The sun rose from the east as the morning sky was lit up with watery-blue colors and batches of white clouds hovering over the houses of Mitakihara's citizens. At this early hour, countless numbers of people readied up for their daily lives, completely unaware of the supernatural events that had transpired last night and caused the death of the time-traveling Puella Magi, Akemi Homura. The true cause of her death would not be known to the public, who will move on and enjoy the bliss coming from secrecy.

This included the 4 newly-recruited Puerum Magi and their new guardian, Sanbey, who, after bringing the body of Akemi Homura back to her hospital room, returned to their homes in the dead of the night; much to the surprise of their guardians, loved ones and servants. Last night's events weighed heavily on them, but they knew the best way to honor Homura's sacrifice was to carry on her wishes and their lives.

Wasting time to needlessly mourn for her was pointless. As hard as it sounded, it would be better to spend time preparing for their fight with the awakened Warlocks who were now beginning their unknown plans for the super-powerful Witch, Walpurgis Night, which would also come in the following month. When they would attack, the Puerum Magi did not know. So, starting their training now would be the best choice to take.

It was what Homura would have wanted, and as the day quietly began, the boys prepared themselves for what was to come in their lives as Puerum Magi and as young adults growing up in the city they now had to look over as its protectors.

In Tateyama's room, the shelves and tables were filled with all sorts of technology, messily strewn around the place as the white-haired boy sat in front of his computer table with the antique memoir of his mother sitting next to a table lamp. Behind him was a television playing out various news reports, programs and shows in the background as Tateyama tapped away on the luminous keyboard, sending files to Mamoru through E-mail. Selecting the last few files on his screen out of the 30 there were, he pressed the 'Enter' key and relaxed on his chair, still wearing his house clothes at this hour.

The files were the encrypted information from Homura that had been skillfully changed into data and decrypted by Tateyama himself. After the boy had returned here, to Tsukuyo's shock, he had spent 2 hours in the morning, working on these files before collapsing on his bed. Some were impossible to decrypt, while others were difficult, but that didn't stop him from trying. He could only guess what were inside them, as these files were entrusted to Mamoru and him alone. Tateyama did not want to go against Homura's wishes and respectively followed his orders to send them to the lead Puerum Magi once he had finished.

On the television behind him, the news anchor shuffled his thick papers and cleared his throat, reading out the news in a solemn tone, "As of this hour, the police are still looking for those responsible for last night's attack on the Mitakihara Public Hospital. An investigation was held by the police and only signs of a firefight could be found on various areas of the building. From ammo casings, to large signs of destruction, and destroyed property, there has so far been no word from the police if this was an assumed terrorist attack as they are still currently holding the investigation."

His partner then read out her part of the paper with a grief-stricken face, "Most of the hospital staff and patients had been found unconscious and unharmed, due to the use of knock-out gas canisters that had been found in fixed points of the hospital. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the security staff, as all were found dead outside and inside the hospital. Also among the deceased was a young, orphan patient, a 14 year-old girl named 'Akemi Homura'. Her cause of death was most likely due to a sickness she had been struck with before she entered the hospital on the same day and can be listed down as not a non-resultant of this disaster."

Tateyama picked up his antique memoir from his table and clicked it open with a shivering finger. Its soft, peaceful rhythm then played out in the room and the Puerum Magi ran a hand though the left side of his face. His computer still continued to slowly send all the files and Tateyama eyed the circular loading screen, the back of his hand wet with a tear.

"The police will continue to look for the those responsible and bring them to justice," the 1st news anchor stated clearly, "But, as of now, we can only mourn for those that had died and the families that have been affected by this tragedy. This is the Mitakihara Report Station, bringing you the news."

Other programs then continued to play out and Tateyama settled down his memoir on the laptop's surface. After the computer reported a success with sending the files, he closed the laptop and readied for school. The shower felt colder than usual, as to him, what the news stated was only true to most people. Only the Puerum Magi and Sanbey would ever know what happened during that night, and it was now their responsibility to drive a sword into the bodies of those that had took Homura's life.

