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“Kyoko! I’m back!” A familiar, yet grating voice made itself known as the door to Sayaka’s room clicked open. “You can stop pretending to be sick now. School’s over, y’know.”
“I’m not fakin’ it, you asshole…” Her voice came out excessively groggy. That was the first time she had spoken in hours.
Sayaka’s footsteps were the only indicator of her actually moving closer, since Kyoko refused to open her eyes at all. She couldn’t exactly remember what she had been dreaming of moments earlier, but it left a smile on her face as she woke up.
Further burying herself under the covers, the subtle pressure of a hand found its way on top of her, near her shoulder.
“Sure you aren’t. I mean, it must have been a coincidence that you suddenly became sick the day we had a test.” The hand nudged her a bit, prodding Kyoko for a response. “Right?”
“I already told you yesterday. I had that feelin’ you get in yer throat, the one where you just know you’re gonna be sick the next day.” Flipping over in bed, Kyoko shook off Sayaka’s hand. “So if you’re gonna be an ass about it, then get the hell out already.”
Taking a moment to clear her throat, Sayaka quickly jumped to respond.
“Hey! You do know that this is my room, right?” She faked an offended tone, one that Kyoko knew not to fall for. Met with her silence, Sayaka finally relented. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop messing with you now.”
Following up her statement, there was a weight added to the bed. One that made Kyoko slump slightly more towards the edge. Sayaka had taken a seat with her.
“So… have you been feeling any better?” she asked. Sayaka’s voice was less annoying now, maybe even pleasant.
Kyoko sniffled before giving her response, “What do you think?”
“Right, stupid question to ask…” she chuckled, probably doing that thing where she scratched the back of her head too. “What I meant was, have you been taking the medicine I gave you?”
“Yeah. I took it a few hours ago, before I fell asleep. I should be ready for the next dose here in a bit.”
“Cool.” There was a brief silence after their exchange. Kyoko thought Sayaka was just going to sit there while she fell asleep again, until she felt her get up from the bed. “If you don’t mind, could I change the rag on your head? That’ll probably help cool down your fever while we wait.”
While Kyoko really didn’t want to get up, her head was practically killing her. The old rag that had been placed hours earlier was only making her migraine worse at this point.
“Sure…”
As the blankets were removed from Kyoko’s face, she slowly opened her eyes, afraid the sun would be too bright at this hour.
Thankfully, the curtains to the room were still closed, leaving most of the surroundings quite dimly lit. Except for Sayaka, of course, who was hovering next to her, a small smile on her face.
“Good afternoon, Kyoko,” she said in a teasing voice. “Nice to see you finally waking up.”
Shuffling upward in bed, Kyoko tried her best to ignore it and just let Sayaka do her thing. “Hurry up and change it already. You don’t gotta make it weird.”
Laughing at her embarrassed remark, Sayaka took the rag from her head and bent down to soak it in the leftover water bowl from this morning. Wringing it out, she carefully placed it down on Kyoko’s forehead again.
Instead of leaving it there though, Sayaka kept her hand resting on it. Like she was trying to feel Kyoko’s body temperature lower in real time.
“You’re still burning up quite a bit. Hopefully this makes you feel better.”
As if trying to make matters worse on purpose, Sayaka’s other hand reached for Kyoko’s, gently holding onto it.
Goddamnit, Sayaka! This was not the way to make her cool down, Kyoko screamed inside her head. If anything, she was only going to heat up more at this rate…
Despite the uncomfortable warmth radiating from her, Kyoko didn’t plan on mentioning it to Sayaka. It’s not like she hated how close they were. Quite the opposite, in fact…
“Hey, Kyoko.” Sayaka’s voice broke her train of thought. “You ate today, right? I know I probably don’t need to ask, considering this is you I’m talking about, but I did forget to make something you could reheat while I was gone, so…”
“Jeez, who do ya think I am, some kid who can’t take care of themself?” Of course Kyoko had eaten already; she would never forget that. “I went through a bunch of my usual snacks when I got up earlier.”
