aboxfulloftea222 | 18th Post!

[Nagisa pushed the wreath aside, and tried to peer into the coffin.]

[It was dark inside in the coffin, and the window was small, so she couldn't see very well into it, but...]

[Nagisa bit her lip, then, and rubbed her eyes. Wait, wait - If she could use her Magical Girl powers to heal herself, she should be able to use them to make her eyes see better, right?]

[And a minute later...]

[Nagisa was running back to where Mami and Miku were, moving almost too fast for normal peole to see. Mami jerked around, and facepalmed - She was going to have to tell Nagisa not to do that where people could see her, didn't she.]

[Nagisa, however, was too upset to care about Mami's reaction for the moment. She ran up to both of them and grabbed their clothes, whispering - ]

...Mami-san! Miku-san! I don't think - I don't think Hanako-Oneesan's body is in that coffin at all...

[mami frowned at that]
"What are you sying, Nagisa chan?"
"Well when I peeked in through the window, there was no body there! Why would her body not be in there?
"Hm, yes that is strange. Perhaps something happened to it. ."
"Perhaps the witch took it ealier, the witch that attacked the funeral home?" Miku suggested

...But why would it do that?

[Mami sighed.]

- I mean, she was dead, right? Why would it even bother?

[And in the meanwhile...]

[Hanako's father, now back in his wheelchair, was staring at the closed casket, shaking.]

...Why isn't the casket open? They said - They said she looked all right! Just like she was sleeping!

[And that was the exact moment that a soft meow resounded through the air.]

[Nagisa spun around, as something that looked like a white puffball with whiskers flickered through the edge of her vision.]

...Anthony?

[She whispered, but then, she bit her lip. Anthony was dead, right? Mami-san had put his body in that paper box, and she didn't know what had happened to it after that, but the poor kitty was really dead, she was pretty sure...]

[Hanako's brother shifted anxiously at this...]

Nagisa turns around and saw it continue turneing aroun the wall. this was off, she saw to check it out! So she headed in that dirsteciton, forgeting to tell Mami

[Nagisa started to walk along a small path she'd found, wondering what was going on...]

[After a couple of twists and turns later, she blinked, and stopped walking.]

[...Since when had she been walking on top of a gigantic wall, instead of a path, again?]

[And that was when a puffball with a mustache came floating up to the edge of the wall she was on, and bounced against it.]

...Meow! Meow! Meow!

[And then, it turned toward something to the side, meowing even more plantively.]

[Nagisa slowly, slowly turned - Only to see a unbelievably large figure of a young woman in a blue dress with her hands held out, towering up toward the skies. The young woman's face was not visible at all, like something has wiped it out with a white marker, but somehow, Nagisa could still tell the face was supposed to have been smiling, once upon a time....]

[And then, she took a deep breath, as a second puffball thing jumped up on the wall she was on.]

[And a third one.]

[Alright, then. It was time to transform.]

Nagisa jumped and twirled around, transsfroming into her outfit.
"All right! here I come!" She realized this was her first battle on her own. She was afraid, but she knew she had to do it. She was a magical girl!

[There were more and more puffballs with mustaches trying to crawl up on the wall she was on, now, all meowing plantively...]

[Nagisa took a deep breath, then, and pointed her wand at them.]

...How dare you silly monsters come and mess up poor Hanako Oneesan's funeral! I am the Pretty Magical Warrier Momoe Nagisa, and I will punish you for your trangressions!

[Her magic wand has powered itself up as she made her speech, and was now glowing a faint pink. Nagisa smiled at it, and pointed it at the middle of a cluster of puffballs.]

- Milk Candy Bomber!

[She grinned as a stream of milk candies started to fly at the puffballs - But then her face falls as about half the puffballs jump at the milk candies, and start to lick them!]

...Not as planned.

[She groaned, her hand to her head. She hadn't meant to feed the damn monsters, that was for sure...]

[But then, one by one, the puffballs licking her candies start to get more and more transparent. They meowed happily, as if they had found somebody they'd missed for a long time - And then, they floated away into the strange grey skies and faded away.]

...Oooooh!

[Nagisa smiled, and clapped her hands - Something seemed to be working, that was for sure!]

[the labyrinth and wavered as it disappeared.
No grief seed? Nagisa pouted a bit. So it wasn't a witch, didnt feel like a witch, so it must have been a familiar! but still, an acocmplishment!@]
"hurray! I did it!" She jumped around, and tried a cute victory poswe "Ive got to tell Mami neechan!!"

