Aurelia's car smoothly cut through the highway traffic, pleasantly cruising through Tokyo's streets and arriving at the corner nearest to her fortune telling shop. The comfort of familiar surroundings warmed up the melancholy in Tsuki's chest.

"Here we are." Aurelia announced with a smile. "We have arrived back in Tokyo."

"Already?" Hotaru looked out the window. "No way, it should've taken an hour or more to get back here. You must've done something strange again..."

Aurelia didn't counter the accusation.

"Huh?" Lily suddenly shuddered in her seat. "...did I fall asleep?"

"You did." Aurelia confirmed. "Comfortable?"

Lily stretched her arms out. "Mmm, yeah... Maybe I should go to bed early tonight..."

"You have been working hard recently." Aurelia nodded.

"All's well that ends well, huh?" Tsuki spoke quietly. "I'm starting to feel a little jetlagged."

"Me too." Hotaru smirked. "I just wanna get back home and relax. My legs're feelin' better, I could probably walk--"

"Hotaru." Aurelia turned around. "I want to apologize for what you went through."

"It's fine, really." Hotaru shook her head. "Honest."

"If anything, it's my fault." Tsuki sighed. "I dragged you halfway across town."

"It's fine." Hotaru insisted.

"I will not allow you to walk home in your current state." Aurelia spoke stiffly.

Hotaru was unsure how to react. "Oh, uhh..."

"I cannot allow a guest of mine to get hurt in any way." Aurelia continued. "Should you collapse... I would not forgive myself."

"...thanks." Hotaru bowed her head. "You're too kind, both of you."

Aurelia spoke again. "Tsukiko, would you do Claudia and I a favor?"

"Huh? Yeah." Tsuki perked up.

"Please, accompany Claudia back to the shop." Aurelia commanded. "I will take Lily and Hotaru home."

"Oh, right." Tsuki nodded.

With that, Tsukiko opened the door on her side and stepped out, with Claudia sliding out behind her. The trunk let out an audible pop as the latch released and it opened itself up, revealing the big roll of white fabric, as well as a few strange devices and shapes inside that Tsuki couldn't really make heads or tails of. Claudia stepped past her and grabbed the roll of white fabric, easily lifting it with just one hand.

"So it was all a trick, huh?" Tsuki glared.

Claudia looked at her, and Tsuki expected her to reply, but then realized her hand was occupied and ended up feeling a bit stupid for it. The little redhead closed the rear door and the car started rolling away, hardly making any sound. The shop wasn't very far away, only a few dozen meters or so, but it was far enough away for the Knight to accompany her anyway.

When they arrived at the front door, Claudia reached into her dress and pulled out a smooth key with no teeth, inserting it into the front door and rocking it back and forth a few times before the door opened. The redhead turned to look at Tsukiko, who was hesitant to go inside.

Claudia's scratchy voice came out. "Something's bothering you, isn't it?"

"...it's that obvious, huh?" Tsuki sighed. "You don't have to talk, it's okay, I understand."

"You know we both love you, right?" Claudia said as she stepped inside.

Tsukiko struggled to find her words. "...thanks."

Claudia closed the door behind her, leaving Tsukiko outside in the afternoon sun. Since she'd woken up early, there was still quite a bit of light left for the day, but with no clear goal in mind, she just stood there in front of the door.

Tsukiko let out a sigh, then started walking down the street, no destination in mind. Fumiko was probably busy, Haruka too. She didn't want to bother Shizuka and Sylvie was... unavailable. There was no way she was going to contact Flowers again, either.

A loud sound to her side caught her attention as she turned a corner, so she stopped and turned to look. It was an open front door to a very dimly lit arcade, with various old games and attractions lined up inside. Shizuka had told her about the place, but she'd never actually stopped to take a look.

Thinking about Sylvie was starting to get under her skin, so she stepped inside, the light of the outside completely disappearing and the sound of what felt like a thousand machines surrounding her. The music the cabinets put out combined into a hazy white noise, and dim tube displays and some weak lights in the floor were the only things cutting through the dark. The place was almost empty, save for a couple people who were far too distracted to notice a Knight Himura walking behind them.

Exploring the place a bit, Tsuki eventually found one of her old favorites, sitting in a dusty corner of the arcade. The display was starting to get dim around the edges and haphazard repairs over the years left the buttons and sticks in a random assortment of colors that clashed with the machine's aesthetics.

It was a fighting game, a much beloved classic that Tsuki'd played thousands of matches of in the past against Haruka. She wasn't a pro by any means, but she was at least good enough to finish the game in one sitting.

Tsuki picked her favorite character and began easily beating every opponent that faced her, knowing full well what they were all capable of. Everything she did, she did without thought, repetition turned into instinct after years of battle. She approached each challenge with confidence and blunt aggression.

When she finally got to the final fight, the game threw her a curveball. Her aggression backfired and each time she rushed forward, she was easily punished by her opponent, losing the first of three rounds. The next round, she played more defensively. Maybe a bit too defensively, costing her precious time and ultimately losing the second round to a timeout. As the Game Over screen appeared, she didn't put in another coin.

"Well, shit." Tsuki muttered to herself as she stepped away.

The other patrons must have finally noticed the Knight in their company, as from the corner of her eye, Tsuki realized that a few of them were watching her with great interest, even hiding themselves behind the other machines to get a better look at her.

Never able to truly get used to the stares, Tsuki simply forced a meek smile, then started looking around for a new game to play. Some of her watchers looked away, but a few kept her within their vision.

