Hello! This is my first attempt to write a fanfic so any comments are welcome. English is not my native language so I deeply apologize for any mistakes.
This is a story set some time before the events of Unmarked. The characters are mostly OC, with two exceptions.
Magical Girl Raising Project belongs to Asari Endou.
Who would've thought something like this would happen...?
Certainly not Terry, when he stumbled across the ad for this social game. It had happened one day early in August when he had nothing to do and was calmly browsing through his phone. Terry liked to play to fill his free time and often tried the recently released games. What he had fixed on this time was of the RPG genre. You had to create a character, which had to free a fairyland from danger while gathering a party, passing obstacles, collecting items, killing monsters, and so on in the course of time. Everything was completely standard as in other such games, but there was a difference. The characters here were magical girls.
Magical girls? Terry wondered. Well, what do you know...
He knew what they were. When he was younger, he had watched magical girl anime, which, although designed mainly for girls, were attracting him more than the titles made for boys. The simple reason for it was that Terry liked beautiful and strong girls, and their adventures seemed more exciting to him. Indeed, quite some time had passed since then, and he was already twenty-four, but then, what was wrong with remembering the past?
So he pressed the 'Start' button and was forwarded from there to the game, where the following message awaited him:
"Welcome to Magical Girl Raising Project! You can start by creating your avatar."
Terry pressed the 'Continue' button under that text and went to the next screen. A standard image of a girl (not naked, after all, but in her underwear, since according to the description, this wasn't an erotic game) was visible there, around which were various menus: 'Height', 'Weight', 'Hair colour', 'Eye colour', and so on. The figure wasn't staying still but was smiling, fluttering her eyelashes, and occasionally leaning left and right. She had a curious expression on her face as if she couldn't wait to see how exactly she was going to be transformed by the player.
Terry smiled as well.
"All right, all right," he said to himself. "Just let me see."
A few minutes later, he was ready with his character's appearance. She was 170 cm tall, had long blonde hair pulled up into a ponytail, navy blue eyes and white skin. Since Terry was a man, after all, he had given her longer legs and more voluptuous curves than the default ones. He nodded approvingly, satisfied with his work, before advancing to the next stage.
"Choose your outfit."
The possibilities there were almost unlimited. Terry felt outright dizzy while looking through the various types of clothes. In the end, he fixed on a below the knee white dress girdled with a leather belt, because he preferred the more ordinary costumes. The skirt and sleeves were decorated with thick blue piping. A silver-coloured armour with large spaulders that covered the heroine from her shoulders to her waist was over the dress. Knee-high leather boots and a pair of short white gloves completed the outfit.
"That's it; it's perfect. So what's next now..."
"Choose your magic."
Magic, of course, where should he be without it? After a short reflection, Terry decided he wanted his heroine to be able to create tornadoes. In his view, they were very useful - they could be used for attack or defense, according to the needs. He filled in his choice and had only the last part left:
"Choose your name."
Now what? Terry thought deeply. It seemed to him it would be appropriate for his character to have a popular and easily remembered name. Because of that, in the end, he chose Mary, because it was also close to his own. But just "Mary"? It wouldn't be enough, he mused.
The young man rested his eyes again on his character, which kept on staring at him with an interest from the screen. Now, with her appearance completely ready, she looked somehow majestically. Somehow like... like...
"Goddess? No, it doesn't fit... Queen? It won't do, she looks too young. Perhaps... princess?"
Yes! That was right! Princess Mary!
"It's perfect," Terry said.
He entered the name in the purpose-designed field and pressed the "OK" button. Princess Mary span round to look at her overall appearance, then jumped and the screen instantly changed. She was already standing in a field of tall green grass. A caption then appeared at the bottom of the screen, which read:
"Your mission is to protect the Earth against the forces of darkness. Good luck!"
"All right, princess, let's go!" Terry ordered.
The game proved to be fun. It was completely standard and its gameplay wasn't difficult. Since Terry was unable to play for more than two hours a day because of his busy schedule, he wasn't progressing very fast. But still, ordering Princess Mary to summon tornadoes to destroy the demons was giving him pleasure. He felt somewhat like a man with a mission.
Meanwhile, Terry had begun reading all kinds of information related to Magical Girl Raising Project out of curiosity. Thus, he came across the claim posted in a forum that one in several tens of thousands of the game's players got the chance to become a real magical girl. When Terry saw that, he burst into laughter at first, then he just waved it away and said to himself "My God, such a crazy thing to say!" before forgetting about it.
At the end of the third week after picking up the game Terry logged again in his account and resumed Princess Mary's adventures. About half an hour in killing monsters went by when at the end of the last fight, his character suddenly stood still. Then, without him having done anything, she vanished and the game's mascot character, Fav, appeared on the screen and said, "Congratulations, pon! You've been chosen to become a real magical girl, pon!"
"Yeah, right," Terry smiled internally. "And how exactly will this happen, hmm?"
He quickly skipped through the next few lines of dialogue. Then a blindingly bright light gushed out from the screen, which made him drop his phone on the bed and close his eyes. A strange hot wave went through his body. A second or two later, everything had gone back to normal and Terry opened his eyes carefully. He supposed his eyesight had played a trick on him and he had played enough for today, so he decided to log out. However, when he took his phone again, he instantly froze to the spot.
His hand was already covered in a white glove. Not only that, but he wasn't wearing his usual T-shirt and trousers, sporting a long white dress instead.
"Whaaaaat?!"
Shocked by that discovery, Terry jumped off the bed and immediately stood before the mirror. Princess Mary was looking at him from there instead of his former strong, brown-haired and brown-eyed self. His height had previously been almost 177 cm but it had decreased a bit now. He passed his hands across his face, then slapped himself on the cheek, and finally reached out and pulled his blonde ponytail to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Somehow, Terry had transformed into his game avatar.
"W-What the hell?!" Terry was horrified. "I became a woman?! Is this some idiotic comedy?!"
At that moment he heard a synthetic voice behind him.
"What's the matter, pon?"
Terry turned around and saw the mascot character of the game rising above his phone's screen. He looked somewhat like a fish, whose left half was white and the right, black. A single wing sprouted from this strange creature's body, and when it flapped, sparkling scales were scattering into the air.
"What... are you?" Terry asked.
"Is it possible you don't know me, pon? I'm Fav - your helper from the game, pon", it replied. "My job is to help everyone who shows enough potential, pon."
"It seems... it seems I'm going crazy," the young man mumbled.
"Certainly not, pon", the mascot character said in response. " You're completely sane. The game just gave you a chance to transform into a real magical girl. Aren't you satisfied, pon?"
"Ahahaha..." Terry tried to laugh but it sounded so awkwardly that he fell silent.
"By the way, it's very rare for a man to turn into a magical girl, pon. You obviously have an unusually pure heart as well, pon."
"A pure heart... yeah, sure," Terry muttered out desperately. "And what I'm going to do now? Will I remain in this form forever?"
"Of course not, pon. You have only to wish for it and you could return to your original appearance, pon. But it'd be best to study your powers before that..."
"But I didn't want to become a magical girl!" Terry objected. "I thought it was just a game."
"But aren't you curious to know what you really could do, pon?" Fav asked. "Your possibilities are much greater than those of normal people now, pon."
So the mascot began explaining to him about his powers and what was required of him. The mission of magical girls was to help people in need - something unquestionably noble, which Terry had also dreamed of doing one day. For every good deed done, the so-called magical candies were received - points that determined the respective girl's position in her fellow magical girls' standings. Also, while being in the form of Princess Mary, he had many times greater powers than normal people. Terry made sure of it by jumping slightly, which led him to almost hitting his head on the ceiling. He then swiped a few times his fist through the air, and the flow created in that way caused the windows to shudder. Terry felt an amazing power being unleashed within him with his every movement, and that made him feel excited like never before. Only the transformation into a woman made him worry, and he confided that to Fav.
