Chapter Text
The Startorch Academy dorm was home to a multitude of students. All passing through, living their individual lives as best they can. Some come to relax. Some come to finish their homework. And some simply talk amongst their friends.
While certain others–--speed through at 30 MPH on their skates.
“COMING THROUGH!”
A blonde haired woman with blue eyes and glittery makeup zooms through the halls as if it were a racetrack.
“MISS LYNAE, SKATING IS NOT ALLOWED IN THE DORMITORY. REPEAT, SKATING IS NOT ALLOWED IN THE DORMITORY.
As the dorm’s robot reaches their arms out in order to stop Lynae’s rampage, she flips and lands on its head.
“Sorry buddy, I'm in a–RUSH!”
Only the glowing trails of her skates can be seen as she uses the robot as a jumping pad to get to the second floor of the dorm.
After nonchalantly doing a few flips in the air, rousing applause from the students upon the floor. Lynae quickly bows, and guns it to her room.
Now, certain individuals may ask: “what happened to make Lynae risk her tenure as a student simply to get to her room?”
Although the question is valid. The reason our beautiful ex-mercenary is speeding through the halls like Sonic is not because she's trying to get to her room. She's trying to get to the person inside.
“CHISA!”
Kuchiba Chisa, our resident scissor wielder, is seen sitting in the left side corner of Lynae’s room. Currently watching whatever anime is on while cutting a piece of paper into mural of Honami City.
“EEP!”
Chisa perks up like a cat, her surprised look turning to one of curiosity and annoyance.
“What exactly is happening that you’d burst in here like that?”
“ IT'S HORRIBLE, IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD.”
Chisa swiftly summons her scissors, her aura tensing around her.
“Whats going on, if there’s anything I can do to help, I will.”
Lynae’s hands cover her mouth as she gasps.
“NO CHISA WE CAN'T KILL HER…Well maybe we could...NO–no! We can’t, right..?”
Chisa begins to raise her eyebrow. Lynae drops to her knees, her pose similar to a pale skinned detective. Although instead of feasting on sweets, she is instead biting her nails.
“I mean it HAS been a while since I killed someone, maybe we can just cut off her legs–OH, you’d be great at that wouldn’t you!?”
Chisa’s head tilts in confusion.
“What exactly are you talking about Lynae?”
The puzzled Lynae immediately rises to her feet. With a never ending stream of tears cascading from her sapphire eyes.
“PROFESSOR MORNYE IS IN LOVE WITH ROVER!”
Chisa’s eyes glow a dark blue hue as she processes this information.
“..what.”
2 Weeks Ago
Rover and Chisa had just arrived through the portal from Honami. Chisa had gone through first, landing around the entrance of Startorch Academy.
It was a familiar site, even 20 years removed from when she last laid eyes upon it. Thankfully it had only been 2 months for her, and the layout remained relatively the same. Feeling confident; she made her way to Startorch. In hopes of contacting her parents, and eventually transitioning back into being a student.
Turns out Chisa completely forgot the way to the academy, ending up in a random alleyway.
“Jeez, why didn’t I just wait for Rover.” Chisa is seen sitting on a curb petting a stray cat that walked by.
“GODDAMNIT, WORK BIKE!”
Chisa looks up, seeing a brash blonde haired girl kicking the side of her motorcycle.
“Ugh! I’m gonna be late for class again.” The blonde said with a ludicrous amount of tears flowing from her.
Chisa sees the problem from a mile away and begins walking towards the girl.
“Do you need help?”
Lynae looks up Honami’s savior, her jaw very visibly agape. Chisa thought she ended up scaring the girl!
Beginning to give her some space, the blonde grabbed her by her hands.
“Wow girl you are gorgeous, what's your routine?”
“Routine..?”
“Like your skin care and makeup! Don’t tell me you don’t have one. GOSH I’m so jealous!”
Lynae began to keep talking about some social media influencer whose skin apparently “glowed brighter than the sun.” Chisa felt like she had to step in.
“Your bike, there’s something wrong with it right?” Chisa points to the bike behind Lynae.
“OMG YES. I bumped into something earlier and now it won’t run at all!. It still turns on and stuff but won’t accelerate at all! I'M GONNA BE SO LATE FOR CLASS!” Lynae once again summons a waterfall of tears.
Chisa walks up to the motorcycle
“I think I know the issue.”
“Please tell me! I’ll do anything to get it fixed!”
Lynae tilts her head down, clasping her hands together in hopes of instilling a sense of sympathy within Chisa.
“It’s nothing serious, you just have a flat tire.”
Chisa walks over to the bike, pointing at the hole which evidently caused the flat.
Lynae’s tears dry up in an instant as she realizes how silly she was for not checking that first.
The tears come back just as quickly however, as she skates over to hug Chisa.
