" I have a similar thing going for my self I believe, my wish was to grow, and I'm still looking nine years old, but when I transform, my body finally changes." She shared with Nanako, when Chiyo arrived and Nanako held her hand, Izumi just stood next to Nanako, but didn't hold Chiyo's hand or Nanako's she didn't show the eagerness like her childish cohort." I don't really like shopping, I always gotta pick from the kids section and people constantly ask me where my parents are mistaking me for a kid." Izumi complained while looking away from the two and holding her arm." I'll still hang out with you guys, but I don't think I really want to buy anything really." She looked up to the magical girl she didn't know and felt a little distrustful of the girl not knowing much about her.

As Miyako jumped into the bamboo thicket, she could hear the sickening giggles of the Hunter Primordial, though the blowing with covered the sound of the creature's steps, it was easy to notice that it was circling her slowly closing in before loosing an arrow at her and retreating back to the heart of the dark groove, trying to lure the magical girl in the traps it had set in order to catch her.

It was clear that this was no normal Primordial, actually all the ones that spawned around this area seemed to have 'something' more to them, as if the once mindless beasts were evolving and if they were, evolving fast way faster than anyone could ever predict.

The Primordial would jump and skip between the bamboo stalks, shooting arrows from the weirdest angles, but only ever managing glancing shots that were only good to direct its prey to her ultimate fate at the bottom of a pit filled with sharp bamboo tips coated with venom.

.@Flamelord

Along with Rose, Akame transformed as well and moved out to intercept this new Magical Girl. Regardless of whether it was the killer or not, she would make the other girl talk. There had to be a reason they were here after all. Before they exited the apartment complex however, Akame took pause in her step, whirling back in the direction of Emiri’s front door.

“Two,” she told Rose with a steely voice. “There’s two. One’s still lingering behind while the other is getting away. They might be trying to lure us away while they’re alone with the body. For what reason, only god knows…we can’t let them tamper with Emiri’s corpse. Rea, you pursue the one ahead. I’ll deal with this one.”

Akame’s voice indicated that she was not to be questioned and she was already walking calmly back towards the seemingly abandoned apartment. While Rose would unknowingly be in pursuit of the fleeing Kasumii, it seemed that fate would create a chance encounter between the living and the dead.

The flaming Magical Girl wasn’t worried; unless they were as experienced as her, this would be an easy battle. Of course, she’d try to resolve this without violence first and foremost if possible. That in mind, Akame’s senses brought her to the bathroom where she frowned in confusion. Well, that was an odd hiding spot indeed.

“Come out and reveal yourself,” she called out to Amara. “If you strike, that will confirm that you are an enemy. And I will incapacitate you. However if you bear no ill will you will come out and face me right now. I have a few questions to ask you.”

Akame crossed her arms and waited, cloaked in her dark longcoat. While that chance meeting was taking place, another one was unfolding farther away into Miso City. Chiyo smiled down upon Nanako as she practically glomped her, reaching out to pet the younger girl on the head gently.

“Yes, I saw lots of cool things Nanako-chan. All sorts of sights too. Maybe I should take you to visit with me some day. I hear they have a great musician over there. Ahead of his time really, but beautiful for the ear. A natural prodigy…or so I’m told.”

Hearing Izumi’s lack of enthusiasm for their trip, Chiyo flashed a warm look of sympathy at the shorter girl. She knew that she only appeared young much like Rea and it was confirmed that this was the result of her wish.

“Not to worry Izumi-chan. Maybe we can stop by and get some ice cream for all of us. Does that sound good to you?”

Izumi looked away from Chiyo getting this weird vibe from the girl while Nanako kept hugging her." I don't know I guess I could get some ice cream with you or something." Izumi sounded like she didn't want to be apart of this excursion to the mall with these two. She really didn't want to go, but deep down in her gut she felt like she should go to keep an eye on Nanako and make sure nothing happened with the other magical girl, sure Nanako trusted this girl, but Izumi felt like Chiyo was friends with Nanako for the wrong reasons, and hey who knows maybe they will have fun or something.

There was no response. Eventually there was a flush, and a janitor girl came out of the stall with a scowl. She had a hat that said 'janitor' and a pair of overalls the had 'Momo' stenciled on the pocket. "Who the hell are you?" she asked and then continued without waiting for a response. "Whoa, what's with the outfit? Are you LARPing? It that weapon real?" She fired off questions in a rapid breathless manor, while she moved, started washing her hands and drying them off. "Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but my break is nearly over and my boss wants me to get to work. He gets really irate when he thinks people are slacking off. I mean there was this one time, he fired someone who had been working here for several years because he took five minutes too long on his break." She walked over to the door, opened it and stepped out and called over her shoulder, "See ya wirdo, have fun LARPing. Tell me who won or whatever."

Miyako grunted as her gaze darted about, moving into the thick of the bamboo as she sought out her opponent. The foliage was not making it easy, as to be expected, but she would not let that get in her way. It was just a pity that she wasn't Akame, and hadn't seen her recently, or else she could have burned this entire thicket down and been done with it. Even if that wasn't strictly how her power worked, it didn't matter. She wanted to win, and had to if she was to survive now.

Still, she plunged ahead undetered, weapon spinning to deflect arrow strikes, which served to provide some direction as she tried to chase down the Primordial. This was majorly getting on her nerves, even as it became obvious that this one was not normal. A normal Primordial would simply fire away, not use strategies like this. Which was worrying to an extent. What else might the thing be planning?

