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~ Mami Souls: Prepare to Waifu ~
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First of all, I'd like to say thank you to all you wonderful people following this little quest for your patience; I know this update took a while to appear and it's entirely my own fault it happened. First there was Persona 5 (which I finished, great game, Futaba best girl), then I struggled for quite some time getting started on the update itself. But well, somehow I managed and now the next chapter is here.
Secondly, as for the winning votes: the majority of you were in favour of making a mix of different dishes for the food, find something in your wardrobe for the clothes, convincing Snuggly to use the spare bed for the sleeping arrangements and asking her about her invisibility trick, as well as giving the stone you got from her a nice place somewhere prominent so she can see how much you appreciate her gift.
With all that said, onwards!
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Rekindling - 7
As you hold Snuggly's petite body in your arms and bask in the warmth of her presence, you mentally marvel at how eventful just the past two days have been. It's as if you took a ride on the world's wildest emotional rollercoaster, constantly going up and speeding down from moments of pure joy and hope into soul rending despair and agony. If this is what it'd be like for anyone to return from death, you're honestly not sure if you would recommend it.
At least, not if you'd been asked before you returned from your trip to school. Seeing Madoka and Sayaka alive was an immense relief, yes, but it's hard to find true happiness in discovering you didn't fail as utterly as you could have. Even leaving that aside, the time you've been alive again wasn't exactly what you'd call 'the good life', just a lot of new trauma and anguish heaped on top of your old ones.
Now, however, things have changed a little, as you've finally found something that really makes you happy to be alive again. Something you can say that, without a doubt, is truly, undeniably, a good thing.
You've made a friend.
After all these years of solitude, all this time spent fighting by yourself, mourning over past mistakes and clinging to a being that never truly reciprocated your friendship, you're finally not alone anymore. You have a new friend, someone who you don't have to involve in the fight against Witches in order to get her to stay or need you. The fact that she's a crow in human form is barely noteworthy in your eyes; a friend is a friend, no matter what shape they take.
It helps that you're kindred souls of sorts, of course, even if Snuggly might not be fully aware of this fact. Just knowing that there's someone who shares your circumstances, who died and was returned to life for another chance at finding happiness, makes you feel less isolated from the rest of the world, which was something you really were in desperate need of.
You bow your head to glance down at the feathered girl snuggling against you and mentally offer a word of thanks to the Firekeeper for sending her your way. A bird girl wasn't really what you expected when you were asked to take care of the reborn sparks, perhaps, but you are glad for her presence nevertheless. Inwardly, you vow to do everything you can to help make her new life a happy one and perhaps, hopefully, brighten up your own in the process.
Satisfied with your decision, you close your eyes to bask in the quiet serenity of the moment some more, only for said eyes to fly open again when the aforementioned serenity gets brusquely interrupted by an obnoxious, growling noise.
Both you and Snuggly sit up in surprise and look around for the source of the noise, but it's only when it sounds again that you realise it's coming from your very own stomach.
Heat rushes to your cheeks as you glance to the side and try in vain to look dignified and composed. Snuggly staring at you with her big, wide eyes as she tries to figure out in the most adorable of fashions why your face is suddenly red doesn't improve matters much, either. You raise your hand to your mouth and cough to break the awkward silence.
"Ah, it seems I lost track of the time while we were talking," you say, with as much dignity as you can muster, while casting a glance at the clock. "Normally I'd be finishing up supper around this hour."
Snuggly tilts her head and blinks curiously. "Mami bird lose thing? Need help find?"
You stifle a giggle and shake your head. "It's an expression, little one," you explain, a patient smile on your face. "I simply meant that I should really start making some food now; apparently I'm a tad famished."
The young crow perks up. "Food?"
"Yes, food," you confirm, nodding. "Are you feeling hungry, too?"
Snuggly gains a thoughtful frown on her face, then looks down and pats her exposed stomach with one of her wings. She lets out a confused chirp, before glancing up at you in confusion, though what it is that has her so confounded, you have no idea.
"I have hungry, yes," she says slowly, as if this realisation comes as a surprise to her. "Is strange. Not have much hungry before long sleep. Why hungry now?" She absentmindedly rubs at one of her temples with her wing as she ponders this conundrum, but stops once she either gives up or decides it's not important. She turns her expectant gaze back to you. "Mami bird bring food?"
"That's my intention, yes," you reply, smiling as you reach out to pat her on the head. "Is there anything in particular you would like?"
The question seems to puzzle the young corvid. "Like?" she echoes. "Mama bird bring food, I eat. What mama bird bring, I like. Mami bird is mama bird now, so I eat what Mami bird bring!"
Well, it's a good thing she's not a picky eater, yet that still doesn't really answer your question of what to prepare for supper. She may have eaten whatever her mother brought her in the past, but given that she lived in a nest and that her mother was a bird, you somehow doubt the food she got in the past was anything like what your modern kitchen can prepare. There's also the worry that, since she's not truly human, she won't be able to eat everything you can. Her mother may have known instinctively what a young crow child can digest, but you certainly do not.
"Well, I suppose I'll just have to make a little bit of everything then," you conclude, as you lightly give her scritches on her scalp, making her coo in delight. "That way, we'll be able to figure out what's most to your taste, yes?"
