---

@VitaVitaAR

For all her association with the cold, Fuyuko's face heated with shame. "Sorry..." she mumbled again, standing and reaching out to help the other student up. That was when she noticed where the brunette was looking, right at the spot where she'd dropped her phone. That surprised expression, that sudden lapse into silence, said it all before the girl spoke.

"You're a magical girl too!?"

Fuyuko bit her lip, eyes darting from side to side. She held her phone to her chest as if her cover wasn't already blown. After that glimpse of the chat room, there was no point in denying it. Swallowing the tightness in her throat, she answered with a tense nod.

"Yes.... Eheh, I don't think I've seen you out and about in combat before," she whispered. Even if the appearance of some magical girls changed drastically when they transformed, like hers and Noriko's did, she was sure she'd recognise this girl's face if she'd seen her. Noting the awe in her tone, remembering what Sophia had said about a newcomer, Fuyuko added, "You don't sound like you've met many of us... Would you be new to this?"

Right then, her phone gave several notification beeps. Checking the screen, Fuyuko grimaced. What was this watcher doing, and what would their next move be? Her eyes shifted to the brunette. Gesturing to the side as a cue to break from the crowd, she lowered her voice further.

"There's uh... There's something I feel I should warn you about."

Not only had she been walked into two days in a row, but both times it was magical girls? What were even the chances of something like that?! As she was helped to her feet, the tiny, child-like girl averted her eyes.

"... Y... yeah..." she half-mumbled, embarrassed at her own outcry in the first place. "... Was it seriously that obvious?"

Gaah, this was just... whatever, whatever! Meeting another magical girl wasn't a bad thing! Hikari took a deep breath. Sure, they were enemies because of the Hex Night, or at least they would be eventually, but for now they didn't have to be, right? They were basically allies up until the moment they chose to fight. Not that she could just let her guard down because of that, at least if they ended up alone somewhere. Doing that would be completely idiotic. But for now...

Just what was she talking about? Hikari didn't quite understand.

"... If it's the Hex Night, I already know," asserted Hikari, assuming that would be the case, "I was brought into this because some spear girl jumped me because she was scared of more competition!"

@LuckyBlackCat

---

@VitaVitaAR

Fuyuko winced. Did this girl mean that was how she'd found out about the Hex Night, or had she not even been a magical girl when the attack happened? Would some people stoop to that level? "Ehh, were you alright?" she asked, eyebrows furrowing as she recalled Sophia's words. A new recruit getting a less than warm welcome.

Given the brunette's rough experiences, Fuyuko clenched her phone, wondering how to warn her about the current threat. "And, uh... It-It isn't just the Hex Night," she whispered. "Well, this could be related. This figure in a strange rabbit mask... They've been spying on people. On magical girls. I don't know their reasons, or what exactly is going on, but..." She paused, shuddering. "It can't be anything good."

Letting the revelation hang in the air, she cringed at her own tone. Magical girls were meant to embody positivity, yet here she was, talking doom and gloom. She couldn't be making the newcomer's introduction to this secret world any easier. "S-Sorry if that didn't help matters!" She bowed, lips twitching in an attempt at a reassuring smile. "The good news is, people are looking into this. Myself included. We'll... We'll do our best."

Hikari was silent for a few moments. She had already seen enough of the Hex Night to know it was definitely intense, but this whole thing about someone in a rabbit mask... that just sounded weird. And creepy. They were spying on magical girls? Why? Hikari couldn't believe it didn't have anything to do with the Hex Night. Why else would they be spying only on magical girls? Unless... they were a creepy pervert that somehow knew about magical girls. But that seemed kind of unlikely.

"... So... there's some creepy person peeping on magical girls?" Hikari asked, folding her arms. For a few moments, she was silent. She was a new magical girl, and... well, wasn't there only one thing a magical girl could do when it came to something like this? Even if it was the Hex Night, that didn't mean that she couldn't be worried about her fellow magical girls' wellbeing, right? And if there was some creepy person spying on them...

"Hmph. Someone like that deserves to be beaten down," she continued, arms still folded across her slight chest, "Do you have any idea who they are?"

@LuckyBlackCat

---

@VitaVitaAR

"Well..." Fuyuko frowned, mulling over her theories. "I can't say for sure, but there are a few possibilities." Every so often, she glanced around to make sure they were out of earshot of other students, particularly female ones. That other chat room user had been right. A magical girl really couldn't be too careful.

