A/N: Okay, I'm taking a step into nowhere land. Up until now, I have just written female to male reincarnation fics. But now I'm just doing female to female fics. I'm in completely uncharted territory. I almost wanted to do a Homura SI but I decided on Kyouko since I adore her character. The only difference is, the canon is closer than usual. The OC barely remembers anything, no unfair foreknowledge, just vague hints and feelings that something is different. It's also in third person, as I wanted to try that.

Do try to give this fic a chance, I'm really nervous about it. But it's not gonna be her knowing all of the timelines, just knowing some of them through dreams (the oc's knowledge) vaguely. She'll be only somewhat aware. The only one who is fully aware is Homu and that's how it's gonna be. There's no OMG I'M IN MEDUCA here. I just wanted to put a less aware person in the role of Kyouko and tbh, I'm happy with how it turned out.

This chapter is probably gonna be the longest fucking thing I've ever written. I hope you enjoy this-this story kept pricking at the back of my mind. I like taking new challenges, so don't worry. Kyouko is still Kyouko-ish. I also came up with this at like 3:00...so yeah, 14 hours later, it's going up. But first, I'm getting dinner.

Sorry if some of you are offended by overly religious themes, but that's how Kyouko was brought up, so that's gonna be something for the first half of this fic, at least. I'm still debating on if I should cut this chapter in half.

I'm actually not a believer myself, haha. But I felt I needed to do this to be true to her character.

Chapter 1: Kyouko

The young college girl pursed her lips tightly. She wasn't sure if she wanted to drive home when it was this dark outside. Clutching her handbag tightly, she went out into the night. She was eager to get home from her work. As she unlocked the door to the car and stepped in, she had no way of knowing that this would be her final time in the car, or even using the car, which she adored very much. If she had, then she would have never stepped inside the car to begin with. But foreknowledge is not a gift most humans possess, and even if they did possess it, it would not change her fate any.

As she followed the familiar path she had always been on every day, she frowned, wondering if the spot up ahead was a deer or else...she couldn't see well, because she hadn't bothered to wear her glasses on the trip up. The car sped down a bend, going the wrong way of what she'd intended, going down the way that instead led to a bend with a small path of trees on either side.

She was going too fast-the car broke the ramp and went flying through the air.

Trying hard to keep herself calm, the girl didn't even notice the incoming obstacle that would pose a threat to her being able to get out of her car until it was too late-a tree. She smashed right into it-and then unconsciousness came upon her.

When she next awoke, it was the smell of smoke that alerted her that something wasn't right with the situation. She looked about frantically, noticing that the car felt a bit hotter than what she was used to. She needed to get out of here as quickly as possible-it was then that the girl thought about and recalled the time of the accident, and noticed the glass embedded in her arms and legs. Panicking, she tried to escape, but her injuries made that close to impossible.

It was then that she heard the sound-the sound that would haunt her up until the day she died, the sound of something crackling. Turning her head, she glanced in her rear view mirror and saw the fire raging in the back of her car.

"Help!" She cried, but her voice could barely be heard, and there was no one around who would hurt her.

The fire licked up her clothes. It started to go up her legs and arms, ripping away at her clothing.

There was no escape, she dimly recalled stop, drop and roll as a means of getting fire off her clothing, but she couldn't do it when she was trapped by the seatbelt. The fire was becoming more and more intense at this point. It was harder to breathe as well. She managed to undo her seatbelt at the last second and smash through the glass, however she was too weak to get herself out.

"Help.." She cried out.

A driver passing by happened to see the burning vehicle and called an ambulance as well as a fire truck to come to the scene and take the injured woman to the hospital. By the time the ambulance got there, the girl was badly burned and in horrible condition. She had third-degree burns to most of her body. They knew that she most likely wouldn't survive.

A nurse asked her what she hated the most about what had happened to her, and she said, "The color red...I cannot stand it now thanks to fire."

Shortly after saying these words, the woman died from her burns.

It was a largely private death that wasn't covered by the media, the media did not release her name out of respect for her family, who requested they do so.

Her life faded into obscurity, although she would live on, in a much different, if not darker, way.

She was running.

