"Um, Homura?" I knock on the guest room's door. "Homura? You awake?" I shake my head. Maybe last night was all a dream. Yes. That makes sense. What are the odds I'd find someone like that? Most Magical Girls would probably sneer at me. And yet, it felt so real. Slowly, I turn the door.
That girl, Homura Akemi, is at the desk, head leaned onto it. Still fast asleep. She really does stay up late, doesn't she? Still, it's about time for lunch. I gently nudge her awake. Slowly, Homura opens her eyes and looks at me groggily. "Whaa…Why'd you wake me up? What time is it?"
I hide the small smile in my face. She seems almost childish like this. "Well, it's almost noon. My parents are making some lunch. I…um…told them you were staying."
Homura looks at me blankly for a moment, as if she's processing what I'm saying. Then, she grumbles to herself. I manage to catch phrases like, "Wants me to get sleep, but this always happens."
I clear my throat. Homura stops her grumbling and looks at me. Then, she looks down. "If I'm a burden, I can just go."
"Oh! No! You don't need to do that! Besides, my family's waiting to meet you!" I sigh. "They're already making food for you, so you might as well indulge them."
"Why would they be interested in meeting me?" she asks, rubbing her eyes. Yeesh, she really did oversleep if she's still tired.
"Well…" I mumble, looking down. I sigh. She's gonna find out eventually. "I don't exactly have a lot of friends or get out much. Not recently, anyway."
"Why not?"
"A lot's happened to me," I admit. "I guess I'm still recovering."
"Recovering? Was there an accident? Did you have some health problem?" God, she sounds so worried about me. For some reason, seeing her like this makes my chest twist, and I know I have to try to put her mind at ease.
"No. No. Nothing like that," I reply. "It's more a personal thing…"
"Oh. Well, you don't have to tell me more if you don't want to." She sounds like she wants to know, and I'm almost tempted to tell her.
"Maybe one day, you'll learn everything."
She shrugs, though I see the faintest hint of a smile on the poor girl's face. "Maybe. And maybe I'll tell you more about…the girl behind the scary, evil demon."
"You're not that scary."
"You haven't seen me be that scary," she replies. "I think I'm pretty scary when I'm…um…well…"
I don't know what prompted me to do this. I find myself placing a hand on her shoulder. She flinches back, looking at me in shock. Still, I say, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Come on. Lunch is probably done by now!"
Homura holds her stomach, groaning a little. "You're not going to just let me avoid this, are you?"
"Nope!" I reply. "At least eat what they have to serve."
When we get to the kitchen, I see her eyes widen as she sees my family. She seems to shrink into herself. "What is it?"
"I know you said you had a larger family. You didn't say it was that large…" she mumbles.
Once again, my heart cries out in sympathy. I didn't think about if she was the anxious type. I smile. "I'll be right next to you. If you need something familiar, just remember that. You…You don't even need to talk, if you don't want to."
"B-But what if…t-they talk…t-talk to me?" she asks, and I notice her voice is a little higher-pitched now, on top of the stutter.
"If they do…" I start. "Would you mind if I do my best to answer?"
"Would…Would you really do that for me?" God, she sounds so nervous. Such a shy girl…
"Of course I would. It just seems unfair to make you do everything yourself, you know?"
"Unfair…" she mumbles.
We walk into the dining room. At first, lunch is quiet, and I see Homura visibly relax at this. Then…
"Kuroe's never brought a friend home before!" My little brother.
"She didn't even bring her own boyfriend to meet us!" My older sister.
What do I say to them? "This is a special case," I manage to explain after a second.
"Did you meet her at school?" My father.
"Um…I'm…still…not…" I mumble.
"It's a real shame," my mother says. "She was just about to take her entrance exam for that nice high school. Then, something happened, and she just…shut down."
'Shut…down?' I hear Homura's voice in my head. I jump a little, before remembering that of course she can do that. All Magical Girls can. But more importantly, she sounds so worried.
"Anyway," I say, trying to change the subject. "She isn't from Takarazaki. She just plans to stay for a while."
"Why? What happened?" my mother asks.
I hear her whimper. Poor Homura. She really can't handle this, can she. "She doesn't like to talk about it," I reply. "Don't mind her. She's just really shy when meeting new people."
My family probably realizes that they're not gonna get Homura to talk much, so the rest of our dinner happens quietly. I can tell Homura's about as relieved as I am. When we're done, Homura goes to the guest bedroom. I follow her. She sits on the bed. After a moment, I sit next to her. "They seem…" She pauses. "Your family seems nice."
