They wandered down the hallway, still without meeting another soul. The path eventually led to a massive opening with escalators and stairs. They hadn't realized they'd been on the upper floor.

"C'mon!" Fumi dragged Tsukiko onto an escalator.

They looked around and spotted many more shops, but they were all still empty. Still, a sign pointing to a food court seemed promising.

The food court was similarly empty. There was fresh made food waiting for them. A bakery had fresh bread, and a ramen shop seemed to have dozens of bowls, lined up and ready for them.

"Let's take a break." Tsuki slowed down.

"Why?" Fumi pouted.

"I'm getting hungry just looking at this stuff." Tsuki rubbed her stomach.

Tsukiko led Fumi to a small burger shop. A bell on the door rang as they entered. Like all the other places, this restaurant had food waiting for them on the counter.

"Burgers?" Fumi grabbed one and looked at it.

"What? I like 'em." Tsukiko grabbed one and dug through it to pull out the pickles.

"I don’t even know why they put those in." Fumiko laughed.

"Some people like ‘em, I guess."

Fumi took the bun off of her burger. "Well yeah, pickles are edible, but they’re still god awful."

"Yeah, they're too damn sour." Tsuki took a bite of a cheeseburger.

Fumi sat down next to her and laid her head on her knight's shoulder. "You’re too sweet."

Tsukiko's mouth curled into a small smile. "Heh."

"You said such sweet things last night, too." Fumi teased.

"Yeah… I was… emotional." Tsuki’s face went red.

"Barely awake, too." Fumi nudged her.

"Can you blame me?" Tsuki took another bite.

"I'm just glad you're doing better now." Fumi sat back up.

Fumiko grabbed a plate of fries and started eating them one by one.

"I meant what I said, Fumi." Tsuki muttered.

"I know you did." Fumi took a bite of her burger.

"Huh?"

Fumi turned toward her, still chewing. "You're more honest when you're out of it."

"Am I?" Tsuki chuckled

"Lying’s hard when you can't think straight." Fumi laughed.

They ate for a while in comforting silence. The food was all fresh and delicious. There seemed to be no way for this to be possible. Still, questioning it felt like it would spoil the fun.

"Y'know." Fumi looked down at herself. "I was thinking earlier of getting a new look, y'know?"

"Ask Aurelia."

"Nah, I don't wanna change it just yet. You bought me this jacket, remember?"

Tsuki turned to look at the now rather worn olive green jacket. It wasn't exactly the right size, a bit too big. The fabric was thin and it had a single breast pocket.

She hadn't stopped to look at Fumiko in a while. She had always loved to show off her legs. Dark tights with spandex shorts. They led down into brown boots made her look at least somewhat classy.

Her top half was definitely more casual. The jacket only ever loosely covered what she was wearing underneath. She almost always wore a deep red ribbed sweater underneath. Only during the hot season would she switch to just a blouse or t-shirt.

"You gonna keep starin' all day? Or are you gonna finally reach out and touch me?" Fumiko laughed.

"I just haven't taken a good look at you in a while, that's all." Tsuki looked away.

Fumi put one hand on Tsukiko's other cheek and pulled her over so that her face was close to Tsuki’s. "Take a closer look then."

Tsukiko stared into Fumi’s greenish, ocean blue eyes. Her own started darting around and her face turned red. Fumiko's hair was brown, messy, and just an inch or two above her shoulders.

Fumiko held Tsuki there for a few excruciating seconds.

Fumi he let her hand slip and she broke into laughter. "You should've seen the look on your face!"

Tsuki muttered. "It's not that funny…"

Fumi wrapped her arm around the Knight. "Don't act like you didn't enjoy it."

The Knight kept her head down in embarrassment.

"On a more serious note." Fumi put a hand on Tsukiko's shoulder. "What happened yesterday?"

"I thought I told you." Tsuki spoke after regaining her composure.

"You did, but… You got all emotional last night, and… Well, I'm a little worried." Fumi had a look of genuine concern on her face.

Tsukiko closed her eyes and smiled. "Worried about what?"

"Worried about your head."

Tsukiko folded her arms on the counter, and laid her head down. "My head?"

"You just kinda… accepted all this. My head's still reeling from the whole Madame Jeanne and Aurelia thing." Fumi put a hand on Tsukiko’s shoulder.

"And?"

Fumi sighed. "I don't wanna find out you went crazy out there or something."

Tsuki yawned. "You’d know by now if I’d gone crazy."

"Real funny." Fumi crossed her arms.

"Listen, Fumi." Tsuki sat up straight, grabbing another burger. "What happens behind these doors, stays behind these doors."

"Huh?"

