Day 6: Anniversary (First Meet/Date/Marriage)
When Diana had a free period, she excused herself from the company of Hannah and Barbara, exhaustion filling her up. She became terribly annoyed at herself whenever she would talk to Akko, all she got were obliviousness from the Japanese girl.
Diana could not blame her, Akko was just so... dense.
It's been a year and the calendar marked the anniversary of where they first met. Diana remembered it so vividly. Akko's ponytail was turned into a leaf by one of her teammates.
Diana walked past the corridor. Padding over to the door to her chambers wrenched it open in frustration and, despite her habitual cravenness for working and studying, she stormed towards her private space in the room with a determined movement and gently laid herself on the bed, taking a brief rest. Her thoughts straying towards that one Japanese girl she had been crushing on ever since the Samhain Festival.
She would often catch herself staring whenever the troublemaker was around. Careful not to overdo it less their friends would read into it.
But Diana was getting tired of it. She wanted Akko. She wanted to be with Akko. Problem is—she doesn't know how to flirt or even to convey her feelings properly. Diana grew up secluded to any activities of romance. Sure she had seen it, read about them even, but her youth and naivety gave her a disadvantage.
Diana could ask help from Hannah and Barbara for they were both romantics but she wasn't confident enough to ask them for help; however, there was something that caught her eye. Moving on to inspect her desk, she saw an unfamiliar looking book staring back at her.
"What is this?" Diana's eyebrows knitted together in a curious expression. "Did the faeries mistook this book was mine?"
She picked up a book, the one on top of the pile, reading the title aloud.
The Art of Cavendish Seduction by Beatrix Cavendish
A slight blush crept across her face. "W-what?" she flipped the book to look at the back cover. "Did the family collection always have this?"
She heard a scratching on top of her bookshelf and saw a white barnyard owl. It was her familiar.
"Did you bring this from home?" Diana addressed the owl. "Who made you sent it to me?"
The owl merely stared at her, as if he too was as confused as her.
Diana flipped the pages open, reading the first sentence. She was mildly intrigued, reading through a tatty looking book that, for all appearances, could have been as old as Gutenberg's press. She didn't even acknowledge her teammates' arrival. Hannah and Barbara knew that if their team leader was already sitting at her study desk and seemingly completely engrossed in the yellow-stained pages, that it would be best not to bother her at all.
Diana steeled herself as she walked down the hallways first thing of the morning, scenarios flittering through her thoughts as she attempted to decide on how to approach the task ahead. Diana wished she had been able to stay calm, but by analyzing every little detail was a bad habit of hers that constantly wore on her nerves and inevitably leads to a stressful weariness. Diana had been like that for as long as she could remember and, as annoying as it was, she just had to accept it as part of who she was.
She had finished reading the book's chapters overnight. The reason had been unveiled to her, a day prior to this morning's events, Diana deemed herself ready.
First step: Choose the person to seduce.
It was obvious who she chose. Diana sighed; she was not one to submit to the desires of the heart. But with Akko, everything was different. Akko was different by merely losing herself in the depths of Akko's enchanting maroon orbs. She was true, pure and utterly indulging as a presence in a way Diana had never thought a person could be.
Diana shook her head, not wanting to drift again into that haunting contemplation like she always did when Akko's name would cross her thoughts.
She and her team sat together for lunch, everything was supposed to be the usual, a clatter of common noises in the cafeteria as students and faeries chattering. She just ate her breakfast quietly. Her blonde hair kept falling in her face so she tucked it endlessly behind her ear.
Nonetheless, there was also a source of noise that was beginning to become frequent but was still highly annoying.
"SUCY!"
Diana's eyes darted towards the Japanese girl at the other table with her friends. Akko was screaming again about how her teammate the one who has the proclivity on potions and mushrooms was using her as a guinea pig again.
"Them again?" Hannah groaned. "Can't we have a quiet meal for once?"
"Akko's team are such troublemakers—don't get me started with Amanda's too," Barbara said. "Not an ounce of refinement within them."
Diana lowered the rim of her cup, her eyes staring at Akko, thinking it was about time to follow the next step of the book.
