"I suspect that you may find the situation to be somewhat different now." Kyubey said. "You are, of course, entitled to ignore me, but I believe you would regret it if you did that."

Kirika scowled at the little white creature. "I'm pretty sure you tell lots of girls that."

"Perhaps." It reached up a leg to scratch behind its ear. "But every time I have said it, it is an accurate portrayal of my beliefs. I have never lied before."

"Oh? Izzat so?" Kirika scratched the back of her head. She hadn't really expected to have Kyubey come visit her again now. Wouldn't it wait until she was in danger or something? That was how it had tried to get her the last couple of times. And besides that… "Hey, don't pretend you didn't lie to those other two girls! Blue and pinkie! You told 'em that magical girls and Witches aren't related!" She pointed an accusing finger at the little creature.

Kyubey took a look at the finger, and pushed it away with a paw. "I did not 'lie', as you claim." It said prissily. "In fact, if you would recall my words from then, I stated nothing but the truth."

"Bullshit." Kirika huffed. "You literally told 'em that Oriko was wrong, and before you told her she was right! What else would you call that!?"

The incubator sighed. "You humans are always so hasty to come to unfounded conclusions. Did I ever once state that Oriko was incorrect about her conclusions on the nature of Witches?"

Kirika opened her mouth to shout at the little creature again, but then closed it after thinking for a moment. Kyubey had definitely done everything it could to mislead those girls into thinking that Witches weren't former magical girls, but it never outright said that she was wrong. She frowned. Was it actually true that it never lied? Instead of screaming at the creature, Kirika simply grunted. "Fine, sure." She said. "Maybe you're right. The hell did ya wanna tell me?"

"Ah, yes. I was just getting to that!" The creature's tail swung rhythmically, almost hypnotically, as it began. It paused for a moment in a way that Kirika would probably say to be dramatic, if it wasn't for the fact that it was Kyubey. "Unless you make a contract as soon as possible, Oriko will likely die within the next fifteen minutes."

"What?!" Kirika immediately snapped back up from her slouching position. "What the hell!? Do you really think that I'll believe you?! You- you're baiting me! Don't lie, you little rat!"

"Did I not just demonstrate that I always tell the truth?" Its eyes burned red. "Even in situations where it's in my best interests to lie, I made sure to tell the truth. You cannot dismiss the facts simply because they hurt your feelings, Kirika Kure."

Kirika's mouth opened and closed like a turkey. What was there to even say to that? It wasn't even wrong, but… "So you're trying to mislead me! It's the same goddamn thing!" She said, nearly shouting before remembering at the last minute that there were other people in the apartment. "The same thing you did to the girls in the labyrinth! Misleading is lying! Don't pretend that it isn't, you little rat!"

"I would beg to differ." Kyubey said plaintively. "But in any case, if you truly believe that I am misleading you, then I invite you to ask more questions about the situation. Do recall, it is in my best interests for you to contract." It paused. "Although as it so happens, according to my calculations, there is a 97.7% chance of Oriko Mikuni perishing within the next fourteen minutes. It might be prudent to ask your questions quickly."

Her eyes bulged with fear. If that was true, then what else could she do besides make a contract? But no, she wouldn't betray Oriko. There was no way she would form a contract without figuring out what was going on first. "W-well, why did this happen? What's the situation? Did you cause it?" Kirika rattled out, voice wavering slightly. She gave Kyubey a glare when it took more than a moment to answer. "Quickly, gimme an answer. If you ain't lying, I'm not gonna let Oriko die because you decided to be a jackass and stall."

Kyubey sighed. "You humans, always so impatient. But fine if you insist." Its tail swung rapidly. "In short, Oriko has gotten into a fight with a powerful magical girl that she wasn't quite prepared for. She is currently barely holding off the girl's offensive, and if nothing changes, she will most likely turn into a Witch or smash her own Soul Gem before that could happen."

She winced. Not that she couldn't see that happening after what she had been told, but to say it like that… "A-alright, alright, what are the chances of her surviving without going insane or somethin' past the time you said if I make a contract?" Kirika asked, stumbling over her words as she tried to figure out how best to word her question.