There was nothing else to do though, and she had to find this thing and kill it. So she played along, waiting for an opportunity to arise to get in close and stab it, or break it's bow, or something like that. "Come on out here already," she growled, slashing away at bamboo stalks. One way or another, she was going to end this, even if it took all night.

As the Primordial succeed in dragging Miyako to her trap, it changed its erratic pattern, becoming more and more predictable with every shot as if it was getting tired of the long and fruitless strife and decided to go all out against the magical girl all of it was ruse, however and Miyako would soon find it.

Once in the middle of thicket, the dark creature got in Myako's sight and drew its bow as much as it was possible, the strength of the next arrow would be such that it could pierce a bunker wall, parrying or blacking wouldn't be an option and is such a crowded area it was too hard to jump or dodge effectively, so Miyako's only option would be go for the kill in he Primordial's mind and if she did that, she would fall right into the trap hole.

As the arrow was shot, Miyako's destiny hanged on her wits alone...

@Flamelord

---

It was the dead of night when Yuna woke up after having slept way more than her usual. The frost magical girl put a hand to her neck to check on Elise's rather savage 'kiss'; it was still a bit stiff but there was no pain left by now and there was only a small mark left that will probably be gone by the morning.

She got up from the infirmary bed and picked her music player and headphones that were laying by her side "It's cold..." she whispered, as her breath turned into small puffs of vapor. Yuna looked outside and saw that the world was covered in a thick layer of snow by now, so it must be have been snowing ever since she went to sleep.

Elise wasn't at the bed by her side anymore, perhaps she was wandering around too, or went to another place during the night, Yuna had no way to know for sure "I guess that I might as well go for a walk too. There has been a place that I've been wishing to go ever since I came to this city again, but still hadn't the time." She said to herself as she out of the window and walked away from the school, still wearing Chiyo's gift uniform, since she had put her usual clothes to the laundry at a nearby shop and forgot to retrieve them on time.

Yuna walked around the deserted and, thanks to the snow, eerily quiet streets of Miso City's downtown alone while avoiding any encounters with the unpleasant types that were out in this hour. She passed by a few stores that were decorated for the upcoming Christmas, that by all means should have been without any snow this year if only Yuna wasn't around of course. "No matter how much I hate this power, a White Christmas never ceases to be pretty." She thought as she finally arrived at her destination.

Yuna knocked at modest the building's locked doors and waited until an old woman's voice came asking from the inside "Who's there at such an hour?" Before opening the doors, slowly.

"It's just me, Mother. Yuna Yukino, I've come back to this city after walking around Japan for some more time again." Yuna said with an smile on her lips as she looked at the grey haired woman's gentle face.

"It's been such a long time, child. Please come in, the doors of the Lord's house are always open, as you know." The old nun said, beckoning Yuna to come in the small chapel that was the only temple of its kind in the region after the Sakura family church had been destroyed.

"Thank you, Mother. If it's not too much of a bother could I ask for something hot to eat? I've been fasting ever since yesterday morning." Yuna answered as she followed the old woman to the chapel's innards.

"Of course not, child. You can wait by the altar like you always do while I prepare you something." The nun opened the sanctum's door to Yuna before going to the kitchen to find her something to eat.

"Thank you again." Yuna said as she went towards the altar and knelt down to pray.

Not too long later, however... "Yuna Yukino, so that's where you were. We've been looking for you everywhere in the city." Said the Contractor as it came leaping down from the altar and padding its way to Yuna's side, gently caressing her legs.

"What do you want with me, white devil?"

"We were just checking around, since the last magical girl that went missing during the night was found dead the other day."

"And since when do you care for our wellfare? For all that's worth, you might even know who the assassin is and don't tell anyone until you're asked directly by someone."

"You're right, Yuna Yukino. But right now, every magical girl is important. The phenomenon that we've been studying has escalated quickly ever since so many of you were reunited in a single place. We can not afford to miss that opportunity by having needless deaths."

"What do you mean by that?"

"In about two days, a phenomenon that we named the Inverted Rainbow will happen. We still don't know what it implies, but we're sure that it'll lead us much closer to the answers that we seek regarding the origins of the Primordials."

"I don't understand what is it that you're planing, fiend. But neither I, nor the other magical girls won't allow your plans to come to fruition. I'll Akame and Rose about this Inverted Rainbow as soon as the morning comes and then see what their plan will be."

"That's something that we will have to wait and see, Yuna Yukino. Not even we are certain of what will happen, just that something will happen and no one can put a stop to it now. Though, if the bonds between the threads of destiny of the individuals involved are strong enough, even fate itself might be changed and we stand to see it."

After saying that, the Contractor left the chapel as soon as the nun came by telling Yuna that her meal was waiting for her at the kitchen.

On the following morning, Yuna waited for Akame and Rose in front of the school gates and as soon as they arrived she said, "I think that we have something big in our hands, Akame and Rose. I need to tell you about what the white told me a few hours ago."

@Ariamis@TheWindel

Alright, Akame could admit that she wasn't expecting that. Sure she had predicted that her quarry would try some underhanded tactic to escape...but this was just pathetic. Almost hilarious. No, in fact it was hilarious. Akame stood there unfazed by the "janitor's" remarks about her clothing or weapon. However, a light smirk did appear on her visage and she crossed her arms to show her amusement.

"You know it's not LARPing if it's only one person, right?" she asked the other girl as "Momo" walked past her. "You can drop the act now. If you really weren't an enemy, you'd at least try a better method of lowering my guard then that," she said, bringing a hand to her mouth to conceal a snicker. "Well then. To what pleasure do I have in meeting yet another new Magical Girl into my city?"

