AN: D, I definitely wished I had done the whole Tateyama and Mami better. I was going for more of a mentor-student thing, but being the genius I am, it ended up going in a much different direction than I intended. A direction I intend to realign. On a more positive note, Madoka Magica has now made it's 7th anniversary! Goddamn, do I feel old. I remember starting out this story as a naive boy. Now I'm a naive young man.
"A 'Soul-Link'?" Mamoru pressed his phone to his ear, the Puerum Magi placing down his knife on the cutting board in front of him and leaning forward on the apartment's kitchen counter as a stack of raw ingredients were to his right. On the other end of the call, Takuya's voice eventually spoke up again, the voices of Hideki, Tateyama, Tomoe, Madoka and Sayaka all audible in the background.
Next to him, Mikage was stirring a brewing pot of stew when she heard the boy's exclamation and turned a curious gaze to him, Mamoru now pulling open the kitchen drawers and rummaging through them until he eventually took out a note pad and a pen.
His phone pressed between his head and shoulder, he began writing over the course of the phone call, "... I see... Is that so...? If that's how it is, then we should discuss about this with the others tomorrow. In the meantime, do try to find any information you can get... It is strange that Sanbey knows nothing of it, but I'm sure we can trust him... Alright. Take care, Takuya," ending the call and placing his phone, pad and pen aside, he picked up his knife again and continued chopping the raw ingredients in silence.
"Is something wrong, Young Master?" Mikage inquired while sprinkling several spices into the brewing pot in front of her.
Placing down his knife, Mamoru handed the board of chopped ingredients to Mikage and crossed his arms over his chest, "It's my friends. One of them, Tateyama, had passed-out earlier alongside the Puella Magi we had allied ourselves with. When they came to, the others told me about a 'link' that had formed between them," grabbing another raw ingredient from the small pile to his right, he continued chopping them with a calculative expression, "This is all too sudden. Not even Sanbey knew anything about this."
Calmly stirring the pot with a ladle, Mikage looked back at him and advised in a sage-like manner, "As sudden as it may be, I'd advise that we continue focusing on Oriko and the leads we have on finding her instead. You were given a lead this afternoon, were you not? I'll see what I can find out about this 'Komaki Asako' before you begin your search then."
"I agree," Mamoru said with tired sigh, glancing aside at the kitchen's balcony where he could see the city outside glowing in the dim sunset, "I'll just leave it to them, I suppose. Nothing we can do from here, either way," passing another batch of chopped ingredients to Mikage, Mamoru's body tensed when his senses picked up several footsteps on the rooftop above. Glancing again at the balcony, he sighed again when none other than Sakura Kyouko landed in sight, her Magi uniform switching back to her casual clothes in a red flash.
Sniffing the air and seeing the brewing pot of stew, Kyouko casually rolled her shoulders while both Mikage and Mamoru didn't even acknowledge her presence, "Dinner's almost done, huh? I'll be waiting back my room then."
Having already been told on how she had prevented Mamoru from taking down a Witch's Familiar this afternoon, Mikage placed her ladle aside and approached the Puella Magi, while Mamoru simply chose to stay quiet and chop up the rest of the ingredients for dinner. With her hands folded behind her back, the bodyguard blocked Kyouko from the kitchen doorway before shooting a small glare at her with a stern tone, "And just where have you been?"
"Hunting Witches, duh," Kyouko casually replied with her hands stuffed in her worn jacket's pockets, "Witches have been appearing left and right, so of course I had to spend a bit of time hunting down my share," she took out one of her hands from her pockets and flashed multiple Grief Seeds between her fingers, "See? I didn't encounter any of those Warlocks you mentioned, but I guess that's more of a convenience for me, right?" with a smirk, she placed them back in her pocket and walked around the bodyguard.
Mikage opened her mouth to speak, but Mamoru lifted a hand, gesturing her to just leave Kyouko be. Cutting up the last of the ingredients for dinner, he stabbed his knife into the cutting board before wiping his hands with a towel, "Bring me whatever you can find on this 'Komaki Asako' girl as soon as you can, Mikage. I'd prefer that we not waste any time when taking down Oriko. Whatever she's doing right now could be dangerous for us and the others back in Mitakihara."
As the sound of Kyouko's room door opening and closing shut could be heard, Mikage diligently nodded and continued preparing for dinner in relative silence. Meanwhile, Mamoru took a seat on the dining table, crossing his legs as he continued staring out the balcony. Whatever was going on in Mitakihara had the Puerum Magi worried, but with his trust in his friends, he hoped that they would be able to settle all of this by themselves.
The yellow rays of sunset shone through the tall apartments of Mitakihara, their soft glow passing the clear windows of Tomoe Mami's apartment and onto several empty tea-cups. Sitting down on one side of the low, glass table, Tateyama and Tomoe had their eyes shut with Tomoe holding onto her Soul Gem and Tateyama's Soul Gem glimmering underneath his shirt. Their Gems pulsing with an alluring glow, Sayaka, Takuya and Sanbey all watched as they sat on the other sides of the table, seeing the silver and gold glow emitting from both Gems in silent awe.
Though his mind was still hazy from the Link's formation, Tateyama's mind felt as though it had been physically expanded. The very idea of communicating with Tomoe Mami through thought alone would spark a telepathic link between them, not requiring either Sanbey or Kyubey to form one between them. In fact, he could feel as though he would able to peer into her mind itself, if she had her consent of course. On Tomoe's end, the Puella Magi could feel the strange heat of Recicio energy within her Soul Gem, the very energy that grew within a Puerum Magi as a manifestation of their willpower. It was weak, but it was present regardless, as the sensation felt utterly alien to the Puella Magi.
Finally reopening their eyes, Tomoe let out a tugged on her uniform's collar for air and put away her Soul Gem, Tateyama taking his laptop out from his schoolbag to type down several notes as his own Gem's glow died down.