She was trapped somewhere.

"Otousan!" She cried out. She could see him preaching up ahead, to an empty hall.

He ignored her.

"Kaasan!" She cried out, her mother, too, ignored her.

A strangled cry escaped her as suddenly something hot was coming around her-fire, fire threatening to swallow her whole.

Was this the devil?

She refused to give in, she screamed and struggled, fighting back against him. She refused to give in to the devil.

"-o"

The devil was saying something.

"-uko!"

It sounded like a word or phrase. She was too busy fighting for her life to really notice.

"Kyouko!"

She recognized that voice.

She woke from her dream with a gasp.

The young girl sat up, her gaze went to her father, who was sitting there, looking quite worried.

"Otousan!" She cried out.

"Kyouko, for heaven's sake, what kind of nightmare did the devil give you that had you screaming like that?" Her father said gently, stroking her red hair.

The five-year old looked at her parents, also noticing her mother leaning in the doorway, looking worried.

She hesitated. "I don't...remember. I dreamed of smoke and fire..."

Minister Sakura was alarmed to hear this.

"You were being tempted by the devil in your dream." He said.

"I...was?" She asked, in confusion.

"Yes, but you are a child of God. You know better than to give in to the devil. What did you do in that dream?" He pressed.

"I ran from the Devil. I didn't listen to him."

"That's right. We are tested by the devil every day, all the time, Kyouko. Your mother and I both understand, that with God on our side, there's nothing we can't do. But we're still people. There are things best left in the hands of God. Dreams are given to us by God to test our faith in him."

"Test our faith?" Kyouko whispered, staring at her parents before hugging both of them. "I love you!"

"Now go back to sleep." Her mother told her, stroking her daughter's hair before leaving the room.

The five year old grabbed her favorite stuffed animal, squeezed it tightly and was asleep within five minutes, before she'd even had time to question the odd dreams she'd had.

Sometimes, little Kyouko wondered if she was a real child. Maybe she was some sort of child genius, like Jesus had been, because sometimes, she knew things that adults knew. She never said it, because it didn't sound very rational.

Every night, her father would test her on the biblical verses she knew, to train her to take her place one day in the church. Kyouko put her all into it, because she wanted to please her parents, and she loved both of them very, very much, not as much as she loved Jesus, of course. Her love for God was above everything else in life. She was deeply afraid of the flames, something about the mention of flames scared Kyouko so much that even as a young child she'd been terrified of candles, until she reached a certain age. Even so, there was a dormant fear of fire in her mind.

"Kyouko? We have something to tell you." Her mother told her one day, three years later.

"What is it?" The eight year old asked.

"I'm pregnant, you're going to have a little brother or sister, Kyouko."

The look of delight on the child's face told her all she needed to know.

"I wanna see them now!" She insisted.

"You can't. Not for a while. They're taking their time coming here, but they'll be here."

"How soon?" Kyouko asked, tilting her head.

"Not long, only a couple of months." Her mother said. Kyouko wasn't quite ready to hear how babies were made just yet.

"I love you, Mommy!" She cried.

Nine months later, the eight-year old found herself in the hospital with her mother, as her mother held a tiny bundle to her side. It was a baby, with light red hair like her own.

"It's a girl, Kyouko." The breathless woman said.

"Let us thank the Lord, that he has helped her give birth to a strong and healthy daughter."

Kyouko's father did a prayer and so did Kyouko and her mother.

After all, it was thanks to the Lord that her sister was here.

Sometimes, when she prayed to God, she felt an inner sense of peace wash over her that she couldn't put into words.

She was doing good things.

Sometimes, when she closed her eyes, all she got from God was silence, and nothing but those horrible flames were enveloped in her mind. So she did her best to be a good little girl.

Her sister's name was Momo, and from the second she met her, she was a good older sister to her.

She always loved taking her sister with her to church and just having her sit and listen to her father speak in his church. She loved watching him speak the word of God to all his congregation, she loved hearing his voice, he was so persuasive and just so kind-hearted, she knew people would listen and he would change the world.

"Dada?" Momo asked, pointing a stubby finger at their father as he was up speaking, "Dada talking?"

