A/N: Finally! this took forever to get off the ground but it's here! Also, there's some news for those of you who want to plug in at the bottom!
Chapter 1: Scarlet Knight
On a sunny Saturday in the gay city of Paris, the jewel of France, a bullet train from London just arrived at the Gare du Nord. Over the intercom rang out Maintenant arrivé, Londres à Paris. S'il vous plaît regarder votre pas que vous sortez, et passer une belle journée. Near the Business Premier car, a bellhop was standing by to escort some very important newcomers to the city. The minute the Parisian Mayor had heard of their arrival, he had hurried – well, rather his staff had been rushed to make as many accommodations as humanly possible!
Using the leaked descriptions, the bellboy found his target immediately – black-blueish hair pulled into a tight bun held by a red barrette, a white long-sleeved shirt with red culottes pants… black sunglasses, and a cane. As if for added confirmation, the slim, middle-aged woman was tapping it around as if searching for something. Smiling in excitement at the kudos he'd receive for getting there first, the bellhop went over and gently said, "Excuse me, Madame, but might I help with your luggage-" The man's sentence gave out in a painful wince as the cane went smacking into his ankle.
As he reflexively knelt to nurse his wound, the same cane -which was actually a wooden training sword known as a bokken, not that the young man had noticed – caught his chin and raised his head to see the woman looking down at him. More impressively, she was speaking right at him, not just focusing on where he might be kneeling. "I didn't ask for help, child!" she snapped impatiently, before turning her head to the train, and yelling in Japanese, "Kagami, we must be off!"
"Coming, mother," came a voice in a much calmer tone. Off of the train, carrying three bags on her back and one in each hand, came a young girl who looked no older than 14! Her slightly pale skin only made the freckles that crossed over the bridge of her nose pop out, and her hair was colored just like the older lady's, but cut in a stylish bob that framed her face. Her svelte but well-toned frame could be seen through the long-sleeved white blazer worn over the black collared shirt, as well as black athletic leggings that led up to a plaid skirt. The skirt matched well with the tie of the same design, completing the look.
Shocked and slightly put out by a teenager carrying more than he would have been able, the bellhop shakily asked again, "U-uh, do you… uh, need help with those, miss?"
Rather than the teenage girl responding, the woman scoffed and removed the bokken. "If she needed your help, it would defeat the purpose! I take it Mayor Bourgeois has heard of my arrival and this is his attempt to learn of the reason?" At the young man's flinch, the woman laughed lightly again. "Truly, the Western world is full of such unsubtle ruses. Thank him for his consideration, but we have a ride already." With that, the matriarch walked proudly through the crowd, her cane not hitting any other ankles as the man noticed, while her daughter walked dutifully next to her, unburdened by her load.
Half an hour later, a sleek red luxury car turned off of the Parisian roadway, and traveled up a short driveway to a modern Japanese house, complete with a nice open field and a zen garden in the back. At the woman's command of "Tatsu, stop!", the vehicle came to a complete halt, allowing for both female occupants to begin unloading and heading into the house. The interior was already decorated, and Kagami suspected the fridge would already be stocked. As her mother had requested, she had only packed what she was not comfortable with being shipped to Paris. Mind you, she followed these orders without backtalk, but a few hundred miles was, in her opinion, more than enough time to wait.
As Kagami dropped the luggage, she turned to Tomoe Tsurugi, her mother and fencing instructor, who almost seemed to be waiting for her to say something. "Do you have something to say, Kagami? Don't hesitate and come out with it!"
"Well…" Kagami started, choosing her words carefully so as to prevent coming off as rude. "I was… surprised when you declared our sudden departure from Saitama, but you explained it would make sense when we arrived. Now, I am over 5000 kilometers from the only home I've ever known and am no closer to understanding. Why are we in Paris, mother?"
Tomoe sniffed before responding, "Looking for an explanation in everything is foolish and brash, Kagami. If you must know why the sudden move, it will make sense in a few days. Now, I have some last-minute preparations to complete, so I will be busy all day. If you have time to let your mind wander to questions that will be answered in time, you can take that time to unpack and prepare yourself for tomorrow. You've been enrolled into Collège Françoise Dupont, and your first day is tomorrow. When you get hungry, there is plenty of food in the fridge, but make sure to clean up after yourself." After explaining nothing, Tomoe walked out of the room, only tapping her bokken on a few pieces of furniture, before entering what could only be her room, more than likely also fully decorated.
No less confused about her situation, Kagami sighed and grabbed her things before taking them upstairs. Her room was decorated in a mix of Japanese basic with a Western twist. Rather than a cot on the floor, she had a bed, frame, and all, next to a window that overlooked the backyard lawn, the stone wall, and the city beyond that. In the center of her room, boxes of the teen's possessions took up space; they were joined by her luggage as she crowded it all in one spot to begin unpacking.
Being as organized as ever, Kagami had everything done in less than an hour; her framed fencing certificates hung next to pictures of a child-sized Kagami after earning a 9th Degree Red Belt in kickboxing, and her fencing gear hung up in her closet. In the room connected to her bedroom was her fully assembled Wing Chun training dummy, as well as some dumbbells that were already here upon arrival. There was only one box left, but Kagami didn't open it; instead, she gave it a sad look, before wiping the expression from her face and stuffing the box under the bed.
As she looked out through the window at what was now her new home, she huffed in annoyance. "It'll make sense… I just need to wait for a few days? Is it really too much to know why we're here now instead of half a week later?" The way Kagami felt, she would usually grab her Épée fencing sword, but a more enticing idea sprang to mind. "New city, new environment… learning the layout wouldn't be a bad idea. Mom might even be proud of my initiative." She internally snorted at that; if her mother cared about anything other than fencing or the family name, she'd never shown it before. Deciding to put that out of her head, Kagami does a kick freshening up before hitting the town.
After about ten minutes of walking up and down the nearby streets, one thing became evident to Kagami: Paris and Saitama were very different from one another. The people, the smells, everything – anywhere Kagami looked, there was something new that just reminded her this wasn't home. Rather than sulking about it and blowing it out of proportion like a gyaru, Kagami tried to find reasons to like or grow to like her new locale.
