Novels2Search

Chapter Four

We never talk at school; it feels too risky. Either Mami found out about our talk on the train somehow and chewed Madoka out the same way she did me, or she suspects something's up because I always see both of them together, despite being from different grades and seemingly not having any friends in common. Madoka doesn't even look in my direction when Mami's around. I really don't see the harm in being friends, and it makes me feel a little angry at Mami for being so overprotective, although I try not to dwell too much on it since apparently stress could make a witch come to my home and eat my parents.

We've been texting a lot this week, though. I've learned a lot about her and the "witches" she fights. I'm doing my part in fighting them by cheering my parents up with gifts, talks, and even organizing a small family trip (the latter was her idea, actually). She also gives me tips to improve my mood, but I really don't need any cheering up, though. I feel like I'm floating anytime I get a text or she smiles at me when we're at school.

We're friends... I'm friends with a magical girl. It's like a dream, and it feels wrong to think we can be anything other than that. It feels like abusing my luck, and I feel undeserving... but I can't help but think of her gentle face, like a delicate porcelain doll. The way she moves, so graceful and fragile, yet there's a hidden strength beneath her shy and tender demeanor. She's unaware of the power she holds, but it captivates me completely.

My phone rings, and my thoughts are pushed to the side. It's a text from her.

"I think I'm gonna fail math >_< How did you do?"

I don't know how she keeps caring about exams and school at all. I can hardly focus on anything other than her and the fact that magic and miracles are real. I try not to be judgmental, but if what she's saying is true about her getting her powers in exchange for making a wish, and that wish being resurrecting a dead cat, well...

"Same, I actually didn't study at all lol."

It used to take me a while to reply to any of her texts; the words just never felt right. They still don't, but I've grown numb to the feeling of looking like an idiot, and I just want to move on and keep talking. I wish we could actually talk too. I want to hear her voice, but if she doesn't call first, I don't think I should call her... or should I?

Another text, "That's not good. Guess I'll be seeing you at remedial classes then x_x."

She's clearly not busy right now, so why not? She's really shy, maybe that's why she's not calling. If she didn't want to talk to me, she wouldn't be sending messages, right? And yet it feels wrong to think about it. Overthinking such simple things makes me feel like a miserable coward. I hesitate so much to do simple things like this while she's out there risking her life.

With trembling fingers and my heart beating hard, I begin typing out a short message, carefully choosing my words as I fight back against my self-doubt.

"Hey, can I callyuo?"

I hit the send button before I correct the horrible typo, and I cringe. Now I really look like an idiot. Usually, she replied almost instantly, but not this time.

I begin nervously fidgeting with my phone, waiting for a reply, any reply. The minutes begin feeling like hours, and soon 15 minutes have passed without any reply. Maybe I had overstepped my boundaries. I thought about sending another message, but what would I even say? What if she suddenly got busy with something?

A cold chill ran down my spine when I realized that that something might be a witch.

I needed to calm down, let my head cool. Video games and the internet wouldn't do. I needed fresh air.

It was dark when I went out. My parents weren't home, so I wouldn't need to come up with an excuse. I began walking in a random direction, gripping my phone anxiously, wondering if she had even read the message at all. I almost forgot that she and I existed in different worlds, and hers was brutal. I kept going and going, and there was no reply. My anxiety got the best of me, and I had to sit down on a park bench to think.

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I really was going crazy over an unreplied message. It made me feel embarrassed and creepy. I needed to calm down, but I was already struggling with a bunch of different anxieties: Was she alright? Did she feel upset somehow? And most importantly, why would she hang out with a neurotic coward that goes crazy over not getting an instant reply? I needed to get a grip.

I kept sinking deeper and deeper into my thoughts beneath a starless and cold night, everything quiet except for a handful of people walking by. They were all walking in the same direction, dragging their feet and looking straight ahead in complete silence like zombies. I didn't give it much thought until I recognized one of them.

It was one of Madoka's friends, the one with olive-colored hair, still wearing her uniform. She was walking like the rest, her eyes fixated on nothing in particular but with a quiet smile drawn across her lips. She stood out from the rest because she was the youngest. Something about the scene rubbed me the wrong way, so I approached her.

