Disclaimer: Neither Takeshi Yamato nor Xamusel own Kamen Rider Wizard or Persona 3. We only own the idea from the plot, and some of the OCs.
Takeshi Yamato: Hello, everyone!
Welcome to the official first chapter of A Wizard in Iwatodai!
Before we begin, I must get this out there: Yes, we did a Female version of Wizard.
Xam and I are both new fans of Kamen Rider - we still haven't seen enough of KRW to get Haruto Soma's personality down, or enough of a grasp of the plot to write it out. Thus, we are doing this post-KRW, and we are using OCs for each of the Riders.
Of course, this being post-KRW, Nayuki would have access to her Dragon Styles and Infinity Style, but that might make things a bit too OP - hence the contract, which limits her to the Basic Styles for now, and also limits her from the Special, Blizzard, Thunder, Gravity, and Miracle Rings until the situation calls for it.
Now, let's see what fate has in store for the Wizard next! :D
A Wizard in Iwatodai
Story by Takeshi Yamato, written by Takeshi Yamato and Xamusel
Iwatodai, Kirijo Dorm - 12:00 AM (Dark Hour), April 7, 2009
It was a minor Mexican Standoff - Nayuki and Minato on one side, the girl in the pink cardigan at the foot of the stairs glaring at them, the redhead in the white cardigan standing off to the side, all backlit by the eerie green from the outside—
—And then the lights came on again as everything seemed to return to normal.
"Huh… that's odd," the redhead said. "It doesn't usually end this soon, unless it's to account for yesterday."
Nayuki's ears perked up at that. It seemed that at least the redhead knew something about that mysterious phenomena. And looking her over, she was kind of attracti-
Nayuki shook her head, trying to banish such thoughts from her mind. She'd only just met the woman, for crying out loud! Not to mention Koyomi's… death… was still less than a month ago - not really enough time to start thinking about another relationship.
The redhead turned to face Minato, then saw Nayuki, before thinking, 'Wait a minute… who on earth is she?' She wasn't registered for this dorm, was she? Or was she a new teacher, given the rather sexy appearance th-
'Get a grip, Mitsuru,' the redhead, Mitsuru Kirijo, thought to herself as she shook her head. 'I'm not interested in pursuing a relationship with anyone, much less a woman who could very well be a teacher!'
Steeling her resolve, she walked over to Minato and said, "I didn't think you'd get here so late. My name is Mitsuru Kirijo, a third year in your school."
The girl in the Pink Cardigan turned to Mitsuru and asked, "Who're they?"
Before Mitsuru could answer that…
"Minato Arisato, second-year. Just transfered to Iwatodai today, after living away from here for 10 years."
"Nayuki Kinomoto, second-year. Just transfered as well today, though this is my first time being in the area."
"Oh, uh, nice to meet you two," the girl said, turning back to them. "Yukari Takeba, second-year."
"Is this a girl's dorm?" Minato asked Yukari.
"Why do you have a gun holster attached to your leg?" Nayuki asked right after Minato asked his question.
Yukari appeared somewhat flustered, with the unusual contrast of both questions unnerving her. "U-uh…" she began, looking to Mitsuru as if silently begging 'Help!'
Mitsuru, on the other hand, was off in lalaland at hearing that Nayuki was a student like herself… for all of a minute. "W-what? What'd I miss?" she asked aloud after breaking out of lalaland.
"Well, Minato-san here asked if this was a girl's dorm," Nayuki explained. "And then I asked why Yukari-san has a gun holster on her leg."
"Oh, right," Mitsuru said. "Well, to answer them one at a time, this isn't a girl's only dorm. It's co-ed. As for the second question, it's to prevent thieves from trying to rob us. They aren't real, though."
"Ah," Nayuki replied, as she and Minato both nodded. "Makes sense, I suppose."
"Also, Nayuki-san, I don't think I saw you on the list registered for the dorm," Mitsuru remarked. "So, what are you doing here?"
"Ran into Minato-san here on the way to my hotel - I've booked a room for a few days until I get a more permanent place to stay," Nayuki explained. "Since this place was on the way to my hotel, thought I'd give him a lift, then see him safely inside before heading to my hotel."
Mitsuru nodded at that, before saying, "I see. Don't worry, that was alright, so long as it's not a habit you make." Turning to face Minato, she said, "It's getting late. Why don't you go to bed and get some shut eye? Takeba will show you to your room."
"Sure thing, Sempai," Yukari replied. "Let's go."
Minato nodded, and followed Yukari up the stairs, leaving Nayuki and Mitsuru alone down below.
"I take it you know something about that phenomena we were in?" Nayuki asked, now that the two were alone.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Mitsuru said, before Nayuki got up in her personal space for grilling her.
"I'm not buying that," she replied. "When everything returned to normal, I heard you saying that, 'it doesn't usually end this soon.' That implies to me that you know something."
Mitsuru backed up a bit, until she hit the wall, with nowhere to go. It was at this time that she broke out something of the truth to Nayuki, saying, "Yes, I do know something about the phenomena, the Dark Hour."
