Author's Notes: Due to popular demand and through your support (thank you!), I decided to try and develop this project into a small series at least. I'll do what I can to make it satisfactory, so enjoy!

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Magica Random

Chapter 2

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"I-I'm... alive?"

Mami's shaken words escaped her lips, disbelief thickly painted in her tone. Her racing heart pounded against her chest as if she were just about to die – but she was alive. The fangs of the Witch that would have killed her disappeared in a heartbeat. The sugary space of the inner chamber of the barrier was replaced by the entrance made of biscuits.

However, she found herself in a precarious position. She was suspended in mid-air by a host of red ribbons that binded her so tightly that she could hardly breathe. Then, as the pain of the constriction spread throughout her body, she realized one more particular oddity – these were her ribbons, cast by her magic.

"W-what the hell's going on?"

Mami grunted, her brow crumpling as she suppressed her pained voice.

"The r-ribbons won't... ungh..."

She could not seem to dispel her own magic.

"Ah. It's already begun." An impartial, lifeless voice reached Mami's ears.

"Who's there?"

Mami gasped, turning wildly to find the source of the voice.

"... Kamijou-kun?"

Standing there before her was Kyousuke Kamijou, looking at her with blank eyes. The cast in his hand was intact and his injured feet and legs still bore bandages, but he stood straight and did not seem to be in pain. Kyousuke's eyes then met Mami's, but the look sent chills up her spine.

"Oh, no... I'm not this 'Kamijou-kun' you speak of, Tomoe-san." Kyousuke replied in that same lifeless voice. "I'm only borrowing this young man's body to reach out to you, Akemi-san and your friends..."

This... being possessed Kyousuke? Mami was abhorred, but could barely breathe.

"Throughout history, I've been called 'Heartseed'." Heartseed continued to speak through Kyousuke, "I am a distant acquaintance of Kyuubey... in a sense."

"That seems to be the case." The airy voice of Kyuubey caught Mami's attention now. The little white creature sat calmly in the midst of the restrained Mami and the possessed Kyousuke. "Heartseed and I have some association, but I will not burden you with them today."

"What do you want with us?"

Mami managed to ask through telepathy.

"How did you restrain my magic?"

"Ah... I guess it was Akemi-san who heard me the first time." Heartseed seemed bored, "I am here to be entertained – nothing more, nothing less. You, Akemi-san and your circle of friends are all very interesting people, and I wish to observe you for my own entertainment."

His reply didn't sit well with Mami – not even a little bit.

"Also, Tomoe-san..." Heartseed blank eyes stared deep into Mami's soul, "In the state you're in, you are not in control of your own magic. After all, your consciousness and emotions occupy a body that is not your own."

Mami's heart skipped a beat. She lowered her eyes reluctantly and fearfully and saw strands of long and straight black hair resting on her shoulders. The voice that spoke her words was also markedly different. She then caught a glimpse of a purple gem at the back of her restrained hands. Indeed, this wasn't her body. This was the body of Homura Akemi.

"This is an interesting phenomenon." Kyuubey then hummed as she watched the terrorized Mami. "You truly are Mami Tomoe, but you control the body of Homura Akemi."

The creature's eyes then shone.

"If that is the case, then I also believe that you now control the magic of Homura Akemi."

Homura's magic? Mami didn't know what sort of magic this strange transfer student wielded. She didn't know what that mysterious girl was capable of. She didn't know what Homura Akemi had done.

Suddenly, Mami heard a magical chime, followed by the flash of golden light all around them. The red ribbons that restrained her disappeared and she fell unceremoniously to the floor.

"Ergh..."

Mami grunted as she picked herself up from the floor, dusting away at her clothes. She had another look at the back of her hand and did see that purple gem again. She stared at it with a mix of fascination and fear. With her thoughts, she was able to transform the gem into its oval Soul Gem form.

"Akemi-san..."

The name escaped Mami's lips. She then turned to Kyuubey.

"What happened just now?"

