The Knights Himura

Tsukiko, Aurelia, and Lilith shared a strange moment together on a bench outside of Aurelia's shop, as she had requested. It was a nice, cool day, so none of them could really complain. Tsuki's eyes wandered up to the deep blue sky, the huge puffy clouds putting a smile on her face. She felt refreshed with each breath, the gentle beauty of the world around her giving her an odd sense of hope for the future. It was quiet, save for the usual sounds of the city off in the distance. If she focused, Tsuki could hear the sound of a passenger jet high above.

"I need more time, but I have another gift planned for you, Lilith." Aurelia looked down at Lily, who sat next to her.

Lily looked up at her with excitement. "Oh, what is it, what is it?"

"It has to be a surprise." Aurelia chuckled.

"Then surprise me right now!" Lily laughed.

Tsukiko adjusted her jacket. "How much longer do you think it'll take?"

"It has been quite some time since I have taken up such a large project. Let's see..." Aurelia spoke with some uncharacteristic uncertainty. "It should only take around two or three hours of work."

"So, you need any parts or--"

Aurelia leaned in close to Tsukiko. "No, it is fine. You really should take Miss Guillemot out somewhere. She would appreciate it."

"But what about the--"

Aurelia cut her off again. "Enjoy yourself for now, Tsukiko. You would be better off helping Lilith than you would helping me. Try to remember how you felt the last time you went through something like that."

Tsuki stopped dead in her tracks. "…you're right. Good luck with your thing, okay?"

"Enjoy yourselves." Aurelia smiled, before standing up.

Tsukiko stood up too, turning to look at Lily. "You wanna go somewhere?"

"Yeah!" Lily jumped up and grabbed Tsukiko's hand.

Tsuki turned to Aurelia. "Should I tell Haruka?"

Aurelia's smile vanished. "No, I will let her know. Today is not the time for you two to worry. Take this opportunity to relax."

"Where are we going, Tsuki?" The little girl stood next to the knight.

"I… uhh… Let's figure it out together, okay?" Tsuki stuttered.

–

Lily and Tsuki walked through the city streets, enjoying the wonderful weather together. Every few minutes, they'd stop and look up at the sky above, pointing out the shapes they saw and laughing together. Tsuki led them both to a nearby spot, an old Japanese shrine. It was empty, which was uncharacteristic for the season.

Their path through the shrine grounds was covered in shade from verdant green trees that blotted out the sun's light, leaving it as bits of light dancing on the ground. The silence here was much greater than it was in front of Aurelia's shop, with only the sound of burbling water trickling through a stone fountain cutting through.

"How've I not noticed this place before?" Tsuki sat down at a bench close to a little pond.

"Look at all the flowers!" Lily stared at them with a smile.

In the middle of it all, in a sunny gap between all the trees, the water gathered into a little pond, lily pads floating on its water carrying white and pink flowers on top of them. At the end of the pond were little bushes filled with bright red thorny roses. Fish swam quickly through the pond, their scales reflecting orange light throughout the crystal clear water. Blue wavy lines bounced off the water and projected onto the dark leaves above.

"You're too cute." Tsukiko planted her hand on the girl's head.

Lily sat down. "Can we pass by the river again later?"

"Why?"

"I need to go pick up my stuff. I don't wanna sleep there anymore." Lily declared.

"Why not?" Tsuki spoke without thinking.

Lily frowned. "Tsuki…"

"Oh…" Tsukiko frowned too.

"Look, now it's a bird." Lily pointed upward.

Tsuki looked up and squinted. "Where? Oh… yeah, it kinda looks like one."

Lily pointed up again. "And… there's a fish."

"Whoa, you're right. You're pretty good at this." Tsuki laughed.

A middle aged woman in a loose dress approached them. "Is that your daughter? She's so cute!"

"Huh?" Tsuki was caught off guard by the woman's voice.

"She's my sister!" Lily brightened up.

"I don't think so." The lady leaned forward to get a good look. "You sure?"

"Is it the hair?" Tsuki smiled.