Tsuki turned to Fumi. "I realized something when I saw that girl, y'know. None of this matters in the long run, does it?"

"Uhh…" Fumi looked as if she was about to speak, but decided not to.

Tsukiko cleared her throat before speaking. "Don't look at me like that. I mean, no matter what magic shit's getting tossed my way, I still have you. Inside a door, in France, in Spain, in Tokyo, hell, even here. I said I was gonna find that guy, and I'm doing my best."

Fumiko leaned over to get a bit closer to Tsuki. "Well, if I’m the only thing that matters, what’s gonna happen if I get hurt? What if you get hurt?"

Tsuki shook her head. "You’re not gonna get hurt. If I get hurt, I’ll figure something out, like always. No matter what, though, I’ll do everything I can to protect you"

"But…"

Tsuki leaned back, stretching her arms out. "Don't think about it too much, alright?"

Fumi looked a little disappointed. "Yeah, I guess…"

"People are tougher than you’d think Fumi. After all, you saw what happened to Lily."

"Wait what?" Fumi jumped.

"They didn’t tell you?" Tsuki paused for a moment. "Some bastards lit her on fire."

"Is she okay?" Fumi’s eyes widened.

Tsuki paused again before speaking. "Not a scratch on her. Even her hair didn't get burned. Clothes got ruined though."

"Really?" Fumi’s face only grew more worried.

"Yeah, it’s weird. I’ve been trying to forget about it, but whenever I think about it, I get really confused and worried. All’s well that ends well, right?" Tsuki spoke with little confidence.

"I told you, you needed this break, Tsuki." Fumi scolded.

Tsukiko smiled. "Yeah, you're right."

"And Haruka?" Fumi asked.

"What about her?" Tsuki yawned again.

"You think she's alright?" Fumi spoke vaguely.

Tsuki shrugged. "She looks fine to me."

"Oh well." Fumi sighed. "I guess it’s like you said, All’s well that ends well."

"Not much has changed, really. Other than us meeting that Madame Aurelia lady."

"She kinda bothers me." Fumiko spoke quietly, as if to avoid being overheard.

Tsuki laughed. "I thought you were a repeat customer!"

"Yeah, but… This is all new to me. She knows everything. How the hell did she know your measurements? or Lily's?" Fumi spoke in a loud whisper.

Tsukiko reached over for a milkshake. "Lily's?"

"Oh, uhh… Aurelia made her a new dress and everything. She didn't even measure her, she just knew!" Fumi’s voice gradually went back to normal volume.

"Maybe someone else measured her? Maybe Haruka measured me? I thought I was supposed to be the crazy one." Tsuki shoved Fumi weakly.

"…you're right." Fumiko looked down, embarrassed.

"Wait, holy shit…" Tsuki looked out the door.

"What? What is it?"

Tsuki stood up and walked toward the door, squinting. "Never thought I’d see one of these in a mall."

Before Fumiko could react, Tsuki was already out the door

Tsukiko led Fumi through an outside part of the mall. The sky was a perfect blue, and there were planters with palms. Fumiko looked out into the distance and saw nothing.

No mountains or cities. It was just a blue expanse into the distant horizon. Of course, she didn't have a lot of time before she was shoved into a new place.

Fumi had been dragged inside of a fancy bar, with colored bottles and dimmed lights. It was an old school bar, with large taps and red stools.

The lights weren't dim, but their gentle shades of orange and yellow left the place looking a little dark.. There was a musky scent of alcohol, perfume and old wood that wafted through the air.

The bar itself was completely stocked. It had not only liquor, but also with any ingredients for mixed drinks. Bottles of seltzer water and syrups sat alongside absinthe, whisky, bourbon and vodka.

The bottles were all made up of differently colored, beautiful glass work. They all sparkled in the dim lighting, giving the dark room some much needed color.

"This is my gift to you, Miss Nakano." Tsuki spoke in a strange, forced dialect, as she guided Fumi to a stool by the bar.

Fumi groaned. "Don’t steal my lines, damnit."

Tsuki hopped over the counter to man the bar. "Lighten up."

"You'd better not get trashed again." Fumi complained.

"I know what I’m doing." Tsuki laughed as she crouched down to look under the counter.

Tsuki pulled up a bottle of whiskey and inspected it for a second, before shrugging and pouring it into a glass. She held another glass under a tap, and poured a tiny amount of water in it. She then poured a few of those drops of water into the glass of whiskey.

"Yeah, I don't know what the hell you're doing right now." Fumi leaned forward.

"Yeah, yeah." Tsukiko took a sip before coughing it back up. "What the hell?"

"What happened?" Fumi grabbed the bottle and inspected it.