A game at the far end of the arcade caught her eye. Pressed against the wall were several of those big sit-down cabinets, a big motorcycle serving as its seat and controller. She felt an unusually intense urge to play it.

Tsuki slowly got onto the motorcycle seat as gracefully as she could, and looked forward. The tube display was still clean and sharp, but the early polygonal graphics made it clear it was the product of a fargone era.

After she inserted a coin, Tsuki was greeted by blaring music and almost instant gameplay. Setting off after a short countdown, she only had a few moments to learn the controls. When she leaned or turned on her seat, the game followed her movements in a pseudo first person perspective.

With a twist of the accelerator, she set off, haphazardly darting across the track, but eventually, she started to understand the controls. She ran out of time in her first race, but was able to finish her second time around. By her third game, she was starting to cut through gentle curves with ease and precision and by her fourth she was carving through corners and landing a decent place.

She took on a zen-like trance as she played, going from casual fun to something she truly wanted to master. A few games in and the music turned to a melodic haze and the world around her disappeared as she focused on the game. She watched the clock with anticipation each run as she blasted past the competition and closer and closer to the top time leaderboard.

When she finally got a time in the top ten, she let out a long sigh, not realizing how much time she'd spend doing it. Though the game beckoned her to keep playing, she didn't feel like spending too much money on it. Instead, she rested on the motorcycle seat for a moment, letting herself relax for a moment.

Tsukiko got back onto her feet and started walking back through the arcade, people giving her short glances as she walked through, before she finally reached the front door. The light and sound of the city returning to her like a wave, all at once.

"Hey, this isn't a good idea, man." A young male voice stuttered behind her.

Tsukiko turned around and found two young men, both in baggy clothes, no older than high schoolers, walking quickly to catch up to her. The younger of the two clung to his older friend, trying to pull him back.

"What do you want?" Tsukiko spoke first.

"Nothing!" The junior replied. "C'mon, man, this is stupid. It's not worth it."

The senior turned back to reassure his comrade. "They're just stories, they're made up!"

"I don't care!" The junior tried to pull his friend back. "I'm not gettin' my ass kicked or goin' to jail over a shitty bet!"

"You should listen to your friend, man." Tsuki raised her voice. "It's not worth the trouble."

The senior stomped up to her. "You've got everyone scared, but you're nothin' but a cosplayer and I'm gonna prove it."

"Cosplayer?" Tsuki took offense to his jab.

Arcade patrons got up from their seats and out from behind their cabinets to stand by the entrance, all of them crammed together. Without a word between them, they all started pushing one another around, craning their necks to keep an eye on the Knight Himura, some of them pulling out their phones to record.

As the Third Knight Himura, Tsukiko was already quite used to the kind of attention that came with the job, good and bad. Over the years, she'd gotten what felt like dozens of unsolicited challenges from drunkards and ill mannered teenagers with something to prove. It was an unfortunate part of the job that she'd probably always have to deal with and something she resented.

Tsuki confronted him. "I'm not here to prove anything to you. I'm just here to play some games and head home."

"I got my chance, I'm gonna take it." The senior stepped forward. "So don't just stand there."

"It's your funeral!" The junior backed away.

Moving first, her opponent stepped forward and took a swing at Tsukiko's head. The Knight moved slightly to her side, his strike whiffing past her shoulder. By the time he realized, Tsuki'd already punched him in the jaw, making him stumble back a few steps, nearly falling but catching himself and moving forward again. Tsuki greeted him with another punch to the face and he fell down to the concrete, this time knocked unconscious.

With his friend nowhere to be found, Tsukiko was left alone, with her opponent a heap on the ground and a crowd formed around her. She did her best to ignore them, instead kneeling down next to the young man, trying to make sure he was still breathing.

"Oi, you alright?" Tsuki shook him a bit.

The man stirred a bit, his eyes opening a bit, but he still looked a bit dazed. She was glad he was still alive, but she wondered if she should've held back a bit.

"What?"

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Tsuki held out an open hand.

"...five?" The man muttered.

Tsuki muttered under her breath. "Well, he can still see... and count... Didn't think he'd go down that easy..."

"Where's--"

"Your buddy bailed, remember?" Tsuki reminded him.

"Oh..."

"Learned your lesson yet?"

The young man looked away.

Tsukiko got back onto her feet and turned to find a small crowd of passersby had formed. They were all watching with bated breath, some of them recording with their phones what had just happened. She expected the worst, but instead heard a bunch of cheers and whistling as they gave her a hero's parade for doing what felt like nothing. She wasn't one for interviews, so she just lowered her head and walked away.

The crowd began to scatter as a passing police officer came to see what the fuss was all about, some of them returning to the arcade and others walking down the sidewalk to get away. Tsukiko watched as he approached with a glare, passing her and kneeling by the injured young man.

"...so he attacked you?" The officer asked.

"Yeah." Tsuki sighed.

"Sir." The officer spoke to him. "You alright?"

"Yeah." The young man muttered.

"You realize it's not a good idea to pick a fight you can't win now, right?" The officer continued.

"Yeah." The young man spoke again with a more direct tone.

"...D'you have to hit 'em so hard?" The officer looked up at her. "I know you're a Knight and all, but this kid could've been seriously hurt if you hadn't been careful."

"...I know." Tsuki felt a bit guilty.

"Think about what you're doing before you do it." The officer scolded her. "Just cuz they're all cheering you on doesn't mean you're doing the right thing."

Tsuki countered. "What, was I supposed to let him hit me?"

"Just go and don't cause any trouble."

"...fine."