However, Hikaru also knew the danger of making too many assumptions and trying to proceed in the absence of important facts. "That maybe true Fuu-chan, but we won't really know for sure until we find out more about Cephiro and what is going on today" Hikaru answered after a period of silence. "Yes, I suppose that you're right Hikaru-san. We mustn't let our thoughts get carried away and we should keep our minds open until we learn more" Fuu agreed. But Umi warned "we still need to be careful though. If wearing the wrong clothes can get us into trouble, there are probably a zillion other things that can too." For a moment Hikaru thought about it and then decided "okay that sounds like a plan. For now we'll just keep a low profile and do our detective work. Who knows what we might find out?" "Surely, a city this large must have a library or university where we can find information." Fuu suggested. Just then, the waitress returned with their orders. Deftly, she set each one down in front of its correct recipient along with a tray of sugars and cream and some extra spoons. "There ya go young ladies!" she said cheerfully." If ya'll need anything else, just give me a holler, and I'll get whatever you need. Enjoy your drinks!" she finished with a cheerful smile and a slight bow before turning back to her duties with other customers. Hikaru tasted her coffee and found it to be a little bitter, so she added some more sugar and stirred it in. Umi seemed quite satisfied with hers, but Fuu took just a sip of her tea. It was quite hot so she let it set for a bit to cool down a brew for a little longer. She took a napkin from the stack that the waitress had left on their table to dab the tea from her mouth. Curiously, Fuu saw something that didn't look like a white napkin in the stack, so she carefully extracted it and began to examine it. It was a tri-folded flier that had some very official looking writing and images on the front page. Umi had noticed what Fuu did and asked "what is that Fuu?" By now Hikaru was also watching so Fuu answered "I'm not entirely sure. It's been a long time since I've tried to read anything in Cephiran text, but I think that it is some kind of government issued document." Then Hikaru's eyes lit up. "Yes, the waitress said that she was going to look for a set of the rules for us! That must be what she was talking about!" Hikaru exclaimed while keeping her voice down. "Erm, can you read it Fuu? Umi asked. "You always were the best at reading Cephiran books back in the old days" Umi finished with a smile. "Okay, I will try, but I can't guarantee that I'll get every word correct" Fuu accepted with a sheepish grin. Then she began:
"This document officially issued by the Cephiro Imperial Government Office of Civil Affairs. Effective date: 14-Dn-1015. Section 701/3-C, Titled: 'Public Dress Code for Civilian Inhabitants of the Empire'." Fuu then flipped to the next page and continued to read. "The purpose of this document is to ensure the fair and equal treatment under common everyday conditions of all citizens of the Empire of Cephiro. While diversity among the population is considered a strength and should be nurtured to promote creativity and healthy competition, diversity must not be fostered to the extent that allows fractures to appear in the general society. Such fractures can lead to, in extreme cases, sectarian violence and lawlessness, therefore …" At this point Fuu was cut off by an impatient Umi "enough of the propaganda Fuu! Just find out where it tells us what we need to wear!" "Oh …" Fuu squeaked out, startled by Umi's insistence. Then she flipped to the next page and began to read again. "For civilians not bound by occupational safety codes, their dress shall be as follows: for men the required dress is a standard 2 or 3 piece pant suit and tie. The shirt shall be white and no other colors. The suit itself may be black, dark shades of gray, or dark shades of brown. No other colors are allowed. The tie must also follow the same coloring rules and match the suit. Shoes may be dark brown or black and made of leather material only. If a hat is worn, it must also match the coloring of the suit. For women, the same rules apply, but with some additional options. Instead of a pant suit, a skirt may be worn instead. The skirt length must be such that the knees are not visible when standing. When a skirt is worn, tights must also be worn and match the same coloring of the suit. An exception may be made if the tights match the natural skin tone of the wearer. Shoes for women must follow the same rules as shoes for men, with the addition that the heels may be no taller than 3 cip." "Three … cip? What does that mean?" Hikaru asked quietly. "Umm, I don't really know Hikaru-san" Fuu replied. "There's only a little bit left to go." Then Fuu finished reading: "For women, an exception is made for the necktie. Women my wear a) a shirt with an open collar and no tie, b) a shirt with no collar, or c) a shirt tied with a ribbon. If option c) is chosen, the ribbon must follow the same rules as for the necktie." "There, that's all of it." Fuu confirmed.
