The corner had become my source of comfort for the past few days. This was a prison cell and I was the criminal. Maka said they would be silly to not let me in, but I think she was just trying to keep me from panicking.
I realized they needed to take time to make this decision, due to all the trouble I've caused, but it's becoming more nerve-wracking as the days come and go. I'm worried that they won't let me in and I'll have to go back to Medusa. And worst of all, I'll never see my new friend again.
I've never been to school. I'm a bit nervous about what will happen if I do get in. It is certain there will be a lot of people and I don't know how to deal with crowds. I hope Maka will stay by my side. But she has her weapon partner and she can't always be with me.
I draw my knees closer to my body and bury my head in the crook between my legs and body. I begin to tremble and the thought of my position sent my brain into panic-mode. Was it easier before with Medusa? Surely not, but my current situation has me wondering if I would be better off crawling back to her.
A knock at the door causes all of my thoughts to scurry away, leaving my mind a blank slate.
"Lord Death has decided to give you a trial day at the academy to see how you manage," a voice comes through the door. A whole new fear settles in me when I recognize the voice. It belongs to that zombie man and I have no idea how to handle zombies.
When the zombie man leaves, the colorful thoughts of me joining the academy and being with Maka flow in and I quietly rejoice in my corner. Tomorrow, I'll be a student at the academy.
"Crona?" I hear Maka's voice call out.
"Over here," I say, surprised at how loud my voice sounds compared to the relenting hours of silence.
Maka let's out a noise of surprise. "What are you doing over there?"
I smile. "I feel better in the corner."
"Well, you look like someone has given you a timeout. C'mon, let me help you up," Maka offers, holding a hand out to me. I take her hand and she lifts me off the ground.
A woman with an eye patch and blonde hair comes in and I jump out of surprise.
"Hello Crona, my name is Marie. I'm new here as well; I'm going to be a teacher here. We can help each other out." Marie smiles sweetly and I can't help but offer a smile back.
The zombie man pops his head in and I let out a little shriek and hurry back to my corner. He says something to Marie but I don't want to listen and focus on the idea of going to school with Maka.
When Marie kicks the zombie man—whom Maka calls Sid—out, we head out into the bright sunlight to begin my trial day. The crowds make me nervous, and I cower from them so much that Maka has to drag me around most of the day.
We come out into a courtyard where the sun is shining especially bright. I hide behind the stone railing, but Maka eventually convinces me to stand up.
The roofs of the houses below look very pretty, and the sun gives the sand surrounding Death City a sparkling glow. I grimace.
"It's so...bright," I force out. Maka and Marie look at each other before bursting into laughter. I panic and try to get them to calm down, and that's when I hear it. The melodious sounds of a well-played violin.
"What's that?" I mutter, wandering in the direction of the tunes. I follow the music, not really focusing on where I am or the people around me. The music is almost hypnotic and I'm easily drawn to it.
I soon find myself watching a beautiful girl dancing on a stage, a singing violin in her hands. She twirls and sways, as if the music controls her muscles. Her hair is on fire, dancing and swaying along with the music. It bounces around her shoulders, and with every twirl it would blur into a sea of red.
She is fascinating. The music she's playing seems to tell a story, and I sit down to try and understand the tale. It feels lonely and different, and I can already relate to her. She didn't need to speak to tell me how estranged she feels. But before I can identify her to a lonely place, the tune picks up into a more cheerful sound. It tells me that she enjoys being apart from others; it means she can ignore the world around her and focus on the more important things. This I can't relate to, and I feel confused.
Why wouldn't she want to be a part of society? I'd give anything to have the confidence to be part of it. Before my thoughts are finished, another person comes in and the girl stops playing instantly.
"Wait, don't stop!" I cry out, but the girl is already putting the violin away.
She looks at me and I realize it's the first time I've seen her eyes. They are a vibrant green, glowing with pride. She stands to face me and thanks me with a bow. The girl who came in walks onto the stage and holds the violinist's hand for a few seconds, then comes back off the stage towards me.
