#put kyoko on a case where the answer is actually magic and see if she figures it out

[aparticularbandit]

I keep thinking, you know, pair up Chaos Gremlin Agatha Harkness with Chaos Gremlin Junko Enoshima and go from there.

But actually, the way I write Agatha, it should be more like.

Local purple girl who finds her identity in the occupation passed down through her family heritage meets local purple girl who also (Agatha Harkness and Kyoko Kirigiri).

Local abused purple girl who is told she is no good and never can be meets local abused purple girl who doesn't believe she can ever be forgiven for existing (Agatha Harkness and Mikan Tsumiki).

Like.

....

I have types, apparently, and I should just shoehorn my chaos gremlins together!

[spectralreplica]

So I loved your response on who would be most likely to witch out in the PMMM/DR v3 au, but id love to ask, what did they all wish for? (Bonus: Also did those wishes backfire?)

So, these are my thoughts for right now, but if I actually planned more of the “story” for this AU, some of them might change. For some of them I kind of cheated and came up with the power first, but in my defense it’s hard to come up with wishes without having planned more of the plot, since Kyubey tries so hard to get people to make spur of the moment wishes during times of stress.

Kokichi: I see him as totally paranoid (rightfully so) over how Kyubey’s trying to trick him but still obsessing for weeks over the perfect phrasing for a wish just in case, and then suddenly a witch traps him and DICE in a Labyrinth and he ends up contracting with a totally spontaneous wish. Something like “saving my friends” or “being strong enough to protect my family.” For maximum irony, he’d end up with powers that get stronger when fighting with/to protect others but keep trying to fight alone anyway due to not trusting other magicals and not wanting to put DICE in danger. He’d also tell people he wished for other things like, “to rule the world from the shadows,” or “an infinite supply of scarfs.” As for backfiring, he does save everyone that one time, but they’re in more danger since other magicals end up targeting them when Kokichi poaches from their territories, plus they’re in the line of fire if/when he witches out.

Kaito: Like in the game, Kaito is terminally ill and wishes for something along the lines of “being healthy enough to achieve his dreams,” but he totally lies and says he wished for something like “being strong enough to help others.” He gets the power to temporarily boost other people’s powers and/or make their bodies regenerate from wounds. He kind of avoids using the healing part at first because it’s a little suspicious with his alleged wish and then pretends it’s a thing he’s been practicing. It doesn’t really go bad for him, and I don’t think he’d regret making the wish, even when he finds out about the Soul Gems controlling your body thing. Maybe when he realizes there are no witches in space? But even then I think he’d be in denial…

Shuichi: Shuichi ends up involved in a really serious case and just can’t find the piece that ties it all together even though everyone is counting on him. At the height of his anxiety, Kyubey approaches him, and he wishes to find the truth. He basically gets super intuition/lie detection with a (mental) visual interface sort of like the DR trials (truth bullets plus the mini games). This creates drama with certain other magicals who are hiding something (cough, Kokichi and Kaito) and makes him doubt his skills since he’s relying on magic to cheat.

Maki: Still an orphan, still approached by a cult, but then approached by Kyubey. She wishes that the cult would never bother anyone at the orphanage again, and they all end up arrested, dead, or mysteriously vanished. She basically gets the power to make things/people “go away” to a pocket dimension only she can access, and this makes other people sort of forget those things/people exist while they’re inside. She sees her wish as a necessary sacrifice, like her becoming an assassin in canon, so she is Not Happy when Kyubey approaches some of the other orphans.

Kaede: Honestly not sure???? She doesn’t really have anything in her backstory that would be a catalyst for Kyubey to approach her, so I see it as more of a random chance, situation-based thing, like Madoka healing the cat. Maybe she was trapped in a Labyrinth and wished for the power to fight survive, or to save a friend? Just know it’s not related to her piano playing. That’s all practice, and she likes it that way.

(Joke answer: Kaede gets super mad at someone from a distance and wishes she could slap them across the face for being an idiot. She gets the power to telekinetically smack anything around from across the room.)

Himiko: Intrigued by the idea of real magic but not intrigued by the idea of having to fight witches. Ends up wishing for her mentor to be more popular. Not as mind-controlly as Kyoko’s wish; basically, people just find him really cool and talented and can’t look away from his shows, but they don’t like, form a cult? Sort of derails her own career as a magician (both because the audience likes her mentor more and because she has to sneak off and fight witches) and doesn’t really fix the problems in their relationship, but he doesn’t leave and never return. Anyway, she gets the power to make herself and anyone she touches more or less noticeable/popular. Really good for stealth or drawing aggro. Also for convincing people to do her favors.

Tenko: She recently moved to the city after living in a temple since she was a child, and is finding it hard to adjust. One night, when she’s out acting as a “hero of justice” like her Master taught her and preventing a suicide, she ends up trapped in a Labyrinth and saved by Himiko. She ends up really, really attached and sort of accompanies her on hunts for a while until something goes wrong, and she ends up wishing to protect Himiko. She ends up with sort of a sense when Himiko needs help and is really good at putting up shields/barriers.

Miu: Still in a bad car crash leading to a coma, butthe surgery doesn’t go as well. Kyubey approaches her in the hospital right after she’s been told she’s facing permanent brain damage. She almost wishes to put her brain back to normal but then decides, why stop there? She wishes to be a genius with a super-brain that can solve any problem, and ends up with super inspiration, mostly aimed at turning any materials around her into an invention that will help her. She can use magic to substitute for missing materials and speed up the development time, but this uses a lot of magic at once, and the finished product won’t work for anyone else. Freaks out when she learns her body is now essentially hardware, but then she realizes the possibilities for improving things… Then everyone else freaks out.

Gonta: Still a feral child who got lost in the woodsand was sort of raised by wolves (not reptites, sorry), but this affects his ability to learn language and social skills much, much more severely than in canon. Wishes for the ability to understand others, which makes him fluent in all languages and sort of an empath. Also, because he sees animals as sort of on the same level as humans, this extends to animal languages in addition to human ones. Being able to speak and mimic “good manners” improves others’ opinions of him and his intelligence, but being able to feel how his birth family really feels about him is so upsetting that he eventually ends up running away and staying with Miu and Kiibo.

Kiibo: Lives with Miu. Does not remember his wish, but he has powers, so he has to have made one? Probably human. I’m still sort of torn over his backstory, but I’m kind of leaning towards a Hijiri kind of situation, where he was created by someone else’s wish. Or magic (cough, Miu.)

Ryoma: Wishes to get revenge on the mafia that killed his family and girlfriend. Basically gets enhanced strength and a sort of sense of where all of the members are. I sort of went over how his wish ends up in the other post…

Korekiyo: Wished to cure his sister’s illness and got healing powers. Currently traveling the world to observe other magicals. Like the other cult members, offers to use his powers for a price (usually Grief Seeds or information).

Angie: Starts out living on an isolated island andacting as a priestess/oracle, but begins to doubt her own abilities/connection to her god because natural disasters are getting worse and more people are leaving. She sort of interprets Kyubey as a messenger from her god and wishes to know what’s really going on/get a better sense of her destiny. She gets the power to predict the future as long as she is personally involved. She has to actively focus on a question (What happens if I do this?) or a goal (I want to achieve this) and she’ll see the most probable path. This really elevates her sense of self-importance, and makes it much easier to make others see things her way. It doesn’t prevent a tsunami from destroying her home and making everyone leave, at which point she meets Tsumugi and Kirumi.

Tsumugi: Her life isn’t bad, but she doesn’t like herself that much and feels empty and unfulfilled until she comes across the existence of actual magical girls (well, one in particular). Like an anime come to life! Tsumugi wishes for the ability to become someone else (yes, I know this was Rena’s wish too…) and gets the power to transform into other people. If they’re a magical, she can also copy a limited, weaker version of their powers.

Rantaro: Wishes to find all of his sisters and gets the ability to track people. He has an inherent sense where each of his sisters is and their general emotional state, but he can also apply this power to other people if he focuses. It works from anywhere in the world and can be based on a photograph, but it works best when the person is close by (from a country away he knows they’re alive and northwest from him, from a building away he knows they’re sitting in a chair in the back corner of the back bedroom and feeling excited but a little nervous) and he’s met them in person. He quickly discovers that tracking a sister down once doesn’t mean she’ll stay “found” and go home. Some of them also want to travel, others have bad senses of direction and always get lost again, some find his new knowledge of where they are and how they feel super creepy and avoid him, and at least one became a magical girl already… He probably finds out about the witch thing first…….

Kirumi: Part of a family that’s been serving animportant, rich family (maybe Rantaro’s? for maximum irony?) for generations. She’s been trained to dedicate her whole life to serving others and has no real prospects outside of eventually becoming head maid and training her own children to replace her. Meets Angie and Tsumugi and is immediately drawn in by Angie’s message. Wishes for the ability to instantly transport herself and others and gets the ability to teleport to any location she’s seen (photos count). It gets harder the more people she takes along, the longer the distance, and the less detail she knows about her destination. She tells everyone—and herself—that she lives to serve and wished for a convenient power to better serve the group’s needs, but she secretly wanted to escape really badly for her own sake too.

[balancingdiet]

Tabula Rasa

Detective Conan & Magic Kaito Characters: Shinichi/Kaito Words: 2500 ish Chapter: (1) ... (9) (10) (11) 

Shinichi always finds his neighbour weird. But he didn’t expect to find his neighbour lying on a patch of grass and donned in Kaitou Kid’s costume, too.

Shinichi had purposely taken an hour off work so he could drop by a toy store, get the gift, and make it just in time for the birthday party. But just when he was just about to leave, a piercing scream echoed throughout the toy store, and in the next second he found a woman lying in the middle of the aisle, death by cyanide poisoning. 

Frankly, it was a lack of planning on his part—who knew his random murder magnet ability would decide to activate today? 

In the end it wasn’t a hard case, but it was a painfully long one to wrap up. By the time he managed to calm the guilty husband, the bawling mother-in-law, and wait for his colleagues to collect every piece of evidences for the report, a good two hours had passed. 

He was now late to the party.

After parking his car (he nearly knocked over his mail box when he did), Shinichi dashed to the house across the street.

Kyoko answered the door.

“I’m so sorry for being late.” Shinichi glanced past her shoulder, slightly relieved that the party was still on-going. He spotted Sakura, the birthday girl, laughing in her pink frilly dress with her friends.

“I should thank you for coming actually.” Kyoko returned an apologetic look and stepped aside for Shinichi to enter. “You must have been busy at work.” 

“Not at all.” Shinichi smiled, glancing at the fancy decorations and the home-cooked food spread across a make-shift table in the living room. Honestly, Shinichi was probably no where as busy as compared to Kyoko today. Being a single, working mom was tough enough, but Kyoko never failed to put aside everything for her daughter. All Shinichi had to do was to keep to the promise he made when Sakura passed him her birthday invitation last week. 

He had no excuse for anything—

“Shinichi nii-chan!” Sakura skipped towards Shinichi and gave him a tight hug. “You're here!”

“Yes, but I do have to apologise for being late.” "It's okay!"

Shinichi bent down, whipping the box he had hidden behind his back. “Here’s your gift.”

“Thank you so much!” Sakura hugged the present under her arm before grabbing his hand. “Now dat’ you’re here, you got ta’ see this too!” she exclaimed, dragging him across the room and to the crowd of children and parents.

“So who wants to be the— Oh! I guess we have a volunteer!”

It was a little intimidating to see all the turned heads and attention on him, but knowing the source of the voice did help to find some comfort in the awkwardness, even if he was the cause of it. 

Kuroba waved Shinichi over.

Given Kuroba’s closeness with Sakura and Kyoko since the first day he moved here, it wasn’t surprising to see him invited. But it was a little irksome to see him charming all of Sakura’s friends and their parents too. 

Sakura squealed and gave Shinichi a surprised push to the front. Before Shinichi could react to her strength, Kuroba grabbed his wrist, pulling him forward to his side. 

“Let’s all give our volunteer a warm welcome,” he said and began clapping. Everyone followed.

Clearly, Kuroba needed to check his vocabulary and understand what volunteer really meant.

Kuroba pulled out a deck of cards from his pocket and fanned them out, showing Shinichi the back side. “I need you to pick a card from the deck.”

Though suspicious, Shinichi silently agreed. It was six of diamonds.

Then, after Kuroba placed the rest of the cards away, he snapped a finger, and a dove flew out from his sleeve and settled on his hand. Everyone awed in amazement, leaving only Shinichi the odd one out. Besides the simplicity of the trick, he didn’t feel good knowing the magic Kuroba had in mind involved his dove. He already had a fair share of bad experiences, like getting his property shitted on and his forehead pecked—

“Now, please hand the card to Tamago.”

Shinichi’s eyes twitched. He was hoping his glare might transmit his warnings to Kuroba or Tamago, but neither seemed bothered. He grudgingly obeyed and passed the card to the dove.

Card now clasped between its beak, Tamago fluttered away from Kuroba’s fingers and settled on Shinichi’s head.