"Dark Hour…" Nayuki commented. "Well, nice to have a name for it, at least." She then looked at Mitsuru. "I'll likely want to know more later, but as you said, it's rather late, so I should get to my hotel."
"Oh? How did you make it here so fast, anyway?" Mitsuru asked Nayuki, before the latter went to the door and opened it, showing Mitsuru her motorcycle… and causing her to gape.
"I call it Machine Winger," Nayuki remarked as she walked up to it. "And apparently the Dark Hour doesn't affect it."
"B-b-b-but how?!" Mitsuru asked with a spluttering of her lips.
"Tell you what," Nayuki said as she mounted the bike and donned her helmet. "Next time we get a chance to meet privately, you can tell me more about the Dark Hour, and I can explain more about Machine Winger. Deal?"
Mitsuru could only nod as Nayuki rode off in the direction of the hotel.
The magic rings, the Wizard Rings.
(A red magic circle appears over a black background. Four lights appear at the main corners of the Circle, from which appear the Flame, Water, Hurricane, and Land Style Rings.)
They shine on both hands of the modern mage.
(The Rings float in different directions, Water, Hurricane, and Land going off the screen as Flame lands on Nayuki's left middle finger as she appears silhouetted in front of the magic circle, Driver On Ring on her right middle finger)
As she changes despair into hope.
(A close-up image of Nayuki's head and shoulders, still silhouetted, as the helmet and upper outfit of Wizard Flame Style super-impose themselves over her form.)
(BGM: Life is SHOW TIME [TV Version])
Maji ka? Maji de? Maji da! Showtime! (Seriously [it's magic]!? Really!? I'm serious! Show Time!)
(Wizard Flame Style does a few spins in various positions relative to a red magic circle on a white background, before appearing on Winger WizarDragon, which flies off the screen before WizarDragon flies back onto the screen, lobbing a fireball from its mouth before the flash resolves into the title logo.)
Maru de tsuki to taiyou (It's like the shock)
(Nayuki is seen standing atop the Iwatodai Dorms building, overlooking the whole town, before the scene shifts to a solar eclipse, then to Wizard Flame Style spinning to face her right, and finally to Nayuki spinning to face her left.)
Kasanaru toki no shougeki (When the moon and the sun collide!)
(Nayuki stands in the middle of a crowded street, head down, before raising it somewhat to look at a boy in a style similar to that of a jailbird, who looks up to reveal Pharos.)
Dare datte kiseki shinjite mitai (Everyone wants to believe in a miracle)
(Pharos lifts his right hand up, the back of it facing Nayuki, and the screen shifts to show them reaching for each other's hand, before it shows them walking across the street to each other, Mitsuru appearing on Pharos' side, Minato showing up on Nayuki's side.)
Kitto hitotsu you fukaketsu no ENAJI kokoro no da ne (The indispensable energy that people need comes from the heart)
(The background shatters, before Mitsuru drives up on her own motorcycle, pulling off her helmet before brandishing her rapier and Evoker. Minato then appears, a silhouetted image of Thanatos behind him. Pharos and Nayuki appear in front of a Velvet Doorway.)
Yume to yosou ii imi de uragitte kureru mono (Dreams and expectations will betray you in a good way)
(Yukari Takeba is seen looking through a tome of magic, while a magic ball shows Nayuki transforming into Kamen Rider Wizard, the ball being held by Pharos.)
3! 21! 1! Showtime!
(The scene shows Pharos' immediate area glowing in light.)
Magic Time!
(Wizard Flame Style is seen in front of a building, jumping and spinning in place.)
TRICK ja nai! (It's no trick!)
(Wizard Flame Style lands on the ground, lifting her right hand to her mask, before lowering her arm.)
Mahou HIIRO hanpa nee ze (The Magic Hero is no pushover!)
(A red magic circle appears under her feet, with three separate magic circles, red, blue, and yellow, underneath the Red Garuda, Blue Unicorn, and Yellow Kraken PlaMonsters respectively, before Wizard Flame Style spins around and sends her familiars out.)
Mo-to halelujah
(Three red magic circles appear around Wizard Flame Style as fire appears behind her.)
Kioku no roots moguri-konde kibou sukui-dase (Dig into the roots of memory and save that hope!)
(Wizard Flame Style leaps through a blue magic circle to her right, becoming Wizard Water Style, then leaps up through a green magic circle to become Hurricane Style, then drops down through a yellow magic circle to become Land Style.)
Show Time!
(Nayuki and Pharos reach for each other's hands and grab them.)
Life is showtime! Tobikiri no (Life is Showtime! It's exhilerating!)
(Wizard Flame Style is seen falling through magic circles.)
Unmei to RAIFU mucha shite mo (Even if you're reckless with fate and life!)
(Wizard Flame Style is riding Machine Winger down a road, as WizarDragon flies up alongside. Machine Winger and WizarDragon combine to form Winger WizarDragon, with Nayuki still riding.)
Mo-to halelujah
(Back with the close up on Nayuki and Pharos' hands, as Nayuki moves the Hope Ring towards Pharos' finger.)
