A/N: Sayaka Miki Is Done With Your Bullshit
Yes, You
All Of You
All Of The Characters
Everyone's Bullshit
Sayaka Miki Is Done With It
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§ x § x §
§ x § x §
SIEBZIG
TIMELINE X + N + 1
Kisuke pursed his lips and took stock of the situation. Sakura's body lay at his feet, functionally dead. Miki was crying over it; the crying struck him as odd but a low priority curiosity. However, why she was actually present, wearing a formal dress, and bleeding from her feet while a discarded pair of formal shoes lay on the ground nearby was possibly important. The three combatants looked roughed up and singed, but not terribly so. The worst visible injury was to Hitsugaya's left shoulder. Akemi's face had shuttered into an unreadable mask. Both were watching Tomoe carefully. Tomoe was crying her heart out over Sakura's Grief Seed, reiatsu unstable but not as dark as he had expected given the circumstances. The secret source of Witches had been brutally thrown in Tomoe's face before they could break it to her gently. She had at least some preparation this time, but how she would react was anyone's guess.
Miki straightened from her bowed position to look at the three with relief. "You're back!" Her face fell again. "You're hurt!"
Hitsugaya sighed heavily and said, "We'll be fine." Neither he nor Akemi took their eyes off Tomoe, wary of her mental state. Akemi maintained the little shield over her Soul Gem.
Kisuke clapped his hands loudly to draw attention. "Well! I think we've had enough excitement for one night. Don't you?"
Tomoe turned to look at him over her shoulder, face painfully incredulous. "Excitement?!"
"A euphemism by which I mean a string of horrible things we really need a break from," he clarified.
Tomoe's lips quivered and fresh tears welled in her eyes. "Oh." Then she stilled and looked up at him hopefully. "Hitsugaya said—"
"That we should retreat to the shop to discuss where we go from here," Akemi interrupted loudly.
It took a moment for Tomoe's confused frown to clear in understanding. "Oh." She suspiciously looked around the brush and rooftops as though searching for spies.
Kisuke wondered if Akemi and Hitsugaya had skipped to what would have been Step Five or so in their original plan and told Tomoe they had secret means to revert Grief Seeds. The blonde was distraught but not insane.
Akemi cautiously glanced at Kisuke before turning her eyes back to Tomoe. "We should go now. Before anyone finds us with a body."
Tomoe's breath hitched, but she dragged herself to her feet with the Grief Seed cradled near her heart. "I—" She stopped and took a shuddering breath when her voice caught. "I'll— carry— her," she said in a guttural rasp. Her steps toward the body were painfully slow.
"How— how will I get there?" Miki asked as she scrubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands.
"Why are you even here?" Akemi snapped.
Miki jerked her head up angrily and snapped back. "I was at the symphony and felt Hitsugaya calling for help!"
"You idi—!"
Kisuke put two fingers in his mouth and whistled sharply. When they both looked at him with sour faces, he focused on Miki and demanded, "How far is the symphony?"
"I dunno, a few blocks that way," Miki said with a careless wave toward the southeast.
After a beat of silence, Kisuke said, "And you sensed the... magic and its message?"
"Duhhh," Miki replied, all snarky teenager. "It'd be hard not to notice ice and fire smacking around." She sniffled, coughed, and picked up her shoes by their heels with one hand, completely unaware of how significant her words were.
Kisuke's brows rose, as did Hitsugaya's. The young captain asked, "You could identify the elements?"
"Duuuhhhhhhhhh," Miki repeated sarcastically. "You were both blasting your magic all over the place!"
Kisuke shared a long, considering look with Hitsugaya, who ran a hand through his hair and heaved a sigh. "I told you we need to talk about her."
"So you did," Kisuke said with his own sigh. Yet another ball to juggle.
"What talk what about me what?"
"Your magic getting stronger," Hitsugaya explained. "But we have to deal with... this," he said with a wave around he field, "before we deal with that."
Miki stared, surprised into silence before saying a simple, "Oh."
No one spoke for an awkward minute.
"In all seriousness, Sayaka," Akemi said, "why were you at the symphony? I thought you said you would not attend until your friend could play violin again."
"I told you that?" Miki blurted in surprise.
Kisuke kept his face neutral. Akemi had probably slipped.
"Yes," Akemi said easily. "At the cafe the other day. Right, Hitsugaya?" Hitsugaya agreed with a straight face.
