Work Text:
Whenever Nanami Yachiyo thought back to that summer, she would think of the smell of asphalt first. Many streets near Mikazuki Villa were endlessly under construction then. The beeping and whirring of construction equipment plus the ditches on every side made the solitary villa seem like a safe house in a post-apocalyptic film. But Yachiyo rather liked that feeling—she could temporarily forget about the looming fate of magical girls. In their own little ark, she could spend the long and all-too fleeting summer with their group of as of yet immature girls.
Wanting to make the most of this wonderful summer, Yachiyo brought Mikazuki Villa’s household on outings during her limited free time. She taught them how to apply fingernail polish evenly, how to make delicious French toast, how to choose exciting detective novels based on the cover, and how to ensure kimonos were completely smooth... Just like that, their summer days passed leisurely, as day turned to night and back and they alternated between activity and rest.
But then, a minor disturbance appeared near the end of August. The onset was when Yachiyo noticed Iroha sometimes appeared distracted. The very first time, she, Iroha, and Sana were waiting to pay at the supermarket. Iroha absentmindedly stared out into the distance, and when they arrived at the register, Iroha was still lost in her own world. Yachiyo tapped on her shoulder and Iroha violently knocked her hand aside. Having reacted unconsciously, Iroha was so shocked she didn’t what to do. Another time, Yachiyo happened to see Iroha pause for a long time while taking down Yachiyo’s blue jumpsuit from the balcony clothesline. Although Yachiyo couldn’t see her expression, it was clear that something was off given how on task Iroha usually was when doing chores. Yachiyo examined the dress closely later but didn’t find anything out of the ordinary.
Everyone noticed it, but Felicia commented on it first, as blunt and direct as always. Thursday evening during dinner, she was pouring curry into her rice when she asked, “Iroha, why’ve ya always been out of sorts recently?”
It was a great question. Yachiyo soundlessly gave her tamagoyaki piece to Felicia. Sitting next to Iroha, Ui stopped eating and looked at her sister in worry.
Iroha seemed embarrassed as she looked up. The forced smile she used to always wear appeared on her face. “Ack, really? Sorry!”
“We were discussing something really serious just now!” Tsuruno said severely. “Master was saying the Daito magical girls are getting too big for their britches, so we’re going to give them a “wakeup call” this weekend. How ‘bout it, Iroha? You’re coming with everyone, right?”
“Is that true?” Iroha looked shocked and ready to leap out of her chair. “But relations between the East and West only just improved!”
Ui said quietly, “Onee-chan, Yachiyo-san was actually saying she wanted to take us to the beach and asked if we had other plans.”
Red visibly colored Iroha’s cheeks. “Sorry, I’m so sorry. I just got distracted. I’m fine with anything!”
Felicia asked in confusion, “The heck is up with you?”
“Oh, nothing really…”
“Have you been overworked recently?” Sana asked worriedly.
Iroha said woodenly, “I really apologize for making you all worry, but I’m doing well!”
Felicia seemed about to say more, when Tsuruno jumped in and suggested a speed eating contest. Whoever lost would have to do the dishes. Felicia immediately turned her attention to her food. Yachiyo went along with Tsuruno and changed topics to the late night TV show they’d been watching instead.
That night, Ui, Felicia, and Sana played video games with Tsuruno, who was sleeping over. It was a rare chance to be alone with Iroha at night. Yachiyo carried a tray with two mugs of warm milk upstairs and knocked on Iroha’s bedroom door. Iroha had just finished washing her hair. She was fresh out of the shower and a cloud of fragrant steam wafted about her. She seemed to stiffen upon seeing Yachiyo. Yachiyo silently sighed and then placed the tray on the nightstand. She handed Iroha her mug. Iroha thanked her and sipped the milk.
Once Iroha seemed more relaxed, Yachiyo sat on the side of her bed and asked, “What’s been going on with you?”
“I might be more tired, I guess?” Iroha paused for a moment. She got that look in her eyes particular to oldest siblings, showing a maturity beyond her age. “I’m really sorry to make you worry! I’ll get my act together soon!”
Yachiyo wasn’t sure if she was imaging it. Iroha seemed to be doing her best to avoid meeting Yachiyo’s eyes. She was staring at her mug, as if some exhilarating movie was taking place in it. Next up, Yachiyo probed further by chatting with her about different things: school assignments, Kamihama Magia Union’s future plans, books she’d read recently… But now, Iroha didn’t let anything slip. Her abnormal behavior from before might as well have been everyone’s delusion. The noise from the living room gradually decreased, and Ui would soon return to her room. Yachiyo could only take her leave from Iroha.