Turning her attention back to the brunette, Fuyuko continued, voice low to be on the safe side. "How much do you know about concepts and archetypes?" As soon as she spoke, she cringed, raising a clenched hand to her lower lip. New as this girl was to the world of magic, had that sounded insulting? She probably already knew about all that from the ally Sophia had described.

"If-If you already know... Eheheh, sorry I asked," Fuyuko added, hunching her shoulders as if shrinking back from her. "But thinking over them has given me a few ideas about who or what the watcher might be."

"Concepts and Archetypes?" Hikari paused for a moment, thinking back to the events of last night. That had been pretty straightforward, getting past the somewhat non-indicative names.

"Of course. A Concept is the general idea of your magic, and the Archetype is the specific tool or weapon or whatever that embodies your powers the most," she said, letting out another small huff, arms still folded. Was this girl just stalling or something? You didn't mention something like some creep spying on magical girls and then stall without letting somebody know anything else. Maybe she was just being a little impatient, but... knowing more about some rabbit mask freak seemed pretty important, right?

"I learned all about that stuff already," she added, cocking her head to one side, pigtails bobbing. If not for her uniform(and perhaps even with it), it would be incredibly easy to believe she was a much younger girl. Not that Hikari would take kindly to such a mistake. "So you don't have to wait any longer. If there's some creep running around like that, they need to be stopped."

@LuckyBlackCat

As the day went by she watched many things. Many people passed. The forest was quiet. Things seemed peaceful, serene. Though the dusty smell of an old warehouse was ever present the air itself was peaceful. In her peaceful isolation Sophia sat alone in her wheel chair. She was just watching the lives of many people, especially those passing by the forest.

Flitting into a specific raven's view something caught her eye. Getting a closer look she recognized the girl she met at the forest. Having seen her in her standard form there was no mistaking her. She was with the newcomer too, the one who was attacked not long before her encounter with Fuyuko.

Intrigued Sophia lingered on this sight. On a power-line the crow of hers rested, it's eye on the two of them. Their sound was distant, hard to make out however. It was like listening to a conversation underwater. This was not to mention the fact that two native Japanese speakers talking to each other was not the easiest conversation for a foreigner like herself to follow.

Still she watched, curious to see what came of their meeting.

---

@VitaVitaAR
@LuckyBlackCat

Himeko gave a warm smile to Chise as she retrieved her questions. This girl was clearly the sensible one of the duo, though she wondered how these two came to be interested in shrine maidens. She didn't recall shrine visits being a mandatory school subject, and not many girls seemed too interested in being a miko, did they? Ah well, these two seemed young enough to perhaps romanticise the inherent mysticism of her position? If that was the case, Himeko had a duty to keep that belief alive!

"Hmm..." Himeko tilted her head slightly, deep in thought as she kept a firm hold of Hanako's hand, "well, I suppose it's been pretty... normal? Just like normal girls, I eat, sleep, speak with the gods, exorcise wicked spirits at night, and just between us, but sometimes I sneak some chocolate into my diet~"

The shrine maiden spoke with a straight face, enjoying herself. Chise had turned her gaze towards the sweet shop for a moment, and it would be cruel to prevent all these girls from having something to eat if this was going to continue, so the shrine maiden added, "speaking of chocolate, how about I treat you all? Hanako-chan here was crying for some earlier, I wouldn't want to keep her waiting any longer..."

@VitaVitaAR@Raineh Daze

"Alright! Time to find some magical girls and kick their butts! I'm part of the Hexing Night, booyah!" Saya pumped her fist triumphant as she walked down one of the back alleys towards home. Recklessly pulling out her Hex Symbol, she gave it a toss before snatching it out of the air with her other hand. She grinned at it, for it symbolized that she was gonna get her fill of great fights against other magical girls.

...

As soon as she found them. A shadow was cast over her face as she realized she really didn't have any plan whatsoever for finding and engaging those other magical girls. What if she couldn't find them, and so they got to sneak attack her and she never got a good fight? Ooh man, that'd just be awful. What could she do to prevent this awful fate?

Scratching her hair, she thought about it as hard as she could.

"Maybe I should have paid attention when they were explaining things. The rules were no showing or hurting civilians... Break their hex symbol... And I think I kinda zoned out after that. Mmm?" She brought her hand down to shield her eyes as she realized she was out of the back alley and facing the setting sun.

~Ooooh right, gotta be quiet about it in public.~ She glanced surreptitiously about herself to make sure no one had heard her, before setting back on her journey back home. Saya still had plenty of energy, but dinner was a must before heading out again, that was for sure.

---

Nico really shouldn't have been hanging around town like she was.

