"…and that's where we'll find them." Kazuo finished outlining a massive plan on a sheet of blank paper.

Once more, they all sat at the same table inside of the same mysterious shop. Haruka was next to Kazuo, sitting so close that she was practically in his lap.

Tsukiko and Shizuka sat across from them. The two of them exuded an incredible contrast from one another. One white, one black, one messy, one clean.

"Okay, but where's my part again?" Haruka accidentally smudged some of the ink on the paper.

"Careful! Now I gotta redraw the lines!" Kazuo complained as he uncapped his pen.

"Kaz, that's the third damn time." Shizuka groaned.

"Fine!" Kaz crumpled up the paper and tossed it to the side, where it landed next to several other discarded ideas.

"Kaz… They're a street gang." Haruka spoke calmly.

"and?"

"How would you know where they would be, or what they would do?" Shizuka cut in.

"Well, it's obvious that--"

"Our plans haven't gone very smoothly before, have they?" Tsukiko agreed with the others.

"Yeah, so?" Kazuo's voice grew quieter.

"You can't plan for something you can't predict, Kaz." Shizuka shook her head.

"You can't just run in there." Kaz grew more and more frustrated.

Shizuka looked Kaz in the eye. "We'll be fine, and you know that. Besides, if we sit around waiting, they'll come to us, remember?"

Kazuo sighed. "Can't we at least do something other than run in?"

"Aren't we doing that right now?" Tsuki asked. "Just gimme a quick recap. Anything helps."

Kazuo sighed in exhaustion. "We know where Flowers is."

"Yeah, I got that part." Tsuki nodded.

"Now we have to go to said place, and take down Flowers." Haruka cracked her knuckles.

"Why?" Shizuka raised her hand.

"So… she'll stop fighting?" Haruka spoke as if the answer was obvious.

"She didn't stop the last two times that Tsuki beat her. Why would she stop now?"

"Maybe we can get info out of her?" Kaz pondered out loud.

"And how do we guarantee it's good info? She doesn't seem the honest type." Shizuka countered.

"You're right."

Tsukiko shook her head. "Anything helps."

"Well, it's not like we can ignore it." Haruka sighed.

"Ignore what?" Tsuki asked.

"She's waiting for us at a diner by the river. Some Damascenes came back to base all bruised up, telling Sylvie to tell you." Kaz chuckled a little bit.

"Y'know, I never expected to be working with the Damascenes. Just a few weeks ago, I thought they were the enemy." Tsuki laid her head on her arms.

"Be grateful." Shizuka smiled. "I would've killed for friends like those when I was your age."

"Why?" Haruka asked.

"You know how much of a pain it was back in the day to go after a whole gang by myself? It feels nice to have at least one of them backing me for once."

"You sure that's the only reason?" Haruka muttered.

Shizuka hid her embarrassed smile. "Does it matter?"

"Nope." Haruka stretched her arms. "Not really."

Tsukiko stood up. "Should we get going?"

"Someone's gotta stay and watch Sylvie. I'd feel bad if we left Aurelia alone to deal with it all." Haruka frowned.

"I can take Tsuki down there then." Shizuka stood up from her chair.

"Can you handle that?" Haruka seemed a bit too concerned.

"I'll be fine, jeez." Tsukiko stood up too.

"I'd rather have you here, worrying about us. I don't need you out there worrying about Sylvie in the middle of a fight." Shizuka lowered the bill of her hat.

"Then Kaz'll stay here with me." Haruka nodded.

"She was up and talking a few hours ago, she'll be fine." Kazuo comforted her.

Shizuka sighed. "Listen, if anything happens, text me. If it's serious, we'll drop everything and come right back."

Haruka stared for a second before responding. "Alright."

--

"Y'think she's actually in there?" Tsuki asked.

"Probably not."

"Really?"

Shizuka yawned. "You'll never know till you walk in."

They stood together in the shadow of the building across the street from the restaurant. They watched through the window, but the reflected glow of the sun made it difficult to see inside.

The streets were a bit more bare than usual. Not a soul walked the streets, and the other businesses looked empty. The only sounds were a bird in the distance and the usual hum of the city.

Tsuki finally spoke. "Well, do we wait, or--"

"No." Shizuka started for the entrance. "Let's at least check the place out."

They walked toward the glass door, and when they opened it, they found that the restaurant was empty. There were no customers, and there were no cashiers. There seemed to be the usual scurry of workers in the kitchen, but the dining room had been cleared out.

"Should we find a place to sit?" Tsukiko suggested.