Akko wasn't about to calm down when her food was defiled by a food flavoring spell enchanted by the snickering Mushroom Queen. Poor Lotte, on the other hand, was restraining both of them.
Second step: Master the art of the bold move but do not be too direct early on.
Diana took the last sip, placed her teacup back on the saucer and stood from her seat. Hannah and Barbara gave each other a look before nodding and followed Diana as she paraded towards the red team.
Handling a conversation with Akko and her friends prior to the Missile Crisis would send the wrong message. All in all, her awkwardness and social anxiety were reasons why she could never relay her feelings quite well so she decided to frequent her talks to the red team with the help of Hannah and Barbara. Although, their lips would be better off sealed whenever they would point out harsh words towards Akko.
Instead of allowing her reasoning to take over her mind, Diana proceeded forward fixing her gaze to Akko with such elegance and amazement imprinted on her look that it proved impossible for Diana not to lose track of her feelings again.
"Excuse me, ladies." Diana adapted a haughty appearance in order to hide her jumping nerves.
"Gahh!" Akko mustered up a brave front to rival hers. "Diana! What do you want?"
"May we simply ask for you to lower down your volume?" Diana crossed her arms. "The rest of us want to simply spend our lunch in peace."
"Yes, yes, tone your voice down, idiot!" Hannah agreed.
"For once Akko, it would be heaven-sent for you to part with your barbaric ways!" Barbara said and now the duo laughed mockingly.
Akko would often retort something about Chariot and how she will study hard despite her failing grades and she will become as famous as her idol, which needless to say produced cracks of laughter from Hannah and Barbara. Akko held up a fist and stared daggers at them. Diana sensed the brunette's radiating anger.
Third step: Send mixed signals.
With every intake of breath, her lungs were filled with courage. "Girls, what had I told you about name calling?"
Her teammates gulped. Diana had the power to stop her teammates from jeering, and she usually just does not want to indulge in such pettiness though there are times when Diana spoke out.
"Sorry Diana," the two immediately apologizes.
"You are asking forgiveness from the wrong person."
Hannah and Barbara glanced at each other, at Diana then at the leader of the red team. "Sorry, Akko."
Fourth step: Give them space to fall.
"Well since I've delivered my message, the girls and I are leaving." She flipped her hair and took a dramatic exit.
Even Hannah and Barbara had their jaws dropped. She could feel Akko staring at her but she acted like she hasn't noticed.
Akko was with her friends out in the field lounging around, probably taking vitamin D. Diana stood behind a wall observing them, waiting for the next step to present itself.
"WATCH OUT!" somebody yelled.
Diana heard a buzz of an object moving toward where she stood, heading towards Akko.
Fifth Step: Pay attention to detail and enter their spirit (Know what they love and do what they love).
Akko lifted face in time to see rogue croquet ball went sailing through the air, aiming directly at her. It all happened so fast and she thought it was going to hit her right in the face, but at the same second, a graceful voice halted the ball, suspending it in the air inches away from her face.
"Wow, what a perfect save!" Lotte said, gushing like a crazed school girl—which she is.
Akko looked at the hand that belongs to Diana, surprised by her more so than the speeding ball that was about to smash her face.
"Please let us not exaggerate, it is merely a reflex," Diana replied modestly.
The witches lead by Sarah was on their brooms practicing croquet and flew their fastest towards Akko. "Oh no!" Chloe apologized. "We're terribly sorry!"
"Are you guys okay?" Elfriede asked, searching frantically for injuries.
"We are fine, girls. Just be cautious next time." Diana tossed the ball from afar.
Sarah caught the ball after it escaped her clutches twice. "Thank you, Diana! We will!"
"Again, we're sorry about that, Akko," Chloe yelled back before their team leader lead them back to the broom pitch area
"They are suddenly a lively group," Sucy muttered under her breath in disgust. "I heard that they are always chattering about crushes and true love."
Lotte groaned in her stead and began a lengthy speech to Sucy about minding people's business. Diana had no time to listen to her so she turned to the girl making her feel things.
Sixth Step: Master the art of insinuation.
"Are you okay, Akko?" she asked.
