Author's Notes: As requested, I'm making clear what time in the ToAru plot this is at. Right now it's about just prior to Vol14's events (ie, Avignon). I was going to reveal this next chapter (it was going to be this chapter, but this got kind of long so I split it in two), but I might as well make it clear here.
Chapter 4 - Power
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"You, you two…!" Misaka Mikoto's breathing became more rushed, her face getting steadily redder.
"W-wait, don't jump to conclusions here Misaka-!" Touma hastily tried to explain, knowing the signs of imminent electrocution from the Railgun by now.
"At least do something like that at a place where nobody else can see the two of you, damn it!" Mikoto yelled, before a bolt of lightning shot towards him.
Touko calmly pushed Touma away from her and stepped back, leaving him to act as the lightning rod and negate the attack.
"… I should have known you were a womaniser of unimaginable prowess." Touko commented, shifting her gaze from a flustered Mikoto who's still blushing from embarrassment at seeing such an intimate scene, to Shirai Kuroko who couldn't quite erase the gloating from her face at seeing Kamijou Touma being in trouble with her Onee-sama, and finally to the unfortunate boy himself.
"You said all that to me when you already have her as your girlfriend? Well, this isn't really my business, but I feel obliged to warn you that saying things like that to multiple women will one day get you stabbed, if not worse-"
"She/He's not my girlfriend/boyfriend!" Touma and Mikoto both yelled back at Touko, though Touma's response was more exasperated than angry.
"I'm not angry because this guy is my boyfriend!" Mikoto said hotly. "I'm just angry that how can you two have no shame, doing that in broad daylight and in the open-"
"By 'that', do you mean him trying to consoling someone who had recently suffered a traumatic experience and tried to comfort her?" Touko asked placidly.
"… What?" Mikoto gave Touko a confused look.
"Look at the area around his shoulder." Touko advised. "See the wet patch around the shirt there? As embarrassing as it is, I cried into his shoulders as I was reminded of… the recent death of someone I cared about."
Touko's face was forced into a slight grimace, even as she pushed down a sharp stab of pain in her heart as she chose those words that described what she went through. That brief flicker of emotion didn't go unnoticed by the two girls from Tokiwadai here.
"Then there's also how I look right now. I'd say after crying that long my face is probably a mess." Touko remarked. Now that she mentioned it, Mikoto saw how Touko's eyes were red and Mikoto can't quite call Touko's current look right now 'presentable'. How this had escaped her notice earlier Mikoto can't really say, but it was probably because she had focused more on the spiky-haired teen and not the girl next to him.
"Even so…" Mikoto was not entirely convinced by Touko's words. "But the two of you were…"
Mikoto tried to go into the details, but the words just won't come as embarrassment got the better of her. Touko suppressed her smile at Mikoto's response; she really was an innocent, if something only at this level managed to faze her. Her Mikoto was like this too, before Touko slowly brought her step by step further along the path of what it meant being lovers…
No, now is not the time to remember that kind of things right now. Touko reprimanded herself, banishing the thought before it led to other, sadder memories.
From the corner of her eye, Touko saw Touma almost choked at the implications of what Touko had done together with the Misaka Mikoto of another world. Without a word Touko closed the connection between them, saving his male mind from trying to comprehend the nuances of the relationship between two girls.
"Forgive me for interrupting," Kuroko's voice cut through the awkwardness between Mikoto and Touko. "But I believe Onee-sama have a point here: the body language between the two of you suggests you two are quite close, even if the scene just then wasn't that of a intimate nature. Do you have an explanation for that?"
With the teleporter having one eyebrow raised, it left no question that Kuroko is trying to turn the situation to her favour. Despite claims by her Onee-sama suggesting otherwise, it was clear as day that there's something between Mikoto and Touma. It was not a surprise that Kuroko is trying to discredit the competition, really.
"Is it really that surprising that a brother is willing to comfort his sister when she's distressed?" Touko asked blandly and ignored the subtle hint Kuroko gave, that Touma was not available to Mikoto as a lover. Her manipulations toward Mikoto do not concern her right now. "It's only natural that siblings have a close relationship compared to that between friends, isn't it? Doubly so when they are twins."
"… Wait, 'brother'?" Mikoto stared wide-eyed at Touko as she shifted her gaze back and forth between Touko and Touma, trying to pick out the resemblance.