"Oh." Miki shook herself. "I was there because..." She trailed off and very obviously cast about for a good lie, then scowled and took a deep breath, steeling herself to speak an embarrassing truth. "Because my parents needed an extra in their show to impress a client and wouldn't take no for an answer." Miki looked up at them with defiant challenge.
No one commented on the implication of a less-than-ideal relationship with her parents. Kisuke made a mental note to amend his file on Miki.
"So. How am I getting to High Spirits?" Miki demanded.
"I can carry you, I suppose," Akemi sighed.
"Don't you need to get back to your parents?" Hitsugaya asked.
Miki stood and waved a hand dismissively as she strode to Akemi. "I'll figure out an excuse."
"They will not be happy with that," Akemi said flatly.
"As if they're ever happy with me," Miki sniffed. She threw her short hair over her shoulder in an echo of Akemi's habit. "I'm a big girl. I can handle it."
"If you say so," Akemi said doubtfully.
Hitsugaya looked at Kisuke as Sakura and Miki were being lifted and asked, "So, what are we going to do about... this?" He waved his good arm around the field, indicating the ice, burns, and divoted sod from the earlier duel.
Kisuke shrugged. "Not much we can do." Not without giving themselves away to the Incubator as when his people cleaned up in Karakura. "Dissolve your ice and let the authorities make of it what they will."
Hitsugaya sighed tiredly and flexed his reiatsu, causing the ice to fall apart and the water to disperse into the atmosphere. "Shall we go?"
Kisuke looked to the girls. Miki was on Akemi's back and Tomoe cradled Sakura in her arms, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. Kisuke heaved his own sigh, said, "Let's," and took to the rooftops to lead them back to the shop.
He made sure to lead them slowly to allow himself time to consider potential changes to their plan. So many options and no way of knowing which was best. It would be a long night.
§ x § x §
Sayaka's second rooftop journey to High Spirits by piggyback was far less hectic than the first one. She was also able to think clearly this time. Being unable to help was frustrating. Watching the fight and not knowing how to use whatever power she had made her feel shame.
She was useless. A background character in a second show in one night. Another supporting role, except this show had far higher stakes than her parents' social schemes. She needed to break type and become useful.
Sayaka made up her mind a block away from High Spirits. She just needed to get through this scene's conclusion before seeking a promotion from extra.
The group alighted in the alley behind the shop and crossed the back threshold onto its grounds. Sayaka relaxed at the sensation of crossing the wards— this place was safe. She had just noticed a car beside the shop's van when a figure jumped off the back porch and ran toward them.
"Is anyone hurt?!" Madoka cried.
"Nothing life-threatening," Mr. Urahara answered easily. "Why are you here?" he asked mildly as Homura set Sayaka down.
Sayaka hissed in pain. The cuts and scratches on her feet had clotted but putting her weight on them now that adrenaline wasn't screaming through her bloodstream felt like treading on knives. She was pretty sure there was gravel embedded in her soles.
"I felt— something. Like— a lot of... magic, I guess?" Madoka said tearfully after hugging Homura. She threw herself at Sayaka next; Sayaka's remaining tension immediately evaporated and she took a deep, steadying breath. She wondered if Madoka had switched to a shampoo that smelled like roses. "I told Mama and Papa and we called the shop and Mr. Tsukabishi said to come here so we all did."
Sayaka didn't miss the look shared by Hitsugaya and Mr. Urahara. It was exactly the same look they had exchanged about her.
Madoka led them to the shop, walking backwards and babbling. "Papa is in the kitchen making tea and snacks and Mama is setting up futons with Tatsuya just in case and—" she gasped and looked worried as they stepped into better light and she could see the red-haired magical girl in Mami's arms. "Oh, no! Who's that?! What happened?!"
Mami's face crumpled in distress again. Homura quietly answered, "Kyōko Sakura. She turned into a Witch in front of Mami, Sayaka, and Hitsugaya."
Madoka's horror and concern were obvious. "Oh, no!" She looked quickly from Mami to Homura. "Did she—?"
"I saw," Mami whispered.
"O— oh."
"You knew, too?" Mami asked dully.
Flinching, Madoka answered, "Y-yes. I'm— I'm sorry."
Mami cut her eyes away, then looked up at Mr. Urahara. "Is it safe to talk now?"
"Yes."
She inhaled deeply and squared her shoulders. "Hitsugaya said you know how to turn Grief Seeds back into Soul Gems."
Sayaka and Madoka whipped their heads to look at first Mr. Urahara, then Homura and Hitsugaya. "What?!" they both blurted.