"Yes, he's speaking the truth. He's teaching them about God." She said, her eyes sparkling.

Momo didn't quite understand, but she knew her sister idolized their father as much as she did.

Sometimes, people were angry with what their father had to say.

When she was older, she figured out that the words people said to her father weren't actually nice, but were in fact mean.

Sometimes, the songbooks had nasty messages written in them.

By the time Kyouko entered adolescence, things started changing. She started realizing that sometimes, Dad wasn't as confident as he seemed.

In her dreams, she was continually tormented by the devil, by those flames, but still she fought back against the devil.

However, the older Kyouko grew, the more she had a strange feeling in the back of her mind that something wasn't right-that her whole life was a lie. She pushed it back-that was impossible. She would never, ever, ever believe that.

Perhaps these were the devil's thoughts her dad talked about, trying to tempt her. She was not a temptress.

She refused to believe what they told her: that God didn't exist, that he didn't listen to people who were in need.

God did exist.

She knew he did exist.

"No one come yet?" Momo asked, staring at the empty church in disbelief.

"They must be busy with something." She told Momo.

"They'll come back later, right?" Momo said, "They'll listen to Tousan, right?"

"Of course they will. They'll listen to Tousan." She hugged her sister tighter.

Then it happened. Their meals started getting smaller.

They would have food and then leftovers for the next week.

Eventually, it whittled down to just small pieces of bread and cheese.

"Why isn't anyone showing up anymore, Dad?" She complained.

"People have chosen to ignore my words." He said, "The people are blinded by the words of the Devil."

How could the Devil do this, she thought, as she watched her little sister cry from hunger?

She hated starving-it was the worst feeling in the world.

She just lay on her bed, night after night, feeling her stomach growl, but not being able to fill it.

She decided from then on, that she would never, ever waste food. Food was precious.

It was also then that she decided she would steal some food for the first time.

Her first attempt failed dramatically. She was caught and chewed out by her father.

"I was just tryin'...to get food for Momo..." She said, hanging her head low.

"You broke one of the commandments." He said in a disappointed tone.

Kyouko knew she'd embarrassed her father.

But she just had to make people listen to her father! She had to bring the smiles back to their faces, but how?

She stopped by the church, looking over the figures, sweeping up junk.

"Oh, God, forgive me, I've sinned. I just wish people would listen to my father-"

'A wish?' A high voice said in her head.

Kyouko glanced around, confused.

She'd probably imagined it.

Then, her gaze fell on a strange, white cat creature that was sitting near her, with odd-looking ears, red eyes, and a white tail that was flicking impatiently. She'd never seen anything like it before.

"Ya don't look like any kind of stray I've ever seen." She muttered, getting a little freaked out by how eerie this whole situation was. "I'm going back inside now-"

'Kyouko Sakura, was what I heard you say just now not true?'

"How do you know my name?" She asked, more alarmed now than ever.

'I can read your mind!' It chirped. 'My name is Kyubey! Your father has been having a hard time, hasn't he?'

"Yes...?" She said, again a little hesitant to talk to this thing.

'You've been on hard times since people won't listen to your father, right? Would you like people to listen to your father again?'

"Yes..." She said, unaware of what would come with those fateful words.

'Then, make a contract with me, I can grant you one wish!'

"What kind of wish? A wish for a bunch of chocolate?"

"Any kind of wish, from curing poverty to helping your father, to making it so you never have to starve ever again.' As Kyubey said this, he rolled around, which Kyouko found very odd but charming, in a strange way, 'If you make a contract with me, you'll get to fight the devils that your father talks about-known as witches. They're responsible for misery in the world. If you become a magical girl, you can do what your father wants you to do, and save the world and those of the people living in it!'

Kyouko's eyes glinted. She ignored the voice in the back of her head telling her that something was wrong with this sort of offer.

"I wish...I wish everyone would take my father's words seriously and listen to what he has to say!" She declared.

"Your wish is granted." Kyubey said, and suddenly there was a painful feeling...like something was being ripped out of her chest.

Then, a pretty red gem was being held in her hands.

Kyouko stared at it, wide-eyed, it resembled a ruby.

