Pruned Trees Re-Sprout!! ~ Ragazza Volpe Magica ~

"Thank you all for your patience – here are the standings as we go into the Rondo portion of our show today!"

There was only one name Shouri and his guild members looked for. It wasn't at the bottom but-

"Oh, I didn't think it would be that well received," Rebecca noted with surprise.
"Were we watching the same performance? What they did up there was insane!" Pacifica exclaimed.

Shouri nodded in agreement with both of their thoughts. Casey's performance was impressive, yes, but they had watched several other dazzling shows. The main edge Casey had over her contemporaries was the "new" magic on display.

He didn't doubt she was getting the third degree in the back from the other divas if they were even allowed to talk between rounds.

"For the first episode of today's Rondo we have Casey Rigewei and Blandus Livy – divas take the stage!"

With that booming announcement the members of PTRS turned their attention to the soon to be battlefield.

"A magic only duel sounds so interesting! I can't wait!" Colette squealed, furiously typing up notes on her tuner.

"No physical contact is interesting," commented Emily.
"From what the squirrel was telling me they're not just graded on damage but how they look while giving and taking," Albarich added.
"Oh, that sounds really cool!" Ritika chimed in.

A tense hush fell over the crowd as the six contestants took their places on stage. From an uneducated vantage point, it appeared to be the start of a normal battle – however, all in attendance knew this would be anything but.

Casey held both of her tuners, at the ready – Blandus her opposite.

Marie and John's opponents were totally mismatched from an elemental perspective – a Nature and Earth. There was mutually assured destruction on both sides– Marie's eyes were solely fixated on her prey: the overly tall giraffe man that bore her advantage. The bovine woman by his side began sparking as if to dare her adversary to try while she was similarly sizing up the water element her opposite.

Two women were tasked to protect the man on their side from their adversary's strength.

The large electronic displays dotted around the stadium showed health bars for the divas rather than the individual Resonators.

Shouri intuited that when that bar hit zero the match was done. It surprised him when a timer also flicked to life under the combatants' gauges. They had a mere five minutes to put on the best show, trip up their opponent, and avoid their opponent's machinations. A tall order indeed.

"Episode One! Begin!" the MC declared.

"Eruzione Solare, Legato!"
"Scambiare Neve, Lento Staccato!" Casey declared her first spells.

"Scudo Prosciugante, Crescendo!"
"Rapsodia di Miele, Legato!" Blandus cast in return.

Rebecca winced, as her eyes were drawn hopelessly to Marie; the facsimile of brilliance that honored the sun hit the crowd like a flash bang. The sudden flash also stunned Marie's opponents for that instant, allowing the following blazing wind that followed to hit true

Blandus' health bar chipped from the blow, but once the stars cleared from the audience's eyes, the lightning cow stood in front of her partner, a barrier of light holding form.

Though what the light show had done was disguise what John had been up to – there were now five of him on stage. Perfect replicas of the deer man, indistinguishable from the genuine article.

"THAT'S what that does?!" Pacifica gasped.
"He's on the far left," Rebecca said.
"Oh?" The otter looked to her fellow Resonator.
"It's really obvious from a rhythm standpoint. Could be useful for catching someone not used to it off guard though."

"Ghiacciolo, Piano Staccato!"
"Arcobaleno Fuoco, Forte!" Casey's next commands came out, however her opponent only needed one.

"Fulmine a Catena, Forte!"
Rebecca's eyes widened at her own realization. "It's… over," she whispered. Taika whipped her head between the fox and the battlefield.

It didn't start with any of the three new spells cast this turn, it was the one suspiciously absent from casting the last turn. The giraffe man held his arms as if holding an invisible object against his collarbone, with electricity brimming from the nature element he began to play the air. In the silence of the arena a beautiful song began to play. An electric melody that reverberated gently through the air. Carried with the sound was the distinct scent of honey, a sweet and pleasing aroma. The tension in the air didn't snap, it relaxed, as did the rest of the audience with the casting of the spell.

"What… is this?" Pacifica wavered, trying to shake off the sudden grogginess inflicted by the spell.

Taika once more looked to Rebecca who had flared out her own rhythm in response to the spell washing over the audience.

"Rapsodia di Miele is a nature-lightning spell that attacks a Resonator's concentration by hitting two senses at once – sound and smell. A beautiful enrapturing melody and a pleasing aroma. If we're feeling it so far out here then-" Rebecca didn't get to finish her thought.

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CRACK BOOM!

