American Magical Girl [Working title]

[Contrabardus]

Edit:Formatting fixed

American Magical Girl. [Working title]


AN: This is a rough first draft. I've done no real editing.

I'm thinking of trying to get this published when it's finished. I do use several original characters I've created for my fanfic Gaijin. Some don't appear in what's done, but will later. There are also quite a few new characters involved. I've also reused some names for characters that are completely different from their counterparts.

Some of the scenes in this draft will probably end up merged or cut. It will likely end up being pretty similar to what's here as a final copy though.

Also, it's very long. This draft is unfinished and 66.5k words. It's several chapters, but not completed. It does reach the end of a story arc, so it's not too abrupt of an ending.

OooOOooOO


Rain fell from the mid-day sky onto a highway that had tall pine trees on either side of it. It was neither busy or empty as cars seemed to lazily float down the road through the rain. Their headlights blobs of yellow gold light as they moved under the gray sky.


Kira was eleven years old. She was a thin lanky girl with a frown on her face. Her shoulder length chestnut hair was tied into a ponytail with a band with two clear pink plastic orbs on it. A pair of old white tennis shoes was on her feet and she was dressed in comfortable clothes. Red shorts that went down to her knees and a pink T-shirt with a faded image of a fluffy white kitten on it. She was sitting in the back seat of the car frowning at the raindrops that were rolling down the glass in the window. The trunk was stuffed full of boxes and suitcases with bungee chords tying it down as they rolled down the road in a beat up ten year old Focus. It was a gray and dingy day, the air was cool but not cold as the beginnings of fall rolled in. The girl kicked her feet as she scowled irritably out the window as they turned into an exit and off the highway. “This is Florida?”The woman driving the car was not her mother, but her Aunt. Her name was Gia Mizura and she was the only one in the vehicle that looked pleased. She smiled into the rear view mirror and nodded once. “That's right!” She was a twenty nine year old Japanese American woman, but she looked more like she was in her mid twenties. Her hair was tied back in a much wider ponytail than her young niece's and she had long straight hair that rested on her shoulders from over her ears and bangs that were split in the middle. She had a very small mouth with pink lipstick and looked quite pleased with herself. The woman was dressed in a pair of cut-off jean shorts and a tied off T-shirt with open sandals on her feet. The weather was a bit cold for how she was dressed. “The weather isn't great here all the time!”


Next to Kira in the back seat was an old black cat. It was a short haired cat with a coat that shined violet and green when the light hit it the right way. In the gray it just looked black and dingy. One of its ears twitched as it rolled a bit to get more comfortable and continued to sleep. “I think Vy hates this too.”


“You'll get over it,” grumbled a rough voice. In the front seat was a fit looking boy of about fifteen. His name was Dante and he was Kira's older brother. He had a frown on his face just like her and was peering out the side window at the trees passing by. His voice had deepened over the past year. He was the only one in the car who wasn't Asian. Kira was Gia's sister's daughter. He was the son of her sister's husband from a previous marriage. His mother had died during birth and the man had remarried when he was two. The boy wasn't swollen with muscles, but he was fit and had a strong jaw. He had green eyes and brown hair, and was wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans and had a pair of black high top shoes on. “I did.”


Kira narrowed her eyes at him. “It doesn't look like it.”


“He's just a grouch,” commented Gia as she reached over and pinched his cheek.


The boy pulled his head away and raised his arm to break her grip. His cheek was a bit red and he rubbed at it and gave her a small glare for a moment.


“I thought this was supposed to be “the Sunshine State,” groused the young tween. She wasn't pleased with her situation and continued to look out the window as the trees were replaced with homes. “We're not even near the beach. It's the middle of nowhere. There's nothing here but swamp and bugs.”


Gia puffed her chest out. “You read that brochure I gave you! I'm glad to hear it!” She shook her finger at no one in particular. “The beach is only about two hours away on the gulf side. I'm sure we'll visit sometime next summer!”


On the dashboard the GPS piped up. “Turn-right-in-one-half-mile.”


The woman driving gasped and got a huge grin on her face. She closed her eyes and blushed looking more excited than she should as she put one of her hands on her cheek. “Squeeeeeeee! We're almost there! Florida! I live in Florida! Flo-ri-da! Yeah!” she cried excitedly. The two children in the car both grabbed the door handles to steady themselves as she turned a bit hard as she took the right turn


They pulled into a pretty large asphalt parking area. The area was largely residential still, but there were a few strip malls and gas stations along the road they were on as well. Dante was the first to get out. He was the tallest of the group at five foot ten inches. Gia was about five foot six and a buxom and attractive woman. Kira was about four foot five and was skinny with no curves to speak of. They grouped together in front of the car to look at the building they'd just driven all the way from South Carolina to find. Neither of the kids were born there, their father was in the Navy and they had both moved around a lot when they were younger. South Carolina is just where they had eventually settled.


In front of them was an empty looking but rather large building. It was two stories tall with large glass windows on the bottom floor. It was clean and neat, but definitely not new. The outside was made of gray stucco. There was an empty sign that had once had neon tubes in it, but whatever the building had once been was no longer obvious. There had already been work done on it before they arrived. The second floor was brick and had normal windows and looked more residential. It was an apartment and most of their things were already inside. Nothing had been unpacked, but the movers had come and gone before they had arrived.


“This sucks,” grumbled Kira as she crossed her arms and kicked a pebble on the asphalt.


“My own office! At last!” said Gia as she pumped her arm into the air and jumped up and down. She bunched up her fists and shook her head looking pleased. “Waaai!”


Dante looked up at it. “I guess it's not too bad. I was expecting worse.”


“Let's go in!” cried the woman as she grabbed their hands and dragged the pair to the doors. She unlocked it and stomped her feet with excitement before pushing them open and strolling inside. Her body bounced a bit as she did this and her nephew and niece looked annoyed at her cheer. There was a reception desk with various boxes piled up behind it and a door that led into a back area. The two kids looked around and watched as their aunt fluttered around the room taking it all in. She was obviously overjoyed with the place. “It's amazing! My own place!”


“Yeah, great. We don't need a check up, let's just go to where we're living,” grumbled Dante


“Maybe you do,” said their aunt as she whirled around and narrowed her eyes at him.


Kira jumped behind her brother and looked around his back at her. “Don't say that!”


“Stuff 's not even unpacked, she couldn't if she wanted to,” grumbled Dante as he rolled his eyes and put his hands behind his head.


“You'd be surprised what I can do!” snapped the woman as she jabbed her finger at him. She didn't look seriously angry at him.


“Anything but cook dinner and act responsibly,” he muttered as he turned his back on her and headed for the door with Kira in tow. “Living with her is like living with a college student.”


“She did just finish her residency,” said Kira as she looked up at him.


“Yeah, but she doesn't act like it,” replied her brother.


“I'm standing right here you know,” growled Gia as she bowed up a little and clenched her fists.


“How much do you want to bet the only thing in the cooler from the old fridge is a case of beer?” asked Dante as he grinned down at his sister.


“Not taking that bet,” said the girl as she shook her head.


“Jokes on you! There's a bag of pizza rolls in there too!” said the woman as she stomped after them looking annoyed.


“It's strange that you think that's any better,” commented Dante as he crossed his arms and frowned at her.


“I'm glad you're here, Aniki. I'd spend the rest of my childhood eating instant ramen and pizza,” said Kira as she grinned at her brother.


“Well, we're going to have to have takeout tonight, we'll have to do some shopping later,” said the boy as he looked around. The place was empty as it was, just an open floor with painted white walls and a gray carpet. There was a desk behind a bar like counter just in front of the door with a small waiting area in front of the open windows at the front. There was an overhang outside that prevented the sun from shining directly in during the heat of the day. There was a crew coming in the next day to add walls to the large open area to create small rooms for their aunt to work in. The office equipment and medical supplies would be delivered after the work was finished. He frowned at her. “And stop calling me Aniki. I'm not a gangster. If you insist on Japanese, it's Niisan.”


“We both know you're a brutish thug,” she stuck her tongue out at him. “You should call me Imotou-chan!”


“No,” grumbled the boy as he looked irritated with his sister. “We're in America, use English.”


“What do you care anyway, Aniki? It's not like you don't understand. Why does it bother you anyway? It's awesome to speak a second language! Girls think it's hot!”


He scowled at her. “Because I don't want people to think I'm some Weeaboo dork, that's why.” He scratched his head and looked up towards the ceiling away from her. “You're not cute.”


“What? I'm totally adorable, you dork!” she yelled as she put her fist into his stomach.


It only hurt him a little and he gave her a light shove on the back of her head. “Quit it, you brat.” It didn't do more than push her head a little and annoy her.


She growled at him and stomped her foot with her fists balled up. “Next time I'll aim lower!”


He narrowed his eyes at her and crossed his arms while leaning into her face.. “Don't even think about it.”


She glared at him with a vicious looking grin on her face and cocked her arm back as she touched her forehead against his. “Is that a dare?”


Gia frowned at her from across the room. “Hey. No hitting.” She narrowed her eyes at the girl. “He's bad enough as it is. Don't you start now.”


The girl put her nose up and turned away from them both with her arms crossed. “He can take it.”


The boy didn't seem to care much and rubbed at the spot she'd struck him for a moment. It didn't hurt, but there was a lingering feeling still. “Where do we sleep?” Their aunt was squatting down in front of an outlet without a cover on it. Wires were poking out with a pair of plugs hanging from them outside the wall.


“Tired already?” asked the woman with a surprised look on her face.


“No, but I don't want to wait until I am to set up the bed and stuff,” he grumbled. “Besides, we don't want to stand here and watch you inspect the walls.”


“I'm hungry!” said Kira with a grin on her face as she raised her hands into the air and let them fall and slap herself on the thighs.


Gia frowned at her. “You'll get fat. We just had lunch a few hours ago.”


“So what? I'm hungry anyway,” said the girl as she hopped up and down.


“She needs to gain some weight. She'll be bouncing off the walls the rest of tonight whether we feed her or not, so I doubt feeding her would do any harm. She'll burn the calories off by being eleven,” replied the boy with a shrug.


“Almost twelve!” snapped the girl angrily.


“Unless you're playing horseshoes, throwing a grenade, or launching a thermo-nuclear weapon, almost doesn't count,” he replied as he pulled down one of his eyelids and stuck his tongue out a little. It was something their father used to say to tease them sometimes.


The girl took a swing at his jaw but he arched his back a little and she missed. “Jerk!”


Gia sighed and stood up while brushing off her knees. “The door on the right leads to some stairs.” It was painted white, but had a deadbolt and looked to be a light metal door, probably made from aluminum. She nodded over to the left side of the room where a pair of cheap looking white painted wooden doors was. There was an imprint in the paint where a pair of small signs once hung. “That's the bathrooms.”


“We have to come down here to use the bathrooms?” said Kira. She didn't look pleased about that.


“Of course not,” said Gia. “We've got a shower and toilet upstairs.” She frowned at them both. “You'll probably be down here sometimes. You can't run around and play down here, but you should know where they are. I'll probably have you both helping out at the front desk and helping out with paperwork and such down here sometimes as part of your chores. Making copies and stuff, you can't handle medical records, but there's other paperwork I can let you deal with.”


“'Let us' she says,” grumbled Dante.


“I'll make sure you both stay healthy,” said Gia with a wild look in her eyes. “I promised to take care of you both after all. I have a responsibility to make sure you're both disease free.” She reached out towards them while wiggling her fingers.


“Can we go upstairs now?” grumbled Kira as she looked annoyed at her aunt and brother.


Gia walked over to the door and unlocked it. “There is a door on the side of the building that leads to some stairs that goes outside. You'll probably be using that door most of the time in the future. This one is for when you come down here to work. You really can't wander around the clinic on your own.”


“Yeah, nothing I want to do more than hang around a bunch of perverted guys and old ladies,” grumbled Dante as he rolled his eyes and walked past her and up the stairs.


“Well, I do plan on using my looks to attract patients,” said the woman with a sweet looking smile as she nodded at him.


“When I'm older and you're not pretty anymore, I'll be the cute receptionist!” said Kira cheerfully as she walked by her with a smug expression on her face.


Gia gripped the doorknob a little tighter and her eye twitched. “Y-you brat,” she grumbled as she followed her. “I'm going to be hot forever.”


At the top of the stairs the group looked around. “Whoa. This place is huge,” muttered Kira. “It's as big as our old house.”


“Not bad,” commented Dante with a grunt. It was a very large apartment. It was the same size as the soon to be clinic below them. “I figured there would be a couple of apartments up here.”


“There were. The upstairs is finished, but there's still a lot of work to do downstairs. It's going to be a bit noisy here during the day for a while.” replied Gia. “They've been working on this place for three months. Half the place below us was a consignment shop, the other half was unoccupied. They both had an apartment above them. I had them knock a few walls down and fix the place up so there would be plenty of room for all of us.” She turned and smiled at them. “The big bedroom is mine, and the other two are the same size. There's a bathroom between them, and I have my own in my room.” She leaned in towards Kira and spoke in a stage whisper. “So you don't have to worry about any funny noises from your brother's room at night. You two have to share the one between your rooms, so make sure you keep it clean for each other. Kira's room is the first door on the left side, and Dantes' is on the end.”


Dante frowned at her and muttered some inappropriate words for a boy his age at his aunt under his breath.


Kira smiled and nodded as she looked around. There was a bar counter top on the far side of the living room space with a kitchen behind it. It also had an island in the middle of the kitchen area with a large sink in it. The kitchen area had tile floors and the living room and hall area had stained wood floors. The living room area had a television hanging off the wall and a long couch with two recliners facing a coffee table just in front of the couch. The walls were stacked with boxes and a large window had two bookshelves with nothing on them on either side of it. There was a lamp in the area between one of the recliners and the couch and an end table in the same space between the other chair and the couch. She walked down the hall and peered into the bathroom. It was dark an everything looked bare and white. There was a tub, but neither she nor her brother ever took baths and both would just use it for showers. She passed by it and opened the door to her room.


Inside she found a stack of boxes her dresser, a desk, and her bed. The walls were painted pink and a brown carpet that was about a half inch thicker than the one down stairs covered the floor. The bedrooms weren't very large, but she had enough room to lay herself out comfortably on the floor with her arms and legs spread if she wanted. The girl peered around in the darkened room and flipped the switch on the wall. A fan with a halogen bulb came on spinning slowly. There was an air conditioning vent in the ceiling near the door and a window on the far side of the room.


She looked outside the window and leaned against the sill to find the rain had stopped and some rays of sunshine were poking through the clouds. It was still gray and not very bright. There wasn't much to see, a few trees across parking lot. Her window was facing the back end of the building. Beyond the trees was a street with a few shops in a strip mall. Nothing she'd be interested in, a gas station was on the end, with a Deli, a battery store, an insurance agency, and a place that sold eye glasses. Her brother would have the same view, just from a slightly different angle and she opened the window to lean out and look towards his. There was another window with frosted glass between them inside the bathroom. It was the only one with a curtain already on it in the home. “So, this is home,” she said to herself as she looked around while leaning out the window.


“Looks like it. Not so bad,” said Dante as his head poked out of his own window and looked towards her. He was smiling at her, but it was a fake smile. She could tell that he was trying to be cheerful for her sake.


“I miss them,” said Kira.


“Yeah,” said her brother as he looked off into the distance. “We'll be fine. We're lucky we have family that can take us in.”


The young girl nodded as a tear fell down her face. They were living with their aunt now, she was the only family young enough to take them in. They had stayed with their grandmother for a while she was finishing up school, she lived outside of Osaka in Japan, they had skipped a year of school because of what happened and were starting again that year. Kira knew she would have kept her, but her brother would have been sent away if she had been the one to take them in. She felt something warm rubbing at her legs and looked down. Violet was rubbing on her legs and looked up at her while purring. She was a short haired cat with a sleek looking coat and mewed at the girl. Kira squat down and rubbed at her head and neck while the cat pushed her head into her hand. The cat had come with them from their previous home, it had belonged to her mother for as long as she could remember. It often slept with her in her room by her head and she could remember many times being woken up by a soft headbutt and a loud purr in the middle of the night. Her sadness wasn't gone, but had faded as she pet the animal. “Thanks, Vy.” She smiled at her and stood up to lean out the window again. She looked over and froze. Her brother was hanging out off the side of the window while gripping the sill in his hands without a shirt on. “Wh-What are you doing you ape?!” cried the girl.
Dante looked over at her. “Huh?” He looked down. “Pull ups. Why?” He pulled himself up and down a few times while she glared at him. “It's nice that we have a sidewalk right in front of our place that goes around the block. I can get some running in without having to cross a street in the mornings.”


“What happened to using the door like you usually do!? You'll fall and break your legs you dope!” snapped the girl.


“I can't get full extension that way without lifting my legs up,” he said as he let his arms relax and hung from the side of the building. “Besides, it's not that far down. I can drop from here no problem.” He let go and landed on the grass and rolled into the impact on his back. “See. No problem!” There was a small bit of dirt and grass between the building and the curb.


He stood up and brushed off his back and the bottom of his sweatpants, they were wet because of his landing and had grass clippings stuck to them. “Bet I can get back up this way too!” He had a huge grin on his face as he stepped back and ran up to the wall. There was a metal gas meter between their windows and he kicked off of it and then pushed up the wall with his other foot and managed to catch the bottom of the window one handed. He almost slipped off because it was wet and chuckled to himself as he waved his free arm for a moment before grabbing the window with both hands and pulling himself up. “See! No problem!” He looked pleased with himself as he pulled up into the window and turned around to sit on the sill with his legs hanging off the side and his back under the bottom of the open window.


The girl was angry at him but kept her voice down a little as she scolded him. “You meat-head! Stuff like this is why your grades suck.”


He grinned at her and pulled own on the bottom of one of his eyelids. “You're just jealous I'm in such good shape. You brat.” He looked pleased with himself. “Besides, not having straight As doesn't mean I have bad grades. I do fine, the lowest grade on my last report card was a C. I don't need to be Valedictorian to graduate, you overachieving nerd.” He frowned at her. “Chill out. What's with you today? You're being more of a brat than usual.”


“I hate it here,” grumbled the girl.


He seemed patient with her and smiled a little. “We just got here.” He hung his head and sighed. “Relax would you? I know you're stressed out because we left Japan right when you were getting used to it. Gia is settling down here, we're not military brats anymore. Neither of us is going anywhere for a while. You'll be fine.”


Kira looked over and frowned at him. “Are you sure about that? We never stay anywhere long.”


“Yeah. We're here for good,” replied her brother with a sigh. “I'm not happy about our situation either.” He hung his head a little and gave a short laugh that didn't sound like he found anything funny. “For a lot of reasons.”
Dante blinked as he heard his aunt's voice coming from the window his sister was leaning out of, he got a sly looking grin as he heard her talking to Kira. It sounded like the woman poked her head into the door to speak with her. “Kira dear. I left you a box of tampons under the bathroom sink. Don't forget to use them or you'll mess up your panties and shorts. This is going to happen every month now, so you need to keep track. You'll get used to it, but you've got to be careful or it will catch you off guard. It's only been two months since your first time and it's important to be mindful about it so you can figure out when to expect it.”


The girl was looking over her shoulder with a horrified expression on her face. “Um. Yes, Obasan.” Her face flushed red as she said it.


Gia sounded cheerful. “Let me know if you need anything else, I've got some medicine you can take if you start feeling a bit too icky and sick.”


“Right,” grumbled the girl desperately hoping that her brother couldn't hear the other half of the conversation.


“Huh. That explains a lot about today,” commented Dante with a fake looking thoughtful look on his face. “Maybe you should get some of that medicine she mentioned?” It was obvious he was teasing her.


“Dry up and die, Meat-head!” cried the girl as she slammed her window closed.


Her brother grinned and sighed as he looked off into the distance again. After a moment he climbed back into the room and closed the window again. His back and rear were wet from the ground, so he wanted a change of clothes. He hadn't unpacked most of them, but had a fresh set in his suitcase still.


OooOOooOO


That night the apartment was dark and quiet. All the people inside were tired and work from the work of unpacking and setting up the home. There was a lot of work still to be done, but they had managed to empty about half of the boxes and set up most of the furniture. The only one awake was sitting on the window sill looking out into the night. The mass of covers in the bed next to the wall was curled up and facing the wall. They hadn't put up curtains or blinds yet, so the streetlights outside cast an orange-yellow light into the room. The animal was quiet and looked out into the streets at the buildings and road. On occasion a vehicle would pass by, but the neighborhood was quiet otherwise and no one was on the streets. The animal narrowed its irises as it lowered its ears and growled.


In the distance beyond the strip mall that could be seen from the window, a sickly green light could be seen. It was dull and faded quickly. The cat sat up and turned its head to look at the bed. With a small sigh it spoke up in a quiet feminine voice. “Oh no! It's too soon. She's too young. We're not ready yet.” She hopped down from the sill and cocked her head. “This is bad. I thought we had more time. We just got here.” She looked over at the mass of sheets and sighed. “I guess I have no choice. There's no other way. I didn't think it would ever come to this.”


Violet gave a small sigh as she hopped onto the foot of the bed. She looked around and towards the window a final time and hung her head. “Great. Just great.” The cat lifted her head and seemed to shake off her doubt. “I don't have time to fret about this!” She closed her eyes and a glowing symbol appeared on her head. It was a four pointed star with a circle in the middle. “Awaken. Bring fourth your power.” The sheets shifted a little and she sighed. “Okay, let's get this over with.” She hopped up on top of the lump and dug through the covers. They were there more to keep the light out than keep the sleeper warm. “Hey. Wake up.” She poked her paw at the exposed forehead.
“Uuuh,” grumbled the human irritably. A pair of green eyes that looked only partially awake glared at her. “Stupid cat.” There was red hair poking out around the sheets.
Violet's tail swished a little. “Hey. Wake up.”


There was an unpleasant grunt. “Stupid cat dream,” grumbled the girl under the sheets. She settled back into the covers again.


“Wake up will you?” said the cat as it poked her again. “This is important.”


“If you need your litter changed or some water, go bother...” grumbled the girl.


The cat sighed. “No. Just wake up will you? We've got to talk.” She pushed on the redhead's forehead with her paw and shook her head without using her claws.


“This better be a good dream,” muttered the girl as she sat up. She was leaning over the cat with the sheets hanging down her back over her head like a hood. She was curvy and attractive with a pair of breasts that was stretching her pajama top enough to strain the buttons a little.


“Just listen. We don't have much time.” The cat sat down and peered at her. “I've awakened your latent powers. You're the Brave Warrior or Light.”


The redhead frowned at her. “Huh?” She looked around at the room and scratched her head. “Wha?”


“Look, just get up. The enemy is near!” said the cat softly. Her tail was swishing about and she was clearly agitated. “Please hurry.”


“Huh? No way. I've got to help unpack tomorrow and a weird dream isn't going to help. Ignoring you,” grumbled the redhead as she flopped back face down on the bed and pulled all the sheets over her head leaving her back exposed.


The cat sighed. She hopped onto her back with her claws out. The redhead jumped up tossing the cat onto the floor reaching over her shoulder and around her belly to her back. “Yeouch! What the hell cat!?”


The animal glared up at her. “Good, you're up.”


The redhead was a little wide eyed. “Wait a minute.” He looked down at the animal. “That...hurt.”


The cat turned her head to look away from him. “I'm sorry, but we're pressed for time and you weren't cooperating.”


“You can't feel pain in a dream,” muttered the girl as she looked around. She was about five foot six and a little off balance. The redhead's eyes turned towards the dresser on the wall beside the closet in the room. There was a mirror on top of it attached on the back side of the top. She could see her reflection but not quite make out what was wrong with it in the darkness. “Wait a minute...”


“Now, calm down. I've got a lot to explain,” said the cat as she jumped up onto the dresser top and raised her voice a bit.


The girl reached over and fumbled her hand along the wall a bit and found the light switch. It came on and she found herself looking at the mirror with an expression that conveyed no emotion. “Huh?” Her jaw dropped a little.

“You're the Brave Warrior of Light,” said the cat as it tried to get her attention. “We don't have a lot of time so...”


The girl screamed and jumped back. It was loud, but short. She covered her mouth and backed into the wall. She looked like a Japanese girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old. Her hair was red and went down to the middle of her back, and her chest was larger than was normal for a girl that looked to be her age, she was at least a C cup. “I-I'm...” She reached down and put her hands up to her boobs and pushed on them a little. They were sensitive and it was a little uncomfortable. “Wha? These are...”


“Yes, that's pretty normal considering,” explained the cat. “It's all part of the transformation. Don't worry about it.”


“Why am I a girl!?” screamed the redhead. “You turn me back right now!” She jabbed her finger at the cat.


“Wait!” exclaimed the animal. “We've got something we need to do!”


“Why am I Asian?” cried the girl as she looked at her reflection by grabbing the edge of the dresser. “What the? Wha?”


“I've a feeling this is going to take more time than I'd have liked,” grumbled the cat as her ears flattened.


“Aniki, why are you making so much noise at this time of night? We've got a long day tomorrow so...” Kira opened his door and looked at the redhead standing in the room. She was wearing light blue pajamas and looked like she was having a panic attack. “Huh?”


Dante gasped and turned to face her. “I...um...”


“Now hold on. Everything is fine. Everyone settle down,” said the cat as she hung her head and looked a bit frustrated. The situation would get worse before it got better at that point.


“V-Vy?” said the girl as she looked at the cat. “You...talked?” She crossed her arms and frowned. “I'm dreaming then. This is weird.”


“Right! This is just a really weird dream, just go back to sleep,” said Dante as he took her by the shoulders and pushed her towards the door.


The eleven year old frowned at her and narrowed her eyes. “If I'm dreaming I'm already sleeping, so why do I have to do that?”


Her brother looked down at her with a surprised expression as he froze in the doorway in the act of pushing her out the door. “I...uh...”


“What is all this racket?!” growled Gia as she stood in the hallway in a robe. Her hand was on her hip and she froze in place as the light came on in the hallway. She had her hand on the switch as she stood there with wide eyes and cocked her head at the girl who was holding her niece by the shoulders in her nephew's doorway. “Y-yer kidding...”


“I...I...I can explain!” the redhead jumped back into the wall and put her hand out with her fingers spread in front of her defensively.


“Oh?” said the woman as she arched her eyebrow and crossed her arms. She had a smile on her face that didn't look pleasant.


Violet was sitting in the doorway looking weary of the situation. Dante pointed down at her. “It's all her fault!” She pointed at the cat and then realized what that sounded like after she said it.


Gia looked at the animal. “Seriously?”


The cat gave a heavy sigh and nodded. “Yes. I didn't have a choice.”


“What's going on?” asked Kira as she looked at her aunt.


“Him?” Gia cocked her head. “Really?”


Violet gave a small shrug. “She's too young. He was the only option.”


Dante's panicked expression faded a bit. “Huh?” He noticed his aunt wasn't as surprised or upset as she should have been.


“I'm confused and tired, somebody explain something,” grumble Kira with her shoulders slumped down and an irate expression on her face. “Is this a dream or not?”


“Bwahahahahahahahaa!” Gia fell onto the ground clutching her stomach. She stopped and looked up at the redhead's dumbstruck expression and fell into another fit of laughter.


“I have no idea what's going on right now,” said Dante with a bit of a slack jaw.


The cat looked up at him. “The world is in danger, and I had to turn you into a Magical Girl.”


Kira gasped. “What? No fair!”


Dante's jaw dropped. “Take it back! Take it back right now!” She stomped her foot and pointed her finger at the cat with her teeth gritted in anger.


“I can't. Once it's given, the power is permanent,” replied the cat. “It's yours forever, and there's nothing I can do about it.”


“Wait...I'm stuck as a girl...forever?” she went very pale and a horrified expression appeared on her face.


“Huh? No. You can become a man again,” said the cat with a small sigh. She looked a bit sorry about it. “It's not so bad.”


“How?” growled the boy as he got on his hands and knees and put his face up to the cat's nose with his brow heavily furrowed.


The cat looked away. “I don't have time to explain. You'll be able to turn back eventually.”


“What do you mean 'eventually'?” he didn't look to be getting any calmer.


“The powers don't work for a boy. You have to be a girl to use them,” the animal turned her nose up. “Relax would you?”


“I'm...gonna kill you!” he reached for her neck.


“If you do, you'll never be able to turn back,” she quipped as she hopped back. “It's not easily done.”


He glared at her with bloodshot eyes. “I...you...” His head hit the floor as he collapsed an gave up on trying to strangle the cat. “What do I have to do?”


“Fight evil I imagine,” said Gia through a few giggles.


“I hate you so much!” cried Kira as she glared at her brother. “You don't even like anime, and this happens to you? No fair! Not fair at all!”


“I don't like this either,” he replied with a scowl as he looked back at her.


“Ahem! We're pressed for time! There's an enemy here now! He's probably tearing up the town as we speak!” snapped the cat as her tail fluffed out.


“I'm not going anywhere until you explain how I become a boy again,” growled Dante.


“I can seal away the power once it's not needed anymore, but it's not something I can do all the time. You've got to stay this way until you defeat the enemy and save the world. Once the world is safe, I can change you back.” The cat looked at him and he seemed near to tears. “I'm sorry. If there was another way, I would have done that instead. It's incredibly taxing and difficult to change you back and I can't do it alone. It's a one time deal, so you'll have to wait until you don't need your powers anymore until I can do it.”


“It didn't take you long to do this to me!” snapped the redhead angrily.


The cat nodded. “I know. Unsealing the power is easy, sealing it up is hard. There isn't a simpler way to explain it.”


The redhead's face looked confused. “I had this power already?”


“Yes. The Hikari line has been blessed with the potential for eons,” said the animal.


“Wait. What? I'm not a Hikari,” said the boy.


“It's the other half of my family,” replied Gia with a shrug.


“You mean, Mom? I'm not her son though,” Dante was desperately looking for a loophole. “So it can't be me! Right?”


“It's not blood magic,” said the cat. “You became eligible when your dad married Akari. It's a family thing, but a direct blood tie doesn't matter. You don't even have to be a Hikari yourself. As long as one of your parents has the name, you're eligible.”


“Huh? But, I'm...” started the boy.


Gia sighed. “Sorry, but it's because your mother's name is Hikari. My Dad's name is Mizura, but my Mom's name is Hikari, like my sister's. Akari was supposed to be the heir in my generation, and Kira in yours. They agreed that the second child would have Dad's name. This is why you and your sister don't have the same last name, and why she didn't use your Dad's last name when she married him.”


“That's too complicated!” cried the redhead in frustration.


“It's a Japanese thing,” replied Gia with a shrug. “It's one of those weird 'old family with magic heritage' cultural things. The Mizura's are a samurai clan, but the Hikari's are traditionally priestesses and mystics. That's why there's a shrine on the mountain where Grandma Hikari's house is.”


Dante rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “It's weird even for Japan, and that's saying a lot. So, if this hadn't happened until I had kids, I'd have been off the hook?” He was desperately looking for a straw to grasp. “My kids don't have to deal with this crap then?”


“Well, actually your line will be eligible to provide the next heir now because you acquired the power,” said the cat as she looked frustrated. They were wasting time. The black cat seemed to understand his frustration and need for information though, so she put up with it. “If it didn't work like this, it would have spread across the world, and that would dilute the magic. Once you took it, others in the family became ineligible. Only one can possess this power in a generation. Your sister's children will also be eligible. There is a long chain similar to a royal family in case something happens to the most direct heirs. It's not that hard to understand, and mostly depends on who is the right age and in the right location when the time comes. Usually the heir will be near to where they need to be when the power is needed as fate tends to work in our favor due to how the magic works and all. You and your sister will both have girls as your first born at least. After that, every other child is a girl, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there will be a boy between the two either. The second child has the same chances to be a boy as a normal pregnancy.”


Dante looked at Gia. “What about her?” He looked over to where his aunt was leaning on the wall and listening to the conversation with her arms crossed and a smile on her face.


Violet looked at the woman. “She's too old.”

 

[Contrabardus]

Gia got an angry look on her face and almost uncrossed her arms. “Hey! Don't put it like that.”


The cat ignored her. “There's a short window in life when the power can be unsealed in a person. You have to be between thirteen and twenty. Once you have it, it is yours until death. However if that window is missed then we have to wait until another eligible member of the line is the right age. That's why I couldn't use your sister, she's too young. It had to be you, I had no other choice.”


Dante frowned at that. “If something happened to me?” He was still kneeling in front of the cat and trying to look intimidating.


The cat shrugged. “Assuming the world didn't end because you weren't around?” She sighed. “We really don't have time for this, but fine. If you died before having an heir, the power goes to the most eligible person in the next generation. It takes a generation for the power to recover from the death of a host.” She looked at Kira who was grinning evilly and rubbing her hands together. “So if something happened to you, your sister wouldn't be able to use the power, but her daughter would likely be the next eligible person. First born children are always girls, but you were brought into the family from a previous marriage and are the eldest child as a result. This is highly unusual. One reason it's not blood magic is so that the power can't be sealed away forever just by killing a family line. It also works this way to prevent jealous family members from assassinating the host to gain their powers.”


Kira's evil expression faltered after that and she looked a bit depressed before rushing at her brother. “You bastard!” cried Kira as she kicked the redhead in the side of the face and sent the redheaded girl's head into the wall. Dante managed to recover enough so that he didn't dent the plaster, but still bumped her skull a little and winced. “I was so close!” The younger girl fell to her knees and cried loudly. “Waaaaahhhh! I'll never get to be a magical girl because of my stupid brother! I hate you forever!”


Dante looked at her sister with wide eyes and became angry. The redhead jabbed her finger at the younger girl and yelled at her. “You were considering killing me, you brat?”


“Only a little,” she replied as she crossed her arms, turned her head away, and pursed her lips. “Don't be so sensitive.”


“You admit it?” he growled. “I'm gonna remember this.”


“Well, you did steal my chance at becoming a magical girl. I'm a bit mad about that.” She narrowed her eyes ant him and didn't look the least bit sorry.


“She'll get over it,” said Gia with a smile on her face.


“Now, now. It's not her fault,” said the cat with an amused tone.. “The enemy appeared too soon so I couldn't use you even if it wasn't him. It would have been your cousin if not him.”


“Hey, that's 'his fault' not 'her fault',” said Dante as he rubbed on his cheek and looked annoyed at the cat and girl. “Why not use my cousin then?” snapped Dante as he seemed to realize what had just been said after that.


“She's in Japan for starters,” replied the cat. “Plus, she's behind you in the proper order. Her Father is your mother's younger brother and named Mizura and your Mother was a Hikari. I told you, it's magic so it's complicated. The closest Hikari to her is Mizuki, your Grandmother, where as your mother is the closest Hikari to you. It doesn't matter that she's your stepmother. That's just how it works.”


“The stupid jerk doesn't even want it!” snapped the girl as she balled up her fists and leaned forward to yell at him.


Dante opened his mouth when a loud boom sounded in the distance. “Huh? What was?” There was an orange light and a cloud of smoke forming over the city in the distance. It was several blocks away, but lit up the horizon around it with an orange glow. “No way.”


Everyone was looking in the same direction and Kira gave a squeak. “Well, good luck with that!” she slapped the older girl on the small of her back and skittered away to hide behind her aunt's legs. “Maybe this isn't such a bad thing?”


“Coward,” grumbled Dante under his breath at the sight of it.


Violet looked up at the redhead. “I told you we didn't have much time. Hopefully no one has died yet. Look. We can talk about the details of this later. Right now, we've got to find and destroy the monster I sensed before it destroys the city. Can we go now?” grumbled the cat irritably.


Gia gave a sigh and hooked her finger over her chin as she closed her eyes and smiled. “I guess it can't be helped.”


