The taxi ride was lot more calming in the night, which did minimally well to soothe Akeidat's nerves. The electric hum of its inner machinery brushed past their ears, as they once again checked their messages, detailing where to find Fiera.
When Fiera left this morning, letting Akeidat know that she'd be talking to her boss, they hadn't thought much of it, other than their usual distaste for the red-furred woman. Then the hours dragged on, and she hadn't been answering her phone well past 10pm.
Then, nearly an hour before the clock struck midnight, their phone began ringing. While the word at the top of it all wasn't a name, it didn't take a genius to figure out what 'Roommate' meant.
"Hello?" Akeidat had answered.
"Fffuck, didn't mean to call," Fiera's voice sounded- muffled, almost? Not in a quiet way, but loudly, as if she was smooshing the phone right by her mouth. Even still, they heard some kind of loud- something, music, perhaps, in the background, booming unforgivingly against their ears. They tried to focus on Fiera's monologue, "-Gonna be... not gonna be home for- for a while, sorry."
"What?!" Akeidat hissed into the phone with alarm, "What's going on?! Where are you??"
And then there was another voice. One that despite the noise, they had a fairly decent guess as to whom it belonged to.
"Come on!" Ms. Forte was saying, "Don't be so-" the singing had gotten louder, "-handle one more!"
"Fuck! Off!" Fiera yelled into the distance, "You're such a-"
"Am I to assume you're threatening me?"
"YOU'RE THE ONE THAT-"
There was a thud, and then all they heard next was the steady hum of a dead line. Akeidat's fur bristled with unease. They tried calling her back, to no avail. Just more ringing. Everything was cold.
Akeidat didn't know what to do. They didn't know what to do. Should they find her? They didn't know where she was. Their breathing felt quicker. What were they supposed to do? How could they help? Was she being kidnapped? Mugged? Poisoned? Dying?!
"I ca- I c-can't-" Akeidat's tail whipped around, frantically. Their heart was beating a million miles a minute. What were they supposed to do?! They needed to help her, didn't they?! They could- they could- they could-
They could call for help.
"...Darius?" They said aloud, trying to push against the fact they felt remarkably silly, "Daaariuuus! Help!"
Nothing. The chills along their back creeped in closer.
"DARIUS!" They screamed to the empty ceiling, "DARIUS! DARIUS! DARIUS! HELP ME!"
The longer the silence stretched, the more Akeidat wanted to kick something. They settled for gripping the furs on their head, instead, as they continued their cries. But no matter how loudly they bellowed against the nothing, nobody appeared. Not even the tiniest spark of light.
They considered perhaps trying to fall asleep and call for help there, from the dream, but- but there wasn't going to be enough time, was there?! Falling asleep in the first place could take forever, and what if they missed the comet?! They didn't want to be stuck in the future forever.
Then- finally, their phone had buzzed. Akeidat scrambled towards it, reading the message with a fervour that rivalled religious faith. It wasn't Fiera, but it came from her number. It detailed a name, and when Akeidat replied with their identity, a location. Finally. It was a fancy-sounding, posh name. But Akeidat didn't care, as long as they now knew it.
And so they'd scurried downstairs, wallet in paw, and hailed the first taxi that passed them by.
And that was how they found themself, biting their finger, as the vehicle drove far beyond the confines of they and Fiera's neighbourhood, all the way out to a point where the skies were the darkest they'd ever seen them, and there were more trees than buildings. Had it been any other day, they might have even found themself inspired by the scenery. Even still, they couldn't help the sting of anxiety that bubbled through their veins.
And then...
Then, at long last, they stepped off, and found Fiera sprawled on a public bench, made of wood and metal. A lone streetlamp shone orange light over her head, which was bowed down in exhaustion. They rushed towards her, and she sat up straight once she caught sight of them.
"Kei, what-?"
"YOU SCARED ME!" they cried. Fiera's wide eyes would have been a comical sight, were it not for the pounding in Akeidat's chest, as they panted, paws on their knees, catching a breath. Eventually, they wobbled out, "I thought- I thought you were getting murdered, or something-!"
