Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In one lifetime, fear and guilt would clash with ancient burdens, tearing a solider in two and raising a child to hide all her jagged edges.

In another, love for the mother outweighed hate of the father, and Celine was forced to confront her scars.

Denial and fear turned to a quiet acceptance, and an all consuming need to protect the last she had of her dear, dear deceased friend.

And so, she decided, as she kneeled before one friends grave, the others blood cooling on her knives, she would rather tear the Honmoon to pieces herself than subject Rumi to this life- Rumi would be free to live and laugh through her imperfect, patterned life.

She would find others to take on her mantle.

She would.

And so, she did.

"Mira's my favourite!"

"She's the visual and lead dancer- no one can move like Mira!" 

"Apparently she was the black sheep of her family? I don't know why, because she's amazing." 

"And who else could wear a sleeping bag to the Met Gala?" 

"She's our idol." 

"She's the best. Love her." 

"And Idol!"

"She's like, super unconventional, but in a totally fierce way!"

"And her voice..." 

"I've heard she used to sing in a really strict opera house and that's why she's so... Alt, now! It would totally explain her vocal range, but she's pretty shy on the personal deets...

"Which we're fine with!"

"Totally fine with!"

"We definitely don't have an entire page on the fan wiki speculating about it!"

"Then there's Zoey!" 

"Even though she's their Maknae, she's the usual centre!"

"She's their lyricist and rapper! She grew up in America- some place called 'Burbank USA'..." 

"She's super cute, but when she gets into it, she gets into it into it!" 

"She gets scary, like so scary, like you better watch out scary!"

"Honestly all three are a little scary..."

"Even their manager! She's not much older than them, but she knows the industry like, inside and out."

"Her mom was a Sunlight sister, and Celine raised her, so she's like, basically royalty..." 

Rumi grinned, watching the fans from the rafters. 

Still as dedicated as ever... The girls were doing good work. When they showed up, that was...

"Rumi- can you figure out where they are?" sure enough, her earpiece crackled to life. "They should be here... The plane tracker says they're completely off course!"

Of course it did... 

"Don't worry, I've got it- the girls are just making a special entrance again." Rumi chuckled, pressing her earpiece. "I'll go make sure they're all set." 

"On a plane...?" 

Rumi didn't bother answering. Why they kept bothering to question it she didn't know... 

A quick tug at the patterns, and... 

"I don't get how you get through this without eating a bite!" Mira snickered, face crammed with pre-show carbs.

"I don't get how you two don't hurl on stage every concert!" Idol laughed, perched on the back of the seat. "Seriously- post-show I get, but pre-show...?"

"You don't post-show snack either though!" Zoey pointed out, "Seriously you're gonna pass out someday, and Rumi'll say she told you so..."

"I say that anyway." 

Rumi totally didn't take just a little too much glee in the way the three of them jumped out of their skin.

"Rumi!" Zoey grinned, latching onto her for a hug. "What're you doing up her- wait, did you just portal onto a moving plane...?" 

"...Not if Celine asks you." Rumi muttered sheepishly, "Anyway- you're running late, came to check in."

"Late? But we..." Mira glanced toward the hostess... Pouring coffee into a plant. "Oh. Great. Of course." 

"Sorry Rumi- tell the mic crew we'll be down in five..." Idol sighed, hopping down from her perch and marching up to the 'flight attendant'. "Hey."

"P-please stay in your s-sea-" 

"Save it. You've already made us late... And oh look, Patterns. Now you gotta die."

"...No offense Rumi!" 

"None taken." Rumi sighed- there was only so many ways to insult demons without your half demon friend catching strays after all- Zoey had a whole notebook dedicated to workshopping them- and she could appreciate some good trash talk. "Give 'em hell girls!"

"That's where they're going!" 

The Honmoon flared to life, quietly backing the girls voices as they launched into the first verse of their song. 

...she'd give the audio crew another raise for timing this right on the ground level. 

Even with teleportation up her sleeve it took a lot of running around to stay on top of Huntr/x' double duties- which made it all the more satisfying when her girls descended on the stage like falling stars, styling out the landing and the last of the fight like it was all part of the plan.

The crowd ate it up- they always did. The Honmoon doubtlessly gleamed with the crowd like this.

But...

With the work officially out of her hands, Rumi settled into her usual perch- the highest spot she could clearly see the stage from, well out of the way of the crowds or any sane members of staff.

Her jacket fluttered lightly in the breeze, just barely revealing the edges of her Patterns.

She rested her chin in her hands as Zoey threw herself into a high energy rap. 

...She craved those lights...

She wondered, sometimes, if it was her father's heritage more than her mother's. Some strange holdover of eating souls without the empty void full demons lived only to fill... Or maybe it was her mother. Maybe it was the dusty Sunlight Sisters vinyls Celine tried so hard not to tear up at the sound of.

...Regardless. She was content with the slice of the spotlight she got.

She had to be. 

It was too much of a risk for her to join them.

Even ignoring all the countless strange, unpredictable ways her heritage could interact with the Honmoon, hurting her or it, there were the risks of the Hunters weapons in such close proximity to her, a single clumsy misstep...

