I
After Madoka had slammed the bedroom door, she waited for a while to see if Homura would follow her in. She put her ear against the door and listened very closely for any sounds or movement. It seemed the cold shoulder was effective and Homura was going to leave her alone, at least for a little while. So, she reached up her sleeve and pulled out the thing that she had snuck out of the kitchen before storming off.
She held up the knife and looked at it with a glitter in her eyes, proud of herself for managing to do something so sneaky! Now she just needed to think of a good way to hide it. It needed to be somewhere she would have a chance of reaching from the bed. Under the mattress was the most obvious option, but it was a little too obvious.
She walked around the bed, from one side to the other, examining all its corners. She lifted up the mattress enough to look under it (being very careful not to make much noise as she did so). Would Homura think to check here before leaving? She wasn't sure. She knocked herself on the head and thought, think, think, think!
She had the knife, but that was only half of the plan. She needed a way to get to it once Homura left for the night so she could cut herself free. Although, if Homura tied her spread eagle as she did the night before she would not be able to reach it no matter where it was stashed. So, phase two of the plan would be convincing Homura to tie her up in a way that gave her more freedom. She didn't know how to do it yet, but she hoped she would think of something.
For now, she set the knife down on the nightstand, then crossed her arms behind her back and laid down on the bed. She reached her foot out and tried to see if she could get it under the mattress. If she scooted herself close to the edge and bent her leg just right, she could push her toes under the crevice between the mattress and the box spring. It was an awkward position, and she thought even if her toes could manage to grab the knife, chances are she would just end up dropping it on the ground.
She unfolded her arms and laid down on the bed normally. Her head laid upon the soft cotton pillow as she stared at the ceiling. Think. Then, a thought hit her and she jumped up from the excitement of it. She grabbed the pillow and held it in her lap. She turned it lengthways and pulled it out of the pillowcase just enough to look at its end.
She figured this was the best plan possible, so she grabbed the knife and very carefully cut a slit on the side of the pillow. She then inserted the knife lengthways and took a good look at what she'd done. The knife was completely hidden, but there was a bit of cotton sticking out of the slit. She pushed it in with her fingers as best she could, but even with the cotton stuffed back in, it was still quite clearly cut. Would Homura notice? It was such a small thing that she might overlook it.
Still, she could not afford to get caught, so it wasn't a chance she was going to take. She pulled the pillow out of the pillowcase completely and put it in backwards. Now the unscathed side of the pillow was visible and the cut side was hidden. It would be harder to get to, but it was worth nullifying the extra risk.
Now if she could just get Homura to tie her in a way that allowed a little more mobility, she might be able to get the knife in her hand and cut herself free. It wouldn't be easy, but it was better than nothing and it was the best idea she had so far.
Then, she heard a knock on the door. She quickly laid back down on the bed and folded her arms, forcing a disgruntled look on her face. She knew she wouldn't be able to pull off nonchalance, so she disguised her fervor behind a layer of malcontent. "What!?" she answered, harshly.
Homura opened the door enough to stick her head in. "I made dinner. You should come eat before it gets cold."
II
On the bar sat two plates of curry with chopped carrots, potatoes, and rice. Homura was in the kitchen, digging through the refrigerator. Madoka stood, staring at the plates that were set directly across from each other, and she regarded them with suspicion.
Homura produced a pitcher of iced tea and poured it into two glasses. As she set the pitcher down, she noticed Madoka's lack of motion. "It's curry and rice. I got the mild kind for you." Then, she gestured for Madoka to take a seat.
Madoka slowly moved to the chair and sat down. She picked up the fork and moved the food around a bit. She had eaten Homura's cooking this morning, but there was something that hadn't occurred to her back then. It was entirely possible that Homura could drug her food. Breakfast had been bacon and eggs and it would have been hard to alter that is some way without it being easily noticed. With curry it's different, mild or not, the spice would block out any bitter tastes from sleeping pills and they would have dissolved perfectly in the sauce.
Also, it was getting late. Homura already said she planned to go out, therefore she was planning to tie her up again. If she were going to drug her, now would be the time to do it. That way she couldn't resist, and Homura could go about her business worry free. The ice tea was probably okay, Madoka decided, because she had just watched Homura pour both glasses. Although, to be on the safe side she would wait for Homura to drink first.
Homura had already taken a few bites off her own plate when she noted that Madoka wasn't eating. "Is everything alright?" she asked, putting her fork down.
Madoka looked away, "I'm... not really hungry."
