After a few hours of chit-chat and ironing out the kinks of the new Guillemot-Journalist-Knight alliance, the group began to break away and head off into the night. First came Lily, who left at Tsukiko's request when she started falling asleep on the counter, leaving a little drool.

Next came Tanaka, who left after drinking a bit too much and nearly stumbling out of his chair. Luckily, it wasn't too late into the night. Finally, Asuka left after running out of ways to try to twist information out of Tsukiko for some sort of tabloid.

Of course, it was the bartender's obligation to close up, since Aurelia wasn't around to lock the doors. Tsukiko got out from behind the counter and approached the front glass door, holding a key in her right hand. It was just a few minutes to midnight, but it was a slow night, and she needed her rest.

Just as she reached the glass door, it swung open before her, and a woman entered, in a hurry. The woman silently looked up at her, looking not much older than Tsuki was.

"Closin' up so soon?" The woman made herself comfortable on one of the stools. "You've got time for a few more drinks, right?"

Tsukiko started walking back to the bar. "It's been a slow night, so I was about to lock up."

"Sorry." The woman bowed her head a little and apologized. "Good thing I got here in time."

"What can I get you?" Tsuki asked as she finally got back behind the bar.

"Nothin'." The woman looked around. "It really is just you, isn't it?"

Tsukiko wasn't alone . "The owner's in the back."

"That's fine. That makes my job a lot easier." The woman smiled a little, leaning forward onto the counter, her hands clasped together.

"You got somethin' you wanna say?" Tsukiko immediately felt her body tense up.

"I need to talk to you." The woman said. "We've got business to discuss."

Tsukiko answered stiffly. "What kind?"

"You're Himura Tsukiko." The woman looked serious. "Right? The Third Knight Himura?"

"Who's asking?" Tsuki went on the defensive.

"Mori Hotaru." The woman held out her left hand. "I really need to talk to you."

Tsukiko looked the woman over.

Golden eyes were hidden underneath a light gray baseball cap. Beneath it was neck length dark hair that looked almost bluish in the bar light. It was messy, but the ends were straight, as if it was awkwardly chopped short. An omamori charm was held by a string around her neck.

A thin, fading canary yellow bomber jacket covered her body, zipped up three fourths of the way up, with something black underneath. Below were a pair of black dress pants and heavily worn brown leather boots, hand polished. Light shined off the small silver digital watch wrapped around her left wrist.

"Hotaru." Tsukiko repeated.

"Yeah, that's right." Hotaru nodded.

Masahiros' words rang in the back of the Knight's head.

"I'm just trying to get some work done." Tsukiko glared, watching every movement carefully. "If you're looking for a fight, find someone else. I'm not interested."

"I'm not here to fight you." Hotaru assured her. "Honest. We've got business to discuss."

Tsukiko shook her head and groaned. "You're seriously gonna walk in here in the dead of night talkin' like that and not expect me to assume the worst?"

Hotaru closed her eyes tight and opened them again. "It's official government business, not the shady kind."

"You a cop, then?" Tsukiko asked.

"No." Hotaru seemed to take offense. "Not officially. Listen to me, it's important."

"Officially? The hell's that supposed to mean?" Tsukiko spoke quickly. "I don't work with the police anymore. So go tell Ishikawa to--"

"Just let me talk for a minute, okay?" Hotaru cut her off, almost shouting. "I'm not working for Ishikawa."

"Then who are you working for?" Tsukiko pressed her for a solid answer.

"I'm working with the Ministry of Justice." Hotaru said.

"The Ministry of Justice?" Tsukiko narrowed her eyes. "Right."

"I'm not lying." Hotaru insisted. "I need your help."

"That's gonna be one hell of a thing to prove." Tsukiko watched her. "Show me a badge."

"We don't issue--"

"Then get out." Tsukiko glared. "I don't know who you are. I'm not helping you."

Hotaru stood there, frozen for a while, before finally speaking. "I uhh... What would prove it?"

"Get out." Tsukiko repeated. "Before I have to--"

"The police officer!" Hotaru shouted. "You found a police officer with an old colored Shakudo mask. You attacked him with a pipe. Your girlfriend took the police chief's gun."

"How'd you--"

"It was stricken from the record. There's no record it ever happened. At least not in any local precincts." Hotaru spoke quickly. "Is that proof for you?"