Kinou, kyou, ashita, mirai (Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow, and in the future…)
(Nayuki, Minato, Yukari, and Mitsuru are in the Iwatodai dorm, each doing various things. Their positions switch two times, with each switch showing a new set of activities.)
Subete no namida wo (…all those tears…)
(Nayuki is riding Machine Winger, Mitsuru riding behind her.)
Show Time!
(Nayuki finishes sliding the Hope Ring onto Pharos' finger, the ring beginning to light up.)
Kouseki ni kaette yaruze (…I will change them into jewels!)
(Wizard's four main Styles come into view, Flame in the center, Water from the right, Hurricane from above, and Land from the left. The four pose identically as Water, Hurricane, and Land turn into light and merge with Flame.)
Maji ka? Maji de? Maji da! Showtime! (Seriously [it's magic]!? Really!? I'm serious! Show Time!)
(Brief shot of Nayuki holding up her left hand with the Flame Style Ring on it, followed by Wizard Flame Style doing a brief spin and posing in front of Machine Winger, the story logo once again flaming into existence in the foreground.)
Chapter 1: From Early Morning to First Shadows
Gekkoukan High School, Entrance - 7:30 AM, April 7, 2009
Nayuki hadn't gotten the best of sleep when she'd gotten into the hotel, but she had gotten some. Luckily, the hotel's breakfast bar had a large supply of plain sugar donuts - which Nayuki had promptly cleaned out.
She was currently munching on one as she walked her bike up the path to the entrance to the school, having gotten directions on her way out of the hotel.
As she walked up, she saw a pair of familiar faces. "Ah, Minato-san, Yukari-san," she greeted. "Good morning."
"Good morning, Nayuki-san," Yukari greeted.
"G'morning, Nayuki-san," Minato said.
"You two sleep well?" Nayuki asked. "I didn't get the best of sleep, but…" she held up her donut, and gestured to a bag which still had a fair number of them that was hanging from one of Machine Winger's handlebars. "…luckily my hotel had a supply of my preferred pick-me up."
"Donuts? Really?" Minato asked, slightly incredulous about it.
"Not to sound rude, but, is that really good for your weight?" Yukari asked, hopefully without getting herself in trouble.
"I tend to burn through a lot of energy," Nayuki replied. "Means I need to eat a lot of high-energy foods to replenish it." She indicated the donuts again. "And Plain Sugar Donuts are my favorite high-energy food."
"Um…" Minato was able to say.
"Is that how you got your big breasts?" Yukari asked, in a hushed whisper.
Nayuki leaned in. "Actually, for that, it's likely more because I tend to get a craving for milk during… 'that time of the month'."
Minato's eyes widened, having overheard the conversation more than he'd care to admit, as his face took on a solid red hue.
"Really? Wow… that's something," Yukari said in the same hushed whisper. "I hope you have less of an issue in regards to girls picking on you, or boys hitting on you just for your breasts."
Nayuki shrugged. "Eh, I can take care of myself. As for the boys… well, they always tend to deflate when I mention that I don't swing that way."
Minato inadvertently tripped over his own two feet that time, knocking Yukari and Nayuki down with him, before they caused a massive pile-up in front of the gates as students ended up tripping over their own two feet for no real reason.
A few minutes later, inside the school building…
They'd gotten untangled relatively quickly, and made it inside the building without any further mishap.
"Minato-san, I'm curious, but… why did you trip like that, when there wasn't anything around to trip on?" Yukari asked, oblivious to the circumstances.
"N… not really sure…" Minato replied, not wanting to potentially incur their wrath. "Just a random bout of clumsiness, I guess."
Nayuki looked at Minato and said, "Or was it because of you overhearing the conversation more than you'd care to admit?"
Minato's face flushed in embarrassment, which really provided more of a clue than anything, even as he stuttered a lot, trying to deny it.
Yukari, despite the fact that she should be indignant about Minato's blatant denial, merely shook her head with a slight irritation. "Anyway, this isn't the time to worry about that, as we're inside now," she said. "By the way, I don't want to know what would happen if the school decides to split us apart, for some reason… no idea why I feel that way."
"Well, I guess we'll find out," Nayuki remarked. She then looked over at the bulletin board. "And there's way too many students crowding around the bulletin board, so we won't find out what class we're in that way." She looked at Yukari. "Well, might as well check out the Faculty Office, see if a teacher's there to help."
It was at this time that Minato said, "Okay, back. We're in the same class."
Nayuki blinked. "Wow, how'd you get to the Bulletin Board through all that crowd?" she asked.
"Simple. There was a gap in between the crowd next to the wall," Minato replied, pointing at said gap.
Nayuki blinked again. "Well, good work, Minato-san," she said. "We might still need to check in at the Faculty office, though."
Yukari gave them a nod, before saying, "Well, I'll see you two later. I need to get to the welcoming ceremony, which you two might do as well." With that, she walked over to the auditorium, leaving the two of them to their own devices.
Minato looked at Nayuki and said, "Time to get going, then."
Nayuki nodded, as they headed down the corridor to the left, looking for the Faculty Office.
Faculty Office
Nayuki and Minato soon found themselves in the correct part of the school, walking into the correct door, before they found a female teacher to help them.
