A/N: Thank you for the lovely reviews. Seriously, they warm my heart.

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ACHT

TIMELINE X + N

Karin and Yuzu had a hectic day at school. The morning full of testing was stressful enough, but their anxiety grew from lunchtime on. They sneaked off to eat their bento on the roof of the school and, by silent agreement, spent the entire period glued to their phones reading all the news they could find on Mitakihara. Both gradually stopped eating in favor of reading between the lines of the articles. When the warning bell rang, they packed away their lunches and phones on autopilot, faces pale.

Yuzu turned her phone off and looked up at her sister. "This looks really bad, Karin."

"Yeah." Karin pocketed her phone and stared blankly at the sky. "It'll be hard, but we need to talk to her. Figure out just how bad things are up there. Seems like they have way more magical girls and Witches in Mitakihara. It's weird."

Yuzu stood and picked up her bag. She frowned doubtfully. "Kyubey did say Karakura was backwards from a lot of places because of the Hollows."

Karin hummed at Yuzu's point. "And it sounds like a lot of the area's magical girls got taken out in only two, three weeks. And... I'm guessing those were Witch Kiss attacks? A place with enough strong Witches to pull that off... I don't like it."

They walked to the roof access door in silence. Yuzu caught Karin's sleeve as she entered. Karin looked back at her sister.

Yuzu looked troubled. "What can we do to help Homura? We can't just run away to help her defend Mitakihara. But she doesn't have anyone and she's so sad. How do we help her?"

Karin sighed and looked down. "I dunno yet. We'll figure something out. We need more information first. If we can't think of anything, maybe we can ask Kyubey. Maybe he knows about some magical girls closer to Mitakihara who can help out."

Yuzu pursed her lips unhappily. "I don't like it."

"Haa, that's what I just said."

The tardy bell rang, startling the sisters into scrambling down the stairs to return to class.

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Homura woke from her nap around two, but didn't bother getting up. She lay on her side in the futon and stared at the storage tubs under Yuzu's bed while critiquing her performance in the current timeline. Her mind spun round and round and round, finding flaws, plucking their threads to try to figure out how to be better next time. It was an all-consuming process that swallowed her time until the Kurosaki girls called out their return greetings downstairs. The cheerful sound jostled her out of her mental spiral. Homura slowly got up and headed downstairs.

By the time she reached the main hallway, Yuzu was coming out of the kitchen and Karin had kicked her school loafers to one side and was busy putting on a pair of sneakers. Both looked up.

"Hey, Homura," Karin said quietly. "How are you holding up?"

Homura stared for a moment then shrugged wordlessly.

Karin sighed. "I thought so."

Yuzu looked sad and silently reached over and squeezed one of Homura's hands. When Homura looked up at her, she tried to give an encouraging smile. It came out strained.

Karin rolled her shoulders and stretched. "Put on your shoes. We need to go talk somewhere more private."

Having expected a grilling of some sort, Homura calmly stepped forward and slipped a foot into one of her school loafers. "As you wish."

Yuzu was about to put her shoes back on when Isshin burst into the hallway. "Girls! You're home! How was school?!"

Karin turned and directed a long-suffering grimace at the wall. Yuzu giggled awkwardly. "It was fine, Daddy. The English test was kind of tricky but I think I did okay."

Isshin whipped his head around to look expectantly at Karin. She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I think I did okay at everything, too. Math was easier than I expected. History sucked, though. Too many dates." She shrugged. "No point worrying about it now. The damage is done."

Isshin laughed. "Karin! Such pessimistic optimism! How do you do it?"

"Trade secret," drawled Karin.

Isshin grinned. He glanced around at the girls and their shoes and became more serious. "Are you girls going somewhere? I wanted to talk with you three."

Yuzu bustled in front of the other girls. "We're going to take Homura on a walk around Karakura. She's been in the house all day and we thought we could... talk. About... everything. In private. As girls. You know. If that's okay with you, Daddy?" Yuzu looked up at her father, vulnerable I'm-cute-and-sad-please-indulge-me face at full strength.

Isshin melted under the onslaught. "Yeah, yeah, that's fine. We'll talk after dinner though, all right?"

Yuzu smiled, cheerful in victory. "Okay, Daddy! I'll be back in time to cook!"

They hustled out the door with Isshin's admonitions to be careful and call me if you need me at their backs.

Homura followed the Kurosaki sisters through their neighborhood. She could see that both were wondering how to start. She didn't particularly care, so she left them to it until Karin finally broke the silence when they were near a park.

"So... have you been reading the news from Mitakihara today?"

"No." Homura looked at her feet. "It would be nothing I did not already know. I do not see any point reading about it."

Karin frowned. "The cops are looking into it, though. They seem to think there's a kidnapper or murderer and they're looking at some of your classmates. They might question you, so you should know how to answer. It sucks, but if you answer in a way that agrees with their theories you won't draw attention to yourself."

