The sun shone brightly over Eientei.
Earth rabbits went about their daily chores throughout the courtyard. Some carried baskets of freshly washed laundry; others swept the stone paths, while a few chatted with one another as they worked. It was an ordinary, peaceful afternoon.
Well... mostly.
Near one corner of the courtyard, two rabbits wrestled over a basket of laundry as though it were a pot of gold.
"Let go! I got it first!"
"I was here first!"
Neither rabbit was willing to admit defeat.
They pulled.
One rabbit gained a little ground.
The next tug erased all of it.
Back and forth they went, each tug undoing the last as neither was willing to let go.
Eventually, both rabbits slumped onto the ground, still clinging to opposite sides of the basket. They were too exhausted to keep pulling, yet far too stubborn to admit defeat.
A third rabbit happened to be sweeping nearby.
She glanced at the exhausted pair.
Then at the basket.
Without saying a word, she bent down, picked it up by the handle...
...and briskly walked away with it.
The two rabbits stared after her.
Their eyes widened.
Their mouths twitched.
For a brief moment, neither of them said a word.
Then, almost simultaneously—
"HEY!"
"GET BACK HERE!"
The third rabbit immediately broke into a run, clutching the basket against her chest.
The other two sprang to their feet and gave chase, the peaceful courtyard erupting into chaos as the three rabbits disappeared around the corner.
One of the earth rabbits walked past the living room, her attention fixed firmly on the task at hand. She didn't so much as glance inside as she continued on her way.
Inside, Reisen sat curled up on one end of the couch with an old abacus resting in her hands. The wooden frame showed its age, its once smooth finish worn by years of use.
Holding it up, Reisen looked toward Kaguya with half-lidded eyes.
"Princess... when was the last time you got a new one of these?"
Kaguya didn't even look away from her Nintendo Switch.
"It still works, doesn't it?"
Reisen's brow twitched.
"That's not the point. It's so old."
Still focused entirely on the game, Kaguya casually shifted one leg over the other. The bean bag beneath her sank and bulged in protest, refusing to cooperate with the way she insisted on sitting.
"Then get a new one tomorrow."
The sound effects from the Nintendo Switch almost drowned out her words.
Reisen stared at her.
The look on her face suggested Kaguya had just volunteered her for several hours of unnecessary work.
A rapid clicking filled the living room as Tewi Inaba wound the key on a small toy spider.
Click.
Click.
Click.
She gave it one final twist and set it down on the floor.
Nothing.
Tewi frowned.
She picked it back up and began twisting the key again, turning it at angles it was clearly never meant to move.
Kaguya finally looked up from her Nintendo Switch.
"You're supposed to turn it clockwise once, then counterclockwise twice."
She raised an eyebrow.
Tewi looked back at her as though she'd just been unfairly scolded.
"I know that!"
Reisen glanced up from her abacus.
"Then why isn't it working yet?"
Tewi puffed out her cheeks.
"It doesn't know how to listen to me."
Reisen silently stared at her for a moment.
"...That's not how toys work."
Ignoring her completely, Tewi gave the key a few more determined twists before setting the spider back on the floor.
This time, its tiny legs began to move.
The toy crawled steadily across the wooden floor.
It passed by Reisen's feet, prompting her to lift her legs just enough to let it continue.
The little spider kept going until it reached the doorway.
The door suddenly burst open.
The toy spider was sent flying back across the room as someone stepped inside without slowing for even a moment.
The living room door swung shut behind the newcomer.
Junko took a single step inside.
Her gaze swept across the room.
Her brows were drawn tight.
Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as they moved from one face to the next, as though searching for something... or someone.
Then she spoke.
"Which one of you is Tewi Inaba?"
No one answered.
The room suddenly felt heavier.
Reisen's fingers tightened around the worn frame of her abacus.
Across the room, Kaguya's Nintendo Switch slipped from her hands.
Clrrk.
It struck the wooden floor.
The game continued playing, its cheerful sound effects echoing awkwardly through the silence.
Tewi looked from Junko to Reisen. Her eyebrows slowly arched upward.
"R-Reisen..."
"...Who's that?"
Reisen didn't answer.
Her...? Here...? How...?
Before she could gather her thoughts, Junko spoke again.
"I'll ask again."
Her voice landed a little sharper than before, cutting cleanly through the silence.
"Which one of you is Tewi Inaba?"
Junko’s eyes settled on Tewi.
Her expression hardened, her brows drawing together.
"is that you?”
Tewi slowly rose to her feet.
Her hands curled into tight fists.
"Y-Yeah..." she said, forcing her voice to sound louder than she felt. "So what?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Junko replied.
"You're coming with me."
There wasn't the slightest hint of uncertainty in her voice.
Tewi instinctively moved closer to Reisen.
Her hands clutched tightly at the edge of Reisen's skirt.
"No."
Reisen was already on her feet.
She tossed the abacus onto the couch behind her without taking her eyes off Junko.
"She's not going with you."
Her voice was calm, but her expression was every bit as determined as her words.
Kaguya rose from her bean bag at almost the same moment.
"What do you want?!"
Her voice rang out with unmistakable anger.
Junko's expression didn't change.
