Chapter 36: Unum

Because all we are

Is everything we've done.

Kyouko started screaming the second she heard the call disconnect.

"Kyouko! Kyouko, what's wrong?" Kiku dropped her towel and ran out from behind the counter, trying to grab the redhead's shoulders and calm her down. But the taller girl threw her off and stumbled a step back, her lips and eyes going bone dry.

"Homura. Homura, she-"

"She what? What is Homura doing?"

She didn't know. She had no fucking idea, and that was what made this so scary. Not knowing was one of the most painful and terrible things in the whole wide world, but with Homura it was always tenfold.

"I don't know," Kyouko shuddered out at last, feeling her arm hairs beginning to stand on end. She was sweating from running off the train, but she felt colder than a witch's heart. "But I have to find her."

Kiku narrowed her eyes, seeming to somehow understand the situation. "Do you have any idea of where she might be?"

The question crushed her heart like a hammer. "No."

"If only we had some way to track her…" Mami muttered to herself as she emerged from behind the kitchen wall, a dark look on her face. The three of them fell into a deep, tense silence.

Then it dawned on all of them at once.

"The compass thing!" Kyouko yelled, slapping the counter.

Kiku's eyes flared. "The one we used to find Homura in that abandoned shack?"

"Yes! Do you still have it?"

"Well, I never threw it away. I probably planned to keep it as a keepsake of sorts... " the brunette turned and looked helplessly at Mami, who had her chin in her hand.

"If it's one of your belongings, Kiku, then it's sitting somewhere in the back," the blonde said. "We haven't even started unpacking yet. It might be in one of those boxes."

Kyouko threw her phone aside and tore into the back room, Kiku in close pursuit. Mami ran to the front door to announce that the cafe was officially closed for today before following them both, rolling up her sleeves in the process.

There was a frenzied crashing as the three of them rummaged through Kiku's things for the next several minutes, tossing aside anything that wasn't liable to break easily. Kyouko searched the hardest of all them, tearing through the cardboard boxes like they were made of butter. Normally Mami would have reprimanded her, but in the wild chase to find Homura before she did something presumably horrible to herself, the blonde held her tongue.

"Found it!" Kyouko roared at last, rising up from a pile of cardboard corpses and holding something up in her hand. In it was a small, rounded glass vial, just the right size to contain the little piece of enchanted metal inside.

The steel rod was already rattling like made in its container, straining against its glass barriers in its never ending task to reach a certain time traveler.

"Oh, I remember now," Mami sighed. "I had to back that thing inside a wall of styrofoam to muffle all the rattling."

"Let's go!" Kyouko bounded past the two of them and slipped out into the anteroom, almost kicking the front door down in her haste to get moving. She heard her friends scrambling to keep up with her somewhere behind, but didn't bother taking the time to wait for them. She had to reach Homura now. Kyouko didn't know if it was paranoia, instinct, intuition or heavenly knowledge that fixed her with the pure belief that her lover was in danger, but she didn't question the notion for a single second.

Her feet hit the pavement as she ran up the length of the street, eyes fixed on the little makeshift compass in her hand. It was pointing north, away from downtown Mitakihara. The redhead could only think of one plausible location in that direction.

The lake.

Kyouko's phone buzzed in her pocket, where she had shoved it after picking it up on her way out. She yanked it out and answered it without breaking stride, breath coming out in harsh, crystallizing gasps.

"Hello?!"

"Kyouko! Where's Four?!"

"Huh?"

"Four's not home! I came back because I forgot my phone and I found Five all alone in the house! Is Homura there with you? Is she with Four? She was at my apartment this morning but she won't answer any of my calls. Kyouko, I-"

"Wait, hold up!" Kyouko interrupted up Mishki angrily, pausing for a split moment to turn the corner. "Why was Homura at your apartment?"

"Didn't you know? She's been helping Four control her restorative magic for the past few weeks...listen, Kyouko, are they there with you? I'm fine as long as they're together, but if Four's alone out there somewhere I…"

The rest of Mishki's sentence faded off somewhere into the ether. Kyouko was still running, her legs were still moving and her lungs were still straining, but her mind was now lost in a far away place. Because everything had just fallen perfectly, horribly into place at long last.

"Kyouko. Kyouko? Hello?"

"Holy shit," the redhead murmured, closing the phone as she transformed.

"You know," Four said quietly, "When you walked in on our base in Kazamino that one day I never expected I'd end up in this kind of position."

You don't say. Homura thought, smiling wryly to herself. All the emotion in her soul had been drained by those few tears she had allowed herself to shed at the bottom of the hill. Still, she lacked the energy to voice her sarcasm.

"I'm sorry that I have to make you do this," she said. Four could only smile back, a pained expression on her face. They were sitting on the very top of the fated hill, with the space of but a few feet between them. A few feet and a patch of overgrown grass. That was all that stood between her and a blank slate.

"I'm not really the sentimental type. You know that," Four said. A slow wind breezed between them, mocking and almost caustic in the way it tried to steal the child's words. Behind them, the sun was rising ever so slowly behind the lake, beginning to paint the surface of the water an aggressive, sparkling white. But the sky was still black, and the moon still shone, as if the heavens were engaged in a civil war.

"But," she continued, raising one delicate looking finger, "I want you to know that I'm so thankful for everything you've done for me. From being my teacher, to being Mishki's friend, to being Five's friend. For being my friend."

Homura smiled genuinely this time, even as the heavy sickness in her stomach seemed to double in intensity. "We'll always be friends, Four. Because we understand each other."

Her student blinked. "If you forget how to use your magic too, maybe I'll be the teacher for once, eh?"

They both shared a dry laugh. Yes, it was best to think of it that way. That there were more things to look forward to than things to miss. Indeed, this was for the best. Homura was making the right choice. She had already known that.

Yet she felt so cold.

Their laughter died down, and a serious expression dominated Four's face again.

"Did you say goodbye to Sakura-san?" she asked softly. The stars above her head winked, as if to say that they, too, wished to know.

Homura sank her fingers into the thick tufts of grass by her knee. "I tried."

Surprisingly, Four just nodded in understanding.

"That's just how it works, sometimes."

That being said, the child closed her eyes and inhaled long and deep, taking in the essence of the lake, the stars, the sun, the clouds, the suffering girl in front of her.

"I can't give a one hundred percent guarantee that this will work," she said. "I can heal physical injuries, undoubtedly, but this is a manipulation of the soul. Aside from the chances of success, other unpredictable phenomena may occur. I'll be immobilized during the spell, so I won't be able to protect you if anything goes wrong."

"I understand," Homura whispered. Four nodded.

A black light, familiar at this point, encircled the child's body and changed her form. The usual circlet manifested itself around Four's brow, the angry dark diamond in its center flaring with a visceral light. Homura made sure to keep her eyes on the Soul Gem the entire time. Within those fractured black holes lay the obliteration of her memory.

Four breathed in again, summoning her magic in one swift move. A smooth band of energy appeared around the girl's hands, snaking around her wrists like it was alive. It gave off a latent glow that bathed both their faces, casting wild shadows where should have been none. The wind swept through them again, and Homura imagined that the world itself were shivering along with her.

"Are you ready?" Four asked. The question sounded almost comical, and Homura had to resist the urge to actually laugh. Ready? How the hell was she supposed to answer something like that?

Raising her head and meeting her now former student's eyes, Homura said, "I'm going to miss being the only one who knows you this well."

A few tears sprang to Four's eyes.

"You won't forget. I'm sure of it," she whispered.

