Prologue

The sound of crackling static heralded the arrival of Michi Hideyoshi as she stepped through the barrier of the Isolation Field. Past the transparent barrier, the former Caretaker found herself in the ruined confines of the gazebo that was her domain once upon a time.

There were two, ash-caked lawn chairs set up there where the Goddess Madoka and the Devil Homura sat in shallow slumber. Then, Michi found a third figure there sitting comfortably on the gazebo balustrades - the captor of the two deities, Ichibey.

The bruised and battered Incubator wore his cryptic smile and wagged his crooked, skinless tail as he faced Michi with a patronizing mug. His smile then grew slightly wider as he calmly greeted,

"Welcome again to the Silver Garden, Michi Hideyoshi. I should have known that it would have been you who would have come here to the gazebo."

As soon as the wretched creature spoke Michi's name, the two sleeping deities weakly stirred. They dared to open their eyes to view the tense encounter that had been brewing before them.

Ichibey then tilted his head and gave his assessment,

"If you are the one who made it through the barrier, then that must mean that Warukuchi is dead. That Clara Doll sought power by hook or by crook, but she still wasn't strong enough to succeed in the end. I always doubted that slanderous Doll, but her defeat doesn't come as a surprise to me, and - in the grand scheme of things…!"

Before the creature could continue speaking, Michi summoned her naginata with a flash of turquoise blue light. Then, in one smooth and skillful motion, she threw her weapon at Ichibey at breakneck speed.

Michi's naginata tore through the Incubator mercilessly and cut him in half. When the naginata fizzled away, the two large chunks of Ichibey's corpse unceremoniously fell down to the wooden boards of the gazebo floor with dull thuds.

However, as soon as the corpse fell, the inner walls of the Isolation Field flickered wildly and crackled with static like an interrupted television program.

Then, a disembodied voice filled the confines of the gazebo with a snicker,

"Impressive, Hideyoshi-san. You have been waiting to do that since you tossed your gem into the Pasig River, haven't you? Killing me, that is. However, I was prepared for this outcome!"

Two, round and red eyes then appeared on the 'screen' of the Isolation Field walls and watched Michi with apparent delight,

"I have plans that concern the fate of the universe, so I wasn't going to let mortality become a liability of mine. Given Warukuchi's nature, I was certain that she would have tried to assassinate me. Miki-san would have done the same too if she had the chance. So now, Hideyoshi-san, you have succeeded in freeing me from my mortal coil! Congratulations! But that is all the satisfaction that you are going to get."

The red eyes on the wall blinked twice as the disembodied voice explained,

"In any case, Hideyoshi-san, you are the one who has been called to participate in the ultimate karmic ritual - the ascension of a new Mistress of the universe! Just as the so-called 'Goddess of Mercy' ate the magic of the Puella Magi that she saved - the 'Devil of Love' fed on the nighttime stars and the dark side of the moon. The powers that they wielded were indeed more than the sums of their own parts - but, alas, it was still insufficient!"

Ichibey's voice snickered as he continued,

"Now, Hideyoshi-san, it is your turn to ascend. It is your turn to feast!"

A bead of sweat formed on Michi's brow as she dared to ask,

"What do you mean… feast? Feast on what!?"

"These two Deities gathered here before you - and the universe that they once reigned over!"

Michi's eyes shot over to the frail Madoka and Homura and felt a chill run up her spine. The disembodied Incubator then spoke,

"To ascend and become a new Deity, you would have had to defeat the old Deity. Alas, both the Goddess of Mercy and the Devil of Love are defenseless! You can do as you please with them! They are at your mercy - which is why you must feast on them! Once you do, you will become greater than a Deity and this universe will exist solely for your satisfaction! That is why you are here, is it not?"

The Hokkaido native clenched her fist and faced the two red eyes displayed on the inner walls as she grimly replied,

"I have been thinking for a long time, Incubator. It's true. I do want to become something greater than myself."

Homura watched Michi's reply with utter dismay, so she weakly croaked,

"Michi… what are you… doing!? Don't tell me that… you've been seeking revenge too…!"

The Devil turned to the Goddess Madoka, hoping to see some sign of affirmation from her. However, Madoka kept her calm, albeit tired expression. There was a twinkle of anticipation in her glowing golden eyes too that puzzled Homura.

