"Hey..." an apprehensive Homura Akemi greeted one Mami Tomoe at her door. It was near night time in Mitakihara, almost nine PM, and a visit from the raven haired girl was probably the lowest on the list of things Mami expected that night, if it was on the list at all. "Can I come in?"

"Oh! Hello, Homura. Of course," Mami opened the door wider, stepped back and said "Come right on in." Shedding her coat at the wall hook, Homura stepped into the main room behind Mami. "I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting any visitors," Mami said as Homura looked around to find the apartment in a slight mess. A few stuffed animals on the couch or the floor, a few books laying facedown on the triangular table, and, what Mami was really referring to, no tea. She knew it didn't matter to Homura, of course. Her sudden arrivals never preceded any casual conversations.

"No, no, it's fine," Homura assured, "I just wanted to talk anyway."

"Oh, about what?"

"I-"
"Would you like me to prepare some tea?"

"...Yeah...That'd be nice."

And so, the passionate dance of the brewer began. From pot to pan and cabinet to kettle, she flitted about with the speed and elegance you'd expect from a fairy, or something equally divine. As Homura watched in mystification, Mami stepped out of the kitchen. Tea was ready. "I'm trying a new recipe this time," Mami set the tray on the table, "I hope you like it."

"So," she took a sip, "Why did you come over so late?"

"I wanted to talk to you..."

"About what?"

"Well... You're the only person I know who really...uses a gun. And... I suppo- I wondered... if you wanted to talk about them." The sentence came out weakly, as if the words were dying in the air. Homura cast the last words out quickly, and turned her face downwards, awaiting judgement.

Mami wasn't taken aback exactly, but she hadn't been expecting this. She knew Homura mostly used guns, like her, but beyond her combat style, hadn't thought much of it. But now that she turned her mind to it, firearms were probably the least common weapon one could think of. In her long career, Mami had met enough girls to fill an armory, but Homura was the only one who'd ever used a gun as well.

In a way, it made Mami happy that she had that kind of exclusivity, but maybe it is a bit lonely. She could never coordinate with Kyoko the way Sayaka could, but clearing witches with Homura was a breeze. She hadn't even responded yet, but she felt a bit closer to Homura already. Mami was excited to actually have something in common with the raven haired girl. Their conversations had always been so short, so businesslike, she hadn't really gotten to talk to her.

"Oh. I would love to," except, "... but... I don't really know much about guns." Mami cringed a bit, realizing she might have just blown it.

Homura broke out into a wide smile, and her eyes flashed with excitement. "Oh! I could teach you! I- I- I know a lot about-," Homura was stumbling over her words, and had to take a moment to come back into herself before continuing, "I know a lot about guns. If you're interested in learning, I am sure I could teach you something worth knowing." The demure and elegant Homura stared back at her, without so much as a grin left over.

Mami giggled a bit. Homura's eyes shifted down, and Mami would swear she saw her fighting the edges of a smile. "Sure, Homura. Though I never thought I'd be taught by an underclassman..." Homura took a long drag of her tea, buying time to reply. "Where should we start, Senpai?" Mami gave her a coy smile. Homura's half lidded eyes flew open, and she tried to hide her head behind the teacup. Blush had erupted across her face, and the porcelain did very little to hide it.

"Please," she looked straight at the floor, bangs working to obscure her face "Don't call me that."

Alright, it was official, Mami decided. This was the cutest she had ever seen Homura. "I'm sorry that I made you uncomfortable, Homura. It won't happen again." There was a 101% chance Mami was going to do this again, accounting for a 1% margin of error. Homura just stared at the ground. Without looking up, she choked out a thank you and set her teacup back in the tray. Mami, however, couldn't hide her smile. "You can look up now, Homura; I'm sure you've stopped blushing."

It was a very welcoming smile, to Mami's credit, so a recovered Homura couldn't help herself but give back a wry smile of her own. "I never started."