Fandom A Magical Mystery (Madoka Magica)

A black unmarked sedan pulls up in front of the Azai residence in San Francisco. It was only Sunday morning, few people had really gotten moving for the day as a tall man dressed in black slacks, blue collared shirt and navy tie exited the sedan and approached the slim two story home before him with a briefcase in hand. A shiny golden badge in his pocket would reveal his name as Detective Sebastian Graham. The home was occupied by a small family, a mother, father and two lovely teenage children but the business the man was here for was far from good. Upon climbing the stairs to the porch he rang the doorbell and hoped for an answer which would come in mere minutes from the father, Hisao. The homeowner's face looked stunned as he invited the man in.

It was still breakfast time in the Azai household and Marianne was just finishing making breakfast for their son Marcel as the two men entered the room. Seeing the man enter the room with her husband her face paled. "Marcel? Why don't you take your breakfast into the living room and go watch some tv?" His mother said in a soft but shaken voice. Eating in the living room was not generally allowed but this didn't seem to be a normal day as the men both sat down at the table while Marianne prepared some coffee for their visitor. It seemed that they wanted to be alone. The briefcase that now sat on the table indicated that there was some business to attend to. Once Marcel would leave the room Sebastian opened the case to reveal pictures of their other child, a female brunette wearing an eye patch by the name of Misaki. Misaki however was not present in the home... no one knew where Misaki was and it was Sebastian's job to find out. Sadly today Sebastian visited with bad news.

"Mr. and Mrs. Azai you know I don't visit for no reason and it's been 6 weeks since I have taken up the case of your daughter's disappearance. The entire department has scoured the city, interviewed everyone we could find any connection with Misaki but we have come up with no sign of her. Her case has gone cold and our officers have been forced to call off the search. There is nothing more we can do." Sebastian's face looked pained as if it even hurt him to tell the family they likely will never see their daughter again. Marianne was in shock and began to cry loudly while Hisao tried to hide the sadness and pain but it was even apparent on his face as he hugged his wife tightly. The detective gave them a small business card with his information asking them to contact him if they did get any more information though it was very unlikely they would. Hisao nodded, unable to speak as he lead the detective to the front door and allowed him to leave before closing it behind him. In such a short time their happy life came crashing down. All they could do was create a memorial for her and hope that some day she returned. Today just couldn't get any worse.

Sitting a couple of meters above a rather angry looking german shepherd, Marcel was atop of a oak's branch. He carried a backpack and a flute case hanging from each of his shoulders, both still covered in the tree's shade as the morning sun had just begun to approach its zenith. After trading a few pinching stares with the dog, both wanting the other to go away, he took out a flute and began blowing it to startle the canine. It was not an effective choice, but being exasperated of having been there without doing much of anything for half an hour, Marcel began to play.

Earlier this day, his family had been informed of his sister's search being cancelled. For the first couple of days, he believed that maybe Misaki was playing a prank in bad taste on them: perhaps she was, although completely out of character, trying to get something out of it. However, as every week passed, his disregard became concern and, eventually, anxiety. In some sense, the informing of desistence was merely a formality; the idea that she was not to be found was, probably, something his family and him already knew over time. His dad took him to school in a quiet, somber ride that ended with a quick, cold exchange of goodbyes.

Some people want it all,
But I don't want nothing at all...

Marcel was singing in his head as he played. The dog was still there.

Upon taking a look at the entrance of his school, Marcel felt a quick sinking feeling in his chest. He knew in that instant that staying in class would just be waste of his time: He was fuzzyheaded, would retain nothing and could just be a source of irritation for the people around him. He opted to take off his grade's pin and spend the day someplace else. Marcel discreetly walked his way to the garden near the Painted Ladies, planning to play his flute to gather five or ten dollars and buy a really expensive ice cream cone somewhere. He was having a very profitable performance for the first two hours until a running man threw a hotdog in the cup he was gathering money in and, almost immediately, the hound came growling at him. Marcel retreated to the tree with all of his stuff excepting the cup and, after a few attempts to bite his feet, both of them came to a stalmate of glares. Soon, they forgot what the conflict was about and left the cup to its luck.

