Mahou Madness!

[Mahou-Shoujo]

"Hehe! That's great! It means I can show you loads... Maybe even play a few with you!"
He kinda had dozens of games that were never even opened because he was waiting for someone to play with... Well now he had someone, who he hoped would be a good friend... Especially since they had this big shared secret to talk about...

Lucas even ate less manly than the others he knew... Actually using cutlery to pick apart the chicken out of a desire to avoid getting grease everywhere, as he ate he listened to the info dumb that Namiko gave him in answer to his questions... This was a complicated world it seemed... He wasn't sure he agreed with either group... The AAD seemed like a crazy corrupt government group, forcing teenage girls to fight and die on their orders, and even then only protected certain places.
While Orphan wanted to rule the world! Well... Honestly they seemed a little better, they weren't forcing girls to fight from the sounds of it, and now he was even someone who would benefit from it so there was some bias there... Plus they were protecting places AAD were completely ignoring!

The Chimera seemed to be a wholly evil race so that was easy to deal with... Hunt them down without guilt, he felt he could manage that much when he had some better control of his powers... And the other things confirmed that yes, magical girls were all girls... It felt like kind of a mean prank, like that time where he was told a part was cross dressing themed... It turns out it had no theme and he turned up in a borrowed dress!
"Umm... Well... Can I change the costume at all?... Uhh! I'm fine if I can't... So don't think too hard though... I just didn't expect to be turned into a girl..."
He mumbled.
A few minutes later they would both be struck by a toothache... There was a chimera nearby!
"Oww... What is that?..."

 

[twinkletide]

"Hm? Well uh..." Now that she thought about it, she didn't have a straight answer. "I don't think you can. After all, if this was the outfit fate has given you, then they're probably the best judge of things." She raised the straw to her lips.

And paused. A familiar feeling. One could mistake it for a cavity acting up, but any magical girl knew what it meant.

An attendant happened to pass by at that moment. Namiko waved him over. "Sorry, but we need to go meet some friends not far from here. We'll only be gone a moment. Can you please wrap this all up in plastic, hold it for us? Make it to-go."

"H-huh? Okay..."

As the boy went back to get some plastic bags and inform his managers of the situation, Namiko stood up and leaned over to Lucas, whispering. "We have a problem. Let's step outside."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

"Oh... Yeah... I was a little worried about that... I guess it's okay though..."
He mumbled, well looks like he had an excu... No choice but to wear the outfit! The fact that the clothes actually kinda felt nice to wear was probably just some magical side effect... After all, why else would he ever want to wear heels? Why would anyone want heels honestly?
"I hope I didn't chip a tooth..."
He mumbled, placing a hand against his cheek as she got up.

"Hahh? A problem?..."
He asked, getting up to follow her, he could guess it was something related to magic though and prepared the mental image he would need to transform in case it turned out to be violent...
The chimera was VERY close it seemed, in fact they would be able to see it slink around a corner down an alley when they stepped outside, it looked like some sort of crab, about the size of a car and with many more claws than was normal.

 

[twinkletide]

They stepped out onto the curb, into the cooling air. A normal suburban scene: businesses lined end to end like dominoes, waiting (as Namiko, and not many people else, would note) to be knocked down; a tangerine sky ripening into an affluent gloom; the pavement like a darkening grey cloud. A scene so familiar that you could almost be forgiven for missing the huge crab rumbling into the alleyway, its chitin gleaming darkly in the faint glow of the sun and streetlights.

Of course, most people couldn't see chimera anyways; another perk of being a 'normal' human. But it almost passed them by too.

Inwardly Namiko cursed. She and heavily-armored enemies never got along very well. The more armor, the harder it was to find a round that could pierce through, and the harder the round could pierce through the harder it was to aim, and the harder it was to aim the harder it was to position herself. They were usually slow - Mother Nature at least had the good sense to follow RPG balancing mechanics - but still. So tedious. She hoped her new friend had some powerful ability that would come in useful right about now.

"So," she said to Lucas resignedly, "looks like you're gonna learn the ropes sooner rather than later. Chimera." She looked at him. "Are you gonna be alright fighting?"