I shrug. "I guess."
"You guess? They're your family."
"It's just…" I sigh. "I don't know."
After a moment, Homura looks at me. "You were incredible…"
"What?" Where'd that come from?
"When we first met. You were so talented and strong."
I laugh a little. She sounds like she genuinely admired me! "If you call almost dying being talented…"
"We all have bad days, Kuroe," she replies. "We all…need help, sometimes…"
I sigh. "You seem like you know your way around this."
"I barely know how to use my power."
"And yet, you were still leaping around and fighting like you've been a Magical Girl for years!"
Homura hums, looking away from me. I see her clench her fists, and I could swear I see tears in her eyes.
"Hey. It's…It'll be okay," I whisper. "How about this? You probably have a lot of knowledge and experience, right? For being a Magical Girl? Maybe you could share some pointers with me? Or something…"
"Hmm…" Homura looks down. "You're stronger than you realize, Kuroe…"
"Okay. Then think of it this way." I walk up to Homura. "We're gonna be working together more, right? If you wanna protect me, I mean."
As Homura nods slowly, I continue. "Well, I wanna protect you too! Don't bother trying to stop me," I interrupt her before she can protest that. "We'll be able to do so better if we learn how to fight together. So…you can teach me a little of what you know, and maybe I can help you figure out your powers too!"
I hear Homura mumble. "I'm not the best at fighting…"
"We can still learn from each other! Besides, the truth is…" I look back and forth, then my voice becomes a whisper. "You really do seem like you're very lonely. I…I'd like to be your friend. Get to know you, you know? Not the girl everyone's scared of or reveres. I want to know you, Homura Akemi."
Homura sighs. "Fine. I don't know how much good my knowledge will do…but you've convinced me. That's not very easy to do…"
"Great! Let's get started tonight!"
_
"Why is there always some abandoned building?"
I simply shrug at Homura's question. "At least there's somewhere we can train…"
"And talk."
I look at Homura in confusion as we transform. Silently, I give her one of my batons. Then, we move towards each other, clashing. These aren't made for that, but it's a start.
"Huh? Don't we already talk?"
"Yes, but now, your family can't walk in on us," Homura says.
"Oh. Right."
"They seem…um…nice enough?"
A sigh escapes my lips. She's confused. I can tell. "Don't mind them. If it helps, you're the first friend of mine I've ever brought home."
"So we're already friends?"
I look down. How do I put this? "Well, I already like you more than anyone at my school."
"I…see…" the girl mumbles. "They seem worried about you. Your family. What happened?"
I know she means well, but I notice the question makes me tense up. Clenching my fists, I manage to get out, "I became a Magical Girl. That's not something they'd understand."
Despite claiming to not specialize at a close-range, Homura blocks my blows, though clumsily. Luckily, I'm not swinging hard enough to seriously hurt her. "There needs to be a flow to your actions, Homura," I say as I block her attack, the baton being easily knocked out of her hand. I hand it back to her. "And you need to have a firm grip, though not too hard."
"Maybe your family wouldn't understand becoming a Magical Girl," Homura says as the spar continues. "But maybe try talking to them? Would they understand?"
I laugh a little. It comes out more bitterly than I intend. "They thought this was just me getting older. Or rebellious. They basically waved me off after a while."
"Maybe they're worried about you, but can't express it."
I shake my head. "I wish they could, then."
"I'd be lucky to have a family, even like them…"
"No."
"W-What? I don't have a…"
"I don't know you well, but I know…you'd be in the same situation as me. You couldn't even talk to them!"
"Sure it'd be different…"
"Homura. I can tell you're not sure you believe that. Look, I know they care about it. It's just that sometimes, they don't really…feel like my family, you know?"
Homura looks away. "You told me you don't really fit in…"
"I don't belong anywhere," I admit like it's a simple truth. "But…talking to you, I get the strangest feeling like this is exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. Like…Like I've finally found somewhere to belong…"
"That is a strange feeling," Homura replies. "I'm sure you'll find somewhere."
"Maybe we'll both find that place."
We continue to spar for the rest of the night. We lose track of time, and by the type we get back to my place, it's the crack of dawn. I sigh, knowing Homura will probably oversleep again.