"You haven't figured it out by now?" Touko asked innocently. "I would have thought it was obvious, what with our eyes and hair being similar."
Before Mikoto can reply however, she was interrupted by Kuroko's groan.
"Damn it! And here I thought Onee-sama can now finally give up on that barbarian now that he has a girlfriend!" Kuroko lamented and fell to her knees in despair. "Why does this happen to me? Do I have to hope for the chance of forbidden love between siblings in order to make sure pure love blossom between Onee-sama and I? This is just- Urk!"
As Mikoto gathered up the lightning around her and intended to shock her kouhai into submission to stop her spouting more of the craziness, Touko had beaten her to silencing the twin-tailed teleporter.
With one hand out in front her, she clenched her hand into a fist. Kuroko had trouble breathing as Touko did so, her airway being constricted by an unseen force.
"Would you mind your language around others, please? Some of us can be offended by the things you're suggesting." Touko said, emphasizing her point by clenching her fist tighter, leading to Kuroko giving a grunt of pain.
Why was it so many people she meets tend to have minds that end up thinking that way when they hear how she and Touma are close? (Yes, she knew she's unfairly generalising people into categories; not that it stopped her from being annoyed.)
"That's enough." Mikoto warned, her electricity started to dance around her before being focused into a sphere in her hands. "Let Kuroko go."
"As you wish." Touko released her hold, and Kuroko took a deep breath trying to get oxygen back into her lungs.
"Attacking other people just because they said something you didn't like? That's not very nice." Mikoto narrowed her eyes at Touko. She doesn't think highly about people that try to hurt her friends.
"You were about to send a bolt of electricity into your friend there for talking like that. I fail to see how you have the right to complain to what I just did." Touko shrugged. "Or is it that you're saying you two are in a relationship where only you are allowed to hurt your friend there? I apologise then, I didn't mean to interrupt something that's a demonstration of love between two people connected in such a way normal methods of expressing their bond is just not enough…"
"Is that true, Onee-sama?" Kuroko shot back up like being choked did absolutely nothing, the idea that Misaka Mikoto having special feelings for her had overwritten anything else in her mind. Though, when one thinks about it, Shirai Kuroko lived through her Dorm-Manager's neck-breaking technique on a regular basis (mostly for her antics in trying to seduce her roommate, but also at times for not filing the forms when she's absent due to Judgment duty early enough) so something as comparatively minor as choking is hardly enough to keep her down. "Oh, Kuroko is so ashamed to have never noticed! Please, Onee-sama, shower me with more affection-"
The bolt of lightning struck Kuroko, leaving her keeled over and with a smile on her face. Mikoto's face is flushed, and then glared at Touko who watched in amusement at how things have turned out.
Having been around Kuroko and Mikoto long enough, Touko already knew what to say – and more importantly, what not to say – to keep the situation under control when dealing with them.
"It's not like that." Mikoto said defensively. "Kuroko's a friend and a roommate, but we don't have that kind of relationship!"
"And yet you trust her enough to shoot a bolt of lightning at your friend, knowing she can handle it." Touko remarked. "Most people would say that's quite a amount of trust... and not the kind most people who are just friends and roommates have."
"Well, what about you! You tried to strangle her!" Mikoto switched to a different point, knowing she can't win in the verbal fight if they kept going on the same topic. "It's different in how you just attacked without knowing if she can be alright after that!"
"I'm just a Level 2 in Telekinesis. I seriously doubt I can do something like strangling people at that range." Touko said dryly. To emphasize her point, Touko pointed at the unopened can of drink that was left on the ground, dropped and forgotten when she hugged Touma.
The can wobbly levitated up, and shakily moved towards Touko's hand; the closer it approached Touko the more stable the can looked, like it wasn't going to just suddenly fall to the ground.
I'll explain later. Touko told Touma via their connection, and he masked his look of surprise (after all, how does losing Imagine Breaker lead to telekinesis?) before Mikoto noticed it. Out loud, Touko said as she caught her drink: "Now, as a student of Tokiwadai you're at least Level 3, right? Surely anything you throw at her is potentially more dangerous than what I can do."
Mikoto grumbled unhappily. She really can't argue against that, not when in events like Daihaseisai she was forbidden to use any electricity based moves because that was potentially too powerful for the human body to handle.
