Epilogue
Kazamino.
Obfuscated by the growth of Mitakihara, this neighboring town is an image of stagnation. Its low resources are only meant to keep its old streets, but even so is not enough.
The night came, with its dark spots, dens for the anathemas of humanity.
"Damn! It's no use."
However, a girl complained about their absence. She walked with open hand, carrying a blue gem with a faint glow.
"You useless thing!" She almost threw the object, but held back, talking to herself. "Sasa... Sasa... if I don't find witches with that, without it I'm sure I won't..."
Sasa Yuuki stopped. She did not even know where she was, not that it worried her. The town was small and any perverted psycho she could find she could handle easily, it would even be fun on other occasions, but she needed to save magic.
"In the weeks that I stayed in Mitakihara I didn't find anything either and that place is huge!" She rubbed her hair violently. "Ahhhh... What's going on? Even those annoying girls who kept wanting to fight me are gone. They must have looking for witches somewhere else, but where?"
Frustrated, she leaned against a nearby wall.
"I didn't want to see my pet witches kill themselves again..." She pouted. "Where does Mami get grief seeds? I could break into the apartment while she's away, but I haven't seen an obvious place where she keeps them. She shouldn't even leave them there."
Thoughtful, she pressed the tip of her nose with her index finger.
"Hmmm... Is she missing me? I could go back and ask for some. I would have to reveal that I'm a magical girl..." She smiled. "But I bet if I cry enough she gives. If not her, that little girl... and I could even ask for a piece of cake too-"
She shook her head and closed her eyes tight. "No!" And began to poke her forehead again and again. "Mentalise, Sasa, mentalise! You can't be seduced! She's just another talented person who's going to use this to step on you." She then stared at her gem. "I'm not going to be anyone's bitch, I'm the one in command now!"
A dark cloud smudged the bluish tones of the precious stone.
"What...?" Sasa gritted her teeth. "What a crap! I didn't even use magic, how do you get polluted?!" Again she felt like throwing it away. "And just now that things are going bad, that furshit of Kyuubey disappears. Oh if I find him... I'll twist those stupid ears until he tells me where the nearest witch is."
A vain dream, but it has made her a bit calmer. The girl then paced back and forth. "I should have stayed with my initial plan and targeted Oriko. At least I already knew she had another magical girl living with her. But now if I go back to that school of spoiled people, Mami will see me and ask questions." She closed her hand with the gem, almost crushing it. "I screwed up!"
A strong light emitted between her fingers.
"Uh?!" Sasa saw her gem shine. "A witch? No... It must be a magical girl... fine! If she has grief seeds, I'll make her give it to me."
She ran along the deserted streets, but in a sneaky way, hiding behind the poles, as she checked her gem for directions.
"Wow, how it shines. Must be very close, how didn't it feel before?"
She reached a high wall of stones and vines, which surrounded a place she had a good guess of what it would be.
"The cemetery?" Sasa narrowed her eyes. "There wouldn't be a magic girl here. So could be..."
She did not waste any more time and jumped over the wall, falling into the pitch black and shrubbery, scratching her legs. "Ouch! Shit..."
She was lucky not to fall on a tombstone of the many that were there. The place had no light at all, but the light of the gem was enough to find a way. But she was not comfortable with that silence, almost supernatural, even more so when she was sure she was not alone.
A gust of wind.
A chill ran through her body and she heard the sound of dry leaves, that was the only clue she had to follow. Hey ghosts, I hope it's not you who are making my gem shine, or I'll make you pay!
She reached what should be the administrative building of the place. It was closed, with a fluorescent lamp illuminating a wall clock above the door. Its hands were still.
What a unkempt place. Sasa sighed. Like all this worthless town. The wind grew stronger, pushing her hair to her face.
The lamp blinked and went out, while another light appeared in midair, a large hologram. It was the purple symbol of an hourglass, with spider lilies at its base and a black salamander snaking around it.
