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Puella Magi Adfligo Systema

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Office Complex pt. 28
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    • "Right..." you dither for a second, and then focus at Sayaka. "I'll answer that in a moment. There's a lot to say on that, because it's a big problem, and there's a lot to work on. I've got a lot on the docket, and there's stuff I'd dearly like your help and input on. But first of all, how are you feeling?"

    "I'm..." Sayaka rubs her face with one gloved hand. "It's horrible, Sabrina. It's terrifying to think that I could turn into a monster if I'm not careful. I couldn't have dreamed of something like this, and... yeah. I get why the big fuss about keeping this a secret. But I'm... I'm OK."

    She says it as if it's a revelation to herself, and then she nods decisively.

    "I'm OK," she says. "I'm scared. But I think it's perfectly reasonable to be, and... I can deal with it."

    You nod slowly, and grin at Sayaka, tucking Hildegarde back into your pocket.

    "OK," you say. "Last thing, then we'll get into the details. Would you mind standing up? And uh, brace yourself?"

    "Uh, ok?" Sayaka says. You dissolve the bench behind her as she stands and braces herself as instructed. "Why-"

    You pounce, pulling her into a hug that has her breath whooshing out of her lungs.

    "Thanks for listening, Sayaka," you mutter. "Thanks for choosing to listen. This... this means more than you know, to me. I hate, I hate keeping secrets and this is one of the big ones. Thank you for being cool about it."

    You feel a hesitant hand pat you on the back, Homura giving you a look you can't quite decipher. A flash of... guilt?

    Ah.

    "C'mon, what else was I gonna do?" Sayaka says. "'sfar as I'm concerned, listening was the right thing to do. And I can help, so... so much the better."

    "Yeah, well, thank you. I mean it," you say, releasing Sayaka before turning to Homura. You wait until she meets your gaze before giving her a gentle smile. "And Homura. Please don't blame yourself for forcing me to keep secrets, yeah? You didn't force me to - I chose to, because I get it. Like... I'm keeping this secret from Mami still, because I know it will hurt her, and that's on me. Alright?"

    You hold her gaze for a moment until her eyes waver a bit - you'd hug her, but you know she's a little uncomfortable with it in front of other people. Instead, you settle for clasping her shoulder gently.

    Sayaka snorts, attention now focused on Homura. "And you. I've got your back too, you know that, right?" She props her fists on her hips, arching an eyebrow at the other girl. "We're on the same side, and like..." She wrinkles her nose. "Yeah, I get it. I'm not sure I wouldn't come off as a weirdo if I had to deal with this shit alone."

    "Hey, Homura's not a weirdo," you protest.

    "You're not a good judge, weirdo," Sayaka says, sticking her tongue out at you.

    "Oh, real mature," you say. You squeeze Homura's shoulder gently. "I mean it, though. We're all on the same side, and... I hate secrets, but I choose to keep them. I understand why they're necessary."

    Homura nods, violet gaze sliding away from you to stare into the frozen city. The shadows seem deeper, in her timestop, the lifeless greys accentuating the evening pall. Her eyes flick northwards - northwards, to the Kanames', then back to you, then to Sayaka.

    "Thank you," she says quietly. "For understanding."

    "'course," Sayaka says, and grins. "Honestly under all that you-ness you're pretty nice, so... I'm glad I got to meet you properly, transfer student."

    Homura sighs faintly.

    "Anyway," Sayaka says, her good cheer fading a little as she returns her attention to you. She looks around for the Grief chair - long since vanished, but now instantly reformed for her. "So, what are we doing about all this?"

    You seat yourself back down, too, and hum thoughtfully.

    "There's a lot to cover, so... I'll start with a high level overview of sorts," you say, bobbing imaginary weights in either hand, up and down to emphasize your points. "Prevention and cure. I mean, it's not a disease, but the idea applies, you know? And honestly, you can help with both."

    "Tell me more," Sayaka says, nodding soberly. She clasps her hands on her knees, attention focused fully on you - the very picture of a model, alert student, and without a trace of mockery, at that.

    "Prevention..." You make a face. "We're already working on it - you included, Sayaka. Making sure that magical girls, all magical girls, everywhere, will no longer have to fight and scrabble for resources to survive. It's slow going, out of necessity, because I can only reach out to so many at once, and even if I could..."