_
Pretty soon, she and I fell into a sort of routine. Since I'm still in what my family calls my "social withdrawal" mood, I still don't go to school. We'd eat quietly with my family, she'd go to the guest room and do whatever she does, then we'd leave to do Magical Girl stuff. After a few weeks, for the first time, I can admit I almost have fun being a Magical Girl with Homura. It's so weird how I feel I can trust her. But I do notice a few things?"
"Can I ask you something?"
She blinks and tilts her head at me. "…Yeah?" Homura replies confused after a moment.
"What are your powers? I know you've told me, but…like…what do you know you can do?"
"Why do you ask? Haven't you seen me fight?"
"That's the thing," I reply. "I've seen you fight with the same techniques you showed me when we first met. And I get the feeling you're capable of more than that."
"I would be," Homura admitted. "But it's complicated."
"Okay. But still. What can you do?"
I can tell Homura's thinking about it. Just when I think she'll say she doesn't trust me, she replies. "Well, I know my way around guns. Those aren't options anymore, though. I used to have the power to stop time, which I used to…find weapons. I can also make bombs, but…well, you're fighting Wraiths up close, so I don't want to blow you up." Is that a laugh I hear? Sure, it's bitter and heavy, but I think that was a laugh!
"Some inside joke?"
"What?"
"Nothing," I reply, thinking it'd be easier if she tells me on her own time. "Go on."
"My weapon in this world is usually a bow, and that's what I could use as a sort of conduit for my magic. But…well…"
"You can't summon it."
"Yeah."
"What about those…wing things? What are those about?"
Homura shrugs. "I've just been able to summon them. They can protect from attacks, as you've seen. I guess I can use them to attack too."
"Can you fly?"
"…Can I fly?" Homura repeats, almost as if she can't believe I'm asking.
"I mean, wings made of magic."
"I've…only jumped with them. I've never tried flying. Not recently, at least."
After a moment, I manage to say, "You're not really the experimental type, are you?"
"What?" she replies again.
"I mean, you find something that seems to work, and you're the type that doesn't think about how to make it better until someone points it out."
"I…" A pause. "I've never heard anyone put words to it. And yet, I'm the one people expected to be creative and try everything…"
"I mean…" I can't help but smile a little. "Maybe you just need someone else's opinion."
"Okay then, oh wise Kuroe." I shake my head at her attempt at sarcasm. "What's your opinion?"
"Do they have to be just wings?"
Homura blinks at me, apparently unable to even say a, 'What?' at me this time. I continue. "How do you form them?"
"I don't know," she shrugs. "They just form when I focus. Not like my bow. That's tied to specific emotions. But…well…I guess they default to wings when I unleash my magic."
"Let's try something then. Make your wings."
She does so, though I see the faint flicker of pain on her face. "It hurts every time?"
"So far, yeah."
"Okay. Um…" I struggle to find the words. "Maybe focus. Try to turn them into something else?"
I see Homura exerting effort. Her wings start to change, but she nearly collapses from the effort, panting. Her wings seem to turn to dust as she sways and almost falls over. I run up to her. "You don't have to if—"
"No," she interrupts me. "I can do this!"
"I don't want you to use too much magic and die, Homura!"
"Then if it makes you feel better, we'll use a few Grief Cubes on me tonight! I could just…tell I was so close, Kuroe! Just one more try…"
Over the past couple of week, I came to know all too well that Homura is the most stubborn girl in the world. "You're lucky we're not in the middle of a battle, Akemi. Last thing we need is to bicker…"
"I know, I know. You're just worried about me." I see her start to concentrate again. "Do you worry about your little brother this much? An old friend of mine said this kind of thing's what she did with her little sister, back in the day…" She trails off, her eyes getting that distant look.
"Um…I'm not really that close to him…" I admit. "Sure, if he got in trouble, I'd save him. But I feel more obligated to do that. I'm not that close to my family, remember. With you, it's different. I…I want to look out for you, you know?"
"And I'm not allowed to look out for you?"
"That's the strangest part," I admit. "With anyone else, I'd feel like a burden. I'd hate it. But I can…almost accept you protecting me, if I'm allowed to watch your back too."
"Is that so?"
I look at her, and she's holding some…things made of mana in her hands. It's still coming from her back, but they…almost look like my batons. "Thinking about me?"
"Easiest to concentrate on. I can see them, after all. But…" After a bit, the batons turn into a kind of giant lance. "With a bit more effort, I guess I can turn it into whatever I remember. Of course, I can't just instantly know how to use this thing. And if I turn it into a gun or something, what I shoot would have to come from somewhere."
