904/A Pink-Blue Renewal

A Pink-Blue Renewal
Date of Scene:	19 December 2023
Location:	Dorms #1
Synopsis:	Madoka gets to knows Sayaka's twin? Apologies are offered and gifts are both given and promised.
Cast of Characters:	Sayaka Miki, Madoka Kaname

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Sayaka Miki has posed:
Sayaka, Klarissa and Ula are all here, having just come in from the school building so the first two could drop off their bags after classes are over.

It doesn't feel like they are going to stay here for longer, though, because Klarissa has a very expectant expression on her face, and she is by the door clearly waiting to be joined by the other two.

Sayaka and Ula meanwhile are discussing the matter of how to deal with Kyouka's magical lessons, and only because Klarissa didn't feel like taking part.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka heard from Gretchen that something weird was going on with Sayaka. Namely, that she had a twin named Klarissa that Madoka hadn't once heard about despite knowing the bluenette since childhood. Also Klarissa seemed to have Sayaka's magic powers? Something odd was happening, and Madoka had to find out.

    Shortly after class, Madoka started heading straight for Sayaka's dorm room, with Lydian sitting in a side pocket of her school bag. Along the way, Gretchen noticed and started following the two, trailing far behind her Bearer but still curiously following.

    When Madoka reaches Sayaka's dorm room, she knocks on the door to see if her friend is still here. She fidgets with the handle of her bag, hoping that she hasn't missed Sayaka already. As it occurs to her that her friend might have already left, her pink eyes glance around as she wonders how long she should wait.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
The wait turns out not to be long at all for Madoka, because as soon as the knock is heard in the room, Klarissa moves from her position next to the door to open it and answer whoever is trying to come in. She doesn't know who it is, but the sooner they can be dealt with the better.

And she stares and blinks when she sees the pinkette at the door. "Madoka-chan..." she says standing there in surprise, gazing at her, with half a dejected frown, half relief. She is glad to have her there, but she is going to be reproached again, isn't she?Much warmer is the welcoming the other Sayaka gives her, cheerfully approaching her. "Madoka-chan, Lydian-chan! It's amazing to have you here, what's going on?"

"Hi, Madoka-chan, Lydian-chan! So nice to meet you again*, exclaims Ula. "How are things?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka smiles as Klarissa opens the door, and then she looks and sees Sayaka and Ula. She glances between the two bluenettes and smiles at each of them in turn, and also waves to Ula. "Hi, Sayaka-chan, Ula-chan, and... I suppose I should be calling one of you Klarissa?" Madoka glances between the two Sayakas, seemingly lost for a moment. Then Gretchen suddenly zips over to her shoulder and directs her.

    "That one's Sayaka," says Gretchen, pointing at the girl near the door. "... and that's Klarissa!" She points at Sayaka, and then flies away before Madoka can respond.

    "Eheh... thanks?" The poor bearer has no idea her X-Chara got it backwards.

    Lydian takes this moment to float up out of the school bag to wave at the trio. "Hi, Ula and Sayaka! It's nice to meet you, Klarissa!" She smiles brightly while her Bearer is a bit more sheepish.

    "U-um..." starts Madoka. "I was hoping to get a chance to talk to you three. I wanted to make sure everything was alright here. Also, if it's not, I'm wondering if there's something I can do to help?"

    Her gaze shifts between the two Sayakas. She doesn't really understand the story here, only having heard the bare minimum of details from her X-Chara, who herself barely knew anything about this.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
The bluenette at the door has no interest in letting the misunderstanding fly, so she quickly speaks up to correct Gretchen. "I am the one going by Klarissa, and the other one is going by Sayaka", she explains, moving away from the door, aware that the patrol plans have just gone up in smoke.

"Please take a seat, Madoka-chan, we have a few things to talk about", Klarissa says, taking a seat herself. Sayaka soon imitates her, sitting at Klarissa's right so they can both look at Madoka once she sits down (well, the pinkette could potentially take a seat on the shorter side of the rectangle, but the twins are expecting her to want to be in front of them too).