"We do," Mr. Urahara said with the slightest of melancholy smiles.
"Why didn't you tell us?!" Sayaka demanded of Homura.
"Operations security," Homura replied, pushing her hair behind her ear as she let her magical girl costume dissolve into her school uniform.
"If we didn't tell you, you couldn't discuss it in an unsecured location and be overheard, thus revealing information that could endanger both our mission and our means of reverting Grief Seeds," Mr. Urahara explained. "Now, let's get inside and get fixed up."
They all trooped into the back of the building and navigated the winding hallways to that same room they had been healed in on the night of the carousel labyrinth. Mrs. Kaname looked up from spreading out the final futon. She took in injuries and faces with quick, sharp glances; her mouth turned down into tight anger and fierce sympathy as Mami approached the first futon with leaden steps, knelt, and gently lay Sakura's glowing body on it, then straightened her friend's limbs and neatened her hair and clothes. In the light, the redhead's disheveled and too-thin state was far more blatant.
"Oh, Kyōko," Mami said weakly. "Why didn't you come to me?" Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks as she sat back and hugged herself.
Mrs. Kaname sat by the nearby table and opened her arms wide. "Come here, Mami," she said gently.
Mami looked up at Mrs. Kaname with a painfully lost expression on her face. Madoka's mom beckoned with her hands again, face soft with concern. Mami's breath hitched; she dragged herself onto all fours and crawled to Mrs. Kaname, then threw herself into the woman's arms and cried.
Sayaka's phone rang. She glanced at it absently, saw it was her mom, dropped her shoes, and swiped to ignore the call. A lot of eyes were turned her way when she looked back up. Her phone rang again.
"If it's your parents, you should probably answer it," Mr. Urahara said.
She looked at the phone, considered, decided on a strategy, and blurted, "Someone make me cry. I suck at faking. Be brutal."
Of course it was Homura who took up that challenge, immediately and dispassionately declaring, "You should never have gone to the source of the magic because you are a liability in battle, not an asset, and you foolishly nearly let yourself be tricked into contracting besides. Your presence was worse than useless."
Everyone but Mr. Urahara turned their heads to look from Sayaka to Homura to Sayaka as though watching a train wreck in progress. It was like multiple stabs to Sayaka's heart. She was genuinely bawling when she answered her phone. "Wha-aaat?!"
"Where are you?!" Mom hissed quietly.
"A-rou-nnnd."
"Where— are you crying?"
"Mayyy-beeee."
"What happened?! Where are you?!"
Sayaka took a deep breath and focused on the lie. "Whe-en I saw the flauuu-tist so pr-roud after hi-is so-lo, I thought of Kyōsu-ke and— and—" Sayaka looked at the dead body on the floor and sobbed harder. "I— could-n't. I could-n't." I couldn't help you. I'm sorry.
"Oh— oh— Sayaka, I didn't think— where are you?!"
"Why do you care?"
"What?"
"You-ou knew and you still made me go-ohhhh. Why do you care now?" It was a valid, burning question on her part. Really, Sayaka didn't understand how her parents so often failed to anticipate how she'd react to things when they should have more than enough hindsight to make the things that would upset her obvious. She would have cried on her way home or maybe hidden in a bathroom to cry at the symphony even if it had been an uneventful evening. Sayaka knew she would have lost it even if she had actually tried to be a good prop. It was just a matter of time.
After all, the violin solo that should have been Kyōsuke's had been only eleven minutes away when she left her seat.
Fuck trying to be a good prop. She was done throwing herself at her parents' feet for scraps of attention.
"Sayaka, I—" Her mother actually sounded hurt. Huh.
"Wait no shut up I don't want to know," Sayaka interrupted flatly. "I mean I already know. They're watching, aren't they"
"No, Saya—"
"Tell your audience some sob story about your daughter and her tragic prodigy friend," Sayaka said bitterly. "Maybe you can win some sympathy points. Tell her how much your family values musicians or whatever. I'll be more useful by not being there." As always. To everyone.
That would change.
Sayaka listlessly looked around the room as her mother sputtered objections. Homura, Hitsugaya, and Urahara's faces were carefully neutral, eyes tactfully averted in a facsimile of respect for her privacy even though they heard every word. Madoka looked like she would cry. Mrs. Kaname looked worried. Mami was too busy crying into Mrs. Kaname to notice anything. Kyōko's body was too dead to express an opinion.
She stared at the dead body, remembered the girl's fall, flashed back to her own bone-twisting transformation, and broke down sobbing again.
