Roran is based on a real-life medieval knight, Roland. Check out dmellaofficial and Nuaibira on DA for their versions of the girls!
This story is so big that I might just shelf the others, BUT there is a story I plan to release on the 15th anniversary of first discovering the Pretty Cure series.
10 May
Caw, caw! Caw, caw!
Raj ignored the wandering crow until it flew in his direction, leaving a feather behind. He kept on crossing the bridge; the water had been gone for decades, leaving lily pads on the ground that were withering. The huge fortress that overlooked the city was decaying as well, with its few roofs and walls missing. The tall fortress, in its prime, displayed black roofs and crane-like white walls. But today it was peeling off, and the building was slowly degrading. Although it had been over five hundred years since O-Yama took over the village, it was his first win against the Pretty Cure, and he was proud to keep it as a trophy. Raj climbed the huge steps and entered the building; the door was widely opened for the king's minions to enter. But if the door was closed, they were told not to interrupt.
As he approached the throne, the crow came to a halt and settled on the armrest inside the huge castle, which appeared to be a throne. Skulls were scattered around the armrest, some still covered in blood. Raj heard a chewing sound and noticed a pale hand illuminating the light overhead, grasping another hand that appeared to be rotting. When he got closer, he felt something strange beneath his feet. As he peered down, his feet were halfway down a scarlet red carpet, which appeared to finish at his lord's feet. As he got closer, the light began to shine on more of his lord's body parts: his feet first, then his hips, his powerful physique, and eventually his face, where Raj could see his sharp teeth nibbling on the decaying hand.
The decaying hand had been disemboweled from its body, revealing bones and muscle where his lord was eating. The crow Raj had noticed earlier perched peacefully on the armrest while his lord caressed it with his other arm. Raj took a step closer, but stopped as he heard a snarl at his feet. Raj took a step back as a gigantic red-brown hound with two heads approached him.
"Cerus! Down boy!"Raj passed the hound as it lay down and whined, smirking as it growled lowly.
"O-Yama. (1) My Lord." Raj kneeled on one knee and lowered his head.
"Raj, I've told you to call me by name. Now tell me." The Lord rose up as he approached Raj. "Do you bring good news?"
Raj could tell the Lord was in a terrible mood based on the tone of his speech. He also detested failures, and if one was standing in front of him, he would tear him apart.
"Y-yes, O-Yama. The plan has been carried out with expedition. The Cures are currently occupied with their current objective: to find the Prism Stones. So, I highly doubt that they have come to comprehend our true achievement. I also have found a new possible ally."
"But?" The Lord stepped behind Raj as Raj widened his eyes. How did he know something was off? As expected from the Dark King, he kept quiet about it as he didn't want to get in trouble for questioning him.
"The hesitance of your voice told me that something was off." Raj's, if physically possible, jaw would reach on the floor. He turned his head to meet his lord's but immediately resumed his position when the lord made eye contact. The footsteps of his lord echoed through the blaze of hell, or a cave his lord would call home, as Raj shut his eyes tightly. He didn't know what consequences would befall him, but he swore on his own life never to lie to his lord and master.
"B-Bakudan has constantly challenged the Pretty Cure in a fight, but to no avail. He might've become frustrated. His current location is unknown."
The O-Yama didn't say anything as he passed by Raj. This was never a good sign. Raj braced himself for the tantrum his lord would throw any minute now. The Yama wouldn't care if he'd hurt his minions, just if he had gotten the anger out of his system. But sometimes he'd almost destroy his own home like a child, not getting what it wanted. The O-Yama's footstep suddenly stopped, and Raj assumed that he was behind him. Was he going to kick him? Break his neck. Raj feared the worst as he shut his eyes tightly. Without warning, he heard a sudden bang as the ceiling started to crumble and rocks began to fall. Raj covered himself with rocks. He then turned over to see where his lord was. The O-Yama had slammed his fist on the paper wall, causing all the crumble. He was about to swing the second time but felt a sudden pull behind him.
"Takamura, please cease this instant!" O-Yama lowered his fist, as if following Raj's command, and relaxed his shoulder as he took deep breaths and muttered.
"One"
"Two"
"Three"
"Four…"
He then proceeded to step away from the wall and return to his seat, petting the crow and the hound. He'd turn around to the black cat to his right; its pattern of stripes that underlies the coat is orange, and her half of her tails up to the tip has a line on her back from her tails to her back.
"Tomyo, are you sure the magician is in this alternative universe?" He asked uncertainly towards the cat. The cat just smiled slyly and nodded. She jumped off the counter and morphed into a human form.
"If that rat is incorrect about that resurrection vial..." He clenches his fist as the woman in the shadow's ears perk up.
"He said he saw the princess getting healed as the queen's life ebbed away." Tomyo replied. O-Yama just scoffed and turned back to Raj.
"I have a new objective for you, Raj. I want you to locate Bakudan." He took a deep breath as his anger returned to him, but immediately calmed down as he continued.
"And kill him. No mercy, no explanation. He should know why. When you see him, eliminate him immediately."
