Episode Twenty-Two: Thorny Weather! A Friendship Devoted to Shiori!
Once upon a time, there were two little girls, and they were very sad.
The little girls had always been alone in the world, for their mother had abandoned them when they were very young. They could not recall ever being loved, or held, or wanted, and they could not remember a life outside of the walls of the gray and dreary orphanage they called home.
"I can't blame her for running away" one of the orphanage workers had once told the pair in a moment of exasperation. "Most parents would struggle to deal with your… condition."
Condition . They always put it like that. As if Kae and Shahei had a disease that needed curing.
Shahei knew better. It was a gift to share a body with her sister. It was a blessing to never be truly alone, to know your most important person would never, ever leave you. It was wonderful to share in Kae's joy as her sister danced and whirled around the room, to feel Kae's happiness and pride as the two of them perfected their magical talents. Shahei wouldn't trade something this precious for the world.
The adults didn't understand how lucky the Asjun sisters were. Just like they didn't understand Kae. She was too naive, too loud, too bold, too much . They wanted her smaller, meeker, more convenient . Shahei would not allow it. Shahei would do everything in her power to protect Kae's joy, no matter the cost.
And it had cost Shahei so much in the end. Protecting Kae meant being punished in her place. It meant learning that nobody else was in her corner, not the rotten adults and not the other children. It meant quietly absorbing every cruelty that was sent her way, because reacting gave them ammunition.
Kae was free to keep being a child, smiling, laughing, and naively dreaming of a future where the twins' mother would come back for them. And all the while, Shahei endured, keeping up a painted-on smile when the adults were around and crying herself to sleep each night, long after Kae had drifted off.
It was a miserable existence. But if Shahei could keep protecting Kae's smile, it would always be worth it.
One day, it would get better, the two told each other. One day, they would escape to a place of their own. A little cottage in the woods, perhaps, far from civilization. They could be alone together like that, forever and ever. After all, Shahei only needed Kae, and Kae only needed Shahei.
Shahei had never stopped understanding that. But Kae forgot this and started letting people in.
First came another child from the same orphanage, a dense brick of a boy who had run away from home and insisted on following the twins when they had fled the orphanage. Then came another boy, this one sour-tempered and irritable, who had taken pity on the three of them and allowed them to live with him, even as he protested and complained about the arrangement.
Shahei should have kept Kae away from both of them. But she had been a fool who trusted her sister more than she hated these two interlopers. If only she'd known what sort of doors she had opened!
And by the time she realized it, it was too late. Kae had already invited the devil himself into their lives. Hinyu, the majordomo of King Kagemera. An adult who was utterly rotted through, who baited Kae with the parental approval she still longed for, before pointing her at the rotten place called Earth. A heartless demon who had drawn Shahei into his web with fear alone.
The twins belonged to Hinyu now. Walking away from a man who could break them with no effort and no consequence was not an option. Shahei knew that far too well. But Kae…
Kae was still a child. A child who foolishly pined after a life as a "normal girl", a life spent on Earth alongside the very people Hinyu wanted the twins to eliminate. A child who had outgrown the need for dolls like Shahei. Or perhaps a child who longed to be freed from the wicked witch keeping her away from the world.
Shahei understood. Even a wicked witch like herself could be fair. She wouldn't keep her dear sister locked away forever. One day soon, Kae would be free to pursue whatever future she saw fit.
As for her own future? There was no point in thinking of such things. After all, the wicked witch never got a happy ending. Who would ever want to save someone like that?
Tobi hadn't given much thought to the mess piling up in the middle of the Trio's shared flat, past "Kae can clean that up her damn self for once." Kae A. Dama leaving her garbage lying where everyone could trip over it was one of life's little inevitabilities. Tobi had accepted that long ago. Didn't mean he had to like it.
At least that hadn't changed, because a lot about Kae had these past couple days. She'd been, well, off lately. She smiled less, hardly emerged from her room, and often looked like she was on the edge of tears when Tobi and Koyoo did see her. She wouldn't talk to her brothers about whatever was eating at her either.
"Don't worry about it." she'd told Kooyoo through her cracked bedroom door last night. At this point, it was a miracle to see her outside her room at all. "Not like you guys could help anyway."
Kooyoo had taken Kae's declining state hard. And Tobi… well, Tobi was better at keeping a stiff upper lip than Kooyoo was, but it still ate at him like acid. Especially knowing who should've been the one stopping this. Which was why he'd made the trip to the Potari household today. He couldn't keep running away.
Tobi hadn't expected to see Kae up and around when he'd returned from his visit to the Potari residence. He hadn't expected to see that mess of hers cleaned up. And he definitely hadn't expected-
"Kae, what the hell are you doing to the floor?!"
Kae didn't react to Tobi's outburst at all. She just kept doing what she was doing - drawing all over the floor with chalk and occasionally pausing to arrange one odd item or another within the magic circle (?) she almost finished creating. Tobi's wings flared out in irritation as he instinctively started towards Kae.
"Kae, for gods' sake-!"
"Oh my… I thought your glasses were just for show." Kae didn't look up from her work as she spoke. "Do you actually need them, Tobi?"
Tobi moved to snipe back at Kae… and then something suddenly fell into place. That dissonantly cheerful tone, that passive-aggressive response… this wasn't Kae he was speaking to.
"Shahei?" He frowned. Both of the Asjun sisters weren't themselves. "Where's Kae?"
"What a silly question." That was a fancy magic circle Shahei was drawing. Tobi would've been impressed, had she not been defacing his floor and dodging his questions. "I can't exactly misplace her."
"That isn't what I mean!" Tobi snapped. "We both know how you two usually are."
Shahei didn't even respond this time. She just kept chipping away at her magic circle while Tobi stood there awkwardly, trying to figure out what function the thing served, what was up with the twins, and how quickly he could get this thing off the floorboards. Finally, she finished up before hopping to her feet.
"You're still here?" Shahei inclined her head quizzically as she regarded Tobi. "I have somewhere I need to be. Don't you?"
"I'm exactly where I need to be." Tobi shot back. "We need to talk, Shahei. Something's clearly up, and if you seriously expect me to just stand around and wait for the other shoe to drop-"
Shahei laughed softly behind one sleeve-covered hand. "Oh, Tobi. I expect you to do exactly that. You're very good at it!" She summoned her staff with a wave of her hand. "Sorry, but I have a date lined up. Excuse me."
Tobi stared at Shahei in disbelief. "A date?"
"That's right~!" Shahei chirped. "A date with Pretty Cure!" She beamed brightly. "Don't disturb that circle, alright? Kae and I will be very sad if you do."
She slammed the end of her staff on the ground, vanishing in a burst of light blue sparkles. Tobi shook his head and swore softly under his breath in her wake. Shahei was right, of course. He had been very good at standing by while things got worse and worse for the twins. And that was why… that was why…
The door suddenly flew open, and Kooyoo stumbled inside with a stack of model kits under one arm. He didn't even seem to notice Tobi as he excitedly bounded over to the twins' bedroom door and pounded on it.
"Kae! Kae, come out! I've got a surprise for you!"
Tobi laid a hand on Kooyoo's shoulder. "You just missed them, big guy."
Kooyoo looked absolutely crushed. "Oh… I should've been faster." He perked back up. "But if she went out, that means she's feeling better, right?" He faltered as he noticed Tobi's tense expression. "Right?"
Tobi drew in a shaky breath. He couldn't afford to just stand here and wait until the geezer threw the twins away like an old rag before torching everyone else in the vicinity. That was why he'd come clean to Washi today, knowing it meant being on the receiving end of his mother's wrath. That was why he had to do this.
