People slowly made their way back into the classrooms, most of the halls being completely filled with seas of students that tried to get as much time as they could before the classes started again. Hitomi could hear different conversations as she walked back towards the class, the girl tried to be polite and not hear what they were saying; but it was still a hard task to accomplish when some of them were basically shouting as they spoke.

And it became even harder when she heard a familiar name from one a few of them.

"Did you hear about Kaname-san and Akemi-san?"

"I did! I did! I can't believe they would do such a thing in the school!"

Those words drove Hitomi to try and listen in, manners be damned, if something had happened to Madoka she had to make sure that it wasn't anything bad. Even worse knowing that Akemi was somehow involved in it, did they fight?

"Do you think they will get in trouble for it?"

"Trouble? I think they could end up suspended if not expulsed for it!"

Hitomi opened her eyes in surprise, the girl couldn't believe that Madoka would do a thing bad enough to guarantee her suspension. Had they really had a fight? Did it get violent?

"How do people even know though? Did they see them?"

"Apparently they went back to class with their clothes all ruffled and breathless!"

That was it. They really had gotten into a fight. Hitomi had expected something like this with Sayaka, but Madoka? The girl was so innocent! There was no way she was going to get into a fight with someone, and with Akemi of all people? Something really bad had to have happened for those two to fight. Hitomi might have not been getting together with her friends lately with how busy she was with one thing or the other, but with how hard Madoka had been trying to try and become friends with Akemi only a really serious matter could have led to an actual fight.

And it probably was Akemi the one to start it too, Madoka would never do such a thing. In the end Sayaka really had been right about what her instincts around Akemi.

Well, Shizuki Hitomi wasn't the kind of person that would let someone hurt a friend like that. And even though she was more than sure that Sayaka and Sakura probably had fought the other girl too she still had to give her a piece of her opinion if she had hurt her friend.

[-]

The door to the class opened with a swift motion as it heralded the presence of Hitomi. The girl looked around the room, quickly seeing Akemi sitting on her desk as Madoka, Sayaka and Sakura gathered around it.

They are still talking about the fight, better go in now and make sure that Akemi apologizes.

Hitomi walked with great confidence towards Akemi's seat, a few heads turning as she walked past them. As she finished approaching the small group, Akemi raised her eyes when she noticed her presence; the rest quickly following suit in a chain reaction.

"Ah! Hitomi, good to see you!" cheered Sayaka, the cheerful tone almost making Hitomi's determination waver when it clashed with her expectations of an angry Sayaka.

Hitomi placed herself right in front of Akemi's desk, the other girl meeting her eyes with her seemingly permanent stoic face. Not a single drop of remorse apparent in her face.

"Akemi-san" said Hitomi, the girl trying to appear as dignified as she had been trained to.

Akemi hesitated for a second before she answered, the girl not moving her gaze away from Hitomi's eyes as she did.

"Shizuki-san" she said, giving her an acknowledging nod.

"I've heard about what has happened between you and Madoka-san" Hitomi crossed her arms, the girl sharpening her gaze as she did so.

"Ah! I'm so sorry Hitomi-chan!" Madoka's sudden interference made Hitomi look at the girl "I was going to tell you, I just couldn't-"

"You don't have to worry about it, Madoka-san" reassured Hitomi, softening her expression for a second before she looked back at Akemi "I'm sure that it was her fault"

Hitomi straightened her back, making sure to appear as imposing as she could when she spoke. The girl trying to follow every tip her teachers had given her for this kind of situation in which she wanted to appear as an authoritative figure.

"Akemi-san, care to explain why you would do such a thing to Madoka?"

Akemi's face didn't change much with the question, though Hitomi could clearly see the others making confused faces.

"I don't think I understand what you are talking about, Shizuki-san" said Akemi, apparently now deciding to even ignore the facts that she had fought with Madoka. Her making as if she didn't know anything and how her voice seemed the same as always really irked the already angry Hitomi.

"I'm sure you do" said Hitomi "I've heard people talking about what you've done to her. After all she has done for you, do you have no shame Akemi-san?"

Hitomi saw as Madoka's face became flustered; the girl probably embarrassed for even getting into a fight. Madoka was sure to berate herself for fighting in school like that, she probably would even find a way to take away all blame from Akemi.