Ula for her part lays her lower body down on the top of the table itself, looking at Gretchen. "I have to apologise first, Gretchen-chan. I lied to you at the tower because I wasn't sure who would be listening." The tiny mermaid then turns to Madoka. "You might have expected this, but they aren't actually twins."

Sayaka nods and intervenes in the discussion. "Yes, we all decided on that as our cover story. You should refer to us as around others that since that's what we have been telling around, but otherwise we would have told you what actually happened as soon as we could."

She takes a deep breath before grinning. "She, or we if you prefer, got ourselves split in half by a Lost Logia. Neither of us is strictly the original Sayaka per se, I am only using the name over Klarissa because one of us has to in the eyes of the school."

"That, and Sayaka is rather unfazed by being a rock and half of Sayaka, so she should be the one to bear that name simply because I don't feel I should", Klarissa chimes in.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    When invited in, Madoka enters. She sits across from the twins as expected, since it seems like the most natural spot to her. As for Gretchen, she pulls her mask down over her face to hide how embarrassed she is. Once she realizes that no one is yelling at her or grabbing her, the X-Chara decides to stick around a bit longer, and follows her Bearer in. Lydian sits down in Madoka's lap and watches.

    To Ula, Gretchen says, "There's no need to apologize. I would have done the same in your situation. I already knew that Sayaka didn't have some mysterious twin sister, but I didn't want to make a fuss in the middle of everything else. I'm sure Homura knew it, too."

    Madoka winces at Gretchen. "A goddess shouldn't lie, you know."

    "I'm a Witch," corrects Gretchen. "You're the one with the godlike potential. Besides, Loki lies."

    Madoka frowns at her X-Chara. "I don't think Loki is a good influence for you..."

    Lydian tugs at her Bearer's arm. "We're getting off topic!"

    Madoka looks like she wants to say more, but she and Gretchen both go silent for a moment. The Chara Bearer's attention goes back to Sayaka and Klarissa, and she silently considers their situation. "Well, I don't mind keeping a secret for you. I'm not a very good liar, but no one says I have to volunteer information." Putting her hands in her lap, she shifts around to sit more properly. "So... a Lost Logia did this? What happened to it? Something like that shouldn't just be left around. I hope nobody bad has it."

    Madoka glances between Klarissa and Sayaka, silently considering. Are these two sides of her friend? Neither of them really seems like 'the evil twin' or anything bad like that, but they do both seem different in some way.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Ula is puzzled by Gretchen pulling her mask down. What could possibly be wrong? But before she can ask the X-Chara has already entered and started talking to her. She is relieved by the dark mini Madoka not being offended by it, and murmurs a thanks to her.

The mention of Homura however attracts the attention of the bluenettes. "How does she know what about us?" they ask at once. "We have never even heard of her before Madoka mentioned her, and now we find out this new girl knows Madoka's family enough to lend them some erbicide and is even informed of Sayaka's family situation", Sayaka replies, unnerved by the thought of Homura snooping around her family like a thief in the dark.

"She should mind her own business", Klarissa backs her up. "Doesn't she know it's rude to snoop around people's things? We appreciate her helping you, but we didn't think she would have been like that when we first met her."

They don't particularly like Gretchen referring to herself as a Witch, either. They both know her power is bad news for Madoka, but this is the first time the X-Chara has referred to itself by the name of their adversaries in the bluenette(s)'s presence. The reference to Loki gets lost over the use of that word.

"Let me handle this", Sayaka says grabbing Klarissa's arm. She doesn't particularly like the X-Chara, but she knows that letting Klarissa intervene is the worse option. "And why should I?" she fires back at her, totally unwilling to do that. "Because I said so, and we have bigger matters to deal with", Sayaka replies calmly, but not letting go of her arm. "Fine", Klarissa says after spending a few seconds thinking. "But she better have a convincing answer, she has endangered Madoka enough already." She adds.

"So yeah, what's up with that?", Sayaka stares at Gretchen, more calmly than her twin. "Something has corrupted you and now you seem to be that something has corrupted you with the power of our enemies specifically. How do we know you won't devolve into an actual Witch yourself with whatever has been used on you?" If Witch's Familiars can turn into Witches herself, they are not excluding the X-Chara is more similar to them than a normal familiar.