Snuggly nods and eagerly flaps her wings. "Yes, yes, much food!" she caws.
You can feel your heart melt at the endearing sight.
Granted, that feeling of endearment does fade a bit when you stand up and are confronted with the sight of your still-ransacked living room, reminding you that you have some tidying up to take care of first before any cooking can be done. Of a room you spent a good portion of your day cleaning, no less.
Groaning, you bury your face in your hands.
The fact that the cause of this cleaning disaster is looking at you with a face that is the perfect picture of innocence, completely oblivious to what she's done to your poor, freshly cleaned and tidied living room, only makes things worse, really.
---
In the end, you didn't lose as much time with cleaning up the aftermath of Snuggly's raid on your living room as you feared you would. Since you decided to let her keep her nest for now, it was mostly a matter of putting upturned furniture back in its place, closing torn open drawers and sweeping up one admittedly broken vase. She apologised profusely for that last one, but you assured her it was okay, not having the heart to truly be mad at her.
All in all, the cleanup took only fifteen minutes.
Now you're in the kitchen, in front of your open fridge and looking over the foodstuffs available to you, trying to decide which ones to use. Since the goal is to figure out what your new houseguest can or likes to eat, you've settled on preparing a hot pot for this evening, figuring that will be the easiest way to provide an acceptable variety of things for her to try with the ingredients you have on offer, all while staying within an acceptable time frame to prepare.
It's a good thing you decided to go grocery shopping today, too, else this plan wouldn't be possible and you would have had to settle for something much less appetizing. In truth, you doubt Snuggly would care all that much, but it would reflect poorly on you as a host, which is unacceptable. Your record of catering to guests has always been spotless, one of the few things unrelated to your prowess as a Magical Girl that you could take pride in, and you'll be damned if you let it be tarnished now.
Alright, maybe you're being a bit too intense about this, but the point still stands.
Taking what you need from the fridge, you place the chosen ingredients on the kitchen counter, then move to a nearby cupboard to fetch a suitable pot. Once that is taken care of, you grab some necessary kitchen utensils from a drawer and put on your favourite apron, after which you're finally all set to get started.
Like cleaning, cooking - and baking in particular - is something you've always found enjoyment in. Especially now, after the emotional rollercoaster that was your day, it feels incredibly satisfying and relaxing to just lose yourself in the mundanity of a vital household task. The fact that you're cooking not just for yourself, but a guest, a new friend, as well makes it even more enjoyable than usual.
It hasn't been that long since the last time you had guests, true, less than a week for you actually, but the circumstances were different. There's no life changing events like finding out witches exist or deciding whether or not to take up the mantle of a magical girl hanging over you like a gloomy cloud this time, no uncertainty whether or not the two girls you saved will be your friends. No expectations, no obligations, just you cooking for yourself and the bird girl you befriended.
The smile on your face as you work is positively radiant and at one point you even catch yourself humming happily while chopping up some vegetables. Not even the wariness born from the memory of what happened the last time you felt this happy can sour your mood. You're not fighting a witch this time, you're merely in your kitchen preparing supper; there's no reason to be afraid of repercussions.
For the first time since too long, things are looking up a bit in your life and you will enjoy it for as long as it lasts.
Before you even realise it, the hot pot is finished. You set the table, then take off your apron and head to the living room to fetch Snuggly. The bird girl is still where you left her, in her nest of borrowed pillows, softly chirping to herself while she toys with her new Hello Kitty toy. Upon seeing you, she perks up excitedly and puts the stuffed animal aside.
"The food is ready, Snuggly," you tell her. "Let's eat it before it gets cold, yes?"
She nods eagerly and stares at you expectantly, then frowns when you don't move. "Where food?" she chirps, confused. "Mami bird say bring food, but I not see. Is where?"
"In the kitchen, dear," you reply, smiling patiently as you gesture at the room in question. "That's where we normally eat food in this house."
"Not eat in nest?" Snuggly asks, with the tone of her voice suggesting that the very notion of the food not being delivered to her in her nest is something she never even imagined could exist, let alone conceive of herself.
"No, little one," you say, while beckoning her towards you and doing your best not to laugh. "Humans don't eat in their nest. Since you now live with one, you shouldn't either, okay? It's only proper." It's also not as easy to remove food stains from pillows as it is removing them from tree branches and straw, but you don't say that out loud.
Fortunately, Snuggly accepts your reasoning without argument and happily hops out of her nest and follows you into the kitchen. After instructing her on how to properly sit on a chair - something she never did before in her life - the both of you are finally seated and ready to eat.
Which is, of course, when your next challenge rears its head.
When you set the table for you and your guest, you put down a set of cutlery for each of you together with the plates and drinking glasses, forgetting at the time that to use cutlery one requires a working pair of hands and opposable thumbs. Unfortunately, your new friend just so happens to be somewhat lacking in those areas, resulting in your somewhat awkward current situation where Snuggly stares at you expectantly, mouth held open and clearly waiting to be fed.