"Woah, woah, hey, I..." Fiera slurred, her eyes and voice softening at their outburst. "...I'm sorry. I just- I'm just sorry for worrying you, but I couldn't work the phone, and... sorry."
Akeidat whiffed the air around her, detecting a rich, sort of... grape-like smell? The aroma was so pungent, they wrinkled their snout.
"Are you high?!" Akeidat questioned, catching her as she wobbled forwards on shaky legs. For as broad-shouldered and big as she was, Fiera was weirdly light. In response, Fiera's shoulders shook with tired laughter.
"Wha..? No, 'm just drunk," she corrected, raising a dramatic finger, "I... may have... may have had far too much wine."
"Why'd you drink so much wine, then?!" inquired Akeidat, mustering their best impression of what a worried friend should probably act like. What would Darius do? He'd ask questions, wouldn't he? "Too much is dangerous, right?"
"Mmmm... my boss," Fiera explained, vaguely, "I didn't... wanna, but she 'sisted. Didn't wanna be rude..."
"What??" Akeidat cried in abject horror, at which Fiera clutched her head, complaining about the noise.
"Sorry!" they whispered, "Sorry. But why? She can't just- force you to drink, could she?"
"Yeeeeaaaaaahhhh," Fiera drawled, "Think I... wanted to talk about raisin' my pay, or something. She wasn't.... happy about it, so I quit. She wanted... I dunno.... last hoorah, or something. Kept tellin' me to drink more, 'ven when I wanted to stop."
"Can't you sue her, or something like that?!" questioned Akeidat.
Sardonically, a cascade of wet giggles bubbled from Fiera's throat, "And how am I s'possed to get a good 'nough lawyer? With the money she didn't pay me?"
None of this sat right with Akeidat. It sounded like the kind of imaginary anti-drug commercials they'd show in school. Did those kinds of things actually happen? This had to be breaking some kind of law, wasn't it? This was- this was wrong. It was supposed to be a happy day for Fiera. A day to celebrate new beginnings and new opportunities; so why did something like this have to happen to her?
"Y'know, I just... let it happen?" she mumbled, barely audible. Akeidat stilled, angling both of their ears to listen clearly, "Just like... like I let everythin' happen..."
"I just... always do whatever everyone else wants," she lamented, apparently a lot chattier than her sober self, "'Cus that's what I'm s'possed to do, but I don't think I... ever really wanted that."
Akeidat wished they could say they didn't relate, "Sorry."
"S'not your fault," their roommate protested, stumbling backwards to hush them, "You didn't do nothin'. 'M just 'plainin' 'bout other people."
"Careful," they hissed, once again pulling her up from face-planting onto the concrete sidewalk. They didn't like the way her eyes were unfocused and glazed over, as though she wasn't looking at anything in particular, "Don't fall!"
"I JUST WANTED TO MAKE PEOPLE HAPPY!" she roared into the air, the wretched sound thundering across the empty street. Akeidat hadn't even considered her capable of roaring. When they looked closer, they could see the tears in her eyes. She knelt, paws-down, on the floor, "Why can't I make people happy?"
Now, Akeidat had never interacted with a drunk person before- not like they ever had a clear idea of what that sort of thing entailed, other than that one scene in that elephant movie, and eerie government posters warning the public about the senseless violence of alcohol abusers. But Fiera didn't look dangerous. She just looked... sad.
Perhaps it wasn't a wise decision to sit so close, but they did so, anyway. Akeidat sat on their knees. They knew that they ought to be scared; but to be honest, they weren't. They were worried for her, and furious at Ms. Forte, but they felt not an ounce of fear of Fiera. It was just this... odd sense of... calm? No, that wasn't right. Every fur on their frame was standing up with agitation.
Neutrality? No.
Maybe they'd never find a word for it.
"I know how it feels," Akeidat nodded, the words slipping out before they could stop themself, "I... my whole life, I've always wanted people to be proud of me, but for some people, it's never enough, is it?"
"No," Fiera agreed, morosely, "I... I don't think it ever will."
The crickets chirped loudly from the bushes nearby. Funny thing, that was. In the cacophony of it all, Akeidat found their thoughts wandering. Did you know that crickets chirped to find mates? A hundred, million insect voices screaming into the night, calling out, is someone there?
