Kyoko Sakura was back against a wall, she had both her arms holding onto her face, she stared at the ceiling of her burned down house, at this moment she felt complicated. She suddenly remembers everything. She remembers every timeline that was erased, but she could not do anything.
She watched as her body moved on it's own. No it was more of she was a spectator that was watching her life play out in a different timeline. She didn't understand why Salem didn't tell her about all...this. Maybe he did and she just didn't listen. She sighed watching herself go along with the day.
She couldn't do anything and she hated it, She doesn't want to admit it, but she already misses Salem.
She watched herself fight a witch and took it's soul gem, when she was about to transfer the taint into the grief seed, Kyoko stopped and realized her soul gem was unusually bright, the inside of it seemed like light red flowing liquid, Kyoko got confused and then pondered for a moment.
It seems she didn't need it, she kept the Grief seed in her pocket and walked along.
Day's passed and Kyoko still hunted down witches and kept their grief seeds, her speed of clearing a witch seemed to have increased and she Realized her ability to cast illusions came back stronger than before. She had a lot of mixed feelings but she decided to shove them to the side and ignore them.
Soon she heard from Kyubey that Mami died and then she went back to Mitakihara City to see what the new magical girl was like.
The Kyoko which was watching this one suddenly sighed with a bit of sadness, she wondered why Salem erased himself, she missed the two times where he called her his Little Wife, maybe she would have been much more happier...now she feels much more lonelier than before.
Kyoko let out a bitter chuckle, her arms dropping to her sides as she continued to watch her past self go through the motions. It was strange—seeing herself move, act, fight—without truly being in control.
So this is what it's like to be left behind.
She never really thought about it before. She was used to loss, used to abandonment. It was easier to live in the moment, to keep moving forward without looking back. But now, with all of her erased memories rushing in like a flood, it hurt in a way she didn't expect.
She hated it.
She hated that he was gone.
She hated that she remembered him when no one else could.
She hated that even now, she couldn't forget.
"Little Wife."
Kyoko clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. That idiot. He always had that smug look when he called her that. She used to throw food at him whenever he did. And yet…
"Maybe I would've been happier."
The thought sent a sharp pang through her chest.
No.
She shook her head, forcing herself to focus. Now wasn't the time for regrets. There was still something she needed to do.
Her past self stepped into Mitakihara once more, the city feeling both familiar and distant.
Kyubey hopped onto a nearby railing, his red eyes gleaming with that eerie, detached curiosity.
"You've become quite powerful, Kyoko Sakura."
She clicked her tongue, stuffing her hands into her hoodie pockets. "Tch. What, you keeping track of my stats or something?"
"In a way." Kyubey flicked his tail. "Your magic has changed. Your soul gem remains untainted, despite your frequent battles. That shouldn't be possible."
Kyoko stiffened for a moment before scoffing. "Guess I'm just built different."
Kyubey tilted his head, unblinking. "Perhaps."
Kyoko ignored the growing unease in her gut. It wasn't just her power that had changed—she had changed.
She could feel it.
The way her magic flowed smoother, how her illusions seemed more real, how witches barely stood a chance against her anymore.
But the biggest change was something else.
She couldn't die.
Not in the normal way, at least.
She had tested it once—let a witch pierce her through the stomach and soul gem. It hurt like hell, but when she checked her soul gem afterward, there wasn't even a scratch. The wound healed in minutes, as if it never happened.
It was like her soul gem refused to break.
The Kyoko watching this one was holding her knees and muttered a single word. "Idiot"
She really was an idiot, testing something like that...it made her feel like a hypocrite, she giggled at the thought of Salem saying that to her.
She remembered the time he used to call her Ophelia and had to stop.
She remembered the single time when they hunted a witch together.
And she remembered the single time they went on a normal yet cute date, it was at that time she got Married to him and he removed her need to feed on grief seeds. She chuckled once more, she was so flustered at that time yet she felt a small sense of joy from him declaring to be her family.
"How rude, you didn't even give me a kiss"
Yeah, maybe she should have, at least he could have that satisfaction and she could remember it to make sure to punch his imaginary face whenever. Ah but what could she do now but reminiscence, she hated this world with all her heart, she wished she can start over in another one, she hated herself.
She hated Mami for acting guilty of her family's death and not caring about it.
She hated herself for not looking at Mami's perspective when she has lost her parents way before her.
Kyoko closed her eyes, resting her forehead against her knees as bitter laughter escaped her lips.
What was the point of all this?
Remembering everything didn't make her stronger—it just made her angrier.
