Chapter One

I

Homura's eyes shot open, she was once again staring at the ceiling of her room on the day she would once again meet Madoka for the first time. She sat up and let her legs hang over the side of the bed, letting her gaze fall absently on the floor.

How many time's now? she asked herself.

She got up and walked to the bathroom with slow heavy steps. She shrugged off her pajamas as she got into the shower. She turned it on and stood with an absent look in her eyes, letting the hot water pour over her body.

She thought that last time would be different, that she would finally be able to put an end to things once and for all. She lost track of how many times she had gone against Walpurgisnacht; it was hundreds now, she was sure. How many years did it add up to? She figured it must have been worth an entire lifetime. She could hardly remember any life before this. Who she before she met Madoka and made that deal with Kyubey. That life was like a distant memory to her.

'This time' she thought, trying to encourage herself, 'this time things will be different.' She didn't believe it. She said that to herself many times before, and many times she did make herself believe it, but those days were gone. Even with the most resolved will, there comes a point where it is simply denial that success is impossible. She had faced failure an uncountable number of times, and she finally felt that resolve wavering… What's worse is...

'What's worse, is I almost died.'

She leaned her forehead against the wall as the hot water poured over her body, and she began to weep. She had thought she was past crying, but it was all becoming too much for her.

I almost died

What would have happened then? It would have been over. Her lifetime of struggling and reliving the same months all would have been for nothing. She would have died, her friends would have died, and worse of all Madoka would have died.

If the blow had been a little more powerful, or hit her in a way that was more lethal she really would have died. Luckily, she had just enough strength to cast her spell and come back to the beginning all over again... but what if she hadn't?

This time won't be any different, she thought as she climbed back out of the shower. She looked at herself in the mirror. She cried her sorrow away and her face was back to the battle hardened face she had learned to be more familiar with. "I can not defeat it," she finally declared to herself. "So..."

So, what?

"I have to try another way..."

That is when a plan began to hatch. She could not save the city, and she could not stop Walpurgisnacht. She knew that now, but there is something she could do: She could at least keep Madoka safe.

She extended her fingers, and looked at the ring around her finger, which was really her SoulGem in it's concealed form.

"Madoka…" she whispered, "Whatever it takes this time. Even if you hate me… I WILL keep you safe!"

II

"Madoka, you're late!" said Sayaka as her pink haired friend came running down the street. Once she caught up to them she bent over and started panting as she tried to catch her breath.

"Sorry!" she said, "Thank you for waiting for me!"

"It's not like we would leave without you," sayaka said with a laugh. "Well, guess we had better hurry, we can still make it if we rush."

"So, what caused you to be late anyway?" Hitomi asked, as they began walking toward the school.

"Oh, nothing really," said Madoka, "I was just talking with my mom and lost track of the time is all."

"Heh, you can be a real ditz sometimes!" said Sayaka with a teasing grin.

At that, Madoka's face puckered up into a pout, "Hey! Don't be mean!"

"Sorry, I'm just kidding," Sayaka laughed. Then she noticed the new ribbons in Madoka's hair and asked, "Hm? Are those new?"

"No," Madoka said as her hand raised up and touched one of them. "Well, mom picked them out for me."

"Oh I see," Hitomi mused. "She was giving you tips on how to be popular with the boys, right?"

"N-no! It's not like that!" Madoka insisted, waving her hands with a touch of red appearing on her face.

"There is a new transfer student coming in today," Hitomi continued with a slightly more interrogative tone. "Were you trying to make a good first impression?"

"I said it's not like that! Besides, we don't even know if it's a boy or a girl yet!"

"So…" Sayaka inquired, "Your mom's giving you tips on how to be popular with the boys, huh?" She laughed and unexpectedly wrapped her arms around Madoka, pulling her into a tight hug.

"S-Sayaka! Cut it out!" Madoka laughed as she tried to pull away, but Sayaka was always much stronger than her and was easily able to keep the small pinkette locked in her grasp.

"I'm not going to let you get way with it Madoka! You're all mine, you hear me? ALL MIIIINE!"

"Sayaka! Seriously! Stop!" Madoka yelled, but she was still laughing enough to take away any authority the demand might have held.