Homura hummed noncommittally.

Yuzu wrung her hands. "You really need to be careful, Homura. At least figure out how to explain how you know Nagisa and the other girl in case they find you with them on a security camera like with the others."

Homura stopped and blinked in surprise, then tilted her head to one side in confusion. "Nagisa...?"

The sisters stopped, too. Karin raised her eyebrows. "What, you don't know her? She was the first one to go missing."

Homura furrowed her brow. "No, Mami Tomoe was the first to go missing."

Yuzu shook her head. "The news said Nagisa Momoe went missing the day before Mami Tomoe. The hospital had videos showing Mami, Saya...ka? And... um..."

"Madoka," Homura supplied.

"Yes, Madoka! There were videos showing them go toward the place where Nagisa was last seen a little bit earlier. And then no one saw Mami after that."

Homura's face turned thoughtful. "May I see the article, please?"

Karin pulled out her phone, brought up the article, and handed it over. Homura's control of her face slipped; the sisters watched her face shift from neutral to disturbed, then grim. They were completely lost when Homura murmured, "Ah. The hospital. Her mother died. Of course," answering her own question.

Karin stared for a moment then swept her hands out expectantly. "Well?"

Homura returned Karin's phone and tucked her hair behind her ear. Her cool mask was back in place. "Nagisa Momoe may or may not have been a magical girl from out of town. I did not know of her. There was a Witch by the hospital's bike racks. Miki and... Kyubey—" God, she hated saying that thing's cutesy name— "monitored it while Madoka found Tomoe. It defeated and ate Tomoe." She paused and carefully considered her next words. "Momoe was probably... overcome... by the Witch before the others found it. I did not see Momoe when I fought the Witch."

The Kurosaki girls frowned. Yuzu teared up. "That's horrible."

Homura shrugged and stared off to one side, melancholy.

After a moment, Karin asked, "The news mentioned some unidentified redhead. Is that girl the Kyōko you told us about?"

Homura glanced back at them. "Yes. Kyōko Sakura. Her main territory was Kazamino City. She intended to take over Tomoe's territory after her death, but Miki contracted the day after Tomoe fell. Things between Miki and her were... messy. Sakura seemed to respect Miki at the end, though. How Sakura went from wanting to kill Miki to wanting to save her... I doubt I will ever know."

They stood together in silence for a while until Yuzu quietly asked, "Are there enough magical girls left in Mitakihara? It seems like there are a lot of Witches there."

"I do not know of any others, no," answered Homura. She looked off into the distance and bitterly murmured, "I am sure... Kyubey... will contract more soon enough." She briskly tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Not that new contractees will survive when Walpurgisnacht attacks."

Homura belatedly realized her words could be taken in a very derogatory way when Karin drew herself up and looked indignant. She had not intended to insult potential magical girls like a snob with a superiority complex, but she didn't know how to fix the situation. Homura grit her teeth and clenched her fists in frustration. Why was talking to people so difficult?

But Karin didn't explode on her like Sayaka would have. Instead, she squinted at Homura for a moment, tilted her head to one side, and slowly asked, "What is Wall-whatever and why do you think newbies will be cannon fodder for it?"

Homura stared.

How?

Yuzu looked surprised for a moment, then eagerly joined in. "Is it something dangerous? Would it help if we come fight it with you?"

Stunned. Homura was stunned, suddenly blindsided by the prospect of courting the sisters as allies in the next timeline. They were amiable enough. If they were competent, veteran fighters— and their ease in combat against the Familiar suggested such— then— then— What if she could prevent Madoka— and Sayaka, really— from contracting, keep Mami and Kyōko alive, and bring in Karin and Yuzu as backup against Walpurgisnacht?

Her mind reeled with the possibilities. It would depend on how good they were in a real fight against a Witch. She bit her lip; it would also mean putting their lives in greater danger than they already were. Then again, whether or not they knew it, they had signed their death warrants the moment they accepted the Incubator's contract. It was a moral gray area. She seemed to live in a moral gray area these days. But even if she had to learn to fight with them, study the possibilities, figure out logistics... test them against Walpurgisnacht in this timeline as a reference for the next... Maybe...

And what if the first thing she did in the new timeline was seek out Nagisa Momoe? Was she really the Sweets Witch? Had she contracted before or after Homura's reset point? Would it be best to dissuade her from contracting altogether, or to explain the risks and lead her into making a better wish than whatever one she had regretted at her mother's deathbed? Morally, it would probably be better to dissuade her, but if the girl insisted on saving her mother, maybe she could be trained well enough to help against Walpurgisnacht.

If she could wrangle all four or five magical girls into cooperating with her... and really, Kyōko would probably be the only one who had to be convinced...

