Ariamis
Danyel
FunnierPrez
Mixtape Ghost N
Lunarlord34
“So I’ve gotta share a banner with these losers now?”
— Oros
Having gotten some contact information from Mia and Connie, Raven had to part ways with them. She wasn’t really comfortable bringing two others back home. Actually, maybe she could check that house down the street. Pretty sure it had a for sale sign. With it being late there were not a lot of people around so after running down a few blocks in the neighborhood she turned in to check through a window. Empty, no people, no furniture, nothing. Not ideal for sure but It’ll work until she could get in contact with Janet and Jenna. Blinking in she opened the door so she could bring Faith inside.
”Mmmhmm…”
Faith groaned in her pain induced slumber. Her wounds had been healed, but it would take a moment for her body to get the rest it needed. The spirit carried faith into a hallway to search for something to lay her on.
Raven turned around to shut the door, but found that it stopped a few inches before closing. No amount of pushing would shut the door. Soon enough, the door was shoved back towards Raven. Her only recourse was to release it and stumble backwards, unless she wanted to risk riding the door handle into the wall. But with the door open, she could tell why it wouldn’t shut. Someone was shoving it open. It was a woman in a black shrine maiden’s outfit.
”Sup.”
She stepped into the house. ”Gotta say, I didn’t take you for a squatter.” She used her foot to grab the door and shut it behind herself. ”Figured Beacon’s dogs were too noble to hang out in shit holes like this. But whatever.” Her eyes traveled up and down the front of Raven’s body. ”Oh cool, you figured out that inner boob is best boob. It’s pretty good isn’t it?” She pointed at the “keyhole” in her own outfit. ”Give ‘em a show from just about any angle, unless they’re beside you. It’s a good way to ensure your prey doesn’t move too far off to the side.” Her grin widened. She wasn’t remarkably tall, but she towered over Raven. ”So what’s your game plan here? Illegally enter an empty lot and play karaoke all night?”
When the door didn't close and it was revealed that someone else had followed her Raven cursed under her breath. She knew she should have teleported a couple times to avoid this happening. Though with how the magical world is it could have been inevitable. At first she looked defensive and gripped her scepter, but was taken back slightly by the banter. "Last minute decision. Next time I'll try and remember and pack the red carpet." Even though Oros was taller than her she wouldn't back down. She knew she couldn't keep up a sustained fight if one broke out though.
The small talk on their outfit did elicit a slight smirk. At the very least this girl hadn't tried to knock her block off yet, though she looked about ready to be able to do just that. Raven supposed she'd been unfairly given an upgrade from her benefactor? Predecessor? Amber. Not that she had any control over such. "It has its advantages." She turned slightly and shifted so she could get in a better spot to catch a glimpse out a window. She didn't actually look in case the girl in front of her hadn't already caught on to her tricks. "But since you mentioned Beacon, I didn't think it would be very safe to bring her around them considering everything that just happened. Just needed to make a little pitstop."
”So you’re not a total shit for brains. That’s good.” She didn’t move from the doorway. ”I’ve got shit to do, so lets make this quick. I don’t know what you’re doing, but you’re way over your head taking this girl anywhere. You’re a Beacon science experiment, and they’re never going to forgive you for hiding something like this from them. Furthermore, it was a Beacon jihad who nuked herself along with her friend. That’ll twist her panties like you can’t believe.” she pointed down the hall. ”So it would save everyone some trouble if I took her off of your hands.”
This girl knew a whole lot more about her than anyone should. She hadn’t even had the chance to tell anyone where she’d come from. Oros was 100% correct that she had jumped into the deep end when she should probably be wearing floaties in the kiddie pool. "Just trying to help. I would have figured something out." Her stance would obviously be changing slowly as her plan, or lack thereof, was being picked apart.
”Sure you would have.” Oros walked deeper into the house. It didn’t take her more than a few seconds to find Faith and sling her over her shoulder. She came back into the front hall and looked at Raven. ”Raven Bianchi, right? Like Amber Bianchi?” Her grin only widened at Raven’s apparent surprise. ”How much of her do you remember?”
None of this encounter thus far was pleasant. Was this Twenty questions or something? Still she found herself answering almost out of morbid curiosity of what Oros might say. "I know what my patron shared of her. They're sticklers for the past. It's probably why I look so much like her." Having one's existence pinned to someone else was a little irksome, but Amber at least had a reputation and sounded a whole lot cooler than Raven ever hoped to live up to. Already she was regretting her choice in names. Even her first name was painfully on the nose.
