[RedSavant]

Hey, everyone. I'm a bit of a newbie here, but I thought I'd post my latest fic up and see what people thought of it. It's Luka/Miku, to get that out in the open, but it'll be a while until it gets to that point. Anyway, all the chapters are (kinda sorta) modeled after certain songs, which they're named for, and... well, yeah. It's my secret goal to sneak in as many song references as I can aside from the titles. I'll bring cookies for people who spot 'em.

Currently up: Chapter 3 - Konbini
http://www.fanfictio...of_Hatsune_Miku

[RedSavant]

Chapter 1: Luka Luka Night Fever


Cryptonight! An oasis of the night life, a neon island of music – and the place for up-and-coming musicians. With gourmet food, a generous dance floor and an even more generous open bar, Kuniaku's hottest new club opened its doors every night at ten o'clock sharp and was packed by ten-thirty. The atmosphere tended toward the quiet side until midnight, when the tables were cleared away and the music really began. When the music started, the crowd took on a life of its own; a confusing mishmash of sound, smoke and sweat, an ever-shifting liquid push of bodies and light.

Megurine Luka loved it. Moving confidently through the press, dancing as much as walking, people flowed around her like the silk of her shin-length xiongsan flowed around the bare skin of her legs. With her rose-colored hair bound up, held in place by a complex brass clip, she felt the pulsing lights on her neck and shoulders, a physical beat keeping time with the band on stage. They were all right; but the dancers knew instinctively that the best was yet to come, and danced slowly, saving their energy.

"I was wondering when you would arrive," a voice said, close to her ear to be heard over the music. The breath that tickled her cheek was hinted with vanilla, and Luka smiled as she turned to face the young man who had come up beside her. His deep blue hair was neatly combed under a sleek black headset, though a single lock of it fell across his forehead; he brushed it aside with a white-gloved hand, frowning only momentarily when it immediately fell back.

"I'm barely late at all, Kaito," Luka replied, laughing. "Aren't you singing tonight?"

Kaito shrugged helplessly and gestured to his lightweight black-and-white outfit, reminiscent of a maitré-d's at a high-end restaurant. Though simple in design, the uniform must have cost a fortune; it was cut to fit, and the fabric seemed to shimmer in the club's half-light. "Mei-san's got me running drinks all night," he explained. "You should go check in with her; she's been worrying about when you would arrive." Luka sighed, knowing exactly how the club's general manager would be 'worrying'. But it was early yet, so she might still be sober. …Might.

Kaito twitched and stood straighter as a woman's voice cut through the din. "I've got to go," he said hurriedly, laying a hand on Luka's shoulder for a moment. "I'll let her know you're here, all right? You should get ready. We'll be getting this lot off the stage in no time," he added, casting an unimpressed look at the struggling band. The lead singer, a young white-haired woman with a long ponytail down her back, appeared to be trying to hold back tears, and the crowd was beginning to mutter. "Later, okay?" Kaito called, disappearing into the shadowy maze of people.

Luka waved at his retreating back, then settled in as people filled in the bubble of calm that their conversation had generated. She let herself be moved by the crowd, circulating with aimless grace until, belatedly, she noticed the music had ended.

A short, slim woman with feathered brown hair was mounting the stage; the heels of her leather boots rang sharp against the metal stairs, and her eyes shone with mischief and saké. "How you all doing tonight?" she roared, her unamplified voice carrying through the club, and the crowd roared back to Shion Meiko, Cryptonight's unofficial patron goddess and master bartender. She smiled devilishly and snatched the mic from its stand, starting to pace back and forth across the stage.

"My friends, I gotta say, we've had some ups and downs in this place," Meiko continued, letting her gaze sweep over the crowd. The white-haired singer sniffed, and Luka saw her disappear in the direction of the bar. "But there's one thing you can always count on," Meiko continued. "One singer always knows how to hit it – one singer who's been kicking ass with the best goddamn techno ever seen by man since we started this place up – say her name with me, it's our very own Luka Luka," she shouted, pointing out to where Luka stood. The applause surged as people gave Luka some space; Meiko's laugh bubbled through the mic, and Kaito gave her a thumbs-up as a spotlight broke through the gloom.

