I'm at my desk, staring at the screen. The clock reads seventeen minutes past six in the morning. I check the document, making sure it's all up-to-date with all the latest information, but it looks like everything I added last time is already still there, so I just have to add the few new little things I learned in the most recent timeline. I was locked up for most of the time, so it's not much, mostly Folklore of Zero trivia.

Once I'm confident that everything is up-to-date, I climb back into bed and scry on Homura. I find her roof-hopping across town towards Mami's apartment. She arrives on the roof across from the place just as Mami is leaving, and hops down into an alleyway, stepping up from behind her.

"Tomoe Mami," she says.

Mami turns to her in surprise.

"Yes? How can I help you?" she asks.

Homura hesitates for a few moments before continuing.

"In a month and a half, Walpurgisnacht will come to this city," she says.

Mami blinks. "Oh! You're a magical girl? But wait… how do you know that?" she asks.

Homura hesitates again before offering an excuse.

"I… heard it from someone," she says. "But the reason I mentioned it is because… it can't be beaten by one person. We should… we should fight it together."

Mami blinks. "Ah… I see," she says. "You would like backup because it's such a powerful witch. That's not a problem – I'd be happy to have someone to fight alongside me once again. We should also work together until then, to get used to each other's powers. Is that okay?"

Homura just nods wordlessly, so Mami continues.

"So, um… with that out of the way… you look like you're about the same age as me, but… and pardon me if this seems nosy… you're not wearing a school uniform?"

Homura blinks. "W-what? Um… I was just discharged from the hospital," she says. "I'll be joining Mitakihara Middle School as a second year… tomorrow."

"Ah, I see," Mami nods. "And what about your parents? Will they be okay with you staying out late?"

"There's no problem," Homura says. "My parents are abroad… I'll be living alone."

Mami blinks, then suddenly seizes one of Homura's hands in both of her own.

"In that case… since we'll be working together, why don't you come and live at my place instead?" Mami suggests eagerly. "I live alone too, but it gets lonely sometimes… I'd love to have the company."

"E-eh!? Um… well… I… I guess that's… fine?" Homura says.

"Um… if you don't want to… I'm not pushing you," Mami says quickly.

"No, um… if… if you'll have me, then… I'd like that," Homura says. "Um… thank you for the offer…"

Mami beams at her.

"Then it's settled! Starting tonight, you'll be staying here! You'll bring over all your things after school, right?"

"Yeah… sure," Homura says.

"Then I'll see you later!"

She watches as Mami turns to head to school, a slightly dazed expression on her face. After a minute or so, she mutters under her breath.

"I… I can't believe it… how did Miss Ashley know she would do that? Even though I tried that before and she was all cool and distant… although I did kill Kyuubey that time…"

With a sigh, she returns to the hospital, where she manages to sneak back into her hospital room before her absence is noticed, just in the nick of time. I'm not sure, but I suspect she must have used time stop to speed her passage even more in both directions.

I'm pulled out of the vision by someone tapping on the door. The first thing I do is grab my phone and take note of the current time.

"Ashley-chan! It's breakfast time!"

It's Komachi's voice, so I quickly get up and put my school uniform on, although I plan to skip school today. After tidying my hair, I head downstairs for breakfast. I've almost finished eating when there's a knock on the door. Mrs Hayashi goes to answer it.

"Hello," a familiar voice says. "Is Miss Ashley Taylor here?"

"Uh, yes, she is," Mrs Hayashi says. "She's almost ready… why don't you come in and wait for her?"

The speaker enters the kitchen ahead of Mrs Hayashi, now wearing a Mitakihara Middle School uniform.

"Friend of yours, Ashley?" Mrs Hayashi asks.

"Something like that," I say. "This is Miss Akemi Homura. Miss Homura… these are the Hayashi sisters, Hiyori-chan and Komachi-chan."

«I already know that,» Homura retorts in my head.

«Sure, but they don't know you know,» I reply.

"Well, I'll leave you be for a bit, but don't forget you need to leave for school soon," Mrs Hayashi says.

She then heads out of the kitchen, and Homura takes a seat at the table, looking around awkwardly. Both sisters seem to notice the ring on her finger, which she's not making any attempt to hide.

"Um… so… how did the two of you meet?" Komachi asks.

"That is… a long story," Homura says.

"We don't have time to get into that this morning," I say. "And I'd rather not say it twice, so… tonight's probably a bad time too. I'd like Inui-chan to hear it as well, you see."

Komachi nods.

"That does make sense, I suppose," she says. "The two of you are fairly close, after all…"

Homura blinks.

"So… you two… you know this Itsumi Inui too?" she asks.

"Of course," Hiyori says. "She's a magical girl who goes to our school, after all. In order to avoid accidental territorial disputes, we need to at least know all the magical girls who attend the same school. We don't know her all that well though… Ashley-chan knows her the best."

Homura blinks again. "She goes to Mitakihara Middle School?"

"That's right," Hiyori says. "You go there too, and you didn't know? Although, I've never seen you before…"

"Ah… I just transferred in," Homura says. "In fact… I don't officially start until tomorrow."

"Oh… that explains it," Hiyori says. "Well, allow me to welcome you to the school, then!"

"Besides you, Miss Itsumi, and Miss Tomoe… are there any others at Mitakihara Middle School?" Homura asks.

Hiyori shakes her head. "No… I think that's everyone," she says. "So you already met Miss Tomoe, huh?"

"Yes… by chance, on the way here," Homura lies.

"Anyway… let me see… how about I explain everything Friday after school?" I suggest. "I'd like to show you something interesting on the hill behind the school, so… if you could wait for us, Hiyori-chan? I'll tell Inui-chan about it myself, so you don't need to worry about letting her know."

Hiyori nods. "Sure… but what's this all about, Ashley-chan?"

"A bunch of things I've been hiding from you," I say. "Because I didn't think you'd believe me… but we've known each other for awhile now, so I figure it's about time to come clean. It includes how I came to know Miss Homura, among other things."

Hiyori nods. "Well, I'll look forward to it," she says.

"I did always think you were hiding something from us," Komachi admits. "But I figured you'd tell us when you felt you could trust us enough so… thanks for trusting us."

I blink as I suddenly remember something.

"No, wait… I almost forgot about Kirika," I say. "Hiyori-chan… could you try to make friends with Kure Kirika?"

"Um, sure, but… why?" Hiyori asks.

"I'll explain everything on Friday, but… Miss Kure has the potential to be a magical girl, so if possible, I'd like you to be there when Kyuubey notices, so you can help her decide on a wish, or even stop her."

"I don't get it," Hiyori says. "What's the point of all this?"

"I promise, I'll explain it all on Friday," I say. "Could I ask you to trust me until then?"

"Alright… I'll do it," Hiyori says. "But what if Kyuubey doesn't notice her by Friday?"

"Then… hopefully her having spent some time with you would still influence her thinking a little," I say. "One other thing before you go, since I'm going to skip school today… I'd just like to warn you away from the witch behind the public pool. I might try killing her together with Miss Homura, but I'm not sure we even can… it's a very strong witch. Its labyrinth looks like a theatre, so if you find yourself in such a place… try to run away."

"But what about the people it sucks in?" Komachi asks.

"Of course, if it draws anyone inside, you can rescue them," I say. "You should be safe as long as you don't enter the main chamber at the back of the theatre."

Komachi nods. "Got it… I hope the two of you can finish it off, but if not, we'll be sure to keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't eat anyone. Oh, and I'll tell the teacher you're sick today."

I nod. "Thanks for covering for me, Komachi-chan."

The four of us leave the house together, and for a little while we walk together in silence. Then the sisters split off in their own directions, and Homura and I watch them go.

"It's kind of… surreal," Homura admits. "To think that you had a life here… a relationship with all these people… and I just thought of you as an obstacle to my plans…"

"If you're sorry, just come out and say it," I retort.

"Why are you so interested in Miss Kure?" Homura asks. "She's Oriko's assistant, after all, and she is quite dangerous in her own right… is it even safe to ask Miss Hiyori to talk to her?"

"Miss Kure's wish changes her personality," I say. "There should be no danger speaking with her before she becomes a magical girl. As for after she becomes a magical girl… assuming her wish doesn't change, she'll only be as dangerous as Oriko needs her to be. In last two timelines when Oriko helped me out, Miss Kure was actually quite sunny."

"I find that hard to believe…"

I chuckle a bit. "So anyway… where should we chat?"

"How about at my place?" Homura suggests.

"Sure."

She leads the way, opening the door with a key fished from her pocket. When I step inside her living room, it's different from what I remember in the anime. Oh, the black benches and mainly white decor are the same, but all that stuff flickering across the walls in the anime is absent. Perhaps she simply hasn't set it up yet? It actually looks like the walls are meant to be digitally customized somehow. I'm not sure if there's a projector somewhere or if they're themselves a gigantic computer screen or what, but… well, that's not important right now. We sit facing each other on the benches and just stare at each other for nearly a whole minute. Finally, I break the silence.

"There's so much to talk about, I'm not even sure where to start," I admit. "Would you like me to go over some things that you've been missing in your retries? Or… I'd also like to hear of some of the more unique retries you went through, such as the one where Elise used her power to save Miss Miki…"

"How did you know about that?" Homura asks.

"I guess I've never officially revealed my powers to you," I say. "My primary powers are telekinesis and clairvoyance… I also have a charm power and some sort of beam that fires from the Teddy Drone."

Homura nods slowly. "I saw most of those in action, but… clairvoyance?"

"Yes… I can see what's happening far away," I say. "It's part of how I know so much, and it's how I was able to interfere so easily when Miss Miki and Kyouko were ganging up on you."

"I see… so, you're claiming I've missed things in my attempts," Homura says. "What do you claim I missed?"

"Well… let's go back to the very first timeline, before you even made your contract," I say.

Homura blinks. "You even remember that far back… no, I think this actually came up before, but… it's still shocking…"

"If you remember… in the first timeline, Miss Tomoe knew that Walpurgisnacht was coming. Did you ever wonder how she knew?"

Homura blinks. "Yes… usually I was the one who told her," she says. "She didn't know until I mentioned it… this time too, she didn't seem like she knew…"

I nod. "Exactly! In the first timeline – in fact, the first three timelines – she already knew without you telling her. But after that, she didn't know until you told her. Did you ever wonder why that is?"

Homura nods. "I do remember wondering why she didn't know in the fourth timeline," she admits. "That was the first time Oriko appeared…"

"That's the answer," I say. "Oriko. It was Oriko who told her in the first three timelines… or rather, she told Kyuubey, who passed it on to Miss Tomoe and others in the area."

Homura blinks.

"Oriko… did something like that?" she says. "But… when she appeared, she was always after Madoka's life…"

"Because her actions were a response to the vision she had when she first became a magical girl," I say. "At first, when she made her contract, she had a vision of Walpurgisnacht, and spread the warning so others could prepare. But starting in the fourth timeline, her vision also included Kriemhild Gretchen."

"What's Kriemhild Gretchen?" Homura asks.