"Did you two sense anything else?" Sanbey asked first, and Tomoe sadly shook her head, the Familiar's ears slightly dropping in disappointment.
"Aside from what we already know, I can't seem to find anything else, really," Tomoe explained, elbows placed on the table as a sigh escaped her.
Takuya covered his mouth as he yawned, something that proved infectious as Sayaka next to him did the same and stretched her arms. Rubbing her eyes, the blue-haired girl couldn't help but groan, "We've been sitting here for one hour already and we still haven't figured out anything else. You'd think we'd find something by now."
Sanbey, deep in thought, flinched when Takuya petted him on the head to get his attention, "You sure you have no clue what that Link-thingie is, 'Bey? When it came to everything else, you pretty much knew they were like the back of your paw," peering at Sanbey's beady red eyes that continued to just stare down on the floor in silence, Takuya pursed his lips and picked up the cat-like Familiar, placing Sanbey on his lap while continuing to pet him on the head, "Sanbey's getting moody again," Takuya commented with a deadpan tone and smile.
"Don't worry, Sanbey," Tateyama assured him while tapping away on his laptop, his eyes turning to them only after he had finished typing a paragraph's worth of notes, "I'm feeling alright now. It was sudden. But I think we shouldn't worry," he lifted a hand and touched the silver Soul Gem faintly glowing underneath his shirt, now shimmering with a slight hint of gold, "I'll see what I can find about this. So don't worry."
The Familiar still remaining silent, his ears perked up at the sound of jingling tableware as Madoka and Hideki finally came out of the kitchen with trays of food and hot tea in their hands. Carefully, the two placed down their trays on the table, and the sight of fresh treats was a pleasant one for all as Madoka sat beside Sayaka and Hideki beside Takuya. The next few minutes were subsequently nothing more than the group erasing their exhaustion with some tea and cake, and once nothing but empty plates and teacups remained, they finally continued with their business, but only after dealing with something else beforehand.
"Hakamichi," Tomoe addressed Hideki as she dabbed her mouth with a napkin, "Would you would mind escorting Kaname and Miki back home for us?"
His spoon still in his mouth, Hideki glanced at the veteran Magi on his left with a dumbfounded look, before turning that same dumbfounded look to Madoka and Sayaka on his right. Hearing an audible gulp from the Puerum Magi, Hideki placed down his empty plate and spoon to scratch his cheek, "Sure," he said with a casual shrug of his shoulders, "Just make sure they don't get into trouble with any Witches or Warlocks, right?"
Responding with a nod, Tomoe then gave an apologetic smile to the two girls, "Sorry for making you two stay here for so long. I didn't really expect any of today to happen so suddenly."
"Nah, it's fine," Sayaka shrugged while scooping up the rest of her cake into her mouth, gulping it all down before adding, "There's always tomorrow, right?"
Madoka nodded in agreement, picking up her bag from behind her back before she gave the rest a bow, "I hope everyone figures out what they're looking for. See you all tomorrow," she said with a peppy smile.
As Sayaka, Madoka and Hideki all stood up with their schoolbags in hand, the rest of Magi waved them all goodbye, Hideki taking a small moment to gaze at the setting sun outside the windows before he escorted the two out of Tomoe's apartment. With a quick two-fingered salute and a cocky smile, the Puerum Magi left with the pair as their footsteps outside slowly faded out of earshot.
The very moment silence had begun to creep into the room, Tomoe pushed aside her plate and opened her mouth to speak, only for all of them to spot a cat-shaped shadow stretching across the table, as none other than Kyubey appeared on the Puella Magi's shoulder. It was as though it had been there the entire time, but no one had actually manage to spot it.
Tateyama and Takuya visibly tensed at the sight of the creature, Sanbey's ears and tails perking in alarm as he jumped off Takuya's lap and onto the carpeted floor. Meanwhile, Tomoe was too busy giving Kyubey a surprised smile to notice any of the boys' alarm, "Oh, Kyubey, there you are. Where were you for the past few days? It's almost as though you had suddenly disappeared."
Hopping off the girl's shoulder and landing on the glass table with a light 'thud', Kyubey gave a silent glance to Sanbey below it, the striped Incubator looking back at it with his three tails raised in the air. Their beady, red eyes staring into one another in silence, Kyubey subsequently turned to Tomoe with an apologetic tune, "Sorry, Mami, but I've just been tending to things in other places again."
"You've been doing this quite often, though," Tomoe replied with a raised brow, her fingers bringing her teacup to her mouth, "Should I be worried about any of this?"
"It's completely fine; I promise!" Kyubey assured her, before turning back once more to Sanbey and the boys, all three of them still glaring at it in uneasy silence, "Now that I'm back, if you don't mind, Tomoe, but I've been meaning to ask your new friends a few questions," its single tail waved left and right, the boys feeling its beady eyes scanning the three of them, "Especially regarding today's array of peculiar events."
Sitting next to Tomoe, Tateyama turned his gaze away from her when she curiously looked at him, Takuya doing the same thing as he picked up Sanbey and placed him on his lap again. Putting a calming hand on the Familiar's head, Takuya effortlessly painted on a believable smile before speaking, "What're you gonna ask us, anyway? 'Bey already said that he doesn't know anything, after all."
"I'm more interested in asking about something else besides that link, actually," Kyubey replied, "I want to simply know one thing-" it stepped closer to the edge of the table and stared down right at Sanbey, "What exactly were you created for?"
Sanbey visibly flinched at its question, all three Magi looking at the Familiar on Takuya's lap as Sanbey continued to remain silent. Seeing this display of discomfort despite the static expression that was Sanbey's face, Tomoe calmly interjected, "Sanbey, though it is sudden, I myself would like to know more about you as well. It could lead to some explanations about just what this 'Soul-Link' is too, so do share whatever you know."
