[SFW]

Being a Heroine is tough work. Especially when you’ve just barely recovered from a literal decade of being emotionally weak, leaving you with a lot of things to learn to make sure you’re up to speed with the rest of your peers. That was the case for Mikai Fushimi, the girl that became the heroine known as Jõtaider Mimoto. A lion-themed gal who did everything in her power to save those that she thought needed a hand…

Combine that with a rival that absolutely hates her, or at least seems like it on the surface. After clashing against her again and again, it was less that she hated her, more that she hated what she stood for. And through employing certain… techniques, they managed to see eye to eye. At least for the time being.

But there was something that always bothered Mikai. Something that shouted in the back of her head, that made her scratch her noggin’ and try to figure out what was up. She knew that her rival, the woman Hiro Fukano, worked for somebody. And yet, she had the strangest feeling that something strange had happened. Because…

That big corporation that was in the middle of town was always named ‘Atlas’, wasn’t it? So why was it a big G all of a sudden? It didn’t make sense to her. It really didn’t. But at the same time, everyone she asked, especially her Mom who knew that her Dad worked for them overseas, said that it wasn’t out of the ordinary. And that just made the confusion pile on.

She had to investigate. And the best way to investigate was to go straight to the top. Straight to where she thought that Atlas person would be!

To the Penthouse of Atlas Corp!

---

Getting up there was not exactly hard. Well, it was difficult for most considering the security and all the clearance that you needed to actually get up to the top of the building, but when you were a heroine with powers that completely ignored all that common courtesy and sensible stuff, why would you bother taking the regular way up?

That was what Mikai did. She used the power of her wind-aligned form, Blast Eagle, to blow herself all the way up to the very top of the building. Which was an impressive trek considering the building stretched all the way into the skies above. Thanks to careful maneuvering, and good use of the wind she had at her command, she could cling to a window and then burst up another few meters, rinse repeat until she made it all the way up to the top.

Once she finally saw nothing but a massive floor inside the window, and the roof hanging overhead, she smiled underneath her bird-beaked helmet and smashed into the window, using the wings to protect herself from any stray shards. “Jõtaider MImoto! On the scene!”

“How in the name of my good self did somebody break in all the way up here!?” An incredulous voice shouted, as a set of steps furiously made their way towards the broken window…

Mikai undid her armor, turning back into the sandy-blonde that had saved several people around town with a bright smile. “You! Uh, whoever you are! Have you seen Atlas?” She asked, pointing straight towards the white-haired woman that came towards her.

“...Atlas?” The woman said, brushing her hand against her ponytail. “How do you know that name? It was supposed to be erased when he…” She paused, before looking at the girl a bit more, her gaze narrowing. “Aren’t you going to say something?”

It took the sandy-blonde a couple of seconds to realize what the woman in white meant, blinking as she bowed. “Sorry for breaking your window, miss! But I really need to know!” She really wasn’t the best in these sort of situations. Part of why she was currently struggling with her studies, because she usually put her foot in her mouth before anything else.

The white-haired woman shook her head slowly. Good lord, what kind of girl was this? How could somebody not know to apologize or double down with what they were doing, after having broken into an important business woman’s penthouse?

“Okay. I know what you want to know. But before that, come over here.” The woman said, beckoning her uninvited guest to step closer, ever closer.

Mikai nodded and did just that, coming as close to the strange lady as she possibly could. She was kinda nice, so she was probably not a bad guy. That was the logic that the girl used to determine when to go on the offensive.

Of course, if she had bothered to use her mind critically, she would’ve predicted a pair of arms wrapping around her and squeezing her dangerously tight. Like, to the point where her body was practically screaming out in some sort of pain levels of tight.

But it wasn’t malicious, far from it. It was… Just a very tight, very forceful hug, from a woman who looked at her with a surprisingly soft smile.

