Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Not a day has gone by without Natsuko thinking back on the now dream-like memories of her time in the world of A Tale of Perishing.

In her last moments in Luke’s arms, surrounded by his warmth, she was finally able to put into words the overflowing love she had for him all along. As her consciousness faded, she knew that her purpose in this world is complete, and this would be the last time she will open her eyes to the familiar scent of Luke’s cooking.

The smell of sanitizing solution and the soft beeping of a monitor trickled into her senses as her eyes slowly opened to an unfamiliar ceiling.

“Where…?”

Her body struggled to raise itself from days of atrophy, but she managed to sit herself up in what she recognized as a hospital bed. A nurse who had walked in to check on the sounds from Natsuko’s bed quickly rushed away to call for the doctors, and a flurry of physical checks, questions and crying visitors ensued. Her parents were beside themselves, and all her coworkers from Studio Konkon arrived in close succession to visit her. Natsuko’s heart was full from seeing everyone’s familiar faces.

“President Fukushima… I’m sorry.” It had been almost a month since she had fallen into a coma from eating the spoiled clam bento that changed her life.

“The release time of the movie… we must be way behind,” she said guiltily, looking down at her hands.

“Oh honey buns, it’s my job to take care of those pesky dates, so don’t you worry a thing!” Naomi quipped brightly. “You just focus on getting nice and healthy again! And we’ll worry about the rest of that later.”

Giving Natsuko a light tap on her shoulder, she added, “we will be there to support you when you are ready to come back.”

Natsuko nodded with a smile, and bid her farewell as she left. Letting out a sigh of relief, she laid back down and closed her eyes. Though she had already been asleep for longer than anyone else, she drifted to sleep again.
—

When she awoke again, the same nurse who had been in the room earlier in the day was here to give her another checkup and bring her dinner. Natsuko couldn’t help but notice that in between taking her blood pressure, the nurse kept glancing in her direction, as if she had something to ask. Finally, when she unwrapped the blood pressure cuff from Natsuko’s arm, she hesitantly spoke.

“Miss Hirose… sorry if this sounds strange… but the day before you woke up, did you… leave your bed to go anywhere?”

Natsuko blinked, perplexed.

The nurse continued, the uncertainty in her voice evident.

“I didn’t want to scare your visitors, but last night, when I came around to check your room. Your… bed was empty. I immediately went and alerted the ward, and all of us searched for you, but couldn’t find you anywhere.”

How could that be possible? Unless…

“When we gave up and returned to your room, there you were again, lying in the bed as if you had never left. We all thought we had gone mad.” The nurse chuckled nervously. “Perhaps we were all tired from our shifts.”

“I… don’t know.” Natsuko didn’t know how to respond. The nurse smiled and told her not to worry about it.

—

Alone in the room by herself at last, Natsuko was lost in thought.

“Could it be—“

She rummaged through the pocket of her purple hoodie. There was her pegbar, which she had held onto tightly before she lost consciousness. And then she felt it. Her hands shaking, she slowly retrieved an object she thought she would never see again. Unio’s horn, glowing ever so softly in the moonlight.

It wasn’t a dream.

She sobbed, holding the horn close to her heart.

It wasn’t a dream.

Chapter Text

Following a few weeks of physical therapy, Natsuko was discharged with a clean bill of health from the hospital. Her little apartment had accumulated a coat of dust that she caused her to sneeze immediately upon entering. The first thing she enjoyed was a long, hot shower. Never in her life had she expected to appreciate the marvels of modern technology as much as she did now, submerging herself all the way up to her nose in the warm water. When she returned to her bedroom from the long soak, a face she had known so well greeted her. The poster of Luke Braveheart, a depiction of him springing into battle, bore into her eyes. Natsuko’s eyes welled up as a feeling of warmth and ache filled her chest.

“Goodnight, Luke.” She gently touched his face. She glanced around quickly as though someone may be watching, and laid a soft kiss on his cheek.

—-

From the moment she stepped back into the studio, everyone noticed her change. The wall of hair that blocked her face is now pulled back into a neat bun, held together by a peculiar hair pin. Her face glowed with a softness that had never been there before. Rising from a long bow, she spoke with a sincere voice: “Thank you for all your support in my long absence. I look forward to working with everyone again.”

Hirose Natsuko sat down in her desk as if she had never left it, and began to draw with an inhuman speed.

“Umm… Director…?” Haruko approached her in slow steps. Natsuko’s blurred pencil motion stopped abruptly. She looked up at the assistant’s nervous smile.

“Yes, what is it?”

Haruko’s heart skipped a beat, she wasn’t expecting the undivided attention that Natsuko was giving her. Courage growing inside her, the assistant continued:

“We came up with a list of animation directors while you were absent. Would.. would you be able to approve them?”

Natsuko received the papers from her hands and read through them diligently while writing down a few notes with a red pen.

“I’ve added a few more recommendations to the list since some of these directors are in high demand.” She passed the papers back to the now elated and shaking coworker. “I’ll leave it to you to delegate the parts they will be in charge of.” Everyone else who had been listening to their conversation with rapt attention let out a gasp at this point. Natsuko looked past Haruko and realized that every coworker in the vicinity were looking at her with awestruck expressions.

“Wh-What?!” She blushed furiously. “Stop that! G-get back to work already!”

—

The months after flew by. The production rush for Hatsukoi: First Love was nothing short of a whirlwind of flying deadlines. In her absence, her coworkers had never been idle. Though the most critical storyboards have been left for her to continue, character designs, color direction, sound direction, and voice casting were already underway even before her return. With all tasks distributed evenly throughout the studio, Natsuko was able pour all her heart into the storyboard. In record time, she completed the entirety of the storyboard, and often joked with the fellow curious animators in the studio that she had drawn like her life depended on it many times already. The love of her protagonists blossomed from their shared love of basketball, the first stirrings of the heart captured beautifully between stolen glances and unspoken longing.

Natsuko’s daily life in Studio Konkon had changed significantly in this time. Where only the freckled production assistant had the necessity to start a conversation with her, many now stopped by her desk for advice and small talk. People were interesting, she realized between these small talks. Aspects of the lives of the people around her, not just limited to a subject she needs to portray in a story, painted the world in a different light. The overbearing burden of her namesake was now broken and scattered, pieces of it carried by the rest of the studio.

—
“President Fukushima,” Haruko asked one afternoon while looking at the poster of a Tale of Perishing, “what do you think Director Hirose saw when she was in her coma?”

“Why do you ask?” The president looked up from arranging a plate of senbei on the table.

“She has changed so much since then, and I love the person she is now, but..” she continued, “sometimes I would see her come into the break room to look at this poster, and she would have the loneliest and faraway look in her eyes. I can’t help but wonder.”

Naomi now also turned her eyes to the poster.

“For as long as I’ve known Natsuko, she has always been a fan of Director Tsuruyama’s work,” she said, reminiscing, “In fact, she wrote in her application that she wanted to join this studio because of how much she admired her. She had drawn Luke Braveheart for her skill exam!”

“Really? I never knew that!”

Naomi nodded.

“I suppose she comes here often for inspiration. It is her roots after all.”

Chapter Text

The rollout of Hatsukoi: First Love had been delayed for a total of three months, but at last the movie hit the theaters nationwide in early spring. The movie instantly became a cultural phenomenon, beloved by the young and old alike. Nostalgia and yearning of first love filled the hearts of the audiences with every showing. Natsuko was filled with relief and pride. Pride for not just herself, but also everyone in Studio Konkon. In the spare minutes of free time in the studio, she often stopped by the poster of A Tale of Perishing. Her own movie had joined the lineup of posters in the break room.

I wonder how they’re doing, Natsuko thought to herself. Though the world was reborn as she left, there must have been a lot to rebuild from scratch.

She raised her worn out pegbar to the poster, almost expecting it to glow again.

Of course not, she smiled wistfully.

It had been almost a year since she woke up again in reality and completed her movie. “A miracle production catch up,” the President had called it. Although she held onto hope that everything she experienced in the Last Town had been real, she struggled with passing time. Perhaps the horn was a replica she had bought herself and forgot at some point. Perhaps she had sleepwalked while she was in her coma- it wouldn’t be the first time she had tried to do something in her sleep. Natsuko clutched her chest. The ache, the longing in her heart was real, and with no one else to confide in without sounding crazy, it was the only thread she had left between her and the world that changed her forever. Although the changing seasons and the lull of normal life put a soft blanket over her feelings, a part her still waited. And she would, Natsuko thought, wait for the rest of her life.

Natsuko clocked out and walked into a beautiful spring afternoon. The cherry blossoms bloomed over the bustling streets. The sweet scent of flowers drifted in the air, lightly brushing by Natsuko’s face as she looked down to check her phone. There is a brief flash of light reflected on her phone screen that escaped her notice. She began her routine commute down the bridge overlooking a small river. As she passed the bridge, a set of vivid colors entered and left her peripheral vision.

Forest green.
Sky blue.
Pottery brown.

Red and gold.
Colors she knew better than anyone.

“Eh?”

She spun around.

Her breath hitched as her eyes locked onto the retreating figures of the Nine Soldiers. She readied herself to call out, but hesitated. What are the chances? What if these were cosplayers? But the thundering heartbeat in her chest spoke otherwise. The company of heroes slowed their steps right as Natsuko rushed towards them.

“LUKE—- UNIO— MEMME—“

Before she could finish yelling out all of their names, a flash of red darted across the oncoming traffic.

In an instant, she was enveloped tightly in Luke Braveheart’s embrace. He held onto her so tightly, as though fearful that she may disappear again, pressing her into his armor to the point she almost couldn’t breathe. He buried his face into the crook of her neck, nuzzling against her skin ever so slightly. Natsuko returned his embrace, leaning her head against the golden strands of his hair. He had always smelled like sunshine, she thought. Though always at the brink of passing out when he carried her after battles, she knew the feel of being held by him well. And she was back in his arms, the void in her heart made whole.

After what felt like an eternity, and yet not long enough, Luke relaxed and moved one hand onto her cheek.

“Natsuko…”
She nodded, blinking away stray tears before gazing into his gentle cerulean eyes. She felt herself craning her neck to look at him more so than before.

175 centimeters, 62 kilograms.

A useless trivia from the character sheets flashed across her mind.

She could tell, from her years of observing moving figures, that Luke had grown past his original height. Looking at his face more closely now, Natsuko could see that parts of his features had become sharper, adding a tinge of maturity. She wondered how long had passed in the Last Town. It had been almost a year after all in her own world. A deep blush formed on her cheeks at this, and she couldn’t help but look away and back erratically.

“Natsuko,” Luke said again.

She realized that he, too, had been studying her face, the same look in his eyes that she had seen many times while eating her wake-up meal in the Nine Soldiers’ quarters. But this time, he leaned in.

Is he —
Natsuko’s heart did somersaults as she snapped her eyes shut, embarrassed beyond belief but hopeful. She could feel his breath as their faces drew ever so close—

“Ahem!”

The pair jolted at the sound.

Unio stood only a few paces from them with his arms crossed, both Memmeln and QJ grinning ear to ear behind him.

“I get how you feel, but we are in the middle of the street, you know?”

Luke and Natsuko’s faces turned several shades of red as the rest of the world came back into focus.

Chapter Text

“Natsuko!”

Luke desperately held onto Natsuko’s fading form.

Don’t go, his heart cried out, over and over.

His eyes shut tightly as though to block out the dread of loss, fearing that if he opened them, the last traces of her existence would again fade away in his hands. He did not know if he could survive a reality without her by his side.

In the softest, sweetest voice she had ever spoken with, Natsuko gently untangled the turmoil in his heart.

“I’ll love you forever. I always have.”

Luke’s eyes shot open.

Natsuko was still there, looking back at him with a smile that spoke for all the love in her heart for him. This was the warmth that brought him back into this world. A new feeling he had never allowed himself until now overwhelmed the fear that had once consumed his being.

Hope. The hope for another day to come. And there would be a tomorrow with her in his life, so as long as he try.

“Next time, I’ll go to the Kingdom of Reality,” he swore to her with determination in his voice, “I promise I’ll come see you. So wait for me!”

And with a final smile, Hirose Natsuko vanished in the glowing light.

In this newly birthed realm brimming with the promise of life, Luke Braveheart kneeled alone in the field of blooming wildflowers, left with the memory of the familiar weight in his arms and Natsuko’s forever love.

“Luke…” Unio approached his friend. Never had he imagined that Luke would lose his first love again after all they had gone through.

“Will you be okay?”

Luke slowly rose, his eyes fixed upon the brilliant azure skies.

“I am. I will be.”

Chapter Text

Fields of greens stretched on forever, meeting the grey mountain ranges in the distance as snowcapped peaks reached for the sky. The beginnings of newly tilled fields drew neat lines surrounding the young Soul Future. This was the Kingdom of Heroes Luke knew as a child before it became the Last Town.

Rebuilding has been ongoing across the Nine Kingdoms, and for the first few weeks, each respective Nine Soldier returned to their hailing nation to assist the effort. After a shocking and tearful reunion with the four soldiers who gave their lives in the fight against Voids, the warriors wanted more than anything to see their homelands with their eyes. Chingosman had laughed boisterously at their broken tombstones.

“Not everyone gets to see their tombstone before they die, you know! These must have looked majestic!”

The Nine Soldiers’ graveyard has since then become a memorial to mark the second age of the realm. The Nine Kingdoms, led by their beloved warriors, began to exchange and transport materials for reconstruction where one nation lacked. The Kingdom of Water provided for clean drinking water across the realms, the Kingdom of Forest provided for the much needed timber for housing, the Kingdom of Wind where the world’s oldest magic users hailed sent casters across the realm.

Luke, Unio and Justice remained in the Kingdom of Light to continue the rebuilding, helping where they can from tilling fields, moving construction material, foraging for food, and cooking hearty meals. Although the townspeople still looked up to him as a hero, Luke noticed more and more that they have started to address him by his name. A change had come over not just the townspeople, but also himself. He was no longer weighed down by the mantle of his lineage and felt the need to be more than himself. He simply lived as he is, one day at a time.

Prophet Baobab had wasted no time in addressing the Kingdom that as the curtains were drawn on this world, it was Natsuko who never gave up fighting to the very last. She was the true light that blazed through the darkest night. No one had known that it was Luke who destroyed the last Soul Future and became the Ultimate Void. The Nine Soldiers who knew all thought it best to keep that a secret. The citizens who led the mob against Natsuko were deeply remorseful, and though they can no longer make amends to her, they devoted themselves to rebuilding the Nine Soldiers’ living quarters. Unio worried about how Luke would accept their attempts to make up. Though Luke was not yet able to find it in his heart to forgive them completely, he did not reject them. In the evening hours of rest, Luke and Unio would be able to return to a rudimentary wooden hut.

“Can you sense your horn today, Unio?” Luke asked, starting a light conversation as the two of them began to turn in for the night.

Unio focused, furrowing his brows while his horn flashed blue repeatedly. With a confounded expression, he grumbled, “I don’t understand it. It feels as though it’s close, yet far away. I can’t put my hooves on it.”

Letting out a frustrated whine, Unio stood with a stomp to the ground. “Mark my words, black-haired gremlin! I WILL find you!”

He turned to Luke, who now looked slightly amused, and continued,

“We are the Nine Soldiers for a reason, you know! No one else knows magecraft better than me or Memmeln! QJ and Memmeln will be back soon! We will figure it out!”

Luke chuckled and thanked his friend. Every trace of the Last Town had been destroyed, and along with it, any records of ancient magics. The remaining grimoires now reside only in the Kingdom of Wind, where Memmeln had returned to for the time being.

“Natsuko… I hope she is doing well,” Luke said softly.

Unio sat back down on his cot and huffed confidently, “I’ll bet she is. No one eats as much as she does! She’s probably stuffing her face as we speak somewhere in the Kingdom of Reality!”

Luke smiled, reminiscing the way Natsuko’s dazzling blue eyes beamed as she ate his cooking. He yearned to touch her puffy cheeks as she downed her food, run his hands through her dark, silky hair, and —

He remembered something he saw when he carried provisions to the new Serval Cat Orphanage earlier in the day. As Luke approached the make-shift grass fence of the orphanage, he spotted Justice with Destiny in the distance. Justice was looking at Destiny as she spoke excitedly with a softness in his eyes Luke had never seen before. He placed the provisions on the ground, unsure if he should call out to his friends. Before he could make that decision, Justice reached out with one hand to cup Destiny’s cheek, and the two closed the space between them in one gentle and loving kiss. Luke stood there, gaping and blushing to his ears, and after a few more circuits around his brain, he finally decided to step away quietly.

“Unio?” Luke asked from his cot.

“What?” Unio responded, already half asleep.

“Will Justice and Destiny have an adult relationship?”

The coughing fit that took Unio by storm echoed across Nine Kingdoms.

Chapter Text

“You really ought to have that conversation with Justice,” Unio sighed the next morning, looking at Luke with tired eyes. He finally understood why Luke had been hesitant to confide in him about his feelings for Natsuko. There truly are things in this world that cannot be discussed between brothers.

“I suppose…” Luke replied while freshening up his face with a pail of water. He did not understand the fuss Unio made after he asked what he thought was a simple question. Was it something truly so different from spending time together with the one he loves? Natsuko and he had already been on a date before, they just haven’t —

He could feel heat rising in his face as he thought about the kiss, and quickly splashed the remaining water in the pail onto his face. With a goal in mind, Luke decided to spend this day to help at the Serval Cat House.

The laughter of children playing on the grass traveled down the hill as Luke made his way to the orphanage, carrying a batch of bread he had baked with a clay oven. A gust of wind tousled his hair, and Justice landed next to Luke in one graceful motion.

“Well here is a welcomed face, we missed you yesterday,” Justice said brightly, “Give that here, I can carry it for you.” Luke passed Justice the sack of bread, overjoyed from the bottom of his heart to see him flying again. As they continued up the newly cleared dirt road, Luke made up his mind to voice his question.

“Justice…” he began, trailing off for longer than he had planned.

The dragon glanced down at Luke, feeling as though he had seen this play out before him not long ago.

“What is it?” Justice asked, already anticipating the worst.

Prompted by his friend, Luke gripped his hand and stammered while looking away.

“A-about this adult relationship— can you tell me what it is—“

“Haaaaaaaaa?????” Not this again. Justice heaved the longest sigh he had ever let out in his life and rubbed his temples with his free claw.

“Luke, remind me, how old are you now?” Justice asked in resignation.

“I’m eighteen…” Luke responded, “But in a few months, I’ll be nineteen! Why does that matter anyway? Unio won’t tell me anything!”

Closing his eyes and feeling the age suddenly settling on his shoulders, Justice sighed for the last time. Luke had no parents to answer the harder questions in life, and Justice accepted the ordeal of enlightening him.

“Meet me by the memorial after we put the kids to sleep today. Do not, I repeat, do no speak of this at the House,” he admonished Luke sternly with a finger pointed to his face, “And to be perfectly clear, Destiny and I do not have an adult relationship! At least, n-not yet.” He blushed at his last statement.

——

Luke Braveheart, eighteen summers of age, drifted down the steps from the memorial.

The change of scenery around him and the evening greeting of Naomi passing by his haggard form failed to register in his mind.

How could one common word have so much implication behind it?

But this explained everything he felt at the hot springs- the tingling sensation, and the way his skin burned when he saw—

“Ahhh!!!” He screamed with both hands covering his face, startling every bird in a nearby tree.

Was this common knowledge? Did every married couple in this kingdom know?

Marriage.

The memory of him considering to marry Natsuko with a straight face flashed past his mind.

Luke wanted nothing more than to disappear into the nearest hay pile and never come out.

Somehow by miracle of muscle memory, he was able to find his way back to wooden hut by the time the first few stars graced the evening skies.

“Unio— why didn’t you tell me—“ he started as he open the door. To his surprise, two faces he had not seen for months greeted him by a dimly glowing crystal lamp.

Unio sat between Memmeln and QJ, an all-knowing smirk on his face.

“Oh~ welcome back, Luke.”

Chapter Text

The four Nine Soldiers enjoyed a modest dinner together. With the fire crystals that Memmeln brought back with her, Luke was able to stir fry the fresh produce QJ had harvested from the Kingdom of Earth while visiting Ganger. A wave of nostalgia washed over them as they sat around the uneven wooden table, remembering meals they shared in the old Nine Soldiers’ mansion. The absence of the one companion who never failed to liven up the room was not far from the back of their minds.

“Luke,” Memmeln spoke up calmly, “what was it that you wanted to tell Unio?”

The legendary hero instantly flushed red from face to neck.

“Yeah, Luke~” Unio grinned and nudged Luke repeatedly, “Tell me what you learned today!”

“Nothing! It was nothing!” Luke huffed, a pout forming on his cheeks. He shot Unio a warning look, to which the unicorn let out a puff of stifled laugh.

QJ hovered close to Luke, scanning him in amusement.

“Luke’s surface temperature, approaching boiling water. Shall I fetch you a towel?”

“QJ!!!”

Merry laughter rang out into the night. They had missed each other’s company.

—

Memmeln laid out an aged grimoire on the wooden table, carefully turning the pages that had become brittle with time.

“Much of the ruins remained intact, so I was able to scour the records for information relating to the Kingdom of Reality,” she explained as she traced her finger across a paragraph on the grimoire.

“While the texts did not refer to a specific place Natsuko called Reality, I was able to find a collection of research written by one of the first spellcasters in the Kingdom of Wind. It was said that she herself traversed the space between time to arrive in our realm.”

“The space between time…?” Luke mused.

“She described it as a place where creation and destruction coexist, and all are connected.”

There was such a place that Luke can recall. A seemingly infinite space showered with starlight. The place he awoke in Natsuko’s arms.

