Fic: Scissoring
Title: Scissoring
Author: JoeHundredaire (joehundredaire@tthfanfic.org)
Rating: R/FR18
Disclaimer: Right, I actually went and checked to be sure this time… Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel: the Series, and all associated characters belong to Fran and Kaz Kuzui. Hajime, her NOTE, her powers, and the rest of the Gatchaman Crowds intellectual property belongs to Tatsunoko Production.
Summary: GATCHAMAN! *wubwubwubwubwub*
Joe's Note: I have no clue where the hell the idea for this came form, beyond the fact that I've been watching Gatchaman Crowds with my girlfriend and… well, Hajime is freaking adorable. I'm not even going to bother pointing out the alternate universe aspect of this because it's about as subtle as me hitting on a woman.
"I hate this. I hate being here. I hate that you have to be here. I hate that there's evil, and that I was chosen to fight it. I wish, a whole lot of the time, that I hadn't been. I know a lot of you wish I hadn't been either. But this isn't about wishes. This is about choices. I believe we can beat this evil. Not when it comes, not when its army is ready, now. Tomorrow morning, I'm opening the seal. I'm going down into the Hellmouth, and I'm finishing this once and for all. Right now you're asking yourself, 'What makes this different? What makes us anything more than a bunch of girls being picked off one by one?' It's true none of you have the power that Faith and I do. So here's the part where you make a choice."
Dawn Summers looked around the room slowly, trying to gauge the Slayers-in-Training's reactions. Most of them seemed either thoughtful or enthusiastic, while Rona and Kennedy were busy blushing and looking anywhere but Buffy. All in all, though, the reactions seemed positive… especially when it came to the one person who didn't get to make the choice. And shouldn't have understood what was going on. "Uh, Satsu? Any chance you're willing to translate for us?"
Glancing over at her friend and traveling companion, Satsu Tani shrugged before offering a crooked smile. "Do I have to? The faces you make when Hajime gets going are kinda hilarious." Hajime Ichinose picked that moment to demonstrate that yes, she did indeed have a firmer grasp of English than the rest of them had given her credit for, letting out a huff and elbowing Satsu in the ribs. "Ouch! Fine! She says…" Satsu trailed off as Hajime chattered away in Japanese for a few seconds before sticking her hand into her pocket and pulling out a white notebook. "She says that it might be best if we opened the seal and then left her and 'NOTE-chan' to deal with what comes out."
"Um… well, that's very nice of her to offer, but…" Buffy Summers looked from Satsu and Hajime to Willow and then on to Faith and Giles and Xander in turn before finally returning her gaze to the pair of Japanese teens. "She does know what's down there, right? An army of übervamps? And I had a hard time taking on just one of them?" Hajime nodded decisively in response and Buffy's eyes narrowed. "In that case… is there something that you two would like to share with the class? Because last time I checked, she was a normal human. A normal, non-suicidal human."
Oh yeah, Dawn thought with a snort, because Buffy had a stellar track record when it came to knowing who in the house was and wasn't suicidal. But she had to admit, her sister had a point. Even if Willow did cast the spell and turn all the Potentials into active Slayers, chances were that they would be leaving with fewer people than they entered the school with. And this girl thought she could replace all of them? What did she know that they didn't?
From the moment the pair of Japanese girls had arrived, Hajime had been a rather frustrating mystery to them all. While Willow had quickly confirmed Satsu's status as a Potential using the same spell that had located Amanda, Hajime had turned out to be a normal human girl. Who had willingly accompanied Satsu to America, according to the Potential, despite knowing exactly what they'd be walking into. When pressed for details, Satsu had answered each and every question with 'because she needed to come' and Hajime had hidden behind a language barrier that evidently wasn't as much of a barrier as they'd thought. Now, though? It appeared they were finally going to get some answers, and Dawn couldn't wait.
Mostly because she had money riding on the outcome.
Hopping to her feet, Hajime made shooing motions as she turned in a circle, clearing an empty spot in the middle of the living room. Eventually, she was satisfied with her working space and spread her arms wide as she stood with her feet a shoulder width apart. "Dekiagaru!" Bending her right arm at the elbow, she brought the notebook in toward her cheek. "Buradu, Go!" Dawn's jaw dropped as the two darker lines on the notebook's cover began to glow brightly, all the space between them transforming into a glass-like substance that quickly filled with glowing blue symbols… and an odd logo that looked like a cross between a 'G' and a bird. A glowing orange and white ring of symbols appeared on the floor at Hajime's feet as its twin hovered over her head. The two rings surged towards each other, meeting at Hajime's waist and… turning the girl into a Power Ranger? "Gatchaman wa koko ni aru!"
Well, kinda. Sorta. There was less spandex and more white armor covered with glowing blue and pink streaks, along with some gold highlights. Oh, and Hajime now had pink pigtails. Dawn's eyes widened as the girl's calf armor popped open, ejecting two objects with a vaguely avian motif: one of them the same color as her armor and adorned with glowing pink streaks, the other made of a mix of white and black with glowing blue pieces. Hajime brought together to form… throwing her head back, Dawn began laughing hysterically. "Whoo hoo! Yes! I win the pool!"
"Like fuck you do!" Faith Lehane hopped to her feet, pulling a piece of paper out of her pocket. Unfolding it, she scanned the list of names before jabbing at the paper with her finger. "You bet fifty dollars that Satsu brought Hajime to America with her because-"
Dawn grinned and gestured to the Scoobies' strange new ally. "Scissoring."
"That's not what you meant and you know it."
"Doesn't matter if I made Britanna jokes. My exact bet was 'scissoring'."
"I hate you."
"Scissoring."
