If light ever left your sight.
Chapter one: Sunflowers.
Maka and Soul walked through the bigger alleys of Death City, as the crazy and creepy moon laughed above them. It had been precisely a year after the incident with Asura, and Shibusen was up and going just as quickly as everything had been done and solved. Maka and Soul's particular team hadn't lost any time at all, and went ahead to finish the quest to recollect the kishin eggs they still had left, and now…
The only thing left was the witch's soul.
"Are you completely, absolutely, positively and certainly sure this time it isn't another cat's soul?" Soul asked his meister, with a distressed tone of voice.
Maka sighed for maybe about the hundredth time, "Yeah, yeah. I double-checked with Shinigami. This time there's no doubt."
She concluded her comment with a small smile and a short laugh.
Soul tilted his head lightly. "Why are you so cheery, huh?" He asked.
"Well, this is our last mission, after all. You'll become a death scythe!" Maka happily recalled. "Finally our efforts are being recompensed. Isn't it wonderful?"
Soul grinned. It was true; but then, he gave out a long sigh.
"Well, it's more wonderful for you, actually. I'm gonna be going to all kinds of places, I'm gonna have to be assigned to some far away part of the world to protect it, and every single meister that gets good wavelength with me will be manhandling me all over and over again" Soul ranted in an annoyed voice.
"But still: our efforts will be recompensed, and that's all I care for. It's cool". He concluded.
"Say, would you miss me if that where to happen?" Maka asked half-joking, to which Soul quieted down and stopped walking. His head turned to a side opposite to Maka's face.
"Soul?" Maka called again.
Thanks to the lack of answers, Maka couldn't help but to laugh a little.
"Oh, I get it. So you really are--"
"MAKA WATCH OUT!" Soul yelled loudly, pushing Maka with him to the pavement, both rolling over violently until friction stopped them. Right now Soul had saved Maka from the hit of what seemed to be an overgrown plant vine; which left an enormous dent on the floor, just centimeters away from the two teens.
"What the HELL, Soul?!" Maka scolded as soon as she noticed the fact that Soul was on TOP of her, on a really awkward position.
"Stop your babbling and look over there!" Soul yelled, getting of from Maka's body and pointing at something right in front of them.
A person was curiously looking over the pair. A girl that looked around sixteen, in a red party dress that went right up her knees, orange boots with curvy swirls at the end, an orange witch hat that also had swirls, with a sunflower stuck on it. The girl's hair had a light shade of brown, and it was long enough to reach her waist. Finally, she had big eyes the same color of her hair.
That girl was the one with the soul of a witch, and Soul and Maka's last objective.
"Well, what do we have here?" The witch asked, her voice sweet and cheery. "You are such a cute pair; I bet you come from Shibusen"
"Right you are" Maka said boldly, trying to get a good look at her enemy.
The witch made a wide smile, as she pointed at Maka. "My, what an adorable girl! Your eyes are just as green as grass!" Then, she pointed a Soul. "Yours are red as roses. How great!"
Maka and Soul traded confused looks, as both got up from the floor.
"Witch Elliotropika, I take it?" Maka asked with authority.
Elliotropika rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Ugh, stupid long names. Why not just call me Elli, huh?"
Soul snorted at the witch's comment. "What do you know? Seems like we're dealing with a grown-up kid or something; aren't all witches supposed to have an animal theme?"
Elliotropika made a pleasant smile.
"Animals are so hideous. Flowers and plants are far better, and prettier. I'm the witch of the sunflower, by the way".
"I don't really care which flower you represent…" Soul muttered, drooling a little.
"Soul, stop chitchatting with the enemy and transform already…" Maka ordered. "Oh, and clean up that drool off your face…" She added, seeing how Soul's little habit was once again coming out.
"Yeah, yeah; as you wish" Soul responded:
His body shone in a blue light, disappearing into the air, and being replaced by a sharp, enormous black and red scythe, which Maka caught easily with one hand, and spun it around several times, as she always did.
"Witch Elliotropika…I'll be taking your soul!" Maka proudly announced, setting herself in an attack position, pointing the sharper part of the scythe at the witch.
