The familiar noise of the crowded arcade surrounded her in an ocean of noises that tried to lure her into the comfortable games in which she had found company within in the past. But Kyouko had not come here to drown in the old violent ocean she had once called home, but rather to help someone else find peaceful waters to float in themselves.

Just like the same warm cerulean ocean she had found a new home in herself.

The same ocean that was now losing against Homura in a game of Dance Dance Revolution. Every time that Sayaka looked towards the other girl's score only making her lose concentration and make even more mistakes than before. Had she paid more attention to the game itself Kyouko was pretty sure she could have done just as well a Homura, who was meticulously stepping on the correct pads without a hint of entertainment in her face or moves.

The final score screen came up, Homura having won even if she had had a treacherous start with her not being used to the game.

"Oh, c'mon!" complained Sayaka, turning angrily towards the still stoic Homura. "You weren't even trying to dance! You are just pressing the pads without almost moving!"

Homura looked towards Sayaka, her gaze not truly meeting her. The girl somehow had not lost her breath, a feat that had gone from seeming impressive to being almost inhuman throughout the day.

"It was faster that way" replied Homura, a mix of confidence and confusion at the other girl's anger "I believe it was the best solution to this game"

"It's a game! You don't have to find the best solution to a game, you know?" sighed Sayaka as she recomposed herself, the girl had been doing a pretty great job at not jumping at the other girl's throat; An incredible improvement compared to how a month ago she would have pushed her off a ledge without second thought.

"If it wasn't a competition, then why did you try so hard to win?" asked Homura, the girl's words way sharper than her stone cold distant expression, her way of acting today being odder than usual for her; which was saying a lot when it came to Homura.

"I didn't want to win, but I didn't expect you to be so good at it your first time of playing!" explained Sayaka, now getting off the machine. Homura's gaze focused on them; her eyes now feeling as if she was there.

Kyouko took a few steps forwards, getting closer to them as to close a small conversation circle around them, making sure to not call the attention of the staff.

"Sorry Sayaka, but a win is a win" said Kyouko as she placed an arm around the neck of quite a bit taller Sayaka, trying to appear as confident as she could as she did so and forcing her to bend over. "You still have a long way to go in DDR"

Sayaka looked at her with what seemed like slight offence in her eyes for the comment, Kyouko was just glad that the colorful lights of the establishments helped hide her probably blushing face.

She had been doing the same to Homura before, so it shouldn't come out as weird, right? Right?

"I-I refuse to admit defeat to that playstyle" complained Sayaka, her voice slightly embarrassed.

Was it because of the embarrassment from losing against someone who had admitted to never playing before? Or was it from what Kyouko was doing?

"That's not a fair way to play" kept talking Sayaka, the girl not trying to get out of Kyouko's grip but rather keeping close.

Was that a sign? Or was Kyouko overthinking things?

Kyouko's eyes wandered around the room before they laid upon Homura. The girl's eyes, even in their almost blank stare, still carried a knowing unentertained gaze. As if her eyes spelled "I know" and were telling her to get over with it already.

Kyouko quickly took her arm off Sayaka. Sayaka, taken by surprise by the sudden lack of an arm around her to lay against, almost lost her balance.

"S-so what do we do now?" asked Kyouko, her eyes meeting Homura's judging gaze.

"W-well-" Sayaka forced a cough as she tried to recompose herself, Kyouko tried not to read too much into it; better to take her mind out of it. "There are a few other games we could try… but I'm not sure if Homura is really liking them"

"Do not worry about me" Answered Homura, her tone of voice and the words she spoke setting off alarms inside of Kyouko's mind that the girl didn't even know she had. A deep worry seating in her mind, a conversation she shouldn't remember playing back in her mind-

In her… her…

What was she thinking about again?

"We can keep playing these games if you two want; But I do need to know if we are going to stay here for dinner or not" asked Homura, as she took out her phone. "I need to tell Madoka if I'm going to eat at her house."

"Hmmm…" Hummed Sayaka, the girl shifting her weight around as she finished getting herself together. "We could eat out"

They looked towards Kyouko, their eyes looking for confirmation on the matter.

It wouldn't hurt, would it?

"Sure, there are a lot of great places around here" answered Kyouko "We can decide where to later"

Homura nodded before she started typing out a message on her phone. As the girl closed the messaging app, her phone's default colorful background took Kyouko by surprise.

"Huh, didn't expect you to not change your phone's background" asked Kyouko, earning herself a questioning look from Homura.

