Difference between revisions of "Mikoto Minagi"

Guardian of the sword.

Loyal to her Lord Brother.

A warrior who can defeat any enemy.

That is who the shrine maiden of Minagi is. But that isn't who most people know.

Most people know Mikoto-chan, the naive young girl with a bottomless stomach. Mikoto is transparent in her desires, innocent as a child in all that the world has to offer. More cat than girl in everything she does, Mikoto is almost charmingly foolish; she finds joy in the smallest things, happiness in sunshine and surprise in brightly-coloured bugs.

Mikoto thinks in black and white. She's good at judging people, to a point; but once she has made a decision, it's difficult to shake. Either you are a good person, or a bad person -- either she likes you, or she doesn't. Those who she deems good have an easy pass through her mental defenses; she's easily-led, gullible to those who she thinks are kind. Combined with her natural transparency, this makes her an easy mark for those who can make that all-important first step.

Mikoto's entire life has consisted of following a superior, obeying them; she cannot stand a vacuum in that area, though she doesn't consciously realise it. Currently, the person occupying that position is Mai Tokiha, who got the position while it was on sale -- Mikoto was starving and alone, and Mai was a kind person who fed her. After Mai's seeming death and following rebirth, Mikoto has thrown herself into loving Mai -- besides, she loves Mai's food, and being with Mai is fun! She's very possessive of this kind person, and she will protect her as if Mai's enemies were Mikoto's own.

But it took her a year to express these emotions, which brings us to a salient point -- Mikoto doesn't understand emotions very well. She can express her appreciation for the things people do very easily, but for a long time, she didn't realise this meant she liked the person themselves. While her brother (and then, her grandfather) were always quick to show her love and appreciation, she was taught very little about how to process her emotions. It's not that she's stupid -- she's very savvy as to how people act, and can notice discrepancies in their behavior easily. But now that she has realised she can love people, she is free and open with her affection -- too much, perhaps. She also has very poor emotional boundaries -- when her friends are sad, she gets sad, too. Luckily, it also works the other way around.

Alongside not understanding emotions, Mikoto doesn't understand a lot of other things. She was never taught about stealing, or about public decency, or about personal space. Many Japanese customs are lost to her, from honourifics (or even decent grammar) to when it's all right to say what she's thinking (that's all the time, isn't it?). She is, however, very conflicted about harming noncombatants; she's always been taught that those who attack her are enemies, which means that people who have done nothing wrong must be, by extension, not enemies at all.

And yet, to think of enemies brings us back to the beginning. It's an important point to make: Mikoto destroys enemies. Those who attack her are enemies. Enemies deserve no pity, no quarter. Enemies must be destroyed! It brings us to Mikoto the shrine maiden, Mikoto the keeper of the sword, a Mikoto far more ferocious and terrifying than the hungry child her friends know. Mikoto, in battle, is girl barely able to even control her sword -- and this imagery is not for nothing. There is bloodlust and battle-rage within her, and if it is allowed to grow out of control, her ability to distinguish between enemies and hold herself in check diminishes significantly. Were something awful to happen... this horrible trait might even come to engulf her.

For now, at least, Mikoto may be shaken from her terrible berserkergang.

A great shadow stretches over the Minagi shrine -- the shadow of the Obsidian Lord. His grip is felt in the blood of every legitimate heir to the name, and in their isolated mountain home, they serve him in all they do.

Mikoto is a HiME. She has known this for as long as she could remember. But she is different to the other HiMEs, those people with Elements and Childs. Mikoto doesn't think about it. Mikoto wasn't told about it.

Mikoto wasn't told that her claymore was the vessel of the Obsidian Lord. She was simply told to keep it with her always -- to guard it with her life. She didn't know that other HiME's Elements disappeared when not in use. She didn't even question it.

She questioned very little, because she was raised to obey, and to fight.

She came to know her claymore as Miroku, the force of destruction which she felt lurking always at the edges of her mind. Miroku, which was in truth the Obsidian Lord's Child, was simply another weapon to her; they were all her weapons, all things she would use to destroy the enemy. Her Child was Miroku. Her Element was Miroku. That neither could be called hers -- that she was more likely -their- possession -- escaped her.

She sought the approval of her Lord Brother, doting on on his every footstep. To serve and love only her brother was the law of the shrine, and she did not question it.

When he told her to fight without hesitation, she fought without hesitation.

When he praised her, her heart swelled.

When he left, she was crushed.

Because he did. He left without warning, without a word. Her grandfather consoled her, and she continued to learn under him, Miroku never leaving her side.

But...

She never forgot her Lord Brother.

That she was intended to serve him was a promise and a contract and a binding force around her soul.

Her grandfather, ever sly and wise, taught her well. He reinforced the ideals which had been planted in her mind, but left enough of himself open to her that she would come to rely on him and to love him...

... so that he could destroy that, as well.

It cost him his life; he did not even falter. That is the way of the Minagi family. Their lives are nothing but pawns on the board.

She didn't falter, either. Miroku cut her precious grandfather open and exposed his insides to the world. And as the killer's remorse hit her, as she knelt beside him and cried, he taught her the lesson which cost him his life.

She was only to love and serve her brother. No one else.

He was in the land of Fuuka, and she was to go there and find him.

The shrine maiden of Minagi left the mountainside that day. Though she could not even properly recall his face, she would find her brother.

On the way to Fuuka, she encountered an enemy. And she fought -- she fought bravely -- but the enemy was too much for her. She might have died, but instead, she woke in a bed. She had been saved, and it didn't occur to her to think about it overmuch. Instead, she confronted the enemy again.

Miroku thinks little of steel; even the steel which comprises a ship. Even so, Mikoto could not defeat her enemy.

She was saved again. It was fortunate. She left as soon as she woke.

...

But she was really quite hungry. She hadn't eaten for quite a while, after all.

She smelt food, and took it.