"Akemi-san dispelled your restraining magic and channeled it into your offensive magic." Kyuubey said knowingly. "She's holding off the Witch for now, as you can tell."

From where they were, they could hear the constant barrage of flintlock rifles and the pained roars of the Witch Charlotte.

"However…" Kyuubey then added, "Your magic is still foreign to her. It is not in sync with how you would use and balance your magic. Magic is not one-size-fits-all, after all. If this goes on any longer, she will overexert herself and… that would be troublesome for you."

Troublesome? Mami gave the creature a puzzled look, but shook her head. This wasn't the time to mull over small details. She had to help Homura posthaste.

"Be wary, though, Mami-san." Kyuubey then warned, "The magical ward you cast when you cast the restraining ribbons was dispelled as well. The minions will be out in force."

As Kyuubey spoke, the obnoxious sound of squeaking rats filled the once silent space. Strange, miniscule blue creatures with rat's tails and nurse's caps appeared around them, readying themselves to charge.

"This is bad…"

Mami held onto the purple Soul Gem with shaky hands. Gritting her teeth, she gathered her strength and was bathed in the purple light of the gem. Now, she wore unmistakable Puella Magi attire of the mysterious Homura Akemi. To command the body and to wield the magic of someone so distant from her felt strange.

However, she didn't have time to ponder on this. Not only did Homura Akemi need help, the body of Kyousuke Kamijou was also in terrible danger. She didn't trust this Heartseed fellow, but she still had to protect Kyousuke.

"Tch…"

If only she had her flintlocks and cannons, she would be able to protect herself and Kyousuke without a hitch. However, she was powerless in this state. For Homura Akemi to be able to skillfully use her magic like she did, Mami was irritated. If the transfer student could do it, then so could she… right?

Mami's eyes turned to the small, silver shield that rested on her arm. Not knowing what else to do, she reached for the shield. As her fingers brushed against its edge, small snippets of memories flashed in Mami's mind.

For a moment, she was lost in a flood of these memories but couldn't make sense of any of it. There were bits and pieces of laughter and cheer, but most of them seemed sad. When the memories faded from Mami's mind, she was able to draw out a pistol – a .50 caliber Desert Eagle.

How did she suddenly draw out that gun? Mami shook her head and focused on the fight. Reaching for the shield again, she pulled out a second Desert Eagle. Armed with two pistols, Mami felt a little more confident.

"Stay close to me."

Mami called out to Heartseed and Kyuubey.

"We'll break through them and push forward towards the main chamber."

Heartseed, though rather unmoved by the sudden swarm of minions, shrugged and did as he was told.

"I'll guide you through the barrier again, Mami-san." Kyuubey added. "Just follow my lead."

"I'm counting on you, Kyuubey."

Mami cocked the two guns and gripped them tightly.

"Let's go!"

Mami pointed the guns at the wave of minions and peppered them with .50 caliber bullets. Once the clips were emptied, she simply tossed the guns aside and drew new ones for her to use. With this, she forced her way through the horde with Kyuubey and Heartseed.

Homura's guns were quite powerful and effective, Mami found. She expected the transfer student's magic to be soft. This was not the case as she routed the minions with relative ease. It made her wonder how things would turn out if she and Homura fought against each other.

Chamber after chamber, the three of them pressed forward and the waves of minions grew thick. The small, blue creatures also grew crafty, springing out of corners in ambush to take them by surprise. One of these minions found its way behind the group and lunged forward towards Kyousuke's body.

"Oy! Look out!"

Mami gasped. She pointed her guns at the minion, but only hollow clicks sounded from them. They were both empty.

"Hah… how troublesome." Heartseed sighed. He turned around to face the lunging minion, still unmoved. He then suddenly threw a haymaker with his casted hand, slamming it into the minion midair and forcing it back into the ground with unbelievable force.

"What the…"

Mami couldn't believe what she saw.