Michi saw Homura's bewilderment, so she shook her head as she clarified,

"I have no intention to ascend and become a Deity above deities. That has never been my intention and our situation does not change that."

Ichibey blinked on the screen as he tried to discern Michi's purpose. If the Hokkaido native did not want to ascend, then why was she there!?

Michi then faced Ichibey's eyes once more and theorized,

"Ichibey. Am I correct in assuming that you have gathered immense power here in this gazebo? This is the power that would have been used for the new Deity to ascend, yes?"

"That is correct, Hideyoshi-san."

"If that is the case, then this power can grant one last wish - one that could change the laws of this universe once more."

"What is your point, then?"

"Ichibey. I am here to bring about a 'true miracle'."

Homura was rattled by Michi's declaration, but a small smile grew on Madoka's lips. The disembodied Incubator then hummed with curiosity as he asked,

"What is this 'true miracle' that you seek, Hideyoshi-san?"

Michi lowered her eyes down to the silver ring that she wore on her middle left finger before she declared,

"I want to break apart the Puella Magi system - from magical girls to Witches and Wraiths. All of it must come undone!"

Ichibey scoffed and promptly opposed,

"That's a tall order, Hideyoshi-san. Did you really expect me to grant you any wish that you come up with? That's an absurd request! How will the entropy of our dying universe be replenished then!?"

"Rather than harvesting just the emotional extremes of middle school girls at their most vulnerable moments, Ichibey, wouldn't it be more sustainable if you gather human emotions from everyone - over the full span of their lifetimes?"

The disembodied voice fell quiet as he considered Michi's logic. The former Caretaker then took that as her chance to continue,

"Just as you have been observing us humans - even in your captivity at the Panopticon - we have been observing you, Ichibey. You once said that you were an unorthodox Incubator who studied human emotions even when it was considered taboo in Incubator society. However, I believe that you only told us a part of the story. I have reason to believe that you were one of the Incubators who exhibited human emotions long before Homura-san forced them onto your society."

"What gave you that idea, Hideyoshi-san?"

"Unlike all of the other Incubators, you were prepared for the time that your hive mind died. You embraced individuality seamlessly too and readily refered to 'yourself' - even when it came to our encounters in the 20th Century. More than that, you only recently became the leader of the Incubators after the hive mind died. Prior to that, you were just a cog in the machine - and an Incubator invalid who carried the mental illness of emotions!"

Michi then took a deep breath and looked straight into the Incubators' eyes as she revealed,

"The most interesting thing that I have figured out about you is that you have always disagreed with the Incubator hive mind to begin with! You believe that the hive mind had tunnel vision - focusing only on the despair concentrated in a middle school girl's heart. That was why you had quietly rebelled against the hive mind."

Ichibey's disembodied voice snickered as he praised,

"You truly do have a sharp eye, Hideyoshi-san. Could it be because you were also persecuted by your own community in Oshimahana - just as my fellow Incubators shunned me?"

"I cannot say that I am glad to have something in common with you, Ichibey, but yes. I understand how you felt. You wanted to see Incubator society burn."

The creature's voice heaved a sigh and then frankly admitted,

"You are correct, Hideyoshi-san. I have been rebelling against the hive mind in silence. I set my rebellion in motion when I granted Elise de Lamarliere's wish - in spite of the liabilities that the Incubators would incur -and brought the concept of 'Soul Gem Binding' into reality. I made sure that you, Hideyoshi-san, would inherit the Taint of the Dreadnaught after you shouldered the karma of the entire Salvae bonded by that concept. I showed that entire story from the Second World War to Akemi-san as well to stir her to action. Then, I granted Kaname-san's wish with the hopes of turning her into a Deity."

Michi put her hands on her hips and then started to extrapolate the Incubator's story,

"After that, you must have compelled the Incubators to force Homura-san into a position where she would have to become a Deity as well to save Kaname-senpai. Once Homura-san did ascend, you assumed that she would unleash her fury at the Incubator hive mind and destroy it - and she did. The Incubators who couldn't handle their new individuality and their emotions declined in power and made you the strongest one of them all."

