View source for 112/Awaken! Prism Keeper Orange!

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2015/06/30
|Location=Mitakihara/Pikarigaoka - King Penguin Park
|Synopsis=Mei encounters the first Shade as Reiko is drawn into the world of the Prism Keepers
|Cast of Characters=60, 65, 66
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Friendship is sometimes specific. Sometimes, it's knowing your friends so well that you can feel the ripples of both the biggest boulder and the smallest pebble cast into their world. But friendship is also a thing of intangibles, of wishes born of good intentions in unclear circumstances, of not-understandings leading to acting-anyways.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Today might be a little of both. It has been a hard few weeks for Mei. Her launch into the world of magic and heroism has been met with its share of hardships. Younger, less experienced, and less sure than most, she has had to make her own way with grit, determination, and untrained power. Even the few helping hands along the way have not always been there to steady her. The only constant is the person who has seen her bruised ribs and bruised ego the next morning, even if she doesn't quite understand, Reiko.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And so they both find themselves here at Reiko's request. A few blocks from the towering slide at Pengy Park, a quiet set of botanical gardens is tucked into a walled plaza. The summer flowers are blooming, and beneath the lily pads in the central pond, the koi swim. There's the usual set of passerbys and onlookers, relaxing families, stressed students looking to wind down, and lovers old and new. This is a good place to relax, to decompress, and maybe to understand.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama was aware that 'things were going on', Mei gets into accidents a lot more often- and now Momo's in the hospital with that mysterious illness going around. It makes her worried. She's worried Mei might succumb to it, she's worried that something worse may happen to Mei's sister. These are all very mundance reasonable fears.<br /><br />So Reiko calls up Mei and says they're going to the gardens in Penguin Park! She's waiting at the entrance and waves her down, jumping in the air so she can see her. "Mei-Chan --over here!" she says. She manages a smile.<br /><br />"It's a nice day out, isn't it? We can go look at the flowers--- and they just trimmed the rose bushes too! and--it's almost koi feeding time!" she says with a wide smile. "I even brought my camera!" she says, picking out a digital camera from her pocket.<br /><br />When she's done having an explanation attack, she takes a deep breath... as she turns to walk into the Gardens and walk along the path.<br /><br />"Is... Momo improving at all?" she asks worriedly, getting to the bad stuff to talk about early on. That, and she's genuinely curious and worried.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Mei's been feeling...down, recently. Pretty much everyone has noticed by now. The girl who's known for her wide smiles, her lunchtime antics, the heart pinned to her sleeve with utmost pride, has started to go quiet and withdraw from the world. Ever since Momo feel into that 'coma', she's headed straight to the hospital every day after school, politely declining all invitations to do otherwise. It frustrates her just as much as it frustrates others, honestly. She'd *like* to try and cheer up -- but then she thinks about what it would take to be out in public, trying to be happy. How hard it would be to smile genuinely, even with her friends.<br /><br />And all she wants to do is sit by Momo's side in the hospital.<br /><br />To be honest, it was a bit of a battle to even join Reiko at the park today. It had been long enough since she interacted with her best friend, and the little redhead was starting to feel guilty about leaving her in the dark. It was that guilt that eventually forced her out of the house and over to Penguin Park (along with some encouragement from Roy and Biv, who dutifully agreed to watch over the Chroma Crystals), and now, she's standing by the entrance, doing her best to push away the cloud that still hangs over her.<br /><br />"Hey, Reiko-chan," she says when she sees her friend, waving and letting herself smile just a little. "Thanks for inviting me. I haven't fed the koi in forever." Mei looks to the sky, nearly cloudless, its beauty enhanced by the fragrance of the flowers around her. "Yeah. It is a really beautiful day."<br /><br />And, despite her efforts to let the beauty of nature ease her soul, she feels herself crumble when Reiko mentions Momo. Her strained, if modestly cheerful expression falls noticeably, and she looks forward, away from her friend.<br /><br />"...No," she says simply, quietly. "The doctors can't figure out what's wrong." But hey, she didn't come here to drag her friend down with her, so the girl takes a deep breath, and continues, "She's not getting any worse or anything, though. So that's good."