Fate of the Moon

It's almost as if the universe had decided to sympathize; like it was letting itself grow empathetic for this dreadful day. 

Heavy clouds slept in the skies, covering the sun and there was not a single spot on the street that shone with golden rays. Every corner, every street and every building had shadows casted upon it. The grey skies hovered over cities, coating it with it's overbearing darkness, making itself known that this was the day of sorrow - the day where people were left to grieve for the lives that were lost on this day, two years ago. 

People in stores, drinking their coffee, had solemn looks on their faces. Their eyes were soft and defeated, their shoulders were sinking further down as they felt their hearts deflate at the sight of the pouring snow. It was too isolating, too cold and too ironically perfect for the occasion. 

The world never seems to stop for you. It pours it's deafening thunder when your smile reaches your ears, rains dangerous hail when you seem to meet your happiness but it seems that's not the case today. It was strange seeing the weather gives its sympathy - or perhaps, it was just some kind of sick mockery. 

"Yerim?" Jungeun calls out and for a second, Yerim feels like she didn't hear it. She turns to the older girl, though her own eyes seem slightly distant. "Are you sure you wanna go today? We can go tomorrow so you can rest. Besides it'll get dark earlier so we can just go home now - Haseul will understand." Jungeun says.

Jungeun was always so considerate of her. Yerim, partially, understood why but another part of her always wondered why Jungeun stood committed. Nevertheless, Yerim doesn't deny it knowing that Jungeun would only shake it off and continue treating her like so. 

"I'd rather just focus on something else." Yerim says, paying no attention to the light padding of the hail.

Jungeun grabs a hold of her hand, curling her fingers around her palm, "Yerim, it's ok to wait. It's ok to rest and to feel it. We aren't in a rush, so don't force yourself." She doesn't smile but the warmth in her words was enough to convey her concern.

Yerim nods but she doesn't say anything after. She only stirs her drink, casting her eyes down as she avoids the way Jungeun looks at her. 

All of this seems so convenient - Yerim thinks. She almost chuckles at the bittersweet greeting that the day had given her so far. Clouded skies, overshadowed streets, dejected expressions and the melancholic wind that breezed on by was arranged so well. 

"One of my friends own this cafe." Jungeun says. She's looking out the window, though it's obvious she isn't quite paying attention to the gloomy weather.

Yerim looks up from her drink, raising an eyebrow, "Who?"

"Hyunjin. She's a friend of mine and Haseul's." Jungeun doesn't mention about Hyunjin being a former LOONA member considering the said owner might over hear her. "She's always been so interested in pastries - mostly bread - and stuff like that, that she set up shop with the help of her family."

Yerim hums, nodding as she looked around the cafe. Considering the dire weather outside, the atmosphere of the cafe was the perfect contrast to it. It was feather light; it wasn't suffocating or heavy on the shoulders, instead the cafe was sweet and generous. The smell of freshly baked pastries circled the interior; if anything, it added to the homely decor that laid across the cafe itself.

Accompanying the homely aroma, there was a soft melody playing in the cafe. It matched the atmosphere; soft and sweet. The piano keys, accompanied by the lightest hint of a wind instrument echoed inside the building, singing it's melody while being hushed by the conversations that were held by the people within. It never stopped, the piano continued on, paying no attention to the people that didn't bother to listen. 

The piano was soothing. Quite ironic, really.

"I hope you aren't talking shit about me in front of your friend, Jungie." An unfamiliar voice cut the two girls off of their unspoken trance. They must've drifted away from their conversation so subtly to not notice the light footsteps of the said owner approaching them.

Jungeun chuckled, " Why would I do that? The owner can be a bit sour sometimes, but the pastries are amazing here. Of course I'd give this place a good word." Jungeun smiled, crossing her arms as she offered the said woman a rather back handed compliment. Noticing Yerim's confusion, Jungeun brightens up, "Oh, right this is the owner, Hyunjin! Hyunjin meet Yerim, a friend of mine."

