355/True Blue Friendship

True Blue Friendship
Date of Scene:	30 August 2015
Location:	Plot Room #2
Synopsis:	After Kyouko is horribly injured (see: From the Dust She Burned), Mamoru takes her to Sayaka.
Cast of Characters:	Sayaka Miki, Kyouko Sakura

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Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    It was the middle of the night- well really, it was closer to morning by this point, the sun only a few hours from rising. Downtown, there had been some sort of massive explosion, emergency vehicles arriving in droves to the warehouse district down in the harbor. This is probably too far away from Sayaka's house for her to have heard any of it though, the damage and the response both fairly localized to that industrial part of town.

    What she does hear, though, is the rapid knocking on her window. This is quite unusual in the middle of the night- and what is more unusual is that the one doing the rapping is a young man in a tuxedo and a mask. This might be alarming, but what's more alarming is what he is carrying in his arms.

    It's Kyouko, and boy does she look like she's in rough shape. She's not in her henshin, instead just in her normal civilian outfit. She's covered in soot and dust, and more alarming, there's a small amount of blood seeping from her nose and the corners of her eyes. She appears to be delerious, her eyes open, but glassy and she doesn't quite seem to know what's going on.

    Mamoru would give Sayaka a brief explanation of what happened: he sensed a big magical explosion, and went to investigate, whereupon he found Kyouko in this state laying in the rubble. He couldn't get her to say much, but she had kept asking for "Sayaka-chan", and eventually he had figured out where you lived (don't ask how, it's magic) and brought her here. There was nowhere else to bring her anyway- she had no home of her own, and traditional doctors cant do much for Puella.

    In Kyouko's hand she's clutching her Soul Gem. It's about half black, half red- she isn't in danger of Witching, but it needs to be cleansed. More concerning- there's a big crack straight down the middle of the gem, all the way through. It's unlikely Sayaka knows how serious that is, but Mamoru seemed worried about it.

    Kyouko had a Grief Seed in her pocket. Mamoru would have stayed just long enough to explain how to use it to cleanse Kyouko's Soul Gem, and then he left back out the window, content that Kyouko was in the best hands she could be in, of the very limited options.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    Aah, the mundane life of a middle schooler. There were times when Sayaka dreamed of living the exciting life of a super powered, magical girl..In fact, that's exactly what she was dreaming out, before someone rapped on her window in the middle of the night, waking her up.

    Having someone knock on the door in the middle of the night is odd enough, but having someone knock on her window on the second floor too..Good thing there's a balcony or else she'd totally have freaked. Yawning and rubbing her eyes, she pulls open the curtains, half expecting to see some tree branch knocking on the window sill..That darn oak in the back yard sure was growing big!

    What she's not expecting to see is some weird guy in a tuxedo (hey...Wasn't he at the hospital too..?) And he's holding...

    "Kyouko-chan!? What's happened?" She holds her breath in trepidation as Mamoru then launches into some brief explanation, seeming in a hurry to leave - hey, her parents would not be too happy about some mysterious visitor pounding on her window and dropping an equally stranger girl at her feet. At any rate, she peers out as the Tuxedo guy vanishes into the night (Where'd he go...Did he just fly!?)

    ..But right now, Kyouko is her primary concern, and she tries to remember what Tuxedo told her about the grief seed, dragging Kyouko inside and laying her on her best as best as she can before pulling the grief seed out of the pocket. Hastily, she touches the grief seed to the soul gem, heart pounding as she hopes this works the way Tux said it would.

    "C'mon, Kyouko-chan..Dont you dare die on me...You promised!" That crack in her soul gem is worrying, Sayaka's not sure what it means, or if this will even work!"

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko is stretched out on the bed. She's awake, as mentioned, but she seems barely there- the same as when you have a bad fever. Her red eyes are glassy, and they focus on Sayaka after a moment. A smile comes to her lips.. "Hi.. Sayaka-chan.." She says, relief sounding in her voice at the sight of a familiar, and friendly face.

    Then Sayaka, as instructed, touches the Grief Seed to her Soul Gem. Kyouko lets out a soft sigh as all the blackness washes out of the gem, leaving it pure, sparkling red.. but that crack doesn't go away. It's still there.. as visible as ever.

