Episode Nine: I Want to be Strong! Wavering Izumi!
Izumi was usually pretty good about getting back to her dorm room by curfew. But lately, she had been cutting it closer and closer.
This evening was no exception. She had lingered in Mirai Academy's athletics center to pump some iron and make sure her reflexes and agility were in tip-top shape until it had finally closed down for the night, and she was currently doing a high-intensity jog up and down the impressively steep stairs at the front of Mirai's classroom building.
It was just like Marina had said - the key to Pretty Cure powering up laid within their hearts. More specifically, it looked like it had something to do with overcoming whatever was holding them back.
Izumi could already see a subtle change in her teammates, she mused as she finished her latest circuit. Yasu had been a bit less emotionally closed off lately, and Hiroko had become a bit more sure of herself. Seeing Yasu actually let herself crack smiles around them or Hiroko agree that yes, her cooking skills were a talent worthy of praise was huge.
"And now it's my turn." Izumi wiped at her brow with the exercise towel draped over her shoulders as she took in the view from the top of the stairs. It was difficult to appreciate how beautiful Mirai was in the sunset when her heart was pounding so loudly in her ears. "Well, that's fine! I'm already working on it!"
Izumi knew what her problem was - she was supposed to be reliable, but she had been more of a burden than anything. She was terrible at academics and required frequent tutoring from Hiroko, she was loud and too forward for her own good half the time, and she was amazingly skilled at ruining things with her utter… Izumi-ness.
There was the way she had screwed up Pretty Cure's first outing, of course, but her parents' state was at least partially her fault… if not entirely her fault. All of their fights were over her, after all.
"She's failing math, Riku! If you hadn't squandered our finances, we could have paid for tutoring!"
"Umi, it was your turn to pick up Izumi from practice! Did you seriously forget your own daughter?"
"When's the last time you've done anything for Izumi, Riku? You're a terrible excuse for a father."
Izumi gritted her teeth as the bells of the clock tower chimed, putting an end to this evening's workout. Fixing that mess by reaching their hearts with her cooking had been a fool's errand. True to form, she had made it worse as well, she mused bitterly as she jogged back to the dorms. Riku was still holding the episode with the cookies over Umi's head from the sound of it.
But that was okay! Izumi just had to get better at the one thing she was good at - being the team's muscle. If she applied herself with all her heart, if she put every drop of energy into being the best Pretty Cure she could be… surely, everything would fall into place from there.
"And then - three powered-up Cures!" Izumi gave a fist pump as she drew near the dorms. "That'll just rule all!"
True to form, the junior high dorm supervisor was waiting by the entrance when Izumi arrived, her arms crossed and her expression decidedly less than amused.
"Hamasaki-san, you're-"
"Late, I know!" Izumi was already jogging past her. "Won't happen again!"
She probably should have cared more about that than she did, but eh. If she got in trouble, she got in trouble. Improving as a Cure was infinitely more important than staying in the dorm supervisor's good graces, as far as Izumi was concerned.
By the time Izumi stumbled into her and Misty's shared dorm, she could feel her workout catching up with her. That wasn't good. She needed to have more stamina than that.
The sound of Misty's guitar playing abruptly stopped the second Izumi entered. Her roommate hurried into the living room area a half-second later.
"Oh, Izzy, you-" Misty frowned as she took in her roommates' condition. "Don't look so hot. Don't you think you've been pushing yourself too hard?"
Izumi shook her head. "Nah, I'm good." As she spoke, she hurried over to the fridge and retrieved a sports drink, which she eagerly took a long sip of. "I've still got body weight exercises to do anyway."
Misty sighed. "Alright... just don't force yourself, okay?"
"There's no need to worry about me!" Izumi flashed a peace sign in between sips of her sports drink. "I'm in top form right now!"
And soon, she would be in even better form! Hiroko and Yasu would have the ultimate reliable teammate before too long!
The Tree of Wrath looked more full of life by the day. Its seed pods seemed healthier and stronger than ever before, and its vast, tangled network of roots had spread even further throughout the Shade Kingdom's capital. Soon enough, those borders would extend past the Shade Kingdom and into the Hallowed Wellspring and Earth.
That day was fast drawing closer and closer, as far as King Kagemera was concerned. According to Tamakushi, the barrier in Kyoukai had grown noticeably thinner thanks to their efforts, and its eventual fall was an inevitability. That barrier and those Pretty Cure were, much like the previous royal family, destined for destruction at Kagemera's hands. It was his divine right.
A contented smile played on Kagemera's face as the Shade King lounged in his throne, letting the chorus of agonized whispering that emanated from the Tree of Wrath wash over him. (If he focused hard enough, he could almost hear this voice. Did that boy still linger on after all these years? It would be a fitting punishment.) Seimono might have been a cowardly traitor, but the man had his current position for a reason. A thoroughly broken soldier made for a fantastically useful tool.
And Seimono had delivered the results Kagemera wanted, as far as damage to that barrier went. Results good enough to sand the edges off the Shade King's furor at yet another Pretty Cure powering up and yet another futile show of "honor" from one of his vassals. (Ah, Seimono, if only you were more easily replaced!) Yes... cultivation was the way to go.
There was a sudden burst of light blue foxfire in the audience chamber as Tamakushi materialized before Kagemera. The faceless woman promptly dropped into a genuflecting position.
"Your Majesty. I understand you wish to see me."
"Ah. Tamakushi." Kagemera nodded approvingly. "You shall be next to take the field. I can think of no one better suited to the task of cultivating despair."
"I already have a plan, Your Majesty." Some bitter part of Tamakushi wondered why Kagemera had chosen Seimono first for this sort of thing. She quickly shot the thought down. Who was she to question a man of such flawless judgment. "The trust between humans is easily broken. I plan to take advantage of that."
Kagemera let out an approving chuff. "A woman of your skills should be able to deliver fantastic results. Go to it, then." A pause, then "As for Pretty Cure-"
"Their increase in strength is worrisome, Your Majesty. However-" If Tamakushi had a face, she would be grinning smugly right now. "-they may have given me an opening to exploit, based on recent observations. I would be a fool not to make use of it."
"I expected no less. May fortune favor you this time." Kagemera said. "And remember this, Tamakushi."
Tamakushi looked up. "Hm?"
"Do not force yourself, should things go awry. I need you alive."
As always, such sentiments left Tamakushi with a strange tightness in her chest. She tried her best to put it out of her mind as she exited the audience chamber, Wrath Seed pod in hand. She was little more than a tool for the Shade King to use as he saw fit. Any personal feelings on her end were not relevant.
Kyoukai was pleasantly warm and sunny this Sunday, and it seemed to be bringing out everyone's best nature. The shopping district was even livelier than usual today, and most every passer-by that Hiroko and the others had noticed seemed to be in high spirits.
This was a perfect day for a group outing. There were a number of sales in the area that Hiroko wanted to check out, Jun had been eager to try Western Paradise's new rainbow frappe (and was currently happily enjoying one, allowing Kichu a sip or two every so often), and Yasu was noticeably more at ease and less anxious than she had during their last outing. She had even expressed interest in visiting the arcade and playing games with everyone later.
This would have been a perfect day, were one thing not missing... Izumi.
"I wonder if Izunyan will really show up." Jun sighed as she and the others wandered the shopping district, occasionally pausing to browse merchandise stands in the area. "She's been pushing herself really hard lately... I'm really worried."
"Chuuu..." Kichu sighed in agreement.
Hiroko frowned. "It seems like something's been bothering her. She keeps saying there's nothing to worry about, but..." She shook her head. "Something is wrong."
And Hiroko had not been able to get what that something was out of Izumi - even if she had a good idea of what it was. Her fellow Cure had started acting strangely right after Family Day, and even if Izumi swore up and down to Hiroko that she didn't care what her parents said or did... Hiroko suspected this wasn't the case. Especially given-
"Huh, cooking? Oh no, I gave that up! I shouldn't be bothering you guys for help all the time anyway."
