At Nozomi's House, Sometime Before Nozomi appeared in the alleyway
Nozomi was in her room, wearing casual clothes while doing her homework. At least, attempting to do so without getting distracted. She already wouldn't consider herself the smartest in class. But after how much her life had turned upside down with the whole magical girl and darkspawn stuff, whatever focus she once had for her studies was mostly gone by now.
Nozomi was about to give up out of frustration when her pendant, which she had placed on her left side on the desk, started flickering a dim light.
Nozomi briefly stared at the pendant before turning her head slightly to the side without taking her eyes off it. "Uhhhh, Seiza?" She called for the puppy's attention who was resting on her bed.
Seiza's ears perked up and he turned his head to Nozomi, his eyes growing concerned by the flickering light from the pendant. "Nozomi...did you do something to the pendant?" Seiza asked as he got off Nozomi's bed, soon getting on her lap it gave the pendant proper scrutiny.
Nozomi shook her head in denial almost instantly. "Nuh-uh, I was doing my homework when it suddenly became like that!"
After a few seconds that seemed to stretch out for an eternity as Seiza placed his paw on the pendant with eyes closed, Seiza finally opened them. "I see...Nozomi, try to transform. From what I could see, the pendant wants to show you something, but it cannot while you aren't transformed," Seiza informed her.
Nozomi nodded. "Okay." Getting up from her seat and donning the pendant, Nozomi raised her right hand towards the ceiling, clutching the pendant to her chest with her left hand. "By the power of the constellations, transform!"
The moment her transformation finished, the gem on her tiara shone red, projecting an image of a group of four rough-looking delinquents who seemed two or three years older than Nozomi following a black-haired woman with tan skin on a mostly empty sidewalk.
As the projection ended, Nozomi didn't need to be a genius to know something was up. The look Seiza gave her when she turned her attention to him was enough to confirm he thought the same.
After having the hindsight to note down the address of a convenience store she had recognized from the projection just a few seconds before it ended so she wouldn't forget it, Nozomi was about to grab her phone and call Yoshino when she stopped her finger just a few inches away from the Call button.
Nozomi's expression grew into a frown as she considered the potential consequences of calling Yoshino. Knowing the most likely scenario would be Yoshino going with her to help, even if it meant Yoshino would put herself in unnecessary danger.
In the end, Nozomi pressed the digital button to call Yoshino. Knowing their friend would be upset if they went on without at least telling them what was going on and what they were about to do. "Maybe...if I tell everything she may realize by herself how dangerous it is for her and let me handle it! Yes, that could work!" Nozomi muttered to herself in a half-baked measure to assure herself.
As she waited, Nozomi squashed down the thought that had sneaked into her mind, how this could be the last time she heard her best friend's voice if she went alone and things didn't pan out well.
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"Hmm..." Yoshino hummed to herself as she browsed PetShopBlue's website, searching for something to give Seiza, a showing of appreciation for his help, wearing casual clothes.
Yoshino might not have the money for it currently. The last few yen from her allowance were used up to buy that water bottle for Nozomi after the latter saved the former. But Yoshino could still look up the prices so when she had the money for it she already knew what to spend it.
Yoshino was snapped out of her thoughts by her phone's ringtone, answering mere moments after realizing who it was. "Yes, Nozomi?"
"Yoshino! I think we have a situation. I'm calling to warn you that I'm going!" Nozomi nervously blurted out from the other side of the line.
"Whoa, whoa, Nozomi, calm down! What's going on?" Yoshino asked, her expression immediately turned alerted.
Thankfully for Yoshino, Nozomi did calm down after taking a deep breath. "Sorry, let me explain..."
Yoshino heard from Nozomi everything that had happened, from the pendant's flickering light to the projection she had witnessed, down to every detail she could remember on a first view. Upon every word from Nozomi's explanation, Yoshino's eyes grew wider and wider at the implications that unfolded and the questions that popped up in her mind.
There were other darkspawns besides the ones they knew. Mother couldn't have summoned another darkspawn since if she did Uncle Henry or Professor Rudabaugh would have told me already...unless she summoned darkspawns somewhere else? Yoshino began pacing around her room. Maybe she did it earlier? While I was away at school? No, again, Uncle Henry or anyone from his crew would have told me so.