"You know the music, folks," Luka said, smiling confidently. She reached up to her hair clip, pulling it free; with a quick button press, the woven brass folded out into an ear-mounted headset mic. With a double tap of her foot, Luka took a breath, and shouted with the weight of three hundred voices behind her own: "Dame dame yo!"

As the band launched into the familiar music, Luka closed her eyes, letting the rhythm carry her. This was her time, and this was her song, and she knew the words by heart. "From the right side to the left…" She swung her hair out; freed from the clip, it reached her shoulder blades, and strands danced at the corners of her vision as she moved.

"I know you better than anyone, so leave it all to me…" She moved like water, around and through clumps of people, constantly in motion. She danced with everyone and no one at once; in some way, this music was for her alone, and the only way to show them was this, imperfect as it was. The music was hers alone, but perhaps – just perhaps – with her voice and body, the lights and the beat, they could see, just a little.

"Luka, Luka, night fever!" This was the time she lived for; not just her body, but her voice and soul were a conduit for the music. The words weren't even important, not really. What was important was the time, so close to midnight and the death of the old day. What was important was the light, dancing glittering circles across the floor, sparking like stars as the rhythm pounded through her feet. What was important was this: the beat, and the synthesizer, and the power and the feeling – droplets of sweat suspended forever beadlike in midair – three hundred people moving as one, with the glowing thread of the music running over and around and through them, eternally linked and eternally one, bathed in the endless neon of the forever night.


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"Hey, hey, take it easy, Luka. Are you all right?"

"She's jus' tired. Silly girl... Why don't you bring…"

Luka's eyes felt impossibly heavy, and she didn't bother trying to open them, even as a blast of cold air hit her in the face. She shivered a little, automatically clinging to the person supporting her, and Kaito's voice vibrated through her cheek.

"You must be tired, Luka-san." Wearily, Luka nodded, and she heard Kaito's warm chuckle. "I understand. It's very early, after all."

Luka made a small sound of agreement. So tired… it would be easiest just to fall asleep right here. That seemed like a lovely idea.

"Taxi…"


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Notes time!

Why yes, I did make up a nightclub by combining 'Crypton' and 'nightclub' into a pun on Kryptonite. I am not ashamed.

Kuniaku City is the city this is set in, in the nation of Kuniaku. The name means 'evil country' or 'country of evil'... and I think that's the only reference to a Vocaloid song in this chapter. Don't expect there to only be one in later chapters, though...

[astroninja1]

you didnt happen to base that title on the Star Wars book, "The Courtship of Princess Leia", did you?

[RedSavant]

No, I didn't. =) I don't think I've read that one... but I do remember seeing it, now that you mention it.

[Byakuren]

D'oh why is this in the fanfiction zone?

Vocaloid works = The Library subforum peoples.

I'ma move this back there.

[RedSavant]

Chapter 2 is now up at FF.net. I'll post it here tomorrow.

I'm a liar and I post things late. Here you go!





Hey, everyone, welcome to Chapter 2. What's this I see here... a stirring of plot? Perhaps, perhaps. But also, perhaps not. Moving right along!

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"Luka…"

Luka shifted uncomfortably. There was an annoying pressure in her side.

"Luka…"

Perhaps she'd left her cell phone in her pocket last night. Luka moved her hand in a vaguely waistward direction, hoping to seize the offending appliance and throw it across the room – bonus points if it went out the window.

"Luka!"

Instead of hard plastic, Luka's hand met someone else's. Around that time, the sounds that had been escalating in volume and plaintiveness resolved themselves into an actual word – her name – and Luka opened her eyes.

Several things became apparent as she did so. First in precedence: her head hurt. This was likely due to the windows on the wall across the room; they faced east, where the sun – as was its wont – currently was. Second in precedence: this was not her bedroom. The hardwood floor and white-painted walls were enough of a case for this judgment, but the additional fact that she was lying on the battered old couch rather than on her bed helped. (Somehow) third in precedence: there was a six-foot-five, black-haired woman in fleece pajamas lying across the back of the couch, poking her in the side with one elegant finger. Luka's bleary blue eyes met the other woman's mismatched pair – red to Luka's left, deep blue to her right – and a contented smile spread across her tormentor's face.

"Oh good, you're awake now," the woman said, letting her arm flop down to rest on Luka's stomach. "Sitting up here was getting a little uncomfortable." She kicked her slippered feet to illustrate her point; since her legs hung about a foot over the edge of the couch, it was a fairly ridiculous image.

