Archive of Our Own

"I don't want to wear this, Mom."

Her mother looks her in the eye for a mere second before going back to the buttons she was doing for her. "You look very pretty in it, Mira."

So? "But I don't want it."

Her mother sighs and still makes no move to replace the frilly dress with something more comfortable. She stands up, holding her hand out for Mira which the young girl takes with a pout. She doesn't have the kind of mother who would hug or kiss her just because. A hand hold is the most Mira would often get, so she takes it, even when she's upset.

As they walk out of the room, she gives Mira a rare smile. It doesn't reach her eyes. "It'll only be for a few minutes. You just have to sit there and be our pretty Mira for a few minutes."

"Are you ready?" the camera man says.

Mira looks around at her family. Her father looks ahead with a focused stare and square shoulders. Her older brother does the same beside him, always eager to follow in his footsteps. Her mother places a hand on Mira's shoulder, a silent reminder for her daughter to keep her back as straight as hers. Mira huffs.

That day, nobody but the camera man smiled. He was too amused by an eight-year-old Mira who defiantly crossed her arms and legs, forgoing a dead-eyed stare in favor of glaring at the camera lens.

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"Isn't she a little too old for this?"

Mira's eye twitches as some girls giggle. Sure, she might be little older than the most of the girls here, but nineteen is hardly too old for anything. Or, at least it shouldn't be. It's not her fault companies prefer prepubescent idols nowadays.

"Shouldn't she be in college right now?" a different girl says and Mira couldn't take it anymore.

Mira looks at the girl dead in the eye before retorting with, "Shouldn't you be in middle school right now?"

Somebody barks out a laugh, and Mira and a group of girls follow the sound to find a girl in a cropped tube top and jean shorts with her hands on her mouth, as if she had caught herself too late. When she slowly peels it off, she gives them a sheepish smile and two peace signs.

"Bae Zoey!" a man entering the room with a clip board suddenly says.

The girl who laughed stands up, hand up in the air as she says, in English, "Over here!"

The girls whisper. She winces and adds, this time in Korean, "Yes, that's me, sir," before getting up and picking up a skateboard off the floor.

The man nods and reads off more names from the clipboard. Mira impatiently watches the girls file behind him. When will it be her turn? As her eyes sweep over them, her gaze stops at the girl named Zoey who is looking back at her. Zoey's shoulders jump at the eye contact, but she doesn't look away and instead gives Mira a smile as bright as sunshine. Zoey pumps a fist, mouthing something at Mira with determination in her eyes.

Fighting! Mira can tell is what Zoey meant to say. Somehow, that was enough to cheer her up until time for her own evaluation came.

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"Choi Mira-ssi, right?"

It's Zoey again. Seeing her among the contestants who were able to make it to the actual show is reassuring to Mira for some reason. Nobody else seems to want to sit next to Mira except for Zoey, so she nods and says, "And you're Bae Zoey-ssi."

Zoey seems very happy to be recognized. "You remember me?"

"Yeah. The girls were calling you a 'hip American' right after you left. Because of the English."

Zoey kicks her feet. It looks like the soles of her shoes barely brush against the floor. "That's a bit of an assumption. What if I was from Canada or something?"

"Are you?"

Zoey giggles. "No." She looks satisfied with herself when she makes Mira smirk. "Hey, what year were you born?"

Oh, here we go. "Ninety-nine."

"I'm two thousand!" She shyly extends both hands to give Mira's a quick shake. "I'll be in your care, unnie."

"You look younger."

"I get that a lot." Zoey looks around, and Mira does too. "So many young and fresh faces around here, huh?"

Mira shrugs. "Relatively."

Zoey leans a little closer and whispers in Mira's ear, "Yikes, that one doesn't look older than twelve."

Mira tries not to shiver. This girl has no concept of personal space. She wonders if this is an American Thing or a Zoey Thing. "I guess they go around scouting in the playground now."

Zoey giggles and finally moves away. "You're funny."

That's a first. Her peers usually say she's dull. But if you were to ask Mira's dreary family, she's seen as unruly. It's all about perspectives maybe, though she's unsure what kind of perspective Zoey is seeing her through.

"I'm so excited for the real thing to start," Zoey says. She seems to have no problem talking to someone who doesn't always reply with something substantial. "You know that Celine's a judge, right? I love Sunlight Sisters. I can't wait to see Celine behind that table."