"I knew it tasted familiar! They lit Lily on fire with alcohol!" Tsuki slammed her hands on the counter.

"…what the hell, man?" Fumi frowned.

Tsuki planted both hands on the counter and stared down at the wood grain. She stared for a while before she downed the rest of the glass.

"Mmm, yeah, that’s good…"

"Really?" Fumi rolled her eyes.

"I wanna drink away my sorrow." Tsuki grabbed the bottle out of Fumi’s hand.

"Lily’s okay. I thought you said all’s well that ends well!" Fumi complained.

Tsukiko started to pour the whiskey out into a glass. She gave up, grabbing the bottle to drink straight out of it.

"If you're gonna drink, at least be decent about it, Tsuki." Fumi looked angry.

"Fuck off." Tsuki said while gasping for air.

"It's noon and you're getting hammered." Fumi’s eyes judged Tsuki harashly.

"It isn't noon!" Tsuki said after she got the last few drops out of the bottle.

Fumi looked out the window and saw the orange glow of a sunset. "How’d it get so late? We’ve only been here for like five minutes!"

Fumi looked back to see Tsukiko taking a swig out of another expensive looking bottle.

"Alright, that's enough." Fumi reached over and pulled the liquor out of Tsukiko's hand.

"That last bottle was rough." Tsuki coughed.

"You give Haruka and your Dad so much shit for drinking, but here you are chugging hard liquor."

"It's for my demons." Tsuki slurred.

Fumi narrowed her eyes. "Are you already-- never mind, just don't get too sloshed, alright?"

Tsukiko coughed. "Nnnnnno, I'm not gonna drink no more."

"Good." Fumi crossed her arms.

Fumi looked somewhat annoyed. Her lips curled ever so slightly, showing that she was holding back laughter.

Tsuki smiled with sharp teeth. "Y'know I can handle my liquor better than that, don't you, darling?"

"Oh christ…" Fumi shook her head.

"You even wore the little red sweater I picked out for you, didn't you?" Tsuki’s face was flushed.

"You just noticed?"

Tsuki hid her eyes under her hat. "Of course I noticed, Madame. How could I not help but admire your body?"

"You're a weird drunk, you know that?" Fumi chuckled.

"Why don't you drink too?" Tsuki laughed.

"Cuz I don’t stumble back through those doors. First impressions, Tsuki!" Fumi scolded Tsukiko again.

"Live a little, slut." Tsuki’s smile faded.

"What was that?" Fumi glared.

"I called you a slut." Tsuki laughed to herself.

"Don't call me a slut."

Tsukiko leaned over the counter. "I bet you've been undressing me in your mind this whole time, haven't you?"

Fumi turned red. "No, I haven’t."

Tsuki clapped. "You don't like it when I do it, do you?"

"Damnit, you always know how to push my buttons." Fumi whined.

"You're pushing my buttons! Wearin those short ass… shorts and that tight sweater…" Tsuki slurred.

"Again, you bought it for me." Fumi hid her face.

"Yeah, well, fuck me. I'm too good at this fashion thing." Tsuki tugged at her collar.

"You're turning into Haruka at this point." Fumi groaned.

"No, I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"Fuck off!" Tsuki swung her arm down in anger.

Fumi broke into laughter. "Christ, you're absolutely trashed right now!"

Tsuki hopped over the counter again, stumbling on the way down. "I'm not that drunk! See?"

"Nice jump, idiot!" Fumi started laughing so hard she couldn’t breathe.

"You're mean…" Tsuki shook her head.

Fumiko smiled. "Nah, just having my fun too."

"Well, you’re the one always teasing me, so it’s time for me to flip the tables!" Tsuki shouted.

"How?"

"You'll see…": she sat down next to Fumiko and tore off her olive coat.

"What’re you doing?" Fumi fidgeted.

"I just wanna spend some quality time with you. That jacket's been weighing you down." Tsukiko planted a hand on the girl's shoulder.

Fumi relented as Tsuki slipped the jacket off. "Ugh, fine. What else're you gonna take off?"

"Nothing. It would be a shame to get rid of that sweater if you look so damn good in it." Tsuki smiled.

"Stop."

"Nnnnnno."

"Aren't we supposed to talk about important stuff? All this stuff that’s been going on, it’s--"

"…but I'm too drunk to talk about that." Tsuki mumbled.

"You weren't ten minutes ago!" Fumi pouted.

Tsukiko sighed and rested her hand on the girl's leg. "How often do we get to spend time with just the two of us?"

Fumiko leaned back and let Tsukiko’s hand explore her thigh. "Fine, fine. I know it’s been a while, but--"

Tsukiko's hand squeezed. "See? That's more like it."

