I promise this is the last SetsunaxImpossible Partner I'll write for a while. Bear with me and my oddities.
Unbelievable.
That is what came to my mind first when I saw Sakurazaki Setsuna, fifteen years ago, strutting through Mahora's front doors. Her etiquette was non-existent, as was her taste in clothing. Nothing I didn't expect from someone as low-born as she was. I had recognized her immediately from Konoka's torn picture of them as children. She was a bit too fond of her for my liking. Too attached to a friendship that, to my understanding, had sailed long before.
When Sakurazaki passed by Miyazaki-san in a moment of need -her books were falling all over the place- without even spearing her a glance of cordial sympathy, I was aghast. Never in my life had I seen a creature so sullen and inconsiderable. Even Asuna, the monkey, had some rusty manners in herself.
I didn't like her. She was a lost case in my books. To think that someone as kind as Konoe-san would consider her a dear friend was utter madness. The actual Sakurazaki and the ghost from a distant past were possibly the most opposite beings on Earth; I came to this conclusion after Konoka re-told us a few of her childhood memories shared with Sakurazaki-san.
As I had expected, she soon became the object of social isolation. Yet she seemed not to mind the company of only one or two equally lonely souls as her own. Tatsumiya-san and McDowell-san were the only ones who were able to establish a certain camaraderie with her. It figured only they would be able to reach the stoic girl, as they were stones themselves. McDowell-san was, especially, a mean soul. She was far the worst of them. I could see the cruelness behind her top-notch manners and reasonably choice of clothing. It could be said that I certainly preferred Tatsumiya, or even Sakurazaki herself, before the small blonde.
"Give them an opportunity," I remember pursing my lips as Asuna scolded me. "Setsuna-san can be specially nice if you look past her glare." I scoffed, but decided against arguing with her. How could I? I wondered to my own musings. What would we have in common, to begin with? It's impossible.
I had made the terrible mistake of judging by looks and social preferences.
It was not until a year later, when we were both sixteen, that I noticed the real Sakurazaki Setsuna.
"You shouldn't have!" It was sheer instinct that drove me to hide behind a wall. Konoka and Sakurazaki were speaking around the corner, and I had no intentions of crossing paths with either. Konoka was a nice girl, but she was a lost one when you put her together with her childhood friend. "What about you?" I chanced a peek. Sakurazaki was, to my bafflement, smirking at the brunette in a rather cocky manner.
"I will sneak in and tweak with the results a bit, that is all." My eyes widened. They were talking about the English exam of that day.
"You shouldn't have, Set-chan. If I have to fail then I will," Sakurazaki lifted an eyebrow and hummed. She looked so relaxed and lazy, it was as if I was looking at a totally different person.
"Too late for that, isn't it? I already swapped our sheets, ojou-sama." I held my breath as she leaned in and kissed the brunette on the lips. "No worries, see?" Konoka looked dazed, as if she were in a trance. "Oh, and don't think I don't know about your... other business." This time, Konoka looked positively mortified and more than a bit shameful.
"You knew?" She breathed out in disbelief. "All this time you knew and didn't say anything?" The conversation turned serious all of sudden, and I felt like I was intruding in something I shouldn't have known about to start with. "Why didn't you say anything?" Sakurazaki smiled sadly at her. She shrugged and turned her back to the brunette, starting to walk in my opposite direction.
"You can't cheat on someone who doesn't love you to begin with. It doesn't quite work like that."
I didn't sleep that night, to be honest. I wasn't a busy-body. I wasn't even of a curious nature. And still, that small scene in the middle of the hallway had left me, to put it bluntly and boldly, stupified. I had witnessed what I considered a Twilight Zone moment. Something impossible and completely surreal.
Were they in a relationship? Did Konoka really cheat on Setsuna? Why had Setsuna swapped sheets with a person who, supposedly, had betrayed her trust? But most importantly; who was Sakurazaki Setsuna?
I tossed and turned. I even remember getting up from bet to make me a cup of Ming tea and not drinking it. And the worst is, what kept me up all night was Setsuna's lonely face. Such a beautiful, feminine face, shouldn't ever wear such an expression.
