Hey hey everyone! Matsu here! It's my turn to tell everyone what happened today!

And don't worry, I'll be speaking in the first person for this. Even I'd get tired of repeating my own name so many times if I wrote it out each time.

To answer your questions first, yes, I am writing the whole journal entry today, and not just the bit that Roland wanted to know about? Why? Well, because Roland has been asleep all day.

It wasn't that surprising when he slept in. He pushed himself pretty hard and didn't sleep it off like Ku-chan did. In fact, he stayed up late writing yesterday's journal. So him sleeping in a bit, or a lot, is very reasonable.

But stuff happened today while he was sleeping that he really does need to know about, so I volunteered myself to write more than just yesterday's stuff and catch Roland, and anyone else who reads this, up!

But not before I read everything up until this point. I've snuck a look at a couple parts before, so I kind of knew what to expect, I knew it wasn't just a list of events and some of his thoughts. But I never realized that my dear Ashikabi-tan was so thorough. He's been practically novelising our adventures!

I mean, it's not perfect, and any actual editor would make him change a lot of stuff, but it's pretty close! Then again, with the current state of the light novel scene, this kind of writing might stand out as unique and he could probably sell it as a gimmick or something. It's all about eye catching gimmicks on old ideas these days.

That's probably a little too off topic though. Ahem.

Anyways. The point is, this journal was a lot different than I thought it would be. Writing must be Roland's hobby or something. I haven't really seen him doing anything else just for fun. Well, except for us. ;)

And speaking of which. Ooh boy was it nice to read all those sex scenes. Those are the biggest evidence of this being something Roland likes doing, because there's no other reason to include them. But I'm glad he did, they were really hot, I couldn't stop myself from masturbating while reading them.

My Ashikabi has a real flair for prose. No wonder he picked Levy as his First.

So, out of respect for that, I'll try to match his style, just like I said I would, even if I didn't know the true extent when I promised that.

I guess I should start with the question burning on everyone's minds first though, right? How the heck did Kyouko join us? After reading Roland's perspective, his confusion makes perfect sense. After all, he missed all the hard work Mami and I put into convincing her to come with us.

When Kyouko arrived I wasn't too surprised. Yes, I was thinking along the same lines as Roland, and that Kyubey would wait and observe before making a move. But I guess he found out more about us than we thought, because he wasn't waiting at all. I still don't know what he found out. I've got a couple theories, but without knowing more about how the transformation process works, all I can do is speculate.

I guess it doesn't really matter, what's done is done, but it bothers me.

I wasn't expecting Kyubey to act so quickly, but sending Kyouko after us was a move I expected from him. That's why we were going to go to her next.

I'm just glad Oriko and Kirika weren't active in that loop, or if they were, they were too slow to show up. Those two are way scarier than Kyouko was. Mostly because Kyouko was someone we could actually negotiate with. Those other two… aren't.

But they didn't show up, and when Roland found himself unable to talk, I knew that I had to step up as the only one who knew her.

We should pick up more anime DvDs when we can, and make everyone watch them. They're all so busy with training like meat heads, but knowledge is just as important!

My plan was pretty different from what ended up happening though. I was going to knock her off balance by showing her that we don't fit in her worldview, that truth is stranger than fiction, and make her a lot less confident in attacking us. It was a gamble because it risked Kyubey learning more about us, but I was trying to keep it to stuff he couldn't actually use against us, and I figured he already knew more about us than we thought, so I took the risk.

Then I was going to tell her the truth about Witches to really knock her down a peg so I could then offer a hand back up, to make her an ally. But then Roland ruined it by laughing.

I get it, I really do. Kyouko being angry about mind control does have a degree of irony to it. But she was a young girl trying to help her father without really thinking about the consequences of her Wish, so it wasn't like she was all pro-mind control. Especially since she regretted it so much later.

But I'm nothing if not flexible, and I encouraged Roland to take the opening that was created. I thought maybe pointing out that hypocrisy would accomplish the same thing, and break her down a bit so we could build her back up. She needed that kind of character development to shock her out of her current state, in one form or another.

I expected the fight that came after, she's a classic tsundere, and Roland was merciless in poking at her issues. But we fought her back, and she was using up all her magic, and everything was good. All we needed to do was exhaust her so we could have a nicer conversation, and Roland could work his magic.

But then…

Kyubey is a more devious bastard than I gave him credit for. There were little hints that he could manipulate the placement and location of Witches. The placement and timing of Charlotte's seed in canon was very suspicious, though there wasn't any proof or even any hints that pointed to him as being the one who put it there, outside of how convenient it was for his plans.

If his acting so fast was a surprise, then him acting so directly and without subtlety was like a punch in the face out of nowhere. Not that him turning a girl into a suicide-witch-bomber was out of character, it was just how obvious he was about it. The fact that even that was just a diversion… I don't think there's anything to be said other than we got completely out played. But I'm jumping ahead.

When Kyouko tried to use the seeds, all the people close to her got sucked into the Barrier as well. Me, Levy, and Uzume. None of the other Magical Girls, of course. That would have been too convenient I guess.

I can confirm that Barriers are just as weird as Roland described them. Though the one we ended up in was even weirder. I didn't know two Witches could share the same Barrier, but I guess maybe that's how Witches end up absorbing each other sometimes?

The Familiars appeared as soon as we did and started fighting with each other as we got our bearings. Little Hina dolls without faces fought against uncanny rubber ducks that just looked off in a way that I couldn't pin down.

And then the Witches appeared. The one on the side of the ducks looked like a giant mermaid with the face of a fish and was wearing a crown. The one on the other side was a massive feminine mannequin wearing a business suit, but also covered in gaudy jewelry.

They both screamed at each other before starting to fight directly, the whole chamber vibrating from the force of their attacks.

