I opt not to go out witch hunting the next day, instead focusing on using my clairvoyant powers to spy on Dad and try to figure out why he's so against me going. There has to be a reason, right? I spend quite a lot of time just watching him in his study, doing whatever work he does. I assume Ashley knew what he does, but I haven't the slightest clue, and Ashley's memories don't seem to be helpful on the matter. Every so often, he checks his email, and I note that one of the senders has "Dr" in front of their name, and "MD" appended. However, the name itself doesn't jog either my memory or Ashley's.

In between bouts of spying on Dad, I flesh out my notes on everything I can remember, or read more of Phantom Thief Magical Karin. By this time I feel confident that I've remembered nearly all the key plot points of the main story and all the spin-offs, though many of the details are missing, especially in the event stories of Magia Record.

Before I know it, I'm being called down for dinner. Before I go down, I check to see how my soul gem is doing. I can see a significant amount of corruption growing in it, no doubt due to all my spying, but it's nowhere near the point it reached during yesterday's battle, so I turn it back into a ring on my finger and head downstairs.

The following day is my triumphant return to school, so I take extra care to make myself look neat and tidy. I try out Ashley's signature side tail hairstyle and decide to stick with it for now. As before, I pick out a combination of clothes that seems Ashley-like, but forgo the mismatched stockings in favour of matching striped ones. Her clothes are little more frilly than I'm used to, but they're cute, so I don't really mind.

Then I eat breakfast and head out, relying on Ashley's memories to direct me to the school. As I step inside the school, I stop, looking around in awe. It may not be quite as much of a spectacle as the glass-filled school that Madoka attends, but it's still quite a sight for someone used to schools being old and poorly-maintained. The corridors are not just squeaky clean but also with no visible signs of wear and tear. I check my smartphone and find I have over ten minutes before class starts, so I decide to explore a little. The cafeteria looks more like the one I often ate in during my college years than the one in my high school, and there's even a balcony on the second floor overlooking the cafeteria, with still more tables and chairs up top. The library appears to be well-stocked and could have been mistaken for a small public library. There are vending machines in several locations that dispense snacks and drinks, and when I peek into the auditorium, it looks like an actual theatre.

"Good morning, Ashley," someone greets me.

I turn to see Sarra, now wearing a knee-length skirt and a blouse, though her hairstyle is the same as last night.

"Oh, good morning, Sarra!" I reply.

"I didn't see you around yesterday," Sarra says cautiously. "Were you busy?"

"I had something to do at home," I explain. "There's a deadline involved."

"I see," Sarra says. "Well, it's not like I was disappointed or anything, just curious. I'll see you around."

As she heads off, the two girls who visited my house yesterday accost me.

"Whoa, since when were you that close with her?" the brunette asks me.

"I've never seen the two of you even look at each other before now," the redhead says.

I look at them in confusion. "Hey, um… this is going to sound terrible, but… I can't seem to remember your names. Maybe the illness affected my memory or something…"

"Huh? Why didn't you say something yesterday!?" the brunette protested. "I'm Janice, Janice! Remember now?"

"No, but I'll be sure to remember from now on," I say. "And as for yesterday, I was a bit distracted… upset at Dad and stuff. Sorry about that."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear it," the redhead said. "By the way, I'm Chevonne. Don't you dare forget it again!"

"I won't forget, I promise," I reply.

"Now, back on topic," Janice said. "Since when were you close with her?"

"Well, I ran into her by chance yesterday," I say. "We talked a bit. That's about it, really. It's really nothing that special…"

"Think it's true what they say about her?" Chevonne asks.

"Uhh… what do they say?" I ask.

"There are rumours that she bought her way onto the student council," Chevonne explains.

"Hmm," I consider the idea. "Well, I haven't known her long, but she didn't seem like the sort of person who would do that. She seems like a kind person."

"Is that so…"

I swear Chevonne almost sounds disappointed. Did she just want some juicy rumour to believe in, or does she actually have beef with Sarra?

"Honestly, I think she's kinda uptight," Janice admits. "I don't really like her as a person. But I never thought there was anything to the rumours."

"Et tu, Brute!?" Chevonne protests, and Janice giggles.

The two of them accompany me to my homeroom class just as the first bell rings, and we settle down in seats by the window. Several students spot me and start gossiping or something, but I ignore them. Then one boy comes over and looms over me.

"Welcome back, Ashley!" he says with a wide grin.

I gaze up at him, leaning back a little so I can look him in the eye.

"Umm… and who the fuck are you?" I ask.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten your own boyfriend!" the boy states.

I glance at Janice and Chevonne for help, but they shrug and shake their heads.

"I don't have a boyfriend, and even if I did, I wouldn't choose an asshole who declares himself one without permission," I retort.

Several people giggle at that, including both Janice and Chevonne, but there's a few others besides. The boy turns beet red and fumes.

"Y-you… why you… how dare you screw with me!" he shouts

He grabs my hand and drags me to my feet. For a second I panic, thinking he might be trying something naughty, but then I remember that we're in the middle of class. There's no way he'd do something so obvious. My fears are somewhat allayed when all he does is grab me by the shoulders and shake me a little.

