Chapter IV
A Cougar in Lamb's Clothing

It took awhile for Homura to finally calm down. But when she finally did, she wiped her tears away with my shirt, hiccuping a little. She stared up at me, and we shared a gentle smile. I felt my heartbeat sped up at the sight.

There was nothing else that needed to be said between us.

After that, Homura took me by the hand, and she led me down the spiral stone stairway, the light of her Soul Gem on her ring finger banishing away the darkness, until we came upon an old wooden door at the bottom of the stairs. Homura pushed it open and pulled me through, and I had my first look at the room we just entered.

The door opened up to a massive stone basement built underneath the abandoned cathedral. The basement was almost completely empty, except for a pair of expensive-looking chairs with cushioned seats and a fancy table placed between them right in the middle of the room. On the table laid a single book with a blank grey cover. Hanging high above the prepared furniture was a floating orb of purple light that lit up the entire scenery with its light.

I blinked as I took in the scenery. I see Homura came prepared.

Homura led me to one of the chairs, and I immediately took a seat. I saw Homura brightened up considerably at that. I filed that interesting little tidbit away for later.

Then Homura took out a piece of purple chalk from her skirt and immediately began drawing a circle around us and the furniture. Once completed, she laid her hand on it, and the circle began to glow a bright purple light. Immediately, the surroundings outside of Homura's chalk circle transformed into a dense white fog. I looked around at the fog, inspecting it critically, before I looked back at Homura expectedly as she dusted off chalk dust from her hands while she took her seat in the other chair.

"It is just a basic veil spell. Think of it as like a magic camo nest, or a giant cloak of invisibility. It will help hide us from Kyubey, so we can speak freely with another." Homura explained, as she crossed her legs. She flipped her long raven hair over her shoulders and then clasped her hands together and laid them over her knee. "So! I imagine you have questions."

I gave her a silent nod, my heart suddenly beating with nervous excitement.

"Speak, then, and I will do my best to answer them." She said.

I took a moment to formulate my thoughts, my hand on my chin. My... journey here had been one crazy ride full of stress and barely-concealed terror, and that was not conductive at all for preparing any questions I might have for Homura. I needed a few minutes to go through my thoughts and prepare myself, mentally. Fortunately, Homura gave me plenty of time for me to do exactly that.

Eventually, after getting my mind into proper order, I came up with four questions I was happy with. I straightened out my back and cleared my throat.

"How much of my knowledge is accurate, Homura?" I first asked.

"As far as I am aware, all of it." She answered. "The only things I am uncertain about are the events that happened after Madoka's Wish to become a goddess, and that is only because we went out of our way to prevent that from happening."

I felt slightly disoriented by her words. It is... so weird to talk about a story plot with one of its primary actors, and have it be a very serious conversation. It was... unnerving. But I recovered, and I moved on to my next question. "How long have you been trapped here, Homura?"

Homura leaned forward and propped up an elbow on the table, while her other arm laid negligently besides it on the table surface. She rested her head against the palm of her raised hand, her purple eyes carefully watching me, and a soft tragic smile blossomed from her lips. "This would be the 150th attempt." Homura said softly. "I have spent 6,706 days trapped inside this time-loop. I have been trapped for eighteen years, four months, fourteen days, and counting."

I felt like I was punched in the guts. One-hundred and fifty times. Holy fuck.I stared at Homura with both horror and pity in my eyes, my mouth opening and then closing out of mute shock.

One-hundred and fifty times. Eighteen fucking years, trapped inside the same month.

Jesus Fuckin' Christ.

Homura's smile spread a little wider, and clear delight danced inside her purple eyes as she watched me. My heart twisted at the sight.

My hands immediately went to brace against my armrests, but before I could rise from my seat, Homura beat me to it. I paused, suddenly uncertain, as Homura rose up from her chair and walked around the table to me at a sedate pace. My eyes could not resist watching her, as her hips and her checkered miniskirt gently swayed from side to side with almost hypnotizing grace, almost teasingly so, while a hand trailed over the table surface as she approached me.

