1752/Karmic Conversations

Karmic Conversations
Date of Scene:	22 July 2016
Location:	Kaname Residence - Living Room
Synopsis:	School being out gives Homura and Madoka extra time together, and they discuss Walpurgisnacht, Wraiths, and the concept of karmic debt on the couch at Madoka's house the afternoon after a sleepover.
Cast of Characters:	Madoka Kaname, Homura Akemi

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Madoka Kaname has posed:
    School is out and that means many hours of extra time in the day, and also the removal of the primary reason for teenagers to need to go to bed and wake up at specific times on weekdays. Madoka's life had been very busy lately, especially with the renewed importance of patrolling and the wraiths to fight, so having more freetime is somewhat of a relief. It also meant that her parents are much more okay sleepovers on weekdays, and the night after school ended Madoka took advantage and invited Homura over.

    Being able to be loud and giggly and not have to worry about giving away the fact her girlfriend was over was nice, as was seeing her get a chance to enjoy her father's cooking at dinner. Snuggles were briefly interrupted when Junko came home late and needed a bit of help getting to bed, but in the Kaname household that's not an entirely unexpected circumstance. She was also able to be a part of the family's sit down breakfast, the main time they all sit together and discuss the happenings of the day.

    No school meant that after breakfast was over they had free time. Tomohisa took Tatsuya out to the garden to watch and help him as he tended the vegetables, and Madoka would normally have gone as well had she not had company over. Instead she's gone into the living room with Homura, having turned on the TV and set it to something mildly interesting, the volume turned up a bit higher than she normally would. Not because she's paying attention to it, but because the noise can help mask their conversation, just in case someone wanders in.

    "I wonder if Kyubey would be willing to keep from Contracting any new Puella Magi forever, since there's a way to combat entropy without Witches now?" Madoka asks while sitting on the couch. For being the optimistic one she doesn't sound it, though one can always hope, "maybe just keep those of us that are still here around, and replace us if something happens to us?"

Homura Akemi has posed:
    Homura, as always, is more than happy to spend time with Madoka. Spending time with her family was always nice, and the more Homura came to know them the more she liked them. She might occasionally be caught playing with Tatsuya in some form or another, trying to tickle him with her index finger and make him laugh.

    Junko's late night arrival at home was... well, it was interesting. She may have viewed such scenes from a distance in previous timelines, but dealing with it directly is something else entirely. She can't help but wonder if she herself has been difficult to deal with while drunk. Homura hopes not.

    At breakfast, Homura was pleasant enough. At one point she may have thought about how nice it was that she was sitting at the table instead of watching from a distance. She blushed a little at that, though she pretended that she wasn't blushing at all.

    Then they're in the living room. Homura is sitting on the couch like a good guest. Madoka is turning the TV on, and Homura watches it a bit at first... but then the topic of magic comes up, and Homura suddenly understands why the TV is just a bit... loud.

    "I wonder if he would. I mean, if you think about it, Witches are a huge risk in of themselves, since they could be killing potential contractees. He might settle for a slower method if he thought it was more reliable."

    She glances towards the TV, eyes on it but not really watching, frowning slightly. "If it's just us... I'm not sure what to think about that. A lot of Puella were lost in the famine. Yet... in previous timeloops, we basically were most of the Puella Magi. I think we can still do a lot by our own, but I find it surprising for Kyubey to completely change his tactics like that."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    It's a joy for Madoka to see Homura interacting with her family. They're friendly and welcoming and Homura seems friendly and amiable. Thus far she hasn't seen any indications things going badly, which makes her happy. Tickling Tatsuya is a dangerous game, because he's likely to retaliate with both hands, though Homura can beat him easily in terms of reach.

    Homura was much easier to deal with! As lightweight as she might be she wasn't nearly so drunk as Junko, who could barely stand. Being giggly and uninhibited while dancing and kissing is a total breeze compared to making sure Junko doesn't break her neck climbing the stairs. Leading in dance is nothing compared to that!

    Madoka sits close, though not cuddly close(yet) next to Homura on the couch, having put on a simple white skirt and a white and yellow striped t-shirt with a smallish, hard to notice white heart on the front, along with a pair of short white socks. "Witches are horrible, but maybe it wouldn't be quite as horrible if they were a potential threat rather than his actual intention. It wouldn't be a perfect solution but it'd be better than how it was before." Completely ending the practice would be best, but sometimes incremental change is better than no change.

