The bustling streets of Albriar.
Many people were entering and leaving the many stores that were established in the city at the center of the continent.
Citizens, merchants, and travelers alike were enjoying the diversity of the products only found in this kind of city.
And in the middle of the crowd, were three strange individuals.
A man with black hair long enough to slightly cover his eyes, and two green haired woman that were tinier than him.
One had a high ponytail, while the other had a low chignon.
If that wasn''t particular enough, they were both holding on the man''s arms as they walked around the city. The one one the left was holding his right hand while pointing here and there with a huge smile on her face, while the other was holding the man''s forearm while making a sour expression.
Orion, Drania, and Dramia, the three of them were on the ''date'' that Orion proposed.
-
"I mean, if you don''t want to, just forget about it. I just felt the need to thank you for everything you''ve done for me since we''ve met."
"Wa- Wait a minute! Where does that even come from? A-And a d-d-d-date, at that!"
"Sis, you''re losing it."
"Why aren''t you even slightly shocked?! Are you really my sister?"
While Dramia had been taken by surprise, Drania seemed completely fine, shown by the smile on her face.
"You''re asking me at this point?"
"But!"
Orion walked up to the table and stared at Dramia.
"..."
She looked at him with a blushing face.
"Kh..."
"He''s waiting for your answer you know."
"I''m also waiting for yours."
"Ha-haha... I had forgotten. My bad."
Cutely, Drania smiled while sticking her tongue out.
"I don''t know, this is very sudden. I wasn''t expecting you to ever propose such an idea."
While beginning to compose herself, she looked at her twin sister.
"The question is, do you want to go, or do you want to stay behind?"
"You''re saying that as if you''re... You''re going to accept, aren''t you?"
"Of course I''m going to accept. We''ve talked about this earlier didn''t we? I''m done being stuck on the past. I don''t want to see that day when I close my eyes anymore. Maybe that''s why we''re still alive today, to be with him."
Orion stared at Drania.
''That day. She means the day Noah died, I guess.''
"I was sure we made peace with our past when we forced our way in that space, did we not? Move on, sis. We still have the right to be happy, you know. At least, I can hear Noah say that."
"Hmpf. He really was like a big brother to us..."
They both smiled at each other, before looking at Orion.
"Fine. I''ll follow you on that d-date, even though I don''t thing you will enjoy it while I''m following along."
"Give us an hour, we''ll come to you when we''re ready."
"Alright."
Orion opened his pocket watch.
''Around 11:30 then. I should find a place to eat while they do that.''
He nodded and began to walk away back to the portal.
"Wait. Before you go, why so suddenly?"
"..."
Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
His back turned to them, he placed the watch back in his back pocket. The twins were waiting for his answer with a knot in their throat.
"I''ve decided to cherish the ones I love, that''s all."
Once he said that, he placed his hands in his pockets and walked back into Horizon, leaving the sisters with a terrible blush that only wore off half an hour later.
-
"We''ve already been to a human city before, stop acting like a child already."
"To Hocride, yes. Not to Albriar! I mean, we''ve been here to defend it before, but we never went inside. And stopped being so grumpy! Smile!
"Don''t tell me what to do! I''m the older sister here!"
Orion walked with the two bickering on each sides of him with a smile.
''They sure do love each other.''
"And I''m telling you... Oh! Is that cotton candy?!"
Dramia placed her hand on her forehead in exasperation.
The three of them walked toward the shop that was selling the food Drania''s eyes sparkling.
"Wait here."
After being released by the two, Orion went to buy the cotton candy. The sisters sat on a bench, waiting for his return.
"What are you doing?"
Unusual to her, Drania sounded upset.
"..."
"Stop being a pain in the ass for once."
"A what?"
"You heard me. I know you as much as I know myself, we''re twins. So for once in your life, stop. You don''t have to refrain yourself from enjoying today."
"I... don''t know what you mean."
"Of course you don''t... Look, don''t come regret it after everything is settled alright?"
"..."
The line was pretty long, which made the wait painfully long for Dramia.
"It''s a date, damn it!"
Drania''s eyes opened widely at her sister''s sudden outburst. The blush on her face was so visible it looked painful.
"Yes, it''s a date. I know, since I''m here."
But she failed to understand what the point of telling that was.
"It''s embarrassing..."
"..."
Dramia grabbed her bangs and tried to hide her eyes.
"That... was something I did not expect."
"It''s my first date! And I''m like that too! Were you seriously expecting me to be upfront about my feelings?"
