Sayaka-chan was gone. Kyoko-san had gone with her. Thinking about the situation any more than she wanted to reminded her that every passing moment was another moment gone that no one but her knew Mami-san was gone.

Kaname Madoka was at a loss. One by one, she was losing people, losing friends, new and old. There was nothing she could do to stop it either. Were she to go to Kyubey, to become a Puella Magi, she knew that she would surely lose her last friend - Homura-chan - in one way or another. Homura-chan had warned her, again and again, that she should not under any circumstances accept Kyubey's offer.

... But how could she possibly keep turning down the opportunity to finally step up and do good, when up until now all she had done was sit back and watch people die and die and die...?

Kyubey came to her late one night. The little Incubator told her the history of Puella Magi. How they had been "helping" the universe since the beginning of humanity - how, if he was to be believed, they had been helping humanity itself since the very beginning of humanity. Perhaps to Kyubey, he thought he was doing the right thing; Madoka was not so foolish or so hot-blooded as to think that he was lying to her.

He truly believed what he was doing was simply more important. In turn, however, Madoka truly believed that her kind and his would always be enemies. She knew that there was no other way for them - there was no compromise, no halfway here.

... But she also knew that she couldn't be the only one to make it so far. To know this much with the question of "Will you make a contract?" still weighing down on her.

Kaname Madoka was no fool. She knew very well how much good could come from a wish, if placed in the right hands. She would not speak ill of the dead, never, but she knew that the idea of a wish was, perhaps in essence, selfish. To ask for something, a miracle, without inputting any work for it (certainly, Kyubey's contract and having to fight was far from "equivalent exchange" - especially in the case of grander wishes) was a selfish idea.

Thinking like this brought tears to her eyes. She had learned a lot from Mami-san and Sayaka-chan - Kyoko-san too. Things she might have thought she was too young to be thinking about before - now, however, she could only think about how such thoughts were useless, wasted on someone like her who could do nothing.

It was far too late for the three of those wonderful, heroic girls to look over their notes, for them to learn themselves what they had taught her.

Perhaps, Madoka hoped, it wasn't too late for her to learn for the last of those wonderful, heroic girls. She was Madoka's idol at this point - a selfless, wonderful girl who had done so much for Madoka without asking for anything in return. She fought her lonely battles, day in and day out, without a single friend supporting her, all because it was the right thing to do.

Homura-chan. Madoka hoped so dearly that she would know what to do. She couldn't... She couldn't take this anymore - this suffering.

With that in mind, she set out to find the dark haired girl.

Madoka still wasn't entirely aware of what "Walpurgis Night" was. She knew, at least, that it was a powerful witch that Homura-chan had wanted help with - help that she no longer had. She knew, as she searched for the girl, that she must be suffering about this, that she must be wondering what she could do alone, that she must be feeling helpless, but not wanting to show it - she knew that Homura wouldn't do anything that would make Madoka want to sign the contract.

But Homura-chan herself had signed the contract, hadn't she? Didn't that mean that Homura-chan had found something worth signing for...?

Before Madoka could wonder about the subject further, she heard a familiar voice - a voice that plagued her dreams, her nightmares, and often her daydreams. His name escaped her lips in a quiet whisper, thankfully one that did not go noticed (or simply was ignored) by the being in question, and more importantly...

"You won't be able to defeat it alone, Akemi Homura. That is a fact."

Homura-chan!

"If all you're here to do is belittle me, you can go. You won't change my mind."

Madoka slunk into the shadows, doing her best to conceal herself. She could tell that this was an important conversation, one about the very monster she had been thinking about. As she listened, her eyes could only go wide, her mouth slack, as she heard about the horrible witch that Homura had sterned herself to fight all alone.

The Walpurgisnacht, or the Walpurgis Night, was the appearance of a witch born of many witches combined together. Madoka could only imagine how horrible such a thing would look (though deep down, she felt as though she knew what it would look like). It was said that the coming of a Walpurgis Night happened once every year, and that they were incredibly powerful - moreso than even ten or twenty witches.

As the two discussed this monster, this horrific creature that Madoka was picturing tearing her last friend limb from limb, it was all she could do to not sob then and there. When Kyubey openly declared that he was certain Madoka's last friend was going to die if she did not get assistance, however, that was when Madoka could no longer take it.

