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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 Interloper pt. 4
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Feb 26, 2015

- #35,943

You sigh as you fall in behind Kyouko. Yuma glances back, still gnawing on the pocky stick, and gives you a happy little wave that you can't help but smile at before turning your attention back to Kyouko's question. She would go for the hard question first, huh?
"No, she didn't," you say, shaking your head with a quiet sigh. "I told her I'd be here, but sticking my nose into everyone else's business is entirely my own idea. And honestly... She's not doing well." You blurt out that last line before you can lose your nerve.
Kyouko stops dead, Yuma continuing on a step before herself being brought up short by her hand, held in the redhead's. Kyouko half turns, glancing at you sidelong with narrowed eyes. "Oh?" she drawls, her posture loose and deliberately relaxed.
You... should probably explain. "Yeah," you say, keeping your hands hanging neutrally at your sides. "She... she gets morose. Withdrawn, if I so much as bring you up."
Faded crimson eyes narrow slightly.
Yuma glances anxiously up at her adopted big sister, then at you.
You meet Kyouko's eyes squarely. "You know Kyuubey. The little white rat was using Mami. She didn't take the news well."
With a loud, expressive crunch, Kyouko bites through the pocky stick in her mouth, and she holds her hand up to the stick, shoving it fully into her mouth, before replacing it. "Shi-" she chokes off the word, lips flattening together. Her jaw works for a moment, before she pivots sharply and stalking off, towing Yuma along by the hand.
"Owie, owie, big sis, you're hurting Yuma," the younger girl cries, almost dragged bodily along with the crimson haired girl's longer strides.
Kyouko flinches, stopping in her tracks and abruptly releasing Yuma's hand. "Shit. Sorry, Yuma," she says.
"It's OK, big sis," Yuma says, reaching out to pat the back of Kyouko's hand.
Slowly, Kyouko turns her hand to take Yuma's again, before glancing back at you. "Well?" she says challengingly. "We eatin'?"
"Yeah, yeah," you say, flapping a hand at her.
Kyouko snorts, and stalks off, radiating anger. You note, though, that she's shortening her strides to match Yuma's shorter legs.
Teenagers.
You trail after the pair.
"Cleansing's still an unconditional offer, by the way," you call after the redhead. "I'd like to do it for filled Grief Seeds, yes, filled, since otherwise they'd be wasted."
"Filled Grief Seeds hatch into Witches, lady," Kyouko snaps.
"So half fill them," you say.
"'Half fill them' she says." Kyouko affects a nasal tone, but continues on, gait unbroken. "Well la-di-da."
... She probably can't afford that, can she? You fall silent, continuing on.
"Sabrina?" Mami, of course.
"Hey, Mami," you say, as Kyouko steps out of the park, lush greenery giving way to the bustle of the streets. "How was basketball?"
"Ah... we won!" Mami says.
"That's great," you say warmly. "What are you doing now?"
"Oh, I just finished showering, we're waiting for our next class," Mami explains. "It's math, next!"
"Mmm. Still on integration by parts?" you ask. You're... pretty impressed with the curriculum, you think, for a middle school.
"Ah, yes," Mami says. "I think we're doing class practice today."
"Makes sense," you agree, following Kyouko as she saunters across the road, enormously voluminous ponytail swaying behind her. "I'm sure you won't have trouble, Mami."
"Thank you," Mami says. "Um... Do you know of you'll be able to make it for lunch?"
"I think so, and I'll try my best, Mami," you reassure her for what must be the hundredth time.
"Alright," Mami says happily. "See you, Sabrina!"
"See you, Mami," you reply.
You eventually find yourself in front of the same buffet restaurant as last time. At this time of the day, there's no queue at all, and the three of you secure a corner booth. You pay, of course, handing over the money without complaint.
Kyouko watches, and departs for the buffet line with Yuma at her side, the two returning with heavily laden plates. You collect one of your own, and by the time you return with your sparsely laden plate, Kyouko's already departing for her second.
You eye the remains -bones and gravy- on her plate, and Yuma, still working slowly through her own plate. She peeks at you with her huge blue eyes, before returning to her food.
As you eat slowly, you watch Kyouko collecting food, piling her plate high.
The redhead slams back down into her seat as you chew thoughtfully on a mouthful of barbecued pork, and bites into her own food with voracious speed, biting down angrily on the food as of it offended her.
You clear your throat. "So, uh," you say, watching the food vanish down Kyouko's mouth just about as fast as she can shovel it in. "We stopped Oriko. She and Kirika are... fine, but we're keeping them under house arrest."
Kyouko clears her mouth for long enough to give you a withering glare and a, "Well, good for you," before returning to tearing the meat off a chicken drumstick, polishing it clean in three swift bites.
"Sabrina?" Yuma's voice sounds in your head, quavering timidly.
You glance at her - the younger girl is, to all outward appearances, still concentrating on her food. You look back at your own food, picking up a drumstick. "Yes, Yuma?"
"Why is big sis so angry?" Yuma asks. "Who's Mami?"
[] Write-in
=====​
Nom nom.
Holding in abeyance:
[x] Inform her about the end of the Sendai conflict.
[x]Just in case you didn't know already...a Walpurgisnacht's going to hit Mitakihara in about three weeks. I'm not here to try and recruit you for it-especially because you have Yuma to look after-but since it might still cause a lot of damage, I thought you should know.
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 5
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Feb 27, 2015