“I meant real food…” Sayaka sighed, giving her a disappointed look from above. “You don’t seriously expect to get better if you keep eating that junk, right?”
“Well it’s not like I—“
“In that case,” Sayaka interrupted her. Both physically and with her words. The hand that had been on the rag moments prior now moved towards her face, a singular finger balanced on her nose. “I’m gonna go make you something to eat. You just wait and try to get some rest in the meantime.”
Huh? When did Sayaka ever cook—scratch that. When did Sayaka ever offer to cook for her without some sort of bargaining chip between them? This wasn’t just because she was sick, right? Kyoko didn’t particularly like being pitied.
“You don’t gotta do all of that for me. I can just—”
Attempting to sit up, Sayaka quickly placed a hand on her chest, gently pushing her back down into the bed.
“Who said I’m doing this for you?” Sayaka jokingly asked, eyebrows raised. “This is just something I felt like doing. I don’t care if you eat it or not, though, I’m willing to bet you won’t let it go to waste.”
Faced with the smug grin on Sayaka’s face, Kyoko knew she was beat. But was it really a total loss on her end…? Probably not, but it felt like one.
“Fine. Knock yourself out, I guess.”
***
“C’mon, Sayaka!” Kyoko whined as she fell onto the bed. “You can’t make me do homework when I’m sick. I wasn’t even there for the lecture.”
“You barely do it anyways!” Sayaka snapped back from the desk she was sitting at, not even bothering to turn around. “Besides, we didn’t even learn anything new today either. After the test, Saotome-sensei kept talking about some transfer student who’s supposed to join our class in a few days.”
“Seriously? A transfer student this late in the year? How come they’re barely coming in now?”
Kyoko didn’t really care about this unnamed transfer student. It just seemed like a good excuse to keep Sayaka talking and avoid doing her work.
“Apparently they’ve been in the hospital for a while, so—” Only then did Sayaka turn around. “—Stop distracting me! If you’re not gonna do your own work, fine, but don’t drag me down with you!”
So close… usually that worked on Sayaka, but it seemed she wasn’t as gullible today.
Groaning as she sat up, Kyoko forced herself to stare into the laptop’s blank screen. How was she going to write a one-page analysis by tonight about a book she didn’t pay attention to?
All she could recall was there being a Nutcracker in the story, as well as a Mouse King that—
“A Night-Nightmare is here! A Night-Nightmare is coming!”
Unintelligible words that somehow made sense blared like a trumpet throughout the city. A familiar call that could only mean one thing.
“I swear, if this is Hitomi’s Nightmare again, I’m gonna lose it!” Sayaka exclaimed as she stood up from the desk, transforming into her magical girl uniform shortly afterwards. “She’s been having these like every other night! I mean, Kyosuke can’t be that bad of a boyfriend, right?”
“I dunno. Seems like you dodged a bullet there.” Rising from the bed, Kyoko also transformed into her own attire. But with her shoulders now exposed to the cold air, she instantly moved to hug them. “I might need to bring a jacket with me… our clothes aren’t really the best for cold weather.”
Sayaka turned to her with a dumbfounded expression. “What makes you think you’re going?”
“Huh? What else am I gonna do?”
“Do you even realize what being sick means?” Sayaka asked as she stepped closer. “It means that you get to lounge around all day while waiting to get better. I know you should probably be used to doing that at home, but it also includes magical girl stuff too.”
“You’re really gonna make me stay here while you guys handle it…” Kyoko sighed, already knowing how stubborn Sayaka could be.
“Yep,” Sayaka hummed in response. “By the time I’m back, you better be done with your homework too.”
Kyoko grumbled to herself as pajamas quickly replaced her magical girl clothes. “No promises…”
Heading over to the window, Sayaka opened it, letting some of the cool night air inside (much to Kyoko’s displeasure). As she tried to crawl through though, her knee got caught on her cape, pulling Sayaka downward.
“Aw, damnit…” Sayaka stumbled a bit before stepping back and recollecting herself. “Y’know, while a cape looks cool, it can get kinda annoying sometimes…”
Kyoko didn’t even try holding back a chuckle. “You sure it's still a good idea to go alone?”
