“I can’t believe I missed this-” Hikari gasped.

“You could stand to be more responsible.” Izanami agreed.

“I usually get up early! The one time I stay up late and want to sleep in-”

“Knowing this city, I’m shocked you ever get ten minutes, let alone eight hours.”

Hikari was flying down the street at high speed, and trying for more. The one time she sleeps in, the first time in like a month, things go sour. The one time she mutes her phone, she gets an alert that a villain has broken free from their containment, and was returning to their old habits.

Kishi Pikami, AKA Sleek Nightfall, was a latex obsessed woman who had fought with Hikari and company before - namely, she’d minionized Hikari, Natsuki, and another magical girl before Akemi and a team of other Magical Girls had managed to isolate her and bring her down. After that, she’d been locked up by the Magical Girl Association like most villains were - only she’d managed to break out. Nobody was sure how just yet but suspicions included a stashed wrap of latex in some place the guards didn’t look, and a visitor wearing latex heels.

Hikari touched down outside of an expansive shopping mall, hearing the sounds of fighting inside. Some other Magical Girl must have arrived before she had, and engaged with Sleek Nightfall and her minions. Looking around the area, Hikari saw a couple of latex-clad drones stumbling around.

“Huh, not as many as last time.” she said.

“Someone else got here quickly.” Izanami surmised. “If I had to guess, that Foster brat we’ve had to deal with so much. Take your time, maybe Sleek Nightfall will nab her before we reach her.”

“That’s just mean.” Hikari muttered, but all the same took a brief detour to blast the minions. When she’d been taken by Kishi before, she’d… well, to be honest, she had enjoyed herself, if only because she’d been brainwashed to take pleasure in lack of thought. But she definitely didn’t like it after the fact - most people weren’t like her friend Natsuki, who enjoyed being brainwashed, and she had to run on the assumption that the innocent bystanders probably would prefer to be taken out of commission before they did anything they regretted.

She herself… well, she was used to it, as odd as that sounded. She wasn’t afraid of it, but she didn’t like it. It was something of an inevitability in her line of work all the same, but hardly an enjoyable experience.

As the faceless latex-bound women crumpled to the floor in an unconscious heap, Hikari turned deeper into the mall. “If we hurry, we can make it in time!” she said, pushing on through the mall. Passing a few stores, which had shop windows stocked full of latex-based clothes (if you could even call them that), furniture, and other items, she made her way down to the center of the mall.

In the center, was usually a water fountain, surrounded by wooden benches where people could sit and chat. Hikari and Natsuki often sat at one of them when they came there after classes. But instead of water, it was now spewing a black gunk, the contents of which were easy to guess if Sleek Nightfall was keeping to her theme. It was appropriate, then, that this was where the latex villainess was locked in combat with a magical girl.

Akemi Foster, the second most powerful solo Magical Girl, looked the role better than Hikari did. Where the only magical thing about Hikari’s magical form was her amulet and the magical staff she created - the rest of it could, and often did, pass for one of her normal outfits, if in more muted colors than she preferred. Akemi, meanwhile, looked something like a fantastical knight, her magic-using form clad in gleaming armor. She didn’t have a weapon, instead using martial arts with her fists and feet, amplified and given range by magical bursts. Where Hikari had an undeniable advantage in pure power, she used it like a club, while Akemi’s power was as directed and precise as a scalpel.

That was Izanami’s take, at least. Hikari had no real conception of comparative power levels. As far as she was concerned Akemi was a friend first and coworker second. “Akemi! Good to see you!” she called out as the veteran Magical Girl weaved around another of Sleek Midnight’s attacks.

“Hey! This is my fight, stay out of it!” Akemi said without looking away from her foe. “I don’t need help!” Akemi… well, she liked Hikari. It was difficult not to. But she saw her as a rival, and accepting aid from her rival was unacceptable. Besides, she was sure she could beat this villain!

“Ok, but I’m going to help anyway!” Hikari said cheerfully.

“Oh, is that number 34? I remember you, did you come back to join me again~?” Sleek Nightfall giggled as she saw Hikari. “Such a devoted slave, maybe you’ll be promoted!”

Hikari might have lacked common sense and often walked right into the villain's traps without realizing. But well, this one wasn’t being subtle. In lieu of a response, she sent a blast of magic towards the villainess.