Kira had tears in her eyes as she turned towards her brother from behind her aunt's legs. “Dry up and die!” she rushed into her room and slammed the door.


“I can't tell if she's upset or relieved,” grumbled Dante as he gave a sour glance towards her door.


“Both,” said Gia with a small sigh. She didn't look like she was taking things very seriously. “Women are strange creatures who can have multiple emotions going at once.”


Dante looked at her with a sour looking frown and a relaxed body with his shoulders slumping a little. “Let's get this over with.”


“Finally,” said the cat as she trotted out into the living room. “It didn't take this long to explain to any of the others. They all understood that it was urgent pretty quickly,” grumbled the animal with her tail swishing.


“Whatever,” replied Dante as he sulked after her. “How many of them had to deal with a surprise sex and race change?” The redhead opened the door and they both walked outside.


The cat hung her head a little as she walked by the new magical girl. “Point taken, but still...”


“Why am I suddenly Asian anyway?” she grumbled as she closed the door.


“I didn't pick your form, the magic did it on it's own. I have no idea,” replied the cat as the door the apartment closed behind them.


Kira was scowling at the door. “I'm going back to bed.”


Gia nodded. “I'll be up for a while. I'm going to make some tea and wait for them to get back.” She turned on the living room light and headed for the kitchen.


OooOOooOO


The cat sighed as she sat down on the sidewalk. They were about a block away and heading towards the sirens in the distance. The local fire department was heading towards the scene of the explosion. “Wait a moment.”


“I thought we were in a hurry,” muttered the girl irritably. She wasn't pleased and was still in her pajamas and looked a bit sleepy still. The top was too tight and wasn't helping her mood, the waist was loose but her rear kept them from falling off, but the legs were a bit too long and bunched up around her ankles because her legs were a little shorter. She was about as tall as her aunt now and had lost a few inches in height due to the transformation.


The cat nodded. “Yes, we are, but I need to explain some things about your powers.”


“Couldn't we have done it before we left?” he said as he hung his head.


“I can only explain this to you alone. It's complicated. It's not that I don't trust them, but there's rules and protocol,” the cat turned her head up. “You're much stronger and faster, tougher, and you can focus your energies to create magical energy. These are things you can do right now.”


“Energy? So, I can make fire or electricity or something?” she put her hands up in front of her face and looked at them with a small thoughtful frown.


“Well, a certain type,” said Violet with a nod. “You're the Brave Warrior of Light, so you can create light energy.”


Dante looked at her hands and a bright flash of light from his palm blinded him. “Gah! What the?” She rubbed at her eyes. “Wait a minute! I'm a walking flashlight? What good does that do me?” He did not look pleased. “What am I gonna do, blind the thing to death?”


“Don't do it in your face! You'll hurt your eyes, dummy.” The black cat hung her head. He was like a baby with a flashlight. “You can fight monsters with this power. It's not much good against humans, but it's a purifying light and can seriously hurt and even kill evil beings like monsters. It can even heal physical and spiritual injuries and free people from possession by evil spirits. Depending on the strength of the spirit you may have to weaken it a bit first, but it's very potent magic.”


“You turned me into a girl so I could be a glorified shrine maiden?” growled Dante as she clenched her fist and leaned down towards her a bit. “You little.”


“Essentially, but much more powerful,” said Violet as she cocked her head a little and nodded. “You're new to your powers so there's a lot you can't do, but you should be strong enough to fight.”


“Now, try again, but not right at your face this time,” said the cat as she rolled her eyes a little.


The redhead nodded and pointed her hand forward. He narrowed his eyes and concentrated on his hand. It didn't take much before a beam of light shone forward and illuminated a brick wall on the building next to them. He paused and looked at it with a frown. “It's pink.” The light definitely had a pink tint to it. “Why is it pink?”


“It's holy light for purification, so it's not normal light,” said the cat with a nod. She didn't look surprised.


“Can I pick another color?” he grumbled as he stopped the light and looked at his hand.


“No. It's got to do with the magical energies in it. At least I don't think so, no one has ever tried before. Most Brave Warriors don't care about what color it is. As far as I know there's nothing to be done about it, but I suppose you can play around with it later and see what you can do. Maybe you'll be able to alter it?” The cat seemed confused by his irritation with it. It was strong magic and a great advantage to her.


She was silent for a long moment. “I guess it doesn't matter. I'm a guy, but I don't mind much. I'd rather a different color, but I suppose there's no harm in it.”


The cat nodded. “There's one more thing. You need to transform.”


“Huh?” grumbled Dante. “I thought I was...”


“Yes, you've already been transformed. Your strength, agility, and stamina are all boosted because you possess this power even without it, but you need to transform to fight.” The cat looked up at her and seemed completely serious.


“I'm gonna end up in a mini-skirt aren't I?” growled the boy.


The cat looked surprised and turned her head away. “Wh-what does it matter?”


“I'll be fine like this,” said the boy as he started walking away.


“Wait! No!” the cat started after him and he stopped to look over his shoulder at her.


“I'm not wearing a skirt,” he snapped angrily as he spun around on his heels to face her again.


“Your defense isn't good enough. You're already tougher, but the transformation acts as armor and protects you even further. If you were shot with a gun as you are now, it would probably injure you. You wouldn't die and it would probably not get past your skin, but it would leave a nasty mark and possibly cause fractures to your bones. It might break the skin a little and cause a little bleeding, but wouldn't cause a serious injury. With the transformation, even a tank round would not do more than knock you off your feet. It's very powerful protection.” Violet seemed to relax as she realized he was listening. “That's not all either.”


Dante frowned at her and had a closed off posture and expression. “I'm listening.”


“It will protect your identity,” said the animal. “You won't look much different, but the transformation contains magic that prevents others from finding out who you are. It's not perfect. If someone sees you transform right in front of them or you say something stupid they'll figure it out. However it will keep people from learning about your transformation just because you happened to vanish from the crowd. They might notice you're gone, but the magic will prevent them from tying you to the Brave Warrior of Light because you vanish when she appears.” The animal noticed the expression on his face look thoughtful and realized she had him. “You can't go around acting like a super human and using your magic in the open you know. The enemy will find out who you are, and other people will eventually put things together after a while.”


The boy turned girl growled and clenched his fist. “Fine, tell me about how to do this.”


The cat relaxed and seemed relieved. “Raise your arm into the air and say Henshin.”


Dante looked at his fist with a scowl. “I know I'm gonna regret this.” He raised his arm into the air with his fist balled up and his feet spread apart. “Henshin.” He felt himself lift into the air a few inches off the ground and spin around as a light enveloped him. His arms spread wide as his clothes vanished at the same time as the new magical clothes seemed to grow on his body. He felt something spread across his forehead at the same time as a long pair of boots spread up his calves. It only took about three seconds to happen and the light died down. He stood with his feet spread apart and his back hunched over a little with his fist balled up in front of him and his other arm hanging loosely at his side. He looked down at himself and frowned. “I knew it. Crap.” She walked over to a nearby store window and looked at her reflection.


He was wearing an almost but not quite neon pink pleated miniskirt that barely covered up his rear. He had long pink boots that laced all the way up the front of them and went up to his knees with a wide and flat one inch heel. On his hands were a pair of long satin pink gloves that went up to his elbows. His blouse was a white Japanese school sailor uniform. It had puffy shoulder sleeves with a pink ring around the base of the sleeve just below her shoulder, a large pink collar that hung down his back like a short cape with three white stripes along the edges, and a thick pink silk ribbon tied around the collar in a bow with a jeweled brooch shaped like a four sided star with a circle in the middle that was made from a clear polished pinkish crystal. On her forehead was silver tiara with a similar symbol and jewel in the center that curved down in a point over the center of her forehead. There wa s also a pink see through visor that covered her eyes and about half of her forehead with a dip in the bottom to make room for her nose. He could see through it without any color distortion, and could actually see a little better than she should have been able to in the darkness. It looked like a cloudy day instead of the middle of the night. “It's...pink.” He glared at the cat. “Why is it pink? Why am I so pink?” Her hair had gone from a bright red to a pale pink color as she pulled her ponytail over her shoulder to inspect it before letting it go and letting it fall behind her back again. “Great.”


The animal growled at him. “I didn't design it. It's based on your powers.”


“People are gonna call me Sailor Breast Cancer,” growled the irritated teen as she let go of where her ponytail was tied. “This sucks.” She hung her head and looked to be a little depressed about it.


“What does it matter? You're part of a proud tradition. You have nothing to be ashamed of,” said the cat as she looked a bit miffed.


“A proud tradition for women,” grumbled the angry magical girl as she stood there and pouted.


“Just deal with it,” said the cat with a heavy sigh. “You're doing fine. Really. I understand your reservations, but I didn't have a choice. There's no one else who can do it, and it has to be done. Please just go with it. You look like a girl anyway, so it's not like anyone is going to think badly of you. You'll be a hero and all.”


“A criminal vigilante you mean,” said Dante as he hung his head and let his arms hang loosely in front of him.


“We're fighting monsters, not street crime,” said the cat. “It's different. You'll be fine. Let the police handle stuff like that,” said Violet. “If you get in trouble with criminals you should use your powers if you need to protect yourself or someone else, but you shouldn't go looking for trouble. That could risk our mission.”


“Yeah, yeah. Let's just get this over with so I can get rid of this outfit,” he looked down at his skirt. “Could this be any shorter?”


“It's got bloomers so relax,” said the cat as she looked up at the pink haired girl. “Oh, one more thing before we continue.”


Dante scowled down at her and was pouting angrily about his situation. “What?”


“Be careful. That uniform protects you, but magical attacks are dangerous. An attack infused with magical energy doesn't take nearly as much force to injure you, and magical energy can weaken and even break your defenses eventually. Normal people won't be able to hurt you, but anyone who can use magic is dangerous. The uniform still protects you, but it's not as effective against magic.” The cat looked very serious and had her tail raised in the air with the end crooked a little.


“Right, so how do we...” The visor lit up with information. A small arrow appeared with distance information indicating about a half a kilometer of distance from them. It was slowly moving to the right. “Never mind. I see. This thing will be useful then.”


The cat's image appeared in the corner of his vision in a small window. “That's right. We'll be able to communicate with this, and it will respond to verbal commands. We'll talk about that later though when we have more time.”


“Right. Why is it metric?” said Dante. “I hate the metric system.”


“Because that's how most of the world is,” was the cat's reply. “Honestly, I don't get why this country even uses that stupid system. The metric system is so much easier.”


“Can I change it?” grumbled Dante.


“No, you'll get used to it and learn a useful skill,” replied Violet. “This will build character. Try to enjoy it. You have super powers.”


“And boobs,” replied Dante with an irate snarl.


“See, you're starting to...” started the animal.


“That wasn't a positive!” snapped the.teenager


“Let's get moving. We can worry about the details later,” said the cat. “Just go, I can keep up with you, I'm faster and stronger than a normal cat.”


“Fine,” muttered Dante as she tensed her legs and pushed off the ground in a jump. She was not expecting it to take her fifteen feet into the air and twenty feet forward. She landed on a rooftop and slid on the gravel before landing hard on her rear. The girl grunted and was jarred, but not hurt. She sat there a moment and scowled. She bounced herself on her rear and frowned. “This sucks.”


The cat landed next to her and looked surprised. “What are you doing? Are you okay? You shouldn't be hurt.”


Dante turned to look at her and seemed near to tears. “I've got a great ass,” he said and sniffled. He bounced again. “It's way softer than my butt used to be, and I can tell it's really round and full. I bet it shakes when I walk. It's sexy, I just know it.” A few tears fell from his eyes. “I'm just getting used to guy stuff and this happens! Why? What did I do?”


The cat blinked. “That's good, right?”


“It would be if I was a teenage girl who was trying to get a date!” he said with a small sob. “I don't believe this! I shouldn't have to deal with this crap!”


The animal hung her head. “Look. I'm really sorry about this. We don't have time for this though. We've got to get moving.” She looked at her. “Just focus on the mission and don't worry about it right now. You can adjust later.”


“My sense of balance is off,” muttered Dante as he wiped his eyes and stood up. “I was a little surprised by how high I jumped, but it wasn't enough to really throw me off. I fell when I landed because I couldn't catch my balance like I should have.”


The cat nodded. “Yes. A girl's center of balance is in the hips rather than the shoulders, you'll just have to adjust and there's nothing I can do to help.”


“Sorry about this, I'm not having the best night,” he seemed to compose himself and balled up his fist. “This is all really strange.”


“I understand, and I'm doing the best I can to help you adjust, but we can't dally anymore. There is a dangerous creature on the streets, and we're the only ones who can take care of it.” Violet looked at him firmly. “Please understand, that this is a threat to the entire planet. I need you to fight.”


The girl got a dangerous looking grin on her face. “Good, I'm good at that. Maybe a fight will help me with this stress?”


Violet looked cautious at the sudden change in tone the girl had.


He looked down at her with a serious expression. “This thing. It's strong?”


“This one is probably relatively weak,” replied the animal. “That's a good thing because you don't have much experience. Don't take that to mean it's not dangerous though.”


The pink magical girl nodded once and jumped over a teen foot gap and up another floor to the next rooftop. She landed and leaned forward using her hands to keep her balance. “Good.”


Violet sighed. The boy had once been gentle and happy. However, after the death of his parents he had changed, he was angry and unfocused. Their time in Japan had been a violent one for the boy. The first few days they were there neighborhood kids had started picking on his sister for only being half Japanese. A few of the boys started bullying her physically and Dante caught them in the act and responded with his fists. He was constantly in trouble and most of his time there he had been covered in bruises and scrapes from his scuffles. He had always been active and enjoyed being outside, but had never really worked at being stronger. Once he realized he had to protect his sister he started working out and running every day and over time his injuries grew less and less frequent despite the number of fights increasing. He wasn't a martial artist at all, but a pure street brawler. He was fast, strong, and clever; a dangerous fighter for his age. Kids started calling him an Oni and avoided him. He never attacked anyone unprovoked, but was merciless with anyone who tried to bully his sister. He would fight older and stronger children without fear and was badly beaten because of it more than once, but he didn't give up because of it. The more they hurt him, the more it seemed to fuel his range and determination. Every time he lost he came back stronger and smarter, and if he lost again he'd just keep trying. Violet scowled as she looked at her back as she rushed towards the signal in her visor. He had gotten stronger and tougher to protect her, she had been hoping the move would provide a new start for him where he could forget about that. The animal gave a sigh. “I suppose this will work to our advantage now. He's careless though, that could become a problem.”


Dante paused and stopped jumping. “Hey, what's this other number?“


The cat was a little ahead of him. “That's an estimation of the monster's power level.”


“Oh, so this thing is like a scouter from that one show?” He seemed to think about it. “Dragon...something?


“I thought you didn't like anime? Your sister is always teasing you about it,” said the animal in confusion. “That's right though. It's just an estimate anyway, but it can help you gauge how tough your opponent might be. It can be unreliable, but your opponent is at least that strong. If it's wrong, then it's an underestimate because some enemies can hide their true power and give a false reading. The average monster can't usually though, so it's pretty reliable most of the time.”


“Huh? Just seems like a waste of time to me. Besides, I live with an eleven year old Japanese girl, it's kind of hard to avoid it completely. She's really into that magical girl crap, but she watches other stuff too. That's probably how you know about it..” She looked thoughtful. “I don't really hate it, I'd just rather do other things instead. Sometimes when it's raining or something I'll read a manga or something, but it's not my hobby or anything. I'm like that with television in general, but Kira teases me about anime because she like it. I watch movies and stuff, but I'm too busy to keep up with a television show all the time, so I just don't bother.” She crossed her arms and looked at the little arrow with the numbers beside it. It was only about a hundred meters away and wasn't moving. There was a junkyard nearby and it looked like it was inside. It was a tall fence that had little aluminum inserts between the links that prevented people from looking inside. There were stacks of cars that rose above the fence line though that made it look like there was a miniature city of scrap beyond the fence. “What's a normal person's level?”


The cat seemed thoughtful. “Fifty or sixty on average,” said the cat. “A really strong human can reach as much as a hundred, but that's very rare. It's not that unusual to find someone with a power level of seventy or eighty, but not many.”


The magical girl looked down at her. “Really? This thing says twelve hundred.”


Violet froze and looked up at her. “Huh? D-did you just say tw-twelve h-h-hundred?”


“Yeah,” replied Dante with a nod. “I wonder what my rating is?”


“Oh no!” muttered the cat as she slowly turned towards the junkyard. “Perhaps we should rethink our...Hey! Wait!” Dante was looking upwards and in front of them while ignoring her.


In the air above them a crushed looking car flew through the air flipping end over end. “Crap,” said Dante as he looked up and saw it heading right for him. He kicked off the roof and jumped sideways away from it. The long destroyed vehicle landed on the rooftop and impaled itself into the rooftop up to the passenger cab. “Well, that's not good.” She dusted off her skirt. “Guess I should go and say hello.”


“Wait!” called Luna as she ran after her. “Hold on a moment we...”


Dante either didn't hear her or ignored her as she hopped over the fence and into the junkyard.


“Crap,” growled the cat in frustration as she followed after her and landed on the top of the fence. “Monsters usually only have a power level of two to three hundred this early on. This is very bad.” The Brave Warriors' starting power was usually only about eight hundred, nine hundred at best. It would grow over time with practice and experience as the body adjusted to the energy, but early on Brave Warriors were vulnerable. “I've got to stop her before she engages!”


Dante frowned as Violet appeared in a small screen in the corner of her visor. “Huh? Kind of busy right now.”


“Stop! That monster is stronger than it should be! This is too dangerous. We need to fall back and...” said the animal in a panic.


“Shut down communications,” said Dante with a small frown. The small window the the cat's image vanished. “Huh. It's really strong then? Guess I'll have to be careful.” He looked up and grinned. He was in between two rows of stacked flattened cars. The ground was a light orange dirt that was spotted with weeds, a few plants could be seen between the wrecked cars. There was an area near the front with mostly intact cars, but the ones he was walking through were flattened and stripped down already. The lot was several acres of land and on the edge of the suburbs in a more rural area. They were waiting to be shipped and recycled for metal. In front of her was an open area and a twisted front half of a car rolled by in the dirt in front of the path she was standing in. She stepped out and scowled up at the thing.


It looked like a giant locust that was standing up on its hind legs at about fifteen feet tall. It was holding a demolished car in its top four legs claws and ripped it in two before tossing either end aside. Its antenna twitched as it seemed to be searching the vehicles for something and its jaws worked its mandibles with its maxilla, the two small appendages on the side of its jaws, wiping over its face. It ignored her and took another car off one of the stacks and ripped it in half. It tossed it aside after not finding what it wanted.


Dante cocked his head. “Wonder what it's looking for?” She cracked her neck by shifting it from side to side and stepped out into the middle of the dirt patch while rolling her shoulders to loosen them up. “Hey, ugly. You look pretty strong. This should be interesting.” She cracked her knuckles as she stood behind the monster and called out to it.


The thing's head turned back and looked at her. It shifted to face her and gave a loud clicking sound and landed on the ground in front of her on all six legs and opened its mouth in front of her face. There was a loud hissing sound as it spread it's wings over its back and started vibrating them, making itself look bigger in the process. A thick green slime dripped from its mouth that pooled on the ground in a disgusting puddle.


Dante scowled at it. “Okay. I guess I've pissed it off enough.” She rushed forward and swung her fist as hard as she could and planted it into the center of the monster's forehead.


The creature gave a screech as it was thrown back six feet and dragged it's claws in the dirt. Its rear end slammed into a stack of cars and sent it toppling back. Two cars fell forward instead of back and bounced off its armored thorax and it didn't seem bothered by the impact. The monster's rear shook from side to side violently creating a lower pitched buzzing noise as it easily shoved the two flattened cars away with its hind legs.


Dante put one of her legs back a little for more solid footing and glared at the thing. “Come on ugly, I'll take you on!” She opened her front most fist and waved it towards her.


The monster swiped its right front claw at her and sent her flying back into a pile of cars. The side dented but the stack remained upright. The pink clad girl slumped down on her rear after sliding down the side of the metal wall and groaned. “Ouch. That hurt.”


“Dummy! It's a magical beast! It can hurt you if you're not careful! Get away from that thing! It's too strong! We...” snapped the cat as her image appeared in the visor again.


“Communications off,” said Dante with a growl in her tone. She pushed off the ground and glared at the monster again. It was staying back and still creating the loud buzzing noise with its abdomen. “Heh.” She turned around and used her legs to push herself up the the wall of cars. “Let's see what I can do.” She managed to grab the roof of the top car about twelve feet over the ground and flipped herself on top of it. The thing watched her but stayed in place on the defensive. The stack of cars next to her was slightly taller and she gripped the end of the top most car wreck and frowned. Her fingers dug into the metal in the frame and she screamed in effort as she twisted her body and tossed it down at the monster. The thing moved back quickly and swiped one of its front claws at the broken vehicle sending it back at the bottom of the stack of cars she was standing on.
The teen grinned as she shifted her weight as the stack started toppling forward towards the beast. She balled up her fist and glared at the monster as it looked up at her as she came down with the stack and pushed off the broken car she was standing on as she fell towards it. “Eat this!” she screamed as she willed the energy into her hand and punched down at the monster's face as she landed. The thing screeched in rage and pain as a large gash was slashed into its face. A brownish green fluid dripped from the wound as a cloud of steam rose from the wound. The edges seemed burned and the fluid was thick and dripped down in large globs. The girl hopped back from the flailing limbs and ran her thumb across her nose. “You're not so tough.”


She shielded herself with her arms as the wings began to beat hard as the creature kicked up dust and sand all around them and rose into the sky. As it rose higher the dist began to dissipate and she glared up at it. “Where do you think you're going?!” she screamed at the sky as she ran towards one of the taller stacks of wrecked cars and launched herself up the side. She was able to keep pushing herself upwards on the side and reached out to catch the back leg of the monster as it flew away. “Get back here you coward!”


“What are you doing!” Are you crazy!?” snapped the cat as she appeared in her visor again.


“Don't make me hang up on you again,” growled Dante as she hung from the leg. The thing didn't seem to notice she was there until she said something and looked back at her. They were a hundred meters over the suburbs and there wasn't much light below them. The creature let out a short call and kicked its leg back tossing her off. “Oh no you don't!” yelled the girl as she fell and thrust her arm forward. A wide beam of light shone from her palm and she gritted her teeth as it became focused for an instant into a bright two inch wide laser-like pink beam. It hit the monster on the left side of the wings and burned right through the thin membrane. The girl and the giant bug fell together towards the street below.


Tsuki hit the ground first and ended up crouched with one of her fists keeping her upright in a large crater in the asphalt. “Ouch.” It stung her legs quite a bit landing that way.


“Are you all right? You should be careful,” said the animal from her visor.


“The ground is hard,” muttered the girl as she stood up and popped her back.


“Be careful, you're not invincible. You could fall from a lot higher than that and be fine, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt,” said the cat with an exasperated sigh. “I'm on my way, try to...”


“I'm gonna kick that thing's ass,” growled the pink haired girl angrily. It had managed to slow its fall with its remaining wing and had landed on its wounded side a short distance away. It was getting back on its feet and looked over at her. Its abdomen began to shake again sending the loud hissing noise loud enough to make her teeth rattle a little. “Heh. It's pissed.” It was loud enough to send a normal human to their knees, but her transformation kept her protected and she could tolerate it.


She opened her palm and built up power inside of her palm. “Come on ugly!” She thrust her palm forward and gritted her teeth. It was the same sort of beam she had used to take out its wing, but it impacted the exoskeleton of the monster and spread out harmlessly. “Crap. It's armored.”


“You got lucky and hit a weak point,” said the cat's image. “It's stronger than you think. You've done well but...”


“Shut up. I'm not running until I've finished what I've started,” she glared forward in a rage and yelled as she charged at the monster. It swiped its claw at her and she ducked and slid on the asphalt on her knees. Her power kept her legs from getting scraped up and she balled up her fist and punched upwards where the legs met under the thorax. The monster shifted sideways and her energy filled fist punched through its center right leg and severing it off. More of the brownish green fluid flowed out as it screeched in anger and turned towards her quickly. She took the front claw in the chest and was tossed into a nearby yard on the grass. She had shifted a little and avoided a direct blow.


“Crap.” There were sharp protrusions on its legs and she had a bleeding gash on her arm where she had blocked it. She looked at her palm and it began to glow soft pink. She put it over the wound and screamed in pain as she touched it. The wound felt like it was on fire and she gasped as she released her arm and fell to her knees. “That hurt,” she growled through gritted teeth with a bit of drool escaping her lips. She pushed herself up and staggered a little. Her arm still had a scar on it, but it was closed and scabbed over.


“That power accelerates healing. I'm surprised you knew about that,” said the animal. 'You'll heal faster than normal anyway, but that power can heal severe damage quickly. Be careful, it takes a lot of energy to use and you'll probably be vulnerable after you use it for a few moments. I don't recommend using it in combat if you can help it.”


“You mentioned I could heal wounds,” said the girl as she looked at the monster. It was being cautious and facing her at all times. The legs were twitching and anticipating another attack from her. “I just tried it and it worked. You should have said it would hurt.”


“I wasn't expecting you to use it this time so I didn't get into details,” grumbled the animal. “Look it's wounded and cornered, but so are you. We should regroup.”


“No. I'm not wounded,” said the girl with a wild look in her eyes.


“You didn't completely heal that wound, and you've lost a lot of power.” Violet was clearly concerned. She rushed over to the girl's side and looked up at her.


Dante smirked at her. “It's about time you caught up. I'm not leaving until this is finished,.” He tucked his right fist at his side and put his other hand forward with his fingers spread out. “I don't back down from a flight.”


“Wait!” snapped Violet as the girl rushed forward yelling. The monster slashed at her with its claws and he dodged aside. The thing's claws left a deep gash in the asphalt. People inside the homes had noticed the commotion outside their homes and the lights were coming on inside the bedrooms and living rooms of the homes around them. Curtains were shifting and he could see people on cell phones peering out from the safety of their homes. No one was coming outside and quite a few ducked back inside their homes to hide. Dante unleashed the energy he had been building up in his hand and a beam of light hit the monster in its side pushing it back as it tied to catch her as she rushed by.

She rolled away and ended up on a lawn and slid back on the grass with her palm holding her upright and her right leg stuck out to slow her slide.


The monster shook its head from side to side quickly as it set itself again and backed away a little. A car was parked next to it and it grabbed it with its three remaining front claws. Tsuki grinned as she prepared to dodge it when the monster threw it. She gasped as the creature held it up over its head. Rather than throwing the vehicle, it twisted it and ripped open the side. Fluid from inside the car flowed down into its waiting maw as it gulped greedily. “Huh?” Her mind went back to what she had seen that night. The fire in the distance along with the explosion, and the fact that she had found it in a junkyard full of junked cars. “It was looking for gas?”


The creature finished drinking and threw the car towards her in two pieces. She could see neither would hit her as soon as both halves left its claws. “Oh crap!” her eyes went wide. The creature didn't use the cars to try and hit her, but to keep her from dodging. Its mouth opened and a jet of flames shot forward forcing her into the air and over it. The creature tilted its head upwards to catch her and she cupped her hands before shoving them sideways. A laser like beam of light shot from her palms that was slightly larger than the ones she had previously used and she was pushed sideways and barely avoided a direct hit by the jet of flames. She shielded her face once she was out of the way as the searing heat hit her body and screamed in pain. It was blistering hot, but she wasn't damaged beyond having her skin turn a little pink for a moment. There was definitely magical energy in the flames.


“How? How did you do that?” said Violet in confusion.


“I noticed earlier that there's a little kickback when I use the magic in a beam that way,” said the teenager as she landed. “Tsch,” she sucked on her teeth and smirked. “That all you got ugly?” she called at the monster.
Violet gasped as she thought about that. “Probably from the magic discharge. Light wouldn't produce a kickback on its own, but because of the magic infusion in an attack it pushes back a little by creating force from the will to harm.” There's no way she would know that sort of magical principal though. She just figured it out from using it and noticing the force pushing against her.” The cat was impressed with her ally. “I knew he was clever in a fight, but this is more than I expected.”


Dante stood back and waited as the monster. She was standing sideways with her arm hanging loosely behind her with her other hand forward and motioning with her fingers for the beast to attack. “Well? What are you waiting for?”


The creature lifted up another car over its head and ripped into it to drink more gas. It gave a slow growling rumble as it kept its head turned to keep an eye on the girl. It had injured it and it was angry at her, but also cautious because of it.


“Bring it, I won't run from your attack this time!” she called to it.


“Are you crazy?” cried Violet in shock. “You'll be hurt and you won't be able to heal that much damage fast enough!”


Dante stared at the monster with a wild grin. “I'm not going to lose to a stupid bug.”


The monster threw the two halves of the cars again, this time one to the right side and the other over her head. It leaned forward with the motion and opened its mouth again to breath fire on the magical girl.


Dante thrust the had behind her back forward and a beam of light shot from her palm and into the monster's open mouth. “Game over,” she said calmly.


The monster gave a half screech and burst into flames. It roared in pain and thrashed about violently as the flames engulfed its body. The abdomen gave a loud pop as it burst and sent a spray of sizzling goo all over the street behind it. A few cars were parked by the curb and were covered in the boiling innards of the monster as its struggles slowed. The thing curled up and burned in the street while Dante looked on with a frown on his face. “Heh. It's smarter than I expected. It noticed I tend to dodge to the right and made sure to keep me on the ground.” She dusted off her skirt and turned to look at Violet. The cat was sitting on the grass with her tail swishing about. “Are we done here?”


“Well, I suppose so. We're going to have a talk about this though,” the cat didn't sound pleased with her. She was annoyed that the girl had ignored her and taken on the monster so recklessly.


Both of their attention turned to a slow clapping sound. There was a boy standing on top of an SUV with a grin on his face. He looked to be about seventeen and had an almost girlish looking beauty to his face. He had curly, well styled, brown hair and a clean shaven face. He was dressed in an open button up blue shirt with a red stripped T-shirt underneath it. He had black slacks with a belt and loafers on his feet. “Well, I'm impressed. I wasn't expecting just one of you to be able to handle that.”


Dante narrowed her eyes. “Who are you?”


People were starting to emerge from their homes and looking at the destruction with a bit of dumbstruck shock about them. Several were taking photos with their phones and posting messages on the internet. Dante called out loudly. “Get back in your houses, this isn't over yet!” They ignored her and seemed confused as there didn't appear to be any direct danger, but were still cautious enough to not approach.


The strange boy hopped down on the street with his grin still in place. “Oh, I think it is.” His eyes were focused on her and not friendly at all.


The pink haired girl stepped back defensively and put her fists up. “You want to start something pretty boy?”


“No, I already told you I'm here to finish something,” he replied as his unpleasant grin turned into a scowl for a moment. He had his hands clasped behind his back and looked uninterested in anything but her.


The people were still standing around outside and looked at her in confusion. A few were almost working up enough courage to approach her.


“No one can see me, but you,” replied the strange boy. “The name is Mark. I'm sure you know that already. I don't know you though.”


Dante narrowed his eyes at him. “If I gave you my name, you'd get it dirty.”

 

[Contrabardus]

The boy's grin faltered. “I suppose it doesn't matter.” He vanished and Dante gasped. She was bent over with a fist in her gut. “Crap.” She tried to swing and catch the new enemy but ended up with the back of a fist in her face and tossed across the pavement.


The people who were looking out at the destruction seemed to realize something was wrong as the girl flew back as if struck and ended up inside the dented hood of a car. Dante coughed and pushed off the hood. She landed on the ground and immediately collapsed to her knees. “Who is this guy? He's strong.”


The boy was walking towards her at a slow and lazy pace with a relaxed posture. “I'm surprised a girl your age doesn't know me. Heh.” He raised his palm and pointed it towards her.


“Look out!” cried Violet in alarm. She rushed up and jumped at the stranger and he swiped at the cat and slapped her out of the air with his palm. It seemed like a few wisps of shadow appeared as he struck her for a moment. She flew through the air and hit a metal mail box head first. The post it was attached to broke and a heavy dent was left in the metal box as she rolled head over heels on the grass of the yard beyond.


“Violet!” cried Dante as he looked over to where she had landed. She turned to glare at the stranger with a fierce anger in her eyes. “If anything happens to her, I'll be stuck like this forever!!” she though to herself. She charged the stranger and tried to punch him. He shifted sideways and put his knee into her gut.


“Pathetic,” he arched his back as she pushed off his belly and tried to spin a kick into his face. She followed up with a punch as she screamed in rage and ended up with his fist in her gut again. She leaned into his shoulder and gave a short laugh. “Got you.”


Mark's eyes went wide. “Huh?” Her hands were on his gut. The boy flew back and ended up back first on the pavement as his gut had a few wisps of smoke rising from it. He gritted his teeth as he opened his eyes and saw the angry girl come down from the air and land on his gut with her fist extended as another blast of magic exploded from her fist. He managed to put his own fist into her face, but still took the brunt of the magic. She was knocked up and back and ended up landing on her back on the pavement The pair sat up slowly about six feet apart from each other and glared at one another.


The strange boy coughed and staggered to his feet. “You're a smart fighter, but not very strong.” He grinned at her with a wild eyed expression. “Too bad I've got to kill you. You might have become interesting.”


“Just try it,” Dante had managed to get to her feet and staggered a little while holding his gut and leaning forward. He wiped a bit of blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.


“Very well,' replied the stranger. He became a blur of motion, but this time Dante was able to follow his movements. Unfortunately, they were too fast for her to react. She took a hard hooking left across her jaw and staggered back, only to bend forward with another strike to her belly and ended up on her back as a knee slammed into her jaw and prevented her from getting her hands on his gut again. Even if she could have she wouldn't have been able to concentrate enough to blast him again.


The boy stepped back three times and raised his palm again. The people who lived on the street were either back in their homes or hiding behind cover. They seemed to realize the strange girl who had killed the giant monster that was still burning in the street was fighting an invisible enemy. They all looked on in shock with their cell phones pointed towards the action as a black sphere of energy about two feet in diameter with a purple aura around it formed about

four feet over the ground. It was crackling with arcs of white energy across its surface.


“Damn!” growled Dante as she put her hand forward and started to build up energy to counter. She didn't think she could gather enough to fight it off, but she might be able to keep it from killing her. She had no idea what she was going to do after that, but she had no choice.


Mark chuckled as he pushed his palm forward and sent the energy ball towards her.


“That's enough, Mark!” shouted a new voice. Another boy seemed to flash into existence in front of the energy ball.


The evil boy snarled as he glared at him. His attack was gone, and a black cane with a silver dragon's head with ruby jewels for eyes was pointed at him. There was a neck below the head that curved the dragon's face so it faced forward on the cane and created a handle. “TJ, you bastard. You've got a lot of nerve showing up here, you traitor.”


The boy had short and neatly styled sandy blonde hair and looked to be about the same age as Mark. “You've got a lot of nerve calling me a traitor, you bastard. I'm not the one who turned his back on his own planet.” He had a pair of sunglasses on and a black blazer with a turtleneck of the same color under it. His right ring finger had a silver ring on it with another dragon head with emerald eyes on it. He had on tan slacks and very clean running shoes that looked like they were brand new.


“Who?” muttered Dante as she staggered to her feet. She wouldn't have been able to dodge the attack in time, but she wasn't so bad off she couldn't move anymore. She was clearly hurt with a large and swollen bruise on her cheek and blood coming out of the corner of her mouth. It was obvious her left eye would be black but it was currently red with a very bloodshot eye. Her had was holding her belly and it was starting to bruise.