"Ah, sorry… I mean she saw Madoka turn into a witch," I say. "All witches have a name… Kriemhild Gretchen is the witch that Madoka would become, if she turned into a witch. This is an example of how events can change even if you yourself don't do anything different."

"How do I know it didn't change because of things you did?" Homura asks.

"Well… I can't rule that out entirely," I admit. "Even so… it's a fact that Oriko in the first three timelines foresaw Walpurgisnacht, but in the fourth timeline, she foresaw Madoka becoming a witch. That's why she was after Madoka's life – to save the world from Kriemhild Gretchen. Not exactly the most ethical method, but her heart was in the right place, sort of."

"Is that also why Oriko behaved differently last time?" Homura asks. "And the time before that?"

"Well, the differences the last two times were caused at least partly by my interference," I say. "In the timeline where Kyuubey remembered, I spoke to Oriko early on and convinced her not to kill Madoka. She'd seen Kriemhild Gretchen and was starting to plan out how to deal with her, and I convinced her that she could prevent the witch's birth without killing Madoka. We may need to do the same thing this time as well. But last time… last time she saw Madoka becoming a goddess, rather than a witch. In other words, she foresaw the wish I interrupted at the last second. However… she was unable to see any further in the future beyond that point."

"Which sounds ominous," Homura says. "Well… this certainly makes sense, but… even so, you were also there in the background changing things, so you can't say it was really something that changed without any interference."

"Perhaps," I say. "Is there anything else you wondered about?"

"The witch that nearly always killed Miss Tomoe," Homura says. "I never saw it in the first two timelines. You said she was a newly-born witch, right?"

I nod. "Yes… Charlotte showed up suddenly in the third timeline, right?"

"Is that the witch's name?"

"Charlotte the sweets witch, yes. But in fact, she did appear in the first two timelines."

Homura blinks. "No… I definitely would've remembered it!"

I shake my head. "Madoka and Miss Tomoe beat her before you even met them, so there's no way you could remember it. Remember, in the first two timelines you didn't transfer in until the end of the second week, right?"

Homura blinks. "But that's not possible… she didn't show up until much later in the timeline…"

"Miss Tomoe was not the first magical to fight Charlotte after she was born," I explain. "Before Miss Tomoe got there, a magical girl named Yumeno Yusa tried to defeat her, but died in the attempt. Because she failed to beat Charlotte, Miss Tomoe showed up and killed her instead, with help from Madoka. However, in the third timeline, I think what must have happened is that Yumeno Yusa did manage to barely beat Charlotte… however, she still died in the attempt. I didn't see that myself, unfortunately, but if my theory is right, that means Charlotte's grief seed was left unattended until, some time later, she respawned. In other words… the Charlotte you remember is the second time she appeared."

"That… that makes a lot of sense, but… but how do you even know so much about it?" Homura says. "Your explanation sounds so detailed that I find it hard to believe…"

"Well, I watched it happen the first time with my clairvoyance," I say. "In the fourth timeline, I even fought alongside Momoe Nagisa for a few minutes before she turned into a witch. Oh, she didn't turn into a witch in front of me, though… there were two witches born at the hospital on that day, and she helped me beat the first one, which was Itsumi Inui. Then she ran off and ended up becoming a witch herself, and I helped Miss Tomoe defeat her."

"And I suppose you'll want to save this Yumeno Yusa as well," Homura grumbles.

"Actually… no," I say. "I don't know of any way to truly save her. If you just find her and have a chat with her, you'll probably understand what I mean, but… she's the least human magical girl I know. Assuming we save Itsumi Inui and Momoe Nagisa, she'll live on by default, but… that won't make anyone happy. In the fourth timeline, I teamed up with the quartet and Inui-chan to kill her myself, but she's very tough – fast, seems to know what you're doing before you do it, can take any amount of damage with seemingly no consequences. I'm pretty sure she blocks out the pain like I've learned to do, too… like Miss Miki usually did."

"Then if I were to stop time and shoot her soul gem, you wouldn't mind?" Homura asks.

"Yeah, but even then, I'd suggest shooting from multiple directions, even behind, just to make sure. Also… I'd also ask you to hold off on that until after we save Itsumi Inui and Momoe Nagisa. This probably seems terrible of me, but… she's going to kill Inui-chan's boyfriend who she loves with everything she has, but he's actually a really terrible person, and having him die seems like the easiest way to force her to move on from him."

"You're surprisingly quite the hypocrite, Miss Ashley," Homura says. "Here you are telling me not to kill, and yet, you killed one person and purposely let another die."

Unexpectedly, Ashley bubbles up at that moment, and her words gush out, startling Homura.

"I know! I can't believe it either! You tell her, Homura-chan! It's not right, is it? Whether it's killing another human being, even a psycho like that Sleepwalking Spectre, or letting them die on purpose like Sho-kun… it's wrong, isn't it!?"

Homura blinks at me.

"Um… what? What are you talking about? Are you… arguing with yourself?"

I manage to take back control and nod.

"Yes… yes, that's exactly right," I say. "There's two different personalities inside me… you just saw the other one come out for the first time. I mean it's the first time she came out in front of you, that is. By the way, the Sleepwalking Spectre is Yu's nickname… also, her full name Yumeno Yusa is forbidden. Don't mention it to anyone else, because it's impossible for anyone to know it, even considering time travel."

"If it's impossible for anyone to know it… then how do you know it?" Homura asks.

"The answer to that question is long and complicated, and I'm not ready yet to share it with anyone," I say. "Perhaps once we escape the time loop with a happy ending."

"I think Charlotte and Oriko were really the only major unexplained factors," Homura muses. "At least, I can't think of anything else… other than maybe the fact that Kyouko always showed up…"

"Well, Miss Sakura used to team up with Miss Tomoe… perhaps you already figured that out though? I think Miss Sakura kind of regrets how they split up. Come to think of it… when you were fighting Walpurgisnacht last time, I couldn't help but notice that you barely did any damage… yet when you were fighting with Miss Tomoe in the first few timelines, there was quite a bit of damage done. I have a theory about that too…"

Homura blinks. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"Well… timeline one," I say. "Oriko, Kirika, and Asako Komaki took on Walpurgisnacht, and managed to do a little damage, but even Oriko's suicide attack only yielded a small crack in the gear… but then when Miss Tomoe and Madoka fought her a few minutes later, they didn't even manage that much. Without knowing the witch's weak spot, they were unable to do any lasting damage."

"Huh? Oriko was fighting Walpurgisnacht back then!?" Homura blinks.

"Yeah… I'm not sure why she didn't try to join forces with those two though," I say. "Then in timeline two, things go quite a bit better. Hiyori-chan and I join Oriko in fighting Walpurgisnacht, so there's five of us."

"Huh? What happened to the other three?" Homura asks. "Those four were always together as far as I know…"

"They died in that timeline," I say. "Two of them turned into witches, and the other detonated her soul gem. Anyway… the five of us did a bit better than Oriko's team in timeline one. We took out two whole gear teeth and left quite a few small cracks in the gears. Then I passed on the witch's weakness to Miss Tomoe. Thanks to that, she brought down a third gear tooth, and then Kyouko showed up just in time to save her."

Homura blinks. "Now that I think of it, you're right… Miss Tomoe suddenly said the weak point is the gear out of the blue… but the first time she never targeted the gear at all… you're the one who told her that?"

"Yeah… Oriko knew it too, of course. So then the Tiro Duet actually snapped a gear in half, right? But then they ended up dying, so you and Madoka, weak as you were back then, only barely had enough power to finish her off, and Madoka turned into a witch."

"That's true… we actually defeated the witch that time," Homura says.

"Then in timeline three, Oriko had a huge team backing her up," I say. "The entire quartet was there, plus me, Kirika, Komaki, and even Yuma-chan. Yuuri-chan and Airi-chan were also there. Oh, and Kohaku Koharu showed up too."

"…who is Kohaku Koharu?"

"She's a veteran who patrols the former industrial district," I say. "You might've spotted her at the battle last time… the one in a sort of shrine-maiden-like outfit?"

"I don't really remember anyone other than Alina from that team," Homura says. "And Yuuri and Airi?"

"Oh well. Yuuri-chan and Airi-chan are a magical girl duo from Asunaro," I say. "They were also in that big team last time. Anyway… as you might expect, with twelve girls all fighting together, we did quite a bit of damage, although it still wasn't enough… I think three of them survived, besides me – Yuuri-chan, Airi-chan, and Yuma-chan. We didn't take off as many gear teeth, but the gears were full of cracks by the time we were finished. Probably thanks to that, coupled with Madoka's increased power, the two of you were able to defeat Walpurgisnacht that time too, but she used too much magic in the process."

"And I made that promise…"

"Right… then in timeline four… you were brooding by yourself in your room, so you wouldn't know, but there was quite a large group of magical girls who came together to fight that time too. The entire quartet was there, as well as Miss Tomoe, Kyouko, Yuma, and Asako Koito."

Homura blinks. "Huh? Did Komaki have a sister or something?"

I nod. "She made her contract after Oriko attacked the school. Besides those, there were also three magical girls from out of town – they didn't join last time though – as well as Koharu Kohaku again. I don't actually know if they would've been able to defeat the witch, but from what I could see, they were doing alright – the first attack broke off a large chunk of the gear. Then in timeline five – from my perspective that is, so the one where Kyuubey remembered – you and Kyouko fought together and barely did any damage at all… I think the only attack that did any appreciable damage was Kyouko's Kugatachi. And finally in timeline six, the last one, you fought alone and barely did any damage at all. Even setting that factory to blow barely did anything, right?"

"I will admit that I'd somehow forgotten about the gears being a weak point," Homura admits. "But… where are you going with all this?"

"Well, it's just… from what I can tell, it just seems like you were the only one unable to damage her at all," I say. "So my theory is that Walpurgisnacht has a strong resistance to ordinary physical weapons. I'm not certain of this, but… if I'm right… all your efforts to defeat her really were in vain."

Homura glares at me.

"And what else could I have done!?" she shouts. "I have no attack magic whatsoever! All I can do is stop time and throw stuff at it! If I can't even damage it—"

"Oh, but I don't think you're incapable of damaging her," I interrupt. "You've just been too focused on your goal, and nothing you've tried has worked. Miss Tomoe probably would've pointed this out to you as well if you hadn't kept pushing her away, but… there are other ways to fight. You need to think outside the box a bit more. You could teach yourself new techniques, like Miss Tomoe did… or you could enchant your weapons, like Misono Karin did. Or you could get someone to make you a magical weapon, like I did… though I have a feeling Pernelle wouldn't take a liking to you… and I don't know anyone else who could craft a magical weapon…"

"I never had a problem with other witches though… and now you're dropping more names I've never heard of…"

I shrug. "Probably physical resistance just isn't a common witch trait… or you were just lucky not to encounter one. And yeah, I suppose I know a lot of magical girls…"

"I'm starting to understand why Miki Sayaka never liked me," Homura mutters.

"Anyway… would you mind telling me about some of the more unique timelines that you experienced?"