For a moment, you're a bit at loss of what to do. "Ah, Snuggly, how did you eat in the past?" you ask, not too worried about that question coming across as rude; you're quite certain by now that your new friend has little to no concept of such things.
Snuggly blinks, then gives you a wide, eager smile. "Mama bird feed me!"
"And how did she do that?" you press.
"Mama bird feed with beak," she answers, while looking at you in confusion, as if she can't understand why you asked her something that clearly was obvious to her. She tilts her head in the most adorable of fashions. "Mami bird okay? Not feel hungry anymore?"
Her concern for you touches your heart. "No, no, I'm fine, don't worry," you quickly assure her, smiling. "I was just surprised. I assumed your mother looked like you did, but from your story, I take it this wasn't the case?"
The young crow shakes her head. "Mama bird is big bird. All black with big wings. I liked sleeping under them, very warm, very soft. Give me food and clean feathers with her beak," she explains, her voice warm with the love a child has for her mother. "Mama bird strong. Want grow big like mama bird, then I fly too!"
This just confuses you even more. If Snuggly's mother was shaped like an actual crow, albeit one that from the sound of it was larger than a crow ought to be if she was capable of sheltering the child-sized Snuggly under her wing, then why does Snuggly look the way she does? You'd assumed she was just a member of a crowlike species of harpy, straight out of your mythology books, but clearly you were mistaken.
What exactly is she then? A crow, yes, but how did she become what she is?
"Mami bird!"
Then again… Mythology showed how much Gods also turned into animals to make half-breeds. The world which Snuggly came from... were there Gods? If there were souls... lost embers, did that mean there was a giant bonfire? The question made you frown slightly.
"Mami bird!" the call from earlier repeats, more insistent this time, snapping you out of your thoughts. You blink and turn your head to see Snuggly looking at you impatiently. "Want eat!"
"Ah, I apologise, little one," you say, wringing your hands. "I got distracted." You turn to the food waiting on the table. "Let's eat, then, yes?"
Since Snuggly didn't magically grow hands during your brief distraction, you have no choice but to play the role of mother hen and feed her by hand - given your own lack of a beak, though you're not really sorry about that - which actually turns out more enjoyable than you expected. You let her point - using her pinions - at the things she wants to try, which you then dip into the broth of the hot pot for her before feeding it to her.
Aside from an early incident where she bites into the fork and complains about you not having removed the bone, it goes swimmingly, though you do switch to using your chopsticks after that just to be safe. You don't want her to get hurt, after all.
Your main reason for settling on a hot pot was that it provided an easy way for you to offer a variety of foods to your new friend and see what she likes or can handle. The answer to that mystery turns out to be a rather simple 'everything', with seemingly little to no complaints. Be it vegetable, fruit or meat, it all vanishes down her wide open mouth with the same ease and eagerness, even if she does admit to wanting meat the most.
It all only serves to make you wonder what kind of creature she is, exactly, for you're not certain a normal crow's stomach would be able to handle all hers seemingly can, but you're not going to complain. After all, it means you'll be able to cook as normal in the future, without having to worry about special diets or ingredients for Snuggly.
All in all, supper turns out to be a rather pleasant affair. Even if you don't talk much, being too busy preparing pieces of food in the broth, alternating between one for Snuggly and one for yourself, it's nice just to not be alone as you eat for a change. There was Kyubey, in the past, of course, but it wasn't the same and can't compare to the sheer innocent, warm and childlike joy Snuggly brings simply being here, let alone to the sincere, unconditional delight and gratitude on her beaming face as she tastes your food and eagerly demands more.
You almost feel sad when all the food is gone and supper is over, a part of you wishing this simple but delightfully wondrous moment could have lasted forever.
"Did you enjoy the food?" you ask, smiling happily as you wipe the crow girl's mouth with a napkin.
"Yes, yes, much like!" Snuggly replies, nodding eagerly. "Much food! Eat good!"
"I'm glad to hear it." You finish cleaning her face and stand up, gathering the now empty plates and used kitchen utensils and carrying them to the kitchen sink. Turning on the faucet, you squeeze a blob of liquid soap into the water, letting the sink fill up while you gather the rest of the dishes.
From her chair, Snuggly watches you with undisguised interest. "What Mami bird doing?"
"The dishes, little one," you answer, while opening the cupboard under the sink to fetch a sponge, which you toss into the now filled sink, the warm water topped with a layer of soap bubbles. "I need to clean the things I used to make the food so I can use them again later, yes? Not to mention they would start to smell otherwise."
The bird girl gapes at you. "Can reuse food?!"
"Not the food, no," you chuckle. "Just the things used to prepare the food."
Snuggly nods in understanding, then perks up eagerly. "I help!"
The offer touches you, making you smile, but still you shake your head. "That's very kind of you, Snuggly, but it's okay," you explain. "You're my guest. As your host, it's my duty to do the housework while you relax and have fun."
The little grow makes a disapproving caw and hops off her chair. Determined, she bends over the table to pick up her unused fork in her mouth, then marches over to the sink to let it drop into the soapy water.
"I help!" she declares, proudly.
You try your hardest not to laugh. "You certainly did," you agree. You'd pat her on the head if your hands weren't currently wet and covered in soap suds. Which reminds you that it'd probably be a good idea to give her a bath once you're done with your current task.