"The Lost Logia seems to be here with us", Sayaka addresses Madoka's question. "That's probably a clue we have to consider when we try to recombine, but Chrono has mentioned we need to placate a fracture between us that was already present in Sayaka's soul if we want to go back together."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Well, this is a barrage of... deep meaningful questions. Many of which, Madoka doesn't know how to answer. In part because she can't give some things away, and also in part because she doesn't actually know. Gretchen is the first one to speak, as she's actually thought about how to explain this more.

    "I keep a lot of secrets. Homura's deal is one of them, as is the nature of Witches. I will say that Homura isn't trying to snoop on you. Whatever she knows about you, she likely learned through either myself or Madoka, and I know everything that Madoka knew when I was hatched. That, and a few extra things."

    The tiny X-Chara crosses her arms and floats ominously. "As for my association with Witches... that one is a bit complicated. I'm sure that Kyubey has mentioned before that Puella Magi are destined to fight Witches, specifically. This is just a guess, but I imagine that when Madoka decided not to accept Kyubey's contract, she defied her destiny. All of her potential was meant to fuel her Wish and make her a Puella Magi, but instead that potential went into us and she became a Chara Bearer."

    Gretchen scratches her chin for a moment as she thinks. "As for why my powers have manifested in this way... it's probably because just like Puella Magi oppose Witches, Chara Bearers oppose X-Chara. However... the stakes of our fighting is a bit different. It's less a brutal fight to the death and more like..." Gretchen gestures between Sayaka and Klarissa, "... an internal divide, like what you two have. Madoka wants to go one way and I want to go another."

    She holds up a finger and says, "I will note that no matter what, Witch magic and Chara magic are very different things. I can emulate Labyrinths and create creatures that sem like Familiars, but a lot of different magics can create very similar effects. My false Labyrinths aren't much different than Barriers or Zero Time, and my minions aren't really spawns of me. There's no possibility of me becoming a real Witch even if I was corrupted with all of the despair and darkness in Tokyo, and I gain no benefit from draining people let alone killing them. X-Chara simply aren't predatory in that way. Rather, we exist because of Easter Corp's propensity to exploit the doubts and fears in the hearts of children. They probably saw Madoka's potential, thought that I was their precious Embryo, and then ditched us when it became obvious I wasn't what they were looking for."

    Madoka is still frowning at Gretchen. She knows that doesn't really explain everything, and that Gretchen is trying to avoid giving something away, but she sighs because she doesn't know how to handle this. What Madoka knows she can't say out loud, and what she doesn't know remains a blank spot for her. Instead of pressing her X-Chara for details, she turns to Sayaka and says, "There are things that can't be said out loud, ever, or people will die. I'm sorry. Homu-chan is a friend. I know her way of doing things is strange, but she has her reasons. I really don't know why Gretchen seems like a Witch, but she's probably not wrong about the fate thing. I probably went against the natural order by not becoming a Puella Magi, and there's no telling what the fallout of that will be."

    On the matter of the Lost Logia, Madoka slumps back and thinks. "So... it fused with you two, somehow? As in, it's a part of you? I guess if that's the case... you'd have to resolve whatever that difference is. Is there something you two don't agree on?" Chrono's name is mentioned, and Madoka thinks she's heard it once before. In a good context, probably.

    Gretchen considers out loud, "Wait... is this a Lost Logia meant to make it easier to argue with yourself? Like... to solve internal conflicts?"

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Neither Sayaka is satisfied by the answer over Homura, but the fact it's Madoka saying that goes a long away in making them accept it. At least when it comes to the Sayaka that has adopted her name. Klarissa is fully intent on shaking Gretchen like a ragdoll until she doesn't spout whatever it is she is not saying, but maybe surprisingly to everyone, Sayaka and surprisingly to her, Ula, intervene to help the X-Chara.

"Stop right there, Klarissa", Sayaka says. "I am not going to let you handle Gretchen like that because you don't feel satisfied. I don't get what it is about Madoka having defied her destiny" - not going along with Kyubey is just a good thing no matter how you slice it, or how both of them would like to slice him - "but if Gretchen is the manifestation of that price, we don't know what consequences there would be in opposing that destiny further. She is doing nothing to harm nobody, and is working just like the rest of us in ensuring people are safe. So think: is this really the wish of a soul so despicable, that deserves to be opposed no matter what?"