"Sayaka, please, where are you?!"
"Traipsing about with orphans," Sayaka sneered as she scrubbed tears from her face. "Gotta help 'em make their parents spin in their graves by having a slumber party on a school night. Just like you said."
Her mother's offended gasp was perfect accompaniment to the sight of both Homura and Mrs. Kaname making identically murderous faces at the phone.
"Sayaka, you're scaring me."
"That's new," Sayaka observed idly, wondering if Homura would be capable of magically traveling through her phone to kick her mother in the face. If anyone could do it, it would be Homura. The magical girl looked like she was seriously considering doing so. Sayaka should probably be bothered that the prospect didn't bother her. Meh.
Voice small and tearful, Mom said, "Saya— ka—"
"Saaayaka Sayaka Sayaka," Sayaka drawled. "I know my name."
"Wha—? What?"
"Don't you have a show to get back to? No, wait: Two shows, right? Double feature!"
"Sayaka—"
"I'm gonna go be a menace to society with my orphan friends who commit the horrible crime of doing each other's hair while talking about how life sucks without parents. We can compare notes," Sayaka announced. "I'll show up when I show up. Just like you. Don't worry. You never do."
"Sayaka—!"
Boop. Sayaka ended the call. She looked around at all the faces. Even Mami was staring now. The silence dragged.
"What?!" Sayaka snapped defensively. Her phone rang. She dismissed the call. It immediately rang again, the screen displaying her father's number this time. She dismissed the call and set the phone to Do Not Disturb before she vindictively turned it off entirely. Let them see what it was like to go straight to voicemail over and over and over.
The entire conversation made her feel... empowered. Like she had wrested control of her life into her own hands. She was done with their bullshit and no longer afraid of letting them know it. There were far more frightening things in the world.
"Did she really say that about the girls?" Mrs. Kaname asked lowly.
"Yep!" Sayaka answered with angry cheer.
"Oh," Mrs. Kaname said in a quiet voice silky with threat, face eerily calm.
Scheming.
Sayaka almost felt bad for her parents.
"Anyway!" Sayaka said loudly. "Don't we have a lot to do right now?"
Mr. Urahara picked up on the hint and smoothly said, "Everyone on a futon. Healing first."
"Kyōko first," Mami objected stubbornly.
"No. Healing first," Mr. Urahara said. "I can't revert her to a Soul Gem myself. I need to call in help."
"So call the help, Magic Man," Sayaka said with a roll of her eyes.
Mr. Urahara looked at her. She couldn't decide what the look on his face was. Partly amusement, though. "We need to figure out some logistics first. How to get them here without revealing them to the Incubator, yes, but also..." He trailed off and looked at Kyōko's body.
Homura looked at the body as well and heaved a melancholy sigh. "We will not be able to let her walk out of here without revealing to the Incubator that we can revert Grief Seeds. We may have to move her. And magical girls who come back from being a Witch... often do not react well."
"What do you mean?" asked Mami.
Hitsugaya pinched the bridge of his nose and tiredly said, "We need to figure out how to keep her from committing suicide before we can calm her down— and make plans for how to calm her down."
"What?" Mami said in a small voice.
"A friend of ours— the first we reverted— shattered her own Soul Gem," Homura said quietly. "We did not realize how much of her time as a Witch she remembered— that she remembered pulling her sister's corpse into her labyrinth and trying to kill us— so we did not address it."
"Sakura doesn't have that added grief to deal with, so she may not react as badly," Hitsugaya continued. "But we need to prepare for the worst."
"Can I help?" Sayaka blurted as a nebulous idea began to take shape. "I— I remember the— the—" She gulped and steadied her breath. "In the carousel thingy. When I was turned into the— the mermaid. It— maybe I could... talk to her?" she suggested, voice rising hopefully.
Hitsugaya, Homura, and Magic Man stared at her, visibly dumbstruck. In any other situation, it would have been hilarious.
"Oh," Homura murmured.
Mr. Urahara scratched at the stubble on his chin thoughtfully. "That... might be a viable solution," he said distractedly. Sayaka could see the intensity of thought in his gray eyes, saw them moving and looking at something only he could see as he considered and rejected and adjusted possibilities. He came back to reality and firmly said, "Healing is still first. I need to think. Everyone who's injured get on a futon."
"I healed myself already," Homura said with a dismissive hand gesture.
"Miss Tomoe?" Mr. Urahara prompted.