"You cant LARP alone?." Amara said, acting puzzled and ignoring the rest of what Akame said. "That is news to me. Hmm..." She lowered her head so the hat shadowed her face and put her hand to the brim. "All right...in that case, consider me a Boss!" She whipped the cap of her head and threw it into Akames face. Amara took off running through the intentionally open door and down the hall, changing into her Magical Girl form midstride. "Try to keep up!" She yelled over. She zigzagged through the hallways, following a predetermined route at top speed, cutting corners by plunging her scythes into the wall and letting her momentum swing her around.

Akame tossed the hat away from her with quick reaction and little effort, sheathing her sword and rocketing off in pursuit of the other girl. Yes, she was convinced now that this new girl wasn't an enemy though she had strange tactics in getting her alone to talk. And if she was wrong, she would simply burn the girl and give her to Rose. No doubt the water Magical Girl would be more than thrilled to interrogate her for suspected murder.

"You know, it's sort of difficult to boast that to someone that's older and more experienced than you," Akame said casually, dashing up to race side by side to Amara. "Especially to someone who knows this city better than you," she added with a smirk.

Indeed, Akame was keeping up, perhaps even outmatching Amara. She didn't need to use her weapon to propel herself like the other girl, instead merely leaping and moving forward with occasional bursts of flame. She glanced at Amara in silence, waiting for what else the other girl had in mind.

Amara just shrugged and didn’t respond to the other girls words. Why would she need to? Actions spoke louder than words. Clumsy, showing off her power like that. But she is keeping up. Perfect. Amara thought. Now to truly test her. Amara noticed and grabbed a useful object off the wall as she was running. At that exact movement, they came to an intersection that had a hall leading to a large window. Amara turned unexpectedly, dashed forward, crossed her arms and crashed out the window. She took the several story drop easily. Once she hit the ground, she rolled and jumped to her feet. She sped up even more, running fast enough that even Akame would have to work to keep up. I remember seeing the perfect spot not far from here... She thought.

At that point Mizuki caught up to her and floated beside her, keeping pace. I guess being insubstantial really helps when you are trying to get somewhere Amara thought idly. "What are you doing? This isn’t going to help our case you know. Why didnt you just tell the other girl what your purpose was? She probably would’ve let you help." Mizuki demanded. "Yes, I know you are probably right, but before I work with them, I want to test these Magical Girls to see what they are made of. This one is an expert, although clumsy. As for the others, I can judge them by how they react and how quickly they react. Besides, I am bored and they should provide some intertainment." Mizuki stared at Amara for a long second. "You...are insane." She said simply. Amara gave her a wide smile, baring her teeth, "Of course." After a pause she said, "That girl is faster than I thought. I guess we will have to go all out." I was wondering when you planned to do it." Mizuki muttered.

Akame was unaware of the bouts the other girl was having with her ghostly companion. Perhaps she was a bit clumsy in her approach, though it wasn't that much of a hindrance to her. Considering the vast difference in power alone, Akame was fairly sure she could spare to reveal a few tricks or two. An eye did raise however as the girl crashed through the window and seemed to lead her out into the open. Following suit, Akame had to stifle a groan as she predicted what was about to happen. She'll admit, it was a little trite at this point but then again they were Magical Girls after all. This was always the way of doing things.

"Please don't tell me you want to fight me. Frankly, I've had more than my share of putting rookies in their place," she called out, gaining closer and closer with more streams of fire. "And don't say you want to test my skills either. Surely you can sense the difference between us? Honestly, what's with you newcomers and always wanting to challenge everyone you see," she added with slight annoyance, mind immediately thinking of Elise and her brash way of thinking.

Rookie? Hehe that’s funny. I dont doubt her skills, I want to test her personality. Amara thought. To her companion she said, "Hey Mizuki, lets show her how much of a rookie we are." "You are so looking for a ass kicking" Was her reply. Without fanfare or more words, Mizuki s ghostly form merged with Amara. With a burst of speed, Amara sped up even further, running faster than the cars driving on the road. She effortlessly dodged and weaved between pedestrians and cars as she ran like a runaway rocket across the city. Almost there, just a little further. She thought.

Soon, she came to the spot she had been running to. The massive graveyard in the midst of the city. Still at her unbelievable speed, she hurtled the low wall and charged deeper. She arrived at a particular grave near the middle. It was a classic gravestone shape, although a lot bigger than normal. Amara regarded the grave quietly, almost reverently. She turned and sat on the grave, waiting for her pursuer to catch up. She summoned her scythe and put it across her lap. She grinned in anticipation. This is going to be fun. She checked her equipment, and made sure it was all ready.

Akame finally frowned as the other girl weaved her way among the oncoming traffic and night life of the city. As much as this girl wanted to test her, she was putting people in danger from her reckless actions. This had better be worth the effort in chasing this one down or Akame wouldn't hesitate to bring this one to Rose kicking and screaming. And only she knew how methodical her friend could be, especially with this Magical Girl hunter on the loose.

She finally made it to the graveyard, slowing down her pace until she was walking casually into the bleak area. She glanced around at the stones and stifled a wince; it was a reminder that they needed to deal with Emiri's corpse once this was all done.

"So you're not even going to give me a name?"

The smirking Akame was gone, replaced now with her usual stoic self. She set a hard gaze on the girl sitting on the grave and crossed her arms. The scythe was an indicator that this newcomer did want to fight but she wouldn't strike yet. First the explanations needed to come out and maybe this girl didn't want to battle and waste magic. Maybe she just had a sick sense of humor.