- #36,178

You bite into the drumstick, replying telepathically to Yuma. "Mami was a good friend of your big sis, but they parted on bad terms. I think she's angry at Kyuubey."
"Oh," Yuma says, a trace of relief colouring her voice. "Um... Thank you." The green haired girl sneaks you a quick smile between bites of a boiled egg.
"You're welcome." You chew thoughtfully on your mouthful of chicken -a bit dry, but what else would you expect at a cheap buffet?-, and glance at Kyouko, who's still working on setting a world record, demolishing the contents of her plate with reckless speed, barely pausing to chew before she swallows.
"How's the food?" you ask idly, wiping your greasy fingers on a napkin and picking up your fork.
Kyouko frowns at you, brows contracting over tired, crimson eyes, her hands moving busily to load up her fork.
"It's good!" Yuma says brightly. Bits of chewed egg spray out, and Kyouko sighs, putting down her own fork before reaching across with a napkin.
"Don't talk with your mouth full," Kyouko chides, gently wiping the younger girl's mouth.
Yuma swallows, blue eyes huge. "Sorry, big sis."
"I'm not mad," Kyouko says, putting the napkin down to ruffle Yuma's hair. She glares challengingly at you, eyes daring you to comment.
You raise an eyebrow at her, holding her gaze as you fork up some salad.
She snorts. "'sabout the same as last time," she allows grudgingly. "Not bad."
It takes you a moment to realize she's referring to the food, and you nod graciously. "I don't think the mushroom soup was here last week," you suggest. Privately, you can't help but think that she's a little like a puppy. A deadly, easily provoked, tsundere puppy.
Kyouko shrugs with a single shoulder, mouth full again.
"Yuma thinks it was there last week," the younger girl says, punctiliously swallowing before speaking.
Kyouko swallows. "What she said," she says, pushing her emptied plate forward and leaving for a third helping. Yuma smiles at you, pushing her emptied plate forward too, and following her adopted older sister to the buffet line.
You look down at your own, barely half empty plate, and raise an eyebrow at Kyouko and Yuma, already piling new plates high with food. You turn your attention back to your plate, eating slowly, while watching the two of them move about through your Grief senses. No spare Grief Seeds. And for yourself... you have Hildegard, Aurora, and...
Jane.
...
Seriously?
Jane?
"Sabrina?" Mami again, as Kyouko and Yuma return to the table.
"Hey, Mami!" you say, injecting cheer into your mental voice. "How are you?"
"We're doing integration practice now," Mami tells you. "Um..."
"Yes, Mami?" you ask.
"Umm... Do you know how to integrate sin x to the power of five? Mami asks.
You blink, frowning and trying to work it out in your head. Well. "Hm... Uh, the integrand should be sin x... you'll get, uh, integration of sin cubed x I think, and then you'll have to integrate that one more time. Same way."
"Ohh... two integrations, I see," Mami says. "Thank you, Sabrina!"
"Sabrina? Are you OK?" Yuma asks, peering up at you. Both her and Kyouko have returned with fully laden plates, and Yuma has, yes, a bowl of mushroom soup.
"Hm? Yeah. Just thinking," you say, returning to your meal. To Mami, you reply, "No problem, Mami!"
"Umm..." Mami says. "D-do you know if... Sorry."
"I should be able to make it, Mami," you say, forking up some salad.
"Oh!" Mami brightens. "See you soon!"
"See you," you reply.
Kyouko and Yuma have returned to guzzling down their meals. You cast about for another topic to try and spark up conversation, racking your brains for something relatively neutral and safe - but really, all you can think of is trying to get Yuma and Nagisa into the same room for maximum diabeetes. And also Kyouko as a puppy.
"So, uh, Yuma?" you ask.
The green haired girl looks up at you, slurping a strand of noodle into her mouth.
"Uhh, I'm just curious, what's your opinion on cheese?" you ask.
Yuma blinks her enormous blue eyes at you in confusion, while Kyouko gives you a flat, unamused glare. "It's... OK?" Yuma says, sounding confused.
"Ah," you say, nodding sagely. "Good to know."
Kyouko continues to stare at you, eyes attempting to bore holes in your skull while you return to eating, forking up some more salad. It's actually not half bad.
"And by the way, Kyouko," you say telepathically to her, and not acknowledging her glare at you. "How are you holding up? Hunting, looking after Yuma?"
"I'm fine," she bites out the words, along with a particularly vicious chomp that bends the cheap metal of her spoon.
[] Probe further
- [] How?
[] Proceed
[] Write-in
=====​
Short update, but I felt I should break here.
For future reference - when I say points, not wording, I don't mean to trim it down to 'Ask Kyouko if she's alright by telepathy' if you have something specific to ask. If you want Sabrina to specifically ask or say something, then by all means, specify it.
Holding in abeyance:
[x]Mention that Sendai's been resolved.
[x]Offer a regular grief seed. Ask to cleanse again too if it seems like she needs it.
-[x] If she presses us for a reason, restate what we said during our first meeting about just wanting to help megucas.
[x]Telepathy Yuma. Try and make sure your big sis cleanses her own gem too, okay?
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 6
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Feb 28, 2015

- #36,303

You exhale slowly, putting your fork down, and look at Kyouko. Your hand fumbles in your pocket and withdraws the Grief Seed Homura had given you - Jane. You doubt Homura would mind you giving it away, and it's for a good cause, in any case.
You can feel Kyouko's eyes lock onto the Grief Seed as you bring it into view, and toss it gently at her across the table. She catches it reflexively, and glares at you.
"I don-"
You cut her off. "I notice you didn't have any Grief Seeds on you. Don't give that to Kyuubey; I can recycle it for as long as you can hold on to it. Half full seems like it'll keep forever, and I can be here within fifteen minutes if you fill it up all the wa-"
"Fucking hell, you're like some kinda dealer pushin' a drug, aren't you?" Kyouko snaps, putting the Grief Seed on the table in front of her with a soft clink. "'Here, take one, it's free. Want more, just lemme know,'" she says, affecting that same nasal tone.
You shrug. "I don't need Grief Seeds," you say slowly, with heavy emphasis. "There are things I can use them for, so I'd eventually like that one back, but." You shrug. "It's not actually a big deal, and you can give it back when you've got a few of your own to work with."
Kyouko groans, pinching her nose with one hand, the other remaining flattened on the table next to the Seed. "Fuckin' hell. Look, why the hell are you so, so... you?"
"Emiya complex?" you suggest, shrugging again before leaning forward, both elbows propped on the table. "But really, do I need a reason?"
"Yes," Kyouko snaps. "No one just breezes in like this and starts tossin' around free food and stuff just 'cuz."
You hold her gaze for a moment, then flick your eyes to Yuma. The younger girl looks terrified, her eyes darting anxiously between you and Kyouko. You return your gaze to Kyouko, keeping your expression neutral.
"That's different," Kyouko snaps at you, reaching out to pat Yuma on the head.
You raise your eyebrows. "Take the Seed, Kyouko," you say. "Just take the damned Seed."
"... Fine," Kyouko says, before grudgingly adding. "... thanks."
You nod, smiling. "No problem," you say, and pick your fork up again. You muse a little on Kyouko as you eat, eyeing the redhead and her adopted little sister out of the corner of your eye. You're really not sure how much of her accepting the Grief Seed was because she actually believes that you're that nice, or because she can't afford to turn it down and is taking advantage of the naive newbie.
Hell, you're not even sure she got that little 'Emiya complex' joke. You're pretty sure she didn't, in point of fact. Hmmm... would that make her Lancer, though? You mean, technically, by weapon alone...
Naaah.
You watch as Kyouko bites back into her food, demolishing that helping in record time, before standing for another helping.
Kyouko returns with a plate of fruit, which she shares with Yuma while you slowly pick your plate clean. After finishing that, she finally leans back, satisfied at last. Yuma finishes her last bite a few moments later, happily patting her rounded belly.
You can feel Kyouko's eyes on you as you clean up your own plate, sweeping it with a fork for those last few crumbs.
"So Kyouko," you say, steeling yourself for the next bit of conversation.
"Yeah?" Faded, cynical ruby eyes glance up at you.
"D'you want to talk about what's bothering you so much right now?" you ask, meeting her eyes squarely and unflinchingly. "You look like you need someone to yell at." You indicate her toothmark indented spoon with your hand.
Kyouko grunts, grinding her teeth against each other, and you can see the caustic retort rising to her lips already.
"Or, hell." You take a moment to consider the time - a little past ten thirty, just enough time, you think. "Do you want to spar? Blow off some steam?"
Kyouko blinks, opening her mouth, before closing it slowly. She picks up her cup, and drains it in one long pull. "You know what, what the hell. Beating the shit out of you sounds fun. Maybe some of the niceness 'll come loose. Let's go." She launches herself to her feet, standing expectantly at the side of the booth.
You pull yourself to your feet as Yuma hops out after her adopted older sister. The younger girl holds her hand up, bumping it gently against Kyouko's and the redhead takes it, leading her out of the restaurant. You follow in their wake, and Kyouko turns down an alley.
"There's an old junkyard nearby," she calls back as she transforms, her red cassock-dress appearing around her slim form in a blaze of crimson light the floods the alley. Yuma follows in her lead and transforms, too, the girl's green and white, cat-hooded costume appearing around her. They bound up to the rooftops above, and you follow suit.
Kyouko and Yuma take off across the roofs, and you leap after them, flagstones cracking underfoot. You land behind them, on uncracked roof tiles, dropping into a smooth shoulder roll, before bounding forwards with both hands on the ground, throwing yourself at the next roof over.
Uncracked roof tile.
You watch Yuma.
...
She's not breaking the roof underfoot.
...
Bah.
Eventually, Kyouko touches down lightly in the promised junkyard, her boots stirring up small puffs of fine, dusty sand. Yuma lands a moment behind, and you crash to a halt, bending your knees to absorb the impact. Kyouko turns to face you. "So," she drawls. "How're we doing this?"
[] Rules?
[] Do you abide by said rules?
[] How do you fight?
[] Write-in
=====​
A team fight against Kyouko and Yuma is also on the table, by the way, but you'll have to talk fast.
Last edited: Feb 28, 2015
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 7
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 2, 2015