"… You never told me you had siblings." Mikoto accused Touma, ignoring Touko's earlier question on seeing family resemblances. "Or that she has a different ability to what you have."
The 'Experiment' suggested those with similar DNA have a high chance of having the same ability; hence Mikoto's conclusion of Touko also having a negation ability, and surprise that Touko didn't.
Knowing Mikoto, showing she does not have a power like Imagine Breaker is a smart move for Touko; Touko was spared of potentially being hunted down to be a sparring partner against a Level 5, like what Touma went through in his earlier days with Mikoto. Saying she's 'only' Level 2 also removed the possibility of treated like Touma when he said he was just a Level 0 – avoiding Mikoto following up from a precedent that 'powerless' people actually do have a ability worth investigating.
"You never asked?" Touma replied weakly, hoping she never actually did ask as he couldn't be sure due to his memory loss. He almost sighed in relief seeing Mikoto clamp shut after thinking about it, finally conceding that yes, she never did ask about his family.
That still doesn't make her feel any better, though.
"I believe an introduction is in order." Touko suggested, giving a half-formal bow to Mikoto. "I'm Kamijou Touko, twin sister to the idiot here that you've been taking care of. Pleased to meet you."
"I'm Misaka Mikoto." The Railgun gave a bow back. Never let it be said the young ladies of Tokiwadai are not well versed in proper etiquette, as they're still ojous despite being middle school students. Knowing these things off by heart is something that was expected of them (even if some of them choose not to act like a well-mannered lady all the time). Next to her, Kuroko gave a similar introduction, after she recovered from what she saw as a over-the-top reaction from both of the other girls present at her comments.
"Was the 'idiot' comment necessary?" Touma winced at the label given to him.
"Probably." Touko said back to him, though while Touma was thinking his 'twin sister' is making fun of his supposedly low intellect, she was actually pointing out how dense he can be when it comes to romance.
Really, this Mikoto has practically fallen head over heels for him and is held back by nothing more than her embarrassment and inexperience in love – probably better known as her 'tsun' side. If Touko was the one in Touma's position right now she'd be able to make Mikoto her official girlfriend in a week's time; with the experience she had dealing with Mikoto in her world, probably even less if she really tried.
Then again, Touma's love life isn't really my business… Touko sighed inwardly. If Touma's not interested in love, then so be it. Having said that, she's not crazy enough to try and make this Mikoto a replacement for the one she lost. She already knew being involved romantically, at least for her, didn't help the situation.
That became painfully obvious after what Acqua of the Back did to them back in her world.
"Do you still want to head off to the supermarket?" Touko asked Touma. "If you have something to do with Misaka-san here I could go by myself…"
"We'll still go together. I haven't got anything else planned, and I promised to go with you first." Touma stated without hesitation. "We might not be able to make the sale, but at least I can still tell you where the bargains usually are. Just let me go back and grab some cash, leave my bag back at the dorm, that kind of things."
"Alright." Touko nodded. She then turned to the two middle school students here:
"Pardon us, but we need to be going now. It was a pleasure meeting the two of you."
"Ah, um, yes." For some reason, Mikoto looked flustered at Touko's response. "See you later, then."
The two sides separated, with Touma giving Touko a brief rundown on where they're going and what to look for at the supermarket as they walked away. Even without turning back, Touko can feel the gaze from Mikoto falling onto their back that's walking away together, and Kuroko probably having a unhappy look that her Onee-sama is paying more attention to Touma rather than herself.
This time, she allowed her sigh to be verbalised. More love troubles, even if she somehow managed to escape having made a bad impression on Mikoto. With Touko appearing out of nowhere and appears to be associated closely with Touma would mark her as a potential rival to keep a eye on, even if Mikoto might not consciously think that way. This had the potential to be very bad, depending on how this plays out.
Touko just hoped Mikoto won't do anything rash. She seemed like an emotionally stable girl…
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"I'm back, Index." Touma called out as he entered into his living room.
"Welcome back, Touma." The silver-haired sister tore her attention from the television (well, what else can a girl well versed in magic do in a city of Science?) and focused onto Touma. Index's eyes widened as she saw Touko (who cleaned herself up before coming here) entering, and tried to move away timidly.