    You grimace, irritated.

    "Time, time, time, my kingdom for a moment more time and yes I'm perfectly aware of the irony," you say, disposing of the grimace in favour of a grin for Homura and the frozen greys of the time stopped world. "I can't possibly impose on Homura for everything, but in turn, I need all the help I can get."

    "And that's where I come in?" Sayaka says.

    "Not just, but there's so much to do, and every pair of hands I can trust will help," you say with a firm nod. "Clear Seeds are a stopgap solution. They work, but they're... still Grief Seeds."

    "Right," Sayaka says, pulling her own out and looking at it. "... yeah."

    "I'm trying to figure out a replacement," you say. "One that doesn't require a Grief Seed as a base. For now... Clear Seeds are better than the status quo, but it's still not great."

    "Right," Sayaka nods. "And with all the powers I'm accumulating, I could maybe help there?"

    "Maybe!" you say with a pleased grin. "We can get into the details later, or another time, we'll see. And in the interests of not getting bogged down in said details... curing. That is to say, reversing a Witch-out, turning a Witch back into the magical girl she used to be."

    "Yeah?" Sayaka says. "It can't be easy, or somebody would have done it already. Or... well, I guess it could require some specific powers put together."

    "There are two parts to answering that," you say. "I mean, yeah, it clearly isn't an easy task. It's been tried before, and people have failed disastrously - from what I've heard, conglomerate Witches are a frequent outcome."

    "Oof, that... doesn't sound fun," Sayaka says, wincing as her imagination clearly treats her to the mental image. "I... oh. Oh."

    "Pretty much, yeah," you say glumly. "It's the kind of thing that gets a bad rep. Hell, both Nadia and Miss Tsuruya kind of freaked out when they heard I was trying it. But." You hold up a finger. "Both that reputation and the failures could very well be attributed to the same source - Kyuubey."

    "Go on?" Sayaka says, brows knotting. "I think I get where you're going with this, but... yeah, go on."

    "It wants us to Witch out," you say. "Maybe not immediately. Some people are more useful alive, like Mami - she was being used to recruit." You're all but spitting the words, you think. Your voice sounds distant to your ears, hard and angry. "But at the end of the day - in Witching, we provide the biggest returns on its investment."

    "So he... it interferes with that kind of thing," Sayaka mutters. She looks thoughtful, scuffing her boots against the rough concrete tiles of the rooftop.

    "It's a difficult, fraught avenue of experimentation in the first place," you say with a sigh. "Because who would be the most motivated to delve into it? Someone who just saw their friend, their comrade, their girlfriend turn into a horrible monster?"

    You spread a fist to an open palm.

    "A dangerous task, carried out under emotionally fraught circumstances," you say. "All it would take is the right word in the wrong place, and maybe not even that. Couple that with the Incubator rumour-mongering..."

    "That's one hell of a problem," Sayaka mutters. "Right."

    You blink at her, anger draining away in an instant to be replaced with a fresh tank of concern. Her Soul Gem is clean enough -you're used to your powers, and monitoring Soul Gems in your presence comes as easily as breathing- but you cleanse it anyway.

    "Are you OK, Sayaka?" you say, looking over her carefully. She doesn't...

    She doesn't honestly seem that upset, which you're glad for, certainly.

    "Yeah..." Sayaka says, and catches your eye. She puffs out her chest and grins. "Seriously, I am. It's a lot. It's scary and freaky and horrifying. But it's like..." She looks between you and Homura. "You're dealing with it. And I'm, I'm, super privileged that I wound up in a group that has guaranteed safety net. Two nets, even, you and Homura. Heck, you can make stupid Star Wars jokes about it, though that might be because you are as big a weirdo as Homura is, but in the opposite direct..."

    Sayaka trails off, eyes first widening, then narrowing at you.

    "From a certain point of view?!" she demands. "Kyuubey does not deserve to be Obi Wan Kenobi!"

    "I mean, you could also interpret it as Homura and I being collectively Obi Wan," you muse philosophically. "Also, don't you want to be Anakin Skywalker?"

    "No, because I don't mean to get my limbs chopped off," Sayaka retorts. "Darth Vader's pretty cool, though."