Izumi had been laughing and grinning nonchalantly as she insisted that no, she was fine going back to eating instant meals and that she felt bad "bothering" Hiroko and Shun with her questions about basic food prep, but it didn't make Hiroko any less concerned. Izumi had been so determined to improve after the Cake-Off, and she wasn't a girl who crumbled easily. Something was going on.
And then the obsessive training had started, and Izumi became more and more scarce. Hiroko and Jun hardly ever saw her outside of class, and Yasu hardly saw her at all. Even Shun mentioned hearing and seeing very little from Izumi. And whenever Hiroko or the others tried to reach out to Izumi...
"Sorry, gotta duck out of tutoring today, Hiroko. I wanna get in some extra gymnastics practice."
"I'd be down for the arcade some other time, Yasu! But right now, I'm kind of tied up with my training."
"Can we see that movie next week, Jun? I'm booked solid this week."
Hiroko heaved a quiet sigh. Izumi was stubborn and single-minded when it came to her goals, but this seemed less like her working towards something she wanted and more like her desperately trying to distract herself. And at this rate-
"I'm scared she's going to hurt herself." Hiroko said. "I just hope we'll be able to get through to her. And that she'll be here." She glanced worriedly at her smartphone. "She hasn't been answering her texts."
She was answered by the feeling of a gentle hand on her shoulder - Yasu, who offered Hiroko a small but genuine smile.
"She'll be there." Yasu said. "I trust her."
"Yeah!" Jun agreed. "Izunyan will be there, we'll let her know how concerned we all are... and it'll all work out, Hironyan! You guys understand each others' hearts so well now!"
"Chu chu chuuu!" Kichu agreed… before springing for Jun's rainbow frappe.
Jun let out a cry of alarm and moved to pull Kichu away from her beverage... but not before the small mouse had dipped his face in it. As Jun dabbed at a protesting Kichu with napkins ("Your fur is all... rainbow-y now! C'mon, Kichu!") something caught Hiroko's ears - the sound of a loud argument.
There were two teenage girls parked in front of a bookstore on the other side of the street. One had long and wavy auburn hair, the other had short, dark green hair with long sidetails, and both were obvious livid at each other.
"Would you quit doubling down and apologize already, Shizuka?" the auburn-haired girl snapped. "You deliberately got dirt all over my favorite blouse!"
"You probably got it on there yourself, Hiromi!" the green-haired girl snapped right back. "Why do you keep accusing me of stuff I didn't do?"
"Why do you keep dodging responsibility? I know what I saw!"
"There you go again! Some friend you are, Hiromi!"
Hiroko bit her lip and looked away as the two girls volleyed insults and accusations back and forth. It wasn't her place to intervene in an argument between strangers, but the sheer level of vitriol being slung around as their argument progressed was-
-before she could finish that thought, something else caught Hiroko's ears - the sound of footsteps thundering towards her. She instinctively jumped out of the way, moments before Izumi Hamasaki bolted past her (still bumping shoulders with Hiroko hard enough to knock her slightly off balance) and turned around, still jogging in place all the while.
"Oh, Izumi!" Hiroko was a bit shaken, but she still greeted the blond with a warm smile. "I'm glad you're here!"
Izumi answered her with a blank stare. "Huh? Here for what, Hiroko?"
"You know, our outing together!" Jun said. "C'mon, Izunyan, you promised you'd hang out with us today!"
"Oh... I guess that was a thing, wasn't it?" Izumi's tone was dismissive, and the resigned sigh she gave didn't help matters. "We'll see. I've got actual important stuff to take care of, Jun."
Jun looked a bit hurt. "But Izunyan! Hanging out as a team is also-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Izumi muttered something about Jun wasting her time before casually shoulder-checking the other girl and bolting past her. She would have knocked Jun right over, had Yasu not pulled her out of the way in time.
Yasu frowned disapprovingly. "We really need to intervene."
"It's okay, Nyasu!" Jun looked visibly shaken, despite her best attempt at sounding reassuring. "I'm sure Izunyan didn't mean it in a bad way. She's just... really focused. I know how she gets."
Kichu looked up at Jun and shook his head. "Chu..."
Hiroko was no less skeptical. "That wasn't called for. I know she can be a little blunt, but... she always has a reason for it."
That aside, something felt distinctly off, something that Hiroko could not quite put her finger on, no matter how hard she tried. Part of her wondered if this also had to do with Izumi's mental state. The other part of her couldn't see it as just that. Something was off. Something was wrong.
Perhaps if she or the others had noticed the handful of emotionally charged arguments between friends and loved ones, much like the one between Shizuka and Hiromi, springing up around the shopping district, she would have been able to figure out what was off a bit sooner.
Izumi had meant to meet up with her friends a bit earlier. Even if it would take away valuable time spent training, even if she felt guilty for even considering this… she really did miss hanging out with everyone. She had even made herself get up earlier than usual so she could make up for lost time.
She ended up cutting her trip to the Kyoukai Fitness center short anyway. Not because she was satisfied (she wasn't) but because a fight had almost blown up between two of the gym patrons, and Izumi really didn't want to stick around to see if it'd get worse. No, she'd showered, changed, and hurried to the exit. She'd promised to meet up with everyone around this time anyway.
And she would have done just that, had Izumi not run into Haruki just as she was about to leave.
"Oh, Izumi!" Haruki had said. "Are you training for something?"
"You could say that." Izumi said. "And it's going great so far - check out these gains, Haru!" She put on a show of flexing for the red-haired boy. "Man, I can't wait to take everyone to the gun show!"
Haruki let out an impressed whistle… before blinking in confusion "Don't you think you're quitting a little early?"
Izumi frowned slightly. "Yeah... I could do more. But I promised my friends we'd hang today." As she headed to the gym exit, she added "I can always make up the difference later."
"I guess that makes some sense." Haruki did not sound entirely convinced. "I wouldn't rush, though. Sis did say she'd be a little late herself."
Right, and if Yasu would be late to the meetup, then nobody would judge Izumi for being a little late. It wasn't like she was going to do that much more - just a circuit or two around Kyoukai Park, a few more rounds of body weight exercises, and this awful "you're not doing enough" feeling would vanish completely!
She was totally on a roll anyway, Izumi told herself as she completed another circuit on the concrete path that looped around Kyoukai Park. Sure, she felt a little dizzy, sure, her legs felt a bit wobbly, but she wasn't a quitter! She would prove her dedication to her friends and unlock her own power! She would become the ultimate fighter for their sake! She-
-must have been way more tired than she thought, because her body chose this very moment to give out on her. Izumi was sent stumbling forwards a few paces before tripping and falling forwards onto the concrete. She caught herself with her hands moments before her face made contact with the pavement.
"Damn it!"
Izumi gritted her teeth as she levered herself up off the ground and pulled herself into a sitting position. God, her hands smarted now, her left knee was bleeding a little, and she knew damn well that several other park-goers had seen her take that spill. Oh well. At least it was in front of complete strangers and not-
"Izumi!"
Oh, hell.
Shun Siegel was hurrying towards Izumi, a shopping bag in one hand. The teal-haired girl wore a green button-down shirt, a dark teal gladiolus-print scarf, a black leather jacket, dark-rinse blue jeans… and an expression of concern all over her face.
Izumi felt her face catch on fire almost immediately. "Oh, Sieg-kun! I-I'm okay, I just-!"
Shun simply offered Izumi her hand before helping the red-faced blond up and over to a nearby park bench. Once Izumi took a seat, Shun set her shopping bag down and motioned for the other girl to extend her right leg out a bit. Shun knelt before her before untying the scarf around her neck.
"Izumi... you need to take better care of yourself." As Shun spoke, she tied her scarf snugly around Izumi's injured knee like an improvised bandage. "Even a top-class car will crash and burn if you don't maintain it."
Izumi couldn't manage to meet Shun's eyes. "Yeah, but I'm not a vehicle, Sieg-kun."
Shun took a moment to make sure Izumi's knee was bandaged properly. "You're right, Izumi. Cars can be replaced if they break down. You can't."
All Izumi could manage was a small nod and what sounded way too much like a teakettle whistle. She probably would have sat there burning up from shame and embarrassment for a while, had Shun not offered her a Ramune from her shopping bag.
"Here - I hope this helps a little."