Touko didn't fault Index for acting that way. Normal magicians, who produce mana themselves as they refined their own life energy into magical power, tend to miss tiny signs of energy movement. Index, who doesn't have mana (at least when she's not in John's Pen Mode) don't have that drawback which she had compared to 'people who is used to eating strong-tasting food cannot distinguish slight changes in the flavour'.
Thus, she can perfectly feel there's just something wrong with Touko. It was not mana, not telesma… but there was just a sense of wrongness coming from Touko. Touko's right hand gave off small waves that put her on edge, producing minute amounts of energy unidentifiable to anything within the 103,000 grimoires Index possessed.
If Touma's right hand was 'destruction that's a part of nature', reducing magical energy to nothing similar to how plants decayed back into the earth… then Touko's hand felt almost the opposite. She held the possibilities of 'Life', but warped in such a way it was straddling the line between what was natural and unnatural. That effect is lessened (though not completely erased) when Touma was around, but to Index it is still noticeable. Hence the reaction from Index that Touma had put down to 'dislike', and he had no idea why Index would act this way.
Touko, on the other hand, wasn't helping the situation. When Index, the one from her world, has been freed from the 'Collar', its weapons like Dragon's Breath unable to defeat the Imagine Breaker, Touko told Index to go with Stiyl Magnus and Kanzaki Kaori. The one that spent days with her, being the anchor of safety Index had not came across for a entire year as she ran from pursuers, had abandoned her to the ones who until days ago are seen by Index as the face of evil-doers that tried to capture her for their own gains.
Mistakenly, Touko had thought no matter how bad the two magicians are they can't possibly be more of a danger compared to being around the vessel of It, Imagine Breaker being present or not. It was the lesser of two evils to send her away than to expose her to horrors beyond that of mortal understanding. Later events showed maybe that was a bad idea, to say the least.
To put it in a way Aogami would understand, Touko missed the crucial flag right at the very start that determined if she'll get a Bad End, and after the wrong choice is made you don't realise the mistake you're almost at the final scene.
Sure, Touko met Index at later incidents like the Book of the Law, but they never got beyond just being acquaintances. Touko don't really know how to interact with Index like she did with other people she met once more coming into this world, and it showed. When Touma brought Index to the hospital to visit Touko, the girl who had once possessed Imagine Breaker were at a loss trying to think of something that would make Index be more at ease around her.
Then again, Index was not entirely wrong to think of Touko as something like an Eldritch Abomination in human form. With that in mind, Touko decided it does not matter if Index doesn't like her, if it means someone will be careful and keep watch.
In addition, this way it will be less of a hassle when the situation demand Touko is to be put down like a rabid dog. There will be fewer people to be afflicted by unnecessary grief in that case.
"I'm going out to buy the ingredients we need for dinner." Touma said to Index, blissfully unaware of the edginess between Touko and Index. "I might take a while since I'll also be showing Touko around. Do you want to come along?"
"… No, thanks. I'll just wait here for you, Touma." Index said, reaching for Sphinx. The kitten nimbly avoided the hand, and walked over to Touko and started begging to be petted.
Whatever power Touko is leaking out, it appears it doesn't make animals think she's threatening (A danger, maybe… but not something that would harm you unless you provoked it). Touko crouched down and scratched Sphinx's ear, a small smile on her face. Yet another difference between the two worlds, as Touko never had a pet; but considering how close she was with Mikoto, any pet she had probably would have been placed through the torture of being around strong electromagnetic fields more often then they liked.
Good thing Misaka #10032's AIM field isn't as strong as her Onee-sama's, then; otherwise the black kitten she picked up would have been much more uneasy around the clones, and probably have never gotten used to their AIM fields.
"Alright, if you say so." Touma said, pocketing his wallet and began to walk out. He wondered what had gotten into Index recently, since if he invited her to go shopping most of the time Index agreed to come – out of boredom if nothing else. It doesn't seem like other people coming along is a factor, as Index didn't change her behaviour when Himegami was living with them or when Kazakiri is around. "Well, Touko-san?"
Touko stood back up, and deposited Sphinx back into the hands of Index as the white-clad nun came to see them off. In response to the wariness Index directed towards Touko, the taller girl merely turned away and followed Touma out of the room after she politely said her farewells.
She tried not to let Index's actions towards her right now act as a reminder of what happened to the Index of her world. If painful reminders happened every time she met someone familiar, she'd never be able to get anything done. For everyone's sake, she can't afford to get sentimental right now.
