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# Puella Magi Adfligo Systema

- Thread starter Firnagzen
- Start date May 19, 2014
- Tags
    bad decisions dating mami tomoe diabolical laughter friendship is the best ship handholding identity crises microwaving tea gets you put in the bad place names are important puella magi adfligo systema puella magi madoka magica the body is the fursona of the soul this is not the baked goods thread we don't talk about rionna what could possibly go wrong? who in the world is azure sanfrancisco?

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Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 19
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 4, 2014

- #3,208

"She-" Mami breaks off the sentence with a sigh, and falls silent again. Her head lowers slightly.
"Hey," you say, draping one arm around her shoulder and pulling her into a hug. "You're a good person, Mami."
"I want Oriko dead," she says in an almost inaudible whisper, still looking away from you. She leans into the hug, though, drawing comfort from the simple physical contact. "She threatened our home. She burned down my friend's house."
You chuff out a sigh. "That's just being human, Mami," you say. "And this... this isn't something I want to do either. We're not..." you wave your hands, searching for a word. "We're not assassins. But we need to get her to stop."
Mami groans. "I... but... this timestop..."
"How did you deal with it?" you ask.
"Huh?"
"Before, I mean. Oriko isn't the only one, you've mentioned being in fights before," you say. "I know that life as a magical girl isn't always... nice, Mami."
"It isn't. She... she's not," she admits quietly. "I was, am, furious, but- never like this. Not a cold hunt like this... We just fought, and I won. I- I... I've hurt people before. Badly. But always in a fight..."
She takes a shuddering breath. "A-and what happens if we find her? We kill her? I- I can threaten as much as I like-" Mami lets out a choked laugh "-I threatened to kill Homura the first time we met! And now look at her! I- I, I don't think..."
You shake your head, understanding. "You don't think you could actually kill someone." Except, perhaps, in the heat of the moment, the types of a breakdown, you think to yourself. You know what she could once have done.
"N-no..." Mami says.
[] Write-in
=====​
Mami's always been able to talk up a good show.
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 20
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 4, 2014

- #3,219

Your arm is already around Mami's shoulders, but you pull her into a full hug. She stiffens in your arms. Not really what you'd been hoping for, but you just hold her for a moment.
"It's not about hunting her, really," you say contemplatively. "It's more... we need to find out why she's doing these things, and stopping her from doing more. The timestop is just the best way of doing it."
Mami sighs. "It still doesn't feel right." She pushes herself up from your hug, and you let her, though one arm still remains around her. "It- I... what do we do when we find her?"
You shake your head. "I don't know, Mami. But I do know that it doesn't have to end in killing if we find her, between the three of us. We've got Homura's timestop, I can cleanse for as long as we need it, and more importantly-" you give her a little shake "-we've got Mami Tomoe. We can find another way."
"You- I-" Mami slumps, head dipping almost to her chest. "You... I'm not- I don't deserve your trust, Sabrina. I don't think- I c-could kill a-anyone, but I- Just thinking about Oriko, what she's done, I want her gone, and-" she breaks off with a wordless noise that's half sob and half snarl, clutching at the air in front of her as if wringing someone's neck. "I- I don't trust myself. And it scares me."
You pull her into a hug again, and this time, she accepts, collapsing bonelessly against you, tears silently rolling down her face. "It's OK, Mami," you soothe, rubbing her on her back gently. "Whatever happens, I'll still be here to help. Always, Mami."
She speaks through her tears, mumbling into your shoulder. "I- I don't deserve you, Sabrina."
You let her cry herself out in little sobbing heaves. Out of the corner of your eye, you can see her Soul Gem- it's perhaps a little tarnished, but nowhere near enough for it to matter yet.
Eventually, her quiet sobs fade away. You idly draw the corruption from her Soul Gem, and pack it away as marbles in your pocket.
She draws back from the hug, and simply looks at you for a long moment with a wan smile on her face.
The smile fades, though, and she asks, "I'm still not sure... do you think we could leave the timestop, just for a bit? J-just to gather my thoughts? The silence is..."
[] Wake up Homura, ask her
[] Wait for Homura to wake up
[] Continue the hunt, leaving Mami behind
[] Just a little further
- [] Specify
[] Continue onwards
[] Write-in
=====​
Heat of the moment. Fury. Incoherency? Oh yes.
Read between the lines. Metaphorically speaking.
One hundred forty three Grief marbles, eight of which are in your pocket.
Last edited: Jul 4, 2014
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 21
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 5, 2014

