Toaru Majutsu no Index Painted prison chronicles

(AND BACK...)

"Gunha-san, are you sure you don't need a glider?"

"Nah, that piece of metal would only restrain my guts! I can move through the air without it. If something happens, I will be there to catch you"

"Alright then... Junko-san, please double check the safety features"

"Yes, Kamijou-sama."

"And please, do call me Shiina."

"Yes, Shiina-san. Everything in place"

"Alright then... here...we... go!"

(MEANWHILE AT TOUMA'S OLD DORM)

"Hey Kamijou!"

Touma screamed as Niang-Niang and Nephthys appeared in the middle of the empty room.

"Gah! Can you please stop appearing outthe blue? Well, at least we have some space, because Lessar and company went to see some movie"

"Are you feeling fine?" asked Nephthys

"Well... I am glad that my mom gets to have fun around here. But honestly... there is a lot on my mind. There are many things that need my attention. But most importantly... Kamjou No Touma is still lurking around. And worst of all, he is messing with my mental endurance. Geh, at this point I think telling my mother than I will be a father of 37 is somehow easier..."

"38... for now"

"Because I wish to... wait? What did you just say?"

"Niang-Niang, you spoiler bringer! You blabbed it out!"

"Wait wait wait... you said 38" Touma said, counting on his fingers" I only recall 37 of my... wow, this still sounds so strange... my children. So what is this about 38th? Who is the mother?"

"Well, she should be flying above Tokiwadai with your mother right now"

Touma's eyes widened and he shot up, pointing straight at the goddesses.

"Undo this"

"Wait, that's-"

"Gunha and Junko are friends to me and I don't wish to get between the relationship they clearly have going, from the time before I came into the equation."

"But-"

"I am not ruining everything like this. I will not-"

"KAMIJOU TOUMA!" Nephthys raised her voice, making the voices of Touma and Niang-Niang die down. She then cleared her throat and explained in a calmer tone.

"We had a good reason for this and I suspected that you will react like you did now. But... just hear us out."

SNAP!

Hokaze Junko, now appearing as adult woman in prime of her youth, screamed loudly. Older versions of Touma, Gunha, and Misaki tried to do their best to soothe the suffering of the childbearing Junko.

She had her hands clasped on both Touma's and Gunha's hands, while trying to breathe regularly. Meanwhile Misaki helped to organize labour supplies, like hot water, towels, and coordinated the efforts of various nurses.

"It's taking rather long, doesn't it?" Touma said, wiping the sweat of girl's forehead.

"Because those are twins. " she whispered, wincing" It takes some effort and time... but I will pull through"

"Do not falter, Junko! And give it your all babies, give it your beeeeest!"

"AAAAAAAAGH!

"UGGGGGGHHH!

Three screams, first from Gunha, who was quite vividly motivating the babies to come out, second from Junko in painful contractions, and third from Touma, who was getting his wrist crushed in the purple haired woman's grip, echoed through some time.

Until...

Two screams of much younger origin came into the world. Misaki, looking as if she was sucked into a tornado, leaned on the wall.

"Junko-san... you are a mommy now"

Junko took two newborns into her arms with a delicate grin of absolute adoration.

"Thank you everyone... thank you so much"

FLASH!

The vision ended and Touma blinked few times, before seeing the goddesses once again.

"I... don't understand..."

"In the possible future that we are trying to achieve, miss Hokaze Junko gave birth to two twin babies of different genders. In other words, a boy and a girl." said Niang-Niang.

"Alright... and?"

"Originally... there was one"

"What?!"

"There is a future, quite improbable one at that, when you and Hokaze Junko did try to date and become parents"

"Ah! What was the other me thinking?!"

"Don't blame yourself. Those parallel timelines can get really varied. Maybe he had reasons for it. Whatever was the history behind it, Hokaze Junko got pregnant... but she wasn't meant to deliver the baby"

"But I saw-"

"We are almost at it. "Nephthys explained" You see, that Hokaze Junko with which some incredibly rare version of you had a baby was meant to miscarry and lose the child alongside her life. But I took pity in the mourning that could have resulted from that and used magic to swap the wombs the baby was in, saving both the child and mother. From one Hokaze Junko to another, with everyone thinking that there were two babies from the beginning"

Touma blinked, pieces slowly coming together.