At that moment, a new voice sounded as two figures stepped through the now open door.
“H-Hey! U-Umm, t-that w-wasn’t v-very nice j-just l-leaving us l-like that!” Connie told Raven in a distinctly annoyed tone, before gasping at the sight of Oros carrying Faith. “Oh! A-And w-who are y-you?!”
“A good question,” Gaia agreed. “In fact, I do not believe we have had the pleasure of making either of your acquaintances.”
“You girls were at the park right? Mask girl and what’s-her-tits with the popcorn rockets?” Oros drew her blade to examine the reflection. It was playing back the battle at the park. “Until I hear your name, I’ll just call you green giant. Even if those aren’t peas you’re swinging around.” She pointed at herself with her sword. “You can call me Oros. If you came here to save Faith I already did that. With my words and wit, I doth convince thee babe napper to change thy ways.” She sheathed her sword.
Yes, we did indeed fight at the park,” the verdant magical girl confirmed. “I am Gaia, Daughter of Mother Earth, and this is Connie, the Empress of Nightmares. We are both friends of Faith and are deeply concerned for her wellbeing. I am most glad that she is now in the hands of an ally, although I am curious if you can prove if that is indeed the case.”
“Y-Yeah,” Connie added, suppressing a shudder at the sound of the word “Mask.” “F-Faith said s-she h-had e-enemies at t-the p-park. S-She s-said t-they m-m-murdered L-Lotus!”
“Oh that whole thing. Let’s clear that shit up right now then.” Oros drew her katana again. “As previously demonstrated, Endless Eclipse has the power to divine shit. So let’s see how Lotus met her end.”
The sword’s murky black surface displayed a scene at the park. Faith, Lotus, Cindy, Ronin, Reaver, and others had arrived. The cardinal was there too. There was an altercation between Cindy and the Cardinal, but the image focused on Sylvia. She opened fire and nearly struck Faith if not for the barrier Reaver placed. Lotus gave into her rage and assaulted Sylvia. Lotus attacked aggressively, she mortally wounded Sylvia. But the beacon girl still had the strength for one last attack. They both died together.
“Pretty shitty way to go.” She lowered her sword. “Don’t have much to prove we’re friends. We serve the same patron if that counts.” Oros pointed at Raven. “Anyway, she’s with Lotus’s murderers. I didn’t think leaving Faith in her care was a good idea.”
”They’re not her murderers. They wanted the fighting to stop. Well, I don’t know about the rest of Beacon but the two I came with did.” She pleaded. ”I said it before. It wasn’t safe to take her to Beacon’s building so I didn’t. But my friends are healers and I know they would help Fath even though they’re ‘the enemy’ or whatever.” She looked over to Mia and Connie. ”That’s why I didn’t want to get you involved though, because they might have others with them that aren’t so sensible.”
Connie gasped as she saw how Lotus met her end. Such gruesome and senseless violence deeply upset her, and a black tear streamed down the cheek of her mask.
“L-Lotus…” Connie whimpered. “O-Okay,” she said after Oros and Raven had made their claims and rebuttals, slightly clenching her fists when Oros said that Raven was with Beacon. “B-But y-you s-still s-should h-have l-let u-us c-come w-with y-you!”
“Agreed,” Gaia added with a graceful nod, while placing a comforting hand on Connie’s shoulder. “If you feared for Faith’s safety, then surely that is all the more reason we should have remained at her side to protect her from your more fanatical associates. And as for you,” she added, turning to Oros, “I suppose we shall have to take you at your word, although I would prefer if we could wait until Faith awakens to see what she has to say about these matters.”
“Aaaaaand now we’re going to have a problem.” Faith was slung off of Oror’s shoulder and lowered to the ground. Her legs collapsed, and she sunk into a kneeling position. She was only able to sit upright because Oros kept a hand on her shoulder. “See the thing is that Faith’s ‘mommy’ never told her anything about me. So she doesn’t know who I am.” She rolled her shoulders. “We’ve been talking for a while, haven’t we? Tell you what, I’ve got things and people to do. While green and purple are typical anime villain colors, I feel like I can trust you won’t take her to Beacon.” Oros. tapped Faith’s knee with her katana. “If you two have a place you can crash with her, that’s great. She’d probably be safer around her friends. My blade will let me know if you’re pulling any shit.” Connie and Mia’s reflections were briefly reflected in the blade. “Otherwise, she can hang at my place. What do you wanna do?”