Yoshino stopped. So there can be only three alternatives: Mom summoned another darkspawn, but this one was in secret and away from home. It had been a completely new individual capable of summoning darkspawns like her mother. And finally, the most concerning in the long-term, the darkspawn appeared naturally somehow, without any artificial input.
That last one made Yoshino grow a grim expression as it implied that even if they were to defeat the Grand Master they would still need to fight, where the prospect of going back to their normal lives was non-existent. Surely there's an end to all this fighting...right? Yoshino internally asked herself. The lack of any obvious answer or confirmation made her grow anxious.
"Yoshino?" Nozomi called from the other side of the line, her tone tinged with concern.
Snapping out of her thoughts, Yoshino took a deep breath to calm down. "Sorry, got lost in my thoughts for a moment...what you said is concerning." In more ways than one but Yoshino didn't want to alarm Nozomi even more than she already had.
Especially, since it hasn't been confirmed yet which one of the alternatives Yoshino had thought of was true. For all Yoshino knew, all of them were false and she didn't know it. Until she reached a definitive answer with enough evidence to back it up, the alternatives she came up with were no different than the fake internet conspiracies Yoshino had watched out of boredom on VideoSiteRed about how the government was fighting cultists that served some weird, cosmic god.
Even if they were well-made, Yoshino would be hard-pressed to genuinely believe in anything said or shown on that video.
"Right? That woman or one of those guys is a darkspawn. Either way, I'm going now over there with Seiza so we can stop them," Nozomi explained.
Yoshino was about to stop Nozomi from going through with this, believing they shouldn't involve themselves in a fight they were just barely prepared and would probably die just so some strangers they never met would be safe.
But the words caught in her mouth just when she was about to speak as the memories of how she had found herself in, from what Yoshino can assume from Nozomi's description, a similar situation where the victim was just minding their own business before getting attacked by a darkspawn found their way to her mind. Even if they are strangers...Can I really in good conscience leave them to a fate I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy?
Yoshino clenched her free hand. She knew that this was a bad decision, the logical part of her mentally screamed for her to reconsider but unfortunately for them, Yoshino had already grasped the metaphorical hand of her emotional part as it led the way to her final decision.
Nozomi's willingness to go whether Yoshino refused or not filling the latter's resolve even further, even if it was to make sure her friend didn't die a gruesome death. It's times like this Yoshino wondered if Nozomi's kindness was rubbing a bit too much on her, granted, Yoshino, even after all these years, still was figuring out if it was actual kindness or suicidal recklessness after the stunt she pulled against Judai. Something to figure out later...I guess.
"Could you send me the address?" Yoshino asked.
Yoshino could tell how hesitant Nozomi felt through the other side of the call by the stretching silence that followed. Yoshino easily guessed the reason was most likely because Nozomi knew if they told Yoshino the address, the latter would follow the former and then be put in danger. Well too bad. Because I'm NOT about to have the last time we talk be through a phone call!
Nozomi finally answered. "Are you su-?"
"Yes." Yoshino interrupted. Her tone was calm, but stern so Nozomi would understand there was no time or room for them to waste time, at least, not while innocent lives were in danger.
After another round of silence from Nozomi's end, she finally gave in. "Ok, I'll send it to you," she replied and soon the call ended.
"I hope I don't come to regret this...if only we had a way to balance out the lack of information with something else to even the odds," Yoshino thought out loud after making sure Nozomi had sent the address. A sigh of relief escaped from Yoshino when she saw the address on her phone's screen.
Just when Yoshino was about to leave after grabbing everything she would need and putting it inside her bag, an idea crossed her mind. Wait... She pulled out her phone and scrolled down at the contact list until landing on the one called BonefiedOutlaw. A smile crossed Yoshino's face as she figured out how to turn the odds in her favor after all the times she and her friends had been at a disadvantage.
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After sending the address to Yoshino through the Chat, now! app, Nozomi donned her mask and with Seiza's help, they departed from her window. The darkness of the night from the early evening served as enough cover for them to hide in while flying high through the skies.