So far, she was largely failing on that front; the coffee and tea tasted too sweet, drivers weren't considerate about people crossing the crosswalk at all, and why were there so many goddamn pigeons everywhere! After startling her fifth flock of the flying rats, one of them left a messy present on her blazer; the vitriolic tirade she launched out at the offending bird had people looking over at her in shock, and one guy who was feeding them to go running away from her crying! (Admittedly, she had felt bad for that – she wouldn't usually be so tense but instead of sleeping to balance out the jet lag, somehow she thought this would be a better use of time.)
Frustrated and embarrassed at the outburst, the teen dropped down onto a bench, as she called back to her mother's meditative teachings. Trying to center herself, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath in, focusing on centering herself, before exhaling slowly. 'Okay, I chose to come out here. I wanted to learn about where I'm living now. So, before I get labeled as someone who yells at birds, let's try this again. Is there something in this downturn of events that I can turn to my favor?'
Finally calmer, she opened her eyes… and saw a bookstore across the street. Said store was even having a sale… on Kagami's favorite reading material. Smiling slightly, she thanked the universe for the olive branch and went over to the store. Once inside, she made a beeline for her favorite section in any bookstore: the manga section. Besides fencing, Kagami's one other pastime was cornering the Japanese graphic novel market; from shonen to shojo, and much in-between, Kagami put great effort into her collection of magazines… about as much effort into hiding it from her mother.
Tomoe Tsurugi hated anything she viewed as a waste of time, and manga was pretty high on her list. (Number one was intimate relationships, which was why Kagami only had the one parent.) Thus, after discovering the joy of the medium was a nice way to cool down from an intense workout, the teen's next thought was 'how do I hide this from Mother?' Naturally, only nine years old at the time, a lot of her first attempts resulted in her mother finding the books and making the poor girl return them. By now, however, Kagami had mastered the art of hiding her "wasteful" hobby and had even condensed her favorites into one box for the move.
After scanning the aisles carefully, Kagami settled on a relatively new manga called Boku no Hero Academia; it was about a kid who met an old hero and got powers from him. 'It might be silly', she thought as she turned the page to see the salad-headed protagonist meet a man whose face was literally on fire, 'but imagine...one day, a person wakes up and before sunset, they have super powers! Unrealistic, but it is a very entertaining thought…'
Deciding to finish the volume at home, the teenager went to the front to buy it. When she arrived, there was already a girl at the desk trying to purchase a stack of American comic books. Trying the operative word as she was talking to the older clerk with a sheepish smile. "Now, Miss Hartman," the girl said with a slightly accented way that Kagami recognized her as a fellow guest from the East, though she couldn't place the origin. Taiwan maybe? "I know we have this fun back-and-forth. I want to buy something, you say I need money – but come on! I live just around the corner! Surely, as your number one customer, I can borrow these for now and come back later with the cash in hand, eh? Whadda say, ol' buddy ol pal?"
Madame Hartman gave the girl a flat look that said this was not the first time this had happened. "How about instead," the woman responded, "I hold on to these comics, you go around the corner, get some money, and come back to actually buy them, because this is not a library, but a bookstore?"
The girl fiddled with the drawstrings on her bright orange hoodie. "Heh heh… shrewd as ever, Miss Hartman. You know, I do have somewhere else to be, so I'd better get going! Save my stuff – I'll be right back!" Grabbing a half-zipped-up bookbag with antlers off the ground, the girl rushed out of the store. She moved quickly, Kagami barely dodging out of the way as she passed.
As she exited, Kagami noticed an object fall from her open bag: a flashlight with a...moose theme, for some reason. Kagami picked it up and inspected it quickly, wrinkling her nose at how sticky it felt to touch. "Uh, hey? You dropped your-" Kagami couldn't even catch her attention before she was out the door, the entrance slammed shut. Sighing, Kagami put down the manga volume and raced out, expecting to see her just outside. No such luck, as it seemed the girl had disappeared completely into the crowd!
"Kuso," Kagami huffed as she looked around for any sign of the girl...before finally spotting a pair of antlers zipping between people. Running after her lead, Kagami dodged around passersby, never letting the odd backpack out of her sight...until she stumbled over some guy with a painted face acting like he was building a wall in front of Kagami. While all the other people thought it was funny and cute, Kagami growled at the performer, whose eyes widened at the display. The poor mime was so distracted by the unexpected response, he was unable to prevent Kagami from leap-frogging over him to get past! She too was so focused on finding the girl and returning her lost item, she didn't notice the slew of camera phones recording her free-running over a mime.
Once she was away from that area, Kagami took one look around her… and realized she had utterly lost the other girl, with not an antler in sight. "...Great," she muttered. Glancing at the novelty touch, she frowned. "Why am I even doing this? So what if she never sees her little light again? It's a toy and a weird one at that. I should just…" Noticing something on the other side of the flashlight, Kagami trailed off as she turned it over. As it turned out, a business card was taped to it. In the top and lower margins was scribbled 'If found, return to Jade Chan!' with the business' name sandwiched between. "...Alright. Maybe five more minutes...but after that, I'm tossing it."
Recalling that "Jade" said she lived nearby the bookstore, Kagami backtracked and began looking around for any trace of this store. Eventually, with a little help from a very jolly-looking ice cream vendor (he'd even offered her three scoops of chocolate, blueberry, and strawberry, but she was in a rush), Kagami found herself gazing at an old antique store. It was little better than a hole in the wall, a red-roofed shack sandwiched between two buildings like it was a kid that didn't move from his bus seat in time and let the jocks squash him between their fat heads.