Mira feels herself truly smiling now. During auditions for this survival show, she overheard a lot of the girls say that they don't know Celine or Sunlight Sisters, because of course they don't. Sunlight Sisters was active in the nineties and disbanded shortly after one of their members passed away. The remaining members, Stella and Celine, tried to keep things going as a duo, and they managed to do it for five more years. But just as Mira was about to turn ten, Stella retired from music and Celine stayed as a solo act. These girls were probably still in kindergarten when Celine truly started to shine by herself, and by the time music artists caught their attention, they couldn't be bothered to look past the newer acts of this generation.

Mira herself only got into Sunlight Sisters because of Celine, and it saddens her to be reminded that she couldn't have seen them when they were complete because she hadn't been born yet. It's nice to know someone of the same age felt the same about a past icon.

"Isn't it nerve-wracking?" Mira says, though she's excited too. "She looks strict."

"I mean, yeah... But it'll only help us get better, right?"

There's a fire in Zoey's eyes now, and her smile is filled with determination. Zoey is a lot like the Sun, Mira thinks. Intense, but warm. Despite their clear differences, Mira can't help but be pulled in her orbit.

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Mira glares at the reflection. Her technique is great. Her body control is impeccable. She shows power when she needs to, and she's fluid when necessary. And yet, Celine gave her such a low score, all because of her facial expressions?

"Dammit," Mira hisses just as the door to the dance practice room suddenly opens.

It's Zoey, and she looks surprised to see Mira here. "Unnie... Why are you still awake?"

Mira doesn't look away from her own reflection. "I'm. Practicing."

Zoey looks her up and down. "You're just standing there. Glaring at the mirror."

"I'm practicing facial expressions."

It takes Zoey a moment again. "You're just standing there... glaring at the mirror..."

Mira lets out a frustrated grunt and finally peels her eyes off the mirror to helplessly look at her friend. "I don't know what I'm doing wrong, Zoey."

Zoey snaps then points at Mira. "There it is! Emotion!"

Mira rolls her eyes and finds a wall to slump against. "Idols don't have any songs that require you looking frustrated and hopeless."

Zoey settles down beside her, criss-cross applesauce with her knee pressing against Mira's thigh. "You don't know that. Idols do some wild concepts nowadays."

Mira sighs. Desperate for comfort, Mira does something she doesn't usually do: she whimpers childishly, then leans until her head and shoulders are pressed against Zoey's. She sees Zoey's hand twitch over the rare physical contact, but she doesn't move away and thankfully doesn't make a move to do anything more either.

"I hate to admit it, but Celine-sunbaenim is right," Mira says. "My face is too stiff."

"I wouldn't say that."

"You don't have to sugarcoat it, Zoey." Mira isn't in the mood for Zoey's bad habbit.

Zoey lets out an unsure sound. And then, carefully, she peels Mira off her, but keeps contact by placing her hands on Mira's shoulders as she fully faces her. "You just need a little practice."

"I told you, I tried practicing. I still suck."

Zoey shakes her head. She's a lot more resolved than Mira is. "I'll help you out."

"But it's almost midnight. The shoot for the next round is early tomorrow."

"Pssh! It's fine. I'm used to staying up late for things."

"Like what?"

"Um... Catching a flight? Jetlag?"

"Fine. Whatever. How are you gonna help me?"

"You're just a little stiff because you're not used to letting the emotions you feel here—" Zoey places a hand on Mira's sternum— "Show up here—" she then lightly touches her fingertips against the underside of Mira's chin. Mira doesn't lean into it, but it is pretty tempting. "You're already such an amazing dancer and singer. As long as we can get those facial muscles to go along with the choreography and lyrics too, you should climb up the ranks in no time. Let's start with something simple. Do what I do. First up, is this." Zoey tilts her head side ways, smiling up at Mira with big brown eyes and her hands framing her jaw.

Mira grimaces.

"Deng! Wrong!"

Mira crosses her arms. "I'm not doing cutesy fanservice."

"You're an idol! It's part of the job! What if we get a cute concept in the next round?!"

Mira grumbles. With great pain, she tries to imitate the face Zoey did.

Zoey starts giggling. "You look like you're about to murder me!"

"I will if you don't stop laughing."

Zoey doesn't stop, yet Mira allows her to live. She reaches out to press two fingertips against the space between Mira's brows. "Relax your eyebrows. And don't squint."

"Whatever," Mira says, though she can't help smiling because of Zoey's infectious energy. "Next face."

