Chapter Text
Raiden Ei loved her job more than anything else in the world, even more than a cold glass of dango milk on a hot summer’s day. When she wasn’t busy saving people, or bickering with her co-workers, the young firefighter could be found on the third floor of her apartment building, carefully tending to her large collection of indoor plants and tiny vegetable garden, reading a book or enjoying a delicious cup of coffee in her favorite mug — a little souvenir she bought for herself years ago, from Disneyland, with her very first paycheck — outside on her balcony overlooking the local park, with the soft breeze gently brushing through her skin and making a mess out of her long purple hair, going for a stroll around her neighborhood or simply watching trashy television while eagerly digging into a cup of spicy noodles. But, whenever duty did call for her? She was always one of the first firefighters to arrive at the scene, and everyone, including her own captain, respected her for that. The people Ei worked with were her found family, giving her a sense of belonging and a reason to keep moving forward even when she didn’t feel like it. Ei wore the black, yellow and red colors of the Station 69 uniform with pride, there was no doubt about it. Everybody knew that, and loved her even more for it.
Growing up, Ei didn’t have many friends, and her own parents didn’t care much for her either. She was abandoned, left to fend for herself, in the middle of the night, and during a thunderstorm no less, at the tender age of six years old. Too young to understand the reasons behind her parents’ actions and way too young to even realize that none of this was because of something she did, or did not do. Ei was the victim, and it took her a long time to realize and, more importantly, come to terms with it. She was born into a family that was, clearly, not ready to take on the great responsibility of raising a child. Oddly enough, though, Ei never stopped finding comfort in the sound of roaring thunder. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that such a blaring sound would often help shroud the cries coming from her childhood bedroom, or maybe it was because of a reason that had yet to be discovered.
Ei had spent the majority of her life, especially her teenage years, trying to break free from the shackles of abuse and lifelong trauma that were constantly suffocating her and holding her back, preventing her bright mind and wondrous soul from achieving her goals and reaching her maximum potential as a firefighter, and a valuable member of society. Although Ei has never been ashamed of her past, and always wore her scars with pride, sometimes all it took for her to shut down and start questioning her own self-worth was nothing more than one misanthropic glare or one pointy finger from a stranger walking down the streets.
At the end of the day, as strong and brave as the young woman was, she was also only human. But, despite her very rough start to life, and all the hardships she has ever had to face, Ei had the biggest and kindest heart a person could possibly have. She used to think of herself as a burden, and of her past as this great obstacle that she would never be able to overcome. She had convinced herself and was so confident that, no matter how hard she tried, the weight of her trauma would one day start wearing her down, little by little, until her will to life had completely sucked out of her. It took Ei a long time, and a great many of sessions with a licensed therapist, to realize that there was a way for her to take all that pain, and all that suffering, and actually use it to her advantage, turning herself into the fearless warrior that she was always meant to be.
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Her daily routine wasn’t anything to brag too much about, really. Long hours at work, below average microwaved meals in front of her wide screen tv, with her entire body draped in her favorite blanket, almost every night, and the occasional drink or two with her co-workers.
Although not particularly exciting, Ei’s life was seemingly perfect now. On the surface, at least, because of some kind of emptiness lingering deep inside her still. A void that she didn’t know what to make of, or how to even fill. But, all that aside, she was just another ordinary city girl. For the most part, anyway.
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It was the hottest morning of the summer season. The wind was silent, motionless, the trees and leaves unmoving, stationary. The birds and other beasts were gasping for air, and the blistering heat had become rather intolerable. Even the walls and floors seemed to be struggling somehow, burning and feeling extremely hot to the touch.
Ei’s eyes were still fighting to adjust to the sunlight peeking soulfully through the cream white curtains of her bedroom window, when her phone started ringing at precisely 8:05.
“Miss. Raiden. I’m really sorry to wake you, but there’s been an emergency and we need all available firefighters in the area now. How fast can you get here?”
“I will be there in less than five minutes”
“Excellent. Please, hurry”
Ei sighed heavily, feeling the disappointment as it coursed through her body. Today was supposed to be the first day of her three week long summer vacation but, clearly, nature had other plans. She dragged her sleepy form out of bed as swiftly as she could, got herself all dressed up and, before she even knew it, she was out of her apartment and on her way to the station.
