Zeitwächter led them across a route which required them to sneak dangerously close to coasts and reefs.
It was a necessary move to avoid the Fog patrols from Japan who also, at least partially, patrolled Chinese waters and would no doubt only get tighter now that both Kongō and the Blue Fleet were enemies.
Nonetheless, the black vessels entered a hidden water entrance courtesy of a surprisingly deep river and continued along it until reaching a lake where they then stopped moving.
Kongō looked in awe at the area around them.
Red maple trees towered above the water like fiery sentinels, their crowns seemingly a sea of wild, peaceful flames moving in the wind, turning the water itself red due to their reflections and sheltering the tons of beautiful flowers under them.
She didn't know how Zeitwächter had found this place, but she could understand why she seemingly returned here at least once a year.
Said battleship now begrudgingly opened her eyes and rose to her feet, rubbing an eye and smiling down at Kongō, before petting the still-dozing dog and holding out a hand in invitation.
The blonde chose to amuse her and accepted the hand, giving a small smile of her own as she was carefully tugged to stand and then led down the ship, the red hexagonal platforms gleaming orange.
One could almost think that Zeitwächter had been made for this environment.
They stepped upon the ground and Zeitwächter led Kongō on through fields of flowers and swarms of butterflies until they reached a clearing where the maples did not obstruct the view anymore.
"Kon-chama", the Mental Model turned back towards the other, still holding her hand, "welcome to Churchgrim's and mine personal sanctuary."
"I thank you very much – you have a beautiful place for yourself."
"Ne?", Zeitwächter let her hand go, Kongō instantly missing its warmth, "it's a secret, so don't tell anyone, okay?"
"Of course", if noone else knew of this place yet, then she wouldn't be the one to betray the immense amount of trust this reveal meant, "I'm wondering though, do you really want to pluck those flowers?"
Zeitwächter was a sentimental one. She would feel sorry for misplaced stones, keep scrap that had been in her possession for a few minutes, pieces of unimportant paper with enough white areas to draw on… Kongō just couldn't imagine that she would take even one of her flowers.
As if reading her mind, Zeitwächter shook her head: "I always go around to pick out the nicest ones and then reproduce them", she let a little blue flower out of nanomaterial appear in her hand and handed it over to the blonde with a little bow, "I don't want to kill any flowers just to decorate something with their corpses."
Kongō twirled the forget-me-not between her fingers: "What flowers are we searching for?"
The other beamed: "Anything to decorate a grave with! I can send you an overview?"
"Do that. How many do you need?"
Zeitwächter threw her arms into the air, all-cheery persona back in business: "As many as you can find! If we have too many, I'll just make a crown for you!"
"Alright. Shall we meet here again at sundown?"
"Sure, I'll go that way", she pointed into a seemingly random direction and ran off as soon as she got the okay from the other.
Kongō gazed up at the sky, finding the sun with her eyes. It wouldn't be long until it started setting.
Kongō was the first to reappear; by now she had Churchgrim, who found her at some point after his nap, at her side and talked to him about random nonsense.
Zeitwächter came limping out not much later, flowers and something catching and reflecting light already in her arms: "Dear~, Kon-chama~"
Churchgrim reacted instantly and bound over, rubbing himself happily against her.
"Hello you, hello!", she would've petted him, but for that she simply didn't have enough limps.
"What happened to your leg?", asked Kongō.
Her friend had finished hobbling over and looked as if she was in slight pain, putting most of her weight on the right side: "Knee, actually!"
That didn't really make it better.
"It's always the left side", she shrugged, "that's my error."
This Mask's error was a damaged left side? Well, alright, then she wasn't just mad, she also carried Fatum's old errors over – the world must really love her.
"If you need a break-"
"Nah, it's fine", she sat down in the middle of the clearing heavily, "I'm accustomed to this."
That didn't make it better either!
"I shall whine the entire time the pain lasts, though."
Kongō and Churchgrim sat down beside her, both definitely more elegant than the tall woman: "I know, you always used to whine more than necessary."
Zeitwächter nodded her head calmly, beginning to sort the flowers into groups: "My theory is, that over the top whining makes you concentrate on that and dulls the actual pain."
Which might actually be a sound theory, but it still made the blonde cock an eyebrow.
"Do you know how to make flower wreaths?"
"I don't", even if, she was too busy wondering about the ring of fine metallic material the other was messing with.
Zeitwächter looked up once she noticed the lingering gaze and blinked while holding the ring up: "Ah, there's a Hmong village in the area. I kinda befriended them and they give me silver every year."
"Just like that?"
"I told them what I'm collecting flowers for and they were eager to help, sooo…"
Some random Hmong village knew what they were collecting flowers for and Kongō, who was in on this entire situation, didn't? Mood.
"Kon-chama, I only know how to make them with a base too", that was the ring, "but let me show you how to make flower wreaths, okay? See it as payment for future piano lessons."
"You will need to teach me very well to pay for all lessons at once", Kongō quipped.
The other made an offended sound and pressed closer to her: "You say that as if I'm not artistically talented."
Kongō, bless her poor fragile heart, made a meaningful face before she could reign in her features again.
"OI! I can draw!"
"I'm not doubting your drawing skills…"
Zeitwächter pouted and laid her head on the blonde's shoulder, before giving a dirty smirk as an idea struck: "Well, Kon-chama", she breathed against her jaw, "I could teach you a lot of different things instead~"
Now, the Fog was an asexual (except whatever Hyūga and Takao had going on) species – that didn't mean that they didn't understand certain innuendos, but it more often than not led to giving absolutely zero fucks (pun not intended).
So, Kongō really tried to keep it together, but in the end she stared at her and waited until Zeitwächter's lips twitched and she started cackling first.
Fastly catching herself, the Mental Model resurfaced from the ground she had sunk to as if nothing had ever happened, clearing her throat and taking up duty: "Let's begin with a random flower."
Kongō was almost impressed by how little the purple haired woman seemed to care about her own joke.
"You need to take care when making knots and bending the stems so that they don't break off."
She nodded, following along with the second ring.
Zeitwächter finished with the first few flowers and looked over at Kongō's, noticing that she was already halfway finished.
Oh well, she thought, not surprising.
It was really easy and Kongō was a fast learner anyway.