Sanbey looked up at Takuya, and then at Tateyama, both Puerum Magi giving him silent nods as he looked back at Kyubey and Tomoe as they awaited his answer. Giving a low sigh, he finally spoke up in a quiet, but calm, voice, "All I know... is that I was created by a group of Puella Magi - the same group that created the Warlocks. I don't know why they did, or what was the point of making something that could make Puerum Magi, but that's all I'm for. I'm just here to grant wishes for boys, just like you do with girls, Kyubey," the last word of his sentence transitioned into a minor snarl.
"Sanbey-?" Tomoe gave a surprised glance at the two Puerum Magi, "Sanbey's creators had also... created the Warlocks?"
Both of them nodded again, Tateyama being the only one to reply with a lowered gaze, "It's how Sanbey knows about them. And how to defeat them. We wanted to tell you earlier, but..."
Takuya awkwardly scratched the back of his head, "We really couldn't find the moment to tell you that."
"So aside from that, you say that you do not know anything about this link that has formed all of a sudden?" Kyubey pondered to itself, "Now whether or not that's true, I'm still unsure about trusting something that does not even know the reason why it exists, or alternatively, something that was created alongside the very monsters you boys are trying to defeat."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sanbey snapped at him, his stripes and three tails glimmering with gold.
"Well, for one, it is a fact that your creators also made the monsters that - not only have suddenly reappeared at the same time as you boys made your entrance - but have also been killing more people than the Witches in town. The fact that you are artificial unlike myself just proves that there could be things about you that you are unaware of, things that could potentially put even Mami in danger from-"
"Kyubey, that's enough," Tomoe cut in, her fingers placing down her teacup back in its saucer as she placed her elbows on the table again. Curling her fingers together, she gave a warm smile to Takuya and Sanbey, "Fujimaki, I'm sorry, but could you and Sanbey take your leave now? It's getting late and I'm sure you two have other things to take care of, such as studying for a school test tomorrow," she added with a small chuckle.
Returning that smile in kind, Takuya then carried Sanbey in his arms and gave a grateful bow before heading towards the front door. Both Kyubey and Sanbey completely silent during all this, Takuya placed his shoes on and waved Tateyama and Tomoe goodbye with a wide smile, "Well, see you guys tomorrow! And thanks for the cake!" opening the door, Takuya then got out of sight as he quickly skipped out of the door and closed it behind him.
Now with only Tateyama, Tomoe and Kyubey remaining in the room, Tateyama looked at Tomoe as she took another sip of her teacup, Kyubey turning around to speak to her instead, "Sorry if I was being brash, Mami, but I'm just worried for your sake. I don't exactly trust that Sanbey, or the boys under it," it said as Tateyama still sat next to Tomoe, the Puerum Magi shooting the Familiar a subtle glare that Kyubey ignored.
Placing down her teacup again, Tomoe pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, lifting one hand to pet the Familiar on the head, "I'm grateful that you're worried, Kyubey, but I'm sure they can be trusted, even if their origins are strange. Don't worry too much for myself, alright? I'm quite able to take care of myself," she got a pout in the only way a being with a static face could actually give and the Puella Magi chuckled, "Now then, Tateyama, could you refill the teapot for me before we continue our business?"
Taking the empty pot into both hands, Tateyama got up from Tomoe's side and gave another subtle glare at the Familiar. His sharp eyes keeping track of it despite one side of his face hidden behind his hair, Tateyama couldn't help but find the 'worry' that the Familiar was showing feel uncanny to him. He couldn't tell what was going on behind that static face, but any emotion it gave off didn't have the same genuine feel that Sanbey's words actually had, just a sense that it was mimicking what it understood as emotions.
The yellow light of the setting sun slowly fading into the horizon, Takuya hummed to himself with his hands swaying at his sides as he skipped along the sidewalk of the streets. Sanbey silently clinging to his back, cars and trucks seldom drove past the boy, the flashing lights and signs on the apartment blocks around him filling their view with hundreds of colours as Takuya made his way back home. Skidding to a stop at a street crossing, Takuya finally spoke up while watching the several cars in front of him drive by.
"You alright, 'Bey?" Takuya looked at the Familiar over his shoulder, "First time I've seen you so quiet. More quiet than usual, actually."
Hearing a deep sigh from the Familiar, Sanbey climbed over the boy's shoulder and dropped into his comforting arms. Takuya didn't mind it, even if it meant looking as though he was carrying nothing in his hands to anyone that couldn't perceive the Familiar. He was used to it at this point, "It's... frustrating," Sanbey whispered, "For the past few days, I've been nothing but dead weight to you all. Everything that comes... either I don't know about it or someone else is better suited to doing it. I'm useless... aren't I...?"
The crossing in front of him finally clear of cars, Takuya raised a hand and stroked the Familiar's fur as he made his way across the empty street, "You don't have to be all-knowing, 'Bey. You taught as all we needed to know to fight the Warlocks. Isn't that enough?" hopping onto the end of the crossing, Takuya spotted a nearby bench up ahead and skipped towards it before nonchalantly dropping himself onto the leaf-covered bench.
Sanbey hopped onto the brunette's side, the branches of the trees around them fluttering from a passing-by breeze as Takuya rubbed his hands together, "I know I can't be omnipotent. It's frankly impossible. But..." Sanbey looked up at the skies above them, its yellow colour slowly transitioning into the coming night, "I'm probably as suspicious as Kyubey now, honestly... I still don't know the true reason I was created; I don't know the things that have been affecting you boys; I'm always keeping quiet when people want things answered. I'm just..."
Petting him on the head once again before he could continue, Takuya relaxed in his seat and playfully drummed the fingers of his other hand on the wooden bench, "Well, you're not wrong with any of that," he gave a small laugh, "But, even so, I'm sure that Hideki, 'Teyama, Mamoru, and even Tomoe are still gonna trust you," he gave the Familiar a beaming smile, one that almost felt a little forced even, "I'm prob' gonna end up saying this a lot, but you've done a lotta' things to help everyone, 'Bey. Nothing's gonna change that."