“Is there a way to get there?! Does it connect to Natsuko’s kingdom?” Luke stood up eagerly.

“Come now, Luke, let Memmeln finish explaining,” said QJ. Catching himself, Luke sat back down.

“In a sense, we are already closer to that space than we imagine. The mage devoted her lifetime to research the connection between our world and other realms, and discovered that all around us, are threads of different realms, separated only by the fabric of time.”

“All… around us…?”

The three listeners gaped at Memmeln with dumbfounded expressions, unable to follow the leap of knowledge she had dispensed.

“Ahhh!” Unio gasped suddenly, causing the others to jump, “So that’s why I always feel that my horn is close and far at the same time!”

Memmeln nodded and continued, “To gain access to another realm, one requires the release of a large reserve of ether to break the barrier of time. This must be how Natsuko was able to cross the barrier, such a release will happen when one is close to death. But of course, our aim is to achieve that without a single death.”

She closed the grimoire.

“Her research did not progress further than this point, so the rest of what I am about to say are purely conjecture. To reach the Kingdom of Reality, we will need three conditions to be satisfied,” the elf explained.

“One would be the spell necessary to locate the thread, which is written in this grimoire, another would be the means to locate the correct thread. And lastly, an object that is capable of piercing through any barrier.”
Memmeln’s eyes drifted up to the item hanging on the wall behind Luke.

“There is only one object in this realm that possesses the power to do so.”

Luke turned around to the part of him that’s been laid to rest ever since the world was reborn. His eyes widened.

“The King Brave Sword…”

“But Memmeln, how will we be able locate the correct thread if there are so many around us? I can sense the general location of my horn, but I don’t know if it will be accurate enough to pick out the right thread!” The unicorn said dejectedly.

A tint of sadness passed over Memmeln’s face. “If we had any objects Natsuko left behind from the Kingdom of Reality, we would be able use that as a conduit to locate the thread. But when she disappeared, so did everything she brought with her.”

The four fell into silence.

Remembering suddenly, a “? !” displayed across QJ’s eyes.

“That strange talking bird Natsuko was so fond of, she is still somewhere in the Nine Kingdoms isn’t she? Maybe if we talk to her, we’ll be able to find out more.”

The four heroes looked at each other with mutual determination. They were going to find that strange bird by any means necessary.

Chapter Text

“Only Natsuko, Justice, Destiny, and I have ever seen this bird called Director Tsuruyama up close,” QJ explained, “but luckily, I had a back up copy saved of Natsuko’s sketch that I can replicate!”

QJ projected a recording of Natsuko’s sketch onto the wall. A set of protruding eyeballs, capped by a hilariously clean cut red hair stared back at the Nine Soldiers sitting across.

“For size comparison… I would estimate that she’s only a bit shorter than Unio. There’s also a turtle shell on her back that makes her distinct from any other birds in the kingdoms.”

“Is the face itself not distinct enough?” Unio squinted.

“QJ, you said that this bird also knew the future of our world like Natsuko did?” Luke asked.

“Not only that, Natsuko said she was the creator of A Tale of Perishing. That’s how she referred to the moovie about our world. She seemed to know everything, about all of us,” said QJ.

“Everything…” Luke trailed off, pondering for a moment before standing up.

“QJ, have this sketch distributed to the machines you know. Memmeln will inform the mages and have them keep an eye out. Unio and I will start the search here with Justice and Destiny, and travel further if need be,” he said, “We will search every crevasse of the Nine Kingdoms if that’s what it takes.”

“It looks like the Nine Soldiers are setting out again after a long hiatus,” Unio chimed in happily, stretching one hoof out towards his friends. Their fists meet in the middle. They would be setting out not to save a dying world this time, but to recover a beloved friend.

—

The search proved harder than expected.

Thanks to QJ and Memmeln’s efforts, word had traveled across the Nine Kingdoms that a strange turtle bird haunts the skies. Reports and sightings of this mysterious bird were never far ahead of their steps, but somehow it remained elusive to Luke and Unio as they traveled from one kingdom to another. They even enlisted the help of Admiral, Capitan, Ganger and Chingosman to cast a wider net in their homelands, but it was as though the bird appeared and vanished as it pleased, never lingering long enough in one kingdom for anyone to attempt a catch.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, and before the warriors knew it, the first spring since the second age of the realm had arrived. For the time being, Luke, Unio, Memmeln and QJ had returned to the Kingdom of Heroes to regroup and plan their next move. Though slightly disheartened, they would keep trying.

“Luke! Unio!” QJ called out to them on an early morning, “Memmeln wants us to meet her at the memorial. Wash up a bit and join us there.”

The two had been chopping wood for their own and the townspeople’s use, a task that Luke briefly considered taking out his sword for but decided against.

Having cleaned off the stray wood chips that became attached to their tunic and mane, Luke and Unio made their way to the distant hill where the memorial overlooked the town.

“I wonder if Memmeln found more clues,” Luke thought out loud.

“I would expect nothing less from my cute, lovely Memmeln,” Unio hummed.

As the memorial came into view, the pair were surprised by the silhouettes of numerous people. Shimmering magical sparks showered Luke and Unio upon their arrival, and cheers erupted all around the memorial. The other seven of the Nine Soldiers, the Mayor, Naomi, Destiny, Meg and Sally, and even Baobab were waiting for them.

Confused and slightly embarrassed by this grand welcome, Luke met Memmeln’s eyes and whispered, “What’s the occasion?”

The unicorn was also deep in thought until realization hit.

Justice leaned in and laughed, “Did you really forget?”

“””Happy Birthday, Luke and Unio!”””

Cheering again sounded off in the clearing, as the Mayor strong armed Luke and Unio to the table that had been set on the grass nearby. On it were a two layered cake decorated with colorings of blue and yellow, and plenty of milk beer and sides to spare.

Luke had indeed forgotten that today he and Unio turned nineteen. In the waning years of their world, celebration for anything other than surviving another day did not cross their minds. And in the short respites between Void attacks, he had poured all his energy to train and prepare for the next battle. By the time he remembered, the one elusive day of the year had gone by.

“Thank you… everyone.” His eyes glistened as he looked over the faces of everyone he cared for in his life.

Unio was already crying.

“Thank you!! Thank you everyone. Did you help plan this too, Memmeln? But we didn’t even have such a big celebration when it was your birthday!”

The cold look Memmeln, Meg and Sally shot at the unicorn told him all he needed to know.

“Ah…. touchy subject for elves I see. Please forget I said anything,” he quickly added while looking away.

The celebration continued throughout the day. After everyone had a chance to wish the birthday boys well, they mingled amongst each other. Capitan and Justice were the first to get drunk, neither wanting to admit defeat in a drinking contest they had long put off. Unio, to his dismay, was already wrestling the kids Destiny brought with her. Admiral Merfolk, QJ and Memmeln chatted beneath the tree that once grew over Chingosman’s grave, the Admiral’s cheerful “Gyohohoho” echoed in clearing. Chingosman himself made light conversation with Baobab about their homeland, also complimenting the little flowers on her head. Destiny showed Meg, Sally and Naomi the engagement ring on her finger, and this time, it was not from the Chairman.

“Ganger,” Luke reached out to his silent stone friend, “There’s something I’ve been meaning to thank you for.”

Ganger grunted in response, tilting his head in curiosity.

“… the well of bath water you made,” Luke continued, blushing, “I was able to take Natsuko there on our first date. So.. thank you.”

Ganger’s eyes narrowed into a line, and metallic sounds that resembled laughter rumbled from his stone chest.

—-

The orange rays of the setting sun grazed the hill as the party slowly drew to a close. Luke had not felt happiness like this since Natsuko left, and the feelings of joy also brought pangs of longing. He would have loved more than anything for Natsuko to meet the people he loved. She would have been overjoyed to see the Nine Soldiers she never got to meet. As the rest of the company bid each other goodbye, Luke let Unio and his friends know that he would be joining them at their home just a bit later.

He sat down in the middle of the clearing as he had done many times when he was here to visit the graves. From here, he could look out into the skyline of the kingdom. The first of the orange rooftops that was a trademark of the kingdom had begun to dot the city, paved roads now drew winding lines between alleyways and the markets; the town was on its way to being restored to its former glory.

As he raised his head to look up at Chingosman’s tree, a glint reflecting off the sunlight caught his eyes. A shape that has been seared to the back of his mind for months stood on a branch in the shadow of the canopy, the metallic object on its chest catching the sun. The bird had been staring intently at Luke with its beady eyes, but she shifted her gaze and positioned herself to take off when their eyes met.

“Wait! Don’t go!” Luke yelled, hastily getting on his feet.

“Director Tsuruyama!”

Her eyelids twitched at the sound of her name being uttered by a voice she’d never expect. Extending her wide wing span, she flapped her wings and landed on the remnant of Capitan’s grave, face to face with Luke Braveheart, the protagonist of what was once her Tale of Perishing.

Chapter Text

“So? What do you want?” The Director narrowed her eyes at the boy, who seemed surprised that she had made the decision to stay so easily.

Luke gulped. This bird was their only clue to the Kingdom of Reality, and here she was after months of searching. He had to carefully choose his next words as to not scare her away.

“We are searching for a way to the Kingdom of Reality that you are from, would you be willing to help us?” He asked earnestly, “Do you know of anything in this world that came from Reality?”

“How should I know? Figure it out yourself,” she responded blankly, “Is that all? I have other places to be.”

Luke had not expected the conversation to drop so immediately.

“W-wait!” he blurted, reaching for the bird. In truth, there were far more he wanted to learn from her. There was a lingering shadow he had that lay buried beneath the normalcy of day to day living, one that he was afraid to bring up to his friends, that only the presumed creator of this world would be able to answer. He was not ready to ask just yet.

“QJ said that you are the creator of this world. Tell me, was it you who sent the Voids?”

The Bird Director’s long eye brows twisted in displeasure.

“Don’t be absurd, I may have personally drawn every one of those critters in reality, but here I am just a bird,” she spat, “my role in this world has remained unchanged from the very beginning to the very end—an observer.”

“Then how—“ How did she know the fate of this world, if she wasn’t the one turning its wheels?

Tsuruyama glared at Luke with her unblinking eyes, debating if she would divulge the secrets of how her movie came to be to the lead character.

“I supposed you’ve earned the privilege to know,” the bird sighed and looked down to tinker with her stopwatch.

“In the twilight of my career, inspiration struck me in the form of vivid dreams of a world fated for destruction, “ she recalled, “No matter how desperately its people struggled, one by one, the beacons of each kingdom were snuffed out by creatures carrying insatiable nothingness.”

“And as though the dream wished to etch itself in my mind, I would watch the final hours of that world unfold night after night, flying above the chaos beneath, witnessing the beauty and madness of all things perishing in midst of despair unending,” insanity permeated her eyes as she savored the memory of her dreams, “A hero drowning in the inescapable tragedies of his life, ultimately reducing the world he had sworn to protect to dust!”

A shiver ran down Luke’s spine as memories of feeling himself dissipate into a cold nothingness surfaced.

“I had to see to it myself to bring this world to life. To give form to terrible beauty that had captivated me so. I would stake my entire career on it, to capture its last moments as it were. How ironic is it that my movie became the catalyst that altered the perfect ending to this world,” she scoffed.

—No matter what kind of villain they are, the moment they are born into the world is super captivating—

“Luke Braveheart.”

The hero jolted at the sudden mention of his name. The bird craned its neck to look at him closely.

“Is this truly the question you wished to ask me?”

It wasn’t.

He can see the uncertainty in himself reflected in the glass-like eyes of the unblinking bird. Luke clenched his fists.

Closing his eyes and taking a breath, he finally asked in a steady voice:

“Am I the Ultimate Void?”

An expression close to a grin formed at the corners of the Director’s beak.

“I am not one to tell others the intentions behind any story I make, there is no joy in doing so. However,” her eyes narrowed, “if you would be interested in hearing an artistic interpretation of what I believe, I will happily share it.”

He nodded at the bird, preparing himself for her next words.

“You are.”

Luke’s heart sank.

“And you aren’t.”

“What?!” Luke blurted out loudly from the drastic fall and rise of his heart.

“Long before the Voids came along, this world saw its share of war and bloodshed. And with each tragedy, more and more wished for an end to their suffering.”

Luke thought of Memmeln, and the eons of untold pain in her eyes.

“These negative emotions do not simply disappear. They are cycled for thousands and thousands of years, until this world finally manifested the curse that would grant the wish for oblivion.”

“The Voids…”

“And to carry out the will of this world, the curse evolved and adapted itself to its opposition. Any and all attempts to deny the final wish of a millennia was futile.” She turned her eyes now directly to Luke.

“As the descendant of the long line of heroes in this world, you alone possess the ability to harness yours and the emotion of others into power as you so wish. You’ve seen it yourself, have you not? The changes in the brilliance of your sword ever since that little girl arrived.”

His sword could pierce through the very darkness of night with its boundless light when he fought with all his heart to protect Natsuko.

“Tell me, then,” the bird whispered into Luke’s face, “what did you wish for when you thought you had lost everything?”

Luke gripped his arm, an ice cold sensation grew from his fingertips and traveled to the pit of his stomach.

In the moment he ended his cursed fate as the protector of Soul Futures, he wished for the end of existence. To desire nothing. To feel nothing.

And the emptiness in his heart harnessed the Void.

Satisfied with his expression as an answer, the Director picked up her stopwatch, and gave it a meaningful click.

“For this enlightening conversation, I should say that you deserve a reward,” the bird removed the watch from her neck and nonchalantly dropped it in Luke’s hands. Looking at its unfamiliar designs, his eyes widened as he realized he now held the final key to the Kingdom of Reality.

“I have no use for it now in a movie that’s no longer of my making.” She ruffled her feathers to rid herself of the creases the sash had made.

“What will you do now?” Luke asked hesitantly, still recovering from their conversation.

“Observe, as I always have.”

“For what purpose?”

“For entertainment.”
Luke stared. The bird and Natsuko were more alike than the bird herself would have liked.

“Luke Braveheart,” Tsuruyama said before getting ready to take off, “You are everything that you’ve been on the path you walked, and you will be everything else on the path after. It’s useless to deny that a part of you longed for oblivion.”

With these final words, Director Tsuruyama took to the skies.

The shadow of the Ultimate Void was a part of him, and with it, the guilt of walking down the path of destruction.

But even so—-

I’m needed.

The warm smiles and laughter of his friends gathered around the birthday cake echoed in his mind.

I want to see her.

Somewhere in a kingdom close yet far, Natsuko was waiting.

And until the day I allow myself to leave this world as I am—

He will continue to live.

Chapter Text

Luke, Unio, Memmeln and QJ arrived at a forested area in the outskirts of town. As a precaution of any dangers that may lie ahead, Luke and Memmeln had donned the full armor and gear that had been resting for almost a year. Before their departure, Justice assured them that he and the other Nine Soldiers will take care of the kingdoms while they’re gone. They were long due for an extended vacation.

“Mmmm— this has to be it,” Unio muttered as he skipped over a tiny stream, “The response from my horn feels the strongest here.”

Much of the scenery had changed, but Luke wondered if this was the same place where they had first found Natsuko.

“Based on our coordinates, this is indeed close to where Natsuko was when she first arrived in our world,” QJ confirmed.

With a nod from Memmeln, Luke removed the stopwatch from his pouch and handed it to Unio. The unicorn and the elf reviewed the incantation once again from the grimoire.

“Ready, Luke?” Memmeln asked.

“I am,” he replied, unsheathing the King Brave Sword.

“Remember, keep the cut as clean as you can, we do not want to damage the fabric of time to the best of our abilities,” Memmeln added, “We know not the consequences of tearing it beyond repair.”

Luke nodded. Though he had not drawn his sword outside of maintaining it for months, wielding it now still felt as natural as carrying an extension of himself. He was confident that he would make the right cut.

Hovering the stopwatch in front, Unio and Memmeln began reciting an incantation Luke had not heard before.

“”Megi Cernos Magia!!””

The blue and green magical glyphs appeared in their outstretched hands. The stopwatch radiated with the blue and green light of their spell, and began to resonate. A paper thin line of the same radiance slowly drew itself mid-air at Luke’s eye level.

“Now, Luke!” Memmeln yelled.

In one sharp motion, Luke cut cleanly through the glowing thread.

The glow faded away.

“Did it work?”

At first, nothing appeared to be different where they stood. And then Luke noticed.

“What… is that?”

A near transparent tear in the air, barely perceptible to the eye unless one really looked, had formed where the thread was. And in the tear, silhouettes of rectangular structures stood beneath a foreign sky. A single pink petal drifted through the tear and landed by Luke’s boots.

“I don’t see anything, what is it?” Unio walked over to where Luke stood.

“Huh?” The unicorn gasped, looking back and forth from the front to the back of tear. “If I look from any other angle, I can’t see it at all!”

“How mysterious…” QJ mused, hovering close.

Unfazed, Memmeln walked over to the tear, and with a light touch of her magic, she widened the tear to a window with space enough for the party to enter. With a nod at each other, the Nine Soldiers stepped through the window in the air.

—-

For a brief moment, visions of infinite space beneath the light of faraway stars passed over their minds, but as the Nine Soldiers planted their feet on solid ground, they found themselves in a courtyard in the shadow of a tall white structure.

The four stood in awe, their eyes fixed on the soft rain of flower petals carried by the wind.

“Could it be..?” Their attention returned to the pondering unicorn, whose eyes were closed in deep focus.

“This has to be it!” He beamed, “It’s still a ways off, but I can sense my horn in this world!”

Luke’s heart sped up in excitement. They were finally here in the Kingdom of Reality.

“Memmeln? What are you doing?” QJ asked in confusion. With an outstretched hand, Memmeln channeled her magic to seal the window as one would sew up a tear.

“We wouldn’t want anyone to accidentally wander in or out, do we?” The elf said coolly, “As long as we remember this location and carry objects from our own world, we will be able to open the window again.”

“Perhaps I would be able to research a more convenient way to travel to and from this world when we return to our realm,” she added, thinking to herself.

The three warriors followed Unio through the courtyard past another pearl white gate. On the way, several people in what looked like simple blue garments or white coats passed by, giving the four warriors inquisitive looks.

“Could this be an infirmary of some kind?” Memmeln guessed perceptively, observing that many seemed to be cared for by the uniformed people.

Eventually, the unicorn led the party to what appeared to be a main road leading out of the infirmary. As they were ready to cross the roadway, a box-like object sped by, causing Luke to jump back and draw his sword in reflex. Passerby looked over curiously and a few even took out a device to face him briefly.

“Luke..! Put away your sword!” Unio whispered loudly.

Still startled, Luke sheathed his sword hesitantly, unsure of what just happened.

“I wonder…I could sense that the object is a type of machinery like me,” said QJ, “I saw a human maneuvering it from the inside. Could it be a carriage of some kind?”

Without horses?

Natsuko’s kingdom was truly peculiar.

—-

The Nine Soldiers continued down the roadway, observing where the citizens of this world walked and keeping to the sides for the horseless carriages to speed by. Although it became immediately evident that their attire was glaringly out of place, no one seemed to question it no matter how many stares they got. Hearing passing conversations, they recognized that their share the same dialect with this world, but the written language was completely indecipherable to them. The town seemed to be connected by a set of lines rising above the roofs and extended continuously by poles stationed apart. In the distance, they could hear the rhythmic clanging of a much larger machinery moving through the town.

As they entered an area populated by mostly living quarters, a group of young girls wearing the same fashion of folded skirts with red bows on their short tunics approached the Nine Soldiers.

Luke tensed up instinctively.

One girl in a ponytail noticed the company of heroes and babbled excitedly to her own friends.

“No way! Cosplayers on a weekday? Is there an event today? The finish of their armor looks amazing! They don’t look like they’re from around here, maybe gaijin?”

In an instant, the gathering of young women swarmed the Nine Soldiers and particularly Luke, who was now reliving one of his worst fears. Unio enjoyed the attention as some of the girls patting his head commented “real mane?” in amazement. They looked closely at Memmeln’s ears and searched for a wire that was suspending QJ mid-air. The girls concluded that QJ must be a fancy drone of some kind.

The situation evolved itself to just Luke being surrounded by the girls, with questions flying in rapid fire such as “Do you speak Japanese?” “Can we take a selfie?” “Is this a real sword?” “Do you have a SNS?” Luke stammered in shock and confusion, unable to understand most of their inquiries.

“Even here…being a legendary hero is still popular it seems,” QJ mused, “should we help him?”

“Why? He’s enjoying his popularity just fine,” Unio quipped loudly, a big smirk on his face.

Luke shot a look of anger and desperation to his friends that screamed “I am NOT enjoying myself!” loudly.

QJ floated over to help break up the flood of questioning.

“Excuse me, misses. We are looking for a location called Studio Konkon. Would you happen to know where it is?”

“Studio Konkon…?” The first girl who noticed them considered QJ’s question and looked up in renewed understanding.

“I remember now! You must be cosplaying characters from A Tale of Perishing!”

“A Tale of Perishing..? That movie your older brother is obsessed with?” Another girl responded to her friend’s statement.

“Yeah, that decade old movie that flopped hard in the theaters. Studio Konkon must have hired these professional cosplayers for an event of some kind.” The girl in the ponytail turned towards the Nine Soldiers. “Can I get a photo of all of you together? My brother will freak out when he sees this!”

“A phooto?” Memmeln tilted her head in confusion. The request of just having them stand together seemed relatively simple, so the party agreed.

As thanks for the photo, the girl drew a quick map for the heroes, and wished them luck. The girls continued their chatter as they walked away, the last notes of “Did your brother ever graduate college?” fading into the distance.

Luke’s shoulders slumped, feeling as though he had just been through a grueling battle.