When she finally arrived, no more than five minutes later, just like she said she would, she was greeted by her boss and the rest of the team already waiting for her inside the fire engines.
At the scene, Ei was instructed to stand guard right outside the burning building. So, while her co-workers were busy dealing with the flames, she was doing her absolute best trying to make sure that anyone who wasn’t a trained professional stayed safely behind the red barricade tape that had the word danger written all over it.
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The smoke had, for the most part, completely subsided and the flames seemed to be well under control thanks to everyone’s efforts. As far as the captain and the rest of the team were concerned, everyone had made it out in one piece. However, the structure itself was on the verge of collapse, and no one was allowed in or out anymore.
The captain pulled Ei aside for a quick little chat. He was still feeling guilty for putting such a sudden pause on her vacation before it even began, but Ei reassured him that there was nothing to feel guilty, or sorry, about. After all, unpredictability was part of the job description. In the end, she was given the all clear to go home, pack her bags, or whatever, and finally start enjoying her time off.
Just as Ei was about to start heading home, she hears a high pitched whimper coming from somewhere in the distance, and it wasn’t anything like she’s ever heard before. “What the sweet hell was that?”, she calls out, alarmed. She stops dead in her tracks, knowing full well that she could easily get in trouble for this, but the strange sound had greatly piqued her interest. Maybe it was nothing more than a simple figment of her own imagination, her mind playing its usual nasty little tricks on her. Or maybe, just maybe, it was exactly what she thought it was.
“Fuck, there it is again, and it’s even louder this time, too”
Ei wasn’t too sure about that strange sound only she could hear, but she really didn’t want to take any chances either. She follows the sound of the whimpers, and her heart just aches at the thought of someone, a little creature perhaps, still being in distress after everything that went down earlier. How could they, how could she, have possibly missed this?
She keeps going, until she eventually finds herself standing right outside of the same building she had just walked away from. The sound was, undoubtedly, coming from somewhere inside it.
Ei really shouldn’t be doing this, and she absolutely knew that, but she went ahead and did it anyway. Before anyone had the chance to even try and stop her, the young firefighter was already running towards the front door of the building, carving her path through the flames and all the thin layers of smoke that were still lingering all around the ground floor. The strange sound from earlier was now even louder than before, so Ei knew she was getting close. She starts looking around, frantically searching behind every nook and cranny, as the source of the whimpers keeps drawing nearer and nearer. She kneels down in front of a fallen wardrobe and, very carefully, pushes it out of the way. There, she discovers a small kitsune curled up in a ball and panting heavily. Ei gasps at the sight — that was the very last thing she was expecting to find. What was a wild animal doing inside a building, in the middle of a bustling city, anyway? As Ei observes the animal, she notices a small amount of dried up blood all over its rich pink fur, and around its nose and mouth.
“My goodness, you are so tiny. And you’re all alone, you poor thing”. Ei mutters to herself as she picks up the frightened little kitsune, pulling it straight into the safety of her embrace. With complete lack of regard for the repercussions, she unzips the top part of her uniform and carefully tucks the animal into the space between her stomach and the turnout coat, slowly securing the opening and holding the little one in place with both arms, before rising back to her feet and making a run for the exit.
Ei and the young pup made it out just in time to see the entire building collapse right before their very eyes. That’s when Ei truly realized, for the first time, exactly how reckless her little solo rescue mission actually was. But she would do it all over again, in a heartbeat, if she had to.
“You’re such an adorable little creature, aren’t you?”
Ei was completely smitten. It’s only been a few minutes, but she had already fallen in love with that cute little pink ball of fluff. “I know I shouldn’t even be thinking about taking you home with me, but.. What if..”, she pondered for a while. Aside from being a firefighter, Ei was also a registered wildlife carer and volunteer at the local animal hospital, and has been ever since she was old enough to rent her own apartment. In the end, she decided to just listen to her heart, rather than her own head, and take the young orphan back to her place.
How bad could it be, really?
