The leash disappeared in a violet flash of light, releasing its hold on the redhead. Akemi Homura looked toward the girl, noting how her brow raised in confusion. "Is something the matter, Sakura Kyouko? I would think that you would rather prefer freedom from such a restraint." Her eyes stared coolly; in the midst of Kyouko's comforting, at which Homura had been completely unprepared for, her eyes had reverted back to the royal-blue pools. She was starting to notice a pattern, now: If her thoughts were filled with malice and lust, it was because of the Devil persona that threatened to take over her, signified by the venomous violet hue. If she could think more rationally, it meant that she was her normal self; the Homura that she had been before the Incubators' experiment.
"Ah, no, it's not like I don't appreciate this…" Kyouko fingered the collar that remained around her neck, a confused frown etched on her soft features. "I'm just trying to figure out what changed your mind." Homura turned to fully face her. "Clearly you've stated that you will remain by my side, have you not? In that case, the only real leash I need is this." She held up her hand, revealing the fire-red gem embedded in the silver ring she wore. The redhead flinched at the sight of it; right, she still had her soul hostage. "A-Ahh…so, what's the plan now?" Homura gave an amused smile. "You tell me. Apparently you claim to be able to save me from becoming a monster, but I don't really think I need to be saved from anything. Have you ever considered that this is who I truly am?" The redhead frowned, shaking her head. "No you're not. If you were, do you really think that you'd be able to show so much regret?" She took the girl's hand. "Here, let's just go for a walk for now." Without waiting for the raven-haired girl's response, she tugged the girl's right wrist along, pulling her wherever she wanted to go as they headed down the path through Mitakihara Park.
It was starting to get late, Homura noted as she saw the sun sinking low over the horizon. Interestingly enough, she didn't think to cut the sun in half as she had the moon; perhaps it was because she still viewed Madoka as the sun, and she was the moon? Oh, but what did that say about herself? Clearly she was a monster…why would the moon be split in half, though? The grassy hill, as well. Perhaps she just felt truly alone, and that half missing signified that there was no one to make her whole. So maybe when she'd finally gained Kyouko's affections, it would be whole again? She caught sight of the redhead's gaze, scarlet staring into royal-blue, before the both of them looked away at once, faces flushed from the awkward silence that ensued. It turned out they had both been caught staring at each other.
"U-Uhhh, so!" Kyouko initiated the talk, clearing her throat in an attempt to drown the awkwardness. "Is there anything you like to do for fun?" Homura blinked in surprise; fun? Where did that come from? Come to think of it, even during her blissful ignorance in the Soul Gem she hadn't really thought of anything 'fun'. "Well…I like a good book. And…dancing is nice." The raven-haired girl looked up at the girl; she had a big grin on her face, unnerving the Devil as she took a couple steps back. What was that for? "So, then!" Kyouko pulled gently on the girl's wrist, bringing her closer. "You wanna try going to the arcade? I haven't been there in a while!" Homura stared blankly at the notion for a bit, before she quickly took note of the leg the redhead was favoring; if she tried playing the dance game at the arcade with that already aggravated injury, she would most likely cripple herself. "I-Idiot! You're injured! You can't play an arcade game right now!" Kyouko took a glance down at the injured leg, frowning at the inconvenience; well, there were other games besides DDR, but that was her preference, and she didn't think Homura would be interested in any of the other games. "Tch. Well, then you think of something…something that isn't creepy and perverted!" She quickly added at the last second, raising a finger to the younger girl to emphasize her refusal on the matter. After all, whether or not she could learn to reciprocate the Devil's love, she at least wanted to show her the simple, pure side of it.
