[Magical Girl Themes, Corruption, Jester TF]
"She took the heart?"
Lady Ravenheart sounded genuinely surprised. If not a little shocked at what she just heard. Which naturally worried Crow as she watched her faceless benefactor consider the facts...
"I will not let her take another. No matter what she says." Crow said. Hand over her heart as she gazed at her Lady. She didn't want her to be angry with her. Or stop helping her recover these emotions...
"I expect as much." Lady Ravenheart said, as another heart formed in the palm of her hand. "Which is why I'm giving you another positive emotion. You didn't get to enjoy the feeling of Desire, so how about a bit of Joy? Then you'll understand why your heart beats as it does when you succeed."
Crow nodded, as the heart flew towards her hands. Spinning right above her palms. Spinning and spinning, waiting to be put to good use...
Yet as she stared at it, she couldn't help but see something in the heart itself. Something that hurt her more than it had any right to.
She saw that girl staring back at her. The girl that had taken her Desire. Despite that... Despite the fact that she should consider her as one of her key enemies as a result of this...
She had trouble doing so. Perhaps it was because of the way she reacted to that Desire flying into her. Perhaps it was because of what she said...
"End up just as bad as them..." Crow muttered, as she sank into the darkness to begin her assignment. Even if she would take her time with it, just to consider what had been said to her...
She needed to really think about this...
---
"You... Are alright, right, Aika?"
"I mean, probably? I don't feel that weird, but I can kinda tell why you think something might be up."
Sumiko nodded as she gazed upon her friend. The two were out running together, just trying to keep up a bit of exercise after school so that they didn't fall behind on their fitness, and... Well...
Aika had gotten a bit more toned than she probably had the right to. Which looked really good, Sumiko wasn't about to say that she wasn't a fan. Not at all. But it was really distracting. And she had a rough idea of why she had started to get like this...
"Yeah, it's just... You sure this isn't because you're being affected by that Desire still?" Sumiko said. Even though she was the one staring a little too much at Aika's body. She'd never really stare like this before, but... Why shouldn't she, when Aika looked this good?
Aika nervously chuckled and rubbed the back of her head as they kept running at a slower but still sustainable pace. "I mean it might have a little to do with it. After I got turned back, I had this flame insid me. Telling me to go for it. I dunno what it meant by 'it', but I decided to start running a bit more. If you want, we can try and see how much iron I can pump now too, I've been trying to get better there too!"
Strong Aika... Sweaty Aika... Her Aika wrapping her arms around her, telling her that she would be safe- No. No no no. Her mind was getting carried away at this point. That simply wasn't allowed...
It's not because she didn't like the thoughts that was in her head. But after that Desire had flown into her, she just wasn't sure if these thoughts were because of it, or because of herself. Well, okay, there was a much bigger chance of them being because of the Desire, but still...
"I think that'd be great, Aika." Sumiko said once she managed to set herself straight, smiling as her heart slammed against her chest out of excitement and anticipation. To see her best friend proving herself to be much stronger than she had originally been...
At least, she was excited for Aika. Right up until she caught a glimpse of a certain somebody in the distance...
---
Crow stared at the heart hovering above the palm of her hand. Staring into the sickly purple glow as she could feel the subtle joy pouring frm it. All while thinking back to what that girl had said...
"Become worse than those two..." She muttered. Was that truly what was going to happen when she filled up and repaired her heart with the emotions that Lady Ravenheart had picked out for her? No. It couldn't be.
Yet she still thought about what the girl had said. Even though there was no way that it had any right to be real. It had to all be wrong. It had to be. Because if it was real, then...
A sharp cry of pain left her lips as she put her hand on her chest, panting and gasping as she felt the pain within her. A different pain than before. The pain of carrying an overflowing emotion for too long... Or something more...
"Hey, miss? You look really sad."
Crow blinked as she looked forward, right at a young girl that had come towards her. A girl who was holding a cute jester doll, snuggling it and hugging it as she looked right at the stranger that seemed so sad...
"Sad..? What is... Sad?" She muttered in turn, not understanding what the young girl was trying to tell her. How would she be able to? She didn't have anything to compare this 'Sad' to that properly described it, because she didn't understand it.
The girl with the jester tilted her head, thinking as hard as she possibly could. Right before she gasped in shock. All because she realized what to do to help this sad lady figure out what sadness was.
