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Despite what it may seem, Mumei is attentive. Big owl eyes were made to see, to observe, to learn.
She is the Guardian of Civilization, after all. Humanity is all about knowledge.
When Fauna is happy, trees sway contently in the breeze. Flowers bloom in a heartbeat, followed by busy bees. You can clearly hear the chirp of the birds. Clouds run freely in the sky. Leaves occasionally fall by your feet as if saying "hello!". It's inviting. It's comforting.
Nature lives. Guided by it's Mother's smile.
And Mumei takes notice. It makes her want to take deep breaths in the fresh air.
They walk hand in hand through the park. Mumei finds it amusing how Fauna does not leave a single piece of grass out of place, as they walk in the greenery. She looks at her own feet, curious. Her dirty boots did the opposite.
"Ah", she reacts. It's stained.
"Ah", Fauna imitates, not even aware of it. She stops behind Mumei, looking over the girl's shoulder to her feet. "What are we looking at?"
The trees follow Fauna's lead. The leaves are curious. Their ruffling softly chants questions in the air.
"Is that why you walk barefoot, Fauna?"
"So I don't leave mud on the grass?", Fauna giggles. It echoes in the breeze.
Mumei wants to fly in it - persue it. Smiling, "Something like that", she says instead. She kicks her legs, but otherwise stays in place, not wanting to cause any more damage.
"I don't need shoes", Fauna affirms. With a flick of her hand, she removes Mumei's muddied footprints from the grass. The mud gets carried away in tiny particles. "Do you need-"
Mumei isn't listening anymore. There's a glint in her eyes. "Can you do that with blood too?"
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Stars twinkle brightly when Sana is happy. It's as if they're chirping. They glow in harmony, to a soundless song. The whole atmosphere feels just a bit more airy. For someone as big as her, Sana's happiness is strangely shown in details.
Mumei wonders how much it actually affects the planet's gravity. She feels as if she could float, sometimes, when near the Speaker of Space.
She wonders. If it affects the Earth like this, then it must affect other planets to. Other systems. Other galaxies. Other universes. Cause Sana is everything one could imagine.
But that's not something she could observe with her own eyes. And yet, she wants to.
They're in the roof of the house all five of them share on Earth, observing the sky. It's that weird time of the day, where it's not actually night yet, but could be at any minute. They sit, side by side.
To Sana, Mumei's frown is loud.
To Mumei, the sky without starts looks empty. She can't stand it. It's not right.
Sana shifts positions, and puts herself behind her companion for the night, pulling the owl into her lap and hugging her from behind.
"What is it?", she asks.
Moments like these, Mumei finds herself in a giant paradox. Looking at the sky makes her feel small under the vastness of space. But being hugged by Space herself is the safest she's ever felt.
"I wish there were stars during the day. So I could appreciate you more"
Sana squeaks. "Meimei!", she expresses, hiding her face on the smaller girl's neck.
"What?"
Sana breathes. "The sun is a star too, you know"
"Oh. I forgot"
It fits. Mumei's frown disappears completely.
The sun burns just a bit brighter before setting completely.
The glint of the stars is it's substitute. They shine and dance under Mumei's attentive eyes. Even with all of the city's air pollution.
She feels Space smile against her neck.
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Do you know those moments when you feel as if time passes by super fast? When you blink your eyes and then suddenly four hours have passed? When you look out the window only to realize the sun has already left, and the moon has somehow taken it's place?
And it just seems too early. Way too early.
That happens when Kronii is happy. It's a direct consequence. Hours turn into minutes. Minutes are seconds.
Mumei can't exactly describe examples in details. Most times, it's because she does not remember them. But she recognizes the feeling.
It's when they're watching television in the dead of the night, and Kronii's unimpressed remarks are funnier than any comedy movie. When they're grocery shopping together, and she somehow convinces Kronii of racing with the shopping carts. When they're playing around with Animal, and it keeps making those squeaky sounds after every jump.
More often than not, it's something as simple as existing together in the kitchen during the mornings. And then suddenly it's afternoon.
Mumei can pinpoint when it starts. And when it ends. The middle passes by fast, though. Way too fast. It's blurry.
But she knows. When it ends, and time flows normal again, she knows. She feels it in her chest. It's warm. It always leaves her grinning. It's a sudden realization, you see. Kronii is happy. So am I.
There are some Council meetings that passes by in six minutes. And at the end, Fauna giggles. Bae smirks. Sana grins. Mumei squeaks in her seat, realization sinking in.
The four of them look at Kronii, with the fondliest of expressions. She is blushing.
"Not a word", she declares.
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Bae's case is weirder. It's not in details, like Sana and Fauna. It's not a feeling, like Kronii.
There's no understanding chaos. If you understand it, then it's not chaos - it's organization. And that's not what that rat is all about.
When Mumei tries to understand her, suddenly her thoughts go to the opposite direction. It's like thinking about triangles, getting lost in it, and then you catch yourself making banana bread at three in the morning. Happened before.
So, she doesn't. Chaos is chaos.
They are in the Council's meeting room. Mumei is studying History. She forgot where she put the fleas she spent the entirety of the year of 1346 gathering.
Bae keeps her company. Which means she complains about boredom every five to seven minutes.
"Mumeeeeeei", she whines.
The Guardian looks up from her book. With a sigh, she closes it. The fleas did not get the job properly done. She's gonna have to brainstorm other ideas.
Mumei, then, takes her notebook and tears a blank page from it. She transforms it into a messed up little ball, and leaves it in the middle of the table.
Bae looks at her, unimpressed. "That won't work"
"It won't?", Mumei smiles.
"No"
It's a sudden staring content. The owl does not blink, obviously.
Bae slowly falters. The piece of paper is irresistible, they both know it.
"I hate you", she whispers, jumping into the table. She plays with it. As per the entropy law, her sharp teeth soon tears it apart.
"Do you?", Mumei thinks of triangles.
"What?", Bae jolts into a sitting position. She scoots closer to the other girl. "No, Mumei..."
"So you don't?"
"YES! I-", Bae averts her gaze, pouting. "I love you...", she whispers.
Mumei squeaks. She can't help feeling giddy when it's said bluntly like this.
Bae's entire face is as red as her hair. "Y- you guys... make me happy..."
In return, Mumei hugs her in the speed of light.
In the Agent of Chaos' case, her happiness is not shown through details, or intuition. It its shown through communication.
It's easier than it looks.
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And the truth is, Mumei might forget all about her lover's little quirks and details later. She most likely will. But she doesn't mind.
Humanity is all about repeating history, anyway. And, as the good guardian that she is, she learns again.
She observes. Learns. Forgets. Learns once more.
It's good. Mumei gets to feel it all over again, as if it's the first time. And come to the same conclusions.
And deep inside her heart, she hopes her girlfriends love her quirks just as much as she loves and seeks theirs.