Ula on her own says "Yes, Gretchen-chan only means well, please. She is not acting like that out of malice, Klarissa, she truly wishes your best. I have been talking with her, and she is friendly and well-meaning, just give her a chance."

Klarissa growls, a clearly betrayed expression on her face. "How can you show sympathy for her? After everything she put Madoka through? You are just going to let her be like that? This is only going to hurt Madoka more", speaking to Sayaka.

And to Ula she has to say "How long have you been talking with her beyond our back. You are not like that, so why? We have been getting along fine, why would you do that?"

Sayaka nods, turning to face Klarissa. "I don't know why it took me so long to realise, but she is still an aspect of my best friend, it's only natural I would hold sympathy for her. I trust Madoka with my life, and I know you do too, so let's trust Gretchen as well: she has explained herself and what she says makes sense. We make mistakes, we get hurt, we fight, we cry tears. But even so, it's important not to lose sight of what matters: the feeling of loving someone." Sayaka turns to Gretchen now. "I can't really speak on behalf of my original, but I mistreated you severely, and I am sorry about that."

"This is just well, I am alone now", Klarissa doesn't take that well at all. "Figures, just do your own thing. I will stick for what I should actually do. And this is a reply to you, Madoka-chan: ever since we separated, they have been all about "Klarissa, you shouldn't be like this", but like this what? I am just a rock now, and everybody refuses to accept that! They are stopping me from patrolling, and now they are siding with Gretchen of all people. All I am good for is stopping people from getting hurt, but no, I can't even do that! Why don't you all stick it in your heads? I don't need to have fun, I don't need all these breaks, I am just this walking mess of a corpse controlled by a rock, and now even half of that! If you take away my purpose, what do I have left?"

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Neither Sayaka is satisfied by the answer over Homura, but the fact it's Madoka saying that goes a long away in making them accept it. At least when it comes to the Sayaka that has adopted her name. Klarissa is fully intent on shaking Gretchen like a ragdoll until she doesn't spout whatever it is she is not saying, but maybe surprisingly to everyone, Sayaka and surprisingly to her, Ula, intervene to help the X-Chara.

"Stop right there, Klarissa", Sayaka says. "I am not going to let you handle Gretchen like that because you don't feel satisfied. I don't get what it is about Madoka having defied her destiny" - not going along with Kyubey is just a good thing no matter how you slice it, or how both of them would like to slice him - "but if Gretchen is the manifestation of that price, we don't know what consequences there would be in opposing that destiny further. She is doing nothing to harm nobody, and is working just like the rest of us in ensuring people are safe. So think: is this really the wish of a soul so despicable, that deserves to be opposed no matter what?"

Ula on her own says "Yes, Gretchen-chan only means well, please. She is not acting like that out of malice, Klarissa, she truly wishes your best. I have been talking with her, and she is friendly and well-meaning, just give her a chance."

Klarissa growls, a clearly betrayed expression on her face. "How can you show sympathy for her? After everything she put Madoka through? You are just going to let her be like that? This is only going to hurt Madoka more", speaking to Sayaka.

And to Ula she has to say "How long have you been talking with her beyond our back. You are not like that, so why? We have been getting along fine, why would you do that?"

Sayaka nods, turning to face Klarissa. "I don't know why it took me so long to realise, but she is still an aspect of my best friend, it's only natural I would hold sympathy for her. I trust Madoka with my life, and I know you do too, so let's trust Gretchen as well: she has explained herself and what she says makes sense. We make mistakes, we get hurt, we fight, we cry tears. But even so, it's important not to lose sight of what matters: the feeling of loving someone." Sayaka turns to Gretchen now. "I can't really speak on behalf of my original, but I mistreated you severely, and I am sorry about that."