“W-Well, I g-guess s-she can s-stay with us,” Connie replied hesitantly. “R-Right, Mia?”
“Of course, my dearest Connie,” Gaia said serenely. “Faith is our friend, and it would simply not do to turn her away in her time of need.”
“T-Thanks, Mia,” Connie said with a smile. “B-But isn’t she still b-badly h-hurt?” she asked Oros.
“Do you want Faith or not?” Oros’s voice was getting sharper. “I’m more than capable of helping her, but your green friend seemed hesitant to let me leave with Faith. If you’re not capable of taking care of her then let me go already!”
Since none of them seemed particularly trusting of Raven she mostly sat back as they talked. Her goal in all of this was poorly planned, but went along with what was being discussed. By this point she had pretty much ruled out getting the twins involved. At least until she could talk to Faith about it. "I could... The three would all look at her and she would clear her throat and speak up. "I can get a hold of a healing artifact. I know that girl used one earlier but if there's more that needs to be healed then we can use that." She would offer. "Also I would like to point out that if I wanted to get her captured by Beacon then there was no reason to leave the park. They were right there." She would wave a hand about before pointing it off in the general direction of the park.
“Be at peace, Oros,” Gaia said in a soothing voice. “We would be more than happy to look after Faith, and I think having her awaken to people she knows and trusts would be the best option at this juncture. I believe my dearest Connie simply wished to know the state of Faith’s injuries as well as if she needed additional healing. To that end,” she added, turning to Raven, “Your offer of a healing artifact would be most appreciated.”
”Hmph!” Oros sheathed her sword and picked Faith up by the shoulders. She took a few steps towards Connie and set her down again, propping the fairy girl against her smaller friend. ”Her heart rate is normal, I don’t smell any bleeding. She should be able to finish recovering on her own.” Oros took a few steps back before looking at Raven. ”There was something I wanted to tell you, since it seems like you’re trying to take Amber’s identity for yourself.” Her grin slowly returned. ”Your teachers, I’m sure they gave you a romanticized version of the pirate. There’s no doubt that she accomplished a lot more in her year of being a magical girl than most shit heads do in a century. But people gloss over the ugly bits. They remember how charming she was and her accomplishments, but none of them really know who she was.” Oros closed her eyes as if reminiscing. ”Shining Scale was selfish. The only reason she agreed to help bring down Justine was because she knew her patron would bitch about it. She rescued one of Justine’s henchmen so that she could help find her treasure. It was not a selfless act, nor was it done out of any sort of mercy.” Her eyes opened again. ”But she was brave. In the end, she died stalling Justine’s ritual so that everyone had time to show up.” Oros’s smile turned into a sly grin. ”She hated the mint too. But not as much as Beacon. She was just a weak little pirate girl, and those shit eaters would kill her because of her debt.” The area around the black shrine maiden crackled. ”The two of you are nothing alike. You put yourself last, you’re a coward, and you dote over Beacon like a child.” She chuckled.
"But I am a child." Raven would state rather plainly.
”You’re a baby.” Oros corrected. ”All the same, most babies aren’t capable of doing more than crying and shitting in their diapers. You were trying to take care of a person, and were ready to hand them over to a complete stranger.” She gestured to Mia and Connie. ”You took her away from her friends. Who knows what I was going to do with her.” A black mass expanded behind Oros. ”Anyway, talking this long is frickin’ boring. I had a date with a damsel I saved from a troll in another world. Since Faith has some guardians now, I can get back to that.” She adjusted her sash. ”I think you can change. That’s all this speech was for. Otherwise, we might have to catch hands in the future.” The black mass swallowed Oros before fading into the darkness.
Frustratedly rubbing her hands over her face Raven groaned a bit. Feeling defeated despite not a single punch being thrown she dropped her head. Looking over at Connie and Mia she didn't make eye contact. "I'm sorry girls. I thought it would be better if was just me. Guess I'm not very good at this stuff." She kicked lightly at the carpet.