What THE—

Kuroba squeezed his shoulder and placed a white hat on his head. “Remember your language,” he whispered. 

Shinichi couldn’t see, but he could definitely hear the smile in Kuroba’s voice.

Kuroba turned to the crowd. “Let’s all count to three, shall we?”

When everyone’s chant hit the number, Shinichi felt a flutter on his head before a warm, and much furrier creature was replaced. It was also the moment Kuroba took the hat away, and a white rabbit immediately bounced into Kuroba’s chest as it nibbled on the same card that Shinichi had drawn out.

Everyone cheered (and Shinichi forced himself to clap just to blend into the crowd).

A few moments after the excitement died down and everyone wanted to see a new trick, Kyoko came out of the kitchen with a huge cake in hand; it was time for the birthday song. Kuroba then performed his last trick by lighting the seven candles with just a wave of his hand.

Everyone scattered after the birthday song, each enjoying the last dessert and chat before heading home for the night. But as for Shinichi, he chose to stand in the kitchen—the most secluded place in the house—and finish the cake in silence. He was quick to talk and gather information from people when it got to do with his work, but being sociable for the sake of socialising wasn’t something he was interested at the moment—

He irritably scratched a sudden itch on his head. It got to be the doing of the dove or the rabbit’s butt...

“Hello, my volunteer.”

Shinichi turned, eyeing Kuroba as he ambled into the kitchen. 

“Of all the tricks, you just had to pull that one,” Shinichi muttered.

“I thought you liked it.” Kuroba tossed his empty paper plate into the trashbin. “You clapped in the end, didn’t you?”

“I couldn’t clap anymore sarcastically if I tried.”

Kuroba chuckled. “You clearly need to work on that.” 

“...Are you a magician?”

It was nice to see Kuroba confused and not look like a smug ass. “What?”

“Not your alter-ego, or you.” Shinichi waved a hand over Kuroba, not really sure how to piece his words exactly. “I mean... your career.”

“Not full-time,” Kuroba answered (which ironically surprised Shinichi because he didn’t expect him to reply almost immediately). “I’m a freelancer.”

“So you’ve got an income.” Shinichi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Yet you steal…”

Rolling his eyes, Kuroba shook his head. “All these redundant questions again—”

The sound of scuffing made both of them turned, watching as two kids—one boy and a girl—nudging and pushing each other until they entered the kitchen together. Judging by their features, Shinichi guessed they were siblings.

Shinichi expected them to approach Kuroba, probably telling him praises and boosting his ego, but turns out they were walking towards him instead.

Kuroba didn’t seem displeased they weren’t his fans. Rather, he looked amused.

"Hello,” the boy greeted, his voice a little dreamy and mesmerised. “Sakura-chan said you’re a detective. Is that true?”

Huh. “Yes, I’m a detective,” Shinichi answered.

“Wow.” The boy widened his eyes as he looked between him and Kuroba. “Sakura-chan is so lucky. She got so many cool neighbours!”

“I also want to be a detective too!” the girl exclaimed. “Do you catch all the bad guys in the world?” she continued, as she swung her finger guns around. 

“Of course. That’s my job.”

It was soft, but Shinichi heard Kuroba snorted. He turned, looking annoyed as Kuroba’s face split into a grin when they made eye contact.

Back then when Shinichi was still Edogawa Conan, they had made a silent pact to not uncover and expose each other real identities (even if Kid stupidly abused the system and disguised as him several times). But now that the pact no longer benefited Shinichi, Kuroba ought to start panicking; he should be going left and right and finding ways to protect his identity and alibi, in case Shinichi decided to bring him down one day out of the blue.

But looking at his comfortable smile, Kuroba seemed confident that the pact still existed, which was actually true. And it wasn’t because Shinichi didn’t have the evidence. Even if he did (which were the photos he’d chose to delete), those threats would only be used between them and not made known to any third-party, much less the police.

Shinichi hated how Kuroba seemed to be able to read him, and he hated how he couldn’t fully figure him out in return (given all the questions Shinichi hadn’t found an answer to). But what he hated more was the hard fact that when Kuroba smiled at him, there was a horrifying, millisecond moment in which Shinichi thought of… smiling back.

As much as Shinichi adored Sakura, he was glad the party was over.

----

Shinichi never expected Kuroba to listen to his advice, and he couldn’t fault him for it when he had played as Kuroba’s role for more than a hundredth time while Haibara Ai played as him; she was always trying to convince Shinichi not to do stupid things, like using the antidote just to make Ran happy for three hours, and then suffering the consequences for the next three months.

So, rather than extra advising, Shinichi decided to watch out for Kuroba instead, but without him realising, of course. Because the last thing he needed was Kuroba to think Shinichi actually had a single strand of care for him, even if he actually had more than five strands of it.

Shinichi liked to think his effort was just an act of a kind, neighbour thing.

Kid had held a total of three heists in the month after his hyperventilating attack. And during those three heists, Shinichi would tweak his radio frequency to match with the Kaitou Kid Task Force’s radio, gaining all of Kid’s information real-time. And when he knew how Kid escaped, he would spy Kuroba’s house by the window of his dark study room, watching and waiting till he safely reached his house. 

It was good to know he didn’t stab himself with a knife while returning home. 

But as for knowing if Kuroba was completely fine in his house… Shinichi believed his intelligent doves would know what to do if he wasn’t.

That was why when Shinichi saw a dove sitting on his mailbox after driving home from work one day, he automatically started to panic. A little.

“Shit.” Shinichi slammed his car door shut and stomped towards the dove. “Did something happen?” 

The dove looked at him with its beady eyes. 

“I asked if Kuroba is alright—”

(Probably thinking he was insane) The dove flew away and into the room with the balcony again.

It eerily felt like a Deja Vu.

Although Kaitou Kid didn’t hold a heist today, Shinichi knew for a fact that the symptoms of PTSD, like panic attacks, could come at the most random times. It was a risk he wasn’t willing to take.

Shinichi dashed towards Kuroba's house.

“Hey.” Shinichi rang the doorbell before changing to hammering the door instead. “Kuroba, are you inside?”

There was silence.

Shinichi leaned his ear against the door, trying to pick up any kind of sound. When there was nothing, he crab-walk around the house and covered both hands to prevent the reflective light from hindering his vision when he tried to look through the glass window. The blinds were down, but he could still see some gap—

“Uh, what are you doing?”

Shinichi jolted, whirling around with more relief than shock when he realised it was Kuroba, who was standing a few metres away and looking at him with the strangest look.

“I thought—” Shinichi shook his head. “It’s… nothing.”

Kuroba frowned and slowly walked towards his house. He gave Shinichi the side-eye. “Are you a pervert?”

Shinichi rubbed his temple to get rid of the incoming headache. “No.” 

“Are you stalking me?”

“No.”

“Are you—”

Shinichi gritted his teeth. He was tired, frustrated at his mistake (for relying on a friggin dove), and clearly not in a right mind before he simply blurted, “Your dove was sitting on my damn mailbox.”

Instantly, Kuroba's teasing features disappeared before he nodded slowly in an emotionless understanding (It was strange how Kuroba seemed to get it, though Shinichi was also glad so he didn't have to admit the obvious). Three seconds ticked by in silence, and then Kuroba turned away to unlock the door. 

“I was at the supermarket,” he explained. 

Stupidly, Shinichi just noticed the grocery bag in his hand. He could make out the shape of a cartoon of eggs, and… ham?

“Ok," Shinichi mumbled.

“Yeah. So… thanks. I guess.” Kuroba paused. There was a flash of hesitance in his eyes, though they were gone when he spoke, "Thanks for your concern.”

“Hm, cool,” Shinichi said before pointing to his own house. “I’ll go back now.”

“Ok, cool.”

“Cool.”

“Cool.”

Shinichi turned and stalked off, not once looking back. When he passed his mail box, he briefly wondered if he should just demolished it; its existence had caused a lot more complications to his life than he liked—

He brushed the ridiculous thought away and returned into his house.

Just two seconds away from entering his study room and suffocating his face into any of his Sherlock Holmes’s books, the doorbell rang. Shinichi frowned, ten percent liking the new distraction but ninety percent dubious about it. Frankly, he had almost forgotten how his doorbell sounded, given the rarity of anybody using it; he’d only interacted with his neighbours on the streets (saved for Kuroba) and rarely had any visitors. His parents got the keys too, so there wasn’t a need for them to use the doorbell. But even if they’d forgotten the keys, Shinichi knew they were somewhere in Russia for a holiday and not in Japan—

All these redundant questions again, he thought (annoyingly in Kuroba’s voice), before he decided to just check the answer instead.

He climbed down the stairs and opened the door.

Speak of the devil.

Shinichi made a face. “What is it?”

“...Apparently my gas ran out.” Kuroba raised a hand with a bag of grocery while the other carried a frying pan. “Can I borrow your stove?”

[edogawatranslations]

Danganronpa Kirigiri (3) - Chapter 3, Part 2

Table of Contents | Previous: Chapter 3, Part 1

“...E-Excuse me?”

“Miracles don’t occur without magic.”

“S-Stop joking around.”

“Come on, just a peck on the cheek is fine.”

“A-A peck on the cheek? That’s enough for you?”

Kyoko shot a look at me. “You’re willing to go along with that?”

“N-No way!”

“How disappointing,” Lico sighed. “Then I guess I’ll take my leave.”

“W-Wait!” I shouted as he began to stand up. “Fine, fine. Sit down.”

“Yui, are you sure about this?” Kyoko asked.

“What choice do I have? Besides, a kiss on the cheek is a normal greeting in some countries.”

“Then please, look more like you’re going to enjoy it,” Lico said, looking up at me.

“Can I say something first? A magic kiss, you know, is typically between a prince and a princess... What I’m about to do is just...”

“I know, I know. I wasn’t serious.” He raised up both of his hands in playful surrender. “I don’t need any magic. I was planning on being your ally from the very start.”

“You little...” I resisted the urge to punch the boy in the face. It wouldn’t be good to lose my cool.

“First, to respond to your question about whether or not I am aware of the contents of the Duel Noir, the answer is no. I know nothing about its contents, nor the solution. Think about it for a second. Would Ryuuzouji really divulge his secrets to me, someone he suspected of being Rei Mikagami?”

“You should’ve said so in the first place.”

“I might as well tell you, but I didn’t sneak into Ryuuzouji’s headquarters to pursue the world’s greatest mysteries. In fact, I’m investigating the Crime Victims’ Salvation Committee.”

“Why did you hide that from us?”

Frustration burned inside me.

“I was anticipating that you’d figure it out yourself. But that’s beside the point. Over the past year, I noticed a surge in the number of people approaching me. All of them were detectives sent by the Committee. I found out Mikado Shinsen has been trying to invite me to join his organization, and if I refused, I’d be met with death.”

Naturally, the Committee wished to obtain Rei Mikagami’s power; it made the most sense to scout high-ranking individuals when seeking additional strength.

“And so, I snuck into Ryuuzouji’s castle and have been tracking the Committee’s movements over these past few months. To tell you the truth, I fully intended on joining the Committee if they intrigued me enough.”

“Don’t you have any honor?”

“I don’t follow any guidelines as a detective,” he said with an impish smile.

Well, at least he admits it.

“But the Committee is devoted solely to creating mysteries. I love a good mystery myself, but designing exam questions isn’t exactly my cup of tea. That’s why my interest in the Committee faded. I would much prefer to be summoned to solve a Duel Noir challenge, but that’s hopeless with my rank...”

The greater the cost of a Duel Noir, the higher the rank of the summoned detective. An exorbitant cost would be necessary for a triple-zero class detective to be summoned, but from a psychological standpoint, I couldn’t imagine anyone having the mental toughness to willingly put themselves in such a situation.

“I’ll get to the point—I want to help you with the Duel Noir. I want to solve mysteries. Please, allow me to join you.”

“Geez, you could’ve saved us so much time if you told us all of this earlier!” I ruffled my hair in frustration. “I don’t know if this is just who you are or if something’s messed up with your brain...”

“Your way of thinking is quite simple.”

I punched him squarely in the face for his blunt remarks—in my imagination, at least. Somehow, I managed to muster the willpower necessary to restrain myself.

“But thanks, we’ll gladly accept your help. We’d be in a pickle otherwise,” I replied.

I offered my hand out for a handshake, but Lico just sat there smiling, not reciprocating.

“...What?” I asked.

“Are you satisfied with trusting me so easily?”

“You still got a problem?”

“Kyoko doesn’t appear to trust me the same way you do.”

Now it’s Kyoko, huh...

She was staring—glaring at Lico.

“Kyoko, what’s wrong?” I asked. “You don’t trust him?”

“Mikado Shinsen...” she muttered. “That man can disguise as anyone.”

Her comment took me aback. Mikado Shinsen—the Variationist, a master of illusion and disguise.

“I see, so you suspect me to be Mikado Shinsen?” Lico asked.

“That’s not possible,” I interjected swiftly. “Just look at him. He’s way smaller than Shinsen; he’s even smaller than you! The Shinsen we met at Norman’s Hotel was taller than me. No matter how talented a masquerader he is, he can’t physically shrink his body down to that size.”