"Well, if you brats really want to fight…" Elliotropika muttered.
Suddenly, a really big plant vine grew out of the cement and attempted to hit Maka from behind, but thanks to her expert reflexes, Maka was able to easily dodge and cut the vine, turning it into dust.
"Is attacking with vines all you can do, witch?!" Maka confidently shouted at Elliotropika, who was crossing her arms stiffly, as if thinking of her next move.
'Oii, Maka…don't get too confident about those dumb-looking tactics; she's maybe one of those persons that aren't what they seem…' Soul's voice echoed from the scythe, his reflection briefly appearing.
"Yeah; I know-!" Maka managed as she started running over a sudden vine storm that appeared from the ground; all long, and some even thorny.
With expert skills, the scythe-meister cut, dodged, and ran over the grassy enemy with astonishing velocity: her stiff and determined expression not moving an inch, and her jumps being just as powerful as they where graceful; her only objective was the sunflower witch, whom seemed to be mocking Maka with each new vine.
With each vine Maka cut, her anxiousness increased, so did her battle-screams and adrenalin; she was just a few centimeters away from the witch and her life's objective.
'Maka…I can't believe this…' Soul's agitated voice sounded from the scythe.
"This isn't the time, Soul!" Maka yelled at her weapon as she cut a vine that was about to get her form behind her head.
'You don't get it…That witch left her soul exposed: I can smell it. I can almost TASTE it… I want that soul!' Soul yelled anxiously; Maka could surely tell that he was feeling just as over-confident and tense as her, both being in perfect synchrony.
"Well, I'll need you to shut up so I can get you that soul!"
-SNAP!-
One final cut from the powerful scythe ended the vine storm, leaving the technician, weapon and witch alone. Elliotropika was sitting comfortably on a levitating leaf that suspended her in a meter or so from the ground, completely open for a direct attack.
"Ugh, this isn't looking good…" The witch complained, biting her lower lip.
Maka made a powerful battle-scream as she used up all her forces to jump, getting the perfect aim for an opening to a cut that would break the witch in two, finally ending the mission; Elliotropika didn't move an inch from her place, probably due panic or astonishment…
.
Or so Maka thought.
Before Maka could cut the witch's torso, Elliotropika made a creepy smile.
-SNAP!-
…That wasn't the sound of the scythe's cut.
It was the sound of Elliotropika snapping her fingers, making a fallen vine rise, and not to punch Maka, but Soul. The scythe was violently taken out of Maka's hand, bouncing against the floor roughly.
"SOUL!" Maka yelled; almost as quickly as two very thin vines (rope-alike) took her hands and legs tightly, suspending her into the air, almost cutting her pulse at Elliotropika's level.
Maka stared in horror at the sight of her scythe: it wasn't coming back to his human form, and it was trembling slightly.
'Shit…what's wrong?!' Soul mentally said, his inner body completely frozen.
"You bitch of a witch…" Maka cursed lowly, seeing how her partner wasn't coming back. "WHAT DID YOU DO?!" She screamed, trying to fight against the very tight vines that kept on adding pressure to her hands and feet; the pain was almost crushing her circulation.
Elliotropika giggled lightly, to which Maka glared with pure hate.
"Well, it's just as simple as me hitting your scythe-boyfriend with a paralysis plant, sweetie…" The witch remarked with a playful look that disgusted Maka to no end.
"CUT THE CRAP AND LET US GO!" Maka screamed fiercely, still trying to fight.
Elliotropika's look darkened in a creepy way, as she took the sunflower that rested on her head, and started pinching all of it's petals off.
"Kill you both…let you go…Kill you both…" She chanted hollowly, as each petal fell into Maka's boots.
The meister felt pathetic. The situation was just so pitiful that it made the enemy randomly decide what to do with her out of bore?
"Let you go…" The witch concluded as the last petal fell. "Ugh, that is so not fun…" She complained childishly, as another sunflower magically appeared back on her hat.
