Chapter 1
“Listen closely, my sweet Felicity,” she would begin, voice soft as moonlight on broken glass.
“Long ago, when despair monsters were drowning the world in black water, a being of pure starlight descended. The Firmament, darling. It held the darkness back with its own body while it forged the Luminary Pact: a perfect system to choose the brightest, purest girls and dress them in light so they could fight." She gives a tender kiss on her child's cheek.
" The Pact speaks in glowing letters, guides their hands, and turns their hope into weapons. It has rules, Felicity. Beautiful, unbreakable rules. Only girls. Only the worthy. Only the ones willing to become what the world needs. And every generation, the Firmament chooses one girl above all others to be its voice. The Dawn Star. She wears the same dress I once wore. She carries the tiara that shines like a second sun. She gives the Pact orders, and the Pact obeys. I was that girl once. The greatest battery the Firmament ever tasted. And one day, my perfect little blossom…”
Iris would lean down, kiss the child's forehead, and whisper against the little one's skin,
“…you will be the next. You will stand in that dress and feel the stars pour into you. You will be the most beautiful lady the world has ever seen. My Felicity Sage, the next Dawn Star, inspiration of generations.”
And to that, nowadays, the child would say...
"To hell with all that bullshit! The Luminary Pact? It's an UHD. Cold and rational, it gives instructions, it grants power, and it's a voice in the back of the mind reminding the Magical Girls of their 'expiration date,' when all their powers would return to Firmament. Firmament? It's not a star; it's not beautiful. It's a grey, horrifying beast, with dozens of arms and hundreds of eyes. What some may call 'Lovecraftian.' The girls are tools that are used, and if they survived their fights, they get ditched to the side at some point, discarded by some higher being that proved too powerful to betray or to go against."
The child, Iris's daughter, is also a lie. She doesn't exist. Even if she did, she'd be a he. She'd be Felix Sage, a boy at heart. Felix was born a girl. 'Felicity Sage.' It never felt right. The skirts, the ribbons, all those stereotypically feminine things thrown his way, all the expectations, all this nonsense—he always hated it. Long hair, magical girl talk, makeup talk... His mother, Iris Sage, is obsessed with it all. Her goal has always been to shape Felix into what she desires, certainly not to listen to him. She wants him to be a girl, the new Dawn Star. Why only a girl? Because the system decided as such, and as her most loyal dog, Iris obeys. Such is Firmament's will.
Amidst that, there is Elliot Sage, Felix's father. When he dared raise suspicions about Felix's gender, given how early the signs were, Iris almost blasted a wall. She may be retired, but she still has parts of her powers, even almost 20 years after her 'expiration date' was reached. Indeed, it is said that Firmament retrieves the powers of magical girls once they reach a certain age, all to redistribute them to younger generations afterwards. Only the Dawn Stars have anything left in the end. Some say the retired Girls are hollowed from the inside, which is not far from the truth at all. But no one dares to mention the downsides... because Firmament sees all.
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Felix is used to the detention room of the Academy, not because of some terrible offenses, but simply because... he decides to wear pants. Baggy pants—because he knows why they insist on making him wear slimmer ones. Downstairs, his mom is drinking her coffee, glaring at him as if throwing knives.
"Felicity…! Why don't you wear that new skirt I bought?"
No answer comes from 'Felicity' for a few seconds. After all, his name is not Felicity. It takes him time to register she even addressed him; that is how detached he feels toward this name. Regardless, he still feels as if it is a slap. One with which he felt pain with a delay.
"... hell no. It's way too short."
"Half the thighs is not too short…?"
"Well, yes, it is? I don't like it. I don't like any skirts, either."
Talking to his mom is always such a drag for Felix. She's insufferable, always trying to coax him into being someone he's not. But at the same time, he can see her frown every time she notices the results of his voice training... and these small victories are priceless.
"What a shame... You are misguided, sweetheart!" Her tone is sweet and motherly, but with an edge sharp enough to cut through stone. But it's not any stone that is defying her will; it's her child.
"Well, being lost can lead to seeing prettier things."
The faintest frown formed on Iris's face at the word 'prettier,' a calculated choice for sure. And Felix's nonchalant attitude, preparing his bowl of cereal in his father's bowl no less, adds salt to the injury.
"... Well... Keep fighting, sweetheart. One day the sky itself will dress you properly. And you’ll thank me when you’re finally perfect, Felicity." She drags the deadname and makes a pause. Iris follows with a barb of her own. "Once you become the Dawn Star, you'll be such a good girl."
Her voice is dripping with venom, her tender facade utterly broken, revealing the rotten woman hiding behind it. Felix doesn't waste time here; he decides to swiftly go back to his room. He won't give Iris the pleasure of seeing him afraid or hurt. He will never give her a single victory; he never did. He won't falter.
After all, the Luminary Pact, this damned system, is on her side. Felix knows it, and as much as he hates to admit it, he's terrified of that day, when 'the sky will dress him properly'.
Later this morning...
As the boy scrolls down his phone to pass time before going to the Academy, a gentle knock on the door pulls him out of his thoughts. He glances up...
"Kiddo? Can I come in?" That voice, sweet and gentle, also hides something. It hides... some sort of regret. And a fear of doing things wrong. It belongs to Elliot Sage, Felix's father.
"Yeah, sure."
Felix doesn't have anything against his dad. If anything, he's supportive. Unfortunately, Iris is the powerful one. She may be a retired magical girl, but her power remains; it has never entirely vanished... yet. So, Elliot never dares to oppose her. But he never supports her actions or thoughts; his approach is always more measured, more comprehensive, and vague. In private, when his voice is but a hushed whisper, he shows his support. Like right now.
"Lookin' sharp, son. Are these pants I bought to your liking?" Felix grins and nods.
It's a little secret between them; Elliot does everything to make Felix feel like who he really is. These pants come from the boy section of the store, obviously. Quite ironic that he mentioned that, considering what his mother said earlier about the skirt.
"Yep! Love 'em."
The archivist reaches to ruffle his boy's hair in a tender gesture. He knows Felix understood that he came in for a reason, so he decides to get to the point. His boy is perceptive; nothing escapes his eyes.
"... I heard your argument with Iris, son. And... I am scared for you. But... But I know you won't falter. You're the strongest man I ever met."
These words make Felix's grin soften into something more loving, filled with respect for the other man. He gives a small nod, indicating that he is still listening. So, Elliot continues.
"So... You have about two weeks before that day. I want to... to make sure you enjoy yourself. I want to make sure you feel good, that you feel... better."
There is a sense of gravity, almost urgency, in these words. It makes Felix's heartbeat quicken.
"What do you mean…?"
Elliot smiles yet again. He reaches for something in his pocket. Such a huge pocket—pants for men are so much better, and take something out of it.
"How about more defiance, my little rebel?"
Scissors.
"Hell yeah!"
And so, each snip of the scissors was like a song. An ode to freedom. Each lock of hair on the ground is a victory and proof of Felix's resilience.
Every lock that hit the floor was proof : Iris’s perfect daughter was dead.And when the Pact finally acts, tries to change this bright being, it'll find a boy waiting.