“T-That’s o-okay,” Connie told Raven, while giving her a small smile. “I can t-tell you m-meant w-well, y-you’re j-just n-new at t-this, like m-me.”
“Indeed,” Gaia concurred with a smile of her own. “Your intentions were pure, despite your mistakes, and I would be most pleased to count you as an ally in the future.”
Considering that Janet had been hurt pretty bad she suspected that she would be MIA for a while anyway. ”I would love that. I’ll get that artifact as soon as I can and get back in contact. I’ll give you a call.” She pointed to her head. ”We should probably get out of here though. I didn’t really want to break and enter.” The lot of them would exit, Raven would lock up and they would go their separate ways.
Following the disaster at Penrose Park, Jenna had immediately taken Janet to the Beacon infirmary, expending all the mana she had doing so. Janet's body had taken a toll from the dirty bomb, but with all that Beacon had that could be treated easily enough. What had Jenna concerned was that after a couple of days she hadn't woken up. Each time she would try and check on what was happening with her psychic power she got a jumbled mess of thoughts and flashes that made her head hurt. She knew that Janet had been trying to get details from Cindy's mind, so her best hope was that once she had time to process everything that she would wake up.
Due to the events at the rave though Jenna was called to produce more White Coins. With Janet's physical condition stable it was arranged to have her moved to the lab where she could personally be monitored by her sister. To some extent the work was the only thing that kept the girl occupied until she finally awoke. "...Oh... why are we... in the lab?"
Dropping what she was doing Jenna whirled around and was at her sisters side in an instant. "I had you brought here after your body recovered. We couldn't do anything to reach you while you were out." She gently stroked a hand against Janet's cheek before checking her forehead for a temperature, which there was none.
Smiling softly Janet patted her sister's hand. "I'm feeling fine. It's my head that's hurting." Sitting up she twisted a bit to pop her back from laying down transformed for so long. "I was in Cindy's mind, I got in and was getting everything I could when there was a big backlash." Thinking back she couldn't quite recall those last moments. Scratching her head a bit she gave up and turned to her sister who returned with a White Coin. "What's this for?"
"Someone at the rave took out a bunch of our sisters. Anyone who had the ShineSpark was protected from the attack, so I think it's time to use one. I'll fill you in on everything else." Both taking hold of the coin it activates.
---------------------------------------------
Being filled in on current events it became clear that work needed to continue. Getting back into a rhythm with new vigor they two began pumping out coins as fast as they could. Funny how a repetitive task that days ago was grating could have such a new light. At this point they hardly minded being cooped up. They made sure to include Binky as well as much as they could. Considering the circumstances the girl didn't have anyone else to call a friend. And now with a war raging there basically was nowhere else to turn. So in the mean time keeping moral up was the least they could do, a thing as a pair of Reinforcement girls they excelled at.
Another day, another batch of coins being sent out. Janet had picked up one of the coins and was about to put it away when her step slowed. Starting she dropped the object and it rolled across the floor with a ring.
Turning her attention to her sister, Jenna asked. "Janet, are you alright?" She moved closer as Janet whirled around.
"Beacon!" Throwing her hand out a barrier pushed the other girl back. Seemingly perplexed by what had happened she paused. What kind of magic was this? Eyes darting down she saw her gauntlet covered hand, which she turned over trying to figure out what she was seeing. Janna had stayed on her feet though and looked hurt, not physically, but pain still showed on her face. "What have you done to me witch? Speak quickly else I strike you down." At the moment the girl was more confused than anything, but that put her on the defensive. Her magic wasn't working like it should and recent events were only just returning to her. She was stalling with one thing she did well.
Putting her hands up Jenna was shocked that her sister would suddenly turn on her. She was acting, well it was hard to describe, but nothing like herself that was for sure. "Janet, It's me. Jenna. W-what's wrong with..." She was able to get the briefest glimpse of her sisters mind before being repelled by her psychic defenses that went up upon realization. Drawing a hand back to her mouth she slowly sank. No, this couldn't... where did Janet go? "Cindy, please listen to me. You... you're..." This was scary because she wasn't sure what exactly to do. Fight back, sound an alarm, talk...? Nothing sounded adequate. The first two actually sounded awful and would only make things worse. A question? "Do you remember me?"