“Thank you soooooo much! I owe you one, big time!”
Chisa awkwardly maneuvers out of the hug. She didn’t really mind. It’s just that the two mounds attached to Lynae caught her off guard.
“You’re welcome..?”
Chisa can’t help but be in awe of the ecstatic gyaru “I didn’t even have to use my forte to point that out...”
Lynae perks up from her bike after checking out the tire. She begins to berate herself for somehow not noticing something so obvious.
“Hey now that I think about it, are you a student at Startorch? I’ve never seen you around.”
Chisa, needing to find her way to the academy anyways, decides to tell Lynae about her situation.
One 2.8 recap later
“Wow, that was you? I swear I heard your story somewhere before. I didn’t think it actually happened though!”
Chisa dawns a slight smile of embarrassment. She left out any mention of Rover for no real reason.
“Yes, that is me."
“Man you're like MEGA old. I was only like 2 when you went in there!"
Chisa's gets colored a reddish hue.
"Oh by the way, you didn't tell me your name!"
"I'm sorry, how rude of me. It's Chisa. Kuchiba Chisa."
"And I'm Lynae! Just Lynae."
The two girls smile in earnest at the thought of making a new friend. Although Chisa finally remembers her original objective.
"Right! You wouldn't happen to know how to get to the school from here would you?"
Lynae who was currently staring off into space responds.
"Yea sure! Just take a---Wait. Where are we?"
Both Lynae and Chisa got lost.
The two girls ended up walking around the academy. Chisa suggested they find an auto repair shop; In hopes they could replace the flat tire. Lynae paid no heed to Chisa as she ended up dragging her to all her favorite places. Showing the new girl all that has changed in 20 years.
After a few hours of ramen eating, arcade games, and hologram VR fights, both girls made their way to the school. Chisa however, felt anything but relief.
“Senpai, where are you..”
Lynae clocks Chisa’s soured expression.
“What's wrong Kuchiba?”
Chisa looks up with pleading eyes.
“When I came through the portal, someone else went as well. I haven’t seen him at all since getting here.”
“Well, what does he look like!? I have a pretty decent time remembering faces! And if I haven't seen him, we can at least report his disappearance.”
Lynae skimps out on the fact that she had to memorize faces, bodies, accents, and all sorts of aspects of human anatomy as her job.
“Well, I’m not that good with faces–But his eyes. He has golden eyes that even I can’t help but stare into. He’s a little taller than me, and has black hair, with a long strand of it down the back. He has broad shoulders, and gentle hands, and…”
Lynae’s smug face permeates throughout Chisa's mind, as she realizes all the embarrassing things she said about Rover.
“Sooooooo, is he your boyfriend?” Lynae leans her arm on Chisa's shoulder.
“No! We're nothing like that! We’re just friends. Partners! In fact.”
Chisa waves her hands in front of her face, attempting to hide her blush from the ex mercenary.
“Partners hmm? It sounds like you’re dating to me!”
“NO!” Chisa’s outright refusal of this notion surprises even herself.
Lynae is taken aback by her stubbornness. Chisa calms down and begins to explain.
“When I was stuck in the sonoro. I was alone for a long time. When he came suddenly, my time finally started moving again. And when we made it out. It felt like my life had begun anew."
Lynae's face softens. Chisa recognizes this as a sign to keep going.
"After the smoke cleared, I asked him why he’d even help me… Why he’d even trust me. He said it was because we were partners. And that, it would only be natural that he'd trust me."
Chisa stares off into space as she reminisces about her and Rover’s time in Honami. Lynae on the other hand is crying her eyes out once more.
“Thats so–sniff–thats so beautiful sniff”
She pulls a tissue from her school bag and begins to blow her nose.
“Yea. I suppose it is...”
Chisa opens her terminal and starts to send a message to Rover. She begins to stare up at the simulated sunset of La-hai Roi. As she sits on the bridge that Lynae dragged her to, all she can wonder is if Rover is okay, wherever he is.
3.0 Story Quest happens
After Rover conducts the Lost Melody of the Soliskin. Him and Lynae go on a ride atop a Jetray.
The sky is a shimmering orange. The wind blows through both their hair, soaking in the sights of La-Hai Roi as they do so.
Lynae can’t help but catch glances at Rover, not even attempting to hide the blush on her face. Seeing as Rover seems to be too lost in the view that he doesn’t notice her staring.
The gyaru decides this is the perfect time to start a conversation.
“Rover, I wanted to thank you again for everything you did.”
Rover dawns a small smile
“No problem Lynae.”
“No really, I never really got to thank you properly, so I want to give you something.”
“Lynae you really don’t have t-”
“JUST SHUSH AND CLOSE YOUR EYES OK!”
Rover laughs awkwardly and begins to shut his eyes.