"Uncle's… Rare Finds?" Kagami read the sign out front, matching it with the name on the card. "Well, here's hoping this is the right spot." As Kagami entered, the smell of age and dust hit her like a wave. Everything was old in here – pottery, furniture, books… heck, even the guy behind the desk was ancient. Withered frame, a shock of gray hair, little glasses perched on the bridge of his nose – all wrapped up in a polyester vest. At first, the old man took no notice of Kagami, more focused on what appeared to be a polished bronze shield; as Kagami came up to the counter, the man finally looked up. "Hello, sir. I'm-"
"There you are!" the man spoke loudly, his voice cutting off Kagami's words. "Uncle knew temp agency was lying about not sending any more assistants! You're late! We open at 8 sharp!"
"Wait, wha-"
"One more thing! Assistant must brew coffee in morning! Coffee only thing that keep Uncle's ancient heart beating. You want dead Uncle, no? Then you make coffee!"
"I…"
"One more thing! Air conditioner is running too hot! Antiques can't stay preserved in heat! Must be cold! Call repairman and get it fixed!"
"Could you just-"
"One more thing! Uncle can't find text to translate writing on shield. Text very old, might be important. Look in back for ancient tome!"
The abrasive man, who apparently liked to go by 'Uncle,' didn't let Kagami get one word in edgewise; she gnashed her teeth, this close to telling the man where he could stick his tome! That is until her mother's words rang in her ear: 'Be respectful to your elders! Their age does not always mean experience, but only a fool goes through a lifetime and learns nothing. Listen, and even a fool can teach you something you did not know.'
So, rather than telling the old shop owner off, Kagami just nodded stiffly and walked into the back. Immediately upon entering the stock room/kitchenette area, the smell of musk and dusk increased, forcing Kagami to hold back a sneeze. After taking a minute to compose herself and place the flashlight in her jacket's pocket, the teen searched the shelves for any book that looked ancient. "Find an ancient tome… that is not specific in the slightest…" As she continued to mutter about the clearly senile elder, she took a chance and grabbed one of the books. It was jammed into the shelf so she had to yank pretty hard. "Come on...come out… right now-!"
Kagami's edge of actually being alive won out again the book's inanimate stubbornness, as she ripped it from its slot. Kagami fell backward, the book landing next to her, it and the object that had wedged it kicking up dust as they hit the floor. "Ai-yah! Assistant! Careful back there! Books are for reading, not dropping!" the old man yelled into the back, though, as Kagami noted venomously, he did not come back to check on her. Not that she wasn't fine, nor did she want this weird old guy to check on her, but it seemed pretty rude when you asked someone to do something for you and not even appear to care!
As Kagami massaged her sore "ego," her eyes landed on the unusual object that had fallen with the book: an old jewelry box shaped like a hexagon, with an ancient design Kagami didn't recognize. "Hm? Some other relic in this shop? Can't be very valuable if it's back here…" Curiosity getting the best of her, Kagami picked up the box and stood up to inspect it in the dim lighting. The box looked hand-carved, and it was polished and varnished with care; Kagami could almost swear it was brand new rather than old enough to be in an antique shop. Finding no latch or lock on it, Kagami carefully opened the box to see its contents… a pair of ruby red earrings, with five black spots on them, with a shine on them that spoke of care and attention.
Truthfully, Kagami was not known for her 'feminine side;' some girls read gossip articles about celebrities and did quizzes on their type of crush, while Kagami preferred to gouge her eyes out before ever reading anything like that. But she wasn't made of stone, she happened to like red, and something about the ruby studs said 'put me on' over and in her head. "Well… I won't take them or anything. But, it couldn't hurt to just… try them on. For a little bit. Like a minute or two." Her mind made up, the young lady took the earrings out gingerly and attached them to each lobe with care. Once on, she went over to the kitchen side of the backroom to admire the earrings on her on the toaster's surface. 'Wow, these things really do shine!' Kagami frowned slightly as she noticed something. 'Actually, is it just me or are they shining bright-!?'
Before she could finish that thought, the earrings did shine brighter, bright enough to blind the girl temporarily, as a red ball of light shot from one of the pair to glow and hover in front of her! As she blinked away the spots, an odd sight met her: a floating creature of some kind with a pleasant smile on its face. With its antennae and black spots, it resembled a ladybug on two legs. Blinking its own bright blue eyes, the creature bowed to Kagami. In flawless Japanese, it said, "Greetings, new user. I am Tikki, the Kwami of Creation. Together, may we be a force of peace and harmony."
"Ah," Kagami said.
Tikki looked around the room, eyes bright with intelligence. "So, why have I been awakened? What danger is the world facing?"
"Ah," Kagami answered.
Tikki looked back at the blue-haired girl, her warm smile never faltering. "You don't say a lot, huh? Are you a monk that has taken a vow of silence? Funny, I was unaware monks could grow hair now… how long has it been, I wonder?"
"Ah…" Kagami's brain had stalled, stuck on a repeat for a moment as she tried to gather what she was looking at, failed to rationalize it, and fell right into the same loop. Finally, after swallowing with a bone-dry throat, she asked, "You… speak Japanese?" It was a stupid question, but Kagami was trying to figure out how a floating mouse–bug – thing could even exist to start.
"Of course!" the creature chirped. "How else would I talk to my chosen, if I couldn't understand them? More importantly, I've been asleep for a while. Who gave you to me? Was it Qui Gon Gin? Maybe Wung Sulong? He always told the funniest stories!" As Tikki laughed lightly, she took notice of Kagami's confused face. "Umm… is everything all right? The Guardian that gave me to you should have explained everything."
"The… guardian?" Kagami muttered. "I...who is that? The old guy out there?"
"Hm?" Tikki, looking slightly more worried now, flew away suddenly and flew towards – strike that, through the door, to Kagami's shock. Outside the small room, Uncle, who seemed to have found the tome he was looking for (and it apparently was not in the small storeroom), was so focused on whatever the writing on the shield read, he didn't notice a confused Kwami hovering around the shop before she looked over the old man's shoulder.
At the same time as Tikki read the words, having seen the writings before, Uncle had finished translating them. They read, Twelve Noble Powers Taken by a Demon of Fire. Twelve Taken Back and the World Will Expire. The Land Will Grow Dark On Chinese New Year. When the Dragon is Freed, All Will Know Fear. "Ai-yah…" Uncle mumbled fearfully, as Tikki stifled a small gasp before both parties looked to the center of the shield. Embedded into the ornate relic was a stone with eight sides, and etched into it was a rooster in red paint. A rooster, as Uncle checked his journals, that could only be-!