No one on the mountain told her that food could be an enemy too.

Water defeated the enemy which burned her mouth and her throat, and then she came upon another -- one who seemed at first to be an enemy, but who was, on closer inspection, the one who helped her. Mikoto didn't get any further time to consider her course of action; she fainted from hunger.

When she woke, she was in a bed again. The girl was there. She gave her food.

Valhalla's gates opened; the angels flooded forth around Saint Peter's stand; ambrosa stood there in her mouth. It was the best thing she'd ever tasted. It was heaven. It was better than heaven. It was delicious!

(It turns out that in a strict shrine, where cuisine isn't valued beyond its ability to keep someone alive, tasty food isn't a great concern.)

The girl was called Mai, and she was too nosy, but she was very kind. Mikoto liked her. Still, she had to go, and find her Lord Brother.

So she left.

Later, during the night, when she could smell nothing which would lead her to her brother, she met that kind girl Mai again. Mai was being attacked. Mikoto, who liked that kind girl, deemed the attacker her enemy. It was good! She discovered that kind Mai was a HiME, and she also met the enemy who had attacked her before. It would have been a wonderful turn of events, had Mai's enemy not been so relentless.

She had to divert her attention to it, and even Miroku's strength was not enough. There, Mikoto met Mai's strength, a strength called Kagutsuchi. It was an overwhelming strength. Mai was not only a kind person, but a strong person. It was amazing!

Mikoto went with Mai to speak to a girl she called the director, who led the school. According to Mai, that girl would pay for her to live there and allow her to study, despite the fact that the closest thing to study in this place was a club where they only studied with practice weapons. Mikoto didn't like her. But she could stay in Fuuka that way, and search for her Lord Brother.

She went back with Mai, and that kind person allowed her to stay. It meant far more than any vague words about being paid for, about some custodian footing her bills. Mai cooked her food!

Mai took care of her, and so she took care of Mai. Because Ohtori was in Tokyo, and Tokyo was a hotbed of spiritual activity. The Orphans which threatened humanity were the HiME's specific problem, but there were more, more and more - monsters and gods and dark things which smelled of ash and rot. Without her Lord Brother to guide her, Mikoto fought for Mai.

There were others. Not only HiME, but Sailors and Knights and Puella Magi. Some of them became her fierce friends, others she knew only on the battlefield. One, in particular, she grew close to - Eri Shimanouchi, who loved plants as she loved cats.

And there were other HiME. Natuski Kuga, who was her enemy, was someone Mai insisted was a friend. Mikoto was reluctant, but Mai eventually succeeded in getting her to like the other girl. There was Nao Yuuki, who told her things Mai never would; later, Kozue Kaoru would take her position of devil's advocate, first known to Mikoto only as Cassandra. Midori Sugiura, of course, was Midori Sugiura.

But Mai was the most important HiME, because Mai made her good food, and Mai slept with her at night, and Mai supported her when she was unsure. Mai made stir-fry, with meat and onions and bell peppers. She made rice balls, and vegetables, and miso soup. She made Italian pasta. She made fish, freshly-caught by Mikoto herself. And, of course, she made ramen, and Mai's ramen was the best.

It was the HiME who SEARRS targetted, a year after Mikoto had arrived at Ohtori. Cassandra's identity was revealed to her, and her identity was revealed to the world. In a tattered ballgown, she went underground with Mai and Natsuki, and found herself summoned by the Headmistress in order to defend the populations of the Sister Schools. Miroku cleaved tanks in half, but it was Mai's power, Kagutsuchi, which truly stole the stage. Upon it, Mai took Alyssa's Child's blast, and Kagustuchi transformed, and took them to space.

But when they fell, Mai was not with them. Mikoto cried out, and in her grief, forgot her most important lesson. 'I love Mai!' The words she couldn't say when Mai was with her, she said as she watched the sky for any sign of Mai's body.

With that admission, it became easier. Mikoto realised she loved so many people. But Mai was gone.

Eri stayed with her, in the days afterwards. She cried on her, often. Eri, who had viewed Mai as such a close friend as well, was the closest thing Mikoto had to guidance in those days. It forged their bond stronger, closer. Eri became the most important girl in Mikoto's world, simply because Eri was there for her when she needed her.

And then Mai came back! It was the best day in Mikoto's life, and she cried happy tears instead of sad, and didn't let Mai go for so long because she was terrified of her leaving again.

Mai had come back, and Mai was safe, and Mikoto didn't want her to be in danger any more. It was easy, when Eri started sharing her problems as a Puella Magi with her, to justify keeping Mai out of the loop. Mai wouldn't understand. Mai would be in danger. Mai, who had come back to them safe, who Mikoto loved and didn't want to see hurt...

... Mai couldn't know about Mikoto's hunts with Eri. And when Eri's problems with other Puella Magi came to a head, Mikoto found she couldn't tell Mai that she was fighting for her friend, either. Because a war was brewing, and Mai would be sad, and disappointed, and in danger.

Mikoto had to do it on her own.

So she did. She aligned herself with Eri, followed Eri's example, and beat Eri's enemies. She came home to Mai at night, and said nothing about the battles she had fought. It was a conflict she struggled with, her obligations to Mai and her obligations to Eri tearing at each other. She tried not to think about it, and justified it to herself, and kept fighting.

In time, it changed from being a question of Eri's life to a question of all life on Earth. It became a question of defending Mai, and a question of safeguarding her Lord Brother. These threats meant much more to her than the lives of so many strangers, and it was these threats which spurred her to commit even further to her bloody path. She hated hurting people who weren't warriors, but what choice did they have? The stakes were too high. So much was at stake. Eri was at stake.

