Madoka Magica - Oneshot: Lay Your Weary Head to Rest
There are some fics that hit you in the gut, and just continue after that. 
idella's fic, Sea Legs does just exactly that, and it's a plausible and awesome continuation from canon.
It seemed that the fic was knocking around my head for longer than I expected, because I found this in my 750 words archives. So I'd thought I'd edit and post it for my own enjoyment.
Title: Lay Your Weary Head to Rest
Summary: The strain of countless timelines catches up with Homura.
The first weekend in Madoka's new universe, Homura found herself in bed and unable to get up.
It was alright during school days, when she knew Mami would be waiting for her to go to school together, face turned to the bright sun and always looking so relieved when Homura appears at the corner that they've agreed upon. Homura had seen Mami's face crumple in disappointment before in far too many timelines, and she didn't want to be the cause of it in this final timeline.
It was alright after school, when Kyouko would push the two of them to find and fight as many demons as possible. Finding the patterns of the demons in this universe gave Homura something to do, and though she suspects demons are not as clear cut and enemy as they seem, for now it is good enough that they are not former magic girls. Madoka made it so.
But the weekend had been Homura's own, with no appointments that she needed to meet. She had gone to bed thinking nothing of this gap in her list of to do's.
Then she had woken to find nothing to guide her forward. There was no Walpurgisnacht to fight against. There was no Incubator to thwart. There was no longer even the simple joy of watching Madoka, vivid and happy and alive.
Without a target, exhaustion set in like a crushing tide. Schemes upon schemes to keep Madoka alive no longer mattered, and Homura's mind was contesting the strain that she had put it under by refusing to think at all. The bed seemed like the best place for her weary spirit.
So she dozed, lying in bed and waking up at undefined intervals. The light through her curtains shifted with the passing of the day. She dozed, and if she dreamed her mind was too tired to register it.
In a way, this was like being back in the hospital, where Homura spent hours in bed just trying to recover. Or maybe it was the opposite. In the hospital Homura would stare at the ceiling or weave dreams, her mind active in the same way as her body was tired.
But this was a new universe, and her body had always been here. Her body had not experienced the strain of multiple timelines. So it protested the inactivity of several hours with an ache at the back of her head from lying in the pillows for too long. Her body was the same, protesting the lack of inaction as her blood became sluggish in her veins.
But Homura was too tired to even do anything about that. She slept, because she had expended all that effort and not even had any success at the end of it...
Her mind must have recovered faster than her spirit did, for after losing track of the number of times she had woken and gone back to sleep, she found herself dreaming. It had to be a dream, because where else could she find Madoka stroking her hair? Homura was too tired to even open her eyes, but she would know that touch. It was one of the few constants, in the timelines when Madoka had been close enough to Homura to even think of stroking her hair.
"It's not wrong to take a break," Madoka murmurs. "You've worked the hardest of all of us."
But what about you? Homura wanted to ask, because Madoka was now saving magic girls everywhere and every time, and that meant she was working the hardest. Homura was only lying in her bed, or wherever this mystical place was where Madoka could reach out and stroke her hair.
Homura was still too tired though, and the dream slipped away without Homura even opening her eyes. She wondered where that place was. She wondered what Madoka had looked like - the girl that Homura remembered, or the goddess that Homura had seen her become?
There were no more dreams like that, even though Homura had dozed for many more hours after that. She only fully woke because the phone she had not remembered buying was now ringing.
Homura's hair was a matted mess from laying on her pillows, and it fell over her shoulders in a odd manner when Homura pulled herself to a seated position. Her head felt light as her blood drained from it in this new position. She heard the phone ring into silence and start again as she re-orientated herself.
She picked it up again before it could be cut off again. Her caller id told her was Mami, but the reality of it only sunk in when Homura heard Mami's voice on the line. It was hesitant. "I know it's the weekend and you might have other plans but... I wondered if you would like to go out with Kyouko and myself later today?"
Homura drew in a breath. This was Homura without any guiding light. This was Homura when she did not know what to do with herself. If she was to make something of this new world, perhaps she needed to find a new reference point.