At the sound of the front door's bell, Uncle closed his book and shoved it under the shield in a deft movement that almost defied his age. Likewise, Tikki flew backward through the door, her speed creating a gust of wind that cracked it just enough to see the front of the store.
Kagami blinked at the creature's sudden return. "Hey, what's-!" Kagami was cut off by a hurried 'shush,' as the kwami clamped her hands over the bluenette's mouth. Motioning quietly toward the door, the pair crept over to peek through the opening. Three men had entered the antique shop, one with orange sunglasses and a denim jacket, another wearing an ill-fitting suit and a bandage over a crooked nose, and the last man in the front of the group was dressed like an extra for Saturday Night Fever, complete with bell bottoms, a gold medallion, and a popped collar. To Kagami, they looked like bad extras from an old black-and-white kung-fu movie.
"Hello," the old man greeted the trio amicably, "and welcome to Uncle's Rare Finds. How can I help you today?"
"You're Mr. Chan, correct?" the pale redhead said before pushing on and not waiting for an answer. "We heard through the grapevine you've come into possession of an ancient shield from a Bavarian castle. Our wealthy employer is very invested in purchasing that shield."
"Bah! Shield not important!" Uncle Chan sniffed, moving from behind the counter so he was standing between the men and the artifact. Tikki gasped quietly at the action, a fact Kagami noted questioningly. The old shopkeep continued, "If interested in a good deal, Uncle just got shipment of a very old wardrobe. Legends say it has a twin, and on a particular day, you can reach through one dresser to the other."
"Ooh, really!?" the eyes of the large one with the crooked nose lit up. "How much?" Both of his companions glared at him, dulling his excitement into sheepishness.
The Irishman took back control of the discussion and said "I insist you give us that shield, Mr. Chan.
Our boss is not a man who stops at the word no."
'Must make him popular with women,' Kagami thought as the four men conversed.
Likewise, Uncle was unbothered by the three sinister people standing in front of him. "Bah, you not like shield. Nothing good about it! Now, either buy something or get out!" The old man's attitude did not sit well with the leading man of the group; as his predatory smile became a thin line, he looked toward the sunglasses-wearing man, who walked over to a vase on a table and "accidentally" bumped the table. The vase fell off, but the old man just barely caught it, bending over so suddenly, his back made a noise like paper balls rubbing together. "Ai-yah! Uncle's back!"
"Oops!" the bespectacled man chuckled in a mock-apologetic tone. "Ooh, that looks like it hurt, Gramps! I'd see a doctor about that. We could call ya an ambulance if you tell us where the shield is."
The minute the old man had cried out in pain, Kagami's heart went out to him; when Specs began mocking him, her anger rose considerably. As she quietly snarled, she failed to notice two things: Tikki had stopped watching the men and had begun looking at her, and Kagami's foot had inched too close to a book stack near the door. The moment her shoes tapped it, the stack came tumbling down, making enough clatter that there was no way they missed the disturbance from the back room.
Sure enough, the 80s-loving redhead looked over to the room, eyes narrowing. "Hey, old man, who else is in here?" Holding her breath, Kagami moved away from the door frame like it burned her, flattening against the far wall with Tikki following suit.
"No one…here...but Uncle," Uncle rebuffed, but from the sound of his discomfort, it wasn't very convincing. Now, Kagami may have grown up protected from the many dangers of the world, but only an idiot doesn't smell organized crime when it's in front of them. Tomoe told her many cautionary tales of the yakuza, and the different heads to watch out for; there were a few who were so old that they didn't need to do crime anymore, but the young and hungry ones...those were always described as the most dangerous. And to Kagami, these guys sounded starved.
As she tried to find a place to hide, Tikki flew up in front of her face in a panic. "Chosen, I can sense these people are dangerous!" she whispered hurriedly. "We must not let them have that shield! Transform, quickly!"
Kagami blinked at the creature in confusion, even as she heard the wood creak outside, and footsteps got ever closer to the backroom. "What? Transform!? What are you…?"
"Right, sorry, I didn't explain that yet!" Tikki slapped her large forehead as the creaks got closer to the door. "To transform, say 'Spots On!' To change back, 'Spots Off!' And for your special ability-"
"What are you talking about!?" Kagami whispered in a panic, even as she heard someone grab the doorknob. "What's all this about 'Spots On!' and transforming-" Kagami's answer came quite suddenly; having said the passphrase, the floating creature turned into energy and flew into the earrings on Kagami's ears. In a flash of red light, Kagami was coated in warm, fuzzy energy; it made the preteen feel empowered like she could cross the entire city in a light jog!
"Hey! Who's back here...huh?" The door was opened fully by the large man with the crooked taped nose, who looked at the scene utterly perplexed. Standing in the backroom was a short woman in what could only be described as cosplay. The outfit's torso was red with black spots all over it, and so were the forearms, calves, gloves, and feet. In contrast, the biceps and thighs were solid black with red spots, and the whole ensemble was completed with a domino mask, red around the nose guard, and black on the outer edges. On her exposed ears, the red studs shined like diamonds, the black spots made them look like two ladybugs resting on her ears, matching what appeared to be a belt buckle on her front.
"Ratso!" One of the annoyed intruders called out. "Hurry up back there!"
The large pale man, Ratso, started before he turned back and answered, "Right! Sorry, be there in a jiffy!" Turning back to the girl, who had spent the second of reprieve to inspect her onesie, Ratso said, "Alright, I don't know what's going on, but you'd better come with me."
Slightly over her shocking transformation, Kagami glared at the large albino. "You put one hand on me, and I will smack you!" Unfazed by the threat, Ratso just chuckled and reached for the girl's arm-
"Whoa!" Both the thugs and Uncle watched as Ratso went flying from the back room, landing sprawled out on the floor. Wide surprised eyes turn toward an equally shocked Kagami ('Huh. Did not mean to hit him that hard.'), who covered her shock by getting into one of many well-practiced fighting stances. Ratso sat up, shaking his head to clear out his blurred vision. "Uh, Finn? There's someone back there," he said sheepishly.