"The transformation doesn't have any effect on your real body, pon. It stays completely male, pon."
"And yet it's very embarrassing..."
"I understand you, pon. It's natural to feel uneasy, pon. But there's absolutely no danger for someone to know your true identity so you shouldn't worry, pon. You just have to concentrate on doing good deeds from now on, pon."
"But I can't... I mean, it sounds very good, but I just don't have the possibility."
"Why, pon?"
"I don't go to school or university," Terry explained. "I'm twenty-four and already working full-time, nine to five. I need rest and also some personal life. I just don't see how I could have time for it."
"Don't tell me you can't spare at least two or three hours a day, pon", Fav replied. "I wouldn't believe it, pon. You've been chosen and you can't give up the mission that awaits you just like that, pon. Besides, I'm quite sure in just two or three days, you'll like doing good deeds so much that you'd want to have been a magical girl since much earlier, pon."
"Perhaps," Terry cautiously assumed. Then he looked at his hands, the hands of Princess Mary, and said, "And now what?"
"Now it's a perfectly suitable moment to test your powers a bit. But not here, because you saw for yourself it's dangerous to do indoors, pon."
"Aha", Terry exclaimed. "And isn't it more dangerous outside? Somebody could see me."
"Magical girls' powers have the ability to make normal peoples' eyes perceive them as just blurred images. The same goes for photographs and videos, pon."
"Ah... That's really good," Terry acknowledged. "But where could I test my powers? Perhaps somewhere in the forests around?"
"Yes, that's right, pon," Fav approved and did a flip, shedding scales around. "Well, shall we go, pon?"
Terry spent the first night getting to know his new powers. The dense forests near Southampton, where he lived, provided him with a perfect place for this purpose. He ran, jumped, somersaulted, kicked and punched stones, smashing them to smithereens, and generally making all kinds of movements that he previously thought impossible for him to do. He also decided to try his magic by making a ten-metre high tornado which left a deep trench on the ground in its wake. When this first training session ended, Terry felt as if he could cope with absolutely everything. He was already positive it'd be fun to be active as a magical girl.
The next day Terry agreed with Fav to spare his time from eight to ten in the evening for doing good deeds. A few minutes before the appointed hour, the young man transformed and left his apartment through the window, hidden by the darkness of the night. He then began jumping from roof to roof, from where he could watch for people who needed his help.
Fav had explained to him he was the only magical girl in Southampton. According to the mascot, that was due to the fact Magical Girl Raising Project wasn't particularly popular in the United Kingdom, let alone among the residents of his home city. And thus, Princess Mary had to cover its entire area alone, a really difficult task.
The first instance that required her intervention was trivial - a cat stuck in a tree was plaintively meowing, hoping it would get someone's attention. Princess Mary looked at Fav sceptically, arching her eyebrows, and asked him, "This? For real?"
"That's right, it's a good deed too, pon", the mascot replied.
"Oh my God, such a cliché!" the girl exclaimed, then sighed and started climbing the tree. She easily got to the branch where the animal was, caught it, despite its resistance, then jumped to the ground and let go of it. The cat ran away without even looking at her, and a faint bubble-popping sound effect reached her ears at that same moment.
"What was that?" Princess Mary asked.
"Look at your magical phone, pon", Fav urged her.
Princess Mary took it out from its leather belt and saw a caption on its screen:
"You won two magical candies."
"Ah", she said. "It's the award for the good deed."
"Exactly, pon. Keep it up, pon."
So Princess Mary kept it up. She warned a boy on a moped to drive more slowly (he narrowly overturned his vehicle when he saw the beauty running beside him), told a woman how to find the address she was searching for, and finally separated two considerably drunk men who were spoiling for a fight in front of a pub. They were so dumbfounded because of the appearance of the girl who jumped between them and stopped them by pressing her hands against their faces that they became sober in an instant.
"Easy, mates, easy", said Princess Mary in her sweet, melodious voice. "It's time for you to go home."
Deeply shaken by what had happened, both men listened to her advice and began dragging themselves to their homes. The girl ran at lightning speed from this place as well, and when she slipped in the nearby dark alley, smiled, satisfied with herself. Fav was satisfied as well.
"Well done, pon!" he congratulated her. "That's the stuff, pon. This is exactly what a magical girl should be doing, pon."
"Thanks, Fav," Princess Mary replied. "It's really great to have all this power. I could do many good deeds in my city with it."
That was how the first few days of Terry's double life went by. He was doing many good deeds and that was bringing him great satisfaction. Naturally, Princess Mary's popularity increased after her every appearance, however fuzzy the memories of those who saw her might be. The unknown girl in white dress became one of the most interesting topics in Southampton, and many were asking themselves who she might be.
At the same time, Terry had shown an interest about how many magical girls there were in the world, and in the United Kingdom, in particular. Fav revealed to him in response there were tens of thousands of magical girls all over the world, most of them being in Japan and the neighbouring East Asian countries. However, that wasn't the case here.
"As I mentioned before, there aren't many of you in England, pon. There's an outright shortage of magical girls, pon. You're just fifty-four for the whole country, pon."
"What about Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?"
"They're separate from you, pon."
"What? Man..." Terry exclaimed. "So there is roughly one magical girl per million people?"
"Yes, and it's a good thing you showed up, pon. You're the latest magical girl, pon. You're helping me very much, you know. After your arrival, each county in England already has its own magical girl, pon."
"But why just one girl per county?"
"Because the mana that supplies your magical powers depends on the land and it's a limited resource, pon. Because of that, the Land of Magic decided such allocation will be the best for England, pon. As a result, one girl with the greatest magical potential had been chosen from every county, pon. The exception is London, where there are six, because of its population size and the fact there is a very large quantity of mana there, capable of supplying so many girls, pon."
"I see. That's a good reason. And who are the nearest magical girls to me?"
"They're Cranberry, from the Isle of Wight, and Paws, from Dorset, pon. Actually, Paws already expressed her desire to become your mentor, being your neighbor, pon. So you'll be able to meet her and the rest of your fellow magical girls during the tomorrow's chat which I told you about, pon."
"A mentor?"
"Yes, pon. Each new magical girl needs to have a more experienced fellow magical girl by her side to learn from her, pon."
"All right", Terry accepted. "I'll be glad to meet Paws. I'll certainly be able to learn many things from her."
The next day, at ten in the evening, Princess Mary logged in the magical girl chat. It was modeled after a park, with alleys, benches, and fountains, where many little characters were visible - the other participants' avatars.
"Good evening," she said.
Everyone greeted her happily.
"Hi!"
"Welcome!"
"Greetings, Princess Mary!"
"I've heard many great things about you! Nice to meet you!"
"Nice to meet you too!" Mary replied.
Her fellow magical girls were a very mixed crowd. There were ones whose outfits were identical to those of magical girls from popular anime series, as well as ones who had chosen to look like characters from books or films. Yet quite a few others had preferred to be more original and create costumes themselves, with which they resembled too little traditional magical girls. There could be seen a nurse with a big cap on her head and an even bigger syringe in her hands; a girl who was wearing a candy-decorated dress and had her pigtails tied with candy wrappers instead of ribbons; a girl whose outfit strongly resembled a policewoman's uniform, and so on.
