"How many times has this mercenary chick switched allegiances so far?" Kyoko asked Archer.
"Twice I believe," he replied.
"Nuh huh," Felicia said as she led them to the Uwasa's supposed location, "I was working on another job before I met all of ya. So that makes it three!"
"That doesn't make it better!" Kyoko shouted.
"I'm just glad we didn't have to fight you," Iroha commented.
"Well… I gotta protect Mister Cow," Felicia replied.
How Iroha convinced Felicia to work with them again after convincing the mercenary that something bad would happen to her stuffed animal if they didn't deal with the rumor, Kyoko didn't know. Apparently pink haired girls in general were really good at talking with people.
Sometimes, when you have nothing left, you're prone to making brash decisions, Archer told her.
Are you defending her?
Just stating a fact. I've seen it plenty of times.
Eventually they passed the school grounds of a place called Sankyoin academy and arrived at an entrance to some underground sewers.
"Well, this is about as cliché as you can get," the genre savvy Kyoko commented.
"Sewers are labyrinthian in nature and people tend to avoid going down them," Yachiyo explained. "It makes them good places to hide."
"Are we going to talk or are we going to fight some rumors!" Felicia shouted at them.
"Quiet," Archer hissed. "If we start making loud noises, they will know that we're here."
"We should be as discreet as possible," Yachiyo said as she led them inside. The tunnels were dark, damp, and smelly. Perfect place to be hiding something important. "We don't have time to waste fighting the people that are protecting the Rumor."
"Alright!" Tsuruno whispered, though it was hardly much of a whisper considering the default volume of her voice. Seriously how was a whisper so frustratingly loud yet technically within reason for a stealth mission? "Time for the mightiest to go stealth mode!"
And then the cloud of bats came.
"Aaaaaaaaaah! Don't come near me!" Iroha let out a girly shriek.
"Hey, c'mon, don't freak out so much over a stupid little bat! We need to be quiet!" Felicia started shouting.
"Waaaaaah!" Tsuruno let out an even girlier shriek. "It hit my face!"
"Calm down. You have worse things living in your restaurant," Yachiyo replied calmly.
"Yachiyo! You're the worst!"
"Kyaaaaaah!"
"This is what I get for working with children," Archer said as he pinched his brow in frustration with one hand and got a blade ready with the other.
"Hey, I wanted to just go about this with just the two of us," Kyoko reminded him as she took out her spear.
"Like you're any better!"
"Who's there!?"
"Aaah! They found us!"
"Of course they found us! You're all so damn loud!"
"Kettle calling the pot black, Kyoko!"
"Quick into mighty battle formations!"
"What the hell are mighty battle formations?"
"Yachiyo!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Who are you?" Archer decided to ask one of the hooded Magical Girls that approached them. Alongside the Magical Girls were two shadowy figures. It was difficult to mistake what they were with the information that they had been given. "And why do you have of Shadow Servants with you?"
"Shadow Servants?" Yachiyo asked.
"Ah the rumored Magi," one of them replied. "These, Shadow Servants as you call them are our soldiers."
"You know about us?" Kyoko asked.
"Yes… we've heard rumors of you and we wish to avoid a conflict."
"Who are you?"
"We are the Wings of the Magius."
"Wings of the Magius?" Kyoko asked. "What you also got Magi in your group?"
"A few though our ranks consist mostly of Magical Girls. We serve the Magius and our organization acts as their wings so that they can achieve their goals."
Why is there always a cult when there's Magic or Religion involved? Archer asked.
"We are the Black Feathers, as designated by our robes," the hooded girl continued.
"And what's your goal?" Yachiyo asked.
"To save all Magical Girls. Our mission is to free all Magical Girls from their curse."
Kyoko froze. "Like free them from their Contracts?" she asked.
"I… can't say."
"Then how does protecting Rumors achieve this?" Yachiyo asked.
"…"
Another piece of paper fell.
1:00
"Now they're counting by minutes," Kyoko grumbled before turning back to the Black Feather. "You have anything else or are you just stalling for time?"
Kyoko only received silence. She then replied back with a Flame Step followed by a swing of her spear. "Cmon! They don't know anything else!"