—-

The map and Unio’s sensing brought them out of the residential area to what resembled a marketplace. Here, the buildings stood larger with brightly lit signs, and a delicious aroma of cooked food wafted through the air. As they passed by a building decorated with large illustrations encased in glass, Memmeln planted her feet by one of them and let out a soft gasp.

Luke, Unio and QJ turned around and stared in disbelief, seeing their stoic friend covering her mouth, eyes sparkling and cheeks flushed as she squeaked softly.

“Sir Exister…!”

“Memmeln…?” Luke approached the illustration, recognizing one of the men from the sketches Natsuko had drawn for her. Playing faintly in the background, the chorus of “I love today~” drifted into their ears.

“Could this be one of Natsuko’s drawings?” Unio said, “I could feel that we are getting very close, maybe she really is in one of these buildings.”

“Once we find her, Memmeln, I’m sure Natsuko can take you to where Sir Exister is,” QJ added while smiling.

With an adoring nod, Memmeln reluctantly left her idol behind and continued up the road.

By this hour, the sun had began to set. The party marveled at the rich colors painted by the evening light on the pink flowering trees as they passed by a bridge overlooking a small river.

“I could feel it, my horn is very, very close,” Unio muttered, squinting his eyes. Luke’s heart was beating fast, but he tried his best to keep his composure as they continued walking.

“Huh?” Unio slowed his steps, perplexed. “I could have sworn we were walking towards my horn, but it’s now…behind us?” The rest of the group also slowed to a stop, but before they had a chance to understand what that meant—

“LUKE, UNIO, M—“

Luke spun around and took off in an instant, his cape flying in the air as he easily scaled over the fast moving horseless carriages. He could see her now, dressed in lighter colors, running in their direction from the opposite side of the road. His heart felt as though it would burst as he finally took her into his arms.

Natsuko. Natsuko, it really is her..!

He wrapped his arms around her tightly, drinking in her scent as he buried his face into the crook of her neck. He had replayed this day in his mind over and over, and the reality of it came crashing down as a soft sob left his throat. He knew as he held her in his arms that he would never again let go, gripping her so tightly as if to confirm to himself that she was tangible. A soft gasp from her snapped him to his senses, and he relaxed his embrace slightly. Reaching for her cheeks, he raised his head from her neck to look at her, noticing that she was also blinking away tears.

“Natsuko…” He said softly. She leaned into his hand and nodded, her lips curling into a smile that he had missed dearly.

Gone were the long strands of hair that hid her beautiful cyan eyes. Her hair was now neatly pulled back and held in place by Unio’s glowing horn, leaving the clear lines of her chin and neck fully exposed. He always knew Natsuko was beautiful, but even more so now, there was a glimmer of maturity in her eyes that mesmerized him. His eyes drifted down to her lips, and a burning sensation coursed through his body.

“Natsuko.” He repeated, overwhelmed by the one desire in his heart at the moment to meet his own lips with hers. He leaned in, the strands of his golden tresses touching her cheeks, as his heartbeat rose to a fever pitch to hers —

“AHEM!”

And suddenly, the pair of reunited lovers were back from their own little world.

Chapter Text

“It wasn’t easy, you know!” Unio huffed before the couple. He was going to tell this gremlin all about their journey to reach the Kingdom of Reality and have her appreciate all the hard work they put into it. But to his shock, Natsuko picked him up and gathered him, QJ and Memmeln in a tight squeeze.

“I missed you all so, so much..!” She didn’t even have a chance to see that they were alive and well before she returned to Reality. Before she knew it, tears were raining down her face again.

“G-gremlin?! Don’t tell me you’re crying?!” Even Unio couldn’t bring himself to make fun of her.

“Shut up, pack mule!!” Natsuko sobbed.

“Don’t tell me to shut up when you’re making me cry, too, hair monster!” Unio sobbed back.

The four of them were locked in a tight hug as Luke stood next them, feeling a little left out, but he chuckled happily at their dramatic reunion. QJ and Memmeln were smiling warmly at Natsuko when she finally relinquished her hug.

“It means more than anything to see you healthy and well, Natsuko,” Memmeln said, a little redness under her eyes.

The display of his eyes forming the biggest yellow orbs, QJ chirped brightly, “Beebity-beep, forecast for an even happier ending, 100 percent!”

To this Natsuko giggled, wiping away a tear from her eye.

Remembering that she was still in the middle of the street with four visitors from a different realm, Natsuko quickly ushered the Nine Soldiers along in the direction of her home.

—-
Luke and Natsuko’s hands naturally found each other as Natsuko led the Nine Soldiers towards her apartment. Although the pair had a mountain of words piled up in their minds, for the time being, they were immersed in the comfort of each other’s presence, blushing away and smiling to themselves while they felt the warmth from each other’s hands.

Unio grimaced as he walked behind the lovebirds with QJ and Memmeln.

“What are they doing? Why are they being so quiet?” He whispered to QJ.

“Let them be,” QJ whispered back, “I’m sure they’re happy to see each other and just need a bit more time to themselves.”

Unio mouthed a “blehhh” with his tongue out and continued walking.

Memmeln remained unperturbed.

“A-ah, that’s right! How is everyone doing over there?” Natsuko finally asked, “I don’t know how long has passed for you, s-so—“ Natsuko stumbled over her words, her eyes swimming. However put together she felt as a working adult in the past year was reduced to a stuttering mess.

“O-oh.. everyone is- doing just fine—“ As though the word staccato was contagious, Luke also fumbled his reply. “Ah! That’s right! Justice - Justice and Destiny! They’re engaged!”

“I can’t watch this anymore.” Unio covered his face in second-hand embarrassment.

After the longest 15 minutes of Unio’s life, they finally arrived at the door of Natsuko small second floor apartment. As she closed the door behind them, Natsuko let out a hoarse gasp.

“Wait here!! Don’t move!!” She yelled at her four companions as she dashed off towards her living room, shoes flying.

I can’t believe I forgot I can’t believe I forgot—

With the desperation and speed of a criminal eliminating evidence before the police arrive, Natsuko shoved a pillow sized Luke plush into the sliding closet, flipped a Luke acrylic stand downward, and slid her sketchbook underneath a pillow seat. As she twirled over to cover the giant Luke poster with her sweatshirt, her socks got caught in the tatami, and she tripped over with a loud thud and squeak.

“What’s wrong?! Natsuko—“ Luke rushed towards the direction of the noise, entering the small living room to find Natsuko there, flipping around from where her head met the wall and using the limited coverage area of her limbs to hide the poster behind her.

“Natsuko, your face, are you ok?“ Luke walked over to check the visible red imprint on her forehead.

“Wait! D-d-d-d-don’t —“

As Luke reached for her face, his eyes drifted towards the illustration behind Natsuko’s head. He gaped in realization.

The rest of the Nine Soldiers stood at the entryway of the living room, watching Luke’s ears turn beet red while Natsuko buried her face into her hands.

“Must be nice to be young,” Memmeln stated coolly at them for the second time.

—

“A-anyways, all of you must be hungry from traveling such a long way,” Natsuko tried to recover herself as she opened her refrigerator. The Nine Soldiers were now seated on the tatami around her dining table. Luke and Memmeln’s plate armor and cape were set aside by the corner of the room with Luke’s sword.

With one quick peek, Natsuko closed the door to the refrigerator immediately. There was nothing except a half eaten bento and a few bottles of water inside.

What should I do? Natsuko thought to herself with one finger on her furrowed brows. She could easily take Luke and Memmeln out to a restaurant, but she would have a world of a time trying to explain seating Unio at a dining table. Ramen? She did have a few in the pantry right now, but surely she cannot treat her guests to instant ramen. She could go to a conbini to pick up some bentos…

“Natsuko, do you need any help?” Luke had wandered into her narrow kitchen area. Scanning the pots and pans strewn about the stovetop, he quickly guessed that this is how the kitchen looked like in the Kingdom of Reality.

“I’m embarrassed to say I’m actually out of food at the moment, so I may need to run out to buy some. And I couldn’t possibly make you cook! You must be tired.” She missed his cooking more than anything, but she was not going to make cooking for her the very first thing he does in this world.

“I would love nothing more than to make a table full of your favorite food, Natsuko,” he smiled gently. His smile emptied Natsuko’s mind of whatever plans she had for dinner, and another moment of blushing in silence passed over between them.

“It’s settled then, go out and get the ingredients already,” Unio complained, “Luke, you should go with Natsuko to make sure she doesn’t accidentally bring back anything poisonous!”

Natsuko started to retort before she realized what Unio had suggested.

But she would not dwell on the implications, her heart was already full to the brim.

As the two closed the door behind them to set out for the local supermarket, QJ asked Unio curiously, “I thought you were always so against them being together, what changed?”

“I’ve found a new way to derive entertainment from their reactions,” Unio said, “And besides—“

He picked up the sketchbook Natsuko had hidden under the pillow seat, an evil grin on his face.

“I’ve got all I need to pass the time.”

Chapter Text

It was around a 10 minute walk from Natsuko’s apartment to the nearest supermarket. The rich hues of the evening skies painted the skyline of the suburbs in a dark purple, rimming the distant buildings with a soft pink. A cool breeze stirred the nearby trees gently as Luke and Natsuko walked in a slow pace, once again holding each other’s hands. They had picked up where their conversation left off. Natsuko explained to Luke about her animation studio and the movie that she had finished since she returned, and how she wanted to take all of them to go see a movie here soon. She learned to her delight and surprise that not only did the Soul Future of the Last Town get restored, all nine kingdoms did, and the realm was overflowing with life. Luke was also eager to tell her about the birthday party they had, where every Nine Soldier was in attendance.

“I’m so glad to hear that everyone is doing well over there,” Natsuko said, pausing a little before asking, “…Luke… you haven’t been pushing yourself too much, right?”

Luke considered her question for a moment, and grinned mischievously. “Have you been worried for me?”

Caught off guard, Natsuko stammered, “O-of-of course, I have!”

She continued, “You’re always putting others before yourself, and you care and protect the people around you more than anyone else. That’s part of what I l-love about you ever since I was little, but—“

She looked into his eyes.

“I want you to be happy yourself. I’ve always wanted you to be happy.”

“Natsuko…”

They had reached a fountain in the small park they were passing through to get to the market. Wanting a bit more time to talk, Luke guided Natsuko to one of the many benches stationed around the centerpiece of the park, and together they sat down.

“Growing up, I’ve always thought of being born as the legendary hero as a curse. My family was bound by duty to protect the world, and because of it, I’ve never known my parents,” Luke began after a moment of watching the rise and fall of the fountain springs.

She knew.

“Unio was the only one by my side, and that was enough for me. I trained and pushed myself harder than anyone else so that I could fulfill my duty, but even so, I still dreamt of the day when I could put all of it aside. But no matter how hard I fought, no matter how hard I trained, the world seemed like it would never be at peace. And one by one, I lost my dearest friends. I couldn’t protect anything.”

Luke glanced up at the evening sky.

“I thought that I was destined to live the rest of my life watching everyone around me die. So when Memmeln told us the reason she tried to summon the Ultimate Void, I couldn’t help but see myself in her. I was terrified of being left alone in a world where nothing remained.”

And this was the end that A Tale of Perishing had written for him. Natsuko often wondered what became of the Ultimate Void after it destroyed the world. Would it continue to exist, persisting in a void where no light can reach?

“But then you appeared out of nowhere one day, reckless, unpredictable, made light of everything we’ve fought for, and suddenly nothing made sense anymore,” Luke laughed.

“Agh—Well you weren’t what I expected, either! You weren’t nice at all and ate all the perishing meals in front of me on purpose,” Natsuko huffed loudly, her face flushed.

“Don’t worry, I intend to make that up to you with the rest of my life,” he smiled tenderly.

Does he have any idea what he just said? The deafening drumming of Natsuko’s heart drowned out the sounds of trickling water.

Oblivious of the proposal he just made, Luke continued.

“It was baffling, watching you genuinely love and enjoy our world, when it was sitting on the brink of ruin. In between the chaos of trying to figure out just who and what you are, I felt like I was able to see the for the first time that the world wasn’t just a place I had to save, but a place where I can live.”

He gripped her hand tighter.
And Natsuko understood. When he thought he had lost both her and Unio, he couldn’t go back to the version of himself who never knew that life could be more, and it had nearly destroyed him.

She squeezed his hand back in return, affirming to him to she was by his side. He smiled at her when he felt her hand.

“I remember waking up in the darkness to a memory,” he said as he closed his eyes, remembering, “It was a memory from the happiest moment of my life. And when I opened my eyes, you were there.”

“Luke…”

It was the happiest moment of her life, too, one that exceeded the day she first saw A Tale of Perishing. It was the day when she felt like she really saw him, not as a caricature of the hero she looked up to and grew up with, but as another living and breathing human being who moved her heart.

Luke chuckled.
“Natsuko, what I mean to say is, ever since that day, there has never been a moment I didn’t genuinely love the world I woke up in. This was the world you brought back for me, and I want to cherish it in any way I can. Not as the legendary hero, but as just Luke Braveheart.”

He intertwined his fingers with hers, and touched the back of her hand to his lips.

“And right now, I have never been happier,” and with the brightest, softest smile that shook Natsuko’s heart, he said, “You saved my world.”

“You saved mine, you’ve been saving it,” Natsuko said softly, searching her heart for ways to convey how much he meant to her. It would be a strange story, one that started before he even knew her. A story of how her life was changed when she saw a hero who threw himself into battle no matter how much the odds were against him. A story of how the same hero had again and again tore down her barriers and challenged her to bare her heart to others—A story in which she saw the scars and callouses that made him human, and fell deeply for him. And she was going to tell him all about it.

“I love you, Luke.” Her confession was unabashed and tranquil, the words left her as naturally as water left an overflowing cup.

Luke’s eyes widened as his heart skipped a beat. He brought her closer, tracing his thumb across her cheek.

“I love you, too, Natsuko.”

Their eyes met, and the wordless desire in their hearts was laid bare. Slowly, they leaned in, feeling the warmth of each others’ faces draw close, until their lips finally touched softly. And as they drew apart briefly, a fire was lit within them—they knew that one kiss wasn’t enough. They kissed once more, this time, deeper, almost desperate, wanting badly to drown in each other as all the pent up yearning in their hearts finally found its exit.

They were left breathless when they parted finally. This was their first kiss, and neither of them remembered to breathe.

The clock had struck 6 in the park, and the lights in the fountain pool illuminated the water in a beautiful fluorescent blue. The moving waters shimmered in waves that resembled a starry sky, but to Luke and Natsuko, the only starlight was in each other’s eyes.

Chapter Text

“Unio, are you sure we should be doing this?” QJ asked as he floated close to the sketchbook Unio laid on the table. Truthfully, both he and Memmeln were also undeniably curious about the contents of Natsuko’s sketchbook, and the way they moved themselves closer to table betrayed their reserve.

“What’s the harm?” Unio announced boisterously, “We’ll put it right back where she hid it and never speak of it again.”

With bated breath and a late realization that only Memmeln can turn the pages with ease, they flipped open the first page of Natsuko’s sketchbook.

“Hmm…?” They squinted.

On the very first page was an elaborate sketch of the Nine Soldiers in a location they did not recognize. It was an amusement park. The four of them had on hair bands and hats with cute round ears, and enjoyed cotton candy together with the most radiant smiles. The rough outlines of a roller coaster and ferris wheel loomed in the backdrop.

“That’s us.. isn’t it? I wonder where this is?” QJ examined the sketch.

Unio’s eyes sparkled, a rainbow splashed across his eyes.

“Natsuko… she really is amazing at drawing…!” Unio beamed in awe, forgetting that he had planned to poke fun at her.

The three of them continued flipping through the sketchbook. On many, many pages Natsuko had drawn the four of them exploring various places in The Kingdom of Reality— a cafe, a shrine, a mall, a train, or a movie theater. In between these pictures, there would always be portraits of Luke, sometimes in his armor, running through the pages in a short animation, at times in his apron and his loose ponytail. The lines of his every facial muscle was drawn with a level of care that exceeded any other sketches. He would be smiling, pouting, laughing—every gentle curve around his eyes and the softness of his hair were captured with love. The sketches spoke of a longing that Unio could not tease.

“Ah…..!” Memmeln inhaled as she turned another page. There she was in Natsuko’s next sketch, dressed in a flowing fairytale dress that resembled an evening gown, hand in hand with the prince of her dreams. Sir Exister was sketched in a regal suit matching her gown, and together they were posed in an elegant dance inside a courtyard of roses.

“Must we keep this a secret?” Memmeln asked, her emerald eyes sparkled brighter than ever. “I would like to ask Natsuko if I could take this picture back with me.”

“Mmmmgh…” The unicorn furrowed his brows, unsure of what to do.

The next few sketches were all familiar scenes from the Last Town— A muscular Destiny and an aproned Justice caring for the kids at the Serval Cat House, the Mayor posing side by side with Destiny, and Baobab reading her book of prophecy.

The pages went empty here.

“I suppose she isn’t done with this sketchbook yet,” QJ commented.

Unsatisfied, Unio flipped a few more empty pages with his hoof, and just as he was about to close up the sketchbook, he saw it. A few sketches peeked out in between empty pages, as though intentionally done to hide from any unexpected viewers. He flipped open the page.

And there Luke was, sketched in all that nature endowed and a single towel. Every water droplet dripping from the curled locks of his wet hair was tastefully placed, and every muscle on his body, down to the shape of his nipples and scars of the gashes that cut across his collarbone and right waist were drawn painstakingly accurate to life. There were closeup sketches from every angle of him flashing a smile that looked criminally sultry in his state of undress.

They stared in silence.

And then Unio exploded.

“Y-You ABSOLUTE ANIMAL!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO LUKE? HOW FAR DID YOU GO???”

Unio raised and shook the sketchbook in a frenzy. His thunderous screams and the clamor of his friends trying to calm him down prompted every dog in the neighborhood to start barking.

———

Luke’s shoulders shook in utter thrill and awe.

“N-Natsuko, you’re telling me that this place harvested every one of these ingredients??” His voice quivered in excitement, scanning the entire breadth of the supermarket, a fantastical culmination of his every culinary dream come true.

“I guess you could put it that way,” Natsuko giggled, pleased by his obvious enthusiasm, “you should pick an aisle to start, Luke. We’ll get anything we can carry back!” She pumped a fist next to her face.

Luke whipped his head around to Natsuko in pure joy, and quickly pulled her along to the first place that caught his interest, excitedly calling “over here, Natsuko, over here!” as he walked. His eyes glimmered in child-like wonder as he looked over the fresh produce and picked up a full cabbage. Natsuko stood with the shopping cart nearby, watching Luke skip from one vegetable to the other, muttering “I’ve never seen one this big!” “The shine on this pepper is incredible!” “What kind of leaf is this?”

“He’s really so cute,” Natsuko thought to herself, smiling.

“E-eh?”

Luke’s cheeks shot red as he returned to Natsuko with a few produce that he had picked out. Natsuko jumped, realizing that she had actually said that out loud.

“A-Ah , w-what I mean to say is, you’re really cute! No! Wait! Ahh-“ She ruffled her bangs in embarrassment. “H-have you picked out everything you need? Let’s go check out the meat aisle!”

Natsuko let Luke have a chance at pushing the cart as they navigated over to their next destination. On the way, they paused several times to stop by packaged goods on display that Luke pointed out. Natsuko happily explained the contents of the packaging to a radiant Luke. A delicious smell drifted towards them as they drew closer to the meat aisle. A sampling table was placed near the aisle, where an employee was frying up gyozas on a flat pan. As they reached the table, the lady offered them samples in small cups.

“Two for the cute couple!” She said cheerfully.

Surprised and blushing, they received the sample and thanked her.

“I’ve always heard you describe gyozas and wondered what they’re like… this is delicious!”
Luke said as he tried a piece with a toothpick while walking.

“Aren’t they? But the version you made was even better, Luke!” She replied as she also ate her sample. Luke smiled to himself at her compliment.

“… Natsuko, I know we haven’t spoken about this formally.. but,” Luke stopped to look over at Natsuko with a quiet and earnest gaze, “Are you ok with it? For us to be a couple?”

Natsuko’s face heated up instantly. Fighting against her erratic heartbeat, she nodded slowly and reached for Luke’s hand.

“… If you’ll have me,” she mumbled.

The two of them toured each section of the meat aisle, with no shortage of Luke singing praises of how every part was already cut out and separated into prepackaged portions. They picked out portions of sliced pork and beef for nikujaga, and continued over to the condiments aisle to find what they needed for flavoring.

“So this what soy sauce and sake really looks like…” Luke mused as he examined the bottles Natsuko had picked out.

Natsuko did another mental inventory of what she had in her apartment, and realized to her relief that she still had a bag of unused rice and quite a bit of salt and sugar left. As far as she knows, their dinner ingredients have all been checked off. Smiling softly at Luke, who’s still immersed in the variety of sauces and oils, she decided that no aisle will be left unexplored tonight. They toured through the dairy section and laughed over dozens of packaged eggs with no chicken in sight. Eventually, they made their way over to the cooked food and bakery area, where Natsuko explained that on her busy days, she would come straight here. Luke assured her with a proud pat to his chest that for as long as he’s here, she would not need to buy dinner made by anyone else.

As they finished checking out at the counter, bags of groceries in hand, Natsuko noticed that Luke was looking back at the aisles longingly.

“Luke,” she said warmly, “we can come back here any time you like.”

Natsuko moved a few bags to just her left hand, and wrapped her right around his arm. Grinning from ear to ear, they began their walk back.

Chapter Text

By the time Luke and Natsuko returned to the apartment, it was already a little after seven. Natsuko expected to Unio to make an obnoxious fuss the moment she opened the door, but what greeted them instead was an eerily quiet unicorn by the entryway, arms crossed with an extremely suspicious look.