"It's sort of like what Aiwass did with Lilith... wait, let me get this straight... so you are telling me that you displaced a child from version of Hokaze-san that would miscarry to the one that was the one in the future phase... while she already had a child with Sogiita. But that means... each of the two children is from the different father, one from me and one from Sogiita, while I never even slept with that version of Hokaze Junko to begin with!"

"Yup, pretty much. Congrats, you have a child without actually messing up your friends intimate relationship. Both of those Hokaze Junko were basically different alternations of the same human"

Touma facepalmed hard.

"Why do you Magic Gods enjoying messing stuff up so much? But I guess... if you saved a baby and one of those possible Junkos... then I can't really complain that much. As for those children... I know Junko... Junko-sans... you know, she is the mother, but which one is supposed to be mine?"

There was silence.

"Oh come on, you can't leave me on that! Don't tell me I am gonna find out the long way around! Come back here!"

(ONE DAY LATER, ON THE AIRPORT)

"Well, it was a nice time while it lasted." Shiina smiled to Touma" Index-san, please, take care of him. Can I trust you on that?"

"Of course" Index smiled and shook hand with Shiina" You can count on me, madam"

Shiina nodded, before turning to Touma with a serious look on her face, mother and son having a private conversation before Shiina departed.

"Touma-san... I think we both know that there is something that you are bound to share with me and your father."

"Yeah, I guess I know what you mean"

"Your life appears so much bigger than we would ever dream. But there are many unknowns and I think all of this is getting much deeper than I can see now"

Touma was about to say something more, but Shiina stopped him

"You are almost an adult now. I would be a bad mother if I didn't respect your personal space, and that includes right to keep things to yourself. However, I trust that when the right times, we can all talk about your life up until now. Can we make a deal like this?"

"O-Of course, mom. Thank you for visiting. I mean it. It seems Kaibi and the girls will miss you too. Even if was just a few days and couple of moments, they seem to grow to like you"

"Be sure to thank them, feeling is mutual. Be sure to spend some time with them now when you get back to your apartment. They surely missed you too"

"Right, I will...w-wait, t-that's not my apartment! Y-You know where I live, it's..."

"Touma-san, as long as you act reasonably, I will let this slide, so don't act dumbly in front of me"

"Y-Yes, mother. How long since you knew?"

"We were meeting together with Gokusai-san and the others every evening. I figured it out through your conversations... I think it was our second encounter"

"Alright... mother... I have to ask you one more thing. You are not mad at the... attention I have around me? You were meeting the girls, so..."

Shiina let out an ojou-sama chuckle, putting her hand on her lips.

"Oh, Touma-san, of course I am not mad. If anything, I am happy that so many people appreciate you"

"Huh?"

"I have to admit, I can't decide over those girls as well. Each contributes a part of the picture of happiness. Kindness, determination, humour, wealth, strength... But as it is now, there is no problem. There are multiple people pursuing you. That's perfectly alright. If you were going after multiple people at once though, it would be a different story... ohohohoho..."

Touma felt as if he was actually shrinking under the force of the dark smile.

'I am sorry mom... but for that future, I am going to have to do it! Once I saw those people... those children who are meant to be mine... I can't just let them never come to be.'

"Please, phone regularly. Eat healthy meals at proper hours. Dress accordingly to the weather. And while I realize that might be senseless plea, do try to stay out of trouble. If not for yourself, then for me, your father, and all those people that care about you"

"Yes, you don't have to worry about it. Oh, and mom..."

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For caring for me. That really means a lot"

"I am your mother, Touma-san. No matter what I do or how strict I act, I am doing this for your sake. I might not be perfect, but I can promise that I will always cherish and protect you. That goes without saying"

As Touma and Index waved her goodbye and then disappeared behind the curvature of the passage, Shiina bumped into another woman while walking to the check-in point.