“Yachiyo-san!”
Iroha stopped her right before she left the room. Iroha’s resolute tone surprised her. Fortunately, Iroha couldn’t see her expression at the moment.
As if she’d made up her mind about something, Iroha requested, “Can I hug you?”
Yachiyo let out a chuckle. She said, “Of course.”
She placed the tray down to the side and walked up to hug Iroha in the safest way possible: with both arms reaching past Iroha’s head and her own head turned slightly away to ensure that Iroha couldn’t feel her breathing, somewhat quickened by elation. Iroha carefully put her arms around Yachiyo’s waist, movements cautious, as if she were handling something fragile. Just like her smile, her hug was so awkward it bordered on being unnatural. Thinking that, Yachiyo tightened her grip ever so slightly.
It was then that she suddenly noticed an unfamiliar scent coming from Iroha. It was faint but sweet, like a berry with a piece chewed off oozing juice, and it was also like the fragrance of an unknown flower in spring bloom. A storm brewed inside of her, making her want to be closer to Iroha, even closer. The scent didn’t resemble any detergent, softener, or perfume in the house, or at least, Yachiyo had never smelled it around Mikazuki Villa before.
Maybe she didn’t know as much about Iroha as she thought. The girl was like a silent bird, unassuming and meek. Her real feelings were a secret that she kept deep inside. Yachiyo felt her heart ache. But intuition told her that now wasn’t the right time to press for that secret. At once, she bid Iroha good night, outwardly calm, and exited, shutting the door as if nothing had happened. Bright moonlight shone on Iroha’s closed door. Yachiyo paused for a moment, then promptly left, seemingly unaffected.
Their weekend trip was going fantastic. The girls swam in the shallows, played beach volleyball, shared shaved ice drenched in syrup, erected a bonfire outside their wooden beach house, and had fun until every person went to sleep, exhausted and content. However, perhaps because she had things on her mind, Iroha woke up early the next day. Wispy sea fog drifted about outside the window. Rays of vibrant morning light pierced through the overcast clouds.
But as she looked around, she found that she wasn’t the only person awake. Yachiyo was reading a book on the window ledge. Seeing Iroha, she greeted her with a smile, “Good morning, Iroha. You’re up early.”
In the early morning light, Yachiyo was like a wax sculpture on display in a museum. While striving to stay calm, Iroha internally marveled for the thousandth time at the beauty of this person living with her. “Yachiyo-san, good morning!”
“Do you want to go for a walk?”
Iroha nodded. They changed quickly into casual clothes and walked along the coast without a destination in mind. The air was fresh and cool, with a note of fall when breathing in deep. A couple of seabirds skimmed over the ocean’s surface every so often, flying towards the boundary between sky and sea. The surf was like a cheerful puppy retreating towards the ocean, watching the people awake at sunrise running along the wet sand, full of cheer. Meanwhile, the two of them walked without a sound, occasionally smiling at each other. This kind of silence where nothing more needed to be said was immensely relaxing for Iroha. But, would they still be able to have walks like this if Yachiyo-san knew her real feelings? Iroha felt a burning pain in her body at the thought.
After walking by a boulder with the appearance of a red blood cell, the two of them suddenly stopped at the same time. A Fata Morgana mirage that shouldn’t appear at this time of the year shimmered over the ocean. It looked similar to a nighttime train station. The awe-inspiring structure somehow floated against a backdrop of the universe like a man-made celestial body. A railroad track shining with cold light under the radiance of the stars could be clearly seen through the fence. An orange, triangular signpost stood stiffly at attention on the platform, like a truehearted guard. The distant morning sun and ocean appeared the real phantoms compared to that vision in the sky which felt more real than life.
Yachiyo immediately transformed and shielded Iroha. “Be careful. There’s a magical reaction. It seems like… an uwasa?”
“But didn’t all the uwasa return to Nemu’s book?”
Yachiyo guessed contemplatively, “Maybe it’s an uwasa on the loose like the Wind Evangelist?”