I scoffed to myself and poured the tea down the sink. Great, I thought. I was thinking of Sakurazaki as beautiful and feminine. Everyone in school, myself included, knew that she was frustratingly uncaring of her looks. She dressed exactly as the code demanded, so her wild hair and the usual dirt she carried around weren't actually breaking the rules. Which only served to tick me off. She could at least iron her clothes, or cut some slack on the good-girl-gone-bad look that had so many girls following her.
Anger coursed through my veins as I remembered that Sakurazaki, though a pariah, was considered one of the coolest girls around school. She was a total walking rag with an attitude, and she had half the school body sending her hooded eyes and ridiculous praises.
I stomped to my room in a frenzy of mixed feelings and threw my weight on the mattress. Why should I care about her? I reasoned with myself. I felt my pulse start to quicken as her face came to my mind once more. I closed my eyes. Suddenly, I was smelling her perfume and feeling her hands graze mine in a soft caress.
No. I sprang up and reached to my red cheeks. No, it's stupid. I must be feeling pity, that is all. That is all, Ayaka.
But my mind questioned my reasoning. Is that really all?
"A-Ayaka-san," The next day, Konoka-san looked positively spooked. "Set-chan is looking for you." She gave me a dubious glance, which was gladly returned by me. I turned my head and saw that, effectively, Sakurazaki was looking at me with a small smile. She waved at me and I felt myself blush.
"Thank you," I went to see what the obscure girl wanted from me. She took me off guard by pulling me down to the seat beside her. The murmurs around us increased. I could feel Konoka's watchful stare on the back of my neck.
"You saw us yesterday," She wasn't looking at me, but she was smiling. There was certain charming tranquility to it. "I am surprised. You didn't open your mouth to tell everyone." She turned to me and rested her head on her palm. "Thank you, Ayaka-san." It seemed like an invitation to leave. Biting on my lower lip, I glanced at her.
"I won't indulge myself in pretending I have the right to know about what happened but," She cocked her head into her hand, almost nuzzling it. "Are you alright?" I saw a flash of the real Setsuna behind soft eyes. I knew, just by looking at her, that she was touched by my question. Just how many times had someone asked this simple question to her? What kind of life did she led before coming to Mahora? So many questions surrounded this mysterious girl.
"You are right." She laced her fingers together. "You can't talk if you don't know me." Her eyes turned mischievous and her smiled widened. "It's about time we got to know each other on a deeper level. Will you have lunch with me?" The first thing you should know about Setsuna-san is, her eyes have certain persuasiveness. The moment you look into them you know you have been caught in her web.
"Alright."
How is it that all my opinions of her crumbled in sixty seconds?
Lunch with Setsuna was mind-changing. She took me to a nearby restaurant that not many knew about, so we had our fair share of privacy. In another time I would have considered it a dump, compared to the lush and plush places I was accustomed to. But, at Setsuna's side, I learned to let loose and enjoy. It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.
To my utter embarrassment, Setsuna ordered two cheese burgers. She laughed out loud when I told her I had never eaten such dish in my life. I even asked -God, I was such a fool back then- if she could tell me where I could get a fork and a knife.
The experience itself was... different. I had been taught that ladies didn't eat fast and their mouths barely opened, so I was forced to cut very small pieces before chewing. A hamburger, however, didn't allow that. I swear the girl had the time of her life watching me struggle against the piece of meat and bread in my hands. The first bite I gave was tentative and my hands were too loose, so half the ingredients almost flew out of the burger. I reordered them, and the second bite must have been too strong because I felt the ketchup sliding under my fingernails as I clawed at the bread.
It wasn't until the third bite that, where I got the wrong hold and the cheese smeared my nose, that Setsuna grabbed a toothpick and stuck it in the middle of my meal. Problem solved.
"You could have done that from the beginning," I mumbled before I started munching on my, and I had to admit it was pretty good, cheese burger. Setsuna smirked before sinking her sharp teeth on her own meal.
"Where is the fun in that?" She asked halfway through her hamburger. It took me a few seconds to understand it was her delayed response.