She lowered her hands, and the soft black light shot forth and impacted Homura's chest. The time traveler gasped and threw her head back, her body snapping so fast that for a moment the line from her neck to her chin was a straight line. The black light erupted upon contact, expanding to consume her entire body, even snaking down to burrow into the dark purple Soul Gem embedded in the girl's hand.

As Homura spasmed in front of her, Four closed her eyes and willed her heart to still. She could feel her own grip on consciousness slipping away. In a few moments she would be immobile, leaving everything else to fate.

She could only hope that this time it would be kinder to the both of them.

"Goodbye, Akemi Homura," Four said. "May you find happiness in this life and the next."

Goodbye, Kyouko, Homura thought as she saw Four's head go limp. I love you.

[Kyouko! Kyouko, wait!]

Kyouko ignored her friends completely, instead choosing to focus on leaping from building to building as fast as she could. Roof tiles cracked and exploded beneath the weight of her haste, but the redhead paid this no mind as she flew across the skyline of Mitakihara, heading towards the one place one her mind at the moment.

[Kyouko, just what is going on?]

Turning in midair, the redhead stared irritably at the two puella magi following behind her. Kiku and Mami had both transformed upon seeing her leap atop the nearest building, but they were just a little bit slower than her. Kiku because she wasn't as used to roof jumping, and Mami because she didn't have the gall to leave the brunette behind.

Gritting her teeth, she decided to allow them to catch up to her. Propelling herself high into the air, she landed on top of the spire of a clock tower, hanging onto the long needle that protruded from the tower's head with one arm. The harsh winds made her coattails flap around like crazy, but she ignored them as she thought agitatedly that an apple or two would have been really handy right now.

[Look, this is going to sound really crazy,] Kyouko relayed back to the rapidly approaching girls, [But I think Homura's going to try and use Four to restore her soul.]

[How do you know that?] Mami asked, nearing the clock tower.

[Mishki just called me. Said that Homura's been taking Four out for a while now, helping her to control her powers.]

Mami leapt high and joined Kyouko at the spire, with Kiku following shortly afterward with less grace.

"So you're saying she might have had an ulterior motive?" the blonde asked, reaching up to shield her ringlets from the wind.

"Maybe. We don't know for sure," Kyouko replied impatiently, her own crimson mane whipping out behind her. "But I do know that messing with your soul like that is probably dangerous. We need to find Homura immediately-"

The redhead was cut off as a deep boom erupted from somewhere behind her. Whirling around, her irises shrank when she saw a massive column of black light arcing out towards the sky, long lines of dark electricity running along its length. Her eyes followed the black tower down to where it had originated, to the solid swirling ball of black magic that was steadily growing just beside the lake.

"Is that...is that Homura?" Kiku whispered, clutching at Mami's sleeve.

"It's got to be," Kyouko whispered, letting go of the spire.

She pushed off with just enough force to propel her to the nearest rooftop, feeling Mami and Kiku moving behind her. She landed hard on top of a library far below, then broke into a full sprint, keeping her eyes fixed on the black tower of light the entire time.

Somewhere in the middle of that lightless monstrosity, Homura was there. As Kyouko leapt across a gap between two buildings, she thought that seeing her own face was probably what the time traveler wanted least right now. But she wasn't going to let Homura take on the world by herself anymore, whether she liked it or not.

"What are you gonna do when you get there?!" Kiku shouted after her, and Kyouko heard the question but did not respond. The invariable truth was that she had no idea. But she was running anyway. Because she had to. Love tended to do that to a person.

The buildings thinned and ultimately disappeared, giving way to a vast grove of trees. Kyouko leapt forward and dove into the upper canopy of thickly bristled pines, calling up a crimson shield to protect her face as she crashed through a solid wall of branches and needles. She broke through the foliage and fell straight towards the soft earthen floor, her shield crashing into the ground and driving a deep indent into the dirt. She dispelled the barrier and continued running, following the sounds of burning magic. Kiku and Mami dove through the hole in the canopy Kyouko had opened for them.

The trees were thick and clustered here, and Kyouko couldn't see past them to the hill. There was only the dull roar of the black sphere manifesting itself somewhere beyond the treeline, and the wind that was howling around her ears, as if agitated by what was taking place here. She forced herself to run even faster, lungs heaving and legs sparking with bursts of raw magic.

The pines crowded even closer together, as if to prevent her progress. The leaves and branches around her were swaying in the wind as dirt flew through the air in clumps. Kyouko snarled and swept her spear in front of her like a reaper, tearing through the natural barriers in her way.

With one final choked cry, she toppled a massive pine and broke out of the tree line.

What she saw there made her heart stop.

A great big hill was soaring high above her head, the long grasses that covered it rippling violently in the storm winds. At the top was the black sphere, a twisting, impossible mass of raw magic surging in on itself in endless circles. It was so thick that Kyouko could barely see what was going on inside, but she could just make out the silhouettes of two small girls sitting across from each other.

"Oh, god," Kiku murmured, as she and Mami finally made it out of the woods behind her. The beam of light rising up and penetrating the sky surged and grew even wider, rings of excess energy flying up its length. The very air around them seemed to be vibrating, and the little rocks that littered the lakebed shivered in place.

Kiku saw it and thought that it looked like the end of the world.

"Homura!" Kyouko screamed, lifting her spear and charging towards the hill. No one told her to wait, because all of them felt the inexplicable need to interfere with this phenomenon as soon as possible. The three of them were just reaching the base of the hill, Kyouko squarely in the lead, when the redhead abruptly balked and raised both arms above her head.

Two explosions ripped into them from both sides, as the twin claymores that Homura had planted beneath the dirt were tripped and detonated. A thick plume of smoke and flaming dirt and rocks engulfed them in an instant, the debris being whipped around by the hideous wind.

When the smoke cleared a moment later, Kyouko was standing with one hand above her head, a flickering red barrier extending from her fingers and enclosing all three of them. Small rocks and flecks of dirt and grass carried by the wind collided into it, fizzling out of existence when they made contact with the redhead's magic.

"What in the world is going on!" Mami yelled over the wind. Kyouko just held her other hand up to silence her, as above them the sphere flared again, and this time something inside moved.

[Don't try to stop me, Kyouko!]

The black silhouette of Akemi Homura arose into their field of vision, as the time traveler summoned the strength to stand and face them. She staggered slowly to the very edge of the sphere, looking down at them with a black face that had only two twin lights burning where the eyes should have been, her mane of hair flowing behind her like a dark flame.

[Don't try to stop me,] the silhouette moaned again, swaying limply back and forth in the wind. [Don't make this hurt any more than it already does. It has to be this way, Kyouko. I promise this way is for the best. This way, I can live.]

"At what cost!" Kyouko screamed back up at the caricature of her lover, fingers gripping the shaft of her spear so hard they turned white. Her voice was stolen immediately by the tornado-like winds that had completely swallowed the hill by now, but somehow the silhouette seemed to understand her.

[At the cost of memory. At the cost of experience.] The silhouette didn't have face, but it seemed to smile. [But that's fine. Those things can be replaced, given time. But you only get one life. And I intend to spend all of it with you.]

"God damn it!" Kyouko shielded her eyes and attempted to take a step forward, only to have another mine explode against the front of her barrier. The redhead swore as she had to throw everything into keeping the shield up, because even the wind seemed to be fighting her now, tearing at her defenses like it was enraged that she would even think to question the spectre standing atop the hill.

Gritting her teeth, Kyouko looked back up, just in time to see an arrow being pointed straight at her.