"Let's look around first. I don't trust any of this." Shizuka scanned the restaurant. "You go that side, I'll take this side."

Tsukiko turned around, walking past each booth. With every step, she rolled her boot from heel to toe, not wanting to make too much noise. She noticed a shoe sticking out from behind one of the seats.

"C'mon, sit down." A voice in the booth called to her.

Tsukiko stepped forward to find Flowers out of her usual robes. She wore rather casual, yet clean clothing.

Shizuka approached Tsukiko from the side. "Nothing over here."

"What're you doing here?" Tsuki stared Flowers down.

"What do you… Oh, it's her." Shizuka scratched her head.

"...who're you?" Flowers looked back at Shizuka.

"I'm the First Knight."

Flowers' eyes widened. "I thought you were dead!"

"Nah, nobody can kill me." Shizuka smiled.

"Sit down, let's chat." Flowers grinned.

Shizuka motioned for Tsukiko to sit down. "It won't kill ya."

Tsukiko took a deep breath. "What did you want to talk about?"

"I'm leaving the Shakudos." The tan girl announced.

"Why?" Shizuka asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Flowers looked at Tsukiko.

"No, not really."

Flowers frowned. "...I don't know what Morgan wants anymore. He keeps rambling on and on like an old man. Justice this, Police that."

"…makes sense." Tsukiko admitted.

"The only reason I joined in the first place was cuz I wanted to fight you, Tsuki." Flowers smiled again.

"Seriously?" Tsuki sighed.

"You're as tough as they said you were. A real fighter, no bullshit. I respect that."

"Don't sugarcoat it too much. Why did you tell us to come here?" Shizuka cut in.

"I wanna join the Damascenes." Flowers lowered her head.

"That's Sylvie's call." Tsuki shook her head.

"Please, put in the good word." Flowers lowered her head onto the table.

"How are we supposed to trust you?" Shizuka crossed her arms.

"You can always trust me!" Flowers looked up again.

"You did attack a hospital." Tsuki pointed out.

"Who do you think called them back?" Flowers countered.

"…well, that changes things." Shizuka clasped her hands together.

"See? You guys can totally trust me!" Flowers gave them both a thumbs up.

"…right." Tsuki felt a sort of unease sitting across from her.

"Anything to get me away from Morgan, please!" Flowers pleaded.

"Morgan?" Shizuka asked.

"Y'know, the guy with the silver and black mask." Flowers waved her hands around to get her idea across.

"Yeah, the crazy dude with the rebar." Tsukiko had a dark tone in her voice.

"Nobody really knows anything about him. He just showed up one day and started demanding people call him Morgan. He was a cool dude, so we all kind of rallied behind him when he left the Damascenes." Flowers laughed.

"Damn, I was kind of hoping you knew something." Shizuka chuckled.

"He's gone off the deep end recently. Something flipped his switch, and not in a good way." Flowers had genuine concern in her voice.

"That's not good." Tsuki muttered.

"Why not?"

"Who says he won't go nuts, and start getting violent?"

"He already has. He already told everyone to make a scene. He wants to bring attention to the gang--"

"What?" Tsukiko's eyes tore a hole in Flowers.

"He started telling folks to get violent. It got out of hand though. Stabbings, fist fights, people getting hurt. It's really weird, especially after what happened to Lily."

Tsukiko's face grew red. "So, you're saying he told the Shakudos to hurt innocent people?"

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"Yeah, something about drawing someone out. He's always had some goal in mind, but he never told anyone what it is. We just do what we're told." Flowers laughed.

Tsuki slammed her fist on the table. "That idiot!"

"I'm sorry!" Flowers held her hands up.

"No, it's not your fault." Tsuki sighed.

"I-I don't really get it."

"It's the whole reason Tsukiko became a Knight. Her girlfriend got stabbed by a Shakudo." Shizuka frowned.

"Oh… shit…" Flowers looked away in fear.

"…and you didn't try to stop it?" Tsukiko leaned forward.

"I-I did the best I could, but--"

Tsuki took another deep breath. "…I believe you. Sorry, Flowers."

"I never did. I never let anyone under me do it either." Flowers made her hand into a fist.

"…we found the guy that stabbed our friend, but he never told us why." Shizuka tried to stay cool.

"Dumbass. Out of all the girls he could have stabbed, he stabs a Knight's girlfriend." Flowers smiled. "Don't you just love when things come together like that?"

"Not really." Tsukiko looked away.

"I didn't mean it like that." Flowers seemed genuinely hurt.

