Akemi's Nutcracker

Part 3

 The tea kettle shrieked a shrill whistle as Homura abandoned her empty kitchen in favor of attending to light, shy knocks at her chained, bolted, and otherwise secured and uninviting door. Despite her rational side chiding her with the reminder that nothing she didn't will exists within this world, she couldn't dispel the anxiety that some other magical girl had come to shatter her. She was acutely aware even now of how despised she was in later timelines as memories of many attempts to kill her flooded her conscious thought. Decades of practice had come with advantages, however, and she steeled herself for whatever lay outside her door in a rehearsed manner, calm exterior never changing at all. With a completely unnecessary breath to collect herself, she twisted the doorknob and thrust the door open, unwilling to cower from the one outside.

Her worry was just as unneeded as the breathing, though , since the one knocking happened to be a certain, painfully familiar pink-haired girl, tapping her fingers in front of her chest with downcast eyes in embarrassment that almost broke Homura's cool exterior in the name of comforting her.

Madoka's mind was no more still than her fingers, as the only sensible tidbit of her mind suddenly swelled and screamed at her in the language of every possible way this could backfire. She could get scared and back away, or get angry. It's not like the unsuspecting raven-haired girl didn't have a right to dump Madoka after the incredibly creepy stunt she just pulled. Even her thoughts, referring to poor Homura as some intricate puzzle that was hers to figure out was creepy! She could see the image of Homura screwing up her face in shock right before slamming the door in her face, disregarding all of Madoka's poorly stammered excuses perfectly behind her eyes. Why did she practically stalk the girl home?? Why did she feel such a need to figure her out?? WHY DID I THINK ANY OF THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA???!??!?!?!?

Madoka's face suddenly echoed the shock she expected Homura to have when the violet-eyed girl's face seemed to lift, demeanor rising with a simple "Oh, hello Madoka." , and pushed the door open, moving out of the way for Madoka to step through like it hadn't disturbed her at all that Homura had never given Madoka her address.

"E-eh? Ah, I'm sorry, this must be so sudden and creepy..." Madoka was suddenly confronted with the fact that she had absolutely no idea what to say to the girl once she arrived at her house. The pinkette cursed her stuttering voice and mind and dragged all of her brain through a grinder in an attempt to figure out something polite to say. Even though she was aware that the best thing to do would be to excuse herself and leave to avoid wasting Homura's time she likely spent studying, Madoka couldn't bring herself to leave. She was once more trapped within the girl gluing her to Homura's apartment door, swimming in every detail and sinking towards all of the questions she wanted answered. "Did you have any plans for today?"

"No", Homura replied simply, yet the ghost of a twitching lip whispered happiness into her expression that gave away that she had wanted to see Madoka, much to the other girl's surprise. "Do you?"

"No," Madoka started, immersed in a sudden moment of clarity. She knew the perfect place to take Homura to get closer to the girl without prying nosily. The field behind the park was somewhere she had spent hours with Sayaka gossiping and sharing their deepest secrets, getting to know each other better than anyone over not much time before she moved to America. The swaying grass seemed to have a magic compelling even the strongest of stonewalls to crumble in an instant. It had to work. "I-if you don't have anything else to do, would you like to go for a walk?"

"Yes, of course." Homura agreed in a millisecond, her previous weariness dissipating in the face of a contented-looking, excited Madoka. The second the rose-eyed girl had walked in, Homura had been hypnotised, unable to look away despite her better judgement telling her she probably looked creepy. Even though Madoka likely thought of her as a mere stranger, Homura knew almost everything about Madoka, and thought every little piece perfect. It was her she had sacrificed her soul, dozens of years, and ultimately the universe for. Even now, when she barely knew her and her impulses had probably made her come off as overbearing and strange, she was willing to put it all aside and go through the effort of following her home. She had seen the pink-haired girl face Walpurgis as she demolished her city, willing to die fighting if it meant she had a chance to protect those she loved. She had witnessed her extend a helping hand to Kyouko despite trying to kill Sayaka in every single timeline in which she appeared, and in her early runs, even when what she said about Kyubey must have sounded like utter lies, she was the only one out of the group of magical girls to not only try and believe her, but empathise with what she had needed to go through to know the things she told her. Madoka had saved her life instead of her own while only asking Homura to try, try to save her in return, and even as a witch, all she wanted was to end suffering for everyone. She had stood powerless as she watched Madoka sacrifice her own existence to save every magical girl that ever was, regardless of how stupid or selfish or cruel or futile their wish was, with no fear for herself. In Homura's eyes, despite her human form and human memories, Madoka was no less of a goddess, and despite her stoic expression, Homura was elated to do anything Madoka could want. Homura was no less her soldier, no less her friend, despite the passage of time. Her work could wait eons and she would never notice or care, as long as she could protect Madoka. The world could end around her and she could never focus on anything except Madoka's safety, even now.