Part-Timer

“Wait a minute…  You?  You’re the Devil?” Mariko couldn’t believe what she was hearing.  Was this reality?  Was she dreaming?  “Satan himself…?  That whole…  Fire and brimstone?  666, the mark of the beast, that sort of thing?”

She paused for a moment, looking at him for the longest time before looking down at her hands, then back to him.  “What was in that burger…?”

“I’m not sure you’ll be saying that when you hear about the countless lives he’s taken…  From his lies alone…” This witch really seemed to have a strong vendetta against these creatures.

-Yep, that was it. Hearing the voice of the guy who’d made that big speech over the city when those familiar had appeared from no where. Freezing in place the girl blinked awkwardly as she considered what to do- Before simply turning tail and flailing her way back to the table.

“O-O-Or-Orik-Oriko! It’s hiiiiiiiiimmmmmm- It’s the guy, the dude- I t-told you! He’s here, he’s working at MgRonalds, he’s right here, right now-” Oriko stood up, placed her hands on Kirika’s shoulders and traded places with her, sitting her partner down while she stood up. “Words, Kirika. You’re human; Use them.” The younger girl twitched sporadically as she attempted to explain again. “It’s the guy, the speech man- Satan, like I told you! He’s here, at the service counterrr!!” “…Satan is working at a cheap fast-food chain…?” “App-arent-lyyyy!!!” Kirika insisted, starting to attract Yuma’s attention with her antics. Oriko sighed, before heading to look for herself. In response, her friend grabbed desperately at her hand. “D-Don’t go talk to him! He’ll knooowwww!” She whined forcefully, only for Oriko to sigh deeply and begin dragging Kirika with her.

Reaching the counter with her partner in tow, the seer somewhat forcefully stripped her partner of her wallet before actually going to address the devil. With no one but the single customer before them and Yuma other than themselves to worry about, Oriko simply went to ask the obvious.

“…You wouldn’t happen to be Sadao Maou, the proclaimed Devil from a place known as Ente Isla…Would you?”

..Well this was going to go just smoothly. He comments internally, as the girl flees from the counter, moving her limbs sporadically. Eyeing the conversation, and perhaps even using some of his magic to enhance his own hearing allowed Maou to eavesdrop. ...Not that he needed it, after all, they certainly weren’t being too quiet.

His gaze lingers on them, as he continued to watch them converse. Guess he’d have to wipe the memories of this from the minds of his coworkers. He was glad Chiho wasn’t in today. His eyes followed them as they once again approached the counter. At least it seemed that they were willing to be a bit more...calm this time. His answer seems to come in the form of an action. He’d have to do it sooner or later, so why not get it over with. Magic coursed throughout the building, rendering the one other customer, and his coworkers unconscious, the inside of the establishment losing it’s saturation, as he crosses his arms. “For your information, I’ll have you know that MgRonalds is no ‘cheap fast-food chain’!” He comments in a huff, before nodding at her question.

“People have many aspects to them, we witches represents the aspects many humans would consider negative.  Because of this, a normally timid girl like madoka can produce a witch like gretchen.  This also plays a factor in variants.  One Homura might develop a strong distaste for cruelty in her timeline, while another can come to adore it, while another still might come to see it as a necessary evil.  It is the aspects that each variant choose to nurture, that ultimately determine who they become.  For example, my Homura was at peace with Madoka’s ascent to godhood, and had no part in her downfall.”  Of course, that was all she was willing to share regarding what happened with her madoka.

“That being said, I must ask that you come to me next time you meet a variant of Kriemhild Gretchen.  I wish to speak with her about her barrier and the nature of her salvation.  You may do whatever you feel is right, but it would be appreciated.”  The demon witch did not feel like starting a fight with a being that could feed off her, so she tried to keep any aggression she felt to a minimum.

“Right.” Hearing her explanation make him pause, and think for a moment. He clears his throat, and rubs the back of his neck. “Look, I really don’t mean to be rude, especially after you’ve been so calm and everything, but. About your Homura. Would she be at peace being you? Would she be alright with the fact that you’re in control, and she isn’t?” He makes sure to keep his tone calm, and neutral. This could go very badly, very quickly if it wasn’t handled right. “What happened that caused her to fall into despair?” He makes no movement, eyes locked onto her features, searching for any sign of hostility, or aggression. He’d prefer that this didn’t come escalate into a fight, but he had vowed to protect humans. And, even if the witch was calm, the Puella Magi that they had once been was closer to being human. At least, that’s what he had chosen to believe.