"Oh, are you the new students?" The teacher asked. "Nayuki Kinomoto and Minato Arisato, correct?"
"Yes, ma'am," Nayuki said.
"Yep, that's me," Minato said.
The teacher looked over something on a clipboard, and then back up at Minato. "Wow, you've lived in a lot of different places…"
"Eh, sorta required of me," Minato said. "It's odd, really, being juggled from one relative to another."
The teacher frowned a bit, looking at the clipboard again. "Let's see… in 1999, that was, what, ten years ago? Your parents-" the teacher then let out a quiet gasp.
"See what I mean?" Minato asked.
"Yes…" the teacher replied, somewhat melancholy. "…I'm sorry… I've been so busy, I haven't been able to read any of this beforehand."
"Not even mine?" Nayuki asked, somewhat irritated at the teacher, given what was just said.
"It can get pretty busy here," the teacher replied apologetically, as she flipped a page on the clipboard to get to Nayuki's file. "Hmm… You haven't had any official schooling Nayuki-chan?" she asked.
"Home schooling was pretty much all I had," Nayuki said, shrugging. "I did get kidnapped at a young age, though, but you probably won't believe the specifics behind it."
The teacher's eyes widened, even as she saw a small note on the kidnapping in her file. "Well, at least you turned out alright," she remarked. "Anyway, I'm Ms. Toriumi. I teach composition. Welcome to our school."
"A pleasure," Nayuki said.
"It's a wonderful time to be alive," Minato declared. "Especially to be at this school!"
"Such enthusiasm!" Ms. Toriumi replied with a smile. "Anyway, have you seen the classroom assignments? You're in 2-F; that's my class." She then looked at a clock. "But first, we need to go to the Auditorium. The Welcoming Ceremony will be starting soon."
"Okay, lead the way," Nayuki said, Minato nodding in agreement.
School Auditorium
As the students and teachers were all seated, the School Principal was standing at the podium, making a speech.
"As you begin the new school year," he was saying, "I'd like each of you to remember the proverb, 'if a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well.' When applied to student life, this means…"
Nayuki was doing her best to pay attention and not fall asleep from how dull the speech was being, while Minato luckily had his music player, which he was currently listening to to pass the time.
It was while Nayuki was about to fall asleep when she felt a tapping on her shoulder, with a girl saying, "Hey... you walked in with that hottie and Yukari-chan this morning, right?"
"Helped him get to his dorm, which was apparently the same one Yukari-san was staying in, and then ran into them again on the way to school," Nayuki replied. "Also, I don't really consider him a 'hottie' - then again, I don't swing that way."
"So you don't know if he has a girlfriend, then?" the girl from behind her asked.
It was at this time that Minato felt a tapping on his shoulder, with a boy saying, "Hey… you came to school with Yukari-san and that hot girl this morning, didn't you? Hey, I have a question… do you know if they have boyfriends?"
"Nayuki-san? No, and she won't get one," Minato said. "As for Yukari-san, hell if I know, I just met her last night at the dorm I'm staying at."
"Huh, rather lucky," the student behind him replied. "And why wouldn't that other girl get a boyfriend?"
"Because, from what I overheard her mentioning to Yukari-san, she 'doesn't swing that way'," Minato replied.
Before the conversations could continue, a teacher called out, "I hear talking! It sounds like it's someone from Ms. Toriumi's class."
Almost immediately, Ms. Toriumi said to them, "Shh. Be quiet! You're going to get me in trouble!"
And with that, they all quieted down, as the speech continued…
Classroom 2-F, After School
After the Ceremony, it had been a fairly uneventful day of class, as the two were introduced to class and given seats, surprisingly next to each other, then going through a few introductory classes.
Now that classes were officially over for the day, Nayuki and Minato were packing up to head out, when—
"What's up, dudes? How's it going?"
—they were blocked by a young man with a baseball cap.
"Who are you?" Minato asked.
"Me?" the young man asked. "I'm Junpei Iori! Nice to meet ya! I transferred here when I was in eighth grade. I know how tough it is being the new kid… so, I thought I'd say, 'hey.' See what a nice guy I am!"
"Uh… what?" Nayuki asked. Before any further conversation could be had, Yukari showed up, as if on a set course.
"Hey, it's Yuka-tan!" Junpei said as he noticed her. "I didn't think we'd be in the same class again."
With a sigh, Yukari said, "At it again, huh? I swear, you'll talk to anyone if they'll listen. Did you ever think you might be bothering someone?"
Junpei looked at Yukari incredulously, before saying, "What? But, I was just bein' friendly."
"If you say so," Yukari and Nayuki said at the same time, causing each other to blink in surprise.
Yukari then looked in Minato and Nayuki's direction, before saying, "Anyway, looks like we really are in the same homeroom…"
"It's just a coincidence," Minato and Nayuki said at the same time, before they blinked in surprise and looked at each other oddly.
"I know, but still… I was a little surprised that Minato-san wasn't lying," Yukari said, getting their attention again.
Junpei spoke up again, saying, "Um, hello? Are you forgetting that I'm in this class too? By the way, I heard you three came to school together this morning. What's up with that? C'mon, gimme the dirt!"
