Land of the good-for-nothings
Almost there. Nagisa thought.
She was climbing the last flight of stairs before the school's rooftop access. Opening the door, she saw that Homura was already there, next to the guardrail, looking at the people below leaving.
Nagisa approached Homura. "Akemi-san?"
The only movement that was perceived of Homura was the swing of her long hair in the wind. She started talking. "You did as I instructed?"
"Yes!" Nagisa replied promptly. "I got on the top floor by the service ramp and locked the door to the rooftop access. Here are the keys." She shook the set of keys that was in her hand.
"Stay with them." Homura looked at Nagisa. "Access to the rooftop is now restricted."
Nagisa looked at the keys. "I thought anyone could come here."
"Change of rules." Homura smiled.
"Speaking of change..." Nagisa said as she put the keys in the backpack. "I always leave with a school friend. We've always said goodbye at the gate, but she didn't feel weird that I left the classroom alone today."
Homura waited for Nagisa to look back at her before she started talking. "I took some necessary measures. She's still your friend, right?"
"Oh?! Yes! Yes! She still is." Nagisa gave a quick smile.
"Great."
The silence took over. Nagisa began to get nervous, perhaps because of the wind whistle or the penetrating gaze of Homura that time, maybe due to them both.
Her heart began to beat faster when Homura revealed a wide, mischievous smile.
Homura then started talking in another language, unintelligible to humans, but to a witch that was like the mother tongue.
"Show your face, Charlotte."
Nagisa hesitated, trying to believe what she had just heard. Then she covered the face with her hands. Finally, she revealed her witch's visage.
"RRwwwaaarrr!"
Homura laughed.
Nagisa cleared her throat and spoke in a lower tone. "Why do you want me to stay like this? It's... scary. My voice is horrible."
A violet aura enveloped Homura. In a flash, her school uniform was replaced with a black dress. Wings sprouted from her back. "Because it's good to know what you're dealing with. If it bothers you, I can still banish you."
"No! I don't feel uncomfortable." Nagisa gestured nervously.
"Are you sure? This will be the point of no return." Homura expressed seriously. "If you betray me, I will destroy you. Not even Madoka could bring you back."
"I understand." Nagisa nodded. "I swear I won't. I will be worthy of your trust."
"We'll see." Homura said coldly. "Hold your backpack and turn around."
"Huh?"
"Turn around."
Nagisa obeyed the order. Held her backpack tightly, thinking of the possible intentions of Homura, when she felt herself being embraced. Her eyes widened. "Um... Akemi..."
Homura sought to better fit her body against Nagisa. "We'll always come and go school that way."
Nagisa shrugged. "H-how? WWHHHOOAAA!"
The two left the rooftop flying.
Vehicles and people now seemed, respectively, like cockroaches and ants at that time. Nagisa noted that, despite the high speed, there was not a strong flow of air against them. "Where are you taking me?"
"Home." Homura answered mechanically.
This was a subject that had not been touched. After school, where she would be? She could no longer live with Mami. Does that mean she would live with Homura?
"We arrived." Homura landed softly on the sidewalk without attracting the attention of passersby. It was as if the two girls did not exist.
They were in front of a three-story house that was on a bifurcation corner. For its architecture and of the nearby buildings, it was in the old part of Mitakihara. However, buildings of modern part were very close, no more than a block away.
Seeing that Homura was heading toward the door, Nagisa asked. "This is your home?"
Homura collected their wings covering her bare back. "Yes."
Nagisa looked at the people passing between them. "Um... Akemi-san."
"You can call me Devil." Homura said as she opened the door.
"Okay." Nagisa continued. "Devil-san, can I call you Homura? You know. If I'm going to live in your home. It's... well... I don't know actually..."
Homura stopped. It was as if she was waiting for the door to open fully by itself. When the door finally stopped, she turned her head and stared into an empty point in space. "Whatever. Come on Charlotte."
"O-of course." Nagisa quickly went along with Homura.
The two were not yet inside the residence, only in a small hall. Nagisa saw that this room did not lead to anywhere, just to a pile of rubble. Then it all became clear: the house was not only old but also seemed abandoned. Everything was to mislead anyone who could check this place for curiosity.
Nagisa also noticed that the walls were covered with graffiti. They were runes, the language of witches. She approached a wall and began to read naturally.
HOMURA
Liar
Cold
Selfish AKEMI
Coward Stubborn
Stup...
A peculiar sweet smell invaded the nostrils of Nagisa. It made her get away from the wall. Those runes were written with blood, a person's blood.