"It's like... You're not with your friend, so you're missing them a lot! Or because you and your friend got into a big bad fight, and your Mommies had to pull you away..." She explained the very best she could, tightening her grip on her doll in the process. "I kinda went through that. I had this friend that moved away. We still talk through letters, but I wanna see her again!"
There's no way that she should be understanding what the girl told her. And yet that's exactly what Crow did. Something about the simple comparison made her heart hurt that much more. But since the girl said this was because of friends...
Did... Did she see that girl as a friend? But that shouldn't be possible. They were enemies. She was a rival in love... It all just didn't add up. It didn't add up at all. Why would she think of somebody that stole her Desire as a friend..!?
"It's you!"
Crow's eyes widened at the sound of that familiar voice. The voice that had been haunting her since the moment she clashed with her. She couldn't believe her luck. Yet again, she had run into the girl that had tried to stop her. Yet again, she ran into the one that took her Emotion...
...Why did her heart skip a beat the first time she looked at her after she had taken her Desire..? Why did that makeup on her face make her feel things? Why did SHE make her feel things in general?!
"Why... Why are you here..?" Crow muttered as she gazed over towards the approaching Sumiko. A radiating aura of jealousy trying to rise around her. Even though it was obvious that she wasn't nearly jealous enough to sustain it. Not after everything that she had earned and learned...
Sumiko smiled as she patted the little girl on the hea, telling her to go catch up with her Mommy since Sumiko needed to have a private conversation with the girl that had manipulated those emotions to cause chaos...
"Because you still look sad. I don't want you to look sad. Not when I think I can still do something." She said, once the two of them were alone. So that she could stare at Crow's face, a look of determination on her own face...
Crow could feel her heart pounding against her chest. Why did it do so? Why did it react like this when this girl said this to her? She had taken things that were important to her... So why... Why!?
"What does that even mean..?! What is Sad!? Why do you think I look that way!? I don't understand! I don't understand why you would do something like this, why you would try to help me after you took what was meant to be mine.:!" She cried out, all while tears had begun to stream down her cheeks...
Sumiko's only response was to hug away at her. Gently squeezing her tight as she smiled just as gently. "Because I don't want you to have that look on your face. You're hurting. And those emotions... They aren't going to help you. If they're as strong as I think they are, then you're just going to turn into a Monster of Emotion..."
Crow's heart went silent for a few seconds after she got hugged. Then the beat of her heart returned as quickly as it had left, now rapidly slamming against her chest as the feelings that were meant to not exist were flowing powerfully through her.
She didn't understand why she felt good while she was being hugged by this girl. All that she knew was that she couldn't stop herself from sobbing in turn. Sobbing and wailing as the tears rapidly started streaming down her cheeks. All while the girl held her...
Which did nothing to stop the heart full of Joy, the one that Crow was supposed to guide towards its proper host, from flying away once the girl lowered her guard. Letting it chase after the little girl that had stopped by, trying to help out Crow and make her smile...
The girl didn't have a chance to see the heart coming towards her before it was too late. The little girl started giggling as soon as all of that Joy flooded through her body. Giggling and laughing, as several fun thoughts started to bounce around inside that little head of hers...
She wanted everyone to laugh with her. That would be the best. If everyone laughed, then nobody would be sad and nobody would go away. And what better way to make somebody laugh than with that jester she held nice and tight?
The little girl's jester doll merged with her as the combination quickly grew older, a joyous light covering them and making it impossible to tell what exactly they were like. At least, right up until the moment that a loud hammer slammed into the ground below. Like a Judge's hammer, handing out judgment!
In place of the little girl stood a jester with a two-toned leotard, which provided a certain level of color that contrasted just how horribly pale the rest of her body became. Especially when combined with the hat on her head, the funny bells already jingling with every mode she even thought of making...
Though it went together even better with her cape, which was just as extravagantly patterned. Red and blue hues repeated in a square pattern over and over and over. It was like a Hero's cape, just a lot sillier to look at. Which was good! She wanted people to think that she was silly!
"Ehehe! It's time for JoyousJustice to let everyone have the fun they're meant to have! That's what Justice is, yep yep!" The transformed jester giggled as she pulled out a pair of mallets from hammerspace, already ready to pound a couple cuties into the ground. That way, they'd lose all those difficult and terrible thoughts, and only joy would be left!