“What took you all so long?” He asked in an icy voice, narrowing his eyes, “Was the suupermaarket really that far?”

Natsuko’s shoulder twitched and her eyes darted away from the unicorn’s stare.

“Just a little far,” she laughed nervously, “We got carried away looking at all the interesting food in the market. Right, Luke?”

“Ah-right!” Luke added loudly, “I have never seen anything like it! That’s why we lost track of time exploring it all!”

Unio was familiar with this exact pattern of interaction from the time they were keeping Memmeln’s clandestine cult activities a secret.

“Don’t play coy with me, gremlin!!” The unicorn shouted, point a hoof at Natsuko. “I know just what kind of BEAST you are!! I saw all your lewd drawings of L—ouguh-“

He was cut off abruptly by Memmeln, who grabbed him by the mouth and picked him off the floor entirely.

“MMmmemmmmng!!” Unio’s legs swam in the air.

“Natsuko and Luke, we are looking forward to dinner. Let us know if you need any help in the kitchen,” she said calmly, and walked towards the living room with Unio pinned under her unexpectedly strong arm.

The entryway was suddenly quiet again with Natsuko coming to the horrifying realization that Unio, maybe even QJ and Memmeln, discovered the sketches that were never meant to see the light of day.

“Natsuko, what sketches were Unio talking about—“

“Luke! Did you know that our kitchens here don’t use fire to cook these days?!” She interrupted in a hurry. “Come on, let’s take off our shoes and I’ll give you a grand tour of all the cooking appliances!”

Before Luke had a chance to say another word, Natsuko shook off her shoes, grabbed as many grocery bags as she could carry and took off to the kitchen at lightning speed. He let out a light chuckle in resignation and followed suit.

—

“…And this here not only cooks rice, you can also steam meat and boil soup in it as well!” Natsuko boasted proudly. While she may not be an amazing cook herself, she took pride in the ownership of such a versatile item. Luke exhaled in wonder as he looked into the inner containers of the rice cooker.

By the end of Natsuko’s tour of the modern kitchen, Luke was already able to draw parallels between the kitchen he’s used to and this one, and he quickly delved into the preparation steps for nikujaga. As he took out the cutting board, Natsuko stole a few furtive glances at Luke, who now had on one of her purple aprons and tied his hair back to a loose ponytail. It had been some time since she’s seen him in that hairstyle, and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia. She always thought he looked cute that way.

While Luke busied himself with the main course, Natsuko took on the simpler task of washing and cooking the rice. Remembering that they had stocked up on the tea leaves, she also made green tea for the Nine Soldiers in the living room. She returned to the kitchen to clean up as they go, and answered any questions Luke had about appliance settings. Before long, the scrumptious aroma of stewed meat and pickled vegetable filled the apartment.

Unio, Memmeln, and QJ glowed with excitement as the table is set. The still smoking pot of nikujaga centered the dining table, surrounded by small plates of pickled cucumber and seaweed salad seasoned with soy sauce and sesame oil. With the exception of QJ, there was a bowl of steaming white rice waiting for everyone to dig in. Natsuko glanced towards QJ and wondered if the motor oil in gas stations here would be edible for him.

“Natsuko, I know what you’re thinking,” QJ laughed, “All I really need for tonight is to charge myself later.”

Everyone dug into the long awaited dinner.

“So this is nikujaga..!” Unio poured a serving of the stewed meat and potato into his bowel and took a bite with his fork. “This is amazing!! I’ve never had anything like it!” Hearts appeared in his eyes as he took another bite.

Memmeln ate in silence, savoring the flavors with her eyes closed. A smile tugged at her lips.

“Mmmm~!! This is it! This is the taste I’ve been missing!” Natsuko sang in absolute bliss. “It’s strange, I’ve had nikujaga since I came back to reality, but nothing comes close to this!”

“..? Luke, are you not hungry?” QJ floated by Luke, noticing that he hasn’t started on his own food. A gentle smile on his face, he was deeply absorbed in watching Natsuko eat to her heart’s content.

He caught himself and glanced back at QJ.
“Ah— right,” he muttered and took a few helpings into his bowl.

“I was wrong, wasn’t I?” QJ lowered his voice, “You don’t just love watching others enjoy their food, you love watching Natsuko.” His eyes flipped into big waves akin to a grin as Luke’s ears turned a light pink.

———

It was late when they cleared the table after an incredibly satisfying meal. Natsuko realized that although she had given the Nine Soldiers a quick tour of the bathroom earlier, she never explained how the showers actually worked in case they needed to use it. In the Last Town, due to its desert climes, most people were content with wiping themselves down with a wet towel, so it never crossed her mind until now that having heated water for baths here all the time would be a surprise.

“Why don’t you go ahead first, Natsuko,” Memmeln suggested, “Since you are more accustomed to using the baths here, it will be faster for you to start and then come back to teach us after.”

“That’s true…” Natsuko paused to think before looking up. “I know! Let me turn on the TV for you all.”

With a touch of the remote, the previously silent screen that had been sitting near the dining table flickered into life.

“What magic is this..?” Luke and Unio drew closer to the screen, fascinated by the moving people inside.

“Think of it like QJ’s projection functionality,” Natsuko explained cheerfully as she gathered her change of clothing, “I’ll only be a few minutes, enjoy and don’t do anything crazy.”

When Natsuko returned from her shower, she found her friends right where she left them, in the living room and crowded around the TV.

Snickering, she announced, “I’m done! Come on, I’ll show you how the shower knob works.”

The Nine Soldiers broke from the spell of evening entertainment and turned their heads around at the sound of her voice.

Immediately, Luke’s breath hitched. Natsuko had changed into a loose button up pajama and matching shorts, the kind one could easily pick up from any convenience store. Her hair now splayed freely over her shoulders, water droplets still clinging to her dark strands. A soft blush still lingered on her cheeks. At her gesture, she led them to the bathtub.

“On the right handle is the hot water, and you can turn it on by turning it upwards like this, and the same with cold water on the left…”

Luke felt dizzy standing next to her. The faint leftover perfume of shampoo, mixed with residue wetness and steam still rising from Natsuko’s skin was intoxicating and it overwhelmed all his other senses. Her voice carried on distantly as he tried his best to nod along with his companions.

“…and that should be it! Piece of cake, right?”

Next to him, Memmeln and Unio were nodding in clear understanding, but Luke had missed the entirety of Natsuko’s tutorial.

“Memmeln, you said you wanted to try it first right? Here, you can wear my spare pajamas,” Natsuko said as she handed her a near identical set, “Just holler at me if you need help, I’ll be right outside!”

The three of them returned to the living room where QJ waited.

“Haaaa Yakult after a bath always hits the spot,” Natsuko sighed loudly as she gulped down the small bottle of yogurt, “Here’s more if you want—Hm? Luke, why are you sitting so far away?”

Natsuko looked towards the window of the living room where Luke had moved to.

“Oh- It’s nothing, I’ll take one,” he walked back to the dining table hesitantly and reached for a bottle.

Prompted by Unio, they spent next few minutes catching Natsuko up on the journey they took to reach the Kingdom of Reality. Natsuko listened in with rapt attention as Unio described the origins of the world crossing magic in detail, and the search they went on to find the elusive turtle crane. Memmeln continued where Unio left off when he took his turn, showing Natsuko the stopwatch they used to resonate with the thread of this world.

“Director Tsuruyama’s stopwatch…” Natsuko’s eyes widened. “Luke, I’m impressed that you were able to get her to part with it.”

Luke shook his head, thinking back on the exchange he had with the bird in the sunset, and the haunting, but liberating message she had left him with.

“She told me that it was of no more use to her,” he said.

“Huh…” Natsuko wondered. She had grown up studying every aspect of Tsuruyama Kametaro’s life and aspirations, and knew that a stopwatch that she had used all her career and taken with her even in death was not something she would easily let go of. Not until she was truly satisfied or content.

“Luke~ your turn!” Unio skipped back into the living room from the bath, refreshed and chipper.

“Ah, Luke!” Natsuko reached for one of the bags from the market. “I grabbed some spare clothes for you if you need to change, just for tonight.”

He thanked her and looked into the bag curiously as he walked towards the bathroom.

One of these days I need to take them to visit a department store, she thought to herself, knowing full well that the clothes she had Luke and Memmeln wear did not do them justice. Dressing up her heroes in stylish modern clothes was a long time dream, and the thought of it filled her with excitement.

Natsuko enjoyed the rest of the night blow drying Memmeln’s silky green hair and Unio’s mane. The warm air from the blowdryer felt so soothing that it came close to lulling them to sleep.

“Natsuko, can you come by?” Luke’s muffled distress call sounded in the bathroom.

“On my way!” she called back, getting up to her feet.

“Is everything ok in there?” she asked by the door, “Can I come in?”

“Yeah, I’m just having some trouble with the knob,” he responded.

Thinking he must have put his change of clothing on already, Natsuko entered bathroom.

How wrong she was.

Facing away from her and focused on tinkering with the shower knob, Luke had but one towel clinging onto his hips, and the full force of the view of his wet back muscles made her take a step back. In midst of her panic, she also noted that there was something different about him than what she had saved in her brain’s permanent visual library.

Natsuko stepped over carefully on the damp floor to look at the source of Luke’s problem.

“Sorry, Natsuko, I’m trying to turn off the water, but somehow it still keeps running,” Luke said as he twisted the hot water knob on and off.

“Ah, I see what the problem is.” The knob
was a slick modern design that didn’t make it plain where the handles were aside from the small handlebar attached to the hot water side, and Luke wasn’t able to read the cold water label. Unio must have left the cold water running on his way out, but only Luke felt responsible enough to switch off the water entirely.

She reached over Luke’s shoulder to twist the cold water knob. “You just need to give this side a downward tur—“

The sound of Natsuko’s voice so close to his ear made Luke jump.

“Uwah——!!!” Natsuko flinched backwards in reflex and slipped on the water on the floor.

“Natsuko!”

She braced for the impact of hitting the tiled floor. But it never came.

Luke had caught her by the waist, and her hand held onto the crook of his neck instinctively.

Natsuko’s mind blanked as she looked up. The distance between them was so close that she can smell the scent of soap from Luke’s skin. A single water droplet fell from the damp hair that traced the shape of his jawline onto her collarbone and down into the folds of her pajamas. The initial shock on Luke’s face slowly gave way to a quiet, heated gaze as he looked back at her. She found herself unable to break away from his cerulean eyes.

Only then did she realize from the feel of his warm skin under her palm what was different about him.

“Luke…your scars are gone.” The skin beneath her hand felt smooth and damp in contrast to the roughness she would have expected from a scar.

“After the world was reborn, the damage that the Voids inflicted were healed completely,” he replied with his eyes still locked onto her.

Her eyes glowed in understanding as she slowly retracted her hand and tried to regain her balance, but Luke maintained a firm grip on her waist, keeping her right where he wanted her.

“Why?” He brought her closer, lowering his voice to barely above a whisper. “Did you like them, Natsuko?”

There was a feverish undercurrent to the tone of his voice that made her skin burn. She shivered as Luke traced his hand to move away a stray strand of hair from her face. She could feel the shape of his muscles against her clothes, and heat pooled in her stomach.

“…… I came to check on you all because I heard a commotion.” A cold, monotone voice drifted in from the doorway of the bathroom. Unio stood there, an even colder look on his face.

“I was wrong,” Unio glanced away to the side looking dramatically disappointed as he continued on, “I see now that Natsuko isn’t the only beast in this house.”

With a final look at the ceiling while wearing the expression of an enlightened monk, the unicorn closed the door to the blushing, shaking couple, and scampered off.

“Memmeln~~~~ my eyes are burning~ heal me?” Unio’s high pitched cry faded off into the living room.

Luke and Natsuko slowly collected themselves and tried to carry on normally as Natsuko helped shut off the cold water. Their hearts were still racing uncontrollably when Natsuko left the bathroom, walking as though her legs were cooked noodles.

——

Natsuko laid out all her spare futons, pillows , and blankets onto the tatami in her bedroom and living room. Her small space would fit two in her bedroom and two in the living room. Luckily, the combined size of Unio and QJ could be counted roughly as one.

She looked over to the Nine Soldiers in the living room, who were now relaxed and content from experiencing the luxuries of a warm bath before sleep. In the corner of the room, QJ was already fast asleep on his charging station. Luke had put on the plain white T-shirt and shorts from the market, and he looked humorously laid-back.

“The size of this apartment is quite small, so we may have to squeeze a bit,” Natsuko started, “I guess Memmeln and I will—“

She stopped as her eyes drifted over to Luke’s forlorn expression—the look on his face resembled a lost puppy. Natsuko felt enamored and guilty at the same time.

“Ah—,uh, I mean—“

They were dating now, and it wouldn’t be strange to share the same room, but she didn’t know if her heart could handle it, especially after what happened in the bathroom just minutes ago. But they had been apart for so long that she also wanted him close.

“Natsuko, I will be fine in the living room with Unio and QJ,” Memmeln said with a smile, “I think you and Luke still have a lot to catch up on, so you should take that time.”

She leaned in close to Natsuko’s ear with a mischievous glint in her eyes and added, “Just don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Natsuko backed away with a choked gasp, but the elf had already reverted back to her innocent smile.

“I.. I guess, Luke, if you’re okay with it, we can be in the same room,” she turned to look at him as she rubbed her nose bashfully. The answer was clear from watts of brilliance radiating from Luke’s eyes.

Unio’s stare burned into the back of her head as she and Luke bid everyone good night and walked towards her bedroom.

“Wait,” Unio said, stopping Natsuko in her tracks.

He reached beneath the cushion he had been using and took out the sketchbook Natsuko had hidden there.

“You • Forgot • This.” The unicorn smirked with all his teeth visible.

Natsuko blushed furiously and snatched away her sketchbook. She made a pass to grab Unio’s horn but missed it narrowly as the elusive unicorn dodged to the other side of the dining table. Mouthing “I’ll • Remember • This” angrily to Unio, she closed the door to her bedroom.

Luke was staring at a poster in her room with fascination when she closed the door behind her. Natsuko slapped a hand on her face — she was so bent on purging the living room of all traces of Nine Soldiers merchandise that she forgot that there were arguably more in her bedroom.

“This is… more of me, right?” Luke asked in genuine interest, “I thought Unio was the most popular Nine Soldier.”

“He is… but,” Natsuko sat down on her futon in resignation, “You were my favorite.”

Luke’s eyes glittered with excitement and his cheeks flushed. This was the answer to question he had been waiting to hear since their first date, and the thought that Natsuko had admired him ever since she was a kid made him feel light. Noticing the sketchbook next to her legs, Luke sat down across from Natsuko on the futon she had laid out for him.

“These are the sketches that Unio was talking about, right?” Luke motioned towards her sketchbook. “May I see them, Natsuko?”

Natsuko nodded and handed the sketchbook to Luke quietly. Knowing that Memmeln, QJ, and Unio had already seen its contents, there was no point in hiding it from Luke.

He grinned brightly at the first few sketches where he and his three companions toured the Kingdom of Reality together.

And then Luke saw for the first time, Natsuko’s solo sketches of himself. His heart threatened to rattle out of his chest as he slowly turned over pages and pages of his portraits, all tenderly depicting versions of him seen through Natsuko’s eyes. She had captured him in ways he never thought possible—the creases between his eyebrows when he swings his sword, the way his eyes arch up gently when he smiles, the strands of hair that fall over his face as he cooked— details about himself that he would only know through another person’s eyes.

Natsuko hadn’t felt this nervous about anyone looking at her art since the day she sent in her first portfolio to Studio Konkon.

“Luke,” Natsuko joked to lighten the mood, “You’re so red.”

“S-so are you!” he said as he looked up, pouting.

Natsuko watched his expressions with a mixture of amusement and chagrin as he looked through the rest of her sketchbook. Eventually, he reached the first empty page.

“Does it end here?” He asked.

“That’s right, the rest will be filled up by yours truly,” she replied cheerfully. Sensing that the danger was near, she quickly reached over to take the sketchbook away from his hands.

“Wait—“ Luke started. He instinctively held onto the sketchbook, wanting to start from the beginning again.

The tug and pull resulted in Natsuko losing her grip, and the sketchbook fluttered onto the space between them, opening itself faced up on the one page Natsuko hoped Luke would never see. The scream that Natsuko wanted to let out died in her throat.

“Is this…?” It was.

The last version of himself Luke hadn’t seen, from their very first date.

Luke breathed in awe as he picked up the sketchbook again, turning the pages to find more sketches of his exposed form, the lines of his muscles and the shape of his scars drawn with startling accuracy. Natsuko had buried her face in her hands once again, praying the mortifying reality in front of her would disappear if she never looked.

“So you do like those scars…” Luke’s lips curled into an expression between pure joy and delight. He almost wished they never healed.

“Natsuko.” Luke gently moved Natsuko’s hands away from her face and smiled at her deeply flushed cheeks and watery eyes. She looked so precious to him. Leaning in slowly, he placed a soft kiss on her lips.

“I love you.”

The rest of the night was a blur for Natsuko. She vaguely recalled switching off the lights, crawling into her futon, and wishing each other goodnight as they held onto each other’s hands between the futons. In midst of her panicked heartbeats and her head spinning whenever Luke took a breath next to her, she finally found the merciful release of sleep.

Chapter Text

“Luke….” Natsuko murmured sleepily in his arms, “I think…I may sleep for more than just three days this time.”

She smiled weakly at him.

“Be ready to… feed me lots when I wake up…ok..?”

With these last few words, Natsuko fell into a deep slumber. Luke cradled her in his arms as he stood up from the endless fields of blooming flowers.

“All your favorites, as soon as you open your eyes,” Luke whispered, “Goodnight, Natsuko.” He kissed her forehead softly.

Luke was familiar with this dream.

It was one that he had often, where he brought Natsuko home like he always did after a battle. A dream where she never left.

Knowing that he would be waking up empty handed in a world without her, he always savored every moment of this dream. He held her close with as much as his strength can afford to without hurting her, buried his face into her long, flowing hair, and nuzzled against her cheeks before planting kisses on her neck. He would commit every part of her to memory before the light of day took her away.

He could hear her voice as he stirred awake to warmth of the morning sun on his skin.

“L-l-l-l-l-Luke? Are you awake?” Natsuko was trying her best in her most subdued, panicked voice, “P-please tell me you’re going to wake up soon..!!”

Luke slowly opened his eyes half way.

“Natsuko…?”

Her beet red face, dotted with a few agitated tears, was right where his dream had left it. A few small red spots now peppered her neck.

He smiled.

For a continuation of the dream, this felt different than usual.

“Weren’t you… going to sleep for longer..?” He asked groggily, bringing her to his chest again as he wrapped his arms around her back. Natsuko shook as parts of his calloused palm grazed her skin where her pajama shirt rode up. As comfortable as she felt in Luke’s arms, she was going to pass out from being overloaded if this went on.

“No, Luke…” Natsuko played along, “I’m…going to wake up soon, and I’ll be hungry.”

Luke’s eyes flew open.

It took a moment for him to remember where he was as his surroundings came into focus. He wasn’t empty handed. Realization dawned on him as he looked down to a blushing and slightly disheveled Natsuko, who was nestled tightly against his chest. All the blood in his body rushed to his face at once and he quickly let go of her.

“I didn’t mean—- I’m sorry,” Luke blurted erratically as he sat up.

“It’s ok,” Natsuko said bashfully as she got up and straightened out her pajama shirt, “It’s not that… I disliked it or anything, just—“

Bad for my heart, she thought.

The image of Luke smiling blissfully at her with sleepy eyes as his messy golden tresses shimmered beautifully in the morning sun will be one that she etched in her mind forever.

What was he dreaming about? Natsuko wondered.

It took a moment for them to regain composure before they could look at each other again.

“Good morning, Luke,” she said, smiling.

“Good morning, Natsuko,” Luke replied with a warm smile.

——

The heroes enjoyed a light but delicious breakfast that Luke made with Natsuko’s help—miso soup, grilled fish, tamagoyaki, seaweed salad, and a steaming bowl of white rice. Natsuko was over the moon from being able to eat such a complete breakfast. A typical morning for her was running out of her apartment and picking up an onigiri from the nearest convenience store on her way to the studio. Luckily, today was the start of the weekend, and Natsuko was brimming with excitement.

“I want to take everyone shopping today!” She beamed.

“Shopping?” Memmeln tipped her head curiously, “Do we need more items from the market?”

“Mmmm a little different than that, but I won’t spoil the surprise,” Natsuko replied. She can already imagine how cute Memmeln would look in a fitting dress or skirt. There should also be an Animate branch store close to their destination that she knew Memmeln would enjoy immensely.

“Taking a train all of a sudden may be a bit too much to start for the second day,” Natsuko thought to herself, “It will be a longer walk, but we should be able to get to the nearest department store in 30 minutes.”

QJ hovered to the window of the living room and scanned the skies. “The weather today is sunny, with no chance of rain! Perfect for a walk.” He said cheerfully. “It will be warm, too. Natsuko, are you sure you want to wear that scarf?”

Natsuko jumped.

“A-Ah, this? Don’t worry, the fabric is lighter than it looks,” she blushed and played at her short silk scarf, “It’s just part of our fashion here.”

Unio narrowed his eyes at Luke suspiciously as Luke looked away and drained his miso soup.

Chapter Text

The party of five walked along the scenic route overlooking a glistening river. All around them, the world stirred with the exuberance of a spring morning. Cherry blossom trees lined the sidewalk, greeting onlookers with a snow shower of petals when the wind blew. The walkway was packed with families, joggers and couples who were also there to enjoy the all the grace that spring had to offer. Natsuko was pleased to see from the expressions of the Nine Soldiers that they were absolutely enchanted by the scenery. There was something ephemeral about seeing her most precious heroes framed by the mundane, but beautiful landscape of day-to-day life. In the Last Town, she would scribble furiously on her sketch pad to capture a moment like this, but this was reality. Natsuko quietly took out her phone and snapped a photo that she knew she would treasure forever.

