Chapter 5: The Date to End All Dates End

Fraxinus Bridge - 4:00 PM

"We found her."

Reine’s voice cut through the tense atmosphere of the airship bridge.

Shido stood in the center of the command deck, still wearing his gym uniform (bloomers included), arms crossed, looking grim.

"Where?" Shido demanded. "Where is that brat?"

"It wasn't easy," Reine muttered, typing rapidly on her console. "Natsumi’s Spirit signature is incredibly faint when she transforms. However... the underwear you were holding provided a crucial sample."

"Please don't phrase it like that," Shido groaned.

"The residual mana on the principal's... garments... allowed us to triangulate her position," Kotori explained, suppressing a giggle. "She’s currently located in the Tengu City Shopping District. Specifically, the arcade."

"The arcade?"

"She's taunting you," Kotori said, unwrapping a new lollipop. "She knows we're tracking her now. She wants you to come to her."

Shido clenched his fists. "Fine. If she wants a confrontation, she’ll get one."

"Wait, Shido." Kotori held up a hand. "You can't go down there looking like a track-and-field reject. If you want to beat Natsumi at her own game, you have to own it."

"Own... what?"

Kotori smirked. "The persona. You’re going to beat her as Shiori."

---

Tengu City Arcade - 4:45 PM

The arcade was noisy, filled with the cacophony of fighting games, claw machines, and rhythm games.

Natsumi sat on a stool in front of a fighting game cabinet, legs swinging. She wasn't playing. She was watching the entrance.

She looked like a normal middle school girl today, wearing a green dress and her signature witch hat.

"He's late," she muttered. "Maybe he gave up? Maybe he's crying in a corner?"

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

Natsumi looked up. Her jaw dropped.

Standing at the entrance of the arcade wasn't the disheveled, panicked boy she expected.

It was Shiori.

But not just Shiori. It was High-Spec Shiori.

She was wearing a stylish off-shoulder blouse, a knee-length flared skirt that accentuated her waist, and modest heels. Her hair was done up in a complex braided style (courtesy of the Yamai sisters). She radiated an aura of mature, big-sisterly elegance.

Every guy in the arcade turned to look. Even some of the girls blushed.

"Y-You..." Natsumi stammered.

Shiori walked over, hips swaying naturally. She stopped in front of Natsumi and smiled—a gentle, maternal smile.

"Hello, Natsumi. Having fun?"

Natsumi jumped off the stool. "What is this?! You're supposed to be miserable! You're supposed to be a sweaty, gross guy in a skirt!"

"I adapted," Shido said, his voice perfectly modulated to a feminine alto. (Kotori had forbidden him from using his natural voice). "Now, turn me back."

"No!" Natsumi blew a raspberry. "I'm not done playing! You think just because you look pretty, you win? You're still just a fake! A gross imposter!"

"Is that so?" Shido sighed. He crouched down so he was at eye-level with Natsumi. "Then what do I have to do to satisfy you?"

Natsumi stared into Shido’s amber eyes. She searched for anger, for hatred. She found only patience. It annoyed her.

"Fine," Natsumi sneered. "If you're so good at being a girl... then prove it. Take me on a date."

"A date?"

"A Girls' Day Out!" Natsumi declared, pointing at the exit. "We're going to do everything I want to do. Shopping. Sweets. Purikura. If you break character once—if you act like a gross guy even for a second—I turn you into a toad. Forever."

Shido stood up. He smoothed his skirt.

"Challenge accepted."

---

Stage 1: The Fashion Show

"Ugly! Ugly! It looks terrible on you!"

They were in a high-end boutique. Natsumi was throwing clothes at Shido.

Her strategy was simple: Pick the most garish, difficult-to-wear outfits to humiliate him.

"Try this on!" Natsumi threw a neon-green dress with excessive frills.

"Okay."

Shido took it into the changing room. Two minutes later, the curtain opened.

Natsumi prepared to laugh.

"..."

Shido stepped out. He had somehow made it work. He had accessorized with a belt to break up the color and rolled the sleeves. He posed with the confidence of a runway model.

"How is it?" Shido asked.

"I-It's still ugly!" Natsumi shouted, her face red. "Next! This one! It's too tight!"

She threw a bodycon dress at him.

Shido came out wearing it. The Spirit Mana inside him had apparently decided to optimize his curves for exactly this moment. He looked devastating.

"Does it fit okay?" Shido asked, checking the mirror. "I feel a draft."

The shop clerk was taking photos. "Beautiful! It’s perfect!"

Natsumi gritted her teeth. Why? Why does he look better than me? I'm the Witch! I can transform into anything!

"Fine! You pass! Let's go!" Natsumi stormed out of the store.

---

Stage 2: The Crepe Stand

"I want the Triple-Deluxe-Mega-Sweet-Special," Natsumi ordered.

The crepe she received was a tower of whipped cream, strawberries, chocolate sauce, and three scoops of ice cream. It was bigger than her head.

"Here," Natsumi shoved it at Shido. "Hold this while I eat."

"Sure."

Shido held the crepe delicately. Natsumi leaned in to take a bite, intentionally trying to smear cream on Shido’s clothes.

But Shido anticipated it. He tilted the crepe slightly, took a napkin, and dabbed the corner of Natsumi’s mouth before the mess could happen.

"You have a little cream there," Shido said softly.

Natsumi froze.

The touch was gentle. Caring. Like a mother, or a big sister.

"D-Don't touch me!" Natsumi slapped his hand away.