Finn, the Irishman, rolled his eyes. "Clearly. Chow, escort the young lady out."
The glasses-sporting man, Chow, cracked his knuckles eagerly. "With pleasure." Getting into his own fighting stance, he sprung at Kagami. She responded with a technique made to unbalance her opponent, but with the increase in strength, she instead sent Chow careening into a shelf of antique glassware.
"Ai-yah!" Uncle groaned from his hunched position. "That collection's priceless!" The words had hardly left his mouth before Kagami dove to catch the fragile figureines. Thanks to magically increased reflexes, she was able to catch all of them; one in each hand, one on a raised knee, another on her head, and a glass crane by the literal skin of her teeth, as it was gently clamped between her two sets of choppers.
Having recovered, Ratso got up to fight the red-suited enemy, but she reacted by bouncing the glass figure on her knee into his hands just as he got close. "Ooh, cool! It's a glass snake-oof!" As he got caught up in admiring the knick-knack, Kagami crane-kicked the man in the gut. As he stumbled back, she placed one figure on a nearby table, caught the airborne pig, and placed both the pig and the other figure on a different table.
She only had seconds to take the bird out of her mouth when Chow attacked with quick but clumsy strikes. Swerving out of the way, the glass mantis on her head fell off, but she caught it with her foot and sent it flying to land on an old throw pillow. With both feet free, she kicked Chow in the calf, widening his stance and lowering him enough to sock him in the jaw with her free hand. With both men gathering their wits, Kagami placed the final piece of the set down.
While that was all happening, Finn had inched away from the fight, shocked that some tiny girl had laid out two grown men, one who claimed was a martial artist. Not taking his eyes off the fight, he reached behind him to grab something to hit Kagami. The minute his fingers wrapped around something, he grabbed hold and swung at her! Already sensing the coming strike, Kagami responded with a punch to counter. Her fist rung off the object with a resounding clang; as she stepped back, both of them realized what was in Finn's hands – the shield the trio had just been looking for earlier!
"That doesn't belong to you!" a voice called out as the only warning before an orange blur slammed into Finn's gut! As the man creased, he dropped the shield into the waiting arms of a familiar face Kagami had been trying to find. The brown-eyed teen glared at the wheezing man, undeterred by his murderous glare. "That was for Uncle, Disco Ass!"
"Jade! Language!" Uncle called out to the girl as he finally straightened his back...just in time to see both Chow and Ratso trying to push a large dresser onto the old man. "Oh, bad day…" Kagami sprang over a shelf the moment she saw what the pair were planning; she arrived just as it fell, catching it at a tilt with feet firmly planted.
As she gritted her teeth and tried to push the large piece of furniture into a stable position, Finn stood over Jade and demanded in a wheezy voice, "Little girl, give me that shield now!"
Jade stuck her tongue out at the thug. "You want this shield, you gotta go through me, ya loser!"
"Geez, we gotta get that shield!" Chow said as he glanced at Kagami, almost done with her task. "I don't want to have to face Wonder Girl again!"
Ratso had to dodged a shield bash, and frowned. "Shame we can't just all rush her at once instead of trying one at a time." He glanced at his comrades… he looked at him with open shock.
"Ratso," Finn said slowly, "you actually came up with a good idea!"
"Oh, thanks, Finn!" Ratso replied bashfully. "I promise not to let it go to my head!"
All three men then looked at Jade with sinister glints in their eyes. Said target looked a little worried about the sudden uptake of intelligence among the group. "Eh he he… or you could leave and never come back?"
They did not do that; instead, they all charged Jade at once, forcing her to dodge and defend with the bronze artifact. Unfortunately, one 13-year-old girl is no match for three grown men, so it took no effort for Finn to finally nab the shield, ripped from the child's hands. "Got it! Let's go!" Finn led the charge to the door, Ratso lagging behind.
Meanwhile, Kagami had finally set the dresser back on its legs, just as Uncle delivered a two-fingered chop to the girl's forehead. "Ow! What the heck, old guy!?"
"Magic girl needs to hurry! Men getting away with Jade!" Uncle said like that explained his attack.
Kagami frowned before shooting a glare at the door. "Those creeps kidnapped her!?"
"Not exactly," Uncle said cryptically.
Outside, the trio had sprinted to the car, Ratso just barely behind them. "Ratso! Hurry up, man! You're the driver!" Chow chastised the panting man, not noticing the weird glances they were giving them.
"Sorry...guys," Ratso mopped his brow. "I feel like...I need to lose...a few pounds-"
"Give me back that shield!" The men jumped at the yell before all followed the sound...to Ratso's large back, where Jade had hitched a ride on his suit jacket. "That doesn't belong to you, so give it back!"
Finn made to retort, but all three heard the sound of sirens in the distance. "Never mind! Get in!"
"But, the girl?" Ratso tried to ask, as Finn stuffed the shield in the back.
"For the love of-!" Finn rolled his eyes. "Chow, grab her legs!" With a lot of kicking and spitting, the group was able to rip Jade off of Ratso's coat (with only a few rips from her grip).
Before they could throw her away from them, Chow glanced over to the shop to see Kagami just running out, and turning to see them down the road. Even from several parked cars, Chow shivered under the glare she leveled at them. "Uh, Finn? Superchick's coming this way!"
Finn looked over and actually got paler. "In the car now!" Instead of throwing Jade, in the haste, they dragged her into the car as she spat and hissed the whole way through!
As Ratso ran for the driver's seat, Kagami picked up speed. "Damn! I'm not gonna make it!"
"Magic girl!" Kagami looked back toward the shop to see the old man yelling at her. "Use your weapon! On your waist!"