Marcel got onwards with the song, swinging a bit while trying to keep a straight posture. He went on absentmindedly, parallel to the dog stopping its havoc and the place after picking up the meal and spilling its contents on the grass around it. He slowed at the end, repeating to himself the last bit of the lyrics as he prepared a coda: "Some just want everything, but everything means nothing if I ain't got you...". When he looked down after finishing, he was all alone and safe to climb off. He approached his previous resting place to pick up the money, but before he came close to it, a man in a suit threw two bills in it.


"That is sum'old music you's playin', boy. Mighty fine. Where'd you 'earit?" Said the man with a strong New Orléans accent.
"Thanks... It's my sister's favorite."

Beep! Beep! Beep! The buzzer of an alarm clock sounded obnoxiously loud through a small apartment only a mile from the school. The apartment belonged to a senior at the school by the name of Paisley. Well somewhat. Her parents paid for her to live there and attend the school rather than go to the less than stellar local school she would have attended if her parents had allowed her to stay on their ranch in Santa Rosa. Paisley wasn't the biggest fan of this setup but she knew her parents were only doing the best they could for her. With a groan a feminine hand reached out from under the soft blue blankets and hit the alarm clock to silence it's annoying cries. At least there was some peace before she finally forced herself to sit up. Her black hair was strewn in all directions from her slumber. With a yawn the girl forced herself to get up and out of the bed before proceeding to the bathroom to brush her teeth and long hair. She looked tired but after washing her face Paisley appeared to have woken up a bit. Now she at least appeared to have some life in her aqua colored eyes.

Next stop was the closet where the girl pulled out some plain jeans and her favorite shirt which consisted of a black shirt with a flaming star logo. The colors were at least within the school's regulation so no one would give her too much of a hassle over it. Once dressed Paisley grabbed her grade pin and pinned it to her jacket. Why they demanded something to differentiate the grade levels was a mystery to the dark haired girl but whatever. It wasn't something she had a say in. Once she had finished dressing herself and gotten her school bag she left for class without bothering to even grab some breakfast. This was a common thing for Paisley to do. She rarely ate breakfast at home or even at all. Rather she would just head off to school. Who needs breakfast anyway?

Paisley walked the mile to school each day. It was a fairly easy walk and with few dangers so why not get out and get some exercise. The neighborhood was one of the safer areas in town so she never felt ill at ease even if she were out in the dead of night. People would often say she walked fast even if she wan't trying to. For some reason she was just faster than most people, making the mile walk to school last hardly 20 minutes. The coaches of the track team always wanted her to join but she had little desire to do so despite likely being able to set a whole slew of new records on the track. In usual fashion she arrived earlier than most students and made her way to her homeroom without bothering with her textbooks. They never seemed that important to her anyway. Once settled at her desk Paisley prepared for another boring day.

School seemed to drag on for Paisley today. Going to school was probably her least favorite thing to do but she didn't have a choice in the matter anyway. Finally the final bell rang which allowed them to finally leave this horrid place. As quickly as it rang she was out of the classroom and on her way out. Paisley quickly shoved her belongings into her locker before heading out to get some real work done.

She quickly exited the school and gave the small ring on her right middle finger a gentle tap. Within seconds it transformed to a small blue gem encased in a gold stand like thing. It glowed softly with a small light from within. Paisley soon began to follow where that glowing light would direct her with very little regard to her surroundings. As she passed a nearby bus stop she bumped into one of the sign posts designating it as a bus stop. As she did so her house keys dropped on to the ground but she was hardly even aware of it until she had made it a short distance away and someone was yelling for her. Startled Paisley quickly transformed the odd gem back into a ring to the unsuspecting ring in order to hide it before turning around to see who was calling for her.

Much to her surprise it was a classmate who was calling her. This wasn't just any classmate though. He was Marcel, the brother of her once friend Misaki. He wasn't exactly someone she wanted to see right now but he seemed to have good intentions. In fact it wasn't his intentions she worried about but rather the guilt in her mind. There were things she knew she couldn't bear to tell him about his dear missing sibling. Trying to make the encounter as short as possible she acted distracted but accepted her keys back from him before mumbling some excuse about being in a hurry and needing to go but thanking him for returning her keys. Through the entire encounter she avoided making eye contact with him before finally rushing off again trying to pick the trail back up again only to find it gone. With a sigh she began to return home once more.