She was talking about her usual coldness.
"No, not really. I was just hoping you would do more than just blurt ''Stop'' at me every single seconds of this date. Just, I don''t know, enjoy it? Talk to Orion for once. Something other than his quest for revenge, or matters we don''t care about."
"Like what?"
"Hobbies? We don''t know what he likes to do. We only knows that he reads a lot, and that he likes crossbows. We can ask what he like about us, what he plan on doing today, go shopping... Be a... normal girl, for once."
"A normal girl."
They both felt like it was a very long time since they thought of themselves as normal. Since becoming half-fairies, their life was all but normal.
Their eyes fell on the couples walking past them. That was what ''normal'' was.
"Here."
As they were daydreaming, Orion returned with the cotton candy.
"O-Oh! Thank you."
Drania grabbed the red coloured snack.
"You too."
"H-Huh? For me?"
Presented a green coloured cotton candy in front of her, Dramia grabbed the stick with trembling hands.
"Thank you..."
''Was that unneeded?''
Orion showed a worried smile, one she couldn''t see.
"Mmh! Strawberry!"
Like a child, Drania ate the strawberry flavor cotton candy with a huge grin on her face.
"..."
Listening to her sister openly saying what she thought made her slightly jealous, but she ignored it. Instead, she plucked off a piece of the candy and placed it on her tongue.
"Melon."
A gentle smile finally appeared on her face after tasting the candy. He felt relieved to know she didn''t hate it.
"Want to try mine?"
As if their previous conversation never happened, Drania offered her snack to her sister with a smile. But the words she spoke kept being worked on by Dramia.
''Being honest, right?''
"Sure. Here."
The two cotton candy crossed, with both taking a bite out of the other''s. This show was heartwarming to Orion, as he preferred to see them like this rather than fighting over nothing.
"Orion."
While he was in his thoughts, Dramia called him back to reality. In front of his month was a piece of the green candy.
"H-Have a bite, too."
She looked away with her face bright red.
"AAAH! That''s unfair! I was hoping to do that too! Grrr~ I should''ve kept quiet. What a blunder on my part."
"Pfft. Hahaha~"
His laugh caught them on guard, making whatever thought they had come to a halt. Sharing a confused look, they then looked at him.
"It''s not a competition, you know? Well, I don''t know anything about sibling rivalry, anyways."
He picked up the green fluff from Dramia''s hand and ate it, before taking the same amount of fluff from Drania''s candy. Obviously, he ate it too.
"They both taste good."
Even Drania began to blush.
Finishing their snack in silence, many passerby looked at them with a heartwarming smile on their faces.
...
"Can I ask where we''re going next?"
Having recovered from the embarrassment, Dramia asked.
"Sure, you can. We''re going to walk around the shops, and enter whichever one catch your interest."
"Then-"
"But no food. We haven''t eaten lunch yet."
With a smile, he cut off Drania.
"Tch."
"Impressive, I never thought you''d click your tongue at me over food."
"A-Ah! I''m sorry, don''t hate me for that!"
"I won''t, don''t worry."
Dramia chuckled a little seeing her sister panic so easily. She was starting to enjoy the time spent here, after making up her mind.
"Then, is there somewhere you would like to go?"
Graciously saving her sister, she asked him.
"Well, there is, but it''s not a store I would go on a date."
"We have no idea what you like other than reading. That''s what Drania told me. So, we wouldn''t... mind knowing more... about you."
Her face turned redder while speaking each words.
''She''s doing her best, isn''t she? This might be her sister''s doing.''
"Then, if we find it, maybe."
Orion walked around the area with the two wrapped around his arms. At that point, a conversation caught his attention as he was about to enter a store.
"Hey, have you heard about that weird dome in Eogis?"
"The one that sealed off the entire place? Yes, I did. We still don''t know what happened right?"
"We don''t. It might be similar to that strange beam of light a month ago in the east, and that big explosion a few weeks ago."
"What is happening, really. It''s rather scary when you think about it. With the Apostles fighting each others out of nowhere and all those strange happenings..."
He couldn''t hear more after entering the store. The sister also heard it and looked at Orion with worry.
Though, to their surprise, he was smiling.
''Seems like he doesn''t care. That''s a relief.''
Thinking in synchronicity like the true twins they were, they continued to enjoy the moment with Orion.
The store they previously entered? Women''s clothing, known as the biggest waste of time in the universe.
Will Orion arrive in time for lunch, or will it take the whole day?