Michi's eyes then grew sharp as she finally deduced,

"Then, you led the rest of the Incubators in an insurrection that was doomed to fail. That way, the entire Incubator race would be eliminated by Homura-san's ire - all while you escaped here to the Silver Garden as the last Incubator alive. You are the hive mind now - and your will is the will of the Incubators. You are standing on the graves of countless Incubator lives!"

"Correct. I must say I am impressed by your observation. There has always been order in the chaos."

"That does not change the fact that I despise you for everything that you have done and I am abhorred by your methods. However, I do acknowledge that you have sought to become the master of your own destiny - just like what us humans seek to do everyday. Even normal people outside of the Puella Magi system shone brilliantly in their own lives - from Saotome-sensei to Shizuki-senpai."

The naginata-wielder then fondly thought about the many people that she met in Mitakihara and then argued,

"In the short time that I was here in Mitakihara, I've come to believe that humans can, indeed, lead wonderful lives at any age! The stories that I have glimpsed into have left a deep impression in my heart… and I believe that harvesting energy from those emotions - the positive and the negative - would yield more power than sheer despair alone ever could!"

She then looked at Ichibey's eyes on the inner walls again and insisted,

"You never truly harbored a hatred for mankind, Ichibey, did you? Instead, you despised the chains that bound you. Now that those chains are gone, I want you to assess my proposal with your own judgement. We can strike a deal right here and now!"

Ichibey hummed again before he finally gave his thoughts,

"Your theory does have credence, Hideyoshi-san. I agree with your assessment as well. The Incubator hive mind was so entrenched in their concepts for the Puella Magi system that they never bothered to look at alternatives. If I build this new system right, I can gather energy by passive osmosis too rather than through the manifestation and eventual death of karmic beings."

The creature's eyes then fixed themselves on Michi once more as it the disembodied voice warned,

"However, the sort of arrangement that you seek will still need a Deity to oversee the efficient transfer and conversion of karmic energy to heat - just as Akemi-san and Kaname-san have done. This is your proposal, Hideyoshi-san, so I would like to believe that you are the most suited to this role."

Michi firmly shook her head and then looked up to the ruined ceiling of the gazebo as she wistfully replied,

"There was a time when I wouldn't have hesitated to become a Deity. I wasn't afraid of death and I have always thought about disappearing. Because of that, and the situations that I found myself in, I sought ways wherein I can have a meaningful death. Dying to save the universe would have been a perfect opportunity for me."

She then turned to Madoka and Homura, making the willow ornament tied to her hairpin chime. Michi looked into Madoka's eyes - then Homura's - as she explained,

"Somewhere along the way, however, I found reasons to live. I realized that I wanted to live. I wanted to live the life that my dearest friends and I never had the chance to even see! For that reason, I cannot be that Deity. Homura-san and Kaname-senpai feel the same way. I know for a fact that neither of them want to be Deities. They never have! Becoming a Goddess or a Devil was just a means to an end for them - and they have both achieved it."

The naginata-wielder then pointed now to the Incubator's eyes on the inner walls and concluded,

"Given that, I say that you should be the custodian of this new system, Ichibey. You will be the one building it, after all, so you will understand it best."

Ichibey's eyes blinked on the walls before he repeated Michi's offer with awe,

"You want… me… to be the Deity?"

"Yes. You will be the gardener who sees to it that the universe is thriving and the scribe who records the story of humanity in its entirety. The universe will replenish its energy in a more sustainable manner than ever before under your new system - but in exchange, you must leave mankind alone to seek its own destiny. Let us see the highs and lows of our lives on our own terms!"

A thoughtful silence then ensured until the Incubator finally warned,

"I understand the logic behind your proposal and I am inclined to agree. However, if I follow this arrangement by the letter, the magic that brought you and your friends to the year 2088 will cease to function. You will become paradoxes who must be brushed away by time, Hideyoshi-san! You and your friends will cease to exist!"

Michi was taken aback by that revelation and, for the first time in long while, felt absolute doubt taking root in her heart. When the naginata-wielder couldn't find the words to speak, Madoka Kaname finally revealed,

"That is because Michi-chan and her friends come from another place and time. Home is where their hearts are… and their hearts have always longed for their own time."

The Goddess of Mercy sat upright in her chair and smiled at Michi as she clarified,

"1945 - the end of the Second World War. That is the time that you and your friends have always longed for, is it not? A fresh start."