"No, it's the eyes." The woman pointed at her own. "Siblings usually share the same eye color."

"No, really, she's my sister!" Lily assured her.

The woman sat down on the bench with them. She sat at Tsuki's left, while Lily sat on Tsuki's right.

"You seem like one of those hardworking types." The woman turned to Tsukiko. "Am I right?"

Tsuki raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"You're all dressed up like a proper business woman, but you're still taking care of a little girl, it must be rough." The woman tried to comfort her.

"Hmm. I guess." Tsuki didn't really know what to say to her.

"You don't look that old, now that I get a good look at you." The woman stared Tsuki in the face.

Tsuki looked away. "N-No, I'm still in high school."

"You a good student?" The woman asked.

Tsuki paused to think before speaking. "I just... do what I have to do. I think I fall asleep in class too much to be a good student."

"So, why the weird clothes?" The woman looked her up and down.

Tsukiko shook her head. "It's a uniform."

"Kind of a weird uniform… Aren't you kids on summer break?" The woman looked Tsukiko up and down.

"It's not a school uniform, it's--"

"I knew a girl back in high school who used to dress like you. Your eyes remind me of hers, too." The woman looked off into the distance toward the shrine.

"Where is she now?" Tsukiko looked down at her boots.

The woman tugged on her dress. "She said she had a dream that she was fighting for, but last I heard, she gave up. I don't even know why. It's a shame, I always admired her."

"Accroche toi à ton rêve!" Lily spouted some French gibberish.

"Hmm?" The woman leaned over to look at Lily.

"It means 'hold on tight to your dreams'." Lily explained.

"Ahh, so your little sister's the good student. So young, but already bilingual!" The woman smiled and clapped.

"What about you, Tsuki?" Lily tugged on her jacket.

"Ehh?" Tsuki was caught off guard.

"Do you know any languages?" Lily asked.

"Uhh, Japanese?" Tsuki answered.

The woman laughed. "No, she means foreign languages!"

"Oh, well… English is the only subject I'm good at in school." Tsuki lied.

"Oh wow! Don't be so humble, miss! Can you speak it?" The woman looked at her expectantly.

Tsuki turned to her and took a deep breath, before speaking in clear English. "Of course I can, I just don't ever need to."

"Wow! You could be a translator. Maybe one of those pretty weather girls." The woman's words had a slight teasing tone to them.

"…I mostly picked it up watching American movies as a kid." Tsuki turned red. "I'm not an expert or anything."

"It's still impressive." The woman nodded.

"It's embarrassing." Tsuki scratched her head.

"Just appreciate your own talents, miss." The woman urged her.

There was a bit of silence.

"You know, giving you a second look, you feel really familiar." The lady put a hand under her own chin. "Like I've met you before…"

Tsuki laughed weakly. "I don't think we've met."

"No, no, you do look familiar! Hmm… Maybe I'm mistaking you for someone else." The woman sighed.

"I'd recognize you, trust me." Tsuki laughed.

"Is that right? Am I really that memorable?" The woman stood up. "Well, I should get going. I'll see you again."

"Aww, goodbye." The Knight waved.

"I hope to see you again, miss." The woman waved back as she started walking away.

"Oh, the name's Himura Tsukiko, by the way!" Tsuki shouted.

"Bye!" Lily waved.

They both leaned back onto the bench.

Lily smiled. "No querías presumir?"

Tsuki closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Hey, get off my back."

Lily snickered. "Sorry!"

"Where'd you learn all that anyways." Tsuki looked Lily in the eye.

"From my parents, I guess?" Lily shrugged.

"What are you?" Tsuki asked rhetorically.

"A girl, obviously!"

"You're not an ordinary girl." Tsuki smiled.

"Why not?" Lily asked.

"I'm an ordinary girl. You're special." Tsuki held her head up high.

Lily paused to think. "I don't think you're ordinary."

After that, they both went quiet. Tsuki grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her up off the bench, and together, they both started their walk out of the shrine.

"I've got some cash, do you want anything to eat?" Tsuki held Lily by the hand as they walked down the streets.

