Like Old Times

By BHS

-for ExtremeEly23-

Five years.

Five years since they had last seen each other and gone their separate ways.

Of course, Sayaka never expected Kyoko to stick around in the first place. She was a drifter, that one, moving with the wind. And it wasn't like she felt a pressing need to go to school… she would have laughed in Sayaka's face if she had even suggested it.

So after Sayaka's ninth grade graduation five years ago, one spring afternoon on the riverbank, Sayaka told her: thanks to influence from Hitomi's family, she had been accepted into Shirome High on a scholarship program. Shirome was a fancy, upper-class school in the next city over, and because of that, the Mikis were moving out of Mitakihara.

How she remembered that day… Kyoko's response to that bombshell was to shrug, grunt crudely, and mutter "So?" as she shoved another stick of pocky in her mouth. But there was no hiding the flash of pain in her crimson eyes. No hiding the small, almost imperceptible quiver in her voice as she turned away and waved her hand dismissively at Sayaka. "Go on to your snooty high school in your snooty city. Have fun with all the rich snobs and oujo types. What do I care? I know you, Sayaka. You'll be bored out of your skull within a week."

The next day, Kyoko Sakura disappeared.

Sayaka searched for her for weeks. She checked all of Kyoko's favorite places: the small grocery store that she usually stole food from, the arcade, the park, the wreck of her father's old church in Kazamino… there was no sign of her. Not so much as a broken pocky stick.

Eventually, Sayaka gave up looking. She couldn't fault Kyoko for being angry… the group was splitting up. Mami was about to attend high school in Paris. Madoka and her family were going to America, with Homura in tow. Hitomi and Kyosuke, inseparable as ever, were already on tour of the country, and likely wouldn't be back for months, if not years. Come next semester, Mitakihara and the surrounding areas would be empty of the people Kyoko knew.

Empty of Kyoko's friends, though she would never call them that. God, she was stubborn.

Five years…

Now, it was late July, summer break, beastly hot as usual. Several weeks ago, something drew Sayaka back to Mitakihara, something she couldn't define. She wandered through the old places, took a look at the middle school, stopped for some ice cream in the park… but couldn't satisfy the nagging itch in the back of her mind.

So she went back to the ruined church in Kazamino. Just on a hunch.

The place reeked more than ever of decay… in another few years, it would probably collapse altogether. Sayaka thought of going inside and taking a look around, but when she touched the doors and heard an ominous creak from within, as if of a support beam bending, about to break… she decided against it. Instead, she wrote a note, and pinned it to the door. It was a simple note, short and sweet. Just enough to let her know when and where she would be, should she find it.

Kyoko,

I'm coming back. Just for a while. I'll be at the train station at six PM on July 25th, if you want to meet me there. I just thought you'd want to know.

Sayaka

"Mitakihara Central Station. The B Line from Shirome has arrived at Mitakihara Central Station. Please stay back from the white line until the train has come to a complete stop. Thank you very much."

Sayaka took a deep breath as she stood up, smoothing the creases out of her blouse. All around her, people bustled and murmured, eager to depart the train… but Sayaka felt no such eagerness. This was her final effort to see Kyoko again… if she wasn't there when she stepped out the sliding doors… well. Either she was gone, or she didn't want to be seen or found. The logical thing to do would be to forget about her and move on.

Sayaka had never particularly been much for logic.

Closing her eyes and collecting her thoughts, Sayaka took another breath as the double doors whooshed open, then stepped out onto the platform, into the sea of people. What are you expecting? said a nasty little voice in the back of her mind. Like she'd be there to greet you with open-

"Sayaka! Holy crap, SAYAKA…!"

The wild scream from somewhere further back in the crowd cut even through the din of canned announcements and passengers filing on and off the train. The voice was loud, it was raucous, it demonstrated a total lack of concern for anyone around that might be disturbed by the noise…

It was Kyoko. No mistaking it.

Sayaka opened her eyes, half-shocked, half-relieved, frozen on the platform as a streak of fiery red hair pushed through the crowd, shoving people out of the way… and she leapt into Sayaka's arms, seizing her in a bone-crushing hug and grinning like a loon.

"Ooof…! H-hey there…" Taken aback, Sayaka patted Kyoko gently, returning the hug without quite as much force. "I didn't think you'd come…"

Ruby eyes sparkled as Kyoko looked up at her, grinning that same old fanged grin. "What, are you kidding? After five years in Shirome, I wanted to see you just to make sure you didn't go oujo and start speaking fancy on me." Somehow, the grin grew wider. "'Cause if you had, I woulda beaten the hell out of you. That kinda crap is Hitomi's style, not yours."

