I

Madoka ran as fast as she could, trying to get as far away from the hotel as she could before Homura returned. She was soaked from the rain. It was coming down so hard she was completely drenched within a matter of minutes. She felt like there was ice in her veins, but she continued to push herself, audibly panting as each labored breath stung the back of her throat.

Finally, she could take it no longer and hid inside an alleyway behind a dumpster. She curled into the darkest corner she could find and covered her mouth to block some of the sound as she tried to regain her breath. She was far enough away now that Homura should not be able to track her down. She would just have to avoid the main streets from now on, then there would be no way her path would cross with Homura.

After a few minutes her lungs still stung and her head felt fuzzy, but she felt like she could continue. She peaked her head out and looked around cautiously. She was not too familiar with the area she was in, but she at least had some vague sense of which direction to find the park. If she could make it there, she would be back in familiar territory and would be able to get wherever she needed to go.

She knew exactly where she wanted to go, too: Sayaka's house. Going to the police might have seemed like the more practical option, but she knew no one would believe her story. Nor could she make them understand that the kidnapper had the power to pull her right out of the police station from right under their noses. They would probably just think she was crazy but offer her weak reassurances that she was safe now.

No, they would not be able to help her. If she went to Sayaka, however, she knew she could make her understand the situation and they could run away together to somewhere Homura could not find them. Even if Sayaka did not believe everything, she would come along anyway, Madoka knew she would.

She got up and started walking again, turning down the first side street she passed in order to keep Homura off her trail.

She cursed herself for choosing a sweatshirt to wear, she hadn't considered how heavy it would become when soaked in rainwater. At least the rain was starting to let up a bit now. It had been a heavy downpour before but now it reduced itself to a light drizzle.

She was getting away from the condensed part of the city now, there were less high rising buildings, and she thought she was starting to see some things that were at least a little more familiar. She noted a certain restaurant that she had eaten at with her family once before. Its doors were locked and the neon open sign was turned off so only the outlines of the letters could be seen.

It was a little bit eerie seeing the city at night like this. She had never been out this late before, and jumped at every random unexplainable noise that came from the darkness. At one point she heard two men shouting at each other from a nearby apartment. It sounded like the argument was getting violent, and she got scared and quickened her pace until she couldn't hear it anymore. She felt for the knife that she had hidden up her sleeve, and took some small comfort in having it, although she sincerely doubted she would be able to use it even when needed.

Then, she saw the café that she would go to after school with Hitomi and Sayaka. Her heart leaped with joy when she saw it, because she now knew exactly where she was. Having a more solid sense of direction renewed her vigor and it motivated her to quicken her pace once again.

She was anxious to get off the city streets, and she was excited to see Sayaka again. She wondered how she would react. Madoka decided she would just let herself in and then shake Sayaka awake. She would probably wake up all grumpy saying something like, "Madoka? Do you have any idea what time it- MADOKA!" Then she would wrap her arms around her and everything would be okay. The idea forced a smile on Madoka's face while thinking about it.

She would have to change her clothes, and then they would leave as soon as possible. She would have to convince her that they needed to stay in a hotel at least for that night so the kidnapper couldn't find her. Sayaka, of course, would suggest calling the police, but all Madoka would have to say is "Just trust me, I'll explain everything later." and Sayaka would listen. It would be difficult to explain Magical Girls and everything else that Homura had told her, but Madoka figured she would worry about that later. For now she just needed to get somewhere safe.

Normally when she walked to Sayaka's house from the café it would take a while. Usually they would stop and joke around, or look through store windows on the way. Now that she was running straight through however, the trip seemed much shorter. Before she knew it she was standing at the end of Sayaka's driveway. She stopped, and let out a deep sigh of relief.

She went to the front door and lifted up a potted plant where Sayaka had a spare key hidden. She unlocked the door as quickly as she could and ran inside. "Sayaka!" she called as she entered the house and ran to Sayaka's room. She stormed right through the bedroom door. "Sayaka it's me! I'm back!"

She flipped the lightswitch on.

Her heart sank to the bottom of her chest when she saw that the bed was empty.

Sayaka was not here.

II

Sayaka's parents were both overseas business people and thus spent a lot of time away from home. It was partly because of this that Madoka and Sayaka ended up becoming so close. When Sayaka was younger she used to stay at Madoka's house while her parents were away. In those days they practically lived like sisters; Eating dinner together, sleeping in the same room, getting ready for school together, they even used to bathe together when they were really little. They were inseparable; even when Sayaka became old enough to stay home alone, they still had sleepovers all the time.

"Sayaka... Where are you?" Madoka whispered in a sad cracked voice as she stood over the bed. She ran her hand over the sheets, and brushed a tear away from her eye. Where was she supposed to go now? She didn't have any money, and she thought for sure Homura would definitely find her if she went back to her own house. Homura was probably there waiting for her now.