"I am sorry"

"No, that was my fault"

Shiina got up before the woman spoke up

"Are you by chance a mother of a student in this city?"

"Why yes. You too?"

The blond woman in beige habit smiled in melancholy.

"Not really. I was a fath... mother once though. Now I am retired from the job I once had in this city, and I am travelling. That's all it is to it."

"My condolences. But... retired? You look so young"

"That's only the body, my dear. Sometimes there are other reasons to step down."

Before the bewildered Shiina could ask anything, the blond gave her a question of her own.

"How do you feel about your child being in Academy City?"

"Why are you curious, miss..."

"Crowley"

"Crowley... I think I heard this somewhere..."

"It's a british surname. Also, one of the leading figures in this city went by it."

"You are from abroad? Quite far away from home"

"Indeed I am. In more ways than one"

"As for your question... I truly didn't know. For a while, I thought that sending my son here will save him from his misfortune. But then it turned out that those accidents never stopped happening to him, instead only changed their nature. They came from left and right. From what I heard from his teacher, the amount was unnatural. You might think that this sounds crazy... but there were moments as if this whole place was created to torment him"

Aleister's eyes moved in a fraction of a surprised moment, before Shiina laughed, waving her hand.

"But that's just absurd. Who would have get out of the way to do such a thing to my son?"

The blond didn't move even a muscle as Shiina moved past her. Until...

"Miss... this might sound hollow but don't lose hope. This city is called the city of science but at its foundations sleep the miracles. It just might happen that this boy can become the most important person through that belief"

Shiina stopped before slowly saying

"He already is. He's my son. And as much as feelings of the mother keep saying to guard him, I can't help but be proud of the way he is too. He might keep falling down, but he has a great talent of turning losses into potential victories."

There was an announcement through the speakers and Shiina blinked in recognition.

"I am sorry, I have to go. Farewell and have a good day"

Aleister watched Kamijou Shiina with distant eyes, before sighing and walking away into the crowd of people.

"In each loss lies a chance for potential victory... was it?"

(AN HOUR LATER, IN KAMIJOU + GOKUSAI RESIDENCE)

"Hey everyone, I am back... ugh!"

Something similar to a blond and pink missile shot from the corridor and crashed into him, throwing arms around his neck.

"Amazora?"

With face completely drenched with tears of happiness, Amazora was half crying, half laughing while hugging him.

"UWAAAAAAAAAAH! Kai onee-chan! Riku onee-chan! Onii- chan is baaaaaaaaaack!"

There was a loud breaking noise and Rikuri came from around the corner so fast that she slammed into the corridor's wall and spun around like a ballerina in a daze, with her long violet dress fluttering around, before she focused on Touma.

Seeing her magenta-pink eyes glimmer with tears, Touma chuckled slightly

"H-Hey, Riku..."

This time he was slammed face first into Rikuri's chest which in a way resembled being suddenly exposed to two soft, warm airbags. As the oldest girl also snuggled close to him, he felt her heartbeat next to his body. Her long blond hair drapped over him like a waterfall of gold. She was managing to overload nearly half of his senses in one moment.

"I-I had an inkling..." Rikuri's voice had a slightly nasal tone, indication that she cried not so long ago, as her eyes, draped with long, slightly wet eyelashes, also appeared a bit puffy" that this withdrawal from you will be hard. But this is worst than the after effects of any of my drugs! Dear me, I didn't expect this to be so bad. My heart hurt and I saw you wherever I looked!"

One could call those reactions severely overdramatic and from the outside perspective, he would be right. But from different side of the story, all 3 of Gokusai sisters: Amazora, Kaibi, and Rikuri, weren't genuinely in love before. Through their own ways, each of them fell for Kamijou Touma and lived with him for a while. This was an invigorating sensation and, willingly or not, the fact that he decided to live away for a few days did not went without repercussions.

There was a sound of footsteps. And as Rikuri shifted her body, Touma saw approaching Kaibi. She closed in, before finally stopping in front of him with crossed arms.