“Strange… I would think they would at least give Unio or QJ a double take,” Natsuko wondered after the third family passed them without affect.

“Before we left this morning, I cast a disguise on them both,” Memmeln explained, “To all other living beings, Unio would appear to be a normal human child. QJ would look mostly invisible.”

“Memmeln~” Unio whined, “At least make me a handsome young man! I am a 19 year old adult, you know.”

Memmeln shot Unio a stoic glance that spoke “too much effort”.

They made several stops on the way to the department store. The sweet scent of early morning bakery lured them into a small storefront filled with bread of all exotic sizes and shapes, and they left with a pastry each in their hands, eyes glowing and ready to take a bite of its crispy crust. They also toured a flower shop briefly, where Natsuko taught them the names of the flowers on display— the variety of plants were strangely similar but different from the fauna in the Nine Kingdoms.

The first mysterious object that particularly caught Luke and Unio’s attention on the streets was a large glass covered case made out of an unknown material that Natsuko called a —

“Veending machine?” Luke asked, staring at the row of bottled drinks he recognized from the supermarket. There were glowing signs beneath each displayed bottle that he couldn’t read.

QJ examined the machine inquisitively, but like the many machines in this world, the box held no sentience.

“Want to try it?” Natsuko grinned and put a single coin in the narrow crevasse on the case. She glanced at Unio first, who shook his head furiously in distrust. She then looked over to Luke. “Go on, pick one.”

Luke frowned at Natsuko, sensing that she was clearly up to something. He was curious himself, and he was not about to tarnish the Braveheart name over a block of inanimate object. Luke hovered his finger over the button under an arbitrary drink and pressed it.

KLUNK

“!!”

The loud noise made him instantly jump backwards and reach for his sword in the same motion. Feeling nothing at his waist, he gasped and remembered that Natsuko had both him and Memmeln leave their weapons behind, explaining that no one here carried weapons in broad daylight.

Natsuko was caught in a fit of unending laughter next to him. With tears in her eyes and arms holding onto her stomach, she said in a shaky voice, “It’s, safe, hee-, I promised you, it’s not a monster, hehahaha—!” She pointed towards the bottom of the case. “See that rectangular outline there? If you push it, you’ll find a surprise inside.”

Blushing slightly from his overreaction, Luke eyed Natsuko suspiciously before pushing open the bottom storage of the vending machine. The exact bottle that he had picked earlier was waiting inside. As he reached for the bottle, a cacophony of coins cascading onto the dispenser next to him sent him flying backwards once again. This time, Natsuko was there to catch him while laughing up a storm in his ears. She collected her spare change, picked up the bottle, and touched the bottle to Luke’s cheek. To Luke’s surprise, it was warm.

“Hot oolong tea, not a bad choice for a day like this,” she grinned and opened the bottle for him.

“It wasn’t that funny, was it?” He mumbled as he took a sip of his hard fought bounty.

Natsuko giggled and took his hand, and his expression relaxed into a smile.

——

As though the towering skyscrapers of the city area were a precursor to what was to come, the sheer scale of the department store stunned the Nine Soldiers. Everywhere their eyes could see, stores after stores lit up the expansive, smooth walkway. People gathered throughout the gigantic building space as though there were a festival in town. The Kingdom of Reality was far more extraordinary than they ever imagined.

“Natsuko…” QJ spoke in a hushed tone, “How will we ever finish seeing everything?”

“Well, ordinarily even people here won’t want to see every single shop,” Natsuko explained, pointing to a standing map nearby, “Some people come here with a purpose in mind and follow this map. Others just roam and pick whatever strikes their fancy until they need to go home.”

She had a purpose, one that spanned thirteen years.

Natsuko navigated their party to the most well visited clothing attire store within the building. The Nine Soldiers had never seen anything like it in the marketplaces within their kingdoms. Past the wide, clean cut entryway, there were enough styles, colors and types of clothing to serve customers from all walks of life laid out in neat stacks, as if a whole caravan of traders had parked in one space. Natsuko took her companions on a quick walk around the store before they decided on which section they should stop by first. Taking in the variety of fashion within the store, Unio came to a startling realization.

“You know, Natsuko, I used to think that everyone in the Kingdom of Reality dressed the way you did,” he began, a smirk on his face, “But seeing all the garments out here, I’m starting to wonder…”

The unicorn leaned close to Natsuko and taunted. “That the way you used to dress was… uncool even here.”

Natsuko jolted and let out an offended huff.

“Listen here,” she grabbed to unicorn to her face and growled, “What I wore was the ultimate form of comfort and mobility, my battle armor as an animator! As if a pack mule like you would ever understand!”

“Hah! You changed out of it yourself! That means you KNEW it was lame!!”

Gasping with no words to throw back, Natsuko grabbed Unio’s horn, getting ready to put him through another spin cycle.

“Careful,” Unio jeered, “I’m supposed to look like a human kid right now—you really want to do that?”

Natsuko squeezed his face with a frustrated growl.

“Calm down, people are watching. Let’s pick a section to look at first,” QJ interjected. Natsuko dropped a grinning Unio with an annoyed scoff.

There were many options they could choose from, but Natsuko couldn’t resist her own desire to see the one thing she has been dying to see since she was nine.

“Luke,” she took his hand into both of hers, “Let’s start with you!”

“Ehh—-??” Being picked first for trying on clothes was the last thing Luke expected. Like Natsuko, the tunic and tights he wore were there for the ease of equipping his armor or putting on his apron. He had but one set of formal dress made for him by the Mayor for special occasions. Picking out clothes to look good was a thought that never crossed his mind. The blinding sparkles pouring from Natsuko’s eyes were utterly irresistible to him, so Luke allowed himself to be pulled along to the Men’s Apparel section.

“Luke strikes me as the athletic and healthy type… so maybe some close fitting activewear would look good on him…” Natsuko was deep in thought as she rummaged through the hangers. “Luke! Anything catch your eye?”

“Ah- uh…” Luke looked up from the neatly folded shirts in front of him. The collars of the light blue linen shirts reminded him of the tunic he had on. A few jackets in hand, Natsuko made her way over to the shelves Luke was standing next to with interest.

“Not bad! Let’s grab one!” Natsuko happily looked through the size labels of the shirts and retrieved one from the pile.

“Wait, Natsuko, these look like they’re in different sizes, how do you know which one would fit me?” Luke asked, surprised by how quickly she made her decision.

“Ah…….” Natsuko glanced away. She has seen enough of him to keep very exact mental measurements. Even without the lucky, no, unexpected incidents, she had memorized every single detail from the character reference sheets of all Nine Soldiers. She knew everyone’s sizes.

“Call it an animator’s intuition,” she chuckled nervously.

That was a long pause, Luke thought.

Unio, QJ, and Memmeln met back up with Luke and Natsuko by the room with tall mirrors lining the walls. Everyone else also had a few pieces of clothing in hand for Luke to wear. Natsuko gathered their picks and patted the stack of clothes onto Luke’s chest.

“And that’s all of them, time to try these on, Luke,” Natsuko said with brightest grin on her face.

“Wait, right now?!” Luke jumped in surprise.

“Of course, that’s why we have dressing rooms here,” she flashed a wide smile, “Convenient, isn’t it?”

Luke glanced over at his friends, who all wore a grin on their faces.

“You’re all enjoying this, aren’t you…” He narrowed his eyes at them.

“Immensely,” Memmeln answered without a missing a single beat.

Natsuko enthusiastically guided Luke by the shoulders into a stall, and closed the door behind him.

“Let me know if you need any help~” she sang.
A single confused groan traveled out of the door behind her.

The remaining four of them waited on a cushioned bench next to the changing rooms. Luke was taking a bit of time, and Natsuko wondered if she should have explained how zippers worked in this world before he started changing. Her ears perked up when she heard the sound of a door opening slowly. Natsuko got up, phone at the ready, and marched towards the mirrors.

“Natsuko—I’m not sure if I’m wearing this right, can you take a look?” Luke walked over while adjusting the sleeves of the sports jacket she had picked out for him. She froze, her phone left forgotten in her hands. He looked——

“Dashing, aren’t you?!!” Unio ran by and nudged Luke hard by the knees.

“Unio!” He stumbled from the impact.

The light blue linen shirt fitted his torso comfortably, covering a pair of slim dark slacks that complimented the line of his form. The loose black jacket contrasted the brighter colors of the linen shirt and his hair perfectly. A spotlight that didn’t exist shined a light on Luke. Natsuko had every intention of greeting him with a witty compliment and snapping at least ten photos, but she was left speechless and rooted to the spot.

“…Natsuko?”

Slightly concerned by how still she was, Luke leaned forward to check her expression.

“I don’t look strange.. do I?”

She gasped for air, having forgotten to breathe.

“No… you look…” Natsuko could feel her face heat up. “… really good.” She finished her sentence with a barely audible voice, and silently took the photo she had been meaning to take.

Luke’s eyes lit up and his cheeks glowed, pleased by her reaction. He made a few more curious spins in front of the mirror to see the other angles of his outfit. QJ and Memmeln nodded in the agreement, satisfied with the slacks that they picked out for him. With encouragement from his friends, he tried out the remaining clothes, even donning on the random pair of sunglasses that Unio threw in at one point, causing laughter to burst out from their corner of the store. Natsuko scrolled through her photo gallery with the widest, most gleeful grin that sent chills down Unio’s spine.

“All of these clothes…” Luke asked nervously as Natsuko moved them into a shopping bag, “You have to trade in coin for that, right? I don’t want you to spend this much for our sake.”

Natsuko puffed her chest proudly. “Don’t underestimate the salary of a virtuoso! I climbed up the industry ladder for this exact purpose!” She beamed at Luke. “Where else will I spend my coin if not here? Just think of this as payment for all the free food I ate.”

Luke let out a chuckle of resignation and offered to at least carry the bag for her.

The party continued with Unio’s clothes by the kid’s section. Despite his protests about being too old for kids’ clothing, it was clear as soon as he put on a button up shirt with a bow tie and a pair of suspender shorts that kids clothing was, in fact, perfect for him. A few young mothers shopping in the section fawned over how cute he looked and it instantly lifted his spirits. Even QJ was pleased to find a few checkered neckties and collars for his collection here.

When they finally reached the Women’s Apparel, Natsuko sped through the hangers, burning with the singular mission to dress up Memmeln. Elegant, soft, and light green—she recited in her head as she looked through a set of in season spring dresses. Memmeln herself showed interest in the silk blouses that were smooth to the touch, as well as the capri pants that she had seen Natsuko wear. Unio was especially enthusiastic in gathering several revealing outfits that were rejected before even reaching the fitting rooms. QJ picked out several hair ornaments that caught his eyes. To Luke, this was a world as unknown as the Kingdom of Reality itself, but he gave it his best attempt after much head scratching and consideration.

Natsuko hummed with joy at the dressing room as she collected the outfits everyone picked out for Memmeln. She guided Memmeln to the stall and remembered this time to give a quick tutorial about how zippers and clasps worked. As they waited by the sofas outside, Natsuko clutched her phone excitedly.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, Natsuko,” Luke glanced at her phone curiously, “What have you been doing with that ‘smaartphone’ of yours all through today?”

“I’ve been taking photos—keeping a record of everything from today,” she said, “Something like QJ’s recordings, but just for a single moment. Want to see?”

Luke moved over to Natsuko’s seat and leaned close to look at her phone screen, making her heart jump a little from the sudden proximity.

“All these are of us…” Luke observed in awe as Natsuko scrolled through the gallery that started from this morning’s walk. He pouted at Natsuko as she scrolled past a blurred shot of him jumping away from the vending machine.

Thinking to himself briefly as he looked through the remainder of the gallery, Luke asked, “How do you take these phootos?”

Natsuko was intrigued by his interest, so she navigated to the camera app and pointed out the buttons that switch the camera perspective and took the photo.

“As an example…” She flipped the camera screen onto them and pressed the photo button.

The camera clicked, and the image of a grinning Natsuko and a surprised and unprepared Luke appeared. Natsuko snickered at Luke’s expression in the photo.

At this moment, Memmeln emerged from the stall of the dressing room. Natsuko rose from her seat and a high pitched gasp escaped from her throat—Memmeln’s dress up appearance was everything she had envisioned and more. The light green spring dress hugged her small frame just slightly below her chest, and flowed beautifully down to her knees. She had also put on a laced white cardigan that complemented the sleeveless design of her dress. Everyone gathered around Memmeln in wonder as Natsuko busied herself snapping photos of Memmeln from all different angles in her usual gremlin fashion. Smiling gently, Memmeln changed into the remainder of her outfits with the grace and confidence of a model, garnering a wave of cheers from her friends with each walk to the mirrors.

Natsuko hugged her phone, content and over the moon with the once in a lifetime set of reference photos that she now held in her hands. She was ready to translate all of it to canvas as soon as she got home. Having accomplished her mission today, Natsuko turned towards her companions to suggest a quick lunch before heading to the Animate store.

“Hm?”

A set of fabrics pressed against her stopped Natsuko in her tracks.

“You didn’t think we’d be the only ones on display for today, did you?” Luke said as he pressed the stack of clothing to her, blushing lightly in anticipation.

“Huh? But I already live here, so there’s nothing new about —“ Ignoring her protest, Memmeln took Natsuko by the wrist and pulled her towards the fitting rooms. “M-Memmeln?!”

The Nine Soldiers waited patiently outside the fitting rooms, making light conversations about the peculiar moving pictures they saw on the towering buildings on their way here.

A door creaked slowly in the fitting room stalls, and Natsuko walked out hesitantly. At the sound of the door, Luke immediately rushed to the mirrors to meet her, only to freeze completely as he looked towards the stalls. Whether it was by luck or blessing, Natsuko had chosen the spring dress Luke picked out to wear first. A lilac semi-transparent fabric stretched lightly across her shoulders just barely below her collarbone, joining the opaque layering at her chest. The hem of the dress followed the gentle lines of her waist, and flared out into waves of translucent folds where weaves of small wildflower patches bloomed. To put on the dress, Natsuko had removed Unio’s horn and tied her hair back to a loose ponytail with the hair ornament QJ picked out.

Luke’s heart beat furiously against his chest. At the harvest festival, Natsuko had also put on a formal dress for the occasion, but he didn’t understand how he felt when he caught himself staring at her wordlessly. This was different. She looked absolutely breathtaking, and he knew the name of the emotion that burned within. He stood helplessly while his face turned beet red and covered his mouth, muttering “I love you” under his breath.

“Calm down, that’s not a wedding dress, you know?” Unio threw a bewildered look at Luke.
He hopped towards Natsuko and took a gander of her outfit with interest. “Hmmmm? Not bad for a gremlin, I’d say!”

“Natsuko, you look amazing!” QJ chirped as he hovered over. Memmeln nodded and smiled sweetly in agreement.

Natsuko blushed in embarrassment and joy from the compliments she was receiving from her friends. She mumbled a “thank you” to them, smiling to herself.

Having finally regained his composure, Luke walked towards Natsuko and motioned a hand at her.

“Lend me your smaartphone, Natsuko,” he said, “Let me take a phooto of you.”

Natsuko stepped back in shock, “Ehh!? Why, all of a sudden?”

“Because you…” Luke’s eyes darted away and back before he took a breath and answered, “You look beautiful.” There was a record of everyone saved in her phone, but barely any of herself. Luke wanted her to be a part of this day.

Natsuko could feel her cheeks flushing again. Averting his gaze, she reached for her phone in stuttered motion and put it on Luke’s palm.

Unio squinted at the couple in mock-disgust as he watched them enter their own little world again.

“You forgot to mention that you were the one who picked out that dress, Luke,” the unicorn jeered.

“Unio?!” Luke jumped at his comment, his ears beginning to redden again.

“You know what they say, when a man picks out a dress for a lady, it means he wants to personally take it—OMmmmnnn!”

The unicorn found himself in another dead lock across his mouth from Memmeln, who nodded silently for Luke to take the photo. Smiling as he looked at her through the frame of the camera, Luke captured the first solo photo of Natsuko of the day.

“Luke, if you tell me how to use this device, I can also take a phooto of the two of you together,” QJ offered with a smile. Nodding with excitement, Luke quickly pointed out the round white button on the screen. After passing the phone to QJ, he marched over to where Natsuko waited bashfully. The two of them stood awkwardly facing the camera, unsure of what to do.

QJ laughed in amusement at the image within the frame of the camera. “Come on now, you two need to move closer for this to be a good record!”

The couple shifted closer at QJ’s behest, until their hands found each other in the middle and their shoulders touched. QJ tapped the photo button, satisfied with his work as the image of his dearest friends smiling lovingly at each other emerged on the phone screen.

Chapter Text

Following an eventful morning of shopping, Natsuko treated the Nine Soldiers to their first lunch at a nearby cafe of a vintage design. They were no strangers to bars or restaurants within the Nine Kingdoms, but they found the pictures on the drink menu particularly fascinating. In addition to the lunch items that Natsuko helped describe to her companions, they each also ordered a hot cafe drink. Everyone’s eyes sparkled excitedly as the aromatic tea and lattes arrived in their ceramic cups, topped by gorgeous foam latte art of fanning leaves and adorable cats that were faithful to the previews on the menu.

“Memmeln, I hope you don’t mind, but from here on out, I’ll need to cover your eyes,” Natsuko said as they arrived at the entrance of the Animate store. The elf glanced back at her inquisitively, but accepted with a nod. Memmeln could feel Natsuko guiding her through a few complicated twist and turns within the floor of the shop they entered, passing by areas where overlapping voices and music could be heard.

As they slowed to a stop, a familiar melody traveled into her ears. Natsuko lifted her hands from Memmeln’s eyes.

“Ah………..!” Memmeln covered her mouth with both hands, her cheeks flushed with a girlish blush as her eyes rippled with watery reflections.

Natsuko had brought her face to face with a large LED screen seated in the heart of the Utamen merchandise section.

“Sir Exister….!!” She squeaked.

The blue haired idol took center stage, singing a song that Memmeln knew and lyrics that extended beyond, spinning and twirling in coordinated, practice motion that fit harmoniously with the equally attractive idols of the group. Natsuko smiled at this sequence of choreography wistfully, remembering the mountain of pop concert footage she had to dig through to get the sharpness and snaps of her boy idols just right. The pay off of watching Memmeln beaming at the TV screen, absolutely enthralled, was more than enough.

When Memmeln was content after watching a few repeats of the music video onscreen, the five of them browsed through the shelves of CDs, acrylic stands, clear files, plushies and related merchandise that were equally distributed between each of the idols in the Utamen group. Memmeln wanted badly to take home a life-sized cut out of Sir Exister displayed in one of the aisles, but Natsuko had to sadly break the news that it was not for sale. Even so, she was greatly pleased with the keychains and huggable Sir Exister plush that she chose to take back with her.

“Natsuko,” Luke asked as he examined the acrylic stand of the orange haired idol, “Is this where you got the decorations of us in your home?”

He turned and grinned at her.

The speed in which Luke was getting a handle on this world was both comforting and alarming.

Frowning and blushing slightly, Natsuko answered his question.

“…..It was. When A Tale of Perishing was first released thirteen years ago, this store was packed with goods from the movie,” she recalled, “I couldn’t afford a lot of it as a kid, so some of the things I bought are from the recent past.”

“They still sell them, but just not here,” she continued, “A lot of the older classics were moved to a branch further away from here to make room for the new series.”

Luke smiled to himself, imagining a younger Natsuko touring these aisle with the same look in her eyes as Memmeln.

After Memmeln and the rest of the party browsed the Animate store to their hearts’ content, they began the walk back to Natsuko’s apartment, stopping by a family restaurant on the way back to give Luke a break from cooking for the night. The second day of the Nine Soldiers in the Kingdom of Reality drew to a peaceful close.

——

The days went by, each better than the last. On the weekdays, Natsuko would still return to work, but a marked change everyone in the studio noticed immediately was that she started bringing in her own lunch. Naomi would walk by her desk, a knowing smirk on her face as she pointed out how well packed her bento box was, and how she would sometimes see a certain handsome and blonde young man deliver it to her personally if she ever forgot. Natsuko could only look away as she stuffed another big piece of karaage into her mouth while her ears turned red.

On days Natsuko got out early and on the weekends, she would use every opportunity to take the Nine Soldiers to see more of her world. One by one, Natsuko checked off the list of sights she had written—the amusement park, aquarium, cafes, shrines and temples, and onsens. By traveling to locations in further regions, the Nine Soldiers became accustomed to the convenient but sometimes unbearably crowded trains. She even brought them to the movie theater nearby, and to her surprise and embarrassment, the Nine Soldiers all chose to see her movie—Hatsukoi: First Love. Despite their initial curiosity, they had decided against watching the blu-ray of A Tale of Perishing, as the memories and pain were still near. Although a part of her knew that her dearest friends were not here to spend the rest of their lives with her, Natsuko wished that days like these would last forever.

With her companions getting a good handle of her world, Natsuko and Luke were able to spend more time alone together, whether it be on dates to cozy restaurants or scenic spots that were only a train ride away, or having the day to themselves in the apartment when Unio, Memmeln, and QJ chose to explore on their own. Luke and Natsuko grew comfortable to their new distance as a couple slowly, and it became easier for them to express their affections through touches, kisses or embraces more naturally. As they grew closer, so did their desire for more intimacy. There had been heated moments where they could feel they were on the threshold of something more, but they were still unsure when that bridge could be crossed.