Izumi's eyes lit up. "Oh my gosh, lychee's my fave!" She wasted no time in opening it and taking a long sip. "Thank you, Sieg-kun!"
Shun retrieved a Ramune of her own and sat next to Izumi. "It's become one of my favorites as well. You have good taste." A pause, then "Does the bandage feel alright?"
"Yeah! But..." Izumi's face fell a bit. "I feel a little bad, getting your scarf dirty like this."
"It's fine - I know you'll take good care of it." Shun said. "I'm more worried about you, Izumi. Why have you been pushing yourself so hard?"
Izumi wanted to tell Shun everything. About how weak and helpless and burdensome she felt in the face of her parents' constant fighting, how much she wanted her teammates to see her as the reliable one instead of a burden as well, how scared she was of dragging them down too... but she had no business dumping all that on her, especially now. So she left it at
"I just really want to improve myself. As an athlete, I mean." And as a member of Pretty Cure, but Izumi couldn't tell Shun that either. "That's all I really have to offer people."
"That isn't true!" Shun protested. "There's a lot to like about you, Izumi. You're worth far more than what you can do as a gymnast." She smiled sadly. "But... I think I get it. To be honest, I only feel completely confident when it comes to motor sports."
"Huh? But you're amazing, Sieg-kun! At like, everything!" Izumi insisted. Without thinking, she laid her hand over Shun's, leaning further and further towards the other girl as she spoke. "You're kind and and strong and handsome and talented, and... even if you weren't the Speed King of Kyoukai, you'd still be my friend! That'll never change!"
A half-second later, Izumi realized that she was touching Shun's hand... and that she was near nose-to-nose with the other girl, who had gone slightly pink. Izumi muttered an apology before scooting away a bit. She would have moved her hand too, had Shun not intertwined her fingers with hers and shot her a reassuring smile.
The two sat in silence for some time before Shun spoke again. "Hey... would you like to go out for lunch today? My treat."
Izumi looked up, blinking. "Lunch?" Was this... no, it couldn't possibly be a date. Shun would come out and say this was a date if it was a date, and besides... a popular girl like Shun was way out of Izumi's league. It was probably just lunch. No need to analyze this further. "Y-yeah, of course I would!"
Shun grinned. "Then we're on! How does The Pearl sound? I could pick you up in front of Western Paradise in a bit and drive you over there."
Her and Shun... going to a classy beachfront place like the Pearl... together on her bike. Izumi had to stop reading into this so much, but... but!
"It sounds great! After all... a lot of girls are saying this is perfect weather for a beachside cruise." Was that too blunt? Izumi hoped it wasn't. "I'll let Hiroko and the others know that-"
Oh, damn it. Her friends were probably wondering where she was.
In fact... Izumi realized as she checked her smartphone (which was almost dead - hadn't she charged this stupid thing earlier?), Hiroko had texted her almost an hour ago asking her about her whereabouts. And then, fifteen minutes ago-
everything okay? want to talk soon.
Oh geez, was she upset with her? On one hand, this was Hiroko, on the other, Izumi had kind of broken a promise, so-
Izumi scrambled to her feet "Sorry, Sieg-kun - there's something I need to-" She started off, only to wince slightly.
Shun immediately flew to her side. "Izumi, if you're still in pain-"
"I'll be okay!" Izumi insisted. "I'm feeling a lot better already! So..." She flashed a peace sign. "See you at lunchtime, Sieg-kun! I know it'll just rule all!"
Izumi hesitated for a moment... before offering Shun a bright smile and one last wave goodbye. And then she took off, tossing her empty Ramune bottle in a trashcan along the way.
Shun watched Izumi until she had disappeared from view. She wanted to tell herself it was simply because she wanted to make sure Izumi really was alright. She knew damn well that wasn't entirely the case. The way her own heart was pounding in her chest as she watched the other girl depart was proof enough.
(And for once, she was worried about being too fast. She had to laugh a bit at the sheer irony of that one.)
But there was also a twinge of... worry? Not just over Izumi's condition. It was that deep-set 'something might go wrong' feeling Shun had experienced a few times before a race. A feeling that had been especially strong right before the race those Shade Kingdom people had crashed, in fact. She had to take that seriously. Especially where someone like Izumi was concerned.
"Izumi... please be careful."
As Izumi hurried towards the shopping district, a plague of miscommunication, misunderstandings, and hurt feelings steadily spread across Kyoukai.
Lovers were left hurt and confused when their partners casually blew them off or showed interest in someone else. Friends came to blows over rumored insults or slights. Children were left heartbroken at seemingly broken promises by or harsh rejections from parents.
It was all part of a puppet show set into place by Tamakushi, naturally. One that was playing out wonderfully so far. As long as the spectral puppets she set on these humans looked and acted enough like their precious people, they easily fell for the deception. As expected from such pathetic creatures.
She watched what she could, borrowing faces from the humans around her as she went along and slipping away right before anyone realized they had a double. It was a struggle not to burst out laughing at the display. Kagemera would be duly entertained tonight. That she could guarantee.
That some of her marks quickly apologized to their loved ones or doubted the deception laid in front of them did not matter. She had cast her net wide for a reason. That initial burst of anger or sorrow or betrayal, the regret of even doubting their precious people was more than enough to feed the Wrath Seed she carried on her, coming from this many people.
And then there was the Pretty Cure, the one who had gone off on her own. Tamakushi had not dealt with her quite yet. She had been a bit too quick on the draw last time, a bit too willing to dismiss those childrens' blind devotion to one another. They were not quite as dense as ordinary humans.
She had to be a bit more subtle this time, Tamakushi, now in the form of a young, bespectacled man mused as she watched the scene unfolding across the street from over the top of her newspaper. You could eat away at that devotion. You could destroy that trust. Clever humans were still humans.
Besides... there was plenty of fresh despair to focus on harvesting. Her opponents were not going anywhere. Their destruction was inevitable.
"Sis is really worried about you! Everyone is!" Haruki was pleading with an impassive Izumi, oblivious to the puppetmaster watching the pair from across the street. "Izumi, what is going on?"
Izumi just turned away. "It isn't any of your business, Haru. Someone like you wouldn't get it anyway."
Haruki looked genuinely confused. "Huh? Izumi, you said we could tell each other anything!" No response. He drew a bit closer to Izumi. "I promise I'll keep it to myself! I'm just scared that-"
Izumi let out a sigh of exasperation. "Oh my god, would you stop?!" She still refused to look at Haruki as she spoke. "Not everything has to be your business, Haru."
And Izumi was gone, leaving a hurt Haruki in her wake. Tamakushi smirked. Even from here, she could sense the boy's despair. Just another drop in the bucket towards her goal.
Tamakushi vanished shortly afterward. Just another push or two here and there, and Pretty Cure was as good as dealt with.
Keiko Ninomiya did not care one whit about the villain plot unfolding around her. No, a fearsome criminal gang leader like herself had greater priorities to attend to, far greater than figuring out why everyone was mad at each other, or why two carbon copies of the same dude had walked past her earlier.
The cerulean-haired girl peered over the heart-shaped sunglasses she now wore (perfect for staying incognito!) as she and Masaru lounged at an outdoor table at Western Paradise. She was intently watching the crowd passing by for… something. Something essential. Something she… wasn't seeing.
"Ugh… none of these men look reliable!" Keiko moaned. She took another bite of the sweet potato yokan she had bought for herself. It hardly helped her mood any. "We're never gonna hire anyone at this rate!"
"We don't have to hire a guy, right, Boss?" Masaru asked. "There's lots of reliable people out there! Like that really nice girl, the one who taught me about the Indy 500 and stuff? She's good at-"
Keiko cut him off there. "An evil team is two men and one woman. And Shahei and I count as one woman 'cause we're twins. That's how it works."
Masaru nodded. "Ah, yeah, I guess that makes sense." It didn't, but well, Keiko knew more about fearsome criminal gang leader stuff than he ever would. "So, it has to be a guy."
"Obviously." Keiko withdrew an elaborately crafted paper charm from her shirt pocket for a moment, sighing heavily as she dangled it between her fingers. "I lost a whole day's profit putting this spell together. And now we've gotta steal a whole human. But… those dishes aren't gonna do themselves."