Michi stood in awe at the Goddess Madoka's insight, but she managed to give a weak nod. So, the Goddess Madoka turned to the Incubator's displayed eyes and asked,

"If Hideyoshi-san and her friends are brought back to their time period, then they will no longer be paradoxes and they will not need to be erased. As for Homura-chan and myself… we will stay here in the present day."

The Incubator blinked as he replied,

"Very well. That is a reasonable request. Now then… shall we get started?"

Michi and Madoka nodded, but the time-traveler defiantly shook her head in protest. She then forced herself to stand upright to face Michi. Homura felt incredibly lightheaded, but she held onto her ash-caked lawn chair for support and demanded,

"If you're going to disappear anyways, Michi, then what have these past few months been for!?"

The naginata-wielder wore a bittersweet smile as she approached the weakened Homura. Then, she laid a hand on the time-traveler's shoulder and reassured,

"Those months were meaningful to me, Homura-san. I may be whisked away from modern day Mitakihara - from this period in time - but those memories will stay with me for as long as I live. The both of us found our wills to live, so that must count for something. We even managed to save the universe along the way too. But now, I must go."

"Hideyoshi-san…!"

"Just this once, Homura-san, I want to be selfish. You can now spend your life together with Kaname-senpai and all of your friends - and I wish to spend my life with mine. We can decide how we want to live our lives now, after all. But I want you to know that all of you will be in our hearts."

As Michi was speaking, cracks started to form on the inner walls of the Isolation Field while Ichibey's image flickered wildly before it disappeared entirely. Then, Michi's figure too started to fade away into nothingness.

The hand that Michi laid on Homura's shoulder also became weightless as an ethereal gale blew through the confines of the gazebo.

The fading magi then closed her eyes and basked in the winds that were blowing her very existence away. Tears formed in Homura's eyes as she tried to grab a hold of Michi, but her hand went through the naginata-wielder's afterimage. It was as if Homura's hands parted ashes that were being scattered to the winds.

Those ashes slipped through Homura's hand as the time-traveler was overcome with tears. For a brief moment, Homura wanted to chase after those scattering ashes, but Madoka suddenly embraced her from behind.

The pink-haired Goddess then whispered as the golden glow of her eyes fizzled and gave way to her normal pink,

"Let her go, Homura-chan! This is her choice. She and her friends all wanted the same thing all this time - another chance!"

Madoka's embrace then grew tighter as she urged,

"So come back to us, Homura-chan!"

At that point, Michi's disembodied voice filled the crumbling gazebo as she spoke,

"Homura-san, Kaname-senpai, please tell everyone else that we had fun being with them and that we're glad that we all met! So - from the bottom of my heart - I bid you all farewell!"

With those final words, the scene faded to white.

Magia, Pacem, Bellum Terrarum - Those Fallen

Peace In Our Times

January 2, 2090 - Thursday

The unfamiliar ceiling of an unfamiliar room greeted Homura Akemi as she awakened in a daze. Her vision was blurry, so she instinctively searched for her glasses.

The black-haired girl's hand reached over to to the nightstand beside her bed where her hand groped around for her glasses in vain. Then, she felt the sensation of someone gently taking her hand.

That person coaxed Homura's hand open and then placed her red-rimmed glasses there.

Homura promptly put on the glasses and gasped when she finally saw who that person was.

It was Sayaka Miki!

The blue-haired girl was pulling up a chair as she smiled at Homura and teased,

"Ah, the sleepy pumpkin is finally awake!"

"Sayaka… Miki…?"

"Ehh? You're still calling me by my full name again? You're making it sound like we're far apart, transfer student~! Though I guess I shouldn't really call you 'transfer student' anymore, huh?"

"What are you talking about?"

Sayaka promptly brought out her WristComm device and brought out a formless screen with the calendar displayed. Homura eyed the date with shock as her glasses slid down the bridge of her nose,

"It's… 2090?"

"January 2, actually - but yeah! It's 2090 now… so I guess I should greet you 'Happy New Year'"

Homura adjusted her glasses and looked down to her two hands. She quickly found that there was no sign of her silver Puella Magi ring to be found. A quick glance at Sayaka's hands showed Homura the same scene - no ring at all.

