The Right to Bare Fangs

LWAGang at 18YO.
Akko (1st person POV)
Sorta AU, bit OOCness with some additional stuff to Trigger's Magical World.

A/N: This work has been in the making for a long time. Any type of feedback is highly appreciated. I'm also mentioning that I've aged up everyone by 2 years, just in case you didn't catch it in the summary.

As for updates, we'll see how consistent I can go. I'm estimating at a 1 to 2-week interval per chapter.

Oh, shoutout to omaomae/bittertomato for being that constant rock and consult throughout this story so far. Real MVP right there. Thank you so much.

This year.

Finally, all those hours of study and practice isn't going to go to waste. It'll just be another year before I go up that stage, receive my diploma and take my first steps into a career that I've longed for since I was a little kid.

To be the next Shiny Chariot!

It was 2 years back that I've been admitted to the best Magic School in the entire world: Luna Nova Academy. No one expected someone from a non-magical background to be accepted into the Academy but fate was on my side that day. But it wasn't without a price. During the past 2 years I've been studying here, everyone else, from the faculty to the students, made it hard for me to adjust. Constantly reminding me that don't have magic in my blood; even going as far as to point out that I don't have any magical powers—despite that fact that I've proven them wrong again and again.

To set the records straight; I did have magical abilities, just like any regular, ol' witch! But I lost them because of an unlucky accident. I'm slowly gaining it back through hard work and dedication. Although I'm still not as strong and as great as Shiny Chariot herself, I'm slowly getting there.

And it's this year that I'm going to make sure that I graduate. It's the first step I need to start my journey in inspiring people around the globe with my magic.

Exactly like her.

Keeping up with the lessons at school is pretty tough, even though Shiny Chariot herself is the one that's supporting me along the way. Trying to get my grades up was definitely not an easy battle but that won't stop me. And two years of non-stop studying and dedicating so much time in becoming a better witch, I was starting to fall behind. My technique was starting to become sloppy and it took more time to master spells and enchantments compared to before.

And as much as I loved magic, all of that time was catching up to me. Chariot did mention something about burning out but I didn't want to believe her at first.

I rushed over to her room after my finals that day I needed to tell her that I wasn't going home. Deciding to take an internship of some sort under her during the break would help me become great just like her. Not only that, I'm sure that it's my one way ticket out of this slump. I expected to be welcomed with that idea, she was against it.

"You've been working hard, Akko. Your progress is amazing but you have to make sure to wind down once in a while," she said to me after I've told her of my plans over the summer.

I laughed it off at first, not understanding why she was so against it. "But you didn't really take a break! And I really want to be like you. Taking a break now would set me back so much! I've got a lot to catch up on!"

She placed her hand on my head, ruffling my hair as she closed her eyes. "I understand where you're coming from but it wouldn't. Take it from me, focus on the other important things in your life. Magic's always going to be here," she paused, smiling at me gently. "I'm always going to be here."

I gave her a small smile as a reply. She's quick to understand me, interrupting me as I was about to comment about the benefits of not leaving school.

"Don't worry Akko. You're not missing out on progress and you're still on your way to become an amazing witch. We'll pick up exactly where we left off. Now, go have fun! It's the summer anyway!"

I guess anyone could say that I'm crazy, not wanting to take a break from school or magic. And even if it was Shiny Chariot herself that told me that winding down would be the perfect solution to burning out, I wasn't excited. My chest dropped the last bell of the school year rang. Luna Nova was a place that I didn't want to leave, especially since there wasn't going to be magic back home.

But if Chariot said I needed a break, I guess I should take one.

She was absolutely right.

That knock on my front door after a long flight from West Britain was relieving. I couldn't believe that not seeing my parents for another year would still make me miss them just as much as the year before. I missed my mom's cooking. I missed my dad's driving. And, I hate to say it but, I really missed their bickering.

They didn't waste any time. Knowing that I was only with them for a few months made them plan the entire vacation without even consulting me—not that I minded, I wouldn't have helped them with anything. We went around Japan, visited some relatives on the other side of the city and some did tourist-y things at tourist locations. We did go on trips to the amusement parks, went shopping, which was my Okaa-sans' favorite pastime, and food trips, which was my Otou-san's favorite pastime. We did have little rest days in between stops and during those little breaks, I'd drop a call to a few of my friends.

