Libra's Lament, a Magical Girl Quest [Complete]

[Naron]

Primordial Moon: New Ability

New Ability gained: Protective Silhouette

Protective Silhouette
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Base Resilience

Base Resilience: 5 -----> 35

Primordial Moon: New Ability

New Ability gained: Protective Silhouette

Protective Silhouette
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Base Resilience

Base Resilience: 5 -----> 35

Primordial Moon: New Ability

New Ability gained: Protective Silhouette

Protective Silhouette
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Base Resilience

Base Resilience: 5 -----> 35

New Shop Item unlocked!

---

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Go bathing...
-[X] Together

[X] Work some more on your mind-connection
-[X] Try to control what is sent and received. Getting poked or hurt at a bad time is making Mom look at you funny.
-[X] Do it in your room when mom isn't watching
--[X] Make it look like you are just playing around.

"Let's go bathing together!"
Eva is surprised for a moment, but she seems to like the idea you just had. It has been ages since you could do that... or at least a month. Anyway, it is always fun to sit in the tub together, that makes soaking less boring.

You just have to be careful not to splash around too much, or your mother will scold you again.

Anyway, you take your sister's sweaty hand and pull her inside.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

The warm water feels nice on your skin, so nice and cozy... Eva sits next to you in the water, her eyes closed and humming happily.
You like that.

Then your eyes fall onto the bandages on the ground... wait, is the hot water really good for her?

Eva does not seem to mind, but... hm.
You look closer, with how you sit to her right... but there is nothing. Just pale skin like you have... huh? Was it on the other side?

"Rico?"
You shake off the thought and look at your sister instead. "Doesn't the cut hurt?"
"Hm? Oh."

She looks down and feels over her side, the one you can see... wait, that was the right one? What happened that the wound is gone? Eva suddenly starts looking like a sheep... no, that was another word... sheepish? Maybe.

Anyway, she looks like that and tells you: "I... I kind of healed it..."

Oh.

You look at each other, then back at the bandages still on the floor.
It was not supposed to be gone already... and you both know that. Your mother knows that as well, so once she looks, she will know that something is up.

Your stomach feels really heavy all of a sudden and you quickly take Eva's hand; she squeezes back as strong as you squeeze her.

Aside from your thundering heartbeat, neither of you reacts for a while.

You both know what happens if you are found out. Even if you are Magical Girls now, you do not want that. You really do not want that...

"We get up first, Rico. Maybe she lets it be if we put on the bandages ourselves?"
It is little more than a whisper, but you can hear it clearly. Some of the words echo over your connection and you nod slowly. That is... probably the best you can do to try and stop your mother from finding out.

You still hope she will love you anyway... but if she does not...
It does not help that bad taste you had ever since this morning to go away; keeping secrets from your parent like that... this is just wrong.

Shaking your head, you push off the thought and squeeze Eva's hand again, then let go. She looks at you, a little calmer than before but still upset... so you pull over the shampoo and smile at your sister. "Come on, I wash your hair."

"Okay."

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

You make sure to wash your sister properly and she does the same for you; Eva is really careful with your longer hair and makes sure it is all clean... and you know she likes playing with shampoo. It is so bubbly...

When you leave the bathroom dressed in your cute pyjamas, there is already the scent of something nice in the air... but your thoughts are still elsewhere; no matter how much you try to not think about everything, it just comes back after a while.

Eva is the same, you can tell. And she can tell that you think about it, too.

You smile for your mother, though. She did nothing wrong, so it would be mean to make her sad. She has this weird mother-sense where she knows when you do not feel good, though... so maybe she does notice? If yes, then she does not say anything about it.

Either way, your tests earlier showed that there is still more you can find out about your connection... and you kind of need to. Someone will notice that you both feel hurt when one of you hurts later.

So after you are done eating and chatting with your mother, the two of you go back to your room to 'play'.
Well... okay, you will play, just not what your mother probably thinks. Eva has ideas again!

The both of you sit down on the ground, with Ludger staying in the living room today; you are happy about this, he would be really distracting.

Eva pokes you a few times, then pulls and you do the same to get a better feeling for your sister; it is still really weird to touch each other without touching anything. Your sister frowns and looks at you some more. "We need to stop everything from coming over. But how do we do that, Rico?"

That is a problem, yes. But how do you do that?
When you do not want Ludger to come into your room, you close the door... hm... but does that work the same way?

You test it and try to push something between you and Eva... and it just *clicks* into place, making both of you flinch at the sudden change.
The warmth from feeling each other is still there, but you get nothing from your sister anymore... the stray feelings are gone.

"What did you do, Rico?"
After a short explanation, you have your twin hugging you tightly. "That's a great idea!"
And it worked, too. That is nice; Eva normally has the ideas and you have the plans, but you are happy you can do some of the work as well.

"But we need to find out if it worked..."
Your sister looks around, then back at you and then at herself... then she starts pinching her arm.

You feel nothing even when tears appear in her eyes from how hard she pinches... so you quickly stop her. "Eva! It's okay, don't do that!"

She lets go and you crawl over to look at her arm... it is really red and you wince from just seeing that. But you do not feel any of it from your sister. "I think it works..."

What you fail to see is how her expression changes to a bright smile.
"Oh, I know how we can test some more!"
And then you feel hands on your side, tickling you. Not again!

There is nothing you can do to stop Eva, not when she got you like this... and you laugh loudly while she attacks you without mercy. "E-Eva, stop! Please, I give up!"
"Nope."

She pops the p somehow and continues tickling until your face is really hot from laughing so much and you have trouble breathing, panting heavily.

Then your door opens and has your mother looking inside... until her gaze falls on the two of you; you are lying on the ground with Eva straddling you.

She just hangs in the door and looks at the two of you until you get the feeling she might know something is up.
"...what exactly are you doing?"
...
"Playing?"
...
Another pause as she takes in Eva's response, then she rolls her eyes and smiles at you. "I see... but keep it down a bit, would you? It is getting late."

You look at each other and Eva is obviously happy that you were not found out. ""Okay!""
Then she retreats out of the room and your sister gets off of you; her pyjamas are crumpled and the topmost button got undone somewhere down the line.

You are probably no different... so the two of you spend a minute rearranging your clothes.
"I could not feel anything from you, either. It really worked, Rico... I am so glad!"
"Me too."

You beam at each other and hug, then go back to the poking; this is fun once you get the hang of it... but now that you think about it, you probably could have stopped Eva from tickling you by pulling her arms...
Speaking of which...

With a quick glomp onto your sister, you have her open her palm and then make a fist... yes, it still works. She does the same and makes you tap your feet a few times, then you smile at each other again. These feelings are still weird, but you can work with that.

But in the end, you let out a wide yawn that your sister echoes after a moment. You now know you can still send feelings to each other... but your heads are yours again. That is nice.

When you climb up the ladder to your bed, you can feel a wave of warmth from Eva. She seems happy with everything you did today.

But you are both tired... now is a good time to-

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Spoiler: Unbalanced Reflection

Everything shakes and a man falls from the sky. You can not see his face, only the large, pretty wings attached to his back. White flashes above and the light quickly fades...

When it turns completely dark, you feel yourself floating... floating next to an older girl, naked and crying and bleeding and hurt... and then she begins to glow.

A flash... and then nothing.

It is early when you wake from that strange dream, just like yesterday. Eva is already doing stuff elsewhere, though; she got up before you again.

Muttering over things, you climb out of bed and quickly get yourself dressed, then hurry over to the bathroom; you can hear steps outside while you wash up and comb your hair, then the door opens and your sister enters, poking you with a wave of happiness again. "Good morning, Rico."

"Good morning, Eva."

She closes the door behind her and finishes your hair for you. While that happens, you are already getting the bandages you now know are here in the cabinet.

Once Eva is done with you, you turn to her with a smile. "Okay, my turn."
She smiles back and lifts up her shirt so you can get to her side; now, how did that work... you just have to wrap it around, that can not be this hard.

Eva holds onto the one end over her side while you slowly walk around her and make sure the bandage sits tight; there is no need to be careful, your sister is not hurt anymore.

So you go around a few times until it looks mostly like what your mother did yesterday and clip the end closed. "There, all done."

Once you leave the room, Ludger is already by your side again and you spend a minute petting him. Such a cute dog...

Eva lets go of him first, bouncing over to the kitchen and then quickly running off to water her plants. She really likes them... and you like them too, just not in the same way. They are pretty, but boring.

---

You have some time before your mother gets up. Pick one:

[] Call your friends; you want to play later

[] Play with Ludger

[] Try finding more ways to use your connection

[] Go take a look at your magic together

[] Go over your situation together; what can you do now?

[] Make breakfast again

[] Look through your schoolbooks for information; maybe there is something useful?
[] Run away, you are no longer safe here
[] Write-in


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+2xp Squeaky Clean
+2xp Figured it Out
+1xp Survived Another Day
+1xp Aspiring Nurse (Only Rico)

EXP gained: 5 + 6 = 11
Total EXP: 12

=====​

(New mechanic unlocked: Joint Shop)
(New Shop Item unlocked)
(Primordial Sun and Primordial Moon gained a new Ability)

Sun & Moon: New Ability

Controlled Connection
-Primordial Sun and Primordial Moon can control the impulses they send to each other; negates pain-backlash and emotional resonance.

Sun & Moon: New Ability

Controlled Connection
-Primordial Sun and Primordial Moon can control the impulses they send to each other; negates pain-backlash and emotional resonance.

Sun & Moon: New Ability

Controlled Connection
-Primordial Sun and Primordial Moon can control the impulses they send to each other; negates pain-backlash and emotional resonance.

 

[Naron]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Call your friends; you want to play later

Rico is playing with the dog again when you go back inside; Ludger yips happily from where he lies on the ground and you smile at the two.

Then you make him run away from Rico by rustling with his collar a bit. He is with you in moments and seeing him run like that makes your sister giggle. You giggle about is as well and poke Rico with how funny you find it. She pokes back... and it got a little easier, you are sure of that.

"Come on, Ludger."
You click the leash into his collar and he already taps forward to the door; Rico keeps sitting on the ground, but gets up the moment you look at her.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

There is absolutely nothing happening this morning. Not that it bothers you, but Rico is bored again.

Now that you think about it, she probably wants to go play with her friends later. She does not really like staying at home over the weekend... but she did stay yesterday and you are happy that she did.

The question is, do you want to go with her?

Not really... you like your sister's friends, but they are always so loud. It is like having five Rico's around. You much rather like Elisa, she is nice and calm.

You like scavenging, too. There are always fun things to be found... when no giant spider-monsters show up.

The walk ends soon and you are back home. It was nice to have some fresh air, though.

However... when you open the door, you can already hear something sizzling and smell breakfast in the air. Taking off your shoes, both of you look at each other and then dart to the kitchen.

It actually happened, you see when peeking inside; there she is, your mother... making food for you. She really got up early for once.

"Woof!"
But Ludger destroys the surprise by running through the door between you, making your mother turn around and smile at you. "There you are. Good morning, girls." ""Good morning!""

You smile right back; it is a nice morning after all. Sundays are good days, even when school starts again tomorrow; your mother hums and turns back to the stove. "Go set the table, I'm done here in a minute or two. And we need to apply new bandages, Eva."

You look at each other over that and Rico gives you an uneasy nod. So you are thinking the same thing.