"We still don't have a reason to trust you." Shizuka explained.

"Yeah, I know. I'd offer some info or something, but I've got nothing. Morgan's a secretive man. Sometimes, I wonder if he's even a man." Flowers bowed her head again.

"You're sure you don't know why he's doing this?" Shizuka asked.

"…the only thing on his mind is you." Flowers looked at Tsukiko.

"Me?"

"Yeah. Everything he does is to get your attention." Flowers shrugged.

"That's kinda weird." Shizuka's eyes narrowed.

"Ever since that day you first met us, he's had his eyes on you. Sometimes, he'd ask me to watch you, see what you were doing. It's all a game to Morgan." Flowers shivered."

"That explains some things." Tsuki played with her hands.

"So, did you spy through her windows? Did you watch her change?" Shizuka chuckled lustfully.

"No, no, of course not!" Flowers held her hands up.

"Ahh, just giving you a hard time." Shizuka laughed.

"Don't scare me like that!" Flowers complained.

"C'mon, loosen up!" Shizuka shook her head.

"I'm trying to make a good impression. I really wanna get back into the Damascenes."

"It's still Sylvie's decision." Tsuki turned back toward Flowers. "I'm not connected to the Damascenes in any way."

"Can you at least put in the good word?" Flowers put her hands together, as if praying.

"I'll tell her what you told me, and I'll tell her what I told you. That's it." Tsuki closed her eyes.

"Thank you!" Flowers lowered her head once more.

A waiter appeared, and slid a massive plate of fries and crispy chicken onto the table, condiments and all.

"The hell's this?" Tsuki looked at Flowers.

"I… thought you would find me later than this. I was gonna try to bribe you with food." Flowers spoke with refreshing honesty and innocence.

"You really think that--." Tsuki got cut off.

"Shut up and eat!" Shizuka started grabbing food off of the plate.

--

Shizuka and Tsukiko entered Aurelia's shop with some speed. There was finally some calm to check up Sylvie. A message from Haruka urged them to return as soon as possible.

Aurelia had promised that Sylvie would be up and walking again by the time they had arrived. Neither of them had a doubt about it in their mind.

Without saying a word to the others, the two Knights passed toward the room where Sylvie was resting. They stopped at the door, still a bit worried about their hurt friend. When they entered, they found Sylvie playing with a rather joyous Lily.

"Yo, you awake?" Shizuka asked.

"What do you think?" Sylvie chuckled.

"You took a real knock, so I don't know what to think." Shizuka smiled.

"Yeah, yeah." Sylvie rolled her eyes.

"Hi, Lily." Tsukiko smiled too, leaning down to hug her.

"Hi, Tsuki!" Lily's eyes lit up as she ran into Tsuki's fingers.

"So, I heard you went to go take down Flowers." Sylvie went straight to business.

"She says she's quitting the Shakudos." Tsuki watched Sylvie closely.

"That right?" Sylvie turned to Shizuka.

"Yeah, and she wants to join the Damascenes again." Shizuka added.

"Well, then you guys said yes, right?"

"…no." Shizuka looked confused.

"Why not?"

"Are we supposed to trust her?" Tsuki scratched her head.

"Do you know how to find her?" Sylvie stood up off of the bed.

"Not exactly--." Shizuka couldn't finish before being interrupted.

"Get me my phone, Lily." Sylvie pointed.

Lily nodded, before digging through a pile of clothes at the foot of Sylvie's temporary bed.

"Do you need my help?" Aurelia suddenly cut in.

Shizuka jumped. "the hell did you come from?"

"I was standing here." Aurelia stood in the corner of the room, somehow still blending in.

"Good." Shizuka groaned. "Leave the whole coming out of nowhere thing to Claudia."

"Maybe Claudia can find her?" Sylvie suggested.

"I can take you there." Aurelia smiled.

"You think I can go like this?" Sylvie pointed at her bandages.

"If one spends too much time resting, they lose their strength." Aurelia told her an odd proverb.

Sylvie tossed her blanket aside, revealing the bruises that the attack had given her. She moved over, sitting on the side of the bed. "Had me some clothes, I'm down to my underwear here."

Lily grabbed the pile and handed it to Sylvie.

"Anything with a little less blood?" Sylvie sighed.

"One of the Damascenes left this." Aurelia walked over and handed Sylvie some clean clothes.

It was the same charcoal jacket outfit she had worn under her robes. Even in the clean clothes, the pain still showed through in her limp. She took a step forward, and reached out to lean on Shizuka's shoulder.

