''NO! Why can't they aim right?!'' Tsuyoshi Tsukino roared angrily while biting on his thin lips. He and his niece were both sitting on the couch with some chips and drinks on the small table before them, while they were watching some darting game together.
''Yajirushi is terrible today,'' His niece, Wakaba, grumbled as she shoved some chips into her mouth.
''You two keep complaining but why are there so many posters of that guy in here!?'' Larry asked as he sat on Wakaba's lap. It actually hadn't taken long for him to be found out by Wakaba's uncle, who seemed to have no problem with a talking little plush. Tsuyoshi Tsukino was a middle-aged man whose face already was covered in wrinkles and looked a little dishevelled but Larry liked him. He was bold, unlike some others...
Wait, scratch that. Wakaba wasn't like that now... her timid-side had completely disappeared, to Larry's surprise, and made way for his screaming-some-foul-languange-at-the-TV-every-second personality.
This happened every time the two watched some Darts game. Larry still didn't really understood any of it but it was kinda amusing seeing the two switch between cheering and totally freaking out in a span of mere seconds.
''So, how's school?'' Tsuyoshi suddenly asked. Wakaba flinched.
''Uh...nice.''
''Thank goodness. I just hope this year will be kinder to you,'' Tsuyoshi said with a soothing voice and put an arm around Wakaba, who quietly stared at the ground and bit her lip.
Op: 'Halloween Night' by Aya Ikeda
Episode 10: Aah! Studying till we drop! I'll Make You Proud!
''..And remember next Monday you'll have your first test, so come prepared!'' Sagino told the class right before the bell rung. Everyone immediately rushed to the door, trying to get out as quickly as they could.
''Hehe! Weekend!'' Miku cheered as put on her coat, Yuina and Wakaba followed her.
''See you, Monday'' Hotaru said to the three and quickly added ''Don't forget to study!''
''Yeah, yeah!'' They chorused.
''Hey sis!'' Kaori grabbed Miku's collar before she could run outside.
''Oh little sister of mine! How are you doing, have you already made many, many friends?'' The older sister asked and grinned at the girl standing next to Kaori, who Yuina quickly recognized as the girl she saved the other day. Luckily, she didn't seem to recognize any of them.
''Uh..hi, I'm Kurenai Kure'' Now Yuina was sure it was her, she had the same nasally voice. She was a bit chubby and her dark-blonde hair was tied in two twintails falling over her shoulders.
''Hehe, If Kaori causes you any trouble, just come to me!'' Miku laughed while patting the girl on the back. ''She can be so immature!''
''Look who's talking!'' Kaori immediately shot with a grin, pushing her older sister away.
''Just kidding! Just kidding, dear sis~!
The trio had decided study for the upcoming test at the clubhouse. Miku had even managed to persuade Yuina and Wakaba to hold a sleepover at the clubhouse, which the two actually found a good idea.
''Hehe! This is the moment I've been waiting for; studying together!'' Miku cheered when they had arrived at the clubhouse. They had gone home first to pack their stuff and told their families.
''Finally,'' Orlok groaned as he flew out Yuina's jacket and landed on the table. In quite a short time the group had shoves the table to the side and prepared four sleeping bags (the fourth one was for Orlok, Jacky and Larry).
''Hmm...It's still pretty empty in here,'' Yuina admitted and looked around. They only things they had was a small TV, a table and a few chairs. The other room had two tables and, of course, that creepy doll. They mostly used the other room as a storage place, having stored the cleaning material, other sleeping bags and even some snacks there.
''Oh! I k-know! A dartboard'' Wakaba suggested quite excitedly and clapped her hands together.
''But darts is boring and stupid,'' Yuina said simply. She felt quite intimidated when she got a dangerous glare from the taller girl who, luckily, didn't say anything.
''Maybe a DVD-player? A computer!? Radio!? Fridge for food!?'' Miku jumped up and down. This was awesome! Their clubhouse would eventually be the greatest place in the universe!
''Oh! That guy looks like Immy!'' Jacky said quite loudly with a big smile as she, Orlok and Larry sat in front of the TV, which Wakaba had set on the ground so it would be easier to watch. The girls were studying (more telling each other random things and laughing about them) while the other three were watching some movie in black and white about some kind of cursed mummy. They quite liked it.
''You can tell mummies apart?'' Larry tapped Jacky on her head. She simply nodded with a smile.
''Of course. It's pretty easy. I mean, some of my best friends are mummies!'' She explained and smiled quite proudly. Orlok found himself smiling when he saw her like that. She was genuinely happy. And it was quite long ago he saw her like that.
''Eh? That movie is so old!'' Yuina said when she noticed what the three were watching ''You can switch to another channel if you like,'' She added.
''No need for that,'' Orlok smiled and turned around for a moment to look at Yuina. ''It's pretty interesting.''