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas seemed to miss the crab at first, too busy looking at the sky and trying to get their tooth to stop hurting, though they didn't need long to spot it, fortunately the monster was moving into an alley with several fire escapes and a dead end, it had likely appeared and then decided to flee rather than fight two magical girls alone, and ended up trapping itself.
"That's a... Crab? It has a lot of claws... Oh! My tooth stopped hurting?"
That was normal, as soon as the chimera either moved out of range or was spotted the painful way of sensing them ended and it was left to the magical girls to decide what to do.

"Umm... I think so? I just need to like, punch it right?"
He asked, taking a deep breath before transforming, red faced as it finished, though there was an odd smile on his face for a moment, though it might have just been a trick of the light...
"How do I get cool weapons like your guns?"
He questioned, still not fully awakened it seemed.

 

[twinkletide]

"Well," Namiko said, "we don't even know if you have weapons yet, because you're not fully awakened. So, yes, for the time being, you'll have to make do with your fists." She placed her hand on Lucas's head, remembering when she was just a brawler, herself. Hard times; her speed made it difficult to get hits in. Lucas's hair was silky. "But maybe in the future you'll have something."

She cleared her throat, then transformed herself, immediately sliding Roanoke out between her legs (the strange nature of which was not lost on her, but which she had learned to ignore). Looking at Lucas, sizing him up, she said "I'll need you to get up close, get some hits in. You're a lot faster than it in your current state, so as long as you keep moving and pay attention you'll be okay. I'll try to distract it as much as possible, but my guns don't work too well in tight spaces, especially not with something that big. Are you good with that?" She smiled reassuringly. "You'll be fine. I won't let anything happen to you, not on your first day."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

"Oh... So it's like in stages then? I see... I need to like level up and unlock it... This isn't like one of those games where my outfit gets more ridiculous and skimpy as I get stronger is it?"
He asked, only seeming to half joke, honestly he was worried, the new body was clearly female when he transformed, but it was still something he inhabited, so showing off was kind of an embarrassing thought.
"I hope I do... Punching those things is pretty messy... And kinda hurts my hands..."
He complained before waving at her hand on his head.
"Hey! Don't mess up my hair... Umm, it might get in my face or something".

He noted the odd source of the weapon as well... But didn't say anything, was whatever chose them as magical girls some sorta pervert or a joker with a bad sense of humor? Either way it hadn't done much impressive that Lucas could see!
"Yeah... I'll be okay! I feel like I can move really fast so I'll get some hits in... Maybe try and knock some of it's armor loose... Though it looks really hard".
He looked at his hands for a moment before sighing and charging the beast, he was smiling now, something about being told that Namiko wouldn't let anything happen was very pleasing, someone was looking out for him!
It was with this smile that he landed a punch, the force causing the armor plating to jiggle a little... Or rather the crab beneath it, the chimera must have been super gooey.

Of course a single hit barely even slowed it down and the great crab turned to swing one of it's many claws, Lucas just barely getting out of the way before it crashed into the concrete ground, tearing a whole through it and leaving a green liquid that slowly ate away at the rubble... This thing had acid coming out of it's claws! Their defenses would protect them but still, that was some pretty dangerous stuff!

 

[twinkletide]

Alleyway. Sandwiched between two buildings, Miko's Dry Cleaning & "Drug Store" (generic), left and right respectively. 3.5 and 3 meters tall each. No windows either side. Roofs accessible via two jumps on the surfaces of the walls. Three meters between them, enough for a car to fit through. No cars. Only a crab.

Namiko slid into the alley to witness Lucas's fist connecting flush onto the chimera's carapace, a huge blow that sent it reeling back, its body jiggling almost like a human's. In response it drew one of its claws back and slammed it on the ground; Lucas just barely removed himself before it struck, sending shards of pavement colliding with the walls of each building. It lifted its claw to reveal a pool of viscous green acid, hissing like a boa. Acid. They'd have to be careful not to step into that, or their defenses would dissolve like sugar in water.

But Namiko smiled at the sight of the kid's agility. At least she knew he'd be fine. He had a strange grace to him.

Without further ado Namiko tossed herself into the fray, shooting, dipping, jumping, skipping off of walls like a game of superhuman double dutch. A kindergartner's game of double dutch. Like a kindergartner, she was slow, occasionally even clumsy—sometimes the crab's claws would miss her by mere inches, or swing right past her in the air, and sometimes she'd just barely miss being cornered into a pool of acid—but she never stopped moving, and never stopped shooting. She was a gadfly on the back of the crab's Athens, annoying it, leaving just enough time with each shot for Lucas to reposition himself, or strike, or recoup. Before long the chimera was securely in the red; its movements grew strained, its groans asthmatic, its claw movements stiff. The acid sputtered rather than spewed. It was, to put it simply, tired, exhausted, vulnerable.

