Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Dawnsx & SilverBlack)

[Dawnsx]

Even in the dead of the night, there were flashing lights all about from cars, traffic lights, and night clubs. The streets of New York City weren't quite as crowded as they usually are in the morning, but still, plenty of night-goers could be found. Most seemed to be people rushing home after a long day of work, but many were toppling over each other after a night of drinking and partying.


Rae observed all this with little enthusiasm. She wasn't interested about what people did in their spare time. Rather, she watched for signs of an enchanted human. For a long time, she thought that witches would target isolated humans who were in some place dark and discreet. After a couple of months on the witch-hunting job, she found that it wasn't the case. With tons of people struggling in the big city, it's nothing but preys for the witches.


Though, despite her disinterest in others, lots of people threw curious glances at her. Almost all of them seemed to be asking the same question- What could a young girl be doing out on the streets after midnight? Whether the looks were out of concern, or perhaps for some ignoble reasons, Rae paid no heed. Or at least, she tried to. The glances were constant reminders of how she's pretty much sneaking out behind her parents' backs to do something that could possibly get herself killed.


Guilty as she felt, she needed those grief seeds.


Rae let out a tired sigh and continued stalking about, keeping an eye out for dark alleyways and suspicious movements, all the while keeping track of any magic emitted by witches with her soul gem. She can't get distracted by unnecessary thoughts. A slip-up could cost the lives of other people and herself. Her mind needs to be guarded and ready for when she encounters a witch.


After two hours of wandering aimlessly and absolutely no witch movements though, Rae was almost ready to call it a night. Just as she was about to turn on her heels and go back the way she came from, she caught sight of a lone woman out of the corner of her eyes. She quickly caught sight of the tinge of blue on the lady's neck, barely concealed by her collar.


No doubt about it. A witch's kiss.


Rae steered herself from her original path and followed closely behind the woman instead, positive that she'll lead her right to the witch's labyrinth. As much as Rae wanted to help the woman right away, she can't jostle the witch and risk it- her, running away.


And so she followed until they reached an alleyway behind some restaurant. The woman's movements were getting more and more sluggish, to the point that Rae wondered if she was going to fall over. Before she could find out though, they reached their destination. A ripple formed on the wall of a building, and it trembled and twitched until a hole ripped opened, revealing a witch's labyrinth.


Before the woman could step in, Rae put a hand on her head and knocked her out with a weak burst of magic. With a soft groan, the woman slipped into Rae's arms. The girl gently laid her down by the wall, then looked around unsurely. Did she really want to leave an unconscious, vulnerable woman here where a random person could very much assault her? Rae looked back at the little portal then back at the woman.


She'll have to take her chances.


With a familiar dark, purple light enveloping her, Rae transformed into her magical girl form. After looking back at the woman one last time, Rae stepped into the labyrinth.

 

[SilverBlack]

"Hey you, young miss, it's so dangerous being out here this late at night alone...How about come to the bar with me? I'll protect you~"


Despite the gloominess of the night sky, the colorful lights from the various night clubs that shone out of its windows brightened the busy, dirty streets, where Emiko found herself wandering into. Surrounded with the drunken chatters of adults and the bittersweet aroma of alcohol, the girl had one hand placed at the back of her head, a clumsy, dry laugh escaped from her mouth as she faced her current situation. It was, after all, indeed unsafe to be out here on such streets at midnight, with no form of protection. Towering over her was a tough, muscled man, obviously drunk with the sickening smell spreading out from him. As the words slurred out of his mouth, his real intention was clear as it was written all over his face, beneath those devilish smile of his.


"Ahaha, no, thank you~" She replied, backing down slowly, before a crowd of people walked past the two. Taking the chance to immediately slip into them she managed to escape as she ran out of the street to enter another. Catching her breath, Emiko sighed at her own silliness, looking at her soul gem which did not seem to be particularly locating anything yet at all.


Pouting her lips slightly, Emiko frowned. The gem's natural brightness appeared to be greatly dimmer than before. She's well aware of her needs for grief seeds, yet for the past two nights she couldn't seem to find any witches at all.