[And on the other side of a wall, where she couldn't see them...]

[Several other puffballs with mustaches were bouncing up and down, slowly. One of them in particular eventually floats off to where there are several of Nagisa's special milk candies still left scattered on the ground, and wrapped them all up in a handkerchief it summoned from someplace, just like Anthony had wrapped up the slices from Nagisa's special cheesecake in a handkerchief, several days before.]

[And then, they all started to bounce off toward a certain direction leading away from the house, and disappeared from sight.]

[Nagisa herself, in the meanwhile, had de-transformed, and was now running back toward she'd last seen Mami and Miku.]

...Mami-nee-san! Miku-san! I did it!

[Mami stared at her, and blinked.]

- You did what, Nagisa-chan?

[Aand Nagisa grinned up at her, hugely!]

...I defeated some Familiars, all by myself!

"Oh? Well good for you, Nagisa chan!" Mami hugged her "Im proud of you!
"What is she so happy for?? Its not like defeated a witch or anything, just a familiar..." Miku mumbled tiredly, then shook her head. No, right, familiars were a threat too..

meanwhile back at the funeral the preiest had arrived. The senior priest was mumbling something about trying to excorcise the demons in the rose bushes

[The junior priest sighed, watching his superior still mumbling to himself, and then shuddered.]

[...So what in the world had those puffball things been, anyway?]

[But then, he shook his head. They had a funeral to pray at, after all.]

[And so, 20 minutes behind schedule, Minagiwa Hanako's funeral started out in earnest. Mami sighed in relief as the buddist priests started to chant prayers, and the people started to line up in rows to pay their respects.]

...There, Nagisa-chan...Just copy what those people are doing, OK?

[She said, nodding toward the people putting incense sticks into the pots meant for that, and praying over the fragnant smoke before making way for the next person in line.]

[And then she leaned closer to Nagisa, and whispered -]

- And please get in one of the lines first - I have to go talk to Miku-san now, you see!

[Nagisa nodded.]

...OK!

[And then, she whispered back - ]

- Is Miku-san sick? She looks so pale and antsy!

[Mami smiled at her, and patted her head. She then whispered some more - ]

...Maybe! I'm going to try and see if I can get her to feel better, OK?

[Nagisa smiled at that, and then nodded, before turning away and getting into the ever growing line of people in black suits and dresses.]

[Mami watched her go, and then turned toward Miku, who was still looking rather out of sorts.]

...Hey, Miku-san.

[She said, gently, and then took a Grief Seed out, and held it out.]

- What about using this? It's almost all used up, but it's good for one more time, I think...

[Miku stared at her]
"a grief seed? what makes you think I need a grief seed?"
"How is your condition of your soul gem? Have you cleaned it recently?"
"I, well," Miku hesitated "I havent had the time to hunt witches recently, Ive been so busy with my music career, and so much to think about and all... Why do you ask!"
"Well, I recogize you fatigue as similar to that of magical girls with darkned soul gems... Like Hanako, just soon before she,"

...Before she...ended up dead, you mean?

[Miku muttered irritably, and then put her hand to her mouth and looked around them. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that nobody seemed to have heard what she'd just said, and then held out her hand toward the Grief Seed, still looking rather annoyed.]

- Well, I'm not going to turn down a freebie, that's for sure...

[She said, and then almost snatched the Grief Seed out of Mami's hand, and stuck it to her Soul Gem. Miku breathed a deep sigh of relief as the dark contamination drained away from her Gem. She then sighed again, looking rather embarrased, and handed the Grief Seed back to Mami.]

.....Ummmmm.......Thank you for lending me that, Tomoe-san. I should have thought of that myself, I suppose...

[Mami smiled at her, and put the Grief Seed away.]

- It's all right, Hatsune-san - We've all got our off days, after all.

[Miku nodded at that, still looking embarrased, but them she paused.]

...Tomoe-san? I should have thought about this earlier, but - It's terribly odd that Minagishi-san ended up being dead in the first place, now that I think about it...

[She then looked at Mami, and tilted her head a bit.]

- I mean - It's really hard to kill any Magical Girl, as both of us do know by now, and - Her body wasn't damaged at all when you found it, right? So what killed her, anyway? Wouldn't a Witch or a Familiar damanged her body more, if it even left around a body when it could be found at all?

