Kyoko and Sayaka rounded a bend at full speed, with Sayaka in the lead. She took a quick look behind and made a comical face at Kyoko, shouting, "Hah! Look who's gonna be the rotten cherry and the smelly frog?"

"Shut up, you musical freak!" retorted Kyoko in a sarcastic manner, panting. "Bet I could win if I weren't so hungry!"

Lost in the temporary euphoria, Sayaka did not realise that the Australian twins were just in front of her. Unable to stop her momentum, she crashed into them, yelling in surprise. All three fell down and it was a mess of hair, arms and legs, made worse when Kyoko tripped over them.

"Whooaahh!" she yelped, tumbling on top of them and accidentally hitting Sayaka in the face.

Just at that moment, Madoka came scurrying down, her pink eyes flashing concern. "Are you four alright?"

The twins hastily stood up, flattening their messed up hair. They gave Madoka an apologetic look, then rushed off along the corridor without a second backwards glance. Madoka looked puzzled for a moment, then reached out a hand to help Sayaka and Kyoko up.

"What's up with the two queens? Can't they even say a simple 'sorry'?" growled Sayaka, rubbing her face where Kyoko had hit her.

"Well," pointed out Madoka with a hint of a smile, "it was really your fault in the first place for running around in the school corridors. Give them a chance, they just came here today, after all."

"Oh, well. I guess you're right," Sayaka sighed, "Even you were once a transfer student, Madoka, and that was six months ago."

Kyoko gave Sayaka a small punch. "Aww, cut the chat and let's get moving. That cake's not gonna wait for no one!"

Laughing, the trio headed for Mami's class, joking about transfer students and smelly frogs.

***

Mami was busy finishing her homework. She didn't want to leave the work for tonight, because she was looking forward to a cook-and-taste session with Nagisa Momoe, a sweet twelve-year-old orphaned girl whom she had taken in six months ago.

She didn't know much about Nagisa then, only that her mother had died from cancer and that she had no father. She found her wandering the streets alone, scared and hungry, so, being the kind-hearted person that she was, Mami took her back home. Soon, they formed a fast friendship, made stronger by the fact that they both understood the anguish of losing one's parents.

Mami was so absorbed in her work that she didn't notice Sayaka and Kyoko creeping up on her from behind. Madoka simply stood at a corner and observed what happened next, stiffling a giggle.

With a wild screech, the two threw themselves upon Mami, who gave a surprised squeal.

"Hahaaaarrr!"

"Yaaaaaahh!"

"Omigosh, what's happening?! Aaaaahhh!!!"

"Hahahahaha! Gotcha, Mami-san, now hand over the cake if you wanna live!" shouted Kyoko down Mami's ear.

Sayaka grabbed at Mami's arms while Kyoko proceeded to tickle her mercilessly.

"Whoohahahahah! Oh, stop tickling me, whahahaha! Okay, okay, I'll give you guys some cake - ahahaha! - just stop tickling meeeee heeeheeeheee!" laughed Mami uncontrollably, trying unsuccessfully to squirm away from her tormentors.

The two girls released their deadly grip from their blonde haired senior, leaning against her table like nothing ever happened.

Wiping away tears of mirth, Mami tutted as she reached down into her bag and produced a small box of cake. She placed it on her table, opening the lid, and the sweet smell of vanilla and strawberry wafted through the air.

Kyoko's eyes lit up at once. "Wow, that looks great, Mami! When did you bake it?"

"I made it yesterday night with Momoe-san, though at first, she insisted that we bake cheese cake instead," said Mami, extending three forks to Kyoko, Sayaka and Madoka, who had walked over now that the prank was done. "I hope you'll like it. We took a long time trying to figure out the right recipe!"

The three juniors dug in, relishing each bite with much exaggerated splendor.

"Mmmhpf! You're the best cook in the whole universe, Mami-san!" praised Sayaka in between mouthfuls.

Madoka nodded happily, taking another bite before saying, "I can never bake as good as you, Mami-san. Ooh, maybe we should all have a baking class together one day!"

Kyoko just gave a contented grunt, too busy inhaling the cake to give a comment.

Mami chuckled, blushing slightly. "Thanks. Oh, by the way, are you guys free tonight? Momoe-san and I are having a cook-and-taste session, and it would be great if everyone can attend."

