Even if there a shred of indecision in the hearts of the girls before her, their direction was already decided the moment they appeared as a mob rather then individuals.
"Such is the way of school that the blind lead the blind, and none question the rhetoric thrown in their faces..." Tsubasa bore the jeers and threats stoicilly, her face bared and unmoving till her eyes snapped upwards, drawn to Ozma as she looked past the thin veil obscuring her from a layer of the truth. It had certainly taken her long enough, what with being the prodigy that she was. Affecting a sigh of resignation she waved her fan at a measured pace, mindful that everyone was still jumpy and expecting an attack.
Instead her Grimoire floated before them, the physical manifestation that very few ever found reason to project. A firey tailed fox in the audience, however, knew full well the circumstances one may do so and blanched with unwarranted worry over it's appearence. With another wave the tome begin to open, pages fluttering one by one, steadily revealing a darkness emenating from it as it drew to the end.
"I see there is no convincing you as we stand here now, but I shall not part on such false beliefs without remediation. You speak as though it were Pageless alone that required to change, but both sides must adapt. You are denying the possibility because, rightly so, it is impossible for you to do so as you are now. You think the Pageless can only eat, but you speak as enemies to enemies." "Any species in the same environment shall compete for resources and space. Pageless kill humans, but do they kill more then the coyote would kill if in equal numbers and flooding our streets? Pageless exist, and nothing that Magical Girls have done has made a step towards changing that. We can not drive them to extinction like the predators of old, so we must fall upon the tested method." "Hybridization and domestication. We shall be as them, and they shall be as the wolf became the domestic dog. They feed on Grimoires and life because no one has considered an alternate method of feeding. Well, I have." At least the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter fluttered to its final page, a serene image of the Princess Kaguya ascending to the Heavens surrounded by attendents...and then it turned again, a page stained in shades of black and purple. Words that were not written, that wriggled and writhed under the eye stood out against the crisp page.
"I AM RETURNED"
"Two among you told me to feed myself to the Pageless. As you can see, I already am, and together we are creating new stories all our own. No longer shall the Bamboo Cutter abandon the world for the purity of the heavens. If I must walk in muck, I shall. That is, the real Tsubasa shall." The light in the mall shifted entirely, darkening as a second barrier snapped into place atop Ozma's own. the shadows deepened to impentrable blackness, the Pageless lost to eyes and magical sense alike as a small pool of light illuminated the spot where Roma stood. In her place now, though, was none other then one of her smiling, jovial
attendants. Unnervingly when it opened its mouth, the voice was that of Roma's own in its same placid tone.
"Had you come as less of a mob I'd have been happy to appear in the flesh, but there was never a hope to speak rationally with such a force arrayed before me. Instead I shall have to leave my attendants to play host for you while I see if those at Merrywell are more receptive. Have no fear, for there is only one murderer in this mall to my knowledge, and she flies above you as I speak."Then the barrier condensed, and the light of the sun was smothered utterly. The shadow was absolute and not a light was on in the abandoned mall, only the faint glow of magical projectiles over Stripes head could be captured by the eye-
A flaming ballista bolt shattered the gloom as Suzuya roared her defiance, a streak of incandesent light streaking right where the Attendent once stood and setting ablaze to the art store. Paints and oils went up, acrid smoke and scents assaulting their nostrils as the flames licked greadily at dry paper and pastel alike.
And the light it cast revealed not a single Pageless to be seen, save for the haunting laughter of Roma's voice, echoing from deeper in the mall.
The Merrywell cafeteria was a fine communal space, bathed in the chatter of friends meeting between classes and the aromas of foods from across the centuries. Two students sat in the center, not a word said between them as they enjoyed their tea. Then one smiled, her posture growing excited and outgoing as she manifested an ornate robe and placed it upon her summoner's shoulders.
Moonlit Tsubasa appeared within the heart of Merrywell in a flash of moonlight, and the Pageless fell from her like a tide of darkwater upon the unprepared Magical Girls. Clad in the Vestemants of Heaven, the Rabbit eared Magical Girl set down her tea and drank in the screams of students borne down by the creatures they hunted, the destruction of tables and wasting of meals.
"Hybridization and Domestication." Change could be painful after all, but she'd bring the Magical Girls an end to the hopeless conflict even if she had to pour the Pageless into their grimoires herself.
"You all shall be the first I have had the priveledge of providing a Revised Grimoire."