Chapter 12: Homura, It's Time
As Mr. Vacan and Madoka descended into the witch's body, they found themselves sliding down a tunnel, it was like a scary water slide without any water. When the tunnel ended, they saw that they had landed in a mysterious forest.
The grass, trees and sky were all shades of purple, Homura's favorite color.
"Mr. Bacon, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," Madoka pondered.
"Is this world still part of witch Homura?" Mr. Vacan asked. He knew that he or Madoka couldn't properly answer, but he liked the way his voice echoed in this place.
Suddenly a flower with violet petals sprouted from the grass. It had a smiling face in the center.
"Hiya, pals," said the flower. "I'm Violet! I see that you're new here! Why don't I show you around?"
"How will you do that?" asked Mr. Vacan. "You're a flower, you can't move."
Violet wiggled his leaves. "But I know all the best roots in this area! Get it, because I'm a fl- AAAGGHH!"
Madoka had picked Violet from the ground. tearing his stem apart like it was a human spine.
"Loves me, loves me not, loves me, loves me not..." Madoka plucked off his petals one at a time, completely oblivious to him screaming in pain.
"Loves me, squeee!" Madoka said as she pulled the last petal. By that time, Violet had wilted and he couldn't even move or speak.
"I think he's dead," Mr. Vacan explained. "But let's keep looking, maybe we can figure out what's going on."
So they kept walking in the forest for what felt like hours, being wary of any hostile characters or talking flowers. This went on until they came across a cart in rails, like in the amusement parks. The tracks seemed to lead into a black portal, so they got in the cart and buckled up.
The cart shot off at light speed, pushing Mr. Vacan and Madoka back until their faces rippled with g-forces. When it drove into the portal, they were transported to a space containing hundreds of screens floating around, each one showing a memory that Homura remembered.
They saw every timeline she went through, every reset she did, every first meeting she had with Madoka and everyone else, every time Kyubey said something mean to her, and every other experience she went through.
Of course, they could not help but comment on some of the crazier things they saw.
"Does my face always look that chubby?"
"Look, Kyubey's doing the thing! The :3 face!"
"I remember this! That was when we fought Charlotte."
"Huh, Homura looks good with an afro."
"I'm glad Homura liked my Vacan and eggs."
"Oh no, Homura's trapdoor failed. Now Walpurgisnacht will win for sure."
"...So that's why she didn't laugh at my chicken joke."
The ride ended after a few hours of seeing Homura's memories, and the exit led to a white door with a sign on it. "NO INCUBATORS ALLOWED"
"Wait a moment," Mr. Vacan advised, and Madoka's hand stopped just a few inches short of touching the doorknob.
"What is it?," she asked.
Mr. Vacan ran off for a few seconds, and when he came back, he had a photo of Madoka and himself that was taken during the ride. They were both screaming in surprise.
"That was worth the $20. Okay, let's go now."
They opened the white door, and they found themselves inside a small office room with a desk and swivel chair.
"You finally came for me, Madoka." The chair swiveled around to reveal Homura sitting in it.
"Also me... for some reason," Mr. Vacan added. "By the way, there was a flower in the forest, called Violet, but he's dead now. Just thought you should know."
"I had to be there for you, Homura. I promised to end the suffering of all magical girls, and maybe boys. That includes you." Madoka smiled and held out her hand, and Homura took it.
"So you remember now that you were the Law of Cycles?" Homura asked.
"Sayaka and Nagisa kept those memories locked safely while we were in the fake world," Madoka explained. "When you turned into a witch, they returned the memories back to me, so I could save you."
"What's the Law of Cycles?" asked Mr. Vacan.
A mortar-board hat and nerd glasses appeared on Madoka's head as she explained. "Basically, I'm the deity that takes magical girls to heaven when their time comes."
Homura nodded in agreement.
"And now the time has come for Homura."
Madoka and Homura hugged, and they started to glow. Homura's witch form was dissolving as the other girls watched, and the ruined Mitakihara changed into a field of flowers.
Madoka, Sayaka, and Nagisa were gone, and Homura was lying in an open casket, her soul gem had gone blank and was now resting on her chest.
"I guess it's over," Mr. Vacan said, feeling sad.
"Yup," Mami affirmed, as they watched over Homura's unmoving body.
"I'll miss her," Kyoko lamented, "she knew the recipe for unlimited pocky..."
The clouds in the sky parted, and a beam of light came down to meet Homura.
Madoka appeared from the light, wearing a long, flowing white dress. She glowed with divinity, and floated down to Homura's body.
"Homura, it's time."
She reached out to take Homura back into the Law of Cycles.
But something was wrong.
Homura suddenly woke up from death, and grabbed Madoka's wrists.
"Yes, it is time. It's time for you to have a bad time."
Holding on to Madoka, Homura channeled Madoka's godly energy into her body. She began to steal her infinite power.