- #3,298

You swallow. You don't want to leave the timestop, since that would free Oriko to do whatever it is she has planned. But now that she's brought it up, you realize the effect the timestop's been having on her... and you're reluctant to subject her to more of it.
Mami's face falls. "O- of course, it's OK if you want continue, finding Oriko is important, too," she says.
"No, no. We'll stop, but I..." you hesitate, but you decide that this really is for the best. "Just one more stop, OK? I want to check on Nagisa first."
Mami smiles wanly. "I... OK. I can... yes," she says with a nod.
A thought strikes you. "I... maybe we can put a movie on or something? So there's some noise while we eat, or something?"
"I'd like that," Mami says, sitting back. She leans against you, the height disparity leaving her shoulder against your arm, a warm sensation even through the sleeve of your longcoat.
You sigh. "I'm sorry, Mami. I know it's not what you wanted to hear... but I... even if we can't find Oriko, I'd like to make sure everyone we know is safe, at least. We... should probably stop for the night after this, anyway, we're all tired, and I don't think we can keep this up too much longer."
Mami chuckles warmly. "You... You, Sabrina... you are something special, aren't you?" She shakes her head, smiling. "I... I dub thee white knight Sabrina, friend to all she meets," she says, with a slight stumble over the unfamiliar syllables.
"I'm not that good a person," you protest, though a smile comes unbidden to your face. "It's just... I can't just let these things go, you know?"
"Ahhh... you would say that," she chuckles warmly. "In any case, yes, Sabrina, I'm OK with checking in on Nagisa, since you think it's necessary."
"Thanks, Mami," you say. "Do you want to try the TV now?"
"Mmm... Is Homura still sleeping?" Mami asks.
You lean back on the bed, trying to peer out of the door. You can just see the back of the sofa from here, and Homura doesn't seem to be sitting up, so you presume that she is, indeed, still sleeping.
"Looks like she is, yeah," you say.
"Hm... maybe if we make it really soft?" Mami wonders. "I don't want to disturb her sleep. She looks like she hasn't, for a few days."
"I wouldn't be surprised," you answer, rising to your feet and offering Mami a hand up. She accepts it, and you pull her up, while musing on Homura.
Mami swipes at her face, rubbing the heel of one of her hands -glove and all- against her eyes. "Yeah, Oriko seems to really have her on edge."
You agree with a nod as you head in to the living room. With Oriko around, you have to wonder if Homura's even slept at all, as opposed to watching over Madoka every night. As you step out of your room, you hesitate, and turn to head back in, drawing a questioning look from Mami. You grab your blanket off your bed, though, and bring it with you over to the sofa where you ever so carefully drape it over the sleeping time traveller.
Homura mumbles something incoherent, and you freeze. One of her hands -her left one, with the Soul Gem and shield- comes up to tug the blanket closer around herself, and she snuggles back down against the blanket.
Her Soul Gem's not very clouded, you notice. You wonder a little at that, but you figure that she's had literal years, if not decades of experience in being efficient. It probably counts for something.
You grin at Mami, who's watching over your shoulder, and she smiles back. You point questioningly at the television, feeling a lot more confident that you can probably try it without waking Homura -she's utterly exhausted, it looks like-, and Mami nods. You snag the remote as she walks over to the shelf, looking for something to play.
With a hand on the television to keep it active, you turn the television on. It simply displays static, but it works, and you hastily turn the volume down until it's nearly inaudible. A quick glance back at Homura tells you that she's still sound asleep.
Your head snaps back to the television. Wait, what? How does that work? Time stop... electricity? Shouldn't the electricity be stopped? You frown at the television. You frown up at the ceiling lamp Mami had habitually flicked on when she stepped in. It had been off in the timestop, and Mami turned it on, but she's not touching it now and it's still emitting light and how does that even-
Mami waves a hand in front of your face. "Are you OK, Sabrina?"
"I... uh, yeah," you say, blinking away the thoughts. Magic is fucking weird, you conclude to yourself.
"Uh, OK." Mami holds up a box for you to see. It's... you blink. It's a console game: Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon. "Do you game, Sabrina? If not, I've also got some movies..."
[] Sure!
- [] Maxim 5. Close air support and friendly fire should be easier to tell apart.
- [] Maxim 25. If the damage you do is covered by a manufacturers warranty, you didn't do enough damage.
- [] Maxim 34. If you're leaving scorch-marks, you need a bigger gun.
[] Nah, watch a movie.
=====​
Why EDF? Because this exists. (Technically that's based on EDF 2017, not IA, and IA isn't quite released yet, but I'm more familiar with Insect Armageddon and shut up.)
Last edited: Jul 5, 2014
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 22
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 7, 2014