"Read for yourself." She said, gesturing at the grave she was on. It was inscribed with the words, "Amara Raith" and below that was inscribed a small poem: "Gone but not forgotten, although we are apart, your spirit lives within me, forever in my heart." "Its a sombering place for me to visit. I mean, we are all going to die. We know that on an intellectual level. We figure it out sometimes when we are still fairly young, and it scares us so badly that we convince ourselves we are immortal for more than a decade afterward. Death isnt a pretty thing. Its scary, its frightening. There is a single hard, cold fact that everyone on earth faces: One day, it is going to be over. One day, the sun will rise, the world will turn, people will go about their daily routines--only you wont be in it. You will be cold. And still.
Death.
You cant escape it.
You.
Will.
Die."
Amara paused at look at Akame. "That is a bitter, hideously concrete fact that I have learned. This gravestone is part of my wish. My life, for my families. But, that is not why we are here. Akame Natsuko, I have brought you here to find out what you are made of. The explanations can wait until after we are done." Amara got to her feet and held her scythe like a sword, diagonal to the ground and to the side. She held her hand up and out stretched, palm outward and toward Akame. She closed her eyes and twisted her neck to one side, then the other. She leveled her eyes at her opponent, every part of her stance proclaiming I-will-kill-you. Her face twisted into a creepy grin. [color=989898] "Now, come at me!" She shouted.

Akame listened to the story and frowned. It would seem that she too had suffered a fate crueler than any real death before her wish. Just like her...Akame was glad that the grave didn't say a certain other name. Was it fate or perhaps coincidence that both Amara and the other girl were buried here? Who could say for sure.

With one hand outstretched, she summoned her blade and pointed it directly at Amara. Immediately the area began to increase in temperature, melting the snow around them and setting it ablaze. The air itself became unbearable, the very oxygen burning lungs from the inside out except for Akame though it was questionable if that would even work on the Magical Girl who was supposed to be dead. She was not rampaging like Elise would but rather focused all of her emotion into the motions of her body. The look she gave Amara was enough to torch the Contractor a million times over.

"So this is all just to test me, right? You brought me all the way here just to see what I'm capable of?"

Amara nodded, then she released her power she had been holding back. Immediately a similar effect happened, but hers was a empty cold, a void that consumed all flames of life. Amara judged Akame to be stronger, but her own power was close. With a steady breath, she went on the attack. She crossed the space between them in a blur of motion and struck in a large over-hand swing of her scythe, wielded in one hand, still. In a reaction matching Amara's speed, Akame blocked the forceful strike with her own blade, using one hand as well. It would seem their powers were evenly matched, to the point where Akame really was wondering if fate brought them together like this. Two opposites and yet they had something akin to similarity radiating off of their beings. Akame moved her feet forward, slashing about now at rapid speed. Amara spun her scythe, catching Akame s blade and hooking it to the side. Amara followed with a fast kick of her right foot to the ribs. Akame narrowed her eyes, unleashing a miniature wall of flame as a makeshift shield to her ribs. Whether Amara would still let the attack connect or back off would be evident in the next few moments. The flaming Magical Girl twirled around and leapt back, spinning her blade in hand. Close-range combat was going to prove meaningless in this fight so she needed a different tactic. Amara let the attack connect, bouncing the impact so that her foot was not badly burned. Her skeletal foot barely singed. She knew she had an advantage in close ranged combat, so she pushed Akame as she tried to gain some distance. She took a few steps forward and thrust her scythe at Akame.

Akame stifled a sigh of annoyance on Amara's part. It wasn't that close-ranged combat was going to be a problem, for both of them wielded weapons that were easily suited for such a situation. No, it was the fact that it would only cause a deadlock and the battle would go nowhere. This much was proven as Akame was forced to meet her attacker's scythe head on once again, slashing and blocking. The speeds at which they were going would make the two combatants seem like a blur to an outsider's perspective.

"This is pointless. We're only wasting magic," she pointed out calmly. "That being said, I'm really quite impressed by your moves so far. Even as someone younger than myself, your potential is quite staggering. Your wish must have been a tragic one indeed," she added softly.

Amara locked blades and responded, "You are wasting magic, I am having fun!" She said this with a manic grin on her face. "Tragic? I guess so." She said just as softly, but still with a mad grin. She broke the lock, planted her scythe, head down, and vaulted with both feet into a kick forward.

"I guess you are," Akame said with unwavering calmness. It was just her luck to be fighting yet another battle crazed maniac and once again she couldn't help but draw the comparisons with her earlier fight with Elise. However, something told her that this girl had more control over her raging spirit than the red-headed teleporter. Musing on these thoughts, Akame met the kick with a fist full of flames, punching forward to counter her opponent's new approach. Contrary to her appearance, Amara s mind was working quickly. She simply used the punch as a springboard, she pushed up off of it, up and backwards, in the same movement, she brought her scythe up in a massive crescent arc, that could cut her opponent in half. If it landed. Meanwhile, she mused, She not surprised by my crazy. Interesting, lets try a different approach then. Amara backed off, and in a sudden change, she pulled in all her emotions and, just ignored them. She went from mad-crazy to utterly calm, emotionless, and focused, in a bit to throw her opponent off balance. Her fighting style changed too, from unorthodox to efficient. She brought her massive scythe up to a two handed defensive stance.

Akame matched Amara's new tactics with her own as well. Gripping her blade's handle with two hands now, she batted the arcing strike with a flaming counter, her sword now brimming with scorching fire. She couldn't help but smile on the inside, approving of the sudden mix in her opponent's fighting style. However, Akame was three years this girl's senior and she had faced much more cunning Primordials. A simple change in fighting stances would not be enough to dispel her flames and she pressed on into the offensive now that Amara was defending.

