The trio of Guardians flew in the air, their lights cutting through the sky. Dee led the way, though she still wobbled slightly.
"Ursa, are you sure about this?" Dee shouted over the whistling wind. "Is it really an elementary school? Because if Falcon is attacking kids, I'm gonna do much more than just poke him."
"It's not a monster attack, I told you!" Ursa squeaked, clinging to Dee's shoulder. "The energy is more localized."
They soon landed down on the roof of the primary school, looking down into the deserted schoolyard, they saw the colorful plastic slides, climbing frames of the schoolyard, the sandbox.
In the center of said sandbox sat Yvette, her small hand playing with the sand.
"Her energy is… electric…" Ursa mumbled.
"She can't be a Guardian! She's too young!" Dee yelled out. "A kid? Really? I get why I'm here, I'm fourteen, it's a completely normal age for magical girls, but she looks like a six year old!"
"She's… she's a child… I can't make her into a Guardian! She's far too young! She's literally a baby!" Ursa shouted.
"She's not a baby, Ursa, she's like... eight," Cecilia whispered, crouched low on the gravel roofing. "But still. This is wrong. We're a bunch of high schoolers, we can handle stuff. A kid shouldn't be fighting!"
"I'm not doing it," Dee stated firmly, holding up her hands. "I'm gonna take her back to her home. This cosmic stuff can find someone who's at least tall enough to ride a roller coaster. "She should be worrying about losing her baby teeth, not fighting shadow monsters from the Void!"
"I don't pick the souls, Dee, the Universe does!" Ursa squeaked, their eyes wide with sympathy. "The Lightning Guardian is always a raw spark, but this is too raw!"
Below them, Yvette looked lonely. She traced a circle in the sand with a branch.
"Uh, girls?.." Harley pointed toward the school's main entrance. "We aren't the only ones who tracked the signal."
From the shadows of the school building, a portal tore open, and Void Walker stepped out.
"The Spark..." the creature rasped. "Small. Pure. Easy to snuff out."
"Since when can these things talk?!" Cecilia shouted the question.
"Oh no, you don't!" Dee didn't wait for a plan. She just threw herself off the roof.
"Dee, wait! It's an assassin," Ursa shouted after her. "They're built for kidnapping!"
"Kind of a dumb name if they don't assassinate anyone!" Dee yelled back.
"I never said they don't!"
Yvette finally looked up, watched the whole thing happen with calm eyes.
"Hey!" Dee dove down from the roof. She swung her sickle. "Kid, run!" Dee shouted.
Yvette blinked, looking at Dee's glowing wings. "Are you from a TV show?" she asked cluelessly.
"No, I'm the local hero who's about to save you!"
The assassin shadow recovered with terrifying speed, lunging at Dee. She tried to block, but she was too slow.
"No!" Yvette yelled.
A loud cracking sound echoed through the playground. A bolt of purple lightning shot straight from Yvette's finger, striking the Assassin mid-air. The monster didn't just dissolve; it exploded into dust.
The trio froze. A small half-purple half-yellow crystal fell from the sky, hovering inches from Yvette's left hand. In a flash of light, her civilian clothes transformed into knee-high boots, a white skirt that reached down to her knees, and a long-sleeved dark blue shirt.
"I said,"Yvette said, her eyes now glowing purple. "No."
"Okay," Harley breathed, wide-eyed. "The baby is a powerhouse. Note taken."
"Ursa," Dee started, staring at the small girl who was now casually zapping the remaining monsters. "What do we do now? We can't exactly take her to get boba tea and talk about protecting the universe. She probably still has a bedtime set! Or she won't even understand half of it!"
"We don't have a choice," Ursa said, peering out from Dee's hood. "She's the Guardian of Electricity now. And judging by the way she's looking at us... she's not going to be easy to babysit."
Yvette finished off the last Assassin with a flick of her wrist. She turned to the older girls.
"Do you have snacks?" she asked. "I'm hungry…"
Dee sighed, de-transforming back into her school clothes. "Yeah, kid. We have snacks. Welcome to the worst after-school club in history," she kneeled down in front of Yvette to look into her eyes. "But you can't tell anyone. Okay?"
Yvette nodded slowly. "Okay…"
"Let's go get you some food." Dee stood up, and took Yvette's hand.
"Can I get muffins?.." Yvette asked.
"Of course, buddy."
The group walked toward a nearby bakery, the signs reflecting off the pavement of the city. Yvette walked in the middle, her small hand in Dee's, while Harley and Cecilia walked close behind.
"So," Harley whispered, leaning over to Cecilia. "Our team is a mess…"
"At least she isn't six years old…" Cecilia stated.
Inside the bakery, the smell of cinnamon and yeast filled the air. Dee bought a large blueberry muffin and handed it to Yvette. The little girl climbed onto a high stool, her feet dangling down, and she began to pick at the muffin.
"Yvette," Dee started, sitting on the stool next to her. "Do you... do you know what just happened back there? With the lightning and the scary shadow man?"
"The mean shadows wanted to hurt me." Yvette said, then pointed a finger at Ursa. "And she sounds like a bell."
"I am a Keeper!" Ursa huffed angrily and embarrassed.
"Listen, Yvette," Cecilia leaned in, her voice soft. "Those shadows might come back. Do you have a place to stay? Are your parents waiting?"
Yvette's expression dimmed. She looked down at her muffin. "My mom's usually at work. I don't know where dad is…"
Dee felt protectiveness wash over her like a physical blow. "You aren't going anywhere alone anymore. You're with us now."
"Does that mean I get to see the catgirl show?" Yvette asked, looking up with sudden interest.
"Yes," Dee sighed, "You can watch the catgirl show. But only after homework."
"She really is a baby…" Cecilia whispered to Ursa.
Ursa stared at Cecilia, looking unimpressed.