"You took your sweet time"

Then, to Touma's astonishment, she raised her hand and slightly lifted Touma's face, looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"Kai...bi?..."

But Touma already knew that Kaibi had a different intention. The corners of her mouth and change in her eyes betrayed her, as the girl closed the distance, kissing him on the lips in a fond and blissful way, making him feel as if both his own lips and mind were melting into gentle warmth.

After a moment, Kaibi pulled away, with Touma being able to see his own reflection in her gem-like eyes, which sparked with suddenly released emotions.

"Welcome home" she said in a much more affectionate tone.

Touma smiled back.

"I missed you too. All of you"

"Hmph, that sister of mine. Since she got the kiss, I am not letting you go for the next hour. Nom!"

"R-Rikuri-san, p-please don't chew on my ear!"

"Everyone, let's do a sibling hug!" said Amazora. "1...2...3... hug!"

Without much of a hesitation, all 4 of them hugged together. It lasted for a moment, until...

"Touma!" came the voice of Index behind them" I can get that I need to work on non-biting you, but why do you have to lead me to temptation? I lived and was by your side much earlier, so obviously I have the greater privileges!"

"N-No, Index, stop! Amazora and Rikuri are still on me... I can't hold all of you... no, don't try to... aaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

(FEW HOURS LATER, IN KAMIJOU SUMMER HOUSE)

Kamijou Shiina was sitting on the sofa on the summer house veranda. She could hear the sounds of the ocean from the distance, but that was not what she was focused on.

"Ne, ne, Shi-chan..." came the voice of Misaka Misuzu, echoing from the speaker of Shiina's phone" Can you finally tell me what is it that you discovered?"

Shiina put a hand to her mouth, looking at the scanned documents, photos, and notes sent to her by Kumokawa Seria. It was gathered fast, absurdly fast even.

"Well, Misuzu-san, there was something that was bothering me in the looks of some of those girls. So when I realized one of Touma-san's friends was good in information gathering, I asked for a favour. And the results are... well... incredibly ridiculous"

"In what way?"

"Do you remember how I told you about the fact that my husband, consciously or not, was very popular with girls, and I had to stand my ground, using various tactics to claim my place by his side?"

"Yes, I do. What about it?"

"Well, it's about those girls... it sounds incredulous, but... it turns out that my own rivals, the girls I ultimately defeated in those battles for affection, are related to the girls that are now around my son"

There was deafening silence on the other side of the phone, before Misuzu exclaimed

"No way. But... that's seems improbable!"

"Well, it's not like they were all my proper rivals from all of the period I knew Touma-san, but the fact is that most of those women... mostly mothers of those girls, with one or two aunts I think... met Touya-san at least at some point in his life, on varying level on relationship and various circumstances... that almost always linked with some romantic misadventure. Like I said, I didn't know all of those encounters and when it comes to those I knew of, my former rivals eventually got married and because of that, changed their maiden names..."

"So... what you're gonna do about it?"

Shiina laughed quietly, tracing her finger down the list of names.

"Nothing, of course. While I am concerned about my son finding a good wife, I will not mess up new generation's romances. This just shows me how small world really is. And that what goes around, comes around. Still... this is a concept to think about."

Just then, there was another call to Shiina. As the caller was unknown, Shiina tried to ignore it, but whoever it was, he or she was persistent.

"I am sorry, dear, but I must take this"

And when she picked up...

"Excuse me, miss Kamijou Shiina? Did I get that right?"

"Yes, but... who is this?"

"Oh, right. My name is Rimea Windsor. I am the first princess of British Royal Family, heir to the throne of United Kingdom"

A somewhat distorted yet loud Rule Brittania jingle sounded from the background.

After a moment of silence, Shiina finally gained control of her mouth again

"Is this some sort of a joke? How did you get that number? Miss..."

"Rimea Windsor, heir to the throne-"

Another Rule Brittania rang out.

"Mother, please, stop playing that over my ear!"

"Oh, I just wanted to give you an epic accompaniment. Boo hoo~"

"Well, as I was saying, no, this is not a joke, it is as far from it as it can be. We learned through our representatives in Academy City that you, madam Shiina, conducted a series of meetings with ones connected to Kamijou Touma. Then we should not be left behind in such things"

"Wha... how... Touma-san... we?"