- #36,732

"Non-lethal," you reply instantly. You take a moment to debate with yourself whether to add in a stipulation about Soul Gems as well.
"No fucking duh," Kyouko drawls. You hold up a finger, still thinking, and briefly wondering how Kyouko and Mami and who knows what else haven't figured out what you call the lichbomb by themselves, before discarding that set of thoughts as irrelevant and silly for now.
"First to yield," you suggest, lowering the finger. "And spar ends if one of us is unable or unwilling to continue."
"Anything goes?" Kyouko says, a glint that you don't quite like in her eyes.
"Sure," you say. "Hmm... one moment, first?"
Kyouko frowns, and gestures impatiently at you. You fish in your pocket for Aurora's Grief Seed, and pull it out. Dense, deep purple clouds of Grief billow out from it with a twist of your will, consolidating into your usual panoply of musical instruments. You bounce on your feet lightly as you let the music start with the heavy strings.
"Seriously?" Kyouko asks looking torn between annoyance and disbelief. She watches the instruments warily out of the corner of her eye.
"Seriously." you say. You reach over your shoulder and close your hand around the handle of a forming hammer, drawing it in a single smooth motion as it coalesces out of motes of light. You flourish it in what would be a fencer's salute if you were, well, using a fencing sword, and with the motion, guide your marbles out of your bag. Some, not all - you'll pull more out if you need to. No overkill. They scatter in a sweeping arc floating in front of you, a dense starfield of tiny marbles.
"Your funeral," Kyouko says. "Yuma, stand clear." The younger girl nods, hurrying to comply as she scurries to the edge of the junkyard. You look around at the junkyard - though really, it's less of a junkyard, and more of, well, a yard that happens to be full of rusting old... junk. Which technically makes it a junkyard, but not a proper junkyard. Fine, dusty sand forms drifts on top of the cracked old asphalt, a few hardy plants poking pale green stems through.
A thought strikes you, and you take your sling bag off, dropping it safely to the side near Yuma, before walking back to your starting point.
Kyouko holds her hand out, and snatches a spear out of the air, spinning it quickly with both hands, the weight of the enormously oversized spearhead hardly seeming to register to her. Rather like your hammer, now that you think about it. The spin ends with the broad, razor sharp blade levelled at you, and you instinctively raise your hammer to guard.
Kyouko meets your gaze and holds it, dusty crimson eyes against brilliant blue. Her lips peel back in a fanged grin as the two of you stare at each other, muscles wire taut and waiting for the first move. You know, by some unspoken agreement, that the spar has already started, your breath coming in deep, steady breaths as your weight shifts to the balls of your feet.
Kyouko moves. A scrape of her boots, and she's airborne.
Sunlight glints off the oversized spearhead plummeting towards you. You sidestep, a wave of marbles rippling upwards in eddies to form a half dome.
Booted feet slam into the dome, and Kyouko bounces backwards, arcing away from spikes suddenly protruding from said dome. You sprint after her, hammer at your side and grief surging after you.
She sees you coming. Her spear flashes out, light as a feather.
You whip your hammer up, and smash the spear away. She rides the motion, spear swerving in a tight, jabbing circle.
You duck under the stab aimed for your head-
-wham.
The haft of her spear cracks against your ribs, and your feet leave the ground. You soar backwards, skipping across the ground in clouds of dust before you catch yourself, only to-
You dive to the side, avoiding an enormous spear. Grief whirs at Kyouko, a dancing swarm in a crashing wave. A fraction of your will drops a few spheres to the ground to lie in wait.
And then she's on you, spear flashing like a scorpion's sting. You block desperately, and give ground, driven back. Three steps in as many blows. Sparks rain from every clash, each strike an enormously powerful wrecking ball backed by a feral, fanged grin.
The swarm of Grief, right behind her. Preternaturally aware, she whirls away from you, the haft of her spear exploding into chained segments. Grief clangs off the spear head as it darts and flickers like a living thing.
You explode forward, hammer swinging through a silvery arc.
A lightning fast glance at you. Kyouko's spear snakes out, lashing around your torso faster than you can blink - and she yanks. The breath slams out of your lungs, and you're thrown sideways into your own swarm of Grief.
You cushion yourself on the Grief, and then throw yourself backwards through the swarm. It closes behind you, and traps Kyouko's descending spearhead in a solid plate of Grief. The girl tugs once, and then immediately abandons it.
On your right - Kyouko, with a new spear jabbing for your stomach. Your hammer rises to defend. Fruitlessly. She smashes your guard aside with force that makes your wrists ache, and you leap back to avoid it. Grief sweeps around in an arcing strike, and she backflips over.
Distant cheering from Yuma.
On your left - the abandoned spear. It snakes to life, blade flickering at you, and-
Kyouko on your right - you lean back to avoid a spear strike that passes uncomfortably close to your face-
A step back-
Magic behind you-
Something pressing against your shoulderblades-
Chains. A wall of diamond shaped chains-
You slide to the side-
Kyouko's spear coming right at you-
The Grief on the ground lashing up at her-
Kyouko slams the point of her spear into the ground and leaps-
You whirl, hammer flicking out high as she arcs overhead-
And the rest of swarm of Grief is on her.
She spins impossibly in midair, spear smashing your hammer aside and flickering through a blinding defensive flurry. The blade lashes out with blurring speed, slamming aside the blunted bars.
She lands, spear still spinning through flawless parries. You split your swarm, each blunted rod curving back in a whirring trajectory. She spins, spear exploding into segments, and she dances through a flourish eeriely reminiscent of Mami.
Heh.
Honeyblob's not a bad nickname for Mami. Not that you'll ever call her that to her face, you don't think.
You shake your head, and when you look up, you find her backing away, spear in a defensive position.
"Yo, what the fuck," Kyouko calls, eyes wide. "Hey, uh. The music's kinda freaking me out here."
You blink.
The music?
The music?!
"Uh. My bad?" you say, blinking, and mentally change tracks.
"Riiiiiight," Kyouko says, bringing her spear back around to point at you.
You make the first move, this time, and charge, hammer drawn back and ready. Your Grief swarms towards her in long, arcing trajectories. Dozens of deep purple bars hem her in, pressing her back, and she whirls on the spot, eyes narrowing.
She jumps, arcing high into the air.
You pivot sharply, and hurl your hammer at her. The silvery warhammer spins out, and clangs off Kyouko's guarding spear, throwing her back. She crashes to the ground, immediately rolling out of the way of a diving swarm of Grief. Behind Kyouko, a wall of chains snaps into existence, diamond shaped chainlinks lashing out to stymie your Grief briefly.
You summon a new hammer to your hand, and bring it up to guard as you sprint to meet Kyouko.
The redhead snaps her spear out, the spear extending towards you. It lances towards you, blinding fast. Your hammer flicks up, smashing the spear away from you. Stinging pain as it snaps past your face.
Kyouko shifts her feet, and the spear explodes into chained segments that coil around you. She flicks her hands, and you're suddenly airborne. Your arms are still bound-
Your Grief closing on her-
The segmented spear releases you-
-wham.
Your flight is arrested rather abruptly by the ground. You explode to your feet, calling a fresh hammer to your hand. Your swarm of Grief is still moving towards her, and you bring your hammer up into a high guard, against the expected attack from Kyouk-
"Hold it!" Kyouko barks, eyes narrowed at you.
You stop, holding your hammer still, and the Grief swarm hanging motionless in the air.
"How much are you holding back?" she asks, eyes still narrowed.
[] Write-in
=====​
Heh.
And thanks to @Rook for the suggestion of the music!
Last edited: Mar 3, 2015
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 8
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 4, 2015