The fight picked up again, Sleek Nightfall feeling the pressure from the two of them trying to get her at once. But Akemi and Hikari were fighting separately, without any teamwork - they might as well have been fighting alone. All the same, it wasn’t easy fighting two people at once when they were at this kind of power level.

“Hey, be careful-” Izanami said. “She’s going to try and split you up, make it so she only fights one at a time, somehow… it’s what I’d do, at least.” While she had no significant attachment to Akemi’s victory or defeat, it would be irritating to spend so much time as a nameless drone - and if Hikari was taken, Izanami went with her.

“I know, I know!” Hikari said quietly, as she prepared a large blast of magic. Sleek Nightfall was in the air, and would land shortly, without time to reorient herself. She charged up the blast, and fired-

And as Kishi was just about to land, she launched a latex web upwards in her path. Sticking to the railing lining the upper tier of the mall, she pulled and dragged herself out of Hikari’s line of fire. Unfortunately for the Magical Girls, this meant that as Hikari’s blast left her wand, it was aiming for Akemi - who had had the same idea as Hikari.

Hikari didn’t have time to divert her aim or even think. She acted on instinct, changing the magic to a significantly less painful effect. The beam turned from it’s usual white to a bright pink. It hit Akemi and she went flying. Fortunately for her, Hikari had managed to change what kind of magic she was using at the last instance - else she’d have been blasted right out of her magical form and knocked out, easy prey for Sleek Midnight. Unfortunately for her, Hikari had changed it from attack magic to… a different kind, in so doing.

It happened too fast for anyone to see, as the light from the magical blast masked it’s effect. Akemi’s armor was blasted apart, but the clothes beneath it remained perfectly intact - and in fact, changed. The simple t-shirt changed color from dark blue to a bright pink as it’s shoulders grew far poofier, white frills decorating the sleeves. The entire shirt followed suit, rapidly transitioning into an elaborate frilly blouse, dappled with white heart designs. The design was finished by the creation of elbow-length white gloves on her hands.

Meanwhile, Akemi’s shorts fused together into a skirt, which grew larger and frillier as it changed to the same soft material. This was accompanied by the appearance of white stockings on her legs, to match her gloves, while her practical boots turned into pretty pink high-heels.

While she’d never wielded a weapon beyond her fists, one formed all the same - a small wand ending in a heart appeared in Akemi’s hands. This was accompanied by a glittery half-mask forming over her face, covering the top half (with the number ‘1’ emblazoned on the top) and leaving only her mouth visible.

If she’d had the time to notice she was being converted, she might have resisted. Or at least tried, if not succeeded. But as it was, her mind was blasted straight into submission. She was a magical girl! A heroine of justice! That much hadn’t changed. What had changed was what defined justice for her. No longer was she guided by her own moral compass. Instead… she had a Mistress. And whatever her Mistress said was right, most certainly was. She served justice, and Mistress was justice.

She landed safely, flipping around in the air to land on her feet and doing a cute pose. “Woah! That was surprising!” she said in a chipper voice.

“Akemi, are you ok!?” Hikari shouted, unaware of what she’d done. When had Akemi changed her outfit? It was so… frilly, and pink, and girly, compared to what she usually had. “What happened to your clothes?

“Did you just… oh god, I can’t believe you just did that…” Izanami said.

“Did I do what?” Hikari asked, frowning.

“You don’t even… pfft-” Any explanation Izanami might have offered was interrupted by her busting a gut laughing. Hikari shook her head a bit - it was hard to focus with someone laughing inside of your head - but dismissed it.

“I’m fine, I’m fine~” Akemi giggled. “My clothes are fiiiiine~ Let’s go after her! That villainous villainess is getting away!”

Well, Hikari couldn’t argue with that. She did wonder why Akemi looked so weird all of a sudden. But that seemed like a secondary concern, as Sleek Nightfall approached for another attack.

“Ohhh, you weren’t just blasting me, were you?” she giggled. “Such a naughty girl… I want you back even more now~”

“Give up, villain! We are the greatest heroes ever! Our friendship will defeat you!” Akemi declared proudly, leveling her girly pink wand at her.

“Aww, thanks!” Hikari said. Akemi was usually never this openly friendly with her, always on about rivalry and improvement.