"I'm f-fine, t-thank you," Akko spoke awkwardly.
"Are you quite certain?" Diana stepped closer to Akko, invading her personal space as she never broke eye contact. "If there's any form of injury or discomfort that you want to ease, I have methods that can help you—in more ways than one."
Akko stared at her aghast, confusion spreading behind the back of her head as her cheeks flush—whether or not Akko got the implication, Diana was all too satisfied at the reaction from her mere proximity. Diana mentally danced around shouting thanks to the gods above and to her ancestor for writing the book.
"How long have you been spying us?" Sucy asked, all of a sudden as if holding her wand up to your throat.
"Sucy!" Lotte reprimanded.
Diana seemed to forget that they were in the company of other people. She hissed softly at her mistake. "I happened to be passing by." She replied without missing a beat.
"Oh, a very likely story," Sucy snickered.
Lotte brought her palms together with a loud noise, hoping to lessen the tension of whatever trouble Sucy had been brewing. "Oh Diana, do you want to go to the town with us?"
Diana wanted to go, but with the presence of Akko's teammates would sourly defeat the purpose of her plan to seduce their team leader. She remembered the next step in the rules and smiled.
Seventh Step: Keep them in suspense while using physical lures.
"Thank you for your kind offer but I regret to tell you that I have duties to attend to today. I hope you may excuse me," she said before leaving. Diana walked towards her destination, swinging her hips with the clear intent of Akko staring at her as she walked away.
As soon as she got behind the wall, she stayed, spying more and with a help of a little incantation, she managed to hear their conversation.
"Looks like someone is getting wet already," Sucy teased.
"What?" Akko gasped. "No! How could you say such a thing?"
"She's your dream girlfriend, Akko," Sucy said.
"What do you mean my girlfriend?" Akko asked, frowning at her teammates and possibly hissing. "Are you crazy?"
"Why not?" Lotte asked. "Sucy's not the only one who sees it. We're not crazy. I saw the way she looked at you!"
"Yeah," Sucy shrugged. "Both of you idolize Chariot. Both of you rode the Shooting Star and saved the world. The both of you fight and worry about each other all the time, I want to vomit. On top of that, she did save your face from the ball. Who would save your life many times if that girl doesn't love you?"
Diana's cheeks burned from embarrassment. She had been flirting with Akko and the dense girl hadn't noticed but her teammates did.
Diana quietly made her rounds of the library scanning the tables and the aisles during her free period. She rounded the corner when she spotted the perky Japanese girl immediately, and she was alone. That was a rare treat for Akko to not be surrounded with her group of friends.
The only case that it happens is when she's studying on her own.
Eighth Step: Poeticize your presence.
Diana sidled back round the shelf parting the books a little to peer at Akko through them, surveying her for a few minutes. Akko looked deep in thought about something, her forehead all creased up and she was tapping her pen against her cheek. Akko had rather long lashes and deep red eyes and hidden scars. She wasn't perfect looking and far from being a suitable lover for her being a Cavendish and all, yet all aside; there was definitely something about Atsuko Kagari that Diana liked... and craved.
Leaving the safety of her hiding place, Diana wandered towards her giving a good impression of not even registering that she was there at all.
After a few minutes of browsing the shelves nearest to Akko, she chanced a glance over her shoulder. Diana scowled because Akko wasn't even watching her. Akko had her head bent back over her notebook and was still seemed totally oblivious to the fact that Diana was even there as she was preoccupied glaring at her book and scratching her head. Whatever she was doing seemed to be giving her trouble.
Diana wondered how she was going to get anywhere if she couldn't even hold Akko's attention for five minutes. Diana bit her lip, scanning the room for inspiration. She smiled; as usual, her quick thinking and natural cunningness didn't let her down.
After a few seconds, Akko crossed the room behind her quickly and rounded the shelves. Diana hastened her footsteps to get out of the way and watched Akko from a safe distance while the Japanese searched for a particular book. Akko saw it among the higher shelves and scratched her head, figuring that perhaps using magic would prove to be messier for she was still not good at object-moving spells. She spotted a step ladder leaning at the far side and retrieved it.