"I think we've both seen the writing on the wall, big guy." Kooyoo was looking around at the walls of the flat for just that. Tobi sighed. " Metaphorically . Those two are in a whole world of shit, and so are we."
Kooyoo looked as troubled and as lost as Tobi felt. "So what are we supposed to do?"
"Hell if I know." Tobi said. "But I know what we can do."
He motioned for Kooyoo to lean in a bit closer before he spoke, keeping his voice just above a whisper. He felt a bit stupid doing this, but Kagemera had eyes and ears in unexpected places, and the four of them were still closely wrapped up with his right hand. They couldn't afford to be too careful.
Summer vacation was coming to an end, and Haruki was a bundle of nerves.
On the surface, there was nothing to be nervous about. He was… mostly caught up on schoolwork, the weather was lovely, and Kyoukai's botanical gardens had never looked more lovely. Hiroko had packed a full spread of food for a picnic on the main lawn, and everyone on the team had managed to contribute something of their own - even Izumi, who had once sworn up and down that she couldn't cook.
So far, it looked like it'd be a perfect day. But Haruki couldn't focus on the gardens or the food or the weather or anything but the missing member of their group. Would she actually show up today?
"I'll be returning home with my family soon, Haruki-san." Shiori had told him over ice cream sodas at Twinkle Etoile. "We probably won't see each other again. I hope you understand."
"You have a bit of time before that, right?" Haruki asked. "My friends and I are having a picnic at the botanical gardens - do you want to come along? It'd be a nice way to say goodbye to Kyoukai, right?"
Shiori's glasses glinted. "I suppose it would be nice."
"Does that mean 'yes' or 'no'?" Haruki asked.
"It means 'we'll see.'" Shiori promptly got up from the table. "I should have time. But my father might have other ideas. You never know." She smiled cheerfully. "You know what they say about assuming, right?"
Shiori had taken off without another word, leaving Haruki alone. He hadn't been able to give his friends a clear answer about Shiori. And Shiori refused to give him a good means of contacting her - if they managed to meet up at all, it was because he always waited at the library for her. All he could do was wait and hope.
There was already a good-sized crowd out and about at the botanical gardens. People were laughing and talking amongst themselves, taking in the sight of the many plants on display, or amusing themselves on the gardens' vast and verdant main lawn. A couple of them were even setting up picnics of their own.
Hiroko and Shun were busy getting the group's picnic blanket laid out and everything else set up, while Yasu sat on a nearby bench, busy at her sketchbook, while Kichu, currently in human form, sat next to her and nibbled on a cookie. Izumi, meanwhile, was teaching Jun how to do multiple handsprings in a row. Jun was getting really into it… or she had been, until she noticed Haruki's clear case of nerves.
"Harunyan!" Jun bounded over to Haruki, staring worriedly up at him. "Are you worried about Shionyan?"
"It's hard not to be." Haruki said quietly. "Especially since… well, you know."
A knowing look passed between Haruki and Jun. There was no need for elaboration, not after the team meeting that Yasu had proposed the other day. This was why this picnic was happening, after all.
"She'll be here, Harunyan." Jun said. "I want to believe in Shionyan, no matter what."
Shiori was indeed here. She stood behind a tree some distance away, tensely watching the crowds milling around the lawn and the surrounding area. The sight of so many people out and about made her chest feel horribly tight. And of course, those six were all present, from Pretty Cure's leader to Kae's ex-cleaning guy.
"Shiori… you don't have to do this if you don't want to."
That was Keiko, giving Shiori the chance to back out. Keiko, who had declared her intent to confront Hinyu when she next saw him, forcing Shiori to take control of their shared body and refuse to let go. Keiko, who was still thinking of her sister's well-being despite this. Keiko, who Shiori really didn't deserve.
"It's fine." Shiori's tone was flat and emotionless. "I've already come this far, right?"
It was not fine. Shiori was only here out of pragmatism. She would've been much better off putting 'Shiori Futaba' away, finishing the ritual, and waiting for Hinyu. She had told Haruki those things for a reason. She had no interest in being Pretty Cure's friend, not when they'd already taken Keiko from her. She-
-let out a small gasp of alarm as she felt something latch onto her leg - an infant with fluffy white hair, who was staring up at her with innocent pink eyes. He broke into a delighted smile as Shiori met his gaze.
"Chuuu! Chu chuu chuuuu!"
"Sheesh, Kichu! I told you to stay with Nyasu!"
Shiori's stomach twisted as Jun hurried towards her, with Haruki close behind. Too late. Damn it.
"Oh, Inoue-san! Haruki-san! Hello!" Shiori cheerfully greeted the pair before indicating Kichu, who was still latched onto her leg. "So clingy - and with a complete stranger! Is he related to you, Inoue-san?"
"Yup!" chirped Jun, who scooped Kichu up into her arms. "He's my one and only baby brother!"
"Chuuu." Kichu agreed… before shifting into mouse form, escaping from Jun's grasp, and perching himself on Shiori's shoulder. He gave her a quick sniff… and then his ears perked up in alarm, and he began to gesture frantically at her. " Chuu! Chu chu chu chuuu!"
Haruki was lost for words. Jun looked very awkward. Shiori just stared, her eyes hidden by the glare of her glasses. Kichu looked put out at the lack of acknowledgement. For a moment, all was silent, and then-
"This is a secret, isn't it?" Shiori asked innocently. "Don't worry - I promise not to tell."
Jun breathed a sigh of relief. "I knew I could trust you, Shionyan!" she said as she gently removed a sulking Kichu from the other girl's shoulder. "Now c'mon - everyone else really wants to meet you!"
Yasu looked up from her sketchbook, just in time to see Jun hurrying Shiori over to Hiroko. Yasu tried not to stare too hard at Shiori as she introduced herself to her partner. It was a bit difficult, given everything.
"Mind if I join you?"
Shun was standing nearby, indicating the empty spot on the bench next to Yasu, who nodded.
"Not at all."
Yasu was mostly pretending to draw now. She tried to keep her eyes on her sketchbook, but they kept drifting first to Shiori, who was now getting an over-enthusiastic welcome from Izumi, and then to Hiroko, who had been positively glowing the past couple days. Was it any wonder, given recent events?
"It felt nice to get it off your chest, didn't it?" said Shun, who had apparently read Yasu's mind. She tipped the other girl a wink. "Maybe we could go on a double date soon? Izumi's got a few places in mind."
Yasu smiled. "That's just like her." she said. "But are you sure? I have no experience with that."
"Hey, neither do I!" Shun said. "Trust me, I'm figuring out a lot of this as I go along."
Yasu raised an eyebrow. "Really? You seem on top of things."
Shun blinked in surprise. " Me? Nah, I'm clueless when it comes to romance. Or uh, most things outside of motorsports." She coughed into her palm before adding "I'm just doing what feels best. Both of us are."
"I understand. That's what I'm trying to do as well." Yasu made a half-hearted attempt at returning to her sketchbook as she watched Shiori interacting with her friends. "I hope everything goes well today." she said quietly. "I want to trust Haruki. And I want to believe in Futaba-san." Her face fell a bit. "But…"
Shun laid a supportive hand on Yasu's shoulder. "It's okay. I get it. Stay optimistic, but keep cautious. That's how I am with Kae." Her gaze drifted to Shiori. "Those two are the same age, so…"
Something was bothering Shun - it was written all over her face. And whatever it was would have to wait, because Izumi had called her over to meet Shiori, and Hiroko looked like she needed her. Yasu nodded to her girlfriend before putting her sketchbook away. Stay optimistic but keep cautious. She could do that.
