Part 3
[Boost!] The gemstone in my Sacred Gear glows and I can feel the power rush through me.
“Here I come, Ise-kun!” Kiba shouts and surges forward.
I can barely keep up with his speed, narrowly dodging two swift blows to the side of my head and deflecting a third aimed at my chest with the Red Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet.
“Too slow!” Rias-buchou scolds me from the sidelines. “It takes too long for you to charge up, so you have be able to stay alive until then.”
“Guh.” I dodge another attack. But I can feel that he cut a strand of my hair. Oi, we're just training, you know? “Did we have to use real swords for this?” This would be a perfectly nice Tuesday morning, if I wasn't scared for my life that is.
[Boost!]
“This sparring match is for both your sakes. Yuuto needs to get used to his Balance Breaker, since he's only recently obtained it.”
And I still can't get into my own Balance Breaker state without help. Shit. Narrowing my eyes at Kiba, I charge forward. If I can't even reach his level, there's no way I can fight Vali on even terms.
[Boost!]
Alright! Now I'm at eight times my normal strength. My mailed left fist surges forward and collides with Kiba's attempt to block. His holy-demonic sword shatters into pieces, but using his incredible speed, he backs away and avoids my follow-up.
“Not bad,” Kiba praises me. “You used your dragon arm. Had you tried that with your other hand, it would have hurt.”
No kidding. His swords have both demonic and holy attributes. The latter is absolutely lethal to devils like us.
“Yuuto,” Buchou says calmly. “Stop holding back.”
“Yes, Buchou.”
No way! He was pulling his punches? If he gets a clean hit, I might die, you know? Buchou has her eyes half closed as she watches our fight. Could it be she's still angry about Akeno-san and I going off by ourselves yesterday?
Kiba strikes a pose. “[Sword Birth].” Several swords rise up from the ground and he picks up two of them in a dual-wielding stance. But something's odd.
“Those are just regular old demonic swords, aren't they?”
He smiles. “Ah, looks like this is my limit for now. I can't stay in Balance Breaker any longer. But that means I can go all out without being afraid of seriously injuring you.”
You say that, but it's still scary as hell! I'm not actually sure that I've gained an advantage here. He lowers his center of gravity and charges me at top speed.
[Boost!]
That's it, the power of my Sacred Gear. Every few seconds it doubles my strength. Now I'm at sixteen times my normal battle power. Just enough to use that technique.
I raise my arm, collecting the magical energies from my surroundings as the jewel in the gauntlet begins to charge and glow a green hue. Aiming it at my opponent, I shout: “[Dragon Shot!]”
Kiba raises the sword in his right hand to deflect my attack while simultaneously slashing at me with the one in his left. The magic beam alters it's trajectory slightly and misses, glancing off the demonic blade and hitting a mountain top in the distance. We can hear the roar from here in the hotel courtyard.
“Dammit.” I look down with a frown. My open uniform jacket is slashed across my belly. A few centimeters deeper and he would have hit a vital organ. But that's Kiba, our technique genius, for you. Pulling off a maneuver like this and still ensuring the safety of his training partner.
Buchou sighs and comes over to us. “Looks like you still can't fully control that power.” She picks up my arm and looks at the Sacred Gear thoughtfully. “It would be nice, if you could get into your Balance Breaker.”
“Sorry,” I mumble. I feel so useless.
She shakes her head. “There's no point in forcing it. You can still be very useful in the upcoming Game. Your ability to transfer power to others could be crucial.”
Yeah, that's the other mode of my Sacred Gear, [Gift].
“Get your uniform fixed. You'll have another sparring match with Koneko in the afternoon.”
“Yes, Buchou.”
“Yuuto, let's go over those books we got from the library again. I'm still working on our tactics.”
He nods. “There's one that could help us. It's called 'Understanding Medieval Equestria'. It describes several battles in Equestrian history in detail.”
She nods. “Good place to start.”
As they leave, Kiba turns and waves at me. “Good match. See you later, Ise-kun.”
I stand there for a minute and then a thought occurs to me. “Shit! I don't know how to fix clothes with magic like the others do. Now what?”