- #3,334

You grin at Mami. "Sure!" you say. You lean down to flick on the Playstation she has underneath her TV, and notice that there's only one controller here. "Uh, Mami-"
She's already flitted off to another room, and comes back out with an extra controller. She blows on it, sending a small cloud of dust flying off of it, and hands it to you to plug in. The controller's just about brand new, and barely used, you notice.
The game is quickly set up, and seat yourself on the floor right in front of the television. That's probably terrible for your eyes, but it's not like that's a concern, is it? Besides, with the volume low to avoid waking Homura, it's the only way you can hear the sound from the television, which is at least part of the point. Mami sits next to you, close enough that her elbow brush against yours when she shifts.
Mami hands you the newer controller, and the two of you quickly pick your choices and start a new game. You pick the Jet trooper class, a flying class with grenades and missiles, while Mami, to your mild surprise, picks the Battle trooper, the heaviest and slowest class. Also the one with the biggest guns, admittedly.
"So, Mami," you say idly as the game loads up. "Do you game much?"
She shrugs. "Some," she says. "It's... something to occupy the time."
"Ah," you say, not entirely sure how to work around that. The game starts, then, and you get to work blasting giant, car-sized ants to pieces from the dropship. A building promptly falls apart as you hose it down with one bullet too many. "Whoops!" you laugh, not very contritely, as the drop ship lands.
"It happens," Mami says absently, controller clicking under her finger as she sends her trooper expertly into the fray, hosing them down with a heavy machine gun.
"So, Mami," you say as you send your trooper jetting to the top of a building, from which you begin to rain down grenades. "How did you learn to cook so well, anyway?"
"Hm?" Mami asks absently, using her trooper's shield to block an ant's attack. "I just learned from recipe books, and the TV. And I'm really not that good a cook."
"Yes, you are," you disagree, launching another salvo of grenades. It just so happens that you're targeting the ants on the buildings. Purely by accident, of course. Building after building collapses in your wake.
"Are you doing that on purpose, Sabrina?" Mami asks as she sends her trooper stomping through the levelled city.
"Nooooooo?" you draw the word out. Purely coincidentally, a grenade lands next to Mami's character, sending the trooper flying.
"Oh, you. This means war," Mami giggles, sitting forward and propping her elbows against her knees. The rest of the level promptly devolves into her chasing you around with her machine gun, while you try to tag her with a grenade. The two of you stifle your giggles, but you're virtually rolling on the floor as most of the city is razed to the ground.
Up until the point where the giant robot shows up, anyway, the two of you having finally exterminated all the ants, and nearly each other. The robot promptly wipes the two of you out, since you'd both managed to reduce each other to extremely low health.
Mami puts down the controller, shaking with supressed laughter. "You're a terrible person, Sabrina," she says, finally. "But... ah, thanks. I think I needed that."
"C'mon, what are friends for, Mami?" you grin at her. "Why EDF, anyway?"
"Hm? What do you mean?" Mami asks, glancing at you.
"This game doesn't really seem your type," you smile at her to take the sting out of it.
The blonde chuckles at that, playfully nudging you with her elbow. "Doesn't really seem yours, either! It's just good fun, even alone... Though I must say, playing it with someone else was much more fun," Mami replies.
"Anyway, what do you think we should do now?" she asks, glancing over her shoulder at Homura. You copy her motion, and see that Homura's still sound asleep.
[] Let Homura sleep
[] Another try at EDF?
[] Watch a movie?
[] Write-in
=====​
Just two friends enjoying themselves. For now...
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 23
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 8, 2014