Pretty Cure had packed a truly astounding amount of food for today's picnic. There were all sorts of delectable-looking treats spread out on the group's picnic blanket now, including karaage, salmon onigiri, apple salad, takoyaki, butter cookies cut into the shapes of different animals, and-
"What are these supposed to be?" Shiori asked, indicating the plate of breaded dumplings near her.
"Zwetschgenknödel!" Shun said. "Dumplings filled with plums and cinnamon sugar - they're one of my specialities! Like the potato pancakes. And the beef rolls. And the egg noodles. And the…" She looked aside sheepishly. "Man, I got a bit carried away. No wonder those baskets were so heavy."
"I don't mind!" Hiroko said between bites of a plum dumpling. "I didn't put a limit on what everyone could contribute. I really wanted to try more German cuisine anyway."
Yasu smiled wryly. "I doubt we'll have many leftovers either."
Indeed, Izumi was going at the picnic food like she hadn't eaten in months, and Jun was right behind her. Even Kichu, who sat on Jun's lap was getting in on the action and putting away a truly heroic amount of food for an infant. Shiori couldn't help but stare a little. How were those three making room for all that?
"Futaba! How're the cookies?" Izumi asked around a mouthful of karaage. "I went all-out on those!"
"The cookies? Let's see." Shiori picked out a cat-shaped cookie and took a bite of it. It tasted exactly like a butter cookie was supposed to, she supposed. A perfectly inoffensive treat. "It's good!"
Izumi's mouth was too full for a coherent response, prompting her girlfriend to pour her another glass of juice, but she looked beyond delighted with Shiori's words. Haruki looked pretty happy as well.
"I'm glad you're enjoying the food, Shiori-san." he said. "I was a little worried, since I didn't know what you liked, outside of sweets."
Shiori shot Haruki a puzzled glance. "Did I tell you that?" She probably had at some point, while distracting him with small talk. It wasn't true - Keiko liked sweets, Shiori did not eat for enjoyment - but he didn't need to know that. Nobody needed to know anything about her. "My, you know me better than I do, Haruki-san!"
Haruki looked a bit awkward. "I'm just good at remembering this stuff, honestly..."
"He is! It's one of his many charm points!" Jun said. "He really wanted to go all-out for you today, Shionyan. We all did."
"Because I'm your friend, right?" Shiori asked.
Jun nodded. "Yup! And that doesn't have to change! I'm gonna keep being friends with everyone here, even after I have to go back home. And even after you go back home, we can keep being friends too, right?"
Shiori's glasses glinted. "That's not my decision to make. Please understand that."
And now Hiroko was looking at her with concern. "Futaba-san, if you need to talk-"
"I don't." Shiori smiled sweetly. "This is supposed to be a pleasant outing, right? It's no good to derail things, Tsubasa-san."
Shiori made a point of busying herself with her meal, which was rapidly losing its taste in her mouth. Of course she'd managed to throw a wrench into the mood around here. Everyone was trying to carry on as normal, but the atmosphere was that much more tense, and the way those six kept looking at her was…
…it meant nothing. They felt sorry for Shiori, the fragile little victim, not Shahei, the empty doll who enforced Hinyu's will. And even if they did, what would it matter? They couldn't get away from Hinyu. Adults could break children so easily, and Hinyu commanded much more power than most adults.
Would Pretty Cure understand that? It was doubtful. Keiko certainly didn't. Keiko actually thought they could turn her back on Hinyu. Because Pretty Cure had managed to get into her head, had made her drift even further away from Shiori. And if Shiori could just make Pretty Cure go away for good…
Shiori shut her eyes, as if nursing a headache. She'd keep that thought to herself, locked away from Keiko. She had to think about what to do next. She was only here for duty's sake, after all.
She wasn't like Keiko. There was nothing for her here. Nothing at all.
"That is true." Shiori said, seemingly to the empty air. "Maybe the flowers will be worth it."
"Oh, the flowers are definitely worth it." said Haruki, who seemed to have decided Shiori was talking to him. "We have flowers from all over the world here - you won't see them anywhere else in Kyoukai."
"Do you have a favorite flower, Shionyan?" Jun asked. "I really like daisies, but dahlias are nice too!"
Shiori smiled. "Me? I've always been fond of roses. They're so delicately beautiful… and if you handle them carelessly, you'll get hurt." This, she could say sincerely. "I truly admire that."
"Oh! We'll have to introduce you to Marina-san, then." Hiroko was doing a bad job of not sounding awkward. "She's been doing a bit of work here over summer break - apparently, she's helping develop new rose hybrids in the greenhouse."
"Maybe we could visit her later." Yasu suggested. "We haven't spoken for a while anyway."
"Oh, you're free to drop by. Just don't sneak up on her. I learned that the hard way."
Shiori only vaguely recognized the voice that had just carried towards the group - and she didn't recognize the black-haired woman who approached them at all. But her six 'friends' were an entirely different story, judging by their collective reaction.
"Yurika-san!" Haruki looked especially happy to see the newcomer. "It's been a while!"
"It sure has, Haru." Yurika had changed quite a bit since the battle at the town square. Her eyes shined more brightly than before, and the air of perpetual bitterness and exhaustion that had once surrounded her was gone… as was the smell of cigarette smoke. "Looks like you're all doing well."
"Back at you, Yurika." Shun said. "Are you planning on returning to the shop soon?"
Yurika nodded. "I'm pretty much back on my feet by now. Marina's been keeping me busy in the meantime." She smiled fondly. "Don't let her fool you - she's a pretty demanding boss."
And right on cue, Yurika's smartphone went off. She shot Pretty Cure a "see what I have to put up with?" sort of look before answering the phone with a curt "Be right with you, dear. I was just telling your students 'hi'." She hung up before sighing in mock-exasperation. "Well. Duty calls. See you all later."
"We'll definitely have to visit soon." Haruki said. "I'm really curious about those roses - aren't you, Shiori-san?"
"I suppose I am." Shiori said absently.
Her face was an expressionless mask as she watched Yurika leave. Something about that woman made her feel uneasy. This outing in general made her feel uneasy. Was it because of what she was considering? Or did Pretty Cure have something planned as well? She really wished she knew.
At first, it had been easy for Shiori to keep it together. The crowd here made her chest feel horribly tight, she was far too warm in her cardigan, and Pretty Cure's inane chatter made her head hurt. But it was okay. Shiori endured, as always. At least she had the promise of a productive mission. And the flowers.
The flowers were indeed worth it, Shiori decided as the group toured the botanical gardens, which were carved into different sections - everything from a traditional Japanese garden to an English Regency-style affair to a fantasy forest populated by statues of mythological creatures and woodland plants. The flora here was truly beautiful. It made that thing Hinyu devoted himself to more repulsive in comparison.
She regretted having to use the plants here for Hinyu's ambitions. They hadn't done anything to deserve it. But Hinyu had given her an extra Wrath Seed pod during his last visit for a reason. Shiori knew better than to waste it, or to throw it away, like Keiko had tried to do. She knew where open defiance led.
But Keiko? Keiko clearly didn't understand. Even now, Keiko was so cruelly innocent.
"You know what? We should come back here once the ritual's done and have a picnic of our own."