Then I stiffened and blushed bright scarlet as Homura sat down right onto my laps, forcing me back into my seat and sending my heart to a roaring crescendo. She lifted her long, graceful legs and left them to dangle off to the side over the chair's armrest, and she laid her head and a hand over my heart and snuggled closer to me, her soft butt pressing down against my suddenly burning loins as she settled in my laps. Her scent filled my nose, and my heart hammered against my rib cage with wild abandon. I could feel myself hardening against her sinfully soft butt, and I have so many mixed feelings about that.

"It's okay," She whispered, as her hand gripped the fabric of my shirt in a tight vise. Her butt gently ground against my burning loins as she wiggled about on my laps and made herself more comfortable. Her grinding movement sent jolts of wicked, sinful pleasure to my poor, trapped loins and up my spine. I swallowed thickly, utterly bewildered by this turn of event. "It's okay. So long as I have you, everything is going to be alright."

I blinked. What the fuck do I even say to that? To this?! Is she doing this on purpose?! What the fuck is even going on with my life?!

I quickly shoved a cork into that part of me before I start gibbering and panicking away, again, and I forced myself to relax by letting out a long breath and allowing my body to loosen up from my stiff posture. Unfortunately, I had no such easy solution to calm down my rapidly beating heart or my trapped arousal, and I have to suffer the indignity of having my burning erection being squished by the butt of the beautiful young girl sitting on my lap in an incredibly awkward silence.

Slowly, carefully, my arms came up and gently wrapped Homura in an embrace, and I squeezed her closer to me. I leaned my head over on top of her head, and I whispered to her, "I'm here, Homura. I'm here for you."

Homura dug her nose deeper into my chest and took in a deep breath. She let it out as a long, relaxed sigh filled with contentment, and she turned her head up to see me. Homura smiled at me, her face still partially pressed up against my chest and so, so incredibly close to me. I could feel my face burn at the sight, at the close intimacy. I swallowed thickly again. "I know," she said softly.

And then for a moment, there was an incredibly awkward silence between us, as she sat on my laps and listened to the nervous beats of my heart, while I held on to her and felt the burning heat my trapped and erect penis was making against her butt.

Fuck. This is so damned uncomfortable.

Homura suddenly spoke up. "Third question?" She asked.

"I..." I began, and then I faltered, suddenly consumed by nervousness and embarrassment. God, this is such a stupid thing to ask of her! Especially since she sitting right on top of my cock!

"Yes?" Said Homura.

"...It's not that important," I mumbled half-heartedly. "Besides, you already know the question, anyways."

Homura suddenly frowned, and before I could panic, poked me in the cheeks. I yelped and flinched away, a hand quickly protecting my poor, vulnerable cheeks from her fingers.

"Ow! What's that for?!" I asked, as I rubbed my stinging cheeks.

Homura glared at me, her arms crossed under her breasts. "Because you are being stupid again." Homura scolded me. "Because this is important for you, Benza, and you are just as important as I am. Just because I already know your question, doesn't mean that you already know the answer. And it is vital for you know, Benza!" Homura raised a finger and wagged it before my nose. "Now, I will not accept anymore talk of how you are not as important as me, or that you are somehow lesser! I will not allow it! I refuse to!"

I blinked, utterly baffled, this time for an entirely different reason. "...Uh," I said intelligently.

"Now, apologize to yourself for your rudeness!" Homura said. "Repeat after me, and say, 'Yes, Homura, I am just as important as you are!' And, 'Yes, Homura, I am sorry for ever doubting myself!' And finally, 'Yes, Homura, what would I ever do without you, my dear Homura?'"

I am so utterly confused. "What?"

Homura pushed herself right up to my face. It was terrifying. "Well?" She asked, with a dangerous edge in her tone.

"Yes, Homura!" I yelped back.

"And...?" Homura said leadingly.

I sighed softly, partly exasperated now and partly amused, and I started over. "Yes, Homura, I am just as important as you are."