“But he can make himself appear larger,” she remarked.

“Well, yeah... But Lico is smaller, so there’s no reason to suspect him.”

“But what if the boy before us is the actual Mikado Shinsen, and he disguised himself at the hotel? Shinsen was wearing some sort of disguise back then.”

“The possibility stands to reason,” Lico admitted.

“I-If that’s your logic, then even I could be Shinsen in disguise too.”

“No, I’m certain you’re Yui,” Kyoko responded.

“How can you be so sure?”

“...Y-Your body was soft,” Kyoko said, averting her gaze.

When she hugged me yesterday, she must have checked to see if I was the real deal...

“Lico, say something to counter her!”

"That’s quite difficult. Her claim can’t be disproven. No matter how much we discuss it, it’ll always come back to ‘Lico might be Shinsen, or he might not’ in the end.”

“Why do you always have to complicate things? All you need to say is that you’re not Mikado Shinsen!”

“I’m not Mikado Shinsen.”

But Kyoko’s piercing gaze showed no sign of relaxing.

“Can you really not trust him, Kyoko?”

“I’d say I trust him about 60%.”

“An oddly specific percentage,” Lico smirked, shrugging his shoulders. “How did you end up with that figure?”

“Your voice. You aren’t altering it. But Mikado Shinsen clearly had an adult male voice.”

“That’s right!” I exclaimed. “No matter how talented he is at disguises, he can’t replicate both a prepubescent voice and an adult voice.”

...But was something like that really impossible for Mikado Shinsen?

I forced myself to ignore the thought that crossed the back of my mind.

“So you’ve decided to trust me?” Lico asked.

“Like I said, I trust you 60%.”

“Both of you, shake hands and make up,” I urged. “At 60% strength is fine.”

Kyoko reluctantly stuck out her hand. Lico politely grabbed onto it and smiled.

“Alright, now we’re all friends. Lico, shake my hand too, since we didn’t earlier.”

I offered my hand out, and he went along. His hand was small like a girl’s. I couldn’t imagine Mikado Shinsen having such a tiny hand.

“Now we can finally get somewhere,” I said.

I started lining up the twelve challenge cards on the floor. The cards detailed cases that were either underway or imminent. And we had to solve all twelve of them.

I grabbed a retractable pointing stick from nearby and started leading the conversation like a commander, with Lico sitting politely on the floor and Kyoko on the edge of the bed.

“If we stick together as a group, there’s no way we can solve all the cases in time. We need to split up and conduct separate investigations. Any objections?”

The two of them shook their heads.

“Fortunately, twelve can evenly be divided by three, so we can each be responsible for four cases.”

As those words came out of my mouth, my head started spinning. Four cases? It took all my strength to solve just one case; how was I going to manage solving four at once by myself?

“First, let’s look up each of the locations where a Duel Noir will be held this time around, and divide them into sets of four based on geographic proximity.”

“Excuse me, Professor.”

“Yes, Lico?”

“If the murders have already occurred, we don’t need to go to each and every location individually. Since I can obtain any and all relevant police information, we might be more effective playing the role of armchair detectives.”

“But that means turning a blind eye and giving up on any crimes that haven’t been committed yet. We can’t knowingly do that!”

These challenge cards also warned of future crimes. Through intuition and reasoning, a detective could successfully prevent a murder from happening.

“But even so, I do think it’s impossible to solve them all,” Kyoko said, slowly shaking her head. “One wrong move and we may end up trapped in one place until the deadline passes, like back at Norman’s Hotel... Among these cases, there’s one set on a cruise liner; it might be stuck out at sea for the whole week once it sails off.”

“Y-Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Taking that into account, I believe it would be better to group the cases according to cost rather than location. We can divide them up between us by counting off from lowest to highest cost, and then we can tackle them in any order we want.”

“Then I’ll reorder these by cost...”

“Come on, hurry up,” Lico threw out his hands in boredom. “Just leave them all to me and I’ll be finished by the time limit.”

“Even for you, something like that is—”

“100% doable.” A cheerful expression formed on his face.

Such a task may have been well within his capabilities.

...In fact, this Duel Noir challenge may have originally been intended as a duel between the triple-zero class detectives, plus the Kirigiri family. Rei Mikagami joining the side of the detectives had to have been foreseen by Ryuuzouji, who probably considered the elusive figure, instead of me, as his true opponent. Or perhaps, that role was filled by Kyoko. Her low rank was only because she hadn’t been active as a detective for a long time, but Ryuuzouji and the Committee must have realized her rank didn’t reflect her true abilities.

The more I thought about it, the clearer it was that I had no business being part of this battle.

Maybe I should leave everything to him...

“I wonder which case will be the most puzzling.” Like an eager puppy wagging his tail after having received a new toy, Lico scanned the challenge cards with a spark in his eyes. “It’s not a real mystery unless at least two or three people die... A higher cost must mean a higher chance of a serial murder case. I can’t wait to see how these weapons are used. Haha....” He was getting worked up.

...No, what am I thinking?

While he was unfettered in his actions as a detective, he also lacked ethics and a sense of justice. His interests lay solely in the thrill of solving mysteries, and I bet he couldn’t care less about the outcome of a case.

I couldn’t entrust everything to him. But I didn’t have the skill to solve a case. If I even had a fraction of his genius, I’d go save people all across the world.

“...I’ve kinda lost all confidence.” I retracted the pointing stick and flopped down onto the ground.

“We haven’t even started our investigation,” Kyoko said.

“I know, but...”

My incompetence frustrated me. But if I kept staring at the ground and sulking, I’d truly end up hopeless. For now, I needed to face forward and stand tall.

“Kyoko, no matter what people say, it’s my duty to go out and save people. This is a battle over my pride as a detective.”

“Yui...” She stared at me with concern.

From her perspective, it must have been painful to watch me reaffirm my stubborn convictions like a straight-F student in high spirits right before a test.

But regardless, I resolved to move forward and trust in the hope that lay ahead.

“I have an idea.” Kyoko ran her hand down her braids. “I agree that splitting up is the best way to solve these cases, but how about instead of us investigating individually, you and I work as a team of two? Being together would feel more... reassuring.”

She had some difficulty finishing that last sentence.

I’d only weigh you down... I stopped myself from voicing those words out loud.

Suddenly, it hit me. In a Duel Noir, the criminal couldn’t lay a finger on the detective. As the summoned detective, I couldn’t be harmed.

That’s right—there was a role only I could fill.

I’ll be your shield.

“Let’s go with that plan. You focus on solving the mystery. Leave gathering evidence, beating up criminals, and everything else to me.”

“So I’m all by myself?” Lico interjected.

“We’ll divide the cases equally between us, so six each. You get two more mysteries to solve than if we split it three ways. Sound good?”

“Works for me,” he replied with a wide grin. His way of thinking was perhaps more simple than I imagined.

“Then let’s move on.” I picked up the twelve cards. “So as for dividing these up...”

“They all sound so intriguing, I can’t choose.”

“Don’t describe them like that. Lives are at stake.”

“Sorry,” Lico said with a petulant look. “But choosing one by one will waste time, so how about distributing them at random?”

“Hmm... That’s not a bad idea.”

Staring at the cards wouldn’t tell us anything more about what the cases would be like, so there wasn’t much of a point to pick based on personal preference.

“I’ll shuffle them.” Lico tightly grasped the twelve cards in his hand, before tossing them all up into the air.

And then...

“Hyah!”

Between his fingers were six darts, which he had pulled out of his suit on the floor. In one smooth motion, he flung all of them around.

One of them whizzed by my face, causing me to flinch backwards.

Thud, thud... Soft noises echoed out as the darts struck different parts of the walls and ceiling. Each one had pierced a challenge card. His abilities were truly superhuman. Looking carefully, I realized one of the darts had punctured my coat.

“What have you done?!” I shrieked.

“I’ll take the cases that were hit.” Pretending to not have heard me, Lico fluttered around the room and retrieved the darts.

I gathered the challenge cards that had fallen to the ground. I sat down next to Kyoko, and together, we looked through the six cases we were responsible for.

 Card 1:

Location: The Goodbye Bar — 20 million yen Weapon: Knife — 5 million yen Weapon: Charybdotoxin — 30 million yen Weapon: Rope — 3 million yen Trick: Locked Room — 20 million yen Total Cost: 78 million yen

Card 2:

Location: Museum of Medieval Torture — 30 million yen Weapon: Iron Maiden — 30 million yen Trick: Locked Room — 80 million yen Total Cost: 140 million yen

Card 3:

Location: Takeda Haunted Mansion — 30 million yen Weapon: Dotanuki Katana — 30 million yen Trick: Locked Room — 100 million yen Miscellaneous: Rubber Bands — 1 million yen Total Cost: 161 million yen

Card 4:

Location: Kareobana Academy — 30 million yen Weapon: Candles — 20 million yen Trick: Locked Room — 150 million yen Total Cost: 200 million yen

Card 5:

Location: Libra Girls’ Academy — 200 million yen Weapon: Iron Pipe — 3 million yen Trick: Locked Room — 150 million yen Total Cost: 353 million yen

Card 6:

Location: Twin Abilities Research Center — 50 million yen Weapon: Knife — 5 million yen Trick: Ultimate Locked Room — 500 million yen Miscellaneous: Chains — 3 million yen Miscellaneous: Padlock — 3 million yen Total Cost: 561 million yen

“Hey Lico, we’ve got a case I think you’d really love. Wanna trade?”

Of course, I was referring to the case with the highest cost. I wanted to avoid it, as the difficulty of a case increased with the cost.

Lico shook his head. “Please don’t show me something so intriguing...” he replied, writhing in ecstasy. “We’ll run out of time if we start discussing which one to trade for. It’s best if we call this final. Otherwise, I won’t be able to suppress my desires anymore.”

Showing him a picture of Stonehenge or the Pyramids of Giza would likely push him over the edge. I wanted to test that hypothesis, but now wasn’t the time to be fooling around.

“Only the costliest case has the trick listed as ‘Ultimate Locked Room.’” As always, Kyoko assessed the situation with a calm mind. “I wonder what kind of locked room is worth over 500 million yen.”

“Wait, is something like that really appropriate for my rank?”

A double-zero class detective was summoned for a 1.3 billion yen case. Was a 500 million yen case really within the range for someone without a single zero like me?

500 million yen seemed like enough to do just about anything. With that sort of money, the options for murder were vast. That would be true even if it were the criminal’s own money, but Duel Noirs felt more frightening because the funding came from the Crime Victims’ Salvation Committee.

“Now that we’ve divided up the cases, I should get going.” Lico stood up with the cards in his hand.

“You’re leaving already?”

“Yes, I can’t wait to open the doors to these locked rooms.”

“Wait, do you even have a place to return to?”

“I’ll be heading back to Ryuuzouji’s castle today.”

“Huh? But aren’t you two pretty much enemies right now? Will he even let you back in?”

“Ryuuzouji isn’t such a narrow-minded person. He won’t do anything cowardly like kill me in my sleep. Besides, I still have a duty that I need to fulfill.”

“A duty?”

“Obtain and transmit police information to the two of you. That was my original assignment, after all. If you need me, don’t hesitate to call at any time. I’ll provide you with any information you want.”

“You’re just like a spy. But I wonder if Ryuuzouji will really grant you access to the information under these circumstances.”

“Nothing to worry about there. He’s a fair person.”

Lico was right—I didn’t have any reason to doubt Ryuuzouji. If he wanted us out of the picture, he already had plenty of opportunities to get rid of us. Besides, he challenged me to a fair battle. His simple honesty may have been one reason that drove him to become a savior.

“Let’s do our best,” he said with a smile.

“Right. We’re counting on you, Lico.”

We walked out to the entryway of the dorm and bid farewell to each other.

Next: Chapter 4, Part 1

[wheremytwinwatches]

[Where My Twin Watches]: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Episode 11

We open in her magical apartment, shining white walls, CG gears floating like some sort of modern-art chandelier, and images of old scrolls hovering around, old manuscripts or what looks like a tapestry with the word ‘Walpurgis-’ on it. Seems Homura’s working on her (latest) plan to defeat the super-Witch and protect Madoka. One thing that struck me between these episodes is that the last time was probably the closest she’s ever gotten to saving Madoka from Contracting, until the Incubator made a last-minute offer while Homura was distracted fighting Walpurgisnacht. But maybe, just maybe, this time it could work? I mean, Madoka hasn’t Contracted, she knows how much of a dick the Incubator is, and has seen all her other friends die as Magical Girls. Maybe this will be enough to keep her away?