"This is just well, I am alone now", Klarissa doesn't take that well at all. "Figures, just do your own thing. I will stick for what I should actually do. And this is a reply to you, Madoka-chan: ever since we separated, they have been all about "Klarissa, you shouldn't be like this", but like this what? I am just a rock now, and everybody refuses to accept that! They are stopping me from patrolling, and now they are siding with Gretchen of all people. All I am good for is stopping people from getting hurt, but no, I can't even do that! Why don't you all stick it in your heads? I don't need to have fun, I don't need all these breaks, I am just this walking mess of a corpse controlled by a rock, and now even half of that! If you take away my purpose, what do I have left?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen is... actually afraid when Klarissa comes close to her, and actually starts floating higher. She's moments away from opening a portal to her own little world to escape Klarissa's wrath, and only really stops because others are rushing to her defense. Even as Sayaka and Ula speak up for her, Gretchen is still silently considering just leaving.

    Madoka herself actually stands up to get between them, not really sure what Klarissa will do. Her worry is plain on her face. Sayaka is her best friend, but her Chara are more like her children. After a moment, she turns to the X-Chara and says, "Gretchen-chan... why don't you go play with Homura for now?"

    That, apparently, is all the dismissal that the dark fairy needs. She vanishes through a Labyrinth-like portal. Traces of her magic can be felt dipping through the wall and then turning to go through the hallway, headed in the direction of Homura's dorm. She's gone without another word. Whether or not she accepted any apology is left unsaid, because she's not stupid enough to hang around an angry Puella Magi.

    Turning to Klarissa, Madoka frowns. "None of what I've gone through is Gretchen's fault. Even the one time she lashed out at me, it was self defense. She felt like she was in danger because I had suddenly grabbed her. As for my Hope Witch henshin, that was a choice that I had made. It wasn't wise of me, but it wasn't some cruel thing that Gretchen had done to me. Neither of us knew what the consequences would be, and I'm sure if she knew what would happen to Brai and Medo then she never would've let me do that. She's still a part of me, and I know that no part of me would want to harm you or anyone else."

    Lydian has ironically been quiet for most of this, possibly because Madoka is already speaking her mind. When she hears the rest of what Klarissa says, her heart actually starts to break. This is just what Sayaka was saying before the split. Is this what the internal conflict is over?

    Madoka turns to Klarissa and asks, in a soft gentle voice, "Do you really think that you're less of a person now that your soul is in a gem? Is having your soul inside of meat really that much better than having it inside of a stone? It's terrible that Kyubey did that without explaining first, but I don't think you should unperson yourself over it."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
"Me unpersoning myself?" Klarissa looks at Madoka with a "not you too" expression. "Do you think that if I wanted to, I could just not do it? It has already happened without me knowing! I don't want any of this rock thing! I want to be helping people, I want everyone to be safe, I want you, Hinoiri, and everyone to be happy, please believe me!"

"You know what, I am clearly I am doing something wrong. If you decide that all I have to do is stand with you and be happy, then our viewpoints are completely broken. Maybe I should drag you to the truth by force. Do you want me to walk around with a sword embedded in me? Maybe in my neck? Is that what it would take to convince you I am gone forever."

Klarissa just shakes her head. "I don't want that though. I don't want to show you something so horrible. It would just come through as a punishment to you, not make you happy at all. Is there really no other way to make you happy than ignore this happened to me?"

She winces as she considers the prospect. "You are too kind, Madoka-chan, if I said I actually wanted to have fun with you, go to a karaoke, spend time at the cinema, laugh like a fool while we chat about inane things as we walk somewhere. You would say yes to all of that, despite knowing me."

"I want you to do it with me then, right now. I don't know if you have plans, but leave them behind. Do what I am telling you. That's how you want to know I am still a person, right? Because I would be this rotting jerk that would make such a pressing demand of you." She looks at Madoka, her thoughts all 'I am deliberately putting on a whole circus act and acting like I am really stupid, what is even going over me?'

It is not occurring to her to check her Soul Gem, and she is only looking at her best friend, who has come here for her, even though she has divided herself into two. She shouldn't continue like this though: she has really compromised her ability to do anything. She isn't sure she has the fiber to go on patrol right now. It's just as Daifuku said, she is giving in to despair and that's not really helping. Such a grand heroine of justice she is, sabotaging herself.