Her sister was in better spirits now, but at what cost? Now she was running her mouth about a future that would never come, and a world Shiori would never fit into. She didn't want to be a normal girl surrounded by rotten adults and untrustworthy children. She wanted her cottage in the woods, alone with Keiko, safely isolated from society, forever and ever. And she couldn't have either. And Keiko did not get that .
"They don't have anything this nice in the Shade Kingdom. It makes me kind of dread going home."
Keiko didn't mean to hurt her, Shiori reminded herself as she brushed her fingers over a rosebush in the English garden, infusing a bloom with red-black energy. Keiko genuinely thought she was helping. But it didn't make her remarks hurt any less. It didn't make Shiori feel any less sick. It didn't-
"Hey, Futaba? Mind if I take a picture?"
Shiori looked up in puzzlement at Izumi, who was standing by with her smartphone. "Why?"
"It'd be nice to take home some memories, right?" Izumi winked. "Plus I can't resist the sight of a cute girl admiring roses. I can't let that cuteness go to waste."
Shiori answered Izumi with a flat stare. "Ah. I see. Well, if Siegel-san doesn't mind…"
Izumi laughed. "Oh, Futaba, you're such a kidder! Now gimme a good pose!"
Izumi threw herself into taking several glamor shots of Shiori, who saw no real point in protesting. And then Jun jumped in, asking if Izumi could take some pictures of her too, and then Yasu had scoped out an archway perfect for a couples photo of her and Hiroko as well, and soon, it'd turned into a full photoshoot.
Shiori found herself seated at a table outside of the snack bar, scrolling through an album's worth of photos on Izumi's phone by the end of it all. She was the subject of so many of these photos. And…
"I fit right in with you, don't I?" Her voice sounded oddly distant.
Shiori elegantly posing alongside Yasu, under a camellia tree. Shiori, looking equal parts delighted and nervous as Shun tried to boost her and Izumi up onto her shoulders. Shiori curiously checking out the herb garden alongside Hiroko. Shiori helping the priestess Jun "save" the knight Haruki from one of the dragon statues in the fantasy forest. Shiori laughing, smiling, genuinely seeming to enjoy herself.
She really did look just like a normal girl here, didn't she? You couldn't see the hate that was in her heart. You couldn't see how dead her spirit was. Because the girl in these photos wasn't real.
"Of course you do, Shionyan!" Jun was as cheerfully oblivious as usual. At least Kichu seemed reasonably wary. "All of us are really different people, but we still get along. You fit right in!"
She didn't fit in at all. She was here to rip them apart. The happiness she displayed, the fun she was having in these photos… it was a lie, just as Shiori was a lie. So why did she envy the girl here so much?
"Y'know, if you don't wanna share your phone number, we could print out an album for you to take with you!" Izumi suggested as she took her smartphone back. I've sure taken enough to fill one."
Shiori didn't respond. Her focus was on Shun, who was buying drinks at the snack bar, alongside Hiroko and Haruki. The teal-haired girl kept snatching glances at her and had been doing so for a while now. Shiori would be genuinely worried if she didn't know that Shun was an idiot. As it was, she was getting annoyed.
"Siegel-san, do I have something on my face?" Shiori asked as Shun sat a sparkling lemonade in front of her. "You keep staring."
Shun looked a bit sheepish. "Ah, sorry about that. Didn't realize I was doing it." Gods, she was a terrible liar. "To be honest, you remind me of someone. Someone who's been on my mind a lot lately."
"You're talking about Ninomiya-san, right?" Haruki asked. "I've been worried about her too."
"Ninomiya-san?" Shiori regarded Shun curiously. "Is she a friend of yours, Siegel-san?"
"She's more like a kid sister, really." Shun frowned a bit. "It's not my place to go into details, but she's not in a good spot. I'm not exactly sure what to do about it either. I guess it was eating at me more than I thought."
"She's still worrying about us?" Keiko sounded genuinely floored. "After everything… she still cares."
"You already have a room set aside for her, right, Sieg-kun?" Izumi said. "That's doing something right there!"
"She's worried about you ." Shiori countered. "How presumptuous. You didn't ask her to save you."
"Our estate is pretty large." Shun told Shiori. "If you ever need a place to go, Grandma would happily make room for you as well. That's the kind of person she is."
"She's worried about us . This clinches it!" Keiko shot back. " Dear Shun isn't bad at all~!"
Shiori was unmoved. "Why would you offer something like that?." she asked innocently. "I'm very close to my family, Siegel-san. It's rude to assume things, you know."
Izumi didn't look impressed. "Did you miss the 'if', Futaba? There's no need for the passive-aggressive bull-"
Hiroko immediately jumped in. "There's no need to fight here!" Or rather, she didn't want a fight. Shiori could tell Hiroko wasn't happy with her either. "Futaba-san, what do you make of the gardens so far?"
The conservation turned towards - slightly awkward - small talk, and soon, the group was setting back out again. But Shiori couldn't focus on the gardens anymore, or the flora she needed to be infecting, or her strategy for eliminating Pretty Cure, because Keiko started talking about… that .
"Shiori… I know you're scared. I am too. But we need to deal with Hinyu, and soon."
Keiko didn't understand Shiori's thought processes at all. She shouldn't have been angry at her for it. It was her fault that Keiko was this naive. But to hear her put it like that felt like a slap to the face.
"I know he'll try and do something. I think Kooyoo and Tobi do too. But if we stay, he'll keep hurting you!"
This too was Shiori's fault. She'd promised herself, over and over, that she would keep Keiko out of that, no matter what. And this was exactly why she'd been so careful. Because now Keiko was doing this.
"We just have to explain things to Pretty Cure! They'll definitely help us!"
Pretty Cure couldn't help them. Nobody could help them. Not against someone like HInyu. A child like Keiko couldn't understand that. Not like Shiori could.
"We have a place to stay! We can start a whole new life, far away from him! You don't have to do this!"
Yes, she did. This was her role now. That freedom was yet another thing Shiori was giving to Keiko. It was fine. It wasn't like Shiori had a future outside of looking after Keiko. It wasn't like she could handle freedom.
"Shiori… I could tell how much fun you've been having today. You want this too. I know you do."
And that was enough to get Shiori to stop in her tracks. Had she actually been having fun? Did some tiny part of her want this? Was that why she'd envied the girl in the photos?
She tightened a fist as Hinyu's face flashed into her mind, as she remembered the latest in a long line of veiled threats against Keiko's safety, against any show of defiance from her. No, no… she couldn't!
"Shiori, please!"
Shiori gritted her teeth as she pressed a hand to her temple. Her head hurt and the crowd around her was making her stomach flip and Pretty Cure was getting into her head too, and Keiko just… wouldn't…
"Shut up…" Shiori hissed through gritted teeth. "Just shut up…"
And now Yasu was at her side. "Futaba-san, do you need space?" She must have mistaken Shiori's hollow stare for confusion, because she added "I'm not fond of crowds either. I understand."
"The conservatory's pretty quiet." Haruki said. "It's not far from here - want me to show you the way?"
Shiori's glasses glinted. "Would you? You're kind, Haruki-san."
"I'll go too!" Jun said. "For uh, moral support!" Kichu, who was riding in her skirtall pocket in mouse form, didn't seem quite as enthusiastic. "If that's alright, of course."
"That's fine." Shiori said. "I don't mind."
Her expression grew steely as she trailed behind Haruki and Jun. She didn't mind at all.
The botanical gardens' conservatory branched out into several greenhouses. This one, which housed a selection of high-altitude plants from around the world, was cool, dry, and most importantly, almost empty at present. It would be a nice, quiet place for Shiori to calm herself down before she rejoined the others.
