You take a deep breath, closing your eyes for a second before letting the breath out. Mami touches your elbow, drawing your attention, and when you look at her, she pulls you into a proper hug.
"Thanks, Mami," you mumble into her hair, leaning into the hug for a moment before straightening. "I... well, thank you, Homura. Thank you, Sayaka. For... being here, for helping me."
Sayaka grins. "Yeah, yeah. What're friends for?"
"Rionna is a danger to us all," Homura murmurs as she returns, eyes fixed on the window through which you sent the Soul Gem. "You're welcome."
"I..." you glance out of the window, too, at the tiny speck that's almost too far to see. "Alright. One moment, let me just... grab her things."
There's a tiny, uncomfortable squirm of discomfort in your gut as you sweep Grief through Rionna's hotel room, grabbing all of her personal items and
twisting them into your hammerspace. Rionna's body is gone, of course, Homura having already claimed it. There are
plenty of reasons to do that - among them, she's definitely want all these things back later, especially her body. And you don't want the hotel staff asking questions.
But that last reason leaves you with a little twist of sour worry, that you
are effectively just vanishing Rionna. For a good reason, but even so.
"Righty!" Sayaka says cheerfully, bouncing on her toes. "We're gonna go get the antimagic enchantment now, right? I mean, I can keep this up, but I don't want to keep it up
forever."
"Yeah," you say, rubbing your face. "C'mon, I'll fly us there."
Mami sticks close to you, hugging your arm to herself as you build a flight platform right by the window.
"I'm OK, Mami," you say, giving Mami a warm smile and wrapping your arm around her. "I really am. And, just... I feel better, just from having you here." You look around at your friends. "From having
all of you here."
"Yeah, yeah," Sayaka says with a grin. She clambers carefully out of the window and onto the platform, one hand held out and antimagic pulses still channelled through her palm. You all climb out after her.
With Rionna's body tucked away in Homura's shield, you carefully reel Rionna's Soul Gem back in, watching for
any sign of activity. Sayaka grabs the Gem, cupping it between her palms with the antimagic beating out a steady tattoo.
"Hey," Sayaka says, as you lift off towards the Mikuni mansion. "I should grab her power, right?"
"I-" your eyes widen, and you hold up a hand. "Sorry, hold off on that for a second? Let me figure out something."
"Eh?" Sayaka says. She blinks at you, confused. "Eh. 'kay?"
Rionna's powers deal with the
Soul. And that means Witches. You can't
ask Sayaka to deal with that. You can't.
Rionna's shades are still out there.
Rionna's shades are
people. Enslaved. That's why you'd disagreed with Rionna in the first place, a fundamental disagreement. She was
enslaving people, people's
Souls. You've shut Rionna down, but... her shades are, presumably, still out there.
You have one -just
one- way you
might be able to reach them still. Sayaka could copy Rionna's powers. But-
Witches. Sayaka doesn't know.
And yet...
"Sabrina?" Mami asks, peering at you in concern.
"Sorry," you say, trying for a smile. "Just... thinking."
"Something to do with her powers?" Sayaka asks.
"Yeah, pretty much," you say, glancing back to catch Homura's eye. She nods slightly.
"Hunh," Sayaka says, frowning. "Yeah, ick. I guess I get what you mean. Raising the dead and all."
... wrong end of the stick, Sayaka, but you're not even sure you should raise it.
But-
You're here to
help.
And yet you can't
ask this of Sayaka.
"Yooooou know what?" Sayaka says. "How about I copy her power, see whether I can... I dunno, do something about her shades, and then just... not use it after handling that? Hell, you can take the power if you want."
Which would...
You glare out at the frozen greys of Mitakihara City, slowing your flight to give you time to think.
Well, you don't know if there are any passive aspects -like sensing Witches- to Rionna's powers. And more than that, you don't even know if those powers
work that way. Can Sayaka simply release them all? Should you be releasing them all?
And you don't want to pressure Sayaka. You don't want to pressure her into this when you've already got all this...
thisness.
"Yo? Earth to Sabrina?" Sayaka says.
You sigh.
"I don't... there are things I wanna say," you admit. "But I'm
afraid of saying them, because I'm afraid of the consequences. It's a nasty, tangled web of
things that I can't even really
vocalize without problems coming up."
"Hah," Sayaka says. "Like those secrets you asked me to think about?"
"Yeah," you admit. "I... yeah. I don't want to bring it up because it isn't bloody
fair. It's a stupid thing where you can't make an informed decision about knowing the details without in the first place knowing about the details." You groan, covering your face with one hand. "I'm mentally exhausted and just
irritated about the entire mess with Rionna and I want it to be over and to go home and cuddle Mami and rest. One out of four isn't bad, I suppose."
You hug Mami, and she snuggles right up against your side as you coast through the sky over Mitakihara. Her hand reaches up to comb slowly through your hair, scratching gently over your scalp. You lean into the touch.
"I'm here, Sabrina," Mami murmurs.