"Hmm… I'm hungry, but…" Lily looked back and forth.

Tsuki gasped. "I know something you'll love!"

Tsukiko started walking faster, and poor Lily struggled to keep up as Tsuki nearly broke into a sprint as she ran through the street toward her goal. When she finally stopped, she'd arrived at a French style bakery, with cute furniture and a facade covered in bright, pastel colors.

"It's one of my favorite spots in town! Plus, it might remind you of your homeland, right?" Tsuki presented the restaurant to Lily proudly.

Tsukiko opened the door and what lay on the other side was familiar, but it was not what she had expected.

"Oh, hello, Miss… Oh, it's you again." The blue waitress smiled.

"What the…?" Tsukiko looked back and forth.

Somehow, the door had led to the same restaurant that she had met the doctor in.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"Goddamn Claudia." Tsuki muttered under her breath.

"What's wrong?" Lily tugged at her big sister's sleeve.

"Claudia must've switched around the door. This is somewhere completely different." Tsuki stepped inside.

"How do you know?" Lily followed.

Lily stepped further inside and turned to the big window, shocked at what she saw, Tokyo's glass and steel replaced by stone and wood, and cobbles where there was once asphalt.

"Would you please take a seat over there?" The waitress pointed to a corner table.

Tsuki grabbed a still shocked Lily by the hand and led her to the table. Lily sat down right next to her, and across from the both was an empty third chair.

"What will you be ordering today?" The waitress approached after a few moments.

"Oh… uh…" Tsuki scrambled to read through the menu.

"Don't worry, Tsuki. We'll have two of these." Lily showed the waitress something before she smiled and walked away.

"Wait, do they take our money here?" Tsuki reached into her pockets.

They sat together quietly for a short while, and before they knew it, their food arrived. First, the waitress handed them two dark, sweet smelling drinks in tall glasses. Then came the food, with a level of pomp and spectacle Tsukiko'd never seen before. Before her, on a big round plate, was a beautiful rendition of a toasted turkey sandwich, with a side of fries to the side, all perfectly salted and golden yellow. As nice as it all was, though, Tsuki feared for her wallet.

"Thank you." Lily thanked the woman before taking a bite.

"I feel so out of place here…" Tsuki sighed.

Tsukiko followed Lily's example and grabbed the sandwich off the plate.

"Where are we, Tsuki?" Lily spoke with her mouth full.

"Well… it's… uhh…" Tsuki struggled to answer before she just shrugged.

"I like it here." Lily spoke softly.

"Huh?" Tsuki tried to avoid eating for as long as she could.

"It's so pretty outside, and the food's great!" Lily took another bite of her sandwich.

"I'm a little too used to the city to appreciate this place. It's a nice town, but I feel like I'd rather be somewhere familiar, y'know?" Tsuki took another bite.

"Mmm…" Lily only paused to listen.

"I've been meaning to ask, where did you live before you stayed in Tokyo?" Tsuki spoke slowly.

Lily turned to a painting on the wall. "I'm not sure. I remember France, Belgium, Germany... We spent a few years in America, then Mexico, and we-- I ended up in Japan."

"Wow, that's impressive." Tsuki forced a happy tone of voice.

"I guess…" Lily took a bite.

"...Don't you have any relatives you're supposed to be with right now? Did you run away?" Tsuki spoke in almost a whisper.

"No." Lily shook her head as she stared at her food.

"Shouldn't you be in school?" Tsuki leaned forward.

"Already did." Lily brought the sandwich up to her mouth.

Tsukiko was a bit disturbed by her rapid fire answers.

"Can I stay with you, Tsuki?" Lily looked up at her big sister.

"I can't… I can't leave you out in the cold anymore, Lily. I just can't." Tsukiko frowned.

Lilith's face filled with warmth. It wasn't the usual big grin she gave when she was happy. There was a gentle, powerful feeling to it, like a deep feeling of contentment.

"This food is really good." Lily took another bite.

"Wait, guillemots are birds, right?" Tsuki asked.

