The Knights Himura

Once more, Tsukiko passed through the door and found herself in the same stone paved plaza, still across the same little fountain. She turned to where the stabbing had taken place, but there was no body, no blood, and no sobbing little girl on the ground. Her surroundings were dead silent, but the sun hung in the same spot it had before, like time had just stopped and gone backward for her. Tsukiko didn't want to think about it for too long. Instead, she tried to focus on the present.

Her eyes wandered, and after a while, she stepped over to the fountain and sat down. The scene around her felt almost perfect, like it'd been ripped out of a painting, so many wood and brick buildings, all under a perfect blue sky, nothing like the metal and glass hell of urban Tokyo.

Tsukiko got comfortable. So comfortable that she started to daydream. She closed her eyes, letting the cool air envelope her, the breeze tickling her ears. She felt a peace she'd never felt before, and as she was about to doze off, a scream startled her awake.

--

"…and you will know the-- again, Tsukiko?" Aurelia turned to her.

Tsukiko shook herself awake. "Wha- What?"

Aurelia stayed silent as Claudia tugged on Tsukiko's jacket and pointed her to the door again.

--

"Alright, I got this." Tsukiko mumbled to herself.

Tsuki sat by the fountain and watched, waiting for the man and the young girl to approach the plaza from a connecting street. On cue, the two violent drunken men appeared, and Tsukiko ran into action. She jumped toward them, her fists ready for a fight. Before she could make her move, everything went white.

--

Tsukiko came to Aurelia's shop again. Claudia held a sign this time, almost like a silent cartoon.

It was a white sheet with a message in red pen. "You didn't make it in time, sorry."

Underneath it was a little doodle.

--

Tsuki passed through with a sigh and a big frown on her face. It wasn't their death that was getting to her, but rather their fear and pain. She didn't want them to suffer over and over.

It was all her fault. Her movements were too slow, her mind unfocused. Even though she knew what was going to happen, she had still failed. Instead, Tsukiko stood by where she knew the crime would take place. She leaned against the wall of a small liquor shop and waited.

After a short while, the man and the young girl appeared, and then the drunkards. Like clockwork, the drunk men started to hassle the young man over something. Money, maybe? She could hardly understand what they were saying. Instead, Tsuki watched them closely, and waited for the men to act.

When they pulled out the knife, Tsuki moved forward, but the knife tore into her instead. It was the most excruciating pain she'd ever felt in her life, everything drained from her in an instant. As they pulled the knife back out, she fell to the ground in a heap, and she looked down and saw the blood staining her white jacket.

--

Again, she returned to the shop.

This time, Claudia's sign read differently. "Knights can't save people when they're dead."

Under it was a doodle of a robed figure holding a knife. Tsukiko tore the sheet out of Claudia's hands and crumpled it up before walking through again.

–

Tsuki sprinted through the door this time, back toward where the crime would occur, opting instead to hide herself behind some boxes. She took some time to study the man and the girl as they approached. Judging by how he carried himself, the man seemed like an important figure of some kind, though he still had some mundane quality to him. The girl, though, was strange, just a bit older than Lily but oddly quiet.

To the left, the two drunks stumbled toward the man and the girl like zombies. They walked with a wide gait, nearly falling over with each step, one of them nearly tripping over his own feet as he turned the corner.

"Goddamnit…" Tsuki muttered to herself.

Tsuki waited until the two men got into position in front of the man, then dove out and tackled one of them before everything went white.

--

"What the fuck did I do wrong?" Tsukiko groaned.

Claudia wrote on a piece of paper. "Attacking unarmed men would make you look like a lunatic."

Below this was the number thirty seven and a doodle of Fumiko and a heart.

"Thirty seven?" Tsukiko scratched her head.

Claudia held out her hand toward the door.

Haruka stumbled in, drunk. "C'mon, hurry up, ya fuckin' idiot!"

"Go away, Haru." Tsuki growled.

Haruka put on a large, cheshire smile, teeth and all.

--

"I got it!" Tsuki exclaimed, before looking around, hoping no one heard her.

Tsuki ran around the corner, looking for anywhere she could lay low and hide for a while, a local restaurant seeming to be the best candidate. She swung open its front glass door and pressed herself against the front window, her eyes glued to the street.

A woman wearing strange blue clothes approached. "Hello, hello, welcome!"

Tsukiko ignored her.

"Helloooo? Are you okay?" The woman inched closer.