Iroha transformed into her magical girl outfit, nervously looking at the ticket gate shining with silver light. The markings on it made it like it was smiling invitingly at them. At that moment, a train engine whistled, overpowering the sound of people laughing and having fun in the distance. The train might be just about to pull into the station. What would it be like? She didn’t remember anything related to this rumor, which probably meant it was created outside of the hospital room.
“Regardless, we should contact Hiiragi-san and ask her to take a look at what’s going on…” Yachiyo fished her phone out of her pocket, only to pull out a piece of green paper, too. She startled. “What’s this?”
Their surroundings gradually began to distort. A familiar robotically shrill voice sounded around them.
“My, have you heard? Has anyone told you? The Rumor of the Galactic Railroad. If you see a mirage of a train station on the water, you’ll be able to take a ride to the depths of the galaxy on a beautiful, little train. The train whistles as it weaves among star clusters in the night sky, never stopping for even an instant on its way to the end of the universe! You must take care though. This locomotive draws in passengers for a one-way trip to another world. Once you depart, you’ll never return to where you started from. This is the rumor widespread at watersides in the summer, but still, I wanna try riding it!”
A brilliant flash came from the mirage and when it wore off, Iroha found they were sitting in a train. The compartment’s interior decorating was exquisite. The seats were covered in blue velvet; the windows were polished and gleaming; and even the luggage racks were covered with intricate floral designs. What was most spectacular was the scenery outside. It was the close-up night sky as it could never be seen usually: silken with a multitude of stars studded within, like an upended gemstone case.
Yachiyo sat across from Iroha and was carefully examining the green piece of paper in her hand that was folded into quarters and about as big as a postcard. Printed on the paper were about ten strange characters on a background with a black arabesque pattern. Perhaps it was something like a train ticket, which was why once they acknowledged its existence, the uwasa thought they were passengers and dragged them into its labyrinth.
“We’re inside the uwasa, though I don’t sense any malice.” Yachiyo analyzed the situation. “Maybe it doesn’t intend to hurt us.”
Iroha asked in worry, “Then, were other people dragged in?”
“That would be an issue. Let’s start investigating.”
Yachiyo placed a halberd where they first arrived at as a marker. They went through the narrow walkway in single file while headed towards the front of the train. The railroad car was as quiet as the night of a first snow, the only audible sounds that of the wheels clacking over the rails and the two’s breathing. The shining Milky Way flowed by them, casting a white glow on everything in sight. Silver pampas grass swayed outside their window, rippling in shimmering waves. Every time Iroha felt uneasy at being in an unfamiliar place, she would look at Yachiyo from behind, with her straight and unflinching back. She thought how wonderful it would be if the page never turned on this night.
As the train drove by a sandy shore that stretched as far as the eye could see, Yachiyo reflected, “It’s been a while since it was just the two of us.”
“Yeah, Mikazuki Villa’s been really lively recently.”
“But some peace and quiet every now and then is enjoyable too, no?”
The train wasn’t reaching its destination any time soon, so they sat down to enjoy the view. The locomotive drove past an island bathed in silver light. A glowing, white cross stood solemnly upon it. Crowned by an ephemeral golden halo, it seemed to have quietly stood there for thousands of years and was ready to solemnly stand there for an eternity more.
What did it resemble? The view of Yachiyo from behind, perhaps.
The thought gave Iroha quite the fright. Recently, a suppressed desire to approach Yachiyo and to hug her kept popping up every time she thought of her. Furthermore, these strange notions ignited something in Iroha, closing up her throat and heating up her body. However, as the leader and older sister of Mikazuki Villa, she was far past the age where she could wheedle for attention on a whim. Why was she having such immature thoughts?
Iroha quietly sighed. The Milky Way grew even brighter outside the window, almost turning the inside of the railroad car as bright as day. The train began to slow down. Railroad and turnout signals flashed by, indicating that the train was pulling into a station. Yachiyo grabbed a halberd, hinting that Iroha should stay vigilant.
The Uwasa-san’s familiar, robotic voice came out of the intercom, “Cygnus Station. Arriving on-time at eleven o’clock with a twenty minute stopover.”
A green signal and posts shrouded in fog quickly passed by their window, and the train pulled into the platform. They could clearly see the giant clock outside the window. The clock hands, made of blue steel, pointed straight at the numbers eleven and twelve.
“Should we go take a look?” Iroha suggested.
“Alright, but we have to be careful.”