"Homura-chan can do anything if she puts her mind to it...! I'm sure of it! And if she can't, then I'll-"

At the mere appearance of the pink haired girl, it seemed the entire setting changed between Homura-chan and Kyubey. Within moments, Homura had pulled a gun - from where, Madoka couldn't even see - and had shot Kyubey right in-between his eyes, and within just a few more moments, a second Kyubey had appeared on Madoka's shoulder (Madoka yelped, then leaped back and away) looking at his fallen body with his usual expression.

"You should know by now, Akemi Homura. I know all about how you fight. You shouldn't waste your magic with Walpurgis Night so close, you know."

The Incubator's taunt (perhaps, to it, it wasn't even a taunt) obviously flared up Homura's emotions, all the more with Madoka right there, but she couldn't fire another shot due to Madoka being directly in the line of fire. There was a long silence instead, with Madoka looking from Incubator to Puella Magi, worry splashed all over her face, until Homura-chan finally lowered her weapon.

"Leave."

For once, Kyubey chose not to retort. Rather than make any kind of comment, he let out what seemed like a sigh of sorts, then hopped off of the wall behind Madoka, gave her a final look, and trotted away.

This, naturally, left the two remaining girls alone - alone and silent. For a long while, what seemed like an eternity, Madoka watched the other girl - the other girl in turn watching her; considering, contemplating.

Knowing that she may not get such a chance again, Madoka recalled Mami-san. She recalled Sayaka-chan, Kyoko-san, and all of the witches she had seen - each one had probably been just like Mami, Sayaka, and Kyoko. They had wishes, dreams, and had fought for those things with all of their heart - just like Homura-chan did too. Thinking about all of that, and the challenge that Homura-chan soon had to face, Madoka could finally gather up her courage to speak-

"You can't become a Puella Magi, Madoka. Don't even think about it. ... Please."

Madoka's courage wavered slightly at the sudden outspokenness of the other girl, but that was all the more reason that she needed to speak - to finally speak, before it was too late once again. No matter what Homura-chan thought, no matter what she said, Madoka couldn't let it go - not without at least knowing why.

Unable to resist the pleas of the person most important to her, Homura finally had to give in. She had wanted to keep it all a secret this time, to leave Madoka out of it as much as possible (which was increasibly hard the more others got in the way of saving her), but after all of this time, it was natural for Homura to crack. She was only human.

More human than even Madoka had realized, in fact.

Madoka could only listen, slack jawed, to the tales of Homura's travels through time, her words aided by images and... memories?, brought on by either Homura herself, or the powers (and the Madoka-centric nature of them) that she possessed.

Homura's story was truly something tragic, the likes of which Madoka had never heard, even with all of the horrible things she had been subjected to these past few weeks.

She had been even more innocent than Madoka herself originally. After seeing Mami and Madoka fall, however, she made a wish - a powerful wish, to go back in time to save Madoka. Again and again, she was put through various tragedies - the same sort of tragedy that Madoka herself was experiencing, that Homura had worked hard to keep away from her; so that she would be safe. Madoka could only watch and listen to familiar but different tales, could only cry for the girl she thought so selfless and brave, as all this powerful new information flooded her mind.

As the tales continued, however, Madoka, attentive and kind girl as she was, started noticing a pattern. Though Homura's words glazed over these facts, the memories were pure and unaltered, and the contrast between those and Homura-chan's words was massive... For her words always always always were of Madoka, her efforts to protect Madoka, her desire to save Madoka...

Realization struck Madoka. Her eyes, red from tears, went wide, and she staggered backwards in horror.

"Ma...Madoka, you see now, don't you? Why you can't become a Puella Magi?"

That wasn't at all what Madoka saw. She saw herself, over and over again, becoming someone with purpose, someone who truly believed in herself - even after learning the truth, the Madoka of the past would still go on, for the friends who weren't saved, who couldn't be saved. A strong, wonderful Madoka who could never exist now - whose comradery with those other girls would never happen, whose powers could have saved those girls when others would not would never happen... All because the chance to experience it all had been stripped from her without her even having a choice.

Because Homura had made it for her.

What have I done?

The images kept coming. No longer could Madoka focus on the tragic heroine, Homura, of the past, and she couldn't even face this magestic, truly selfless version of herself, not when the she that she was now had become so corrupt and weak.

All Madoka could see were the faces of her friends. Trying again and again and again to do their best, and failing over and over - not being allowed to rest in peace, let the world continue, to try to recover from the disaster of the yearly Walpurgis, because Homura would not allow it. Instead, again and again and again, like puppets that had been dropped to the stage, their strings were picked up once again, and the plays began anew.