- #37,312

"Well..." you stall, keeping your face impassive and showing no hint of the turmoil swirling behind your eyes. How much to tell her? Tell her about that you can use the Grief Seed against her? There's a chance she knows it already. She saw you pull Grief from Aurora, after all, and she's certainly seen you use Grief against her. And she isn't stupid.
Then again, the Grief Seed is still in her pocket, so maybe she hasn't cottoned on yet? It's... you don't know. Will she be offended by it? By how much you quite frankly outclass her, that you gave her a gift you could technically use against her?
You don't know. Instead, you fold your arms, hammer hanging from one hand. "Honestly? With my hammer? Not at all," you say flatly. You stop the music, turning away the fraction of your mind controlling it away, and melt the instruments into a drifting cloud of marbles. "With my magic? Quite a bit."
"Yeah? Like what?" Kyouko snaps, shifting her spear to point at the sky, butt grounded firmly.
You shrug, unfolding your arms to hold up a fist. "Most of my stuff? Lethal," you say, raising a finger. "I haven't sparred very much." The redhead rolls her eyes, and you growl in annoyance. "Look, the majority of my stuff is either lethal, feels like Witch-" you raise another finger, "-or only works on Witches-" one more finger, "-or just knocks you out, save or die."
Kyouko glares at you. "Well la di da, princess. Spare me," she snorts.
"Look. You don't fucking invite someone to a swordfight and then fucking salt the fucking field with landmines," you say, letting the frustration you're feeling leak into your voice. "It defeats the point."
"Ooh, she swears," Kyouko drawls, a smirk growing on her face. "I reckon we can deal with a coupla friendly landmines." She raises her spear, whirling it and then levelling it at you.
"Fine," you bite out.
You pull with your mind. The marbles that used to be part of the Grief instruments swirl towards you, joined by a cascade of the remaining marbles from your bag. You sweep your hand in front of you, fingers spread and palm held perpendicular to the ground, and a torrent of marbles whirl around you in lazy orbits, vertices outlining multiple, concentric geodesic domes. Your hammer is held loosely in your other hand.
Kyouko's smirk grows as she hefts her spear in both hands, crouching low.
You raise your hammer in salute.
You almost miss it when she explodes into action. She dashes out to your left, sprinting hard, and her spear bursts into dozens of chained segments twining around her in a defensive barrier.
Wings explode out from your back, a few layers of your domes fading away to feed them, and you leap into the air, away from Kyouko.
The redhead glares up at you, eyes narrowing for a moment, before snapping her right hand out. A second spear bursts into existence, coiling under her feet like an enormous cobra with the rattling crash of chains. She rides it into the air, balancing in a low crouch the flat of the spear head rocketing up at you.
You throw yourself down to meet her, wings folding and Grief marbles now whizzing around you in a flickering, multilayered defensive screen.
The two of you smash together in a colliding wave of fury. Hundreds of marbles blur on individual trajectories, clashing against whirling, dancing chained poles. The crash of chains and cracking impacts of marbles deflecting off metal fills the air, Kyouko pressing forward, upwards with a feral grin.
You press downwards, wings thundering behind you.
Your hammer pulls back over your shoulder, and you smash it down with all your might. Kyouko meets it with the flat of her spear, serpentine and adamant. Sparks scatter into the air, metal straining against metal.
Midair, your wings wrap around you, and you roll. Your marbles follow, whirling to reestablish their defensive perimeter. Kyouko, suddenly finding herself without resistance, launches forward for a split second.
You swing behind her-
Wings flare wide, and you twist-
The flat of one wing smashes into her back-
Kyouko tumbles forward, falling off her spear-
She whirls midair, gesturing-
The spearhead snakes at you with blurring speed, swinging wide to encircle you.
You've been thrown into the ground one too many times already. You dive forward, wings thundering. Grief surges forward in a wave, the sphere bulging forward to engulf Kyouko as she falls.
Chained poles swirl around Kyouko, and her spear snaps into a straight pole. It telescopes out towards the ground, slamming down in a cloud of dust. She pivots impossibly around the haft and hurls herself upwards, a motion reminiscent of a high jumper clearing the pole.
A fresh spear spear forms in her hands, jabbing right at you.
Marbles swirl, and Grief wraps around the spear in a thick, trapping layer. You gesture, Grief and spear jerking away. Kyouko swings wildly at the far end of the spear, hanging on tightly.
The spear abruptly folds into chained segments. Kyouko's motion, formerly under your control, is now under hers. She swings around, shooting towards you boots-first amidst a flurry of her cassock-dress.
Your wings thunder, driving you to the sid-
Too slow.
Kyouko's boots slam squarely into your stomach. Your breath whooshes out of you in a convulsive gasp. You swipe wildly with your hammer, catching nothing but air as she lets herself plummet away.
You fight to stabilise yourself in the air, while Grief marbles dive after Kyouko's falling form. As she catches herself on another spear, a wall of chains snaps into existence behind her. Your Grief ricochets off the diamond shaped links. Momentarily stymied.
You catch yourself and dive, hammer drawing back. You slam through the wall with a tremendous crack, Grief marbles roiling around you-
Just in time to catch a spear slicing for you-
The blow deflects off to the side-
You surge forward-
The swirling cloud of Grief bulges towards Kyouko, like enormous jaws yawning open-
Grief slams into her, dozens of marbles flowing like liquid. It folds around her legs, and you drag her upwards, her arms flailing wildly.
She grabs desperately at the Grief, yanking at it as you haul her through the air. A spear in her hands, prying at her legs. Magically formed metal pries at Grief, hacking herself free, and she hurls herself away.
She crashes to the ground, landing in a crouch and frowning up at you briefly.
You hover, wings flapping slowly - too slow to actually hold you up, but then again, magic.
Kyouko lets her spear dissolve into crimson motes of light, and the detransforms in a burst of light.
Taking that as a sign that the spar's over, you drift down to the ground. Yuma runs across to Kyouko as you do do, squealing, "Big sis! That was so cool!"
Kyouko absently ruffles the younger girl's hair, pulling a box of pocky from her pocket as she does so, sticking it into her mouth. She eyes you as you detransform.
You blink at her, waiting for her to speak first.
Finally, she sighs, walking forward with the box of pocky held out. "You're not as easy to beat up as I thought you would be," she says sourly, refusing to look at you. "Want one?"
[] Write-in
=====​
OK, so. In the end, I wound up mixing votes a little, because Kyouko wound up being all bitchy.
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 9
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 5, 2015