“Sorry, no time to talk. I can't beat him, but I can keep him from using magic against us. We need to leave,” said the new stranger. “Name's T.J. It's a pleasure, but we can talk later.” He grabbed her hand with the same hand that was holding the cane and pulled her towards him. There was a bright flash of light that blinded everyone who looked directly at it for a moment and they were gone as soon as it cleared up.


Mark shielded his eyes and frowned as he looked around. “Damn.” The pair was gone. “Tsk. I suppose there's nothing I can do. The others won't be pleased to hear about this.” He looked over at the destroyed mailbox and gave a small sigh. TJ had been cradling the cat in his other arm when he blocked his attack and grabbed the girl.


OooOOooOO


Dante was holding her gut and bent over with tears in her eyes. “Did you have to grab me that way?” She was sitting on the curb of a convenience store near to the neighborhood where the mess had occurred.


TJ sighed and scratched his cheek with a sorry look on his face. “Sorry. I didn't want to dislocate your shoulder by using Flash Steps while holding your hand.” He had ended up grabbing her about the waist when he carried them away from the scene. He took off his sunglasses and hung them from his blazer's front pocket. His eyes were a light blue color. The lights were off inside the store and it was closed for the night, but her visor let her see him clearly even in the darkness.


“Flash Steps?” said Dante as she seemed to calm. Her gut hurt still, but the worst of the pain was fading a bit. She stood up. “Hold on a second.” She looked at her hands and they both started to glow with a pink hazy light. The worn out teen gritted her teeth to keep the scream in as she put her hands on her face and belly. The swelling and bruising didn't vanish, but went way down. When she stopped she ended up on her hands and knees gasping for breath and covered in sweat. She pushed herself onto her rear on the curb again with her hands behind her and looked at the sky. “Damn. I need a shower.”


“I suppose that would be nice after all this. I'll probably do the same when I get back to my place. I'm surprised you still have the energy to heal yourself that way.” TJ smirked at the scene. “Who are you? I've never seen you before.” He looked at her with a sideways glance while she was distracted with recovering from healing herself and arched his eyebrow. She was still a little banged up, but the magic had cleared up the worst of her beating leaving her in much better condition.


“Brave Warrior of Light,” said the girl. She looked over and saw Violet was curled up on the curb next to her. She was breathing and seemed all right. “I'm surprised you grabbed her.” She looked over at the cat.
TJ nodded. “I've been following that jerk around all night. I noticed you talking to her before he attacked you. I would have liked to have stepped in sooner, but I had to wait for an opening. I'm not really strong enough to take him so I had to wait for an opportunity to jump in and help you out.”


“That makes two of us,” growled the pink haired magical girl as she looked at her hands and seemed frustrated. “Got a lot of work to do I guess.” She was a bit annoyed at getting dragged off from a fight, but smart enough to realize it probably saved her life. It was frustrating, but she wasn't upset with him for getting her out of that.


The boy put his hands behind his head and laid across the dirty sidewalk in front of the store with his legs crossed looking up at the stars. “Never seen a talking cat before. I've seen a lot so it's not that weird to me I guess.” He cocked his head a little and looked thoughtful. “Never met a real life magical girl either.”


Dante coughed a little. “I didn't pick the outfit.” The guy seemed friendly enough so far. He pulled him out of a tough situation and seemed a bit weary from his efforts. “That flash step thing takes a lot out of you? What is it anyway?” He did look a little worn out still, but had taken a few moments to catch his breath once they had arrived where they were. She felt drained as well and doubted she could have kept fighting much longer, plus she'd drained herself even more patching herself up. It seemed her power had limits, and she'd come close to reaching them that night. The beating she had taken probably had something to do with it as well, but it was obvious she didn't have an infinite supply of magical energy.


The older teen nodded. “Yeah. It's a magic technique. I use a bit of power to move in a super fast burst of speed for a moment. I give myself a little push with a quick burst of power and time it with how I move my feet. I can do about fifteen one after the other before my magic gives out and has to recharge.” He looked at the ring on his finger.


“That's what lets you do it?” she noticed his attention on it.


“Pretty much. I stole from the bad guys a while back,” he said with a shrug. “It's how I escaped. I've got a few little toys up my sleeve.”


“Escaped?” said the girl in confusion. “Sounds like you've got a story.”


“I'm not telling it tonight. Though, I gotta admit that's a good line to get me talking,” he said with a smirk on his face.


“I guess I should say thanks. Who are you anyway?” she said as she scratched her head and seemed to realize she hadn't yet.


He paused for a moment and looked a little surprised. “Um, you don't know who I am?”


She looked confused. “Should I? I'm kind of new to this stuff.”


“I guess not,” he replied with a smile. “At any rate, that guy back there and I have history.” He sighed. “It's a long story. I'm sure we'll meet again.”


“All right.” Tsuki frowned and looked at her hand. “How did you stop that attack?”


“The cane cancels out magical attacks. It's actually a magic shield,” he said as he twirled it around his hand with a bit of skill.


“That's interesting,” she replied. “Those guys have magic items too?”


TJ sighed and sat up with his hands draped over his knees. “No. They don't need them anymore.”


Dante looked thoughtful. “I get the impression that guy isn't the one in charge.” She was clearly frustrated, but not with him.


“You're pretty smart,” said TJ. “You need to work on the name though.”


“I didn't pick it,” grumbled the girl irritably. “Still, I owe you so I won't get mad at you for teasing me. Normally I'd punch you.”


“Is that so?” he said with a smile. “Well, I doubt we'll be bothered again tonight.” He stood up and dusted off his pants legs.


“Why are you doing this?” she looked up at him. “It's a family thing with me, but I don't get the impression that it's something like that with you. You know that guy. Is it revenge?”


He looked up at the stars with his hands in his pockets. “I've got to stop them. We were friends once, but I can't let this stand. I didn't stop them when I had the chance, so I have to do all I can to stop it now.”


Dante nodded and stood up next to him and offered her hand. She'd figured out that they had some sort of past relationship from their short conversation when TJ had rescued her. He hated admitting that, but couldn't deny it either.


“Well, you know more about what's going on than I do. We should talk more later. I'm sure we'll be running into each other again. We've got the same problem even if we're doing it for different reasons.”


TJ cocked his eyebrow and took her hand. “I guess so. I'll see you around then.”


“Yeah,” agreed Tsuki as she watched him walk away. She sighed and looked down at the sleeping cat. There was a bump on her head, but she seemed all right otherwise. “All right, you furball, let's go home.” She looked thoughtful and a bit weary. “He seems like a nice guy. I'm gonna have to pay him back for that. Kind of annoying to owe someone this way.”


TJ looked over his shoulder as he watched the girl walk in the opposite direction he was moving. She was about ten yards away and he paused by the end of the parking lot to watch her walk away. “Damn. She's hot.” Her butt was amazing and shifted as she walked away with the cat in her arms. She had to be about seventeen or eighteen from the look of her. “Looking forward to talking again.” He smiled as he walked away with his hands on top of his head with his eyes towards the stars.


OooOOooOO


Dante staggered into the apartment. It was well after midnight and she was moving sluggishly and looked about to collapse. She staggered over to the recliner and set the cat down. Violet was still warm and breathing, but hadn't woken up during the trip home that she'd noticed. She flopped down and rolled over onto her bask in her sleep and Dante felt a little relief at the sight of it. It was the first time she'd moved on her own. She staggered over to the couch and fell face first into the cushions. The girl remained that way for a moment breathing into the gray fabric that covered the cushions. After a moment she tolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling in the darkness.


“You're home then,” said Gia from the kitchen. She was sitting in the dark at the counter with a half gone and long since cold cup of tea in her hands. The woman was still wearing a terry cloth robe and didn't seem upset. “I wasn't expecting you to be gone this long.”


“Yeah,” said the teen from the couch. She was too worn out to sit up and look at her. She was a little surprised that the woman was there, but too worn out to even jolt in surprise over it.


“You'll heal faster than normal. A good nights sleep and you'll be good as new, assuming it's not too serious,” the woman stood up and walked over to look down at her from the other side of the couch.


The girl's expression didn't give away any emotion. “Good to know. Still sucks now though.”


“Well, I'm sure you'll be fine. I'm surprised you look this tired, they're never very strong in the beginning.” Gia sat on the edge of the couch holding her mug and smirked down at her.


“How much do you know about all this?” asked the teenager. She was still wearing the pink outfit, but it was hard to make out with all the lights off.


“Not a lot. I heard stories when I was younger. There isn't a living person who has used that power this generation. My grandmother was the last.” She sipped on her cold tea and sighed as she looked up at the ceiling. “That was a long time ago, but she still had the power in her until she died. It was a few years before you were born. She used to show us a little when we were younger, make her hands glow and tell us stories about her and her friends when they protected the world from evil. I never met anyone but her though. I think she kept in contact, but they drift apart once the job is done. I think it's so they don't all get caught off guard in one place. Grandma was the last one left, but I think a few of them were still around when I was little.”


Dante put her arm across her eyes. “There are others?”


Gia looked down at her. “Of course. You'll meet them soon I'm sure. They gather together when they are needed. Fate brings you together on it's own.”


“Four more,” grumbled Dante. “I've seen enough of those stupid shows my sister watches to guess that many.”


Her aunt nodded. “Yes. The last time it happened was in Japan. It's probably what started all those girly shows you hate so much. It was before amime and manga were a thing in the late 40s. She was pretty strong back then and fought many battles with her friends. It's probably the real origin of the sailor school uniforms.” She sounded relaxed and was enjoying thinking about her Grandmother's stories. “The enemy tried to take advantage of the aftermath of the war and she fought many battles with them in the fifties. There was another event in the mid eighteen hundreds when she gained her powers as a teen. She left Japan during the war and ended up in Australia. You can't get involved in that sort of thing, it's against the rules. One of her friends stayed behind and lost her powers for a while because of it. They came back when they were needed again, but she was just a normal human for about ten years.”


The pink haired girl looked a bit confused. “Eighteen hundreds? Just how old was she?”


“The power extends your life a bit. Don't worry, you won't live forever or anything. Grandma was a little over two hundred when she died,” the woman seemed wistful. “She didn't become an old woman until she was about a hundred and fifty.” She stretched her arms. “I'm not sure about you because you want to seal the power away. Grandma's friend aged quite a bit while she was human during that decade she went without her powers. She didn't become an old woman or anything, but she did age normally and was the first of her group to die. She lost her powers though, and you just want to suppress yours to be a man again, so it might still keep you around for a while or it might not.”


The teenager was lying there with wide eyes. “Seriously? You're jerking my chain aren't you?”


“Grandma was born in eighteen sixteen,” said the woman. “She died just a few years before you were born. You figure it out.”


“I guess that's okay. I don't want to spend the next fifty years as a sixteen year old,” said Tsuki with a small frown.


“I'm not sure, but I think you'll age normally until you're in your twenties. Grandma had some really old photos from the eighteen sixties where she looked grown up. I think you'll age normally until you're an adult. I don't know for sure because that's a few decades after she became a Brave Warrior and no one ever mentioned anything about it. We could ask Violet about it tomorrow I guess.” The cat looked worn out and was being surprisingly quiet so she didn't want to bother her with it right then. She assumed the cat would have spoken up if she was up to it already and she seemed to be having trouble keeping her eyes open at all.


“Okay,” said the pink clad girl as she relaxed a little. “I guess that's no big deal. Being around for a while doesn't sound so bad I guess. It's not like I'll live forever or anything.”


“Well, don't tell your sister about that. She's mad enough at you as it is,” said the woman with a chuckle. She didn't want to tell him that he'd probably spend at least a few decades as a woman in the end. Even after the events passed and her powers were sealed away, they would probably need to be unsealed periodically to deal with another threat. He would then be able to reseal them for a while if he wished until they were needed again. Battles of that sort usually took at least a few years to resolve and monster attacks could be separated by weeks or even months at a time. Sometimes they occurred within a few days of each other, but that was pretty rare. There were protections in place that prevented an all out invasion and enemies had to break through several barriers to send even one monster into the realm. There were points that were weaker, and even then it usually took a while to create a hole long enough to send something through. The weak points were usually near areas with a high concentration of magic, the area of Florida they were in was one such place. Gia's mother knew more about it than she did, but she was pretty well versed about the basics because she used to really enjoy her Grandmother's stories when she was young. The woman suspected that her nephew would probably graduate high school as a red haired Asian girl. He didn't need to hear that though as he was having enough trouble adjusting. “Don't be in such a hurry. This is a unique opportunity for you. You should take advantage of the situation and learn all you can so you can be better at dealing with women when you're older. I think you'll be surprised about what you can learn from this.”


“I'm glad it wasn't Kira,” said Dante as she relaxed without taking her arm off her face. She deliberately avoided the fact that Gia's Grandmother spent several years dealing with magical girl problems and decided to change the subject rather than think too much about it.


“Oh?” said Gia with an amused tone.


“She wouldn't have come back alive,” replied Dante simply. The teen didn't seem upset and was pretty calm if a bit tired.


“I think you'd be surprised,” replied the woman as she caressed the teen's forehead.


“No. It almost killed me. Violet said this one was a lot stronger than it should have been. Something is different this time from the last time something like this happened.” Dante removed her arm and stared at the ceiling. “The monster was bad enough, but then this guy showed up and nearly killed me. I don't think he was human, not anymore.”


Gia looked a bit worried about that. According to her Grandmother the ones that looked the most human were usually the most powerful and dangerous. Dante's face was serious and she looked angry. “Are you sure?” muttered the woman.


The somber looking teen nodded. “If my sister had gone out tonight, she wouldn't have come back.” She closed her eyes and looked thoughtful. “My sister isn't used to fighting. That guy would have ripped her apart and I don't think she would have been able to hold him off and get away.” She avoided mentioning that she had been saved by someone else. Mostly because she suspected her aunt would tease her about knowing a cute guy. She wasn't attracted to him, but knew enough to know he was a pretty good looking guy that most girls would want to talk too. That was another reason she was glad her sister hadn't gone out that night. She had a weakness for pretty boys, and both the enemy and the guy she owed for helping her out qualified.


Her Aunt nodded and looked over at where Violet was now sleeping again. She had woken up a little briefly after they had started talking, but didn't stay awake more than a minute or two. “She's been surprisingly quiet.”


“She was knocked out in the fight. Let her sleep,” said Dante as her face calmed down some. “The jerk tossed her into a mailbox, but she doesn't seem hurt. Just a bump on her head.”

Gia gave a heavy sigh and nodded. The animal was awake and looking at them both. She seemed calm and relaxed. The cat was curled up on the chair cushion and not speaking at all. She glanced back at her nephew. “Well, you look tired, so get some sleep.”


“I need a shower,” grumbled the girl. “It hurts too much to stand up and get one though.”


The woman smiled at her. “It can wait until tomorrow. You'll wake your sister up running the water at this time of night. Just get some sleep and shower in the morning. You'll feel much better in the morning, trust me. Grandma's bones were brittle and she used to have breaks all the time and would be fine in a few days. A few bruises and bumps won't take more than a night to heal up.”


“Yeah, that healing magic sucks. Feels like I'm on fire to use it,” said Dante as she pushed herself up and hung her head over her knees.


Gia arched her eyebrow. “You figured out how to do that already? I'm impressed. Grandma used to use it when we got cuts and scrapes. It was almost worse than getting hurt in the first place. We all used to hide it from her if we got hurt when we were little.” She smirked. “She used it on my brother once when he broke his leg when he was six and he'd hide whenever she visited for a whole year.” She leaned over the couch and pushed on the back of her head. “Get some sleep. You look like you need it.” She glanced over at the cat and smiled at her as well. “We'll talk about this tomorrow.” The animal gave a yawn and twisted so her chin was facing up.


Dante staggered back to the bedroom and closed the door behind her. She was hungry as well as tired, but tired won easily. She was out almost as soon as her head hit the pillow and ended up sleeping in her transformation.


OooOOooOO


It was eleven in the morning when Tsuki woke up. She sat up in bed and stretched her arms. Her hair was a mess and she looked dreary and yawned. There were dark bags under her eyes and she frowned at the rays of sunshine coming into the room from her window. “Ugh. I feel like crap.” She noticed the change in her voice and sighed as she stood up. The clothes were wrinkled and dirty as she stood up and walked over to the mirror to frown at herself. Her face looked better and she didn't have any signs of the beating she took. Her stomach didn't feel like she'd been hit by a car, and even the rips in the uniform were gone. There were still a few bloodstains and smudges of dirt. She peered at her face and sighed. “Not a dream. Great.”


The girl stretched her arms and looked down at the pink outfit. “This sucks. How do I get out of this thing?” There were no buttons and it was pretty tight fitting. It was easy to move in and didn't hinder her, but also didn't stretch so she could remove it. She turned and looked at her back and scowled. There was nothing there either. “I guess I should try how I got into them.” She raised her fist into the air and looked pretty unenthusiastic about it as she said “Henshin”. The girl was more than a little relieved as she felt herself lift off the ground and spin in the air a few inches from the floor. Her back was slouched and her arms hung lazily as she felt her uniform vanish and her clothes return. “Great. Still a girl,” she scowled at her reflection. Her top was still too tight and her bottoms too loose. “Shower,” she muttered to herself.


The redhead emerged from her room and almost jumped back. Kira was leaning against the wall with her bottom lip stuck out, her arms crossed, and her eyes narrowed. The girl was wearing a T-shirt and shorts with sandals as she gave her brother the evil eye. “Jerk.”


Dante scowled at her. “Get over it. I had to fight a giant bug and nearly died. You'd have hated it and would be dead now.”


The girl's eyes went wide. “A giant bug? You're lying! You just said that so I'd forgive you!” She stepped off the wall and shook her fist at him.


“Do I look like I care enough to lie?” grumbled the redhead. “It was a giant locust that drank gasoline and breathed fire. It sucked.”


“S-seriously?” grumbled the younger girl as she looked like she still quite didn't believe it, but also like she didn't like the idea one bit.


“Yeah. You'd have freaked out. You can't even handle it when that cicada was flying about your room in Japan,” said the redhead. “Can this wait? I need a shower and I'm not in a good mood because of all this.”


“Hurry up! I've got breakfast for us!” said Gia from the kitchen. She had apparently heard the pair arguing.


“Wait, what?” muttered Dante as she looked towards the end of the hall.


“She bought a box of toaster pastries. Don't get too excited,” replied Kira as she rolled her eyes.


“I wasn't excited, I was worried. You know what it's like when she tries to cook,” said the older girl with a slightly relieved look on her face.


“You're not putting me on though, it was a bug?” Her cheeks flushed and she avoided looking directly at her brother with her index fingers touching tips together.


“A fifteen foot bug,” said the red haired girl with a nod. “Look. I'm not happy about being stuck like this, but I'm glad it wasn't you. It's more dangerous than you think and it's not some cartoon show. You would have died, and I'm not just saying that to make you feel better.”


The girl looked up at him with a shocked expression. “Hey! I can...”


Dante cut her off and put her hand over her mouth. “I'm not joking or making fun of you.” She didn't look like she was.


“Jerk!” snapped the girl as she rushed out into the living room looking more flustered than angry.


“Brat doesn't know how lucky she got with this getting dumped on my head,” grumbled the older girl as she turned towards the bathroom and walked inside.


The sink and counter went from the wall next to the door to the toilet. It was a long bathroom with about an eight foot counter top with two sinks. The toilet took about three feet between the shower and the edge of the tub. The wall over the counter was one long mirror with a halogen light over the top. She closed the door and took a towel from the small closet just behind the door, the floor widened just past the closet up to the wall where Dante's bedroom was. The room was about six feet wide at its widest point, and a little more than three at its narrowest. Kira's room was beyond he wall behind the counter.. She had to close the bathroom door to open the closet. It was a sliding shutter style door and they had stocked it while unpacking. There was soap and shampoo in the window sill on the wall that was inside the shower, the glass was frosted so no one could see inside. The shower curtain was open and clear with tropical fish printed over it.


The girl looked at her reflection. She'd never had long hair before and it now went down to the middle of her back. She struggled a bit with the buttons on her pajama top and paused as she finished undoing the top two. “I've never seen...” He'd seen pictures of naked women before on the internet. It wasn't something he really looked for much, but it was hard to have not seen at least a few videos and pictures at his age. She looked down at her top and swallowed hard. “I don't know if I can do this.” He was wide eyed and worked his jaw from side to side. After a moment she shook her head. “What am I thinking? It's me. This is my body. It's not a big deal because they're...mine.” She didn't like the idea of thinking about it that way about having boobs. The redhead unbuttoned the rest of the top and rushed a bit to just get it over with. She stood holding it closed and shut her eyes as she removed the top. Slowly he opened his eyes and his jaw dropped. “These are...amazing. This sucks!” She hung her head to look down at them. They were full, round, and quite perky. “I'm totally hot! Why do I have to be hot?” She kicked off the pants and boxers and looked at herself. Her teeth were gritted in frustration as she looked at her profile. She had a tight and fit looking waist and a perfectly round behind. “What am I gonna do? I can't look this good! Guys are gonna be all over me! I don't want that!” She was panicking a little at the thought of it. Even her face looked good, she had high cheekbones and a sharp chin with classically beautiful Japanese features. Her nose was short and a little flat, but not too much and her mouth was smaller than it had been before. Her teeth were a little crooked with her eye teeth protruding a little. She had bad breath and her teeth felt a bit like they had a little film on it.
She and glared at the mirror with beautiful green eyes. “Guess I'll just have to be a huge bitch. That'll probably help.” She growled a little in frustration at her own looks. “Great. What am I supposed to do about this?” The redhead lifted her sonic toothbrush off the charging station and put a bit of toothpaste on it. She brushed her teeth and mulled over the problem. “Crap. If I have to be a girl I'd rather be average than hot. Standing out isn't good in my position.” She was an Asian girl with naturally dark red hair with just a bit of curl to it, there was no way she wasn't going to stand out. Dante spit into the sink and grabbed a bit of floss and started working at her teeth. Her lips were pretty thin and she found herself looking in her own eyes as she cleaned between them. She was inspecting her face and her skin was pretty clean looking. She wasn't oily and had cleaning pads that she was considering ignoring keeping up her skin. “I don't want to be all broken out when I turn back.” She mulled over it as she finished and used a water pick to finish up cleaning her teeth. She licked across them and found them white and clean. With a final sigh she turned away from the mirror and looked at the shower.


It took a few moments and some adjustment to find the right temperature. The shower head was one of those massage shower heads that hooked onto the top with a hose that allowed it to be removed and get to various places on her body. She stood in the shower and let the warm water flow over her body and turned to get completely wet. It felt a little weird on her breasts compared to what it felt like as a boy, but it wasn't too jarring. They were soft and it felt weird when they moved, but it wasn't so strange she couldn't deal with it. She washed over her body with soap and a rag and managed to get through rubbing herself down. Her nipples were standing out more and were larger, but overall it wasn't a big deal. She started on her hair and it took quite a bit more shampoo to lather it up completely. Once she finished washing it she rinsed it off and applied conditioner. Taking a shower wasn't really that much different than it was as a boy overall so she found herself relaxing quite a bit more and settling down as the hot water relieved her stress. She tried to look as good as she could as a boy and didn't want to get grungy and gross even if she was a girl. She grabbed the shower head off the hook to rinse the soap off of her body completely and moved it down her body to get the excess under her armpits and between her legs. She turned it towards her crotch and it didn't feel that different, she angled it a little and froze in place. Her eyes went wide and she screamed in shock as she dropped the shower head quickly and jumped to the other side of the tub with her hand on her chest and a completely red face from a heavy blush. “What the hell was that?”


After a moment of catching her breath and relaxing a bit more the door to the bathroom opened. “Are you all right?” said Gia as she poked her head into the bathroom. She didn't sound very worried about her and seemed more curious than anything.


“I'm fine,” said the girl in the shower. “I just stubbed my toe.”


The woman sounded amused. “All right. Be careful and tell me if you need anything.” She closed the door and left her nephew alone. She knew that was just an excuse because he never screamed like that because of a little pain, but didn't press the matter.


Dante shut off the water and opened the curtain. “Crap. It's a wonder they ever leave the shower.” He was embarrassed and flustered by what had happened. It hadn't felt weird until he hit a certain spot, and when it hit him it hit him hard. “Gotta be careful about that in the future.” It didn't feel bad, but he didn't want to get to liking it too much. She grabbed a towel and started drying herself off. It took a bit longer than it usually did, but mostly because of his hair. It was a bit of a chore to brush it down once she got out. There were tangles in it and she ended up using the hair dryer. She usually didn't bother with drying her hair beyond toweling it off because it was short enough that it didn't need it. The brush pulled at his scalp more than he was used to as he brushed it, but it wasn't a bad feeling until he hit a tangle. “This sucks.” It was the longest he'd ever taken having a shower in his life. Once she finished brushing and drying her hair she took the cap off of her deodorant and sprayed a couple of quick bursts into her armpits. “Less is more,” he said. It was advice his mother had given him when he had started using it as a young teen and had overdone it a bit.


She walked over and tossed the towel into the hamper and pulled her bathrobe off the wall from the hook inside the linen closet. His sister had one there as well and she tied it around her waist. It was a bit longer than it used to be. Dante wasn't a small teenage boy, but he wasn't burly. He was toned and fit, but not bulky and on the slim side. As an Asian girl she was shorter and thinner everywhere but her chest and rear. The robe barely fit without dragging on the floor and she waked out of the bathroom and frowned as her aunt was leaning against the wall outside with a smirk on her face. “What?”


“Once you get dressed, we need to talk,” said the woman with a cheerful expression. She waved at him with two fingers extended and cocked her head.


Dante scowled at her and nodded. The teen wasn't sure why, but she had a bad feeling about it. She walked into her room and noticed Violet curled up on the end of the bed. “Nothing to say?” he asked her. She shook her head as she woke up to shake off the sleep and looked at him and gave a soft mew. “Whatever.” She turned to her clothes and frowned. Most of them were still in boxes and she dug through them to find something. She came up with a Pantera T-Shirt that was a bit too large for him before, and a pair of jeans. She put on boxers and dressed herself. The T-shirt fit pretty well, and the jeans were loose. She used an old leather belt and had to use a pocket knife to bore a new hole into the belt so that the jeans would fit properly. Her socks were loose and her shoes didn't fit anymore. The jeans were bunched up around her feet so it was hard to tell anyway.“Crap.” She was frustrated as most of her other T-shits would be tight in the chest and her shoes didn't fit. That meant the only thing she had that she could make fit were pants and a few over sized T-shirts, and she'd need to use a belt for that. She looked in the mirror and scowled. “I look like a kid from the nineties,” she grumbled to herself.


Dante walked out and frowned as she saw her sister sitting at the table looking grumpy. “What's with you?”


“I'm hungry,” grumbled the girl as she glared at him.


“I thought Gia bought some toaster pastries or something,” said the redhead in surprise.


“She burned them,” grumbled the girl as she belted her forehead on the tabletop. “The whole stupid box.”


The redhead sighed and hung her head. “And of course, that's all we have to eat right now too.”


“You got it,” grumbled the younger girl.


“They're just a little blackened,” said Gia as she leaned over the kitchen counter. There was a toaster oven on the counter and they didn't have a regular toaster with slots for bread. Gia used it to heat up frozen pizza and snacks while she was in school and usually overcooked whatever it was at least a little. She was easily distracted in the kitchen and would get tired of watching food cook quickly. There was a table set up on the other side of it where they would usually eat meals. There were four bar stools along the counter next to the counter. The woman was eating a very dark looking pastry and it was crunching louder than it should.


“Unless that's a chocolate pastry, you've burned it,” replied Dante as she leaned onto the counter and looked at the crumb filled plate under where she was eating. “You should have waited on me to finish my shower. It didn't take that long.”


The woman dropped it and it broke in half on the plate sending crumbs bouncing across the counter top. “Fine. You're right. I was hungry though.” She sighed and looked more lazy than sorry. She put her head on her arm and was draped across the counter top.


Kira lifted her head off the counter and glared at her. “Well now we're even hungrier and have nothing to eat.”


“We'll get something while we're out,” said the woman with a heavy sigh.


“You're going out?” said Dante in confusion.


“I said 'we'. You're coming too,” said the woman as she pouted at her nephew.


“I'm not going out looking like this,” said the redhead as she stepped back.


“You can't stay in the house all the time,” said the woman as she gave a heavy sigh. “It'll be fine. No one will notice anything is different because we don't know anyone here.”


Dante looked thoughtful and then hung her head as she gave up. “You're right. Still, I'm not staying like this forever.”


“Plus, you've got school,” said the woman as she ignore the teen.


“I'm not going to school like this! I can just go next year when all this is over with!” cried the redhead in alarm.


“You're not skipping school,” said Gia as she leaned towards her and narrowed her eyes at her. She poked her in the chest.


“They're going to notice when I show up an Asian girl and my records say I'm a white guy,” snapped Dante angrily. “I'm not going like this!”


Gia gave a heavy sigh. “I took care of all this last night. I made a few calls to some relatives and they're already working on up your records. You'll be fine, and we can change them back when this blows over. No one will notice and they'll think this you transferred out when boy you transfers in.”


“Huh? How?” muttered the dumbstruck magical girl in confusion.


“We've got family connections who took care of it. Don't worry.” Gia yawned and stretched her arms. “I only woke up just before you did and took care of it last night.”


“Family connections?” said Dante. “Who can get into my records and...”

 

[Contrabardus]

“Yes,” said the woman with a nod. “Uncle Daisuke has friends who can do that sort of thing.”


“You mean Uncle Daisuke is a gangster,” grumbled Kira as she gave the woman a distrusting look. She had her head on the table and her arms stretched out on top of it.


“It's polite to pretend we don't notice,” said Gia. “It's useful sometimes and he's not really a bad guy. The bosses of those types like to keep their noses in the occult and it can be useful to a clan like ours. Changing records like this is no big deal and it'll be totally legit when they're done, and easy to change back when we need to.”


“I'm pretty sure that's a felony,” grumbled the boy.


“It's only cheating if you get caught,” said Gia with a smile. “You'll be fine. All we really did was set you up with a fake identity as a girl from Japan. The boy you is staying in Japan with your Uncle and going to school there. When you transfer back, you'll have the same grades and everything you earn while you're here. The fact that you spent that year in Japan just made things easier. Daisuke knows what he's doing, the identity is as good as a real one. It was pretty expensive, but the family took care of everything.”


“When you say things like that, it makes me worry about the fact that you're a doctor,” said the redhead as she glared at her aunt.


The woman scowled at her. “I earned that fair and square and didn't cheat to get it. This is different.” She flicked her in the forehead. “At any rate, your name is Tsuki Hikari now. You should get used to it, so we're going to call you that around the house.” She put her hand on her hip and put her finger over the teen's lips to prevent any protest. “You can't go around telling people your name is Dante. You're a Japanese girl right now, whether you like it or not.”


“I'm from Japan?” asked the teen.


“Yeah. It was the easiest way to deal with it, plus it will help you out socially since you don't know how to be a girl. People will think that the stuff you don't know is because of cultural differences. Don't worry, you won't get deported. You were adopted by me last year and I've been a US citizen for fifteen years now and have legal custody. You've got citizenship automatically because I adopted you and I am legally your parent. Once this magical girl thing blows over we can say you went back to live in Japan with family there without any trouble since you're also a citizen of Japan as a girl.”


Dante balled up her fist and hung her head with a small growl, but nodded. “Fine.”


“You're my niece and Kira's cousin. That will make it easier when you show back up as a boy later. We'll just say you were going to school in Japan and came back when the time comes. Tsuki can go back home and that will clear up any questions.” Gia smirked and shook her new niece's shoulder. “I know you don't like it, but it will make things easier on all of us and leave less to explain.”


Kira had cheered up quite suddenly. “I'll call you Aneki from now on!” She pumped her arm in the air and seemed quite pleased with herself. It meant the same thing as Aniki but was a female version of it. It meant older sister, but is basically how a female delinquent was referred to by other gang members.


“I hate you so much right now,” grumbled Tsuki as she tensed up and stuck her bottom lip out a little at her sister.


The girl stuck her tongue out at her brother: “Biiiiiiii.”.


The red haired teen gave a heavy sigh.“Fine, Tsuki it is then.” She pouted about it but didn't argue. She was in a sour mood over it and sat down in one of the chairs and hung her head looking frustrated.


“You'll be fine, it's not that bad and you'll get used to it.” Gia shook her shoulder. “It's weird for us too. This is the first time this has ever happened as far as I know.”


“Whatever,” Tsuki stood up and turned away from the table towards the door. “Can we go now? I'm getting hungry myself. We're going out to pick up some food right?”


“We'll pickup a snack at the convenience store on the way out to tide us over. Then we're going to get you some new clothes before we stop and eat lunch,” said the woman with a cheerful smile.


Tsuki froze in mid stride and hunched her back a little. She looked over her shoulder with a surprised expression. “Huh?”


“We can't have you running around in boys clothes that don't fit. You need new underwear and girl supplies.” The woman looked quite pleased and hooked her purse over her arm.


“G-girl supplies?” muttered the boy in shock. “What do you mean by that?”


“Your boobs are bouncing all over,” grumbled Kira. “It's really unfair that yours are bigger than mine.” She narrowed her eyes as she got out of her seat and walked over to poke him in the belly. “It's embarrassing that my brother is prettier than me, but not as much as you running around dressed like that.”


Dante made a dash for her room and both of the females chased after her. “Get back here!” snapped Gia as she chased after her nephew.


The redhead was opening the window and attempting to escape through it. Both his aunt and sister grabbed him by the waist and pulled him back into the room by force. “I am not a doll!” she snapped angrily as she was suplexed onto the bed and held down by force by his aunt as she gave a loud excited yell.


“Ha! You're not getting away!” yelled Kira as she got into the activity a little too much.


“Grab his shoes!” snapped Gia as she held Tsuki down by lying across her belly.


“They're not going to fit because they're too big!” said Kira as she held up his shoe to show her.


The woman growled as the redhead flailed beneath her. She grabbed the teen's leg and picked up her own foot to put it next to Tsuki's and grinned. “Go get my brown flats from my closet. I'll hold him down!”


Tsuki wasn't fighting all that hard, but was making things as difficult as she could. Kira was pushed around a little but managed to get his over sized socks off and his feet into the shoes. “Hey! Perfect fit!” she cried in triumph.


“Go grab a skirt and blouse from my closet as well. She's about the same size,” said the woman as she grabbed her nephew in a headlock and forced his face into the mattress.


“No way!” snapped the redhead her forehead was pushed into the springs, but her mouth was still above the surface of the mattress.


“Shut up, you dork! They won't fit perfectly, but it'll be better than the clothes you're wearing!” She called into the room. “Grab a bra as well! Just get one of my sport's bras!” She would have liked a standard bra, but getting the redhead into something like that was more trouble than it was worth at that point and she was a bit bigger in the chest than the woman was.


OooOOooOO


Kira and her aunt both looked a bit disheveled. Tsuki was in the back seat with a scowl on her face and had pretty much resigned to her fate. It had taken them ten minutes to force her into the car. She made things difficult and was plenty strong enough to escape if she had to, but didn't want to hurt either of them despite the situation .She ended up just making things as difficult as she could without risking an injury for either of them. She considering making a break for it and just overpowering them to get away, but sooner or later she'd have to come back home and deal with it.


“Look, once you have some more comfortable clothes you'll feel better about this,” said Gia with a frustrated scowl as she gripped the steering wheel and pulled out of the parking lot. “Those clothes will do for now.”