- #3,360

You shake your head. "I'd rather let her sleep," you say. "If you're alright with that, I mean?" You give Mami an inquiring look.
Mami dips her head in a nod. "I'm... willing to let her sleep. She really needs it, doesn't she?"
"Yeah," you shake your head. "Doesn't even seem to have stirred even with the noise we were making."
"Do you think..." Mami frowns. "She's really worried about Oriko, isn't she? Do you think she's been out looking for her?"
"Sounds quite likely," you answer. Privately, you suspect that she's also probably on Madoka-surveillance around the clock, too.
Mami sighs, and you put a comforting hand on her arm. "Just a little longer, OK, Mami?" you say. "Shall we eat? I don't know about you, but I'm starting to get hungry."
"Sure," Mami says, rising to her feet to fetch the spaghetti from the kitchen. You follow her, but pause by the sofa and check Homura's Soul Gem. Deciding to play it safe, you draw off the Grief from her, collapsing it into the familiar little spheres. You then head into the kitchen, where Mami's checking on the spaghetti.
She pours out the tea into cups, while you pull out some utensils. Forks, to go with the spaghetti, and between the two of you, you carry your food and tea out to the living room. Homura's portion you leave in the kitchen, still locked within the timestop.
You and Mami seat yourselves next to the television. Thanks to the timestop, your food is still piping hot, and you're about to dig in when an idea occurs to you. "Hey, Mami? Maybe we could watch a movie or something while eating?"
"Ah? Sure," Mami says, blinking up at you and putting her plate down on the floor. The colour fades from the plate as her hand leaves it. She stands, and wanders over to her small collection of movies. "What would you like to watch?" she asks.
"Something light, I guess?" you shrug.
Mami runs a finger along the spines of her disc collection. "Hmm... How about an anime?"
"I suppose so?"
"Ah, just the thing, then," Mami smiles, pulling out one of the discs. You don't see what it is before she cracks the casing open and pulls out the disc. "I haven't gotten around to watching this one, anyway."
The television is quickly set up, and the two of you are sitting in front of it, Mami again sitting close enough to you that her elbows bump against yours. You twirl your fork in the spaghetti, gathering a decent amount which you stick into your mouth as you wait for the movie to begin. Mami's cooking is good; just the right balance of taste.
"The morning of December 16. It was so cold. And I mean cold, that if you took an ice pick and plunged it into the ground, you'd shatter the earth into a million pieces."
Time passes quickly, and the two of you polish off your meal quickly, setting aside the plates. The tea you'd made is extraordinarily thick, but it definitely perks you up.
As the movie draws to a close, your tea long finished, you look back at Homura. To your surprise, she's still sleeping - she must have been utterly exhausted, but her sleep seems rather less restful, now. Her face is contorted into an expression of dismay, and her hands are fisted in the blanket you'd draped over her.
Mami glances back as you do so, and a frown also creases her forehead.
[] Wake Homura
[] Let her sleep it off
[] Write-in
=====​
Well, it's not Endless Eight.
Implying implications.
One hundred forty six Grief marbles, eleven of which are in your pocket.
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 24
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 9, 2014