    Homura shifts slightly, and you turn to her, swallowing your retort. You should probably not waste as much of her time as you are, you suppose.

    "Sabrina is a bigger weirdo than me," Homura states in the same calm, clinical tone she always uses, the words spoken with steady gravity and measured intent-

    "... hey," you protest as the actual words sink in.

    "No, no, she's got a point," Sayaka says, leaning back and nodding at Homura.

    "Ugh," you grumble, folding your arms. You catch Homura's eye - she's smiling, just the tiniest bit. You beam at her. "Surrounded by traitors, I am."

    "You don't get to pull off Yoda, either," Sayaka says, rolling her eyes.

    "Anyway. Back to the matter at hand..." You sigh, drumming your fingers against your thigh. "Kyuubey... We aren't in a position to fight it directly, yet. Killing it does no good, because it's got extra bodies it can just... teleport in? I think it teleports. Homura, do you have any idea?"

    She shrugs.

    "It might as well teleport," you conclude. "It's also capable of... memory stuff, as you know."

    Sayaka scowls deeply. "Right. I remember."

    "It also has influence over media and the spread of information," you say, shaking your head. "So no, we can't face it directly. Not yet. But when we find out how, when we have the support, we are going to end this whole rotten system it's built."

    "Sounds like a hard ask," Sayaka says, grimacing. "If it's got that much support..."

    "It's not going to be easy," you admit. "I mean..." You wave at Mitakihara, frozen in dull greys. "We're here, hiding under Homura's power, because we're afraid it can overhear us. We're fighting from a disadvantage. But that doesn't mean it's impossible, or that we shouldn't."

    "I'm not saying it is!" Sayaka says. "I'm just saying it seems... I have no idea where we'd even begin."

    "To belabor an analogy, we're the Rebellion," you say, flashing a sudden grin. "It was always going to be an uphill fight."

    Sayaka snickers, and rolls her eyes. "Right, right."

    "So... welcome to the Rebellion," you say, spreading both arms wide. "That's the high level summary. Do you have any questions? Need a break to think it over?"

    "Yeah, I mean, uh, no, no break," Sayaka says. "I've got a billion questions. First of all is... who is we? The three of us? I get the impression you've been at this for a bit."

    "Nadia is... neutral-ish, but helping us to spread the word," you say with an even nod. "Kanna Niko is actively researching the topic, and the Fukushima group is helping with experiments. But I should emphasize that we're taking this really slowly, because I don't want to hurt the souls I'm trying to help."

    "Makes sense," Sayaka agrees. "So, Miss Tsuruya... figures. And Miss Kanna. I can talk to them?"

    "Yes, but remember - telepathy isn't secure," you say.

    "Ugh, right. Got it," Sayaka says, nodding. "That really sucks, but... OK. We're the underdogs, we've got to be careful. Right." Sayaka nods thoughtfully to herself, then looks at you. "So where do I come in?"

    "Well. You've already been a huge help with the outreach efforts," you say, smiling. "I don't think I need to tell you that you've been a huge help there. But more pertinently, now that you're in the know..."

    You gesture at her belly, where her Soul Gem shines bright and clear. "Your Wish gave you, in effect, the ability to scan Soul Gems, and create ersatz copies. I don't think that's a coincidence, considering what you Wished for," you say, and hold up a warning finger. "But - don't try it by yourself, and definitely don't try it at home."

    "Hmm?" Sayaka says.

    "I don't have your power, but I've... tried tapping into a Witch before," you say. "And I... I felt its suffering. It wasn't..." Words fail you, and you shake your head. "It's not an experience I'm eager to repeat, and it's not something I want you to experience - not without a spotter, at the very least, and hopefully not without some kind of precautions."

    "Right," Sayaka says, nodding thoughtfully. "OK, I guess that makes sense. I won't experiment on Grief Seeds without someone watching... I mean, yeah, I guess that's common sense."

    "Not if I had to remind you," you say, gently chiding. You catch Homura's eye, nodding slightly. Sayaka's recklessness is something that needs to be curbed before it gets her in trouble. "Seriously. It's dangerous, Sayaka."

    "I know," Sayaka says with a sigh. "I know. I won't. I promise."