Namiko excused herself to the roof, immediately dissipating Roanoke and pulling an RPG-7 out of her skirt, securing it over her shoulder. She thought for a moment. A shot directly on the carapace wouldn't kill it, even in this state. The only choice, then, was to hit it closer to one of its claws, where the meat was, but that was easier said than done; it never stopped swinging those things around, them being its only practical method of attack. A wrong shot and it could just glance off and destroy the building, and even if she wasn't arrested it should take a hell of a lot of explaining. So...

"Lucas!" she shouted. "Can you get it to stand still?!" She gestured her head towards the rocket-propelled grenade sitting on her shoulder. "And get out of the way! The explosion is going to be nasty!"

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas kept up his attacks, seeming to mostly annoy the crab, since he no longer had the first transformation boost to his damage output, the hits were more of a bruising force than anything, still it was enough to slowly wear the thing down, unfortunately Lucas was wearing down as well, his gymnastic skills lent themselves well to fighting up close but he wasn't used to dodging things that could literally kill him, not to mention all the acid pools that built up in the alley! So he was overdoing it, dodging too far and then running back in only to dodge again, it was a massive waste of energy that seemed to mostly work as a mere distraction other than the rare moment where a hit would get through and stun the chimera for a moment or two.
The shots barely seemed to do anything, and Lucas was getting worried, wasn't this thing small fry? Why was it so damned tough! He could understand if it was his own weakness but Namiko was a veteran!

He was relieved when it seemed to reach it's own limits, the acid mostly stopping and the swings becoming less and less accurate, allowing him to get more and more hits in, a few were even moderately damaging! It roused his spirits and kept him fighting as he summoned up some reserves, managing to shatter a claw with his next punch.

It was a minute or so after that when he heard Namiko shout, and quickly put two and two together and figured out the plan... He had no idea how she got a rocket launcher! But was sure that at least would do some real damage to the cracked plating on the crab, maybe even kill the whole thing outright.
"Got it!"
He moved close to a wall, waiting for the crab to swing a claw, and once it was embedded in the wall he moved close to the crab, turning his back to it for a second to hit the claw with a heavy punch, jamming it into the thick concrete, it was stuck for now...
Unfortunately this did open him to an attack, a swipe of a claw sent Lucas flying a little ways down the street, before landing and rolling another couple meters.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko cursed as she saw Lucas get knocked across the street. At least he got her an opening; one she intended to make use of.

As the chimera tugged at its claw, struggling to pull it out of the ground, Namiko aimed the tip of the RPG like a spear.

(Hypotenuse 4.03 meters. Grenade initial speed 115 m/s. Claw moving up/down at a rate of .2 m/s w/ .09s intervals between pulls.

Fire.)

She pulled the trigger. The rocket flew out, roaring, straight as an arrow. Time slowed. The crab had barely enough time to spot, with one of its eyes, the grenade inching towards it, a spout of smoke billowing out back, as if to carry it away; to watch follow it down as it flew straight...into...its...meat. Giving it a tender, gentle, playful poke.

It didn't feel the blast of heat, or its claw being blown off, or the roar of flame, or its acidic innards being dissolved in a reaction known only to chemistry majors. Lucas and Namiko did, but far away. Far enough to appreciate the spectacle, to feel the warmth as it bloomed and withered, a fireworks display to the growing night.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas had managed to sit up to watch the explosion, dropping his transformation once it seemed obvious that the crab wouldn't be getting off, in fact by the time the smoke cleared completely all that was left was a dark crystal laying in a crater where the crab had once stood, oh and a whole lot of very expensive looking damage all through the alley, Lucas was glad they didn't have to pay to fix things they broke in battles... He would be so grounded... And of course probably arrested! Not a good look.