"My what!" Kagami looked around her person until she grabbed the buckle which came away from the suit revealing it to actually be...a yo-yo. Kagami went deadpan at the sight of the children's toy, but the sound of the car's engine revving was enough to spur her into action. "Alright, here's hoping it's a least a magic yo-yo!" Spinning it around a bit for momentum, she launched the yo-yo forward; the cast wasn't perfect, but if struck true, snagging onto the car's bumper, just as it began to move. Kagami tried to plant her feet, but unlike the dresser, there was a lot more force to contend with, so she soon found herself being dragged behind the vehicle, running along the road as she tried to find some way to stop this ride!
"Aw man," Ratso groaned. "She's on our bumper! Literally!"
"Then try! To shake! Her off!" Finn grounded out, as he and Chow wrestled with their hostage, trying to tie her up, and failing because of Jade's struggles.
"Easy for you to say, I have to drive," Ratso complained. "All you guys do is sit in the back and do nothing."
"Does it look like we're doing nothing!" Chow bit out even as Jade bit his arm. "Just shut up and drive!"
Hanging on for dear life, Kagami sped up her sprint as the black coupe picked up momentum. In her haste to avoid a bad case of road rash, she reached out to a bystander watching the unusual car chase and snagged the kid's skateboard. "I'm sorry, I'll bring it back later, thank you!" she said in a single breath as she jumped onto the board. Now with wheels, Kagami found it much easier to keep up with the kidnapping crooks, and even though she'd never really ridden a skateboard before, it hardly mattered when the car she was attached to was doing all the work.
In the car, Finn, now sporting a scratch mark on his cheek, finished zip-tying up their spitfire passenger's hands. "Ha! No more scratching for you, ya little pest!"
Jade, now gagged with a length of cloth, gave the man a flat look before she kicked him right in the sternum. It only knocked the wind out of him, but she used the force of her strike to slam her head into Chow, knocking his head against the window. "Hey, watch it back there! I'm driving here!" Ratso called to the back.
Chow pinched his nose to prevent bleeding as he snapped back, "Focus on that she-devil on our bumper! Do something to lose her!"
"Got it!" Ratso said before he swerved the car to be partially on the sidewalk. As everybody jumped and ran out of the way, the car plowed through cafe tables, leaving Kagami to duck or lean out of every one of them sent her way.
When a stool caught her in the temple, though miraculously not breaking skin, Kagami growled. "Enough of this stupid chase!" Grabbing the yo-yo cord with both hands, she began to pull herself closer to the vehicle.
As Chow held down Jade's legs, Finn glanced to see that their other tag-along was only getting closer. "Ratso! Wonder girl's still on our tail!"
"I have gum less sticky than her," Ratso complained. "What do you want me to do!"
Finn turned to the front of the vehicle to berate his compatriot...and swallowed his words when he realized that Ratso hadn't been watching the road. His proof was the Seine and the fence surrounding it coming up to greet their car. "Focus on the road!"
The second Ratso looked toward the front, he screamed and turned the wheel sharply to avoid swimming to their base. Sadly, the sudden turn caught Kagami completely by surprise, and it was all she could do to adapt by shifting her weight on her borrowed ride. It was to no avail though, as while the yo-yo string held firm, the bumper it was attached to was not as strong. The sound of metal tearing was all the warning the new Parisian got before she went flying through the air, the transfer of energy sending her – yo-yo, board, and all – into the drink.
The entire car grew silent; the trio of criminals was in shock at their fortune, and Jade still gagged and unable to utter a word. Finally, the men hooted victoriously, Chow banging on the shield like a drum of victory. "Take that, ya bitch!" Finn crowed. "You might have a mean bite, but can you doggy paddle!?"
As the car sped around a corner, Kagami finally pulled herself out of the water, spitting up the awful slimy stuff. "Jewel...of France...like hell!" she coughed out, setting a mental reminder to shower five times when she got back home, and brush her teeth 12 times! Shaking out her hair, she took stock of not only the people taking pictures of her ('I might be on the news by early evening.') and the chunk of car she had torn from the getaway vehicle as it sat in the road.
Still dazed from her flight and really still trying to process she was now literally a superhero (one who needed some practice, but she'd get there), she walked over and kneeled down to examine the trash. "So, first day in this orokana machi, and I get lost, get superpowers, and get defeated by off-brand yakuza?" The spandex-wearing girl frowned at that as she stood back up. "Yeah, that isn't happening here-!" Her monologue was cut short when some driver who clearly wasn't paying attention (a problem, Kagami began to realize, that was far too prevalent in this city) almost barreled into her!
Almost being the key phrase, as the minute she heard the car horn, her reflexes, amplified by whatever magic Tikki was giving her, kicked in, and allowed her to make a vertical jump straight up! When she found herself eye-level with a street lamp, she reached out and grabbed it frantically. As she looked at her new position in shock, she made a mental list of her abilities. 'Increased strength and reaction time, durability, super jumps, magic yo-yo...me and that floating yokai are going to have talks after this…'
As she climbed up to be standing on the lamppost, because of course she now had superhuman balance now, she looked up and down the road for the criminals' car. "Not here...need a better vantage." Taking out her yo-yo, she gave it a test spin before glancing at a building a bit farther than she could (now) jump. "If you can grab onto a car bumper, I wonder…" Putting her thoughts into practice, she swung the yo-yo around until its speed was to her liking.
Admittedly, it took longer than she liked, not being used to the weapon. "What I wouldn't give for a foil or a bo staff at least." Sucking up her pity party, she focused on the building ahead and threw the yo-yo at her target. It was as awkward as when she cast it earlier, but whatever magic that was surrounding her must have guided the yo-yo to curl around the spire, anchoring firmly in place. "Ok, step one cleared. Now, step two…" Looking down at the street, she allowed herself a small spark of unpreparedness, a feeling she was not used to having, took a deep breath, and pushed off of the post into a swing.
As she flew threw the air, Kagami heard screaming; it was unclear to her if it was her screaming or someone else since she was too busy trying to not vomit her heart out as her stomach seemed to drop into her feet. Regardless of where the yelling was coming from, it stopped when her feet finally touched solid ground. Blinking her eyes opening, and wondering when she had closed her eyes, the newbie heroine looked around to the roof she had landed on before reeling back in her yo-yo.