"Do you like the work of my children? Beautiful, no?" Homura closed the door smiling. The darkness took the ambient, except a pair of eyes and an earring that emitted a faint violet light.
Nagisa thought to reconsider the concept of scary.
"Stay still." Homura ordered.
Nagisa obeyed and waited. Soon a bright light appeared in the air like a great hologram, illuminating the hall. Gradually that light was gaining definition forming an image.
It was a diamond with a black salamander behind. Under the salamander tail was a pair of inverted white wings, as if they were falling.
"Charlotte." Homura started towards the image. "I'll go first. Wait twenty to thirty seconds and then you may enter. Got it?"
"Hum...ok." Nagisa said, without understanding the reason of that procedure.
"No tricks." Homura looked one last time to Nagisa before crossing the image that was in the air and disappear completely.
Nagisa, now alone in the hall, stared at the picture knowing its function: a portal to a witch barrier. Homura was not a witch, right? However, since she could recreate the universe, building a barrier would be a mere joke.
Bearing in mind this conclusion, Nagisa approached the portal. What would be on the other side? What would be the throne of this deity? She swallowed hard, caught her breath and closed her eyes.
Then crossed.
The singing and beating of birds wings were the signal that Nagisa was on the other side. Opening her eyes, she saw that she was in the middle of a cloud of white dust. She despaired at the thought that it could be toxic. Fortunately, she had held her breath, unfortunately, she had not thought to breath in more air before went in. Unable to hold it anymore, she aspirated the dust. It smelled like... chalk?
The cloud began to dissipate and it was possible to discern that Homura was standing right in front of her. She was white from head to toe, covered by that powder. There were several blackboard erasers on the floor surrounding her.
It was also possible to see where the bird sound came from. Black birds were perched on chandeliers in a corner of a large hall. The floor and the walls seemed to have an ink that emitted a faint white light, which contrasted with a tangle of red lines painted all over. It was like being inside a huge spider web.
And there were the children of Homura, right in the middle of the room, holding a long poster and blowing party whistles. The poster contained runes that said:
Welcome Your Good-for-nothing!
Homura turned her dusty face and exchanged glances with Nagisa. She closed her eyes and gave a sigh. Then she turned to the children and clapped, throwing dust to all sides. "Children. Come to me."
The children left the poster and party whistles. With a mechanical sound from their joints, they stood to walk toward their master.
Nagisa soon recognized that they were not children but dolls. The same dolls in which she faced when Homura had turned a witch. They were made of white wax and had black clothing. Their eyes spiraled in blue and white tone. The mouths of inhuman proportions expressed joy.
In an orderly fashion, they lined up before Homura.
"Right." Homura crossed her arms. "Which one of you had this idea? Huh?"
The dolls began pointing between them. Some also pointed to Homura and others towards the birds.
Homura rolled her eyes. "I'll reward for anyone who tell me the truth."
The dolls went back to pointing, but to a different place from before. Still, there was no agreement. One of the dolls had pointed to Nagisa as well.
That was when the dolls noticed the newcomer. In unison they mechanically dangled their head to the side and fixed their gazes on Nagisa.
Nagisa stepped back. She knew that these dolls were very strong, just as much as a magical girl. In an instinctive reflex, she revealed her sharp teeth.
In response to that attitude, the dolls have changed their eye colors. The blue becoming green, white becoming red. A row of teeth similar to Nagisa's appeared in their mouths as if they were retractable.
Homura stared at the dolls and Nagisa. "Oh. Fufu. I see you're already getting along well." Then reached for Nagisa. "Don't be afraid. My children are just curious."
Nagisa stood by Homura, but avoided getting too close so she would not mess with the powder.
"They asked about your name, witch." Homura said.
Nagisa understood that Homura was doing the interpreter role, but she had not heard anything. Was it some kind of telepathy or sign language? "Hi. My name is...um...Charlotte."
The dolls began to whisper among themselves.
"Ufufu."
"What is it, Homura-chan?"
"Ah..." Homura's smile disappeared, but soon returned. "They found you strange, including the name. So they decided to call you 'Weird'."
"Well... thanks?" Nagisa, with her big teeth, expressed a grim smile.
"I'll present them." Homura began to point to each doll. "Ibari, Nekura, Usotsuki, Reiketsu, Wagamama, Warukuchi, Noroma, Yakimochi, Namake, Mie, Okubyou, Manuke, Higami, Ganko."
Homura spoke so fast that the only information that Nagisa absorbed was the fact that there are fourteen dolls in total. Fortunately, each doll had different hair and clothing, which would help when needing to identify each of them. "Nice to meet you."