"Well, I suppose we could try a quiet activity, then." Homura suggested with a light shrug. Kyouko's eyes were wide with curiosity, much like a child's; it both surprised and made the girl glad that Homura was willing to go for something innocent. And since she didn't specify, Kyouko could make the decision! "A quiet activity? Hmm…maybe…" She looked skyward, frowning in thought. There was already something coming to mind for the girl, but she hadn't done it in so long…she quickly looked back at the other girl, a happy grin on her face. "That's it! We can make paper dolls!" Homura blinked in surprise at the strange notion. "Ehh…p-paper dolls?" The redhead nodded in excitement. "Yeah! I used to make them all the time when I was little! I haven't really had much practice with it recently, but…I mean, you seem to enjoy papery-looking characters, based on the familiars, so why not?" The raven-haired girl seemed to be rather taken aback by the simple activity the redhead had suggested; she had always taken her for a tough, active kind of girl. But to think that she got so excited by something like making paper dolls? "Well…I guess. I have paper back at my place, if you want to go back there. It is starting to get late, after all."
Even inside the Devil's house, Madoka and her friends weren't finding anything different. It appeared that the only one who could access a portion of reality, after all, was Homura herself. "It doesn't seem like this is going to be any help." The pink-haired girl frowned, disappointment raining down on her and crushing her resolve. "I guess it wouldn't be as easy as that, after all…" She looked up to see the blue-haired girl frowning. "Sayaka-chan?" Azure eyes shifted toward the younger girl as she turned to fully face the taller girl. "Hey…don't you ever wonder about that ear cuff she's always wearing?" Madoka tilted her head to the side. "Ear cuff? You mean…that amethyst jewel that she wears on her ear?" The older girl nodded. "That's the one. Haven't you noticed its similarity in color to how Homura's Soul Gem looked? Homura doesn't have a regular Soul Gem anymore, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there isn't still an outside source of her power!" Pink eyes widened in realization. "Which means that the source of all this is still on Homura-chan's person!?" But in order to receive it, they would have to ambush Homura herself to try to extract the piece of the Goddess she stole. "…This just got a whole lot harder, didn't it?" Sayaka frowned. The pink-haired girl could do nothing but give a slow nod.
"So, then…there's nothing we can do at this time?" A bell-like voice resounded behind them, attracting their attention. "Mmm, that's what it looks like. Homura-chan's house isn't going to help us any." Nagisa stepped closer, her arms folder across her childish figure. "Then Nagisa can only figure we have no choice but to wait for Pumpkin to drop her guard. And then, when Pumpkin thinks that everything's okay…SNAP!" She uncrossed her arms and re-enacted the movements of a shark snapping its jaws with her hands, a loud CLAP startling the rest of the group. "Right? We play innocent until we find the right moment to strike!" Mami stepped back, instinctively reaching for her neck as she was subtly reminded that this was the exact Witch that would usually bring her demise. "Y-Yes…I suppose that would work…but we've been playing innocent for quite some time, now." Sayaka frowned, her fists clenching. "Yeah! And how can we play innocent when Kyouko's on the line, now?!"
"Calm down, Sayaka-chan." Madoka ordered. "Remember, Kyouko-chan will be able to help us to get Homura-chan's guard down. At this point, all we can really do is wait." The blue-haired girl turned towards her friend, glaring intensely. "I still don't like it! Using Kyouko like a tool just feels wrong! She should be actively fighting with us; she's a warrior, after all! She prefers to be direct!" Mami sighed inwardly, placing a hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "I understand how you feel, Miki-san…but now, we really have no other choice but to wait for Sakura-san to soften the Devil until she's no longer keeping attentive. In the meantime, why don't we head home and relax? We were clearly rushing ourselves with this plan, after all." Sayaka looked ready to protest even further, but the sight of Madoka's firm expression, even when her eyes retained that normal rose hue, stopped her in her tracks. Azure eyes widened in realization; Madoka was clearly angry about the situation. It wasn't often she saw the girl looking so tense and frustrated, but it was becoming clear to the blue-haired knight that Kaname Madoka was genuinely pissed off at Homura's actions. She was ready to stop the Devil, no matter the means, for the sake of Law and Order; even if it meant sacrificing one of the other girls to the Devil in the process. "Madoka…" Sayaka stepped back, eyes wide. "…Fine. All for Law and Order, right?"