Gazing up at the Puerum Magi as he ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair, Sanbey couldn't help but ask, "Don't you think I could be keeping things from you all...? Things that... could possibly hurt you?"
Takuya puffed his cheeks and swayed around in thought like a child before giving an easy-going shrug that got an exasperated sigh from the Familiar. Sheepishly sticking his tongue out the corner of his cheek, Takuya then said with a chuckle, "Whether or not you're actually keeping stuff from us, I trust that you're doing it for the right reasons, 'Bey," a small hint of doubt then crossed his face before it faded away just as quickly, "It is scary to not know about things that could affect you. Like what the Warlocks are planning, what they could do to the people we care about - but I'll keep on fighting like the others despite that. After all, we made a promise to Homura, right?"
Seeing that eager smile returning to the brunette's face once again, Sanbey looked down and couldn't help but shake his head in exasperation, "Sometimes I'm not sure if you're either too naive for your own good, or just really, really hopeful, Takuya."
"There's a difference?" the Magi laughed before hopping off the bench and stretching his arms and legs. Seeing the skies above slowly fading into night, Takuya promptly picked Sanbey up and ruffled his head with a hand, "Let's just head home for today and leave wondering about that Soul-Link thingie for tomorrow, 'kay?"
Giving no words in response, Sanbey simply nodded and Takuya laughed before they headed back home, skipping through the streets of Mitakihara as the street lights around them slowly lit up one-by-one.
Closing the apartment curtains shut and flipping on the lights, Tateyama turned back to the living room where his laptop sat next to a filled teacup and Tomoe's Soul Gem on the glass table. He could hear her tending to the used tableware in the kitchen as he walked back to his laptop and sat back down, scrolling through all the notes he had typed out on their Soul-Link. At this point, the mere sight of an ocean of words simply arose another yawn from Tateyama as he grasped his teacup and glanced at Tomoe's Soul Gem next to it.
Shimmering next to his hand with colours of gold and faint silver, her Gem was still mildly dimmed from Tomoe having used her magic against that Witch earlier. Eyes narrowed, Tateyama looked around for any sign of Kyubey and noticed that he was still in the kitchen with Tomoe. His hand letting go of his cup, he held up Tomoe's Soul Gem to his face and lifted his other hand from his side to unbutton his uniform's collar.
Two buttons undone to reveal the silver, diamond-shaped gem engraved beneath his collarbone, Tateyama gulped before holding up Tomoe's Soul Gem in front to his own, "No results," he thought to himself when the two Gems continued to shimmer normally, "But what if...?" grasping the Puella Magi's Gem tightly, he slowly pressed the egg-shaped device against the surface of his diamond Gem, and as he felt his breath turn hoarse, his eyes suddenly widened in shock.
His hand trembled, his eyesight blurred, as with each passing second he pressed the two Gems together, he could see the taint that had grown within Tomoe's Soul Gem as a result of using her magic slowly transfer into his own Gem, all before the taint systematically vanished like a stream of dirty water going through a purifier. When the last of the taint had been extracted, Tateyama hastily pulled the Gem away from his chest and ended up knocking his teacup off the table. The tableware shattering on the floor and tainting the carpet with hot tea, Tateyama gripped the sides of the table in front of him, gasping for air as sweat trailed down the sides of his face.
Panting as the tea stained the carpeted floor, Tateyama looked back at Tomoe's Soul Gem and saw that it had returned to its former bright glow, "What... was...?"
Hearing hurried footsteps, Tateyama placed Tomoe's Soul Gem back on the table and buttoned his collar up before Tomoe rushed back into the living room with Kyubey behind her. She immediately saw the pieces of the broken teacup scattered all over the stained carpet and Tateyama's sweaty demeanor, "Ikezawa, what happened?" she asked, gingerly stepping around the broken pieces of her teacup to pick up a dust pan in the corner as Kyubey stared at the Puerum Magi in silence.
Wiping the sweat off his face with his sleeves, Tateyama avoided both of their gazes before looking straight at Tomoe, stating as firmly as possible, "Your Soul Gem," he pointed to it as it sat next to his laptop, and in the same calm tone, said, "I... purified it."
Kneeling in front of the broken shards with a dust pan and small broom, Tomoe looked at him and blinked, "What do you mean?" she asked with a confused smile and glanced at her Soul Gem, only to notice that its previous luster had suddenly returned. Placing down her items on the floor, she reached into her pockets and saw that the Grief Seed from the Witch earlier was still in her pocket, still unused and untouched. She blinked once more, before she sat down and held her hand over her mouth.
"What is the meaning of this?" Kyubey finally spoke up, climbing onto the table and pressing its paw against Tomoe's Soul Gem to check on its condition. Gazing back at the Puerum Magi to its left, Kyubey once again demanded an swer, "Ikezawa Tateyama, just what exactly did you do?"
"Like I said," Tateyama emphasized, wiping his sweaty face again, "I purified Tomoe's Soul Gem. I held her Gem against mine, and it worked like a Grief Seed, something we didn't try earlier," lifting a hand to touch his Soul Gem underneath his shirt, Tateyama looked back at Tomoe who slowly got back up, her dust pan now carrying all the broken teacup shards, "S-Sorry for breaking that, Tomoe," he quickly added, scratching the back of his neck, "All of a sudden, I just-"
"It's alright," Tomoe said, the girl still reeling in from what she had just heard as she walked up to the bin across the room and dumped the shards inside before placing her dust pan and broom away, "I... I should clean this up first. All of this is just so... sudden," dusting her hands, she went back into a kitchen to fetch something to clean the carpet when Tateyama quickly got up from his seat to follow her, leaving Kyubey alone in the living room with Tomoe's Soul Gem.
In the kitchen, he followed Tomoe inside as she picked up a piece of cloth from one of the drawers and held it under the running sink with her back facing him.