Sasa was amazed. "Ha... haha... hahaHAHAHAHAAAA!" She started to jump with excitement. "Yes! Yes! YYUUUUSSSHH! It's my lucky day, or lucky night, whatever..."
She looked around, just to be sure, but there was no one else. The source of the magic was that witch and her alone.
"More perfect is impossible." Sasa ran to cross the hologram. "This witch is already min-"
She was greeted by a sand blast, covering her eyes and filling her mouth. Falling to the ground, and suffocating, she lifted her gem, invoking a strong shock wave.
"Cough! Cough! Blegh..." Spitting the sand and rubbing her eyes, she saw the storm moving away. "Curses..."
The witch's barrier was a vast desert, with a cracked violet sky.
Sasa was overcoming each dune, trying in vain to find a direction with her gem. There was no sign of the witch, not even a familiar.
"What a dull place, this one must be weak. Ah!" She had stubbed her toe on a black brick with violet runes. That was when she realized she was in the middle of ruins hidden beneath the sand.
"Hmmm... and if she's weak, she's a coward." She smiled and her gem shone brighter. "Let's see if I can startle her."
The light of the gem surrounded her and she began to float. Her clothes were being replaced by a gaudy caramel-colored outfit, with large white pom-poms at their tips. The same could be said for the hat, similar to that of a court jester, too large not only for her head, but her body as well. On top of the hat was a large dark brown bow, accompanied by a blue spherical gem.
"Tadah!" She made a pose and then stretched her body. "Hmmmm... I was already missing my epic clothes. TeeeheeeeEEEEHHHEH?!"
The desert quake, knocking Sasa to the ground. The sky darkened and she heard loud rumbles coming from all directions. It was then that she saw a closet of titanic proportions rise behind a dune. She also felt that she was rising and the sands beneath her feet were being sucked in by spans arranged in parallel along the whole expanse.
They were long polished wooden planks, which became the new floor when the last dune disappeared. Sasa was now in a dark bedroom of a giant, or she had shrunk, she was not sure. The architecture was ancient, from the early twentieth century if not before, but there was no sign of abandonment. All well refined and preserved, something that only a very rich person could afford.
The noise was gone as well, now it was playing a melody from a music box on a nightstand.
Sasa smiled. "I guess I have to give credit to the witch now, but this is very unusual. It's not as bizarre as the other barriers... maybe she's more unique than I thought. In this case..."
She raised her hand and a metal wand with a curved tip materialized, which she spun with mastery. "I'll love having her in my collection!"
She ran across the room to a ballet slipper that was lying on the floor. She hid behind, looking at her goal.
A multi-story doll house. It had a beautiful façade and was well lit. Guarding the front door were two tin soldiers with bulky heads and braids. They carried black spears and wore a pair of glasses on their purple faces.
"I bet the witch is on the top floor," Sasa said as she pointed her wand at the guards, "but first... Could you guys patrol somewhere else, please?"
Almost immediately the soldiers turned and marched away from the entrance.
"Easy peasy~!" Sasa left the hideout toward the house. "But I'd better spare the rest of my magic to control the witch."
The door was not locked. It was hard to believe that this was a doll house, for the floor and furniture were made of legitimate wood, nothing seemed fake. It would be hard to even believe she was in a barrier if it were not for the strange markings on the wallpapers she was already used to seeing. She soon found a staircase at the end of a corridor.
That was when she heard footsteps, and then feet of white wax came down the steps.
Sasa ran into one of the side rooms and hid under an armchair. She waited, holding tightly to her wand.
At the entrance of the room appeared two dolls walking down the hall, they had different statures and hair. Their clothes were also different, but almost always black or gray. They were dragging another doll by its feet, which did not seem to protest.
Until the doll's eyes meet Sasa's.
SHIT!
The eyes changed color, from blue and white to green and red, and the doll showed its sharp teeth. It struggled, scratching the floor.
The sounds of footsteps and dragging became distant until they could no longer be heard. Sasa left the armchair and peered carefully down the corridor as her heart soothed. Okay, let's get this over with.