    Madoka looks over to Homura and nods, "If we worked together, or at least kept from fighting each other, we could probably do very well against these Wraiths." Then with a soft sigh she nods, "He said he was testing a theory now that Walpurgisnacht was defeated, but that doesn't mean it's the only reason. There still haven't been any new Witches, so even with his theory 'confirmed' it means he isn't making new Puella Magi."

    She looks over to Homura, "It also doesn't explain those Puella Magi who were working for Eclipse. That imitation Kyubey lied to us, and I don't know how much we can believe any of what he said, but there's probably still something other than the Wraiths going on."

Homura Akemi has posed:
    Getting drunk quickly does have a way of reminding someone to slow down, or stop outright. Meanwhile someone who has a bit more tolerance could slowly wear down their sobriety until there's very little left. There's also the fact that Homura never really feels like she can allow herself to be unable to fight, which doesn't stop her from drinking but it does limit it.

    Homura decided to wear a black blouse, black jean shorts, with a silver chain holding a teardrop-cut pink sapphire hanging around her neck. It's a bit of bright color on what might almost be a gothic look, especially with her long black hair.

    A brush is in her hand, and she's running it through her hair. She did a bit of brushing before breakfast, just to look presentable, but to do the kind of work she needs to in order to make it beautiful, she has to do a lot more brushing than what she can realistically do in the same time it takes for Madoka or Junko to freshen up for the day.

    She glances down at the couch, and then up at Madoka, as her girlfriend sits close to her, but she doesn't reach out yet, instead focusing on brushing her hair.

    "It'd be nice if he stopped contracting girls. I wouldn't be too upset if I never saw another Witch again. Kyouko and Mami can take care of themselves. Even Sayaka is starting to come into her own. We might also have less reason to fight each other, depending on how often these Wraiths continue to appear."

    Homura glances up at the ceiling. "However, the fact remains that the Wraiths represent a karmic debt that hasn't yet been repaid. Walpurgisnacht was far more powerful than she should be, which means that the unpaid debt is far larger than what I'm used to. I think it'd be a mistake to assume that things are okay just because we have a less horrible means to keep ourselves alive."

    Homura's body language is noticeably less expressive, mostly because of the hair brushing. Hands and head being caught up in the act of brushing does mean she has very little left to express herself with. She does manage a small shrug at the mention of the Eclipse Puella. "It doesn't, and that's an issue that still needs to be investigated. I suppose I overestimated Agera-san's involvement, but I've yet to ask Hannah about hers."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    The TV being on becomes an even more obvious ploy as Homura brushes her hair. As she starts drawing the brush through it she turns, curling her legs up beside her on the couch and resting with one arm on the back of the couch, watching Homura care for her long hair happily and with keen interest.

    Things do look a little more bleak as the reality of the situation is injected into the conversation, the karmic debt brought up. "It really doesn't seem fair. Having to fight for the rest of your life, and probably turning into a monster yourself, that should be more than enough to pay off the changes a Wish brings."

    She gives a small shake of her head, "Maybe it would mean Wraiths would never stop because we keep destroying them before they... do whatever it is they're doing, but I don't see a better alternative right now. We're not going to let them hurt people just because of something like 'karmic debt'," she almost sounds offended by the term. Madoka shifts a little and rests her cheek on her hands, still watching Homura brush her hair, "It's never okay if innocent people are being hurt, but it seems like it's probably better than so many girls suffering. They end up trying to hurt the innocent people at the same time."

    For a few moment's she's quiet, thinking to herself, before saying quietly, "If that's what Walpurgisnacht is, it was probably so much stronger because of the other magical heroes around to destroy Witches. If they're destroyed right away it means they didn't get the chance to hurt anybody."

    Madoka then looks away, down to the couch in front of her, and a small frown she muses, "I wonder... would a large wish create very much more 'karmic debt' than a really small one..?"

Homura Akemi has posed:
    Homura Akemi notices the watchful eyes of Madoka Kaname, and regards her with cool eyes as she slowly, gently brushes her hair. She keeps brushing, tilting her head to give Madoka a better view, and flashes a smile her way. The strands of her hair shine in the morning sunlight coming through the glass that leads to the garden. From this angle, Homura almost looks mystical.

    Then she frowns, because she doesn't like what she's about to say. "It is, in a real way, completely fair; or at least there's some universal law that seems to think it is. It isn't just that we made our wish. The influence of our rule-breaking wishes didn't end there. We started using the powers we gained from that wish to make things better, and that unbalances things further."