Summer went by quick because of the full schedule. Before I knew it, I only had a few days left of my summer vacation.

They've exhausted all of their vacation leaves on me, but it still wasn't enough to cover for my entire summer break. As much as they did want to spend more time, they still had to go back to work. So, for the last few days of my summer vacation, I get to spend it with my Obaa-san in the outskirts of Hokkaido.

I know it's been ages since I've last seen her. She always asked me to drop by before but I never got the chance. I never expected to really go since Okaa-san and Obaa-san were always at each other's throats even over the smallest things like laundry, cleaning and who cooks better.

So naturally, the whole trip was going to be a bummer. But then with my Okaa-san's work, I got to stay at my Obaa-san's house alone. My parents dropped me off on a Sunday. They did want to stay but they had work and couldn't afford to miss another day of it.

With a vacation that was filled with hopping from one place to another, staying with my Obaa-san was the relaxing part of the summer. All that travelling around Japan was exhausting and spending the last few days out on the countryside before I headed out back to the Academy was the downtime I needed.

Maybe it's because I haven't visited her in the longest, but Obaa-san's house looked and felt different. It was cleaner, the air was cool despite her house being located on the outskirts of Hokkaido and the stream right outside her house sparkled like fresh spring water. Waking up to the birds singing in her front yard was amazing, and pairing that up with the view of the mountainside when the sun rises, all of it was truly breathtaking. Not only that, the smell of freshly grilled fish got my tummy rumbling so loudly in the morning that most of the time it's my stomach waking me from my sleep.

Time always seemed to pass a little slower out here than in the city. What seemed like a day's worth of chores would always end at around 3PM. Obaa-san would retreat to her room at this time to take her little nap, waking up only roughly an hour before she starts to cook dinner.

It's during these slow hours where even the dullest thing to do was exciting.

So the day before I was supposed to go to the airport, I combed through my entire luggage, rearranging clothes and double checking all of my school stuff just to make sure that I won't leave anything. My books, my uniform, my crystal ball (which I wrapped carefully with my clothes) and my Shiny Chariot Cards; all tucked away in the plastic pages of my album.

I nearly closed my luggage when I felt something roll towards the side of my leg.

My wand.

I held it, swiveling it around a bit as I brought it closer to my chest. I haven't used it in a month and it still felt familiar to touch. Tracing its handle, my fingers ran over a scratch near the base of it. I never knew it was there. But remembering the countless times I've thrown, dropped, smacked or hit it, it doesn't seem impossible that it's got a few scratches. I tapped its side, sliding out the battery and held it in my other hand.

That's weird; it had juice. And it was charged up to full. I don't recall any Leylines traversing across the places we traveled to, remembering 1st year general magic, there are no major Leylines that traversed across Japan. I'm pretty sure I haven't felt or seen the presence of a Sorcerer's Stone nearby.

After immediately returning the battery at the base of the wand, I casted an illumination spell to see if I can get the power down a bit. Then, I casted another light bending spell, this time making the little particles sparkle and explode like a little firework display. Checking again, the battery didn't drain. Not even a percent.

Last one. Maybe these spells didn't take enough magic power to drain my reserve. Time to use something a bit more powerful than those little light bending tricks.

Turning into a mouse, a monkey or an elephant would've been too easy since I've been doing it before. And since there's some magic around, turning into some other animal would've been more of a challenge. Checking out the magic in the area at the same time practicing my metamorphosis magic was like hitting two birds with one stone.

So choosing an animal that I wasn't used to was a bit complicated. It had to be something a bit more intimidating, a bit scarier I guess. Something I've never transformed into before.

"Metamophei Faciesse!" I screamed. As the light magic surrounded me, I tried to envision myself as the animal I chose—keen senses, powerful jaws, long legs, sharp canines and jet black fur. Once the smoke cleared, the side table was much smaller than what it was. The wooden floor was soft beneath my paws. I tapped it lightly, hoping that finally, after more than a year's worth of practice, I'd finally perfected metamorphosis magic.

My tail wagged along to the bit of excitement running through me. Maybe that's what I needed; some sort of break from all that practice to finally get the magic right. The fur on my leg was pitch black and the nails of my paw ran thick. I ran my tongue across my teeth, lingering on the two sharp canines.