Homura nods. "I suppose it can't hurt," she says. "Actually, now that I think about it, there were quite a few unusual ones… the one where Madoka wished to save Miss Miki after she turned into a witch… the one where Miss Tomoe turned into a witch… the one where Kyouko turned into a witch… the few timelines where Oriko tried to kill Madoka… the one where Elise saved Miss Miki after she became a witch… the one where Miss Miki didn't turn into a witch… and a few where I didn't even go to school…"

"As you know, I saw the first timeline where Oriko interfered," I say. "Were there any significant differences the other times?"

"Well, other than you and the Teddy Drone not appearing… I don't think there were any major differences," Homura says. "But… things were different enough that I couldn't entirely rely on my memory of the other timelines…"

"Probably because Oriko predicted that you'd predict where or when she'd appear, so she appeared at different times or in different places to negate your predictions," I say.

"That is an extremely confusing way to say it," Homura says. "But I get what you mean."

"Whatever… what about the ones where Miss Tomoe and Kyouko turned into witches?"

"I assume you more or less know how the last timeline went?" Homura asks.

"Yeah, I was watching most of it, I think…"

"It was mostly the same… but after Miss Miki turned into a witch, I defeated her instead of fleeing, and Kyouko snapped… then she also turned into a witch."

"Huh… there must've been some difference you were unaware of to influence her reaction so much," I say.

"Maybe… I have no idea," Homura says. "Unlike you, I can't see everything everywhere…"

"It's not like I can either," I retort. "My vision is limited both by who I know and by what I choose to pay attention to."

"The one where Miss Tomoe turned into a witch… that was the first one after Oriko appeared," Homura says. "It was my first time trying, so I failed to prevent Kyuubey from talking to Madoka and convincing her to become a magical girl… I decided that she was at least alive, so I'd fight alongside her to the end, but I think Miss Tomoe got jealous. There was a witch in a park that I'd never seen before, and Miss Tomoe fought it, but the woman she saved yelled at her, and Madoka and I showed up just as she turned into a witch."

That description reminds me of one of the routes in the PSP game. I doubt it went exactly the same as the game, but I suppose that means the witch from that game, which I'd assumed to be defeated well before Homura's loop got going, is actually still around.

"I see… I'd like to see that witch later, if you don't mind," I say.

"I can show you where she found it," Homura says. "I don't know exactly when it appeared, though."

"And the one where Madoka wished to save Miss Miki?"

"In that timeline, it was Miss Tomoe alone who saw Miss Miki turn into a witch… I warned Kyouko to stay away from her, but she confronted Miss Tomoe anyway and they got into a fight. Then… as far as I know, Kyouko killed Miss Miki and used her grief seed to purify Miss Tomoe, before killing herself. I hoped Miss Tomoe might actually get over it that time… but she ended up killing herself too, and then Madoka wished for Miss Miki to be revived, so the three of us faced Walpurgisnacht together."

That sounds similar to the Different Story timeline from the manga.

"You said there was also one where Miss Miki didn't turn into a witch at all?"

Homura nods.

"That one was a lot like the third timeline, where Miss Miki threw her soul gem away in a labyrinth," she says. "The difference is… instead of everyone saving Miss Miki from that dark witch who hides in a jungle gym—"

"Suleika," I say. "The dark witch is called Suleika."

Homura picks up her sentence without even acknowledging that I said anything.

"Instead of everyone saving her from that witch, Kyouko found her before she even met the witch. Miss Tomoe defeated the witch while they were chatting, so she never saw that boy and her friend together. Other than the one where Kyuubey pushed them together, that was the only time Miss Miki and Kyouko actually became friends…"

"Was Madoka a magical girl in that timeline?" I ask.

"No… she wasn't."

"Then, what about the one where Elise saved Miss Miki?"

"That one… was probably the most anomalous of all," Homura says. "Other than the one where Kyuubey remembered, it was the only time I ever saw Elise Pierrot… it was one of the earlier timelines, where I tried becoming friends with Madoka, instead of keeping my distance. I'd also failed to prevent Madoka from contracting, but… I was willing to let that pass, as long as we could beat Walpurgisnacht. It was pretty similar to the second timeline, where everyone teamed up…"

"But then the quartet intervened?"

"Yes, we were fighting a particularly tough witch when Elise and Claire jumped in to steal the kill with some sort of combined attack," Homura says. "Miss Tomoe asked them what they were doing… I'm not sure, but it seemed like they either knew each other or had at least heard of each other. Kyouko and Miss Miki were convinced they were invading our territory. Over the next few days, we ran into them a few more times, and those two always attacked… eventually the four of them let slip that they were searching for a particular witch."

"Right, the witch of Elise's sister, Liliane… but it was a vain search, because Masuyo Mari defeated that witch as soon as she was born."

"Is that so…? Anyway, after we defeated the witch that looks like a girl praying to a weird sun tree…"

"That sounds like Elsa Maria."

"Whatever, after we defeated her, the four of them all showed up, we got into a fight again, and Miss Miki ran off… since her soul gem was bad, we chased her, but it was too late. Those four chased her as well, and as Miss Miki's soul gem transformed, they told us briefly about Elise's sister. Then, just as the witch emerged, Elise sort of swallowed her up, Miss Miki's soul gem went back to normal, and Elise's soul gem turned into a grief seed instead, spawning a witch that looked like a dragon."

"Doki Yatsura," I nod. "I fought her once, too."

"After defeating her, Claire told the story in more detail… how Liliane had disappeared after a New Year's party, and about Elise's wish… how they later learned from a classmate that Liliane had been a magical girl… how they found out that magical girls turn into witches… how Elise realized the significance of the power she'd kept secret from them until then… how they decided to search the city and see if they could find Liliane's witch."

"How did they find out that magical girls turn into witches? Did they see someone turn into a witch? If so, who?"

"No, it sounded like they heard it from Kyuubey," Homura says. "After they realized Liliane had been a magical girl, I suppose they questioned him about it and got the truth out of him."

"I see… I thought maybe Kanna-chi had shown up looking for me and told them about it…"

"…who?"

"Never mind… that's not really important… just another friend from another town. You also mentioned some times when you skipped school, but… are those unique enough to be relevant?"

Homura nods.

"Not all of them, but there were… probably two or three where I chose to skip school and things took a strange turn," she says.

"How many times did you skip school?" I ask.

"Quite a few… maybe about one-fifth of all attempts?"

"So, what was a typical school-skipping run like?" I ask. "So I have a basis of comparison when you explain how a few of them took a strange turn."

"Um… I'd spend all my time fighting witches," Homura says. "The rose witch, the sweets witch, the box witch… all of them, I'd try to find and destroy before the others could. I usually got into fights with Miss Tomoe though, and sometimes Kyouko. Madoka never made a wish until the very end… Miss Miki didn't make a wish either. I think she never even met Kyuubey, because the rose witch event never happened. Usually it ended up with Kyouko and Miss Tomoe teaming up against me, but then they fought Walpurgisnacht together and died, and then I tried and failed to beat it, and finally Madoka made a wish and defeated it. She always turned into a witch after she defeated it."

I nod. "Okay, that all makes sense. So… how did they sometimes take a strange turn?"

"Well… there was one timeline where a strange magical girl appeared," Homura says. "I don't remember her name, but she seemed to have three different forms, and she attacked Miss Tomoe and… stole her soul gem. Kyouko got mad and chased after the girl, and… I never heard from her again in that timeline."

I blink. "Huh… that sounds like the Souju twins," I say.

"What? No, there was only one of them," Homura says.

I shake my head. "The Souju twins are two magical girls sharing a single body," I say. "You said three different forms… two of those are the twins' native magical girl forms, and the third is a combined transformation. The fact that they stole Miss Tomoe's soul gem is also evidence that it was them, because, well… that's what they do."

"Huh… that's… strange," Homura says. "Even stranger that you know of them…"

"Well, I have friends in Asunaro," I say. "The Souju twins are wanderers, but they stopped by Asunaro before coming to Mitakihara. Usually they didn't even make it to Mitakihara… although… last time they actually did, and ended up dying somehow… I don't suppose you have any idea who might've killed them?"

Homura shakes her head. "No… I never saw them last time," she says.

"Hmm… since Asunaro is to the north… Masuyo Mari seems like a good guess," I say. "But I guess it doesn't really matter."

"The other strange turn of events when I skipped school was… four magical girls showed up suddenly and just started killing everyone," Homura says. "Miss Tomoe, Kyouko, Oriko, and several others died by their hand. I was able to evade them, and once everyone else was gone, they just left town. They were led by a girl with a feather headdress."

"Huh… so it sounds like the Folklore of Zero came to Mitakihara," I say. "They were in Asunaro last time, and I encountered them once. But I wonder what would've drawn them to Mitakihara? Unless… did they kill Madoka?"

Homura shakes her head. "No… she wasn't even a magical girl. After they left, Miss Miki and Yuma took over the territory."

"I assume the two of them only made a wish after Folklore of Zero had moved on."

"Yes."

"I guess Kyuubey was a bit more thorough in searching for potential magical girls because everyone else had died," I say. "So that would be why it approached Miss Miki without first meeting her in Gertrud's labyrinth… anyway, was that all the unusual timelines you can remember?"

Homura nods. "The Souju twins appeared twice, and the second time Kyouko and Miss Tomoe swapped roles, but otherwise there wasn't anything I could see to distinguish the two timelines."

We spend all day talking about our experiences in the time loops. On my side, I limit it to Mitakihara and Kazamino, but that still means I talk about Yuuki Sasa, Lina and her team, Masuyo Mari, Naomi Noriko, Kohaku Koharu, and even Yoshida Tamura. I occasionally touch on things that happened before the time loop got started, like how Mami finished off Albertine when Inui and I were having trouble, or how I got into a fight with Kyouko after defeating another Albertine too close to the border. For her part, she keeps coming up with little things that varied across timelines that she couldn't explain, and I offer possible explanations for them, though they're mostly speculative.

We're both startled when the doorbell rings. Homura jumps up to answer the door.

"Good afternoon, Homura-chan!"

It's Madoka, and she seems to be alone. Homura lets her in, and I wave to her. She and Homura both take a seat so that we're in a sort of circle.

"Good afternoon, Ashley-chan!" she says. "I couldn't wait to come see you, so I told Sayaka-chan and Hitomi-chan that I had something to do. Also, we should all exchange contact info!"

She pulls out her phone, and I follow suit. After a few moments of hesitation, Homura does the same, and we all tap them together to exchange information.

"Has Kyuubey contacted you yet?" I ask.

"Yeah… he caught me as I was leaving the house this morning," Madoka says. "I told him I needed to think about it, so he mostly left me alone, though he was with me for most of the day."

"Despite what Miss Ashley said before, I still don't want you to become a magical girl," Homura says.

"I'm not going to make a wish for at least a few days," Madoka says. "I need to think over what Ashley-chan said and come up with a better one… and if I can't come up with one, maybe I'll decide not to become a magical girl."

"Could I suggest that you put it off at least until after Oriko has become a magical girl?" I ask. "That happens this Sunday. I'd like to see what she foresees before you become a magical girl."