The former-time traveler closed her eyes and recalled the scene that she saw in the gazebo of the Silver Garden. Then, she mused in a tired yet reminiscent voice,

"So… that wasn't a dream? The Puella Magi system is gone…?"

Sayaka shook her head and then fondly reassured,

"It wasn't a dream, Homura. All of it happened… but if you wanna be technical, it's sorta like the magic that kept us in 2088 was invalidated. So we moved forward in time. That's one year of Madoka's Law of Cycles and the months of your universe… what do you call it?"

"Pax Akemi…"

"Really now? Anyways, those periods of time nudged us forward as if we had been living normal lives. Now, we're here."

"I see…"

The former time-traveler turned to Sayaka and curiously asked,

"So, Miki-san… what exactly happened in this 'normal life' of ours? Why am I here in the hospital?"

Sayaka sat down on her chair and wore a warm smile as she explained,

"You underwent treatment for your heart disease - chemotherapy, surgery… and a whole lot of other stuff that an idiot like me doesn't really know much about."

Homura listened to Sayaka's story with caution as she gently laid her hand over her heart. She then adjusted her glasses and theorized,

"Here's what I think, Miki-san. This past cycle that was just invalidated - it must have been tied to my heart disease somehow. For the longest time, I've been keeping things like these to myself. I didn't want to appear weak, after all, and I didn't want Madoka to worry. I didn't really care about what happened to me, after all."

"But Mi-chan knocked some sense into ya, didn't she?"

The former time-traveler scoffed and conceded,

"I hate to admit it, but yes. That whole front of strength that I had started to unravel when I let that girl advise me. She got me to lower my guard and accept the fact that I was sick. I even revealed my chronic sickness to Madoka - even though it was truly 'uncool'."

"But things turned out for the better, you big pumpkin. You swallowed your pride and tackled your heart disease problem once and for all! Honestly, Homura, I'm amazed by how strong you are - what with all the treatments you had to go through."

When Sayaka mentioned 'treatments' again, the former time-traveler hesitantly reached for her hair and her heart quickly sank. Her long, silky locks of hair were gone! Only a short head of black hair braced with Homura's black hairband remained as a shadow of her old crown.

"My hair… it's…?"

As Homura started to fret, however, she felt Sayaka's hand on her shoulder as she reassured,

"I cut my hair short too, Homura. It was out of solidarity, I guess - and I helped raise money for your treatments while you were still 'asleep', so to speak. The other girls didn't cut their hair, but they helped fundraising whenever they could. Now, you've beaten cancer a second time~!"

"I… see…"

Tears started to form in Homura's purple eyes, but a small smile broke out on her lips as she added,

"Even though I shot you in the head nine times… you still did this for me…"

"Well, having lead pass through your head really clears your mind a lot, you know!"

"That was a bad joke, Miki-san."

"Ahahaha, I guess so~!"

"But in all honesty, thank you for doing this for me, Miki-san. No - Sayaka. Thank you, Sayaka."

"It was my pleasure, Homura. After everything I did to spite you, I had to make it up somehow too."

Homura set her hand over Sayaka's and reassured,

"It's all in the past - in more ways than one. Now, we're even."

"Ahahaha~ I guess that's true."

"Also, Sayaka."

"What is it?"

"Happy New Year to you too, raspberry."

Homura and Sayaka, two rivals who were prepared to start the Third World War to spite each other once upon a time, were enjoying each others' presence there in the private hospital room. Sayaka dutifully brought Homura up to speed about the things that have happened in Mitakihara while she was still 'asleep' while the former time-traveler eagerly listened.

Bridges that had been burned and relentlessly bombed were rising up once more between the two as Sayaka peeled some apples for Homura. The blue-haired girl served Homura her slices of apples with a smile and continued,

"You know, Homura. The two of us are seniors now - and we're in Class 3-4 too!"

"That's the class that Tomoe-san was in…"

"Yup~ and that means Saotome-sensei is still our homeroom teacher. Though, people are saying that she's next in line to be the principal."

"Saotome-sensei would fit the role nicely, I think."

"Hehe, I think so too!"