Mami sniffled and said, "Oh. Oh. I can do that. Yes. I'm not— not hurt much, anyway." She sat up straighter and looked like she was trying to pull herself together. "I— I can help heal?"
Magic Man stared at her for a moment, thoughtful, then asked, "Can you do burns?"
"I think so?"
He nodded firmly. "Please work on my nephew's arms and tutor Miss Akemi on the process. She needs to study healing of others."
"My shoulder's dislocated," Hitsugaya declared.
"Oh. How fun," his uncle deadpanned. "Want me to relocate it?"
Hitsugaya grimaced and agreed. Sayaka wanted to ask them to do it somewhere else because the sound of Tessai fixing Madoka's shoulder haunted her nightmares, but she needed to show she could handle everything about this mess to be taken seriously. So she forced her face into neutrality and didn't flinch at the horrible sound through sheer force of will.
Magic Man looked at Sayaka and asked, "I think I saw that your feet are injured?"
"Yeah." Sayaka inhaled deeply and settled her mind. "Couldn't run right in heels. I have a bunch of gravel in my feet."
"Well, that will have to be removed before we can heal you," Mr. Urahara said.
"I'll do it," Madoka's mom volunteered. "Water, cloth, tweezers, and antiseptic?" she asked in a businesslike tone as she stood.
"Coming right up," Magic Man said with tired cheer as Madoka's dad entered with a tray of snacks and tea.
Sayaka grit her teeth and refused to show pain as Madoka helped her hobble to a futon. She opted to stay sitting up instead of lying down so she could watch the magical girls working on Hitsugaya's arms. Magic Man and Tessai had been able to heal without being magical girls. Maybe Sayaka could learn. Maybe she could be useful that way.
"Sa-ya-sa, Sa-ya-sa."
Sayaka turned and looked at a corner of the room she hadn't paid attention to. Madoka's baby brother was strapped into his car seat and looked like he had just woken up.
"Sa-ya-sa, Sa-ya-sa," he chanted sleepily.
"Hey, Tatsuya," she greeted with a weak smile.
"Sad?" he asked.
"What?"
He looked at her like she was a puzzle and said, "Sa-ya-sad?" Tatsuya looked past her and saw the other teenagers. "Mi-mi-sad?"
"Mimi?" Mrs. Kaname wondered as she prepared supplies. "Oh, Mami."
Mami looked up. "What?"
"Mi-mi-sad?" Tatsuya repeated. He looked at Homura. "Mu-ra-sad?"
"What," Homura said blankly.
Tatsuya squirmed against his harness. "Sad, sad, sad. Hugs? I hugs." He reached out his arms as though trying to hug them from a distance and looked disgruntled that he couldn't get closer. After a wordless screech, he shouted, "Out! Out!"
Finding him cute and hoping to stave off a tantrum, Sayaka asked, "Wanna come sit on my lap?"
"Yeah!"
Madoka unstrapped him and let him loose to toddle to Sayaka and throw himself into her side. Sayaka found herself hugging him back fiercely. It was like holding a teddy bear; she felt calmer.
"Good hugs?" he asked.
"Yep! Thanks!"
Tatsuya smiled and drooled. "I back, I back," he said before toddling to the next futon over and throwing himself into Homura's waist. "No sad!"
Homura relaxed and awkwardly patted his head. Tatsuya giggled and threw himself at Mami, whose tense posture eased somewhat as she cooed over him. Hitsugaya wasn't upset but Tatsuya looked at his injuries, said "ouch, ouch," and gave him a hug anyway; the teenage boy looked surprised and ruffled the toddler's hair. Then Tatsuya saw Kyōko's body. He frowned and toddled over to her, expertly evading Hitsugaya's grab with magical toddler skill.
"Tatsuya, no," Mrs. Kaname scolded.
Tatsuya dropped to all fours by the body and looked at the redhead's bloodied mouth intensely as Madoka scrambled to grab him. He dodged again and pointed at Kyōko's face. "Ouch, ouch."
"Yes, she's hurt too," Mrs. Kaname said as Madoka scooped him up.
"Fix!" Tatsuya commanded them.
"We will, Takkun," Madoka said, then kissed his head. "It's gonna take a little while." She smiled at his impatient huff and added, "Weren't you going to sit on Sayaka's lap?"
The toddler blinked up at his sister and looked at the other teenagers for a long moment while chewing on one hand. Tatsuya's face went stubborn and he announced, "Mimi need."
"Eh?" Madoka wondered.
"Sayasa sad, Mura sad-sad, Mimi sad-sad-sad-ouch," Tatsuya explained firmly. "Need more hugs."