After the initial greetings, Princess Mary was approached by a girl with cat ears and tail, long blue hair, and sharp little fangs. She was wearing a tiger-striped top and a pair of green shorts and had her hands covered in cat paw gloves. She introduced herself as Paws, her mentor, and began a lively conversation with her. Both were also joined by Handygirl, a stocky girl with short brown hair dressed in something like overalls, a helmet on her head, and a huge hammer on her former had been a magical girl for a half a year already, while the latter, who represented Tyne and Wear - for a little over four months. The two proved to be excellent company and Princess Mary was able to feel at ease. She told them everything that had happened to her until now, and replied readily to their questions, of course being careful not to give herself away in any way she was actually a man. For her part, Paws entertained them with funny stories from her life as a magical girl, and Handygirl was willingly pointing out the inaccuracies in her words.
"You see", she told Mary, "this girl loves exaggerating. I need to correct her from time to time."
"But those bank robbers were really five and were armed with automatic rifles!" Paws retorted.
"Hm? And why did you tell me then they were three, armed with guns?" Handygirl asked.
"Oh, really? That's odd; it must've been a slip of the tongue!" Paws replied, then tapped her head with her fist and stuck her tongue out. The sight was funny enough to make the other girls giggle.
With time pressing on, the magical girls began leaving the chat one by one. Princess Mary and her new friends were among those who stayed almost to the end, engrossed in their talk. When Handygirl also decided she had to go and parted from them, Paws suggested to her pupil that they meet in Southampton the next evening, in order to patrol together and to explain to her everything about magical girls' activities.
"Thank you. I'm looking forward to meeting you", Princess Mary accepted.
"You can count on me, Princess! I'll see to it that you learn all there's to learn", the catgirl said with a smile.
The princess also smiled in return, then asked: "Excuse me, Paws, who's that girl there?"
She had noticed her almost immediately after logging in the chat. Sitting on a tree stump upon a little hill there was a girl with short, dirty blond hair and elf ears. She was dressed in a flare-collared short green jacket held together by a bell-like amber pin, and a frilled white dress, girded by a leather belt with a big silver buckle. She was also wearing pale green tights that had a rose and thorny vine print design on them, and black high heels. She had a flower crown of dark purple roses on her head; vines dotted with flowers were wrapped around her body. She was playing a light, pleasant melody on her violin with her eyes closed, as if completely estranged from what was happening around her.
"That's Cranberry," Paws explained. "She's a regular in the chat but practically never talks. She's a weirdo. Nobody knows anything about her, except which county she's from."
"Yet she's playing very nicely," Princess Mary appreciated her performance. "I'll go greet her."
"Don't waste your time," her mentor said. "We've tried to attract her attention many times but to no avail. She's locked herself up in the world of music and doesn't come out of it."
"Well... I'll still try," Princess Mary decided.
She quickly climbed the hill and stood before Cranberry who still kept playing her violin.
"Greetings, Cranberry", she said. "I'm your new neighbour, Princess Mary from Hampshire. It was nice to be able to meet you. You're playing quite nicely, by the way."
At her last words, Cranberry lifted her eyelids slightly and stared at the magical girl before her. A faint smile swept across her face before she closed her eyes again and kept on playing.
Discouraged by her failure, Princess Mary went back to Paws, who told her:
"I warned you. Let's go, because it's very late."
"All right. We'll meet tomorrow at nine in the evening, then?"
"Yes. On top of the Civic Centre's clock tower, as we agreed."
"Great. I'll be there."
When Princess Mary arrived at the prearranged place the next evening, it was ten to nine. However, she was left surprised when she saw Paws was already waiting for her there.
"Hi. How long have you been waiting for me?" she asked her.
"Ah, don't worry. I simply came a little early because I wasn't sure if I'd get here on time. Well, how's it going?"
"Nothing special. It's Sunday after all, so I slept until late, then I went out with friends and so on..."
"I see," Paws replied. "And may I tell you something before I start with the explanation?"
"No problem, go ahead."
"I know you're a boy."
"Wha... what're you talking about?!" Princess Mary replied, half shocked, half afraid, being horrified that her secret was about to be revealed. Then she managed to regain her composure to a certain extent and said, "How did that come to your mind, Paws?"
"Fav told me. He'd decided you'd feel more comfortable around me if you don't need to hide the whole time you're a boy. And I think he's right. The link between a mentor and a pupil is much stronger if there are no secrets between them."
Mary just stared at her, speechless.
"Come on, calm down," Paws continued. "I don't consider a boy being able to turn into a magical girl a bad thing. It's even very interesting because I learnt from Fav it happens very rarely. Why don't you tell me about yourself? I'll let you ask me everything in return."
"Only... only if you can swear to me this will remain between us," Mary uttered, her cheeks flushing bright red.
"I swear," Paws declared, pressing her hand against her chest. "I wouldn't allow anyone else know your secret."
"I don't know," the other girl hesitated. "It's so embarrassing... I mean... after all..."
"I'm positive it must've been an exceptionally strange experience for you," her mentor tried to calm her down. "However, you'll feel better if you tell me."
"All right," Mary said reluctantly, trying not to look Paws in the eye. "I'm really... a man."
"A man?" the catgirl exclaimed. "How old're you?"
"Twenty-four..."
"Oh, and I thought you're a teenager. And how did you start playing the game?"
"I like playing various games on my phone in my free time. I just... saw that title and thought it'd be fun to give it a shot. And so it happened..."
"I see, I see. But to take up playing that kind of game exactly... you've surely had an idea about magical girls? For example, you've watched such anime or read such manga?"
"Anime... well, when I was younger," Mary was quick to specify. "I don't watch such things anymore."
"Just a moment, I think I can guess which title you've watched," Paws said. "Hmm... Sailor Moon? It's it, right?"
"Wow! How did you guess?"
"Well, it's the most famous magical girl anime; it's known all over the world. As you saw for yourself, there were no less than three girls in the chat, who had clearly designed their outfits after it."
"Yes, I saw them," Mary replied. "Have you watched it, as well?"
"Of course," the catgirl confirmed, then she suddenly began singing softly:
I'm sorry, I'm not honest,
I can say it in my dreams.
My thoughts are about to short circuit.
I want to see you right now.
"Yes, the opening song... it was exactly like that," Mary said more cheerfully. "Those were great times."
"So they were," Paws agreed. "I was young when I saw it on TV but I liked it right away and I'm a fan of it even now. And before you ask - I'm thirty-one. I'm married if you're interested in that, and I have two wonderful children. My name's Patricia, but everyone calls me Patty. What's your name?"
"T-Terry", Mary replied, stammering.
"See, it wasn't scary," her mentor said. "You're from Southampton, right?"
"Yes, I'm local. What about you?"
"Bournemouth. Have you been there?"
"Yes, perhaps seven or eight times. It's a beautiful city."
"That's right," Paws agreed, then she smiled smugly and asked, "Well, what's the feeling to be in a woman's body, Terry?"
"How should I put it... A strange one but I got used to it, more or less."
"Oh, you're obviously adapting quickly," her mentor praised her. "That's very good. It's also helped by the fact the magical girls' bodies are ideal. When you're in this form, you don't feel the need to sleep, eat, or anything else normal people would need. It's amazing."
"Aha," Mary replied. "I understand now why I wasn't tired at all in the end, no matter how much I trained. Thanks for your explanation."
The two talked a bit more about the various aspects of magical girls' life and work. During that time they both learnt many things about each other, including what their powers were (Paws' were her steel claws that were able to tear through anything) before going on a patrol around the city. The evening turned out really peaceful and they hadn't much work to do. They still did a few good deeds, like preventing a car theft and directing a lost foreigner. When the time came for them to part, the girls promised they would make such joint patrols in the future and waved goodbye to each other, while smiling widely.