Hyunjin smiles though Yerim feels as if it seemed rather tired. "Nice to meet you, I'm Hyunjin. I own this amazing cafe and I have a sister who helps me with it, but she kinda gets on my nerves sometimes." She says but there was no malice in her tone. 

"Your cafe is so pretty!" Yerim gawks, gushing about the cute decorations that laid on some counters. 

Hyunjin whipped her hair back - much to Jungeun's surprise - and gave Yerim a smug smile, "Of course it is. I decorated it! My sister kind of helped out but she's irrelevant right now." She snickered at the last part, along with Jungeun.

"Haseul and I usually go here when we have the time." Jungeun explained, "You should come here every once and a while Yerim. It's kinda close to your university too so it's convenient." 

Hyunjin feigns a gag reflex, rolling her eyes in disgust as she makes a sour face, "Yeah and I have to suffer the consequences of seeing them all mushy towards each other. It's honestly irritating to see Jungeun get all soft whenever Haseul's around." She shudders at the thought though chuckles when Jungeun glares at her.

Snickering, Yerim nods, "Right? I never knew Jungeun is such a softie. It's cute for Haseul but it scares me sometimes."

"Sometimes? It scares me all the time." Hyunjin offers Yerim a soft smile but Yerim can tell there was mischief hidden beneath it. Sighing, Hyunjin nods knowingly at her, "I'm so proud of you, Yerim. I mean, to be able to deal with Jungeun for this long? I'm amazed, seriously."

Jungeun twitched in frustration, playfully poking at Hyunjin's side to which the latter flinched at, "Hey! You've got some nerve saying that. For your information, Yerim very much appreciates my company, right Yerim?" She meets Yerim's eyes; the amount of certainty in Jungeun's face was unfathomable and it was all the more motivating for Yerim to tease her.

Yerim blinked at her, humming, "Not really."

Hyunjin snickers in victory as soon as Jungeun looks at her with pure shock, her jaw hanging as she blinks at Yerim confused. Hyunjin, as if wanting to add fuel to the fire, "Jungeun, it's ok I'm sure you're somewhat fun- hey! Stop poking me-" 

Yerim watched in amusement as Jungeun continued to defend herself though her red faced expression seems to do her no justice. Hyunjin doesn't really acknowledge any of her efforts considering she keeps dismissing any of Jungeun's points with a shrug and a smug smile. Hyunjin seemed rather mischievous and seeing her act makes Yerim wonder if Hyunjin's sister was just as playful and impish as she was. 

Trailing her eyes across the cafe for a brief second, Yerim catches sight of a corner that seemed a little rather out of place. There was a white plush of a bunny sitting on the counter, leaning against the wall and on it had the cutest button eyes accompanied with a headband that seemed rather out of place for the stuffed toy. "Hyunjin?" Yerim mumbles. "Is that your plushie?"

Hyunjin, laughing as she turns away from Jungeun, hummed as she notices Yerim talking again. She followed Yerim's gaze and her eyes widened as she saw the same bunny laying on the counter - her laughter fades. "Oh, uh, yeah. It was given to me."

Yerim turned to Hyunjin, "Really? It's so cute! I thought it was a kid's toy and wondered if someone left it there. I didn't know you liked bunnies, you didn't strike me to be a bunny person."

Hyunjin chuckled softly, rubbing her nape, "Oh I- um, I'm not. I prefer cats over bunnies if anything." She looks down, her eyes softening. "The person who gave it to me liked bunnies though. So, I just keep it close."

"They must mean a lot to you then!" Yerim beamed. "I really like bats but Jungeun says they're kinda weird - which they aren't - so she never buys me a plushie." She growled, shooting a glare towards the said girl's direction. Jungeun only rolled her eyes though she quickly averted them back to Hyunjin.

Hyunjin has a soft smile on her face as she nods, "Yeah, they're really special to me." 