Buttoning up his uniform, Tateyama stared at his reflection in the mirror and picked up the white stretch of hair covering the left side of his face. The gruesome scars there were now gone, most likely when he had made his wish, as he now stared at himself with both blue eyes. Blinking, he had forgotten what it was like to see with both eyes after 4 years. He had grown used to it, and it felt weird to be having his vision becoming wider again. But, he preferred to keep his hair like this, choosing only to pull up this side when he would inevitably enter combat with the Warlocks.

He pocketed his memoir, packed up his laptop bag and exited his room. Walking down the stairs, he saw Tsukuyo standing at the end, giving him a worried look as he walked down, "What?" he asked, simply walking past her, "If you're worried about last night, I'm fine. I didn't get hurt since I was already released from the hospital when it happened."

She grabbed his shoulder and Tateyama halted in his steps.

"T-Tateyama," she began, "Are you sure...? You came home late last night, went up to your room and locked yourself in there without saying anything. And then I heard about your heart attack yesterday - The attack on the hospital-"

He took her hand and carefully lifted it off his shoulder. They both stared at each other, and for the first time in their 4 years of living together, Tateyama shrugged off her concern in a more kind and gentle tone, "I'm fine," he insisted, releasing Tsukuyo's hand and facing her, "You don't have to worry about me anymore. After last night, at the hospital, my heart had recovered from a treatment I got. So, what happened yesterday will not happen again. I'm sure of it."

Tateyama took out his medicine capsule from his pocket and handed to Tsukuyo as the pills inside could be heard shaking.

Her lips pursed and Tsukuyo closed her eyes, nodding slowly as she took it off his hands, "Alright. If you say so," she gave a sad smile, "Just don't get into trouble, alright?"

"Of course," Tateyama turned away and opened the front door, giving a simple wave of goodbye to her, "I'll come back after dinner with Narita and the others at the diner, like always."

The door closed and Tsukuyo could only head back up her room to ready for work. She knew she could trust him and she had her faith in him. But, after hearing about Homura's fate from the living room TV, she can tell that the boy had changed. His eyes were softer, his tone was more gentle, but his heart was heavier than usual and the look of his face... It was the very same expression that he had a day after he had saw his parents die right in front of his eyes. She could recognize it, even when it had been so long since they had met on that snowy day.

"Tateyama..."

The small, tidy room of the Fujimaki brothers was in complete silence as hundreds of books adorned the tall shelves that stood next to posters, practice targets and displayed bows of fine woodcraft. Morning sunlight shone through the half-opened window as Tomura stared at his legs with a gaping mouth, brushing his thigh slowly with a hand. Not only that, but a completely-healed Takuya was standing right in front of him, smiling like he had never got caught in the car accident that was only a day ago.

Sitting down on the bed, Tomura blinked as he moved his toes and stared at them in utter amazement. He looked up at his older brother and tears began to form in his eyes, "But, how...? You... I... When did-?" he could barely form a proper sentence, never feeling so happy and relieved in his entire life to see his brother, "B-Brother... I-I'm... sorry for yesterday - I didn't want to worry you-"

Slowly, Takuya crouched down on the carpeted floor and pulled Tomura into a warm hug, speaking to him quietly, "It's alright. I'm right here, alive, and you can finally walk again. You don't have to say anything anymore. Everything's going to get better from now on. I promise."

Tomura accepted the hug and a tear could be seen coming down his face as he wrapped his arms around his brother, "But... Akemi... She's... she's..."

"In a better place now," Takuya assured, pulling away and grabbing Tomura by the shoulders, "And wherever she might be, I'm sure she's watching over all of us, right?" he gave a smile that infected Tomura, as the younger brother tried giving the same cheerful expression, too.

"Yeah..." Tomura rubbed his eyes, "She deserves a good place to be in."

Standing up, Takuya made his way to the door and gripped the doorknob when Tomura called him again.

"B-Brother?"

"Yeah?" Takuya looked back at the boy on the bed, "What is it?"

The younger boy gazed down and asked curiously, "Did Homura-" he rubbed his hands together, "-get back her memories before she died?"