Mami and Kyouko were a good enough place to start from. "OK," said Homura. She'd brush her hair as soon as her call was done. It wasn't as good as Madoka's carress, but it'd do.
idella's fic, Sea Legs does just exactly that, and it's a plausible and awesome continuation from canon.
It seemed that the fic was knocking around my head for longer than I expected, because I found this in my 750 words archives. So I'd thought I'd edit and post it for my own enjoyment.
Title: Lay Your Weary Head to Rest
Summary: The strain of countless timelines catches up with Homura.
The first weekend in Madoka's new universe, Homura found herself in bed and unable to get up.
It was alright during school days, when she knew Mami would be waiting for her to go to school together, face turned to the bright sun and always looking so relieved when Homura appears at the corner that they've agreed upon. Homura had seen Mami's face crumple in disappointment before in far too many timelines, and she didn't want to be the cause of it in this final timeline.
It was alright after school, when Kyouko would push the two of them to find and fight as many demons as possible. Finding the patterns of the demons in this universe gave Homura something to do, and though she suspects demons are not as clear cut and enemy as they seem, for now it is good enough that they are not former magic girls. Madoka made it so.
But the weekend had been Homura's own, with no appointments that she needed to meet. She had gone to bed thinking nothing of this gap in her list of to do's.
Then she had woken to find nothing to guide her forward. There was no Walpurgisnacht to fight against. There was no Incubator to thwart. There was no longer even the simple joy of watching Madoka, vivid and happy and alive.
Without a target, exhaustion set in like a crushing tide. Schemes upon schemes to keep Madoka alive no longer mattered, and Homura's mind was contesting the strain that she had put it under by refusing to think at all. The bed seemed like the best place for her weary spirit.
So she dozed, lying in bed and waking up at undefined intervals. The light through her curtains shifted with the passing of the day. She dozed, and if she dreamed her mind was too tired to register it.
In a way, this was like being back in the hospital, where Homura spent hours in bed just trying to recover. Or maybe it was the opposite. In the hospital Homura would stare at the ceiling or weave dreams, her mind active in the same way as her body was tired.
But this was a new universe, and her body had always been here. Her body had not experienced the strain of multiple timelines. So it protested the inactivity of several hours with an ache at the back of her head from lying in the pillows for too long. Her body was the same, protesting the lack of inaction as her blood became sluggish in her veins.
But Homura was too tired to even do anything about that. She slept, because she had expended all that effort and not even had any success at the end of it...
Her mind must have recovered faster than her spirit did, for after losing track of the number of times she had woken and gone back to sleep, she found herself dreaming. It had to be a dream, because where else could she find Madoka stroking her hair? Homura was too tired to even open her eyes, but she would know that touch. It was one of the few constants, in the timelines when Madoka had been close enough to Homura to even think of stroking her hair.
"It's not wrong to take a break," Madoka murmurs. "You've worked the hardest of all of us."
But what about you? Homura wanted to ask, because Madoka was now saving magic girls everywhere and every time, and that meant she was working the hardest. Homura was only lying in her bed, or wherever this mystical place was where Madoka could reach out and stroke her hair.
Homura was still too tired though, and the dream slipped away without Homura even opening her eyes. She wondered where that place was. She wondered what Madoka had looked like - the girl that Homura remembered, or the goddess that Homura had seen her become?
There were no more dreams like that, even though Homura had dozed for many more hours after that. She only fully woke because the phone she had not remembered buying was now ringing.
Homura's hair was a matted mess from laying on her pillows, and it fell over her shoulders in a odd manner when Homura pulled herself to a seated position. Her head felt light as her blood drained from it in this new position. She heard the phone ring into silence and start again as she re-orientated herself.
She picked it up again before it could be cut off again. Her caller id told her was Mami, but the reality of it only sunk in when Homura heard Mami's voice on the line. It was hesitant. "I know it's the weekend and you might have other plans but... I wondered if you would like to go out with Kyouko and myself later today?"
Homura drew in a breath. This was Homura without any guiding light. This was Homura when she did not know what to do with herself. If she was to make something of this new world, perhaps she needed to find a new reference point.
Mami and Kyouko were a good enough place to start from. "OK," said Homura. She'd brush her hair as soon as her call was done. It wasn't as good as Madoka's carress, but it'd do.