"Hey, uh, hi."

She turned to look at me, a hint of confusion flickered in her dead eyes before a lazy smile drew across her face. "Oh hey there, you're Kaname-san's cafeteria friend, aren't you?"

"Y-yeah... I'm Satou."

"I'm—" she looked downcast and stopped herself before snapping back to quiet elation. "—going somewhere better. Way better than here."

"Where?"

"You wanna come with us and see for yourself?"

"Do you know these guys?"

"No, I've never seen them before."

"You didn't tell me your name."

"Doesn't matter, call me whatever you want."

I would have thought she was high on something, but then I remembered what Madoka had told me about witches hypnotizing people, making them do things they wouldn't normally do. I went to one of the other people walking weird, a middle-aged salaryman.

"Hey mister."

"Get lost, kid," he said without even looking at me.

"Where are you all going?"

"What the fuck does it matter to you? What the fuck does any of it matter at all..."

They kept walking as if I weren't there. I followed them a bit, and soon there was a crowd. I got my phone out and began texting Madoka. The typo didn't feel so important anymore.

"Your green-haired friend is acting weird. I don't know where she's going. We're down in the industrial zone."

Just as I hit send, it struck me how far I had walked with these people. Now it was only me and them. Most of them looked dejected or in some sort of trance. Madoka's friend looked overjoyed by comparison. I tried talking to her again.

"Hey, Why are you following these people again?"

"I already told you. We're all going to a better place, but first we need to make a ritual offering. If you come along, you'll also leave this awful world behind—"

"That's crazy!" I stood in front of her and grabbed her by the shoulders. No one around seemed to care or notice. "What exactly are you going to do?"

"Let go of me!" She shoved me back, looking pissed. "You're so rude! That must be why Kaname-san wants nothing to do with you anymore."

That one stung a little bit, even if I knew it was a lie. "I don't know what's up with all of you, but you need to calm down!"

"You know what, Satou? Maybe you deserve to stay behind." She said with punctuated contempt before moving along. I didn't know what to do, call the police maybe? I was certain these people were going to do something crazy.

"Hitomi!", a voice called from behind us.

We both turned our heads. It was Sayaka. She was running at us at full speed, cradling... nothing. It looked as if she were holding something against her chest, but her arms seemed to be wrapping around empty air.

"Sayaka?"

"Satou!" She was white as a sheet. "You too?"

"No, I'm fine, but your friend is—"

"You need to get out of here now! It's too dangerous!"

"Do you know what's happening?"

"Oh, you two are incredible," Hitomi interrupted with a sneer. "Dangerous? You don't know what you're talking about. You have no idea what will happen tonight... honestly, I pity you."

"Snap out of it! This isn't you! Something... something's controlling you..." Sayaka said with desperation, grabbing Hitomi's hands. I thought she would shove her like she did me, but instead, she grabbed her hand, and a calm smile drew across her face.

"Since you're my friend, I'm gonna give you the opportunity to see for yourself. You can come too if you want, Satou. Everyone is deserving of a second chance, after all."

"Satou, get out of here, I'll handle it, but you need to leave!" Sayaka said with agitation. She clearly didn't have a clue about how to handle whatever was going on, and I had the feeling I didn't either.

"I-I'll call the cops!"

"Yeah, yeah! Just get out of here!"

Sayaka and Hitomi walked away with the crowd. They were all going into a warehouse. I called the police as I saw all those people disappear into the building, Hitomi and Sayaka as well.

I was terrified.

There was no doubt left in my mind: Inside that warehouse was a witch, and all those people had been hypnotized into doing something horrible to themselves. Sayaka was in there, probably the only sane person left. And she would have to face one of those things... alone.

I wanted to wait outside for the police to arrive. I wanted to call Madoka and beg for help. The night was freezing, the silence around the warehouses overwhelming.

Then the roll-up door began lowering. The light from the warehouse slowly disappeared. I dialed Madoka's phone, and I ran.

The call connected, but no one picked up. Behind me, the metallic door hit the floor.

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