"And?" She said.

"Yes, Homura," I told her, a soft smirk on my lips now, "I am sorry for doubting myself."

"And...?" She said.

Now it had been swiftly replaced by deep embarrassment, and I felt heat rushed up to my face. "Yes... Homura," I began slowly and awkwardly, "What would I ever do... withoutyouHomura?" I quickly rushed over the last part, being filled with far too much embarrassment to ever want to touch that particular landmine, even with a ten-foot pole, and I quickly prayed that Homura wouldn't notice or wouldn't consider it too important.

Her purple eyes narrowed dangerously at the last thing I said... and what I didn't. I swallowed. Fuck, guess not.

"You missed something,"

Homura said carefully, her purple eyes filled with absolutely zero amusement at my little evasion. Terror seized my heart.

But my sheer desire to avoid feeling embarrassed and awkward at saying those kind of words to Akemi Homura ended up winning over instead. Fuck, my mind is in such a damned mess.

"Fuck, Homura, is this really that damned important?" I most definitely did not whine to the Akemi Homura.

"Yes." She said, her purple eyes never straying away from me.

I winced. Ah. Shit. "...Sorry," I whispered.

Her eyes softened considerably, but Homura did not withdraw her face away from me.

I averted my eyes away from her and off to the side, and I quickly scrounged up my courage, before my sense of dignity can stop me again. I nervously licked my lips, looked back at Homura's close but gentle eyes, and tried again.

"Yes, Homura," I began again, "What would I ever do without you, my dear Homura?" Heat rushed up to my face as I said the last three words, and I resisted the urge to bury my face in the palms of my hands to escape the sheer embarrassment I'm feeling deep inside of my chest.

It was like as I flipped a light switch. Homura suddenly transformed the second she heard those last three words. Pure joy erupted from her brilliant purple eyes, and she beamed at me with a wide smile. She backed away from my face and laid her head over my heart again, while wrapping my chest in a tight embrace. "Good." She said, as she snuggled up closer to me. "Don't ever doubt your worth again, Benza. Or I'll be forced to show you just how much you mean to me."

I could feel my heart beating loudly inside my chest as I considered the girl hugging the shit out of my chest. That meant more to her than I thought, huh? My eyes softened considerably. How... incredibly sad.

My arms carefully wrapped around her, and I leaned my head against hers again. "Okay," I whispered.

I felt more than saw as Homura nodded her head again against my chest. "Now, your next question?"

I paused, trying to muster up the courage to ask. A part of me... wanted proof, real irrefutable proof that this is actually happening to me. I wanted more than just a pretty light and a cute girl getting incredibly frisky with me. I wanted to know beyond a shadow of a doubt... No, I needed to know that this is actually happening, that this isn't some mad, pointless delusion of mine.

I needed to know that this is real.

"I..." I nervously licked my lips. God, this is so awkward! Even more so than calling Akemi Homura "My Dear"! "Can I... can I see your magical girl outfit, Homura?"

Homura raised her head from my chest to face me, propping up her chin to lay against my chest, and her bright purple eyes sparkling with both sadness and delight. She looked absolutely adorable. A hand came up to caress my face, and there was a soft tender smile on her lips.

"Of course, my dear Benza," She whispered. I could feel my cheeks blushing madly, as hot as burning coals, and I felt my heart skipped a beat.

Homura got up and slipped away from my laps. She took a few steps away from me before twirling around to face me once more. She planted her feet apart and raised a hand towards me, her Soul Gem displayed proudly as a ring on her ring finger. She had a gentle smile on her face, and her purple eyes twinkled with an inner light.

And then her body was briefly consumed by purple light.