"Um... Mommy? We already did that."
Now this has her look at you again, measuring first your sister and then you for a moment. Your heart almost stops from nervousness, but then she nods and turns back again. "Okay. Let me take a look after breakfast, just to make sure you did it right."

"Okay..."
"You're mean, Mommy! I did it just like you did yesterday!"
Rico pouts, though; she takes the plates and runs over to the table, then sits down there and crosses her arms; it is actually really cute when she does that.

You giggle while bringing over the forks and knifes, then sit down next to your twin and pet her head. "There there, Rico."

She still pouts, but you can tell it is fine because she does not shake off your hand. She always does that when she is not just pretending.

Your mother chuckles while putting down the food on your plates, but does not say anything for now. You leave Rico alone once she grabs for her fork and take your own; today's breakfast is bread with scrambled eggs.

And it tastes great; your sister seems to think the same, seeing how fast she eats.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Once you are done and the dishes rest in the sink, your mother walks you over to the bathroom and looks at the bandages; Rico stands next to her to watch, but the adult only looks over them... you do think you did well, so she may think so, too?

"Hm..."

She pulls a little bit on a few crumpled ends and smoothes them out, but leaves the bandage alone before giving your sister a nod and a smile. "I take it all back, Rico. Good work."

You rarely saw Rico beam like that... and there even is a wave of pride rolling... no, it is there that you can feel it, but it does not really go all over you. Weird. But this feels better than everything being all intense.

You smile at your sister and then follow her out of the room.
So... what to do today? You already know that you can not be alone at home this time; your mother will stay to prepare things for school and clean up a bit. Maybe you could help her?

Rico is already running for the phone to call her friends to play... mhm, you could go with her, too. Or you could visit Elisa or... or go over your homework again. Or maybe read that book your mother got you?

So many choices...
You sit down on the couch while Rico babbles to whoever is on the other end, then cross your arms and start thinking really hard.
What do you want to do?

Ludger is here, too. Lazing around in his basket is what he does.

Actually, he lost a lot of hair again... stupid spring...
Now that you actually noticed, this is not at all good. There is dirt and dust and dog hairs all over the place... and after you have seen it, you can not unsee the sight.

Maybe it really is a good idea to clean up. You can spend some time with your mother afterwards, then prepare your things for tomorrow. Oh, right... you also need to pack a bag for gym class.

That sounds nice. A nice Sunday.

Pick three:

[] Read a book

[] Help your mother cleaning up

[] Play with Ludger

[] Prepare your things for-


And then someone pokes your cheek. Eep!

You flinch away and look at the one responsible, your very one twin sister; Rico seems a little curious and her finger follows you as you retreat over the couch. "What are you thinking about?"

"Huh?"
"I called you three times and you didn't hear me, so spill!"

Oh... did she?
You try to dodge the finger again and have it rub over your neck instead while ducking below Rico and bringing the couch between you. "Um... I thought what to do today? You don't need to be mean about it..."

Your sister gives you a look and tilts her head in wonder. "What do you mean, what you do? We're scavening with Bruno and everyone!"

We? Oh no, she just decided without you again...
"Don't give me that look, Eva! You can't just sit at home all the time!"

You continue pouting at her just because you can. You like being at home, it is nice and safe and pretty and Ludger is there, too.
Then Rico pouts back at you and it becomes a fight. Who gives in first?

You even make your lip quiver and try to not look her in the eyes, but she does the same to you and ducks her head and then looks away and... oh... you do not like it when she looks so sad, even if she is only pretending.

"O-Okay... I guess..."
"Really?! Wohoo!"

And there she is beaming again, then runs around the couch and takes your hand to pull you along. "It's a promise!"

Oh Rico...

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

The others are already waiting for you on the bridge; you always meet here because most of the children in Verona live on the other side... it is mostly older people on your side... but the school is closer and you like the house a lot.

Bruno is waving at you in the same way Rico waves their way; he is a little bigger than the two of you and has blond hair that is a little shorter than yours; you forgot the names of the other two boys, though... Rico talks about her friends a lot, but you do not go around with them that often.

The other girl with them is Henrietta, though. She is in your class, too.

You greet each other with cheer... well, you greet and Rico brings the cheer, but it counts!
Anyway, there are hugs and you try to wiggle yourself out of it, but the others have none of it and hug you, too. Everyone gets along really well... but they are still a little too close.

Thankfully, Henri lets go after a bit and you can breathe again.
Then however, Bruno looks at you with... uh, is that concern? "Rico said you got hurt. How bad is it?"

Oh, that. You exchange a glance with your twin, who shrugs and leaves you to answer... so you do. "Um... I... I got a big cut i-in my side."

You mostly mumble while not looking him in the eyes. It feels weird to do that and you always stutter a bit when talking to someone you do not know so well.

"But Eva is okay... but I won't let her carry any stuff today, so we got only five bags."
Rico quickly follows up on what you said and raises her own bag... thinking of it, you left yours in that other building with the spider-monster. You liked that bag...

"Oh, okay."
No one minds you just running along with them... that is nice. "W-Where are we going?"
The boys look at each other over your question, then one of Bruno's friends raises his hand with a bright smile. "The suburbs!"

Oh. That is a little bit away from where you are now. But if you want to have enough time to scavenge properly, you should get going.

Rico thinks the same, seeing that she points forwards. "Alright then, let's go!"

And marches off, the rest following as cheerfully.

. . .
Line Break recognised
. . .​

It is nice to explore things with everyone; everyone is in a good mood and chatters away... you like just listening to them. Rico is better talking to others, anyway...

Many of the buildings were already cleared out, but there is still enough for you to find some nice things, even a few flashlights and a few difficult-looking books. No one wants the books, so you tell Rico to please take them along for you.

While you are at it, your sister tells everyone how you met the spider-monster. They heard that something happened and looked really interested... and scared. And you made sure she did not mention how she hurt her ankle; that would not have healed by now, so someone would know something was up.

There are other children around scavenging too, most of them older than you. This is great fun and everyone likes it.

However, you try to always keep the important rules in mind and tell the others when they forget.

First, do not take things too heavy to carry.
Second, do not take anything personal, just in case whoever lived in the place comes back to get it.
Third, if a building looks not secure, do not go inside.

You have a nice little stack in the afternoon, everyone found something cute or nice to take along and you can not wait to ask your mother what those books are about.

Henrietta has been staying by your side most of the time, talking to you and being a sweet girl overall. Maybe she feels bad because everyone else talks to Rico far more than you? Either way, it is nice of her to do this. You give her a big smile to thank her, making her smile in return.

In the end, you say goodbye to everyone just a few minutes before the sun sets. Rico hugs her friends... and Henrietta hugs you, too. The boys are nice and leave you be.

You are exhausted... not from walking around, although your feet hurt a bit. You really do not understand how your sister can keep up with her friends like she does.

Now you just want to have dinner, drink some juice and have a nice evening.

---

There is still some time to spend after dinner. So pick one:

[] Watch TV with your mother

[] Play with Ludger

[] Read a book

[] Turn in early

[] Write-in


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+2xp Fooled Mommy...
+1xp Adherent of Pouting
+2xp Aspiring Looter
+4xp The Responsible Twin (Only Eva)
+2xp Went Out And Did Stuff (Only Eva)
+4xp You Sure Are Popular (Only Rico)
+2xp Carried For Two (Only Rico)

EXP gained: 11 + 11 = 22
Total EXP: 34

=====​

Looks like you got away with it this time.

 

[Naron]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Read a book

After a great dinner, Eva gets the book your mother gave her a while ago and went back to your room; mother likes to watch TV in the evening, so she could not read there. You follow her and Ludger follows you, but she does not mind; Eva likes reading a lot for some reason, even when it is boring.

So... what do you do? Poking her now would be mean and not fair after you already pulled your sister along the whole day.

She turns on the small light she has on her bed for reading, then lies down on her belly with her head on the pillow and the book right in front of her, looking at the cover for a moment before opening it.

Hm...
What do you do now?

Ah!

You quickly sit down and have Ludger sit with you, then hug him and try to see through Eva's eyes; the first thing you see is yourself, though... but she quickly looks back at her book and goes back to the first line.

Heh, you can read like this! This is nice.

It is actually a nice story, too; something about a boy that wants to be a hero... you did not really have the time to read it properly, Eva is a faster reader than you.

And you kind of were more excited to play around with your connection...

Anyway, she puts down the book after a few chapters and puts in her pink bookmark, then sets it down and you two wash up before going to sleep.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Spoiler: Unbalanced Reflection

There is ice and snow everywhere... some water, too. It is bright with the sunlight reflecting everywhere.

Your big sister is there, her sundress fluttering in the breeze; she sits on a small hill of ice like a throne, unmoving and looking forwards.

You glide closer to touch her, but she does not react... she is crying. The tears are frozen to her face.

Your eyes open just a few moments before the alarm starts beeping. Eva lets it ring while she gets up... so you have to climb down and do it yourself despite of how your eyes burn a little and you have stuff in them.. She always does that so you get up, the meany...

After turning it off, you think back and wonder what kind of weird dream that was. Then you shake your head and look at what Eva is doing; she usually gets up earlier than you, but you doubt you could sleep any longer after that. Ugh... morning... but you have to get up anyway. You have school today.

""Good morning.""

You greet each other as usual and get dressed, then Eva starts filling her bag with gym clothes and you quickly do the same after making sure the backpack is ready. You only have one because of the... uh... the thing where people only get as little stuff as necessary. You two got to the same school and are in the same class, so you have only one backpack and one set of books.

You do not mind that, though. Sharing with Eva is fine.
Hm...

"It's your turn to carry the backpack... but I guess I'll take it today."
You usually switch doing this each week... but with how your sister is'hurt', that would be weird. Eva looks up from the shorts she is folding and nods at you. "Thank you. I'm almost done... can you do my bandages?"

Of course, you should do that before your mother wants to do it... so you quickly get out of the room and run over to the bathroom, take the bandages and that weird scissor you use to cut them, then run back and close the door behind you.

Eva is looking a little confused, but starts to understand once she sees what you brought with you. She finishes packing her bag and zips it closed, then gets up and lifts her sweater over her head; maybe you should have done that before getting dressed... huh...

Whatever, you quickly take off the last set of bandages and just throw it to the ground, then fix a new one in place and make sure it is smooth this time. You ponder making a bow with the two ends for a moment, but mother would probably not find it as cute as you do.

With the bandages in place, you help Eva pull down her sweater again, then take up the old pile and both of you head out to the kitchen, where you can already smell toast waiting for you. Your mother is there too, packing lunch for the three of you and filling some bottles with water.
"Good morning, Mommy!" "Good Morning!"

Ludger looks up from his bowl, but seems to decide he likes his breakfast more right now. Your mother turns her head for a moment and smiles at you, then repeats the greeting and gets back to making food for you. Eva takes her seat while you take the small pile of old bandages over to your parent. "Where do I put these?"

She gives you a quick glance, then points at the trashcan. "Just throw them away."
"Okay."

With that done, you sit down and have breakfast. It is rather quiet and you like that... it helps waking up some more and now you actually notice that the sun just got up.

"I want you to come home right after school today; we have to clean up a bit for Bianca."

Oh... oh, right. Big sister is coming tomorrow!
That thought blasts the tiredness away and you poke Eva happily. She pokes back and you beam at each other. ""Okay!""

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

You pet Ludger goodbye and then leave the house. He has some water and his basket to sleep in, so he will be fine. Your mother already went ahead before you left, but you are on time... she just has teacher-stuff to prepare.

