Author's Note:

Hello, hope you enjoy this.

Keep in mind that this starts at the picnic meeting that Kirika and Yuma planned and forced Kyoko and Oriko into the last time we saw them.

I do have one semi-serious question for you readers that I'd like some feedback on. Would you prefer my chapters be shorter? The actual length of content likely won't change, but I would try to break it up into more pieces that might be published quicker (I make no promises, but it's likely). I'll repeat this question in the end notes in case you missed it here, but I would appreciate you to weigh in on this, as I realize that 30 page long chapters might be a bit much to go through at once.


Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Pergo Pugnare (Strings)

Kyoko had to admit, as she tasted some rice prepared by Oriko that the girl was good at cooking. That and, as far as she could tell, she didn't seem to have some sort of unseen agenda in regards to Yuma. They had agreed to meet in the park in an hour while Oriko had gone to get the food. Kyoko had had very little problem waiting as it had meant that she wouldn't have to worry about getting a meal for herself and Yuma and she was not disappointed by the amount or quality of the food that Oriko had brought. Kirika and Yuma were obviously enjoying it too as they were both chowing down with a gusto that Kyoko could both understand and approve of given her own views on how not one bit of food should be wasted.

After a bit though, she felt that she should probably get the conversation rolling.

"So" Kyoko said after shoving a large chunk of rice into her mouth. "We talking or what?"

Oriko picked at her own bowl of rice as she and Kyoko stared each other down. Both girls seemed to be on the lookout for any sign or clue which would give them insight about the other girl's motives and character. Kyoko noted internally that Oriko was dressed in a, while not gaudy, still a rather expensive set of clothes as well as the fact of how she held her head high and her body with perfect posture, along with her seeming tendency/ability to try and read people. Put it all together and Kyoko figured that Oriko was from a rich family, probably lots of influence hence a need to instill 'proper' ways of acting and reacting around the Plebian Commoners.

Oriko meanwhile had taken in Kyoko's stained and somewhat frayed clothing, evidence of long usage over time in outside weather. She also noted how Kyoko might seemed relaxed but underneath it she could see a tenseness that indicated that she was ready to move and fight at the slightest hint of provocation. All possible signs of her being homeless (not all that unlikely, life as a Magical Girl did a number on most familial relationships, or even just relationships in general). Oriko was not homeless, but was not unaware of the harsh conditions such people could face (it was, after all, one of the things that her father had wanted to change and campaigned to do so). Thusly, Kyoko's cagey behavior around an unknown element was understandable. Heck, if Oriko hadn't known Yuma beforehand and gotten something like an unintentional vote of confidence from her, Kyoko probably would've just been on her merry way rather than agree to talk further. Though, Oriko did wonder why she'd been spying on the same group that she herself was.

Meanwhile, on their side, Yuma was steadily chewing her way through a rice ball so large that it looked more in shape like a cantaloupe than anything else. Just across from her, Kirika was doing the same. Both girl's faces were transported with pleasure as they savored the fruits of Oriko's labor.

Oriko and Kyoko stared each other down for a bit longer before Kyoko, rolling her eyes at the long silence, suddenly spoke up.

"So, you said something about spying on the Magical Girls in the apartment. Why? What's your beef with em?"

"I could ask the same of you" Oriko said mildly as she raised a teacup and took a sip.

Kyoko snorted in a way that Oriko had certainly never done so, "I asked first. Sides, of the two of us, I think I got more reasons to spy on them then you do."

"And why is that?" Oriko asked mildly.

Kyoko opened her mouth, no doubt to try and turn the question back around on Oriko again, but before she could speak, Yuma looked over at them, swallowed, and answered.

"Oh, because one of those girls is a friend of Kyoko's!"

"Yuma!" Kyoko said sharply, her eyes flashing in the young girl's direction.

Yuma put a hand to her mouth sheepishly. "Sorry Onee-Chan, I forgot you said that you weren't friends anymore."

Kyoko put two fingers to her forehead, "no, that's not why . . . just please be quiet and eat some more rice Yuma."

"Okay Onee-Chan," Yuma nodded vigorously and returned to her systematic inhalation of the rice ball. In spite of herself, Kyoko smirked and patted the young girl on the back as if commending her for her ability to eat so much so quickly.

"So you know one of the girls?" Oriko prompted.

Kyoko scowled at her, then seemed to decide that, with the information out in the open, she may as well confirm it.
"Yeah, Mami Tomoe. Used to work with her for awhile before I wised up."

"And she is the reason you were spying on them in the middle of the day?"

Kyoko narrowed her eyes, "I'm hearing a lot of questions for me, but not a lot a answers from you. You got something outta me, so let's hear you take the next turn."

Oriko considered this. It did make a bit of sense, information for information, fair trade. The problem was, she had things that she wasn't really ready to share freely. In the wrong hands, especially if the Kyubey thing should prove hostile, some of her foreknowledge might convince it that she was a threat that needed taking care of. She needed to be sure she could trust Kyoko before she let information like that out.

Still, the idea still had merit, maybe it could work with a simple caveat thrown in.

"In that case, I have a proposal" Oriko said. Kyoko raised an eyebrow but did not interrupt, so Oriko continued.

"We will each be able to ask the other a question in turn and the other will answer. However, if we do not feel like answering, or feel that we cannot answer, the other person may ask a new question to make up for the unanswered one. Quid pro quo as it were. Is that acceptable?"

Kyoko looked down, pondering the deal, turning the words over in her mind. She couldn't deny she was curious as to why this Oriko girl and the biker chick, Kirito or whatever her name was, had been spying on Mami and her new posse. It's not like she considered her past with Mami a huge secret, though she didn't particularly want to discuss anything close to her father or family. But Oriko had said that she could refuse a question if she wanted.

Kyoko gave a curt nod and Oriko opened her mouth. But before she could speak, both girls were distracted as Kirika gave a sudden cry of pain. She had apparently been so intent upon eating her food that she'd wound up biting on of her own fingers. After a few moments sucking the finger and ensuring it wasn't permanently damaged, she turned to the others with a grin on her face, pain completely forgotten.

"Sounds great, Oriko, you got an answer about Mami, so now you got to answer one of Kyoko's questions."

Oriko blinked, then sighed.

"I suppose you're right. Very well Kyoko, ask your question."

Kyoko contemplated the girl in front of her, then snorted.

"Just answer my first question, what's your beef with Mami? Or her groupies or whoever you were spying on."

Oriko mulled the question over in mind. Divulging her intention of information gathering would doubtless lead to more questions that might probe dangerously close to her vision of the creature and its fate of destruction. However, would no answer be even more suspicious? Kyoko could conceivably be an ally, but just as conceivably not if this Mami Tomoe turned out to be a person she cared for and Mami was in turn in league with the small creature. Though then again, perhaps she could sell Kyoko on the premise of saving her friend from the small creature's influence.

There she was, getting ahead of herself again. She didn't even really know much about the small thing, but as she'd said when she first met Kyoko, their lack of information on both sides might possibly be a path for cooperation. So, a small bit of the truth might not hurt here. Not much until she had an actual workable agreement with Kyoko, but a small bit.

"Currently, I have no problem with any of the girls. Only potentially with the Kyubey-like creature that was with them."

Kyoko tilted her head, "you noticed that too huh? Wonder what's up with that thing? And that was rhetorical, not an actual question."

Oriko cleared her throat and then spoke her question, "what was your reason for spying unseen on them?"

Kyoko looked away, taking a moment to answer, ". . . been away for a while. Wanted to see what's changed. Didn't think that Mami would have so many new friends already."

"She's lying, or at least, not telling the whole truth" Oriko thought as she noted Kyoko's shifty eyes and tense posture.

"Perhaps she too has a strange reason to chase those girls" she continued the thought. "Whatever it is, she likely won't tell you until some trust is earned, or an agreement is reached, if possible."

Kyoko had turned back and the next question flowed off of her lips.

"Why's that Kyubey thing a problem? Whatcha know about it?"

Oriko debated on that point. Technically Kyoko had just asked two questions, but as they could conceivably be called the same, similar, or just connected, she felt she could answer them both. But back to the matter at hand the creature might be dangerous. If it was, she couldn't risk the fact that she might have to kill it getting passed onto its ears, even indirectly.

"I am unsure," she said truthfully. "My powers have given me reason to believe that its differences from Kyubey are not just skin-deep. This makes it a rogue element that may or may not cause unnecessary damage."

Kyoko mulled the words over in her head as she picked up a chicken leg and began chomping on it messily. Oriko flinched slightly as grease and oil spattered onto Kyoko's shirt without the girl noticing (or else not caring). Would it kill her to show some proper manners?

On Oriko's side suddenly, a small burp suddenly erupted and everyone looked over at Yuma. The small girl covered her mouth, her face reddening, but then everyone's attention was stolen yet again as an even louder burp was sounded by Kirika.

The black haired girl looked down at Yuma and grinned as the small girl tried to smother her giggles.

"Betcha you can't burp louder than that!" she said in a challenging tone of voice. Kirika had actually grabbed a soda can and seemed about to empty it into her mouth before Oriko put a hand to her forehead, though she was smiling ruefully.

"Kirika, this is not the time or place."

"Aw, c'mon Oriko!" Kirika protested, somehow managing to make her lip tremble as she gazed imploringly at the white-haired girl. Oriko almost gave in at the look on Kirika's face, but steeled herself and said firmly, "no."

Oriko turned back to Kyoko, who was smirking with grease covered lips at the girl in front of her.

"My turn then," Oriko said to bring the conversation back to the main topic. "Are you intending to make contact with the group of girls we were both observing?"

Kyoko mulled the question over, then shrugged, "not yet. Don't think I'd be welcome and besides, don't want them to know I'm watching em. Need to figure some things out first."

Kyoko then looked intently back at Oriko, "so what sort a deal you wantin? I don't share spoils for hunts and I gotta say right now, if your lookin to fight them you'd better steer clear. Mami's had this territory locked up nice and tight for awhile now and she's good at what she does. You might be crazy or stupid enough to try it-" Kirika looked angry at this and opened her mouth to retaliate, but Oriko held up a hand, forestalling her.

"-but I ain't. Still, now that I got this little munchkin," Kyoko jabbed a finger at Yuma, who looked up at her with her mouth full, "it might be nice to get some help to get this done as soon as possible so I can head back to Kazamino."

Oriko nodded, "as for that, we appear to be in broad agreement. Simple observation for now with no contact and we shall compare and contrast notes. Perhaps take it in shifts to watch them. All other aspects of our lives, Magical and otherwise, shall be unaffected by this deal."

Oriko glanced at Yuma and a sudden thought seemed to occur to her. She turned back to Kyoko.

"Can I assume that you both are, broadly speaking, homeless?"

Kyoko's eyes narrowed, "you some sort of stuck up rich girl?"

Oriko held up a hand to forestall Kyoko's anger, "nothing of the sort, though I am rather better off than most in the city. I was merely going to suggest that, if you have nowhere warm to sleep, I could rent a small apartment for you and Yuma."

It was a calculated move. Sure it might leave a paper trail back to her that could lead the Rogue Drone or one of it's companions back to her home, But Oriko got the feeling that Kyoko didn't have the technical know-how to do that. Kyoko also didn't give the feeling that she was going to rush to tell the Rogue Drone everything she know about Oriko. The girl seemed to like to hold information close to her chest. Adding to that was the fact that she really did not like the thought of Yuma being homeless alongside a girl who might die at any moment in a Witch Hunt. And finally, it might gain some trust and cause Kyoko to feel she owed Oriko something.

