How many times had she been in this situation? How many times had she cried as she pulled the trigger to kill her only reason for going back again and again, and again just to try and save her? How much longer could she bear to watch her suffer the inevitable fate of so many other magical girls when she was too late to stop it?
The smell of pistol smoke still lingered in her nose as she cradled Madoka's lifeless body and placed it carefully on a patch of dry concrete amidst the ruins of Mitakihara. Rain pelted down on her as she wept silently, surrounded by the desolate remains of the once-vibrant city.
Homura looked down at Madoka, she stared at the bloodied corpse before her, Madoka's pink hair matted with crimson red, her school uniform besmirched with a mixture of blood and mud, her skin torn and bruised while bones were twisted in place. Homura's body started to tremble. Why did it have to be her, the embodiment of a gentle and kind person, the Madoka that could always see beyond the façade she wore, Madoka who always thought of others before thinking of herself, Madoka, who's smile could turn the dreariest of days into one of warmth and happiness.
Homura's knees buckled from underneath her, she started punching her fist into the ground beneath her shattering it like a sledgehammer. She screamed out in rage and grief at yet another failed timeline. She had once again failed to protect Madoka, her one and only reason for living through this same month. She kept hammering her fist into the ground even as her knuckles began to bleed from the force of the impacts. Tears streamed down her face as she gasped for air. She allowed herself to cry, but also reminded herself that this setback was temporary, and that she would have another chance to try again.
Homura took a deep breath and let it go, collecting herself as she stood up and began searching. She combed through the debris of the building that had once stood tall in its place searching for something to cover Madoka. Amid the shattered glass and twisted metal, she spotted a tattered curtain that had possibly hung from a window sill or a doorway. She removed it from the pole that had held it up.
Homura returned to where Madoka laid, feeling her crimson covered fist heal as she took the curtain she had and draped it over Madoka. Homura sat next to her taking her cold hand into her own, she was silent as she began to wonder why this was the course the universe set out for her and others like her.
Was it some cruel joke or entertainment for some deity that thought all of this suffering was fun to watch? She couldn't fathom if there was a god somewhere out there. Why would they create a universe that was filled with such misery? Homura clenched her fist as she continued to think. No, no just god would let this happen… or maybe god abandoned them, leaving them to fend for themselves. She couldn't stand it. If she were in charge of everything, maybe she could. But how? would it be even possible for her to gather enough karmic destiny to become?
"That was unfortunate. I had hoped to see Madoka become the most wicked of witches to ever exist. But it's no matter; there are always other magical girls out there." Kyubey sat unemotionally on a nearby ledge, commenting on the recent events.
"Incubator," Homura spat out, her voice leveled towards the white furred creature. Kyubey leapt from his perch landing in front of Homura,"I don't understand why you tried so hard, it just prolonged the inevitable. Your efforts were futile from the beginning. All magical girls have to face the same fate, sooner or later. It's just destiny." Beaded red eyes gazed into her own, "Say what you like incubator, your words mean nothing to me. I'll keep fighting as long as I still possess my powers." As Homura materialized her shield, the sound of the pouring rain ceased abruptly, and rain droplets remained suspended mid-fall, she pulled out a pistol from behind her shield and took aim. The gun recoiled as Homura pulled the trigger. A single bullet remained suspended mid-flight, waiting to hit its target.
She allowed time to flow once more. The bullet hit true, killing kyubey for a short while. Homura didn't feel like continuing conversing with the invasive species. Storing her gun away, Homura focused on Madoka. She leaned over her, planting a kiss on her forehead "I'll see you soon, Madoka." Homura's voice quivered as she stood up walking a few feet from Where Madoka laid. She took one last look at Madoka and the ruined Mitakihara "I can do better, I have to keep trying" she said as she set her hand upon the shield.
Homura went to turn the shield but it didn't budge. She was taken aback for a second; this hadn't ever happened to her before. "You were working just fine a minute ago," she grunted as she put a little more force into it but it wouldn't turn. She had heard this issue arising with other Homuras out there at the inn. "Maybe I should try contacting tech support." She muttered to herself. "Let me try one more time." Homura took a firm grip on the shield and applied all her strength to turn it counterclockwise.
The shield turned with a metallic click, but nothing happened. "What the hell is going on?" Homura shook the shield in frustration. Suddenly, she grunted in pain as a massive headache hit her. She gripped her face as the pain became more intense. She didn't understand what was happening when she was hit with a sudden feeling of weightlessness and began to fall.
As she fell, a white void surrounded Homura, which then shifted into various colors - first pink, then gold, and finally a mixture of white, gold, and pink. The void then morphed into a pitch black abyss, causing Homura's shield to dissipate along with her magical girl form. The pain of her headache overtook her, and she felt as if her eyes were going to pop out of her skull due to the pressure. Homura's last thought before succumbing to the skull-crushing pain was, It can't end like this.
