sorry for the wait yall i got a little busy

Maleficent, the dark queen, had once again gone and shown her face. Was she the cause of the Heartless showing up?

"Foolish child. Every new world you discover is one more I shall one day rule."

"As if!" Sora countered. "If you're already here, then the others won't be too long, either. And it's not like we're just going to sit back and let you do as you please."

"Putting your faith in your friends again. Do you really think those mere schoolchildren can stop me?"

"Of course we can! I've beat you before by myself. Just watch!"

Maleficent hummed in consideration. "We shall see, child." Was all she said, and then turned to leave, disappearing in a dark vortex.

With the threat gone, Sora looked around at the crowds. Wonder and amazement, shock and confusion. Multiple people had their phones out. A few flashes of light. It was then that Sora realized that he might have made a mistake. "Uhhh..." He trailed, scratching his chin lightly. "Gotta go!" And he Airstepped away from the arena, getting into the air and gliding away higher than anyone could hope to reach.

During the lunch period of the day, Madoka and Sayaka had gone to the roof to discuss things without having to worry about any normal people hearing them. They didn't want to start any strange rumors, after all.

"Hey, Madoka?" Sayaka asked. "Have you thought up of something to wish for yet?"

"Not yet." Madoka admitted. "What about you?"

"Not a clue." Sayaka responded, pausing to stretch. "I'm stumped. I've thought about it so much my brain is starting to hurt. I mean, there's so many things I wanna have and do, but maybe it's the 'risk your life' part. Maybe that's what's holding me back." She sighed, getting up and walking towards the high wall. "Nothing I want is worth that much."

"That's so odd." Kyubey remarked. "Most girls accept my offer right away."

"Then... I guess we don't know any better, do we?"

"Really?" Madoka wondered. "You really think that?"

"Yeah. We're just blissfully ignorant. Think about it for a second: Have you ever wanted something so bad, you'd trade your life for it? There's tons of people out there with a lot less than we have who'd jump at a chance like this. You see? We can't figure out what to wish for, because we don't know what it's like to want anything that bad. We're blissfully ignorant to any kind of suffering." She paused for a moment, as if thinking of something or someone. "Why us? Why do we get this chance? Why do I get a wish when there's so many people out there who could use it more?"

"Sayaka..." Madoka muttered, having never seen this deeper side of her friend before.

The door to the roof slammed open, and standing there was Homura Akemi. Sayaka ran from the wall to Madoka, putting her hand out in a defensive stance.

"It's okay." Mami's voice said in their heads, and as they turned, the three girls spotted her on a nearby ledge.

"Yeah, chill out! Everything's gonna be fine!" Sora reassured them, standing in the same spot he was before he left and fought the Heartless.

Homura kept walking towards them, stopping only a few feet away.

"Back for more, huh?" Sayaka wondered.

"No." Homura stated. "I haven't come to fight." She explained, her eyes lowering to Kyubey in Madoka's arms. "I wanted to kill it before it made contact with Madoka Kaname. It's too late for that now." She then looked back up at Madoka. "Well? Now what? Are you going to become a Magical Girl?

"I, uh..."

"Yeah, right!" Sayaka said. "Like it's any of your business!"

"I warned you, remember?"

"Yes..."

"Very well. Don't let my warning be in vain. Goodbye." And Homura turned to leave just as suddenly as she arrived.

"H- Homura! Wait!" Madoka called. "I want to know what you wished for when you became a Magical Girl!"

Homura tilted her head back to silently glare at Madoka, and then she simply kept walking.

"Well." Sora stated. "That could've gone a lot worse."

"Actually, Sora. While you're here, would you mind meeting us after school?" Mami requested. "I forgot to tell you before I left this morning."

"Yeah, sure. Remind me when it's over. This about that Witch-hunting you brought up?"

"Exactly."

The four of them had met at a fast-food restaurant within the Mitakihara Shopping Center, where Sora had first met them.

"Well, time to start lesson one of the Magical Girl Experience!" Mami declared. "That's what I like to call it, anyway. I hope you're ready."

"I don't know if it'll make a difference. But I brought this!" Sayaka said, slamming down a long, weirdly-shapen object onto the table, throwing off the cloth to reveal a baseball bat. "Better than not having anything, right?"