"Oriko? The one who was commanding that huge team of magical girls?" Madoka asks.

"Yes… she's an oracle, so as soon as she makes her contract, she will see Walpurgisnacht and possibly more. Last time, she saw you make that wish that I stopped you from making, but she couldn't see what would happen next."

"Eh? Why would that be? There's no way that kind of wish could destroy the world…"

"My guess would be that her predictive power just isn't strong enough to account for a total rewrite of history," I say. "So it broke down and was unable to determine the future beyond the point where the rewrite was initiated."

"Oh… so it wasn't like the future didn't exist," Madoka says.

"Right. You know, in the previous timeline – the one before the one you remember – you became friends with Oriko."

Madoka blinks. "Really? Then maybe we can become friends again! Can I go with you when you go to meet her?"

"Well… I don't really mind if you do," I say.

"In that case, I should go too," Homura says. "Just in case she decides to kill her on sight."

"So it'll be the four of us then… I guess that's fine," I say.

Madoka blinks. "What do you mean, four? Who's the fourth?"

"Itsumi Inui, possibly the closest friend I've made here in Japan," I say. "Other than school, we're usually together."

"But you're not together now," Madoka points out.

"Well, yeah… because the event that brings us together doesn't happen until Friday. Actually, speaking of Friday… would you like to join the meeting, Madoka?"

"What meeting?"

"I plan to explain everything I know to those I'm closest to, and I've invited Miss Homura as well."

"By everything you know… you mean about witches and the time travel and stuff?" Madoka asks. "But I already know all of that…"

"You don't know all of it," I say. "There are a few things I haven't told you yet."

"Oh… well, in that case, I'd be happy to come," Madoka says. "I guess… I shouldn't really invite Sayaka-chan, right?"

"Yeah, you should probably come alone," I say. "We'll meet at the front gate of your school on Friday, after school's out. You may have to wait a little while though, because there are two magical girls I need to save at the hospital first."

Madoka nods. "That's fine, I can wait."

"You could always get to know Hayashi Hiyori while you wait… she'll be waiting for the same reason. You should be able to identify her by her magical girl ring."

I show off my own ring to make sure she understands what I'm talking about.

Madoka nods. "Sure. So… what are you going to do next? Is Friday the first chance to save someone?"

"Pretty much," I say. "But tomorrow's the day you meet Miss Tomoe, right?"

"Oh, is it?" Madoka says.

I nod.

"However… you might not be able to count on Kyuubey calling you this time," I say. "Although I wouldn't put it past it to lure you into a labyrinth in the hopes of forcing you to contract… but my point is, if you want to meet Miss Tomoe, you might have to run into the labyrinth yourself. In the first timeline you actually stumbled in by accident after taking a wrong turn."

Madoka nods. "I see… I'll keep that in mind, then."

"You even know something like that…" Homura says. "This knowledge of yours seems like it goes way beyond what you could learn through clairvoyance, or precognition, or time travel, or even all three put together…"

"Well, I've used every means at my disposal," I say. "That includes clairvoyance, and Oriko's precognition a little, and your time travel, and Yoshida Tamura's alt-universe vision, and my own secret method."

"…alt-universe vision?" Madoka asks.

"I don't know what else to call it," I say. "She can see things that might have happened if past events had gone differently. Oh, speaking of Yoshida Tamura, she's a bit of a mystery wrapped in an enigma, because she looks almost exactly like Miss Homura, and she was even in the same hospital at the same time and discharged on the same day and returned to school on the same day, at least by Miss Homura's original schedule. Even her magical girl outfit is almost identical."

Homura blinks. "Huh? It's not like I have a twin sister or anything, though… although I feel like I may have heard the name Tamura when I was in the hospital…"

"Yeah, like I said, it's such a strange pile of coincidences that I don't even know what to make of it," I say. "She lives with her parents in the former industrial district… what do your parents do, Miss Homura?"

"Um… I'm not exactly sure," Homura says. "Excluding the time loop, I haven't seen them for almost three years… I think my mother might be a doctor or something? I remember my father a bit better, because he was the one who always at home before I had to be hospitalized… but I have no idea what he does now. Both of them are overseas."

"You were hospitalized for heart problems, right?"

"Yes… I don't remember the specifics, though," Homura says. "I was originally hospitalized for surgery, then kept on because of unexpected complications… and even when I was finally discharged, it's not like it was cured… if I hadn't become a magical girl, I'd still have to take medication every day to manage it."

"I didn't ask Tamura-chan why she was hospitalized, but… I have a feeling it was also for heart problems," I say. "It's so strange… it's like, why are there two of you?"

"That really is strange," Madoka says. "But I'd definitely like to meet her. Do you know where she lives?"

"Yeah… and she'll probably make a wish next Sunday. But before that, there's a witch I wanted to introduce Homura to today."

"Can I come along?" Madoka asks.

"Um… I really don't think that's a good idea," I say. "This is a very powerful witch… I don't think I'd be able to guarantee your safety. It's certainly too powerful for me to take on alone, but… I think with Miss Homura's time stop, she should be beatable. If I'm wrong… we'll just use her time stop to retreat."

"I understand," Madoka says. "I can still accompany Miss Mami a few times before I decide on a wish, so it's fine, right?"

"Yeah, you can do that, sure."

"Why are you talking as though it's inevitable that you'd become a magical girl!?" Homura asks. "You shouldn't become one, Madoka!"

"I know," Madoka says. "But I think I want to. Homura-chan… if you like me as much as you said back then, the last time we met in this place… would you deny me the chance to do something that I really want?"

Homura sighs.

"I don't know what to think of this Madoka," she mutters.

"Oh? I think this Madoka is kind of cool," I say. "The Madoka of the last timeline had no confidence in herself… it may have been a painful experience, seeing all her friends die, but she's really grown from it."

Madoka turns a little red and looks away from me.

"P-please stop that," she says. "I'm not all that special… I just finally figured out… what it is I want to do with my life."

"I think I prefer the Madoka who gained confidence in herself and made a difficult decision to become a magical girl even knowing the truth, over the Madoka who became a magical girl on a whim and slowly gained confidence as a result of her powers," I say. "But I suppose the latter is the Madoka you knew best, right, Miss Homura? Since that's how she was before you started intervening to make sure she didn't make a contract."

"Yes but… I don't know," Homura says. "Madoka is… Madoka…"

"Stop it!" Madoka complains. "Y-you're embarrassing me…" She pauses, then looks at me. "By the way… what was my original wish?"

"Oh, in the first two timelines? And I suppose, possibly in others where Miss Homura failed to stop you."

Madoka nods.

"You saw a black cat get hit by a car and wished to save its life."

Homura blinks. "W-what… are… are you serious…?"

"Oh wow… you weren't joking when you said it was on a whim," Madoka says. "It does sound like something I might've done back around the time I first met Homura-chan. But… what happened to that cat when I didn't make that wish?"

"I'm afraid I have no idea," I say. "Sorry… it was Friday after school, at a crosswalk on your way home… I don't think you'd gotten all that far, perhaps the first crosswalk… but I don't remember any more than that. I bet the cat is fine, though – it might've died in timeline three, but by now it's probably experiencing enough deja vu to avoid that fate… assuming deja vu affects animals. Still, if you want to try and find it, then you're welcome to."

"I hope you're right, Ashley-chan. So um… you said we can save at least two of the witches we encountered before they become witches, right? Is there any chance we could save some of the others too?"

I shake my head. "Not to my knowledge, but I have to admit that I haven't monitored them closely enough to be sure. Hmm…"

I start counting off on my fingers.

"There's Gertrud, the rose witch, and Suleika, the dark witch… from what I can tell, Suleika is a well-established witch with a number of copies, so I'm sure it's too late to save her. Gertrud… given that you meet her tomorrow, it's probably too late for her too, but I can't be certain."

"In some timelines I encountered that one today," Homura adds. "However, I usually ran from it, to avoid disturbing the timeline."

"Which makes it even less likely," I nod. "Then there's Charlotte and Elly, who can be saved, since I've already identified the magical girl they're born from. Albertine… I fought two versions of her already before the time loop got started, so she's almost certainly like Suleika, well past saving. Gisela… I think Miss Tomoe fought her over a year ago, so that's obviously out."

"Which ones are Albertine and Gisela?" Madoka asks.

"Just after Miss Miki became a magical girl, did you help her attack a familiar?"

Madoka nods. "That's when Kyouko-chan showed up and got mad…"

"That was one of Albertine's familiars. I don't think you've ever met the witch herself, though. You haven't met Gisela, either. Nor have I, for that matter – I only know of her second-hand. I think she looks like a giant robot or something?"

"I never encountered that one," Homura says. "But it sounds like one that Miss Tomoe defeated in one timeline."

Madoka nods. "Huh, alright… so what about the others? There was one with an open sky and clotheslines…"

I nod. "That's Patricia. I don't know much about her origins, so maybe she can be saved. Then there's Izabel, the first witch Homura ever encountered that looks like the Arc de Triomphe… Roberta, who looks like a birdcage… I don't know much about those two, either. And finally Elsa Maria, which Miss Miki usually defeated not long before she turned into a witch."

"How do you know about the birdcage witch?" Homura asks. "I didn't encounter that one until after Oriko… so you wouldn't've seen me fighting it…"

"I think I just heard about that one somewhere," I say. "Or maybe I saw Miss Tomoe fighting it when Madoka was following her? I don't quite remember."

"I think I do remember that witch," Madoka says. "It was a few days before Miss Mami died, if I recall correctly… so anyway, from what you've said, it sounds like we might be able to save Patricia, Izabel, Roberta, and Elsa Maria, right?"

I nod. "Don't get your hopes up, because I simply don't know enough about them to say… but it might be possible, yes."

"Were there any other witches you encountered, Homura-chan?" Madoka asks.

"Um… there were a few others, but I don't remember very clearly," Homura says.

"Try to remember!" Madoka says eagerly.

"Well… there was one that seemed to be made of chocolate," Homura muses. "And I remember one that looked kind of like a headless princess, but it had at least eight legs… I only met that one a couple of times."

"The chocolate witch could be… Matasaburo?" I muse. "I have only a very vague idea who that might be, but she can probably be saved… and the second one… hmm… sounds like it could be Sotria. If so, that's Oriko. Both of those are just guesses though… I'd have to see them myself to be sure."

Matasaburo is the witch of a girl from Mitakihara who joins the Wings of the Magius, but I don't know her name, so the most I can really say is that she must still be alive right now. Perhaps I can figure out her name in this timeline, though.

"That's not all that helpful," Madoka muses. "Then I guess I should focus on figuring out where those other four came from… where and when do they show up?"

"Miss Homura can probably answer that question better than I can," I say. "Although I do know Patricia showed up on the first of April, and I fought some of her familiars, so she was probably closer to the west?"

"Elsa Maria… the sun tree, right?" Homura says. "She appears on the twelfth of April, in the old industrial district. And Izabel… if she was the first witch I ever encountered, then that would be Friday next week, somewhere between here and the school. The birdcage witch… it varied a little, but usually April twentieth, near the city hall."

