“Owwwww… what the heck, Oracle?! What the hell, Kiwa-chan?!”

Kotone sat up on her knees, sighing in defeat as the road returned to normal, the straight, endless Miracle Street fading into a normal Kamihama intersection, though deserted as the rest of the city.

“Didn’t I tell ya, Kotone-chan? Cece-chan’s the best!”

“You didn’t tell me she had her freakin’ Doppel!” Kotone winced as she rubbed the back of her head.

“She just got it, Kotone-chan! Like… half an hour ago, or so! Or maybe two hours. I dunno. Hey, Cece-chan, how long were we walking here?”

The Oracle sighed, facing away from the pair. “Kiwa-chan, please show Kotone back to your home. She has some friends to meet and questions to answer. …And cookies to eat, no doubt.”

“Hey! I’m not a child, Oracle! I don’t need–“

Kiwa shimmied herself under Kotone’s right arm, slowly helping her to her feet. “Now now, Cece-chan’s right! Masako-chan and Yoko-chan are there, too! Aaah, I bet Masako’s dying to hear how Cece’s Doppel Training went!”

“Ggh… I don’t gotta choice here, do I?”

“Nope! Come on, Cece-chan! We’re goin’ home!”

Cecilia, however, started walking the other way. “…I’ll catch up. There’s something I must see for myself, first.”

“Cece-chan…?”

“…Aw damn. Kiwa-chan… we uh… we gotta go. My big sis isn’t too happy.”

“Big sis…? Oh no. Cece-chan, come back! It’s too dangerous!”

Cecilia continued walking, disappearing into the fog back from where they came.

“Ce… Cece-chaaaaan~!”

---

The road continued for awhile, as it had when it was Kotone’s barrier, though it was quick to shift. The asphalt widened, spreading into a larger road, then larger still, then eventually, the Oracle came to cracks in the street, bearing grass. As she walked, the grass patches became more apparent, then drier and more dense, and before long, she found herself on a yellow, dry plain, which stretched far beyond her field of vision.

“You give yourself away too easily”, the Oracle said, quietly. “…Yoshino Hinata.”

A taller girl, about as tall as Cecilia emerged from the horizon, fazing through the shimmer of reality on the opposite side Cecilia had entered from. “Clever girl”, she said, brushing a strand of her long, fiery red hair from her face, behind her ear. Her amber eyes shimmered in the light of the setting sun. “Figured you’d have sensed me by now. When was it you found me out?”

“During my fight with Kotone. You were watching me, but you did not interfere. Why?”

“I wanted to see what you’d do. If Kotone’s life were in danger, you’d have seen me sooner. But I could tell right away that you weren’t out for blood. It’s not like Kiwa-chan to go for an assassin to solve her problems, anyway.”

“Kiwako is a pacifist, then?”

“…Sorta. You’ll find out.”

“So the other reason you did not make yourself known, then, was to see how I fought.”

“Yeah. I figured, just like the twins said, that you’d start to use your Doppel on us by now. Kotone was too thick to listen to them, but I…”

“…did your homework.” Cecilia’s sapphire eyes were locked into Hinata’s rubies.

Hinata, in turn, gave a soft, self-assured smile. “Just like you did. And I know that biblical angel Witch’s weak spots, so… sorry, babe, but it’s game over.”

Cecilia, however, closed her eyes and gave a sad smile in return. “…Indeed. But I’m afraid you’re not as astute a student as you’d like to think.”

Hinata’s smile faded, her shadow spreading behind her, growing until it took the shape of a lion. “Explain, Oracle.”

“I did my homework, as we both said. But you see… I learned more than your names, and the names of your Witches. I took a large look at Mitakihara before I left. I knew, roughly, what would be the most opportune time to look within myself. To see which side the coin should land on each flip. And more importantly, which side of the line in the sand I belonged.”

Hinata’s expression darkened as she took a stance, steel claws emerging from her gloves. “…You set a trap, and I was the one lucky enough to fall in it.”

The sky darkened, a low roll of thunder echoing through the otherwise crystal clear sky. “I counted each and every second that would pass in Mitakihara. It wasn’t easy, her voice is quite distracting. But I knew what would happen on the other side of the mirror here.” A streak of purple lightning shot across the empty sky as a stage began to rise behind Cecilia. “…We’re two halves of the same coin, she and I. And she needs me now, so I shall be more than willing to let her reawaken, for a while, when she needs me most. And as a result, I, too, will have the grace of surprise. You studied me… but it was -her- that you should have spied on.”

“Tch…” Hinata’s fists tightened as the steel claws shimmered. “Hardly fair. But I’m a lion, not a coward. Gimme your fair fight, then, Oracle.”

“Oh…”, Cecilia said, lowering her hood as a silver staff appeared in her right hand, “Who said anything about a fair fight?”