Another minion then came to attack Kyousuke's body from a different angle, but he responded calmly. Without even the slightest hint of worry, he greeted the attacker with a roundhouse kick that sent it flying into a wall. Many more of the minions came, but none of them could strike down the possessed Kyousuke. He would pulverize them with unusually strong punches and assault them with swift kicks that a normal person, let alone a crippled boy, could manage to pull off.

Just who or what was this 'Heartseed' anyways?

Mami snapped out of her daze and drew some more guns for herself. Together, she and the possessed Kyousuke cleared the last chamber of minions. All that was left was the long, long bridge they would have to cross to enter the core chamber. The three of them started to run down its entirety.

As they ran, Mami started to feel a mild yet growing pain in her chest. She had been running in Homura's body for a while now. The transfer student always looked as if she was in top form. Being in Homura's body, Mami realized just how frail this black-haired girl was. Her legs were strong, but her breaths were perennially short. Her body also easily built up fatigue, so Mami had to conserve her stamina.

Rather than feel happy that she was in better form than Homura, she felt a sense of empathy instead. Somehow, it helped her understand that mysterious transfer student. Just what kind of a person is Homura Akemi, really? Mami wanted to know.

The hatred and frustration that Mami had harbored in her heart for the transfer student slowly started to wane. Thus, her desire to save Homura strengthened and pushed her forward.

Then, she heard a fierce, desperate cry.

"Tiro Finale!"

Just as they reached the core barrier, a powerful blast of magic tore through the Witch Charlotte and incinerated it into oblivion. The barrier started to fade, but the victor fell on her back, losing consciousness. The yellow Soul Gem in Homura's hands was nearly totally consumed in darkness.

"The Soul Gem!"

Mami gasped. She found the Grief Seed dropped by the Witch Charlotte and rushed over to Homura's side.

Mami pried the yellow Soul Gem from Homura's hands and ran the Grief Seed through it, cleansing the gem entirely. The downed Homura slowly came to and looked up to her savior. Mami and Homura looked at each other in silence.

It was an odd moment – it was like they were looking into mirrors of themselves.

"Tomoe…san?"

"Yes… I am Mami Tomoe."

A small smile then formed on Mami's lips.

"You are Homura Akemi, right?"

"… yeah."

Here she was with Homura – someone who she, just a while ago, hated to the core. Right here, in this moment, she was absolutely relieved to have been able to get to her in time. At that moment, she knew it wasn't her who saved Homura – it was Homura who saved her.

If Homura truly wished Mami ill, then she would have let the Witch eat her body. However, this transfer student took every effort to protect Mami's body and to defend both Madoka and Sayaka. The mere thought of it made contradicting emotions swell in her heart.

"I'm glad."

In the heat of the moment, Mami embraced Homura and closed her eyes. It felt odd to embrace one's own body, but she thought nothing of it. Some way, somehow, she felt as if she were embracing an old friend whom she hadn't seen for a long, long time.

When Mami opened her eyes, though, she was returned to her own body. Now, she was in the arms of Homura Akemi. The golden-haired girl felt her cheeks grow warm, growing more and more conscious of this transfer student who held her.

Homura, though, turned her eyes away from Mami and set her down on the ground. She then stood up from where she knelt and watched as the possessed Kyousuke and the Incubator approach them. She glared at the two with sharp eyes.

"Heartseed… who the hell are you?"

As Homura demanded an answer, Madoka and Sayaka reluctantly stepped forward and watched the scene with great tension.

"Nearly all of the pieces are in place." Heartseed said, the mildest intrigue spilling into his voice, "This will be fun."

In the musty interior of the Sakura Cathedral, Kyouko Sakura sat on one of the pews lazily. There was a small paper bag set beside her and a small pile of the cores of eaten apples. She reached into the bag again, but the bag was empty now.

"Hrm... what to do now..."

She leaned back into the pew and covered her eyes with her arm. Then, there was a brief moment of strange silence.

Kyouko peeled off her arm and looked around her with clueless eyes.

"... where... am I?"

To Be Continued