Zoey makes a goofy face now, worthy of being used as a meme reaction pic. Mira's so surprised that she barks out a laugh.

"The Hell was that?!"

"The troll face."

Mira laughs some more. "The what face?!" It takes Mira a moment to stop laughing, and when she finally does, Zoey's looking at her with stars in her eyes. "... what?"

Zoey shakes her head. She still looks delighted. "I've never heard you laugh like that."

Mira feels herself flush. She doesn't think she's laughed that loud before, come to think of it. She feels self-conscious now. "So?"

"You're very pretty."

Mira has heard that before. From her mother, when she wants Mira to behave. From her classmates, as a backhanded compliment because it's all she has going for her with no personality to speak of, apparently. But for some reason, hearing it from Zoey after getting to laugh so hard and so much that she has to wipe tears from her eyes, feels good for once in her life.

"Um. Thanks."

"You are, really! Seriously main visual potential. You're a... a cool beauty. What do they call it here...? Chic?" Zoey snaps her fingers. "Very girl-crush."

Mira likes the sound of that. "Yeah?"

"You gotta capitalize on that. Doing facial expressions that you don't usually do may not be a good idea. It'll just look unnatural. A small smile here and there should be fine. What you gotta work on, is your eyebrows."

"... Should I pluck them?"

"No! They're perfect! You just gotta stop furrowing them so much..."

"What if I just shave them off and draw on some straight eyebrows so I look less threatening?"

Zoey laughs but stops when she sees the blank look on Mira's face. "You're joking, right?"

Mira lets the question hang in the air for a couple of seconds before replying with, "Duh."

A staff member ends up finding them in the dance practice room because they were laughing too hard in the middle of the night. They get scolded, and both of them could feel the hours of sleep they lost the next morning, but Mira can't help but feel that it was worth it. Especially when Celine gives her a better score in the next round and Zoey hugs her tight right after.

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"I can't do this."

Mira's brows rise. They've managed to get pretty far in the show without getting eliminated, and so far this is the most distressed she's seen Zoey become.

The contestants have been separated to three groups with nine members each, and this round's theme is "cool and fierce girl crush". Mira's confident with her resting handy little bitch face this time, but the same can't be said about Zoey. The fact that they're in different teams doesn't help. This is the first time they've found time to talk to each other after practicing with their own teams the whole day.

"Why did they make me the rapper?" Zoey whines. Her hands are in her head, and she's hunched over the railing of the balcony.

Mira led them here so they could get some fresh air, but now she's thinking maybe that wasn't such a good idea. Just to be safe, she grips the back of Zoey's shirt. She can't go and let her only friend in this competition fall off three storeys.

"I'm not even all that fluent in Korean yet..." Zoey adds.

"You sound pretty fluent to me," Mira says and tries to sound supportive. Sincere. She's been improving with that lately because of Zoey. "And your diction is clear."

Zoey looks up at her with a pout. That's pretty deadly. She should try using that in a performance someday. "What about my accent?"

"Your accent's cute."

Furrowed brows accompany her pout now. That's still pretty cute. She glares down below, and all it does is make her look like an angry little bunny. "I'm not meant to be cute in this round. I'm meant to be fierce! And cool!"

Mira sighs. She hunches over the railing too, standing close enough so their arms are pressed against each other. "Just because you're cute doesn't mean you can't be fierce. And you're cool."

"Right."

"Really. Being able to ride a skateboard is pretty cool. I'd fall on my ass."

That finally makes Zoey laugh. Mira preens with pride. Zoey's the only one who laughs at her jokes because she's the only one who listens. "It's not really that hard."

"You just gotta channel that same, uh, skater girl energy in the performance."

Zoey raises a brow at her, but she's smiling. "Skater girl energy?"

"Yeah." Mira does the rock and roll sign and gives her an exaggerated smoulder. "Swag."

Zoey barks out a laugh again, then quickly realizes that it's too loud. She slaps a hand on her mouth, but just as the giggles calm down, Mira snorts and that brings the laughter back. Zoey and Mira wheeze in muted laughter, slapping each other to get their shit together but inevitably making the other giggle harder when they make eye contact.

"Stop it!" Zoey hisses in a high pitched whine. There are tears in her eyes.

"Okay, okay. I'm done. Don't — pfft — Don't look at me, you idiot! Okay. Okay..."

Once they've managed to calm down, Zoey says, "I'm gonna work hard. I'm not gonna get eliminated. I want to win and debut."