She clenched her fists, shaking as the emotions swirled in her chest. Hate, regret, sorrow, exhaustion. She had tried to move on, to keep fighting, to pretend like none of it mattered, but deep down…
She was tired.
So tired.
….
Today Sayaka woke up from bed feeling strange, her body felt a tad bit tired and she felt a violent pain in her heart, she shrugged it off as nothing and stood up and cleaned herself up, made herself some breakfast and went out of the door and to school.
There she saw Madoka who joined her on the walk and soon Hitomi joined them, soon she played around with Madoka making Hitomi say some strange words which made them both laugh.
They arrived at class and a strange new transfer student called Homura Akemi was in their class, she seemed interested in Madoka.
Later that day she went to a music store with Madoka, she turned around the next second only to see Madoka not at her original place, she began to look for her and when she found her she found the transfer student looking at Madoka menacingly, she took a fire extinguisher and sprayed it on her. She grabbed Madoka's arm and saw she was holding a cat like being.
"Hah, This day again huh" The Sayaka that was spectating this one sighed, she didn't know how to feel about this, she laid on the air, her eyes were dull as she realized she made a huge mistake, Salem saved her life once and now she can't forget him.
She already knew that when he helped her from never becoming a witch, she and Kyoko went out to eat that day, she was in a very depressed mood at the time but Kyoko irritated her out of it, she still remembered the question she asked her. "Hey, so now that Salem tricked the both of us into supposedly Marrying him, what do you think about it"
At that time Sayaka blushed a little even though her eyes were still dull. "Ah, I don't know, Hitomi said she liked Kyosuke and now they are dating, I don't really know what to feel. I'm still disappointed...and a bit sad too, it was probably my fault for giving up on Kyosuke to Hitomi when she asked did I like him or not, ah whatever and regarding the so called marriage with my best friends twin brother...I don't know"
Kyoko threw away the can she was eating some chips from. "Well, he definitely was right about you being naïve and selfless but don't feel too sad about it, even though he acts like a creep sometimes, I think Salem cares about us but I don't really need that"
Sayaka chuckled. "Oh but aren't you super lonely"
Kyoko scoffed, kicking her feet up on the table. "Shut up. I don't need anyone."
Sayaka gave her a knowing look. "Uh-huh. Keep telling yourself that, 'Little Wife.'"
Kyoko nearly choked on air. "You wanna die, Sayaka?"
Sayaka just laughed, though there was something hollow about it.
That was the last time they ever really talked about him.
Now, watching herself relive those moments like a scene on a broken record, the Sayaka that was merely spectating let out a long, shaky sigh.
"God, I was so stupid."
She thought she had moved on. She thought she had accepted things. But now, remembering everything, all she could feel was an aching void in her chest.
Salem.
Even now, his name felt foreign on her lips. Like something fragile, something precious, something she shouldn't be allowed to remember.
Yet she did.
She remembered his voice, his stupid smirk, the way he somehow always had a plan even when everything seemed hopeless. She remembered how he saved her—not just from becoming a witch, but from herself.
And then he was gone.
Erased.
Like he never existed.
Like everything he had done for them didn't matter.
Sayaka clenched her jaw. "That's not fair…"
She wasn't sure who she was talking to. Maybe to the universe. Maybe to whatever cruel force decided to take him away. Maybe to herself.
But no matter what, it didn't change the fact that she was still here. Stuck in a world that didn't remember him.
Except for Kyoko.
Sayaka blinked, suddenly realizing something.
Kyoko still remembered him.
Yes that was right?!, maybe her past self can find Kyoko...but she would have to wait until...until Mami...dies again.
She didn't want to see that again.
In other timelines she saw Mami being unstable and going insanely paranoid when she found out they became witches. But...Mami is still her friend and her heart aches whenever she remembers her dying or getting killed or even killing their friends sometimes because of the cruel truth that Magical girls would eventually become witches.
Heh.
Oh well.
Sayaka let out a slow breath, bracing herself. She had to watch it all play out again. Mami's death. The grief. The horror. The moment when everything would fall apart.
She wished she could stop it.
But she wasn't part of this world anymore—just a ghost lingering in the cracks of forgotten timelines.
Her past self continued on, oblivious to what was coming.
Sayaka felt sick.
She already knew how this ended.
And she hated that she couldn't do a damn thing to change it.
But maybe… just maybe… when this was over, she and Kyoko could find each other again. Maybe they could piece together what was left of Salem's memory.
Soon the time fast forwarded. The spectator watched as Sayaka made a wish to cure Kyosuke. She was stupid at that time to. She did remember when Salem stopped her from becoming a witch and said something about the spell of Copulation being completed.