Kyouko was still rather off balance, but she followed her instincts and she flung herself at the Witches, her weapon raised as she yelled in rage.

Which left the three of us all alone to face the Familiars. Most of them were focused on each other, thankfully, but quite a few noticed us, and we had Familiars from both sides coming to attack us.

But neither Uzume nor Levy are slouches. As soon as they saw that we were in danger, they started fighting.

I admit, I didn't pay much attention to their fight. I couldn't really help in that kind of situation after all. Levy threw around a lot of flashy attacks. Lightning was a common one, the rubber ducks really didn't like it, contrary to what you would expect from rubber. But she also made good use of oil and fire, as well as stones and other stuff. Uzume was less flashy, but no less efficient, as she used her rolls of cloth to bash, cut through, and squeeze familiars into goop.

But most of my attention was on Kyouko because I was really worried about her. She was low on magic and had just been put through a lot of emotional turmoil. Turmoil that was my fault. I was feeling a little guilty for that, I guess. Her having to fight a Witch in that condition was never part of the plan, she would have been in a much better condition before that happened, if we fought any more Witches at all.

I could tell it was affecting her fighting too. Even with two Witches, she would have been fine, if only because they paid as much attention to each other as they did to her. It was truly a three-way fight. But Kyouko was very passive in it. She only summoned more spears when she absolutely had to. It was clear to see that she was conserving her magic.

I contacted Roland, to let him know we were okay and holding steady, and he sent the reinforcements our way. At the time, I was grateful, though in hindsight I wish he had kept Bisky with him. There was no way of knowing what would happen of course, and he was worried about us, but still. Especially when, a few minutes later, I felt my Norito finally wear off and I couldn't reach him anymore.

Kyouko… barely held out before the other two got there. Her movements had grown sluggish, and it was only the fact that the Witches were distracted that prevented her from taking any serious hits. But she was taking hits. Glancing blows mostly, but each one made me worry more and more.

The minutes it took Mami and Kyouko to arrive felt so long. But Mami, like the Magical Girl she is, arrived just in the nick of time. Kyouko was on her last leg and the mermaid Witch had retreated a little, leaving the other one to focus purely on Kyouko. It raised the clipboard it used as a weapon and brought it down in a chopping motion, and I feared that Kyouko was about to meet her doom.

But then! From nowhere! A gunshot rang out, and the clipboard was knocked aside! "Kyouko!" a heroic voice rang through the chamber, worry and love clear in her tones as Mami swooped in to save her beloved kouhai!

Bisky, powerful and dependable, followed quickly behind. "Ora!" she shouted as she flung herself at the Witch, graciously distracting it while Mami rushed to Kyouko's side. Bisky's punch pushed the Office Lady witch back, sending her stumbling and causing her to scream in anger and pain.

But Mami only had eyes for Kyouko. "Kyouko…" she repeated, softer this time but still firm and full of worry.

Mami tried to help her up, but Kyouko's heart was still closed. "Get off me, I'm fine," she said grumpily, like the tsundere she is.

"You're not!" Mami insisted. "Look how dark your Soul Gem has gotten!"

"And whose fault do you think that is?" Kyouko said with a derisive snort. She forced herself to her feet, using a spear to help push her up. "I don't need magic to kill a couple of Witches like this. Don't interfere in my hunt."

But Mami was not to be put off that easily! "Don't be stubborn," she chastised as she put a hand on Kyouko's shoulder. "Let Bisky and me handle this."

Kyouko looked at Bisky, who was still fighting the Witch, with a sour look. "Is that her name? Your new 'protege'? You aren't happy unless you have someone to show off for, I guess." Kyouko jerked away from Mami's touch.

"It's not like that," Mami said in a soft, hurt, voice. "I'm just trying to help."

Kyouko snorted. "Help. Right. How could I forget that? Mami, the good girl, who always does the right thing and never thinks about herself."

"So?" Mami replied, defending herself. "You were like that too. I know you still remember."

"Yeah, well, I learned better," Kyouko said darkly. "When are you going to grow up and do the same?"

Anger and frustration crossed Mami's face. How could it not? All she wanted to do was help this precious former kouhai of hers, but said kouhai wasn't making it easy with her attitude. But then, Mami's expression suddenly calmed. "I have," she whispered.

Kyouko looked at her in surprise, not having expected such a response. Tsunderes are weak to the unexpected. "Huh?" she asked.

"I have grown up!" Mami replied, anger in her voice once more, just the same as during the picnic, when she yelled at her before. "What do you think this is? Why do you think I'm here?" Mami gestured to everyone else, to Bisky fighting the Witch, and very easily winning I might add, and to the three of us fighting off the Familiars, which were starting to thin out.

"I've finally decided to be a little selfish," Mami continued. "I've decided to abandon this city, this life, all for the sake of my own happiness."

Kyouko snorted. "Well, good for you-"

But Mami wasn't finished. "But I'm not giving up on helping people," she continued. "I can't do it here, not after everything I've learned about Kyubey and the secrets he's kept from us. But I will continue to be a Magical Girl that protects people!"

Kyouko's eyes narrowed at the mention of Kyubey's secret. The elephant in the room, thankfully not a literal one because an elephant Familiar would be a sign of a much scarier Witch, hadn't been addressed yet. The fact that Kyubey had tampered with the Seeds he had given her.

Behind them, the mermaid Witch joined the fray, joining the first one as they fought against Bisky. But as expected of her, not even two Witches were enough to put her in danger, and Mamki and Kyouko could continue their talk uninterrupted. Bisky was really considerate like that.

"So what?" Kyouko growled, avoiding the topic. "You only did that because some guy is controlling you."

But Mami shook her head. "No, I decided on that before I gave myself to him. He might have helped me decide on it, but it was my own decision.