The walk to school is... chilly. It is not really bright just yet and the air is cold; at least you have a jacket to cover you.

Your friends are always later than you, though; they have longer ways to walk and your family makes sure you are up and going in time.

But the cold air at least wakes you up.

You enter the classroom a little after half past seven, so you still have... ugh, Anastasia.
There she sits in the last row, her arms folded and looking out of the window... then she sees your reflection and turns around to glare. You glare right back.

She is a bully and picks on Eva.
You do not like her at all... no one does, really. That does not make her stop, though... and the teachers like her because she does her homework and is smart. She even looks nice with her nice face and long hair, but she is just sooo mean.

Eva ducks away and just pulls you along to the second row, where your seats are, but you can tell Anastasia is still looking at you.

With how close you live to the school, you are usually here before most of the others; only one or two are otherwise around.

Then there is a sigh behind you. "Oh dear... good morning, you three."
That voice is... you turn around together with your sister and find an older girl walking up, her blonde hair neatly done in a cute ponytail; she takes her seat in the third row and smiles at the two of you.

"Good morning, Elisa."
"Good morning."
"Good morning."

Even Anastasia responds after a moment... but Eva seems the most happy to see her friend; Elisa is pretty and nice, a little more than a year older than you and everyone likes her.

Everyone, even Anastasia. You are surprised that girl likes anyone at all.

Elisa continues being bright, but takes out her books and starts looking through her notes. Everyone else comes in after her... and you start talking to Henrietta.

It is mostly girls here, seeing that the boys are helping out in the fields. With how few children there are, you only have three classes, too; first to fourth year are together, then fifth to eight year and ninth to twelfth year. You are in the first group, soon moving up to fourth grade. That will be nice, especially summer break...

But the teacher comes in, so you stop thinking about that while Class starts.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

School is great today!

With Eva and you working together, you can solve everything the teachers give you! Mostly math and stuff, but still... everyone looks at you when you give the right answers and even the teacher praises you!

Your connection is so neat! You can concentrate lots better, too!

Even when everyone says they are terrible... being Magical Girls is not as bad as you thought it would be... if you just did not have to lie to your friends and your mother about it... but thinking about that will not help.

You play tag with your friends during the breaks... and notice her watching you as you play, but she quickly gets back to her book once she knows you know. Whatever Anastasia was looking for, you made sure Eva was with you... no bullying your sister.

Gym class is nice, too. You are pretty good at it.

When classes were over Elisa stayed behind for some reason... you were too busy complaining about the homework to ask, though.

Nothing really happened on the walk home and now you are here... you would much rather play, but big sister is coming! Playing can wait!

Ludger already comes running when you unlock the door and yips happily, so you pet his head. Eva puts down her bag and looks at him for a moment, then looks at you. "I think I should walk him now. Can you take my bag?"

You just take it and smile at your sister... it is a little heavy now, with two bags and the backpack, but you just walk over to the bathroom while you can hear some rustling behind you and the door closing.

While you are busy pulling the sweaty gym clothes out of your bags, you try to look through Eva's eyes for a bit and see some of your neighbours smiling and greeting her. Ludger plays around with some of the other doggies in the neighbourhood, too. That is really cute...

Eva thinks the same, but you stop looking after a while and get back to throwing your clothes into the basket one by one, then turn the bags inside-out to air them; just like your mother showed you to do it.

She has yet to come home, but that is normal; teachers stay longer to do teacher-stuff.

So you put the bags away and then go to get your books out of the backpack -ugh, homework-... and then there is not much else to do. Except that Eva is back and already goes to get the cleaning stuff you need for later.

But you are hungry, too... you do not want to work.

So you decide to be unfair and go grab your sister by the hand, then bring her to the couch and hug her tight. A little waving with one hand brings Ludger to hop up and lie down at her other side, so now you have her trapped while she looks at you.

But Eva understands what you want and lets you. So now she is your teddy bear.

You cuddle up and feel her arms squeeze you back, and both of you just sit like that. It is nice and warm...

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

You are now Eva and have no idea how long you have been sitting on the couch, but Rico lets go once you hear the door opening. Mother is home...

But you are really comfy right now and... maybe a few more minutes? So you just hold on and do not let her go, the warm Ludger at your other side just staying where he is.
"Eva?"
"Mhn..."

You mumble into her side and just hold on... and she lets you, too. Hugging Rico is nice...

You hear some shuffling in the hallway and... is that laughing? Maybe... eh, it does not matter. You just stay where you are.

After some more minutes, Rico shifts and you pout at her... but let go. It is probably time to get up... and you can smell something nice from the kitchen.
Food has you both go exploring for what your lunch will be.

The rest of the day passes by like that, you clean up and do your homework and walk the dog again and then it is time for bed already... it was still really dirty in a lot of places, so you made dinner after you were done cleaning. But it was fun, too... everyone worked hard and mother gave you ice cream when you were done.

So now you lie down and close your eyes... but you can feel Rico looking forward to tomorrow. Even with this... this block in place, you can still feel how happy she is.

And you are, too. It has been months since big sister was here. She is the best big sister in the world.

And she is coming here!

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Spoiler: Unbalanced Reflection

Myriads of colours pass by, changing and forming shapes you can not see before they are gone.

Empty echos...

You float nowhere and everywhere...

When you wake up, there is nothing left of tonight's dream. You just remember that it was really weird.

But that does not matter, because big sister is on her way. She will be here when you get out of school and you can play and watch TV together and she can read books to you and... and... oh, so much to do!

You let the alarm ring for Rico and jump out of bed... but she is already coming down from her bed, beaming and turning off the noise before getting her own clothes and dressing herself. Lots of happiness come over your connection and you push as much of yours to your sister.

You are both so happy today... nothing can make it bad. Nothing.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

School goes by slowly, but you do not really care. You just take care of the questions you get and play around during the breaks. Rico told her friends that you can not play after school for a few days because big sister is there, too... Anstasia trips you on the way back to class, but you do not mind it much today.

And lesson after lesson... you do not get any homework. This really is the best day ever... or at least the best day this year.

So when the last lesson is over, the two of you are the first to leave; Rico grabs the backpack, you stuff everything inside and then you wave your friends goodbye before running off.

When you reach your home, she is already there; you can tell because there is a car parked nearby. And because she is sitting at the table on the patio, reading some things... but she looks up before you can call out to her, a gust of air making her short hair curl.

Spoiler: Big Sister, The Best

She looks just like you remember her, pretty and calm... her hair is about as long as yours and she is still bigger than you, but you are getting there!

"Big sis!"
Rico is already running again and you follow her; your sister gets up from the chair and has you both come up to her, then hugs you tightly.

"Eva, Rico. It's good to see you."

---

What to do? Pick One:

[X] Play with Big Sister

[] Do something else
-[]Write-in what

---

You hug her back and then let go and smile up at her, but Rico is faster than you. "Play with us, big sis!"

She looks at you for a moment, the cold look going away quickly and becoming a smile; big sister looks at the papers she was reading before, then ruffles your hair and nods towards the house. "I don't mind. Go bring your things inside, I'm right behind you."
""'Kay!""

You run to the door and open up; Ludger is already waiting there, wagging his tail and yipping happily.

Rico goes ahead to throw the backpack somewhere while you pet the dog, then look behind to make sure big sister is really right behind you; she likes doing work, so you have to check. You see her putting away those papers into a bag she had leaned to the table, then close it and sling it over her shoulder.

When she finds you looking, she smiles at you and walks over to crouch next to you; then she joins in petting the dog. "Hey there, Ludger. You're living the life?"

He yips again and licks her hand, as if to tell her something. Your big sister laughs and ruffles his fur again, then lets him be and wipes her hand with a handkerchief. She closes the door with her foot and you can hear Rico coming back.

You let go of Ludger and look around... huh... you probably should walk him, but... but... ugh... you want big sister, so... can he wait?

Rico probably feels it and looks where you are looking, then sighs and takes the collar; Ludger is with her so fast that you can not even see him move. "I go with him, but promise you don't start having fun without me."

Oh... that is really nice of her. You smile at your sister and big sister does the same, then presses a fist to her chest. "I solemnly swear to you that we will not eat the sweets I brought you before you're back."

That has both of you stop and look at your sibling in awe; she brought you sweets? That is great, you have so few chances to eat them!

Big sister laughs again and walks past Rico, then gives her a nudge. "You should go now."
Your sister nods and puts the collar on the dog, then runs over to the door... and looks back. "No fun before I'm back. I will know if you start without me."

You giggle and wave until she turns around and leaves fast; Ludger runs after her without a care and you feel an arm snake around your shoulder. Looking up, you find your big sister giving you another smile and a slight squeeze. "You're taller each time I get to see you."

You smile back and take her hand, then pull her over to the living room to sit with you and climb onto her lap. This is your only chance to have big sister for yourself, so you will use it!

She only chuckles and wraps her arms around you, making you feel warm and comfy. This is nice...

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

When Rico comes back, she finds you cuddling on the couch and quickly jumps up to you. "Hey, me too!"

Aw... now you have to share again. You slide off of big sister's lap and to her side while your sister takes the other, then you both snuggle up to her. She is going exactly nowhere for now.
Not that she made any move to go, but you never know...

"So this is how it's going to be?"
You just press yourself closer to her side and say nothing; Rico probably does the same.

You are not sure how much time passes... but the first thing that happens is your mother coming home. You can see her from turning your head, standing in the doorway and smiling.
"I would greet you properly, mother... but... as you can see, I was taken prisoner."

You giggle with your parent and Rico does something on the other side... then she shouts cheerfully: "Yup, Big sis is our prisoner now and we won't let her go."

Your mother chuckles some more, then hides her mouth behind her hand. "Oh no, what should I do? Please, have mercy on an old woman... how much do you want for my child's release? Can I bribe you with lunch?"

Hm... lunch is tempting and you are pretty hungry. You lean a little bit forwards to look at Rico, who looks back. She is not sure, either.

But in the end, your tummy decides that food is important and you nod at your sister, who then nods at your mother. "Fine, but we wanna see the goods first."

Now both adults break into laughter and you join them. Even you can tell that this is from some movie you watched together, even if you are not sure which one.

You sit like this until your mother is done making lunch, then let go and eat together; Rico is talking enough for the four of you, chatting about... everything, really. You just let her and eat quietly, observing the adults at the table; both of them are smiling

Then you spend the rest of the day playing with your big sister. There are not that many games around to play, but you make do and have fun; and you show her your garden and the pretty pictures you have been drawing... you think she likes it. Big sister smiles.

In the evening, the three of you go out to walk Ludger; Rico has the leash and the corgi runs around excitedly.

Your big sister is walking between the two of you, looking around as you go; she only sees the city once a year and they are still busy building lots of things, so it is different each time.
Rico stopped talking a while ago... you are not sure why, but she might have nothing more to talk about.

The quiet is nice, though.

"I heard what happened from mother."

Huh? You turn your head and look up at her; Rico does the same and Bianca gives you both a concerned glance. "About the attack."

Oh. You blink at your big sister and wonder when they could have talked about that without you hearing; you have been with her ever since she arrived.

Wait... if she knows, then she knows you are 'hurt'... what if she wants to check? You do not have any reason not to let her see...

"Are you two okay?"