Takuya opened his mouth to speak, but paused for a second, "Yeah, she did... she definitely did," he opened the door and headed out into the living room, closing the door quietly behind him. Leaning on the wooden door, he shook his head to forget about last night. Takuya didn't need to remember those pale hands that no longer moved and the serene expression illuminated by moonlight. It was a sight that would force his tears to come back.

Bringing back his chin up, he then looked at the dining room where in front of the rectangular table, Narita sat in her chair with her eyes locked on the table and her hands holding onto the sides of her head. Next to the disheveled-looking nurse was an unlit cigarette and cup of coffee that had already gone cold. Takuya walked into the dining room, stood behind her and patted on the back of Narita's sleepwear, "Narita..." he whispered, and the nurse's eyes widened as if she had gotten out of a daze.

"Oh, Takuya," she cleared her throat and sat up straight, "I didn't hear you coming out of your room."

"Tomura's legs have healed, and he's taking it well," Takuya sat on a chair opposite of Narita's, "What about you, Narita? How are you feeling?"

Narita's hand blindly searched the table until it gripped onto the unlit cigarette next to it and brought it to the nurse's lips. She placed her elbows on the table and checked her pocket for a lighter, "I'm fine, Takuya. I... I had gone through the deaths of your parents before. You know I'm not a stranger to death. I have seen plenty of patients dying in hospitals, and I don't cry easily," she fished out a lighter and flicked it open with a 'tink'.

Takuya painfully watched as Narita struggled to light her cigarette, fiddling endlessly in frustration with the spark wheel. That was until Takuya took the cigarette from her lips and placed it back after reversing it. He sat back down, saying, "Narita... your cigarette... was backwards."

Settling down the lighter on the table, Narita ran a hand through her long hair and took out the cigarette from her lips. In 3 seconds, she crushed it in her palm and grimaced. Her eyes began to water as she abandoned her veil of calmness and slowly broke down into tears. To see Narita like this was completely heartrending to Takuya, who had never seen her cry in his entire life. She had known Homura longer than him or any of the other boys, happily took her into her own house, gave her a place to stay and watched as she lost her sense of shyness and eventually befriended the boys Narita had watched over as a guardian. Takuya couldn't help but look down and offer a silent prayer for Homura.

"T-Takuya, I will only say this once-" Narita threw her crumpled cigarette into the dust bin behind her and slammed a fist on the table, shaking the coffee in the mug, "I know I failed as a guardian to watch over her, I-I know I failed as a nurse to take care of her... But, to be honest, I am at least grateful to know that you, Tomura and the others are completely alright. I don't care anymore about how did Tomura get back his legs, or how did you recover from your accident... I'm just happy that you're here, right now; I heard what happened last night at the hospital and I-"

"It's alright, Narita, you don't have to blame yourself," Takuya placed a reassuring hand on Narita's shaking fist and held it tightly, "It wasn't your fault or the doctors that Homura couldn't be saved. And if it makes you happy, before she died... Homura remembered everything, and she didn't have any regrets left in her before she passed. I'm sure of it. And I'm sure she didn't have anything against you."

The two stood up and Takuya comforted his crying guardian with a hug, her tears staining his uniform as Tomura could hear her cries from his room. He, too, offered a silent prayer for Homura, who he wished he got to know more about before she died.

And as the Fujimaki household echoed with Narita's cries, the house of the Hakamichi family was completely silent.

Sitting on the side of his bed, Hideki stared at his hand and absently watched it close and open as the silhouette of birds flew pass his shut window's curtains. Around him, broken dumbbells and other forms of muscle-building lied on the floor, snapped in halves or broken beyond repair from usage. After waking up from his 5-6 hours of sleep, Hideki had spent all morning testing out his newfound-strength by running laps around the household and other forms of exercise while his father slept.

Needless to say, his body had grown at least 3-5 times stronger than it was before. 20 push-ups in 10 seconds was a breeze, 30 sit-ups was child's play and the result of testing out his strength now lied at his feet in pieces and as physical proof of what he could do. Most of them cost the boy over 2000-3000 Yen, but it didn't matter to him anymore, as he had got what he wanted for years, in exchange for Homura's life and a tough duty to carry on for her.

