Adjourning

“Sami?” I called out to the open. Immediately faces turned to me and only half turned away a second later. Don’t really blame them; I’m known to be more active during dusk and nightfall. But a call in by Eightball is a call I couldn’t really deny, and apparently I wouldn’t be alone for his little interrogation.

Still, people didn’t expect me to ever show myself in day time. I couldn’t tell if they were wondering why I was there at the time or if they were looking at me and thinking “that’s one of the qualifiers for the tournament.” I couldn’t care less about it back then; I just wanted to make sure Eightball knew something after the interview.

I am not a morning person. Do not ever expect me to become a morning person. If you call me up early somebody will have bloody jelly for a head.

…Guess I was feeling merciful that day.

I walked straight to the end of the room to the elevators when one of them opened in front of me. A few girls walked past me but the surprise was the only one left in the elevator when I got on.

“You’re still in that?” The casual question was asked as I joined Sami, transformed in her dress and ribbons combo.

“Not much blood, doesn’t matter. Then there’s you, hypocrite.” She eyed my own dress, black and that same shade of blue while having more dots of crimson on it then on her.

“Yea, I guess we’re both lazy.”

“You’re lazy.”

“You don’t care.”

We stopped after that as the elevator began to ascend. I realized then why she was there; we both fought the day before and did well. Eighty had told me he wanted a few words with those he thought showed potential in the tournament.

I already had been watched by him in the past. I wanted to see who else he saw.

“Mornin’ bitches!” A classic greeting by Eightball as we walked out of the elevator and passed by a girl with long, orange hair who grinned at me as she walked by. “And I’ll be catchin’ you later Megan!”

Megan huh? I’ll probably see her again later.

“Gina, you were all bitchin about the tourney, but look at you now! Totally wiped that poor sucka! You getting on the good road to winning, I tell you. Now, Sami…” He turned his head to her while she was doing her best not to yell. “Eightball ain’t got much to say to you. That match? Fuckin brutal, it spoke for itself. Wasted her in no time flat! You serious about gettin that gold aren’t you?

“I did what would make me win.” She stated coldly, turning her head away. Sami never had the best… relations with Eightball, ever since I knew her. Didn’t know why and figured that if a cold person gets irritated by something, you don’t ask, especially if they consider you a friend.

“Aw, come on now Sami-girl. You scared a lot of the other bitches by tearing that girl a new one! When she came back to she didn’t know what the fuck happened! You’ve been-”

“Eighty, please.” I interrupted his speech, hoping he would get the notice.

“Gina, you shut the fuck up for a bit, okay? Just tryin ta make sure all my good bitches know I’m proud of em!” He… kinda did. “Alright, earth-ta mother-fuckin Sami. . .”

Oh boy, I thought at the time, this will be a while. And it would.

The ten minutes afterwards were Eightball trying to sweet-talk Sami into talking more, but her responses were either short, non-descriptive or unsatisfactory to Eighty. I knew that she was hard to crack, but he didn’t need to try that hard. Whatever Sami had against Eightball, he was only making it worse. I could tell from her face.

His phone rang on the table, making a nice interruption. “Fucking damn it, what the hell is it now?” He opened the phone while I looked back at Sami, who was more then relieved.

“The fuck is it Mary? …Oh really? We fuckin straight now… She asked for what!?” He busted out laughing at whatever him and what I assume was the warmaster-in-training was talking about. “Fuckin Japaneese. Just make sure the suit fits er like a glove as we be rollin. I’ll thank my bro for sendin his bitches over. Eightball out.” He sets the phone down and looks back at us. “You girls be free to go, I gotta see that I pay my respects. A brotha gotta thank his brothers."

“Later, Eighty.” I did a respectful bow and turned to leave. Sami on the other hand wasted no time heading to the elevator, immediately getting in as it came up and opened.

“Never good with him huh?” She intentionally avoided my gaze and my question, tapping her foot against the floor as the elevator started going down. “If it helps you calm down, you can come to my place.” It was nothing I really minded, I never had any problem with visitors before, but I knew Sami was… different. Like I was.

“…Sure."

Other magical girls didn’t bother us as we exited the building. For a long time, we didn’t talk. I could tell she was conflicted then, and I knew there was still a lot I didn’t know about her. But I was reminded of the day before, and what she told me.

“You were right yesterday.” She turned to me as we began walking down the sidewalk. “What you said about collecting weapons. I didn’t really think about it then but you made a point. The difference here is that when the world comes looking for me, I’ll be ready.”

“Better be.” Her cold response told me she wasn’t going to cooperate that well. With the opportunity of location I decided to change the subject.

“We first met around here, a few months ago.” My eyes scan the area, a normal California costal town that’s hiding two deadly organizations. “Funny how you started the conversation, asking me why I was perched on a rooftop.”

“You didn’t know why.”

“True, it was just habit. Like how you are always in costume.”

“It’s comfortable.” That was true, at least for me as well. The outfits are usually on-spot for most girls, though there are some… questionable combinations. I briefly considered asking how Eightball could get all those fashion ideas for so many girls, but I found out we were out of time.

“Well, we’re here. Again."

