A meeting of minds.
[ACSRS: Old Feelings]
Joule dropped her bag on one of the chairs as she entered the Judgement office.
Saten was lying on one of the sofas, Kuroko looked half-dead in her wheelchair and Uiharu was typing away at the computer.
"What's going on?"
"Hey Joule." Saten spoke from the sofa "We're thinking."
"About?" Joule tried.
"Yesterday." Uiharu noted as she typed "Saten's been throwing magical concepts at us all morning."
"I'm not sure which ones really work." Saten notes and Joule sees the phone in her hand move as she spoke "So I'm just looking up all of them."
"And Kuroko?"
"Missing my sis." The teleporter muttered quietly. Joule looked to the others for an explanation.
"Misaka didn't show up this morning." Saten explained "And Kuroko seems to be going through... withdrawal?"
...Kuroko was strange. Joule wasn't just realising that, she'd known it for a while, but it still stood out. But, did she say Misaka was missing?
Memories of her call with Mental Out floated into Joule's head and she had to ask to clarify.
"Yeah," Saten confirmed "she sent us a message that she'd be late. Kongou passed along that one of her friends said something that confused her and she was probably looking into it."
Well. That didn't sound good. Had Misaka somehow caught on to that thing that Misaki was hinting about?
Joule glanced at the clock on the wall, it was less than an hour now to when she'd said she was going to come find her.
Uiharu looked the same way and noticed the time "Shirai, the patrol?"
Kuroko followed her gaze and nodded half-heartedly "It is the right time."
Saten wanted to come too and Joule wasn't about to get left behind so they all set off together.
[ACSRS: Gentle Feelings]
"Are you sure she's okay?" Saten asked as Uiharu pushed Kuroko's wheelchair down the path.
Uiharu nodded slightly "She's just facing the fact that she doesn't know how long it will be until she sees Misaka again."
"Five days." Kuroko mutters "At worst."
Uiharu nods, corrected "She knows that at worst there are five days until then."
"Question," Joule began "I thought you were fine with crutches now?"
Kuroko sighs "In some areas? Yes. In others, the wheelchair is still safer. Thankfully I'll be out of it in a day or two."
Joule nodded and Kuroko looked forward. Her gaze focused.
"Uiharu, are you sure we're going the right way? This street isn't on our patrol route."
A nameless fear gripped Joule.
[ACSRT: Memory Manipulation]
"What do you mean?" Uiharu asked "I remember that this was-"
Kuroko passed her phone "Check the map."
"Oh, you're right."
Joule took a step away and whispered "Lumen?"
"Yeah." Her friend confirmed "I think so."
"Honestly, if you're going to tell someone they're wrong about something, you should at least be certain about it yourself." Kuroko criticised.
"It wasn't her fault." Joule said quietly. The others looked at her and saw her expression. In a moment, Kuroko pulled out a set of crutches to stand and Uiharu stepped to the side, looking out.
"Sorry to bother you..." A male voice came from behind them. Joule turned sharply along with her friends to see the man who had walked up. Blond and in a suit, Joule didn't recognise him. As they looked the man continued, apparently ignorant of their moment of panic "I noticed the armband, are you with judgement?"
"Yes, that's right?" Uiharu spoke, her guard dropping a tiny bit.
"I'm not from around her," The man explained "I only came to see the festival and I just got robbed over there." The man gestures behind him.
Uiharu blinked "That's awful." she went over to offer help and in that moment everyone's attention was focused.
"Turns out taking the wrong route was a good thing after all." Saten notes quietly.
Kuroko frowns, not answering and thanks to that she heard the small sounds of a few footsteps. She turned just as a girl left the alley behind them.
Joule followed her friend's gaze and saw Misaki just as she pressed a button on her remote.
They all froze in place.
"JOULE!" Lumen yelled and she felt a tearing and a pain in her head.
"Sorry, sorry." Misaki apologized and with another button push the pain vanished and she was able to move again.
Joule formed a link with Kuroko quickly.
"Are you okay?"
