Work Text:
Another failed attempt, another month wasted, another loop for nothing. How many times did she find herself in this place already? Way too many, that she was sure of. It was starting to seem hopeless, Homura was aware of this, but she pushed these thoughts aside. She mustn’t let herself get dragged down by them.
Yet, she was tired of this scenery. The same overcast sky, the same destroyed cityscape… And the same gigantic witch that caused it all. The one hurdle, she never managed to overcome… so far. Although it felt like she got… replaced by another, much worse, witch more often over the last loops. The appearance of that witch was the worst possible outcome.
Homura cursed herself when, just for a single moment, she thought that the body on the ground, pretty close to her, was nearly comforting. After all, that was only the second worst outcome.
But no matter what she did, either of those two outcomes always happened. No matter what she did, she couldn’t defeat Walpurgisnacht. And no matter what she did, Madoka would never ever let her die or the city get destroyed.
Just a hint of a bitter smile was visible in Homura’s face. That very personality that she loved so much about Madoka was causing her so much grief. And it was the one thing that’s truly impossible to overcome, more than the most powerful witch. That’s why defeating Walpurgisnacht was the only way to change her fate. If only she didn’t have to do it alone nearly every time. What were the other magical girls doing, getting themselves killed so often so early?
“What are you going to do now?” the voice of the most wretched creature in the world reached her. “It will be very difficult for you to fight against it.”
Homura ignored Kyubey and just watched the witch from afar. Of course, she wasn’t going to fight it. There was no point, this timeline was a failure already. She should go right away, nothing was holding her here anymore. And yet, she just stood there, letting the wind rustle her hair and clothes.
And after a few moments, she finally looked down. Down at the broken bow, the shattered Soul Gem… the lifeless body.
Gritting her teeth, Homura forced herself to look at Madoka, who just lay there, dead after facing Walpurgisnacht. It was downright grotesque that such a sweet and kindhearted girl like her could just die like that. She knew why, and yet she couldn’t help but wonder what this was happening. Why fate played them such a cruel hand. Homura was fine with dying, with turning into a witch, if only Madoka could keep on living. Yet, so far, it seemed like it was impossible for her to survive this month…
“You should hurry, if you wa--”
Homura didn’t let Kyubey finish, before she shot him several times, until he lay in several pieces on the ground. Seeing Madoka like that filled her with sadness and anger… but also with resolve. Just before she turned time back again, she gave the remains of Kyubey one last look.
“I will never let you have her, Incubator.”