Tsukiko didn't even turn to look. "Yeah, sorry, I won't be ordering anything."

The man and the girl appeared. She waited for a second, watching the, before stepping back out the door. As she approached, the two men appeared, and Tsuki shadowed them from a short distance, watching their every move.

"Watch where you're goin', man." One of the drunks bumped into the man and the girl.

"S-sorry!" The important looking man apologized.

"Sorry? That's not gonna cut it!" The drunkard raised his voice. "You coulda knocked me over, you coulda killed me!"

"Please, you'll be alright, it was just a bump!" The man lowered his head.

"Just a bump?" The drunk pulled out a razor. "What if I hit my head on the ground, eh?"

"Please stop!" The girl shouted.

Tsukiko ran forward and grabbed the drunk man's arm and twisted it. He tried to escape, but he was far too intoxicated to make any graceful movements. Tsukiko slammed him to the ground with enough force to knock him out. The other drunkard raised his hands, as if to fight her. He tried to punch her, but he stumbled forward and fell. Tsukiko brought her leg down onto his back and put her weight on him.

"The hell do you think you are, huh?" Tsuki shouted before kicking him in the side, making him writhe on the ground. "Now stay down!"

"Ehh, miss?" The girl asked.

"Oh, uhh…" Tsuki took her boot off of the drunkard's back.

The man stumbled up, leaving his still unconscious friend behind.

"Thanks. I don't even want to think about what could've happened." The important looking man lowered his head.

"D-don't worry about it. Worry about the kid who's about to bawl her eyes out." Tsuki smiled.

The man jumped, then quickly turned to the girl at his side, quickly kneeling next to her and placing his hand on her head. His presence soothed her, and she was able to force her tears back. Satisfied, Tsukiko turned and started to walk away.

The man called out to her. "Hey! Can I at least offer you a meal?"

Tsuki thought for a second before she replied. "...it would be pretty nice to try out the local food."

–

"What would you like, Miss?" The man smiled.

Tsukiko shrugged. "Surprise me, I guess. Make it cheap too, I wouldn't wanna milk you dry."

It'd been a bit awkward for Tsukiko to march right back into the restaurant she'd just left. The three of them had taken a table by the big front window and sat down, finally able to talk.

"No, no, please, we owe you our lives." The man's voice still had a bit of fear in it.

Tsuki planted her hand on the table. "Save the money, so you can keep on living. Don't worry too much about paying me back, I just wanted to see the local cuisine."

The young girl watched Tsukiko with a slight awe on her face, her eyes sparkling with joy.

The waitress approached with a strange spring in her step. "Hello! What can I get… Oh, it's you again! Are you actually ordering this time?"

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Tsuki tried to speak up, but the man ordered for her, listing off a rather long list of sweet sounding dishes. Once they were done, the woman winked at him, and disappeared with another eager bounce.

"Pancakes? Toast?" Tsuki laughed.

"Yep, it's a favorite of ours, ain't that right?" He looked at the girl.

The girl didn't say anything.

"Is she a mute?" Tsukiko leaned forward.

"A mute? No, no, not like that. She's not usually like this, just a little shy." The man turned to her.

"C'mon." Tsukiko narrowed her eyes and smiled. "You can trust me. Sorry if I scared you."

The girl's face tightened to something more serious. "Th-Thank you so much! I-I don't know what would've happened if--"

"Don't mention it." Tsuki interrupted. "It's my duty."

"S-sorry." The young girl stiffened up.

"You don't have to apologize all the time." The man assured her.

The man reached over and started rubbing the top of the girl's head. Her face turned a little red.

"Thanks." The girl looked down at the table with embarrassment.

"So..." the man leaned back in his chair. "Where are you from?"

Tsuki considered her options before shrugging.

He laughed. "You don't know?"

"I do know, I just… I don't know how to explain it. I'm not sure where I am right now, either." Tsuki hid her face.

"Do you at least know how to get home?" His face showed concern.

"…I think." Tsuki had little confidence in her answer.

Tsuki hadn't considered how she would return. The door hadn't moved, of course, being part of Aurelia's shop, but there was no real guarantee that going through that door again would take her back to the same one back in Tokyo.

"Y'know, I'm always looking for assistants. You could take some of the load off for us, learn the trade." The man made his offer.

"Trade?" Tsuki cocked her head.

He clasped his hands together, as if to look professional. "I'm a doctor."