"I am sorry about attacking Gretchen over your decision to push her, I am sorry for pointing at her with nothing she actually deserved when she was already distraught by your Hope Witch transformation." She looks around in search of the X-Chara, even if she is in her Labyrinth. "You are right, and I have been too stupid to consider it. And now I have made everything such for everyone."

"You should be the one to do this", Sayaka whispers to Madoka, pushing a Grief Seed in her hand.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka watches Klarissa with a silent frown. She hasn't seen what Gretchen has seen. The other timelines where Sayaka went too far down a depression spiral that she couldn't pull back from, the horrible truth of what a Witch is, and why Gretchen has the memories... none of that is known to her. All she really sees is that her friend needs help, and she doesn't know how to give it.

    She glances off to the side as Klarissa talks about throwing herself into her work instead of relaxing and having fun with friends. After a moment she closes her eyes and shakes her head. "I can't ask you to do that."

    Madoka takes a step forward, looks directly at Klarissa with sincere compassion, and clasps her hands over her own heart. "I can't ask you to ignore your work as a magical girl in order to go have fun. When I first got powers, even though I didn't have a full henshin yet, I couldn't help but fight. I wanted to help, and I wanted to give my all, and I still do. It's hard to ignore the fact that at any moment, something really terrible could be happening that you have the power to stop, and the only way I can feel at peace about it is by having faith in the fact that I'm not the only one out there fighting."

    Madoka's eyes look out the nearest window. "It's the same as working at a hospital. A lot of people need help. They need someone who has the skills and powers necessary to save them. I see many doctors and nurses in that position work themselves to exhaustion, and at times they need to be ordered to take time off and let someone else take the next shift. I couldn't possibly ignore that kind of pull, and I can't ask you to just ignore it either."

    Letting her hands drop to her side, she closes her eyes again and shakes her head before turning back to Klarissa. "I just don't think it's right for you to say that you're lost to us. We're both magical girls. We might have different sources of power, but we're on the same team and we want the same things. I'd be happy to have fun with you if you needed a break, but I'm not asking you to neglect your work..."

    Sayaka starts to hand her a Grief Seed, and Madoka looks at it. It then occurs to her what might be happening. She's seen something like this before. Her eyes look at Klarissa's Soul Gem ring, and she starts to get worried. Stepping forward, she tries to take Klarissa's hand. "... at the same time, your health matters, too. I want to help you too, because I feel like you're hurting and it's not fair."

    Unless Klarissa does something to resist or pull away, Madoka gently places the Grief Seed next to her Soul Gem ring, letting it do its work.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Klarissa's hand twitches lightly when Madoka grabs hold it of it, but she doesn't really opposes Madoka besides an initial vestigial show of it that soon enough ends and lets Madoka purify her Soul Gem.

"You must really babysit me", she says looking at the impurity that gets sucked out of her ring. She feels too awkward over "being babysat" to pull her hand away, waiting for Madoka to do it. "I do mean my saying sorry to Gretchen, that wasn't just the darkened Soul Gem talking." She says it looking at the space where the X-Chara disappeared, hoping that she would come out them. Though she doesn't rely deserve getting forgiven, she reminds herself.

She takes a few seconds to reflect on her situation. She doesn't really want to stop helping people, and she still doesn't think she should have anything to do with enjoying herself, but there is pressure for it from all sides, so even if she is still in a very "screw it" sort of mood, she is at least on board with entertaining what everyone wants from her.

"Giving people a helping hand is not something I really want to stop doing", she admits out loud. "That's want I wanted this power for, so I don't really feel comfortable with the idea of stopping using it. But... I guess I could try making space for it... At least, once."

"That's such a relief", Sayaka pulls her and Madoka into a hug, while Ula joins in by attaching herself to Madoka's wrist as a passable substitute. The other bluenette's tone is clearly much more light and she is giving Klarissa a smile, even if she isn't answering in kind.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen has her own share of traumas and problems, and once she gets scared it's hard for her to calm down. There is also the fact that she's a Chara and, despite having decades worth of memories in her head, she has the same kind of emotional regulation as a child. She wouldn't rely on that mask so much if she wasn't, in some ways, vulnerable. Gretchen isn't just hiding. The X-Chara ran away, probably back to wherever Homura's dorm is, using her Labyrinth to pass through walls and hide even from magical sight.