"That's your Soul Gem, Kyouko Sakura! From today on, you are a Magical Girl!" The creature declared.

"But magic is evil..." She said.

"Your magic is for good! The witches are the bad ones, they use their curses to lure innocent people into their wards, where they devour them. So Magical Girls save people from becoming victims of these witches."

Kyouko pondered over whether she'd done the right thing that night, as Kyubey lay on the floor, curled up in a ball. But her father would surely understand, right? She'd done this for him.

He'd understand.

The next day, when she awoke, her father was banging on the door.

"Kyouko!" He cried, "It's a miracle! We've been blessed! There are people!"

She glanced out the window and saw a whole group of people standing outside their front door, with smiles on their faces. Some of them were the former parishioners. All of them looked friendly and inviting.

Her father opened the door.

"We came back to hear your messages! We want to hear your messages of love and acceptance! We were wrong to reject you!"

All of them looked so happy and delighted to be there.

She didn't even notice how frozen their smiles were, though.

'See, your wish did save your father!' A voice chirped.

She turned to see Kyubey by her father's feet, though it seemed none of them noticed him.

'Only you can see or hear me! I'm invisible to normal people!'

Kyubey hopped onto her shoulder and she just stared at him.

"This is amazing, Tousan!" She yelped.

"It's a true miracle. Somewhere in their hearts, they must have known."

Their father gave tons of speeches.

At first, only small groups of people came. But gradually, more and more people arrived.

Eventually, they had enough money for Kyouko's father to get them food again.

They could refurbish their house.

"It's like a dream. I never thought I would live like this again, it's truly amazing." Kyouko's mother whispered.

"God works in mysterious ways." Kyouko's father said.

"Thank you, God for this meal!" Momo chirped.

"Are you happy to see your father saving the world?" Their father asked them.

Both girls nodded in assent.

"One day I'll be up there like you, dad!" She said, as she dug into her food.

Once again, she listened in the church as her father spoke, listening to the cheering people who were happily reciting her father's words. She never found anything wrong with them always being happy, for once no one was complaining about her father or disagreeing with him. They greeted her with words like Pastor Sakura's daughter, you're so kind.

"You have wonderful daughters, Pastor Sakura, please look after them." An elderly woman said.

"Daddy's famous!" Momo cried.

The parishioners around them laughed.

"He is famous." Kyouko said, patting her sister's head.

She continued to fight as a magical girl, sometimes winning, sometimes losing, up until the day when she met another magical girl-one who would be one of her closest friends.

A blond-haired girl with golden eyes had helped her-the whole time, Kyouko had wondered if she was an angel, from her soft voice to her kind nature, until she finished speaking.

"My name's Mami Tomoe. That was some impressive magic you did back there."

"I'm a superhero! I'm Kyouko Sakura." She introduced.

"Sakura-san, would you like it if I taught you the ways of being a veteran magical girl?"

The look on her face told her the answer was yes.

Mami-san was amazing.

She made the best desserts and the best food.

Food was the number one thing in Kyouko's life.

Mami-san even came to Kyouko's house to meet her family.

"One day, things started looking up for us. God answered our prayers."

Kyouko could feel Mami's eyes on her and paled slightly.

"Sakura-san, was that your wish?" She asked softly.

"No one listened to my father, so I made sure they would!"

"Are you sure that's what your father really wants?" She pressed.

"I'm sure!" She cried.

"Things will be fine. Just don't be too reckless." She said, "Your father would never harm you. He loves you too much."

The voice in the back of her head said, 'Be careful, be careful!'

But once again, she ignored it.

Tragedy was looming around the corner, unfortunately.

Kyouko would not know how to deal with it when it came.

Kyouko couldn't believe it.

A witch had invaded her own home. She'd managed to stop it in time, though.

She sighed in relief. Now everything would be fine.

She was finishing up whenever the door opened.

"Kyouko?"

It was the voice of her father.

She turned around, stunned.

He was staring at her. "What is this? What is this outfit you're wearing?"

"Tousan...I can explain. You see, people were trying to destroy the church, so I turned into a Magical Girl."

"Magic? What are you using magic for?"