- #37,579

You raise your eyebrows, feeling your lips curl into a surprised, pleased smile. "Thanks," you say, reaching out and taking one of the chocolate coated treats and sticking it in your mouth. "Uh, you too. And thanks for the spar."
Kyouko heaves a sigh, stowing the box of pocky and keeping her eyes away from you. "Can't fuckin' hate you," she grunts. "Listen, we're not friends, y' got that?" she says, waving her hand at you. "I'm just saying you're not that bad."
"Sure," you mumble, working to keep that stick of pocky in your mouth while speaking.
"And I'm not being tsundere," the redhead adds with a sharp glare.
"Sure," you repeat, still trying to hang on to the chocolate covered biscuit. You reach up and grab it with your hand.
"Big sis, what's tsundere?" Yuma asks shyly, tugging at Kyouko's hand.
Kyouko palms her face. "I... I'll tell you later, Yuma. We can go hit a hotel room for the TV or something," she mutters into her hand.
"OK!" Yuma says brightly.
"OK, how on earth do you keep the pocky in your mouth while talking?" you ask Kyouko, inspecting the stick with some annoyance.
Kyouko gives you a look, her own pocky still hanging from her lips. She doesn't dignify the question with an answer, opting instead to ruffle Yuma's hair fondly.
You grumble, and finish the treat in a few quick bites. "Thanks. Anyway. Do you want to spar again another time?"
The redhead frowns at you, jaw muscles working as she crunches trough the remainder.of her stick of pocky, replacing it with a fresh one from her seemingly inexhaustible box. Tired, faded crimson eyes regard you for a long moment, then flick away to the side before she sighs. "Yeah, sure," she mutters at last. "Whatever."
"Great," you say. "Honestly, I need more practice with my hammer."
She growls quiet under her breath, still looking away -anywhere but at you-, before holding her hand out and manifesting her Soul Gem in its egg shaped form. "Hey, can you..." she makes a vague flicking gesture at her Soul Gem with her other hand.
"Of course," you say. "I was going to ask, actually, and like I said - the offer's always open." It's the effort of a moment's focus to tug the darkness free. Kyouko's Gem is surprisingly low on corruption, for that big fight - which makes sense, you suppose, since she was only using her weapon. Well, you say 'only'.
And yet... you remember the state she was in, when you'd arrived. A sixth, maybe a fifth full.
For good measure, you cleanse your own Soul Gem, too, drawing forth the layer of corruption filming the surface. You collapse the Grief into marbles, absently pulling out Aurora's Grief Seed and replacing the Grief you'd withdrawn earlier.
Kyouko frowns, enormous ponytail wobbling behind her as she shakes her head. "You know that's fucking weird, right?"
You shrug, flicking your hand offhandedly to the side. Directed by your will, marbles cascade back into your bag, packing in neatly. "Magic is magic is bullshit." The bag sails back to you, and you catch it neatly, dusting it before slinging it over your shoulder again.
The redhead grumbles again.
You shake your head, smiling. "Shall we walk? I don't really feel like standing out here under the sun for too much longer," you say, jerking your head in the general direction of said incandescent ball of plasma.
Kyouko grunts. "Sure, whatever. C'mon, Yuma," she says, taking the younger girl's hand.
"OK!" Yuma says brightly.
You walk alongside them as you leave the junkyard, winding along the pavement. "Y' know, I know a girl about Yuma's age," you murmur to Kyouko. The green-haired girl looks up at the mention of her name and gives you a sunny grin, dimples flashing on her cheeks. "Maybe they would make good friends?"
"Piss off," Kyouko says half-heartedly. "What, y' settin' up a play date?"
You shrug. "Just a thought."
Despite her insistence to the contrary, you don't think she's really completely against the idea? Nor is she really completely against being your friend, though you can't help but feel there's something more to it. You glance sidelong at her, and find a crimson-eyed glare coming back the other way.
"Sabrina?" Mami's voice. You hadn't heard from her for... forty-five minutes, now? Maybe she was concentrating on her practice?
"Hey, Mami!" you say. "How's math going?"
"It's going well!" Mami says brightly. "Thanks to you, I managed to do that question!"
"No problem!" you answer.
"So, um, Sabrina," Mami starts, the faintest quaver permeating her mental voice.
"I'll make it," you interrupt her gently. "I'm wrapping up here."
"Oh, that's good!" Mami's voice immediately brightens. "I'll see you soon, then?"
"Yep," you agree. "Soon!"
You glance at Kyouko and Yuma again as you walk out onto the main streets, joining the midday crowds. You get a few more odd looks than you usually would - a tall, white-haired foreigner, a scruffy looking street rat with an enormous red ponytail, and a tiny, green haired girl do not exactly make for an inconspicuous group. "So. Moving on," you say. "About Sendai..."
Kyouko frowns at you. "Yeah? Weren't you headed over there?"
"I was, and I did," you say. "It's been taken care of, and there's..." you waggle your hand from side to side. "There's peace, I guess, between the two groups there." You'd... aggressively befriended them. Yes. Aggressive befriending, that's the ticket.
Kyouko blinks. "You're... serious."
"Yep," you say. "Mami, Kirika and I went over there and put an end to it."
Kyouko blinks again. "Jesus fuck," she mutters quietly.
You chuckle, and glance sidelong at her with a smirk. "That's exactly what one of them said. Her name's Sakura, too."
"Fuck you," Kyouko says.
You laugh, smirk growing into a shit-eating grin. "She said that, too."
"Big sis, that's rude!" Yuma pipes up, from the other side of Kyouko.
Kyouko grumbles.
Your chuckles subside. "Anyway, more seriously," you say. "Are there any other magical girls in the area?"
The redhead frowns sharply. "No," she answers, tone clipped and abrupt. "Not if they know what's good for them."
"Ah," you say.
Kyouko glances sidelong at you, eyes hard and lips pressed together.
[] Write-in
=====​
Include what you'd want to do for the first parts of lunch in the vote. A few conversation topics are nice.
Yuma doesn't know what 'tsundere' is because she never got to watch TV...
Later, after breaking into a hotel room for TV...
"Big sis, you are tsundere."
Last edited: Mar 5, 2015
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 10
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 6, 2015