"Good night, Princess Mary!" Paws said.
"Good night, Paws," Mary replied.
"What do you say about Princess Mary, Fav? She seems interesting and quite strong to me."
"Yes, she is, master. It also looks like you attracted her curiosity, pon."
"I noticed that. I suppose she'd be a match for me."
"In my view, it's too early, pon. She's not experienced and you'll probably beat her very quickly, pon."
"All right; I'm not in a hurry. What's important is that the magical girls are as strong as possible because we'll be able to wage nice battles that way."
"Exactly how we both like them, pon."
"There are more than enough girls I can choose my rivals from. That's why I'll give the princess time to develop her powers at ease. I may keep her for last. "
"There has been an announcement from the Land of Magic, pon. The test that will determine which one of you will be chosen as the best magical girl in England begins today, pon. The winner will be the only one who will get to keep her magical powers, pon."
With these words, Fav met the magical girls in the new weekly chat. Of course, they were left very surprised and angry by that development. They had expected they'd have their powers forever, and now it turned out all of them except one, would lose them. Many of the girls fired questions at Fav, such as why there was a need for such competition and shouldn't he have told them that right at the beginning, but he defended himself by pointing out none of them would agree to participate in that case. And the contest was necessary, because while there was an enormous quantity of mana on the territory of England, even it wasn't enough to support such a great number of magical girls for too long. The Land of Magic had been simply waiting for the representatives of all counties to show up, in order to announce the start of these eliminations. The mascot repeatedly apologized to everyone but confirmed nothing else could be done. The top brass had made that decision after carefully analyzing the situation and that's why they had to trust them.
The uproar gradually subsided and that gave Fav an opportunity to explain the rules of the competition. There was nothing complicated - all had to simply keep on doing good deeds in order to get magical candies, and the girls that were in the bottom two places of the table at the end of each week would've been eliminated.
Mary and Paws exchanged glances when they heard that. They weren't in danger at the moment because they were in the middle of the table, separated from each other by just ten candies, but the mascot's announcement made them sink in thought.
"There's logic in what Fav said," Paws admitted, "but it's still unexpected. I have the feeling our hands are tied."
"I suppose it's not a problem to voluntarily give up...," Mary began but her mentor interrupted her.
"Would you give up such powers just like that?" and when the other girl shook her head, she concluded: "I don't believe any of the other girls would give up either. It's good each of us covers a large area, or else a serious battle about the magical candies would ensue between us. Some might even try to trick the others with the sole purpose of getting a greater number."
"I wonder if they'd really do that?"
"It'd be entirely possible."
As a result of Fav's words, Princess Mary, Paws and all their fellow magical girls began doing good deeds even more actively than usual. They didn't work mostly in the evenings, like before, but during the day, too. That led to a great increase in the sightings of magical girls and attracted serious attention to them from normal people. However, none of the participants in the competition was worried about it. What they did worry about was the potential loss of their powers which would mean the end of the dream they were living at the moment.
"I'm glad to see you again, pon," Fav greeted all present when the new weekly chat began. "You did very well during the last week and helped many people, pon. Thank you for your excellent work, pon.
Unfortunately, two of you have to leave us, pon. So... that's you, BlueFox and Rammiella, pon."
Disappointed exclamations sounded and Mary saw how a girl with fox ears and tail buried her face in her hands and started sobbing. Not far away from her, another of her fellow magical girls - dressed entirely in white, with a hairdo that strongly resembled ram horns - shook her head angrily, clearly refusing to believe Fav's words. The ones who were standing beside them tried to calm them down by saying they had done their best and there was nothing to be sorry for. Neither BlueFox nor Rammiella had been considered weak - they simply haven't got enough time to earn more magical candies. In the end, they both managed to accept the news and although they were very sad, began saying their goodbyes to their fellow magical girls.
"Had they been magical girls for a long time?" Mary asked under her breath.
"Fox was one for four months and Rammiella - for about three", Paws replied. "Perhaps you won't be surprised if I tell you they represented Leicestershire and Derbyshire."
"Ahhh, yes," Mary said almost immediately. "The Foxes and the Rams. That's really too bad. "
Soon it was her turn to say her goodbyes to the eliminated girls. When they shook hands, she said to them:
"I'm sorry we didn't have the time to get to know each other. Perhaps we might've become friends. I wish you all the best from now on. "
"I'm sorry too, princess", BlueFox replied. "I hope you'll have more time to enjoy your powers because you haven't been with us long. Good luck."
"Good luck," Rammiella also wished her. "Foxy and I will follow on the Internet how you and the others do."
"That's right," BlueFox confirmed.
"Thanks. I promise you I'll do my best," Mary assured them.
When they said goodbye to everyone, both girls turned round to face them and waved them for the last time before dissolving into the air and disappearing from the chat. After that, the table with the remaining participants' rankings showed up. Mary's name was in sixteenth place; Paws was one position after her, and Handygirl ranked nineteenth. However, the princess wasn't very happy because she was still under the impression of the sad farewell with the eliminated girls.
"Well done! You're doing great," her mentor greeted her.
"That's all right," Mary replied humbly. "You're very good, too."
"I could probably get even more candies but my hometown is simply one of the most peaceful places in the country," Paws admitted.
"That isn't bad in principle," Handygirl chipped in. "We just have nothing to gain by this situation."
"Yes, there isn't much work near us either," Mary confirmed. "I was mostly busy this week with finding lost footballs and balloons and returning them to the children. There were also a few more serious situations from time to time, such as two brawls I stopped. Oh, yes, I also saved an old woman who was about to be run over by a squirt driving a BMW. Honestly, I felt like lifting this jalopy and turning it upside down on the asphalt afterwards, in order to teach that fellow a lesson."
"But we shouldn't do such things, right?" Paws said and nudged inconspicuously Mary in the ribs with her elbow. "Don't forget we're magical girls, and they do only good deeds."
"Yes! Yes, of course, you're right," Mary was quick to agree with her, having taken her mentor's hint to not forget to behave herself more like a girl. "I flare up easily sometimes, sorry," she muttered and chuckled in order to wipe out the impression.
"No problem," Handygirl replied. "I also get angry because of bad things in life and I wish I had more power to set them right. But that's the way things are at the moment."
"And that's really sad," Paws said.
"The princess's doing well. I see she's constantly in the top half of the table and she even got into the first ten last week."
"Yes, pon. But I think she's not going to be much of a fighter in spite of her appearance, pon."
"Is that so? Why?"
"Well, because she has never yet been in a situation where she has had to fight, pon. Her most serious achievement to date is stopping several drunken brawls, pon."
"So you're telling me her militant appearance is actually deceptive?"
"So it seems to me, master. I can't see how she'll be a trouble for you, pon."
"Despite her being able to create tornadoes?"
"And what happened to the other girls who were able to control such elements, pon?"
"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Well, yes, you're right about it. But there are others, too, who we already know to be strong and willing to fight. I'll try them first. As for the princess, I'll take care of her if I have the time."
"But you didn't mind at all fighting against ToffeeFay whose ability was 'creating candies that make people happy', pon?"
"Sometimes, seemingly weaker girls could surprise."
"However, she couldn't, pon."
"I almost felt sorry for her. Especially while she was crawling at my feet and begged me not to kill her. Just like many others had done before her. But when I stamped on her leg and it broke, the sound that was heard was very pleasant, wasn't it? It really tickled my ears."