Or the laundry. Or the dusting. Or the cooking. Or the… well, anything around their shared flat.
It wasn't like she and Masaru really needed a sour, fun-hating killjoy like Tobi. Or like they were struggling that hard without someone to do the cooking or the cleaning for them! Instant meals were perfectly good, and a little extra dust and dirt never hurt anyone! Villain lairs were supposed to be super grimy anyway!
And yeah, Masaru broke pretty much everything he touched when he tried to clean, and sure, Keiko had kind of disintegrated a few plates trying to figure out how to clean them with magic, but… they weren't helpless! They could have figured this out on their own! They just had other, far more important priorities!
So… she had no choice but to make a new henchman, just like Tobi said. She would have preferred a spirit, but well, humans were more pliable. Less difficult for anyone she lived near to miss too. The whole human 'lack of powers' thing was a roadblock but look, the first priority was getting a new chore boy.
Masaru hummed thoughtfully as he took in the crowd. "Maybe we should try and find a guy Pretty Cure is friends with? You know, like in Space Team Cross-3, when Crimson General Carnelian kidnapped Blue Cross' kendo instructor and turned her into a cyborg and told her to kill the-"
"Yeah? And what happened next, Masaru?" Keiko retorted. "She was overcome by righteous fury! Like-" Keiko suddenly jumped up from her seat and pointed accusingly at Masaru "Crimson General Carnelian! How dare you rob such a noble woman of her warrior's heart! I'll never, ever forgive you!'
Masaru looked genuinely rattled. "You won't?"
"You have crossed the point of no return!" snapped Keiko, who did not seem to notice the people in the vicinity stopping to stare at her. "Take this, you devil!" She mimed unsheathing a sword. "All my love, my anger, and sorrow! Cross 3! Shining Sapphire… Slash!" She acted out a dramatic sword finisher before turning away dramatically. "Master… your death has been avenged."
Masaru stared blankly at Keiko. So did the people who had stopped to watch… whatever it was Keiko was up to before they lost interest and walked away. An awkward silence hung over the two's outdoor table before Masaru finally managed a quiet
"Am I dead now?"
Keiko nodded. "Yeah, he went 'kaboom' and everything."
Masaru frowned. "I don't wanna do that. It sounds like it'd hurt."
Keiko plopped back down onto her seat. "And that's why we can't target any of Pretty Cure's friends! Because when villains target heroes' loved ones, they get killed and die."
"Oh yeah, that would be bad." Masaru leaned forward a bit before adding "Okay, but... what if we kidnap somebody, and it turns out they're Pretty Cure's friend? That happened in another episode, didn't it?"
"Y-yeah, it did, but! This is real life, Masaru!" Keiko insisted. "C'mon… how many Kyuikai people could Pretty Cure know? Nobody is that popular." She took another bite of sweet potato yokan before adding "Geez, next you're gonna tell me 'Oh, what if one of them shows up to stop us?' Like that would-"
Before Keiko could finish that sentence, Izumi Hamasaki jogged past their table… before stopping in her tracks, doing a double take, and jogging backwards a few places.
"Hey, Kae. Hey, Kooyoo." Izumi was still jogging in place as she spoke. "Didn't know you guys liked chilling here."
Keiko gaped blankly for a moment... before jumping up and slamming both hands on the table. "We're not chilling, you! We're scheming! "
Now, that seemed to have Izumi's attention. "Oh? And just what are you scheming, exactly?"
"Well see, we really need to get the dishes done and stuff!" Masaru said. "So we're gonna-"
Izumi cut Masaru off there. "Uh yeah, never mind. I don't really care about your housekeeping drama, guys." As she moved to leave, she added "Call me when you're gonna start something, okay?"
And with that said, she was off. Keiko started after her, visibly fuming
"We are starting something, damn it!" She stomped her foot several times. "We're evil, damn it! Evil! " She threw her hands up in indignation. "Can't you at least be suspicious?!"
Unfortunately, Izumi was far out of earshot by now, and something told Keiko she wouldn't have cared if she had heard her. Foolish girl. She'd see. They'd all see!
Yes… once she got her so-called "housekeeping drama" taken care of… the Trio would be back better than ever!
Izumi was a bundle of nerves as she hurried to Kyoukai Leisure Land. Sure, Hiroko hadn't sounded upset when Izumi had texted her and apologized for running late right after leaving the park, but Izumi had still made her worry. God, first Shun, then Hiroko... she was supposed to be the rock her friends relied on, not someone they had to waste their energy worrying about! She really had to be better than this.
And then there was the way Haruki had responded to her when she had run into him en route to the arcade - by immediately averting his eyes, muttering an apology, and hurrying off. Izumi had been left too stunned to say anything about… whatever it was she had done.
(Had she done something? She didn't think she'd said anything out of line to him recently... or ever… but with how thoughtless she could be, maybe...)
By the time Izumi stepped into the arcade, her heart was pounding like a jackhammer, despite her attempts to calm herself down. She might have been overdoing things lately. She should have told the others where she was. But it wasn't like they were going to hate her. They were teammates. They had already weathered a fight and come out of it stronger. They-
"I don't understand - doesn't Izunyan like us anymore?" Jun was just around the corner, near one of the crane machines, along with Yasu and Hiroko. "Why would she just blow us off like that?"
"Her training must be more important to her." Yasu said. "I shouldn't have expected anything different."
Hiroko frowned. "Maybe so, but…" She shook her head. "I really thought Izumi would be better than this. Between ignoring us and the terrible things she said to Haruki-san…"
Yasu's eyes grew steely at the mention of Haruki. "She really showed us what kind of girl she is."
Jun nodded sadly. "I guess she did, didn't she?" She forced a smile. "At least I still have you guys, right?"
Izumi ducked behind the corner, the blood draining from her face. Oh god... they were angry at her, weren't they? And why shouldn't they have been? She had promised to be there on time, and she had still ended up prioritizing her training over them. If she had asked, if she hadn't just assumed-
-and if she just stood here feeling sorry for herself, things would only get worse. Strong people were accountable people, Izumi reminded herself as she took a deep breath, walked around the corner-
-and was immediately met with a visibly unimpressed Hiroko.
"Oh, there you are, Izumi." There was an edge of barely restrained anger in Hiroko's voice. Izumi could not hold it against her. "Could you step outside with me for a minute? We really need to talk."
Izumi did not resist as Hiroko took her by the arm and hurried her out of Kyoukai Leisure Land. And she did not notice Yasu and Jun dissolving in a shower of light blue wisps mere seconds after the two had left.
Once again, Hiroko found herself with much more to worry about than she planned. Izumi's behavior was concerning, but not as much as the growing tension in the air, the uptick in arguments and misunderstandings between the people around her and Kichu's nervous squeaking, which had started up a few moments ago.
All signs pointed to Shade Kingdom activity. And if Hiroko was right, Izumi could have been caught up in it. Sure, the callous way her fellow Cure had treated everyone earlier could have been explained away as Izumi being in a bad frame of mind. But the Haruki had texted Yasu shortly after the group's arrival at the arcade, complaining about how Izumi had treated him, and alarm bells had begun going off in Hiroko's head. The real Izumi would have never spoken to Haruki like that.
(Did Tamakushi have that little faith in the bonds between humans? Was she that cold and cynical?)
Her texts about that didn't get a response from Izumi. Worrisome but nothing to fret too hard over yet, Hiroko told herself. Izumi would definitely get her message. Tamakushi had done this before, and it hadn't worked then. There was no need to-
-panic, is what Hiroko would have told herself, were it not for what she glimpsed outside the doors of Kyoukai Leisure Land as she stepped out of the restroom.
Izumi. And… herself.
Hiroko felt her breath catch in her throat. She could not hear their conversation through the glass, but Izumi's distressed body language told Hiroko all she needed to know about what the… thing wearing her face was saying to her teammate.
Her teammate, who was sporting a bandaged knee she didn't remember seeing earlier.
"Izumi!"