Kyoko considered the proposal, "how small we talkin about? We talkin small suite small, or capsule hotel small?"

Oriko smirked, "well considering I live in a large estate, I think my definition of small is a bit bigger than yours. It would be comfortable enough for you two, though not overly large. I may not want for much money, but that doesn't make my resources unlimited."

Oriko then noticed that Yuma was gazing awestruck at her and the small girl suddenly spoke up, "you live in a mansion?!"

Everyone looked at her, but she was too caught up in staring rapturously at Oriko to be embarrassed by this.

Oriko chuckled slightly, "yes, I do live in a very large house that would probably classify as a mansion. I only heat a part of it however, as the costs of heating the whole building is too expensive. Not to mention a waste of time."

Kyoko sniffed "why's that, are your family health nuts or something who think that freezing your a-" She shut her mouth for a moment, glancing at Yuma while searching for an alternate word. "Freezing your butt off is a way to get better? 'Misery builds character' sort of people?"

Oriko frowned and looked down. "no . . . I live alone. My parents are . . . unfortunately no longer with us."

Kyoko froze, her eyes boring into Oriko's. Then she said something that caused Oriko to tense up.

"Say, wasn't there a politician named Mikuni who got fired cause he was stealing? Then he offed himself."

Oriko was still as a statue as she stared at Kyoko. The red-headed girl however, sniffed and examined an apple before taking a large bite out of it. Her eyes found Oriko's again and she smirked.

"Doubt you had much to do with it, probably too young. Was that why you made your wish?"

Oriko blinked, thrown for a loop as she stared at the girl who'd managed to guess her reasons (or at least, the main reason) why she'd made her wish. Kyoko shook her head, her smirk vanishing as she closed her eyes in a stressed expression.

"You'd start to think Kyubey's got a thing for girls who'll just waste their wish on their Dad's."

"Waste?" Oriko said, half-curious, half-annoyed. Kirika was glaring at Kyoko again, though she refrained from speaking for the moment.

Kyoko snorted, "Magic's only good if you use it for yourself. But anyway, we don't seem to be playing the question game anymore, so let's talk about our deal." She grimaced.

"Flattering as it is," she said with the small sneer, "I think I'll stick to roughing it in the great Mitakharan City Outback. No offense but I don't know you well enough to start acceptin charity from ya."

Oriko nodded, not particularly surprised, it'd been a bit of a longshot anyway.

"I do have one other condition," Oriko said clearly.

Kyoko cocked an eyebrow, but did not speak, so Oriko continued. It might've been said already, but Oriko felt the need to make a point of it.

"It is that you will not make contact, direct or indirect, with the Magical Girls or with the Rogue Drone unless I say so."

Kyoko was silent for a moment, then snorted and smirked, "what, are you scared I'm gonna tell on you or something?"

"It's no laughing matter," Oriko said sternly. "It is imperative that the Rogue Drone and its allies not know about us before we're ready. If it really is as dangerous as I think it might be, then we'll need every edge we can get. And the element of surprise is one edge that is easily lost and hard to regain."

Kyoko was still smirking slightly, annoying Oriko with her expression. But after a few moments she sighed, "fine, I'll check in with you before I go running off on any big adventures or something like that."

Oriko nodded and looked around at the group as a whole and noticed that nobody (not even Yuma and Kyoko) was eating anymore.
"Well, in that case, it appears that our meeting is concluded" she said reasonably. "When would you like to meet next to compare notes?"

Kyoko thought for a moment before shrugging.

"How about a tomorrow. Should give us some time to get some new info to share, or just hash things out more. So long as you keep the food comin I'll share."

The red head got to her feet and everyone joined her, Oriko gathered up the pieces of the picnic and put it in the basket she'd brought along. Yuma helped with a small smile on her face and as she brought her dishes over she held them out as she spoke.

"Thank you for all the nice food Onee-san."

Oriko smiled warmly down at her as she accepted the dishes and put them away. Then she stood up and dusted herself off.

"Well . . . until then Sakura-San."

Kyoko nodded, then turned and walked away with Yuma at her side. Yuma waved enthusiastically at Oriko as she walked and Oriko waved back with a faint smile on her face. Kirika waved so fast that her hand looked more like a blur than anything else.

"I liked her!" Kirika said, referring to Yuma, "she was soooo cute! The redhead though," Kirika's face fell slightly, looking annoyed, "what's her deal! She had no right to call you stupid!"

Oriko shook her head slightly, touched by Kirika's defense of her.

"It's alright Kirika. Not everyone likes me."

Kirika shook her head violently, staring at Oriko, "then they're idiots Oriko! No one who knew you could dislike you! You're perfect."

Oriko chuckled slightly as the two of them turned and began walking home. But something in her felt a little bit uncomfortable. She had noticed it before. At times Kirika had moments like this where her devotion seemed to swing forward into obsession. It was somewhat disconcerting for her to hear Kirika say such things with such absolute certainty.

Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Warning #2 [Pitched+1]

"Kirika," Oriko said suddenly. The black haired girl looked over at her expectantly.

"What would you do for me?" Oriko asked quietly.

Kirika looked slightly confused by the question, "anything Oriko!"

It sounded good on the surface, but something about the instantaneous speed of the answer bothered Oriko, something she couldn't put her finger on.

"Anything Kirika, anything at all?"

Kirika cocked her head, "of course, Oriko whatever you want."

"What if I asked you to do something you didn't want? Something you didn't like?"

Kirika seemed to freeze for a moment, looking a slight bit confused. Then a placid smile spread over her face and she answered with crystal clear certainty and a (slightly concerning) airy-fairy look.

"All I want is to do what you want. After all, I love you and you're always right."

Oriko studied Kirika's face intently, noticing how the girl seemed utterly oblivious to everything but Oriko herself.

"But why? Why do you think that?"

Kirika shook her head, the same vague smile on her face.

"What does it matter why I think it, it's true isn't it?"

Oriko stared with some trepidation at the almost blank stare of the black-haired girl. She considered Kirika her only friend and treasured their relationship like no other, but moments like this made her rather worried about Kirika as a person. Whenever she delved deeply into why Kirika wanted to be her friend, she always seemed to come up against these statements that ran in circles rather than answering themselves. It worried her, and it frustrated her that she never had the time, nor even the motivation to truly investigate it.

She shook her head and looked away, mulling things over with some frustration. Perhaps, when the current crisis was over, she could truly sit down with Kirika and hash out what made her so certain and . . . obsessed with Oriko. But right now, the Seer felt she couldn't spare the time to do so. It looked as though she would have to try juggle not accidentally revealing herself to the Rogue Drone or one of its companions, maintaining a good relationship with Kyoko (while simultaneously making sure she didn't 'out' Oriko to the Drone, intentionally or otherwise), sorting out her feelings with Yuma and trying to make sure the younger girl wasn't getting into too much danger, thinking up potential plans for how to 'deal' with the Rogue Drone before her vision came to pass, and to top it off, try and ensure that Kyubey didn't benefit anymore from this chaos than it surely already was.

She was swamped.

Still, it didn't stop a dull worry in her gut as she turned back and watched Kirika skip along beside her, the placid smile still painting her face. She really wished she knew why the girl latched onto her so hard. Perhaps in her own way, Kirika was just as broken as Oriko herself. And if she got fixed, would she even want to be around Oriko anymore?

Oriko felt her fists clench and her eyebrows furrow. For a moment she felt something icy stab into her gut, but then she forced a long deep sigh. Kirika looked at her with concern, seeming to snap out of the sort of daydream that she'd seemed to have fallen into, but Oriko just smiled and then and walked on. She had some spying to prepare for, as well as instructions to give to Kirika during the days when she was in school with the Rogue Drone's companions. She pushed the questions about Kirika to the back of her mind. Hopefully they wouldn't bother her there.


Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST - Taenia Memoriae

Kyoko and Yuma were perched on the top of a high rise building. It was a fancy hotel that Kyoko had managed to break into after their normal sleuthing and gathering they'd done after they'd left the meeting with Oriko. Both of them were looking out over the city as the sun set. Yuma was enjoying the view immensely and that was the main reason that Kyoko was sticking around up there. It wasn't bad she had to admit, as the sky was a beautiful mix of fiery oranges and reds as the orb started to dip below the horizon.

Still, as she looked over at the small girl beside her, Kyoko felt herself frown.

"Say, Yuma."

The green-haired girl looked over and up at Kyoko with a small smile on her face.

"Yes Onee-Chan?"

Kyoko pinched her forehead, "I thought I told you not to call me that," she said, though without much heat.

"Anyway, so you said earlier that you met Oriko at a picnic." She waited a moment, Yuma nodded.

"Right, so was that the only time you saw her? Before today was that it?"
Yuma nodded, tilting her head with curiosity at where the conversation was going.

"What was she like then?" Kyoko asked, staring piercingly at Yuma.

Yuma squirmed a bit, ". . . she was . . . she was nice."

Kyoko mulled the words over in her mind. Oriko had seemed pleasant, at least as far as politeness went. But Kyoko was able to note the wariness that the girl seemed to conduct herself with. To be fair, Kyoko herself hadn't exactly been willing to spill every single secret she had in an instant, but . . .

Kyoko chuffed slightly, she couldn't put her finger on it, but the girl had given her a feeling of . . . depth . . . unspoken intent . . . it was just that Kyoko felt like there was more to what she wanted than what she was telling Kyoko. Supposedly she was investigating the weird Kyubey thing because she suspected it of something dangerous. How or why she knew that wasn't discussed. Thinking back on it, they hadn't even really discussed what their powers were as Magical Girls (not that Kyoko was all to eager to discuss her own abilities, or rather, her lack thereof).

Kyoko had lived on the streets for a good long while, and in such a time, there had been a bit of an education on knowing how to conceal things, when to reveal them, and see when someone was conning you. She didn't feel like Oriko was 'conning' her per se. But she could not shake some sneaking suspicion that something fishy was going on. She supposed her weird dreams were a part of this. But the fact remained that she wanted to try and know a bit more about Oriko. She had her guesses which she felt relatively confident in, but not certain.

Which brought her back to Yuma.

"Look," she said quietly, "just tell me what happened when you met her."

Yuma thought back, her face growing pensive.

"It was night and I wasn't at home. Mommy . . . Mommy told me to . . ." Yuma's face fell and she clutched herself, seeming to become lost in a memory as she shivered. Kyoko instantly scooted closer to her, and, despite feeling a small bit of embarrassment, put her hands on Yuma's shoulders and shook her slightly.

"I think I get the picture Yuma, just skip to when you first met Oriko."

Yuma shook her head slightly, "w-well. I walked around until I got to the place with all the grass and trees. It was dark out and I was a bit scared and hungry. Then I smelled some really nice food and walked through some bushes. Then, I met Mikuni Onee-San. I was afraid she'd tell me to go away, but she just smiled, gave me some food, and told me to sit down next to her."

"Okay, so she let a random kid sit with her and shared her food with her" Kyoko thought, digesting the fact.

"Maybe her similarities to Mami are bit more than chest deep" she thought with a small smirk.

"We talked for a bit, she said she was watching the moon then she asked me why I was out when it was so dark. I told her about . . . mommy and daddy . . . how I wasn't a good enough girl for them."

Kyoko's eyes narrowed, "hold up, who made you think that! Was it Oriko?!"