"You’ve turned into a real pervert." Fumi sighed.

Tsuki mocked her voice. "You’ve turned into a real hypocrite."

"I'll give you that one." Fumiko chuckled.

They both silently for a while, as Tsuki rubbed and squeezed Fumi’s leg.

"Goddamn, you're beautiful." Tsuki suddenly remarked.

Whether it was the alcohol or not, the girl next to her looked beautiful. Her blue eyes looked as deep as the ocean. The lights made her complexion perfect and her skin looked unblemished. The slight smile on her face made Tsuki's heart melt.

Fumi's deep red sweater was just tight enough to show a nice, fit body underneath. The black shorts and pantyhose left little to the imagination.

The way her big brown boots hung under the barstool made Tsukiko want to lift her up. She wanted to pick Fumi up like her bride and carry her off to the sunset.

"Huh?" Fumi was caught off guard.

"I feel like the luckiest girl in the world." Tsuki spoke quietly.

"Oh, thanks." Fumi blushed.

"I mean that."

"Yeah, you're too honest when you're drunk."

"It's not my fault you're so pretty when I'm drunk." Tsuki slurred again.

Fumiko pouted. "So I only look pretty when you're drunk?"

"You know I don't mean that!" Tsuki took back her words immediately.

Fumi shook her head. "I know, I just don't wanna be the only one being messed with tonight."

Tsuki put her head on Fumiko's shoulder. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"I thought I was gonna lose you, but here we are. It made me realize how much you mean to me." Tsukiko's spoke clearly.

"That's surprisingly coherent for a drunk." Fumi mocked.

Tsuki wrapped her arms around her love. "You're amazing, Fumi. You're the best girl in the world."

"Where's this even coming from?" Fumi smiled.

"I dunno… Maybe it's cuz I'm drunk, and the mood seems right, and…" Tsuki trailed off.

Fumiko pulled off Tsuki's hat.

Fumi's hand rubbing the top of her head. "Trying to act all tough, but deep down you're so innocent".

"guhhhhh, I love when you do thaaaat." Tsuki writhed around in pleasure.

"Do what?" Fumi rubbed in circles.

"Why do I like this so muuuuuuch?" Tsuki moved her head closer to Fumi, like a dog trying to get its owner to pet it.

"Who knows? It's fun though. Your hair's so soft." Fumi ran her fingers through the Knight's hair.

They sat like this for a while, Tsukiko writhing around like a happy puppy getting its belly rubbed. It truly was her greatest weakness.

Though, she was probably weaker to it as a side effect of chugging an entire bottle of liquor. Still, even sober, she loved when Fumiko showed her affection like this. She shut her eyes as a smile widened across her face.

"It's kinda weird how much you enjoy this." Fumi pulled away her hand.

"Why'd you stop?" Tsuki sat back up.

"Cuz you looked like you were about to start drooling."

"No, I wasn't." The smile on Tsuki's face turned into a frown.

"Too bad." Fumi stuck her tongue out.

"Okay, fine, just a little…"

"Too much." Fumi scolded her.

"Can you blame me, I was in heaven for a second there." Tsuki had no real filter when she was drunk.

"I don't get it."

"It's like this."

Tsukiko moved her head close to Fumiko's. She started planting light kisses along her neck and collar. She struggled against Tsuki’s affection.

Tsuki eventually pulled back.

"I didn't tell you to stop." Fumi turned red.

"That's what I thought." The black haired girl laughed.

"Damnit." Fumi sighed.

Fumi looked out the window, and Tsuki followed. Through a window, they noticed a grey sky with droplets of rain sliding down the pane.

"Guess we aren't leaving anytime soon." Fumi yawned.

"Is that such a bad thing?"

"Of course not." Fumi smiled.

Tsukiko moved in close. "What're we waiting for, then?"

"What do you mean?"

Tsukiko put her hands on Fumi’s waist. "I said I was gonna shut you up."

"Huh?"

Tsukiko dragged Fumi off the stool and onto the ground. She positioned herself over Fumi with a huge sharp toothed grin on her face.

"W-what? Here?" Fumi looked up at Tsukiko.

"Yeah, why not? Not like anyone's gonna find us." Tsuki spoke casually.

"It’s still weird, y’know!"

Tsuki got lower, putting her face inches away from Fumi’s. "Consider it payback."

"Payback for what?"

"This time, I’m the one in control." Tsuki grinned.

"What if we get caught?" Fumi’s voice was less fearful.

"It’s empty out there. Besides, I don’t care if someone sees us. The only thing I want right now is you." Tsuki leaned forward to kiss Fumi.