Edit: Forgot to put in line spacing and added some punctuation

The brat could definitely eat. It was only after devouring her third Taiyaki, did the kid finally begin to slow down. Mostly because she was coughing on the tail end of her last pastry.

"Careful kid," Kyoko said as she handed the girl a can of juice to drink. "Make sure to eat your food properly," she chastised the girl as she drank.

The girl looked down at the top of her can and froze, likely remembering what had just happened to her parents.

Tch… trauma wasn't something that Kyoko was very good with.

"Your parents were killed by a creature called a Witch."

"A Witch…?" the girl asked hesitantly as she turned to her.

"Yes, a Witch. I hunt them for a living."

"What are you?"

"A Magus."

The girl looked confused. "Magus?"

"A magician basically," Kyoko simplified for her. "I use Magecraft to fight."

"… Like a Magical Girl?"

Kyoko shook her head. "I'm not a Magical Girl. They do exist but this isn't like those mangas, there isn't any love, courage, or salvation. Your family is dead, and they aren't coming back. That's why you're on your own from now on. Just you, even for foo-"

"Yuma"

Kyoko looked at the girl. "Hmm?"

"My name is Yuma, not you."

"Cheeky brat," Kyoko replied, though without much bite.

"So, you protect people like me, right? Like a Hero of Justice?"

"No!" Kyoko shouted, causing the girl to recoil with wide eyes. "Don't ever say that again," she hissed with her fists clenched and her body tensed. "Don't ever try to be a Hero of Justice, hell don't even be a regular Hero."

She took several deep breaths and meditated to herself like Archer had taught her in order to steady her emotions. Surprisingly enough though Yuma had seemed calm despite her outrage and stood up in front of her.

"Is being a Hero so bad?" she asked.

"Yes. Heroes don't last long. They either die or have everything taken away from them."

"Well, then maybe I can become a Magical Girl?" she said with some cheer in her step.

"What?"

"I want to be a Magical Girl that fights witches too!"

There was something wrong with this kid. How could she so cheerfully exclaim that she would be a Magical Girl after what just happened to her.

"Don't say stupid crap like that-"

"Then I'll be a Magus. And use ma-"

"Look kid. I'm not taking any apprentices so ju-"

"Papa and mama are dead! I have nowhere to go!" Yuma shouted, causing Kyoko to flinch. "How do I become one? I'll do anything."

Once Kyoko collected herself, she simply shook her head and stood up. "You almost died," she said as she walked past Yuma. "Why don't you live a normal life while you still have it."

Kyoko thought that would be the end of it. But then she heard a sniffle behind her.

"But… But… I won't make it alone."

At this point Kyoko could practically hear the pout and tears that were appearing on the brats face. It was enough to get her to stop walking and put her face in her hands. "By the Root damnit," she cursed as she forced herself to turn around and address Yuma. "My name is Kyoko Emiya."

"Kyoko?"

"Yes, and I don't take any lazy idiots. You are going to learn proper Magecraft as a Magus. If you ever start slacking off or stop being useful to me-"

"I won't I'll do my best!" Yuma replied.

"Good. Most important of all though, you are not a Magical Girl and you are definitely not a Hero of Justice. I don't want to hear those words in my house. Agreed?"

Yuma eagerly nodded her head. "Yes!"

"So anyway," Kyoko gestured to the house that she and Archer resided in. "This is home."

She almost chuckled at the awestruck look Yuma had as she took in the entire estate. To be fair, it was an impressive place. The building alone was several times larger than the average house and it was rare to find such a traditional design in the middle of Kazamino. That of course said nothing about the gardens, archery range, built in dojo, and that Koi pond of theirs that was still under construction. The Koi pond might need to be delayed though. It would be best to save up a bit more now that they had an extra mouth to feed.

A mouth that Kyoko would eventually have to tell Archer about upon his inevitable return. That was not going to be a fun conversation…

"Am I… living here too?" Yuma asked once the initial shock wore off.

"Yes," Kyoko replied.

"I-It's so big and cool!" the girl shouted excitedly. "You live like a rich samurai! This is all yours?"

Oh well in for a penny. "There's another person and it's our place. You'll meet him soon enough, but yea you more or less have free range of the place. Just stay out of the wooden shed over there," Kyoko pointed to said shack off in the distance. "Seriously don't go in there. I'm not responsible for what happens to you if you do."