Homura nodded to Nagisa and then headed toward the dolls. "Children, you'll have a lot of time with her. Now I want you to clean up this mess and leave."
The dolls were sad.
Homura was more reprehensible. "Now! Even the poster and the party whistles."
The dolls began to collect objects on the ground. Some of them took the erasers and started beating Homura with them, raising a cloud of dust again.
Nagisa avoided the powder by swaying her hand.
Homura put the arms over her face. "Cough! Stop! Cough! Let me clean myself."
The dolls stopped and finished collecting everything. Together they walked to an almost invisible door, due to its similar painting matching the walls.
After the dolls were gone, Homura removed all that dust in a flash of violet light. "You only waited twelve seconds..."
"Yeah?" Nagisa had not come to count the time before entering, but the waiting seemed to have lasted an eternity. "S-sorry. You didn't want me to see you like that."
Homura turned to Nagisa. "Of course it isn't that."
A bird poop fell on the head of Homura.
"I just wanted to avoid you being the victim of one of their jokes."
More poops fell. One almost hit her eye.
"I wanted to avoid an incident. That's all."
Nagisa was not even more paying attention to what Homura was talking due to the literal rain of poops falling on the raven-haired girl. Birds that were doing the deed came from nests in an old and huge clockwork at ceiling. The gears and the pendulum stood still, rusted over.
With the silence of Homura, the birds returned to their homes.
In another flash of light, Homura was clean. She smiled, trying to change the subject. "Ah... I'm hungry."
Suddenly a flying tooth, larger than a human head, came from one of the walls. He had a mouth and carrying a glass cup on its top. When stopped suddenly near Homura, the glass fell.
Already expecting this, Homura took the glass out of the air and offered it to the tooth.
The tooth then vomited a dark brown liquid, something you'd find in a poorly maintained latrine. The jet was filling her glass and splattered on the floor and Homura. The smell was horrible.
Nagisa was flabbergasted.
With the cup overflowing, the tooth stopped. Homura happily handed the cup to Nagisa. "Vitamins, Amino acids, Proteins... All the daily needs are in here. Want some?"
Nagisa made a negative gesture with her hand. "No, thank you. Hehe."
Homura shrugged and drank all glass content in a few gulps. After that, she threw the empty glass back to the tooth.
The flying tooth took the cup with his mouth and chewed, and chewed, and chewed. It continued until the glass turned into powder and then returned to the wall where he had emerged.
Wordlessly, Homura started to walk down the hall.
Nagisa accompanied, seeking to avoid the puddle of vomit that had been on the floor.
When they approached a wall, Homura stopped and, with a gesture with her hands, made several screens appear.
Nagisa saw that the screens were passing moments of her and Mami, but from the perspective of a third person. Recognizing a tea scene with cookies in the apartment of Mami, she realized that this person was Homura.
"You always knew." Homura said.
"Huh?" Nagisa asked.
"On the first day of my world, Miki-san didn't lose her memories. You also didn't, just pretended, did you?" Homura looked at Nagisa.
Nagisa lowered her head.
Homura looked back at the screens. "You're smart. So I'll keep you here, near me."
"I remember now." Nagisa looked up. "Your children... they were at school too."
The screens began to show the dolls. "Yes, but they are useless. They were playing tricks and scaring people which caused me many problems. That's why they don't leave here anymore."
So this is how you're dealing with your problems. Nagisa thought as she stared at the red lines on the walls. This is a cage.
"Globe."
After Homura say this, the screens are gone and a hologram of the Earth globe appeared above them.
Nagisa saw the spinning globe revealing dark spots on some parts of the world. Two, one on China and one on India, were particularly large.
Homura sighed. "As usual."
"What are these spots?" Nagisa was pointing.
"Demons."
Homura and Nagisa were exchanging glances with each other.
Nagisa began. "T-then it's true! Mami had felt their presence, but then she didn't feel them no more."
"Unfortunately they still exist. Disappear!" With that last word, Homura made the globe vanish. "Well... I'll have to take care of it."
"Howwrrmura-chan! Will you go there alone?!" Nagisa was so surprised that she forgot to control her voice.
"Of course." Homura gave a big smile. "Since in my world there are no magical girls."
Nagisa was taken by an orange light and changed into her magical girl uniform. "Then I'll help you. Teheee!"
"NO!" Homura frowned.
Nagisa was shrunken and pouted.
Homura snorted. "You will only delay me." She began to walk towards the exit portal. "I'll be back at dawn."
Nagisa gaped and twirled her eyes. "Huh? Will spend all night out? You don't sleep?"