It had been awhile since she last became a magical girl, unaware yet of the heavy burden she'd have to carry with her. Now, every darkening of her gem appeared to her as one step closer to a nightmare. Despite finding the little entertainment in the cuteness of her dress and the adorableness of her spoon weapon, Emiko could still feel the strain that came with this exchange. She knew she deserved it, but...


"I want food! TV! Blanket! Aye..." Mumbling unhappily to herself, Emiko once again looked sharply to her surroundings. It was much quieter than before now, an obvious decrease in the numbers of people that's wandering through this street. Emiko narrowed her eyes in hope of catching anyone with an irregular form of movements, or perhaps just a witch's kiss upon their necks. For a few minutes, nothing caught her attention. She did see a girl with a particular hard glance in her eyes as she seemed to be following somebody, but Emiko brushed off the thought of that being particularly important or related to what she's doing now. Nevertheless, as her patience seemed to be running out, the girl decided that she might as well bet on that previous lady as she walked onto the same path as her.


Emiko gasped lightly when she noticed her soul gem began to shine, and her steps quickened when she finally seemed to reach an alleyway behind a restaurant. Believing in the accuracy of her gem, each step was cautious as she now acted on guard, her body much tenser than before.


The woman that was resting against the wall caught her attention first--it was a sight all too familiar to know the meaning behind it. Emiko's eyes then traced it to the rip on the wall, enlarged into the entrance to a witch's labyrinth. "Finally," the girl said to herself, feeling the guilt for finding pleasure in discovering a creature that could harm humanity so badly. Emiko took a look around to make sure the woman's safe here--persuading that she wouldn't be hurt with a restaurant so closely by to notice if anything's going on, before a bright pink light engulfed her and she transformed into a magical girl, stepping into the witch's labyrinth with no longer the hesitation she had felt when she first began this witch-hunt.


The monstrous, inhuman space was one Emiko found herself grew uncomfortably used in as she aimed down the road of the labyrinth, the walls on both sides carved in gigantic letters of the English literature of Shakespeare's works. She wondered how this labyrinth came about as she quickened her space, feeling the weird sensation that she's not alone in this as the hand holding on to her weapon tightened.

 

[Dawnsx]

Fear.


Fear was all that Rae could ever feel whenever she steps into a labyrinth. It didn't matter if she was met with an eerie silence or an onslaught of attacks. Fear would always have her heart in its suffocating grip. Rae had tried to tell herself to not be afraid and to just focus on whatever's coming at her, but eventually, she stopped trying to do the impossible. There was no reason to not feel fear when you could lose your life at any second. Besides, being able to feel these hurdles of emotions served as a reminder that she wasn't too different... That she was still more human than she might be.


So now, with every step, Rae would inhale and exhale almost rhythmically. Afraid as she may be, it doesn't mean she should lose control of herself. That's right- feel afraid, but keep your cool. Perhaps that was the formula for success in every one of her battles.


Rae walked through the labyrinth quietly, taking note of everything she sees. There were giant stylus pens stabbed into the ground, creating little cracks in the ground. Framed photographs of famous poets and authors were hung around the walls, and their eyes seemed to follow Rae as she walked past them. Tattered bookshelves of all shapes and sizes stood about. The shelves all held thick books, but the titles on the spine of the books were all either smeared with red liquid or scratched off. Clotheslines hung about with scrap papers clipped on them. Each started off with some sort of Shakespearean poem, all neatly handwritten. But as the poems went on, the writing became more and more incorrigible until they became what seemed like mere scribbles. Little pink familiars that looked like used erasers scrambled about to hang more up. None of them seemed to pay any heed to Rae as they went about their jobs, but she wouldn't dare let her guard slip. If she had learned anything in these past couple of months as a magical girl, is that labyrinths are unpredictable.


The longer she stared at her surroundings, the more uneasy she felt. Part of it was simply just the ominous air about them, but the larger part was because she knew the labyrinths all consisted of the girl's memories and what she treasured. Walking through a girl's mind and heart, and seeing their life before it was crushed by the harsh reality... It felt too much like desecration.