"They live on islands, I think." Lily took a french fry off of her plate.

"That's adorable." Tsuki finally took a bite out of her own sandwich.

"Do I really look like a bird?" Lily looked up at Tsuki with curiosity.

"A little bit. It's really cute though." Tsuki took another bite.

Together, they took their time enjoying their food and conversation. The food really was good, much better than Tsuki'd expected.

"Here's the bill ma'am." The waitress slinked over while they weren't paying attention.

Tsuki leaned over and whispered to Lily. "You wouldn't happen to have any foreign money, would ya?"

Lily shook her head. "Nope."

Tsukiko sat up straight. "Well, uhh, y'see--"

A familiar voice broke through the sounds of the restaurant. "I will pay for their meal, miss."

The voice belonged to Aurelia, who was handing a crisp bill to the young waitress. "Here, keep the change. It is the least I can do."

"Thank you so much, Aurelia!" The waitress bowed her head before scurrying off.

Aurelia sat down across from them. "I am sorry for that, really."

Tsuki sighed in relief. "Oh good, I thought Claudia pulled a prank on us or something."

"No, no, this was my doing. Still, did you two enjoy the food?" Aurelia grabbed one of the last fries on Tsukiko's plate.

"Yeah!" Lily smiled.

"Then, was it really that bad?" Aurelia teased.

"It was just a bit jarring." Tsukiko groaned.

"Still, you almost cleaned your plate."

"And you still haven't really explained where this is anyways." Tsukiko put her hand on the table.

"Does it matter?" Aurelia smiled.

"Of course!" Tsuki raised her voice a bit. "...of course it matters."

Aurelia went silent, before shifting the subject. "I have made some good progress on Lilith's gift."

"If I guess, will you tell me if I'm right?" Lily looked up at the tall blonde.

"It is good that you are excited, but I think you should wait until it arrives." Aurelia shook her head.

"Don't hype it up too much, now. You might disappoint her." Tsukiko's eyes looked sharp.

"I never disappoint." Aurelia chuckled.

"You're usually ready with these things. Why's this one taking a while?" Tsuki asked.

"I am not an engineer. I need help from Claudia from time to time when it comes to working with… complex mechanical parts. Still, I prefer doing these things myself if I can." Aurelia started playing with her fingers.

"Mechanical parts?" Lily mumbled to herself.

"I hope it isn't too complicated. If you're trying to learn, maybe you should do something simple." Tsuki tapped.

"I am not totally inept. I have some experience, but these things still take time. I prefer doing things myself, especially if it is a gift." Aurelia lowered her head a bit.

"Huh…" Tsuki was caught off guard by Aurelia's somewhat sensitive response.

"Did you enjoy yourselves, at least?" Aurelia looked at Lily.

"It's always fun with you guys around!" Lily's expression made Tsuki happy.

"That is good to hear, Lily." Aurelia stood up. "Well, I really should get back to the shop. Remember to pick up Lily's things, alright?"

Tsuki blinked. "Wait, how did you--"

Aurelia was almost halfway across the restaurant by the time her eyes opened again.

–

Lily sat just a bit longer, eating up every last crumb of their meal before they thanked the server and left. The door led back to the streets of Tokyo, and it was far later than they'd anticipated. The moon had started to rise, and the opposite end of the sky'd turned a deep orange. Big crowds went up and down every street, bathed in bright lights and music, feeling as lively as any other night in Tokyo.

"C'mon, let's get to the river, Lily." Tsuki held her by the hand tight.

They continued down their path, now lit by neon signs, passing by all kinds of people. There were young couples experiencing the nightlife together for the first time, while lonely middle aged businessmen and office ladies shuffled around, looking for a good time after work. Tsuki was more worried about running into her father.

"Heyyyyy, Tsukiiiiiii." A voice called out. "C'mon, it's meee, Haruka!"

Tsukiko's drunk sister stumbled into her view, her arm wrapped around Kazuo's waist and her other arm grasping at his chests.

"What the hell?" Tsuki approached.