Her parents most likely expected her to come home straight away after school had ended, just like how she usually did, but the habit had been broken more and more often ever since she'd become a magical girl. This time was no different as Nico aimlessly wandered into town. Something was weighing on her mind, something that made her uneasy. The Hex Night had begun in earnest just the day prior, and she'd already met two of her 'competitors.' It still didn't feel right to fight each-other like that. Thoughts like those made her feel inferior and weak. It was reassuring that Nari was on her side, but... if Nico didn't get over these feelings, surely she'd be one of the first to go.

She couldn't let that happen. She wouldn't let that happen.

"Merw."

A sudden meow coming from beneath her snapped Nico out of those thoughts, having her glance down at the origin. It was her little friend again. She was showing up a lot more than Nico remembered her to. Still, she happily crouched down and picked up the cat, who didn't offer any resistance as it gleefully hung from Nico's arms.

"Little troublemaker..." she whispered to her with a giggle. She bent one of her hands back a little so her fingers could scratch behind the burmilla's ears. The cat let out another delighted meow. The two of them walked a bit further into town like this. Then, suddenly, it climbed out from between Nico's arms. She didn't get the impression it was bored of her, so she asked "Hey, what's wrong?" to the little creature. Its tail was stiff and straight as the cat paused for a moment, just long enough for Nico to be caught off-guard when it suddenly ran across the corner. She chased after it, worried about whatever happened, only to find it hissing at another girl she'd never met. The girl was only a few meters away from the cat.

"A-ah, excuse me..." Nico apologetically told the stranger, crouching down next to the cat. "It's okay... you don't have to worry," she reassured it. The cat looked back at Nico, perked up a little, and jumped right into her arms again, snuggling itself into her chest this time. Nico sighed and stood upright again, giving the stranger the least awkward smile she could muster. Looking at her better, it didn't seem like this girl was any older than Nico herself. Blonde, too... what a strange hair colour. Was it dyed?

"I'm sorry if she bothered you... I usually don't have to keep her in check like this," Nico told the girl as she looked back down at the kitty, still rubbing its head against her uniform.

"Oh! Hello!" Saya's face immediately brightened as a cute kitty came into view. "There?" Only for it to turn rapidly to confusion as the cat turned to hissing and growling at her.

"Uuuuuh... I don't remember petting any dogs today. Why are you so mad at me?" Saya knelt down to face the kitty down low, a bewildered expression on her face. "See, I don't smell. Or... Wait, maybe I do?" Saya held her hand out for the cat for a moment before bringing it back to her face for a quick sniff, that left her just as puzzled as before.

As Nico turned the corner and recovered her frustrated feline, Saya rose to greet her with an equally apologetic smile. "Aha, cats, right? Who can understand 'em? Truly mysterious creatures." She tried as best she could to play it off with a little laughter. "I mean, yeah, I don't blame you for not being on the watch for this. Pretty bizarre." Saya waved her hands as if she could somehow make the awkwardness go away. But considering she was still holding her Hex Symbol in one of her hands, it would probably just make things more alarming for anyone who knew what such things meant.

---

@VitaVitaAR

Fuyuko bit her lip at the sharp tone. Just as she'd feared, the other girl seemed to have taken her question as an insult. "S-Sorry... But in a nutshell, yes," she replied, before getting to the point. "You see, while looking for the watcher, I caught a glimpse of a mansion in the woods. I was thinking either the house or this person could be an archetype. It's just a possibility, but it might give us a better idea of what we're dealing with."

She fell silent, raising her hand as if to cover her mouth. Too late to take back the use of "us" and "we", as if she expected assistance - even if the newcomer had hinted at wanting to offer it. "I-I mean, there's no obligation to help out," Fuyuko added. "They will be stopped, another magical girl and I are going to make sure of it. If you really do want to, though, we've all got to be cautious about this."

And about each other, she thought, looking over the brunette. Having only known about all this for a day, the other girl probably wasn't in the Hex Night. Still, even if she wasn't a threat, others were. What if the three caught the attention of competitors like the one mentioned just now? And was bringing a new recruit on a dangerous mission really the right thing to do anyway?

"... Hmph, Archetype or whatever they are, it's creepy and wrong," Hikari concluded, arms folded firmly across her chest as she spoke. If it was another magical girl using their Archetype to spy, wasn't that really creepy? What Archetype would even be a creepy person in a bunny mask? Weren't they all supposed to be from mythology and history or something? Tokiko had mentioned it could also be something that inspired human imagination, or something like that, but Hikari couldn't think of anything that would be a creepy person in a bunny mask. If she'd seen someone like that spying on her last night, she wouldn't have hesitated to take her hammer right to them!

