Ai Senshi: A Magical Girl Joint

What Chiaki says about Shinto shrines in America here is true, by the by.


You realize that the conversations you've been having keep circling around this Raising☆Heart thing. You've never been the kind to ignore the obvious (unless it gets in the way of a good story or a good ship), and you're not going to stop now.

You lean back on the forest green chain link fence lining the rooftop, the kind you only saw in anime. "Hey, what's this Raising☆Heart thing?"

Chiaki looks at you from over her canned coffee. "You don't know? Did it not turn you into a Magical Girl?"

"Nah," you say, "a cabbit did."

Alice, who had hitched a ride in your backpack earlier, pings you with some mustard. +I'm not just a cabbit, love. I'm a member of the Majokko Corps.+

+How are you even hearing this?+ you ping back.

+While we're within about 300 meters, I can hear what you hear and see what you see. Part of being contracted to me.+

+Remind me not to watch porn again ever, then.+

You see Alice shudder in your mind's eye.

Chiaki watches you, seemingly waiting for you to pay attention to her again, and hums. "Well, it's a device that makes Magical Girls. Kinda like a sparkly Stand Arrow." She motions with her hands. "Unlocks the latent Will in the user, transforms them into a warrior of love and/or justice, the whole thing. Heard about it from some of the folks in the occult social media sphere, followed some rumors that it ended up in Las Brujas, did some digging annnnd yeah."

You ping Alice with no small smugness. +Toldjya I had a lead.+

You feel her pout over the ping. +...+

"How'd a rumor end up with your girl getting got?" you ask, focusing your attention back to Chiaki.

"Naturally, I let my girlfriend in on my research," Chiaki says. "Those two girls who started shit with her are the Heathers of our occult scene; she must have told them about it. Those girls hate someone having magical knowledge they don't; especially Harmony Kumatora, the dirty witch with a B."

You inwardly notice the irony of coming to a place named Las Brujas and immediately getting tied up with witches and bitches. Makes sense, Magical Girls started out as witches and every clique's got it's bitches.

You bounce off the rooftop fence, the chain link sways like a leaf in the wind. "So you got bitch-witches looking for this thing, who want it bad enough to press-gang Youma into finding it. Must be a lotta wanna-be Maj round here."

"The Kumatoras were bragging about summoning devils on Aozora a few days ago," Chiaki says, tapping her finger to her lips. It seems like she doesn't know about Echnida's Heart, or whatever the fuck Piron called it. "And honestly, who wouldn't want to be a Magical Girl? Killer costumes, vast magical powers, noble hearts, and an escape from the dull grey everyday."

You let that last part marinate, comfortable in finding a kindred spirit.

You ask Chiaki, "Does the thing kill the weak-spirited like the Stand Arrow does?"

"Don't know," she says, looking out over the rooftop. "It'd suck for me if it did."

+The transformation process should be non-lethal, thanks to the mascot, I mean familiar, modulating the procedure+ Alice pings you. +But if the Raising☆Heart has been overclocked, or somehow illicitly modified, it could cause a target to undergo an Inversion Impulse or even die from overwhelming magical power.+

+Fucking brutal,+ you ping back.

You walk while you talk to her, so you can stretch your legs. "Would you still use the Raising☆Heart if you knew it did?"

Chiaki turns to you, dead serious. "In a heartbeat."

You whistle. She's not playing around about being a Magical Girl.

+Well, that's concerning.+ Alice pings.

"You don't look like someone weak-willed about this shit," you say to Chiaki with a laugh.

"Who, plain old me?" Chiaki says with a droll drawl. She does a self-effacing pirouette and points to herself. "Do I look like Magical Girl material? Honestly?"

"Hey, Usagi was a chubby crybaby dork. If she can do it, anybody can." You gently nudge her with an elbow. " 'Sides, you've got that Honoka know-it-all vibe. Hell, I bet you already know where the Raising☆Heart is."

Chiaki smiles knowingly. "I have a pretty good idea. I wanted my girlfriend to check it out before things happened. Wanna check it out?"

You match her knowing smile with a sassy grin. "Trying to take advantage of my ally of justice shit again?"

