Homura walked into her home, her legs dragging along the floor with every step she took, before plopping herself down onto a bench. The pendulum rhythmically swung in the background of her vision, and from the corner of her eye, she could see the phone microwave sitting across from her, daring another use. Okabe sat himself down beside her and started playing with her hair. It was a nice feeling.

"Did we avert disaster this time around?" She asked, unresisting to his playing with her braids. As much as she loved them down, she had to admit that she did feel a lot better in them. It reminded her of a time long past. A time she won't be getting back. Okabe just stared at the machine, thinking to himself about whatever he thought about.

"I'd say it's possible, but from personal experience, uses of this machine often have very unintended side effects, even with the most innocent of jobs, though I'm not sure this can really be called innocent." She heard a laugh escape from him. A small one. "Case and point, Sayaka Miki."

Homura sat up and turned to face him.

"I mean, sure, she's in a wheelchair, but she otherwise seems fine to me, albeit a little bit of anger issues. It's probably for the best that we don't play with things that may make this worse than it already is." She stated.

"Are you sure about that?" He asked.

The question took her a little bit by surprise, forcing her to rack her brain.

"Yeah. If anything, we've cut her off from contracting to save that boy. If she's not a magical girl, then things will be much easier. It comes at a price, of course, but…" She paused, noting that Okabe was once again sorting through memories, unfocused on what was around him. Not completely, anyways.

Finally, he spoke up.

"Fate has a very interesting way of dealing with certain events." Okabe stated, a little solemnly.

"What do you mean?" Homura asked.

"Some things can be nearly unavoidable and absolute. The situation might differ, but the result is the same. You try to take them a different route, they get shot down. You try to take them down a set of stairs, they fall and die horribly. You try to escape on a train, and they…" There was a momentary silence, and it occurred to Homura that he was revisiting a bad spot. "It really is like clockwork, and if what I've heard is anything to go on, you're having a very similar experience, aren't you?"

She thought back to Madoka, and her heart stung a little.

"So, you're saying it's hopeless?" She asked, falling back into her laying down position, only this time Okabe able to catch her.

"Of course not. That's why I'm here, after all. You just need to seek out that perfect timeline where everything is resolved, and like I told you back at that shop, it exists. You may not see it, but it exists."

"Correction: You told future me that. I'm not future me. It's a little unfair to compare the two of us, don't you think?"

"S-sorry. I forgot."

More silence.

"It's really nice to hear, though. Something that I forget a lot too."

"Yeah, well, same here. Never said it was easy, did I?" Okabe stated. Again with his laugh, though she could do nothing to read the emotion behind it. Homura let out a yawn, her eyes drifting off to sleep.

"I'm not tired, just so you know. I'm...not…" She said, doing a miserable job of covering herself up. As he expected, she was asleep within moments, head resting in his arms. He began playing with her braids again, and caught a slight smile from her face. For a girl that had been to hell and back, she still had quite some softness in her.

Swish swish swish

His eyes cast to another part of room where a familiar white cat sat patiently beside the machine.

"What do you want?" He asked the incubator.

The creature didn't blink.

"I have simply come to say that you have lots of potential. Magical boys are very rare to find, but someone with as much potential as you is unnatural. Very similar situation to that to Kaname Madoka." It rested its paw against the Phone Microwave, seeming to examine it with great interest.

"You could save that girl with a single wish, all her pain and suffering would be gone, as if it was never there." The creature continued. "Logically, it's really the best outcome."

"Homura is just fine without me making a contract. She'll save Madoka. I'm sure of it." Okabe argued, patting the girl over the head.

"I wasn't referring to Akemi Homura."

Okabe stopped patting her head, his eyes fading.

The creature slowly cocked his head, curiously examining Okabe.

"I've considered it, you know. Wishing away her suffering with no more than a few words, everyone getting along like nothing ever happened. She would be safe, wouldn't she?" He asked.

"Of course. Her unneeded deaths would be no more. You could live out the rest of your days with her knowing that she is safe. Is that not what you want?"

Okabe laughed a little bit. Only a little.

"Maybe, but I'm sure this girl right here would find a way to fix that anyways, similar to how this timeline is likely a direct result of myself making that exact choice."

"And why do you say that?" Kyubey asked, head still tilted in curiosity.

"Because it's something I would do. If this timeline was the result of a fix, then I'm sure I made that choice. Even if I didn't, she would still fix it. I'm sure of it."

The creature sat still for a moment, taking in his words.