"We being me and my sisters. I would like to express my gratitude. Although the nature of my relationship with him is confidential, he is doing a great effort in supporting me in becoming a future queen. You raised a wonderful gentleman, Mrs. Shiina, and your family can considered themselves a friend of our own family"

"Oh, indeed" chimed in a different female voice" Oh, my name is Villian and I am the third princess. My sister is literally reading a script she write for this conversation, she can be a little awkward at times with things like speaking to the mother of the guy she... oh, oh, she is giving me that icy glare... anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I also deeply admire Touma. Whenever he is, I always send best wishes to him and I am always happy if I manage to get a word with him"

Shiina was still in such a shock that she didn't managed to speak even a single syllable.

"My sisters wanted to make video calls with you, so I will arrange some in the upcoming days. Don't mind Carissa too. She can be a little brash, but she was secretly excited at this. I-"

There was an explosion and third voice, roaring 'VILLIAN!' through the communication channel.

"I-I wasn't ready... I mean, don't phone to her! DAMN IT!

"Oh, she found out that we are-"

There was a loud noise, Rimea loudly saying something over the line, which was followed by another angry scream of Carissa, and what sounded like pieces of metal falling to the floor, before the line went silent.

Wide eyed Shiina stared at her phone, before Misuzu, who was still on the line, spoke

"Umm... Shi-chan?"

"I think I am going to make an exception... and get a drink after what I just heard"

(SOME TIME LATER IN THE ALLEYS NEAR KAMIJOU + GOKUSAI RESIDENCE)

After making sure that no one could hear him exit, Touma found his way to one of the alleys near the wider street by the side of which the apartment complex was located. As he looked away, a female voice spoke.

"I am surprised. I didn't expect to be sought by you first"

Ladylee Tangleroad waved at him from the shadows.

"I still found it weird how you managed to get my number and send me yours"

"Don't think about it too much. I am quite an adaptive lady. When you summoned me, I came to you. So what do you need from a beautiful and humble immortal during such lovely nightfall? Or maybe..."

Touma stood in silence for couple of seconds, before sighing and raising his head.

"Ladylee, I've been thinking about our earlier encounter and I... I agree. I will help you and lead you to your death"

"Really?" something akin to hope combined with surprise glowed in Ladylee's eyes, but Touma raised his hand in an authoritative manner.

"I will do it, you have my word... but on two conditions. One long term and one short term"

"Conditions?" Ladyless said slowly, before shrugging" Huh, let's hear them. I don't have anything to lose"

"Firstly, I will not kill you. If we are going to do this, we will do this my way. Which means that you will give me time to try and make you regain what you lost, to give you hope, before moving to what you speak of"

Ladylee laughed quietly, shaking her head.

"What I've lost..."

Even if she didn't desire it, those words brought some memories.

The feeling of sea salt tickling her nose and throat.

The hands and smile of her mother.

The shack on the hill with cypresses.

Going to the small village for wood and supplies.

Venturing into caverns and exploring the arcane soothsaying and divination.

The face of the injured solider and her own scream of fright.

His stories of lands far an unknown.

Her efforts to bring him peace and comfort.

His last wish and gift to her.

The golden fruit emanating soft glow, unlike any other on earth, and her own teeth sinking into it.

The one swallowed bite that changed her forever.

There was a lot more to story of that single girl, but for now, she shook her head

"Those things can't be brought back. I've seen too much and I've felt too much"

Touma grit his teeth so hard that he felt pain spreading through jaw, before saying

"But that's all the more of a reason. I am sorry Ladylee, I can't abandon you. I can't look away from you and just try to kill you. Not when you feel so hollow. I am not... I am not saying that you shouldn't die at all, if that's your wish. I am just saying that I will do everything to give you a reason to remember what it's like to cherish life before death"

"And how do you intend to do that?"

"I don't know yet. But please, let me do this for you. I will try my hardest for you. Just please... live on and try for a little longer."