Yuma looked startled by Kyoko's outburst and her angry expression. Still, she shook her head regardless.

"N-no. She just talked for a bit about how Mommies, Daddies, and little girl's should all try to be 'good' but that we can't . . ." Yuma's face fell as she tried to phrase what Oriko had told her.

" . . . that, nobody's perfect and that we shouldn't be angry at people because they aren't perfect!" she finished with a smile, proud of herself for having managed to say all that.

Kyoko nodded, thinking about what Oriko had been said. But then Yuma seemed to remember something and spoke again.

"Oh, she said that she didn't feel like a 'good girl' either."

Kyoko's brows furrowed. That was something interesting. Assuming Oriko was being genuine, and Kyoko had little reason to suspect that she wasn't at that moment. Sure, she probably could sense that Yuma had the potential to be a Magical Girl (much like Kyoko herself could sense it), but it seemed that she hadn't taken any advantage of the situation. The bit about Oriko not thinking of herself as being good did stir something inside her and brought up some images of her Father hunched over a desk with a bottle in his hand. Images that she quickly clamped down on, having no desire to remember them.

Was Oriko trying to fix something? If she didn't feel like a good person, what was she trying to do about that? As she and Yuma got into bed, Kyoko mused that, speaking as someone with some experience making a wish for the sake of another person (possibly the same sort of person, if she was right in her guess on who had influenced Oriko to make her wish), then it was a powerful motivator. Whether or not it was a smart thing was another matter altogether.

Kyoko groaned internally, she was thinking way harder about this than she was normally given to. How had it come to this? Her nice little life had collapsed to numerous complications in the space of about a week. Ever since that first weird dream with the black-haired girl, she'd felt like she needed to come back to Mitakihara, the dream with Sayaka had been the . . . well not exactly straw, more like 'boulder' that 'broke the camel's back.' And since she came back, her life had just spiraled into her looking after a grade-schooler and agreeing to act like a spy with a Magical Girl who wasn't telling her everything. Seriously, how had things gotten so insane in just a few days?!

She rolled over and caught sight of Yuma's sleeping face. After a moment, Kyoko's disgruntled face relaxed and her lips softened into, not exactly a smile, but not a frown either. Then she sighed deeply and closed her eyes, giving into sleep's embrace.


Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Salve, Terrai Magicae (Tin Whistle, Orchestra)

The next few days were a mix of tailing the Drone and its companions, meetings with Kyoko to compare notes, and keeping up appearances at school. Kirika gathered all the information she could on the sly during school (mostly on the Drone's companions due to the fact that she went to the same school as them). Kyoko did tell them in a basic sense about Mami and her powers (ribbons apparently, but she was very good at finding creative ways of using them and of maximizing basic Magical Girl powers). The two had evidently been partners for awhile until a disagreement had driven them apart (Kyoko always refused to discuss the particulars with Oriko and Kirika). The other three middle-school students were somewhat unknown.

Kirika had managed to get some hearsay about them through school gossip, though she'd said that the black haired girl (named Homura apparently) had seemed to shoot her quick looks a few times. Oriko had been curious, but as nothing had happened within a few days, hadn't seemed to consider it something to worry too much about (or at least hadn't indicated such to Kyoko). Anyway, Homura was apparently a Magical Girl and somewhat of an anomaly. Kyubey had been around occasionally (thankfully he hadn't yet found out about Yuma to their knowledge) and Oriko and Kyoko had asked him about the group. The main interesting thing of the conversation was that not even Kyubey knew much about Homura, apparently he had no memory at all of granting a wish to her and didn't even really know what her powers were (though he indicated he was observing her to make progress on that front.)

Madoka and Sayaka had been less mysterious, they were simply girls who had the potential to become Magical Girls, though they'd evidently decided against it. The white-haired grade schooler, Nagisa Momoe, was another new Magical Girl who was bunking with Mami due to a personal tragedy.

Kyubey didn't have much knowledge on the Rogue Drone (or at least not much that he'd been willing to share). The only knowledge of it that they'd gained was that, a week or two ago, it had suddenly disconnected itself from the network (though Kyubey described it as one of his friends suddenly not talking to him anymore) and had resurfaced working with Homura. When asked if it was possible that the Rogue Drone was controlling or manipulating the girls in order to go along with some sordid scheme, Kyubey had responded by saying that it was certainly possible. It was even probable that he was getting the girls to do what he wanted by making them think certain things of Kyubey that they wouldn't normally.

All in all, they gained a good bit of impersonal information, but still had a lot of questions after a few days. Which isn't to say that some interesting things didn't happen. One thing was what happened when they had next met and Kyoko and Oriko had gotten around to discussing what sort of powers they had.


Oriko and Kyoko were sitting on a park bench, eating some food (Oriko daintily taking small bits and chewing with intent while Kyoko scarfed down a plate loaded with food), and watching as Yuma and Kirika messed around a few feet away.

Eventually, Kyoko finished her food (somehow quicker than Oriko in spite of the mountain of food she'd started with) and put the plate aside, "so what are your powers anyway?" Kyoko asked casually as she stretched.

"I gain visions of the future," Oriko said casually. She had been hesitant to reveal her powers at her earlier meeting, but as they had a working agreement down and neither one of them would be in contact with the Rogue Drone, she felt it was alright to reveal her powers.

Kyoko froze as Oriko spoke, her arms and legs frozen in an outstretched position as she stared at the girl. Eventually, she opened her mouth and then closed it again, seeming to be searching for something to say. Finally, she opened up her mouth again.

"So, you can see things that are gonna happen?" her voice was hesitant as she stared at Oriko, who was a bit disconcerted with her reaction.

" . . . yeeees," she said with a questioning voice. "My visions usually come at random and some of them are of people I haven't even met yet."

Kyoko twitched, her eyes narrowing. "And that's a skill that only you got? That ain't anything other Magical Girl's can do?"

Oriko tilted her head, "no, as far as I know, it's just me. Kyubey says its my Wish-specific power that gave me this ability. Why do you ask-"

She stopped short as they contemplated Kyoko's question before reaching a conclusion

"Have you . . . " she asked slowly. "Have you . . . been having visions of the future?"

Kyoko looked to the side, her eyes hard and her face taut, as though angry with herself. Then she burst out.
"Okay look, the first one was about a week ago and it was freakin weird all I really remember is that black haired girl in it trying to fight off a giant witch that looked like a . . . " she strained for a moment before snapping her finger, "a big joker doll, that's it."

Oriko twitched, recalling the shape that the giant Witch, that Walpurgisnacht, had taken in her vision.

"She was tryin to fight the giant joker doll and was losin. Then, a couple nights ago, I got another weird dream that had Mami and those other girls in it, but it was mostly about Sayaka and me!"
Oriko blinked, "who?"

Kyoko slapped a hand to her face, "dangit, that was her name in the dream. I still gotta see if that's her real name. But anyway, I never met any of them, cept Mami, before and I suddenly start having dreams about them. I mean, it ain't my power so what the heck's going on here!"

There was a moment's silence as Oriko tried to take all this in. Kyoko looked frustrated and conflicted, but then her face suddenly grew horrified.

"Oh no!" Kyoko exclaimed loudly. Oriko looked at her with interest.

Kyoko's eyes were wide as she stared at Oriko, "I said 'freakin' instead of the other word! What's happening to me?!"

Oriko put a hand to her mouth and chuckled slightly, "I suppose it's just Yuma rubbing off on you. You've censored yourself in front of her, so I suppose its taking effect elsewhere. You said 'heck' too if my observations are correct."

Kyoko looked more horrified than ever.

"Oh, and 'dangit' if memory serves," Oriko needled with a smirk.

Kyoko put her hands on the sides of her head and stared at Yuma with wide eyes.

"But back to the matter at hand" Oriko said pointedly "what are your powers? Are you certain that they didn't have anything to do with your visions?"

Kyoko's face grew annoyed, bordering on angry. She crossed her arms and looked away from Oriko. The silence stretched on between them, but finally, after a long stretch, Kyoko mumbled something.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that" Oriko said tentatively.

Kyoko looked back at her, somewhat mutinously, "I said, 'not likely.'"

Oriko blinked, "I'm . . . going to need a bit more explanation than that."

Kyoko threw up her hands in frustration, "my powers don't work anymore, okay! They haven't worked for for a long time now! There, you happy!"

Oriko stared, ". . . . I . . . wasn't aware, and I'm sorry to hear that you can't access them anymore. Though, I suppose that is a testament to your raw skills that you've managed to do so well so far."

Kyoko rolled her eyes, though she looked slightly mollified, "yeah well, I had to learn to live without em. All I really did anyway was make fake copies of myself and other things. Didn't have anything to do with my mind or seeing the future. So that's a no go for a theory."

Oriko nodded finishing up her own food and laying her plate down neatly in the picnic basket they'd brought. A ways away, Yuma chased Kirika in a game of tag, the older girl dodging around as Yuma surprisingly was able to catch her quite frequently. Kirika took it in good humor as she chased the younger girl around and fell over time and time again as she leapt at her. Their laughter reached the two girls and they found themselves smiling automatically as the two girls played.

A moment later however, Kyoko arched an eyebrow at Oriko.

"So, you gonna tell me why you're so obsessed with that weird Kyubey. Did you have a vision about him or something like that?"
Oriko looked down. She supposed that it might be rather obvious in hindsight that her powers would bear in on her mission. She hadn't revealed her reasons the last time they had met, but with the reveal that she had visions of the future, it probably would be rather obvious to anyone what the most logical explanation for her suspicions would be. To deny it would probably be more suspicious than it would be to just outright admit it. Though she need not get too detailed.

"I did indeed have a vision of the Rogue Kyubey. In it the creature was fighting, as you eloquently put it, the giant 'Joker' Witch, Walpurgisnacht is her name."

"Huh," said Kyoko noncomittally, "so wait. If it was fighting that giant Witch, then why do you seem so suspicious of it. Wouldn't that make it one of the 'good guys'?" Kyoko made air quotes at the last two words.

"Unfortunately," Oriko said matter-of-factly, "in the course of beating the Witch, the Rogue Kyubey appeared to destroy the city and, if the energy wave I saw continued on, was possibly going to go on to destroy the world."

"Hmmmm," Kyoko hummed. "So, if I saw the black-haired chick fighting the giant Witch and looking like she was losing and you saw the weird Kyubey thing fighting the Witch and blowing up the world . . . who's right?"

That brought Oriko up short for a moment. It was true that she'd had a vision of Yuma being dead because of her mother which obviously hadn't come true. Oriko had been operating under the assumption that her visions were what was going to happen, unless she took steps to prevent it. But, Kyoko did make a good point. Whose vision was more "true" of the two of them?

"I think," she said slowly, "that it's possible that your vision was a view of what might happen if the strange Kyubey creature wasn't in the picture. My vision is likely what will happen given that it is involved now. After all, it is my dedicated power, so it seems reasonable that my vision would be truer than yours."

Kyoko seemed to contemplate this. Finally, after a bit of thought, she replied, "okay, but if that's true then what are we gonna do? When that girl was fighting the giant Witch, Walktowardsthispack or whatever its name was, she wasn't winning. She wasn't a weakling either, she kept throwing bigger and bigger bombs at it and it just threw back stronger. It felt more like she was trying to fight fate than anything else."