"As you wish, O-Yama." Raj bowed before he disappeared from his lord's sight.
His allies shot him a disappointing glance, except for one green-haired human male with a low ponytail who just smirked.
Kazumi contemplated what happened yesterday once again, still struggling to fathom her rapid transformation into a Pretty Cure, as she came to a stop near the school entrance. It could be a dream. She pinched herself, let out a small shriek, and looked around, hoping to be in bed. She was still at the school gate. Perhaps she was in a coma or deep sleep? Kazumi shakes her head. The sooner they recover those stones, the sooner she can return to her old life. This whole Pretty Cure thing wasn't really up to her taste. Verone Academy was separated into four sections: Verone Academy Girl's Junior High School, Verone Academy Boy's Junior High School, Verone Academy Girl's High School, and Verone Academy Boy's High School.
She reflected on that dreadful day, which turned out to be good. The image of Suzuki and Kujou-kun together burned into her memory of what she witnessed behind the Tako Cafe. Suzuki was able to answer the question before Kazumi, despite her actions in class. Kazumi didn't know Suzuki very well before all of this, but based on her stick-up attitude in class, she must be a self-observant individual. Kazumi despised those types of individuals. However, what Suzuki said yesterday really stunned her.
She yelled, putting her finger beneath her chin and raising her hands. "Alright! "I made a decision!" The pupils looked at her strangely or laughed at her actions as Kazumi curled up in embarrassment. Kazumi became interested again when the students resumed their conversations with their friends.
"Fujimura-san, you still have a chance." Her face became red as Suzuki's words entered her head; she had the opportunity to trade Kujou. She let out a 'kyaa' as she twirled around with her arms close to her chest, unconcerned about the students watching her. Her imagination flashed back to herself and Kujou when she was her mother's age. "Hello, sweetheart; I just made lunch for you.
"I poured my heart into it." Older Kazumi declared as she delivered the lunch box to her husband, who approached her while fastening his tie.
"I will enjoy every bite of it, Kazumi." He emphasized Kazumi's name while staring intently into her chocolate-brown eyes. "Takezo." Kazumi whispered warmly. "Kazumi."
"Oh, Takezo!"
Kazumi remarked tenderly out loud as the students paused and giggled, but she was buried in her fantasy. Kazumi felt a sudden impact on her back.
"O~neechan!" The thing called as it dangled about her neck. "S-Saki? Don't rush up to me like that!" Saki leaped off, a mischievous grin spreading across her face as she moved closer to her sister. Kazumi responded by staring at her awkwardly as she sweatdropped.
"You were just thinking of Kujou-kun, right?" Kazumi flushed madly and waved her hands. "W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-wha? N-n-n-n-n No, I wasn't. Her cheeks were as bright red as a cherry, betraying her words. Saki moved a little closer to her sister. "You've been acting that way since yesterday.
"I wonder what happened..." Saki smirked, leaning towards her sister as her face flustered.
"A-a-anyways, Saki, remember Ritsu's concert at four after school!" Kazumi changed the subject quickly. Saki kept her smirk but allowed her sister to talk about something else.
"Yeah, dad's going to drive us there. We'll meet outside the school gates, right?" Kazumi nodded as her tomato face diminished slowly. They suddenly arrived at the school entrance, not noticing it until Saki changed her shoes. Kazumi felt a tap on her shoulder, turned around, and found Shizuka standing in front of her with a smile.
"Good morning, Fujimura-san, uhm...Fujiramura-san's sister." She added awkwardly to the freshman, causing her to snicker.
"Please, Saki is fine. You can also just call Onee-chan Kazumi," she alleged.
"We're not that close yet..." Kazumi looked at Shizuka, as if confirming what she said.
"Yeah, we just met two weeks ago." She still had trouble addressing Saki.
"Saki!" The sisters turned around to see the two girls; one of them shyly approached Saki. Kazumi had seen them in the same class as her sister.
"Fuuka here wants to make bento for her boyfriend, but she's hopeless at cooking." Naoki pouted, but her friend continued. "Can you help her after school?"
"Of course, all we need are rice, a sweet rolled omelet, pickled plums, seasonal vegetables and fruits, potato or pasta salad, and cooked pickles." Saki chattered while Kazumi drooled behind her, and Saki just looked at her unamused.
"As expected from the Queen of Culinary!" Saki smiled sheepishly and flustered, but deep down, she loved the compliment and the title her schoolmates had given her.
"N-not really; it's easy once you get the hang of it. We can go to the mall after school. Onee-chan, remember to attend Ri-nee's concert!" Kazumi waved her hand dismissively while typing on her Android phone, adding the event as a reminder. "Yeah, it's done."
"See you at home." Saki waved to the girls and walked with her classmates to the class. Shizuka opened her shoe locker, and love letters poured down. Kazumi looked over as she gathered them, scowling.
She looked around again for Ritsu and checked the school clock. Class would begin in ten minutes, and Ritsu always tuned and cleaned her guitar before heading to class. She pouted and went to her classroom, expecting to be alone before class.