They hurried to exit the train and ran past the ticket gate. Not a soul could be found on the platform. The fresh air cleared up the fuzziness in Iroha’s head. They left the station and came out into a small square enclosed by gingko trees that looked hand-carved of quartz. A wide road led from the square straight off into the dazzling light of the Milky Way.
The uwasa before had seemed filled with pure malice and deceit, but this one was wholly different. It was a true miracle, beautiful and peaceful. Side-by-side, the two of them followed the dazzling road towards the Milky Way’s shore that they had just seen from the train. The sand in the river of stars were just like fine crystals. A flame burned in each and every grain. The Milky Way flowed with water that was barely corporeal. Their surroundings were quiet save for the water’s gurgling, as if this extensive field of stars was meant for them alone in this moment.
“Just to bring it up, could I know what you’ve been thinking about recently?”
“Huh?” Iroha felt her body heat up all over. Her breathing hitched as the suppressed desire that had bothered her for so long rose up.
Yachiyo smiled. “We’re the only two people here. Isn’t this the best place to vent?”
She was gentle and sincere. Iroha’s nervousness drastically reduced. Iroha found herself telling Yachiyo of her complicated feelings buried deep down, of feeling helpless against the mysterious changes in her body, of the desire she couldn’t face, and of the fear that with how weak she was, she wouldn’t be able to handle the obligations of being a leader…
By all accounts, the worries Iroha was describing were normal for a kind and caring girl like her. But somehow, Yachiyo kept thinking about Iroha’s abnormal conduct lately. Her change in scent, her body feeling hot, her emotions becoming heightened, and her increased desire for touch… In combination, these clues unquestionably pointed to an unexpected conclusion.
Yachiyo surmised that while she was completely unaware, Iroha had developed into her secondary sex. In addition, Iroha was an omega, the opposite of Yachiyo, who was an alpha. This theory flashed into Yachiyo’s mind, sending pins and needles down her back. Having a secondary sex hadn’t affected Yachiyo much, maybe because magical girls were inherently different from normal humans. Her pheromone scent was very faint and coverable with perfume. For the longest time, she only had to take a tiny amount of suppressant to ignore other people’s pheromones and peacefully get through her heats. Alphas and omegas were exceedingly rare, so she never considered that someone close to her would develop into a non-beta secondary sex, especially not Iroha. The girl always seemed so measured, so Yachiyo had naturally associated that characteristic with beta personality traits.
Yachiyo’s mind was blank. What could she even think? Or say? She’d never experienced something like this. Or rather, in an era where everyone was quick on the uptake for matters like these, people as dense as them were rarities.
After a long while, she decided to be upfront about her failing, “I’m really sorry. I didn’t fulfill my responsibility as a guardian. I should have noticed sooner.”
Iroha tilted her head and asked in confusion, “What?”
Yachiyo went into a bout of intense internal conflict. After gathering herself, she nervously gave Iroha the rundown on her hypothesis.
Iroha’s voice was slightly hoarse from distress. “Then, what I’m feeling is…?”
Even her nose was red, Yachiyo thought, but she figured she wasn’t doing any better. A flock of birds resembling white egrets flew overhead, their cries gushing out like water.
After what felt like an eternity, Iroha gathered up the courage to say, “But I think I understand now. What I feel for-”
However, Iroha didn’t finish her sentence, because at that moment, the uwasa’s labyrinth began to disintegrate. The star clusters fell from the night sky like silt swirling into a whirlpool. Distant, phosphorescent cudweeds, soft yellow and green, mixed together like melting paint. She felt her consciousness cross the horizon in the blink of an eye, dropping her into the ancient darkness.
“So what?” she distantly heard Touka exclaim. “You can’t even manage your own creation? You’re such an idiot!”
Nemu shot back, “What can I do? By design, that uwasa can bend the laws of spacetime to go anywhere it desires. Even the magic book can’t restrict its movements.”
“However, it got Onee-sama involved this time! That’s absolutely unacceptable!”
“But it’s harmless. It poses no real danger to humans and can only bring them into a dreamscape labyrinth.” Nemu lowered her voice, something she only did when feeling ashamed. “When it comes down to it, wasn’t this rumor made according to your specifications, Touka? As a collaborator in its creation, you should own up to your part in this.”
Touka looked ready to fire back, but the Eternal Sakura interrupted their back-and-forth, “I just talked to it. It said the book was very stuffy, so it slipped away to the sea, where it just so happened to see Iroha and Nanami-san. It thought they looked to be getting along well, and it therefore wanted to invite them on a tour to the end of the universe.”