This time, I was sure I've gotten this right.

I turned around to see myself in the mirror set on the corner of my room.

Crap. I still couldn't do it perfectly.

The red eyes of my reflection stared back at me with the same hint of disappointment that my whimper carried. I wasn't able to get rid of my hairstyle.

I sighed. Even if I was able to transform into a wolf, my half pony didn't go away. No one's going to be frightened even if I bared my fangs or howled. They'd probably be too busy laughing at my head.

I huffed, ready to change back but the sound of the door sliding open caught my attention. I came face to face with my Obaa-san, face pale, eyes wide behind her glasses as she pointed a trembling finger towards me.

"Ookami…" She was able to mumble under her breath before she passed out. She dropped to the floor, her head thudding against it.

"Obaa-san!" I panicked, transforming myself back and ran to her side. Oh no!

Her breath was still stable, but I'm sure she hit her head rather hard. I checked the back of her skull, feeling a big bump forming near the top of it.

White magic was the only way out of this situation but I never had the talent for it. I should call Diana, hoping that she was already up at this hour. My clothes flew everywhere as I rummaged through my luggage to get my crystal ball. It was wrapped in a thick jacket, which I threw to the side before I powered it up. Once the crystal glowed lightly, I dialed the only person's number that I knew that would, and could, help me in this situation.

"C'mon, pick up." My leg was shaking, my fingers were tapping away on my thigh. Waiting for Diana to pick up was nerve-racking. The line kept ringing on and on. I was on the verge of giving up at the seventh ring. In the middle of the eight ring, the sound of her voice on the other end washed away every bit of worry in me.

"Hell—"

"Diana!" I screamed, holding the ball closer. Once the connection stabilized, her face was clearer. Judging by the look she had on, she wasn't amused one bit.

"Are you in school already?"

I flinched. Diana didn't have to sound that angry.

I checked my time, it was 5:47PM. Yikes, no wonder she was mad. It's probably around 8AM over there. Although she always woke up early, her mornings were always jam-packed with things to be done. I should've called someone closer to my time zone, like Sucy. But then, she would've probably be more angry than helpful if I dropped her a line. "It's an emergenc—"

"Are you in trouble?"

"I—" Why would she even assume that I'm in any sort of trouble? It's not like I planned any of this. "I'm not in trouble!"

"Excuse me for a moment." She disappeared from the crystal ball and all I could see was a bookshelf and the back of the office chair she was sitting on. I could hear her calling out to Anna, Diana's voice pretty distant. I couldn't make out her specific words but hearing the words fish, biscuits and tea, I figured she was leaving Anna in charge of the kitchen or the market.

She came back and sat back down on the chair. Before she focused on her own crystal ball, she straightened out her shirt and flipped her hair backwards. "I apologize for the interruption; there are errands I had to settle. Now, what is your reason for calling?"

"I turned myself into a wolf."

She blinked. Then blinked again before narrowing her eyes at me. "You turned yourself into a wolf…" She said as slow as possible.

"At my grandmother's house."

"…at your grandmother's house?" she said slowly as she leaned in, propping herself up on her elbow.

Okay, now she was just repeating everything I said and I was getting flustered with it. "No, Diana! Let me explain." I furrowed my brow, trying to get my thoughts together before I started to tell her the events that just happened.

"So, I'm in my Obaa-san's house…" She cocked her head. Great, it's not like I didn't tell her that before. Anyway, it was nice of her to let me continue. "And I transformed into a wolf."

If this were somebody else, they would've definitely groaned, or laughed, since I wasn't making any sense.

But this was Diana. She was still waiting on me to continue with my tale. Good thing she wasn't impatient like me; I would've ended the call minutes ago.

I nodded. "I've nearly perfected metamorphosis magic." I sounded remorseful, not even excited that I was finally doing the spell with at least 90 percent proficiency. "And she walked in on me when I was a wolf."

There was this silence between us. I didn't want to talk because of the sinking feeling in my gut. Diana inhaled sharply, her eyes wide as she finally figured out the reason behind my frantic, panicked call to her out of nowhere.

"Is your grandmother alright?"

Obviously, she wasn't.