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"So, about that explanation…" Touma started to say, as he leaned forward to pick out the meat they're buying tonight.
Remember what I said before, how our resonance is a 'natural' power as opposed to 'supernatural'? Touko sent through their connection. The 'telekinesis' I used earlier follows the same principles; I don't overwrite reality with something like Personal Reality, I 'bend' the rules of reality into achieving similar effects.
… How is that even possible? Touma thought back to her.
You tell me. I don't get how formatting our brains a certain way allow humans to overwrite reality either despite the Science behind it. But if reality can be overwritten is it that much of a surprise it can be directly manipulated? Touko responded voicelessly, reaching out to one of the packs. All I know is WHYthis works. Not the HOWof it.
And I suppose this is something I should already know. Touma sighed inwardly. It wasn't even a question, just a statement of fact. I'd be interested in using some powers like that…
I'd advise you against it. Touko 'said' sharply back to Touma, as she walked to the next section of the supermarket. I'm only using this because I don't have Imagine Breaker anymore. Your right hand acts as a lock, sealing away something inside you. Using another power puts a strain on the lock, like a computer trying to run too many programs and the CPU can't handle it. Frankly, this ability is the last line of defence I have keeping 'It' sealed away inside me, and every time I use this 'It' is more likely to break free - that THING have a back door into the ability through me.
Touko's words were filled with venom as she thought about the one partially responsible for the end of her world. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she continued:
Right now, you're pretty much in an ideal state: you're not using an ability that has a loophole for another being to exploit through you, and the lock is still strong. You might not be able to throw lightning and flames around like a god of war, but at least this way you don't have an entity trying to devour you from the inside out.
Touma mulled the information over. Power has a price, huh?
Don't it always? Touko's reply had a bitter tone to it.
The two of them got everything they're after by this point, and headed towards the checkout.
If it ever turns out you need power, strength more than what you have right now… Touko told him as they placed the groceries in front of the cashier. Use the Imagine Breaker's full strength instead of relying on the other ability. It willalso put strain on the lock, but not as much as the alternative. And considering our… no, your opponents will be mostly magicians and espers, I'd say that would be enough.
'My' opponents? Touma frowned slightly, taking half of the bags the cashier handed to them. Aren't you going to help me?
If you need my help, by that point we'd already be in trouble so deep it won't matter either way how much more help you have. Touko told him, both of them walking out the supermarket. Left unsaid was her opinion on how if she helps she might just make things worse.
Not that Touma would believe it anyway; but the two of them going in circles repeating the same arguments again and again won't help the conversation.
As they began to go their separate ways back to their current residence, Touma called back to Touko:
One final thing – is there a name for this ability? I don't want to just refer to it as 'that ability' whenever we talk about it, it's too much of a mouthful.
I'd think you'd probably keep calling it 'that ability' even after I tell you its name. Touko's amusement drifted across the connection.
Oh? Touma asked, not quite believing Touko's claim.
'Kamijou'. The Power Above That of God's. 'La Persona Superiore a Dio'. These are just some of the names that have been used to refer to this ability, or a person with this ability. Touko's chuckling voice was mentally heard by Touma. In spite of the amusement however, there was also a sense of mocking directed towards herself. Laughing at the irony of how someone with power arguably the strongest on her planet had ultimately failed to protect what she wanted to. Really, you probably won't be using names as ostentatious as these if you can help it, right?
Without waiting for an answer, Touko left. Touma turned just in time to see her vanish around a corner, her voice in his mind fading away that same instant with the connection being closed off.
Despite her answers, Touma now have even more questions than before.
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*End Chapter 4*
Author's Notes: I know the first part of this chapter, where Touko met Mikoto is weak writing; I was stuck on that for a while. In the end I decided to just put something there and move on to more important/interesting things. I don't want to be stuck there when I have more to write.
I've been hinting at Touko's past, and how she messed up throughout this story. Rest assured I will be putting flashback scenes in once certain events come to pass, eg Acqua's attack on Academy City and the UK Civil War.
As for the explanation/theory of the 'natural vs supernatural power'… I did say I'm going to be playing hard and fast with Index canon. More information will be revealed to help readers make sense of everything – just not soon.
I blame Tvtropes, Doctor Who and Warhammer 40k for giving my muse the premise to the theory I'm going to be going with in later chapters.