"It seems illogical though. Shiina Mayuri will only continue to suffer-" His words were interrupted with a bullet to his head and his carcass falling to the ground. Homura shot awake in his lap, her eyes coming to fix onto a second incubator eating it's corpse.

"If you're done, I've heard more than enough out of you. Go find someone else to preach your bullshit to."

"Just making the offer." The creature stated. As quickly as he had appeared, he was gone.

Homura sat up to say something, anything, but his eyes had a broken look to them. It was as if anything she said would shatter him.

And so, she said nothing.

A short while later, Okabe stood up and made his way to the bed.

"Come on, we should sleep."

Homura just nodded and followed, matching his speed as best she could. Somewhere, out in the world, her future self was burdening his problems. Problems she would never truly relate to. Not that trying to would do any good.

So she didn't bother trying.

Homura passed the time outside the hospital drinking the familiar red drink she had been given when her and Okabe had first met. She took it in little sips while Okabe watched for Madoka and Sayaka to eventually come by. However, he glanced back at her every once in a while with a curious look.

Homura, on the other hand, kept glancing at the wall, checking it for the appearance of the labyrinth that would inevitably take Mami's life, for Madoka to go find Mami and take her here. Homura would follow, only to be stopped from saving her.

"So, why not just be there when it appears?" Okabe had suggested earlier that morning. That had been the plan she had set her mind on, and it was a pretty good one too. At least, it was.

Homura opened her phone and checked the time, quickly growing anxious.

"It should have appeared by now, or at least begun to." Homura silently fidgeted with the can in her hand, swirling it back and forth.

"Give it a few minutes. Not everything is squarely on-the-dot, you know."

"It's been half an hour." Homura blankly replied. "This feels wrong." She took another sip from her can, letting the taste sink through her. She still didn't get why he liked it so much.

"Just calm down. There's probably another explanation for all of this."

As if on cue, Homura felt her phone vibrate, something that never happened. Not here.

"It's from Mami." She stated, looking over to see that Okabe was looking at his phone too.

"She wants us over at her apartment…" Homura whispered.

"I assume this is something new?"

"Very."

Okabe turned away from the hospital, facing into the distance.

"Then we shall march onwards towards the future." Homura smiled, following his lead with her can in hand.

Maybe this would work out after all. Maybe.

Okabe and Homura stepped into Mami's apartment, greeted to Madoka and Sayaka sitting at a small glass table. The former had a look of excitement over her face, while the latter just seemed restless. Cautiously, the two stepped in and took seats around the table.

"Anyone know what any of this is about?" Okabe asked.

Everyone shook their heads.

"Thought so."

Suddenly, without warning, his vision turned to grey, everything going still. Only the warmth of Homura's hand kept him let him know of this.

"I did a quick scan around the apartment." Homura immediately stated. "Mami isn't here anywhere."

Homura's eyes gazed into his with a solid look, one that, on her face, frightened him.

"Alright, but...why do you need to use your magic to tell me this?"

"I need to know if you told her anything, about the future. If so, and she ran off to fight the witch herself, then…" Of course, to Homura, this didn't mean much in the grand scheme of things. Madoka would still be alive, as would Okabe. The sweets witch might be an issue, but she could deal with that later. She felt a little pain in her heart about what she was saying, but...

"I didn't tell her anything, alright? You don't need to be so anxious. Now, can you stop using your magic for now?"

Homura nodded, bringing the colour back into the world. For a moment, Madoka looked at the two with a confused look, but decided to ignore it. Conversation continued, until Kyubey strolled through the door and plopped himself onto the table, looking Okabe directly in the eye.

It took all his strength not to strangle the creature then and there. More footsteps from outside relieved Homura of her fears, but something sounded off about them. Her worries only came back when she stopped at the door and the footsteps continued. Homura slowly reached her hand down, but was grabbed by Okabe.

"Sorry for that, but I wanted this to be a surprise for all of you." Everyone sat confused as Mami left the doorway, muttering something they couldn't hear, returning seconds later with a little girl in tow.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet the newest magical girl addition." Mami proudly stated to the group. The girl just shyly stepped forward.

"H-hi. My name is Momoe Nagisa. I look forward to working with you all."

6 months isn't that long of a time to wait, right?

Seriously, though, I'm really sorry about the wait. Lost motivation to write this story for a while, and only started writing it again when I got the chance to look over it recently.

Anyways, I hope not to go on another long break like this, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy what I've written.

Until next time...