    "Good," you say with a smile. "Now, you have more questions?"

    "I did, but..." Sayaka frowns. "I... think what I need is some time to think this all over." She gives you a sheepish smile. "This is just... It's a lot. But I know we've got it handled in the short term, and I know we've got plans moving forward. I'll want to know more about those plans at some point, but..."

    Sayaka waves her arms, a grand, pinwheeling gesture as if to encompass the entire world.

    "I've got a place in all this," she says. "I'm part of this, and that's... important. There's a place for me to make this right."

    [] How do you respond?
    [] Any last points to bring up?
    [] Back to Mami!
    - [] Invite Sayaka along
    - [] Conversation with Homura
    - [] Conversation with Mami
    - [] How do you tell Mami about Kyouko?
    - [x] Dinner!
    [] Write-in (word count limit: 150 words)
    -[X] Almost all magical girls - even the most heinous ones - are ultimately victims of this system. And often the most ruthless and vicious ones are the ones who know the most: they'd do anything to avoid suffering that fate.
    --[X] You strongly suspect this is why the Akiko of the Sendai group was so harsh with her "taxes" upon the University Girls.
    --[X] With the recent outreach in Tokyo in particular, you think that the truth about witches was shared in that Council Meeting, and Chiyoda used memory magic to cover it up.
    -[X] Explain your current theories regarding Clear Seeds and their absorption of Hope.

    =====​

    Last few points for Sayaka - and I do mean last few. :V
     
    Last edited:
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    • Firnagzen said:
    "No, because I don't mean to get my limbs chopped off," Sayaka retorts. "Darth Vader's pretty cool, though."

    Homura shifts slightly, and you turn to her, swallowing your retort. You should probably not waste as much of her time as you are, you suppose.

    "Sabrina is a bigger weirdo than me," Homura states in the same calm, clinical tone she always uses, the words spoken with steady gravity and measured intent-

    "... hey," you protest as the actual words sink in.

    "No, no, she's got a point," Sayaka says, leaning back and nodding at Homura.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    It's treason then.

    Firnagzen said:
    "To belabor an analogy, we're the Rebellion," you say, flashing a sudden grin. "It was always going to be an uphill fight."

    Sayaka snickers, and rolls her eyes. "Right, right."

    "So... welcome to the Rebellion," you say, spreading both arms wide.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Sabrina, please don't tempt the devil, she's sitting right there.
     
    Wow, Homura even made a joke! In front of Sayaka, no less. It's really nice to see her testing the waters and getting affirmation.

    And Sayaka is taking it quite well. But it makes sense--she's been given hope, a direction, and methodology.
     
    Seems like we don't have much more to say here, I think we can let this go with some parting hugs.

    [x] "Attagirl, don't hesitate to contact me or Homura if you have any questions. Securely if possible of course."
    -[x] One last hug, thank her again, you really can't say enough how much of a relief this is to have off your chest, even only partially.
    [x] Back to Mami!
    -[x] Invite Sayaka along but don't put any pressure on, she just had a bombshell dropped and needs to think, you'll understand if she'd rather take some time for herself.

    This is how I'd start, not sure about the rest though, and it's late where I am...

    - [] Conversation with Homura
    - [] Conversation with Mami
    - [] How do you tell Mami about Kyouko?
    - [x] Dinner!
    [] Write-in
     
    Firnagzen said:
    "To belabor an analogy, we're the Rebellion," you say, flashing a sudden grin. "It was always going to be an uphill fight."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Just have to fight uphill until we have the hight ground.
    Firnagzen said:
    "Sabrina is a bigger weirdo than me," Homura states in the same calm, clinical tone she always uses, the words spoken with steady gravity and measured intent-

    "... hey," you protest as the actual words sink in.

    "No, no, she's got a point," Sayaka says, leaning back and nodding at Homura.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    If this trend continues Sayaka and Homura will team up against Sabrina more and more. I can't wait.

    Good stuff all around.
     
    This...this is a triumph for both Sayaka and Homura. So satisfying!

    Go figure having one of the strongest Puella Magi abilities while being part of a downright unfairly powerful team gave Sayaka the emotional wherewithal to take the hardest truth there is to being a Puella Magi.
     
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