"I want Tewi."
"That's not happening!"
Kaguya took a step forward, her glare fixed firmly on Junko.
Junko silently looked at each of them in turn.
Then she shifted her weight, taking one small step back as she settled onto the heel of one foot.
For the briefest instant...
...nothing happened.
Then she moved.
She exploded forward with such speed that she became little more than a blur.
Reisen’s eyes widened.
She barely managed to throw one hand forward before the force of Junko’s charge caught her and hurled her backward across the room.
Kaguya reacted only a fraction of a second later.
She had scarcely taken a step before the same force swept her off her feet, sending her crashing onto the wooden floor.
The couch shuddered as Reisen slammed into it.
Kaguya skidded several feet before finally coming to a stop.
The only sound was the cheerful music still playing from the Nintendo Switch lying forgotten on the floor.
Reisen lifted her head from the couch.
Kaguya looked up at almost the same moment.
Junko stood several paces away as though she had never moved.
One arm was wrapped firmly around Tewi's waist, holding the rabbit horizontally against her side.
Tewi dangled helplessly above the floor.
For a moment, she could only stare.
She looked up.
Junko looked back at her.
For a brief moment, their eyes met.
Tewi's pupils shrank.
Her breathing quickened.
She squirmed in Junko's grip, struggling to free herself.
Reisen slowly pushed herself to her feet, one hand rubbing her aching back where she had slammed into the couch.
Kaguya rose unsteadily a moment later, brushing a strand of disheveled hair from her face.
The instant her eyes found Tewi—
"PUT HER DOWN NOW!"
Reisen's gaze snapped toward Junko.
"LET HER GO!"
Caught between their voices, Tewi began struggling even harder.
"I DON'T WANT TO GO WITH YOU!"
"LET ME GO!"
"LET ME GO!"
She kicked and twisted with everything she had, but Junko's grip around her waist never loosened.
Junko calmly looked from Reisen to Kaguya.
"It's already been decided."
Her voice remained calm.
Her expression did not.
Without another word, she turned toward the doorway and began walking out of the room.
Reisen and Kaguya burst out of the living room.
At the far end of the hallway, Junko was already making her way toward the exit.
Tewi thrashed wildly in Junko's unrelenting grip.
"REISEN!"
"KAGUYA!"
"HEEELP!"
The desperate cries echoed through Eientei.
Several earth rabbits poked their heads out from nearby rooms.
The moment they saw Junko's unwavering expression and the terrified rabbit struggling in her grasp, they froze.
One by one, they quietly withdrew back into their rooms.
Kaguya was the first to give chase.
Her feet pounded against the wooden floor as she sprinted down the hallway.
Kaguya stretched her hand toward Junko.
Her fingertips fell inches short.
Without even breaking her stride, Junko lashed out with a single kick.
The impact sent Kaguya stumbling backward, bringing her charge to an abrupt end.
Reisen raced past her without slowing.
She reached out with everything she had.
Her fingers brushed nothing but empty air.
Junko was already several more paces ahead.
Reisen and Kaguya burst through the front door.
Reisen nearly lost her footing on the wooden steps, catching herself before she could stumble as she threw herself into another sprint.
Kaguya rushed after her, one hand catching the doorframe just long enough to steady herself before she ran into the courtyard.
Both of them searched the sky.
"There!"
Reisen shouted.
Junko was already flying away above Eientei.
One arm remained wrapped firmly around Tewi's waist, holding the struggling rabbit securely against her side.
"TEWIIII!"
Reisen's voice rang across the grounds.
"JUNKO!"
"YOU BRING TEWI BACK RIGHT NOW!"
Kaguya shouted as she ran after them.
Tewi heard them.
She twisted around as far as Junko's grip allowed, one hand reaching for the two figures below.
"REISEN!"
"KAGUYA!"
"HEEEELP!"
The cries drew the attention of several earth rabbits.
Some stepped out into the courtyard.
Others leaned out from the engawa or looked through open doorways.
One after another, their eyes followed the sound until they found Junko carrying Tewi through the sky.
Reisen kept running.
Her eyes never left Tewi for even a moment.
Kaguya ran beside her, shouting after Junko again and again.
Neither of them gained any ground.
Junko continued flying at the same steady pace.
Tewi kicked wildly, twisting her body from side to side as she struggled with everything she had to break free from Junko's grip.
"Stop that."
Junko's voice remained as calm as ever.
Tewi looked up at her.
Her brows drew together in anger, though her eyes widened with panic.
Junko met her gaze.
"We'll arrive at the moon in a moment."
"The..."
Tewi's eyes widened.
"...moon?"
Her mouth slowly fell open.
"NO!"
"I DON'T WANNA GO TO THE MOON!"
She thrashed even harder, her legs kicking wildly through the air.
Below them, Reisen and Kaguya continued running across the grounds.
"TEWI!"
Reisen shouted again.
No answer came back.
Junko only grew smaller against the blue sky.
Tewi's cries faded until they could no longer make out her words.
Reisen slowed.
Kaguya stopped beside her.
Neither of them took their eyes off the shrinking figure overhead.
It grew smaller...
and smaller...
until it disappeared into the distant sky.