"Fujimura-san?" Shizuka snapped her out of her thoughts. She was already a few meters from her. She caught up to her, and they walked to their class.
They didn't spot a snake slithering to the right as she walked up the steps.
Ritsu turned the pegs and strummed her guitar; the pitch was too high and out of sync. The instrument was so dazzling today that it could blind someone. Well, that was an exaggeration, but it was intended as a saying. After a few minutes of tuning, she strummed again, and the guitar responded wonderfully. Ritsu started playing a little before looking at the time. She just had five minutes to go to class, yet she took the time to store her guitar in a case. Her hand started shaking after she concluded the case. She grasped her right hand and practiced breathing exercises.
"Riitsuu..."
A shudder ran down her spine, her breathing became heavier, and she hurriedly spun around, but no one was there. She settled down but furrowed her brow. She returned to her tuning, but when she strummed her guitar, a string snapped and soared across the instrument, stopping at the neck. She grumbled under her breath as she took the damaged string from her guitar and flung it away. Without warning, the window sprang open as she felt the usual chill crawling up her skin.
"Ritsu..." The deep voice beckoned to her again, but she reluctantly disregarded it and shut the window. She stroked her body with her hands, the chill remaining as she shuddered noisily.
"Katsuya Ritsu..." The voice made her eyes widen, and she was clearly alarmed. She took up a drumstick and circled the floor in defense. A hard hand was placed on her shoulder. Ritsu jolted, whirled around, and waved the drum stick around, trying to cause some damage while having her eyes closed.
"Ritsu!" she said, opening her eyes. Her club members stood in front of her, clearly worried. Her senior, Senpai, had a simper look.
"Are you alright? What happened?" Her senpai spoke as Ritsu looked around the room one more time.
"I-..n-nothing." She didn't want to worry them, but denying it didn't help them relax at all. "I'm just nervous about our upcoming concert." Senpai wasn't buying it. She grabbed Ritsu's arm and pulled her away from the other girls.
"You know you can talk to me if something's bothering you," she whispered.
"What's with that serious look, Senpai? You'll get wrinkles if you keep it up." Ritsu simply smiled, acting dumb. "We have to worry about the concert! Let's win those first-years' hearts!" Ritsu grabbed her guitar and began strumming it. This encouraged the others to join in with their instruments, but their Senpai maintained a troubled expression toward Ritsu.
The bell rang across the campus, interrupting their fun. The girls packed their instruments in a case and dashed to their classes.
As Kazumi stepped out of the school gates, she grabbed her phone from her backpack and began browsing the internet. She glanced up as cars zoomed past her to see if she could spot a recognizable automobile, but she knew her mother wouldn't be there this early to take her up. She peered over her shoulder; she was used to having Saki on her back at all times, spying on what websites she was visiting, and trying to catch her texting her secret boyfriend while they were on the train home. She loved her, but there were moments when she needed a break from her nosey sister. She didn't notice Mepple poking his head out of the screen and leaning toward Kazumi's phone.
"What's that, a phone-mepo?" He inquired, drawing Kazumi's attention as she lowered her phone so he couldn't see anymore.
"It's—wait, you know what a phone is?! Kazumi boomed, surprised.
"Of course I do! Me and Mipple were confused as one twenty years ago. It sure has advanced a lot since then." He looked at the phone but couldn't see the screen. The thing intruded on Mepple. Despite Kazumi's attempts to take the phone away, Mepple was able to flex his head in the direction she was pointing. It finished with him coming out of the smartwatch and falling to the ground, while Kazumi laughed at his misfortune. He leaped at her face, scaring her, but Kazumi quickly caught him up and stretched his face.
Shizuka, who was also leaving the school grounds, came to a halt when she noticed Mepple and Kazumi bickering as she chuckled at them. Mipple returned to her regular form as she escaped Kazumi's grasp. They all went well for a few minutes until Mepple informed Mipple of what he and Kazumi were discussing.
"Oh, yes, I remember that. Has the phone really advanced that quickly?" The girls crooked an eyebrow.
"Twenty years isn't actually quick. I've heard that as you get older, time seems to speed up." Shizuka trailed off in her thoughts.
"We decided very late to adapt our transformation to the Earth's technologies—mipo." Mipple explained.
"You guys adapt slower than my grandparents." Shizuka muttered.
"Garden of Light's time flows differently than here. One day is a hundred years in Earth's time. When we were here for the first time, the humans didn't know what a phone was—mepo." Mepple smirked to himself, amused.
"W-wait... when did you first come here?" Kazumi was preparing herself to not be surprised, but Shizuka waited with anticipation. The mascots looked at each other as if asking each other if they'd remember, and then nodded.
"I believe it was six days ago for us-mepo." He looked over to Mipple to verify, and she nodded.
"W-wait..." Kazumi didn't expect that blow. "You came here 600 years ago?!" she exclaimed.
"Early 15th century...Tokyo, or Edo, wasn't founded until the early 17th century, so you must've landed near here." Shizuka clarified.