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The scene is persistently cheerful, though in moments like this, that might make it a little oppressive. It's a light knocking on the door that can't quite get in or a personal connection that can't quite reach across the gap of ignorance. But some lights are brighter than others, a little harder to ignore. In the distance, an old man in blue coveralls waves towards the girls. Tanaka-san, the groundskeeper, a perpetual smiling face and oft-listener to the troubled who pass through the gardens. But his face falls a bit when he sees Mei's expression. Today, he thinks, he'll keep his distance. Friends are better in moments like this. And so he quietly withdraws to the supply shed in the corner of the gardens, emerging with a few fresh tools, beginning to trim some of the more unruly growth in the hedges here.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama stops mid stride and turns around and just swings her arms open and gives Mei an incredibly tight friend hug. She doesn't care if people need to walk around them on the path. She sighs a bit. "Don't worry---I'm worried too. I even visited the hospital the other day to deliver a card!" she says. "I'm sure the doctors will figure it out. I mean, they have to!" she says. She of course, isn't aware of the real nature of the sickness, she just knows it's doctor's jobs to figure this kind of thing out.<br /><br />She waves over to the groundskeeper though as they pass, but nothing more, because she's taking Mei, directly to the rosesbushes, past a lovely arched trellis covered with growing ivy plants. Kois will come a little later.<br /><br />"Hiroko-san has been a pain in my butt recently-- probably because you've been out and she needs somebody to harrass or she might melt!" she says sarcastically. "But don't worry, I can handle her!" she says with a huff, and a wide smile.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Mei tends to have blinders on when she's preoccupied with something. It's why she can't multitask worth anything -- though that doesn't stop her from trying, especially when she wants to write in class. ("I'll just stop writing my story when I hear something important!") So, unfortunately, she does not see Tanaka-san's wave. Her mind is just a bit too full to notice anything outside of herself, at the moment.<br /><br />She's caught off guard when Reiko pulls her into a hug, and it's enough to send her steely facade reeling. She promised herself she wouldn't cry if she went out with her friend. She wasn't going to drag her down. The Prism Keeper business, and all the trouble it's gotten her into, is hers to shoulder, her responsibility -- but in that moment when her best friend is hugging her, Mei feels so weak she could collapse in her arms.<br /><br />Handling all of it alone is *exhausting*. Her heart is bursting to tell Reiko all about what's been happening, the truth behind her 'accidents', why it's up to her to fix Momo, not the doctors. Instead, she shuts her mouth tight, letting tears stream down her face instead as she returns her friend's hug.<br /><br />"It's so hard, Reiko-chan," she says, unable to stop herself from confessing that much. "Everything has been so hard these past few weeks. And I don't know why -- it's up to me to fix all of it, but I don't know how. The world's been turned upside down."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Perhaps following the lead of the girl who fights with their likeness, across the pond, a bed of blooming flowers momentarily darkens, as if shaded by a cloud in the utterly clear sky above. And then it's gone.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The passerbys continue to wander, though their numbers seem to be thinning. Nothing out of the ordinary, of course. The crowds come and go, and it's possible that some of the people here simply decided they'd seen enough, and have moved on to seek refuge from the summer heat. The girls are possibly so involved in their exchange that they don't notice.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama has to blink and manages to frown just a little in concern--- Mei's had bad days. And she's been there for them in some way or another if she knew of them. But never this /bad/. But because of this, she doesn't break the hug. She just frowns a little. "H--hey, it's okay Mei-Chan. Things can't be that bad, can they? I know you've been going through a lot, but things will be okay. I mean... unless there's something going on you're not telling me--- you're not in some sort of trouble are you?" she says as she wonders as she gasps.<br /><br />"Your mom isn't sending you away to a boarding school, is she!?" she asks, imagining that might be a thing Mei wouldn't share with her until the last moment.<br /><br />She doesn't notice the crowd thining, doesn't feel anything strange in the air, she's just filled with worry and fret now for her friend.<br /><br />"Yo.. you know you can tell me anything, right? I won't make fun!" she says in a worried stammer.<br /><br />Something does catch suddenly in her periphal vision--- then she notices all the people are going away. She blinks. "Wha? We still have a good few hours before they close. Where'd all the people go..." she asks as her head tilts around. "It's usually busy this time of day!" she huffs. "It's Koi feeding time afterall!" she says.