At the sound of more food, Kyoko hastily swallowed her mouthful of vanilla cake and slammed her fork on the tabletop, making everyone jump. "Are we free? Of course we are! No one's ever too busy for food, ain't that right, Sayaka?"

Sayaka threw her hands upwards in mock despair. "You great foodbag! One day, you're gonna get so fat, you'd sink into the ground."

Immediately, Kyoko pounced on Sayaka and launched into a tirade of sarcastic comments.

"Oh, ho, foodbag, is it? You're nothing more than a pompous windbag, then!"

"More like I'm the sensible lady who doesn't go around stuffing her face with cream every second of the day!"

Madoka groaned as Mami tried to prise the two girls apart without much success. "There they go again..."

***

Kirika Kure walked down the corridor, passing Mami's class and overhearing the merry conversation. She heaved an inwards sigh, wondering why she wasn't as popular as Mami.

No one seemed to want to speak with her, let alone make friends with her. Maybe she was just a born outcast, doomed to live the rest of her life alone. She shuffled past the class gloomily, fiddling with a stuffed toy that she hung on her hip.

She wanted to make friends, but was scared to commit herself to someone. She had learnt a lesson the hard way to not trust someone wholeheartedly - through betrayal by a once-best-friend, Erika.

At least there was one person that actually cared about her. She felt better instantly at the thought of meeting up with her beloved Oriko tonight.

Only Oriko would understand her feelings.

Hefting her bag on her shoulder, she walked with a spring in her step, whistling with fake merriment to mask her oppressive loneliness.

***

Estella Queen looked behind her, heart beating fast from the run after bumping into Kyoko and Sayaka. Her twin, Luna, glanced at her, saying, "Whew, I'm so glad they didn't come after us, Stella. I'm actually quite scared of Sakura-san and her fangs." She paused for 'dramatic' effect, then added in an undertone, "Do you think she's a vampire?"

"What? Nah, don't spew nonsense like that, Luna," chided Estella, flapping at herself with a hand. "Besides, vampires don't exist."

Luna bit her lower lip, worried. "I hope we haven't angered them or anything. I'd hate to make enemies out of them, and they seemed quite friendly, especially that pink-haired one."

She was about to say more when Estella silenced her with a finger. "Hush, someone's coming here, and she's whistling loudly."

The twins smoothed down their uniforms and made to hurry off, but the person was already in front of them. She was of normal height, with dark brown hair and striking gold eyes. Her uniform was vastly altered. Instead of leggings, she wore knee-high boots with belts on them. A piece of checkered cloth hung on her left hip, along with a voodoo-like doll, and she wore a tie with two button badges on it. Flashing a reckless grin at them, she exposed two sharp fangs. Luna involuntarily recoiled, with thoughts of vampires floating around in her head.

"Hey," she said casually, raising a hand in greeting. "New here?"

The twins nodded dumbly, awed at this cool senior girl. Estella spoke first, introducing themselves hesitantly in her awkward Japanese accent. "Good afternoon, senpai. I'm Estella Queen, and this is my twin, Luna. We're from Lordanum City in Australia and have just moved here a week ago."

Kirika nodded, feeling secretly happy that two juniors had taken notice of her. "Well, enjoy yourselves here at Mitakihara. And, drop the formalities. My name's Kirika Kure, but you can call me Kirika." She gave them a roguish wink before continuing her walk down the corridor, whistling loudly.

Luna stared after her, blinking. "She's one cool girl, even though she's got fangs and dresses like a ruffian. What do you think, Stella?"

Her twin gave a shrug, saying, "Well, at least she's nice, though she looks like some punk on the outside. But, seeing as she was the first person to not comment on our weird Japanese accent..."

They looked at each other and smiled. Maybe things will turn out for the better eventually. And who knows, Kirika Kure might make a good friend and senior.

***

The sun was beginning to set, casting its last golden rays across the city skyscrapers and tingeing the fluffy clouds a vivid orange-red. After picking up Nagisa Momoe and Yuma Chitose, who was under Kyoko's care, from Mitakihara Elementary School, the six of them headed for Mami's apartment, chatting excitedly.

"Kyoko, Yuma has missed you dearly! What are we eating for dinner?" enquired the little green-haired girl, tugging at Kyoko's skirt.