"I know," you say, smiling at her. "I just... yeah. I hate this."
"You know what? Hit me," Sayaka says, making a face. "Yeah, maybe it isn't fair to me. That's... eh. I can take a bit of unfairness."
"Are you sure, Sayaka?" you say. You don't
like this. It feels uncomfortably like the same kind of pressure the Incubators exert, putting someone in a position where they might be the only one who can do anything to force a decision.
"Yeah," Sayaka says, and grins. "It's about those shades, isn't it?"
"It... is, yeah," you say, sighing. "But... do you remember those secrets I mentioned? That I told you to think about whether you want to know? Rionna knows, and she implied she knows because of her powers. I... don't want to force you to
have to know this stuff."
"Hrm," Sayaka says, scowling down at the Soul Gem. "I... I guess I see why you didn't want to tell me. How about I just... try and not look? Would that work?"
"Yeah," you say. Mami tightens her hug around you, and you lean against her, savouring the sensation. "I mean no, uh- I mean yeah, that's why I didn't want to tell you. I don't want to pressure you into doing things. But no, I don't know whether that would work. For all I know it's a passive thing."
"Hrm," Sayaka says, falling silent. "Well... I've got a bit of time to think about it? Until... well, before Homura lets go of the timestop at least?"
You sigh. "Sayaka, I..." you close your eyes. "I really,
really didn't want to bring this up, because I'm afraid you'll force yourself to do it because... well, you're
you."
"Yeah, well," Sayaka says. "I mean... the thing about having power is that if you can help, you
should, right?"
"That's precisely my point," you say, snorting. "Also, I don't know how long Rionna's shades will last, without her at the helm. They might fade instantly, or they might, well,
not. I don't know."
Sayaka laughs, the noise swallowed up almost instantly by the timestop, and the humor fades from her face. "I... yeah."
"Nnngh," you say. "Change of topic for now. Any idea what we can do we Rionna's Gem?"
"Put her in jail," Sayaka says, shrugging.
"Keep her until you've figured out what to do with her," Homura murmurs. "Jail or not."
"I mean, that's why we're getting an antimagic enchantment, right?" Sayaka asks, shrugging. "Stick her Soul Gem in a box or something until we figure it out."
"She attacked you, Sabrina," Mami says with a firm nod. "I don't think anyone would blame you."
You squeeze Mami a bit. "I know, but what I meant was more of, uh... where do we physically
keep her Soul Gem while we decide-and-or-negotiate-with-Miss-Tsuruya? I was thinking maybe I could keep her in my hammerspace?"
"Does it matter?" Homura asks. You can hear the frown in her voice. "No one's going to try and steal her."
"Uh," you say. "Well, that's
true. I
was worried she might be able to operate as
just a Soul Gem, but..." You glance at the Gem cradled between Sayaka's fingers. "It doesn't seem to be the case?"
"Ah," Mami says. "In that light... it
does make sense to keep her in a more secure location. But antimagic should count for much, shouldn't it?"
Sayaka frowns. "She...
isn't conscious, right? It would be horrible if she were, and just... cut off from everything. I'm not sure she deserves that."
"No," you say. "I'd be able to sense that, even with antimagic suppression."
"Right," Sayaka says. "Yeah, that makes sense."
You all fall silent after that, the timestop swallowing your thoughts as you glide towards the Mikuni mansion.
They might be the Kures, but it's still the Mikuni mansion if only for the delightfully alliterative name.
You sigh as you land once more in the familiar rose garden. That one uprooted rosebush is still there, roots slowly reaching once more for the soil. Homura stirs behind you.
"Do you need more time to think?" she murmurs.
"I..." Sayaka makes a face as she stands, hopping off the platform to land on grey-hued grass. "No, I don't. I'm going to try and use a clone to copy Rionna's powers, and then see what I can do. The clone isn't
much of a help, but it's a bit of an insulating layer, and... Sabrina, after I'm done, you can keep the power for me. I don't want it."
"If you're absolutely sure, Sayaka?" you ask.
"I'm sure," Sayaka says, nodding.
Mami exhales quietly and stands, giving Sayaka a warm, encouraging smile. "Sayaka, you're braver than I am," she says quietly. "I'm not sure I would have the courage to try that."
You help Mami off the flight platform and pull her into a hug.
"Ehh," Sayaka says, blushing and scrubbing at the back of her neck. "Thanks. It's not really
courage, though. I just couldn't not do something. But anyway!"
She reaches under her cloak and pulls out one of her power gems, holding it up with a flourish. It vanishes, and she twirls dramatically,
two Sayakas stepping away from each other - one still holding Rionna's Soul Gem, antimagic pulsing between her palms.
You hug Mami close, burying your nose in her hair. She presses back against you, turning in your arms to keep an anxious eye on Sayaka. Homura's a silent presence, gaze just as intent.
"Let's try this!" the clone declares, and takes another power gem from Sayaka. She absorbs it, and reaches a single finger for the Soul Gem.