"Well... Let's say I'm glad you're going into it with that spirit..." Mami agreed with a tone of voice that made Sayaka feel like she did something wrong.

"What about you?" Sayaka asked, turning to Madoka. "What'd you bring?"

"Oh, nothing." Madoka admitted. "Just this." She said, pulling out a notebook full of sketches with designs for Magical Girl outfits. "I... Sort of thought it'd be good to have some costume ideas..."

Everyone laughed at that, turning poor Madoka's face bright red.

"It looks like you've certainly got the right spirit." Sora remarked.

"Oh, that's awesome!" Sayaka stated. "I can't top that!"

With their little meeting over, the four of them headed back to the spot where they were introduced to Kyubey. Mami stared at her Soul Gem, which was pulsing faintly.

"It senses the magic residue of the Witch from yesterday. When we hunt, we have to scour the city on foot. Once your Soul Gem picks up the trail, follow it until you find the Witch."

"That's it, huh?" Sora wondered. "Basically a scavenger hunt with a laid-out path."

"You could put it that way."

They kept walking for almost an hour, now on a large bridge as the sun started to set.

"Hey, Mami, your Soul Gem isn't glowing as brightly anymore." Sayaka noticed.

"That's because it's been almost a day since the Witch escaped. The trail is just barely there." Mami explained.

"So, what you're saying is that if you'd gone after the Witch right away, we wouldn't be looking for it now?" Sora surmised.

"If I had, I might have been able to finish it off." Mami admitted. "But then I'd have to leave you three behind, and I didn't wanna risk it."

"Come on, I could've taken on that transfer student if anything happened!" Sora said, turning to face them and walking backwards with his hands behind his head.

"Well, that's Mami for you. A true warrior of justice, unlike that transfer student..." Sayaka added. "What's her deal, anyway? She pisses me off!"

A while later, and still no Witch.

"So, Mami. When you're hunting Witches, is there any place special you go to look for them?" Sora asked.

"You can sometimes find Witch auras at the scenes of fatal car crashes, so streets with heavy traffic are a good place. There's also the red light district, where fights usually break out. Then there's places where people go to commit suicide. Finally, I check the hospitals. The worst place for a Witch to hide. It's unbearable to see them draining the life of someone who's already weak from illness."

'Hospitals?' Sora thought. 'Why do I have a bad feeling about that?'

Mami then stopped, staring at her Soul Gem, which was now glowing brightly. "It's picked up some powerful magic. It's close. I think I know where."

And Sora, Madoka, and Sayaka followed behind her as she ran off, stopping in front of an abandoned building. "There's no mistaking it. It's here."

Sora looked around for any sign of Witch activity, only to turn his eyes to the sky and find a haunting sight. A woman was standing on the edge of the building, and threw herself off. Despite it being a stunt Sora did all the time, he knew a normal human couldn't possibly survive that fall.

Within seconds, Sora leapt off the ground and air-dodged towards the wall of the building, running up said wall until he was a little bit below the falling woman. He then kicked off the wall and shot through the air, managing to catch the woman. From there, he let himself fall, hitting the ground with a fairly solid impact since he couldn't roll to brush it off. He wouldn't even feel it in a few minutes.

"A Witch's Kiss..." Mami muttered upon looking at the mark on the woman's neck. "I knew it."

"Is she, uh...?"

"She's fine. She just fainted. But we should hurry before anyone else comes along."

"Right. Let's go!"

They went into the building, and the Labyrinth opened up in front of the stairwell. Mami placed her hand on Sayaka's bat, and it transformed, now having a more ornate design.

"It's not much, but it'll help you fight off anything that might come your way. Stick close to us once we're inside, okay?"

"Got it!"

Mami then plunged into the Labyrinth, followed by Sayaka and Madoka. As Sora went to dive in as well, he felt someone watching him. He turned, and found Homura Akemi there once again.

"What? Are you after this Witch, too?"

"I was, but it seems I'm not needed here anymore."

"Just what's your deal, anyway? What's with your saying stuff that makes no sense? You're reminding me of the Organization..."

"Organization?"

"I- Nothing. It's nothing." Homura's eyes narrowed. She didn't believe him. "Fine, if you want me to talk, you'll have to as well. But it's gonna have to wait. We've got a Witch to take out."

And he leaned backwards and fell into the Labyrinth, leaving Homura there to do as she pleased.