- #37,822

"I understand," you say simply.
Kyouko snorts and looks away, pocky disappearing into her mouth.
"Still-" out of the corner of your eye, you can see her head twitch over to glare at you. "-if you come across any magical girls in the future who don't have territories, you can point them towards me."
The redhead grunts, and pulls another pocky out from the box, sticking that in her mouth. "'s long as there's no one leechin' off 'f my turf, I don't care," she mutters.
"Big sis?" Yuma asks, an achingly familiar quaver in her voice. One you heard just a few minutes ago.
"Not you, Yuma," Kyouko says, stopping in the middle of the path to ruffle the girl's hair affectionately. The crowd parts around the three of you, a few odd glares sent your way by people passing by.
"O-oh," the green haired girl says, blinking her huge blue eyes up at Kyouko.
You cough lightly into your hand. "I... guess I'll be going, now." You mentally debate deploying the 'I should go' line for a brief but heated moment, before deciding that that joke's for Oriko. You vaguely wonder if she'll ever get it. "See you... whenever. Give me a call-" you tap the side of your head for emphasis, "-if you need help, OK?"
Kyouko rolls her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Bye."
"See you, Sabrina!" Yuma chirps.
"Oh, by the way," Kyouko drawls, glancing obliquely at you. "Nice rings."
"Eh?" you ask, before glancing down at your hands. Your left hand, in particular - you still have the Grief Ring on, and your Soul Gem ring on your middle finger. "Uh, yeah. That one's an experiment," you say, waggling your little finger.
The redhead snorts, raising a hand in a silent wave as you start walking away. You turn down an alley, and make your way to the roof with a few quick bounds, and a moment later, you're soaring over Kasamino, wings beating vigorously and climbing hard.
You find your mind turning to Kyouko's comment on your rings earlier. Your Soul Gem ring. What if Kyuubey installed failsafes into Soul Gems? He might be able to induce Witchouts on demand, or if they get too old. Maybe... what if that's what happened to Roberta? She's supposed to be an old puella magi who Witched out, right?
You shake yourself, driving the thought from your mind. You're being paranoid. Far too paranoid. As well worry about those feathers, and you don't even know what those are about.
Ugh. You rub your forehead in irritation as you bank over the glittering expanse of the river, far below, vaguely wondering what its name even is. It might be called the Mitakihara river? You've no idea, really.
You soon arrive at the glittering steel and glass building of Mitakihara Middle School, bright and shining and obvious from above. You fold your wings and plunge, letting out a loud whoop of joy at the exhilaration of wind rushing past your ears.
With a wrenching flare of your wings, you jolt to a stop and drop lightly to the rooftop in a crouch. No one here yet, which is excellent. That would make things... rather awkward, putting it mildly.
You detransform, longcoat and ever reliable pants fading away into the aether to be replaced with your simple pale green skirt and blouse. You sit down on one of the sun-warmed benches, crossing one leg over the other and leaning back against the backrest as you wait.
As the sun reaches it zenith above, the school bell goes off. A heartbeat of silence permeates the school, breaths sucked in, and you can imagine the scene repeated dozens of times over.
"Rise!... Bow!... Sit!"
And a moment later, the explosion of chatter, finally released. "Sabrina?" Mami, of course.
"I'm here," you say, smiling.
"Oh! I'm on my way!" Mami says.
It's bare minutes before you hear footsteps pelting up the stairwell, and Mami steps out, blinking and shading her eyes in the sudden sunlight. You stand as she catches sight of you, a wide, delighted smile appearing on her face, and she moves over, arms rising hesitantly.
"Thank you," she murmurs quietly, looking up at you.
"Hey," you say, stepping forward and wrapping your own arms around her. "Told you I'd do my best."
Her arms wrap around your waist. "Thank you," she murmurs into your shoulder.
"Mm," you say, letting her hug you.
A moment later, she separates from you. "Um... how did... your visit go?"
[] Write-in
=====​
I'll be honest, I didn't think Mami would ask that, but she did, so. Holding this in abeyance:
[x] Lunch:
-[x] Tell the others about the meeting with Kyouko and Yuma.
-[x] Inform Mami and Homura about the possibility of megucas appearing in Mitakihara looking for cleanses in the near future.
-[x] Ask Sayaka if she's settled down at her new place yet.
-[x] Telepathy Madoka and Sayaka. Ask how they're holding up.
-[x] Plans after school? Nagisa can probably come today.
-[x] Mami suggested a picnic earlier. We got to find a day to do this.
-[x] Talk about different kinds of tea.
Last edited: Mar 8, 2015
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 11
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 7, 2015

- #38,063

You step back, slightly surprised, and you smile. You gesture at the bench behind you. "Ah, that's a bit of a story," you say. "Shall we sit down first?"
You flop onto the bench, Mami seating herself more sedately and smoothing down her skirt. "Where do I begin..." you muse, considering how much to tell her. In the end... you're trying to stop hiding things from her, to be less controlling. "Kyouko had a Grief Seed problem," you say slowly, watching Mami. "She didn't have any Seeds on her, and she was still taking care of Yuma, so I gave her one and offered cleanses."
Mami bites her lip, brow knotted in a worried frown. "Is she..."
"Yeah, she's OK," you hasten to reassure her with a hand on her shoulder. "Like I said, I gave her a Grief Seed, and I told her she can call me in at any time. After that, I had a fun spar with her, and she said that we aren't friends, and that she isn't being tsundere. Which is a huge step up from last time, so, uh. Overall I'm calling it a success."
Mami nods slowly. "That's... good. Um..."
"Mm?" you look at her inquisitively.
Her golden eyes flick up to yours, and then down again, hands worrying at the hem of her uniform blouse, twisting the fabric back and forth. You bring your hand over to rest on hers. "Mami?"
She heaves a sigh, eyes still downcast. Old pain, tempered by anger in the set of her brows, flickers across her face. "I... we... Kyouko and I parted on... very poor terms."
You close your hand lightly on hers, and she turns one hand upwards to clasp yours, palm to palm. You squeeze lightly in comfort. "I know, Mami," you say. "I know."
Mami sighs again.
You hear footsteps at the stairwell, of a whole group of people coming. The first thing you see is Madoka and Hitomi, Sayaka following a step behind the greenette and Homura ghosting along behind.
Hm. Is greenette technically correct, really? Brunette developed from French -brown, brun-, so... French for green would be... vert? Vertette? Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue.
"Mami! Sabrina!" Madoka calls with a bright smile on her face. The smile fades, though, when she sees Mami looking downcast, her quick pace slowing to a walk. "Mami?"
Mami looks up, smiling weakly and smoothing her uniform out. "It's nothing," she says quickly. "Hello, everyone!"
Worried pink eyes glance at you as the others chorus their greetings, and you shake your head slightly.
Madoka nods, moving over to sit on Mami's other side. Homura gives you a sharp look as she settles on Madoka's other side.
Sayaka drops onto the opposite bench, handing a lunchbox to Hitomi, who accepts it gracefully.
"Hey, everyone," you say cheerfully as you open up your own lunchbox. "How's school going?"
Sayaka rolls her eyes. "Miss Saotome got dumped. Again," she says.
"... really?" you tilt your head over to the side. "And she... vented in front of the class again?"
Madoka nods.
Hitomi chuckles genteely, picking up her chopsticks. "Poor Nakazawa."
"How does she have a job if she does that kind of thing?" you wonder out loud as you pick up some rice with your chopsticks.
"Miss Saotome is a great teacher," Madoka offers.
Mami nods. "She is," she says.
"... huh," you say.
"Ah, Sayaka?" Madoka asks.
"Yeah?" Sayaka asks.
"Um, did you catch what Miss Saotome said about next week's lessons?" Madoka asks.
"Uhhh," Sayaka says.
"We're having a review session next week," Hitomi says reproachfully.
"Oh," Madoka says.
"It's nothing much," Homura says quietly, looking at Madoka.
"Yeah, yeah, we know your English is great, transf- Homura," Sayaka grumbles petulantly.
You cough loudly. "So, anyway, today, I went over to Kasamino for a bit."
"Oh?" Hitomi looks interested, and Homura gives you another inscrutable look.
"Yep," you confirm. "Went there to meet... an associate," you say, and chuckle. "She says she's not my friend, and she also says she's, quote-unquote, not being tsundere."
Hitomi blinks, looking vaguely puzzled, while Homura frowns minutely, looking askance at you. Madoka, by contrast, claps her hands together delightedly. "Oh, that's so cute! How did that hap- oops!" The lunchbox on her lap nearly overbalances and falls to the ground, but Homura's hand shoots out lightning fast to steady it. "Ah, thank you, Homura!" Madoka says.
"It's not a problem," Homura says tonelessly.
Well, you can't tell them about the whole magical girl thing. Not with Hitomi there. You rub lightly at your forehead with the hand not holding the chopsticks. "Ah, there's nothing that much to tell," you say delicately. "I, uh. Have a tendency to poke my nose into other people's business. That's how I met her."
Madoka giggles, this time keeping one hand on her lunchbox. "That's amazing."
Mami shifts a little, shuffling closer to you so that her hip brushes up against yours. "It is," she says quietly.
Sayaka shakes her head. "Have I mentioned how it's totally not fair you don't have to go to school?"
You shrug. "Yep."
"Well, it's totally unfair," she says, sticking her tongue out at you. "I mean, I know you lost your memory an-" she cuts herself off, looking horrified at herself.
"Sayaka!" Madoka and Hitomi say in stereo.
"Sorry! Sorry, Sabrina," Sayaka says.
"It's fine," you say. Mami brushes her hand against yours in sympathy, and you turn to find her giving you a smile. You return it, before looking around at the others. "Honestly, it doesn't bother me much."
"Ah," Sayaka says.
"So, Sayaka, how are you settling in at your new place?"
Sayaka rocks back on the bench slightly, her expression slipping. "Oh? I... it's going OK," she says loudly. Blustering. "Nothing to worry about!"
Madoka gives you a reproachful, disappointed look.
[] Write-in
=====​
Do you want to poke Sayaka more? Clarify about the whole Kyouko and Yuma thing?
Holding in abeyance:
[x] Also, I asked her to send over any girls she kicks out of her territory, so...that might be happening? Sorry about not asking first, it was kind of spur of the moment.
[x] Lunch:
-[x] Plans after school? Nagisa can probably come today.
-[x] Mami suggested a picnic earlier. We got to find a day to do this.
-[x] Telepathy Homura and Mami I've been thinking that there might be a few girls coming here looking for me, after word about what happened in Sendai gets around. Just keep an eye out for new magical girls in the city, okay?
-[x] Talk about different kinds of tea.
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 12
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 8, 2015