Shiori did appreciate it, mind. Just not for the reasons Haruki seemed to think she did.
Her eyes were hidden by the glare of her glasses as she silently advanced on Haruki and Jun. He was over at the other end of the greenhouse, introducing Jun to a few of the exotic plants on display. She was next to him, enraptured by what Haruki was saying. They weren't paying Shiori any attention. Good .
Light blue spirit power arced between her fingers like an electrical current as she tightened a fist. She'd finish this quickly, before her mental concentration faltered, and Keiko figured out what she was doing.
"Hinyu-sama… if I go with you, what will happen to Kae?"
"Why is that your concern? You should discard what you don't need, Shahei."
First Jun, then Haruki. With those two gone, Pretty Cure would be much easier to deal with, and their influence would be far weaker. Hinyu would be pleased too. Pleased enough to listen to her, hopefully.
"I'm no fool. I know Kae has been turning against me. And you're not the most obedient girl yourself."
"Kae can't do much on her own, Hinyu-sama. Is she really worth wasting your energy on?"
Her hands were shaking as she drew closer and closer. Her heart felt like it was going to leap out of her chest. Why? This was the best thing she could do, for Keiko and herself. There was no need for regrets!
"I'll do anything, Hinyu-sama. Anything at all. Just don't hurt her. Please, please don't hurt her."
"Are you trying to extract a promise from me? You should know better than that, Shahei"
Shiori's hand shot towards Jun's neck - right as the mental wall she'd been keeping up slipped-
"STOP!"
-and Keiko yanked control of the body away from her. Shiori let out a gasp of alarm as her arm suddenly jerked backwards, prompting Haruki and Jun to turn around.
"Shiori-san?" And of course, Haruki was looking at her with worry again. "Is everything okay?"
Shiori just stared hollowly at Haruki and Jun, sweat beading on her brow and shoulders trembling. She couldn't manage a response that wouldn't blow her cover right there. Luckily, she didn't have to.
"Oh? Is that you, Haruki?"
Marina Ishii hurried towards the group, unknowingly saving Shiori from having to explain herself. From the look of things, the green-haired woman had been up to her elbows in the soil for a while. Yurika Himura was right behind her. Her gaze lingered on Shiori just a bit too long. Shiori pretended not to notice.
"Marinyan! Yurinyan! Hello!" Jun chirped. "We were about to go looking for you!"
"That's right." Haruki said. "Futaba-san is a big fan of roses - I heard you were working with them?"
"You heard correctly." Marina said. "I'm Marina Ishii - a biology teacher at their school." she told Shiori. "And this is Yurika Himura, my partner. It's a pleasure to meet you, Futaba-san."
"The same to you, Ishii-san, Himura-san." Shiori sounded less calmly cheerful and more borderline robotic right now. She couldn't manage anything better right now. "Can I see the roses you're working on?"
"I don't mind." Marina said. "We've hit a bit of a lull anyway." As she led the group to the greenhouse she'd been working in, she added "Where's the rest of your group?"
"Sis and the others should be nearby." Haruki said. "It's just the three of us for now."
And for a moment, Shiori forgot her anger at the fourth member of their group as she followed the others into the greenhouse. She had never seen so many roses in one place. Roses of all shapes, sizes, and colors, roses that smelled more fragrant and bloomed more brightly than the ones she'd made with her magic.
"Did you create all of these?" Shiori asked
Marina shook her head. "I'm just one hand of many here. Look." She indicated one particular patch of roses, which bloomed a vivid pink. "Now, these I've had a hand in developing."
"They're supposed to have more potent medicinal properties." Yurika explained. "Don't ask me to get into the ins and outs of it. That's Marina's thing. But it feels nice, helping with something like this."
Jun looked delighted. "You're a healer too, Marinyan?"
"I guess that's one way to put it." Marina said. "You should leave the world a bit better than it was when you arrived. That's how I was raised. And these are my little contribution to the future."
"We have to do whatever we can for a better tomorrow, right?" Haruki said. "That's why I want to write stories that inspire people."
"And that's why I want to become a great priestess someday." Jun glanced at Shiori. "What about you, Shionyan? What do you want to do?"
Shiori stared hollowly at Jun. She wanted to make this girl and this boy and all of their friends to go away , she wanted to appease Hinyu, she wanted to make sure her sister actually had a tomorrow, and she couldn't bring herself to say any of that, even if there was no longer any point in pretending! Why?
"It doesn't matter." Her lips seemed to move on their own. "I don't have a future anyway."
Everyone around her fell silent. Everyone except for Yurika, who looked genuinely haunted by Shiori's words. The way she was looking at her… it was as if Shiori was holding up a mirror to her past self.
"Futaba-san… that isn't true." Yurika said. "Your future does matter. You matter. Even if you can't believe in yourself right now, that won't change" She smiled sadly. "Trust me - I know that from experience."
Marina was looking at Shiori with pity as she held Yurika's hand, and Haruki was worried about her, and Jun was moving to comfort her, and even Kichu looked as concerned about her as he was wary. Shiori hated it. She hated them. She hated herself. She couldn't do this anymore. She-
-abruptly pulled away as Jun tried to approach her. "Don't touch me."
Jun looked like she'd been slapped in the face. "Shionyan?"
"Why do you care so much? Why do you think I need your pity?" The polite, smiling Shiori was gone. In her place was the dead-eyed doll she truly was. "We aren't even close to being friends. So why?"
"That doesn't matter!" Haruki said. "You don't need a reason to help anyone, friend or not!"
Shiori couldn't manage a response to Haruki's outburst. She simply stared uncomprehendingly at him for a moment before abruptly lunging towards Marina's roses, yanking a handful by the stems, and bolting out of the room before anyone could stop her.
She existed to protect Keiko. She existed to serve Hinyu. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else mattered!
Shiori was hunched over in the center of the botanical gardens' parterre when Haruki and Jun caught up with her. Her breathing was ragged and uneven, and there was a glazed look in her eyes. She didn't seem to notice the injured hand she'd given herself, let alone the blood dripping onto the pavement.
"Shionyan?" Jun's eyes widened in alarm as she noticed Shiori's hand. "Shionyan, you're bleeding!"
Jun started towards Shiori, who shoved the other girl away from her. Haruki hurried to Jun's side to steady her, as Shiori glared daggers at the two of them.
"Why can't you leave me alone?" Her tone was ice cold. "Don't you get it? I'm not your friend. I've despised all of you from the start." She met Haruki's eyes. "Do you still think I'm worth saving, dear hero?"
"Shiori-san… even if you hate us, you're still a person." Haruki stood firm, despite being clearly shaken by Shiori's abrupt shift in demeanor. "You still deserve to be safe and happy."
Jun nodded. "We still believe in you, Shionyan, even if you don't! So please, let us help you!"
Shiori shook her head as she backed away. "You don't know what you're saying." She felt sick. "You don't know what kind of girl I am. You don't know what I've done. You don't know what I might do."
"You're right, Futaba-san. We don't know."
And now Hiroko was here, alongside the rest of the group. Shiori's escape was all but cut off now, unless she was willing to give up on her disguise. And at this point…
"But even if I don't know much about you, I can tell you're hurting!" Hiroko continued. "And I know how important it is, to have people to turn to when it matters most."
Yasu said nothing. The way she intertwined her fingers with Hiroko's said enough.
"Damn straight!" Izumi said. "Do you think we're just gonna leave you to suffer, just 'cause you don't like us? Who the hell do you think we are?!"
