Mahou Madness!

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas seemed for a moment like they might actually have something to say to her... But then shook their head.
"I'm fine... Just in a rush... And a little tired..."
He assured her, though it clearly wasn't true, and he fidgeted nervously at his own lie... he wasn't used to being dishonest, especially with someone he considered a friend like Namiko... Though he WAS used to lying to himself...

Soon the train arrived and he dashed on board.
"Uhh... Talk to you at school tomorrow okay?"
Were his intended parting words.

 

[twinkletide]

He left her standing on the platform, watching the train dash away.

She stood for a moment. It was a breezeless late afternoon. Smoke was free to waft unimpeded from people's lips. There she was, breathing smoke and listening to the sound of the train receding, as if an old memory.

Above all else she wanted to understand. She wanted to burrow into that mind of his and pull out and unfurl the secret scroll within, that which had the key to his troubles. She needed to be better, a better partner, a better big sister.

Two days. How much had she felt in these two days? How much had she felt in sixteen years? She felt like a new era of her life was starting, some climactic operatic beginning, an overture to something grand and terrifying, and yet she didn't know why. It was a lingering feeling, one she wished to remove.

Silently she sat down on a nearby bench. The air settled like dust, and the few people who were there had dispersed. She was alone. Looking down, she spotted a small pebble on the ground. As she picked it up and placed it on her tongue, lolling it around, feeling its tough flinty skin and remembering times past, she tried to understand.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas went straight home and managed to get in before his parents and change, he needn't have bothered though, they showed up hours late and barely talked to him... It wasn't always like this but sometimes they could go a couple of months barely talking to him, he did get a comment from his father about needing to bulk up and look less feminine... Which he wasn't sure how to feel about... Other than a vague, unidentifiable pain.
He would go to bed early and be up for school the next day, arriving on time via the bus as usual.

No one would approach Namiko as she waited, her train late by about five minutes, it was usually like that, people ignored each other except for the odd drunk or crazy person that would go around getting into people's faces.
If she was at school on time the next day she would find Lucas sitting in a hall next to the lockers, holding a book, and seeming to be thinking about starting to read it.

 

[twinkletide]

It was morning.

NAMIKO:​

• Wake up.
• Eat.
  • Breakfast: Maruchan Brand Ramen, microwaved twice for three and two minutes, respectively. Chicken flavor.
• Sun: Not out. Overcast. Cumulonimbus skies.
• School 1.5 miles away. Walk approx. 45 minutes average.
• Today's walk: 48 minutes. Ten minutes before first bell.
• Lucas:

was there. Back against a lockers, holding a book whose title was obscured to her. She walked up to him and cleared her throat. "Hi, Lucas," she said gently. "What's that book?"

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas jumped as usual when greeted while distracted... Damn he was a jumpy kid! No wonder bullies liked to target him when it was so easy to get a reaction... Well that and the fact that he was a small, quiet kid who didn't fight back...
"Oh! Uhh, Hi Namiko... It's something one of my friends said I should read... It's called Being Emily?"
He looked at the title, the blurb seemed to be missing though, as if his friend had wanted him to go in without knowing anything, and of course he didn't think to just google it...

"So uhh... You made it home okay then? Sorry for running off... I didn't realize what time it was and forgot my parents were coming home... Honestly they might not have noticed if I showed up late in a skirt..."
He admitted with an embarrassed grin.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko nodded. She was glad to see him back to normal. Extremely glad. Relief coursed through her; actual relief, in the sense of a burden being lifted. Smiling she said "It's okay. I understand. Just...don't worry me like that, okay? You ran off so quickly."

"Anyways, that seems like an interesting book. Do you like to read?" She didn't read very much herself, but she realized she didn't know very much about Lucas's hobbies.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

He looked a little ashamed at himself for a moment but it quickly passed and he smiled again... He was surprisingly good at that... How often must he have hidden emotions for one reason or another behind a fake smile and cheery tone?
"I won't, next time I'll wait for you, I normally would i was just a little umm... Confused?"
The answer seemed to be more of a question in itself.

