I'm back with more LWA! I can't even begin to explain how thrilled and excited I am about the new anime! I've waited for 3 years, and now I can finally get back into one of my favorite series!
This story will likely be one of many future LWA fics from me! It was commissioned by ChuckleBrotherz, and is a direct continuation from my first LWA fic, A Witch's Dilemma. As such, it takes place in between the 2 OVAs.
Disclaimer: I do not own Little Witch Academia.
A Witch's Confession
Chapter 1. A Sudden Realization
All the way back from her little trip to the library, Akko had been replaying the events that had transpired in her mind.
She couldn't stop feeling giddy - giddier than usual, even for her. Talking to Diana like that, setting things straight, helping her feel better, and even going so far as to call her a friend had left Akko bubbly with excitement all night long. She kept giggling to herself, enough to have Lotte shush her more than once.
She didn't know why she was quite so happy about what had happened between Diana and herself in the library. But simply remembering the way Diana had smiled and hugged her back made it all worth it, in Akko's mind.
When she finally calmed down from the restless tossing and turning, she slept soundly for the rest of the night...
Bee-bee-bee-beep! Bee-bee-bee-beep! Bee-bee-bee-beep!
"Uuuuhh..."
"Akko... turn off your alarm... It's too early..."
Lotte's moan of a voice sounded from above.
Akko grumbled and whined as she turned over, reaching her hand out from the pile of blankets she'd become overnight. She flailed her hand around on the nightstand, trying to silence the pumpkin-shaped clock to no avail.
"Akko..." Lotte hissed. "Hurry, before Sucy wakes up... You know she's not a morning person..."
"I'm tryiiiiiiing..." Akko smacked aside a booklet, then a small flower pot, until at last she hit the alarm. Both girls let out a sigh of relief to discover Sucy was still fast asleep.
"Thank goodness," Lotte sighed. She sat up and put on her glasses diligently, while Akko flopped back down and prepared to fall back asleep for as long as possible. But her friend wasn't about to let her.
"So, how did things go with Diana last night? You came back so late Sucy was already in bed and I couldn't ask you. Did you give Diana her notes back?"
"Uhhh yeah!" Akko nervously buried her face into her pillow. "Everything was fine! Totally fine!"
"Are you sure? Why were you gone so long if all you were doing was returning her notes? She didn't bully you more, did she?"
"Huh? N-No, nothing like that! We just had a little... chat, is all."
"A chat?" Intrigued, Lotte leaned over in an effort to seek out her roommate. "What do you mean? You and Diana actually had a civil conversation together?"
"W-Well, um-"
"Ahh, c'mon you guys..." Sucy's grumble of a voice interrupted, just in time, in Akko's case. "Is all this talking really necessary so early in the morning?"
"Morning, Su," Akko mumbled.
"Good morning," Lotte joined in. "Sorry we woke you."
"Mm whatever. You'll both just have to be part of my next experiment to make it up to me."
"What? Not agaaiin..."
While Akko's two best friends roused themselves with some playful banter, the brunette kept her face hidden in her blankets. She didn't know why she was getting so flustered while talking and thinking about Diana.
I've gotta make sure to keep her secret, though, she reminded herself. I can't ever tell anyone I saw her crying! Diana'll never forgive me! She'll probably have my head!
"Akko!"
"W-Whaaa?!" When both her friends called for her, Akko shot up, but ended up smacking her head against the underside of the bunk beds in the process. She collapsed back onto her pillow with a moan. Sucy snickered while Lotte sighed.
"Not again..."
From there on, the three roommates tried to have a normal morning and get ready for classes as usual.
But even with Lotte's estimations of how long it would take them all to change, eat, and get across the school, they still ended up being late for their first lecture of the morning.
The bell rang just as Lotte and Sucy entered the classroom. But with Akko lagging behind, by the time she got in, she was technically late, and got a brief scolding from the professor.
But Akko wasn't about to let that get her down today. Not when she had a new friend to help keep her spirits high.
She straightened up and put a big grin on her face as she scoured the room, her eyes going directly to the more elevated seats near the top of the incline.
Diana was sitting in her usual spot, prim and proper as ever. She caught Akko's eye briefly with a look of mild interest, but nothing more.
As Akko went to her own seat, she waved vigorously at her, but Diana paid her no heed.
Well, class has technically already started, Akko shrugged. I guess she doesn't wanna wave back now.
Therefore, she was determined to try again in between classes.
As soon as their first morning lecture was over and the bell rang, Akko jumped up from her seat as everyone else started packing up their things to leave. She scurried over to Diana in a haste, almost tripping on her robes and losing her hat in the process.
But she eventually managed to get there in one piece. She put on another wide grin and called out cheerfully to her.
"Morning, Diana!"
The white-haired witch tensed at the sound of her voice, then swiftly whipped around to face her.
"Well, if it isn't Akko."
Then, like parts of her shadow, Barbara and Hannah popped up from either side of her.
"Nice of you to like, actually join us this morning."
"Bet she ran into another trash can!"
As the two girls started cackling, Diana waved for them to be silent, then turned her attention back to Akko.