How do you describe a magical girl transformation? Yes, there is a light show, but seeing it from an anime and watching it in person is like comparing the difference between night and day or Heaven and Earth. You simply can't. They are just incomparable, because it is so much more than just a simple light show. In the anime, Mami had described magical girls as bringers of hope, right? And Kyubey explained that magic comes from human emotions, yes? So how do you describe the moment when a seemingly ordinary, if beautiful, girl suddenly transforms into a warrior-maiden of wonders in all her glory? How is a magical girl able to walk right into the heart of a Witch's Labyrinth, stand at the seat of a Witch's full power, and still resist her mad, grieving whispers, when so many others succumb so easily? How does a magical girl keep her ordinary companions accompanying her from succumbing to a Witch's whispers as well?

It's because Mami wasn't lying. Magical girls do bring hope. Literally.

The purple light burst and Akemi Homura stood before me, dressed in her signature magical girl outfit: a white, long-sleeved coat with a black trim over a black collared shirt with a white trim and a large, dark purple bow with two long ribbons over the back of her coat. She sported a dark purple bow with long ribbons over the center of her black shirt collar, and right underneath her bow, proudly stood a cross studded with amethyst gemstones, glowing softly with inner light. Draped over her shoulders, placed under her shirt collar but over her white coat, was a dull, light purple seifuku-style collar. She wore a dull, light purple miniskirt with a white ruffled trim over black tights that had purple diamonds line the sides of her legs, and her feet were clad in a pair of black heels. And over her left forearm was her signature magical girl weapon, a silver buckler that can stop and reverse time itself. She shone radiantly before me as she flipped her midnight hair over her shoulders, shining in my eyes like a brilliant purple star, and I could physically feel her magic, the pressure of an ethereal and supernatural presence, roiling from her form, stretching out to me and enveloping me in its radiant embrace. And I stared at her with naked awe.

To stand in the presence of a magical girl was like standing in the chilly night air when the Sun rises. It was like trudging through the scorching desert sands, sun-burnt and dying of thirst, when rain falls. It was like watching your starving children slowly die from famine when the hunt returns with food. It was like sitting alone in utter darkness and being terrified out of your mind when the light comes on. To feel relief as the warmth of the Sun's rays fill up your bones and banish the night's chill away. To sit in the desert sands and laugh with sheer joy as the rain washes your burns, quenches your thirst, and chases away the oppressive desert heat. To sink your teeth in fresh red meat and watch with tearful delight as your starving children finally fill up their hungry bellies. To stand up and watch with captivating wonder as a torch lights up the tunnel and banishes away the darkness and your nightmares.

To stand in the presence of a magical girl in her full glory is to feel relief, and joy, and delight, and wonder all at once. It is to know and to feel that you are safe, that everything is going to be alright, and that so long as she is there, there is hope.

It is to feel as if hope itself has come to save you.

I felt all of that, and more, when Akemi Homura transformed before my eyes and touched me with the light of her soul. Tears fell down my cheeks as I felt her soul's embrace, and a sob broke through my lips, which I swiftly hid with a hand. I felt my legs become weak, and I collapsed into my chair, and I knew then, that if I had been standing, I would've fallen to my knees before Homura, resplendent in all her glory.

Sweet Mother of God! If this was anywhere near close to what Homura experienced when she first met Madoka, then no wonder she fell so hard for her!

It was too much. The relief, the joy, the delight, and the wonder, and so much more, all rushing into me all at once, it was too much. I couldn't handle it. I couldn't control it. Not along with all the other emotions I'm trying to keep bottled up and at bay. And I realized so many things, in that exact moment.

That this is real. That this is really happening to me. And, with it, I suddenly understood that my family are gone. All of them. Mom. Dad. George. Rachel. Victoria, Nicholas, Helena, and Joseph. My friends. My dogs. I felt a sudden sense of wailing grief and chocking sorrow, which was only made worse by the sharp contrasting feelings of relief and joy and wonder I'm experiencing from Homura's presence.

And at the same time, I realized... I'm going to die.

"You're still alive," she whispered to me.

One hundred and fifty times, she had said.

Which meant... every single one of my alternative selves... had failed.

I'm... going to die. I'm going to die. I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!

