Kyubey lollops onto the scene and into her arms. I don't know.

"If I'd known this was going to happen I'd have taken better notes of specific things I could predict. The biggest one is the rain; it starts three Saturdays from now, suddenly and without warning, and is really strong. Over the next week it gets worse, so bad the entire city needs to go into bunkers, and it's not enough.

"I also have my powers, which came with my wish. I can stop time, and I can also rewind it. I could show it to you. I know it doesn't prove everything, but it's what I have."

"...you can show it to us?"

"Yeah. I can bring other people with me into the time stop. As for the rewinding—there are lots of things I could do. I could know the answers to a bunch of questions right now that I shouldn't know, because I asked them and then went back in time before I did so that I'm the only one who remembers them."

The two of them look at each other and, presumably, do not include Yutaka and Haru in their telepathic conversation.

Yutaka looks at Haru, then, and says, This is nerve-wracking.

They're tiny and if they're the ones who control Bunkyo I think I don't like the implications.

Yeah I'm not in love with that either!!

Like, did they inherit it from an older friend who died or moved, are they just into looking thirteen for some reason and they're actually twenty-five, have they been magical since they were ten and they're actually super experienced and powerful -

We could always ask but they might take offence at the presumed disdain for their apparent ages.

Yep.

"How about if it starts raining like you say, come back then," says Ichinoya.

"Okay. That's reasonable. But in the meantime I'd ask—just in case I'm legit, if it won't be too much trouble," Yutaka is so good at sonkeigo, just watch him, "to stockpile on seeds? That witch is really, really bad, and we could use everyone at full power if we can." He bows again. "Please."

"If you have the exact powers you just said you have you could steal them pretty easy," she points out.

"That... is true. You can hide them? Don't tell me where, I won't ask but if I do definitely don't tell me. Maybe Kyūbey could help you hide them? I'll do anything I can do to earn your trust."

"Maybe we will and maybe we won't."

"Is that all you came to say?"

"It was. Thank you for taking the time to listen, truly. I hope we can work together and avoid the worst." Yet another bow.

"Uh-huh. Bye now."

"Goodbye."

And they should be off.

Yep. Kyubey, are they really as old as they look?

I never asked them how old they were.

...that's kind of a weird answer. But you didn't contract with them when they were twenty and then they modified themselves to look younger or anything like that? Are they using bodies that'd be about the right shape and stuff if they had never made their wishes?

As far as I know.

I see.

What the fuck.