Before Yukari could say anything…
"Minato-san and Yukari-san are in the same dorm," Nayuki replied. "I helped get Minato-san to the Dorm last night, as it was on the way to my hotel, where I'm staying till I can find something more permanent, and I ran into them again today on the way into school."
Yukari spared Nayuki a brief glance before looking back at Junpei. "Exactly. There's nothing going on, okay? Why are people even talking about it!? Now you have me worried…" Looking at Minato, she said in a hushed tone, "Hey… you didn't say anything at all about… you know what, did you?"
"You mean that Mexican Standoff last night between you, Mitsuru-san, and Nayuki-san and I?" Minato asked.
"Mexican Standoff?" Junpei asked, curiously.
"Minato-san and I got into town really late," Nayuki explained. "When I got him to his dorm, it was midnight, and the door was unlocked, so I thought I'd see him safely inside. Yukari-san was somewhat distrustful, and Mitsuru-san, another resident at the dorm, was rather wary of me, considering I wasn't registered as a resident, but it all resolved itself rather nicely."
"That put it nice and aptly," Yukari said, relieved that it was explained that way. Looking at her watch, she said, "I've gotta go. I've got something to take care of for the Archery Team. But, you better not be spreading any rumors, Junpei!" With that, she walked out the door.
Junpei eventually said, "Ah, who cares? Nobody takes rumors seriously, anyway. She's so paranoid…"
"Some people are like that," Nayuki remarked. "Honestly, I don't care for rumors much, either - too many of them could obscure the truth about something."
Junpei nodded in agreement about that, before saying, "But, hey! It's your first day here, and already people are talking about you two! You might not believe it, but she's actually pretty popular. You da—"
"I'm not able to be much of a man to get them both, Junpei-san," Minato said. "Nayuki-san doesn't like men like that."
Junpei looked at Nayuki, shock on his face. "Seriously?" he asked. "You're not interested in guys like that?"
"Not really," Nayuki remarked. "Nothing against guys, I just swing the other way."
Junpei looked down at the floor, before saying, "I see… my bad." Lifting his face up, his attitude took a 180 as he said, "Hehehe, this is gonna be a fun year. I can feel it!"
Minato decided to head back to his dorm with Junpei, but Nayuki didn't really have much else to do, so she explored the campus a bit.
It was while she was about to head down the stairs that she heard footsteps from behind her, with Mitsuru's voice calling out, "Kinomoto, a moment of your time, please?"
She turned, and saw Mitsuru walking up to her. "Fine by me, Mitsuru-senpai," she said. "Where would you like to talk?"
"Why not as we walk?" Mitsuru suggested, walking up beside Nayuki.
"That works," Nayuki replied, as she reached into her backpack and pulled out a Ring. Like most of her other Rings, the 'gem' part was rather oversized compared to a regular ring. This one appeared to have a red crystal core, with the metal motif around it showing some kind of bird. "Let me just take care of something really quick…"
She moved her school jacket a bit, revealing that instead of the standard belt she had her own regular belt, with what looked like a black hand trimmed with gold over the buckle. Slipping the Ring onto her right middle finger, she held the Ring over the hand on her belt, as a voice called out, "GARUDA, PLEASE!" A tray materialized in front of Nayuki, containing several parts that separated from the tray and seemed to come together to form a red-and-silver mechanical bird, with a slot on its chest. Nayuki took the ring from her finger and inserted it into the slot, and the bird came to life. "Go get a feel for the school layout, and make sure you aren't seen," she said to the bird. "I might need you to scout around later, so you should know how this place is laid out." The little bird nodded, and flew off.
Mitsuru's mind suddenly flew out of her head at seeing the Red Garuda, making her ask, "H-h-h-h-h-how?!"
Nayuki smiled at her. "I know it's not used all that much these days, Mitsuru-senpai, but Magic is most definitely real," she said. "Though, not many people can use it…"
"W-what makes you say that?" Mitsuru asked, calming down significantly.
Nayuki frowned a bit. "To properly explain that requires a little bit of explanation," she said, as the two began walking. "The first bit of the explanation, involves creatures known as Phantoms."
"Phantoms?" Mitsuru asked.
"Creatures born from despair," Nayuki replied. "When a person who has the potential to use magic, called a Gate, is driven to the depths of despair, a Phantom is born within them, and often breaks out violently, killing them and taking their place. These Phantoms then go about and drive more people into Despair, creating more Phantoms."
"What happens if they don't break out?" Mitsuru asked.
"About the only way that happens is if someone is able to hold onto hope in some fashion," Nayuki explained. "If a Gate who has been driven to despair is able to hold onto some kind of hope, they can suppress the Phantom within themselves, chain it in a sense. Those who do so… are able to use Magic."
"Wow… that sounds amazing," Mitsuru breathed. Noticing the time, she said, "We'd best get moving."
"Right," Nayuki replied as they began walking. "Anyway, the only other way to keep a Phantom from breaking out of a Gate is for a user of Magic to dive into the Gate's Underworld, their subconscious containing a memory of their happiest moment, and destroy the Phantom before it completely destroys the Underworld. This saves the Gate, but also removes any ability for them to use Magic."
