Homura walked with her head down. She just couldn't look anyone in the eyes. All she wanted was to just sink into the ground and disappear from the world and everyone in it. There was no place in the world for a pathetic girl like her.
In her mind a sweet siren's call started to echo out to her. It beckoned her forward and promised her oblivion. It repeated all of her self-doubts and insecurities into her mind's ear over and over.
"Hey, transfer student," a voiced called out from behind Homura.
Her head snapped up. What had she just been thinking? She couldn't remember exactly what it was. Homura turned around as a classmate with short hair jogged up to her.
"H-hello, um…"
"I'm Miki Sayaka. We are in the same class."
"Right, sorry, I forgot."
"It's your first day. You have a lot of new people to remember, I have just one. Anyways, you really don't want to go that way. There is a lot of crime and have even been a bunch of suicides. It isn't safe."
"But it's the only way I know how to get home."
"Well, I could help you find a better route home as long as you don't mind a detour."
Homura smiled. It was a hesitant smile that she cautiously wore. "No, that is fine. I don't mind a detour."
Together, Homura and Sayaka walked away from where the witch lay in wait for victims, just missing the battle that in another world would have shown Homura the world of magical girls and the beginning of her friendship with Kaname Madoka.