When she reached the second floor, she found herself in another corridor, much longer. There were doors on both sides along the way and a large ebony door at the end.
The witch must be there.
She tried to make little noise as she walked, looking at each door, sometimes she looked back, until she reached the large door.
Does my magic pass through? Sasa pointed her staff at the door. If it worked, she could capture the witch without exposing herself.
A door opened behind her.
She turned around and faced another, blonde, short-haired doll. Its eyes and sharp teeth exalted anger.
Quickly she pointed her wand. "Go back to your room."
But other doors opened and a dozen of dolls appeared, all with the same intimidating countenance. Soon they invoked long, sharp black pins in their hands.
Sasa's eyes widened and she hurried to open the large door. She managed to get in and close, even more fortunate that there was a key in the lock, which she used while she sighed in relief.
The wood burst and a black tip almost hit her eye. Sasa jumped back as more pins pierced the door. She had to act fast.
The room was big and had a large glass panel that offered a panoramic view. She had not noticed it from the outside, but she could not have expected less of a supernatural place.
However, the room had all the common elements that someone would find in a bedroom. The exception is the hospital bed, with several bags of serum and tubes.
And there she was.
A dark figure sitting, clad in stitched leather straps and a funeral dress. On her hand was an hourglass, making a subtle sound of bouncing pins. Her mouth was covered with leather while the rest of the face with a white mask with a long nose. There were no eyes, just a dark void, and she wore a pointed hat with a vinyl record as its base, with white braids glued to it.
"You're the most normal witch I've ever seen." Sasa smiled and pointed her wand. "Now, you will-"
The wand flew away.
The girl was more confused than scared to see the witch in front of her in an instant, then she heard the door fall.
The dolls came in with their pins and mischievous smiles.
"Ah... aaaah..." With the dread growing, Sasa saw her wand on the ground. She ran and threw herself to catch it. However, a black foot stepped on it. It can't be! This witch...
The girl got up and stepped back. Somehow the witch had teleported, but that was not what made Sasa more disturbed.
This witch is intelligent!
"Gaaaah!" An excruciating pain crossed her abdomen and she saw a crimson tip pierce her dress and then return, causing the blood to gush. "Aaaaah!" She turned around to see the dolls examining the tip of the pin that was dripping, clacking their teeth.
Taking advantage of that distraction, Sasa went to the glass panel and rammered her body against it, but the panel only cracked. "No... way... cough!" Her cough sprayed the glass with blood. In addition to the pain, she felt shivers, her body trembling. She tried to hold the wound, but in vain, her clothing was soaked, as her back.
She looked back and saw the dolls approaching. She staggered across the room, grabbing a chair and hurling it at them. In retaliation, a pin impaled her thigh, breaking the bone. "AAAAIIIIIEEEE! AAAAHHHHGGG!" She crawled to the wall, with nowhere else to go and a certainty.
I gonna die!
With the tears mingling with the blood on her face, she witnessed the dolls getting ready for the thrusts. Sasa held out her hand. "No..."
She had not been heard and the first blows struck her torso.
"NOOOOOOUUGGHhh..." Sasa choked on her own blood as the dolls became more excited and aggressive, turning her body into a red mess. Meanwhile, she remembered her life.
There are people who are better than others. There are those who are more beautiful, richer, gifted. She was not, born in an average family, she was average, if not a little below, in a world where only the best is accepted. That needed to be punished, that was her wish.
As a magical girl, she had achieved some fame with the others who disputed territory, bringing disgrace to those who deserved it. Everyone above her had to submit.
Now, she would die with nothing. Forgotten like an average person, if not a little below.
Sasa felt dizzy, unable to focus on anything as she lost her sense of her body, but could discern a hand going to her hat and returning with a darkened sphere.
I was pointless.
Then a black curtain fell.
／人◕‿‿◕人＼
Sasa gasped in a fright as her eyes became accustomed to the light... but it was not light. It was a white world, without a horizon, where there were chairs of all kinds floating.
