'Kyubey,' Kyouko muttered, 'what the hell are you thinking?'

Kyubey stopped in his tracks and tilted his head back. 'Oh, Kyouko. You startled me.'

Kyouko raised an eyebrow. 'No, I didn't. You knew I was there the whole time. Now answer my question – what the hell are you thinking giving a naïve fool like her a contract?'

'On the contrary, Kyouko, I believe Madoka possesses the potential to become the most powerful Puella Magi this universe has ever seen,' Kyubey replied calmly.

'As if. She made a contract over a cat, for God's sake. A cat!'

'A wish is a wish,' Kyubey shrugged. 'If it is what a person wants, then who am I to disagree?'

'Still…' Kyouko racked her brains, looking for a good response. 'Why are you making contracts in the first place? I'm planning to stay in Mitakihara for a long period of time, you know. You don't need more than two magical girls in one area.'

'Oh,' Kyubey said. 'Are you scared that Oriko and Kirika will find you?'

Kyouko swallowed. It was true that she was scared of this pair of girls, who had made it their mission to murder every Puella Magi they set eyes upon. Yet Kyouko was too proud to admit her fear, especially in front of somebody like Kyubey.

'Not at all,' she sniffed, raising her nose in the air. 'Those bitches don't know what they've got coming to them.'

Realizing Kyouko was unaware of Oriko's ability to predict the future, Kyubey let out a small smile of amusement. He was certain Oriko already had a plan laid out for Kirika to capture and kill Kyouko.

'They have already faced many powerful victims,' Kyubey noted. 'So far, I'm not aware of anybody who has escaped their clutches unharmed. Their latest victim was killed only last night.'

Kyouko froze. 'Seriously?'

'Yume Chitose,' Kyubey informed Kyouko. 'I believe you knew her.'

'I did,' Kyouko said quietly, her voice hoarse. 'Not well, but I still knew her.' Her fists clenched into tense balls. 'Dammit. She was only a kid. Why would they want to kill her?'

'There's still much you don't know, Kyouko.'

'Don't try to comfort me.' Kyouko pushed Kyubey away with a flick of her hand.

'I wasn't,' Kyubey continued. 'I was simply informing you that you're not aware of the whole situation.'

'Well, I'd really like to know more about it,' Kyouko mumbled, looking away. 'I've been on the run from them for two weeks now, and I managed to nearly get my throat slit in the process. It wasn't my intention to end up here, but… oh, never mind. I'm going to die, aren't I?'

'Everybody dies,' Kyubey replied perkily.

'Oh, shut up.'

Mami was still recovering from the shock of Kyouko's return as she had a warm bubble bath in her apartment that night. She couldn't possibly begin to entertain reasons why Kyouko was here in Mitakihara. Hadn't she vowed to never set foot in the city again, all those years ago? Why was she here now?

To make the situation even worse, there was a new magical girl in town too. Mami had known the instant the contract was formed – her Soul Gem had resonated with the sudden burst of new power, alerting Mami to the presence of the new Puella Magi. She didn't know what her name was yet, and had not had chance to contact Kyubey and discuss the matter. Right now, she didn't care.

One thing unusual thing Mami had noticed about Kyouko was a large scar on the right side of her chin. There had been no chance to ask Kyouko about the scar, but Mami knew something was suspicious about it. A witch didn't inflict those kind of injuries – it had to have been done by somebody armed with a magical weapon.

And yet why on the chin? Could somebody perhaps have aimed for her throat, but spectacularly missed?

Mami shuddered at the thought. Being the only Puella Magi in town (well, up until now) had been fortunate for her. She had no need to share her Grief Seeds with anybody else, and there were no territory disputes. Mami hoped for her own sake that the new Puella Magi, whoever she was, was younger than her and innocent, like Kyouko had been before she changed.

'Mami, are you awake?'

Mami sank further into the bubbles. 'Kyubey, what do you want?'

'Don't be like that, Mami. I take it you're aware I've made a new contract?'

'Yes, you did tell me as you were left you were going to make one. Did you forget?'

'No, I didn't, I was just checking. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you a little bit about it.'

Mami used her elbows on the side of the tub to prop herself up. 'Go on.'

'She's a student in the year below you at school. Her name is Madoka Kaname.'

'Oh, Kaname-san?' Mami sat up in the tub, listening carefully. 'Oh, I believe I've seen her before. She won a school competition a few months back, if I remember correctly.'

'That's wonderful,' Kyubey continued, sounding uninterested. 'I have a suggestion. Why don't you meet on the rooftop tomorrow lunchtime?'

'I don't have a problem with that,' Mami replied, 'but there's something I'd like to know. Is she in any way hostile or aggressive?'

'Of course not,' Kyubey said. 'I believe the two of you will make an excellent team.'

'Whatever you say. I'm having a bath right now, so is it alright if we continue this conversation tomorrow?'

'Oriko!'

'What?'

'Oriko, I'm cold.'

Oriko frowned. 'Fine then, have my blanket.'

Despite their lengthy friendship, Oriko Mikuni was beginning to become irritated by Kirika Kure. She cared deeply for the girl, but Kirika's constant complaining and moaning had begun to annoy Oriko, disrupting her usually calm temperament.

'Oriko, are you angry?'

Oriko glanced at Kirika, who had a scratchy blue blanket pressed to her. Her eyes reflected fear and worry.

'Of course I'm not angry,' Oriko smiled, switching back to her charming persona. 'Come on now, Kirika. We'll be out of here soon.'