Homura stopped and looked up where the bird nests were. "I sleep when I can. Now pay attention." She pointed to a door in the wall. "There is the access to your suite, don't miss it. I took all your stuff from Tomoe-san's apartment and left on the bed." Finally, she turned to walk.
"So that's it?" Nagisa looked around. "I will be waiting for you here?"
Homura was about to leave, when she looked at Nagisa. "Have you forgotten? I told my children that they would have much time with you. Fufufufufu..."
And so Homura gave a goodbye to Nagisa.
As she imagined the significance of what Homura just said, Nagisa felt herself being observed. She turned around and saw that the dolls were right behind her. Where'd they come from?
Nagisa waved her hand. "H-hi. Um... What do you do to pass the time?"
The dolls, together, stepped forward.
"How about a game? One that isn't very dangerous. Hehe." Nagisa started to get scared. Then she felt something nudge her shin.
It was a very strange creature. It had a couple of mouse paws and tail. Its body was round and black with red polka dots. It had a great eye in the center, its iris was made of concentric circles that alternated between yellow and dark blue. Between the body and the eye came a pair of blue ears and a moustache that was actually a very sensitive nose.
Nagisa's face lit up. "Pyotr! How did you get here?"
Then she heard the sound of mechanical clicks.
The dolls had their eyes fixed on pyotr and a black object began to materialize in their hands. They were large pins about the same size as their owners.
Before Nagisa could understand their intentions, one of the dolls struck pyotr with the head of the pin like a golf swing.
"Oh no!" Nagisa put her hand on head.
The other dolls, smiling, join the game. They stuck the unfortunate pyotr, alternating between each other in various styles. Sometimes it was golf, sometimes baseball, or hockey or cricket...
"Stop! You're hurting hiiimmm!" Nagisa left her backpack on the floor and ran.
The dolls made silly faces at Nagisa, in-between silent laughter. Then, in a dive, Nagisa managed to rescue the pyotr.
He was shaking and with his tail between the legs. His ears covering the eye.
Nagisa hugged him fondly. "I know. They were very cruel, but I'm with you now." And ended with a kiss.
The pins evaporated of the hand of the dolls. They watched with curiosity.
Nagisa spoke to the dolls with irritation. "He's not a toy. You have to treat it with care, see?"
The dolls dangled their heads to the side and stared at the floor with a sad expression.
That scene stirred the heart of Nagisa. Then she spoke to one of the dolls. "Hey. Want to try?"
The doll straightened her head when she saw the pyotr being offered to her.
He returned to tremble.
"This time they won't mistreat you." Nagisa sought to reassure pyotr.
Nevertheless, he continued shaking as he was held by the doll. Imitating Nagisa, the doll hugged him and she began to caress his body.
Slowly, he began to relax.
The doll looked at Nagisa and the two exchanged smiles.
However, the other dolls began to get agitated, they also wanted to caress.
Willingly, the doll launched the pyotr to one of her colleagues. She cared for him and passed him off to another and it repeated. Basketball, handball, volleyball... There were passes in all kinds of styles.
Nagisa made a facepalm. "No! Not like that!"
／人 ◕‿‿◕ 人＼
Mitakihara was welcoming the sun.
Homura was returning from her long hunt. The more populous regions are where the presence of demons is greater. India and China required weekly visits.
In the entrance hall, while invoking the portal, Homura thought of the witch.
Did she try to escape?
Homura smiled, in which case her children would have a lot of fun.
After crossing portal, Homura came across an unusual scene even for her: dozens of pyotr were walking from one side to the other. A large rectangular table had been set up in the middle of the room, their children were sitting there as well as Nagisa too. There was a vacant chair at one end.
Conveniently, Nagisa was close to that end. "Hi Homura-chan!" She nodded, as well as the dolls.
Homura approached Nagisa, avoiding tripping over one of the pyotrs. "I see you brought your familiars, witch."
"Ah! They will follow wherever I am. Hihi." Nagisa laughed, but then came down with a serious expression. "Or can I not keep them?"
"There is no problem, since they don't get out of here." Homura said coldly.
"Yaawwrr!" Nagisa opened her big purple mouth and raised her arms. The dolls did the same in silence.
"And it also seems that you managed to make friends with my children." Homura noted that each doll had a pyotr in their lap.
"Yeah. They helped me pack my stuff in the room." Nagisa took a 700ml cup filled with chocolate milk and started drinking.
"Really?" Homura was perplexed.
Nagisa had drunk the entire glass and was licking her lips. "Mmmmhh... they were also brought the table into the hall."