“That is the nature of the Uwasa of the Galactic Railroad, after all,” Nemu supplied.
Touka didn’t sound any less furious, “Hmph, and it just took Onee-sama there without her permission? I see it has no manners. Small wonder when that moron Nemu is its creator!”
“It’s far more like that nincompoop Touka who always does whatever she feels like!”
Stop arguing, you two. I’m okay. Iroha tried to open her eyes, but she couldn’t, no matter what. A strong drowsiness draped over her mind like the night itself and left her unable to move. Just as she was about to give in to sleep, she heard Yachiyo say, her voice calming as always, “Although the way we were taken into the labyrinth was rather unceremonious, as a whole it was a very pleasant trip. I should be thanking you two, so please don’t fight anymore.”
Iroha didn’t react for a moment, and then she realized that Yachiyo’s voice was too close. Was it possible that she was leaning against Yachiyo’s shoulder?! Iroha’s sleepiness evaporated like the morning dew and she rocketed up, wildly looking around. The sun was high in the sky. It might already be about noon. She currently sat on a bed in their vacation cabin, with everyone encircling them in the middle. The one stroke of good luck was that her hair was loose and just happened to cover up the teeth marks.
“Look, my sister’s awake!” Ui rushed to inform everyone of the good news.
Felicia looked at her face and said, “Her face is so red. Did somethin’ scare her?”
Iroha felt she had lost the capacity for speech, “Um, not exactly…”
Yachiyo casually stepped in to help Iroha out, “Maybe it was because the car was hot.”
“Master, what was the inside of that uwasa like?” Tsuruno curiously asked. “Nemu said it’s extremely beautiful, but it rarely comes out by itself. I really want to take a look if there’s a chance.”
“It certainly was extremely beautiful. How should I put it? It was like what you see in space documentaries…”
Yachiyo seized the chance to redirect their audience’s attention to the beautiful scenery inside the uwasa. She talked until they all finally lost interest. As one would expect, the girls quickly forgot the topic entirely and returned to making plans for the beach. Felicia ran to the seaside like it was a second home, dragging Tsuruno and Sana with her. Nemu and Touka discussed how to discipline the wayward uwasa and were soon at each other’s throats. To distract them, Ui suggested putting their argument on hold to all have fun in the ocean together. The Eternal Sakura looked worriedly at Iroha, but Iroha expressed that she would be better once she rested. The Eternal Sakura thus ran with the three children to the seaside.
Before long, they were the only two left in the room. They kept an unsaid distance between them. The atmosphere between them was like a cube of chilled butter. Yachiyo moved first to prepare hot chocolate for them. It was scalding, but Iroha still drank it. After everything that happened, she likely needed to replenish her strength.
“Can we continue from where we left off?”
“Huh?”
Iroha couldn’t get a word out. Her brain had turned to mush the same consistency as Mitama’s carefully concocted porridge.
“Then, could I use a different method to verify things?”
Yachiyo first placed her lips against the back of Iroha’s neck. Then, she deepened the touch until she was licking and sucking. After obtaining Iroha’s consent, she bit her lightly. Iroha felt Yachiyo’s pheromones enter her blood through the bite mark. The scent of it was like her father’s treasured collection of gold rum and also like the fragrance of orange blossoms and jasmine. But overall, it was more of an experience than a smell, like the chilling shock of touching a window covered in frost flowers or soaking in a glacial lake floating with ice, the lapping waves kicked up by the colliding ice chilling her to the bone. But what was most amazing was that her fears and insecurity melted away like snow at the touch, leaving behind a happy sense of satisfaction.
She unthinkingly hugged Yachiyo, and Yachiyo became panicked at the motion. “Sorry, did it hurt a lot?”
“No, it doesn’t hurt at all.” Iroha lowered her head, avoiding Yachiyo’s eyes at all costs. Her face was as hot as sand that the sun had been beating down on all day. “Your pheromone scent really has your feel to it.”
“Then, did you like it?”
Iroha fell into a long silence. Just as Yachiyo thought she would never respond, she whispered, “I loved it.”
Yachiyo immediately bore down on her. They shared their first, cocoa-flavored kiss in the ocean breeze, immense delight smothering their hearts. Outside their window, summer slowly and silently slipped away.