“I… oh you can’t be this dense… not after all the times you’ve been on the other end…” Izanami managed between bursts of laughter. Hikari still had no idea what she was on about, and didn’t have the time to think about it as the fight picked up again.

Something was different this time. She and Akemi were fighting together as a team, now - or at least, Akemi was in active support of Hikari. She fought to maneuver Sleek Nightfall into Hikari’s line of fire, where she would be easily defeated by the girl’s overwhelming firepower. “This is fun, girls, but I do have some other things to do~”

“Oh no you don’t!” Akemi shouted, leaping at the villainess. Sleek Nightfall tried to wrap her in latex, but she was able to suddenly jerk upwards mid-leap, flying over her and grabbing her from behind.

“Since when could you fly?” Hikari asked.

“Doesn’t matter, blast her before she gets away!” Akemi shouted.

“Oh, I guess as far as ends go, this could be fun~” Sleek Nightfall giggled.

Hikari didn’t wait any longer, firing off a blast at the woman. This one, like the earlier hit to Akemi, was pink instead of Hikari’s normal style. The blast enveloped Sleek Nightfall, and like with Akemi, changed her.

The villainess’ latex bodysuit rippled as it’s color shifted, from midnight black to bubblegum pink, spotted with hearts. Unlike Akemi, this transformation retained elements of her original for. Sleek Nightfall’s outfit remained mostly latex, even as a small skirt was created on her body, going down to a bit above her knees and giving her a bit more modesty than the suit would naturally offer. Frilly bands formed along her body, further breaking up the mono-texture.

Like Akemi, she received a magic wand - though this one seemed to, rather than being primarily metallic but for the heart-shaped gem on the end, was a latex plastic. Once again, a mask formed on her face, covering all above her mouth, which promptly split into a wide smile.

Kishi had known what was coming - from looking at Akemi, it was impossible not to. But she’d equally known it would be useless to resist, and gave in without a conscious thought. Her desire to coat the world in latex was ripped from her, replaced by a burning passion for justice, as defined by her Mistress. Her aggression and desire to steal Hikari was replaced with friendship and devotion. She submitted completely, as the mask was marked with the number ‘2’.

Hikari blinked with surprise as the light faded, leaving the modified villainess in her view. “...That wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“Great job!” Akemi said. “I knew we could beat her together, Mistress!”

“Yes, I’ve learned the error of my evil ways! Magical Girl Kishi Pikami, at your service, Mistress!” The former-villainess declared.

Hikari looked from Akemi, then to Kishi, then back. She looked at the matching elements of their outfits - the pink with hearts, the masks, the wands. She looked at the numbers on their heads. “Oh no, oh no… Izanami!”

“Finally!” Izanami said. “Finally you figure it out!”

“Izanami, this is serious!”

“Good job, Hikari, you’ve got yourself your first minions! I’m like a proud mother watching you grow up!” Izanami laughed.

“WHY DO I HAVE MINIONS!? WHY CAN I DO THAT!?” Hikari shouted. Akemi and Kishi looked around, wondering who their Mistress was talking to.

“Hell if I know, but it’s hilarious, and kinda impressive! Even I can’t make minions of such powerful people with a single blast! I think you might be tapping into my powers… but then, if it was just that, they’d look like my minions, and not your own style. The numbers are a nice touch. The first of many~?”

“You are having way too much fun with this! I didn’t try to do that! It just… happened!” Hikari paced around, thinking. What to do, what to do… “How do I turn them back?”

“Since when do I care about turning minions back to normal?” Izanami asked.

“I don’t know! You seem like you’d be prepared for that!”

Izanami was actually a bit surprised. Hikari was, quite clearly, freaking out - and she almost never did that. Even in the process of being turned into a minion herself, she rarely panicked, maintaining her cheer and upbeat attitude even as her individuality was drained away. “...Look, take a moment and calm down. Why don’t we go somewhere private, figure it out?”

Hikari took a deep breath. “...Yeah. Maybe Natsuki will have an idea… come on, guys, let’s go.”

“Yes Mistress!” came the pair of replies, causing Hikari to wince.

After making sure that Kishi released all her drones (this much, at least, Hikari wouldn’t feel bad for ordering…), the trio flew off towards a certain place.