...oh who am I kidding. Madoka’s a Protagonist. She may be meek and scared, especially compared to Alpha Madoka, but when it comes down to it she overrules her fears and does what needs to be done, like when she threw away the chemicals in the warehouse. If she thinks that there’s something that she can do, she’s going to try her best to do it. Ugh. Admirable, but doomed to failure. “Time-traveler, Homura Akemi…” Well, look who it is, barging into Homura’s home at the eleventh-hour. What, are you going to brag about how your ‘perfect logic’ is going to prevail, that you still have claim to be the right side? Come on, Incubator, just try to convince me. “Your existence has answered at least one great mystery: Why is Madoka Kaname’s potential as a magical girl so abnormally vast?” ...wut? “You see, a magical girl’s potential is based on the weight of the karmic destiny she bears.” Oh. Oh, fuck. Homura was the cause. Alpha Madoka was a strong Magical Girl, but still lost to Walpurgisnacht. But each of the other timelines we saw, she survived up until she Witchified, didn’t she? I just put it down to Homura’s help, but if she was growing stronger and stronger… If each time Homura rewound time, all for the sake of one single person, reality after reality based around the lone girl Madoka Kaname… Multiple timelines, converging on one point, one person. All the ‘karmic destiny’ of the prior Madokas, concentrated into the next. In trying to save Madoka, Homura turned her into The One. “Excellent work, Homura. You’ve made Madoka into the most powerful witch we’ve ever seen.” Intro sequence. Well. That’s a thing. For what it’s worth, I paused to really read the lyrics of the intro song this time, and goddamn is it obvious now that it’s really Homura’s song. All the references to time, being stuck on a bad path? The songwriter must have been giggling like crazy when they played this in the early episodes. (Oh hey, it ended with the updated RADIO TOWER OF LIES with all five of the girls hanging out on top.) Ep 11: The Only Thing I Have Left to Guide Me A rainy day in Mitakihara City. Oh. “Sayaka Miki Funeral Service.” I guess the cops finally found her body. The school’s turned out for the service, and Madoka’s there with shaded eyes. She knows the truth, but can’t tell anyone. “Up next, the weather forecast.” Geez, show a little tact radioman! Sayaka makes it home, puts away her umbrella as her mother… uh oh. “About Sayaka’s case… Are you sure you don’t know anything about it?” Madoka claims ignorance and walks away. And the camera makes damn sure that we know Mother ain't buying any of it. Gulp. And now Madoka’s just sprawled on her bed, a blank look on her face. Her best friend and Kyoko are dead (what, no mention of Mami?). All because of- YOU. “It wasn’t exactly an unexpected outcome.” For crying out loud Incubator, give her some space, she just came back from the funeral of her best friend! Although knowing the Incubator, it’s taking this opportunity of a damaged emotional state to try and fill its quota sooner rather than later. Wait. Wait wait wait. What did you just say, Incubator? What the FUCK did you just say? “Then, for example, do you feel responsible for the deaths of livestock? Do you ever think about the process by which they become foodstuffs for you?” … “Because they are slated to become food for humans, livestock are fed and provided for all their lives, and given equal chance to reproduce free from natural selection. Cows, pigs, and even chickens have an overwhelmingly higher rate of survival in captivity than in the wild. So isn’t it actually a rather ideal, mutually beneficial relationship for you both?” Alright. Ok. *deep breath* First I’ll try to address the “eating other lifeforms” thing, then I’ll address why this analogy does not even come close to this situation. I’m an omnivore. I eat both meat and plant matter. I eat meat for several reasons, nutritional and ethical. It's not a perfect system, but it works and I consider it good. If it wasn't for the core flaw, I might even admit that the Incubator has a point in them being similar. But all of that is based on one single, fundamental fact: these creatures are not sapient. You can’t talk to them. Incubator, I’m going to bring something up called the Hierarchy of Foreignness (a system created in the Orson Scott Card “Ender’s Game” series). A general description is that it classifies groups or species based on both their species and ability to communicate, ranging from Utlanning (same species, easy communication) to Djur (different species, non-sapient). Note the communication aspect, that’s crucial. Sapience is a divisive subject, but I think we can all agree that if communication was possible between us and another species, if we could talk to them and they could rationally answer in kind then there’s no way in hell they would be on the menu. And yet, even though the Incubators can clearly communicate with us, even though they know that we are capable of reasoning, of storing and transmitting ideas, of generalization and abstract ideas… they still treat us as a resource. “Are you saying it’s the same between you and us?” “On the contrary, our treatment of humankind is much more respectful than your treatment of livestock. Perhaps it isn’t perfect, but we do acknowledge your species as sentient and try to deal fairly with you.” And there we go! Sentient, not sapient. Awareness, not reasoning. We raise cattle as livestock because it is the best solution and they are not sapient beings. You assholes stumbled across a rock full of sapient, rationalizing beings that you could communicate with and turned them into batteries. But wait, there’s more! The Incubator proceeds to show a horrified Madoka images of humanity’s history, from caves to castles. “We have intervened in your civilization’s development since prehistoric times. Countless girls throughout time have made Contracts with Incubators, had their wishes granted, and then ultimately succumbed to despair (images of woman I assume to be Cleopatra, based on pyramids and snakebite). Beginning in hope and then ending in a curse; that is the cycle that countless magical girls have repeated to this day. There are some who have wrought revolutions that changed history (Joan of Arc?), or elevated human society to new stages of development.” And so that gives you the right to harvest a thinking species, then? You set these girls on the path to destruction, get your precious emergy, and think we should be grateful for the privilege? Madoka breaks down into tears, cries about how they all trusted the Incubators. Who just claims that it wasn’t the Incubators who betrayed them, but their own prayers. That is the equivalent of saying “I gave them a box of matches, it’s not my fault they ended up burning down the house.” It goes on to argue that all hopes are Wishes for something other than the current reality, and anything that doesn’t match reality is bound to cause change. And of course, Change is Bad, so… “If they considered such a natural outcome to be a ‘betrayal’, they were wrong to have made wishes at all.” Really? Really, Incubator? So you’re saying that since change inevitably results in at least some negative outcomes, it’s wrong to try and enact change? Say, trying to prevent the natural heat-death of the universe? “Not that I’m calling them foolish.” Oh no, you’re just calling them acceptable, unintentional sacrifices. “If you understand now, why are you still holding the fates of a few individuals to be so precious?” Because they are individuals. Because the ending of a rational life, one that is denied a future of experiences and progress and chances to help other lives… Civilizations that exist based on the suffering of others are not worthy of the term. And the Incubators passed that line long ago. Madoka numbly looks up to the Incubator and asks if after all the time they spent watching over those girls they really feel nothing for them at all. The Incubator blithely retorts that if they could “understand suffering”, they wouldn’t need humanity in the first place. A society that treats emotion as a mental disease, to whom the concept of empathy for one another is foreign. Incubator, as surprised as you are that a world of individuals could move beyond the basest of conflicts, I am just as surprised that a species of a single mind could… no, I can’t say that I am surprised that a single focused mind could progress so far. But it is not a society that I would want to be a part of. The Incubator claims that if they had never come to Earth, then humanity would still be living naked in caves. I think you underestimate us. But even if that were true, it would be preferable to your schemes. ...I’m sorry, I can’t take anymore tonight.

*once again, needed an angry sleep to calm down* *calls for one final show prediction*

Well, my guessing has been so spot on so far, why stop now? This is the scenario we have, the elements leading into this finale: -Madoka has not Contracted -Homura knows her time travel has resulted in Madoka’s Protagonist Potential -Walpurgisnacht is inbound, which means bad times for Muggles -All the other MGs besides Homura are dead -Madoka’s Mom suspects that she’s hiding something about Sayaka -Homura is going to try and fight Wally on her own like last timeline, hoping that Madoka won’t Contract From this, I can see three possibilities: (Good Ending) Homura attempts to fight Walpurgisnacht on her own (because that worked so well last time). Brave, heroic, foolish Madoka intervenes, Wishes Mami (or best-case scenario Sayaka and Kyoko as well) back to life, and all the girls work together to destroy Wally. Homura is upset that Madoka still became a MG, but Madoka says that it’s her choice. All the girls will have to be careful, but knowing the risks of despair on their Soul Gems (and the other two/four keeping an eye on Mami so she doesn’t go all Spark-Hunter on them) they work to protect their city and prevent other girls from Contracting. Eventually all the Witches are exterminated, so no need to use up their Soul Gems anymore, they are locked away. Show ends with all three/five girls walking to class, another chance at normal lives. (Was just about to post this when I got the unpleasant realization that this is impossible. "Lock away the Soul Gems"? Wouldn't work. Damn. Ok, so best-case scenario the girls actively avoid using magic, but they still have to carry around this reminder. Still leagues better than where they are now, but... damn, even when I try to come up with a Good ending Urobuchi blocks me. ) (Feels Ending) Homura attempts to fight Walpurgisnacht on her own. Madoka intervenes, makes a Wish that Homura doesn’t hear, and destroys Walpurgisnacht. With her last words before she turns into a Witch, she asks Homura to not give into despair, and keep trying. Homura travels to another timeline, but when she gets there her shield shatters and her Soul Gem disappears. And when she gets to school, Madoka is nowhere to be found. (Urobutcher Ending) Madoka is about to go and try to help Homura, when her mother stops her with several men in uniform. Madoka is taken away for questioning about Sayaka, while the police car is stuck in traffic Walpurgisnacht attacks and destroys the car in passing. Homura tries to fight Walpurgisnacht, but loses like last time. Knowing that if she goes back again Madoka will be further tied up with Protagonist Potential, Homura gives up and her Soul Gem turns black. ...yep. So, so much fun coming up with these predictions. And even though for the last one I tried thinking of what could make me punch my screen, I wouldn’t bet that Urobuchi will find some way to top it. Ugh.

Still raining, scene change to a bar?

“It really does hurt, losing one of my own students this way…”

Oh. Ouch. Looks like the girl’s teacher is trying to cope. And she still doesn’t know what really happened to Sayaka, and we know that she never will. Add in a missing third-year student…

All they’ve got to go on is the fact that Sayaka was ‘quarreling’ with a friend over a boy. Aw jeez, Hitomi’s got to be in a bad spot right now, huh? Probably thinks that she drove Sayaka off? Kinda true, but not the whole story. Ten-to-one that the Incubator plans on paying a brown-haired girl a visit later.

So the cops are calling it “an accidental death, exacerbated by mental stress after running away from home.” So in other words, they’ve got no clue how she actually died. I suppose one’s soul turning into a Witch wouldn’t leave any real signs.

Oh, so Teach is talking with Mrs. Kaname! Should have realized when this convo took place in a bar. Heh, remember back when it was just jokes about Madoka’s Mom having to drink with her brotastic colleagues, and planning a coup of her department? Those were good times.

Uh oh. Mrs. Kaname’s admitting that she thinks Madoka knows something. But she also doesn’t seem like she’s lying… I think Mrs. Kaname’s thinking over that late-night advice on making a mistake for a friend. Madoka did say that a friend was getting into trouble. So much guilt being felt by all these secondary characters: Hitomi thinks she drove Sayaka away over Kamijo, Teach is worried about students going missing from school, Mrs. Kaname knew ‘a friend’ of Madoka’s was in a bad spot. Can’t say the blame falls fully on any of them, but I bet they feel like it does.

Mrs. Kaname bemoaning that for the first time, she can’t tell what Madoka is thinking. With things seeming off lately, she can tell something’s weighing on her but Madoka hasn’t talked about it. Understandable given the subject matter, but from Mother’s perspective Madoka doesn’t trust her anymore. And all she can do is trust Madoka.

Back at Homura’s place, doorbell? Oh, Madoka’s going to talk to Homura! She asks if all the floating diagrams are about Wally, says that Kyoko told her about the super-witch. Been a while since we last saw Kyoko, I can’t remember if that was onscreen on this is just establishing how Madoka could know about it.

Ah, seems Madoka’s here because she was told Wally is such a strong witch one person can’t beat it on their own. Homura was planning to team up with Kyoko… but then stuff happened. Madoka asks if Homura’s been planning on fighting it all this time, which gets an odd look from the time-traveler. Madoka rallies and asks if the city will be in danger.

Homura’s explaining that Walpurgisnacht is so powerful it doesn’t need to hide in a Labyrinth. If it manifests, thousands die. Muggles can’t see it, so they just think it’s caused by some natural disaster.

Madoka asks, or rather says that it absolutely has to be defeated… yup, Protagonist. Sorry, Homura, but I look at Madoka now and see someone who knows that there is a problem, and a way that she can help against it. With all the other girls gone, Homura will need help, so Madoka suggests that-

Homura cuts her off, insisting that she can do it on her own, claims that she never even needed Kyoko’s help. Yyyyeah, even Madoka knows that you’re bluffing. Then… oh! “I don’t know why, but I really want to believe in you, Homura. I don’t want to think that you’d lie to me.” Aw now you’ve done it Homura, you made Madoka cry. Feel the guilt. Feeeel it!

Urg, so many feels right now. Madoka’s crying because Homura is lying to her, and Homura’s clenching her fists and teeth because-

“I’m not even living in the same time that you are, Madoka!”

OUCH. Homura has broken down, rushed over and grabbed Madoka in a hug, our Protagonist is standing there very much off-guard. Cold, distant Homura is finally telling Madoka her story, that she’s from the future. That she’s met Madoka over and over, and each time had to watch her die.

