Learning Vicariously

6.4.1

[we briefly see the museum exhibits]

[fade to black, and then a scene looking like a library, with shelves lined with books]

[there we see Iroha and Tsuruno]

Iroha: "uh... mmmmmh..."

[screen wipe, then we see Sana and Felicia]

Felicia: "mmmm..."

Mifuyu: "Go ahead and gaze upon the truth."

"The truth I saw about magical girls..."

"I'm looking forward to seeing how this turns out..."

Yachiyo: "I knew you'd be trying this."

Mifuyu: "Yacchan!?"

"You never learn, do you? I warned you."

Yachiyo: "I came only to rescue some good magical girls."

Mifuyu: "Another lousy excuse..."

"Why don't you take another look?"

"At what happened back then..."

Yachiyo: "That book..."

[a white flash]

Yachiyo: "Wha-"

[fade to white, then to the riverbank in the evening. Momoko is scowling.]

Momoko: "..."

Kaede: "You're scaring me, Momoko-chan..."

Rena: "If it's really that hard to talk about it, then let's wait until another time..."

Kaede: "Should I go buy some drinks?"

"Maybe it'll help you talk if you're more relaxed."

Momoko: "You don't have to worry about me. I'm prepared to do this."

Kaede: "Okay..."

Rena: "So... what is it you've been hiding?"

Momoko: "To put it simply, you two don't know about magical girls."

Kaede: "Something we don't know?"

Momoko: "Yes..."

"The first thing is something I heard from someone I trust."

"The second is something I witnessed with my own eyes."

Rena: "I was expecting more like, maybe some kind of love story."

Kaede: "Me too, that's what I thought."

Momoko: "If it were, I wouldn't be treating it as seriously as I am this."

"This involves all of us, so listen closely."

Kaede: "Okay..."

Rena: "Alright..."

[insert image with three girls]

Touka: *There once were three magical girls, A-san, B-san, and C-san. They were great friends and always hunted witches together.*

[fade to Iroha's bedroom at Yachiyo's house; Iroha is in pajamas]

Iroha: "Ah..."

Mifuyu: "Good morning, Iroha-san."

Iroha: "Ah, Mifuyu-san... Good morning..."

Mifuyu: "Hehe, you sure like to sleep in. Everyone's already downstairs waiting for you!"

Iroha: "Eh!? Already!?"

[down to the living room]

Mifuyu: "So then should we do about that witch that got away yesterday?"

Yachiyo: "Traces of its magic are still nearby, so we should deal with it as soon as possible."

Mifuyu: "Yes, we should... But, are you alright, Yacchan?"

Yachiyo: "What about me?"

Mifuyu: "Your visit to your grandmother in the hospital."

Yachiyo: "They said that her condition is good today, so I can go visit tomorrow."

[A tall blonde girl in a white shirt and brown plaid skirt appears]

???: "...You should go visit... you might regret it."

Mifuyu: "How unusual of you, Kanae, to be concerned like this."

Kanae: "Dummy, you know that's not it..."

"It's just that I feel indebted to her grandmother..."

Iroha: "Hehe"

"Well, let's meet up after school to search for the witch."

"This time, it's probably dangerous to work alone."

Yachiyo: "Let's do as Tamaki-san suggests."

"Although this doesn't really have to do with Kanae."

Kanae: "Yeah, I'll go alone..."

"I do owe you for putting me up, but for me, working with others is stifling..."

Mifuyu: "Oh, you're always like that."

Iroha: "Yeah."

[battle]

[In the evening, in front of a construction site]

Iroha: "It's over here."

Kanae: "Ah..."

Iroha: "Kanae-san."

Kanae: "Mm... I... followed the magic here..."

Yachiyo: "Good timing."

Mifuyu: "Yeah, let's all search the area."

Kanae: "Mm..."

Mifuyu: "Kanae-san, you've become much more lively lately."

Yachiyo: "You really have. Did something good happen?"

Kanae: "Not really...?"

Mifuyu: "You changed a bit after you bought your guitar."

"You just had your first concert, right?"

Kanae: "Mifuyu... You knew about that..."

Mifuyu: "Hehe, I'm sorry."