- #3,402

You sigh. "Time to wake her up, I think," you mutter, looking at Mami.
"Are you sure?" the blonde asks. "We could just let her sleep... maybe the nightmare will pass?"
You shake your head. "No... I think this would be for the best." You rather suspect that Homura's nightmares can only get worse. You stand easily, stretching out the kinks from your sitting so long, and move over to the sofa, where Homura's rolled over, tangling herself in the blanket.
"Homura?" you say softly, reaching out to nudge her gently on the shoulder. You lean back, ready to avoid a reflexive shooting.
Nothing.
Homura mutters something in her sleep, and she curls in on herself to avoid your hand. Her death grip on the blankets loosen slightly, though, and her face eases.
"Homura, it's time to wake up," you say, nudging her a little more firmly.
The black haired girl makes a little 'mnaaaaaa' noise, and one hand comes up to bat weakly at yours. You can hear Mami biting back a delighted squeal from behind you, and you half turn to grin at her.
You put your hand on her shoulder and give her a little shake. "Homura, wake up," you say, louder.
The time traveller's eyes blink open, and for a bare moment between heartbeats, you can practically see the old Homura in her sleepy violet eyes. She blinks again, looking muzzily up at you, confusion swimming in her eyes. The moment passes, however, and her eyes harden, startled expression quickly subsumed under her usual impassive mask.
"Good morning, Homura," you say with a smile, stepping back.
She glares at you, pushing the blanket back and swinging herself upright. "I fell asleep?"
"Yes, you did," you confirm.
"You should have woken me up," she snaps at you.
"No, we shouldn't have," you counter. "With your time stop, we're not losing any time, and with me around, corruption isn't an issue. And really? You need the rest, Homura." That she fell asleep at all, let alone remained asleep like that, speaks volumes about how tired she must have been.
"I agree with Sabrina," Mami adds firmly. "You were exhausted, Homura. Anyway, stay here, I'll get some food for you." The blonde turns up the volume of the television, and walks off to the kitchen.
Homura frowns, looking slightly mutinous, but she seems to accept your logic and remains seated on the sofa. You sit down beside her, kicking your legs out. "You shouldn't be afraid to accept help from your allies, you know," you reprove.
She sighs almost imperceptibly, but doesn't reply to that. She only reacts when Mami pushes a steaming plate of pasta and cup of tea in her face, looking up at the blonde. "Thank you," she says, grudgingly, before accepting the fork and beginning to eat.
Mami seats herself on the sofa on your other side, watching the television, which is now looping through the movie a second time. You split your attention between observing Homura, Mami, and the television. Homura's fork moves rather rapidly- it seems that in addition to being exhausted, she's starving, too. You catch Mami's eye, and jerk your head in the direction of the time traveller. She nods in acknowledgement, lips pursed as she watches Homura wolf down the food.
Homura polishes off the spaghetti in record time, and you catch her glancing oh-so-casually at the kitchen, as if she's wondering if there's more. However, she silently sets aside the plate, and picks up the cup of tea, slowly sipping it.
"So, Homura," you begin. "We're considering calling off the time-stop hunt, after checking maybe one or two more locations. There's just too many places Oriko could have gone to ground."
The time traveller fixes you with her violet gaze. "You and Mami may leave the time stop," she says, and, a heartbeat later as if she's debating something with herself, she continues, "May I come back to you for cleanses of my Soul Gem?"
[] Write-in
=====​
Sleeping Homu, and something for you to consider, perhaps- why is Homu so tired?
Last edited: Jul 9, 2014
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 25
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 10, 2014