She curls up a little, her big blue eyes glancing shyly at you. "No, actually. I legitimately want to be friends with you and show you this cool thing."

"Because I'm a Magical Girl?"

"Because you helped me out," she says, raising a finger. "And also because you're a Magical Girl."

"Well shit," you say with a shrug. "Sure."

She raises her canned coffee in salute to you. "It's a date."

You clink your empty can with hers as the schoolbell rings.


After school, Chiaki meets up with you to take you to where her research led her. She's got a motor scooter license, so you learn the joys of riding bitch on a bright yellow Vespa.

A bright yellow Vespa driven by a madwoman.

Apparently, underneath the nerd glasses and young professional attire lies a 100% Grade-A speed freak. One you have to cling to for dear life in order to not end up road pizza.

Somehow, miraculously, you make it to your destination withour losing your lunch or your life. Alice, who hitched a ride in your backpack again, isn't as lucky. She pukes up rainbows by the side of the road while you take in the surroundings.

You're deep up a mountain path, at the front gates of a Japanese-style shrine. There's nothing of the ticky-tacky suburban sprawl here, only the stately silence of an old forest. The air is crisp and heavy; it tastes a little like Piron and a little like your transformation.

You're starting to get the feeling that you can taste magic, that the eddies of invisible power all around you make your teeth itch. Your mouth twitches up into a strange, fey smile.

Chiaki walks up to you, Vespa parked and Army surplus motorcycle helmet under her arm. "Are you okay?"

"Huh? Yeah. What's up?"

She looks at you for a while, stopping just short of being uncomfortable. "Nothing. I've just never seen someone so excited about a shrine visit before."

You force your smile down into a blasé little thing. "This looks like a true-blue Shinto shrine and I'm weeb as fuck, so yeah."

Chiaki snorts and playfully rolls her eyes. "That'll do it," she says. "This here's Mikazuchi Shrine, the only mainland US Shinto shrine that is still open, actually has land, and isn't currently going through bankruptcy proceedings!"

"Shit, I didn't even know there were Shinto shrines in the States."

You take a moment to gawk at the torii gate, the vibrancy of its red lacquer against its weather-beaten poles. The colors almost seem to flow around the gate, pooling in the pockmarks and rushing over the cracks in the wood.

"Geez," Chiaki teases. "You're acting like a tourist." She crosses under the torii and up the gentle, swept-dirt path to the main shrine.

You follow her, not wanting to be left behind (or look like a tourist). Crossing the torii is like plunging into a pool; the magic washes over and through you. Wading through it takes effort, a jelly-like resistance it takes time to get used to.

Chiaki looks back at you from up ahead, a bit concerned. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," you say, waving her off. "You don't feel this pressure?"

"All I feel is kinda clammy," she says. "Forest air's really damp."

"Huh," you say. "Must be a Magical Girl thing."

"Makes sense," Chiaki says, trudging further up the path. "This is a spiritually rich location, what with housing Oniarisama and all."

Acclimated to the magical pressure, you easily catch up to her. "That's the fox one, right?"

"Yep. They say the miko working here is one foxy lady, too."

+Given the etheric readings I'm getting, I wouldn't be surprised if she was a kitsune.+ Alice pings, as she finally catches up to you on her stubby cabbit legs. There's a thin line of rainbow drool at the corner of her mouth.

You gesture to Alice to wipe her mouth. She blanches and furiously does so with her forepaws. It's kinda cute.

"...This miko's not actually a kitsune, is she?" you ask Chiaki.

"God, I wish," Chiaki says with a sigh. "Kemonomimi girls are the cutest in the-"

There's a loud crash and the sound of screaming. The din of combat despoils the forest's silent serenity.

+Ah, bloody hell.+ Alice pings. +Youma activity.+

You can't see the shrine yet through the trees, but you can feel the ruckus. Another magical signal wafts downwind, tasting of fire and blood. The tingling feeling of an upcoming fight worms it's way into your heart.


[What do you do?]
[ ] Transform, grab your trusty nailbat and enter the chaos.
[ ] Transform and see if anyone needs saving.
[ ] Scope things out with Chiaki first, all sneaky-like.