Perhaps it is because we have a guest at our house that I am waking up this early to make breakfast. Yes, it must be.

I had already arranged plans with the school to allow Mami Tomoe to attend the same classes as I am. Typically speaking, the educational schedule in Asian school districts are one or two years ahead of the American educational systems, up until college, at least. Last night, I had talked with Mami so that she is aware of this. She said it would be fine, and to be perfectly honest, she does not have to pay any shred of attention to any of my classes, since she is only staying a week. But after talking with her for a few hours, I have gotten a good grasp of her personality and who she is.

As I busy myself in the kitchen, pulling out ingredients for our breakfast from the refrigerator, I review my thoughts on our new guest, who is, I presume, still sleeping. Mami Tomoe certainly carries herself much like a daughter of nobility would. In fact, the way she conducts herself is uncannily similar to mine. It is a much more polite version of my own personality. Take out all the animosity that I have in my heart, remove the sarcasm and bloodlust, and you have Mami Tomoe.

"We gotta keep our eyes on her, Hae Eun. I really feel like she's really uncomfortable being here, even if she doesn't show it."

That is what Antonia informed me before we went to bed for the night, and I agree with Antonia's judgment. Mami is excellent at hiding what she truly feels in a particular situation. A glass-stained window in a Gothic cathedral. Beautiful to see, artful to craft, but if someone puts a bullet in it...

But she certainly knows her teas. We had much fun in making teas and enjoying them together, and Antonia helped out too. It had been quite some time since I had last spent good hours drinking tea with company, and Mami had gotten out some of the sweets in one of her suitcases for the occasion as well. It was fun.

I hear light footsteps, much different from the heavy footsteps that Antonia produces when she shuffles around the house. So she does wake up early.

"Good morning," Mami greets me in English, already in her Mitakihara Middle School uniform. "Oh, you are making breakfast already? Please, allow me to help."

"Gladly," I nod good morning back at her. "Today's breakfast is curry omelets, do you mind this?"

"Oh, no, not at all. I love omelets - I make them all the time for my friends," she says with a giggle.

"That's good. Could you make the rice, please? There is a rice bag in the cupboard over there."

We go about making breakfast together.

"Mami, it is only 6:30. You could have slept for a little bit longer, school does not start until eight," I mention as I crack some eggs into the frying pan.

"I understand. But I wanted to be of assistance to my hosts. I am indebted to you for providing me a place to stay for this weekend's conference," Mami says back.

So she is that kind of person. The kind of person who feels the lack of worthiness or usefulness and cannot live with that feeling in the back of their minds.

I glance over at her. She is humming something, and she is always smiling. Truly a gentlewoman.

"I had meant to ask, Jeannie, but do you not feel uncomfortable going outside with your Soul Gem exposed like that?" Mami asks me with a bit of concern. "My friends and I usually wear our Soul Gems in ring form. Do you not have the same concern as well?"

"I do not mind keeping my Soul Gem as it is," I respond. "Even if there were to be rival Magical Girls who wish to defeat me for the purpose of acquiring more Grief Seeds, let them come to me. I will defeat them all first. Oh, and if you prefer speaking in Japanese, I do not mind that either."

"Oh...is it okay...? I will admit that I am more comfortable in Japanese..."

"It is fine," I say in Japanese so that it is okay.

"Then...why do you think that way? There may be powerful Magical Girls roaming around in the world. Magical Girls whose only goals are to acquire as many Grief Seeds for themselves as they can. One of my friends, Sakura Kyouko, was that way too, until she decided to join us."

"Mami, please do not mistake me for a rookie Magical Girl. I have been in this trade for longer than even you have been. I do not mean to come off as arrogant, but I am simply stating the truth. No Magical Girl has been able to so much as touch me. The only one I know who is capable of landing so much as a scratch on me is the one I live with."

"I see." Mami joins me as she pours the rice water into the rice cooker. "Out of curiosity, how long have you been a Magical Girl?"

"Two and a half years."

"Oh my...yes, that is quite some time." She sounds genuinely impressed. "Then I must ask, how did you know that you have been a Magical Girl for longer than I?"

"I asked Kyuubey to give me some information about you," I reply, "so that I know what to expect when we received you."

She does not reply to that. Hmm.

"Please do not be alarmed. Neither I nor my friend Antonia plan to do anything to you while you stay here. As long as you do not do anything suspicious or malicious, we will do our best to make you as comfortable as possible throughout the duration of your stay. I simply wanted to get to know you a bit more."

Right as I say that, the tension that I could see in her countenance dispels immediately.

"I understand. It is good for all Magical Girls to get along and fight the witches together. I, for one, do not see the point in quarrels among us..." she mentions.

We continue to make breakfast. I fry some fillets of tonkatsu to put in the omelettes once we start making the, and Mami takes care of the eggs in the frying pan.

"You mentioned making food frequently for your friends. I assume you are proficient in cooking?" I ask, out of curiosity, and she nods enthusiastically.

"Yes. The friend I had mentioned, Sakura-san, is now living with me in my house back in Mitakihara. She had been operating out of the nearby prefecture of Kazamino, and when she came to Mitakihara due to the lack of witches in her city, she asked me for a place to stay."

"I assume, then, that this Sakura-san and you are close friends?"

Mami chuckles. "I suppose you could say so. More accurately, I was, and to a certain extent, still am her senpai. I taught her the ways of the Magical Girl, and she and I have teamed together frequently in the past."

I start filling the plates. "Judging from what you have said earlier, it seems you work with friends who are also Magical Girls. How many others are there?"

"Hmm, let's see...there is Sakura-san whom I have been talking about, there is Kaname Madoka-san, Akemi Homura-san, and Sayaka Miki-san. They are all wonderful girls, and with their combined power, I daresay that our fights against witches have become much more productive."

"I'd imagine. Fighting five on one at all times against a witch would be energy-efficient among all the Magical Girls. I suppose the only problem would be how the Grief Seeds would be distributed."