"Umm... Yeah! I love reading... I have a lot of books at home... Oh! I also like sewing... That's even more fun than books... Though it's a girly hobby so maybe I should stop, even if the club does say I am good at it..."
He mumbled right before the bell for class went and he stood up without having started reading the book.
Class would likely go as normal, full of sleepy students.

 

[twinkletide]

That answer...was somewhat concerning. 'Con·fused, /kənˈfyo͞ozd/, (of a person) unable to think clearly; bewildered.' She knew the definition; but what did it mean now? Here? In relation to him and her?

She shook off these queries, not wishing to show too much concern. Anyways, interesting; into sewing and reading. Maybe she should start reading more, she thought. Just to give them some more common ground. Or invite him over to play games. Even take his offer to borrow some of his games.

Class drifted lazily along. Namiko always waited for math, when she'd be free to play games under her desk the whole period, seemingly having every equation and formula imprinted in her brain, as if her X and Y chromosomes were actual variables. It was a drowsy thick-headed morning that moved to a drowsy thick-headed afternoon.

She closed Earthbound and sat back in her chair when lunch rolled around. Immediately an idea struck her; but she needed to hurry. She walked briskly over to Lucas. "Lucas, do you want to go pick something out at the student store? Better put those, er, 'rocks' to use."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas managed to focus mostly on class, though he too ended up playing games under the desk during maths, though rather than already knowing everything... He just knew so little that he didn't bother, despite tests being some of the few things his parents were always happy to talk about...
He did nearly get caught by the teacher was paying an odd amount of attention to him, though it was hard to see why, unless she just knew he was a bad student.

Lucas seemed confused by the word rocks in this context but nodded.
"That sounds fun... Though i don't think I really need anything?"
He replied, seemingly willing to go along with her purely because she was his friend.

 

[twinkletide]

She pulled him along the hallways. Their shoes slipped and slid over the linoleum with loud squeaks. Before long they found themselves in front of the school store cafeteria, a.k.a. the place that also has the student store which sold melonpan and other various goodies to hungry students with excess cash. It was set up behind a counter with a dull-looking lady behind it with glum eyes and an apron. There was a short line, but it was moving quickly―luckily for them the Student Store was not the survivalist affair that was portrayed in many anime.

"We," said Namiko, "Will eat here today. And you will too!" Her voice was slightly louder than usual, but it was obvious she was trying to force herself to be boisterous for effect. "Sorry, Lucas," she said, already predicting his dissent, "but you really need to eat." She knew that better than anyone.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas was about to step back a little, within range to talk to Namiko but clearly not in line, that was just common courtesy so people didn't think he was waiting in line for something, after all, he didn't think he was waiting in line... Assuming Namiko was just here to get herself something to eat.

Instead he was surprised by her offer, stepping back into line next to her without thinking, though he immediately tried to step away again after his instinct no longer ruled.
"I... Yeah... I can't argue..."
As if to push the point his stomach decided to let loose it's own dissent, growling quite noticeably, bringing a faint blush to Lucas's face as he placed a hand on his stomach as if attempting to shush it.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko smiled. Hungry. She knew it. Peering at the items on offer she wondered what to get him. There were various snacks and pastries on display, all of them cheap, drugstore fare: melonpan, dorayaki, the like. The names with simple font, both romanized and in kana with the prices displayed next to them. Namiko had only been to the student store a couple of times before, when she happened to have a hankering for red bean paste, and its dull simplicity never ceased to amaze her, producing a strangely pleasing sensation.

"So, Lucas," she said, as the line began to thin and there were only three more people ahead of her, "what do you want? I'm getting some dorayaki."

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

As the neared the food Lucas's hunger began to become more obvious, he usually ignored it by avoiding looking at anything that could set him off and remind his stomach that it was empty... But now he was looking at cheap, yet still tasty food.

"Uhh... I think I'll get that too... I like red bean paste... Oh... You should let me pay, I'm the guy right? And I have more money anyway... I think?"
It occurred to him that his assumption could be offensive, it was just that he was given a large allowance by his parents while Namiko had to fight terrifying monsters that could kill her in a single moment of inattentiveness.
Then again... That probably paid really well...