The lightning cow fired off her spell, a bolt of lightning that first struck Marie, then chained through all four of the ice clones before hitting John.

In an instant, most of Casey's health bar vanished.

Marie wasn't giving up and fired her spell, aiming for the lightning rod of a man, hoping to even the score. She underestimated how nimble the ignored was however. The bovine woman pivoted around her partner and took the blow in his stead, shielding him from the explosive fireworks ravaging the battlefield.

"La Bella Vita, Lento!" Blandus shouted.

With a graceful bow, the cow shimmered with healing light. John had recovered from the force of the lightning spell and began launching arrows of ice at his opponents. The cow and giraffe were in peak form and showed as such, dancing around the arrows as if they were the stars of this recital.

"It fell…" Colette gasped, noting the failed attack dropped Casey's health further.
"It must be because that attack only served to highlight Blandus' pair instead of Casey's.
"Oh…" the scholar couldn't even blink, totally transfixed on the match like the rest of the audience.

The last thirty seconds began to tick on the clock.

"Charm up! Loro Formato-"
Blandus was already mid-cast himself. "Gli Spiriti dei Sorda, Legato!"
"-Lunare Lago, Legato!" Casey shouted in desperation.

Now it was Taika's turn to perk up, studying the other healer on stage. Before Marie could even begin gathering the rhythm to cast the meteor spell, she was surrounded by what looked like transparent images of the cow Resonator. The apparitions sunk into Marie, causing her hands to spark – where the rhythm should have gathered to form the meteor… nothing happened.

DING DING DING!

Marie and John stared at the screen, panting hard. Ice arrows John had already formed fell to the ground and shattered against the stage. The cow and giraffe also stopped their dance of dodging, keeping themselves as composed as they could.

"It's unanimous – the star of this episode is Blandus Livy!" the MC declared.

The applause was thunderous.

Only PTRS didn't join.

Knock knock

"Come in," Casey spoke from the other side of the door.

Shouri slowly opened the door, his loyal partners behind him. Casey sat in the chair in front of the dressing table. Her tuners lay on it next to a couple of glasses of golden liquid. Dancer stood by her side with Marie tending to John on one of the benches.

"Ah, you came," Casey grinned, though her expression was strained. She shook her head and refused the guildmaster's gaze. "Sorry," she mumbled.

Shouri stepped in and his trio fanned out out behind him. "For what?" he asked as Rebecca gently closed the door.

"You spent all that time helping us and I got us knocked out in the first round," Casey's voice cracked as she spoke, her fists curled up and trembling in her lap.

Rebecca opened her mouth to speak, but Dancer spoke first. "It happens," said the horse. "No matter the stipulations it is impossible to expect to win every fight," he said. "The only thing that matters is learning from your mistakes," he offered.

"My… mistakes?" Casey looked up at the earth element.

"Scambiare Neve only made John a bigger target. You should have focused on their footing. Alter the stage to your benefit. They wouldn't have been able to dodge John's arrows had they also had to contend with sink holes or rivers," Dancer explained.

Rebecca let out a soft chuckle. "Yeah, you're a battler alright," she whispered.

Dancer looked to Shouri, a certain look in the horse's eyes told Shouri what he needed to know. Still, the Maestro hesitated, that was until he felt three hands on his back. He didn't need to see them to know what they were trying to say. The guildmaster smiled, and reached into his jacket pocket.

"Casey," Shouri spoke as he approached her. He took a knee and pulled out Dancer's brown tuner.

The diva stared at the device as it was presented to her. "On behalf of Pruned Trees Re-Sprout – will you take Dancer with you? I- we have determined you will be a good fit for each other."

"I uh…" Casey looked to her current pair.

"I think we could stand to improve more," John added.
"He knows his stuff," Marie grinned.

Finally, the man himself. Casey turned to the horse who gave an approving nod. The girl couldn't help but smile.

"Of course, it would be my honor." Casey pulled the device from Shouri's hands, as she did so her name appeared on the screen, completing the transfer.

Shouri stood up, his smile joining the rest the rest in the room. This was correct, he could feel it in his rhythm.

KNOCK KNOCK

"Sounds like you have more guests. We'll step out," Shouri waved.
"Remember to tell them all about your awesome new spell," Rebecca added.
"Show it off!" Pacifica chimed in.
"Buona fortuna!" said Taika.

As the four left the dressing room they heard a spirited "THANK YOU!" which earned them some curious gazes from the half dozen divas who had gathered outside Casey's dressing room.