Mami giggles again. "That was what I once thought too, when we initially decided to fight witches together when Miki-san and Kaname-san became Magical Girls. However, it turned out that we were quickly able to optimize our fighting styles to accommodate each other so that our energy outputs would be minimal after each fight. We are all friends and schoolmates, after all."

We take the food over to the table and sit down. "What about you, Baek - er, Jeannie-san? Do you cooperate with any other Magical Girls besides Ainsley-san?"

I shake my head. "Not for the most part, no. She and I are the only two Magical Girls in this region, since we are the two most powerful Magical Girls here. Because of that, the other Magical Girls have recognized this area to be our territory and have largely left us alone."

Mami looks at me with concern. "Is it because you wish to keep all the Grief Seeds for yourselves?"

"No, neither of us have that kind of selfish desire. We do not mind if other Magical Girls decide to stake a claim in our so-called 'territory'," I reply, placing Antonia's utensils where her chair is at the table. "Should that have been the case, I hardly think it logical for us to decide to provide you lodging for the week, no?"

Mami nods slightly. "You're right. I apologize for sounding the way I did, that may have been too doubtful of me."

"No, it is understandable, the blame is partly mine to share for my wording. But to be clear, the reason why other Magical Girls do not enter our region is because the witches that spawn here are typically much stronger than the average witch."

This catches Mami's interest. "Stronger? How so? And why is that?"

I shrug, drinking some water from my glass and waiting for Antonia to come to to the dinner table, since I can hear her getting up from bed and putting her clothes on.

"I do not know. I have talked to Kyuubey - " he jumps onto the table and sits upright - " - about this occurrence, and it appears that this region has always had very tough witches. As for how so...well, perhaps if you would like to join us on a witch hunt sometime, perhaps then you will see for yourself just exactly how much stronger they are. I cannot, unfortunately, tell you upfront such information, because these witches are all we have ever fought before. Nothing less than they have been our opponents."

Antonia walks out to the dinner table, stretching her arms and yawning heavily. "Mornin' all...wuzzz fer breakfast..."

"Omelettes," I tell her in English. "We've got an hour, so take your time."

"Mmmhmmmm..." she drones as she plops down in her chair next to me and starts eating.

"Itadakimasu," Mami puts her hands together and begins eating as well. I bow my head slightly in a short prayer before following suit.

"Out of curiosity, what are your abilities?" Mami asks in English so that Antonia can understand too. "If there are witches that we must fight during the week, I would like to know how I can be of help."

Antonia looks over at me, and I look back at her and nod.

"Well, for me...it's not so much of an ability, more like a trait. I'm just really strong, is all," she says, stooping down underneath the table, putting a hand underneath my chair, and lifting me straight up some three or four meters off the ground. My head just barely misses the ceiling, and she puts me down. "My weapon's kinda unique. It's a halberd, but..." She summons her halberd into her hand, and the first thing that Mami sees is the Predator head stretching its jaws.

"Um..." I can see a cold sweat running down Mami's cheek.

"Don't worry, she's harmless," Antonia says. "Unless, 'course, I tell her to bite you, haha."

"I-I see..." Mami clearly is not very comfortable with Annie. So I suppose it is my turn, then?

I put my fork and knife down on my empty plate and raise my hands for Mami to plainly see.

"40 inch barrel, 56-inch length percussion lock, .58 caliber rifle musket. Accurate up to 500 meters with a muzzle velocity of 1000 feet per second," I recite, keenly observing Mami's reaction, and she reacts just in the way that I expect.

"What - those are - "

Before she can finish her own thought, a musket just like the one that Mami uses to fight with drops out of the air and into my hands.

"...where - where did you...?" Mami stammers, very alarmed that a Magical Girl she hardly knows for more than half a day has managed to procure one of her muskets.

"Allow me to explain," I say calmly before Mami begins to jump to conclusions, setting the musket on the middle of the table. "This ability I have showed you is my primary ability. It is actually quite similar to yours conceptually. You are able to produce an infinite amount of muskets of any varying size and caliber and strength at will - I, on the other hand, can produce any object I want. Including other Magical Girls' weapons...but it is not limited to only weapons."

I produce a Japanese folding fan into my hand and pop it open to prove my point.

"...please tell me how you know my power," Mami says, sternly but cautiously. "I hope you understand that I am not comfortable with others knowing what I am capable of without ever having met them prior."

It is Kyuubey's turn to speak. "Jeannie Baek and Antonia Ainsley had asked me about you, Mami Tomoe, before your departure," he states. "They inquired about you and your ability so that they know what to expect of you."

"K-Kyuubey! But why would you say something like that? !" Mami is clearly very agitated.

"Well, they asked, and I answered. Simple as that. I do not lie to you Magical Girls," he shakes his head. "You could have just as easily asked me to tell you all about these girls too, and I would have given you such information."

Mami is sitting on the edge of her chair now, and she does not touch the rest of her three-quarters-eaten omelette. "Then I suppose it is safe for me to assume that you know everything that there is to know about me as far as my identity as a Magical Girl is concerned?" she asks tensely.

"All we know is what you are able to do. We do not know exactly how strong you are until we actually have the chance to observe you fighting," I say as I drink some more water. "Though, I will say this. Your muskets are very beautifully crafted, Mami. As a gun user myself, your muskets caught my eye the instant Kyuubey informed me about them."

Mami smirks lightly. "I hope you know that a little bit of flattering praise is not enough to have me lower my guard, Jeannie-san."

"Suit yourself," I reply back quickly, "for it is I whom you must rely upon for the rest of this week. We are here to make your stay in America as smooth as possible, nothing more, nothing less. I personally do not care for what you feel towards me or my friend. Perhaps Antonia may have a different opinion on this, but that is my perspective, and she must comply with mine, for she is indebted to me. Should you decide to treat us with suspicion, then very well. I am in no position to control your will."

Mami falls silent and looks back down at her omelette.