Umi and Hikaru just stared at her. "That seems kinda strict" Hikaru commented. Then Umi added "That's just nuts, no school has a dress code that oppressive!" Fuu looked down at her own school uniform and added her own evaluation "Our uniforms aren't really that far off. If they were black instead of emerald green, we would be all set." (Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu all attend the same high school as Fuu's sister Kuu did in episode 21.) "Yeah, I guess" Umi pouted. "Oh!" Fuu exclaimed "there's something else in here! Hair coloring is not allowed. Only the natural black, gray, and brown colors are permitted." "Huh?" Hikaru and Umi stared at each other aghast. "So no wonder our waitress commented about our appearances" Fuu concluded. Both Hikaru and Umi stared at her indigently. "W-what's the matter?" Fuu stammered "why are you looking at me like that?" "Because …" Umi ground her teeth "… you're not going have to get your hair done!" she replied menacingly. After that, Fuu very gently inserted the flyer back into the stack of napkins. "It will take years to grow my hair back out if I have to dye it some other color" Umi fumed quietly. "Erm, maybe there is another way, like a wig or something?" Hikaru suggested, but Fuu had a different answer "we could use transformation magic." "Use transformation magic?" Hikaru asked, a bit puzzled at the suggestion. Then Fuu explained "do you remember Zagato's minion Innouva? He was able to use transformation magic to change his entire appearance into the woman we knew as Sarah. We could use the same technique to change your hair color or anything else that you would like, including our clothes, into something more compatible with our current situation." Hikaru seemed to understand Fuu's reasoning, but had doubts about implementing this technique. "Can we even use that kind of magic? Even if it was possible, how would we cast such a spell?" Fuu smiled mischievously. "Fortunately I've already figured out how to do it. Because of Innouva, I'd always known that it was possible, so it just took some experimentation to figure out how to do it. It's very similar to Winds of Healing" Hikaru was a bit surprised at this and replied "I've always been scared to using magic at home in Tokyo because I didn't want to burn half the city down." Umi chuckled slightly at that remark and added "I can see what you mean Hikaru, but Fuu is right. Transformation magic does work and she even taught me how to do it as well. However, we've only played around with it for fun and neither of us has ever tried to use it in a real situation like this. I'm not sure how it would turn out."
After that the conversation went quiet until everyone had finished their drinks. The waitress returned to bus the table and take their payment of the tab. They left her a generous tip for her help in providing the information that they needed to avoid trouble with whatever local authority that enforced the imperial dress code. After they left Sephira's coffee shop, the Magic Knights once again found themselves in a sea of humanity on the bustling concourse of the transport terminal. Looking around, Hikaru began to observe the other people there, and indeed their manner of dress did conform quite closely to the specifications that Fuu had read from the government pamphlet. Soon Fuu mentioned "we need to find a place with some privacy to make this work. Do either of you see a restroom anywhere?" Hikaru's stature proved disadvantageous in the search, but Umi looked over the crowd as best she could and spied one. "Over there … I think" and pointed in the general direction of what she saw. Fuu and Hikaru followed Umi to the restroom, but before they reached the entrance she pulled the three of them to the wall at the edge of the main concourse. There, they found a more secluded corner where they could extricate themselves from the throng and could talk without being easily overheard by dozens of other people. The entrance to the restroom was still visible from their position and they could observe a brisk stream of women entering and exiting. Fuu looked at Umi and asked "do you remember what to do Umi-san?" Umi nodded in apprehension. "Okay, you go first while I try to explain to Hikaru how to do this" Fuu instructed. "Got it." Umi confirmed and joined into the line of women entering the restroom. Fuu then turned to Hikaru for a crash course in spell casting. "This is actually a rather simple spell to cast" she began. "My Winds of Healing spell works because I can visualize what an injury should look like when it is back to normal." Hikaru nodded that she understood and Fuu continued. "To cause a transformation, I must clearly visualize what I want to end result to be. That is the difficult part. You must be very precise if you want it to come out correctly." "Okay I think that I get it. Is there an incantation that I must use?" Hikaru asked. Fuu replied "Yes there is, but it is specific to your school of magic. For me I use 'Breeze of Transformation'. Umi-san uses 'River of Transformation'. So yours must come from a fire based incantation." Hikaru started to think of what this spell could possibly be.