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>She broke her promise. She said she wouldn't cry. She said she'd stay strong and have a good day with Reiko. Most importantly, she promised herself she would *not* say anything to Reiko about...business. Mei knew that the second she told her friend the truth, she would insist that she help her -- and there is no way in the world she could make her best friend understand the magnitude of that decision. Not without her living it, and once the Chroma Crystal awakened her as Prism Keeper Orange, there would be no going back.<br /><br />But the burden of secrecy is becoming too much to bear, with so much going wrong so fast, and no one to turn to but the mascots and Kamen-senpai, who has his own burdens. Reiko's offer of listening is tempting. So tempting that, for one moment, Mei pulls away, looking the girl in the eyes, her own still teared up.<br /><br />"I'm not -- I mean, there's plenty of people who have it worse than me," she says, letting the words come as they will, even if they don't make sense. "But...things are really complicated right now, Reiko-chan. Something's happened, and I *want* to tell you about it. I do. But you could get hurt, and I..." Her voice starts to wobble as the falling tears turn into more audible crying. "I can't lose you too!"<br /><br />She pauses when her friend makes an observation about the park, rapidly emptying of people. Mei's sure she wouldn't have noticed it if Reiko hadn't said something -- famous one-track mind, after all -- but now that she mentions it, it *is* awfully suspicious that people are leaving in such droves. The redhead sniffs, then wipes her eyes with her sleeves. /Please don't be another monster. Not with Reiko here. Not right now./<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;It's funny how details escape one's sight in the periphery of their vision, how things important can get filtered out by the brain when more volatile emotions expand to fill the mind. It's hard too, when you only stand around four feet and a half. The world is taller and obstacles more concealing. Everything is a little less clear to younger minds and eyes.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Mostly concealed by a tall hedge, only visible by a purple purse and the clean, and brand new shoes of a young child that creep around the plant, the family of four that passed the girls minutes ago lies passed out on the ground. The black hair of the stressed high schooler now spills over the back side of a bench in the distance, the girl slumped over to her side. And as young eyes turn bright with panic, more and more signs of this pervasive pattern is seen, people fallen, visibly unharmed but unmoving. Only three are left standing. And of those, one stands through will alone.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Reiko-chan! Mei-chan!" He cares. Tanaka-san stumbles toward you, and with every step, you can see the blue of his coveralls draining away into the ground, giving way to a pallid, sickly gray. Higher and higher, his body first, then outstretched arms, then extinguishing the brown of his eyes. And once entirely drained, he too falls.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And then the two of you are alone, almost. Faintly, the two girls can feel something else, an energy that feels at once feels familiar but very wrong, like a perversion of a normally pleasant feeling. _Something_ else is here, something inhuman and menacing.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Mei's instincts are right- if she knew the truth, Reiko would just say 'Okay!' in a heartbeat. But Mei doesn't, so Reiko can only listen concerned.... Trouble? Trouble so bad it can hurt her, /too/!? She frowns again and purses her lips in careful thought... "Mei..." no chan this time. "What's so.. wrong that... it'd hurt me too?" she asks worriedly. "You don't have... someone threating you, do you!?" she asks. Her mind running rampant along all the mundane reasons Mei has for being so vauge and secretive. Money problems? Did her dad come back and he's a creep? Lots of not nice thoughts going through her head.<br /><br />Then she blinks and----- people have fallen down around them. Then the Groundskeeper--- she brings a hand to her lips in shock. "Oh no!--- so..somethings happening!" she says, because she has no words to describe it--that lingering feeling sets in and it makes her feel so wrong. But that shaking feeling. Familar? That's weird.<br /><br />"Mei-chan....." she trails off. "We.. we need to go...!" she says worried more now about the current situation.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It's here.<br /><br />Everything up until now -- everything that's happened, good and bad, happy and painful -- it's all been *real*, but it's also been secondary to her real mission. The one that she was given her power for. The one that, despite coming to life some time ago, has not yet made its first move. Until now.<br /><br />*It's here*.<br /><br />(Far away, a cardinal looks to the sky, stock still. He's sensed it too.)<br /><br />Mei gasps as she sees the spreading gray, stealing away the beauty and life from the botanical garden with creeping dread. She didn't know how it would look, in real life. She'd imagined it as kind of harmless, when compared to the twisted reality and danger of the Witches and the wicked power of Miss White, Mr. Black, and Scorn. But, seeing all those people collapsed, she knows it is not at all the trivial thing she imagined when she played Prism Keepers in the schoolyard with her friends.