“I'm fine,” Tsuki grumbled irritably. She was wearing a brown nylon and cotton blend skirt that went to her knees and a white blouse with a rounded collar and a few frills down the sides of the buttons. Her hair was tied back in a large bun with a scrunchy and she had her arms crossed. The two girls had forced her into a sports bra, but she was still wearing boxers under the skirt.


“Aneki, you should relax. You really need girl's clothes. Going without a bra with boobs like yours is pretty uncomfortable. Trust me,” said Kira with a scowl over her shoulder from the front seat.


“How would you know?” the older girl snapped at her.


Kira reached back at him with her hands clawed. “You bastard! How dare you!?”


Gia pushed her niece back into the seat. “Don't let him get to you, he's making this difficult so we'll give up. I won't let it work.”


“This bra feels loose at the bottom and tight on the top. Plus the skirt is so loose it feels like it will fall off,” grumbled Dante. “I'm blaming you if this stupid dress falls off my waist while we're out and everyone sees me in my boxers.”


Gia's eye twitched and she hunched over the wheel while clenching her teeth. “Little bastard.” She gripped the wheel as tight as she could and hit the gas hard.


“Slow down you maniac, you'll kill the two of you, but I'll be fine. I've got super powers remember?” said Dante calmly as he crossed his arms and looked out the window in the back seat.


“Is that so?” said Gia as she jerked the wheel back and fourth quickly. Kira was holding on to the arm rest with wide eyes and looked a little scared.


Dante was tossed back and fourth and ended up belting his forehead on the door. It hurt a little and he grabbed the door handle to steady himself and decided to shut up. Gia noticed his expression of irritation in the mirror and calmed down a little feeling satisfied that he wasn't going to run his mouth anymore.


OooOOooOO


Much to Gia's relief, her nephew had calmed considerably once they reached the store. She just stood around and pouted with her arms crossed as they shopped for clothes. The worst of it had been dragging her into the changing room. Fortunately she didn't look too different from a rebellious teenage girl who was shopping with her mother. She looked a lot like Gia and it looked like all three of them were related by blood, and not just because they were all Japanese. A few mothers offered sympathetic smiles towards the woman as she forced her nephew to shop in the young adult girls section of a department store not too far from where they lived.


It lasted for about four hours, and the first hour was the worst of it. Dante seemed complicit after that and cooperated for the most part. She still moped and pouted, but let the girls drag him around and tried on what they gave him. He put up some resistance when it came to stockings, but relented in the end. She also got some ankle and knee socks.


She ended up with a carload of boxes and bags of clothes. They had bought her an entire wardrobe, skirts, slacks, feminine cut T-shirts, and blouses mostly. A few pairs of shoes, none with heels, and undergarments. They were very basic and had small floral prints, roses, polka dots, and hearts on them along with a few plain white sets of undergarments.


She had changed out of the borrowed clothes her aunt had put her in and ended up wearing a white T-shirt with a red electric guitar on it, a denim skirt and belt, and a pair of gray and purple running shoes with thigh high socks bunched up just above her ankles. They all fit well and she refused to admit that they were more comfortable than her boy's clothes were. The teenager was just being stubborn by that point.


After they left the department store they ended up at the sandwich shop near their home in the strip mall they could see from the window. It was called the Golden Star Deli and the people behind the counter were all Korean, including a girl about Tsuki's age with short dark hair . A boy a few years older than her that was working behind the counter with a white ball cap that had the deli logo on it was checking her out and she ignore him. He smiled at her but she just turned to look away. “Having a rough day?” he asked as he noticed.


“You could say that,” she replied as she glanced at him. The place sold deli style sandwiches and subs, but also had a few Korean ingredients and sides such as Kimchi, ganjang, and gochujang. It was between lunch and dinner and only a few people were eating at the tables in the small dining area.


“Sorry to hear that, I bet you've got a pretty smile,” he said as he winked at her.


She balled up her fist at her side and shuffled away. “Jerk,” she muttered under her breath.


They got their sandwiches to go and left the shop.


OooOOooOO


Once they arrived Gia took the food up and left Tsuki and Kira to deal with the boxes. Tsuki got most of them and struggled a little to get them up the stairs behind her sister. She kicked the slightly ajar door open and tossed them onto the couch. Gia had left the food on the table and was nowhere to be seen. Dante flopped down on the couch next to the boxes and sighed as she tilted her head back. “We had to live on the second floor didn't we?” They weren't really heavy to her, but it was awkward walking up the stairs carrying so much.


Kira rolled her eyes. “If you hadn't dragged them all up here at once you wouldn't have had so much trouble.”


“A guy always gets it in one trip,” said the redhead as she narrowed her eyes at her.


Kira stuck her tongue out at him and went over to dig out her sandwich from the bags their food had come in.


“Hey, put those in your room, not out here,” Gia walked out of the hall and frowned at her with a box in her arms.


Tsuki's head snapped to attention and she frowned. “What's that box?”


The woman narrowed her eyes at him. “Your clothes. I'm locking them up. You don't need them until you're a guy again.”


The redhead sucked in a breath. “Huh? Wait! I can use some of those still! Some of the T-shirts will fit me!” She jumped up and reached for the box in the woman's arms.


“No. You don't need these right now. If I let you keep them, you'll keep trying to get away with wearing only guy's clothes,” she said as she turned the box out of his reach behind her. “You can have them back when you're a guy again. I wouldn't mind if they fit you, but it makes us look bad if you're wearing clothes that don't fit you properly.”


Dante stood there and fumed. “You...you...” He hung his head. “At least let me keep a few of my band shirts, a few of them are over sized and will still fit.”


The woman looked at him for a moment and seemed to think on it. “I'll dig a few of them out for you later if you behave. You're going to have to spend at least a week with girl's clothes only though so you can get used to it first though.” She nodded towards the couch. “Go pick up those boxes and put them in your room. You can wait until later to put them away. We're going to eat and then go grocery shopping.”


Tsuki gave a heavy sigh and moped over to the boxes she had carelessly put on the couch and started to collect them. “This sucks.” She once again grappled with all of them at once and stumbled towards her room. “Why did we buy so many anyway? It's not like I'm staying a girl for all that long.” She pushed her door open and just tossed the boxes onto the bed carelessly. She jumped a little when a black ball of fur shot out from under the bed and rushed out the door. The redhead seemed surprised and cocked her head as she looked at the door for a moment. “Must have startled her.”


OooOOooOO


The Japanese family walked through the grocery store together. The trip was uneventful, except the boy bagging up their groceries kept fumbling a bit because he was staring at the redheaded girl in the group. Tsuki ended up putting her forehead in her palm and gave a heavy sigh. The girl working the register looked a little annoyed with him, but neither one said anything. The guy puffed his chest out and spoke up after they had paid. “I'll be glad to take this out to your car for you!” He was a bit too excited about it.


Tsuki grabbed the handle of the cart from him. “I've got this, thanks.”


“Are you sure? It's no problem at all!” insisted the boy.


“We're fine, thanks,” she said with a little bit of a growl to her tone.


The boy backed off to simply watch them leave. Gia was stifling giggles behind her hand at the sight of it and looked over her shoulder to see the boy rush over to some of the other male employees to talk about the hot girl that had visited the store. It was late so the store was slow enough that he didn't need to help anyone else at that moment and the manager was off in another part of the store.


“Quit laughing, it's disgusting,” grumbled Tsuki as she caught her aunt chuckling it.


Kira smiled at him. “Come on Aniki, can you blame him? You're a total babe!”


Her brother scowled at the girl. “Shut up. I'm not had at him, but that doesn't make this any less uncomfortable.”


“You'd have done the same thing if you ran into a girl that looked like you,” said Gia as she gave him a playful swat on the back of his head.


The redhead hung her head as she opened the trunk of the car and started loading groceries. “That doesn't mean it's a bit weird to have guys checking me out now.”


“What's wrong with it?”asked Kira.


“I didn't say there was anything wrong with them, the problem is on my end,” he said as he closed the trunk. He pushed the cart away from them and returned it to a nearby cart return bin. “I'm not a girl. I don't know how to deal with this stuff or how to act.” She shoved her hands in her pocket and looked at the ground.


“You'll be fine. You don't have to like boys or anything. No one is saying that.” Gia shook her shoulder as the teen opened the rear door to the car to get in. “You'll adjust, you're good about that.”


“I'm wondering if adjusting to this is really a good thing or not,” he said simply as he slid into the back seat.


The woman sighed and leaned into the open door. “You're a strong kid. I'm sure you'll be fine. We'll help you out. You've just got to let us.”


The redhead nodded. “This is day one, give me a bit of time to work this out will ya?” She turned her head away and crossed her arms.


She smiled at her and ruffled her hair. “I know, but we're here if you need us.” She closed the door and got into the driver's side.


“Let's get home before the ice cream melts,” grumbled Kira with a bit of irritation in her tone. She looked at her brother in the back seat. She looked a little depressed and had her head hung a little. “Humph,” she turned her nose up and looked out the window.


“Be nice,” said Gia as she leaned in a little and whispered at her. “I know you're feeling a bit mad right now, but he's having a hard time today. Think about how you'd feel if you woke up a boy tomorrow.”


The girl glanced at the woman out of the corner of her eye and then looked back at her brother. Her irate expression softened a little. “Fine. I guess I feel a little sorry for him, even if he is stupid,” she muttered under her breath and settled down. It didn't matter that he wished it hadn't happened, but that didn't make her any less annoyed that her brother was suddenly a prettier girl than her without even trying.


OooOOooOO


Tsuki put a plate down in front her her sister at the table. It was cubes of pork with onions and peppers over rice and smelled amazing. She sat down with her own plate and started eating. Gia was already started on hers and smiled at the redhead. “Great as usual!”


“Heh. Now he looks like he should be cooking at least,” said Kira as she teased the redhead.


“Most chefs are men,” replied the teen simply. She didn't look bothered by the teasing much. “Dad taught me as much about cooking as Mom did, Grandma taught him.”


“Akari used to make a beef bowl with udon that was amazing,” said Gia cheerfully. “She was always better in the kitchen than I was.”


“I know,” said Tsuki with a serious nod. “I have that recipe, I'll get what we need and make some next time we go to the store.”


Gia narrowed her eyes at the redhead for a moment. She wasn't sure what she meant by “I know” but didn't want to press the matter because either way the teenager was right.


Kira was shoveling food in her mouth and chewing loudly. Her brother slapped her on the back of her head. “Slow down and close your mouth when you chew.”


“I'm starving,” grumbled the girl as she lowered the pace of her eating a little.


“We had those sandwiches for lunch,” said the redhead as she rolled her eyes. “You can't be that hungry.”


“I'm a growing girl!” snapped Kira at her.


“You could put on a few pounds,” said Tsuki with a nod. “It's not attractive if you're too skinny.”


Gia chuckled at the arguing pair. “That's your Dad's side of the family talking.” Dante was Italian American, his father was an American of Italian descent, and his mother had come from overseas and lived in Naples when she met his Dad.


The redhead narrowed her eyes at her aunt and pointed at her with her fork. “That's kinda racist.”


“True though, Akari put on some weight after she visited your grandparents. She said she couldn't sit down without them offering to feed her.” Gia chuckled at the teen's annoyed reaction. Their Dad's parents had died of illness and age when Kira was about seven.


“I can't argue with that,” said Tsuki with a small sigh as she pushed around a few lumps of rice on her plate to soak up some of the drippings before eating them. She ate them and stood up to carry her plate to the sink and rinse it off before setting it on the bottom. “I'm going hang out in my room until I go to bed. I've still got some stuff to unpack and I want to hang some stuff on my walls. I'll shower in the morning.”


“You're not going out on patrol?” asked Gia with a cheerful smile. “You're allowed you know.”


“Nope,” said the redhead as she walked into her room and closed the door.


“Spoilsport,” grumbled Gia. She looked at her niece and smiled in a way that seemed sweeter than it actually was. “You've got dishes tonight.”


She girl hung her head and grumbled. “How come Aneki never has to do them?”


“Because your new cousin feeds us. You can't cook because every time you do you pretend to be an anime character and intentionally screw it up,” said the woman as her smile fell away into a small frown.


“Huh? That's not...” The girl was cut off by her aunt.


“Last time we let you try to cook you tried to make a curry, marshmallow, soba, and spinach dish with a honey and mayonnaise sauce. I know you know better than that,” said the woman as she leaned in towards her and narrowed her eyes.


The girl played with her fingers and looked away from her. “It might have been good.”


“It was disgusting and you knew it,” said the woman. “Stuff that's cute in anime isn't always cute in real life.”


The girl stood up and grabbed her and her aunt's dishes to go do her chore. It was as much to get away from the conversation as it was to get it done.


OooOOooOO


Tsuki looked about her room. It was about a half hour after she had left the dinner table and she was looking at the various rock band posters that hung in her room. Most of them had black backgrounds and various leather clad band members standing around a logo. They were a mixture of rock and metal mostly. Dante had always had a liking for electric guitar riffs that were fast and hard. Lyrics mattered less than the sound of a skilled thrasher. It didn't take her long to pin them up and mostly cover the walls. There was a large one with a famous older metal singer sitting in a throne with a crown and cup in his hand along with heavy black makeup around his eyes. “I guess that's enough for tonight.” Her room was mostly finished. There were black curtains over the window, a lava lamp on the dresser along with various odds and ends, a large stack of CDs, a stereo with a CD player in it, and a milk crate full of vinyl albums that were mostly as old as he was if not older. There was an old record player in the closet along with a couple of two foot high speakers. It was sitting on a wooden box with shoes scattered around it. She had a phone with a large storage SD card in it with plenty of music on it as well and would sometimes plug it into the stereo through the microphone jack and listen to music that way. It was mostly what she used the phone for to begin with.


The redhead opened the closet and sighed as she looked at the girl's clothes that hung there. She wasn't the type to dress in black and wear makeup to begin with, but wished she'd been able to get something that fit her tastes a little more, even if it was for a girl. She missed the chance by not cooperating and figured she'd get an opportunity sooner or later once she was more used to being like she was. They had gone for relatively bland looking clothes without any flash to them with mostly neutral colors. She liked darker colors. She still had a few spiked bracelets and belts that worked, but she didn't really dress like a total metalhead when she was a guy. She liked a T-shirt and jeans, and didn't want to look like a goth kid or the type who worshiped Black Metal. The truth of the matter is that he tended to look more like a jock without a team than a metal fan. She was pretty casual as a fan and liked a lot of different types of rock and heavy metal, and even a few pop songs and girl bands.


Her prized poster was hanging off her closet door within view from her bed if she was laid out on it on her back. It was a woman with long heavily bleached hair who had black lipstick and a pentagram tattooed on her shoulder. She had contacts for pale blue eyes and pale white skin. She was holding an apple and had a boa constrictor hanging from her shoulders. She'd never admit that she was the lead singer for her favorite fan, but would freely admit to liking the group. Not just because she thought she was smoking hot either, she really did like the music and enjoyed the group before she'd ever seen a photo of her. She sat on the edge of the bed and stared at it for a long moment. “This is weird, usually if I'm looking at this I'd feel.” She wasn't sure how to describe it, but looking at the woman's image felt different and she couldn't quite figure out why. She frowned and looked at her hands as she thought about it. She still found her very attractive, but something was missing.


The teenager gave a heavy sigh and rubbed at her temples as she pushed the confusing puzzle out of her mind for the time being. There was a sound coming from the room beyond the bathroom. Laughter, a lot of it. His sister had apparently discovered the funniest thing in the world. After a few moments he realized that his aunt had also joined in. Whatever it was, they were having a great time of it. “What the hell?” She kicked off the bed and opened the door to walk over to the next room. Moving in a skirt felt weird to her, but she pushed that aside as well in favor of her curiosity. The pair inside had quieted down but were still giggling inside the room. She pushed it open and frowned at the two of them. “Hey, what's so damn funny.”


The duo turned to look at the new arrival and immediately burst into laughter. Gia had tears running down her face as she pointed at her and laughed while holding her belly. Kira was sitting at her desk with a laptop in front of her and had her head in the crook of her elbow and was beating the wood with her fist with her other arm.


Tsuki narrowed her eyes at the scene. “Well? What is it? Some Youtube video?” She had a sinking feeling that she wasn't going to like it.


“Tee hee. You've got to see this!” said Gia as she picked up the laptop and turned it to face the redhead while holding it with her forearms.


The redhead froze in place as color drained from her features. “Huh?” In big bold letters was a headline on a news site. “Laser Girl!” Under it was a picture of her in the Brave Warrior outfit while she was shooting a beam from her palm.
“Monster Bug attacks propane storage and then demolishes residential neighborhood. New heroine steps in to face menace as onlookers capture the amazing event and post video online!” There was a video link to some cell footage of the event taken from one of the yards around the battleground.


“So, um. Laser Girl?” Gia was still fighting off the giggles.


Tsuki frowned at them both and looked more tired of dealing with it than angry. “Better than Brave Warrior of Light I suppose.” She turned to leave them to their laughter. “Jerks.”


Gia gave a heavy sigh and seemed to bring herself under control. She wiped her eyes and sat down on Kira's bead. “I'm sorry, it's just too good.”


The teen looked over her shoulder. “Yeah, yeah. I'll look it up later. I guess I should read what they had to say about me.”


The woman nodded. “They like you. That's good.”


“Yeah. You're a real hero,” agreed Kira. “I hate bugs. I'm glad it wasn't me now.” she said with a huge blush on her face.


“Me too,” said the redhead. “I'll catch you guys later. I'm going out.”


Gia frowned a little at that. “I thought you weren't going on patrol.”


Tsuki frowned at her from the door and grabbed the door frame. “I'm not. I want to try some stuff, and I don't want to do it in the house. I might wreck the place if I try.”


The woman gave a small chuckle and nodded. “Don't stay out too late. The curfew is ten if there isn't a monster attack. I don't want you using that as an excuse to run around at night, because I'll find out about it if you're not being honest.” She actually sounded a little firm as she said the last part.


“There's nothing to do around here at night anyway,” said Tsuki as she left them.


OooOOooOO


It was about eight o'clock in the evening, Tsuki was standing in an old park nestled between two brick apartments near to the clinic. The ground was flat and long grass brushed at her shins below her knees. She was standing in the center of the open area with a frown on her face and her eyes closed with her arms crossed. It was about fifty yards across and eighty yards long. There was a basketball court not far from where she was, but there were groups of boys playing ball still and it was well lit. She didn't really want attention for what she was doing. She was going over something in her head over and over again and mulling on it with a frown on her face. “Hmmmm.”


It was dark in the field, but not pitch black yet. The moon was still low on the horizon and it was away from any roads. The field itself was pretty small and nestled between two apartment buildings about two block from her home.

There was a few fence posts with the chain link long since gone, and no street light leaving her away from prying eyes for the most part. The walls on either side had no windows looking over the field. It was mostly weeds and overgrown with trash and bottles scattered in the grass and patches of dirt between the two. It had a rusted and long since unused frame for a swing with no swings attacked and a twisted ladder that had once been a slide in a block of concrete. There was a broken and old looking plastic duck on a rusted heavy metal spring. The center was pretty open though, and left her plenty of room to move about. There was evidence that kids still used it to run around in even if they couldn't play on the old playground equipment, a few makeshift bases in a baseball diamond and a lack of windows made it safe for ball playing. There was trash, but it wasn't piling up, as if someone cleaned it up on occasion. The ground was clay and cracked from the last rain drying out.


The redhead opened her eyes and sighed. “Magic in the legs? It's not that simple, but...” She shifted her feet and looked at them. “Hmmm.” She kicked off to the left and then hopped back and fourth a few times. “Not sure if I can do this, but I don't see why not.” She stopped and hooked her finger over her chin as she thought again. “His legs. They didn't seem to move that much.” She lifted up her right foot and rotated her ankle a little. “Maybe it's a smaller motion that like hopping with just the ankle?” She tried to kick herself sideways with just her ankle and ended up falling over and landing on the dirt on her side. “Crap,” muttered the girl as she stood up and dusted off her side. She was still wearing the skirt and blouse from earlier and they ended up filthy with large patches of dirt stuck to them. “I'm not getting this. I know it needs magic, but I'm not sure what to do with it. He said something like using it for pushing, but...”


“Hey. What are you doing out here?” asked an unfamiliar voice. “Are you all right? I saw you take a bit of a fall there.”


“Huh?” Tsuki turned her head towards the newcomer. At the entrance to the old playground was a girl about her age. She had short dark hair and cocked her head. Her build was slim and she had a baggy T-shirt on with a pair of jean shorts that went halfway down her thighs and a pair of flip flops on her feet. “Nothing. Just needed some room to work something out.”


“Hey. I saw you earlier,” said the girl as she leaned against the brick wall to one of the apartments and looked the redhead up and down. “You came into the store today and my stupid brother hit on you.”


The Japanese girl blinked and cocked her head a little as she remembered where she had seen her before. “Yeah. You were in that Korean Deli down the road from here.”


“Yeah. Name's Sooyoung,” the girl grinned and curled her arm as to show off her bicep and grinned. She was skinny and her arms were thin, but there was a solid muscle there. She was a bit on the smallish side and was about the same height as the redhead. “Who are you? Do you live around here? I've never seen you before.”


“Huh?” It took the red haired girl a moment to shake out of her surprise. “Name's Tsuki. I moved in down the road a couple of days ago.”


“Oh, so you live around here now?” said the girl with a grin on her face. “Really?”


“Yeah, about two blocks down the road. I live over that empty shopping space,” said the redhead with a bit of caution to her tone. The new girl seemed friendly enough so far.


“This is great! Another Asian girl! You're hot too!” said the girl as she raised her hands in the air and seemed very excited. “You'll be in school this year, right?” She balled up her fists and put them together in front of her chest and seemed very pleased.


“I...um, guess so.” Tsuki was a little confused about what she was so happy about.


“This is Tits! I've got the scoop on the new girl before school even starts! You're gonna be popular because of your boobs and stuff. You're way prettier than I am! How long have you been here? Your sister is seriously adorable! Your Mom is pretty too, so it must run in the family or something. I am a little jealous though. I'm Sooyoung. Wait, I already said that. Everyone calls me Soo though. Not Sue, it has more “oo” in it. Your name is Tsuki, right? Nice to meet you! We should be friends! There aren't any other Asian girls in this neighborhood, but there's a few at school. It's weird don't you think? It's really strange! I have a bunch of brothers, but no sister. There aren't a lot of girls our age nearby, only a couple really. There are a few guys though, they usually hang out by the basketball court. Some of them are pretty cute. I noticed you have a little sister, I'm jealous of that too. I shouldn't like you, but I think we should be friends anyway! You seem pretty cool. What are your favorite foods? Do you like any bands? I love 2Heart 4Ever, they're so dreamy. I like other stuff too though. Do you play video games? What are your favorite shows? What about movies? Tell me everything!”


Tsuki took a step back and got a little wide eyed. “Um, hey. Slow down would you?”


The Korean girl gasped and blushed a little. “Oh, sorry. Do you have trouble understanding English?”


“No,” said the new girl with a small sigh. “I'm fluent. You're talking faster than I can think though.”


“Are you from Japan, or American like me?” said the girl as she walked up in front of her and leaned in to peer at her.


Tsuki was a little uncomfortable with it and leaned back away from her. “Both.”


“Oh. I've never even been to Korea. Neither have my parents. My grandparents immigrated a long time ago,” said the girl. “Did you live in Japan?”


The redhead gave a small sigh. She could probably use a friend, even if the girl did seem a bit weird. She had no idea how to get around as a girl and wouldn't have help from her aunt or sister at home. “I moved here from Japan to live with my Aunt. She's an American Citizen and adopted me, so I'm a citizen now too.” It was partially true at least.


“Wow! Your English is very good!” said the girl with a huge grin. “My grandparents were awful. I could barely understand them sometimes. They were cool though. I've never even left Florida before. It must be exciting to move to a new place like this.”


Tsuki gave a small nervous laugh. “Well, there's a lot I don't know about this country. The culture is a bit strange to me, even if the language isn't.” The culture of the women anyway.


The girl squinted her eyes and looked comical and serious at the same time as she leaned towards the new girl with her hands behind her back and nodded. “I see, I see.” She grinned. “I'll help you out then.”


The redhead wasn't so sure she was okay with that just yet. “Um, I'm fine. I'm not dumb or anything.”


Soo twisted around on her heels and straightened up her back. “So what were you doing out here?”


The Japanese girl shrugged. “I saw this guy do something cool and I'm trying to figure out how to do it myself.”


“Huh? Like a magic trick?” The Korean girl put her finger on her bottom lip and looked up. “Are you a magician?” She turned to face her with her fists balled up looking very excited.


Tsuki sighed and hung her head a little. “No. It's a move I saw him do.”


“A dance thing?” the girl looked thoughtful again and played with the dirt with her toes. “I can't dance.”


The redhead leaned against the brick wall and shrugged. “Neither can I to be honest.”


“At least you're trying though. This is so cool, like one of those movies!” The girl leaned against the wall and looked up at the sky with a grin on her face. “Did you get served? So now you're trying to get your dignity back on the
dance floor by training hard and coming back to beat them in a big dance off? Then you'll win back your handsome boyfriend the dancing witch stole from you, but then dump him for the roguish hunk who helped you train! It's so cool! He probably looks hot in a dirty white T-shirt and has a blue collar job that gets him sweaty and buff.” She gasped and slapped her fist into her palm. “This is a part of a montage isn't it!?”


“That's surprisingly not that far off, except for the whole boyfriend thing,” said the redhead as she looked thoughtful. “I'm not learning to dance though.”


Soo blinked and looked at her with a rather expressionless face. “Wait. Are you really strong?”


Tsuki shrugged. “Yeah. Kind of.”


“So, it's like a martial arts manga?” the girl's eyes got very wide. “That's so cool!”


“I wish I could say that wasn't true, but it kind of is. I'm not a martial artist though,” said the new girl as she scratched her head. “I lost a fight and need to get stronger so I can beat the crap out of the jerk that did it next time I see them, but I'm just a street fighter. I don't use martial arts.”


“Ooh, so you're a delinquent,” said the cheerful girl with a huge grin on her face.


“Kind of,” grumbled the girl as she ran into something else she really couldn't deny. “Not the bad kind though. I don't like bullies. It gets me in trouble sometimes.”


“So, you used to get bullied and then got stronger to fight them?” asked the girl as she seemed sure that she was right.


“Nah. I never put up with that sort of thing, not since I was a little kid. I only really got serious about it recently though,” said the redhead with another shrug. She was kind of surprised she'd spoken to this girl for as long as she had.


“That's weird,” said the Korean girl with a somewhat disappointed looking frown on her face.


“I've known you all of ten minutes, and I already know you've got no room to talk,” said the redhead with a smirk.


“What were you trying to learn?” said the Korean girl as she looked down at her feet. “It's obviously some sort of foot technique.”


The redhead looked a bit surprised and looked down at her feet as well. “He called it Flash Steps.”


The girl blinked. “Oh, that? It's a Taekwondo technique. It's Korea's martial art and has very powerful foot techniques.” She hopped off the wall and set her feet about a foot apart from each other. She rolled her ankles so that her feet moved sideways a little. “It's tough to learn because it requires that you strengthen your ankles. Most of the power comes from the amount of force you can provide by moving them quickly.” She shifted sideways quickly, but not nearly as fast as TJ had. “Grandpa used to talk about using Ki to make it more effective so that you could move faster and father. It's really a dodging technique.” She smiled at the new girl. “Take a swing at me and I'll show you.”


The redhead was a bit wide eyed. “Um, are you sure?”


“You don't have to really attack me or anything, just a demonstration so even a weak swing will do,” said the girl.


“A-all right,” muttered the redhead as she balled up her fist and took a swing at the girl while moving towards her a little, intentionally overextending and putting no real force behind it.


Soo shifted aside and ended up with a good angle for attack and touched her ribs with her palm. “See? It's a technique to move around strikes to defend and put yourself in a good position to attack.” She scrunched up her face and frowned at the girl. “You really should give up on this, the exercises you have to do to strengthen your ankles really suck, trust me.”


“You're pretty good,” said Tsuki as she cocked her head and looked at the girl.


“No one knows but my family and you. I'll get in all sorts of trouble if I use it when someone isn't trying to kill me or something,” said the Korean girl with a sigh. “They get mad if I show off too. It's weird. If I ever hit someone the punishment is worse than just putting up with them being a jerk.”


The redhead smirked. “Is that so?” She looked down at her ankles. “So, like this?” she shifted her ankles to the side a little.


“Huh. Not bad,” commented Soo as she leaned down to have a look. “You should stop though. You'll be seriously sore tomorrow.”


“I don't have much choice,” said the Japanese girl as she closed her eyes and shifted her ankles a few times to practice the movement slowly. After a few tries she opened her eyes and shifted from side to side by speeding it up a little. She managed to push herself about three feet in either direction.


“Whoa. You just,” said her tutor with a slacked jaw. “No way! No way you could learn that fast! Are you some kind of genius?”


“Not really,” said Tsuki as she looked a little embarrassed about it and rubbed on the back of her head with her right hand. “It's still not good enough though. He was way faster.”


“Seriously?” said the Korean girl. “Like how fast?”


The red haired girl closed her eyes. “Hmm. I'm not sure how to explain.” She focused her energy and shifted her ankles.


Soo gave a small shriek as the redhead vanished from in front of her eyes and jumped back with her hand over her mouth. “No freaking way!” she managed in amazement as she looked around. Her shock faltered when she turned to look at the opposite wall and saw the redhead was flat up against the wall face first with her arms and legs spread out against it.


Tsuki fell off and onto her back and gave a painful groan. Her eyes were closed and the brick where her forehead had been was cracked and left a dusty red grit on her forehead. “That sucked.”


“That was seriously cool, even if it was incredibly stupid and clumsy! How did you do that?” said the short haired girl as she knelt down beside her. “You're not dead are you? Please don't be dead!”


“I'm fine,” said the strange girl as she sat up and dusted off her forehead. There was a red mark where it had hit the wall and her nose and lip stung a bit, but she wasn't really hurt. “I guess I've got to figure out how to control that a bit.”


“Seriously? I thought Grandpa was nuts when he talked about that ki stuff!” the girl was clearly amazed. “I thought I was impressing you, but you're way stronger than me! This is so cool!”


“Is it?” muttered the redhead with a scowl on her face. She didn't look angry with her new friend, just annoyed in general.


“Seriously? You're awesome. I've never had anyone who I could talk to about this stuff except my stupid brothers!” She was very pleased and bouncing with excitement. Not that there was much to bounce, she was a very slim girl and didn't really have a chest. Her baggy T-shirt didn't help matters. Not that Tsuki cared in her position anyway. “We're totally gonna have to hang out! What's your contact info?” She pulled out a cheap prepaid pink touch screen phone from her rear pocket.


The redhead frowned. “I didn't bring my phone with me. I wasn't expecting to run into anyone. I don't really know the number.”


“You don't know your own cell number?” the Korean girl looked a bit confused.


“No. I've only had it for a couple of weeks and I've only gotten three or four calls,” said the new girl as she sat in the dirt with her legs bent under her skirt. She pushed off the ground and dusted off her clothes. “I don't really like phones.”


“That's strange,” said Soo with a small frown. “What kind of girl are you?”


“A terrible one,” said the redhead with a small chuckle. “I only live a couple of blocks away. I'm sure we'll run into each other. Besides, your family's shop is the only place to eat within two miles of this place. My aunt is lazy, so we'll probably eat there a lot.”


“Okay,” said the short haired girl with a grin on her face. “I guess I'll see you then. I should get home, it's late.”
Tsuki looked up at the apartments. “You live here?”


The girl nodded. “Yeah. My family takes up two of the apartments in this complex. That building there,” she pointed at the one on the right. “I live with my Mom and Dad and my youngest brother, and my two eldest brothers have their own place across the hall from us. I'm the youngest one in the family and Mom and Dad say they're through with kids after me and my mouth.”


“Um, is that so?” Tsuki was a little surprised that she seemed proud of that.


“Yeah. I talk a lot,” said the girl with a nod and a serious look on her face. “I'm probably talking too much now, and I should really get home before I get in trouble.”


“I guess I should get back as well,” said the redhead as she gave a nod at the girl. “Thanks for the help by the way. I appreciate the lesson.”


“I've gotta be honest here. I only showed you because I didn't think you'd get it,” she smiled and scratched the back of her head. “Don't tell my Dad about this, I'm not supposed to teach people stuff like that. It's our family style and he's weird about it.” She put her hands together and seemed to be playfully begging.


“I figured that, but thanks anyway,” she stood up and bowed to her. “I'm gonna get going. I'll see you later.”


“Yeah,” said Soo as she returned the bow and turned to go into the apartment. “See you later.”


Tsuki got a few yards away and looked down at her feet again. “Well, I guess I should start figuring this out.” She skipped forward a couple of times as she tried to use Flash Steps to move forward and failed, and then vanished in the middle of the street and appeared about a block down the road. “I need to figure out how to shorten this a little.” By the time she made it home, she was down to about ten feet a jump and still couldn't pull it off every time she tried. She looked up at the apartment door and sighed. “That's enough for tonight.” She walked up the stairs a little slowly and sighed. “That wore me out, and I need a shower.”


OooOOooOO


“Oh, you're home,” said Gia as she put down a book. She was curled up in the recliner farthest from the door and smiled at him as she pulled her reading glasses down the bottom of her hose. “Find anything interesting?”


“Not really,” replied the redhead with a small sigh. “I wasn't looking, I just wanted to try some stuff out.”


“Training then?” said the woman with a nod as she went back to her book. It was one of her medial books from college.


“Basically,” said the teen with a shrug. “I got my butt kicked and I don't want it to happen again. I need to figure out this powers stuff and how it works.”


“Hmmm,” said the woman as she continued to read.


Tsuki walked into her room and flopped down on the bed. Her ankles were a bit sore, but it wasn't too bad. Just being off them helped. The cat was curled up on the pillows and looked at her with the relaxed face cats have. “What's with you? You've not said anything since that night. Are you mad or something? What did I do?” The animal looked at her and seemed to realize she was speaking to her. She walked up and mewed at her before butting her head into the girl's face. “Hey, cut that out,” she muttered as she pushed the animal back. The cat caught her palm with her head and rubbed her face into it while purring loudly. “You want to get pet do you?” She scratched the animal behind her ears and it was obvious Violet was enjoying it. She paced back and fourth making her scratch the top of her head and rub down her back. “Hey, what's with you?” Tsuki was getting a little annoyed.


The animal rolled over and grabbed her arm. She could feel Violet's claws, but she wasn't breaking her skin and bit into her hand lightly. Not aggressively to hurt her, but like a happy cat giving love bites. She started to lick her arm and rubbed her face into it. “Huh? Hey, Violet. What's the deal?” Tsuki was getting annoyed and had stopped moving as to not cut her arms on the animal's claws by pulling away. “Cut it out. We should talk. I'm not sure about this whole thing.”


The cat simply released her and sat up again before mewing at her. “This isn't funny! Cut it out!” The redhead jumped up and shouted while pointing at the cat. The animal got wide eyed and bent its ears back before dashing off the bed and underneath it.


Tsuki froze and blinked in surprise. “Huh?” She got down on her hands and knees and heard the animal growl at her and hiss from under the bed. She was hiding near the back by the wall. “Look. I'm sorry all right, just come out of there and talk...to...me.” The redhead realized that this behavior wasn't new. The animal had been acting like this since they had come back after the attack. “Oh! Oh no!” The color drained from her face as she looked at the cat hiding at the back of the bed. In her head the moment when the animal had been thrown into a mailbox head first popped back to the forefront of her memory again. “Oh crap!” She reached towards the animal and rubbed her fingers together. “Um, Vy? You okay? C'mon and speak to me all right?” The animal took a long moment as she tried to coax her and slowly moved forward to sniff at her fingers. “C'mon, please. Say something.” The cat started purring again as she rubbed her head into her palm again. The red haired girl backed out from under the bed and sat down on the ground with her rear on her ankles.


