Showing up 2 months late with starbucks [Action with Madoka, backdated to April]

[heribbon]

Kaname-san, Miki-san? Are either of you home? We need to talk.

[She wasn't dressed as a magical girl at the moment, so that was a good sign at least. Less of a good sign was the serious tone in her voice. She fidgeted with the ring on her finger as she looked around the apartment. She didn't want to admit that magical girls became witches...That Kyubey lied to her, but it was becoming harder and harder to deny. Maybe talking to her friends would ease her worries. Maybe they'd tell her that she was being silly.]

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[protectshope]

[By now, Madoka has gotten Mami's groceries back. She vaguely knows what is going on and she is terrified of confronting it. Not telling Mami the truth before... She's been just like Kyuubey, hasn't she? And relating to Kyuubey is horrible and painful for Madoka.

When Mami returns, Madoka is fiddling with her ring. She turns to look at her friend, but it's hard to smile. Madoka has never been good at hiding her emotions.]

Mami-san... Hi. Welcome h-home...

[heribbon]

[At how nervous Madoka seemed, Mami almost wanted to put off the conversation and try to help her friend through whatever was bothering her, but this was too important. Too bad she was still struggling to figure out how best to approach it.]

I tend not to pay attention to idle gossip or assumptions thrown my way, but... Within the span of a week two people seem to believe that we are turning into... monsters of some kind, one of them also seemed to believe that my soul was actually in my gem. And considering the existence of witches in our world...

[She took a deep breath realizing that she was losing the little bit of composure she had gained on her way to the apartment.]

Do you know if any of that is true?

[protectshope]

[Guilt is eating Madoka up from the inside. She knows that if she dwells on it, her soul gem is going to taint and then she'll have a bigger problem to deal with...!

So Madoka just nods. At first, she has no voice. Just trembling and nodding, as she scrambles to think of what to say.]

... So much happened, Mami-san. I-I didn't tell you, I'm sorry! Y-You were alive a-and-- and I didn't want t-to... [She shakes her head rapidly. Stop pitying yourself, Madoka! She remembers how hard it was to learn the truth herself, bit by bit... now Mami has to learn everything at once.]

I uh... B-Before anything! I need... t-to tell you my wish. Can we sit together?

[heribbon]

[She was hoping that she would've laughed it off and tell her that she was wrong. She had hoped she was wrong. But really, ever since her conversation with Soma, she had been worrying that she was coming closer and closer to being a witch. It all makes so much sense that she hadn't been surprised by the nod, not really. Although the tears welling up in her eyes may show differently.

Realizing that Kaname-san still wanted to talk, she nodded, and sat down on a nearby chair. A few more minutes wouldn't make too much of a difference, would it.]

What...what was it?

[protectshope]

[Madoka breaths in.

She knows that this hurts Mami horribly. She's seen her friend lose her grip when she learns what she will become... So that's the place to start. With that worry.]

I wished for witches to never be born, and to be there to prevent them from being born. Each and every one, wherever and whenever. [She exhales now, continuing. Madoka can't give herself a chance to lose steam and chicken out.] It was after you... l-left. Sayaka-chan made her wish, and then... and then everything got crazy. We met Kyoko-chan, and Kyuubey told me about Homura-chan, a-and... It was all awful. I think I decided not to tell you, because the fact it happened still makes me so scared.

[heribbon]

So... there are no more witches? We aren't becoming witches anymore?

[That was the most important thing to clarify. She could handle her soul being in her gem, but she couldn't turn into a witch. She couldn't let anyone turn into witches here. Second most important thing though was...]

You met Kyoko? Was she well?

[protectshope]

Mm. No more witches. Before a magical girl's soul gem becomes a grief seed, I show up and put them to rest... It's not exactly what I wanted, but... [Madoka's voice trails off.

It's close enough.]

A-And yeah. Kyoko-chan came after you left. She was kind of mean at first, but in the end, she did her real best to help Sayaka-chan. In the new world without witches, you and Kyoko-chan, and Sayaka-chan, and even Homura-chan protect Mitakihara together.

[heribbon]

[At the confirmation that there were no more witches, Mami visibly relaxed. She still wasn't certain what that would mean here if Madoka's gem gets too tainted, or how to purify any of their gems. But it didn't seem that they would need to take immediate action.]

[She looked at Madoka, taking the responsibility of every magical girl's life- well, death in her hands can't be easy.]

You've grown up a lot from the magical girl trainee I met before.

[It makes her rediculously happy to hear that there's a world where she and Kyoko remained friends, even if she didn't get to experience it herself.]

Still, we need to figure out what to do in this world. [She summoned her gem, which was a bit darker than it usually was.] I don't think any of us want this second chance to end any sooner than it has to.

[protectshope]

Well... I had a really cool heroine to look up to. You really inspired me, you know?

[The praise is so embarrassing, so Madoka naturally deflects it back. She isn't lying, either. Seeing Mami so ready to protect the city cemented Madoka's resolve.]

Yeah, I don't want it to end either. A lot of people have come to me with ideas, but... [Madoka's shoulders sink,] They're... our souls. We can't be using them to experiment on methods that might break them.

Kyuubey used to say the dark stuff was curses, right? So maybe we need to find someone who deals in curses.

[heribbon]

Don't be too modest, Kaname-san. I only got you started. The rest was your doing.

[Mami seemed to think for a moment before speaking up again.]

We may want to continue talking to them anyway, see if their abilities would work as a plan B. As for finding someone who deals in curses....I could record a video to see if anyone here fits that criteria.