<br /><br />Those people are in danger. Reiko's in danger. And it's up to her to stop it.<br /><br />/Kamen-senpai said it wasn't my fault--/<br /><br />Tanaka-san collapsing before them is the last straw. The redhead shakes herself from her momentary daze, pushing all sadness to the back of her mind as she turns on her heel to face her companion. "Reiko-chan, run! Quickly!" she yells. "I'll...I'll be right behind you, I promise! Just get out of here, right now!"<br /><br />Mei is a terrible, terrible liar.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;It comes slowly, ponderously, each lumbering step creaking like the unlubricated hinges of a fence gate. It's a motley thing, an amalgam of the tools of the gardener's craft, of blades and posts, of cement sidings for flower beds and gas-driven landscaping tools. This thing, once, was Tanaka-san's shed, the implements which kept this place beautiful. Now, they've been coopted by whatever dark energy you face, by the gray void which binds those parts together. This is a Shade.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And it's perhaps having a little identity crisis. It's shaped like a giant sunflower.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;It stands fifteen feet tall, with a stalk of bundled fence posts that sprawl awkwardly into soil bag "roots" that function as feet. Two "leaves" stick out near its midsections, flat interlocking panels of wood that once comprised the back of a bench. Doesn't look like it would be fun to get hit by those. But the "flower" is where the real danger is. In the center, the business end of a gas-powered lawn mower spins rapidly, dangerously, and around it, the "petals" radiate outward, a mess of swirling garden shears rotate around it. This thing doesn't look nice.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;But it stops, unsure of itself, staring at the girls. In a twisted, inhuman voice that sounds cobbled together from its patchwork parts, it asks, "Bloom?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama eyes go wide. "No... I'm not... going without you! Come... please! This... something! Ugh!" she's frustrated because she can't put 'the world is turning grey and draining people?' into words. It doesn't make sense, and it's giving her a sense of panic.<br /><br />Then the ground shakes a little dark forces come into play and there's a giant creature, shaped from the various bits of the groundskeeper tool shed.<br /><br />Reiko's eyes just go wide. "W...what!?" she says with wide eyes. She falls back against the ground before she can actually run, hand over her mouth as she takes the site in... "Mei---" is all she can say because there's /no words/ for this thing in front of her right now that's frightening to the core.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>"Shade!"<br /><br />The word jumps from Mei's mouth before she can stop it, even before she can make sure Reiko's run away. Whatever she'd imagined them like in the book -- back when things were imaginary -- it had never been something as...as terrifying as the monster that stands before her. (Or maybe she had, and seeing one in the flesh is just different from imagining one. Who knows.) And it can *talk*.<br /><br />It's so close. Much too close to her and Reiko, and Reiko's fallen to the ground in fear, there's no way she can run away in time. This is all happening so fast, Mei can't think of any other option than to do what she has to.<br /><br />Even if that's in front of her friend. She has to protect her -- her safety is more important than any secret identity she's trying to keep. She'd tried to preserve it from Momo, after all, and that witch got her all the same.<br /><br />"Reiko, find somewhere to hide," Mei yells, dropping the honorific for the sake of time. Her pendant glows a bright crimson, floating in the air as she prepares to transform. "This is something I have to take care of. Right now."<br /><br />"CHROMA PRISM RED! TRANSFORM!"<br /><br />("She's fighting it," Roy says severely, still looking out the window. "We should be there. She might not know what to do."<br /><br />"She said she was meeting her friend, right?" his blue bird partner replies, transforming out of her human state to perch alongside him. "We may need to bring the Crystals along. We all know who Reiko's meant to become."<br /><br />"She won't be happy." Roy loops the bag's cord around his neck, allowing him to carry it through the air. "But this is for the greater good. Without a doubt.")<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And then the frightful Shade--lets call it Bloom--hesitates, seeming almost surprised by the spectacle unfolding before it. Monsters and magical girls. This should be a simple enough equation. If this were a black and white situation, maybe the violence would have already started. But instead Bloom turns its "face" to face some indeterminate point in the distance, as if looking to someone for guidance. Maybe the girls might feel that same set of watchful eyes on them. And then, as if receiving some silent word of acknowledgment, Bloom turns back toward Red, its course having been decided.