Shaking her head of those thoughts, Rae focused on finding the witch. A door was in sight- it looked almost like the cover of a composition notebook- but two familiars stood on either side. They both looked like English soldiers with their red uniform, but rather than a human body, they were number two pencils with the erasers as heads. In their thin, string-like arms, they each held a wooden musket.


As soon as Rae entered their field of vision, they both raised their muskets and fired. Small, sharpened lead pieces whizzed through the air and threatened to impale their target. With a racing heart, Rae jumped into the air and materialized the pitch black scythe in her hands. Concentrating her magic into the weapon, she swung. A dark energy wave burst through the scythe and pierced through the soldier on the left. Before the second soldier could react, Rae used the ceiling as a propeller and went flying down onto it. The soldier made a screeching sound and held up its musket as if to defend itself, but Rae's scythe cut through the musket and slashed through the soldier as if they were both made of paper. With a small huff, Rae regained her posture and looked back at the soldiers who now lay like cheap, broken pencils. She turned back towards the door, and after a second of mental preparation, she pushed it open.


What entered her eyes was a circular room filled with chaos and havoc. The pink familiars were everywhere, scrambling with piles of papers in their hands. The click-clack of keyboards and the scratching of pencil against paper could be heard, but the source? Rae couldn't see it. Amidst the chaos, sitting in the center of the room was a humanoid creature with a large, red timer for a head. Rather than regular hands, she had sharpened pencils for fingers. The witch seemed to be sitting on a pile of old newspaper and ripped loose leaf, but by the way of how the paper moved along with the movements of the witch, Rae could only assume that it was part of her body.


Rae gripped her scythe a little tighter and stepped into the room. As soon as she set foot into the vicinity, the witch turned her head, and suddenly the loud ringing of the timer filled her eardrums. Rae winced and brought her hands to her ears reflexively, but as she did so, the papers underneath the witch rose and expanded before shooting out in her direction. The girl gasped lightly and swung her scythe forward. The dark energy wave met the papers with a boom, and smoke immediately filled the air between her and the witch. Without time to gather herself, Rae found herself met with another barrage of pencil lead bullets that whizzed through the smoke. She jumped up and landed on the tip of a giant stylus pen where she could see the witch clearly.


RING RING RING RING!!!!


Rae grimaced at the infernal ringing buzzing in her head. She needed a plan, or at least be able to fight head-on with a clear head. But how was she going to do that with the annoying-


RING RING RING RING!!!!


The magical girl growled softly. Screw a battle plan. Take out the damn head. Take out the damn head.

 

[SilverBlack]

Two slim finger was placed upon her lips as Emiko stepped further into the labyrinth, her eyes looking about to explore her surroundings, out of both caution and curiosity. It was undeniable that she could feel the heavy pounding of her heart against her chest, the growing anxiousness as she aimed forward, keen eyes looking around to stare into the empty hollow eyes of the famous poets within the photographs, hung above the scribbled walls, their souls seemingly trapped along inside the labyrinth like the darkness of the mind this witch...or girl, once locked herself into before the tragic transformation took place. She most certainly liked literature--Emiko wondered if the girl was once an author, or an obsessed reader, perhaps? The way pencils impaled the floor, poems so messily hung, famous pieces of work marked so deeply into the walls. Emiko's grip on her weapon tightened as she saw the little pink familiars moving about, seemingly benign but never trustworthy. As if responding to her action--or her tightened guards, to be more accurate, the five candies of different colors that were originally just floating and dancing about at the curve round surface of the spoon expanded, first circling the girl, enclosing her as a defensive phase before turning into mini, rectangular shields, letting out a rainbow glow. If anything, she would have to protect herself first. Emiko had after a long thought settled upon the idea that she did not fear death, having not much to live for anyway, but she must at least live until she fulfilled her duty--one she promised herself to do that turned her into a magical girl in the first place.


