---
"Huh?!" Ryuji exclaimed. "There are cognitions here too?"
"Ryuji, that may not be—" Morgana began.
"Oi! You're a cognition of Shiho here, right? What are you doing?" Ryuji demanded loudly.
"Teehee… is that what you think?" the copy of Shiho replied. Her voice was layered and distorted, similar to Kamoshida's king form — but lighter. Mocking.
"Shiho…" Ann whispered, eyes darting between the real Shiho at her side and the one approaching from the depths of the tunnel.
"I don't…" Shiho managed weakly.
"I am the Shadow," the copy interrupted. "The true self. Teehee. All the parts she doesn't want others to see. All the ugly parts. Everything she hides… exposed through me."
Silence.
A Shadow? Here?
Morgana's ears twitched.
"Shadows are supposed to reside within the individual…" he muttered. "Why is it manifested here?"
Shadow Shiho tilted her head slowly.
"So, Shiho. Going to play the hero now that you have a chance? Finally away from that scum of a human. Didn't you feel relaxed yesterday? So peaceful… knowing he wouldn't have a chance to lay his hands on you again?"
Ann stiffened.
"His hands on you? Shiho?!" she demanded, glancing at the real Shiho's pale face, the bandages, the bruises.
"Oh, it's fine though," Shadow Shiho continued lightly. "He didn't do THAT. So you can handle it. Everyone already knows what happens at those practices. But you ran away… and didn't even tell your friends."
"No… I…" Shiho's voice trembled.
"And if it isn't Ann," the Shadow cooed. "The light of your life. Strong. Straightforward. Beautiful. Everything you aren't."
Ann flinched.
"Covered in bruises. No makeup. Sports clothes. Injuries everywhere…" the Shadow sneered. "Mishima wasn't at school today. You know what likely happened. But you still refuse to speak. You are selfish. You are weak. You ran. Comforting yourself with the thought that maybe you'll be left alone."
The grin widened.
"And maybe your 'light' won't have to sully herself for you anymore."
"Stop… please…" Shiho sobbed, clutching her chest.
"You know what happens next," the Shadow whispered. "Go back. Endure it. You'll prevent others from sharing your fate. After all… all you are is a punching bag who happens to be decent at volleyball."
"Stop! You aren't me!!" Shiho screamed.
"Oh, but I am," the Shadow hissed, voice cracking and distorting. "I am the Shadow. The true self."
Her form warped.
Limbs elongated. Feathers tore through skin. The air vibrated with a monstrous howl as she transformed into a womanly winged warrior clad in twisted armor of netting and fractured metal.
"Now… I will be the dominant one!"
"Oh no—it's going berserk!" Morgana shouted.
"We have to stop it!" Ryuji yelled, summoning Captain Kidd in a burst of blue flame.
"Careful! Don't kill it!" Ren barked urgently. "We don't know what happens to her if you do!"
Captain Kidd fired off a Zio. Lightning crackling through the tunnel.
"Lady Ann! Get Lady Shiho away from the fight!" Morgana commanded sharply.
Panicking, Ann dragged the trembling Shiho toward the subway steps.
Only now did she truly see it.
The walls weren't concrete.
They were pulsing.
Red veins throbbed beneath the surface, like something alive breathing beneath the skin of the tunnel.
Ann stumbled backward, hugging Shiho tightly as tremors wracked her body.
The fight erupted.
Ren moved instinctively, blade flashing — but his mind lagged half a step behind.
"Rebel against what binds you…?" he thought, ducking beneath a sweep of Shadow Shiho's blade. "No. That's not it… The true self? What—"
"Ren!" Morgana and Ryuji shouted.
BOOM.
Ren was launched backward, slamming into the pulsating wall. The impact forced the air from his lungs. He coughed, tasting blood.
"Zorro! Dia!" Morgana yelled.
Zorro appeared in a flash, casting the healing spell. Warm light sealed Ren's internal injuries as quickly as they formed.
"Thanks," Ren muttered, pushing himself upright. "Arsène!"
Arsène surged forward, claws slashing through the Shadow.
It did nothing.
"We aren't doing any damage!" Ryuji shouted, leaping high as Captain Kidd swooped down, catching him against the deck of his phantom ship before retreating out of range.
The Shadow laughed.
Then—
A blinding flash, freezing everything.
A yellow tarot card spun slowly above Shadow Shiho, radiating golden light. Chains of light formed a barrier around her, suspending her mid-motion.
Shadow Shiho roared as her monstrous form began collapsing inward, feathers receding, armor cracking, returning to a warped humanoid shape.
Ren lowered his blade cautiously.
Ryuji and Morgana scanned the tunnel.
And then Ren saw it.
Ann had fallen backward.
Shiho stood several feet away now.
Clutching Ren's bag tightly to her chest.
Her eyes were wide. Golden light reflected in her pupils with an occasional blue and gold flame flaring around her.
As if she was in a trance.
---