"Is that right?" Mitsuru asked, before they made it down the stairs. "Would the use of Magic allow anything to work in the Dark Hour that normally wouldn't?"
"Apparently," Nayuki replied. "I think that's why Machine Winger isn't affected - it's powered by Magic."
"I see…" Mitsuru said. "In any case, I feel that I need to head back, before evening."
"Alright," Nayuki said as they stepped out of the school building, and headed to the Bike Rack, Nayuki to Machine Winger, and Mitsuru to her own bike.
Platform of the In-Between, Between April 8th and 9th, 2009
Okay… this was certainly stranger than most of Nayuki's dreams. In fact, it was probably one thing to dream this in bed, but it's definitely another to dream it standing upright! All she did beforehand was go to the door of her room in the hotel at the start of the Dark Hour and touch the handle, before a glowing blue butterfly appeared in front of her, which prompted her to reach out to it and touch it… which then made her go into this strange location. Was it a dream?
In front of her, there was a man in a white tuxedo, wearing a butterfly mask to obscure his face. With a bow, he said, "Welcome. It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Philemon, a dweller between consciousness and unconsciousness. And now, a simple test; can you state your name?"
"Nayuki Kinomoto," Nayuki replied. "And that mask… I assume you're the man who sent me that contract through that kid?"
"Indeed, I am," Philemon said. "And splendid, Miss Kinomoto… there aren't many who remember their identity when in this domain. It seems you've passed that test. But tell me this." He pointed his finger at her for a bit. "Are you aware of the many and varied selves you harbor within you?" Lowering his finger at that, he continued, "The self suffused with divine love. The self capable of demonic cruelty. People live by wearing different masks. Your current self may be only one of those innumerable masks. Do you have any questions so far?"
"Well, I guess my biggest two questions at the moment are: Have you worked with Wizards like myself before now, and why exactly was I needed to sign a contract?"
Philemon raised his middle and index fingers into the air, saying, "I have worked with one Wizard before you, a man named Haruto Soma in what would be considered an alternate reality, when he had a run-in with the company SEBEC, who were opening a doorway to an alternate reality tied to the psyche of a young girl named Maki Sonomura. He was one to help stop the branch president Takehisa Kandori, alongside a group of students with supernatural powers that I specifically help deal with… though the problem wasn't over until Pandora, another facet of the identity of Maki, was dealt with." Lowering the middle finger, he continued, "To answer your second question, not only is the power of a Gate a blessing, it is also a curse, especially as Shadows can make a Wizard go into sneezing fits or even worse when a Wizard fights them for too long."
"Like… Allergies?" Nayuki asked as Philemon lowered his index finger. The concept of parallel realities wasn't that far-fetched to her - she'd had an encounter or two that dealt with things like that - but the other reasoning was a bit shocking…
"Precisely," Philemon said, nodding. "However, that doesn't mean the inverse is false. A Gate that has access to their proper power to fight Shadows, on the other hand, is immune to the allergies. It needs to be that they have the manifestation of power opposite of suppressing a Phantom from within. However, a regular person with this power is incapable of facing a Ghoul or Phantom without getting a rash or worse."
Nayuki nodded, understanding a bit what was going on. "So, the contract was to enable me to fight Shadows without allergic reactions?" she asked.
"Indeed," Philemon said. "As I was about to say before asking if you had questions: You, though… you have a very firm grip on your identity. I respect your strong will. In return, I grant this power… Persona. It is the power to summon the selves within you, the god and the demons you harbor. The time is soon when you will need this power. Now, you must return, to your proper time and place."
With that, the vision ended, returning Nayuki to the realm of consciousness.
Iwatodai, Near the Kirijo Dorm - 12:00 (Dark Hour), Between April 9th and 10th, 2009
The past couple of days hadn't really been that hectic, and nothing really unusual had happened, aside from that meeting with Philemon - School was fairly normal, though it seemed Ms. Toriumi had as much of a sweet tooth as Nayuki herself, if the fact that she wanted cake as apology for any mistakes was anything to go by.
Nayuki had also started exploring during the Dark Hour, despite the fact that it was normally a rest time. She'd learned that yes, her Magic was capable of fighting and defeating these 'Shadows', having had to fight a couple of minor ones. She hadn't run into anyone from the Kirijo dorm, yet, though, even though she knew they apparently fought the Shadows.
Tonight, her exploration had taken her towards the Kirijo Dorm, where she could sense something… familiar, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
Eventually, she ran into a third-year running away from a giant mass of black goop and blue masks, with the roman numeral of 1 on top. This third-year had silver hair and gray eyes, and wore a red vest over a white shirt, with the symbol of a Boxing Captain on the vest. With that in mind, she stopped in front of her senpai and yelled, "Get on!"
The third-year looked a bit surprised, but quickly got on Machine Winger, as they took off away from the thing.
"Thanks," he remarked. "That thing's a lot tougher than anything I've faced before."
"Really, now?" Nayuki asked, curiously at that.
Soon enough, they got to the Kirijo Dorm, with the third-year pulling out a radio and calling, "Mitsuru, come in!"
