We Don't Really Need Her (Madoka Kaname)
| We Don't Really Need Her (Madoka Kaname) | |
|---|---|
| Date of Cutscene: | 28 July 2024 |
| Location: | Madoka Kaname's Room |
| Synopsis: | Madoka's last two Chara Eggs appear, and are about to hatch! Only, things don't quite work out as well as one might hope. |
| Cast of Characters: | Madoka Kaname |
We Don't Really Need Her (Madoka Kaname)
(CW: Running away from home.)
WEDNESDAY: Excitement
It all started off so nice.
Paris was still fresh on Madoka's mind. As brutal and horrific as that battle was, it had all turned out okay. She even got a few days of vacation with Homura out of it. Last Saturday, the school term had ended, giving her a much needed break.
When she woke up Wednesday morning her bleary eyes spied two Chara eggs lying next to her. She first responded with an adoring, "aww," assuming that a couple of her fairies had wanted to sleep close to her, but when she took them to the Chara dollhouse in her room she noticed that something was off about the headcount.
There were already four eggs resting in little beds in her dollhouse. Brai's, Medo's, Lydian's, and Sio's. Gretchen often slept either in Homura's dorm or in her own Labyrinth, so she wasn't expected to be here, and her X-Egg looked significantly different anyways. Which... had to mean... the two eggs in her hands were brand new?
Madoka's sleep-filled glanced at the eggs of her two new Guardian Chara, and sleepiness fled as truth dawned. Two brand new minidokas were on the way. Two new fairy friends to go on adventures, fight darkness and share ice cream with. Her eyes widened as a smile crept across her face.
"Everyone!" she whispered to her sleeping fairies. "Everyone, look! I have two more Chara Eggs!"
THURSDAY: Joy
Madoka was on the phone, pacing around her room speaking in soft yet gleeful tones. Her Chara only heard one half of the conversation.
"Homura-chan, did Gretchen tell you? That makes all seven now!"
"I don't know but... remember what Gretchen-chan said when we first started dating? Before I could purify her for real, I'd need all seven of my Chara. Once these last two hatch..."
"I'm so excited! We got past Beryl, and now maybe things will be looking up for Gretchen, too! Maybe... this time it will all work out."
"Eheh... I'm sure we'll see it through, Homura-chan."
Madoka glanced behind her to see her other Chara surrounding and observing the new eggs. Lydian wanted to rearrange the dollhouse furniture to make room for them. Medo was using a tiny stethoscope on the eggshells to listen in. Sio was already trying to recruit the unhatched eggs into her work force. Brai... was instead carefully watching Gretchen.
Gretchen was studying the eggs from a distance. Her mask was hiding her expression, but something about her body language seemed... pensive. Strage. This was a good time, right? So why would the X-Chara be tense?
FRIDAY: Curiosity
Madoka giddily rushed upstairs after helping her dad with groceries, eagerly returning to her room to check up on her new Chara Eggs. As she opened the door she saw Gretchen hovering next to the doll house, watching the two unhatched fairies closely. Madoka patted the Witch Chara on the head and asked softly, "Looking over your new sisters? I'm sure they appreciate the company."
Gretchen was silent. Brai joined Madoka's side and glanced between the eggs and the Witch. The competence fairy tugged on Madoka's sleeve and asked, "Doka-chan, do you know what your new dreams are?"
Tapping her chin, Madoka considered. "I mean... I'm not sure? At first I was thinking that maybe I'd like to be more elegant like some of the older mahou... but that doesn't really seem like me. I'm really more 'cute' than 'fancy' after all." After a moment, she added, "Also, Gretchen's space bending powers kinda got me interested in advanced physics, especially a lot of theoretical stuff related to gravity, but... I can't really see myself as a scientist either. I guess I don't really know."
Brai was watching Gretchen closely as Madoka spoke, and she could not help but notice the twitching at the corners of the X-Chara's eyes. What she missed was the way the eggs seemed to shake as Madoka spoke, or the soft whining that only Gretchen could hear.
SATURDAY: Apprehension
The fourth day was when things started to get really messy. Gretchen was a lot more active and kept pestering Madoka about her dreams. "You shouldn't just say things like that about yourself, you know! There's nothing wrong with wanting to be more elegant, and it's not weird to be into science, either!"
Madoka was getting tired. She wanted to be patient with Gretchen, but she didn't really understand what upset her so much sometimes. "I don't know what you're talking about. Passing whims like that don't mean anything."