Yerim smiled, she opened her mouth, a look of curiosity on her face, "What's their na-"

"Yerim, we're gonna be late. C'mon." Jungeun pats her head as she stands up, placing her cash on the table. "Haseul's going to get mad if we're late, you know her. Thanks for the amazing food Hyunjin." Jungeun smiles, taking note of how Yerim shudders subtly at the thought of angry Haseul.

The younger girl is first to approach the door, bidding a beaming farewell at Hyunjin alongside Jungeun who only shoots her a soft smile. Jungeun steps out first, muttering how she doesn't want to worry Haseul for being late. As Yerim stepped out, Hyunjin called out to her.

"Ah, what was that?" Yerim raised an eyebrow.

"Heejin. The name of the girl who gave me the bunny. Her name was Heejin." Hyunjin's lips twitched into a solemn smile.

Yerim recognizes the choice of words but doesn't question it. Returning the warm smile, she says, "That's a pretty name."

Hyunjin sighs, nodding, "It really is." 

****

"Ok, breathe in. We're only like - what - 25 minutes late?" Jungeun hopped in her spot, shaking her hands and taking deep breaths in. "Wait - Yerim you stand here and greet her."

"What? Why me?" Yerim turned to her, "Shouldn't you, since you've been here more than me?" 

Jungeun whined and Yerim could only cringe at the sight of the older girl pouting at her, "Yes, but Haseul is soft when it comes to you so please answer the door first just in case she's the one to open it?" Jungeun's tone rose a few octaves as she ended her sentence, her hands clasped together in an attempt to plead. 

Jungeun landed two knocks on the door before rushing behind Yerim, peaking over her shoulder as the door slowly opened. She pushed Yerim closer, to which the latter whined lightly at, complaining how Jungeun was moving too much for her liking. Yerim groaned, trying to brush off Jungeun's calloused hands.

Their not-so-quiet bickering went to a stop once they heard the click of the door echo in their ears, causing them to snap their up front.

Yerim was about to greet Haseul with the most giddy smile she can possibly muster up only for it to drop when she saw a raven haired figure stand in front of them - the most confused face on her face as she stood still. Said figure looked over Yerim's shoulder and sighed as soon as she saw Jungeun smiling at her, relieved. 

"You're late." The stranger said, her arms crossed. Yerim studied her face, taking note that she looks a little similar to Hyunjin's.

Jungeun let out a strained breath, patting her chest, "Thank god you showed up Hyejoo. Is Haseul mad?"

"No but she looks pretty worried so you should hurry up." Hyejoo sighed as she opened the door wider, letting the two girls walk in.

Yerim bowed slightly to her though Hyejoo only nodded, her stare looked rather pensive - almost as if she was trying to run a scan on Yerim's face. The latter, feeling a little awkward, looked away and followed Jungeun as quick as she could.

"Haseul told you we're starting night patrols today, right?" Hyejoo hummed, leaning against the nearest wall. "Former groups apparently." The tone in her voice gave off her underlying disapproval but Yerim decided to keep away from their conversation considering she's barely a member.

Jungeun nodded, "So I've heard. It's not a bad idea since Jiwoo was right about researching now. Besides, night outs are fun, right?" She chuckled, gesturing Yerim to follow her towards the kitchen, to which Yerim followed behind quietly. Hyejoo walked alongside them, her eyes seemingly still filled with frustration.

"Why don't we switch up the groups?" Hyejoo said, looking directly into Jungeun's eyes. She stood a little taller than Yerim but even then just by the way her expression hardened, Yerim felt a little intimidated for Jungeun. 

Jungeun poured herself two cups of water, handing the other to Yerim in a swift manner, "Because it's easier that way. It's only for a few hours, you can handle it, can't you?"

Hyejoo raised an eyebrow in disbelief, "Are you kidding me-?"

"Yerim! My baby!" A screech echoed in the small living room and before Yerim could even react, she felt a body crash into her, nearly knocking the air out of her lungs - actually, it probably did. 