"You look too young to be a doctor." Tsuki played with her hair.

"Ahh, well, I would alwa--" He was interrupted by the strange, smiley waitress.

As she passed around plates stacked with sweets, Tsukiko took a long hard look at the waitress. There was something off about her. Whatever it was, she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Uhhm, Miss?" The waitress waved her hand in front of Tsukiko's eyes.

"Oh, uhh… Sorry, you look... familiar." Tsuki blurted out

"Do I know you?" The waitress leaned forward on one leg to get a better look. "No, I'd remember a face like that."

The waitress left, and Tsuki could now look at the pastries before her. In front of her, a slice of chocolate cake. The man had something that looked like two pieces of bread with jam in the middle, and the young girl got the short stack of pancakes.

"Can we eat?" She looked at him.

"Of course, you don't need to ask every time." The man replied softly.

Tsukiko grabbed her fork and started poking at her slice of chocolate cake, watching it as though it might have some strange, regional twist, but it looked like any old slice of cake. She took her fork and separated a piece away from it, before shoveling it into her mouth, making just a bit of effort to do it in a modest, respectful way.

"Yeah, that's… Wow, that's amazing." Tsuki's fork went for another piece.

A hand came down on Tsukiko's shoulder. She nearly jumped out of her chair. She turned fast, but there was no one behind her. She looked forward again and saw Claudia standing outside, watching her through the window.

"Ask him about Aurelia's order. Tell him the dress is coming along nicely!" The redhead waved the sign.

"Where'd you find that jacket, Miss?" The man asked.

"Oh, this? Uhh…" Tsuki tried to come up with an answer.

"It's like nothing I've seen before, so it's definitely not a local tailor." He stared curiously.

"It's from a woman named Aurelia." Tsuki answered truthfully.

"Aurelia? Has she been holding out on me?" The man muttered under his breath. "I've been meaning to get a new coat."

The Knight paused to think before she asked. "How's her order coming through?"

"Aurelia's order?" The man paused. "Do you work for her? I've never seen you around her shop before."

"Nah, she just... asked me to look out for a young doctor with a girl." Tsuki spoke slowly. "I've only met her recently myself."

"Well, I have it in the shop, if you'd take it to her." The man took a bite of his food then spoke again. "And if you know, please tell me why she needs the other thing?"

"What other thing?" Tsuki asked.

"Doctors shouldn't share so much about their clients…" The man's head dropped in disappointment. "N-never mind…"

They sat in a mellow silence as they ate their sweets. The Himura girl ate like a savage compared to the girl sitting across from her. Tsuki enjoyed the food far too much to slow down and eat properly.

Tsuki finally paused to speak again. "She also said… The dress is coming along nicely? Does that mean anything to you?"

The smaller girl's face lit up. "Really?"

"That's what she told me to tell you." Tsuki started shoveling more food into her mouth.

The young girl tried to regain her composure. There was an odd formality to everything she did, but even with her finest manners, it was still clear just how excited she was at the news.

–

The sun went down quite a bit as they finished their food. As agreed, the man paid for the bill, then led Tsuki and the girl back to his office, which doubled as his home, the entrance to his house also being the entrance to his clinic. The front served as a sort of waiting area, with various patient rooms attached to a long hallway. At the far end was the door to their personal living space.

As Tsuki passed, she got a good look at the patient rooms, each of them being nothing more than a small room with a single bed and a night stand. Strange looking medical equipment lined the far walls.

As they entered the living space, the man stepped to the slide and flicked a switch, turning on a lightbulb, which shocked Tsuki. Judging by the look of the place, she thought she'd been taken back in time.

At a glance, their living space was quite small, with an open space with several bookcases, and a kitchen by a big window. It was enough for the man and the girl, but three made the place feel a bit crowded. Along every wall in the clinic, there was a strange dark staining near the bottom, like an uneven watercolor painting.

The man sat down in a chair and sighed. "It's already night time, huh?"

"Damn, has it really been that long?" Tsuki stood in front of him, awkwardly shifting her weight from side to side on her new heels.

The man stood up suddenly. "I should make some tea."

The girl sprang up. "No, let me!"

"Please, you know I don't like it when you work too hard." The man shook his head

"But…" the girl looked disappointed.

The doctor smiled. "If it matters to you that much, we'll do it together."

The girl's eyes sparkled with joy and she latched onto his arm, her face pressed against him.