Lucas stayed laying on the ground, catching his breath for a minute, a little sweat on his forehead, that was a tough fight! But... Kind of fun...
Assuming Namiko would collect the crystal for whatever it was used for, Lucas finally stood up, laughing a little.
"That was really cool... Like... Huge explosion! I hope I can do stuff as cool as that!"
He declared, his voice sounded just a tad higher, though maybe that was exhaustion?
"So... I'm guessing you like, collect those?"
He asked, pointing at the crystal.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko raised her brow a moment, noting the slightly higher pitch of Lucas's voice, before waving it off. She opted instead for a motherly smile. "Well, it's certainly possible. I've seen a lot of stuff even cooler than that before, and so will you. Maybe you'll even be the one doing stuff like that in the future."

They came to the crystal, barely visible in the darkening light, cloudy textures squirming within it. "Yes, we do. We in Orphan can turn them in for a bounty. Part of our paycheck, if you will." She picked up the crystal, turning its smooth, cool body in her palm. Out of force of habit her hand got halfway into her pocket before she paused, getting a better idea. "Actually, you can have this one," she said, placing it in his palm. "This was as much your kill as mine, and I owe you for saving my life earlier. It should fetch a fair amount."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas didn't seem aware of his own changed voice, and absently dusted himself off, there was certainly a lot of concrete dust in the air, at least he hoped it was just concrete, the thought of breathing in that chimera, or it's acid, was not a pleasant thought... Well his lungs were not melting and even the bruises and cuts from the fight were healing up quite fast, so it seems nothing too bad happened!

"Huh... Getting payed... That's so... Mercenary... I can see how it would help though, this way magical girls can focus on fighting the bad guys and get paid for it, and I guess these crystals must have some use beyond making new magical girls..."
He declared before taking it, and after looking closely, shook his head.
"No way... You took it down, and anyway, I don't know who to sell it to? Besides, I have plenty of money, don't you need it?"
He questioned, holding it back towards her.

 

[twinkletide]

She wheeled around. That glint in her eyes; was it her or the emerging moon? "Nah, I have enough cash myself. I've been working for a while now, remember? Really, you deserve it. And...oh, right, you don't know how to turn it in." She slapped her forehead conspicuously. "Well," she said, smiling distantly to herself, "I guess you'll have to find me again later, so I can take you to Orphan. Just a thought."

Her words sounded playful, but underneath it, barely hidden, was a pleading, hopeful undertone; an unspoken request not to do the opposite, to leave her alone or—worse—join the other side. Her stare was meaningful beyond words. There, for a second, under a widening lozenge of moon and the spotlight glow of a streetlight, as her dress dissolved back into the slim form of her school uniform, she looked paradoxically, completely old.

"Well," she sighed, her back turned to Lucas. "Let's go pick up our food. It's about time to head home, isn't it?" The sky was purpling like a wound.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Joining Orphan was an interesting idea... Lucas hadn't really thought that far but in a world with two factions, it made sense to join one of them right? He was sure there were some independent magical girls... But he felt like more of a team player than a solo fighter, especially after encountering that crab, no way could he have taken it down by himself! Well... Maybe with a few hours and if he was in better shape... But it would still be pretty close!
"Uh... Yeah! I think I might try and join them... Umm, it's better to work together right?"
He asked, not sure if there was some reason to avoid each other.

He went with her to pick up their food before heading home, they DID have school the next day, so he wanted to get home and sleep, especially since his parents were home for the day and he forgot his key... So it was either get home before they slept or don't get inside... Well, with his new powers he could break in but that just seemed like a bit of a bad idea.
The next day he would be at school on time, having taken the bus as usual, his uniform did fit a little weirdly... Had he lost weight? It was like his shoulders had shrunk or something... And they were already small to begin with!
At school the whispers of damage had everyone talking, they hadn't cancelled the day, but that hall was taped off for the day.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko woke up at three A.M. The bedsheets against her back had a dewy layer of sweat. No dream. Then again, there were rarely any, nowadays.

Slowly, painfully, she pulled herself out of bed and yanked a t-shirt onto her shoulders. For the rest of the morning she ate toast and eggs and leftover biscuits she'd thrown into the microwave in a stupid daze. The TV sputtered nonesense at her, speculations wholly free from what she knew to be the reality.

She got a call last night, almost the moment she'd scaled the steps to her apartment. They'd heard about the kid, and wanted to get a look at him. Soon, she'd replied. Soon. She grimaced just thinking about it. Nothing special about the call, even if he was the first male magical girl. Just a repeat of the process of the receuitment of something expendable.

Well. It wasn't like the AAD was any better. She knew better than anyone that Orphan had it good, ideologically and otherwise, even uf she hadn't been there for that long. And anyways, this is how history was. They were no different because they were magical girls.

