Flowers
"You know as well as I do, that she's long forgotten about you."
Note: dis is Alternate Universe, u've been warned.
Angels and Grim Reaper were more like fictional characters made up in books and fairy tales to teach kids about life and death. No one would know the truth, and even if they did, it would have been too late to tell to the living.
But not for Akemi Homura.
She was a Grim Reaper herself, suspended from hell and heaven and sent to Earth for fifty years as a form of punishment for tweaking with time. Homura had no idea when she became a Grim Reaper, but it must had been centuries ago, to actually make her feel that her punishment to stay on Earth for just fifty years was too lenient. There was no reason to complain.
Most of the other Grim Reapers shook their head, not able to understand her silly actions. For the Angels, they took pity of her instead, wondering if being a Grim Reaper was even suitable for her in the first place.
Homura wondered about it too.
It all happened on that simple and normal night. She was tasked to collect a soul of a child who was due to die in a car accident in a local hospital, which she had visited over a million times. This was basically a mundane task, one she should have no problem dealing in the first place.
But when she saw the child, something inside her broke.
And she couldn't do it.
Instead of reporting about her failure, she messed with the books too. The timing of the child's death was altered, and she added another 70 years before sealing it with her powers. It was something all Angels and Grim Reapers could do with their powers, yet was forbidden by God because of his rule about fate and destiny.
So she did it. But was found out in the next split second when she was teleported back to her post.
The rest was history.
And here Akemi Homura was, before a lonely and empty piece of grassland she found and deemed as her new home for the next fifty years. She didn't have an identity on Earth, just her own name in a body of a teenage girl with purple eyes and black long hair.
It isn't that bad. She drawled to herself.
Homura began a small task that she thought could help her pass time. She began planting flowers and trees, creating life and things that her Angel friends told her about. It was weird to be watching things grow when she was always in charge of taking one's life away. Maybe everyone was right, she just wasn't cut out for Grim Reaper.
A year later, she was sitting in the field of daffodils alone, watching the yellow flowers dancing in the soft wind that blew by. With life surrounding her, Homura felt like something inside her was changing-
"Hello!"
Homura blinked.
She glanced up from her feet and looked up at the small hill behind her. Standing on top of it was a small girl with pink pig-tails, waving animatedly at her.
A feeling of Deja vu swirled in her chest, and it didn't take her long to realize why. Homura slowly stood up from her position.
The little girl skipped down the slope, carefully walking across the field to prevent herself from stepping onto the flowers. After some effort, she stood beside Homura, her height barely reaching Homura's chest.
"Hello! Nice flowers you got here!" The girl beamed.
Homura's lips twitched. "Y-Yeah."
"I'm here for my summer vacation and staying over at my Grandma's house, I still remember how empty this place was!" Abruptly, she began walking around to sniff some daffodils. "What's your name?"
"I'm-I'm Homura."
"Homura-chan!" Madoka smiled brightly. "My name is Kaname Madoka!"
That was it. She finally confirmed that this was the same child that Homura saved, the one she couldn't watch and take her soul away from this world. Homura remembered the pink hair, however, her face was pale and she wasn't awake at that point of time. But she also remembered that name plate beside the hospital bed, which stated the exact name that the girl introduced herself.
Homura couldn't believe this. Out of the millions of life she took away, she saved one. And here she was, healthy and strong. A feeling of satisfaction was pumping deep inside her chest, an emotion that was far greater and powerful she ever felt even with the hundred of flowers she had groomed and cultivated for the year around her.
The two of them talked for the whole afternoon about everything. The bubbly child did most of the talking, and Homura had been listening and offering input when needed.
"What's the flower called?"
"Daffodils."
"Why is it yellow?"
"The colour of the daffodil is linked to the pollinators it attracts. In order to produce the next generation, flowers have a lot of tricks to draw in insects to move the pollen to the stamen. Competition is fierce for those critters. The information for what colour is best for the daffodil after thousands of years-"
"You're making it more confusing!"
"I think so too."
