Lily Petals

The Queen caressed the lily necklace that her wife had snuck into her hand during her last moments.

'Sayaka, we'll meet again soon......'

The Queen put on the necklace before observing the sleeping form of the human she had caught.

'Saotome Mary,' she thought, musing. 'How bold of her, and to think that she assumed I was Ririka. Did Ririka not tell her anything about me? How insulting.'

Mary groaned awake, snapping the Queen out of her thoughts. The human found herself trapped in a magic orb.

"Saotome Mary," the Queen said, chuckling. "You actually had the nerve to trespass the forbidden area of the castle."

"Ririka......?" Mary said breathlessly. "It's me, Mary! Why are you acting as if......" She paused abruptly as a memory flashed through her mind.

That portrait......although the Queen's face wasn't clear, she remembered those pair of pale arms wrapped around Lady Momobami's waist lovingly.

"You...you were the Queen all along? You had a wife and didn't tell me?!" Mary exclaimed, incensed with anger. "You...you deceived me! How could you!

"Oh?" Kirari said, amused. "Is that what you think? As hilarious as this is, you're surprisingly doltish and vacuous, not like you'd understand what those words mean of course, as I was saying, as funny as this is, you've got it all wrong."

Just then, Ririka burst into the room. "Rari! I sensed Mary's presence in here----" she gasped. "You...you...!"

Kirari nodded towards the tongue-tied Kitsune. "That, is Ririka Momobami."

The Queen stared down at her, looking right through her soul.

"I am Kirari Momobami, wife of Sayaka Momobami, Head of the Momobami Clan or Hundred Devouring Families, twin sister of Ririka Momobami, and ruler of the Celestial Reach, as well as the person who killed Aoi Mibuomi and the rest of his useless underlings."

Mary gaped openly.

"Still dumb, I see," the Queen said. "Well, to make it easier, I'm the Queen and Ririka's twin sister, happy?"

"Sister!" Ririka cried out. "Let her go!"

"Oh? This vermin trespassed the forbidden area of the castle and I'm inclined to let her go? How funny, and put your weapon down, please, you of all people should know that such things are incapable of hurting me," the Queen replied calmly. "Shouldn't trespassers apologize?"

Mary gritted her teeth. "You arrogant little----I wonder how Sayaka even married you!"

Her eyes widened. Shit.

Even Ririka whimpered and pulled down her Kitsune ears.

"Sayaka?" Kirari said, her tone turning dangerous. "You dare call my wife by her first name in my presence? How about I let you join her so you can ask her some questions? Not like the two of you will end up in the same place, you'll probably go straight down to hell." Her pupils turned black as she leaned forward, gripping Mary's chin roughly. "I dare you mention her again. Apologize, I do not wish to mutilate you in front of my sister, especially since the two of you are together, hm?"

"I'm s...sorry..." Mary said, glaring at the Kitsune Queen, who smiled proudly. She waved her hand and the magic orb dissipated into thin air.

Ririka bolted towards her girlfriend, comforting her.

"Seriously, Ririka, of all things, you chose this? You could've chosen someone as sophisticated as my dear lily," Kirari commented, smiling amusedly.

Ririka had to hold down her girlfriend from tackling the Queen. "Stop it, Mary! Any human who touches Kirari without permission will disintegrate into dust! Only Sayaka could, because she obviously didn't need permission and because she was her wife! Kirari will probably make me sweep up your dust remains and throw them somewhere, even!"

Mary stopped, sitting there stubbornly like a grumpy chipmunk.

"Let's have a chat, shan't we? And perhaps discuss why this human decided to take an interest in my wife," Kirari stated, though the glint in her eyes said that she knew everything, from Mary meeting Aethelsa and Ren to finding out what had happened to Sayaka.