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A whole week goes by, and the pint sized kitsune was lucky to be alive. Still nowhere near the end of its — or.. her? — recovery, but at least now the little creature was eating and drinking well, and was even able to stand up on her own for a few seconds at a time. Ei called that a massive win, because that’s exactly what it was.
“Wait, hold on a moment”, she uttered. “I can’t just keep referring to you as an it for the rest of your life, can I?”
For some reason, Ei had this feeling that the little creature was, in fact, a girl. But, of course, she couldn’t be sure unless she checked first. She picks up the animal in her hands and carefully pushes its tail out of the way. Yes, definitely a girl. Either way, Ei still hadn’t come to terms with the fact that she was now sharing her space with another living breathing thing. Sure, she’s taken care of animals just like her in the past, but there was clearly something different this time. She just couldn’t put her finger on it. All she knew was that she now had another reason to wake up in the morning, something to care for and look after besides herself.
Another week passes, and Ei’s eyes well up the moment she sees the animal walking for the first time. It wasn’t a pretty walk, nor a graceful one, but it was at least something. A sign that the kitsune’s health was on the right track.
With a little encouragement from Ei, the young pup slowly begins exploring her surroundings. Her mind was full of curiosity, sniffing every corner of Ei’s apartment, with those fluffy ears of hers raising and falling constantly. Ei was always there, watching over her like a hawk, with a smile on her face.
“I still have no idea what to call you, though”
The little creature immediately turns to Ei, as if she was desperately trying to tell her something. She wobbles closer to her, and looks up at her with those big purple eyes of hers that were almost the same color as the ones of her rescuer.
“Oh! I got it!”. Ei squeaked in excitement. “What about.. Sakura? You know, after that fun-sized mark on your little forehead?”, she smiled softly, purple eyes focused entirely on the tiny cherry blossom. “What do you think?”
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It has been almost three weeks now, and Ei was nearing the end of her summer vacation. With only two days left to spare, she decides to make the most of them.
“Alright, little one”, she begins. “First, I’m going to take you to the vet for a quick checkup to make sure you’re alright, and after that we’re-”. Ei hadn't even finished her sentence, when Sakura jumps straight onto Ei’s lap, with both of her front paws on her chest, and bites playfully on her nose. Yet, the small pup looked quite displeased for some reason.
“H-Hey, what was that for?!”. Ei asked in a bit of a haze. “Anyway, as I was saying.. I’m going to take you to the vet — no, don’t you dare bite me again — and then we’re going to stop by the local pet store to pick up a few more toys for you to play with, since you’ve pretty much destroyed all the ones I got you last time”
Ei drags herself back into her room and reaches right underneath her bed, looking for the pet carrier. She opens the metal door on the front, doing her best to guide Sakura inside, but the animal simply refuses to cooperate. Instead, she starts running in circles, hiding behind the furniture and forcing Ei to chase her around the apartment for a good couple of minutes, before finally giving in to her owner’s demands.
“Good girl. Now, let’s go”
The two of them arrive at the vet’s office right on time, despite little Sakura’s antics from earlier. It’s an anxious time for Ei, as she sits in the waiting room, but when she hears that the animal she had spent the last three weeks of her life caring for is doing alright, she lets out a big sigh of relief, and a tear or two to match.
Sakura sure as hell knew that she had Ei wrapped around all four of her paws, and could get her to do anything she wanted. Ei knew that, too, and, quite frankly, she didn’t mind it. She was head over heels for that thing, and she wasn’t ashamed to admit, or to let Sakura use her like that. Anything the little animal’s nose touched, Ei got for her. How was she supposed to carry all those toys, and treats, home she had absolutely no idea. Unless.. “Do you guys deliver?”
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The next day, Ei wakes up bright and early. Sakura was still slumbering peacefully right next to her on the bed — of course, where else would the little one be? She was so cute like that, Ei didn’t have the heart to wake her. Instead, she gives her a gentle kiss on the forehead, before making her way to the kitchen to start preparing her and Sakura’s breakfast.
But, when she opened the fridge, there was barely anything in it.
“Well.. That’s unfortunate”, she breathes out.
