“R... Reiko-chan..." Rui gasped, her eyes wide. “Noooooo!”

I looked up, exhausted. I was stunned by her words. My mind was gradually reassembling as though it was doing some heavy duty defragmentation. The words were confusing enough, but she was looking directly at me.

“Oh, kami! Did I?” I gasped.

“HALT!” The policemen surrounded us. Some assumed offensive stances. Others stood to cast light on us. The light blinded us momentarily.

“We’re screwed!” Rui gasped softly. “People saw us on the trains that passed us. Plus with what that woman from the train said, we’re literally out of luck. They’ll pin everything Noh-face did all on us!” She clapped her hands to her cheeks. Akushi walked up behind the officers, one hand resting on the wall to steady himself. I saw his eyes gleam wetly in the dark. There was a glowing quality to them, reinforcing the impression that he was not human.

I surged to my feet, gritting my teeth.

“Stay down!” one policeman yelled loudly. “If you resist, we’ll force you to stand down!”

My eyes fastened on Rui determinedly. “I’ll carve us a path!” I announced, clenching my fists.

“W-wow... Magiranger Red..." said an officer I recognized from earlier, the one who had been overjoyed to see me. I decided he must have been stationed one over to cover what was going on here with the rest of the officers. “That’s what you really looked like under that helmet? You’re quite the strange creature. Magiranger... you’re some kind of..." He staggered, looking betrayed.

On the other side another policeman stepped forward. “FATHER, MY ASS!” he shrieked. “I can’t believe I was so taken in! I need to train harder!” He nearly pulled his hair out on the spot.

I stiffened, blinking. Well, the cat’s out of the bag. Even so I clenched my fists more tightly. My nails bit into my hands. It hurt intensely, but I didn’t stop clenching them. Hot fluid dripped gently down my hands. My arms lifted into a clumsy martial art stance. “Alright, Rui! Run!” I whispered.

I darted towards them, but Rui snagged me and yanked. I slipped and fell instantly down to my butt. Despite how angry I was, I didn't feel powerful anymore. Before, getting angry meant feeling a surge of power. That was over and done with. “That’s enough, Susumu. You’re such a sweet idiot.” She knelt by my side and leaned down to plant a kiss on my forehead. “It’s such a tragedy, this -- Oh, Susumu..." She shook her head.

I looked up at her, blushing. My brain froze at how warm she was being. Perhaps it was because I wasn’t a man anymore, but a strange noh-face yokai. Maybe finding my mind mysteriously despite the fact that I was told I’d lose my mind made her feel warmer towards me. She might even have developed more respect for me than anyone else ever did, my own parents included.

“That’s enough! You’re under arrest!” another officer said. “I assume from your stances you have no intention to resist apprehension!” They closed in on us. I turned to look at Akuchi. One of his fists was clenched and he was shaking, his knees knocking. It was clear he had very little energy left . He averted his gaze, and I saw tears fall from his cheeks.

I looked down, putting my hands together. Rui did the same by my side. A strange chittering noise echoed softly. “It’s fine..." She had a sparkle in her eyes. “It’s not the end. This story will go on for a ways yet.” She gave me a thumbs up.

I smiled warmly at her, my joy suffusing the blank portrait that had been my face all day. Her confident expression faded into a deep blush when our eyes met, and I thought she was incredibly cute. For the first time in my life, I wanted to kiss someone besides Reiko-chan.

“Wahahahaha!” A loud feminine laugh filled the tunnel. “Run wild, my friends of the night!”

I gasped as the policemen closed on us. Suddenly their ranks were plunged into chaos. The air filled with groans and yells. The flashlights swung violently as the officers wheeled around. Many of them fell on the ground nearby.

*THUD*

*WHACK*

*CRUNCH*

*BAM*

It sounded like the wind was whistling. “AYAAAAAAAAIIIII!” a man screamed. “Magiranger, save me!” It was that policeman again. “I don’t care if you... PLEASE!”

*GURGLE*

*SMACK*

A moment later, a fallen flashlight seemed to levitate. As it drew close to us, a delicate hand became visible holding it. It was then directed upwards to reflect a face with glowing eyes. Plump lips spread in a toothy grin to display sharp fangs. “Oh, my! I couldn’t have imagined you’d end up like this! This is perfect!”

“I-it’s far from perfect!” Rui yelled aloud. “Ume-chan! I’m so glad to see you, but this is so wrong on so many levels!”