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Some instructions are simple. See the red girl? *Smash the red girl.* And with a second cry of, "Bloom!" this one filled with rage, it lunges forward, trying to bring a hardwood "leaf" down against the magical girl before it.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama eyes go wide, and Mei calls out a word. "Shade?...." she blinks. She begins backing up against the ground as she goes and manages to get onto her feet finally... She shakes a bit, and swallows. Mei says she has to take care of this. This!?<br /><br />Reiko runs past the trellis, she has to step over some people, but she hides all the same--- she peeks out from behind it as she hears and watches Mei call out her transformation phrase. It's familar to her, because that was part of the story-- part of the game. But to hear it called out with that berth of actual urgency behind it is disjarring--- of course, Mei's also transformed into Prism Keeper Red.<br /><br />"....no---no way!" she says to herself.<br /><br />Shades are real!? And.. and Mei is a real magical girl!? A Prism Keeper no less- like... the story----. Surely she, herself has come down with this sickness that's been going around. She has to be in a coma. That's it. She's in a coma and this is a dream. She has a hard time convincing herself of this.<br /><br />Then the thing moves to attack!<br /><br />She hides behind the trellis further, but still keeps an eye past through it. She's too paniced right now to put any puzzle pieces together in her head about Mei and her troubles right now.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>When the red light clears from her eyes and Mei has transformed into Prism Keeper Red, her first thought is to look around frantically, to see if Reiko took her advice and got out of harm's way. Sometimes the girl is too self-sacrificing for her own good, part of the reason why she chose not to tell her about everything that's happened since the fight with her mother and the birth of their story into reality. But she can't find her orange-haired friend anywhere on the battlefield, so she assumes that the monster finally scared her into running. Good.<br /><br />Alright. Time to get down to business.<br /><br />"You!" Red yells, firing up a blast of magic rather like a firework to get the Shade's attention. "A botanical garden is full of colors and life for a reason! People planted all these colorful flowers to make people happy, to give them strength of heart on bad days! Coming here to spread your gray evil is absolutely unforgivable!"<br /><br />('Unforgivable' is a must in any justice speech, don't you know.)<br /><br />The young girl whirls on one foot, sending an array of sparkles in every direction, then strikes a defiant pose. Deep breath. "Roses are red! Violets are blue! For your evil deeds, I'll punish you!"<br /><br />Of course, even given how important it is to deliver A Speech in battle, Red knows that speechifying alone will not defeat the Shade. As she began the bright spectacle of hers, vines of roses -- scarlet, vibrant, and thorny -- began to snake slowly up from the ground, aiming to grab and bind the Shade in one place. The Prism Keeper hates to admit it, but Miss White was right in their battle. Binding the opponent in one place will make it a lot easier to hit.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Red's speech completed, Bloom's attack finally comes speeding toward her. The hardwood "leaf" likely weighs more than the girl several times over, and the blow would be enough to badly injure a normal person, but Red's learned wisdom proves valuable. The erupting vines reach upward, intercepting the attack midair, then creeping further, past the leaf, and spreading across the Shade. In moments, the vines surround Bloom, binding its body. For several tense seconds, the two are locked in a contest of wills and magic power, and it seems like the magical girl might have the upper hand.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;But Bloom just might be a little too purpose-built for Red's powers. The longer it's bound, the more enraged it becomes, and soon enough, the rotation of its "petals" increases to a frightening pace, the whine of spinning blades filling the air. And as it begins to thrash, those metal teeth catch hold of the vines, shredding them with ease, splashes of red color energy wafting into the air as the vines evaporate.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;But there are other lessons that Red hasn't learned yet. This is magic, after all, and this contest might not be all about strengths and weaknesses.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama is hidden. She's not too far off, she can watch what's going down. She can hear what's going down and-- Prism Keeper Red just made a JUSTICE Speech! For real! Her eyes light up in wonder just for a long moment. She watches Red cast off an attention grabbing blast then attempts to bind the creature that's threating the area.<br /><br />She takes a deep breath and settles down a bit. She should be safe here... right?<br /><br />If Mei's a real magical girl, afterall, she knows she can handle this!<br /><br />She keeps a bated breath until The creature seems to just shrug off Red's attack. Come on, she thinks to herself, you can do this, Mei! Bully the Bully! Do it...!