"Hi, I'm Anna," she smiles. "Merida wants to tell you that she was very honored by your presence, but we need to hurry off to class. We apologize for the abrupt finish."
I frown at Anna. "Couldn't she just tell me that herself?"
Anna's smile falters and falls. "You don't know?"
"Know what?" I question. I'm not happy that she disturbed Merida's playing.
Before Anna can answer, Merida runs up and grabs her hand. A look of confusion crosses Anna's face, and then one of understanding.
"I'm very sorry, I didn't realize you are the trial student. I hope I wasn't rude."
I'm confused by the sudden change in attitude. Anna lets go of Merida's hand and reaches out to shake mine. "I'd like to welcome you to our school," she smiles sweetly.
I reach out and touch her hand. Merida also reaches out for a shake, but when I touch her hand I get a strong shock and I pull my hand back immediately.
The second I pull away, Merida's face turns to one of panic. She grabs Anna's hand and in an instant Anna begins pouring out apologies.
"Oh gosh, are you alright? I'm very sorry, she always has a hard time meeting others, we're both really sorry. Is your hand alright?"
I nod, looking at my hand. It's slightly red, but it's fine otherwise. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"That's good. I'm very sorry, but we need to hurry to class. I'll explain later, it was nice meeting you!" Anna calls, pulling Merida out of the room.
I remain unmoving, thinking of my encounter with Merida. So beautiful, but so quiet. I wish I could hear her voice. I'm sure it sounds like an angel's.
"Crona, we've been looking everywhere for you!" I hear Maka call. I turn and see her and Marie running towards me.
"I'm sorry," I mutter.
Maka chuckles. "It's okay, silly. C'mon, we're going to the Czech Republic!"
I nod, eager to get my mind off the beautiful girl with the fiery hair.
I sit down next to Maka as the school day begins. My trial day was successful, so now I get to be enrolled in classes. The idea of the crowds still scares me to death, but I'm certain I can find peace eventually.
I listen to the others chatting, not really focusing on the conversation. I pull out a notebook and pencil and prepare the first page for notes.
I notice the flare of a flame out of the corner of my eye and look up to see Merida walk through the door, holding tight to Anna's hand. I watch them sit next to each other at the front of the class by the door and can't help but feel a twinge of jealousy that she doesn't sit next to me.
I nudge Maka with my elbow and gesture to the two. "Are they together? Like together, together?"
"You mean dating?" Maka raises an eyebrow at me and I feel slightly embarrassed. I nod, and Maka smiles.
"No, they're not dating. Anna is Merida's weapon partner," she says, watching the two.
"Then why do they always hold hands?" I ask, noticing how Merida grabs Anna's hand.
"Merida is mute," Maka whispers, as though it's taboo to say it out loud. "She and Anna communicate through their soul wavelengths."
My eyes widen and I look to them again. To imagine that these two girls, sitting in complete silence, could be having an intense conversation about anything was astounding to me. I find it fascinating and very intimate that Merida could only speak with others through her soul wavelength. Something occurs to me as that thought runs through my head.
"Does that mean she can recognize soul wavelengths?" I ask Maka.
Maka nods. "She can tell a familiar soul from an unfamiliar one, and she can sense when they're near. Her wavelength is very powerful, though she doesn't have the skill of projecting her wavelength. It definitely helps that they don't communicate out loud because they can't reveal their plans for attack to the enemy. Black Star wants to beat her someday."
I look at Merida again and watch her grab Anna's hand constantly. She has a very petite body; she's shorter than Anna. To imagine this small meister beating Black Star, who's scary enough as it is, is incredible.
"I'd like to challenge her," I whisper to Maka as Ms. Marie walks into the room.
"Well, she definitely doesn't like to back down from a fight," Maka smiles. "It'll be fun to see your first battle at the DWMA."
"Just walk up to her and challenge her," Maka advises.
"But what if she doesn't want to. I'm not very comfortable doing this." Why did I decide to challenge her? If I win, she'll hate me. If I lose, she'll think I'm weak. Now Maka wants me to fight her and I don't think I can do it.