"Well, I met a creature, he said he could grant any wish, so I asked for everyone to take your words seriously. Dad, everyone really believes in you and your words now. I wanted to help you, dad."

She didn't expect the slap across the face.

"You sold yourself to the devil. You're nothing more than a witch. How could you go behind my back like this? People aren't coming here because they believe in me-they've been bewitched by this very same sorceress that stands before me."

"I'm not a witch, Dad. I'm not." She cried.

Her father stormed out, and Kyouko transformed back.

Her little sister hugged her.

She was hugged by her mother, but her father ignored her for the rest of the day.

Her father took to drinking.

"He's in his room all day, I can hardly get a word out of him." Her mother told Kyouko.

That night, she dreamed of a rope hanging from the ceiling. She walked into the room, startled to find her father hanging from it, and a witch had eaten her mother and sister.

Kyouko woke, wondering what that was about, but instead she got no answers. For some reason, she just didn't want to get out of bed. She felt like if she stayed home, things would be all right. Even so, she got up and went to school. Her classmates had ignored her before, but now they were all throwing praise onto her. It bothered her.

"Pastor Sakura's amazing, isn't he, Kyouko?"

She fixed a smile on her face. "Yes, he is amazing."

Now her father's speeches were filled with anguish and anger at the world. Even so, the people still kept on coming.

Kyouko returned home in time to find the door unlocked.

"Kaasan? Otousan? Momo!" She cried out.

Nobody was there. Nobody answered, and the lights were out.

Kyouko stepped into the house and heard a thudding sound coming from the upstairs. She noticed there were signs of a struggle downstairs, and broken glass and toppled furniture lay about the living room.

As she came in, she had a knife pointed at her.

"So the witch shows herself."

It was her father, and her mother and sister were bound with rope, staring at her with horrified eyes.

"Kyouko..." Her mother said.

"This thing is not our daughter."

"How dare you call her a thing." Her mother said.

"You have been bewitched by her, too." Her father said.

"Kyouko-neesan." Momo whined.

"Momo!" Kyouko cried, trying to come toward her, "Dad, please-"

"Don't call me that, you piece of filth." He snarled.

Instantly, Kyouko transformed, causing her mother to gasp.

"Kyouko, what have you done?" She said in fear.

"I just wanted to help my family." She said, uncertain of what to do.

"You turned your back on God." Her father snapped. "Now, you'll suffer."

He stabbed Kyouko in the chest.

She fell to the floor, as her mom screamed her name, and got back up.

"See, Tousan, that didn't hurt me in the slightest-"

Why hadn't she died?

"You witch." He snarled.

"I'm just gonna take Momo and then I'll go, okay."

"You get away from her."

"No."

But Momo broke free and ran towards Kyouko, only for her father to push her backwards.

There was a sickening thud as she fell backwards.

Kyouko fell unconscious, Momo in her arms.

It felt like this wasn't the first time something bad had happened and she'd fallen unconscious.

When she awoke, she glanced up, in time to see her father bent over her mother. Her mother was dead, blood pooling out from under her.

"Dad..." She whimpered.

"The witch is still alive." Her father hissed.

Kyouko stared at the trembling bundle in her arms. "Momo..." She whispered.

Momo was beaten up. There were bruises on her face. There was blood on her face.

"Kyouko-neesan, I'm sorry...I'm going to heaven." She whispered.

"No, ya ain't! You ain't goin'!"

"Kyouko-neesan is a superhero." She whispered.

Her father smiled. "She's going up to heaven, you however, will go to hell where you belong."

Kyouko watched as her sister slid out of her arms, showing that she had been stabbed.

For the first time in her life, Kyouko found herself cursing.

"You...you son of a fucking bitch, how could you?" She snarled, advancing on her father, who backed away.

"Stay away from me, you monster."

"I ain't a monster! I dare you to call me that again!"

Frightened, her father leapt up onto the ladder.

She found herself recalling her dream.

"Dad, don't-"

His neck snapped.

He was dead.

The next second, the house was full of smoke and flames. Her father must have set it on fire. She had no choice but to abandon the house.

"I'm sorry, Kyouko, it was a tragedy. Your family just wouldn't listen." Kyubey said.