Kyoko gave her a distracted answer, still thinking of cakes and dessert. "Huh, what? Oh, we're having apples and Pocky sticks."

Yuma's blue eyes widened. "Whaaat? But Kyoko, they're not filling at all!"

Sayaka, Madoka, Mami and Nagisa laughed, with Sayaka commenting drolly on Kyoko's bad habit of fantasizing about food. "Huh, you two are so alike. Is food all you guys ever talk about?"

The merry banter went to and fro, occasionally interspersed with witty and sarcastic remarks from Sayaka and Kyoko, which set everyone guffawing.

Eventually, they reached Mami's apartment. She invited them in with a flourish, turning on the lights and gesturing for them to sit around her triangular table. As usual, her apartment was in tip-top condition, with everything arranged neatly and tidily.

"Compared to Mami's place, mine looks like some run-down shed," muttered Kyoko, who received a playful bump from Sayaka.

"Make yourselves at home. Momoe-san and I will be presenting you with our dishes soon!" said Mami with a cheerful clap, clearly enjoying herself. "Come on, Momoe-san, time to get cooking!"

"I'll make a cheesy spaghetti carbonara, followed by chocolate cheese cake!" Nagisa said, tying an apron around her small waist and running into the kitchen after Mami.

Madoka's tummy rumbled as she listened to Mami and Nagisa exchanging recipes and ingredients in the kitchen. Whatever they were cooking up, it sounded and smelled fantastic.

She just wished that Homura was here to share it with them.

***

Oriko was busy pruning her late father's roses in the garden. Though she wasn't a fan of roses, she still kept them in good shape. It was a shame to let the beautiful flowers die. Closing her eyes, she inhaled the cool evening air, letting the sun's dying light envelop her in its last remaining warmth.

She was about to carefully snip off a branch when Kirika barged into the garden, hollering her name.

"Oriiikoooo! I'm here, let's go for dinner now! Quick, I'm hungry!"

Oriko took off her gloves and put them onto a table nearby with her pruning scissors, frowning as she told Kirika to keep her voice down. However, that did not seem to dampen the gold-eyed girl's spirit.

Plopping onto a garden chair, she enthusiastically told Oriko about the two Australian transfer students that she bumped into earlier that day.

"They actually greeted me and spoke to me like I was some respectful senior," she grinned. "And then I left them and they were like, 'Wow, this girl is cool!' Heeheehee!"

Oriko re-tied her ash-blonde hair into a long ponytail, saying in an amused tone, "They wouldn't have said that if they really knew you were like this."

"Aww...don't say that, Oriko,"sulked Kirika, drawing her legs up on the chair. "I might be able to make friends out of them, since we're all in the same boat of misunderstanding."

Oriko's stern green eyes softened, feeling sad for her friend. Kirika had never been able to make friends easily ever since she was betrayed by Erika, and she could see that the brown-haired girl was trying her best to look nonchalant about it.

Taking Kirika's hand, she pulled her up and said with a smile, "Come on, then. What do you want for dinner tonight? It's on me."

Kirika's golden eyes shone happily. "Anything that Oriko wants, I'd want too!"

***

Homura stood alone in the dimly lit street overlooking Mami's apartment, contemplating about the recent events that had involved both witches and wraiths. Madoka was already showing signs of remembering her godly form, and Homura did not want that to happen at all. She had created this world specifically to ensure that Madoka remains a human forever, and lives a normal human life without having to shoulder the grief of all the Puella Magi.

If she can't keep Madoka from reverting to the Goddess of Hope, then all her sufferings and sorrow; all the cold decisions she had to make to save Madoka; her own willingness to turn into a demon... They would all be wasted.

Homura was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she didn't notice the large multicoloured barrier that was descending over the apartment like a bird of ill omen.

When she did look up, she gave a gasp of horror.

Eliyah Sampah's ugly head poked out between the lids, hissing like a cat as she perched on the roof with her large spring. Her scribbly fly minions, Olyams, flew around the apartment, blocking out all the lights like a plague and shredding the concrete and bricks like paper with their razor blade wings.

The repulsive witch gave an unearthly cackle through her bloody, sewn lips, then sent her three arms flailing towards Homura, hollow eyes alight with the madness of battle.

Yes! I'm finally done with this chapter :D A big thanks to those who are reading my story, and don't forget to vote and comment! XD love you guys!
~SaitheVivana