[UPDATE IN PROGRESS] Onmyou-Pocketville: Fallen Dusk

Chapter 12: The Night Watch

The candlelight gave off a warm but ominous glow, illuminating the castle up as it was midnight already. Kikyou was walking through the many corridors, as she was on her weekly night shift at the palace. The home of the monarch would usually be jovial and energetic during the day, with numerous staff members running about and doing their work, but at night, all was quiet and dark. Especially quiet. In fact, it was so quiet that Kikyou's pawsteps on the wooden floor seemed like they were echoing and bouncing off the walls.

As she kept her steady pace and a determined look, she pressed on, leaving the previous corridor to go on to the next. Patrolling around the castle's vast interior reminded her of when she first stepped inside after having just been made a Royal Guard thirty years ago.

Just as Kikyou walked down the hallway, she saw William, her fellow colleague who began his work the same time as her, walking the opposite way. He decided to work overtime on patrolling the palace.

As soon as they got close, both Kikyou and William dipped their heads in greeting and respect for each other.

"Good evening, Kikyou," the canine began.

"Good evening, William," the tabby had replied.

"Anything suspicious?"

"Not that I know of."

"You should go and check the garden. Make sure no one is tampering with anything there. We don't want any flowers being cut off their stems."

"Okay," Kikyou nodded. "See you around."

As William took his steps down the palace corridor, Kikyou continued her walk, this time looking for the doors leading to the atrium. Just then, a quick, dark figure barely brushed against her fur and ran off. Kikyou flinched from that sensation, but she then ran after the figure as swiftly and briskly as she could. Who was that?

"Hey! Get back here right this instant!"

Kikyou kept her gaze on the dark figure as she was chasing it. How could a potential thief sneak in the castle without all the guards noticing? Kikyou had already known that Queen Ami's home is heavily guarded inside and out with multiple Royal Guards, so she became befuddled over the figure.

Eventually when both of them came to the corridor, the figure picked up so much speed that Kikyou almost completely lost sight of it. But it did look like it managed to escape into the entrance doors. Depending on the candlelight attached to the walls of the room, Kikyou looked over at the doors to the outside. But they were closed.

"Drat!" She huffed.

Kikyou thought of several questions about how the figure ran towards the doors as if they were going outside, yet they did not open them at all. Did they use teleportation? The only way to find out is to go outside herself.

She stepped out into the terrace of the fountain. All the flowers seemed to have iridescent petals reflecting off the three moons' light, and the fountain waters surely had the glow too.

Arcanielle, unlike the real earth, had three moons instead of one, which is considered unique. Each moon switches phases in their own pace, making it a rare treat to see all of them in the same phase, be it new, crescent, half, gibbous, or full. Perhaps those three moons are connected to the three star prophecy, too?

The fountain garden had a mysterious vibe to it during the night, with fireflies hovering around with their golden bioluminescence, the song of shiny field crickets and leafy-green katydids echoed through the breeze, and if Kikyou were lucky, she would hear one of the owlish Winged Guards hoot in the distance during their shift.

Kikyou eyed a complex right next to the palace a few rabbit hops away, which looked a bit like a small house, along with a paved path that led there. One of the guards was supposed to keep an eye out on that specific place. Since she was also one of those guards, she rushed forward towards the shed-like building, running as fast as she could as she followed the path. As soon as she was in front of the gates, she read the sign that was attached to the exterior wall.