"Maka, I don't want to," I mumble, but Maka continues pushing me.
"I know you have a thing for her, Crona. You're so easy to read. She'll be glad you took the initiative, Anna told me about how nervous Merida gets about you since you met. This would be a great way to get to know each other."
"She really gets nervous about me?" I ask, dumbfounded.
"Yes! Now go!"
An especially rough shove sends me towards Merida, who senses my presence and turns to smile at me. I smile back, my face heating up, and I open my mouth to speak.
"I want...um...would you fight me?" I force out, her captivating green eyes griping my attention and my words.
She nods, smiling brightly, and grabs hold of Anna. Anna pauses and looks around. "Do you have a teacher to observe?" she asks.
"Uh," I stop. A teacher?
"She's right here!" Maka calls from the side, and Ms. Marie appears, breathing heavily as though she ran.
Anna and Merida nod to each other, gripping the other's hand tightly. Anna transforms into a whip and Merida cracks the whip menacingly, and I feel surprised by her weapon choice.
"A whip? What weak game, we've got this one in the bag, Crona," Ragnarok teases, popping out from between my shoulder blades.
"Don't be rude, Ragnarok. Just transform already," I whisper irritably, embarrassed that he would say that. I don't want Merida to hate me.
Ragnarok complies, sensing my feelings, and I get into a stance that I hope is at least slightly intimidating.
"Begin!" Ms. Marie cries, and Merida begins to twirl, her hair dancing like a fire around her head. I grip Ragnarok tightly and prepare a stance in case I need to jump out of the way.
Merida soon brings the whip down and I leap out of the way, but Merida flicks her wrist simply and the whip catches me anyway. I cry out in surprise, and run quickly towards her side. Before she could react, I jab her with Ragnarok's hilt and knock her back.
She easily recovers, almost like it's a dance, and sends a counterattack my way. I dodge, and this time I block her secondary attack with my blade. However, she hurries beside me and tackles me to the ground. She straddles my hips, and my face seems to catch on fire.
I flop her off of me in an involuntary attempt to separate our bodies. The physical contact sends me into a frenzy and I can't hold to my thoughts as they speed through my head. I can see Merida looking confused but preparing another attack, but at the moment I am unable to connect the dots. She swings her whip and I single thought that screams "Move!" rushes through my head, but I'm not quick enough and she catches me on the side.
I stumble but catch myself. The pain knocks me back into reality, and I can feel my blood harden where she hit me. I run at her, dodging the whip as Merida twirls, trying to hit me. Before she can stop me, I tackle her to the ground, pinning her shoulders down.
We stare into each other's eyes for what feels like hours. Her green orbs shine, the fire of the fight still glowing strong. But they soften, and her face relaxes into a sweet smile. She raises a hand, and I tense at the movement, but she simply waves at Ms. Marie, and the fight is ended.
I lift myself off Merida in surprise, and offer a hand to help her up, but Anna transforms and helps her instead. I frown, but let Ragnarok transform as well.
"That was a really good fight," Anna smiles, holding out a hand to shake mine.
I gingerly take it, holding her hand lightly by the fingers, and nod.
Anna's smile grows. "That's a really cool trick you can do with your sword. How do you do that?"
My mind goes into a panic. What am I supposed to say?
Before I can open my mouth, Maka jumps to my side, grinning at me. "Crona's sword is special. Only he can do what he does with it. It's a secret," she says cryptically, winking at me.
"That's really cool," Anna says, and Merida nods in agreement.
My face heats up at the complement and I open and close my mouth several times before I can squeeze out a small, "Thank you." Merida smiles happily at me, and my face gets impossibly hotter.
"C'mon Crona, let's get to class," Maka laughs, noticing how uncomfortable I am. "Thank you very much, it was a great fight."
"Thank you," I mutter as she drags me away. I feel awful for not speaking, but her smile sent every thought out of my head.
We slip into our seats, where Kid is chatting happily about a party at his house. "We can celebrate Crona's first fight at the Academy," he adds, and I blush again.