It was something Homura could never doubt, both the table and chair were made of ebony. There was on the table all types of cake, desserts and other delicacies. Her dolls were also eating or at least seemed to be: they did not swallow the food, just chewed and chewed...
"I was hungry and you did not tell me where the kitchen was." Nagisa put a whole cornmeal cake on her plate. "So I had to improvise."
Homura was staring off. "Even if you had found, there is nothing there."
The conversation was interrupted by the intrusion of a nurse. In fact, one could say that was a nurse by the body and clothing, as for her head there was only one large eye similar to pyotr. She was carrying a tray with a lid.
Nagisa looked at the nurse. "Hi Polina! What have you brought?"
Polina put the tray on the table and took off the lid.
Nagisa clasped her hands. "Wow! Profiteroles!"
Homura gave a simple smile. "You should be very useful for Tomoe-san."
"She prefers doing the cooking. Told me that's like a therapy." Nagisa pushed the tray toward Homura. "Want one?"
"I'm not hungry."
"But who said you had to eat it because of hunger?" Nagisa gave a smile from ear to ear.
Homura then carefully took one of profiteroles. Approached the mouth and smelled the chocolate icing. She finally took a bite and was quick to give a sigh of pleasure as she chewed.
"So? You like it? "Nagisa asked.
Homura swallowed. "It's good." she said in a polite tone before mouthing the profiterole altogether.
"Hihi. Want more?"
"Mmmhhh." Homura finished swallow that piece, which was much larger than the last. "I'd love to, but we lack less than an hour to get to school and I would like to have a little fun before we go. Right, children?"
The dolls turned to Homura and seemed excited.
Nagisa was intrigued. "Having fun? It's a playtime of yours?"
"That's right. Fufu." Homura began to stretch her fingers. "Bring him."
The dolls left their pyotrs and the table then joined hands to form a circle and began a ring-around-the-rose. It went faster and faster until it formed a blur due to speed and finally disappeared.
Nagisa was impressed with that. "Who is he?"
"You'll see." Homura said, crossing her arms.
Then the blur came back again and slowly the circle of dolls were losing speed. At its center there was now a white cat. Not exactly a cat, but a cat mixed with rabbit: His body, tail and head were of a cat, but his red eyes seemed more of a rabbit. It had cat ears, but from these ears flowed out long and flaccid ones, similar to some of rabbit species. These 'rabbit ears' were exotic, as they had a golden halo surrounding them and a hint of rose color at the tip with three red gems same as his eyes. Finally, there was a red oval design on the back.
The cat looked around and saw that was surrounded, he still tried to run. But the dolls easily caught him.
While one of the dolls led him to her master, Nagisa exchanged glances with him.
"Kyuubey!"
Kyuubey rose his cat ears and began to struggle.
"What's up Incubator? Don't you want to fight entropy today?" Homura invoked her gem and it landed softly in her hand. She then revealed the gem to Kyuubey and blew.
The gust made a thick black fog left the gem, as if it was dusty. The fog began to be absorbed by the body of Kyuubey. Then his fur began to shiver and his eyes, usually static, were bulging. His body writhed in erratic spasms.
"Feeling happy to save the universe? Oh yeah. You don't feel anything at all. FufufwahahahaHAHAHA..." The sadistic laughter of Homura echoed through the hall.
In response, the sound of children's laughter began to be heard by Nagisa. It was a muffled sound, as if from another room. Was it the dolls? Although not in sync with the sound, the dolls were visibly laughing too.
"HAHAHAHAHahahaaa ..." Homura noticed the expression of pity from Nagisa. "Are you finding it very cruel, witch?"
Nagisa looked away.
"I see that Madoka taught you very well." Homura took Kyuubey by his head. "But I can teach you something too."
Homura held Kyuubey in front of Nagisa's face. He was still suffering convulsions.
"Compassion is a laudable virtue." Homura said quietly, but soon acquired a begrudging expression. "But only for those who are able to comprehend it!"
Homura crushed the head of Kyuubey by closing her hand. His body and his bowels fell on the cornmeal cake. His eyes popped out and flew toward Nagisa.
"AAHHH!" That made Nagisa fall over, along her chair.
Homura stared at what was left of Kyuubey in her hand, a mixture of white fur with minced meat. "Enjoy it while the icing on the cake is still fresh." She looked back at Nagisa. "If you aren't hungry, then go to your room to get ready. In half an hour, we'll leave."
Nagisa got up and ran to her room without saying a word.
Homura looked at her children, they were eagerly awaiting her call.
"Bring another."
Next chapter: Prelude