Two Trees Crossing Overhead

“Japan's railway system is top of the class in terms of punctuality… for better or for worse. Rain or snow or sleet or giant monsters couldn't keep the trains from following their schedules.”

Tamzin, son of Lalabel and Toshio

Approaching Sapporo, Hokkaido

Melody and Kenta were resting easy after their brief scare in Asahikawa. But Kenta was getting restless. 

“Ugh… I skipped breakfast this morning…” Kenta complained. "I'm sooooo hungry..."

“I know, you've said that thirteen times since we left Asahikawa,” Melody scolded him.

“Well, it's true,” Kenta insisted. “I'm hungry.”

“Fourteen times. Okay, when we get to Sapporo, I promise we'll make a pit stop to grab some lunch. Deal?”

“Deal.”

As they shook hands to signify the deal, a voice came over the train's intercom saying, “We will be approaching Sapporo Station in five minutes. Please make sure your personal belongings are secure before you exit. We appreciate your patronage.”

“See? We're almost at Sapporo already,” Melody told Kenta.

•

As they arrived at Sapporo Station, however, trouble awaited them once again. A group of National Security Bureau agents stood on the train platform, led by Kaito Suzuki and his assistant.

“Great… a welcoming committee,” Melody complained.

“Thank you so much for riding Nippon Rail,” the train intercom told everyone as they exited the train. “Have a nice day!”

Before anyone could enter or exit the train, however, the doors along the side of the first train car opened up, allowing Agent Suzuki to enter.

“Mr. Conductor,” Suzuki said with a very polite bow, “my name is Kaito Suzuki. I am with the National Security Bureau. It is our belief that this train harbors two confirmed fugitives. It would please the Prime Ministers greatly if you allowed us to search your train for them. I promise there won't be much of a delay.”

“How did he beat us here?” Melody asked, spotting him from all the way in the last train car. “And what's with the glasses?”

“So now what?” Kenta asked.

“I have an idea,” Melody replied. “Just repeat after me: Hide Me from the Eyes.”

Melody vanished from Kenta's sight in an instant. Kenta did the same, allowing him to also become invisible for a moment. Melody's hope was that it would buy them enough time to escape the train and get past those agents.

But someone was watching them.

“Sight Beyond Eyesight,” Shimano chanted, allowing him to track down anyone who snuck away from the train. Sure enough, he had spotted Melody and Kenta running away from the train platform… while holding their breaths…

“Splat Splat Tracking Trick,” Shimano chanted his next spell, putting a splatter of an orange paint-like substance on the otherwise invisible Kenta. “Levitating Pulse!!” Shimano's third spell knocked Melody and Kenta's invisible bodies into the air. The shock of getting caught forced both of them to gasp for air, ending the invisibility spell. With Shimano's plan executed to success, he motioned and called for Suzuki.

“Well now,” Suzuki said to them as he stumbled into view, “if it isn't the Phantom Thief and her new accomplice.”

“Accomplice?!” Kenta couldn't believe his ears. “I'm the victim here!”

“Not anymore, you're not!” Suzuki corrected him as he removed his glasses, and then his bandages. Neither Kenta nor Melody could bear the sight of Suzuki's mangled face. As he put his glasses back on, Suzuki continued, “Aiding and abetting a known fugitive, that's a charge. Assaulting a law enforcement officer, that's another charge. Resisting arrest, yet another charge. I think you're looking at up to ten years in the pen, young man. Though maybe since you're a first-time offender, the judge might let you off with a warning, who knows?”

“This is all your fault!” Kenta shouted at Melody.

“My fault?!” Melody was stunned to hear the accusation. “I didn't decide to wake up your high magic this morning!”

“Oh?” Suzuki smiled at the sound of the term high magic. “So that's your high magic is it? Very interesting. Seems the chief was right about you.”

“The chief?” Melody asked.

“Yes, the Bureau Chief,” Suzuki answered. “My boss, Kimiko Sakamoto. She didn't like the fact that you basically removed my eyesight, but you… Oh, you might be useful to us.”

“Useful how, exactly?” Kenta asked.

“Spoilers.”

“Three. Two. One,” Shimano counted down to the end of the levitation spell. Once the time hit zero, Melody and Kenta suffered a rough fall to the pavement below.

“You two are under arrest,” Suzuki told them as agents surrounded them, handcuffs at the ready.

Melody quickly shouted “Zap It To You, Mate!”, sending Shimano flying into the side of the train. While still in control of the lighting spell, she spun in a circle with incredible speed and grace. She even took extra care to avoid zapping Kenta. Her spell managed to dispatch every single agent in the area, allowing her and Kenta to make a quick escape.

Suzuki, however, was quick to spring back into action. Against all common sense and his better judgment, he shouted “Channel Fireball!!”, sending a large fireball out of his wand and in the general direction of the runaways. He missed, but in doing so, caused a nearby car to explode. The message he sent was clear: he would do anything in his power to bring those miscreants to justice.

As the chase continued, he was somehow able to keep a decent pace with his targets, firing off several more fireballs despite having maybe 20% of his eyesight still functioning. The only issue was because his remaining eyesight was so poor, he was a very terrible shot. None of the eleven fireballs he shot made their mark, instead causing tremendous damage to nearby buildings, vehicles, and trees. He could hear them getting away, disappearing into the crowded streets of Sapporo. He tried to fire off more fireballs, but soon came to realize he was out of mana.

“I hope you enjoy your time together!” Suzuki screamed at them as they disappeared into the crowd. Angry at what just happened, Suzuki slammed his fist into the side of a restaurant. Shimano snuck up behind him, laughing at the whole thing. “What's so funny?” he asked Shimano.

“I bugged him,” Shimano answered, unable to control his laughter in the process.

“The fluff is that supposed to mean?”

“I put a tracking bug on the boy,” Shimano explained. “Now, wherever they go, no matter where, we will know. The bug is magically linked to my thoughts.”

“That's actually rather brilliant, Shimano,” Suzuki congratulated his assistant on a well executed plan. “I do have one question, though. What if they get separated?”

“Oh, they won't,” Shimano replied. “It's clear the two of them are traveling together. They're headed to the same place. Whether they'll stay together once they get there is unclear.”

“Where are they headed?” Suzuki asked him.

“You mentioned the shinkansen to Tokyo earlier. Why was that?”

“It was a safe assumption to make,” Suzuki explained. “Most of the criminal underground is there, so if the girl is taking the boy anywhere, it could be there.”

“The shinkansen leaves in half an hour,” Shimano reminded him. “Do we ambush them when they arrive?”

“No, they'll be expecting that,” Suzuki replied. “They may even take a different route. We need to figure out where they're heading, then ambush them there. Fortunately for us, I know an old witch who can help us with that.”

“Just give me the address and I'll take us there,” Shimano told him. “Also, I may call in a member of the Non-Magical Patrol. You really need someone to help you aim your spells.”

“How bad of a shot was I?” Suzuki asked.

“If you weren't an agent of the Bureau, you'd be facing about twenty-five years in prison.”

“Fluff…”