Pilgrimage 7

Germany

[]

Long black hair swayed through the cold skies, her boots dragged through the snow. Stopping in front of a seemingly-abandoned gym, she clenched her fists and pushed through the door.

There, through the door, were ten magical girls, all wearing biker-gang jackets, all smiling nonchalantly. The moment she came into view, every magical girl there turned their attention to her.

A young girl with vibrant red hair welcomed the raven-haired girl. Speaking in German, she welcomed the Japanese girl.

"Hello, my name is Kerze," The girl said in German.

"Hello, my name is Kito. Nice to meet you, Kerze," Homura answered, nodding respectively and shaking Kerze's hand. Noticing another girl with short white hair, she reintroduced herself.

Proudly nodding, the other girl said, "Aaaaand my name is Victoria! Nice to meet ya!" Wrestling her arm on Kerze's, she proudly announced, "Kerze and I are lovers!"

"I see," Homura said, "I'll be rooting for you both." Bowing her head once again, her purple eyes were unfazed. Everyone else snickered in the background.

Awkwardly coughing, Kerze struggled to get the mood under control. "We are the Osmanen Germania group, a magical girl team based on a biker gang. We all like motorcycles and we don't really get along with society. Some of us lost our parents, some of us never had anyone to begin with. Stuff like that. We're always willing to lend a hand to a lost magical girl. Granted, as long as you don't attack us."

"I see, thank you. I'll be in your care for a while, Kerze."

Wrapping her arm around Homura, Kerze lead her into the group, with Victoria pouting adorably like an angry little hamster. The raven-haired girl couldn't help but snicker.

It was enjoyable. For the first time in a while, the Akemi girl enjoyed herself in a group filled with strangers. They were all very nice and patient with her personality. It's as if they welcomed her as one of their own.

Homura was grateful.

"So you see, Victoria and I met two years ago. I just lost my parents, and my little sister and I were both thrown in some crappy orphanage. We had a tough time, but we had each other. At least, I thought that was enough. That was until she entered a gang."

"Yep! That's when I first met her little sister. My God she was a mess. When I was patrolling, I saw her sis robbing an old lady! Like holy shit."

"T-that's enough….Victoria. You're kinda...uh…"

"Ah, sorry," Victoria shut her mouth. "It's just…I kinda find it funny."

"Well..you're not wrong."

They giggled in sync, with Homura looking confused. "That's when she dragged my little sister back to the orphanage, and gave her a good spanking. It's how we met."

"With your little sister…spanked?"

"Pretty much."

"Huh…" Homura let out an awkward nod.

"Yep. And she got us back into shape, and bit by bit, we kinda…fell for each other. I'm really grateful to Victoria. Without her, I think both my sis and I would've been long dead. If it wasn't for this wish…"

A wish…granted by Kyubey…

[]

The faint air of a foreign land penetrated Kira's nostrils. Her eyes gleamed at the dark corridors of Germany, solely lit by tiny little bulbs in the city streets of Bamberg. The houses were almost medieval in nature, with a huge river flowing right below Kira's feet.

From the corner of her eye, she saw a faint hue of purple glowing near a lamp post. "Ah, Sensei!" She said, clasping her hands together, "Ahh, a motorcycle?" Kira noticed her raven-haired teacher drag a black-and-purple motorcycle. Kira couldn't help but chuckle watching her teacher's femininely-thin arms carry such a manly piece of metal.

"Yes. I met with the Osmanen Germania group. A magical girl group designed after an old biker gang," Homura said, hugging her arms as the cold cut through her bones.

Lifting an eyebrow, Kira said, "Biker gang? That sounds dangerous. You gonn' be alright, Sensei?"

"You shouldn't judge a book by its cover. You'd be very surprised," The raven-haired girl said, winking at her student. "Let's go. We'll meet them again tomorrow."

Parking the motorcycle by the side of the street, the two magical girls entered a well-designed Hotel, with Kira yawning slothfully. "Ugh…whatever you say, Sensei."

[]

Madoka remembered the first time she met Homura. Long, smooth black hair, beautiful purple eyes, and a powerful demanding demeanor. She was nothing at all like the weak and frail Madoka. Homura Akemi, to Madoka, was the very definition of feminine grace and power.

From time to time, the pinkette would envy Homura's strength and beauty. The way the Akemi girl carried herself was so admirable, Madoka's eyes would glisten with admiration from Homura's dark beauty.

It was like watching a beautiful yet dangerous animal up close. The feeling was exhilarating.