Hitomi had an unamused expression on her face, and sighed as she watched the struggle rage on. After a moment, she clear her throat to grab their attention, and enlighten them to the fact that other students who were walking by were starting to stare at them.

Madoka and Sayaka both froze with Sayaka arms still firmly wrapped around Madoka from behind, and they both started to blush. Sayaka quickly let go and started walking forward again. "Heh, whoops," she said, whistling and holding her bag behind her back, trying to brush off the awkwardness.

Madoka took a moment to straighten her shirt, since it became somewhat ruffled during the exchange, then sprinted a few steps to catch up with her friends.

"Still… I am kind of jealous," said Sayaka. "Your mom is so cool! It must be nice having someone to pick out cute clothes for you."

"Heh, I guess so," Madoka said, playing with the ribbon and trying to force the blush off her face. "But… you don't think it's too flashy do you?"

"No, not at all," said Hitomi. "In all seriousness, they do look great! Right Sayaka?"

"Yup! They're really cute!" Sayaka agreed, putting a thumb up and grinning.

III

Homura stood outside the classroom and waited to be called in. Once she was, she came in and stood in front of the class as she had many times before. The teacher introduced her and beckoned her to tell the class about herself.

"My name is Homura Akemi, I'm a transfer student," she said, standing in front of the class and speaking without much passion. Her eyes glanced the rows of students, and searched out Madoka's face. Once she found her, her eyes locked on to the pinkette with a level of intensity that was hard not to notice.

I'll protect you this time, she silently vowed to her only friend. This time, you won't feel any pain.

When Madoka realized she was being stared at so intently by this girl who was a total stranger to her, she started to feel a tad awkward, and blushed with her eyes shifting around nervously. Sayaka noticed all this and looked back and forth between the two of them with a raised eyebrow, wondering if they knew each other.

"Um…" The teacher seemed unsure of how to take this odd new student of hers. "Um, thank you Homura. You can take a seat now," she said, trying to put on a smile. Homura, without any change in expression, then walked to the nearest empty seat she could find and sat down.

The class went by normally from that point further. Nothing too notable or out of the ordinary happened until Homura was asked to solve a math problem on the board, which she did very quickly, yet unenthused, seeming not to have to stop and think for even a moment. The entire class seemed impressed by this and quietly whispered to each other as the tall raven haired girl turned away from the board and casually walked back to her seat. The truth is, Homura could have written down the right answer even if the teacher had asked her to approach the board blindfolded, for she had solved that same problem in this same class hundreds of times before.

Homura ended up being the center of attention throughout the rest of the day in every single class she attended. In gym class she crushed every one of the school's records, and in the classrooms she knew the answers to every single question the teachers asked. It was impressive enough that when there was a free period before lunch she was instantly swarmed by a group of girls who wanted to learn more about the stunning new transfer student.

In many of her past lives, Homura had humored this group of girls, but this time she wasn't in the mood for it. She just gave them the cold shoulder and left them to wonder why she seemed to have a problem with them.

Homura avoided Madoka through most of the day. Considering the plan she had in store for later she figured it would be best not to be seen spending too much time around the girl who would soon be going missing. Homura already had plans to forge a note from the hospital to explain her own disappearance. If done right, no one would be likely look into her beyond that.

However, Homura had a few things she wanted to say to Madoka before her plan was put into action. She feared how Madoka would ultimately end up reacting, and Homura thought if she could at least subtly express her intent beforehand it would help things go a little smoother in the long run. So, as soon as the class was dismissed for lunch Homura waited for an opportunity to approach Madoka.

She stalked the pinkette through the hallway, keeping a few students between the two of them, but not taking her eyes away from her target. Once in the lunchroom, Homura waited for Madoka to take her seat, then walked over to the table. She stood there for a moment, until the three girls took notice of her. Homura did not pay any mind to Sayaka or Hitomi, and just looked directly at Madoka.

"Madoka Kaname," she said, with a dry blank voice.

"Um, yes?" Madoka asked, and put on a smile as she set her utensils to the side and looked up at the odd transfer student.

"You are the nurse's aid, are you not?"

"Oh, yes, that's right!" Madoka said with her typical cheery tone of voice.