"I don't know. Why make me look like a fool?" Setsuna smiled as she cleaned her hands with a dispensable napkin. The tissue took a red and yellow tint and I watched, half in horror and half in fascination, as she dipped a French frie on the mix.
"Because I like the puzzled and embarrassed expressions you make. I like knowing that you are not the rich brat some think you are. I like seeing the real Ayaka Yukihiro." I was stunned by her honest response. So stunned that I didn't notice her stealing half my fries as I stared dumbfounded at her.
"Hey!" I snatched a frie from her fingers as she smiled widely at me.
"Are you sure you know how to hold one of those?" I blushed at her teasing before popping it in my mouth. She chuckled and shook her head in amusement. It was then that I noticed her posture. She sat straight and her legs were crossed in the right angle, one leg dangling over the other, showing the right amount of skin. Her eyes were full of emotion and yet yielded no thought. It was the standard sitting position in casual aristocracy meetings. No common person should ever know about it. She seemed to notice my trail of thoughts and smiled.
"Konoka's mother was a kind woman. She took me in and treated me as a daughter. Naturally, my education included everything a proper lady should know- Ah." She took in my perplexed face. "Maybe we should skip classes and take this elsewhere?" She offered me a hand. I smiled at the simplicity of the gesture, at her easiness. Being with Setsuna had turned out to be a refreshing experience.
"Let's just stay here and have a cup of something?" She nodded her head, seemingly pleased with my answer. She ordered two cups of tea. It didn't surprise me that she knew of my tastes. I had the same beverage every day at lunch and it was common knowledge. What did surprise me was that she ordered the most refined tea in the menu for me. Most people usually ordered a cup of coffee or plain tea when they took me on a d- No, I couldn't afford thinking like that. It wasn't a welcomed trail of thought at the moment.
The school bell rang, and Setsuna and I shared a naughty smile. I had to admit, skipping Negi-sensei's monologues was a completely new yet not uninvited path. It felt good to be the 'bad' girl for once. It felt even better to not give a damn about consequences and have someone to share the experience with. Setsuna was more than a suitable partner for the occasion, I had learned.
We talked for three whole hours. About anything and everything we could. She was charming, complex yet simple, and cultured. I was surprised at her vast knowledge of pretty much everything. She did have a weak spot for martial arts, though. The way her nose twitched whenever she spoke about her passion was nothing short of endearing.
Soon, we noticed that more and more people entered the secluded place, which only meant that dinner time was on us. I wanted to propose staying for that dish too, but Setsuna was already picking our stuff and handing me my coat from the hangers.
Our outing ended too soon for my liking, even though we had been chatting for an insane amount of time, considering we barely knew each other until that day.
We shared a brief, awkward shake of hands before going on separate ways. Setsuna promised another outing, and I found myself hoping it would be more than a friends casual outing, because at that point it was undeniable that I was starting to like her more than I should have.
It was exactly a month later when I learned the truth about Setsuna's odd relationship with Konoka. She brought it up herself during one of our meetings at that secluded place around Mahora. It had become our special place.
Konoka and Setsuna had a short, bittersweet romance that crashed long after both parties realised their lack of feelings for the other. Setsuna had this crush on the Konoe for a while, and it seemed mutual during the first stages of their secret rendezvous. Unfortunately, someone else caught the brunette's attention and it was Setsuna's misfortune to catch them together in the bed she and Konoka usually shared. Konoka never noticed Setsuna's presence, nor did the other girl, whose name Setsuna refused to give. I had an inkling it was someone from our class, but refused to comment on it.
The day I saw Setsuna with Konoka was the last day of their relationship. Setsuna, in a final gesture of friendship, swapped her test for Konoka's. Apparently, the dizzy brunette had been too diverted to study. Setsuna then made some... adjustments to her test -originally Konoka's- so that she could get a decent mark. Konoka got a B plus for Setsuna's effort, and my friend barely passed. I found this extremely unfair, and the only reason I didn't take the issue to someone else was because I would have been disrespecting Setsuna's decision.