"You totally mangled her, master. When the police find her body, they'll wonder what had happened, pon."
"I don't care, Fav. What's important for me is to have opponents to fight fierce battles against. That's all I care about. That's what you want as well."
"You're right. I'll go and see how the other girls are doing, pon."
The mascot disappeared silently, and Cranberry, laid back on her bed, began remembering the battles she had fought and invariably won against other magical girls until memories of her adversaries' last moments were particularly vivid. The eyes widened in horror, the faces convulsed with pain, the trembling hands stretched out in a desperate attempt to stop her... Some were screaming as if hoping someone would hear them and come to their rescue, others were sobbing desperately, having seen they couldn't do anything else. The majority of them were those who begged her not to take their lives. Cranberry had heard the cries "Please don't kill me!", "Have mercy on me!", "I don't want to die!" and the like hundreds of times. There were also girls who were calling their parents or their loved people before dying. The mentioned by Fav ToffeeFay was also among them. She had managed to moan "Mummy..." and "Daddy..." several times, while laying on the ground, before the hand of her attacker stabbed her to death straight in the heart.
Of course, all that left Cranberry cold. But there was an instance - a single one - that had left her impressed. It was during the last test she had supervised. Then she had made her way to Texas because she had learnt many strong girls had shown up there through Magical Girl Raising Project.
Cranberry had held tests all over the world but that was the first time she had set foot in the US. She had expected much of the local candidates and wasn't disappointed. There were some who really stood up to her before they died. However, she wouldn't ever forget one of them...
...The girl dressed in a long red and white robe was sitting on the ground, having put her back against a tree trunk, and was trying to rise with the help of her right hand. She was running out of energy. Her right ankle was broken, and her left palm was pressed against her left side in an attempt to stop the blood flowing from the deep wound there - something doomed to failure. Then Cranberry stepped out of the nearby bushes and stood at about ten metres before her. A triumphant smile had appeared on her face, and her half-closed eyes were fixed on her victim.
However, that girl didn't begin screaming in horror. She didn't beg for her life. She didn't even call her loved people. She just gathered her whole energy left and began singing a song that was unknown to Cranberry. She found out later that had been the popular Christian hymn Amazing Grace.
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
Ignoring the pain, the girl kept on singing while her opponent was walking towards her with a sadistic expression on her face. When she finished the verse, Cranberry stood over her and said,
"That's a very nice song. Do you have anything else to say?"
The girl replied in a faint but firm voice,
"Take me... to Thee, my Lord."
A moment later, the other girl's fingers tore apart her throat.
I give her credit for that, Cranberry thought. That girl met death with dignity. She had nothing to do with the others who were crying and asking me for mercy. She wasn't very strong, but she wasn't afraid at all. I love such opponents the most.
Then she turned on her phone and began looking at the list of magical girls in England.
The number of magical girls kept on decreasing in the following weeks. Besides the bottom two in the table who were eliminated every weekend, there were one or two more dropping out every week, the reasons pointed out being 'voluntary refusal' or 'going abroad' almost every time. The girls were informed by Fav the latter also meant the end of the game because thе test couldn't be held outside the borders of their homeland. However, the more the competition was coming to an end, the more suspiciously sounding these two motives became, especially to the ones who had been magical girls for a longer time and knew the others well enough.
"But Queen of Roses didn't mention anything like that!" the magical girl-nurse, White Angel, exclaimed angrily during the last chat. "Why would she leave for the US? We talked just the other day!"
"There are all kinds of circumstances," Fav replied. "She didn't tell me why she was going to the US, and I didn't ask her about the reason either, pon. After all, everybody needs to keep some secrets from time to time, pon."
"But... I just can't believe it...," said White Angel confused, then fell silent in embarrassment, casting her eyes down.
Only seven girls remained currently - Princess Mary, Handygirl, Paws, Cranberry, White Angel - county Kent's magical girl, Phoenix from Oxfordshire, and Green Arrow from Nottinghamshire. The uneasiness had already begun showing on their faces. They were happy they had reached that point which meant they were the top seven magical girls in England. However, the danger of losing their powers was still keeping them in suspense.
"It's surprising how many girls dropped out on their own or had to stop participating in the game for one reason or another," Princess Mary confided to her mentor. "Don't you think so, Paws?"
"It's suspicious, princess," Paws replied. "There's something fishy about it but I'm not sure what."
"Girls," Handygirl addressed Princess Mary and Paws when they logged out of the chat. They were in the Civic Centre's clock tower in Southampton where Handygirl had especially come to meet her friends in real life. "I definitely think something is off and I'll find out what it is."
"But where do you think the problem is?" Mary asked.
"Cranberry", was the short answer.
"Cranberry? Why do you think so?"
"I'm in the game for a long time and I already know well all the remaining girls. All of them are kind, nice and candid, including both of you. And Cranberry is secretive and doesn't associate with anyone, just playing her violin the entire time. It's almost as if she isn't taking part in the game. That certainly makes her suspicious."
"Do you think she'd been... playing unfairly and that's why she keeps on being in the game?" Mary supposed.
"Exactly."
"Unfairly most likely means theft," Paws remarked. "But why any of the other girls hadn't protested to Fav then if they'd really been robbed by Cranberry? He could disqualify her at once and give back the powers to the other girls who then would be able to keep on competing."
"Well... I don't want to say it but perhaps they're not able to complain," the girl with the hammer replied.
"You think Cranberry has done something to them? Impossible..." Mary gasped.
"I assume we shouldn't rule out anything, princess," Paws said. "What Handy said is very logical."
"Anyway, I've decided what to do," Handygirl replied. "I'll trace Cranberry to gather info about her and to find out what has happened to the other girls."
"Don't do it, Handy, it might be dangerous! If it really turns out she's done something bad to them, she could try to harm you too," Paws worried.
"Don't worry about me. I know how to take care of myself," Handygirl assured them and tossed her hammer high into the air. Then she jumped and caught the rapidly spinning tool exceptionally skillfully. "And if I see things are getting rough, I'll run away."
"I can go with you," Mary suggested without hesitation but Handygirl refused.
"No, one is enough. Look after yourselves. In case I don't return for the next weekly chat, then you'll know for certain it's been Cranberry's fault."
"Hey, don't say such things, please," Paws asked her. "You will return, understood?"
"Good luck. I hope you'll find out something, Handy," Mary said. "And please take care of yourself - that's what's most important."
"Of course," Handygirl replied.
The three girls exchanged hugs and reminded themselves one more time to be careful before they parted.
In Handygirl's absence, Princess Mary and Paws kept on doing good deeds and earning candies. They didn't know what was happening to their friend because she'd shut down her magical phone, explaining to them they would be safer if they don't keep in touch with her. When the time came for the next chat and the princess logged in, she immediately looked around for Handygirl but she wasn't there. She went to Paws who waved to her but looked very worried. Mary tried to calm her down, making a guess perhaps something had delayed the girl with the hammer and she'd show up any moment. However, Fav's appearance interrupted her.
"Greetings, everyone", the mascot welcomed them. "I'm glad to see you again, pon."
None of those present answered him.
"You're a bit silent today, pon," Fav remarked. "Well, I'll speak to the point then. Green Arrow and Handygirl had been eliminated this week, pon."
Why? How come? Mary thought while watching Green Arrow disappearing from the chat without even being able to say her goodbyes to her fellow magical girls. Paws stood petrified, her eyes wide open, clearly refusing to comprehend what the mascot had said.
"Green Arrow had the lowest number of candies, and Handygirl dropped out by her own volition, pon. So nobody else would be eliminated this week, pon. I wish them all the best. They were great magical girls, pon."