- #3,469

"Yes, of course," you say. "Even so, you shouldn't stay up too much longer, Homura. You really need the sleep. As it is, you're barely half awake, and, y'know, you actually fell asleep there. If you're barely alert... It's that much easier for Oriko to catch you off guard, you know?"
Homura looks away. "I can't affor-"
"Can't you?" you snap. You have easy rebuttals for this, since you were just thinking about it. "You have all the time in the world, and I'm perfectly happy to cleanse your Soul Gem for you. Food? Have you been eating instant ramen all the time?" -from the flash of surprise that crosses Homura's face, you suspect you're right- "I'm sure Mami doesn't mind feeding you." Mami nods, supporting you.
"It's not necessary," Homura scowls at you.
"Unecessary is not the same thing as 'shouldn't be done'," you say, holding up a finger. "I believe I've mentioned this before."
"Sabrina's absolutely right, Homura," Mami injects firmly. "You're pushing yourself too hard. You can afford to rest."
At least one good thing came of this entire affair, you reflect. Mami now actually cares enough about Homura to try helping her. Which is... unexpected, but nice. Now, if only Homura would actually accept the help. And speaking of help...
"And one more thing, Homura," you say to her scowling face. "I think it's probably for the best if you sleep here tonight, after everything's done, OK? Safety in numbers, right?"
Homura glares at you, and you glare right back. Finally, she relents, and glances away. "Fine," she grunts.
"Good," you say. "Alright, then. Our next stop for now is checking on Nagisa... but first, cleanses, everyone?"
You go through your standard ritual of drawing off the corruption from everyone's Soul Gem, including your own, while still seated comfortably on the sofa. You call the sling bag to you, levitating it via the mass of Grief marbles inside, and drop the new ones in before leaving the bag on the floor beside you.
Mami purses her lips, looking thoughtfully at Homura's cleaned out plate of spaghetti. "I suppose I'll wash up later, when we're not in the timestop," she muses. "Have you finished your tea, Homur-"
The timetraveller interrupts her by grabbing the cup and draining the remains of the tea in one long gulp.
"... Alright, then," you say. "Let's go?"
After looking up Momoe Shin's residence, the three of you set out again, with you remembering to snag the sling bag. Mami takes the lead- even if she doesn't know the precise address, she knows the general area.
It turns out that Momoe Shin lives in an apartment in a relatively upscale part of the city. It's not the implausible rolling acres of the Kaname and Mikuni residences, but the buildings are new, and seem to be well maintained.
"Uh..." you check the address written on a scrap of paper. "That building there, I think. Third floor."
Mami peeks over your shoulder at the paper, and you obligingly angle it so that she can see it easily. "Yes, that's the right one," she agrees, while Homura looks on impatiently.
The three of you head over to the building, and Mami uses her ribbons to lift you up to peer through the window. Momoe Shin's house speaks of quiet opulence, and, to an extent, bachelorhood, though it's generally well kept. Nagisa, it turns out, is sleeping. The braids are undone, and the ribbons are piled up on her bedside table.
There's absolutely nothing out of the ordinary here.
You wave your hand to signal Mami, and the ribbons holding you aloft relax, letting you back down to the ground. "Nothing wrong here, it seems," you inform the others.
"Hm... What will be our next step, then?" Mami asks, glancing around at the grey of the time stop.
[] Continue hunting
- [] Where?
[] Stop hunting
- [] Try to convince Homura to stop too?
[] Write-in
=====​
Homura actually agreed to staying over pretty readily, didn't she? I wonder why.
One hundred fifty four grief marbles, eight in your pocket.
Last edited: Jul 11, 2014
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 26
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 11, 2014