At first, Madoka was afraid of Homura because of that feeling, but as time grew, the pinkette realized Homura was just like any other girl, just a little quieter and just a little shyer.

She remembered tugging on her sleeve. The touch made the raven-haired girl slightly jump, her ears red and looking away from Madoka. The pinkette couldn't help but giggle.

Homura, deep down at her core, was very different from Madoka's first impression of her. Fragile at heart, the raven-haired girl tried her very best to be strong. Had she hardened? Had she shattered? Several of these questions ran through Madoka's thoughts like an out-of-control rollercoaster.

"H-Homura-chan, would you like to go to the mall with us?" She asked, beet-red. For a moment, the stoic girl's eyes widened, her voice hesitated.

"O..okay…" She said, quietly.

A smile brighter than the sun met Homura's gaze.

For a moment, Madoka swore she saw a smile softer than snow on Homura's lips. It happened for just a moment, but she saw it – Homura's heartfelt smile.

Her heart tugged painfully. She definitely wanted to be Homura's friend.

Unbeknownst to her, Homura treasured dearly, more than the world.

"I want to see you, Homura-chan…"

[]

Laughter and rain poured into the atmosphere. Her ears were clogged by water and madness, as her eyes only saw the massive witch in front of her. People screaming, people dying, blood everywhere. That's all she saw for over ten whole years.

Ten whole years in the span of a mere six weeks.

"Sensei~" An ear-piercing voice filled with overpowering sweetness shrieked in her ears. Slowly opening her eyelids, she saw a familiar green-haired figure smiling over her with a black marker in hand. "I tried waking you up sooner, but you were just not waking up. Had a good dream or something?"

"Not really," She said coldly, pushing Kira off her and tiredly slipped purple bunny slippers into her feet, "I'm just a heavy sleeper." She lied.

"So, what're we doin' today, Sensei?"

"First I'm going to see just what you drew on my face. Depending on what you did, we might have to start with ten laps around the city."

"C-city?" Kira gulped, "Don't you mean street?"

"I mean city. Every square inch of it."

I…shouldn't mess with Sensei…

Kira heard the sound of water dripping from the faucet, and two small feet pitter-pattering across the smooth floor. With water still dripping from her cheeks, Homura spoke, "Start running."

"Gaaaahhh!"

[]

I had been fighting for a very long time. It wasn't for the sake of the world, or the city, or the town. It was all for one person. I kept fighting for that one person. Madoka Kaname.

My life was filled with thorns and wounds buried under countless scars. But I kept moving for her.

My gratitude to her surpassed everything else in my life. My compassion for her encompassed my very soul. My love for her consumed every other emotion I've felt.

Of course, these feelings are something I'll never tell anyone. They are things I will drag to the grave with me.

Have I become something else? Had I become inhuman?

I questioned myself over and over after the fall of Walpurgisnaucht.

I even contemplated suicide. I kept failing over and over and over and over again. One more try, one more chance. Just one more TIME is all I kept telling myself.

And I stuck it out.

I succeeded.

After the excruciating punishment Homura inflicted on Kira, the duo left to meet with the Osmanen Germania group.

Contrary to their cheerful demeanor from last night, the biker gang was now silent and sad. The ten-person biker gang was now reduced to nine, with Victoria sobbing uncontrollably in the background.

Kira's face contorted to anxious awkwardness, like a bent pole. "Uh…w-what's…going on?" She asked in Japanese, to her teacher.

Homura motioned for a "Shush" and walked over to Victoria, who clearly didn't register her. "Victoria," She said in German, "Where is Kerze?"

Just hearing her name sent Victoria into a fit. Hysterically sobbing even worse than before, if that was even possible, Victoria's muscles convulsed from sheer stress.

"Victoria," Homura commanded, "Tell me what happened."

"Kerze…she…Kerze…she…She committed suicide!"

Eyes wide opened, Homura glanced at Victoria's white soul gem. It was almost seared in black fog. "…Shit."

[]

CHAPTER END

Author Notes

This arc is dedicated to Chester Bennington (March 20, 1976 – July 20, 2017). Lead Singer of Linkin Park.

Rest in Peace. You were one of my favorite lead singers. I grew up with your songs. You were a part of my childhood.

To my readers: I feel it may be distasteful writing a story arc based on suicide solely because a favorite musician of mine died, but this is really the only way I can show my gratitude to the singer. Hope you can stick around. It's been a while since I've written for this story.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you aren't familiar with Linkin Park, go ahead and listen to some of his music. I think you'd like it.