It came to her mind that it was a witch's barrier, and then she remembered everything else. She realized that she was lying down and looked at her body. There was no sign of blood in her magical uniform, no damage. She fumbled, unable to believe what was happening.
That was when her eyes met the violets one of a girl with a cold expression. Her clothes were not extravagant, but the purple diamond-shaped gem on her left hand left no doubt that she was a magical girl too. Her hair was black, with long braids...
Sasa rose quickly. "Who are you?"
"Homura Akemi."
It was an obvious answer, but it did not calm Sasa, maybe she was seeing more things than she should. It could not be any different, with all the blood and pain she remembered. Sasa did not know if that girl would be there to help her, but she was feeling really bad. "Didn't I die?"
"No," said Homura, "you're saved by our goddess."
"Goddess?"
"Madoka, goddess of magical girls." Homura gestured toward one direction.
Then Sasa saw a girl sitting on a throne. The first thing she noticed was the pink hair, with strands so long that they did not seem to end. Her majestic dress was of an incredible white purity, like the place where they were, but the interior parts were just the opposite, of abysmal darkness. Her visage was imposing, with a gaze of golden glow.
Homura continued, "she was very generous, because she expects something from you."
"Yeah...?" Sasa's mouth fell open.
"Sasa Yuuki," Madoka spoke, "I know of your intentions towards Mami Tomoe."
"You... know..." Sasa's eyes widened and then she laughed. "Hahahaha! Of course you know, you're a goddess! Hahaha..." Then she gestured frantically. "B-But I had given up on this idea. I won't bother her any more."
"No," said Madoka, "I want you to continue visiting her. Mami-san is a close friend of mine."
"Close friend..." Sasa swallowed hard and then smiled, opening her arms. "Suuuuure... sure... I'll also be her friend. I'll even go and hunt witches with her and that little girl."
"You're not going to do that anymore," Homura affirmed.
Madoka added, "the witches who were in your possession were also claimed."
"What?" Sasa was confused. "But how will I cleanse my gem?"
"You don't have to," Homura replied, "Incubator fooled you."
"Inkyyuuubeeytor..." Sasa blinked. "Kyuubey?"
Homura looked away and spoke in a lower tone, "The blessing of our goddess will protect you, no need to worry about your gem."
Sasa gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. "Ahhh... I'm going to tear that fluffy tail!"
"I don't want revenge," Madoka said.
Making Sasa restrain herself. "Ah..."
"Behave yourself." Homura's gaze became more intense. "What our goddess has of generosity, doesn't have as patience."
"Y-Yes!" Madoka followed the other girl's statement, raising her fists clenched. "I'm very, very, very angry! And... That's it!"
Sasa knelt down and bowed, begging, "Oh great goddess! Please don't smite me!"
Madoka gestured and made an awkward smile. "N-No... I won't smite you..."
Homura glanced at her.
With her trembling hand, Madoka covered her mouth and grew more serious. "If you behave well..."
Sasa showed her face full of tears.
At that moment, Madoka almost left the throne, but she took a deep breath and remained seated, even lifted her chin.
Between a sob and another, Sasa asked, "Then will I go back to the world of living?"
"You're alive," Madoka replied.
Sasa rubbed her face with both hands. "Thank you... Thank you for this second chance. I won't disappoint you."
Madoka nodded. "I'll be close."
"Will you?" Sasa raised her eyebrows.
"Remember, you won't be doing this for Mami-san or me, but for youself."
The last thing Sasa saw was a serene smile from the goddess before plunging into an ocean of lights and colors.
Homura saw that aura blend its colors until it turned white again, leaving no trace of the other girl. "You sent her back to Kazamino?"
Madoka rose from the throne, tossing a few strands of hair away. "Back to the cemetery."
Homura turned. "Then we must go."
"We have time."
She returned to look at Madoka, who had approached and was now genuinely serious. Then Homura lowered her gaze, knowing what it would be.
"Why all this cruelty to Sasa-chan? Like with that boy you sent to the hospital."
