ᴋʏōᴋᴀ's ᴅɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ ᴄᴏʟᴏʀ ✦
#A641C8ᴀʀɪᴇʟ's ᴅɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ ᴄᴏʟᴏʀ ✦
#AC1947
Kyōka stood as calmly as she could on the brink of the rooftop, her scarf flapping loudly in the wind. She gazed down, watching the tiny specks of people and little dots of moving cars on the street twenty three stories below. Even if a passerby were to look up, there was no way they'd be able to see her from so far off. Indeed, there was a certain sense of security that came with knowledge of one's own anonymity. Even with eyes on her, she didn't have to be afraid. Was this the sort of way a Magical Girl was supposed to feel? That thought put her a little bit at ease - or at least, as much "at ease" as she could possibly be with the wind threatening to rip her over the edge and send her plummeting downward to join those specks on the pavement. Another gust buffeted her, and she took a step back on instinct, not wanting to chance that her tiny form might be carried completely over the precipice. Kyōka breathed slowly inward and outward, doing her best to calm her racing nerves. In the first place, what reason even was there to be nervous? This was only a trial run. She'd just be mapping out an area she could keep track of in the future, not actually picking battles of life and death. She wasn't in any danger - not even from the height, now that she thought about it. Her powers could easily break her fall without even winding her. In the first place, there was no place for fear - that was just the ordinary, cowardly junior high school student trying to get the better of the thing she'd become - a Magical Girl.
And, if she was a Magical Girl, then it would befit her to act like one. So, steeling her resolve, she braced herself against the featureless concrete of the rooftop, and stretched out her right hand ahead of her. The fairy that had accompanied her in silence thus far gingerly alighted from her shoulder, fluttering into the gusty air and spreading her violet wings. Ariel floated down before her, giving a re-assuring smile.
"Are you ready?" She asked gently. Kyōka nodded wordlessly in response, taking a deep breath as Ariel descended before her outstretched hand. Kyōka could feel the warmth of the tiny woman's palm pressing up against the center of her own, and with that warmth came an energy that made her hair stand momentarily on end. The electric heat spread outward in all directions from the two's joined hands, coalescing into a ring of purple light marked with countless unintelligible symbols.
"In accordance with the contract, the power that dwells within you shall now be released. I will be correspondent to command, and be as your right hand, as you are mine. I am Ariel. By this name, I bid you show yourself, defender of Humanity!" As Ariel spoke, the light of the circle began to crackle and gleam even more brightly than before. Slowly at first, then ever more quickly, it began to spin, and then at last moved forward, slowly traveling down Kyōka's extended arm and towards her body. She stared into the brilliant sigil as if it were a door opening before her, and, at last steeling herself, she stepped through. In an instant, every part of her it passed over was consumed, her clothes and body becoming indistinct as if melting within that radiant glow, taking on its luminescence themselves. Then, slowly, that light began to take on a new form, cycling around the borders of the sigil as it closed around her.
"I-In accordance with the contract," Kyōka stammered, very intent on getting every single part of the rather lengthy transformation ritual absolutely right. As she spoke, she could feel the power centering in her arms, her body fitting snugly within its shell just as perfectly as her hands fit themselves into their new gloves. It crawled next up her legs, billowing outward from black boots to form a skirt that fluttered violently about her.
"I will humbly accept that which you have bestowed. I will watch over those who need protection, and shield those who are too weak to fight. I am... I am a Magical Girl! And I... have now arrived!"A long white coat and a single long tail of fluffy purple hair billowed outward in the wind, and two violet eyes opened anew. Two voices spoke now as one as a big pink ribbon formed across her chest, tying itself as if in representation of the contract that had just been sealed.
"Magical Girl Aegis Violet!" "Ignite Heart!"