"A village named... um, I never got the name-mipo." Kazumi, meanwhile, unlocked her phone and entered a search site, typing something on it while Mipple continued.
"We met two girls, the same age as you girls, Ryoko and Kiyoki, and they were..." Shizuka, who had her face close to her smartwatch, interrupted Mipple. Kazumi jolted at her sudden yelling, almost dropping her phone but managing to catch it in midair.
"THE Nogami Kiyoki and Honna Ryoko!" Kazumi looked at Shizuka and her phone as if debating to herself if she should search the names. But she knew she'd explain it, so she went into online video sharing instead.
"Not only were they one of the few samurai women, they also broke the social norm and became friends since a peasant and a Lady of a Daimyo were socially unacceptable at the time!" Shizuka babbled, while Mepple hung onto Kazumi's shoulder. Kazumi blinked at the sudden change in Shizuka's personality, or the side she hadn't seen yet. The mascots exchanged glances before returning their attention to Shizuka, who was beaming. She kept talking while Mepple sweatdropped at her babbling, but Mipple hung on every word. Kazumi gasped and grasped her palm over her lips, her gaze fixed on her phone, as the others gazed over her worriedly.
"L-look." Kazumi showed Shizuka her phone. A man holding a mic with 'Live' to his upper left while text scrolled across the screen beneath him stood behind a mall. Smoke came out of the building, and police officers and ambulances surrounded the structure.
"Thank you, Satonaka-san. As you said, I'm standing at Wakaba City Mall, where a bomb was just detonated. We are not sure if there are any casualties and the rescuers are having a hard time finding a way in. The bomb likely blocked the entrance. Kazumi cut off the newscaster by locking and lowering her phone.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Shizuka nodded as the mascots turned back to their smartwatch forms. They picked up their bag, and Kazumi pocketed her phone into it before dashing to the mall. A car pulled over behind them near the school gates; Fuji-P was not paying attention to the running girls.
Saki grunted alongside three customers and her friends as they threw the debris to the sides, which was obstructing the exit. Even if they had been going non-stop for almost an hour, it felt like the debris would be never-ending. An hour ago, a couple explosions went off, scaring customers to the exit before it was closed. Saki and the others were too late to escape when a final explosion and debris fell in front of the entrance. Fortunately, no one was wounded when they fell.
One of the workers, an elderly man in his sixties, paused for a breather and sank down against the debris, panting. The individuals gave up one by one, but Saki and her pals persevered. The elderly man simply shook his head at their futile attempt, but those who had given up before were inspired to try again. A woman in her late thirties consoled ten-year-olds who were crying, terrified, and screaming for their mothers. It helped when she brought them chocolates from the store, even though she had put money on the counter to avoid stealing.
"Saki, it's no use," one of her friends, Yukari, finally said quietly so the kids wouldn't hear her. Saki ignored her and kept going until she, herself, gave up too, placing her hand against the concrete. Her other friend, Fuuka, had already given up and helped the woman soothe the children down. Saki looked about, noticing a vent above the rubble covering it, then back behind her, where Fuuka was, and spoke to Yukari in the same hushed tone.
"I have a plan. We need to find a vent for the kids so they can get out, and then maybe the rescuers can blow up the debris for us from the other side." Yukari nodded and agreed. She pointed to her right. Fuuka looked at her friends, having overheard them, and displayed a distraught face. When a boy asked her what was wrong, she switched immediately back to her usual cheery self and assured him everything was alright.
"You take right; I take left, alright?" She nodded again and dashed to the right, as Saki had indicated, while Saki took the left. Yukari had ran for a few meters before her eyes became heavy and half-closed, and she slumped, but Saki did not hear the thud. Following her collapse, the others too lost consciousness. Bakudan was dangling from the ceiling, his gaze fixed on the girl. Saki dashed into the open, and the evil pursued her, moving crab-like on his feet and hands. He came to a halt when he noticed a black-coated cat with a red stripe on its back and tummy, sitting and staring at him. It grinned at him before going away. Bakudan felt sweat coming on and hurriedly crawled to keep up with the female.
Saki carefully gazed around every time she came to a halt and noticed a bench or a trash can, hoping to find a vent hidden away. So far, the only vents she'd seen were on the ceiling or too high to reach. It did not deter her, however, as she continued to search. When she turned to the corridors with the bathrooms for each gender, she noticed a vent to her left. She cautiously opened the vent with her fingers, delving into it before gently placing it next to her. She looked inside, crawling halfway to check, then crawling out when she was finished. Satisfied with her searching, she stood back up and readily turned her heel back to the group. The cat emerged from its hiding place, looked at the ceiling where Bakudan was, and waited for the girl to run out of its sight.
But Bakudan dropped down opposite Saki, who stopped in her tracks and instinctively went into battle stance as the cat went back to hide behind the trash can. Its ears were flattened as it growled, but quietly. Bakudan approached Saki as the bulky man with the bomb bandolier towered over the poor teenage girl and stared intensely into her eyes. She threw a straight punch at the muscular monster, but winced and withdrew her hand from the pain.