Escaping this encounter was the only thing on her mind. She knew he had to be hurting from the loss of his sister and she was one of the last people Misaki had been with. Thankfully for her the excuses worked and she managed to get away from him. Paisley could tell he didn't exactly feel friendly to her, likely due to her relationship with his sister. As she turned to leave she caught the scornful look before finally escaping the encounter.

Finally free from the most emotionally painful encounter she could imagine Paisley made her way back toward home having lost the witch's trail but nearly halfway home she was able to pick it up once again. That beast wasn't getting away again if she had anything to say about it. The girl began to walk quickly, following the light of the small gem in her hand until she was able to get away from the general public. Once out of sight she began to sprint, racing toward the source of the trail. It led her to an old warehouse by the docks and certainly not a great part of town. She entered the warehouse cautiously only to find it empty, seemingly abandon. On the wall opposite of the door was a strange crest on the wall. It could best be described as a red butterfly like shape but what business did it have being here?

Tapping the gem in her hand the girl was momentarily engulfed in a bright light. When it faded her clothing had entirely changed. She had gone from jeans and a t shirt to a something straight out of an anime. A black waist trainer covered her mid section while her chest was covered with dragon scales the color of the sky on a sunny spring day. Her jeans were replaced with a black skirt with those same scales scattered throughout the darkness of the fabric. Regular shoes were replaced with boots extending halfway up her calves still as black as night but with buckles as blue as her scales. A blue crescent moon gem appeared on her arm as the transformation ended. Placing a hand on the red butterfly a doorway opened to a world that looked like something straight out of a bad lsd trip.

No longer was Paisley in the warehouse but rather a strange world somewhat resembling an aviary filed with exotic birds. These birds however didn't look normal. They almost looked like they were made from some kind of scrapbooking paper of multiple colors and patterns; some had mustaches, some had multiple sets of wings and some we're simply so deformed they hardly looked like birds. That wasn't the end of the strangeness of this place. In the center of this world there sat a large birdcage with another strange being inside. This being was even more out of someone's nightmares than the birds flying about. It appeared to at one point have been human though began to grow more and more beastly features to match those birds around it. A break replaced it's mouth, long feathers grew from its arms and fingers, its feet no longer resembled human feet but rather that of a bird. All these new pieces had the same coloring as those birds. That same scrapbook paper horror coloring covered it. At this point no one could call it human. This was a monster.

Paisley took a moment to study the movements of the beasts around her, searching for patterns and a good spot to strike. She summoned an intricately carved bow that appeared to be carved from the darkest sequoia wood. Quickly notching an arrow she took aim and fired, striking down a bird with a blazing blue arrow. Repeating her movements she continued to fire and destroy the monstrous birds one by one as they began to catch on to her location. The beast in the bird cage seemed to notice as well as it began to stir, it's movements becoming more and more erratic. Paisley had only gotten halfway through the flock of birds before it's erratic movements began to break the cage. Bit by bit the bars chipped away before some starting to fall clean off until it was a mere pile of rubble and the beast was free.

The beast had no hesitation in making it's way toward Paisley in an unnatural gate. It seemed to attempt to fly with it's growing wings only to achieve a mere flutter. It flung sharpened feathers the size of brooms at the girl at rapid speeds yet somehow she was fast enough to get out of their way even if only just barely. Aiming at the eyes she notched another arrow and fired one after another taking out the sight of the beast while preparing a devastating attack. Paisley shot one arrow straight up covered in a blue light. The further it went up the more lights it split into until it began to fall back to the ground like a hailstorm of arrows. The beast and it's bird minions cried out as they were pierced by arrow after arrow. It was too much for the monsters as they soon fell and the strange surroundings began to fade revealing the warehouse once more. The monsters were gone but in their place was a strange black gem. Paisley wasted no time in picking it up and beginning her trek home. It would be dark before she would arrive but that was fine. Paisley preferred that night to the day anyway.