You both nod at big sister and she gives you a long look each; she can tell if you lie, but this one is not wrong... you are okay now, even if you were scared a lot.
"I see. That's good to hear."

She leaves it be and you continue on your way.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Spoiler: Unbalanced Reflection

But nobody came

You are now Rico once more.

When you open your eyes the next morning, you have no idea if you dreamed anything or not. You are still not happy that you were not allowed to sleep with big sister, anyway.

But now that the night is over, you can go play with her again... no, wait... you have... school. Ugh.

After pushing yourself out of bed and getting dressed, you quickly shuffle Eva over to the bathroom to change her bandages again.

Then you have breakfast with everyone; big sister is already awake and reading a newspaper when you enter, but she puts it down at once and smiles at you. After wishing each other a good morning, you get to eat and make yourself ready to head out. Eva pokes you with unhappiness and you poke her with your own. Neither of you wants to leave big sister alone.

"Don't worry about me; I have Ludger here and some work of my own to do."
Now you blink back at her; as if she knew what you were thinking... but only Eva can do that, this is not fair!

You pout at being found out and both adults chuckle about it.

Nothing interesting happens in school, either... you do good again, play in the breaks and tell your friends you have no time later. They can wait when big sis is around.

Speaking of, she is already waiting for you when you come back home, Ludger lying curled up by her feet and dozing while she reads.

Then you sit next to her again and the book is put away. The title looks complicated... and it is in English, for that matter.

But you are with her now, so everything is good. Her arms are around your shoulders and you enjoy being with your siblings; your family is the best.

Then your big sister sighs.
"I think we played around for long enough. What did really happen last Friday?"

Huh?

You look up at big sister... and she has her serious face. The one she only has when she wants to really know what you did... but... why? How? You put so much effort into making sure she does not know...

Over your stunned silence, she adds another question: "You are Magical Girls, aren't you?"

---

You may or may not be in trouble. But then again, do you really want to lie to the person you love the most?

[] Write-in a plan


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+1xp Meet The Bully
+1xp Meet The Sweetheart
+2xp Impressed Your Classmates And Teachers
+1xp Cleaned Up
+2xp How Did You Get Out of Bed? (Only Rico)
+10xp She is The Big Sister
+3xp Successfully Captured And Ransomed Your Big Sister
+2xp Welp...

EXP gained: 20 + 22 = 42
Total EXP: 76

=====​

(Unlocked Level 1 Character Sheet: Bianca Vescovi)

=====​

Okay then, here we go.
Have fun~

 

[Naron]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Admit it
-[X] We've never been able to lie to big sis; but if big sis thought we were bad. She would have brought soldiers with her.

Your body grows cold in an instant.

She knows.

But... but you can not lie to big sis... even when it will be really, really bad... but if it was, she would have brought soldiers, right?

"...yes..."
Eva whispers your response, shivering and shaking and pale... and then you feel your big sister's arms squeeze you both a little tighter, bringing you a little closer. "I see."

She looks at you both for a moment and pauses for some reason... is she thinking about what to do with you? You can not run away with how you are...

Oh please, please don't bring us to them...

You can feel the fear from your sister and are no better yourself; your vision blurs under tears as the silence continues... and then she just squeezes you again. "It's fine. No one knows and I won't tell."

Huh?

It takes a moment to take in what she just said... but you stop and look up at her with hope growing; your heart stops being heavy and hurting and... and big sister smiles at you both. "You're safe with me."

"R-Really? You... you don't hate us?"
You have trouble speaking and your voice almost breaks and you still can not believe what you just heard, but... big sister just nods and pulls you so close you both can rest your heads at her chest. "Never. No matter what happens, I will never, ever hate you."

Thank god...

You scrunch up and hug her with all your strength, then just cry into her chest in relief.
You are safe! You... you can live!

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

"How do you know? Did someone see us?"

It is the first thing Eva asks after you stopped crying; your big sister left you where you were, nestled against her while she holds you... but now she lets go a bit so you can look at her again. There is a weak smile on her face while her hands slide higher to stroke your hair.

"No, no one reported Magical Girls. And I didn't know."

Huh... huh? How does that work.

She presses a little stronger for a moment; that tells you to just stay quiet while big sister explains, so you do.

"You did a good job in hiding what happened... but there was a small detail that destroyed your work. Eva, you got that cut in your side, right?"

Your sister nods shily, her swollen eyes never leaving Bianca's face. "Your shirt had none, but it should have. Mother noticed that one and became suspicious."

Oh. But... from just that?

As if she read the question from your face, big sister smiles and shakes her head. "No, she was not sure at all. As I said, you did well in hiding... but mother is mother, she could tell there was something going on."

Urgh... you really forgot that part? But...
"Are you telling Mommy?"

Now you get the calm look she gave Eva before... and another rub over your head. "I just said I won't tell anyone. Unless you want her to know, I will not. In fact, I will tell her there is nothing; she brought me in because we both know you won't lie to me."

So... it was a trap all along? And your mother called Bianca over to make sure they found the truth?
...ugh, how mean.

"But... but you said you didn't know..."
"I didn't", she interrupts Eva with a mean smirk. "But I can tell when you lie to me, so I would have known no matter which answer you gave me."

So... it was a trick. Your big sister bluffed you!
But before you can start pouting, her look becomes nicer. "This kind of secret... is not something you would come out about, and that is good. You did not tell anyone, did you?"

You both shake your head.
"Would you have told me?"
You think for a moment, then shake your heads again. You were far too afraid...
"So I had to come and ask... I'm sorry for scaring you like that."

The arms around you squeeze again and you just hug your big sister tightly. "It's fine... everything is okay, so we forgive you."

Eva nods into Bianca's chest, agreeing to what you said. She just hugs you tight again, then sighs and continues while looking at the ceiling. "But... in all honesty, you could tell mother as well. She won't hate you for it, either. We all know awakening magic is not something one can control."

"How do you know she doesn't hate us?" "Are you a Magical Girl?"
You speak at the same time, then look at each other while your big sister goes over what you just said. Then she looks at you with a shake of her head. "No, I'm no Magical Girl."

After saying that, she turns to Eva and rubs her head gently. "Mother... after she noticed that your shirt was still whole when it should not be, she cut it up herself, then sewed it back together. Just like I do, she will love you no matter what."

Huh... so your sudden thought was wrong after all.

But this is weird... and nice and good and... a lot of things. You look up at Bianca. "But... Mommy hates Magical Girls... are you sure?"

You heard her crying and swearing before, when she thought you were not around...

She stays quiet for a while and you just go back to leaning against her while she thinks. Eva does the same and you can listen in on big sister's calm heartbeat.

"This... is complicated. I'm not sure if what mother feels can be called hatred, but it's not far off. And I can't tell for sure if it is still what she told me with how I live far away. Mother is not fond of magic, or Magical Girls, in any way... but she wouldn't want people killed for something they have no control over."

Her voice sounds a little weird with you having an ear at her chest, a little vibrating... but the words are clear nonetheless.

"Most of all, though..."
A pair of arms squeezes you tight once more. "Most of all, you two are her babies. She does not hate you and never will."

Oh.

No more words are said after that; you just hug your big sister happily. You feel much better now, after she accepted what you are.
She is so warm...

---

It is Wednesday, where your mother goes to buy groceries after getting off work. You have some time to spend with just the three of you.
What do you do for the rest of the day?

[] Play with big sister

[] Cuddle with big sister

[] Once your mother is back...
-[] help with lunch
-[] Write-in

[] Spend your evening...
-[] Playing with big sister
-[] Watching TV together
-[] Write-in

[] Write-in


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+5xp Can Not Lie to Big Sis
+10xp Not in Trouble

EXP gained: 15 + 15 = 30
Total EXP: 106

=====​

A shorter update this time, but that might be better for this one in particular.
The next one will take up the rest of the day, so vote accordingly.

 

[Naron]

Primordial Moon: New Ability

Lunar Blessing
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Maximum Health


Health: 100 -----> 250

Primordial Moon: New Ability

Lunar Blessing
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Maximum Health


Health: 100 -----> 250

Primordial Moon: New Ability

Lunar Blessing
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Moon's Maximum Health


Health: 100 -----> 250

A Shop-Item's description changed.

---

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Play with big sister
-[X] Ask about her work.
-[X] Ask if she wants to see your magic.

[X] Once your Mother is back...
-[X] help with lunch

[X] Spend your evening...
-[X] Playing with big sister

You snuggle with big sister a little longer, the heavy load finally off of you. It feels good that she knows and stays with you.

You think about telling your mother once she gets back, but... you are not sure just yet.

But what you want to do right now... you have been sitting around for a while. Rico is usually the one to do things and you love cuddling with your sisters, but with everything out now... you want her to see!

"Big sister?"
She turns her head to you after a moment and you can tell Rico is listening, too. "Um... do you want to see our magic?"

Both of your siblings give you a look, but you just watch Bianca with curiousity. Your magic is nice and she will definitely like it, too. "Mommy goes to the market on Wednesdays, so she won't be back soon."

Your big sister looks at you a moment longer, then she smiles and lets go of you. "If you want to do that, go ahead."

You beam at her and jump up, then take her hand and pull her along to the basement. Rico seems to like the idea as much as you do; she skips by your side, curious where you want to go.
Once you wander down the stairs, your sisters look at you again and you tilt your head in wonder. "Is something wrong?"

"Eva... you never liked going down here."

Oh, right. You give Rico a wide smile and point downwards. "I'm better now; it isn't that scary anymore."

At least it does not feel that way; you have your magic and then there is always light... and looking backwards, you are followed! There he is, the little spy!
"Ludger, come!"

He was following you without any noise, but now he yips and runs through Bianca's feet, then comes with you into the room. Light switch, light switch... there.

You turn on the light after a few seconds, even when it is pretty weak after all. Your sisters look around and you beam at them. "No one can see us down here, it is perfect!"

Both of them share a look and big sister shrugs, then she closes the door and sits down against it; Ludger comes to lie down next to her while you and Rico go further into the room. It is a little embarassing, but you can bear with it. It is just your big sister watching.

When you transform in an aura of light, so does your twin. You both stand still for a moment for Bianca to look at you, then you float over to Rico. "Here, you have wings, too! Come on, come on!"

Then you guide her through the same things you did when you tried flying; it is so much fun to float around!

Your big sister just watches you with a smile, one hand on Ludger's head. The corgi is watching with her and you wave from right under the ceiling.

Rico is having fun, too... but you want to show Bianca things, so you come back down after a while; she sits there and looks at you a little longer, then she gets up without a word and moves to you. "So you have the basics of flight... stay still for a moment."

You do so and she starts tapping around on your suits; it does not feel like much happens, but you can hear the knocks her fingers produce. Actually, there is a slight shine to the suits now... you are not sure this was there before.

Bianca keeps quiet as she works at whatever she is doing... and then she puts a hand on your weapon, a silent question. You let go and she takes it to look closer.

When she wants to give it back, you call it back to you from her hand and big sister is actually surprised. So is Rico, who looks at the scepter. "Hey, that looked neat! Do it again!"
Um... you guess so?

After a moment of thought, you throw your scepter a few metres away so it lands on the ground, then call it back to your hand. Rico claps happily, then throws her own weapon... only that it does not come back.

"Huh?"

Now Bianca snickers behind you and goes to get the scepter. "Every weapon is unique, even when your scepters look similar. Eva can recall hers, but you can't... there should be something else it does, though."