You hold your breath. You trust Sayaka. Even if she learns the truth about Soul Gems -about
Witches- you trust her not to blurt it out in front of Mami.
"Got it," the clone mutters. "Right. Shades..." She pauses, blinking. "Nothing. Huh."
"What do you mean, nothing?" Sayaka asks, scowling.
"I mean nothing!" the clone snaps back. "Like I'm trying not to look at things too much but I can get
that much. There's nothing out there!"
She flicks her hand, a clear, blue gem forming in her hands. "Bleh," she says, and frowns, looking up at you. "Yeah, Sabrina. There's nothing."
"... dammit," you mutter. "I don't... No, I'm sure you checked as much as you could. And you didn't see anything?"
The clone shrugs, and flips you the gem. "Nah," she says. "But I
did get a good look at... It's like there's supposed to be a network, you know? Strings stretching out and all that? Except I couldn't feel
anything. Just an empty spool."
You catch the gem and slip it into your pocket before sighing, and slumping against Mami. She leans back against your chest, tucking her head under your chin.
"I suppose in some ways it's a bit of a relief," you admit. "Selfish as it may seem. What's done is done, I suppose. I..."
It's
done. Sayaka can't reach the shades. Maybe they're gone, maybe they're still tied to Rionna or something. But you can maintain Rionna's Soul Gem, and... you're done with it.
"OK," you mutter. "OK. We're finished. Antimagic enchantment. Homura, could you..."
Homura nods, reaching for her shield.
Life floods back into the world, a rush of sound and colour. You tilt your head back, simply... breathing for a moment.
You hear the glass door scrape open.
"... Sabrina? And, uh, everyone?"
You open your eyes to spot Kirika, eyebrows quirked curiously. She's dressed in a set of pastel blue pajamas that look a size too large for her.
"Hey Kirika," you say. "Uh... sorry, did we interrupt something? Were you going to sleep?"
"Nah, just had a shower and decided to change," Kirika says, glancing at the Soul Gem in Sayaka's hands. "'s comfy, but it's not even eight. We sensed the antimagic from inside the house, what's happening?"
"Uhh," you say. "The explanation's a bit complicated, but I'm
hoping to get an antimagic enchantment from you, if that's alright?"
"Oh," Kirika says. "Sure."
"Why don't you come in?" Oriko emerges from the corridor, walking up to stand beside Kirika. She's similarly dressed in pajamas. "We can spare the time to talk."
"Erm..." you glance around at your friends. Sayaka shrugs, glancing at her clone just in time to see her vanish. Homura shrugs minutely, and Mami just hugs you.
"Yeah, sure," you say, smiling faintly.
"Then please," Oriko says, returning the smile and heading in. You all follow her into the house, Mami immediately claiming a corner of the sofa and pulling you down to cuddle with her. Sayaka plops down on the sofa furthest from the Kures, earning her a look of faint annoyance from Homura, who takes the seat beside you instead.
"'kinda enchantment do you want?" Kirika asks.
"Uh, hm," you say. "Something that's tuned to that Soul Gem Sayaka has?"
Oriko frowns sharply. "That's... her, isn't it?"
"It is," you say. "Soul manipulator who happens to be blonde and green-eyed. She... well, she was."
"I see," Oriko says, slumping back against the sofa.
"I really don't know," you admit with another sigh. "Suffice it to say we were at severe odds, and, well, here we are."
You need to have words with Nadia about this. The impression you got of Rionna from her was...
not anything like this.
"So..." Kirika says, smirking.
"Oh, sorry," you say, shaking your head. "Sorry, I'm still a bit scattered. Uhm. Something tuned to that Soul Gem Sayaka has, and uh... something small? I was thinking a box of some kind?"
"A band," Homura murmurs. "That can fit around the Soul Gem."
"That works too," you say. "Uh... do you have anything I could use to make the band with?"
Homura frowns, reaching behind her shield and evidently considering the matter for a moment before producing a fork.
You chuckle, grabbing the fork with a bit of Grief. "That works. Thanks, Homura."
It's the work of a moment to bend the fork into shape and pass it to Kirika, who grins and starts to enchant it.
"What happened?" Oriko says, frowning.
[x] Vent to your friends
[x] Snuggle with Mami
[x] Thank everyone
[] Talk to...
- [] Sayaka
-- [] About the secrets
-- [] About the powers
- [] Homura
-- [] Thank her for the help today
- [] Mami
-- [] Ask her to look at Rionna's flask
- [] Saito and Akemi
-- [] Tell them what happened
-- [] Apologise for running off without warning
- [] General
-- [] About Rionna's actions, their opinions, etc.
-- [] Something else?
[] Rionna
- [] Talk to Yuki about another prisoner
- [] Hang on to her for now
[] Write-in (word count limit: 150 words)
=====
Here we are, a day late. I'd really meant to get this up yesterday, but Sayaka was being difficult.
