“Time to recall it,” Star-trail said, floating down from beside the ceiling light and hovering in front of Rei.
Star-trail swept its paw across the mark on the back of Rei's hand. As if a switch had been flipped, the faintly glowing star-shaped mark began to fade. The starlight receded layer by layer, turning from silver-white to a pale gray before shrinking into a tiny speck of light that vanished between the creases of her skin.
Unlike usual, Rei's transformation didn't release a dazzling burst of light as it dissolved.
“It's over,” Rei murmured. She clenched her fist, then released it, pressing her hand against her chest as she felt the warm current within her slowly recede.
She stared at her hands, which had returned to normal, and remained silent for a long moment before finally looking up.
“Thank you.” She gently scooped Star-trail down from midair. Her movements were incredibly careful, as if she were holding a kitten that had just been rescued from a tree.
“Thank you for letting me know what it feels like to be a Magical Girl. This is the best gift I've ever received. I will remember every single detail of today—every single second.”
“Do you not regret it? If you wish, you can have this feeling forever,” Star-trail said, patting Rei again. The mark from before surfaced once more.
“I don't regret it.” Rei stared at the reappearing mark and shook her head. “Because I've already obtained what I wanted most. It's just like you said earlier—I have the aptitude to be a Magical Girl.”
Star-trail rested quietly in Rei's palm for a moment, then flew up and headed toward the window.
After flying half a meter, it paused and looked back at Rei, as if bidding her farewell.
Rei stood where she was and waved at it. It slipped through the gap of the half-open window, the last trace of silver light vanishing into the night.
“Goodbye,” she whispered toward the window.
Qiluo waited for Rei to turn around, then offered her a gentle smile. “Is it gone?”
“Yes, it's gone.” Rei closed the window, drew the curtains, and returned to the bedside. She picked up the pillow that had fallen onto the floor, patted it down, and placed it back in its original position.
She saw that the mark on the back of her hand had completely vanished, leaving no trace behind on her skin. But she knew that she had once been a Magical Girl.
“Tian Gong-san,” Rei said, sitting on the edge of the bed and burying her face in the pillow. “Could you keep tonight a secret for me? I mean, my transformation and the Contract Spirit.”
“I can, but why did you refuse?”
Rei raised half her face from the pillow, revealing only one eye.
“Because I'm already lucky enough. I've gotten to see so many of the Magical Girls I support, and I even got to transform myself, even if it was only once. If I get any greedier, the heavens might look down on me.”
Rei rested her chin on the pillow. “Besides, if I really became a Magical Girl, who would bring you lunch? Who would help you ask the math teacher for leave? Who would share gossip with you during lunch break? Those things are important too. Someone has to do them.”
Why does she have to say things that make people blush so much...
Qiluo silently turned her head away. But then again, that was just how Rei was.
She was always like this, putting other people's matters above her own dreams.
Alright, alright. Since Rei doesn't want to be a Magical Girl, I should head back too!
This is the perfect opportunity to suggest going home, so Rei can head back early too.
She's experienced so much tonight; she definitely needs some time to process it all.
“I think I'm feeling much better.”
Qiluo threw off the blanket, slipped her feet into her shoes, and stood up, hopping gently on the spot twice as if testing to see if anything was wrong with her body.
Rei watched her from the side, her hands half-extended, ready to support her at a moment's notice. But Qiluo stood perfectly steady, even finding the leisure to raise her arms and stretch, letting out a very relaxed, satisfied sigh.
“See, I told you. A quick nap was all I needed.” She lowered her arms and looked down at Rei, who was still sitting on the edge of the bed. “Let's go! It's time to go home!”
Qiluo stood by the door, resting her hand on the doorknob. Just as she was about to turn the lock, Rei's hesitant voice came from behind her.
“Tian Gong-san... did you forget?”
“Forget what?”
Qiluo turned around in confusion.
Is there really something I forgot?
I returned Lightweaver's cosplay costume properly, and Star-trail flew outside, probably heading straight to Yuki Kurokawa's bedroom to sleep.
Rei stood up from the edge of the bed, twirling the ends of her hair around her finger over and over again. This was a little habit of hers whenever she was about to say something embarrassing.
“The after-festival party and the bonfire. You promised we would go together tonight. You forgot, didn't you?”
Rei gently tapped her index fingers together in front of her. She peeked up at Qiluo's expression before looking back down, a trace of loneliness in her eyes.
“Are you too tired to go? If you're really exhausted... then forget about it. I can just go by myself. Anyway, they have the bonfire party every year. If I miss it this year, there's always next year.”
...
The bonfire crackled in the middle of the schoolyard, sparks rising with the warm updrafts, flashing in the night sky before quietly burning out.
The crowd at the after-festival party wasn't as dense as during the day. Rei ran back carrying two cups of hot cocoa, shoving one of them into Qiluo's hand.
“Someone over there is handing out sparklers!” She pointed toward a few student council members holding cardboard boxes on the other side of the field. “I'm going to go grab some. Wait for me here!”
Rei squeezed back through the crowd before long, clutching a handful of sparklers in her hand, the cardboard boxes crumpled from the squeeze.
She ran while shielding her loot with her body, almost tripping over a stone used to secure the bonfire pit. She stumbled for a few steps before managing to steady herself.
“I got them—the last two boxes!” She placed the sparklers on the bench, handed one to Qiluo, and lit a small cluster of sparks in front of herself.
The tip of the sparkler sizzled and ignited, golden sparks scattering around their feet, instantly swept away by the night wind.
“Tian Gong-san,” Rei said, staring at the burning sparkler while the bonfire crackled in the distance. “When we graduate and grow up, will we still be able to sit together like this? Will you become someone really amazing and go somewhere far, far away, never to return?”
This was exactly why Qiluo always thought Rei had incredible intuition. She always managed to ask questions that caught people completely off guard.
This question hit right at the center of what Qiluo had been avoiding thinking about.
Since she came from another world, logically speaking, she ought to find a way back.
Qiluo looked down, watching the sparks from her sparkler fall one by one.
Just as Qiluo was about to speak, a figure suddenly pounced from behind, and a pair of arms wrapped around Qiluo's neck.
The impact forced her forward, and the sparkler in her hand almost slipped from her grasp.
Rei was also startled by the sudden intrusion, dropping her empty cardboard box onto the ground.
“Tian Gong-san! I finally found you!” Kizuna hung all her weight on Qiluo. “Why are you just sitting here? My sister and I saw your back from over by the tents earlier. We thought we had the wrong person, but it really is you!”
“And you, Rei! How could you just whisper secrets here with Tian Gong-san and not call me? That's so mean!”
Recovering from the shock, Rei patted her chest, bent down to retrieve the cardboard box that had been blown away by the wind, and waved her hand at Kizuna. With a smile, she said, “I wondered who it was. So it's Asana-san. I thought you'd already gone home, but I didn't expect you to still be at school.”
Rate on N.U.