Ladylee sighed and waved her hand.

"Alright, alright, I will go along with it. I lived over 8 centuries, I can live a couple more decades. But I hope that you will kill me for good when it doesn't work out"

"It will work out. I will get your joy back"

"Fine, fine... so, what about the second condition"

"That's... actually more of a request... though I will reconsider pulling back from the deal if you refuse"

"Colour me intrigued. Do tell what's on your mind"

"I want you to ally with me... against my darker side"

"Huh?"

"I will explain..."

(AFTER EXPLANATION OF ORIGIN OF KAMIJOU NO TOUMA AND CURRENT SITUATION)

"That's an interesting situation. It can actually be rather amusing to observe and engage in, with how much is at stake... fine, I will see where this goes. I will conditionally ally myself with you." Ladylee extended her hand" So you better keep your promise"

Touma nodded with a serious face and shook the girl's hand.

"I will, but remember what we talked about"

"Sure. Although I must admit, you claim that this other you is all malice and stuff, but you too seem to have a little bite. It's much easier to ally yourself with someone who is incapable of dying. Does this make your conscience lighter?"

"No... that may be true, but it was not my main reason for contacting you"

"You won't tell me, huh... a mysterious man... I admit... this kind of an attractive quality in you, specifically"

"W-Why did you just lick your lips? Ladylee?"

"Let's get something to eat"

"D-Don't divert my remark and also, I can't. The girls think I will be back any moment now..."

"Come on, let's go!"

"You said that you don't need to eat"

"Don't need, doesn't mean that I don't want from time to time. Oh, and one more thing... why did you even think of alliance in the first place?"

"Well, that's because... I am sure he already thought of something like this much earlier. He is far stronger than he lets on. And I think... there may be a spy somewhere in my surroundings. It's just a feeling... but I wanted an ally to keep the balance on the sides. You can never be too careful with that guy"

(SOME TIME LATER, IN STUDENT DORM SOMEWHERE IN ACADEMY CITY)

"See you tomorrow"

"Yes, have a good night"

A girl closed the doors to her dorm after bidding her friend farewell for the day.

She put her bags on the ground and walked over to the desk by one of the room's walls.

The mysterious girl sat down, pulled out her phone, and after searching recorder messages, she found the one she was searching for, the most fresh out of all them.

'Do continue your work' the silky smooth voice came from the phone' If I was him, and I unfortunately am to some degree, I would think of some form of retaliation. Find out if he is making any moves and report them to me. If you do as I say, you will be rewarded!'

It was a recording. She could not respond to it.

Kamijou no Touma wasn't in fact sitting idly by. Without his other side's knowledge, he searched every crack in Touma's consciousness he could use to take control. And during such escapades, he encountered a very unexpected ally... from even more unexpected place.

However, she proved to be capable. And although she didn't understand the situation well, her motivation alone made her an excellent ally.

Said girl smiled sweetly.

"I don't want any trouble." she said to herself, musing over what she heard." But that guy actually promised knew what I wanted the most... my greatest secret ever since enrolling in the school..."

She flipped the switch, making a board over the desk light up.

It was filled with photos. Of various locations and taken in various circumstances, dozens of them. But all were linked by one factor...

A single boy was on every single of them.

Kamijou Touma

"Oh, Kamijou-san, I've long since wanted to have you... to say that I want to be with you and you alone... I have enough devotion to fill all those empty cups that are other girls around you... why can't we share it... the main stage..." the girl whispered.

The girls cheeks flushed when she reached to stroke a line of photos on the board. On those, she was also present. But with glossy eyes, she looked more feverish than happy, as her cheeks got even hotter.

"But others... always get in the way... thanks to them, I am always confined to the background. Well, with his help... this will be no more."

She looked at the photos of various girls, with crossed out eyes, with those depictions being partially shredded or burnt.

She slowly took a photo of a spiky haired boy in her hand and smiled.

"Yes, with his help... I will become a lead actress in this drama called life... and I ensure that there are no nuisances bothering us... with you being mine... and only... mine".