Humming softly, you continue cleaning until all dishes are done, then grab a towel to dry them off. Occasionally, you hand off a non-fragile item to Snuggly so she can put it away and keep 'helping' you, much to the young child's delight. Her cheerful presence turns what is usually a mundane and boring chore into a lighthearted, enjoyable affair that is over all too soon, even if, for all of her 'help', it takes you as long as it usually does to finish.
You dry your hands off with a towel and glance at the digital clock on the fridge. Three minutes past eight; admittedly a bit late for you to finish up with supper, but then again this was a rather unusual evening with very exceptional circumstances. It's not like you still have any homework waiting for you, either…
Thinking of school causes you to sigh. You will need to deal with that particular problem some time, preferably soon, but there's a host of other issues preventing you from doing that to take care of first. Not to mention you now have Snuggly to consider as well. If you want to go back to school, you'll have to ensure she's cared for in your absence. She may be used to being left by herself for long stretches of time, but you'd prefer to avoid doing that if at all possible.
You shake your head. No, you're not going to sour what has been a wonderful evening so far by worrying too much. There are things you will have to deal with, yes, but they can wait until tomorrow. This evening, your focus will be solely on helping your guest get settled in your home.
Speaking of which…
You hang the towel on the drying rack, then turn to the little crow in question, who is currently poking one of the shiny door knobs of your cupboard with her pinion feathers, mesmerised by the way it gleams in the light of the lamps in the ceiling. You clear your throat to draw her attention.
"Snuggly?"
Her head swivels towards you, her wing still on the shiny knob. "Yes, Mami bird?"
You smile and hold out your hand towards her. "Would you come with me?" you ask, voice all innocent and sweet.
She nods and briskly hops over to you, face beaming. "Go where?"
"To the bathroom, little one," you answer, while you gently take her wing in your hand. Your smiling expression does not change as you lead her out of the kitchen. "You're getting your first bath!"
Snuggly tilts her head.
---
You feel the child pressed against you, hiding behind your legs, while the both of you stare at the body of lightly steaming water contained within the stone basin. Somewhere in the back of your mind, a small, idle part of you wonders if your mother was ever faced with a situation like this when you were still a child.
"It's just water, Snuggly," you say, while trying, for the umpteenth time, to pry the little crow loose from your legs.
"That, no, no, that not soft!" she squawks, stubbornly shaking her head while tightening the hold of her wings on your lower limbs. "That white cold! Much white cold, when white cold picked up! No, no, not warm! Not soft!"
It takes you a moment to decipher her words. Thinking back to what she told you of where she lived before coming here, by 'white cold' she probably means snow, which, when picked up and held in your hands, melts to become… A frown forms on her face and you glance down at her quivering form. Could it be that she's never seen any water at all in her life, outside of melted snow?
It's possible, but doesn't explain why she's suddenly so afraid of it. She was just fine drinking it during supper, so what changed?
One of your hands idly toys with your ringlets as you ponder this conundrum.
"It could be the amount of it. There's a difference between a glass of water and a whole bath filled with it. If she's never seen water outside of melted snow, perhaps seeing so much of it at once intimidates her?" you think. Then, in a flash of insight, a soft gasp escapes your lips as another possibility offers itself to you. "Water to her is just melted snow, which she associates with cold. Given that she d-died because she froze to… Oh no…"
In an instant, you're kneeling down in front of her and putting your hands on her shoulders to comfort her, your face a distraught mask of guilt and compassion.
"Sweety, listen to me, okay?" you speak to her, trying to sound as warm, gentle and understanding as you can. When she shifts her eyes to look directly into yours, you take it as an encouraging sign and continue. "Not all water comes from white cold. We humans can get it from other sources, ones that aren't cold. Even if it was, we can make our water as cold or as warm as we want and this water is no different!"
She leans to the side a bit for a quick look past you at the bath, then her gaze flits back to you. "Is not same?" she asks, her voice tiny.
You give her a comforting smile and an affirmative nod. "That's right," you confirm. A thought hits you and you look at her curiously. "Snuggly… Do you actually know what a bath is?"
She hesitates for a moment, then shakes her head.
Well, that explains a lot while raising plenty of new questions at the same time.
You reach out and gently pat her on the head. "You remember how we cleaned the things used to make food just now, yes?" you ask, to which she nods. "Well, a bath is like that, only we use it to wash ourselves instead of other things. If we used cold water for that, we'd get sick, so we make sure the water is all nice and warm before we get in to clean."
The crow child casts another uncertain glance at the waiting bath. "White cold warm?" she asks, sounding doubtful.
"Why don't you feel for yourself?" you suggest kindly, gesturing at the bath. "If it's cold, you can go back to your nest, okay?"
Snuggly hesitates, but after a few brief seconds relents and nods in agreement. Slowly, like a bird approaching a carcass while ready to fly off at the slightest sign of danger, she walks up to the bath. She eyes the steaming water warily, but when it doesn't suddenly come to life and leap out of its container to attack her, she puts one of her birdlike feet on the edge of the bath.
Then, at an absolutely glacial pace, she lowers her middle toe and dips only the very tip of it into the water.
