The two girls sat across from each other, an immaculate tea set on the table between them. Kyoko's gaze was focused on the cup of tea in front of her, fidgeting uncomfortably, while Mami looked at Kyoko in worry.

"May I ask what brought you here, Sakura-san?" Mami asked, watching as Kyoko constantly drummed her fingers on the table. It's been a while since she last saw Kyoko, and it's safe to say they hadn't left on the best terms. The last conversation they had was an argument about what it means to be a magical girl: it was a long, heated conversation about their conflicting ideologies which ultimately led to them splitting up. They haven't spoken since. Considering their history, she had assumed Kyoko would not want to associate with her again. Or maybe she wanted to bury the hatchet? She could only hope.

Mami tightly gripped her tea cup as she took a sip. After all that happened between them, why would Kyoko appear at her house all of a sudden? She hadn't made any hostile moves, so clearly Kyoko wasn't here to attack her, not that Mami thought she would do something like that to begin with. Yet she couldn't help the feeling of anxiety that bubbled up in her, though she was making a conscious effort not to show it.

"Have you talked to Kyubey recently?" Kyoko finally asked.

"No," Mami lightly shook her head. "He hasn't come around in a few days."

"Hmm." Kyoko huffed. "He might be underestimating this guy then…" she mumbled.

"Come again?

"Look Mami, I'm here 'cause I need your help."

"Ah." Of course she wouldn't come to reconcile their differences. Though she must have had quite a bit of trouble if even Kyoko needed to ask for help. "You must have faced a powerful witch-"

"No. Not a witch or a familiar. Kyubey came to me earlier, asking me to deal with someone that killed a witch somewhere in Mitakihara."

"Oh dear… Are you having trouble with another magical girl?"

Kyoko scoffed. "If only. It's some old guy."

"...I'm sorry?"

"Some old guy that showed up outta nowhere. I just had a run in with him."

Mami frowned and let out a light sigh. "Is this a joke, Sakura-san?"

"What? No, I-"

"I know we hadn't exactly left off on the best terms, but I expected you to at least show a little decorum, coming here as you did."

"Mami, listen, I know it sounds crazy but-

"Honestly. To show up at my house late at night with such a ludicrous story is quite unbecoming of-"

"Can you shut the hell up and listen to me already!? This ain't a joke damn it!" Kyoko slammed her hand on the table. The sudden yell had taken the other girl by surprise. She had a mind to chastise Kyoko for yelling so loudly and nearly damaging her table, but looking more closely, she could tell that Kyoko was trembling. Mami hadn't seen Kyoko so shaken since they first met.

Mami regarded Kyoko with an apologetic look. This was a person she had once called a friend and partner and she had come to her in need of aid, and here she was letting some lingering feelings of resentment and betrayal cloud her judgement. To turn away another's cry for help would go against everything she stood and fought for. Regardless of whatever history they had, in front of her was a girl asking for help.

Perhaps their relationship could still be mended.

"I- I'm sorry, Sakura-san. What you're saying is rather unbelievable, so I thought this was some kind of prank at my expense."

Kyoko sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "Nah, it's fine. Heck, if I was in your position, I wouldn't believe it either. But damned if I didn't feel…" she cut herself off with a curse.

"Please continue, Sakura-san."

"Right…" she took a sip of the tea before continuing. "Just over an hour ago, I saw a guy with white hair and a red jacket, just like Kyubey described to me earlier. Apparently he saw the old guy right at the sight of a Witch's labyrinth that just collapsed. He hadn't mentioned seeing another magical girl there, so he wanted me to check it out to be sure. So I see him right, and we end up getting into a fight."

"Kyubey told you of this person?"

Kyoko nodded. "He didn't know what his exact deal was, but some random guy who can take down a witch is really weird right?"

"Do you know how Kyubey found him?"

"I don't know the details, but he said he was looking for some girls with potential and came across a labyrinth collapsing. All he saw when he got there was the guy standing around a bit before heading someplace else."

"And this wasn't just someone drawn to the labyrinth before the witch was killed?"

"If it was, he had to have already been inside. Kyubey said the residual magic of the witch was rolling off of him when he first saw the guy, more than if a Witch's kiss was dissipating. Plus, that's how I was able to find him in the first place. I honestly thought it was some new kind of roaming witch at first."

"Hmm." A Witch's labyrinth could be detected for a brief period after it was destroyed, so the idea that the magic would take some time to wash off someone made sense. "And then what?"