Fresh tears welled up at my eyes, my soul quaked with horror and despair at the realizations, all flooding through me all at once, and a surge of emotions, complicated, boiling, overflowing emotions, swelled up from inside of me and overwhelmed me.

It's like my whole world had just shifted. Like I had only just bothered to look down at the ground and realize I am tipping off the edge of a cliff, just one step shy from falling down into the abyss below, while above me, waiting for me, was a host of angels with their arms spread wide, urging me to only jump and they will catch me and deliver me to the Pearly Gates. Like I had only just looked down and realized that the ground is crumbling beneath my feet, while above me, waiting for me, I can feel the light of Heaven reaching out to me. To feel both euphoria and blinding terror, joy and choking sorrow, pride and crushing shame, comfort and crippling loneliness.

Hope and drowning despair. It was too much. It was far, far too much.

A soft, warm hand cupped my cheeks, throwing my thoughts and my boiling, swirling emotions to a screeching halt. I looked up, my eyes wet with tears, and I saw Akemi Homura standing in front of me, her hand holding my cheeks. She looked down at me, her eyes burning bright purple and full of sympathy and understanding.

She understood. She understood me.

I felt a connection to her, right then and there. Something intimate and personal that I never wanted to lose, not again. And I realized then, that I needed her. Her touch. Her warmth. Her comfort. I needed her to embrace me, to touch me, to kiss me and assure me that she will always be there for me and will never leave my side again. I needed her to chase away the darkness and the loneliness from my soul. I needed her to say that she loves me and that I am worthy.

I just felt so tired, and empty, and lonely inside, and I wanted it to end.

Homura crawled into my laps and straddled my legs. She wrapped my head in her arms, with one arm around my neck and her other hand holding the back of my head, and she gently guided me down to her shoulders. She leaned her head against me, and she whispered soft comforting sounds into my ears, while her soft, gentle fingers stroked my hair.

"Shhh, it's okay, Benza," Homura whispered to me, her soft fingers stroking my hair. Holy joy and relief filled my ears at her words. "It's alright. Let it out. Let it all out."

I wrapped my arms around Homura, pressing her body against my chest, and I buried my face in the crevice between her neck and her shoulders.

And I finally broke.

And in the safety and warmth of her embrace, I finally let it all out, all the emotions I kept bottled up inside me all this time.

I screamed. I cried. I raged. I begged. I wept.

I screamed out the names of my parents and my siblings, and for them to save me.

I cried out, denying my fate and my future, my knowledge and my circumstance.

I raged at the injustice of it all, at the bitter chalice thrust into my hands and at the heavy burden forced upon my shoulders, without warning or preparation.

I begged for someone, anyone, to save me, to take this chalice and this cross away from me, and to wake up once more in the comfort of my bed and in the safety of my home, safe, happy, and just a regular, ordinary soul.

I wept for the trials yet to come and for the doom waiting for me at the end of it all.

And through it all, Homura held me, stroking my hair with her soft, gentle fingers and cradling me in her arms as she straddled my laps, whispering comforting noises in my ears, while I clung to her like a drowning man and wept.

I never wanted to let her go.

[HAROLD]

I cried. I cried, and I cried, and I cried, until I ran out of tears and emotions to weep for. And when I finally ran out, I fully sank myself into Homura's warm embrace, burrowing my nose deeper inside the crevice between her neck and her shoulders, and I allowed myself to actually, truly, and finally relax for the first time since I woke up in Japan. I drew in a deep breath, drinking deeply of Homura's scent, and I let it all out in a single, relaxed sigh full of satisfaction. I basked in the warmth and comfort Homura's body gave me, pressed up against my chest. I silently listened to the steady heartbeat beating inside Homura's chest.

And all the while, Homura stroked my hair with her soft fingers, leaning her head against mine, and hummed the familiar tune of a nursery rhyme that I vaguely recognize into my ears.

And for the first time since I woke up here, I felt happy and content.

I never wanted this to end.