"Let me guess. You slept in again?"
"Well, uh, actually yeah. A little bit," she admitted. She was in too much of a good mood to realize Diana and the others were trying to taunt her. "I didn't get much sleep last night either. I think it's because I was just thinking about what happened between us at the library-"
Diana lost her usual, confident smile and immediately lunged forward to cover Akko's mouth.
"Be quiet, you fool! Or would you prefer to tell the entire school about what happened?" She blinked once, then turned another stern gaze on her. "You haven't told anyone, have you?"
"N-No! Of course not! I would never reveal my friend's secret like th-"
"Good. You'd do well not to." Diana released her, then continued packing up her things. Akko readjusted her jaw and decided to loiter a minute longer.
"So, um... anyway, Diana. Do you think you'd like to-"
"Are you still here?" she snapped. "Akko, I've got to get to my next class."
"Oh, ah, r-right. Sorry!"
Diana brushed past her without a second glance. Barbara and the other one made faces at Akko as they followed. Akko watched Diana go, feeling her shoulders slump just a little bit.
"Huh..." she mumbled aloud. "I thought that maybe she'd be a little nicer to me after what happened last night..."
"Whoa, what happened last night?" Sucy appeared seemingly out of nowhere, causing Akko to shriek and fall onto her backside. Lotte was there a second later to help pull her up.
"Geez, you need to stop reacting so strongly to everything," she sighed.
"But anyway," Sucy continued. "What happened last night with you and Diana, huh? Anything juicy?"
"Wh-What?!"
"Sucy, what does that even mean?"
As Lotte tried to rationally make sense of every word that came out of her roommate's mouth, Akko was trying to recover from the shock of the suggestion.
But what took a little longer was recovering from the shock of how Diana had treated her this morning, even after what they'd been through last night. She made sure to considering things in her head this time, not out loud.
Maybe she's feeling weird about it, too? Maybe she's just... not sure of how to deal with it, so she's just trying to be her usual self? O-Or did she not even care about what we said to each other...?
That was a little disheartening, to think that Diana didn't take what Akko had told her last night seriously, or that she didn't care at all.
Akko thought it might've been nice to try and be her friend after everything that had happened. If the incident with the Dragon had proven anything, it was that all witches – Akko and Diana included – worked much better together as friends than separately as competitors. She thought it might've been nice to be amiable with Diana rather than to be constantly at-odds with her.
But... maybe Diana just doesn't care...? She shook her head, trying to give the other witch the benefit of the doubt. Well, I can't give up after only one try, right?
"Ah-kko!"
"H-Huh?!"
"We're gonna be late again!"
"Oh, crap!"
Hurriedly, the three girls grabbed all of their things and rushed out the door, bound for their next class.
Akko didn't see Diana in all of her lectures, but she did see her in most of them and at lunch time. She was determined to talk to her again, her line of thinking being that perhaps Diana's mood would change for the better as the day progressed.
Akko went up to her and tried to say hello as many times as an opportunity presented itself. She always went with a big smile and good intentions.
But every time, Diana shot her down, either blatantly with words, or nonverbally by brushing her off. And with each rejection or failed attempt, Akko felt more and more dejected.
By the time the day was over, she limped back to her dorm room with Sucy and Lotte trailing behind, sharing concerned looks all the while. When they got inside, Akko only had the strength to flop onto her bed and deflate. The others entered after her, Lotte clearing her throat as she closed the door.
"Akko... are you okay? You were spacing out more than usual today."
"Usually when the professors call on you, you give some kind of answer," Sucy recounted. "But today you just mumbled nonsense."
"Is it because you hit your head again?" Lotte guessed.
They both waited for a response. It took her a moment, but Akko only sighed and rolled over.
"Nah. I think it's Diana..."
"What? Is she really bullying you again?" Lotte gasped, going on the defensive right away.
"That's the thing!" Akko groaned. "I don't know! I can't even tell if she's bullying me or..."
"Or...?" Sucy parroted. "What happened between you two last night anyway, hmmm?" She slinked forward until she was hovering right next to her friend. Akko quickly shooed her away.
"N-Nothing happened! I-I mean..." She bit her lip. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone."
"Hmmmmm?" Sucy purred. "You can't just say that and then not tell us what happened."
"Seriously, Akko!" Lotte cried. "Now we just wanna know!"
Akko sat up on her bed, only to clutch her hands to her head and contemplate.
"Uuu, I guess you guys are right. Maybe if I talk about it, you guys can help me with it."
Lotte and Sucy both took seats on the floor in front of their friend's bed to listen. Akko internally debated with herself for another moment.
I promised Diana I wouldn't tell anyone! But if it's Lotte and Su, maybe they can help... So, sorry, Diana...
"Well~?" Sucy prompted, clearly interested now.
Akko finally decided to go through with it.
"I... I went into the library last night to return her notes... and I saw Diana... crying..."
Silence filled the room after that as the girls all took in this new information. While Akko was berating herself for breaking her promise, Lotte and Sucy were trying to imagine Diana Cavendish crying. Obviously, the natural response was disbelief.