You watch with a smile as her expression turns puzzled when she doesn't feel the cold she was clearly expecting. Somewhat emboldened, she allows her toe to sink deeper into the bath and gasps softly as she registers the pleasant heat now surrounding her toe. You see the apprehension vanish from her face, replaced by her usual childlike curiosity as she lowers her other toes and eventually her entire foot up to its ankle into the water.
She turns her head excitedly in your direction. "Mami bird, is really warm!" she crows in delight, her eyes sparkling. "White cold is warm and soft, yes!"
You politely hide your chuckling at her innocent wonder behind your hand. "I told you so, didn't I?" you say pleasantly as you walk up to her. "Are you ready to take a bath now?"
The affirmative nod she gives you could not be more eager. "Bath is clean, yes? I take me in warm white cold?"
"That's right," you confirm. "You just need to take off your clothes and-"
Before you can finish your sentence, you're cut off by a cheerful whoop and a loud splash.
Ah, well, her rags probably needed a good cleaning, anyway.
---
With Snuggly having conquered her initial fears, the rest of the bath goes surprisingly smooth. Once you've managed to get her out of the rags she calls clothes, you let her soak for a bit and splash around in order to get used to the water, which she does with gusto. She chirps and coos in obvious delight, eagerly telling you how she's only ever been so nicely warm before when cuddled under her mother's wing.
Even when the time comes for the actual washing to be done, she's remarkably cooperative. She sits perfectly still as you rub shampoo in her hair - after explaining to her what it is and not to try and eat it, of course - keeping her eyes closed as instructed to avoid any of the soap from getting in to them. She doesn't even panic or get nervous as you rinse her hair clean with the showerhead, merely giggles and wriggle in place a bit because it feels ticklish.
When you have her stand up and use a sponge to scrub and lather the human part of her body, that, too, proves to be another source of amusement.
"Mami bird, mami bird!" she laughs, flapping her drenched wings and flinging water everywhere as she stares in childlike amazement at the soapy suds now clinging to her thin frame. "I'm bubbly!"
Despite your best efforts to keep a straight face, you can't help but let a few chuckles through your defences. "You certainly are, dear," you allow, before taking up the showerhead again and washing the bubbles away.
Cleaning her feathers proves to be a bit trickier, since you've never done anything like it before, but after some experimenting you discover that a soft hair brush with some soap does the job just fine. A hard bristle brush is used to scrub and polish the scales on her legs and feet until they gleam.
Honestly, when you decided a bath for Snuggly was in order you expected it to be a lot more challenging; whenever you overheard your parents or other adults talking about giving their children a bath they always spoke of it as if it was this grueling, herculean task that could be carried out only by the staunchest of hearts. Yet aside from Snuggly's initial hesitation at the start, everything went swimmingly, even if did make you feel twenty years older.
In fact, it turns out to be far more difficult to convince Snuggly to come out of the bath.
"No, no, not leave!" she cries out indignantly, shying away from you towards the opposite side of the tub where you can't reach her unless you get in yourself. "Is warm and soft! I stay!"
So, naturally, that's when you reveal your trump card and simply pull the plug.
Uttering a startled caw of dismay, Snuggly jumps to her feet. "MY WARM! MAMI BIRD! THE ABYSS TOOK MY SOFT WARM WHITE COLD!" the girl points to the plug with a shriek.
"Oh no... there there," you smile benevolently, unfolding a large bath towel and holding it open invitingly. "Better come here so I can wrap you in this soft and warm instead then, yes?"
She pouts in the most adorable of fashions, but acquiesces with your request.
After drying most of her off with your towel, you wrap her in another one, still dry, then have her take place on the bathroom stool while you fetch your hairdryer. You explain and demonstrate to her what it does, which earns you another wide-eyed look that nearly crosses the border between admiration and worship.
"Mami bird can make magic!" Snuggly exclaims. "Can make warm wind!"
You're glad that she's too busy marvelling at the hairdryer in your hands to spot the grimace on your face. It still hurts to be reminded of the magic that you've lost, as well as everything that came with having that magic, including the fact that it lead directly to your death. Not that she had any way of knowing that, of course, which is why you don't want her to see your discomfort and make her feel bad.
So instead of responding, you simply turn on the hairdryer and start drying her hair, followed by her wings and tail, since her feathers are too delicate to be dried with a towel.
Just like with the bath, she pouts when the 'warm wind' stops blowing.
Once she's all dry and clean, you take the little girl, still wrapped in the large towel, by her wing and lead her out of the bathroom.
"We go back to nest?" she asks, her innocent eyes looking up at you questioningly.
You smile and shake your head. "Not just yet. First, we're going to find you something to wear that's a bit more suited for your size than this towel."
The crow child tilts her head. "I already have fake skins," she says, with a brief glance over her shoulder towards the room you two just left. "They back near bath!"
"Maybe, but those clothes are currently wet and need to dry, since someone didn't wait for me to tell them to take them off before they jumped into the bath," you reply, giving her a knowing look from under your raised eyebrows.
She turns her head, having suddenly taken great interest in the wall opposite of you.
You smile at her antics and continue on your way to your bedroom.