    Even so, as the Grief Seed heals her Soul Gem, her body heals also- all the physical damage going away. The blood that had been seeping from her stops, and even the blood already on her skin fades away. She still looks pale, but all signs of actual damage are now gone.

    Her eyes also clear somewhat.. as if cleansing her Soul Gem cleared her mind also. "Nngh.." She groans softly, blinking a few time and looking around. "What.. where the hell am I?" She mutters.. her eyes then turning to Sayaka. "Sayaka-chan..? What're you doing here?"

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    "....." Sayaka watches worriedly at first, although that worry quickly turns to surprise then relief as the grief seed works its magic, seeming to absorb the darkness in the soul gem, and by extension, healing Kyouko and her wounds too.

    "Wow...That really is a powerful gem!" She peers at the grief seed, realizing now why these artifacts might be so coveted to possess such power. Glancing back at Kyouko, she still seems worried, although she cracks a smile for the red head. "I'm so glad you're alright! Some guy in a tuxedo came to my window and dropped you off, said he found you wounded in some sort of explosion...Kyou-chan, what happened?"

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko tries to move, tries to sit up.. but immidiately it appears that's not a good idea, as she groans again, this time as her muscles protest, and sinks back down onto her back, panting for a moment. Although it looks like her wounds have healed, she's clearly not fully restored to health.

    "Ah.. t-thats Tuxedo Kamen. He's.. a friend of mine. I'll have to thank him later." She says, catching her breath after a moment. "Dammit.. I was such an idiot."

    She peers up at Sayaka for a moment, then frowns slightly, looking away. "I got ahold of.. something really powerful. I thought it would help me get revenge on Miss White for what she did to me. I think.. it did. I don't really remember but.." She winces again. "Ah.. it feels like it.. did a number on me in the process.."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    "Tuxedo Kamen.." She chuckles and nods. "Yeah, I'll have to thank him. I knew I saw him somewhere before.."

    Glancing over at Kyouko as she tries to sit up, Sayaka smirks, "Don't even think of getting up. Just get some rest for now, you almost died.." Her smile quickly frowns as Kyouko expains what happens. But she's still pretty vague.

    "What..Some sort of powerful artefact? Just to get revenge on some magical girl...? But why!? Why risk your life like that? Was it really worth it?" She's starting to sound a bit annoyed now.

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko actually flinches a little bit as Sayaka sounds so annoyed with her, perhaps not having expected to hear that tone in her voice. "Yes it's worth it!" She snaps, her red eyes flaring up. "You don't understand what it's like out there, Sayaka! You have to be the strongest, and you have to protect yourself or else you're done for!"

    "I spent years building myself up until I was the best, and she took it away from me. She /humiliated/ me! If I couldn't make her pay for that I.. well.. what would I be worth?" She glares at Sayaka, and there's tears glistening in her eyes.. maybe she realizes when she says it out loud, how pointless it all sounds.

    "Besides.." She flops back down, turning her face away. "It's not like there's anybody who cares about me except me. I'd rather die than be reduced to a weak nobody."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    Sayaka had been sitting on the edge of the bed, listening to Kyouko's talk. However, as she continues, the blue-haired girl's normally cool eyes start to glower, rising from her seat as she clenches her fist. She'd really like to..Slap her right now, but in her current state, that would not be very noble of Sayaka Instead, she lets her clenched fists grasp at the sheets of the bed.

    ..."Baka! You could have died! Maybe you dont care about yourself, but there are others who would miss you if you were gone.."

    After a moment, Sayaka stands up, turning away towards the balcony, staring out at the starry night sky as she folds her arms, having just realized she's still in her pyjamas, and it's a pretty cold night. She didnt even have time to close the window, she was so concerned about Kyouko.

    She sighs, not bothering to close the window. "I'm sorry..I suppose I couldn't understand. Afterall, I'm just an ordinary girl, but..I care about you, and I'm always afraid that next time you're gonna die..."

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko flinches again when Sayaka bursts out with that censure of her, and of her motivations, her brows drawing together as she turns her face back to look at the other girl. "Nobody would miss me if I was gone.. I don't have any family, and every friend I ever had I've run off."