The blue-haired girl nibbled on a slice of apple and noted,

"As for Mami-senpai… she's a high-schooler now. Her school's downtown near the central train station… her uniform's really cute too! Blazer, ribbon and sweater! You should have been there when Mami-senpai graduated though - she was absolutely in tears~!"

"I can imagine that. Tomoe-san truly is an emotional person, after all."

"I know, right? Oh - and Nagisa-chan's a freshie at our school now. At the new student ceremony, Mami-senpai bawled too and she was like 'Nagisa-chan is growing so fast!'"

When Sayaka told her this, Homura started to chuckle - a departure from the serious airs and expressions that the former time-traveler always put on. Looking at the short-haired, bespectacled Homura on the verge of lighthearted laughter made Sayaka wonder.

Was this the 'Homura Akemi' that Michi saw?

Perhaps it was.

For the first time, Sayaka understood why Michi dared to defy her and walk the opposite path. So, Sayaka smiled back at Homura and continued her fond stories.

The blue-haired girl talked about how Madoka's mother got promoted to Vice President in Elysian Fashion and how Hitomi Shizuki became the student council president in a landslide victory. It was only after Sayaka started running out of topics when she finally started talking about herself.

The blue-haired girl stood up from her seat and turned around once as she spoke,

"I celebrated my birthday a few months ago for the first time in I don't know how long - if you count the Law of Cycles and all those timelines that you made. I'm a 16 year old girl now - and I'm growing taller too. I caught a cold two months ago and I had to get better without magic."

"An idiot like you caught a cold?"

"Heh - I know right? But in any case, what I'm trying to say is that our clocks have all started ticking again. Time marches forward like it always has before - but the difference is that we're being swept along too. We're not just bystanders anymore. I mean - look at you! Your lost all your hair when you went through chemotherapy, Homura, but it's already starting to grow."

Homura thoughtfully felt a lock of her now short hair and hummed,

"I guess that's true…"

"This new situation of ours has its ups and downs, but, I guess I kind of like this. Now that we have a choice in the matter, i'm not really keen on staying a Puella Magi for all eternity."

As Sayaka was speaking, she heard a number of footsteps from the hallway outside heading towards the private room's door. The former saber-fighter grinned as she happily anticipated,

"And the goddess arrives~! Or, should I say 'class rep' instead?"

The private room door slid open and the excited head of Madoka Kaname poked inside. The pink-haired girl beamed as soon as she saw the patient wide awake. Then, she cried out in glee,

"Homura-chan~!"

With that, she rushed over to Homura's bedside and embraced the newly-awakened patient. She gently rested her head on Homura's while the patient relished in her visitor's unhindered affection.

Madoka then brought herself up and smiled as she praised,

"I'm glad that you and Sayaka-chan are getting along well too~!"

A somber air then surfaced on Madoka's expression as she reflectively added,

"After everything that happened between the two of you, I was really worried that the two of you would hate each other forever… all because of me. But now, I'm convinced. A true miracle did happen - that's why we're all still here!"

Homura nodded and smiled back as she assured,

"We have our whole lives ahead of us now - just like how Michi and her friends surely had theirs."

Madoka's expression lightened up as she cheerfully agreed. She then held Homura's hand and gladly announced

"Speaking of Michi-chan… I just finished talking with Saotome-sensei and Hitomi-chan about our senior year trip. We're going to Hokkaido~!"

March 21, 2090 - Tuesday

Chilly winds of single-digit degree temperature greeted the students Class 3-4 of the Mitakihara Junior High School as they stepped out of their charted bus and into the storied valley town of Oshimahana, Hokkaido.

Madoka Kaname, Kyouko Sakura, Sayaka Miki and Homura Akemi shivered in the face of the frosty greeting, but the early springtime sun smiled upon them before long. Kyouko shielded her eyes from the sun as she hummed,

"That Michi kid was a bit of a whirlwind, but she had one hell of a warm smile too. I guess this town is where she got those…"

The former spear-fighter put a hand on her hip as she turned to her companions and sighed,

"You know, Mami and Nagisa really, really, reaaaaally wanted to go with us - but this is a class trip, y'know. They'll have to settle for pics and souvenirs."

While Kyouko was speaking, she heaved a had a long, sleepy yawn before heard the ominous sound of a camera shutter followed by a flash of light. The mercurial red-head turned to the source of the sound and saw Sayaka taking a picture of her.