Yerim blinked as she saw the familiar white feathers wrap around her figure, coating her in this comforting embrace that was filled with warmth from both the culprit and the large wings that engulfed her. Yerim giggled as she returned the equally bone crushing hug, melting in the way that she missed this familiar warmth. 

"Haseul! Wow, your wings are as pretty as ever." Yerim brushed her fingers across the light weight feathers, her palm tingling at the feeling of the light yet somewhat furry sensation breeze against her skin. She dug her fingers lightly into one area, smoothing out the stray feathers into order. "You really do take wing care seriously." Yerim giggled.

Haseul chuckled, nudging her own shoulders to let her wings slightly spread out, "Of course I do! I'm basically stuck with these for the rest of my life."

"True, but you have a lot of patience. I wouldn't be able to do it like you if I had your quirk." Yerim smiled. She ran her thumb against one of the feathers one last time before pulling away, letting Haseul envelope in yet another hug - to which she was now prepared for. Their short reunion was cut short when a voice interrupted them.

"Haseul you know her?" Hyejoo raised an eyebrow, looking away from an exhausted Jungeun.

Haseul nodded, patting Yerim's head affectionately to which the latter only smiled brightly at. Hyejoo almost had to squint her eyes for the sudden rush of energy that radiated off of Yerim. "Hyejoo, meet Yerim. Yerim meet Hyejoo. Hyejoo's a member of LOONA and Yerim is the new member! She's also a really precious friend of mine."

Hyejoo hummed, her eyes averting from the leader and settling on Yerim. The latter cleared her throat, slightly shivering at the way Hyejoo stared at her with such analyzing eyes. Yerim couldn't blame her since trust is hard to gain these days; however, she wished that Hyejoo could at least be subtle about it. It was obvious Hyejoo was cynical of her and Yerim felt small under her narrow gaze.

"Nice to meet you Hyejoo." Yerim chuckled, though nervously, "Can't wait to be um- a hero alongside you!" She tried to be as enthusiastic as possible but all she earned was a grunt.

Jungeun elbowed her - Yerim, albeit feeling bad for Hyejoo, was thankful for Jungeun nudging Hyejoo out of her trance which was probably filled with trying to kick the secrets out of Yerim - to which made Hyejoo flinch. Sighing, Hyejoo nodded at her with indifference, "Likewise." She says.

Expressive. Yerim sighs.

"Yerim and I will talk in the basement, you two stay here!" Haseul was quick to push Yerim away but she didn't miss the way Jungeun's expression conveyed uncertainty and hesitation. Haseul tried her best to reassure her but with Hyejoo around and Yerim just a few feet away, she couldn't do much but smile.

Jungeun sighed, putting her glass down. "We aren't changing the groups, Hyejoo. Besides Chaewon will be with you." She waited for the other two to leave their ear shot before proceeding their former conversation.

"She can go with you. Chaewon and I are fine alone." Hyejoo snarled. 

"Stop being stubborn, Hyejoo."

"Being stubborn? I don't want to be around her-"

****

"Yerim."

Yerim shivered at the tone, shaken by the way it was stern and nowhere near familiarity. She turned to Haseul, tilting her head in confusion as she put on the most innocent face she can muster up in hopes that Haseul won't berate her. "Hm?"

"You're joining because of Jinsoul and MOON right?" Haseul's eyes weren't on her, instead they laid rather stagnant on the piles of files laying idle on the table. "Tell me the truth. I won't get mad."

Yerim almost rushed with a lie when her lips parted but instead she shut them tight, knowing Haseul would see through her either way. Albeit not having such a quirk, Haseul seemed to always have good intuition - maybe it just comes with being a leader. "If I do, will you stop me from joining?"