“S-Shut up!” Sayaka stammered out, obviously flustered by her situation. “I’ll just leave it here tonight. I only really use it for flashy moves anyway.”
Moving a hand toward her collar, Sayaka unclasped her cape. Throwing it on top of one of the many standing mirrors in her room, she made her way towards the window once again.
Successfully hanging on the edge this time, she gave Kyoko one last look. “Don’t wait up for me!”
Watching as Sayaka disappeared, probably onto the roof, Kyoko was about to get back to her homework when she realized something.
Sayaka didn’t close the damn window!
Having to get up now, Kyoko closed it with a huff of annoyance. Seriously, wasn’t Sayaka going on about how it was important to take care of herself since she was sick? How hard was it then to just close the…
Kyoko found herself standing still, staring at the cape Sayaka left behind, hanging over the mirror.
Huh…
This was stupid. Probably the stupidest idea she’s ever had. But yet again, this might be the only time she would ever get a chance to do this. And Kyoko wasn’t going to let it pass.
It took a second for her to figure out the clasp, but once she managed to get the cape on, she found it strangely comfortable.
The fabric itself was smooth and warm to the touch. Kyoko wasn’t sure how that worked, probably magic or something. Either way, it felt great to hug around herself. Especially since it could cover her entire body, hanging down to just a little above her ankle.
Honestly, the fact that Sayaka could fight in something as impractical as this was kind of impressive (though Kyoko wouldn’t be caught dead telling her that).
As she stood in front of the mirror, she took in the sight of herself wearing it. Alright, now it was starting to feel a little weird. White wasn’t really her color, but now she was beginning to realize the implications of her actions.
Don’t couples wear each other's clothing…?
Maybe that was why it felt so warm. Or maybe it was the fact Sayaka had actually been wearing it a few moments ago, resting against her exposed back and shoulders—
Nope! Kyoko refused to start thinking about that!
Turning away from the mirror, she returned to the bed and faced the open laptop once again.
No way she would be able to get anything done, not with her thoughts jumbled up. Plus, she was still sick, so…
Shutting it closed, Kyoko placed the laptop to the side of the bed and laid down. Sayaka would understand. At least, she hoped she would.
Wrapping the cape tightly around herself, Kyoko used it as an extra blanket while burying her face underneath it. Closing her eyes, she tried her best to just relax.
Every time she breathed, she could smell the ocean mixed with a hint of vanilla. It was like Sayaka was right next to her. The thought itself warmed her entire body.
For some reason though, her legs were quite cold still. Obviously they weren’t being covered right now, but it almost felt like the window had been opened again—
“What’re you doing?” Sayaka’s voice sent a chill down her spine.
“Wha—” There was a gentle pull on the cape, exposing Kyoko’s face and forcing her eyes to open. Sayaka was standing over her, staring directly at her.
“Is that my cape?” she asked rhetorically.
No excuse would be able to get Kyoko out of this mess. She was smart enough to know that. So she did the only thing she could.
Calmly redirect the question towards Sayaka.
“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOIN’ HERE!?”
Sayaka laughed at her outburst. Not the reaction Kyoko was looking for, but maybe this was still salvageable.
Wiping a tear from her eye, Sayaka explained her side of the story. “Y’know, you were right about it being cold outside, so I decided to come back for my cape. Seems like you called dibs on it first, though.” Leaning down to her level, Sayaka flashed her a cheeky grin. “Did you really miss me that bad?
“You wish…” Kyoko quietly chuckled, trying to play it off. “Take it if ya want. I don’t really care.”
“Nah,” Sayaka said as she stood up, turning her back to Kyoko. “I think you need it way more than me.”
What? After all of that, Sayaka was just going to leave like nothing happened? And what the hell did she mean by saying she needed it more than her!?
“Just take your stupid cape already! I said I don’t want it!”
Messing with the collar, Kyoko struggled to get it off in time before Sayaka reached the window.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it.” With one last remark, Sayaka vanished into the night once again.
