I sat there, alone, numb to the noises in the station around me.
Who was I again?
Footsteps. A girl with long red hair is walking towards me. Is she a friend?
...Kyouko. That's her name. The girl who steals food. The girl who hadn't cared until she learned just what kind of monsters the two of them are...
"Finally, I found ya!"
Kyouko comes over and sits on the seat next to me, pulling out a package of chips to munch on. Does she ever not have something to eat in her pocket?
"So how much longer you gonna do the stubborn thing, huh?" Kyouko asks, popping a chip into her mouth.
Being stubborn is the reason I felt so horrible - that much I remember. It's hard to forget...
"I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble." I say dully. Apologizing doesn't matter much now, not this late. It doesn't ease the pain in my heart, not even a little.
Odd how it hurts so much in my chest when my soul's not even there anymore. Maybe I'm finally feeling the hole left behind.
"Seriously? Doesn't sound like you at all." Kyouko says around a mouthful of chip.
"Yeah, you're right," I sigh, "I guess I just don't care anymore. I can't remember...what I thought was so important. What was worth protecting, you know? It's all a blank now - doesn't make sense anymore."
"Hey, c'mon." She's trying to cheer me up. I don't say anything. I simply uncover the blackened Soul Gem in my hand. Kyouko sees it and gasps, horrified.
"Balance means good and bad have to zero themselves out, right? That's what you said...or something like it. I think I understand what you mean now." Good and bad. Hope and despair. They push and pull on each other like the moon and the ocean.
"The good thing is, I did save a few people, but the bad thing is, I got angrier, and my heart filled up with envy and hate. It got so bad, I even hurt my best friend." I can't even remember that girl's name now. I only know that I've lost something, enough to make the hole in my chest ache with pain and loneliness.
"Sayaka, your Soul Gem!" Kyouko exclaims. She's still trying to wrap her mind around all that's happening.
"For all the happiness you wish for someone," I continue numbly, "someone else gets cursed with equal misery. That's how it works for magical girls, and that's how it is for me."
I finally turn to look at Kyouko, revealing the tears that are burning in my eyes. A single drop falls from my face.
"I was stupid, so stupid!"
The soft sound of the teardrop hitting the Soul Gem reverberates through the room.
And in between one heartbeat and another, Sayaka Miki stops existing.