Everything about Jenna's response only served to confuse and annoy the other girl in the room. "I remember you, Beacon. We met on the battlefield. Your sister attempted to disway me with your hollow words of peace." Her scowl and words clearly were having more of an impact. Perhaps because the girl was alone. Pathetic. More and more of what happened was coming back to her though. Ishtar being run through, the bomb that had ravaged her monstrous form, Reaver... Reaver. Had he... And everything just stopped. Taking another look at the armored hand she took the chance to looking away from the enemy just briefly to observe herself. Who was this? It certainly was not her by any stretch. It looked familiar, but it was difficult to say for certain. Eyes snapping back to Jenna, the girl hadn't moved, frozen. "Do not move." She had spotted a surface that could act as a mirror, some sheet of metal on a contraption. Moving her way to it carefully she stole a glance. The one looking back was the Beacon girl that had done most of the talking that night they met. Janet her name was? Yes that was it. "Drop this charade at once! You think me a fool that you can convince me that I am anyone but the Queen of Penrose?" Though she was new to this kind of magic, she was bound and determined not to be tricked. Another barrier formed, blocking off Jenna from the exit.
Moving up and beating against the wall she called out. "No Cindy, wait! You don't understand!" She watched as Cindy rushed out of the room. "Dammit. Janet what did you do?" Being more adept with her magic she broke through the barrier without much fuss only to be met with another down the hall. Wouldn't have thought it, but she learned fast.
Racing down the hallway Cindy searched for an exit. There didn't seem to be anyone else here but one other girl and her clones. Batting away any that happened the misfortune of crossing her path they were little in the way of obstacles. Quickly running out of places to go though she realized she was trapped. Were there no doors to this facility? Was this a prison? It looked nothing like any prison she'd ever seen. Those clones though, in her haste she hadn't given than a second thought. Jenna caught up with her soon enough.
"Cindy please. I think I know what's happening. I can't just let y-" She was cut off as a barrier slammed her to the ground. It was too hard to see her as anyone else but Janet. Trying to get up Cindy grabbed Jenna by the neck and tightened her grip. Janet always had the slight edge in terms of strength, and try as she might she couldn't wrestle Cindy off now. Her Third Eye saw something building inside her sister. "S-stop. You nee-"
Determined to eliminate her enemy, Cindy held on. It wouldn't be long. "You are the ones I swore to protect my people against. I will find find my way out of here and show all that oppose me just what, ah, ahhh!" Her grip loosened and Jenna flung her back. Her mind was burning, the ShineSpark having differentiated the difference between Janet's cleansed mind and Cindy's corrupted one. The feeling wasn't familiar, but the result of this magic defense was clear. She remembered now, she'd died. Her core eaten by a monster. She had only just come back. Now here she was again. Jenna had scrambled over and held Cindy, yelling something she couldn't make out. Twice now she had failed at her purpose, her destiny. The intense heat suddenly gave way to an intense cold that rushed through her entire body. The magic defense that threatened to scorch the foreign persona out of existence, the ShineSpark, was quenched by an even greater cleansing force. Washing over Cindy's mind her vision turned into the dark field of space as her mental mutations faded into the void.
Vision slowly returning everything felt hollow for a moment. How does one describe waking up in someone else's body and having their demons stripped away? Catching her breath she rubbed a hand over her face and had to check her hand. Were those tears? That was never something she could do as a monster girl. It was very unbecoming of someone her status but at the moment she was just glad to be "alive". Having a corporal form again had so many weird sensations when one actually stopped to think about it. Despite not really having done much she ached slightly. Being helped up by Jenna, Cindy managed to eek out. "What kind of spell was that?" She hobbled a moment before insisting on standing on her own two feet. Looking back down the hall there were a dozen clones peeking and watching in terror. It finally clicked that this was the girl, the coin maker.
Meeting Jenna's gaze no words needed exchanging. In an annoyed tone the twin rolled her eyes slightly. "Hey, you're a guest in my sister's body I hope so try and stay low. If people found out you were in Janet's head I swear, eeeeveryone would be trying to kill you. We have to play this smart. You want to live, I want Janet to live, let's start there." Turning back to the hall all the Binky clones turned to run. "Oh god." A psychic wave passed through the lab knocking out Binky clones one by one and finally Binky herself. She was going to have to expunge this from their minds, there was no way in hell she was going to let this slip out before they were ready. She hated to do it but there was no choice.