The cat came out after her and mewed up at her. Violet got into her lap and put her paws on her chest before rubbing her face on the girl's nose. “Crap. Please no!” said the teen as she rubbed on the cat absently with a look of complete horror on her face. “Please just be joking. This isn't cool!” She stood up and lifted the cat into her arms and walked out into the living room holding her. She flopped down onto the couch and just held her in her arms with a vacant expression.


“Oh, it's nice to see you two getting along,” said Gia with a smile as she looked up from her book. Her smile faded as she noticed the expression on the redhead's face. “Hey. I something wrong?”


Tsuki looked near to tears as she looked over at the woman. “Something's wrong with Violet.”


The woman looked down at the cat. “Wrong?” she put her book onto the coffee table and leaned over to look at the animal. “She looks fine. Seems to be enjoying herself.”


“She hasn't said anything since we got back the other night,” said the girl with a vacant expression.


“She doesn't talk much. You didn't even know she could talk and you've lived with her since you were two,” said the woman with a shrug.


“She hit her head while we were out,” said the girl with a frustrated frown directed at the cat. “She's never acted like this before. Not since I was little has she ever acted like this.”


Gia blinked and narrowed her eyes at the cat. “Huh? I guess. She's never spent a lot of time around you.”


“She doesn't remember. She thinks that she's a normal cat,” said the teenager with a small sniffle.


“Come on. Quit teasing him. I'm sure he's sorry for whatever he did,” said Gia as she reached out to the cat. She paused when the animal hissed at her and put he ears back. “Huh?” She scowled at the animal. “What's gotten into you?” She backed off and sat in her chair again. “That is weird.”


Tsuki sat and continued to pet the animal with a look of shock on her face. She was clearly not doing very well. The cat seemed to notice and stood up on her lap to lick her face.


Kira walked out of her room and looked at the scene. “Ew! You let her do that? She was drinking from the toilet earlier today.”


Gia looked at her. “Wait, did you say that Violet was drinking from the toilet?”


The youngest girl nodded. “Yeah. It was weird, I've never seen her do that before.” She rolled her eyes. “Completely disgusting.” She looked at her brother. “Since when do you pet her anyway? You two always ignore each other.”


The teen girl was looking at her sister with a look of horror on her face. “Yer kidding!”


“Jeez, it's not that big a deal. I'm pretty sure it was flushed. You look like you think you're gonna die or something,” said the girl with a surprised expression.


“Um, she hit her head, you say?” said Gia as she looked over at the completely horrified redhead.


Tsuki had tears running down her face. “She got thrown into an aluminum mailbox hard enough to knock it over. It had a three inch thick wooden post.”


“Oh my,” said Gia with a gasp.


“What's the big deal?” asked Kira as she seemed to realize something was amiss. “She seems fine.”


“Violet has lost her memory,” said the older girl. “This sucks!”


“What?” said Kira in confusion. “That's bad right?”


Tsuki looked over at her with a pathetic looking frown and her voice was shaking a bit. “She's the only one who knows how to turn me back into a boy.”


Gia gave a heavy sigh. “She seems all right otherwise. So it's not so bad right?”


“I'm stuck like this forever without her!” snapped the redhead. The cat hopped off her lap as she stood up and walked off with her tail raised and twitching a little. “What am I gonna do?”


“Well, there is one other who might know how to turn you back,” said Gia. “Thing is, we can't do anything about it until we finish this whole save the Earth mess anyway. You'll be fine.”


“Really?” said the redhead as a bit of hope returned to her.


“Huh? Who?” asked Kira in confusion.


“Galileo will probably be able to help, but we've got plenty of time to worry about it,” said Gia as she winked at Tsuki. “He'll probably need some help from Violet, so it'll be all right.” Galileo was a white cat who lived with Kira's
grandmother and always seemed to be by her side. Neither of the children ever had much contact with the animal.


“How is she going to help him in this condition?” snapped Tsuki as she pointed at where the cat was sitting in the middle of the floor and ignoring them in favor of batting at a small piece of weed that had been tracked in from outside.


“You'll be fine. There is plenty of time to worry about it later. You're going to be that way for a while anyway, and Violet isn't dead or anything,” Gia seemed pretty unconcerned. “We'll work something out when the time comes. Just relax.”


The redhead stood there and looked at the cat with a frustrated frown before turning away from her and giving a heavy sigh while rubbing on the back of her head with one hand. “I guess you're right. There's nothing we can do about it now.” She glared at the cat again. “If she isn't able to turn me back, I'm making violin strings out of her innards.”


Gia gave a small sigh. “Just relax. You need to take care of her anyway.”


“She's not my cat,” grumbled the redhead as she crossed her arms.


“She's not our cat either, she's supposed to be your partner. Violet isn't a pet, she's an intelligent being and steward of the power you have. She was with Kira because we all thought she would end up being the one if this happened this generation. Now she's your responsibility. It's part of being the Brave Warrior Laser Girl.” Gia looked quite satisfied with what she said as if she though it was very wise. She had her eyes closed and was nodding her head with her arms crossed.


“Laser Girl is a better name than Brave Warrior of Light,” grumbled the redhead as she sulked off into her room to mope. “That's not saying much though.”


Kira looked a little worried. “Is Violet going to be okay?” She squatted down on the floor next to the cat and started petting her.


“It's probably temporary. Those cats are older than Grandma and tougher than you think. I'm kind of surprised something like this happened.” Gia settled down with her book again. “She has magic as well, and she'll eventually heal damage, but it's not nearly as powerful as what your brother has. She should be fine, eventually.”


“You don't know do you?” The girl looked over her shoulder at the woman. “You look worried.”


“I am, a little,” replied her Aunt with a small nod. She kept her eyes on her book. “I might be wrong and there might not be anything we can do. It's best to not bring that up around your brother though. He'll adjust, and all we can do for Violet is hope she's all right and can get her head back in order. I can't take her to a vet and claim she has memory loss, and she doesn't seem injured. I think she'll be fine, but it will probably take some time.”


“Okay,” grumbled Kira as she put her mouth into the space between her knees and continued to pet the cat. “You think Dante is okay?”


“He's fine. He's good at adapting,” said the woman with another nod. “Don't worry about it. He's grumpy because this is new, but he'll adjust.” She lowered the book and looked over at her. “You should call him Tsuki right now. Getting used to it will keep us from slipping up when we're talking to others about him. We should probably say her as well instead of him. She can't be found out, it's dangerous for all of us if she is.”


The raven haired girl nodded and continued to pet the cat. “All right. I'll try to remember.”


Gia looked at the cat out of the corner of her eye and gave a small sigh behind her book. “Please be okay. He's going to need your help.” She said it to herself and the cat didn't seem to notice. “This is bad. I'm gonna have to make some calls. I was hoping to avoid that, he doesn't get along with her very well. I can't really blame him either.”


“Huh? Who do you mean?” said the girl in confusion. “Wait. You mean...” Her eyes got a little wide.


“Don't worry about it, it'll take a while anyway,” said the woman with a smirk and a wink. “I was going to have to do it anyway, and it'll take a couple of months at least. Things will be fine until then.”


“He's gonna be pissed,” said the girl as she went back to petting the cat. She didn't seem very upset about it. “He hates her.”


“Well we're out of options, so he's just going to have to deal with it. It will probably be good for both of them anyway,” said the woman as she went back to her book again. She spoke up from behind the pages. “Don't tell him about this. He's bad enough as it is and it will just make things worse.”


Kira pulled her hand back as Violet batted at the back of her hand and walked towards her brother's bedroom. She wasn't being mean, but wanted to let her know she was done getting pet. “Violet seems to like him...um, her.” She stood up and started walking towards her own room. “I'm gonna go back to my room. There's a Laser Girl fan page on the internet now, and there's a forum and chat room and everything.”


Gia looked up from her book. “Hey, be careful what you post.”


“I know, I'm just some kid that lives in the town she was first spotted in,” said the girl as she waved over her head while holding her elbow as she walked away. “I'm not stupid and I know I can't say I know her or anything. There's already a few people saying stuff like that.”


Gia gave a small sigh. “That might be dangerous for them. Be careful.”


OooOOooOO

 

[Contrabardus]

Tsuki had a laptop of her own and frowned at the results of the vanity search she had put up. She was sitting on the edge of her bed with it resting on her knees and was bent over the screen a little. There were dozens of videos online and an official fan page. “Crap.” The search brought up hundreds of forum posts about her in various threads and message boards. “This is getting out of hand.”


None of the videos went past the giant bug monster fight. She frowned as she noticed a few descriptions of the fight with an invisible foe that had happened. Recording devices stopped working when Mark had appeared on the scene. Whatever was making him invisible likely disrupted recordings as well. A lot of people thought it was some sort of promotion for a television show or movie that hadn't been officially announced, or some sort of web video created by Anime fans. She ended up watching the video from three different angles and noticed that a lot of the comments were impressed with the level of special effects in an amateur video. She noticed that nobody had seen TJ but her either. That was interesting, and she wasn't so sure she trusted him completely. He seemed nice enough, but wouldn't put it past the enemy to have some sort of plan that involved getting him to trust her. She still felt like she owed him though, so she couldn't just attack him based on an unconfirmed worry. His explanation seemed plausible, but she didn't think that it would be a good idea to just tell him everything about herself either. Him showing up the way he did seemed pretty convenient.


Her face became a little green as many of the comments became somewhat crude and disgusting. A lot of people were talking about how they wanted to have sex with her in very graphic ways and were making strong assertions about much the liked specific parts of her body. She stopped reading about the point someone commented that she probably had great feet. The comment went on for several paragraphs after that, but she didn't read beyond that point. “Well, that's enough of that.” She left the video site and went to the official fan club link. Gah!” she shuddered as a still image of her in her uniform was surrounded by pink hearts and had an anime theme playing in the background. He didn't recognize what show it was from, but it was bubbly pop about a girl that had secret feelings for a guy. Not particularly offensive, but she really should have expected the color scheme of the site to be pink and white. There wasn't a lot of information there, and the forums were mostly positive. The apparently didn't leave up anything sexual or rude and moderated the discussion area. She wasn't about to interact with anyone on the site, at least not from his own IP. There wasn't really anything she wanted to say and most of the comments were about how pretty she was and how they were looking forward to the show or whatever it was they were advertising.


Tsuki shut off her computer and gave a heavy sigh. “Well, I've no idea what to do about all that.” She was hoping she could just ignore it. Violet hopped up on her bed and mewed at her. “I guess I should get some sleep. I'll take a shower in the morning.” The girl closed the screen and slid it under her bed before rolling over onto her back with her arms spread across the mattress. The cat crawled up on her chest and purred loudly. “You walking hair dispenser. You'd better remember. I won't forgive you if you don't.” She scratched the cat between the ears and it seemed to satisfy her as she settled down. The animal's purring helped her relax more and she drifted off to sleep.


OooOOooOO


“What is this?” said Tsuki as she held a plastic object in her hand and frowned.


“A razor,” said Gia with her arms crossed.


“What for?” asked the redhead with a scowl on her face. She knew the answer, but didn't want to admit it.


“Your legs and girl parts,” said the woman. “Your legs are starting to feel like sandpaper and you need to keep your pubes manageable. You don't have to shave it into a cute heart or anything, but you'll be more comfortable if you keep things under control.”


“I'm not trying to get a boyfriend,” said the girl as she let the arm holding the razor drop down to her side. She didn't drop it though.


“That's fine, but this is basic hygiene. There's other stuff we'll have to talk about later, but for now you need to deal with this.” Gia looked pretty firm about it and poked her nephew in the chest with her finger. “I'm not asking you to do your nails or wear makeup. I just want you to look neat because it makes us look bad if you don't.”


“I've a feeling that's not far off,” grumbled the teen. Gia shoved a can of shaving cream into her chest. It was pink and thin.


“I'm not going to bother you about that,” said the woman with a small sigh. “It's fine and I understand why you don't want to wear makeup and stuff, but you need to do this kind of thing. I recommend you shave your pits as well. It will look neater and you'll be able to wear sleeveless clothes to be more comfortable when it's warmer.”


“Seriously?” grumbled Tsuki as she looked at the pink can.


“Yes. Now go get cleaned up. You smell from running around all night,” said the woman as she pinched her nose and walked away.


The girl glared at the can and dragged her feet as she walked into the bathroom again. “Jeez, being a girl sucks.” She looked around the bathroom counter and narrowed her eyes. “Hey. Where?” She started opening the cabinets beneath the sink and the medicine cabinet behind the mirror on the wall next to the door. “Where is?” She left the razor and shaving cream on the counter and walked out into the hall. “Where is my deodorant and cologne?”


“I packed them up with your boy clothes,” said Gia from the living room. It was obvious she was a little frustrated with him. “You don't need them right now, there's deodorant on the counter.”


“That's Kira's,” said the redhead irritably as she walked out and found her aunt in the recliner watching television. The volume was low and a woman was stuffing a turkey and making side dishes on the screen. “I'm not using her stuff.”


Her aunt looked over at her. “There's a brand new one right next to hers. It's got your name on the side of it. That's yours. You don't need cologne either, that stuff is for guys.”


The red haired girl looked a bit annoyed at that. “Why not? I know not to use too much.”


Gia glanced over at him. “That's not the problem. It smells weird on a girl. That stuff is made to smell right on a man's skin, your balance is different as a girl and it makes it smell different. If you want I'll get you some perfume later. It's the same thing but doesn't smell so strange on you.” She leaned over the arm of the chair and smirked at him. “I get it, you're trying to keep your routine to help you cope and act as much like a guy as you can. That's fine, but the bathroom is pretty much the worst place to cling to that sort of stuff. You need to change your habits in there and learn to deal with doing things differently because your body is different and has different needs.”


“I'm not so sure I like the sound of that,” said the redhead as she looked a bit nervous.


“It's not as bad as it sounds,” said the woman. “It's just a little time consuming. You don't have to pluck your eyebrows or anything.”


“Are you going to make me douche?” said the teen with a nervous look on her face and a heavy blush. She was only vaguely aware of what it meant.


The woman smiled and laughed. “No. Of course not, that's not really good for you. I recommend my patients don't do it. It messes with the ecosystem of a healthy vag and screws up the bacterial balance and can cause problems.” She was amused by the relieved look on her nephew's face. “Don't worry. You'll be fine.” She stretched her arms and smiled. “Think of it this way. You're getting a look at a world most guys never see. It sucks now, but when you're older, you'll be able to use it to your advantage. The girl that catches you is going to be one lucky woman because you'll understand her in a way no other guy can.” She leaned forward in her seat and gave him a wide smile. “Now go get a damn shower before I decide to take one with you. You smell awful and I'm watching a food show right now. You're ruining it.”


Tsuki turned away and scowled as she shuffled lazily to the bathroom. “Fine.” Once she was inside it wasn't much of a chore. She'd showered before and while the sight of her naked body was a bit strange and made her feel a little weird. She knew what to expect and just got it over with. Shaving her legs wasn't terribly difficult to figure out on her own. The detachable shower head made things a little easier and she only nicked herself a few times. She was particularly careful in her more private areas and managed to rinse herself off without giving herself another jolt. The rest was done as before and she used the deodorant that was balanced for her skin. Gia had written her name in Kanji and she scowled at that a little, but it made sense with her cover story and it wasn't like she couldn't read them anyway. Drying and brushing out her hair was irritating and time consuming. “Maybe I should get it cut?” she wondered aloud. Her hair was short when she was a boy and it wouldn't look bad on her, but she wasn't sure if it would grow back with her transformation or not.


She left the bathroom and walked out in her bathrobe into the living room. “Obasan?”


The woman was still in her chair and looked up at her. “Ah, much better.” The girl had a few blotches of toilet paper on her legs with red dots on them, but it was only a few. “You probably won't admit that it feels good to be clean and neat.'


“Why wouldn't I?” said the redhead with a shrug. “I'm not so petty. It's just annoying to have to deal with all this new stuff.”


Her aunt chuckled at that. “You surprise me. That's a good attitude for someone in your position.” She noticed she was in her bathrobe. “What did you need?”


“I want you to cut some of my hair. I want to try something,” said the redhead. “Just a little off the bottom. Even it out for me.”


The woman seemed a little surprised. “Okay. I'm glad you thought better of trying this yourself. What are you up to?”


“I'm thinking a short haircut might be better, but I'm not sure if my hair will stay short if I get one,” said the redhead as she turned her back on the woman. “I want to make sure before I go to the trouble and spend money.”


Her aunt smiled. “Ah. You want to make sure the transformation doesn't just grow it back?”


“Yeah,” said Tsuki with a serious nod.


“All right. I'm curious myself,” said the woman. She grabbed the base of her ponytail and clipped a short section off so that it was even and flat at the bottom.


The teenager frowned as she looked at her fist for a moment. “I guess I should transform then.” She raised her arm in the air and said “Henshin.” The transformation lifted her off the ground again and spun her once around as her clothes vanished and were replaced by the uniform again. She looked herself over and noticed that it was neat and clean again. Any damage that had been previously done to the clothes was gone and it looked brand new and fresh. “Huh. Guess it cleans and repairs itself. It was pretty messed up the last time I had it on. The rips and stuff fixed themselves before, but it was dirty and had some stains on it.”


Kira was sitting at the dinner table and glared at her brother. “You jerk. Quit showing off! I hate you!” she snapped. She stood up and came over to inspect the outfit though. “It's pretty.” She didn't make it sound like a complement and didn't bother to hide her jealosy.


“Yeah, well I'm not exactly pleased about it. I can't do anything about how it looks at all,” grumbled the older teen. She noticed there was a large pink bow on the back that she hadn't noticed previously, and it covered most of her lower back. “Next thing you know I'll have a stupid wand.” As soon as the word “wand” left her mouth a long heavy mace like wand appeared in her hand. It was about two and a half feet long and had silver and had a golden heart that was encrusted with pink gems on the top of it with a pink ribbon tied into a bow just below the heart. The upper portion was wider than the handle, and a pink crystal was embedded in the heart shaped pommel. “Crap.” said the pink haired magical girl in frustration. She didn't know the command to get rid of it.


“I seriously hate you right now,” said the younger sister with her eyes narrowed and her bottom lip stuck out.


Tsuki tossed the magical weapon over to the couch and it vanished in thin air as soon as it left her hand. “Oh. That's how I get rid of it.” She looked at her aunt over her shoulder. “How is my hair?”


“It grew back,” said the woman with a shrug.


“I kind of figured it would,” said the teen with a nod. “The question is does it stay that way if I turn back?” She lifted her arm into the air and said “Hensin” again. The uniform vanished and her robe reappeared. The transformation barely kept her decent and a light surrounded her that blocked a clear view of anything naughty. It wasn't so bright that someone couldn't watch the transformation though and wouldn't blind anyone. It just made it uncomfortable to look at certain areas of her body while they were exposed during the clothing transfer. Tsuki looked at her aunt again as it finished. “Now?”


“It's still cut. That's good. It would be awful if you had to have the same hair style all the time,” said the woman with a smile. “That would get really boring.”


“I kind of figured this was how it worked, but I wanted to make sure before I spent any money on getting it cut. I also didn't want to have to explain how it suddenly got long again to anyone who noticed.” Tsuki walked towards her room and waved over her shoulder. “Thanks for helping me with that. I'll probably go out and get it cut after I get changed.”


“All right,” said Gia with a smile. Almost as soon as the redhead's door closed a knock came to the door. She paused and blinked as she opened it to find a fifteen year old girl standing there with her hands behind her back and a grin on her face. She was Asian, Korean by the look of her and had a short haircut. She was wearing a white T-shirt with a halter top over it and a pair of jeans.


The girl looked up at her. “Hey. Is Tsuki here? You're her Aunt right? She said she was living with her Aunt.” She gave a small bow.


“That's right. You're a friend of hers?” said the woman.


“Sure. We met last night. She was hanging out in a lot next to my place when I ran into her. She said she was working on training,” said the strange girl as she looked pleased about it. “I'm Sooyoung, but everyone calls me Soo. Not Sue though, more “oo” at the end.”


“I'm Gia Mizura, her Aunt. She just went to get dressed. Come in and wait for her would you?” She stepped aside and invited her in.


“Thanks. You're pretty. I'm kind of jealous of this family,” said the girl with a small sigh.


There was a younger girl sitting at the table. She looked up and furrowed her brow at the new girl. “Who is that?” said the girl with a small snort.


“She's a friend of Tsuki's. She says they met last night,” said her Aunt. She looked at the new girl. “This is Tsuki's cousin, Kira. She's also staying with me. I'm her aunt as well.”


Soo nodded. “Ah. I thought she was her sister. They look a lot alike. You all do really. Not just because you're all Japanese I mean. Sorry, that sounded a bit like you all look the same didn't it? She's cute too though.”


“We get that a lot,” said the woman with a cheerful smile. “Have a seat.”


“That you're cute, or that you look alike?” asked the new girl with a sly looking grin.


“Both,” said Gia with out missing a beat. “It's harder than you think to be this pretty.”


“I like this family,” said Soo as she sat back with a grin on her face.


Gia looked over at the door. “It seems my niece is taking a while. Would you like something to drink?”


The Korean girl smiled and shook her head. “No thanks. I had like a half gallon of tea earlier today. If I didn't get to it, my brothers would have left a little at the bottom for me. I like to return the favor whenever I get the opportunity.” She looked about the house. “Nice place. You guys are living here now?” She sat down in the recliner and seemed pretty relaxed.


Gia nodded. “Yes. I'm a Doctor. I'm going to open a general practice clinic in the space below.” It was currently being worked on. There was bare drywalll erected in the space below, and the construction crew would be arriving in about an hour to start working again. Once the construction was finished, another crew would be coming in to set up the equipment for the office. It was currently sitting in a large self storage garage in town.


“Wow! You're like my mom's dream for me!” said the girl with a huge grin as she put her hands on her knees. “That's pretty cool though.” She was very excitable and talked easily it seemed.


“Is that so?” said the woman with a small chuckle. “You live nearby?”


The short haired girl nodded and smiled. “Yeah. Just down the road a couple of blocks. We've got an apartment where I live with my youngest brother and my parents. My two older brothers have a place right across from us. I'm the youngest though. It's kind of a pain, but not so bad. My brothers are all horny dorks. They were really excited to see you and your niece in the store the other day.” She paused. “Tsuki I mean, they aren't that perverted.”


“What's that supposed to mean?” said Kira as she walked over and leaned over the back of the recliner that the new girl was sitting in.


“I see your point,” said Soo as she smiled at her. “Still, it's a bit weird for an adult guy to go for a girl your age. Kind of illegal actually. Only one of my brothers is still a minor, and he's seventeen. I've seen their search history, and they aren't pedo or anything.”


Kira was annoyed, but not really upset. “What's taking her so long?” she grumbled as she looked towards her brother's door.


As if on cue Tsuki walked out of her room and looked out into the living room. “Hey. What's going on?” She was wearing a loose thin cotton dress that went down to her ankles and a top with inch wide straps instead of sleeves that showed off her bust without revealing any cleavage. Getting the bra on had taken her a while as she was still figuring out the hooks on the back and how to adjust things to fit properly. Her dress had a couple of pretty deep pockets where her wallet and keys were.


“Hello!” said Soo as she leaned around the chair to look at her.


“You didn't tell us you made a friend, Aneki,” said Kira with a smirk as she crossed her arms and looked like she was going to enjoy teasing her about it.


“Aneki? That's your family name?” said Soo as she looked thoughtful.


“No. Her family name is Hikari, Aneki is kind of slang for big sister,” said Gia as she chuckled and shook her head.


Tsuki rolled her eyes and looked a bit embarrassed. “It's what delinquents call girls in their gangs. She's saying I'm a thug, and not the rapper kind.”


“Are you a thug?” asked Soo as she leaned towards her a little and put her hand up next to her mouth to talk out the side of it.


“Yeah. Kind of,” said the other teen with a shrug. “Not the bad sort though. I'm brutish and strong, but not mean or anything.”


Kira hung her head. “You do know those aren't good things right? I can't believe you admit that.”


“You did spend a lot of time in trouble when you were in Japan, getting into fights and generally terrorizing the neighborhood,” said Gia with a heavy sigh. “You really shouldn't admit that so easily.”


“I was terrorizing the people who were terrorizing the neighborhood before I got there,” said Tsuki with another shrug as she looked at her aunt. “They always started it.”


“You were provoking them,” said her sister. “Don't act like you weren't picking fights. You just didn't hit first.”


The short haired girl nodded. “Ah, I see.” she seemed pleased to see her. “I hope you're not mad, but you didn't leave your contact information, so I decided to drop by and see what you were up to.”


“Nah. It's no big deal,” said the redhead with a shrug.


“She didn't mention meeting you when she came home last night,” commented Gia as she looked at Soo.


“Why would I tell you?” said Tsuki as she sat down on the arm of the chair next to her new friend.


“Are there many kids around here?” asked Kira as she leaned in towards the short haired girl over the back of the chair.


“Huh? Sure there are. There are a few boys and girls around your age. Go down to the lot down the road during the day and you'll meet them. They also hang around the basketball court a couple of blocks from here sometimes, but that's usually an older crowd.” Soo sat back and relaxed as she looked up at the younger girl. “There are a lot of families around here. Mostly low income.”


Gia smiled and nodded. “That's why I moved here. I'll probably mostly be getting paid by way of insurance, and can offer inexpensive basic care a lot cheaper than a hospital can. It's a family practice. I'm not running an emergency room or anything, and I'm not equipped to handle anything serious that requires a specialist. I'm hoping to become the primary care of most of the people who live around here. I've got a friend who is finishing up her residency who will be joining me once everything is set up. Plus I'll be hiring soon.”


“All that sounds expensive,” said Soo with a small gasp.


“You'd be right.” Gia smiled and looked a bit saddened and wistful as well. “I'd be drowning in debt right now if not for Tsuki and Kira's parents. They planned for the future and had life insurance policies and left us all with enough to get a good start here. Both of them have college paid for already.”


It made the Korean girl a little uncomfortable. “Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to bring that up.”


Tsuki gave a snort as Kira slid off the back of the chair and sulked a little. “Don't worry about it. It's nice that they took care of us that way.” She scratched at her head and didn't look sad or happy about it. “It was a car accident. Some drunk asshole t-boned the car they were in. He's in jail for most of his life and we still have family. We're luckier than a lot of other kids in our position.”


“Yeah, lucky,” grumbled Kira.


Tsuki shook her shoulder and looked at Soo. “What brings you by?”


“I was just wondering if you wanted to hang out? Maybe meet some of the other neighborhood girls. You're the closest one to me, but I've got a few friends that live a few blocks from me that hang out around the neighborhood,” said the Korean girl with a smile. She was glad to change the subject. Tsuki didn't seem to mind much, but her cousin was clearly upset. It seemed the same accident took both their parents away from them.


“I was gonna go to that place on the other side of that shopping complex where your family's deli is to get a haircut,” said Tsuki as she looked down at her friend. “You can come along if you want. I suppose I could use some advice.”


The short haired girl got wide eyes. “Not that place. It belongs to the family of this girl I know named Angieline and she's psychotic. She spends a lot of time there and I'd rather not run into her. Her family is nice enough, but she's a huge sociopath.”


“Huh? Where too then?” said the Japanese girl as she started towards the door.


Soo followed after her. “I know a place nearby. It's a bunch of crazy Vietnamese ladies, but they aren't evil incarnate.”


They walked down the stairs together and Soo was seeming more relaxed. Tsuki looked over her shoulder. “Sorry about my aunt. She's the dumbest smart person I know.”


“She seems nice,” said her friend.


“She's irresponsible and lazy,” said the redhead with a heavy sigh. “She can't even make toast without burning it and you'd think she was still in college the way she acts.”


“She sounds kind of fun,” said the black haired girl. Her hair had a slightly bluish tint to it in the sunlight. “My mom is strict and hardcore. I love her, but she's a pain to deal with sometimes.” She looked over and noticed Tsuki's face had fallen a little. “Oh. Sorry. I wasn't thinking when I said that.”


“It's fine,” said the girl. “It's been more than a year, and I'm not as sensitive about it as I used to be.”


“Change of subject,” said Soo as she raised her arm in the air with her finger pointed upwards. “What are you thinking about doing with your hair? It looks great as it is.”


“I'm tired of long hair. It takes for ever to dry and gets tangled too easily,” said her new friend. “I want to have it short again.”


“Seriously? Your hair is amazing!” said the Korean girl with a gasp. “You're going to cut it? I wish my hair looked half that good when it's long!!”


“Tired of dealing with it,” said Tsuki with a shrug. “I'll look amazing with short hair too.” It wasn't really a pleasant thought in her mind. If having shorter hair made her less of a babe she'd shave it off. She didn't think it would help though.


“It's annoying that you're right about that,” said Soo as she hung her head and pretended to look disappointed. She jabbed her elbow into her friend's side. “What kind of cut do you want?”


“Not sure. I guess pretty short, but not like a guy's military cut or anything.” Tsuki looked thoughtful.


“Huh? Like mine?” said Soo as she rubbed at her scalp. Her hair was about three inches long and spiked about her head in various directions. It looked a bit messy and had a bit of a shine to it because of the gel she used in it.


“Not sure. Like I said, we'll see when we get there,” said the redhead.


They walked along together for a short time with Soo excitedly making suggestions and Tsuki remaining uncommitted to anything. They arrived and sat in the waiting area. There was a section for getting nails done on one side of the wall, and the other side was a hair stylists wall with long mirrors, barber's chairs, and shelves of combs in blue fluid with scissors and hair clippers. There were several seated hair driers along the back wall.


“Help who is next?” said a Vietnamese woman who stood at a register. She smiled warmly next to a large shelf of shampoos and conditioners. “You want nails or hair fixed?”


“Haircut,” said Tsuki as she returned the smile. She wasn't so sure about it.


“Both,” said Soo with a cheerful grin. “I'll pay for getting our nails done.”


“Huh? You don't have to,” started the redhead looking to get out of it.


“My family is actually pretty well off. We could afford a better place than where we life if we wanted easily. It's close to the shop and convenient so we just stay there anyway. It was cramped at first, but now that there's just four of us there it's pretty comfortable. The building doesn't look like much, but it's pretty well kept up and everything works. Not many bugs either. We were poor when we moved in, but the Deli does good business and two of my brothers are on their own, with another one out the door next year. My parents have been putting money away for college since we were little, and they both have loans.” She pushed her from behind her back up the small set of stairs and into the area. “You get a haircut, and then we'll get our nails done together! It'll be fun!” She turned towards the stylist and picked up a magazine after Tsuki relented and stopped resisting. “Give her this style,” she pointed to a page inside and winked at the woman.


“Is short?” said the woman as she looked at the redhead's long hair. “Is sure?”


Tsuki couldn't see what the style looked like and Soo put the magazine down before she had a chance to catch a glimpse. “Yeah. Short. I'm tired of long hair,” she replied absently. “It's too much trouble.”


The woman nodded and seemed a bit confused. “Sure thing. Have good hair. It pretty long, but look good short too.”


Tsuki arched her eyebrow about an hour later and the woman had cut, dried, and washed her hair. She turned her to look in the mirror and the redhead put her bottom lip out a little and seemed thoughtful. Her hair was cut close to the back of her neck and left about an inch long on the back of her neck. The top part of her head had about four inch long hair that was rounded along the back and top, and long bangs framed her face on either side and covered about half of her forehead with an even line across the top. “It looks good.” She was a bit surprised at how she looked. It was neither a good nor bad feeling as she didn't want to look too good, but also felt that she was still uncomfortably hot.


“Good,” now we bleach, then color,” said the woman as she started putting clips onto her hair and pinned up the outer portion of her hair and bangs. She left the rest hanging and started setting up tin foil and a few powders and creams. She also pulled several strands out of the clipped hair and let them hang with the rest of it.


“Huh?” said the newly short haired redhead.


“It look amazing, yes?” said the woman cheerfully. She seemed pretty impressed at her work so far.


“Yeah. I guess so,” muttered the Japanese girl. She was a little worried, but decided to just go with it. The girl was wondering what she had gotten herself into.


It was another thirty minutes later when the woman had finished brushing a bleach solution she had made from a powder that she added a bit of water. She used a special brush and started with her roots and brushed down the hair while wearing plastic gloves. She then wrapped the segments of hair in tin foil and stepped back. “Okay, it dry now. You wait and don't touch.” She seemed cheerful and smiled at her. She set a timer for fifteen minutes and walked away leaving the redhead staring at her own reflection with pieces of metal hanging from her head. She noticed that Soo was sitting next to her with bits of metal in her hair as well. “You're getting something done as well?”


She smiled at her. “I got tired of waiting and decided to get some highlights.” She seemed pretty relaxed. “You look good by the way.”


“I look like I'm playing the Tin Man in a grade school production of the Wizard of Oz,” said the girl as she narrowed her eyes a little. It was obvious she was joking.


“Well, we all suffer for beauty,” said the girl. “This is like 40 volume developer. I think she's using a 30 volume for you.”


Tsuki had no idea what that meant and relaxed her eyes. She didn't want to know badly enough to ask, but figured it had something to do with the strength of the bleach. The timer went off and her hair was washed and dried again. “Now time for dye.” The woman was cheerful and seemed to be enjoying her work. She mixed a bowl of dye and had a brush in it. Tsuki was too busy looking at the yellowish strands of hair in the mirror to notice the color. The woman folded tin foil again and draped her hair over it before painting it with a bright purple dye. After she wrapped a dyed strand of hair, she pressed it down with a flat iron to even it out.


The Japanese girl was a little surprised at the color, but after about ten minutes the yellowish strands were painted and wrapped up in tin foil in several layers about her head. A half hour later they came off and another wash and dry was done. Tsuki had been there for about two hours at that point and her rear was getting a little sore. She could have walked around a bit but had opted for staying in the chair talking to Soo. The Korean girl was done first and simply sat next to her, it was a slow day at the salon so they didn't need the chair. There were platinum blonde stripes in her hair and it wasn't spiked anymore. The gel had been washed out and her hair was smooth and flat on her head. She had to get a toner applied to her hair as well after it was initially bleached to turn it platinum. There were a few other customers as well, and a few older women sitting in the hair driers in the back that were getting curls done. Everyone in the salon was Asian.


The woman smiled as she finished with her hair and turned her to face the mirror. “Looks good, yes?”


Again Tsuki was surprised. It did look good, better than she had wanted it too. She had purple highlights in her hair and the inside of her bangs was purple as well. It was mostly red as usual, but framed around her face accenting the long shape of her chin and cheeks. “Yeah. It's great.” It was also a hundred and thirty five dollar haircut. She could afford it and had two hundred in her wallet. It came to a hundred and forty after a tip. The woman who had done her hair told her that she needed to use conditioner regularly to help restore the damage to her hair the bleach had done.


“Come on, we'll get our nails done next,” said Soo as she dragged her over to a set of tables with different women sitting around them.


The pair sat with the women and both had their cuticles removed, their nails polished, and then painted. The whole process took another hour. Having the cuticles removed was the worst part as it left Tsuki's fingers a bit sore. The woman helping her had complimented her on her strong healthy nails and ended up putting a violet color to match her new highlights on her nails. The woman talked to her constantly, with Soo occasionally chatting with her. She didn't really need to say anything and ended up just nodding in agreement on occasion. Soo paid for the nails, but Tsuki tipped the woman who had done her nails herself. It was an interesting experience, even thought it was long and pretty boring overall.