Sumiko could feel the worry pour across her back. Another Monster had taken form. Causing her to carefully sigh as she let go of the girl. Making sure to keep a brief grip on her shoulders as their eyes locked once more. "Okay. Here's what we do. I'll help free the emotion from this Monster... And then you tell me everything. Okay? If you really need them, then we can try and find some sort of compromise..."
Crow wasn't too happy with what was being offered. Those were her emotions that they were negotiating about after all. But it's not like she had much of a choice. She needed the emotion to either get its fill of fun by rampaging in this Monster form, or somebody had to beat them and make them drop the emotion that way. Both options left her incredibly passive, at least compared to the role she had in making the Monster in the first place.
Right as she was about to agree, she watched as the Monster came leaping and skipping towards the two. And her words got caught in her throat, as she tried her best to warn the girl. Not that she didn't want her to lose so that she could get her emotion back, but... But..!
"Watch out behind you, Sumiko!"
Sumiko blinked as she watched Aika come up running behind her, stopping right in front of her as the sound of a squeaky hammer echoed out. Something that definitely sounded like it shouldn't hurt, and yet...
As she turned around, she found Aika partly submerged in the grund, her face having turned pale like a clown's. She was still missing the red nose that would make the whole aesthetic fit, but at least she was short just like the jester that had hammered her. And clad in the exact same multicolored outfit.
"Awww. I was hoping to make you Just too!" JoyfulJustice whined, before spinning those big squeaky hammers of hers. "You two just sit still, you both need to laugh!" She said, as she jumped towards the two again. All while her minion worked on getting out of the ground...
Not that the Monster was going to get as far as she probably wanted to. Sumiko's light poured forth, forming the aura that kept her safe during transformations. "SPREAD MY WINGS!" And as she shouted out the transformation phrase, the aura exploded into an offensive tool...
One that knocked away both the shortstacked... Minonized? Aika out of the slight hole that she had been buried in, as well as the Monster herself. Both of them ending up skidding together as they ended up side by side.
Giggles poured forth from the two girls as they pointed at the transformed Lovely Dove. "We'll take you on! And then you'll laugh just like us! It'll be soooo much fun!" The jester declared, as she tossed her hammers into the air. Letting them juggle as she pulled out another pair. Ready to throw down, ready to make 'em all have the fun that they were meant to!
Right up until the moment a gunshot rung out, and the four squeaky hammers all popped all at once. Not only that, but the second gunshot that rung out ended up striking the jester straight in the heart. Causing her to explode into the same kind of Joy that she embodied...
"Pathetic."
Starry Eagle had made her appearance again. And as the girl and Aika both laid on the ground, she kept focus on the sickly purple heart. The sickly purple heart that was trying to fly towards the girl that had been the cause of all of this...
The sound of a gun firing echoed out. Only for the sound of metal hitting metal to echo out as well, as the shot refused to make its mark. Leaving the starry 'heroine' to stare at the girl that was trying to get in her way...
"What do you think you're doing, exactly?"
Lovely Dove panted as she stood in front of the heart. All while holding tightly onto a sharp-toothed blade... The same sharp-toothed blade that was used by DangerDesire. She didn't know how she was able to wield it. Just that it had come from her heart when she jumped in front of the Emotion that was flying freely.
The other girl was watching as well. She couldn't believe that the girl would actually jump in front of the heart like that. What did she think that she was doing..? Didn't she just say that she didn't want her to end up looking as she had done before..?! Why the contradictions..!? It didn't make any sense..!
"I..." Lovely Dove muttered, before tightening her grip. Glaring towards Starry Eagle as she stood her ground. "I won't let you hurt that emotion. I don't know if there's a way that she can use it without being hurt... But I'm not letting you hurt her!"
Starry Eagle laughed as she watched the so-called heroine try to stand up to her. Really. She thought that she was hot shit? She seriously thought that there was any way for her to protect that... That thing? Oh. How rich.
"Then try and stop me." The visor-clad girl said, spinning her stars as the barrels transformed into blades once more, wielding them with a reverse grip as she suddenly dashed towards the girl behind these Monsters...
She was so fast. She could feel her heart, even if it was nothing more than an outline, nearly jumping from her chest as the much more violent girl came running towards her..!
"STAR BREAKER!"
The slash was supposed to go straight through her. The slash was supposed to hurt her. It was supposed to do a lot of things to her. And yet...