Jogging over to the other side, she looked over the edge, scanning to find any sign of her target. Sure enough, she located it: one messed up bumper on a formerly nice-looking car just turning the corner. Gazing across the gap and swallowing thickly, she took a deep breath to steady herself before taking a running leap off of the edge, keeping her eyes open this time. The moment she landed on the other side, sliding a bit to stop, she let out a held breath before grinning widely.
The next building was easier to jump to, as was the second. The third was too far, which Kagami only realized mid-jump, so she tried to cast her yo-yo out in midair. When it worked, she had to remind herself not to cheer or laugh too loudly, as she was trying to sneak up on the goon squad. The teenager settled for a mad grin plastered onto her face instead. Maybe it was the adrenaline, or maybe it was because this was the first real instance of freedom Kagami Tsurugi had ever experienced in her 13 years ever, but what she felt was like winning her first exhibition match at 10 years old.
After landing on another building with a tuck and roll, Kagami looked to the street below to see her target directly underneath her. Grabbing a rain gutter on the side of the building, she slowly descended, being extra careful to… 'Wait,' she thought. 'Why didn't I just use my yo-yo-!' Her thoughts screeched to a halt when she heard stone and metal creak under some new and unexpected pressure. "Well, shi-" was all Kagami got out before the gutter gave up entirely and let gravity take hold of the girl.
Jade glared at her captors as they fully ignored her. Finn preened in the shield's surface, wincing as he found another bruise. Meanwhile, Chow was glaring out of the side window through cracked sunglasses and Ratso was driving calmly, even checking his blind spots, but not without rubbing at a sore spot on the back of his head. Jade smirked under the gag, proud of her handiwork. Her uncle would be pleased. Well, actually, he'd be having a heart attack to learn she was kidnapped, but he might be proud after he stopped worrying. 'Now, I just need to get out of here,' Jade thought. 'I just need to right opportunity-'
"Hey, do you think she's alright?" Ratso broke the silence as he stopped another light.
"Who?" Finn said, still fretting like a schoolgirl about the dark patch on his chin from Jade's headbutt.
"The girl, ya know," Ratso offered. "The one we threw into the Seine."
"Who the hell cares! We're Enforcers, not Samaritans," Finn snapped as he put down the shield. "She'll serve as a lesson! No one takes on The Big Man, and no one gets the drop on us!" Because the universe likes to make asses out of bastards, it was at that moment that the Enforcers' current headache did in fact drop back into their lives – right onto the hood of their already beaten-up car, leaving just one more dent in their mode of transportation.
Both parties blinked in shock at the sudden meet cute, before Kagami grinned sheepishly. 'Think of something to say,' she thought, before finally looking at the accrued damage from their earlier chase. "Um...I'm sure this'll all buff out," she said casually like the Enforcers weren't looking at a girl they were fairly certain they had drowned. That was clearly the wrong thing to say, as the wry comment only made all three men furiously scowl at the determined do-gooder.
"Ratso," Finn growled out around clenched teeth, "Squash this bug!" That was all the man needed as he stomped on the gas, now heedless of driving safety, gunning forward and slamming Kagami onto their windshield. Despite swerving here and there to shake her off, Kagami held firm, like a spotted hood ornament. One such swerve hit a trash can, the bump shaking Kagami's grip; she flew off of the bumper, but was just able to grab onto the roof. "She's still on us!"
"Not for long!" Chow, looking more fed up with this whole thing the longer it went on, whipped out a butterfly knife and stabbed into the roof, the blade inches from Kagami's face. "Time to pin this pest!" While Kagami could fathom her suit protected her from harm, she didn't know if that extended to her face, so not chancing it she leaned any and every way to avoid being shivved. After a few more stabs, Chow stopped to look at his results: 28 stabs but no iota of red heroine coming from any hole.
"Well, what happened?" Ratso asked from the front. "Did ya get her?" His question was answered by a tap at the passenger window; he glanced over to see Kagami, saying something but the speed and the glass made it impossible to hear her. "What?" Rolling her eyes, she tried to say it again, but the albino just wasn't understanding. "I can't hear you! Hold on!" With that, he rolled down the window, much to his partners' shock, and their prisoner's disbelief.
"Ratso!" Finn and Chow yelled in unison.
"What?" the man shrugged. "I just rolled down the window to… oh." His train of thought caught up to him just before Kagami's fist caught him in the jaw, as she landed in the passenger seat. Before she could act or say anything, Chow took out piano wire and reached out from behind his seat to wrap it around her neck!
"I'm getting real tired of you getting in our way!" As he tried to squeeze tighter, Kagami thrashed, kicking the dashboard and reaching out aimlessly. "What's the matter? No more witty comebacks!?"
Kagami didn't reply; not just because she couldn't with lack of oxygen supply, which the weird magical protection was in fact protecting her from, but because she was using her perceived weakness to line up a good strike, with her legs on the dashboard to push back, and her hand clamped around the seat lever. The minute it clicked, Chow only had seconds to look down before a headrest smacked into his face, cracking the other lens of his specs.
"That enough legroom?" Kagami quipped to the reeling and cursing man. In his shock of pain, his knife fell onto the floor; Jade seemed to be the only one to notice… as well as noting that Ratso was not driving very well, what with being knocked in the head. Case in point, with the rapidly approaching iron fence in front of him, he didn't hit the brakes until it was too late to slow down.
The car impacted the barrier, but anyone wearing a seatbelt was fine; Kagami, however, went flying through the windshield, glass shards flying everywhere, as she crashed into the iron fence at the same speed as the car. "Ooh… what I wouldn't give for a magical helmet," she muttered. Her reprieve was short-lived, as Ratso, now woken up by the slam, came out of the car and tried to bring both fists onto Kagami's head. She was able to dodge, jumped over his next hit, and used his back as a springboard for a back flip to the other side of the car.