She walked back towards her home and sighed. “Does it usually take four hours to go to a Salon?” She stretched her arms and popped her back. She had no idea what was normal.


“Not usually,” said Soo with a grin. “Its great to get pampered on occasion, but usually it's only a couple of hours. Unless you're getting something really fancy done or something,” said her friend with a grin. “You've never been to a salon before? They don't have them in Japan?”


The redhead looked towards the sky with her hands behind her head. “Never gotten my nails done before. I've gotten a haircut of course, but never anything like this. I'm kind of a tomboy and not used to this sort of thing.” She smiled about it. “Wasn't so bad.”


“Yeah. It was fun,” said Soo with a sigh. “You've never had your nails done?”


“No. Is that weird?” said the redhead as she looked at her with a playful grin with her hands still behind her head. She relaxed her arms and took a deep breath.


“I guess not. I mean, it's unusual, but a lot of girls our age haven't gotten a manicure before. The lady who did your hair is a friend of Mom's. I kind of got a discount on getting our nails done because of it.” She seemed pleased with herself over it. She assumed Tsuki meant that she'd never had a professional nail job before, not that she'd never so much as painted her nails.


“Well, I need to get home. I've got a shift at the shop tonight,” said the Korean girl as they neared her apartment.


“Yeah, thanks for coming with me,” said Tsuki. “I'd have had a fit trying to figure out what to do.”


Soo smiled at her. She assumed she meant she'd have had trouble deciding on a style, and not what she really meant by that. “Sure thing.” She paused. “Oh, do you have your contact info this time?”


The redhead blinked as she seemed to think about it. “Yeah.” She pulled her phone out of her skirt pocket and turned it on. “Here's my number and my E-mail.” She handed it over with the information displayed on the phone.


Soo smirked as she copied it down on her own phone. “All right, I'll call you later. I get off later this afternoon so we'll hang out or something.”


“Sure. I don't think I'm doing anything this evening, and it's going to be loud at my place because of the construction work. I'll probably want to get out of the house by then.”


OooOOooOO


Tsuki gave a heavy sigh as her aunt grabbed her by her shoulders and looked at her with wide eyes. The woman was grinning from ear to ear. “I knew it was a good idea to send her with you! You even got your nails done!” Gia grabbed her hands and gasped before pushing on her shoulder. “You got a manicure? Amazing!”


“Seriously?” gasped Kira as she jumped up from the couch and ran over to grab her brother's hand. “No way! You did!”


Gia looked at her nails. “They did a good job. You'll have to tell me about this place. I'll probably make a visit in a few days.”


“Me too!” said Kira as she looked up at her aunt with huge eyes. She paused and frowned at her brother. “Hey. You have highlights? Seriously?” The girl screeched. “You jerk! Obasan won't let me get highlights and you just go out and get some! No fair!”


“She spent her own money. If you want to save up and pay for them yourself instead of buying candy and manga you can get them yourself.” Gia smirked at her niece as the girl's face fell. “That's what I thought.”


Kira went back to the couch and grumbled as she turned on the television and pouted about it.


“I'm surprised at you,” said Gia with a chuckle.


“I got dragged into it and couldn't think of an excuse to get out of it,” said Tsuki with a sigh. “I wasn't expecting to spend that much money today. I'm not too bad off though.” Dante didn't spend a lot of money. He bought CDs on occasion and spent a bit on a T-shirt sometimes, but generally didn't blow his money on junk food, toys, or games. He liked to do things outside and spent a lot of time running about the neighborhood instead of sitting around playing games or watching television. Most of his allowance went to his savings and the most regular thing he spent money on was the occasional snack or drink when he was out. He usually had a few hundred dollars in his wallet and could afford a cheap but decent car once he got his license. Gia was talking about getting him his learner's permit once they settled. She wanted him driving, mostly because it would mean that she could just send him to the store to fetch things for her.


Kira on the other hand was terrible with money. Most of what she got ended up paying for her manga collection, junk food, or games. She also had a large collection of anime DVDs, but more recently she had cut back on that in favor of less expensive streaming services. She also had a few models and figures of characters she liked. She also had an assortment of games, but wasn't into them a whole lot. Most of what she had was related to series she liked. She also had a few boys love dating sims that she thought Dante and Gia didn't know about. They were mostly harmless games though and didn't get graphic, so they both ignored it.


Gia was just plain cheap. She'd spend as little as she could most of the time, even though they were pretty well off. Setting up the clinic had taken a sizable chunk of her savings, but she still had enough that she could take care of both children and retire without working if she was careful and didn't blow a lot of it. She didn't have to worry about paying for school for either one of them. His aunt sighed and put her hand on his shoulder. “Yes. Well it's a learning experience. Now you understand how we suffer for our looks.” She pursed her lips and turned away shaking while holding her belly.


“Is it really that funny?” grumbled Tsuki with a sour frown as she realized what was happening.


“Yes! Yes it is! You got highlights and a manicure!” She fell to her knees she was laughing so hard. “Oh man! This is great! Mr. Tough Guy got highlights and his nails done!” She fell over onto her side and kicked her legs. “Tee hee! I can't believe you let her drag you into that!”


Kira was scowling at him, jealous of him for getting highlights. “I hope your hair falls off!”


Tsuki hung her head and sighed as she turned away to go to her room. Her aunt still hadn't stopped laughing and her sister was being a brat. “I wish it would fall off. Then I wouldn't have to deal with this crap.”


OooOOooOO


Tsuki looked at her phone. It had started vibrating on her dresser and she slid to the end of her bed and sat on the edge and answered it. “Yo.” She brushed her hair off of her chin.


“Hey,” said Soo on the line. “What are you up to? I just got off of work.”


“Nothing much really. I'm just sitting around in my room listening to music.” She stood up and stretched her free arm.


“Really? What are you listening to?” said her new friend cheerfully.


“Metal Rain,” said the redhead. “They put out a new album this month.”


“Huh. Metal head huh? I like the lead singer of that band. She's pretty cool.”


“I like electric guitar, I don't know why,” explained Tsuki. “What are your plans? I don't know the area,” she rubbed her hand along Violet's back as she walked towards her door. The cat was curled up on top of the dresser. The animal shook her head and looked up at her giving a small mew


“Is that a cat?” said Soo on the other side of the line.


“Yeah. We've got a little short hair,” said the Japanese girl as she scratched the animal between the ear.


“That's cool. My Dad hates cats. He's not allergic or anything, he just doesn't like them.”


Tsuki gave a sigh. “I understand how he feels. This one is a huge pain.”


The girl on the other end of the line laughed. “Can we hang out? There's no one at home but my stupid brother. He's in his room looking at porn while my parents are out of the house. He's not smart enough to realize how obvious it is and it's awkward.”


“Sure,” said the redhead. “I've got nothing to do and need to figure out how girls are supposed to act.” She blinked as she realized she said that out loud. “I mean, American girls,” she quickly corrected herself and sounded embarrassed.


“Cool. I'll introduce you to some of the other girls in the neighborhood tomorrow or something. Everyone I know is doing something right now,” said Soo with a small sigh. She realized how that sounded and corrected herself. “I don't mean you were my last choice. I knew they'd be busy a few days ago.”


“Is something going on that they're all busy at once?” said Tsuki as she put her keys in her pocket.


“It's Sunday. They have church,” said Soo with a small sigh. “They don't have church on Sunday in Japan?”


The redhead didn't realize it was Sunday. “Huh? No actually. Well, Christians do. Most people don't really follow one religion over there. It's kind of strange to Japanese people that westerners only have one belief system.”


“Really?” said Soo. “Huh. Didn't know that.”


“Yeah. A lot of homes will have a Buddhist shrine in them, and the same family will perform Shinto rituals and even have western style weddings. In Japan most people kind of mix and match spiritual beliefs and just go with what suits them,” said the redhead. “Where should I meet you?”


“You know where the basketball court is?” said the Korean girl.


“I thought Sunday chruch was in the morning?” said Kira as she walked out into the hallway.


“There's evening services as well. Their parents all work in the morning like mine. Sunday after church is one of our busiest rushes. That's why I had to be there this morning,” said Soo.
Tsuki ran into her aunt in the living room and frowned. The woman noticed her and waved her over. “I'll talk to you when I get there. Obasan looks like she wants something.”


“All right,” said Soo. “See you shortly.” She hung up.


“What is it? I'm going out to research how to be a girl,” said the redhead as she walked over to her aunt.


She smiled at him. “You seem to be taking this to heart.”


“Not really, it's just easier to try and fit in,” said the teen with a small sigh as she suddenly looked a bit weary. “If I have to do this, I might as well figure out how to blend in as best I can.”


“So you're just using that girl then?” said Gia as she frowned at her.


“Huh? No. She's pretty cool so far. I wouldn't date her or anything, but we're getting along all right and she seems pretty cool. I'll probably make friends with her again when I'm a guy again if we get along.”


“That might be tougher than you think,” said her aunt with a small sigh. “Still, you're doing well and I'm proud of you for putting some effort into it.”


The redhead looked a bit shifty eyed. “I'm not perving out because of this or anything. It's weird, but I don't feel the same way about naked girls that I used to. I still like em, but they aren't as interesting since, um, “it” disappeared.” She seemed thoughtful. “Can't really explain it.”


“You can't get a boner anymore so your brain still has all the blood it needs,” said Gia with a small chuckle.


“Even I know it doesn't take that much blood,” said Tsuki with a small scowl.


“Yes. I know. I was joking, but that's pretty much what it is. You don't have boy hormones anymore, so that sort of thing doesn't affect you in quite the same way,” said the woman with an amused looking smile.


“Still think tits are awesome,” said the redhead with a shrug. “I guess I'm technically gay.”


“Well, it's a bit more than technically,” said her aunt as she leaned on the edge of the counter with her elbows resting on it. “You should be careful about who you say that to.”


“Why? Are they gonna beat me up?” said the girl with a mean looking smirk.


Gia considered warning her about fighting, but decided it wasn't the time. “It might make things more difficult for you than you think. People don't necessarily need to hit you to hurt you.”


“They can bring it on,” said Tsuki with a shrug. “What did you want? I'm supposed to be meeting someone.”


“Here,” Gia tossed a shiny brown leather purse into the girl's arms. It was wide at the bottom and had several pockets on the sides. It had a few brass latches and she could fit her whole forearm inside it easily by putting it in straight down or laying it sideways along the bottom.


“A purse?” said the redhead in confusion.


“Put your keys, phone, and wallet into it and start carrying it around,” said the woman with a shrug.


“Why?” said Tsuki as she seemed a bit annoyed with the bag. “Not every girl carries one of these things around.”


“You'll get used to it, and you'll start collecting stuff as a girl and need a place to put it,” said the woman. “Just trust me all right. It will make your life easier.”


“Don't you mean I'll spend half my life with my head in this thing looking for something?” said the redhead as she scowled at the leather bag in her hand. “I don't need this.”


Gia gave a heavy sigh. “Look. Just take it. You look bad with all that stuff in your pockets in that dress and it's pulling the waist down.”


Tsuki looked down and noticed that the back of her panties were showing as the dress drooped from the weight of her keys, phone, and wallet. “Crap.”


“You don't look weird without this, but no one is going to make fun of you for carrying it around,” said the woman as she turned the girl around by grabbing her shoulders and gently shoved her towards the door. “It's a matter of convenience and it will be easier to stash your stuff when you transform. I'm sure you've not noticed, but that outfit doesn't have pockets. If you transform with that stuff in your pockets it might damage it.”


“Fine. I'll try it then.” Tsuki tossed the purse into the arm chair and raised her hand into the air. “Henshin!” She spun around and floated in the air as the change took her over. As soon as the part of her dress that had the pockets transformed her keys, wallet, and phone clattered to the floor. “Son of a...”said the girl as she looked at them. Her phone had popped open and the battery had fallen out. “Fine. I'll take the stupid purse,” she grumbled as she picked them up and put the phone back together. It booted up and wasn't damaged. She shoved her stuff into the bag and transformed back.


Gia was leaning against the counter sipping on a mug of tea and looking smug. “Told you,” she said from behind her mug.


Tsuki gave her a angry looking glare and walked out the door with the bag hooked over her shoulder.


OooOOooOO


Soo waved her arm as Tsuki approached. She was leaning against the fence to the basketball courts with a spaghetti strap top and a denim skirt that went to her knees. “Hey!”


The redhead walked up and nodded. “What's up?”


“Not much,” said the girl as she stretched her arms. “Just watching some of the guys play basketball.” There was a group of about eight older boys playing on the asphalt court. They were engrossed in their game and a few had their shirts off. They were a mixture of races a couple of white boys, two hispanic guys, and about four black guys of various skin tones.


“This wasn't your plan was it?” asked the redhead.


“I figured we could talk while we looked,” said the short haired girl.


“You look, I'll talk,” said the redhead as she leaned against the fence and looked out into the street to watch cars pass by.


“Well, okay. The weather is getting cooler, this might be the one of the last times we see them play with their shirts off until next year,” said Soo as she hung off the fence by holding on with her fingers.


Tsuki looked at her out of the corner of her eyes. “I'm gay.”


“Huh?” said the short haired girl.


“I don't like boys,” said the redhead with a shrug.


“Wow. Just came right out and said it,” said the Korean girl with a rather surprised expression. “Did not expect that.”


“Yeah. I don't mind hanging out here so you can enjoy the view,” said the redhead as she looked at her. “It's no big deal. I get it and everything. Just not into that.” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder towards the group of boys.


“What are you into?” said her friend as she cocked her head. “Ideal woman and all?”


“I dunno,” she said honestly. “I mean, if I had to say. Probably boobs like mine and a bitchy personality.”


Soo laughed at that and shook he head. “You're serious aren't you?”


“Why wouldn't I be?” said the redhead with a shrug. “I've got nothing to hide. Besides, I told you how I deal with bullies. I'm not afraid of anyone giving me crap for it.”


“That's cool,” said the girl as she looked a little uncomfortable.


“I didn't tell you to ask you out. You're not my type,” said Tsuki as she noticed her discomfort.


“Okay. You need to meet my brother,” said the girl as she pulled on her arm. “You shouldn't be so blunt.”


“Huh? I'm not interested...” she started.


“I'm not trying to hook you up, just trust me,” said the girl as she pulled her towards her apartment.


OooOOooOO


“Great. My parents aren't home,” said Soo as she looked into her apartment door. They were on the second floor of a four story building.


The place was a little worn down, but clean and well kept. There was a couch and a small HD television on a stand on one wall. A dining room table was next to a small kitchen with a refrigerator a bit large for it. There was a closet with a washer and dryer inside of it at the back end of the kitchen. One of the two windows in the living room had an air conditioner in it. There were various Asian decorations, a South Korean flag on the wall and a calendar with Korean characters. There was a small hallway with four doors. One near the front of the hall that lead to the bathroom, and three more that lead to the bedrooms. One led to the master bedroom that belonged to her parents, and the other two rooms were hers and her brother's. “Nice place.”


“I've seen your place. You don't have to be nice,” said the Korean girl with a smirk.


“No, I mean it. I was expecting it to be a bit more run down. You made it sound worse than it is,” said the redhead with a smirk.


“In here,” said the girl as she pulled on her arm and dragged her into one of the doors.


Tsuki found herself in a small room with a bed in the corner. A pretty nice computer tower was under a table with a monitor, keyboard, and mouse on top of it. A dresser was at the foot of the bed, and the posters were covered in pictures of handsome men, boy band posters, and a few muscular guys in speedos. “This is your room? Not what I expected.” The desktop was on and had a body builder lying on his side with his cheek in his palm and a huge grin on his face.


“Where is Chul?” she muttered as she ignored her. The toilet flushed and the bathroom door opened in the hall.


A moment later a Korean boy of about seventeen walked into the room. He wasn't with his family at the deli the time she had gone with her family and she didn't recognize him. He was slim and tall, but had a handsome face. He was clean shaven and had brown eyes with a strong jaw and slick styled hair that was brushed back. “Huh? Sooyoung, what are you doing in my room?” He seemed to realize there was another girl in the room. “Who is this?” He seemed friendly enough and wasn't upset.


Tsuki leaned in towards Soo and put her hand up to whisper. “When you said your brother was at home looking at porn, this isn't want came to mind.” She was a little wide eyed.


Soo gave a heavy sigh. “I thought you two should talk.”


The redhead looked at him. “Um, I appreciate the sentiment, but just because we're both...”


Soo put her hand over her mouth before she finished. “She told me she was gay about five minutes ago.”


“I see. So she's your girlfriend? I never knew you had it in you?” The boy smiled and turned the computer chair in front of the PC around to sit in it. It was obvious to Tsuki he was teasing her.


“I'm not dating her! I like boys!” she snapped. She ran her fingers through her hair and looked frustrated. “She's from Japan, so I don't think she quite gets what just saying that can mean.”


Tsuki pulled the girl's hand off. “I know what it means. I just don't care.”


“Huh?” The Korean grl hung her head. “She said it out loud in front of the guys on the basketball court. I don't think anyone heard her, but she was careless.”


“You're worried about me?” said Tsuki as she seemed to realize what was going on.


The girl sighed and nodded as she sat down on her brother's bed. “Yes. Chul has to be careful when he goes out because people found out about him a few years ago.”


“Well, you guys can fight, right?” said Tsuki with a small frown.


“I never trained,” said the boy with a shrug. “I'm pretty fast and they can't catch me, but she's right. I do have to be careful or I might get attacked.” He gave a sigh. “I'm safe enough around other people, but I have to be careful if I'm on my own or if it's too late.”


“What?” said Tsuki as her jaw dropped. “You're kidding me? This kind of stuff still happens?”


“Yeah,” said the boy with a shrug. “It's a lot better than it used to be. I'm pretty safe and most people these days don't mind, but there are still a lot of people who will hurt me if they get the chance. Even if they won't attack me they sometimes won't serve me or say nasty things. It's not always easy.”


“Who hurts you? I'll take care of it!” snapped Tsuki as she stood up and cracked her knuckles. “I hate that sort of thing.”


The boy looked surprised. “Violence doesn't solve anything!”


“Tell that to Hitler,” said Tsuki. “It's not always the best solution, but sometimes it's the most effective one.”


The boy gave a sigh. “I'd rather not handle this that way. I'm fine.”


“How is being afraid to go out fine?” said the redhead as she calmed a little and sat down on the bed next to Soo. Her friend was a little wide eyed at her reaction. “I get that you don't like the idea of punching people, but that's the best way to handle a bully.”


The boy arched his eyebrow at her. “Is it? They're often abused children.”


“Yes. They learn that pushing people around is the best way to get what they want from their abusers,” said Tsuki with a smirk on her face and a dark look in her eyes. “The best way to deal with it is to push back. That requires a measure of force. Tormenting them is just bullying back, but putting a stop to them is doing them and everyone they hurt. They learn that there are people that they can't push around and that some people hit back. It makes them more reluctant to start pushing people around.”


The older boy nodded and looked thoughtful. “You've got a strong philosophy I see. You think that things can be made right by being stronger. The question is, are you right, or just strong?”


The redhead smirked. “The best way to close a dangerous path is to become a strong wall.” She leaned towards him and pointed at his forehead. “If someone tries to push me, I push back harder. People say that violence creates violence, but when applied correctly it can end the cycle.”


“You're an aggressive person,” said the boy as he leaned back and smiled. “I like you, but you seem like trouble.”


She relaxed and sat back on her palms. “You have no idea. I've got anger issues. I know it and I try to do something constructive with it. Any losers that try to attack me are gonna get hurt.”


“You can handle a group of eight strong guys on your own then?” asked the boy. “I'm not talking about skinny fat weaklings.”


“Easily,” replied the redhead with a shrug.


“Now I'm worried about her,” said Soo as she put her face into her palms. She was sitting back and letting them talk and was struggling to not interject.


“She must be worried. This is the longest my sister has ever been quiet when she wasn't sleeping in years,” said the boy as he chuckled and leaned back in the chair. It reclined a little and he rolled back to the wall.


“Crap,” said Soo with a small groan. “Chul, you know that Ki stuff Grandpa used to talk about?”


The boy looked at her. “Well, I know what you mean. I didn't train like you and Gun did. He used to mention it sometimes when he was talking to you two.”


“Well, she can do it, like for real,” said the short haired teen with wide eyes and a hushed whisper. “Seriously.”


The boy's eyes relaxed a little. “Seriously? Come on Soo. Don't be dumb.”

 

[Contrabardus]

“Hey. I'm not really supposed to tell people about that,” said Tsuki with a small frown.


“Sorry, you didn't say anything and did it right in front of me,” said the girl with a shrug as she looked a bit guilty.


“It's all right. He's cool I guess.” The redhead sighed and glanced at him. “I wasn't thinking when I did that because I was figuring something out and was paying too much attention to getting it to work.”


“Very funny,” said the boy as he looked a little less friendly.


“Can we show him? Please?” said the boy's sister.


Tsuki sighed and nodded. “Fine. Just this once though.”


The group walked out of the home and Chul stopped as he left the door. Another older Koran man was standing across the hall and frowned at him as he opened his door. He looked angry at the very sight of the boy with them. He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and walked into the apartment across from them.


Tsuki looked over her shoulder at Chul and frowned. “I see.”


“Sorry,” he muttered looking embarrassed.


“Why?” said the redhead. “It's not your fault he's a jerk.”


The guy looked surprised.


“That was Geyong. He's the middle brother,” said Soo as she pushed them along. “The only person he gets along with is my eldest brother Gun Hyeon.”
Tsuki looked over her shoulder and scowled at the door.


“Don't worry about him,” said Chul as he ushered them along.


The group walked outside and over to the lot between the apartments.


“So what's this thing you were telling me about. With the Ki and all?” He looked around with his arms crossed. It was a little cooler than it was earlier in the day, but not so cold that he would need to hold his arms to keep warm. He was nervous.


“Don't worry. You'll be fine,” said Tsuki as she looked over her shoulder. “Relax.”


The boy frowned at her. “Just show me so I can get back I've got some stuff to check online.”


Soo sighed. “Hey. Remember this?” she shifted side to side on her feet using her ankles to hop side to side a few feet in either direction.


“I wish I didn't. My feet were sore for a month because Grandpa made me do those stupid ankle exercises.” It was not a pleasant memory. The old man eventually gave up because of his lack of interest.


Tsuki sighed. “Fine. I guess I can show off a little.” She shifted a little on her heels. “Give me a moment to loosen up.” She wasn't hopping but was rotating them a little. “I get stiff if I just do it right off the bat.” She smirked and looked up and had her smile falter a little.


“Chul. What's this?” said a boy of about seventeen. He had his shirt off and a ball cap backwards on his head. He was white and had brown hair. ”Hangin out with girls? Not like you can do anything with em.”


There were three other older teens behind him. One was Hispanic and had slicked hair and a wifebeater T-shirt, he had a green bandanna tied around his arm up near his shoulder. The other two were black and wearing jeans without shirts. One had a ball cap on that was tilted a little to the side with a State University logo on it. He had his arms hooked over a wooden baseball bat. The other black kid had a ball and glove so he wasn't brandishing it as a weapon and they had just finished playing a game nearby. Probably in the lot they were standing in in fact. They had grass and dirt stains on their clothes and a looked dirty.


Chul was not happy and looked nervous. “Shit,” he muttered.


Tsuki looked on with her arms crossed and was still moving her ankles to loosen them up.


“Sup. Why you hangin around this fag?” said the white guy as he spread his arms and tried to swagger up to her. He looked her up and down. “A pretty girl like you. You should come hang around with us rather than stand around with this dick sucker.”


“I don't like that word, and I don't like people who use it,” she replied fearlessly. She was wishing one of the four douchebags was going to take a swing at someone. She was mentally willing it to happen as hard as she could.


“Get lost you jerks,” snapped Sooyoung. “You're not going to do anything with us standing here.”


“You sure about that?” said the black boy without a hat on as he bowed up at her. “Skanky ass bitch. No one gives a shit about yo flat chested ass.”


“What? Did you think I'd find you insulting my friends hot?” snapped Tsuki with pure rage in her eyes. She had her fist balled up and was clenching it hard enough to whiten her knuckles.


Chul noticed and started to move towards the back of the lot. The other side was open to the street as well, and the group of boys were barring his way back to the apartment. Tsuki reached out and grabbed his shirt. “Don't go anywhere. None of these guys is going to touch you.”


“That ain't for you to say,” said the Hispanic boy. He didn't have an accent and sounded like he spoke better English than the white kid did. “This faggot knows he ain't supposed to be out of his house. He knows what happens.”


“What happens? Does baby Jesus cry?” snapped the redhead as she glared at him. “You've got no right to tell anyone where they can go.”


“Freedom of speech, bitch,” said the white guy as he spread his arms. He shoved her in the arm. Her fist tightened further, but she needed more than that.


Soo pulled on her arm. “Just come on. We should leave,” said the girl. Chul was behind her.


“Should we?” snapped Tsuki at her. “I don't think we should. I think these guys need to take a long walk off a short pier and find something better to do.”


Both the Korean teens were pulling on her arms to hold her back.


“Let her go. What's she gonna do?” said the black kid with the bat. He took it off his shoulder and poked it at Chul's shoulder.


Everyone froze as the Japanese girl's hand cupped around the front end of the bat before it touched him. “You'd be surprised,” she said with a dark looking scowl as she gripped it hard. The boy tugged at it a few times and she twisted her wrist and jerked it out of his hand and tossed it aside with what seemed like a casual effort.


“You jerks are in over your heads,” she said simply. “Unless you want to do something besides pose and compensate for your tiny dicks by running your mouths, I suggest you find somewhere else to be.”


The lead teen looked around and brushed his hand over his head on his ball cap. He stuck his tongue into his cheek and nodded. “All right. C'mon.” He turned to walk away and waved for his boys to follow.


Soo and Chul relaxed and let the girl go. They gasped and jumped as the white kid spun around and punched at Tsuki. The girl stood there and looked at the fist that stopped an inch from her face. “Was that supposed to make me flinch?” She was as calm as death and the right corner of her lip turned up a little. “You couldn't break wind with that punch.”


The kid was enraged. The black kid without the hat was laughing at him and hooting in excitement. “Damn! Bitch burned you son!”


The other black kid pulled on his arm. “C'mon man. C'mon. She ain't worth it.”


The Hispanic boy looked largely indifferent. He had a somewhat surprised look on his face and narrowed his eyes. He started walking away and ignored the other two.


“Hey, where you going Hector?” said the teen that was laughing and hooting as he noticed.


“I got better things to do than play with a little girl,” he said as he looked over his shoulder.


The white kid scowled at his laughing friend and stood up and brushed off his arms as he scowled at her. “I better not find you alone.”


“Or you'll what? Pretend to punch me again?” said the redhead as he smirk turned into a full blown grin. “Get lost you pussy. You couldn't hit me if you tried.”


The kid's eyes become a bit bloodshot as his stare intensified.


Chul and Soo were behind her and looked a bit nervous by how she was acting. Soo was less worried about her than what she might do in the lot next to their house. “Just don't kill him, all right? Tsuki, come on. Just let them leave.”


Her brother looked at her with wide eyes. “Are you kidding?”


The angry white boy screamed and took a hard swing at the girl who was talking shit and embarrassing him in front of his friends.


Tsuki smirked and vanished from in front of his punch. He staggered towards the two Korean teens and felt the back of his pants keep him from moving forward. “I told you, you can't hit me if you try. You're too slow and weak.”


The kid looked over his shoulder where the girl was standing with her back to his back and her hand reached out behind her to grab one of the loops in his belt.


“Damn!” snapped the black boy in the ball cap. “Did you see that shit?”


“That's some Dragonball Z shit right there!” said the other boy as he stopped laughing and looked a bit wide eyed.


“Are you guys done? You can leave now,” said the redhead as she let go of the boy's belt loop as he regained his balance.


The white boy's hat had fallen off and he bent down to pick it up and dusted it off. He walked over to the wall to pickup the bat and started to walk away.


“You all right, Dog?” said the boy who was laughing a few moment's before. He looked a little worried about the white kid.


Once again the boy turned to attack the girl by surprise with the bat this time. He swung in a wide arc as hard as he could.


“Predictable,” said Tsuki as she simply reached up and caught it. “Did you think I'd be surprised?” She jerked her arm and it came out of his grip. She tossed it back over to the boy who had it originally and he caught it with a surprised look on his face. It was a light toss and he was in no danger of being hurt by it. She looked at the other boy. “I suggest you get your friend out of here before he does something stupid and ends up getting hurt.” She turned her back on him and walked towards her friends for a few steps. “One more thing, if I find out you're messing with my friends I won't be nearly as nice as I was this time.”


The other boy walked up and pulled the white kid back out of the alley. He didn't resist much, but the other boy had to struggle to pull him away. “Are you stupid? That bitch will kill you.”


The angry boy shoved him off and reached down to his ankle. Tsuki gasped as she looked over her shoulder as he grabbed something metal that was strapped around his lower shin.


The boy didn't even manage to get the weapon past his knee before he was in an arm lock. The redhead was not happy. “Oh no! You did not just pull a gun on me!” She backhanded him across the face and he fell to one knee. His arm was barred hard and he tried to turn her wrist to point it at her and get a shot off. “Dumbass,” said the girl as she forced the bar past it's limits and broke his forearm neatly.


The boy screamed in pain as the weapon fell from his hand . Tsuki released his arm and grabbed it by the barrel before it hit the ground. It was a thirty eight special and about the size of the boy's fist balled up. He tried to get to his feet and take another swing at her while she was distracted with catching the small revolver. She shifted out of his punch and put her knee into his chin. The boy landed on his back and writhed on the ground in pain. There was blood coming from his mouth and he clutched at his face.


Tsuki had her phone out and already had it against her ear. “Yeah. Some jerk just tried to shoot me. He's on the ground with a broken arm right now and bloody mouth. I'd appreciate it if you sent someone to pick him up.” She listened for a moment and the boy rolled over to try to crawl away. She walked over to push him to the ground by pushing him down with her foot. “Yeah. I'm the one who took the gun from him and put him in this condition. I can't guarantee he won't be even worse when you show up if he doesn't stop trying to get up and swing at me.” He tried to roll over and swing at her leg. She pulled her leg back and put her foot into his face before pausing and looking down at him. “He's got a broken nose now too. Hurry up, he keeps being stupid and trying to attack me.”


Soo and Chul were speechless as they looked on.


The teenage Korean girl looked at her brother. “I told you.”


He looked flustered and surprised. “Um, yeah.”


“Don't get too excited. Your brother is the one who called these jerks up,” said Tsuki as she frowned down at the white kid. He seemed to have lost his will to fight. “Isn't that right?” She gave him a light kick in the ribs.


“What?” said Soo in confusion. She sounded angry. “No way, he...”


“I heard him calling these idiots up on his phone when he slipped into his apartment after we ran into him on the way out. These jerks were playing ball in this lot. They hid out until we came outside and then came over to screw with your brother.” She was angry as well, but seemed to have calmed a bit after bringing down the gun wielding idiot.


“Gyeong?” said Chul in shock. “I know he doesn't like me much, but he wouldn't! Not with Sooyoung here!”


“So he would otherwise?” said the redhead with her eyebrow arched. “That's disgusting. Still, I'm sure of it. He told these idiots we were on the way down and had them wait for us. The jerk.”


Police lights became visible in the distance. “About time,” muttered Tsuki.


The kid on the ground closed his eyes and just gave up.


OooOOooOO


The police station was pretty slow. Sooyoung's family, the Moon family, were sitting at different desks.


Chul was talking nearby to a burly officer who's shirt was a bit too tight for him. He didn't seem to be enjoying it much though and just looked tired. “She didn't hurt him until he pulled the gun. I don't think she would have. He tried to hit her with a bat and she didn't hurt him then. She just caught it and gave it back to those other boys.”


Soo nodded from beside him. “Yeah. I've seen them around the neighborhood. They were jerks, but they didn't do anything. They tried to get him to leave and took off as soon as he pulled the gun. I don't think they knew he had it.”


Tsuki saw Sooyoung's father hovering protectively over their children. The eldest brother, the one who had spoken to her at the Deli was looking on at the scene from behind a small gate in a waiting area. His mother was next to him, and the father was behind the daughter and youngest son. The middle son wasn't there and had stayed home.


It was getting late and things were winding down. Gia was sitting next to her looking a bit tired and weary of dealing with the police. Tsuki was an adopted citizen who had been living in Japan for a year. The paperwork was still moving through the system and had complicated things. It was going to put pressure on her Uncle in Japan to get things done a little faster.


Things wound down at the station due to the witness accounts. There had been a few witnesses who had seen part of what happened that were going by on the street as well and they had been interviewed on site. Only the Moon's youngest children and Tsuki and her guardian had needed to come down to the station. The boy who attacked them was in the hospital, but no one seemed to think the red haired girl had done anything wrong. The evidence was against him and he was looking at a long sentence that would probably be shortened because he was a minor. He did have a small rap sheet, but it was all minor offenses.


They had tracked down the kids friends as well, and they didn't back their friend up. They were just as surprised as anyone else when he pulled a gun.


Tsuki and Gia walked out of the station together and the woman swatted her on the back of her head. “I can't believe you did this. You know you don't have proper paperwork yet.”


The teen looked very weary. “I know. I'm sorry but he pulled a gun. I wasn't worried about myself, if he managed to fire it it might have hurt Soo or Chul, or even the guys he was with.”


“You could have just beaten him up,” insisted the woman. “You didn't have to hurt him like that.”


“He was an assassin,” said the redhead simply. “He wasn't there to scare Chul. He was there to kill him. His friends didn't know about the gun. It was obvious they were freaked out when he pulled it out.”


The woman frowned at her. “Still.”


“I've got somewhere to go,” said the redhead as she turned away from her aunt. “I'll be back in the morning.”


“You need sleep,” said the woman as she reached for her arm. “You can't just run around doing anything you want. Do you have any idea how much trouble this is? We're gonna have to appear in court, and you're going to have to get your paperwork together before then. It's going to be a huge pain.”


“He'll plead guilty,” said the redhead. “Don't worry.”


The woman looked surprised and irate. “What makes you so sure?”


“Because the guy who hired him is going to make sure,” said the redhead. “I'm not getting any sleep until this is done. I'll see you later. It's important.”


The woman growled under her breath at how the teen was acting. “You need to realize I'm the parent here. You can't just do whatever you want. You put a lot of work at risk.” She grabbed her arm and turned her to face her.


The girl looked firm. “I have to do this. There won't be any trouble. I'm not going to get into a fight here. He needs to know.”


Chul looked on at the scene from a short distance away. The station was only about four blocks from the apartment and he had taken the small pea green scooter he owned to get there. The redhead broke off from her aunt's arm and walked away. “Where are you going?”


“To chat with your brother,” said the girl as she looked at him with a frown.


“What good do you think it will do?” he asked her.


“He didn't hire that guy to try and scare you straight. You know that right?” said the girl as she whirled around to face him with an angry frown on her face. She gasped as she saw the expression on his face. “You don't know, do you?”


“Look. I've taken a beating before. I guess he expects the gay to get beaten out of me. He means well, he just...”


Tsuki slapped him, not hard enough to hurt him, but it got his attention. “That guy was there to kill you,” she snapped. “Don't you get it? He's not trying to cure you, he's trying to get rid of you, permanently.”


“He wouldn't!” snapped the older boy. “Not in front of Soo.”


“You've been too careful, he got impatient and took advantage of the situation. He was desperate because you've been hiding and being careful about getting caught out in the open,” she hung her head and sighed. “I'm sorry. Your brother is dangerous. I'm pretty sure he's going to make sure his assassin pleads guilty to assault with a deadly weapon.”