-----

You’d never know Natsuki was wealthy just looking at her. She talked and acted like any other girl, oddities in her interests aside. She didn’t flaunt it or talk about it, but being the daughter of the president of the Magical Girl Association, she had money and she had power by proxy. The Nakano estate, in the more ritzy part of town, was sizeable. Hikari would usually walk in through the front gate, maybe make chit-chat with Hayato the Gate Guard and William the butler at the door.

Today, on the other hand, she flew in. Her guest pass, in her pocket, still kept any of the hidden magical defenses from triggering and blasting her - which was good, she wouldn’t want to damage the place - but she didn’t much want to explain her glittery pink entourage to someone who might ask questions, or talk about it to Natsuki’s mother Chihaya.

She was fairly sure she knew where Natsuki would be this time of day. She floated her way up to the window she knew would be her friend’s, and peeked inside. Natsuki was there, on her laptop at the desk.

“Natsuki…!” she hissed, knocking on the window. “Come on come on-”

Natsuki looked over, blinked a bit in surprise, and came to the window to open it. “Hikari? What are you doing sneaking in like this?”

“I didn’t want to talk to the guards…”

“Couldn’t you call?”

Hikari blinked. “...Probably. I didn’t think of that… anyway, emergency! Can I come in?” Natsuki stepped aside, and Hikari flew in and landed. She peeked out the window. “You two come in now too!” Hikari said.

“Yes, Mistress!” came the reply, as the glittery pink minions came floating in after their Mistress.

Natsuki looked from them, to Hikari, then back to them. “...Is that… Akemi?”

“Yep~!” Akemi chirped.

“And… wait, the heck, how did Sleek Nightfall get here?”

“Kishi!” The woman corrected.

Natsuki looked at Hikari. “...What happened?”

“I don’t know! I blasted Akemi by accident, and Kishi intentionally, and somehow they ended up like this! And they won’t stop calling me Mistress!”

“That’s because you’re our Mistress, Mistress.” Akemi said helpfully.

“Or we could call you Owner if you prefer. Or boss?” Kishi added.

“Do you see the problem?” Hikari waved at her (unwilling, on her part) minions.

“Yep. Definitely do.” Natsuki said gravely. “It’s a bit of a conundrum. They don’t look very minion-y if they don’t match, but it’s so hot when there’s clear evidence of who they used to be… and the names, hm, they still have those. Have you considered calling them by their numbers? I think that’d get rid of it quick-”

“She is nothing if not consistent. She might not be your first, but she’d probably make a good lieutenant all the same, so let her keep her individuality.” Izanami suggested.

“Natsuki, this is serious!” Hikari said. She was getting exasperated - first Izanami, now Natsuki, why was nobody but her taking this seriously?

“Well, what does Mistress say? She’s the expert on this.” Natsuki said.

“She said she thinks it’s like, part me tapping her powers, part my own… but I’ve never done that before!” Hikari shouted.

“Well, how do we turn it off then, Izanami?”

“She said she doesn’t know. She never really cared about whether minions went back to normal.”

“Did she say she doesn’t know or that she doesn’t care?” Natsuki asked. “She’s smart, she wouldn’t use a spell without knowing the ins and outs, including reversal, regardless of whether she wanted permanence or not.”

Hikari blinked. She couldn’t see Izanami just then, but she imagined her leaning against a wall whistling inconspicuously. “...Izanami.” She said flatly.

“Not my fault you just took a lack of caring for a lack of knowledge.” Izanami said with the mental equivalent of a shrug.

Hikari took a deep breath. “Ok, how do I turn them back? I want to release control on them.”

“I don’t know, are you sure? Akemi’s kinda bitchy, and Kishi obviously is a villain…” Izanami said.

“Yes!” Hikari snapped. “End of story, no more discussion. How do I turn them back?”

Had Hikari ever gotten mad at Izanami before? Actually, seriously angry? Izanami was actually fairly sure she hadn’t. Not like this. “...Alright. When you turn someone into a minion, you impart a piece of your power into them. That’s why they can fly, when they couldn’t before. Of course, with your power scale, it’s hard to notice being a little weaker. So all you do to revert them is to take that power back. It should be fairly simple.”

“Thank you!” Hikari said, resting a hand on Akemi’s shoulder.

“Uh, maybe you want to have Kishi leave, first.” Natsuki suggested. “I don’t know if she’ll remember anything, but if she doesn’t we don’t want her questioning, right?” She spoke a bit more softly, now, noticing Hikari’s distress.