- #3,492

"Um..." you glance at Mami, slightly worried about her reaction. "Mami, would you mind if we were to check out Homura's house, too? I know I said Nagisa's would be our last stop, but I just thought about this..."
Mami nods, though her smile is slightly strained. "I... yes, that's a good idea," she agrees. "Wouldn't do to leave her in the lurch."
"It's not necessary," Homura repeats impatiently. "I'm capable of checking my house myself."
"Homura, just let us help you, OK?" you say.
She glares at you, but ultimately relents. "Fine. Let's go, then," she grumbles, and starts walking away.
You glance at Mami as you start to follow the time traveller. "You're sure you're OK with this, Mami?"
"Yes," Mami affirms with a smile. Lowering her voice, she adds, "Homura... needs someone to look after her, doesn't she?"
"I... yeah, she kinda does," you whisper back.
"I can hear you perfectly well," Homura calls back, before tensing and crouching to jump up two closely spaced buildings.
You look back at Mami again, and roll your eyes. You follow Homura up to the roof, as does Mami, and the three of you leap off towards her apartment, an odd corner block at the junction of three streets. Mami cautiously opens a window with her ribbons, and the three of you enter Homura's apartment through the window.
Homura's apartment is... odd. In the center of the living room are several backless sofas, arranged in broken, concentric circles. The walls are a plain tan colour, and there are little devices studded along the edge between the floor and walls - projectors, you figure. The air in here, even deadened by the timestop, has a faintly antiseptic scent.
But that's not really what draws your attention. What does is the massive, bladed pendulum hanging down from the unusually high ceiling - if not for the timestop, the words 'careening madly' should probably be applied. You... knew that she had one, from your memories, but actually seeing it in person is something else. You stop and stare at it, as does Mami.
"Is that a hologram?" Mami asks, still staring up at the pendulum.
No response. You look around for Homura, and don't see her. The ribbon binding you to her leads into one of the side rooms, and you tap Mami on the shoulder, pointing at it. "Homura?"
"Here," she replies, voice floating out of that room. You walk over, picking your way around the sofas, to find that this room apparently serves as Homura's armory. There's a table with a reading lamp and a viceclamp on the side. While there aren't any guns lying around -why would there be, when Homura can keep them in her shield?-, but you can smell the gun oil in the air, and lying on the table are cleaning rods of various kinds, as well as wirebrushes and so forth.
Homura's peering under the table as you walk in. "Nothing?" you ask.
She shakes her head. "Nothing."
"Anyway... I think that after we finish up here, we should go back to Mami's apartment and stop there," you say, choosing your words carefully.
"As I said earlier, you and Mami may leave the hunt," Homura repeats, standing and frowning at you.
"No, I mean we, Homura. You're pushing yourself too hard," you say. "I think..."
[] Write-in argument
[] Ask about the pendulum
[] Something else?
=====​
Minor edit to the last update, incidentally; you brought your bag of Grief with you.
Last edited: Jul 11, 2014
Threadmarks Direct Intervention pt. 27
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 12, 2014

- #3,524

"I... look. What I said earlier is still true, Homura. We're just getting tired, while Oriko is still fresh, and she has Kirika, and possibly one more magical girl to help her," you say, thinking furiously. A footstep behind you; Mami following you into the room.
"I can rest in the timestop, as you've demonstrated," Homura says flatly. "It's more important t-"
"Will you?" you snap, eyebrows arched high. "You know, the fact that you actually fell asleep like that says something. Like, for example, that you haven't been resting properly, timestop or no."
"And?" Homura replies evenly.
"You- ugh," you break off when Mami puts a supporting hand on your shoulder. "Look. We're tired, and Oriko has had enough time to plan this out, and well enough that she could get to us inside the timestop. Remember the mine back there?" You wave a hand at your leg to emphasize. "What if she gets you with something like that while Mami and I aren't around?"
"I can still heal myself," the time traveller replies implacably. "It just takes time and Grief Seeds."
And of course Homura, of all people, would have plenty of both.
You open your mouth, but you're out of reasons. Reasons that you feel you can bring up, anyway.
"Homura..." Mami says, her hand dropping from your shoulder as she steps forward. Her voice is gentle, consoling, what you'd use to talk to a distraught child. "Why... why are you so determined to hunt down Oriko? I was -I am- furious with what she's done... but... what has she done to deserve your, your hatred?"
Homura stares at Mami, a flicker of emotion you don't catch crossing her face. "It's not your concern, Tomoe Mami."
The blonde flinches, but her face sets in determination. "Homura, we're trying to help."
[] Intervene
- [] How?
[] Let Homura reply
[] Write-in
=====​
Short update today. You would have asked about the pendulum, but Mami had her own ideas.
Last edited: Jul 12, 2014
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Jul 13, 2014