"'Morning," Luka mumbled, rubbing at her eyes. Yokune Ruko, Luka's flatmate and best friend, was an unusual person at the best of times; sleep-deprived and hung over, there was no way Luka was up to the task of conversation with her, so she let herself tune out her heterochromatic friend while she took better stock of the situation. As she'd noticed before, she was in the apartment's common room, a big open space that combined lounge with kitchen. The sunlight that had woken her was indeed natural sunlight; somehow or other the burning lances of morning always managed to dodge around the glassy skyscrapers between the sun and the apartment to catch Luka in the eye. Judging from the angle, it was still pretty early, maybe about ten A.M. –

Luka shot vertical, narrowly missing Ruko's forehead with her own. "What time is it?" she shouted, wincing as she rolled to her feet and dashed toward her room.

Ruko shrugged, slipping back under the kotatsu she had contributed to the apartment's furniture when they'd rented it. The table's ancient heater rumbled audibly, and Ruko fairly purred with happiness, spreading herself out over the scratched wood surface. "Maybe ten-thirty?" she called, after a moment of quiet bliss.

"Shit," Luka fairly shrieked, peeling off the xiongsan. She threw open her wardrobe and fumbled through her drawers, changing quickly into new clothes. No time to shower; she'd just have to sit far away from people. To top it, as she swung the wardrobe doors closed, she caught her finger in the gap.

"You're always in such a hurry," Ruko commented as Luka stormed back into the kitchen, sucking her finger annoyedly. "Classes don't start until noon anyway –"

"Your classes don't start until noon, Ruko," Luka almost snapped, stuffing papers into her bag. "I, on the contrary, have an English exam in half an hour."

"Oh. Sorry," Ruko replied, yawning. "I would've woken you up earlier, but that cute blue-hair guy said I should just let you sleep it off…"

Luka stiffened. Kaito had had to bring her home? The day could hardly get worse, and it hadn't even started properly yet.

"I'll be back… sometime," Luka said, pulling on her coat and settling her bag across her shoulders. "Don't go back to sleep; you need to catch the eleven-thirty train into town, remember?"

"Got it. Good luck on your test," Ruko said sleepily, pillowing her forehead on her hands on the table. Luka pulled open the door and stepped out into the stairwell; a jingle of keys later, she was gone.

After a few minutes' silence, Ruko sighed. "I guess this means she's not making breakfast…"


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"Shit, shit, shit," Luka muttered, pushing her way through the bustling crowds filling the sidewalks. The morning was bright, clear and cold, the January chill focusing Luka's still-fuzzy head like a lens. Unfortunately, the last thing she needed right now was help understanding just how screwed she was.

The train station finally loomed into view, and Luka allowed herself a small sigh of relief. Starting up the stairs, she checked her watch: ten forty-five. Just in time to catch the train into the University, if she hurried. The rumble of the approaching train was already resounding through the station.

Luka hustled up the remaining stairs, pushing past business-suited salarymen and mothers towing children of various ages. The buckles on her bag jumped and clattered against their clasps as she ran, and she fumbled one-handed in her wallet for her train pass as the doors opened and people disembarked. "Come on, come on," she whispered, feeding the little cardstock rectangle into the reader. She pushed at the turnstile bar… which refused to turn.

"Please renew your train pass," a pleasant female voice said from the little speaker in the top of the turnstile. "You have zero yen remaining. Please renew your train pass."

"You're kidding," Luka sputtered incredulously. She shook ¥100 coins into her hand, thanking whatever deities came to mind that she hadn't cleaned the change out of her wallet last night. The fare was ¥800… she had to have enough. Had to.

She shoved the last of her coins into the slot and strained against the bar. Any second now, it would start to turn. Any second… she heard the last coin jingle down into the basket. Any second now.

"Please insert another ¥50," the voice said. "Your paid fare balance is ¥750. Please insert another ¥50."

Luka stared at the digital readout. She'd put eight coins into the slot, eight ¥100 coins. Unless… A thought struck her, and she hit the coin return. Seven ¥100 coins fell into the cup… and one ¥50 coin, identical except for the little hole in the middle.

"You are kidding," she decided to no one in particular. The train marshal's sudden shout caught her attention, and she looked up to see the doors on the train beginning to slide closed. Oh, hell no.