"Let's invite Merida and Anna too," Maka suggests, and I stare at her in horror.
"Maka, please…" I stutter, and she looks at me, a glint of impishness flashing through her eyes.
"It'll give you a chance to get to know her better. And, you'll see her in a dress," Maka adds mischievously, which sends me into an hour of silence.
The thought of seeing Merida in a dress makes me dizzy and it's hard to focus on taking notes. I'd have to wear something nice. Perhaps Maka can take me out to get something.
After class, Kid invites several people, including Merida and Anna, to his party, while Maka invites me to go out shopping for nice clothes. I agree, glad that she suggested it. We shop around for several hours, and I find a nice white dress suit while Maka finds a nice blue dress. She brings me to her home to change for the party, and shows me around the place.
Eventually her weapon partner Soul comes home to change for the party. "Hey Crona," he smiles when he finds Maka and me in the living room. "Would you like some dinner?"
"Sure," I smile.
"Just a small one, Soul. Kid will probably have food at the party," Maka adds.
"Kay, I'll get to it," Soul agrees, heading into the kitchen.
We have a small meal, consisting of grilled sandwiches and chips, before we get ready to leave. Soul offers me a bottle of a smelly liquid that I'm supposed to spray on myself, but I decline. I wait for them by the door, and when they're finished, we head out.
The walk to Kid's house goes by quickly, and the anticipation of seeing Merida fuels my desire to go. However, once we get there, I can't find her anywhere. My hopes immediately drop and a wave of sadness flows over me, but the feeling is short-lived once Black Star shows up.
"Hey guys!" he screams, and I resist the urge to cover my ears. "Where's the food?"
"Over there," Kid offers nonchalantly. Black Star runs off without so much as a goodbye straight to the food table, leaving us in peace.
"Congratulations on your first victory, Crona," Tsubaki complements. "Black Star was really jealous that you managed to beat Merida. The fight hardly lasted five minutes."
"Yeah," I mumble, my cheeks feeling a little hot at the thought of Merida.
"I wonder if she can make it. It would be very nice to see her," Tsubaki thinks out loud, echoing my own thoughts.
The others look at me, apparently expecting a response from me. I hurry to think of a reply. "Uh, yes, I think so too. Um, please excuse me, I'm going to get something to eat," I force out, hurrying away from the conversation. I don't want to think of Merida right now or I won't be able to speak.
Just as I finish putting together a plate for myself, the door opens and Anna and Merida join the party. It takes all of my willpower to not drop the plate I'm holding. Before she can spot me, I hurry over to stand with Maka, who smiles at me encouragingly.
I watch as Anna and Merida go around greeting friends. Anna is doing the talking, but Merida is smiling and waving to everyone they greet. Anna is wearing a sweater and simple black pants, but Merida is wearing a pretty dark blue dress that shows off her figure nicely on top, and then flares out at the bottom. The skirt goes to her knees and has a delicate nighttime sky design. I feel a heat creep up my neck as I admire her dress, and I secretly wish that the two make their way over to us.
As though my wish is granted, they find their way to our group and greet us. My face heats up as Merida walks up to me and I smile softly and utter a tiny, "Hi."
Merida smiles in response, waving to me. I smile and realize perhaps it might be easier for me to interact with her since she can't speak.
"I like your dress. It's very pretty," I complement, and Merida makes a motion that I believe is thanks. I try to think of something else to say, and my mouth decides to do the talking before I can decide.
"How are you?" I ask, feeling stupid once the words leave my mouth. How is she supposed to respond?
She gives me a thumbs-up and I nod. "That's good."
She points at me. "Oh, I'm alright," I mutter.
She shakes her head to the sides in an understanding way. I feel a little more comfortable now, and try to think of a way to continue the conversation, but nothing comes to mind.
Merida apparently notices my struggle and tugs on Anna's sweater, who nods and puts her hand in Merida's. She waits, and I suppose Merida is telling her something, and then lets go.