However, shortly afterwards Hikaru noticed someone coming towards them – a person that she had never seen before. Fuu noticed as well. "Oh dear …" Fuu expressed dismay. The woman was rather tall, and seemed to be in her thirties. She wore a black silk skirt suit with a white scoop neck shirt underneath. Her blonde hair was tucked neatly into a bun on the back of her head and she wore a fashionable pillbox hat. She was very beautiful and to Hikaru she felt somewhat intimidating. The woman walked up to Fuu and Hikaru and addressed them politely "Excuse me, young ladies." A bit lost, Fuu replied "Erm … yes? Can I help you with something ma'am?" As Fuu looked into the woman's blue eyes, she was overcome with a shocking realization. Fuu's eyes grew wide and she covered her mouth as she gasped "… U-umi-san?" Fuu stammered incredulously. The woman's mouth curled into a friendly grin and she giggled delightfully. Then she confirmed. "Yes, it's me. For a minute or so it fooled even you Fuu!" Umi giggled again. Hikaru's mouth just hung open, speechless. Fuu gathered herself and then complimented Umi "nicely done Umi-san. You've always been gorgeous, but this time you've outdone yourself. I too noticed a lot of blonde women here so it must qualify as a 'shade of brown' but I had not thought of making myself look so adult looking. It could eliminate a lot of questions, so what a great idea!" Umi beamed at Fuu's praise and then said "okay, you're next Fuu. I'll stay here with Hikaru." Fuu nodded and then went to join the restroom line, leaving Hikaru with adult Umi. Umi then asked Hikaru "did Fuu explain everything to you while I was in there?" However Hikaru, was still speechless. Umi became a little cross and held Hikaru by the shoulders. Shaking her gently, Umi exclaimed "snap out of it Hikaru!" Coming back to herself Hikaru then scanned Umi from the polished heels on her feet to the pillbox hat on top of her head. "Is that really you Umi-chan? I've never seen anything like this. You look so amazing." "Yes, it's really me Hikaru." Umi smiled and answered sweetly and then she gave Hikaru a hug. And then Hikaru was sure – she still smelled like Umi's perfume.
After their brief embrace Hikaru answered Umi's question "yes Fuu told me what to do and I'm pretty sure that I understand. The incantation is the only part that I haven't figured out yet." "Oh I see." Umi acknowledged, but then offered a suggestion. "When I came up with mine, I just imagined what sort of water type experience would feel good to immerse myself in, after all you're going to be 'wearing' your magic. I thought about taking a nice warm bath, but 'bath of transformation' didn't work right off. Eventually I came up with 'river' which did the trick … pardon the pun." Hikaru smiled at the last remark. Thoughts started coming to her though "so I should not use anything with fire or lightning in it then?" Umi's eyes went wide with alarm. "No, definitely not, Hikaru!" Umi warned "You want something soothing and comfortable." Hikaru started thinking again and soon noticed someone else walking towards them. This time however, the person did not appear as a stranger. Hikaru could see that it was Fuu despite the drastic changes to her appearance. No longer in her school uniform, Fuu now wore a tailored, dark chestnut brown suit, pleated skirt, and with a shirt similar to Umi's but with a higher neckline. Her hairstyle was unchanged except that her hair was now longer and reached her shoulders. Fuu's shoes were similar to Umi's but brown in color. The biggest change however was in her glasses. Hikaru had never known Fuu to wear any glasses other than her round, frameless ones, so to see her wearing rectangular lenses with a black half-frame on top was quite startling. When Fuu met back up with them again Hikaru noticed that Fuu also seemed taller and more adult like, much like Umi. "Everyone, do I look okay?" Fuu asked a little nervously. Umi smiled and confirmed "Yes, you look great Fuu! You look almost like an attorney or politician, but then again that is you're family's background after all." "Oh, yes." Fuu agreed. "My father and mother have taken me on many trips already to the Japanese consulates in China and Korea, so I've spent a fair amount of time around such people" she added. "Erm, it's been the same for me too" Umi continued. "My dad has been taking me along with