Audibly drawing in a deep breath, Tomoe looked back at Tateyama with a smile while he stood underneath the kitchen doorway, puzzled by her sudden shift in expression, "Everything's been quite hectic today, hasn't it? Hunting down Witches as usual... that Soul-Link... now this? It's so- what's the word?"
"Hard-to-take-in?" Tateyama answered and Tomoe gave a half-shrug, half-nod. Reflecting her gesture, Tateyama walked up to her side and leaned forward on the kitchen counter, gazing out the window in front of them as he saw the Mitakihara buildings shimmer brightly underneath the night skies. Hearing no other words from the Puella Magi beside him, Tateyama scratched the corner of his mouth and attempted to change the topic, "Tomoe, I wanted to ask this earlier, but... we're... teacher and student... right?"
The two glanced at each other and Tomoe simply smiled at him again, closing the sink and wringing the wet rag in her hands, "Of course. You and Hakamichi are my students, correct?" Tateyama gave a small nod and she placed her wet rag aside to lean forward on the sink as well, gazing out of the window in front of them at the numerous array of buildings, "Or are you... talking about that instead?"
Tateyama's cheeks visibly turned a deep red, even if half of face was covered up by his messy bangs, "How do you deal with all this? Doing everyday-things and being a Magi? It's all so... difficult, since our responsibilities as Magi always come first," lowering his view until he could see the faint glow of his Soul Gem underneath his shirt, Tateyama closed his eyes with a tired smile growing on his face, "But at the same time, I do admire you, Tomoe, for going through all of longer than us, and becoming a strong teacher to Hideki and I. I'm grateful for that."
Tomoe cupped a reddish cheek with one hand, a bit of a smile forming on her own face, "I am indeed strong, aren't I?"
Then, as her cheerful words rang in his ears, he felt his Soul Gem pulse underneath his shirt. A mild pulse, as though the Link between them was suddenly acting up, and as Tateyama gripped his chest to focus on this strange sensation, Tomoe's words once again echoed through his ears, and suddenly rang with a subtle sense of 'falseness'. He didn't know why. Tomoe sounded as cheerful as she always did, and her face bore what looked like a genuine expression of fluster. But Tateyama could sense that something was not right behind that smile nor her words.
"Ikezawa?" she spoke up and Tateyama glanced back at her with wide eyes, realizing he had been keeping silent for an several minutes now, "What's wrong? Did everything that happened today suddenly wear you down?"
Seeing that smile on her face, Tateyama turned his gaze away from her and shook his head, "It's just... just..." he gazed out once again at the shimmering view of the city in front of them, unable to tell just what was wrong with him, or rather, Tomoe, all of a sudden, "Are you scared, Tomoe?" Tateyama asked, and as he glanced at her for a second, his sharp eyes spotted a mild tug at the corner of Tomoe's mouth. But still, her warm smile remained.
"Why ask this all of a sudden?" she mused with a mild chuckle.
Tightening his hands at his sides, Tateyama answered without looking at her this time, "Because I am. I lost people before, and I don't want to experience that again. So... no matter what, I want us to stay with what we have right now. This teacher-and-student thing between you, Hideki and I, where we come to you for help, always," his lips feeling dry, he wanted to speak further, but could only voice the rest of his words in his mind, "No matter what you're hiding from us," finally getting off the counter, Tateyama wrung his wrist and looked back at Tomoe who still had a hand on her cheek.
"You're quite the determined one, aren't you?" she mused with another chuckle and picked up her wet cloth from her side, "Well, if I do have any worries I would like to point out, I'll be sure to voice them just as you did here, Ikezawa," ending her words with a smile, Tateyama felt that strange sense of falseness in her words once more, something that only made Tateyama take a few steps back to avoid having her notice his mild grimace.
After Tomoe finished up preparing the other objects meant for cleaning the carpet, the two walked back to the living room where Kyubey had its palm on Tomoe's Soul Gem, "It seems I've found something," it pointed out and Tateyama stopped in his tracks as Tomoe cleaned up the stain on the carpet.
"Did you find anything important?" Tomoe asked and Kyubey hopped down from the table to explain it to them.
"It would seem that Ikezawa is acting as some sort of 'partner-unit' meant to stabilize your Soul Gem, Mami. It's quite interesting. The link seemed to have formed entirely from Ikezawa's end, even if it was unknowingly."
"So you're saying... this was simply all done by Ikezawa?" Tomoe placed down her wet cloth for a second and Kyubey gave a precise nod. Looking back at Tateyama, the Puerum Magi held a hand to the Soul Gem on his chest while Tomoe turned her gaze away, "It would seem that we finally found some answers tonight. But now, I should suggest that you head home, Ikezawa, since it's getting quite dark outside."
His hand still grasping the Soul Gem engraved in his chest, Tateyama hesitantly nodded in agreement, "Alright," walking pass Tomoe and towards the table, he picked up his laptop and placed it in his schoolbag before carrying the heavy object with just one hand. Looking at Kyubey, it stared back at Tateyama in silence.
"Quite odd that your friend Sanbey couldn't find this out, isn't it?"
He gave it subtle scowl the moment Tomoe had her eyes away from the two, "It's not odd that he wouldn't know everything we can do. We were the first and only Magi that Sanbey ever recruited."
A small tilt of the head came from the cat-like Familiar, a gesture that made Tateyama's skin shiver, "I wouldn't be so sure of that fact."
Before Tateyama could even reply to that sentence, Tomoe's gaze returned back to them out of curiosity and the boy continued to pack up his things. Zipping his bag shut, the boy stepped up to the door, his gaze low with one hand in his pocket. Glancing back at Tomoe, he gave her a small wave, "Goodnight, Tomoe."
That smile once again, and this time, he wasn't sure if he could feel that sense of falseness once again, "Goodnight, Ikezawa."