"Are you sure she's okay?" Tsukiko asked.

"Give it time. She will be back to her usual form in just a little while longer." Aurelia assured her.

"You sure?" Tsuki frowned.

"Trust me, Tsukiko."

"Alright…"

--

Tsuki and Sylvie passed through the door and arrived in a spot right underneath a bridge. After the door slammed behind them, they turned around to see a water maintenance door.

They could see Flowers, facing away from them. She was tending to a small flame, holding her right hand above it to keep it warm, a bottle in her left.

"Flowers." Sylvie called out.

The tanned girl turned around, slowly at first, then quicker when she realized whose voice it was.

"Boss?" She asked.

"Just call me Sylvie." The blonde replied.

"Sylvie…"

"You wanna join the Damascenes?" Sylvie coughed.

"Y-yes!" Flowers hopped up, an anxious look on her face.

"Then what're you doing here?" Sylvie motioned for her to get closer.

"I'm sorry, I was just nervous. I thought you wouldn't want me, boss." Flowers got closer, her head lowered like a guilty dog.

"I'm not your boss. I'm Sylvie Fontaine, get it right." she spoke with a certain strength in her tone.

"Sylvie… Fontaine? Is that your name?"

"What else would it be?"

Flowers stopped in her tracks. "Are you alright telling me your real name?"

"Quit worrying." Sylvie's voice was a bit weak.

"You okay?" Flowers looked Sylvie up and down.

"I'll be fine."

"You sure?" Flowers seemed concerned.

"Yes."

Flowers paused for a moment. "Why do you trust me so much?"

"Hmm?"

"Tsukiko didn't seem to trust me, so why do you?"

Sylvie sighed. "Well, how much damage could you really do if you were doing something shady?"

"I dunno." Flowers shrugged.

Sylvie leaned on Tsukiko. "While you were gone, the Damascenes lost most of its members. I got beaten so bad that I was in the hospital for a couple of days."

"So that's why he sent us there…" Flowers muttered to herself.

Sylvie took off her jacket and pulled up her shirt to reveal red marks on her abdomen. "Look at me. I'm not in tip top shape. I'm walking with a limp."

"Bo--. No, Sylvie, I won't let it happen again. When I find those damn Shakudos, they're gonna--"

"The Damascenes did this to me, cuz I was a bad leader. I thought it would be a good idea to fight 'em all at once. I almost won… Almost died too…" Sylvie chuckled weakly.

Flowers' head hung low. "I'm sorry for leavin', I'm sorry for--"

"Quit apologizing. I had to learn sometime." Sylvie smiled.

"So, can I rejoin?" Flowers looked up at her with puppy eyes.

"Yeah." Sylvie leaned in close. "But just so you know, hurt anyone I care about, and I'll hurt you."

Flowers straightened up. "N-no problem, ma'am-- Madame!"

"Course, I won't let you get hurt either, so lighten up." Sylvie backed away.

"…thank you." Flowers bowed her head once more.

Sylvie reached into her pocket and pulled out a mask. It was once again, ornate. A delicate golden floral design on a white porcelain mask.

"Your old mask. Take good care of it." Sylvie held it out.

Flowers grabbed the floral mask and stared at it. "You kept this?"

"Sure did." Sylvie smiled.

A look of utter sorrow washed over Flowers' face. "I'm sorry for leaving."

"I said you don't have to apologize, idiot." Sylvie shook her head.

"But you kept this… after all this time." Flowers looked up at her.

"What am I supposed to throw it away?"

"No, but…"

"What happened to the tough girl that wanted to kick my ass?" Tsukiko forced herself into the conversation.

Sylvie looked at Tsukiko, not bothering to actually turn her head, only shifting her eyes.

"I'm still here." Flowers straightened up. "And I'll get you someday."

"That right?" Tsuki smiled.

"Damn straight!" A smile returned to the grey haired girl's face.

"See?" Sylvie smiled too. "Keep your spirits up."

"You're right."

"I'll see you at the warehouse. You know where it is." Sylvie turned around and started for the door again.

"I'll be there!" Flowers nodded.

--

"Phew." Sylvie closed the door behind her.

She stumbled through the hall until she collapsed back on her bed. Tsuki trailed close behind, her arm always at the ready, in case the blonde girl ended up falling over.

"You okay?" Tsukiko sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"Yeah…" Sylvie muttered.

"You sure?"

"…acting tough is hard." Sylvie stared at the ceiling, her hand over her stomach.

"Then why do it?"

"Had to give her at least a bit of a hard time. That, and I wanna seem like I've changed." Sylvie sighed.