=
Homura's eyes fluttered open, and she was met with an unfamiliar, blurry ceiling. The room was dimly lit by a small lamp on a table side cabinet and a flashing digital clock. However, the first thing she truly took notice of was the familiar smell of a sterile and clinical hospital room. The second thing she observed was her poor vision as she turned her head to the left to see a brightly lit cityscape through a window that was partially covered by blinds.
She spotted her half-rimmed red glasses sitting next to the clock on the bedside cabinet that sat between the bed she lay in and the window to the outside. Homura honestly didn't feel like moving, but if she wanted to figure out which hospital she was in, she would reluctantly have to. She made a move to grab her glasses when another headache stopped her. She winced, massaging her temples to ease the slight pain; this one was much smaller, lasting only a few seconds before quickly fading away.
She took her glasses and slipped them on, checking the time on the clock: 00:27. Uncovering herself from the blanket, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and got up to take a better look out the window. She felt a little light-headed as she did so, Homura didn't know what to expect but it wasn't her seeing the Tokyo skyline before her.
In the distance, two enormous towers loomed above the Tokyo skyline. The first tower leaned at an angle, surrounded by gigantic structures that seemed to support it. It was lit up in a dazzling display of various colors. The other one that resembled a rocket ship to Homura was dimly lit and less colorful than its counterpart.
Feeling confused, she was at a loss as to why she wasn't in Mitakihara. She looked down at herself and realized that she was still in her same old body. Trying to make sense of the situation, she wondered if perhaps in this new timeline, the Orphanage had never sent her to Mitakihara for treatment. She couldn't help but feel a sense of unease as she tried to piece together what had happened and what her next steps should be.
Homura turned around and quickly scanned the room. What she had failed to notice when she woke up was an older woman, perhaps in her mid-thirties, with long black hair like her own, asleep on a brown leather lounge chair on the right side of the room. Was she with the orphanage? Homura didn't know. She quietly made her way around the hospital bed, past the woman, and entered the bathroom. There, she flipped the switch to turn on the bathroom light.
Homura saw herself in the mirror. She was wearing clothing provided by the hospital while the pair of glasses she wore were the same old glasses she used to wear when she first met "Madoka," she said with sadness in her voice. She wanted to cry but held back to not wake the women on the other side of the door.
Facing the sink, Homura took off her glasses and turned on the faucet. She splashed some cold water on her face to liven herself up a bit and dried it with a hand towel hanging on the wall. Taking a calming breath, she concentrated on feeling her magic, but there was nothing. She didn't feel an ounce of magic within her. She looked to her left hand where her ring should have been, but once again, there was nothing.
Homura could feel her heart start beating faster as she felt like she was going to start panicking. If she didn't have access to her magic, then what good was she to Madoka if she couldn't prevent her from contacting Kyubey and stopping Walpurgisnacht? I need to calm down, she thought to herself, if I am in my old body, then that-. Suddenly, a sharp pain racked Homura's chest, and she held her left arm as the pain sent waves of agony throughout her whole system.
She tried and failed to contain her cries of anguish as she fell to the floor, taking a tray of various bathroom amenities down with her. Bottles, soap dispenser, and towels scattered across the tiled surface. Homura was writhing in pain, clutching her chest as if trying to stop the agony from spreading. "HOMURA!" the woman who had been sound asleep on the couch yelled as she burst through the door with a picnicked expression on her face. She rushed to Homura's side, kneeling down beside her. "Hey, Homura look at me," the woman said as she pushed away hair that had fallen over Homura's face, trying to comfort her.
"Tamura-san, Kuroki-san!" the woman called out behind her. No sooner than that, two girls-one in a red school uniform and the other in a blue uniform-came rushing through the main door. "Tamura, find a doctor quickly, and Kuroki, contact Director Nishikigi."
"Yes, ma'am," both girls said in unison. Tamura ran out of the room to look for help while Kuroki fell back onto the main room.
Perhaps it had been a decade, or even a century, since the condition that once affected her heart had disappeared. When she made a contract with Kyubey, Homura never imagined that she would feel this type of pain again: the discomfort, shortness of breath, the lightheadedness. She wished she didn't have to as the women worried over.
"Ms. Nishikigi, please give us some room. Let us take care of Homura-chan," a doctor and nurse said as they entered the bathroom to help Homura, who had started to feel like she was going to pass out. The nurse wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Homura's arm, she could feel her consciousness slipping away. This was proving to be too much for her.
Kuroki, who was in the main room, came back and whispered something to the woman now known as Nishikigi, who was hovering nearby. Nishikigi nodded in affirmation and sent Kuroki away to join Tamura outside in the hallway. "Stay with us, Homura. Your mom is on her way. Okay, honey." Mom was the last thought Homura had before everything faded to black.