Leona's mood lifts slowly, but she still feels a bit sullen after we get on the shuttle back to school, so I think for a bit, until I have an idea. “Hey, let's go see a movie.”

“A movie?”

“Yeah. I think it will help you feel better.”

Leona sighs and leans closer, wrapping one arm around my shoulder. “Thanks again, Seiko.” We get the shuttle to change destinations, stopping at a theater along our route, and decide on some big flashy action movie this time.

It turns out to be a sort of war movie, and I'm actually kind of worried how Leona will react, but she seems to enjoy it. Stuffing ourselves with movie theater snacks since we're hungry probably helps.

When it closes out with the heroes, victorious over some fictitious enemy force, she has a pleasant expression. The credits roll, and we leave, boarding another shuttle back to school.

“It wasn't very realistic, but I liked how they strategized, taking the enemy force into account. Since they'd never have weapons like that in real life, I think they actually responded pretty well based on what they were dealing with,” Leona comments after some thought.

“Oh?” I mean, I guess, but it's not like I know anything about war.

“Yeah, since the Froll soldiers all had those close range energy weapons, it was a smart move to switch to booby traps instead of ballistic weapons, it let the Laros soldiers lead them around and whittle down the larger enemy force.”

“Huh, that makes a lot of sense when you put it like that...”

“I do think Sharon-san's powers were too convenient though,” she nitpicks one part. “She could just throw illusions over all of their traps so no matter how many times the enemies tripped them, they couldn't get any better at avoiding them. The chance of having that exact psion on hand is pretty much impossible.”

Then she tilts her head and taps her chin. “Actually, maybe it's the other way around. They went with traps because they had Sharon-san there. That makes a lot more sense, it's how we do things in real life...” I can't help but grin. The way she analyzes the war aspects of the movie is kind of amusing, since like many other movies, a lot of it was done just so they could make the biggest, flashiest battle scenes they could.

That does make me wonder though... “Hey, about those visual effects, were they realistic?”

“Well, some of the stuff was made up, so I can't say much about that, but I think the conventional weapons and psionic powers were pretty much right,” she responds after some thoughts.

“Huh.” Wait... My brow furrows on its own as something jumps out at me. “Hey Leona, why does it look different when you use your powers?”

“Different?” She doesn't get it. “What do you mean, different?”

“Well, all the psions in movies kind of just,” I wave a hand. “Light up like the sun.”

Leona glances around, like she has no idea how to respond. “Yeah. Psions glow when they use their powers.” She says it flatly, like she doesn't know why she's explaining this. Which makes sense. Everyone knows psions glow when they use their powers, but-

“But why do you glow differently?” She's still clearly lost, so I take a breath and try to be extremely specific when I make my next point. “Ok, so, every psion I've ever seen in a movie has their entire body glow bright, blinding white whenever they use their powers. But you don't do that.” Leona opens her mouth, like she has something to say, before closing it, letting me finish. “For you, only your eyes glow, and they glow with whichever color of your power you're using. And when you use a lot of power, the color kind of comes out of your eyes. It's way different than any other psion.”

“Seiko...” At that point, her words fail and she's struck speechless for some time.

“Leona?” She keeps blinking, taking a while to recover. Did she not realize that? No, that's impossible. She must have seen other psions use their powers when she was in the military...

“That's...” The first thing she manages to say doesn't really help much.

“Come on Leona, what's wrong?”

She finally straightens herself out and speaks clearly. “That isn't how it looks. Here, watch.” Then her eyes glow faintly purple. “I should be glowing faintly now.”

I shake my head. “No, it's just your eyes.”

“That doesn't make any sense...” Leona pulls out her mobile and switches to the camera, starting a video recording. “Alright, let's assume you see it differently because of whatever happened to you.” Oh. I straighten up when she puts forth that possibility. It's not her that's different. It's me. “I can't see the glow of my own power when I use it, but it shows up in videos. Watch this.”

Her eyes glow with power once more as she she looks into the camera for a few seconds, then stops, and plays the video back. “See? The light just blows out the video.”

I blink down at the mobile screen. “Umm, no it doesn't? It looks exactly the same, still just your eyes glowing.”

“...What?” Leona openly gapes. Then she waves her hands. “Wait wait wait, you're saying that even when it's recorded video, you still see it differently? That doesn't make any sense.” She shakes her head. “Alright, turn around. I have to test this.”

I frown a little and turn my back to her. It's pretty clear now that somehow, what I see is completely different than what everyone else sees. Leona's right, that doesn't make any sense...

“Ok, check this video. Tell me, what faces am I making?” She plays back the video and once more, her eyes are glowing. Which means to her, the video displays nothing, just blown out over-exposed white.

But to my eyes... “Smiling, frowning, smiling, sticking your tongue out, tilting your chin up...” I easily call out the movements she makes in the video she just took.

“Alright then...” Leona sighs. “That proves it.” Then she sits back, scratching a hand through her short hair. “For some reason, you can just... see differently than everyone else.” She turns and gives me a look. “Psions included.”

“So... what does it mean?” I ask.