"I won't," Yuma said before running to the front porch and quickly throwing off her shoes.

Kyoko quickly followed and gave her a tour of the house. Once they were done the girl's stomach had started growling again, so she brought her to the kitchen where they ate. Thankfully Archer had kept true to his promise of stocking the fridge with at least a week's worth of food, so there was plenty extra for the two of them.

It didn't take very long for both their plates to get emptied either, though there were still little bits of bell peppers left on Yuma's plate by the time Kyoko had finished. These scraps were then pushed aside by Yuma as she pushed her plate towards Kyoko.

"I'm done."

Kyoko gave the girl a glare. Nothing too tough, but enough that Yuma would know she meant business. "Hey," Kyoko said firmly as Yuma looked up. "Rule One. We do not waste food. You eat everything that's on your plate."

Yuma grimaced and looked down at her plate. She looked back to Kyoko who refused to budge.

"You live in this house, you follow the rules. Unless you want to renegotiate our agreement."

Yuma gulped before picking up the scraps with her fork and shoving some of them into her mouth. The resulting face the girl made could've made one hell of a picture. She kept going though and soon enough the plate was cleared.

"I finished!" Yuma said, practically gleaming at her.

Kyoko couldn't help but let out a little smile at that. "Yea, good job." She stood up and petted Yuma's head before taking the plates to the kitchen sink to be washed. "Don't ever take food for granted alright. You'll never know where or when you'll be able to get your next meal," Kyoko said as she dried her hands.

"I won't. Are there any other rules I need to know?" Yuma asked. She was an eager girl. Kyoko could work with that.

"Yes," Kyoko replied as she sat back down at the dining table. "Rule Two. Do not ever mess with the kitchen not unless you get Archer's permission." Kyoko crossed her arms. "He's the other person that lives here and messing with his kitchen is almost as bad as going into his shed."

"Is Archer your papa?" Yuma asked.

"He's… a guardian and my mentor. He took care of me, so you treat him with the same respect you give me."

Yuma nodded.

"Rule Three. You do not talk about the existence of Magic to anyone."

"Anyone?"

"No one. Regular people can't know about the existence of magic or Witches."

"What about a Magus or a Magical Girl?" Yuma asked.

"If you find someone that does know about magic then don't say a damn thing. Just run and get away as soon as you can."

"Are they dangerous?"

"Yes. Or stupid. Or worse, both. They ain't the most dangerous thing out there though."

"The Witches?" Yuma asked.

Kyoko shook her head. "No. There's this white cat with bunny ears and golden hoop earrings that might show up. If you see it, kill it."

Yuma tilted her head. "Kill it?"

"Stab it. Punch it. Throw it in front of a bus. Just don't let it talk to you and get back to me as soon as you can." Kyoko noticed the shocked look on Yuma's face and sighed. "This thing actually has a lot of bodies. Too many to count. It doesn't feel pain either, so you don't have to feel bad about hurting it. If anything, the most you can do is inconvenience it. I just find that its decent stress relief when it does show up."

"Why do you… keep trying to kill it then? Did it do something bad?"

Kyoko clenched her fist. "There's a good chance it'll show up to ask you for a contract to be a Magical Girl. Don't ever accept it. If you do, I'm kicking you back on the streets."

She had expected Yuma to be afraid but the extreme degree of fear on the girl's face had caught Kyoko off guard.

"I-I won't. Please don't make me leave," Yuma practically begged. Well, at least it wasn't likely she'd contract. The girl probably needed some serious therapy though.

"Power always comes at a cost. If anything, out there ever offers you power, know that it is never free. Kyoko continued. "To be a Magus on the other hand is to walk with death. We are constantly striving, paying the price in time, effort, and resolve in order to acquire the power we desire." She could only hope that she sounded at least as half as imposing as Archer did whenever he went on another lecture about Magecraft. "There are no shortcuts on this path for it is one that we have to pave ourselves."

Yuma stared at her in awe. "So, you became this strong by yourself?"

"Uh… yes... sorta. Archer helped a little. Kinda need another Magus to teach you the basics, but once you get that down you'll be allowed to take up whatever field of research you want."