<br /><br />".Me--- Red! You can do it...!" she calls out finally, because-- that's how it works in Anime! You tell the hero she can do it! Right!?<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>...In retrospect, maybe sending flower vines to bind a monster with actual shears on its body was not the best idea.<br /><br />Red swallows hard as her attack is shredded to bits by the Shade's metal flower, eyes widening in disbelief. Really -- it was that easy? Could Miss White have broken her binding vines so easily too, or was it some power this Shade had specifically? These questions and a million more race through her head as she watches Bloom rise up before her, and she finds herself temporarily frozen with indecision. Make the wrong move and someone gets hurt. Make a bad decision and the park gets drained of more color.<br /><br />But she doesn't know what is right and what is wrong. The vines seemed right, and now they're gone, just like that. The pressure overwhelms her, binds her to the spot in a cruelly ironic twist.<br /><br />("Oh no. I wasn't expecting this..."<br /><br />Roy flits over to the park, velvet bag around his neck, and perches on a nearby wall. "How did it get so powerful on its own? Unless -- but no, that's impossible. They couldn't be so strong so soon.")<br /><br />It's the cry of her friend that finally snaps Red out of it. She turns her head to see Reiko in a trellis, where she'd hidden. If she stays like that, though -- exposed and making noise -- the Shade is surely going to go after her. Her heartbeat doubles in terror at the thought. There's no way she's losing someone else so precious to her. Not today.<br /><br />"Reiko-chan!" Red calls out, then abandons her position on the battlefield to fly over to the girl's hiding place. "I'm going to get you somewhere safe, ok?"<br /><br />("There she is," the cardinal observes when he sees the shock of orange amidst the greyed-out trellis she'd been hiding in. "Forgive me, Red. This battle is too much to handle on your own."<br /><br />With several powerful wingbeats, Roy takes to the air and soars over to Reiko, just as the Prism Keeper herself arrives.)<br /><br />Red realizes what's about to happen as soon as she sees Roy and his bag of Crystals. "Wait, don't--"<br /><br />"Reiko Touyama! Take up the mantle of color and awaken! Prism Keeper Orange!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Sometimes good intentions lead to bad results. Reiko and Mei are two girls ever ready to sacrifice for each other, and on this gray day, that just might be what they're forced to do. Red chooses, perhaps wisely, to retreat, the beating of slightly-more-practiced-wings bringing her swiftly to her friend's side. But perhaps it's not so wise; Bloom, thusfar, has been focusing on her. It seemed to have had little interest in those already drained of color or the orange-haired girl. And that doesn't change. The creature is not as fast as her, for sure, but when Mei slips away from the Shade, it follows. You can hear its creaking, pounding "feet" not far from you, slow but long strides loping toward the young Keepers. And those spinning blades whine ever faster as it approaches.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama nrgs, no, you're not..supposed to save her... you're supposed to fight the creature! That thing... is hurting people! "No--please.. you have to.. stop that thing!" she says pointing at it and this is when a bird enters her field of vision...<br /><br />---and /talks/. Her brain momentarily farts as she processes this, because birds do not talk. The bird is familar, though----<br /><br />Oh--wow!, it's Roy. THAT'S REAL TOO!?<br /><br />At first nothing happens at first, because Reiko's confused as heck. Wait--- is /she/ one too!? Well--she is. But.. that's a game. Surely this is a dream.<br /><br />Eventually she snaps out of it. "Right----! I.. can help Mei then!" she says squeezing her fists together. Things start to make sense in her head. The accidents, Mei's worries. Was it all about this?<br /><br />As these feelings resonate within her---so does her crystal in the bag--causing the bag to shake before a crystal shoots from it toward's Reiko and floats there glowing a lovely shade of orange. Her hand shakes a little bit as she reaches out towards it and grabs it.<br /><br />"Mei...please don't worry...." she says as she gets close.<br /><br />"CHROMA PRISM ORANGE! TRANSFORM!"<br /><br />Part of her expects to wake up from a dream---but instead there's an orange flash of light, as her transformation takes place. Two small, cute, magical koi tie a bow in her hair. She blinks a bit. That felt--- odd --- was that two koi flying in the air above her for a moment. She could had sworn it was. Blink Blink Blink. She'll worry about that another time. The Shade is right there!<br /><br />"Mei---watch out!" she says as she points her hand, in which is a Chroma Wand suddenly. She once again blinks at this. These were always just sticks from the bushes on the playground at recess... and at home. It's really unbelivable to be holding the real thing. She shakes herself out of it. This thing is creeping up on Mei, and as it attacks-- and perhaps by instinct, She waves her wand and a bunch of orange koi come into existence between the monster, and Mei, hoping to act as a barrier to stop Mei from being squished and/or cut by spinning shear hands.