Everyone stared.
"Hugs ouchies bye-bye." Tatsuya squirmed in Madoka's arms with a grunt of effort and reached toward Mami. "Mimi! I hugs!"
Homura looked between Mami and the toddler speculatively and said, "Go ahead and hold him, Mami. I'll clean Hitsugaya's arms myself first."
And so Tatsuya ended up cuddling in Mami's lap and Madoka sat by Sayaka, who hissed at the sudden sting of Mrs. Kaname starting to clean her feet. Madoka took her hand and leaned into her side to support her. Sayaka thought Madoka's rose shampoo smelled even stronger in the closed space of the room. Maybe she used matching body wash?
Mr. Kaname served them all tea and cookies so new they were still hot from the oven. This amused and touched Sayaka— Madoka's dad was a nervous baker and must have been incredibly anxious to have thrown together cookie dough so quickly. Sayaka focused on the tastes to distract herself from the pain in her feet and watched Mami and Tatsuya; they had a plate to themselves and Tatsuya was shoving cookies in Mami's face with a bossy look as if he was giving the teenager medicine. As time passed, Mami's face smoothed and she actually managed small smiles as she shared cookies with him.
The power of cuteness was amazing.
Sayaka drowsily watched the two magical girls pointing and discussing anatomy and Hitsugaya's injuries between bouts of doing glowy stuff with their fingers while Tatsuya watched from Mami's lap, eyes wide in wonder. Homura was exceedingly familiar with the structure of the shoulder, arm, and hand— more so than Mami, even. She spoke of difficulty with nerve damage and they pressed on Hitsugaya's arms to figure out how much had been inflicted by the burns. Sayaka was able to follow some of what they were saying because she had done research in the same vein after Kyōsuke's accident.
Wait. If Sayaka could learn how to heal... maybe she could help Kyōsuke on top of helping the magical girls!
Sayaka soon lost track of time. Madoka's mom moved from Sayaka to Kyōko, washing the girl's dirty, bloody face and combing her tangled hair with the care of a mother tending a sick child. Tessai showed up at one point to heal Sayaka's clean feet and explained that Mr. Urahara was calling a lot of allies to make arrangements.
Mrs. Kaname's phone rang. She tugged it out of a pocket in her sweatpants and looked at it, face suddenly going cold and calculating. "Sayaka, it's your mother," she said.
Sayaka pouted stubbornly. "Whatcha gonna do?"
"Hmmm." Madoka's mom tapped a finger against her chin while her eyes did the exact same calculating movements Mr. Urahara's had done earlier. "I'm going to buy you time. Everyone be quiet." Lips turning up into a bland smile as she sat by her husband at the table, she answered the phone. "Ah, Kotone. I wondered if I would be hearing from you." She tapped her nails on the table lazily.
"Yes, Madoka did hear from Sayaka."
"No. A friend of ours has a family emergency, so we're up at their house to help for the night."
"That is none of your business, Kotone."
"No. But Tomohisa and I allowed Madoka to go out and find her."
She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't even try it, Kotone. Madoka had her phone on speaker because Sayaka's state worried her so much. I know what Sayaka said happened. Being that upset is perfectly reasonable for the things you said and the situation you put her in."
"It became my business when your daughter called mine in hysterical tears because her parents didn't respect an honestly mature gesture of solidarity with poor Kyōsuke right after insulting new friends who have shown her their pain," Madoka's mom snapped with a scowl. "Your daughter is one of the more empathetic people I know— one who actually acts on her empathy. You should be proud of her principles, Kotone, not crushing them."
"That is exactly what you're doing. She wears her heart on her sleeve so it's easily wounded. You shouldn't be the one stabbing it. I would think tonight would show you that you're driving her away."
Her smile widened into something sweetly poisoned. "Oh, Minoru. How lovely to hear from you."
"That's not the best way to get anyone to cooperate with you, you know."
Mrs. Kaname arched her eyebrows. "Minoru, I am stunned by just how much more mature your teenage daughter is than you. And that's saying something."
She laughed lightly. "You're not going to intimidate me, Minoru, so I suggest you stop trying."
"Oh? You'd really risk me putting your treatment of your daughter into the official record of a police report when the officers come looking? And risk me explaining my encounter with law enforcement to HR and my peers in charge of the actual contracts with your employer?"
"I didn't think so," she cooed.