"Sorry." Shido didn't get angry. He just smiled. "It's delicious, right?"

Natsumi looked at the crepe. She looked at Shido.

"Why?" she whispered. "Why aren't you mad? I turned you into a girl. I embarrassed you at school. I put panties in your hand in front of the principal!"

"Because," Shido said, taking a bite of his own crepe. "It doesn't matter what I look like. I'm still me. And you're still you."

Natsumi stared at him. "That doesn't make any sense! Appearance is everything! If you're ugly, people hate you! If you're weird, people ignore you!"

"Maybe," Shido admitted. "But I'm looking at you right now. You're Natsumi. You like pranks. You like sweets. You have a weird laugh."

"Hey!"

"And," Shido leaned in, wiping another smudge of chocolate from her cheek with his thumb. "You look like you're having fun."

Natsumi’s face went beet red. She tried to say something snarky, to insult him, but the words got stuck in her throat. She grabbed her hat and pulled it down over her eyes.

"S-Stupid... Shido..."

---

Stage 3: The Purikura (Photo Booth)

"Last stop," Natsumi mumbled, pointing at the bright pink booth in the corner of the arcade. "If you do this... I'll admit defeat."

"Purikura?" Shido smiled. "Easy."

They squeezed into the small booth. The screen flashed with options: Sparkle Mode, Big Eye Mode, Romantic Mode.

"Pick 'Romantic'," Natsumi ordered, her voice shaking slightly. "And... you have to kiss my cheek on the count of three."

"What?" Shido blinked.

"Do it! Or I turn everyone in the arcade into hamsters!"

"Okay, okay!"

The timer started counting down. 3... 2...

Natsumi squeezed her eyes shut. She waited for the humiliation. She expected Shido to hesitate, to look disgusted.

1...

Shido leaned in. He didn't just peck her cheek. He wrapped his arms around her small frame, hugging her warmly, and pressed his lips to her cheek just as the camera flashed.

FLASH.

The photo appeared on the screen.

It showed two girls. One, a beautiful, elegant older sister. The other, a small, flushed witch looking surprised and... happy.

"It's a good picture," Shido said softly.

Natsumi looked at the photo. Then she looked at Shido.

"You really are... an idiot," she whispered. "You're supposed to hate me."

"I can't," Shido said. He turned to face her fully, kneeling slightly so they were at eye level. The air in the cramped booth suddenly felt heavy, charged with magic.

"Natsumi."

"W-What?"

"You said if I acted like a guy, I'd lose. But..." Shido smiled, a genuine, masculine smile that somehow transcended his feminine features. "I think I've been Shido this whole time."

He leaned in.

Natsumi didn't pull away. She didn't turn him into a toad. She closed her eyes.

Shido pressed his lips to hers.

It wasn't a long kiss. It was soft, sweet, and accepting.

Immediately, a surge of warmth flowed through Shido. The connection was made. The Reiryoku that Natsumi had been hoarding flowed back into Shido, mixing with the turbulent storm of mana already inside him.

[SYSTEM ALERT: SPIRIT SEALED]

Natsumi’s clothes glowed. Her witch hat dissolved into particles of light. The Angel <Haniel> flickered and vanished.

Shido pulled back. Natsumi slumped against him, exhausted but peaceful.

"I... I guess you win," Natsumi mumbled sleepily.

"Yeah," Shido said, patting her head. "I guess I do."

Then, Shido felt a sharp pain in his chest.

"Gah!"

"Shido?"

Shido clutched his heart. His body began to glow with a blinding white light.

"Uh oh," Shido groaned, his voice cracking. "Reine said... the mana would react..."

POOF.

Smoke filled the photo booth.

---

Epilogue: The Aftermath

The Spirit Mansion - One Week Later

"And that," Kotori said, pointing at the chalkboard, "is why you are still wearing a skirt."

Shido sat on the sofa, his head in his hands.

He looked... mostly like Shido again. His hair was blue and short. His shoulders were broader. His voice had dropped back to a tenor.

But.

"Why," Shido asked, his voice trembling, "do I still have these?"

He pointed to his chest.

They weren't C-cups anymore. But they definitely weren't flat. They were a solid A-cup.

"Residual mana," Reine explained, sipping her coffee. "Natsumi's power was potent. The transformation is fading, but it has a 'half-life'. We estimate you will return to complete biological male status in... approximately three weeks."

"Three weeks?!" Shido screamed. "I have gym class tomorrow!"

"Don't worry, Shido!" Tohka patted his back. "I think they are cute! They are like mochi!"

"Don't touch them!"

"Darling~!"

The front door flew open. Miku Izayoi burst in, followed by a trail of porters carrying shopping bags.

"I heard the news! You're turning back! That means we have limited time!" Miku grabbed Shido’s arm. "I bought every frilly dress in the city! We have to do a fashion show before your shoulders get too broad!"

"No! Miku, let go!"

"Keh-keh! A fashion show?" Kaguya appeared on the stairs. "The Yamai sisters accept this challenge. We shall dress him in Gothic Lolita!"

"Competition. I will put him in a nurse outfit."

"Stop it! All of you!"

Shido ran for the door. He threw it open—

And ran smack into Origami.

Origami looked at Shido. She looked at his chest. She looked at his face.

She held up a camera.

Click.

"New folder created," Origami muttered. "Title: The Transition Phase."

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!"

Shido’s scream echoed into the sunset, marking the end of another peaceful day in Tengu City.