It hurt, not being able to talk to Mai about it. But she loved Eri, too, and didn't want her to die. She didn't want Eri to burn out in a blaze of glory. She didn't want Eri to suffer. So Mikoto pushed herself harder, and harder, and harder, all so Eri wouldn't have to expend so much magic, so Eri wouldn't need quite so many grief seeds. Mikoto didn't need grief seeds. Mikoto could do that much for Eri. It was Endo Naoki, in the end, who dashed her hopes and dreams for Eri's shining future. He and Fallen Stern demolished her twice in a row, defeating her utterly.

But when he struck her down her the second time, with a mighty blow which ought to have felled her even were she healthy instead of almost past her limit, she didn't stay down. Fearing for her friends' safety in the face of someone who could destroy her so reliably, Mikoto convinced herself Miroku was necessary, though she had always been taught to use his power alone with caution. She summoned her Child, and destroyed Endo, in turn. If not for Ren Aizawa's timely interlude, she would have surely killed him.

Instead, it was Eri who killed. Mami's soul gem was shattered, and Mikoto convinced Miroku to reveal itself - a conversation strange to have, thoughts not quite her own - so that it could rescue Eri and the other Shepherds from Chevalier retaliation. It was against the idea. She persisted. Sayaka's darkness was too wrong; Eri's anguish, too deep. She had to get them away.

So she did.

And when next she woke, she found herself attacked in such subtle, terrible ways, with cables in her flesh and horrible beeping machines. She tried to flee, remembering old instructions to survive - but she was too weak, and they captured her and bound her. Yumi explained, when she came to, that she was in hospital. Hospital... the same place Takumi so often went. Mikoto hadn't realised how torturous it was.

Mai visited the next day, and her grief and her worry and her anger were so overwhelming that Mikoto's world was shattered in an instant. Everything was for naught - because Mai was crying. Mikoto realised, all at once, that her efforts were meaningless, because she had made Mai go through the same horror Mikoto went through when she thought Mai was dead.

And in Mikoto a darkness flowered, so unlike her obsidian edges. Because she had no way to make Mai happy, and make Eri happy as well. She loved them both - served them both - and they would never, ever agree. Mai wanted them to be normal high school students. Eri was embroiled in a war. Mikoto knew the warrior's path she must lead, saw it leading away from Mai -

- it wounded her, deep inside her heart. She struggled even to enjoy food, for the joy of food was something Mai had shown her; she felt so undeserving of delicious things. A terrible guilt pressed down upon her, as she struggled to reconcile her two closest friends. She couldn't be what Mai needed her to be - but she couldn't be what Eri needed, either, because her body was broken. She was not smart enough, or good enough, or strong enough, to find a solution which would make everyone smile. Worse - asking for smiles only brought wooden, stiff things.

But Mai was the girl Mikoto loved most in all the world, so Mikoto tried anew to be what Mai wanted. She tried to attend normal school functions - they went wrong. And then she tried to make Mai happy by staying at home and recovering, even though there was so much danger she felt she had to confront.

She just wanted Mai to smile. She knew that soon she would be called on to fight again, and she would not be able to resist the call, because Eri loved her - really, really told her she loved her, unlike the Mai who never said those words - and Eri needed her strength.

And all Mikoto could do was fight, as the war so clearly demonstrated. Fighting was all she was good for. Destroying enemies was her singular purpose, and Eri had so many enemies, and Mai increasingly few...

... but Mai's sadness hurt so much. So Mikoto tried to stay still, tried to do normal things.

It didn't last. The one time Mikoto decided it was safe to take a normal walk, without any intention to fight... she saw a menacing ship approaching, and was drawn into a battle anyway, because it threatened the Earth - where her Lord Brother was, and Mai and Eri, too. They were threatened with vaporisation, but Steven Universe's shield saved them. They then fought a ferocious warrior, Jasper - who thrust a gem destabiliser right against Mikoto's heart.

Her connection with Miroku was temporarily disrupted, and for the first time, she couldn't feel it at all. It flew into the ocean; she hit the sand. Stripped of her powers, she could do nothing as she was kidnapped by Jasper and Rubeus into their spaceships. She awoke in a room with Endo - and no one else at all. When Mikoto realised, she wanted to kill him - but a previous conversation with Kasagami Araki stayed her hand, because she'd told her that she was breaking too much of herself in her anger, neatly coached in the metaphor of broken chopsticks. Forced to inaction, she was stuck in a hateful room. The only way she could tolerate speaking with him was to educate him on their enemy's weaknesses. She found a surprising amount of excuses to do so - because the loneliness was just too much to bear.

But she was rescued by Steven once more, and he led her to her obsidian pendant, stolen from her person when she was imprisoned. She separated from them to find Miroku - and after fruitless searching, eventually it was able to reach out to her. She took it in hand, and met with the others, where Ruby demanded help, because Sapphire was being menaced by one of Rubeus's black crystals.

They were stopped by Peridot, in a robonoid mecha. Mikoto went to struck it down - and was met, face-to-mechanical-claw, with an industrial destabiliser, designed for things much larger than girls. And for the first time in Mikoto's life -

- she froze. She couldn't move. She had no options. She was still injured; she wouldn't be able to leap away in time. She couldn't possibly block something like that. And attacking it would be fruitless. There was nothing, nothing she could do. She couldn't even try, as her warrior's training and Miroku both demanded of her, because fear flooded her, locked up every limb.

The destabiliser terrified her that much. And Steven saved her, a third time, shield to destabiliser. Through Ami Mizuno's direction, they were able to destroy the mecha, exposing Peridot. Mikoto would have executed her despite being already defeated, moved both by her terror and Miroku's terrible anger - but she disappeared. There were few things which could distract Mikoto from her rage, in that moment.

An honest, unfiltered show of love and affection and romance between Ruby and Sapphire turned out to be one of those few things. In the brief moments she saw them reunited as a pair, Mikoto found herself thinking of a certain face. Is that what being attracted to girls meant? And why, then, would it make her think of...