"You want me to take back your plate, Hae Eun?" Antonia asks me as she stands up with her own empty plate. I nod, and she whisks it away to put in the kitchen sink so we can wash the dishes later tonight. Mami, meanwhile, decides that it is more prudent for her to finish her food and resumes eating, albeit with markedly more caution. I watch her eat for a minute while slowly drinking the rest of my water, and once I finish it, I also stand to put away the glass and prepare to leave for school. As I stand, I say to Mami,

"Please remember that you are always welcome in this house. I have seen enough about you to know that you are a good person, Mami Tomoe. And that is not what Kyuubey has said, I have come to that conclusion myself."

Mami does not answer me. Oh well - I suppose I will let her come to terms to her situation by herself.

We enter first period, which is World History, some five minutes before the bell rings.

"So this is an American public school classroom?" Mami wonders aloud. "There is no required school uniform? How surprising..."

"Most American public schools do not require a uniform, unlike most Japanese schools. Usually, American private schools or boarding schools have them," I say to her as I lead her to my seat. There is an extra seat that I put last Friday next to my desk so that she can sit next to me, and we sit in our usual seats. By this time, some of our classmates have noticed Mami and are staring over our way.

I hear the familiar clomping of Nikes and Vans heading towards us.

"Yo, Jeannie, Antonia! Ready for another absolutely wonderful and boring week of world history?" Matty gives us his usual forehead salute wave as he slides into his desk, throwing his backpack next to his chair in the aisle.

"Dude, fuckin' tell me 'bout it. I'm done already readin' that goddamn textbook," Jonah complains, rolling his forehead across his desk. "Like, I'm not even kidding. Fuck that thing. By the way, who's she?" He points at the back of Mami's head.

"Let me introduce her. This is Mami Tomoe; she is the Japanese student who is staying with us until the MUN conference," I have Mami turn around in her seat to greet our friends. "Mami, this is Matty, Jonah, Haley, and Lucy."

Mami bows her head. "Hello, it is a pleasure to meet you all. Please take care of me for this week."

There is an abrupt silence. I cannot help but sense that something very bad will happen to Mami in about three...two...one...

Jonah kneels in front of Mami, takes her right hand like some chivalrous knight would, and asks,

"Please go to prom with me. I beg y-"

"SHE AIN'T GOIN' TO PROM, DUMBFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !"

Antonia literally drags Jonah from in front of Mami and out of the classroom. She comes back a minute later.

"...what...what'd you do with...uh...Jonah?" Haley asks hesitantly.

"Hung him out on the flagpole," Antonia replies curtly, sitting back in her desk.

I lean a bit to look around Mami, and I can just barely see Jonah hanging by the hood of his sweater on the flagpole, too high up to get down by himself safely.

"...Antonia, please get him down. That was not warranted."

"Do I have to? He pissed me off askin' that."

"Please do. Class is about to start."

Antonia sighs and walks back out reluctantly, muttering "right, right..."

Mami still looks confused. "Um...what did he ask me? I...I'm afraid I do not understand..."

"He just asked you to go out with him to the prom. Basically, he wants you as a date," Matty explains with a cool look. He is trying too hard to impress Mami, I can tell.

"Eeeeehhh...? !" Mami starts blushing at the thought. "A d-date...? But..."

Lucy kicks Matty in the side from her desk. Apparently she holds the same thought as I. "Don't be getting any weird thoughts, now, you hear? !"

"O-Oi, what's that for?" Matty gives her a bewildered look, but Lucy only returns an icy pout back to him. Oh dear...Matty sure is dense when it comes to realizing that Lucy holds affection for him. Even though he only sees her as a friend...but it is up to Lucy to gather the courage to tell him directly. I will not interfere.

I face our guest. "Mami, allow me to explain. Prom is an American high school tradition in which students participate in social festivities such as dancing and other methods of socialization. Because prom is considered a formal event, it is commonly considered a date if a boy and a girl agree to go to such a prom together. Thus, in the minds of many high school students, it is commonly considered a date - just a very stylized and formal date."

I see Antonia walking back into class, still dragging Jonah by the back of his sweater, out of the corner of my eye as Mami nods, visibly surprised. "I see..."

"However, because high school teenagers are fickle and emotionally driven, many who concern themselves with popularity and such trivial things like that commonly manipulate prom to promote themselves for the sake of their own popularity. And it is not something you should concern yourself with either, as you will be long gone when prom arrives."

"I understand. I just find it very surprising that such an event exists. There is a lot to American schools that I still do not know, it seems, haha," Mami smiles. "But then, if I was asked to prom, what should I say? It seems the boy who told me so is back..." Mami looks very concerned, not knowing how to act.

"You do not have to reciprocate his request. This is just my personal recommendation, but you should only accept their invitation if you also hold some form of affection for the boy in question as well. Some boys go to great lengths to impress the girls they wish to ask out, but that is for you to decide."

"But do girls not ask the same of boys? Is it custom for boys to ask the girls?" Mami asks.

"Girls may ask out boys too. It is just more common to see boys asking the girls, however."

"Oh, I see."

"Especially when you are very beautiful yourself, Mami."

"E-Eh...?"

Mami hears me speak that part in Japanese so that no one else can understand, so she replies to me in Japanese.

"...Jeannie-san, are you perhaps...er...um..."

"No, I am not, I can assure you."

"But you said that with...with such a straight face..."

I can hear Antonia lecturing the heck out of Jonah at the back of the classroom. "I tend not to show much emotion, Mami. I am simply bringing a truth that I find quite evident to light. It seems you never considered yourself to be a rather attractive lady?"

Mami gives me a weak smile. "Oh, please...I spend too much time as a Magical Girl to think about those kinds of things..."

"Well, I just want you to realize that American boys here in this school tend to hark after beautiful blonde girls like you. But also remember that there may be girls who may end up becoming jealous of your beauty."

Mami starts giggling.

"...what is the matter, Mami? I don't think what I said was meant to be funny."

"No, no...I just find the fact that you are caring for me so much to be rather amusing..."