The other Black Feathers immediately jumped at Kyoko, chains and scythes coming out of the sleeves of their robes. The pair of Shadow Servants likewise brandished their own set of knives and swords.
Koko shot a ball of fire at one of them and then began exchanging blows with another. The rest of Black Feathers were then intercepted by the rest of her group.
"Don't kill the Magical Girls. Just knock them out or cripple them," Yachiyo shouted.
"Act as support!" Archer commanded Kyoko as he rushed forward, now donning his iconic Red and Black armor. He crippled a pair of Black Feathers with a single sweep of his twin blades and started trading blows with the two Shadow Servants. "You can't take the same hits we can!"
"Fine!" Kyoko replied as she took a step back and let the Magical Girls and Servant take the brunt of the fighting.
"Wow! He's awesome and he can transform too!" Tsuruno shouted as she pointed a pair of twin fans and shot out a steady stream of flames at their enemy. "Your dad is like a-"
"Oh, please not again," Archer pleaded.
"Magical Boy!"
"No!" Archer shouted as he threw his blades, beheading a Shadow Servant and crippling a Black Feather. Yachiyo then rushed to his front, covering him and giving him enough room to start using his bow. "Do not call me that!" he demanded.
Kyoko was definitely going to call him that. In the future. If they got out alive.
Manipulating the fire created by Tsuruno, Kyoko added her own flames to it and shot it forward with rather explosive results. A good portion of the Black Feathers were sent flying with a new collection of burns and missing limbs. She then made a gun sign with her left hand and pointed it at the few that remained standing.
"Gandr."
A curse rune that drained physical health, straight from a surprisingly cool chick she had seen in Archer's memories. Took a bit before she finally got it down, but it had its uses. It was a relatively inexpensive spell and she could make up for her lack of precision with rapidly firing a bunch of them at whoever happened to be within eyesight.
It sucked being relegated to support, but it wasn't like she wasn't used to it whenever she had to fight with Archer. It was the reason why she had liked hunting alone back in Kazamino, to finally get some action up close.
"You got a lot of tricks!" Tsuruno shouted as she jumped forward and used her fans to spar a Black Feather. Sparks flew as their weapons connected.
"Magi have to be prepared!" Kyoko shouted as she continued shooting Gandr. In reality though she had already used up most of her ranged tools. Reinforcement was being relegated for repositioning and her Illusions, which were often used to mislead or hide the angle of her attacks, could only work if she was within spear swinging range of her enemy.
She couldn't mess with the battlefield or create clones of herself like she could in the past, not that she particularly missed it considering where that particular power had come from. Still, her experiences from that time gave her a very personal awareness of what she should be aiming for.
Body shots weren't effective. Granted it took Magic to heal wounds, but Magical Girls didn't really bleed out or mind losing an internal organ or two so they could ignore those in the middle of a fight. Generally, your best bet was to aim for the limbs in order to cripple them and slow their movement. It wasn't fatal either, they could always reattach the limb or have a healer grow them a new one, but it was enough to put them out of commission.
The Shadow Servants though were another issue, being significantly stronger and tougher than the average Black Feather. Thankfully, lethal force was allowed against them. Something that Felicia took advantage of when the hammer she held suddenly become three sizes larger and she slammed it down on the Shadow Servant that Archer had disarmed and kicked away. What was left was essentially just a black smear in a freshly made crater.
Turns out Mercenary Girl wasn't all just talk. Her swings were reckless, and you had to give her a very wide berth anytime she swung, but damn if that thing didn't hit hard.
"We're clear!" Archer shouted as he grabbed a Black Feather's arm midswing and then slammed her head into a wall. "Move forward!"
"Cmon old man, we at least got an hour left! Plenty of time!" Felicia shouted, though she still chased after him.
"Will they be ok?" Iroha asked as they ran by a few Black Feathers that had been on the business end of a giant hammer.
"Yea. They'll probably just forget how they got here," Felicia replied.
"Memory Manipulation?" Archer asked.
"I just use my hammers to POW some memories as they're fighting. A lot easier to hit someone when they don't remember that you're going to hit them again!"
Well, that was certainly effective. Mind manipulating magic in general was incredibly dangerous, even against Magical Girls and Servants. Thank the Root its user in this case was… well dumb.