Questions which were quickly ignored and suppressed. Ruby and Sapphire fused together, became Garnet, her enemy. She directed them to the prisoners still captured... and they walked right into a trap. A trap which they had no hope of defeating - but they didn't have to. There were others, who had come to save them. Lancelot had come to save her. Mai had come to save her.

And Mikoto, who had felt so despondent over Mai's coddling, despaired so much over Mai's inability to return her love, was overjoyed to see that Mai cared so much. Surely, this meant Mikoto was still important to her! Because Mai wouldn't let anything hurt her - not even the words of an enemy. But Mai was hurt, in the fight against Rubeus, where Mikoto fought so hard because Mai bid her to destroy her enemies. Never mind that Mikoto's healing injuries were also aggravated - Mai was hurt! It was through Lancelot's help that they were all able to flee; it was through the efforts of several that they were able to escape. (Notably, Steven's bubble protected them from the impact. That's four times he saved her.)

Jasper survived the crash - but she didn't survive fusion with Lapis, who dragged her into the ocean as Malachite. Mikoto used Eri's words, to try and convince Lapis not to do it; words she didn't really believe herself, but the only ones she could think of which might not have made everything worse. But in the end, Lapis's own feelings made even the threat of their fusion a distant thing, lodged at the bottom of the ocean.

The aftermath of her second space adventure left Mikoto more scarred than she'd like to admit. She dreamt of the annihilation of destabilisers, even alongside Mai's comforting presence. And the fact that Mai was hurt while rescuing her weighed on her, especially as she saw how much it hurt Mai to have to stop, too.

It was in trying to help Mai, by going out and getting ingredients for dinner so she wouldn't have to walk on a hurt ankle, that things became worse for Mikoto again. Wounded and weak, she was targeted for harvest by Vita - and though Vita found her a dangerous beast to back into a corner, Mikoto ultimately couldn't face up to the other berserker. Though Lera Camry tried to intervene and save her, the Book of Darkness drained her of her magic and left her defenceless.

Lera took her to Nishitama Park to try and help her recover, and Mikoto's stubbornness saw her not only hiding the fact that it was Eri's territory, but also saw her stalking off alone as the guilt overwhelmed her. She had to kill Lera's friends, after all - even if Lera was a good person who saved her and tried to convince her she had worth beyond the fight. It was a foolhardy decision, because Mikoto was a normal girl, and normal girls were Witch food. She found herself caught in a Labyrinth, and was almost torn apart by Familiars before Eri intervened.

And so Mikoto found herself powerless again, so soon after the destabiliser severed her. This was not the same feeling - Miroku was still there, but it was distant, foggy, and she could not handle her sword at all. It was as if she'd been taken by some terrible sickness. Her friends tried to reach out to her, to convince her there were still things she could do, even when she couldn't fight. It was difficult to convince her, but Eri and Yumi Ohzora eventually made some progress. Kasagami Araki, on the other hand, declared Mikoto her knight in her enthusiasm while reassuring her - and Mikoto found herself rankling against the girl again. There was something threatening, about Kasagami's aspirations. Mikoto tried to tell her she could only be her friend... tried.

But it was Mai who saw how much being drained wounded Mikoto, at night, as she slipped away to try and reach out to her sword. And it was Mai who sat with her, under the night sky and a glimmering star, and listened to her woes. It was Mai who reminded her of her resolution as a HiME - to protect someone precious. The most important girl in her life... well, wasn't that Mai Tokiha? The knowledge brought Miroku back to her, and Mai congratulated her for it. Mai supported her. That Mai did not condemn her - that Mai was glad for her - was an incredible healing force, for Mikoto.

Were this a happy story, Mikoto would go forward with the power of love and fight for justice.

This is not a very happy story.

Eri called a meeting of the Shepherds, and Mikoto found herself reminded of the guillotine hanging over the head of the third most important person in the world. She reached out to Homura, offering to hunt Sayaka with her. She couldn't leave it to Eri, not after seeing how much defeating Mami hurt her hunting partner. Mikoto was not affected by Mami's death like anyone else - she was a natural choice to kill the next one. She had the strength to do it, so she had to do it. If she didn't, Eri would die. She did not tell Mai, when she got back. She was ashamed. And death, besides, was a secret thing, though she did not know why she felt so.

She was interrupted from a nap by Nagi, informing her that the final fight for control of the World Tree was beginning. And Mikoto, though she was still hurt, had to respond: its power could threaten the world where her Lord Brother lived. The Protodaimons proved horrific foes, however, especially as they tore through her mind's defences instead of her body's. Terror took her, and she fled from her allies and her enemies alike.

It meant she was not by their side, as Dark Fall seized victory and opened a yawning portal to the Dark King. All the most terrible servants of darkness responded to his clarion call --

-- including Mikoto Minagi. Her necklace glowed with sickly purple light, and she was possessed by a dark shadow which veiled her identity and every soft part of her. That terrible force rampaged in a completely unguided fashion, activated with no orders to follow. It sieved the love from her heart and made her strong again, so that she might destroy them all. Destruction was all she knew. It was only luck which saw nothing cross her path to be annihilated.

But the Kiryuu Sisters sacrificed themselves to stymie the Dark King's coming, and the golden light of their love settled in on Mikoto, and the dark shadow faded and she found herself standing alone. Alone and confused, because she didn't remember the Dark King's call at all. She thought she must have just gotten so frightened that she forgot. She thought the Kiryuu Sisters' light must have revitalised her. She ascended the tower from her low point, all alone - and was caught in the process by Mai and Kagutsuchi. Mai was there for her in her dazed bewilderment.

Mai took her to the husk of the World Tree, alongside Takeo Akamizu. There they found the Wolkenritter, using that hated Book to drain the Dark King's portal. But Mikoto could not lay aside her grievances - she attacked Vita, alongside so many others. It would have been a terrible fight, had the Book of Darkness not activated itself. It absorbed the Wolkenritter in an act of violence which even disturbed Mikoto, and it captured all those girls and sent them to a perfect world of dreams.

