It was raining. Akko raised her brows, feeling annoyed as small drops bounced on her nose then on her forehead. It was barely a drizzle but still, it was making her head wet. She didn't like rain at all. It always made her feel melancholic in one way or another without a supposed reason as to why. Maybe because her futile attempt to summon a barrier over her head was a thing but eh, why did she expect anything out of this at all?
But currently, the rain and its annoying pitter patter wasn't her chief source of irate. It was the blonde heiress holding out her medial-sized umbrella, barely enough to cater two, standing directly in front of her. She carefully placed her wand back to her sash's hook.
"Hey, wanna' share?" Diana smiled, holding out her royal blue parasol over her and the brunette. "In Luna Nova, we don't usually use umbrellas since we can always intercept rain out of magic," she explained, and her gaze incredibly softened. "This is causing you trouble, right?"
"... Just this one time, Cavendish." Akko resigned her voice barely a whisper as Diana stepped beside her and held the umbrella over their heads. The drops on Akko's head stopped.
"You so looked so gloomy, you know. I'm glad I could help Luna Nova's Miss 'Know-it'All'." Diana said, grinning. When Akko's face contorted into a sharp glare, as though she found it distasteful to walk along with her under this weather, Diana snickered. It was like drinking all of Sucy poison was somewhat better than sharing an umbrella with the Cavendish.
Akko glared at Diana one more second before moving her eyes somewhere else, anywhere, as long as it wasn't that perfect smile the blonde produced. As she stared at the damp grass of the courtyard, she began to contemplate on why she was so hung up on sharing this umbrella with her.
Akko didn't exactly hate Diana. It was just—it's just— it infuriated her at how the blonde was so talented at magic but didn't spend a second to think on how to utilize her talent to the most efficient of sorcery. She was the descendant of the Nines Witches, and Beatrix the Affectionate of all the lot. But all she did was goof around and made her magic for show. And her grades—don't get Akko started on that—her grades were so horrible that Akko didn't want to mention it.
But look at what the brunette was, she, who loves magic more than anything in her life, couldn't do a single barrier spell right.
As if the weather and the girl beside her couldn't possibly bring her mood down, her internal berate plummeted it further.
"I like this weather. The sound of rain is so calming." Diana was the one who started the conversation. She looked at the gray sky, the edges of her lips curling slightly.
Akko looked Diana, not knowing what to answer to her convo-start, and instead of thinking of a reply, she examined her face. She realized that the blonde girl really loved to smile. Whenever she saw her, Diana was always smiling, simply enjoying whatever nuisance that came up. She was really pretty with that smile.
Sometimes, that smile was even directed at her, often accompanied by a small wave. Akko never tried to be friendly with Diana (unless proclaiming rivalries is an act of friendliness) and yet, here she was, being all friendly with her, as if they hadn't had a brawl about magical tarot cards just last week.
"You really are a weird girl." Without realizing it, Akko has said her thought out loud. Diana looked at her but she didn't stop there. "You never care about grades or test or what other people say."
Akko stares at Diana's lips, where she flashed her perfect, pearly teeth again. "Really? I think I'm just a normal girl who loves to have fun." Akko's words came out of nowhere, but Diana didn't mind. Besides, if Akko was talking, why should she mind, anyway? "Why should I waste my energy in all these kind of things? People say things and they never stop saying what they want so it's kinda pointless to go do what they say, you know?"
Akko's eyes remained trained at her lips, contemplating on Diana's words before turning away. This time, she didn't look at the grass, at the wet pavement, nor the blonde, but at her feet, as though she was interested at how wet her school shoes were getting. The crease between her brows tightened. And somehow, a weird, steaming knot was around her stomach.
"I think you should do that too. You care too much, Atsuko." Diana tried to pick up the conversation again. Since today was a rare chance that she gets to talk with Akko without the other shooting quips, she didn't want their short walk under the rain to be totally silent.
Diana waited for her answer until she saw her lips move. "...Because I am not you..." Akko muttered.
"Uhm...What?" Maybe it was because of the rain Diana wasn't sure what Akko said.
One second was calm until Akko decides to jut her face onto Diana's, her red eyes wide with… envy?
"Because I'm not the heiress of the Cavendish Manor!" Akko said, almost shouting. "I'm not the descendant of Beatrix or the one who Professor Chariot fawns over, or that student who's recognized as the school magical ace! I'm not the one who's so talented in magic that she didn't even need to try and everyone will still recognize her talent! I'm—" Akko felt like she was close to crying. The back of her eyes stung. Her cheeks felt burning and worse of all, she shouted at her without a relevant reason at all.
