"Eeeeeee
eeeeeeeeeeeee-" your squeal shades into the inaudible as you dive at Mami, sweeping up the mini-Mami into your arms and then the
real Mami in one giant tackle hug. So cute
so cute it's a tiny squishable huggable mumi not that the real one isn't squishable and huggable but this one is so tiny and
so cute-
You crush both the Mamis in a gigantic bearhug. Mami laughs and hugs you back, swept up in your delight - and a tinier pair of arms hug you around your torso, too. You pick them both up and swing them around in a circle, squealing all the way.
"So cute so
cute-"
You're babbling and somewhere in the back of your mind you remember Homura but there are more important things to consider right now. "
SorryHomuthemostadorablethingishappeningrightnowtalkinaminuteortwobyeeee-"
You ignore the confused, "
OK?" in favour of babbling at Mami. "How does- wow, just wow- can you see through it? How autonomous is it? Are you concentrating on the external appearance and-"
"Sabrina!" Mami laughs breathlessly, patting your hands. "I can't answer if you don't let me!"
"-
how did you do this wonderful thing?" you run out of steam, still cuddling both Mamis close.
Mami's blushing, a bright, pleased rosy hue. "Um... Yes, I can see through it. It's not very autonomous, I can make it move like I can, but it can't make decisions on its own."
"Do you have to control every movement?" you ask, squeezing both Mamis.
"No," Mami says, shaking her head. "There's a... it's like my powers, I
know how to drive it, does that make sense? It's more like playing a video game than walking it around myself, and I have to concentrate a bit on it to animate it." The chibi Mami wiggles in your arms, patting your face. "Like that!" she says, giggling.
"It makes sense, yes, and that is
so cool," you enthuse. You pinch the chibi-mumi's cheek gently and squeal at the adorable little pouty face.
Mami pouts at you, too. "Sabrina, I can feel that..." she protests half-heartedly.
"Well," you say, abandoning the pinching to cuddle both of them again. "So cooooooool so cuuuuute-"
Both Mamis giggle, and nestle into your hug. "Um..." Mami mumbles into your shoulder. "I was actually trying to make a full-sized clone of myself, a while ago. I never managed to make a stable one, but I could consistently make a chibi-me work."
"Huh, that's pretty cool," you say, grinning brightly. "What else can you do with the chibi? You can see and feel through it, right?"
"Ah, the chibi-me can actually fight quite well? But it's a bit... limited," Mami says. "I don't really use it for much."
"But it's so cuuuuuute," you say, beaming at her. "You're awesome."
Mami blushes. "Thank you, Sabrina, but... I'm really not."
"Yes you are," you say, still beaming at her. "Look at this! Look at
you! You're awesome, Mami."
"A-ah... thank you, Sabrina," Mami says, glancing down.
"That's better," you say, releasing the hug and carefully setting the chibi-mumi down. It -she? It
is Mami, after all- blinks up at you, the blush and smile on her face mirroring Mami's.
"Anyway," you say, rubbing your hands together. "Before I forget or get distracted again, Mami - I think I'll use your name for the laser. It's my first one, so 'First Light' works quite well!" You can't help but wonder if that niggling little feeling in the back of your head that says Mami even named her
kicks -Flawless Leg of Gold!- is true.
Mami beams at you, clasping her hands together. "A-ah, thank you!" she says.
"No, thank
you," you say, smiling right back. "Hmm... Honestly, the problem with Prima Luce is that I... really don't know how safe it is. Or, well, it's an attack, it's not meant to be safe, but it should be safe to
use, you know? I'm not sure that it is. We have to shield
ourselves to use it."
Mami nods seriously. "When I was beginning to experiment with it, my muskets frequently burst on firing."
You wince. "Hope you didn't get hurt?" you ask. At the same time, you reach out for Homura, since you're no longer squealing over the chibi-Mami which is
so cute. You reach down and pick it up again, cuddling it like a teddy bear. "
Sorry 'bout that, Homura, Mami just showed me she can use ribbons to make a chibi-doll of herself and it's the cutest thing."