Mikoto wished so much to be back with her family. And since her Lord Brother never left - Mikoto never went to Tokyo at all. But she couldn't forget her love for her friends, and so in her dream she attracted the monsters of Tokyo to her mountain instead, to defeat them alongside her Lord Brother. She would fight all the battles - and the people below would be able to live peaceful lives. And the only things she ever fought... were monsters. She didn't know how to hurt humans. She didn't need to know.

But still her heart yearned for what she had left behind, and so the Book's Mai climbed the mountain, and Mikoto defended her from the terrible creatures there. It was in delivering her back to the train station that she found Eri - and she was not of the Book at all. She weaved a hundred little questions through Mikoto's mind as they climbed the mountain, and after so much subtlety applied the force of a sledgehammer to one final question: What was her Lord Brother's name?

It shattered the Book's hold on Mikoto, and she knew nothing of Eri's conversation with the image of her Grandfather. She was having her own conversation, after all - with her Lord Brother. She realised it was wrong. He would never act the way he was. He would never fight as her partner, like Mai or Eri. And his training was not just focused on monsters at all.

As she took through the Book's worlds awakened, she was all sledgehammer. She burst into Mai's world and reminded her of how the world truly was by getting into trouble immediately - it was in anger that she tore down Kasagami's illusions of being Mikoto's 'Lord Sister'. In the visage of the Belkan Knight Golf, Mikoto even ripped through the memories of the Wolkenritter's past to inform Vita so bitterly that she was dead and gone. She could not abide the lies.

And when it came time to escape the dream... the world was shattered. The World Tree crumbled, and not every civilian had escaped the massive barrier erected around Tokyo. Amongst so many people to protect were Chie and Aoi, Mikoto's stalwart social defenders at school. She called Miroku's obsidian spires to their defence, to help stop the World Tree's boughs from crushing them - perhaps the only time those jagged things had been employed to any other purpose than destruction. They had questions, and Mikoto had scarce few answers for them, but she knew she must protect them.

The Book of Darkness faced them, and Mikoto found herself facing off against the attacks of so many foes again as it employed all the skills it had absorbed from the magical community. Worse than that, however, was the way she summoned Miroku - and empowered her profane copies of the weapon with Fallen Stern's offensive magics. Mikoto would have torn her apart, falling on her with all the force and fury of a freight train, had Fate Testarossa and Nanoha Takamachi not blasted her from the Book's form.

And so the Book was named 'Reinforce', and the forms of Hayate Yagami and the Wolkenritter resolved again. Mikoto could not trust Vita, but in the face of the threat of NachtWal, she followed the instruction of a girl who had been so sickly before. She fought with Takeo against the threat, joined at points by Steven and Sailor Pluto - but in the end, as NachtWal crumbled into a mass of flesh and misery, she was alone. It was there that Lera called out to her, and showed her a path through the horror. And as they held the line against NachtWal, to keep it from the civilians, Lera spent every ounce of magic and found herself without her Barrier Jacket at all - and Mikoto, without thinking, stepped in to shove her aside and cut down the flesh which meant to take her.

She would make a thousand excuses, later, for why she did it. But the truth was, she had already decided Lera was a good person, and it was difficult to convince her mind that a good person could be an enemy. Lera had never attacked her, after all. Lera tried to help her, after all. Lera said kind things about her, after all. And, after all - good people were always worth protecting.

Through Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate's combined efforts, NachtWal was destroyed, in a storm of destruction she felt pressured to describe as 'beautiful'. And in the end, a wizened woman appeared to instruct them to plant the seeds of their hope and their dreams. And Setsuna Higashi approached her, and shared with her her own struggles - and in that vulnerable moment, tired from the fight, Mikoto took her hand and let her lead her to a site to plant a seed. She spoke of her own realisations, her own hopes, her own fears. They helped to nurture the seed into a tree - the new World Tree.

Were this a happy story, this triumph of hope and compassion would pave the way to new friendships and understandings.

This is not a very happy story.

She left the World Tree, and she knew only one thing: she must find her Lord Brother. She must pour all her energies into the search, to find him, to apologise for her perfect world being different from the vision he had for her. To bring that perfect world into reality - the true perfect world, the one he desired - she must find him.

Mikoto dreamt again, that night, abstract black-glass nightmares as her brain struggled to comprehend the darkness which had consumed her on the tower. Within it was a command, issued from her darkest parts in recognition of the dangers presented by Eri's questions: she must destroy.

It was this onus of destruction which saw her descending on Vita, fully intending to take her life. The decision was barely conscious; in her battle-fugue she stalked and apprehended her in broad daylight. But Vita would not fight - and as a civilian, Mikoto found she could not lower her blade onto her. People who couldn't attack her could not be her enemies. She tried to incite Vita to violence, and failed. It was Vita who incensed her, instead, as Mikoto felt her words of triumph were a scathing indictment of her failure to keep her Lord Brother safe and happy. She might have felled her regardless of her feelings, then, if a bystander had not rounded the corner - so instead, she swore her vengeance and left.

She was not the only enemy Mikoto spoke with, though Eri's injunction not to fight the Chevaliers without reason held fast. Cure Passion tried to understand her, only for Mikoto to end up screaming at her. Nanoha found Mikoto in her bakery - and Mikoto tried to behave herself in the enemy's territory, but regardless abjured any attempt to call her a friend. Fate tried to reach out, and her familiar history wounded Mikoto deeply before she pushed the nascent realisation away. Her enemies were wearing her down, inch by painful inch, and she hated feeling so weak in the face of something she could not call an attack at all. But it was difficult for enemies to reach someone like Mikoto, even as she tried to kill Westar for trying to get her help in dragging Setsuna back to Labyrinth.