"Yeah."

Zoey bumps shoulders with her. "I wanna debut with you. So you better make it, too, okay?"

Mira smiles. She's smiled more during this whole competition than she has for the past nineteen years of her life. "Yeah."

"Oh, come on! Put more energy into it!" Zoey faces Mira and widens her stance, face contorted into a intense expression as she flexes her non-existent biceps. "Yeah!"

Mira rolls her eyes but mirrors her anyway. "Yeah!"

Zoey raises her fists. "YEAH!!"

Mira does the same. "YEAHHH!!"

"YOU TWO AGAIN?!"

They both flinch when the same staff member that caught them in the practice room slides the glass door open. They apologize profusely, bowing until their backs hurt before the staff member finally lets them go. As they walk back to their room, Zoey says, "Hey, if I get first place in this round—"

"Wow. Confident you'll get first place now?"

Zoey playfully shoves Mira. "Mira-unnie! Listen! To me!"

"Fine, fine. What is it?"

"If I get first place, can you give me a reward?"

"Like what?" Mira digs in her pockets. "I don't have much pocket money on me right now..."

Zoey laughs. "I'm not asking you to treat me to anything!"

"What do you want, then?"

Zoey grins mischievously. That can't be good. "I want a big fat kiss. Right here."

Mira's eyes widen as she watches Zoey point at her own round cheek. Then she laughs. "Why?!"

"Bragging rights."

"Bragging rights?!"

"If I get a kiss from the coolest, prettiest contestant in this show, then that'll mean I'm cool too."

"I'm not sure about that." Mira overheard some girls call her a weirdo the other day, all because she ate two packets of ramyeon in less than four minutes.

She sees Zoey give her a shy, hesitant glance for one nanosecond before going back to her cheerful self. "Psyche!" She pokes Mira's side. "Just joking!"

"The heck... Now you're confusing me."

"What I really want is to go to this one aquarium here in Seoul."

Mira smiles knowingly. "To see the turtles?"

Zoey flashes those big brown eyes on her again. "Yes, to see the turtles! After the competition, go with me, please!"

"Dummy." Mira lightly pushes her with an index finger on her forehead. "I'd go with you regardless of your ranking."

Zoey beams. "Really?"

"So if you really end up getting first place..." Mira smirks. "I'll give you that kiss."

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Zoey ends up getting ranked fifth, only right behind Mira, who's fourth. Not a bad outcome, considering people didn't expect a cute girl like Zoey to go that hard with her rap part.

Although Zoey wasn't able to make her end of the bargain, Mira's really too happy about the results to care. So while the crew plays triumphant music to celebrate the end of the round, she pulls Zoey to her side and gives her a kiss on her cheek.

Mira hasn't kissed anyone in a long time. She's never had a boyfriend, and her parents aren't really affectionate like that. But Mira isn't really perturbed, and liked Zoey's plump cheek so much that she ends up peppering Zoey's face with more kisses.

"That tickles!" Zoey squeals as she half-heartedly fights against Mira's hold. "Stop!" she says, but she seems disappointed when Mira actually heeds her request.

Mira, of course, teases her for it.

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There's confetti in the air, but Mira feels numb. She checks the screen again, still she doesn't see hers or Zoey's name among the top nine.

They couldn't make it. They're not going to debut.

When the show ends, the contestants run up to the edge of the stage, waving to their families and friends among the audience, here to either congratulate or console them. Mira gets to have neither, seeing as there's nobody here for her. Just as she's about to walk off the stage completely, she feels a pair of arms circle her waist and a warm body press up behind her.

"Where do you think you're going?" Zoey says.

Mira can feel Zoey's cheek on the exposed skin of her shoulder blade. "Backstage? Show's over."

"You did great."

Mira blinks. She can feel moisture on her shoulder. "You did, too."

Zoey nuzzles into her. "I really wanted to debut."

Mira reaches up to place a hand on top of Zoey's head. There's confetti all over her hair. "You will. I guess it won't be here. But you'll debut, I know you will."

After the actual shoot is over, they congratulate the winners, bow to the crew, thank everyone, and head backstage. Zoey doesn't seem too eager to return to the dressing rooms yet, so they find a seat by the vending machines and get a drink.

"Your family couldn't make it today?" Zoey asks. Mira's actually impressed it took her this long to ask about her family.

"They didn't want to. They didn't really think it was worth it."