- #3,571

It's your turn to put a hand on Mami's shoulder, tugging her back lightly. She turns questioningly to look at you, and you shake your head, no.
"Homura, you're running yourself ragged," you say, meeting her gaze steadily. She doesn't deny it, eyes sliding away from yours - not in impatience, but rather that she can't quite seem to meet your gaze. "Whatever your opinions on Oriko are... you, your health, are more important. The only real lasting effect that Oriko's had on us so far, with this incident? This-" you pat your bag full of Grief marbles, "-and the three of us being tired. You especially." And, you add to yourself, Mami now actually caring enough about Homura to give a damn, you suppose.
Homura doesn't reply, gazing at a point somewhere near your feet. You sigh. "If you still want to continue... well. I'm still happy to cleanse for you. Just... please be careful, Homura. And don't stay out for too long, OK?"
Homura still doesn't reply, and you hold out a hand to her. "C'mon Homura. Let us help you."
Violet eyes meet yours, inscrutable and implacable once again. "You wanted to go back to Mami's house, correct?" She walks past you, leaving the room.
You sigh heavily and look at Mami helplessly. She's half turned, one hand out in an aborted gesture to grab Homura. She can only shake her head back at you, golden eyes looking lost.
Well, there's nothing for it, is there? You really can't force Homura of all people to stop.
The two of you follow Homura out, your eyes drawn with all the inevitability of gravity up to the pendulum. You really want to ask about the pendulum.
You really want to ask about the pendulum.
You... "Hey Homura, on a completely unrelated topic, uh... why the pendulum?"
Homura stops in her tracks, and turns to look at you with a raised eyebrow. Mami, by your side, very slowly palms her face.
"I like it," Homura says simply. Her eyes track up to it. "It reminds me of..." she trails off, looking lost for a moment, before recovering and stalking out of the apartment.
"Sabrina..." Mami groans into her hand, shaking her head.
"What?" you ask defensively. "I wanted to know."
"Oh, Sabrina," Mami says, lifting her face from her hand and favouring you with a smile and a shake of her head. "Nothing gets you down, does it."
You shrug as you follow Homura out of the apartment.
The three of you journey back to Mami's apartment in silence, each lost in your own thoughts. Mami opens the door, and you file in silently.
"Um. How does this work, Homura?" Mami asks, looking at the time traveller.
Homura plucks at the ribbon around her waist. "You just need to disconnect the ribbon."
"Um. OK," Mami says, sitting on the sofa, and spending a minute to fuss with her skirt, and then her clothes, flicking off invisible specks of dust. She pats the sofa beside her, looking at you invitingly.
"You won't even notice. Just dissolve the ribbon," Homura says, looking slightly bemused at Mami's antics.
"I..."
She's scared, you realize.
And you guess you can see why - time continues, in a fashion, and it doesn't involve her. It's... somewhat existentially disturbing, you suppose.
You sit down on the sofa beside her, and give her an encouraging smile. "It's nothing, Mami. It's not like Homura hasn't done it before, right? Used the timestop, I mean."
"I guess," she admits, returning your smile. Now looking determined, she looks at Homura, and dissolves the rib-
=====​
-bons.
You blink.
Homura's crossed the distance to stand in front of you, and is now looking down at you. She has a hand on your shoulder to bring you into the time stop. Beside you, Mami is frozen in hues of grey, still looking at where Homura was.
"Hi, Homura," you sigh. "How long has it been? Any news?"
"I haven't gone looking yet," she replies. She's wearing an expression you've never seen before on her face - she looks lost, and she's looking down, unwilling to meet your gaze. "You... why do you care?"
[] Pull Mami in.
[] Say something
- [] What?
[] Write-in
=====​
There are, as is usual, more than one layer to Homura's reactions.
Last edited: Jul 14, 2014
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