“Okay Lynae, all you have to do is kiss him. Yea Chisa definitely has a thing for him and yea he’s just as dreamy, and kind, and handsome. Oh and now that I see it his lips are so smoo-”
Lynae slaps her cheeks so hard they turn red.
“Lynae are you ok?”
Rover begins to open his eyes
“DON”T LOOK!”
Rover takes her raised voice as confirmation of his question and continues to keep his eyes closed.
“Can I really do this? I mean it’s not like they’re dating so it’s fine right? Right??”
Lynae looked down at the ground, and then to Rover’s lips. Her heartbeat begins to rise, her cheeks feel warm and fuzzy. Her palms begin to sweat. With her eyes fixated on her prize. She whispers under her breath.
“Maybe just one couldn’t hurt”
Lynae puts her hand atop Rover’s, which was sitting on the Jetray.
Their lips only inches apart, their breath intermingled between each other. Lynae closes her eyes as she leans in..
YOU HAVE 1 NEW MESSAGE FROM: CHISA
Rover quickly open’s his eyes.
“I’m sorry Lynae, I have to check this---Lynae?"
Little did Rover know, Lynae had just turned invisible to prevent herself from being caught lips first in Rover’s face.
“DAMNIT DAMNIT DAMNIT DAMNIT, IT’S LIKE SHE KNEW.”
Rover responds to the text Chisa sent. It was an invitation to hangout in the near future when they’re both free.
Lynae feels a pang of jealousy in her heart as she watches him eagerly respond to the girl.
Rover sends the text and takes one more look around for the blonde.
“I guess she left..”
Lynae watches as Rover leaps off the Jetray. He summons his bike and drives off into the sunset. Lynae notes that he’s driving towards a voidstorm.
“He must be the one calming them all down huh.” She noted in the back of her head.
“Damnit, I need to see Chisa.
WavesLine: YOU HAVE 1 NEW MESSAGE FROM: LYNAE
Lynae: CHISA CHISA CHISA!
Chisa: Yes Lynae?
Lynae: COME TO MY ROOM QUICK, IT’S AN EMERGENCY.
Chisa darts out of the faculty office; In which she was doing some admission forms. She practically flies out onto the streets. After the incident with the Voidworm and truth being revealed of Lynae’s true nature. Chisa had been weary of the Fractsidus targeting Lynae, or even the school attempting to take matters into their own hands.. Chisa heavily doubted these worries would ever come to fruition, but Lynae’s text sparked her into action.
She used her scissors to maneuver and float around, jumping from building to building. Her steps were as light as air. Being forced into a sonoro full of TD’s has it’s perks.
She dashed through the front lobby of the dorm and searched for Lynae’s room.
“Lynae..Lynae..Here!”
Chisa kicks in the door with the nameplate “Lynae”
She steps inside to see shabby looking Lynae on the ground in tears.
“Who did this to you?” Chisa’s question spurted with venom. Lynae was the only friend she made here, she wasn’t going to let her get hurt. She was never going to let a friend down again.
Lynae slowly lifted her head up to look at Chisa.
“I’M IN LOVE WITH ROVER.”
Chisa sat awestruck, staring at Lynae feeling both an immediate sense of relief, and rage. Lynae on the other hand--
“Woah, you fight with giant scissors? That's badass girly!”
Chisa’s eyes turn an aqua hue as her scissors slightly rev up
“You’re in love with Rover..?”
Chisa’s tone implies that any direct answer to the question that wasn’t “no” would result in Lynae getting a live demonstration of how “badass” the aforementioned scissors are. So she gave an indirect one.
“Wait!! This is what I wanted to talk about!!” She said with sweat beading down her face.
Chisa, hearing this, went to sit on Lynae’s couch. Brushing off a few crumbs and old clothes that were scattered about. Instead of un-summoning her blade. She instead leans it on the seat next to her. She smooths out the bottom of her skirt while sitting down.
Placing her hands on top of each other on her lap, and with both her lips and eyelids shut, a malicious smile crawls across her face.
“Talk.”
Lynae in all her years of killing had never felt such fear run down her spine before.
“We-Well you know how we stopped Hyvatia right??”
The anxiety in Lynae's voice is palpable. Chisa shook her head in confirmation. Lynae continued.
“And how I maybesortacrashedintohimonhiswayhere…”
Chisa’s mood noticeably got more irritable.
“Cut to the chase.”
Lynae internally laughs "Cut to the chase? This girl is a riot!"
Lynae sighed.
“I tried kissing him the other day.”
Lynae ducked on pure instinct, as an invisible force cut through one of the posters she had on her wall.
“Man, I really liked that one--I didn’t actually kiss him though!!”
Chisa raised her eyebrow at the girl.