"I might be new, but a magical girl is a magical girl," asserted Hikari, with a firm nod, "There's no way I'd just let someone creepy like that run around, even if they are a magical girl's Archetype. That just makes the magical girl creepy too!"

@LuckyBlackCat

Almost immediately as those words left Himeko's mouth, Chise's more serious visage shattered. Her eyes were shining, and it almost appeared as if there was a little drool in the corner of her mouth.

"Really?" she asked, excitement creeping into her voice immediately, "Is that okay, onee-san? Is that really okay?"

She took a step forward, the offer of sweets having instantly won her over.

Hina's eyes, meanwhile, were shining for an entirely different reason. The idea of a miko fighting evil spirits and speaking to the gods absorbed her attention thoroughly. If that was all true, then the miko was definitely a magical girl, wasn't she?! There was no question of it, someone like that absolutely had to be a magical girl! In fact, she was already feeling incredibly confident in this plan. The little brunette girl had no doubt in her mind that they'd truly found a magical girl, and that they could even defeat her tonight!

Sure, it would be their first battle against another magical girl, and that was going to be way different than fighting shades, but still!

@RolePlayerRoxas@Raineh Daze

---

"W-well, I'm just glad she didn't cause too much trouble," Nico replied to the mysterious girl, looking down and scratching the cat behind its ears. "She's not even mine, really... I've just been seeing her a lot lately. I doubt she's a stray, though... strays don't act this friendly to people."

It really was a curious case. Nico can't recall ever meeting their owner. She'd always just assumed they lived close to her school since the cat usually hung around there, but the both of them were unusually far removed from that area by this point. "Say, have you..." she said, intending to ask a question, upturning her eyes, and pausing. Nico saw it. The symbol. She couldn't before, because it wasn't too large and had been clutched pretty tightly, but between the fingers of this mysterious young woman was a Hex Symbol. Entirely identical to hers. Colour drained from Nico's face because she knew what it meant.

"..."

Silence. Something was caught in her throat. Nico didn't know what to do. Here she'd been, worrying about it just moments before. She took a deep breath and put her kitty down, petting its head. "Its okay. I'll see you later, okay?" she comforted it. Nico crouched, pulled her last snack for it out of her pocket, tore it open and happily watched the cat enjoy herself. It didn't take long to run off after it had finished, and after it looked up to Nico with a bit of confusion. She stood up. Nico didn't face the other girl, she just looked in the direction where the cat had ran off to. "Sorry. You're a magical girl, too, huh?"

Now she looked back.

"I don't feel right hiding it, so..."

Nico pulled out her own Hex Symbol. "I'm Nico Kaneko. It's nice you meet you."

---

@VitaVitaAR

It looked like there was no talking the headstrong new recruit out of it. All Fuyuko could do was resolve to make sure nothing went wrong on this mission, but uncertainty and self-doubt chipped at her morale. "Well... If it's what you feel is right," she whispered, lifting up her phone, "I'll let the person I'm working with know." She hesitated, then remembering the girl's dislike of waiting, tapped a quick message to Shining Fist.

"Hello? It's Yamazaki here, and it's about the watcher situation. Sorry I couldn't find much last night, but there's someone else who wants to help us, is that ok?"

Pressing send, she could only hope none of them would end up regretting this.

"Thank you..." She inclined her head to the brunette, that strained smile tugging at her lips. "We'll need a plan, but hopefully with three of us, we can make some leeway this time. And uh... Sorry I haven't introduced myself yet. Yamazaki Fuyuko, and your name is...?"

There wasn't an immediate response, but that could simply mean that Shining Fist was busy and didn't have time to reply at the moment.

"I'm Hoshino Hikari," Hikari introduced herself, placing one hand to her chest as she spoke. "I might be new, but there's no way I'm going to let that hold me back."

She paused for a moment. Her family didn't expect her to come home immediately after she was done at school, so she had a little bit of time. And when it was something important like this, it only stood to reason that she'd take the time she had to try and help figure out just what the deal with this creeper really was.

"I have some time before I have to get home," she added, "Should we try and find that weird house again or something?"

@LuckyBlackCat

Saya's eyes narrowed when Nico paused. Something was wrong. Why would she stop so suddenly? Then she followed Nico's eyes and saw the Hex Symbol. Huh... Well, she'd only know what that meant if she was a magical girl too, right? Maybe this could be her strategy! Could she put it on a necklace or something? Regardless about that, there was no way she could let this girl out of her sight now!