But all things must come to an end, even this. So slowly, regretfully, I withdrew from the comfort of Homura's embrace, and I raised my head and stared at her, face-to-face, with a soft, gentle smile on my lips and my hands down on her hips. Homura stared back at me, smiling as well and still straddling my laps, her eyes burning purple filled with love and kindness, and she cupped my cheeks in her two hands and used her thumbs to wipe away my tears.

And then we leaned our foreheads against each other, closed our eyes, and settled in silence. Enjoying each other's presence while we still could. For a moment, I was at peace.

And that was enough.

But, unfortunately, we can't spend the rest of our days like this. There is still much work that needs to be done.

So, I broke the silence. "What now, Homura?" I asked softly, opening my eyes. I had a fourth question I wanted to ask, but ever since Homura revealed herself in her full glory, I couldn't for the life of me recall what I was going to say. So, I simply gave a mental shrug and moved on. I'll just ask Homura whenever it comes back to me.

Homura pointed her hand at the table behind her without looking, and she snapped her fingers. The lone book jumped from the table to her waiting hand with a gust of wind, and Homura placed the book on my chest. Not once did her purple eyes broke contact from me.

Holy shit, that is so cool!

"Here," She said quietly, "Read this."

I took the book, and Homura readjusted her seat on my laps and snuggled up to me, her head underneath my chin and her eyes watching me, as I opened it up. On the back of the front cover, I found a foreword, handwritten in nice, neat English print with black ink. I immediately recognized the style of handwriting. How could I not?

After all, it was my own.

For a moment, I forgot myself. I touched the back cover, tracing my fingers over the dried ink, and I allowed myself to remember my childhood. Of the countless hours spent writing stories and ideas inside my school journals with pens and pencils, back before I had my own laptop. Of trying to figure out ways to hide my journals from my family, because they saw my writings as useless distractions and I was embarrassed to show it to them. Of how my handwriting slowly grew and developed over the years, born out of my desire to cram as many words as I can onto a single page, while still making sure they are still perfectly legible for me. Nobody else had this kind of handwriting, that I saw, because nobody else bothered to practice it like I have.

And Homura had this with her.

This journal, more than anything else, convinced me that Homura had actually met an alternative me. It was an actual, physical, concrete proof in my hands that Homura... spoke the truth.

And she treasured it enough to have kept it with her, all this time. Heh. Take that, Dad! My writing isn't so useless after all! Even a pretty girl agrees with me!

I... I know I've been acting all this time on the blind assumption that my knowledge is true, but... it is still such a huge leap of faith to make. So many things could have gone wrong, if I turned out to be wrong. Is it wrong for me to be so relieved to have actual, physical evidence in my hands? To know that I am not actually crazy? Or at least not alone in my insanity? What does that make me, I wonder? A lucky idiot? Or a wise fool?

I drew myself away from such depressing thoughts, and I allowed myself a few seconds to lose myself in the memories of my childhood.

And then I began to read.

I tried, Lord, it began. I prayed, and I prayed, and I prayed, and yet still, I don't see the perfect answer. Only bad ones, worse ones, and craven ones. Please. Answer me, Lord. Save us from the whips and snares of the Xenos.

God will not answer my prayers. So be it. If God Himself will not grant me this miracle, then with my own two hands, I will

makeone. And if God should judge me guilty of sin, then I submit myself to His Judgement. I will get down on my knees, bow my head, and accept my righteous punishment. I will simply tell him that I could not find the perfect answer, and so I chose what I thought was the lesser evil. And I decided that freeing the souls of the Puellae Magi from the yoke of the Xenos was worth any sacrifice.

Even my morals. Even my innocence. Even my life.

Even my immortal soul.

I will make no excuses. I accept the consequences of my actions, Lord, whatever they may be. All I ask is that you have mercy on the souls of the little ones. They did not know what they were doing.

For He is the Lord, my God. He is the Alpha and the Omega. The Beginning and the End. He is my Creator. He is my Master. He is my King. He is my Redeemer, my Savior, and my Messiah. He is my Lord and my God. God is good. God is great. God is just.