"Kyubey met with me right after he saw the guy. It wasn't too hard to find him, it was just like finding a witch. I mean, it was one that felt like it was really weak, but I got to him before all traces of the witch were gone." She sighed. "I found him at an ice cream place."

"...Pardon?"

"No, seriously. He was leaving an ice cream shop and then wandered in and out of alleyways for at least twenty minutes."

"I can see how that would be suspicious."

"He never ran into anyone, so I thought I could get the jump on him…" Kyoko trailed off. Mami could see that she had begun shaking again. "He either knew I was following him or has crazy reflexes. Probably both. Everything I threw at him he dodged. He even caught my spear!" Mami's eyes widened in surprise. "I threw all my magic into one attack and he blocked it with a freaking handgun! Didn't even flinch." She shook her head. "He was toying with me the whole time. I come up with this plan to catch him off guard- it works and I stab him right through the chest, and he stays there, limp as a ragdoll." She gave a wry laugh. "Not even a minute later, he gets up, pulls my spear out and looks brand new." She chuckled wryly. "Imagine my surprise when I get a close up of his heart kneading itself back together.

"It wouldn't be that bad if that was it. I mean, we've fought witches that take a lot to kill, and as magical girls we can pretty much do the same thing. It's weird seeing it on a normal guy but still… what really got me is…" She gulped. "About halfway through he said he'd… 'take me seriously', and… and I…" Mami looked as the blood drained from Kyoko's face as she recalled the events. "It was like I was staring death in the face, like my very soul was shouting at me that I was going to die right there and nothing could stop it."

"Sakura-san…" Mami wanted to give an encouraging word, but everything she thought of died in her throat. So they sat there in silence.

"But-" Kyoko suddenly continued. "As far as I'm concerned, that was just some kind of mind affecting magic, probably used to intimidate. I'm thinking if he's got that sorta ability, he can't be that powerful. I mean, all he had was the gun, and anyone can take out a witch with enough firepower."

Mami gave a small smile. Though Kyoko was shaken, she still displayed a fierce determination. It was one of the qualities she really admired in Kyoko. She wouldn't let one failed encounter dissuade her; she was stubborn like that. "And so you suggest we work together on this?"

"You're like the strongest magical girl, Mami," Kyoko said. "I figure if the two of us hit him with everything we got, there's no way he'll get out of it. Everything gives at some point. At least with us looking out for each other we stand a better chance against him."

Mami couldn't believe her ears. Kyoko Sakura was once again asking for a partnership with her. Though the circumstances were unusual, she could hardly suppress the wide smile that threatened to appear on her face. Kyoko clearly thought this was a serious matter, and she didn't want to appear to be too eager or making light of it.

"Of course, Sakura-san. You can count on me."

"Cool," Kyoko let out a sigh of relief. "Now that we got that settled, we just gotta figure out how to find him."

"It's unfortunate that your encounter ended that way, Kyoko." The two girls turned. Sitting on Mami's windowsill was a small furry creature, it's pink eyes clearly visible despite the low light.

"Kyubey!" Mami said as the creature jumped down before them. "We were just talking about you."

"So I gathered."

"How much did you hear?" Kyoko asked.

"Everything that interested me." Kyoko hummed softly. "So you weren't able to deal with our Mysterious Stranger. While that isn't something that was completely unexpected, to be so thoroughly defeated is not what I anticipated. I admit, he is perplexing."

"What do you mean?" Mami asked.

"I would never have noticed the man had he not escaped a labyrinth completely unscathed," Kyubey said as he hopped onto the table. "I felt the collapse of the labyrinth and made my way there in order to collect a used grief seed from a magical girl. Yet when I arrived, no magical girl was present. I instead find this man drenched with the unmistakable scent of a Witch immediately where the labyrinth had been minutes before. Had it not been for the destruction of the labyrinth, I would assume he was affected by a Witch's kiss. It was quite surprising that such a phenomenon could occur, so naturally I asked the closest magical girl to observe." He turned to fully face Kyoko. "Your assessment of his abilities only served to increase my curiosity. For him to be able to best a particularly strong magical girl worries me. That, and he could be hoarding grief seeds."

"Do you have any idea what he might be doing with them?" Mami asked. "I can't imagine why anyone other than a magical girl would need them."

"...It is possible he found a way to harness some of a witch's power. It would explain his regenerative abilities."

"Harnessing a witch's power through grief seeds? Is that even possible?"

"Potentially. Though I am unaware of any human means of doing so."

"If that's the case, then it is of the utmost importance that we stop him," Mami said. "For an unknown party to utilize the power of witches… I shudder to think of what could happen."