    Then, Homura tilts her head the other way, and moves her brush to the other side of her hair, letting the locks fall past her head and frame her face as she addresses Madoka. "Don't get me wrong. There's nothing that says that has to be the end of the story. We can still have good things as long as we're willing to keep fighting for them. Whether it's karmic debt or some force of darkness, we'd always have to fight in order protect the things we love. This is just an extension of that."

    She closes her eyes. Focusing on moving the brush through her hair, stopping when she reaches a tangle, working through it gently. "I suppose it says something, that while there are forces that seek to bring the universe to balance, there is also something that gives us our powers and allows us to resist it. I've no doubt that Walpurgisnacht was stronger because of the other magical girls in this city, whether it's because they were so good at fighting Witches or it's because they bring so much good into the world unchecked."

    Homura glances towards Madoka. She doesn't really need to think about it. "I'm pretty sure that it would. Everything I've seen seems to indicate that."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Bright light makes quite the impression, bouncing off of shiny black hair. Homura almost does look like an angel, with the way the light seems to surround her. Well. She is Madoka's guardian angel, maybe it's not entirely inappropriate for her to look mystical?

    It isn't often that Madoka completely refuses to accept one of Homura's arguments, but this is one of the times she does. "It might be 'balanced', but there isn't anything fair about it. There's nothing wrong with there being more happiness in the world, or making someone's pain go away." Her head shakes from side to side, using her firm, though not loud, arguing tone.

    She then nods in agreement to Homura's assessment, that they'll keep fighting no matter what the source of the danger and destruction is. Then at the comment of Walpurgisnacht maybe being stronger because they're bringing good into the world Madoka frowns again, "I don't think that could be true. They have their own evils to fight, and Walpurgisnacht has always been one of ours. Bringing good and hope into the world... that's the purpose of magical girls, isn't it? We fight against the things normal people can't, but that isn't the only reason for us to exist."

    She is quiet for a while, taking some solace in watching Homura brush her hair, as it spills over her shoulder when she tilts her head in the other direction. Finally she says in a very quiet voice, "I wonder if that makes it wrong to tell girls they should make very large Wishes and get the most out of their choice. It might make them more powerful, and make the benefit to themselves something closer to the cost, but if it means the entire world will have to pay more because of it, is that right?"

Homura Akemi has posed:
    It might surprise Madoka to see Homura smile at her refusal, or it might not. Yet, there she is, smiling at her girlfriend being optimistic and hopeful. She isn't quiet, but there is a softness in her voice when she says, "I knew you'd say something like that."

    Homura certainly does look somehow angelic, especially with the way the hair plays with the loose strands of her hair, giving her a bit of a halo effect or an aura. From the sparkle in her eyes, she might be doing this on purpose.

    "Even so, I'm sure that Kyubey would say something like that. Not that he's right, but... he would. If we wanted to make that right, we'd have to alter the rules of the universe."

    Madoka seems to disagree with Walpurgisnacht growing as a result of other magical girls even existing. Homura purses her lips. "Maybe. It's true that our power is unique in that it directly opposes natural laws, and Walpurgisnacht did appear in previous timelines. Yet it's also true that I've never seen a Walpurgisnacht that powerful. If Sayaka doesn't become a Witch and doesn't kill people, do those few deaths account for the massive power increase that Walpurgisnacht had? I don't think they do. It could make sense if you consider that there are many more Puella Magi here than in the other universe, which means many more Witches, but the scale that would be necessary..."

    She closes her eyes again. "It implies that there is a lot of death that has been prevented. Since Walpurgisnacht wasn't allowed to complete its objective, there's no telling just how big the difference would have been."

    Homura purses her lips, completes her brush's path through her locks, and sets it aside. "I think, if a girl is willing to sell her soul, and her life, for a single wish... then it should at the very least be her wish, regardless of how big or small. I can say that I'd rather people not accept wishes from Kyubey, and I mean that, but what would be an even worse fate would be for them to die for something that they didn't even want."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka blinks a little at Homura as she smiles and replies. She is a little surprised, but even a small bit of reflection makes her think she shouldn't have been. Her cheeks gain a touch of pink on them and she laughs good naturedly, "Eheheh, you know me best of all." She's smiling too, now.

    Homura's playing with her hair does enhance the effect and Madoka looks over her girlfriend admiringly. "You look beautiful, Homura-chan," she comments softly, leaning away from the couch so she can hold her hands up in front of herself while making a square with her thumbs and forefingers, closing one eye and looking through the center at Homura, as if to put her in a picture frame.

