I do not own PMMM or Magia Record. PMMM is own by AniplexNA. Magia Record is owned by f4Samurai

Chapter 2: Answers


She got answers alright. Oh she got answers. And they weren't good ones. And she didn't even need to leave the house.

Homura's eyes widened as she glanced at the newspaper on the front porch of the villa.

April 8, 2009.

Which meant that she had gone not 6 weeks, like she normally did, but a full 3 years back! She quickly gathered her wits and dashed out the from door, roaming around until she found the train station. She didn't even stop to buy a ticket, just freezing time until she was on the train. An hour later, she was in Mitakihara. Thirty minutes after that, she was at Mitakihara middle school. She searched the entire grounds but there was no sign of Madoka, Sayaka, Mami, or even their teacher.

Another twenty minutes and she was at the Kaname family apartment. She stopped herself before she rung the doorbell, electing to scale the fire escape and peer in from there.

And there she was. An 11 year old Madoka Kaname, curiously staring at her mother's round stomach, with whom Homura knew was the yet to be born Tatsuta. Homura watched her closely from her perch on the fire escape before dropping down from her vantage point.

A block away, Homura sat on a park bench and considered her revelations.

One, Madoka was 11. She was not a magical girl and wouldn't be approached by the Incubator for another 3 years.

Two, her apartment most likely didn't exist at this point. Her parents had yet to pass and she probably was still in Tokyo at that catholic school.

Three, none of the girls she had known previously had contracted yet. Mami having contracted within a month from now. Kyouko would contract a year after that, and Sayaka three years. Well, at least assuming this timeline went as normal. So what was she to do?

She didn't have a home, she didn't have a territory, and she didn't know anyone.

Or did she?

Her thoughts took her back the trio of girls in Kamihama. They had no idea who she was, yet had accepted and welcomed her without any hesitation. And they did let her stay with them for that one night. Maybe Yachiyo had some contacts who could help her get settled in Kamihama?

"There are plenty of witches in Kamihama, and they are very strong" Yachiyo had said. Now that was an idea. She could settle there and offer to assist in hunting witches in exchange for lodging. Mitakihara wasn't that far away and she could keep watch on Madoka while developing an even stronger arsenal to defeat Walpurgisnaught. After all, she had three years to prepare this time!


Yachiyo considered the girl in front of her. Homura Akemi, as she had introduced herself, was a anomaly.

She had appeared out of the blue in the middle of a major witch hunt. Not to mention she packed a serious firepower, literally. And on top of that, she had saved their lives. That was nice and all, but something didn't add up.

Homura didn't know who she was. Yachiyo was fairly certain every magical girl from Shinsei to Minagi knew who she was. Or at least had heard of herself or Mifuyu. And for such a powerful magical girl to have come into Kamihama without her notice was almost unheard of.

Homura Akemi was a mystery, and Yachiyo's detective side was determined to solve it.

So when Homura returned to Mikazuchi the following day asking for contacts and lodging, Yachiyo was more than interested.

"So, tell me about yourself Homura." Yachiyo hunched forward, trying her very best to look cool, professional, and business like.

She most certainly hoped it was working, because Homura's eyes were doing everything but making eye contact.

"I'm from Tokyo, but...due...to my previous health situation I was in the hospital for a heart condition. I made...contract for...to heal my condition. But I lost my parents to a witch."

Yachiyo allowed a small frown of sympathy to crease her mouth, "I'm sorry to hear that. You have my condolences."

Homura shook her head, "Thank you."

An alarm bell went off in Yachiyo's mind. For losing her parents recently, she seemed awfully unfazed by it. Maybe it was still shock. Or maybe there was something else.

"Anyways, I heard my uncle was going to take me in, but when I arrived in Mitakihara yesterday, I found out he had vanished and the apartment I was supposed to stay in was occupied." Homura continued, "And now, I have nowhere to live."

Yachiyo considered her story, "and so you need a place to stay..."

The dark haired girl nodded, "Just until I can find my own place and a job."