* * *
A bell rings as I enter the shop named Carousel Boutique. After asking around in town for a bit, it has become clear to me that this is the only place I can go.
“I'll be out in a minute.” The melodic voice that comes from the backroom belongs to Rarity. No doubt the cheerfulness will leave it instantly, when she sees me.
I glance around the sales floor curiously. So ponies do wear clothes after all. I just haven't seen any do so. Maybe they only wear them for special occasions. My own approach to fashion has always been strictly utilitarian. Well, I did get dressed up for that date with Yuuma-chan. … Yuuma-chan …
I shake my head angrily. No. I can't let myself fall into these thoughts again. Need something to take my mind off things.
As I walk around the room, I somehow end up near the door to the other room. Since it's slightly ajar, I can hear the voices of the two ponies behind it pretty clearly.
“What do you think, darling?”
“I think it might just give us the edge we need!” Twilight Sparkle sounds pretty excited. “How many can you make?”
“Well.” Rarity seems a little hesitant. “Because of the unique properties of these gemstones, they don't respond at all to my Gem Finding Spell, so I have to look for them the old-fashioned way. I still need some more. Even then I'll only be able to make one in time.”
“I see. Then we'll have to think really hard about who should wear it.”
“Well, Princess Luna, you and I are out for obvious reasons.”
“I suppose so. The effect would not only be restricted to the opponent. The wearer also receives the same effect.” What are they talking about?
“What about Rainbow Dash? She'll be wearing armour anyway.”
Twilight doesn't seem to agree. “It would probably be too cumbersome. She'll need her speed. We need somepony stronger. Also I'm not sure how this secret weapon of yours would react with pegasus magic.”
Secret weapon? Is this about the Rating Game?
“I do have enough to make something in Spike's size right now.”
Once again Twilight shoots the idea down. “Dragons already have a natural resistance to magic. Giving it to him would waste its strategic potential.”
“Huh, I never knew that.”
Twilight giggles. “Why do you think I ask Spike to help me with most of my experiments? If something goes wrong, he's the most likely to walk away with only minor injuries.”
Rarity gasps. “Twilight! That's a horrible thing to say!”
“I know, I know. But it's the truth. And it's not like I hide it from him, if it's something dangerous. I do sometimes think that those teenage dragons we met that time were right about one thing. He is one tough, little dragon.”
“If only he had the confidence to match, he might be our best hope of winning this.” Huh, that's strange. Rarity sounded rather wistful just now.
“Anyway, getting back to the matter at hand. It's gonna have to be either Applejack or Pinkie Pie.”
“Alright, I have both their measurements and they're fairly similar. This way I can get started and make the final adjustments, when you've reached a decision.”
“Right. I'll have to run this by the Princess. I'll let you know what she decides.”
“Please do, darling. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a customer.”
“Sure thing, Rarity. See you later for spell-casting practice.”
I can hear hoofsteps. Looks like Twilight left via the back door. A pang of guilt hits me as I back away from the door. I probably shouldn't have heard this conversation. Then again, I'm not even sure what they were really talking about. I suppose it's fine as long as I don't say anything about it.
Rarity walks onto the main sales floor with a bright smile. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique! What can I do for … you?” Just as expected, her face darkens immediately at my sight.
“Uhm, I need something fixed.” I tug at the place in my jacket where the fabric has been slashed by Kiba's sword.
She's still glaring daggers at me. I can see it over the rim of her designer glasses. This mare really doesn't like me. But eventually she sighs and trots over to a sewing machine. “Over here.”
I hand her my jacket and she picks it up with her levitation magic. “Sit,” she says. “This'll only take a minute.”
I sit down on a nearby stool. Damn, it's small. I feel like I'm sitting in a place made for a fourth-grader. I must look like an idiot.
The rattling of the machine fills the air. I can't think of anything to say, so I simply watch her. She looks so earnest. No wonder she's a business owner at such a young age.
“I see your abhorrent behaviour towards clothing even extends to your own.” Suddenly Rarity decides to strike up a conversation.