    She's being silly and giggles, but a moment afterwards she pauses and, with a more serious expression, pulls out her phone and quickly takes a picture. Afterwards she turns her phone around and shows it to Homura, giving her girlfriend a very bright smile.

    Someone just found a new background~

    To Homura's consideration about Walpurgisnacht she thinks for several moments and then shakes her head, "Maybe not just Sayaka-chan... but maybe her and all the others? Tokyo is only one city, and even though most of the Witches and Puella Magi seem to have ended up here, there used to be ones all over, right? Erin-chan came from out of town and left to go other places, and Mami-san has been sent to hunt dangerous Witches in other cities, too. Maybe there are other Magical Girls there too, stopping Witches quickly and helping Puella Magi fight."

    Another thought occurs to her and she makes a soft hum, "It do like that it means many more lives have been saved, but how big a difference would it be?" She looks upwards, crossing her arms for a moment, "Walpurgisnacht if left unchecked was able to almost completely destroy Mitakihara, though there were probably some survivors. It seemed strong enough to do the same to Tokyo as well, though there's a chance it would have destroyed the Mitakihara District and moved on, but if not... If you compare the size of how Mitakihara used to be to the size of Tokyo... would that be about how much stronger it was?"

    She turns her eyes down from the ceiling and to the purple of her girlfriend and partner, tilting her head and making a hand motion towards her, as if laying a fact or suggestion down in front of her, "It doesn't seem all that unreasonable, Homura-chan. The entire 'Holy Quintet' is alive, though I hadn't made a Wish to count for karmic debt back when Walpurgisnacht struck. And the Witches that were around were so very, very strong. It's also very hard to say what kind of karmic debt the White Flower was introducing." A pause and a slight grimace, "...or taking away."

    She leans forward, curling a bit while letting out a sigh, "Though it seems crass of me to talk about peoples lives being as a statistic that makes Walpurgisnacht stronger. I guess it isn't so bad, since it's lives that are continuing rather than ones being taken away." The truth of the world is harsh, and sometimes it can weigh on her slim shoulders.

    Still, she doesn't let it keep her down for long. Madoka smiles softly to Homura about her response, "You're right. The most important thing is that they know what they're getting into, and that they use their Wish for something truly important to them. I don't know if I could have wished for something bigger, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't have wished for something better." Her eyes sparkle a little as she looks at Homura.

Homura Akemi has posed:
    "I do. I especially know the parts of you that I love the most," says Homura, with a smile betraying understated happiness, as she seems to almost radiate light despite the dark clothing she wears. She giggles as Madoka seems to be lining her up for a picture with her fingers, but when the camera comes out, Homura holds still, allowing Madoka to capture the moment without blurs or blemish.

    When she sees the picture, Homura suggests, "We should add that to the photo album." The thought that Madoka would use that as her phone's background warms her heart. That Madoka would be reminded of Homura and admire her when messing with her phone...

    Homura has to consider the implications of Puella Magi from other towns. "Yeah, in other timelines they were all over the place. They seem to gather here in this universe. Would that increase Walpurgisnacht's power? Maybe, if they were all gathered here."

    Madoka should remember Walpurgisnacht as clearly as Homura does. She did take her trauma and despair, after all. It's no surprise to Homura that Madoka has that kind of knowledge.

    "Well. That's one way of looking at it. Another way to look at it is... it would take two or three Puella Magi to destroy Walpurgisnacht normally, and they'd likely die in the attempt. We had... what, twenty? Thirty? Maybe more? Somewhere around there. Then again, Mitakihara doesn't normally have magically defended buildings, so Walpurgisnacht would have to be even stronger to take those out, too."

    Homura considers the rest of what Madoka says, about karmic debt and the White flower and the Holy Quintet being alive. "All of that probably contributes, in some way or another, and I don't think it's... crass, persay. Cold, maybe, but it's important to at least understand how these things work."

    Homura blushes at Madoka's conclusion regarding wishing for something better. She smiles, and leans against Madoka. "You saved me, but not only that, you wished for the power to save others as well. I think you did make a good wish."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka takes a bit longer to take the picture when Homura holds still for her, centering it properly and finding a slightly better angle. Her smile is then extra bright! At the suggestion she nods and repeats, "We should," in a cheery voice, taking an extra moment to sort the picture into a folder on her phone for just that so she won't have to remember later. "So pretty~!" she says with a smile before turning her phone off and putting it away.