"Not like I wasn't gonna keep going after him regardless." Kyoko said. "You got any bright ideas on what to do, Kyubey?"

"I didn't sense much power coming from him," Kyubey said. "I conjecture that his regenerative abilities stem from whatever he may be using grief seeds for. Since regeneration and a form of hypnosis are the only abilities he has displayed, whatever he's doing with grief seeds is most likely in its very early stage; as far as I can tell, he appears to be an average human, albeit one with lower than average emotional responses. I believe you two together would be able to overcome him, as long as you work quickly."

Kyoko grinned. "Well if Kyubey says so, then I guess that's all there is to it.

"But we still don't know where he is," Mami said.

"That shouldn't be an issue," Kyubey said. "If he is hunting witches, then it is most likely you will encounter him at a labyrinth."

A new day has dawned and Homura found herself getting out of bed. She hadn't planned on going to sleep, but the man in red currently sleeping on her couch insisted that she should. She tried to explain that she can draw on her magic in order to meet any of her physiological needs, but Dante countered that it was a waste of her power and that since she has the opportunity to sleep, she should take it. Continuing to argue would have been fruitless, so she relented.

And it actually turned out to be beneficial. Not because she needed sleep or because she felt particularly refreshed, but because the hours of silence had forced her mind to wander. Typically she kept busy to avoid this, as she had the tendency to spiral down a rabbit hole of self-doubt and regret that would immediately make her soul gem darken. But the slight reprieve allowed her to focus more fully on formulating this plan. She had many plans of course, but there was an order of priority. The most pressing issues were apparently going to be handled by her self-proclaimed 'partner', which allowed her time to think more thoroughly on the less immediate things. She found herself thinking about it for hours until she let herself fall asleep, and upon waking up she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

She went through her meticulously precise plan as she readied herself to go to school. She couldn't believe how foolish she'd been to not think of it sooner, but when it comes to being in a time loop, its better late than never. She allowed herself a smile. After executing the plan, everything else would fall into place. And it was so simple:

She had finally figured out the perfect way to have a conversation with Madoka.

She has spent countless time agonizing over just how to begin speaking with her again, how to steer her away from magical girls and Kyubey, but now she knew. And it wouldn't even cause Sayaka to be angry with her for no reason. All she had to do was say, "Kaname-san, is it okay if I speak with you?" And then go from there.

It was foolproof.

As she headed toward the door, she was stopped by a voice. "Where ya headed?"

She turned. Dante was laid about on her couch, a cowboy hat sat upon his face, blocking out the light.

"School."

He chuckled. "You don't have time to sleep but you have time to go to school? I'd say your priorities are messed up, but that's just me."

"I trust you remember what I asked you to do?"

"Don't worry!" From his position, Dante flicked his hat upward, backflipped off the couch, and landed in front of Homura. His hat fell squarely on his head and a long scarf materialized around his neck.

She wasn't impressed.

"I doubt Kyubey will try to approach you directly, but he will be watching you. As long as you show that you are capable of dealing with a witch, he will have to. Keeping him and the other magical girls preoccupied is paramount." Dante gave a single nod. And without another word, Homura left.

"So, dealing with witches, huh?" Dante said. He didn't think palling around with a nine-year old was how this mission would go. He'd say he had experience in this regard, but when Patty was Homura's age, aside from when they first met, it was more that she got wrapped up in his stuff, not the other way around.

The revelation that magical girls fight by burning up their souls didn't sit well with him. Sure, he knows the human spirit is tenacious, but he never thought of it as something tangible; a resource that could be consumed if even the nebulous concept of spirit was analogous to the soul. The core of a demon was a physical thing and could be considered the demonic equivalent of a soul. Some of his past Devil Arms could talk, after all. He supposed there wasn't any good reason why a human soul couldn't take a physical form and be burnt up like gas to fuel 'magic'… but that didn't mean he had to like it.

"Guess I'll get a move on," he said, lying back down on the couch.

It was several hours later that Dante was moving about the city. It had been a hot minute since he needed to follow whatever map he had on file, but he was making his way to the nearest witch. It happened to make its home at the same construction site where Homura tried to kill him, so he was already kind of familiar with it. Only problem…

"Where the hell is it?" Dante walked up and down and all around this place and he couldn't find a single trace of the witch. If it wasn't for Homura giving the exact detail of this witch, complete with images and attack patterns, whose name apparently was Gertrud, he wouldn't pay this place any mind. Even with him focusing as hard as he could, he found no difference in the air, none of his highly trained senses telling him this place was anything out of the ordinary; he had nothing. "How did she find the last one?" He knew where they all were, but came up at a loss on how to actually enter the labyrinth. All Homura did was hold out her hand and it opened up like she was invited. Was that it? Was that what he needed to do?