- #38,314

You flush, cheeks colouring red. Dammit, dammit, damn it.
You shoot Sayaka and Madoka an apologetic look, one Sayaka doesn't even seem to notice. Madoka, on the other hand, shakes her head very slightly, pink eyes worried. She slants a glance at Sayaka, and then back to you. A light touch at your elbow is Mami, in silent support.
Hitomi looks askance at Sayaka, then Madoka, and you, her eyebrows knotted in confusion. Homura just tucks away another morsel of her lunch, watching with her usual implacable, unperturbed expression.
You nod. "Well, then... Are we going to do anything after school today?" you essay a smile, looking around at the others. "I think we can have Nagisa over today. If that's OK, Mami?"
Mami nods, smiling. "You don't have to ask, Sabrina, and it'd be nice to have everyone over again!"
"Oh!" Madoka says, giving you a quick smile. "I'd like to see her again, too!"
Sayaka blinks at you. "Yeah, that sounds fun," she says. "I uh kinda want to visit Kyousuke today, though."
A quick shrug and a smile. "Well, we can do one after another, right?" you say, picking up your chopsticks again.
The bluenette -bleunette?- nods quickly. "Yeah, that sounds great! I like Nagisa, she's so adorable!" she says. A smile, small but genuine, touches her face as she waves her chopsticks at you.
You grin, swallowing a mouthful. "She is!"
"Ah, who's Nagisa?" Hitomi asks, looking curiously around at all of you.
"Well, uh, remember how I said I have a tendency to stick my nose into other people's business?" you say.
Hitomi nods.
"Um, well. I found Nagisa crying in a corner at the hospital," you say. "So I took it on myself to comfort her a bit," you say. You decide to leave out that Nagisa's mother had passed away a few days ago - don't need to cast even more of a pall over lunch.
"Ah, I see," Hitomi nods.
"Maybe we could bring her on the picnic?" Madoka suggests.
"Ooh," you say. "I wanted to bring that up, actually! We should really find a day to do this soon."
"Maybe... this Friday?" Mami suggests hesitantly, her elbow brushing against yours. You turn and smile warmly at her, the blonde returning the smile. Over Mami's shoulder, you can see Homura giving you a look.
"I think Saturday might work better?" Madoka says, glancing at you, then Sayaka.
"Saturday works," Sayaka declares.
"Friday or Saturday," Homura says quietly, from her end of the bench. Violet eyes flicker over to you for a moment again, before she returns to dividing her attention between chewing through her plain looking lunch and watching Madoka carefully.
"Ah... picnic?" Hitomi asks.
"Oh!" Madoka says. "Um, Mami suggested that we could go for a picnic together sometime. Um, Mami, Sabrina...?" she turns to the two of you.
Mami hesitates for a moment, looking at you.
You nod with a smile. "Hitomi? Would you like to come along? Just a picnic, the six of us. Maybe seven, if we can bring Nagisa along?"
Hitomi smiles. "Thank you for the invitation," she says. "I'll, ah, have to ask my parents first," she adds, looking apologetic.
"Ah, of course," you say. "That's fine. What should we bring? Food, I mean."
"Umm... I've never had a picnic before," Mami admits.
"Oh, we just need bread and fillings for sandwiches!" Madoka says brightly. "Um, drinks, some salad... we should go shopping for it!"
"We could!" Mami agrees, smiling.
"Great, it's a plan, then!" you say. "Hmmm... is tea a thing for picnics?" You've had tea on your mind for a while.
"Iced tea, perhaps," Hitomi suggests, looking quizzically at you.
"Iced tea," Homura says, nodding in agreement.
"Iced... green tea?" you suggest.
"What? No," Hitomi says, making a face.
Mami shakes her head. "I... no, Sabrina, you do not ice green tea."
"But people do that, right?" you ask.
"Yes, Sabrina, but we do not," Hitomi says, with some asperity.
Mami nods, blonde drills bobbing.
"But-" So you're not allowed to microwave tea or ice it - well, not green tea, anyway.
A stifled giggle. Sayaka, with one hand slapped over her mouth. "Bahaha- if you could see your face-"
You snort, crossing your arms and pretending to be indignant. "Hmph," you say, shooting Mami a quick, reassuring smile, that you're not really angry. Privately, you're glad Sayaka seems to have gotten over her gloom.
"Uh, by the way," you say telepathically to Mami and Homura as you pretend to glare in annoyance. "I... Well, two things. I told Kyouko to send any magical girls she came across my way, rather than just chase them off. I'm sorry I didn't check with you first, but uh, it was kinda spur of the moment."
Madoka's shaking her head as you say that. "We can make iced English tea?" she suggests.
Homura gives you a look, violet eyes blinking. "I see."
"Oh," Mami says. "Um... If you think it's for the best."
"Sounds like a plan," you say to Madoka, smiling, and then pop a lightly steamed broccoli into your mouth. "Yeah, and on that note - There's probably going to be magical girls coming after me, personally, after what happened in Sendai gets around. Just... keep an eye out, OK?"
Homura nods fractionally, while Mami looks faintly worried. "Alright, Sabrina," she says.
Lunch slowly finishes amidst discussion of tea, and the picnic - it turns out Sayaka has a taste for herbal teas, and the date's tentatively set for Saturday. Finally, Sayaka stretches, patting her stomach happily. "Ahh," she says, leaning back on the bench.
Hitomi finishes her last bit of watermelon with a few neat bites. "In any case," she says, continuing the conversation, "Gyokuro is nice, but I still think that matcha tastes better."
"Ah, but it's so much trouble," Madoka says, her lunch long finished.
"Only if you go through the full tea ceremony," Hitomi says, setting aside her lunchbox. Sayaka discreetly takes it, and tucks it away with her own. "We can just brew it without the ceremony, you know."
"Ah, I hadn't thought of that," Madoka says.
"Matcha is excellent," Mami agrees. "Though western teas are good, too!"
"Ooh, what kind do you like, Mami?" you ask.
"Ceylon black," Mami says, smiling. "We still have some at home!"
You can feel Hitomi's eyes on you for a moment as you smile at Mami. "Ah, right," you say. "I'd forgotten about that."
"I think we should be going," Hitomi says, standing. She looks around for a moment. "Where's my lunchbox gone?"
"Here," Sayaka says, lifting it into view.
"Ah... thank you, Sayaka," Hitomi says. "You don't really have to, you know. My other arm is perfectly fine." The greenette wiggles the hand not in a sling at Sayaka.
"I should," Sayaka says.
Hitomi shakes her head, but doesn't press further as Madoka and Homura also stand. "See you later," Homura says quietly, faded amethyst eyes glancing over at you.
"See you, Homura," you say, standing yourself. "See you, everyone!" You raise your hand in a casual wave.
Mami hesitates for a moment, looking up at you before tentatively spreading her arms. You smile, and hug her. She wraps her arms around you tightly, leaning her head against you. "See you after school, Mami," you murmur into her hair.
"See you, Sabrina," Mami whispers. She separates from you a moment later, looking up at you.
The others have disappeared into the stairwell already, and you can hear the echo of their voices fading away as they descend. Mami takes a step back, golden eyes still fixed on you, and you smile at her, internally fretting about her. You... maybe if she had someone else to be a mentor to? Maybe?
Mami turns to leave, casting one last look back at you. You wave at her, smiling, and a faint smile touches her face as she disappears into the stairwell.
You sigh, bouncing lightly on your feet as you stoop to collect your bag. You've got the afternoon available to you for now, so... What now?
[] Write-in
=====​
Matcha is the powdered tea used for tea ceremony, by the by.
Last edited: Mar 8, 2015
Threadmarks Interloper pt. 13
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#### Firnagzen