“I thought about my friendship with you. And how you spoke about him when we first met. I didn’t want my feelings about him getting in the way of all the fun times we had and will continue to have..”
Chisa’s scissors disappear into thin air, immensely relieving the ex mercenary. Chisa bows down to Lynae.
“I’m so sorry Lynae. I don’t know what came over me.”
Lynae’s mouth went agape once more.
“I don’t own a Rover. Just because I liked him first doesn’t mean he’s mine. You have every right to feel the way you do about him. Me, of all people should understand why you do.”
“Chisa?…CHISA!”
“Wait? Huh!?!?”
Lynae tackles Chisa to the ground. Sobbing into her uniform.
“YOU’RE SO KIND, I THOUGHT WE’D NEVER TALK AGAIN OVER SOME STUPID BOY. I’M SO GLAD YOU DIDN’T KILL MEEEEEEE.”
“Kill you??”
Lynae simply just continued to sob into Chisa, causing the black haired girl to give a couple of headpats to the blonde haired one.
After a few minutes of Lynae sobbing, she perks up as if none of that ever happened.
“So what are we going to do?”
Chisa stares at Lynae questioningly.
“What do you mean?”
“Well we both love him! What are we going to do??”
Chisa stares down at the floor lost in thought.
“I guess I didn’t think about it.”
Lynae shoots up from the couch that she moved herself too after the crying session.
“What if he rejects us?? What if he wants us BOTH!?”
“Senpai wouldn’t be the polygamous type…right?”
Chisa’s mind wanders to what the bed situation would look like between the three of them. She then starts to imagine what sort of things would happen in said bed between the three of them.
Chisa malfunctions.
“Chisa, hey Chisa are you ok!?”
The havoc girl’s eyes have cartoonish swirls surrounding them. As a blush emanates from her cheeks, and blood from her nose.
“Hey dude you’re BLEEDING! Hold on.”
Lynae skates out the room to get tissue for the far too sheltered girl.
After a tissue and drink run, the bleeding ceases. Chisa. after calming down decides to speak up.
“We should just see who he likes first.”
Lynae's lips leaves her can of Heartpour.
“Well duh, but how do we do that without one of us just straight up confessing.”
Chisa looks down at her Boba Tea.
“I don’t know…”
Both their heads hang dejectedly. Although Chisa’s curiosity peaks her.
“I’ve never felt this way about someone before—have you?”
“Sure, tons of times. But my ‘job’ never allowed for those kinds of relationships. Or relationships at all for that matter.”
Lynae depressingly looks off into her room, remembering the details of her past, and loves long lost.
Lynae begins to stand up.
“We should just put a pin in it for now. You have to focus on classes. So do me and Rover. There probably won’t be any time for any of us to think about all that mushy stuff, so let's just chill for now okay?”
Lynae turns back to Chisa, her arms behind her back. Her smile beaming brighter than the sun as she looks at Chisa.
Chisa stands up. Lynae almost suspects she’ll try to cut her again as she gets closer.
“Thank you.”
Chisa says while hugging Lynae.
“AWWWW BESTIEEEEE!” Lynae hugs her back.
“OMG, WE HAVEN’T TAKEN A SELFIE YET!”
“A selfie?”
Lynae stares at Chisa dumbfoundedly.
“You really are 40.”
“HEY!”
The two begin laughing, enjoying their friendship to the fullest.
Present Day
“-And check this, she called him “mentor” after mentioning this promise! I could barely keep it together. Like I’m 90% sure she’s like 10 years older than him!! Isn’t that crazy!? Chisa? Chisa?”
Chisa malfunctioned.
“Not again!”
With Lynae shaking Chisa back to normal. The girls once more drowned in their sorrows about the increasing competition. Chisa's conviction hardens however, as she comes up with a plan.
"You had the Professor and Rover over in your room a few days ago right?"
Lynae begins to speak with her mouth-full of ramen.
"Yea gulp but it was mostly to discuss what happened with Hyvatia."
Chisa puts her fingers to her chin.
"Invite them over again this weekend. If we can get alone with the Professor, we can ask her why she calls him mentor. And most importantly ask if she really loves him."
Lynae perks up.
"I like the way you think girl! But remind me never to get on your bad side."
Chisa simply giggles at the girl. Lynae feels a little less safe as a result. Since Chisa never denied the possibility of doing anything bad to her.
"Wait a minute, how are we going to get Rover to leave?" Lynae questions the black haired girl.
"Leave that part up to me. All I need you to do is get them here."
Lynae stands up from her couch and prepares to text the two.
"Aye Aye Captain Chisa!" Lynae salutes to the girl.
"You're so silly." Chisa laughs at Lynae's eagerness.
Although in the back of her mind, a thought slowly makes its way to the surface.
"Senpai will be mine, all mine..."