That was so unlike her. But under the rain like today, under the pressure of so many things happening in her head, she couldn't control herself. "I'm... I'm none of that," she finishes. "I'm… just a normal girl... I'm not even a real witch..." Akko had always known that but she had always refused to accept it, and her intellect had made a mirage to think that she was a witch. But, the thing with intellect was it can't change how you feel on what you think.
She never told anyone about it, she didn't plan to show anyone her weakness, not especially here on Luna Nova Academy, where she swore weakness was forbidden. But now, out of all the people in Luna Nova, Diana Cavendish was the first one who knows about this side of her. And it made feel such an idiot. And idiot that's below the academy's name.
Akko could feel Diana's sapphire eyes trained at her, but she didn't care anymore. She didn't care if this girl would laugh at her, make fun of her like her teammates or tell her to give up and leave the school. Whatever the reply was, Akko wanted it to be over with. But the blonde did nothing but stare at the brunette.
The silence was deafening. "If you have anything to say then just say it." Akko hissed, gritting her teeth but the silence continued. She didn't dare to make eye contact.
"...I was thinking about how you can be so dumb sometimes." Finally, Diana answers.
"Excuse me?" Akko looked up, unbelieving to what the blonde had said. As she did, she stared at the passive expression that was so alien but comfortable on Diana's face, but the passion in her clear blue eyes were still there.
"Not a real witch? You are more of a witch than anyone in Luna Nova, Atsuko." Diana says, and stood directly in front of her. As she saw Akko raise a brow. She sighed. "Do you want to know why? Because you love magic more than anyone," Diana took one step forward to Akko, leaning closer to the brunette's face as she smiled brightly at her. "And," the blonde flushes a bit. "that makes me like you a lot."
"W-What...?" Akko blushed like crazy. Did Diana Cavendish just tell her that she likes her, like, a lot? She just means it as a friend, right? Or—or maybe as a rival? Either way, Akko could still feel her heart race. Her heart was racing for the person that made her angry all the time. It was driving her nuts. Why!?
… wait, since when did Diana began holding her wrist?
Diana looks at her with a pointed look only she could pull off, looking so authoritative but quite jovial at the same time. "Look, if somebody ever says otherwise, tell me first, okay? I'll punch them in the face so hard it'll knock off their socks for a week." Diana returned to her place, but her smile was still there and so was her hand on her wrist, the grin so bright that Akko worried she might go blind.
"... You really are weird..." Akko couldn't say anything besides that. Her free hand slowly touched her face and felt the light heat. "Seriously, stop making me blush." She said in a hushed voice.
However, Diana didn't realize Akko's red face, but she did wink at her. Normally, this would make her uncomfortable but right now? It somehow made Akko's skip a beat. She thought that she would go crazy without understanding the weird feeling in her chest, not knowing the reason of her heart ready to bounce off her ribcage.
The rest of the walk was all silent. Diana continued to pout as Akko ignored all her efforts to make her talk again, going quiet herself after the fifth attempt. But what Diana didn't know that Akko was too busy finding out what the heck was the feeling she had right now, whilst deciding she had already spoken more than enough. Akko glances at her in secret. Her red eyes examined Diana's frame, the way she stood straight, the way her cold but soft hand gently squeezed her wrist, the way her ribbon was slightly crooked and uneven, and, oh, by the Nine Witches, she realized Diana's shoulder was wet because she wanted to make sure the brunette didn't get a drop of rain in her clothes, the way she was calm by it, it made the hopeless Atsuko Kagari blush a storm again.
Why did she keep getting the butterflies in her stomach because of Diana Cavendish? She scolded her heart, reasoning to herself with all the logic and intellect that she had, that this wasn't the smart and magnificent Professor Chariot who Akko had as a Magic Astronomy teacher. No, no, no…
But that's the thing with intellect. It can't change what you feel on what you think.
This was originally written by ihavatoomuchotp on Tumblr. You're the best! I own none of this except for the idea of the reverse au of LWA and the cover art. BTW, if any of you want to write or draw something out the Reverse!LWA then go ahead! I don't own the characters but the idea and reverses anyway.
Thanks again, ihavetoomuchotp!
-Blee-Bleep