"Who are you? What's this light presence?" He spoke, his voice echoing the empty mall as he approached the teenager simply backed down, knowing that her combat abilities were not on par with those of her older sister. She backed backward and felt her foot contact a little metal trash can behind her. Fortunately for her, it was empty when she picked it up and threw it at Bakudan, who swiftly dodged it. Maybe it was due to fear or the tall man towering over her; Saki didn't run away after throwing the object.
A vein appeared on the side of Bakudan's head as he conjured a bomb with his palm, while Saki stood there shaking. She finally mustered the confidence to turn her heels away from the villain as he tossed the bomb near her, sending her flying across the corridor and onto a wall, her arm falling on top of her stomach, sandwiched between them as she screamed in pain and yelled out. As the man's footsteps echoed closer to her, Saki opened her eyes to see what was happening. She secretly wanted her older sister to be here to save her.
As if someone had answered her prayers, a vent hatch slammed into Bakudan's forehead.
5 minutes earlier
The girls came in front of a crowd, and the police stood behind an aluminum barrier that could easily be knocked to the ground, but everyone was busy staring in shock, hiding their mouths, or praying for the victims' safety. Few ambulances were on standby for the injured or, in the worst case, deaths. Shizuka and Kazumi didn't waste time diving into the crowd and pushed them gently away so they could advance. Kazumi was leading, with Shizuka behind her. She almost lost sight of her when she reached out to grab Kazumi's hand, causing the girl to look at the green-haired one bemused, but she kept going nonetheless. It was weird for Kazumi for them to hold hands when they weren't even proper friends or close.
They managed to get in front of the barricade and saw smoke coming from the second floor of the building. As they stared at the smoked building, a young police officer noticed Kazumi and asked to change spots with another officer.
"Kazumi-chan, it's too dangerous to be here! Go home! Your mother's safe." He called over to her, and Kazumi's attention drifted over to him. Kazumi grabbed onto the barricader, not to force herself to pass the familiar policeman but to just talk to him. The young officer knew it, as he had known the teenager since she was little.
"Adachi-san! What's going on? Did a bomb really go off?!" Adachi scratched behind his head, unsure how he should put it and not scare them. While he was lost in his thoughts, Kazumi saw her mother in action; she pointed her index finger everywhere, commanding the lower ranks to do her bidding while talking on the radio, all while staying calm.
It made Kazumi somehow excited and proud to see her mother confidently and calmly give commands. The rescuers were still waiting outside, anxious and worried, and waiting for the police to give them a go to enter the mall. Kazumi heard it from Adachi's radio; police officers were desperate to get them inside while her mother denied their requests and told them that another bomb could go off while they were inside.
When another bomb exploded, the audience jerked and yelled. Some of the officers, including Adachi, went around to witness the damage; the bomb had exploded on the same floor, but it came out of two or three windows away. They heard Nagisa on the radio telling everyone to go to safety, so they pushed them further away, even though some of them had already fled when the explosion began as they covered their noses with their clothes or their hands from the strong smell of fire. Shizuka and Kazumi crawled amid the crowd despite the pandemonium; fortunately, Adachi was too distracted to notice; they were not discovered or questioned about their actions.
Shizuka tugged at Kazumi and pointed at the vent near the bushes, and they nodded at each other. Thanks to the bomb going off, the girls managed to sneak to the vent undetected by the police. They opened the hatch as Kazumi looked inside, concerned, but with a deep breath, she gathered the courage to crawl into the small, dark space, with Shizuka following her behind. Kazumi had no idea where to go due to the darkness; she was just praying they were on the right track.
Kazumi's mind raced as she crawled through the vents; it tricked her into believing there was a small creature lurking in the corner, causing her to squeal in surprise, and Shizuka looked and inquired if she was okay, which she managed to assure her she was. The longer they stayed there, the more Kazumi felt herself losing her mind from the darkness and horrific experience as she struggled to keep her breathing from hyperventilation.
Shizuka was going to say something when they were interrupted by a loud bang. Kazumi temporarily forgot her anxiety as she crawled faster, leaving her partner behind, hoping it wasn't another bomb.
"F-Fujimura-san!" Shizuka called from behind, but she was ignored and tried to keep up with Kazumi.
Kazumi arrived at the end and noticed Bakudan approaching someone, so she moved within the gap so her legs faced the end and kicked open the hatch, which landed directly in front of Bakudan's face. As she exited the vent and Bakudan was too stunned by the impact of the object, Kazumi's attention was all on the villain as she gritted her teeth.
"Where's Saki?!" Kazumi yelled when she landed on the floor, not noticing her sister behind her, who had just lost consciousness. Shizuka had just crawled out of the vent and dropped down, but she didn't join her friend; she had noticed the young girl lying next to her.
"I don't care! I'm here to kill you, Pretty Cures!" Bakudan summoned a bomb, and Shizuka pulled Saki up. He flung it at them; Kazumi rolled to the side, and Shizuka joined but ran instead.