"Right." Madoka nodded firmly. "All for Law and Order. Come on, we'd better head home before Homura-chan starts to notice suspicious action." Well, if she hadn't noticed now, she probably wasn't going to notice at all while she had a distraction, but it was better to be safe than sorry. If they were lucky, Homura would start returning to school again with the redhead, and they could more readily reach the two. If not…at least they knew how to get into the Devil's abode. Now they just had to wait for the right time to strike. Madoka, Mami and Nagisa began to make their way out the way they came in; Sayaka lingered behind, taking one last look around to see if she could locate the redhead anywhere. At least now she knew where it was that the Devil was keeping her, but…
"Kyouko…" She turned towards the empty bedroom they'd checked. "Where did she take you?" Her eyes shook with sadness as she slowly, hesitantly, joined the others, slipping out of the house and away from the neighborhood before they would have the chance of being discovered.
If they'd stuck around a half-hour more, they would have run into Homura and Kyouko.
"Right, then!" Kyouko sat down excitedly on the pillow in Homura's tatami mat room, only wincing for a moment when the movement aggravated the pain in her leg. "First, supplies! We need paper, we need color pencils, we need scissors…and we also need sticks and glue!" Homura slowly made her way to gather the items, looking helplessly at the restless redhead as she bounced excitedly in place; that couldn't be good for her injured leg. "You…really like making paper dolls, don't you?" She asked, although it was a silly question. "Huh?" Kyouko stopped in place as she looked toward the Devil, tilting her head, loose scarlet locks falling over her knees. "Yeah!" She closed her eyes happily. "I haven't done it in a long time, though. The last time I made paper dolls was before Kyuubey approached me for the first time." She sat up straight again, reaching a hand to brush the locks out of her face and behind her ear. "It's not much…but especially when you're poor and can't afford buying a lot of toys, it's a great activity."
"I see." Homura laid the supplies down on the table before taking her seat on the pillow. "Still, I never would have pegged you for being into arts and crafts. I always thought that was more something a shy, sweet girl like Madoka would be into." Kyouko raised her eyebrow. "Hey, there's way more to that girl than being shy and sweet. She's extremely determined, and can be rather stubborn at times. After all, I may have suggested the idea to go and save Sayaka, but she was the one who went along with it." She took one of the pieces of paper in one hand, a black pencil in another. "I don't think you give that girl enough credit. She's more than just some damsel." Homura frowned in thought, watching as the girl sketched softly on the piece of paper, her head tilted slightly to the side as she sketched out what looked like a face. "…And, what about you?" Homura asked, royal blue glancing between the sketch and the redhead. Kyouko didn't look away, but acknowledged the question. "Hmm? What about me?" The Devil shifted in place; she never really did try to get to know the redhead for herself, before. "What would you say about yourself that I've misunderstood?" Homura still wasn't comfortable with small talk; even through the timelines, she would mainly only approach Kyouko for business. "I mean, I first took you for a thug…but that was before I'd ever even heard about your background. Since that point, I really wasn't sure what to make of you. You're rough, yet sweet. Bold, yet shy. Full of yourself, yet humble. What makes you…you?"
"Hmm…" The redhead's eyes roamed the paper in thought as the face evolved into a girl's head. "That's a good question. I guess you could say that there are two types of "me"." The pencil dragged softly against the white surface, creating an arm for the figure. "There's the "me" before the tragedy…and then there's the "me" after the tragedy. After I'd met Sayaka and was reminded of my old self, both of those sides began to clash." The other shoulder was formed, and she proceeded to draw the body. "The "me" before the tragedy was who I used to be; Shy, humble, hopeful. Although I had a short temper, I often cooled it with an optimistic mindset, and I always took care not to be too aggressive and egotistical. Pride, if taken too far, was a sin, after all. Based on how I was raised, I grew to love family more than anything. And being the eldest daughter, I naturally did what I could to be helpful. Maybe it was because I had a temper I always wanted to quell…" She drew a well-detailed dress on the figure, taking care to add all the individual creases and frills, however little there were. "But I had always admired my Father for being so calm, yet so hopeful. I felt that I wanted to be just like him; I wanted to do all I could to help him. So, that drove me to become even more helpful, putting my own wants and needs to the side."