He held out his hand.

Nothing happened.

He concentrated a small amount of demonic energy.

Same result.

"Well don't I look stupid." It's never that simple. He crossed his arms. "So what the hell does it want me to do?" The thought of using the Yamato to open a tear in space time (or whatever it did) crossed his mind. But the second he attempted that, he'd be fighting Vergil for the next decade.

Tempting as that sounded, he didn't think it would be good form to leave a mission incomplete. That's just bad for business.

As he further contemplated what to do, he was interrupted by the march of footsteps behind him. He turned to see a small group of people of varying ages walking forward in single file, stopping just next to him.

He eyed them: blank, vacant look, slack jawed and extremely quiet. Either they were zombies, puppets, or mind controlled. "I take it you guys are here for the party?" He asked the group. They remained silent, save for their breathing; no outward response of having heard him. Looking closer, he could see they all had the same mark placed upon their neck. Definitely mind controlled. "It's pretty exclusive." Dante finished. "You all on the guest list?" On cue, space distorted in front of the man leading the group, twisting and warping, increasing in size until the world around them looked like a surrealist painting. "I'll take that as a yes," he grinned as the labyrinth revealed itself, the normal world fading away in the distortion as they were swallowed into the pocket dimension, leaving no trace of them behind.

And looking on from a distance, Kyoko watched as the man she had been spying entered a labyrinth with several charmed victims in tow.

"I guess we were right about him being up to something," she said. Hopefully whatever he's doing is going to take a while. Hey, I found him. She utilized her telepathic communication to relay the information to Mami. Just entered a labyrinth with a bunch of people.

People? Mami responded back. He's actually using… to think he would be so… so heartless!

It is a natural next step if he is attempting to understand the power of witches, Kyubey's voice cut in. As witches kill humans and spread curses, it is not illogical to think they have a greater purpose in doing so.

This is even worse than I feared! Mami relayed. Please, watch carefully if anything happens, Sakura-san. I'm headed to you immediately.

Don't you have school right now? Wouldn't want you to mess up your grades, Kyoko snarked.

As if I would place missing half a day over the lives of others. We have a chance to save them, Sakura-san. I won't waste it.

For the first time in an eternity, Homura felt happy. Here she was, despite everything that happened, speaking amicably with Madoka. Okay, moreso listening to Madoka as she talked. Or rather, listening as Madoka showed her around the school and explained how to get to various places like clubs or the nurse's office.

Of course she knew all of this already, but simply basking in Madoka's presence and hearing her melodious voice was an event she wouldn't dare pass up. She couldn't help the grin on her face as she followed Madoka around, taking in her lovely shade of hair, her firm, yet elegantly dainty gait… she smelled faintly of strawberries today. And her-

"Well, that's pretty much it. Do you have any questions, Homura-chan?"

The question instantly snapped her from her reverie. Had they toured the entire school already? Ah, it seems they had. It was the lunch break, so she took a more expeditious approach, touching on only the most important areas. How gracious of Madoka to sacrifice her personal time like the saint she is to grant Homura's request to spend time with… to show her around the school. Which is what she asked.

Unfortunately for her, when the time came to speak with Madoka, she got too nervous and settled on asking to walk around instead. It worked of course, but it is only a temporary solution. She needed to permanently ingratiate herself into Madoka's life. That way she could spend time with her every day- to protect her of course. Just because this time loop has gone significantly off track doesn't mean she can just up and forget what she needs to do! She needed to stay by Madoka's side and make sure she doesn't get involved with magical girls.

Wait, Madoka asked her a question and she needed to answer before she made things awkward and drove her away.

"No." Perfect.

"I see. Um… have you made any friends so far?"

No one else in the class mattered aside from her. She didn't need anyone other than Madoka. "I have not."

"Ah, it must be hard since you just transferred. Would you like to eat lunch with my friends and me? I don't want you to feel left out…"

Yes. Very yes. Absolutely. Most definitely. "I would like that, Madoka," she said with a smile. "You are very kind."

"Oh, thank you," she returned Homura's smile with an angelic, radiant one as they made their way back to the classroom. "Hitomi-chan is nice, and Sayaka-chan is a little… energetic. She's nice too, but don't think too badly of her at first."