"Mitsuru here," she replied. "What is it, Akihiko?"
"You're not gonna believe it, but I just got away from a rather large Shadow! In fact—"
Nayuki looked to her right and said, "Uh, Senpai, you might want to look right. There's another one headed this way!"
He did, and swore. "Dammit! Mitsuru, we've got two big ones headed straight for the Dorm!"
"What?! How close are they to the Dorm?" Mitsuru questioned.
"The first one is still a ways off," Akihiko answered. "The second one is about on top of us, though!"
Mitsuru swore. "Dammit… okay, we'll prepare for battle!" she said. "Also, you said you got away from the first one earlier… how did you do that?"
Akihiko turned to face Nayuki and said over the radio, "A woman riding a motorcycle somehow was in the area, and—"
"Woman riding a motorcycle?" Mitsuru asked, interrupting him. "Kinomoto-san?"
"Hey there, Mitsuru-san," Nayuki replied, taking off her helmet. "Saw your friend trying to get away from that first large one, and decided to lend a hand." She stepped off of Machine Winger, and got out two rings - the one with the black hand matching the hand on her belt, and the other with a bright red crystal and what looked like some kind of mechanism. "Now… might as well show you what I can do."
She slipped the Ring with the hand on it on her right middle finger, the ring with the red crystal on her left. She brought her right hand down to her belt, and a voice called out, "DRIVER ON, PLEASE!"
As she pulled her hand away, a gleaming silver belt buckle materialized on her waist, a similar hand to the one on the normal belt in the center of the buckle, and a pair of switches on the left and right ends.
Nayuki put her hands on the sides of the belt, and flipped the switches such that the hand was pointing the other direction, causing the voice to call out, "SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN! SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN! SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN!"
Bringing her left hand up, she used her right hand to trigger the mechanism on the Ring with the Red Crystal, causing transparent parts to fold down and give it the image of a face. "Henshin!" she called, as she placed her left hand over the belt.
"FLAME, PLEASE!" the voice called out as she flung her arm out to the side, causing a red Magic Circle to appear to her left, flames encircling it as it moved over her. "HII! HII! HII, HII, HII!"
Once the Magic Circle had passed over her, Nayuki stood transformed.
Her previous clothes had been exchanged for a full-body black suit that hugged her body, with what looked like an overcoat that was black on the outside and red on the inside stretching down from her waist. On her chest was a block of what looked like red jewels, and she had black, silver-trimmed shoulder armor. On her head was a helmet, silver with a round red face mask, and silver lines running along the upper part to give some semblance of eyes, and a slightly Gundam-like Head Crest.
She had become Kamen Rider Wizard Flame Style.
Turning to face Akihiko, Kamen Rider Wizard said, "Get inside the dorm. We don't know when the other one will get here, so we need to be careful, Senpai."
Akihiko looked stunned, but nodded. "Alright, but I'll definitely be wanting an explanation later," he said.
"No need to worry about that," Kamen Rider Wizard said, as she turned towards the stronger Shadow. "Saa, Showtime-da," she remarked, before going off to fight the stronger Shadow.
She switched out the Driver On Ring with another Ring, with an orange core and what looked like a dragon going in and out of some kind of portal on top of the Ring. She switched the hand on her Driver so it was oriented for her right hand again, and the Driver began to call out, "LUPACHI MAGIC TOUCH TO GO! LUPACHI MAGIC TOUCH TO GO! LUPACHI MAGIC TOUCH TO GO!" When she put her right hand over the Driver, it called out, "CONNECT, PLEASE!" and a Magic Circle appeared to her right, as she reached her hand into the Magic Circle, it passed through and vanished on the other side, though eventually she pulled her hand back out of the circle - and was holding her WizarSwordGun in Gun mode. As the Circle disappeared, she pointed the Gun at the Shadow and started pulling the trigger, firing Silver Bullets at the Shadow.
The Shadow moved on forward, the Silver Bullets not even scratching it, before it moved an arm into position with a blade in its hand to slash at her. Kamen Rider Wizard barely had time to shift the WizarSwordGun into Sword mode before she was forced to block, the force of the blow hurting her arm, even as she attempted to keep the blade from hitting her. Unfortunately, the Shadow's very presence was enough to make her start to sneeze after only about a minute of actual fighting, plus the minute and a half that she was setting up for fighting it.
'Damn, the allergies that Philemon guy mentioned are already kicking in?!' she thought to herself. 'It's a bit tougher than I thought, too - might have to kick it up a notch.'
As she leapt backwards to get some distance, she moved to switch the dial on her belt to the opposite direction with her right hand—
"UNKNOWN POWER DETECTED! UNKNOWN POWER DETECTED! UNKNOWN POWER DETECTED!" the driver called out as she was about to grab the buckle.
—when she realized that she had something completely wrong for the situation. Moving her hand to look at what was in it, she saw what looked like a Tarot card, only the image on the front was that of a woman with a background that looked like a moon on it, the woman's face covered by a black mask. In the woman's hands was an oversized katana, one that had a crescent moon on the hilt's bottom.