And there was Gwi-ma! They had no way of knowing if he could find a way into her head. It seriously wasn't worth the risk of drawing his attention...

"Huntrix don't miss!" 

"How it's done done done!" 

...Rumi forced a smile, and hopped down to wrangle the Snack Bringers for the girls post-show ritual. 

Chapter Text

Idol's hands wouldn't stop shaking. 

It was excitement, she told herself. Excitement and a little shock.

That was definitely what Mira and Zoey had assumed at least- clinging to each other and giggling, Zoey giving her a quick, gentle, shoulder squeeze and knowing smile before giving her space. 

(As much as they could, in the lift, anyway) 

(It was the thought that counted) 

It was excitement. 

It had to be. 

They'd finally glimpsed Gold.

...Because if it wasn't excitement, it was fear. And if it was fear...

The only ones who had anything to fear of the Golden Honmoon were demons. Irredeemable shells of terrible people, who deserved nothing more than an eternity under Gwi-ma's rule.

So. 

It was excitement.

"Great show girls!" Rumi beamed as the elevator doors opened with a ding. "The snack tables ready and stocked!"

"Rumi- Rumi you're not gonna believe it!" Zoey squealed, grabbing their manager by the shoulders and all but dragging her and Mira both into their dressing room- fully stocked with snacks, as promised. "Gold!" 

"Gold...?" Rumi murmered. 

"Gold!" Zoey giggled. 

"...Gold!" Rumi gasped. 

"Gold." Mira confirmed. 

"...One braincell for the three of you, I swear..." Idol sighed.

S̵͔̝̱͕͒̄̎͝H̸̝̝͇͖͒̅͐E̶̙̪͚͐ ̸͓̩͈̓s̶͎̩͗̄͜ḣ̸̙͌̐ö̴͓̥̩̺ū̷̹̹̱̝̑̀͠l̸͇͑̆d̷͇͈͍̒͝ ̷̈́̎͜b̸̧̍̎͌è̷̲̙̹̬̉ ̴͎̻͂̋̓̀t̸̤̪̃̋͌ḧ̵̯̤́̆͌ȩ̸̋̈́̎͐͜ ̶̱̰͆́̚h̴̖̤̜͝ͅu̵̖͙̠̓̀ṅ̵̡̳͜͜t̷͇͓̟͛̅ͅȅ̷̹̭̳̠r̷̲̫̝̈̄̐͘,̶͕̙̆̅̕ ̴̛͕̼͌̑̚n̴̢͈͗͆͋õ̴̥̕t̵͈̪͔̿̔ ̸̤̞̼̓ẙ̵͔͙͆͜o̷͖̭̅̆̑͜û̶̪͌̒.̸̛̦͍͐̔̊.̶̤̈́̕͝͠.̵͓̐̐ ̴͔̯̗̍̑͠

...this shit again.

"Anyway- if you three are gonna keep going in circles, I'm going to go steal the best seat on the couch!" Idol chuckled, bolting for the exit, to her groupmates anguished protests. "Couch, couch, couch, couch..."

Most groups would probably be stuck waiting for their car after a concert. 

Most groups couldn't backflip between buildings, kill demons in their free time or, in Rumi's case, literally teleport.

...Idol could too, but that would raise a lot of uncomfortable questions if the girls caught her.

And besides... 

She came to a stop, on a skyscraper near their own. It was slightly out of the way- not a route Zoey or Mira would take even if they did make good on their threats to race her. 

Idol came to a stop, leaning on the maintenance railing and staring into the endless sky. 

T̶̙̆͂h̴͓̋̔ḯ̴͉͜e̴͓͘̕f̵̖̓̑.̶̥̜̆͝

̶͊ͅL̵̙̆̄i̶͇͑̊͜a̴̢͂ṛ̴̫̏.̸̻̞͗

̵̜͠F̴͌ͅȃ̴͉͈̍ḽ̶̀͝s̵̛̜e̴͓͙̓͊ ̵͓̓̓h̷̝̍̋u̶̧͔͌n̸̤͒̚ṫ̸̟̕͜è̶̥̚r̴̥̣̚͘.̶̡̰̍̕

̷͋M̴u̷͚̠͛́r̶̡̹͌͒d̷̯͒ẹ̷̱͋r̷͍̾ē̸̬̟͛r̵͉̒.̷̣̩̋̏.

...of course it would be acting up.

Of course... She would be acting up.

Golden Honmoon, huh? 

Her Patterns spread across her skin unbidden.

"I didn't kill them." she muttered, clutching at her neck. "You killed them. I was just your- I just wanted... Just wanted..."

The voices stopped. 

...Gwi-ma couldn't influence her. Not since the Honmoon had reluctantly accepted her- a begrudging compromise with its grieving former guardian.

This Shame was entirely her own. There was no point in arguing with it. 

"...I just wanted to be free..." the girl called Idol sobbed, knees tucked to hide her face.

The girl she'd been before had been a fool. No amount of guilt or shame could be worse than not knowing what she'd done. Not when it was something she was so desperate to forget she furthered her debt to Gwi-ma to lose it.