"And why is that?"

"Because maybe, perhaps, I held a wrong impression about you this morning."

I break out a small smile myself. "I would rather be friends than enemies, Tomoe Mami. It would be awkward every morning riding in a car with another Magical Girl that I did not like."

Mami chuckles a bit louder this time. "Indeed."

Mr. Frasier walks into the classroom, late as usual. "Sorry, class, got mixed up at the printer room again..." he sighs, carrying a stack of papers. "So, uh, let's go ahead and start class n - " He stops as soon as his eyes fall on Mami. "Oh right, Jeannie's hosting a foreign exchange student this week. Does she speak English, Jeannie?"

I nod.

"Okay then, why don't you go ahead and stand up and introduce yourself real quick so we can get started with the lecture..."

Mami stands and bows.

"My name is Mami Tomoe. It is a pleasure to meet you all~"

Come lunchtime, and our usual spot in the amphitheater is more more lively than usual. We are surrounded by a moderate number of guys and girls, all wanting to see who the new foreign exchange student is that the wild fantastical rumors that have spread throughout the school like wildfire are talking about.

"Can you imagine all the shit that's been said 'bout Mami?" Antonia laughs as we eat our packed lunches. Mami is sitting in the middle of a circle of people, mainly girls, with the boys trying to snatch a glance at her from the outside. "People been sayin' that she's some kinda Asian goddess, hahaha!"

"Well, it is certainly true that Mami is exceptionally beautiful. And to think that Kyuubey mentioned her not having any friends at all before she met her own Magical Girl friends..." I ponder, watching her talk with some sophomores.

"One thing's for sure, though," Antonia grins as she leans in towards me. "Remember when we first started school? Everyone was watchin' you, too. But you know why no one ever treated you like this?"

I sip some of my Capri Sun. "Why?"

"Because you've always got that frown on your face! Smile for once, at least!" Antonia starts pulling the corners of my mouth to force a smile.

"Hey..." I don't like it, but I let her do it anyway, and she stops after a few moments. "Mami has a more accessable temperament than I do. I do not mind the fact that she is receiving more attention than I have. You know I do not care for attention anyway."

"Yeah, unlike 99.99999999% of this school," Antonia scoffs. "But c'mon, Hae Eun. Just smile a bit more, not just for me, but for other people too. I keep tellin' people that you're not as scary and removed as you look, 'n that you just need to smile a bit more often to get people to wanna talk to you."

My hand that is about to guide a spoonful of rice to my mouth stops midway. "...I am aware of the fact that you greatly like my smile, Antonia, but I wish to reserve such emotions for people or times when I feel I can best express myself in that way," I mutter. "I don't believe in giving everyone smiles."

"...why not? It doesn't hurt."

"So you think."

"Then why not?"

I remain silent for a second.

"Because I fear that one of those smiles may not be true to my feelings. I feel that I will lead others astray."

Antonia simply bursts out laughing. "Christ, Hae Eun, I keep tellin' myself that you worry about fuckin' everything, but geez!" She rubs her eyes from laughing so suddenly. "No, I know what you mean, don't worry. It's better for me, anyway, I get to keep all your cute lil' smiles to myself!" She then tugs me suddenly towards her in a mighty hug, and I almost regurgitate the food that I just swallowed.

"Gu-heh..." I choke, crunching my teeth together to suppress the sickening feeling of almost throwing up. "A-Antonia, could you please not do that...?"

She lets go of me right away. "S-Sorry. Just got caught up in the moment."

I scootch over near Mami. "Mami, take the rest of my bulgogi, Antonia almost strangled me just now and I don't really feel like eating anymore."

"Oh...okay, then," Mami says, watching as I pour the small amount of meat into her lunchbox. "But strangle...?"

"I just hugged her real tight," Antonia happily says, suddenly putting her arms on top of my head and leaning down on it. "Nothin' ta worry about."

"Er, do you all know each other?" one of the sophomore girls that Mami was speaking with asks.

"She is staying at our home for this week until the MUN conference this weekend," I say. "And Antonia, please refrain from doing that."

Antonia gives me an innocent grin, but she obeys. The sophomore girls squeal in delight for some reason.

"You all know each other? How many more friends of yours are like Mami?" the other sophomore asks eagerly.

"She is the only one. Mami is Mami, no?" I reply.

"Oh, stop lying, I know you know a lot more pretty girls! I mean, just look at her!" The sophomore practically jumps onto her butt next to Mami and starts feeling her up. "This hair, these body proportions...I mean come on, this is just unfair how perfect this girl is!"

"Ah, ehehehe - " Mami giggles, the hands of the sophomore running up and down her body tickling her. "Please, stop, stop, ahaha - "

"Fuckin' hell, man, don't think I can stay here much longer," one of the junior boys exhales deeply, pulling on the collar of his shirt. "It's gettin' way too hot in here, don'tcha think, Charlie?"

"Oh, shit yeah," the guy next to him whose name is apparently Charlie, "I mean, we got the three hottest girls all in one place. I'm surprised we haven't damn well melted the stage off yet."

The guys around them laugh in unison. I smirk at their humor as the bell rings to signify the end of lunch.

"So how was school today?" I ask Mami as we put away our school materials into our bookbags, the fifth period ending bell just having rung. She brought her suitcase bag from her own school, while I use a messenger bag.

"It was fun," she replies, stowing the Chemistry 2 AP textbook underneath her desk in a little metal grate that is fixed underneath the seat. "American schools are much more different than schools in Japan are, so it was enjoyable. It was a nice change of pace."

We start walking to the school parking lot, where we will meet with Antonia at the car.

"The thing that took me by surprise the most was that everyone here seems so friendly. There were so many people who wanted to get to know me," Mami mentions. "Well, I don't say that to flatter myself, but...I never really had people come up to me like that before."

I lower my head slightly. "...I think I mentioned this once before, Mami, but a lot of those people do not have the friendly intentions that you think they do. The people here in this school are mostly driven by their own emotions and desires. Rarely will you find a truly altruistic person whose purest intentions are to make friends."