She blushed slightly, she couldn't believe someone her ages said something so...unneeded, she doesn't know, maybe it was needed, Maybe she did want to be called Little Wife. She felt old, how many times did Homura reset the timeline.
She would guess it to be the hundreds, maybe even thousands. It didn't matter.
None of it mattered, because no matter how many times Homura rewound the world, the pain never disappeared. The memories never left her. And now, she was cursed to remember all of them.
Ah, maybe she should look at it at Homura's perspective, it was a surprise she didn't turn into a witch yet.
Ah, she was going to sleep and maybe wake up when she finds Kyoko, she doesn't want to experience seeing herself becoming a witch and reliving that annoying day. Octavia Von Seckendorff.
Sayaka groaned as she felt the familiar dread settle in her chest. Even if she was just a spectator, even if she had already seen this unfold countless times, it didn't make it any less painful. It was her so called True Name. After all it seems a witch trial happened and the witch got purified and became her instead.
Ah yes, he became a concept, Born from the fear of witches and the desperate escape of Magical girls from fate.
The Salem witch trials came to birth. But it seems the concept is devouring itself.
"He who devours himself, Yachiron" Salem didn't like being a concept, she realized maybe this was why he erased himself, to devour himself and come back, Is that why she needed to remember him?, was it a part of some kind of weird resurrection ritual?.
Wait...did she actually miss Manaka that much....who is Manaka?.
Sayaka then remembered, it was Salem's original name before he became a concept. "Manaka, you really are no help."
Sayaka's head ached. Thoughts of Salem—or Manaka, as she now remembered—twisted in her mind like an unsolvable puzzle. If he had erased himself, why did she and Kyoko still remember him? Was that part of his plan? Or was this some cruel joke, leaving them with the burden of a ghost no one else could see?
She closed her eyes, retreating deeper into the void of her own existence. The events of the past played on, like a story she could neither influence nor escape.
And soon, as expected, Mami died.
Sayaka didn't flinch this time. She had seen it too many times to react. She only watched as her past self stood frozen in shock, the weight of reality crashing down on her shoulders. This was the turning point. The moment that set everything in motion.
Then came Kyoko, returning to Mitakihara, stepping into her role as both a nuisance and an unintentional savior. Sayaka wanted to reach out to her past self, to scream, to warn her. But it was pointless.
All that mattered now was Kyoko.
Sayaka shifted, focusing on the red-haired girl as she moved through the city, acting like she didn't care while quietly carrying the weight of everything she had lost. Kyoko was different now. Stronger, sharper, impossibly resilient. And yet, Sayaka knew the truth.
Kyoko missed him too.
As the past continued unfolding before her, Sayaka realized something else. Something strange.
Kyoko's soul gem was still untainted.
Why?
Magical girls had a limit. Their souls could only take so much before corruption swallowed them whole. But Kyoko… she was different. Her magic had evolved, her abilities amplified. And more importantly—she was never at risk of becoming a witch.
Just like Sayaka.
Her eyes widened as the pieces started clicking together.
"Hey, Blue hair, are you done sulking around" Sayaka flinched as she heard Kyoko's voice, she turned around to see another Kyoko near the real one looking at her with a sad yet smug grin.
Sayaka sat up, staring at the Kyoko before her. The redhead had her arms crossed, a lopsided smirk on her face, but there was something in her eyes—something heavy, something exhausted.
"You're here too, huh?" Sayaka muttered, rubbing the back of her neck.
Kyoko scoffed. "Like hell I'd let you be the only one stuck in this freakshow." She dropped down to sit beside Sayaka, her legs dangling over the abyss of forgotten timelines. "Besides, if I left you alone, you'd just sulk yourself into oblivion."
Sayaka huffed, shaking her head. "Right, because you're so good at dealing with this."
Kyoko went quiet for a moment, her smirk faltering. "Tch. Like I got a choice."
They sat there in silence, watching their past selves move like puppets on a stage. Sayaka watched as her past self threw herself deeper into battle, her movements becoming reckless, desperate. Kyoko watched her own past self try to act indifferent, even as grief and loneliness clawed at the edges of her soul.
After a while, Sayaka spoke again. "Kyoko… do you think this is all part of his plan?"
Kyoko tensed, but didn't answer right away. She just watched as the past continued, as their younger selves walked further into the same doomed fate.
"...Dunno," she finally admitted. "But if it is, I hope he knows I'm gonna punch him in the face when I see him again."
Sayaka blinked, then let out a small, genuine laugh. "Heh. Yeah. Same."
Kyoko grinned, nudging Sayaka with her elbow. "Guess that means we gotta find him first."
Sayaka exhaled, looking down at her hands. "Yeah… but where the hell do we even start?"