“What do I have to do to save you? What do I have to do to change your fate?” She’s been redoing this month trying to find an answer. Yeah, not blaming you for your confusion Madoka, this is a big change from the Homura that you knew.

“I’m sorry… I’m not making any sense, right? I must seem horribly creepy, right?” Madoka’s known this Mysterious Transfer Student for barely a month, while Homura’s known Madoka for who knows how long. And for all Madoka is a kind and compassionate Protagonist, she really doesn’t know what do with this weepy girl.

“But to me… To me, you are…”

...well.

“The more times I redo all this, the further in time we drift from one another. Our feelings drift further apart, and my words don’t even reach you anymore. The truth is, I think I’ve been lost for a very long time now.”

“I will save you. That was the feeling that I started all of this with. And now, it is the only thing I have left to guide me.” Title drop! “It’s ok if you don’t understand. It’s ok if my words don’t reach you. But, please… Please… just let me protect you.”

...yup. That was one heck of a gut punch. I can say I understand the MadoHomu shippers now, that “To me, you are…” is all but a confession to me. However, I will still stand by my friendship interpretation because damnit my Ship of Death has killed off half the cast already, and I wanna see this girls live.

Cut to a dark and stormy sky, thunder and lightning. Some dudes are remarking that the thunderclouds are spreading at unbelievable speeds, call for an evacuation of the city. All the residents are getting ordered to their nearest shelters, and now the streets are empty.

Except for one person. A dark-haired girl in a school uniform, overlooking the water.

“It’s here.”

(For the record, as soon as I typed that the internet decided that “Eh, that’s a good place to crash”. Thankfully fixed it, but for a while there I was yelling at Wally for breaking my computer.)

Now we’re at a fancy building with lots of glass (as per the norm in this city), apparently it’s a gym of sorts that’s serving as a shelter, lots of families on green mats around the court. Not sure how much of a ‘shelter’ the building is with all the giant windows, let alone how it’s probably not Witch-proof, but better than everyone being at home I guess. Madoka’s family are at their own mat. Daw, been ages since I last saw the little brother and the Dad, Brother’s cute asking if they’re camping tonight and Dad saying it’s a great big group campout. But Madoka’s turned away from the rest of the family, clutching her knees. Taking bets on how long she lasts until she runs off to try and help, I’m giving it five minutes.

Back at Homura, colors are going monochrome, and a fog is spreading across the river. Once it reaches Homura she gives one last MST hair-flip, and starts walking. Wait, hold up, wasn’t she just behind a railing, facing the river? Is the fog a sign of warped reality so that the railing isn’t there anymore, or what?

Ah. Some sort of crayon rabbit-thing (not an Incubator, just has ears like a rabbit) just ran by Homura. Reality warping it is. And it just got stomped on by an elephant? Ok, looks like while Wally doesn’t have/need a labyrinth it does project a cirusy-vibe.

A lace curtain rises, and the music kicks in. A countdown begins. 5. 4. Buildings rise behind Homura. 2. The pastel circus passes by her. 1. Shattered buildings rise up and Walpurgisnacht looms from the clouds, an upside-down mannequin in a flowy dress with giant gears above.

The Future has arrived. Walpurgisnacht is here.

Homura launches into a quick transformation sequence (is this the first time we’ve seen her transform?), clicks her shield… and whoa that’s a lot of rocket launchers. No seriously, I am seeing dozens of RPGs and bazookas set up around her, how long did it take her to gather all of these?

So yeah, Homura’s starting off by freezing time and blasting dozens of explosives at Wally. Who just laughs a creepy echoey laugh and floats off breathing technicolor flames as Homura now runs about triggering mortars. That likewise seem to do no damage. Dang, even Homura’s early pipe bombs could destroy a Witch quickly, what’s Walpurgisnacht made of? Alright, will collapsing some metal towers on the Witch work? Nope. Now… do I hear a truck?

Abridged!Dio: “Look what I’ve got!”

Ok, the explosions keep coming as Homura drives a freaking tanker up the bridge into Wally’s face. And then ok what the hell, is that a sub? Did Homura just launch a freaking missile into this Witch? Half a dozen missiles? And then two that ram Wally into the industrial area? Sorry Mami, but as impressive as it was to see you summon a company-worth of muskets, I think Homura has you beat in firepower here.

Argh, but even after getting hit by friggin missiles Walpurgisnacht is still inta- oh, that’s a bomb. Oh, that’s a lot of bombs. OH, that’s a shitton of bombs!

But the music’s not stopping. It sounds like it’s building up, even. Aw crap, are you telling me that THAT wasn’t enough? Homura just blasted this thing into a building practically made of bombs, what more do you want?!

Crap, yeah. Homura just got struck by some sort of starry-whip, and Walpurgisnacht appears no worse for wear. Homura, I really hope you’ve got some more firepower stashed away.

All these explosions are shaking the shelter, Madoka’s parents are looking up at the ceiling worriedly and not saying anything. Madoka’s still off to the side, clutching her- wait, she just stood up. And said that she’s going to the bathroom. *Checks time, just under 3 minutes* Damn, even faster than I guessed.

Madoka’s looking out the (probably not storm-proof) giant glass windows at the pouring rain, and for crying out loud the Incubator is perched on the railing. She asks it if Homura was telling the truth about being able to face Wally on her own, the Incubator asks if she’d believe it anyways if it told her no. “At this point, explanations are pointless. You should go and see for yourself. See how well Homura Akemi is faring against Walpurgisnacht.” Manipulative to the end, aren’t you you little jerk.

It then proceeds to frankly say that Homura hasn’t given up hope yet. If she loses, then she can still turn back time, restart this ‘meaningless’ chain of events over and over. Because it’s no longer possible for her to stop or give up.

“The moment she acknowledges that everything she has done is pointless, and your fate is impossible to change, Homura Akemi will fall into despair and turn into a Grief Seed.”

Aw hell. The Urobuchi’s setting up Ending #3, isn’t he? Come on Homura, don’t fall to despair! You can’t give up on Madoka, even if you fail again this time you could still save the Madoka in the next timeline!

“So you’re saying that as long as she continues to hope, she can’t be saved?”

...no. No no NO. Do NOT do this to me, Urobuchi! I am begging you, do NOT make Ending #2 happen either! It doesn’t matter if Madoka Wishing for Homura to not be trapped in her quest to save Madoka would end the problem, if we end with either both girls dying or Madoka Wishing Homura free from the time loops, I am going to scream. Damn it, cut these girls a break!

Damn it. Madoka has dried her tears and is walking away. Either to lichdom to save another or to her death, I do not know. But away she goes.

Holy crap, Mom out of nowhere! She just grabbed Madoka’s hand.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Aw shoot, she’s confronting Madoka. If I see people in uniform show up I am going to break something.

Madoka says that she has to go save a friend, but Mother cuts her off and says to leave it to the firefighters. You know, the guys with rescue training that a middle-school girl doesn’t have.

Our Protagonist insists that it has to be her- oh! Mother just slapped her. “You don’t live your life just for yourself, understand?!”

But Madoka understands. She knows how much her mother and father care, because she loves her family too. And in order to protect them and her friend, she has to go somewhere else now.

Damn, props to Mother. Even not knowing everything that’s going on, even with such a terrible ‘storm’ outside, she says that she’s going with Madoka if she’s leaving. But Madoka says no, that she needs to stay and makes sure Father and Tatsuya stay safe.

“Mom, you told me you had raised me well. I don’t tell lies (*beyond not explaining Magical Girls*). I don’t do bad things. Will you believe in me now? Will you trust that I’ll do what’s right?”

Mother raises a hand. And then lowers it. And then launches Madoka forward with a pat on the back. Got to admit, for a second I thought that Madoka was going to fall down the stairs. What a way to end the show, right? But no, it’s a heartwarming moment between mother and daughter.

Back to Terrible Things! Walpurgisnacht is heading deeper into the city, Homura chasing while being surrounded by laughing starry MG-silhouettes. And of course Wally is heading for the shelter, as if this wasn’t bad enough already. If you’ve got anything left Homura, now’s the time to use it!

Um. Ouch. A building to the face has got to smart.

Aw crud, Homura’s foot is trapped. Is she…? Yup, she’s grabbing her shield, preparing to reset again. But if she goes back again, Madoka will get more tied up in MG potential.

No. No no no nope uh-uh NO. You do not get to give up now, Homura. You are not going to go Ending #3 and make Madoka have to fight two friggin Witches. Do NOT give up! No no NO

Madoka’s here.

“That’s enough. You’ve done enough, Homura.”

The music from the Future Dream/secondary credits has just started. The Incubator walks up beside Madoka.

“Madoka… you didn’t…!”

“Homura… I’m sorry.”

And credits.

After-credits picture of all five magical girls.

“If someone says it’s wrong to have hope, then I’ll tell them they’re wrong, every single time. And I know I’ll always tell them so.”

Final Episode: My Very Best Friend

*phew* Ok, we got way too close to Ending #3 there for me. And it’s clear that Madoka is going to make a Contract and become a MG to fight Walpurgisnacht. The only question now is what she’s going to Wish for.

I have to re-evaluate #2 now, given the after-credits line about Madoka always saying it’s wrong to give up hope. I can’t see someone who says that ending Homura’s quest, even with good intentions. So it’s more likely that Madoka will make the Wish about this timeline and just give Homura the inspiring speech, that just because this timeline didn’t work out that doesn’t mean she should give up on the future. So maybe a Wish like “I Wish I had the power to save this city from Walpurgisnacht”, or best-case “I Wish for my friends back to help me fight Walpurgisnacht”, and when Madoka runs out Homura leaves for the next timeline. And so we end with another failure, but hope that someday Homura will succeed.

*Sigh* Well, whatever happens next, bittersweet or just bitter, it’s been a trip. Thank you all for joining me in this WMTW, I will hope beyond hope that Homura will find peace someday.

[takerfoxx]

Read the Walpurgis Nights epilogue, and I gotta say: Is it wrong that I actually found the Charlotte and Candeloro parts to be the least interesting? Again, they’re not bad, but as is par for the course for your stuff, I always find the side stuff more intriguing than what the main focus is supposed to be.

In this case, it’s the introduction of the Flip Flappers. As someone who considers the show to be an underrated gem of the Magical Girl genre, it was a thrill to see them in the Walpurgis Nights universe, though this does bring up it’s fair share of questions, such as:

What were their wishes?

Does their hair still change color when they transform?

Why Osaka? Was there a particular reason, or did you just think of a random Japanese city name?

Can they even have a group with two green members? That throws off their pattern.

Regardless, I’m pleased we might see them in future installments, even if I am slightly worried Yayaka might become Ophelia 2.0.

Also, I thought about what you said about my preferences regarding my last review. And I think it has to do with the books I read as a kid. See, while other kids went through a Harry Potter phase, I was going through an ‘After Man’ phase, and if you’ve ever read that book, you’d know it’s a bit… different than conventional popular works. 

Point is I was more interested in that stinking Karnuk than I had any right to be. Though I do wonder how intelligent it is. On one hand, it is a predator, and its’ actions do suggest it possesses a good memory and possibly emotions, but on the other hand, the story suggests they are usually solitary creatures that probably don’t care for young, and they probably just overpower anything as opposed to pack hunting, which would suggest a lower intelligence. 

While reading this review, you might be hearing a slurping sound. That is me trying to eat the words I wrote regarding Charlotte’s encounter with her past self. Because THIS was the meeting between the two I was looking for! A delightful little moment that raises a lot of questions as well.

The final scene with Madoka’s family was beautifully somber as well. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I like it, because a lot of fanfic writers, even the more popular ones, tend to forget the importance of Madoka’s family. They were a huge influencer, arguably more so than Homura, on Madoka’s decision making in the end of the anime, so thanks for giving them their due.

In short, this is probably the second best chapter of this part, rivaled only by the one where all the witches meet their past selves. 

And one final thought: Every time you mention a tall, slim, athletic girl, I feel a little bit worse for Candeloro. She probably feels like the token fat kid by comparison.

1. Dunno. If I ever expand on that I’ll figure something out.

2. Probably. That whole business is gone though.

3. Osaka was pretty much chosen out of a hat. Also, I have a weird fondness for it due to...reasons. But yeah, most random details quite often have no deeper meaning behind them.

4. Ophelia is the way she is due her own unique circumstances. If anything, Yayaka will probably take more after RD Kyoko, minus all the spiraling sanity stuff due to not being on a torturous quest. 

5. As for the karnuk, I’m afraid it was mostly there as a plot device (give ‘em something to fight in the water), and the details were made up as needed (invisible to keep it from getting caught too early and to give it an edge, normally skittish to justify its initial behavior, etc.). Also there’s the Rule of Cool and Rule of Funny to keep in mind. 

Basically what I’m saying that with things like that I tend to mostly make them up as I go along, so any questions about its intelligence and social life I really don’t know.

6. With everything that this whole arc has been about, I really couldn’t think of any other way to end it other than looking back on those who were left behind. I mean, there’s been a lot of lighthearted cuteness in this story (well, there used to be anyway) that it’s easy to forget that most of them did leave grieving families behind. So it felt right to confirm that the girls are loved and remembered, but their families were able to pull themselves together and move on.