Homura watched in silence, noting the redhead's smile reshaping into a frown. "When everything went to hell, it became even harder to quell the raging temper I'd had; I had even threatened my little sister when I became frustrated by her insistence that what she was eating wasn't actually soup. I was mad at how picky she was being, when we literally had nothing. Thinking back on it, I guess Father and I kinda had the same temper; when everything started going to hell for him, he too would lash out in anger." A scoff escaped her lips. "Yet, he showed none of that when we were all struggling against starvation…never, in all six years…did he show any sign of his temper. Maybe it was because he was that set on his beliefs, he believed that it was all just a test and had to remain strong through it all…heh." The sketching halted for a bit; royal-blue looked up from the drawing, noticing the tremble. "Still, I believed in him…I wanted to do all I could to help him…but I didn't want to do anything that would be considered heresy. Especially not when Kyuubey suggested I become my Father's own god. That sure pissed me off, and I didn't wanna see the rat for the rest of my life after that suggestion. It wasn't until I'd become too weak to even successfully steal a single apple, when Kyuubey found me in such a weakened state…that I finally contracted. Not for me…not for food…not for money…but for people to listen to Father." She sighed, resuming her sketching. Homura could see that the action was managing to calm her down somewhat. No doubt the drawing was one of the ways she would redirect her stress, so as to quell the raging fire inside. 'So Ophelia was always there…' Homura thought.
"I was a naïve idiot. In my mind, I was still the hopeful eight-year old that first encouraged her Father to pursue his vision. Yet, that was who I was. I was still shy because I didn't like to brag. Since I didn't like to brag, I was humble. Because I was humble, I could remain optimistic and hopeful, and jealousy would never plague my heart. To be jealous, you have to be prideful, which creates envy towards those who have what you don't. I never had a problem with being poor, really. In my eyes, I was rich in another area, so it made things all the better. I just didn't want my family to suffer. Because of that, I never envied anyone that was richer than me. Mami, for instance. Instead, I looked to see if I could see people for who they were. Mami, although she was rich, was lonely. She craved company, even if that company was only there to be impressed. She would often put so much effort into impressing others that she would lose sight of everything around her." She closed her eyes, pausing in her activity again.
"…If you don't mind my asking…" Scarlet orbs reappeared, glancing quietly at Homura. "What was Tomoe Mami to you? I've noticed that, throughout all the timelines, there seems to be some sort of quiet conflict between the two of you. Yet, I didn't sense hatred from you; it was more akin to sadness." Kyouko raised her head to look straight at the raven-haired girl. Her eyes were wide, just for a moment, before she quickly turned back to the paper, resuming the sketch. "Tomoe Mami was…is…" Her hand was shaking; she quickly pulled it away from the paper, so as not to make unnecessary marks on the drawing. "…She's the only family left for me, now." Homura's eyes widened. "Family…?" The redhead gave a small nod as she resumed her action, adding more detail to the figure's long hair. "Yeah…during the time I'd spent with her, I began to see her as more than just a sempai. It reminded me a lot of how I always treated Momo: A lot of teasing, but plenty of care to make up for it. Before I knew it, I began to think of how it would be if I was a younger sister. And Mami…she quickly filled the void where an older sister would be, in my mind. I thought to introduce her to my family so that she could get to know them, and in time, maybe join us instead of remaining in that big apartment all alone."