Maybe the girls in other timelines wouldn't believe what she said about the Incubator, the origin of Witches, and the truth of Soul Gems, but if she simply set up Walpurgisnacht as a common enemy to be defeated without trying to convince them of anything else...

So many possibilities she had never considered.

New hope burned in her chest.

The twins looked unsure about her. Homura swallowed hard and tried to restrain her sudden euphoria. "You do not know what you are offering. Walpurgisnacht is... massive. An enormous Witch. It is a collection of pieces of many other Witches that fuse into a Witch strong enough that it does not need a labyrinth. It is going to hit Mitakihara in about ten days and it will be like a hurricane. And it has so many Familiars." She pursed her lips, then heavily continued, "You could very well die. For total strangers."

Karin crossed her arms. "Risking our lives to protect people from Witches is what we signed up for. We were aware that we could be killed when we contracted. Whether we die here or in Mitakihara, it's all the same if it's for the sake of protecting people."

Yuzu looked more frightened than her sister, but determinedly nodded her agreement.

Homura looked at Karin sideways. "If you say so. How much experience do you have?"

Karin gestured dismissively. "Over a year. We're no fledglings. We've been flying on our own for awhile now. We get more Familiars than Witches in Karakura because of the Hollows, but the Witches that do come here are nasty tricky."

"And we fight the Hollows, too!" chimed Yuzu. "We've had a lot of practice."

"That, too," drawled Karin. "The Witch we're hunting right now is a stubborn one. We only ran into it once. It's been really good about hiding since. Keeps splintering off strong Familiars. How about you help us get that one out of our hair and we'll help you with this Wall-Knocker Witch?"

Homura's face twitched terribly. She tried to say something substantive, but all that came out was a strangled "Wall-Knocker?!"

Karin blinked, falsely oblivious. "What?"

Homura stared at her incredulously, worked her mouth in an attempt to speak, then burst into hysterical laughter. Not joyful laughter, but harshly startled laughter in the face of madness. Her own laughter actually frightened her. It was a brief bout, but unsettling all the same. Homura held a hand over the bottom half of her face and just looked at the ground and breathed.

The twins watched her for a long minute. At length, Yuzu quietly asked, "You were going to try to fight it by yourself, weren't you? You were going to beat it or die trying. And your friends are all gone, so without any help..." She trailed off into unhappy silence.

Homura met Yuzu's speculatively piercing eyes. It was obvious Yuzu wondered if Homura was outright suicidal or if she was simply extremely dedicated to protecting the city her friends had died for. It technically wasn't either, but the truth was too complicated so Homura chose to ignore the implied question. She straightened herself with a sniffle and brushed at her clothes.

Holding her head high, Homura pushed her hair over her shoulder and airily hedged, "I will have to see how well you fight against this Witch of yours. You have also mentioned fighting Hollows. What are they?"

Karin and Yuzu stared at her for a moment more before simultaneously turning to one another and having a silent conversation consisting entirely of the slightest of facial expressions. They seemed to agree that Karin would take the lead.

"Kyubey said he doesn't bother explaining Hollows to most girls because they don't really show up where there are a lot of Witches. Said the vast majority of magical girls will never run into one so he doesn't see the point in talking about them."

Oh. Another of the Incubator's "you didn't ask" topics was about to bite her. Fantastic. When would she stop running into such things?

"To explain what Hollows are... hmm." Karin paused and stared skyward, eyes unfocused. She cast about for a moment, almost seeming to be listening or looking for something, then focused on a point in the distance before looking at Homura. "I think I need to explain something else first so it will make sense. And I want to do a little experiment. Kyubey doesn't like talking about Hollows and everything so I'm curious if other magical girls can see Pluses."

Homura didn't bother hiding her wariness. Things Kyubey Avoids Talking About could be a horror novel, in her opinion. "Experiment? And... Pluses?"

Karin waved her hands in a placating gesture. "I promise, it's just walking down a street and finding out whether or not you see something that most people can't. Pluses aren't dangerous. We actually try to help them. I wouldn't bother but if you can't see a Plus then it might change how I explain Hollows."

Okay, now Homura was completely lost. "If you say so," she said doubtfully.

Karin shrugged and scratched the back of her head with a sheepish grin. "Come on. It's not far."

The twins started walking. Homura followed several paces behind them. They crossed the park, passed an elementary school, and ended up on a quiet residential street. The twins paused as if listening, then turned and entered the courtyard of an older apartment complex. It soon became apparent that they were heading for an older man whose back was to them.

"Excuse me," began Yuzu. "Hello, Mister. Can we help you?"

The old man turned around and regarded them suspiciously. "Get out! You don't belong here," he sneered.

"Neither do you, now, Gramps," Karin snarled lazily.

"Karin!" hissed Yuzu.

The man puffed up like an angry cat. "Such an impudent little—! I should—!"