7. I truly doubt it. For one, I think you’re over exaggerating Candeloro’s curviness. And even if you’re not, I’m reminded of that time when Patrick Stewart was asked why Captain Picard is bald when baldness ought to have been cured in the future. His answer was that in the future, people don’t care.

Basically, Freehaven has enough weirdness going on already for anyone to really give a shit if someone’s put on a few pounds. Kind of hard to care when your new neighbor’s got those sticky-stretchy things for hands and hair that always points north for some inexplicable reason.

[seyaryminamoto]

May I ask, why does Azula make you passionate? Not a lot of people has the capability to empathize (NOT sympathize) with the antagonists, or a lot don't have the power to share or sense clearly their thoughts and feelings (for many reasons) as they do with the protagonists. Most people are mersiless toward them, even if they were understandable.

Uh, well, if you want the very honest answer? I saw myself in her. But if you want an in-depth answer, click the Read More.

I didn’t mean to, no. I didn’t go looking for myself in her character, I was uneasy about her, even somewhat worried, in her first episodes. She had been characterized very deliberately as colder, more scheming, more efficient than her brother or Zhao, the only Fire Nation villains we knew so far. She hadn’t quite succeeded at anything yet, but there was no tantrum after her failures, no self-pitying act: she simply kept going relentlessly. 

She wouldn’t stop at anything, and after watching her convince Mai so easily that her brother wasn’t worth trading over a king, it’s kind of natural to wonder if she’s really devoid of a conscience… No lie, though, it also reflects heavily on Mai that she agreed so easily. It especially looks like Mai has less of a conscience than Azula, since it’s her brother we’re talking about, and it doesn’t really look like she was scared of contradicting Azula: she had only ever complained about her family ever since she showed up on-screen. In short, I thought they were all weird and mean and morally incorrect! :’D

But I have had a penchant to grow interested in characters who are strong, who are driven to the ends of the earth. I used to think I favored tsundere-types of female characters back when I was in my anime-heavy phase, but soon enough I realized that wasn’t quite right: I was interested in female leaders instead, characters who were often tsundere because they bury their feelings deep down, because their main interests are professional, or academic… basically, they were ambitious people who sometimes went too far in dragging others into stuff they hadn’t signed up for (Ritsu Tainaka, Haruhi Suzumiya, Misaki Ayuzawa, Kyoko Mogami, Natsumi Tsujimoto, and so on…).

Basically, I’ve been appealed by characters who share Azula’s reckless determination, but when I approached Avatar I had also moved on mostly from anime, and I found myself, instead, writing an original story where my protagonist was a princess, hailing from a western nation she was supposed to rule one day. This princess was very determined, physically powerful to the point of being beyond human (then again, she was a literal descendant from gods :’D), with a terrible relationship with her family (in particular fighting with an older half-brother who wants to prove he’s more suitable for the throne than her). Said girl’s priority, first and foremost, is her nation, and she’s willing to go to whatever means she must in order to protect it (even resort to magic, which is frowned upon in her nation of warriors).

Now, after I exposed that character’s main traits to you, don’t you think there’s a few too many similarities with Azula? :’D yep, I thought so too as I continued watching ATLA. Tbh it freaked me out how similar they actually were, since I hadn’t watched the show or been influenced by it at all. I didn’t even know Azula existed!

Anyways! I’ve gone off the rails a bit, but back on track: why did I identify with Azula?

First off, I did start getting the feeling she was similar to those characters I loved, despite she was, obviously, meant to be a villain. But what REALLY did it for me?

It was the scene in Zuko Alone, when Iroh’s gifts arrive. Azula’s dear brother gets something mind-blowing while she gets something pathetic, generic, that someone assumed was going to please her because she’s a girl. Because girls like dolls, right?

Well, in my case, I got play make-up instead. I had a trauma with make-up since age 4, and if people had bothered knowing me, or even talking with my mom about me, they would have known that. They didn’t. It didn’t matter to them either way. Meanwhile, my brother’s gifts were incredible! :’D all sorts of action toys, new Hot Wheels, even remote-controlled cars. And when I wanted to play with them? I got a big ole’ NO from him, along with my parents telling me, often, that the toys were his and that I should let him play instead.

Heck, there was this one time he got this ship-in-a-bottle crafts as a present for his birthday from someone who worked at MY school. When I asked where was mine? Oh, there wasn’t one. My birthday was the day before my brother’s, the guy who made it worked at MY SCHOOL, but he would make a gift of the sort for my brother and not for me. I don’t remember if he even lied saying he’d make one, but fact of the matter is, I never got a handcrafted, special boat-in-a-bottle with my name on it. He did.

Let’s just say… when I saw Azula getting that disappointing doll while Zuko got the incredible knife, my jaw dropped. I literally dropped all my defenses against her along with my jaw, too. I saw that and damn, it put her character in a completely different perspective for me: it made her REAL, her experience with her brother resembled mine so much that I was in genuine shock. The salty “You’re not even good!” comment when he was playing with the knife, spoken with the intent to mask her interest in the weapon and her jealousy? The way she takes the knife later too, smirking and teasing her brother, yet letting him have it back because she knows it’s not supposed to be hers? Anon, I swear that was 100% the way I acted in countless similar situations. And I know, it may make me sound like a very bad sister (in Azula’s defense she’s actually a better sister than I am, in my brother’s defense he’s a better brother than Zuko could ever hope to be), but it’s still how it was.

From there onwards, a lot of my interest in Azula came from seeing how she suddenly stepped out of her “supreme villain overlord” role to prove she was really just a teenager like the rest of the cast. We’re talking about a girl who imitated her brother for shits and giggles, just to amuse herself at the expenses of a completely confused Aang. A girl who made a pun about the Avatar’s fangirls. Her sense of humor, no doubt, is kinda weird and not the sweetest? But she has one! It’s there, and no lie, I laughed my ass off with those two occasions at least.

Eventually, I just found myself more interested in her to the point of recklessly supporting her in the show. Yes, I knew the Gaang would win, and I didn’t mind, I liked them too! But I was slowly and surely loving Azula more with every passing episode, as she proved she was the one villain worth respecting in this entire franchise. And she was a fourteen-year-old girl with zero social skills, self-esteem issues to the ends of the earth, a turbulent relationship with her parents and her brother, and the frankly adorable wish to know if people might like her if they didn’t know she was a princess.

Another big selling point for me, as already stated, was her relationship with her brother. While my brother is a little less of a drag than Zuko can be (meaning, my brother can be happy once in a while :’D he even makes jokes… though seriously bad ones .__. maybe he shouldn’t make them...), their relationship was so similar to ours that it freaked me out. I’ve been competing with my siblings since forever, but when it came to outdoing my oldest sisters I seriously just couldn’t do it (honestly, no 3yo can expect to compete in regards of anything with a 10yo, or can she? :’D and yet I was such a pig-headed brat that I did it all the same). Meanwhile, my brother, only two years older than me, was an easier target to surpass, and I set myself on the task of doing that. Whenever he was better than me at anything, I ridiculed him (remember the knife scene?). Whenever I was better than him at anything, he would try to outdo me again and usually fail, then get annoyed and say it was a stupid thing anyways.

As we grew older, the conflict in our relationship grew a lot uglier in the sense that we didn’t really just snap at each other about toys now. I seriously got so pissed off by how entitled he was acting once that I locked myself up in the bathroom, punched a wall out of sheer frustration and damn near broke my hand in the process. No lie, that helped me vent my frustration real easily :’D

Basically, I’ve experienced the sibling relationship Azula did. My brother is far more popular than I am (well, in regards of people who live in our environment, at least), so everyone flocks to him, and when Azula’s friends betrayed her for Zuko, well… you can imagine how that stung for me :’D I’ve had friends who haven’t quite betrayed me for him or so, but they’ve stopped being my friends and become his, instead. How about that?

Anyways, Azula most likely wasn’t built up to be relatable, she was built to be a rounded character instead. There are more obviously relatable characters in the show, Katara is relatable for most the fandom, Toph is relatable for natural tomboys, and so on. But even then, none of these characters were built to be relatable. They were built to be real and believable, and in being built that way, they became relatable. And that’s what happened to me with Azula.

Honestly, I think I can’t really relate or empathize with Zuko a lot because of my own experiences too. I will judge him harder because yep, I’m biased :’D but I’m not trying to say he’s all bad and Azula is all good or anything. Truth be told, secret I’ve kept to myself for a long time… The finale depressed me for a day or two because I kept wondering if that was the only outcome for someone like Azula. Because in a sense, it looked like the show was saying that was kind of the outcome for someone like me. It felt like it was saying the world would judge me as impossible to save, while my brother got every success I could only dream of. 

And... who knows? Maybe that’s what’s happening indeed. He’s certainly doing better than me these days. All I can safely say is I’m glad he is. Despite things were bad between us, they’re not so bad anymore. So if I’m to be left unsuccessful and he’s off to shoot for the stars, I’ll congratulate him instead of holding grudges about why he gets that and I don’t.

Anyways, the finale freaked me out, but I distanced myself from the character to a degree so I wouldn’t project on her so much. Still, the way her ending wrapped up bothered me, and I was very much unwilling to see her life end that way. As the comics have been building her up either for a very bad downfall or for a very long redemption that still is barely beginning, I lose my patience often as I keep wanting something better for her ASAP. Not a lot of positive stuff has happened yet to her… but that’s what fanfiction is for, for me. Ever since I opened FF.net’s ATLA archive, the first thing I did was search for Azula getting happy endings xD

And thus, that’s why I write her as I do and connect with her as I have. Azula seems to gather most the traits of characters I loved, but on top of that, she had an eerily similar sibling relationship to mine with my brother. A lot of my own eternal chase towards polishing and developing my talents came from a rather toxic place of thinking that having lots of skills was the only way I could be valid, somehow. I’m not exempt from self-esteem issues myself, see :’D

Anyways, I realize the majority of people won’t find Azula relatable, acceptable, likeable in any way. I don’t mind, I don’t really think it’s that odd, the show very obviously featured her as a problem that needed to be dealt with. But I’m not one to stick with supporting only the heroes in stories. Very often I’ve liked villains better, whether because they’re complex and worth exploring, as Azula is, or because they’re simply more interesting than their heroic counterparts. I guess I could have said this from the start and spared you the insanely lengthy insight into how my mind works, right? :’D

[wheremytwinwatches]

[Where My Twin Watches]: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Episode 6

*comment on Grief Seeds recharging Magical Girls*

Recharge? I was under the impression that using a Grief Seed increased their total amount of magic, not replaced magic that they use up fighting. That... actually changes a lot of my assumptions. If a MG only has a limited amount of power... Wow, that really turns things around. Magical Girls aren't competing for an increase to their power, but the ability to use their power in the first place! That's not trying to get a Devout Mantle to boost stats, but friggin healing potions so you don't die! No wonder MGs don't normally work together, unless they can be effective enough to get more than twice the Grief Seeds they would normally get then it's a losing prospect. ...and that's what happened to Mami, isn't it? Unlike the other girls we've seen she actively used her power to protect Madoka and Sayaka, and fought Familiars along with Witches. She used up more power than if she had been on her own, she was even showing off to Madoka before she faced the Dessert Witch... and then she ran out of power and couldn't fight back. Still hate Kyoko, though. Keep standing in the corner, you!

Back to the fight! Kyoko’s knocked Sayaka down and is going in for the kill, sudden flash of a Mysterious Transfer Student in the falling water droplets… And our original antagonist has appeared. What is going to happen next? Kyoko is not pleased that another MG just interrupted her battle (if you can call it that, Sayaka got beat up pretty badly there). Ooh, Homura’s doing the ‘move so fast I’m suddenly behind you’ anime thing. Is that her power like Sayaka has super healing, or just because she’s an experienced MG? Kyoko figures out that Homura is the “irregularity” that Kyubey told her about, asks what kind of magic she’s using. Hmm, implies that Homura’s flash-step thing is powerful even among magical girls, probably takes a lot of power. Sayaka demands that the Mysterious Transfer Student get out of the fight (loving the shadows in this scene, Sayaka looks very menacing here), she charges forward… and flash-step Homura smacks her down with a neck chop!... ok good, she’s only unconcious. Still, after she endured that fight with Kyoko, how strong is Homura to stop her with a single attack? And why did she attack her? The jerk magical girl is as confused as I am, asks which side Homura is on. “I am on the side of those who think rationally, and an enemy to those who engage in needless conflict. Which are you… Kyoko Sakura?” Kyoko ‘Sakura’? Oh boy. I’m going to have fun trying to not mix up Sayaka and Sakura, aren’t I? Also holy crap, that name drop. Kyoko picks up on it too, is not happy that the MST who she has next to no info on knows her name. Homura is very noncommittal on answering if they have met before. In any case, Kyoko backs off from the staredown, and wall jumps her way out of the alley. Madoka is coming to grips with the fact that Homura stepped in to save her and Sayaka. Maybe she isn’t so bad? (“civilian-protecting” character trait for the win!) Whoa. Whoa, ok. Sudden shadows and asking “How many times must I warn you? How foolish can you possibly be?” Super-closeup of Homura’s eye as it widens in the biggest emotional display we’ve seen. Yeah, I’m with you, Madoka, that is super intimidating. Damn, this really is Homura’s idea of helping the non-MGs, isn’t it? I can see the twisted logic; if the consequence is death, then almost any means can be used to drive the civilians away from the risks. Wait what. “If reasoning with a fool won’t work, I will turn to more drastic measures.” Wait no. Don’t do that. Please don’t do that. And now she’s walking away while Madoka can only kneel next to the unconscious body of her friend and ask “Why?” Kyubey mentions that it’s certain that she’s planning something. Time to be extra careful. Kyubey? Kyubey, what are you thinking? Do you suspect something about Homura? Care to enlighten us? ... Well that was something. So now we’ve seen Homura actually fight, even if it was against a weakened and inexperienced MG, and I have to say I was impressed. And I can remember her taking down the Dessert Witch, makes sense that instead of it simply missing she was flash-stepping out of the way. That’s a cool power! But what’s disconcerting is that Homura seems to be reaching the end of her patience. From her perspective she’s been warning our characters about the risks, but they keep ignoring her and stumbling forward. Add in that they are interfering with her plan to get what I can now understand as a Super Battery… I don’t think I want to see what she considers to be ‘drastic measures’.