Stepping out the door and closing it shut behind him, Tateyama slowly took in the cold, night air into his lungs and gazed at the expansive city in front of him. His skin shivering at a passing breeze despite his usual indifference to the cold, Tateyama began walking down the hall of the apartment complex and towards the elevator.
In the back of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder just what was that sensation he had sensed earlier. And aside from what, he had to ponder if anything that had happened between them - if any - was truly genuine, or was it all just something Tomoe had been doing to others for years already? He could tell that there was more to her than the kind mentor she presented herself as, and as he stared at his reflection on the elevator doors, he tightly gripped onto the straps of his bag and wondered just the formation of this Soul-Link actually meant to them.
Meanwhile, in the small block that sat near Mitakihara's main housing areas, the meaty strumming of an acoustic guitar, accompanied by the peaceful whistles of a woodland flute, floated from an antique radio and through the small diner that was the Shanghai. The two waitresses that were present moving through the tables with only several customers present, Hideki, quietly chewing on his food, watched as Sayaka and Madoka in front of him attempted to pile through the study material for tomorrow's test while simultaneously eating their dinner.
"Wait, if this is that, then how does this work?!"
"Simply add these two here and then you have-"
"Ah, you're a live-saver, Madoka!"
"It's easier than it looks..."
Swallowing the food in his mouth, Hideki further chowed down on his katsudon as the two girls looked at him. Madoka spoke up while Sayaka was too busy attempting to understand the mysterious markings that was her algebra notes, "Aren't you going to study, Hakamichi? The test is tomorrow, isn't it?"
Hideki washed down the food in his mouth with a mouthful of soda and wiped his mouth with a tissue, "Nah, it's fine," he gave a careless shrug, "Whatever happens, happens. I didn't get a chance to study anyway with all the Witch patrols," he then took a moment to think, "Actually, I don't think I would've read up on those notes even if I got the chance," he added with a nonchalant laugh before finishing up whatever was left in his bowl.
Madoka, unable to form a reply to his easy-going attitude, simply smiled and nodded out of politeness. But before helping Sayaka with her Math notes, she looked at him one more time and asked, "Are you sure you're alright with paying for all of us? It seems a bit unfair for-"
"It's fine, it's fine," Hideki insisted, waving his chopsticks with bits of rice on his cheeks, "You two came over to Tomoe's place to study, and all that shit- I mean, crap that happened this afternoon pretty much made that a no-go. Just see this as a way of apologizing for taking up both your time, m'kay?" he flashed a cocky smile and Madoka gave a genuine smile this time before tending to her best friend's dismay and her own dinner.
Placing down his chopsticks after scooping the rest of his meal into his mouth, Hideki leaned back in his seat and looked around at the few people that were simply minding their business in the diner. The tune from the antique radio making him feel right at home, Hideki let out a relaxed sigh and watched as the two in front of him battled the dreaded monster known as mathematics. Smirking for almost no reason as the minutes passed, Hideki turned to the white ceiling above and wondered about what was going on between Tateyama and Tomoe.
Even after all this time, he honestly couldn't tell just what was the relationship the two had. They've both gotten flustered every now and then, but the fact that there was little to no progress between them just felt... odd. His hands curling together at that thought, he couldn't help but laugh at his description, considering the very girl he was pursuing, Miki Sayaka, was right in front of him, and he was still doing absolutely nothing to actually spark something between them. She was right there, he was treating her - and someone else - to dinner, and he was still doing nothing. Was it because of that Kyousuke guy that kept bothering him in the back of his mind? Was he just distracting himself with the Warlocks since he didn't know what to actually do about a girl he had spent so long pursuing?
Letting out a tired sigh, Hideki sat upright to grab his drink when he noticed one of the waitresses - Tsukuyo, also Tateyama's guardian - walking up to them. With a tray held to her chest, both Sayaka and Madoka were surprised by the woman with long, black-hair as she waved at them as a greeting, "It's rare to see you without Tateyama, Hideki," she spoke in a cheerful, almost aloof tone, "It's almost the first time I've seen you without him, actually. Where is he now?"
"Well, 'Teyama had some business to take care of," Hideki explained, leaning his arm on the windowsill to his left with his soda can in the other hand, "These are our schoolmates, by the way," he gestured to Madoka and Sayaka, both of them bowing politely at the older woman.
Returning the gesture in kind, the young woman then stepped up to Hideki's side and curiously uttered to him, "Well, it's good to see that you two have been making more friends. But I've been meaning to ask though, just whatever happened to that Homura girl you were with?"
The can in Hideki's hand crumpled in his grasp just loud enough to get the attention of the two girls in front of him. Bits of soda leaking down Hideki's hand, the blue-haired teen's eyes widened when he realized his sudden action and he covered with through a series of rather-believable coughs. With one hand over his mouth, he asked the woman, "Ya mind if I order some coffee? Today's been pretty long for me."
"Oh. Sure," surprised by his reaction, the woman then gave another bow to the two girls and headed to the kitchen to fetch a cup of coffee.
Once she was out of sight, Hideki placed his dented soda can on the table and wiped his hands clean with a napkin. As he did this, he heard Sayaka across the table ask for a bathroom break, and the girl scooted right past Madoka to head to the bathroom stalls outside the small diner. Now with only Madoka and Hideki left at the table, silence quickly came suit, filled only by the tunes from the antique radio sitting on the cashier counter.
Drumming his fingers on the table, Hideki looked up from the floor to see that Madoka was staring right at him. He avoided her gaze and whistled a tune to distract himself, "Something on your mind?"
"Hakamichi," she started with a low tone, her fingers twiddling together while she lowered her head, "... Do you like Sayaka?"
"Huh?" he said out-loud, scratching his cheek and humming to himself in thought, "Well..." he took several more seconds to think, his humming getting louder and louder before he gave another shrug of his shoulders and smirked, "Maybe?"