"Do you like daffodils?"
"Neutral."
"What is Neutral?"
"Neither a yes or a no."
"Well, I like daffodils, it's pretty. Like the sun!"
"True."
"So do you like daffodils now?"
"I guess so."
"Bent down for a bit!"
With a raised eyebrow, Homura did as told and Madoka plucked a flower, setting it on the side of Homura's head.
"You look pretty!"
Homura slowly pat the flower on her hair before looking down at Madoka.
"I think white will suit your pink hair." She softly said.
"Really?"
"We can try it next year."
o0o
The next year went by and Homura easily grew her field into a land of white tulips. She wouldn't consider it harder to grow than daffodils, but she had a year to get the hang of this planting and cultivating plan. Sucking souls out of people's body was so much easier than this, but she wouldn't say she miss it at all.
Madoka came like she said she would last year, and she appeared just like how it happened the first time. Homura was carelessly minding her business in the middle of the field when a shout came from behind and she would watch the bubbly child bouncing to her side.
Unknowingly, Homura smiled.
"Hello!"
"Hello Madoka."
The said girl froze as her eyes widened at Homura. The latter tilted her head at the sudden change of expression by the expressive girl and frowned a little, wondering what was wrong. Her question was answered instantly.
"How do you know my name?"
She pursed her lips and faked a smile. "It's a small town, news and words travel fast when someone not from this town came to visit."
Madoka beamed. "No wonder! I thought that was weird, about how you knew my name!"
Homura's forced smile was still plastered on her face.
It wasn't because of the poor memory, or that Madoka was too young to remember, but it was Homura's problem. She should have known that Madoka wouldn't be excluded from the fact that human would eventually forget her existence. The fruit-seller didn't remember her when she re-visited her stall occasionally, neither did the florist shop either, one that she patronized most of the days for the fertilizer and supplies for her planting project.
Homura was a nobody. A name in a soul-less body. To put it bluntly, she was like a ghost. Just that she looked respectable enough to pretend to be a human.
This was one part of the punishment that made her a little vexed about.
But she was used to it, since she had been a Grim Reaper for so long, walking past clueless people every single second. The problem was that she didn't want it to be applied on Madoka.
If only...
"I'm here for my summer vacation and staying over at my Grandma's house, it's nice to see some flowers here!" Madoka stroked the soft white petals between her fingers. "You planted all these?"
For you. "Yes."
"Are these... I think I've learnt in my school before..." Madoka squinted her eyes before a smile spread across her cheeks. "Daffodils!"
"It's tulips."
Madoka blinked and stared at the white flower. "I could have sworn something told me it was daffodils."
Homura lowered her gaze. "It could have been."
"No one helped you with these?"
"Not really."
"You're amazing!"
"Thank you."
"It's really pretty... just like you!"
Homura turned and plucked out a tulip, placing it on the side of Madoka's hair.
"You're pretty too."
Madoka didn't bother to hide her happiness. She enthusiastically plucked out a tulip too, tip-toeing a little and stuck it by Homura's ear.
"We're both pretty now!"
Their conversation lasted till sun sets.
o0o
One year, two years, three years... Homura couldn't remember. She wasn't exactly sure the pink daisies she was cultivating now marked how many years she had stayed on Earth, but she didn't care.
The only thing that mattered was Summer break.
"Hello! What's your name?"
Homura was in the midst of watering the pink daises when she heard a voice speaking quietly behind her. Despite the huge change from the way Madoka made her entrances for the past years, Homura recognize her voice from the instant Madoka spoke.
She turned with her watering can, to only be struck by another surprise.
Kaname Madoka... had grown.
The pink-haired girl still kept her pigtails, but it her grew longer and a little past her shoulders. She had finally reached the same height as Homura too, though her chest needed a little bit more work. But nonetheless, everything about Madoka that day... was just too beautiful in Homura's eyes. It was like all the pink daises she cultivated with blood and sweat looked like withered leaves, in comparison to Madoka standing by them.
What is happening to me?