"Like I believe that," Kyouko sneered. "And even if I did, it wouldn't change anything. So what if you learned to be a bit more selfish? All that means is you're slightly less of an idiot."

"It doesn't have to be an all or nothing, Kyouko!" Mami insisted. "That's my point. You can be selfish and help others at the same time!"

"Pass," Kyouko replied disinterestedly. She made to step towards the Witches that Bisky were fighting.

"No, I'm not letting you fight," Mami said, standing in front of her. "Not until you listen to me."

"And you're just going to let your new student handle two Witches all by herself?" Kyouko pointed out.

"She'll be fine," Mami said confidently. Her words were backed up by Bisky throwing a massive punch that tore off half of the Office Lady Witch's chest, bringing her down to just one arm. It wasn't a killing blow, but it was clear that Bisky had the advantage, even when fighting two of them.

Kyouko clicked her tongue in annoyance. "You really have become selfish, huh? Stealing my prey like this."

"You don't have to pretend," Mami said gently. "It's okay to admit you can't fight right now. Kyubey tricked you, like he tricked all of us. There's no shame in that."

"He didn't trick me!" Kyouko snapped. "Just because you've somehow gotten it in your head that he's a bad guy, a thought probably put in your head by your new boyfriend so you'll only listen to him, doesn't mean Kyubey tricked me! There was… it was just a mistake! An accident!"

"Kyubey doesn't make accidents," Mami insisted. "There was an illusion on those Seeds. We all saw it."

Kyouko flinched, her mask cracking slightly, but she wasn't ready to back down from just that, she was too stubborn. "Now who's being the dumb one? Kyubey can't use illusions like that."

"I'm not so sure about that," Mami replied, not getting flustered. "What do you really know about him? Have you ever asked?" Kyouko didn't reply, her lips pressed tightly against each other. "And even if he can't… A Magical Girl could. You used to be able to use illusion magic, right? If Kyubey approached you and asked you to cast an illusion on a couple Grief Seeds and not ask any questions, and he gave you an empty one in exchange… would you do it?"

Kyouko clicked her tongue again and looked away. In the distance, Bisky shouted loudly and her gauntlets shone like a brilliant gem as she unleashed a punch that exploded the Office Lady Witch into tiny pieces, defeating it. Neither of the other girls reacted, even as the Dungeon started to warp around them.

Before Bisky could claim the Seed, the Mermaid's tail whipped out and grabbed it for herself. She laughed, the sound of it bubbling like water, and pushed the Grief Seed into her mouth. There was a terrible crunching sound, and then the Witch grew even larger.

The Familiars, ridiculous looking as they were, also grew a little larger and fiercer. And now, without the other set of Familiars to distract them, they were all focused on us.

Mami finally looked up from her conversation with Kyouko as the Familiars grew too numerous for her to ignore. A frown crossed over her face. "Stay here. Don't you dare fight," she commanded Kyouko before leaping into the fray.

"As if!" Kyouko responded, leveling her spear. But all of a sudden Levy was next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Why don't you trust her to handle this?" Levy suggested. "You know she's more than capable enough. And do you really want to waste your energy fighting small fry?"

Kyouko tensed, but then clicked her tongue and lowered her spear. "Whatever," she said. I'm pretty sure she would have put up more of a fight if she wasn't actually running on fumes.

And Levy was right in that Mami certainly didn't need the help, especially since she didn't have to worry about conserving her magic. She conjured dozens and dozens of muskets, each one firing off to take out at least one Familiar per shot. She practically danced between all of them, and around her Familiars died by the droves.

It didn't take long for all the Familiars to be wiped out, and then Mami joined Bisky and the two of them finally put down the Witch. It didn't stand a chance against the two of them. Bisky may have been new to being a Magical Girl, but she wasn't new to fighting.

As the barrier started coming down, Mami leaped back to Kyouko. "Here," she said, placing the Grief Seed against Kyouko's Soul Gem.

But Kyouko backed off before her Gem could be completely cleaned. "Oi, what do you think you're doing?!" she protested. "I don't want your charity. You may have stolen my kills, but that Seed is yours."

"But I don't need it anymore," Mami said with a gentle smile. "See?" She tilted her head to show her Soul Gem, which was mounted on a flowery hairband. It was a little darkened, which was only to be expected from the magic she was just throwing around, but even as we watched it visibly lightened.

Kyouko's eyes widened. "What the f-" she started. But she was cut off by Levy.

"Where's Roland?" she said with concern. Everyone looked at her, and she was looking around, brow furrowed. All of us looked around as well. We had arrived back at the picnic site, now a little ruined by the fighting, and Roland, Kusano, and Chiho should have been waiting for us there. But they weren't.

Then Mami gasped. "There's another Barrier!" she said.

I think it clicked for all of us then what happened, the true depths of Kyuubey's assassination plot. There was a beat as horror dawned on us and then we were all rushing towards the spot where Roland had been standing.

I recognized the Barrier as soon as we entered it, and I had the same concerns as Roland. "Mami!" I called out as we ran. I could barely keep up with the others, but I wasn't going to be left behind. "I know this Witch! She looks small like a cute doll, but she has a second form that's a giant worm! Each time you kill it it will shed its skin! Don't let your guard down for an instant!"

"Got it!" Mami replied, and she sped up even further.

The rest, Roland more or less covered. We got there just in the nick of time, and even Kyouko launched a few spears to save Roland. Most of my thoughts were worries about Roland, but even then there was a part of me that wondered why she would do that. Of course, in hindsight, I already knew the answer. She was a tsundere, which means she can't always be tsun, she has to be dere sometimes.

I also suspect that she was starting to put the pieces together, and she knew that Roland was important not just in general, but to Mami, and potentially to her. Even if she wasn't ready to fully admit it to herself, I believe it was influencing her decisions.