Madoka's inquisitive expression didn't change even a bit, and Hideki's smirk quickly faded, the boy coughing awkwardly into his fist.
"I've heard the rumors," Madoka said while pushing aside her empty dinner plate and stirring her tea almost for the sake of it. Taking a mild sip, both Hideki and Madoka nervously avoided each other's gaze as neither felt comfortable about bringing up this topic, "Back then, I heard about how you would look at Sayaka a lot. How you tried to confess to her sometimes. All those rumors kept going around the school... and they were true, weren't they?"
Both of them fidgeting in their seats, Hideki, with his chin now resting in his palm, sighed before answering, "Yep."
Taken aback by the sudden nonchalance of his answer, Madoka then pushed forward with her next question, "They said you had been doing it for a long time, and then... suddenly stopped. What happened?"
This time, Hideki kicked back in his seat and placed his feet on the table, the cups and plates jingling when he did so, "You don't mind listening to the ramblings of an old man?"
"You're the same age as me-"
Seeing the kitchen door open again, Tsukuyo finally came back to the table with a mug of coffee in hand and placed it in front of the boy. Giving him a nod and an almost apologetic smile, Hideki returned the gesture as the waitress went off as quick as she came to wait the other patrons, "Now, where do I begin?" Hideki grasped his steaming mug of coffee while Madoka patiently waited for him to speak. Sipping his mug, Hideki smacked his lips and then gave a cheeky wink, "I think I forgot."
"Hakamichi-"
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," Hideki laughed, taking a heavy swig of his coffee before wincing at the heat of his drink. Taking a few seconds to wince at his singed lips, he then placed his mug down as the cocky smirk he bore slowly faded, "It all started when all of of us had just started middle-school. One day, when I was getting beaten up by some old bullies, Sayaka - all by chance - passed by and confronted them head-on almost instantly. Thankfully, the sight of a little girl scolding you would feel pretty awkward, so they backed down almost immediately."
"And then?" Madoka leaned forward on the table, wanting to hear more.
"That's it," Hideki said with a shrug, a puzzled expression growing on Madoka's face as the boy chuckled at how anti-climatic he sounded, "She just came, talked them down, they backed off and I thanked her. She said it was nothing and went on her way. But... well... just the fact that she did that, with no hesitation on her part... pretty much sparked my interest in her. I guess I just have a thing for girls with fiery hearts," finishing up the rest of his coffee and pushing the mug aside, he let out a wistful sigh as he stared through the window to his left.
Leaning back in her seat, Madoka then began putting aside all of her notes and stationery on the table into her bag, seeing it was getting late. As she did so, she asked one last thing, "But what made you stop?"
This time, Hideki gave her a straight answer, "I knew what my chances were: Zero. She liked that violin dude and not me. Simple as that. But-" he lifted his hand to touch the Soul Gem underneath his shirt and felt out its edges with his fingers, its azure glow warm to his touch, "I'd be lying if I said I didn't think that becoming a Magi, becoming a protector of this town... would get her to notice me," looking at Madoka with a pitiful smile, Madoka stared back at him in silence, "Pretty shallow, right? Like something out of a cheap teen-film."
Zipping up her bag and making sure that Sayaka's own items were in her own bag as well, Madoka then sat up straight and looked at Hideki in the eyes, "But even so... do you still want to be with her?"
He remained silent this time, only smirking as a response. Before Madoka could ask again, they heard the bell hanging on top of the diner's front door jingle as Sayaka finally returned. Dusting her hands, she looked at the two who simply remained quiet at her presence with her hands on her hips, "Oh, we're leaving already?" she asked, grabbing her soda to finish what was left before picking up her bag, "Anyway, thanks for the meal, Hakamichi," she gave a peppy smile to Hideki, "I guess we owe you one, huh?"
"Nah. It's on me. Think nothing of it," shrugging her off, he then picked up his bag, got his feet off the table and stood up as Madoka did the same. While the two headed to the door, Hideki stepped up to the cashier where Tsukuyo was and took out his wallet. As he handed her the cash for their meal, the woman gave him an apologetic smile once again, but before she could say anything, he just waved off her concern, "Don't worry 'bout earlier. I know you didn't mean anything wrong."
Nodding gratefully at the boy's easy-going attitude, Tsukuyo then waved him goodbye as Hideki stepped out of the diner and onto the sidewalk outside where the girls were. Breathing into his hands for warmth as a chilly breeze blew past them, Hideki couldn't help but smile while the two girls continued chatting about whatever they were occupied with. Madoka's question echoing through his mind, that single sentence she gave him, felt more difficult than every Warlock and Witch he had faced so far, and as he gave a lengthy, longing gaze straight at Miki Sayaka, he heard the high-pitched alarm of his Warlock detector ring in his ears.
The two girls turned back to him as he took out his Warlock detector and flipped open the clam-shaped device, his eyes widening as he saw a single blip on the scanner zipping towards a specific direction, "South-East... 50 meters... wait... that's...?"
"The hospital!" Sayaka exclaimed out loud, Madoka and Hideki looking back at her in shock as the Magi clenched his device tight.
"Tomoe and the others will take a while to get there... but I can make it faster. You two head home now!" shoving his device back in his pocket, Hideki drew out his knife-shaped Soul Key and darted off into the dimly-lit streets, leaving the two as Hideki twirled his Key in hand, "Soul Change!" tossing aside his schoolbag into a nearby alley, he stabbed his Key into his chest and was bathed in azure light before soaring into the skies on wings of jet-fire, his glass visor flipping over his face as his armor clicked together around his arms, legs and torso.
Like a blue comet, the Puerum Magi flew over the numerous houses and buildings below, the tall tower that was the hospital visible in the distance as the roar of his back and leg thrusters echoed through the night sky alongside Madoka's question.
