*
I suppose I was really stupid... No, wait my grades weren't that bad, my common sense just wasn't developed enough due to my limited interactions with other people... Even as the famous sports tom girl, the topics ended at my performance at games and other related trivial stuff. I didn't really know how to expand into other topics... So when the other party doesn't continue the conversation like how I wanted, maybe I showed the disappointment in my face and scared them off...
Ah.... So I was just bad at talking to people. I can't believe I'm only realising that now, but I guess I was actually stupid back then. I thought it was normal how I was treated and how I reacted, but people were too terrified to point things out and I became isolated as a result... Now the isolation only got worse as even as stupid as I was, I could see the fear and disgust in their faces whenever I was around. From a joyful and mellow expression enjoying their conversation, the moment I entered their line of sight, they warped into something ugly.
It was probably odd that I in turn feared that they would group up and attack me, but none of that happened. Conversely Melia didn't dare to make eye contact with me anymore. I thought it was her own way of showing she hated me and glared back at her, but I guess she was actually traumatised.
Another few years go by and I pretty much didn't talk to people at all... I slowly realised my loneliness, despite being used to the isolation since it was not much different from before the incident. The air was suffocating to be around, and the rumours of the incident was still fresh in everyone's mind, evident by their continuous callous treatment of me. I... Wouldn't blame them. If that's what they had to do, then I was the same. I just did whatever I wanted and gave it my all when the time comes. So if they are trying to ignore and isolate me with everything they had, then it was just not meant to be.
My parents ran away. I don't know if it was the heavy debt that they racked up, my poor reputation with the others in school, my painfully average grades or a combination of other factors. They left me to fend for myself... Was it their urgency? Did they thought it necessary to run immediately while leaving everything else behind? Or was I bait for the debtors?
"You... Why can't you just be normal?" (Mum)
I remembered her loving words as if it was just yesterday... After all I've heard that plenty of times now. I initially believed that they were just her way of warning me not to step over the line... I didn't realise they were her scorn filled comments on the fact that I had already crossed the line for them... To the point that they couldn't treat me properly as their children. Dad wouldn't even make eye contact with me, while mum would bend under my harassment and talk to me reluctantly...
They left a note on the table.
'Don't look for us.'
Their last words weren't filled with any particular emotion that they wished to be conveyed. Just an instruction.
Finally, in a very twisted manner by fate, I met Gerald. I was kidnapped by the cult and was one of the experimental subjects meant to artificially awaken as a magical girl. I was knocked out for a short moment when I was first transported to the facility, but I suppose that's the most likely moment that they did some kind of magic treatment to get me to awaken. Now, whether that treatment actually bore any results depended on the person. I was simply one of the lucky few along with Gerald who were successful.
... I was hungry, so I put my all into being stealthy. I hid under the security cameras watching over the canteen. As a kid from the modern age, I had already received prior education, so it was really easy to pass the test and unlock the elevator to the canteen and obstacle course. It was messed up of them to force a few kids through the obstacle course everyday... When one falls the fall was so deep that it was practically impossible to survive... Unless you were a magical girl.
Well, I didn't fall though. I was pretty much a normal girl, or maybe I awakened in my sleep and didn't realise. There was one night when I woke up covered in sweat before that time I sneaked into the canteen, so maybe it was that time. In that case, I didn't let on any proof that I was a magical girl. I simply idled my time away at the facilities... It was not much different from my normal life...
When I decided to sneak into the canteen, it was too dark to see anything since the lights were off and it was underground. There wasn't any natural light from the moon or any crevice, it was a completely blocked in and airtight facility.
'It would be convenient if I had a light'
A small glimmer and warmth wraps the inner skin of my right palm, it was completely contrary to the sheer coldness of the stale underground air. So I noticed it in an instant, a tiny mote of light floating above my palm. It was blinding for a moment... But for some reason it didn't hurt my eyes at all. I stared straight into it, mystified by its weird properties of being bright but not harmful to my eyes.
"Tch! Hey! Turn it off!" (?)
I turned around to that foreign noise, needless to say I received a huge shock. I inhaled deeply by reflex, about to let out a blood curdling scream... But she jammed her fingers between my lips and a dark purple glow surrounded her silhouette. By her clothing and stature, I quickly realised she was another test subject just like I was and regained my composure a little. Given the heart pounding nature of the moment, my mind was a little beaten and scrambled as it raced to make sense of the situation.
"W....w....w... Who are yo-you???"
Looking exasperated that her instructions didn't come through, anguish dyed her supple forehead, twisting it into a wrinkle of irritation. She was unexpectedly resilient... Or maybe she was used to high stress situations, since she quickly dispelled her own stress by exhaling deeply.