Between all of us, and just how angry we were that Roland's life was in such danger without us ever knowing it, well, the Witch didn't last long. She would have been obliterated practically immediately if it weren't for her skin shedding, but even that only bought her a bit of time.

Charlotte quickly fell, and the real world established itself once more. Roland… he didn't look good. He was bleeding from bites all over and he had passed out from exhaustion as soon as Levy grabbed him. Kusano was hardly doing any better. Chiho… she wasn't hurt or exhausted, but she looked kind of shell shocked, like she wasn't entirely here. Uzume was doing her best to comfort her.

I turned to Mami, who had just retrieved Charlotte's Seed. "Can I hold on to that, actually?" I asked.

Mami gave me a strange look, but she handed it over. "Why?"

"I'll explain later," I replied, pocketing the seed. "It's a conversation that needs to be had with Roland."

Mami accepted that with a nod.

"We have to get back to the Skyblock, now," Levy said. She was carrying Roland, which did look a little silly if I'm being honest because he was so much bigger than her, but none of us were in a laughing mood. "He needs treatment, and we need to get away before Kyuubey attacks us again." She shot a look at Kyouko. "You're welcome to come with us. No strings, you can leave any time. But we're leaving now."

Mami instantly turned to Kyouko and grabbed her by the hands. "Please, please, come with us. Just for a little bit. I think… I think you need to see their home. You'll believe then."

Kyouko looked… well, she looked lost and confused. Her eyes kept flicking between Mami and the unconscious Roland. Then she sighed. "Fine, I'll check out this stupid place if it'll get you off my back."

Those weren't her real feelings though. I could guess what those were. She was scared to be alone, scared to run into Kyubey again after being used as a suicide bomber by him.

Uzume scooped up Chiho and Bisky picked up Kusano and then we all took to the roofs as we dashed for the portal that led back home. We were all on edge during the trip, heads on a swivel as if we expected Kyubey himself to drop down and attack us. But nothing happened, thankfully, and we arrived home without issue.

Kyouko paused when she saw the portal, but Mami dragged her through and brought her onto the Skyblock.

It's always fun to see people's first reactions to the Skyblock. It's such a strange place compared to well… anything else. It's certainly the furthest thing you could get from a city. Endless kilometers filled with the presence of mankind disappear and give way to a beautiful emptiness.

"What- what is this place?" Kyouko asked, eyes widened as she looked around. Most of the others immediately rushed to the bedroom to take care of Roland and Kusano, but I opted to stay behind with Mami and Kyouko. I wanted to see what they were talking about, and I couldn't help in there.

"This is Roland's home," Mami said. "My home too, now. A little island of his own, floating in an endless sky, separated from every other world, but able to touch them, like through the portal. You can feel it, right? Doesn't it feel like an inverted Barrier? The opposite of a Witch's home?"

Kyouko didn't look at Mami, she just turned in a slow circle, eyes on the sky. She jumped onto the roof of the house so she could get an unobstructed view of the horizon, confirming that that was nothing save for us in this world.

"This is… this is crazy," she says. "This can't be real."

I decided that was my cue to interject. I jumped up to the top of the roof next to her. "I get that, it feels like something from a dream, right? Or a fantasy book? And in a way, it is. But that doesn't make it not real. It's a miracle, pulled straight from a fairy tale."

Kyouko frowned, her gaze still on the horizon. "Miracles aren't real. Not free ones at least."

"And this one isn't free either," I admitted. "But, if you ask me, the costs are pretty reasonable. A bargain, even."

She looked at me then, ignoring Mami who had also hopped up to join us. "What are they?" she asked. There wasn't any contempt on her face or in her tone, no real emotion at all. She just wanted to know. Finally, she was thinking, she was considering it.

"Well, the way I see it, you have two options," I told her, then paused. "No, wait. Make that three. The first is that you just leave here. Doesn't have to be now, but it does have to be…" I looked at where the sun was hanging in the sky. "In about the next eight or ten hours? Once that portal closes, you're here for good. So option A is that you leave. We wish you well, and you go back to your normal life. Back to being a normal magical girl for Kyubey."

She flinched and looked away at the reminder of her betrayer. "And the other options?"

"You still leave, but you do it with more than our well wishes. You get Stamped, and three days from now you'll no longer need Grief Seeds. You'll be protected from various things, a list that will only grow as Roland continues his journey, despite you never having to meet him again. And you're protected from-" I cut myself off. We hadn't told her the truth about Witches yet. "Well, you'll be protected from something I'll explain later. Now, as you no doubt have guessed, that does come with a cost."

She nodded, but didn't say anything, so I continued. "The Stamp does come with a minor mind control effect. If you accepted the Stamp and then left, then it would result in you developing… a sort of loyalty to Roland. It wouldn't make you like him, you wouldn't have to obey him, but you'd respect him and think well of him and would be on his side. Though, that doesn't mean much because, in this scenario, the two of you wouldn't ever meet again."

Kyouko grimaced, silently processing that. It had already come up, a bit, before the fight happened. So it wasn't a new idea to her. And now… she just looked so tired. "And the last option?" she asked.

"You accept a Stamp, and you stay here with us. You join our family. We have plenty of food, our home grows better and better with each passing day, and we can help you grow your strength a lot. Of course, this one comes with equal costs. As part of our family, you'll have to work as well. For you, that'll probably mostly be training between portal trips. And you'll need to help with those too, trips to other worlds with strange people. Your world is just our latest stopping point. It was… more exciting than most, but as more and more worlds become available, I'm sure we'll have more trips like this." There was a lot that I was leaving out, but the details could wait.

"And the mental costs?" she asked. "Am I going to be like Mami?"