"Good, I am feeling ill. I need you to show me to the nurse's office." Homura then began to lead the way, but looked back when she realized that Madoka wasn't following. "Right now, if you would," she said commandingly.

Sayaka's eyes narrowed at the overly assertive transferred student, and moved as though she were about to stand up and say something. Madoka had barely gotten started on her lunch, and apparently Sayaka had something to say to this rude girl. However, Hitomi quickly tugged on Sayaka's sleeve to bring her back down again, and whispered, "She must really be feeling unwell."

"Yeah… I guess you're right," Sayaka agreed reluctantly, then returned to her seat.

Madoka glanced down at her food for a moment, then looked back to Homura and smiled. "Ok, I'm coming. Just a moment." As she stood she looked back to her friends and said, "Don't worry, I'll be right back."

IV

Madoka felt nervous, but at the same time a bit relieved she would get a chance to break the ice with this strange new girl. The truth is, she actually had been thinking about her all day. She hadn't told her friends yet, because she couldn't find the right words and she was sure they would laugh it off, but she was positive that she had seen this girl in a dream last night. Maybe she really was just being silly, but it gave her a strange feeling which she just could not shake.

While she was thinking about all that, she realized that she wasn't really leading the way as Homura had asked. In fact, it was Homura who was leading the way, and she did it as confidently as if she knew exactly where to find the nurse's office. That was impossible, though. Even if she did know the way, why would she ask Madoka to show her? Of course she didn't know the way, so Madoka decided to use that as a way to get talking.

She sped up her pace to walk alongside Homura, who was moving with quick steps. "Ok, so the nurse is just down this hall and..."

"I know where it is," Homura said in her blank distant way.

Madoka frowned. "But, if you're a new student how can you know? And... why would you ask me to show you if you already knew?"

Homura didn't respond but just kept walking at her fast pace, leaving Madoka to feel like she had no choice but to just follow. Why did Homura not answer her question? Could her odd behavior be attributed to her just being really sick? Maybe that's why she asked Madoka to come in the first place, incase she had some sort of complication on the way to the nurse. The teacher did say she had just recently been released from the hospital, and Madoka didn't know anything about her condition, so that seemed like a pretty plausible explanation.

The silence was starting to make Madoka feel rather uneasy either way, and she racked her brain for something to say, to try to get Homura talking and hopefully relieve some of the tension she felt. "You are really good at math," she ventured. "Everyone was impressed by how well you solved that problem in class. Were you in the advanced classes in your last school?"

"No, in my last school my grades were average." Homura responded in her same monotone way.

"I... I see..." Madoka looked around, realizing they were now in the hallway by themselves, and she suddenly felt rather nervous about it.

Homura suddenly stopped walking, then turned toward the window. She looked outside, not passively, but searching. Her eyes darted this way and that, checking every corner of the schoolyard.

"Um… Homura? A-are you ok?" Madoka asked, nervously taking a step forward.

Homura's eyes finally stopped, and Madoka glanced out the window to see what she could be looking at. All Madoka saw was a small white animal, probably a rabbit, hiding under the bleachers. It seemed to be looking their way, but then quickly turned and scurried away into deeper hiding, almost as if it could tell they were looking at it.

Homura suddenly turned away from the window and looked at Madoka with an uncharacteristic amount of expression. Until now she had been dull and monotone, but now she spoke with a sense of importance. "Madoka, let me ask you something."

"Oh, sure, sure, anything!" Madoka was glad to finally get her talking, but now felt concerned about the seriousness in her voice.

"Let's say you had a friend who was in danger, but she didn't know she was in danger and would not believe you if you told her. You could save her, but you knew that in the end it might make her hate you. Would you go through with saving her? Even if she did not want you to?"

"Um..." Madoka didn't expect such a profound question, and took a moment to think it over. "Well, if she's my friend and she really is in danger... Yes, I would do anything I could to help her!"

"Even if, in order to save her, you had to do something she hated?"

"Well... If she is truly my friend I think she would understand I just wanted to help. But Homura, why are you asking me this? Is everything ok? Do you have a friend who is in trouble?"

Homura nodded and turned back to the window. "Yes, and she has no idea of the danger she's in."

"Who is it? Should we go tell a teacher?" Madoka asked.