"I can't believe they're all gone." She said, crying, "It's not right."

Her frame shook as she wept.

At the same time, with such deep sorrow came a sudden sense of anger and hatred for the world around her.

She was never going to make any wishes for anyone other than herself. Fuck others, fuck them.

"I'm doing things for myself." She muttered.

'What about the people who suffer from witches, Kyouko?' Kyubey asked.

"I'll just take down the witches. I don't give a fuck anymore."

Even the church had been demolished.

The students at school stopped speaking to her, so she dropped out.

Nobody stopped her from doing so.

Her father's relatives had estranged themselves from her long ago. As a result, Kyouko could wander around and do whatever the hell she wanted.

Religion, God, the devil...it was all fucking bullshit.

That's all it was.

She broke into bank machines, stole money, stole food for herself, and spent night after night in homeless shelters, in soup kitchens, or else in abandoned buildings.

Kyouko's heart grew more bitter to the world, until the day that she met Sayaka Miki and told her her story.

Kyouko's life became even more confusing.

She was supposed to turn into a witch, just vanish?

Fuck that.

Then she decided to die to save Sayaka.

End her worthless life.

Suddenly, she awoke, back in her temporary apartment.

Confused and bewildered, she glanced around, wondering why that had happened.

"I could've sworn I met a girl named Sayaka and she died and I died..." she muttered, but noticed her Soul Gem glowing red on the table.

"Either I dreamed all of that or else there's some other shit going on." She muttered.

Kyouko was feeling a little odd lately. Sometimes, she looked at her hair and thought she hated the color red. That was freaking stupid.

She reached into her cupboard and pulled out a bag of potato chips and started eating. Food was the best way she could relieve her stress.

But still, being a magical girl beat everything else.

It was then that she thought she spotted a person outside her window, watching her, a girl with purple eyes.

She'd sworn she'd seen her before, in her dreams.

Kyouko blinked, wondering what that was about.

"Either I'm psychic, or else I'm losing my mind."

She came over to the window. "Show yerself!"

Suddenly, a figure appeared in the room with her, staring at her in bewilderment.

(A/N: Kyouko's death in the past life is kinda messing with Homura's timeline and thus making her remember things she ordinarily wouldn't. The OC's knowledge, etc. But it's very limited, so it's not like she remembers everything, just bits and pieces. Wouldn't do to make her overpowered. Only Homura remembers all the timelines, that's staying intact.)

Kyouko studied the girl before her. Long black hair, purple eyes and holding a Soul Gem. Yep, definitely another Magical Girl.

"How'd you get in? Ya didn't even open the window."

"Magic, of course." Was the curt answer she got, "I didn't think you would notice me, Sakura Kyouko."

"Ya were outside my window. That's really creepy. Are ya here to steal my food?"

"I'm not here to steal your food." She said in an impatient tone.

"Say, haven't we met before?" She asked.

"It depends on what you want to believe, Kyouko Sakura." The girl said ambiguously.

"Well, if we have met before, that would explain why ya know my name."

Homura stared. "What?"

"Anyway, I had the strangest fuckin' dream."

"Dream?" The dark-haired girl said.

"Yeah." She ate five chips at once. "I fuckin' died."

"You what?" She said, looking shocked.

"Yeah, that's what I dreamed. I fuckin' died, and then I dreamed...goddammit, I can't remember the rest of it. It doesn't mean anything." She cursed, crumpling up the bag and throwing it away.

"It does mean something."

"What? What are ya talking about?"

"You...remember."

"Remember what? If I could remember them, I wouldn't be living in this piss poor apartment."

"Kyouko Sakura, you did die."

Kyouko's mouth fell open. "You're fuckin' crazy. Get outta my apartment."

"No, I can't. You remembered. You've never remembered before." Though she looked deadpan, there was a crazed excitement to her eyes.

"Do I look like a psychic to you? Now tell me what ya want."

"Kyouko Sakura, you have died. You have died many times before this."

"Eh, how many times are we talking? I died once when my family died."

"You've died around twenty-five times. This is the twenty-sixth cycle so far." The girl was talking to herself.