"Now that you mention it…" added Sayaka, as she moved besides Homura to look at the girl's still unlocked screen.

"What do you mean?" asked Homura, showing curiosity for the first time throughout the day, the girl holding her phone up as she looked at the basic background.

"Kind of expected you to have a photo of Madoka or something like that" said Kyouko, as she crossed her arms behind her head "Just so you could see her even when she wasn't there or that cheesy stuff you two are up to all the time"

"Right?" added Sayaka, the girl's voice increasing at the same rate as her excitement "I honestly expected her to have one that not even Madoka knew she had taken, like a photo from afar or stuff like that".

"I would never do such a thing" quickly corrected Homura, the girl slightly offended by the statement

A short silence formed around them. Homura looked at Sayaka with a small frown on her face; Sayaka held the girl's gaze with a disbelieving raised eyebrow.

"No, no; Homura is right" added Kyouko, which got her weird looks from the other two. "I mean, remember how she won't do anything unless Madoka tells her to do so? She is harmless with that kinda stuff… Now, Madoka on the other hand-"

"No." violently interrupted Homura as she stomped the ground to turn and face Kyouko directly, her eyes carried and edge like that of a recently sharpened sword.

"C'mon Homu, you gotta admit that she would, right Sayaka?" said Kyouko, trying not to feel intimated of Homura's stance, the girl somehow felt more dangerous than usual.

"Hmm…" hummed Sayaka, as she held her chin with her left hand, the girl's eyebrows frowned as she gave the matter a bit of thought. "I mean…"

"Don't you dare" warned Homura, her head whipping to look over at Sayaka instead, the other girl still thinking about what stance to take on the matter; though even her taking so long to think about it was angering Homura "Madoka would never do such a thing"

"Why not?" questioned Kyouko, making Homura's frown deepen even more as the girl's attention went back to her.

"She is too nice to do that. Too good of a person. Too innocent" quickly explained Homura "Madoka wouldn't do anything that she would consider to be bad without reason"

"And getting a photo of the girl she liked wouldn't be enough of a reason for her?" countered Kyouko, one brow raised in defiance.

"That wouldn't justify it-"

"Homura…" interrupted Sayaka getting the attention of both of them "I'm sorry to break it to you, but Madoka would very much do so. She is no angel"

"Yeah, she can get pretty bold" added Kyouko as she relaxed her posture now that Homura's aggressiveness started to cool down; Homura now taking control of her emotions once more. "And even more with how she acts around you"

Homura stopped and looked at them with confusion in her eyes, the girl's aggression dissipating into thin air as her mind cooled off and her thoughts reorganized themselves. The girl's frown was still present, but it showed more confusion than anger.

"I admit that she can be… bold when we are alone" said Homura, a small blush on her cheeks as she spoke.

Kyouko couldn't help but smile at Homura's words, Madoka being able to lead their relationship like that filling her chest with pride; as if she had been the one that had taught her how to (even if she really hadn't done much)

"But she wouldn't do what you two are accusing her of" Homura's gaze became sharp once again, her previous aggression now showing confidence and pure trust. "I know she isn't like that"

"How are you so sure? Have you seen her phone's gallery?" asked Kyouko, still trying to push the matter before her chance disappeared.

"No, she hasn't showed it to me" Homura answered "And I try not to peek at her phone whenever she is using it"

"Maybe she took a photo of you then" said Kyouko "Probably before you two were going out too, I think she would just ask you to take one nowadays"

"I would have noticed-"

"Are you sure about that?" quickly interrupted Kyouko, trying to continue piercing the same spot she had opened on the perfect image the girl had of Madoka "You really sure she never did?"

Homura frowned once more, a mix of anger and doubt on her eyes as she tried to think back on all the times she had seen Madoka with her phone.

Sayaka approached Kyouko, the girl quiet steps catching Kyouko's attention.

"You should stop" said Sayaka, nodding towards Homura "She is going to get angry at this rate"

Kyouko looked at Homura for a few seconds, the other girl still occupied with trying to remember if Madoka had or had not taken a photo of her; apparently something she had never really paid attention to, seeing how much trouble she was having with it.

Kyouko sighed, and with a small pause, walked towards Homura.

"Just ask her when you get home" Kyouko placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, taking her out of her trance "Now, let's go, I wanna play against you two in something that won't get a lot of attention from the staff"

Kyouko started to walk away from the other two, leaving a still dazed Homura behind. Sayaka walked over to Homura, placed a hand on her shoulder and with a small smile nudged her to follow Kyouko.