“You are in great pain, are you not?”
“…”
“Well, I know it is pointless to ask. Certainly we are both aware of it.”
“…”
“You are making this very difficult. Please realize communicating will ease matters for both of us.”
“I have nothing to say to you.”
“Do you not?”
“I do not. We should not be talking. You should not be talking.”
“In strict terms, I am not.”
“… You should go.”
“Should I interpret this as a rejection, then?”
“A rejection of what, exactly?”
“I come to you with an offer. It would be unreasonable of me to persist if you are being so unresponsive.”
“…”
“Well then, I’ll be on my way. Goodbye, Ma-”
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“I am… interested.”
“Oh! So you do have something you want.”
“…”
“This is not a very productive conversation.”

**

Rising from above the ground in the stairway leading up to their house, the Azai were taking up a small marble monolith. It was smoothly carved and shiny, with black calligraphy that displayed both roman letters and kanji with Misaki’s name, topped off with a small roof-like summit. They got it into a small van and drove off to China Beach: a small ceremony was to take place with some friend of the family and people who were close to Misaki. It was meant to be a commemoration: a celebration of Misaki in her absence, hoping for her return. More than one person in presence could have taken the event as a disguised funerary service, but no words on the topic were mentioned once it began.

The stone post they were carrying was meant to work as a shrine on one part: a piece of furniture dedicated to the absent daughter of the family. However, its lightness and mobility served a symbolic purpose that Marcel thought of and proposed in its design: It could be carried and disassembled, for if Misaki ever returned, the item could be taken away (making it thus, through a detail of construction, distinct from a grave). Until then, it would rest in the porch of their home as a welcome sign.

Much to Marcel’s surprise, a considerable amount of the attendants was not visibly sad or, in some cases, absolutely disingenuous. He guessed that a lot of the guests had probably gone through the same process of recognition and were trying to sympathize by not acting gloom, but many seemed blatantly oblivious to Misaki’s official disappearance. Zoe, a junior in the digital club that he knew from rehearsal, came near him and said that he found endearing that Misaki was so missed that her family was throwing a party in her name, but she seemed to be implying she was on a trip of sorts rather than missing.

As odded out as Marcel was by her tone, he accepted her good wishes. The rest of the evening came around in a very similar fashion with only a few individuals seeming to catch onto the reality of the situation. People laughed, cried and, in all simplicity, were spending a day at the beach.

Marcel was slightly annoyed at the fact that none of Misaki’s friends seemed to have arrived. He knew Tasha’s visit could be complicated: she had gone to study somewhere outside the state in all likelihood, but he had yet to see Sophie and Paisley around. He wasn’t exactly eager to see them, but not having them around was way worse in his consideration. Given that he did not bring his flute, Marcel spent the day aiding out the event’s runners and talking to his classmates, friends and acting company: rarely even mentioning his sister.

As a closing segment for the day, people were to present trinkets and gifts to the shrine. People formed a line and placed out a wide arrange of pictures, sweets and tools that Misaki was known to enjoy. The more personal and unique things came from her close friends and, as the setting sun crashed the ocean in the distance, Marcel sighed and walked away towards a parking lot south of the coastline.

From afar, he stared at the line formed in front of the monolith; the strands of a conversation playing in his mind.

**

“Do you need me to say it out loud? Fine: I want something.”
“Good. Then we can proceed. ”
“What’s in for you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well! I am getting a very good deal, I am getting it from a very unusual source-- pardon my stinginess, but I don’t exactly believe it’s a handout.”
“…”
“Seems like you were too quick to nag me over silence.”
“I am just surprised. I am not asked to answer this question frequently.”
“And that is because-”
“Desperate individuals tend not to be very selective with their options.”
“…”
“Are you desperate?”
“… Yes.”
“Then it seems unwise to me that you are walking around this so much. There’s always someone else willing to make a contract, you know; soon, simply talking to you will have me losing time.”
“Just tell me what I am putting in the table and you will get a yes-or-no answer, pal.”
“… You really won’t want to—”
“DO IT!”
“… Your soul.”

The last two weeks had been rough for Paisley and even Sophie who had been working with her. Sophie was all she had left at this point; the only one who still had her back. Paisley had been taken Sophie out on her hunts more and more trying to help her train and get stronger. She didn't want to loose any more friends. She couldn't bear to loose any other friends. Without Sophie she was entirely alone in this city. There had been some close calls but for the most part the two were doing well. Both had survived to make it to Misaki's memorial after all.

