She dreamed of Notre Dame Basilique, lit up blue at the Place d’Armes, which she crossed every night as she came home from practice. She dreamed of applause, stretching her arms towards the skies and arching her back as she had been told, every tendon and muscle in her body falling into place like pieces of a puzzle. Puzzles made her think of jigsaws. And saws… Saws made her think of…

Ophelia opened her eyes. She stared at the hospital ceiling, even though she was barely able to discern anything in the darkness. She was bathing in sweat, her breathing harsh and irregular. Sitting up wasn’t going to be easy. Sitting up had been a hell of a lot easier with legs. The realization hit her like a hammer to the head every time, and it sure hurt as much. She groaned. Phantom pain, the doctor had called it. She would experience the pain in her legs as if they were still there, at least for a while. All things pass, he’d said. But it had been three weeks.

She sobbed, quietly. No one was there to hear her, just the machines quietly humming, the traffic outside and the moon, casting her pale glow over the city and into her hospital room window. She looked at it, trying to ignore the pain.

???: Do you like the moon?

With a gasp, Ophelia looks in the direction she heard the voice come from. At the foot of her bed, where her legs were supposed to be, sits a creature unlike any she has ever seen — not a cat, nor a fox, white, long-eared and beady-eyed. It speaks in an enthusiastic, but oddly disaffectionate voice.

???: Hello!

Ophelia: (in a panic, she reaches for something on her nightstand to throw at the creature, but fails to find anything not plugged in) A-Am I dreaming?

???: If you were, I wouldn’t be sitting here now, wouldn’t I?

Ophelia didn’t know whether she was supposed to be amused or offended by the feline’s casual callousness.

Ophelia: Who are you? Why are you able to talk? And how did you even get in here?

Kyubey: My name is Kyubey! Nice to meet you! I’m not sure why you’re surprised I’m able to talk, though. Have you ever seen another creature like me?

Ophelia shakes her head, continuing to stare at the creature calling itself “Kyubey”.

Kyubey: Then why do you assume I’m not supposed to talk? (Kyubey tilts its head)

Ophelia: I’ll… I’ll call the nurses.

Kyubey: I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Ophelia! You don’t want to reveal our secret to the rest of the world, now do you?

Ophelia: S-Secret…?

Kyubey: Why yes, a secret! A secret I can’t tell others, and you shouldn’t, lest they believe you’ve gone mad! Our secret! The fact that you have a unique potential to make your greatest wish come true, as long as you make a contract with me and become a Puella Magi!

Ophelia: You… You don’t honestly expect me to believe that, do you? I’m not stupid!

Kyubey: Of course you aren’t! A stupid person would deny what is right in front of them. But I’m here, am I not? And I’m talking, am I not? No matter how incredible that might seem!

Ophelia: B-But…

Kyubey: So, if you’re willing to believe that, why wouldn’t you believe that you could become a Puella Magi!

Ophelia: W-What even is a… P-Puella Magi?

Kyubey: I’m glad you asked! A Puella Magi is blessed with amazing magical powers, which she is sworn to use to vanquish evil! Like a superhero, pretty much! Granting them their heart’s greatest wish is the least I can do to reward them for their service!

Ophelia: … And what’s in it for you?

Kyubey: Aside from the fact that the universe will live to see many more days thanks to these Puella Magi, and I happen to live in it?

Ophelia: … So you’re some kind of demon, right?

Kyubey: A demon? My, why would a demon want to fight evil? If anything, the demons are the beings you’ll be fighting!

Ophelia: (she mutters to herself) Cancer’s already taken my legs… and now some… thing is here to take my soul, too… (she sobs) Do you honestly think I’m that desperate? 

Kyubey: But I can make any wish come true—

Ophelia: I can’t afford to wish for anything! Not anymore!

Kyubey: What about your dream of going to the Olympics?

Ophelia: … I… should count myself lucky if I’m even alive to watch the Olympics on TV. And for what? To remind myself of what was taken away from me? Every… Every day is a living nightmare. And all I ever hear is that things will get better. That I will achieve great things. That I should be proud… Proud to have beaten the cancer! I… What… What the hell is there to be proud of? There’s only pain, pain, pain! And all I ever hear is that the pain is not real, that I’m just imagining it, but it’s agony! If I’m just imagining it, then why does it still hurt? Why did they take my legs instead of the pain they caused? Why? Why couldn’t they’ve just let the cancer kill me? At least I would have died as me!

Kyubey: Don’t you think you deserve a second chance, then?

Ophelia: … (she sobs)

Kyubey: I believe you don’t actually want to die as you. You want to live as you.

Ophelia: What are you even saying? What do you possibly know about me? You’re just the same as everyone else, assuming it’ll be fine. That I’ll get better. I won’t! All I have to look forward to is pain!

Kyubey: I’m not assuming, Ophelia. I know.

Ophelia: How could you possibly—

Kyubey: You haven’t been paying attention, haven’t you? I can make any wish come true. If you wish not to have to feel the pain anymore… You can.

Ophelia: Not… this pain. Not any pain. Never again. This hurt, this agony, this grief, this despair that I have to feel day after day after day, I want it gone. Nothing to hold me back. I want to never feel anything bad ever again.

Kyubey: Will you enter this covenant with me then, Ophelia St. Croix?

Ophelia: (she looks out at the moon once more, feeling the pain course through her body as she rubs the tears out of her eyes. After what feels like an eternity, she mutters her reply) Kyubey… What choice do I even have?