Mami nods. "I understand. I have had such experiences back in Japan. Oftentimes, I would help other Magical Girls fight the witches and give them their Grief Seeds, but they would urge me to keep it instead, saying that I should look out for myself, because that was the way that we Magical Girls should live. My friend Sakura-san was like that for a time as well after her family died, but when she met Miki-san, she changed back to the self that I knew when I first met her. I am no stranger to what selfishness feels like on the receiving end, Jeannie-san."

"Then I suppose my concern was in vain. But still, it is not as if you will return to America any time soon after this week. It is not that I am telling you that making friends during your stay here is futile, but the pain of not being able to see them again for a long time is quite the burden to carry."

"Oh?" Mami stops, cocking her head a bit to her left shoulder and smiling at me. "So does that mean you will miss me when I return to Japan, Jeannie-san?"

I smile lightly. "Then I suppose that also means you hold no sign of suspicion towards me?"

We start walking again, past the cafeteria. "I have no reason to be suspicious of you. Not anymore, at least," she says.

"And what made you change your mind?"

She giggles. "Would you laugh at me if I told you my reason?"

I shake my head. "No, I will not."

"Alright, then. It was your food."

I smile again. "Thank you for the complement," I say, beaming lightly. "I take pride in my culinary skills."

"I could tell. As a cook myself, I can tell that you put your whole effort into making our lunches today. As they say, the fastest way to someone's heart is through their stomach."

"Oh? Even the Japanese have a saying like that?"

"Well, I thought that was more or less a proverb all people knew..."

"But do you see me as a friend, then? It is not that I mind, I am just rather curious."

"But why not? You are kind enough to offer me hospitality during my stay, and you are not a bad person. That much I can see."

"...but what if I am only allowing you to stay because that way, I can ask of you a favor in the future? What if I am only showing you hospitality because you will become indebted to me in some way in the future?"

"Then it will be my duty to repay you accordingly. That is not something I mind either, so long as it is not something I am against."

"Then what if I do ask of you something that you do not agree with?"

"That will not happen, because that is not the kind of person you are," Mami says resolutely. "That is my firm belief, Jeannie-san."

I cannot help but smile. Mami's innocence is too strong.

"I envy your optimism, Mami...but for now, I guess you do not have to worry."

"Optimism?"

"Yes, optimism. You are trusting the goodness within me too much, I feel."

"But judging from your relationship with your other friend, Ainsley-san, you two are very close, am I wrong?"

"No, you are not, but Antonia and I have known each other for the past two years. We, however, have only barely over half a day's worth of acquaintanceship between us. It is rather dangerous to be so optimistic, no?"

"Then why did you tell me this morning that I was welcome at your house at any time?" Mami drops her smile. "It is almost as if you are deliberately trying to trick me into doubting myself. Why are you saying such things to me?"

She takes a step in front of me to block my path. "I do not know how you have lived your life, Jeannie-san. But I know how I have lived mine. There have been times, admittedly, when I had doubted the ways of my life. I know the people who fight with me. I may not understand what you may have against this so-called 'optimism' that you see within me, but please do not question it."

I gaze back at her. It seems odd that for someone whose resolution is this strong, her height does not complement it easily.

It also seems odd that such a strong conviction is to be threatened by the very truth of the existence of Magical Girls, a truth she does not yet realize.

Who knows what will happen when she does discover that terrible truth.

I bow shortly at Mami. "I'm sorry for doubting you. It is because in my life, trust has become a very touchy concept for me to handle, and it is one that I give extremely sparingly. Please forgive me."

Mami smiles again, and she gets out of my way so we can continue walking.

"It is certainly rare to see people our age apologize as you did," Mami remarks.

"Because typically, teenagers our age are too self-centered to realize the errors of their ways. They are too embarrassed to bring themselves to learn how to apologize and fix themselves." I feel my grip on my messenger bag strap tighten.

Mami apparently saw my hand, because she puts a hand on my shoulder lightly. "Don't worry. I have felt the same...because I have committed that very sin myself...more times than I wanted to," she says somberly. "My friends and I...we have had personal conflicts among us, conflicts that could have been so much more easily been resolved if we had all just simply learned to apologize. Instead, we all had to learn how to do so the hard way, learn how to apologize at virtually the worst times possible."

"It seems we understand each other."

"It certainly seems that way. But even if you think that you are the only one in this entire school who knows how to apologize for her mistakes, I urge you not to stray from it. It is better to have but one light burn in a world of darkness than no light at all."

Her poetry is undoubtedly interesting. "I had no plans to do such a thing, Mami. Ever since I met Antonia, I have lived this way, and I plan not to change. But thank you for your encouragement anyway."

I see Haley and Lucy waving at me from across the parking lot, and I wave back, with Mami following suit.

"Did we have homework today for Chemistry? I must admit that I did not hear any mention of it..."

"Oh, that is because our homework is posted online. We can check it when we get back home."

"Ah, I see..."

We meet up with Antonia at the Chrysler.

"Yo! How was your day, Mami?" she gives us a hearty smile as she opens the doors for us and we pile in.

"It was wonderful, thank you."

"Hae Eun, you got anywhere to go today?"

I shake my head. "No, why?"

"I was thinkin' we could stop by that cake shop, y'know? The one we went to yesterday?"

I nod. "Good idea."

Mami leans over from the back seat. "Cake shop?"

"Yes, we know a very good bakery that sells excellent little cakes. Would you like to go there?" I ask, looking at Mami through the rear view mirror, and she gives us another one of her warm smiles, nodding.

"Of course!"

"Uwaaaaaaahhhh~!"

Mami's big puppy-eyes are practically giving off sparks so bright I feel that I can hardly see her face.

"These cakes...they are so delicious...! ! !" she cries out in wonder, putting another forkful in her mouth. She ordered a lemon cheesecake, the same flavor as the one we had ordered for her and is now sitting at home in the refrigerator.