"H-Hello." Homura cleared her throat. "My name is Homura."
"Homura-san!" Madoka beamed. "My name is Kaname Madoka, nice to meet you! I was passing by and I've taken notice of your beautiful field. You grew them all on your own?"
"Yeah."
"You're really talented!" Madoka glanced around the flowers and took a whiff. "It smells brilliant!"
Homura smiled in reply.
Seeming to know what was going to happen next, Homura watched Madoka plucking out a pink daisy and walking towards her and set it on her head like every other years. It was comforting that this part of Madoka didn't change.
"You look pretty!" Madoka chortled before realization dawned over her and she stepped back in embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry! I just destroyed a flower that you've painstakingly grew! I wasn't sure why I-I did that!"
Homura's smile faltered. Or maybe... she did change unknowingly after all. She quickly fixed a reassuring look on her face.
"It's fine." Homura took the daisy off her head and closed the distance between Madoka, setting it on her hair instead.
"You-" Homura's lips twitched. "You look beautiful."
Madoka rubbed her noses sheepishly and tucked her hair behind her ears, giving more attention onto the flower instead.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
They talked till the night falls.
o0o
Now Homura was counting the years that went by.
It had been thirty years since Madoka visited, and when those times passed by, the number of flowers Homura cultivated grew small and smaller to none at all. The only thing that stayed by Homura's side was the river, which was as calm as it always was.
Her time back to being a Grim Reaper was nearing too. It would have been better if she had forgotten that part all together and just disappear into thin air and becoming the nothing she always had been. Neither alive on Earth, nor back to Heaven and Hell.
Oh, if only...
Homura's eyes lowered as she stared at her own reflection in the river.
Thirty years...
"You still can't forget that girl."
Her purple eyes shifted past her shoulder as she glared at the white cat licking its paw behind her. With a plain face, Kyubey stared back at Homura until the latter looked away.
"Shut up."
"You know as well as I do, that she's long forgotten about you."
Thirty years...
She'd never remember me in the first place.
"Your post had been replaced by someone more efficient when you were suspended, you know. You should be happy that God still wants you back."
"I don't need you to tell me what to feel or do."
Kyubey moved to Homura's side and stared at its reflection in the water too. "You've fallen for that girl."
"Mind your own damn business."
"God should be informed about this. Grim Reapers aren't capable of love."
"Shut up."
"She's already have a family of four, and a dog. Oh my, I hate dogs. I can't believe why she would want to own that very creature that I hated most out of all God's creation."
Homura grabbed hold of Kyubey's collar and raised it threateningly above the surface of the water, "One more word from you, just one more." Homura gritted dangerously between her teeth. "You can try me."
Kyubey remained silent.
She then tossed the cat-like creature back to the ground as it jumped and sat a little further away from Homura. "That's more like the legendary Akemi Homura Grim Reaper I know. You need to kick that newbie Miki Sayaka and show who's boss."
Homura sent a last threatening glare before the cat disappeared, probably reported back to Hell. Oh home sweet home.
The number of years for the punishment didn't matter. Homura had come to realize after a few years when Madoka didn't show up like promised. This pain was the ultimate punishment. To play with fate and destiny like that, Homura had to go through this outcome.
But it was alright. Everything was alright. Homura thought. She still didn't regret that night when she saved the girl. She didn't regret any of her choices at all. Having to see her again, and seeing her for the next ten years or so was satisfying enough. To look at the brighter side, Homura had been happy during that period of time, a feeling that a Grim Reaper would never experience ever. And most importantly, to know that Madoka was healthy and happy too...
This was all for the best.
o0o
Just a tad bit longer...
Madoka closed her wrinkled eyes...
Ah, it was that girl from her dreams again, that girl who told her why daffodils were yellow.
"Kaname Madoka, are you ready to go?"
"Yes."
And they went.
A/N:
heavily inspired by noragami, and i'm too lazy with the ending omg yawns
btw cashbanky sucks 0/10
why am i still here with 92 stories lmao