Sayaka sighed… but it was a joyful sigh. "I can't believe it. Five years, and you haven't changed at all…"

"Wouldn't say that," said Kyoko with a mischievous wink. "I've filled out a bit. Bigger boobs, longer legs… but holy crap, look at you…!"

The redhead took a few steps backward and whistled in admiration. Sayaka blushed and turned in a slow circle… Shirome had forced her, not without some reluctance, to bury a bit of the old tomboy Sayaka. Her blouse was new, she had bought it at an upscale shop just for this trip. The label was more expensive than she typically wore, but she liked it anyway. A sensible dress of a respectable knee-length, casual but not too classy. Her hair was longer, more carefully styled, and-

"Earrings? Jewelry? Make-up?!" said Kyoko, taking it all in with a display of mock horror. "On you?! Jesus Christ. I always thought they brainwashed people in Shirome… looks like I was right. Little Sayaka-chan's a proper lady, all grown up…"

"At least one of us is," said Sayaka with a playful smile as she looked her friend up and down. Her eyes widened. "Kyoko, my God, tell me that isn't-"

Kyoko stuck out her tongue. It was indeed the same old well-worn green hoodie that she had been wearing the last time they saw each other. It was now ragged and threadbare, patched in a dozen places, almost falling apart… but it was clean, as well-maintained as Kyoko could keep it. And underneath… it was like a time capsule of the old Kyoko: the same old dark shirts, the same style heavy boots, the black bow in her scruffy red hair. Even…

"The shorts," groaned Sayaka in exasperation, putting her face through her hands and peeking through her fingers. "Good Lord, I can't believe you're still wearing those shorts. You really don't have any shame, do you?"

Kyoko stuck out a leg, showing off even more thigh than the frayed old jean shorts already did. It was a nice thigh to look at, Sayaka had to admit. A very nice thigh, with silky smooth, slightly tanned skin… and the rest of the leg wasn't at all bad either. "They're comfy and easy to wear," she said with a smirk. "'Sides, I rock these things, and you know it."

Laughter bubbled up from inside Sayaka. It felt like it had been somewhere inside her for five years, waiting to surface again… and on a sudden whim, she hugged Kyoko, drawing her in close. "I missed you. I missed you, you know?"

Now it was Kyoko's turn to pat her back. "Don't start blubbering in the middle of the station, bonehead. At least wait until we get somewhere more private. Wanna swing by my place?"

"Your place?" Sayaka blinked. "But I thought you left the church-"

Kyoko reached up and gently flicked the tip of her nose with one finger. "Things change. C'mon."

Sayaka stared in open-mouthed awe. She looked from the building to Kyoko and back while the redhead fidgeted and shifted from one foot to the other. "A job. Kyoko Sakura got a job. I can't believe it."

"Eh, it's more like volunteering. They pay me a bit when they can, and they give me room and board, food and stuff..." Kyoko stared intently at a perfectly ordinary bush across the street, feeling warmth on her cheeks and hoping she wasn't blushing too badly.

"Even so… I never thought-"

"Never thought what?" said Kyoko, shooting a glare in her friend's direction.

"Nothing," said Sayaka hurriedly, waving her hands. Inside, though, she reeled with shock… this was completely unlike the Kyoko she thought she knew.

It was a small orphanage, tucked away in a seldom-visited street near the city limits of Mitakihara. In contrast to the rest of the city, the orphanage was rundown, in need of some repair, with dirty windows and a roof that needed to be reshingled. But Sayaka could tell, just from the way that Kyoko's face lit up when they turned the corner and saw the building… it was as precious to her as a chest full of priceless jewels. Kyoko the street rat had found a home.

"Now, I gotta warn you," said Kyoko, reaching for the tarnished brass door handle. "You might get your fancy high-class outfit a little messy in here. A lot of the kids are little hellraisers…"

"Like you, you mean?" Sayaka said with a smirk.

"Ha ha. I'm dying." Kyoko made a show of rolling her eyes, but there was no hiding her smile. Carefully she opened the door and peered inside… "Anybody here?"

Pow. She was promptly knocked flat on her backside as the door flew open, and seven or eight shrieking little blurs tackled her, clinging to any part of Kyoko they could reach and joyfully chorusing "Kyoko-onee-chan! Kyoko-onee-chan!" at the top of their lungs.

"Ooof! Get off me, you little brats!" shouted Kyoko from somewhere within the tangle of limbs, beaming from ear to ear. "I'm gonna clobber every one of you if you don't cut that out! Hey… hey! What have I told you?! Geez, you're gonna break my neck… Oi, Ryo! Hands out of my pockets if you want to keep them! Owww, I said off! Sayaka, a little help here, please?"