"Honestly, must you girls always make such a huge waste of my gifts?"

The flaming Magical Girl faltered in her step just barely, dashing back to disengage. A quick scan confirmed that the Contractor was sitting on Amara's grave with interest watching them. How long it had been there was hard to say but it was probably for some time.

"Amara Raith, don't you know that your Soul Gem darkens the more you burn power like that? Shouldn't you be focusing on hunting down Primordials instead of using your time on silly tests? Or does the value of other human lives mean nothing to you?" Amara mirrored Akame’s disengagement, but she struck the ground with her foot pushing her backwards into a shallow arc. She added a rather impressive flip when she stepped off her gravestone, her foot right in the spot the Contractor was, forcing it to move or be stepped on. She landed behind her grave and stepped sideways out from it, one hand behind her back in a fencer stance with her scythe. "I am doing this because I will not take orders from someone who I don’t respect or trust. Yes, I know that you are the leader of the Magical Girls here. But I want to find out if you are worthy of that, myself. Now enough talk!" Of course that was not all, just an excuse, they didn’t need to know the other reason. Amara launched into a rapid pattern of, slashes spins kicks and thrusts in a maelstrom of attacks. I have one more card to play. She thought.

The Contractor leaped away from where Amara's foot would surely crush it. Landing on the side, it titled its head in silence as she belted out the reasoning to her logic. And frankly, it was reasoning that Akame had to agree with the Contractor with. Really, this was a waste of time and they needed to put their efforts into more constructive matters.

"Really, that's what this is all about? Either you're good at making things up on the spot, or you've been watching too much anime like Rea," Akame said with no trace of panic in her voice. Likewise, she casually blocked the strikes Amara was unleashing upon her. At this point, she didn't even bother to attack back, merely watching the other girl closely while avoiding the strikes.

"But that's not quite it, right? You wouldn't do all this just to test me. So let's be honest Raith-san, why is it that you want to fight me so suddenly?"

It was impressive on Akame's part to treat the whole matter like an ordinary conversation, even with the knowledge that one slip up could result in being her downfall. Still, she was willing to listen to the other girl's words even more and it wasn't like she was actively engaging in this fight anyway. Of course, she was also willing to put up with Amara's annoying battle tactics as well. Amara didnt respond, she just redoubled her efforts. She managed to knock the other girls sword out of the way, and sent her off balance. Amara moved in for the kill.

Akame's eyes noted her sword being flung away before the sensation of her body soon meeting with the ground was felt. She caught herself on the palms of her hands and spun around quickly, directing a flaming kick in Amara's direction. To which Amara replied by pulling her hand from behind her back, in whitch she had the fire extinguisher she had swiped from the apartment, and hidden behind her grave. She doused Akame and swung her scythe down in a murderous arc.

The flaming Magical Girl grunted as a sudden wall of white filled her vision. It only took a second for her to realize that this wasn't some new form of magic being unleashed. Instead it was a....fire extinguisher? While she had to commend her opponent for being creative, she shouldn't have stolen things from Emiri's apartment like that. And then Akame sensed the coming blow of the scythe. Well then. She might as well reveal a little bit more of her power to the one that had come this far in their struggle.

Amara's scythe would connect with something as hard as metal. Closer inspection would show that Akame's sword was still embedded in the snowy ground several feet away from them. What she was wielding now was a blade of pure fire, its exterior as tough as diamond. Akame took that brief second of surprise emitted by Amara to strike. With a flaming fist, she lunged up and uppercutted the girl's chin with all the force she could muster. Which in hindsight, was quite alot. No doubt it would leave some burn marks but it was nothing their magic couldn't heal.

The Contractor watched, expression never changing.

Amara felt the impact and her vision went red. She was sent flying through the air. She was stunned for a moment, but she had the presence of mind to flip herself over and slam her scythe into the ground, plowing through the snow and dirt, and preventing her from being launched too far. She landed badly falling on her face and struggling to get up. She finally managed to get to her feet, and lean on her scythe like a staff. "Enough!" She shouted or tried to, it came out more as a wheeze. "This fight has fulfilled its intended purpose. She changed out of her Magical Girl form "I understand now. I am sorry I lead you through this." She said to Akame "You were right it was kind of a waste, but I wanted to know how powerful you were." And other reasons. Amara sighed and said "Alright, I will answer your questions now. But you might not like the answers. After that, I can help you find Asuka Emiri s murderer."

"Of course you did," Akame said with a shake of her head. Given the falling snow overhead, she considered keeping her Magical Girl attire on. But one glance at her Soul Gem told her that she couldn't waste more magic. As she transformed back into her Miso High School Uniform, she frowned at how dark her Soul Gem had gotten. Well then, it was a good thing that they recovered over time. The Contractor watched her intently without her notice.

"First off, who are you really Raith-san? I know you're not Emiri's killer but you can start off with answering that. Or are you just here because of the irregular appearances of Primordials in this town?"

Amara made a face, "Drop the -san and just call me Amara. Who am I? That is a long story. Although, yes I am here because of the irregular Primordials, and I am chasing a killer. I believe it is the same one who murdered Emiri, but I will have to ask." She said that last part as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

"Try me," Akame said, crossing her arms as she caught the Contractor leaving in the corner of her eye. "We have the whole night Amara so you might as well tell me more about yourself than just that. You obviously knew my name and I'd like to know why that was so."