"I can't move." Kuroko noted, her fear clear but Joule's contact seemed to offer some alleviation from that.
Joule looked at the level 5 telepath. Said telepath was focusing on the others, thinking. Before anything else, Misaki asked "So, Joule. Thoughts on my earlier offer?"
"What does she mean?" Kuroko asked via the link "You've spoken to her?"
Joule hesitated and asked "What are the two paths, now that it isn't over the phone, can you explain what it is you actually want from me?"
"You're bargaining with her?" Kuroko asked, fear growing.
Joule shuddered "I think it might be one of the only reasons I'm free to act currently."
Kuroko was silent for a moment before replying "Good. Learn what you can and hold onto it."
"You good?" Misaki asked. Joule looked to her grin and waited.
Misaki nodded a clicked another button "Everyone into this alley please, I'd rather not be noticed."
Like puppets, Joule's friends followed her into the alley she had come out of. Joule followed her too, not about to leave her friends undefended. The man came up behind, apparently acting as a lookout.
Inside the alley was... an armchair?
"I needed somewhere comfortable to wait." Misaki notes as she sat down in it and left the others to stand. She smiled at Joule in a way that seemed to be her trying to keep them all calm.
Before she began talking she pressed another button and all of the friends covered their ears and closed their eyes. Kuroko's fear grew again but Joule kept her steady.
"Two paths." Misaki nodded "First path, you betray Railgun. You install a backdoor into her mind that I could use. I know she trusts you enough to let you past her EM barrier."
"Why, what exactly would you do?" Joule asked.
Misaki shrugged "Mess with her memories a bit. Hide what she knows about the Sisters for the rest of the festival and makes her want to stay with you or my clique during that time. It would keep her out of danger."
"And the second?" Joule asked and Misaki gave her a pitying smile.
"I rewrite all of your memories, removing your memories of Railgun entirely. I know you can recover your own memories though so I'd likely need to place some kind of limit on you for that time. After that I would have my clique keep an eye on Railgun for the next few days. It keeps her away from the trouble and keeps her focus on me so she doesn't look into the trouble."
Both options "Worked" as far as Joule could tell but neither of them were nice.
"You'll allow us to keep our memories if I take the first?"
Misaki waved a hand around in a so-so manner as she answered "You? Yes. The others? They won't remember this meeting but they'll remember your friendship."
"Lumen?" Joule asked quietly in her mind.
Her ally hesitated "I don't know if she really could seal me but I'm worried about the possibility."
It might be something like death for her if she were to stop existing for a few days. What if she was never able to form again?
"Can you tell me what's actually happening?"
"Better you not know." Misaki answered but Joule was focused.
"How will Misaka make it worse?"
"She's at the core of the enemy's plan." Misaki offered "Best to keep her away and out of his hands."
Joule nodded. She understand that logic at least. Yet still, there was something she still needed to ask.
[ACSRT: I Cannot Hold My Anger Any Longer]
"Is there another way?" Joule asked "A way that we could help?"
Misaki blinked "I thought I told you that it was dangerous?"
Joule nodded "But it's involved with the sisters. Even if Misaka doesn't help, as you've said it would be a problem, can we help?"
The telepath took a moment to process what Joule had said before she focused "Are you sure? Do you know what could happen?"
Taking a breath, Joule noted "Misaka will find out about this after the fact, If something horrible ends up happening to the sisters and we could have helped prevent it, I'll feel guilt. Even if it's only me, let me help."
Misaki smiled "So option 1?"
Joule hesitated one last time before she made her decision.
"Yes."
End of chapter.
And the plotline for this arc is thrown from it's tracks. I really hope I'm skilled enough to write this properly.
On Joule's choice;
As far as she knows, Misaka getting involved will somehow only make it worse. She doesn't like Misaki but is taking what she's saying as the truth. She wants to keep her friends safe but as she noted, she doesn't like the idea of "Not helping" might hurt the sisters (Who she sees as similar to herself)
Thus the only option left; Keep Misaka safe and out of danger and help stop the villain alongside Misaki.