"Hmm," Madoka says. "We should also keep an eye on the news for missing girls… there could be a clue in there, right?"

I nod. "It's definitely possible, but keep in mind that missing magical girls often don't get reported for several days, or even longer in some cases. Remember how long it took people to notice that Miss Miki and Miss Tomoe were missing?"

Madoka nods. "That's true… but I'll still pay attention, just in case."

"Okay, so shall I summarize my plan for the next few days?" I ask.

"P-please do…" Madoka says.

"If you must," Homura says.

"Tomorrow… Madoka, you should remember what happened last time, right?"

Madoka nods.

"So, the goal is to recreate that meeting with Miss Tomoe, but Kyuubey may not be there to lure you in. Miss Homura… you'll probably be patrolling with Miss Tomoe tomorrow, right?"

"Um… it's possible," Homura says.

Madoka blinks.

"Eh? That's right, you were going to meet Miss Mami today… how did that go?"

"Well… she invited me to stay with her," Homura says.

"Oh, that's awesome!" Madoka says. "So you're really getting along this time…"

"Well, it's a bit too early to say," Homura says. "But… it looks promising…"

"So basically what that means is, if you and Miss Miki wander into Gertrud's labyrinth, you'll be saved by Miss Homura and Miss Tomoe," I say. "That should also help Miss Miki's first impression of Miss Homura."

Madoka nods. "Okay, then I'll be sure to be there," she says.

"Then, on Friday… Miss Homura, I'd like to ask you to meet me after school on the roof of the hospital."

Homura blinks. "What for?"

"You'll probably get there before me," I say. "So you might notice a confrontation between two magical girls in one of the alleyways beside the hospital. What I'd like to ask you to do is follow the one who wins, the one with the horn on her forehead."

"Are we going to become friends with them?" Madoka asks.

"The one who loses, yes… the other one though, she certainly wouldn't be interested in making friends."

"Eh? Why not?" Madoka asks.

"Well… you may remember hearing about her on the news," I say. "Although it's been a month and a half, so maybe you've forgotten, but… do you remember hearing about mysterious disappearances?"

"Um… let me think," Madoka says. "Um… there might have been something like that… the police were treating it as a series of murders, right? Although they couldn't find the bodies… but apparently there was a lot of blood…"

"Right… well, that girl's the culprit," I say.

Madoka blinks. "Oh no… why would she do something like that? Aren't magical girls supposed to fight witches to keep people safe?"

"Because they're bad people, apparently? Anyway, yeah, not friend material. Not all magical girls are good people, unfortunately."

"R-right…"

"After I've saved Inui-chan's life, we'll meet up at the front gate of your school, and I'll explain everything I know."

Madoka nods. "Okay! So I get to meet her then, right?"

I nod. "Her, and perhaps one other girl who I'll save right after."

"Why only perhaps?" Madoka asks.

"Well… Miss Momoe's got some… attitude," I say. "I certainly intend to save her, but I don't know if I'll convince her to come to the meeting. If you don't meet her on Friday though, I expect there'll be other chances, especially if she connects with Miss Tomoe."

"Alright, then I'll look forward to this," Madoka says. "After seeing so many magical girls showing up to fight Walpurgisnacht last time, I've realized… we were so terribly closed in last time. We didn't even meet any other magical girls, right? There were so many, so close to us, and we just never even knew. So this time I'd like to meet lots and lots of magical girls!"

"Now that all that's settled… Miss Homura, would you mind accompanying me to fight that witch?"

Homura nods. "I suppose so… I need to gather grief seeds after all."

"This witch is an unusual one with two grief seeds, so it's a good choice for gathering them," I say.

Homura blinks. "Huh? That was possible? I thought it was always one grief seed per witch."

"I've only seen two witches like that, and they were both exceptionally strong ones… but yes, it's possible. In fact, I bet Walpurgisnacht will drop three or four grief seeds once she's finally defeated. Although she's also a bit special, so it's possible she won't drop anything…"

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Homura-chan," Madoka says. "Good luck on the witch hunt!"

March seventeenth. Sayaka and Madoka visit the music store, but after a few minutes, Madoka heads out, making her way towards the area under renovation. Sayaka notices she's gone and runs after her, catching up to her just as she's staring at the signs indicating not to enter.

"What's up, Madoka?" she asks.

"I… thought I heard something," Madoka says.

Ignoring the signs, she heads into the restricted area, looking around anxiously. There's no sign of anything, though. Even Kyuubey is nowhere to be seen. Sayaka follows her, looking worried.

"Madoka… there's nothing here," Sayaka says. "And we're not supposed to be back here… let's go back…"

"Just a bit longer…" Madoka says.

She stops to look up at a grate on the ceiling, perhaps the very same one that Kyuubey came tumbling through in the last timeline, but nothing so dramatic happens this time. The area is utterly deserted. Finally Madoka turns to face her friend.

"I guess you're right, Sayaka-chan," she says. "There really is… nothing… huh?"

As Gertrud's barrier manifests around them, Sayaka blinks in confusion.

"H-huh? What's going on all of a sudden…?"

Then the familiars begin to show up and approach them. Madoka watches them warily while Sayaka looks around, growing more confused by the second.

"Emergency exit… pointing nowhere? Seriously, what the heck is going on!? This has to be some kind of joke… am I having a nightmare?"

"They're kind of cute, actually," Madoka murmurs.

Sayaka looks at the familiars.

"Cute…? What exactly is cute about those weird moustache butterflies…? They're freaking scary, that's what they are! Stop daydreaming, Madoka!"

Madoka blinks. "R-right! Um… we should… run?"

She looks around and gasps.

"O-oh no! We're surrounded!"

Madoka clings to Sayaka, looking around wildly as the familiars close in. Fortunately, they're slow, inching forward a bit at a time, but it really looks like they're done for… right up until the point where those moustachioed puffs of wool burst apart all at the same time, eliciting a fresh gasp from the pair of them. At the same time, Mami and Homura suddenly appear in front of them, fully-transformed and holding hands.

"That was a close call," Mami says. "It's lucky we were tracking this witch!"

Madoka leaps forward and glomps Mami, almost throwing her off her feet.

"I'm so glad you came!" she says. "I thought I was done for!"

Then she steps back and beams at Homura.

"Thank you, Homura-chan!"

"It… it was nothing…" Homura mutters.

"You're the transfer student…" Sayaka says. "What's going on here? What were those monsters?"

"Those were a witch's familiars," Mami says. "And the two of us are magical girls whose duty is to defeat witches. I see you have already met Akemi Homura… I am Tomoe Mami, a sophomore at Mitakihara Middle School."

At that moment, Kyuubey pops out from somewhere.

"Kaname Madoka," it says. "I did not expect to find you here."

"W-what? The stuffed animal talked!?" Sayaka gasps.

"Kyuubey… yeah, I thought I heard something," Madoka says.

"Eh? Have you seen this… Kyuubey before, Madoka?" Sayaka asks.

"He showed up yesterday morning and talked to me," Madoka explains.

"Have you made up your mind yet, Madoka?" Kyuubey asks.

"No… I need more time," Madoka says.

"Huh?" Sayaka says.

"Ah… is she the prodigious candidate you mentioned before, Kyuubey?"

"Indeed," Kyuubey says. "Kaname Madoka has the potential to be a magical girl stronger than any other."

"Eh? Are you going to become a magical girl, Madoka?" Sayaka asks. "That sounds awesome…"

"Miki Sayaka," Kyuubey says. "You can become a magical girl too. All you need to do is make a wish, and the contract will be complete. Of course, once you are a magical girl, you will have to fight witches."

"I'm just not sure what to wish for yet," Madoka says. "I've been thinking about it, really! But I can't quite decide."

"Huh… so I've gotta decide on a wish if I wanna be a magical girl," Sayaka says. "I guess I should give it some thought too…"

"Most magical girls make a wish on the spot," Kyuubey says. "It is unusual for them to think so much on the matter."

"But it just goes to show that you're smart," Mami says. "After all, you only get one wish, so you should make sure it counts, right?"

Sayaka nods. "I see what you mean…"

As she says that, the labyrinth suddenly collapses, and Mami turns in surprise.

"Oh no… while we were talking, the witch got away!"

She sighs and powers down.

"Well… I need to guide you to safety, anyway. Homura-chan, could I ask you to chase it down for me while I take care of these two?"

"Um… sure," Homura says.

And just like that, she spins her shield and is gone.

"Can Miss Homura teleport or something?" Sayaka asks.

"Something like that," Mami says. "Come, why don't you join me for some tea and cake and we can talk about what life is like as a magical girl?"

"I'd like that!" Madoka says eagerly.

Mami leads them to her house, and when they get there, they find Homura already there, waiting outside the apartment door. Mami raises her eyebrows.

"How did it go?"

Homura shows Gertrud's grief seed, and Mami nods.

"Great! That's one witch down! Alright, let's go inside."

She unlocks the door and turns the light on, and Sayaka and Madoka follow her inside, with Homura taking up the rear.

"Wow…" Sayaka says.

"It's nice and cozy," Madoka says happily. "So nostalgic…"

"You don't need to be formal," Mami says. "Homura-chan and I are the only ones who live here. I don't have much to offer in the way of hospitality, but like I said, I'll fetch some tea and cake."

Mami heads into the kitchen to prepare the tea and cake.

"Eh? You live here too?" Sayaka asks.

"Um… yes, since the transfer," Homura says.

"Since Homura-chan's parents are abroad, I suggested she could live with me so she doesn't get lonely," Mami explains from the kitchen. "I have to admit, I may have been a little excited myself. Until now, I have lived alone here for over a year now."

"It's great that you at least have each other now," Madoka says. "I've never really been alone, since there's always Mama and Papa and Tatsuya, but I don't think I'd like it…"

Mami comes out with cake and tea a bit later, and Madoka immediately tries the cake.

"Yes! It's so delicious and nostalgic!" she says happily.

"What do you mean, nostalgic…?" Sayaka asks. "Well, it is pretty tasty though. I feel like I'm gonna explode from the sheer deliciousness of it."

"Thank you," Mami says with a smile. "Since the two of you have been chosen by Kyuubey, we are no longer strangers. Therefore, this is a great opportunity for some important explanations."

Sayaka nods.

"I got it," she says. "Just ask whatever you'd like to know."

"You've got it backwards, Sayaka-chan," Madoka says with a giggle.

Mami turns her soul into gem form and shows it to them.

"That's so pretty…" Sayaka says.

"This is a precious stone, born from the contract between Kyuubey and a chosen girl," Mami says. "It's our source of magic power, and proof of our identity as a magical girl."

"So about the contract…?" Sayaka says.

"I can fulfill any one wish," Kyuubey says.

"You said that before, but… can you really fulfill any wish?" Sayaka asks.

"It can be anything," Kyuubey says. "No matter how miraculous, I will be able to grant it."

"Are you really sure there's no limits?" Madoka asks anxiously.