Peering through spaces in the shelves Diana watched as Akko tiptoed on the side and yet still couldn't reach the book for she underestimated the distance. Too lazy to even get down and move the step ladder, Akko stubbornly reached for it until her weight shoved the stepladder over.
Akko screamed, anticipating her fall.
Ninth Step: Confuse desire and reality.
"Scrylla!" Diana caught Akko in her mid-air fall. "Yera Retoure!"
Genuine shock crossed Akko's features, "D-Diana?"
Diana placed one free hand on her hips while her wind's tip glowed. "What's happening to you, Akko? I saved you twice in a span of hours." She scooted towards Akko, gently laying the shorter girl down to the floor.
"I wobbled and the stupid thing fell over. My foot hurt." She complained, rubbing her ankle. "Do you think it got twisted?"
Diana carefully removed Akko's shoe and socks to look at how bad it was. It is a little swell but it was far from being bruised. "Does it hurt when you move it?"
"I'm scared to move it. The last time my ankle got twisted, I couldn't walk for days! And nothing bores me more than being in bed all the time—W-what are you doing?"
"Let me make certain if it's swollen." Diana was suppressing the urge to smile at the awkward look on Akko's face when she started rubbing to feel around Akko's joint.
"No, I don't want to be indebted to you anymore!" She swatted Diana's hand away, retrieving her sock, her shoe and the sprawled book on the floor that she was trying so hard to reach earlier. "I'll do it myself!"
Diana decided to make a neutral face when the Japanese girl refused her help instead of showing hurt. "It doesn't seem swollen, you are incredibly exaggerating it. Do you need help to stand at least?"
"No, I'm all right." With a wince, Akko stood, her body weight rested on the other foot. She was so scared to see if she really sprained her ankle.
Tenth Step: Prove yourself worthy to be their object of affection.
"Akko," Diana bent over her. Hooking Akko's arm to her waist and hoisting the shorter girl to her feet. "Please don't be stubborn."
Akko nodded and stared at Diana for a short while before limping along leaning all of her weight against Diana and whimpering every now and then.
Diana couldn't help but smile, if Akko also had eyes for her, then Diana's doing well on making an impression on her.
"You have the most wonderfully endearing expressions, my dear Akko," she complemented with a sly smile and helping her sit at the table where all her school supplies were. "You should not let your pride stop you from asking for my help."
"Fine!" Akko said grumpily. "Please do your magic."
"As you wish," Diana took her wand from her sash. The tip of her wand glowed a teal color and as well as Akko's foot. If she ever did have a sprain, it's all gone now. "How do you feel now?"
"Much better... thank you." Akko opened the book she was after that caused all this and continued writing her essay, dipping her quill in a bottle of ink.
Diana nodded and sat next to her. Akko managed to get a spot where it has a minimal interruption from other schoolmates. There were a couple of girls with them in the area but the team decided to leave, as they chatter away with the promise of extra tarts for dinner at the cafeteria.
When the sound of team's footsteps faded into the background, several additional moments passed in silence as the tension from the previous conversation, which had loomed overhead during the fancy promise of extra sweets in addition to the usual potato meals, descended once more upon the table by the window, lingering among mounds of parchment, loose and bound alike.
They stayed there together in silence for the next couple minutes until Diana sighed quietly. Propping an elbow on the table and lowering her forehead to her palm, and eyes closing in visible frustration. "Akko, do you hate me so?"
Akko didn't budge.
"Why won't you answer me, Akko?" Diana asked her voice cracking. Wondering if she failed the seduction or those procedures that was written is now invalid in the 21st century. "What did I do wrong? I'm always unsure of what you think of me and how you view me is really important, do you know that?"
After a long pause, Akko destroyed the silence, shrugging. "I think you're quite fickle. Sometimes I see you being very rude and at other times I see you being very kind. One minute you're sneering and the next you're laughing and giving me this stare full of adoration."
Diana blinked. She wasn't one hundred percent sure what to do with it, but Akko had sounded so serious when she spoke that Diana knew she had given the matter a deal of thought. Vaguely, Diana wondered if Akko had nothing else to occupy her with.
"You want to laugh at me, don't you?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.