[It ends here, Kyouko,] the silhouette said from behind the black arrow she had pulled back, cocked and ready to fly. The twin lights in the girl's face seemed to burn brighter than ever. [Either stand still or leave. Otherwise this arrow will fly.]

"Homura…" Kiku whispered from inside the barrier, falling to her knees with tears welling in her eyes. She held her hands up to her face, as if she wanted to bury them together. "When you said you wanted us to love the new you...this wasn't what I thought...oh, Homura…"

The brunette lowered her head and began to cry, and Mami bent down to comfort her. But Kyouko did not move. She stood completely still, legs shoulder length apart and her spear plunged into the dirt pointing forward. She was the only one who didn't lower her head, because her blood red eyes were boring holes into the colorless figure standing atop the hill, holding them all hostage with a single arrow.

What was it about this image that enraged her so? Was it the twisting winds, the pines bending underneath them, or the small fires smoldering in the grass around them in the aftermath of the mines? No. No, it wasn't any of that. The only thing about the figure standing atop the hill, in all its moral and magical glory, was that it stood alone. Akemi Homura was standing alone.

And that was something she simply could not accept.

"Mami," Kyouko murmured, "Get Kiku out of here."

The blonde bared her teeth. "We aren't leaving you."

"And I'm not asking you to," Kyouko replied bluntly. Twirling her spear, she planted it firmly into the ground. Her head turned to make eye contact with the blonde, who inhaled sharply when she saw the fire burning there.

"Tell Kiku to get to the other side of the hill. I have a plan."

In this little world she had created for herself, she was alone.

Homura didn't know that she looked like nothing more than a black outline from the outside of the sphere, but the truth was that she looked no different on the inside either. When she looked down her arms, her legs, even the smoldering bow in her hands had turned pitch black. An empty void, perhaps soon to be filled.

She could feel her memories slipping away already. Random little thoughts, tidbits and images from her long and arduous past, were breaking free from her soul and flying out to join the swirling vortex all around her. In the walls of the black sphere she could see all of her loved ones' faces filtering upwards until they were blasted into the sky. The wind was screaming in her ears, the grass lashed at her ankles, and her heart wept silently as Homura kept her midnight tipped arrow trained on the red barrier at the base of the hill.

To the bitter end, the two of us butt heads, Homura thought with a wry smile. A huge plume of dust was swirling around Kyouko's shield, as if the girl were ravaging the earth in her anger. She could hardly see the redhead through it. Homura wondered if she would wake up to find that Kyouko still hated her. Would her lover direct any anger towards someone who knew nothing?

Beside her, Four was slumped over onto the grass, her arms sprawled out over her head. Her heavy coat was rippling in the wind. The dozen Grief Seeds she had shoved into her pocket were working overtime to absorb the massive amounts of despair that were accumulating around them. Inside of her own chest Homura could feel the tendrils of Four's magic grabbing her soul and forcing the holes closed. Her memories destroyed, one by one. It wasn't unlike the time Tayoshi had attempted to eat her soul. Homura's entire being was open to the air, as the black mass that had been her essence was exposed for the world to see.

She had never felt more vulnerable in her life.

Something dark and heavy tugged at the corners of Homura's consciousness, and she knew she was going to black out soon. Her grip on the bow was swaying gently back and forth. As her eyes began to droop closed, Homura grip on the arrow went slack.

It was then that the impossible happened.

Something erupted through the barrier behind her, and suddenly Sakura Kyouko was bounding across the crest of the hill towards them, spear held high above her head, mouth screaming bloody murder. Before Homura could even react, the redhead dove straight for Four's paralyzed body and brought the spear down on her fragile frame.

"NO!" Homura screamed, firing the arrow. It missed and wizzed past Kyouko's head, colliding into the wall of the black sphere and exploding. A thick wave of heat rolled into her face as she threw the bow down and charged across the grass, diving straight for the redhead's midsection.

Kyouko's body fizzled and froze as Homura passed right through it like a ghost.

The time traveler's eyes went wide as she flew straight through the redhead's stomach and rolled to the edge of the black sphere, a cloud of flaming debris raining down around here from where the arrow had detonated. One horrified eye took in the sight of the Kyouko-illusion as it cracked and shattered into a million different specks of green glass, the telltale sign of a certain brunette's magic.

"Right now! Hurry!" Kyouko barked behind her, one hand tugging the yellow ribbon tied around her waist as taut as possible.

"Here goes nothing!" Mami yelled as she gripped her own end of the ribbon. Rearing back, she swung the magic rope behind her as hard as she could. Kyouko was lifted clear off her feet as the blonde began spinning her like the end of a lasso in the air. The redhead covered her eyes and kept her barrier around her as she felt herself gaining momentum, the entire world spinning perilously around her.

"YAHHH!" Mami yelled, planting her foot and launching every muscle in her body forward. The ribbon snapped taut and yanked Kyouko forward, and suddenly she was being thrown forward at an incredible speed, so fast that even the winds could not stop her. At the very apex of her flight, the redhead's spear lashed out and cut the yellow rope, and now she was hurtling up the hill at lightning speed, arms flailing like mad as she felt her body crashing into the wall of the black sphere-

-and now she was tumbling across burning grass on the other side, her shield dissipating as her spear flew out of her hand and slid off the side of the hill. Grabbing onto a tuft of grass to stop herself and looking up, Kyouko's eyes locked immediately on Homura's small, black form, the very same moment that the time traveler was watching Kiku's illusion shatter into a myriad of pieces.

Screaming the girl's name, Kyouko began to charge.

Homura's eyes went wide and she scrambled backward when she saw the redhead coming straight at her, hastily trying to summon another bow and arrow to defend herself. Suddenly it was another race against time as Kyouko bared her teeth and ran faster, a new bow materialized in the shield user's hand, and in one swift movement she drew it back and aimed for the redhead's knee-

Kyouko roared as the black arrow pierced the flesh just above her ankle, pitching forward as her entire right leg buckled from the sudden injury. She grabbed Homura around the waist and dragged them both down to the grass, where they immediately began to wrestle, fists flying and fingers scrabbling. Kyouko was blinded by the stream of light pouring out of Homura's chest, but she was physically stronger and her experience in hand to hand combat could not be matched. Soon Homura's flailing arms were pinned to the grass and her chest was exposed, her gaping wide soul was exposed-

Kyouko grabbed Homura and pulled her into a crushing hug, and their souls met each other for what felt like the first time.

She heard Homura scream into her ear, and suddenly a blinding light was erupting from between them, reaching out and engulfing them faster than either of them could react. Her Soul Gem flared a great, brilliant red, and suddenly the sky was painted a radiant mosaic of red, purple, and pure, pure white.

The light grew stronger with every passing moment, the wind was howling at them and tearing the entire hill apart, and the ground shook as if the earth itself were afraid for its life. And amid all the terror, amid the calamity and the confusion and the anguish, Kyouko wrapped her arms around Homura and hugged her as tight as she could, dominated only by a single thought that had been burning in her heart since the day they had met.

I don't want you to be alone anymore.

Outside, the black sphere had turned a gleaming white, and Kiku gasped when it suddenly exploded outwards. It swept through the pines and swallowed the entire city. Now the light was everywhere, consuming everything, burning the grass and the hill and the lake and the very sky above them…

The light enveloped everything, and the world became so white that even a certain Goddess could see it from her perch amongst the heavens.

And if she were to peer closer, she would have seen two brightly colored flames becoming one.

But she would have had only a moment to look, because soon the light was bright enough to blind the greatest of gods.

And thus the world changed.