As they walked, Homura noticed Mami Tomoe hurriedly moving through the halls. She tensed, thinking she wanted something, but she simply strode past the two. Madoka didn't pay her any mind. Which meant she wasn't familiar with her. And if Mami Tomoe was headed away so quickly… then it was safe to assume that Dante was effectively drawing her attention.

It seems he's more reliable than one would assume.

Regardless, she had a date with Madoka. Unfortunately she would also have to pay attention to Sayaka as well. It would be best if Sayaka never became a magical girl either, but as long as Madoka wasn't one, she really didn't care either way what happened to anyone else.

When the space around them settled, Dante found himself, along with the others, in a large dark room. Flying all about were numerous butterfly-like creatures and a large gate covered in vines in front of them. The creatures seemed to pay them no mind, which was probably a good thing as he noted that the group he was with remained as stoic as ever.

The gate opened. A group of small, cotton ball-looking things with handlebar mustaches with butterflies for legs came forward to surround them. They ushered them forward, and after the first step they took, Dante found himself moving past several other gates in quick succession until he was in another room. Great. This meant that space within this area was not as it appeared. And as Dante looked around, he was not looking forward to traversing this place.

A large staircase lay before them in a huge open area seemingly to move upward endlessly. More of the cottonballs lined the railings, seeming to pass small objects to each other, like a factory production line. The group of people, guided by the cotton balls, began moving upward.

"Looks we're gettin' the VIP treatment! This place really goes all out, huh?" Dante said. "Too bad they couldn't spring for a red carpet." They continued on, ignoring Dante's numerous comments. But, as funny as he found his own quips to be, he was now in the labyrinth and could do his job. These people weren't gonna be able to save themselves, being charmed and all. And not by his devilishly good looks.

Dante grinned. "Let's get this party started!" The moment after the words left his mouth, the people he was with fell to the ground. A quick burst of power was all it took and they all fell down. He didn't like having to do anything to normal humans, but things were about to get a lot crazier. Better to have them out of the way for this.

The moment they hit the ground, the cottonballs screeched. They got knives, scissors, and other sharp objects and charged forward. Large, ghost looking creatures with eyeballs plastered over their fronts swooped down from above, looking to go for an easy kill.

Just another day for the Legendary Devil Hunter.

He jumped before the flyers hit their mark. He pulled out Ebony and Ivory and started a rainstorm, the enemies falling one by one as they were caught in the storm of bullets. He switched to Coyote-A and unleashed the fireworks, the ones surrounding him dying instantly to the rapid buckshots. A quick glance below was all he needed to know just the stylish combination he wanted.

He's been itching to test his swords against these things.

With a loud rev, Cavaliere appeared and shred the approaching enemies. Dante swung the demonic motorcycle, effortlessly mutilating the flying eye things with each spin of the wheels. He finished it off by releasing the Devil Arm, throwing it into several more as they exploded on contact.

King Cerberus was out next, and with a yell like his favorite martial artist/actor, he whipped an icy Revolver as he spun to the ground, flash freezing and shattering the eye ghosts. He landed, and King Cerberus glowed purple as it was charged. "Lightning!" Dante said, slamming the weapon into the ground for Percussion; lightning strikes, obliterating the grounded foes. He set the weapon ablaze and set in staff form, executing a Rock Back by enflaming his shoes and kicked a nearby cotton, burning it to a crisp. Several attempted to leap at him, trying to impale him with sharp objects, but a quick series of fiery twirls was all that was needed to fry them, and the final swing of the weapon let out the Hot Stuff, incinerating the few that remained in front of him. He took out Balrog, kick form, and-

Dante paused. It appeared like nothing more was coming at him. Despite the hundreds of little guys he saw, it seemed like all the other cottons lining the wall were just gonna ignore him and keep passing stuff around. There was a distinct lack of flying eyeballs, too.

Savage!

Well that was disappointing, he thought as he dismissed Balrog. Can't really look cool if there's nothing to look at. He supposed he'd have to tune it down even more next time, make it last longer. Oh well. He glanced to the side. The people here were still unconscious and completely unharmed, and nothing was making a move toward them.

He glanced around at the labyrinth. Didn't seem to be any obvious exits except for the giant staircase that screamed 'big boss at the top'. "Nowhere to go but up." And with that he headed further into the labyrinth.

What is it like when you pull back the curtain and realize every wrong is a right?
Here's another part. If you've read this far, I guess you think it's interesting. Thanks for taking time out of your day to do so.