Shiori just stared at Hiroko, at Izumi, at all of the people she called enemies. If they had any sense at all, they'd abandon her right there. And yet, here they were, offering to help, offering to stay, as if she wouldn't happily erase them with a snap of her fingers. Because they didn't know .
"You're idiots." Shiori removed her glasses with one trembling hand, allowing them to clatter to the ground. "You're all idiots." The ribbon tying her hair into a bun went next, allowing her long, wine-purple hair to flow in loose curls around her face. "You don't get it at all."
"Do they have to get it? They're on our side, Shiori! Isn't that enough?"
Keiko again. Poor, naive Keiko. Small wonder she'd latched onto Pretty Cure. They were alike in their childish idealism. Not like her. Shiori understood what was important. Shiori wouldn't allow herself to get distracted. She didn't want or need their support. She didn't need anything of her own!
"Shiori, that's not true, and we both know it! Quit acting like you can fool your own twin!"
"I don't deserve it. I don't deserve… any of this." Shiori hissed. "We both know that."
It wasn't fair. Shiori knew what to do when people were cruel to her. It was easy to answer venom with venom. But Shiori didn't know what to do with this unconditional kindness, let alone the hope Pretty Cure and Keiko were offering. Anger and hatred were comfortable in their familiarity. Hope? It was terrifying .
"Futaba-san… it's okay."
Hiroko was offering a hand to her. Shiori stared at it in bafflement. She should have just slapped it away. Taking that hand meant bringing Hinyu's wrath upon her and Keiko. Taking that hand meant embracing uncertainty. At least she knew what to expect as Hinyu's puppet. At least she knew how to live like this.
And yet, some tiny part of her wanted something better. As if the witch could attain a happy ending.
"Let's go together, Shiori!"
And for a moment, Shiori was almost willing to indulge that tiny part of herself. And then she noticed how Yasu couldn't seem to make eye contact with her and how something seemed to be bothering Shun.
Her stomach dropped as her mind traveled back to her last encounter with Pretty Cure. She hadn't thought much of it at the time. But now… but now…
"Fukuda-san. You saw, didn't you?"
"I did." Yasu still wasn't meeting Shiori's eyes. "But I still wanted to trust you."
Shiori hardened her gaze. "Why are you lying?" Her eyes darted from person to person as she slowly backed away from Pretty Cure. Of course it was like this. Of course they'd want her to lower her guard. It was her fault for underestimating them. "Now I understand. You're all the same. All of you are the same."
"That isn't true!" Shun said. "Everyone here wants what's best for you, Shiori!"
"Enough lying." Shiori hissed through gritted teeth. "You're here to defeat your enemy, just like I am."
"We don't want to defeat you!" Jun said. "Even if you're our enemy, I know you're a good person, Shionyan!"
"Really, Inoue-san?" Shiori smiled sweetly as the scent of roses suddenly grew thick in the air, and translucent black petals began to drift around her. "Tell me… would a good person do this?"
Shiori snapped her fingers. Screams of terror rang out around the gardens as red-black vines lashed forth from various plants around the area, ensnaring any humans unlucky enough to be too close. The sky above the gardens went gray and stormy as body after unconscious body dropped to the ground.
As people futilely tried to flee the area, red-black orbs rose from the chests of the unlucky victims, both in the immediate vicinity and from elsewhere in the gardens, drifting towards and infusing with the handful of roses that Shiori had nabbed, which began to glow more and more intensely with red-black light.
Shiori smirked as she stepped back and allowed her disguise to fall away, revealing-
Haruki's jaw dropped. "Kae?!"
No, that wasn't right, was it? The girl standing before them looked identical to Kae, but the way she carried herself was completely different. And Kae did have a sister, didn't she? A twin sister.
"So, I was right." Shun didn't sound happy about it at all. "You're Shahei, aren't you?"
Shahei didn't respond. Or rather, she couldn't respond. Her body suddenly went rigid, as her purloined bouquet dropped to the ground. She looked like she wanted to do something, or at least say something, and then her hands seemed to move of their own volition, flailing towards her head before gripping onto it-
-and twisting it all the way around to reveal Kae's terrified face. The other Asjun twin looked like she was on the verge of tears, and she was clearly fighting with all her might just to hold on like this.
"I'm sorry - I can't hold her back!" Kae had never sounded smaller or more frightened. It didn't help that Shahei was already wresting control of the body back from her. "Pretty Cure! Please stop her! Please-!"
Too late. Just like before, Kae's arm shot up on its own like that of a marionette, and her hand awkwardly clenched into a fist glowing with red-black light as the roses began to blaze with dark energy.
"Pretty Cure! Spirit Unleash!"
Pretty Cure and Shun just managed to leap out of the way of the ensuing explosion of red-black energy. When the dust cleared, they were faced with a massive botanical monstrosity - a massive, vaguely cephalopod-like Nikuina with a mass of writhing black thorny tentacles. Black rose vines, studded with deep pink buds, criss-crossed its entire body, and the stench of rotting flowers surrounded it.
Shahei, who stood atop the Nikuina, twisted her head back around as she glared at Pretty Cure.
"Now do you understand?" she asked coolly. "Now do you get it? I exist only to destroy you."
"I don't believe that." Shun said as she met Shahei's eyes. "You don't want to do this, do you?" It was idiotic, saying such things to a girl who could easily crush her. But then, Shun had always been a fool. "I'm sorry. I wish I'd known earlier. Then I could've helped you properly. Because-"
"You think we can be better, right?" Shahei's tone was flat and emotionless. "You still believe in us. Even after all that , Kasoku." She smiled hollowly. "I know. I heard all of it. I want that for Kae too."
"It applies to you too, Shahei! Why wouldn't it?" Shun shot back. "You're both just kids! You both deserve better! And I'm willing to help you, however I can! All of us are! So please, just knock this off!"
Shun was answered with a vine sharpened to a razor point, which shot towards her at a blisteringly fast speed. Genbu scooped her up in her arms and carried out out of the way before she could be skewered.
The Nikuina wasn't done. Still more vines shot towards Pretty Cure, forcing Seiryuu to slice through them, Byakko to deflect them with her shields, Suzaku to burn them away, and Ouryuu to lash them aside with her own vines. Shahei's eyes burned with hatred as she watched her opponents fight off the assault.
"I am nothing like Kae!" she snapped. "Don't assume otherwise!"
As Shun hurried to safety, the Nikuina threw everything it had into dispatching Pretty Cure with its mass of vines. Some of its hundreds of tendrils attempted to flatten and skewer its five opponents, forcing them to beat them back with sheer force or destroy them with their spirit power. Still more attempted to ensnare and trap Pretty Cure, forcing them to stay on their toes as they fought to beat down their opponent.
"Shionyan! Please listen to us!" Ouryuu pleaded as she kicked aside a vine before parrying another one with her spirit power. "We don't have to fight!"
"Shiori Futaba isn't real!" Shahei snarled. "She's a lie I created to fool you!"
Suzaku sliced through another vine with his Scarlet Sword. "Even if 'Shiori' wasn't real, your feelings are!" he said. "You can't tell me everything was a lie!"
Shahei responded by summoning her staff and firing a blast of light blue magic at Suzaku. Byakko just managed to intercept it in time, leaving Shahei's attack to bounce off the white Cure's shield and back towards her. She wasn't able to get out of the way before it grazed her shoulder, and she hissed in pain.