Mami shakes her head, smiling. "I took safety precautions, too," she says.
"
... I see," Homura responds in a tone that clearly says she
doesn't.
"
You'll get it if you see it. And you will, if you come along? I'd like it if you and Sayaka got along better, and just being present would help. You don't
have to let Sayaka copy your power if you don't want to," you tell Homura, while giving Mami a smile.
You put the chibi down again, and watch as it pads -as Mami makes it pad- off to look at the still cooling puddle of metal. You drape your arms around Mami from behind, the chibi stumbling for a moment as her concentration's interrupted by the surprise hug.
"So, Mami," you say. "Do you have any ideas for improving Prima Luce?"
Mami chews her lip. "It's a
laser, right?" she asks. "Ow, hot- Um. Is there a way you could project the heat and the, um, glare in one direction? Maybe with a barrel of some kind?"
Homura projects a mental sigh at you. "
I'll be there."
You shake your head in response to Mami, grimacing. "Not exactly," you say. The chibi-Mami pokes gingerly at the fragments of glass surrounding the melted engine block. "The problem is that the
air is heating up and re-radiating the light, so it goes in all directions, including back towards us even if I'm shooting it purely forward."
Speaking of shooting, an idea occurs to you. "
Actually, Homura, are you any good with paintball guns? Or airsoft? Anything non-lethal. I think Sayaka could use some experience for when an enemy simply doesn't let her close to melee. Neither Mami nor I are really good for that."
Mami nods slowly. "Ah, that could be a problem..." she says. "You could always use it when we have a bunker, right? Like what you made with Grief for Sendai?"
"
I have airsoft guns," Homura agrees. Maybe it's your imagination, but her voice seems a little more interested.
You should probably not be encouraging Homura to shoot Sayaka, but then again, there's harmless catharsis, right?
... Right?
"
Great," you say. "
You can come along whenever, alright?"
You tuck your chin on Mami's shoulder. "Ooh, you're right," you agree. "That would work! Would be nice to be able to deploy it normally, though."
Mami nods. "Then either you need to make it safe for us, or we need a signal to know when you're going to use it," she says. A teasing smile appears on her face. "Such as shouting its name."
"That's true," you say. "Is that why Tiro Finale has a name?"
Mami shakes her head. "No, it has a name because names are
important."
You laugh, hugging her tighter. "Right, of course." You pause. "Hey, there's an idea," you say. "If I figure out a combination attack with you, we can call
that something-Finale!"
"Oooh," Mami says, eyes almost
sparkling at the idea. "That would be great! Hm... I wonder what we can do for that?"
"Hm, I wonder if I can reinforce the Tiro Finale cannon?" you say speculatively. "Is durability a problem with it?"
Mami shakes her head, her hair drills tickling your nose. "Not anymore," she says. "But..." she chews her lip for a moment. "Do you think you could handle a firing mechanism?"
"Probably?" you say.
"Fully automatic?" she hazards.
"... Probably?" you say, a slow grin starting to break out on your face. "Mami, are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"
"... Probably?" Mami says, imitating your inflection, right down to the pause.
You laugh, and poke her cheek with one finger. "Repeating Tiro Finale?"
She nods. "Mmmhm!"
"That is the
second best idea," you declare. "The best one being the chibi-Mami, of course."
Mami nods solemnly. "I'm glad you think so, Sabrina," she intones, just as grave.
You manage to hold it for a minute before dissolving into giggles, releasing Mami so you can laugh.
Mami starts to giggle, too, as the miniature her pads up with something shiny in her hands, which she holds up to, well, herself. Mami takes the thing, tucking it into her pockets.
"H-hey," you manage. "Should I try making a chibi too?"
Mami pauses, her eyes going wide. She starts nodding vigorously. "Yes!" she manages. "Yes, you should!"
[] Write-in
=====
Next vote will be Good morning Mitakihara, as well as Homura arriving - please write-in for those!
]Do the voices!