They continued running until they exited the tunnel and arrived at a circular area of the sewer, the remaining light from the setting sun streaming from a hole above. In the back of the area, in front of the only other exit out of the place, stood two figures hooded in white.
"Five hundred yen they call themselves White Feathers," Kyoko commented.
"They said that they only have an hour left, right?" one of the White Feather's began speaking.
"I heard them. They said they only have an hour," the other said.
"Right?"
"But that has nothing to do with us. After all, we'll have to stop them here."
"Please just succumb to misery and undergo hardships for us."
"Right?"
"What is your goal?" Archer asked. "How do you plan to achieve this… dream of yours."
"It is the dream of all Magius and Magical Girls. To finally be saved from our fate."
"Right?"
"But I guess that doesn't matter much to a Master and a Servant."
"Right?"
So, they knew that Archer was a Servant. Not a big surprise at this point, tough that didn't really bode well at all for them.
"Magus and her Servant," Iroha looked between Kyoko and Archer. "He's your Servant? Does that mean he works for you?"
"No. He isn't even human. Is he?" a White Feather teased.
"A spirit of legend of summoned called upon through time and space," the other answered.
"To serve."
"To fight."
"To kill."
"To die."
"Right?"
"Right?"
"Ignore them," Yachiyo said though she glanced briefly at Archer's form. "We don't need to listen to anyone that have to keep themselves concealed."
"But. We are not like the other Black Feathers," a White feather replied. we are perfectly happy to reveal ourselves."
"Right?""
They threw off their white robes and-
"Root damn it, of course it had to be a pair of creepy twins," Kyoko said in disbelief. "What's next? Putting us in a room of deathtraps we need to escape from?"
"That's an interesting thought isn't it, Tsukasa?"
"It is, Tsukuyo."
"Stop giving them ideas Kyoko!" Tsuruno shouted.
"I'm not and they're creepy anyway!" Kyoko shouted. "Whatever. let's just beat them up. Clearly the Rumor they're protecting is right behind them."
"We have said that we have no choice but to stop you," Tsukasa said.
"Oh yea! You and what army!?" Felicia shouted.
Felicia was answered by five shadow servants that came from above and a large group of Black Feather that streamed from the tunnel behind the twins.
"Felicia," Yachiyo said.
"Yes Yachiyo?" Felicia asked.
"You are no longer allowed to speak."
"Agreed," Archer replied as they were charged at by the veritable army of Magical Girls and Shadow Servants.
Yuma continued to stare out the window of the classroom she had been left in. It had only been a few hours since Kyoko and Archer left and yet she already wanted them to come back. She was nothing without them… actually, what good was she with them? What else did she do apart drinking that water and getting them into this trouble in the first place?
Getting her and Kyoko cursed just because she was thirsty.
No… she wasn't useful at all.
Her hand caressed the hilt of the weapon that she kept hidden in her bag. Rule Breaker… she knew how it was supposed to be used. But if that situation ever came, was there anything that she could do?
Kyoko would always tell her that she was useful, that she was needed, but that was only because of one thing. Because Yuma could act as a little sister, a replacement. She knew it ever since the first night that she and Kyoko slept together. The night when Kyoko grabbed her onto her in her sleep and called out Momo's name.
Yuma was always meant to replace someone. Her asking Archer about Momo's identity was just confirming that. At first it was a small price to pay for a warm bed and food. If it meant living in a home with people that didn't try to beat her every other day. That was why she had been fine with playing her role and putting on the act.
But then something changed.
She was always grateful for their care, even knowing the reason behind it, but then she began to want more. She wanted more than just being a replacement. But being herself wasn't good enough. It wasn't good enough for Kyoko, it wasn't good enough for Archer, and it definitely wasn't good enough for Yuma Emiya. If she even deserved to be called an Emiya.
"Don't worry Yumi. They'll be back soon once they get rid of this curse on you and your Sis," Emiri said cheerfully as she patted Yuma's back.
"It's not me that I'm worried about," Yuma replied.
"Archery's strong! I'm sure he can handle it."
"Anyone can die… it doesn't matter if you're strong or not."
"Oh no, Archery's been putting his lectures in your head. Hasn't he?"