"You haven't eaten all day. You should really eat at least a little of it. It might be a while before you get another chance." She thought about it for a moment, watching Madoka's face. "Or, is there some other reason why you won't eat?" Madoka just stared at her plate. "In this situation it's perfectly understandable that you would be suspicious of me. If you have any concerns just say it. I won't be mad or anything like that."
Madoka moved the food around, timidly. "Well, I was thinking you might have drugged it... or something."
"I see. I suppose it would be fairly easy to do that with curry... Want to switch? Mine is a bit spicier, but you should be able to handle it." Madoka looked between the two plates, not sure how to answer. "For what it's worth, I would never try something as underhanded as that. I know you don't really know me, but I promise I would never betray your trust like that."
Madoka thought, Oh yeah, that means a whole lot coming from the girl who kidnapped me, broke into my house, and left me tied to a bed for twelve hours! Still, she somehow had the feeling that Homura could at least be trusted on this. After all, she did offer up her own plate, and it's not like she really needed to use drugs if she wanted to tie her up. That was already exceptionally clear. Aside from all of that, Madoka actually was very hungry, and the smell of the curry was tempting her past her suspicions.
"It's alright. I'll eat it," Madoka said, as she lifted the fork to her mouth and took a bite.
III
"So... what do these witch things look like anyway?" Ventured Madoka, amidst the middle of their meal.
Homura set her fork down and thought about it for a moment. "They are hard to describe. They all look very different from one another. Most of them are pretty frightening, others are just strange, and there's some you might even consider cute.
"One of them takes on the form of a high school girl, except bigger and warped completely out of proportion. You can't really see her face, I'm not even sure if she has one or not, she basically took the form of the lower half of a human girl... except... warped. If that makes any sense. Like I said, it's hard to describe."
Madoka seemed interested, so Homura kept going.
"There's another that has butterfly wings, but the body of a slug, and a face that looks like molded meat with rotten juices dripping off of it. It has at least twenty eyes, all of which kind of look like roses. You wouldn't really know they were its eyes at first, except it's almost like you can feel it when it's looking at you. Like it's looking directly into your soul, and clawing at something deep inside yourself."
Madoka forked her food and thought about it. The schoolgirl one didn't sound so bad, but the butterfly winged one sounded awfully terrifying, although she was having a hard time imagining it. "You said some of them actually look cute? Tell me about one of those."
"Well, cute was a bit of an exaggeration. The one I was thinking of is what we've called the sweets witch. It does seem cute at first, but it's only a ploy to catch you off guard. It takes the form of a small doll, like something a child might play with. Even its voice is kind of childlike."
"Witches can talk?"
"Not really, it doesn't use words that anyone can understand. I don't know if it has its own language or if it's just gibberish. While fighting it, it's always making these noises that sound like speech. It's more like squeaking, actually. The thing is, it eventually transforms into its second form, its true form. That second form is a monstrous creature with razor sharp teeth. I've seen it take out one of the most powerful Magical Girls I've ever known with a single strike." She was referring, of course, to Mami. In many of Homura's past lives she had watched Mami fall victim to the sweets witch. It was likely that Mami would be fighting that witch sometime tomorrow, and chances are she would once again die in the battle unless Homura were to intervene.
"Witches are terrible creatures, they are not something you ever want to lay eyes on. Becoming a Magical Girl means you have to spend the rest of your life doing battle with them. Your only reward at the end of all of it is to turn into a witch yourself. It's a fate I wouldn't wish on anyone, and it's that fate which I hope to save you from, Madoka." She stood up and started gathering the plates. "You're done, right?"
"Um, yes I'm finished. Thank you, it was delicious."
"You're welcome," she said, as she added Madoka's plate to the pile. "So, feeling light headed or anything like that yet?"
It took Madoka a few seconds to realize Homura had made a joke. She didn't think it was very funny, but she smirked anyway.
She now had a full stomach, and although her curry was mild it still left a bit of a tingle on her tongue. She suddenly felt a bit sleepy and let out a long yawn. Homura started rinsing the dishes in the sink and said, "If you want to take a shower you should do it now." Madoka nodded in agreement and went into the bedroom to grab a change of clothes.
She grabbed the pajamas from last night, figuring they were still good for at least one more night, and a fresh pair of panties. She then went to the bathroom. As she crossed the living room, Homura peeked from behind the bar to make sure she didn't go for the front door. Madoka did stop and consider it for a moment, thinking how ironic it was that the barrier between freedom and captivity was so close. If Homura was a normal person she could easily bolt through the door and make a run for it. Because of Homura's power, however, she knew it was impossible.