But Mira wanted it. No matter how little the chances in winning was, Mira wanted to do it. They could just never understand that.

"Oh, same," Zoey says with an empty chuckle and that's when it hits Mira how self-centered she is. She was so hung up on her own family not coming that she didn't notice Zoey's isn't here either.

"Your parents didn't want you to become an idol, too?"

"She never actually said it, but Mom thinks it's a little stupid. And Dad... he just doesn't really get it. Even if he wanted to come, he's back in the US."

Mira sighs. "What now?"

Zoey leans her head on Mira's shoulder, and Mira lets her. It's the easiest thing for them to do nowadays. "I need to find a good company. I might try to properly rap. Like, actually train for it. I got really into it. How about you?"

"I—"

"Mira-ssi and Zoey-ssi, correct?"

Mira and Zoey shoot up from their seat as soon as they notice Celine walking up to them. She's beautiful as always, and even with the amount of times they've seen her in every round, Mira still feels starstruck. The fact that this is the first time they're seeing her up close probably contributes to that.

"Oh my gosh, Celine..!" Zoey stammers and Mira lightly elbows her.

Under her breath, Mira says, "Sunbaenim."

"Celine-sunbaenim!" Zoey corrects. "Hi!"

"Good work out there," Celine says. "I'm proud of you two."

"Thank you!" Zoey says. She looks like she's on the verge of fainting. "I know we couldn't actually make it into the final nine, but hearing that from you already means so much."

Celine gives them a serene smile. "I know it must make you sad to not make it into the group, but don't think that all is lost. The experience and lessons you learned along the way will help you achieve your dream, even if it wouldn't be today. In fact..." She pulls out two cards from her purse. "... I can tell that the two of you will be promising stars one day. How about training under my company?"

Zoey gasps. They both take the cards with differing degrees of shock.

"You want to train us?" Mira says.

Celine nods. "And in due time, we'll get you to debut in one group. I have another trainee that would fit right in with you." She places one hand on each their shoulders. "I can tell that you're both talented and strong girls with a passion for music. Out of all the girls here, I'm sure the two of you will be able to take the group that I need into great heights. So go home and rest. And once you've had the time to think, call that number if you want in."

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When the palm makes contact with Mira's cheek, a shrill sound rings in her ear. Something pulses in the air, and she thinks she sees a wave of energy pass through the room.

She's probably just seeing things. That's probably just what getting slapped by your father does to you.

"Are you happy now?" he says. "Got it out of your system?"

Mira's jaw clenches. Her cheek stings, but she doesn't care. "Yeah. Have you?"

Her father reels back for another hit, but her mother grabs his arm.

"It's over, dear," she says. "The competition's done. She's lost. There's no need to do this." When Mira's father turns away from both of them, grumbling, her mother approaches. "Mira, please. Promise you won't do this agai—"

Mira flinches away from her mother's touch. She ignores the call for her name and runs. Just as she gets to the foyer, she runs into her older brother on his way up the stairs. Their gazes meet, but he doesn't so much as say hello. He merely rolls his eyes and walks up the stairs.

The park closest to their house has a slide, some swings, and a jungle gym. When Mira was a kid, she would swing around it, giving her mom a heart attack while she plays around like a feral monkey. As she sits on a bench in the vicinity, Sunlight Sister's discography blasts in her earbuds, drowning out the delighted shrieks of the lucky children who got to be actual kids instead of numb accessories to their parents. She pulls out Celine's business card, thumb brushing over the phone number. Should she?

She dials. It rings. "Hello?"

Hearing Zoey's voice is the final push to break the dam. Tears fall from Mira's eyes. The lump in her throat keeps her from speaking.

"Helloooo? If this is a prank, I'm hanging up."

"Zoey..." Mira croaks out. "Do you wanna see the turtles with me?"

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There's a worried frown on Zoey's face when Mira finds her waiting just outside the building. And when she finally notices Mira, the worry turns up a notch despite the smile Mira throws her way.

"Mira-unnie!" Zoey cries as she runs up to her. She reaches out to cradle Mira's face in her hands, but Mira flinches away when she feels her touch the still tender flesh. Zoey's eyes widen, hand to her chest. "Are you hurt?"

Mira tugs the fringes at the side of her face. It won't completely cover her sore cheek, but she doesn't know what else to do.

"Your eyes are red..." Zoey says. "Do you... Do you want to talk about it?"

Mira ducks her head and blindly reaches out until Zoey's hand is in hers. "I just want to see some cute turtles."