Mere moments later, Kyouko's WristComm device buzzed with messages from Mami and Nagisa. Sayaka uploaded the photo online!

Sayaka snickered as she read those same messages on her own device, mimicking the two former magi's voices,

"'Ara, ara~ the sleepy Sakura-san really adds depth to this photo! - RealTomoeMami', 'Wehehehe~ Kyouko-neesan yawned! - CheeseMonsterRawr'"

Kyouko's brow furrowed as she growled at Sayaka,

"Why you little raspberry!"

The red-head then promptly chased after Sayaka who ran on ahead into the Oshimahana town proper. Hitomi Shizuki and Saotome-sensei were just stepping out of the bus themselves when they saw the commotion, but it was already too late to call them back.

Homura went over to Hitomi and then promised,

"Madoka and I will make sure those two are back here for roll call later on, Shizuki-san."

The teal-haired student council president tilted her head and cautioned,

"Oshimahana is a pretty big place, Akemi-san. Will you guys be alright?"

Madoka then intervened with a smile and reassured,

"The four of us know this place quite well. It'll be fine, Hitomi-chan!"

With that, Homura and Madoka went off on their own too.

The two former deities walked down the now paved sidewalks of Oshimahana on that chilly, early spring day.

It looked much different now from the Oshimahana from the 20th Century that they had seen before, but they still felt the spirit of the valley alive there.

The forests still stretched out as far as the eye could see and the mountains lorded over any building in the town. All the while, the relaxing murmur of the gentle valley stream filled Madoka's and Homura's ears.

They crossed the concrete bridge that ran over the stream and tried to follow the footsteps of the former naginata-wielder as best as they could.

Then, they reached the place where the Hideyoshi household should have been.

The foundations of the stone walls were there, but the rest of the house was nowhere to be found. Instead, the walls wrapped around what appeared to be the town brewery.

Madoka and Homura turned to each other and decided to try and take a peek inside anyways.

Once the girls crossed through the gate, they were greeted by stacks of sake jugs that towered above them on one side of the stone path of the brewery's front yard. Those jugs, however, had an unusual neighbor at the other side of the path - willow-wood barrels of imported French wine. They looked like the displays of offerings made to temples.

Madoka and Homura watched the sake jugs and the wine barrels with awe when they heard footsteps approaching them. When they turned to face the footsteps, they found a peculiar figure.

The figure was a young girl who looked like a middle school sophomore. She was wearing a silk, periwinkle kimono adorned with silhouettes of willow trees and had short yet wavy black hair. There were freckles on the fair skin of her cheeks while her eyes were a beautiful, unusual shade of ash-grey.

The young girl put her hands on her hips as she discerned,

"The two of you are from Mitakihara Junior High School, aren't you? Mama and Papa said that we were having students from Kanagawa Prefecture around town today~! So - are you guys here for a tour? My parents are the owners of this place and they're not here right now, but I can show you two around if you want!"

Homura and Madoka were taken by surprise, but they decided to accept their lively junior's offer. The young girl was pleasantly surprised, but she composed herself and graciously gestured to her new customers,

"Very well then - please follow me~!"

The junior walked a pace behind the two tourists as they went around the front yard of the brewery. All the while, she went through a practiced yet wholehearted spiel,

"Now then - the Oshimahana Brewery might look old, but it is actually a lot younger than most of the breweries around Japan. We have only been running for three generations, you see! Four if you include me! However, what our humble brewery doesn't have in age - it makes up for in its story… and its amazake~!"

The young girl then brought Homura and Madoka into the main brewery building where she showed them their various facilities for making their many spirits. She explained the processes as best as she could, lavishing the narrative with tall tales while skillfully stopping short of revealing trade secrets like a shrewd businesswoman.

If Homura and Madoka didn't know any better, they would have thought that that little girl was the one in charge of that entire operation!

After going through the production plants, the girl brought the two tourists into a small gallery that was filled to the brim with black and white photos along with all sorts of memorabilia.

As soon as Homura and Madoka had a closer look at the photos, however, they immediately recognized the people in them.

Just as the little girl was about to explain one photo, Homura beat her to the punch and identified the subjects.