Oriko considered this. Certainly such a powerful Witch that was going to arrive soon was cause for consideration. Still, Oriko felt that it would probably be more prudent to figure out the main threat that actually did seem to cause the ultimate destruction and what it was doing at the moment. Walpurgisnacht was a serious threat, but perhaps conceivably if she could figure out what the Rogue Drone was doing with the girls, perhaps she could disrupt its plans and get the local Magical Girls to work together to defeat Walpurgisnacht afterwards. Plus, her vision hadn't felt immediate. Some time soon, perhaps a month, but she had distinctly felt that they had had time to do some observation work.

"As we agreed in our last meeting, the current plan is to simply observe them and try and figure out their plans and powers. Hopefully we'll be able to approach this from a situation of knowing our potential enemies and what makes them tick."

Kyoko snorted, "heck I coulda told you what makes Mami tick if you'da just asked."

The silence stretched for a moment as Oriko looked expectantly at Kyoko. The redhead smirked back at the blond haired girl.

"You ain't asked yet. Besides, the other two ain't Magical Girls and the other one's the same age as Yuma, so why you bothering about them?"

Oriko leaned back, "the Kyubey creature in my vision . . . it used an extraordinary amount of energy and it looked familiar."

Kyoko once again cocked an eye at Oriko before the ash-blonde haired girl continued, "it was black and looked extraordinarily similar to the contents of a Grief Seed. My suspicions is that it is gathering corruption from defeated Witches and from the girls in its group. It is likely using them as a means to an end to gather more and more energy and when they are of no more use, I suspect that it will simply do away with them."

Kyoko's eyebrows had clenched as she heard the theory. She seemed to mull it over for a bit. Oriko watched as Yuma and Kirika continued their game of tag. Finally, as the two seemed to tire, Kyoko answered.

"Okay, fine. Don't really change much anyway. All I wanted was to get info, and if this giant Witch really is as dangerous as you say, then I doubt Kazamino would be safe. Besides, someone's gotta make sure Mami doesn't do anything too stupid that might get herself killed That and I wanna see if this Sayaka's anything like what I think she is."

Oriko nodded. It was progress she supposed. At least it seemed that, having heard of Oriko's powers and the source of her suspicions, that Kyoko wasn't going to dismiss her outright. She did seem sincere in her own way when she said that she was going to stick around. The fact that Kyoko had had visions of her own was interesting, but not something that Oriko could really explain at the moment. She'd keep her eyes open for an explanation, but it wasn't one of her priorities at the moment.

"Well, it appears we're agreed then."

Kyoko smirked, "what, and here I thought you liked me before. Did the revelation that I see things in my head too suddenly make you loosen up? Gotta tell you now, I don't swing that way."

Oriko smirked back, "you know that's not what I meant, aside from the point being moot. I don't either."

Kyoko snorted, "really, from the way you carry on with that Kirika chick, coulda sworn something was going on there."

Oriko chuckled lightly, "I . . . can't say I don't understand where your coming from. But Kirika and I are simply friends. Close friends, but just friends."

Kyoko stared at Oriko shrewdly, then back at Kirika. Her eyes narrowed, then she sighed slightly.

"Hmmm, well take it from me, that girl's chained at the hip to you. And from what I've seen, it's a pretty big chain, tight too. Make sure she doesn't wind up strangling herself, or you, with it."

Before Oriko could respond, Kirika and Yuma stumbled back over towards them, both panting heavily.

"Yuma is . . . surprisingly good . . . at tag" wheezed Kirika as she clutched at a stitch in her side and surveyed the grass stains on her clothes.

Kyoko reached out a hand and ruffled Yuma's hair, "good job kid, you'll make a first rate homeless girl with those moves. Nowhere near as good as me, but pretty good."

Yuma giggled and Oriko rolled her eyes.


As the days passed they usually met once a day at least, occasionally more. Most often it was for supper (Kyoko left it up to Oriko to provide for these). Kirika probably saw the most of their quarry, as she went to school with them. Oriko used the times when she could not or did not observe them to accomplish other tasks that she felt might be useful in the event of a conflict. Still, nothing noteworthy occurred much. They found that the Rogue Incubator and the White-haired girl, Nagisa Momoe, mostly stayed in Mami's apartment during school hours. Oriko noted that, if it came to it, this could make them easy targets. Certainly, it was likely that if the future she saw was to be averted, then the Rogue Drone would have to be . . . removed. Though, when she attempted to get a look at that sort of future, it usually ended with her failure, by death or other means. She needed to find some way to move forward.

However, another notable event, occurred a bit later on during one of their observation sessions.


Oriko leaned forward, peering through some binoculars at the group of girls and rogue incubator as they practiced in the abandoned industrial park. She held up a small recording device to dictate information.

"Alright, the Incubator appears to have the ability to conjure spheres of energy to use as weapons. It also appears to have some ability to self-modify its body. It appears to be using its prehensile tentacles as alternating blade, claw, strength weapo-"

She was cut off by a loud burp and turned to glare at the girl in red beside her. Kyoko was looking through binoculars of her own, though she was obviously very bored as she alternately took swigs out of a soda can.

Noticing Oriko's glare, she smirked, "lighten up, it's not like we've seen anything new. Honestly, I don't get what you're so nervous about."

Oriko sighed in annoyance. She'd been remarkably open with Kyoko and did appreciate that the girl was staying within the established rules of their partnership, but that didn't mean that she wasn't abrasive and rude. Honestly, sometimes Oriko wondered why she didn't feel more angry at the girl for being so even though she obviously knew it annoyed Oriko.

She heard Kirika panting slightly and turned to see that the black haired girl was hoisting Yuma up on her shoulders. The two of them took a moment to balance themselves, then Kirika handed some binoculars up to Yuma who took them and looked through them.
"So," Kirika asked eagerly as Yuma swung around, looking over the streets below, "see anything juicy?"

Yuma focused, then giggled, "there's a guy down there who just got caught picking his nose. Some old lady is yelling at him . . . now she's grabbed him by the ear and is dragging him off. . . ."

Oriko smiled faintly at the two's antics, they seemed to get along rather well. She supposed that it was due to the fact that Yuma was a young child and Kirika . . . well . . . at times she seemed to act like a young child so it followed that the two would enjoy the same things. She'd been rather worried about Yuma, despite the fact that she had someone to look after her now. Kyoko had not inspired confidence with her normal attitude of disaffected nonchalance that seemed almost allergic to sincerity and non-sarcastic conversation.

But, whenever her attention turned on Yuma, Oriko was able to notice a strange change in the redheaded girl's attitude. She was still abrasive and somewhat condescending, but it was all tinged with worry and caution. Oriko was able to observe Kyoko speaking quietly and calmly to the small girl, something she was sure Kyoko would never do to Oriko herself. At least, not in the genuine manner that Yuma provoked. Somehow, Yuma seemed to be able to get Kyoko to drop some of the defenses that she had up whenever she spoke to anyone else.

For example, at the moment the girl in question was watching Yuma and Kirika with a laser focus as the two girls swayed around. Oriko caught her flinching several times as Kirika leaned a bit too far and nearly overbalanced with Yuma on top of her. Finally, as Kirika walked dangerously close to the edge of the building, Kyoko growled in frustration and reached out her hands. She put then underneath Yuma's shoulders and plucked her off of Kirika.

"Alright, ride's over."

Kirika groaned dramatically and Yuma's lips quivered as she looked up at Kyoko with doe-eyes.

"Please Onee-Chan? Can't I ride a bit more?"

Kyoko put her fingers to her forehead and closed her eyes, seemingly in frustration (though Oriko suspected that it was more so she wouldn't be broken by the look Yuma was giving her).

"No means no Yuma. If you keep swaying around like that both of you are going to fall off the edge. Then I'd have to catch you and you'd blow our cover."

Yuma looked down, seeming to think. Then she spoke again, "why are we hiding Onee-Chan?"

Kyoko glanced over at Oriko, as if expecting her to explain things.

"Fair enough" Oriko thought, it was on her request that they were skulking around after all. Still, this might yet be an opportunity to learn a bit more about Kyoko's relationship to the girl's they were spying on.

"We are hiding Yuma because we are unsure if the Incubator, the white cat-creature we've been observing, is malicious in nature."

Yuma blinked, looking a little confused. Kyoko rolled her eyes.

"We're tryin to figure out if the cat-thing is bad or not."

Yuma nodded and made a noise of comprehension.

"Oh, okay. So if it is bad, are we going to try and figure out how to rescue the other girls from him?"

Kyoko and Oriko glanced at each other.

"Let's not get too far ahead of ourselves Yuma," Oriko said simply, Kyoko nodded in agreement. Yuma, however, looked up at Kyoko with another confused look.

"But Onee-Chan, isn't one of those girls your friend?"

Kyoko put a hand to her forehead, "I thought I said that we weren't friends anymore Yuma?"

Yuma tilted her head, "but then, why do you always say we shouldn't fight her?"

There was a pregnant pause. Kyoko looked like she swallowed a sour apple slice for a moment before rallying.

"Be-because she's a really good Magical Girl! Even someone awesome like me might have a tough time beating her!"

"Interesting," Oriko thought as she put her binoculars back up to her eyes and turned back to view their quarry.

Kyoko looked like she was trying to think of something else to say to Yuma (and Kirika who was hovering in behind the young girl with an equally curious look on her face), when-

"Get down!" Oriko suddenly spoke loudly and reached out an arm and dragged Kyoko down. Yuma and Kirika ducked instinctively as well. Kyoko sputtered and dragged her hand out of Oriko's in annoyance.

"Hey! What gives?!"

Oriko simply looked pensively tense.

"The black haired Magical Girl, she was looking at us."

Kyoko scoffed, "so she looked off into the distance and just happened to glance at us. You really think she could see us from this far away? Heck I can barely see em without the binoculars!"

Oriko looked to the side, her mind whirling, "I don't know, but she was staring for longer than normal in our direction."

A few seconds passed, then Oriko gingerly peeked up and over the edge of the building. Things seemed calm, but it was hard to tell from this distance so she got her binoculars and looked again.

The group was continuing on like normal. The black-haired girl wasn't even looking at them anymore, instead watching as Mami seemed to coach the white-haired girl on something. Still, as the rest of them rose to stand, Oriko felt that it might be prudent of them to call off the observation for that day and come back later.

As they left the roof they went down to one of the lower floors so as to camouflage their exit. Oriko got a weird feeling as they came up to the roof door. She stopped and looked at it closely. It was slightly ajar and she felt like it had been closed when they arrived. She glanced back at the group Magical Girls and Incubator still training with a pensive look. Then Kyoko complained about her holding them up and Oriko shook her head and moved on. She had probably just misremembered it.


Kyoko, Yuma had gone their own separate ways, likely to find somewhere to sleep the night away in the city and Kirika had gone home. She preferred to stay over at Oriko's house, but she did feel that she had to at least keep up appearances with her family from time to time. As she mulled the events of the day and her observations over in her head, Oriko didn't pay much attention to where she was walking, she knew the way home by rote. As such, when she felt a tugging in her gut, she blinked and looked up. The world was distorting around her and eldritch patterns were circling around. She cursed herself as she realized that she had just wandered into a Witch's Labyrinth, and indeed, a large creature was rising up in front of her. The Witch was in the form of a garish carnival mask with blazing red eye holes as well as two white gloves with sharpened claw-like ends that floated through the air independently. It's malevolent stare left her in no doubt of its intentions, as if it would be anything else. The Witch must be newly hatched or hadn't consumed many victims yet, because its Labyrinth was extremely compact, more of a large room really.

Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Short Action[Pitched+1]

The Witch snarled and Oriko braced herself, ready to transform. But then, as the Witch struck, a shield suddenly sprang into being in front of her. Oriko blinked and turned. A girl had leapt in front of her and was holding up an extremely large weapon that appeared to be some sort of one sided axe. On the same end of the weapon was a flat piece of metal opposite the axe blade, shaped like a shield. It bore the sign of a cross. The girl's costume was predominantly blue and gray and gave Oriko a feeling of a large indomitable force, ready to take whatever came and weather it.

The Magical Girl for of course that was what she was, had dark blue hair and had conjured up some sort of shield that the Witch had impacted against. The Witch drew back, snarling at the girl and struck again and again and again. But each time, the girl simply batted the attack away with her massive weapon or conjured up another glowing shield. The Witch drew back for a moment, seeming to be reevaluating the situation and the girl half glanced back at her. Oriko blinked, a surprised look coming onto her face.

Komaki Asako snorted as she looked Oriko up and down, "well at least you ain't screaming like some of the others I helped so I guess you got that going for you."

The girl turned, twirling the large weapon with a no-nonsense on her face. The Witch had once again lost patience and and one of is hands sliced forwards. Komaki responded with a swing of the axe side of her weapon and, next moment, the weapon had buried itself into the attacking appendage, causing a large crack to run down it from the place that the axe was lodged in.

The Witch shrieked in pain as Komaki levered the axe around and with a crunch, broke the hand into pieces. She swiftly repeated the process as the Witch desperately tried to hit her in the back with it's other hand. Then she turned, her eyes narrowed at the carnival mask that formed the main body of the Witch. With a loud yell, she sprung forward and brought her axe down with force so powerful that Oriko could've sworn she felt a small shockwave.

The Witch screeched as the axe finally bisected it. The Labyrinth faded and a Grief Seed fell to the ground. Komaki strode over and picked it up, scrutinizing it. Then, she looked back over her shoulder at Oriko. She closed her eyes, sighed and slammed her her weapon into the ground.

"So, you gonna run away screaming now?"

Oriko put a hand to her mouth, smirking.

"As tempting as that sounds, I do have some questions."

Komaki opened up her eyes again, scrutinizing Oriko with a calculating look. Finally, after some thought, she spoke again.

"Bet you do. But trust me, you're better off forgetting you ever saw anything like this. You should run along home now. And if you ever try and tell anyone at school about this, well . . . you think anyone would ever believe you?!"

Oriko held up a hand to forestall the dismissal, "please, I think that we both could have a great deal to discuss together. This hasn't been my first time inside of a Labyrinth."

Komaki blinked, "really? But how'd you surv-" she was cut off by a small beeping sound. She muttered to herself as she pulled out a phone and apparently found that an alarm had gone off. She glanced between Oriko and the phone, then seemed to come to a decision.

"Okay, fine. Meet me after school tomorrow to so we can hash this out. And don't be late!"

With that, she turned on her heel and strode off, her clothes reverting back to normal in a flash of light. Oriko, caught a little flatfooted by the suddenness of her departure, blinked. After a few moments, she decided that there was really nothing for her to do either but go home as she had been before.

As she walked, she did reason that this new development was certainly interesting. Komaki wasn't exactly nice to her, not at all really. But she'd also been one of the few people who'd actually seemed to think up a legitimately good reason to dislike her (relatively speaking). She'd even told off other people for being idiots in that respect (Komaki was known for being very confrontational).

Hopefully the girl would prove reasonable, and if so, she might actually prove to be a useful addition to the small team that Oriko was setting up. Though, it was a bit early to think about something like that. Indeed, as Oriko walked in through the gates of her home, she did wonder if it came to that, if Kyoko and Komaki's rather . . . headstrong personalities might set them against each other or not.


Oriko sat down in bed, the darkness of the room doing little to soothe the headache she'd had developed. As she'd been getting ready to go to sleep, she'd suddenly been struck with a pain in her forehead. As she laid back, she felt herself slipping off into unconsciousness.

Soundtrack: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince OST – Into the Pensieve

Was it a vision? A dream? Some combination of the two? Oriko was cognizant and aware, so that supported it being a bona fide vision instead of a simple dream. But for the life of her she had no idea where it was.

The world formed into the view of a forest. Oriko could see into the immediate area, but beyond that, a strange oppressive darkness held sway. It felt less like the dark of a night, less like the darkness of the vision she'd had of the Rogue Incubator, but more like a black fog that seemed to swallow anything beyond initial view. It was supremely unnerving and Oriko looked around nervously. Perhaps this was a Witch's Labyrinth. Yes, that seemed like a viable explanation. The world just felt a bit too . . . eldritch, to be a normal forest.

Presently, Oriko realized that she was at the foot of a small hill and, furthermore, that there was a sound of fighting coming from the top, up where there seemed to be some sort of Radio Tower. Curious, and figuring that the most important part of her vision was probably at the top of the hill, Oriko began to hike up. She was about halfway up when it almost felt like there was a shudder that ran through the ground and she heard several massive shrieks. Then, all of a sudden, the oppressive atmosphere disappeared in an instant. Oriko stumbled, thrown off by the sudden lack of feeling that something was lurking just beyond her vision that wanted to do absolutely horrendous things to her.

She shook herself and hurried up the final stretch of the hill. She was shocked greatly by the scene that greeted her as she got there. A quick look around revealed several bodies lying on the ground that looked in various states of inhumanity, one of them looking barely human with an emaciated frame and sharp claws and teeth, while another looked near human but deathly pale and with a stark white mask over its face. But sitting or standing around these bodies was not only the rogue drone's group but also Oriko, Kirika, Yuma, and another girl and a woman that she didn't know.

How had they all come together here Oriko wondered? Furthermore, why was Oriko simply sitting out here in the open with Kirika and Yuma along with all the group of people that they'd taken such great pains to hide from and spy on. The way they were all sitting around and breathing heavily it was almost as thought they had just gone through some sort of pitched battle. For that matter, as she looked around, she realized that someone was missing. Where was Kyoko?

She heard something shifting and turned. Oriko gasped as a small white thing dragged itself back into the circle of girls. At first she couldn't tell, but eventually she realized that this had to be the Rogue Drone. Oriko however had never thought she could see it looking more woebegone. It was dragging itself by its tentacles instead of walking and looked as thought it was having a hard time moving at all without lances of pain shooting through it. Its body and limbs were limp on the ground (one of them couldn't be seen and must be dragging beneath it) and a streak of blood was left as it tortuously dragged itself forward, though its expression was strangely blank as its head dragged in the grass. Long strips of flesh, almost like the tentacles that sprouted from its ears had seemed to grown out of its back and were trailing behind it.

One more creature joined the ring, Kyubey himself. He was looking between the Rogue Drone and Homura and, even though Oriko could not hear their telepathic dialogue, she marked that Homura was becoming more and more agitated.

The black haired girl was sitting hunched up on the ground. Madoka was hovering over her looking concerned. Homura was panting and breathing like a bellows, her eyes darting around without ceasing. Finally, her eyes focused as she appeared to receive a final telepathic message. Then, faster than it seemed possible, her hands moved and a loud crack rent the air.

Oriko gasped as the deed was done, a deed she honestly would never have thought of any of the Rogue Drone's companions. Homura was shaking as she beheld her handiwork, her eyes wild as though she couldn't quite believe what she'd just done. Everyone was frozen, staring at either her, or the results of her action. Not a single person moved, everyone was suspended in shock.

Oriko blinked. She was back in her room, staring at the ceiling from her bed. She breathed deeply. That vision had been . . . interesting. If true, perhaps it could lead to a further alliance opening up, if only she could figure out a way to open up communication with the girl without the Rogue Drone knowing.

She blinked again. Something wasn't right. Belatedly, Oriko realized that there was some sort of pressure on her feet and sat up slightly. She jerked in surprised, drawing her feet close to her and pressing her back against the wall. A small girl, looking to be the same or similar age to Yuma was sitting on the end of her bed, formerly on Oriko's legs. She had blond hair and eyes that were green like the sea, with depths to match. In spite of her young age, she seemed to exude a mix of deep wisdom could only come with painful experience.

It was herself.

Soundtrack: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Slughorn's Confession

Specifically, herself as she'd been years ago when her father was still alive. The small girl stared at her, her expression withdrawn and calculating. Oriko stared back. She closed her eyes and held them shut for a few seconds.
"It's all in your head, it's all in your head," she told herself over and over again.

"It's all in your he-"

"I'm still here Oriko," came a soft young voice.

Oriko's eyes snapped open and she sucked in a breath. The voice was instantly recognizable, though her own voice had changed since that age. Her younger self had crossed her arms and was staring, somewhat indignantly up at the girl who had apparently just tried to disbelieve in her.

"You're not real," Oriko said simply, attempting to keep a quaver out of her voice.

Young Oriko snorted, "that's all you know. I'll drop you a line from one of our favorite books, 'why do you doubt your senses?'"

Oriko blinked, "'A Christmas Carol?' What does a Christmas Carol have to do with anything."

Young Oriko put a finger to her forehead, closing her eyes as though asking some deity for patience. Oriko tilted her head, staring at the small girl.

"What? Are you something like the Ghost of Christmas Past?"

The young girl in front of Oriko opened her mouth, then froze as though considering the words. Some contemplation later, she sighed slightly and answered, "something like that I suppose."

"So, if my past self is going to be the Ghost of Christmas Past, whose going to be future and present? Now that I come to think about it, it won't be Christmas for awhile yet won't it?"

Young Oriko slapped her full hand against her forehead.

"Would you give up on the whole "Christmas Carol" thing, I was just using a question from there. If you really wanted to know, I'd be past, present, and future in a way."

She removed her hand and gazed imperiously at Oriko.
"I am the voice inside of you, the sum of your past, judgment of your present, and advisor for your future. That's as plain as I can put it. But that's not the main issue here."

Oriko tilted her head, "what are you talking about? As a matter of fact, why am I even talking to you?! I may not know much about psychology, but I think it's a bad idea to engage with hallucinations."

The girl blinked, then sighed.

"Aren't you curious at all why you might be seeing your younger self?"

Oriko shook her head vigorously, "no . . . no I'm not! I have nothing to say to you, so you should leave at once!"

Young Oriko sniffed heavily, "funny, I thought you were trying to avoid outright lying to others. Though I suppose lying to yourself is alright. Or, I suppose, you might be more comfortable with telling the truth in a way that leads to other to believe a lie. How very Kyubeyish of you."

Oriko gulped slightly, but her gaze grew sharp, "what are you talking about?"

The girl fixed Oriko with a piercing, almost accusing look.

"Why are you chasing the Rogue Drone?"

Oriko's brows furrowed, "because I had a vision of him destroying the city, maybe the world!"

The smaller version of herself shook her head, looking frustrated, "really? I don't know if that's the real reason Oriko. Maybe you should stop and take a closer look at the situation before you make a mistake you'll sorely regret."

"My only mistake so far," Oriko said tersely, "is indulging in a hallucination. It's obvious you don't really have anything of value to say to me!"

"Oh really," her younger self snorted, "or is it that I'm asking you to look beyond some comfortable boxes you've built around yourself. For instance, why aren't you doing more to find out why Kirika is so obsessed with you?"

Oriko sucked in a short breath, but then rallied, "she's needed and she doesn't know why she is like she is! She doesn't even remember what her wish is! What am I supposed to do with that?"