"...so what?" Tsukiko sighed. "You here to blackmail me?"

"No." Hotaru shook her head. "We're just... trying to contact you."

"I thought they had bigger things to deal with, what would they want with me?" Tsukiko stood up straight.

"Your cooperation." Hotaru said. "Well, the Knights' cooperation."

"That doesn't mean anything to me." Tsuki leaned forward, trying to get a better answer out of her. "Cooperation with what?"

"Every investigation needs connections. We're looking for people who know the city and can help us keep an eye on everything going on on the streets." Hotaru sighed, unable to keep up a professional act. "...we want your help keeping track of Themis and its leader."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"And?" Tsuki kept up her guard.

"The Knights would know the streets better than anyone, and they've been fighting gangs for years now." Hotaru gave Tsukiko an odd look. "Isn't it obvious? If anyone knew, it'd be the Knights."

"I don't have any reason to get involved with the Ministry." Tsuki disregarded her offer. "I'm only trying to do my job as a Knight."

"It's not getting involved with anything, at least not officially." Hotaru tried to reassure her. "We know you and the other Knights can help us. It's hard for the Ministry to get boots on the ground without clearing red tape first, so we've come to ask for your help."

"They're way more powerful than you and me." Tsukiko looked away. "If it was really that important, they'd go deal with Themis themselves. There's no reason for them to try to get me involved."

"The Ministry has legal power, but not enough to do whatever they want." Hotaru's intentions poked through the red tape. "If you cooperate, you might be able to give them the right... legal channels to move forward."

Tsukiko didn't say anything in response.

"All you've gotta do is talk to me, and I'll put in the good word for the Knights." Hotaru did her best to appeal to Tsukiko. "I need you to trust me, okay?"

"Why don't you ask Ishikawa?" Tsukiko countered. "He's got a cop on every corner in town."

Hotaru paused. "Exactly. They're spread thin and a regular beat cop doesn't have the same skill set that the Knights have."

"So you're trying to get everyone you can on this, huh." Tsukiko said.

"The Themis of the past was involved in international weapons trade. You get why the Ministry's concerned, right?" Hotaru spoke quietly. "I'm not really supposed to--"

"I know." Tsukiko cut her off. "You have my attention, not my trust."

"...is that enough to get you on the Ministry's side?" Hotaru pleaded.

Tsukiko crossed her arms and stood her ground. "What would I have to do? What do I get in return?"

"...it'd depend on what they send down the chain. They just want information." Hotaru was clearly out of the loop. "All I know is that it's entirely your choice. It's all up to you and what orders you decide to take."

"The Knights aren't too good at following orders." Tsuki looked down at the bowing woman with slight confusion. "Don't expect us to bow down."

"They're well aware. That's why they're being so... lenient." Hotaru couldn't help but smile a little. "They've been following you and the Knights for quite some time now."

"Yeah?" Tsuki cocked her head.

"Ever since the Shakudo Incident a few years back." Hotaru began to explain. "Morgan, or the man who called himself Morgan, made the police force look incompetent. He made the people lose trust in the police. The people of Tokyo put their faith in you and not their leaders."

"It doesn't matter to me who they put their faith in." Tsuki shook her head. "All's well that ends well, right?"

"In the game of life, but not in the game of politics." Hotaru spoke with sobering cynicism.

"Fuck politicians." Tsukiko rebuked. "Who cares what a bunch of useless pencil-pushing fucks have to say?"

"Talk all you'd like, but it's those pencil pushers who've been saving you from getting your ass tossed in jail." Hotaru said bluntly.

"And how do I know they'll keep saving me?" Tsukiko narrowed her eyes. "How am I supposed to believe they won't throw me under the bus as soon as it's convenient?"

"...I don't know." Hotaru admitted.

"It's hard to trust the Ministry, and it's hard to trust anyone that works for them." Tsukiko looked away. "Sorry."

Hotaru's expression softened. "You know who I am, don't you? Shizuka's probably told you, right?"

"Shizuka?" Tsukiko was caught off guard. "...you know your stuff, huh?"

"It's my job to know." Hotaru tried to reassure her. "I'm not stalking you, or anything like that. Don't worry."

"Well, no. She didn't." Tsukiko shook her head. "Masahiro did."