"Hitomi-chan I don't think-" said Madoka with a meek voice

"No Madoka-san, I won't stand that Akemi-san did such a thing to you. And in the school no less! Just to get you into more trouble-"

Sakura placed her hand in front of Hitomi's face, cutting her off before the redhead spoke.

"I'm gonna stop you right there" she sighed "Are you really going off some rumors?"

"Of course I did!" said Hitomi "Even with more reason after I heard that Madoka-san could be in trouble"

"Trouble?" worriedly asked Madoka, or was that confusion? Hitomi couldn't really tell, there was no way she could be confused about how a fight was going to get her into trouble.

"Hitomi…" Sayaka looked at her with a worried expression on her face "What did you even hear about?"

Hitomi took a step back, taking a deep breath to calm herself before she spoke again.

"I heard that Madoka-san and Akemi-san fought, that it got physical"

There was a moment of silence as the other girls' eyes went wide in a mix of surprise and disbelief at Hitomi's words. The silence that had formed between them completely broken by a hearty laugh coming from Sakura.

"What's so funny about it, Sakura-san?"

"Oh man… I can't imagine these two fighting like that, my god…" Sakura wiped a tear that had started to form in her eye "Is coming to completely wrong conclusions a requisite for liking violin boy or something?"

"Yeah Hitomi, you got it completely wrong…" Sayaka frowned for a second, before she suddenly looked as if she had been insulted and quickly turned towards Kyouko "Ey! What did you mean by that!"

"I don't…" Hitomi simply was confused, the girl looking at the other two that had been the ones that had supposedly fought for some kind of explanation.

"Hitomi-chan," Madoka looked at her with a calmer expression on her face, one that exuded pity "Homura-chan and I didn't fight"

"You… didn't?" Hitomi slowly came to the realization, embarrassment quickly finding its place in her face as she realized what she had just done.

"I would never hurt Madoka" said Akemi as if even the idea that her fighting Madoka was something that only a fool would dare say.

Hitomi turned towards Akemi, all the things she had said to her making her embarrassment grow in strength. They barely knew each other and yet, Hitomi had assumed the worst based only in a rumor she didn't even properly hear about.

"Oh my god, I'm so, so, so sorry Akemi-san" Hitomi took a step back, putting enough space between the two so that she could do a deep bow towards Akemi "I apologize for the trouble I've caused you, Akemi-san"

Hitomi held the bow, the girl waiting for Akemi's response,

"It's fine. I don't really care"

Hitomi raised her head with a relieved sigh.

"But really, can you imagine these two fighting?" wondered Sakura, the redhead looking at them with a smirk.

"Ah… It wouldn't work… Homura would probably hit herself so that Madoka won or something" Sayaka sighed, Akemi did not deny her words; she simply kept her face as neutral as ever.

"We just wouldn't fight in the first place" complained Madoka, the girl making a small pout towards the other two.

Hitomi smiled as the tension around them completely faded away, she was glad that she had just mistaken the rumors. It did leave what the rumor was actually about though.

"Now I am curious though" said Hitomi, catching the others attention "If you two weren't fighting, what were the rumors about?"

A short silence surrounded the group, Sayaka and Sakura exchanged looks between them before looking towards Madoka. Madoka moved her eyes towards Akemi with a questioning look in her eyes, the other girl simply shrugging her shoulders in response to the non-spoken question.

"Well, you see…" Madoka looked back at Hitomi, a slight tint of pink in her cheeks "Homura-chan and I started dating"

"Oh"

Silence fell around them once again, Hitomi simply staring between them as the others waited for her reaction.

"That's…"

Hitomi tried to gather what everyone was thinking, try to see if they were just messing with her… by the looks of everyone's faces it didn't look like they were just joking around

"C-congratulations?" Hitomi said, more a reaction to the new than a thought out response.

Madoka looked at her with a slight tint of worry on her face, the girl took a step forward…

Hitomi took a step back.

"Hitomi-chan…" Guilt overcame Hitomi after she saw Madoka's face twitch before her expression changed into a hurt one. Hitomi couldn't ignore the killing glare that Akemi sent her way at the gesture.

The school bell rang.