<br /><br />"...we can do this together!--- right?" she asks towards Mei.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Red's emotional reactions completely stall as she sees the Orange Chroma Crystal shoot from the velvet bag, enveloping her best friend in the light of transformation she's become so familiar with. This...this is a *bad* thing, right? She was supposed to handle all the evil her story unleashed on the world by herself, without dragging her friends into it. It was her responsibility, after all. Her mess to clean up. Far too dangerous to bring in anyone she cared about, now that she's seen what exactly magic can mean in this world.<br /><br />So, if this is bad, why does she feel so relieved? Why does it feel like a gigantic burden has disappeared from her shoulders?<br /><br />When the light finally clears, Prism Keeper Orange stands before her -- exactly how she'd pictured her when this was just a game. "Reiko-chan..." she says, still a bit stunned by what just happened. "I. I--"<br /><br />It would have taken her a long time to find the words she's looking for, and that's time they just don't have. Reiko -- Prism Keeper Orange, now -- springs into action much more readily than her partner, using her Chroma Wand to summon a wall of koi between them and the monster.<br /><br />Oh, right. Monster. That's something that's still here, isn't it.<br /><br />Red turns on her heel to see the approaching Shade, held at bay by the school of orange fish. Wow, that's...actually really impressive. It took her forever to figure out how to conjure more than one rose, and even longer to summon them on vines. Reiko-chan's always been a bit more level-headed than she is, though, so it's not really surprising that she could pick this stuff up in the middle of battle.<br /><br />"Thanks, Orange-chan," she says, switching to code names now, like they used in their imaginary fights. No telling who was around to hear them, right? "But we're gonna need to attack this monster directly if we want to bring it down!" Red shoots her a smile: one tinged just a bit by sadness, but warm and supportive nonetheless.<br /><br />"Together, alright?"<br /><br />Like a red comet, the Prism Keeper shoots up from behind the koi wall, pulling herself to a stop several feet above the Shade's 'head'. "Hey, Big, Grey, and Ugly!" she yells, pulling her white-and-crimson Chroma Wand from thin air. "Look up here!" An orb of power pools around the gem on the Wand's crown, ready to fire when her new partner has summoned her power as well.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama rights--- they have--- names! Not... thier names, but the other name! She blushes just a bit. "Right--- Red-chan! Together!" she says as Mei hops into action. Red's the leader... that's right! You got to obey the leader! That's how it works! Her own koi barrier will phase out of existance eventually-- how did she even do that? She thinks. It just... happened. Mei was in trouble and she just made it happen like it's a thing she always could do. She'll probably have SOOOOO many questions for Mei later. Or maybe the bird has answers! THAT'S A MASCOT'S JOB, RIGHT!?<br /><br />Regardless she holds her Chroma wand high, and begins summoning up some color energy, pooling into an orange orb at it's tip. She takes a deep breath.<br /><br />"Jerkface---you... hurt these people! So--- um.... ah...."<br /><br />Reiko is fumbling on the justice speech. Some things seem to come easier than others. This causes her to fumble mentally, though the power still grows at the tip of her wand.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Bloom's whirring blades howl with fury as the creature continues to attack the reflexive barrier erected by Orange, slamming its hardwood-and-iron "leaves" against the koi, its back-and-forth rearing head trying to slice and dice with "petals" born of Tanaka-san's frequently-sharpened shears. "Bloom!" it screams, voice echoing throughout the park.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;But nothing happens. The barrier holds firm, and each successive enraged cry from the Shade sounds a little more impotent and empty. That's odd, isn't it? These are the same fierce weapons that shredded Red's attempt to bind the Shade.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Maybe it's not odd, though. You can see it in each impact, each collision of metal or wood against fish. No blood or scales or splinters or shards are sent flying. Instead, it's only color and energy, orange and gray splashing against each other, pigmented plumes evaporating into the sky with each strike.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Right. This isn't about force or about strengths and weaknesses, unless you believe it is. This is about magic. This is about a girl, Red, who had been knocked down so many times that she doubted her ability, and another girl, Orange, who desperately wanted to defend her friend. It's about the strength of will born of friendship. Especially what happens next. Somehow, they both know what to say.