Paying no attention to the fact that she was in a skirt, Luka vaulted the turnstile bar. Her feet hit the floor and she moved, feeling her toes dig into the concrete as she hunkered down and sprinted like she hadn't since grade school. People inside the train began to notice, and shouts began to float out of the rapidly closing doors: "You can make it!" "Go, go, go!" The train marshal turned confusedly, then rapidly stepped out of the way as he caught sight of the madwoman hurtling toward his train. Luka stretched out a hand, gathered her legs beneath her, and pushed –

The doors made a little hissy sound as they closed fully. Luka's eyebrow twitched and she ground to a halt, barely two feet from the threshold. She'd never noticed that noise before. The doors were obviously laughing at her, and she glared at them as they started down the tracks.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we can't stop the train now," the marshal said, rubbing the back of his neck. "The next train is in ten minutes… you can ride for free, alright?"

"…That's fine," Luka said. Letting her shoulders sag, she turned back to the turnstile – at least she'd get her money back. ...If a small, grubby child hadn't just pocketed it. Well, it was only ¥750…

"Today can't get any worse," she murmured, taking a seat on a nearby bench. The other end was occupied by a teenager in a junior high uniform, who was giggling at something on his cell phone. Luka leaned back with a sigh, closing her eyes. Ten minutes… she'd really have to haul ass to get to class at an acceptable level of 'late' at this point. She wondered if it even really mattered anymore; English was only half her major, after all, and she had semesters enough left to switch over to a full major in music…

The giggling from the boy was getting really annoying. Cracking an eye open, Luka sat up, craning her neck to see over his shoulder. What was displayed on the little rectangular screen was a pair of women's underwear, pink with lacy bits on it. She sniffed, closing her eyes again. Teenagers… Come to think of it, she thought she had a pair just like that. Come to think of it, she was wearing them right now. Come to think of it, she'd vaulted over a turnstile in a skirt. Luka felt her opinion of her own intelligence drop.

"Hee hee, [photo get]*," the boy muttered excitedly. A shadow fell over the screen, and he turned around, surprised. Luka took advantage of his confusion to pluck the phone from his grip. "Hey," he tried, standing up. Wordlessly – not even looking at him – Luka walked the short distance to the rail well and dropped the phone in, taking care to get it as close to the third rail as possible. "Hey, that's my phone," the boy said, voice escalating. "Do you know how expensive that wa –" He choked off as Luka's eyes met his. After a moment, he fell backwards, landing on his rear. Luka nodded perfunctorily at him and sat back down on the bench. Ten minutes. How long could that take?

For once, not too long. She was awoken by the train marshal gently shaking her shoulder. "The next train has just pulled in, ma'am," he said. "Please, come aboard."

Luka stifled a yawn. "Thank you," she said. She stood, turning to the track, where the train had indeed just arrived. People were pressed up against the doors, impatient to get off, and Luka smiled again. She might even get a seat.

"I'm sorry for your luck," the marshal said as they approached the train. He waved her over to the side as they neared the doors, making space for people departing. "I know you're in a hurry, but I'd rather not have put you on a commuter train…"

Luka blinked, then looked again at the train. Yup. Those people weren't pressing against the door of their own free will; there was a reason commuter trains were called 'sardine cans'. She sighed. If she immediately dropped English 301, there might be time left to sign up for a vocal theory class in its time slot…

"Thank you for riding," the same female voice said, tinny over the train's speakers, as the doors opened and the few passengers who were leaving got off. "Welcome to West Hata, Kuniaku City. Thank you for riding." The people remaining on the train immediately expanded to fill what little space had been freed up – there was a sound like a gust of wind, fifty people heaving synchronized sighs of relief – and Luka pulled her bag's strap farther up her shoulder. This was going to be difficult.

"Here," someone called. "There's room here." Luka looked around, and after a moment her eye was caught by a hand waving at her. It was fine-boned and small – almost like a child's – and the nails were painted an eye-popping teal. Gratefully, Luka grasped the hand and stepped onto the train.

As the doors closed behind her, Luka found herself shoved uncomfortably into a short girl with remarkable hair. It was pulled into twin pigtails that fell to the bottom of her shoulder blades, which was not the remarkable part. The remarkable part was that her hair was the exact shade of blue as her eyes, which were the exact shade of blue as her fingernail polish. "Sorry about that," the girl said, leaning back a little to pull her face away from Luka's chest. "But it can be hard to get onto the train when it's this busy."