"Just try not to be too reckless. Practice before you rely on it."
"Heh. And you say I'm the teacher. Where'd you learn that?"
"I used to be a baton twirler back at my old school. That kind of thing, if you didn't practice, you'd pull something."
"Really? I just used magic when I needed to do something like that at school. Better than being mocked, or so I told myself…"
That night, the Wraiths were a bit easier, and I discovered Homura could make basically any weapon she could think of. I heard she was powerful, but clearly, there's a lot even she doesn't know she can do yet.
_
"So you can make walls with your power?" She gazes at the one I just made.
"Yeah. Guess it fits. You're one of the few to get past mine."
Homura sighs. "I don't know how."
"You listen. You don't dismiss my concerns like my family does. And you're the best partner anyone could ask for."
"L-Let's not go that far…" Homura looks down awkwardly.
"The key's to be in sync, right? Once you practice enough with someone, you'll know how they fight?"
"Yeah. I suppose that's how it works," she replies. "But the way you can make a lot of batons I can jump between is…um…cool."
"I wouldn't say it's cool." I look at her. "But usually, the area we fight's not exactly the type of place you can jump between buildings for. Besides, I'm not as elegant as you are when we do that."
"Me? Elegant?" Homura scoffs. "If it weren't for my magic, I'd be tripping and falling all over."
"You? A klutz? I can't see that."
"It's true!" she says indignantly. "Not
as much now, but I swear you'll see me trip
over something someday!"
We both jump at the steel drum we decided to use as our training dummy. Far from being afraid of stepping on her toes or getting in her way, I find myself almost in tune with her. We weave our way around each other as we take turns hitting it. She lifts me in the air. I come down, and our fake enemy becomes nothing but crushed scrap under my batons. "Pretty good?"
"If we can do that against Wraiths, yeah. Pretty good." I see Homura crack a small smile. "It's…been nice working with you, Kuroe. You're stronger than you realize."
"So are you!"
Homura gasps. "Your wrist!"
Suddenly, I yelp. Why does it hurt so much?! And it's swelling! "Were we going too hard?"
"It's my fault. I shouldn't have pushed you…"
"No. I should've been more careful. It's…" I feel her hold my wrist. "Okay…" I finish awkwardly.
"When we get home, put some ice on it, okay? Magical Girls heal quicker than normal humans, but things still hurt…"
I nod simply. "I will. Though I think the swelling's going down already. It's already hurting less."
"Good. Your healing's fine, then." Homura sounds so relieved. We walk home quietly. She seems convinced my healing's that good. But the truth is I think I noticed her hands glowing when they touched mine. Certainly, that's when the pain faded to nothing.
But even stranger than that, I looked at my Soul Gem, now a ring. When we'd finished our training, there was a bit of cloudiness to it. I know our Grief Cubes are at home. Homura hadn't brought any. And yet, staring at it, my Soul Gem shines as bright as ever.
What cleared it?
_
"Iroha."
"Hm?"
I sigh. Tonight, we decide to start our search for Wraiths on the roof to my old school. As Homura scries for miasma, I figure now's the time to talk about…this. "There was a girl…a very sweet, mature girl named Iroha."
"A Magical Girl?" Homura asks.
"She wasn't a Magical Girl, but I did save her from Wraiths. We exchanged numbers, and we chatted a bit. This was a bit before I…um…isolated myself besides doing Magical Girl stuff. I was in a bit of a slump after I broke up with my boyfriend…"
"Boyfriend?"
"Heh. I was kind of silly. I wished to date him, thinking it'd make me happy. And it did, at first. I could discuss the books I liked with him. Then, I realized…he couldn't understand me either. As you can imagine, I was sad, but not as much as I thought I'd be. I was already miserable, feeling even more like I was just going through the motions…"
"I know how that feels…"
"I suppose a lot of Magical Girls end up
feeling that way," I admit.
"You have no idea…" I hear her mumble as she continues to check the area. She seems to find something and motions me to follow her. I leap from building to building. Homura, being the cool one and having figured out she can do this, flies a bit ahead of me. "Not much further. So how's this Iroha fit into your story?"
'Well, as I said…' By now, our conversation is taking place telepathically. 'I saved her from being drained by Wraiths one day, and we started talking from there. She thought I was super cool.'
'I can see why.'
'Homura, I think a couple of months is long enough to realize I'm not that cool.'