    Twenty or thirty magical heroes to destroy Walpurgisnacht, and not all of them survived the battle. That does make it sound so immensely stronger and Madoka nods, looking down thoughtfully, "That's true, there were a very large number of people there. I didn't have to fight it myself so I can't really say from experience how powerful it was." She looks back up to Homura, making a face, "Twenty times stronger though..? I don't think that's right. If it was as strong as that no one could have defended from it's attacks; your shield is incredibly strong and it pressured you heavily even in past timeloops, right? So if it was twenty times stronger wouldn't it have killed you or used up all your magic in a single hit?" She doesn't actually remember if Homura tanked any of Walpurgis' attacks. "I think maybe it was several times stronger, but it's hard to say because it was so insanely powerful to begin with. It took so many to destroy it, but probably because of how much more powerful it was than any one of those fighting it."

    Madoka frowns a little, thinking she isn't getting her point across very well, before suddenly realizing a good example. "If an army decided to fight a weak Puella Magi and they had no magic, how many of them would it take to win? The actual number doesn't matter, but it'd be a lot, right? If you make it a really strong Puella Magi instead, it'd take very many more, even if the strong Puella Magi was only twice as strong as the weak one." It suddenly strikes her that she might sound negative so she shakes her head, "I'm not trying to say what everyone did wasn't amazing, it really was! But when something is already insanely powerful, becoming even a little more could make a very big difference. I just think it's too much to say that Walpurgisnacht this time was twenty or more times stronger. I think if it was it'd be trying to destroy the whole world, not just Tokyo."

    After a moment she looks very embarrassed and rubs the back of her head, "Ehehe..."

    Right. Kriemhild Gretchen.

    When Homura against Madoka the pink-haired girl practically melts against her, scooting closer and slipping both arms around her, still half curled up with her legs on the couch, and fairly tempted to climb right into Homura's lap. That wouldn't make her very good leaning support, though! "I'm glad you think so. I'm also glad you came back to me, and that we were able to connect the way we did. Being able to see you so happy and spend so much time with you has already made it worth it, and there's still so much more for us."

Homura Akemi has posed:
    More giggling as Madoka says she's pretty, though Homura does suppress it enough to let Madoka take the picture. It's only after that where she starts talking.

    "Minor nitpick: Thirty people versus three people would be ten times stronger, at worst, and that's assuming... well... a lot." Homura waves her hand in the air. "As tempting as it might be to think of it in terms of some kind of shonen power scale, I don't really think that's an accurate way to see it. People died because it's a dangerous fight, not necessarily because it was a powerful opponent. You could have a familiar that kills a Puella in one hit, but also dies to one hit, and that wouldn't necessarily put it on the same level as Walpurgisnacht."

    Her brush is down, and her lecturing index finger is up. "In short, we don't know that we needed thirty people to kill it. We only know that we had thirty people and that was enough. For all we know, ten could be enough, or five if they were willing to die. Though, for the record, I would actually be surprised if five would be enough, and if I had my way I'd grab fifty more people and make sure that no one died."

    Homura picks up her brush again, and starts working through her hair. "Like you said, it's really a matter of... critical points, more than raw number multiplication. Being strong enough to break my shield with one hit would be one way to increase her power, but another way would be to... simply give her more skyscrapers to throw around. Her familiars were actually about as strong as expected, but there were more of them."

    As she leans against Madoka and is embraced, she closes her eyes peacefully. She takes a deep breath, lets it out, and says, "It's been wonderful, hasn't it? I know I've loved every moment of it."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Somehow in Madoka's estimating she had failed at elementary school level math, and she flushes brightly, covering her mouth and giggling a moment later. She listens to Homura's lecture all the way through and by the end feels properly lectured. "You're right. It's probably not something we can calculate very easily at all like that, is it? I thought maybe if we could it might help us better figure out why it was so much stronger."

    She gives a small shake of her head, not frowning, really, but looking vaguely worried. "The fact is that Walpurgisnacht was very, very powerful, and now because it's gone, and because there are no Witches, those Wraiths have appeared. They're dangerous, but I think being careful they're somewhat less so than Witches."

    She looks into Homura's eyes, "That... worries me a little. Because Walpurgisnacht was so very, very strong. The Wraiths are very weak compared to them. I think we need to be careful to never get lax when fighting them, Homura-chan. If they're the 'plan B' to Walpurgisnacht there must be something very dangerous about them we haven't seen yet. Maybe they're just working on a much more widespread of a scale and we can't see it, but we should still be ready for them to get much more dangerous if they're here to finish the job Walpurgisnacht started."