"S...sorry for making you drag me," their companion suddenly said, "You don't... have to."
"Yes I do," Akeidat replied, somewhat snappishly.
Fiera shook her head, stubbornly, "I can walk on my own."
"You look like your legs are made of spaghetti," Akeidat observed, and Fiera let out a laugh, bright and melodious. It sounded like a blend of the eruption of fireworks, and the singing of morning birds.
"It's just... you- you've already done a lot for me," she fired back, weakly. Her eyes were wet, "You... made things feel... real again. Fun. I don't- don't think I've ever... smiled this much in the past few days than I have in years."
The crickets were chirping louder, as the night dragged on. Here in the dark, Akeidat could see all the stars in the tapestry above. They could even see the comet, a fire trailing across the sky like a tadpole, though they averted their eyes quickly. Get Fiera to safety, first, then make their wish.
"I'm... I'm glad," they replied, still holding her steady.
"...I worry 'bout you, too, y'know?" she replied, "Even 'fore you lost your memories. I'm glad you've gained a little weight. You used to be so skinny, and..." there was an audible gulp. Akeidat wasn't fully certain who among them it belonged to, "...And I'm sorry I didn't try... actually talking to you, sooner."
"I'm sorry that I didn't, either," Akeidat sighed, "I'm so used to handling everything on my own, but... I don't know."
Maybe everything would've gone a lot better, a lot quicker, had they been less stubborn from the start. Akeidat's head scrambled at the possibilities.
"I'm... not gonna be able to say this sober," Fiera suddenly said, "But... Kei. Please, please, don't waste your life trying to always do things for other people."
Akeidat stilled, and now their heart raced for a different reason.
"That's how people like us," she gestured to herself, "End up in places like this. Not sayin' you should be all lone wolf, everyone for 'emself, but... don't forget, you matter, too."
"I..." they paused, stunned. They reached a paw to their eyes and cheeks, and when it came back down, it was wet. Akeidat sighed, quietly, then nodded, "Okay."
Then a little more confidently, they repeated, "Okay."
"You have a good- a good heart," she said, staring at them, intensely, "Don't let anyone... take advantage of it. Not even me."
"Okay, I get it!" Akeidat snarked. Fiera blinked her two eyes owlishly at them, but it seemed she was finally out of words. Then she smiled, and they returned it. They cracked a smirk at her previous nagging, "Okay, so, I'm not being the responsible one here, since I'm asking you: what do we do now?"
Fiera paused.
"First decision I make all on my own," she mused, hobbling to her hooves, "Let's... let's go home."
Akeidat snorted. Hear, hear. She wasn't going to need to tell them twice.
Eventually, after more walking, the two reached a point where the street wasn't so empty anymore. The roads were bustling with vehicles, and the sidewalk was bustling with people. They came upon a zebra crossing. On the other side, was a bus station. Nearly there.
Akeidat paused at the threshold, examining the traffic. The pedestrian lights were still red, and though it wasn't totally congested, a steady stream of vehicles were swanning across the road, left and right. It reminded them of those road-crossing games on their phone.
And then they felt fur bristle against fur.
Without warning, Fiera had moved forwards without them, hooves barely keeping her upright, as she dragged herself across the busy road. It took a moment for them to process the sight before they registered what was happening.
Wait.
"Wait, wait, wait, WAIT-!" they called amongst the beeping, their heart drumming like mad in their chest. This couldn't be happening. This could not be happening. Not to her. Not to the only friend their age they've ever had. Not to their study partner.
Fiera, oblivious, stopped in her tracks, "Wait for what?"
"No, just- just MOVE!" They called, desperately swiping their paw, gesturing for her to move to the side.
"...What'd you say?"
"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Akeidat yelled. Without another second to think, they rushed forwards.
Their hoofsteps pounded against the asphalt, as they put all the energy they had into bursting into a sprint, because a lorry was coming, and it was getting closer and Fiera wasn't moving and nobody else was doing anything and-
"GO!"
Paws met against clothing. They shoved her out of the way. When she landed, Fiera looked around, and then her eyes widened.
"WAIT-!"
And then they got hit.