A/N: Hello, everyone! Before the fic starts, I just want to make some notes on what to expect.

This is a Madoka fic with Persona 5 elements. I consider it a crossover with Royal because many of the themes and ideas seen in Royal's third semester will be seen in this fic. However, you only need an understanding of Madoka Magica to enjoy the story.

That said, this story takes place after the Rebellion film, and assumes any readers already know what happened in both the base series and Rebellion. You can consider this a continuation of those plots.

With all that said, I hope you enjoy my take on a post-Rebellion story.

Homura danced.

The world was her stage, and her feet gracefully brought her across the grass field. At that moment, her mind was free of despair. The torment she had faced was no more than a memory for the Devil who now owned the universe. She had no need to worry, no need to cry. All she ever wanted was in her hands.

Demon. Monster who tore her away. You deserve to rot in hell itself.

So she danced. Her soul gem flew out from her hand, a black crown containing the universe inside. As Homura spun in glee, the gem followed her movements. Her smile only grew each time she saw it pass.

Finally, as her steps brought her to the edge of the cliff overlooking the city, she let the soul gem stop at her hand. A chuckle escaped her. Everything was as she wanted.

You have no value. You exist only to stand against her. She will be your enemy one day, for you can be nothing more than a failure.

Her sin was worth the cost, even if it meant she had to be punished. Even if she had to dole out the punishment herself.

Leaning sideways, Homura fell off the cliff. Though she could summon her wings, she remained in her school uniform, falling to what should have been certain doom. She accepted her body's plummet, and the pain that would await her at the bottom. This was how things should be.

You're nothing but pitiful garbage consumed by greed. Your love is a stain on her purity.

Watching her fall was a single spectator. A white, furry creature with disheveled fur and eyes filled with madness. Those eyes tracked her the whole way down.


Sayaka knew she was forgetting something.

It was the worst feeling, knowing she had to remember, but not knowing what it was she had forgotten. It was a constant feeling that followed her every day, no matter how hard she tried to shake it. That feeling only got worse whenever she looked at her friends.

For some reason, the sight of Hitomi and Kyosuke made her so sad yet so unbelievably happy. Every moment spent with Kyoko felt like a blissful moment of paradise. And Madoka… Madoka seemed to shine much more than she had before her 3 year trip to America. Sayaka felt there was so much more to Madoka than she was remembering.

That feeling of needing to remember was strongest around one girl in particular. A girl who she despised with every fiber of her being, yet couldn't remember why.

"You, Homura Akemi, are a demon!"

Had she said those words? She couldn't remember, yet they rang so loudly in her head. All she knew was that she couldn't trust Akemi as far as she could throw her. Especially after the girl had been a creep to Madoka that one time.

She had to figure out what was bothering her about Homura Akemi. It couldn't be all in her head, right? The girl was evil, she just knew it.

Those thoughts all ran through Sayaka's head as she glared at the girl. They were in class, with Ms. Saotome ranting about yet another guy she'd fallen out with. Sayaka was starting to wonder if the teacher was even compatible with men.

That wasn't what mattered. What did matter was figuring out what the hell Akemi's problem was. Sayaka held her glare, as though she could dig the answers out of the girl that way. In front of her she saw Madoka give her a concerned look, but she couldn't stop now. Besides, Madoka had always been too nice for her own good.

Unfortunately, by the time the lunch bell rang, Sayaka was no closer to getting answers. She sighed, picking up her bag and making her way to Madoka's desk.

"We heading to the usual spot?" she asked.

Hitomi walked over to them. "I don't see why not. Although, Sayaka, I hope you weren't hoping to copy my notes during lunch again."

Her notes? Ah, crap, Sayaka had been so focused on Akemi that she had ignored the lecture!

Falling to her knees, Sayaka raised her voice with false desperation. "Please, my dear, sweet Hitomi, give me one more chance!" Saotome was already out of the room, so Sayaka felt perfectly comfortable with the display.

There was one pair of eyes on them that she ignored for now. She kept her gaze on Hitomi, who was shaking her head, a frown on her face. "You need to learn to be more responsible, Sayaka!"

"Sayaka didn't take notes?" That was Kyoko, her hands behind her head as she walked up to the desk. "Crap, who am I gonna leech off of now?"

"Take your own notes!" Sayaka retorted, only for her eyes to immediately widen. "I mean, friends help each other out, so we can come to some sort of arrangement! Right, Hitomi?"

Hitomi sighed, shaking her head again. The four of them got up and made their way out of the classroom. Before they could get too far, however, Sayaka rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Whoops. I forgot my bag. You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up!"

Fortunately, the others didn't question it, used to her forgetfulness by now. Therefore, they were all out of sight by the time a raven haired girl made her way out of the classroom. No one else was around, so Sayaka felt comfortable grabbing the girl by the collar and slamming her against the wall.