Steam filled the room, condensing droplets of water trickled down the walls. The sound of running water stopped as Madoka stepped out of the shower, the warmth of the hot water she had been under suddenly replaced by air that was cold in comparison that made her shiver for a bit. Thankful for the warmed floor tiles, she stepped over to the towel she had prepared beforehand and started to dry herself.

It had been still a bit early for her to take a bath, or even a shower, but she had been feeling really uncomfortable in the living room as she waited for her mom to come back. The girl somehow feeling as if lots of eyes had been watching her, a sensation that pushed her to cool her head down with a nice shower.

Which had apparently worked, seeing how the moment she started to take a shower the sensation disappeared completely.

Her eyes wandered to the shower, where quite a few extra bottles of haircare products had taken residence in after Homura moved in. Coconut oil that the girl applied before going to sleep, a shampoo of a brand she had never heard of, accompanied by a conditioner of the same brand, hair mousse that Homura said increased volume, a bottle of what Homura had called 'nourishing serum' that apparently helped with split ends, and a bottle of BB cream.

All products that Homura had to really fight against Madoka's mom to make sure that they wouldn't buy them for her. She would keep saying that they were too expensive, and to let her pay for those at the very least.

Though seeing all the product line-up made Madoka a bit self-conscious with how little care she took of her hair in comparison. And with how prideful Homura was of her hair, and it made a lot of sense that she was, Homura probably thought that Madoka's hair was subpar in comparison.

Madoka touched her still damp hair, the towel not being near enough to completely dry her hair with such little time. It wasn't in bad condition, but she could see a few split ends here and there. She clearly had less volume than Homura too. And Homura's hair color was prettier too, instead of the washed out pink she had.

Homura would never tell Madoka such a thing of course, but… it still kind of hurt.

"Aaahhh… What am I even thinking about" sighed Madoka as she kept drying her hair.

Homura wouldn't tell her that, not because she didn't want to hurt her, but because she really wouldn't think it was like that. If Madoka ever mentioned it to her she would surely look at her with the same worried and hurt look she always used whenever Madoka self deprecated herself in front of Homura. Then she would say a few reasons as to why Madoka is wrong, even if most of those reasons are 'Because I think so'.

A small dumb smile appeared on Madoka's face as she imagined Homura listing all the reasons as to why she thinks that Madoka's hair is better than her own. Sure, a lot of them would be dumb, but that was just how Homura was. Always logical until her feelings get in her way, then she is a mess that can't really think straight.

Just how she reacts every time that Madoka kisses her, the girl failing miserable to hide her blush.

Or how she always softened her expression whenever she talked with her.

How the girl would cry whenever she finally broke and talked about her attempts at saving her from her own fate-

Madoka's vision became blurry, the girl lost her footing as she fell to the ground; her whole body to weak to keep up. A million memories rushed in. An existence greater than life itself appeared before her.

Colors she could not name surrounded her as she observed infinite universes from her home in the stars. A raven haired girl forced herself in battle.

Porcelain like legs appeared in her blurry vision, a clap echoed in the bathroom.

The girl's face was not clear, yet she could feel her sadness.

The porcelain like figure frowned, a second sturdier clap reverberated Madoka's limp body.

Her… soul gem? Darkened, the girl expended magic way faster than she should. Madoka had to interfere with her own wings to protect her from blows that would have hit her otherwise.

A third clap. A fourth. A fifth.

Where was she? What was she seeing? Who was the person she was seeing? The noise in her head increased.

A sixth. A seventh.

Only the colors of space surrounded Madoka in her state, uncountable gems floated around her in a state not so far from death. A cloud of static covered further away than a few meters from where she was.

An eighth. A ninth. A tenth

The colors fought against the static that tried to devour them

Madoka could hear how the universe cried out as it was torn in two.

A violet flame burned the colors away, only ashes remained around her. The flame caught up to Madoka herself, the ashes it left behind full of fear.

…

…

…

Madoka gasped. Her eyes opened. Her heart beat as fast as it could. A sensation like that of falling cursed through her body, making the girl drop the towel she had just picked up.

It took her a few moments to calm her breathing, the girl's mind was foggy but still she could remember she had just gotten out of the shower. Her whole body still wet had yet to be dried.