It's hard to get Zoey to let it go. She's a good friend and Mira is really lucky to have met her. But Zoey is the kind of girl who wants to be able to actively do something to make Mira happy. Being coddled is a constant reminder that Zoey is making up for whatever Mira is troubled by, but Mira doesn't want that. Mira just wants to spend the day the same way they usually would and forget about all the shit she's dealing with.

"Zoey! Look!" Mira says as she points at a sea turtle. They haven't been able to spot one until know. "Turtle!"

Zoey gasps. She frantically looks around until she spots it, swimming beside a huge coral. Zoey's face is practically glued to the glass. "Babyyyy!!!" she coos.

Mira chuckles, mood already lifting at the look on Zoey's face.

The rest of the day goes a little better after that. The other sea creatures were pretty cool to see, but Zoey still thinks the turtles are the cutest. They spend the whole afternoon inside, and by the time they decide to head home, it's already dark out. Wanting to stall, Mira treats Zoey to some teokbokki before she walks her to the subway.

"Have you thought about that thing with Celine?" Mira asks.

"Yeah. I'm going."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Zoey shrugs. "I know the company's new and small and all, but Celine is one of the greatest singers and songwriters out there. How could I pass off this once in a lifetime chance?"

Mira hums. "I guess that makes sense." Zoey stops walking, looking worried again, so Mira does too. "What's wrong?"

"Aren't you going to join too?"

Mira looks away. "I... I don't know."

"Do you have another company in mind?"

"It's not about the company. I'm not sure about becoming an idol anymore."

It stings Mira to see Zoey so heartbroken. "Why not?"

"I lost. If I can't even make it in that stupid show, how am I supposed to make it in the industry when there's hundreds of idols out there? The real deal."

"So? Not everything's about popularity. That's just a bunch of numbers! It's about the music, the performance..." Zoey takes one of Mira's hand in hers. "Do you really not want it anymore?"

Mira does. Ever since she saw Sunlight Sisters perform on a low quality youtube video, she's wanted to become an idol like them. She's wanted to sing and dance and make people as happy as they did her. She's never felt so intensely about anything before.

"I want it," Mira quietly admits. "I really want it. So bad."

Zoey's hand around Mira's squeezes. Her fingertips make contact with Mira's jaw, gently pushing up so she could look at Zoey's big brown eyes. "Then that's what matters, right?"

Mira takes in a shaky breath. "I—"

Something... pulses. A wave of red light briefly illuminates the empty street before ebbing away. Mira stumbles back in shock, rubbing at her eyes. What's been going on with her lately?

When she opens her eyes again, she means to apologize to Zoey for the weird behavior, but she sees her rubbing her eyes too.

"The fuck..?" Zoey mutters in English. When she looks back at Mira, she says in Korean, "That was so... You didn't see that, did you?"

Mira's eyes widen. "Are you... Are you talking about the red light?"

Zoey gasps into her hands. "You see it, too! My mom asked if I needed to see a doc—" Zoey's words are cut off by a choked shriek, eyes panicked and wide over something she can see behind Mira. She rapidly slaps her shoulder, hissing, "Be-Behind you!"

When Mira turns, she sees a head with glowing yellow eyes emerging from some kind of glowing portal on the ground. When the creature fully emerges, Mira sees that it has sharp fangs and claws and glowing purple patterns all over its blue skin.

"Holy shit!" Zoey screams in English once again before switching back to Korean. "What is that?!"

Before Mira could make a coherent answer, the monster pounces. There's no time to think, only act. So Mira pushes Zoey out of the way. The wind gets knocked out of Mira's lungs when she gets tackled to the ground, huge clawed hands pinning her to the pavement. Mira cowers underneath its maw, and when it opens, Mira feels the energy drained out of her as she sees some sort of blue energy sucked out of her body into the monster's mouth. Just as she's about to lose consciousness, the heavy weight of the monster suddenly disappears. Somebody grabs her by the arm and she blindly follows, still trying to get her bearings.

"Unnie! Mira-unnie!" Zoey's frantic voice pulls her out of the fog. "Are you okay?!"

Mira shakes her head, just to clear the fog in her head away. Her gait becomes steadier as she catches up to Zoey. She's seeing clear enough now to notice that Zoey's holding a steel pipe. "Where is it? Did you kill it?"