"Mami wasn't ever Stamped, you know?" I replied. "It works both ways. You can either be Stamped and gain feelings for Roland, or fall in love with Roland and be marked. That's what she did."

Mami flushed, but when Kyouko looked at her, she nodded. "I uhh, didn't even notice when it happened. It didn't feel like anything changed. It still doesn't." I didn't miss the way she pressed her hand against her lower stomach, where her Stamp was. Roland has excellent tastes, and his mark is always above the womb. It's very hot. Sadly, Mami's was hidden by her Magical Girl outfit.

"So I won't fall in love with him?" she asked.

"No, in this scenario, you will," I told her. "Accepting the Stamp and leaving is different from staying. If you stay, you become part of the family, and being part of the family means becoming one of Roland's wives. Or his harem member, or lover, or whatever other label you want to use. He won't force you, and he certainly won't force you to do anything. But sooner or later, you'll want to."

Her frown grew more pronounced. "I don't like any of these options," she admitted.

"Sorry," I apologized, and I even meant it. "You were kind of put in a bad position with no good way out as soon as you agreed to Kyuubey's deal though."

Her grimace turned into an angry sneer for a moment before even that faded away. The sense of fatigue I got from her earlier was stronger now. "He really did set me up, huh?" she said in a quiet voice. "I just don't get why."

Mami and I exchanged looks, and I gave her a small nod. "There's… there's a lot about him that he never told us. About why he makes magical girls in exchange for wishes. Come on, let's go sit inside, and we'll tell you everything."

"I'll even dig into the emergency chocolate stash," I added. "This is the kind of conversation that needs chocolate."

Kyouko was still for a moment, just long enough to make me worry that she wasn't going to cooperate, but then she nodded and jumped down off the roof. Her clothes flashed in a burst of light as she shifted out of her Magical Girl form.

We went to the dining room for our talk. I dug through the 'secret' stash, that wasn't really a secret but there was an agreement that anything in there was being saved for special scenarios, for some M&M's and Mami and I started explaining everything to Kyouko. About Witches, about Roland, about everything.

Kyouko was quiet, her face blank, during most of the explanation. She only asked a few questions during the entire thing. The others eventually joined us, save for the two that were sleeping and Chiho who stayed in there to watch over them. They let us know that Roland was okay, he just needed rest. But they stayed quiet as Mami and I explained things.

If Kyouko seemed tired before that conversation, then she was drained after it. Like she couldn't even muster the energy to be angry. She was quiet for a while, gaze unfocused as everything we told her sunk in.

"The Stamp," she eventually said, focusing on me. "The third thing it does. It stops me from becoming a Witch?"

I nodded. "That was our main goal in your world. Stamp as many Magical Girls as we could so they wouldn't turn like that. We don't have the ability to stop Kyubey entirely, but we could help in little ways."

"That's what you guys do? You go around to different worlds, 'helping' them?" Kyouko asked.

"We try to help, where we can," Levy says. "But that's not all we do. When the portal opens up… it's a chance for a lot of things. To restock supplies. To go on a date. To explore a new and interesting world. And to recruit people to our family, to help us grow. That is what Roland wants, above all. To grow this little island into something amazing. But he doesn't want to do that just by plundering the worlds we go to. His goal is to leave the world a better place than we left it, if he can, even if it's just a little."

"A balance of selfishness and selflessness," Mami summarized, repeating her earlier sentiment.

"And to be part of that, all I need to do is fight for him, and fuck him?" Kyouko said, a bit of a sarcastic edge to her voice. Then she sighed. "Well… it's not like I really have a choice. I can't go back to Kyubey. He'd probably have me killed off for real. So I guess I'm staying."

Mami squealed in happiness and threw her arms around Kyouko. "Oh I'm so glad to hear you say that! Don't worry, it'll be great! Just like the old days, but better!"

Kyouko flushed and looked annoyed, but she didn't push Mami off of her. "Yeah, yeah, whatever," she grumbled, but her heart wasn't in it.

Levy got up, holding the Stamp. "It takes three days to settle in, so we should do it now, rather than later. That way you get the benefits as soon as possible."

Kyouko eyed the Stamp a little warily, but she nodded. "Fine, fine, let's get it over with."

Levy nodded and walked over to Kyouko before holding her hand out. Kyouko only hesitated for a moment before placing her hand in Levy's and allowed Levy to place the Stamp against her.

We all let out a collective held breath, a sort of tension that was in the air bleeding away now that Kyouko was as good as one of us. Kyouko didn't notice, too focused on Roland's symbol now stamped on the back of her hand. "So that's it huh?"

"That's it," Levy said, sitting back down at the table and pocketing the Stamp. "At least until it finishes. Or you could shortcut the process by telling Roland you love him. And meaning it, at least a little."

Kyouko snorted. "Fat chance," she said. She flexed her fingers, but finally tore her gaze from the tattoo and looked back up at us. "So… just what have I gotten myself into?"

We spent the next few hours explaining everything we could think of to Kyouko. We caught her up on the adventures so far, about all of our worlds, the powers we have, what powers she would or could learn, and more information about ourselves. We showed her around the Skyblock too, not that it was terribly large. She tried to hide it, but she really liked seeing the chickens.

After that… well, if you've read this far, you know everything that happened after that point. Roland woke up, caught up to the situation, and declared our counter strike. And I'm not going to lie, it was pretty hot seeing him like that. I love Roland, and I like the way that he listens to us, lets us take the lead for a lot of specifics, acting like a proper leader and guiding our broad path while we handle our specialities. I like how laid back he is. But I also really like it when he takes charge like that. Hmm, maybe I should get some silk ropes the next time we get a chance…

Anyway, the plan to stamp the remaining main characters went off without a hitch. I wasn't there to see it, but I still feel for Homura. But I believe what I said. She'll thank us for it eventually.