    She seems to think that's the end of it, but as Sayaka moves over to look out the window, her brows draw together again, a look of confusion coming across her face. "You're.. why would you be afraid for me?" She mutters, not quite seeming to understand. "I don't even know you that well.." Yet even she can't deny that she cares what Sayaka thinks. She finds the other girl's presence reassuring, or else why would she, in her delerium, have asked Mamoru to take her here in the first place?

    After a long moment, she sighs again and turns back to look at the wall, trying to sort out her thoughts. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I.. well, I didn't want to make you worry. I just.. I thought if I let her get away with what she did to me I.." She pauses, not sure what to say, almost like her excuses don't hold up even to her when she actually voices them.

    "Anyway, I don't think you have to worry about me getting into trouble anytime soon.." She allows herself to smirk just a little. "I.. think I'm in a pretty bad way."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    "Heh.." she laughs, turning away from the window to face Kyouko again. she looks..Kinda scared, shaken even. She's never seen someone so close to death before.

    "I dunno, I guess there are things about you that I can relate to. Always wanting to be a the bigger person, the stronger one. Always trying to protect others from bullies. I suppose I always wanted to be a heroine. A REAL hero, and not just make-believe. I saw that in you, Kyouko. You try to be all tough and uninterested, but you're strong, and you dont fake it either. You just tell it like it is."

    She laughs, a bit shakily, "I guess...Maybe I'd be like you too, if I became a magical girl..Maybe. Always trying to hide your feelings, your weaknesses. You feel like you're alone but you're not..And maybe I dont know you that well yet, but, maybe it feels like there's a connection there, somehow.." It's hard to explain without seeming weird, so she's relieved for a change of topic. Relieved, and a bit concerned again, however."

    Sayaka arches a brow at that last part. "How do you mean? You seemed to have healed up pretty quickly. In fact I was surprised, I thought I'd have to take you to the hospital..." Of course there was that crack in her soul gem..But Sayaka doesn't really know much about those, except that they're somehow connected to their source of magic.

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    "I think.. you got the wrong idea about me, Sayaka-chan." Kyouko says, but she says it in a whisper, looking the other way. She's no hero. She /is/ the bully.. or at least she has been, ever since she split from Mami two years ago and went off on her own. She always thought it was the right way but.. why, suddenly, does she feel ashamed? She never had before, but hearing Sayaka say what she thinks Kyouko is, makes Kyouko suddenly terribly ashamed to /not/ be that.

    Kyouko is now staring at her Soul Gem.. at that crack. "The thing is.." She says, biting her lip. "I've been trying to henshin.. to.. change into my magical girl form for the past minute or so. And it's not working." She looks up again, and there's something like a combination of fear and amusement on her face.. almost like she finds how dumb she was funny in an odd way. "I.. I think I broke it."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    Sayaka shakes her head, "Maybe it's who you pretend to be, but you didn't have to save me when we first met..You could have just told me to get out of the way, and fought with those other magical girls for rthe soul gem at the hospital..But you didnt. You were more concerned about the safety of an innocent."

    She chuckles. "Have some faith in yourself. I do.." Though what she says next, causes Sayaka to draw a deep breath. "...Seriously? You broke it..?" She peers over at the soul gem again, noticing that its still cracked. "Can't it be repaired? Is this gem really so cheap?"

    If Kyouko's really lost her powers..Sayaka's not sure what she'd think about it. Maybe it's a good thing? But..

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko frowns a little bit, thinking back to the hospital. "I don't know why I did that.. I should have just fought for the Grief Seed but.. I dunno.." She sighs a little bit. "I guess.. I know what you mean. In that, you remind me of me a little bit, back.. before a bunch of crap happened to me. And I didn't want to see you go through that same crap that I went through that made me into such a selfish POS."

    She sighs again and looks at the cracked Soul Gem. Her hands are shaking a little bit as she holds it. "I.. I don't know if it can be repaired. I've never heard of this happening before.. I do know that if it breaks all the way.. I'll die. That's part of the contract we make."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    Sayaka peers curiously at Kyouko, and after a while her gaze seems to soften a bit. Was she a bit too harsh? Judgemental? Afterall, she is herself, just a mundane, what right does she have to judge the actions of a magical girl, when she has no idea what it is to be one herself?

    After a moment, she comes to sit on the edge of the bed again, peering down at Kyouko's shaking hands. With some hesitation, she reaches out, covering Kyouko's hands with her own and smiles.