"Why should I tell you anything?!" Shahei asked as she held her free hand to her injured shoulder. "You were leading me into a trap!"
"We weren't trying to trick you, Shahei!" Seiryuu said as she sliced through several vines with her Azure Wings. "We wanted to help you!"
"That's right!" Genbu said as she smacked a vine aside with a spirit power-charged punch. "If we could get to you like we got to Kae, maybe we wouldn't have to fight! That was the idea!"
Shahei said nothing for a moment. She just watched Pretty Cure continue to fight, her eyes shaded by her hair. And then a hollow-sounding laugh escaped her mouth.
"Do you really want to help me, Pretty Cure?"
A broken smile.
"Then disappear ."
The rosebuds on the Nikuina's vines suddenly blossomed, and a sickeningly sweet-smelling pink mist erupted from each bloom, suffusing the air around the Nikuina. By the time Pretty Cure realized what was happening, it was far too late. The roses' fragrance was already doing its work.
It all happened so quickly. One moment, Pretty Cure was still holding their own against the Nikuina. The next moment, their heads were swimming, their limbs were growing leaden, and their movements were growing increasingly clumsy and uncoordinated.
The five of them were now sitting ducks for the Nikuina, which easily snared each of its opponents with its vines before hoisting them into the air and gradually tightening its grip on them.
Shahei's face was expressionless as she watched her Nikuina begin to squeeze the life out of her opponents. It didn't matter how she felt about it or how upset Kae was. This was necessary .
"I won't let you use my roses like that!"
A blast of violet water came shooting out from the distance and struck the Nikuina, followed by a bolt of red flame, followed by several more blasts where that came from. None of them were enough to damage the Nikuina, but they were enough to make it loosen its grip on its captives.
Seiryuu managed to smile, despite everything. "Marina-san! Yurika-san!"
Indeed, Marina Ishii and Yurika Himura had arrived. The pair were quite light on their feet for seemingly normal humans, easily managing to evade the Nikuina's many strikes as they pelted it from afar.
"Don't get in my way!" Shahei snapped. "Nikuina!"
The Nikuina sent a hail of razor-tipped vines towards Marina and Yurika-
-and Shun leapt in front of the pair of them, shield at the ready. This time, her barrier, which crackled and sparked with static electricity, managed to hold up against a prolonged assault. It was thanks to the Kirin crystal, which glowed brilliantly despite its broken state as she held it out in front of her.
"Guess I owe you one, Shun." Yurika said. "Can you hold the line for us?"
"Will I get a free tune-up out of it?" Shun's tone was light, despite the obvious strain she was feeling.
Yurika laughed dryly. "Don't press your luck." She and Marina shot forth towards the Nikuina, taking advantage of the opening Shun had given them. "Pretty Cure! Can you fight this?"
Seiryuu nodded. "We have to try!"
The five's bodies glowed with spirit power as they summoned their strength in an attempt to free themselves. And it was working bit by bit, thanks to Pretty Cure's efforts and Yurika and Marina's power. T
And then Shun's shield abruptly flickered out and died, as the exertion became too much for her. The Nikuina eagerly seized the advantage and ensnared her as well.
"Sieg-kun!" Genbu cried.
The shock of this turn of events threw off Marina and Yurika's concentration, allowing the Nikuina to easily snatch them up as well. And from there, it was free to continue squeezing the life out of its opponents.
"I'm sorry, everyone." Marina said weakly. "I got careless."
Yurika, meanwhile, looked horrified. "Please, not like this! It can't end like this!" she pleaded as she futilely struggled against the Nikuina's grip. "After everything that's happened… damn it!"
"Shiori-san, please stop!" Suzaku pleaded. "You're better than this! I know you are!"
Shahei answered him with an empty smile. "Oh, foolish hero. You , of all people, should know better."
She couldn't stop shaking as Pretty Cure's end drew near. She didn't understand why. She didn't like any of these people. She needed them to vanish. She wouldn't regret their demise at all. So why did she feel sick?
No. It wasn't just nerves or illness, Shahei realized. Kae was fighting for control of their body.
"What are you doing?!" Shahei had never pushed back against Kae this hard. "Stop it, Kae!"
"That's my line!" Kae shot back. "They weren't lying, Shahei! They're our allies! Please don't do this!" Shahei didn't respond, and that just made her fight even harder. "Why won't you listen?! I don't understand!"
Shahei tightened a fist. "Of course you don't! You never had to understand! I made sure you wouldn't!"
And that rattled Kae enough to make her stop fighting for a moment. "Shahei?"
"If I give Hinyu-sama what he wants, he might give me what I want." Shahei said darkly. "Pretty Cure's life. Your happiness. It's a fair exchange. That's how this world works, dear sister. But you don't get it. You can't get it. Because you don't know how rotten this world is. Because I kept you from it!"
"I didn't want this…" Kae was beginning to tear up. "I didn't want you to get hurt again… I didn't know… "
"Don't trouble yourself, dear sister." Shahei said. "You'll be free soon. Just like I promised."
" We'll be free!" Kae retorted. "I love you more than anyone else, Shahei! I'm not leaving you behind!"
"Don't be ridiculous. I don't have a place in this world. Not like you do" Shahei said. "I've accepted that."
"Then why are you crying, Shionyan?"
Shahei's eyes widened in shock as she met Cure Ouryuu's gaze. Despite everything, the gold Cure and her allies were still clinging to consciousness. And despite everything she told herself even now, Ouryuu was right. There were hot tears running down her face, and her chest ached horribly.
And worse, she knew why it ached. She still hadn't let go of that tiny scrap of hope. Some part of her still wanted something better, something she knew she could never have and should not have wanted.
That realization caused Shahei to let her guard down, just enough for Kae to swoop in and seize control of their body. This time, Shahei had no room to fight back. She could only watch herself aim her staff right at her own Nikuina, before a bolt of sparking violet magic leapt forth from it, hitting her creation dead-on.
The effect was instantaneous. The Nikuina's body sparked all over as Kae's magic deep-fried it from within. Its vines withered away, causing it to lose its grip on Pretty Cure and their allies, who dropped harmlessly to the ground. Kae forced Shahei to teleport off the Nikuina, which collapsed in an unmoving heap.
"Now, Pretty Cure!" Kae cried as she continued to hold Shahei in place.
"Got it!" Suzaku managed to ready the Scarlet Sword and channel his spirit power, despite his weakened of flame dancing about him and red sunflower petals swirled around him as he prepared to finish off the Nikuina. "Pretty Cure! Scarlet Inferno!"
The Nikuina burned up in a red heart-shaped explosion of spirit power, leaving nothing behind but the ruined remains of Marina's roses, as the color returned to the sky. Pretty Cure crumpled to their knees and lost their transformations as their allies hurried to assist them.
Shahei took it all in with dead eyes. She had failed once more. She had lost any advantage she'd had. And she had allowed Pretty Cure to get into her head. Had taking Kae away not been enough for them?
"Shahei… let's end this now." Kae said gently. "It'll be okay, I promise."
Shahei simply made a derisive noise under her breath as she tore her eyes away from her opponents.
"I'm not settling anything. Not with them and not with you . "
And then she was gone, vanishing in a burst of light blue sparkles before anyone could stop her.
There was no salvaging the mood afterward. Not after everything that had happened. Not after how poorly Pretty Cure's attempt to reach out to Shiori had gone. Not after what they had learned about the twins. And not knowing what kind of situation those two had gone back to and would stay in, if nothing was done.