“...Right. Uh. Kishi.” she said.

“Yes, Mis-”

“Please wait outside.” Hikari said quickly, before she could finish that dang word. “And be very quiet until I come and get you.”

Kishi silently saluted, and climbed out the window, silent as a mouse.

Hikari put her hand back on Akemi’s shoulder. Then, she focused hard, trying to feel her power on the girl… and she did. “There it is. Now take it back…” Izanami instructed. She considered if she could leave some kind of “sleeper agent” kind of compulsion in Akemi, while she had this direct access through Hikari - or even just by misinforming Hikari. It would be quite advantageous to have the second strongest Magical Girl in the city in her thrall.

But… Hikari was so angry about this. So distressed. If Akemi was a bit nicer, a bit more submissive, she’d never notice. But if she found out… if she knew that Akemi was still under her control after a few months… Izanami wasn’t sure what she’d do, how she’d react. She justified it to herself as being worried that Hikari would take steps to have her removed, and gave her the right instructions. For now, Akemi would regain her independence.

Akemi’s form seemed to become fuzzy and indistinct for a few moments as Hikari siphoned off her power. Then, she stumbled backwards, back to her casual clothes, as if nothing had happened. She blinked a few times, looking around. “...When did I get to Natsuki’s room?” she asked.

“I, uh…” Hikari stammered.

“It was very brave!” Natsuki interjected. “The villain was getting away, but you held them down while Hikari blasted them! Unfortunately you got hit in the blast, but they’d have escaped if it weren’t for your bravery!”

Akemi looked over at Natsuki. “You weren’t there.” she said flatly.

“Hikari told me about it while you were unconscious. She’s just feeling guilty about blasting you now.” Natsuki said. Izanami was almost impressed by how easily she lied despite being nowhere near the scene.

“...Well, it’s fine, if we got her. Sleek Nightfall won’t trouble this city anymore!” Akemi said, puffing out her chest. Then rapidly deflating. “...I’ve got a headache, do you mind if I get some water?”

“Sure, sure, William will get you some. Just tell him I let you in the back door so he doesn’t freak out.” Natsuki said, ushering Akemi out the room.

Hikari let out a deep sigh of relief as the door closed. “Thank goodness that’s over…” she said. “I guess I should head over to the MGA and turn in Kishi…”

“First thing’s first though!” Natsuki said. “My turn~ I’m thinking maybe go with a full face mask, and change my hair some too so that it’s impossible to tell it used to be me… oh! And a number, that too, go with calling me a number-”

“N-Natsuki… I’m not going to just… do that…” Hikari stammered.

“Just once? It’s not like it’s unwilling. I do it for Izanami all the time, what’s the harm doing it for you for a change?”

“She’s going to press this.” Izanami noted. “Don’t worry, you know her, it’s basically how she relaxes. All but literally turning her brain off.”

“...I’m, uh, sorry… but I just can’t.” Hikari said. “I know you like it, but… well, I’d feel guilty anyway.” Despite the stammering in her words - she hated to deny a friend - there was conviction all the same.

Natsuki paused for a second, blinking in surprise. “...Yeah, I understand. Sorry for being pushy.” she said after a bit. “...Can I at least make some suggestions for Kishi on the way to put her away?”

Hikari sighed, but nodded. “Yeah, that’s fine… she’s already under, and I’m going to release her, so you can have your fun.”

The two left the house the same way Hikari came in, picking up Kishi and bringing her towards the Magical Girl Association HQ. On the way, Natsuki talked and talked about how she would personally design a minion outfit - going as far as to list options for varying levels of individuality and whether who they had once been would be clear at all - as they did.

When they approached the MGA, Hikari dragged Kishi into an alleyway and, apologizing all the while, tied her up before releasing control. Unlike Akemi, the villainess slumped unconscious when she was released, able to come quietly.

While Hikari turned the woman in (crediting Akemi with helping more, of course), Izanami wondered about the implications of the event. Hikari had accessed one of Izanami’s powers - did that mean she could get the rest? Could she mimic her ability to jump between worlds? And how much of what had occurred was borrowing Izanami’s abilities, and how much was Hikari’s own untapped and unknown magical reservoirs?

Whatever the case, Izanami had some research to do next time she took control...