"Now. You two really fucked up this time. I will intercede and try to coax Sayaka down so she doesn't outright run away. I suggest you stay the hell out of— no, you shut up. If she stays with us, she isn't on the street. Do you want her on the street?"
"No. That tactic is exactly what drove me to run away at her age and get involved with a lot of unsavory things out of rebellion. You'll pour fuel on the fire. Let me handle this."
She rolled her eyes. "Of course I'll let you know when she's safely with us, Kotone. I'm a mother myself. Yes. Let her cool down while you take this opportunity to realize how deeply you hurt her with your neglect."
"You obviously did, Minoru, or she wouldn't have run out into the night bawling."
"For God's sake, take a look at yourselves in a mirror. Figure out why your daughter thinks you see her as nothing but a pawn on a chessboard. Because that's all on you."
Mrs. Kaname clicked her tongue in disapproval. "That's exactly the attitude that got you into this mess. Look at your life. Look at your choices," Mrs. Kaname said mockingly before she hung up.
Everyone stared at the woman in awe as she daintily sipped from her teacup. Even Homura and Hitsugaya looked impressed.
Junko Kaname was Sayaka's freaking idol.
"Thank you," Sayaka said quietly.
Mrs. Kaname smiled warmly. "You're quite welcome. I've wanted to do that for awhile now, haha." She turned to Mr. Urahara. "That takes care of Sayaka's parents. What do we do about this girl?" she asked with a nod toward the fallen magical girl. "If her parents report her missing, we could have a major problem added to the mix."
"Kyōko's parents are dead," Mami said dully. "She ran away from foster care. Last I heard, she lives in hotels she pays for by breaking into ATMs."
"You— you said her wish went wrong and it made her bitter," Madoka said slowly as her parents looked heartbroken. "What happened?"
So Mami explained the clusterfuck that was Kyōko Sakura's life and the fallout of her wish. Sayaka only realized she was clenching her fists in fury when her nails bit into her palms and drew blood. Madoka cried. Homura and Hitsugaya's faces went cold and angry. The sound of ceramic breaking drew their attention to the table.
Madoka's dad looked the angriest Sayaka had ever seen him. His teacup was in a few large pieces on the table and his hands were in a tense position Sayaka likened to throttling someone. "Because she had powers?" he growled. "Because she dared to innocently try to help him? His first thought was to blame his daughter instead of the— the being that tricked her? No concern for her, just a— just a tantrum over not being popular without help? Killing his entire family over it?!"
"What a selfish, deluded asshole," Mrs. Kaname sneered.
Kyōko's father was probably lucky to be dead already because the Kaname parents looked like they would gladly tear him limb from limb with their bare hands.
"All right, how is everyone doing?" Mr. Urahara asked from the doorway. Everyone turned to him; he glanced at each of them before his gaze settled on Hitsugaya's arms, which were bandaged in Mami's glowing yellow ribbons. Magic Man looked intrigued, but didn't say anything about it.
"What's the plan?" Mrs. Kaname asked, all business.
Mr. Urahara looked amused. "You assume I have one."
Mrs. Kaname rolled her eyes. "I know your type. You wouldn't be here unless you had one."
Magic Man's face slowly lit up with a sly grin. "Perceptive."
Sayaka didn't have the patience for witty grownup banter. "Just tell us the plan already, Magic Man."
Mr. Urahara blinked slowly at her with a tilt of his head. Sayaka just scowled at him. He raised a brow but didn't say anything about her snippy interruption. "Well, we still need to not arouse suspicion in the general public, so you will all go to school tomorrow. It's only a half-day. I know it will be difficult—" he darted a sympathetic glance toward Mami, who hugged Tatsuya closer to her and looked mournful— "but you don't need to pretend nothing is wrong. I couldn't possibly expect you to do so. To excuse any potential absence next week, go ahead and tell people a friend of yours died. It's technically not a lie and it will make people both sympathetic and likely to leave well enough alone if you say you don't want to talk about it."
Mami's lip quivered, but she nodded her acceptance. Sayaka put her hands on her hips and challenged him. "So what are we actually gonna do?"
Mr. Urahara looked oddly curious before his face softened into tired concern. "In addition to the healer, the family that is allied with us is going to come here. Magical girl sisters whose father and brother are completely in the know and have experience with the supernatural. They have a way with people. My hope is that Miss Sakura and Miss Tomoe can benefit from their support."
Sayaka opened her mouth to question that— she was suspicious of these unknown strangers— but snapped it shut when Homura said, unprompted, "They are very kind. Odd, eccentric, and... energetic, but kind." The magical girl folded her hands in her lap and looked down at them with a hesitantly soft expression. "They are... like... family. To me," she added quietly.