Sayaka had her parent's credit card, so they would have been able to run to a hotel or something to hide out for the night, but Sayaka wasn't here.

Madoka went to the bathroom and knocked loudly, "Sayaka?" she called, then opened the door and looked inside. She checked every room in the house, hoping on that slim desperate chance that she would find her. She even went to the basement and called down into the darkness. She didn't actually go down, because the light was always very dim, and really creepy at night.

Once, when they were younger, she and Sayaka were having a sleepover and dared each other to go down into the basement. They had held hands all the way down to the bottom of the stairs. Madoka had clung tight to Sayaka's arm once they made it to the bottom, visibly shaking, but Sayaka put on a brave face and said "This is nothing!" However, when the boiler randomly kicked on they both ran back up the stairs screaming their heads off. Sayaka's mother met them at the top, wanting to know what all the commotion was about.

Madoka paced back and forth in the empty house, trying to think what to do now. She supposed her only option left was to go back to her own home. Maybe Homura would not find her there. She would have to convince her mother that she needed to go hide out somewhere, for reasons she could not fully explain. She always was a good listener and always came through for Madoka in the past. Thinking about it, Madoka thought maybe going back to her own house is what she should have done in the first place, but she just really wanted to see Sayaka again.

She was pacing around the kitchen when she finally made her decision. First, she needed to change her clothes. She was soaked to the bone and could feel a chill setting in. She would need to borrow something from Sayaka. After getting dressed she would walk home, but stay hidden until she was sure Homura was not stalking around her house. Then she would get her mom to drive her away and explain as much as she could on the way.

When she walked into the dining room, she froze. The room was dark, and she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her at first, but a flash of lightning revealed a black silhouette sitting at the table. Madoka gasped, and fell back, hitting the wall. Her hands trembled as the shadow rose from its seat and stepped into a dim ray of light that was shining in from a window.

"I thought you would come here." Her voice was cold as stone. "I hope you had fun. It's time to go back now."

III

Homura looked at Madoka's scared face, her trembling lips. She was soaking wet, water still dripping from her hair and the sleeves of her sweater. She just stood with her back to the wall, eyes wide, staring in disbelief.

"I thought you understood," said Homura as she stepped closer and closer until she was standing mere inches away. "You can not get away from me." Her hand rose and touched the side of Madoka's face, her thumb gently petting her cheek. "It doesn't matter where you go, Madoka. I can find you, and when I do all I have to do is stop time and take you right back. So escaping is pointless, don't you get that?"

Madoka's wide eyes stared at Homura, then shifted over to the hand that was touching her face. With a deep breath and a sudden intense look of determination, she reached into her sleeve, grabbed the handle of the knife, and thrust it at Homura's neck!

Homura took a step back, not needing to try very hard to avoid the unresolved blow. Madoka stood with the knife shaking in her hands, just inches away from Homura's neck. Homura clicked her teeth and brushed her hair back, looking at the blade as if it were some disgusting thing. "Why don't you put that down?"

"What did you do to her!" Madoka shouted.

Homura's eyes shifted, surprised by the accusation. "Miki? She was never here." Her voice became defensive. "I would never do anything to harm her or anyone else. Whatever you may think of me, I'm not that kind of person."

Madoka's face scrunched up, and with a cry her shaking hands loosened their grip and the knife dropped to the ground. Her back against the wall, she slid down until her butt was on the floor and her head buried itself down into her knees.

"I'm sorry!" She shouted, and started to whimper.

Homura lowered herself down to Madoka's level. Her long pink hair was tangled and hanging over her knees as she hid her face between her legs. Homura reached a hand out to brush her hair back, but with a cry Madoka shook away from her touch, and the hand receded. Homura sank back, and sat down completely on the floor, across from Madoka, and just watched her.

Madoka wasn't allowing herself to cry openly, but she was doing so silently, with her face hidden. Buried in her knees, tears were flowing freely from her eyes.

Homura didn't know if there's anything she should do in this situation. Part of her just wanted to grab Madoka and hug her deeply, and make all the sadness go away, but Madoka had rejected her attempt at comfort. So she waited.

After a while, Madoka spoke with a choked whisper. "I won't tell anyone, i-if you just let me go, I promise. We can forget about all of this. You can come back to school, and I won't say anything to anyone. I-I'll say I was blindfolded, and I didn't see who did it. Then, they just let me go, a-and..."

"I can't do that."

Madoka rocked back and forth inside her knees. "I won't sign the contract! I won't! I won't!" Homura didn't respond. "I won't," she sniffed. "I promise I won't! S-so… p-please..."

Homura stood and walked back to the dining room table where she took a seat. "When you are ready, get changed into some dry clothes. I'm sure Miki-san won't mind. Then we have to go back."