“For a window-breaking intruder, you’re way too cute.” The woman said, before she cleared her throat. Felt nice to have somebody besides her hubby in her arms for once. “I am Gaia Grimwald. Atlas was my former, totally inadequate and horribly misguided self. After I was allowed to emerge from the ashes of his ego, I made an effort to make sure that the world wouldn’t mistake the two of us. Does that explain everything you want to know?”

Mikai blinked a couple of times as she tried to catch up with all of the information that just got dumped on her. It was a lot to put together for a girl like her. “Uhhhh…” She was about to ask something, only for her eyes to glint as another part of her mind reminded her. Boys could totally turn into girls. Cobra showed her that the opposite was possible, so why wouldn’t that be? “...How’dya make the world think you were always a girl?”

“Are you familiar with the Cosmos Queens that’ve been causing trouble around the place over the last little while, Mikai?” Gaia said, carrying the girl towards a couch so the two could be more comfortable while they discussed these things.

That was something she could understand. “Mmhm! I’ve been fighting them and teaching them that being mean’s bad. Though they’ve been kinda clingy now that I think about it, kinda like you… You’re not suddenly in love with me or anything, miss Gaia, right?”

A blush quickly found its way onto the white-haired woman’s cheeks. Oh, she was dangerously cute. What kind of girl would outright ask a woman if they loved her? A bold and adorable one, that’s for sure. “No, far from it. I think you’re adorable, but I only reserve love for a specific man. But that’s not important, not right now.”

Gaia let go of Mikai as soon as the two found themselves sinking into one of her couches, clearing her throat a little. “The Cosmos Queens come from a world similar yet different to ours. Several worlds, in fact. By taking advantage of the way they enter our world, I’ve supplanted everyone into a world where I was always Gaia. Nothing more, nothing less. I’m surprised you somehow managed to avoid getting your mind adjusted to fit the new narrative.”

The look on the sandy-blonde’s face told the white-haired woman that she understood absolutely 0% of what she just told her. “I took everyone and put them in a world where I always existed. Does that explain what you wanted to know?” She repeated, and this time the younger girl nodded her head. Thank goodness, boiling things down for her so she understood it all was… actually more useful than she thought it would be. It meant she could probably get through to Seiryu in the same fashion, considering she always said she was too longwinded…

“Sooo… If I stop them, everything goes back to normal?” The sandy-blonde asked, trying to use her bean of a brain as best she could.

Gaia pinched the bridge of her nose. Somebody really had to make sure this girl got the education that she needed. Because this was getting ridiculous. “No, but they’ll stop trying to tear our world out of its place and into their collection. So that’s a good thing, keep up the good work.” She explained, before pausing a little. “Actually… About that love you mentioned. Did they fall in love with you, genuinely?”

Mikai nodded as she slowly started counting on her fingers. “Every single one that I beat turned out to not be that bad once you stripped away the parts where they hurt people, and because I used their own abilities against them, they realized what they had done wrong. And then they all asked me out, so…” She sighed, like all the power in her body suddenly left her. “It kinda means I don’t get a lot of time to myself. With all that stuff I gotta do.”

“Putting former enemies ahead of yourself. Adorable. Exhausting, but adorable.” The white-haired woman said, putting her hand on the sandy-blonde girl’s head and slowly threading her fingers through that kinda-messy bed of hair. “Are you sure you’re going to handle it all? Are you sure you can manage all of that?”

The sandy-blonde giggled a little as the hand went through her hair. “I know I can. Because people believe in me. They reach out, and I gotta reach back.” She replied with conviction in her eyes, clenching her fist tight. “Even you do, Miss Gaia! I’m sorry for breaking in, but I just had to find out. I’m glad you’re a much nicer person than what Hiro’s told!”

Gaia grimaced slightly as she slowly put two and two together. This was the girl that had been causing her trouble, eh? Just what secrets were that skunk-striped bitch telling her? ...Then again, it was the same girl that had managed to make that bitch smile for once. She was definitely an invaluable asset if that was the case…

“So, uh, Miss Gaia?” Mikai spoke up again, noticing the distaste on the white-haired woman’s face. “Who helped you? You said you were ‘allowed’ to emerge, and doesn’t that mean somebody gave you permission? Who was that? Are they also nice? Can I meet them?”