---
Thirty minutes later both of you are back in the living room, with you having taken place in the couch while Snuggly returned to her nest. The little girl is wearing one of your old sundresses - a nice yellow one with cute frills at the hem - though to your regret nothing else besides that.
It turns out that having wings and a tail really limits what kind of clothes one can wear. Anything with sleeves or that had to be pulled over the head was a no go, simply because Snuggly couldn't work her wings through them, while pants or even underwear were similarly impossible because the feathers of her tail got in the way.
For a moment you really feared that the poor girl would have to stay wrapped in her bath towel for the rest of the evening. Admittedly she probably wouldn't have minded much, but the same couldn't be said for you.
Luckily, that's when you found the sundress at the bottom of one of your drawers. The shoulder straps could be undone, so it was a simple matter of having her step into it and pull it up from her legs upwards and then retie the straps over her shoulders. Her tail did still get in the way, making the backside of the dress fan out, but this was compensated somewhat by the fact that the sundress was actually a bit too large for her, making it appear longer on her body than it did when you once wore it.
It wasn't perfect, not by a long shot, but it would do for now.
With a sigh, you let yourself fall back in the couch and close your eyes. You feel tired, which is probably not very surprising given your day. The emotional turmoil you had to deal with early today would have been exhausting enough in and of themselves, but you had to take care of a very energetic bird girl who is the equivalent of a ten year old child on top of that.
If this is what it's like every day raising a child, then your already high respect for your parents just went up several more nodges.
Still, tired though you may be, you can't deny that you enjoyed every moment of it and that all that hard work feeding, bathing and clothing Snuggly has left you with a wonderful, warm glow of happiness and satisfaction in your chest. You already had a friend in the Firekeeper in your dream sanctuary, but now you are no longer alone in the waking world as well and the exhaustion you feel just serves as proof of that.
You wouldn't trade it for anything else in the whole wide world.
Opening one eye, you glance at Snuggly in her nest. The young girl is busying herself with her Hello Kitty toy, hugging it and rubbing her cheek against it and chirping happily at its softness. The sight brings a smile to your lips.
At one point, however, she puts down the stuffed animal in order to start shuffling around some of the pillows and blankets that make up her nest. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but what catches your attention is that Hello Kitty vanishes before your very eyes the moment Snuggly lets go of it.
Your curiosity piqued, you sit back up and focus your full attention on the playing child.
As a Magical Girl, one of the reasons you managed to survive for so long was your diligent experimentation with your powers, fueled by your drive to understand the mechanics behind the magic you wielded. Those powers are gone now, since you lost your soul gem and with it the source of your magic, but your interest in its workings remain.
"Snuggly? Can I ask you something?"
The girl looks up from where she's nudging a pillow into place. "Mami bird can give ask," she says, giving an affirmative nod and turning her whole body to face you to give you all her attention.
"How do you make things appear or disappear?" you ask, gesturing to where you last saw her Hello Kitty toy. "Or make it so I can't see you?"
Snuggly tilts her head. "Mami bird want know where I put warms?" she asks in return. When you nod in confirmation, she simply says: "I put it safe! Nobody find, nobody take."
A lovely if not unhelpful answer.
"I turn not see because mama bird tell me two legs dangerous, so must not let them see me," she continues. "I turn not see to not let them see me! Not know how I do, only know I can do. I want it really, really hard, and then I turn not see!"
You let out a thoughtful hum as you ponder the meaning of her words. It definitely sounds like her ability is something she knows how to do by instinct, rather than by practice or being taught it. It's hard to figure out anything more than that, but it's a neat ability nonetheless, one you could certainly have used yourself when-
The image of those teeth flashes before your eyes, causing you to wince and reach for your throat.
No, no, you must not think of that… incident. It's behind you, you're safe and at home with a new friend and it can't hurt you anymore.
"Mami bird?"
Your eyes snap open and you see Snuggly is staring at you, visibly worried and concerned for you after that sudden but noticeable shift in your mood. Seeing her there reaffirms her presence, which helps to put you at ease. You take a deep breath to calm yourself, then give her an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you worry, I just remembered something not nice, that's all," you assure her, though she does not seem entirely convinced. You nervously wring your hands and happen to brush against the stone she gave you, still sitting in your pocket, in the process.
Eager to shift away from the topic of your nightmares, you retrieve the stone from your pocket and hold it out for her to see.
"What about this stone?" you ask. "Do you know where it came from, or how you got it?"
You're not happy about brushing her off like that, but the less you need to remember the moment where you died, the better you'll feel. Fortunately, Snuggly seems to understand, or if not that at least buys into your faked cheerfulness, and doesn't pursue the matter any further.
"Two legs give me that shiny! I wake up, find two legs left things in nest. Two legs leave softs and warms, I give them less soft and less warm!" she squawks in cheeky giggles. "Two legs so silly! I get best warms!"
Her childlike glee at having 'outsmarted' the 'two legs' makes you smile.
"Are you sure I can keep this, then?" you ask, glancing at the stone in your hand. "If this is a, ah, soft or warm you got from someone, I don't want to take away from you if you'll miss it. You can have it back if you want."