"Fujimura-san!" Shizuka burst out and Kazumi turned her attention towards her. She widened her eyes when she saw her little sister bruised and unconscious. Her clothes were torn from the explosion on her back, with some burn marks. Kazumi took her in her arms from Shizuka as tears welled up. She leaned in to see if she was breathing, and by miracle, her breathing was normal despite her injuries. Kazumi was relieved, yet her eyebrows were raised and curved with her upper lip lifted, but slowly her eyebrows furrowed, and she clenched her hands while her body was shaking.
"How dare you..." Kazumi breathed as she handed her sister over to Shizuka. Her friend looked over to her, worried, but couldn't express anything as Kazumi turned to face Bakudan, tears in her eyes.
"How dare you hurt her!" she exploded, and her nose wrinkled. She let out a battle cry as she ran towards Bakudan, who didn't have time to summon another bomb when Kazumi's fist connected to his block. She kept throwing punches until she brought the knee of her rear leg up and snapped her foot out, kicking Bakudan in the stomach and breaking his guard. He managed to recover and threw his fist at her, but Kazumi grabbed his arm and threw him over her shoulder.
While all of this was happening, Shizuka found the vent Saki had found earlier and placed the unconscious girl inside it, her legs sticking out. Her head snapped back to Kazumi when Bakudan landed harshly on his back on the ground, with Kazumi breathing heavily. Shizuka ran towards her, and Kazumi grabbed and tightly squeezed Shizuka's hand while they threw their hands in the air.
Dual Aurora Wave!
Emissary of light, Cure Black
Emissary of light, Cure White
We are Pretty Cure!
Servants of the dark power
Return to the darkness from which you came!
The cat came from its hiding and went over to Saki. Suddenly, it changed into a human with cat ears and two tails, but when she chanted under her breath, the ears and tails disappeared. She inspected Saki's injuries, then rolled her on her back, where she winced at the burned back. She took out a vial of liquid and poured it onto Saki's back, to which she groaned under her breath. The human cat stopped before pouring more until the burned injuries disappeared. When she screwed the top back on, she looked over to Bakudan, who, with good timing, went back on his feet, more pissed than she had ever seen.
"That's it! Zakenna!" he yelled while touching a trash can. Eyes appeared on the sides of the hole and it grew double in size. Its appearance did not pose a threat to the girls, so Black went ahead and attacked, but as she did so, it spewed empty soda cans, plastic bags, and food scraps, overwhelming Black and throwing her back. She landed on her feet, but a half-empty can hit her in the head, and she collapsed to the floor.
"Do people not know how to recycle?" White muttered angrily while helping her partner back on her feet. After helping her, White jumped towards the trash's side with her leg up high, preparing to kick it. Bakudan hurled a bomb at her before she could get close to the Zakenna. Fortunately, Black caught her before she hit the floor.
"Are you okay?" Black asked, and she nodded. She glanced at a store that was selling trampolines, and she turned to Black, smirking.
"I have a plan. Distract the Zakenna." White jumped away, leaving Black confused, but she got back to reality when she noticed a bomb hurling at her and managed to evade it. Black looked over at where Saki was, and she swore she saw a random cat entering the bathroom, but she had no time to think about it. White evaded the bombs thrown at her while Zakenna focused solely on Black by running behind the pillars; fortunately, they did not come into contact with the explosives.
"Black!" White yelled, drawing Bakudan's attention to Black as if she were going to do something. Black simply disregarded her and continued kicking and pounding the massive trash can without difficulty. Bakudan looked back to see White, but she had vanished. He smirked to himself as he began to bombard Black, who simply escaped them. Without realizing it, they had arrived where the customers and Saki's companions were unconscious.
"It looks like your partner has abandoned you!" He berated her, but Black's lips curled into a grin, her teeth visible, leaving him perplexed but enraged. He turned his head as someone whistled, but Black disregarded it as she resumed her struggle with Zakenna, keeping it away from the innocents. White stepped behind the villain and simply waved at him, as if welcoming an old friend with something behind her. In response to this ploy, a vein burst in his skull, and he summoned and threw a bomb at her.
White kept her gaze fixed on the bomb, and as it reached her, she defended herself with a little trampoline, onto which the bomb rebounded, and back toward Bakudan, who flailed his arms before it struck him, knocking him down. Just as the bomb went off, Black knocked the Zakenna down near the bystanders, softly landing on the floor. White went towards Black, and they squeezed hands.
"Black thunder!"
"White thunder!" White and black thunder struck on their hands as they held it above their heads.
"Our beautiful souls," White spoke.
"Shall crush your evil heart." Black finished. They squished the hands tightly as they continued.
"Pretty Cure Marble Screw!" The thunder increased and hit the possessed trash as Zakenna left the object before exploding into stars. The marble screw kept going, pierced through the debris, and exploded, creating an opening. Bakudan recovered in the meantime and, realizing he had been defeated, escaped into thin air.