Hiroko burst out of Kyoukai Leisure Land… a split-second too late. Izumi had already fled in tears. Hiroko was left with her doppelganger, who looked her in the eye and smirked before dissolving into a shower of light blue wisps.
Hiroko barely noticed. She immediately bolted in Izumi's direction, ignoring her body's protests. She would catch up with Izumi and get this cleared up. She had to-
-flail around a bit to stop herself from crashing right into Izumi. In any other situation, Hiroko would have laughed at the irony. Not now, though, she mused as her eyes flitted to Izumi's conspicuously non-bandaged left knee.
Izumi wheeled around, eyes blazing. "Would you just leave me alone, Hiroko?!" she snapped. "God, all of you are so damn nosy!"
Hiroko unconsciously tightened a fist. "Look, I know you're not-"
"Oh, whatever." the thing posing as Izumi said before shoving past Hiroko. "Save it, Hiroko. I don't care anyway."
And the Izumi doppelganger was gone, dashing off into the distance. Hiroko could have followed her. She was sure Tamakushi thought she was stupid enough to do so. But...
Moments later, the sound of footsteps reached Hiroko's ears. She turned to find Jun and a visibly winded Yasu. Both girls, along with Kichu, who sat on Jun's shoulder, were visibly tense.
"That wasn't Izunyan, was it?" Jun asked. "The real Izunyan, I mean."
"I knew it." Yasu said. "She'd never speak to Haruki like that." Her expression was stoic as usual, but there was an undercurrent of rage in her tone. "We need to stop her."
Hiroko nodded. "We definitely will." Even as she spoke, she hurriedly fired off a text to Izumi, mentally praying her fellow Cure, wherever she was, would see it. "And we'll find the real Izumi too."
She already had a plan for both, and she would make it work out. She had to try.
Izumi refused to allow herself to stop running until she had put a decent amount of distance between her and Hiroko. By the time she arrived at the small bridge that crossed the river dividing Kyoukai's residential district from its shopping district, her lungs felt like they were on fire.
God, she was so stupid... and selfish and careless and... and...
...had she been in a better frame of mind, perhaps she would have realized something was off about the verbal dressing-down Hiroko had given her. But as it was, Hiroko had only confirmed what Izumi had been thinking about herself lately.
"I really thought you actually cared about us, Izumi. That you trusted us. Now I see what kind of girl you are."
Izumi stared down into the water, scowling at her reflection. She looked like a mess, between her unkempt hair, her flushed face, and the visible shadows under her eyes. Like... someone about to crash and burn.
"What's with that surly attitude, huh?" she told her reflection. "Don't bring down the mood, Izumi" She forced a smile. "It's okay... it's not th-that big a-"
A tear rolled down her nose and splashed into the river below as her words dissolved into quiet sobbing. It wasn't fine. She wanted to be useful to her friends. She wanted them to want her around. And yet, she had ended up selfishly acting on her feelings once more in the end.
"Hiroko! Would you lay off?!" Izumi snapped. "I know... I know I haven't been a good friend lately! But you don't have to talk to me like that! Why are you being so self-ri-!"
Her words died in her throat as she met Hiroko's wide-eyed stare. Her hand flew to her mouth. Oh god. She was about to do it again, wasn't she? Just like before, during their first outing together! Stupid, stupid, stupid!
Izumi stepped back a pace. Then another. And then she turned and ran.
"You can't do anything right." Izumi's voice sounded cracked and broken, and her reflection looked even worse now. Whatever. "How are you gonna fix this one, huh? You can't fix anything, dumbass."
And her stupid phone was dead too. Of course it was. Nice going, Izumi. Wonder what other texts from your friends you could have missed.
"Izunyan! There you are!"
Izumi looked up to find Jun. So one of them did still want something to do with her, huh?
"Why are you-" No, there was no point giving her the third degree, Izumi mused as she turned away from Jun. "You don't have to force yourself, Jun. You're allowed to be mad at me."
Jun smiled and shook her head. "I'm not angry, Izunyan." As she drew closer to Izumi, her right hand morphed into a long, translucent blue blade, and a malicious smirk played on her lips. "I'm here to take care of you."
The unease that had been following Shun around for the past while had not diminished one bit. If anything, it had only increased, between the tension between the people around her (was it just her or was everyone upset with each other lately) and the strange feeling that someone had been following her.
Or maybe that bit was just her jumping at shadows. Wouldn't have been the first time.
Yurika was conspicuously absent when Shun dropped by to get her motorcycle looked at. The mechanic on duty said she had caught a cold. Shun suspected otherwise. Her older sister had been a Pretty Cure once herself, and she was still suffering for overusing her own powers. And while Shun tried to keep herself out of Kimiko's private affairs, she had overheard a thing or two about Yurika's current activities.
There was no point in worrying too much about it. Not like Shun could do much to help Pretty Cure herself. All that savate training had been more for the sake of her own ego - ultimately, she was just as helpless against the Shade Kingdom as her six-year-old self had been.
"It can't be helped." Shun told herself as she prepared to put on her helmet and depart on her motorcycle. All she could do was focus on being there for-
"Someone, please help!"
Shun snapped to attention as a young and petite teenage girl with long and wavy cerulean hair staggered into view. She was visibly frantic, and her dark gold eyes were brimming with tears. And all thoughts of leaving fell by the wayside. Shun set her helmet aside, right as the girl hurried towards her and grabbed her arm.
"Please..." the girl sobbed as she plantitively looked up at Shun. "M-my brother, he's... please help him!"
Shun laid a reassuring hand on the girl's trembling shoulder. "It's okay." she said gently. "I'm here for you. Lead the way, alright?"
The girl nodded tearfully before doing just that, guiding Shun towards an alleyway not far from the auto shop. Shun's heart leapt into her throat once she rounded the corner into a more open portion of said alleyway. There was a teenage boy with messy blond hair laying sprawled on the ground. One she definitely recognized.
"Aki-san!" Shun wasted no time in hurrying to the boy's side and moving to check his pulse. She couldn't remember where she knew him from. Didn't matter. Not right now. "Mm. His pulse seems fine, but…"
"But what?" Keiko drew closer to Shun as she spoke, readying the charm she had prepared earlier. Just a little more... "Will my big brother be okay?"
"I mean, he seems to be in good shape. I'm no doctor, though." Shun turned to regard Keiko, a half-second before the younger girl could use the charm. Keiko immediately hid it behind her back and looked aside. "Can I ask what happened?"
Keiko froze up like a deer in headlights. "Uh… that's-" Oh god, why did her stupid brain have to blank out now? "You see, my big brother and I… we were…"
Masaru sat up without warning, sending an alarmed Shun leaping to her feet and reeling back a pace. "Boss, I was mugged, remember?" He frowned. "Or did you want to do the version with the Shade Kingdom people? I still think it'd be more fun if- mmph!"
Keiko clamped a hand over Masaru's mouth. "Don't give the game away, dummy!"
Shun stared blankly at Masaru, then Keiko, then back to Masaru again. Blinked a few times. Stared some more. Finally, she threw up her hands in exasperation.
"Okay, I give up. What are you guys trying to do?"
Masaru pushed Keiko's hand aside. "Well, I was supposed to pretend to get knocked out, so you'd wanna help me! And then Boss was gonna hire you as- ow!" He winced as Keiko clocked him over the head. "I was just answering the question!"
"You're supposed to lie!" Keiko snapped. "What kind of evil henchman wouldn't-" Shun was already walking away. Her jaw dropped. "H-hey!" She leapt to her feet, hurrying after Shun. "Where do you think you're going?!"
"Sorry, but I've got places I need to be." Shun tipped Masaru a quick nod. "I'll play with you and your sister some other time, Aki-san. See you later."
Keiko ran in front of Shun, trying to cut off her exit. "You can't!" She stomped her foot in protest. "I forbid it!"
Shun quirked an eyebrow. "On what grounds?"
"That's-!" Keiko's mouth worked frantically as her brain tried to string together a sentence. "I already chose-! People don't-! We need-!" Ugh, Beauty General Lilith would've had a totally epic speech lined up at a time like this! "I- I mean, you… the-!" She pointed triumphantly at Shun. "Dishwasher! Yes!"