Yachiyo: "Really, why didn't you tell us?"

"Right, Tamaki-san?"

Iroha: "Yeah, we should all go see her sometime."

Kanae: "..."

"...Sometime..."

"When I'm not embarrassed... to show everyone..."

"That's where I need to start..."

[Iroha senses something]

Iroha: "The witch is over here!"

Yachiyo: "Haah!"

[the barrier appears]

Yachiyo: "sigh... You really gave us a lot of trouble."

"For today, let's just get this out of the way."

Kanae: "Yeah..."

6.4.2

[black screen]

Touka: *But one time, after having struggled against a witch and let it get away, they challenged the same witch the next day.*

[insert image with sheep witch and the three girls]

Touka: *However, they ended up in a pinch!*

*Before the witch's overwhelming power, the three girls were on the verge of defeat.*

[inside the witch barrier]

witch: "!!!!"

Iroha: "Kyah!"

Yachiyo: "Tamaki-san!"

"What's going on..."

"It's incomparably stronger than it was just yesterday..."

Mifuyu: "There's a chance it preyed upon a large number of people over the last day..."

Yachiyo: "It didn't make the news, but it's not impossible."

Iroha: "What should we do... Should we retreat for now?"

Mifuyu: "Maybe..."

"We can't oppose it with just the four of us..."

"We should gather some grief seeds from other witches."

Iroha: "Yes!"

familiar: "o.yndt,n.tyhd25d!!"

Iroha: "A familiar..."

Yachiyo: "This is bad... It's blocking the exit..."

Kanae: "..."

"I'll... go ahead..."

"You take care of the rest..."

Mifuyu: "Kanae-san!"

[in battle]

Mifuyu: "Ahead..."

"Do you know what you're saying!?"

Kanae: "Mm..."

Yachiyo: "Then don't be stupid!"

"This life you saved..."

"Even though... I was empty... I played music..."

"I had a future..."

"That's enough for me... I had a good life..."

Yachiyo: "Kanae!"

Kanae: "Yachiyo..."

"..."

Yachiyo: "!?"

"No, don't be an idiot!"

"There will be no point if you're not with us!"

Kanae: "Mm... thank you..."

[battle; you can't win but you have to last 5 turns]

[fade to black]

Touka: *At that moment, C-san stood up and charged at the witch.*

*Thanks to that, the witch was given a lethal blow, giving A-san the chance to finish off the witch.*

[insert image of one of the girls laying on the ground]

Touka: *However, C-san died, even though her body was completely uninjured.*

[it's nighttime, Kanae has her eyes closed]

Kanae: "..."

Yachiyo: "Kanae! Kanae! What's wrong, she's not injured anywhere..."

"Please, open your eyes!"

"You finally found a dream for yourself!"

"Don't throw it all away now that you've just barely found it..."

Mifuyu: "Yacchan... this..."

Iroha: "Mifuyu-san, isn't that..."

Mifuyu: "It's Kanae-san's soul gem..."

"It was probably broken by the witch during her charge..."

Iroha: "Please give it to me!"

[she tries to cleanse it]

Iroha: "..."

"It's no good, even if I use a grief seed, it won't return..."

Yachiyo: "Mifuyu, Tamaki-san... Do you understand what this means..."

"Even though she's not hurt, she won't open her eyes..."

"Her soul gem is broken... Basically..."

Iroha: "No way..."

[insert image showing a shattered soul gem near C-san's hand]

Touka: *Beside C-san's pristine body, her shattered soul gem had fallen.*

*At that moment, A-san and B-san realized that a soul gem is, just as the name literally says, a girl's life itself.*

[back at Yachiyo's house, with the blinds closed]

Iroha: "sniff... uu..."

Mifuyu: "Iroha-san... we're magical girls..."

"Sooner or later, we are fated to die..."

Iroha: "I can't accept it like that!"

Mifuyu: "I can't stand it either!"

Iroha: "!?"

"I'm sorry..."

Yachiyo: "At least..."

"Between us, we have to accept and understand it..."

"What Kanae has taught us..."

Iroha: "About soul gems..."

Mifuyu: "That's right..."

Iroha: "sniff..."

Yachiyo: "Now we have too many mugs..."