IV

After a while, Madoka regained her composure and looked up. Homura sat at the table, one leg crossed over the other, watching her from the dark with expressionless eyes. Madoka slowly raised herself back to her feet, and moved towards Sayaka's bedroom. She stopped when she realized Homura had gotten up and started following her.

"I'm getting changed now. Can I have some privacy?" she said.

"I don't want anymore tricks from you tonight," said Homura. "I have to keep my eye on you." Madoka opened her mouth to complain but Homura cut her off before she could, "I'll keep my back turned." Homura had that cold commanding look on her face, and it killed any courage Madoka had to complain about this.

Homura sat down on the bed, her back facing the dresser. Madoka looked back and forth between Homura and the dresser, uneasily, fidgeting her hands within one another. Then she sighed and opened the drawers and started looking though.

She moved slowly, trying to buy some time so she could think. She had come this far, was she really just going to go right back? She had no idea what to do, though. As she was looking through, she remembered something: she had her ribbons in her pocket. She glanced back at Homura, and saw that her head had turned with one eye watching Madoka's every move. "If you're up to something," Homura said in a cool calm voice, "Please just forget it. The more trouble you cause means the less freedom I'll be able to give you in the future. Understand?"

This made Madoka want to scream at her and get into another fight, but she felt as though all her aggression had already been stripped from her. She just nodded weakly, and looked back to the dresser.

She found a white skirt with a cute blue flower design running down the side. She knew that this was one of Sayaka's favorites and she knew she would notice it was missing. If she could at least leave some sign that she was here it might be enough to send out a signal that she wasn't far away, thus making it easier for the police to search for her. It was a long shot, and probably not much would come of it, but it was the best she could think of.

She laid the skirt on top of the dresser, and found a matching white and blue top which she laid next to it, along with a pair of socks. She turned to see Homura was still watching her, and she said, "I-I'm changing now. Don't peek, okay?" Homura's intense eyes stared into her for a moment longer, as if trying to read something, but finally she agreed with a nod and turned her head away.

Madoka pulled the soaked sweatshirt up over her head, and quickly replaced it with the shirt she had chosen. Then she did the same with her pants, but as she was taking them off her hand very quickly shot into her pocket and grabbed one of the ribbons. She glanced back to see if Homura was looking, and she wasn't, so Madoka stuffed the ribbon down into the dresser drawer, and finished getting changed. She glanced back a few times in the process to make sure Homura kept her word, and it seemed that she had. She took the second ribbon and stuffed it into her skirt, just in case.

"O-ok, I'm finished," said Madoka as she closed the dresser drawer.

Homura stood up and walked over to her, intently. She pushed Madoka to the side with a soft touch, and started examining the dresser.

"W-what?" Madoka asked, quickly trying to think of a way to draw her attention away. Homura didn't bother acknowledging her at all, but opened the dresser drawer and started delicately lifting up articles of clothing. Madoka watched anxiously, every fiber of her praying and willing for Homura to not find it. Her heart sank even deeper when Homura raised the ribbon up and held it out to show it to her. She raised a scrupulous eyebrow as if asking for an explanation. Madoka just sunk back into her shoulders feeling even more defeated.

"Do I really need to start watching you change too?" Homura asked. Madoka's eyes shifted away, she should have been mad about Homura saying something like that but for some reason all she felt was guilt. "I guess it can't be helped, but this really needs to stop." She sighed and looked at Madoka deeply. She looked like she wanted to say more, but she didn't. Instead, she turned away, flung her hair back, and disappeared.

"Homura?" Madoka looked around, confused, and feeling nervous. Whenever Homura randomly disappeared like that it never meant anything good. She wasn't gone for long, though. After a few seconds she reappeared, holding a chain and a dog collar. When Madoka saw it her eyes widened and she slowly started shaking her head and backing away. "No, Homura... you can't mean..."

"This is the best I could come up with on short notice." Her eyes narrowed. "I wasn't expecting to have to chase you halfway across the city tonight, you know."

Madoka touched a hand to her neck, she started to blush and her eyes shifted away. "But, something like that..." She shook her head slowly. "No!"

"I need a way to keep contact with you so I can pull you into my time flow. Like I said, this is the best I could come up with." She stepped forward, holding out the open dog collar. "Won't it be more dignified if you just accept this? Rather than having me drag you across the city again? Because I will do that if I have to."

Madoka's eyes shifted around, trying to decide what to do, all the while her face growing redder and redder. Ultimately, she knew resistance was futile, she missed her chance to get away, and now her freedom was gone once again. Her hands dropped down to her skirt and grabbed onto its delicate cloth with two tightly balled fists. She bowed her head forward with closed eyes and a nervous tight lipped frown. She kept that position until she felt the collar lock around her neck.


-Atomyst

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