“So, you're a fan of my music?”
Komaru Naegi is a girl with olive green eyes that shift away from Sayaka's face, as if shy. She looks like her brother, in a lot of ways: her eyes are just a bit brighter a shade, and yet they seem to hold infinitely more darkness. It's not strictly accurate to say that Makoto Naegi doesn't despair, despite the propaganda Future Foundation may put out—but his eyes have never looked like Komaru Naegi's.
(They're beautiful eyes, though. Enchanting, like looking into the night sky; sometimes they sparkle, so bright, as if full of stars. Only when she looks at her—only then do they shine. A deep, dark abyss where light flickers.)
Her face is pink, glancing to and forth from Sayaka's own and the ground. Makoto used to look like this, Sayaka recalls—now, he only shows such a face to Mukuro.
(Of course, though.
Those two had always saved each other. Meanwhile, Sayaka is the sinful girl who tried to kill—how could anyone ever look at her the same?
How can anyone look at her like Komaru Naegi is?)
“I love your music.”
A smile winded up on Komaru's face. Sweetly, tenderly. Eyes still flickering. A cute, if ordinary face. Sayaka's heart skipped a beat.
“It made me smile, you know?” She confessed, hushed and lovely, glancing up from her bangs and so, so red. “Your music, I mean… I could tell how much you loved it. How you wanted everyone to smile. And that made me smile, because… it was so lovely. I could tell how much you loved singing. Your music saved me… And then you saved me again.”
Sayaka's eyes widened. When she smiled like that, Komaru Naegi was truly radiant. The kind of girl Sayaka always sang for, from the bottom of her heart.
“I'm not so great.” Sayaka denied. Makoto smiled at her like this, once upon a time. And she betrayed him; just like, right now, she was betraying Komaru Naegi too. “I'm… an awful person, Naegi-chan. You don't know me.”
“But I want to!” Komaru cried, surging forward to take her clenching hands. “I want to, Maizono-chan. I always thought you were lovely. Don't be so hard on yourself! So far, nothing I've seen from you have made me think otherwise. You saved me. You didn't have to. And whenever I cry, you comfort me. Even though you shouldn't have to… you give me hope, everytime. And you don't think that's lovely?”
“I'm… That's not me.” Sayaka denied. “I'm not that. I've never been that.”
“That's how I see Maizono-chan.” Komaru insists. “I know I'm… not the most useful, or skilled… but I want to protect Maizono-chan like she's been doing for me. We both have these megaphones, so… maybe we can protect each other? I… people called me a white knight a lot online, you know… but I truly think being Sayaka's knight would be lovely. Would you let me?”
Slowly, she raised her hand to her mouth, pressed her bare-lips in a chase kiss, and bowed her head. Sayaka almost thought she'd kneel to complete the image. Her heart fluttered, and Sayaka blinked tears from her eyes. She wondered if they looked like stars; if her dark eyes were the same as hers. “My knight, then,” she whispered, and Komaru raised her head with a brilliant smile. “You'll regret it, but…”
“I would never regret it.” Komaru promised. “My princess, I would never regret you.”
“Ah…”
It should be silly, but… Sayaka didn't find it so. Her heart wavered, just as it had so many eons ago. The Naegi's had a way of making her hesitate—making her choke on that hesitation in turn.
Maybe Komaru would understand like Makoto did. Understand how important Ayaka was to her. Maybe she'd forgive her like her brother did, so long ago. But she wouldn't want her. Not when he didn't, either.
“That's what they always say,” she whispers, “And they're always wrong.”
Her knight doesn't believe her. They never do.