"Don't worry, Kanae... I won't kill you..."

"As long as I live..."

[insert image of four fallen mugs around a spotlight]

[one more appears in the spotlight]

6.4.3

[black screen]

Touka: *After A-san and B-san had accepted that their soul gems were their souls, they formed a team with some other friends.*

[insert image of 5 girls. Left is obviously Tsuruno, right is Momoko.]

Touka: *They joined with D-san, E-san, and F-san to make five in total.*

*They fought witches with everyone supporting each other.*

[fade to Yachiyo's house]

Momoko: "We're here!!"

Yachiyo: "Ah, man... what bad timing..."

Tsuruno: "Hey hey, listen to this, master!"

"On our last break, Banbanzai went to the Ramen Grand Prix—"

Momoko: "Hey, hold on!"

Tsuruno: "Huh?"

Momoko: "Right now, I'm the one talking to Yachiyo-san."

"I found a great yakitori place, so we should have dinner there tonight."

Tsuruno: "My story is cooler! Our ramen placed fiftieth at the Ramen Grand Prix!"

Momoko: "What's the denominator!? Fifty out of how many?"

Tsuruno: "Right, Yachiyo?"

Momoko: "And anyway, Tsuruno, why do you get to Yachiyo-san so casually?"

Tsuruno: "Because I'm her disciple."

Yachiyo: "No you're not. And also, you're both being noisy."

"Can you be quiet for thirty minutes or so?"

[a door opens]

[a girl with short green-brown hair and a black uniform shows up]

???: "Nanami-senpai! I'm all alert today!"

Yachiyo: "Not you too, Meru... I'm trying to do our budget here..."

Mifuyu: "Hehe, the Nanami house is so mature..."

Yachiyo: "As if you don't live here..."

"Sigh... After she died, there are so many things I've found out for the first time..."

"Grandma sure had a lot of work..."

Iroha: "Ah, Yachiyo-san."

"Can I at least help you divide up the receipts?"

Yachiyo: "Thank you, Tamaki-san. You're helpful, unlike Mifuyu."

Mifuyu: "Hmf. Then I'll help too."

Yachiyo: "You're always disorganized, so no thank you."

Mifuyu: "That's mean, Yacchan..."

Meru: "More important than those numbers, listen to this!"

"Today, I did some fortune telling with tarot."

"Turns out, today is my lucky day!"

Yachiyo: "I see..."

"Wait, didn't I tell you not to do fortune telling so much!?"

Meru: "I couldn't stop myself, so..."

Yachiyo: "Your fortune telling tempts people towards results..."

"Please stop..."

Meru: "But today's my lucky day!"

Yachiyo: "It's no silver lining to a storm cloud."

"It's dangerous, you know..."

[battle]

[at a park in the evening]

Mifuyu: "Today, we're hunting for the witch that came from Ootou Ward."

Yachiyo: "Yeah..."

"It cut through the Artisan, Central, and Mizuna wards..."

"If we here in Shin-Nishi don't stop it, it'll get out of the city."

Momoko: "Man, where do you find all this information, Yachiyo-san?"

Yachiyo: "Rather than 'find' it..."

"It's that the magical girls in the other wards were asking me to deal with it."

Momoko: "So you have such a big network..."

Mifuyu: "It also acts as a safety net."

"For example, if Tsuruno-san or someone were to charge into another ward..."

"If they saw it as an invasion of their territory, it would cause a lot of trouble..."

Tsuruno: "I wouldn't do that! I know my place here!"

Yachiyo: "Even though you used to challenge every magical girl you saw?"

Tsuruno: "That's in the past, and aAAA!"

Iroha: "What's wrong, Tsuruno-chan?"

Tsuruno: "Today, I have to help out in the shop... What should I do... I'm almost late..."

Yachiyo: "You always back out at the most important times..."

Mifuyu: "We're going to be fine, so you can prioritize your restaurant."

Tsuruno: "I'm sorry, Mifuyu... Well then, see you later!"

[she leaves]

Iroha: "We have one fewer person now..."

"If others were having trouble, are we going to be alright?"

Meru: "Don't worry, Tamaki-senpai!"