It occurred strange to her that she somehow could sense the weird feeling that she's not alone in this labyrinth, an unfamiliar sensation that someone was here before her. Had someone wandered into this labyrinth? If so, she must hurry to save him or her before it's too late. Unconscious and manipulated, it served as a grim reminder for Emiko of the weakness of the human minds. But she herself must certainly not fall down for it---must not. How would it feel like to become a witch herself, she wondered. What will her labyrinth look like?


Oh, what is she thinking? But if one day it happened that she indeed becomes a witch, then her labyrinth will certainly be filled with adorable, fluffy stuffed animals. The walls will be pink with laces and candies, with fancy dresses and accessories hanging about. Cheerful, anime music will be playing all around, even if it might go distorted once in a while. Her familiars will be red ribbons and more candies, and it will be the cutest labyrinth any magical girl would ever encounter, it'd be so pretty that even if the dolls are torn and blood is smeared---


The sight that eventually entered her view prevented her imagination from progressively growing darker. Think positive! The girl scolded herself inside her mind from even thinking about her own labyrinth, before slowly redirecting her attention to the door in front of her. It certainly didn't seem to be as tightly shut as it should be. Rather, the extremely loud ringing that soon burnt into her ears caused the girl to immediately screamed--a clear, light yelp that escaped her throat before she went to cover her ears, catching her breath back to balance. The five candies shaped into the shields around her seemingly glowed brighter then as she finally realized what's going on. She had forgotten the very thought that there might be another magical girl with her, within this city. Emiko had long fought alone that she never considered the idea, yet the broken pencils that seemed once to be familiars, as well as the increasing noises of clinks and screeches beyond the door, very convincingly proved her assumption to be right.


Almost at the same second, two thoughts formed into her mind--to be able to gain a companion, a fellow buddy....Or, to have an opponent in the fighting for dark gems. Buddies! Buddies are more important! If they become friends, then they'll be able to share gems, right? At least right now, whatever trouble the girl was facing with the Witch, she must help. Her instinct led her into immediate action. Emiko scolded herself for even having a moment of hesitation--as the door opened like the flipping of a composition notebook cover, the girl dashed in, her eyes widened by the horrifying sight, but nevertheless gritted her teeth when the loud ringing of the alarm clock pierced through the air once again.


That's when she saw her--the other girl, dressed in dark, black outfit that totally contradicted with her pink and whiteness in color. A girl around her age who was desperately struggling against the monster, catching her balance on a giant stylus pen. Emiko blinked at the sight, before letting out a huff.


"What are you waiting for, let's go!"


Her voice was clear as she yelled, the candy shields enlarged to defend her from the pencil leads bullet that began to shoot toward her direction upon catching the witch's attention with that call. Perhaps her decision to just lunge wasn't the exactly smart thing to do, but for her who has survived without forming a battle plan for all these times, the girl could care less. Right now Emiko would just love to stop the painful loud ringings from the witch, at least before she turns deaf.


With a dash, Emiko aimed toward the witch--gasping as she barely dodged the paper shoot attack that she'd failed to expect, thus the shields failed to block her from. With an angry hiss, Emiko's weapon expanded in size until it's half as huge as the monster before she swung it, hitting the witch heavily from the side, its impact strong enough to at least, even just a little, catch the witch off balance.


Then, with a quick, swift moment, the spoon had changed shape into that of a huge, white axe. A roar escaped the pink magical girl as she once again lunged at the witch, her axe held high to slash at it from the top. Except, when the witch's sharpened pencil hands aimed at her, she'd missed her focus, landing an attack upon the witch's face only without cutting its body in half, like she's previously intended. With an easy blow, she was thrown to another direction when the witch's long arm slapped at her, as a response of defense upon the slash on its face, but Emiko stood back up only with a displeased pout.


"That was close! Ah...Here's the chance! Cute emo girl over there, take out the head! She can't focus clearly right now!" Cheering when she noticed the witch beginning to lose its full control over itself, the girl began to cheer, caring not at all on how she's addressing the other magical girl.