I gripped the crystal ball tighter, resisting the urge to throw it as hard as I could against something. My tongue already picking up this slight taste of blood from my frustration. I didn't know what to do.

"Who is that young lady you're talking too?" came a voice from behind me as I was about to answer her.

I look back to see my Obaa-san standing over me, squinting at the crystal ball I had tucked between my legs.

"Obaa-san!" I shot up, the crystal ball hitting the hardwood floor with a loud clunk. I hugged her tight, seeing that she's okay. However, the bump on the back of her head was still there. "Are you okay? Do you feel dizzy? Does your head ache?"

"I am fine, I did have the weirdest dream though. I was about to call you for dinner, but when I walked into your room, you weren't there." She shrugged her shoulders and leaned in to whisper, "There was an Ookami right in your room, staring back at me."

I smiled at her as I wiped the tears from the side of my eyes. "I'm really glad you're okay, Obaa-san. And that wasn't a dream; that was me. I was practicing something for school. Turns out, it was a bad decision. I should've warned you first."

She laughed at me. Knowing her, she was laughing at my mistake. If this were any other person, I would've been pissed. But the important thing is that she's okay. "No wonder that felt all too real. You are forgiven, Atsuko. Accidents happen. This wasn't something you intended. Besides, you are a good child." She patted my shoulder, then started to walk towards the dining room. "Now, dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Freshen up and come to the table. It's not nice to keep the food waiting."

"Akko!" I heard a small, faint cry.

Oh no! I nearly forgot about Diana!

I scrambled to the floor, looking at all directions, checking out where the ball might've rolled over. There was this weird crease in the futon that looked like a ball so I pulled it up. The crystal ball was there, safe and unscratched.

"Ehh , sorry Diana," I laughed nervously as I tried to hide my shame. I took it in my hands, this time placing it on top of my clothes pile on my luggage. "I was going to ask you to help me out with some white magic since my Obaa-san knocked out."

"Nothing seems to be wrong with your grandmother. Do you still need any assistance?"

I nodded. "She hit her head on the ground when she fell and now she has this really huge bump. That's got me worried now," I whimpered.

"Just a moment." She reached for something on her right. It was a little fuzzy but I thought I saw the corner of a book. I assumed right once I heard the sound of pages flipping.

It took her a while to answer, but I was willing to wait. She pursed her lips after a few moments of silence. "Try casting this spell on her. Focus your magic on the area of her bruise and chant ' Repar vasaguinos '."

It sounded unfamiliar, I doubt I'll be able to nail the pronunciation correctly the first time. "Repara Vasajinosu?" I said, sounding a bit too confident. The crease on Diana's forehead definitely told me that I didn't get it right. The words were too foreign, and its composition was too hard to follow.

"Repeat after me. Be conscious with your stresses," She looked at me, blue eyes boring straight into my own. "Repar."

"Repar," I repeated.

Then she continued the rest of it slower, enunciating each syllable. "Va-sa-gu-wee-nos."

"Va sa guinos." It sounded alike to my ear. And judging by Diana's grin, I got it right.

"You pronounced the syllables correctly but you require a minor adjustment. The stress is on the fourth syllable, Akko. You won't be able to cast anything if you say it like that," she corrected me. "Now, repeat after me. Vasaguinos."

"Vasaguinos." This time I'm sure it's right.

"Sounds correct," she said. Great! I got it!

"Repar Vasaguinos," I repeated, trying to get the words to stick. Mentally prepping myself for when I cast white magic on my Obaa-san's bruise.

She closed the book in front of her then gave me a small grin. "There, you got it right. Now, be careful in your execution and make sure to focus on the area of the bruise. "

My nod was a bit too ecstatic as I hugged the crystal ball as if it were Diana herself. She's always available to help me out when I'm in a pinch. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. I'll see you in school in two days. The call time is at 8AM so don't be late." She was about to end the call, but hesitated for a bit. "You know the consequences of being tardy," she added.

"Yep Diana! I won't be late! I think..." I said a bit too excited, sort of promising her that a repeat of the previous years would no longer happen. Besides, it's just another day that I'll have to endure until I'm finally back at campus. Back to where my friends are, back to where Chariot teaches and more importantly, back to where magic lives.

Translations:

Okaa-san - Mother
Otou-san - Father
Ooba-san - Grandmother
Ookami - Wolf