"Assuming you make a wish that is directly applicable to the situation at hand, which it is predicted to be probable, there is between a 92.5% and 99.8% chance that she will make it out of this situation unscathed, going down depending on the relevance of the wish, as well as the length of time you take to wish." It replied clinically. "My recommendation would be to make your wish immediately, now that you know what the situation is like."

"Go- go to hell, Kyubey." She said, but there was no heat in the words as she rapidly tried to figure a way out of this, thoughts running through her head. It was a given that Kyubey was trying to trick her somehow, but it was also true that it had never lied to her. If she sent it away, everything might turn out fine, but she might as well stab herself right now if it turned out bad. There was no way she could let Oriko die. Kirika let out a sigh, a defeated cast coming over her face. That was basically her answer, wasn't it? "Alright, Kyubey, I'll make your goddamned contract."

"Oh?" The creature perked up, its eyes gleaming. "Tell me, then, Kirika Kure. Just what is the wish that would make your Soul Gem shine? What is the desire that you would sell your soul for?"

She was in the familiar setting of her bedroom, not moving a muscle, and yet Kirika's heart beat faster than it ever had before, echoing in her ears. This was it, the last chance to back out. But no. If she was going to throw away her life, like she surely would sooner or later, better that she should spend it on something worthwhile than on nothing at all. She licked her lips. Now or never. "Listen closely, Kyubey! I want the power to save Oriko! I don't care how, give me the power to save Oriko from any danger she faces!"

Kyubey's ears stretched out, reaching into Kirika's chest- and a flash of pain raced through her, like she was being ripped apart. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, the pain receded, and when she opened her eyes, Kirika saw a dark gray Soul Gem, trending towards black, in her hands. It looked beautiful, and yet she still regarded it with deep suspicion. How could something so beautiful represent her very soul?

"Thank you for your contribution, Kirika Kure. Your wish has reduced entropy."

She let out a sigh she hadn't even realized she was holding, and hopped off the bed. "If that's it, then I think it's time for you to take me to where Oriko is." Kirika scooped up Kyubey, ran out of her bedroom, and then the apartment. She could hear her mother calling after her, but she ignored that. She had to get to Oriko.

—

It was routine at this point. The Witch sent out another familiar, Oriko directed another crystal ball to batter into it, she quickly glanced back to check that Komaki and Mami were doing alright, and she just as quickly turned back to the Witch she was fighting. The other girls were holding off their Witches well, but who knew how long that would last? "Just a bit longer, everyone!" She called out. Oriko had considered throwing herself into the Witch as soon as she received the vision of Kirika, but… No, she couldn't do that now. So she just had to inform the other girls that another magical girl was coming to help them, and hold off until Kirika came in to tilt the balance with… whatever power she had gained. Hopefully she had taken Oriko's warning to heart. If Kirika came in with her mind altered as Oriko had foreseen, she didn't know what she would do. Stab herself? Throw herself into the Witch anyways? Oriko tore her mind away from the thoughts. This wasn't productive, she had to keep her focus on the Witch. Another familiar leapt out, but once again, she battered it until it stopped moving. The Witch was moving slower, summoning new familiars slower. She could see that it was getting as exhausted as she was, she just had to hold out a bit longer… and then suddenly, Kirika arrived.

Oriko blinked as she watched Kirika materialize, and then slam into Sasa, swiping an oversized claw at her face. She had been hiding behind her Witches, wary of Mami's ribbons, but that didn't stop Kirika from getting to her. As she attacked Sasa, Oriko stared at Kirika's costume, which was fairly different from what she had seen in any of her visions- Kirika was wearing shining gray armor, covering most of her body. It looked like it should have stopped her from moving easily, but her movement showed that she could fight as if it wasn't there. Meanwhile, Sasa shrieked, quickly raising her staff to avoid getting disemboweled, but she couldn't do anything else. She was forced to twist her staff to block each blow as strike after strike came raining down. "Geez! Who are ya, even!?" Sasa forced out as she concentrated on holding Kirika off. "What did I ever do to you!?"

Oriko could barely see Kirika in all the chaos, but she was very clearly able to see the flash of rage that came over Kirika's face. "You really don't know what you did!?" She sneered. "You attack Oriko and then pretend like you don't know?! Go to hell, you piece of garbage!" She teleported again to right behind Sasa, and once again, Sasa flailed, narrowly avoiding getting hit.