We went to bed last night and Kyouko slept in the guest bedroom. Roland passed out before we could have any fun, but I don't think any of us were really in the mood anyway. Mami got a little embarrassed when we all stripped naked to go to sleep, but when we started laying down next to Roland and she realized that not all of us could be as close to him as we wanted, she didn't hesitate to shuck off her clothes and jump into the pile.

Normally her hesitation would have cost her, but it was her first night with us, so we let her get a nice spot. She'll have to fight the same as the rest of us starting tonight though. Hmm. I should convince Roland to get some kind of multi-form power or something. Something to talk to him about later. Ashikabi-tan, when you're reading this, come talk to me about it!

The next morning we slept in a bit. All of us were pretty tired, Kusano especially. Bisky officially declared that it was a rest day so we wouldn't be doing our morning workout, and we all cheered.

Normally Roland wakes up when we are all starting to get up. He can be a pretty heavy sleeper at times, but usually he wakes up at about the same time as us, even if it's often because of Bisky waking all of us up.

But not this morning. This morning we were all awake and starting to file out of the bedroom and Roland was still snoring away. But we decided to let him rest. He pushed himself further than any of us.

Mami was a little surprised when we started leaving the bedroom still stark naked, but she had gotten a little used to it over the night, and barely put up a fight before she was following us to the dining room in a similar state of undress, albeit a little nervously.

Far more amusing was when Kyouko joined us in the dining room. I heard the door to the guest bedroom open and kept my eyes on the hallway so I could catch the moment she walked in. Her expression when she stepped into the room and saw all of us, save for Bisky, naked was priceless. Her jaw dropped and she froze in her tracks as she stared at us.

I caught her eyes and flashed her a grin. "Good morning Kyouko~," I said. "You're just in time for breakfast."

"I- you- what- why are you naked?!" she sputtered. "Is this some kind of weird prank, or sex thing? Now that I can't go home you're revealing how perverted you really are?"

"Yes-" I started to say, wanting to mess with her more, but Levy gave me a light whack on the shoulder.

"No, it's not," Levy explained. "You're free to wear whatever you like, but most of us choose nudity for practical reasons. Laundry isn't easy to do with the resources we have. We have a washboard and a basin and you can hang them up in the bathroom, but it takes a lot of time when we have so much else to do, when we could just go without clothes and just wash our bodies. The climate here is very temperate, and clothes aren't really needed."

Levy ran her eyes up and down Kyouko. "And since things were so rushed last night… that's probably your only outfit, isn't it?" Kyouko tensed a little, confirming Levy's guess. "Unfortunately, you're not really close to any of our sizes, so we don't have any other clothes you can borrow. Maybe some few panties, I know you'll want to change those. But for more clothes you'll have to hope that the next portal opens on a world we can do some shopping on."

"I'll be fine," Kyou retorted, blushing and looking away. "It wouldn't be the first time I've had to go a few days wearing the same clothes."

"Oh, Kyouko…" Mami said in a quiet and sad voice. I was kind of there with her. Kyouko had only not been living on the streets for the past year because she used her magic to rent hotel rooms to sleep in and to steal food. It wasn't a nice way to live.

"I don't need your pity," Kyouko snapped. "I was doing just fine most of the time."

"And now she's here with us, so she doesn't have to worry about that!" I interjected. "And you don't have to join us in being nude, Bisky doesn't." I sent her a playful glare but she just turned her head away and ignored me, so I looked back to Kyouko with a shrug. "You are responsible for your own laundry though. You can just take your bath last. Or do it in the afternoon or something, that way your clothes have time to dry."

"Fine, I'll do that," she says. She looks at the table, where we're all sitting. "...but all of you are still going to be naked."

"You'll get used to it," Uzume commented. "Mami already has."

Mami blushes and averts her eyes. "Well… mostly, I guess."

A blushing Mami is so cute, it was hard to resist putting my hands on her. But she needed a bit more time to adjust. I'll indulge tonight, when she joins our nightly orgy for the first time.

"Exhibitionism aside, here," Bisky said as she handed Kyouko a bowl of fruit. "Breakfast."

Kyouko grumbled, too quiet for me to hear, but took the offered bowl and sat down with the rest of us. Well, there was a bit of space between her and the next closest person, but then Mami slid down next to her, which made Kyouko blush and avert her gaze even harder. But she didn't scooch further away, and I gave Mami a mental thumbs up of approval. Good on her for helping Kyouko adjust and feel welcomed!

Bisky sat down on the other side of Kyouko. "So, we're not going to do any serious training today, but I'm going to unlock both of your aura nodes today, after breakfast," Bisky told them.

Kyouko frowned. "You mentioned this aura stuff last night, but I don't really get it."

"It's what Roland uses, right?" Mami asked. "What let him fight the Familiars?"

"And I use it as well. It synergizes pretty well with this Magical Girl stuff." Bisky suppressed her aura and flexed her hand. "Even when not transformed, my body is pretty strong now. And that increases even further when I do transform and fortify it with magic. Aura acts as another multiplier on top of that."

She looks at the two of them again. "The three of us have the most combat potential out of everyone here, even just from being Magical Girls. With aura, we'll be a force to be reckoned with. Strong enough to make sure that what happened yesterday won't repeat itself. So I'm getting you started today."

Mami and Kyouko still looked a little lost, but they understood the main point Bisky was trying to make. What happened yesterday, with Roland almost dying, was unacceptable, and Bisky was going to teach them what she needed to so that they would be strong enough that it wouldn't happen again.

"Speaking of Roland… should we wake him up?" Chiho asked.

"No, let him rest as much as his body wants," Bisky said. "He used up all of his energy yesterday. Even with Kusano's healing, he needs time to recover."