Akemi, for her part, hardly seemed to react, even as Sayaka got in her face. "Alright, Akemi, what's your deal? You always wait until Madoka leaves the room to go out. Your eyes are always on her in class. And somehow you convinced her to wear those ribbons you gave her! Are you stalking her or something? Because if you try to go anywhere near her—

"Enough, Sayaka Miki." As usual, there was no emotion besides empty judgment in Akemi's voice. "I always leave the room last, so of course I would leave after Kaname-san. Her desk is close to the front, so I have to look that way in order to see the board. As for the ribbons, she chose to wear them on their own. Perhaps you should ask her for her reasoning rather than waste your time accosting me."

Accosting? Who actually said that? Sayka scowled, letting go of Akemi's collar.

"Fine. But I have my eyes on you. If you do anything to Madoka, I'll make you regret it."

"Your threat is noted." With that, Akemi walked away from her, seemingly without a care of the world. Sayaka hated her for that. Always acting like she was above everyone else.

Whatever. Sayaka had better things to do than think about Akemi. First, she went back into the classroom for the bag she had purposefully left behind. Her phone was inside, and she gave it a quick glance to see if she had any new messages.

She didn't but there was an app on her phone she didn't recognize. The icon was a weird looking red eyeball with a black star in the center. Seeing it made Sayaka shiver. It was like a cult emblem. Still, curiosity got the better of her, and she tapped on the app.

Everything froze. The distant voices of students passing in the hallway, the trees swaying in the breeze, even the air itself seemed frozen. Sayaka's breath caught in her throat. Her eyes had to be playing tricks on her.

Except there were students in the courtyard frozen mid step. One of them literally had their foot in the air and wasn't moving at all, not even to breathe.

I'm hallucinating. I have to be. Just as the thought crossed Sayaka's mind, blue flames sprouted from seemingly nowhere in the courtyard. Those flames were like a portal, leading to a distant realm Sayaka couldn't understand. And within that realm, something peered out at her. A knight's helmet, with a blue heart covered in black diamonds behind it. That was all Sayaka could make out, the remaining details obscured by the flames. However, she swore she could hear the faint playing of orchestral music.

Then, it was gone. The flames and the knight vanished, and time resumed once more. The students were walking, the wind was back, and Sayaka could hear the voices in the hallway again. It was like that creepy timestop had never happened.

"Did that app… hypnotize me!?" That was the only explanation Sayaka's frazzled mind could come up with, and she latched onto it. Yeah, this app was a virus, and it had some weird hypnotizing effect on the user. Sayaka deleted it, then restarted her phone for good measure. Whatever that was, she really didn't want to experience it again.

Gotta get that off my mind. Talking to the others would help. With that in mind, Sayaka hurried to the roof.


The rest of the school day managed to pass without any other weird incidents. Sayaka even managed to ignore Akemi's presence during the remaining lectures. After school, she hung out with Madoka and Kyoko at the mall, then headed home with Kyoko.

"Think your parents will be home today? Kyoko asked as they opened the front door.

Sayaka snorted. "You kidding? They would never tear themselves away from work unless I had a heart attack or something." That was how it had always been. By now, she was more than used to the house being empty. She was just thankful her mom and dad had let Kyoko live with them. Along with making the house far less silent, Sayaka really liked having Kyoko around. Even if the redhead got on her nerves constantly.

"Sweet, there's still leftover pizza!" Kyoko was already at the fridge, and started to pull out the last few slices.

"Hey, don't have all of them!" Sayaka hurried to grab a slice for herself. "This one's mine!"

Kyoko raised an eyebrow. "I don't see your name on it."

"Well too bad! Two slices is enough for you."

"Fine, but I'm raiding your snack cabinet later!"

That was the best Sayaka could hope for. Smiling, she warmed up her slice of pizza. Even bickering with Kyoko brought a warm feeling to her chest. Which was strange, considering they had only known each other for two months.

A flash of a red spear. An apple inside a church. The images came to Sayaka's mind unbidden, bringing with them a stab of pain.

"Gah!" Sayaka clutched her head, groaning.

"Woah!" Kyoko was there, catching her. "You okay there, Blueberry? I didn't think I talked your head off that much."

"I'm fine." Sayaka waved off her concern. "Just a headache. Mind if I lie down for a bit? You can have my pizza."

Kyoko gave her a thumbs up. "Any deal that involves me getting more food is one I'm glad to take. Go rest, Sleeping Beauty."

A flush came unbidden to Sayaka's face, and she tried to play it off by rolling her eyes. "Very funny." She went to their shared room, then settled in on the top bunk of the bed. She would have taken the bottom, but Kyoko always fell out of the top bunk.

It's been a weird day, that's all. I'll sleep it off, and then feel all better tomorrow!

Sayaka told herself that, but somehow she still had her doubts. Those doubts only persisted as she drifted into sleep.

Then she woke up, transported to a room of velvet.