The sudden black-and-white lighting that briefly lit up the mall outside mesmerized but perplexed onlookers. Nagisa kept staring at the building as if hypnotized, but was snapped back when Adachi asked if she was alright. Nagisa just barked orders at him. He copied the orders to the rescuers, but more gently, to finally enter the building, along with the special assault team. Nagisa sighed at him, and as she looked at where the black and white light illuminated, somehow, deep inside, she was sure it was safe.
As the stars ran away and faded away to who knows where, Black came back with Saki in her arms. After the attack, Black immediately went back to fetch her little sister. White looked at her, her brows raised, as Black stared at Saki and caressed her cheeks.
"I-is she alright?" She inquired immediately. Black rolled her half-way over to check her burnmarks, but she gasped. "What's wrong?" she added.
"T-the burnmarks...it's gone." White went to look, and as she said, the burn injuries had disappeared. She looked back at Black, who just shrugged and gazed back at Saki. As she laid Saki down next to her friend, they transformed back to their normal outfits. Kazumi continued to stare at the girl, worried. She felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Atleast she's alright." Shizuka tried to reassure her. Kazumi nodded but couldn't shake the thought of who could've healed her sister. She gasped when she remembered something, and Shizuka looked over at her. But she calmed down when she started to think logically; she was unconscious this whole time. Right?
"When-" Kazumi stopped when she heard footsteps approaching. The girls immediately turned and ran away as the customers, Saki, and her friends woke up. The police looked around, shouting 'clear' as they checked everything, and Kazumi was fortunate to have just closed the vent when the police began to sweep the area and had not detected it.
The rescue squad checked on the customers, and they awoke one by one. When Yukari awoke, she returned to where everyone was and searched for her friends. Fuuka appeared to be in good health; she was monitoring the children under her care. Saki winced when one of the rescue team members touched her arm during their examination. He looked at her arm, which was bruised and swollen. He tried to move it, but he couldn't get very far before Saki let out a short, sharp cry in pain, leading her friends to rush up to her.
"I-is she alright?" Fuuka quickly asked, worried. Yukari took Saki's arm to comfort her through the pain, while Saki tried to smile at them, creating a facade.
"She might have a broken bone. We need to bring her to the hospital just in case." The man wrapped the arm in a bandage and supported it with his own. His colleagues were also checking for other people's injuries, but only Saki appeared to have any. When they were finished, they were led outside, but Saki and the kids were first, with her friends by her side.
When they stepped outside, the kids ran towards their parents, who hugged them tightly with tears in their eyes. Saki looked around the crowd, hoping her mother wasn't among the police officers while she was led to an ambulance. She declined the ride, saying it was unnecessary, but her friends managed to convince her and asked if they could ride with her, which the medics approved. A female voice crying out to her with a mix of worry and sadness diverted her attention as she sat on the stretcher.
"Saki!" Nagisa fast-walked towards her and pulled her into her arms. She had seen her daughter being escorted to the vehicle. Fuuka and Yukari bowed their heads and greeted her, while Nagisa, after cuddling with the poor girl, bowed back. She thanked them for being there for her, but they looked down when she mentioned it, which Nagisa didn't notice.
"What the hell were you doing inside?! Is anything broken?!" she cried out, noticing the bandage around her arm. The paramedics repeated what the rescue team said inside to her.
"I was helping Fuuka find ingredients to cook for-" Fuuka, who was blushing a lot, was covering her mouth. Nagisa just smirked slyly at her, causing her to blush even more. Nagisa's phone rang, and she picked it up.
"Hello? Fuji-P?" Saki sighed; now her father was going to be worried too. Within a few seconds, she spoke again.
"Kazumi wasn't by the gate?" Saki widened her eyes. It wasn't like her sister to act that way. But she smiled when she saw Shizuka and her sister come running towards them. She poked Nagisa's back and pointed at them.
"Ah, Kazumi's here. Saki will be at the hospital." Silence. "I'll explain when I get home. Can you drive her back home for me?" She nodded a few times before telling her husband that she loved him and hanging up. She noticed that she had a few missed calls from him.
"What happened? We saw the news!" Shizuka asked quickly. Nagisa just stared at her as Shizuka sweatdropped and felt creeped out.
"Mom!" Nagisa looked over to Kazumi, who called her, and she scratched her head sheepishly. "S-sorry. Saki might have a broken bone, so she'll be spending a night at the hospital." Shizuka and Kazumi looked at each other. But nothing could've been done; they were magical girls, but not Superman. The paramedics announced that they were leaving, and Saki's sister and mom hugged her for the last time before the medics closed the door and drove away with no siren on. They looked over beyond the barricade when someone honked their horn.
"This case will take all night..." Nagisa spoke. "Can you tell your father what happened for me?" Kazumi nodded. Nagisa hugged her daughter, and Kazumi walked towards the car.
"Wait!" Nagisa bellowed. She gazed at Shizuka with a smile. "You want a ride?"
"N-no thank you, my home isn't far from here. Fujimura-san, see you tomorrow." They waved at each other before Shizuka went the other way, and Kazumi entered the car. Nagisa couldn't help but stare after her.
"Ugh, this is so boring."