Although this hotel room had some kind of illusion of freedom, and didn't look much like a prison, that's exactly what it was for her. There were no steel bars securing her inside. Except, technically, there were; they just didn't look like steel bars. The bars in this prison looked like an ordinary highschool girl who was currently standing in the kitchen washing dishes.
The prison breaks displayed in movies never happened during the day or in broad daylight, and she figured real prison breaks were much the same. It had to happen at night, when the guards think you are sleeping and securely locked in your cell. That's the way it was going to be for her. Tonight she was going to get out, she just had phase two of the plan to complete and then she would be home free.
IV
After the shower, Madoka took a good look at herself. The rope marks around her chest and forearms had almost completely faded, they weren't visible unless she looked closely. Around her wrists and ankles there were still some pretty clear impressions. Once she made it home, she figured she would have to try and hide these from her parents, otherwise they would worry that she had been mistreated. Well, she supposed she had been mistreated, being tied up, dragged across town, and left on a bed for twelve hours, but it really wasn't as bad as all that sounded.
Still, she could not just stay like this so she had to get away, and hopefully tonight would be the night. She just needed to find a way to convince Homura to tie her in a way that allowed more freedom. She was not a good liar, but she didn't necessarily have to lie. She was honestly very uncomfortable last night and all she had to do was make a solid case against it.
She rubbed a towel into her hair to dry it, then she put on the pajamas. She held the doorknob for a few seconds while she took a deep breath and assured herself that she would be able to do this, then exited the bathroom.
Homura had been sitting on the couch watching TV while she waited. She looked over her shoulder to Madoka who stood just outside the bathroom and near the front door. She was wearing the pajamas from last night, and her pink hair was down and still slightly damp. Homura loved her ribbons and her pigtails, but also thought she was really cute when her hair was down like this.
"Ready for bed?" Homura asked, casually. Madoka stood there with her fingers fidgeting within one another. Through the corners of her eyes she looked down at the door knob.
Homura stood up and started coming towards her, then stopped when Madoka suddenly grabbed the doorknob and looked back at her with an intense look in her eyes. Homura returned the look with a raised eyebrow and said, "What are you doing?"
"What if..." Madoka had to look away and gather her courage, then resumed her intense stare once she found it. "What if… What if I just ran out this door right now?"
Homura sighed. "Then I would drag you right back before you even made it three steps down the hall. You know you can't outrun me."
"You're planning to tie me up again right?"
"Sorry, but I kind of have to. It won't be for long this time. Just go to sleep and it'll be over before you know it." She stepped forward and held out her hand. "Come on."
Madoka looked at her hand, and looked at the door. Being resistant is the more natural reaction for someone who didn't have an escape plan, so that's the impression she had to give. She figured if she came along too willing Homura might be suspicious that she was up to something.
"No," Madoka said firmly. "You're not doing that to me again! I Refuse!"
"You don't have a choice."
Madoka didn't need to fake any emotions to respond to that, "What? Am I just going to get tied up every night for the rest of my life!?" She started yelling, "Am I supposed to just live in this crappy hotel room forever? YOU EXPECT ME TO JUST ACCEPT THA-" She was cut off when Homura suddenly appeared in front of her, and she realized her mouth was stuffed with something that muffled her speech.
"You are being too loud," said Homura, flatly. Madoka tried to take the gag out of her mouth, but Homura disappeared again, reappearing behind her and started pulling her arms behind her back. Madoka screamed through the gag, and pulled away with all her strength, digging her feet into the ground and trying to yank her arms free from Homura's grasp.
Homura let go of her wrists, and instead wrapped her arms fully around Madoka's body, getting her in a bear hug. "Calm down, Madoka! Just relax!" Madoka wriggled and fought against her hold, but couldn't get out of Homura's arms. Homura was much stronger than her, and didn't have much trouble keeping her small body locked against her own.
While holding her, she couldn't help but smell the fresh scents of the shampoo in Madoka's still damp hair. Madoka's struggle continued for a while, but eventually it started to cease. Homura spoke very softly, burying her face into the back of her neck. "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you, so just stop it."
Then, unexpectedly, Madoka's body went completely limp, her knees became rubber and she just hung loosely in Homura's arms. "Madoka?" she lowered her captive down to her knees, and loosened her grip. Madoka was sobbing through the gag and repeatedly saying something over and over "aam aarry!, aam aarry!"
I'm sorry?
Homura pulled the cloth out of Madoka's mouth. Madoka turned to her, with a red face and glassy tear stricken eyes. "I'm sorry, Homura. I- I'm just scared!"
