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.