She gives the weapon another look and a swing, but nothing happens. "You will find out in time."


Of note, Rico's Modifier Save allows her to reuse a previously rolled modifier roll however long she wants in a battle; which means that once she rolls high, she can keep using this roll instead of rolling again


Your sister looks over her own weapon and shrugs, then big sister becomes more business-like again. "What spells do you have?"

You take over from this point and motion at yourself. "I can heal a bit and Rico... I think Rico's is a damage spell, but it's weak."
"Hey!"

Bianca thinks over that while your sister grabs you under the arms and starts tickling you. "Hm. A moon that heals and a sun that damages... maybe it burns..."

You want to ask what she is mumbling about, but you are too busy laughing under your sister's attack; Rico stops after a while, but you both hang in the air by that point, panting. "You should know that all Magical Girls have a theme; it can be basically everything, but their names and transformation phrases are always connected to it in some way. You are Sun and Moon, so it's pretty obvious what your themes are."

You look at each other over the explanation. It does make sense if you look at it like that...

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

She has you use your spell on a few things, but nothing happens; no one is hurt, so nothing is supposed to happen. You can not look at Rico's spell because you do not want to break anything, but explain it as best as you can to your big sister.

She listens closely and seems to think about it a lot, but does not say much more. She just ruffles your hair when you are done and leads you back up.

Rico is as curious as you, but you know Bianca will say whatever she thinks about when there is something important to it.

You spend the rest of the day just playing with your big sister, the relief over not being hated still clear in your minds. You also help with making lunch and dinner... and think about telling your mother, but you do not feel well about it still. Even when big sister told you it would be fine... things would definitely change.

...

Later. You will do that later.

In the end, Bianca even helps you with your homework... she does not need to, but does it anyway. Now you just sit here and work through another math problem while she looks over your shoulder; Rico writes away just as fast.

"You got pretty good at math."

Huh? Oh.

Now that you think about it... Rico quickly glances at the door, but you can hear the TV going; your mother is a few rooms away, but you keep your voice down anyway. "Um... actually, we forgot something about our magic."

You completely forgot to tell her about the connection. It is just there and you do not really mind it at all... it feels normal already and Rico beams at your big sister. "We can feel each other and our feelings and stuff. And we got smarter and can do math now."

That... is somewhat right, but makes no sense; looking at your big sister's face, she thinks the same thing. You quickly pull at her sleeve to get her attention, then point at your forehead. "It's... Rico and I can... uh... share?... our feelings and I can tell what she thinks and... and we already found out how to stop her from feeling when I am hurt and we can move each other."

Bianca gives you a long look, her face completely calm. Then she does the same to Rico before nodding at both of you. "I see. How far does your control go?"

Now you look at each other for a moment and your twin shrugs. "I think there is still more we can do, but..."

She shrugs again and you just nod. It is still weird, especially when explaining it to someone else; you just feel how it is.

Bianca thinks about that and shrugs in the end. "It might be useful later."
She does not say any more... but when you turn back to your work, you can see a relieved smile on her lips for a moment... from the corner of your eye.

Huh...
​

. . .
?
. . .
.....

.....

The reflection gains balance​

 

[Naron]

In this largest of castles, the greatest of beings came together. In this largest of castles, decisions were made.

And yet, despite all the splendor on its walls and in its halls, the single room they frequented was devoid of luxuries.

It was a mood whiplash that could not have been greater; to find that their council of rulers collectively refused to bask in its riches as it usually did... it was a reminder of how serious this gathering was.

There was the Supreme Overlord of Hell, cast in shadows as he preferred to; only his eyes were visible, glowing a terrifying red. As the constant host of these meetings, he had taken his place at the table's topside and the rustling of paper could be heard from within the pure darkness surrounding him.

The most powerful demon in existence, fifth successor to the original Supreme Overlord.

On the second side sat a streamlined creature that was without doubt the most bizarre of the group. Its body was metallic, consisting of a great many tubes stuck together to form a main body; yet all of those tubes bent as if they were organic, forming no less than seven whip-like appendages moving around their own reports. Five separate heads protruded out of the spindly body, two on top and three out of the back, their gazes fixed on the other participants, the notes and the large map in the table's center at the same time. Actinic light blazed over its body in small waves.

The Forgotten Heart, first of the dolls to become alive and their undisputed ruler.

Opposite to the ruler of Hell sat... lounged... was an amorphous mass that took up almost this whole side of the table. Slimy appendages slithered around the humongous body and an assortment of eyes wandered from one colleague to the next, placed on top of a head as large as the Forgotten Heart. The creature's maw was opened in its three segments, revealing razor-sharp teeth and a split tongue.

One of the three Queens of Carnivon, bred to rule and further her ancestors' goals.

Lastly, on the fourth side of the table, sat a humanoid no bigger than two metres. A set of four yellow eyes was calmly examining the atmosphere, gauging her counterparts and their moods while clawed hands tapped onto the old wood once in a while. Her figure was sleek, streamlined and one could easily see her muscles shift under the taut yellow skin with every movement.

Of all the individuals gathered, the Head Warrior was the youngest; she had begun leading the Children of War but a decade ago, holding her title with ferocity, strength and cunning.

They were the undisputed rulers of their realms, together forming the highest authority of the Unified Dark. For each their own reasons, they did not accept the doctrine of their opponent, the Unified Light. They were the shadow creeping behind all creation, the black of the endless void everything originated from.

Today however, those four had not gathered to discuss strategy; their previous plans were still in motion and no alterations had to be made.

What brought them together again so soon was something entirely different.

The tension was still there, though; they were an alliance of interests, not comrades or even friends.

"According to what data you could gather", the Forgotten Heart broke the quiet with its somewhat screeching voice, "this new race has gone to war. Why should that bother us?"

Eyes wandered over to the deep blue doll, then back to the shadowy figure; the Overlord's eyes vanished for but a moment, a single blink telling them about his exasperation. "My agents already established contact, as did the Light... but this is... concerning."

The others tensed over the last word; the Unified Dark was all about strength, seeming unmovable and invincible... for any of them to admit worry meant that things had gone bad.

""""""How concerning, dear Overlord? We took an interest in these... Magical Girls... but why should we care for their weak little race? It is small and we already assessed it as non-threatening.""""""

The Carnivon-Queen echoed her question with the myriad of her voices, creating an unsettling cacophony; nonetheless, the Head Warrior nodded her agreement to the statement. "The Queen is correct. Why would we have to be concerned about a little war going on there?"

"Because this war is not 'little' like your own constant skirmishes and battles", was the demon's response. Something cracked on the dark side and the eyes rose further upwards.

"Keep in mind that this race is not yours, Head Warrior. I dedicated a larger-than-necessary force of mages to scrying this one tiny race because I myself could not believe the first reports. Their... 'Magical Girls' bring slaughter in the hundreds like our elite warriors against a huddle of puny elves. Humankind's regular troops fight with weapons we never saw before and have no hope of replicating; we got a few models in for testing and found them more than capable of taking our strongest in battle."

Silence reigned the table while the Overlord began to pace up and down in his dark side. "This 'little' war of theirs started but a month ago, but six million humans have already died. From what I gathered, this was just the initial few confrontations; more separate realms are joining the fighting as we speak."

The pacing stopped and red eyes focussed on yellow, the Child of War having grown pale and subconciously clawing on the table. "They do not wage war for fun like you do, Head Warrior. They fight to the last and destroy what they can not conquer."

They stared at each other for a few seconds, but everyone knew what the youngest member of their gathering thought. This was not how war was supposed to be fought.

"Then what do you suggest, Overlord?", the Forgotten Heart chirped while examining several sheets of paper at once. "Shall we exterminate the humans, now that they are busy with themselves?"

"""And risk them to join the Unified Light like the Fae did?"""

"The Fae do no longer exist, as you very well know. They never managed to be more than a minor inconvenience."

As this discussion between the two went on, the Head Warrior's head lowered; she was not at all happy with any of these topics.

After a while of silently listening however, she clenched her fists and spoke up. "What-"
Then she saw it; hidden by darkness his person may have been, but the sudden closing of both eyes and light tap on the ground were enough to tell her everything. The Supreme Overlord of Hell had just flinched a step backwards.

This time, the silence was deafening; as if a heavy weight had been put on her shoulders, the Head Warrior had to press the words out: "What do you suggest we do, Overlord?"

The demon was quiet for a while. Then, solemnly, he responded: "I suggest we leave them be."

They had no need to exchange glances. Hell had been one of the first participants in this long, long conflict; only demons and angels were still old enough to remember the beginning, as every other race that stood back then had long since died.

Yet... for this proudest of demons to show fear like he did... they understood. They all did.

"Agreement."
""So am I.""
"..."

The Head Warrior was quiet a little longer than the others. She still wondered what exactly her counterpart had seen that left him like this.
Then she decided she rather not know.

"The decision is unanimous."
Her words were calm, but final. They would go nowhere near these beings.

"However, we will continue to employ this one Magical Girl that established contact with us."

She had met this one; a fine being, albeit a little young for actual battle. The Children of War gained her service in exchange for training and opportunities to grow stronger; fair enough a deal.

Although the gazes she got from around the room told her she was alone with that thought; at least none of them disagreed with her decision.

---

+10xp The First Step was Made
+150xp Completed the Tuto... uh... Chapter 1

EXP gained: 160 + 160 = 320
Total EXP: 326

=====​

Congratulations, now the real show starts; have some EXP to spend. No voting about it just yet, though; there is another piece coming up in a bit.
By the way, this is now character knowledge.

 

[Naron]

.....​

.....​

.....​

The reflection lost its balance​

​

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

How weird a dream that was. It almost felt real...

You blink at the ceiling a few times before slowly rolling over and pushing yourself up. There is the ladder, now you just... okay, you can get down easily. Eva is awake, too... and a look at the alarm tells you that it will start ringing... now.

Your hand is already on top of it with the first ring and you turn it off; your sister sits up and looks at you... she probably had the same dream. About weird, creepy things and bad people.

The Unified Dark, was it? Maybe you should ask big sis... she knows a lot.

You get your chance a little later, once your mother headed out to school; there are still a few minutes left before you have to leave, so you bring your and Eva's plate to the sink while your twin speaks up. "Big sister, what is the Unified Dark?"

You sneak a peek through your sister's eyes and find Bianca looking at you... uh, Eva with serious attention. "Where did you hear of that?"

She sounds alarmed... is this something bad? Well okay, especially that Queen-thing looked really ugly and creepy, but it was nowhere near here... right?

Eva squirms a little before responding; with how big sis reacted, it was probably not just a dream. Maybe a magical vision or something?
"Um... we kind of dreamed about it?"

You put down the plates and start washing them; Eva is busy talking to your sister, so she would not have the time to do it herself today. Bianca thinks about what she just said, but you can not just look through your sister's eyes again right now; you need to see what you are doing.

"I see. The Unified Dark is... one of the two large factions nearby, next to the Unified Light."
"So they're evil?", you interrupt your sister with curiousity. If someone calls themself dark, they had to be the baddies, right?

Bianca stays silent for a moment longer, then sighs. "Yes and no. They are decidedly not good, but... the world is not just black and white. Give me some time to think about it and I explain in the afternoon?"

You think about this for a moment. Not black and white... huh.
Like how big sis is always cold but actually really nice?

Hm... you do not really get what she means, but there seems to be something between good and evil.