...she'd killed someone he wanted dead. She knew that much. She suspected it had been a Hunter- not a Sunlight Sister, thank god, the timelines didn't align- that would be a crime she couldn't bare to so much as look at Rumi without confessing. But who else would Gwi-ma 'reward' her so richly for slaying?

...She wished she'd been brave enough to deny the role. 

Celine had come to her desperate- the Honmoon chose it's Hunters, and was reluctant to bend to mortal whims. But Celine was as stubborn as the sunrise, and Idol could both sing and see the Honmoon- Celine had no way of knowing it was for all the wrong reasons. 

Idol was probably a punishment. The Honmoon spiting it's former champion with a wor̴t̸h̶l̸e̸̪̞̊͠ŝ̶̡̻̓s̴̰̾, ś̶̞e̵̹͌l̷̪̈́f̸̢͝i̸̡͖͂s̴̳̼̊h̷͖̚, c̶̪̔̀̌̆̈́̕r̵̦̩̳̠̪̒͗̋͛͝͝ư̵̰̳̜͓̩͊̄̋͊̒e̶̲͒̐͗͛̉͋l̸̼̟͆̑͑͗͝ͅ, c̸̥̩̘̝͈̰̺̼͎̯̋̃̊́͊̋̎͊̓͆̄̕o̸̜͖̤̻̫̗̞̞̞̠͐͆͑̍̀͆̇̄͂͛͝w̷͍̙͍̬̜̩̰̪̝̌̇͜͜A̶̧̨̫̲͈̭̟͍͐́̿͋͐̆̌̈́̑͊̈́̄R̸̡͖̖̗͎̪̭̦͛̓D̵̢͕̘̦̗̫͉̰̤̮̠̅̌̈́̀́̀͜͠-!

"Idol?" 

Instantly, the marks receded.

Idol whirled around, instinctively pulling forth her hwando and pointing it at the voice.

"Oh my gosh I'm so sorry-" and just as quickly, dispersed it at the sight of Zoey's slightly startled and sheepish face, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you, silly." Zoey giggled, hopping onto the railing and idly waving her legs in the cool evening breeze. "We got back and you weren't home yet- Mira's busy trying to explain what a break is to Rumi, sooo I figured I'd come find you!"

"...As good an excuse as any to escape that fate, I guess." Idol chuckled, hackles falling at the clear confirmation Zoey saw nothing. "Was she talking about that tech stuff again?" 

"She does run all of our official accounts..." Zoey giggled, "But she seriously needs the break as much as we do!"

"Fence sitting like a professional I see."

"Hey! They both have fair points..." Zoey whined. "...Aaand Rumi gets really pouty and sad when we gang up on her."

"Ahh I see. Truly, a terrible fate."

"Exactly!" Zoey pouted, burying her head in her hands. "You always manage to avoid it somehow- Rumi's puppy dog eyes are lethal! She looks like a sad little kitty!"

"Wait, I'm confused- are they puppy eyes or kitty eyes?"

"Yes."

Idol laughed, finally drifting over to Zoey's side at the railing.

It was a beautiful view...

"...Are you... Okay?" Zoey asked, twining her fingers in her lap and not quite looking Idol's way. "You seemed a little... Out of it earlier. And- uh... Well..."

"I'm fine, really- just-" Idol scrambled for an excuse, forcing a laugh and a light, airy tone. "... Gold huh? Even Celine's gonna run out of excuses to coddle Rumi soon..."

"...I can tell you've been crying Idol."

Idol froze. 

If she'd seen her crying then- 

T̴h̸e̸ ̴p̵a̸t̷t̷e̵r̴n̶s̶.̴.̵.

"Your mascara's smudged. Which- you really should take Mira up on the waterproof stuff, seriously she got me on it and I can't even tell the difference, promise!" Zoey rambled, oblivious to the racing thoughts in Idol's head. Of course-makeup, that was all. "Like- real talk I think our makeup crews gonna start trying to kill you if they keep having to redo your whole look every break..."

"I'm fine- really." Idol lied. "I just... Heh. Once the Honmoon's fully Golden... It's the end of a story, isn't it?"

"...Idol." Zoey gasped, almost falling off the railing as she lunged forwards into a hug. "We're not going anywhere!"

Idol's skin burned. 

"The Golden Honmoon isn't gonna change anything- well, except maybe Rumi getting to finally join us on stage, but..." 

...they couldn't find out. Not this late in the story. 

"Yeah, I know... Just got in my own head, 'kay?" Idol chuckled, her tongue lead in her mouth. "Really I'm fine."

"I mean- you're totally allowed to be scared!" Zoey was quick to assure her, "Even good change is scary..."

The Golden Honmoon wouldn't be a good change. Not for Idol.

"Mind if we take a detour to clean my face up a bit?"

"Yeah, sure- we can grab some snacks for the others too while we go!"

The Golden Honmoon would be the end of all of this. 

How absurd. A hunter trapped in her own net.

But... 

Idol forced a smile at something Zoey had said, the words flowing around her like an ocean. 

That net would seal. 

For Mira. For Rumi. For Zoey.

Idol just needed to keep her secret a few more shows...

...and then, she would figure out how to say goodbye.