Sayaka couldn't answer. It was all she could do to remain standing as she clutched her stomach, nearly sick from laughing.

Somehow, after much squirming and hollering of threats, the tangle got sorted out and Kyoko stood back up, the smallest of her charges reaching up to cling to her fingers as the others stood in some semblance of a line. Kyoko's face was smudged, her hair a mess, her clothes grubby with handprints, but she looked radiantly happy… happier than Sayaka had ever seen. She nudged each of the little ones in turn as she introduced them. "Sayaka, this is Ken… and Umeko… the one who keeps trying to sneak candy out of my pockets is Ryo… yeah, that's right, I know exactly what you're trying to get at, don't give me that innocent look…! Hanataro is there on the right… the twins are Yui and Ai, and…" And finally she nodded down at the two small girls with death grips on her fingers. "… these two are Yuma and Nagisa. Say hello to Sayaka-onee-san, everybody!"

Eight pairs of eyes briefly stared at Sayaka before they all bowed and said in semi-unison: "Nice to meet you, Sayaka-onee-san!"

Wiping the last of her tears of laughter from the corner of her eye, Sayaka bowed to them in return. "It's nice to meet you all, too! Kyoko, I'm surprised, you handle them so well…"

"Yeah, well, they usually behave a hell of a lot better when there's other people around…" Kyoko grunted and slapped lightly at a small hand that was making a grab at her pocket. "I said no, Ryo, you little pig! I'll give you some later."

Taking a few steps back, Sayaka watched as Kyoko wrangled the little ones, fussing over them like a mother hen…

"Uwaaah, somebody stinks! Did one of you step in dog crap or something?! All right, lift up your shoes, all of you. Left feet first. Your other left, Umeko… oh good God. Here, the three of you, off with the shoes. Off with them! There we go. Where the hell have you guys been, the back yard of the pound?! Right, that does it… all of you filthy little monsters are getting baths."

"Awwww…!"

"Don't you 'awwww' at me! You're the ones who stink! When was the last time any of you had a bath, last year?!"

Yuma, the green-haired girl attached to Kyoko's left side, looked up at Sayaka hopefully, then back to Kyoko. "You and Sayaka-onee-san will come and help, right?"

"Sure we will," said Kyoko, flashing Sayaka a devilish grin. "We just need to get Sayaka-onee-san into some less fancy clothes first…"

Swallowing audibly, Sayaka took a few nervous steps back…

Many noisy hours later, Kyoko let out a sigh of relief and turned over the lock to her bedroom door. "There," she said. "We're done. Whatever trouble the brats get into for the rest of the night, now they're my bosses' problems. Sorry again about Nagisa puking in your lap, by the way. I told the little glutton that five helpings of parmigiano risotto was too much!"

Sayaka grinned and ruffled her bath towel through her hair a few more times, then unwrapped it and placed it on a nearby rack. "I'm telling you, it's okay. They're your clothes and your dry cleaning bill…"

"Now aren't you glad I talked you into changing?" There followed a heavy flump sound as Kyoko collapsed onto her small twin bed.

"Definitely." Sayaka now looked far more like her old self than she had when she came in. Dressed in an overlarge tee shirt and baggy shorts of Kyoko's and lacking her jewelry and make-up, it was almost as if time had somehow gone back five years, to the last time they were together…

"Well," said Kyoko, spreading her arms wide. "This is it. Home."

It was a plain little room, not very large, and sparsely decorated, with only a few trinkets here and there to personalize the space. Sayaka was amused to see a small television attached to a vintage game console over in the corner… so she still played video games. She found that oddly comforting to know. There was a large silver cross hung up on one wall, and atop a dresser, a long, dark, flame-blackened something that Sayaka couldn't immediately identify. She opened her mouth to ask what it was…

"It's a support beam from the church." Kyoko's tone was wistful as she followed Sayaka's gaze to it. "I took it out of there when the place started to fall apart. I dunno why… maybe just to remember."

"Remember?"

"Where I've been, you know." Her eyes drifted to the window. "Stupid, right? You'd think I wouldn't want to remember that of all things…"

"I don't think it's stupid at all." Without really thinking about it, Sayaka took a seat on the bed next to the redhead, reaching down to put a hand on her bare leg in a supportive way.

At her touch, a heavy shudder raced through Kyoko's body.

The reaction from Sayaka was immediate. She stood straight back up as if she had been given an electric shock, her eyes wide with alarm. "Oh God, Kyoko, I'm sorry… that wasn't appropriate, I just-"

"S-Sayaka, stop it, it's okay, really!" Kyoko tried to sit up, but only made it to her elbows. "Geez, bonehead, now you even sound like Hitomi, apologizing for everything…" Despite her levity, however, there was a tinge on her cheeks that she couldn't hide.