"Merida wants to try to talk to you. Here, let's go sit somewhere a little less crowded," Anna tells me.
My face heats up. Merida wants to talk to me? I feel elated at the thought and follow quickly. Anna leads us to a corner with a couch that is far away from other people.
"Go ahead and sit down," Anna instructs, and Merida and I sit on the couch.
"Now Merida needs a way to adjust herself to your soul wavelength. Her wavelength is usually too strong for other people, which is why she shocked you when you first met. She's a very chatty person when you get to know her, so her wavelength is nearly overpowering because she has so much to say."
I nod. "So how is she going to adjust?" I press.
"You need to hold out your hand and try to concentrate your wavelength there. It's okay if you can't, but it may hurt a little more."
"Hurt?"
"Yes. Merida will need to touch you to get a sense of your wavelength, but she will only use the tips of her fingers to make it hurt less. It makes it easier if you can concentrate it in one place."
"Oh, okay," I comply, holding my hand out to Merida.
"It'll sting a little bit at first, but not for long," Anna informs.
Merida carefully reaches out her hand, her fingers poised to brush mine. I focus to try and direct some of my wavelength to my hand, and she quickly brushes the tips of her fingers along my palm. I wince at the sudden shock, but refrain from pulling my hand away. She quickly pulls her hand back and pauses, as though she's deep in thought.
After a few seconds, Merida looks up to Anna and smiles, and Anna nods. "Okay, I'll leave you to it. Have fun, kids."
With that, Anna walks away and leaves me to sit with Merida in silence. Merida holds her hand out to me and I hesitate. What if it didn't work? I apprehensively press my palm to hers and let out of a sigh of relief when a shock doesn't travel through my arm.
"Hi Crona," a voice echoes through my head, and I jump out of surprise. Merida's eyes widen, and a tiny, "Sorry," goes through my head.
"It's okay," I mumble in surprise.
Merida smiles and she laughs in my head. The sound rings out like a choir of angels and my face starts feeling hot again.
"You should try speaking with your mind. I'll be able to hear you, so don't worry."
I look at her confusedly. "Um, okay," I think to myself.
"There you go," she smiles. "I'm going to try and visualize a place where this feels a little more comfortable. Go ahead and close your eyes," she instructs, and I do as she said.
Soon after, the darkness I usually see when I close my eyes erupts into a world of bright colors. I quickly recognize this place as my soul. I remember it from when Maka took my dry world and gave it an ocean. I look out across the water, now bright and teeming with life.
"Hi Crona," a voice says behind me, and I spin around to find Merida in her pretty dress.
"Hi Merida," I mutter awkwardly.
It takes me a second to realize how odd this is, and my eyes get wide. "Are you talking?" I nearly scream in surprise.
"Not really. We're still speaking in our thoughts, but this way it feels a little more comfortable. It makes it seem like we're actually having a normal conversation," Merida smiles, but this time with a little sadness.
I watch her, and then gesture her to come over. "Here, let's sit down."
"Let's have a picnic!" Merida shouts happily, and a blanket and picnic basket settle down beside me.
We both sit on the blanket and Merida pulls over the basket to search through it. She finds a platter of sandwiches and sets them down on the blanket.
I grab a sandwich and take a bite before a thought comes to my mind. "Merida, why are you unable to talk?"
Merida stops mid-bite and looks up at me. She swallows and puts her sandwich down before responding. "My mother abandoned me when I was very young. She left me out on the street and I never saw her again. I was alone for weeks, and when someone eventually took me in, I could not express my thanks. The doctors I visited said it was from the trauma of being abandoned by the only person I knew. I'm not sure if it's true, but I know that I can't remember any of it very well. The doctor said that amnesia might be a side effect of trauma, so I guess I caused that too. I just wish I could remember her."
I watch her sadly. "I'm very sorry," I try to comfort, and she looks at me sweetly.
"It's okay," she smiles warmly. "Being mute means I have an excuse not to talk to people. It makes me happy."
"But why? I'd kill to have the confidence to talk to people."