"Glad to hear it," Antonia says cheerfully. "Me 'n Hae Eun always come here whenever we want something nice 'n sweet. We actually got a bigger one of those for you as a present, but it's back home."

"Really? Oh, thank you," Mami says. There are actually tears in her eyes, but if I were to taste these cakes for the first time, I doubt I would have much of a different reaction. "My goodness...if only I knew how to make these for my friends back home..."

I swallow my bit of caramel creme brulee. "I can teach you, Mami," I mention. "I know how to make these kinds of desserts."

Mami quickly takes my hands over the table. "I am in your care," she asserts, her eyes full of eagerness and anticipation.

"Whoa, you know how to make these? !" Even Antonia is amazed. "Goddamn it, Hae Eun, what don't you know how to make? !"

I cannot help but grin back at Antonia. "As I have stated many times before, Antonia, don't underestimate my cooking ability. I pride myself upon it."

We enjoy the rest of our cakes with mild camaraderie.

"Thank you very much for treating me," Mami says with a satisfied smile. "If only we had tea to wash it down, too."

"I could not agree more," I nod. "Tea would make this cake an excellent dessert."

"Then it's decided!" Antonia says. "We'll buy a big cake 'n take it home with us so we can eat it together after dinner or something."

Mami clasps her hands together happily. "That would be great, yes! And I can have Jeannie-san teach me, too!"

So we order a 12-inch fruit tart cake, one filled with blueberries, grapes, and strawberries. As it nears the time of completion, Mami starts to chuckle lightly.

"What's up, Mami? Something funny?" Antonia asks.

"No, it is nothing. It's just...I just find it so interesting that Magical Girls just like me, in another completely different part of the world, are so similar to me and my own friends."

Antonia gives her a light grin. "I mean, hey. We're all Magical Girls here. It's not like we're all foreign to each other 'r anythin'. We just happen to be different people and speak different languages, that's all."

"Indeed. If only, however, everyone could live the way we do..."

"Live the way we do? What do you mean?" Antonia's grin gives way to a look of confusion.

"Well, surely you have run into other Magical Girls who live very selfishly," Mami states. "I just wish those kinds of Magical Girls could change their lives and see that their selfish desires do nothing but hurt other people and other Magical Girls like them."

"But don'tcha think that's a selfish way to think, Mami?" Antonia asks.

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"See, look. I don't mean ta insultcha or nothin', but you stand there sayin' that everyone should live the way you do, right? All righteous 'n stuff? I mean, I don't have anything against your way of living as a Magical Girl. But you don't understand every single Magical Girl out there. Everyone's got a reason to live the way they do. I personally don't think it's right for you, either, to preach your methods onto other people, y'know?"

"But there can be nothing bad that can come out of showing other people kindness and compassion. I simply want other Magical Girls to treat others with the same kind of treatment I myself have shown others. You may call it selfishness, for I see the meaning behind your words, but I do believe that there are far worse kinds of selfishness that exist. What about yourself, then, Ainsley? You are not a selfish person either, so by your logic, you should not be trying to correct my beliefs, no?"

Antonia grins and turns her gaze away from Mami. "Haha, that's where the plot twist comes in. I'm actually the most selfish bitch you can ever find on this side of the entire fuckin' globe."

"Eh...?"

"Listen up, Mami. Both me 'n Hae Eun started out as real selfish girls. Back in the days just before we became Magical Girls, we had our issues. I was just concerned with myself, trying to figure out a way to make it so that people didn't pick on me so much in middle school. Hae Eun, too, didn't do anything for other people. Our wishes, too, were really selfish, to boot, but that all changed when she saved me."

I quickly bump Antonia's left side with my elbow, and she gives me the smallest nod that I have ever seen her give.

"She saved you? How did that happen?"

"She basically saved me from a witch fight," Antonia says calmly. "I was really inexperienced back then. You see, my wish was to get stronger, so when I did become a Magical Girl, I was really fuckin' strong, y'know? So I thought I could defeat any witch that came my way. But I was really, really wrong. I nearly died, and that's when Hae Eun came to save me."

Mami gazes at us, then slowly nods. "I see. That is why you two are so close, I take it?"

I nod. "Antonia was the one who made me realize that simply sitting back and watching another Magical Girl fall victim to a witch wasn't what I could bear to live with. So I had to jump in to save her."

"See?" Mami draws closer to me and pokes me gently on the left cheek. "I knew you weren't a bad person."

"Nnnn, I don't like having my cheeks poked. Only Antonia can do that," I pout.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry," Mami apologizes quickly, withdrawing her hand right away. Antonia hugs me again suddenly from my right and rubs her cheek against the top of my head.

"Awwww, don't be like that, Hae Eun! Mami, just fyi, she's actually got a really, really cute side to her," she whispers to Mami, knowing that I can hear her.

I bop Antonia's stomach with my right fist as I feel a bit of red bubble up to my cheeks. "Quiet, you."

Mami chuckles. "Don't worry, Jeannie. Everyone has their cute side, too."

"I don't like it when people think I'm cute."

"Oh? Why not?"

"They like to play around with me, so I don't like it. Like what Antonia always does."

"Aw, c'mon, Hae Eun! You don't mind it, be honest with me~"

"Hmph!" I face away from Antonia with the same pout. "I only tolerate it because it's you."

"Awwwwww, thanks, Hae Eun, I'll make sure to keep teasing you lots, 'k?" Antonia coos, and I hiss like a cat at her as our cake arrives.

Nighttime.

"Hwaaaaahhh~" Mami clasps her cheeks as she admires the desserts that are set on the table. Not only do we have the two cakes that we had ordered from the bakery, but I have also spent some time after completing my homework to make some desserts to eat after dinner, mainly tarts.

"There are so many...I don't know which to choose from..." Mami looks at all of them wondrously. "Ooohhh...and I need to start watching my weight, too...what shall I do..."