“I have absolutely no idea.” We both sit in silence for a while after that.

“Is there anyone we can ask?” I eventually question, but I'm not expecting much.

“I highly doubt it, and it's a really bad idea.”

“Why?”

Leona grimaces, hesitating for some time, before her shoulders fall in resignation, and she begins to explain. “If a psion keeps their powers active, the glow is bright enough to keep them from being seen clearly. They can hide their identities on the battlefield, so you never know who your enemy is, and you can never strategize based on which psions are where.”

I don't think I'm following, and she can tell. “Alright, think of it this way. One psion can shoot fire, and another can mind control your soldiers. While they have their powers active, you have no idea which is which until things either start blowing up, or your own soldiers start killing each other.” I cringe slightly at the mental image, then nod for her to continue.

“So, you show up to the battlefield and you see an enemy psion, you have no idea which one it is. You have a dozen different options for how to deal with them, but you have no idea what they're capable of, so you have no idea what to choose.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“Ah, it makes a lot of sense when you put it like that...”

“Right, so. What happens if you find someone who sees things differently? Someone who doesn't see the glow at all and can easily identify any psion when their power is active?”

It finally clicks, and my blood goes ice cold. “They're an extremely valuable asset.”

“Exactly. You don't want to spend the rest of your life watching video feeds of war frontlines, do you?” I shake my head stiffly. “Then my suggestion is just, never tell anyone else about this. No one would ever expect you to see what you do, so as long as you don't talk about it, no one will ever know.”

“A-alright, I'll do that. Thanks for the warning, Leona. I really don't want to end up in the military...”

“Don't worry, you won't.” Then she grins a little, and tries to lighten the mood. “Well, except that technically you're already in the military.”

“Hehe, good point,” I snicker. That manages to break the tension, and we settle in comfortably the rest of the way back to school.

It's pretty late when we arrive since we stopped for that movie. We don't need to go to the infirmary, but I ask to go anyway to get my injuries looked at. Leona agrees, and we head over.

“Hey, I'm feeling a lot better, can you check my injuries again?” I ask the doctor when we get there. It's weird, I don't even feel injured, but I'm not about to start jumping around without the doctor's go ahead. Besides, didn't she say I have another couple weeks for my broken arm to heal... yesterday, was it?

“Fine, let's take a look.” She has me lie down on a bed and starts it up to scan over my injuries, and I can't help the wry grin that creeps onto my face. I'm doing nothing but lying around and getting scanned with different machines today, aren't I?

Soon enough, the results come in.

“Huh?!” the doctor balks. “Gone, all your injuries are gone! Maka-chan, I need to see this for myself.” When the doctor takes a quick step forward, the intensity in her eyes sends me fleeing into the wall behind me on reflex, before Leona slides between us so fast she's like a blur.

“Stop!” Her command is enough to bring the blue-haired woman to heel. “You're scaring Seiko.”

“Oh, I'm sorry,” she apologizes, though she looks confused. “But, there's nothing to be scared of.”

“Remember what happened? Seiko is very sensitive now. Especially to touch.” Leona scolds her. We never actually told the doctor about it, but she overheard more than enough of us talking to get the picture.

“Y-yes, that's right, my apologies...” The doctor cringes when she remembers, and softens her tone, then asks, “Maka-chan, would you allow me to examine you for injuries?”

“A-alright.” I stammer a little, still off balance from all of this.

I slide forward on the bed again while she asks, “Could you get undressed? You can leave your underwear on.” I do as requested, then lie still as the doctor goes over me, examining the spots previously bandaged, and takes extra time ever so gently having me move my no longer broken arm, searching for any remaining issues or pain. At least we already told her about my skin issues, so we don't have to deal with that at the same time.

“Huh... I have no idea how, but you've made a full recovery. At least a week or two ahead of schedule. Did you do something since yesterday that would cause this?”

I think Leona and I realize the same thing at the same time. Our eyes meet, and our faces say it all. The time stretching affects my body?!

“W-wait, so it doesn't just feel like a month, it is a month?” I stammer out at her.

“I can't think of anything else.”

“No but, wouldn't I die of starvation?”

“Not necessarily, psionics don't have to make sense. Remember, you don't sleep either.”

“Then what about my body? If I heal, do I grow? Do I age?”

“I have... no idea...” Leona sighs out, pressing a hand to her head. “I'm sorry Seiko, it's all questions and no answers.”

“Mmm...” I don't really know what to say, but now I'm reaching behind myself to check the length of my hair. One month of growth might not be something that's immediately noticeable, it's hard to say. It is a good bit below the bottom of my shoulder blades now...

I pull some in front of me and notice that it goes about halfway down my ribs, well past my breasts. “You should get a haircut,” the doctor comments. “It's been growing at a pretty miraculous rate, but you have a lot of damage and split ends. When was the last time you cut it?”

“I don't want to cut my hair,” I respond, automatically on the defensive.

“Hm? Why not?” she asks curiously.

“I...” When I realize what I'm doing, I stop with a sad sigh. “I always told my parents I thought it was cool, like a rock star or something. Obviously that was an excuse,” I roll my eyes at myself. I can't believe I bought that. Did I really tell the lie so many times I convinced myself? “So... yeah, I did it to protect my hair from getting cut off.”