A small crow was flying across the lake when it saw the aftermath of a great calamity.

Being just a mere crow, the bird obviously could not comprehend what had taken place here. He could only see the calm waves from the lake that lapped the shore, and the singed pebbles that dotted its banks. From his position in the sky he saw a great hill that was quietly smoldering with little fires. The spot at the very top of the hill seemed to be almost entirely devoid of life, as if God himself had smote the one place in particular. The tops of the pines in the forest were burned or still burning for a mile in every direction, and the ones closest to the hill were but charred black skeletons.

Curious, the crow flapped his wings and dove down towards the crest of the hill for a flyby. Thin columns of smoke rose steadily from the area, thickening the air and making it easy for him to hover in place for a brief moment. It seemed that he had been wrong; two small figures lay curled next to each other atop the hill, the only living things in a circle of death and desolation.

The bird's sharp beady eyes picked up a small slip of paper clutched in one of the girl's hands. It was held in an awkward manner, as if the girl had fallen unconscious while attempting to pull it out of her pocket. The edges were singed, but the message scribbled onto the paper was still wholly intact.

Unfortunately bird can not read, and this particular crow chose to turn tail and fly somewhere else in search of a nesting spot. But if there were to be a world where common crows were literate, here is a little bit of what the letter would have said:

Dear me,

Today, I made a promise.

I made a promise to always stay by the side of those I love.

Because as horrible as they can be, people need each other.

And no one conquers the world alone.

When Homura opened her eyes, she found herself sitting in the middle of a vast field of flowers.

Looking down, she saw that she was seated in a small white chair. Her hands were folded neatly across her lap, and though she could not move, she lacked the desire to do so anyway. She felt content sitting here like this, among the neverending stretches of multicolored roses and lilies. The sky above her head was a pure baby blue, with only the occasional wisp of cloud. Somewhere beyond her field of vision, the day bird were chirping. The air smells of fragrance.

It was paradise.

"You're a real troublemaker, you know that?"

Homura turned her head, and for the first time she was allowed to look Madoka square in the face.

The Goddess didn't look like much of one. In fact, the petite girl was sitting beside Homura in a little white chair of her own, dressed in the familiar school uniform. Her pink locks were tied up in the usual twin tails, and her eyes were as demure and innocent as Homura remembered. For one terrifying moment she wondered if everything had been a dream.

"Trouble is my middle name," she murmured back, as a sweet breeze caressed her hair.

Madoka giggled, and somehow the spell was broken. No, this hadn't all been a dream.

"That sounds like something Kyouko would say," the pinkette smile behind her hand. That beloved smile. It tugged another onto Homura's own face, and for a moment she remembered how much she had loved and adored this girl at a certain point in her life.

"I suppose." Homura kept the smile on her face as she looked back out at the flowers, trying to see where they ended. They didn't seem to end at all. It was just lush green and smooth, blue sky forever.

"I tried to create a calming scene for you. You've been through a lot today, right?" Madoka said, looking at the scenery herself. Homura eyed the girl discreetly. There was a certain confidence in Madoka's actions that didn't feel familiar. Indeed, this wasn't the same girl she had known in the past.

No, this certainly wasn't a dream.

"Am I dead?" It occurred to Homura immediately afterwards that she seemed to ask that question a lot, especially to Madoka. But it was a high priority inquiry, wasn't it?

The Goddess sighed, stroking at one of her hair ties absentmindedly. "Thankfully, no. You're still alive. But I've never come closer to taking someone through the Cycle before. Only you could put your own soul through so much and somehow come out of it unscathed."

Homura stared down at her hands, which were soft and flawless where they should have been burned and scarred. "What happened to me?"

Madoka exhaled slowly through her nose, closing her eyes for a brief moment. The flower grove rustled quietly around them in agreement. Somewhere out there the birds went silent.

"It's hard to say exactly. You never know for sure when it comes to us magical girls." she offered a small smile. "But...she saved you, Homura-chan. Somehow, she introduced her own soul into yours and managed to meld them together. An incredible feat in itself. In fact, it was rather similar to the way I absorb the grief of other puella magi."

Homura blinked. "Meld? As in...we're sharing the same soul now?"

"In essence." The Goddess shrugged. "I'm still trying to figure it out myself. I'm just a concept, you know? I don't know everything. But I do know that you aren't sick anymore, Homura. Your souls are now in eternal matrimony, inhabiting both your bodies simultaneously. You and Kyouko are now one and the same."

Homura kept staring down at herself. "How is that even possible?" she whispered.

Madoka shook her head. "It's hard to say. Neither of you are concepts yourselves, like me. But I imagine it has something to do with the fact that your soul was pulled open by Four's magic. That and a whole lot of love."

The pinkette fell silent as her friend sat there wordlessly, struggling to understand what had taken place. Then something else occurred to her.

"So you were watching. The whole time?"

Madoka smiled. "I made you a promise, Homura. Whether you know I'm there or not, I'm always watching over you. You're my best friend, after all."

The time traveler looked away. "Then you must have seen all the terrible things I've done."

"I did. And I don't care," Madoka assured her, reaching out a touching her shoulder. Homura looked at the point where they made contact, wondering if that was real too. "You did what you felt was the best thing to do. I can't condemn anyone for that. You just happened to be wrong. And thank the Cycle that you were."

Homura stared quietly back at Madoka, eyes searching the girl's face.

"Is this appearance right now a part of your 'calming scene' too?" she asked at last.

Madoka closed her eyes and laughed. "I suppose I shouldn't be trying to baby you."

Her form glowed with a golden light, and now Homura was looking at the Goddess in all her glory. A long, white flowing dress spilled over the borders of the chair and onto the lilies at their feet. Her pink locks grew until they hung over the back of the chair. She closed her eyes, and when they reopened the irises were a brilliant yellow.

"After all," the Goddess continued, "You were always the one babying me, weren't you?"

Homura found herself smiling. "I don't think you need babying anymore."

Madoka smiled and shook her head in agreement. Homura looked back at the field of flowers.

"Did you create this all yourself?" she asked.

"I had to. Nothing can happen in this realm unless I permit it. I even have to schedule when it rains! It's absolutely horrid!"

They both giggled at that, and for a moment Homura felt like it was the old days again. When it had been her and Madoka and the rest of their friends living life together. What had been so fulfilling about those sun filled days?

Homura knew the answer already. She had loved those times because she hadn't been alone.

Madoka sighed and wiped a mirthful tear from her eye, then rested her head against Homura's shoulder.

"You know, for a Goddess I happen to be pretty selfish," she said. "Whenever you came close to the brink of death, there was always the small thought in my mind that I would finally get to have you for myself. Even right now, I could probably detach your soul from your mortal body and bring it to this realm. Your physical self if very weak right now."

Homura closed her eyes and felt the pinkette's hair tickle her ear.

"Why don't you, then?"

"Because you have people waiting for you, Homura. People waiting to love you and be loved by you. I can't stop that from happening. So for now, I'm going to let you go."

Madoka left Homura's shoulder and stood up, the white chair she had been sitting in fading out of sight. She clasped her hands behind her and smiled, and in that moment she looked truly majestic, among the glittering flowers and the perfect azure of the sky.

"We'll be together again one day," the Goddess promised. "This is but a temporary goodbye, you hear?"

She waved one gloved hand then, and the world started to recede from Homura's vision. The flowers closed up and retreated, the sky darkened, and Madoka herself became a tiny golden speck of light in the ether.

Yes, Homura thought, as her head fell forward. Just a temporary goodbye.

Those were the best kind.