"My fortune telling predicts that today is my lucky day!"

Iroha: "Certainly, your fortunes are always spot-on, Meru-chan!"

Meru: "That's right!"

Mifuyu: "What was the result of your fortune telling like?"

Meru: "Nanami-senpai told me not to look at it, so I didn't."

"So all I know is that my fortune is good."

Mifuyu: "Yacchan's always one to worry."

Yachiyo: "You can say that because you've never experienced it..."

Meru: "Do you still think that the bath breaking was the fault of my fortune telling?"

Yachiyo: "Half of it, I think..."

"I think that your fortune led to Tsuruno acting up..."

Meru: "That's a false accusation!"

Yachiyo: "That also shows how much I trust in your fortunes."

"Including that today is a lucky day."

Meru: "Alright!"

6.4.4

[black screen]

Touka: *But one day, a witch came over from another territory.*

[insert image of sandbox witch with 4 girls, no Tsuruno]

Touka: *D-san was unavailable, so there were four of them.*

*They intended to work together to defeat this witch as usual, but the witch, having survived previous battles, was strong, and the four found themselves in a tough fight.*

[in the labyrinth]

witch: "ZUSHAAaAan,tdyt!!"

Yachiyo: "As expected of a witch that has traveled this far..."

Mifuyu: "That's right, it's certainly not your everyday witch."

Iroha: "Yachiyo-san."

"We have numbers over it, so why don't we split up..."

"And confuse the witch?"

Momoko: "Well, Iroha-chan, that might be difficult..."

Iroha: "Momoko-san..."

Momoko: "The witch has plenty of energy to spare."

"If it makes good use of its familiars, it might be able to stop us from moving."

Iroha: "Ah, I see..."

Meru: "Then... I'll use fortune telling to figure out what to do..."

Mifuyu: "No, Meru-san, please don't move."

"You've used a lot of magic..."

Yachiyo: "Meru's fortune telling does fail sometimes, too..."

Meru: "How pathetic..."

Yachiyo: "For now, I'll act as bait."

"While I have its attention..."

"Tamaki-san, Mifuyu, and Momoko will circle around its back."

Mifuyu: "But what about you, Yacchan!?"

Yachiyo: "How long do you think I've been a magical girl?"

"I'll be fine."

Mifuyu: "Alright..."

[battle]

[in battle]

Mifuyu: <Yacchan has caught the witch's attention.>

<Iroha-chan and Momoko-san, please follow me!>

Momoko: <Shouldn't we not head straight for it like this, though?>

Iroha: <There's a limit to how much I can weave around at a distance!>

Mifuyu: <So once we get around to its back, I will use illusion magic.>

<It won't work for long, but it's enough to get us an opening.>

Momoko: <I see, and Yachiyo-san will also be attacking it as a distraction.>

Mifuyu: <Exactly.>

<Then, let's do this.>

"!?"

"Yacchan!!"

[screen wipe]

witch: "JAGInt,ydhntedy!!"

Yachiyo: "On no!"

[screen wipe]

Meru: "Nanami-senpai!!"

[this battle is also turn limited, and the witch has dazzle cast on it each turn before it attacks]

[black screen]

Touka: *A-san found herself in a pinch, and F-san, sacrificing herself to protect A-san, fell in battle.*

*The witch once more escaped, ending the battle, but F-san's body was in shambles, and the group had no grief seeds.*

[insert image of a girl lying on the ground, with a blackened soul gem]

Touka: *When her soul gem was completely stained black, F-san's body stopped moving.*

[back to the riverbank at night; Meru is emitting dark smoke]

Mifuyu: "Meru-san..."

Yachiyo: "I told you not to move!"

Meru: "I'm sor... Nanami... sen..."

Yachiyo: "Meru... Your... soul gem..."

"Oh no, the magic needed to regenerate is...!"

"Does anyone have a grief seed!?"

Mifuyu: "I don't..."

Momoko: "We didn't beat the witch, and I didn't have any on hand..."

Mifuyu: "And I had one..."

Yachiyo: "No, it's my fault... This is the result of my mistake..."

"Keh..."

"Even now, we need to go hunt witches!"

Meru: "W...ait..."