It was very obvious that her story was fake, but it didn't mean Yachiyo had to reject her. In fact, quite the opposite. If she let her go now, the mystery of Homura Akemi would never be solved. And Yachiyo never let a mystery go without taking a good crack at it.

"If you're interested," Yachiyo proposed, "I'd be willing to let you stay here indefinitely. You could live here, even fight alongside our team."

Homura's eyes narrowed, "Really?"

Yachiyo nodded, "Really. You're a strong fighter and very resourceful. I could definitely use a girl like you in our team. You're strong, resourceful, and cover the much needed range element for our team."

She raised a finger thoughtfully, "On top of that, you're mesh well with Kanae and Mifuyu. My grandma seems to like you, so convincing her to let you stay here shouldn't be that big of an issue."

Homura nodded, "So basically, you want me to fight for you."

Yachiyo smiled, "Not just that, but being the boss of the West is a heavy responsibility and sometimes requires a bit of...let's call it...intimidation to keep the other girls in the area in line."

The black haired girl's eyes widened. "You make it sound like there's a lot of magical girls in Kamihama."

Yachiyo raised her brow, "Oh yes, we're a bit unusual. It's probably because our city is so large, but we have over eighty magical girls in Kamihama. A good ten live here in Shinsei alone, with over a dozen in Mizuna, and several dispersed in Sankyou and Hokyou. And I have to manage and keep all of them in line."

Homura considered the idea. "And you need some muscle."

Yachiyo nodded, "I'm glad you're following my thought process. I've been relying on Kanae in the past, but Kanae is still Daito in the end and she gets a bit of flak because of it. And as you can see, Mifuyu just isn't terrifying."

"I can see that." Homura conceded, "Right then, what about living expenses?"

Yachiyo smiled softly, observing the one last thing this girl seemed oblivious to. "I might have a possible work offer if you're interested."

"What's that?" Homura's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Have you ever considered modeling?"


Two weeks later

"Wow Homura, you're so pretty!"

Homura felt her cheeks heat up as the rest of Mikazuchi Villa's residents gushed over the newest release of a fashion magazine.

Mifuyu flipped the page and squealed, "Ooh, you and Yach-chan look so pretty together! You just exude cool energy!"

Yachiyo nodded proudly, "I was rather proud of that shot. Homura is picking up my lessons rather quickly."

Kanae frowned slightly, "They are rather pretty aren't they?"

Mifuyu spun her head in disbelief, "Aww, Kanae, could it be that you're jealous?"

The blonde looked away, "Of course not..."

Homura blushed even harder as Mifuyu slid her arms around Kanae's neck. "Don't worry, Yach-chan and Homura can be as cool as they want, but you're my star." She pecked the blonde's cheek and nuzzled in a shameless display of PDA.

Even Yachiyo had glanced away uncomfortably. Homura could relate. The revelation that resident punk and puppy were dating was quite startling and their random displays of affection would take a while to get used to.

A hand rested on Houma's shoulder. Homura turned to see the grandmother smiling softly. "I am so glad you chose to stay with us Homura. Yachiyo's been rather lonely ever since Kanae and Mifuyu started their relationship. Please keep her company."

Homura considered her words before nodded, "Of course Mrs. Nanami."

For the first time, Homura felt a warm sensation in her chest, and she wasn't quite ready to let it go so easily.


A month later

Homura stood alongside Mifuyu and Kanae, watching the Nanami family pay their respects to the freshly dug grave of Mrs. Namami.

Mifuyu clung to Kanae, sobbing into her shoulder, her tears staining the dark dress.

Homura simply watched, not a tear going down her cheeks, her fist clenched. She silently vowed, just as she had vowed to Madoka, that she would never leave Yachiyo alone. If she would be the devil to save Maoksa, then she would be Yachiyo's friend.


Note:
I used April 8 because that sounded about when Homura would have time traveled back to Mitakihara. Except this time, she traveled to Kamihama and three years early.