At least she closed the window this time…
Not like it mattered at this point. Kyoko was too focused on her thoughts, and her blushing face, and the fact that Sayaka’s cape was still in her hands.
Debating on whether she should keep it or not, she decided that it would be a waste to go through all of that and not even get to enjoy it.
Oh well…
Snuggling up in bed again, Kyoko held the cape close, bringing it to her face like one would a stuffed animal.
Maybe if she fell asleep fast enough, this would all seem like a bad dream…
***
Dealing with the Nightmare had taken longer than Sayaka thought it would. While it wasn’t Hitomi’s this time, they still had to go halfway across the city to take it down.
That, combined with the fact that Mami had to fill in for Kyoko’s lyrics, meant by the time she got back home, it was already way past the time she usually went to bed.
Why did they have to sing to defeat them anyway? Sayaka thought to herself as she quietly entered her room. While it was an arguably better system than witches or wraiths, it was still just as weird…
Since Kyoko was probably asleep by now, Sayaka tiptoed over to the bed, not wanting to wake her up.
To no one’s surprise, she heard the sound of Kyoko’s breathing before she saw her sprawled out on the bed, barely visible in the faint moonlight. Noticing that her cape was still being held in her hands, Sayaka couldn’t help but smile.
Kyoko’s sleeping face was so different from how she usually carried herself. So vulnerable, so peaceful, Sayaka found it cute each time.
Not that Kyoko wasn’t always cute. She could still picture her embarrassed face from earlier, a blush the same shade as her hair. Sayaka couldn’t help but watch over her for a bit.
“I wish my magic let me heal others too… that way you wouldn’t have to be sick…” Sayaka whispered to herself as she brushed a strand of hair from Kyoko’s face.
Okay, maybe she shouldn’t stare too long. But what else could she do? It was way too late to finish her homework; she’d worry about that tomorrow. And getting in bed might wake Kyoko up, not to mention she still needed to get out of her magical girl clothes…
Detransforming back into her pajamas, Sayaka forgot to take into account the other part of her outfit.
The cape in Kyoko’s hands also disappeared. The repercussions of said action were near instant.
Muttering in her sleep, Kyoko was starting to toss and turn a bit in bed.
Crap!
Reaching out for the blankets, Sayaka quickly moved to cover Kyoko, only to suddenly be grabbed herself.
Being pulled onto the bed, she nearly landed on top of Kyoko, instead falling right beside her.
What was going on!? Was Kyoko just pulling a prank on her or—
Faint breaths brushed against her ear, too steady to come from anyone who wasn’t asleep.
Oh…
She was just looking for something to cuddle with, huh?
The way Kyoko’s arms wrapped around her only confirmed Sayaka’s thoughts. She did have an annoying habit of holding onto her when they slept, but never with this much enthusiasm.
Trying to shuffle out of her grasp so she could at least get under the covers, Sayaka was met with an even tighter hold.
“Don’t leave…”
Sayaka froze at Kyoko’s voice.
“Don’t leave… Sayaka…”
Whether they were the incoherent rambles of a dreaming girl, or a glimpse into what she truly felt deep down, they resonated with Sayaka all the same.
After all, her greatest and single regret was doing just that. Leaving Kyoko behind to fend for herself.
Maybe it was stupid to think she could forgive herself. That by letting Kyoko unconsciously hold onto her, all her past regrets would fade away. Sayaka didn’t care. Because maybe, just maybe, a part of her selfishly wanted this too.
“I’m not going anywhere, Kyoko…” Sayaka leaned into the embrace, resting her head against Kyoko’s shoulder. “...I promise.”
A promise Sayaka knew she wouldn’t be able to keep. The day Homura transferred into their class was approaching soon. Eventually, she would have to complete her duty and return to the Law of Cycles once again.
She hoped Kyoko would understand, maybe even get to have one last conversation together during that brief moment where they’ll remember everything. That would be nice.
But until then, Sayaka was going to make the most out of every single moment she got to spend with Kyoko here. Starting now…