Saya's stance straightened and she rolled her shoulders back confidently, tucking away her hex symbol and then crossing her arms while Nico shared a moment with the cat. Saya wasn't going to go down to some sneak attack, no, she had a Magical girl right in front of her to fight! Course, she wasn't going to attack on the street or while she had a cat in her arms, but they were totally gonna fight later in a great place!

"Saya Ogata!" Saya smiles fiercely as she returns her own name in answer to Nico's. "I'm-pfft-Wait... Okay, that is waaaay too perfect. Your name is Nico Kaneko, and you show up holding a mysterious acting cat? I bet your magical girl form is cat themed too, this is rich!" She suddenly cracked up as she finished parsing Nico's name. She couldn't help but titter, futilely hiding her laughter behind a raised hand.

"Eeeeh, sorry about that. It's nice to meet you too." Saya finally managed to compose herself. "So, when and where you wanna fight? I'm aching to get in my first proper battle of this Hex Night?" She offered, as if battle was the most natural solution.

---

@VitaVitaAR

A few seconds of silence passed. "Uh..." Fuyuko considered her options. On the one hand, it seemed wisest to wait for Shining Fist to respond and take the lead. On the other, Hoshino and waiting didn't exactly go well together - and what if someone else got hurt in the meantime?

"We could do," she finally replied, "as long as we're both careful, since it's just the two of us. I can stay out, I'll just quickly tell..."

Right on cue, a hand clapped onto her shoulder, a cry of "GRAAAHHHHH!" making her whirl around. Seeing Noriko and the exaggerated scary face she pulled, Fuyuko accompanied her sister's guffaws with a much softer laugh.

"Hey, how could I resist?" Noriko chirped, that grin spreading across her face - although it wasn't her usual one. Too wide, failing to reach her normally warm brown eyes, which seemed empty. She gave off the air of an actress in a comedy play. "C'mon sis, Mom's waiting for us."

Once more, Fuyuko fell quiet. "Well, uh..." Her eyes darted between Noriko and Hikari. "I'm actually planning on staying out and about, if that's ok with everyone."

With a look she knew, one that said she didn't blame her, Noriko nodded. "All good, I'll let Mom know." Again, her voice sounded a little too chipper. "Just tell us when you're heading back, ok? Well, see ya!"

Fuyuko returned the nod. "Later," she murmured, noting the unusually heavy steps as Noriko left. The thought of the responsibility she'd burdened her sister with made Fuyuko's heart ache. Head drooping, she faced Hoshino.

"L-Look, on second thoughts, maybe..." She glanced over her shoulder, staring into space. Shouldn't she spend the afternoon supporting Noriko with the home situation? Wouldn't be be best to wait for nightfall and Shining Fist's reply after all? If she did, though, and Hoshino investigated on her own, were problems to arise, she'd be responsible for having abandoned her. Magical girls tended to work in teams for a reason. "Uh, never mind."

She lifted up her phone, wondering whether to invite her sister along. Hoshino surely wanted to meet a magical girl she could trust. Then again, if they got caught up in this mission past evening, there'd be nobody to protect the home. Sighing, Fuyuko lowered the device. Beep. Right then, a text notification blinked onto the screen.

"Hey, if this is Hex Night stuff and you won't be back until much, much later, I'll tell Mom you're staying with a friend. I mean it's not like she won't understand. Again, best of luck! Sweep through 'em like the snowstorm you are!"

Giving a twitch of a smile despite the pang of guilt, Fuyuko typed a reply. "It is, sort of... Sorry I can't be around, but thanks." The instant she sent the message, she wished she hadn't written "sort of". Someone as perceptive and protective as Noriko would worry, want to know more.

Trying to focus on the task at hand, Fuyuko raised her eyes from the phone. "S-Sorry. Just a quick message," she muttered. "Uh, anyway... If you're ready, let's go." She started on her way to the school gates, towards the path to the woods.

Hikari most certainly did not jump when Fuyuko's sister surprised the other girl. That definitely wasn't the case at all. She was looking right at her, why ever would she get surprised by something like that? Don't be ridiculous. Someone like her would never do something as silly as that, especially now that she'd become a magical girl and participated in an actual battle.

She remained silent for a few moments and allowed the two siblings to talk to one another. From her perspective, it just seemed like the typical conversation between siblings... Hikari didn't know either of them well enough to pick up on anything else. She waited patiently as Fuyuko tapped out a message on her phone, but as soon the other girl was done she was already turning to make her way towards the forest.

"I'm sure your family would understand if they knew!" she declared, with a firm nod, "Someone creepy like that can't just be allowed to do whatever they please."

@LuckyBlackCat