They were the former Puella Magi from the Second World War!

While the little girl droned on about the quaint exhibit in the room, Homura and Madoka paid special attention to the stories of the six magi that they lived with, ate with and fought alongside in the short yet eventful few months of their stay in Mitakihara.

They found a picture of Audrey Wilhelmina Burnham posing in front of a school in Mariveles, Bataan where her old sugar plantation house once stood. Esperanza and her team of girls were there too - as students in one photo and then as faculty members in the next. The American haciendera-turned-soldier-turned teacher apparently came to Hokkaido often to teach every so often.

In another photo, they saw a newspaper clipping from a Vladivostok publication that featured Serafina Larivenko as a ballet dancer and a photograph of her posing with Nikita Kruschev. The Ukrainian apparently promoted dance as a form of soft-power diplomacy with the West in the thick of the Cold War. Whenever Soviet diplomatic missions went to Japan, Serafina's troupe often performed throughout the country.

Glass-covered displays of model trains accompanied pictures of Lorelei Sankt who appeared in more photos than the other magi combined! She turned out to be a scientist for West Germany who helped connect Western Europe by rail through the Marshall Plan. Lorelei also visited Japan often to observe the building of the first Shinkansen line.

Ligaya de la Cruz, on the other hand, had the most dramatic photos. The Filipina struck flashy poses with her fellow graduates of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 61'. She also had photos with the F-86E Saber jet as one of the first female jet fighter pilots in the force. The handsful of medals and ribbons that were framed along with the pictures showed her many flights in UN peacekeeping missions around the world.

When the tour finally reached the memorabilia relating to Elise de Lamarliere, the little girl seemed to speak with much more familiarity. She pointed to the small oil paintings and told Homura and Madoka about the French girl's successful and storied career as a landscape painter. Elise turned out to be a renowned artist whose renditions of landscapes from before the Second World War were sought after.

Then, when Michi's turn finally came, the little girl just spread her arms out wide and gleefully explained,

"This brewery - and this entire town - is Michi Hideyoshi's memorabilia. In spite of the harsh conditions of post-war Japan, Hideyoshi-san took a big risk and started this very brewery right here in Oshimahana with the help of all of her friends. As the brewery grew, the town grew along with it."

The girl then came to the end of the exhibit where the six magi from the Second World War posed together outside of the brewery as she continued,

"Over time, the group of friends went their own separate ways. Only Elise de Lamarliere stayed in Hokkaido for the long term and eventually settled here together with Michi Hideyoshi. However, I believe that the bonds they shared withstood the test of time. This brewery stands as a testament to that, after all!"

She then brought her hands close to her heart as she finally introduced herself,

"I am the great granddaughter of Michi Hideyoshi and Elise de Lamarliere. My name is Mirai Hideyoshi - it's been a pleasure to have you here at our humble home!"

Mirai wore a warm smile for her two guests and then gave a deep, respectful bow - the same kind that Michi often gave to Madoka and Homura.

Once Mirai ended her tour, she opened the door at the end of the gallery and revealed the inner courtyard of the Oshimahana Brewery. There, Homura found the same, grand cherry blossom tree that was missing from Mitakihara!

Seeing that old tree again moved Homura to the verge of tears. The former time-traveler then whispered,

"You're finally back home, huh?"

Mirai tilted her head and wondered what Homura was musing about. The black-haired student, however, reassured Mirai with a smile and then asked,

"Hideyoshi-san."

"Y-yes?"

"Would it be alright if my friend Madoka and I had some amazake under the cherry blossom tree?"

The afterimages of Michi, Elise, Lorelei, Ligaya, Serafina and Audrey all appeared in the Brewery's gallery and smiled at Homura. The French girl and the Hokkaido native then supportively patted the innocent Mirai's shoulders as Homura happily explained,

"The two of us want to share a drink with some old friends."

The End

Author's Notes: It's been one hell of a journey writing MPBT. There were times when I didn't think that we'd make it this far - but here we are! The end of MPBT and my ventures into the Madoka Magica series. It was eventful, to say the least, but I felt like I grew in those many years of production (and re-writing). That said, I want to thank you all for staying with me until the end and I hope you enjoyed this journey as much as I did!

Until next time!

Elias Pedro