"Can I learn to fight?"

"Eventually." Not any time soon though if Kyoko had anything to say about it.

"How long is that?" Yuma asked.

"Whenever we feel you're ready," Kyoko replied.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Yuma, you're starting from scratch. Don't know how quickly you'll learn or pick things up, but we aren't rushing this. Give me a few weeks to see how well you're doing before I tell you. Alright?"

"Okaaay," Yuma replied, disappointed.

"Good," Kyoko leaned over and gave Yuma a quick sniff. "We need to get you a bath."

After filling up the bath, Kyoko dragged Yuma to the changing room where they began to take off their clothes. She then took the time to look at Yuma's body after the girl had completely stripped.

Damn. No wonder the girl ate so much. She was practically skin and bones and needed some serious fattening up. Did her parents not feed her much before they got offed? Had they been poor like Kyoko's family had been?

"You're pretty!" Yuma exclaimed.

Kyoko had to stop the urge to bashfully cover her own chest. Apparently, she hadn't been the only one to do some looking.

"Thanks."

Kyoko didn't put that much effort in her own appearance, but she knew that her active lifestyle of training and fighting Witches had given her a nice figure. She was attractive. A good catch. Could use a bit more development in the chest area but that was her only complaint. It was never much of an issue anyway if the looks that the boys, and a few girls, at her school had given her. Most of them were too shy to say anything to her though and the few that did couldn't stop stuttering after she had gotten a bit tough on them.

She didn't have anything against them, they were all hormonal teenagers after all. But seriously, how could they possibly think about going out with her if they couldn't handle her being a bit rough? Being a timid girl wasn't an excuse, though it wasn't like most of the boys were much better either. Seriously, you'd think the gender with biologically more muscle mass would have actual spines to support all that meat.

They stepped into the bathroom and Kyoko almost chuckled at the look of awe on Yuma's face. That face kept popping up ever since the girl had been brought here and it never got boring

"Your bath is so big!"

Kyoko grabbed Yuma by the shoulder before she could make a break for the tub. "Wash up first."

"Okay!" Yuma sat down on a stool. She tried to reach for the shampoo bottle only for Kyoko to grab it first and sit behind her.

Kyoko squirted some shampoo into her hands and began to scrub Yuma's hair. It just felt natural to do this.

"Am I too rough?" Kyoko asked.

"No. You're really good at this," Yuma replied cheerfully with her eyes closed. "Did you do this before?"

Kyoko remained silent as she lifted up the girl's bangs to get to her hairline. She immediately stopped what she was doing.

Burn wounds. Cigarettes. Definitely not from a Witch.

Yuma went deathly still.

"Your parents?" Kyoko asked.

Yuma began trembling.

Kyoko sighed before pushing the bangs back down and continuing to wash Yuma's hair. She made sure to be a bit gentler this time though. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

God knows how much she didn't talk about the things that happened to her. Apart from Archer, but it was hard to hide things from your guardian with whom you had a mental connection with.

Any of the previous excitement that Yuma had shown was now gone though and they finished the rest of their bath in silence.

Once they finished, Kyoko got Yuma an old T-shirt to wear and they made their way to the guest bedroom. There were several of them actually, but they were usually empty. Kyoko opened the door for Yuma and was about to walk away when she noticed that the girl remained hesitant in front of the open doorway.

"I'm not judging you," Kyoko told her as she walked back up to her. "You don't have to be afraid of them anymore."

Yuma nodded. She looked down at the floor and remained silent for a long time.

Kyoko was about to take Yuma by the hand and help lead her to her bed when she finally spoke. "I… didn't actually love papa and mama," Yuma said while looking at the wall. "They argued all the time and papa was almost never home. And Mama was mean to Yuma. She said papa didn't return, that papa went out to play because Yuma was a bad girl." The girl put her hands on her forehead, where the scars seemed to be the worst. "She was very, very mean."

Kyoko grimaced and closed her eyes. Of course, that had to have happened to this little girl. The world wasn't merciful, even to the children. It would take a miracle from the Root to change that. "You had it rough… but well… betrayal by your parents isn't something I'm unfamiliar with."

Yuma shivered and looked up at her.

"We're similar in that regard," Kyoko admitted. "That's why I live with Archer now."