We all accepted that, Bisky was the expert after all, and continued with our day. After breakfast, Bisky took the two new girls out to the training area, and we all felt it when their auras were unlocked. But we all had other work to do, and we went off to do it.

Well, except for me. I grabbed the Jinki, but gave up trying to mess with it after just a few minutes. I just wasn't in the mood for it. So instead, I snuck into the bedroom and grabbed Roland's phone, the one device my power didn't work on, so I could read his journal. I did it in the bedroom, and each time I touched myself because I was reading one of the sex scenes I was really hoping he would wake up and 'catch' me. But he slept through the whole thing.

By the time I was done reading, I decided that I might as well start writing up my 'report' on yesterday so Roland would be on the same page as everyone else, especially when it came to Kyouko's development.

I headed to the garden to start writing it. I like hanging out there while Kusano works. It's peaceful and relaxing.

But it wasn't today. I found Kusano not among some crops growing around her, or feeding the chickens. I found her sitting with her back against the oranut tree, one of the hens in her lap as she wrapped her arms around it. It didn't seem to mind, but it was clear that Kusano wasn't doing okay. She didn't even notice me as I sat down next to her.

"What's up Ku-chan?" I asked her gently. She started, surprised by my sudden presence as her head whipped around to look at me.

"Matsu-nee…" she started before trailing off. Then she shook her head and looked away, stroking the head of the hen in her lap. "No, it's nothing. I'm just taking a little break."

But Ku-chan is a bad liar, and she couldn't get such a weak excuse past me. "You're thinking about yesterday, aren't you?" I guessed. "About that fight with the Witch."

Kusano looked at me again, eyes widening. "How did you-" she said before cutting herself off. Her expression soured, like she just smelled or tasted something disgusting, and she averted her eyes and fell quiet.

I gave her a moment to continue, but when it was clear that she wasn't, I spoke up. "You know, I used to get into a lot of fights like that," I told her. "Fights with my life on the line. Fights where I had to protect my family. Fights where I stood side by side with allies as we killed everything that threatened us."

I looked away from Kusano, reminiscing on the past. She didn't say anything, but I knew I had her attention. "It was the early days, when we had just woken up. It was just Miya at first, that MBI found. But as word of our ship and the technology on it spread, everyone wanted it. And they were willing to use force to take it. Kamikura Island quickly turned into a battlefield, and not even Miya could handle it on her own. So, she woke us up, the next four in line. The original Disciplinary Squad. Me, Kazehana, Mutsu… and Karasuba."

It's always odd, thinking about Karasuba. Once upon a time, she was my most dependable ally. And part of me still thinks of her that way, and still loves her like a sister. But she changed. Or I guess it's more accurate to say she didn't change. The fighting stopped, and we left the battlefield, but it never left her. She kept seeking it out, even if it meant making one.

"It was actually Miya's husband-t0-be that handled our adjustments," I continued. "He turned the four of us from embryos stored in our ship to full grown adults ready to fight." I shook my head. "I never even got a chance to be a kid, you know?"

"Is that why you act so childish now?" Kusano asked. Then she slammed her mouth shut and I looked at her to see an expression of 'I didn't mean to say that out loud' panic on her face.

But I just laughed. "Maybe! That would make sense, wouldn't it? It's a little out of order, but well, we Sekirei don't exactly have 'normal' lives, do we?"

"Us more than most, probably," Kusano said, calmed down after seeing that I didn't get mad at her for her sass.

"Probably," I agreed. "Most are stuck in Shinto Teito after all. In that cage of a city. But Roland broke us free." I shook my head. "But even that cage wasn't something we always had. Kamikura Island wasn't a cage that kept us locked inside of it. It was a wall, a wall we had to defend. Violently so."

"...and you fought too?" Kusano asked, tone somber.

"Yep. Weak little me who has never held a weapon, and if I get my way, never will. But I still took them up regardless. I invaded their systems and stole their weapons for myself before turning them on their own forces. Missiles and machine guns would target them from behind. Weapons they trusted and exposed their backs to would tear them apart."

If I was being honest, I didn't do that kind of thing too often. The others handled the bulk of the actual killing. My main job was espionage, listening in to their communications, interfering with them, and coordinating our own forces. But there were more than a few instances of me having to get involved more directly.

Kusano was looking at me again, her eyes wide. I wasn't sure how much of it was the shock of me doing such things, or the fact that I was being so serious for once. I looked back at her with a warm smile.

"And you know what? I hated every moment of it. I hated the violence, the blood, the death. I hated that I was involved in such a thing. I don't like fighting. I don't like hurting other people. Those days were hell, and not a moment went by that I wasn't pleading for it to end. But…"

I trailed off for a moment. I admit, I was getting a little caught up in the memories of those days. It was hard not to, after so long of avoiding them. But Kusano needed to hear this.

"But?" Kusano asked. Her eyes were fixed on me, her hands shaking.

"But I hated it less than I hated the idea of all of you, of all the Sekirei still waiting to be born, being killed or taken away from me. There's no amount of fighting and killing that I would not do in order to protect the people I cared about. To protect my family."

I placed my arm over her shoulder and drew her closer to me in a sort of half hug. "I can imagine what it was like yesterday. To be an important line of defense. To have to fight to protect Roland and Chiho. I know you. You're a gentle girl, Ku-chan. I know how awful it must have been to fight like that, how scary it was."

Tears formed in the corners of her eyes and she nodded. "I- I've never been so scared. Not even when Takami-san was attacked and hurt, when that boy tried to wing me. Not even when Karasuba threatened Onee-chan. My hands wouldn't stop shaking, my heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest, and I felt like I was going to puke."