"Thanks," Luka said, returning her first genuine smile of the day. "I usually catch a much earlier train, so I don't end up on sardine cans much…" she trailed off, sniffing the air. "Does something smell to you?" she asked after a moment. Being packed in with people wasn't an unusual experience for her, but being packed in like this – not dancing, just standing in one place – was suffocating, and she didn't need weird smells to boot.

The other girl frowned, looking around at the salarymen clinging grimly to the straps overhead. "Like what?" she asked. "I don't smell anything."

"Like…" Luka took another sniff. It was pungent, and very recognizable, but her brain still felt off, and it was refusing to identify the smell. "I can't really say, but it really smells. Really badly. Someone forgot to take a shower," she muttered, and the girl giggled.

"Well, I don't know," the green-haired girl said, shrugging. "If you recognize it –"

"I do," Luka exclaimed, interrupting her. "I've got it. Leeks!"

There was a deadly silence aboard the train.

The other girl shrugged off her backpack, wrestled it around in front of her, and unzipped it. "This is my lunch," she said flatly, pulling a whole leek from the bag. Luka opened her mouth to apologize, but the girl simply slid the leek back into her bag and melted backwards into the crowd. The leek smell went with her, but somehow Luka felt even worse when it was gone.


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What seemed like an hour later, Luka turned the corner to Kuniaku University's foreign language quad. The big brownstone building on the corner closest to her, Minato Hall, was the English building, and Luka hurried toward it. The clock set into the building's façade just below the roof read eleven-ten; if she was lucky, Leon-sensei hadn't gotten around to passing out the tests just yet.

"Luka-san!" Luka pulled up short and looked around at the familiar voice. Near the Hall's main entrance stood a young man in jeans and an open windbreaker; he made Luka cold just by looking at him, and she pulled her coat tighter around herself.

"Gakupo," she said, smiling as she joined him at the top of the short flight of steps. "Sorry I missed you last night; Mei-san needed me to come in."

"It's quite alright," Gakupo assured her, smiling back. "But… we're late, you know, Luka-san."

"I've told you twenty-five hundred times, you don't have to call me Luka-san," Luka replied, brushing a strand of purple hair behind his ear. She leaned in to kiss him, closing her eyes as their lips met, and sighed contentedly as she pulled away several seconds later. "I needed that," she said. "Today has been a very bad day so far."

"We shall hope that it improves as it goes on, then," Gakupo said, taking her hand. Together, they walked into Minato Hall, and the sound the door made as it closed behind them echoed through the empty quad.


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* If you see square brackets in my stories, it generally means that whoever's using them is speaking English, or some other language that the point-of-view character understands but that someone else wouldn't necessarily. Just getting that out there, heh.

Oh, shocks! You got your Luka/Gaku in my Luka/Miku fic. Could this be trouble for later...?

Again, lots of song references, and maybe a bilingual joke or two. VocaloidOtaku folks, be sure to mention any finds in the thread; I wasn't lying about the cookies.

Cheers, everyone!

[RedSavant]

Chapter 3: Konbini

Oh my god, here comes the plot at last. Red's finally got his s!*t together, it seems? You'd be surprised.

Oh: I'd rather not hear any anti-Luka/Gakupo, please. I happen to enjoy the pairing, even if it's not my favorite - so please, just remember that this is categorized as a LUKA/MIKU fic for a reason, and be patient.


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"What a day," Luka sighed, leaning back in her chair until her head bumped against the wall. "I just want to get home and finally take a shower…" She took a sip of her hot chocolate, now cooled to pleasant warmth, and closed her eyes against the orange light of the setting sun.

The little corner café was officially the 5th Street Coffee shop, but the students and faculty of Kuniaku U. universally called it Teto's. Under the management of the high school student and her brother Ted, who had taken over when their father died, the café had become a haven for anyone looking for a romantic lunch, a last-minute all-nighter, or a good post-test crash session. This particular chair was pretty uncomfortable – it was a simple cushion on a wrought-iron frame, not suitable at all for napping – but Luka thought she might make a game effort anyway.

"I'm sure you did quite well, Luka-san," Gakupo said quietly, smiling. Luka twitched, opening an eye to look at him.