It was on a warm morning when Memmeln and QJ found themselves alone in the living room, looking out to the clear blue skies while enjoying a hot cup of green tea. Thinking to herself as she watched two birds cut across the sun, she looked over to QJ.

“QJ, based on your records, how many days have we been in the Kingdom of Reality?” she asked.

“I believe this would be the 28th and an eighth day since we have arrived in this world,” QJ answered. He paused before asking in realization, “….Memmeln…are you thinking…?”

“…..I have never felt peace the way I have than here in Natsuko’s world. Living here felt so comfortable that I wish I could remain forever… from Natsuko’s estimate of how long had passed before we were reunited, it is likely that time flowed the same way in our worlds,” Memmeln looked down at her tea with sadness in her eyes, “…but it should be sooner that we make a trip back to the Nine Kingdoms to let our companions there know that we are all safe and well, before it becomes even harder to leave.”

She glanced back at QJ.

“It’s certainly possible to just have you return first to let everyone know we’re well, but…” Memmeln conjured a magical glyph riddled with runes circling an orb in the center on her palm, “We would miss an opportunity to bring back the information I have collected of this world, and delay the potential to develop an even easier way to travel to and from here.”

“But if you were to return with me, Memmeln, that means…”

Memmeln nodded.

“Everyone will have to return. We cannot risk keeping a gateway opened between two realms, and it may take years before we are able to create a new window to this world without Luke’s sword.”

QJ looked down dejectedly. “We’ll have to tell Unio and Luke soon… and Natsuko.”

——

“Ah……. that’s true, it has been quite a bit of
time since everyone came here,” Natsuko chuckled at her dinner in an attempt to cover the twinge of pain in her chest. The Nine Soldiers looked at her with sadness and concern.

“When… will you be setting out?” She asked hesitantly.

“In two days time,” Memmeln answered.

“Is that so…” Natsuko paused before grinning brightly at her friends, “Well, that means I’ll have to make good use of this time to load you all up with souvenirs, in our traditional Kingdom of Reality custom!”

Saying so, she sped through the rest of her dinner.

After Natsuko and Luke finished setting up their futon for the night, Natsuko reached for his hand and pulled him down to speak. They had forgone the second futon, having always woken up close to each other anyhow.

“Luke… tomorrow, I won’t have to be at the studio,” she began, “Can we go on a date? It’s a little ways from here, but there’s a place I want to take you to.”

Luke smiled, squeezing her hand. “Always.”

——

The couple woke early the next day to catch their train. Having finished up getting ready first, Luke waited for Natsuko by the door. Over the month, he had grown used to wearing the strange but comfortable attire in this world, and today, out of nostalgia, he wore the first outfit he changed into at the clothing store. He turned towards the hallway as he heard her footsteps approach, and instantly inhaled his breath. Natsuko had put on the lilac spring dress for the first time since she had brought it home. Her hair was drawn back in a ponytail like before, framing her face elegantly with a few loose strands of her black hair. She carried her matching purple backpack, along with the small Luke doll that dangled to the side.

“Saved the best for last,” she grinned at him brightly, “Looks like you did, too.”

She took Luke’s arm and they set off for the train station.

To reach their destination in what Natsuko called Tochigi, the fastest way was to take the high-speed bullet train. This wasn’t the first time Luke has ridden the shinkansen—the last trip Natsuko took everyone to a mouse-themed amusement park, they had also experienced moving through space in an unimaginable speed. Riding it a second time was no less exciting. Luke took the window seat again and followed his eyes through the moving buildings and changing scenery. The 40 minutes journey flew by with Luke excitedly pointing out landmarks, and Natsuko happily identifying them for him.

They had a short walk down from the painted steps of the train station, and soon, a set of yellow gates came into view. Even in the morning, a crowd had formed around the entrance and were filing in slowly. Luke wondered what could be beyond the gates to draw in so many visitors, and as he walked past the gates with Natsuko, he understood. He could see in the distance a curtain of amethyst flowers rising above the patches of flowers that also bloomed in the garden. Luke and Natsuko’s pace quickened instinctively until they found themselves under the ceiling of wisterias. Rising from the single tree in the center, the hanging flowers swayed gracefully across the wide plane of their growth in chorus with the wind. It felt as though everything beneath the waves of their curtain were swimming beneath an ocean of purple. Luke and Natsuko’s mouths hung open as they took in the sight before them, awestruck by the quiet beauty of nature.

“Is this….a dream..? I have never seen anything like it before…!” Luke couldn’t help but exhale in admiration.

“That’s a relief, I was worried that this was something Chingosman’s kingdom may have up its sleeve,” Natsuko joked, “This is my first time seeing these wisteria trees, too.”

“You haven’t seen them, Natsuko?” Luke turned to her in surprise.

“Oh…you know how it goes,” Natsuko chuckled, slightly embarrassed, “Sometimes the more local you are, the less likely you are to make an effort to see things.”

Natsuko pulled at Luke’s hand, leading him towards a pathway winding into the gardens.

“I think there’s more this way!”

They continued walking down the garden path, passing by more varieties of flowering trees in prominent shades of white and yellow along the pond. But further down the path was an even more breathtaking view. Stretching before them as far as the eye can see, bands of white and purple wisteria arched across the sky, forming a long tunnel to the far side of the garden. The array of wisteria captivated the couple, who forgot to walk as they drank in every motion and every wave that rippled across the sea of flowers above them.

Luke glanced down at Natsuko, who was still absorbed in capturing the swaying movement of the wisteria, no doubt storing every bit of its motion into frames in her mind. He watched as the wind lifted strands of her hair across her deeply focused cyan eyes and made ripples through the folds of her dress. He knew then that the wisteria flowers would always remind him of her. Without breaking her focus, Luke gently removed a petal from her hair.

Having reached a seated area after seeing a great portion of the park, Luke and Natsuko decided to take a short break. As they sat down on a bench overlooking the flower terraces, Luke noticed the small Luke doll dangling off Natsuko’s bag. He reached over and picked up the smaller version of himself.

“I’ve been wondering, Natsuko, am I at all like the Luke you knew from the A Tale of Perishing?” Luke asked, examining the faithful replication of his armor on the doll.

Natsuko considered his question for a moment, looking over Luke’s face as though searching it for a way to convey her thoughts.

“I would say… he is a lot like you, but incomplete,” Natsuko said, brushing the doll lightly with her fingers.

“The more experience I gained as a director, the more I came to understand the challenges Director Tsuruyama had to face,” she said thoughtfully, “As an animator and a storyteller, we are very limited by the screen time that we are allotted, and we really have to choose carefully what makes it into the final cut in order to tell the story in a way that is easiest to understand.”

“Director Tsuruyama may have known who you are beyond what I saw in the movie, but she picked out the qualities of you that she wanted her audience to see the most.” Natsuko chuckled as she recalled, “As a nine year old kid, you were the prime example of what a righteous and responsible adult looked like to me. When you’re a kid, everyone above the age of fifteen seemed so mature. You could say I looked up to you all my life.”

“I am a responsible and … mostly righteous adult,” Luke muttered bashfully.

“When I met and spoke to you for the first time, I thought you were a brat!”

Luke frowned as Natsuko laughed with nostalgia.

“There was nothing wrong with that. You were only 18….And you shouldered a burden that no 18 year olds should ever have to bear alone.”

Natsuko cupped both of his cheeks and grinned mischievously.

“The Luke I met is stubborn, childish, overly serious, naive, new to the concept of humor, and frighteningly legendary when it comes to being straightforward,” she said, continuing as her eyes softened, “He is also an amazing cook, without doubt the strongest warrior in the realm, responsible to a fault, more caring and loving than anyone else…..and the one who stopped at nothing to open my heart.”

She smiled gently at Luke.

“You could say he had the best of the movie Luke, and so much more.”

“Natsuko…”

Luke felt as though he could fall in love with her all over again.

Brimming with fondness in her eyes, Natsuko brought his head closer and kissed his cheek.

The sun was already sinking below the horizon when Luke and Natsuko left the train station to begin their walk home. They walked slowly, fingers intertwined, wanting to savor the last leg of their date for as long as possible.

“Luke…were you able to fulfill your wish?” Natsuko asked as they passed by the bridge overlooking the familiar river, “To go off somewhere not in the Nine Kingdoms, and see a ton of things you’ve never seen before?”

Luke’s eyes widened in surprise at first, not knowing how Natsuko learned of his promise to Unio. He nodded wholeheartedly.

“From the moment I stepped into this world.”

“Oh? What was your favorite part of the journey?” Natsuko prodded.

“Let’s see…” Luke looked up at the sky and considered thoughtfully.

“First was this bridge where we found each other. I thought it was a miracle, seeing you running to us from the other side. I never wanted to let you go.”

Natsuko smiled as she recalled their reunion.

“The same night, you took me to that marketplace…” Luke blushed, remembering their first kiss before arriving there. Clearing his breath, he continued, “If there was a place like that in the Last Town, I could have made any dishes you missed from the Kingdom of Reality.”

“And then there was that clothing market. I never knew we could have so much fun just picking out clothes for everyone,” he chuckled.

“That one place you brought us to after work… the public home for sea life?”

“The aquarium?”

“That’s right! So many of the fish there reminded us of Admiral Merfolk’s relatives that we brought up the time QJ almost fed one to us for dinner. He kept pleading us to pretend it never happened,” he laughed as he remembered.

“The real onsen and the amusement park, too. Even though you explained that no magic exists in this world, those were some of the most magical places I’ve seen. Your aneemation magic in the moovie theater was also incredible!” Although Luke had little understanding about the setting of Natsuko’s movie, one sequence stood out from the rest to the point he had to cover his face in theaters. The bright and energetic female lead who fell for the stoic male lead launched a series of bold confessions to him, all of which fell flat. In the crowd stirring climax, she confessed to him at the top of her lungs as she scored the final three pointer for the championship—and finally scored his heart.

“Hang on, Luke,” Natsuko laughed, “That’s almost every place we went to!”

“Well, of course, every place you took us to was amazing!” Luke insisted, “I would love to see more when we come back here again.”

Natsuko smiled warmly at him, a little sadness in her eyes as she looked away. Luke squeezed her hand gently, noticing the loneliness in her expression.

“I promise we’ll be back again very soon.”

Natsuko nodded as she held onto his hand tighter in return. With his eyes still on her profile, Luke smiled and continued.

“When you can take a break from your aneemator work, Natsuko, I can take you to see the Nine Kingdoms.”

The suggestion did its magic—Natsuko turned to face him with glimmers in her eyes.

“In just a few weeks, it will be summer time there. All the trees in the valley will be in the deepest shade of green, and the forest will be full of all sorts of critters. The Kingdom of Water will have its first boat race for the first time in years. It will be quite the sight, seeing all the wooden ships sail across the sea of clouds for the honor of having its maker’s name etched in the walls of the palace.”

“When the leaves turn orange again in the fall, the Kingdom of Light will hold another harvest festival. You’ve been to one, Natsuko, but this time it will be even bigger. I heard they are planning to bring back the gigantic straw floats that used to be our tradition. We’ll be seeing fireworks go off all around the kingdom.”

“In the winter, snow usually falls more in the southern Kingdom of Ice where Capitan is from. I’ve only seen it once myself, but artisans from all over the realm gather there to build snow statues of all shapes and sizes. The mages would cast spells to make the statues move. The kids love playing with them. All the streets in the kingdom would be lit beautifully at night, and the adults would go from store to store to trade gifts for their loved ones.”

“And when spring comes again…” Luke paused, looking up at the dwindling petals of the trees above him.

“I know—In the spring, we’ll come back here. This time, we’ll have Memmeln cast a disguise on Justice, Admiral, Ganger and Chingosman, and then bring Destiny, too, so they could all come here to see the cherry blossom trees in full bloom.”

“Would that be all right, Natsuko?” He turned to face her excitedly.

Natsuko rested her head on Luke’s shoulder with a blissful smile tugging at her lips.

“I would love that, very, very much.”

——

The morning of their departure came quietly.
As promised, Natsuko had loaded up their sacks with more food, clothing, tools and merchandise than one could feasibly carry, but with a quick snap from Unio, the sacks shrunk to a nail size and were easily tucked away. Memmeln and Luke had equipped their armor and weapon, an ironically rare sight Natsuko hadn’t seen in a month. To ward away unwanted attention, Memmeln cast a shield around them so they could travel to the location of the window undetected.

As they stepped out of the apartment, Natsuko gasped suddenly.

“Just a minute, I forgot something!” She said as she rushed back to her room.

She had promised to give Memmeln the sketch of Sir Exister dancing with her, and it had slipped her mind in between all the souvenir piling. Natsuko opened the sketchbook on her desk and flipped through the beginning to look for the page where she drew Memmeln.

Something caught her eyes as she flipped past the first few pages of her sketchbook.

She turned back the pages curiously, and noticed what changed. In all her early sketches of the Nine Soldiers touring the Kingdom of Reality, a caricature of what appears to be her, drawn with an incredibly unsteady hand, had been added into the sketch. Natsuko recognized the artist immediately. Every location they had visited together in the past month - the amusement park, the cafe, the shrine, the mall and the movie theater - now had a squiggly Natsuko joining the party of heroes.

“Ha, haha, this is… incredible,” Natsuko giggled, beads of tears rolling out of her eyes and onto the pages, “Thank you… Luke.”

Her eyes were noticeably red when she returned to the door and handed her sketch over to Memmeln. Her companions looked at her with worry, but Natsuko flashed them a huge grin and pinned the blame on those darn pollens in the spring.

The walk to the city hospital was mostly silent. QJ, Memmeln, and Unio took the lead, with Luke and Natsuko following behind, holding each other’s hands. Whenever they passed by a memorable food stand or restaurant, a light conversation would trigger about the remaining flavors that they haven’t tried out, and which ones they would try next when they return.

“Natsuko! You tell that brat at the shopping alley that I’m winning back all my marbles and his next time!” Unio turned around and pointed.

“Well, don’t make an enemy by hitting on his older sister then,” Natsuko snickered.

Unio spun forward again and scoffed.

After a few more turns in the residential alleyways, the party arrived at the white gates of the hospital. Passing through the gates and the walkways unnoticed, they stopped at the courtyard in the center of the hospital wings. A single cherry blossom tree stood in the courtyard, the petals scarce with the passing of early spring. Natsuko recognized where they were.

“This is…right under my hospital room,” she looked around and pointed at a window on the second floor, “I think that’s it!”

“The window to our world must have been opened here when you were brought here for healing, Natsuko,” Memmeln observed.

With a nod to Unio, the elf removed her tiara and passed it over to him.

“Are we ready?” she asked.

Her companions took their positions and nodded in unison.

Unio levitated Memmeln’s tiara to the center, and with a single concerted breath, they chanted the incantation.

“” Megi Cernos Magia !! “”

Glyphs erupted from their hands and shrouded the tiara in blue and green light. As the tiara resonated, a slim thread illuminated in the air next to them. With a single practiced and precise cut, Luke swung the King Brave Sword cleanly through the thread. Natsuko breathed in awe as she witnessed their world-shattering magic.

Memmeln retrieved her tiara and examined the tear closely before proceeding with her next spell. Satisfied, she traced her fingers in a few swift motions, and widened the tear into a window. Through the window, Natsuko could see a forested clearing beneath a layer of rippling light. The Nine Soldiers stood in silence, the reluctance of parting sounding loudly in their hearts.

“Well, this is it, gremlin,” Unio announced with his hooves on his hips, “Don’t get too lax now, I’ll be back to put you in your place before you know it!”

“Next time, I’ll be sure to bring over some fresh tomatoes from the garden,” QJ smiled as he hovered next to Natsuko.

“Take care,” she replied with a smile, “Yes, even you, Unio.”

With a nod and a huff, QJ and Unio stepped through the window.

Walking to her with a gentle smile, Memmeln took Natsuko’s hands into hers.

“I promise I’ll spare no time in putting the knowledge I collected of this realm to use, Natsuko,” she said, “The next time we cross over, let’s go visit that themed cafe you told me about.”

“Mhm, we’ll order every item there so you can get all the coasters,” Natsuko beamed as she nodded.

Memmeln gave Natsuko’s hands a light squeeze before turning to Luke.

“I’ll be waiting by the edge of the clearing. When you’re ready, I will come back to seal the window.”

After patting Natsuko’s head for the last time, Memmeln disappeared into the window.

With only Luke and Natsuko left in the courtyard, the air of unspoken words hung heavier. Before Natsuko could figure out her parting words, she suddenly found herself snugly pressed against Luke’s armor plate. He had pulled her into another tight embrace, one that reminded her of their reunion.

“Natsuko…! Natsuko…!”

The voice that left him was soft, hoarse, and urgent.

“What’s wrong?” Natsuko laughed through her tears as she returned his embrace, “Weren’t you the one who said that you’ll be back very soon?”

Luke nodded behind her ears.

They held each other in silence for a long time, until they slowly relinquished their embrace. Gripping Natsuko’s hands tightly, Luke looked into her eyes, determined.

“I promise, I’ll come back for you.”

Natsuko smiled warmly, wiping a stray tear from his face.

“I believe you, you’ve already found me once.”

They closed the distance between them and met their lips in a gentle kiss, lingering for as long as they can before finally parting.
Natsuko sent Luke off quietly, raising her hand towards the window until the last touches of his fingertips left her own.

Luke stood on the other side of the window, nodding to Natsuko to see her off. His eyes followed her until she disappeared behind the corridor of the hospital.

As he turned away to head towards the edge of the clearing, a flurry of motion in the window behind him caught his eyes.

“LUUUKEE BRAAAVEHEARTT!!!!! WAAAAAAAIT!!!!!”

Charging with enough speed to create an afterimage of her legs, Hirose Natsuko leapt through the window with reckless abandon. Crossing the in between star field and the barrier of time, she landed herself straight onto Luke, who turned around and caught her mid-air just in time. She threw her arms around his neck.

“What—“ Luke started in shock, his mind still catching up.

“I thought, you were going to, close the window soon,” Natsuko panted and heaved erratically. Reaching for her phone, she flashed the phone screen next to her face. Luke could only make out the gist of the message from his early overtures of studying hiragana.

“My, last minute time-off, request, was just approved,” she explained, finally taking a deep breath before continuing, “I sent it out this morning, right when I went to get Memmeln’s sketch. I didn’t think I was going to make it.”

The mail displayed on her phone screen held a very picturesque message full of emojis.

A time-off request from Director Natsuko for the first time in five years? Of course I’ll approve it! Consider it an extended Golden Week! Say hi to the polite young man for me, honey buns!

“I told her that I’d be traveling to a place with no reception. It would be a vastly unknown land, possibly rife with danger. And this time, I won’t have my world-saving pegbar with me, so I’ll need a very reliable guide.”

Luke’s stunned expression melted into a fond smile. His merry laughter rang out through the clearing as he met her forehead with his.

“That sounds like the perfect job for a retired legendary hero.” He ran a hand through her hair.

“It would be an honor to show you the Nine Kingdoms, Natsuko.”

They leaned in and kissed again in the clearing of the forest, their hearts filled with the anticipation of the days to come.

Chapter Text

Hirose Natsuko raised her pegbar to her eye level, counting the frayed fringes of the black paint on its most touched surfaces and the exposed metal underneath.

“Are you sure you want to leave that at the studio, Natsuko?” Naomi asked, “That’s been yours since your first day here. We wouldn’t be opposed to parting with an old pegbar.”

Natsuko looked at her pegbar fondly, and laid it carefully on what used to be her animation desk.

“Yeah. It’s time it passed onto another starry-eyed animator,” she said, smiling to herself, “Besides, I’ve already gotten myself a new one.”

“Did you know, President, that this pegbar used to belong to Director Tsuruyama?” She asked as she turned around to face Naomi, who was leaning against another desk.

“Of course I did! How could I not know which pegbar my 107th first love used?” The president of Studio Konkon replied proudly, “I was the one who assigned you to that desk, you know?”

“Eh?!” Natsuko’s eyes widened in surprise.

“I may not look it, but I read through the applications of every potential hire very carefully,” Naomi said, reminiscing with her eyes closed, “ ‘I want to join Studio Konkon because the virtuoso of the anime world, Tsuruyama Kametaro worked here. I’ve looked up to her all my life and want to become an animator just like her.’ were your exact words. I simply couldn’t resist setting you two up!”

Even though Natsuko knew what she wrote on her application and that President Fukushima and ten other people on the hiring committee must have read it, she still felt a little embarrassed hearing it being recited out loud.

“So why part with it then, if you already knew Director Tsuruyama used it?” Naomi asked curiously.

“It’s hard to put into words…” Natsuko pinched her eyebrows as she thought about it.

“When I first joined this studio, I was hellbent on picking up skill after skill, learning from my animation director at the time and doing master studies of frames from all the past works here,” she recalled, “I didn’t really think about it then, but every cut, and every new movement sequence I learned— it must have taken someone else a long time to come up with it in the first place. But it took me just a few days to absorb it.”

She glanced over at the wall of the hallway, where every poster told a story in the history of Studio Konkon.

“In other words, I was only able to get to the starting line of ‘the present’ because Director Tsuruyama, and so many others before her, left a piece of themselves behind in this studio.”

“It’s a strange thing, isn’t it? Animation,” Naomi smiled as she also turned her eyes onto the posters, “Like a living, breathing thing that was here long before we came along, and will continue to evolve and change long after we’re gone.”

Natsuko nodded.

“That’s why I want to leave a piece of myself, and everything I inherited from others before me behind,” she touched the pegbar lightly, “So new animators can find their next ‘present.’”

Naomi smiled warmly at her.

“You’ve really grown so much over these eight years, Natsuko,” Naomi said as walked over, and to Natsuko’s shock, reached over to squeeze her cheeks, “I’m sooo proud of you, honey buns!! This studio is going to be so lonely without you!! The anime world is going to miss its new star of the decade!”