What the hell?! Are you making fun of us?
"Good luck to all of you who have progressed, pon! The final's just around the corner! See you next week, pon!"
Handy? What has happened to you...?
Not long after the chat had ended, Mary and Paws got together, not at their usual meeting place but at Saint Peter's church in Bournemouth, as they had agreed earlier this week. When the princess climbed the belfry where her mentor awaited her, she saw tears were rolling down her cheeks. The catgirl literally threw herself into Mary's arms, sobbing, "M-Mary... Handy... Handy's no more...!"
Dumbfounded by what she had heard, Mary hugged Paws and began stroking her hair, unable to utter a sound. She couldn't believe their friend's suspicions had been confirmed. That meant a real nightmare had been lurking around them, like a wild beast threatening to swallow them, too.
However, she couldn't just stand by, doing nothing. Despite the grave condition her mentor was in, Mary had to clarify things for herself.
"Paws, is what you're saying... one hundred percent true?"
"Yes, Mary," the catgirl cried. "F-Fav personally... Fav personally confirmed it with me."
"Fav?"
"I insisted on him t-telling me what had really occurred... He told me... a b-battle took place... between Handygirl and C-Cranberry... Cranberry won but she used too much power, and... and... Handygirl died...!"
"But... but Handy assured us she would only trace her and not get into trouble! How had this happened?!"
"He t-told me he didn't know... he'd g-got no information. B-but I don't believe him! He's been lying us the whole time..."
"Cranberry... that viper!" Mary growled out. "And she looked so innocent. I swear I'll kill her if I get the chance!"
Paws lifted up her head then and said resolutely, "No, Mary... She is too dangerous. If... if she'd killed Handy, that means the other girls who allegedly dropped out, had also been killed by her. None of us will be able to stop her. She's a monster!"
"But what should we do then?"
"We need to escape, Mary. We need to leave our homes and hide somewhere Cranberry wouldn't be able to find us."
"We can't do that!" Mary objected. "There are two more girls besides us; shall we allow her to kill them as well?!"
The mentioning of their fellow magical girls made Paws come to her senses. She looked around confused, then stared at her pupil's eyes. She obviously didn't have an idea what they should do and hoped to receive advice from her.
Mary mused. The situation was difficult, but she was sure it wasn't hopeless. There had to be some way for this madness to be stopped and she was determined to find it.
We're four, not counting Cranberry, and we're competing for one position. The bottom two girls are cut, so... if we all have the same result, then nobody would drop out... Yes, that would do.
"All of us should finish with an equal number of candies," Mary said.
"An equal number?"
"That's right. We'll end in a draw next week and we'll tell Fav we won't participate anymore. That way we'll make him stop the game. Then Cranberry would leave us alone, too!"
"That... really gives us a chance," Paws admitted.
"We'll just have to contact White Angel and Phoenix and talk to them," Mary continued. "I'm sure they'll agree with our suggestion."
"But what if... what if Cranberry decides to attack one of us... or one of them meanwhile?"
"We'll really have to escape then, as you said; that would be the wisest choice. Even if she challenges us, we'll have to run at once and hide instead of attacking her. We'll warn White Angel and Phoenix to do the same if they see her. "
"All right," Paws accepted. "I'll contact them this very day and tell them about your idea. I don't know them very well but I think I'll be able to convince them."
"That's right. We won't allow Handy's self-sacrifice to be wasted. She tried to protect us. Now we have to protect the others."
The catgirl started sobbing again when she heard their friend's name, and Mary embraced her to comfort her. She also shed many tears while remembering Handygirl.
When Paws calmed down a bit, she said to her pupil, "Thank you. I really needed support. It was... so hard for me..."
Then she drew back from the other girl and completely unexpectedly returned to her everyday appearance - the one of a small woman with pleasant facial features. She had green eyes, blonde hair that reached her shoulders, and was wearing a brown leather jacket and a long blue skirt. Mary blinked confusedly but quickly followed suit and changed back into Terry.
"Why... why did you detransform?" he asked her.
"That's because I wanted you to remember me not only as the magical girl Paws, but as Patty, too, Terry... in case we don't meet anymore."
"Patty...," he uttered. "Don't say that. We'll outwit Cranberry and we'll meet again! I promise you!"
The genuine conviction in Terry's words had a positive effect on Patty. She wiped her eyes with her hand and a faint smile appeared on her face.
"Yes... We'll make it. We must make it," she replied. "For Handy's... and for all others' sake."
When they transformed again, Mary suggested to Paws to see her home for safety's sake. Soon they landed quietly in the backyard of her house.
"Good night, Paws," wished her Mary. "I'm glad I was able to meet you in your real form, too."
"Me too, Mary," Paws replied. "Take care."
"Yes," Mary agreed.
The next day Patty informed Terry she had spoken to Phoenix and White Angel. They had accepted the plan and confided they had also been suspicious of Cranberry. Both were very scared when they learnt about the death of Handygirl and didn't know what to do but Mary's idea had cheered them up and inspired courage in them. They had also agreed not to come into conflict with Cranberry and to run as far as possible if she showed up before them.
Terry was very pleased. That raised his hopes they all could be saved. In addition to his plan, the four of them created a chat in Skype to eliminate the danger of information leakage which existed when they were using their magical phones. They engaged themselves to publish every change in the number of their magical candies in order to know at all times how many each of them had. During next week the girls kept on doing their work just as if nothing had happened. They were resolved not to give Cranberry any opportunity to know what they were up to.
On Sunday evening, about an hour before their usual meeting with Fav, the four met again in Skype as agreed, and they wrote how many candies each of them had, while also sending screenshots of their magical phone's screens. They had agreed beforehand to reach a number that could be divided in four so they quickly redistributed their candy and in the end, they all had the same amount. Finally, Mary gave one last advice to her fellow magical girls, "We don't know what Cranberry's powers are so it's best to play it safe. Check your candies continuously and if there's a change in their number, write it here so that we could redistribute them again!"
The other girls were surprised but decided to listen to her. When the time came for the chat to begin, they logged in and found out Cranberry was already there, playing her violin as always. Fav was there as well.
"Greetings to all, pon," he said. "One more week went by during which you did a great many good deeds, pon. You're awesome magical girls and all of you deserve to win, pon. But we have to part with two of you today as well, pon."
Fav stopped talking for a moment and although his expression remained unchanging as ever, it seemed to Mary as if he was considering something. Then the mascot said, "It's been a hotly contested competition, pon."
Mary looked at her magical phone. The number of candy was the same as after the earlier redistribution.
"There are four of you who practically have an equal amount of candy," Fav remarked after one more pause that lasted for about ten seconds.
Practically? Mary was startled.
"Phoenix, White Angel... you have the lowest score this week, pon."
What?!
Mary looked immediately at her phone. The magical candies had increased by one.
"Unfortunately, we have to part with you two, pon..."
"WAIT!" Mary shouted. "I'll give them some of my candies!"
"NOOO! You can't!" White Angel screamed.
"There has to be some mistake!" Phoenix began protesting vehemently. "The four of us had an absolutely equal number so far!"
"Fav, stop it!" Paws implored. "There's a flaw in the system, my candies have increased for some reason!"
"There are no flaws in our system, pon," Fav replied briefly. "Phoenix, White Angel, I wish you all the best, pon. It was my pleasure to know you, pon."