"I… I have to go to my seat" Hitomi excused herself before she started to turn away, the last thing she heard being Kyouko sighing and Sayaka giving words of encouragement to Madoka.

Hitomi couldn't pay much attention to class; her mind had gone somewhere else as she tried to think about what Madoka had told her.

The bell rang one last time for the day, giving way to the students to go back home. Homura got up from her seat, her things already neatly placed back on her schoolbag, and started to walk towards Madoka's seat, the pinkette still in the middle of putting back her things; Homura could easily tell that her pace was abnormally slow, the usual spring to her movement being replaced with a slight hesitation in every movement she made.

Homura knew the reason as to why Madoka was feeling so down. The girl had already been affected by the rumors; a seed of doubt had been planted in Madoka's heart. And with Shizuki's reaction to the news, the seed had started to sprout.

Homura had thought while the classes were still going what she should do. The problem being Shizuki Hitomi's reaction to their relationship not being one she could just fix with her powers, at least not without having to alter the other girl too much; which would lead to the question of whether Shizuki Hitomi would still remain as the same person at that point.

No, Homura knew that Madoka wouldn't like if she just took care of the other girl by manipulating reality to her will.

Though changing how she thinks about such things would be the easiest choice.

The Devil's voice resonated throughout her mind, her not choosing to appear in such a crowded room.

And the best for her. Change Shizuki Hitomi, and she is sure to keep being Madoka's friend.

No, Homura had already decided to fix this in a different manner. She couldn't just change how someone that was important to Madoka was, that was something she really tried her best not to do.

Or rather, she didn't want to even check if she could change a person's own feelings like that. The implications of her powers being able to do such a thing would probably break the good relationships she had started to gather with the rest of the group.

Homura finally reached Madoka's seat, the other girl still picking up her things.

"Madoka" she called, already noticing a few curious eyes were on them.

Madoka looked up from her table, meeting Homura's eyes with a slightly forced smile on her face.

"Ah, sorry Homura-chan! I'll hurry up" said Madoka, picking up her pace as she closed her pencil case and threw it into her school bag. Madoka quickly got up from her seat, the girl almost jumping off of it. "Let's go, Homura-chan"

[-]

Homura gently tilted the watering can as droplets of water started to pour over the now sprouting seeds that they had planted together. The small plant gladly accepting the water Homura was giving it.

After she was sure to water it as much as Madoka had told her to do, she placed the can aside and observed the plant for a few seconds. Her attention quickly moving to her side as Madoka stood next to her, the other girl carrying a pair of pruning scissors looked with eager eyes to the sprouting flower.

"I can't believe it started sprouting so soon" Madoka said before squatting down until she was eye level with the flower pot. "You must be really good at taking care of it, Homura-chan!"

"It's only thanks to your guidance, Madoka" said Homura, a small smile forming in her lips as she looked at a now more energetic Madoka. The other girl had been able to focus completely on the job at hand, the rumors and Shizuki's reaction going to the back of her mind in the meantime.

Madoka looked up until their eyes met, a smile of her own in her face.

"Thank you, Homura-chan" Madoka slowly stood up, looking back to the small bonsai she had been pruning before. "I still have to finish with the bonsai the club president assigned me, but after that we can go back home"

After getting a small nod from Homura, Madoka's smile brightened before the girl turned around and started to make her way back to the small tree that still was in the middle of its pruning session.

Homura observed as the girl skillfully worked with the bonsai tree, every cut she made being backed by a deep well of knowledge. Madoka treated gardening as a hobby, but one that she enjoyed both doing and learning about; her bookshelf having quite the number of gardening books being telling enough of the girl's skills.

Homura could have stared at Madoka working the whole day if she needed to, but she still had to come through with her plan to lift up Madoka's spirits.

"Madoka, can I ask you a favor?" Homura started to put away everything that they had used.

Madoka stopped pruning before she turned around to look at Homura, a bright smile appearing on her face with the girl's comment.

"Of course Homura-chan!" she cheered. "I'll help you with anything!"

Homura smiled at the girl's cheerfulness, seeing Madoka act like usual being more than enough to soften her battered heart.

"It's about Amy, my cat" Homura started to say as she placed a small box of gardening tools back on the shelf "We got her things from my house, but I still have to find her"

Homura picked up a broom from one of the closets in the club room, the girl trying to advance some work so they could leave sooner.