Snuggly shakes her head. "No, no, I told Mami bird, that not how it work," she insists, her expression adorably serious. "You give me something more soft and warm than that, so Mami bird can have less soft and less warm." To further illustrate her point, she makes her Hello Kitty toy reappear and hugs it closely to her chest.
"Well, if you're sure," you reply. "In that case, thank you again for the gift."
The little child nods happily, then goes back to playing with her toy.
You turn the stone over in your hand so the image of the dragon is facing you. With great care, you let your fingers trace the lines forming the carving, marvelling at the delicate touch it must have taken to sculpt it from the rock. The way the dragon spreads its wings and jaws in a silent roar is surprisingly lifelike. You almost get the impression its tiny stone eye is staring straight into yours.
Perhaps it is because you already have magic on your mind from talking with Snuggly before, but as you stare at the carving and feel the warmth of the stone in your hand, you're reminded of how it felt to hold your soul gem, for some reason. Which is ridiculous, of course, since what you're holding now is simply a rock with a pretty carving in it, the warmth it emits merely a result of taking on your body heat when it sat in your pocket.
Closing your eyes, you reach out to the rock as you did to your soul gem in the past, partly for a laugh and partly out of a sense of… longing? Nostalgia? It's hard to tell; while not every moment you spent as a Magical Girl was unpleasant, you're not quite sure if you actually miss being one now, either. You may no longer have powers, but it also means you no longer have to risk your life hunting Witches, as well as-
Your thoughts come to a grinding halt and your eyes snap open when you feel something within the stone react to your prodding.
Sitting up straighter, your mind now wide awake and sharp, you stare at the stone in your hand with suspicion. It was brief, but you definitely felt something just now. You cast a brief glance towards Snuggly, but she is still playing with her Hello Kitty toy and doesn't seem to have noticed anything. Returning your attention to the dragon stone, you decide to try and replicate what you just did, in order to assure yourself that you weren't just imagining things the first time around.
Once more you close your eyes, then reach out with your mind to the stone, like you called out to the magic of your soul gem so many countless times until your death. Now that you're prepared and actively looking out for it, you're not caught off guard when the same feeling from before returns.
It's faint, so faint you're not surprised you didn't notice it until you actively went searching for it, but you definitely, unmistakably, feel the magic contained within.
You open your eyes again and let out a breath you didn't realise you were holding.
Magic.
You can feel magic in the stone.
This is… You don't know what this is.
How? How? That is the question raised foremost in your mind right now. Your soul gem was shattered when you died, you know this, just as you know that with it gone you've also lost the source of your magic and power. So then how, how, are you capable of sensing what is unmistakably magic within this stone when according to everything you know about how magic works that should no longer be possible for you?!
You fold your hands in front of your face and take a deep breath to calm yourself. There's no use in getting all worked up about this. Just approach it the same way you did any other magical phenomenon in the past: analyse the situation while remaining alert and cautious, then resolve the situation as necessary.
Admittedly, there doesn't seem to be nuch need for any resolving right now. The magic in the stone seems to have gone quiet again now that you're no longer trying to reach out to it, leaving you holding a rock with nothing out of the ordinary about it aside from the image decorating it.
Gnawing on your lower lip, you stare at the object in your hand in deep thought. You wish Kyubey were here; he knows far more about magic than you do and might have been able to tell you more about the nature or purpose of Snuggly's gift.
For now, though, it looks like the stone doesn't do anything unless one actively goes prodding it, so you're relatively certain that it's not dangerous, at least not right now. It definitely holds a secret of some kind and that definitely merits further investigation, but there doesn't seem to be any harm in delaying that until tomorrow. The hour has grown too late to be doing any kind of magical experimentation, anyway.
Your mind made up, you place the strange dragon stone on your coffee table, taking great care in doing so to avoid accidentally scratching the table's glass surface. Usually you have a tablecloth to prevent exactly that kind of thing from happening, but unfortunately said cloth is currently serving as part of Snuggly's nest.
You should probably look into a solution for that nest tomorrow, too, so you can have your pillows back.
Placing a hand on your face, you groan as you rub at your tired eyes. The list of things you need to take care of tomorrow just seems to keep growing. Was your life always this hectic before and did you simply not notice? You honestly can't seem to recall for the moment. You wonder if it's the same for other people who just came back from death, or if it's just you.
Dropping your hand, you turn your head to glance at the only other person you know who returned to life as you did. Said person is still sitting in her nest of stolen goods and apparently trying to make a mini-nest for her Hello Kitty toy, all with a smile on her face and not a care in the world.
You sigh.
Definitely just you then.
---
It's not much later that you decide that it's time for bed. You tried to do some light reading to relax, but you could barely keep your eyes open to get through even as much as a single page and so figured it was best to just call it a night. You've had quite an eventful day after all, to say the least, so there's no shame in going to sleep earlier than you're used to.
Even Snuggly's childish energy finally seems to be running low, if the yawn currently escaping her wide open mouth is any indication. She's gotten a lot quieter than before, clutching her stuffed animal to her side with one wing while using the other to rub at her half-lidded eyes.
A smile tugs at your tired cheeks. "Feeling sleepy, Snuggly?"