Even knowing, it was painful to hear that stern voice. "The boy? I had no way of knowing he was going to hit his head."
"And about her?" Madoka folded her arms.
Homura noticed that the infinitely long strands of hair had ondulated with force.
"Homura, and about Sasa-chan?"
"She's a magical girl," she replied, aloof, "and she came to the Law of Cycles, alive and healthy, as you wanted."
"That was not our plan!" Madoka uncrossed her arms in frustration. "Why did you act alone? What's the problem? Is it because of Oriko-san, because was she who told us that she had recognized Sasa-chan in Shirome?"
Homura remained silent, but she shook her head slightly, denying it.
Madoka pressed, "So it's because you did not want me to go with you to Kazamino? Because-"
"No, it's because the plan was absurd!" Homura pressed her lips together and whispered, "you ask me to steal the grief s-"
"To rescue the grief seeds," Madoka emphasized.
Homura looked at her with intensity. "What do you think she would think when she found out there're no seeds? It would be like a cornered animal, she's dangerous!"
"We would be monitoring her steps." Madoka was sure of herself. "If she tried something desperate, I would be there to deal with it. Much better than almost killing her."
Homura smiled with irony. "I guess I was incompetent..."
"You would if you had killed her," Madoka replied promptly.
Making the other girl's smile fade. "Why do you care so much about her? To the point of making me take part in this preposterous performance and send her back without her knowing what she is now." Homura gritted her teeth. "Don't tell me there's any goodness in her!"
"That's why I'm doing this." Madoka looked down. "If Sasa-chan suspects she's like the witches she enslaved, she will not accept it. She will curse herself forever or destroy her own seed."
"You speak as if you were sure..."
Madoka just nodded at the comment. "If it's true what Oriko-san said. That Sasa-chan has formed a friendship with Tomoe-san, with interests, yes, but a friendship... Then there is hope to bring a meaning to her life beyond hatred and envy."
"Again with that hope." Feeling the acidity in her own words, Homura had her back to her. "She doesn't deserve this. In fact, there are many girls who don't deserve this..."
"What do you want me to do?" Madoka's eyes flashed. "Do you want me to sit on that throne and start judging every girl?"
She felt tired, but it was not something physical, just the weight of a defeat already consummated. "Do what you want, consider this a suggestion."
"So I will reject this suggestion, always."
Another quick answer. Homura was not sure if Madoka could not see her from every angle, but this time she did not hide the contractions of her face. Her fists clenched and she punched her own legs.
Madoka winced at the reaction.
"Your grace will always be commendable, Madoka."
It was nostalgic to hear that tone of Homura's voice, without the veils of omission and dissimulation. However, Madoka knew she would hear something the other girl could not contain anymore.
"But you don't understand that the mercy from a stranger is meaningless."
She gaped. "Homura..."
Hearing her name, the girl with braids lowered her head. "I... I'm worried this will be used against you by other girls who live here. I want to protect you, it's just that."
The tone of voice was already gone. Madoka came closer and would place her hand on her shoulder. "Homura."
But Homura turned her head, glancing at her. "It's. Just. That."
Madoka recoiled her hand, with an expression of sadness.
Homura ignored, saying coldly, "We wasted too much time, we have to tell Tomoe-san about this girl. You must already have a plan to avoid her from being scared of it."
Madoka composed herself. "Leave it to me this time." Then her dress and hair fluttered with power.
Homura saw a multitude of colors covering her.
While Madoka watched her disappear. She had stayed in the Law of Cycles, she could spend an eternity there and for Homura it would be as if she had come right behind.
Alone, the goddess of that place remembered a past more distant than it seemed, about a girl desperate for acceptance and strength.
She had only found strength.
"Homura-chan..." Madoka returned to feel nostalgia in her whisper, almost smiled, but tears came first. She could no longer refer to her like this, a legacy of a past that should not return.
She closed her eyes and felt the afternoon sun bath her face. She reopened them and saw the reflection of it on the channel of Mitakihara that was passing under the bridge where she was.