“What?” The older boy looked upset. Tears started to run down his face. “That's not true! He wouldn't! He's my brother!”


“What are the local gang colors?” asked the girl as she crossed her arms and looked at him with hard eyes.


“Blue or green,” said Chul. He was upset and shook his fist at her. “He's not in a gang!”


“Really? Because the punk who was going to shoot you had a green handkerchief stuffed down the back of his pants, and he had a green one wrapped around his hand when he was on the phone. I noticed it when he opened the door to his apartment.” The girl stood and looked at him as if her face was made of stone.


“No, you're wrong,” said the boy with tears in his eyes. “He wouldn't!”


“Are you sure?” asked the girl in a calm and even tone.


He stood there for a long time with his head hung. “No.” He sat on the hood of the car he was standing next too. “Shit. I've known about the gang for a few years now. He was always angry and we got along until he found out I was gay. After that, he never tried to hurt me, he just ignored me. He stopped talking to me. He didn't care as long as no one else found out.”


“They did find out didn't they?” said the girl with a frown. She sat down next to him. “He's not going to stop trying until something is done about it. Especially if he thinks no one knows about it.”


“How did you figure this out?” said the older teen. “What are you, a Japanese Sherlock Holmes?”


“Naw. I can hear better than a normal person. I hard him talking on the phone inside of his apartment, and put the rest together. He mentioned initiation to the kid and told him if he did the job he was in. The green handkerchief they all had clenched it. Only the Hispanic kid wore his openly. He was probably there to verify as a member. I don't think his two black friends were involved.”


“Black kids wear blue. The Emerald Kings don't like it if you're too dark,” said the older boy with a heavy sigh. He was upset and things were starting to make sense. “We live in Kings territory.”


“Not anymore,” said the redhead.


“Huh?” said Chul as he jerked his head up to look at her.


“This is my neighborhood now,” she said firmly and clenched her fist. “I'm not putting up with this gangbanger crap where I live.”


“Hey. You might be pretty strong but this is different,” said the boy with a worried frown. “You'll be killed.”


“I'm not stupid enough to try and clean them out of town, but the neighborhood is done with this crap. I'll work something out.” She smirked at him. “Trust me.” She pushed off the car hood and started walking. “Don't worry about your brother. He won't be trying this again.”


“Don't hurt him,” said the boy as he jumped off the car. “Please. He's my brother.”


“I know. Don't worry,” said the girl as she vanished from in front of him in a quick blur of motion. “Huh. If I hadn't seen it myself I wouldn't believe it.”


OooOOooOO


“Hi.” Gyeong rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he opened the door to a cheerful looking Japanese girl. She had long pink hair and was wearing a schoolgirl uniform that was cut way too sexy to be from a real school.


“What is it? I've had a late night,” he muttered. He paused and reconsidered. She was pretty and looked to be about seventeen or eighteen judging from her measurements. “Sorry. Can I.”


“I'm hear to talk to you about you trying to kill your brother,” said the girl with a sweet smile.


The older boy's face fell. “Huh?”


“A little bird told me a girl from around here put your little pal in the hospital,” said the girl as she leaned against the wall next to the door and played with the buttons on his shirt. “There isn't much that happens around here that I don't know.” She flipped her finger up into his nose.


“Is that so?” he seemed cautious.


“Yeah,” she tilted her head and seemed a bit too cheerful.


“So what about it?” he asked her.


“Weeelllll,” she said as she put her finger into her cheek and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. The world became a blur for him and the next thing he knew he was looking down at the pavement from the roof of his home.


He gasped in shocked surprise and tried to yell. His mouth was filled with the tip of a boot. “Sssshhhhh! You'll weak everyone up. We're going to have a little talk you and I.” The small Japanese woman was holding him up by one leg with what appeared to be no effort


She took the tip of her foot out of his mouth. “You...you're...” stammered the man in shock. He was flailing his hands about and terrified.


“Yeah. I don't like murderers, and I like cowards who can't do their own dirty work even less,” she said as she knelt down and lowered him a little. “Now, we're going to have a little talk about how you're not going to do something so stupid again.”


The young man managed to reach into his coat and pulled out an automatic weapon. “Well, even if that stupid thing would hurt me, you might want to consider your position here.” She shook him a little by his leg as if to remind him that he was dangling over a ledge.


“Shit,” he muttered as he realized it himself.


“Not very bright are you?” she said with a giggle. “Now. You need to tell your friends that this is my neighborhood now. I don't want to see your little green friends around here. As long as the blue folks behave I won't bother them, but you're both going to learn eventually.”


“Who are you?” cried the man with a shaking voice from a mixture of anger and fear.


She let go of his leg and grabbed his shirt before he fell and pulled his nose up to hers. “I'm Laser Girl. Tee hee.” She looked very sunny as she said it. She tossed him over her shoulder and onto the rooftop.


He groaned in pain and rolled over. It took him a moment to regain his movement and he leaned against a small exhaust pipe and rolled onto his back with his gun in his hand. “You stupid bitch!” He raised the weapon and pointed it at her. He fired and she sat there with her legs crossed and ignored it. He pulled the trigger three more times and it was obvious that the bullets where hitting their mark. He didn't see any sort of impact though. “Damn sights are messed up.”


“You sure?” she asked as she pulled four bullets from her clothes and tossed them to the ground at his feet one at a time. “Seems to be working fine to me.” They were still rounded on the tip as if they hadn't hit anything at all.


“What the?” he said as he looked down at them. “Is this some kind of joke. You obviously had those on you and just palmed them after I missed!”


He raised his weapon again and glared at her. “Just die, you bitch!”


She shook her finger. “Tsk. All that noise at this time of night? How rude.” A point of light formed at the tip of he ringer and she pointed it at his weapon. A beam of light impacted the barrel and the weapon began to glow orange in an instant. The man dropped it and clutched at his arm in pain. The inner palm was burned and smoking a little. “Gah! Damn it!” He rolled around for a moment and looked up to see her standing over him.


She looked serious and scowled at him. “In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm just toying with you. You don't want to know what I can do if I get serious.” Her palm glowed with a pink light as she grabbed on to his hand. He screamed in pain as she clutched it. “Consider this a favor for passing the message along. Next time I won't be so nice as to fix you up and you'll have an excuse to wear this horrible looking rag on your hand.” She pulled the green handkerchief from his pocket and tossed it onto his chest.


He glared at her in rage. “What do you care about that faggot?” His face was red and spit flew from his lips as he snarled at her.


“I don't. You think this is about him? It's not. You tried to kill someone in my neighborhood. I don't care who it is. Not if it's your family or some stranger. You don't pull this shit in my neighborhood.” She leaned in and dug her fingernail into his chest as she poked him.


“You think this is your neighborhood?” he snapped as he gave a cruel laugh.


“If I'm standing on it, it's my neighborhood,” she said as she gave him a slap on the cheek. “If you don't behave, I might decide to stand on more of you and your friend's turf and there isn't a thing you can do to stop me.”


“You think they're going to stand for this?” he asked her as he shook off his hand and staggered to his feet as she backed away from him a little.


“I hope not. I like a good fight. I have my doubts you and your little boys club will put up much of one,” she said as she smirked at him and stood on the edge of the roof. “One thing you better be damn sure to remember. If you want to kill someone else on my turf, you'd better be sure to kill me first.” She jumped off the edge of the roof and the man looked on with wide eyes.


He rushed over to the edge and looked down. She was gone and there wasn't any sign of her anywhere. He looked at his hand and growled. His gun was damaged by the heat and warped so it was obvious that what had happened to his hand wasn't some sort of illusion. He was badly burned and she healed him with a touch. It was painful, but the damage was completely gone. “Shit.” He staggered back and went towards the roof exit and back to his apartment.


OooOOooOO


Tsuki frowned as she was lying on her back with her phone up to her ear. “I can't. I'm grounded.”


“Huh?” said Sooyoung on the other end of the line. “What for?”


“Beating the living crap out of that kid last night,” said the girl with a shrug.


“I guess. I thought it was pretty cool. I mean, he was scary and all, but it was kind of fun to watch you push him around. Even Chul thinks so.” She was sitting on her bed eating a red rope licorice whip and chewing on it. “Is it okay for you to be on the phone?”


“Yeah. I have to do something else stupid to lose phone privileges,” said the redhead with a small sigh. “I think she's going easy on me because we're new in town and you're the only girl I know right now.”


“That and you saved my brother,” said the girl. “He won't admit it, but he's grateful. He's complaining about how there was a way to do it without hurting anyone.”


“I don't know him that well, but it sounds like him,” said the redhead.


“Mom and Dad kicked Gyeong out today. He's already out of the house. I think Gun Hyeon threw him out too. I think Gyeong got into an argument with someone last night and Gun Hyeon overheard it. Everyone is seriously mad at him. I think you were right and that had something to do with those guys showing up last night when they did. He's always been a jerk, but I thought better of him than that.”


Tsuki gave a sigh. “Is that so?” she asked.


“My parents seriously want to meet you. They say you saved Chul's life and want to say thank you.” Soo sounded pleased and a little proud. “You're way more awesome than I expected you to be when I met you. I'm glad we're hanging out.”


“Yeah. You and your brother are pretty cool,” said the redhead as she rolled over on her bed and looked out the window. It was raining a little.


“Oh, get this. I hear Laser Girl had something to do with last night,” said the Korean girl as her voice became more excited. She sat up and hopped on her bed.


“Huh?” said Tsuki. “What do you mean?”


“Apparently she caught onto my brother's evil scheme and paid him a visit last night. Gun was talking about it. I think that's what he overheard. She came to squeeze him for information and told him she'd kick his butt if he tried to kill anyone around here!” She sighed. “I wish I could have seen it.”


“You like her or something?” said the redhead as she cleaned her ear with her pinky finger. She looked at it and flicked a small amount of wax from the inside of her nail. The polish still looked good and seemed like it was holding up.


“Of course! She's awesome! She can shoot lasers from her hands and she's super tough!” She was kicking her feet and seemed close to squealing. “I've watched that video like a hundred times. She's totally some manga star or something!”


“You think that bug thing was real?” said the redhead with a bit of surprise in her tone. Most people seemed to think it was some sort of special effect and promoting some unannounced movie or show.


“I dunno. She seemed pretty scary to my brother apparently. Gun seems to think it was real enough when he saw her last night.” Soo picked at her hair a little to play with the spikes from her gel.


“I guess,” said Tsuki.


“Really? What about you? Do you think she's real?” asked her friend in a playful tone.


“Sure, why not?” said the redhead. “I think that bug monster was real too.”


“Huh? Seriously?”


“Sure,” said the Japanese girl. “Why wouldn't I think a Kaiju was real? If I saw one I could run away screaming and fit in with the rest of my culture.” It was obvious sarcasm.


“Come on. Be serious. What do you really think?” insisted Sooyoung.


“To be honest, Soo, I'm pretty sure she's real,” said the girl. “Those schoolgirl uniforms had to come from somewhere, and there some obscure legends in Japan that say they didn't just pop up in the fifties and were actually based on something else. It's weird but there are legends of magical girls from before anime and manga were a thing.” She was smiling as she said it.


“Jeez, you're no fun. If you don't believe it just say so. I guess it is a bit silly, but who knows? Somebody scared the heck out of Geyong and sent him running. It apparently looked an awful lot like Laser Girl,” the girl gave a sigh.


“Who knows what it was? Maybe he was just being kinky or something and got caught?” She blushed as she realized what she had just implied.


“I doubt it with him, he's super conservative and creepy about that kind of stuff. He once said he'd kill anyone who touched me before I was married and then force them to marry me.” Soo sounded a bit annoyed by it.


“That's kind of a brother thing I think,” replied Tsuki.


“I was five,” clarified Soo.


“Oh. I see. Seems weird he'd turn out to be a gangster,” said Tsuki.


“Huh? How do you know about that?” said the girl on the other end. “I didn't tell you.”


“I'm the one who told Chul about it. I noticed a couple of the guys who were messing with us last night wearing colors and overheard him talking on the phone to them when we ran into him. He was letting the jerks know we were coming down. He also had a green handkerchief tied around one of his hands.” She sighed and rubbed at the bridge of her nose being frustrated with her slip up.


“Wow! You're like a detective!” said the girl. “Maybe we'll solve mysteries or something!?”


“I'm not. I just hear really well,” replied Tsuki.


“Wait!” said Soo as rummaging and the sound of dressers opening carried over the speaker. “All right, can you hear this?” It sounded like someone blowing into the speaker.


“What are you doing?” asked the redhead.


“It's a dog whistle! You can hear it can't you?” said the girl.


“I don't think the speaker in this phone can reach that frequency. Besides, all I hear is you blowing into the microphone,” said the redhead as she hung her head a little.


“Oh. Nuts. I'll have to try it the next time I see you then,” said the Korean teen cheerfully. “Oh, Chul sends his regards as well. I think he's a little bad that violence solved his problem after all that philosophizing while you were over.”


“Well, I wouldn't call it solved, just an immediate danger resolved,” said the redhead as she flopped onto her back again and relaxed.


Sooyoung sighed. “I hate to do this, but I've got to go. I'm meeting some friends today. I wanted you to come along and meet them this time too, but if you're grounded I guess not.”


Tsuki tried to sound more upset than she was. “It's all right. We'll do it sometime next week.”


“Well, I'll talk to you later then. I'll call later tonight.” She hung up.


Tsuki frowned as she tossed her phone down the mattress a little ways. “Man, that girl can talk.” He didn't really like talking on the phone much to begin with. It was better than lying in bed and listening to the sounds of the construction crew below. She closed her eyes and put her arm over them as she relaxed. There was a steady thump of hammering and muffled sounds of power tools, but overall it wasn't too loud. They were working on a part of the building that wasn't directly below her. It would take two more days to complete the work and it was looking mostly done. The biggest power drain would come from the X-ray machine they would have below. One of Gia's friends from school was a radiologist who would handle that part of the clinic. She had already finished schooling and was working as a barista in a nearby coffee chain until the clinic was open. She had never met any of the people who would be working there and figured she would soon enough.


She started getting a little introspective when she was alone, and given her current situation it was a bit annoying. She'd never had a friend like Soo before in more than one sense. She was a bit of an odd girl as far as she could tell. He'd also never been friends with a girl like she was friends with her. She'd only known her for a few days, but it was still a bit strange. She wasn't attracted to her, but still thought she was cute. She liked being around her even though she was often wishing she would talk less and be a little less excited. Before, outside of his family, he wasn't really very interested in any girl he wasn't at least a little attracted to. Soo wasn't ugly, but she wasn't a babe either. She was skinny and energetic and he likely wouldn't have even noticed her before he'd been turned into a girl. He would have been polite if he met her, but likely wouldn't have gone further than that.


Tsuki felt off and didn't know why. She had a week to spend inside and alone. She was lying there and trying to think and the pounding noises below were making things difficult. She had a bit of a headache and sighed as she lay there and frowned. “I dunno why, but I want some pickled seaweed.” She kicked off the bed and rubbed at her head a bit. The ache was small, but irritating. She staggered into the kitchen and sighed. She fumbled through the cabinets and found a box with katakana that said Su Konbu on it and rummaged through it to pull out a few strips of the snack and popped the end into her mouth and started sucking on it. It was very sour and she squinted her eyes a little as she chewed on it.


Kira walked out into the kitchen. “Huh? What are you doing?”


“Just wanted a snack,” said the girl with a shrug as she continued eating it.


“Is that pickled seaweed?” said her younger sister as she looked at the box on the counter. “You hate pickled seaweed.”


“I dunno, just had a weird craving,”said the redhead with a shrug. “S'no big deal.” She put the box back and walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of lemonade and poured a glass of it. She took both her snacks and her drink into her room.


“Okay, that was weird,” said Kira to herself.


OooOOooOO


Gia sighed as she looked over at her nephew. The teen was sitting with a frown on her face and looked uncomfortable. “What's with you?”


The girl seemed irritable and tired. “Leave me alone. I'm having a bad day.”


“You look a bit puffy,” said the woman as she poked at her cheeks.


Tsuki shoved her hand away. “I'm fine.” She had a huge zit on her forehead and one on the side of her nose as well. There were a few small ones on her cheeks and neck as well. “I feel a bit gross today.” She hung her head and sighed with her palm in her cheek.


Her aunt narrowed her eyes and let her be. “Something is up.”


Kira was sitting on the couch and turned back to look at her aunt. “You noticed too? Earlier today I found her eating Dried Pickled Seaweed with lemonade.”


“What? She hates Dried Pickled Seaweed. Lemonade too? She doesn't usually mind that, but it is a weird combination.” Gia looked thoughtful.


“She said she had a weird craving,” said her niece with a scowl on her face. “I'm suspicious. Maybe she's been possessed!?”


Gia gasped. “No, it's much worse than that!” She looked over her shoulder and frowned. Tsuki was leaning on the counter with her head in her arms. She gave a heavy sigh and looked miserable.


“No way! Him?” gasped the girl in shock as she realized what she meant. She scowled at her aunt. “You just had to pick now to ground her for a week didn't you!”


“She doesn't suspect what's wrong. We probably shouldn't tell her given the situation unless things get dire. She'll probably spend the whole week in her bedroom like you usually do.” Gia nodded and looked confident.


Unfortunately, that was not to be.


OooOOooOO

 

[Contrabardus]

Tsuki spent most of her week out in the living room. She was not the type to sulk and ended up looking frustrated and being short tempered. She jogged around the living room shadow boxing and made frustrated growling noises. She did get a little depressed, but it was usually short lived as the construction work below quickly grated on her nerves and brought her out of her funk and into a frustrated rage again.


About day three Tsuki was punching with bloodshot eyes. Her face was broken out and she was jogging in place in the middle of the living room. Gia could hear hardcore metal coming from the girl's headphones, much harder than she usually listened to. The guttural roar of a death metal lead singer could be heard softly as she walked by her in an area wide enough to avoid any errant punches. The girl's ankles were a bit swollen and her cheeks were puffy.


Occasionally she'd stop punching to thrash out some air guitar and growl. She was sweaty and hadn't showered in two days. She claimed she could hear the banging of the construction workers through the pipes and threatened to go down and murder them all if they didn't learn to build quieter.


Gia moved over to the phone and picked it up. “Please, please pick up.”


“Yo! Soo speaking!” said the girl's voice.


“Please call my niece. It's the only thing that calms her down and I can't take this anymore,” said the woman with desperation in her voice. Kira was holed up in her room, but she didn't think it would be safe for the workers downstairs if she left the girl unattended in her current state.


“Huh?” said Sooyoung in confusion. “What?”


“Please. She'll kill someone if she keeps going like this.” said the woman as she bent over the receiver and then hung up before her nephew noticed.


A moment later the teenage girl's phone rang. “Huh? Oh, hey Soo. What's up?” She walked into her room as calm as she normally was and closed the door.


Kira poked her head around outside her door and looked about. “It's safe?”


Gia flopped down on the couch. “She's talking to her friend. We should have at least a half hour.”


“Man, that guy sure is lucky she wasn't like this when she pounded him,” said her niece as she looked towards her brother's door.


“No kidding. Though, he had a gun so I doubt she'd have gotten in too much trouble,” said the woman with a sigh. She flopped her head back on the back of the couch and seemed to relax. “I hope this is over soon.”


“It'd be great if she could leave the house and blow off some of that steam. The construction isn't helping,” said Kira with a scowl.


“I can't. I have to follow through with this or I'll never be respected as a parent.” She hung her head between her shoulders and growled. “I won't break. Not even for this.”


Kira groaned. “She's the one being punished and we're the ones suffering. Not fair!”


“She's not having a great time of it either,” grumbled Gia.


OooOOooOO


“Hey, lay off your aunt will ya?” said Soo after a few moments of small talk.


“Huh? What do you mean?” said Tsuki in confusion. “I've barely talked to her this week.”


“You're freaking her out. She asked me to call you to calm you down. What are you doing to her?” said the girl.


“Nothing. Seriously. I'm just a bit stir crazy because I'm stuck in the house. I'm not bothering her. She's barely spoken to me, my sister is the same way.”


“That's because they're avoiding you. This is the third time she's asked me to call you like this to calm you down.” Her friend sounded like she was fussing at her.


“I don't get why. I'm not doing anything. The construction guys working is a lot of noise during the day and it's a bit annoying, but other than that it's been pretty peaceful. We're not fighting or anything. Seriously.” Tsuki looked a bit thoughtful. “I've been listening to music and working out mostly. I don't see why that would bother anyone. Not with all the construction noise already going on. It's no worse.” She was playing with her hair and twirling it around her finger as she said it. It was something she had started doing while she was grounded. “I don't get what the problem is.”


“Well something is up. Are you doing all right?” asked Soo. She sounded a little thoughtful and concerned.


“I dunno. I've broken out a bit and I've been feeling a little off for the past few days. It's nothing serious.”


There was silence over the other end of the line for a long moment. “Off? How?”


“I dunno. I guess I'm a bit uncomfortable and I really can't explain how.”


Another pause. “Like bloated maybe?”


Tsuki paused for a long moment. “Huh?”


“Your boobs are a bit sore, maybe a headache sometimes?” asked Soo.


The redhead was starting to get a bit uncomfortable about the conversation. “Um. So?”


“Is this your first time?” asked the girl with a small sigh.


“My first time for what?” asked the redhead in confusion.


“Your first period,” said the Korean girl. “Seriously? You're like fifteen and this is the first time?” She paused. “Sorry, that didn't sound the way I meant it to. I'm not making fun or anything. It's a bit unusual for it to take this long though.”


Tsuki was quiet and a bit shocked. The color had drained from her face and she glared at the phone. “Huh? No!”


“It's all right. It's obvious you don't know what's going on. Just relax. I won't say anything to anyone.” She took his rejection of the idea as embarrassment about it. “Geez, you live with a doctor and she didn't explain this to you?” She sighed again. “You'll be fine in a couple of days to a week, tops. Try to keep calm. Once you start bleeding the symptoms will go away.”


“Wait. You're saying Obasan is avoiding me because I have mega PMS?” Tsuki rubbed at the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes.


“Yeah, basically. It's seriously your first time? Sorry. I'm a bit disappointed in her for not saying anything.” The girl sounded a bit annoyed with the woman.


“She had a good reason,” said Tsuki with a small sigh. It made sense, as much as she hated to admit it.


“What's that?” said her friend.


“It's hard to explain,” said the redhead. “Just don't worry about it. I'm fine, they're the ones freaking out.”


“Seriously? What is with them?” said the Korean girl.


“They're afraid I might kill someone. They're right about that,” said Tsuki as she looked up at her ceiling. She put up her hand and spread her fingers apart to look at them.


“Okay, that doesn't make me worry less,” said Soo with a bit of confusion in her tone.


“It sounds worse than it is,” said the Japanese girl. “By kill I mean slap around until they are nearly dead. I really can't kill them in my position.”


“Well, I admit it was irresponsible of your aunt to not say anything, but still...” Soo was getting a bit wary of her friend.


“I don't mean my aunt or my cousin,” again she had to catch herself before she said sister. She was getting used to it and it was the first time it had happened in a while. She couldn't tell her it was the cat. “The construction guys have been making a lot of noise, and it's been driving me up the wall.”


“Oh. They're doing their job, so you shouldn't be mad at them, even if it is annoying,” said the girl.


“Thanks for calling. I think I'm gonna take a nap now,” said the redhead.


“All right. Take it easy all right? It's not as bad as you think.” Soo seemed to relax a bit as it seemed Tsuki had calmed a bit. “I'll talk to you later.”


“Yeah. Later,” said the redhead as she hung up. She kicked off the bed. She opened the door to her room and stepped out into the hallway. Kira and Gia were sitting on the couch. She looked at them both. “Where is the cat?”


“Huh? Why?” asked Gia as she looked away purposely.


Kira slipped away and went behind the couch.


“You know why. This is her fault and she must suffer.” Tsuki scowled at her aunt. “I want her to pay.”


“She doesn't remember!” said Kira from behind the couch. “Leave her alone!”


“I don't think that matters,” said the redhead with a furious frown on her face. Her fists balled up and her muscles clenched.


“That's why I didn't tell you about this,”said her aunt with a frown. “If you still want to torture her for something she doesn't even remember when you're done PMSing, I won't stop you. However, you should bear in mind that she might remember and that it might affect her decision to change you back when the time comes.”


The redhead frowned at her aunt and narrowed her eyes. “Fine. She lives for now.” She glanced over her shoulder. “I will have my revenge though.”


Both the women backed away a little from her gaze. Gia let out a sigh of relief. Her symptoms were never all that serious, but she was going to have to learn how to handle them better. It was probably aggravated by the construction work going on and the fact that she was stuck in the house and grounded. She seemed to switch from depression to aggression unusually quickly, even for a woman dealing with her monthlies.


“At least she knows what it is now. We should have told her sooner,” said Kira.


“I wasn't so sure I could talk her down from trying to kill Violet,” said the woman with a shrug. It would have been easier to explain after the worst was over, and she'll probably be more reasonable next time. The racket from downstairs during the day and the stress from being grounded and not realizing what it was probably made things worse.” Gia relaxed on the couch. “I'm still not sure she won't flare up again and start trying to find her.”


“Where is she anyway?” asked Kira.


“I'm not telling you. You'll give her up if she threatens you in a heartbeat.” Gia closed her eyes. Tsuki would probably be all right once she had a bit of time to think about it now that she knew what was off about her. She probably wouldn't take it well at first. It was one more part of her manhood that was gone. The cat was in her bathroom under lock and key in a cat box. She had food and water and probably wasn't too happy, but was taking it quietly. It was for her own safety even though she did feel a little bad about confining her that way even when it was a problem she caused to begin with.


OooOOooOO


Two days later Tsuki was lying on her bed. It was the last day of her grounding. Her face had cleared up and she felt less bloated, even though she wasn't completely better. There were periods in the week where she was fine and pretty normal, but they were short lived and fleeting. Most of the time she felt at least a little scummy. She had started taking showers again and the construction would be finished in a few more days. She just stared at the ceiling and glared. She had stopped listening to death metal, it had lost it's appeal, and no longer had a strange craving for Dried Pickled Seaweed. The grungy feeling was still there though, just not as bad as it had been.


After a long moment of lying there frowning, she realized that her train of thought had stopped moving. The redhead was unsettled and felt a new type of uncomfortable. She couldn't quite place why. The girl shifted about and realized that a certain area of her body felt a bit cool and moist. Her eyes went wide as she realized this. “Uh oh,” she muttered. She sat up and frowned as she hiked her skirt up and looked at her crotch. “Shit.” There was a large wet spot of red on her panties and a stain on the inside of her skirt. “You have got to be kidding me.” She growled as she glared at it.


A moment later she stood in the bathroom staring at the back of the box she had pulled out of the bottom of the sink. She stared and stared at it for a long moment and then pulled one of the thin plastic wrapped objects out of the inside and looked at it. “I can do this. It's just a natural thing that shouldn't be happening to me.” She felt like crying and the corners of her lips quivered a little as she looked at it. She opened the wrapper and pulled out the plastic insert and stared at it. “This sucks.” After looking at it for a few moments, she spent another fifteen minutes looking at the directions on the box. She was burning them into her memory to make damn sure she didn't shove it into the wrong spot. She looked at it again and walked over to the toilet. She grabbed a wad of toilet paper and shoved it into her panties and pulled them up. With the plastic insert in her hand she walked back into her room and sat on her bed again. She pulled her laptop onto her lap and opened it up. “Let's see. How to use a tampon,” she said aloud as she did a quick search. There were several links, but the top one was from the company brand of the one she had in her hand. “Hmmm. There were pictures and she peered over them. “I hate this so much,” she grumbled as she frowned at it. She went over it a few times and finally stood up with a huge sigh. She dropped her panties and took out the tissue. It stuck a bit but she used it to wipe some of the excess off before she made her attempt.


Finally she squeezed her eyes shut and bent her knees a little before reaching the little plastic object down between her legs. “Thiiiiisssss ssssuuuuuucckssss!” She bit the bullet and put it in. It was relatively painless and went in easily. She followed the instructions and pulled out the slightly bloody empty plastic part and tossed it into the waste basket by her bed. “Oh God! That's gross!” She shuddered and tossed in the bloody toilet paper as well. With a huge sigh she took off her skirt and put on a fresh pair of panties and a denim knee high skirt. She looked at the clothes on the ground and sighed. “Now what?” With a sigh she decided it was best to wash them quickly and picked them up in her arms.


She stepped outside her door and froze. Gia was standing there looking at her door with a grin on her face. “What are you doing?”


“Nothing,” said the girl as she clutched her dirty clothes. “Just need to wash some clothes.” She didn't look her directly in the eye.


Gia sighed and held out a container of Meat Tenderizer. “Mix some of this with some cold water and make a paste. Use cold water or the stain will set and never come out. Rub it on the stains and let it sit for about a half hour. Rinse it off the clothes and then wash them after.”


The girl had a heavy blush on her face and looked a bit wide eyed. “Um, how did?”


“Are you kidding? You spending a half hour in the bathroom and running about like you've been in a panic? Of course I noticed,” she said with a heavy sigh and shook her head. “I figured it would be today or tomorrow since your PMS has calmed down anyway. I know what's going on, so it wasn't that hard to figure out. Just relax. You should have come to me for help.”


“I figured it out on my own,” said the girl with her head hung.


“I know. You didn't have to though,” she said as she lifted up her chin. “Change that in about four to six hours. Depending on how heavy your flow is.”


“How heavy my flow is?” said the girl in confusion.


“How much blood is coming out. You'll figure it out pretty quickly.” The woman rubbed on her head and smiled gently. “I'm sorry I didn't explain sooner. I was a bit worried about what would happen to Violet if you figured out what was going on too soon. You were stressed out and in a bad environment. I probably should have let you go outside, but I thought it was important that I stick with the punishment. I have to be a parent, even if it's unpleasant.”


The redhead nodded and looked a bit sullen about it. “Sorry, if I was a pain.”


“It's all right. The fact that you have super powers was a bit worrying. It's not your fault though.” She chuckled. “You became a real super bitch for a while there. Literally. I'm proud of you though. Considering the situation you handled it pretty well. I get the feeling I didn't though.”


Tsuki had a few tears running down her cheeks. “I hate this. This shouldn't be happening to me.”


The woman sighed. “I said pretty much the same thing when it happened to me.”


“You weren't a guy to begin with. I don't know how to handle stuff like this,” said the teen as she sniffed.


“Neither did I when it happened to me,” said the woman. “It was scary and everyone acted like I should be proud of it.”


“I'm not afraid, it's gross and irritating. I don't like it because I'm a guy. I was supposed to get out of this crap just by being born a guy,” she wiped her nose with her forearm. “I know that sounds selfish, but it's true. I'm not a girl. I shouldn't have to deal with this girl stuff. It doesn't feel right to be in this body, everything is strange and feels weird.”


“That doesn't sound as different from being an actual girl as you think, especially one going through all these firsts,” said the woman as she put her arm across her shoulders and shook her a little. “I mean that too. You're doing well. A lot better than most people in your position would be.”


“I dunno, I think I know a guy who might like it more than I would,” said Tsuki with a sad sort of smile.


Gia smiled at her and shook her again under her arm. “I guess I know what's for dinner tonight.”


OooOOooOO


Tsuki was in the fifth level of hell. She set out dinner and sat herself down in her chair with a scowl on her face. She had a bit of a breakout on her face and there was a zit on the center of her forehead, and another on the side of her nose. She had been using cleaning pads, but a few were still breaking out. It wasn't nearly as bad as when she didn't shower for a few days, but still lingered.


“What's with her?” asked Kira as she leaned in towards her aunt. Her brother looked a bit puffy about the cheeks and neck.


“Her special friend finally came to visit for the first time!” said the woman as she whispered back.


“Wait, what?” responded the girl quietly. “That Korean girl? That was a couple of days ago.” She had a wry grin on her face. Both of them were teasing the former boy.


“Why are you whispering? I can hear you both.” said the redhead as she put out the plates with dinner on them on the table in front of her relatives.


“What's this?” said Kira as she looked at the meal set out before her.f


“It's a special occasion!” said Gia with a grin on her face.


“Obasan made me make it for dinner,” said the redhead as she glared at the plate of beans over rice.


“It's red beans and rice,” said the girl. “Last time we had this was when I had my first period. I guess we're at the end of the road then?”


Tsuki was simply glaring forward and not looking at anything with her spoon gripped tightly in her fist.


Gia nodded and leaned in towards her niece. “Leave her alone dear. She's never had to deal with this before. She'll be fine, but it's best to just let her be for now.”.


Both women backed away from Tsuki as she gave them both an evil looking glare. She was feeling better, but was tired of dealing with their teasing and still wasn't feeling quite right yet. Gia decided to pick up her plate and move to the couch. “How about we put on some television while we eat!”


“Good idea!” agreed Kira as she followed her example.


The teenager decided to enjoy the solitude and ate in peace.


OooOOooOO


Tsuki was free from her grounding and it was getting late in the evening. It was the day after and was still feeling a bit weird. She had a mild cramp when she had woken up and her aunt had given her a bit of medication to deal with it. It had subsided and she was feeling better. She had a small pill container that had a few doses just in case. Her aunt had told her no more than one every four hours, and that she likely wouldn't need them all. She had only taken one other while she was out that day. She was going back home with Soo walking with her and had spent most of the day hanging out with her and her brother. Chul was a nice guy and she liked him. They had spent most of the day in his room watching funny videos and watching a movie about two gay cowboys. It wasn't a bad film, but did make her a little uncomfortable in some places. They had twisted her arm about it and she just relented, and ended up getting more into it than she expected. It was roughly nine at night and they were walking down a block that had businesses that had all closed a couple of hours before. Both sides of the street had businesses like plumbers offices, exterminators, and repair shops for appliances. The area was vacant at that time of night and they were the only two people there.


“Hey,” said the girl as she poked her in the cheek to get her attention. “Feeling better?”


The redhead looked a bit embarrassed as her cheeks flushed. She put her hands behind her back and looked away. “Yeah. Sorry about that.” Soo had insisted on walking her home. It was a short trip so it wasn't that big a deal, probably forty minutes both ways if she took her time both ways.


“Was that really the first time?” said the short haired girl as she walked up beside her.


Tsuki almost decided to pretend to not know what she was talking about, but it was pretty obvious. “Yeah. Kind of,” she said with a blush. “Obasan says it was worse because I was cooped up and because of all the construction racket. Sorry for the trouble. I was a little crazy because of it and wasn't thinking straight. She says all the stress I've been through the past couple of years probably had to do with why it didn't happen until now. It's not a big deal to me to be honest. I just wigged out because conditions were about as bad as they could be for it to happen.”


“Obasan is your aunt? I've heard you call her that. I thought her name was Gia?” said the girl. “Her family name or something?”


“Obasan means aunt, or an older woman in general actually. Gia isn't her name though, it's just a nickname she picked up when she was a kid. Gia means Gear. Her real name is Gena. No one calls her that though.” Tsuki shrugged at her questioning look.”I don't know why that's her nickname, no one ever explained it. Even her Mom calls her that.” She sighed. “It sucked being grounded, but I'm kind of glad she suffered with me. That sounds mean, but it's partly her fault things got as bad as they did.”


“I'm surprised she didn't just let you go,” said the girl. “You didn't really do anything wrong. I mean, you saved my brother and everyone knows what a tool my other brother was. Dad was pretty mad at him, Mom too. I don't think he's gonna be around for a while” She shoved her a little with a playful push. “If he had really done it and they found out, they never would have forgiven him. He'll probably be able to get Mom and Dad to forgive him if he apologizes and seems like he means it after a while. Well, Dad anyway. Mom has been mad at him for a while now and they haven't really talked in years anyway.”