A friend, on the other hand... would have much better luck. For at the same time as Mikoto struggled with the words of her enemies, she listened wholeheartedly to the words of Homura Akemi, a girl she trusted well. Homura had defeated Mai's murderer, after all. And Homura took the belief Mikoto had forged for herself, that little scrap of ethics she had fought for under the cover of her Lord Brother's brutal instruction - that people who couldn't fight her could not be her enemies at all - and she shattered it unblinking. They had to kill Sayaka as a civilian, and Homura could not have Mikoto flinching out of a misplaced sense of honour. It hurt, and yet Mikoto discarded the belief without hesitation, because she loved Eri, and she wanted Eri to live.

It was Mai Tokiha herself who almost lifted another of her self-imposed limitations. She shared her fears with her as they tried to take a Golden Week holiday, how battered she felt by the barrage of words she could not defend against, and Mai told her the one thing she had denied for so long: words could be an attack, too. But if words were a method of fighting, Mikoto would have to fight so many more people - including the bullies of Ohtori. Mai struggled to reason with Mikoto that words ought to only be fought with more words, and told her to ignore them, or shout or call to Mai for help before she drew her blade. And yet, she said that sometimes, there was no other choice... and Mikoto knew well what she meant. She felt foolish, for not realising that she was being attacked. Now she knew.

Mikoto is a finely-tuned food-destroying machine. So long as it isn't spicy, and the food is otherwise pleasant, she can tear through it as if inhaling. Due to her senses, she's also very good at figuring out whether food has gone bad!

Mikoto grew up in a mountainous shrine, and so she is adapted to outdoor life. She's so good at climbing trees that she often takes naps atop their branches! In the city, she's translated these arboreal skills to roof-hopping, jumping from awning to sign to fire exit with aplomb.

Also due to growing up in one, Mikoto knows her way around shrines. It's one of the few areas where she knows the social rules well enough to not shock anyone.

Mikoto was tutored in Japanese history as part of her studies growing up, so it's one of the few school subjects where she doesn't flounder. While she can only hope to get Ds or Cs in most of her subjects, she's consistently a B-student in Japanese History. It's the one thing - aside from her good PE scores - which saves her from cram school!

Mikoto is good at calligraphy, another thing she learned growing up, and her handwriting is surprisingly pleasant because of it. Her penmanship earns her a few more points in Japanese class, despite her poor grammar, letting her scrape by a 'poor' grade average in that class.

Mikoto has gotten better at speaking Japanese, over the time she's spent in Tokyo. Grammatical things like articles still elude her a frustrating amount of the time, and she still prefers the most simple and direct way to say what she means, but she understands a lot more than she did when she started. If she puts the effort in, she can almost talk normally... but it is an effort, and one she doesn't always care to make.

And while Mikoto may not always speak Japanese perfectly, she's fluent in cat body language and their various meows. She learned from the shrine cats at a young age, after all.

However...

Mikoto wasn't raised with an eye towards social skills. She knew very few people growing up, all part of her family, and her training was focused heavily on fighting and topics adjacent to the fight. Her speech wasn't corrected, and she wasn't taught about many fundamental topics. It means that she's terribly unbalanced; even though she's a fright on the battlefield, she often seems ignorant outside of it.

Mikoto is an extremely sensory person, and has trouble thinking of words to express her thoughts, a problem compounded by her life growing up. She's grown better at it with time, but she still needs a calm atmosphere to be able to speak precisely. Sensory overload troubles her, as well, a problem most succinctly expressed by her reaction to spicy food.

Mikoto remembers little of her childhood, and nostalgic reminders can often shut her down while her brain struggles with connections it can't quite make. She has traumatic reactions to many things, though she doesn't recognise them as traumatic. Even in the present day, if something happens which is too difficult for her to absorb, she will just dissociate from the knowledge so that she can keep being the cheerful girl she is.

Mikoto is self-centred, though not in any malicious sense. She understands people through her own reactions to them, and usually falls prey to the typical mind fallacy, thinking that other people must feel the same way she does. Though she genuinely cares about her friends, her attempts to fix their problems often amount to telling them to 'just smile!', and she's troubled when the advice which helps her doesn't help others. She's realised, now, how useless that advice is... at least in regards to Mai Tokiha.

Mikoto tends to decide whether someone is good or bad upon meeting them, in an easily-predictable and easily-manipulable way. She shuts herself off from people she considers bad, and doesn't guard herself around people she considers good. There are a few people who have switched categories, so she's capable of changing her mind, but it takes a great effort to do so. People who skirt those categories are extremely frustrating to Mikoto, and she tends to react by even more firmly categorising them as 'good' or 'bad'.

Mikoto is bottom-barrel in all of her other classes, only managing to escape abject failure due to Mai's heroic efforts. At times, her scholarship seems thinly-justified, because she's simply so bad at things like mathematics and science.

Around School:

• She's a transfer student who came here in the 9th grade!
  

... I heard no one knows where she came from, and even her school records are a total mess!
... I heard it couldn't possibly be Juuban, even though she's so simple!
... I heard she's actually a delinquent who was sent to such a civilised place as one last chance for redemption!
... how terrible!

• She's a terrible student, especially in science and maths!
  

... I heard the only reason she doesn't fail is her roommate!
... I heard she's actually really good at Japanese history!
... I heard she skips class a lot!
... how terrible!

• She can be so rude!
  

... I heard she never says more than three words to anyone!
... I heard she looks down on everyone, and that's why she's not in any clubs!
... I heard she doesn't care about our money or status at all!
... how terrible!

• She really doesn't understand social interaction!
  

... I heard she just doesn't care!
... I heard she doesn't use honorifics and always calls people by their first names!
... I heard she's totally unaffected by hot guys, and, scandalous as it is, hot girls too!
... how terrible!

• Some of the girls kind of pick on her, huh?
  