Her younger self's face grew hard, "and I suppose it's worth it for that sort of devotion?! I suppose if you needed a personal assassin then it would be so convenient to have a girl who was so blindly devoted to you that she'd just kill anyone you asked her to no matter how much it hurt her, no matter how much it tore her mind apart to do it!"

Oriko blinked, "I wouldn't do that!" she said dumbly. But inside, something in her felt very cold. She wouldn't do that, why would she even?

Young Oriko was speaking again, "oh really?! I thought you were devoted to the mission!? I thought that you were going to save the world no matter what?! And if saving the world requires that a few innocent people who never did you or anyone else any harm die, well, it's all for the greater good anyway!"

Oriko opened her mouth, then shut it again. Then she managed to speak, "it's nothing like that at all! The enemy isn't even human! I saw him destroying the city! He may even be manipulating several Magical Girls!"

The younger version of herself's eyes narrowed, "I'm sure you'd think that, wouldn't you. Typical Oriko, always thinking that you know what's best. Everyone else, well, they're all so stupid and judgmental, so best you keep them out of the loop for their own good, even the person you're liable to kill. I mean, it's not like you could get to know them at all. If you got to know them, you might actually feel a bit guilty about using them as a method to make yourself feel a bit less useless. You might actually discover that they're not like this elaborate fiction you've built up in your head and that maybe, just maybe, they could help you!"

Oriko blinked again, then rallied, "I'm not hunting a person, it's an Incubator. And what are you talking about, 'making myself feel better?"

"You've felt useless ever since our father killed himself. You tried so hard to be our mother after she died, tried so hard to be the best you could be to please our father. You made our father the center of your life, no matter the fact that he was always too busy to spend time with you. Then he died, and it felt like it was all worthless. And now that you've literally made the wish 'I want to know my purpose in life!' and felt like you've gotten no response, what are you going to do? Why, what else can you think there is for you but to find the first supposed villain and try and set yourself up as some sort of savior, no matter how much the world tells you that things aren't like what you think they are! You're still trying to do it, even with a 'hallucination'" -she made air quotes at this- "outright telling you that you need to reevaluate things, you're still trying to justify yourself!"

The younger version of herself was on her feet by this point with her hands shaking at her sides. Oriko felt like trembling, but kept her body firm.

"Why are you so angry?" Oriko asked with some incredulity.

Young Oriko's eyes blazed, "because it's highly annoying for me to see how I've become so self-hating and desperate that I'll take the first option to make that go away! That my love for Father has warped me so much. That I'd do anything to make myself feel worth something, even if that means killing an innocent someone or something that I really don't know anything personally about, just because they MIGHT do something! Something that I might not even really understand! Because you are acting like a self-righteous IDIOT!"

Oriko was stunned into silence as her young doppelganger's steam of invective came to an end. There was a long drawn out silence as Oriko stared with an open mouth and her young copy sat down and crossed her arms as she breathed heavily.

Finally, after a long pause, Oriko spoke again.

"My visions have been clear-"

"Have they?!" Young Oriko interrupted with the same blaze in her eyes, "how much have you actually thought on them?!"

"Clear enough!" Oriko retorted snappishly, "and I don't see where you get off in lecturing me?! You don't know what I've been through and what I'm trying to prevent!"

The little girl shook her head, "oh you poor stupid girl, why are you so stubborn? But better question, why is your first solution murder?"

Oriko froze. After a moment in which her young self stared into her soul, she managed a response, "I- . . . I'm not just- . . . killing isn't the only option I'm considering!"

"No, but every plan you make always loops back to that doesn't it?" the young one said shrewdly. "You don't talk about it much, but that's what you're planning isn't it. Inevitably, you always think about things in terms of, 'get information on the potentially dangerous target, cut out the target's supports and/or get support yourself, then kill the target so that it can't hurt anyone else.' Funny how none of those steps ever actually involves getting to know the target well enough to see if the whole thing is even needed or whether or not there's some easier way to do things that might not require dozen's of bodies to hit the floor!" Her young self's voice had grown harsher and harsher with sarcasm, barely grating the words out by the time she was done speaking.

Oriko blinked in some mild confusion, "what do you mean, "dozen's of bodies?"

It was the young version of herself's turn to freeze. But she rallied so quickly that Oriko wasn't sure she'd even seen it, "if other people stood in the way of the Rogue Drone and you felt it was necessary, can you honestly tell me that you wouldn't consider their deaths a fair price to kill it? Or 'stop it' if that's what you prefer."
Oriko opened her mouth to deny it, but found that she couldn't quite get the words out. This alarmed her slightly. Was she really willing to leave a trail of bodies behind her in her pursuit of halting the future that the Rogue Drone had shown her?

Her younger self as staring at her with an "I told you so" sort of expression. She crossed her arms and sat back down with that maddeningly superior look on her face.

"Think about what I said," her young self said with a look of serious dislike on her face. "Maybe we'll be seeing each other again. Hopefully you'll have stopped be such a self-righteous twit by then."

She dissipated. Disassembling like wreaths of smoke that vanished into nothingness. But for a small ruffling of Oriko's bed it was as though she'd never been there at all. Oriko blinked, once again left a bit flatfooted by the sudden end of the hallucination. Though, a part of her wondered if it even had been a hallucination, it had seemed so real! But no, that was ludicrous, a hallucination was the only logical explanation.

But still, hallucination or no, what it had said had been highly intriguing, if disturbing at some points. Perhaps her subconscious was trying to signal something to her. A sudden yawn reminded Oriko that, hallucination or no, she hadn't had much sleep and needed more if she was still planning on meeting with Komaki the next day. Best to not get distracted with her personal problems, even if they were manifesting in strange ways.

She couldn't shake her young doppelganger's words though, even as she slipped off into sleep's embrace.


The sun was bright and the air cool due to a soft breeze as Oriko sat outside the school. Classes were done for the day and she was simply waiting for Komaki to arrive. The day had been a bit of a long one as she had been mulling over the words that the hallucination had said to her over and over again. She tried to justify herself, and a couple times even felt as though she'd succeeded. But inevitably, the doubt would creep back in and nest itself into her mind.

Honestly, it had been a bit of a vicious one-two punch. First that extremely strange vision with the black haired girl, Homura, doing such an extreme action. Then she'd had a hallucination of herself when she was younger reprimanding her. It felt strange to acknowledge all of that and it left her shaken. Still, perhaps the vision of Homura meant that she might be . . . amenable to some sort of cooperation. But then again she realized with a small start, her vision of Homura might be, and probably even was, mutually exclusive with her vision of the Rogue Drone destroying the city.

If that was true, well then that was interesting. With another small start, she recalled what her younger self had said and shifted uncomfortably. She had already contemplated and semi-accepted the concept that her visions were what was going to happen if there was no interference. But . . . what if her visions weren't what was going to happen, but what might happen under certain circumstances? If that was the case, what even was the point of anything she was doing?

Oriko's face hardened. No, she couldn't allow herself to doubt. If she doubted, she opened the door to that despair that had consumed her before. Such despair was even more dangerous now that she was a Magical Girl. Even if the future she'd seen with the rogue drone wasn't destiny, it still was a potential, even probable future that she needed to avoid. She needed to put her doubts out of her mind. Still, perhaps she should consider some changes in strategy.

Soundtrack: Madoka Magica Portable OST – Hora Theae

Oriko heard some footsteps and turned. A soft smile came onto her face as she beheld Komaki sitting down beside her. The girl was tight-lipped and wasn't looking at her, seeming to prefer to glare at the city skyline.

After a bit of silence, Komaki chuffed slightly, "well, if you ain't gonna talk I suppose I gotta. Why'd you want to meet anyway? As far as I can figure it, I saved you from the Witch, you survive to live another day and we both forget about the whole thing. Or what, you feel like you owe me something for saving your life?"

Oriko pulled out a small pitcher as well as two cups. She poured some tea into both and held one out to Komaki. The girl looked down at the beverage and sniffed a little.

"No thanks, don't like tea. You're gonna have to do better than that if your trying to repay a debt. Not that I want anything like that by the way. Far as I'm concerned this is nothing more than community service.

There was another short silence. Then Oriko spoke for the first time.

"So you do this to protect people?" Oriko asked mildly as she sipped her tea. Komaki glared at her.

"No need to sound so smug about it. Honestly, do you think I'd really get into that weird getup just because it looks cool?"

There was a small silence, then Oriko smirked.

"Well it did seem to suit you rather we-"

"BECAUSE I DON'T, YOU HEAR!" Komaki shouted, her eyes wide and her face angry. She breathed heavily for a moment before looking away. Then she mumbled something too low for Oriko to make out.

"What was that?" Oriko asked politely.

Komaki glared for a moment again, then looked down. Finally she repeated, "did you really think it looked good?"

Oriko nodded, smiling at Komaki's conflicted face, "I admit that I perhaps don't have much experience in grading the outfits of Magical Girls, but yours works to your advantage. You have the overall appearance of some sort of Samurai, or perhaps Western Knight who fights demons to protect people. Which is appropriate considering what you do."

Komaki crossed her arms and harrumphed slightly, but her posture was a bit more relaxed. There was comfortable silence for a bit before Komaki turned back towards the other girl.

"How do you know so much about being a Magical Girl?" Komaki asked, staring at Oriko with hard eyes.

Oriko smiled and held her hand out. Shining on it was her own Soul Gem. Komaki stared at it, then her eyes flicked back back to Oriko, then to the Soul Gem, then back to Oriko. She finally put a hand to her chin and leaned back, making a thoughtful sound. She appeared to be thinking.

Finally, after a bit, she spoke, "Kyubey didn't tell me that there were other Magical Girls in the school. Then again I don't really have much contact with him. Explains why you were so calm in front of that Witch yesterday. Though, it doesn't explain why you'd just tell me outright. I can't imagine many girls want to share territory. You being generous?"

"Nothing of the sort," Oriko said, the smile staying on her face. "I am investigating something dangerous and, if it comes to it, I would like another ally to fall back on."

Komaki raised an eyebrow as if to say, "and?"

Oriko struggled to put her thought into words, "while we are not friends, I will admit, you seem reliable in your own way."

Komaki narrowed her eyes, "not sure where you got that impression from. I ain't exactly been very nice to you. What's your angle?"

Oriko shook her head, "kind you may not be, but in your own way I feel, you are trying to help people." Komaki stared at Oriko with an expression that suggested she thought Oriko was a bit cracked. Heedless of it, Oriko continued, "perhaps, when you insult people, you're hoping that they'll see their own flaws and become better people. Whether out of anger to spite you, or actually seeing their flaws."

Komaki looked like she didn't know how to respond to that. After a moment, she looked away and up, staring at the sky with a neutral look on her face.

Finally, she chuffed a bit, "yeah, it figures you would come up with some sort of insane justification like that. Honestly, I don't get why you think so nicely of me. Heck, maybe you're just telling me what you think I want to hear so I'll help you, I don't know. Before your dad offed himself and left you holding the bag-" Oriko flinched "-I was probably one of the lowest ranking girls in the school's pecking order." She sniffed slightly in disdain, "that's what being a first generation rich girl will get you. The other girls think I'm tarnishing their school's reputation or something because my parents weren't rich from the get-go." Komaki snorted loudly. "Idiots. If I ever have kids I might just send them to a normal school."

Oriko smirked, "but then, wouldn't they have to rub shoulders with the lower classes, or worse, disgraced people like me?"