"Well, that's the thing. I don't have the confidence to talk to people."
I look at her in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah. I only had my mother to talk to, and when she was gone I really didn't know how to talk to others so I just…stopped."
"Wow," I mumble. I ponder for a few seconds before speaking up again. "Do you think you'll ever be able to speak again?"
"I'm not sure, though even if I did I probably wouldn't do it anyway. It's easier to just avoid conversation. It's better to only have a few select people to talk to rather than hundreds that endlessly babble. I like it, it keeps me sane."
I stare at her in amazement. Could someone really have such a view of the world, that even if they could talk they wouldn't? I find it almost inspirational.
Merida lies down on the blanket. "Or that's at least what I thought before I met you," she mumbles into the soft fabric.
That takes me by surprise. "W-what do you mean?" I stumble over my words.
She looks up at me with an almost exasperated look in her eyes. "C'mon, you know what I mean."
She watches me for a minute before sighing and looking up at the sky. "With most people, I can brush past them without blinking an eye. Almost like I have radar for people I don't want to talk to. But you're different. I want to talk to you for hours late into the night, and I want to talk to you about everything without having to grab your hand all the time. I want to talk to you like a normal person. If I could talk again, you'd be the only person I'd talk to."
My mind is reeling by this point. "But why me? I'm nothing special."
"But that's where you're wrong, Crona. I knew you were special from the moment you sat down to listen to my music. No one ever comes to listen to me play."
"Why not? It's beautiful."
"Apparently you're the only one that thinks that. I could tell you were listening to my message. I remember I could almost grasp your soul wavelength that time. That's why I thought I could shake your hand. I thought I'd adjusted, but I guess not. I am really sorry for that."
"It's fine, don't worry. I'd like to hear you play again sometime."
"Really?" Merida asks, looking at me in surprise.
"Of course."
Merida smiles happily. "Thank you."
We enjoy our picnic, learning new things about each other. I learn that Merida's favorite color is blue, and she enjoys music a little too much, and she sometimes makes believe she is a princess that has lost her voice. I tell her a few things about myself, like how I love the color green and how I like corners, and soon we've finished our picnic. We decide to walk along the beach, taking our shoes off and walking through the water. Eventually, however, we realize we need to stop soon.
"The party could be over and they just don't want to be rude. We should probably go," Merida suggests sadly.
I sigh. If only it could last forever. "Merida, I had a lot of fun with you today. I think we're going to be very good friends."
Merida chuckles. "Or perhaps more."
"What does that mean?" I ask, worried that I'm missing a point.
Merida keeps laughing. "You'll find out eventually."
The scene shifts to black and I open my eyes. The party is still going, but there are fewer people.
"Anna is gone," the thought passes through my head, which startles me. I realize Merida and I are still holding hands.
"Perhaps we have a little more time together?" I think hopefully, but Merida shakes her head.
"I wish we could, but perhaps another time."
"Well, perhaps I could walk you home?"
Merida smiles. "That would be awfully nice of you. You don't have to, though."
"I want to."
"Okay," Merida's voice chuckles in my head.
I say goodnight to Maka and the others, and Merida and I leave the party. We walk slowly, as though we were trying to make time pass slower. We chat happily, never letting go of each other's hands. Sooner or later, however, we reach Merida's home and my heart feels heavy.
"Goodnight, Crona. I'll see you tomorrow," Merida sighs.
"Goodnight. Sleep well," I return.
Merida smiles and lets go of my hand. I return the smile, and before I know it she's holding my face between her palms and her lips are touching mine. I freeze, unsure of what to do next. It's a soft kiss, gentler than a whisper, but I feel it and my brain goes numb.
She soon releases me, a mischievous smile on her lips. She grabs my hand a little roughly, and a thought of, "You too," runs through my head. Then she lets go and hurries into her house.
As I'm walking home, I realize what she meant by "Something more" and my face heats up so quickly I fear it may actually be on fire.
"I think I love her," I think to myself, a happy little thought that brings a smile to my lips and carries me all the way home.