While he was talking, Mary and Paws were each desperately trying to send one of their candies to their fellow magical girls but they failed to do it. It was as if their phones were frozen. Thus they could only watch helplessly how the avatars of Phoenix and White Angel disappeared from the chat, despite their screams and protests that continued until the last moment. Immediately after that Mary logged out from the chat and tried to call both girls in Skype. She couldn't contact either of them.
"Fav! Hey, Fav!" she shouted.
The mascot showed up instantly. The ever-present smile on his face seemed insulting to Mary.
"What the hell is this dirty trick, Fav? How come the others had less candy, and Paws and I had more? I spoke to them just minutes ago and all of us had an equal number!"
"Because we didn't need the two anymore, pon," the creature replied.
"We didn't need them?" Mary repeated his words. "Who are you? You... and Cranberry? So you're working together?!"
"Oh, you got that very quickly, pon," Fav replied unabashedly.
"Did you... did you change the number of our candy...?"
"There was no other way, pon. The game can't be stopped before the final. If you had refused to participate anymore, I would choose one of you as the winner and simply take the magical powers of all others, pon. And we wouldn't have our current conversation, pon."
"You knew...?"
"That's right, pon. Don't think any of your actions could remain secret, pon."
"And what will become now of White Angel and Phoenix?!"
"They'll cease to be magical girls, since they finished last, pon."
"And what does that mean?" Mary demanded to know.
"That means death, pon."
Mary dropped her magical phone.
"How... come...?" she could only utter.
Fav's voice came to her ears from the floor, "That's the price at which the magical powers come, pon. If you lose them, you cease to exist as a human too, pon."
Mary's amazement turned very quickly into anger.
"What about the girls who allegedly voluntarily dropped out of the game and relinquished their powers? Did they know about that, huh? Or did someone made them drop out?"
"Well, I admit it - they didn't drop out. Cranberry chose them as opponents and defeated them, pon."
"She not only defeated them! She killed them!" Mary roared.
"I can't deny she uses too much power sometimes, pon. But then, her battles are always interesting, pon."
"Interesting? How could you... play like that with people!"
Then she decided on a desperate deed.
"If you want to kill someone, then kill me! Let them live! They don't deserve to die like that!"
"Princess Mary, it's too late for that now, pon. There are three girls left now - you, Paws, and Cranberry. Accept things as they are, pon."
Mentally exhausted by all these disclosures, Mary sat on her bed and let her hands fall to her lap, being unable to say anything. She stared blankly at the wall opposite while Fav was hovering over her phone and did flips from time to time, sparkling scales dropping from him.
"Hey, Fav," the girl said at one point, "does Cranberry really participate in the rankings? Or is she apart from us?"
"I told you some time ago there are supervisors from the Land of Magic for those tests, didn't I, pon? Well, Cranberry is such a supervisor, or Master, pon."
"Oh my God... Cranberry is…? Does someone in the Land of Magic know what're you doing?"
"No, pon."
"So they're a bunch of incompetents who can't control their subordinates?"
"I can't say they're incompetent, pon. It'd be too much. But they do are too gullible, pon."
"So you've been lying to them by saying there are no problems with the tests", Mary said. "And Cranberry's only goal is to have death matches against the participants."
"Only against some of them whom she considers worthy, as I told you, pon. Besides, she always leaves one girl alive in order to be able to give an account there has been a winner of her test and everything has been OK, pon. But Cranberry went too far during the previous test and killed the last girl as well, pon. That's why I told her it was now strongly recommended to leave a survivor, pon. Otherwise, the Land of Magic could think the tests she's holding are too difficult and become suspicious of her, pon."
"Isn't there… a way both me and Paws to be the winners if we end in a draw?"
"No, pon. If you have an equal number of magical candy at the end, then Cranberry will personally choose the winner, pon."
"Let Paws win then. I agree."
"Are you sure, pon?"
"I'm completely sure. Please get in touch with Cranberry and tell her I want to meet her. I'll let her do whatever she wants to me, provided she leaves Paws alone. She has many more reasons to keep on living than I have."
"But Cranberry won't agree with you simply surrendering to her, pon. She could easily decide to make you fight against her by attacking Paws, pon."
"So I don't have the right to choose, is that right?"
Fav remained silent.
"All right... Then tell Cranberry I agree to fight against her."
"You have it, pon," the mascot said. "Do you have any preferences for your meeting's date, time or place, pon?"
"I want us to meet at night, as far away from populated areas as possible."
"Understood, pon. And I suggest you choose a date closer to the end of the week to be able to prepare yourself better, pon."
"Fine," Mary said. "Make it Saturday."
"Is ten in the evening all right with you, pon?"
"Yes."
"Just a moment to check the surrounding area," Fav said.
He stood still into the air and said half a minute later, "The most suitable place around is the New Forest National Park, pon. You won't be disturbed by anyone there, pon."
"There of all places...?" Mary asked.
"Do you have something against my choice, princess, pon?"
"Actually not... New Forest is a beautiful place. I've been there several times. There are vast pastures there, too, where we'll be able to fight without damaging the forest."
"And since New Forest is almost entirely a property of the Crown, it's a place befitting a princess like you, pon."
"A place befitting my death, right?" Mary said in a voice filled with bitterness.
"Be more optimistic, princess," Fav replied. "As long as you're breathing, you still have a chance, pon."
"Stop that. Just call Cranberry... And make her promise me... make her promise me Paws won't be harmed."
"At your orders, pon," the creature said and disappeared.
Mary turned off her magical phone and fell back on her bed.
Things were already decided.
"Master, a proposal came from Princess Mary to meet her in order to have a battle, pon."
"Excellent. I've wanted to meet her for quite a while. Did you agree on the date and place?"
"It'll be on Saturday, at ten in the evening, pon. The place is the New Forest National Park, pon. I'll make sure to choose an appropriate location in it and inform you, pon."
"Good," Cranberry replied. "Did the princess have any requests?"
"Not to harm Paws, pon. She said she's letting her win that way because she wants her to survive, pon."
"All right. Well then, Fav, take care of everything."
"Leave it to me, pon."
The next day after the chat Terry had a long and painful conversation with Patty. She had also talked to Fav who had disclosed to her what had happened to Phoenix and White Angel, and she was completely grief-stricken. Her words were constantly interrupted by sobs. Terry tried to comfort her but realized he was unable to do it because he missed their friends badly as well. The best thing that occurred to him was to tell Paws how Fav had told him a decision had been made that neither of them was to lose their life, regardless of who would finish last because they had achieved excellent results in the test. He did his best to sound as convincing as possible in order to make Patty believe him, although his heart ached with the thought he had been lying to her in such an offhand manner. In the end, his friend seemed to calm down a bit and told him it was good they both would remain alive after the test. She also asked him not to ever forget his fellow magical girls and he promised her that.
At the same time, Terry prepared himself for the battle against Cranberry. He took a one-week leave from work and went every night to the location in the New Forest fixed by Fav in order to get to know it as well as possible and train. He remained there as early as five or six in the morning, then went back to his apartment to sleep. He learnt to control the speed and size of his tornadoes very well during this time. Mary was creating ten in a row without a problem, always hitting her selected targets with them. On Friday she was already sure no matter what'd happen, she'd at least make things for Cranberry very difficult.
"If she wants a fight so badly, she'll get it," she thought.
And so Saturday came. Mary arrived at the future battlefield - a vast pasture not far away from a thick deciduous forest - a whole hour in advance to test her powers one last time. After summoning about a dozen tornadoes of various sizes that lifted all nearby trees and bushes into the air, she felt ready. She was planning to do her best to defeat Cranberry, no matter how weak that possibility appeared.