Shun nodded solemnly. "Ah, I see. It was a killer appliance that knocked Aki-san out." She shook her head and sighed mock-exasperatedly. "Guys, that's Pretty Cure's job, not mine. Sorry." She tipped Keiko a wink. "Call me when your refrigerator's running, alright? I'd be fast enough to catch that."
With that said, Shun gently shoved past Keiko and went on her way… or she would have, had someone not grabbed her from behind.
Shun immediately wriggled out of her assailant's grasp before wheeling around and nailing said assailant - Masaru Aki - right in the chest with a well-placed whip kick. The blond boy was left staggering backwards, visibly winded by the impact.
"Aki-san, what the hell?!" Shun looked equal parts confused and infuriated. "You're better than this!"
Masaru seemed genuinely hurt by Shun's response, enough to visibly hesitate. She met his eyes, smiled, and nodded, even as she retreated a few paces. He smiled right back…
...and then lunged at Shun again. She met him with a quick jab to the chest, followed by a low sweeping kick to the shins. As Masaru struggled to regain his footing, his disguise fell away, revealing his true form.
"You're the one Boss wants." Kooyoo said quietly. "Sorry, Siegel-san."
The color drained from Shun's face as she realized what she was dealing with here. She promptly took advantage of the opening her last strike against Kooyoo had given her and-
-would have bolted out of the alleyway, had she been able to move more than a few inches from her current spot. The reason for that quickly became apparent - a small circle of violet light beneath her feet, which seemed to be binding her within its confines.
"Ohohoho! Foolish boy! There's no outfoxing a fearsome criminal gang leader!"
Shun turned to find Kae standing nearby, magic staff at the ready. The aqua-haired girl smirked, looking the struggling Shun straight in the eyes even as she off-handedly tossed something in Kooyoo's direction.
Shun narrowed her eyes. "I don't remember saying I was-"
Kae raised a hand. "Whatever it is, I don't care~!" She briefly locked eyes with Kooyoo, who was drawing up behind Shun and readying the charm Kae had made. "And soon, you won't either!"
"What are you-?"
Shun didn't get to finish that sentence. The minute Kooyoo slapped the charm onto her forehead, there was a flash of violet light, and her eyes rolled back into her head as the charm dissolved into nothingness. Kooyoo scooped her up in his arms before she could crumple to the ground.
"Did… did it work?" Koyoo asked. He tried not to look too hard at the unconscious Shun as he spoke.
"Obviously, it worked. It was my spell." Kae huffed. "He's ours now - and the Magnificent Trio is back in business!"
Kae threw in one last noblewoman's laugh for good measure as she slammed her magic staff on the ground. There was another flash of light, and she, Kooyoo, and Shun were gone.
Hiroko was leaning up against the sealing stone in front of the library when Izumi found her. Her eyes were red rimmed from crying, and she looked completely and utterly defeated. It seemed to take a few moments for her to even register that Izumi was there.
Finally, Hiroko looked up. "Oh… Izumi." She even sounded utterly defeated. "You still want something to do with me, huh?"
Izumi crossed her arms and looked aside. "I mean, I could hear your fight with Yasu from two blocks over. Excuse me for being a little worried." She looked around, frowning. "Jun's not here either, huh?"
"That's right." Hiroko sniffled. "They said we should leave you alone. But I couldn't just…" Her shoulders began to tremble. "I thought it'd be okay from now on! I thought we'd never fight like this again! But… but!"
Izumi's expression softened a bit. "Oh, Hiroko…" She drew closer to her fellow Cure. Hiroko hardly seemed to notice. "I'm sorry." Her hand morphed into a translucent blue blade as she spoke. "It shouldn't end like-"
"That's enough, Tamakushi."
Izumi froze in her tracks, her hand reverting to its normal shape, as Yasu emerged from the shadows. The cerise-haired girl's glasses glinted keenly as she stared down the blond.
"H-huh?" Izumi backed away, her eyes wide with alarm. "What are you saying, Yasu? I'm the real thing!"
Hiroko looked up, her eyes shining. "Which is why your knee magically healed, right?" The strain in her voice was completely gone. "And why you were so needlessly aggressive towards Haruki-san, right?"
Yasu took her place by Hiroko. "You were right." she told her, even as she stared down not-Izumi. "There was no way she could resist the chance to take you out."
Not-Izumi tightened a fist as she stared down the two Cures. For a moment, the blond looked like she was going to keep playing at being hurt. And then she began to laugh.
"Oh? So you have me all figured out, do you?" As she spoke, her voice dropped into Tamakushi's familiar contralto, and her facial features vanished one by one. "A shame Izumi was not half that clever."
Hiroko just readied her Purciell. "I don't believe that." Tamakushi had been confidently wrong last time too. "There's no way any of us would go down that easily."
Yasu readied her own Puricell. "You have so little faith in others' bonds. I feel sorry for you."
Tamakushi just gave a dismissive 'tch' as the rest of her Izumi guise fell away and a Wrath Seed pulsing with red and black light appeared in her hand. She tossed it up in the air, and it split into four parts, each of which burrowed deeply into four trees surrounding the library plaza.
"Appear! Nikuina!" Tamakushi raised a fist glowing with red-black energy into the air. "Cast the world into despair!"
The four trees began to glow with red-black light as they uprooted themselves and converged. There was a flash, and an immense, red-eyed spider-like creature made of gnarled wood stood before Hiroko and Yasu gave a roar, drawing ribbons of sealing energy into its mouth at a rapid pace.
Hiroko and Yasu did not hesitate to spring into action.
"Pretty Cure! Spirit Unleash!"
Tamakushi appeared on the back of the Nikuina in a burst of light blue foxfire as it reared up and struck at Cure Seiryuu and Cure Byakko. Both Cures leapt backwards and out of the way, using the high wall surrounding the Kyoukai Public Library as a springboard before launching themselves at the Nikuina.
Seiryuu and Byakko dove towards the Nikuina, attempting to pelt it with elementally charged strikes. Byakko summoned her White Fleuret and elegantly wove and jabbed at the Nikuina, blocking the return blows from its legs with her shields, while Seiryuu kept her distance and blasted at it from afar with spirit power.
It was difficult to hit the Nikuina. It was surprisingly agile for something so immense, easily dodging and parrying Byakko's light-charged and shrugging off Seiryuu's salvo of wind. When Seiryuu summoned the Azure Wings and threw them towards it, it easily sidestepped the disc, which went flying right past it before vanishing in a burst of blue light.
Before Seiryuu could summon her Spirit Arm again, something ice cold gripped tightly onto her shoulders - Tamakushi's phantoms. The blue Cure instinctively froze up - only for a second, but a second was all the Nikuina needed to blow past Byakko and charge towards Seiryuu at top speed.
"Seiryuu!"
Byakko hit the ground running before leaping into the air, touching down by Seiryuu, and pulling her out of the way. Unfortunately, she only got her fellow Cure out of the way of one pair of the Nikuina's legs. It caught the two off guard and smacked them into the air with another pair, sending them flying.
As the two Cures were tossed into the air, the Nikuina gave another roar and spat a burst of sticky thread towards them. Seiryuu and Byakko were tightly bound up and left to hit the ground some distance away. No matter how hard the two struggled, the webbing held them tightly.
"Human bonds are so very fragile." Tamakushi sneered as the Nikuina advanced on the struggling Cures. "So worthless. So easily mined for despair. And yet you put so much faith in them." She laughed as the Nikuina reared up. "I wonder if your little friend recognized their uselessness by the end?"
Seiryuu and Byakko simply glared defiantly at Tamakushi. The Nikuina reared up-
-and was sent flying backward by a high-pressure blast of dark violet water.
Cure Genbu touched down in front of Seiryuu and Byakko, effortlessly cutting through their bindings with one water-charged blow. Jun scrambled towards the scene right and helped both Cures to their feet.
Seiryuu immediately pulled Genbu into a tight hug. "Genbu! You're alright!" The blue Cure's eyes brimmed with tears as she held the black Cure close. "Thank goodness…"
Byakko simply offered Genbu a small smile and a nod.
