You remember when I said there were no crossovers?
I lied, ese!
***
You uncurl your fist, one finger at a time, as the glasses girl looks at you with cool interest. Her face is a porcelain mask, despite how plain it seems. Her piercing blue eyes almost spiraling as they peer into your soul.
You're not one to back down from a staredown, so you match eyes with her. A lopsided smirk creeps onto your face, half-amused and half-violent.
She smiles back. "If you're gonna swing, please not the face. These glasses are precious to me and I'd hate to have them get wrecked."
You shake out your hand and set your grin to charming. "You used to getting punched in the face?"
"On occasion," she says.
"You look the type," you say.
She sighs. "I get that a lot. Name's Chiaki, by the way. Chiaki Love-Aida"
"So you have love in your name twice?"
"My parents are really lovey-dovey," she says with precision teenage embarassment. "I'm just glad I'm not Aiko or something,"
That gets a chuckle of you, which gets a gigglesnort out of her.
"My girlfriend loves that bit," she says, a blush sticking on her round cheeks. "Which brings me to why I'm violating your personal space."
You quirk an eyebrow. "Looking for a polycule?"
"Pfft, no," she says, brushing at her blunt black bangs. "You said you do good deeds, right? Well I need a little favor..."
"I'm not great at fixing lover's spats," you say. "My weapon of choice is a bat, not an arrow."
"Heh," she says. "That's just what I need. You see, my girlfriend's gotten herself into a little...disagreement with a rival school. This school is pretty hardcore, so she's gonna need backup."
"And you want me to be that backup?"
Chiaki snaps her fingers. "Bingo!"
Your shoulders sag. One of the shitty things about your sukeban vibe was that people would come to you for a fight; either starting one or hoping you'd finish one for them. Most of the time it wasn't worth your time, and it always felt like whoring yourself out.
Your grin turns into a bored pout. "Look, my thing's helping the weak and downtrodden, not getting into turf wars. You want to rent a thug, I'm sure there's plenty around here."
Chiaki gives you a knowing look. "
Au contraire, Miss Koyanskya. I am quite physically weak, and love for my girlfriend makes me even weaker." She places a hand over her heart and swoons. "Why, I have a heart condition, and if anything were to happen to my dear little vixen..."
You put your hands up, motion for her to tone it down a little. "Shit, you lay it on thick."
She gives you an impish little smile with just a hint of fang. "Drama Club's a wonderful thing. Shame I had to give it up for StuCo." She coughs into her hand. "I'm serious about my girlfriend, though."
You study her face, once again smooth and implacable. Her hand is quivering, betraying serious concern.
"...There's something about this you're not telling me."
She looks away, then towards you with pleading eyes. "More perceptive than I expected. No offense, of course."
You shrug. "I've heard worse."
"Well, my girlfriend hasn't contacted me on LIME in the past 24 hours. That wouldn't be a problem, except she always has her phone on her, she carries a spare battery in case the first one runs out, and she hasn't even left me on read. Complete radio silence."
The gears turn in your head. "You think she got black-bagged?"
Chiaki's countenance darkens, her bangs hang dangerously low over her eyes. "I'm almost certain of it." She takes your hand in hers, looks at you with the brightness of hope. "If it's not your thing, I'll make it worth your while. Please help me out with this one, okay?"
[Dialogue prompt: What do you say to Chiaki?]
[ ] "Fuck it, I'm in. Doing good deeds is my thing."
[ ] "This is kinda sketch, but I can't turn down someone with this much love in their heart. You owe me though, especially if this goes tits up."
[ ] "Nah, I'm out. Not my scene, not my problem."
***
Not much of note happened after that in school. Despite the surprising levels of give-a-fuck from everyone in the school staying high, it was still just school.
The lunches were great, though. Real gourmet shit. They even had yakisoba pan!
And it's yakisoba pan you're chewing on now after the final bell rings. Kids file out of school like rats from a fleeing ship. You're past the school gates, taking in the sunset, when a cabbit sidles up beside you, now firecracker-free.
+I was wondering where you went,+ you ping Alice. +How'd you get the firecracker out?+
+Very carefully, love.+ she replies. +How are you feeling? Have you experienced any side effects? Headache, nausea, vomiting rainbows?+
+Nah, although that last one sounds fun.+ You look out towards the horizon. The skyscrapers of the Business District shimmer in the heat haze, the whole scene a faraway Future Funk album cover.
Damn, you think you're gonna like it here.
+In any case, did you read the Primer?+ Alice asks.
+That flashy thing in my eyeball? Yeah.+
You see a blue icon, this one familiar. A notification message.
You put a finger up to Alice. +Hold up, getting another transmission.+
She looks up at you with mild concern. +Another, love? I hope it's not ground control to Major Tom.+
***
Loading... ... ...
Ready?
Run!
TENCO MAGICAL GIRL RAISING SYSTEM
Ver. Delta
Congratulations BANCHO LILY on the first expenditures on your Magical Girl transformation! You now wield the power to further your career as a warrior of love and/or justice!
You have reached RANK B in COMBAT ARTS! If you meet the Buddha in your path, cut him down with one of these new techniques!
[Choose one:]
[ ] IRON-FIST FRAULEIN: Your fists and feet can smash through concrete and cut through steel when transformed. Untransformed, you don't have to worry about breaking a nail or a bone when going all out on someone.
[ ] REFLEXES AU CHOCOLAT: You gain photographic reflexes; the ability to learn and imitate the motions for any fighting technique after seeing it in action. This can also be used, with a bit more effort, to mimic non-combat motions; such as dance routines or visual tics.
[ ] MILLEFEUILLE ARSENAL: You gain the ability to always be armed when you so will it; manifesting your weapon of choice to hand with a thought. With a greater effort of Will, you can make perfect copies of said weapon.
You have reached RANK B in WILL-WORKING. Unlock the magic in your believing heart with one of these new techniques!
[Choose one:]
[ ] BLAZING MAIDEN HEART: Using the power of Invocation, you can toss projectiles of pure Will from your body and/or weapon. Your aura of Will is now a tangible field, usable for offensive and defensive purposes.
[ ] DEMON DEFYING DRESS: Using the power of the Trickster, you wrap yourself in a cloak of sheer confidence. When active, this allows you to scare foes of lower Rank into submission and increases persuasiveness when befriending (or "befriending") others while transformed.
[ ] TOKIMEKI TALISMANS: Using the power of the Conjurer, you gain the ability to barter with and summon YOUKAI for services with your talismans. YOUKAI will actively seek you out and be your erstwhile allies...as long as you keep your end of the deal.
Choose carefully, and NEVER LOSE MAIDEN'S HEART!
***