After that, Mary sat on a stone and played the song Forest by the Amercian singer Emily Bindiger on her phone - a song that always moved her to tears, - trying to find a relief in its melody. She let the music fill the space around her and closed her eyes. Tears began rolling down her cheeks.
When the song ended and Mary lifted her eyelids, she found out Cranberry had already come. She was standing about six metres from her and was watching her with interest. Her lips were curled into a slight smile.
"Good evening, princess," her opponent greeted her. "I'm glad we meet in person at last. You have a good taste in music."
Mary quickly wiped her tears away. She put her magical phone back into her belt and rose from her seat.
"Good evening, Cranberry," she replied. "Thank you. I like such songs."
"Fav informed me you wanted to fight against me so I accepted your invitation. I expect a very interesting battle. I hope you won't disappoint me."
"I've been preparing myself for this moment for a whole week, Cranberry. I also learnt everything about you from Fav. How you hold your tests and what your goal is."
"That's good," Cranberry said. "So you know what to expect from me?"
"Yes," Mary confirmed. "I know you'll very likely kill me. But I assure you I'm going to sell my life dearly for certain. Fav must've told you I'm doing it in order to make Paws win. Because of that, I beg you... I plead you, don't do her any harm."
"I must admit I wanted you to win. You have greater powers than Paws and you seem more worthy to me. And it's a great rarity for a man to become a magical girl. But since you've decided to protect that girl, so be it. I won't touch her. I need a winner, after all," Cranberry concluded and smirked.
"Thank you."
"Well," her opponent added, "shall we begin?"
"All right," Mary replied.
Immediately after her words, Cranberry lunged towards her, aiming a leg at her head. Mary, however, threw herself aside to evade the attack, then summoned her tornado and directed it towards the flower-draped girl. She on her part dashed like lightning to move away from the path of the element, before attacking again. The princess used her powers on her enemy once more but Cranberry proved to be quick enough to dodge the assault, after which she suddenly disappeared. While Mary was frantically looking around for her, she detected some enormous invisible power was approaching her and barely managed to jump aside. A moment later there was a huge explosion at the place where she had been standing until a moment ago and a several metres wide crater appeared on the ground. When Mary turned around and saw the result of that attack, she felt her skin crawl. Then she felt something else as well.
A powerful kick in her side threw her several metres away, followed by a flurry of punches and kicks, most of which hit her. Mary wasn't prepared for that. She barely managed to maintain her composure and summon her tornado in order to put an end of that attack. She was in great pain and was breathing heavily but she nevertheless used the fact Cranberry had found herself far away from her for a few seconds and attacked her by creating a series of powerful vortexes. While the other girl was busy with evading them, Mary mustered all her energy and sent a massive tornado towards her that was more than one hundred and fifty metres wide. She was hoping its size wouldn't let her opponent evade it. The monstrous attack dug a deep ditch in the ground, uprooting grass and bushes and lifting lumps of earth into the air.
Suddenly an invisible wave hit Mary, flinging her about ten metres away after which she smashed into the ground and rolled over a few times. That made her realize she hadn't managed to hit Cranberry. Even though Mary was strong enough and protected by her armour, she still suffered a broken bone in her lower left arm and a badly twisted right ankle by that attack. Her rage, however, made her forget about the pain and after evading one more sound wave that broke a tree next to her to pieces, she directed seven or eight consecutive tornadoes towards Cranberry who was standing nearby. They raved for about a minute, digging a colossal trench that was over three hundred metres long and almost two hundred metres wide. The destruction was so great that Mary thought there was no way her opponent had remained unharmed. Then she perceived some kind of movement behind her and turned around at once. To her horror, she faced Cranberry who was so close that their noses almost touched. A bloodthirsty expression had appeared upon her opponent's face and her teeth were bared in a predatory smile. The next instant Mary received a terrible punch in the chest that broke through her armour and sent her flying before she collapsed to the ground. Before the princess could recover, Cranberry's fingers tightened around her neck like pliers and her breath stopped. The flower-draped girl lifted Mary high up into the air with her left hand, while she was writhing in pain, being unable to summon her powers.
"Too bad," Cranberry said. Her clothes were torn and she had several bad wounds all over her body, which meant the tornadoes had hit their target but that clearly hadn't been enough to bring the girl down. "Our battle didn't last very long. I thought you were something more than the others but I've obviously been wrong. Well, never mind - I might have better luck during my next test..."
She bent her right hand at the elbow and raised it before her chest, aiming straight for her opponent's heart.
"It's over..." Mary thought while her consciousness was slowly leaving her. "Goodbye, Paws..."
"LET GO OF HER RIGHT NOW!" a voice which she immediately recognized shouted out.
"Paws...?!"
"Look who's here," Cranberry said spitefully. "Princess Mary was trying to save you, yet you're asking for trouble. Do you think you'll rescue her?"
Even before she finished speaking, Paws had already lunged towards her. Then Cranberry flung Mary with all her might at the trunk of a big nearby tree that was broken in two by the impact, and the princess dropped to the ground. Her whole body was screaming in agony, thus making her unable to move and turning her into a helpless witness of what was happening before her eyes. The merciless attacker evaded easily the catgirl's series of furious swipes with claws and chose the right moment to kick her hard in the ribs, sending her flying far away. Then she chased after Paws and rained down a shower of hits on the other girl who couldn't protect herself against them. She began to look like a living punching bag. When Cranberry ended her attack, she grabbed her opponent and threw her onto the grass next to Mary.
The princess managed to lift herself with great effort on an elbow and looked at her friend. When she saw the condition Paws was in, a look of horror appeared on her face.
"P... Paws...," she uttered.
"You passed the test, princess," Cranberry chipped in. "You survived and will become a real magical girl. Congratulations!"
After those words their opponent went away, leaving Mary and Paws alone. The catgirl was covered in blood, and her face was almost unrecognizable. Nevertheless, she was still breathing and conscious.
"Why did you come...?" Mary asked.
"Fav told me... where you were. I thought... we could defeat her together..."
"No, don't speak anymore," Mary whispered. "I'll take you to a hospital, I promise you. I'll..."
"Listen to me, Terry..." Paws whispered with great difficulty, then she had a fit of coughing and a trickle of blood oozed from the corner of her mouth. Mary began caressing her face desperately, feeling herself utterly useless.
A few seconds later the catgirl managed to take a breath and said more clearly, "I'm glad to have known you... You were a great friend."
"No, I wasn't! I couldn't protect you! Forgive me, Patty!" Mary shouted.
"Don't blame yourself... I was naïve and let myself be misled. But you're alive now... because of me."
"You must live, Patty! You have a family! Don't die, please!"
"My dear children...," Paws said with a weakening voice. "Carrie... Jimmy... mommy loves you... and will watch over you from heaven..." She made an effort to smile, then uttered, "Forgive me, Al... I love you..."
A lonely cry, filled with pain, tore the silence.
"Did you take care of the princess' memory, Fav?" Cranberry asked.
"Yes, pon. She won't remember absolutely anything except Paws. In her mind, she'll be a normal woman whom she'd known from somewhere and who'd been killed in a road accident, pon. She'll only know she'd passed a test from the Land of Magic and had become a real magical girl. That's it, pon."
"Perfect. But I'm not especially satisfied. It turned out there were almost no really good fighters in England. I was expecting more from the local girls."
"Me too, pon," Fav confirmed. "I suggest we go back to Japan. After all, the majority of magical girls are there, as well as the best fighters among them. Even the American girls weren't that strong, pon."
"Exactly," Cranberry replied. "Start searching for girls for the next test, Fav. I'll return to the Land of Magic for a while before going to Japan."
"Understood, pon."