We’re at Sayaka’s place now, going by the ‘Miki’ sign. Looks like she’s recovered from Homura-induced nap and is recharging her Soul Gem. Although is that really the best way to describe it? I mean, the animation is of some sort of black cloud being absorbed by the Grief Seed leaving the Soul Gem all nice and shiny. I don’t know, best explanation I can think of is that it’s supposed to be recycling the energy or whatever. Or actually, maybe it’s more like a lung? Oxygen-depleted cells leave, so oxygen-enriched cells can enter? I don’t know, someone tell me the mechanics of how these gems work, I want to know. Sayaka comments that the Grief Seed looks pitch black now. And Kyubey says that it’s dangerous, too? OH SHIT. “If it absorbs any more impurity, a witch could hatch from it.” SO I THINK I UNDERSTAND SOUL GEM MECHANICS NOW. *Deep breath* Ok, so I’m picturing a Soul Gem as a magic container, for the sake of simplicity I’ll think of ‘magic’ existing in little packets of energy (oxygen-enriched red blood cell). Soul Gem holds this magic, as the MG uses her power the packets are emptied, still existing in the Soul Gem but taking up space (oxygen-depleted red blood cell). With a Grief Seed, the MG can take their depleted magic packets and put it in the Seed, and the Soul Gem is filled with fresh magic packets. But if the packets aren’t completely drained (I assume there’s just enough magic to make the transfer happen), then the Grief Seed is gaining magic where there was previously just empty ‘space’. And if they get enough, a Witch hatches? That’s actually a pretty ingenious system, story-wise. Regardless of where Witches first came from, I actually haven’t seen that many Witches in the show, and they would have to be fairly scarce if MG’s have to compete over them as batteries. But if in the process of fighting Witches the MGs actually cause Witches to hatch again, then the cycle is much more sustainable. Although that still leaves Sayaka with a dangerously-close-to-hatching Grief Seed in her room. Can she take it out of town or something? Or Kyubey can do it for her? … Well. Don’t I feel foolish now. I get all in a fuss about ‘dur I can understand the cycle, it makes sense now’, and then Kyubey goes and eats the Seed. Ok, new theory: Kyubey’s species (are there more of him? We haven’t seen any) somehow through contrivances evolved to feed off of Witches. But come on, we’ve seen absolutely no combat skills from the Rabbit-Thing, the idea that he could fight those monsters is insane. So they recruited Magical Girls to do the hunting for them? I dunno, I know nothing about Kyubey’s species so I’m just guessing wildly. I’ll accept it as part of the story, hope that it gets explained later, and move on. Well, now that Kyubey just ate the magic battery, they should probably get another to replace it. After all, Kyoko was pretty powerful. But if they could get ahold of some extra Grief Seeds, then Sayaka could really let loose and maybe overpower the more experienced Magical Girl in a fight. Sayaka raises a good point, that Grief Seeds mean that a familiar has killed enough people to become a Witch, even if that’s Kyoko’s key to success. Huh, the characters keep describing the recharging process as “cleaning”, and Kyubey says that the more magic Sayaka uses the more polluted her Soul Gem will become. So is the process like chemical buildup in a battery, the emptied magic packets interfere with magic usage? In any case, Sayaka has been decisively shown to be weaker than Kyoko. So the name of the game is “Get more Grief Seeds for the inevitable rematch”! Something tells me that Homura isn’t going to be in favor of this plan. But Mami didn’t stockpile Grief Seeds, did she? And she could blast away all day long. Pfft! “Was she just more talented than me?” “Well, there’s certainly that.” Tact, Kyubey. Learn to use it. Sayaka may be able to fight Witches like the one that caught Madoka and Familars like Crayon Kid from last episode, but she’s feuding with a girl who apparently has both inborn talent and much more experience as a Magical Girl. But there’s someone else with no experience, who’s natural talent would be greater than Food Girl’s? Ah, Madoka. You know, it’s funny. I know that the show is named after her and all, but it’s getting harder and harder to think about Madoka as the Protagonist. Kyubey keeps building up that if she would just Contract and make a Wish (bring Mami back) then her Protagonist Powers could solve whatever problem they’re looking at. I’m starting to get worried that when she eventually does Contract (I said it’s getting harder to place her as the Protagonist, not impossible) that it won’t live up to the hype. But we’re only halfway through the show, so I guess there’s still time. Oh, wow. For all that Kyubey looks like a cute little MG show mascot, I’m starting to see that he has quite a manipulative streak in him. Early on he kept trying to get the girls to Contract, left when they got scared but apparently still stuck around for when Sayaka changed her mind, and called in an outside MG not long after Mami left. And now he’s telling the “Ally of Justice” that if she can’t beat her enemy, then she could always ask her too-kind friend to do it in her place? Huh. This show is doing an excellent job of giving characters multiple motivations. Homura seems to be trying to protect non-MGs while still growing her power, Sayaka became an “Ally of Justice” to heal Kamijo with an unfortunate intent of earning his gratitude, and now the show’s mascot is recruiting girls to both Fight the Good Fight and to get a food supply. I don’t think I expected anything this complex in terms of characterization when I started this show. Yeah, Kyubey is definitely interested in Madoka becoming another Lunch Lady, I mean Magical Girl. Sayaka refuses, says that it is her fight, she won’t let her get dragged into it. Props for spirit, Sayaka, but you kinda got trounced that last time. The next day… Food Girl! Apparently eating pocky (in defiance of the No Food sign, you rebel you) and playing a DDR arcade machine. Don’t think I didn’t notice the theme music there, show. Homura? Didn’t expect you to check out a place like this, what’s your business with Kyoko? If you’re going to fight, could you maybe move away from all the electronics? Kyoko asks what the Mysterious Transfer Student wants. Homura says- ...I’m sorry, could you repeat that? “I want to put this city in your charge.” Aw. Aw no. This is ‘drastic measures’, isn’t it? Kyoko want’s to know why the change, Homura says that it’s girls like her that are most suited to be MGs. Damn, you really don’t have much faith in Sayaka, do you? To choose the person who is on record for wanting people to die for a guaranteed Grief Seed, rather than the “Ally of Justice”. Uh, random cat in the game? That was odd. Oh! “Settled as peaceably as possible”? Ok good, you still are showing some restraint, Homura. I was getting worried you were planning a hit on the girl. She wants Kyoko to stay out of it, while she handles it herself. Um. Maybe I spoke too soon, Homura has a pretty broad definition of “peaceful”. Food Girl raises a good point: what’s in all this for Homura? I mean, if this plan to “peacefully” remove Sayaka from the territory works out then Kyoko would get the territory, and Homura would lose the ability to get new Grief Seeds. Or is she planning to take out Kyoko once all this is over? “Two weeks from now, “Walpurgisnact” will descend upon this city.” Wally-watsit? I think that might be German, but I don’t want to look up translations in case I get spoiled. Can anyone fill me in on the meaning? Huh, Kyoko’s still dancing but she’s looking a lot more serious now, asks how Homura knows that. MST refuses to say, gotta stay mysterious! But she seems to be recruiting Kyoko to defeat it, in exchange for her leaving the city to Kyoko. Defeat it? Coming in two weeks? Could it be…. Is Walpurgisnact the Giant Flying Thing from the vision? Kyoko’s saying that it would be pretty tough for Homura to beat it by herself, but if they work together they could probably win. Ok, so let me lay this out: -The thing is called ‘Walpurgisnact’ -It is coming in two weeks -Homura knows this but refuses to reveal sources -It’s too tough for a single MG to face alone -In return for aid in fighting it, Homura will leave the city to Kyoko Add it all together and what do we get? Wally-watsit is probably a Witch, notable for being the only in-show named Witch I’ve seen so far (assuming we aren’t supposed to be able to read the title card runes just yet to know the previous names). This Witch having a name indicates that MGs have faced it before, and either lost or it put up a big enough fight that it’s commonly known by experienced MGs. To paraphrase Space Batman: "When the magical girls name a Witch, you know you're in trouble. They don't think anyone is going to kill it.") If Familiars are pseudo-Witches that don’t drop Grief Seeds and Witches do drop the magic batteries, then a Super Witch like Wally is shaping up to be could have a proportionately more powerful Grief Seed. In other words, my theory was right! Homura is after a Super Battery. Guessing that she knows the exact date of the arrival because her ‘secret sources’ are just that that’s the time she will summon it, in order to try and get the Super Grief Seed. And heck, if she’s strong relative to Kyoko without it, then with the SGS she could probably win, no problem. All she has to do is keep her distracted until she can grab it. Like say, promising her the prime territory of Anime City? Or maybe she is legit, won’t need the territory when she has the SGS. Woo! Alright, good feeling to have a theory validated in this show, instead of getting wrecked once Kyubey has a snack. Kyoko finishes her game with a flourish and offers Homura some pocky. Given that she’s been shown eating practically-nonstop this entire time, I’m taking this as a sign of trust and agreement. Houston, we have plot! Homura is confirmed to be going after the Super Grief Seed, Kyoko's been promised the city but I can’t imagine she’ll just pass on the SGS when she realizes that’s what it’s all about, and Sayaka’s looking for a leg-up to face off against Food Girl after their first fight. Now I’m picturing that our two teams (Homura and Kyoko of ‘Team Antagonist’ and Sayaka and Madoka of ‘Team Protagonist’) are going to be in a race to prepare for and try for the SGS. Things are going to get interesting! Or maybe my predictions get completely jossed a few minutes later in the show. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised.