"C'mon, driiiink with us!" Haru stumbled.

Tsuki shook her head. "No way."

"Tsuki, I know you'd love it." Haruka's voice demanded.

"No, you're a terrible drunk, Haru." Tsuki stood strong.

"Oh my god! Jus' cuz I fuck up one tiiiiiiiime." Her voice slurred.

"Don't bring it up, please?" Tsuki pleaded.

"Don't act like it wasn't fun, you bitch." Haruka, her teeth showing.

"What the hell're you doing here, Kaz?" Tsuki turned to him.

"Haruka said she needed a drinking buddy. She seemed really down, so I tagged along. She really likes the hard stuff, huh?" Kazuo looked away, a guilty look on his face.

Tsuki frowned. "Have fun, you two..."

"Huh?" Kazuo turned back to Tsuki.

Tsuki pointed at a bag under Haru's arm. "Did she take you to a drug store?"

"Uhh… yeah." Kazuo was clueless.

"Eugh." Tsukiko shook her head. "Sorry, I can only wish you the best of luck."

"What're you--." Kazuo was interrupted by Haruka shoving her face close to his.

"C'mon, take me home, I'm sleepy!" Haruka demanded.

"But it's only--" Kaz was cut off by Haruka dragging him away through a crowd.

"Tsuki?" Lily tugged on the taller girl's coat. "Is he gonna be okay?"

Tsukiko held the girl's arm tighter. "I hope so…"

–

Eventually, Lily and Tsuki managed to push their way through all the crowds to a less populated area. There, they refocused their efforts and quickly found a path back to the little shack by the river. They snuck underneath into Lily's little shack, Tsuki taking a moment to look out to the water and see the moon's reflection on its surface.

"Where're you gonna stay now, Lily?" Tsukiko leaned against the wall next to the girl's little home. "...I'm not sure if I can take you in, but if we have to–"

"Well, I was gonna ask Aurelia." Lily started going through her things.

"You sure? You could stay with me if you want…" Tsuki frowned.

Lily seemed focused. "Is it really okay?"

"Maybe for a while…" Tsukiko wasn't as confident with her answer.

"Hold this." Lily handed Tsuki a few photographs.

Tsuki looked down at one of the photos. "Who are these people?"

The photo in Tsuki's hand had a few people standing together in front of the camera. A woman with a large sunhat stood out from the rest of them, looking quite strange in comparison to the others.

"Mom gave them to me a long time ago." Lily moved a box.

The second photograph had the same strange woman, with her arm around a familiar blonde, both of them standing under a large oak. There was a look of joy on their faces.

Tsuki felt tempted to ask. "Is this your mom? Is she standing next to Aurelia?"

Lily popped back out to look for a second. "uhh… yeah…"

The third photo she looked at had the same woman again, but this time with a young looking man at her side. The photo had faded where his face was.

Tsuki asked again. "And this is your dad?"

Again, Lily popped out to answer, before crawling back in. "I dunno, can't see his face."

Upon further analysis, there was definitely something off about all those photographs. The backgrounds were all a bit strange, all of them being taken in front of a large looking home in the middle of a big field of grass. In particular, the one that stood out the most was the one with Aurelia. Tsuki remembered seeing a similar tree, but she didn't feel right mentioning it.

Tsuki sat down on the ground. "What was your Mom like?"

"I don't remember…" Lily admitted again.

"Oh yeah, I forgot." Tsuki looked out toward the river.

"…she wasn't a bad person." Lily spoke from within the shelter.

"And your dad?"

Lily made a strange sound. "Mmm…"

"I shouldn't ask, should I?" Tsuki laughed awkwardly.

"I should be the one asking you the questions." Lily popped out with a smile.

"What do you wanna know?" Tsuki hid her face.

Lily paused to think. "I… I dunno."

Tsuki shrugged. "I'm not that interesting, y'know?"

"Why're you staring at the river?" Lily stopped moving her things for a moment.

"Cuz I can see the moon." Tsuki answered bluntly.

"And?" Lily prodded with a smile.