Then all of a sudden they heard Madokas voice.
"I want to erase all witches before they are even born. I will erase every single witch in every universe, past and future with my own hands... I don't care what you call it. All those Magical Girls who held onto their hopes and fought against witches I don't want to see them cry. I want them to stay smiling until the end. If any rule or law stands in my way, I will destroy it. I will rewrite it. That is my prayer. That is my wish. Now grant it, Incubator!.
ayaka and Kyoko froze.
The voice rang through the void like a declaration of war, like a force rewriting the very foundation of their existence.
Madoka.
Sayaka turned to Kyoko, wide-eyed. "Did you—?"
Kyoko was already on her feet, eyes locked onto the scene playing out below them. "No way…" Her voice was barely a whisper. "She's—she's actually doing it."
They had seen this before, countless times. But this time was different.
This time, they remembered everything.
A surge of energy rippled through the air, golden light breaking through the darkness like dawn piercing the night. Sayaka and Kyoko shielded their eyes as the timeline twisted, shifted—no, shattered—before them.
The world below them changed.
Witches disappeared. Magical girls who once fell into despair were freed from their fates. Sayaka felt it—her past self, the moment she should have transformed into Octavia, simply… vanished. As if that tragedy had never existed.
And yet, she was still here.
She turned to Kyoko, heart pounding. "We're still here."
Kyoko clenched her fists. "Yeah. We are."
Everything was being rewritten, reshaped by Madoka's wish. A world without witches. A world where they didn't need to fight against their own fate.
Then why were they still standing in the void, untouched?
And more importantly… why did they still remember Salem?
As the golden light of Madoka's new reality spread, Sayaka and Kyoko stood at the edge of existence, caught between what once was and what was being reborn.
Rebellion.
Homura was having the time of her life, after countless resets she has finally found peace, Mami, Kyoko ,Sayaka and Madoka were all here and happy. She smiled her glasses slowly tilting down.
She was about to walk when a door appeared in front of her.
She tilted her head in confusion and curiosity, why did a door appear in front of her, she didn't know why but she instinctively touched the door knob.
Homura gently opened the door.
"Oh, hello Homura, you have a nice looking labyrinth here" It was a boy with pink hair with stripes of white, he was reading a small book titled '0' while laying on a couch. The boy had Pink eyes that looked like molten bronze. He was wearing a casual outfit, a t-shirt and shorts.
Homura blinked, confused by who this is, she went into the door and it closed right behind her. "Uhm, who are you?"
"My name is Salem but you may call me Manaka" He closed the book with a loud thump.
Homura narrowed her eyes and stared at him. "What do you mean by Labyrinth"
Manaka merely smiled, he stood up and stretched, behind him countless tomes floated like this place was some kind of grand library, there was a strange looking rune that resembled a serpent devouring its own tail, glowing faintly in the dimly lit space. The air felt heavy, like the weight of countless forgotten stories pressed against her skin.
"A labyrinth is what it is," Manaka—Salem—said nonchalantly waving a hand. "A space created from the emotions and desires of a being. In your case, Homura, your labyrinth is… well, this." He gestured around him. "A carefully crafted illusion of a perfect world."
Homura's breath caught in her throat. "No… this isn't a labyrinth. This is real."
Manaka tilted his head, a knowing smile on his lips. "Is it?"
She clenched her fists. "What do you want?"
Manaka shrugged. "Me? Nothing much. I just thought I'd say hello before the cracks start showing."
Homura's heart pounded. "Cracks?"
Manaka stepped closer, his molten pink eyes gleaming. "You did something incredible, Homura Akemi. You defied fate, you rewrote the world in your own image. But…" He let out a small chuckle. "Even the most beautiful lies have their limits."
Homura took a step back, suddenly feeling the weight of the space pressing down on her. "You're wrong. This world—this happiness—is real."
Manaka sighed, shaking his head. "You can convince yourself of that for now. But soon… even you won't be able to ignore the truth."
He turned away, walking towards the shelves of floating books. "Sayaka and Kyoko are already beginning to see through the veil. It's only a matter of time before the others do, too."
Homura's eyes widened. "Sayaka? Kyoko? What do you mean?"
Manaka smirked over his shoulder. "Oh, you'll see soon enough."
And with that, he reached out and pulled one of the floating tomes from the air. The moment he did, the door behind Homura creaked open again.
A chill ran down her spine.
"Well, that's all for now," Manaka said, flipping the book open without looking at her. "See you soon, Devil."
Homura turned sharply. "What did you just call me—?"
But before she could finish, the door yawned open, and she was pulled backward, falling back into her perfect world.