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko tilted her head. "Well, you can pay, but...I'm not hurting for money either. I've been saving money ever since I became a magical girl, and the only thing I spend money on anymore is rent, groceries, and the occasional game." She shrugged.

Finally they arrived at the front of the line. The cashier was a sleepy woman with a curl of the lips that looked more delirious than happy. But she was nice nonetheless. "Hi, Namiko...and..." She squinted her grey eyes at the newcomer. "Sorry, what's your name, miss...?"

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

"Umm... Well I think I'll still pay... If you're saving you must have some sorta goal right?"
He assumed, either that or she really didn't have anything to spend money on... Which sounded like a kind of boring life, Lucas himself was constantly buying books and games and food... Not that he ever ended up putting on weight or filling the weird empty feeling that his parents said was likely just a result of puberty...

Being called a girl stunned Lucas for a moment and he didn't seem like he was able to answer, it was sort of a deer in the headlights reaction and it seemed up to Namiko to break the stand still that the cashier had unintentionally created.

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko groaned. "His name," she said, "is Lucas."

"Huh? Oh, sorry, mistake." She said it casually, as if it were a perfectly obvious fact that she'd failed to notice. "Two dorayaki..." With a smooth, practiced motion she produced two packages of the treat and placed them on the counter. "That'll be 360 yen." Namiko had her half already in her hand, and she handed it to her. The cashier gestured towards Lucas.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas let out a breath he had been holding, though had an odd look in his eyes for a moment after... What was with all the odd looks and sighs recently? Perhaps he was just stressed from his new job... Fighting monsters was not exactly normal for most teenagers, and he seemed to have other problems he wouldn't talk about.

He pulled a card to pay his share, Lucas never carried loose money around anymore, the card was easy to hide and needed a password to use so it wasn't really a target to most people, at least not after the first few times they had been taken and word spread.
When they had paid Lucas started eating, keeping it slow and careful despite his clear desire to chow down without restraint.
"Mhh~ I didn't realize I was so hungry...."

 

[twinkletide]

"Yeah," she said, watching him eat. She peeled back the wrapper on her own dorayaki and bit into it. "It is important to eat. Get some meat on your bones. Especially since...you know, being fit is part of your job now. Just look at me, I eat junk food all the time and I can barely run half the speed of most magical girls."

She placed her free hand on his head. For some reason his hair was pleasing to the touch, like a freshly cleaned blanket, such that she could reach out and touch it and feel relaxed. Strange. She'd never done this before now. "Listen, Lucas. I've been in the business a while now, and—" bite "—if there's one thing that endangers magical girls, it's keeping pent up feelings." She looked at him and lowered her voice to a soft whisper. "If you need to talk about something, that's what I'm here for. I'm your partner. Your big sister. Okay? Just...try." Another bite. Part of her worried she was being too headstrong, but the other just felt right doing it here, now.

 

[Mahou-Shoujo]

Lucas ate mostly in silence, seemingly too busy thinking about something, and her saying he could come to her to talk... Seemed to make him think even harder as he ate, though didn't end up causing him to actually talk, instead he barely spoke the rest of the day and headed off towards the exit of the school saying something about needing to be home early, and that he needed to try something out in private...

That of course left Namiko to head home alone... And on the way she would feel the all too familiar feel of a chimera, it didn't seem to be a big one, and she did have Lucas's number if something bad happened, besides, Namiko was a veteran! Surely a single low power chimera was nothing to be seriously worried about?

 

[twinkletide]

Namiko dropped her bag and transformed. Of course, there couldn't be a single day without one of these freaks coming to crash it. All she wanted was to walk home peacefully and think, and of course this motherfucker came in and now she has to pull out her rifle and shoot it.

She shook her head. No, focus. Immediately she noted her surroundings; open street, cars relatively sparse. A park right across the street, open space, big pond in the center. To her left were houses, which she'd need to avoid, so the only way she could move was to her right. Park was relatively small, so she could afford to lose Roanoke and grab something more maneuverable, which in this case meant a fully-automatic rifle with a mid-sized barrel and retractable stock. She pulled it straight out in a u-shaped motion so that the magazine wouldn't catch on her nether regions, and turned around to face her opponent, legs crouched slightly in a preemptive stance.