"But clearly, that didn't happen…" Homura noted sadly. "Yeah." Kyouko finished the final touches on the girl's hair before reaching for the purple color pencil. "When Father found out, and everything REALLY went to hell…" She dragged the purple lines through the hair, taking care to follow the flow of the hair so it would look realistic. "I couldn't bring Mami into my happy family, anymore…because there WAS no "happy family". And since it was my fault that it'd even happened in the first place, I didn't feel that Mami would be safe near me. Y'know, since all I could do was destroy everything I tried to help." She set the purple color pencil to the side, taking the black pencil again and filling in the dress. Homura noted in surprise that the figure in the picture looked just like herself: the diamond ear cuff, the long hair parted in the back, everything. "But she wouldn't have any of it. So, that was when I really had to become who I wasn't. I remembered how much she protested when I even suggested the idea of not saving people, so I used that to my advantage, hoping to chase her away. I thought she would just be disgusted with how much I'd changed, and leave me alone." She set the black pencil back, reaching for a light peach. The black, hollow eyes of the drawing stared back at the Devil as she listened to the tale.
"But she reminded me that our relationship wasn't nearly that shallow. Being the big sister figure that she was, she couldn't leave me in my current state. So, I had to force her away with violence." She shifted in position in order to not get too stiff; that wouldn't be good for her leg. "That's why, even now, things are pretty shaky between us. And of course, in order to keep others from getting close to me again and in order to survive the ordeal I had gone through, I began to create a mask of everything I wasn't. Layer after layer, I hardened myself until I began to doubt whether or not that was even the real me, anymore." She sighed, putting in the finishing touches of the shading in the drawing's skin. "And that's how I turned from sweet and innocent to "thug", as you so politely put it earlier." Setting the color pencil to the side, she sat up straight and turned to face the Devil. "That answer your question?" Homura nodded. "It also seems that you're truthfully rather mellow. The thing that really makes you seem like such a hothead is really just your temper flaring up more than it used to." She placed a finger on the picture. "Is this me?" The redhead gave a light shrug as she took the paper in hand, slipping it out from under the other girl's finger. "Yeah. Speakings of "you", you seem to have more to you than you let everyone know."
"Ah, no, you don't want to hear about me." Homura attempted to dismiss the topic, but the stern look on the redhead's face said otherwise. "The hell I don't. I opened myself up to you; the least you could do is the same thing!" The raven-haired girl cringed; she was right, after all. With all that prying she did, Kyouko had just as much right to know about her. That, and if she really did care for the redhead…wasn't it only natural to open her heart out to the girl?
"Well…I used to be very shy." Homura glanced to the side, her face scrunched in a nervous frown. Kyouko reached over, grabbing the scissors. "Used to be? I think that's still a thing." A small blush formed on the raven-haired girl before she cleared her throat, filling in the awkward silence. "A-Anyway…I was very shy. I couldn't talk to anyone without stuttering, I didn't have any confidence in myself at all, and I often questioned the meaning of my existence. I also had a heart condition since I was young, and had only recently been cured of it. During the time I met Madoka for the first time, I had only recently returned from the hospital. In fact…every time I would reset a timeline, I would awake to that moment where I was finishing the last of my days in the hospital room, just a week before I would be checked out." Kyouko nodded in acknowledgement, cutting into the paper as she maneuvered expertly around the figure she drew, freeing it from its white space. "So you were a patient before, huh…at Mitakihara General, right?" The raven-haired girl nodded. "Yes. I was originally in Tokyo, but I had been transferred to the Mitakihara hospital to undergo an operation for my heart just a year before I was discharged."
"Hmm, an operation? Sounds rough." The empty paper fell limply to the table as she held up the paper figurine she freed, reaching over for the glue stick, as well as a popsicle stick. "Anything stand out from that time?" Homura frowned, folding her arms tightly around herself. "Well…I'm not too sure, actually. The operation itself I was knocked out cold from the painkillers administered, and the night before was a blur. I do remember something red, though…" Kyouko paused. "Red?" She set the paper doll down on the table. "What do you mean?" The raven-haired girl sighed, shaking her head. "It's all a blur, I couldn't tell you. I do know it wasn't blood. It wasn't that dark, and I don't think it was liquid. But it was rather comfortable and warm at that time…" The redhead blinked in confusion; she shifted her position to fully face the other girl. "Were you outside at the time? On the hospital roof?" Now it was Homura's turn to look at the redhead in confusion. "Ehh—outside? I…well, maybe? I do vaguely recall a strong wind…maybe I'm just mixing up reality with dream or something. But why would you think it was on the hospital roof?"