Yuma gripped the sides of her shirt and trembled. "I. I… I want to become strong! Kyoko, why do you fight witches."

"Because I'm good at it… and it makes good money."

"You're strong because you're a Magus? You'll help make me a Magus right?" Desperation. Pure and utter desperation as if she had seen her salvation dangled in front of her, just out of reach. This was the look that Yuma was giving her now. It was enough to cause Kyoko to take a step back. "Yuma is weak. I don't have anything because I'm weak. You'll help me be strong, won't you!?"

"I already told you I would," Kyoko replied with widened eyes. Yuma was unhinged, manic. It shouldn't have been such a shock, Kyoko had seen signs of the girl's instability earlier that night, but it had still taken her completely off guard.

"Do you have friends?" Somehow the girl looked even more unhinged. "What about school? Are there other Mages or Magical Girls you know?"

"Hey, one thing at a time-"

"I want that. I want all of those things. Will I be able to get them if I get strong?" Yuma took a step forward. It took all of Kyoko's will not to step back in response. "Tell me what I have to do! Tell me what I need to do to be strong!"

"Yuma-"

"I won't become a Magical Girl. So don't make me leave! Just let me stay! Let me-"

"YUMA!"

Yuma froze and finally went silent.

Kyoko panted as she calmed herself down after her outburst. She closed her eyes and after a few seconds, knew what she had to do. She took a few slow steps, making sure not to scare the girl off, before kneeling down and enveloping the girl in her arms.

It only took a brief moment for Yuma to grab her in turn and sob into her chest.

This had not been part of Kyoko's plans. She had wanted to keep Yuma at some distance, but damn it if the girl didn't need a hug at that moment. She was messed up, they both were, and it was why she could understand her a little. It was why she knew that Yuma was desperate to grab onto something, anything. If Kyoko could be that thing… well it wouldn't be so bad. "I promise that I would teach you. I'm not going to break it alright."

"Y-you won't?" Yuma stammered.

"I won't," Kyoko replied before holding her even more tightly.

This was a mistake. She shouldn't be doing this, letting herself open up like that. It was a reminder of what she had already lost, it would just lead to more pain.

Kyoko knew all this, but she still wouldn't let go. Oh god. Archer really was going to let her have it once he saw this.

"Are you alright now?" Kyoko let go and asked Yuma a few minutes later.

Yuma's eyes were bloodshot and she was still sniffling a little, but otherwise had stopped sobbing. "I-I will."

"Alright then." Kyoko scratched her head. "Good night." Before she could walk away though she felt a gentle tug on the edge of her shirt

Yuma looked up to her with pleading eyes. "C-could I sleep with you? Please?"

"… Yea. That's fine."

Homura opened her eyes, her last memory was the image of a monster laying destruction to what remained of Mitakihara.

Kriemhild Gretchen. Madoka's Witch. A Witch… the fate of every girl that had contracted, including her.

Kyubey had deceived them. Tricked them into believing that they, no Madoka was doing good, only to trample on that faith. To let them become the very monsters that they sought to destroy.

She sat up and gripped her blankets tightly. Tears began to appear at the corners of her eyes.

It wasn't fair. Madoka didn't deserve this. Not such a kind and selfless girl. Not someone who'd go out of their way to save and befriend someone as pathetic as Homura was.

Homura needed to tell her, warn her of what was going to happen to her. Madoka would definitely believe her, wouldn't she? So, would everyone else. They were friends, weren't they?

No… they weren't. Not yet.

At this point she was essentially a stranger to every one of them, including Madoka. It wouldn't be a good idea to make the same mistakes as her first foray into the past. Suddenly walking up to Madoka on her first day of school to declare her friendship and status as a Magical Girl in front of everyone in the class probably hadn't been one of her brightest decisions. It was actually really embarrassing once she had the time to look back at it.

Time to look back… Well she certainly had plenty of that now.

Homura looked at her Soul Gem. The ability to turn back time, all so that she could be the one to protect Madoka. And yet it still hadn't been enough…

Homura got up from her bed and made her way to the bathroom to wash her face. She tightened the ribbons on her hair, making sure that her twin tails were firmly in place. She wouldn't fail, not again. This time she would be the one to protect Madoka.