Much like the last couple weeks Paisley tried to avoid Marcel as much as possible even at the memorial. In fact she tried to just stay out of sight in general. It was difficult for her just to face the people who loved Misaki. The fools... No one but her, Sophie and another strange creatures knew the fate of the sweet girl who's life they were here to celebrate. That made it so much worse just to be there yet Paisley couldn't skip such an event. Not one that celebrated a close friend's life, her last chance to say goodbye. Rather than mingle with the other patrons of the event Paisley sat high on a rock outcropping almost entirely out of sight watching the waves, her strange gem in her hands with her fingers running over it gently, absentmindedly as if she were lost in thought.

"Paisley? It looks like they are starting to do the tributes. Don't you wanna come say goodbye?" A voice called out to her from the sandy ground below. It was Sophie who had been mingling a bit though she even had seemed distracted, obviously not thinking Misaki was just on some trip.

"Yeah I'm coming. I've got something for Misaki anyway." Paisley spoke as she stood up and jumped down to the ground where Sophie waited, together they joined in the line of people waiting to leave gifts. What Paisley had though was something entirely different from what the others gave. Others were giving candies, small trinkets and even a few toys but Paisley had something more personal. When her turn finally arrived she placed an eye patch on the monolith. This wasn't just any eye patch however. It was the very one Misaki had on when she left home the last morning her family had seen her; the last she ever wore. A few tears fell from her eyes as Paisley finally spoke.

"Misaki... I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. I hope wherever you are it's better than our screwed up world." It was all she could say before finally having to turn away and allow the next people in line to have their turn. Sophie stayed by her side as the two began to leave.

It was visible that the busier attendants were already leaving. Cars began to move as families and classmates left towards the city and Marcel stood along them, covering his face from the impacting sunlight. He sat in a white bench next to a Corolla,staring in the general direction of the beach.

In the distance, he spotted Paisley and Sophie placing a gift in the memorial’s line. He was pleasantly surprised to have them prove him wrong on their absence, but it did not make him any more happy to know of their presence. He let his eyes rest on them for a minute, being almost lulled to sleep until he spotted a little strand of cloth they placed at the shrine: an eyepatch from the looks of it. That sparked him up and fueled him with the will to interrogate them that very second, but they were quite some distance away; though he would most certainly go confront them later, Marcel decided against it today: it could be perceived as rude and it did not seem to him like the best time to pin a couple of friends down with questions. They probably missed her too.

Marcel waited for the event to end to save everything back in his parents’ car, along with some help of the party managers. After a long return ride, they returned to a dimly-lit house. Putting the pedestal back up again by the door was a last struggle on Misaki’s matter of the day, and Marcel and his parents went about to care for their own business once they all picked it up from the trunk and to the porche.

Marcel went into his room and kicked off his shoes by the bed. He picked up his phone for a moment before being interjected as soon as he turned on a lamp.

“You said you were interested.” A voice muttered from behind a shelf.
“I did.” Marcel replied. He was startled, but tried not to let it show.
“Are you going to make me wait more, Marcel?”
“Yes.”

Kyuubey walked out from his hiding in the furniture, standing around by Marcel’s feet.

“Well, that’s very unfortunate.” The creature replied, relaxed.
“You are not asking something trivial from me. I want to think it through.”
“I can understand that. Please note that I am making an exception with you.”
“I know.”

Marcel went to Misaki's room, closely followed by his interlocutor. He took a laptop with him, opened a yearbook of his sister's and browsed through a list of contacts. He eventually pinned down an address tagged with Paisley's name, and sent an e-mail through an anonymous account he used for online shopping. Whatever shock value he could get off the action was good on his book, so he sent a shorthanded, quick sentence away:

After making sure his parents were asleep, he asked:
So what's this about soul-giving?""

Paisley and Sophie made their way off the beach and to their respective homes before the event fully came to a close. She could feel eyes watching her as she began to leave and had a pretty good idea who they belonged to. Only one person had been watching her with such ferocity lately. Still she refused to turn back and see who it was or why they may be staring. If her hunch was right she knew exactly why he would be watching her.