Actually, mixing black and white gives you grey... and there is a lot of tones of grey. Is that what she means? Lots of things between good and evil and... ugh, this is complicated. Now your head hurts a little...

You quickly finish the dishes while Eva nods at big sis. "Okay."
Then you get ready and head out; Bianca sees you off at the door, together with Ludger.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

School is... normal. You work on your problems and the teachers are helping out some of the younger girls... but you get the feeling that something is weird.

Then, during the short break between lessons, you realise what it is by watching Elisa; the nice older girl has walked over and is talking to Anastasia... who has her hands on her tummy as if it hurt.

Huh... Anastasia. She does deserve to be hurt, but tummyaches are bad. Urgh...

She talks back to Elisa for a moment and the older girl does not look happy, but she nods and gets back to her seat.

You keep an eye on her when you have chances to turn around and... she does continue pressing a hand on her belly every time. She does not look really happy, too... oh great, now you almost feel bad for her. But only almost because she is still a bully.


A few minutes before the first longer break however, she starts whimpering and the teacher notices.

"Anastasia? What's wrong?"

She ignores the older woman and curls up in her seat some more... and everyone else is looking now, too. Elisa even gets up from her seat to check on the other girl... but Anastasia just shakes her head and ducks her head. She seems to hurt a lot and even Eva looks unhappy to see her like that.

Then she takes a hitching breath and speaks up, her voice empty.

"When no warmth is left, pain settles in. I am Magical Girl World Eater!"

Dirty brown light engulfs her from the inside and breaks the table she sits on... then, when it goes away, she has changed completely. Her hair is now a snowy white and she wears a cute outfit in brown and orange... and her eyes are weird; there is more than one colour in them now...

Spoiler: Anastasia?

Everyone sits and stares for a moment, even her...

---

You might need a plan.

[] Write-in what to do


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+5xp It Looks Like This From The Outside

EXP gained: 5 + 5 = 10
Total EXP: 336

=====​

And here begins the second chapter of this story.

 

[Naron]

Primordial Sun: Spell Upgrade

Scorching Sunlight
-May the glorious rays of the sun set you ablaze
Level 3 -----> 4 -----> 5
Base Damage: 160 -----> 320 -----> 640
Magic Modifier: 65 -----> 80 -----> 105
Affinity: Sun
Ability: Burn | Armor Removal

Primordial Sun: New Ability

Solar Blessing
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Sun's Maximum Health


Health: 100 -----> 300

Primordial Sun: Ability Upgrade

Solar Blessing
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Health: 300 -----> 500 -----> 700

Primordial Sun: Ability Upgrade

Shell of Light
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Base Resilience: 25 -----> 45 -----> 65

Primordial Sun: Spell Upgrade

Scorching Sunlight
-May the glorious rays of the sun set you ablaze
Level 3 -----> 4 -----> 5
Base Damage: 160 -----> 320 -----> 640
Magic Modifier: 65 -----> 80 -----> 105
Affinity: Sun
Ability: Burn | Armor Removal

Primordial Sun: New Ability

Solar Blessing
Level 1
-Increases Primordial Sun's Maximum Health


Health: 100 -----> 300

Armor Removal lowers the target's Base Resilience upon hitting it.

Primordial Moon: Ability Upgrade

Protective Silhouette
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Base Resilience: 35 -----> 65 -----> 95

Primordial Moon: Ability Upgrade

Lunar Blessing
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Health: 250 -----> 400 -----> 550

Primordial Moon: Ability Upgrade

Protective Silhouette
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Base Resilience: 35 -----> 65 -----> 95

Primordial Moon: Ability Upgrade

Lunar Blessing
Level 1 -----> 2 -----> 3
Health: 250 -----> 400 -----> 550

---

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Rico: Keep the rest of the class calm. Use our best "Commander" mode big sister voice.
-[X] "Alright! Now, no one is going to panic. Because if you panic, she panics. And no one here wants that. So, you're all going to keep quiet and slowly walk out of the room without so much as looking at her."
-[X] Call Big Sis after and explain what happened. Including how this is probably her first transformation from how it looked/when it happened.

[X] Eva: Talk to her. Soothing, calm tones.
-[X] Topics: Why she bullied us, our sister and how she doesn't hate magical girls, why she's hurting
-[X] If she asks why we're helping it's because she's hurting and we want to help and because no one should have to run and hide in fear
-[X] Try to get to how our sister does not hate magical girls before Rico calls her and how she's the best way we have to help Ana.

The silence almost hurts your ears.

But it does not matter. You do not need to look at each other, do not need to talk.
In this moment, you know what the other wants to do. Eva is reluctant, Rico is concerned... no matter.

Even if she was mean to you before, even if you do not like her much... you can not just take the easy way and run, even though it is tempting.

"You look cute."

Eva's words shatter the painful silence and everyone, really everyone except Rico stares at her now. No one screamed just yet.

While Eva wanders over with reluctant but steady steps, Rico turns around to her classmates and straightens up. How did big sis do that again? Chest out, arms behind your back... uh, you better not. That would look weird.

Anyway, all eyes are still following Eva, so Rico clears her throat to get their attention; without anyone talking, it works easily. Then you give them a few stern looks and, seeing that Anastasia is still looking at Eva, point at the door while putting a finger over your mouth.

Eva reached her target by now and takes the empty chair next to the Magical Girl, a little nervous but she can do this.
"I saw you hurting before... what happened? Do you have a tummyache, Anastasia?"

Her multicoloured eyes are focussed on Eva now and she slowly nods before hugging her tummy again. "N-No... I'm so hungry..."

You are concerned again... with how she is named World Eater, that might mean things. But everyone is quietly leaving; most of the girls are running, but Anastasia is not reacting. Rico follows the teacher and pulls at her sleeve, then whispers to call her mother.

However, Elisa is still there; she is slowly walking over and takes the seat on Anastasia's other side. She does not speak though... so pale. Eva smiles at them both, then gently takes the Magical Girl's hand. "It's okay."

"I..."

She rips the hand out of yours and presses both of hers against her head, wincing in pain... you give her a moment and lean over to look at Elisa. "Can you get my lunchbox?"

The older girl blinks at you for a moment, but gets up and quickly walks over to where your things are. Rico is still walking through the school... so you have a little more time.

Anastasia groans and Eva turns her attention back to the new Magical Girl. She has to be new or she would not have transformed right here. "Are you okay?"
"Ugh..."

She keeps quiet for a moment and a few tears trickle down from her closed eyes. "No... it hurts..."

You lean forward and rub her back gently, waiting for her to continue. "I... I can feel so many things everywhere... moving and... urgh."

Huh... you have no idea what she means, but you go from rubbing her back to petting her head. "It's okay, Anastasia."

Her eyes open slowly while Elisa places your lunchbox in her lap; you quickly open it and smile at the other girls. "I don't mind giving you mine."

Elisa is shaking a bit, but Eva acts as if she did not notice; she is a great person for giving this her all even now, so you will hug her later and tell her she did good. Right now, you continue smiling at Anastasia, whose mouth is slightly opened without saying anything.

Then her hands grab for your sandwich and... she stuffs herself with it. Literally. She takes it as a whole and stuffs it into her mouth... is that just your imagination or did it get bigger to take in the whole thing?

There is some smacking and she keeps her hands pressed to her mouth so nothing can fall out, but it is gone quickly. Then Anastasia's stomach gurgles and she holds it with a whimper. "Ugh..."

"No good?"
You went back to rubbing her back by now and Elisa is watching you both with... you are not sure what. Curiousity? Fear? Maybe...

Anastasia hickups and looks at you with teary eyes now, her hands shaking and grasping at nothing. "You... you... why are you s-so nice?"
Hm?

Oh.

You smile brighter at her. "Because I don't like when people are hurting. I want to help."
Then your smile gets a little sheepish... you did have another reason for this, but still... with how she was always mean, she probably did not have many... "A-And I thought we can be friends..."

Eva says it quietly, but the words are heard and Anastasia tears up before hugging her tightly and crying into her chest.

Rico quickly explains the situation to your mother, now that you found her with the second class. "One of our classmates became a Magical Girl, Mommy. Eva keeps her calm right now, but we need big sis! Please call her!"

Your mother's class is still in session, so no one issued an alarm just yet; your teachers go along with what you are doing, so maybe that is on purpose... anyway, the students are working quietly while you talk to your parent outside. Rico looks up at your surprised parent, a little giddy over almost feeling a face pressed to her chest. Eva has things under control, but still...

Your mother takes a deep breath and nods at you, then looks back at her class. Then she hands you her cellphone after pressing one button for a few seconds. "I will keep the students distracted, you tell Bianca what happened."

You take the cellphone and smile at her. "Thank you, Mommy!"

Eva lets her new friend cry for a while, holding her as best as she can while Elisa smiles at her gratefully. "You are a great girl, Eva."
The praise makes your smile a little brighter.

"T-Thank you..."
Her quiet words make you look down, where multi-coloured eyes blink up at you. You still sit on your chair, but Anastasia is on the floor. "I... I..."

You slide off of the chair and hug her again. Everything is okay now. You only have to bring up big sister now; she will know what to do and Rico is busy explaining things to her right now.

"Anastasia?"
"Hrm?"

You did not let go and do not do it now, but you give her some room to look at you again. She is so warm... it is just like hugging Rico... uh, focus.
"My big sister is in town... and I think she can help you."

Your words have your friend look down on herself, then back up while Elisa becomes a little more concerned. "You mean... oh. But would she not just arrest her?"

You shake your head, pretending to ignore how the arms around your waist stiffen. "Big sister is not mean to Magical Girls. If we ask her, I'm sure she will help."

Anastasia relaxes a bit, looking at you with wide eyes. You look back and squeeze her gently, trying to show that you mean it.

"Okay. I..."
"It's okay."

She trusts you. That makes you really happy.

Rico is about done talking to Bianca, so you let go and offer Anastasia your hand. Elisa stands with you and takes a deep breath, but then she shakes her head and gives you a nod. "I... I will stay here, if you don't mind."

You just shake your head to tell her you do not, then feel something warm slip around your fingers; there is another hand holding onto yours now and those eyes look at you. She is nothing like the Anastasia that tripped you and made fun of you... she trusts Eva.

Rico already got Bianca to come over, so now you just walk through the building together, around the classrooms... and meet your other twin at the entrance. You do not talk, Rico just takes your friend's other hand and smiles at her.

The walk is quiet... it is so silent...
"I... I was so mean to you..."
"It's fine."

Rico says it before Eva can and you both squeeze her hands. "I don't care if we don't like you, I'm helping. And once we are done here, you are our friend."

It is that easy... but why is she sobbing? You take your sleeves and wipe away her tears... but it does not take much longer until you can see your big sister running towards you. It is still quiet all around and she comes to stand in the middle of the street.

Anastasia tries to stop, but you guide her along until the three of you stand right in front of Bianca, who looks your new friend over for a moment longer and nods slightly. Her voice is still calm, just as always... but her words scare you a little.

"We have no time for introductions... I will keep myself short: with everyone watching, my options are limited right now. Listen to what I have to say and do not react to it."

She waits for a moment, has you all nod and then continues: "With how things stand, we do not want you to surrender here; your best option is to run."

Her gaze never leaves you, even though your eyes grow wide. "Take the main road to the north and run for the forest, this is your best bet right now. I can not do much now, but I can have someone pick you up in a few days. If you manage to stay hidden until then, she will find you and bring you somewhere safe."