"Eh? I don't understand what ya mean!" Kyouko snapped.

'I thought it was one hundred timelines.' A voice said in her head.

Kyouko paused and looked around. No one was there.

"You mean...I'm..." She muttered. "Repeatin' my life?"

"Yes."

"Ya expect me to believe this?" She said, grabbing a can of soda and starting to drink from it.

"I didn't expect you to believe this. Until you suddenly acknowledged my existence and recognized your own death, which is impossible."

"You're crazy." Kyouko said. "Why do I need to hear this? Wait a second, ya mean I did die?"

"Yes."

"Fuck."

"Could you refrain from cursing, Sakura Kyouko? My name is Homura Akemi."

"Repeat that again?"

"Akemi Homura."

"Okay, Homura, Homerun, whatever yer name is, tell me why on earth this is happening. Where's the proof I should believe ya?"

Suddenly, a second later, Kyouko's bag of potato chips was gone, absent from where it had been previously.

"So it is possible?" She said, at a loss for words.

"Dying repeatedly is very possible, Kyouko. I witnessed you die many, many times." Homura said.

"Could ya quit talkin' like that, it's really, really creepy." Kyouko snapped.

"I'm just excited. Barely anyone has ever remembered, but you have. This is amazing."

"So wait, you've been repeatin' time and I've been dyin'? For what purpose would ya do this? It sounds utterly pointless."

"You're not even paying attention." Homura said.

"So you mean what you're sayin' isn't total bullshit?" She said, drinking more soda.

"That's what I've been trying to say this entire time." She said in irritation.

"Okay." Kyouko said, feeling stupid.

"So, what are ya doin'?" She asked, when the girl didn't respond.

"I'm making coffee." Homura said.

"Why are ya using my coffee machine? Why should I trust ya?" She snapped.

"We're magical girls. We might as well trust each other." Homura replied.

"Doin' that will get ya stabbed in the fuckin' back."

"You're the same, yet different."

"How's that possible? Quit talkin' like ya came out of fuckin' Shakespeare." Kyouko scowled in irritation and ate some cookies angrily.

"Your use of the term Shakespeare...and your memory of dying...could it be that I'm affecting you as well with the repetition of the timelines?"

"Eh? I'm the same. I've always been the fuckin' same." Kyouko growled as she was eating another cookie.

"Can I have one?" Homura asked.

"Sure," Kyouko said noncommittally.

Homura took that as a yes and accepted a cookie.

"You steal these?"

"I did."

"You should go back to the place, apologize and buy them."

"Don't wanna."

"Just because we're magical girls doesn't mean we can't obey the law."

"It's just not basic decency to steal." Homura pointed out.

"Look, you told me that I've fucking died over twenty-four times."

'Twenty-five.' That same voice said in her head.

Kyouko frowned. "Ya hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Nothing."

"Are you talking to yourself now?"

"No. So how did I die?"

"Most of the time, to witches, or sacrificing yourself for someone you will meet soon, and in one instance, you destroyed your Soul Gem with a spear because you ran out of sweets. I'm joking." She said, upon seeing the look on Kyouko's face.

"So how's Mami?"

"She died."

Kyouko dropped her soda.

"Don't you remember that?"

The idea of Mami being dead felt permanent? Maybe, maybe not.

"I don't know." She muttered.

She suddenly had an image of a giant thing biting Mami's head off, even though she hadn't been there to see it.

Kyouko shook her head.

She must be going insane.

"You remember, did you?" Homura asked.

"Mami died from eating too many sweet cakes."

To her surprise, the dark-haired girl looked like she was trying hard not to smile, but hid it. "No, she died at the hands of a witch, not too long ago. How often do you feel like things are familiar?"

Kyouko paused. "I don't give a fuck to notice. But just now, things felt familiar."

"And it appears my screwing around with the timelines screwed around with the people in it." Homura said sarcastically. "So, I'm afraid I'm going to be keeping a closer eye on you than I thought."

"I really don't know you. I'm guessing you're the Doctor, like that English show?"

"Some might call me that." Homura said and when Kyouko blinked again, she was gone.

"Fuck this, I'm going back to bed." She muttered.