Light... She felt so light! It was like she could just hop into the air and float away. No, a better way to describe it would be to say that it felt like this was already happening. An unseen power, almost indistinguishable from the air itself, had wrapped itself around her, bursting forth with so much as the slightest movement she made. She raised a hand to brush her ponytail back over her shoulder, and could hear the wind howling in her wake. But it was too much. She heard her arm popping quite disconcertingly, and a twinge of pain ran up her stiff limb. It was like waking from a long sleep in an uncomfortable place - her movements were still groggy, and her body was sore.
Then, little by little, the feeling faded, until it was only lingering on the edge of her consciousness. Suddenly, she didn't feel all that different from how she had before, as if she hadn't transformed at all.
"Limiters engaged," Ariel notified her, giving her the confirmation that it was safe to start moving around in earnest. Now that her power wasn't overflowing so rapidly, she could actually maintain this form, albeit in a much weaker state. But, since today was just for exploring, that didn't really matter too much.
"Alright," the now very magical Aegis Violet announced to nobody in particular.
"Starting out, let's have a bit of a look around." She sized up the area, before motioning to a few city blocks close to the seaside that seemed, at first glance, to contain two large neighborhoods and one large shopping street.
"That looks like a good place to start, doesn't it? It's easily within walking distance of my apartment, even in my normal form, so I should be able to patrol without having to transform every time and draw attention to myself.""You make a good point. What's more, don't you pass through that area on your way back from school? It's right on your way home. I'd say that's a perfect place to start, especially since from up here, you could probably make it over to that street in just a couple of jumps with your powers. Go on, try it out!""If you say so, I guess I'll try it..." The violet Magical Girl was a bit less than convinced, but if that was what Ariel wanted, then she knew best. So, gulping down her breath, she stepped a little further back from the ledge, then took a running start towards the edge of the roof. Ariel crouched low in the hood of her coat, clinging to the fabric in preparation for what would come next.
"That's the way! Now, when you reach the edge, kick off of it with your right leg as hard as you can!" Ariel said encouragingly in her ear. But, Aegis didn't have time to process much more than that, because in the next instant, the ground beneath her was suddenly pushed violently away, sending her shooting upward like a rocket almost half again the height of the building she'd jumped from. Clouds of chilly vapor swirled about her, and for just a moment, Kyōka was living a dream she'd long thought impossible: she was flying.
Sure, she was probably at least a tenth of a mile up in the air now, but she couldn't help but laugh despite herself. She'd tried out her powers under much more limited circumstances, but never once had she ever done anything like this. The rush of air against her face took her breath away, and looking down, she could see most of Umitori City from quite literally a bird's eye view.
"Ariel!" Aegis called back, shutting her eyes against the wind.
"How much power did I just use to do that?""Calculating," Replied the fairy methodically, hanging onto her charge's hood for dear life, yet still remaining as composed as ever.
"About three percent," She answered at last. Aegis would have beamed, if the air slamming into her as she free fell hadn't prevented her from moving her face much at all.
"Then I can make a jump like that more than thirty times before I run out? That's amazing!""While I'm glad to see you enjoying yourself, I would recommend that you do something to break our fall," Interjected the fairy, bringing her metaphorically down to earth before gravity could do the same, only literally.
"Oh... Right. Umm... How... How do I do that, exactly?" Aegis asked sheepishly, the ground below her suddenly looking a lot less like a beautiful landscape and a lot more like imminent death.
"Just jump again!" Aegis blinked. But how could she do that when there was nothing to jump on? Just as she thought this, however, it suddenly felt like, despite the fact that she was currently in free fall, there really was something underneath her. So, she "jumped," and found herself rapidly slowing her fall, then vaulting a little further forward before beginning to plummet again. She was now only a few stories up, however, so repeating her earlier motion, she managed to break her fall rather quickly, and found herself descending without incident atop the roof of what looked to be a local diner of some sort. Stumbling out of her rather clumsy and awkward landing, she took a moment to catch her breath.
At this moment, Aegis Violet was sure of exactly two things. Firstly, she was going to be utterly terrified of doing anything until she figured out exactly how her powers could and could not be used. But secondly, this was going to be a lot more fun than she'd first imagined.