"I don't know." Zoey's hold on her hand tightens. "But I'm —"

Another portal opens and the same monster appears before them, stopping them in their tracks. Zoey whimpers in fear, but despite her shaking knees, she defensively holds up the pipe, stepping in front of Mira.

Beneath the terror, Mira feels a fond warmth in her chest. This stupid girl is too good for this world.

The monster reels back its arm, and for one quick second, the sick memory of her father flashes in Mira's mind. She can't let Zoey die like this. So she wraps herself around the other girl, making sure to keep her back to the monster. She braces herself for the impact, but nothing comes. Mira slowly opens her eyes, but all she sees is Zoey's face pressed up against Mira's chest, terrified.

The monster behind them groans before something heavy makes the ground beneath them tremble. Mira turns, and she and Zoey both gasp at what they see.

The monster is on its knees, hunched over with a glowing blue blade sticking through its chest. On his back, a girl stands. Her thick purple hair is tied into a huge braid, and her face is young and beautiful and, for some reason, familiar.

"You..." the monster beneath the girl heaves. "... damned hunter..!"

The girl's serene face breaks, eyes narrowing as she snarls before twisting the blade. The monster writhes before fully crashing to the pavement. When the girl pulls the blade of her sword out, the monster's body slowly dissipates. She looks down at her sword then at Mira and Zoey, both girls trembling in each other's arms.

"Brace yourself," the girl says before multiple portals light up all around them. Out of all the things Mira expected this girl to do in retaliation to a swarm of monsters suddenly appearing out of nowhere, singing Celine's latest single is the last thing Mira would have guessed.

As if she were dancing, the girl glides from one monster to another, not missing a single note even as she swings her sword. Mira is mesmerized. She's never seen anything so haunting and yet so beautiful. Music among carnage. When she looks down, she sees stars in Zoey's eyes, gaze locked on the mysterious girl too.

By the time the girl has reached the bridge of the song, only one monster remains. But the girl stumbles, unable to dodge in time. Just as the monster pounces, another voice comes in to finish the song. Glowing blue chains shoot out from a dark corner in the street, wrapping around the monster's neck. The mysterious girl takes this opportunity to recover and harmonize with the second person for the final chorus, severing the monster's head with one huge swing of her sword.

When the song ends, Mira feels another pulse of energy. Blue waves of light pass through them, as if enveloping the entirety of the city. The mysterious girl drops to her knees, breathing hard. Mira and Zoey are quick to run up to her.

"Hey..." Mira says as she tries to get a good look at the girl. She doesn't look hurt, but she seems exhausted. "Are you okay?"

"We need to work on your endurance," somebody says. From the shadows, Celine emerges. In her hands she holds two sickles, the end of each one's handle connected to each other through the same chains that wrapped around the first monsters neck. She smiles down at all three of them. "But that wasn't bad. All three of you did well."

♪♪♪♪ ♪♪♪♪ ♪♪♪♪ ♪♪♪♪

Mira doesn't indulge in fantasies all that often. But in rare times that she does, she has imagined getting to be friends with Celine. She doesn't think she ever went so far as imagine she could be invited to her home, but if Mira ever did, this would never be how she imagined it would go.

After getting basic first aid applied to their scrapes and bruises, Mira and Zoey are led to the living room, where the mysterious girl with purple hair waits on one of the couches. She gestures at the couch before her, and both girls oblige with only a little hesitation.

"Celine is still on a phone call," the girl says. She isn't making any eye contact with either Mira and Zoey. A glaring contrast to the impressive and fearless swordfighter they saw earlier. She just looks like any other shy girl now. "You'll have to wait a bit."

"Um, excuse me," Zoey says. "Sorry. Are you Ryu Rumi?"

The girl finally lifts her head. Even through her stiff expression, Mira can see a gleam in her eyes. "You know me?"

Zoey gasps. She excitedly slaps Mira's arm beside her. "Oh my gosh! That's you, isn't it? Ryu Rumi-unnie! I'm such a fan!"

Rumi shifts in her seat, though not exactly uncomfortable. Maybe just a little bashful. She lays her braid over her shoulder and fiddles with the ends of her hair. "You've seen my covers? That's..."

Mira gasps, finally realizing where she recognized her. Celine brings her with her in awards shows and has her perform in her concerts and showcases sometimes. Outside of that, she releases song covers on youtube. "You're Aurora — I mean... You're Ryu Miyeong's daughter."

Rumi becomes even more subdued. Mira can practically see the walls pull up around her.