"Who said I'm worried about the test, Gaku?" she asked. "I'm just really, really tired…" Letting her chair fall forward again, Luka set her head down on the sparkling-clean, if a little chipped, wooden table between them. She inhaled, letting the shop's ever-present aroma of coffee and fresh bread pull some of the tension from her body.

"You were at the club again last night, weren't you," Gakupo not-really-asked, his tone not changing. Luka felt the tension that had leached from her muscles fill them again, and she made a move to sit up – but Gakupo's warm, strong hand was atop her head, fingers idly combing through her hair, and she relaxed again.

"…Yeah," she said, after a moment. "I talked to Meiko-san again," she added, remembering, "…but she said she still can't let you in until you're twenty-one. I'm sorry."

"I'm not concerned about the club, Luka-san," Gakupo replied, not stopping his slow ministrations. "I'm concerned about you. This is not healthy – staying up all night, getting three hours of sleep before waking up again… it will catch up to you."

"I always get enough sleep," Luka protested, lifting her head enough to stifle a yawn with the back of her hand. "Besides, I –" She was interrupted by a burst of electronic music from her bag, and Gakupo lifted his hand away to let her get at her cell phone. The little ceramic tuna charm attached to it clattered against the back of the phone as Luka flipped the top open, and she stilled it with her free hand.

"Hello, Megurine Luka," she said, casting an apologetic look at Gakupo. There was a pause as she listened to the tinny voice on the other side of the phone, then she sighed. "Right, right. I got it. I'll make something when I get home." Closing the phone with a flick of her wrist, Luka stood and shouldered her bag.

"I need to bring Ruko some dinner, looks like," she said, stooping to give Gakupo a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you –" She paused as Gakupo returned her hug, holding her in place for a moment.

"Don't go dancing tonight, okay? Stay in and get some rest," he whispered. Releasing her, he stood and picked up his empty cup. "Would you like me to walk you to the train station? It's getting dark," he said, speaking normally.

Luka smiled, hitting him gently in the head. "You don't need to worry about me, Gakkun," she said, placing her own empty mug back on the counter. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" She waved a goodbye to Teto, who paused in sweeping long enough to return it, and left in a sweep of chill air.

"You know, you shouldn't worry so much about her, Kamui-san," Teto said after a moment, bending down to root around behind the counter for something. "She can take care of herself, y'know? Aha," she muttered, pulling a rag from some mysterious drawer and starting to buff the counter with it. "She'll run out of steam eventually," the pigtailed girl finished.

"That's what I am concerned about," Gakupo murmured, setting his mug down next to Luka's. He let his gaze drift out the window, his eyes tracing the peach swirl of Luka's hair in the afternoon wind.

"That's what I'm concerned about."


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It was only once she'd gotten within three blocks of home that Luka remembered that they did not, in fact, have anything to make dinner with. Pinching the bridge of her nose – no wonder Ruko had called her instead of simply mashing whatever she could find into combinations that might be called edible – Luka turned her feet toward the convenience store nearby, on Sensou Street. She could just pick up a few bento and bring them home, and go shopping tomorrow when she had more money on her. Problem solved.

Opening the door, Luka found herself in a world of artificial lighting, preternaturally clean linoleum and pop so instantly forgettable she almost didn't hear it at all. The store was mostly empty this late on a Wednesday; a pair of blond high school students too similar not to be twins seemed to be arguing about what fruits to buy, but aside from that the place stood quiet. There wasn't even a cashier in sight.

Luka drifted over to the bento section to pick out some of the lunch packs. There was only one left with tuna sides, and she grabbed it quickly despite the fact that there were no other customers within ten yards. For Ruko, she picked out a vegetable-and-barley pack and a pair of iced coffees; one would be necessary to wake her up in the first place, and she'd complain if she didn't have one to drink with dinner. Juggling the groceries around until she was fairly certain that she wouldn't drop them, she headed over to the register, which was still deserted.

"Hello?" Luka called, setting her items down on the counter. A door stood ajar behind the counter, and she leaned over a little to see if she could see into the room. A quiet sound was filtering out through the crack; it almost sounded like… singing…? "Hello? I'm ready to pay," she repeated.

"Ah, sorry, sorry," someone called from the back room. The door swung open, and the speaker dashed back to the register. "I was – um, that is, I –" Luka blinked, surprised.