Haseul sighed at the question. Just by that the answer was obvious but she understood why Yerim avoided it. "I don't want you getting hurt, Yerim." She ran her fingers through the paperwork, her skin brushing against the smooth material, "We all want the same thing. We all want to take back what we lost, redeem ourselves for something that was out of our control and even save the last bit of energy we have to at least feel satisfied." 

Yerim listened intently. She watched as Haseul picked up a photo but Yerim couldn't see who it was she was smiling at. It didn't seem joyful; more so, sorrowful and guilty. 

"All of us lost something that day - well today - and I understand the absolute hunger to make those same people pay for destroying lives but-" Haseul put the photo down and she leaned against the table, meeting Yerim's eyes, "-letting ourselves get eaten up by that isn't the way to be a hero." Haseul frowned as she saw the brunette hang her head low, her eyebrows furrowing in disappointment.

"I know." Yerim mutters but Haseul knew better than to trust that. Deep inside, Haseul assumes Yerim is trying her best to convey as little of her emotions as possible. "But I won't let tha-"

Haseul sighs, "However, I'm not stopping you." She smiles softly as soon as Yerim snaps her head up, eyes full of surprise as she wasn't expecting such a giving response from the leader so quickly. "As long as you stay by our side. As long as you let us help you when you need it and let us be by your side, then I'll always welcome you with open arms, Yerim."

Yerim brightens up, "Wait so am I-?"

Haseul nods defeatedly, though with a pleased grin on her face, "Welcome to LOONA, Choi Yerim." She stops Yerim from almost squealing with a hand raised up, "You can tell me what Hero name you want and I can start working through some papers to make you an official hero of LOONA. Since you're of age, that makes things easier for me."

Yerim nods running to Haseul's side as she starts to rummage through several forms and files. She doesn't understand a thing but supports the leader all the way through. "Hero name.." Yerim thinks for a bit, but nothing seems to come to mind.

She's never wanted to be a hero before and the thought never really crossed her mind - believe it or not. Yerim knows a hero name should be memorable. It should be something that was easily etched into people's minds; Yerim even acknowledged the idea that it should be the name that citizens should think of once they're in any kind of danger but she only giggles at the thought.

"You can think of it next time." Haseul chuckles, "Oh right. Since you're new, You can go with Jungeun on night patrol, starting today. That's every night by the way so prepare yourself." She sighs, already groaning at the thought of staying up late.

"Do we just run around the city?"

Haseul smiles at the rather odd observation but it's pretty much what patrols are. "Basically. Also use the time to see anything out of the ordinary and stuff like that. Jungeun will run it through with you so don't worry-"

A crash echoed through the household, making Yerim and Haseul flinch. The latter tilted her head up, pausing to hear anything that could have signified a possible intruder of some sort but nothing came. Haseul reluctantly paid it no attention since it was a quick thud and figured it was just one of the other girls playing a game so she turned back to Yerim. "As for your quirk, we have a place we can test it out and train you. Jiwoo, who you should meet soon, and I can train you if you wan-"

Another crash intervened their conversation and this time it was louder and alarmingly violent. Yerim sent her a look of concern and for a second Haseul thought of acting with caution, in hopes of being discreet, but that was thrown out of the window when she heard familiar voices ringing up the living room. Knowing who it was, she didn't bother thinking about the weight of her steps and instead she ran up the stairs, Yerim following behind her. 

"Just please listen to me, Hyejoo!" Jiwoo's voice rang painfully loud in the living room, shocking almost everyone to hear her scream at the younger girl. "I want to talk to you, I want to fix things so for once just please give me the chance to do something."

Yerim catches Jungeun standing behind Jiwoo, and it seemed as though she was the former receiver of what seemed like Hyejoo's blooming anger. 

"Fix things?" Hyejoo scoffed, "You're a little too late, don't you think so?"

Jiwoo raked her fingers through her hair, "You-" She grunted, throwing her arms as her face flushed with hot red, "Do you think I'm ok with what happened? Do you think that I don't hate myself for what happened because I do! Every day I blame myself, is that what you want to hear Hyejoo?!" Tears streamed down her face but her gaze didn't falter away from Hyejoo.