"You do not have to eat all of them," I say as I take a bite out of a kiwi tart. "In fact, you do not have to eat if you are trying to watch your diet."

"But...I just feel that if I do not eat these, I will be simply wasting your efforts..."

"It's fine, it's fine!" Antonia laughs heartily as usual. "As long as you appreciate her efforts, she'll understand."

Mami cannot help but stare at Antonia as she gobbles down the tarts. "...wouldn't eating so much not be healthy...?" she asks almost timidly.

Antonia shakes her head. "I work out a lot, and on top of which, we fight witches regularly, so that keeps us in shape. Don't worry 'bout us," she says. "Besides, I fuckin' love Hae Eun's cooking! It's just so goooooood~"

Kyuubey jumps up on an unoccupied corner of the table. "You girls, I've found another witch nearby. You need to go take care of it."

"Aw, fuck that, we just got started eating!" Antonia yells, almost throwing her fork at Kyuubey, which I stop by grabbing her arm just in time.

"I never said you needed to go now, but you will have to deal with it tonight."

I point at a blueberry tart that is nearest to him. "Have some if you wish. We will go after we eat."

"Very well." Kyuubey walks to the tart and sits, chewing on the tart as well.

"Do you know where this witch is, Kyuubey?" Mami asks, sipping some barley tea to wash down her cake. "And why are you telling us that there is a witch nearby? Don't you normally let us find them ourselves?"

"Yes. It is normally a forty-minute drive from here, but with Jeannie, such a distance is negligible," Kyuubey says, taking a bite out of his tart. "And the reason why I help these two locate their witches is because their territory is so large, I take care of their hunting for them most of the time."

"Eeehhh...? Er, I do not quite follow," Mami frowns. "Just how big is their territory? And what do you mean, the distance is negligible...?"

"Our territory encompasses not just this town, but everything from Oceanside to Ventura. In other words, our territory covers some 120 miles or so. It is a handful of cities' worth. Conveniently, most of the witches that show themselves in our territory congregate in this general area in which we live, and there are a few that appear further away."

Mami is gaping at me. "...120 miles...?"

"Hey, we weren't lyin' when we said earlier this mornin' that we were the two strongest Magical Girls around. We control a lot of fuckin' territory," Antonia replies coolly. "The witches 'round here aren't exactly pushovers. Only we've been able to deal with 'em efficiently."

"I see..." Mami takes another bite of her banana tart.

"We shall guide you through it, Mami," I say to our guest. "Though, we will not hesitate to ask for your assistance if we feel that it is necessary."

Mami beams. "But of course."

We finish our dessert, and we store the uneaten ones in plastic and put them in the refrigerator.

"Are you ready to go, Mami?" I ask, when we wash our hands.

"Yes, anytime we are ready," she replies steadfastly.

"Alrighty, then, follow us," Antonia yells, already walking out our living room sliding glass doors that lead out to the big backyard where the pool and the basketball court are. We, including Kyuubey, follow after her to the basketball court.

"So, how will we reach the witch?" Mami asks. "There is no car out here..."

"For anything that is more than fifteen minutes' worth of driving, we do not drive," I tell her.

"Then...if not by car, then - "

I turn to her.

"By helicopter."

I watch in amusement as her eyes widen in shock as my outstretched left hand calls down a UH-1H Huey. Antonia walks to one of the passenger doors and slides it open. "C'mon, hop in," she barks at Mami as I enter the pilot's seat. Mami, hesitating at first due to her supreme confusion at how I was even able to drop a helicopter out of nowhere, slowly climbs in.

"H-How...how did you do this...?" Mami stammers as Antonia slides the door shut after her.

"I already told you. My power allows me to create any object I wish," I say before spinning up the helicopter rotor blades. "Please put on those headphones. The helicopter blades will be deafening."

A few minutes later, we are airborne, flying for the location of the witch.

"Wow...this is rather surreal," Mami whispers over the helicopter communication line. "I never believed I would fly inside a helicopter..."

"You work with Hae Eun long enough, you'll find yourself in a whole lotta weird situations," Antonia assures Mami. "Trust me, this is normal."

"I am the daughter of a former American military general," I mention, checking my avionics. "My father trained me in the ways of a secret operative, so I am familiar with military procedure and operations."

By helicopter, it barely takes us more than ten minutes to arrive at our destination.

"I cannot see the witch's portal anywhere..." Mami reports, looking all around out of the windows. "Do you know where to land?"

"Yes, because I can see it," I reply, banking the helicopter down in the middle of an abandoned field. Although it is on the outskirts of a town, I do not think we will be spotted here. After landing, we pile out, and Antonia and I lead Mami to the portal.

"...how did you manage to see it from so far up in the air?" Mami asks when we reach it further down in the field with small tufts of dead grass.

"We don't see, we sense," Antonia laughs. "We've gotten to the point where even if we can't see it, we can sense witch portals and familiar presences within a pretty good distance. I mean, that's not to say other Magical Girls can't do the same thing given enough experience, and you can do it too, it's just we haven't met anyone else who's been able to do it better."

We open the portal to witch's domain and get changed into our Magical Girl gear. We are standing in the middle of a T-intersection of hallways, surrounded by black and gray walls.

"A maze, huh..." Mami grimaces. "This will be tough to find the witch this way..."

Antonia puts a hand on Mami's shoulder, grinning like mad. "Don't you worry, babe, we've got good ol' Antonia Ainsley here with the world's best sixth sense! Shit like this don't faze me, gal! C'mon, it's to the left!"

We dash to the left, following Antonia's lead. Antonia breaks her halberd in half and tosses the animal half behind us, and Annie the Predator clomps behind us, guarding our rear as Antonia revs up her chainsaw blade and holds it out in front of her in case of any surprise attacks.

"Take a right!" she yells, and she sharply twists her feet to bounce down a hallway to our right, which Mami and I emulate. "I'm sensin' a whole buncha familiars headin' our way behind us! We gotta keep movin', don't slow down!"