Elliotropika looked at Maka with a devilish look. "At least I'll do something fun…"
Maka cocked an eyebrow.
'Torture?' She fearfully thought.
Elliotropika took her hat off, and like a magician, made an item appear from it: a stone that shone in a potent red color; almost crimson.
"Girlie, do you know where my name originated from?" The witch asked softly.
"No. I don't know, and I don't give a rat's ass!" Maka bluntly responded, still glaring.
"Insolent girl…" Elliotropika complained, rubbing the stone to give it more shine. "'Heliotropes' or more like 'The one that looks at the sun'. That's the Greek name for a sunflower, or so I think".
"What the hell does that have to do with me?!" Yelled a very disgusted Maka, almost loosing the feeling sense on her hands.
"Soon you'll be a heliotrope." Elliotropika said, snapping her fingers softly.
Before Maka could even react, extremely thin, serpent-alike vines crossed over her face, and took her eyelids hardly to the point that she couldn't close her eyes anymore.
"WHAT THE?--!"
"Behold, scythe technician." Elliotropika said proudly, showing Maka the stone. "The amulet of Helios; or the 'sun' amulet. When I want it to do so, it'll shine with the same force the sun does when you look directly at it…" She said in the sweetest of tones.
Meanwhile Elliotropika was explaining to Maka the uses of her stone, Soul had regained the ability to go back into his human form, realizing that the paralysis plant had only a temporal effect.
"MAKA!" He yelled in horror, when he realized the situation his meister was in. Without thinking twice, he ran into her direction.
"Soul, stay back!" Maka ordered, trying to get rid of the vines, close her eyes, and stop Soul, all at the same time.
Elliotropika twitched in annoyance. "I'm sick of you, little girl! I think it's time for you to go black-out!" She said, instantly making the amulet shine in a powerful, blinding white light in front of Maka's eyes.
…
..
.
"…Soul…?"
Maka's voice was hurt.
Hurt, cold and low, because of the scene that appeared before her open eyes.
Soul, being noble, a good friend and loyal weapon, had put himself as a shield before Maka, without knowing what the amulet was; he looked at the light in Maka's place.
He allowed a painful howl to go out, cutting the night with pure feelings of hurt that made Maka feel the outmost guilt and sorrow: it was the same as when Soul had gotten the scar, and she hadn't been able to do a thing about it, again…
Soul was sent flying few meters away from Maka and landing painfully at the cement with a violent thud.
Elliotropika stared in amazement at Soul's sacrifice, and looked down.
"Stupid scythe boy…" She muttered, disgusted at the fact that her original target wasn't fulfilled.
Feeling bored, she allowed her fingers to snap and let Maka go.
Without even stretching up, threatening Elliotropika or even thinking, Maka ran to her partner's side, desperate to know what exactly the beam had caused.
"Soul…Soul!" She called in a horrified tone, kneeling to her weapon's level and holding him close to her chest, in a very tight grip.
"Ma…ka…" Soul managed weakly, in middle of painful groans. "Is that you…?" He asked slowly: His eyes not opening at all.
"Of course it's me!!" Maka yelled in obvious agony, feeling her mouth and eyes dry, and a horrible lump on her throat. "WHO ELSE COULD I BE?!"
She finished taking Soul's hand fiercely; her's shaking slightly due the fact that she couldn't quite feel Soul's pulse.
The scythe-boy finally opened his eyes, but…
The lively and dangerous crimson color that painted his eyes was gone…
Now it was replaced by a dim, senseless and death red that couldn't seem more ordinary… and white pupils.
"Maka…everything went dark…" Soul's voice remarked, seeming almost scared.
Maka gasped in horror.
.
.
Soul was blind.
.
.
End Chapter.
AN: 'kay, I know. This fic isn't like me…at all.
I know everyone hates OC's, but tell me what did you think about Elli, if you'd like? I personally liked how she came out xD
much angst, hurt and romance is going to be in this new (short) fic, coming soon, this summer!
Sorry for making Soul blind and all, but I needed this to get a plot, so…yeah.
Enjoy my very new written adventure, and don't forget to get me a review!