... I heard she's a little kid who somehow skipped enough grades to end up in high school!
... I heard she's a total weirdo who stares too much!
... I heard she's a totally oblivious and ignorant country bumpkin!
... how terrible!

• She's the demon cat who lurks in Ohtori, running around the rooftops and through the trees!
  

... I heard it has terrible glowing yellow eyes, and it's wreathed in shadow!
... I heard that it spit fire and smoke, and it wouldn't listen to reason at all!
... I heard it just stares at all the boys like it's trying to figure out who to eat!
... how terrible!

• She's a mysterious golfer-chan who always carries her clubs with her!
  

... I heard she's bound by oath never to play again!
... I heard her abilities are so amazing, she's just waiting for an opponent worthy of her skill!
... I heard she's actually awful at golf!
... how terrible!

• She has this weird ability to make friends with any cat on campus!
  

... I heard it's because she's really a cat in human form!
... I heard she's a cat priestess - I saw how she acted at a shrine once!
... I heard she's amassing a cat army, and when she reaches her full power, she's going to take over Ohtori!
... how terrible!

Magical Girl Rumours:

• Oh, Mikoto? She's a HiME, I learned that when Ohtori was taken over!

• She's a Shepherd, right? She's been fighting alongside them for a long time now.

• She wields this giant black claymore, and she never, ever lets it go!

• She never talks when she's in a fight... all she does is scream. She's like one of those berserkers, you know?

The Shepherds: Just Eri's allies, at first. But... Shepherds are good people. Kind to me. Would never leave me to suffer alone. So I love them, too. Maybe we do bad things... but it's necessary! Not just for Eri. Even earth is at stake. How can I defend my Lord Brother, or Mai, or Eri, in destroyed world? They'd be ash. ... but... but I wish we only killed warriors. People who haven't decided to fight... aren't enemies at all... but we have to. We don't have a choice! Real world isn't... simple!

Natsuki Kuga: I was wrong. Natsuki is good person. I love Natsuki! Natsuki is cool, but Natsuki cares. Natsuki's like cat, acting aloof... huh? Lone wolf? I mean, I guess. I just wish Natsuki would stop calling me a kid. I'm in highschool..!

Midori Sugiura: Midori is such fun person! I love Midori. Midori's class is only writing class I'm good at. Glad just one teacher isn't disappointed.

Nao Yuuki: Don't care what people say. I know Nao is good person. I love Nao. Nao's a good friend, and important to me. Tells me stuff other people won't. We get in trouble sometimes. It's fun.

Yukino Kikukawa: Yukino's good person! Quiet, but nice, and smart too. Notices lots of things. I love Yukino.

Ye-jin Song: Why was Ye-jin being so mean? Is making parties really that stressful..? I guess life can be hard even without magic. But Ye-jin's a really nice singer!

Georgia Jenks: Georgia's HiME?! What a shock! But Georgia's really cool... let's fight monsters together!

Chie and Aoi: Mai's normal friends. Look out for me in school. I love them, but they're not supposed to be involved in any of this. Chie says, 'gossip is good for a girl,' but Chie has lots of opinions about what's good for girls. Aoi's kindhearted. ... Reinforce hurt them. I won't forgive that.

Cat Friends: My normal friends. Hey, I have normal friends too! I'm friends with all cats on Ohtori! And all other cats, but don't get as many chances to be friends with them. Some yearling kittens have attached to me a lot! Mori's black and white, doesn't like people, but she likes me. Momo's brown tabby, and she's so playful! Fuku's orange tabby, sleepyhead, he likes strangers. Kita's calico, polite refined lady just like Ohtori. ... used to be another one, but Fuku's brother Ichi... the war was... I couldn't focus... and, winter... it's hard for strays.

Takeo Akamizu: Takeo is good person, good taste in food. And... helped save me. Helped get Mai out. ... I'm glad Takeo likes Mai. Mai deserves to be liked! Takeo always tries to support me... it makes me happy.

Fuu Hououji: I am glad Fuu is not my enemy. I like Fuu. But I don't understand Fuu at all! Even though I did such horrible things, Fuu still supported me... Fuu still believes in me... why?!

Kasagami Araki: I couldn't be honest after messing up so bad. I don't wanna make Kasagami mad... I love Kasagami.

Setsuna Meioh: Mysterious, but kind. Setsuna gave me thoughtful gift, jade cat. It lives on our windowsill. Setsuna understands purpose... just like me. Gives good advice. And, very smart! I love Setsuna.

Yumi Ohzora: Seems frail, but has strong heart. Helped me when I was scared and alone. Couldn't imagine Yumi's pain before, but think I'm getting close. I love Yumi. Tama is good, too. Yumi... Yumi's willing to listen, even when she doesn't understand. Yumi does a lot. Thanks, Yumi...

Kyouko Sakura: Eri's ally, also mine. Anyone who likes food like Kyouko is good person. Anyone who likes Eri like Kyouko is good person, too.

Chitose Shiratori: Chitose is a good person! White Omen is good, too. Chitose's half-alien, too, but hasn't been to space much. Space isn't good, Chitose... but I guess just saying that won't help much if Chitose misses it.

Homura Akemi: Not quite Shepherd, I think..? Still our ally. Hard to read, but I like Homura. We get along.

Sailor Uranus: Poetic. Uranus is very sure of herself. Makes sense... Uranus's strong. Uranus is a good person!

Sailor Neptune: Neptune's really elegant! And, warm. Always with Uranus. Neptune's good person too! I hope Neptune gets that house. But... Neptune said something which bothered me... about me being replaced by Eri. I don't know. I gotta think about it.

Michiru Kaioh: Saved me from awful spicy pain with milk. I'm so grateful! Michiru is a really good person!

Kimiko Akane: Those cookies were really good... but story behind them's sad. Kimiko's had lots of sad things happen. It's sad. I wanna help.