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Chroma Power Unison! Apples and Oranges!" The Keepers' energy having reached its apex, twin beams of Red and Orange intertwine, slamming against the Shade, a brilliant display of color and light filling the park. Bloom howls with pain at first, but that fades quickly, a serene look eventually spreading across its "face." "Bloom?" it asks, curiously, thankfully. And slowly, its wrongness starts to feel right again. The objects corrupted by the gray energy return to normalcy, falling to the ground, and as the onslaught of the duo fades, they find themselves staring at the contents of Tanaka-san's shed, now quite inanimate, piled on the ground rather haphazardly. He's gonna have a heck of a time cleaning this up.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And as Bloom falls, the accumulated color energy of the park and its inhabitants drifts toward their wands, floating there, as if waiting to be released. One last thing to be done to end this day of heroism.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:60|Mei Akatsuki (60)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Some parts of being a magical girl are hard. Like, *really* hard. Hard enough that they can land you in the hospital if you lose. Hard enough that the people you care for can get hurt, even with you protecting them. It's not as effortless and fun as it looks on tv, that's for sure.<br /><br />But some parts -- some parts seem to work themselves out all on their own. Like when your partner awakens and in minutes you already know what your team attack is going to be called. And when it works, and you see all the evil magic disappearing from the world, at least for now. Those parts come easy.<br /><br />Red likes those parts more than anything else. That's why she wanted to be a magical girl in the first place.<br /><br />When Bloom collapses into Tanaka-san's shed once again, the girl feels herself break into a wide smile, shutting her eyes as happy tears spring to them. "We did it, Orange-chan!" she yells, lowering herself back down to the ground and running over to give her friend a hug. "We saved the park!"<br /><br />Well...almost. Their surroundings are still greyed out, and the people are still collapsed, but the sparkles of color energy are drifting over to their Chroma Wands, ready to be returned to the flowers, the sky, the grass, the orange koi that still need to be fed.<br /><br />Pulling back from the hug, Red holds out her Wand, to be crossed with her partners. "You know what we do now, right?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:66|Reiko Touyama (66)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Reiko Touyama watches as the Shade fades away---and he mess falls on the ground. She didn't even have to think about it. It just happened--- and, it was together! With Mei! She is hugged! and she smiles! Because that was- amazing! She gasps. "Ohmigosh, that was... amazing! We did do it!--" she says, expressing her inner thoughts in earnest!<br /><br />Then Mei motions to the color energy that was collected by the shade, now drifting freely.<br /><br />"Yeah, I do!" she says, crossing Chroma Wands with her--<br /><br />Ready to restore color the grey botanical gardens- and the people still trapped there! That's important, afterall!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:65|Hiroko Koumoto (65)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;They know this phrase. They've said it together before, after all. They believed it together once, in the imaginary world that gave birth to their now shared trial. Together, two young voices cry out, "Chroma Palette Cleanser!" And with those words, all of the color energy once absorbed by Bloom explodes outward in a brilliant cascade of reds and blues, oranges and yellows, greens and purples. It's a fireworks display of twisting rays, each mote of glowing color floating back to find home, returning the botanical gardens to its rightful state. The purple purse of the mother of four regains its hue. So too does the navy high school skirt of the stressed student. Even Bloom's constituent parts regain their hue. The wooden handles of those once fearsome shears turn a pale, pleasant indigo one-by-one. It's Tanaka-san's favorite color.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Tanaka-san, always stubborn, returns to normal last, that familiar blue slowly spreading across his coveralls, a vibrant brown returning to experienced and friendly eyes as they open. As Roy above feels pride and satisfaction in the team's first victory, the girls' transformations finally drop, returning them to their normal elementary school selves as the crowds begin to waken.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;There will be questions, of course, but the girls likely won't be asked. What would a pair of little girls know, after all? A gas leak, they might say, knocking out the passerbys here with thankfully no injuries. And Bloom? Well, they might not have an explanation for the scattered tools, but she'll find her way home, in her own way, the shed rebuilt, returning the gardens to their normal beautiful state in the coming days in Tanaka-san's capable hands.<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;For now, though, the girls have a lot to talk about as the unwitting people of the park awaken around them.<br> <br>
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