"It's not that I'm worried about her being outside" added Homura "But I should show her where I am living in now, just to let her know where she can find food"

That was completely unnecessary, that much Homura knew. Her dolls were clearly attached to the cat, probably just as much as Homura herself was, and she knew that they would take care of her even without Homura having to tell them.

Homura knew better than anyone that her dolls were still a part of herself, that was part of why she was scared of them after all.

"So you want us to search for her?" asked Madoka

"Yes, I would like to check my house first. If she isn't there, I know of a few places that she frequents" Homura said, turning her head to look at Madoka directly "It will take some time to walk around the city, so if you don't want to, I would understand"

She knew she would find Amy in her house though; the dolls had been instructed to keep her there.

"Of course I will help you!" said Madoka "Besides, spending time with you is what I like to do the most. You didn't even have to ask, Homura-chan"

"Thank you, Madoka" said Homura, getting a smile in return from Madoka before the girl went back to work on the bonsai.

[-]

Homura opened the door to her house, the old smell she had gotten used to throughout the years welcoming her. The smell still made her remember how excited she had been the first time she walked into this apartment, how excited she had been to start a new life in Mitakihara after her surgery. How she had felt like everything would only get better from that point forwards.

How wrong she had been.

"Sorry for the intrusion…" muttered Madoka to herself as she stepped into the house.

Homura took off her loafers, neatly placing them next to each other as she did so. Madoka followed suit, the girl placing hers next to Homura's.

Homura made her way towards the living room door, slowly opening after she saw Madoka had already made her way towards her.

On top of the table of her living room sat Amy, the cat looking around in confusion as it tried to search where the dolls that had been taking care of her had suddenly gone to. Her confusion was quickly shut down when she noticed Homura, instead opting to meow at her from the table.

"She is so cute!" said Madoka from behind Homura, the girl just making her way into the room.

Homura walked over to Amy, the cat simply lying down as she demanded for Homura to keep doing what the dolls had been doing. Homura simply complied with a small smile on her face as the cat used Homura's extended hand as a make-shift scratcher.

"C-can I?" asked Madoka, looking over Homura's shoulder with clear restrain in her eyes.

"Go ahead" said Homura, moving her hand away from Amy as Madoka moved her hand closer to the cat.

Madoka stopped her hand a few centimeters away from the cat waiting for her to take the first step. Amy moved her head closer to Madoka's hand, the cat curiously sniffing it as she tried to see who Homura had brought over. After a few sniffs Amy simply lied back down and meowed at Madoka.

Madoka moved her hand closer to the cat, gently stroking her back. Madoka's smile widened as Amy simply let herself be petted, the girl becoming completely engrossed in petting her.

"She is so friendly!" giggled Madoka, Amy quietly purring in the background as Madoka's hand started to scratch her behind the ear.

"She is pretty used to making people fall for her" Homura reminisced. "Is how she used to get most of her food as a stray"

Seeing that Madoka was completely enthralled with Amy, Homura started to make her way to the kitchen, getting out of one of the cupboards a small bag of cat treats.

When she came back to the room Amy suddenly got up and moved away from Madoka's grasp, the cat jumping off the table to walk over to Homura as she had heard the familiar noise that the plastic bag made.

"Don't get too impatient" reprimanded Homura as she tried to dodge around Amy so she could reach Madoka. A hard task, seeing as Amy was trying as hard as possible to nudge against her leg.

"She really likes you" giggled Madoka, the girl looking at the spectacle that was unfolding in front of her.

"She just likes the treats" said Homura, finally reaching Madoka and handing her the bag. Amy quickly changed targets and was now nudging against Madoka's legs "See?"

Madoka laughed – god bless that – before she took a treat out of the bag and crouched down to give it to Amy, the cat gladly accepting it in exchange of letting Madoka pet her a bit more.

"Thank you for keeping Homura company all this time, Amy" said Madoka, Amy still too engrossed in her treat to even react to the girl's touch. "I will take care of her from now on, okay?"

Amy meowed in response, getting a small chuckle from Madoka.

A slight blush appeared on Homura's face at Madoka's words, Amy suddenly meowing almost as if she had understood Madoka only helped to drive deeper her embarrassment.