When Homura opened her eyes again, she was greeted with the gray ceiling of a hospital room.

Her heart panicked in a moment of forgetfulness, briefly assuming that she was waking up from yet another time leap, yet another failed attempt to save Madoka. But no, that wasn't it. Those days were over.

She was tucked firmly into the bed she was laying in, the covers drawn up to her chin. A fat pillow was keeping her head at a slight angle. Looking down, she saw that she was dressed in a hospital gown and had an IV drip running into her arm. Somewhere by the window a machine was monitoring her heart rate, its slow, mechanical beeps filling the room with its gentle ambience.

Homura turned her head and squinted at the light poking through the blinds. It must have been around the afternoon. Blinking to dispel the distortion, she turned her head the other way.

That was when she saw her.

Kyouko was sitting upright on the edge of her own bed, which was situated just a few feet away from Homura's. She was in a gown too, and even had a bunch of bandages and stitches on her leg and face. They made eye contact in the quiet hospital room, and for a moment Homura was afraid to see hatred in those deep red eyes.

But the girl's irises filled with relief instead, and she opened her mouth hesitantly.

"H...Homura?"

"Kyouko," she rasped back, and suddenly Kyouko was tearing the IV drip out of her arm and running to Homura's bed, where the time traveler was sitting up just in time to pull the redhead into a tight hug. The redhead buried her face into Homura's chest and began to cry immediately, and Homura held her back and cried with her, not even caring that Kyouko rarely ever cried. It was that blessed moment of assurance, of relief and the belief that everything was going to be alright.

"I'm so sorry," Homura whispered harshly through her tears, squeezing Kyouko hard against her. "I'm so, so sorry…"

"God, Homura, you fucking idiot," Kyouko sobbed back, punching the girl's arm lightly. "You stupid, fucking idiot…"

"I almost lost everything," Homura said in a hushed voice, throat made thick by emotion. "I almost threw it all away, my memories, my love, everything. I was so scared. I'm sorry…"

"Don't apologize," Kyouko said roughly against the hem of Homura's gown. Reaching up, she grabbed the girl's face and forced her to make eye contact. "Just never, ever do something like that again. I love you, Homura. I love you so fucking much. For you to just leave like that, I would...I-"

"I know. I'm sorry," Homura murmured, stroking the redhead's hair as she continued to bawl. "I'll never leave you again, Kyouko. I promise. We'll always be together."

There was a banging from outside in the hall, and suddenly a whole team of doctors was barging in and yelling at them to get back in bed and reconnect to their IVs, what the hell were they thinking? Were they crazy? A knot of nurses surrounded them and tried to pry Kyouko off of Homura, but the redhead kicked and yelled back at them. In the end they had to sedate her, and the nurses carried a limp Kyouko back to her bed for the night. After extracting a promise from Homura that they wouldn't act up again, the doctors left the room.

That night, Homura closed her eyes and slept with the knowledge that Kyouko was there with her. And at some point in the moon's cycle, the redhead left bed again and crawled into hers, wrapping her arms around Homura's middle and pulling her close.

And in that moment they were both happy.

Homura could feel in their shared soul.

The days following that were mostly centered around recovering. Kyouko had sustained a number of cuts and bruises all over her body from the flying debris around the hill, and while those were no big deal for a magical girl, the real problem was the hole Homura had blasted in the redhead's right calf.

Even with magic as a resource, it still took a significant amount of time for the injury to heal. It was a wound inflicted through supernatural means, after all. Homura apologized to Kyouko about a million times a day for the incident, and no matter how many times she was told that it was alright she still felt a crippling guilt over it. To the point that it kept her up at night, and Kyouko would have to kiss her and soothe her relentlessly until the time traveler fell asleep.

There was of course the issue of explaining the whole thing to the medical staff, but apparently Kiku was taking care of that. Something about a mini tornado descending upon the lake when they had been in the middle of a barbecue. It was a far fetched story at best, but Kiku somehow managed to persuade the doctors with the help of a little magic. She and Mami had sustained minor injuries during the incident, and called to tell Homura that they would visit as soon as the doctors allowed them to.

And then there was Four. The child had been left unconscious like the rest of them on the side of the hill, where she had been thrown by the powerful winds. In fact, the only reason why any of them had been found so soon was because the Mitakihara police department had arrived in full force intending to deal with a "terrorist attack." Homura managed to needle the doctors enough to learn that Four was being kept on a different floor, and that her injuries were not serious. Mishki had apparently visited every day and was scheduled to take the child home in a few days.

The news flooded Homura's heart with relief.

Besides finding all that out, however, the only other thing she really had to do was sit around and think. And there was a lot to think about, indeed.

She and Kyouko were now sharing the same soul. It was a difficult idea to grapple within one's mind, and the ramifications of such an idea were completely unknown to either of them in the beginning. Whenever they had a chance, deep into the night when even the most diligent of nurses were asleep, the two of them would transform and search for answers.

The first thing they discovered was that Homura truly was, indeed, cured. None of the fatigue that had plagued her being for so long existed any longer. It was as if a massive weight had been lifted from her preson, like she were the Greek titan Atlas and Zeus had come to tell her that she no longer had to hold the sky on her shoulders. She felt lighter and happier than she had ever been in her entire life, and she spent the majority of the first day marvelling over this fact. The only benefit of pain was the bliss that followed its alleviation.

A number of other changes had taken place as well. They could now sense each other's thoughts much more easily now; in fact, Homura had to put conscious effort into making sure that Kyouko couldn't hear literally everything that went through her head. Oftentimes one of them would get a craving for a certain time of food, usually Kyouko, and Homura would instinctively know that the redhead had a particular desire for fish that evening.

It was uncanny and odd in its own way, but strangely intimate too. Sometimes the redhead would lay in her bed and stare quietly at Homura, and the time traveler would blush when she interpreted the loving thoughts running through Kyouko's mind.

There might have been changes to their magic too, but there was no real way to test that within the confines of a hospital room surrounded by humans. The only thing Homura managed to confirm was that she had retained her ability to stop time. The rest remained a mystery.

Interestingly enough, both of them still retained their sense of self. They could feel each other's presence acutely now, but they still had a sense of individuality. Homura had her own thoughts and Kyouko had hers. Still, Homura quickly learned to cherish this new connection between them. Now she could finally say without being cheesy that their hearts were one.

A week passed, and the doctors finally decided that the two of them were healthy enough to allow visitors. Kiku and Mami visited the very next morning, and Homura had to endure yet another round of the "are you insane? You had us worried sick!" talk. But after Kiku was done blowing off steam she collapsed onto Homura's bed and sobbed uncontrollably, and Homura could only hug her and apologize. Kyouko snorted and rolled over to take a nap.

Eventually the brunette was all cried out, and she left the room rubbing her eyes and saying something about finding the bathroom. The door hissed shut behind her, and now it was just Homura and Mami in the room, with Kyouko snoring gently in her own bed.

The shield user stared out the window for a while, taking in the outside world. It was now the height of summer, and she could hear the distant shrieks of children playing outside. A cherry blossom was shedding its leaves by her window, and she followed a single petal in its descent until it disappeared beneath the window sill.

"I really made the wrong choice this time, didn't I?" she said at last, not looking at the blonde.

Mami smiled, occupying a stool by the bedside. She set her bag down and cupped her chin in her hand. "So you admit that you can't always be right?"

Homura smirked. "I'm rarely right, Mami. I just force things to go my way. But I guess I was in over my head this time."

The blonde sighed, shaking her head.