"I-I said... I won't... I won't let YOU HURT HER!"
It didn't reach. The blades that Starry Eagle wielded were stopped right before they hit their mark. All thanks to the girl that rushed over to try and help, barely making it in the nick of time.
Her legs were trembling. Starry Eagle's power was overwhelming. But still. She didn't back down. She wouldn't back down. Not against somebody that clearly had no good intentions in mind for any of this. She just fought and fought, not caring who she hurt or what she accomplished..!
"Aha! You really think you can hold out?! You really think that you can stand up to ME!?" Starry Eagle shouted, pushing her advantage. Each step forcing her forward. Each step making Lovely Dove lose yet more ground...
She wouldn't give up. Not with that girl behind her. She hadn't gotten her name yet. But she didn't care what her name was. She didn't care if she thought that she was being reckless or foolish or stupid. She wanted her to smile again. And that's why..!
"Star Fall."
The clash between the three blades was cut short as Starry Eagle pulled back, swapping her blades back into guns once more. The barrels pointing past Lovely Dove's shoulders, both aimed straight at the girl and her pretty little head...
"LOVELY FEATHER DESIRE!"
Right before two blades flashed before her eyes. And there the barrels were. On the ground, turning back into stars. All while Lovely Dove was left wielding two of those sharp-toothed blades. Panting and gasping as she struggled to maintain herself like this...
Starry Eagle couldn't believe her eyes. Those things were meant to be indestructible. Yet the girl was able to... Aha... Ahaha. Ahahahahaha...
"I'll be back for you. Lovely Dove. And I'll enjoy seeing you break." Starry Eagle said, laughing as she slowly staggered away. The shock of actually being matched making her heart beat way faster than it ever did before...
Lovely Dove panted as the wings of her transformation folded back around her, turning her back to normal as she very nearly fell onto her knees...
Nearly, because the girl... The mysterious heartless girl was there to support her. Using her body to prevent her from falling...
"Why... Why would you go that far for me..?" She didn't understand. She didn't understand at all. Why would somebody like her not only not blame her for what she had done to her... But why would she then also try to protect her and what she was aiming for..?
The sickly heart filled with Joy flew towards the two, all while Sumiko cracked a slight smile. "I... I told you, didn't I? I don't want to see you with that sad expression anymore. I want to see you smile. Because you deserve to be happy. Just like everyone else."
Her emotion. It was pure. So pure that the heart started to lose its dark colors. Turning a pearly white, as it gently approached the girl that was meant to absorb it. A girl who didn't know what to think...
Nor why she was starting to cry. She sniffled. She sobbed. And she stared at the heart in her hands. It was so pure. So... Serene. Was this what Emotions were meant to be like..?
"...I... Who... Who are you, anyway..?" The girl sniffled. The least she could do was ask for the girl's name. To understand more about her. To understand why she would do this...
"Sumiko. Yamamura Sumiko. What about you?" Sumiko smiled, as she reached into her pocket. Pulling out a hankerchief, which Aika had given her in the past in case she ever needed it, just so she could wipe away a couple of the girl's tears.
The girl blushed as she felt her wipe away at her tears. Her heart was beating ever stronger. Why..? "...Crow." She muttered. She shouldn't let her know, but...
"Crow, huh?" Sumiko said, smiling slightly as she put the hankerchief away. "It's a cute name. But a beautiful girl like you... I don't think it suits you." She never imagined she would have to use a line like that. But it's just something that flooded her mind when she thought about 'Crow'. She really was pretty despite her sad expression.
Crow was left speechless. Not just because of the compliment, but because... Well, when she mentioned that the name didn't feel right, it's like another formed in her head. Or did it... Did it emerge..?
"...Kiyomi. Maita Kiyomi..."
"Kiyomi. Now that's a wonderful name. Just right for you, Kiyomi!"
Sumiko's smile flooded Kiyomi's mind. Wiping away many of the worries in her heart. It's like... It's like she could depend on this smile...
And if she could depend on it, then... Then maybe...
---
"So. This Dove has managed to purify one of those Emotions..."
Lady Ravenheart muttered, as she closed the window she had been using to keep tabs on Crow. Sighing as she stepped deeper into the darkness that made up her domain...
These Emotions inside Crow had to remain volatile. Otherwise, her wish wouldn't come to fruition...