Yurika and Marina were long gone. They needed to speak to Rie and Kimiko about everything that had happened today and make sure Marina's roses were unharmed. That had been the official explanation. But nobody in the group had missed how shaken Yurika still was or how tense Marina looked.
Yasu, meanwhile, had gone off on her own, sketchbook in hand. When Hiroko caught up with her girlfriend, she was sitting on a bench in the English garden, half-heartedly drawing a nearby rose-covered lattice. She didn't look up until Hiroko laid a hand over hers.
"Yasu… it wasn't your fault."
Yasu hesitantly met Hiroko's eyes. What she was saying was true. Intellectually, Yasu knew this. But…
"Hiroko… I wish I could make myself believe that."
Hiroko said nothing in response. She simply cuddled closer to Yasu, who abandoned her sketchbook and held her partner close. Nothing else needed to be said right now. Nothing else really could .
Izumi and Shun, meanwhile, had retreated to the lakeside garden. Shun laid across one of the park benches, resting her head on her girlfriend's lap. The sunlight dancing on the water of the lake, the gardens' duck population going about their business, Izumi gently running her fingers through her hair... normally, she'd find all of this incredibly relaxing. But right now, she was in no state to relax properly.
"Hey, Sieg-kun..." Izumi said quietly. "We'll be able to help those two, right?"
"I really hope so." Shun sighed. "I wish I could borrow Hiroko's optimism right about now."
It was just one wish of many at present. She wished she could have fought alongside Izumi in earnest. She wished her shield hadn't given out when it had. She wished she'd know about the twins' true nature, which, in hindsight, had been staring her in the face. She wished she'd been able to reach Shahei properly.
But sitting back and wishing for something would accomplish nothing. Only action mattered. If only Shun knew what to actually do here. If only she could have done more.
Jun was the only member of the group that didn't seem to be in low spirits. She laughed, she smiled, she eagerly chatted with Haruki as she dragged him to the parts of the botanical gardens the pair had yet to see. She kept this up, until it became too much for him, and he finally stopped her.
"Hey, Jun… it's okay. You don't have to force yourself."
"Sorry, Harunyan." Jun said. "I just wanted to cheer you up. I don't like seeing you like this."
"Chuu…" agreed Kichu, who was perched on Jun's shoulder.
"I don't know if I can. Not right now." Haruki said. "Not when you're hurting too. And not…" A bit of strain crept into his voice. "I didn't know how much Shiori-san was hurting. I didn't know at all."
"None of us did, Harunyan." Jun said. "But now that we do know, we can do something for those two!" She really was forcing herself right now, and it showed. "We have to look at it like that, right?"
Kichu couldn't quite match Jun's enthusiasm. "Chuu… chu chu…"
"Yeah… I'm worried too. This is a lot worse than I thought." Haruki told Kichu. "But I can't give up on either of the twins. It's not what a hero does." He shook his head. "No… it's not what a friend does."
His gaze drifted up to the sky as he felt Jun take his hand in his. The twins were somewhere out there, under another world's sky. Somewhere none of them could reach. Not right now.
Shahei… Kae… please be okay, wherever you are.
When Kae came to, she was lying on the floor in the middle of the Trio's flat. Her head felt like it was going to crack open like an egg, and her eyes kept wanting to see two of everything. The air around her smelled burnt and vaguely sulfuric, and while she couldn't see much from her vantage point on the floor, what she could make out was in complete disarray, as if an earthquake had ripped through the place.
Kae couldn't remember what had happened between Shahei's ill-fated fight with Pretty Cure and her waking up here. Not clearly, anyway. She remembered Shahei dragging her back home in grim silence. She remembered feeling overwhelmed by her sister's bitter rage. She remembered thinking what now?
It was all a blank void from there. Try as she might, she couldn't remember a thing.
Try as she might, she couldn't feel Shahei either, Kae realized as she returned to consciousness. Her sister had always been there before. Even when Shahei was asleep, Kae could at least sense her. But now?
"Shahei, wait!"
It hit her like a leaden weight. She'd tried to stop her. She'd just needed a little more time, while they navigated the fallout of… of everything that had happened lately. But Shahei… Shahei hadn't listened.
"Why do you protest, dear sister? Didn't you want this?"
She remembered feeling the magic the pair had infused into their circle going wild. She remembered feeling pain hundreds of times more agonizing than their encounter with Kichu had been. She remembered the feeling of being torn apart at the seams. She remembered wondering if they'd come out of this alive.
"Welcome back to the land of the living, dear sister. I thought you'd be out forever."
Kae forced herself to stand up, forced herself to face her sister - and felt her blood freeze in her veins.
It was surreal to see Shahei standing across the room from her. It felt strange and uncomfortable to be truly alone with her thoughts, to know that the special link she and Shahei had shared was severed for good. But Kae could have learned to live with that in time. She had told herself that from the beginning.
But she couldn't live with the sight of Hinyu standing next to Shahei, with an arm placed around Shahei's shoulders. Hinyu who had no right to even breathe in her sister's direction after what he'd done!
"DON'T TOUCH HER, YOU BASTARD!"
Kae's hands sparked with violet spirit power as she launched herself towards Hinyu - and was intercepted by Shahei, who aimed her magic staff right at her own sister's heart.
"Please stand down." Shahei had never sounded so unsettlingly polite. "I'd hate to dirty my hands."
"Shahei?" Kae stared in confusion at her sister, who did not waver at all. "Why?"
"Is it not obvious?" Shahei pressed her staff to Kae's chest. "I have no more use for you." She calmly looked into her sister's shocked and hurt eyes. "You should discard what you don't need. Right, Kae?"
"This isn't you, Shahei." Kae's eyes welled with tears as she met Shahei's gaze. "This isn't you at all!"
But Shahei did not budge, and something told Kae her sister wasn't bluffing. As for Hinyu… he was certainly looking at Kae, just like she had once wanted. But it was the same way one might look at trash lying on the roadside. She was nothing to him, just as Shahei was surely nothing to him. She should have done something, said something.
And yet… and yet she was stuck shakily backing away from Shahei, who smiled approvingly before going to the side of the man who'd hurt her, the man who could and likely would break her once she lost her novelty. Because he could easily break her too.
"Let's go, Hinyu-sama." Shahei's gaze was as hollow as her tone was cheerful. Hinyu did not seem to notice or care. "There's so much that needs doing, isn't there?"
Hinyu was saying something to Shahei. Kae couldn't hear it. She couldn't hear anything past the beating of her own heart (a heart she had once shared with a girl she'd failed horribly) and the blood rushing into her head (which felt so very empty and so terribly lonely without her sister's constant presence).
This wasn't real. This couldn't be happening. This had to be a dream. Just a terrible nightmare she'd wake up from at any moment.
But it wasn't. This was real . Her sister was about to walk out of her life, alongside the monster she'd once devoted herself to. She was about to lose the person most important to her, all because she'd been that desperate for an adult to love them, to actually need them, just this once . And she didn't know what to do.
Shahei said nothing as she watched her sister sink to the floor in despair. She did nothing. She felt nothing. This was what she wanted, after all. This was the best possible outcome.
And in the end, the sad little girl was set free. She was no longer the witch's prisoner. She could follow whatever path she wanted to take for however long she pleased, alongside the new friends she had made. Perhaps she would even find a family of her own one day, a new family to finally fill that void in her heart.
And the witch? She simply remained as she was. Wicked and heartless to the core. And one day that wickedness of hers would be her undoing. There would be no saving her in the end.
And there would be no tragedy in that. No tragedy at all. It's simply the way these stories go.