"I swear, you agreed to go out with me!" he shouts. "We were supposed to go on a date, but then you got sick and couldn't make it! Don't tell me you don't even remember that!"

"Please let go of me," I say calmly.

"Please, try to remember!" the boy says desperately.

I gaze right into his eyes.

"I said, let go."

But he doesn't let go. If anything he grips me even more tightly. With a sigh, I reach up and force his fingers open, twisting free of his grasp. He's no match for my enhanced magical girl strength, after all. He seems startled at how easily I break free. Once I'm free of his grip, I step over my chair, placing my desk between us.

"Look kiddo, I don't really remember whether or not I agreed to go on a date with you," I state. "Maybe it happened, maybe it didn't. But even if I did, your outburst this morning definitely would've convinced me to cancel it. Please try to think before you do things."

The boy takes a step back, looking rather downcast. He seems honestly disappointed at the outcome. Perhaps he didn't mean anything bad, and this was just the clumsiness of youth, but it doesn't change the fact that I'm not interested in him, even if Ashley had been before I replaced her in this world.

"R-right… I… I'll just… go over there," he mutters.

Just at that moment, the teacher arrives, out of breath, and then the second bell goes.

"Everyone, please be seated!" he announces. "I'm sure you've all noticed, but Miss Taylor has returned to us from her illness! Miss Taylor, I know it's been awhile since you've studied math, but I had a test scheduled for today. Do you want to try writing it? I can let you write it next week, if you prefer."

He probably assumes that I'm behind on school, which would be a correct assumption if I were the real Ashley Taylor, but I'm actually a college graduate, so even if I might be a bit rusty, I'm pretty sure I can do okay on a high school math test. Okay, so my college degree may not have been in math or anything math-adjacent, but it still means I already completed high school math, and I think my grades were fairly decent back then.

"Um… I'd like to try it," I say. "But does that mean I can retake it next week if I do badly?"

"Of course!" the teacher says. "If you get a failing grade, or heck, even a sixty or so, I'll write a new version of the test just for you, and you can retake it next week."

So after taking attendance, he distributes the tests, and I settle down to puzzle through it. As I expected, many of the problems are fairly easy for my level. There are a few I have trouble with, mostly because I can't quite remember some of the formulas, but I manage to finish within twenty minutes.

After quickly rechecking my answers as best I can, I settle back to see what my Dad is up to. He seems to be at work, doing whatever it is he does all day. Since I have little else to do while the others are writing the test, I idly watch for awhile.

Just as the class is coming to an end, something changes. Dad gets up from his desk and leaves the office. Ignoring the other students gathering up the tests and handing them over to the teacher, I focus on Dad. He gets into his car and drives off somewhere, but at that moment, Janice shakes me, and I lose the vision.

"Hmm? Something wrong, Janice?"

"You were spacing out there… we gotta get to our next class, come on!"

"Oh, sorry about that," I say.

As Janice leads me to the next class, I try to call up the vision again, but it eludes me until I've settled down at my desk again. Finally, I see Dad driving again. I try to keep the vision active in a corner of my mind while at the same time paying attention to what the teacher's saying, but it's surprisingly difficult.

Eventually, Dad pulls into the parking lot of what seems to be a hospital. I blink in surprise. Of course, I knew that Ashley's father died of an illness after she went to Japan, but according to her mother, he hadn't been diagnosed until after she left. Was that not actually true? Had he kept the truth from both of them?

Since my desk is towards the back of the classroom, I decide to pretend to sleep while focusing on the vision. As I close my eyes, the sounds of the vision begin to make themselves known, and I strain to hear my father's voice as he talks with the doctor.

"Wake up!"

It's Janice, shaking me awake. I sit up and see that the students are filing out.

"Oh… next class, right?"

"Geez, you're so out of it today, Ashley," Janice says. "Come on, let's go."

As we exit the classroom, I nearly run into Alice. She hops aside with a yelp, displaying the supernatural dexterity of a magical girl. If it had been anyone else, we probably would've collided hard. Hmm… I wonder why she didn't dodge last time though? Did she not hear me coming?

"You again… watch where you're going, you dimwit!" she shouts.

"Right back at you!" I retort.

Alice just glares at me and runs off.

"What the heck was her problem?" Janice wonders.

I shrug. "I think that's just how she is… honestly, it's kinda of charming, don't you think?"

Janice gives me a weird look. "I know I've said this before, but you really are weird sometimes, Ashley."

"But we wouldn't have it any other way," Chevonne adds. "That's what makes life fun, right?"

"Well, I guess," Janice reluctantly agrees.

When we arrive at the next classroom, Chevonne is already there, and it's only then that I realize she wasn't even in the previous class. She waves in greeting, and the two of us join her.

As I ponder what I saw in my vision, the rest of the day passes like a blur.

"Dad, we need to talk."

We're sitting down to eat dinner together, and I've been stewing over it while eating.

"I have nothing more to say on the matter," he replies.

"Well, I do," I say. "You just say it's for my own good, but you won't explain yourself. You're hiding something from us, aren't you?"