"Truthfully?" Amara asked with a strait face. She hooked a thumb at the spot where Mizuki had been sitting. "The ghost of my dead friend told me. Before we talk more, lets go somewhere and get a bite to eat. I will foot the bill.

Akame blinked in surprise at the statement, eyes trailing over to where Amara was pointing. A Magical Girl...ghost? Honestly, she wasn't too surprised considering that type of situations a Magical Girl had to face on a daily basis. She did wonder if the Contractor knew of such a phenomenon.

"Well next time tell your friend not snoop into people's personal lives," Akame said levely, shaking her head as she led the way to someplace warmer than a graveyard. The two would eventually find themselves across from each other in a coffee shop nearby. Akame sat with a polite posture, waiting for Amara to speak up.

Amara let the silence stretch. "Where to begin..." She finally said. I really am not good at this. My life story is probably very similar to the other M.G.s. Nice life then, Bam!, bad things happen and a creepy feline shows up offering a wish that I take to my eventual regret. Am I close?"

"Sounds about right," said Akame. "Though that still doesn't answer everything but I'll accept it for now. A Magical Girl' wish is supposed to be private after all. Is that the only reason you came to Miso City then? To hunt down this Magical Girl serial killer?"

That and to investigate the Primordials. I never thought it would lead me here of all places and meet you of all people. Fate has a strange sense of humor. This is the city where my life changed and I lost and gained everything. After that, Amara stopped, slightly embarrassed and trying to stay away from unpleasant memories. I don’t like telling about my past. Some things are better left forgotten.

"You speak as if you knew me from before," Akame pressed on with a raised eye. "Apologies if I'm being too forward, but have we met before?"

"No, we have never met before. But, for now, tell me a little about yourself I have done all the telling so far. Just anything you want, anything you are comfortable telling.

Akame frowned. She didn't want to point out that Amara had only told her the bare minimum and she hadn't learned much of anything at all. It would be rude to vocalize that to the other girl but the fact remained that Amara was still holding back. In that case, so would Akame.

"I became a Magical Girl four years ago," she said at last, voice level. "The wish isn't important but as you can imagine, it granted me my control over fire and heat."

Amara finished the last of her coffee in one gulp. "I understand. Let’s head back to the apartment and get to work on finding that killer." She got up and laid out the money plus a tip. Akame nodded once, following the other girl in silence. Hopefully Rose had gotten better luck than she had in pursuing their mystery killer. All she was another person to look after. Still, it was nice to know there were more allies on their side. With this in mind for them both, the two girls walked out into the snow night.

Miyako quickly noted the Primordials erratic combat style diminishing as the fight went on and the two of them moved further into the bamboo, her wondering just how thick this field actually was. Given where they were she hadn't expected it to be this ridiculous or deep, though there was nothing she could do about it now. Perhaps it was the Primordials magic, but it didn't seem likely.

Her eyes widened as she got it in view at last, only to see it pulling back the bowstring to a frankly ridiculous degree, preparing a powerful arrow. Well, that wasn't good, and she had a feeling that she wouldn't be able to block it or deflect it, for fairly obvious reasons of how fast it would be moving. Well then, fine, she could handle that. This thing would learn why it had been a mistake to mess with her.

She moved forward, but not at a breakneck pace meant to outleap the arrow. Instead she waited until it had been unleashed before hitting the deck, falling to the ground as it whizzed overhead, wind blowing against her back and shattering bamboo in the process like nothing's business, before she got back to her feet with a flip and then sprang forward, jumping over the trap hole in the process, which she barely even registered as she moved to engage the thing at close range, blade swinging to take out it's bow and then kill it. Score one for the Greatest Magical Girl in the World, she supposed.

Leaving the apartment, Kasumii felt the presence of the other magical girl, she knew was hiding during the fight before. There was no need to focus on that though, she moved along, towards where she felt a magical girl fighting a primordial. However, before reaching halfway, she felt the primordial had been defeated.

The misty-self hovered, left with nothing to do. All she could do now was wait for another event, or so she first thought. Is one of them following me? She couldn't tell if Rea was following her or not, only could sense that she had moved in Kasumii's general direction. Oh well. Kasumii simply thought, moving along.

Hovering around, over the city, she finally found the place she was looking for. The public library. Seeping through the gaps, into the library, she slowly materialized. It used less magic to come back slowly, only a little bit less. As soon as she materialized, her presence as a magical girl would become much more clear to the others. For now, she was just a simple girl, in a black gothic dress. Walking up to the bookshelf, she pulled a book off the shelf, moved to a seat and started to read. Kasumii stayed on alert, not letting her guard down.

Elise waved goodbye to Yuna while she was sleeping, and decided to leave on her own; she wasn't that comfortable with spending time with other people, as fun as it was to her, and felt like having a bit of space to herself. So she went through the city, hopping from lamp-post to lamp-post with a kind of dance, taking a bit of care to not frighten the common folks at all by teleporting away when seen.

She knew that Rose and the others would find her if they went to look for her, so Elise, on a whim, set out to check out the public library. She stepped inside, and began to throw books everywhere while glossing over their covers.

"Not one of these books have anything on Primordials or using magic, huh? Shouldn't that furball think we ought to know this stuff?" She vocally gave her thoughts, not really caring if she was heard, since commoners would only think she was a silly little girl playing around.

@Little_ninja

Rose was surprised to hear that someone was back at Emiri's apartment. Had they really been flanked so easily. Akame left her no option but to continue to pursue whomever was ahead of them, while she went back to protect Emiri's body. That was fine with Rose, she did not want to see the lifeless corpse of her friend again. Rose raced through the city bouncing off the rooftops. She was having difficulty tracking the presence in front of her until it finally settled down in the public library. Whomever this was they seemed to like books. Rose might just like this magical girl. Rose liked books. She just did not read a lot anymore. Too many animes to watch.