“It was a training accident.” It's silent again except for the noises of the machine. This is so awkward. But something is bugging me. “I don't understand why you're so disgusted by my technique. You ponies walk around naked most of the time. So why are you so upset about the very idea of my Dress Break.”
“It's not about nudity,” she explains. “Although from what I gather from your culture, it's still a rather despicable thing to do. It's the callous disregard for the clothing itself that appalls me personally.”
I shrug my shoulders. “It's just an object. It's not like my technique hurts anyone.”
“Oh, but it does!” She objects violently. Picking up my jacket, she hovers it in front of my face. “What is this?”
I blink. I'm not really sure what she's getting at here, so I answer with my honest thoughts. “It's just my school uniform. I wear it every day.”
“Precisely. Someone, somewhere took the time and effort to design that article of clothing. No doubt they took great care in the process, knowing the responsibility that hundreds of students would wear this every day. They had to consider aesthetics and comfort. They did this for your benefit. And if you treat it badly, you injure the person that worked hard on it.”
“ … “ I don't really know what to say. I've never thought about it that way.
“More than that,” she continues as she returns to carefully stitching up the uniform. “When you destroy someone else's clothing, you hurt them. Not because of their nudity, but because they took the time and care to pick out this particular garb to wear that day. It's because dressing up and making yourself pretty can bring joy to a person's heart and the people around them. Maybe that person wanted to look her best for her very special somepony that day.”
… Dammit. Again, why do I think back to my first date? The happiest I'd ever been up until that point in my life, at least until I was killed by my date. Yuuma-ch … no, Raynare. The words she said to me still chill my bones. Will you die for me?
“How would you feel, if someone spilled a drink over your girlfriend's dress?”
How would I feel? I'd probably be pissed.
The sewing machine stops and Rarity looks at me. She shakes her head. “I suppose someone like you will never understand.” Looks like she took my silence the wrong way. “Try it on for size. I'll be right back.”
As she trots over to a chest in the corner, I put on my jacket and check my reflection in the mirror. “Hey, what's this?” I run my fingers over the embroidery that has appeared over my left chest. It's stitched in gold thread and it looks like … the head of a dragon.
“I couldn't help myself,” Rarity says, appearing next to me in the mirror. “I just had a flash of inspiration and couldn't let it go. It covers up the repair work quite nicely, but I'll remove it, if you want.”
You did that in such a short time? I probably should tell her to get rid of it. I'll get in trouble at school for not wearing a proper uniform for one thing. “No, leave it. It looks great.”
For the first time since I've met her, I can see a genuine smile grace her face. I can feel my heart skip a beat, surprising even myself. This mare looks … cute! ARRGGHHH! Dammit! Why did I think that? I'm not a furry!!!
Gently she hovers a small ruby up to my chest and weaves it into the fabric with her magic. Now the golden dragon has a fiery, red eye. “Thanks, it looks awesome. What do I owe you?”
She turns around and begins to put away the sewing utensils she used. “Nothing. Take it as a gift. Maybe it'll make you think about what I said.”
“No, really. I should pay you. What do you want?”
She cocks her head and looks over her shoulder at me with what could almost be described as a seductive look. Damn, it should be illegal for equines to have such sexy eyes. “Well, there is one thing.” Then she bares her teeth at me in a positively vicious grin. “I'll kick your dress-breaking flank during the Rating Game. Seeing you lose will be my reward.”
Oh, feisty! I grin back at her. “That's the one thing I can't let you have. I'm gonna have to win for my master.”
“We'll see, darling.”
As I leave the boutique, I'm actually happy that I had this chance to talk to Rarity. Could it be that Buchou actually meant for this to happen, when she told me to get my uniform fixed? I wouldn't put it past her.
Then I look at my hand. Dress Break. It's something someone like me, with a limited magical aptitude, managed to create. Well, Asia helped me refine it. But just like Rarity takes pride in the dresses she creates, I should be able to take pride in the technique I created. Neither of us is really wrong, I know that. But I also know that we'll never see eye to eye on it.
I make a resolution that in the future I'll consider more carefully who I use Dress Break on. After all, with great power comes great responsibility. That's what my dad always says. … Or did I get that from somewhere else?