It was then that she realized that her cheeks were wet. Tears? She had the feeling that she had forgotten something, but everything was there, the ribbons tied in her hair, the school bag, the uniform...
She took a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her face. It could be that she was sleepy. Dad always talked about the importance of sleeping well. She smiled, after all Mom almost always arrived late at night.
However, there was something strange in the air, a silence. It seemed she had really forgotten something. Maybe it was the way home? She did not remember the need to cross a bridge.
Looking back, Madoka saw another school girl crossing the bridge. She was the new student, she was very meek, and her glasses and long braids only contributed to the image of a frightened animal.
"HEEEEYYYY! HOMURA-CHAAAANN!" Madoka waved. Sayaka was always a friend with more attitude than her and it was good to have someone like that. However, Sayaka's personality would be too much for the newcomer. That should be her role, to help her adjust after the long hospital stay. It was time to stop being a mere shadow and make a difference.
Homura did not react, continued on her slow walk, head down, holding her bag in front of her.
"HEEEEYYYY!" Madoka waved again. Her smile was gone when she noticed Homura's disappointed face, she seemed to be talking to herself. She waited for the girl to get close enough to ask, "Homura-chan?"
Homura stopped, dropped her bag, looked like a zombie.
Madoka started to get scared. "D-Did something happen?"
Homura turned, watching the channel. She took off her shoes, removed her glasses, and put them on her shoes, then released her braids.
With her hair long and fluttering, she looked like another person. Madoka was stunned, did not understand what was happening, actually, she did not want to understand.
Homura began to climb the railing.
"What are you doing?! No!" Madoka panicked. "Homura-chan!"
She stood on the railing and looked down.
"No matter what happened, I want to be your friend! Don't do this!" Madoka pleaded, "Why don't you listen to me? Homura-chan!"
"Why don't you save her?"
She dropped her bag. It was Homura's voice, but... Everything was clear now. Madoka's dread was diminishing and she spoke impassively, if not with a little anger, "It's you."
"I asked you a question!" Homura gritted her teeth. "How do you want to save other girls if you can't do it? What a hypocrite you are!"
"She will be saved." Madoka noticed black veins forming in the other girl's hands. "But not by forcing my will on her. I'll be at her side, but she must carve her own destiny."
"And I see you're doing very well." As the irony was uttered, the veins came up through her neck and covered her face. "How you don't know Homura-chan... I could give happiness to her."
"You want to give satisfaction," Madoka clasped her hands over her chest, "I want a reason for that."
"I see now..." Homura raised her hands to the sky.
At the same instant Madoka felt a terrible pain in her chest. "EeeeeehhhggGGYYYAAAAAAHHHH!" It was so much that she lost the notion of balance and fell.
When the pain was gone, she found herself stuck by the neck in stocks, and, meters above her, there was a heavy hanging blade.
"It's just another hope." Homura jumped off the bridge.
The blade fell and when it went through her neck, Madoka saw the world spin until she dived into a sea of tar. She struggled with all her might to maintain consciousness or it would be over.
She first heard a buzzing and then a mantra. She felt pain again, but it was welcoming because she could feel it all over her body. The tar trickled from her face, from her hands and divine garments. She was on her knees in a black puddle, back to the world of whiteness and chairs.
In their white robes and miasma, demons meditated around her.
"Thank you."
After she said that, the demons faded, camouflaging with the scenery.
Madoka stood up as the tar ran to the interior parts of her dress until the puddle was gone.
It's more than hope, it's her.
And Madoka stepped forward, toward the colors, to a world, to a person.
Jafs: Thanks for reading "Love", another volume from the "Year Zero" series is complete!
It's getting big, isn't it? And there are still stories to be told. When it comes to feelings, there are no cheesy ways!
I will discuss more about the future of the series in an extra chapter, accompanied by some bonus scenes, just for fun.
And remember: cheese is rich in calcium, protein and phosphorus.