After thinking about it for a while, Ei decides to make a quick trip to the corner store down the street. No reason to tell Sakura she was leaving, since she wasn’t planning on staying out for too long, anyway. Plus, could Sakura really understand her? Surely not.. right..?
At the store, she purchases her usual mixture of things. A carton of milk, a few boxes of pasta, her favorite sweets, some junk food, and whatnot. She also thought of picking up some biscuits and a few other treats for little Sakura. She wasn’t even sure if the young animal would like them, but she was really in the mood to spoil her that morning. While waiting in line to pay for the goods, Ei feels the corners of her eyes wrinkling, beaming with joy, and her lips curving slightly upwards.
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Ei was gone for about thirty minutes, or maybe even less than that.
She holds the bags of things with one hand, while the other is busy rummaging through her purse looking for her keys. When the door to her apartment finally cracks open, Ei is immediately astounded by the sight of a half naked woman lying on her couch, wearing nothing more than one of Ei’s old shirts. Somehow, the pink haired stranger looked oddly familiar to the firefighter, but.. No, it really couldn’t be. Could it?
The sound of grocery bags hitting the hardwood floor at high speed almost startles the other woman. She turns around, but doesn’t say a word. She just smiles softly, instead.
“Uh, h-hello?”. Ei stuttered, shaking her head in complete and utter disbelief. “Who the hell are you? How did you get into my apartment, and.. Wait! Is th-that my shirt?”
The mysterious woman finally stands up, and— Oh my.. No clothes or anything from the waist down. Ei was most definitely in awe, wholly mesmerized, just by looking at her, but she could also feel her mind spiraling slightly, and her heart running a million miles an hour. She would have lost the ground from underneath her feet, too, if the other woman hadn’t offered to help guide her to the couch.
The stranger smiles again. Both her and Ei are now sitting only a couple of inches away from each other.
“Feeling any better?”, she asks. Her smile was warm and comforting, but Ei could only nod her head in response. “Good, I’m very glad”
“You must have questions”, the woman continued.
“Oh, I have plenty of questions”. Ei countered. She wasn’t sure if she was feeling confused, shocked, angry, happy, or.. in love. Maybe she was feeling every single one of those things at once, and also none of them at the same time. She really couldn’t tell the difference anymore. “First of all, what should I even call you? Do you happen to have a name?”
“Of course I do, silly. It’s Yae Miko”
“Why do I feel like I’ve been here before..”, she wondered, taking a quick moment to at least try and wrap her head around the fact that there was a living, breathing half naked woman sitting right in front of her, on her couch. “No, it can’t be.. Not her.. She’s.. No. Just get it together, Ei. You’re not making any sense”
“Hello, Yae Miko. I’m-”
“I know who you are, Ei”. Yae Miko winked, ears twitching in anticipation, eagerly awaiting for Ei’s next move. “Oh, seriously.. Have you forgotten all about me already?”
“S-Sakura?!”. Ei gasped, nearly choking on her own saliva as she swallowed. “Β-But how? When I left you here earlier, you were still- you were-”
Yae Miko lifts up her hand and gently presses her thumb on Ei’s trembling lips, silencing her outburst. Her free hand rubbing circles on the other woman’s back, doing her best to try and comfort her.
“In my kitsune form. Yes, I was”
Silence falls between them as soon as Yae Miko finishes uttering those words. Ei smiles nervously at the kitsune in front of her, and the two of them spend the next few minutes just gazing deep into each other’s eyes.
Moments later, Yae Miko couldn’t help but notice Ei wistfully wiping her eyes and cheeks with the back of her thumbs, as tiny droplets of water continued to fall and soak the light colored fabric of her clothes. She was actually crying, and in front of someone else, too. But.. why?
“Ei?”
“I’m fine, Sak- I mean..”. Ei barely responds, her words coming out in clumps. “I’m sorry. I just.. I just really need a moment, th-that’s all”
Yae Miko does exactly that. She doesn’t move, and she doesn’t say a word either. She just sits there and waits, patiently. She had a feeling Ei would call for her soon, anyway. After all, who wouldn’t? Unless Ei has been through something like this before, but the kitsune was willing to bet all four of her paws that she hasn’t.