Elias stared at the gate.
Then at the house behind it.
Then back at the girl still holding his sleeve like this was a done deal.
"…Right," he said.
Momo beamed. "You're funny."
He wasn't trying to be.
The gate slid open without a sound.
Automatic door??
That felt worse.
He took one step inside and immediately clocked three things.
First: space. Too much of it. Wide stone paths, trimmed hedges, open air that felt curated instead of natural.
Second: quiet. Not empty. Controlled. The kind of quiet that came from sound being managed, not absent.
Third: people. Not many, but enough. Adults in neat clothes that weren't uniforms but might as well have been. Calm eyes. Good posture. Awareness without staring.
"Come on!" Momo said, tugging again. "I'll show you my room!"
He let himself be pulled.
Every instinct said don't, which usually meant do it carefully.
Inside, the house was… polite.
That was the best word for it.
Wide halls. Soft lighting. Floors that didn't creak. Walls that held art without screaming about how expensive it was. Everything felt sturdy in a way that didn't invite questions.
Elias shortened his steps. Let his arms swing wrong. Let himself trip once on purpose.
Momo didn't notice. She was already talking again.
"My mom says I shouldn't run but I do anyway and she says 'Momo' like this—" She pitched her voice lower. "'Mooomo.' It's funny."
Elias nodded at the right moments.
"Uh-huh."
Footsteps echoed from the hall behind them.
Calm. Even. Unhurried.
Momo froze.
"…Oh."
Elias looked up.
A woman stood a few steps away, posture relaxed, hands folded loosely in front of her. She had Momo's face, just sharper. Smarter. The kind of presence that didn't raise its voice because it didn't need to.
"Momo," she said gently. "You ran off again."
"Sorry!" Momo said, immediately turning around. "But I made a friend!"
The woman's eyes shifted to Elias.
Not down. Not dismissive.
Straight to him.
"Hello," she said. "I don't think we've met."
Elias straightened a little. Just enough.
"H-Hello," he said. "I'm Elias."
"Elias," she repeated, tasting the name. "That's a nice name."
She crouched slightly so they were closer to eye level.
"You live nearby, don't you?" she asked. "I could've sworn I saw you earlier this week."
Elias hesitated for half a second.
Momo stepped in front of him.
"Mom," she said, pouting. "Don't question my friend too much."
"I'm not interrogating him," her mother replied, amused.
"Yes you are," Momo said confidently.
The woman smiled, then looked back at Elias.
"Sorry about that," she said. "Momo gets… protective."
"It's okay," Elias said quickly. "We just moved here."
Ah.
That did it.
"I thought so," the woman said. "You're from the family that moved in recently, right? A few houses down."
"Yes, ma'am."
She nodded once. Filed away.
"And your parents know you're here?"
Elias nodded again. "Yes."
That wasn't a lie. Just not a detailed truth.
"Good," she said. "Then you're welcome to stay."
Momo grinned like she'd won something.
"See?" she said. "He's my friend."
Her mother chuckled softly. "Alright, alright."
She stood back up.
"But no running," she added, looking directly at Momo.
"Okay," Momo said immediately, then whispered to Elias, "I'll only run a little."
Elias blinked.
"…Cool."
The woman turned to leave, then paused.
"Oh," she said, glancing back. "I'm Yaoyorozu. Momo's mother."
"I'm Elias," he said again.
"I know," she replied with a smile. "You already told me."
She left them alone.
Elias let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.
Inside his head, Abraxas spoke.
"Wow… that woman was pretty interrogative," it said.
"She seems very protective of her daughter. Against a rogue kid like you."
Elias blinked.
"…Rogue?"
There was a pause.
Then, inside his head—
"Hm."
That was it.
"…That's all you've got?" Elias thought.
No answer.
He glanced around the hallway, half-expecting commentary.
Nothing.
"…nice," he muttered.
Momo tugged his sleeve again. "C'mon!"
And just like that, the moment passed.
The rest of the afternoon blurred together.
Elias followed Momo around.
A lot.
She showed him her room. Then her other room. Then the room she wasn't supposed to go into but did anyway. She talked the entire time. About toys. About school. About things she wanted to make "when she was older." About nothing. About everything.
He listened. Nodded. Said "yeah" and "cool" at the right times.
Sometimes she dragged him along faster than his short legs wanted to go. Sometimes she ran ahead, then doubled back when she realized he wasn't behind her anymore.
"Why do you walk so slow?" she asked once.
"I'm thinking," he said.
She accepted that immediately.
They sat on the floor at one point while she pulled out boxes of neatly organized supplies. Papers. Tools. Things that probably cost more than his entire room back home.
She tried to explain what she wanted to build.
He didn't understand most of it.
He nodded anyway.
At some point, someone brought snacks.
Momo talked with her mouth full.
Elias ate quietly.
By the time the light coming through the windows started turning orange, Elias realized how tired he was.
Not physically.
Just… full.
Momo finally slowed down when the sun dipped low enough to cast long shadows across the floor.
She sat beside him, swinging her legs.
"…It's getting late," she said, almost reluctantly.
"Yeah," Elias replied. "I should probably go."
She looked at him for a second, then nodded.
"Okay. You can come again tomorrow."
That wasn't a question.
Elias stood, brushing dust off his clothes.
"Sure," he said. "Maybe."
That seemed to satisfy her.
As he walked toward the gate, the sky darkening overhead, Abraxas finally spoke again.
"You survived kid" it said lightly.
"…High praise."