"I dunno. I like the moon. I remember when I was a kid, Haruka used to tell me there were rabbits up there. For like a month, people at school used to call me Bunny just to tease me." Tsuki laughed to herself.

"Is it cuz your name's Tsukiko?" Lily sat close to Tsuki.

"For a French girl, your Japanese is pretty good." Tsuki laughed.

"Am I right?" Lily smiled.

Tsuki leaned back. "My dad always told me that it was cuz I was an accident. It was a special night out, and there was a full moon, and they were still in love. Mom told me he lied, and that she named me Tsukiko as a jab toward him for always coming home late at night, piss ass drunk."

"An accident?" Lily frowned.

"Yeah, I was never supposed to be born, it just kinda happened." Tsuki felt a bit disturbed saying those words. "Unplanned pregnancy."

"I bet Haruka's happy that it happened." Lily tried to comfort Tsuki.

"I hope she's happy." Tsuki fidgeted around.

"Huh?"

"I have a lot of good stories about Haruka, but there's always been something off about her. A few months before she left, she got all sad. I hope she's okay." Tsuki stared out at the river.

Lily laid a hand on Tsuki's leg. "You can make her happy."

Tsukiko smiled back. "Y'know, Haruka knows the real reason my name is Tsukiko."

"What is it?" Lily lit up.

"My Dad's sister named me. People used to talk about the moon when they were in love, so that's what she named me after." Tsukiko spoke.

"What do you mean?" Lily sat up.

"It comes from an old book, apparently. I don't know that much about it, to be honest." Tsuki let out an awkward chuckle.

"...talking about the moon when they're in love?" Lily repeated the words, as if deep in thought.

"When I first admitted my feelings to Fumi, she said something cliche like 'The moon is beautiful, isn't it?' It was super cheesy, but… it hit me so hard that I broke down crying." Tsuki stuttered a little.

Lily asked something odd. "Why did you cry?"

"I cried cuz… well… I loved her. I was madly in love with her. I didn't expect her to love me back, y'know? I might look fearless on the outside, but I was scared." Tsuki felt her eyes water.

"Huh."

"Is that a good enough answer?" Tsuki wiped her eyes.

Lily nodded.

"Here's everything." Lily pointed to a pile.

It was a pile of mundane things and a few strange, intricate looking mechanical toys, all cleaned and protected. Another part of the pile was dedicated to survival, with a cast iron pan, utensils and pocket knife, like Lily was prepared for anything. At the top of it all was a large photo album.

"How long have you been living like this, Lily?" Tsuki grabbed the cast iron pan.

"Too long." Lily sighed.

"You seem so experienced." Tsuki put the pan back.

"Etsuko and the others taught me everything I know." Lily seemed proud of herself.

Tsuki frowned. "Hopefully, you won't need to use these skills ever again."

Lily gathered her things into a bag. "C'mon, let's go, Tsuki."

"Alright, let's get going." Tsuki helped her move her things into the bag.

As Tsukiko crawled out and got back up onto her feet, Claudia appeared next to her suddenly. Tsuki nearly jumped in shock.

Claudia held out a long object with a note attached. "This is for Lily. It is not much, but Aurelia and I hope you cherish it."

"What is it?" Lily looked up at it in wonder.

Tsuki took it out of Claudia's hands. It was a long cylindrical thing that she rolled in her hands. Claudia vanished soon after, so they'd have to figure out what it was together.

On closer inspection, it was some kind of parasol or umbrella. The handle was made of a very fine pale wood, with two silver bands near the top and bottom, more engraved silver adorning its bottom end. There was a small button on the side of the handle, and when Tsuki pressed it, the umbrella opened wide to a bright lapis lazuli blue color. On its underside, Tsuki could see the tensioned wires and metal pieces that made up its mechanism.

"It's a bit big, isn't it?" Tsukiko slowly handed the umbrella to the young girl next to her. "Are you sure you can handle this thing?

"…I love it!" Lily stared up at the bright blue fabric with a smile as she held the open umbrella above her head.