Getting up from his bedside and standing in front of a tall mirror, he examined his new body and the infused blue diamond below his collar bone glowing brightly in the dark room. The marks and bruises from brawls over the years were all gone, even the wounds he had received from Takehito yesterday and the day before that had disappeared. It was as if he had not received them in the first place, and Hideki was amazed by this.

But now, he had the Warlocks to worry about. He had to mentally ready himself with another fight with those things that had killed Homura, and he was going to make sure that they paid the full price for that with a Recicio-infused punch. A quick image of the one he saw at the hospital flashed in his eyes and Hideki knew the abominations for what they were from that single encounter alone. A disease to be cured, vermin to be exterminated. An absolute threat to the town.

Turning his eyes to his drawers, a bunch of colorful, unfolded arcade tickets was placed near to a picture of his mother and himself. Hideki picked them up and gave them a closer look, and only then did he realize that these came from the Star Platinum arcade back in the city. It was from that forgotten night when the group had headed out to the mall by train. He also remembered that was the time when he had played that shooter-game with Homura and couldn't believe he had actually forgotten about it.

He felt a stinging sensation in his eyes as Hideki held the tickets tightly to his chest and scowled. He could have given these to Homura as a last parting gift, a token of friendship and a sign of gratitude. He placed it back down on the drawer, letting it sit next to the picture frame. Rubbing his eyes, Hideki put his uniform's shirt back on and hustled up his bag's strap over his shoulder. Hidek opened the door to his room and he gave one last look back to the pictures of his mother on his wall, giving a two-fingered salute before closing the door.

There, the small living room was unusually quiet, no signs of his father as only the hissing of steam pouring from a water boiler in the kitchen could be heard.

"He must have gone to work already," Hideki thought, walking down the stairs of his house. But he stopped midway and looked to his right where, he saw that the trophy cabinet that had broke during his fight with his father, standing behind the cough, already fixed. Its glass casing had been replaced as the gold trophies inside sat back in their original positions, "Did he fix it...?" Hideki couldn't believe it, but he then shook his head. He knew better that to continue doubting his father, as he could still feel the guilt from attacking his father lingering in his chest.

"Hideki," a voice addressed him from behind.

Turning around slowly, he saw his father standing in the doorway of his own room, dressed sharply for work with a suitcase sitting at the base of his feet.

Hideki had no control of his feet as they carried him back up the stairs. Their similarly-colored eyes locked and did not part with each other as each step brought Hideki closer and closer to where his father quietly stood. Shin did not have the dismissive expression he usually had, bearing only exhausted eyes and a relaxed posture. The man also did not seem to mind that he was already late for work.

Now standing right in front of him, Hideki tore his eyes away from his father and pocketed his hands, "Dad," he calmly called him back. There was a small pause of silence between them after that. What were mere seconds felt like long hours as the clock above Shin's head emitted a 'tick-tock' noise echoing through the entire household.

"Hideki-" Shin began slowly, clearing his throat, "If you are expecting me to give you another lecture like I did yesterday, you can drop those expectations. Looking back, I realized that I shouldn't have pestered you to not join the competition without any good reason to do so. I should have stopped, as it was what your mother would have told me to do," Shin's hands closed and opened repeatedly, "I guess I can't live without Hairi at my side, too," he picked up his suit case from the floor and walked to his son's side, "I'm sorry. I will not get in your way anymore, if that's what you really want."

What Shin admitted actually sounded sincere, and felt like a physical blow that made Hideki realize just how much distance there was between them for all these long years. Hideki couldn't bear to quip nor ignore his father's admittance, as he felt something tug at his emotions.

With an expression that showed that he was tired of their bickering, Hideki looked aside to his father and shook his head in disagreement, "No, dad," he said quietly, "I... I should be the one apologizing. I guess never really think about what you felt, going through a tough life with a son like me giving you trouble. I know that I acted without thinking. I was too caught up with myself, and the competition. But, I guess that's because we both barely know anything about each other, and never tried to understand each other ever since mom left," Hideki gave a dry laugh and a cocky smile, "But, I guess we both acted like idiots."

Shin was stunned, hearing the modesty that came from his son was something he did not expect to come from this talk.