Genbu looked genuinely confused by Seiryuu and Byakko's reactions. "You guys aren't mad at me?"
"Of course not, Izunyan!" Jun chirped. Kichu nodded in agreement from his perch on her shoulder. "Pretty Cure wouldn't doubt each other like that!"
Genbu felt her heart sink at Jun's words. She had doubted her teammates. She had foolishly doubted her teammates up until the end. Up until-
Izumi saw it reflected in the water moments before Jun could strike - a blue bladelike appendage, so much like the one Hiroko's doppelganger had attempted to take her out with back then.
"NO!"
She wheeled around and shoved the false Jun away from her. The doppelganger gave one last malicious smile before it dissolved… and everything suddenly became all too clear.
It had been Tamakushi all along, hadn't it? Here at the bridge, back at the arcade, maybe even before that. All Tamakushi, and she had played right into her hands. She had really let herself believe that her friends would-
"Izunyan!"
And before Izumi could finish that thought, Muse ran towards her and launched herself into her arms, Kichu following right afterward. Izumi looked down at the two spirits.
"Hiroko and Yasu are already out there fighting her, aren't they?" She grinned at Muse's nod of acknowledgement. "Then I know exactly what to do."
The only thing someone like her could do well. The only way she could possibly make this right.
"How…" Tamakushi hissed as the Nikuina struggled to regain its bearings. "How are you still here?"
"I'm not going down that easily, Tamakushi!" Genbu snapped. She dashed at full speed towards the Nikuina before anyone around her had a chance to react, her form blazing with dark violet light. "I won't abandon my friends like that!"
She had already been enough of a burden towards them, Genbu told herself as she met the Nikuina head-on in combat. She gracefully dodged and backflipped out of the way of its attacks before nailing it with one high-powered elemental strike after another. This time, the Nikuina was not quite as good at getting out of the way. Genbu was pushing herself to her limits, after all. She had to. This was the only way she could fix this.
Seiryuu and Byakko nodded at each other before joining the fray as well. As Genbu administered a beatdown on the Nikuina, Seiryuu used her Azure Wings to shred apart the webbing that it spat at the group, while Byakko continued to deflect the attacks it flung at her and the others to the best of her abilities.
Genbu felt something in her heart stir. That was right. Even after she had screwed everything up, her friends, her teammates still trusted someone like her. The real ones still wanted her around, despite how much of a burden she was. She…
...felt a warmth stirring in her chest as her brooch began to glow with dark violet light. Finally!
"That's right… my friends have my back!" Genbu leapt backwards before launching herself into the air and barreling into the Nikuina feet-first. It was driven back some distance, tearing multiple gouges onto the ground. Genbu sprang after it, raining a flurry of high-powered blows on its form. "I… I definitely-"
Just a bit more! A bit more and she could at least be useful as a fighter! That was how she'd redeem herself!
"I won't drag them down any longer!"
There was a flash of dark violet light as Genbu's fist connected right with the Nikuina's head, stunning it in place. As she touched down on the ground, an orb of dark violet light emerged from her brooch. The black Cure grinned triumphantly as she reached out for the orb-
-which dissolved into nothingness before her eyes.
Genbu was left frozen in place, staring uncomprehendingly at the empty space where her upgrade had been just a few moments ago. She did not notice Tamakushi appear behind her, naginata at the ready.
"No!"
Seiryuu and Jun did, though. Before Tamakushi could strike, Muse shifted forms and launched herself towards the faceless woman, sinking her teeth into her arm and throwing off her aim. This gave Seiryuu just enough time to pull the stunned Genbu out of danger. Tamakushi hissed in pain before flinging Muse off her. Fortunately, the cat spirit managed to land on her feet.
At least the Nikuina was not in a position to take much more punishment, thanks to the beatdown it had received at Genbu's hands. When it attempted to start after Pretty Cure, it managed a few shaky steps… and then its eight legs slid right out from under it.
That was Byakko's cue to strike. She readied the White Fleuret and channeled her spirit power as white moonflower petals danced around her.
"Pretty Cure! White Rain!"
The Nikuina was pelted from all sides by Byakko's energy swords. It gave one last roar before it disappeared, leaving nothing but a spent Wrath Seed pod and a few motes of light. Byakko collapsed to her knees, reverting to Yasu. Muse and Kichu flew to the exhausted girl's side as the damage done to the library plaza reverted itself.
And Tamakushi burst into sarcastic applause.
"What a pathetic showing!" As she spoke, she fixed her eyeless gaze on Cure Genbu, who was staring out into space as Seiryuu held her close. "But don't worry. You produced a generous amount of despair for our cause, Cure Genbu. We are but one step closer to the inevitable, thanks to your idiocy."
Seiryuu glared at Tamakushi. "Don't talk about Izumi that way! And don't act like we're destined to-"
The blue Cure was answered with a naginata aimed right at her face. "Do you think I'm blowing smoke, child?" Tamakushi snarled. "Our Shade Kingdom had Pretty Cure once too. They were so certain they'd triumph over King Kagemera as well."
Muse looked genuinely caught off guard by this revelation. "You mean... you guys also..."
Tamakushi laughed softly. "That's right. But no longer. Their corpses were still warm when Kagemera ascended to his rightful place." She let out a soft 'tch' as she demanifested her naginata and stepped back a pace. "Just like yours will be."
Yasu fixed her with a glare. "We definitely won't-"
Tamakushi hardly seemed to notice. "I still reaped plenty of despair thanks to the people of this town. Your precious barrier is still being eaten away at. None of your little victories matter in the grand scheme of things. No one can keep King Kagemera from his divine right."
And with that, she was gone in a burst of foxfire, leaving Pretty Cure and their allies to their own devices.
No amount of apologies could make things right, as far as Izumi was concerned. Not after how badly she had screwed up today. Even if her teammates didn't seem to be upset at her, the guilt remained.
Her body felt like a lead weight on top of everything else. The minute Izumi had released her transformation, the exhaustion from today's training, coupled with this last battle had hit her like a ton of bricks.
Even now, Izumi was leaning heavily on Hiroko as the team made their way through Kyoukai's shopping district. So many people around them were apologizing sincerely to one another and making up. Even if Tamakushi had managed to do real damage in the heat of the moment, it didn't seem like it would last.
That should have held true for herself and her teammates as well, Izumi mused. Even after now. Even after she hadn't even managed to power up like she had needed to. But… but…
Izumi suddenly came to a stop. She was shaking all over.
Hiroko started towards her. "Izumi?"
And Izumi suddenly pulled Hiroko into a hug as she burst into tears.
"Hiroko... everyone, I'm so sorry!" she sobbed. "If I'd told you guys what I was doing, if I hadn't been so self-centered, you wouldn't have..." Her voice caught in her throat, and it took a moment for her to find her words again. "I just wanted to stop dragging you guys down."
Hiroko held her close. "You're fine, Izumi. We aren't angry at you, I promise." That seemed to calm Izumi down a bit, at least. "For now, I'm just glad you're alright."
Izumi nodded, sniffling a bit. "I really doubted you guys for a moment there." she said quietly. "I really thought..."
Yasu shook her head. "Tamakushi went out of her way to manipulate you. It isn't your fault." She looked aside. "I'm in no position to judge anyway."
"Everything will be okay, Izunyan! We're still friends - and you'll definitely unlock your powers soon!" Jun chirped. Kichu nodded in agreement from his perch on her shoulder. "C'mon, let's get some pizza at Western Paradise together! That'll help, right?"
Something clicked in Izumi's head at the mention of Western Paradise. Her eyes widened in alarm as she parted from Hiroko's hug.
"Oh hell, Sieg-kun!" At her teammates' quizzical looks, she clarified "Um… she asked me out! To lunch, I mean! She said she was going to wait in front of Western Paradise for me, and my stupid phone's dead, so I can't even-" She ran a hand through her hair. "Oh god, she's probably already left without me!"
Izumi muttered something about her being an idiot and attempted to start off on her own, only for her legs to sway a bit a few paces in. Hiroko and the others were at her side immediately.