"He has a lot of practical advice," Hinano replied. She was a Magical Girl that was only a bit taller than Yuma was despite being eighteen and less than a year away from attending college. "Wouldn't kill you to listen. Would mean less trouble for me in the long run."
"He can learn to lighten up a little though! Like have you ever seen the guy smile? He should smile, I'd bet he'd look great."
Actually, now that she thought about it, Yuma had never seen Archer smile either. And she lived him for months now. Did Kyoko ever see him smile?
"He definitely won't smile for you," Hinano commented. "Or anyone we know for that matter."
"You're just mad because he rejected you."
If Yuma had been drinking something, she would've spit it out all over window. "What!?" she shouted as she swerved her head toward Hinano.
"Do you really have to bring that up in front of her!?" Hinano shouted as she gestured to Yuma. "And that was before I knew he had his own kids to take care of."
The diminutive Magical Girl crossed her arms and looked away. "Besides that, there's nothing wrong with me asking him out. I'm an adult… at least in most Western countries."
"Is it strange that you're not an adult in Japan until you're twenty and yet the age for consent and marriage are much lower?" Emiri pondered.
"Don't get any ideas Emiri, you're still thirteen."
"W-why would you ask him out?" Yuma asked with wide eyes.
"Because he's mature… and he actually treats me with respect unlike some people," Hinano replied as she glared at Emiri. "He treated me like the mature woman that I am rather than a kid, so I wanted to get to know him better." She turned back to Yuma. "I'm sorry I asked. I didn't want to try and take him away from you and your Sister."
"You're probably just not his type," Emiri teased. "Too bad for him. He can't appreciate your cuteness, and I'm sure that there are people can."
"Shut up," Hinano grumbled. "One day I'll get a proper boyfriend that will treat me like an adult."
"I don't think it matters for Archer anyway," Yuma said. "He always says no when someone asks him out… it doesn't matter who asks." And boy were there a lot of people interested in his looks on the street.
"Is he not interested in women?" Hinano asked.
"Oh!" Emiri put a fist to her hand. "I bet he's gay!"
Yuma shook her head. "He's not gay either. He loved a girl… but apparently he couldn't be with her."
"Unrequited love?" Hinano sighed. "I get that."
"Then he just has to keep trying!" Emiri said. "If it's true love then he's gotta work for it and never give up!"
"No, he can never be with her," Yuma explained. "It's impossible now… she isn't even here anymore I think." At least that was what she had assumed from what vague remarks Kyoko could gave her about Archer's past. Archer on the other hand was a complete stone wall when it came to such topics.
"Oh…," Hinano shook her head. "I've gotta apologize to him later. Don't need to add my love problems to his."
"I guess we can't force him into a relationship then… but that's surprisingly romantic though," Emiri mused. "For his heart to be so loyal to someone even after they've passed on. Nut maybe they'd want him to move on to."
"Archer and Kyoko, I think they're all stuck in the past," Yuma commented.
They both pined for something that they had lost, something that they would never be able to get back. Yuma on the other hand… she just wanted something that she never had in the first place. The question was whether or not she deserved it.
"I want to be better for them. So that they can move on," Yuma gripped her sleeves, "But I'm weak and stupid. I can't understand Archer's lessons even though so slowed down for. Even in school… I work so hard and I'm barely passing. I'm trying so hard to become a Magus like Kyoko wanted… but it's impossible."
Hinano stared at Yuma pensively before grabbing a chair and dragging it to a nearby cupboard. She then used the chair as a stepstool so she could reach a cabinet and unlock with her key. Inside were a bunch of empty glass vials and beakers which she began to take out and put onto the table in front of Yuma. Hinano then kneeled down in front of another cupboard and took out a bunch of different colored liquids in a variety of containers. She arranged them on the table creating a veritable rainbow of assorted chemicals.
"When I was your age, I was a clumsy Magical Girl," Hinano told her as she put on a pair of goggles. I actually had to become when because of accident I caused. Wished to not be killed by the poisonous fumes and fire that I created."
Yuma eyed the large variety of colorful vials on Hinano's desk and arms. She did her best to discreetly angle herself towards the doorway.