"I... Am Gerald. Listen here, there are security cameras all around us. You're lucky I was here, but if you were caught using magic, they wouldn't let you go... They'll brainwash you and turn you into a slave once they find out you're a magical girl!" (Gerald)
"..... Magic...? "
I stared at the tiny orb of light gliding gently above the air over my palm... I see... So this is magic... And according to Gerald... It'll be bad if the cameras see it.
"... Umm... How do I get rid of it?"
She looked at me for a few seconds before fully comprehending my question. After a few more moments of thinking, she clapped her hands softly and began explaining.
"... Okay, first off what you are doing is called using a skill. Think of skills as these containers.
When you fill up the container with water, it starts to overflow. That overflowing is what we call magic. So in order to stop causing magic to exists, you have to stop filling the container with water.
... Can you do it? "(Gerald)
It sounded like she had an entire script ready, as if she was anticipating for this to happen, but that just might be a coincidence. It seemed that she was more worried if I was able to understand her analogy and was actually trying hard to deduce my age...
Well, it's been a long time since I did sports. My muscles and body probably got a lot smaller, so I may seem younger than I look, but I was just a little malnourished... Following her instructions, I searched around for a sensation of something flowing out of my body. From how she said it, it sounds like skills were closer to candles than containers... They need a fuel which I presume is magic, and all I needed to do was to cut off this fuel source, so it stopped lighting up...
It took about 5 minutes, then it finally began to dim. It took a couple more minutes as it died down really slowly, and when it was finally done it felt like the air around me began moving again. It seemed like Gerald had done something... In the first place the light orb was very conspicuous, so Gerald must have done something to hide it from the security cameras. Though I couldn't see what she did at all. So I whispered a question to her.
" Miss Gerald... Did you do something to the security cameras...? I'm afraid I might have lit up too much..."
"... Oh...! Yeah, I did. I used my own magic to form a dark wall so they couldn't see anything, what with how dark everything is...
Hey... Do you think they could have outfitted the cameras with night vision...? " (Gerald)
A cold shudder crawls through my skin, a realisation that I naively didn't want to hear. I wanted to deny it but I immediately recognised that there was no point. It was time to be cautious, they could seize us at any moment.
".... Urgh... Damn it. Have they been observing my movements the entire time? And without a single word? I can't believe I was this stupid until now..." (Gerald)
"Haha... You unexpectedly have a clumsy side huh? This is victory for me...!"
"Urgh.... Whatever, I suppose my hiding under the blindspots of the cameras wasn't in vain then. I thought about it, but just in case I always find a way to hide from the cameras. There's also the fact that they may not always be looking at the security footage the next day. I got it. I'll cut the losses here and initiate the plan.
I'll go get the supplies and everything we need. You on the other hand can go train in your own room. There isn't a camera in our private rooms, so you should be able to freely practice your magic there. Make it so it becomes practical in a fight. Tomorrow night, we'll be escaping. We'll need everything we have... " (Gerald)
" Got it! "
With that, I stayed up all night trying to increase the output. The result was an instant flashbang, but it took a long while for it to dissipate back into magic. It stayed as highly condensed light and the air around it even felt really hot. To directly touch it must be quite searing and painful. Since the escape was planned to be in the night... It meant that my final mission was to last through the day and pretend to be normal, even though I spent most of my sleep time training my magic...
I exit my room as usual, the morning marked by the gradual increase in the room's brightness. The ceiling lights in the room increase by small increments so that the subjects are able to simulate a normal day and night cycle, unlike my flash bang. My eyes felt groggy and my eyelids felt limp, but I forced them open with sheer willpower. It wasn't something a quick and freezing shower couldn't fix. Whenever I still felt sleepy and fatigued in the morning, the cold shower always wakes me back up and washes away the exhaustion.
This time too... It should be the same. I shook my head quickly, diverting the cold water all around as the water droplets splashed over my face. I have to get through the day without any suspicion... After all, staying up during the night is against the rules...
After I was done with my shower, there was a window cracking scream... It coursed through my ear drums, vibrating vigorously to the point it felt like it would burst. I quickly cover my ears and made 2 small orbs of light to warm them up, it was mostly placebo hoping light could heal my aching ear drums. I looked in the direction of where the scream came from...
It was a magical girl... One completely covered by restrains... The observers of the facility... Our wardens... They had come prepared. They swiftly pulled out magic tools from under their generic white coat and threw them at the magical girl. They then grabbed her away by the chains connected to those restrains... There were tight metal cuffs at most of her limb joints, from her wrist to her fingers, elbows and even her waist had been secured to that extreme to make sure no astonishing things happen.
...... Would that have happened to me too if I got caught?