“Mnrgh—Pres—!!” Natsuko’s cheeks grew red with chagrin and being squeezed. After having her fill, Naomi let go of Natsuko’s cheeks and laughed boisterously.

“I’m not a kid anymore, you know?” Natsuko pouted and rubbed her sore cheeks, “And it’s not like I’m quitting animation altogether, I’m just going freelance.”

“Oh but you are moving to a country far away from here,” the president’s eyes curved up knowingly, “I wonder if that has anything to do with that pretty little sapphire ring on your ring finger~~~ Now where have I seen that color before? It sure reminds me of someone who’s been to this studio~”

“St-Stop it! Anyways! I’m still going to visit from time to time, so you’ll always be able to make use of my talents when I’m around!” Natsuko huffed, blushing.

“It’s too bad I might not be able to make it all the way over if you have your wedding there, but know you have my blessings, honey buns!” She hugged Natsuko gently and led her to the staffing lounge where the rest of the studio waited for the farewell party.

You are going to be there, in a sense, Natsuko couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.

——

Luke Braveheart flipped over the painted wooden sign on the door from “Open” to “Closed.” His heart was beating fast with anticipation — today was the day Natsuko will be making her last move into their new home, and he could hardly wait for her to see the new addition to what will become her atelier.

“A two month long break for the Wisteria, huh? Diners all across the Nine Kingdoms will be devastated,” Unio commented as he helped move away the daily special display away from the oak door.

Luke laughed. “You’re exaggerating. Most of the visitors from other kingdoms came only because they were curious about what a retired hero could make for dinner.”

“Yeah? Maybe for the first time,” Unio crossed his arms and insisted, “They wouldn’t keep coming back if that’s all there was to it! Give yourself a little more credit.” After a year of apprenticeship at Naomi’s tavern, Luke was ready to open his restaurant. The modest restaurant seated only around 24 people, but already there were lines leading out to the road at meal times. Diners raved about both the feel-good home cooking and the exotic dishes from the Kingdom of Reality.

“Thank you, Unio,” he replied with a bright smile.

Having finished locking up the restaurant, Luke retrieved a silver ring centered with a small aquamarine gem from the pocket of his apron, and put the it back on his ring finger. A comically gleeful grin crept over his face as he held up his hand to examine the ring in the light. Natsuko’s influence had rubbed off on him over these years. Unio’s eyebrows furrowed in mock-disgust, grumbling “Really now? He’s had that for 6 months already” under his breath.

Unio and Luke parted ways at the cobbled road branching off into the Nine Soldiers’ quarters, where QJ and Memmeln still resided. The quarters were currently close to full with Chingosman, Capitan, Ganger, and Admiral Merfolk visiting the kingdom. Luke walked further away from the town center to an area of houses that were spaced further apart. He entered the gates to the small garden of a two-story home, orange-roofed and built out of stone and plaster in the architectural style of the kingdom. For his long service to the Nine Kingdoms, this home was given to him by the Council, and much of the interior was passionately decorated by Naomi.

A section of the garden was dedicated to growing produce, much like the courtyard in the old heroes’ mansion. And in an isolated space to the side of the house stood a wooden training dummy, already frayed on the edges with use. It had taken a long time before Luke was able to wield his sword regularly again. For as early as he can remember, the weight of the blade always carried the weight of duty, and he wanted to lay it to rest with his title. But after some time had passed, he began to realize that he had missed it—not what the sword represented, but the sheer thrill of moving his body in a practiced, deliberate motion, and the inner strength it gave him. Sword training had always been able to clear his mind, and without the urgency and gravity of war, he was finally able to truly enjoy its artistry.

The day was still young, just a little past noon. Luke drew some water from the well and watered the flower patches by the door. As he set down the watering pot, the air behind him glowed. A single line of green light drew itself into a doorway, opening the space within to a completely different scenery. Natsuko, with a cardboard box in one hand and a medium sized suitcase in the other, emerged from the other side.

“Luke!” Natsuko greeted him happily, “I thought you’d still be at the restaurant!” In her excitement, the box almost slipped out of her hold. Luke immediately rushed over and caught it just in time.

“This is heavy…what’s in there?” Luke asked, surprised by the weight.

“The folks at the studio got carried away and gave me a bunch of animation papers,” Natsuko chuckled, “There’s enough key frame and storyboard papers in there to last me at least half a year.”

Natsuko turned behind her and waved to the other side of the door, where her parents waved to her and Luke. He waved back with a smile, still a bit shy even now about the idea of having new parents in his life. With a short bow, they returned to the Hirose home.

“But really, this world crossing device is super convenient,” Natsuko said as she reached for her pocket and took out a compass-like device surrounded by moving runes, “To be able to connect my old home and here like this…Memmeln and QJ have truly outdone themselves.”

With a touch from Natsuko on the center emerald crystal of the device, the door sealed itself shut and disappeared. It had taken Memmeln and QJ nearly two years of collecting coordinates and ether data in both Reality and the Nine Kingdoms, and collaborating across mages and engineers from both the Kingdom of Wind and Kingdom of Mechanics to reach this point.

“I’m really glad your parents were able to accept us, and having the window to this world placed at their home so openly,” Luke said, chuckling as he remembered the first time he, Memmeln, Unio and QJ made their appearance to the Hirose couple, “I didn’t know what was going to happen at first.”

“I suppose having a daughter like me dampened the blow,” Natsuko laughed, “You should have seen the look on my dad’s face when Memmeln first opened the window though, it looked like someone unplugged his power!”

Luke smiled and laid a gentle kiss on Natsuko’s forehead.

“I’m thankful to have their blessings,” he said. In many ways, Natsuko and her parents shared the same kindness of readily accepting others as they are, and it always put him at ease.

Luke and Natsuko entered their home through the front door, with Luke carrying the heavier cardboard box and Natsuko dragging in her suitcase. The interior of the house was spacious, with wooden steps leading up to the second floor, and an inviting living room that connected to a well equipped and wide kitchen space. They took the stairs to the second floor, where Natsuko rolled her suitcase into the bedroom. Aside from the main furnishing — a dresser, bedside table, a canopy bed and a standing closet, the bedroom was sparsely decorated like the rest of the house. On the walls were some brightly colored dried flowers and simple paintings of the landscapes within the kingdom that Naomi personally bright over, but the rest remained a blank canvas with the promise of being drawn.

“Natsuko! Over here!” Luke called from the room across.

Leaving her suitcase behind, Natsuko walked into the room Luke was in. This sunlit room, with a slanted wooden ceiling and large windows overlooking the trees in the garden, was going to be her new atelier. She looked around for Luke, and found him standing next to the window. She gasped as she walked closer.

“My animation desk…?!”

Set near the window was a close replica of her animation desk from the studio, save the monitor and PC. The desk was painted white and built wider for comfort, but the stack of storage shelves to right, and the hanging illumination and lamp to the left made with fire crystals, were almost exactly as she remembered. Even the cushioned chair had moving wheels carved with wood.

“Luke…!” Natsuko turned to him with her mouth wide open in shock, “Did you make this?!”

Luke’s eyes beamed proudly.

“I had some help from QJ and Justice,” he explained, “ QJ had an accurate recording and measurements of your desk, and Justice…”

Luke laughed.

“Justice knew the thickness and weight of the material, saying that he’s slammed his head through it and personally flown it around for laps.”

Natsuko blushed, knowing exactly what string of events he was referring to. Touching the smooth surface of her new but familiar desk, her heart soared. She turned and threw her arms around Luke tightly.

“This is amazing…! I don’t know how you’re always able to bring pieces of my life into this world like this,” she said, “Thank you, Luke..! I love you.” She raised her head to plant a kiss on his cheek and his lips, and went back to hugging him tightly.

Luke smiled sheepishly with Natsuko in his arms, pleased with her reaction.

“Anything for you,” he said as he held her.

They spent the next few minutes storing away the animation papers Natsuko got from the studio and the clothes from her suitcase. With the last set of items tucked away cleanly, Natsuko stretched herself in the living room.

Remembering her first thought when she arrived, she spoke loudly so that Luke could hear her in the kitchen.

“Luke! You still have to go back to the restaurant later right? I can go with you to help out tonight,” she said, rotating her right shoulder, “It’ll certainly be a good exercise for these stiff animator shoulders.”

Luke’s eyes looked up at the ceiling and back to the tea cups he was putting away, considering her words.

As Natsuko continued stretching, she felt Luke’s hands on her shoulders. He began to gently massage her. She relaxed under his touch.

“Ah, that’s the spot… Luke…?”

The rhythm and strokes of his hand on her shoulders felt almost… intentional, sensual.
Moving away from her shoulders, his arms snaked around her collarbone and waist, his slender fingers trailing along her body in a slow motion that instantly made her breath hitch.

“Natsuko…” Luke spoke quietly into her ear, desire and yearning permeating his voice, “I’ve closed up the restaurant…so there’s nothing left to do for the rest of the day. We could…take a break?”

As if the allure of his voice was not enough, Luke’s lips ghosted over her ear and wandered down to her neck. The strands of his hair tickled her skin. Natsuko’s face immediately flushed into a shade of deep red. They had both grown in the past years, but for Luke especially, shedding the last few traces of his boyishness had made it near impossible for Natsuko to deny him of anything.

“The front door… is it locked?” She asked, gripping Luke’s arms to steady the trembling in her voice. Their friends had a habit of showing up right around times like this.

“Right as we walked in,” he muttered into her skin.

Natsuko laughed, leaning into his embrace. “If we’re that prepared… let’s take that break,” she whispered to him.

Without another word, Luke lifted her off her feet, carried her into their bedroom, and shut the door behind them.

Chapter Text

As the day of the wedding drew near, preparations sped into a whirlwind. With the Mayor’s help, the newly finished garden surrounding the Soul Future were theirs to use, and a small group of minstrels were readied for the big day. The remaining Nine Soldiers had taken charge of venue decorations, and they were confident with their choices. Floral arrangements of violet, white and yellow arrived from local florists and decorations were underway. Naomi had strong armed Luke out of the feast preparation after, adamant that it was the master’s job to cater for her apprentice’s wedding. Seamstresses weaved their final touches on every formal wear, and gifts of precious seashells and pearls prepared by the Admiral were packaged in neat little boxes.

For Natsuko and Luke, the remaining tasks were to sort out seating, invites, and going through the checklist of every item to make sure nothing was missing. Three days ahead of the wedding, Natsuko guided her parents through the doorway to this world, and settled them in the guest room on the first floor of their home. With the abundance of water in the realm now, they were able to draw water and heat it up for baths should they need it. This was the first time her parents had ever crossed into this realm, and Luke and Natsuko had to introduce them to the town little by little. Even though the Hirose parents had seen parts of A Tale of Perishing simply from Natsuko marathoning it day and night before she moved near her studio, the experience of witnessing a mixture of elves, dwarves, mermaids, beasts, living stones, machines, trees and dragons roaming the normal roadways was still a culture shock of the century.

Natsuko’s father in particular was excited beyond belief and flooded Luke with questions about the variety of races in the Nine Kingdoms and which kingdoms they hailed from. Luke smiled to himself at the way her dad’s blue eyes glimmered as he fired his questions away, a testament that he was indeed Natsuko’s father. Her mother, the calmer of the two who resembled Natsuko in appearance the most, would often pull at his ear and remind him to tone it down. Watching them banter became part of enjoyment of having them here. Luke found himself laughing often at dinner, especially on the night he made soba, seeing the Hirose family sing praises for his cooking in the exact same manner.

The morning of the wedding arrived on a breezy summer day blessed by clear blue skies, as accurately predicted by QJ. Natsuko and her parents set out earlier than Luke to get a head start on the longer preparation time. They would get dressed in the spare rooms in the Nine Soldiers’ quarters, which was only a short walk way from the Soul Future garden. With his own wedding attire wrapped up and ready, Luke met up with Justice at the Serval Cat House and set out together.

As they made their way through the market streets leading uphill to their destination, Luke slowed his footsteps, noticing the strange atmosphere of the town this morning.

“Justice…doesn’t it seem like…the kingdom is more festive than usual today?” Luke glanced around nervously as another set of fireworks bloomed into the sky and white flower petals rained onto the road. Everywhere he looked, the townspeople cheered and whistled at him. “We did keep the invites limited to only people we know, right?”

Justice blinked at Luke.

“Let’s see…the small and private wedding between the legendary hero who fought all his life to protect the Nine Kingdoms against the Voids and the mysterious summoner who defeated the Ultimate Void against all odds and saved the world. A well-kept secret between only the friends and family who were invited and those involved in the wedding preparation,” Justice mused, a finger on his chin as he pretended to consider the situation deeply.

“Naturally, the whole realm knows.”

“What—“ Luke jumped in shock.

“What, you don’t see the Wedding Day discounts on these skewers here?” Justice said as he paid for one himself and took a bite, “Very good by the way. Want one?”

Luke sighed and scratched the back of his head, unsure if he should feel happy or embarrassed that a whole kingdom, possibly more, were celebrating their marriage. Another set of flower petals rained down on him as he walked.

——

“Breathe in, Miss Natsuko~!” Sally said brightly as she wrapped a thin white fabric around Natsuko’s waist. Natsuko felt a sense of relief that they did not try to put a real corset on her, but rather used an extra layering of cloth to shape her waist. The seamstress herself was an elf who had sewn Memmeln’s formal dress, so Meg, Sally, Memmeln knew exactly where the pieces fit. With their help, Natsuko was able to put on her wedding gown without accidentally breaking any seams. The worry was always at the back of her mind with the way Luke has been feeding her. In the style of this kingdom, the glowing dress in the color of the purest snow was cut right above her chest and beneath her shoulders, with a transparent layer of laced silk covering the areas above. A gold sash was tied at her waist, from there the dress flowed down beautifully with the cape sleeves onto the floor. As a final touch, Memmeln cast an enchantment on her dress, making the fabric shimmer with starlight.

“Memmeln…this is…” Natsuko was at a loss for words as she looked at herself in the mirror.

“There is one more surprise in this spell,” Memmeln replied with a gentle smile, “You will see it at the ceremony.”

Natsuko waved and thanked Meg, Sally, and Memmeln as they took their leave of the dressing room to make space for Destiny, who arrived to do her hair and makeup.

A basket in hand, Destiny radiated with boundless enthusiasm.

“Nacchan, I’m going to make you the most beautiful girl in the Nine Kingdoms, so get ready!” She beamed.

Destiny hummed as her hands combed through Natsuko’s hair in front of the mirror on the dressing table, her own ring on her left hand peeking in and out of Natsuko’s sight as she worked. Like Luke, Justice had also traveled to the Kingdom of Earth and picked out gems for their rings with Ganger’s help. The fluorite on Destiny’s ring glowed with more than just the reflection of the morning light alone.

“Thank you for doing this, Destiny, I know it isn’t easy to get a few hours away from the kids,” Natsuko said, watching Destiny carefully parting and braiding her hair.

“Of course~! You did this for me at my wedding, too, Nacchan, and besides, the kids are in good hands with Ganchan and Merchan! They simply cannot get enough of climbing up Ganchan!” Destiny sang happily.

Natsuko laughed sheepishly. Although she had never been an hairdressing or make-up expert, she had pulled out all stops to study and learn ways to style long, wavy hair before Destiny’s wedding. She had a clear vision of what fit perfectly for Destiny, but the execution itself took weeks of practice.

“When I came to this world, Destiny…” Natsuko started, blushing slightly, “You were the first person to call me a friend for the first time… in…a long time.”

“So that’s why I wanted to do something for you… my first friend here, even if I wasn’t the best at it,” Natsuko said bashfully.

“Nacchan…….” Destiny’s hands stopped. She looked into the mirror at Natsuko, the lights in her eyes dancing with joy.

The pair fell into a comfortable silence as Destiny began to arrange the braids in place, but Natsuko could tell that there was something on Destiny’s mind, as she often loved to carry on the chatter.

“Nacchan…if I tell you a secret, will you promise not to be mad at me?” Having made up her mind, Destiny asked Natsuko hesitantly.

“Hm? Mad at you? Is that even possible?” Natsuko’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. Seeing that she was nervous, Natsuko added quickly,
“I won’t be mad, I promise.”

“The truth is…” Destiny began, “… that when I first met Luke-kun at the harvest festival…. I had a crush on him…”

“Just for a little while though!!” She hastily added, worry in her voice, “It really, really didn’t last very long!”

“Ah……………”
Natsuko already knew.

“Nacchan, you don’t seem very surprised at all?” Destiny glanced at her, her expression turning from anxiousness to surprise.

“Well……” Natsuko couldn’t possibly tell her they were fated for each other in the original movie plot line. “I was there when you first met each other, I could tell.”

“For the longest time, I thought you two would end up with each other, until…” The memory of Luke’s first confession to her in the moonlight surfaced in her mind and she turned away slightly, blushing, “…a lot of things happened.”

“I’m sorry, Nacchan, I know this isn’t the best time to tell you something like this,” Destiny said apologetically, “… but I didn’t want to keep secrets like this from a friend.”

Natsuko smiled warmly. This was why she could never bring herself to dislike Destiny from the moment she met her. No matter how the story wrote her, she had always been truly kind at heart.

“Luke-kun had this powerful and warm brilliance about him, and I couldn’t help but get drawn in,” Destiny recalled. Natsuko nodded in complete understanding.

“At that time, there was still a lot I didn’t know about the world around me. Papa was always so protective, you see? So when the Chairman asked me to marry him in exchange for building an orphanage, I thought that was the only way I could achieve that dream,” she continued, “It felt like the world was always one step ahead of me, and I had to keep chasing its steps to keep up.”

Destiny smiled sadly behind Natsuko.

“With someone as strong and kind like Luke-kun, I probably couldn’t help but end up relying on him… And it wouldn’t be right.”

“But Nacchan!” Destiny stuck her head out from behind Natsuko and beamed at her in the mirror. “You have your own brilliance, too! When you told off the Chairman and struck that pose, you looked so cool! When I looked at you, it made me feel like anything was possible! That I could become anything I want!”

“I’ve always wanted to be as strong as Papa, and when I saw the Serval Cat Mask take on that Void all by himself, I just knew that was who I wanted to become— someone who’s powerful enough to protect the people I love!” Destiny smiled brightly and put her muscular arms gently around Natsuko.

“I still love who I am now, and I’m blessed to be loved as the best version of myself,” she said, leaning onto Natsuko’s head.

Realizing that her friend had fallen silent after a few seconds had passed, Destiny moved around Natsuko’s head to check her face.

“Destiny….!!” Teardrops rolled out of Natsuko’s eyes and her nose ran. Destiny had seen her cry like this only once before at her wedding ceremony. Natsuko never thought of herself as the sentimental type. Perhaps it was the years. Or this day. She was overjoyed that Destiny had found her happiness and written her own fate.

“Oh my,” Destiny chuckled as she quickly retrieved a towel and wiped Natsuko’s face, “Good thing we haven’t started makeup yet.”

After giving Natsuko a moment, Destiny completed the finishing touches on her hair and moved on to putting on her makeup while she jokingly admonished Natsuko to save all her crying for during the ceremony.

“There you are~” Destiny said cheerfully, turning Natsuko to face the mirror and rotating her head slowly left and right to catch more angles of her hair.

Natsuko held her breath, hardly able to recognize herself in the mirror. After seeing the type of hairstyles that Luke admitted to styling her hair into while she was asleep, Natsuko was prepared for anything when they decided to have their wedding here, but Destiny worked her magic—Natsuko’s fine black hair was elegantly braided on both sides, each feeding into a sophisticated loose bun. A trail of small white flowers dotted her hair and met at the centered bun in the back. Her makeup was light for the summer day and complemented her skin tone and dress perfectly.

“Destiny….! You’re amazing..! Thank you!!” Natsuko’s cheeks flushed with joy.

Destiny grinned proudly.

“Nacchan, you don’t just look pretty today,” she said as she took a big breath, “You look, BEAUUUUUUUUTIFULL~”

The two friends bursted out laughing.

___

Luke stood awkwardly in his own dressing room, back straight, cheeks pink and eyes looking to an uninteresting patch on the wall design as Justice and Unio straightened up his hair and wedding attire. Insisting that his own formal attire was nowhere as elaborate as Natsuko’s wedding dress, Luke had planned to change by himself in his old bedroom, but his comrades would not have it. Having joined the brigade of dragging Luke into the dressing room, QJ, Capitan and Chingosman passed him off to Justice and Unio and set out to the venue to put their final touches on the wooden benches Chingosman had brought over from his kingdom.

“Did you want to tie up all these boot laces by yourself?” Unio sighed loudly as he gestured his hoof to move the complicated strings on Luke’s black shin-length boots into place with his magic, “Don’t underestimate how weirdly involved the traditional groom’s attire is in this kingdom.”

Justice clipped his side cape on and patted it a few times to smooth the edges out.

“I’m surprised you didn’t see this coming, when you yourself had me, a dragon, put on a proper pair of trousers and tunic for my wedding,” Justice said, crossing his arms to examine the rest of Luke’s attire.

Luke had tied up his hair into a neat ponytail, and strands of his side bangs hung cleanly next to his ears. A high collared white tunic fitted his frame nicely under a vest of light grey-blue held in place by a thin white belt. The vest extended past his knees and covered the black trousers beneath. Simple patterns of silver threads lined the edges of his vest and white cape.

Justice and Unio nodded in approval. As the best men and groomsmen themselves, they each wore a matching side cape of light blue and silver.

“All those fittings the Mayor dragged you to paid off, you’re as handsome as you’ll ever be in this life,” Justice laughed brazenly.

Luke furrowed his brows, a bit embarrassed and confused whether Justice meant that as a compliment or not.

“…Thank you,” he mumbled to Justice and Unio.