And looking into Homura's eyes, Madoka knew for sure that these plays would go on and on forever until Homura got the result she wanted, no matter who else was lost in the pursuit of that result... or how many times it took for her to get there.

Madoka could tell just how much Homura had suffered. She knew that Homura had been through horrors that few others could only imagine. She knew how badly Homura wanted Madoka to live on, live happily, but Madoka could tell already - if she could switch the Madoka she was now for almost any of those other Madokas, she would gladly do it. Those Madokas knew what they were fighting for, living for. Those Madokas were there for their friends - there for Homura as well.

What Homura wanted was a Madoka in a jar, to keep all for herself and protect from everything, regardless of what Madoka wanted - regardless of what the rest of the Puella Magi, and even the entire world, needed.

Her breath shaking, Madoka clenched a fist and blinked back tears. Resolve was starting to boil up in her, as if it had been waiting all along for her to come to this discovery, and she made her decision.

Homura slowly raised a hand, stepping forward, hoping to wipe the tears off of the face that she hated seeing stained by such things the most. She hadn't failed yet, there was still hope in this world, she could still defeat Walpurgis on her own; yet as she voiced those thoughts out loud-

A resounding SLAP echoed in the empty night, as Madoka's outstretched hand came into contact with Homura's cheek.

In all the worlds that Homura had been through, all the years she had spent repeating this endless cycle, this had never, ever happened before. It was only natural to stare, to gape, to raise a hand to her quickly reddening cheek and gasp at the girl before her - the girl she would do anything for.

"M-Madoka... Why? How could you...?"

Why?

How could she?

The answers to that were actually simple. Despite the nagging voice that told her she sounded like Kyubey, Madoka pushed aside her emotions to tell it to her last friend - one she might rapidly be losing with each passing moment, a fact that broke Madoka's heart.

Why? How could she?

"Because, Homura-chan, you've been ignoring what I would want. What I need. I want to be able to be there for my friends, and seeing this just shows me how much good I could be if I were to contract with Kyubey! Do you think I'd like to watch the last friend I have, the last friend I love so much die, all because they were so stubborn...? I-I couldn't go on if that happened!"

Madoka took a deep breath. Speechless, Homura could only stare in disbelief as emotion finally started trickling back into her voice, as tears trickled down her face once more.

"You... You never once considered the lives of Mami-san, Sayaka-chan, and Kyoko-san, did you? Not... Not like you have me. At best, they... They were just means to an end, weren't they? Ways to keep me away from Kyubey, to keep me happy so I wouldn't want him... Why couldn't you think about any of them? How did you think I would feel, after you finally saved me, when I learned you had the power to save everyone, but refused to even try... because they weren't me?"

Homura was in a state of shock. What Madoka said was all true, and more. Even now, the idea of saving the others, trying to go after them to the extent she had Madoka... It was too foreign. Even now, in the back of her mind, she was telling herself in a few days she could reset again and try again - that even if this Madoka had failed, the next one (it was always the next one) would be better. She would be able to be together with the next one.

As soon as those thoughts surfaced, however, Homura felt shame as Madoka's words fought back against those thoughts. Was this... really what she had become...?

"... Do you hate me, Madoka...?"

Madoka stopped. She hadn't been done talking, but she clearly hadn't expected Homura to interrupt her - perhaps she knew that, if Homura were to do so, her resolve would shatter, and she would forgive Homura. Her pause was short lived, though, and she raised her hands once more.

Homura flinched, preparing herself for another wound that she was starting to realize she just might really deserve. Yet no wound, slap, or small fisted punch came. What Homura was given instead was a pair of arms, wrapped tenderly around her, and before she realized it, Madoka was pulling her into an embrace, tears flowing freely.

"I could never hate you, Homura-chan...!"

As Madoka hugged Homura tight, as Madoka told Homura how much she cared about her, how hard it must have been just to make it this far, the mask that many of this time had come to know as Akemi Homura began to crack, until finally, she could return her treasured friend's embrace and, finally, let her own tears flow free once again.

They spent a long time together that night. Kyubey decided to leave them alone - he knew that, at the very least, at such an emotional high, chances of contracting Madoka were at an all-time low, and he wasn't in the mood to be shot again. That in mind, the Incubator proceeded to follow up on other business - business in the nearby city of Asunaro - while he awaited Walpurgis' arrival, and the perfect chance for Madoka to become a Puella Magi.