Rose descended to ground level. She landed softly and as quietly as she could. She stole some water from a water fountain as she approached the library entrance. She used it to unlock the front door of the building. She walked inside. She could hear someone across the library tossing books. She could sense Elise's presence but noted it odd. Why would she be in a library? Rose would have thought she would hang in a fight club or something. It comforted Rose to know she could call Elise if needed.

Rose finally found her target. The magical girl in front of her was reading a book acting like she was unaware. Rose cautiously stepped forward and addressed the girl in the black gothic dress, "Greetings, It is always nice to meet a new magical girl. I warn you. you came at the worst of times. Why are you in this city. And so help me, god. If you are an enemy, I will smite you were you side."

@Little_ninja@Ariamis

The strike was quick, fast, precise, the bow sent spinning off into the distance as Miyako batted it out of the way, before she moved in for a finishing blow, stabbing the Primordial and slamming it into a bamboo stalk. She grunted as she pushed it in that much deeper before pulling it out, sliding free with an audible sound. That was finished off with a downwards slash across it's chest, finishing it off.

She grinned as it dissolved, straightening up and gingerly walking around the pit in the ground as she whistled. "Geez. When'd that thing have the time to make this?" This wasn't exactly a rush job, so how could it have been done in the time the Primordial manifested? It was hard to believe.

Leaving that alone, she dismissed it to the back of her mind for now, and she took off once she had gotten around the pit, headed for the warehouse and the other primordials, or where they had been before. She wanted to meet that other magical girl, the one she had seen before, and to get the lowdown on them. That was how it had been done for her, and now she could do the same. She only hoped that the girl was still there when she got back, or else this would be a lot more difficult.

Kasumii quietly read, feeling the presence of two magical girls approaching the library. One had arrived before the other, the presence felt like the rabid magical girl from today's fight. She was loud and mentioning Primordials and Magical girls out loud. The library didn't have anyone else near by, but she would probably be seen as a silly little girl in most occasions. Since she was not approaching, Kasumii continued to read.

The other presence, it seemed to be the girl who followed from the apartment. Seems like she did follow me. Now if I remember correctly, this girl was called Rea by the other one. So, this would be Rose, the one Yuna had mentioned before, and the other must of been Akame. Definitely adept girls as Yuna mentioned. Kasumii thought, appearing to continue reading as Rose approached her, cautiously, greeting her. "Greetings, It is always nice to meet a new magical girl. I warn you. you came at the worst of times. Why are you in this city. And so help me, god. If you are an enemy, I will smite you were you side."

Closing the book and turning to Rose, Kasumii thought through her approach to answering the situation. Using her name will probably alarm her and get more questions. Best to introduce myself and explain that I am looking for the killer Clearing her throat, she spoke, softly, "Greetings. I know I came at a bad time, it would only be natural to suspect me. My name is Kasumii." Kasumii lowered her head politely, indicating a small bow. "I have been following a case of serial killings, leading me to here. I am not your enemy, I wish to stop these killings. Now is that all?" After answering Kasumii, she turned to her book, and continued to read. She waited for Rose to answer or react. Kasumii did not let her guard down, ready for anything to happen.

@MarsAdept @Ariamis

Chiyo lead the way towards the shopping mall, Nanako dotting closely next to her, happy to see her returned friend once more. Although Izumi slowly followed the two from behind you could see the large complex from a distance. Two rather extensively large looking glass towers with electric billboards towering over people that advertised several different products by famous singers and actors. The crowed become rather dense, so the group walked closer together so that they wouldn't be separated.

Once inside the building, the group looked at a sign which indicated what was on which floor, Izumi seemed to be eyeing the level where majority of the food was. Nanako had a peaked interest in the toy level and... It would seem like something rather than shopping was on Chiyos' mind, but Nanako couldn't exactly tell what.
"So! What should we do next? Maybe we can go check out the toys!? Or or maybe we should get some food so we can eat as we browse!"
Nanako was thrilled to be here with her friends. Even though the area felt rather overpopulated with the unusual amount of people there today, perhaps nobody had anything to do, so they decided to spend it shopping.

Rose looked at Kasumii with judgmental eyes. She watched hard for any aggressive actions by this girl. Rose did take the girl so willing to give her name favorably. Rose responded with a polite curtsy, "I am known as Rea Hargrove. I am among the elder magical girls tasked with guarding this city. Forgive my aggressive introduction. Now One of my trusted few was just murdered, I try not to wear my emotions on my sleeves best to keep the suitors guessing, you know." Rose's voice was cold, almost as cold as Yuna's ice. Rose rested her left hand on the hilt of her sword ever so casually. She took a deep breath and continued, "You are saying that you have been investigating killing of our kind. I know of another who has told me the same story. I trust her however. What have you found in your investigations that might help me avenger my friend"

Rose might have acted politely but her actions were far from it. Rose did not know how this girl would act. She could be the killer even though she doubted it. Rose was silently using her magic to secure the upper hand if a fight broke out. Rose was controlling the water form one of the water fountains and maneuvering it into position. A ball of water was slowly forming just off the ground around the corner. Another two streams silently moved along the floor concealed behind the bookshelves.