"There are none," Kyuubey says. "Especially not for you, Kaname Madoka."

"So we could wish for riches, long life, or great food, huh?" Sayaka says.

"Food's a bit…"

Madoka starts to protest but decides it's not worth it.

"When you make a wish, a soul gem will be created," Kyuubey says. "As the receiver of the soul gem, you must thereafter fight witches as a magical girl."

"Like that thing before, huh…" Sayaka muses. "So, what are witches, anyway? Are they different from magical girls? They kind of sound like they'd be the same thing…"

"That's true!" Madoka gasps. "They do sound like the same thing…"

"If magical girls are born from wishes, then witches are born from curses," Kyuubey says. "Magical girls spread hope, while witches spread despair. Furthermore, witches can't be seen by normal people. They are truly evil creatures. Anxiety, suspicion, rage, hate… they bring such seeds of discord into this world."

"Unreasonable suicides and murders commonly stem from the curses of witches," Mami adds. "This enemy moves unseen against the hearts of the people."

"If such dangerous people exist, then why doesn't anyone know about them?" Sayaka asks.

"Witches have always remained hidden and would never reveal themselves to anyone," Kyuubey says. "That maze-like structure you were trapped in is called a labyrinth. It is where witches conceal themselves."

"It was really dangerous, wasn't it?" Mami says. "People who are swallowed by a labyrinth rarely return alive."

"So you've been fighting such scary enemies all by yourself," Madoka says.

"Yes, and staking my life on it," Mami says. "That's why the two of you should think this over very carefully. Given an opportunity to fulfill any dream, would you be willing to face death at any moment?"

"This is quite a difficult decision, huh?" Sayaka says.

"I think I'd be okay with it," Madoka murmurs.

"Therefore, I have a suggestion," Mami says. "Why don't you accompany the two of us in vanquishing witches for a little while? In doing so, you will come to understand exactly what it means to be a magical girl. Use your very own eyes to verify whether your dreams need to be fulfilled at the risk of your life. You need to consider this seriously."

Sayaka looks at Homura, who has been sitting there in silence the entire time, eating her cake and sipping at her tea but not offering a single word to the conversation.

"What about you, transfer student?" she asks.

"Sayaka-chan, she has a name!" Madoka protests.

"R-right, um… Miss Homura?" Sayaka says. "You don't have anything else to add?"

Homura shakes her head.

"Mami explained most of the key points… more eloquently than I could have," she says.

Sayaka blinks. "Only most of them?"

"Well…"

"There are a few things that are easier left until we are on the battlefield," Mami says. "Isn't that right, Homura-chan?"

"Y-yeah… um… easier to show than tell… right?"

Mami nods. "Exactly. Well then… it seems like it's getting dark, so your parents might be getting worried. Why don't you head home, and we can go on our first witch hunt right after school tomorrow?"

"U-um… actually, I had other plans for tomorrow," Madoka says. "Can we do it another time? Even just a bit later in the afternoon would be fine…"

"Huh? What sort of plans?" Sayaka asks.

"Well, um…"

"Madoka offered to show me around town a little," Homura says.

"Y-yeah, that…" Madoka nods.

"Eh? When was that? I never heard it…" Sayaka says

"When she took me to the nurse's office," Homura says.

"Oh, right…"

"We could always hunt at the same time," Mami points out.

"B-but you wouldn't be able to properly enjoy it then," Madoka says.

"Hmm… in that case, how about we have our first demonstration hunt early tomorrow morning?" Mami suggests. "That way I can simply hunt tomorrow afternoon without worry."

"Okay, sure!" Madoka says.

"Then let's meet here at five thirty."

Saving Inui goes almost exactly as it did in the previous timeline… or the one before the last one, since I was locked up in the last one. The words are a little different, but I allow Ashley to do the talking again. The most notable difference I detect is that she's the one who calls Inui a partner this time, instead of me, but I can't see any way that would change things.

Once everyone has calmed down and Komachi has used a grief seed, I pause to check on Homura. She seems to be chasing the Sleepwalking Spectre as I requested, so next I check on Hiyori, who I find waiting alone. Since Madoka isn't with her, I check up on her too, and find her at a crosswalk petting the cat she saved in the original timeline. Then I finally check on Nagisa. She seems to be in a hospital elevator with Kyuubey, so I keep that vision open for now.

"So… where's Elise-chan?" I ask.

"I asked her to meet Hiyori for me," Komachi says.

"Perfect… we're almost ready for that meeting, then," I say. "Inui-chan… would you like to come and live with us? Assuming Komachi-chan's mother is okay with it."

"I'll ask," Komachi says. "I think she'll be okay with it, but you'll probably have to share a bed."

"If it's okay with you, Ashley-nee, then I'd be happy to share a bed," Inui says.

"That's fine… would you like to fetch some things from home?" I ask.

"Yeah… there are a few things I'd miss," Inui says.

"Do you need me to come with you?" I ask.

"Um… I think I'd prefer that," she says.

"Okay… but ideally we wouldn't run into your father," I muse. "Can I squeeze everything in…?"

Nagisa has reached the door to her mother's hospital room while we've been chatting, and after some hesitation, she shoos Kyuubey away and enters.

"Could I ask everyone to wait here?" I ask. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

"What's this about?" Inui asks.

"I'll explain properly when everyone's together," I say. "Just trust me for now, okay?"

Inui nods. "Alright, Ashley-nee…"

I summon Teddy Mk II and hop onto his back, zooming up onto the hospital roof and grabbing an elevator down to the floor where Nagisa's mother is. I can see that conversation beginning as I go, and as far as I can tell, it's the same words as the last time I watched it. At first, she gives her mother the cheesecake, but then it turns into a huge argument. It actually makes it easy to find the correct door, because while muffled, the shouting is audible from the hallway. I'm a little surprised it doesn't attract anyone else's attention, though I guess magical girls do have enhanced hearing, so maybe I'm the only one who can hear it. I stand outside, waiting for Nagisa to come out… after a minute or two, she finally does, slamming the door behind her. She stares furiously at me for all of ten seconds, and suddenly, my body moves on its own… or is that Ashley stealthily seizing control for a moment? …and I step forward and hug her.

"I'm sorry," I say.

"I hate her!" Nagisa complains, bursting into tears all of a sudden. "She doesn't care about me at all!"

"That's too bad," I say. "I'm sorry. I really am… I wish you could find someone who cares about you…"

"I wanted her to care," Nagisa sobs. "I wanted her to live… I wanted her to pay attention to me… why won't she? She's my mother… it's supposed to be her job… right?"

"You've got that right…"

"But I don't care anymore," Nagisa says, pushing me away and wiping at her tears. "I'm not going home anymore. I'm going to do whatever I want from now on."

"So… what do you want to do, Nagisa-chan?" I ask.

She looks up at me curiously. I check on her soul gem, and it's certainly in bad shape, but it's not as bad as I expected. She could probably even hunt a witch alone and still be fine, as long as she doesn't dwell on her mother… which I suppose is the purpose of me coming here at all.

"Ah… you're the girl from that time," she says. "Ashley or something…"

"That's me," I say.

"Hmm… I want to… save someone," Nagisa says. "After all, I became a magical girl, so I should try it at least once."

"Do you know how to hunt witches, Nagisa-chan?" I ask.

"No… I don't know," Nagisa says.

"It's quite simple," I say. "You take out your soul gem and hold it on your palm, and you watch for reactions. You should understand what I mean as soon as you try it."

"Huh… is it really that easy?" she asks.

"I wouldn't call it easy," I say. "Do you know how to purify your soul gem?"

"Kyuubey mentioned it," Nagisa says.

"Well, it looks like you need it right now," I point out.

"But I don't have a grief seed," Nagisa says.

"I could give you one," I suggest.

"I don't want to accept charity," Nagisa says.

"You could always pay me back by giving me the first one you get," I suggest. "Then it's a loan, rather than charity."

"Hmm… okay, sure," she says.

I take out a grief seed and hand it to her, and she turns her soul into gem form to use it.

"Wow… it's really sucking it all out!" Nagisa marvels. "Amazing!"

"So… what will you do now?" I ask.

"I'll go hunt down a witch and pay you back!"

"Sounds good!"

I accompany her back down to the lobby and out of the hospital, but we split up once we're outside – Nagisa takes out her soul gem and runs off, while I head back into the alleyway.

"Come on, let's go," I say.

"That was pretty fast," Inui says. "What was that all about?"

"Like I said, I'd rather not say it twice… so let's meet up with the others first."

I keep an eye on Nagisa with my clairvoyance, watching her amble around, humming a little, her eyes fixed on her soul gem. Several times she almost runs into someone, but she seems to be oddly adept at last-minute dodges, enough that some of them don't even notice she nearly collided with them. We head for the front gate of Mitakihara Middle School, where we find Elise, Homura, Hiyori, and Madoka waiting for us. Madoka also seems to have brought the cat along – it's curled up in her arms, and I think it's purring.

"Ashley-chan!" Hiyori calls. "You just missed Miss Kure!"

I blink. "Huh? She was here?"

"Y-yeah, she left with Kyuubey," Madoka says.

"But she seemed to be thinking about what to wish for," Hiyori says. "She was about to make a wish earlier, but I stopped her and suggested she should give it more thought."

"I tried inviting her to accompany us with Miss Mami," Madoka says. "But she didn't seem interested… anyway, I think you have some introductions to do, Miss Taylor? Miss Elise and Hiyori-chan already introduced themselves, but…"

"Ah, right," I say. "These are Hayashi Komachi, Claire Branch, and Itsumi Inui."

"Nice to meet you!" Madoka says. "I'm Kaname Madoka."

"Nice to meet you!" Claire says.

"Y-yeah…" Inui says.

Then I turn to head around the back of the school, and everyone follows me.

"So why the hill behind the school?" Madoka asks. "I've heard it's haunted…"

"It actually is haunted," I say. "But that's not why we're going there… there's something else special about this hill."

"By the way… did you defeat that witch yesterday?" Madoka asks.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to ask about that too," Komachi says.

I nod. "Yeah, Itzli is gone," I say. "You won't have to worry about people disappearing behind the public pool after all. More importantly… does the cat have to come along? It's not that I mind, it's just… I don't think it'll like where we're going…"

Madoka shrugs. "I could let it go, but… it's really friendly, so I don't think it's a stray. I was going to see if I could find its owner… though there's no tag, so I could be wrong."

"Ah, well, okay then," I say. "Do whatever you want."

We all hop over the fence, Madoka getting some help from Homura, and start to follow the narrow path leading to the peak. As we walk, I start to explain all the secrets I've been keeping to myself – the time travel, the true nature of soul gems and how they turn into witches, my clairvoyance power and the dual nature of my soul. Their reactions are pretty much the same as in previous timelines. Madoka and Homura mostly stay silent, since they already know almost all of it. The only thing that comes as a surprise to them is my dual soul. I also explain why I didn't want Kirika to become a magical girl and how I prevented Nagisa from turning into Charlotte.

"So, I understand that you wanted to tell them all of this, but why here?" Madoka asks.