"A-alright, goodbye!" She said, stuttering slightly. "I-I guess the Mitakihara girls weren't as reasonable as I thought they would be!" She quickly ran towards the ribbon elephant Witch, blocking another strike from Kirika as she went, and hopped onto the Witch. A few more attacks rang out at her, but she avoided those, and soon disappeared out of the barrier, leaving just the two other Witches in the barrier.

The four girls glanced at each other, an awkward silence hanging over the air for a few moments. Finally, Mami decided to break it. "Well… I suppose we should take care of these Witches, and whatever Witch is in control of this barrier." She said. "It wouldn't do to leave the Witches free to hurt others."

The others agreed, and with an extra magical girl on their side, even as exhausted as the rest of them all were, they were easily able to take care of all three of the Witches. Oriko kept a close eye on Kirika through all the fighting, and was happy to see no immediate signs of insanity. She could see Kirika giving her constant glances back and forth, almost as if she was frightened… but that was to be expected. She just truly hoped that Kirika didn't hurt herself too badly in making the wish.

Soon enough, the barrier faded, and the girls were back in the world of reality, on the same abandoned property they entered from. Oriko cleared her throat, causing everyone else to look at her. "Everyone… I must apologize for how tonight went." She said. "I thought that this would be a wonderful opportunity to take down Sasa, but it seems that she was far stronger than I assumed her to be. I assure you, I will not make that mistake another time." She managed to keep her face steady there. It seemed like lately, she could do nothing but make mistakes. Maybe she would learn someday, but Oriko had her doubts.

Mami smiled at her. "Please, Mikuni-san, don't worry about it too much." She said. "We all make mistakes, and since this encounter didn't end badly, and we weakened her, I'm inclined to not worry about it too much. All's well that ends well, yes? I'm certain you'll be able to take this as a learning experience, in any case."

Komaki grunted her agreement with Mami, and walked over to pat Oriko on the shoulder. "Yeah, what she said. Besides, ain't I the one who pushed you into going for her quick? Some of it's my fault. So don't worry about it too much, yeah?"

"Please, Komaki-san. I told you that we should be patient initially, but then I decided to rush in as soon as I had even the slightest idea of how her powers worked. I was the one being foolish here." She replied. Internally, however, she felt quite relieved. She wasn't really too worried that they would be mad, but it was still good to find out that they weren't.

"Self-flagellating about whose fault the current situation is won't do us any good." Mami broke in. "We should meet again soon to discuss how to deal with Sasa, however. It's a bit late to meet now, but… perhaps we could meet over tea tomorrow?" She stood up straight, a smile on her face. "I don't think we're all in the same school, so it might be a bit difficult to make work, but we should figure out a time."

"I agree." Oriko nodded. "Me and Komaki-san are in the same class, but Kirika is in the class under yours at Mitakihara, if I recall correctly."

"Ohh, is she?" A genuine expression of excitement came over Mami's face. "It should be nice to have a magical girl junior in school." Kirika's face was blank, barely paying attention to the conversation, but she started when she heard that.

"Ah… of course, senpai!" Kirika said quickly. She still seemed out of it, but Mami beamed at her.

"Perhaps we should figure out when to meet?" Oriko said politely. They quickly agreed, and within a few minutes, they figured out a time that should work for all of them. Mami and Komaki said their goodbyes, and they all went their own separate ways. The only two left were Oriko and Kirika.

"Would you like to come over to my house for tea again, if you have the time?" Oriko asked, putting in effort to keep her voice from wavering or cracking. "I'm very thankful for what you did, but I imagine that we could both use some tea now."

Kirika glanced at her, but then flinched as if she was struck. "U-um, sure." She said, and then added quietly, "I'm sorry, Oriko…"

Oriko reached in quickly to pat Kirika on the shoulder. "There's nothing to be sorry for, Kirika." She said softly. "You did the best you could at the time."

She looked at Kirika again, seeing the unshed tears fighting against the blank expression on her face, and gave her a wan smile. "Let's just discuss at my house, okay? We can't have this conversation on the street."

She received a short nod in return, and they walked off towards Oriko's house side-by-side. "Don't worry… It's going to be okay." Oriko said. She still wasn't sure if she really believed it.