Doctor Belinda winces. “Yeah, that sounds rough. But what I'm talking about is a trim. It's important for women to get regular trims to keep their hair healthy.”

“Ahh...” I leak out a nervous reply. Can I really get my hair cut like a girl? They won't try to chop it all off? Like when I was a kid?

“Here, since it's been however many years without a proper cut, I'd recommend about four or five centimeters.” She shows me visually with her fingers, indicating how much to take off. It's... just a little bit at the ends, nowhere near cutting it all off. “It's a lot since it's the first cut, but it would be good for your hair.” She thinks that's a lot? The thought is kind of amusing and helps calm me down with at the idea of a hair cut.

“Alright, that's a good idea,” I admit. “Thanks, Doctor.”

“No problem, Maka-chan. So, would you care to explain more about how you suddenly healed?” She smoothly transitions back to the previous topic from before we got sidetracked.

“Ahh, that...”

Leona steps in to help, giving a brief explanation of how the scanner at psi-ops makes me feel like a lot more time is passing, and how that may actually be real time for me rather than just a weird trick of my perception.

The poor doctor has absolutely no idea how to deal with that explanation, so we simply move on. I thank her for the checkup, and we head out. The sun is already going down, so we return to the dorm, and I cook something, relishing in my ability to use two hands again, and then retreat to our own rooms for the night.

I know I need to burn energy, so I fight with my weights, making a futile effort to lift them. At least Ken isn't here to watch and make me feel even more awkward about this. To think I used to curl these easily, now I literally cannot budge the heaviest from the floor at all. With both hands and my legs, I can manage the lightest, but that's not really an accomplishment...

I keep at it for as long as my newly healed up body holds out. When every one of my muscles has turned to jelly, I collapse, panting and gasping on the floor, until I can move enough to stagger upright and take a shower.

Unfortunately, I wind up in the same predicament as the last time I wore myself out, struggling with my bra for a while before I manage to muster the arm strength to get the tight elastic off. I really need to get bigger ones tomorrow...

Once I do manage to wriggle out of my awful clothing, I step into the shower water, and I feel like I'm going to melt. “Holy...” Unlike my clothes, the hot water feels fucking incredible running over my sensitive skin. This is my first shower since the changes I experienced from the regens, isn't it? That first one must have just gotten all the old dead stuff off.

So now, I can't help the moan that escapes at all. It's like every part of me is being caressed, stroked lightly by gentle heat. I flush hot, my skin tingling even more. I'm getting turned on by this?

Why wouldn't I? It's so good. Without another thought, I touch myself, letting my hands explore the places I discovered last time, stroking and massaging the spots that make me feel good for a minute, the hot water touching me everywhere else.

As I've noticed before, the experience is worlds different from arousal as a man. I just feel good. But at the same time, I can still function, at least for now. I did lose it when that psionic effect made me way too aroused, but that hardly counts.

There's one sensation that makes me dizzy even now though. My breasts. Every drop of water is like a tiny electric tingle across them. I turn my back to the showerhead because it's a bit much, but bring my hands up and rub them a little myself.

They're still kind of sore, but they feel so good in my hands. “Mmm...” Of course I've heard men's locker room talk about grabbing boobs and sex and all that, so I know it's supposed to feel good for women, but I never imagined it would be like this. They never feel this good when I touch them normally!

After some time gently caressing one, I poke my nipple experimentally and wince. Yeah, way too sensitive. I return my attention to the rest of my body, enjoying every sensation.

After my breasts, I'm still a little intimidated by my crotch, so I just leave that alone and focus elsewhere. Like the back of my head and neck. When I let the hot water wash down my hair and massage the back my my scalp, it's absolute bliss.

Even worked up like this, I still have the presence of mind to work my way through showering properly, though it takes a while longer than usual as I stop regularly to just enjoy the pleasure.

When I get out, I towel off, but I still feel hot. Still worked up and excited, but also vaguely sleepy, my body quietly craving more touch. Just putting lotion on has me biting my lip as my heart flutters.

I start to put my clothes on, but my shirt is so scratchy on my already hot, aroused skin, that I can't take it. The feeling of all that fabric, sliding and scraping and rubbing makes all my insides twist and I clench my legs together automatically. This feeling - I'm getting wet. I've heard men talk about this, so this is how it feels? Was I already wet? I couldn't really tell in the shower...

With my wandering thoughts, I abandon the clothes and wrap a towel around myself. It isn't that much better, but it's something. Peeking out of the wash room, I look around to confirm our room is empty right now. All my clothes go in the laundry, and I slide into bed, covered with my wonderful blanket.

It takes some time for my body to calm down, but it does so without issue. Despite the little clothing problem at the end, that was incredible. I definitely need to do it again when I have the time. Wait, I hope showers don't always make me feel like that, it would be a bit much to handle...

Once I've calmed down again, the sleepiness comes to the forefront, and I slip off for the night, really looking forward to shopping tomorrow.