The green-haired girl from the train stopped immediately when she recognized Luka, and her eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. When she spoke again, it was with a clean-cut sort of politeness much cooler than the weather outside. "Hello again," she said. "Is that everything?"

"Can I apologize for what I said?" Luka asked. The girl ignored her, pointedly counting up the prices. She stacked Luka's bento into a bag, keeping the coffees aside. "That's ¥1200 even."

Luka sighed, looking down at her nametag. "Look, I want to apologize, um, Hajine-san*. I actually do like leeks, and it was rude of me to –"

"Hatsune," the girl said quietly.

Luka paused. "Sorry?"

"It's Hatsune," the cashier repeated. "Hatsune Miku." She met Luka's eyes, and surprisingly, some of the frost there had melted. "You were having a bad day, right?"

Luka let out a short laugh. "You could say that, yeah. I was late for an exam, lost my train fare, got a picture taken of my underwear…"

Miku nodded to herself. "I knew it," she said. "I guess I can forgive you, then," she said, smiling. "Let's start over, huh? I'm Hatsune Miku," she said, offering a hand. "You won't forget it, 'cuz it's the same way you write 'start'."*

Luka, after a moment's hesitation, took Miku's hand and shook. "I'm Luka," she said. "Megurine Luka, like 'wandering sound'."*

"The same 'ne' as my name," Miku exclaimed. "That's pretty cool, huh? What a coincidence." She handed Luka the plastic bag, taking the bills and tucking them into the register. "Thanks for shopping here, and have a nice day," she said. "I have to say that to everyone, but I guess I actually mean it with you," she confided.

Luka picked up Ruko's coffees, putting one into her pocket to leave a hand (mostly) free. "Thanks, Hatsune-san," she said, turning to leave.

"Hey." Luka paused, one hand still on the door. Cold air blew past her into the store, stirring her hair across her face, as she turned back to face Miku.

"Come back again sometime," the green-haired girl said, smiling as she leaned over the counter.

Luka nodded, smiling herself. "I will." Then her phone rang, and she tucked the other iced coffee into her elbow to open the device. "Yes, I'm coming," she said, holding the phone a bit away from her ear. "Yeah. I bought you coffee, too, so stop shouting…" her voice trailed away as she walked into the night, eventually cutting off completely as the door closed behind her.

Miku watched her retreating back disappear into the burgeoning twilight. After a moment, she looked over at the only other customers in the shop, the argumentative twins. "So, you two gonna buy something, or what?"


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"What," said Ruko, completely flat.

"She followed me home," Luka said, stepping past the dumbstruck woman and kicking off her shoes. "Can we keep her?"

"I –" Ruko tried, turning back and forth between Luka, who was setting down a bag of groceries, and Miku, who gave her an apologetic wave from the hallway. "You bought another high schooler?" she asked, after a moment. "She's not going to fit in the closet with the others."

"Ruko, this is Hatsune Miku-san," Luka said, pushing Ruko gently aside so Miku could step in. "Miku-san, Yokune Ruko, my roommate."

"Nice to meet you," Miku said, bowing to Ruko, who returned the gesture somewhat bemusedly. She closed the door behind the green-haired girl, bending to set Miku's shoes against the wall.

"Miku-san's a freshman, and apparently she takes Voice with Kiyoteru-sensei too," Luka explained to Ruko. "Since I run into her at the convenience store all the time nowadays, I figured she might as well come over and sing tonight."

"She takes Voice with us? No way I missed someone with hair that color," Ruko said, folding her arms and giving Miku a critical look.

Miku returned the look, adopting the same pose. "I take Voice with you? No way I missed someone that tall," she replied.

Ruko burst out laughing and patted Miku on the shoulder. "We're going to get along just fine," she said, nodding happily. She fairly skipped back over to the kotatsu, sliding under it with practiced ease. "So, can we keep her, Luka?" she asked, burying herself under the heated table until only her face was visible. "Freshmen are so cute."

"Um, I brought along some music," Miku offered, pulling the sheets out of her bag. "I'm sorry, Yokune-san… I didn't know Luka-san had a roommate, so I didn't…"

"Ah, that's okay," Ruko said, shrugging under the table's skirt. "I can wing it, right?"