"Yeah, yeah, goddamn kids, get off my lawn, whatever. We got it." Karin rolled her eyes. "What has you hanging around, Pops?"

Anger animated his reddening face. Unable to form the words to address the brat before him, he swung an arm around and jabbed a hand at the apartment building. "That! That wreck! I told the building manager over and over that he needed to do something about the goddamn rotting guard rails, but would he listen? No! And now look at me! And what does he do? Just patches up the stretch that finally broke. Irresponsible money-grubbing slob! Us oldsters rebuilt this country and all we ask for is a rail to help us get to our little holes in the wall without breaking our necks. Can't even do that much! Ungrateful—"

Yuzu dutifully listened and nodded along to the screed while Karin zoned out and glanced at the building dispassionately. Homura just stared.

There was a hexagonal metal plate riveted into the man's chest. A long chain trailed down from it and slithered across the dry grass toward the apartment building.

A metal plate riveted into the man's breastbone. What.

She had seen many stranger things, yes, but never outside a Witch's labyrinth. Never with a person who was acting so normal. Cantankerous, but normal. Except for the whole being riveted to a chain that tied him to a building like a dog thing.

Karin eventually interrupted the man's tirade about what he planned to get the building manager to do with a blunt, "You know you're dead, right, Pops?"

The old man turned to Karin and snarled, "Of course I do, you little snot! I'm old, not stupid!"

Karin lazily scratched her ear. "Sooo... how do you plan to accomplish anything?"

Yuzu pouted at Karin. Karin shrugged.

"I'll— I'll haunt him! I'll haunt him until he fixes the place! If anyone else has an accident, we'll haunt him together!"

"Hmm, hmm, I see." Karin nodded sagely. "He won't be able to see or hear you so that wouldn't really go anywhere. It might feel great to scare the hell out of him, but how is he supposed to link it to fixing things?"

"W-well, do you have a better idea?!" he blustered.

Karin tilted her head toward her sister and fished out her phone. "Hey, Yuz, what city department would look into stuff like this?"

Yuzu brought a finger to her mouth and pursed her lips in thought. "Hmm. City planning? No, wait— code enforcement?"

"Sounds legit." Karin tapped around on her phone a bit.

The man squinted at the girls suspiciously. "What are you doing?"

"Using the magic of the internet to file a complaint for you from beyond the grave. You're welcome. Observe my sorcery." She started dictating aloud to herself. "Dear Pencil-Pusher. I heard this old guy I used to run into fell at his apartment complex and died. He used to tell me how terrible the safety rails and stuff were and how dangerous it was and that he was afraid he'd fall and break his neck because the landlord wouldn't do anything. When I heard he actually did fall and break his neck, I went and looked myself. The place is rickety as hell and there are other old people there. Can you have a code inspector look at the place? If for no other reason than to make the other geezers feel safer. I'll attach a picture of the wreck. Thanks." Karin snapped a quick photo and tapped the screen. "There. Happy?"

The old man was gawking. "That was the rudest— they'll never— you just— you little delinquent—!"

"Whatever. It'll liven up the day of some poor bureaucratic minion. Your issue has been addressed, your earthly burden is relieved, et cetera, et cetera." Karin flung her left hand out in front of her. Her Soul Gem ring flared brilliant red and manifested a katana. "Have a nice trip, yeah?" In one smooth motion, she bopped the old man on the forehead with the pommel of the blade.

"You are the most disrespectful young lady I have ever—!"

The old man abruptly glowed and burst into fragments of blue light. A black butterfly wobbled around Karin's face irritably before floating up and disappearing.

Karin stared at the sky and swung her katana up to rest against her shoulder. "Jeez, what a chore."

Yuzu looked at her sister reproachfully. "Did you really write those things in the message?"

"Pfft. Of course not. I just made a few notes so I can write something better when we get home."

Yuzu pouted. "That was mean, Karin."

Karin shrugged carelessly and let her katana disintegrate into red sparkles. "He was mean to you first."

Yuzu rolled her eyes. "I'm capable of standing up for myself, Karin."

"I know. You're just too nice to actually do it sometimes."

"I'm getting better at it."

Karin patted her twin's shoulder. "Yes, you are. I'm very proud."

"Tease."

"What just happened?"

Both twins broke off from their banter to look at Homura, who was confused and unhappy about her confusion.

Karin looked satisfied. "So you did see it."

"What was that?" Homura was not unintelligent. This was like adding one and one, getting two, and still not trusting the answer, though.

"That was a Plus," Yuzu said with a smile. "Most people call them ghosts."

Homura stared. "Ghosts."

"Yep! We get a lot of them here."

Karin smirked. "Welcome to Karakura."

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A/N: "Karin's Adventures in Konso" could be its own omake series, I swear.

This chapter was replaced with an edited version on November 1, 2019. Reviews with timestamps before that date refer to a slightly different version of the chapter.