"Kyoko…" After a long, uncomfortable moment, Sayaka chewed on her bottom lip as she replied. "We kind of… left off in a bad way."

Kyoko huffed and shrugged her shoulders. "You could say that."

"I want you to know…" said Sayaka, pausing to choose the right words. "I… I regret that. If I had stayed back then, things could be different… We could have-"

"Could have what?" Kyoko blew upward, fluttering her bangs. "Look at you, Sayaka. You're in with the upper crust now. You're well-connected, you're educated, you're…" At once she stopped, and the tinge on her cheeks darkened into a full blush.

Sayaka tilted her head. "I'm what?"

"… gorgeous, all right? There, I said it." With that, Kyoko turned away, just like on that afternoon five years ago. "You're going places, and I'm… still here. Yeah, things are better for me than before, but let's face it: I don't have a fancy rich family like Hitomi's that's gonna sweep me up and get me in with your crowd. I'm just like I've always been, always will be." Bitterness crept into her tone, and she laughed… a soft, hollow sound, without any mirth. "You don't belong with trash like me."

"That's not true." Sayaka saw a chance and took it, damn the risk. Putting a hand on Kyoko's shoulder, but gently, she sat down once again on the bed next to her. "None of that is true. You've changed, just like I have."

This time, Kyoko didn't flinch. "Yeah, right."

Damn it, she was stubborn. That hadn't changed. "You have," said Sayaka. "The old Kyoko never stuck her neck out for anyone. Remember? You drove me nuts back then, always talking about how doing things for other people was a waste of time. And now you're here, caring for these kids… I saw how they all look at you, Kyoko, they adore you!"

"I only took the job for the free room and food," muttered Kyoko, staring obstinately down at the floor. "That's all. The little brats are more a hassle than anything."

"Now I know that's a lie. I saw how you look at them, too. You're crazy about them."

And suddenly, the words tumbled out of Kyoko's mouth before she could stop them… "That's just it! Dammit, what's gonna happen when they all grow up and leave me, just like you did-"

Sayaka's entire body tensed.

Horrified with herself, Kyoko clamped her mouth shut and burned silently in her own shame for a few seconds that felt like a few years…

"Kyoko." Sayaka softly took the redhead by the chin and turned her around to face her.

Kyoko squirmed in her grip. "L-look, just forget it, okay? Forget I said anything. It was stu-"

She was silenced by warm, soft lips pressing against hers… Sayaka's lips. Sayaka was kissing her. Paralyzed by disbelief, Kyoko held still to let herself be kissed… at least, that was her intention. Her body seemed to have other ideas, reacting on its own, leaning into the kiss and returning it… Sayaka's scent overwhelmed her, flooded her with heat and nostalgia. How she had missed that scent…

When they parted, Sayaka smiled a sad little smile, sporting her own blush. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left, and that we never really got to say goodbye. I'm sorry… for everything."

Sayaka braced herself for Kyoko to burst out laughing, tell a joke, make a smartass remark, wave it off, or tell her she was being stupid. Any of those things she was prepared for… but not the shaking sob that emerged from somewhere deep inside Kyoko as the redhead wrapped her arms tightly around her and buried her face in her shoulder, as if to anchor her, keep her from flying away. This wasn't one of those usual bone-crushing Kyoko hugs like she gave her at the train station… this was an embrace of passionate need.

"Y-you're s-such a b-b-bonehead." Kyoko choked the words out in between sobs. "Y-you should be s-sorry, k-kissing me and m-making me blubber like a snot-nosed little kid… S-stupid, stupid Sayaka…"

Gently, Sakaya returned the embrace, supporting her, letting her cry it out as she rocked back and forth. "It's okay. It's okay."

"It h-hurt, you know. Wh-when you left…"

"I know."

"And… and when you leave again-"

"I won't be gone for long." Leaning down, Sayaka placed a feather-light kiss atop Kyoko's head. "And I still have a couple days before I have to go back. So until then-"

A heavy sniff, and Kyoko looked up at her, grinning tearfully. "Until then, it'll be like old times, right?"

"Like old times, right."

"Except for making out and stuff."

Sayaka giggled. "Yeah, except for that."

"Good. 'Cause I wanna do stuff I never got a chance to back then."

"Do you now?" Sayaka raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Kyoko's hands snaked around her. "I never did get to see if you have huge mutant cow boobs like Mami's."

"Pervert. Maybe I'll let you find out. Maybe."

"Bonehead. Try and stop me."

"Moron."

"Idiot."

"I love you."

"I love you."

They fell back to the mattress together, their voices joined in helpless laughter.

THE END