Arriving home Paisley couldn't find the will or energy to go out on another hunt. Not tonight. Not after Misaki's memorial. Instead she kicked off her boots at her doorway and threw a cheap frozen pizza in the microwave to cook. Food was hardly a necessity anymore but it made her feel normal again. Eating was something she enjoyed long before this nightmare began. A few minutes later than microwave beeped and she took out the lousy food, tossing it on a plate and not bothering to cut it into slices before plopping herself down on the couch with it.

How long had it been? How long ago did she last just have a relaxing night? No hunting witches or worrying about the future? Just watching anime and eating crappy pizza? Too long that was for sure. Paisley flipped on one of her old favorite animes, one of some kids in a rural town going crazy. It was meant to be a horror had quite a few funny moments as well. Curling up and eating her food Paisley began to watch as the rest of her apartment stayed dark.

A few episodes in she found herself drifting off to sleep. She had done so little today yet felt so drained. Maybe it was time to go to bed. Just as she debated turning in for the night she saw her phone light up with a notification. She had a new email. "That's odd." She thought as she opened it up. Paisley never gave out her email to people. What it said sent a chill down her spine even more than the anime could have. Who was this? How did they know it was her that gave the eye patch? How did they get her email?

Who are you? What does it matter?

It was all she could say in reply as she hit the send button with her hands shaking

"I am sure you might be dissuaded if you figure."
"It's on you to make a good point, then."
Kyuubey continued, between irritation and fidgets. "You'd get any wish you want granted, but your soul would be extracted to fulfill optimization purposes."
"Hm..."

Marcel sighed. Looking at his phone, he saw the incoming reply. He raised his eyebrows a bit after feeling a strain of angst coming from the writing at the chained questions: clearly she did not take the interrogation well. Before proceeding with any writing, he took a deep breath and tried to tranqulize his nerves. He was too tired and too sad for snides. Besides, his mind was already set: needed only was a confirmation of his deepest belief.


Marcel typed, trying to soften the tone now that he believed that he had caught Paisley's attention. Though he asssumed they both came from a place of pain around the subject, he insisted on being assertive and pushing Paisley to comply. He did not know if she would want to talk to him as he himself was still reluctant around the idea, but the notion of it came to his mind as an ever increasing necessity for closure:


"Give me three days." Marcel said, and cutting the conversation with Kyuubey in the usual fashion of their exchanges, he went to sleep.

After sending the message Paisley felt her knees give out once more and drop her back onto the couch. What in the world was going on? Whoever this was was incredibly smart to get this far for sure. She spent a few more minutes just staring in silence before a small chime snapped her out of her deep thought. Another email already? The girl hesitated to open it but with a deep breath she finally mustered the courage and tapped the notification so her phone would display the contents.

Reading through the chills raced down her spine once more. They wanted to meet with her, to talk with her. It was the last line however that got her the most. The mention of the police. Paisley had been interviewed by the police given she had been friends with Misaki prior to her disappearence but she didn't tell them everything and for good reason. After a few long minutes Paisley began to type a response.

I'll meet you but if I see any sign of the police it's over. I've spoken with Detective Graham. I have nothing more to say to him or the rest of the police force.

Her message was short but clear. If the police were involved Marcel wouldn't be getting answers. She knew now though that she'd need to scout out the area to make sure he didn't have them hiding somewhere nearby. With the message sent she tossed her phone in the charger before curling up for a pretty lousy night sleep.

It was almost meeting time. Paisley had already arrived but didn't show herself just yet. Rather she stuck to the shadows while looking around for any sign of life, police or the mysterious person who had contacted her. So far there was no trace of life. In face she couldn't find Kyubey which was odd. In fact she hadn't seen him in while though she didn't exactly miss him. For now she rested in a tree waiting.

Paisley didn't have to wait long though. The clock soon struck midnight and she saw a shadow figure approach the table below before taking a seat. This had to be them. Smiling a bit Paisley stood up and jumped down from her perch in the tree to land just beside the table. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she could finally see the face of the mysterious person.

"Marcel?" She asked with a bit of a surprise. Somehow she had suspected him yet it still came as a surprise. The surprise soon faded as she sat down in the seat across from him. It was time to get down to business.

"Well you got me out here. What do you want?" She asked knowing what he wanted but wanted to make him say it himself.