    "I'll tell her you said sorry later," says Madoka. "It's okay. I'm sure she understands. She just... has a lot to deal with on her own, and I don't think she really has many people she can fully open up to." Madoka considers for a moment how to explain this without giving too much away. She feels bad for keeping secrets from Sayaka, but she's not kidding about it being important to just never say some things. "She'll feel better later. She tends to be quick to run away, because... she's very aware of how small and fragile she is."

    Well, really, it's because the X-Chara is bearing all of the trauma from the hundred or so horrible ways that Madoka has died in other timelines.

    The pinkette does smile somewhat more brightly as Klarissa seems to calm down a bit and agrees to enjoy herself a bit more. Madoka lets herself get pulled into a hug, wrapping arms around both Sayakas. Lydian giggles and then joins in on the hug pile, attaching herself to Klarissa's shoulder.

    At this point, Madoka thinks she understands better what the deal is. Hopefully this will make things easier for both Sayakas?

    At some point, Madoka will have to ask Gretchen if Sayaka has ever gotten depressed in other timelines, and what they did to solve it or make her feel better.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
"Thank you", Klarissa replies when Madoka explains about Gretchen. "I am sorry for chasing her away just now. If there is something that she enjoys in particular, could you tell me, please? I want to make it up to her if she is willing to give me the opportunity."

She pulls herself even closer to Madoka and adds "I should apologise to you too, both on my own account and on behalf of the complete Sayaka. Neither of us has been fair to you and have been just as much a pain while trying to protect you in a haphazard way one moment and being troublesome the next."

"Since I am just as much her as Klarissa, I should apologise too", Sayaka chimes in.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    What does Gretchen like? Madoka actually has to think about this for a moment. "Well... she seemed to really like the bit of ice cream that I shared with her the other day? She doesn't really talk about her likes that much. Mostly she talks about things that bother her."

    Lydian actually crosses her arms and floats over Madoka's shoulder. "She likes plushies. Tiny little plushies. She fills her X-Egg with them. She's a lot like her Bearer in that way. Also, yes, she likes ice cream, or at least she's always complaining about how she doesn't have enough when you're not around."

    Madoka tilts her head at that. "She is? Huh..." That's a part of the X-Chara that the Bearer hasn't really seen before, yet apparently Lydian knows.

    Madoka leans into the hug, and will stay hugging for as long as the two Sayakas need it. Well, Sayaka and Klarissa, but in her mind they are both her best friend. "... I'm sorry, too. I'm sorry I can't do much to really help you or make things better, but I want you to know you're not alone. I'll be sure to tell Gretchen what you said. I'm sure she'll understand."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Klarissa chooses that moment to districate herself from the hug after giving Madoka one last squeeze. "Ok, tiny plushies and ice cream", she repeats, making a mental note about it. "I will turn up later to give them those gifts."

"Madoka", Sayaka says, still in the hug. "You are always helping us a lot, so don't say that. Without you, Klarissa wouldn't even have considered trying to enjoy herself."The other bluenette nods awkwardly with a faint blush to communicate her support to that statement.

"Hey, Lydian" Ula speaks up. "I wanted to give this to you", she says, floating towards the Chara to give her a jewel. "I would like you to have it too, something for the help."

After that comes a single proposal in twin voices. "If you have nothing to do, you could come with us. We are going on patrol." The occurrence makes Sayaka chuckle.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Klarissa stops first, and after that Madoka starts to disentangle herself as well. She smiles softly at Sayaka's words and says, "Well, of course I want to help you. We're friends, right?"

    Lydian looks over to Ula when her name is called, and her eyes light up as she's given a jewel. She accepts it gratefully, holding it in both hands. "Thank you so much, Ula-chan. It's very sweet of you!"

    When both Sayaka and Klarissa invite Madoka to patrol, she looks between the two of them and giggles. "Of course! I'd be happy to help you out. Hope Blossom and Sharpsong are here to save the day! Or.. I guess we have two Sharpsongs now?"

    Feeling a bit better now, and understanding a bit more of what's going on with Sayaka. Madoka starts heading for the door. After all, patrolling is still important, and it's a lot less dangerous with friends.