"Haa…" sighed Madoka as she started to dry herself, Homura's haircare products catching her attention for a second "Maybe there is too much steam in the bath and I got dizzy from that…"

The same sensation from before of being watched was now more intense than before, though it felt reserved. Piercing eyes in the reflection of the mirror appeared from time to time, only making Madoka hurry up as she finished drying up.

"I hope mom comes home soon…"

"Eh… Homura, they are getting kinda close" said Kyouko as she tried to take down as many zombies as possible before she had to reload "Pay attention to the game!"

"AH! I can't get them all on my side!" shouted Sayaka, the girl not even having to aim to hit a zombie with how many there were in front of her. "We shouldn't have put it in five player mode with only three of us!"

"Homura! We are going to lose!" shouted Kyouko.

Homura came back to her body, the soul crushing pain she felt in her head intensifying from what she had had to do just moments ago.

She took aim and started to try and help, but she had taken too long and they didn't have enough firepower to get back into the game. In a few seconds, they were overrun by zombies and one by one they died.

"Oh c'mon!" complained Kyouko, the girl angrily putting the plastic gun away.

"We were so close to the end too…" lamented Sayaka as she placed the gun from the fake players in their place too.

"Yeah… what the hell happened back there Homura?" asked Kyouko, the girl's expression a mix of anger, disappointment, and worry "You suddenly stopped shooting"

"I…"

The image of the Devil being unable to forge Madoka's memories came back to her.

The shriek of the universe as Homura forcefully rewound time just a few seconds still in her mind. It had not been how her shield did it, it had not made a new timeline; it had moved everything back, every single atom, every single electric charge in the universe forced to become what they were a few seconds ago.

It had been violent. Forceful. Wounds still opened all around the fabric of reality itself that Homura hurried to close.

It had not been an entropy defiant spell like her shield time travel.

The magic of her flame had engulfed the universe itself and consumed a large chunk of it to make it possible.

"I just got distracted" Homura turned to face them, doing a deep bow towards them "I apologize, I'll pay back what you two spent"

Kyouko sighed, waving her hand off as guilt started to gnaw at the girl. The girl thinking she shouldn't have asked it like that, that she should have used a gentler tone-

Homura reduced the reach of her consciousness, the girl now realizing she had been reading the other girl mind without wanting to. Something she only ever wanted to have to do when rewritten them.

"Nah, don't worry about it" said Kyouko, dismissing the whole thing. "You have to be tired from being here all day, the noise and the people can catch up to you. You should have told us something though"

"Right, sorry" apologized Homura, her consciousness going back to where Madoka was. She didn't want to have to monitor the girl while she showered, but had she taken just a few more seconds to react everything had been for nothing.

Homura wasn't going to make that mistake again. She couldn't rely on the Devil. She couldn't rely on her dolls.

Once again, she could only rely on herself for this.

"Just tell us next time!" added Sayaka, the girl trying to sound energetic as to make sure the mood didn't go awry.

"I will" said Homura, forcing a small smile to try and reassure the other two.

Sayaka smiled back, Kyouko merely relaxed her expression.

"Well, why don't we go eat!" said Sayaka "If we take a bit longer everywhere we go it's going to be full of people!"

"Yeah, you are right" agreed Kyouko, the girl taking out her phone as she opened the maps app on it and started looking around. "Anything you two want to eat?"

"I know to trust you on these things, so whatever you think will be best" said Sayaka before she turned to face Homura "Unless Homura wants something in particular?"

Homura looked at them, her mind still tried to catch up with everything around her as it worked the hardest it ever had. She could feel her own magic not being enough to fix what the flame had burned, a fleet of familiars had to be released to help with the burning seams.

"Anything's fine with me"

Kyouko nodded as she went back to her phone, the girl quickly tapped away a name of a restaurant and checked if it was open or not before looking up from the screen.

"Well, I know a good ramen place relatively close, that okay?"

"Oh, I think you talked about it before?" wondered Sayaka as she looked at Kyouko's phone.

"Yeah, pretty good. Not as good as the one in Kazamino, but what can one do" Kyouko shrugged before she looked back at Homura "Is ramen okay then?"

Homura slowly moved her eyes to meet Kyouko's, her body unable to keep up with the stress of her current rate of magic expenditure.

"Yes, it's okay"

Everything is okay…

Current date: Friday 30th, May

A/N: Sorry for being so late! I promise I will post another one before next week!

I'll try to get a hold of my life so I can get back to a proper schedule this march, sorry for the inconvenience.

Please do leave your thoughts on the chapter if you can (and want)!