"Well… I mean, it's a duet," Miku continued wretchedly. "I'll bring a trio song next time, but…"

"That's really okay," Ruko insisted, pulling herself out from under the kotatsu. "Really. I actually just remembered I have some studying to do, so I'll let you two sing, okay? I'll be in the library." She slung on her coat and shouldered her bag, disappearing out the door before Luka could stop her.

"Should I go after her?" Miku asked Luka, shuffling from foot to foot. Luka shook her head, frowning at the door, which stood open about an inch.

"She's just being pissy for some reason," she replied. "She gets that way sometimes if she's had too much coffee." She offered a chair to Miku, sitting down on the couch after the younger girl accepted. "Ruko's right, though. It's weird how we've never seen each other around before, you know? Especially since we're in the same Voice class."

"Oh, well, I have seen you around before," Miku said, laying her bag on the floor next to her chair. "In the dining hall, you know? Around," she finished, shrugging.

"You have? Really? Why didn't you say anything on the train?" Luka asked, interested. Miku gave a small laugh.

"Well, it's hard to fit in," she said. "Hi, I'm stinky, have I seen you somewhere before?" She laughed again, but stopped as Luka frowned.

"You're not allowed to bring that back up," the senior chided her kohai**. "I already apologized for that."

"Hey, I'm the one who was called stinky," Miku retorted, mischief sparkling in her eyes. "You should apologize again."

"I won't apologize a second time for saying you smell like leeks," Luka said teasingly, folding her arms across her chest. "If you want me to apologize again, you'll have to smell different."

"What do I smell like now, then?" Miku said, sitting forward. Luka stood and leaned over her, putting a hand on the younger girl's shoulder to balance herself.

"Well?" Miku asked, looking up at Luka. Luka sat back down, looking thoughtful.

"You smell… nice, actually," Luka replied, surprised. "Like… flowers, or something…" she coughed, wondering why her face felt hot. Miku's cheeks looked a little pink, too, didn't they…?

"So, what'd you bring?" Luka asked maybe a little loudly, picking up the sheet music. She leafed through until she found one she recognized, showing it to Miku. "How about this one? Kiyoteru-sensei taught me a trick with the harmony I want to try out –"

The door closed with a bang.

"Wha-?" Miku performed a strange little jump away from the door. "Ah… we left it open… I guess air pressure closed it?"

"Maybe," Luka said, standing. She crossed to the door and opened it, looking out into the hall beyond. It was empty, the faux wood paneling on the walls staring back at Luka in the glare of the fluorescent lights. Frowning, Luka retreated back into the apartment, closing the door behind her.

It would have taken a more sensitive nose than hers to detect the faint smell of coffee that lingered in the hallway.


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Ah crap, drama. What's this mean for our heroes and heroines...? I'm not going to tell you. That would defeat the whole purpose.

Notes!

* All these asterisks relocate to the same footnote, since it's the same thing, basically. Miku and Luka are telling each other how to spell their names using the proper kanji, many of which can share the same pronunciation. Luka's mistake - calling Miku 'Hajine-san' - comes from the fact that the first kanji of her family name, 初, can be read as 'hatsu' or as 'haji', as in 初め (hajime, or 'start'). Both girls' names contain the character 音, 'ne', for 'sound'.

** Underclassman, or coworker/fellow student with lower status. The correspondent term for addressing a senior is 'senpai', which is much more commonly used in anime and such.

Oh, by the way. I realize some of y'all may not have, in point of fact, heard the songs I've been linking these chapters to... so here you go! These are only the extensions; you'll have to plug them into a certain video-sharing site that starts with Y yourself, since FF will redact the link if I post 'em directly.

Luka Luka Night Fever (Chapter 1): SQhfd6nQbbU [Any translation of this song you find that starts with 'No no too bad boy' is INCORRECT to the point of making me nerd raeg.]

Turkish March Owata! (Chapter 2): fs5_vNMg1xc

Konbini (Chapter 3): 0Sp9rU5OIBc [Subs aren't great, but understandable].

As of next chapter, I'll be posting them at the end of the chapter they're titled for, so please keep a lookout for that.

Cheers!

[descent87]

Thank you for writing this. I'll be honest I was very unenthusiastic about reading a Vocaloid fic, but as I worked through it I really really started to like where it might be going. I'll definitely be following this, good luck!