Komaki rolled her eyes, "better than growing up a spoiled brat. Honestly, if I didn't have friends and family here and my parents didn't want me to attend so badly, I'd be tempted to transfer out. And as for you, don't get me wrong, you wouldn't have spared the time of day for someone like me back before,-" Oriko frowned slightly. "-and right now you're just sitting around, probably trying to do whatever you can to avoid feeling bad-" Oriko's frown deepened and something jumped slightly within her as Komaki near echoed her hallucination's words. "-but at least you ain't turned snotty and angry to try and cover it up. And who knows, now that I know your a Magical Girl, maybe I was wrong about you. Of course, you might've made a wish to try and get your old popularity back, but seeing as how the school people still hiss and snigger at you, I don't think that's the case."

Oriko thought about what Komaki had said. It was brash and straightforwards, like most of the girl's talk, but Oriko did appreciate that the girl didn't hold back on her and did have semi-reasonable reasons for disliking and/or being suspicious of her. She didn't particularly appreciate the insinuation that she'd be willing to brainwash other people for something as petty as regaining popularity. Fame was a fickle thing, she'd learned that lesson hard and, with her current mission, it wasn't likely that she'd be regaining popularity anytime soon.

Komaki seemed to be ready to move on with the conversation.

"So what's the deal, what are you investigating?"

Oriko considered what to say. Like with Kyoko, she knew that she had to be careful on what information to give out, given that she was worried about the Rogue Drone learning about her too quick. But then again, it wasn't likely that Komaki would be seeking out the Rogue Drone anytime soon. Still, prudence, or at least partial prudence, would be good.

"Due to my powers, I have reason to believe that one of the beings that give us our powers-"

"You mean Kyubey? There's more of him?" Komaki interrupted.

Oriko sighed, but continued on, "yes, in a manner of speaking. But as I was saying, I have reason to think that it has eschewed Kyubey's Mission and is attempting something dangerous. It may even be gathering other Magical Girls to its cause. For these reasons, I'm investigating it along with a few other associates."

Komaki considered this for a moment before looking back at Oriko, "so you want me to join this little, 'investigation squad' do you?'"

"Not as such," Oriko replied, "I certainly don't expect you to simply drop everything to aid me. That would be naive and irresponsible. I would simply appreciate the chance to work with you and perhaps, gain some trust and, in time, ask for your aid in the possible elimination of a dangerous creature."

Komaki stared at Oriko, then turned to look up at the sky. Oriko could tell she was thinking things over.

"Thanks," she said with a soft snort, "but no thanks to the deal. I ain't nobody's executioner and you'd have to give me some pretty good reason to actually go looking for something other than a Witch to kill."

"This thing may potentially destroy the city, perhaps the world" Oriko said calmly. Komaki looked sharply at her as Oriko finished, "I would think that that might be good enough reason for anyone."

The Blue-haired girl's mouth worked slightly as though she was chewing on something. She stared Oriko directly in the face, as though trying to intimidate her into revealing a falsehood. Oriko stared placidly back.

"Geez" Komaki said finally. "You're serious aren't you?!"

"I am," Oriko said in simple reply.
Komaki looked to her side, then sighed, "I still ain't willing to do anything, just so you know. I'd have to be completely stupid to try and attack someone just on your say so. You might be more than I thought you were, but you're still just a rich orphan who happens to be a Magical Girl. Not good enough reasons for me to trust you for something this big."

Oriko smiled faintly, the girl was frustrating in a way, but in another, she was refreshing.

"In that case, perhaps we should hunt some Witches together for a start, perhaps with a few of my colleagues. It might help us to get to know each other better."

Silence reigned as Komaki considered it.

"Fine" Komaki finally said with gritted teeth, "I go out at 10 tonight, I'm going to go round the park in the middle of town tonight. Meet me here and don't be late!"

Oriko nodded. After a moment, Komaki stood up and, without a backwards glance, she stomped off.

"Such a strange girl," Oriko chuckled to herself. "She seems so angry, and yet . . . she cares in her own way."

She packed up her food and started off for her house. It was a quiet walk as she thought over what to do next and how to explain to Kyoko that they'd have a new person for a hunt that night, or even that they should be out hunting that late. She was sure that Kyoko was going to complain about missing valuable sleep time, and, she suspected, staying up past some sort of arbitrary bed time that she'd set for Yuma.

And beyond that, how was she to get evidence for Komaki about the abnormal nature of the Drone. To be honest, most of her current evidence she had was her visions and observations of the Drone and it's allies. Perhaps it was time to try and get a bit closer in and some more concrete evidence and information.

Soundtrack: Puella Magica Madoka Magica OST – Encounter [Pitched+1]

It happened in an instant. For a split second, the world seemed to turn grey, sound died and she felt something impact and stick into her back. She stumbled for a moment, but then, all of a sudden, her body seized up as if felt like she had shoved her finger into an electrical socket. She couldn't move at all as she pitched forward. As her face impacted into the ground, she heard a crack and in a blazing moment realized that she had been hit by a taser.

Pain coursed through her body as the tasing continued. On and on, neverending as she screamed internally. Black dots appeared in her vision and she felt her consciousness begin to flee. After a lifetime of silent suffering, the flow of energy finally ceased, and her body slumped bonelessly, her head sliding to the side, feeling as though a hot liquid was running down it. Before the darkness finally claimed her, she heard footsteps and saw some black-heeled boots come into her view.


Oriko opened up her eyes blearily. Pain bit at her and she blinked and looked around. She was in a bare concrete room. It was lit by a single light over her head that barely seemed to give light to her and left large dark swaths in the room before her.

She tried to stand up, but was stymied. Looking down, she realized that she was tied to a chair tightly, so tightly that she realized that she could barely feel her arms and legs. She also realized that her face felt rather hot and sticky. Looking down, she saw that lines of red liquid, apparently trailing from her chin and dripping steadily onto her chest and running down her bosom.

She sniffed heavily and winced as her nose throbbed. She tried to move again on instinct to feel it, but only succeeded in a reminder of how asleep her arms and legs were. She tried to gain information on her nose through other means, and ended up going cross-eyed.

"It's broken, if that's what your wondering."

Oriko's head snapped up as she looked around. Her eyes strained against the bright light which was hung near directly in front of her and made it consequently near impossible to see anything in the dark patches of the room. The voice had seemed to come from in front of her and was obviously being run through a voice filter.

A moment of silence passed as Oriko squinted, but she couldn't make out anything beyond the stretch of light. Finally, she pulled herself together and spoke.

"What . . . what do you want with me?"

". . . . That will depend on how you answer my questions" the voice came back.

"Then perhaps we should speak face to face . . . Akemi-San," Oriko said as she stared piercingly ahead of her, heedless of the glare of the lamp.

There was a soft shift of fabric, as through someone had jumped slightly, and Oriko smiled.

"Surprised? Well it's only logical, you're the only one of your group who theoretically possesses the chance to get the drop on me. I may not know the particulars of your abilities, but they do allow you to cover large distances instantaneously and without detection. I suppose that you noticed me that one time, watching you from the roof and that's what motivated you to look into me?"

There was a pregnant pause. Then, a footstep on concrete wrung out, and then another, and a few more, and Oriko's captor strode more fully into view.

Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Fateful #1 [Pitched+1]

It was indeed Homura Akemi. She was staring at Oriko with extremely furrowed brows, as though she was clamping down on a rising anger. One of her hands was clenched into a fist and another was holding a pistol that looked to be of an American design. It wasn't pointing directly at Oriko, but the girl could see that it was firmly gripped and ready to be brought up to shoot her at a moment's notice. The two of them stared at each other for a long moment, Homura with an unreadable, but nevertheless extremely intense expression on her face. Oriko looked back with a cautious curiosity.

Finally, Oriko broke the silence, "if I may, why did you knock me out with a taser and then drag me here? What harm have I ever done to you?"

Homura's eyes narrowed, "don't play games with me Mikuni. I know very well what your capable of and what you've been doing. I know your intent and I will not allow it to come to pass."

Oriko spat some blood off to the side that had pooled in her mouth.

"What intent do you mean Akemi-San? I don't have any personal animosity against you, so why are you so hateful of me?"

The pistol twitched in Homura's hand, Oriko noted with some worry. The black-haired Magical Girl's face shifted into a look of intense dislike. Even that seemed like she was clamping down and much stronger feelings. She brought up the pistol slightly, as though she were debating using it.

"I won't let you do it. I won't let you ruin this. I'll protect h-" she seemed to catch herself and glared even harder at the girl in front of her.

"So, she knows. But how does she know?" Oriko wondered belatedly, eyeing the pistol with a small flicker of panic. It seemed as though this girl was quite willing to kill her outright. She had better do something or say something quick. Her mind flashed to the vision she'd had of all of them on top of a hill in a forest of and of the deed that Homura had done there. Some hope leapt in her that the girl might be willing to listen.

"Please!" she said with some panic as Homura made to raise the pistol to a firing position.

"My only real quarrel is with the Rogue Drone, he has to be stopped, if you would just hear and understand what I've seen I can explain," she babbled out. To her gratification and confusion, Homura stopped raising the gun and looked slightly stunned.

" . . . . What did you say?" Homura finally asked, her eyes gone wide.

Sensing that she had an opening, Oriko plowed on, "I have reason to believe that the Rogue Drone has malicious intent and is planning to destroy the city, potentially the world!"

Homura blinked, then narrowed her eyes.

"How do you know this?" Oriko opened her mouth, but a look by Homura silenced her.

"And before you answer, do not think that I am unwilling to take extraordinary measures" Homura said stonily. She held up one of her hands, which had been clenched in a fist up until that point and slowly unwrapped it. There, sitting on the palm of her had, was a brightly shining Soul Gem. Oriko's Soul Gem.

Homura held up her pistol and put the end of the barrel against the shining Gem. Oriko's breath caught in her throat as her eyes flicked back to Homura, trying to hide her fear.

"Do. Not. Lie. Mikuni, I will know if you lie on the source of your information, or I will find out and nothing will stop me from hunting you and the others down."

Oriko wet her lips and stared. What should she do? Would Homura believe that she had visions? Should she even tell her the truth? The girl was an ally of the Rogue Incubator and she had no idea if it was behind this interrogation.

"If that's not sufficient motivation for you, then perhaps this is" Homura said as she reached into a pocket and pulled something else out. She presented it and Oriko's blood froze. The black-haired girl was holding a Yellow Soul Gem that Oriko knew only too well.

It was Kirika's.

"You wouldn't," the words had slipped out of her before she could stop them as she stared with barely veiled horror at the Soul of her best friends in the hands of this possibly unstable girl.

Homura's eyes darkened as she pulled the pistol up and placed it so it was pointing straight at the Soul Gem, the end of the barrel barely an inch away.

"I can . . . and if you do not tell me all about what you are doing, I will. Don't test me Mikuni, you won't win."

Oriko hung her head, the blood from her nose dripping steadily onto her chest. Desperately trying to keep her eyes dry, she spoke in a defeated voice, "I had a vision of it fighting Walpurgisnacht and destroying the city."

She braced herself for a gunshot sound, for the sound of her best friend's death.

There was silence.

Presently, and very cautiously, Oriko looked up. Homura was still in position to shoot Kirika's Soul Gem, but the girl was staring at Oriko blankly. The anger that had dominated her expression seemed to have drained somehow.

"Describe your vision to me in detail," she said in clipped tone.