"We can go together, Izumi." Hiroko smiled at the blond as she offered her a hand. Izumi took it. "Siegel-san seems like a kind girl. I'm sure she'll understand if-"
"There you are!"
Someone was running towards the group - Kimiko Yoshimoto. The serene expression the green-haired woman had worn during her first encounter with Hiroko was completely gone. She looked horribly strung out, and judging by how pale she was and how heavily she was breathing, she had been in this state for a while.
"Huh? Kimi?" Izumi blinked in confusion. "What's wrong?"
Kimi needed a moment or two to gather herself before she spoke. "Shun… Shun's gone missing!" Her voice hitched a bit as she spoke, looking from Izumi to Hiroko, to Yasu, to Jun, and back again. "I thought… I really wanted to think she'd be with you, Izumi-chan, but…"
Izumi stared at Kimi like the woman had started speaking another language. "What do you mean? Sieg-kun wouldn't…" Not Shun. Nothing bad could happen to Shun, even with the Shade Kingdom running around. She'd get out of it somehow. "There's no way."
"She told me she wanted to get her bike checked, before you two's outing. That's the last I heard from her." The more Kimi spoke, the closer she sounded to bursting into tears. "Kiryuu-san - the mechanic on duty - said she vanished into an alley with some little blue-haired girl and never came back out." She grimaced uncomfortably. "Like they dropped off the face of the planet."
For a moment, Izumi had been ready to protest, to insist that there must have been some misunderstanding. But there was no way Shun would have just casually up and abandoned her motorcycle, especially when she had been planning to take Izumi out on it. And she had never seen Kimi this broken up before. She was usually unflappable, almost eerily so. It would have taken something significant to change that. Something like... well, her sister being kidnapped.
Izumi staggered backward. "Then she… Sieg-kun's really…"
Everything around her seemed to blur out of focus as the reality of the situation sunk into her brain, which was already pushed to its limits after today. She was distantly aware of her teammates and Kimi speaking to her, but she couldn't hear any of them. It was as if she was drowning on dry land.
"Call me when you're gonna start something, okay?"
The blue-haired girl Shun had gone off with… that had been Keiko, hadn't it? Keiko, who Izumi had just casually written off, despite how much trouble she had inadvertently caused in the past. And now… because of Izumi's carelessness, Shun was... Shun had been...
The light in Izumi's eyes flickered and died and her surroundings seemed to fade out around her as she sank to her knees. It would be some time before she came back to Earth.
The sun was shining about as brightly as it could in a dismal place like the Shade Kingdom when Tobi arrived at the door of the Trio's shared flat the next morning, carrying a box under one arm.
It wasn't like he forgave Kae for treating him like that. But it had kind of been his fault for not putting his foot down earlier, hadn't it? And besides… those two were absolutely hopeless without him, and Shahei wasn't much better. God, they were probably all begging for him to come back!
(On top of that... as much as that return trip to the Potari household had one him good, his siblings didn't need him. Taka, Hakucho, Fukuro, and Tsubame were getting on alright thanks to the money he sent over, as was his mother. His teammates? Now there were people who did need him around. Someone had to keep that house. Someone had to keep an eye on that man.)
Tobi spent a moment or two mulling over just what he was going to say. Should he gloat at the inevitable mess and go all "I told you so" at Kae? Should he play the 'regretful big brother' card? Should he rejoin right away, or should he hold some terms and conditions for that over Kae's head? He idled there for a moment, mulling over the possibilities before he finally threw his hands up in the air.
"Oh, whatever. I'll just wing it."
The door to the flat was unlocked, because of course it was. Kae always left the damn door unlocked unless he or Shahei reminded her to do otherwise. No matter. Saved him the trouble of having to... having to...
Tobi's jaw dropped as he stepped into the flat. "What in the hell?"
The dismal mess that Tobi had expected to be met with was nowhere to be seen. The flat wasn't even close to being in the state it had been in when he left. No, the whole place was almost disconcertingly tidy. It sparkled like a diamond from top to bottom, to the point he could see most every detail of his face reflected in the tile flooring.
Kae and Kooyoo were sitting at the table. She was reading her manga and taking notes with gel pen in a notepad, he was stuffing his face with a stack of delectable looking pancakes. And at the sink was…
Some new guy Tobi couldn't place. Some new guy who was wearing his apron and using his scrub brush and doing his dishes in his goddamn house while his teammates just sat there like he wasn't even in the room with them!
Kae looked up from her manga just then. "Huh? You're back, Tobi?" She didn't seem to notice how visibly Tobi was seething. Or knowing her, she did notice but didn't care. "You're a little late, in case you haven't noticed~"
Kooyoo looked up from his pancakes. "Tobi!" Before Tobi could react properly, Kooyoo bounded towards him and pulled him into a tight bear hug, drawing a surprised squawk from the violet-haired boy. "Boy, did I miss you!"
Kooyoo parted from the hug, grinning from ear to ear. Tobi hardly seemed to notice. He was focused on the new guy, who had looked up from the dishes and was staring at Tobi in confusion.
The newcomer was wiry in build and a bit shorter than Tobi, with the same chalk white skin as Kae, solid red eyes, and slightly messy gray-green hair pulled into a short ponytail. They were clad in a long-sleeved dark gray turtleneck tunic, a dark green vest fastened by a silver clasp, a dark green belt, dark green gloves, light gray pants, and dark green boots.
Tobi did not recognize this guy at all. Didn't matter. He already hated this… this interloper on principle. And before Tobi could ask the new guy or Kae or anyone in this damn house to explain themselves, Kooyoo was excitedly pulling the newcomer away from the sink and over to where he was.
"Oh yeah, Tobi! You've gotta meet our new friend!" Kooyoo slung an arm around the shoulders of the new guy, who was a clear bundle of nerves, as he spoke. "Kasoku, this is P. Tobi! Tobi, this is my new buddy, E. Kasoku! We work together now!"
Tobi tried to keep himself from glaring as he looked Kasoku up and down. So, Kae had traded in one slender pretty boy spirit for another, huh? Except she'd went with the 'utterly spineless' model this time, judging by Kasoku's timid body language. It seemed Kae had taken his heat of the moment outburst literally, because of course she had.
"Ah… h-hello." Kasoku nervously managed. "Boss and Kooyoo told me a bit about you. I, uh…"
"Okay, that's enough!" Kae shoved past a baffled Kooyoo and a visibly rattled Kasoku before grabbing Tobi by the arm. "Tobi. In case you haven't noticed, we don't need you anymore. You can go now~"
And suddenly, Tobi found himself being shoved towards the exit. "Yes, Kae, I- damn it, you don't have to push me!" He opened the door - and then turned to face Kae. His mouth was smiling, but his eyes were not. "Well. If this is how it is now, I'll just have to accept it. Enjoy your doormat."
Kae just grinned nonchalantly. "I plan to." She lunged forward without warning and snatched the box Tobi had been carrying. Her eyes lit up as she checked its contents. "Oh! You brought manju! I'll enjoy these too!"
And before Tobi could say anything else, Kae slammed the door in his face.
Kasoku looked like she wanted to hide under the table at this point. Kooyoo patted her on the shoulder.
"It's okay!" he said. "They'll make up, and then we'll be one big happy family!" Man, he hoped this was helping. It was the least he could do after what he had put Kasoku through. Well, put her former self through, anyway. Shun Siegel didn't really exist anymore. "You're gonna love it here, I promise!"
"Y-yeah… I hope so." Kasoku didn't sound entirely convinced. "I... should probably get back to work. Wouldn't wanna let Boss down."
Kae happily tucked into a manju as she watched Kasoku dutifully return to cleaning up the kitchen. Man, this place had never looked so shiny and neat, she and Kooyoo (who was morosely staring out the window again… he'd get over it) had eaten so well this morning, that grouchy killjoy birdman was out of their lives for good…
...oh sure, she had questions (namely, how in the world had her magic turned a human into a spirit? Was she that good?), maybe a lingering concern or two, but otherwise! Things had turned out better than Kae had ever imagined!
"This is the life~!" Kae chirped in between contented bites of manju. "I love being a fearsome criminal gang leader!"