My apartment was fair, at best. Not too bland but not a whole lot to look at either; walls of blue, black carpet and very few pictures. At least it looked more modern then others. The furniture was comfy at least, save for that one rocking chair that I forgot its origin. I didn’t like to keep anything dirty or messy for too long, but I knew regardless of that Sami wouldn’t care.

“It’s been a while.” She stated as she walked in, looking around.

“To an extent we both prefer being alone.” I reminded her, entering in last and closing the door. “The first time you came here you ranted on about every minute detail and hoped I got annoyed enough to let you go.”

“Which didn’t happen.”

“You did do your best, I’ll admit.” Chuckling, I looked over where she was. Surprisingly she was looking at the mirror, her hands touching the blood stains on the dress. Her ribbons began moving too, stretching out then relaxing. She once said her ribbons felt like a part of her, which was part of the reason she didn’t like getting out of her magical outfit, since they also vanished.

She looked back at me after a while and I could tell she was looking at my bloodstains as well. “You have more blood on yourself then I do.”

“You’re smaller.”

“You should change.”

“I, what?” She never bothered with me on stuff like that before, why now? I stared at her in shock as she opened the closet and looked at my clothes inside. “Well, I guess I should but…” I watched her take some clothes and fling them at me.

“Get out and go change.”

Sami is not someone I would ever consider for fashion, but looking at the full-body mirror showed she did have some taste. A black and purple skirt reached my feet while the top half of me was blue shirt with a black, red and gold Chinese dragon coloring on it that spans my entire chest despite my proportions (Sami was jealous of me, but a D isn’t really -that- big). My black hair didn’t get in the way since it only went down to the shoulders, but it also didn’t hide my worn-out face, only made more apparent by my dejected red eyes.

Eventually I walked away from the mirror, wondering how much I could really go before I couldn’t recognize myself anymore.

“You want anything?” I asked her, walking over to the kitchen area. “Still got a lot of stuff I haven’t finished yet.”

“I’m good.” Her reaction was bland as she gazed at something across the room. Just knowing what direction she was looking at I knew what object had gotten her attention.

“I really haven’t picked up that in a long time.” Turning my head to the piano at the far side of the room, I couldn’t remember the last time I played music. “Probably should, every night something doesn’t go wrong when I wonder around just means it’s going to happen later.”

“Playing music is safe?”

“Safer then braving the midnight streets, even if I’m a magical girl.” Almost automatically I walked over to the piano, an old wooden model that was handed down to me…

“One of the bloody gifts?”

“Yea. . .” We once talked about our histories and how we became magical girls and decided not to bring it up again. It turned out I wasn’t alone in the ruined childhood department.

“Why did you stop?"

“There was no reason to keep playing.” She should have known what I meant, but. . .

“Then play for me.”

Sami never failed to disappoint in the surprises factor that day. After getting myself down on the chair I lifted the cover and ran my fingers over the keys. It took a few moments of random key pressing before I somehow knew what to play. An ode to the shadow of the earth, I played it slowly.

“The darkest night, with no moon
Blankets over all, no one is immune.
The light of man, across the world
Hides the shadow, which we’ve furled.

Nations crumble, people die
Before our eyes, time flies by
We can’t stay still, for too long
For as we wait, life goes on.

People can say, nothing to loose
Some still tell, of freedom to choose.
The iron hand, still grips us all
We can’t escape, until we fall.

Leaders rise, and hold our fears
While in the dark, feed on tears
When will we see, what has gone
When we’re content, how life goes on.

Will there ever come a time
When we will look at crime
And see our race’s blackened core,
When we realize
We must cauterize
The source of blood under the door.

Civilization, out greatest illusion
Along with dreams, of revolution
If we never, look past the door
We’ll never know, what’s next in store.

Time is spent, lives are wasted
Humanity now, can’t be sated
Still we hold, and press on
For we all know, life goes on.

And as we pray for the dawn,
Life goes on… life goes on.”

”That was the first song I was taught.” I explained to her after I finished. “I didn’t really understand back then, but now I understand. She tried to warn me.”

“She couldn’t have warned you.” Sami retorted. “There’s a difference between someone who cares and someone who knows you.”

“I get it, but…” The sigh didn’t do much for me. My thoughts were messy and clouded. It’s just, what was I supposed to say?

“Nothing will change the past, especially not thinking about it.” I angrily muttered out, catching her off guard. You know that as much as I do, even if you were better off then I was.”

“We never reached a consensus on that argument.” Sami stated, and she was right. It was touchy, but in a way we could somehow connect with each other. “The best you can do is keep doing what makes you feel comfortable.”

I got up and looked at her. To anyone else it would be shameful to have me be talked down by someone smaller and possibly younger then me. I myself had all the intention of talking back to her. But I knew better than that.

“Gina?” She asked me as I hugged her softly but with enough force to keep her from getting away if she wanted to.

“And this is why we’re friends.” I broke away from her and smiled, giving her a part on the shoulder. “I can think of things from here. Maybe. I can always call.”

“My cell phone’s broken.”

“Oh.” I watched her calmly walk away from me and to the door. When she opened the door she turned back to me.

“What is it that they’re saying now, ‘May the Blessed Lady protect?’” I shrugged in response as she closed the door and left. People are thinking of stranger and stranger things. If there is a “Blessed Lady”, I wouldn’t mind meeting her.

Well, there’s still time in life for a lot of things. Life goes on, indeed.