The crow child nods lethargically. "Yes, I have sleep…" she mutters quietly. "I eat much, feel warm, play much… Want sleep now…"
Grateful that you won't have to deal with a child not ready to call it a day yet, something you've heard many horror stories about from your parents and their friends, you rise from the couch and stretch your arms and neck.
"Let's get you in bed then, hmm?" you say, holding out your hand for her to take.
She looks at the outstretched digit, blinks, then looks up at you uncomprehendingly. "Mami bird want take me somewhere?" she asks, after setting loose another impressive yawn. "I not sure can go… I really sleepy."
"I know," you reply, smiling patiently. "That's why I'm taking you to a place where you can sleep comfortably."
The little crow tilts her head, looking even more confused than before. "Not sleep in nest?"
You shake your head. "No, Snuggly, humans don't sleep in a nest. Or rather, our nests are a bit different than yours. I think you'll like it!" When she still looks uncertain, you add: "If you don't, you can come back and sleep here, I promise."
This seems to satisfy her and she hops out of her nest and joins you at your side, placing her wing in your hand. You give it a light, comforting squeeze, then gently tug her along up the stairs to the second floor of your maisonette.
There's not much there, just a small room which long ago you furnished into another bedroom, in case you ever had a guest stay for the night. It hasn't seen any use in a while, not since you broke with Kyoko, and many were the days when you thought about just clearing it out because an empty guestroom just made your isolation and loneliness feel even worse. Now you're glad that you never gave in to those urges.
After explaining to Snuggly how to operate a light switch, in case she ever needs or wants to go downstairs during the night, the two of you enter the room proper.
Like the rest of your home, it looks neat and tidy, though it is decidedly more sparsely decorated than the rest of the apartment, limited to only the essentials. A warm, fluffy carpet in the center of the room, a wardrobe, a shelf, a bedside table and, of course, the bed itself. You show the child where she can find the light switch, then guide her to the bed in the corner of the room.
"Here it is," you say, gesturing to the piece of furniture in question. It's a standard sized bed for one person, with a thick, fluffy pillow stuffed in a white pillowcase and a warm duvet with a plain yellow cover.
Snuggly tilts her head and studies it curiously. "This nest of two leg?" she asks, while poking the side of the bed with one of her toes. "Saw in Mami bird cave, too. It not round, have no edge!" Her curious face turns towards you. "Mami bird sure this is nest?"
"Positive," you reply, smiling warmly. "Here, let me show you how it works."
You pull back the covers, making room for her to climb in. With patience and care, you instruct her how to lie down and to rest her head on the pillow.
"Is soft and fluffy…" she murmurs sleepily, as she turns on her side and happily rubs her cheek against the pillow.
"That's how it's supposed to be," you whisper softly, a tender smile on your lips. Quietly, you pull the covers over her body, making sure she's nicely tucked in, just like your mother did for you when you were little. Once you're satisfied with the result, you place your hand on her head and gently let your fingers brush through her hair.
Snuggly's eyes, already half closed, silently seek out yours.
"So, what do you think?" you ask, though something tells you you already know the answer. "Is this okay?"
The young girl yawns, her eyes falling shut, and gives you a drowsy nod.
Smiling, you pull back your hand and right your back.
"Sleep well, Snuggly," you whisper.
"... Mami bird…" she mumbles, before burying her face completely in her pillow.
You fondly shake your head, then carefully tiptoe out of the room, pausing only in the doorway to turn off the light. You leave the door open, of course, to make sure she can leave whenever she wants. Having done what you came here for, you quietly make your way back downstairs.
After one last round of the apartment to make sure the door is locked and all light are off, you head for the bathroom to change into your nightgown and brush your teeth before finally stumbling into your own bedroom. You leave its door open as well, so Snuggly can always reach you should you need to.
As you crawl into your bed and wrap yourself in its welcoming covers, you can't help but think back and marvel at what a day it's been. A lot of things happened, some bad, some good, but overall the first full day of your second life has been a net positive. You confirmed Madoka and Sayaka are safe and, just as importantly, you made a new friend.
Even if there are still many things waiting for you to be done, you feel better knowing that no matter how tough those may get, from now on you can always look forward to having Snuggly welcome you home.
You're no longer alone.
Tired but nonetheless happy, you turn off the night light on your bedside table, then close your eyes to let yourself drift off to sleep.
There are no nightmares this time, nor do you wake up to find your pillow wet with tears.
---
AN: So, ehm, I know tapkomet said to stop apologising so much, but in this case I really feel it's necessary. I had no intention of taking this long to update, nor do I have any excuse for it. I finished Persona 5 two weeks ago, so there was nothing to distract me from focussing entirely on this, yet I still struggled to continue my work. For this I am genuinely, truly sorry, and my only hope is that the length of this update will make up for the long wait somewhat.
That said, with this, we wrap up 'Rekindling' and move on to the next chapter, though I have no clue as to the title yet. A quick word to head off some worries now, namely about Priscilla: I haven't forgotten about her and she will arrive in due time. I have her arrival planned and the story will make it explicitly clear when it's time to go look for her.
Me thinks her mama bird just took really, really good care of her.