After Seiza landed on an empty alleyway Nozomi pointed to, she looked both ways to see if anyone would see her before stepping outside.
Taking a deep breath, she jogged to the address, paying attention to any familiar stores she had seen before. Internally hoping no one would stop her.
Not necessarily because she was worried she would get caught, but thanks to the mask hiding her face and her short blonde hair turning into a long white, she didn't need to worry about anyone recognizing her from a distance. Even if her voice and the school uniform were, admittedly, things she still had to work on so her disguise would indeed be foolproof. In the end, it was enough for anyone who caught a glance at her to think it was just cosplaying.
No, her real concern as she ran, was that if she were to be stopped she would be too late to help. When she went to rescue Yoshino she just barely made it, and only because Seiza was there to stop Yoshino from bleeding out. If Nozomi were now to be stopped for any reason, even if it was only for the briefest of seconds...
Nozomi shook her head, banishing the thoughts of her arriving when no one was left alive to be saved. No. I will be there in time...I must! Nozomi thought as her pace quickened momentarily before soon realizing she had been leaving Seiza too far behind.
When Nozomi slowed herself down she and Seiza unintentionally apologized to each other at the same time while not stopping for it.
Thankfully for Nozomi, it didn't take long to encounter Yoshino, wearing her pink goat mask, as she was across the street from them, soon joining Nozomi's side on her run. Nozomi slowed herself down further so Yoshino would keep up.
Nozomi wondered for a moment how Yoshino got here so fast without a means of quick travel like she did with Seiza, before chalking it up to her having used dark magic to jump from building to building. Nozomi didn't need to think too hard to guess she wasn't currently using it so due to her aura, unlike Nozomi, she would catch too much attention from any bystanders they came across without a way to shrug it off as just cosplay.
Instead, Nozomi focused on how they would approach the imminent encounter with the darkspawn.
"So...kind of a dumb question but, when the time comes, do I just shoot them?" Nozomi asked, trying her hardest not to think about the recent memory of her shooting Henry.
After Yoshino gave it some thought, she shook her head. "No."
Nozomi's expression grew into a confused frown as she couldn't understand why Yoshino wouldn't want to take the initiative. "No?! Why not?"
"Because of the sound. Nozomi, remember how your magic sounds like a gun shooting when you use it? If you use your magic the whole city will know. Even I am not planning to shoot them without being sure no one I don't want to hear hears it," Yoshino explained.
Nozomi nodded slowly, finding Yoshino's logic sound. "I see...then what do we do?"
"...Let's bait them into opening a dark barrier with us inside it," Yoshino finally said to Nozomi.
Nozomi's eyes grew wide at such an idea. "B-but, isn't that risky tho? We would be fighting on their turf, also, what's stopping them from running away?"
"Yes, I won't deny it's a risk, but...it's a necessary one. And as for them escaping, I thought of that, trust me, they won't be leaving this place without a fight!" Yoshino declared, a smirk growing on her expression. Giving Nozomi the confidence booster that she needed.
When they finally reached the address, Seiza caught the darkspawn's scent and soon guided the girls to an alleyway where they found Rea and the woman Nozomi had seen in the projection. The delinquents were just barely caught by Nozomi's eyes before disappearing from view by exiting through the opposite side of the alleyway Nozomi was.
"What's she doing here?" Nozomi whispered as she, Yoshino, and Seiza sneakily observed the situation. As it seemed to have changed.
"Hmm...I think I know what's happening," Yoshino turned to Nozomi. "Nozomi, do what I'm about to say..."
As Yoshino explained what Nozomi needed to do, her eyes grew wide before biting her lip, since although she understood it was probably necessary, she still couldn't help but blush slightly in embarrassment at how her friend explained.
When Yoshino finished explaining, Nozomi gave her a nod before taking a deep breath and stepping inside the alleyway. 'Here goes nothing!' Nozomi thought.
"Stop right there!" Nozomi shouted in an attempt at an impression different enough that Rea wouldn't recognize her before pointing dramatically at Rea and the pale girl's direction. "I won't let a darkspawn like you trick this innocent girl, not while I, Guardian Taurus, am here!"