Diana nodded. "I'm afraid so. Forgive me, you are just so adorable."
Akko didn't seem annoyed by her answer but looked as though she had expected it and just wanted his clarification on the subject.
"Do you relatively spend your time thinking about me, Akko?" Diana asked her with a slick smile, leaning in closer to her, taking in the bright maroon eyes and cherry looking lips that at that moment were pouting at her.
Akko sucked in her breath as Diana's face came closer to her, red eyes widened slightly. "No."
Lifting a brow, Diana's smile widened. Akko's never good at bluffing so she reached out a hand and tucking a stray strand of brown hair behind her ear. "So you do think about me?"
Akko shivered when Diana's fingertips brushed over her cheek and trailed down her neck from her ear. Swallowing she managed to choke out, "Only sometimes, okay!"
Diana's lips curved into a smirk. "I knew it. Why did you have to lie?" she asked, allowing her blue eyes to travel over her face and linger on her lips.
"Um, because of lots of things that would make Sucy and Amanda tease me to no end. Mostly I wonder why you saved me yesterday from that ball, and now I'm wondering why you came looking for me today."
Diana was taken aback. "You knew?"
"It's actually hard to ignore you when you sparkle like all attractive people do." Akko placed her hand on top of Diana's. "I did my best not to look at you, but you're just so mega distracting that I tripped."
Diana flinched at the mere thought that she sparkled like Edgar in the Night Fall series that she knew Barbara secretly read before revealing it to the others. Though as she sensed the warmth of Akko's hand emitting on hers, in such a natural way as if she had done such action forever, she forgot about all of her worries. She focused on the now then their gazes met.
11th Step: Create temptation.
"Akko," she suddenly spoke as their lips were an inch from one another. "Why do people kiss?"
Akko stopped moving for a while, silently contemplating the curious gaze that she so charmingly reflected in her deep maroon eyes.
Diana smiled as her lips moved closer to hers, discerning the reason why she wanted to kiss her. She just wanted to see or to know any sign if Akko wanted to kiss her too.
Akko's lips, Diana could imagine, were sweet, because their clasping mouths made the blood rush through her veins because when the wetness in hers met Akko's it would feel like she was a different girl. A girl not defined by her last name. Diana would kiss her because it was the only manner that really spoke something about her, it was her fingerprint.
Akko blinked. "Well, people kiss because..." she paused. "Kisses are…" she ran her fingers through her long hair, slightly disheveling it. "People kiss because they yearn to say something that cannot be spoken with words."
"Is that so?" Diana mused.
"Yeah."
"Do you have words you can't say to me Akko?"
Akko flustered. "Of course I don't! I mean I DO. I mean... sometimes. Aargh! Why must you make English hard sometimes?"
"Because Akko, even if I can speak a lot of dead languages. Your mother tongue and the language of love are not one of them. And I have constantly wanted to tell you that..." Diana then scooted closer for a lip lock.
Diana's world ceased for a moment.
No lips seemed to have tasted so good, no touch had ever matched hers, and most certainly never had her heart pounded so fast. As Diana's hands had slid down on Akko's slender shoulders, she could feel Akko succumbing to the kiss slowly.
Akko was kissing her back.
When their lips broke contact to catch their breaths, their gazes met and smiled at each other in a childish manner that could only be attributed to the fervent kiss they had shared only a couple of minutes prior.
"I..." Akko's cheeks powdered pink. "I like you too, Diana. I like like you a lot!"
"I like you too, Akko," Diana whispered. "More than I can ever express in words."
Laying her head back down on the small space where Akko's neck met her shoulder, she hid a grin as she felt the Japanese girl stiffen, still unused to physical intimacy.
Moving her hand to cover Akko's heart, Diana could feel it almost thumping out of her chest.
Diana figured that the last step would be next. She will do it once Akko would finish her homework. It's only natural that it could wait.
Satisfied she landed victory, she drifted off in a daydream.
A/N
I think you all know who delivered that book to Diana. I based this on a real book 'The Art of Seduction' by Robert Greene. but I made it more wholesome and cute. I would like to point out that the original book's message not what it seems at first so take caution if you ever want to check it.