We keep weaving in and out of the hallways for some fifteen minutes, and during all that time, we constantly hear the screeches and hysterical laughter of the familiars that are chasing us and we cannot see.

"How much further away is the witch?" Mami calls out. "It is not as if we can continue to run for much longer!"

"That's just you, Mami!" Antonia calls out back to her. "Me 'n Hae Eun, we can keep at this for hours! It's jus' runnin'! And besides, we're almost there!"

"Ehhh...?" I can hear Mami breathing heavily, starting to tire out.

Then, Antonia stabs her feet into the ground, almost causing me to run right into her.

"What is it?" I ask.

"We're gettin' ambushed up ahead," she says.

"How many?"

"A lot, all I can say."

I step in front of her, pull back my right arm underneath my left arm, and lash my right arm out. We watch as a thermobaric grenade sails through the air and detonates, setting all the familiars its chemical fumes touch ablaze.

Insect familiars?

"It's clear! C'mon, it's just up ahead!" Antonia yells, spurring us on. Beyond the smoldering blazes, I can see another warp gate, but there is what sounds like a stampede coming behind us.

"Mami, cover your ears and keep running!" I shout, throwing a flashbang grenade behind us back over the blazing fires. We all throw ourselves into the gate as the flashbang goes off, deafening us momentarily as we all tumble onto each other into a bowl-like valley, including Annie.

This feels like ceramic.

"Are you okay, Mami?" I ask, helping her up. "I just wanted to buy us some time to make sure we all made it through in time without getting hurt."

"Yes, I am fine," Mami says, readjusting her beret and rubbing her ears. "It seems you fight just like Akemi-san, so I am used to it."

"Akemi-san? Your friend?"

Mami nods. "She also tends to use a lot of military equipment, though I do not know how she does it. I have yet to see her use a helicopter, however."

"Yo, keep sharp!" Antonia barks, looking straight across. "She's there, alright!"

We look where Antonia's eyes are set. A massive spider stands on the side of the ceramic valley, and we see her familiars, centipedes and beetles, grotesquely misshapen, pour out from their nests and holes from the upper parts of the ceramic valley.

Araneola. Such irony.

"Goddamn. This'll take a bit," Antonia clenches her teeth. "I can already tell..."

As can I. The sheer multitude of familiars and the size of the witch's dimension points to a long, drawn-out battle. It will certainly be no less than challenging.

"Mami, you and I will take care of the familiars!" I command. "We'll cover Antonia so that she can attack the witch directly!"

Mami nods, and she swipes off her beret and lets fall two dozen or so ornately decorated .58 caliber rifle muskets around her. "Understood!"

"Annie, help 'em out!" Antonia yells, and Annie roars in response and jumps behind us to cover our flank in case of an attack from the rear.

I grip two H&K MP7A2 submachine guns and take aim. "Weapons free."

Mami and I open fire. The single shots of her booming muskets and the rat-tat-tatting of my MP7's wreak havoc in the air as the insects that begin to surround us. Spent muskets are tossed into the pool of spent bullet casings onto the ground around us. Antonia slices away anything that jumps in her way, kicking off the insect familiars that jump out to stop her to advance further towards the huge spider, and Annie chews through hordes of the insects.

"There's just no end to them!" Mami yells, gritting her teeth.

"If you feel you cannot expend more magic energy, stay near Annie!" I yell back, reloading my submachine guns and squeezing the triggers again. "She will protect you adequately!"

"I am not quite there yet! I can still fight!" Mami hollers back as I see her whip her arms out to her sides and generate some ten more muskets that unleash their armaments all at once like a Portuguese Renaissance-era organ gun. She repeats the process five more times, and the spent muskets clatter everywhere along the ground.

I hear sharp clangs of a chainsaw blade ripping against flesh, and suddenly, the great spider collapses into the ceramic valley. Antonia drops like a bullet down on the stomach (?) of the spider, crushing her right foot so hard that she pushes the entire spider down a foot into the ceramic ground.

"Jeannie-san, cover me! I will finish it off!" Mami orders as she jumps towards the spider. I slide behind her in her wake, dropping my empty MP7's and opting for an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon with a 200-round belt magazine. I drop to one knee and resume fire.

"Tiro Finale!" I hear a chant, and an explosion, but I focus on my assignment, mowing down waves upon waves of familiars.

"Mami, get back! This bitch ain't dead just yet!"

"E-Eh? ! But how? ! My Tiro Finale hit her directly!"

I notice that the waves of familiars coming from the holes further up the ceramic walls are abating, so after I blast the last few remaining, I stand back up and turn to see the spider. Antonia is in front of Mami, with her left arm thrown in front of her and her chainsaw blade in her right hand.

The witch is certainly not dead. But we do not know what else it will do.

"Antonia!" I shout out to them. "Give me two minutes!"

Antonia nods to me. "Will do! Annie, cover her!"

Annie roars and guards my back, looking around feverishly for any more enemies. I focus my eyes on my target for the next two minutes, and my vision becomes tunnel-like. Soon, I only am able to see my target, the spider, the witch.

The witch, in a world of darkness, much like the world that we live in. My mind is only concentrated on it.

No, I am incorrect. I am only concentrated on its death.

My senses never seem to keep track of time when I am in this state. The moment my vision recedes to darkness, it only seems to be a few moments before I can locate the point that I must strike to eliminate my target.

It's time.

The moment I open my eyes, I find myself in the air, just above the spider's eight-eyed head. Everything is in freefall - and time has stopped. I feel something small and sturdy in my hand, the cool touch of mahogany wood.

Slowly, time resumes...then normalizes.

"True Strike."

I feel a mighty crash crunch beneath my feet. The knife in my hand plunges into the top of the head of the spider, and my ears ring with the indistinguishable screams of the death of a witch, and the body implodes into a dark, black mist that bleeds away into the ground. Only a single Grief Seed lies in its wake.

"Are you alright, Mam - "

Antonia is lying behind Mami in a pool of blood.