She looked out the window. The sun was creeping up over the buildings, making everything some shade of yellow. Waking up this early might be unhealthy, but there were some benefits. It comforted her, at least, to watch the sun, feeling the warmth gradually blanket her living room, though it meant she had to store her TV and consoles in some corner of the room where their black chassis wouldn't overheat. The curtains were never closed. She didn't see the point.

In a couple hours she was dressed; another couple, she was out the door. A few buttered crumbs of bread on a paper plate lay tanning in the oven glow of the sun. There was no space in the trashcan for more.

++++++++++
​

As she expected, the hallway where they'd had their fight was blocked off with yellow tape. As she walked through the school people whispered about it. She heard prank, she heard aliens, she heard criminals. She did not hear magical girls. She did not hear Orphan. She did not hear Namiko, or Lucas.

She did, however, see Lucas, looking at the same scene. She walked up to him and tapped him on the shoulder. It felt weirdly delicate, lithe. "Good morning, Lucas! How was your rest?" she asked with a wink. A couple students turned their heads, surprised at her sudden friendliness with this kid she previously hadn't talked to much.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas had his usual morning, wake up an hour before school, grab some cereal and then shower while avoiding looking into all the mirrors placed around the bathroom, seriously who needed six mirrors?!
He didn't really know WHY he disliked mirrors, something about seeing his own nude form just made Lucas shudder, maybe it was because he had matured so slowly like his parents kept pointing out.... And the boys while they were changing for PE...

School had been pretty normal for Lucas other than the obvious whispers about the damage, at least no one had mentioned him so clearly no DNA evidence had been left behind, he wondered for a moment if that was an effect of the magic? He hoped so, since it would make not being caught a hell of a lot easier, he made sure to note that he should ask Namiko next time her saw her...

Which turned out to be a couple minutes later as he felt a tap on his shoulder, flinching instinctively before relaxing visibly as he realized who it was.
"Oh! Hi Namiko, umm, I slept pretty well... Yesterday really wore me out... So I fell right into bed when I got home... Did you sleep well?"
He asked, not quite proficient in normal conversation with friends, though he wasn't sure if Namiko counted as a friend actually...
"Though uhh... Maybe you shouldn't talk to me where people can see..."
He suggested, looking oddly nervous.

 

[twinkletide]

"Hm?" Namiko looked around to see the gazes of several people, all of them mixed. She gasped, though perhaps misinterpreted the reason for Lucas's nervousness. "Oh, sorry! But don't worry, soon it'll be as natural to them as anything else. We are gonna keep talking, right?"

There it was again; that smile. A calm sea with flotsam always hanging on the edges. You got used to it after a while, stopped noticing it, but it was always an uneasy ghost lying in wait, something you didn't quite know how to broach.

"Anyways, it's about time for class, isn't it? Wanna walk there together? I have to talk to you about a few things later."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

She had indeed misinterpreted as Lucas seemed to get more nervous and made to move a little away from her.
"Umm... Yeah... I guess... Like about magical stuff... But let's just... Ignore each other at school... I can't be seen talking to you..."
He mumbled, refusing to look her in the eye at all as he scuffed the ground with one shoe.
"Uhh... No, I'll go the other way!"

He answered, running down another hall, he would likely be a little late with that route, it seemed Lucas was avoiding Namiko for whatever reason, as he had said he couldn't be seen with her? And the blush and refusal to look at her were suspicious, almost like he was embarrassed to be seen with her.

 

[twinkletide]

She watched Lucas's figure disappear down the hallway.

She blinked twice.

She walked down the hallway into the classroom. A couple of acquaintances greeted her as she came in. She greeted them back with a smile. Lucas came in slightly late.

Later she played The Binding of Isaac under her desk during class. For some reason she was not very eager to learn even more about the Mean Value Theorem. She played as Azazel, and destroyed shit and demons and spiders and skeletons into bloody pulps, occasionally looking up from her console to peek at Lucas.

Why? she asked herself. Did she do something wrong? Was he going to join the AAD? Did he...resent her? Somehow? Everything seemed implausible and incredibly real and concrete at once.

Soon lunch came. She'd packed for herself some leftover pasta from two days before. However, she opted instead to scan the room for Lucas, hoping to maybe sit down and talk with him.