'Do you know where Kyouko Sakura is?' Kirika whispered, her voice hollow. It appeared two weeks living on the streets had taken its toll on Kirika.

'She's in Mitakihara,' Oriko said.

'Really?' Kirika gasped, her eyes widening at the mention of their hometown. 'Why's she in Mitakihara?'

'God knows,' Oriko smiled weakly. 'I guess going back to Mitakihara will give me the opportunity to go back to school, too.'

'I just want to get rid of her now,' Kirika hissed. 'She's caused us nothing but trouble. I've never seen anybody like her.'

Oriko stood up, shaking her ponytail loose. 'It's eight o'clock in the evening. Do you want to call it a night, or should we head to Mitakihara?'

Kirika pondered this for a few moments. 'I think we should go.'

Oriko turned around and smiled wryly. 'Exactly what I was hoping you'd say.'

The pair caught the train to Mitakihara at around half past eight, with half an hour's journey time. The train was almost empty, most commuters having already returned from work and nightlife not yet beginning to emerge.

'I'll murder her this time,' Kirika said, her voice muffled by the newspaper she was covering her face with. 'I swear down. That Kyouko Sakura's as good as dead.'

Oriko glanced at her. 'I think I'll aid you this time.'

Kirika almost dropped her newspaper. 'Are you sure about that?'

Oriko nodded. 'Of course I am. Friends help each other out, right?'

'Yeah, but… you don't have to go out of your way to help me. I'm fine on my own.'

Oriko bit her lip. Kirika was an emotionally vulnerable girl – even the littlest thing could make her fly off the handle if it wasn't what she wanted to hear. There was no tactful way to tell Kirika that she wouldn't be able to beat Kyouko Sakura on her own, and, whilst Kirika's anger always quickly subsided, Oriko knew it would only slow their hunt down to rile Kirika up.

'Well, I want to,' Oriko smiled, taking Kirika's hand. She instantly recoiled – Kirika's hand felt as though it'd been placed in a freezer for a few hours. Hesitantly, she touched her hand again. 'Come on, Kirika. It'll be easier if we work together, too.'

'I don't know…' Kirika mused on the offer, before her face broke out into a grin. 'Actually, you're right. I don't see why not.'

'Thank you,' Oriko whispered, and returned to glancing out of the window.

After disembarking from the train, Oriko and Kirika hung around in the station for a while, buying some snacks from the store whilst they were there.

'Do we have a plan?' Kirika asked Oriko in a hushed voice.

Oriko drummed her fingers on the arm of the bench. 'A surprise attack might work this time.'

'We'd need to get her into an isolated area first, though,' Kirika pointed out. 'We can't spy on her twenty-four hours a day, either. We're bound to get caught.'

'It's alright,' Oriko mumbled. 'I can easily find out when to catch her alone.'

'What? What do you mean? How?'

Oriko smiled wryly. 'Just trust me on this one, Kirika. Anyway, there's no point hanging around here. I can assure you we won't catch Kyouko tonight, so we might as well check ourselves into a hotel in Mitakihara.'

Kirika blinked at her. 'You're not going home?'

'No. I don't feel like it.'

Kirika stared in bewilderment. 'I don't understand.''

Oriko shook her head. 'You don't need to. I just feel like it's… like it's time for me to stop depending on other people, you know? I need to start taking control of my own life.' She gave Kirika a weak smile. 'Anyway, don't mind me, rambling on to myself. Let's go.'

'So, Madoka, what did you do at school today?'

'Oh, nothing much. I saw a couple on the way to school kissing each other, and when they turned away the girl smacked into a tree.'

Junko howled with laughter, banging on the table with her left hand. 'Oh, Madoka, how come you don't tell me stories like this more often?'

Madoka blushed. 'Funny things like that don't normally happen. Mitakihara's actually quite a boring school.'

'It didn't exist when I was your age,' said Junko. 'It was only built the year before you were born, actually. It's such a high-tech place, though, isn't it? You've all got personal laptops to work on!'

'Yeah, I suppose so.' Madoka ran a hand through her hair. 'There's one girl who hasn't got one, mind you.'

'Aww,' Junko frowned. 'Poor thing. Anything else you'd like to tell me about?'

Madoka hesitated. She knew telling her mother about Kyubey would be risky, and probably worry her, too.

'No, nothing,' she smiled. 'It's been a pretty uneventful day, if I'm honest. What's for dinner tonight?'

Junko grinned. 'Niku ramen! In fact, I'd better get cooking now. Get your homework done whilst you're waiting.'

Madoka beamed at her as she departed to the kitchen, her smile fading once her mother's back was turned. Her stomach felt as though it was twisting, sending bile rising to her throat.

'I can't do this,' Madoka murmured, her mother now well out of earshot. It just didn't feel right to keep things from Junko. The pair of them were more like sisters than mothers.

Is this really what I want for the future? Have I made the right decision?

Memories of mini fashion parades and batches of cookies flashed through Madoka's mind. If she couldn't trust her own mother, who on Earth could she trust?

I have to tell her.

And yet, as Madoka rose from her seat, she remembered something else. The voice from earlier – the girl who had given her a warning.

Just how dangerous is this going to be? Madoka mused, her bottom lip beginning to tremble. I can't get Mom involved with this. It's not fair on her.

In an attempt to put the whole thing out of her mind, Madoka opened her Science textbook and began to study.