We've just reached the top of the hill, and I turn to point at the lone tombstone. The cat meows, looking over at the tombstone. Perhaps it can sense the presence of Youha's ghost.

"That's the reason I brought all of you here," I say. "This is the last secret I wanted to share with all of you. Madoka, since you're not a magical girl, stick close to me. I'm not sure how well you'll be able to perceive them, but you are a magical girl candidate, so I think you should be able to. Remember how I said there are monsters besides witches in this world?"

"You did say that, but I found it all rather incredible," Homura says. "Even if witches prevent them from spawning, surely they would still appear every now and then, right?"

"That's a good question, and I don't really know the answer to that," I say. "I guess maybe in rural areas? But I bet they don't spawn at all in rural areas because there just aren't enough people. Anyway, Madoka, watch closely. What you're about to see is a taste of what the world would have been like for magical girls if you had made that wish."

I nudge the tombstone just a little, then quickly step up next to Madoka, laying a hand on her shoulder as I transform. A dark miasma begins to rise up from the ground, and the cat suddenly hisses, its tail uncurling and shooting out. Madoka quickly pets the cat and manages to calm her down a little, but she's clearly still quite nervous, looking around warily.

"Everyone else, you should transform and get ready to fight," I say. "That black smoke-like stuff you're seeing is something I call miasma, which heralds the birth of wraiths and surrounds them once they've spawned, separating them from the normal world. It's not a labyrinth, but it sort of serves a similar purpose. Watch out for their beam attacks, and be wary of them phasing through objects… although fortunately there are no walls here."

As I give my explanation, the pixellated giants spawn amongst the trees, towering above them. Homura gasps.

"It's true!? That does not look like any witch I've ever seen… and it's certainly not hiding in a barrier…"

"It's no witch," I say. "It's a wraith. Try killing them."

"They're huuuge…" Madoka says, hugging the cat close and stroking her back. "You're saying magical girls would have fought these every day if I erased all witches?"

The magical girls other than myself spring into action, Homura vanishing only to reappear on a wraith's shoulder, where she fills its face with bullets before retreating.

"Yes, but these are just the weakest type," I say. "No-one here should have any trouble beating these, but there are more powerful types of wraiths that can pose a real threat even to a magical girl. I haven't seen those myself, mind you, but Pernelle mentioned them to me."

Indeed, the six of them make short work of the wraiths, even having the sense to gather up the fallen cubes before regrouping at the tombstone. Even I manage to take one out, as it decides to target Madoka and me, forcing me to slice it in half with my sword.

"What are these things?" Homura asks, holding up one of the cubes. "I've never seen anything like them before, but… they do sort of resemble a grief seed…"

"They essentially are grief seeds," I say. "Kyuubey calls them 'prototypical grief seeds'… I prefer the term 'grief cubes'. Either way… you can purify your soul gem with them, just like you can with a regular grief seed."

"Wait… but we got a whole bunch of them," Hiyori says. "I got four or five just from killing a single wraith… are they really grief seeds!?"

"They're a bit less effective than regular grief seeds," I say. "But I think the quantities you can collect them in more than makes up for that. You also need to dispose of them with Kyuubey, as usual."

"So um… why do they only spawn here?" Madoka asks.

"They spawned here because someone left some full grief cubes in the tomb, and there's a barrier around the hill that keeps witches out," I say. "They won't spawn ever again, unless someone were to actually move in and live here on this hill. Or if we stowed our spent grief cubes here instead of disposing of them with Kyuubey… which might actually be a good idea, come to think of it."

Homura goes to take a closer look at the tomb.

"Kazura no Youha?" she says. "Does that name sound familiar to anyone?"

"Kazura…?" Inui says. "That's not a family name… it was a sacred order that used to serve the Tokime clan back when they were the lords of this land."

"So… it means a person named Youha who was a priestess of this Kazura order?" Hiyori asks.

"Probably," Inui says. "I feel like I've heard the name Youha somewhere before, too… but I can't quite place it…"

"It's certainly an unusual name," Madoka muses. "I feel like I may have heard it somewhere too…"

"She's from the Akatsuki clan," I say. "Does that help?"

Inui blinks. "Um… maybe? Akatsuki no Youha, Akatsuki no Youha… oh! I think she may have been the last head of the Kazura before it was dissolved, when the Akatsuki clan took over."

"Right… I'm starting to remember from history class," Madoka says. "The Akatsuki clan wanted to seize power… so they bribed the Mikoshiba clan, who were vassals of the Tokime…"

Inui nods. "So the Mikoshiba clan betrayed them, and the Tokime clan was all but wiped out… although supposedly some of them escaped to a remote village. But if I recall correctly… Lady Youha did not support her clan's actions, so she took her own life."

At that moment, the faintest whisper can be heard, and everyone except Madoka turns their heads towards the tombstone. Even the cat turns to look, twitching its ears and mewing.

"Mikoshiba… damn her…"

The faintest outline of a girl can be made out, in front of the tomb. Madoka blinks and turns to look as well, confused and a little spooked.

"Eh? Is… is there… something there?"

"You didn't hear it, huh, Madoka?" I ask.

"Hear what?" Madoka asks. "D-don't tell me… there's an actual ghost…!?"

I nod. "It seems that normal people can't see them… not even a magical girl candidate," I say.

Madoka squints and peers at the tombstone for a second, but then shakes her head.

"I don't see anything unusual…"

"I can't believe the rumours were actually true," Komachi says. "And it was someone so important, too…"

"And the wraiths probably explain that legend where a bunch of people supposedly died, too," Elise says. "Amazing…"

After staring at us for a bit, the ghost's form sort of dissipates. Homura leans in to look at the tombstone again.

"These symbols under the name," she says. "I'm sure I've seen them in witch's labyrinths, all over the place… do they actually mean something?"

"It's a Roman alphabet cipher," I say. "In this case it's Japanese, using an early Portuguese romanization. If I'm not mistaken, that line says… 'here lies Youha of the Kazura, who lived as a magical girl, yet died as a human.'"

"Eh? Lady Youha was a magical girl?" Inui asks.

"If she died as a human… she wasn't a magical girl anymore?" Homura says.

"How is that possible…?" Madoka asks. "Is there a way to put the soul back into your body?"

"Not that I know of, but I guess you'd have to ask her to really find out," I say.

I lean in and readjust the tombstone to its proper position.

"But I've covered everything I wanted to cover, so there's no reason to hang around here any longer, right?"

So, we all power down and collect up all the grief cubes to distribute them amongst us, excluding Madoka of course. Then we head back down the hill before splitting up to go our separate ways. Homura stays with Madoka, the quartet head for home, and I accompany Inui to her apartment to fetch her things. Unfortunately, we do run into her father this time, but as before, Inui's charm gets us out of there mostly unscathed.

The whole time I was explaining things to everyone, I had my eye on Nagisa in a corner of my awareness. She wasn't making any progress on her witch hunt, but she also didn't seem to be put out by that fact – it was almost as though she was having fun just wandering around town. As Inui and I are leaving her house, however, she finally finds something, in a manner of speaking. That is, she very nearly collides with none other than Tomoe Mami. Good… I was hoping those two would be able to meet, but I wasn't sure how to make it happen. Now I don't have to… what luck!

"Ah!" Mami says. "You… you're a magical girl?"

Nagisa stops to peer up at her.

"Maybe," she says. "Who's asking?"

"Ah, my name is Tomoe Mami," she says. "I'm the magical girl who takes care of this area. What's your name? Are you new?"

"I've been a magical girl for…"

Nagisa pauses to think it over.

"…about… three hours? I think? Maybe four? My name…"

She hesitates before nodding firmly and saying it.

"Momoe Nagisa."

"How old are you?" she asks.

"I am ten and a half years old!" she says proudly.

"That's so young for this life…" Mami says. "Tell you what… why don't you come with me, and I can show you how it's done?"

"I dunno," Nagisa says. "Is there anything in it for me?"

Mami blinks. "W-well um… I could offer you some tea and cakes afterwards?"

"Will there be cheese?" Nagisa asks. "Or cheesecake?"

"I probably have some cheese, but I'd need to go shopping for the cheesecake…"

"It doesn't matter," Nagisa says. "I don't actually like cheese that much anyway… Mother's the one who likes cheese."

"Oh… you live with your mother?"

"Not anymore," Nagisa says. "Mother's in the hospital. She's going to die."

"That's terrible…" Mami says. "I'm so sorry!"

"It doesn't matter," Nagisa mutters. "She doesn't care about me anyway. I don't need her anymore. I'm a magical girl now… I can do what I want…"

Mami seems to have the same idea as Ashley and me, hugging the silver-haired girl out of the blue.

"That's so sad," she says. "It sounds like you've been suffering for awhile, huh? Why don't we go hunt a witch together, and then have some tea and cake?"

"Cake would be nice," Nagisa admits. "But I need to get two grief seeds today."

Mami blinks, stepping back to look at her.

"Why's that?"

"One for myself," Nagisa says. "And one to pay back Miss Taylor for the one she lent me."

"Oh, I see," Mami says. "You've met Miss Taylor, have you?"

"Do you know Miss Taylor, Miss Tomoe?"

"A little," Mami says.

"I don't like her very much," Nagisa says. "But she did lend me a grief seed, so I need to pay her back."

"Huh… why don't you like her?" Mami asks.

"I dunno," Nagisa says. "I just don't, okay?" She tilts her head thoughtfully. "Fine… I haven't found any witches yet, so I guess I can go with you, Miss Tomoe."

"Great! I have a partner as well, but she was unfortunately occupied today, so I'm happy I ran into you."

"Really? You're happy to meet me, Miss Tomoe?" Nagisa asks.

"Um… yes, of course," Mami says. "I'm always happy to meet a fellow magical girl."

They set off, both of them with their soul gems out, hunting for traces of a witch.

"Do you care about me then, Miss Tomoe?"

Mami blinks. "Um… we've only just met… can I answer that question after we have tea and cookies?"

"Hmm… I suppose," Nagisa says. "Miss Taylor said she wanted someone to care about me. Do you think that means she doesn't care about me?"

"I don't think it means that," Mami says. "She probably just doesn't know you very well… and she did lend you a grief seed. I don't think she'd do that for someone she hated."

"Huh… but it doesn't mean she likes me either, does it?"

"I really don't know," Mami says.

Soon after, they stumble upon Suleika's barrier and step inside. Nagisa transforms and toots her horn, blasting away a single familiar each time. Between her clarion calls and Mami's musket fire, they rapidly reach the witch's chamber, where Nagisa fills the area with a bubble cloud while Mami whittles her down and then finishes her off with Tiro Finale.

"That was pretty good for your your first battle," Mami says. "You really haven't fought a witch before?"

"No… that was the first time," Nagisa says.

"Your magic seems pretty unusual… is there anything else you can do with that trumpet?"

Nagisa shrugs. "Just the bubbles, I think… but maybe I can change their effects a bit?"

"You should definitely experiment with that, then," Mami says.

"Hmm… maybe I will. If I feel like it."