''Oh alright. Have fun.''
Miku was actually quite baffled by how terrible Wakaba was at maths. Not to say Miku was that good but Wakaba had already trouble with simply multiplying numbers.
Of course she didn't say it out loud but Wakaba apparently knew that what she was thinking.
''I k-know...I'm really, really d-d-dumb,'' Her voice cracked as she spoke.
''What? No. You're not dumb. You just have some trouble with numbers. A lot of people do~!'' Miku said simply, then she added in a whisper: ''Like Kaooorriii...''
''And I have trouble with it too,'' Yuina admitted but Wakaba still seemed somber.
She took a deep breath. This would be the best time to tell them.
''Do you know the reason why I'm held back this year?'' She abruptly asked. Hands clutched together and looked at her two friends. She was so happy with them.
''Uh...no.. I didn't even knew you were being held back,'' Miku blinked a few times. ''Did something happen?''
''I'll t-tell you.''
''I have the tests back for you'' The teacher, Mr Amano, said and started handing everyone their tests back. Every student had gotten a good score. Except Wakaba Tsukino. The quiet girl in the front.
''Hey... Wakaba, have you ever got a good score?'' The girl sitting next to her, Kasumi, asked the taller girl. While Kasumi didn't meant to sound so pushy, Wakaba's mind warped Kasumi's face and tone into a mean-spirited one.
Wakaba stared at her test. Out of the twenty questions she only had one correct. Her hands trembled and she tried to speak to Kasumi but her shyness prevented her. Kasumi's huge, glaring eyes made the tall girl shrink.
''You alright?''
Wakaba opened her mouth but no words come out.
''This test was so freaking easy. She's really a dumbass,'' She heard someone whisper. She then heard laughs. Wakaba held her head down, afraid to look behind her.
She had no choice but to let the mean-spirited laughs flow into her ears.
The next tests Wakaba had tried to study hard but to no success. She just didn't understand any of it. She tried asking her uncle but he didn't know either, resulting in yet another bad score. She had no courage to ask the teacher or a classmate. They would surely laugh at her! They all knew she was dumb.
Slowly the remarks got worse and then the pranks started. After gym her clothes were thrown out the window. Wakaba had locked herself in the toilet, crying in her sport-clothes, and had stayed there the whole day until the janitor had noticed her and gotten her clothes back for her.
Then her notebook was stolen and someone had drawn an ugly stick figure with 'Mr. Amano' written above it which resulted in Wakaba getting punished and not having enough courage to defend herself.
And later some guy had 'accidentally' spilled some drink over Wakaba and later someone had gotten a picture of it posted it on the school-site.
She had told her uncle about it, who was furious when he heard it. He had started cursing and grabbed a bat from the closet. Wakaba had managed to calm him down and also didn't want him to talk to the teacher, afraid of the bullying getting even worse.
But the very last straw was when Wakaba had arrived at school, walked up to her desk and saw that someone had written, or better said cut, the word 'DUMBASS' into her desk.
She couldn't take this anymore.
Wakaba had run out the school, crying, trembling and locked herself in her trailer. She refused to go to school again. Her uncle tried to comfort her and later had angrily gone to school to talk to the teacher and eventually it was decided that Wakaba would be held back a year and didn't have to come anymore till next year.
But until then Wakaba had been alone. Afraid of facing school again.
''Are you serious, Wakaba?'' Larry asked with big eyes. Everyone had listened to her story. She had never told him this...
That was the reason why she hadn't gone to school.
''That was you?'' Miku asked and felt an enormous amount guilt flowing over her. She had seen that picture of Wakaba at the school-site. She had seen it and had laughed at it
''I'm so sorry!'' She cried and embraced the taller girl, who was also crying. Yuina put her arms around the two and pulled them close.
''Stop it, you silly. That's not going to happen anymore. We will help you study!'' She said motherly with an encouraging tone and smiled.
''You guys are so nice...I...thank you so much...'' Wakaba sobbed and wiped her tears away to grin at her friends. They knew. They didn't belittle her for her flaws. They accepted her. They wanted to help her. ''Thank you.''
''But...I really want to get a good grade for my uncle,'' She added with a frown.
''Then we'll study till we drop!'' Miku said and made another strange pose and dramatically exclaimed:''It's a Pretty Cure Study Weekend! Hehe!''
''That sounds really stupid.''
The whole weekend was indeed spent on studying. All three girls normally didn't like studying but had found great enjoyment in doing it together and sometimes taking a little break. Orlok, Jacky and Larry also spend the whole weekend watching movies which happened to be on the TV.
The next Monday, Mr. Sagino was still acting like himself and didn't show any signs of being Grey. The Cures were still suspenseful. A week ago they had tried to wait for him to go home and follow him, to their surprise, he lived in a small house not to far from the mall. Not even a small clue about Grey or the other Black Roses.