"Whatever gives you that idea?" he retorts.

"It doesn't add up!" I reply. "Why won't you explain it to me? Are you really thinking of me? Aren't you only thinking of yourself? You're just afraid that if I go on this trip, you'll never see me again, aren't you?"

My father blinks.

"What? Of course not," he says. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"It's the only thing that I could think of that makes sense!" I explain. "I thought about it all day. You're keeping something from both of us, aren't you? Whatever it is, I think Mom deserves to know too! Especially if someone has told you you don't have long to live!"

His reaction shows that I hit the nail on the head. Of course, I'd already gleaned that from his conversation at the hospital, but it would be suspicious if I brought that up. More important than his reaction is Mom's reaction. She looks startled by what I said, and I can see that she too noticed his reaction to it and is starting to wonder.

"Look, I don't see what any of that has to do with your trip to Japan," Dad begins.

"So you're just going to dodge the question?" I interrupt. "If that's the reason you're not letting me go, then of course it's relevant!"

"Ashley dear, please calm down," Mom puts in. "I'm sure your father has his reasons."

"Oh, sure," I retort. "But he won't even tell me what they are! Are they good reasons? Who knows!"

Dad smacks his palm against his face.

"Ashley… you realize you're being really childish right now, don't you?"

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm technically still a child, at least according to the law," I retort. "Besides, being all adult about it didn't help me yesterday, now did it?"

"Look, I didn't want to worry you," Dad says desperately, but that was exactly the response I was looking for, and he realizes a moment later that he just put his foot in his mouth.

"Oh, so you're admitting that I'm right?" I ask.

"Dear, what is this all about?" Mom asks him.

Dad groans. "It's really nothing," he says. "I mean, it's most likely nothing. The doctor just noticed something slightly concerning in my last checkup and asked me to come back for a more detailed look. I didn't want to worry you guys when it was most likely a false alarm!"

"You could've at least told me," Mom says reproachfully.

"I was going to, once I was certain," he replies.

"And when's that?" she shoots back.

"After Christmas."

I figure it's about time to switch strategies and give him a carrot.

"Dad, look, there's no way it would be the last time you see me if I go on the exchange program," I say. "I mean, like you said, it's probably a false alarm, but even in the worst case, I'll still call every week, okay? More than once every week, if possible. I want to go on this trip more than anything, so please, Dad, please let me go!"

Dad facepalms again.

"Ashley, I…" He trails off for a moment, then starts over. "Perhaps you're right. I knew in my head that this was most likely a false alarm, but something inside me was still panicking. It's not right for me to push my own problems onto my only daughter." He lets out a long sigh. "Fine… you can go, but only if you promise to call twice a week."

Elated, I jump up from the table.

"You really mean it?"

He nods, and I run over to give him a big hug. The feelings that surface most likely come from the memories of the original Ashley, yet the words come to me as naturally as if they were my own feelings.

"Daddy, I love you! Thanks a bunch!"

"So um… when's the deadline, anyway?" he asks.

"Um… it's today, actually," I say.

"Guess we'd better hurry up and finish eating so we can get that submitted then," he says.

"By the way, speaking of Christmas," Mom jumps in with a new topic. "Have either of you thought about where you'd like to go for the holidays? I was thinking maybe Madrid…"

"Ohh, the holidays?" I muse. This could be my chance to possibly meet Pernelle! If I recall correctly, she's said to live in… "Well, I was thinking Paris, actually…"

"They're not all that far apart," Dad points out. "We could always split half and half. I haven't really thought about it myself, so I'll go with whatever the two of you choose."

"I'll do a little investigation and make the bookings, then," Mom says. "If we don't book soon, we might miss our chance."

"Yeah… we're running a bit late this year due to Ashley's illness, huh?" he nods. "Weren't even sure we'd be able to go somewhere."

"So this is my fault now, is it?" I retort, making a pouty face at them.

This remark sets off a chain of laughter, and even I end up joining in for a bit. Then I finish off my meal and head upstairs with Dad following me. I log into the website for the exchange program and pull up my saved application form to allow him to fill in the final details. Then I hit the submit button and hear the satisfying ping of a confirmation email entering my inbox.

"Well, I've got work to do," Dad says.

"You should try working less, Dad," I retort. "It's not like you're in school anymore. You don't have homework."

He chuckles. "Well, perhaps you're right, but if I don't get this done…"

He leaves the possible consequences ominously unsaid, and leaves the room. I immediately pull out my soul gem to see how it's doing. It seems to be at about the same state as it was after Saturday's battle, so I fish out the grief seed to purify it. As if on cue, Cube pops up from somewhere.

"How do I tell if I can use it again…" I mutter.

"That grief seed is not ready for me to harvest," Cube observes. "It most likely has one or two uses left."

"But I should hunt for more, right, I get it," I sigh. "You planning to follow me again today?"

"It is my custom to accompany new magical girls for their first few fights," Cube explains. "However, if you would prefer, I can leave you alone."

"I don't really care," I shrug.

I make sure my door is properly shut, then escape through the window once again. Unlike the previous night, I don't have a witch to follow, so I just pick a random direction and walk.