"Give me a break, you didn't care - you never fucking cared about Sooyoung, and I bet you could care less about what happened to everyone else! " Hyejoo screamed, her jaw tightening as she matched Jiwoo's glare.

Jungeun was the first to step up, her eyebrows furrowing as she could barely register what Hyejoo said and if she meant what she meant, "Hyejoo-"

"You-" Jiwoo pushed Jungeun aside. Frustrated streams of tears ran down her cheeks continuously, her eyes stung red and her shoulders sunk as she ran a palm over her face. Jiwoo let out a trembling sigh, "You know nothing, Hyejoo. You don't know anything and you-" Jiwoo's fist formed into one of hard steel and she sent a piercing yet disappointed glare towards the younger girl.

Hyejoo stepped forward, challenging her, "I think I know enough to understand that you didn't deserve Sooyoung from the very beginning."

Jiwoo looked as if she was about pounce on the younger girl, her eyes glaringly frustrated, whereas Hyejoo seemed ready to grab to Jiwoo by the collar and send in an attack but even before they could begin to let their bodies move on their own, a familiar tone cut through their tunnel atmosphere.

"That's enough, the both of you!"

Jungeun snapped her head up to meet Haseul's eyes, ones that seemed exhausted and rather disappointed. Yerim was standing beside her, expression full of alarm and concern.

Haseul narrowed her eyes at the two girls, "I understand today is difficult. It is for the all of us but if we're all going to stand here, arguing with one another, then we're not going to get anything done. The both of you should know that what we're doing now is critical, so please, just think of that for the time being." Silence enveloped all the girls, leaving them speechless either from shame or perhaps biting their tongue back.

Hyejoo was the first to speak up, "I'll go on my own." Her voice was low and it was barely audible at first.

Jiwoo, for the first time, didn't disagree and stayed quiet. She had her head down, face in her palms as she let out soft sobs of her own. Jungeun rubbed her back lightly and she was holding in every temptation to berate Hyejoo, to scold her, but she knew that would only be adding fuel to the fire and right now, none of them needed that.

Haseul shook her head, "No, you're not going."

"I know my way around the city, I'll do the patrol by myself." Hyejoo was already heading towards the door when something white dashed by her and shut the door flat against the hinges. She winced at the thud and stared at the lingering snow white feathers that practically glued itself to the frame. 

Haseul crossed her arms, "Whether you like it or not, I'm not letting you go alone. I don't care if you want to work alone, it's protocol for groups to do these patrols at night." Although Hyejoo wasn't turned towards her, Haseul still trained her eyes on her broad back, "You know better than to disobey me right now, Son Hyejoo." The hard emphasis on her full name had the atmosphere plummeting even quicker than before. 

Hyejoo's hand retracted from the door knob, though her back was still turned to everyone else. Haseul switched glances between Jiwoo and Hyejoo, her head pounding with what to do. "Chaewon will be with Jungeun and Jiwoo will be with me for the next few weeks." Haseul pinches the bridge of her nose, "Right now our main priority is getting information so put aside your differences and investigate."

Jungeun glances at Yerim who seemed more than confused than anyone. Haseul sighs, "Hyejoo you'll be on patrol with Yerim, the new member."

Yerim's eyes widened as she turned her head towards Haseul with the utmost plead in her eyes, as if begging Why me? but Haseul didn't seem to catch it. Either that or she was just ignoring Yerim as of the moment. 

"I trust that you'll work with Yerim, right, Hyejoo. " It didn't seem much of a question, more like a statement clarifying what she had to get done. Yerim shuddered at the way Haseul burned holes into the back of Hyejoo's head.

Hyejoo turns the door knob though she doesn't turn back. Haseul's feathers fall away from the frame, reluctantly, relaying Haseul's hesitance. 

"Just don't get in my way."

And the door shut behind her, the thud echoing in the living room.