Holy Mother, pray for the abandoned daughters of Eve. Saint Michael the Archangel, protect us from the temptations of the Devil, the lies of the Xeno, and the whispers of the Witch. Lord, have mercy on the souls of both Magical Girls and Witches, and grant me both the strength of will and the clarity of mind to do what I must.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

On the opposite page, on the very first page of this journal, I read its title:

ON MIRACLES
A Study into the Thaumaturgical Science

By: Harold E. Blackwater

Written with Joint Cooperation of the Puellae Magi of Mitakihara Town:
Akemi Homura, Tomoe Mami, Sakura Kyouko, Miki Sayaka, and Kaname Madoka.

I skimmed through the pages, only stopping and reading through some parts that caught my interest. I saw pictures and diagrams. Of Soul Gems and the bodies of Magical Girls, with and without their Magical Girl outfits. Of a rough sketch of the soul and of the human body, both physical and spiritual. I saw theories and hypotheses on the nature of the human soul and the properties of magic. I saw diagrams of crystals and circles, each more stranger and more bizarre than the last, and utilizing Holy Scriptures and Latin as the core foundation (What? Why? How does that even work?).

I saw pictures of weaponry and armor and how to make them, from basic instructions on how to enchant guns, bullets, and modern body armor, to instructions on how to forge a magical alloy called magisteel and craft magical weapons and armor from them. (You basically submerge steel in a liquid pool of pure magic and start praying. No, literally, the instruction says to start praying the Rosary while you wait for the steel to absorb all of the magical energy. Mixing in incense and holy relics also help, apparently - wait, Homura, why are you mixing my bones and blood with steel here? Where do you even get that?! How do you even get that?! What the fuck, Homura.)

I saw instructions on setting up thaumaturgical agriculture and animal husbandry (Read: submerge the plant seeds in magical energy, breed them for even more magical capacity, let them mature, and then feed them to the animals, to encourage the spiritual growth of their souls. Abuse Akemi's time magic to accelerate the process - wait, what?! She can do that?!) the basic foundation required so you can have easy access to magical reagents for alchemy, tailoring, smithing, spellcrafting, and even cooking, since someone decided to farm and exploit little girls for millennia, instead of letting Earth develop a natural magical ecosystem. I saw instructions on how to brew healing potions, how to weave fiber rich in magic into clothes, and how to layer spells on top to use the stored magical energy, so you can turn regular clothes into magical clothes.

I saw diagrams of combat magic, both offensive and defensive. I read about spells that protect, from a basic barrier of magical energy that shields against only kinetic energy to a complicated spell-weave that protects against kinetic, heat, light, liquid, gas, magic, and anything else I or a Magical Girl could possibly encounter, a process that took a lot of pages, a lot of ink, and a lot of experiments before it was finally perfected. I read about offensive magic, from techniques inspired by martial arts to a poor man's imitation of a Magical Girl's innate magic. These imitations ranged from a spell that tried to ape Mami's gun-fu that ended up being dumb down to a simple magic beam, with a focus instead on techniques that improved multi-tasking, to a spell that tried to copy Sayaka's sword and ended up creating a blade made out of pure, lethal magic, but unable to cross the final distance in transforming the magical energy into a physical, monomolecular steel blade.

My alternate self also left a lot of notes bitching and complaining about the Magical Girls' instinctive and natural grasp on their magic, from their spells to their superhuman strength, speed, and reflexes, while he's stuck having to learn everything from scratch. Homura, on the other hand, left a lot of notes right next to them that countered his complaints, such as reminding him that his sheer versatility is bullshit all on its own and that lacking the flaws of a Magical Girl is useful in its own right.