You all just look at her while she waits for a few moments. Bianca then closes her eyes and sighs. "I'm sorry I can't do more, but my position doesn't allow it."

Anastasia looks down for a moment, thinking; her hands squeeze yours tighter and you squeeze back.

"Okay... what do I do now?"
"I have to try subduing you once you start running; just kick me off, I will not get hurt. Aside from that, you should run as fast as you can... and you should start now."

As if it was a signal, you weaken your grasp and the girl in your middle lets go before pushing Rico aside and turning to run.

Your big sister is right behind her, faster than anything you ever saw.

(Bianca: +10 Base Damage, +30 Attacking From Behind, +30 Bigger and Stronger, no dice = 70 Total Damage
World Eater: +50 Base Resilience, +53 dice = 103 Total Damage Reduction

No Damage)

But even then, Anastasia dodges her by ducking under the lunge and then wacks her in the chest with a quick kick.

(World Eater: +10 Base Damage, +50 Planned Action, +46 dice = 106 Total Damage

The Guardian: No damage)

You can see her foot hitting your sister, but it does nothing for some reason... it came in so fast, but just stopped there. However, Bianca twists on one hand and throws herself away. Anastasia does not look back and runs... and you run over to your big sister. ""Bianca!""

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

She got away.

Your big sister took command of the soldiers herself after a minute of getting back up, not that she was actually injured... but she sent you back to the school. It was break by now and no one knew what happened.

Your class was already waiting for you... and they already got most of it from Elisa. You didn't tell them much and they left you be... but you gave Elisa the hug Eva decided to give her earlier.

Word got around quickly, though. The whole school knew in the afternoon.

You actually waited for your mother to take you home and she gave you a big hug and praised you and said you did good. No one is hurt.

That she got away is something you learned later, when Bianca came back in the evening. After she praised you for how great you did, too.

Now you sit in the living room, your mother on the couch with you and your big sister at the table with some paperwork.

"We lost track of her in the woods and there are no trained dogs nearby to look for her... no, Ludger. You are not a police dog."

She pushes the corgi away from her chair and sighs. "This should be it for today... but I will stay a day longer to sort out this mess... you don't mind, do you?"

You both quickly shake your head and your mother chuckles. "Not at all, dear. Take your time, the girls will be happy."

Yes, that is true. Another day with big sister.
"But for Anastasia of all people... she is such a bright girl..."

You look at each other.

---

[] Tell mother the truth
-[] Everything
-[] Leave out that you are Magical Girls

[] Do not say anything


Due to the circumstances, school is cancelled tomorrow and you get a long weekend.

[] Write-in one thing to do with the remaining evening

[] Write-in what to do in the morning


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

=====​

+3xp Kept Her Calm (only Eva)
+2xp Made a New Friend (only Eva)
+3xp No One Panics (only Rico)
+5xp Calm Within The Storm
+5xp An Escape Was Made
+5xp Made Mother Proud
+5xp Made Big Sister Proud

EXP gained: 25 + 23 = 48
Total EXP: 64

=====​

(Unlocked Level 0 Character Sheet: Magical Girl World Eater)
(Unlocked Level 2 Character Sheet: Bianca Vescovi)

=====​

Now, this is what happens when the girls get to work in earnest.
Besides, you managed to destroy my main plan... guess I will play "All You Can Eat - A Magical Girl Quest" in the background and write up another route for you people to play.

 

[Naron]

The Adige Spring orphanage was not a bad place to live in. The halls were wide and well tended to, the staff was nice...

But Anastasia did not particularly care. She got along with the adults just fine and that was enough for her. She had been here for years, ever since her parents died in the first attack on Verona.

Breakfast went as usual; she took her place at the long table, as far away from the other children as possible. She disliked them for being so childish when everyone had to do their best to help and they disliked her for that. Not that it mattered, being strong was what mother and father would expect from her.

It did not matter.

The young girl calmly ate her bread and finished her juice, making sure that not even crumbs and drops were left. Being wasteful was a bad thing.

She was still hungry for some reason, stealing another glance at the group sitting across from her; some were older, some were younger, all of them seemed happy for some reason. How stupid.

But it would be nice to... no, stop. Not those thoughts again.

Shaking her head, Anastasia got up and brought her plate to the kitchen. Her tummy was not really full, but she refused to bring extra work for the staff by asking for seconds; they worked enough as it was.

Once she was without her plate, the blonde made her way back to her room and gathered her things for school, then turned around and began to head out. The others would take longer again, just as usual; she ignored them on her way outside.

The cold air helped wake her up some more and she wandered through mostly empty streets on the usual way; it was even marked for the younger children, in case they went by themselves instead of in groups.

It was still early and she knew that... but she did not want to walk with all those groups around her.

Today however, her tummy insisted on more food for some reason; it growled quietly and she pressed a hand on her belly to make it stop. This was embarassing if anyone heard!

But there was no one around, so she was safe for now; Ana shook her head again and walked a little faster. She had as much breakfast as she had every day, so why was she still hungry like that?

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

As usual, she was the first in class. The clock on the wall told her that she still had a little more than twenty minutes, so the girl picked her folders out of her bag and looked through the homework that was due today. There was a mistake in her calculations and she caught a spelling error in that English-assignment, but everything else was fine.

Then she saw them enter. Those twins, those... ugh.

Instead of turning her head away, she just glared at their backs. Those girls were the worst of all, always running around as if they were not still rebuilding everything. Ana almost growled at the thought, but caught herself.

These two had no business being as happy as they were. They just played around and never did anything, they even still had their mother with them, so why could they not be more grateful for what they had and work hard?

...

Whatever.

Others entered the room in small groups, talking among each other about unimportant things. Then their first lesson started.

But it did not help much... the hunger grew stronger and stronger, a weight building in Ana's tummy.

Ugh... soo... hungry...

Adhoc vote count started by Naron on Sep 13, 2017 at 3:01 AM, finished with 40 posts and 10 votes.

• ---

  3 people have voted

  [X] Tell mother the truth
  -[X] Everything
  [X] Watch TV with Mom and Big Sis
  [X] Get Big Sis to teach you how to use your weapons.
  [X] EXP Plan
  -[X] Save it

  • DarkKing98
  • kinigget
  • MilitaryAaa

  2 people have voted

  [X] Do not say anything
  -[X] You'll check with Big Sister first.
  [X] [Evening] Ask Big Sister if it's okay to tell mother, and if there's somewhere safer than your basement to practice your powers.
  [X] [Morning] Experiment with your link. Could you try using each other's bodies and magic to do things through it? It'd be fun to swap places!
  [X] EXP Plan Savings
  -[X] Save it

  • veekie
  • kitsune9

  2 people have voted

  [X] Tell mother the truth
  -[X] Everything (together with our sister)
  [X] EXP Plan
  -[X] Save it
  [X] Watch TV with Mom and Big Sis (evening)
  [X] Get Big Sis to teach you how to use your weapons. (Morning)

  • Dragou
  • wingstrike96

  1 people have voted

  [X] "Mom? There was something wrong with Ana. From what she said, it sounded like she ended up transforming because she was starving."

  • ShadowAngelBeta

  1 people have voted

  [X] Tell mother the truth
  -[X] Everything
  [X] Experiment with your link. Could you try using each other's bodies and magic to do things through it? It'd be fun to swapplaces!
  [X] Get Big Sis to teach you how to use your weapons.
  [X] EXP Plan
  -[X] Save it

  • SkyLing

  1 people have voted

  [X] Tell mother the truth
  -[X] Everything (together with our sister)
  [X] EXP Plan Flight
  -[X] get rico and evas flight to 3 to make it viable (costs 60 exp)
  [X] Watch TV with Mom and Big Sis (evening)
  [X] Get Big Sis to teach you how to use your weapons. (Morning)

  • LightLan

 

[Naron]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Tell mother the truth
-[X] Everything

[X] Watch TV with Mom and Big Sis
[X] Get Big Sis to teach you how to use your weapons.

"Mommy?"

You can not look her in the eyes and Rico looks away, too. With everything that happened... Anastasia had to run away and... and if it had been you, you would have to leave just like her.

This is... she should know, right?

"What is it, Eva? I never saw you talk with her, but what happened must have been hard on you."

A hand gently rubs your head, but you quickly shake it and pull away. "We let her go."
"...Come again?"

"We let her go. Big sister told her how to get out of the city and let her run away."

You can feel her gaze on you, but then your mother turns her head to look at Bianca, who appears no different than usually. She is still sorting through her things, writing down notes and stuff... but your parent does not look angry at least. Rico feels as bad as you do, too.
"And why did you?"

Bianca closes her eyes for a moment, not meeting your eyes either. This feels so awful...
"Because this was the better choice for her."

Now... that sounds weird. Living in the forest is better than going with the government? You... uh, you heard that some Magical Girls get taken away, but no one ever talked about what happened to them. Rico gets to ask before you, though: "What happens to the girls that stay and get caught?"

Are... are big sister's hands shaking? Maybe it was just your imagination. Bianca sighs and puts down her notes before looking at the three of you in earnest. "Those that do not resist have only the choice to work as UES-Enforcers. They get to hunt other Magical Girls."

She pauses and shuffles in her papers for a moment... for no reason. Is she nervous?
"I don't like it, but I can't overrule the rest of the council by myself. The older ones just get bombs implanted into their bodies to make them comply, the younger ones get indoctrinated."

You gulp at the first part, but tilt your head over the last word; bombs you know, but what is indoctrinated?

"Brainwashed, basically."
Oh.
Is Bianca reading your mind again?

She looks down and sighs once again, her arms resting on the table... limp, much different to how untiring she usually is. "Nothing particularly bad and no violence, at least. They just go and show them what the Magical Girls that run did, explain over and over how many people died because of them and so on. The girls grow up sheltered and learn that their own people are horrible, which is why they fight them."

You actually want to change the topic, but this makes you even more curious about what is going on. Anastasia was weird when she transformed...
Hearing what would happen if you went with the military sounds bad, too.

"I heard that most Magical Girls destroy a lot when fleeing."

She gives your mother a look you can not really read. "Those that get away, yes. I recently had a case where a girl was shot after resisting arrest... then she got back up and fell in a frenzy, destroying half of a major city."

Oh.

Oh.

"And what is worse", Bianca continues without waiting for you, "is that all of this is a self-fulfilling prophecy."

She is just talking now and you do not interrupt her... there was probably no one else she could speak to about this at all...

"Magic is formed by what we believe it does, the rules are malleable and can change. Humans believe that magic is not for everyone, so only one in a thousand has magic. Humans believe that Magical Girls are a thing, so they are... humans believe that Magical Girls are horrifying creatures hiding behind innocent faces... so they are."

Her shoulders slump and she lets out a last sigh. "I really shouldn't talk this much."

You look at each other over this. It sounds really bad and terrible... but the worst is that is makes big sister sad. You do not like to see her that way and Rico thinks the same, you can tell from how she looks at you.

You slowly get up and walk over to where Bianca sits, then pet her head like she does for you all the time. "It's okay, big sister. It's not your fault."

She looks up at you and smiles a bit, but not enough for you... so you do not stop petting her. Her hair is fluffy... but a little slick too, maybe from sweating. No matter, you just pet on.

"I know it's not my fault, but thinking about all those girls being forced to become monsters hurts. I can change things from where I am, but it goes much too slow for so many of them..."
You continue petting and let her talk it out; she will feel better when she is done, just like you always do. "You saved Ana today."