Of course, he would still be a simple call away, unlikely as that was. Kyubey was always watching, even when he wasn't. He was the most efficient of the Incubators, after all.

The next day, Madoka wanted to make the day as much of a good one as possible for Homura. They both knew what was coming on the next, but neither wanted to talk about it. Instead, Madoka wanted to give Homura something to enjoy, to remember, because Homura knew that no matter what, she would be going back again, one last time - but this time, she swore to Madoka that she wouldn't let Madoka down.

Madoka just smiled. Seeing that smile, directed at her despite everything, Homura could finally smile too.

Perhaps Homura should have seen it coming. Perhaps she should have realized that Madoka wasn't getting Homura ready for her trip at all.

Perhaps she should have seen that this beautiful, blissful time was nothing more than an apology in advance. But how could she have known? Madoka had nothing to apologize for, it was Homura who kept apologizing, and Madoka who kept forgiving. Homura swelled with feeling, and thinking became the last thing on her mind.

No matter what was going to happen the next day, this was something that Homura's soul had needed for a long time. No worrying about witches, protecting Madoka, or anything. She had been caught up in her sins, freed from and forgiven for them, and for Madoka, she would fix them. Even if it was imposible, she had to try. The idea of living alone, with a miserable Madoka, whose misery came directly from her... It was something Homura couldn't think about.

She had been so caught up in fixing the present that she had forgotten that there would be a future to follow it. She saw that now. It had taken Madoka, who she had stopped listening to so long ago, to show her that again. For the first time in a long time, now Homura felt like there was really a battle worth fighting, that she really could win it all, despite all the failed attempts that had come and gone in the past.

Homura was ready to make it all up to Madoka. She even said this to Madoka, over and over, as if letting the girl know that she was ready now for what was to come. She said, over and over, she would save everyone for Madoka. Madoka returned that with a hug, and Homura thought everything, for this last day they had together, was bliss.

So, naturally, it came as a tremendous surprise when, that evening, she found Madoka coming to her with a look that Homura couldn't quite read-

- and Kyubey in her arms.

She didn't understand. Why was Kyubey here? Why was he with Madoka? Why was Madoka looking at her like that?

Homura had so many questions, and as she tried to get as many of them out as she could, before Madoka did something both of them would regret, Madoka started to explain.

"I did a horrible thing to you, Homura-chan. I... I can never thank you enough for what you've done, but I can never apologize enough either. Even if you chose this path yourself, it's me who put you there, and it's me who holds the key to your cage."

Madoka closed her eyes, as a tear trailed down each cheek. Despite that, she seemed to be at peace - it was so surreal that, combined with the day's shattering of Homura's usual collected self, the time travel couldn't bring herself to move.

"Now it's time I set you free."

Kyubey looked up at Madoka, as if the little alien had been waiting for this moment all along.

"Are you ready?"

Madoka nodded.

"Mmmm. I am."

Madoka cast a final, forlorn look at Homura.

"Thank you... For everything, Homura-chan. I'll never forget you."

Finally, Homura found her voice, because she had seen this horrible event so many times now that she knew what was going to happen, she knew she had to stop it, she knew that Walpurgis didn't even matter anymore, because all that matter was Ma-

"I wish that Homura-chan had never become a Puella Magi!"

There was no time for Homura to protest, no time for Madoka to say goodbye, no time for Kyubey to even finish his usual introduction.

Everything was white. There was simply whiteness, endless whiteness, and then there was nothing.

To free "her" Homura-chan, Madoka would give away her soul. She had done so willingly, and without second thought. Now, she had until Walpurgis Night to save all Homuras, present and future, and Sayaka-chans, Kyoko-sans, Mami-sans, and whoever else she could in the small time frame she had been so graciously granted by a little time travel.

The first thing she did was elect Sayaka to be her substitute for class nurse officer. By missing the right day of school, in turn, the new (or old, as it happened), lonely Homura had latched onto the bright and vibrant Sayaka like peanut butter to jelly, and Sayaka was more than eager to help out the poor girl (especially with Madoka, her favorite tease target, conveniently missing), and they became fast friends.

It was hard for Madoka to stay away from them, because she so dearly would have loved to be able to spend time with Sayaka-chan and Homura-chan, especially with this cute, glasses wearing version of Homura-chan she had never been able to meet before, but... She couldn't get them involved. She had a job to do. She had already said goodbye to Homura-chan, and now she...