Yachiyo: "Meru, let go of me... I'll get you a grief seed soon..."

Meru: "No... It's too late, I can tell..."

Yachiyo: "Don't say that!"

Meru: "Bit by bit, I'm getting colder... I can... feel... it..."

Yachiyo: "Some lucky day this is... This is the worst..."

[Meru perks up and smiles]

Meru: "..."

Yachiyo: "What are you saying!?"

Meru: "Guh... Uuugh!!"

Yachiyo: "Meru!"

Mifuyu: "Meru-san!"

Iroha: "Her soul gem!"

Momoko: "What's happening..."

[a flash of white, then the scene comes back darkened]

Momoko: "W-what's happening?"

Iroha: "No... way..."

Yachiyo: "This can't be right..."

Mifuyu: "A witch was born from Meru..."

Iroha: "Mifuyu-san!"

Mifuyu: "That's the truth!"

[fade to black]

Touka: *In the collapsed F-san's hand, there was a pitch-black soul gem.*

[insert image of the soul gem emitting some sort of black smoke]

Touka: *Suddenly, F-san became writhing in pain, and soul gem transformed into a grief seed and gave birth to a witch.*

[switch to Yachiyo's kitchen]

Yachiyo: "This mug too has lost its owner..."

"sniff... Meru..."

Momoko: "I still just can't believe it..."

Yachiyo: "Momoko..."

Momoko: "After all, if it's true..."

"Then what we defeat are all magical girls!?"

Mifuyu: "Momoko-san! Don't say that!"

Momoko: "But Mifuyu-san!"

"The result of our wish is that we all become murderers, right?"

[a door opens/closes]

Momoko: "Yachiyo-san..."

Yachiyo: "Meru... she... tried her hardest to live as a magical girl."

"Don't make her into a murderer!"

Momoko: "I'm sorry..."

Iroha: "But Yachiyo-san... Won't we eventually be the same as Meru-san?"

Yachiyo: "Don't burden her with sins..."

"The fault for this lays with me..."

"Before all the sins build up, I will erase..."

Mifuyu: "Don't think about people dying like you did with Kanae-san..."

"Why do you become more miserable the more you live through?"

"Well, Yacchan?"

Yachiyo: "Mifuyu, Momoko..."

"If the worst happens, please erase me..."

Mifuyu: "For me, the same, please."

Yachiyo: "It's a promise."

Mifuyu: "It's a promise."

Momoko: "Yes..."

Yachiyo: "sob... sniff... sob..."

[insert image of four mugs around and one under a spotlight]

[one more appears under the spotlight]

6.4.5

[insert image of B-san deep in despair]

Touka: *After having witnessed a witch transformation, half a year passed, and B-san was still in shock.*

*She tried but failed to change her way of thinking, merely cursing herself for having become a magical girl.*

[at a boardwalk along a river]

Iroha: "Mifuyu-san, I think you're worrying too much..."

"It's true that we might become witches..."

"But for now, we're magical girls..."

"And also, we made that promise, didn't we?"

"If the time comes, we'll do it with our own hands!"

Mifuyu: "I get it!"

"I get it already!"

"But somewhere deep in my heart, I just cannot accept it. I only have regrets!"

Iroha: "But..."

Mifuyu: "You don't understand, Iroha-san!"

"You don't get how much I've held back, how much I've had to try to fool myself!"

"Ever since the moment I became a magical girl, my wish has had no meaning..."

Iroha: "What do you mean?"

Mifuyu: "I wanted to become a normal girl!"

"But ever since I became a magical girl, I was no longer normal, you see?"

"At first, I felt it was just my contracted responsibility."

"I was able to accept it that time with Kanae, but now this is too much..."

Iroha: "But aside from fighting witches, you are a normal girl, Mifuyu-san."

"And you're strong, so it's easy..."

Mifuyu: "Iroha-san, you still haven't noticed after being with me?"

"My magic is slowly declining..."

"Even while I accept my limit as a magical girl..."

"I can't compensate with strength anymore..."

Iroha: "But Yachiyo-san hasn't changed at all!"

Mifuyu: "I know... isn't it strange..."

"But that makes me dislike her even more..."

"Yacchan, as strong as ever..."