Hideki turned back and headed down the flight of stairs, continuing, "I know how dangerous the competition can be, Dad. And... today, if I don't get into the competition again, I promise I'll stop trying to enlist for good," he said, finally reaching the front door and gripping tightly it by the handle, "And also... I'm sorry for hitting you yesterday. I had no right to do that."

With that apology, Hideki exited the house and closed the door behind him, leaving his stunned father inside. Standing outside on the porch, Hideki inhaled the fresh, morning air and looked up at the bright sky as the wind picked up his messy, blue hair. He felt like a burden had been lifted off of his shoulders, and honestly, it felt good when he had said that. He had no time to waste fighting with his own father. They were of the same blood, and keeping a distance between them was not what they should do as father and son.

Touching the Soul Gem that was shimmering beneath his shirt, he whispered to the skies, "Homura... This is the right thing to do, isn't it?"

The sound of a printer in-use echoed through the long, empty hallways of Mamoru's household as the rich boy had sent off all of his servants, giving them a 2-3 day vacation from their service to the Tezuka family's house hold with only the loyal head butler and maid staying behind to care for the boy. In the large, decorated living room of marble tiles and polished furniture, Mamoru and Sanbey sat on the long couch together. The boy seemed to be already prepared for school as his bag sat next to him.

A loud, finished beep from the printer across the room caught the attention of the green-haired boy, who put down his morning tea and walked across the room with his footsteps echoing behind him. He pulled out a file from the dusty printer, which he had personally brought down from the storage room for him to print out Tateyama's decrypted files. The boy did not mind to do some menial work in the least.

Walking back to Sanbey's side, the black-and-white Familiar asked, "And which file is that?" he absently licked the back of his bandaged paw.

"The tenth, so far," Mamoru answered, placing down the file on top of accumulating papers sitting down on a glass coffee table in front of them. He sat back down in his seat and dusted his hands, "There are still 20 more to go. Perhaps we should let them print out while we go to school?"

Sanbey watched Mamoru finish his drink before placing the teacup back down on its emerald saucer. The three tails Sanbey had flickered slightly, as the Familiar changed the subject to a more important one, "You are aware that what those files contain exceed everything you have known up until now, right? I had only been granted permission to read to smaller ones, but they were enough to make me question from where Homura had gotten them from."

Mamoru lied back down on his sofa and sank into it, saying, "I was prepared for anything the moment I made my wish, Sanbey. I am no fool to not expect the unexpected," his hand was seemingly lifted by itself and for a second, the green-haired boy pressed a finger on his emerald Soul Gem fused into his chest, "My wish... It was quite simple, wasn't it not?"

"'The power to lead and guide my friends', it's alright," Sanbey said reassuringly, legs stretching on the pillow cushion, "As long as you do not regret it, it does not matter what wish you make or powers you receive. A weapon is only truly dangerous at the hands of a proper user."

"Hmph. Perhaps," Mamoru folded his hands on his lap and crossed his legs. Tapping a foot on the marble floor, he sighed quietly as the printer continued its work in the background. His stare moved from the high ceiling above, to the files stacked on the table. He could have simply read these through a data reader he had in his room, but he would prefer to maintain some physical copies in the case of file corruption. It didn't hurt to have some back-up data either.

Instinctively, Mamoru leaned forward and picked out the file from the bottom of the batch; it was warm to the touch and thicker than the others he had printed so far. Sanbey seemed to be interested in it. too, as his ears perked up.

"Have you read this file before?" Mamoru asked, opening the file's cover.

Sanbey crawled up to his side and peered his head over Mamoru's forearm, saying, "This file... Homura never allowed me to read this. It was one of the files locked inside a cabinet. I wonder what's inside this one? You do not mind if I look, do you?"

The Puerum Magi shook his head and flipped open the file's contents to gaze upon long paragraphs of words with the familiar. There were some pictures, too, placed above the columns of words in an organized fashion. Mamoru narrowed his eyes as he read out the first few lines in confusion, "'I have lost count of how many times I had returned to this day, waking up to see the pearl-white hospital ceiling above me and the calendar placed on the wall of my room. Again, I had failed to save Madoka and prevent Kyubey from contracting her. Again, I had failed to destroy Walpurgis Night alone and all by myself'," he nibbled on his finger, stammering, "Sanbey, w-what is this?"