That was like screaming those people's weird awesomeness from the rooftops as far as Stranger Danger was concerned, so Sayaka refrained from voicing any suspicion and instead decided she wanted to meet these people.
"So, what, we're coming here after school?" Sayaka asked.
"If you want," Mr. Urahara said with a shrug.
"When will these people get here?"
Why did Magic Man look so interested? "Shortly after you get out of school. They have covers to establish, too. They'll stay for at least a couple days, not leaving the shop so the Incubator doesn't know they're here."
"Then how will they get here?" asked Madoka's mom.
Mr. Urahara smiled widely and explained something about portals and dimensions that Sayaka followed better once she ignored the more sciencey words. Then he exhaled loudly and clapped his hands together. "Well. I think we had better all get rested. Miss Miki, I suggest you go home."
"No."
"I'm sorry?"
"No," Sayaka repeated stubbornly. "I'm not gonna be left out. Mrs. Kaname gave Mom and Dad an excuse for me to stay away from home. I'm not going back. They went too far this time. I've had it."
Magic Man stared at her for a long minute before slowly asking, "You have a plan?"
Sayaka straightened her spine and raised her chin with a defiant expression. "I'm gonna go to school like a good girl so they can't complain about that at least. I'm gonna try harder, too. I wanna look like I'm the one being mature about it. I'll text them sometimes and say junk like sorry, I'm in a meeting, I don't have time to chat and whatever so they know I'm alive and making a point."
"Is that really mature, though?" Homura muttered.
"When will you go home?" Hitsugaya asked before Sayaka could retort.
Sayaka shrugged snobbishly with a dismissive wave of her hand and answered, "Who knows?"
Magic Man frowned and opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by Madoka's mom. "Leave her to me, Kisuke. I was in a similar position at her age and know how to manipulate her parents," she said briskly. "You worry about the hocus pocus angle, I'll handle the teenage girls."
"We," said Madoka's dad. "We will."
Sayaka almost laughed at how blatantly relieved Magic Man was by that.
They wrapped up about an hour later. Madoka's dad left to pack up stuff from home so the family could camp out at the shop for a few days. Madoka's mom texted Sayaka's mom that Sayaka was safely with the Kanames just before the Kanames took a guest bedroom with Tatsuya. The teenagers all pulled the futons into a circle and bedded down for their second depressing slumber party with a glowing corpse. It was an awkward setup. A dim little lamp was placed near the door so everyone could get to the bathroom without tripping on anyone else. Sayaka lay staring at the soft green glow around Kyōko with Mami and Madoka, planning and strengthening her resolve. Finally growing sleepy, Sayaka allowed her eyes to wander the room. Two futons lay empty. Hitsugaya and Homura sat propped up against the walls in a corner, wide awake and staring at Mami from the shadows.
Sayaka drowsily thought about the story of Homura's team leader who had snapped and shattered her friends' Soul Gems, noted the subtle wariness in the two friends' postures, and felt her heart crack a little bit more. It wasn't fair that they had to worry about Mami's sanity and whether she would attack them. It wasn't just. She looked to Kyōko's soulless stillness; that wasn't mere injustice; it was an atrocity.
No part of the magical girl system was fair to anyone.
No part of the Incubator's actions were just.
Her resolve crystallized. She would be useful in the righteous war against the Incubator. Absolutely had to help them bear that burden.
Sayaka Miki would be useful or die trying.
§ x § x §
Two high school girls stood alone in a dim, cavernous hall that echoed with the splashing of running water.
"At least make Kazumi suffer the same fate as those girls."
"What are you talking about?"
The first voice giggled. It wasn't a particularly sane giggle. "You're bad at lying, Saki. If Umika weren't around just now—"
Saki reared back, fear quickly chased from her face by anger. "SHUT UP! I'M NOT LYING!"
"I'm telling you." Tapping footsteps joined the echoes of the fountain. The girl leaned close to Saki and conspiratorially whispered, "I know everything, okay?" She leaned in closer, smiling lips brushing the shell of Saki's ear as she breathed, "Fantasma Bisbiglio."
§ x § x §
§ x § x §
§ x § x §
A/N: Happy funtimes! :D
Fantasma Bisbiglio = Ghost Whisper
This chapter was replaced with an edited version on November 1, 2019. Reviews with timestamps before that date refer to a slightly different version of the chapter.