Homura looked away, feeling guilty, and thought of a solution. "What if I didn't leave tonight? Would you feel better?"
Madoka shook her head instantaneously. It was almost too quick, Homura noted. "No, I want to write a letter to mom. I know she is so worried right now, if she knew I was okay it would make her feel at least a little better. Still, it's scary. Being all alone," Madoka swallowed. "and... and the fact that I couldn't move at all, that was the worst."
Homura thought about this for a moment, noting a certain eagerness in Madoka. The tears acted as good cover, but there was something else hidden there. "How about this. If you don't struggle, I can tie you in a way that allows for more movement. Would that be better?"
"I-I suppose." Madoka tried not to betray any of her true intentions by seeming too excited by the suggestion, but her heart jumped at the words. Her plan was working! It was actually working!
"Come on, then," said Homura, her voice had reverted back to being cold and monotone, her suspicious mind was ticking. Madoka didn't notice, however. She was too excited about what she had just accomplished. Her plan was working! Homura helped her to her feet, then led the way to the bedroom.
Madoka waited a moment before following. When Homura was in the doorway of the bedroom, she stopped.
Madoka wasn't sure if her eyes had played a trick on her or not, but in that moment, something happened. Madoka couldn't put a finger on it, but something about Homura had changed, it was very subtle, but something was different. Homura turned and looked back at her, beckoning her forward with nothing more than a stare.
Madoka followed her into the bedroom, nervously twiddling her fingers, despite herself.
"Take a seat," said Homura, as she went to the closet where she had stashed the rope. Madoka did as she was asked and sat down on the bed with her back turned. Homura climbed onto the bed behind her and said, "Put your arms behind your back." Madoka submissively obeyed, and the next thing she knew the rope was being thrown over her shoulders and wrapped around her body.
When it was all done, she was tied similar to how she was the first time, with the rope over and under her breasts with a V in the middle. The difference is her arms were now crossed behind her back instead of straight with her hands down by her butt. "Is that comfortable?" Homura asked, pulling on the rope in some places to test it. "It's not too tight?"
"I-I think it's okay."
"Alright then, just one more thing." She grabbed a length of rope and ran it through the bed frame. She took both ends and tied them together around the cross between Madoka's arms.
"There," Homura said, brushing her hands off and inspecting her work. "This way you can stand up and walk around the bed a little, if you want. Also, you still won't be able to get at any of the knots because of the way your hands are... Actually, move your hands around a bit so I can see." Madoka obeyed, turning her wrists and reaching as much as she could. Homura seemed satisfied. "As long as you don't break the bed frame this should be fine." She put her hands on the bed frame and tested it. "I really doubt you could pull that off, though. Besides, you wouldn't be able to get the rope off your body either way."
Madoka's hair got a bit tangled up during the struggle, so Homura started running her fingers through it to straighten it out. It was still damp and cold to her touch. Madoka had no choice but to allow it. She didn't hate it, but it did make her feel a bit awkward. "Things won't always be like this," Homura said, still running her fingers through Madoka's hair. "I'll come up with a better living situation, and eventually I think I will be able to trust you more." Madoka didn't say anything. "You have to show me you can be trusted, though. I don't want to hurt you, I just want you to be safe. Even if it does not seem like it." She grabbed the rag she had gagged Madoka with earlier and held it where she could see. "Ready for this?"
"Um... Homura?" Madoka asked, meekly, still trapped in her captor's embrace. "Could you make one more stop while you are out? There's a photo album in the living room back at my house. If you could grab a picture, one with my whole family in it... well, I really miss them and I think having that will make this a little easier for me."
Homura was slow to respond, but eventually she said, "Sure, no problem." Then she put the rag to Madoka's mouth; she now accepted it willingly and let Homura stuff it inside. Homura tied a small length of rope around her mouth and the back of her head to keep it in place, pulled her hair up to keep it from getting tangled in the rope, then stood.
Madoka, gagged and completely silent, watched her walk away. In the doorway Homura stopped and said, "Like I said, things will get better. I need you to just accept this for what it is, and things will be easier for both of us. Understand?"
There was something about Madoka when she was gagged, Homura thought, it was like the lack of speech made her eyes all the more expressive. It was as if she actually could speak, but she didn't need to say a single word to communicate her thoughts. Madoka looked at her with wide guilty eyes, and nodded.
As soon as Madoka heard the front door shut, she sprang into action. She rolled over to the pillow and got her hands on it, then started working it out of the pillow case.
-Atomyst
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