"Masahiro?" Hotaru paused for a moment. "He was... one of the first members of Themis, back when I founded it all those years ago. We weren't like the first gang. We were trying to follow in the steps of the Damascenes."

Tsukiko tried to get a word in. "So you--"

"I cleaned up my act. I retired." Hotaru looked her straight in the eye, forcing away any shame or fear. "I spent years working my way up to getting a job in the Ministry and... here I am. Not exactly glamorous, but it is what it is."

"...are you really that desperate?" Tsuki asked with some hesitation.

"I know you're not gonna trust the Ministry or who I work for." Hotaru's tough voice softened. "But I want you to at least be able to trust me."

Tsuki got a good look at the woman's face. Her expression was stoic and honest, but something about it wavered. There was a subtle weakness to how she carried herself.

Tsukiko's anger softened. "...it's not something you can earn overnight."

"If you don't trust them, then trust me." Hotaru lowered her head. "What's it gonna take?"

"Eh?"

"Name your price." Hotaru grit her teeth. "I'll do whatever it takes to earn your trust. Your wish is my command."

"Hey--"

"Whatever it takes, damnit." Hotaru tightened her hand into a fist and prepared herself for whatever hell she was going to be put through.

"Calm down." Tsukiko took a cautious step back. "The hell's wrong with you?"

"It's my neck if this doesn't work out." Hotaru lowered her head.

Tsukiko couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. "...the Ministry must be a real shitty place to be if this is the kind of work they make you do."

Hotaru let out a long sigh. "I'm just an errand girl, don't get it twisted."

Tsukiko closed her eyes and let out a groan. "I'm my own person. I can't speak for the other Knights, so I'll be your only line of communication. ...I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, but I'm definitely putting myself in a bad position with this."

"Thanks." Hotaru said quietly. "It's better than nothing."

"Don't expect me to wear my heart on my sleeve. You'll know what you need to know." Tsukiko said. "...I don't think I'll ever trust the Ministry either."

"I understand."

"...and I need a favor from you." Tsukiko cut off Hotaru's moment of relief.

"What is it?" Hotaru dreaded the worst.

"A friend of mine, Sylvie Fontaine." Tsukiko sighed. "She was taken away by Ishikawa's men a while back, and we haven't heard anything about her since. It's like she disappeared."

"Fontaine..." Hotaru seemed familiar with the name. "I'll have to pull some strings over at Immigration, since they're usually the ones who handle arrests involving foreigners. I'll see what I can do."

"Please do." Tsukiko asked.

"...I'll try my best, okay?" Hotaru looked her in the eye. "No promises, though."

"Thanks." Tsukiko smiled a little. "You're honest for a cop."

"Not a cop. Just an errand girl." Hotaru repeated herself. "Besides, I've gotta do anything I can to make our lives easier. This has to go off without a hitch."

"Well, since you're holding up your end of the bargain..." Tsukiko pulled out her phone.

Quietly and quickly, they exchanged phone numbers.

"Thanks." Hotaru's shoulders dropped in relief, her hands shaking a little. "You can be pretty scary, y'know?"

"Oh, hello." Aurelia stepped out from the back in her own uniform.

"Eh?" Hotaru was caught off guard. "You the owner?"

"Yes, my name is Aurelia." She nodded. "Do not forget it."

"Hmm." Hotaru hesitated, looking the blonde up and down. "I uhh... I was about to head home for the night, actually."

"Oh." Aurelia cocked her head. "That's a shame."

"Yeah." Hotaru seemed out of her element. "Kind of awkward, isn't it?"

"No, of course not." Aurelia assured her. "Even a chance meeting can lead to new opportunities."

"Maybe you're right." Hotaru shrugged.

"Please, come again." Aurelia looked a little disappointed.

"I will, I will." Hotaru put on a guilty smile. "I was visiting to talk to your bartender, but I'll definitely come for a drink next time."

"Thank you."

Hotaru got up out of her seat, thanking the bartender for her time. With just a smile and a slight bow, she turned to the door and walked out into the night. Tsukiko followed with her keys, making sure to lock the door behind her.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Aurelia called out from behind the bar.

"It was..." Tsukiko was walking, but she stopped. "It was alright. Not sure if I can trust her either way."

"Keep an open mind, Tsukiko." Aurelia smiled. "She was pleasant, no?"