Jenna moved them to a secure room. Only really being around recently, she swore that Janet got herself into more trouble than anyone had any right to. How Beacon hadn't Excommunicated her yet was a miracle. With her overbearing need to defend Penrose stamped out, while Jenna worked to bury what had just transpired, Cindy familiarized herself with Janet's body and magic. Being "human" again was a surreal experience. So many little details she'd forgotten existed. The girl at least was not hard to look at. The long golden locks were pleasing to the eye. The eyes, eh. The knightly armor suited this form, but was well below her class. This would not do at all. Vanity aside she explored what magic was available to her. Reinforcement, Psychic, Fist, Melee, of course Twinned Soul which explained Jenna. No wonder they cowered behind their defenses. Wholly underwhelming yet befitting a lowly knight. Were they not Beacon the pair would have made excellent subjects. Oh, what was this!
Having taken care of the loose ends Jenna stopped to get a couple glasses of water. It had been a while since they'd taken a break and the brief tussle wouldn't have helped. On her way back she felt magic rising up inside her. The lights flickered slightly. Was Cindy? No, some of this magic was coming from herself. She could see that her magic capacity had grown significantly. Something clearly up she hurried back to Cindy. "What did you do?"
It was a very curious thing that one would just sit on something as valuable as a Ruby Coin. It was most fortuitous that she had discovered the coins the twins had stashed away. As Jenna entered Cindy was toying with a ball of lighting in her hand, rolling it and turning it over. "You befuddle me, Beacon. That you would hold such a treasure and choose not to use it. If I am to remain in this form I thought it best to make it more familiar." Casting lightning at Jenna, the girl reached out and caught it with ease, the charge harmlessly passing into her body. Clapping her hands together Cindy looked pleased. "So it is true what they say of a Twinned Soul. I've made some adjustments to make myself more at home." She said so dryly.
Oh, there was no describing how much the twin wanted to try and rip Cindy out of Janet's mind right now. That was easier said than done though. The combination of Psychic and Reinforcement made that extremely difficult. And with the ShineSpark seeming to have accepted Cindy there was little chance of that happening. Damn, if they had only used the White Coin sooner. Sparks in her eyes Jenna seethed which seemed to please the other present. Swallowing her pride Jenna let the air hiss from her lungs. Stepping over she set down a glass for Cindy to drink. Eyeing the liquid cautiously she was clearly suspicious. "What is wrong with you? Do you think I would poison my own sister? Snatching it back up she took a sip before placing it down again. Still her guest would hesitate. Jenna took a seat and put her head in her hands, rubbing her eyes. "I realize you and water probably don't have the best of relationships, but right now you and I are twins. If I need it then you'll need it too. Please."
Tapping a finger against her leg, Cindy had been observing and deliberating over every action Jenna took. It was obvious to the ancient magical girl that her "twin" was less than pleased with the situation. Yet she found the courage within herself to remain calm and kind, if not a bit curt. Even going as far as to provide basic needs to the enemy to ensure the care of her sister body. Admittedly this scenario was less than ideal in her own mind. Taking up the cup she decided to ask a question. "Do you love your sister?" Taking a sip of water it was surprisingly refreshing.
What kind of a question was that? Sitting up straight she was beginning to piece together the way Cindy acted. She was toying with her to find soft spots and ways to manipulate her. There was also probably some genuine morbid curiosity. "I would die for my sister." She would state clearly.
Cindy would raise an eyebrow for the briefest of moments. "My my, straight to the point of the matter." The glass once again resting on the small table before her the girl would take her time deciding her next course of action. To which Jenna would respectfully wait in silence. Coming to a decision she shifted. Crossing her legs and resting her hands together in front of her she finally spoke. "You spoke of knowing how I ended up with your sister's body. Explain."
Oh boy, here we go. "I can guess. I would need to look further. We had hoped that we could come to understand your side of the story. It seemed like the best way to help fix the rift between us. We had hoped to do that with words. After the bomb went off Janet was unable to participate in the fight, otherwise she would have tried to defend you. When your condition became dire it was clear that if we wanted to understand others like yourself that she was going to have to go in. With the window of opportunity closing she couldn't be selective so she tried to get everything. She was still connected at the very end and my sister suffered severe mental trauma from the feedback and became catatonic. It took several days but she eventually came back to me. She didn't remember anything of your memories so we assumed they had been lost. And then you showed up. So if I had to guess. Your memories have been forcibly planted along side my sisters and allowed to develop into a second conscientiousness." Her conclusion was an educated guess at best. She had not fully investigated the matter as there had been no signs of anything out of the ordinary. But considering neither of them seemed to have been aware of the other she assumed they were two distinct personalities now. That was if Janet was still in there, dread the thought that she wasn't.