"Well-" Homura forced a cough, the girl trying to recompose herself "I have her cage in my room, we will have to buy food for her on the way to your house though"

"Okay" said Madoka as she slowly rose, turning to Homura with a small frown on her face "But Homura-chan, you are wrong"

Homura tilted her head to side at Madoka's statement, a look on confusion appearing on her face.

"It also is your home now, Homura-chan" said Madoka with a beaming smile on her face.

Homura stared at Madoka, her words still echoing in her mind. A grateful, happy, and honest smile appearing on Homura's lips.

"Right, thank you"

[-]

Amy comfortably slept on her bed, the sound of a pen against paper being the only noise that could be heard inside of Madoka's room. Madoka was working on the schoolwork she hadn't done yet, while Homura sat on the bed as she revised the content they would be seeing tomorrow.

Homura moved her head away from her book, her eyes going to the digital clock that was on top of Madoka's desk. An hour until midnight still, Madoka had been working on her schoolwork for two hours already; having said she wanted to try doing it by herself before relying on Homura.

Though with how long it had been… it wouldn't be rude to ask, right?

"Do you need help with anything, Madoka?" asked Homura, the girl being unable to just sit idly as Madoka struggled by herself.

"Hmmm…" Madoka hummed as she started to think of something to answer with, the girl tapping her head with the back of the pen she was holding. "No, not really. A break would be nice though, and…"

An impish smile appeared on Madoka's lips before the girl got up from her chair, her pen clattering against her desk. Madoka carefully turned towards Homura, taking steps that felt like those of a hungry beast towards her.

"With everything that has happened today…" whispered Madoka, her words making Homura's heart start racing as she recognized the dangerous glint in the girl's eyes. "…I feel like I've been neglecting something important"

Madoka swiftly closed the distance between them, pushing Homura against the bed as she left their faces mere centimeters apart.

"I haven't given you much attention today" Madoka's breath against her lips completely froze Homura in place, and with Madoka being on top of her she could feel her old meek self coming out. "I don't want you to feel lonely again, Homura-chan"

Madoka leant forwards, stopping only when their lips were barely grazing each other. The slight touch made Homura crave even more for the contact, yet she knew she should never be the one to take the initiative; she shouldn't taint Madoka out of her own desires.

"And I know you've been trying to cheer me up today…" Madoka whispered, every word making their lips softly touch again and again, the gesture making Homura's whole body scream at her as she tried to take a hold of herself. "…So I think you deserve a reward"

Homura's heart raced; the girl completely unable to fight against Madoka. She was trying oh so hard not to close the gap herself, to not simply take Madoka's lips by herself.

"please…" Homura pleaded, her voice coming out even before she could think what she was saying; her whole focus working on holding back her own desires.

She would only accept what Madoka wanted to give her.

She would not take more from her.

Homura felt as Madoka's smile widened at her words, yet she didn't have much time to think about it before Madoka sealed their kiss, her thoughts being completely overridden as her whole mind just focused on Madoka and Madoka only. The kiss being the first one since this morning's small peck not helping at all to keep her mind in check as she simply gave herself away to Madoka's love bomb of a kiss.

A few seconds later Madoka pulled away, the gesture making Homura have to hold back a disappointed whimper. Homura was glad that Madoka and her never went this far during the time loops, she was sure to die of loneliness if she ever had had to give away this Madoka.

"You can go to sleep while I finish, okay?" asked Madoka, the girl moving away a strand of hair that had found its place over Homura's face.

Homura nodded in response, the feeling of their kiss still to young in her mind to be able to even recompose herself. If helping Madoka without using her powers would give her this kind of rewards she was going to try and do it more times without a doubt.

Current date: Tuesday, 27th of May.

A/N: Sorry for being late.

I have some bad news to give, due to my hands being a mess my doctor told me that I should rest them as much as possible. And since my other responsibilities also requires me to use a keyboard, I cannot rest them while working.

As such, I've had to make the decision to slow my pace with my writing. From now on there will only be one chapter per week, I'll be posting them on Sunday.

Sorry for the inconvenience, I will try to find a way to return to my previous pace without overworking my hands. In the meantime, I can only apologize for not being able to deliver on my promises.