"You've always impressed me with how strong your will is, Homura. I never would have been able to even come up with a plan like that. But at the same time...I don't blame you. You were pushed into a corner, and you saw what you thought was your only way out. Even if it meant forgetting everything."

Homura turned her head away from the window, instead fixing her eyes on the ceiling. "Do you think things would have been alright, if I did go through with it? Would I have been alone in the end?"

Mami stayed quiet for a significant duration, and Homura looked back at the window, not expecting to get an answer. She knew the blonde didn't like hypotheticals. She didn't either, to tell the truth.

"I don't think you would have been alone. Because you would have had us," Mami said at last.

Homura hummed in understanding.

"But it wouldn't have been the same."

"Why not?"

"Because the rest of us would have felt alone instead," Mami said simply.

Homura hummed again, and this time it was in agreement.

It was funny. Her magic revolved around time, yet even she was caught off guard by what a single year or two could do to your life. She remembered a time where their roles had been reversed, when she had been the one visiting Mami in a hospital, not out of benevolence but disgust. So much had changed since then. And Homura could only feel shame about it.

"There was a time," Homura said out loud, "Long ago, when I called you fool for not wanting to be alone."

"Yes."

"I ridiculed you. I despised you. I thought you had your priorities all messed up. I thought your desire to love and be loved was going to get you killed one day."

Mami chuckled dryly. "Did you really?"

"I did." Homura finally turned her head and looked the blonde in the eye, face painted with regret. Mami blinked in surprise. "But now I understand why you feel that way. Being alone is so scary. It hurts and it's cold. I called you a fool, but in truth I was the real fool. I thought I could conquer the world alone. But I was wrong. So...I'm sorry. For doubting you."

Mami stared at her friend for a brief moment, then smiled and patted the girl's head gently.

"It was never anything so grandiose," she murmured. "I just wanted someone by my side, is all. But I'm glad you finally understand. And I'm glad we have each other."

Homura nodded quietly, and that was that.

"Oh, that reminds me," Mami said, picking up her bag and reached into it. Homura looked on curiously as the blonde pulled a small pile of things from the bag. "The police said they were done with their investigation, as well they should be. Kiku managed to...'convince' them like she did with the doctors." she used air quotes for emphasis, and Homura had to stifle a laugh.

"Anyways, your things were being held as evidence. They said I could give them back to you." Mami placed a small pile of dirty, tattered clothes on the bedside table.

Homura wrinkled her nose. "What exactly am I supposed to do with those?"

Mami shrugged. "I don't know. You can throw them out if you want to. But there's this, too. The police were a little more reluctant to let go of it, but I managed. I don't know what it says, but it looks important. I won't pry."

She placed a small piece of paper on top of the clothes, its edges charred and gray. Homura recognized it immediately, but didn't say anything about it.

"Thank you," she murmured. Mami nodded and stood up, throwing her bag over her shoulder.

"No problem. I'll grab Kiku and go home. You get some more rest." She turned and walked towards the door, stopping for a moment to roll her eyes at a snoring Kyouko. "Maybe pick up a few tips from this one, hm?" Homura laughed, and the blonde waved farewell before disappearing through the door.

She waited until she couldn't hear the girl's footsteps in the hall anymore, then snatched the letter into her hands. Unfolding the sheet of paper gingerly, for fear of damaging it any further, Homura's eyes took in the message she had left for herself in a different time.

Dear me,

Today, I made a promise.

I made a promise to always stay by the side of those I love. Because as horrible as they can be, people need each other. And no one conquers the world alone.

Sometimes the world is cold. Sometimes life tears everything apart and looks a little too much like death. But never forget how content you were in that moment, where the stars shone for you and her and we felt invincible. Because you only feel that way when you're with her. She is everything. Never forget that.

All we are is everything we've done. Everything.

Good or bad.

Don't ever throw that away.

-H

On the final day of Homura's hospital stay, the night before she was scheduled to be discharged, she got a surprise visit from an old friend.

Well, she wouldn't exactly call him a friend. But she was trying to think in positive terms these days.

She was about to go to sleep near midnight when she saw him. Kyouko was asleep, having turned in a little earlier. Homura had just pulled the covers up to her chin when her eye caught the outline of a small silhouette sitting on her windowsill.

[Long time no see,] Kyubey greeted her, sitting back on his haunches and looking demurely at her. Homura frowned and climbed back out of the bed, pulling up a stool by the window and sitting by the alien.

"Long time no see, Kyubey. Up to no good as usual, I assume?"

The little white animal flicked his ears. [Nonsense. I am simply playing my natural role in the virtuous fight against entropy.]

"Uh huh. Looks like you haven't changed one bit."

The alien shrugged and curled up on the windowsill, resting his head on his paws. Homura put her own arms on the sill and rested her head on them, indulging herself by playing with Kyubey's ringlets for a brief moment. Outside, the moon bathed Mitakihara in a pale glow.

"Why are you here, Kyubey?" she asked at last. "Do you need something from me? Where were you all this time, anyway?"

[This area has been purged of demons for the past several months, and will remain so for a number of years in the future,] Kyubey replied. [There is no reason for me to stay assigned to an area under such conditions. I've been roaming other areas of your country until now.]

"Then why come back?"

Kyubey flicked his ears again. [We observed a significant magical phenomenon taking place here several days ago. I knew that it had to involve you somehow, and since I am the most familiar with the puella magi in Mitakihara, I was ordered to investigate.]

"Oh." Homura stared absentmindedly down at the city below them, scratching Kyubey's head with a finger. "So what have you found out so far?"

[Nothing, unfortunately.] There seemed to be genuine frustration in the alien's voice. [You and Kyouko are the only two people who could possibly tell me anything of substance. I could approach Mami or Hanezawa-san, but neither of them trust me very much.]

Homura snorted. "And I do?"

[You have a track record of being more reasonable. So, would you mind enlightening me?]

Homura eyed Kyubey nervously. In the past, she had always been careful of how much information she could divulge to the alien. After all, the Incubators had an annoying habit of taking little tidbits of information and turning them into huge messes that they liked to call "a step forward in the fight against entropy."

But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't think of any way that this could be turned against them. And besides, she was tired. The days of calculating every action were past.

"Long story short, Kyouko and I share the same soul now," Homura said at last. "My soul was damaged, and I made a desperate move to save myself...then Kyouko came rushing in and somehow pulled it off. I can't really explain it myself. It must be somehow related to grief sharing, but otherwise I've got no idea."

[Incredible,] Kyubey murmured, pacing back and forth on the windowsill. [Then your powers must both have become significantly augmented. If we could deploy that kind of enhanced firepower against demons, our efficiency rate-]

"Kyouko and I don't plan on returning to the fight any time soon," Homura chided, bopping the alien lightly on the head. "We've had enough for a lifetime."

[But your power would be unprecedented!] Kyubey insisted. [Ordinary grief sharing already makes puella magi significantly stronger. At your level, you would be unstoppable. Why wouldn't you want that kind of power?]

"I guess you and I are just made of different stuff," Homura sighed. She couldn't really get mad at Kyubey's ignorance anymore, either. She was tired of doing that too. "I want to leave that chapter of my life behind. No more fighting."

Kyubey lashed his tail. [This safe haven of yours won't last forever, you know. The demons will remain eradicated for a little less than a decade at most, and two or three years at worst. Leaving the city at all will mean facing demons as well. This won't last.]

"We'll burn that bridge when we get to it," Homura yawned. It was getting late.

Kyubey cocked his head to the side.

[You really won't change your mind, then?]

Homura smiled back. "No."