They power down and resume hunting, looking for another witch. After a few minutes, they pass by a park that I've never seen before. Mami pointedly looks away, but Nagisa turns to look at it.

"Miss Tomoe, I think there's a witch here," she says.

Mami sighs.

"That's a really strong witch," she says. "I'm not sure if I can handle it, especially with you along, since you're new to this."

"Have you fought that witch before, Miss Tomoe?"

"I have," she says.

"Huh, so even you have problems with a witch sometimes," Nagisa says.

"That's right," Mami says. "In fact, I've tried to take that witch on many, many times… about once a month since I first encountered it. However, it has overwhelmed me every single time."

"But if we leave it, then it will hurt people, right?"

"That's true… we really shouldn't leave it," Mami admits.

"I suppose it doesn't matter as long as the people it hurts aren't people you know," Nagisa says.

Mami blinks at her. "Th-that's not true!" she says. "It doesn't matter whether I know them or not!"

Nagisa leans forward, planting her fists on her hips, and gazes up at Mami with her head slightly tilted.

"Hmm… so you seem to be in a tricky situation," she says.

"Yeah…" Mami nods.

"Then… if you can't handle it, shouldn't you call your partner to help?"

Mami blinks.

"Th-that's… true… I only recently started working with a partner, so I didn't think of that."

Mami takes out her phone and composes a message to Homura.

"Homura-chan, there's a really strong witch at the park. Can you come help?"

She sends it, then heads into the park to take a seat with Nagisa on one of the benches, keeping an eye out for anyone with a witch's kiss. After waiting for a minute or two, Mami suddenly blinks.

"Wait… I forgot to tell her which park!"

But just as she whips out her phone to send another message, Homura appears out of nowhere, looking vaguely concerned… her face is mostly emotionless as it has been for awhile, but there's a definite hint of concern there.

"Are you okay?" she asks. "Did you try fighting it already?"

"Huh? I'm fine," Mami says. "I haven't even gone in yet… huh? How did you know it was this park?"

Homura lets out a small sigh, brushing off the question with a flick of her hair.

"Alright… then…"

She suddenly spots Nagisa, sitting next to Mami and humming softly.

"Wait… who's she?"

"Ah, this is Momoe Nagisa," Mami says. "She just became a magical girl today, and I happened to run into her by chance, so I'm teaching her how it works."

Nagisa turns to look appraisingly at Homura.

"Are you Miss Tomoe's partner?" she asks.

"Y-yes… I'm… Akemi Homura."

"Why are you so sad?" Nagisa asks.

"Um… well… a lot of stuff has happened…"

"You seem like you're ready to hurt people so you don't have to be sad anymore, but you should realize that that's not going to work," Nagisa suggests sagely.

"W-what are you talking about?" Homura blinks.

"By the way… if you're so sad, why aren't you crying?" Nagisa asks.

"Eh? Um… what?" Homura asks, confused.

"Mother used to say you should cry when you're sad," Nagisa says. "She said it makes you feel better. It's definitely more effective than hurting people. And she knew that from experience, so you should really try it sometime."

Homura glances at Mami, who just shrugs a little.

"She's a bit of a strange girl, but I can't just let her fall to a witch in one hit, now can I?" she says. "We magical girls have to stick together."

"Do we?" Nagisa asks. "Why? Kyuubey said magical girls don't usually work together…"

"W-well… because… because we can get more grief seeds if we work together," Mami says.

"Hmm… if that's true, then I suppose it's a good reason," Nagisa says. "Hey, look, that man is acting strange!"

Mami and Homura turn to look where she's pointing and see a man bearing a witch's kiss. Mami nods.

"R-right, we're here to hunt that witch, after all," she says. "Let's go!"

They gently knock the man out, then step into the labyrinth and transform. Or, Mami and Nagisa transform – Homura already was, since she used her time stop to get there.

The labyrinth looks like a ruined steampunk city. The familiars are masses of shadow that wield clockwork pistols. Mami and Homura open fire on them, but they're surprisingly tough for familiars. Even Mami needs several shots per familiar, and after Homura empties a clip from her pistol with no effect whatsoever, she decides to switch it out for an assault rifle, which proves significantly more effective. Nagisa follows behind them, looking around curiously and every so often tooting her horn to destroy a familiar that tries to sneak up from behind – it usually takes two or three toots, indicating that this witch is quite a bit stronger than the previous one, but she's still able to defeat a familiar by herself.

They spend about ten minutes wandering through ruined streets. Mami seems to have some vague idea of where they're going, pausing at each intersection and choosing a path, and finally they reach an open area that looks like it could have once been an airstrip for small planes. The witch's name is emblazoned in huge runes on the largest building by the airstrip – Gisela.

Gisela rears up as they approach. She's basically a robot, her torso mostly concealed in a thick shadowy morass, with the arms, legs, and head protruding from the shadow, along with some other bits. The robot is completely covered in rust though, and whenever it moves, there's a screech of metal on metal, as if it's not properly lubricated.

"Alright, this time, I'll end this!" Mami says.

The three of them leap aside as Gisela slams one of her hands down on the place they were a moment ago. She's quite fast, it seems. Nagisa puts her horn to her mouth and blows, expelling a cloud of bubbles that fills the entire region. Each bubble reflects and distorts the light, making it harder for the witch to find them. The sound of gunfire fills the air, punctuated by explosions from the bombs Homura places. Several times, Gisela slams down at one of them again, but thanks to the bubbles throwing her aim off, she misses every time, though there are a few close calls.

However, she's still not defeated by the time the bubbles have cleared up. By that time, Nagisa appears to have climbed up on top of that largest building, where she gazes down at the fight. Homura continues her hit-and-run tactics, and Mami fires off a Tiro Finale, but it's still not enough to defeat the witch. Gisela slams her hand down at Mami, who vanishes at the last second, no doubt thanks to Homura.

That's when Nagisa puts her horn to her mouth once more and expels an even bigger swarm of bubbles than before. But these bubbles seem to be different. Rather than staying small and filling as much space as possible, each bubble keeps growing in size. What this actually means becomes clear when the first bubble comes in contact with the witch.

The bubble pops, and explodes violently.

And that's only the first bubble. There's an entire swarm of the things, so the first explosion is just the start of a chain reaction through the entire swarm, the explosions all merging together into a massive conflagration that engulfs the witch in flames for close to a minute. And just as that conflagration is dying down…

"Tiro Finale!"

…Mami unleashes her ultimate for the second time. With a screech of metal, the witch bursts apart, chunks of metal flying everywhere, and the grief seed appears, floating down to the ground. Then the labyrinth begins to collapse, and Mami catches Nagisa in a hug and spins her around.

"That was amazing, Nagisa-chan!" Mami says. "It wouldn't be a stretch to say we beat that witch thanks to you! Thank you very much, Nagisa-chan!"

"I was just doing my job," Nagisa says. "Does that mean I get this grief seed?"

"I think that's a perfectly fair exchange," Mami says. "Besides, I have the grief seed from that other witch." She turns to Homura. "Thank you as well, Homura-chan… I don't think I could've done it without you, either."

"That's… not true," Homura says. "You definitely could have beaten it… it might have taken longer, but…"

Mami smiles. "I'm happy that you have so much confidence in me, Homura-chan… Although… you didn't get a grief seed out of it…"

"I got one two days ago when I fought a witch with Ashley Taylor," Homura says. "And then yesterday I got another one from the rose witch. So I should be fine for awhile."

Mami blinks. "Huh… you've also met Ashley Taylor?"

"Just recently…"

"Okay… in that case, why don't we go home for now?" Mami suggests.

"But I still need another grief seed," Nagisa says.

"I know, but it's getting late," Mami says. "You're probably going to keep hunting witches nearly every day, right? So I'm sure you'll get that extra grief seed before long, and then you can pay Miss Taylor back, okay?"

"Hmm… I suppose so," Nagisa says. "I am hungry after all…"

So the three of them head back to Mami's place, where Mami prepares not just tea and cake, but dinner as well. Once the meal is over, Nagisa has an announcement.

"I've decided," she says. "I'm going to live with Mami-nee from now on."

Mami blinks at her.

"Um… not that I mind, but… shouldn't you ask nicely rather than just announce it out of the blue?"

"But you said you don't mind, so what difference does it make?" Nagisa asks.

Mami sighs. "Well… we'll have to work on your manners, but… I'll be happy to have you. Actually, I'm starting to get a little excited… with first Homura-chan and now you, it's almost like I have a family again."

"Is a family a good thing?" Nagisa asks. "My family wasn't."

"It's definitely a good thing!" Mami protests. "Of course it's a good thing! Even if your family wasn't the best family, they were still your family, right?"

Nagisa shakes her head.

"No, I've decided they're not my family anymore," she says. "I don't need Mother or Father anymore."

"But that's so… so sad," Mami says.

Nagisa shakes her head again.

"It's not sad, Mami-nee," she says. "It's a happy occasion. It was sad when I lived with Mother."

Mami blinks. "You… I just… I can't agree with your reasoning," she says.

"That's okay," Nagisa says. "It's just my opinion. I don't really care if you agree."

A stifled snort comes from the direction of Homura, attracting both their attention. She seems to be just barely suppressing her amusement at this exchange.

"It's not funny!" Mami protests.

"Are you less sad now, Homura-nee?" Nagisa asks.

Homura blinks. "Eh? Well… maybe? A little?"

Nagisa nods. "Of course you are. You laughed, didn't you?"

"Well…"

"You see?" Nagisa says. "I don't need Mother and Father, because I have two big sisters now. You're my new family."

Mami suddenly hugs her.

"I'm… I'm happy you feel that way," Mami says. "You can stay here for as long as you like. If… if someone comes and tries to take you away… then I won't let them!"

After returning to the Hayashi residence, I make the call to Ashley's friends back home to introduce Inui to them and give them the basic truths of the magical girl system. As far as I can remember, the whole conversation goes the same way as it did the last time around. Once the call is over, I spend some time double-checking my informational document, then browse the web for awhile.

Before going to bed, I check up on two particular girls of importance. First is Kure Kirika, who I find is not a magical girl yet. The second is Tamaki Iroha, who is already a magical girl. Both these are as I'd hoped, so it means things are going well so far. Then I compose a message to Hijiri.

"Hello! Sorry for the short notice, but would you be able to accompany me to Hohzuki tomorrow to take care of the twins? And after that, perhaps stay the night here in Mitakihara? There's another magical girl I'd like you to take charge of for awhile in the Freezer."

So apparently Magia Record finally made Pernelle playable and… shock! They chose the void element for her, the same as I did! (I mean, I chose to call it null, because it's not like elements are ever referred to by name in the game, but same difference.) I can hardly believe we both came to the same decision on that.

Anyway, this chapter is the true introduction of Momoe Nagisa. We've seen a few flashes of her here and there in Acts 0 and I, and Ashley even briefly fought beside her, but that was just a warm-up, if you will.

One reader asked if she would be joining the "Holy Quintet". I trust that this chapter answers their question… but how can it be a "Holy Quintet" if there are six?