"hm, that is true." Mami thought about this. "Perhaps her death was caused internally, and simply lucky enough that it wasn't lost in the witch ward... "
"Maybe we should look into this" Miku suggested "Like if we look into her coroner reports, or where her final moments."
"Yes, perhaps... there was something a bit odd though. when we found her, her soul gem ring was broken, the the mark upon her fingernail was smudged...

...Smudged?

[Miku muttered, tilting her head, and then she looked at Mami.]

...I've never heard of something like that happening before. - Why on the earth would one's magical markings become smudged??? I mean - It's supposed to be one of the signs of being a Magical Girl, or something!

[She then looked down at the ground, and mumbled - ]

- I mean......It's not like Hanako-san - stopped being a Magical Girl or anything, right?

[Mami sighed at that.]

...I don't think there's any way of actually quitting, Hatsune-san, but -

[And that was when Nagisa started to wave in their direction!]

[Mami blinked at that, and then looked at the lines. Nagisa was getting very close to where they were actually praying, it seemed...]

[And so, she pointed toward where Nagisa was, and whispered -]

...But first things first, Hatsune-san - We really should be getting over there, since Nagisa-chan was kind enough to get in line for us...

"All right, we'll discuss this later.."

[Nagisam reached the front and clasped her hands in prayer. even if her body was gone, she hoped her spirit made it and was finally happy again. Maybe now she was in the most beautiful garden ever with lots of roses and butterflies, and fluffy anothoony was with her...]

[And in a certain Witch Barrier not so nearby where the funeral taking place...]

[A Witch and several of her fluffy white Familiars all sneezed, at the same time.]

[The Witch looked at the rose garden, and sweatdropped a little. She really hoped they weren't developing allergies to one of the most prominant features of their own Witch Barrier - That would be horrendeous, indeed...]

[And in the meanwhile, back at the Kagamine house...]

[Rin and Len were getting ready for their mini concert at the hospital.]

...I have no idea why they decided to combine a Plum Blossom Watching Party with a Mini-Halloween Party, but it does sound like fun!

[Len laughed. Rin sighed a bit at that, poking at her costume.]

- Yeaahhh. What's not fine, on the other hand, is that we aren't being paid for this. Like, at all..

[Len raised his eyebrows at that, and gestured, theatrically.]

...Come on, Rin - Have a heart, OK? It's a hospital, and we're supposed to be cheering up sink and injured people! What could be a more worthy cause?

[And then, he grinned, and poked her forehead.]

And besides - Singing at hospitals would look good on our resumes, I think, and they even said we could sell our CDs during the parties, so it wouldn't be a total bust, financially speaking...

[And then, he patted her head.]

...And Mother would be proud of us, don't you think?

[Rin blinked at that, and then she nodded a bit grudgingly, and smiled.]

- Yeah, you're right.

[Their mother was supposed to come home the very next day, if nothing untold happened. It was a shame that she couldn't see them sing at the hospital, Len felt, but at least she was coming home. Len had missed her something aweful, and he was pretty sure that his sister had, too.]

[Later, the funeral was over. Miku had agreed to looke into the mystery of Hanako's death for now, while she had some free time, while Mami was taking care of Nagisa. then the two teen magical girls parted ways.

Mami and Nagisa boarded the bus back to the hospital and sat down
"..are you all right, Nagisa?"
Nagisa nodded and managed a small smile "I think I'll be..." she hugged Mami suddenly "Thanks for being there for me, Mami onnechan..."
Mami hugged her back, a warm feeling in her. Oneechan, huh.

...You're welcome. And anyway - Hanako-san was my friend too, remember?

[Mami hugged Nagisa one more time, and then let go of her, smiling softly.]

- You should go get into your costume now, I think...We'll be late for the party, otherwise!

Yeah, yeah...I want to go talk to my Mama first, though. I don't want her to be worried, after all...

[Nagisa rubbed her eyes, and then blinked.]

...Hey, Mami-Oneesan - Where did Kusaka-san go? She was there at the funeral with us, right?

[Mami blinked at that, remembering the nurse who'd gone to the funeral with them.]

......Now that I think about it...Where'd she go? She wasn't the sort to just wander away without telling us, I don't think...

[And in the meanwhile, Rin and Len had just arrived at the hospital, towing all kinds of musical equipment behind them.]

...Alright, then -

[Allen said, looking at a map he was holding up.]

I think we're supposed to go thataway, buuut...

"It is that way!" rin retorted
"It would make sense to ask someone which way the room is"
"I know where it is!"
As the twins bickered they suddenly stumbled upon someone"ow!"
"hey!"
"Ah, sorry!"
"Sorry, here, lemme help" It ws a girl about their age with shorter sea blue hair . She sat up and helped pick up their things "Guitars and amps huh"

That's right!