Operator

- Mar 9, 2015

- #38,652

You debate on doing a few more experiments now, but in the end, you drop the idea. You'll go talk to Oriko and bestbuddy for now, you think.
You stretch again, looking at the fence surrounding the roof. Hopping that's going to be tricky without breaking the roof, and you don't really want to do that. You do want to practice roofhopping, though, so...
A thought is all it takes to transform into your magical girl costume. Grief billows out, marbles dissolving into rippling, deep purple clouds, and your wings arch across the rooftop. They beat heavily, lifting you into the air, and you soar over the fence, landing easily on the next building over in a long, gliding hop.
You melt the wings back into marbles as you land, wings imploding on themselves in hundreds of accretion sites, stars coalescing out of endless night. Without the nuclear fusion, of course. You can only shudder to imagine how much damage you could do if you'd gotten nuclear fusion as a power, or worse yet, antimatter. A crook of your finger, and marbles cascade back into your bag.
You smile, looking at the next roof over, and you crouch lightly. And then you pause thoughtfully, straightening and dipping your hand into your pocket for your phone. You check the date absently - 5th April, 2011, before clicking to the messages menu.
You rapidly thumbtype a message to Nagisa's uncle. Would it be possible to have Nagisa over for dinner today? Perhaps You hesitate for a moment, considering the times. Dismissal at three, so call it an hour plus for the visit... at five today? Satisfied, you hit the send, and drop the phone back into your pocket.
You sprint for the edge of the roof, leaping powerfully at the last moment, with an accompanying pulse of magic to disperse the impact.
Your leap is accompanied by the absence of the sound of shattering concrete, and you whoop as you soar over to the next rooftop, longcoat snapping in the wind rushing past you. You crash to a landing, wincing as you skid slightly and the flagstones crack underfoot. Whoops. Halfway there, anyway.
You check your phone. No response yet.
Onwards, then!
You take off over the rooftops, checking your phone every few stops. There's... some success with not breaking rooftops you pass over, but... ugh, it's the timing, and if you get too enthusiastic about it, things break too.
A message on your phone from Shin - That would be acceptable. The same place?
Your reply to him is brief, before you're back to leaping over rooftops. Yes.
You squint at the time. You'd alloted yourself twenty minutes for roof hopping practice before shifting to flight, but it really isn't that much further... You decide to just finish the rest of the journey roof hopping. It's only a few more minutes. You soon launch yourself one final leap over the rolling swathes of greenery below, aiming for Oriko's backyard.
You-
Uh-oh.
You crash to a landing in the middle of an enormous rosebush. Sharp thorns catch on your longcoat, scraping and dragging at your costume. Thankfully, nothing comes close to your face.
A voice from outside the rosebush. "Hi, Sabrina!" Kirika, and you can hear heavy thwocks as you shove your way forward through the thorny thicket. You burst out of the thicket amidst the heavy, cloying scent of roses and sap, seeing Kirika beaming proudly at you. A pile of rose briars, neatly cloven by her razor sharp claws, carpet the ground.
"Hi, Kirika," you grumble, brushing leaves off yourself and checking your coat and your self for scratches. Nothing, luckily enough.
"My father loved these rosebushes." Oriko's quiet voice, accompanied by footsteps rustling over grass. The seer walks forward, footsteps dainty on the grass, looking as impeccably unruffled as always despite her missing arm.
"Mmm," you say, looking at the ruined bushes.
"They look better this way," Oriko says, turning to head back into the house, Kirika immediately untransforming and bouncing along in her wake. "Do come in."
"Sure," you say, following Oriko into the living room.
Kirika flops on the sofa, grinning at Oriko as she departs for the kitchen. The black haired girl turns her sunny grin on you. "Sabrina?" she asks, adopting an uncharacteristically solemn expression, despite the hint of a grin still lurking at the side of her mouth.
You quirk your head at her, suddenly worried. "Yes, Kirika?"
"What's a precog's favorite sport?" she asks, still looking perfectly serious.
...
Is she-
She is-
"I don't know, what?" you ask, a smile beginning to form on your face.
"Crystal ball!" she declares proudly.
Your grin grows to a smirk, and you begin giggling. "Oh that's fantastic," you say.
Kirika nods vigorously. "And Sabrina, you might be a precog if-"
"If?" you ask, giggles still bubbling in your voice. "Oh. Ohhhhh. Yes!"
Footsteps herald Oriko's return, the seer giving you a sour look. "This is your fault," she says, tone drier than a desert as she sets the tea tray on the table.
"I take full responsibility," you declare, grinning broadly. "Also, I'm pretty sure you find it funny on some level."
"I do not," Oriko declares sourly as she sits next to Kirika. The black haired girl cuddles into the seer's side, wrapping a hand around her waist and smiling broadly up at her. The seer favours her with a gentle smile, before starting to pour out the tea.
"So, first order of business," you say, receiving your cup of tea graciously. "Soul Gems, cleansing?"
Without being prompted, Kirika produces two Soul Gems from her pocket, and you cleanse them. Kirika's Gem is surprisingly full, a thick layer of darkness occluding its brilliant orange shine. Fuller than Oriko's, you think.
"I healed Oriko a bit!" Kirika says brightly in answer to your questioning look.
"Ah, gotcha," you say as you cleanse their Soul Gems with a casual gesture, tucking away the Grief in your bag. "Be careful, though."
"Of course," Oriko says quietly.
You nod.
"Anyway," you say. "Would you like to go shopping for groceries? I'm willing to escort you around." You watch Oriko carefully as you offer this minor olive branch.
Oriko blinks slowly at you, her weight shifting slightly, the smooth flesh of her stump hidden behind Kirika. "Thank you for the offer," she says. "Kirika, dear, would you like to go?"
"Um... you're not going, Oriko?" Kirika asks, sounding obviously disappointed.
"I don't think so," she says.
[] Write-in
=====​
My thanks to @Mister Bad Guy for helping me with the jokes! Also, some suggestions for light conversation would be nice.
Last edited: Mar 9, 2015
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