“I think Obasan was trying to be firm with me because she's new at being a parent,” said the redhead with a sigh. “We both suffered because of it. I'm not mad at her anymore. I was stressed out enough and telling me about it would have made it worse.”


“Why?” said the girl in confusion.


“It's complicated. I'm kind of a tomboy,” said the redhead as she glanced at her out of the corner of her eyes. “My family are pretty much the only girls I ever really hung around with before.”


“Oh. I see. So, I'm like your first girlfriend?” said the short haired girl with a grin on her face as she leaned into her.


“Well, girl that's a friend, yeah,” said Tsuki with a nod.


“So, you've had a girlfriend before?”asked Soo with as she cocked her head and leaned towards her.


“No,” said the redhead as she frowned at her a little.


“How do you know you're gay?” asked her friend. “I mean, you've never tried it?”


“How do you know a frozen turd on a stick doesn't taste amazing? You've never tried it right?” said the redhead as she grabbed her by her shoulder and pulled her close. “Maybe you should try it once, just to be sure?”


“Okay. I see your point,” said the girl as she looked away and seemed a little annoyed. “Still, how do you know?”


“How do you know you're not gay?” asked the redhead as she shook her by her shoulder. “I mean, you look at a guy and just know that you're attracted to that right? You don't have to make out with him to find out or anything.”


Soo shoved her off lightly. “Fine. I get it. I'm just teasing a little.”


“I know, so was I,” said the redhead as she seemed to cheer up.


Soo froze and lowered her gaze. “Shit.”


Tsuki noticed and looked ahead. “What? What is this guy gonna do?”


It was the Hispanic guy from the night before. “Hey.” The boy gave a nod and walked up to them. “What's up?”


“Considering your company last time we met,” said Tsuki as she stood between him and Soo.


“I ain't got no beef with you,” said the boy. “I was just there to observe, had nothing to do with anything.”


“That so? Still don't see why I should pretend to be friendly,” said the redhead.


“I hear you got a friend,” he said as he walked up. He didn't seem threatening and was pretty relaxed.


“A friend?” asked Tuski.


“What's he mean?” asked Soo from behind her back. She noticed the girl had moved up to bet between her and the guy.


“Yeah. Some lady with pink hair and a bad attitude,” said the boy with a shrug.


“I don't know who you mean,” said the redhead as she narrowed her eyes. “I'm new in town, and the only lady I know is Sooyoung's mom.”


“Really? That ain't what I heard,” said the boy as he looked over his shoulder. “This chick shows up and beats up one of my boys, hangs him from a roof, and messes him up real good. Funny how that happened right after his little job got messed up by you.”


“It was outside in plain sight. Anyone could have seen that,” she replied with a shrug.


“Well, how about we see what happens then?” said the boy as he frowned at her and spread his arms to lean in a little.


Tsuki growled, there was a white unmarked van rolling up down the street behind him at a slow pace. “Kidnapping? You're dumber than I thought.” She put up her fists.


“Don't make this difficult,” said the boy as he narrowed his eyes at her. “You come with us, sit around quietly until your friend shows up. After that, if you behave you go free.” He pointed at her. “You make trouble, and we'll have a little fun with you and your friend before.”


“That was exactly the wrong thing to say,” said the redhead. The van pulled up and four guys in masks jumped out. They were burly and older, probably adults in their early twenties. They had on black shirts and leather gloves. Before they had even landed on the pavement Tsuki had vanished and appeared out of nowhere with her knee in the forehead of the Latino boy. He landed five feet away on the pavement on his back and his head bounced on the concrete.


Soo gave a yell and spun into a kick that bounced the guy closest to her into the side of the van and he crumpled down and took a moment to shake his head. One of the men picked up a hunk of concrete from the side of the road that weighted about fifteen pounds and threw it a the Korean girl. Rather than dodge she spun on her heel and trust her heel into it with a high kick. The hunk of stone shattered and flew apart from the blow. She set her foot down and frowned at him as she hopped in place with her fists up. “I doubt I'll get in trouble for beating the crap out of these dorks.” The guy's arms dropped and he backed away a little and reconsidered attacking her.


Tsuki hooked her foot into the back of one of the men's knees and pulled enough to get it to bend. She used the force of her pull to put her elbow into his nose and his head dented the side of the van before he slumped down onto the concrete.


The last man had a firearm in his hands. It was a Russian made assault rifle without a stock. He pulled back the lever to cock the weapon and was about to train it on the redhead as she put his companion's head into the side of the van again with a quick kick. The girl noticed and growled through her teeth as she shifted towards him and seemed to vanish and reappear in front of him. The weapon was pointed upwards and her knee was in his crotch before he realized what had happened. She gave a hard jerk and took the weapon from his hand as he fell to his knees before turning into a kick that caught the side of his head and sent him into the brick wall of the building next to them.


The last guy was a bit stunned. He put up his hands and took a couple of steps back. Tsuki noticed in the last step that his weight was shifted forward a little, he was planning on charging her if she lowered her guard to let him go. The Japanese girl tilted her head and worked her jaw as she noticed it and hit him in the face with the handle of the weapon in her hand by holding the barrel and using it like a mace. “Assholes.” There was blood seeping through his mask as he ended up flat on his back on the ground with his face turned sideways. She kicked sideways and broke the leg of the guy who was getting up from the side of the van just as another of their attackers landed on his back on the pavement from behind her.


Soo rubbed her thumb down the side of her nose as she walked up next to her. “What is this about? Why are these guys bothering us?”


Tsuki didn't reply and walked over to lift the Hispanic guy off the ground by his shirt. She held him up by his collar with his feet dangling off the ground. “Listen up, loser. You need to understand one thing right now. I am a badass bitch all on my own. I don't need any help from any pink haired “friend” to take care of myself. If you mess with me or my friend again, I will break every bone in your body and then hand you over to the police. Is that clear?” She was drooling a little through her teeth as she growled the words at him and shook him against the bricks a little as she said it.


The unfortunate gang member had his hands up and his face turned to the side with his eyes closed. “I get it!”


“Good, because next time I won't be nearly as nice,” said the redhead as she dropped him. He slid down the wall and ended up on his rear and put up his hands to cover his head. “You got a problem with this pink haired chick you're talking about, you take it up with her. Don't make me regret letting you live.” She shoved the side of his head with her foot in a light kick that was meant to intimidate rather than injure. “I had every right to kill you this time. Next time I'll exercise my right to stand my ground on your dumb ass.”


Soo was looking on as this happened and had a huge grin on her face. “You are seriously awesome! Bad ass bitch is right!” She was hopping with excitement and Tsuki grabbed her arm to pull her away from the mess.


Tsuki was looking over her shoulder as the Hispanic guy fumbled about on the ground. She was halfway expecting him to pull out a gun and try to shoot them in the back. She was ready to be back in his face the moment he tried and had the muscles in her feet and ankles ready to spring.. He glared at them and turned to run off. The other guys were starting to recover and were climbing back into the van again. Tsuki's angry glare faded a little and confusion took over. A shadow appeared over the van, and it was growing larger. One of the guys looked up as he noticed it as well and fell flat on his back while shielding his face with his arms.


The Van was crushed under a huge brown mass with spikes of hair poking up from it. Two leathery wings folded and then spread as a high pitched screech filled the air.


“Crap,” said Tsuki as she staggered back a step.


“Whoa! What the hell is that?” said Soo as her eyes grew wide. The guy who had spoken to them was running down the street ahead of them looking over his shoulder as he did so as he sprinted away.


The thing's head snapped up to look at him and a bit of drool fell from it's jaws onto the pavement beside the crushed remains of the van. Two large round ears were perked up over it's head as it set itself.


“Aw man,” said Tsuki. She shoved Soo into an alleyway and charged after the thing. “Henshin!” she said under her breath as she vanished in a flash jump.


“Hey!” cried her friend as she landed in a heap of garbage bags. It was gross, but she wasn't hurt. “Tsuki?” said the girl as she looked around. “Hey? Where are you?” She was a bit annoyed as she staggered out of the alley. “What's the big idea pushing me in there and running off?” She got a little wide eyed at what was left of the van and the people inside of it. There was a mangled mess of metal with an arm hanging out of it. It was obvious no one inside had survived. One of the men in masks was cowering against the wall and sobbing to himself while shielding his face with his arms. He was curled up in a ball and was clearly terrified. She ignored him and ran down the sidewalk a little ways. “Tsuki? Where are you?” She looked down the road and got wide eyed. “Whoa! Awesome!” She didn't want to get any closer and hung back to watch.


OooOOooOO


Tsuki scowled as she saw the creature ahead of her. It was bearing down on the unfortunate gang member. He had tripped and rolled over onto his back to put his hands up as he looked on in horror at the fang filled jaws that were bearing down on him. The monster that was charging him suddenly fell from the air and hit the pavement jaw first. He looked up and got wide eyes. There was a woman standing on top of the thing's head with her feet driving it into the ground. She flipped off and landed in front of him. “Get lost. This is my problem.” He stayed in place just staring at her for a long moment. After that he scrambled to his feet and started running. She frowned at the monster and cracked her knuckles. The visor predicted its power level as about two thousand.


The pink haired magical girl frowned as the monster looked past her and started moving after him again. “Hey, where do you think you're going ugly?” It was the first time she'd gotten a good look at it. The thing was about twelve feet long and looked like a monstrous bat. It had human like hands at the top of the middle of its wings with six inch claws, and two large horns protruding back from the top of it's head, several smaller bone spikes were running down the back of its jawbone. The thing had two foot long fangs eye fangs and the rest of it's teeth were foot long fangs. The whole beast was about twelve feet long and it looked dangerous and hungry. The claws on it's feet were as long as its fangs and carved gouges in the concrete of the sidewalk easily. She balled up her fists and scowled at it. “I'll be your opponent.”


The thing snorted at her and simply flapped its wings to try and go over her. She gave a rough snort and balled up her fist. “No you don't!” she snapped angrily. She pulled her arm back and thrust it out with her palm open as it tried to fly over her about six feet above her head. A beam of light shot from her palm and took it in the shoulder. The thing screeched and rolled in the air from the impact as it came down again about ten feet behind her. It pushed itself up on its hands and shook its head before turning to look at her with its teeth bared at her. “That's right ugly, the only one you need to pay attention to is me.” Drool fell from between its teeth as it growled at her.
The redhead clenched her fist and put her foot back to set herself. “Come on!”


It roared and charged at her snapping with its jaws at her position. She vanished and appeared over it's head with her arm cocked back to strike. She never got the chance to strike before the left wing swung up and knocked her out of the air. She hit the ground on the opposite side of the street in a wide and grassy median between two roads and rolled for several feet and ended up flat on her belly . Her head raised up and she pushed herself to her feet. “These things are smarter than you'd think.” It rotated its body to face her and screeched again in a short burst. It was staying on the ground and crawling about on all fours. “That's weird.” She recalled that her beam had knocked it out of the air, but that on it's own didn't seem to be the issue. It would have an advantage in movement above her and didn't seem to have any trouble falling from high enough to crush a van almost flat. “What's it up too?” It crawled across the street slowly and stopped on the edge of the grass with its rear hanging out into the street. It had a long whip like tail that put large dents into the cars parked on either side of where it crossed as it whipped back and fourth.


She brushed herself off and frowned at the thing as it stayed where it was and waited on her. She started moving towards it and growled at the back of her throat as she cocked her arm back and dashed forward with flash steps again. She became a blur and vanished before appearing in front of the monster's face with her punch ready and charged with energy. The monster kept its eyes on her and dug its claws into the ground as she vanished.


The monster's face moved faster than it should have been able to and it was looking at her before she could react. It's mouth was open and she was thrown out of her attack and rolled across the grass again It was screaming at a pitch high enough to shatter any windows nearby. Glass on cars and buildings broke as it focused its cry on the girl who was laid flat on the grass. She clutched her head and covered her ears as she struggled to her knees. “Damn it!” She couldn't hear the sound of her own voice and couldn't focus enough to even stand under the assault. Her hands were all that were keeping her eardrums from bursting and she felt her teeth shaking in her jaw as she clenched them. The beast swiped its wing as it stopped screaming at her and she took a hard blow to her chest and flew back into the passenger door of a parked car on the other side of the street. The vehicle door dented a foot and a half into the vehicle and she yelled in pain as she slumped down inside the caved in metal. “Crap. This thing is a pain.” It crawled across the ground towards her and raised its hand into the air and slashed down with its claws at her.


Tsuki managed to roll aside, but the car had four deep cuts in the dent she had made with her back. She stumbled and rolled to put some distance between them as the bat monster turned to face her. “This isn't good.” She opened her hand. “Wand!” The mental mace like wand appeared in her grip and she clenched it. She stood tall and spun it around her palm. “All right, let's see if this stupid thing does any good.”


The monster hissed at her as it's wings spread open and it reared up taking in a deep breath with its lower claws dug into the ground. It was preparing the scream attack again and looked like it was putting more into it.


Tsuki focused her energy into the end of the wand where the heart was and set her foot back. “Crap.” The beast hit the ground and gripped it with its front claws and opened its mouth to scream at her again. This time a visible shield of pink energy appeared in front of her from the front of her wand. She felt her feet slipping as the air pressure from the sound pushed her back even with her protection. It was still loud, but not painful. Her ears would be ringing when it was over if she could hold it off, but she'd be able to attack while it recovered. The scream came to a stop and she had been driven back about four feet leaving gouges in the dirt from where her feet were dug in. She yelled as soon as the pressure let up and thrust the wand forward. A beam of light larger than the ones from her hands blasted from the front and the monster shifted to the side, it wasn't enough to avoid it and it roared in pain as the left side of its face was left smoking. It writhed in pain for a moment and clutched at the wounded spot with its hand. Tsuki narrowed her eyes and jumped at the monster to take advantage.


The beast snarled as it moved forward as soon as she left the ground. She wasn't sure what happened, but when she got her bearings she was punned to the ground under the monster's claw as it loomed over her with its fangs bared. The thing's face was half gone down to the bone. It's eye and part of its forehead were blackened bone and burned flesh. It pushed down on her chest hard enough to keep her from breathing and intended to smother her on the ground. It hissed at her as she struggled to take a breath. Tsuki knew she was in trouble, she had dropped the wand and couldn't speak. She closed her eyes and concentrated as hard as she could. The monster growled at her and opened its mouth a little. The girl's hands snapped up to grab around its wrist while glowing with pink power. The beast roared in pain as it reared up on its hind legs and shook its paw off. The short fur around it's wrist was burned away and the skin was blackened and pink. She flipped over onto her feet and couldn't push herself back into a jump to avoid the monster as it came down because she was still out of breath. She started to raise her arms to block the impact but the monster flew backwards as something glowing with a golden colored light impacted the center of its chest and sent it flying back. “Huh?” She looked up and blinked as she realized what she was looking at. It was Soo, and she had golden arcs of energy flowing up and down her forearms and arcing across her fingertips. She stood there looking at them with wide eyes and seemed surprised. The visor indicated her power level was eight hundred and fifteen.


OooOOooOO


Soo looked on as Laser Girl fought the giant bat monster. She was in a bit of a state of shock. The monster was not some special effect created on somebody's computer, and it wasn't a puppet. It was a real beast that was over ten feet long and fighting a girl of about eighteen to twenty years old from the look of her. She managed to help the jerk escape and ended up in the median between two streets that moved in the opposite direction. It was a couple of blocks from her apartment and she could see it from where she was. She should have run home, but couldn't. Seeing the pink haired girl made her feel strange. It wasn't sexual, but seemed to pull at her.


The monster screamed and glass instantly shattered all around them. The range was limited to about a block, but it was loud and terrible sounding. She covered her ears and staggered back a little from it. She couldn't take her eyes off the fight. The monster had the girl on her knees. It got a good hit in while she was recovering after the noise stopped and wrecked someone's car pretty badly. It slashed at her with its claws and the woman dodged. The magical girl seemed to summon something into her hand and the monster prepared another scream. “No way!” She covered her ears, but it wasn't as loud from where she was standing as the other one was. It was more focused and directed at the pink clad woman. She had some sort of shield erected between them that took the brunt of the attack and blasted the thing in the face with a beam of light as soon as it finished screaming. “Yeah!” she pumped her arm and moved a little closer by jogging without thinking about what she was doing.


The monster surprised the girl a moment later and pinned her to the ground with its paw. She seemed to be struggling and was trapped. The wand she was using vanished as it fell out of her hand and she had her arms spread out and closed her eyes. “No!” She started running and pushed herself harder than she ever had before as she charged the monster. She flew into a kick and saw a flash of golden light as she slammed into the center of the monster's chest. She had been aiming for its head, but it had suddenly gone upright. She landed and saw that its wrist was injured and looked burned. Then she realized what she was doing and got a little wide eyed as she looked up at it. It was looming over her and staggered back clutching its injured paw. She looked down at her hands and noticed the energy moving up and down them. “Huh? What is?” The monster roared and slashed down at her and she put her arms up defensively. When she looked over her arm to see why she hadn't been hurt, she got wide eyed again.


Laser Girl was standing with her wand in two hands. The center of the mace like weapon was holding back the monster's claws as it pushed down on her with all of its strength. “Don't let your guard down in a place like this! Back up!” She narrowed her eyes and pushed up with all of her strength and the monster landed flat on its back. It writhed around for a moment and the pink haired girl appeared in the air over it with the weapon in her hand swung back behind her. She thrust it down as he fell and another beam of light erupted from the front and impacted on the ground. One of the wings had a huge burn in the membrane, but the monster had managed to role aside. It hissed at her in rage and she landed in front of it. “You there. Raise your arm into the air and say Henshin!” she called to Soo.


“Huh?” said the girl as she looked at the monster with wide eyes and took a step back. She looked a little shocked. “What? Which arm?”


“It doesn't matter! Just do it!” snapped the redhead. She had to be sure. She raised her wand over her head and backed a little closer to the girl. She was making sure the monster kept its attention was focused on her.


The Korean girl frowned a little. “What does that even mean? Henshin?” She gasped as the word left her mouth and staggered back as the blue energy crawled up her arm and seemed to eat through her clothes. She kicked her feet and realized that they weren't touching the ground and spun around. “You pervert!” snapped the girl as she landed thinking her clothes were gone. She looked down at herself and was wide eyed as she found herself with long white gloves and a gold colored pleated miniskirt with a pair of gold thigh high boots. “Whoa!” She was promptly knocked off her feet and rolled across the asphalt on the road as the monster hit her with its good wing. “Ouch,” she muttered as she picked herself up and found herself surprisingly unharmed. Her belly was a bit sore from where she had been hit, but she wasn't scraped up from landing on the road.


“I told you not to let your guard down,” said Laser Girl with a smirk on her face as she spun her wand around her palm and pointed it at the thing. Soo was a little surprised that she looked younger up close. She was about sixteen or seventeen it seemed. A buildup of light formed on the tip of the wand. “It's been heavily damaged. Bet it can't dodge this one.” She acted like she was going to fire it held it over her head before swinging it in a wide arc. The monster jumped to the right with the uninjured wrist and Tsuki shifted at the same time. She was expecting it to try and use flash movement to get out of the way of the attack and that it wouldn't try to do it with its injured wrist. She'd figured out that the clawed feet were being used as an anchor and that it was moving about using the hand like paws and its wings. This time the beam took it right in the center of the face and the girl screamed as she put more power into it as soon as she saw that it hit. The beast screeched a final time and a large hole was burned into the center of it's forehead. A split second later part of it's back melted off and it slumped down as the beam erupted from its back and impacted the brick wall of the building behind it. The beam left a burn mark on the wall, but didn't damage the building.


The very pink girl looked over her shoulder and let go of the wand letting it fall away from her grip and vanish. “Hey. We should talk.”


Sooyoung was very wide eyed and nodded. “Um, yeah.” She looked at her hands. “What is this? How did you do this to me?”


“Follow me,” said Tsuki with a small chuckle. She jumped away and Soo followed her a little clumsily. She was staggering after her first big jump and scared herself half to death doing it. She wasn't expecting to go so far when she pushed off the ground after the girl. “Whoa? This is cool!” she managed after she recovered. She was still in a little bit of shock. A moment later she landed next to the super hero on a nearby rooftop.


Soo was the first to speak up. “What did you do to me? This is coo? Is it temporary, or do I get to keep it!?” It was obvious she was hoping for the latter.


Tsuki crossed her arms and cocked her head. “I didn't do anything. I just told you how to put on your uniform. You already had that power.”


The short haired girl looked confused and worked her mouth open and closed a few times. “Huh?”


The pink haired girl nodded. “Yes. You're one of the Brave Warriors. There are three others that I haven't found yet. You have some powers without that outfit, but it acts as armor, so you shouldn't fight without it.”


“Seriously? I get to keep this?” Sooyoung was very excited. “Awesome! Wait until I tell Tsuki about this!” She gasped. “Wait! That's right! We got separated.” She seemed to think about that. “Actually, she pushed me to safety and ran off. Crap. I hope she's all right!” She turned away and went over to the edge of the rooftop. “I'm sorry. I've got to go find my friend and make sure she's all right!”


“She's fine,” said the pink haired girl. “That thing only killed the people in that van. No one else was hurt, not even that jerk that deserved it.” She sat down on the ledge with her legs kicked over the side of the roof and looked up at the moon. “Relax. I've got some stuff to tell you about. It's important, and your friend is just fine.”

 

[Contrabardus]

The girl looked a bit wary. “Are you sure? You're not just saying that?”


“Henshin,” the pink haired girl put her arm in the air with a smirk on her face. About three seconds later a short haired redhead with purple highlights was sitting on the edge of the roof. “Pretty sure.”


Soo's arms dropped to her sides and her jaw dropped. “Tsuki!?”


“Yeah. Sorry,” said her friend with a nod. She looked like she was enjoying herself.


“You're Laser Girl?!” gasped the short haired girl as she fell to her knees. She looked quite shock and her eyes got wider and wider as more and more seemed to make sense.


“Hey. Quiet down would you. You can't go around telling people about this.” The Japanese girl waved her over and patted the spot next to her. “Come on. I've got a lot to explain.”


“So, um. Laser Girl? Really? You're cool and all, but that name isn't that great,” said Sooyoung as she seemd to get her wits about her.


“At least I don't look like a Super Saiyajin,” said Tsuki as she narrowed her eyes at the girl.


“Huh?” said Soo in confusion.


Tsuki rummaged around in her purse and came up with a mirror.


“Hey. When did you get that back. I thought you dropped it with me in that alley,” said her friend in confusion.


“I used flash steps to grab it while you were still figuring out how to move like that,” said the redhead with a shrug.


“Whoa!” said Soo as she looked at herself. She had golden hair that was hanging back over her head as if it was brushed back. It went down to the base of her neck and she had two small strands of hair that hug below her temples in front of her ears. “That's me?”


“Blonde is a good look for you,” said Tsuki with a giggle. She became self aware of how she had laughed afterwards and looked a bit embarrassed about it.


Soo didn't seem to notice. Her outfit looked like Tsuki's wth a large collar that hung down her back, crystal with a lightning bolt symbol in it, and a pleated skirt, but where Laser Girl's were pink, hers were gold. “Wow. Not sure I like this color.” “What's with this visor?” It was covering her eyes and looked like it was gold tinted in the mirror. It didn't distort the color of her vision though and looked like it was clear from the inside. “Weird.” She could see pretty clearly despite the lack of light around them.


“We don't get to pick. Do you think I'd be in pink if I could?” asked her friend with a small disappointed sigh.


“Bummer,” said the golden haired girl. “So my powers still work even if I don't look like this?”


“Sort of. They're stronger in that form and you're a lot tougher,” said Tsuki with a shrug. “It also protects your identity. It's not perfect, so don't go saying anything stupid or transforming in front of people.”


“What's the deal with this anyway?” Soo looked at her hands and the gloves on them.


“I'm not sure, but we've got to save the world from monsters and pretty boys. It kind of sucks.” The redhead put her chin onto her knee as she pulled it up and held it with her arms.


“Pretty boys?” said the Korean girl in confusion.


“Yeah. I ran into an evil jerk who looked like he was in a boy band or something. He was pretty strong and got away though,” said the redhead with a nod. “It sucks, but we don't have much choice as they're destroying the world or something. We're pretty much the planet's only defense from what I hear.”


“Wow! Like an anime or something! I hope we have a cool theme song! I like something upbeat and snazzy! Sung by Megumi Hayashibara!” The girl was almost bursting with excitement. “It would suck if we got canceled halfway through our run though. I hope we reach our ending.”


“What are you talking about?” said Tsuki with a small frown on her face as she looked at the girl.


“Dude! Seriously? There is no way this isn't some manga or something. I hope if we're an anime there aren't a ton of filler episodes,” said the girl with a wistful sigh.


Tsuki put her face into her palm. “Why would this be an anime? We're in America. This isn't some television show, it's real life.”


Sooyoung looked at no one gave a nod and winked with her thumb up. “Right.”


“You're so weird,” said Tsuki as she turned around and stood on the rooftop again. She brushed off her rear.


“You've got no room to talk. You're a lesbian, tomboy, magical girl ,who dresses in a pink sailor fuku and beats up monsters with a gem encrusted heart shaped wand!” She looked a bit annoyed. She lost that train of thought as another came up. “Do I get a wand too?”


“I dunno. You've got to figure out how your powers work on your own,” said her friend as she turned around. “We should get going. It's getting late.” She pulled up her phone to her ear. “Hey. It's me. I'm gonna be a little late. Yeah. Some giant bat thing tried to kill me and Soo.” She paused and listened with a small wince. “She's fine. It took care of it.”


“Who are you talking to? Your secret boss who gave you magic powers?” asked the golden haired girl as she leaned in.


“Yeah. I found another Brave Warrior by the way,” said the red haired girl as she twisted her finger in her other ear to clean a bit of wax out. She looked at it and used one of her nails to flick it away. “Sooyoung.” She paused again and listened. “Glad you're so happy about that. Yeah, we're both fine. I'm gonna take her home.”


“I'm supposed to take you home,” said the girl with a small frown.


“We need to talk to your parents. It's almost eleven,” said her friend as she looked at her.


“My parents will kill me!” she gasped and suddenly lost all of her cheer.


“You'll be fine. I'm going with you,” said the redhead as she put her hand on her shoulder.


“Yeah. You can vouch for me right? We'll just tell them about those kidnapping jerks and how the monster...” She lost steam as she spoke. “Waaaah! My parents are going to kill me! They'll never believe any of that!”


“You'd be surprised,” said Tsuki under her breath.


OooOOooOO


“You'd better have a good explanation for why you're so late,” said the firm looking woman who met them at the door of Tsuki's apartment.


“She does,” said Tsuki from behind her.


The woman was very round. Her face was almost a perfect circle and she had her hair permed in a puffball like ball. She was a bit on the hefty side, but looked surprisingly strong and firm. Her face had a scowl between two puffed out jowls. She looked at the redhead. “You're her new friend? I am not certain I'm pleased with your friendship if this is a result.” She smirked at her fearless expression. “I'm grateful for what you've done. We've not spoken directly yet. It will have to be another time as it's very late.”


“It's not her fault! Really!” said Sooyoung as she looked afraid and cowered under the woman's gaze.


“Your father is beside himself in worry! Come inside, you can speak to your friend tomorrow,” said the woman as she reached for her daughter's ear.
Tsuki intercepted her hand. “We've got something important to discuss.”


The woman arched her eyebrow at the girl and got a cruel looking smile. “Huh. You're a very brave girl. She is my daughter and won't be harmed. She just knows that I'm not pleased and is acting accordingly.”


The redhead gave a nod. “I'm not protecting her because I think you'll hurt her.” She gave her a cool stare. “Do you know what a Brave Warrior is?”


The woman's eyes got wide. “What?”


“Hey, quiet about that!” snapped Soo as she looked at her friend.


Soo's mother looked at her daughter and pulled her hand back. She opened the door all the way. “Inside. It seems we do have something to talk about.”


“Huh?” said the frightened girl in confusion.


“Come on,” said Tsuki as she pulled on her shirt and into the home.


“I am Areum Moon, you may call me Mrs. Moon,” said the woman. She was stern but seemed polite. She motioned for them to sit at the table.


Both girls did so and the woman went about making tea. After a few minutes of awkward silence where Soo was trying to figure out what Tsuki was up to and trying to get her to talk to her with looks. The redhead ignored her.


The woman set the mugs down and sat across from them. Tsuki smiled at her. “Thank you.”


The woman hadn't smiled yet and sighed as she settled into her chair. “What do you know of Brave Warriors?”


Tsuki raised her hand. “Henshin” a few seconds later a pink haired girl was sitting in the chair across from the woman who picked up her cup of tea and sipped at it.


“That is all the explanation I need,” said the woman as she got the hint of a smile. She looked at her daughter. “Sooyoung?”


“Yeah. We're fated to meet it seems,” said the pink haired girl.


Sooyoung was stunned and hadn't moved since the girl transformed in front of her mother.


“Her brothers are not your children, are they?” asked Tsuki as she set the cup down.


“I love them as if they are my own, but no. My daughter is their half sister,” said the woman with a nod. “I was not expecting to see this in my lifetime.”


“It surprised me too,” said the Japanese girl with a smirk as she looked a bit cocky. “Soo, go ahead and transform.”


“You told my mother?” snapped the girl. “You're not supposed to tell your parents! Haven't you ever seen a Magical Girl show or read a comic book in your life? This is secret stuff!”


Tsuki looked a bit surprised. “My cousin likes that stuff, but I never cared for it. I've seen a few shows of course, it's hard to avoid living with a Japanese girl that age, but I've never paid a lot of attention to it.” She leaned in towards her. “In case you haven't figured this out yet, this is kind of a family thing. She was going to figure it out anyway as soon as someone noticed you.”


“Huh?” She looked at her mother. “You knew about this?” said the girl in confusion. “You never told me about it?”


“Well, it was hard with your brothers and my husband. I'd have told you in private when you were older,” said the woman with a small shrug. She had calmed considerably and didn't seem angry with her daughter anymore. “There's no reason to hide it from them now that it's happened, but we're not supposed to tell people outside of the family about it unless someone has obtained the power.”


“Magic has weird and oddly convenient rules,” said the Pink haired girl. She raised her hand again and reversed the transformation. “Henshin.” She looked at her. “Go ahead and transform. I'm sure she'd like to see it.”


“Henshin,” grumbled Soo. She changed into her golden clothes and stood up. She turned about so her mother could have a look at the outfit and seemed a bit sour. “Hey. Are my boobs bigger?” She stopped and looked down at her chest She cupped them in her hands and pushed them around. “Hey! They are! A magical boob job? I like it!” She raised her arm and went back to her normal self. “Henshin!” She gasped and grinned. “They stayed! Awesome! I have boobs!” They weren't nearly the size of Tsuki;s, but had grown another cup size.


“I think it's a bit annoying. Mine are too big,” said her friend as she looked at her chest. “They get in the way sometimes.” She sipped on her tea.


The woman smiled at her daughter and grabbed her in a hug. Sooyoung looked surprised and blushed a bit. “Huh?”


“I am proud of you, my daughter! To think this day has come!” She smiled and pinched her cheek. “I'm certainly glad I had your grandfather train you when you were little, and it pleases me that you have kept up.” She let go of her cheek and poked her in the chest. “The rules have not changed. You may only use your fists to defend life.” She looked at Tsuki out of the corner of her eye. “As for you. I am aware you are a bit free with your fists. I'll be watching you as well. Honor you family and position.”


“Y-yes Ma'am,” said Tsuki reflexively. The gaze she was giving her was scary and gave her a bit of a chill despite the warmth of the tea she was drinking.


The woman smiled at her as well. “I wish you luck in finding your companions.” She stood up. “It is late, it is time we went to sleep. It is nearly midnight, and I don't want to disrupt your sleep cycles so close to the start of the school year.”


“All right, I'll give you a call tomorrow, Soo,” said Tsuki as she stood up and set her mug down.


“You'll call me? That never happens! What's up?” said the dark haired girl in confusion.


Tsuki looked at her out of the corner of her eye as she grabbed the door handle. “Training. You and I both have to figure out how to use our powers. We can't just sit around and wait for the next monster to show up and hope we get stronger. We've got to work on it and figure out our powers. It'll be easier with a partner.”


The girl didn't like the look on her friend's face. “Um. I don't know. I think I'll be fine.”


Her mother smiled and gave a small bow. “A wonderful idea. I'd like to meet your mother as well. I'll come along with her so we can speak. It will be interesting to meet another woman who is also in my position.”


Tsuki nodded and smiled at her. “She's my aunt actually. My mother isn't with us anymore. She's lazy and irresponsible, but I think you'll get along.”


The redhead left and her daughter went into her room a moment later. Areum Moon's face fell and she sat down at the table with a sullen look on her face. “So. My daughter has been chosen to fight then?” She was afraid and worried. If the Brave Warriors were awakened then there was a dark and powerful force at work in the shadows. One that threatened all of humanity, if not life itself on the world as a whole. “I fear there are dark times ahead.” She hung her head and pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbed a few tears out of her eyes. “It would be best of Gyeong did not hear of this.” She knew that the girl that had come before her had spoken with her stepson rather forcefully. He was not the type to let such things go and likely would not care about the consequences. She didn't think he could threaten the girl's lives, but would become a distraction for them and might lose his own life in the end. There was little danger to the girls, but dividing their attention to matters beyond the darkness they were meant to fight could prove dangerous. The Brave Warriors had powers far beyond mortal men, extended lifespans, and were nearly invincible warriors. She remembered him when he was a sweet boy and despite his evil path, did not wish to see that child's life ended. His path of hatred could be a danger to more than just his brother. Chul was still having trouble with what his brother had tried to do to him. They had once been very close, but the divide between them was beyond measure now.


She stood up and cleaned up the mug and placed them in the sink after pouring the remains down the drain. She paused by the wall and looked a bit lost in though as she turned off the lights and went to her bedroom. Her husband was already sleeping. He had been worried about their daughter, but had worn himself out at work and passed out an hour before she had returned. She would have to speak with him about her tomorrow. For now, she needed sleep herself, and her daughter and stepson were both safe in their beds.


OooOOooOO


AN: That's all I have for now. It's coming out okay so far and needs a lot of edits. Some stuff needs to be added and other things need to be cut. More descriptions for scene setting and a few scenes either go on too long or aren't needed and should be merged or removed.

Any feedback is appreciated.

 

[gemmaethanwhitaker]

Dude, formatting. When posting to forums always use two new lines

 

[Contrabardus]

Dude, formatting. When posting to forums always use two new lines

Sorry.

Didn't carry over from the WP. I use Open Office and it's always been cool until now about this.
I'm gonna have to go back in and do it manually it seems. Which sucks for this many words.

I'm already working on it.

 

[gemmaethanwhitaker]

Formatting like that never carries over from WP to my knoweldge, and even stuff like italics and bolding only does on the most advanced forums

 

[Contrabardus]

Finished with the format fixing. It's good now. Like I said, this hasn't been a problem before when posting stuff here to have all the spacing between lines disappear like that.

 

[Contrabardus]

Formatting like that never carries over from WP to my knoweldge, and even stuff like italics and bolding only does on the most advanced forums

It does if you put formatting in manually and don't use auto format. At least as far as spacing between lines goes, it still loses margins and stuff and I usually don't use italics or bolding in my writing anyway. A mistake I'll not make again. Considering this and how I use documents from a WP, it's less convenient to auto format. I'll just stick to my old habits after this. I was thinking it might make things easier on me to use it and the opposite happened.