With a few beats of her heart in what seemed to be movie theater stereo, she drew in a deep breath and raised her hand that held the card, especially as she heard a woman's voice in her head say, "Thou art I… and I am thou… from the sea of thine soul I cometh… I shall lend thee my strength in times of need…"
It was at that time that Nayuki uttered three syllables at the same time that Minato Arisato was uttering the same syllables, only with a gun next to his head, put there of his own volition.
"Per… so… na!"
With a crushing motion, Nayuki crushed the card, forcing the Shadow to go backwards as an ethereal figure appeared behind her, the woman on the front showing up as said figure. "Daughter of the ruler of the underworld and the father of creation, I am Tsukuyomi, Orb of the Night!" Nayuki said as her Persona did, prompting the Shadow to stay still for a short while. It was at this time that the Shadow essentially transmogrified itself, revealing some figures that were not exactly expected to be seen by anyone in the year 2009… a large group of zombies.
"Mahama!" Nayuki called out, as a large amount of Expel/Light energy that was guaranteed to kill Zombies struck them down in one blow, causing them to disintegrate.
Cancelling the transformation as Kamen Rider Wizard, she asked herself, "Is it over?"
At that point, a bunch of small blobs showed up, with stubby arms and blue masks.
"I guess not," Nayuki said as she transformed back into Wizard. She still had the WizarSwordGun, which she switched into Gun Mode. "Saa, Finale-da," she said as she opened up the hand on the Gun, which began to chant, "COME ON AND SHOOT, SHAKE HANDS! COME ON AND SHOOT, SHAKE HANDS!"
She brought the Flame Ring on her left hand over the hand on the Gun, and it called out, "FLAME, SHOOTING STRIKE! HII HII HII! HII HII HII! HII HII HII!" as the Gun was covered with flames. She pulled the trigger, and this time, rather than Silver Bullets, the Gun shot fireballs, which devastated the Shadows, often destroying them with one Fireball each.
The battle, if it could even be called that, was over in fifteen seconds. In short, it was a massacre, the Shadows in question being exceptionally weak to fire.
As the last of the Shadows was destroyed, Nayuki spun so her back was to the flames, and posed with the top of the WizarSwordGun resting on her shoulder, as she said, "Whew. Well, that was interesting. Looks like I have a new power in addition to my Magic." She looked up at Tsukuyomi, who nodded at her before vanishing, returning to the form of a card which returned to wherever it had come from. Nayuki then dispelled her transformation again, and headed back to Machine Winger, to walk it up to the Kirijo Dorm.
She'd promised an explanation, and was going to give one.
Kirijo Dorm, 4th Floor Command Room
Mitsuru, Akihiko, and Shuji Ikutsuki all watched the twin camera views, one with Nayuki walking up towards the dorm, the other on the rooftop, Yukari checking on Minato's unconscious form.
"Well, Kinomoto's certainly powerful," Mitsuru remarked. "That Persona looked like something new to her, as well, but even without it, her Magic is certainly effective."
"Y… yes, I suppose it is," Ikutsuki replied. "I assume you will be asking her to join us as well, Mitsuru-san?"
"Yes, I will," Mitsuru answered. "Don't get me wrong, she probably would've been able to handle it on her own for a while longer, but she'll need a better support base eventually. She's probably the only one like herself in this case."
"Very well," Ikutsuki remarked. "Though, I will likely need to file a report on this, so I should get back to the office."
"Alright," Mitsuru replied. "I'll go greet Kinomoto-san. Akihiko, get Takeba and Arisato."
"Gotcha," Akihiko replied, and the three headed out, Akihiko up the stairs to Yukari and Minato, Mitsuru to the front door to greet Nayuki, and Ikutsuki out the back door.
'I had no idea a Mahoutsukai had come to Iwatodai,' Ikutsuki thought to himself. 'If she will be fighting alongside SEES, it would likely be best if I avoid the dorm from now on, and simply contact them via remote.
'I wouldn't want the Mahoutsukai to find me out, after all…'
Inside the collective chaos of people's hearts…
A dark mass of unbridled chaos briefly awakened from its slumber, having been put in that state some ten years ago. It was supposed to wake up after a minimum of 13 years, but the interference of its rival somehow got to waking it up unintentionally… even if for a short time.
'Well… who knew that Philemon would do something as foolish as use a Wizard to help him in this timeline? I thought he learned his lesson the last timeline…?' the entity thought. 'Meh, no matter. I'll defeat whoever is in my way, and in the way of annihilating the world and its population.'
With those thoughts, the entity of many aliases, The Crawling Chaos and Nyarlathotep being chief amongst them, alongside others, went back to sleep for the time being.
Xamusel: Okay, to elaborate for those who thought this would only be a P3 crossover with Kamen Rider Wizard, it's not. I had the bright idea to add Philemon and Nyarlathotep into the story, both of whom are pivotal plot points in the first half of the current Persona series timeline, from before P3. It was also my idea to give Nayuki that weakness to Shadows without awakening her Persona, and it was my idea to do the call backwards to the first couple Persona games (P1 in particular).
Now… time to review, people, and tell us how we did on this.