    As Homura closes her eyes Madoka's arm in front of hugs around her, hand on her shoulder, while the other goes up and gently pets the side of her head, brushing over her hair. She leans her girlfriends heard to her chest, cuddling her close and pressing a small kiss to the top of her head, very motherly and nurturing all of a sudden. "It has, and I'd never have known what it was like to be so happy if it wasn't for you, Homura-chan."

Homura Akemi has posed:
    Homura shrugs, a bit sheepishly. She feels a little silly lecturing Madoka sometimes. Not because Homura is inexperienced, quite the opposite, but she's not used to actually being listened to. "I guess I just... I think it's weirder than that. Like... yeah."

    "I mean, dealing with karmic debt is like... you have a bank account, but you can never really look at what's in it, and you can't view your own spending records, and if you run up too much debt something goes wrong. I mean, if Walpurgisnacht were a hundred times stronger, but it got defeated in five minutes without killing anyone, how would that affect the karmic debt? I have no idea how I'd figure that out."

    Homura listens to Madoka's other concerns regarding Wraiths and Witches. It takes her a bit before she responds, which gives Madoka enough time to speak her mind. "It's a little odd, isn't it? 'Less dangerous than Witches', admittedly, isn't saying much, but I'd agree that they seem to be.less scary. Though that might be dangerous thinking. It easily might be the case that what they do leads to a fate worse than death. I don't really know for sure that it doesn't."

    Dire thoughts, but they're talking about aspects of the universe that they only just barely understand, and they don't seem very fair. "I agree though. We should never lower our guard, no matter what. There's no reason to let them do whatever it is that they're doing. It can't possibly be good."

    She nuzzles against Madoka, smiling and going 'mm' at the kiss on her head. "I'm glad that I was able to show you that, Madoka-chan. You've always meant so much to me."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Madoka gives Homura a mildly curious look at the sheepishness but doesn't otherwise press. "Weirder is the right word for it," Madoka agrees.

    At the analogy of a bank Madoka thinks it over before frowning a little, "Does that make your potential as a Puella Magi something like your credit rating? Does that mean it has something to do with karmic debt?" She shakes her head in confused fashion and sighs a little, "We could ask Kyubey, I suppose. It isn't like him to bring things like this 'karmic debt' up without being asked about it directly, though maybe he was forced to with all the lies that imposter told."

    When Homura responds to her comments about Wraiths she hums, "Aren't they, though? Witches are terrifying and all very different, but they're also very unforgiving. Wraiths need to fight in groups to be the same kind of threat as a Witch, but that might not always be the case. I don't want to get complacent because they all seem to be the same and fight the same way, especially because Kyubey said they have the same 'job' as Walpurgisnacht and it was so very powerful."

    They seem to be completely on the same page when it comes to keeping their guards up and taking them seriously, so Madoka isn't as interested in pushing her opinion as she is about making them clear.

    Madoka smiles herself at the nuzzle, pressing her forehead to the side of Homura's head and brushing her fluffy bangs into Homura's hair. Hopefully it doesn't mess it up too much! "You always meant a lot to me too, Homura-chan. It just took me a little while to remember."

Homura Akemi has posed:
    Homura isn't sure how much the bank analogy holds. Maybe it does. "I suppose that would make sense. If you have a good 'credit rating', maybe that the bank is more likely to offer you a bigger loan. Though I'm not sure if it's possible to damage your metaphorical credit rating."

    On the subject of asking Kyubey, Homura shrugs. "We could ask. I doubt we'd get a clear answer. Not unless he thought he had nothing to lose by answering fully. He's actually really helpful when he thinks it benefits him."

    Homura listens a bit before answering further, and they are mostly on the same page. There really isn't much room for disagreement on that subject. Puella Magi can never lower their guard, no matter what. Even if they get away with it once or twice, it's not a habit that they can afford to have.

    'It's a little strange how they tend to look the same, but maybe there's a reason for that. I don't know, but it might be because they don't come from someone's soul. If they come from the universe, then it makes sense for them to be a little bit samey.

    "I wonder if that makes Walpurgisnacht a Wraith instead of a Witch... but that can't be right. It didn't drop a Grief Cube, either. Also, she doesn't look anything like a Wraith."

    Homura smiles, adjusting her position to wrap an arm around Madoka's back. "I'm glad that you did remember, though. For all of the bad things we've been through, there was a lot of good too. The time you came for me, in a lot of ways, was one of the best. Despite the circumstances."