"And me, on the verge of hating her..."

"Tamaki-san..."

Iroha: "Yes?"

Mifuyu: "Kill me..."

Iroha: "I-I couldn't do that!"

Mifuyu: "Then, I'm sure that I will hold a grudge and become a witch..."

"Holding my own selfish grudge... I also hate that part of myself..."

[fade to black]

Touka: *After that, another half year passed. In Kamihama, witches started gathering, and Kyubey was no longer sighted.*

*Her soul gem eroded in accordance to her feelings at the time, and it reached a point where it was dyed black with impurity.*

[insert image of the soul gem turning into a grief seed]

Touka: *B-san thought back... Finally, she would become a witch, just like F-san did...*

*However, that did not occur.*

[battle]

[insert image of a girl kneeling on the ground]

Touka: *B-san didn't become a witch, and instead released a doppel.*

[back to the boardwalk, bathed in light]

Mifuyu: "What on earth..."

Touka: "Ehe, did you think you'd become a witch?"

Mifuyu: "Who are you?"

Touka: "I am Satomi Touka."

"That was something called a doppel, to help avoid the transformation into a witch."

Mifuyu: "Avoid? That's ridiculous..."

"I saw it with my own two eyes, one of my friends became a witch."

Touka: "Like I said, I made doppels happen so that you that won't occur anymore."

Mifuyu: "You... *made* it?"

Touka: "Yes, me!"

[insert image of a girl kneeling on the ground]

*At this time, we had already begun working to release the magical girls in Kamihama.*

[Touka appears on a black background]

Touka: *Then, a girl appeared before her, and said this:*

"Hey, veteran girl..."

"Let's work together to release magical girls."

"If we do that, you won't have to suffer anymore!"

Mifuyu: "I will be free from these... shackles of being a magical girl?"

Touka: "Shackles... I like that way of putting it!"

"That's right, you won't become a witch, and you won't have to fight anymore."

"How about you over there?"

Iroha: "Me...?"

Touka: "Yes! Let's be released together!"

6.4.6

[on the boardwalk]

Iroha: "We'll both be released together?"

[fade to black, then a pink cloudy background like doppel awakening missions]

Iroha: "Huh? I... I was friends with Mifuyu-san and..."

Mifuyu: "Basically, we had you experience my memories."

"Have you changed your mind at all?"

"That is the truth I saw about magical girls."

Iroha: "So the mugs were a symbol of friendship..."

"That's why your mug was left there..."

"And the other one in the back was Momoko-san's?"

Mifuyu: "Yes, that's right..."

Iroha: "..."

Touka: "Hey, Tamaki Iroha..."

"Won't you release magical girls together with us?"

Iroha: "Touka-chan..."

"If you're with us..."

"You'll be able to find out whether Nemu or your little sister are in the Wings of Magius, you know?"

"And also, as long as you, Tamaki Iroha, are a magical girl..."

"Even if you do reunite with your sister, you might die at any moment."

"However, if you are released, then that result won't occur."

"The two of you would both be able to grow up together and become adults, you know?"

Iroha: "I..."

[screen wipe]

Tsuruno: "So that really was me in the story from the lecture..."

Mifuyu: "That's right... That's the truth that you, D-san, did not learn."

"Everyone was kind, so we never told you."

Tsuruno: "If, back then..."

"If I hadn't gone to help at the shop, Meru wouldn't have died..."

"I always regretted that..."

"But I never imagined that she became a witch..."

"On top of not being able to protect her..."

"She became a witch..."

Mifuyu: "But that's the result."

"You didn't know, so there's nothing you could have done..."

Tsuruno: "I just can't think of it that way..."

"If soul gems and grief seeds are the same..."

"Then while Meru was living, she was spreading curses around..."

"If I had been there... Then that..."

Touka: "And that's exactly why we're creating a world where that won't happen."

"You can do things as a Wing of Magius, you know."

"The small things you were unable to accomplish, as well as the big things you'll do in the future!"

"You can achieve greatness!"

"There won't have to be any people like Meru-chan anymore!"

Tsuruno: "I..."

[fade to black, then to a more purple fog]

Felicia: "So in the end, I killed magical girls..."