“Tsk... he’s human.” Ume waggled a finger with a wink. “That’s ideal. His vessels are pulsing with vibrant energy-filled blood. I’d say you’ve won!”

“B-but..." Rui gasped.

“Make the best of a strange situation, I always say.” Ume giggled. “That’s my business, you know. Hmmm... maybe..." She delicately walked over to me and patted my cheek. “Honestly, I like it. You’re right... it’s far from perfect, but what I meant is this: my plan will be far more effective than it would have been.”

“Master!” Akuchi yelled and bounded over to us from the shadows. “It’s a miracle! My vampire friends! You’re..." he gasped.

In a flurry he was restrained. There were other vampires here besides Ume-chan. A couple of these shadowy figures leaned down to lift up flashlights. They shone their flashlights on their faces. Once I got a good look -- “KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

They were all goths! They grinned like Ume had and in doing so they displayed fangs of their own. They weren’t just goths, all were vampires!

“My, my... isn’t this reaction a bit exaggerated? Don’t you remember what I told you, Susumu?” Ume waggled a finger. “You’re hurting my feelings... and that of my friends. We’re here to save you. Ah... who’s this strange tanuki?” Ume asked, looking puzzled. She inspected Akuchi.

“He’s a friend! Thanks to him, we were able to defeat Noh-face.” I leapt to his defense.

“He’s a bit of a pain. He loves to play games,” Rui commented. “But when he’s invested, he’s loyal and dedicated. Let him go, please.” Rui looked to Ume. She let out a sigh.

Ume-chan nodded. “Of course. If you say so, I will totally accept that!” She smiled so warmly my heart skipped a beat. Gosh, she’s so cute!

“Alright, we’ve wasted too much time already. There may be a backup force on the way.” Ume nodded towards the station we’d left earlier. “These aren’t the only officers mobilized to capture you. They know they’re dealing with a severe threat here. Now their response is fast and severe. It would be best if we could vanish, one way or another.” She sniffed the air. “Umuuu… They aren’t coming yet, I don’t think, but I’d wager your tanuki friend here can’t pull off any significant magic in his condition.”

I gasped. She can tell all this just from sniffing the air?

“Hence, here is my plan for victory! We’ll get you out of the station, and it will be easier than you would think!” Ume grinned again. “So..." She clapped her hands and another shadow slipped out from the darkness. It was another cute girl. She held two piles of clothes. Another stepped into the light beside her, a young man. He held a case of some sort. When I saw it, I thought about the night when Reiko-chan put makeup on me. Again? A makeup case?

“We’re going to dress you both up!” Ume purred. “You’ll join my flock of the night! We even have fake fangs! When they see us, they’ll treat us like they always do. We need to be careful, though.” She giggled and clapped her hands again. This time, she hopped up and down, really happy.

I gasped as one tore my ragged sentai costume off. The suit which had withstood those colossal blows against Noh-face was easily destroyed in one go by a single vampire. “With this strength, w-why didn’t you go after Noh-face!?” I gaped at Ume. Meanwhile, Rui was being changed. I blushed intensely and averted my eyes. A mass of clothes were pulled over my head, while another fiddled with my legs. Underwear was snugged tightly up. And it was super restrictive. My eyes narrowed when my balls were crushed by them. “K-kyaaaaaaaa!” I screamed.

While I was recovering they put socks and shoes on my feet. Another started cleaning up my face and it was covered liberally with makeup which was white. When they started applying lipstick and other such types of makeup, I struggled, but I stood no chance. When it was done, I looked at Ume piteously, feeling violated, but this time was even more profound. “Ummmm..." Ume-chan tilted her head and walked circles around me. She fingered her plump lips and grinned again. Finally she stopped and bounced, giving me a thumbs up. “Yes! It’s perfect!”

I looked at Rui. A wall of vampires melted away to show what they’d done to her. She was a perfect goth loli. She wore a dress. Her lips pouted and she stared at me as much as I did at her. The blood red lipstick they put on her made her lips fuller. She looked seductive, or at least as much a loli ever could. She walked up to me and looked into my eyes, and for some reason, she seemed to have grown a bit. She was in boots, but they weren’t high heels.

She smiled warmly at me and reached up to seize my neck. I was stunned when she pressed her lips against mine. My eyes widened and I felt myself melt.

“N-noooo!!!” Akuchi yelled. “He’s my partner!!!”