The little alien stood up and approached the edge of the window sill, his long ears floating in the night breeze. [Then I suppose my being here has lost its significance.]

"I suppose."

[Goodbye, Akemi Homura. I would wish you well, but things usually don't turn out that way for your kind, do they?]

And then he was gone, melting into the night like some white spectre. Homura rolled her eyes and made to close the window. Kyubey just had to be that way until the end.

Still, she couldn't help feeling a little something as she watched the tiny alien figure leaping away from the hospital building. It felt like she really was saying goodbye to a chapter of her life forever. Her very existence as a puella magi had begun with Kyubey, and now it was ending the same way.

"Goodbye, Kyubey," Homura mouthed quietly, before going to sleep.

"I wish you well."

She could say that, unlike Kyubey, because she believed it. She believed she and Kyouko would turn out just fine.

And that wasn't a wish. It was reality.

Kyouko had apparently promised to buy Kanade lunch, and that little promise ended up turning into an entire scheduled party. Kanade, Seiyaku, and the rest of the Buzzers were all invited. Thalia was sent an invitation as well, but it was declined. Still, the girl called to tell Kyouko she was glad everything had worked out.

"It feels a little bit like you did it for both of us, you know?" Thalia had said through the phone.

"I don't know how to thank you," Kyouko had said back. "Are you sure you don't want to come?"

"No, I'm fine. It makes me happy just knowing that Homura's all right. I'm trying to make up for everything I've done, you know, little by little."

So that was that. Thalia wouldn't be coming, but everyone else was going to be there. Mishki, the twins, Mami and Kiku, and of course Homura. They were going to have a good long party with beer in Mami's apartment, mainly because it happened to be the biggest. The celebration was scheduled to start at two in the afternoon.

Now if only they had remembered to set an alarm.

"We're going to be late," was the first thing Homura grumbled when she opened her eyes, her nose squashed against Kyouko's bare collarbone. They were both naked beneath the sheets of their bed, back in their apartment. A simple, innocent tryst the previous night had become less and less simple or innocent when they both realized that sharing a soul made sex a lot more interesting.

"Not my fault," Kyouko grumbled back, sitting up in the bed. Homura crawled off her lover and yawned, holding a hand up to her mouth to stifle it. She blinked when the redhead suddenly leaned in and kissed her, long and sweet.

"What was that for?" she whispered when they parted, blushing when she saw the way Kyouko was looking at her. No matter how many times she saw them, Homura was always entranced by Kyouko's eyes. They told entire odysseys, not just stories.

"Nothing." The redhead grinned and nuzzled her lover's neck. "I just wanted to do that." Leaving those words hanging in the air, Kyouko lowered her head and started absentmindedly teasing Homura's collarbone with her mouth.

Homura shuddered as the girl's lips ghosted across her skin. It felt like the redhead was kissing both of them at once. They would definitely have to experiment extensively with that later, but right now they had to get going. Who wanted to be late to their own party?

"Later," she said sternly, putting a finger to Kyouko's nose and pushing her away. The redhead pouted, running her hands up and down Homura's sides in a dangerously convincing manner.

"But you look good enough to eat, Homura. Can't a have just a little bite of you?"

"You already had your meal," Homura chided. She slipped out of bed and made her way to the bathroom, her hips swaying enticingly behind her. "And if you don't hurry up, you won't be getting seconds."

Kyouko blinked as the girl's hidden meaning dawned on her, and she scrambled to get ready for the day.

"And we're here!" Kyouko yelled triumphantly, as the two of them entered Mami's apartment. Homura heard a massive cheer resonate from inside the building, and when she looked in she couldn't help smiling.

It seemed like everyone who had promised to come was there. All the Buzzers, Kanade, Mami, Kiku, Mishki and the twins. It was only roughly ten people, but to Homura they were the world. And seeing them all in one place made her heart smile so much it hurt.

She stepped into the room, and everyone suddenly went quiet when they saw her. She shifted about nervously, wondering if she had done something wrong.

Seiyaku was the first to step forward. "Homura," she said seriously, holding a hand out. She shook it gingerly. "I heard everything from these guys. I can't believe you would try to go through with something like that."

Homura bowed her head. "I know. It was stupid of me."

Seiyaku smiled. "Don't worry about it. What matters is that you're both okay. What I am worried about, however," she said, abruptly turning and plucking Kanade out of her seat, "Is that a certain someone had the gall to bring someone into the Church behind my back!"

Kanade squealed and struggled to free herself from Seiyaku's grip, but it was no use. "I said I was sorry! I had no choice, didn't I? It was to help Kyouko!"

"Yes, but you could just have told me! I would have done everything to help you two! Heck, I'd even pay the train fare if I could!"

They all laughed at that, and the mood finally descended into something lighter. Everyone formed into small groups as they began to socialize, catching up on this and that over drinks. There was plenty of alcohol around, and though it was obvious that Mishki was the only one present who was legally allowed to drink, Mami surprisingly didn't say anything.

The Buzzers ended up pulling Kyouko into a rowdy conversation, so Homura wandered over to the couch and sat down by herself. She poured herself half a cup of beer, not really knowing if she was actually going to drink it or not. She was in the middle of suspiciously sniffing the stuff when someone entered the edge of her vision.

It was Mishki. Four was sitting behind her, eyes flitting nervously between the two of them. It seemed that Five was off trying to get Kyouko's attention. Homura gulped and set her solo cup down on the table, bracing herself for the full brunt of the guide's anger.

"I didn't have the chance to visit you before you were discharged," Mishki said, her voice flat and emotionless. "I was too busy tending to Four. How are you feeling?"

"Um...I'm fine," Homura said nervously. She was feeling even better than fine, actually, but this didn't seem like the place to brag.

"Four was worried sick about you, you know," Mishki continued, making Homura cringe. "She spent half her time asking to see you. Not to mention the fits Five threw thinking that her sister was dead. Am I getting through to you at all?"

Swallowing again, Homura nodded vehemently.

"Good," the older woman said blandly.

She pulled Homura into a big bear hug.

"Ugh, I'm just so glad you're okay!" Mishki exclaimed, all the venom gone from her voice. Homura blinked in confusion as the guide pulled back, putting her hands on the time traveler's cheeks. "Don't get me wrong, I'm still hideously angry that you went behind my back while teaching Four. Not to mention that you basically abducted her from my apartment."

"Technically speaking, it wasn't abduction," Four pointed out. "I went along with her willingly."

Mishki silenced her with a look.

"What I'm trying to say is," she continued, "I'm glad you're okay. Even if you did pull some crazy shit to get there."

Homura smiled sheepishly. "Yeah...sorry about that?"

Mishki sighed and shook her head. "This whole week had been murder on me." She reached over and took Homura's solo cup, downing the entire thing in one gulp. Then she scrunched her nose and stood up. "What is this weak stuff? Don't we have anything stronger? Hey, Mami!"

The woman marched off in search of more potent alcohol, leaving Homura and Four to themselves.

"Well," the child said, "I can't say any of this has gone according to plan."

Homura burst out laughing.

"No, not at all," she agreed.

Four leaned against Homura's side. "You know, I'm kind of glad it didn't work," she said. "I didn't want to be the one responsible for destroying your memories. I couldn't bear to do it. You're the one who taught me how to do so many things, after all."

"I think you would have managed, somehow."

"And why's that?"

"Because you and I are very similar," Homura said simply. "We're made of similar stuff."

Four smirked. "But there is one fundamental difference between us."

"Hm?"