''I hope you all have spent your weekend in a good matter. Once the test starts I want it to be quiet and if you're finished bring it to me and leave, quietly. Tomorrow you'll get the results.''
''Oopsy! I forgot!'' Tomoko quietly gasped and quickly took a one last glimpse at her notebook before Mr. Sagino started handing out the test and giving Tomoko a long stare, who awkwardly put her notebook back in her bag with a cheesy smile.
''You may begin.''
The test took surprisingly short to finish. Tomoko and Miku were one of the first who handed their tests back to Mr. Sagino and the latter waited in the hall for her friends.
''Bye bye, Miku!'' Tomoko waved quickly. Truth be told, she had found the test to be ridiculously easy and was quite happy to finish early. That way she could avoid her classmates begging her to introduce her to Show Kabocha.
Hotaru was the next to come out, then some others, then Yuina, some more and finally Wakaba.
''And...'' Miku began curiously and poked Wakaba's side playfully.
''I d-d-don't know..''
''We'll see tomorrow but now...Ah! I have to go to work!'' Yuina said as she looked at the clock on the wall.
''But...I though you were fired?''
''I was but they asked me to come back, as a clerk this time!'' Yuina explained and quickly rushed off, leaving Miku and Wakaba to walk home.
The next day Wakaba was too nervous to look at the piece of paper Mr. Sagino had given back to the students. Yuina and Miku (and probably the rest of the class) was very surprised that the only one who had gotten an 'A' was Tomoko. Both Miku and Yuina had gotten a 'C' and Wakaba...
''Wakaba?'' Yuina said, trying to show no emotion and pushed the paper from Wakaba's face.
She had gotten a 'C'. She had gotten a 'C', just like her friends. She had gotten an average score. Not a bad score. Her uncle would be so proud.
With some trouble Wakaba had managed to hold tears back and embraced her friends in a very tight hug.
''Thank you so much, girls,'' She whispered, genuinely thankful. She loved her friends so much.
The whole way home Wakaba had held her test to her chest. She was just so happy, finally she had managed to get a better score. She couldn't wait to show her uncle.
''That's a nice test you got there,'' She suddenly heard someone whisper into her ears and felt some hands on her shoulders but before she could turn around her test had already been infused with an awfully familiar needle.
In insane speed her test had turned into an Okinakuchi.
''No.''
Yuina and Miku turned around and saw Kuroneko sitting on a nearby branch, grinning.
''Show me something interesting, Pretty Cure!''
''Oh we'll show you! Boo Boo Bogey! Monster Change!''
''Pure Blood lust, Defeating you is a must! Cure Blood!''
''Magical Spell, Potion with a strange smell! Cure Witch! Hehe!''
''Howling High, Full Moon in the Sky! Cure Wolf!''
Cure Wolf immediately shot a look at Witch, knowing that her staff had the ability to purify Okinakuchi and turn them back into the item they were created from.
''Jacky told it only sometimes does that,'' Witch explained. She remembered when Jacky had told her about the Witch Staff. it was a strange thing with lots of hidden abilities and even she herself hadn't even figured out how it actually worked. Cure Witch had really gotten bad luck with her powers.
''Please try it! Maybe it works!'' Wolf almost begged as Witch slowly nodded. Cure Blood was already trying to find the Okinakuchi's weak-point.
Hearing Kuroneko laugh again, Wolf felt some strange desire to violently rip the catgirl to shreds. That'll shut her up!
Instinctively Cure Wolf jumped on Kuroneko, who could just barely avoid being struck by Wolf's claws. She hissed at the Cure as the two started some fight solely consisting of Kuroneko avoiding Wolf's attacks, who grew more irritated every time she missed.
Meanwhile Blood and Witch had already found the weak-point of the Okinakuchi. Again it was located on its back, but because it was made of a simple paper it didn't have that much place to hide it in. After taking a breath and trying to concentrate while Blood protected her, Witch pointed her staff at the Okinakuchi
''Please purify it, for Wakaba.'' Witch whispered before using her attack. ''Pretty Cure! Witch Curse!''
While the Okinakuchi was hit by the attack, Kuroneko was also slashed in the face by Wolf. The Cure's claws had slashed through her eye.
It hurt! It did really hurt! Kuroneko panicked and quickly disappeared while at the same time the three cures were rained in the blood of the destroyed Okinakuchi.
''It didn't work,'' Witch put her hand against Wolf's shoulder and gave her an apologizing look. Wolf walked towards the place where the Okinakuchi had just stood, the blood slowly faded away leaving nothing behind.
''NO! NO! NOOOO!'' Wolf screamed in fury and sadness as she fell to the ground.
ED: 'Delusion Disco!' - Yoshino Nanjo (Yuina Akagawa)