Takezo stared blankly and was annoyed by the ground. He was wearing an open blue shirt with a white tank top underneath the apron. Picks and papers rested lazily on the ground until Takezo swept them into the second garbage bundle. Akane and his mother headed to the market to resupply their ingredients, but fortunately, the restaurant closed. Takezo was not truly prepared to take on the responsibility of welcoming and caring for customers. Two figures wearing traditional Japanese straw hats caught his attention; the taller one had two sets of swords around its waist as well as haramaki, waraji, baji, and durumagi (2). The other person wore strange Chinese clothing that Takezo couldn't identify, but he or she appeared to be carrying a bo (3). Although straw hats covered their faces, a smile was visible. The tall one broke the tense silence among the three and spoke.
"Good morning, sir. "Do you know where I can find Verone Junior High School?" Takezo nodded as he approached and directed them. The tall one paid attention, while the other simply glanced at Takezo with fascination.
"And Marcus works there?" the tall person inquired.
"He works with both girls and boys at Verone schools. Just take the train to Izumi (4) and walk for 10 minutes to get there." The two bowed to him before smiling and thanking him for his support. They went off, and Takezo returned to his tasks.
"Are you sure you don't want me to lead this time, Teoki?" The tall, thin one inquired, prompting the tall, muscular one to raise his or her voice.
"I know where to go, Lan! I only got lost once," the tall one replied. Takezo accidentally eavesdropped on them.
"Once…right." The tall one smirked. "Just don't complain to me if Master Saori scolds you." Takezo raised an eyebrow, but then returned to sweeping. When he looked back at the two, they had vanished, most likely turning to either side. Takezo scowled, concerned that the two might go lost, but shook his head and assured himself that everything would be OK.
"There you are!" Takezo jumped as a familiar voice roared behind him. Takezo gently turned around, hoping there wasn't another fan. When he peered at the source, his eyes opened and his mouth gaped up; it was a miniature plushie yellow lion with an orange mane, dressed in plate armor, holding a small sword at his side and a shield behind him. He had a scar running across his face. Takezo fought to control his emotions as the tiny kid jumped off the restaurant and approached him. His movements came to a halt when he glanced at the stuffed lion, as if concentrating on something.
"Look at you-rora! You've matured into a handsome teen!" The plushie spoke boldly.
"W-who...are you?" Takezo managed to respond, despite his shock.
"Do you remember me, Takezo!? It's me, Roran the Knight-rora!" The plushie "Roran" exclaimed, irritated.
"Wait, how do you know my name?" Takezo paused in mid-sentence as memories poured back. In front of his eyes were four more plushies in yellow, pink, and green, as well as an old guy and Roran.
Little Takezo was holding his mother's hand, looking at Roran with curiosity and attention. His little sister, who was on the other side, let go of their mother's hand and knelt down to his level.
"You're so cute!" Miki yelled, and Hikari grinned.
"I am not cute! I am Roran, the mighty knight-captain-rora!" Roran exclaimed triumphantly, raising his face to the young girl. She still smiled and drew the little fairy into a hug while he fussed around, but his body grew numb and his face relaxed, as if he were enjoying the hug.
"Knight, what is that?" Takezo asked. Roran snapped out of it and managed to get out of the girl's grasp.
"A knight protects the Queen and Princess-rora! They also safeguard civilians and assist the famed Pretty Cure-rora." Takezo's smile spread as he stood up and tugged on Hikari's apron.
"Mommy, I want to be a knight too!" Roran folded his arms and scoffed.
"It takes a lot of training. However, because you are the son of Queen's Life, I can accept you as a squire." Takezo gazed over at Roran with excitement.
"WHEN! You become age-rora." Takezo pouted.
"How about age fifteen, Roran-san?" Hikari inquired nicely. Roran moaned and thought carefully. "Alright-rora. If that is the queen's will, I will come for you when you are fifteen."
"Then…I'm…"
"That's correct-rora. You will address me as 'Master' Roran-rora." Roran transforms into a necklace. Roran cast a severe glance at Takezo as his head appeared above it.
"Let's go now! We need to find Pretty Cure!" Takezo blinked quickly, perplexed, but then placed his broom on the restaurant's wall and hurried away, with Roran directing him.
"Wait, how do we know who the Pretty Cure is? And who are they?" Takezo
"We will know when I sense Mepple or Mipple-rora. Now, hurry!"
"Auntie's gonna kill me..."
I'm so sorry if this seems to be too rushed. Please give me criticism; I'm open to it.
Holy crap, over 8000 words? This is the first time I've written that much.
If anyone is interested in me writing a story about the first ever Pretty Cures, let me know! I might have an idea. I might want to write a story about that.
I picked Adachi because I had recently finished Persona 4
1) If anyone is familiar with the voice actors of original Pretty Cure, those are the surnames of VA of Honoka and Nagisa
3) You'd need to Google, unfortunately.
4) East Asian quarterstaff, a staff weapon used in the martial art of Bōjutsu.
4) Izumi Todo is the creator of Pretty Cure.