"We will see about that."

"Um... are all Magical Girls really bad?"

Rico's question makes you look to her; Bianca does the same and blinks before smiling. "No, there are exceptions. Most are not even bad people, they just get some form of horrifying power forced on them with no way of making it stop."

Those exceptions... you are two of those, right? You do not have any bad or mean powers.

At least your big sister is no longer so sad. That makes you happy and you hug her.
"Say, Bianca... what kind of powers are you talking about?"

The arms around you stiffen for a moment, but she does not let go and there is nothing in her voice telling about her actual feelings.

"Let me see... one I can talk about with children in the room would be... ah. There is a girl that can increase the growth-speed of plants... with the twist that everything she helps grow turns into flesh and starts smelling very soon."

Oh... that does sound bad. But what does a flesh-plant look like?

"She can grow animals, too. In fact, I know she used to have a little dog like Ludger."
He is looking up from where he sits over hearing his name, you can see it through Rico's eyes. "Once she was done using her magic on it, it was a six metres high monster."

Uh...
"And the worst part? She doesn't see it. To her, the plants just grew strong and the dog became big. Unless someone tells her what she is doing, she has no idea what actually happened."

Her arms hug you a little tighter, so she is still sad even without showing it... but that is okay. You just hug back and try not to think about how this monster might look like.

Then you think of a really big Ludger. He would be as big as your house, how cute!
Rico squeals, too... you probably brought the thought to her and mother looks at her now and oops, that is weird with what big sister just said...

Uh... right. There was something else. You slowly let go and get back to sitting. It feels better like this; you want to be near her, near Rico... Bianca goes back to her paperwork after a moment. She takes a deep breath. "Thank you for listening. I think I needed that."

"It's fine, Bianca. Everyone needs to speak their mind once in a while."

You guess now is a good time?
"Can we say something, too?"

Rico is not looking at her and you slowly start looking away yourself. Even after all of this was said, you are still scared of what will happen now.

You can see big sister from where you are looking; she has her hands on the paper and watches you with a calm look. When she sees you watching her, she gives you a nod while your mother shifts slightly.

"Go ahead, what do you have on your mind?"

You dare peaking up at her and find her looking at you with a similar look to Bianca.
"We are.... we are Magical Girls."

Rico mumbles it quietly, but she is heard and your parent turns her head, then slumps over a little. "I see."

It sounds... resigned? Was that the right word? Not at all happy, but you were not hoping for that. Both of you look away again; big sister said she would accept you anyway, but...

An arm winds around your shoulder and pulls you into a hug right next to Rico; just like with big sister yesterday, but you can feel mother pressing you against her with all her strength. She keeps quiet for a while and you just hug her back.

"You said everything was fine..."
"I lied."

Bianca answers her question as calm as always from somewhere to your side. "I promised them not to tell."

"You... you don't hate us, do you?"

Rico is still so quiet and afraid and you know because you feel the same... but you both shake a little from how hard your mother shakes her head. "No. No, I don't... I won't. And don't you ever think that again, Rico, Eva."

Her words make you feel so light all of a sudden.
Everything will be okay, everything will be fine.

You are warm now and your mother will not go away.

You do not know how long the hug lasts, but you let go at some point. Rico does the same and you finally can look your parent in the eyes without feeling bad again.

Both of you sweep happiness back and forth and even Bianca smiles. "See? Mother will not think worse of you."

Yes, she is right. You never should have doubted her... or big sister. Even when she just said she lied to your parent, she will not lie about how much you can trust someone.

After nodding slowly, you look up at your mother. "Can we watch something together?"
They cancelled school for Friday, so you can stay up a little late... and you really, really want to cuddle now. You want to cuddle with everyone, because you want to be close to them.

Rico pokes you with warmth and you poke her right back and your mother starts to smile again. "I don't mind. What do you think, Bianca?"

You all look at big sister now... her gaze goes back and forth between you and the papers on the table, but then she pushes them aside and sighs. "Fair enough, I can do the rest later."

She comes over and you pat the seat to your left... and she sits there. Now you are right between the adults and much more happy than before. But who do you lean against?

In the end, you switch between the two; Rico pouts that she sits far away from big sister... and you do not really notice what kind of movie you are watching. You are so warm and happy... and...

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

Spoiler: Unbalanced Reflection

The city behind herself, Ana finally settled down. Her chest and sides stung with pain, breathing was painful...

And over all of it, the hunger; her tummy rumbled and demanded food, hurting badly.

But she was safe... somewhat. The soldiers she saw were too far away to catch her and she destroyed the street with a stream of bubbles, so they could not drive after her.

What now?

Looking around, the young girl found herself surrounded by trees; she was still transformed and sweat soaked her clothes... actually, those were pretty cute.
Ah, stop! Focus!

That weird feeling of knowing things around her grew weaker once she left Verona proper... there were a few things... maybe she could eat those? Ana remembered feeling the same thing coming from Evangeline... so...

Despite of how tired she was, her body did as she told it and walked towards those things she felt... and she found a pair of rabbits.

A pair of rabbits... uh, those were hard to catch, right?

But there was little choice, Ana was hungry and the only other choice she had was the grass on the ground.

So she leaped, with speed she never knew she had... and caught one of the furry little things in her hands, holding on tight while the other jolted and ran away.

(Rabbit: +10 Base Damage, +10 Desperation, no dice = 20 Total Damage
World Eater: +50 Base Resilience, no dice necessary = 50 Total Damage Reduction

No damage)

She could feel the little body thrashing about, trying to free itself... it even tried biting her, but the teeth just did nothing to her skin for some reason... it felt a little like someone poking her with a finger.

This was so sick... but her tummy was stronger than her disgust, so she pressed harder and bit down at the animal's neck.

A crunching noise, wetness on her lips and chin and cheeks...

And the rabbit went limp. This weird scent like iron was all around her now... blood. It only made her more desperate to eat.

So she ate, without any preparation or anything else. Her teeth broke bone and fur alike, all of it vanishing down her throat without care.

Ana had to keep herself from gulping the bites down all at once and to chew properly after she nearly gagged on the first mouthful.

Once there was nothing left but some half-dried blood on the ground and herself, Ana slumped down and held her belly. It still hurt from hunger, but it was not as bad anymore.

But what should she do now? Right after she actually made a friend, she had to run away and... and...

Tears started to mix with the blood on her face and a quiet sob escaped Anastasia. This was not how it was supposed to be, not at all...

But their sister said someone would come to take her somewhere safe... so she just had to wait and survive, right?

When your eyes open, you are in your own bed and not in the forest.
And you are crying.

You press your hands over your eyes and sniffle over that dream. Is this what happened to her? How terrible...

There is a whimper above you and Rico pushes against your mind, sad just like you... oh, it is still early. You climb up to your sister, hug her and fall back into slumber.

When the two of you leave your room later, your sister and mother are already awake and busy making breakfast together. Bianca looks more at ease than she did yesterday, you can tell when her shoulders are all stiff... but now she is relaxed.

"Good morning, sleepyheads", your mother smiles at you and you mumble a greeting back; Bianca does not even turn away from the stove where... wait. Are that... are those pancakes?

Your eyes widen in realisation and you bounce up to look around Bianca... and yes, she is making pancakes! For breakfast, even!

You squeal happily and big sister pets your head. "Go and wash up, they aren't done yet."
""Okay!""

Rico saw the pancakes, too; you both beam at each other and then run off to the bathroom.

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

"I want you three to come with me."

Breakfast had been quiet so far, mostly because you and Rico were busy eating. But what your big sister just said makes you stop... and everyone else, too. Bianca looks serious and has her hands folded in front of her.

"That's... pretty sudden, isn't it?"
You agree with your mother... not that you would mind it much to be with your big sister some more, but all your friends are here... and the school... and...

"It is... but there was an attack just a week ago and another Magical Girl awakened on top of that. People will be keeping a close eye on what is going on here and the girls are not safe."

"But in Berlin, with half a million people living there?"
You do not really get why it is bad that there are so many people... but you understand what your sibling means; when something happens, everyone looks out for more trouble... and if they see you... oh...

"If they are found out over there, I am around to react on time; I can get them out of trouble at least... and I couldn't do that here, not in time."

You keep quiet and watch the adults talk; big sister does make sense... but you would have to leave the house and friends... and... almost everything else.

On the other hand, big sister. You can stay with big sister all year.

You look at your twin, who is as conflicted as you are; Rico likes all her friends a lot and she has many more than you have, but... big sister. Everyone would be together... and you could write letters, right?

Your mother is still thinking about it; her left brow is scrunched up in this weird way that shows she is thinking really hard. You watch her for a moment, then look at Bianca again. "Um... what about our school? Can Mommy be a teacher there, too? And can we write letters to our friends?"

She starts smiling as you ask away. "Of course, to all of those. It will be a bit more difficult to talk to others, but your English is good enough for that. More teachers are always needed, too."

You hum over that and poke your sister, who pokes back with confusion... no, the word is different.... where you are not sure what to do...

"I'm not expecting you to decide right away... but we should get this in the clear soon. I can make arrangements for basically everything necessary within two weeks."

"I will think about it."

It gets quiet again after your mother says that. You get back to your now lukewarm pancakes and eat up... and now you have nothing to do; you got no homework yesterday... soo... you can play with big sister, right?

"Big sis?"
"Hm?"
"You're good with weapons, right?"

Bianca looks up from her own plate and gives Rico a look; the one where she wants an explanation. You are curious, too. Why is this im... oh. You have weapons and can not use them, but she can show you. Rico is smart!

Your sister shuffles a little in her chair and looks away. "Um... I was thinking you could help us use ours? I mean, just in case..."

She turns her gaze away to think and you can see your mother having this blank look she always has when she does not like something. "Is this really necessary? Chances are good that we can hide this properly."

"No, mother", Bianca replies before either of you can. "A single wrong word at the wrong time, one bad move can make all of this undone. We can't watch our every step like this, that's not healthy... so I'd rather see the girls prepared for when it happens, because there is no 'if'."

She sits quiet for a moment, then looks at the two of you. "Eat up and wash your hands, we'll get started once you're ready."

. . .
Line Break Recognised
. . .​

It is... boring.

Bianca has you take a stance she shows you and then you have to practice swinging... and she sometimes comes over to correct how you hold your scepters, but this is it.

You thought this would be more interesting.

At least you can pass the time with wondering why your sister is now shining a little brighter than yesterday... and Rico says it is harder to see your face properly. Something is... uh... overshadowing it? Big sister said that shows you have grown stronger.

But really, there is nothing else to do. You still try to concentrate on swinging just like you were told to, your feet planted on the ground and your whole body lowered a little... but... ugh.
Rico seems to have fun hitting imagined bad guys, though.

Your mother did not want to watch when you asked her, she just said to have fun and went to walk the dog. She does knock at the door at some point to call you for lunch, though.

---

What do you do with the remaining day? Pick two:

[] Do something with big sister
-[] Write-in what

[] Do something with your mother
-[] Write-in what

[] Play with Ludger

[] Do more of this weird training

[] Double down (picks the other option again)

[] Write-in


[] EXP-Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it

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+4xp Mommy Loves You

EXP gained: 4 + 4 = 8
Total EXP: 72

=====​

Now then, things will change soon. You have yet to do more training to get this modifier off of your backs, though.