"You don't have to run, I got a handle on all this now," Hinano reassured her as she began to meticulously arrange the chemicals on her desk. "What I'm saying is that I wasn't always competent. Back then I never imagined I'd be leader of the chemistry club or in charge of teaching science to the elementary school kids here, but here I am."
Hinano took out an empty vial and began pouring a several liquids into it. Yellow fused with green to make blue. Then a bit of red to make purple. Then some brown to muddy it all up.
"What I'm saying you can't predict how your life will turn out. Things might seem bad now, but there's also a good chance that it'll get better. That you'll be better."
Yuma grabbed her hands and looked down. "I just… feel like such a burden."
"Kids are supposed to be burdens," Hinano replied curtly as the mixture became black. She then added several clear liquids into it. "You know how much trouble Emiri causes on a regular basis?"
"Heh, heh," Emiri winked without an ounce of guilt. "Well, you're always so reliable Senpai."
"And you need to stop making me worry," Hinano grumbled before turning back to Yuma. "Emiri is a few years older than you are and she still needs help. I needed a lot of help few years ago myself. Still do. So don't worry about being a burden, let your family take care of you. That's what they're there for."
The black mixture was then boiled down and turned into some thick gloopy substance before a considerable amount of water was added to it.
"But how can I repay Kyoko and Archer?" Yuma asked. "For dealing with me?"
"Once you've grown up, live your own life. Or even take on your own little brat to raise. Any parent will be proud to say their kids grown up and taking care of their own." Hinano filled the vial with ice, transferred some of it to a cup, and then offered it to Yuma. "Here. Drink this."
"Uh… what?"
"Just drink, it's safe."
"I d-don't think I should."
Hinano took the glass and immediately gulped it down. "See perfectly safe." She brought out another cup and filled it. "Now drink."
"Okay…" Yuma grabbed her cup. She stared into it, muttered a prayer to herself, and then tentatively took a sip. Her eyes went wide as the liquid hit her tongue. "Its-"
"Cola was an accident," Hinano explained as she handed another vial to Emiri. "What was intended to be medicine became one of the most popular drinks in the world. Your family might have certain expectations of you and if you want to follow them go for it, but it's perfectly fine if you become something different from that. You might turn out even better that way."
Not become a Magus? But that was the first and only future that Kyoko had given her. If she couldn't be a Magus… then there was only one other alternative she could think of.
To become a Magical Girl.
It would mean disobeying Kyoko and Archer. It would mean that the promises she had made to the two of them would become lies. She would be a bad girl and they might actually hate her for that. But if that hatred meant that she could be there for them when it mattered, that she wouldn't just be another replacement for Momo…
But wait, Momo had become a Magical Girl before she died. Wasn't Yuma just doing the same?
Yuma looked at Hinano and Emiri carefully. "What's being a Magical Girl like?"
"Emiri don't encourage her to make a wish like you did Rika," Hinano said.
"I know I learned my lesson," Emiri replied.
"Good."
"Is it really that bad?" Yuma asked. "To be a Magical Girl? Kyoko and Archer said it is but they're the only one I talked to about this."
"It depends," Hinano replied. "I don't mind my wish to survive, but there are plenty of Girls that do regret theirs. And many more that can't handle the responsibility of hunting Witches. A wish should never be wasted, but its fine if it's never used in the first place."
Hinano put her arms on the table. "Your family is important, but a wish like that, just for the sake of helping them. It doesn't sound like something that any of you would be satisfied in the end."
"But they're all that I have," Yuma shuddered in her seat. "I can't lose them. Before Kyoko and Archer, I had nothing. All my Mama and Papa did was act like I wasn't there or hurt me when they did."
Hinano squinted her eyes. "Your parents beat you?"
"I didn't love them. They hurt me. And then they were killed by a Witch. And then Kyoko saved me. Then she gave me food, bed, and a home. So, I have to do something for her."
Hinano looked at her pitifully before sighing. "Have you talked to your family about this? The ones that actually care for you?"
"They won't like it."
"If not about being a Magical Girl, then just about how you're feeling in general. They won't be able to help if you don't talk to them. And if you take too long to do that, then you'll probably end up doing something that you'll all regret."
Regret…
Yuma would regret everything if she let her family die because she did nothing. She would have nothing once they were all gone. And if she had nothing, then she'd be better off dying to that Witch that killed her parents.