I also read about the failures. I read my handwriting detailing magical experiments, only to suddenly stop and then be continued on by Akemi's handwriting, that simply say that I died, how I killed myself, and a reminder to set up safety protocols and equipment to prevent this from happening again. Some pages still had dried blood staining them. Chills ran up my spine when I saw those. This only happened two or three times before my accidental deaths finally stopped. The rest of the failures either ended up with injuries, broken or destroyed equipment, or both. I saw-

I tore my eyes away from the pages, breathing heavily, lest I get lost in them once more. I stared down at the book in my hands, a strange new feeling thrumming in my chest. Magic. I figured out a way to use magic! Dangerous, yes, but magic!

I turned to the girl sitting on my laps, her eyes watching me carefully. Her hand raised up to caress my cheeks.

"You," Homura said softly, "Are the Father of Thaumaturgical Science. You sought to expand our knowledge on magic and how to better exploit them. And you succeeded beyond my wildest dreams."

Her hand dipped down and took the book from my hands, closing it and storing it inside her buckler. Her hand returned to grasp the cross of amethysts on her collar, and she pulled it off. A purple light shimmered around it and burst apart, leaving a cross of amethysts now with a little necklace loop.

"This," Homura said, raising the cross up, "Is a talisman that you created for me. The gemstones embedded inside it are what you once would name Anima Crystals. Crystallized magic. My magic."

Her purple eyes stared into me with an intensity that I found to be a tad bit disturbing. "You figured out a means to create and store magic. It can be used to purify a Soul Gem or to power a spell. These--" She brandished the cross. "-power up an energy barrier that can shield me from harm, and you made sure to place enough Crystals and magic that it can stand up to an artillery barrage or a concentrated assault by a team of Magical Girls. Or even Walpurgisnacht herself. And it is the core foundation behind your Thaumaturgical Technology."

I stared at her hypnotizing purple eyes, spellbound by her words. The strange feeling inside my chest grew stronger and stronger.

Homura smiled gently as she got up from her seat and slipped away from my laps. Her hand holding her cross slipped it inside her buckler. Her purple eyes stared at me, never once breaking contact from me, as she slowly made her way to the edge of her chalk circle. "Do you know how you managed to create the first Anima Crystal, Benza?"

I silently shook my head.

Her smile grew wider. "What is the single greatest act of emotion known to Man?" She asked me, and with her foot, she broke the circle.

Purple light blossomed into existence. Before Homura's feet, was a giant polygon, with an intricate and arcane-looking interior and made out of brilliant purple light, carved into the stone floor. Seven purple crystals the size of my fist floated over the anchor-points of the polygon, shining with inner light. And at the center of the magic polygon, stood a king-sized poster bed, partially obscured by black, silky curtains. Arcane sigils, smouldering with purple light, decorated the silky, black fabric of the curtains.

My brain short-circuited.

Homura stood before me, awashed in the radiance of the polygon's light, a triumphant gleam in her purple eyes. My eyes snapped back towards her when she slowly stalked forward to me, her hips and her Magical Girl's miniskirt swaying hypnotically from side to side.

Oh no. Oh, no. Nonono-!

I froze in my seat, suddenly paralyzed, my heart thundering in my chest and my mind desperately scrambling for an escape route. My hands squeezed my armrests, and I spluttered.

"We-we-we're not even married!" I managed to choke out. This can't be happening! This can't be happening!

Homura paused, as she stared down at me in front of me, tilting her head like a cat that had found a new toy to play with. Her fingers reached out to gently and tenderly stroke my cheeks, before sliding down to grasp my chin and raise my face up to her. She smiled. "Oh," Homura purred, "We can fix that."

Before I can respond, Homura got down on her knees and pulled out a tiny, black velvety jewelry box from her buckler. She placed it on the palm of her hand and presented to me, and with the other hand, she opened it.

Sitting inside, nestled on a tiny pillow of dark purple, gleamed a silver ring with a brilliant and polished white stone that shone with an inner argent light.

"Ebeniza Brackwatah," Akemi Homura purred, a victorious gleam in her purple eyes. The way she pronounced my name sent shivers of delight down my spine.

"Will you marry me?"

A/N: And... here. We. Go.