Madoka laughed, despite the fact she was also tempted to cry. This was exactly how Homura-chan must have felt sometimes, wasn't it?

Homura's job had been hard work, hadn't it? Madoka could only smile, recalling her Homura-chan. Perhaps, when this was all over, she would be able to see her again, while this one here lived a happy, normal life. ... Well, if not, the Homura-chan of "now" being able to be happy with the rest of her friends - that was more than enough for her.

The second thing Madoka did was pay a visit to the hospital - not to play matchmaker (that was, in fact, the third thing she did) - but to find a Puella Magi that was sick and bedridden. Given how certain events had happened in her own time, Madoka suspected (and was right to do so) that someone here was close to the end, to giving in to the darkness and becoming a witch.

In saving this girl and sending her the way of Mami-san, she had saved two lives - the sickly Puella Magi's and Mami-san's. The two would be sources of strength for each other (how had they never met, but been in the same city for so long?), and together, they would last far longer than they would have had they been apart.

The third thing Madoka did was return to the hospital to visit Sayaka-chan's dear childhood friend. She was by no means well versed in the ways of the heart, but with a little help from her mother, she had gotten a good idea of what to do. Teasing was certainly not her forte, but after years of it from her childhood friend, she could manage it long enough to plant a simple idea in a hormone-ridden young man's head.

Kamijou Kyosuke would never look at Sayaka in the same light again, once Madoka had finished with him. Of course, that was exactly the reaction Madoka had been hoping for.

As it turned out, Madoka didn't have to do much for Kyoko-san. Accompanied by a small, green haired girl that Madoka had never seen before, Kyoko-san arrived in the city on schedule and joined her old comrade (Mami-san, naturally) to seek out a pair of mysterious Puella Magi that were bothering her little friend. As it turned out, despite how Kyoko-san had acted about Mami-san to Madoka and the others in the present... They got along really well when they were together.

It brought a smile to Madoka's face, as if it was confirming something she had known all along. That was just like the red haired girl, wasn't it?

Things weren't as easy as Madoka would have liked; she ran around fighting witches whenever she could, as to ease the burden of her friends that had already made their own contracts, and so that no one else would be forced to make a contract while she was still around to prevent it.

More than once, Madoka had come close to disaster, but all it took was to think of Homura - to think of how Homura had been through this exact same trial, countless times, and had never given up, even when things looked hopeless. Just imagining a bruised, bloody, and battered Homura, fighting against all the odds just to make it to that fated night was all Madoka needed to stand up and fight once again.

It was thoughts of Homura-chan that finally brought Madoka to the last witch she needed to face - Walpurgisnacht.

Madoka had done everything within her power to ensure that she would fight this monster alone - and, thanks to Homura-chan, she happened to have a lot of power built up from all of the time looping around her over and over again, and it was time to put it to the test. She would exhaust everything she had to do it - this was her plan - so that there would be nothing left of her, no witch, to terrorize the people she loved most in her wake.

As she charged into battle, Madoka wondered what Homura was doing right now. The witch's storm was picking up - was she somewhere safe? She could just see Sayaka running out into the storm, to hunt her new friend down (likely Hitomi too) to find and protect her, despite the fact that she was in just as much danger. Mami and the other Puella Magi were probably coming up with a battle plan, one that very likely considered the real risk that some of them might not make it out of it.

But they had no way to know that there was no need for plans. Kyubey, the one she had known before her contract and the one who wondered about "Madoka the enigma" in this world now, both knew that her power was incredible - more than enough to take care of this monster.

It was time to end this night of pain and suffering and make way for the daytime. Madoka had no way of knowing what would happen come morning. There surely be fights, struggles, and despair... but along with those, there would be hopes, dreams, and the possibility for so much more happiness. She was opening their cage, at long last, and letting everyone loose - she could no longer watch after them, but somehow, Madoka knew in her heart things would work out.

Readying her bow, Madoka looked up at the tremendous witch, and she felt an odd sense of calm, despite the fact that she was alone. All her friends, Puella Magi and not, were as far from her as they had ever been. Some of them didn't even know who she was, thanks to her meddling, and she sincerely hoped it would stay that way.

Somehow, though, that didn't bother her.

She had finally given them a tomorrow.

"I'll see you soon, Homura-chan."

And that was worth more than anything.

The Beginning