We open in the alleyway where they fought earlier, the walls have huge gashes in them and the ground is all smashed up. I wonder what whoever owns/maintains the alleyway will think caused all the damage. Madoka walks up as Kyubey reports that too much time has passed, they can’t track the Familiar that Kyoko let get away. Madoka pipes up, asks if they won’t run into Food Girl again if Sayaka keeps hunting Witches like this. Given the likelihood, maybe she could seek out Kyoko and try talking first? ...Madoka, I love you and all, but you did see the fight last night, right? I think that they’re a little past the talking stage. “‘Fighting’, you say?” Oh dear. Sayaka has to break it to our All-Loving main character that last night was a fight to the death. After the first few blows, that Kyoko intended to put Sayaka in the hospital with, they were really trying to off the other. These are still middle-school girls, right? And now the show’s reached the point that our main character’s best friend was really trying to kill another girl? “Ally of Justice”, remember Sayaka? I want to say “don’t let other Magical Girls drag you to their level. You’re better than this.” But Kyoko, the girl willing to let people become Witch Food for Grief Seeds, was really trying to kill Sayaka. You can’t really reason with that. Yeah, you’re reeeealy reaching there, Madoka. You want Friendship to happen, but you’re asking your “Ally of Justice” friend to work with someone with a different “method”. I can admire your idealism, but it’s not matching up to reality. Please stop, Madoka. You mean well, but now you’ve brought up Homura. After her association with Mami’s death and her knocking out Sayaka, she really doesn’t have the best reputation to your friend. Yeah, Sayaka’s pointing out how she didn’t show up until after Mami died. ...wait, you do know Mami tied her up first, right? You weren’t there, but didn’t Madoka tell you what happened? Madoka, please speak up. You need to tell Sayaka what happened, she’s making some bad connections right now. I mean sure, we know that they’re working together, and they both value Grief Seeds, but Homura is shaping up as a lite version of Kyoko now. Homura wouldn’t let people die just so she can get Grief Seeds… right? What the hell is happening, I’m trying to defend the girl whose first action in the show was to threaten Madoka’s family. For good reasons, but still- See?! I’m trying to justify even that now! Well done Urobuchi, you’ve made Homura my new Zuko. Aw jeez, Sayaka’s really going to a dark place here. “Mami was the one exception”? Sure, out of the very, very few Magical Girls you have met so far. You can’t just lump everyone else in with two bad apples, they could be good. Jebus, Sayaka! I understand you’re trying to make a point, but now you’re dragging Madoka’s family into it! Her Dad, Mom, little Tatsuya… “Could you forgive those who stood by and let them get killed?” Please, Sayaka, Madoka is our All-Loving character, please don’t break her. Argh, Sayaka keeps turning my words against me. She wanted the strength to protect those she loved, but now she’s seeing enemies pop up everywhere. Protecting others is a noble goal, but I’m worried that she’s going to pull a Homura, and start using sketchier and sketchier ends to reach it. I mean, protecting others is Good, right? So how could someone striving for that goal be anything but Good? But- Argh. Sayaka, please. I am begging you. Don’t lose sight of who you are. Damn it! Sayaka’s sworn to fight “humans who are worse than Witches”. This is not a good pattern, Sayaka. First it was Witches, to protect human lives. But now you’re targeting humans who you think are “worse than Witches”. Can’t you see how this contradicts itself? See what you’ve done, Sayaka? You’ve made Madoka cry. I hope you feel good about yourself. Sayaka’s walked away, Madoka pleads for Kyubey to say something, anything. All he can say is that she’s being too reckless. (“I mean, if she keeps this up then I’ll be down a Magical Lunch Lady!”) Right now she has no hope of facing either of the two Magical Girls, not that she’d ever admit it to Madoka. Later that night, Madoka’s sleeping when a door opens downstairs. Mother coming back from another work bender? Up, she’s downstairs taking a drink of something that I suspect is not water. Madoka comes down, asks if they can talk. With a glass of something that I hope is not alcoholic, she starts talking about how one of her friends is in a lot of trouble. Madoka doesn’t think what she’s doing or saying is wrong, but… yeah, ‘but’. She keeps trying to do right, to do Good, but things keep getting worse. Mother admits that that happens a lot, just because your intentions are Good doesn’t mean you get a happy ending. And you can get so sure that your way is right that you refuse to listen to anything else. All matching Sayaka for a tee so far, she’s turning into quite the paladin, isn’t she? This is a pretty big life lesson for anyone to hear, especially innocent little Madoka, but it’s one that has to happen. It’s hard to accept that not everything can be resolved with a neat and tidy end, without harming anyone. But given the alternative… I mean, we’re already planning to use the Wish to bring Mami back, I don’t know if it can bring back two. “Then you should make a mistake for her.” Huh, that’s an interesting way to think about it. “If you can see there’s no way for your friend’s problem to end in but disaster, it’s be better for her to crash and burn sooner rather than later.” Sayaka will sure as hell not appreciate it at first, but it really is for the best. Better to do this than to give up on her and watch her lose. Madoka really is a good girl, isn’t she? She’s been a good kid. But now she may need to grow up, learn how to make mistakes and keep going. Aw. I can understand it, but I really don’t want Madoka to ‘grow up’. I don’t want this show to be about her losing her ideals, to survive in the greater world. I can understand it, but I don’t like it. Heh, Mother really is a good mom, isn’t she? She doesn’t talk down to Madoka, but gives her the best explanation she can. (I mean, she doesn’t know how serious Madoka’s situation is, but it’s still good advice). And she softens the lesson about how adults are always suffering from their mistakes, but hey, they get to drink alcohol! You go, Alcoholic Protagonist Mom. Bleh, that was a heavy conversation. I am growing increasingly worried from Sayaka’s aggressive attitude toward Magical Girling, and worried that Madoka is going to start suffering some real-world character growth. Hopefully she can head off Sayaka’s path without compromising herself too much.

Sayaka’s walking up to a large door, is about to knock when a violin starts up. Oh, visiting Kamijo outside of the hospital? Probably best not to interrupt practice, so GAH sudden drum noise and Kyoko watching her, eating a churro(?) menacingly. And I mean that in all seriousness, it is terrifying to see that Kyoko was apparently tracking Sayaka. If she hadn’t promised Homura to back off... Food Girl taunts Sayaka about leaving without seeing Kamijo, after she apparently spent all day following him. Um. And oh crap she’s saying she knows Sayaka is pining after the “little rich boy who lives here”. Talk about a hot-button issue of Sayaka’s. I can see Kyoko’s excuse now: “Oh, I was just trying to talk to the new girl, and she blew up over some small comment I made and attacked. I had to defend myself!” *chomp* Now she’s insulting Sayaka for using her Wish on Kamijo. “Magic is only supposed to be used to grant wishes for yourself. If you use it for somebody else, it always ends up going bad.” Well, I get Mami’s warning about the consequences of a Wish, but we’ve only seen hers and Sayaka’s so far, no idea what Homura or Kyoko Wished for. Oh no, you don’t get to name-drop Mami, you red-headed jerk! WOW. Ok, so Kyoko just advised Sayaka that if she wants Kamijo that badly, she should just bust in and go all Annie Wilkes on his limbs, so he can’t do anything without her. Sayaka does not approve, so then Kyoko offers to bust him up for her, “as a favor”. I have to admit that that’s some pretty skillful threatening, up there with the hallway from Ep 1. Yup, that’s pushed Sayaka over the edge, she’s challenging Kyoko again. Gah, you are getting played like a violin here, Sayaka. Kyoko says they should go somewhere less visible. Madoka’s back at her house typing on what looks like a holographic keyboard (I want this future tech!) for some English homework, as she thinks about Mother’s advice. Suddenly, Kyubey! “Hey Madoka, one of my meal tickets is in trouble, you’ve got to come quick!” So apparently a lit bridge over a busy highway is what Kyoko thinks as ‘less visible’. We get to see Kyoko’s transformation sequence, and Sayaka’s getting ready to follow suit when Madoka and Kyubey come running up. Sayaka says that they should get out of the way while Madoka pleads for her to stop. Hey, how dare you call Madoka an annoying friend! WHOA WHAT THE HELL Ok, that was seriously creepy. I paused as Kyoko was calling Madoka annoying (grr), hit play and then suddenly the next frame Homura is standing right behind Sayaka, it’s paused again as she’s dissing Kyoko (probably annoyed that Kyoko tried to go behind Homura’s back to remove Sayaka), Food Girl hasn’t even noticed she’s there yet. Hah, serves you right, Kyoko. Homura reminds Kyoko that this fight wasn’t what they agreed on. Kyoko tries to claim that Sayaka isn’t backing down, Homura flash-steps behind Kyoko again and… uh oh. As amusing as it is for Homura to be using the power of flash-steps to keep Kyoko off balance, she just said that she’d take on Sayaka herself. Well crud. At least she probably won’t kill Sayaka? Kyoko says she’ll give Homura until she finishes her pocky, Homura says that’s all she needs. Sadly she’s probably right. Sayaka does not approve of this condescension and prepares to fight the Mysterious Transfer Student. Madoka’s rushing forward? Holy crap! I’m psychic! Tephi asked me for predictions, and I guessed that Madoka would steal Sayaka’s Soul Gem and give it to Homura to prevent a fight! And what just happened? Madoka stole Sayaka’s Soul Gem! Maybe it’s a mistake to give it to the MST, but it’s better than a fight. Oooor instead of giving it to Homura, she’ll throw it off the bridge… well, that works too? So is the Soul Gem going to get crushed by a car, or… nope, landed on top of a truck. I don’t think that Sayaka can transform without it, so that fixes things. Although it might make getting her back to power for the finale a bit difficult. Wow, Homura looked surprised and just flash-stepped away. The animators must have had a field day when they realized that they could represent Homura’s power by just not drawing her from one frame to another. It’s a neat effect. And now I guess she’ll go and get the Soul Gem. Cool, one of my theories are actually holding up for once! Yeah, Sayaka is pissed right now. But it’s for the best Wait Wait what Why did Sayaka just slump down? Why are her eyes blank? “No matter how mad you are, shouldn’t throw your own friend away like that.” ...’s Soul Gem? Translation error? ...what do you mean, “She’s dead”? Did...what… Homura’s flash-stepping after the truck with Sayaka’s Soul Gem… Soul Gem… WHAT “It’s because the furthest you magical girls can control your bodies would be within about a 100 meter radius.” Is this really happening. “Madoka, that isn’t Sayaka. It’s just an empty shell.” This is really happening. “Sayaka is what you just threw away a moment ago.” Kyoko is clutching her own… Soul Gem… in shock. Did… did she not know? Homura’s caught up with the truck carrying Sayaka’s… So. You’re telling me that a Soul Gem isn’t some fancifully-named piece of Magical Girl gear like a Star Power Stick or Moon Prism Tiara or whatever, but a literal translation? “Did you really think you could fight witches with the same fragile bodies that humans possess?” Homura is now on the truck. “For magical girls, those so-called ‘bodies’ that you possess are really just exterior hardware.” Close up of the small ornate blue crystal as Homura picks it up. “Your real bodies are your souls, and in order to make them able to use magic more efficiently, we put them in these compact, easy-to-protect forms instead.” Homura is holding Sayaka’s Soul Gem, just looking at it. “To complete the contract to become a magical girl, what I do is rip your souls out of your bodies and turn them into Soul Gems.” I… Kyoko is royally pissed right now. She really didn’t know? Except for Homura for some reason, nobody knew? Kyubey knew he was turning these girls into...into… ...into LICHS and he didn’t even tell them?! WHAT. THE. FUCK. Homura? You can sit in the fluffy armchair. Kyoko? You can have Homura’s old seat. Kyubey? Congrats, you are officially Number One on The List. Kyoko has grabbed Kyubey by the ear and is yelling at him about turning them into zombies. Apparently she hasn’t played D&D before, they are by any definition I know of lichs. I am watching a show where the teenage girl characters are undead magic users who have their souls contained in small external objects. What the fuck. And… all Kyubey can say is “But isn’t it handy this way?” “Even if your body’s heart gets crushed, or you bleed out your very last drop of blood, you can just heal your bodies with magic and get right back up!” Wait, but… how did Mami die then? If they are… lichs… then she should have been able to recover from even a head attack! “So long as your Soul Gem remains unharmed, you’re basically invincible!” Wait… she wore her Soul Gem as a hairpin, didn’t she? Oh mother fracker. Mami didn’t know. Kyubey didn’t tell her either?! So she took no extra care to keep what she (and I) thought was just a magic channeling tool safe from harm, and then chomp, and… “Isn’t that a lot better for battle than those breakable human bodies?” ...Kyubey really isn’t human, isn’t he? Or whatever word better describes “not of our moral understanding”. He’s just listing off the advantages of being a lich, even as Madoka says that it’s too horrible for words. “You humans always react this way. Whenever I try to tell you the simple facts, you inevitably have the same reaction. I just don’t get it.” STOP SMILING. “Why are humans so touchy about the placement of their souls?” Kill him, Kyoko. Kill him, Kyoko. Wait. The Soul Gem’s back! Homura just put it in Sayaka’s… in the hand of Sayaka’s body. She’s breathing! Sayaka’s back! And she can’t remember what happened? “What is it?” *End Credits* Son. Of. A. Bitch! ...where do I begin? So Soul Gems are actually containers for the literal souls of Magical Girls. No, actually before even that. Souls are a proven thing in this setting, given how Kyubey can apparently tear them out and stuff them into jewelry. Which implies an afterlife… Magical Girls channel magic through their actual souls. Is that in any way healthy? They clean their Gems using Grief Seeds from Witches. In what setting ever has using parts of monsters in any proximity to your soul end well? Although this one does work in reverse of the normal pattern… Kyubey knew. Homura knows, but Mami, Kyoko, and Sayaka didn’t. Kyubey didn’t think it worth mentioning that the Contract would tear their souls from their bodies. Magical Girls control their former bodies like meat puppets, and they can heal any damage so long as they presumably have magic and an intact Soul Gem. Does that extend to gradual damage, like wear from lack of food or sleep or aging? Can Magical Girls change their own bodies, stay looking younger? I- HOLY SHIT It makes sense now. I actually understand Homura. You take a Magical Girl. She starts killing Witches, maybe even makes a few friends of both MGs and non-MGs. But the other MGs die from Witches, and the Magical Girl who can control her aging will outlive her non-MG friends. She starts moving from place to place to avoid connections and get fresh territory, just focusing on getting Grief Seeds to maintain her magic. She needs a cover story to explain why she travels. Class, I would like you to meet Ms. Homura Akemi the Mysterious Transfer Student. … Did this show seriously create the sort of undead character that Stephanie Myers should have written, instead of the Clan of the Sparkles? ... After Credits Scene: An illustration of the four Magical Girls we’ve seen so far. Their bodies are completely dark, the only color is their heads and their small Soul Gems. Mind and Soul… Kyubey is talking: “Before you took on this destiny of battling Witches, wasn’t there a wish you wanted granted? That wish has really come true, hasn’t it?” SHUT UP. Next Episode: “Episode 7: Can you face your true feelings?”