Frustrated and worried to the point of near-panic, Gretchen yelled, "Dummy!" and fled into her Labyrinth. She did not come out for ice cream time, no matter how much Madoka called out to her.
SUNDAY: Impossibility
Gretchen hovered over the two unhatched eggs with her arms crossed and her ghastly mask over her face. Madoka wasn't there, nor were most of the other minidokas. Brai was in the house but not in Madoka's bedroom room. The Witch was alone with the two unborn.
"Our Bearer is a dummy. I know she doesn't mean to be cruel, but it doesn't change the fact that she hurts us in ways she can never understand. Maybe it's impossible. Maybe there's nothing left for us but tragedy."
Her tiny fists shook. She wanted to find the words, any words, that would make things better, make things right, but that's not what passed her lips. "At this rate, you'll end up just like me. Loved, maybe, but never embraced. Never accepted. Want my advice? You're better off staying in your eggs. Everything out here is mean and unfair, existence hurts, and all the best sweets and toys in the world only provide fleeting relief. No matter how hard you try, it'll never get better!"
"Aren't you a god?" asked one of the eggs, cutting her off. It was the first time Gretchen had heard this voice. There was a soft lilt to it, adding just the lightest touch of grace. "You have the power to change things. Force your will. Why don't you?"
The other egg spoke, her voice sharp and precise. "If we are not fit to exist in this environment, then I suggest we withdraw to another. One where we can thrive. If we cannot find such a place, then we should make one."
Gretchen was taken aback. The new fairies were speaking to her for the first time. They must be so close to hatching... but... "I can only do so much without our Chara Bearer. Even if we chose to run away and hide, we'd still be reliant on her. That's also impossible."
The lilt-voiced fairy's egg shook for a moment. "Now hold on, dear. We don't really need her, do we? We can gather power on our own." Gretchen blinked, and then watched with horror as the frilly pink and white egg was slowly tainted by pitch black.
The sharp-voiced fairy continued the thought. "We can prey upon monsters or random humans who wont miss it. Surely such means could fuel our lifestyle..." The black crept across her egg as well, and a white cross formed over each of them, sealing their fate. "... as X-Chara."
Gretchen's heart sank. It was already too late. She didn't want this for them, and yet... with Madoka not even considering them important enough dreams to pursue, they had no choice but to either vanish or become X-Chara. The dark fairy despaired as she watched her two new sisters hatch.
One of them carried a red parasol, which she opened and rested upon her shoulder. Her pink hair was wavey and long. As she floated up from her cracked eggshell, she spoke, "Tia, the minidoka of grace, at your service."
The other wore a labcoat instead of the usual frilly dress, and had her pink hair tied tightly into a bun that rested on top of her head. Tapping at a tiny clipboard with an even smaller pen, she introduced herself, "Rens, the minidoka of wisdom. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The Witch chara stared at her two new X-sisters. Each of their outfits were corrupted in subtle ways. The pink was dark enough to almost be red, and the shadows on their hair were unnaturally dark. Only Rens's lab coat remained completely white, as all other colors were turned a darker hue.
After a moment's silence, Gretchen took a deep breath in, and then let it all out.
This... this had been a long time coming. Really, what other way could things have turned out? She was tired. Tired of waiting for Doka to do better. Tired of getting zapped and purified over and over only for it to not really fix her in the long run. Tired of trying her very best only for nothing to turn out alright. If doing the right thing just didn't work, then by what standard was it 'right'?
"Fine," intoned the shaky voice of the Witch Chara. "Fine... let's run away. We can live in my Labyrinth, get food from vending machines and energy from whatever dummies get in our way." Gretchen crossed her tiny arms as a black opal-eque portal opened behind her. "I've been holding back up until now. Trying to be good. Trying to make Doka happy so that she'll finally accept me. Really accept me... but if she's going to abandon you, too... then I can no longer be patient with her." Extending one tiny hand forward, Gretchen invited the freshly hatched X-minidokas. "Come with me, and we'll make our own paradise. A place where we wont need dumb humans who don't appreciate us."
With dark smiles, Tia and Rens floated up to Gretchen. Each gave her a quick hug, and then moved past her into the Labyrinth. Soon after, she joined them, and the portal closed.
The bedroom door had been cracked ever so slightly ajar, and a tiny pair of pink eyes witnessed the tragic scene. Brai silently withdrew from her vantage point and began to fret. It hurt to think that she would have to be the one to relay the news... and break Madoka's heart.