"You've learned what it means to be human, Homura. I haven't. Not yet, anyway. But I intend to learn."

The time traveler ruffled Four's hair, a wry smile on her face.

"While I support the idea, I would recommend getting a different teacher this time. One that won't blow up a lake."

"You're hilarious."

"I try."

The rest of the party proceeded as planned, which was to say that a lot of unexpected things happened. Still, some of Homura's expectations were fulfilled; Mishki got mad roaring drunk within the first hour, and started complaining about her love life to a rather uncomfortable looking Kanade. The Buzzers started up an intense game of poker that they were somehow playing with the cards facing the wrong way. Kiku had a fair amount to drink herself, and actually set off a round of loud cheers when she declared her undying love for Mami and dragged her into their bedroom. Only Homura knew that the brunette ended up falling asleep on the floor instead.

But they ran out of booze eventually, and it was rather difficult to hold an animated conversation when you were intoxicated. In fact, by the end of the night only she and Mami were completely sober. The blonde had simply sighed and called cabs for everyone, sending them off one by one while thanking them for coming.

"When did we become friends with all these party animals?" she muttered to herself. Her hair was a little mussed up, and her clothes were at odd angles on her body. It seemed that Kiku had made a little progress on Mami before knocking out.

Homura dug Kyouko out of the corner and hoisted the redhead onto her back, piggyback style. The girl's head lolled around in a drunken circle, as she murmured something about monkeys playing baseball on swings. Homura rolled her eyes and carried her towards the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Mami said, before gently closing the door.

"See you tomorrow," Homura mouthed back.

There was a certain comfort in being able to say that.

A few weeks later, the temperature began to drop as fall made its first appearance. It was on a cold chilly day fit for this season that Homura crawled out of bed, leaving Kyouko to sleep in to her heart's desire. She enjoyed a quiet cup of coffee by herself, then meandered about, searching for something to do. When she wasn't with Kyouko, things tended to get bland really fast.

Maybe she would go for a walk.

Homura dug her coat out of her closet and shrugged it on, and was about to open the door when something occurred to her. Leaving the door where it was, she made her way to the back of the apartment where the basement was. Pushing the door aside, she walked down into the dusty confines of the room. It took her a few minutes to find it, but she succeeded in the end. Five minutes later, she walked out of the apartment with Junko's chess pieces stuck into her coat pocket. She didn't know why she needed them, but she took them anyway. She had been keeping them this whole time.

Once outside, Homura made an immediate bee line for the hill with the frozen chessboards, where she and Junko had played each other so long ago. It was stupid, she knew, but she had the strange conviction that the woman would be there. It was a ridiculous notion, given how busy she knew Junko was, but she kept walking anyway. Her breath came out in thick puffs, and her coat ruffled slightly in the wind. All around her, the trees were shedding their leaves.

She reached the base of the hill within the hour. Taking in a deep breath, she began to climb, focusing her entire mind on the task. She could have just transformed and flown to the top, but something stopped her from doing so. She might be seen, after all. But the bigger reason was that she wanted to earn this, somehow.

After a long and arduous walk, Homura finally made it to the top of the hill. It was even colder up here, and the time traveler drew her coat a little tighter around her body as the wind swept past her. Taking a few more steps forward, her eyes sought out the chess tables where she had sought advice in the past.

Amazingly, Junko was there. The business mogul was standing with her back to the hill, looking out past the little wooden fence and at the lake. It wasn't frozen over this time, but the scene matched Homura's earlier memory so closely that it made her stop in her tracks, just a few yards behind Junko.

"Well, don't just stand there, Homura," the woman said, not even having to turn around. "Are you going to join me or not?"

Smiling knowingly to herself, Homura walked up to the fence until she was shoulder to shoulder with Junko Kaname. She peered over the cliff drop standing in front of them, and the shivering pines below and the lake beyond. It really was like she had stepped back in time.

"Are you here because you needed a break?" Homura asked, slipping her hands into her pockets.

Junko smiled. "Maybe. How about you, Homura? Have you come to seek my advice yet again?"

Somehow the woman always managed to return the ball to her court. Homura supposed that was part of what made Junko so formidable, in her eyes.

"Not really," she admitted. "I just wanted to return these."

She pulled the box of chess pieces out of her pocket and presented it to the older woman. Junko gasped in delight, reaching out and taking the box from Homura's hands. "Oh, wonderful! I've been wondering where I misplaced these. I must have left them here during our last game by mistake."

Homura chuckled. "You don't seem like someone who makes mistakes."

But Junko raised one finger and wagged it in the air. "Everyone makes mistakes, Homura. Even me."

"I don't know if that's comforting or worrying."

"Take it as you will."

They remained silent for a while, enjoying the view. Homura closed her eyes and tried to remember if the air had always felt so clean in Mitakihara.

"You know," Junko said at last, turning the box over in her hands, "When we first met at this place you seemed so utterly lost. You had so many questions floating about in your brain, and you could only bring yourself to ask me a few of them. I left thinking that I was rather worried about you. But you're different now. Something's changed. I imagine things turned out the way you wanted them to?"

Homura looked out over the city, the sky, and thought about her girlfriend sleeping soundly in their apartment, her friends waiting to see them later today, her allies in Kazamino, and the girl who was always watching from the heavens.

And in that one, single moment, Homura thought that she was no longer alone.

"Yes," she said, smiling almost goofily to herself. "Yes, I suppose you could say that."

Junko offered up her own gamely smile, opening the box and shuffling its contents into her open palm.

"I always like seeing my rivals grow. What do you say, Homura? Another game, for old time's sake?"

Homura looked at the pawns and kings sitting in Junko's palm and thought about the blind plays she had made during their first game, how lost she had been. That game hadn't been unlike her life until this point. Always too caught up in things that were irrelevant, and losing sight of what truly mattered.

She also remembered acutely that she had played most of her pawns on their own, without support, somehow deluding herself into thinking that they could topple the king from his thrown all on their own. In chess, as in life, there were different roles and sacrifices to be made.

But never once was one piece capable of doing it all.

You can't take on the world by yourself. Homura thought this as she and Junko took their seats at the chess table, carefully arranging their pieces. Sometimes hurting yourself meant hurting the people around you too. She had finally realized that.

Love wasn't just something you gave. You got it back, too.

It felt like she had been fighting all this time to understand that.

Junko set her final piece into place. With a flick of her hand, the game began.

And this time, Homura won.

THE END

Wow. Wow, I actually finished it.

This 400,000 word monstrosity is finally finished.

When I first started writing the opening chapter of a Madoka Magica fanfic, I didn't really have a plot in mind. I just wanted to splurge out a ten chapter thing to satisfy my void after finishing the show. But now it's become so much more, and almost two years and 36 chapters later this long story has finally come to an end.

Given the fact that this story has changed along with my ideas for the past two years, not everything was planned from the start. In fact, an actual plan didn't really start until the beginning of Part 2. But I managed to find a common theme among all of it, and that was the horror of being alone and the value in being able to rely on others, a key theme in the show itself. I hope I've managed to tie it up nicely for you guys.

A huge, huge thank you to literally anyone who reads all the way up to this point. You guys are seriously awesome for reading so much of my work, and I genuinely appreciate it. This story has been a part of my life for half of my high school years, and I'm finally closing the final chapter on it.

As for my plans for the future, I'll probably be taking a really long break from fanfiction, or even creative writing in general. I want to try writing something original next time, and that takes a lot of time to think about. If you're interested at all, you can check me out on FictionPress someday. I go by the same name.

And as always, thank you so much for reading.

~Banshee