“If you want to thank us, I can think of several ways,” Justice grinned slyly, “How about an entertaining story to pass the time? We did finish up an hour early.”

Unio’s ears perked up in interest.

Before Luke could ask, Justice continued.

“… For instance, tell us exactly when you fell for Natsuko.” Justice sat down on a chair leisurely, “Go on now, we’re all ears.”

“WH-WHAT????” Luke instantly turned red from the neck up, his arms flailing backwards in shock. Although he was one step away from marrying his soulmate, questions like this still never failed to fluster him.

“Oh, that’s a good one, Justice!” Unio beamed with excitement, “I’ve been curious about just how Luke fell for that hair monster, too!” He hopped onto a chair and waited.

With Unio and Justice both closer to the door than he was, Luke could not come up with an escape route.

Luke took a seat on the spare bed himself and sighed deeply, resigning to his fate.

“…I used to think…it was right after Unio pointed out that he thought we were dating,” he muttered begrudgingly, “but I’ve had years to reflect on it and I realized…it really started when I first saw her face.”

Unio gaped at Luke.

“HUH? Are you telling me that it was love at first sight???!” He exclaimed.

“D-don’t say it out loud like that!!” The blush on Luke’s face deepened, but he did not deny it. “When I picked her off the sand and the hair parted from her face… something…stirred inside of me. I couldn’t look away from her…. and since then, all I could think about was when I’d be able to watch her happily eating my cooking again.”

“So that’s how it was,” Unio sighed, “All this time I was fighting a losing battle. I could have sworn I had it in the bag I saw you and Destiny shooting sparkles at each other at the harvest festival, but I was already too late.”

“Unio…!” Luke glanced worriedly over to Justice.

“Hm?” Justice tilted his head, unperturbed. “If you’re going to be praising how attractive my wife is, I’m all for it.”

Luke wiped away the cold sweat in his mind.

“… When I first saw Destiny, I couldn’t help but get drawn in. She was…beautiful, and had this radiance about her,” Luke said hesitantly, “Not only that, she was gentle and had a way of making others feel warm and comfortable around her….. but it felt different from Natsuko, in front of Destiny, I—“

“—Felt like a brat who had to be on his best behavior?”

Justice’s comment caused Luke to jolt and turn towards him, unprepared for the accuracy of his quip.

“Relax, I’m speaking from experience here,” the dragon cackled in amusement, “I can see why it wasn’t quite the right fit for you. You could already win awards for being the most well-behaved brat in the Nine Kingdoms. …But it was exactly what I needed.”

Luke pouted at Justice, feeling as though he could never best him at his worldliness. But a smile crept across his face as he directed the flow of the conversation back to Justice.

“You never did tell us how you ended up working at the Serval Cat House, Justice,” Luke asked, eager to see where this thread will lead.

The dragon blinked, not expecting the questions to come his way.

“After that picnic we had, there was one runt who would not let go of my wing,” he recalled, “I had to personally walk to the Serval Cat House with the rest of them until Destiny could peel him off in his sleep.”

“When I dropped off the runt and turned to leave…Destiny stopped me,” he said as his eyes softened, “She asked me if I had anywhere to go, like I was a lost child myself. .. When I told her that I was going back to the Despair District, she offered me a place to stay in exchange for helping her at the orphanage.”

He paused here, debating if he should continue on.

“When she … took my hands into hers, and gave me that warm smile of hers…. I couldn’t say no.”

Justice ruffled his hair shyly, a few strands slid down and covered his eyes. When he looked back at his friends again, Unio and Luke both had content smirks on their faces.

“What?” The dragon squinted at them.

“Oh…nothing, it’s just that you always seem so put together when it comes to things like this,” Unio sneered, “It’s actually quite refreshingly cute to see you blush over anything.”

“It’s a shame Natsuko isn’t here,” Luke grinned smugly, “She would have loved to capture that expression just now for her ‘what’s it called’ sheets.”

Justice groaned in frustration and stood up hastily.

“That’s enough story time for the day!” He said loudly as he clasped his claws. “Get up, boys, we have a wedding to catch!”

With a snicker to each other, Luke and Unio rose from their seats and exited the door behind Justice. The dragon stretched out his majestic wing span and soared into the skies ahead.

“Hop on, Luke!” Unio gestured to himself, already in his full unicorn form.

In one swift motion, Luke hopped onto Unio’s back, and they took to the skies, tracing the path behind them with a trail of light.

——

Natsuko now sat alone in the dressing room, enjoying a moment of peace after the busy morning that was hair, dress, spell-casting and makeup. Destiny, Sally, Meg, and Memmeln had temporarily left the room to see to the remaining decoration arrangements, and she had a few minutes to herself before checking in on her parents. She was trying her best to stay still, fearing that the moment she rose from her seat, every thread and enchantment on her would fall apart. A single tall window hung open, letting in a summer breeze that gently stirred the thin linen curtains. The light streaming through the window danced on the stone floor with the shadow of swaying leaves. As Natsuko looked into the mirror to adjust her earrings, a flutter of wings sounded from the window. Natsuko’s eyes followed the shape of the dark shadow that cast itself onto the floor to the silhouette on the windowsill that she knew all too well. Her mouth hung open in surprise.

“Still got that pathetic look on your face even in a wedding dress, I see,” the annoyed voice of Tsuruyama Kametaro echoed in the room.

“Director Tsuruyama?!” Natsuko stood up. “You can’t be here to congratulate me…right?”

The turtle-crane’s face scrunched into a look of disgust. Clearly not. Natsuko observed her disgruntled face for a moment. If she didn’t spend all that effort just to fly here and make a pass at her, then…

Natsuko smirked.

“If you’re looking for Destiny and Memmeln, they’ve gone back to the garden venue.”

The Director’s eyebrows twitched.

“What makes you think I’m here for them?” She asked, irritated.

“Of course you’d be here to see them, this is the once in a lifetime opportunity to see them all dressed up and pretty in those beautiful pink bridesmaid dresses~” Natsuko jeered, “They look super cute by the way, you really did miss out.”

“Hmph, that overactive imagination of yours probably did help in your career,” the bird scoffed.

“Was I wrong? You didn’t fly here to catch a glimpse of them, saw me instead, and had to take out the disappointment by throwing an insult at me?” Natsuko asked, tilting her head curiously.

Director Tsuruyama narrowed her eyes.

“What makes you think I had any interest in the way they dress?”

Natsuko stood straight again, hands on her hips and eyes beaming.

“That would be…. Love, of course!” She proclaimed.

The bird choked on her breath.

Undeterred, Natsuko continued, pointing a finger at her like a detective exposing a suspect.

“You may think I haven’t noticed, but I’ve seen you show up at everyone’s major life events. Like just two years ago, you were at Destiny and Justice’s wedding, perched all the way up on the spire!” She said, “Don’t think I didn’t also see you spying from the tree at Luke and Unio’s birthday party a few months ago, too. And now, you’re here because Luke is getting married. You couldn’t possibly miss that.”

Tsuruyama fell silent, unable to deny her claims.

Natsuko’s eyes softened.

“No matter what kind of ending you may have written, this was the world that you painstakingly brought to life on paper. If you didn’t love it yourself, I wouldn’t have loved it this much, either.”

“I don’t claim to be as amazing as you, but as a creator and an artist, isn’t it only natural to love the world and characters you’ve made, even if tearing it down is the story you wanted to tell?”

She smiled at the director, whose expression had changed from displeasure to unreadable.

“Hmph.”
The bird did not answer. As if to avoid the question, she began to ruffle and clean her feathers.

A thought occurred to Natsuko as she looked at the bird’s bare chest.

She rummaged through her purple backpack on the dressing table, the shuffling of the Luke doll on the side of the bag making the director squint.

“There it is,” Natsuko muttered as she took out a round, metallic object that the bird recognized immediately, her stopwatch. Natsuko carefully waddled over in her dress to the windowsill, and handed the stopwatch to Tsuruyama.

“What’s the meaning of this?” The bird did not move.

“Luke told me that they were able to reach our world only because you gave them your stopwatch and I have you to thank for that,” Natsuko said, “But an animator can’t be without her tools, right?”

“You’re not worried that I’ll conjure up Voids to destroy this world again?” Tsuruyama answered flatly.

“Trying to scare me is useless,” Natsuko grinned smugly, “Luke already told me you don’t have that kind of power. You said so yourself.”

“Tch,” she clicked her tongue.

“I stand by my words when I say I have no more use for this stopwatch,” the bird turned away stubbornly, “When the curtains fall, the creator has but one job to watch the credits roll.”

Natsuko smiled wistfully, remembering exactly how she felt when she finally saw the credits at the end of Hatsukoi: First Love. It was the joy of accomplishment, and the feeling of loss, having to let go of the world and the characters who had been a significant part of her every day life—like a family who occupied the household of her mind, until they all suddenly disappeared one day.

“Where one work ends, another begins. Our vision may be very different, but I know this for sure— Artists can never put down their pencils, even if they try,” Natsuko said, to herself and to the director she looked up to even now, “So draw, Tsuruyama Kametaro, until your heart is truly content.”

She gestured the stopwatch towards Tsuruyama once more.

The bird shook.

Slowly, wordlessly, she stretched out her wing, and lifted the red and yellow threading of the stopwatch over her head and onto her neck.

Shooting a suspicious look at Natsuko, she asked, “You want a bird to make anime?”

Natsuko let out an amused laugh.

“No, I want the great Director Tsuruyama, virtuoso of the anime world, who personally drew and signed a sketch for me using feathers and claws alone, to make new stories again,” she said, “If you need a space to do that, I do have a studio here now that you’re welcome to use any time. The window will always be open for you.”

The director’s eyes narrowed.

“Quite the kind gesture for someone whose personality doesn’t mix well with yours.”

“I have a friend who absolutely detests my personality, or so he claims.” A confident grin stretched over Natsuko’s face. “But he loves my drawings.”

“And Director Tsuruyama, I’ve loved your drawings, for 17 years!”

Tsuruyama Kametaro gaped at Natsuko, stunned. The beginnings of a smile formed around her beak, but she quickly shook it off and returned to her staple blank expression. She sighed.

“Fine, just know that you are offering studio space to a bird. Don’t be surprised when I inevitably defecate on your chair.”

Delivering her final jab, Director Tsuruyama glided off from the window with a flap of her wings, leaving a trail of feathers behind.

“Gross. She has to be joking, right?” Natsuko grimaced as she picked up a single dark grey feather.

——

The flowers were in their vivid summer blooms, stretching from the tower of the Soul Future in a steady, unbroken circle of flourishing greenery. The castle walls that once served to protect the bright star from the Voids had never been rebuilt—from the garden raised high in the center of the kingdom, the faraway sky was open for all to see.

“Just like how I remembered,” the Elder Baobab said as she gazed upon the scenery.

“Elder Baobab, is this something you saw in a prophetic dream?” The Mayor asked inquisitively behind her.

The old woman shook her head.

“Hundreds of years ago, long before the wars started and Voids appeared in this world, this was how the center of Kingdom of Heroes looked,” she reminisced, “The sky garden, they called it. I was but a wee little tree when I first visited, but the memory of its beauty took roots in my mind forever.”

Amazement and wonder filled the eyes of the guests entering the garden from the steps leading up. A stone walkway connected the stairs into a circle clearing in front of the Soul Future tower. On this day, however, bouquets of the violet, yellow and white wedding blooms guided the straight path to the altar, where the walkway met the clearing and an archway carrying the same flowers that curved above the altar. On each side of the walkway, earthy wooden benches lined the seating area, adorned with white silk and small flower patches growing on the edges. The fragrance of grass and flowers filled the venue. As the small gathering of family and friends of the Nine Soldiers filtered in, the minstrels began to perform a light tune. The Mayor and Baobab walked down the pathway and awaited by the altar. Ganger, Admiral Merfolk, Chingosman, and Capitan were already seated in the front row. Only a few minutes remained until the beginning of the ceremony.

Below the flight of stairs leading into the ceremony, Luke, Unio, and Justice waited for their entrance.

To distract himself from his beating heart and the butterflies in his stomach, Luke turned to the unicorn for conversation.

“Unio, how come you’re still in your full form? Don’t you usually prefer your smaller appearance?”

“Luke, I’m going to be standing with you by the altar for a while. If I’m in my shorter size, I’m going to miss all of the ceremony from my vantage point,” Unio answered.

“Oh? Is that so?” Justice grinned at Unio. “Not because you wanted to impress the bridesmaids and their ethereal relatives in the third row?”

Memmeln, Meg, Sally, and Destiny were only a few steps below in the procession, absorbed in their own conversations and adjusting the flowers in their hair for each other.

The unicorn stuck out his tongue and made an obnoxious “Blehh!!” at Justice.

The relaxing tune slowed to an end, and a festive, melodic song began. This was their cue to begin the procession.

Luke took a deep breath.

Nodding to Unio and Justice, Luke stepped up the stairs, and entered the venue. The guests cheered and clapped on both sides of the aisle as they made their way to the altar. The beautiful bridesmaids followed shortly after, taking their place next to the altar on the opposite side. After a short pause, a small figure floated up the stairs. QJ, in his most festive collar of white and light blue, hovered slowly towards the altar, gingerly carrying the key ceremonial items on a soft velvet cushion — two shards of the Soul Future, and—

“Unio?” Luke looked at the unicorn in surprise.

—A unicorn horn, halved cleanly from the center.

“I’ve been saving that since the last time those little brats broke it,” Unio explained proudly.

QJ smiled at Luke and hovered to their side.

The air rippled with anticipation as everyone awaited the arrival of the bride. Luke gulped and adjusted the cuff of his tunic as he stared towards the stairway.

At the gesture of the Mayor, the music changed to a slow, elegant track.

Immediately, two small children in ivory white dress robes dashed up on the stairs in excitement. A basket full of white flower petals in hand and laughing, they threw the flowers into the air, showering the guests and aisle with petals all the way to the altar. The guests laughed and cheered in their wake. With the petals still lingering in the air, the venue grew quiet.

From the stairway, covered in a translucent white veil and delicately dressed in the purest white, Natsuko entered the garden, a bouquet of white and violet roses in full bloom in hand. Her parents followed by her side, wearing their traditional black kimono and supporting her as she walked. The flowing veil and the shimmering fabric of her dress trailed behind her, undulating softly with the wind. When she was sure of her footing, Natsuko’s bright cyan eyes rose from the ground to the altar, and through the veil, Natsuko and Luke’s eyes locked.

They held their breath.

Between the heavens and the earth, nothing else existed in that moment. They saw only each other from the opposite ends of the procession. It felt as though the stars above shined only for them, and all the love they had for each other was laid bare in an instant.

“Go easy tonight, lover boy,” the dragon smirked at Luke and slapped his back hard. The rest of the world came back into focus.

“J-Justice…!” Luke almost toppled from the impact, but he stood his ground and shot Justice an embarrassed look.

Luke’s eyes followed Natsuko as she slowly approached the altar, feeling as though he was looking at a dream.

And finally, she was standing before him, bathed in the shimmering starlight of the enchantment on her dress. She was smiling lovingly at him behind the veil, as though he was the most precious thing in the world. Sniffling uncontrollably, Natsuko’s father raised her veil, and he and her mother each gave her a kiss to her cheeks. Tears escaped her eyes.

“Please take care of our daughter,” he said to Luke as he guided Natsuko next to him.

“I will,” Luke swore firmly. Her parents gripped his hands for a moment, before leaving the altar to take their seats in the front row.

Memmeln retrieved the bouquet from Natsuko and took her place by the bridesmaids. The couple joined hands before the altar.

Nodding dramatically in approval, the Mayor began the ceremony in his booming voice.

“We are here to day to bear witness to the glorious union of two souls who found each other across the stars, Luke Braveheart and Hirose Natsuko! I, the Mayor, has had the honor of watching Luke grow into the fine young lad he is today, and personally welcoming Natsuko into this world as a Nine Soldier.”

Behind Luke, Unio held back a sob.

“We are privileged to flourish under this azure blue sky by the grace of their hard fought battles. Let no souls here ever forget that we live in the triumph of their love. Such is the burning heart within them that shaped not only the future but also each other.”

The Mayor smiled warmly at Luke and Natsuko.

“Luke Braveheart, Hirose Natsuko, under the light of the Soul Future, do you take each other as husband and wife, and promise to love and cherish each other for the days to come, be it full of sunshine or rain?”

“”We do.”” The joy in their hearts was overwhelming, and they saw it reflected in each other’s eyes.

The Mayor nodded again in satisfaction and glanced over to QJ and Unio.

“And now, with Elder Baobab and I to bear witness, we shall commence with the exchange of blessings and vows.”

QJ floated the shards of the Soul Future and Unio’s horn between Luke and Natsuko, his eyes in the brightest yellow orb.

Unio took a deep breath, and positioned himself in front of QJ.

“To the souls joined under the light of the Soul Future, I bestow the blessing of the unicorn horn.”

With a soft touch of his own horn, the broken horn transformed into spheres of scintillating blue light, and drifted into Luke and Natsuko’s rings.

“Before you ask me if this means I’ll always know where you are now, no, I do not plan to make a habit of that!” Unio squinted at Natsuko’s open mouth.

“Lest you forget! Unicorn horns can ward off diseases and evil! You are one of the rare couples who even get to have this blessing! S-so…” His voice quivered.

“You… better be happy..!” Unable to hold back the tears, Unio sobbed.

“Unio…thank you,” Luke smiled warmly at him, already tearing up himself. He reached over to pat his mane.

“I’ll absolutely cherish this S class blessing, Unio,” Natsuko added, following suit to pat Unio while he continued crying.

Justice walked over to put a hand on Unio’s back, and with a flash of light, Unio transformed back into his smaller form. The dragon lifted the crying unicorn to his shoulders, and made his way back to the side of the altar.

The couple now turned towards each other to recite their vows.

“Hirose Natsuko, to you, I bestow upon the blessing of the Soul Future.”

Luke retrieved a shard of the Soul Future and gently held it above Natsuko’s ring. As though called forth by the gem, the shard disintegrated into the sapphire and imbued it with light.

“Shields may be splintered, blades may be shattered, but my love for you shall forever be unbroken, from this world to the next. For my evening star in the darkest of nights, I vow to love and cherish you, ‘til unto stardust we return.”

He kissed her hand to seal his eternal vow.

“Luke Braveheart, to you, I bestow upon the blessing of the Soul Future.”

In the same gesture, the light of the Soul Future imbued the aquamarine gemstone on Luke’s ring.

“My love for you shall be eternal, from this world to the next, unguarded, untarnished by the flow of time. For my guiding light in the tempest of life, I vow to love and cherish you, ‘til unto stardust we return.”

She leaned forward to kiss his forehead to seal her eternal vow.

A full blush on his face, the Mayor nodded eagerly for the third time in approval.

“By the light of the Soul Future and the power vested in me and Elder Baobab, I now pronounce Luke Braveheart and Hirose Natsuko — married!! May your days ever be blessed with light. You may now kiss!” He boomed.

Luke’s lips were on Natsuko’s scarcely before the Mayor even finished his last word. The couple embraced, locked in a passionate kiss as the guests exploded in cheers, claps, and tears. Without breaking their kiss, Luke lifted Natsuko off her feet and spun her around. They giggled into their kiss as he did so. In the moment Natsuko’s dress twirled around her, the enchantment shed from her dress and scattered into the air in the form of shimmering butterflies. The butterflies fluttered above venue, meeting each other in the center with a spark of light that spread across the sky above. The spectacle of light transformed into a light snow fall that showered the summer garden with its welcoming coolness. Gasps and cheers filled the venue as guests held out their hands to catch the snowflakes. From the side of the altar, Memmeln nodded at Capitan with a content smile. Luke and Natsuko were able to catch the last moments of the summer snowfall when they finally broke from their kiss. They leaned on each other’s heads as they watched, blissful in their new shared bond.

As Baobab made her way down the garden path with the Mayor, she glanced back at the newly weds with great interest. From her eyes, the blessing of the Soul Future had imbued its light on not just two souls, but three.

“Hoho?” The elder chuckled to herself. “They’ll know soon enough.”

Although the bouquet toss was not a tradition here, Natsuko had made an attempt and tossed it high into the air. By sheer height alone, the flowers fell onto Ganger, who held it in his hands in confusion for a while and then handed it over to Unio.

Festivities carried on in the gardens as the minstrels performed songs for folk dances. The guests mingled and danced to the music while the children played in the grass, rolling and falling on the gentle flower patches. A single familiar bird cut across the Soul Future high above as the first shades of sunset painted the skies.

“Natsuko, it is taking every bit of my restraint not to steal you away for myself right now,” Luke said as he spun her around and caught her hand in their steps

Natsuko blushed deeply at his words and laughed.

“Luke..! At least make it through the first hour of the feast! You wouldn’t want to miss all of Naomi’s hard work, right?”

Luke pouted.

“There’s still some time before the feast, let’s go off somewhere,” he suggested, a mischievous glint in his cerulean eyes.

“Is this really Luke Braveheart? Proposing we escape from our own wedding?” Natsuko gasped, genuinely shocked but amused.

At the very next twirl in the dance, Luke took the opening and whisked Natsuko off the ground. With a pace that only a legendary hero can keep up with, Luke stole off with his bride down the stairway and into the town, laughter trailing behind them as he ran. When they snuck quietly into the courtyard of the Heroes’ Mansion, the newly weds glanced up at the very first stars to dot the skies.

On that day beneath the river of starlight, in the infinite space where anything was possible, they had held each other and made a single wish in their hearts.

The wish to live.
For tomorrow to come.

And the world answered.

Today was their first day in the eternity of their promise, in the world born out of their hope.

And for Luke and Natsuko, any promises to an eternity was attainable as long as they had each other for the many days ahead.