'And yet, you try to call me cool. Oh look! I can fly and make swords out of magic! Which you had to tell me I could do!'
'Anyway, I talked to her…about things I couldn't talk about anything else to. In exchange, she told me about her sisters. I felt so bad for her. Her parents were always working, and her sister and her friends were terminally ill, so Iroha had to take care of them.'
'Sounds tough.'
'I could tell she loved them dearly. She'd do anything to see them get better. Ui was her whole world, and Touka and Nemu really were her sisters too…'
'…Despite not being related to her…' For some reason, Homura sounded wistful. Almost like she's longing for something. 'What happened to them?'
'We'd agreed that one day, she'd take me to meet them. Iroha was so nice and so selfless. I felt my heart race when I got a text from her. I found myself visiting her a lot.'
'You had a crush on her.'
I was silent for a moment as we landed. Homura hums. "Here."
"Do you really need magic to sense this?" I point to the ground in front of us. It's almost like the area had been flooded. Some of the street lamps look like they're rustier than usual. Indeed, the lights start flickering.
"We've got a stronger one tonight, Kuroe. Remember, just like we practiced. Don't mind how your skin feels."
Indeed, I've noticed my skin's a bit more rough than usual. It doesn't help that it feels hot. I sigh as I see the Wraiths we'll be fighting. About two of the blocky ones, and five of the fiery ones. "Homura…"
"I know! Don't worry. We'll protect each other!" she replies as she lands next to me. By now, Wraith fights become second nature to us. For some reason, knowing I can rely on someone helps the fear a little. "Tell me more about what happened! This Iroha person! You loved her, right?"
'I don't know what I felt,' I admitted to her as she fought one of the fire Wraiths. I manage to dodge one of the blocks, hitting another back at one of the Wraiths. 'It felt more…real than with my boyfriend, I suppose.'
'Did you ever tell her?' Homura asks as she manages to impale one of the Wraiths.
'I needed magic to ask a boy out. And even if I had been able to…well…one day…' I remember seeing the text. Then, the news report. The crash. I sob. I feel the heat, but my mind's a million miles away. Suddenly, the heat fades. I snap back to reality, seeing Homura glaring at me.
"You were just standing there! You could have died!" she snaps at me.
"S…Sorry…" I mumble.
I see her gaze soften. "We're at a painful part, aren't we?" I simply nod. She sighs. "Well, I suppose we can finish off this last Wraith first, then."
And indeed we do. We advance on the last fire Wraith. As I draw its attention, Homura's wings morph into swords. She's a blur as she hits the Wraith again and again until it falls, fading as the black cubes fall to the ground.
"We…We did it…" I mumble.
"Yeah. We did…"
"H-Homura! Your Soul Gem!"
"What about it? Oh…" She looks at her hand, noticing the gem has almost no purple to it. "Of course I overdid it. Stupid. Should've been more careful like you said…"
"Hey! It's okay!" I grab some of the Cubes and use them until her Soul Gem is as good as new. She does the same for me. We both collapse onto the grass, catching our breath. "Think we'll walk home…"
"Y…Yeah. I don't think the buses run this late…" she replies.
Eventually, we manage to get up and start walking home. "If you want, I'll tell you how the story ends."
"That is not necessary."
"We've come this far. You deserve to know. Iroha had made me happier than I'd been in a long, long time. She made me feel like I wasn't just useless garbage."
I look at my friend, who seems to be deep in thought. Maybe she's thinking about some of the friends she's had. "But then one day, she…she texted me. 'Ui is dead. My sisters are all dead.' That was it…and that was the last she'd texted me. I tried texting her. Calling her. When she didn't answer, I went to her house. Her parents were there, and they said something about how she just…completely shut down. Then…there was a crash a few days later. Iroha…I was told…" I can't help myself, and I start crying. "Why…Why couldn't it have been me?! She was so kind and good! Why?!"
"Kuroe…" I hear her soft voice. I've learned that when her voice is higher, she's allowing herself to speak more…normally. Honestly. I wipe my tears. I blink as I gaze at her. Why's she crying too? "I…lost someone dear to me too. A long time ago. My best friend. M…Madoka…"
Just hearing her say that name, I can tell my friend has a lot of feelings regarding this. I hear admiration, and I hear despair. But just from hearing it, I can also hear the love she must still bear for this girl. I blink, and I find myself somewhere I've never been. I gasp and look at Homura in shock.