Whilst the twin was going about her explanation and theories she was watched with a cold stare. So it seemed that the Queen of Penrose was indeed dead. She herself, as far as she could determine, was nearly a perfect copy of the queen's mind. Be it a sick twist of fate or great fortune, Cindy now found herself in the body of a Beacon girl. There was a moderate amount of surprise that a girl of this nature had accomplished such a feat. Under the circumstances it was a wonder either of them had made it out of it at all, let alone both. While the though of having her mind invaded disgusted her she was potentially in a much better position. Her foes that sought her life now thought her well and dead, this facility housed not only White Coins, but the coin smith herself, Jenna was actively trying to hide her presence from Beacon, she had access to a plethora of new magic, and this girl possessed some mysterious cleansing power. There were however a great many drawbacks as well. As she was running through those in her mind her heart rate started racing. Focused and absent minded of her new physical needs she failed to breath until her body involuntarily forced her to gasp for breath.
Instantly on her feet Jenna was poised to aid her sister or Cindy either way. Just as quickly though Cindy stood up with an arm outstretched to strike, expecting an attack of some kind. However, the sudden movement and lack of oxygen caused her head to spin and she could feel herself falling. Jenna was right there to catch her though and lay her down carefully, protest as she might. "Hey hey. It's okay, breath slowly." While Cindy was dazed she took the opportunity to see if she could find Janet's mind. She found it easier to locate than she had expected. Seemed her theory was correct, Janet and Cindy were still two distinct people from one another. What's more they both sat on level ground as far as the driver's seat of Janet's body. This was good news as it meant that neither was supplanting the other. Despite finding her sister's mind intact she could not communicate with her at all. Guessing while one was in control the other had to go dormant which would be consistent with what people would call a split personality, at least to Jenna's understanding. Important to note, this probably meant that the actions of one mind would be completely unknown to the other. Satisfied that her sister was safe and not wanting to provoke Cindy she didn't press any further.
Being coddled like a child irked Cindy to no end, especially over minor little mistakes due to her own negligence. Though she was too proud to admit such a thing. Jenna's kindness was both a source of frustration and curiosity. Not that this would be the first Beacon girl not to outright attack her, Penny had assisted her and her followers after all. But this was different, much more... personal. She hated it. Pushing the girl back and sitting up she coughed a few times, not listening to the advice. "Flesh is such a bothersome thing." There were still a great many questions she had, but for now she would stay her tongue. Best not to tip her hand should she need something.
Backing off, Jenna sat back down as Cindy got up. "You get used to it. Though there were some advantages to being made of water" Receiving a stare from the former monster girl. "Janet was briefly a monster girl made completely of water. She was purified (an irony Jenna only just now realized) to become a regular magical girl again. Things had been touch and go with how Beacon feels about monster girls after that, in Penrose anyway."
Cindy did not want to talk about Beacon, but the girl had touched on a subject she saw opportunity. "I cannot fathom how you can stand with the likes of Beacon when your ideals so clearly do not align. If you truly sought to better Penrose you would leave them." She stood over Jenna. "Or is it that you are afraid? Of Excommunication perhaps? If they were truly so righteous they would have no need to stoop to threatening their own with expulsion. I have watched them exact their form of justice for far too long. You haven't the slightest idea..."
Getting to her feet and raising her voice Jenna wouldn't take the verbal abuse, not even if the other person looked like her sister. "We wanted to change Beacon! I know they've been doing things the same way forever, but we were making progress. Then all of it got blown away after what happened at the Penrose Park and the rave!" She was done, and turned to leave. The space was more than sturdy enough to keep Cindy locked up in here.
The insolence of this girl. Magic building, Jenna was about to learn why so few crossed the Queen of Penrose. What stayed her hand was the last thing said. Grabbing hold of Jenna's arm and jerking her back, Cindy's eyes were glowing bright blue. "Tell me about the rave!" Recalling now that Ronin had warned her of events at the rave, if something had happened to her people there was going to be hell to pay!
