"So I was thinking," said Madoka, "that if we're going to play house, Hitomi would really be the princess, because she'd be better at it."

warm breeze, rustling of leaves. postmeridie.

"Well, she does get a lot of practice," said Sayaka.

sunlight through the leaves on the babbling brook

"That's very kind of you, Madoka, but I don't mind if you play the princess sometimes. It's important to share." she'd have a lot of fun, too

"But then I had an idea!" said Madoka. "Hitomi can be the princess, and Sayaka can be the knight, and I can be, like, a ballerina, which is basically as cool as a princess, but different."

aren't you a little too old to be playing ballerina princess

"Hmm. I'm not necessarily against it, I suppose, but —"

"Great!" exclaimed Sayaka, leaping up on a parapet, brandishing a sword, striking a pose. "You have nothing to fear, your majesty." Madoka said nothing, but ruffled her tutu, and curtsied.

well on the other hand I suppose it would be a little rude not to play along

"Well, if that's the case," said the dreamer, taking out the tea box, "I suppose I should prepare some tea." Chabako temae. The outdoor ceremony. Harmony. Respect. Purity. Tranquility. Madoka was a good ballerina; her smile was innocent, her manner gentle. The quiet bravery of the vulnerable. It was a good dance, elegant, like a swan, and delicate, like a well brewed cup of tea. Tea. The dance was a distraction. The sleeve of her kimono knocked over a cup. The tea spilled.

Inelegance.

Failure. Shame.

Panic.

She sat up in bed and the blanket slid off the side to the floor. A dull glow of light in the east window. Not quite dawn. Relax. Deep breaths. It's okay. It was just a nightmare. What had even happened in the dream, anyway? She wasn't quite sure. She was glad that Madoka got to be a ballerina, though, she was very pretty. Wait. Madoka's not a ballerina... Why am I even dreaming of playground things, anyway? Dreams are weird. She plopped her head back down.

Maybe she should get back to sleep.

Maybe she should stop feeling ashamed about messing up the tea ceremony. It was only a dream.

Maybe she should give up on both of those and just wake up and start the day, take a few extra moments to get ahead on homework.

Soft pillow, soft nightgown, soft sheets, soft slippers on soft carpet. soft morning twilight, soft glow of the desk lamp.

You could always work a few days ahead in English. What was this stuck in the workbook? An envelope? ... A letter.

She grabbed her phone from where it was charging.

hey madoka it's almost 5am and your probably alseep but I can't get back to sleep and I think I just found another love letter in my school papers and my heart feels funny should i open it?

i opened it and it's a lot nicer than the other one but he says my eyes are like avocados.

i guess that's supposed to be a good thing though?

i mean it's very original at least, and the rest is articulate

okay i'm going to put away my phone now and do english but i'll see you in a little while

"Right. English. You can do this," she assured herself. "Take deep breaths."

—

warm breeze, rustling of leaves. postmeridie.

"You're a little later than usual."

"Shush, you," replied Sayaka. "I only hit snooze twice. Everything's fine."

"If you say so," smiled Hitomi.

"Good morning, guys!" called out Madoka, hurrying into the clearing.

"Good morning!"

"What took you so long, Madoka?" enquired Sayaka. Oh, Sayaka. "Look at you with your cute ribbons!"

"You think so? They're not too flashy?" asked Madoka.

"I think they look lovely."

Sayaka made a bit of a show about needing to hurry on account of Madoka's epic lateness, and ran out ahead of the others, and they all played at running to catch up, but the three were soon walking normally again, talking.

"My mom said that if a boy can't say he loves you to your face, he's not worth your time," offered Madoka.

"Your mom is way cool, Madoka! I mean she's smart, gorgeous and successful," proclaimed Sayaka.

"If only I could make up my mind as easily as that."

"If only everyone could have your problems," said Sayaka.

It's okay. She doesn't know what she's saying.

"You know, she's right," said Madoka. "I wish someone would send me a love letter some time. It'd be nice to get one."

"Ah, now I get it," said Sayaka, mischievously, "you want to be as beautiful and popular as Hitomi here, don't ya? I bet that's why you're wearing those ribbons to change your image."

don't put it to her like that, it's not like her regular image is wrong, just sort of... little girl-y.

"That's not true!" protested Madoka, "and my mom picked these out and..."

"You tricked your mom into telling you the secret to being popular, didn't you?" Sayaka beamed. "Well, I'm not gonna let that happen!"

Madoka blushed. "No! No, stop it! No!"

"You're just too cute! I'm not gonna let you be popular with the boys. You're all mine, Madoka; you will be my bride!"

no! you can't have her! you can't take her away! We were friends first, you know! You... you are just Sayaka being Sayaka right now, aren't you.

She closed her eyes, and in a practiced gesture, put her hand to her mouth.

"ahem"

The school's bell rang out, Westminster chimes. Simulated bells.

Take deep breaths.

—

There was a new transfer student, miss Akemi, and was honestly looking as if she had designs on Madoka too.

"Will you please come with me?" asked the interloper. "... To the nurses office."

That's ... not some sort of a euphemism for something, is it?

She squirmed.

Take deep breaths.

—

Madoka finished explaining.

"That's so moe it makes me sick!" declared Sayaka.

"This has to be a misunderstanding, Are you positive you've never met her before?"

Madoka explained, or something.

Sayaka was her usual bundle of laughs about it. "I got it all figured out. You guys knew each other in the past life, and fate has reached across time and space to bring you back together again."

Thanks for nothing, Sayaka. She took note of the time. She'd have to disarm the situation quickly.

"In your dream, what happened when you met her?"

"That's the thing," replied Madoka, "I can't really remember what happened in it. All I know is that it was really strange and spooky."

"If you want my opinion," she said, "I think it's entirely possibly you met Miss Akemi somewhere before. You might not remember meeting her, but your subconscious certainly took note of it. When you were having that dream, your subconscious simply brought up the image of her." It's fine. It's perfectly normal. Definitely not fate.

Sayaka wasn't having it. "Seriously? That's a heck of a coincidence, don't you think?"

More of a coincidence than "fate reaching across time and space?" Sorry, dear, she thought, but what she actually said was simply, "Hehe, perhaps." And then, "uh-oh, look how late it's gotten. Excuse me, but I really should be going now."

"Is it piano today or classical dance?" asked the knight.

"Tea Ceremony lessons today. Even though our exams are coming up, my mother still wants me to continue taking them," she explained.

"Yeah," said Sayaka, "there's another reason to be glad I wasn't born a rich girl."

"We should get going too," said Madoka.

"Madoka, you wanna hit the music store on the way home?" asked Sayaka.

"Okay," she replied, "something for Kyosuke again?"

"Yeah, maybe."

Hitomi nodded approval. "Have fun shopping!" That's right, she reassured herself, if Sayaka actually had the idea in her head to make Madoka her bride, she wouldn't be teasing about it, she'd just go off and do it. But you can tell she really likes Kyosuke, because she's shy about it, and blushes a little.

—

She smiled on the way to her lesson. Chabako temae, the outdoor ceremony. Harmony. Respect. Purity. Tranquility.

While she was practicing, Sayaka made Madoka her bride.