Plan

Crunch

With Madoka's help, Homura had gathered all the magical girls near Mitakihara Town. Things were tense, sure, especially between Sayaka and Kyoko, but Madoka had set aside her shyness to act as a mediator.

A small smile made its way past Homura's cold exterior. Stubbornness and determination suit Madoka, she thought before wiping any traces of emotion from her face.

She cleared her throat, gathering everyone's attention. What exactly should she say? The last thirty or so loops, she'd only had one-on-one discussions about time travel and Witches.

The first time, however, Mami had killed Sayaka. The memory sent a cold shiver down her spine.

The fact that Kyubey was gazing intently at her didn't help matters.

Homura glanced at Madoka, who gave an encouraging grin and a subtle thumbs-up. Worse comes to worst, she could just redo this specific encounter.

She took a deep breath and dove right in. "In one week, the Witch known as Walpurgisnacht will descend upon Mitakihara Town."

Crunch

The corners of her lips turned downwards. "Walpurgisnacht, the Witch of the Eternal Walpurgis Night, is a collection of…of Witches."

It was the truth, albeit not the whole truth. She didn't want another Psycho Mami Incident.

"It will appear right here," she continued, pointing at the map floating behind her. "When it does—"

Crunch

A vein throbbed in Homura's forehead, but it was Sayaka who burst. "Can you stop eating for three seconds?!" Sayaka yelled at Kyoko. "This is kinda important if you couldn't tell!"

Kyoko rolled her eyes and took another bite of her apple, deliberately making the crunch even louder than before. "Ain't nothing wrong with eating." She smirked and shoved her apple in Sayaka's face—specifically the part that she had taken a bite out of. "What, are ya hungry? Ya wanna share, Blue?

Sayaka made a big show of hacking and coughing, causing Mami to huff. To Homura and Madoka, Mami thought, "So, how long until they start dating?"

"Um…maybe a week or two?"
"Sayaka would die before confessing."

Madoka gasped and covered her mouth. "That's dark, Homura-chan!"

Considering the circumstances, Homura couldn't deny it, but it also gave her statement weight.

"And what about you two?"

Mami's comment caused all the blood to rush to Madoka's face. Homura didn't fare much better. "N-now's not the time!"Homura hissed. Mami leaned back with a smug grin, twirling a lock of hair around her finger.

Madoka, looking as if she were on the verge of running away, let out a few squeaks.

Wait, were those words? Homura wondered. That's adorable. Wait, no, bad Homura!

They were supposed to be preventing the end of the world, yet here she was, thinking about Madoka. Again.

She shook her head to clear it. "Are we done yet?" she asked, forcing in as much aggression as possible. Mami kept her smug grin. Madoka nodded meekly—which was not adorable, and it certainly wasn't a distraction. Kyoko stopped chasing Sayaka with a half-eaten apple and turned to Homura with crossed arms.

"Can ya make it quick?" Kyoko asked, tapping her foot. "We eat Witches for breakfast, and this ain't any different."

"This is worse than any Witch you've ever fought before," Homura said, having regained her composure. "Walpurgisnacht doesn't manifest in a labyrinth. By its very nature, you need at least two magical girls to defeat it. Even then, it's likely that one of them will die."

Madoka wrung her hands together, knowing who Homura was referring to. "Th-that's why all of us are going to fight her, together! There's no way we can lose!"

Kyubey hopped off a nearby chair and pawed its way towards Madoka. "You're included in that? Are you saying that you wish to form a contract with me? Let's not waste any time! Let's do it right now! Let's—"

Homura stepped in front of Madoka. "Back off, Incubator," she said coldly, drawing strange looks from the other magical girls. "Leave Madoka out of this."

Kyubey flicked his tail. "Can't you feel it? She has a wish! Don't stop her from saving us all!"

"Wish or no wish, it doesn't matter. I will protect her with all that I am."

Sayaka looked between the two. "I don't know what the heck's going on, but it's nice to know that Madoka's got someone to watch her back—aside from me, of course."

Homura grimaced at that. If anything, she had to protect Madoka from Sayaka, but they didn't need to know that.

She inclined her head, staring down at Kyubey with as imposing a figure as she could muster. "Madoka has taught me that her choice is hers and hers alone. You are not a factor in that, Incubator."

"…We shall see, Anomaly."

Kyubey didn't move from its position, but they all knew that he was done speaking for the moment.

Homura sighed and resumed her explanation of Walpurgisnacht: its strength, its weaknesses, multiple attack plans, backup plans, optimal ways to retreat from such a large Witch, and more. Even Kyoko seemed invested in the discussion.

It wasn't a perfect plan, and Homura wasn't sure if she would need to redo this or not, but she would treat it as if it were her last shot. She would defeat Walpurgisnacht and save Madoka. She had a veritable army on her side, and that was enough to fill her with hope.

Well, that, and the stars in Madoka's eyes as she gazed at Homura's determined expression, but that was neither here nor there, was it?