Glistening moonlight shone through the windows and reflected off Hideki's armor, the Puerum Magi slowly ascending the staircase of the Mitakihara Public Hospital with his hand grasping onto his Detector. Seeing the small blip on the screen slow to a halt several meters from him, possibly two floors above, Hideki gulped and held up his other arm, clenching it into a fist as his wrist-blade sprung from his forearm bracers with an audible 'shing'.
Reaching the doorway to the floor where the blip was on, Hideki drew in a steady breath, reached for the knob, and was caught off-guard when the blip on the scanner suddenly vanished, "Huh?!" he retracted his wrist-blade and tapped on the device's screen, only to see that the the blip, for sure, was no longer in sight, "What the hell?" waiting for any changes in the next few seconds, Hideki clicked his tongue and placed the device back in his pocket, taking out his cell phone this time as his Magi outfit vanished into azure particles.
As the surveillance bugs had already notified the others to the Warlock's appearance, the rest were already on their way as Hideki texted them all, "The Warlock's signal ain't here anymore. It probably got away or something. You guys check downtown; I'll continue searching the place for a bit longer," placing his phone back in his pockets, Hideki groaned before slowly opening the door in front of him, poking his head through to see that both sides of the hallway were perfectly empty.
Stepping through with his hands stuffed in his pockets, the silent, dimly-lit atmosphere of the hospital, with the ceiling lights flickering weakly every few seconds, brought a small chill up the boy's spine. His Soul Key still in hand, he then stepped through the empty hallways, his ears keeping out for any sound of the hospital's night-watch or possibly even the Warlock itself. But despite his tense guard, he couldn't help but yawn while glancing aside to the rooms he was passing by out of curiosity, only to skid to a halt when he reached one specific room.
"Kamijou Kyousuke," read the metal plaque on the room door. A name that only brought a scowl to Hideki's face as the boy hurried in his pace and walked away from the room with heavy footsteps.
After moments of walking just for the sake of getting away from that room, he finally came to stop, his hands gripping his Soul Key tight, and this time, Hideki brought himself to a room that bore a different meaning to him entirely. It had no name plate. Just a number: "57".
Without a moment's hesitation, the door let out a low creak as it slowly opened, Hideki stepping through it to enter a room that lacked anything distinct aside from an untouched bed, a bed-side table and a large window that took up an entire side of the wall, allowing Hideki to see the city of Mitakihara glimmering in the distance while the moon shone in a sky with not a single cloud blocking it. Placing his Soul Key on the table, Hideki stepped up to the side of the bed, his hand gripping its metal railing, and smiled.
"Hey, Homura," Hideki's tone was weak, lacking any sort of energy nor strength to it, "You don't mind if I ask you a few question to help me out? Like you did back then?"
No response. Only silence from the cold, empty air.
His grip tightening on the bed railing, the boy sat down on the bed, his head now hanging with a small, pitiful smirk, "I don't know if you knew this back then, but... I had a thing for Sayaka, you see. Well, I still do now, again, after I had given up on her weeks back..." he paused in-between sentences, as if waiting for any sort of reply, "And even after I had worked up a lot of courage, grown stronger - mind and body - do I-?" he rubbed his eyes with his sleeve, "Do I even have the right to feel this way about her?"
Once again, he waited for an answer. An answer that he knew would never come. Hideki could only chuckle in pity as he was doing this.
"I'm a Puerum Magi, a protector of this town, with a life that involves constant fighting that could get me killed one day. I'm brash... I'm prone to violence... and I'm about as romantic and interesting as a plank of wood," he scoffed, shaking his head while his Soul Key on the table next to him continued to reflect moonlight off its surface, "All these years, I've been longing for her, and now, ironically, at my strongest... deep down I know that someone with a life like this, would just get her hurt one day..." when his hand finally let go of the bed railing, the metal had been visibly bent.
The cold, harsh air remained silent again, interrupted only by Hideki's subsequent laughter of pity.
Getting up to his feet, Hideki gazed at the untouched bed, and felt something warm trail down his cheek before he wiped it away, "I'm really pathetic, aren't I?"
"You shouldn't underestimate yourself, Hideki," a voice answered him, causing Hideki's eyes to shoot open wide as he heard the door open.
As he spun around to face the room door, Hideki drew in a sharp, trembling breath, his hands beginning to shake as his legs faltered. Standing under the doorway, wearing the same clothes that had been given to her on the very night she was admitted to this hospital, was Akemi Homura. Leaning on the doorway with a soft expression on her face and her hands running along her raven hair, Akemi Homura, almost like ghost answering his pleas, approached Hideki who took a hesitant step backwards until he stumbled into the bed behind him.
His breath was shaky, visible in the cold air, and when he closed his eyes to quell the vision before him, he felt a warm hand gently cup his cheek. Opening his eyes once more, he felt another tear trail down his cheek as a crooked smile grew on his face. He touched her hand, confirming her presence to be real as it felt warm to his touch, "Homura...? How did you...? When...?"
Homura smiled, and at the same time, she shed a tear herself, "Hideki..." she lowered her hand and gripped Hideki's shoulder, several more tears trailing down her cheeks as her voice suddenly cracked, "I'm sorry."
Hideki felt a warm sensation spread across his chest, and as he drew in a sharp breath, that warm sensation turned into searing pain as he gazed down at the ebony claw that had impaled itself in his chest. Feeling several blades puncture straight through his chest, Hideki screamed in pain before Homura palm-struck him in the abdomen with her other hand and sent him crashing into the window behind him. Cracking the glass, shards fell onto Hideki's body as he clutched his burning chest in pain, gasping for air as he looked back at Homura with eyes wide and a hand stained with blood.
What was Homura's left hand had morphed into a claw with knife-like fingers, her other hand pulsing violently before it too cracked and shifted into the same horrid limb. Hunching her body over, the veins all over her turned into a putrid black, and with one last tear trailing down her cheek, she uttered one weak word to the bleeding Puerum Magi with a broken smile on her face, "Run..."