him to work when I have days off from school so I've also found my ways to fit in with the corporate environment as well. And … well it's not always an easy thing to be the 'heiress' around all of those bigwigs." Hikaru didn't quite understand what that last comment meant. "Heiress?" she asked. "Erm, yes Hikaru. My family owns the Ryuuzaki Financial zaibatsu and my father is the President and CEO and as his only child, someday I will take his place. Hopefully that won't happen for a long time, but I can feel pressure even now. I'm so happy that I have you two for friends, the time that we have already spent together and our adventures in Cephiro have prepared me for this future in ways that I doubt either of you could imagine!" Umi looked at both of them lovingly, in genuine appreciation of their friendship. Hikaru responded "Wow Umi, that's just amazing, that you have the courage to even think of running a company like that. And you too Fuu, someday I'll bet you'll be the Prime Minister!" Fuu just blushed, but quickly remembered "oh Hikaru! You still need to get into your disguise, hurry!" "Oh right, sorry" Hikaru responded just a bit embarrassed and then went to join the restroom line.
As she waited in line Hikaru thought to herself "what I am going to do? How do make myself into a respectable adult like Umi and Fuu? How will I stack up against Madame Prime Minister and Ms. Fashion Plate CEO?" Nervously, Hikaru fretted as the line slowly crawled towards her destination, the toilets. The queue snaked around the line of sight barriers and soon the line of stalls came into view. When Hikaru's turn came, the stall at the far end opened up and she briskly went in and latched the door. Now very nervous, Hikaru had to calm herself. "Okay, something warm and comfortable" she thought. Almost right away she remembered spending time at the beach during the summer. A hot August day, lying on the sand wearing her bikini swimsuit and a ton of sunscreen, she felt the warmth of the sun and its relaxing, sleepy heat. Then the word "sun" came to her. "Okay, I will try that, but just a test at first" Hikaru thought. She looked down at her hands and saw how her fingernails were neatly trimmed and well cared for, but hardly manicured or fashionable. Then closing her eyes, Hikaru imagined them long, manicured, and mirror polished a dark crimson. Then quietly she whispered "sun of transformation" to herself. Instantly, she felt her hands warm up, just like on a hot summer day, and then just as quickly the heat faded. When Hikaru opened her eyes and looked at her hands, she saw exactly what she had envisioned in her mind – a beautiful set of nails. "It worked! It worked!" Hikaru exclaimed excited in her thoughts and covered her mouth to stifle her delightful giggling. "I wish that I'd known about this sooner! This could be a lot of fun!" Hikaru thought, all of her nervousness washed away with excitement. Next, Hikaru thought to tackle her biggest problem – her non-conforming red hair. In order to not duplicate Umi or Fuu, Hikaru thought to use dark brown or black for a color. However, the style was a problem. She knew that the way she always braided it looked much too young for an adult, but what to change it to? Hikaru also didn't have days to agonize over this so she began to think of adults that she knew and how they did their hair. One that came to mind was Presea and Hikaru remembered how beautiful her hair was. The ponytail was also a simple design to imagine, so Hikaru went with it. When complete, Hikaru had to pull out a pocket mirror to check the front and saw that her neatly combed bangs looked perfect. The ponytail also looked perfect as well – Hikaru was getting good at this! After that came her school uniform. She thought to transform it into a combination of what Umi and Fuu did and imagined a few differences. Hikaru still wore the pendant of Lantis, so a closed collar tied with a ribbon would be required. But as she looked down at where the pendant hung on her chest, an embarrassingly vain thought came to her. "I could make my chest larger" she thought as her face suddenly turned red. Hikaru was not the type to be a show off, but she had always felt that she was different from Umi and Fuu in that regard. "They have always been more feminine than I am, but why is it bothering me now?" Hikaru mused. "Hmm, maybe because I have