    "Don't worry. We'll find a way to fix it. Maybe we need to talk to Kyubey. maybe he can help. At the very least, your wounds are healed. Maybe it's good that you cant transform for now. Give you, and it some time to heal..Some time to think.."

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    Kyouko looks up as Sayaka comes over to sit on the bed. She feels the other girl's hands cover hers, and it helps her own to stop shaking. She sighs a little bit, curling her fingers to hang onto Sayaka's hands lightly. "I don't.. honestly, I think talking to Kyubey is the last thing I want to do. But I have no doubt that he'll come talk to me whether I want him to or not, so I guess asking him wouldn't hurt."

    At the latter part, she shrugs her shoulders. "Maybe you're right. I've been so caught up in this whole thing.. I thought I knew exactly what I was doing but it looks like maybe I was just acting like an idiot." She quirks her lips to the side, suddenly amused again. "I guess that's pretty par for the course for me." She looks up at Sayaka. "I'm sorry I made you worry, though. Really."

    She sighs again. "Maybe you're right. Maybe it's time I just.. forgot about it all for a while."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    "Oh? Wouldn't he be the best person to talk to?" she peers back at the red head quizzically. "I mean, isn't he the one who makes the contracts? So he probably knows everything there is to know. What about you? What do you know about these..Soul gems?"

    She peers down at Kyouko's soul gem curiously, noticing the crack with a slight frown. But hey, at least it's not all dark and murky anymore, right?

    "I just don't understand it well enough to help, but it seems to be connected to you somehow, so...Maybe it's related to your emotional state too? At any rate, I think right now you should just focus on healing and resting. Take all the time you need.."

    She's not sure if Kyouko had mentionned having a place to stay but Sayaka's house is pretty big..Her parent's are likely to discover the girl sooner or later but at least for now it wouldnt be so bad if she stayed here would it?

    "Eh, dont worry about it." Sayaka smiles, seeming to have forgiven her for being an idiot earlier, "I'm just relieved that you're alright! And yea, you once said you constantly have to worry about trying to survive as a magical girl. Take a break for a while! Try to enjoy life as a normal girl for a bit."

Kyouko Sakura has posed:
    "Yeah, it's just.. well, I don't want to go into it but I don't trust him, that's all. Not after.." Kyouko sighs a little bit, and leans forward against Sayaka slightly. "I'll tell you my life's story another time, okay? It's not pretty. Not the sorta thing I wanna think about right now."

    She looks at the Soul Gem. "I'd be lying if I said I understood it, but it's like.. somehow, when you get one of these, your life is tied up with it. If it turns all dark, you die. If it breaks, you die. Not that breakin' 'em is easy.. or at least, I didn't think so. I've never seen one crack before." She laughs softly. "Guess I really screwed up. But what else is new."

    She smiles at Sayaka telling her to take all the time she needs. "Thanks.. I appreciate that. I won't.. I don't want to trouble you. As soon as I can walk, I'll get out of here. It'll probably be in just a few hours. I'm a lot tougher than I look."

    She looks thoughtful at Sayaka telling her maybe it would be okay to take a break from a while.. her eyes staring off into space. "Yeah, y'know.. maybe it wouldn't be so bad to just be Kyouko Sakura again for a little while."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
    She doesn't trust him, huh? It's not the first time Sayaka had heard that before. Hadn't Homura also told her to be careful about Kyubey and his promises? Still, he seemed harmless enough.

    She sighs, peering thoughtfully at Kyouko. "If they're that hard to break, then you must've been messing with something pretty powerful..." But she's already learned her lesson. Perhaps it will need something equally powerful to repair the crystal. Right now however, Sayaka just wants Kyouko to focus on resting up and worrying about that later.

    "A part of you huh. So I guess that 'soul' bit might just be literal.." She laughs nervously at that thought. It's kind of a scary thought, to think that becoming a magical girl would make you become so connected to a simple jewel- that breaking something outside of your body like that could kill you. Indeed, what else is Kyubey not telling her..?

    She rises from the bed again, going to her wardrobe as she rummages around for something. "Get some rest, Kyou-chan, I think I've got a sleeping bag in here somewhere.." Sayaka smiles at the thought. She's never met the girl before she became a magical girl. Maybe it wont be such a bad thing afterall.

    "Good night, Kyou-chan.."