 

[Dawnsx]

Rae narrowed her eyes at the witch and tightened her grip on her scythe. She'll take out that alarm-head in one shot! The magical girl got into a charging position, ready to jump straight towards the head- if the witch attacks her, she'll just counter them and keep going for it. Rae sucked in a breath and made a move to leap, but the composition notebook door was pushed open, and she found herself nearly stumbling off the giant stylus pen. She planted her free hand on the edge of the pen, barely catching herself from slipping off, and looked towards the direction of the new voice.


For a moment, she thought that the voice might have been Kyubey, but once she laid eyes on the girl in a silly costume, she realized that it was another magical girl. A very... Pink, frilly, cutesy, impractically-dressed magical girl. Well, she supposed that she wasn't one to say anything on the impractical part. Really, you'd imagine that people who needed to fight all the time would have something easier to move around in, but instead Kyubey and its poor tastes decided that short skirts are the way to go. It wasn't like there are usually anyone to catch magical girls' exposed panties, but Rae wasn't particularly fond of the breeze down there.


Rae sighed and shook the thought, watching with a small smidgen of distaste as the girl with the frills lunged straight at the witch. She managed to hit the witch all right, with that strange weapon of hers, but was quickly knocked away in retaliation of the witch. Rae grimaced slightly, recalling her original plan to charge at the witch, similar to what the new girl had done.





Good thing she beat her to it.


Rae stood up and looked in the direction of where the girl was thrown towards in an halfhearted attempt to check if she was alright, but her attention didn't leave the witch. It was caught off-balance. Rae once again made a leap towards the witch just as the frilly girl yelled at her to finish the witch off. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes at the little nickname, Rae charged her scythe up with the dark energy. As if noticing her advance, the witch turned its head towards her and raised its arm as if to defend itself. Too late for the witch- With a yell, Rae slashed across the witch's head, leaving a trail of dark energy wave in the scythe's path. The alarm cracked, and the ringing suddenly ceased.


The magical girl leaped a distance away, watching as the witch fell to its side. Before long, the environment began to distort and fade away. Only then did Rae relax herself and change back to her civilian form. The nastiest part about witches is that you never know if they're dead or not. For all you know, what you've just defeat was a decoy or some sort.


The surroundings once again became the dark alley that Rae had found herself walking into. She glanced around the ground until she spotted the grief seed, but the woman she had followed was nowhere in sight. A voice at the back of her head nagged her that it was a bad idea to leave her there, but Rae convinced herself that the woman probably just woke up and left. With a small huff, Rae bent down and picked up the grief seed before looking towards the frilly girl that had... Helped her. Not that she needed help in the first place.


Pursing her lips, Rae thought of her options. She could give up on the grief seed and let the frilly girl have it. After all, the frilly girl gave her the opportunity to take down the witch. Besides, she didn't use much magic back there, so she could still find another grief seed before her soul gem gets too muddy. Or, Rae could hog the grief seed to herself, since she did deal the finishing blow. The frilly girl came in halfway into the battle anyway, so naturally it wouldn't be wrong for the grief seed to belong to Rae.


Third option, they share. Rae eyes narrowed at the idea. Sharing would almost be like making an alliance with this girl that she didn't even know. From what Kyubey has said, and from a few experiences in the past, some magical girls aren't too fond of making allies with other magical girls. For all they know, they could be stabbed in the back for the grief seeds. Rae wasn't the type to dwell on that- as long as she could clean her soul gem, she didn't care too much if she had to share or not. Having an ally would mean an easier type defeating witches and getting grief seeds too, it's just the matter of trusting the other party.


Now, could Rae trust the girl in front of her? Her appearance was certainly... Friendly, to say the least. And the battle showed that she wasn't one to want glory and to be the MVP, so she could probably cooperate in a fight. Still, appearances could be misleading. Best to play it safe for now.


"You can keep this." Rae said, tossing the grief seed to the girl. "If you helped back there because you wanted to make allies or something... Well, you should know how some magical girls are like. I'm not saying I'm one of them, and I'm not saying you are, either, but it's best for both of us to hold some caution."