"What?" Lotte squeaked. "Y-You saw her crying?"
"That's kind of juicy."
"Stop it, Sucy!" Lotte chided her briefly before turning back to Akko. "Why was Diana crying? Was she okay?"
"Well... she was feeling guilty about accidentally unlocking the Dragon's seal." Akko didn't have a problem telling them this part, because Lotte and Sucy were some of the only people in the Academy who'd known it was Diana and her friends from the start. Even so, both of them were taken aback by the information.
"Really?" Lotte asked. "She was worried about that? Even after all that time?"
"Guilty conscious," Sucy noted. "Must've eaten away at her."
"It really did," Akko agreed. "Enough to make her cry about it. And I-I dunno, I just... felt so bad for her. She didn't mean it. Anyone could've unsealed that lizard. A-And Diana's such a good student and everything. It was killing her that she'd caused such a ruckus-"
"And that you were the one to save the day," Lotte guessed.
Akko nodded.
"Yeah... S-So I tried to make her feel better, a-and I dunno, I just thought... maybe we could kinda start over and be friends or something. I told you guys before, right? It was more of her personality that I didn't like, not Diana herself. I think I actually... might kinda like her..."
That had the other two raising eyebrows.
"Like her?" Lotte repeated. "How do you mean?"
"Like as a potential acquaintance, or as a potential mate?"
"Sucy!"
"M-Mate?" Akko shrieked, her face turning cherry red.
"What?" Sucy shrugged. "It could happen. Nothing wrong with it. It'd just be a weird choice for you. Considering how mean she's always been to you."
"W-Well..." Akko covered her face with her hands and tried to calm herself down. "I-I mean... she was only ever mean because I invited her do it. Sometimes I'd fight back, so she'd keep going... I-I guess it's sorta my fault in a way..."
"Well, and you know what they say," Sucy went on. "People often tease the ones they like, right? So maybe Diana likes you, too."
"...Huh?" Akko finally peeked through her fingers. "Y-You think she might?"
"Anything's possible, right?"
Akko was silent for a moment. The idea that she might like Diana as more than a friend was certainly scary and foreign to her.
But now that she really thought about it, it kind of made sense in some ways. She did often find herself hanging around Diana even when she didn't consciously intend to. And ever since they'd helped one another out after the Dragon's attack, she'd found she'd been a lot more excited whenever she was around Diana in general.
Akko had always convinced herself that her heart had only been pounding because she'd nearly fallen to her death, not because she'd been cuddled up against Diana's back for an entire broomstick ride.
And she'd always zone out in class, but for some reason, she'd always perk up and tune in again whenever she heard Diana speaking.
Now that she thought about it... as strange as it might've sounded or felt... maybe she really did like Diana to some degree...
"Akko!"
Lotte was tired of talking to her friend only to have her space out today. This time, she bonked Akko on the head to get her attention.
"W-What?! Oh, sorry. Did I do it again?"
"Mm-hm."
"Do you think about Diana every time you space out?" Sucy wondered.
"Uh, sometimes-"
"You like her."
"W-What! N-No way! I-I mean... m-maybe...?"
"Don't try to deny it," Sucy advised. "It'll only make things worse."
"Waaah... s-so then what should I do?"
"Well, let's not jump to conclusions," Lotte said. "Let's find out for sure if you really like her first. We don't wanna impose that on you and make you think you like her if you really don't."
"B-But... how do I find out, then?"
Lotte and Sucy shared another glance and thought for a moment.
"Hmm... Well, let's wait it out for the rest of the week. Depending on how you feel whenever she's around, or how she reacts to you, we'll probably be able to tell. Now that you've told us, Sucy and I can keep an eye out for things you might not have been able to notice on your own."
"Operation: Get Akko a Mate."
"Sucy, stop saying it like that! Geez..."
As her two friends started squabbling again, Akko finally let her hands fall away and back into her lap.
Do I... like Diana? L-Like that? I mean, I guess it would explain a few things... b-but, it feels so weird! How could I like someone who's only ever mean to me? But then again... she's not always mean to me... She can be nice sometimes, too. Like last night in the library...
Right now, Akko didn't know what to feel or how to feel it. Just the proposition that she might have a crush on her classmate was enough to occupy her mind right now. She'd just have to trust Lotte and Sucy to help her out with this and see what happened.
The three of them eventually got ready for bed. Lotte and Sucy promised to help Akko out tomorrow however they could, but also vowed to keep her secret. She also made them swear not to tell anyone about Akko seeing Diana crying last night, and they both agreed.
With a wave of her wand, Lotte put out all the lights and candles for the night.
And of course, Akko was restless almost all night long, her mind occupied by thoughts of Diana, still trying to figure out how she might really feel about her.
But of course, people didn't often lie awake in bed for hours each night thinking about someone they didn't like.
She realized that at about 2 in the morning before she finally decided to face the music.
Maybe... I really like Diana...
Hopefully tomorrow, she'd get some surefire answers.
A/N: I think Akko having a crush on Diana would be quite adorable, but I know the anime won't ever go there.
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