[Len smiled at her.]

We're both musicians, and we're supposed to play a gig at the Plum Blossom Watching Mini-Halloween Party!

[And then, he handed the blue haired girl one of the pamphelets for their CDs.]

...The what party???

[The blue haired girl laughed, and then told them how to get to the room the party was supposed to take place in.]

- So you're the Vocaloids, huh? Cool!

[And then she grinned at both of them.]

...My name is Miki Sayaka, by the way - And I might come and see you two sing at this party, depending on how things turn out.

[Sayaka was not at all sure about what Kyousuke would feel about attending any party with live music involved, in his current state, but...]

...It's good to meet you, Miki-san! And thanks!

[Len smiled at her. So did Rin, though her smile was a bit forced.]

[The girl was giving her an odd feeling - Like she could see something white and fluffy walking over the poor blue-head's grave. It was pretty creepy, to be honest.]

[And under one of the hospital couches...]

[A red eyed critter with white fluffy fur was looking up at the blue haired girl, wondering if she would be worth Contracting. Probably not, he decided eventually with a yawn - She did have some potential, but not enough of it to risk doing anything to mess up his current plans.]

[He'll think about it later, in a couple of months, if things turned out the way they thought he would, he decided - And then, he closed his eyes, and curled up into a fluffy ball.]

"Nice to meet you too!" Sayaka gave a little wave asshe stood up "I'll try to drop by the party later after I visit my friend. Heck, maybe we can try a jam session sometime"
"yeah, looking forward to it!" Len waved back as she walked away "she seemed nice."
"yeah... funny enough that we ran into that mermaid today..."
He noticed her expression "something wrong Rin?"
"hm? what?"

[and meanwhile Miku was working on the mystery of Hanako's death as she hacked into the files of her morgue records with her magical girl abilities.
Hm, this was strange. Aside from signs of emotional stress, there seemed to no damage to be body at all. Like her life simply vanished...]

[Len stared at Rin, then, blinking.]

...What mermaid?

[Rin stared at him, and then, shook her head. At first, it had been just been the creepiness, but now... Why the heck did she keep getting images of the blue haired girl as - as some kind of mermaid demon, anyway?]

- I don't know, and I don't wanna know, either.

[And then, she sighed, and patted her guitar case. She bit her lip, trying to remember when she and Len had finally managed to buy their matching guitars, and how happy they'd been, then.]

[The future had seemed bright and shiny, then, like a road that went on for ever and ever and ever.]

[Rin groaned, then - Her...No, their future was still bright and shiny, of course - what the heck was her subconsious going on and on about, anyway?]

...C'mon, Len - Let's just get this gig on the road, OK?

[And in the meanwhile, in the computer room of her house...]

[Miku was biting her lip as her fingers danced over her magically argumented computer's keyboard.]

[There was something - And then, a image popped up, right on her computer.]

[Someplace inside a white room...]

...It's so weird...

[A handsome man in his early 30s in a white labcoat said, taking off his gloves and washing his hands with disinfectant.]

- She was still a teenager, and totally healthy! Why is she dead in the first place? And that strange pattern on her finger - It's just like that weird case we got about six years ago. What was it called, the Saito Kiyomi case?

[A older man, also wearing a white lab coat looked at him, and bit his lip, looking a bit grey.]

...Um - Let's not talk about that one, OK?

[The younger man raised his eyebrows.]

...But Kamada-san - You actually believe in curses and all that rot?

[The old man mopped at his brow, grimacing.]

- Try dealing with 2 suicides and 4 mental breakdowns in a space of less then 4 months, and you'd start believing in curses, too, you young idiot!

[And back in her room...]

[Miku blinked at that. Haaah? That was interesting, indeed...]

[The party was starting to get underway in the event hall. It was a fairly good turnout, with hospital staff who werent busy, patients who were well enough to leave their rooms and visiing friends and family.
Nagisa was pacing about in excitement while everyone told her how lovely she looked in her costume. Mami told her it was best to conserve energy as much as possible from their magical girl outfit, so she had modified one of her lovely dresses from when she was her age into a magical girl princess outfit.
Nagisa tired to see if her mother had made it.

"Well it is a big metroplois, "
"what of the people who were perfectly mentally healthy right before? " the older doctor continued "And some had woken up with little memory of what happened, as if they were in a trance! "

18th Post!

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