"So that's why I haven't seen you two speak lately," I concluded. Across me, Setsuna sat in a perfectly mannered position. She nodded, seemingly unaffected by what she had related. As if being cheated on hadn't hurt her at all.
I decided to prove my luck, "Don't you feel anger? Sadness? She did betray you." The clank of her cup touching the plate told me she had finished with her coffee. She sighed and looked at me with tired, deep eyes. I felt like my soul was nude whenever she gave me that look.
"Do you remember what I told her before I walked away?" The gears in my head worked through the memory. Yes, I did remember.
"You can't cheat on someone who doesn't love you to begin with."
Setsuna confirmed, "Indeed." She smiled at me with that disarming charm. "I was only infatuated. Konoka is a very pretty girl, and she has a certain innocence that makes her look like an angel. She holds no dark feelings, but is quite capable of committing dishonest acts, just like any of you." The 'you' puzzled me. She seemed to catch on my confusion and smiled sadly.
"Tell me, Ayaka, how much do you know about Negi-sensei's," She hesitated for a brief second and gave me a pointed look.
"You mean that he is special, right?" She nodded. I had known about it for quite a while now, unbeknownst to even himself.
"Right. I figured you knew already. You're too smart for your own good, Ayaka." I wasn't sure if that was a praise or a light-hearted warning. I took it as both.
"I'll cut to the chase. Negi-sensei is a mage, so is Konoka. I, however, am an entirely different thing." I wasn't doing a good job at hiding my surprise. I did suspect Konoka, but Setsuna- she looked pretty common, eccentricities aside.
"I am a demon." There. Right there I felt a moment between us. I knew everything rested on my shoulders from then on. Depending on my answer, our slowly-building relationship would either proceed or crumble. But how was I supposed to react to her confession? How is anyone supposed to react when someone you cherish tells you this?
When I looked into Setsuna's earnest eyes I knew my answer.
Tentatively reaching to her hands, I grasped them in my own. I noticed how they trembled, then tensed for a second and relaxed into my touch.
"I don't care." And I really didn't.
My eyes flutter open like butterflies' wings. The moonlight shines through the open window and the air is a reminder of the ending Winter upon us. I remember falling asleep in front of the fireplace, reading a book from my vast collection. I must have fallen asleep around the end.
"Good morning," I feel Setsuna's arms sneak around my middle and squeeze me to her front. I snuggle into her warmth and kiss her knuckles.
"You have an abstract view of morning. It is still night." I feel her chuckle behind my nape. Her warm breath sends shivers down my back.
"There's only thirty minutes until sunrise." I hum and play with her slender fingers.
"It is still night," I hear her chuckle louder this time. She knows she is not going to win this argument, I will not allow it. "And what are you doing here at this hour? I thought you had a meeting with Negi?" Her job as a concilliator between different species takes a lot out of her. She was due to return on Monday night. Today is Sunday. Not that I am complaining.
"About that..." She is nervous, I can easily tell. "I may have quitted my job there." All the sleepiness flies out of my body as I sit up straight and look at her in astonishment.
"Why? You love it." She nods lazily and cooes me next to her again. I comply with her wishes and listen carefully to what she has to say.
"I do love it. But I hate it too." She purses her lips and looks at me solemnly. Her hand caresses my cheek, I feel her thumb at the corner of my mouth. "We barely see each other anymore, and it is quite upsetting." My heart skips a beat as I shy away from her touch. "Everything is arranged for me to live here on Earth as a guide to magical beings. I would like to- No, what I am trying to say is," She moistens her lips and nears her face to mine. "Would you, perhaps, spend eternity with me?"
The corner of my lips lift in a small smirk, "I thought you'd never ask."
To think I misjudged the love of my life based on the clothes she used. I was a fool back then. Setsuna surprises me every day with something new; we discover each other with every opportunity and exploit it to the fullest. I never thought I would find someone who completes me as she does. But here we are, and I am not letting go, for as long as she'll have me.
Any incomplete data was left that way for the readers to draw their own conclusions. Setsuna's past, Konoka's lover, their classmates' reactions etc., are perfect examples of this. You are free to think your own hypothesis.