"And please, have a seat." The man offered the chair to Tsukiko.

Tsuki hesitated for a moment, but her exhaustion took the better of her, and before long, she sank into the chair with a sigh. She could hardly move, now that she was comfortable, but she couldn't tell if it was because she'd overexerted herself, or just eaten too much cake.

"Here we are!" The young girl came out with small cups.

They both sat on the floor in front of Tsukiko.

"Nah, I can't take this seat from ya." Tsuki stood up.

"No, no, you're our guest." The man smiled.

"Exactly." Tsuki sat down with them on the cold floor.

None of them dared to show weakness or informality by sitting down in the chair.

"So, what brings you here?" The doctor took a sip of his tea.

"You invited me." Tsuki laughed.

"No, you know what I mean." The man laughed at himself.

Tsuki sat, thinking of a good answer. "Hmm."

"You don't remember?" The man prodded.

"I'm… running errands, I guess." Tsuki put her hand on her chin.

"Oh, I almost forgot." The doctor stood up and hurried off to another room.

For the moment that the man stepped away, Tsukiko was alone with the girl. She took a nice long look at her. The girl was cute, but there was a strange sort of emptiness in her eyes, with the kind of tiredness that doesn't go away with rest. She seemed to carry herself with maturity, keeping clothes clean and her hair neatly tied up. The girl didn't notice Tsukiko staring, probably from the way she'd slip into a daydream from time to time. One look and Tsuki could tell there was a lot on her mind, but she wasn't going to share with anybody.

"You like living here?" Tsukiko spoke up.

"Yes, I do." Her eyes sparkled. "I love it here."

"Are you his daughter?" Tsuki asked.

The girl shook her head. "No, he lets me stay here."

"He looks like a nice guy." Tsuki smiled.

The girl shook her head again. "He is a very kind man. He went out of his way to save me."

"From what?" Tsukiko leaned forward.

"It… doesn't matter. I'm happy, and I'll do whatever I can to repay him. I owe it to him." The girl held her hand against her chest.

Tsuki stared at her for a moment in thought, but then reached out to put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Don't let that hang over your own head."

"What do you mean?" The girl asked.

"Do what you have to. Don't feel like you owe him a thing. He does all these things for you because he cares." Tsuki looked the girl in the eye. "He wouldn't have taken you in because he felt you'd owe him anything. He took you in because he wanted you to be safe. That sounds like it's all he'd want."

"...I still have to do my best for him." The girl lowered her head.

"Then make him proud. Become someone he can admire. Become someone you admire." Tsukiko tried her best to get her idea out. "Whoever that might be."

"Someone we can admire..." The girl repeated to herself.

The man returned with a brown paper bag.

"Here." The young man handed the bag to Tsukiko. "This should be everything."

Tsuki bowed her head slightly. "Thanks, I really should get going now."

"Will we see you again?" The timid girl spoke up.

"Hmmm." Tsukiko stood up. "We'll see. I'll definitely try to come back if I can."

Tsukiko walked to the exit, and turned back to wave.

"Aren't you two being a bit dramatic?" The man laughed.

"Just roll with it." Tsukiko opened the door and passed through.

–

Tsuki appeared somewhere else, definitely back in Tokyo, but not a part of town she recognized. Behind her was another restaurant, and in front of her was another weird looking shop with a big sign that read "Fortunes" in red writing. Tsuki stepped inside.

The same strange blonde woman greeted her inside. "Welcome back, Miss Himura."

Tsuki quietly walked past her and slumped down on a chair.

"Uhhm, Tsuki?" Fumi stood in front of her, pouting.

"Sorry, I'm just…" Tsukiko yawned. "…really tired."

Haruka squeezed herself next to her sister. "Well, at least we know you know what you're doing."

"…huh?" Tsuki unconsciously leaned onto her sister to use her as a pillow.

"You walked in there, and didn't even question half this crap. You went in and did what you had to do." Haruka wrapped her arm around her sister. "You're gonna be just fine."

Haru stood up, letting Tsuki lean over onto the other seats.

"C'mon Haru, that's cruel." Fumiko sat down with Tsukiko.

Fumi slid closer, putting Tsuki's head on her lap. Her pantyhose made her legs the warmest pillows. Tsuki looked up at Fumiko, staring into her eyes.

"Geez, how tired are you?" Fumi ran her fingers through Tsuki's hair.

The black haired girl could only mumble in response before falling asleep.