"So change, don't just act like you have." Tsuki sat in the chair by her bed.

"I have, I have. I guess I just wanna show that I'm trying my best."

"Better stay true to your word, then."

"Yeah." Sylvie sighed. "…did I sound cool though?"

"Really?"

"Yeah, really."

Tsukiko groaned. "A little."

"Hah!"

"You were cracking though."

"Hmph." Sylvie pouted. "Well, how do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"You're always so tough. How do you pull it off?"

Tsukiko shrugged. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"How do you keep yourself from shaking? How do you keep yourself from getting really angry?"

"I don't." Tsuki shrugged.

Sylvie sat up straight with interest. " Really? I just end up feeling weird and stiff."

"I guess confidence works? I know I can take whoever I'm talking to down, or at least I can try." Tsuki tried to think.

"That's it?"

"Well, that, and I've got a reason to be tough. I've got Fumi and the rest of the group. I'm not about to back down."

There was a long awkward silence as Sylvie processed what Tsuki said.

"Thanks, Tsuki." Sylvie blurted out awkwardly.

"Why?"

"I learned something." Sylvie put her hands together. "I think."

"What'd you learn?"

"Well, I didn't learn anything, but something in my head clicked." Sylvie looked through her.

"That's the same thing, isn't it?" Tsuki raised an eyebrow. "C'mon, out with it."

"Y'know, you'd make a good leader."

"Giving up?" Tsuki adjusted her hat.

"No, no, nothin' like that. It's just..." Sylvie looked away. "Sorry, it's kind of hard to explain."

"We've got time."

Sylvie stopped for a moment. Her eyes moved back and forth as she considered her words carefully. For once, she didn't blurt out the first thing that came to mind.

"...I'm not the only one who wants the best for the group, y'know? The whole reason this started was because someone thought they could run a gang better than I could." Sylvie frowned. "I'm not the only one who can lead. Anyone can."

"...and?"

"Well, that means I'm not alone, right? Shizuka and Haruka can do anything you can, but you're still here."

"It's cuz I've got a reason to be here." Tsuki made her hand into a fist. "They can fight just like I can, but they don't fight for the same reasons I do."

"You know what you want." Sylvie looked at Tsuki. "You've always known. I don't. I have no idea what I'm doing some days. I'm still figuring it out."

"I'm just doing what feels right." Tsuki admitted. "If it weren't for you and the others, I probably would've left this jacket back at Aurelia's."

"...Anyone could screw up like I did. It's been a long time since things've felt right." Sylvie laughed sadly. "I have to figure out why I'm still doin' this, what I want out of this. This whole time, I've just wanted to have fun and make everyone happy, but I can't."

There was a moment of awkward silence. Neither of them dared look at each other, or even turn their heads. They both stared off into the distance. It was only for a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity.

"Tsuki! Sylvie!" Lily popped her head out from the doorway.

"Hi, Lily!" Tsukiko smiled.

Lily ran up and hugged the Knight.

"Are you two okay?" The little girl asked with a sort of innocent concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine… Don't I get a hug?" Sylvie complained.

"You're hurt. No hugs." Lily shook her head.

Sylvie sighed. "Can't believe you'd treat a fellow Frenchman like that…"

Lily shrugged. "Sorry."

"Heh, don't worry about it." Sylvie laned back down onto the bed.

"Don't guilt trip the poor girl." Tsuki faked a frown.

"It's not guilt tripping when it doesn't work."

"Didn't work at all." Lily shook her head again.

"Damn, she wouldn't even go along with the joke." Sylvie weakly swung her arm up.

"You worried?" Tsuki leaned forward and put her hand on Lily's head.

"Mmm, yeah." Lily's eyes moved from side to side, avoiding direct contact.

"Really?"

"Yeah!" Lily sounded a bit frustrated.

"Don't worry about me, kid." Sylvie leaned over to get closer to Lily. "I'm fine right now, aren't I?"

"Mmmm." Lily fidgeted.

"If you're so worried, then why don't you stay in this room for the night? I could probably ask Aurelia for something soft you can sleep on." Sylvie rolled over to look Lily in the face.

"That sounds good. Sorry for worrying." Lily sat on the bed.

"Don't apologize kid. It's natural to get worried when one of your friends is hurt." Tsukiko looked Lily straight in the eye.

"Just don't let it eat you from the inside though." Sylvie added. "…or else it'll end up hurting you."

Lily's unease began to fade as she got more and more comfortable. "You're right."