This question was the one that sent the white-haired woman over the hills, as she let out a deep and satisfied sigh. Hearts started dancing around her head as her irises blossomed into the same shapes. “Oh, you want to know about my dear Hubby? My sweet little man who’s done nothing but good for me and my dear saints?”

“Mmhm! Who is he? He sounds really important to you. Just like Dad sounds to Mom, whenever she gets a postcard from overseas!” The sandy-blonde chimed, pulling her legs up onto the couch, wrapping her arms around them. She really did enjoy listening to other people talking about their lives. It gave her something to compare to.

Gaia sighed even deeper, leaning up against the girl as she practically melted with how much warmth seeped out of her. “He’s the best man I’ve ever had the pleasure of being with. He’s also the worst, with what he tends to do. But that’s part of why I love him. It’s part of why I enjoy doing all these terrible things, so that he can put me in my place whenever he catches me being naughty. And by the same cheek, why I enjoy putting him in his place. You should see what a man is like when you ride them dry for an entire week…”

Mikai blushed. Ah. They had that kind of relationship. The kind of relationship that Virgo taught her about. The kind that she almost got roped into. At least it sounded nice when somebody else was involved, she just wasn’t ready for one. “And… What’s his name?”

“Deltas. Deltas Danforth. That sweet blonde lad, always charming me off my feet whenever we talk. Convincing me to do so much worse than he ever could’ve cooked up on his own. Just so he could see the results. Oh, talking about him makes my skin crawl in all the right ways!” The older woman just kept on prattling, her love for the man drooling off his lips. God, she could just keep going if somebody didn’t stop her.

The sandy-blonde, initially a bit weirded out by the relationship being that kind of relationship, giggled a little. “You really do love him no matter what he does, huh?” She could understand that kind of love. She had seen it before. In a couple of the girls that she had saved… And the Queens.

When it came down to it, they’d give themselves to her just like this. And the ones that were still mean were just as devoted to their empress. It brought her another perspective on the kind of people they were, now that she had seen somebody else that devoted to their loved one.

“I’d say he forced me to love him, but that’d be a lie. If anything, I’m the one forcing him.” Gaia laughed a little as she calmed down, brushing the sweat off her face. She really got worked up about it all. “I’m sure he’d love to meet you too. If there’s anything he’s weak against, it’s cute girls with a lot of spunk and a lot of heart. And you’ve got both in spades, even if you’re all empty up there.”

Mikai pouted. “I’m not that empty! I’ve got a friend in there!” The girl protested. She didn’t disagree with the insinuation that she was dumb, she knew that quite well. She just didn’t want to come off as being all empty headed. Because she knew better!

“I’m sure you do.” The white-haired woman patted her on the head. She didn’t take the claim seriously, because why would she? Still, it showed that the girl was still as innocent as she could be. And that was a plus in her head. “How about it, though? Do you want to meet my Hubby sometime?”

She continued pouting. Though only for a bit. She could hear Chimera whisper into her ear that it didn’t matter if she was real or not. As long as she was with her. That brightened her up real quick. “Sure! When?”

“When he’s ready. I’ll let you know.” Gaia chimed, planting a little kiss on the younger girl’s forehead. “Now, I want you to do one more thing for me before you go. You’ve probably got plenty to do as a little heroine.”

Mikai nodded and listened carefully. She’d happily help the white-haired woman with whatever she needed.

“Fix the window.” The older woman’s voice dropped a few octaves as her soft smile turned sour. She held a grudge. Because of course she did.

The young heroine nervously giggled, getting up as she went to find the supplies she needed, all while the woman continued to watch from the couch.

“If she keeps being this cute, we might just need to make our plans fit her, Hubby…” Gaia mused, giggling as she closed her eyes. Today had been a good day, despite appearances...