"I love your covers!" Zoey says, either unaware or unbothered by Rumi's withdrawn behavior. "Your voice is. To. Die. For! You've got insane lung capacity by the way. How were you able to fight all those monsters without missing a note? I mean, I'd ask why, too. But, you know... Actually, why did you do that?"

"Because it's what hunters do." Celine finally arrives, gesturing for them to stay in their seats as she takes the space beside Rumi. "Music drives evil away, and our voice is as mighty as any other weapon we wield."

Mira exchanges a look with Zoey before speaking. "Sunbaenim. With all due respect. What?"

Celine raises a brow and Mira nervously swallows.

"Sorry. I'm just a little confused. What in the world are you talking about?"

And that's how they find out about the demons of the underworld and the hunters that fight against them. They find out about the real identity of the Sunlight Sisters, and the hardships they faced trying to keep the Honmoon intact after one of their members passed away.

"I will need to retire soon," Celine says. "Rumi has long started her training to lead the next generation, but she still needs two more hunters to complete her team."

Mira has a feeling she knows who the remaining two hunters are supposed to be. And it looks like Zoey does too.

"Us?" Zoey says with astonishment. "You want us to do all that?" She nervously bites her lip. "Facing those monsters is hard enough. Belting a note while we dance is hard enough. You want us to do those at the same time?"

"I know it sounds difficult," Celine says.

Mira crosses her arms and grumbles. "That's an understatement."

Celine sharply exhales. "But this isn't the same as simply becoming an idol. This isn't for the fame or the money or the charts. You do this job for the sake of the souls these demons are about to take. If you don't do your duty, many lives would perish."

Mira bristles. "How are you so sure it's supposed to be us?"

"You see it, don't you? You see the Honmoon and the demons."

Mira pinches the bridge of her nose. "I don't know what I've been seeing."

"Why only now?" Zoey asks. "How come we've only been seeing all these weird stuff now?"

"Performing in front of such a wide range of audience woke up the power inside you," Celine says. "The masses' feelings over your voice is what powers you and the Honmoon. As you performed on international television for the first time, your powers started to grow. The more the people love your songs, the stronger you become."

"But we didn't even make it through the top," Mira says. "If popularity is what you need, just get one of those girls! How are we supposed to 'power the Honmoon' if there aren't enough people who like us?"

"Numbers aren't everything, Choi Mira. I've seen how the audience's feelings for the both of you affected the Honmoon. You are both meant for this."

Mira stands. She can't take it anymore. "I want to go home."

Celine leans back and sighs. "Very well. Rumi. Take them to the car. The driver is already there waiting."

The walk out of Celine's house is awkward and quiet the whole time. Zoey keeps herself close to Mira while Mira keeps a cautious eye on Rumi. But Rumi doesn't do anything suspicious and simply does as she's told. Just as they finally get to the garage, Rumi finally speaks.

"For what it's worth, I voted for you."

It isn't worth much. Mira still wasn't able to make it. But she feels a warmth of appreciation all the same. She can tell that Zoey feels the same way.

"Which one?" Mira asks with a smirk. "Which one of us did you vote?"

Rumi blinks. For the first time since Mira has seen her, she finally smiles. It's a small gesture, yet still beautiful. "Both of you, of course." She giggles. "I had to make separate emails to vote for Choi Mira and Bae Zoey."

"If we don't become hunters..." Zoey says, "... Will you still fight them? All alone?"

"I already do," is all Rumi replies with before bidding them farewell.

On the car ride back, Mira and Zoey stay close enough to have their arms pressed against each other. It's rare for Zoey to be quiet so long when they're together, but Mira supposes she's thinking about the same things Mira is right now.

"I think I'm going to do it," Zoey eventually says. "Achieving my dream while I get to protect people doesn't seem like such a bad deal. I get to actually be cool and badass instead of just looking the part."

Mira thinks back to the way Zoey tried to protect her multiple times tonight. "You already are cool and badass."

"How about you? Do you want to do it, too?"

What does Mira want?

She looks at the bandaid plastered on Zoey's left cheek. If Zoey wants to go through with this, she'll be getting a lot worse than that in due time. Even Rumi, who has apparently been doing this for a few years, got her own scrapes and bruises from tonight. She can't just leave Zoey alone to do all of that. She can't just let Rumi do it by herself either.

She can't.

She doesn't want to.

Mira crosses her arms and shoots Zoey a smile. "I did promise to debut with you, didn't I?"