an opportunity to do something about it now, I think. But, I'm ashamed to even think about it, to look grown up like they do." Then Hikaru made the realization "Well, we are trying to be adults here, so umm … I can use that for an excuse … and it's not like it will be permanent. If there are any problems, then I won't do it again next time." Hikaru reasoned and made her choice. Her school uniform transformed into a gray, tailored linen suit with a straight, slightly flared skirt, a white collared shirt, buttoned to the top and tied with a thin, black ribbon. Right away Hikaru noticed that her breathing was a little different due to her chest being about two sizes larger than previously. Inspecting the rest of her outfit, Hikaru found it to be satisfactory and continued on to the last step – her shoes. Recently Hikaru had only the opportunity to inspect Umi's shoes closely so she decided to reuse those (a decision that she would soon regret.) Hikaru stood on her tip toes and then applied the transformation to her school uniform shoes. When finished, her feet remained in that position, with all of Hikaru's weight on her toes. "Erm, maybe I should try something else, but I've been in here too long already!" Hikaru thought as she began to worry. One last look with the pocket mirror revealed something else she had forgotten "ahh, I still need makeup!" she cried silently at the mirror. Fortunately Hikaru did know how to do her own makeup, but using the spell would be much quicker, so once complete she stowed away the pocket mirror and flushed the toilet to keep up with the façade. Slightly apprehensive, she unlatched the door and exited the stall. Immediately Hikaru went to the sink to wash her hands and looked at her new appearance and 'physique' in the mirror. Oddly enough, she saw almost no difference between herself and the other women around her which helped embolden her confidence. Her shoes were definitely an issue, so Hikaru walked slower than normal as she exited the restroom area and went to rejoin Umi and Fuu.
They were chatting as Hikaru approached them, but they quickly took notice of her. Both of them stared at her and didn't say anything. This made Hikaru a bit nervous, so she asked "Is … is it okay? Do I look alright?" Fuu responded after looking Hikaru up and down. "You look fantastic Hikaru! I can't believe it's actually you! You were in there for a long time, but it was worth it, you did great!" Fuu finished with a smile and then Uni chimed in "You seriously look almost as gorgeous as me! And I've done this before … a lot! Well, just not with magic." Hikaru just blushed at their praise. "To me you look much like a university professor, like someone who teaches economics or business" Fuu commented further. "Oh, I do teach classes at our Kendo school" Hikaru responded "but mostly just the classes for girls since the techniques are different than for boys." "Hehe someday you'll be the dojo-master Hikaru" Umi warned affectionately. "Thanks Umi" Hikaru said, but she was eager to proceed "alright, if we're all set, let's get moving and find the exit for this terminal. We still have a lot of detective work to do." Fuu and Umi both answered "Right." The exit to the city streets outside wasn't hard to find, but after walking only about 100 meters, Hikaru's feet were aching viciously. Her poor toes were not conditioned to this, but Hikaru was determined to keep moving. The exit door itself consisted of four pairs of sliding doors, of which two where entry doors and two were exits. Guards that looked like policemen were stationed at each set of doors, presumably to watch out for troublemakers. Now it was time to test their disguises. Hikaru and Umi had both planned to look calm and just walk right by, but Fuu walked right up to guard to ask him a question. Umi went on her guard, she did not like this. Hikaru was too busy mastering the pain in her feet to put up any resistance to Fuu's action. "Excuse me sir" Fuu addressed the guard. Her polite demeanor caught his attention "can I help you with something ma'am?" he inquired with respect. "I'm sorry to ask, but we are new in town and I was wondering if you could recommend a place of lodging here for us." The guard replied "there are many hotels in the downtown area of Maashan City, but for you ladies, I would recommend the Emeraude Plaza. It's one of the best we have."