Oriko started, taken aback at seemingly being taken seriously. But then, at a look from Homura, she launched into a description of her vision of the Rogue Drone. Of the dark curtain that seemed to obscure parts of the vision and of the explosion that had seemed so powerful. Homura took it all in quietly, only asking for a few clarifying details.

Once Oriko had finished, they two stared at one another. A new expression was starting to come over Homura's face, one that took Oriko a moment to place.

"You didn't see . . . anyone else?" Homura sounded almost confused.

Oriko blinked owlishly in her own confusion. Anyone else? Why should she have seen a vision of anyone else? As far as she knew, no other creature or person possessed the same destructive potential that the Rogue Drone had. So why did Homura think that she would've been concerned with other people?

". . . noooooo," she said slowly, "I've seen no one else who could ever pose the same danger that the Rogue Drone does."

Homura stared ever more intently at Oriko. She appeared to be thinking it over, her eyes narrowed to slits. Suddenly, a new question came from her.

"Do you have any other helpers besides Kirika?" her voice was sharp.

Oriko swallowed, she didn't want to reveal one of the last held back pieces of information she had. Maybe she should lie and risk it. But her eyes flicked to the gun held against Kirika's Soul Gem and felt another clamp of panic in her heart.

"I have some others," she said evasively with her eyes staring at the floor.

"Name them," Homura said curtly, "or else."

Oriko felt a rush of anger and resentment. As she felt another throb of pain wrack her body, she found she couldn't help her next outburst.

"Why are you doing this?!" she said loudly, glaring at the black haired girl. Oriko tried to clamp down on her emotions, but could not stop the next sentence that came out of her, "what have I ever done to you?!"

Homura's face twitched very noticeably and she glared at Oriko who finally brought herself under control.

Eventually, Homura answered, "you're a danger Mikuni, and whether or not you've done anything yet, you should be grateful I didn't outright shoot you the moment you began spying on us. Considering what I know."
"What do you know?" Oriko said, internally incredulous. She was quite certain she'd never met Homura face to face before and she couldn't think of anything she could do that would make the girl so hateful of her as she seemed to be.

"That's my business Mikuni" Homura said imperiously, "but you've delayed long enough, name off your allies or else."

She lightly pulled on the trigger of the pistol. Not enough to shoot it, but enough to get her point across. Oriko blanched. In a flash she remembered something obvious. If Homura had found out about her during that one time on the rooftop, well, Kyoko and Yuma had been with her that time, so of course Homura knew about them. She was probably just testing Oriko.

"One of them is a Magical Girl named Kyoko Sakura along with a younger girl named Yuma Chitose" she said quickly, her eyes locked on Kirika's Soul Gem, just millimeters away from being shot.

There was a second of silence, and Homura's eyes narrowed even further.

"Is that all Mikuni?" she said in a voice full of menace. Oriko debated, only for a moment, trying to hold out on her new working relationship with Komaki. But as her eyes flicked back to Kirika's in-danger Soul Gem she found it wasn't worth the risk.

"I . . . I . . . no, it isn't" Oriko said in a defeated voice, "I was trying to make alliance with another girl, Komaki Asako right before you captured me."

There was a pregnant pause. Oriko felt her nose, and then the rest of her body throb with another wave of pain as she stared into Homura's implacable face. Then, to Oriko's relief, Homura's finger eased off of the trigger.

"It was wise not to lie to me Mikuni" Homura said as she stared down at the girl, "if you had, it wouldn't have ended well for you . . . or for your friend."

Homura's gun came away from Kirika's Soul Gem and Oriko let out a large sigh of relief. She wasn't even sure if she cared that Homura saw such a display of weakness anymore.

"So, you think that Ke-, the Rogue Drone is a danger?" Homura asked.

Oriko took a deep breath and nodded, "that is what my vision appeared to show."

Homura put Kirika's Soul Gem away and then put that hand to her chin.

"Maybe, maybe not," Homura muttered, mostly to herself. She turned and walked away a bit, muttering to herself. She seemed to be doing some very deep and quick thinking. Whatever she was thinking, she was away for almost 5 minutes before returning to the cone of light that illuminated Oriko.

"I have decided to let you and Miss Kure go," she began. Oriko's heart leapt for a moment, but froze as Homura finished. "Under restrictions."

"Restrictions" Oriko repeated with some unease. She was thrilled that she wasn't going to die that day, even more so for Kirika, but what did Homura mean?

"Your claims about the . . . Rogue Drone, must be verifed. So I will keep an eye out" Homura said stiffly. "In the meantime, you will continue on as you have, but keep it subtle. You will also report your findings to me."

"Just myself, or my colleagues as well?" Oriko asked.
Homura shrugged, "Kyoko Sakura is not to be informed nor Yuma Chitose. Komaki Asako is not to be told either. Kure-San, she is devoted to you correct? Enough that she'll obey what you say?"

Oriko narrowed her own eyes, wondering how Homura knew that, but she nodded. Homura gave her a look and Oriko instantly reschooled her expression, it wasn't helpful at the present to antagonize her captor with such looks.

"Well, if you must, you may inform her, but you will make it absolutely clear to her that this is a secret and will not go beyond you two. Otherwise, it might simply be wise to keep her out of the loop for her own good. Although-" Homura's face darkened slightly, "-you will be responsible for making sure she does not do anything disruptive."

"And if this is . . . to be. How are you going to communicate with us?" Oriko asked quietly.

Homura reached into her shield (her hand phasing through it like nothing) and began pulling out small electronic equipment.

"You will fasten these around yourself somewhere hidden." Homura explained. "They will let me know where you are and what you are doing."

"Is this necessary?" Oriko asked quietly. Homura glared at her.
"Yes. I don't trust you Mikuni. It is either this, or I remove you from the equation entirely, take your pick."

Oriko sighed, then nodded.

"If you take the recording device off, I will know. I will review it regularly enough to know what you're doing, so don't think of trying anything. If you go off the rails or step out of line . . ."

"You'll kill me," Oriko said in a toneless voice.

"No," Homura said blandly and gestured back to Kirika's Soul Gem.

Oriko closed her eyes to hide her pain. Then another horrible thought occurred to her. Homura hadn't even used the words kill, what if she had another fate in mind in case of disobedience. What if she could get the Rogue Drone to fill Kirika's Soul Gem with Despair to make her turn into a . . . Oriko shuddered.

"Is this all truly necessary?" Oriko asked quietly. Homura cocked an eyebrow at her.

"My quarrel is with the Rogue Drone, not you" she finished.

"I'm willing to take what you said under advisement Mikuni" Homura said simply. "But I'm not foolish enough to think that you might not try to outwit me, or have another vision that causes you to take drastic action."

"Do you really think I'm that bloodthirsty" Oriko asked with some incredulity.

"As I've said, you're a danger Mikuni, so you'll operate under strict supervision" Homura said placidly.

Oriko internally gritted her teeth. She might be able to understand this if she'd been attacking Homura before, but as it stood, she hadn't done anything of the sort. The only thing she'd done was to watch Homura from a distance, they'd never even spoken before. So why was this girl judging her based on what she might do along with information that apparently only she knew. Really, it wasn't as if Oriko ever di-

Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – Fateful #2 [Pitched+1]

She felt like she'd received an electric shock quite different from that of the taser from before. The description she'd just applied to Homura had hit far far too close to home. Frighteningly close in fact.

"But I'm different" Oriko protested internally to herself, "I'm doing this for a good reason!"

She could almost hear the voice of her younger self answering in a smug voice, "yes, I'm sure you are. And I'm sure that Homura is acting completely out of line, making sure that a mysterious person who keeps acting weirdly and has strange powers doesn't do something bad. She's surely out of line to justify herself that whatever she's doing is 'for the greater good.' Completely unhypocritical of you to complain about her doing things like this when she doesn't know you and when you obviously know the Drone so well. I'm sure you're completely in the right here."

Homura was speaking again, interrupting Oriko's internal revelation.

"I'm reasonable, so after Walpurgisnacht is defeated and hopefully K-, the Rogue Drone situation is sorted out, we can discuss separation. Assuming you are dedicated to actually preserving the city, then I'll be willing to let our business conclude then, and with both parties alive if possible. In spite of my misgivings towards you."

The last bit was said with some venom and Oriko was once again a bit incredulous at the amount of pent up anger this girl seemed to have for her. It was . . . well honestly it was starting to rank up there with the mystery of the Rogue Drone in terms of how important it seemed.

Homura moved forward, pulling a knife out of her pocket, Oriko flinched, wondering what it was for, but Homura ignored her.

"I am going to let you out your bonds" Homura said as she put the knife to a rope and began to cut. "If you want to try anything, recall that I still have yours and Kirika's Soul Gems."

"I won't try anything," Oriko said, and she was being honest.

Homura seemed to believe her, for she nodded and continued to cut. After a few moments, the rope gave way and Homura moved onto another. It took a minute or so, but eventually Oriko was rope free. She attempted to stand as Homura moved back, but her legs refused to support her and she fell on her side with a cry of pain.
"Your limbs are asleep" Homura said matter-of-factly, "wait a few minutes."

Oriko did so, and after feeling had come back into her arms and legs, she gingerly stood up. She winced as it felt like pins and needles were inside of her body, but shook her head anyway. A gasp of pain escaped her as her nose protested at the sharp movement. Oriko held her hand up and, with a soft glow, began to heal her face. Homura patiently waited for her to finish, and, when she was done, even got out a stack of small towels and napkins. She placed them on the floor, along with Oriko's Soul Gem and then let the girl grab them and wipe her face off, which was near coated with crimson blood by now.

After she'd cleaned her face as much as she could, Oriko looked inquisitively at Homura. The girl tossed four small items with arm bands attached to them over at Oriko.

"And these are?" Oriko said curiously as she fingered the items.

"The tracking device and . . . insurance" Homura explained, "one each for you and Kure."

Oriko felt a surge of anger again, "you want me to strap these to Kirika as well?" She said it indignantly, "how will I explain it to her?"

"That's your business," Homura said without emotion, "given her devotion to you, I doubt she'll make much of a fuss if you ask it of her. Don't forget Mikuni, it is this, or removal. Don't test me."

Oriko nodded.. She pulled up one of the sleeves of her shirt and fastened two of the items around her shoulder. The strap clicked into place solidly, and it wasn't too obtrusive. Few, if any people would know she had it on if she wore clothes over it.
"Are they waterproof?" Oriko asked, wondering if she would have to give up showering for the time being, a fate she wasn't sure she could face.

Homura blinked, ". . . they are."

Oriko tugged her sleeve back down and looked at Homura.

"What now?"

"Now . . ." Homura pursed her lips, ". . . now we will go return Kure-San's Soul Gem. How aware of the situation she will be . . . that will depend on you."

Oriko nodded, her eyes falling. Homura made a motion with her hand, her pistol still held in it and Oriko, her head down and her posture low, began to walk, her mind in turmoil.

Soundtrack: Puella Magi Madoka Magica OST – End Credits (Magia)


Author's Notes:

Fun fact, this was originally going to be a part of chapter 5, then it kept getting pushed back as more content was typed and I decided to split the last few chapters down group lines. I'll probably do a bit more intermingling from here on out though.

As mentioned above, I would appreciate some feedback on whether or not you'd like me to break up these chapters into shorter lengths to make it a bit more quick to read and possibly to update? As said above, quantity (and I hope, quality) will likely not be effected, just how fast it comes out and what size chunks it does in.