Steven Universe: Protected me. Rescued me. Brought me back to obsidian pendant. Saved me. And then, saved everyone. Steven really is a good person. Half-Gem, too. Steven's so young, but still a warrior... I know how hard that is. I'll protect Steven. After everything, nothing else I could do. ... glad Lion's okay too. But Lion's special, huh? Portals!

Usagi Tsukino: Usagi's good person. Passionate. Not a warrior. Haven't spoken much.

Sailor Moon: Strong.

Anthy Himemiya: Wonder if monkey's still around. Anthy's... odd.

Niramo Umokeshi: Kasagami's friend, Steven's friend too. Niramo's nice! Seems like caring person. Having parents is tough, huh..?

Sourisi: Helped me fly. My ally, now and then. Don't know much else.

Nori Ankou: ... very quiet girl.

Madoka Kaname: ... not a warrior, Eri said. Not my enemy. Not my friend, either... but not a target. But how could Madoka do that to Eri?! Eri was Madoka's first friend! That's most important friendship!

Cure Bloom: Yells like me.

Chibi-Usa Tsukino: Little girl, but shattered that... she's brave.

Sailor Mercury: Told us how to break giant destabiliser. Good.

Shigure Shiratsuyu: Niramo's normal friend... makes sense, since Niramo's normal too. Shy girl, but Shigure seems nice. Can't eat stuff like me! But, for different reason.

Lera Camry: Lera's enemy. That's why Lera kept hurting me with words. But Lera saved me... and Lera said I wasn't useless, just like Eri did. Eri wouldn't ever hurt me, so Lera mustn't have been lying, either... did Lera really just save me for advantage? Even if Lera did... can't deny Lera helped me... I don't like owing enemies. And... there's something... I don't know... Lera's difficult! Lera's complicated! I don't like it!

Lapis: This feeling must be... caution. Lapis gave up. But Lapis still consumed Jasper. How? ... Lapis is dangerous.

Utena Tenjou: Took Sayaka just as I was about to defeat. It should be simple. But... Utena rescued my bento...

The Chevaliers: I swore Eri's enemies were my enemies. Does Eri know how important that is? I hope so. Eri understands a lot. It's different to defending Eri. It's... a promise. And promises mean I can never go back. Even if Chevaliers are good guys. They don't get it. Eri has to eat. I won't let Eri starve. I know bad things. I can be a monster... Eri wants to give them a chance. To not give them reasons to fight. For Eri, I won't hunt them down, except...

Mami Tomoe: It's good she's dead. Now she'll never hurt Mai or Eri ever again. But... is it possible Mami was giving Mai something to fight against, even without defeating Mami..? ... I don't get it.

Sayaka Miki: I can't let Sayaka hurt Eri, but, I tried really hard and Sayaka still got away. Eri says I deserve better... but Eri's already so hurt after killing one girl. If I don't take care of Sayaka... no matter what, something awful's gonna happen.

Garnet: Garnet smells of nothing. Strange. My enemy, now. Also, fusion, two gems made stronger by love. ... I really... don't understand why Garnet protected me. Or why Garnet accepted me there. Bothers me. Doesn't make sense.

Ruby: Very loud. Good distraction. Ruby's passion feels familiar. And... I'm glad Ruby found Sapphire. ... I guess they're enemies too.

Sapphire: Sings. Made ice, I guess. Seeing them so happy... is what being sweet on girls means? ... I don't really get it. But I guess they'd never tell me. They're Garnet. Garnet's an enemy.

Endo Naoki: Fallen Stern's wielder. Endo's my exception. Endo dies, too. Maybe revenge really will make it worse... but Endo'll listen to Fallen Stern eventually. Fallen Stern is old like Miroku. Ancient blades can't be denied. Besides, Endo's focused on keeping friends safe. Just like me. So I know what that means. ... I hate how Endo saw me so weak. I hate how Endo knows stuff about me now. I hate how I had to speak to Endo. I hate how Endo was only one I had. I hate how I left Endo alive again. But Endo hates me as much as I hate Endo. Makes it easy...

Ren Aizawa: Intervened without warning. She's strong. People who attack me are enemies. ... but I still couldn't leave her wondering. If I came to rescue someone I'd kill for, and found nothing... it's just chopsticks. She'd blame me. That's all.

La Sirene de Diamant: Glittering, now. Salt-smell and danger. She's seen Miroku. What will she do with that knowledge?

Kozue Kaoru: ... stand with my enemy, fight alongside my enemy, become my enemy. Enemies must be destroyed. Doesn't matter if Kozue was only one who respected me. Doesn't matter how I feel. We both know what we gotta do. Nothing else we could do.

PRiNCESS Ye-jin: Masked stranger. Whip-wielder. Fast! Too fast!

Jasper: Trapped in ocean's better fate than Jasper deserves. But... I guess Jasper's gone now. Beyond reach. Ocean's too deep, even for me, Miroku.

Peridot: If she ever comes back, I'm gonna kill her.

Rubeus: ... I'm uncomfortable. Better be dead.

Vita: I'm not fooled. Vita's still my enemy. Vita still left me defenceless. Vita's not Chevalier, so there's no reason not to destroy. ... doesn't matter if Vita won't fight. Right, Homura?

Setsuna Higashi: Stop it. We're not friends. I can't rely on enemies. I should've just left. There's nothing Setsuna could do which would help, anyway, right..?

Fate Testarossa: ... don't expect to hear the answer. It doesn't matter if I enjoy it or not, anyway. Fate doesn't know anything... Fate doesn't get it at all.

Nanoha Takamachi: Bakery's Nanoha's territory. I won't intrude again.

Westar: I'm not like Westar either! ... I'm... kinda worried I scared someone like that. Must just be 'cause Westar's not very good at it.

Shizuru Fujino: Please don't destroy everything I care about. I can't fight someone like Shizuru. I really can't. That sort of nobility... but Eri won't let Shizuru hurt me, right?