@Little_ninja

Nodding in acknowledgement of Rose's reply, Kasumii had turned away from her book to look at Rose. Thinking for a moment, with a straight face, and closing the book, Kasumii was unsure of what to say to respond to Rose. It was suspicious that Kasumii was here, and the fact that Kasumii had found very little in her investigations does not help her case. She only happened to reach a similar conclusion to Yuna when they had met in their travels, discussing many topics. But Kasumii was told that she could trust Rose, Akame and Miyako, were she to ever cross their paths, from Yuna.

Kasumii was about to speak, before noticing something. She felt that there was magic being used in the area. She could not pinpoint where, or what was happening, but, she had concluded it was Rose using her powers. "Could you not use your magic here? The books will get damaged. I have no intention of a fight with any of you Rea." she sighed, waiting for a response.

Eventually, she would continue, "Now then, unfortunately, I doubt I have any useful information to you. These deaths, I have found nothing in common between them all so far. Some deaths were brutal, girls brutally tortured, others, like your friend, most likely letting their guard down, before being killed. So far, I have found nothing that connects them all, but I feel they are. If only there were a clue, something that happened before they died. Otherwise, the only thing I could suggest is that there are two killers, one who enjoys brutally slaughtering magical girls and the other, more likely, has a reason to kill magical girls when they have let their guards down."

Kasumii, wasn't usually much of a talker, but given the situation, she figured it would be better to tell as much as possible, to cause less trouble for them both. "I would like to ask about your friend. Of course, if you do not want to talk about it, then that is fine, and I apologise for bringing it up." Kasumii waited for Rose to reply.

@MarsAdept

After she "checked out" most of the books at the separate hall she was in, Elise took a pause to listen to the conversation that was happening nearby. She recognized Rose's magical signature, but the other one was new. It seemed like she wasn't a threat, and was actually looking for that bitch who killed Emiri. Elise approved of people like her who would go out there and solve crimes like some kind of frilly Batman. Yeah, Batman was one of her inspirations growing up; how he was so good at martial arts and scare the living daylights out of crooks. She didn't share in his rule of no killing, of course, but she admired the superhero for kicking ass without even needing to kill.

Having decided that she's heard enough, Elise then made a dynamic entry by teleporting right in the girl's face. "Who are you asking Razor about? Goldylocks, or Arcane?" She nonchalantly asked while enjoying her surprised face.

Realizing that the girl had noticed her magic, Rose dropped the water where if floated. The water would have been absorbed into the carpet of the library floor and she could reclaim it with some difficulty if the need arose. The girl continued to talk. Rose was a little surprised. If she was lying she could spin a good lie. Rose did believe that she did not want to fight, But Rose wanted to fight. She wanted to fight something, someone, anything to get the feeling of vengeance. Rose none the less considered Kasumii's words. Two killers could be a definate possibility though they could not have come to this city at a worse time. All the megical girls were gathering here for the hunt for the Primodial nest. It must be too tempting for a killer to come here now.

Rose opened her mouth the speak, but Elise suddenly appeared. The teleport startled Rose. Rose took a defensive step back as Elise startled her. She swore at Elise inside her head. Rose shook her head and recollected herself, "Elise, What are you doing? This isn't a good cop, bad cop interrogation. And what is up with those nicknames. I know I am Razor. I like it. But Goldylocks and Arcane...? Well, I guess Emiri could be Goldylocks, she was a blonde, but that would mean Akame is Arcane. She is good at magic, and I can see how that name is a pun off Akame, but wouldn't something Fire related be better. Anywho, Ms. Kasumii, You can ask what you want about Emiri, but please not I am not known for telling the truth."

@Ariamis@Little_ninja

As Kasumii waited for Rose's reply, she could feel the other magical girl approaching them, before teleporting in front of her. She was taken aback, only slightly. Her facial expressions rarely changed, so as usual, her face was basically the same as always. On the other hand, however, the chair had screeched the floor slightly, as she backed away at that very moment. Kasumii knew that the girl could teleport, due to her observation of the duel, but nonetheless, something appearing in front of anyone gives anyone a bit of a fright.

"Who are you asking Razor about? Goldylocks, or Arcane?"
Kasumii's facial expression had finally changed, instead of the surprise the girl may have expected, she showed a very confused look. What is she on about? Razor? Goldylocks? Arcane? Who are these people? Or are they things? And if so, what? Kasumii questioned in her mind, before Rose filled her in and gave a reply. At that moment, Kasumii took a deep breath and returned to her regular facial expression.

"Elise, What are you doing? This isn't a good cop, bad cop interrogation. And what is up with those nicknames. I know I am Razor. I like it. But Goldylocks and Arcane...? Well, I guess Emiri could be Goldylocks, she was a blonde, but that would mean Akame is Arcane. She is good at magic, and I can see how that name is a pun off Akame, but wouldn't something Fire related be better. Anywho, Ms. Kasumii, You can ask what you want about Emiri, but please not I am not known for telling the truth."

"Well, I understand you do not have any trust in me yet, so I do not expect the truth right now, but hopefully at some point, things will be cleared up." Kasumii replied to Rose, before turning back to Elise, "I believe you should be able to tell who I was talking about, since you were listening in on the conversation for a while, but to make it clear, I was referring to Emiri."

Kasumii then started to ask Rose a question, "I just wanted to know what happened before she was killed. Whether she was perhaps fighting and overused her magic, or whether she may have been hit by something which left a mark, perhaps. An unusual event occurred maybe? That is all I would like to ask about Emiri, however, there is one thing I am curious about." She paused for a moment, before asking, "Why are there so many magical girls here? In my travels I have seen places with usually a quartet or so at most. There are as many as ten magical girls here, including myself. To me, this just does not bode well."

@MarsAdept @Ariamis