Not slowing in the slightest, she slipped into the still-open window, kicking Finn with her diagonal entry. As she fell onto Jade's lap, she undid her belt, used it to tie Chow's hands when he tried to hit her and kicked Finn out of his unlocked car door sprawling him out onto the grass. Just as Kagami threw Jade into the front seat, Chow freed himself and got brass knuckles. He never got the chance to use them as Kagami kangaroo-kicked him from the car.
Leaning into the front seat, the budding heroine slammed her hand onto the lock button just as Ratso and Finn tried to open the doors. Lowering the gag from Jade's mouth, she asked, "So, how're you holding up?"
"I'm fine! Get that knife!" Jade said quickly, pointing with her bound hands to the knife on the floor.
Kagami nodded and reached back to get it before settling into the front seat to cut the captured girl's bonds. "Alright, once I finish, grab the shield and run!"
"No way! No deal!" Jade argued, both parties seemingly ignoring the Enforcers' reddening faces at this farce of a job. "You need my help! You don't even know who they are!"
"They're jerks. No further introduction needed," Kagami commented. "And besides, I can handle-" The words of encouragement were shattered at the same time as the window. Kagami had no time to respond at Ratso's hands grabbed her in a chokehold and dragged her from the wrecked coupe.
The knife was dropped, but Jade was able to catch it. "Tch. Could have at least cut my hands free," she muttered as she tried to cut her own bonds carefully.
Outside the vehicle, as Ratso tried once more to strangle her, Kagami broke the hold by running up the car's side and flipping over the large thug. Kicking his knees out from under him, Kagami dropped Ratso into a kneeling position just in time to dodge Finn's clumsy fist. Flipping over him brought her face to face with Chow, as he swung a haymaker. Kagami caught him by the arm and flipped him onto Finn, before using the car side as leverage for a flying knee on a still-recovering Ratso.
"That all you got?" the spirited girl looked around at the dazed enemies who, to their credit, were still struggling to get up. As Kagami prepared for another beatdown, Jade's voice called out.
"Hey! Bug Girl! Over here!" Said girl, her wrists free though the ties were still around them, was sticking out from the car's moon roof, bronze shield in hand. Taking the opportunity of the Enforcers' distraction, Kagami jumped over the car, grabbed the girl and shield (marveling at her new strength to carry both of those at once), and leaped over the park fence. The three thugs had only just gotten up by the time they were over. As Kagami put her down, Jade looked at her in awe. "Whoa! Somebody eats their vegetables."
Kagami just shrugged, before turning back to her enemies… who had whipped out some form of weapon that could only be described as energy sabers, with electricity running up and down them, and began cutting through the iron fence! "These guys… must really like shields," Kagami tried to quip for her audience of one, but Jade looked as far from amused as one could get. "Just get out of here! I've got this!"
"But they're not after you!" Jade protested. "They're after the shield!" The new Parisian grabbed the shield from Jade before she could blink.
"There. Two birds, one shield. Now, run!" Kagami pushed the girl away from her as Chow came in with a swing. Kagami raised the shield to deflect, but Chow diverted his swing to her surprise. The answer to the behavior clicked almost instantly. "You can't hurt this shield. I bet whoever you work for is going to be steamed if you do!"
Chow snarled as he came at her again, but this time Kagami body-checked the small man, sending his weapon in the air and him sprawled out on the ground. Catching the sword out of the air, Kagami's fencing muscle memory kicked in as she defended herself from Finn and Ratso. By the time both men had been disarmed, Finn's suit was singed everywhere and his sleeve was ripped, while Ratso's tie had been cut in half, and his belt fared no better. "Short on weapons? Here, you can have this back!" Kagami chucked the high-tech weapon at Chow; it missed a sensitive area by inches, planting itself halfway in the ground from him and causing him to scramble back in shock and self-preservation.
The three thoroughly whipped men looked at their opponent… and she was no worse for the wear. In fact, she even had time to taunt, getting into a fighting stance and gesturing with one hand to bring it on. Glancing at each other, all three nodded, communicating with just expressions. Together, they squared up… and ran for the park's exit, just narrowly grabbing their weapons on the way out. Kagami smirked as they fled with their tails between their legs, posing with her hands on her hips. "Nothing like a little shock and awe."
"Ok, you are so cool," Kagami blinked as she turned to see Jade, popping up from the bushes she hid behind. "But you have got to work on your banter. It's seriously the worst."
"What… why are you here?" Kagami blinked. "I told you to run!"
"Pssh!" Jade's mouth cocked into a defiant smirk. "What are you, my mom? Besides, I'm not gonna miss a real-life superhero kicking bad guy butt!" She punctuated her excitement with a few clumsy punches and kicks. "You're like Super Moose, but all… spotty. Like a ladybug."
"First off, never call me that," Kagami said with an internal cringe; from a glance, she could tell she looked like a human-sized ladybug, but if people started calling her that, she might never put on the outfit again out of sheer embarrassment. She paused a little at the thought. Would she wear it again? An identity outside of her mother's sphere of influence, where she got to fight bad guys and fly across the rooftops? A face that didn't have to think about being the new kid in an unfamiliar place? God, yes! In a heartbeat!
Back to reality, Jade snorted at the hero's rebuff. "Okay, Bug Girl. What do I call you?"
Kagami gave it some heavy thought, channeling all the manga she read. Finally settling on a name worthy of her, she did a pose from one of her many favorites, shield and all. "You can call me… Crimson Tide."
…
"I am not calling you that."
A/N: Alright, you actually read this far, so thanks for all your support! So good news, I have an official list of all the stories I'm writing now. Obviously, it's late, so I'll update my profile in the morning to reflect this list, but here it is:
The Mighty WarrHammer
Age of Wonder
Kamen Rider Ranger
Scarlet Knight
and coming soon...
Shooting Star!
Why just these five? Besides these are the ones I'm most passionate and comfortable with writing, they all... might be connected to each other. Mind you, I'm not gonna be that guy that says you have to read all of them to see where the threads lead. Read the one you like the most because you enjoy it and not because you're trying to absorb everything I'm putting out there. In any case, I am calling it a night, so see ya!