"And I'll become a witch and do the same thing!"

"What should I do... What should I do..."

Mifuyu: "Felicia-san, please calm down a little."

Felicia: "Who could calm down right now!?"

"I can't defeat any witches like this!"

"Even if you tell me I won't gather any sins..."

"If I kill people the same as me, then there's no difference!"

"And then there's the sins from the sheer number of witches I've killed..."

"That won't ever go away..."

"Arrrrgh!"

Touka: "Then, in the same amount as the sins you've built up..."

"Do enough as a Wing of Magius to drown all of them out."

Felicia: "You..."

Touka: "If our goal is accomplished, then you won't have to kill witches anymore."

"You won't become a witch, either..."

"Although your sins will remain."

"Let's make a world where we don't need to sin anymore."

Felicia: "I... I..."

[fade to black, then to a slightly greenish fog]

Sana: "In the end, I am going to become a witch..."

"I see..."

Mifuyu: "You don't seem very disturbed, Sana-san..."

Sana: "No, I am... very scared..."

"Just thinking that witches used to be magical girls..."

"Makes my chest feel tight..."

"But it feels like there's nothing to be done about it..."

"And even if I do become a witch, everyone who knows the truth..."

"I think they would help erase me..."

"I don't have any attachments to reality anyway, so I'm not afraid..."

Touka: "That's true regarding witches."

"However, what about your wish?"

Sana: "My wish?"

Touka: "Your true wish."

"Magical girls will be released from their shackles."

"Might that also connect to releasing them from their wishes?"

Sana: "You mean returning from... being invisible...?"

Touka: "There is that possibility."

"Isn't it appealing to think about? The Wings of Magius, too?"

Sana: "I..."

[back to Iroha's fog]

Touka: "Well, what will you? The sooner you decide, the better."

Mifuyu: "That's right."

"Come with me to the Wings of Magius..."

Iroha: (Ui... Nemu...)

(Even if I met them again, I wouldn't live much longer...)

"And if I were to join the Wings of Magius..."

mini-Kyubey: "That's wrong." or "Don't do it." I'll pick the second.

Iroha: "Yeah, it's okay... I get it..."

"I will not join the Wings of Magius."

Mifuyu: "Even after having seen that much of the truth... Are you serious?"

Iroha: "Yes..."

Touka: "Why do you refuse, even after knowing the truth?"

Iroha: "..."

"Knowing that I will become a witch that will hurt people..."

"Even though I lament that that is my future.."

"I cannot accept that you use witches..."

Touka: "But don't you think your sense of values change if you joined us?"

"After all, there are lots more things you'll find out once you join us."

Iroha: "That may be true, but..."

[flashback to the hospital]

Ui: "Onee-chan!"

Touka: "Ane-sama!"

[back to the fog]

Iroha: "I will believe in my own memories."

"And on top of that..."

"Yachiyo-san knows the truth, and also doesn't join the Wings of Magius."

"So, I'm sorry, I can't go with you..."

[battle]

[back in the library of book/memories]

Iroha: "sigh..."

"This is..."

"Oh yeah, I..."

[flashback to the exhibit space]

Felicia: "What the hell? Where'd that book come from?"

Mifuyu: "This is my memory, the memory of the story you heard in the lecture..."

Iroha: "Please stop, Mifuyu-san..."

Mifuyu: "Please, come take a close look at the truth. We will save the talking for afterwards."

Touka: "Have a nice trip!"

[back to the library of book/memories]

Iroha: "I'm so glad... I came back..."

[screen wipe; we see Yachiyo with her eyes closed]

Iroha: "Yachiyo-san!?"

[Yachiyo is breathing lightly]

Iroha: "She's sleeping..."

"Did she come to save us?"

"Where is everyone!?"

[two screen wipes]

Iroha: "Nobody's here..."

[scene change to the riverbank]

Rena: "Is that really what you saw?"

Momoko: "At the very least, I saw Meru become a witch with my own eyes..."

Kaede: "sob... sob..."

Momoko: "If it's too tough, you don't have to hold back from crying."

"I'll accept it all for you."

"You don't have to play strong either, Rena."

Rena: "You don't have to tell me that... idiot..."