"But you did it," I pointed out, voice low and gentle. "You pushed through those feelings and fought. I read what Roland wrote about what happened. If you weren't there, if you didn't fight, they would have died. I hope you never have to do it again… but I'm glad that when the time came, you stepped up and did what had to be done. And I'm so, so, proud of you."

Kusano's expression twisted even further, and then she suddenly turned and threw her arms around me, the hen being tossed aside with an indignant squawk that neither of us paid attention to. Kusano clung to me, her hands on my back, as she started sobbing into my chest.

I held her close to me and stroked her hair gently. "It's okay," I reassured her with a whisper. "I'm right here. We're all right here. Just let it all out."

I held her like that for quite a while. Poor Ku-chan had been bottling up those feelings since yesterday, and she needed to get them all out. It had taken me far too long before I figured that out myself. Just one of many reasons I loved Miya, because she was the one that helped me. And now it was my turn to help Kusano.

Kusano slowly calmed down as I held her and stroked her hair, her sobs turning into hiccups and whimpers, and eventually even her tears dried up as her breathing slowly evened out. It was a few minutes after that that she finally loosened her grip on me and pulled back a little, sniffling.

She was quiet for a moment. "...I got you all dirty," she said.

"It's fine, we can just go take a bath to clean up," I reassured her. I didn't mind, because such a little thing didn't matter compared to making sure she was okay. "Are you feeling better now?"

Kusano nodded. "I- I think so."

I smiled at her. "Good. In the future, don't try to hide those feelings, okay? Talk to us. You can talk to me, or Roland, or Levy, or Bisky, or any of us. We're one big family, and that means we help each other. A lot of us have gone through what you're going through, and we know how to help. So just like you heal our wounds, let us help heal your feelings. Okay?"

She nodded again. "Okay. I will, I promise. I- can we go take that bath right now? I feel all gross."

"Sure thing," I said with a gentle smile. "Go head to the bath, I'll go bug Levy into getting us some hot water."

We didn't talk about anything serious in the bath. I don't think Kusano was ready for that. But she was happy and gladly talked about all kinds of other things, like the plans she has for the garden, or types of dishes she wants to learn how to make.

Kusano is the real reason I decided to write more than just what you missed yesterday, Roland. I headed things off early, before she really started bottling it up, but she's still carrying the scars of what happened in Charlotte's Barrier. She's not a warrior like Bisky or Levy, or even how you seem to be growing. She can fight… but she shouldn't, not unless she has to.

I saw how Chiho reacted, and I think you did good by her, even if you're technically breaking your promise by sleeping all day today, not that I think she'll hold it against you. I've spotted her a few times, lost in thought. She's talked to Levy and Uzume and even Bisky a few times too. She's eager to be more active.

Kusano is not. I know there will probably be times she has to fight, and I think she'll be prepared for those times. But she'll need our support for that, emotionally speaking. She's a good girl, a sweet and caring child who wants to create and encourage life, not take it. And we need to make sure she stays that way, understood?

Well, I don't want to lecture you too much. You've done a good job so far, and it's not like you wanted her to fight. Keep it in mind, and maybe spend some time with her, give her a chance to talk, if she wants. She might not talk to you though. If she doesn't, I'll make sure she talks to me, or one of the others. Just keep an eye on her, okay?

Nothing else super interesting happened today. After our bath Kusano went back to the garden and I started writing while keeping an eye on people. It really does take a long time to write these, huh? Wish we had a keyboard or something. We should get one when we can, one of those bluetooth ones. That'll help a lot.

It's almost dinner time and you're still not awake. I'm a little worried but- oh, nevermind. I just felt you get up and start moving! Bye bye future Roland, I have to go tackle- I mean hug, present Roland! See you tomorrow!

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AN: Oops. Sorry for the surprise small hiatus for this. Turns out you can burn yourself out even if you don't feel like you're pushing yourself, so I just needed a bit of a mental break. I did do some writing though, in between all the Tears of the Kingdom I was playing(fantastic game, btw). I touched up on A Crimson Chain a bit more and I started a story on . But I'm not done with this fic by any means, so it was just a matter of time until my break came to an end.

Matsu chapter! Any time they split up and someone does something exciting without Roland is a good excuse to show off their perspective. Matsu was chosen because she's been around for a while, Roland wouldn't mind her reading the journal, and because it was just the most in character for her. Mami might have been a little more interesting, or even Kyouko, but it feels weird to have newbies write a journal entry, just from an in-universe perspective. Besides, writing Matsu's writing was kinda fun. Her focus and style are very different from Roland.

So I put a lot of thought into the Witch that Mami fought that Roland followed her into the last chapter. The double Witch Barrier this time? Not so much thought, if I'm being honest. Consider them both Familiars that grew into Witches, so they're a step or three removed from any actual Magical Girl.

We finally got to see the Kyouko development, but even more important than how the tsundere was tamed was Kusano. It got glossed over in the last chapter because of well… everything, but that experience was pretty traumatic for someone like her. Roland rolled with it(mostly, it left its mark for sure), but Kusano doesn't have the mindset you need to just 'cope' with an experience like that. She needs help. Matsu was the perfect parallel for that. Sekirei is a weird series, especially when you start really digging past the surface level. For all the silly hijinks and fan service, a closer look reveals just how dark things can be.

I don't plan on doing a full deep focus on Kusano's trama. This isn't that kind of story, and I really don't feel educated enough to write something like that. But that wasn't the kind of thing I could just gloss over either, it needed to be addressed. To pretend like she wasn't affected by it would have been a disservice to her character. I write porn, but I do try to make it a good story as well.

Anyway, I feel like I've gotten the momentum back for this, so expect chapters to come at their regular pace from here on out. I've got a lot of things planned for the future, some near, some far. I'm very excited to get to them.