"Well, it's been a long time since it happened, but…" Kyouko leaned back a bit, staring up at the ceiling in thought. "I still have memories about that time, just a year after I contracted…right, 'cause it was my first time saving someone from a familiar. There was a girl, not too much younger than me, who'd been affected by a pretty strong familiar. I know it was a familiar because Kyuubey had actually observed the mark on that girl's neck at the time and told me. That girl wore lavender pajamas…her hair was dark…and I think it was in braids." Homura's eyes widened. "Ehh…!? W-wait; I was rather anxious about the upcoming operation…m-maybe it was possible that I had been affected by a Witch's Kiss, back then…eh? But that would mean…!"
"It's useless; it's just going to fail…I'm going to die tomorrow, I just know it…"
"Then it would be better if you just ended it all now!"
"It would be better if I just end it now…"
It was cold outside…bare feet stepped slowly toward the edge, as if in a trance. The wind was strong…it wouldn't take much for the fall.
"That's right…end it all!"
The wind rushed through her braids; the end was drawing near…
"Hey! Are you okay?"
Eh? Something warm…and…red?
"It appears that this was just caused by a familiar."
Who was that speaking?
"Huhh!? Who cares!? If it's going to hurt people, we can't just let it get away!"
Eyes peered open, just slightly, as the young patient spied her rescuer, just for a moment, before passing out.
So much red…like a candle burning bright…
Homura got up from the pillow she was sat on and moved towards the redhead. "If it weren't for you, I would be…!" Her knees landed on the floor beside the redhead as she wrapped her arms around the girl. "Thank you…it seems you've been there for me much longer than even I realized!" Kyouko flinched at the contact, but remained firm. This wasn't a threatening hold, after all. She was just giving her a regular hug. "W-Wow…I never would've guessed that you were the first victim I'd ever saved…!" She shifted awkwardly in the slightly taller girl's hold. "Well, I guess it's a small world, huh?" The raven-haired girl nodded in silence, nuzzling the redhead's chest gratefully. Kyouko stared down at her thoughtfully. Really, when you took away the menacing acts that she did in her role as the Devil, Homura was just an insecure girl who needed someone by her side; someone that wouldn't leave her, and devote all their time to saving others. 'I guess, since I too know what it's like to be left alone…' A small smile formed on the girl's soft lips. 'I can do what I can to be there for her…at least until this world is returned back to normal.' Her eyes shifted toward the unfinished paper doll resting on the table. 'After all, it's not so bad to dream for a while…and what's the rush? The Majuu are still being dealt with, after all…and it's not like the Incubators are going to cooperate with us, anymore…really, this dream world is the calm before the storm for those of us still fighting in the real world.' She absently wrapped her arms around the other girl. 'This isn't so bad, once in a while…although I still don't know whether or not I can return the sudden feelings she has for me, having company is nice…' She leaned forward, pressing her head against the other girl's in a loose embrace. 'Well, love was never developed in a day, after all…'
Homura tightened her embrace, pulling the redhead even closer. "Don't leave me…please, don't leave me…" Kyouko could feel the tremors in the other girl, so she tightened her hold. "I said before though, didn't I? I'm going to stay by your side, and try to guide you. Or did you forget that already?" She sighed. "Alright then, I'll make a promise. I swear, on my soul, that I will never leave your side as long as I can." The other girl nodded, a smile forming on her face. "…Okay. I'll hold you to that, Kyouko…" She nuzzled her again, her arms sliding to the small of her back. The redhead straightened her posture, fixing the other girl's position. "Got it. I won't interfere in the process of fixing this world any further."
'…Of course…I can't say that I could bring myself to stop the others from trying to fix this world. I couldn't betray them like that…'