"A diary?" Sanbey assumed.

Going with that guess, Mamoru continued, "'My efforts were insufficient and once again, I was forced to turn back the clock to the date of March 16th'. March 16th... A day after that... I... I remember meeting Homura in the park, reading a file when Takuya, Tomura and I were there. She had a picture of the girl, Madoka, that Takuya had accidentally dirtied. It was the same girl Homura had told us to protect," Mamoru whispered to himself, biting down on his finger, "Homura's a time-traveler?"

Sanbey kept his eyes on the paragraph of words, now fully-knowing how Homura had received and gathered such enormous information into multiple files. Sanbey had guessed Homura simply had the power to see the future of sorts, but he was terribly mistaken, "Skip to the end," he formally requested.

Flipping the thick file to the last page, the last few pages had lesser and smaller paragraphs with a date that listed these events down as just a few days ago.

"'I had met an Incubator named 'Sanbey', an unknown being I have not encountered in my previous loops until now. It seems harmless, but I do not trust it for now. It has offered me help in the form of 'Puerum Magi', which he requires candidates if I am to accept this offer. Although suspicious, I had accepted this offer, and I am ready for anything this thing tries to pull'."

On the last page, Mamoru gasped at the pictures of Hideki, Takuya, Tateyama and himself, printed along with the last remaining words below them, "'I had picked out these four boys, who - judging from my information - are to die in an assumed attack in a Witch Barrier that appears in the Public Hospital days from now. I will seek them out and try to find a way to recruit them to our cause. If I succeed, then I expect the battle with Walpurgis Night to be much easier. End of line'," Mamoru crumpled the edge of the file as he felt a heavy sensation on his chest. The paragraphs ended there, abruptly, "Homura..."

Closing the file, Mamoru quietly placed it back down on the table and lied back on his sofa, hands cupping his face as Sanbey remained quiet. This realization was something Mamoru couldn't even begin to speak of. He thought he had seen it all: Recicio, Obscurum and Dycic energy, Warlocks, Puella Magi, Puerum Magi, Wish-Granters. But this, this was too much for even him.

Sitting straight back up again, Mamoru continued to pick out files from the batch and continue reading them at a fast pace as Sanbey could only watch from the sides. It was best if the Puerum Magi leader knew this only, as the more people knew, the higher chance problems could start arising in the team.

But as the green-haired boy skimmed through files, more secrets were revealed to him. Oriko Mikune and her servant, Kirika, two Puella Magi that posed a threat to Homura and made her turn back time lived in this very town. He recognized them as the two from two days ago, back in Tsukuyo's diner. Kyubey, the Wish-Granter of the Puella Magi, possessed ulterior motives as oppose to Sanbey, and had no emotions whatsoever. There were so much information, Mamoru couldn't process all these in just a few minutes and immediately stopped after the first 2 files.

Mamoru rested his head on the sofa again, sighing as Sanbey climbed up the armrest and clapped a paw on his shoulder, "Take it easy. You need not rush with the information."

"I know," he panted, repeating his words again and rubbing his temple. He decided to save these for the night, as it was nearly time to head to the park and meet up with the others for school. Sanbey clung onto his shoulder as the boy picked up his bag and headed for the main double-doors, only to receive a phone call when he stood in front of the doors. He took it out and spoke the caller's name, "Joseph?" he flipped over the phone, answering, "Is there something you need to tell me?"

The first few words from Joseph made Mamoru release his bag and let it drop the floor, spilling out some books.

"Father's... recovered...?" Mamoru uttered, cupping his mouth, "I see... Thank you for the news, Joseph... I appreciate it."

Closing the phone and pocketing it, he crouched down and began picking up all his books from the ground. This was good news that brought sheer relief to his chest, and even relieved some of the stress from just now. But, standing back up again with Sanbey still clinging onto him, Mamoru knew had to break the news of Homura's passing to Minami and Yuri. If not him alone, then Hideki would be with him as well, seeing as how he had more experience with the Homura when she was still around.

"Come, Sanbey," he said, opening the double-doors of his house and walking out into the front-yard, "We have much to do."