"No, its nothing any teacher can help us with." She stepped toward Madoka, shortening the distance between the two of them. Madoka shrank back a little, feeling a bit intimidated by Homura's intensity. "Madoka, if something strange happens to you some time in the near future, please trust that it is for your own good."

"H-Homura, what are-" Madoka's eye started shifting around, but she didn't get a chance to finish her thought.

"Thank you for walking with me, I can find my way on my own now." Before walking away she turned back for a moment to say one more thing. There was still that cool intensity in eyes. "Please remember what we talked about today."

Madoka just stood there, completely bewildered, and watched as Homura walked down the hall. Once Homura turned around the next corner, Madoka finally turned away herself and started walking back to the lunchroom. She thought it over, trying to make sense of it, and wondered if she should do something.

V

After school, Madoka along with Sayaka and Hitomi went to a local cafe for milkshakes. There, Madoka told them of the strange encounter she had with Homura, and everything the girl had said to her.

"Wow! What a total Psycho." Sayaka laughed and took a sip from her milkshake. "I knew there was something off about that girl, but that's just crazy." She noticed the distressed look on Madoka face, and sighed. "Look, I wouldn't worry about it, chances are she is just messing with you. She probably just thinks being the weird transfer student is cool or something." She pushed her milkshake to the side and grinned. "AH! That's so Moé it's making me sick!" She then feigned as if she were gagging and pretended to pass out.

"I don't know," Madoka said, her eyes shifting down to her own drink. "She actually seemed pretty sincere. The even weirder part is, I feel like I do know her from somewhere."

"Really? From where?" Hitomi asked.

"Well, you guys are probably going to laugh at me... but... I think I met her in a dream… or something..."

"You met her in…" Sayaka started.

"A dream?" Hitomi finished. They looked at each other skeptically for a moment, and then simultaneously burst into laughter. Madoka became frazzled and looked back and forth between them with a bright shade of blush appearing on her face.

"Oh wow!" said Sayaka through her fit of laughter. "Looks like the anime character is coming out in you as well!"

"Don't be mean!" Madoka said, "I know how it sounds, but I'm almost sure of it!"

"Well what happened is this dream?" Hitomi asked, seeing how serious Madoka was and deciding to put the jokes to the side for now.

"Well, that's the thing... I don't really remember."

"Well, if you want my opinion," Hitomi started, "There is a chance you have met her before. Maybe it was just so long ago that you don't remember. Then in your dream last night, your subconscious brought back the image of her."

"That's a bit of a huge coincidence, don't you think?" Sayaka said, skeptically.

"Not at all, just think about it. We actually do that kind of thing in dreams all the time, but more often than not we have no use for the information and we forget about the dream soon after having it. However, on a rare occasion, something in your real life brings up your memory of the dream before you have a chance to forget it and it ends up being one of those dreams that just stick with you." She took a sip of her milkshake and let the idea sink in for a moment. "Anyway, that's probably what happened here. If you did not just so happen to meet Homura again today, then you would have likely totally forgotten the dream, along with the black haired girl that was in it. Since you did see her, the dream ended up sticking with you. It's as simple as that, or at least that's one possibility."

"I don't know," said Sayaka, "Still sounds pretty far-fetched if you ask me." She played with her straw for a moment while they all thought about it. "Hey, you guys want to go to the music store after this?"

"Sorry, I can't," said Hitomi. "I have some things I need to do at home."

"That's ok, how about you Madoka?... Um, Madoka? Earth to Madoka!"

Madoka was staring out the window, deep in thought, but shook herself out of it when she heard Sayaka call her name.

"Huh? The music store? Um... Sure! Sounds like fun!" she said, forcing a smile back onto her face.

"Heh, you're being a real space cadet today. What's the deal?"

"Well… I'm just thinking about Homura, I was thinking there seems to be something really sad about her."

"It's probably just that she's new," said Hitomi. "It must be scary transferring into a brand new school where you don't know anyone. I'm sure she'll cheer up in a few days."

"I don't know," said Sayaka, "After that story you told us she doesn't exactly sound stable in the first place. Personally, I would stay far away from her if I were you." She got up and pulled her bag up over her shoulder. "Anyway, ready to go?"

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-Atomyst