"I can manipulate memories," she explains simply. "Turns out that's a bit more versatile than…well…editing them, thankfully. A while ago, I figured out I can show people things. Would've been nice to know earlier…"
We're in a classroom. I see Homura enter it, or at least a younger one. One with braided hair and glasses. She stutters as she introduces herself to the class. I see them tease her. Then, I see a pink-haired girl skip her way.
I watch them progress to being friends, especially after the girl, Madoka Kaname, reveals she's a Magical Girl. And when I see them playing with some black cat, I can see in the younger Homura's eyes a certain fondness. The same love I saw in her eyes earlier. But then…the memory cut to Homura wailing and cradling Madoka's body. I look to the other one, and I can see the tears in her eyes. "I made my wish, then and there. After all, a world without here didn't appeal to me at all. Back then, in that world, we fought creatures called Witches. The biggest one killed Madoka, so…"
"You wanted to save her from that…" I mumble as I see it reset.
"But no matter what I did, Kuroe, it always ended the same…" I saw events repeat, always ending the same way. "Always the same…stuck in that Hell for so long…"
As the images continue, I see Homura grow more and more broken. More and more distant. "I killed her…" she mumbles. "I killed her…"
Still, the events repeat, and I found myself admiring her. I know I'd have snapped long before she did. But then, I saw something incredible. The last repetition, Madoka Kaname didn't die! She used her wish to save Homura! Save everyone!
"So…that's how the world was made, huh?"
"Yes. She gave up her existence, but no one had to worry about…" I see the images…Homura's seen all her friends become those…things. She wipes away her tears. "I wish that had been the end…But I made the mistake of assuming telling that rat wouldn't backfire on me…"
The scenery changes. I see Homura unconscious on a stone slate. Her Soul Gem is in some sort of…thing. "What happened?"
"They thought causing something impossible would lure Madoka back to Earth. So they could control her…" The sheer disgust and contempt in her voice doesn't shock me. She's never had nice things to say about Kyubey. "I was bait. They fed me despair until I cracked. My friends saved me. But then…"
Homura looks away, unable to hold back the tears as I see the Goddess descend, waiting to receive her…only for Homura to rip her apart. I gasp. "You…became the Demon…"
"Yes…" she chokes out. "I did something unforgivable because I was convinced Madoka wasn't happy. So I became her greatest enemy…"
As the scenery returns to Takarazaki, I see her shaking. Whimpering. Sobbing. I don't know what comes over me. Before I know it, I embrace her tightly. "Hey. Hey. It's okay." I whisper.
"It's not okay! I hurt her so much! Why…Why didn't she just kill me?!"
"Homura…maybe she didn't want you to die…"
"Why not?! I was practically dead anyway, and…and…" More sobbing. "Worthless monster…"
"I told you you're not a monster, Homura! Yeah, you did bad things, but…but I'm still gonna be here for you!"
"You…You'll be a target…"
"So what?!" I yell.
"Kuroe, I—"
"No! You listen to me, Homura Akemi!" I lean back enough to see her. "Look at me! I can tell how much it hurt you! And I can tell you never want that to happen again! If I'd known you then, I'd have joined you!"
"W-W-Why?! Why would you do that?! You're a good person, Kuroe!"
"And you're not?!"
"No! I'm not! I'm a gross, disgusting, evil—"
"You know what you've been to me?! Nothing but supportive! Kind! You believed in me when no one else would! Were you lying?!"
"…No. I wasn't…"
"Then I see no reason I have to abandon you. So…" I smile a little at her. "Looks like you're still stuck with me! Because now, I know. You're like me. You know what it's like. Homura, I won't let you make those mistakes again. I won't let you make my mistakes. I promise."
I tighten my embrace a little. For some reason, it just feels right. Like I'm comforting a family member. But I never felt this way about my family. Just her. My voice turns to a whisper.
"I promise, Homura…"
_
"You used to wear glasses. At least, in the thing you showed me."
"…Yeah?" She sounds very confused as she replies. "I used my magic to heal my eyes. Why do you ask?" Her voice turns bitter. "Do you think I'm weird?"
"I didn't say that! But did you use that magic…you know…recently?" Homura looks at me in surprise. "It's just…well…I ask because I've caught you squinting your eyes a lot lately."
"I wanted to get rid of the signs of my weakness," she replies.
"Did you feel stronger when you fixed your eyes?"
"…No." She sounds like this is the first time anyone's asked her this question. "I didn't…"
