Chapter 9
Maka smiled, and nodded. The two students made their way closer and closer to the dim candle light. With each step, the light grew bigger, and an aroma of roses filled the hall. They reached the opening from where the light poured out, and saw a woman crouched over something, next to a full length body mirror.
As she turned, her beautiful features shocked Maka and Soul. Under a black hood that faded to blood red at the sleeves and hems of her cloak revealed a rich and bright ginger head of hair, curls reaching past her chest and down her back. She glared at the meister and weapon with bright blue eyes that lacked empathy and saneness. Her fair and well-kept skin gave her the appearance of a gorgeous young woman, but that image was shattered by her blood lusting grin and glare. Underneath her cloak was a blue and gold silk dress, ending above her bare feet.
"You," Maka growled. Soul changed into his scythe form, and was caught by his meister. "You must be the Witch Cassandra."
"You must be Meister Maka Albarn," the witch's silk voice cooed, sending shivers down Maka's spine. "And Soul Evans, her weapon." Maka could almost feel Soul gorwl at his real name, never wanting to hear it.
"Where's Leiko?" Soul demanded from his weapon form's voice, reflection appearing on his blade. Cassandra laughed at the two, one that reeked of insanity. She stepped aside, and circled around the two, revealing Leiko on the ground, laying in a puddle of her own dark red, almost black, blood.
"You seriously don't know who she is, do you," she asked. "I do, and she does. I know everything that's going to happen here and now, so you two might as well slit your own throats." Cassandra dragged her dark blue painted nails across the wall, leaving scratch marks without even trying.
"And how could you be certain?" Maka asked, backing away to form a plan.
"I am, well was, a witch of Troy. Knowing the whole myth of how Troy burnt to the ground because no one listened to my gift, I moved on. I wanted to help my family save Troy, but my curse being no one trusting my gift of sight, they dug their own graves.
"I could tell you what is going to happen in this cave here, but you just won't listen. I could tell you who your friend here really is. I could tell you what would've happened to you two if Leiko never came here, but that would just be too dangerous to everyone to explain. That is, until you two are on your death bed, which you will, by the way."
"I heard you were insane," Soul said, almost taunting her. Cassandra glared at the two, a red mist coming from her mad soul. Pitch black dove wings, tips drenched in blood, erupted from her back, which looked like a perfect manifestation of her soul wavelength.
"I am not insane!" Cassandra screamed, shooing what seemed like feathers from her hands straight for Maka's throat. If it wasn't for her quick instincts, she'd be dead in seconds. Maka jumped out of the way of Cassandra's feathers just quick enough for them to slice up her clothes, fizzling into nothing when they crashed into the wall. Maka could feel how her soul was ridden with madness. After realizing her snap of insanity, Cassandra sighed, and her wings folded back into her soul. "Excuse my temper."
"You're soul is infested with Madness, Cassandra," Maka said, positioning her scythe, ready to strike. "You should be a weather girl, not a witch."
"And why is that, Maka?" Cassandra asked, giggling while putting her hood down, eyes and hands glowing.
"Because your little forecast about our death is wrong!" Maka jumped at Cassandra, aiming Soul's blade for her head. The witch dissipated into down feathers at the slightest touch of the weapon.
"You really are just like the others," Cassandra muttered behind them. "I'm not as predictable as your little Medusa was, you see. I'm one of the oldest civilized witches there ever was!"
Cassandra's nail grew and sharpened to those of a raptor's talons. She launched herself at Maka, who turned on a dime to protect herself using Soul as a shield. The witch smiled as her nails scratched the scythe blade, leaving marks of her claws. Maka jumped back, feeling Soul's pain.
"Soul, are you okay," she asked, watching Cassandra's every move.
"I'm fine," he said, scratches covering his arms in the reflection. "Stay focused on her, not me." Maka nodded, and watched for any attacks.
Cassandra advanced towards Maka, and clawed at her again. Maka leaned back, dodging her by centimeters, smelling the polish on her fingers. Cassandra's eyes were contracted, and her smile was full of madness. She pulled her hand back, and shot the other right for Maka's stomach. Not seeing this quick enough, Maka didn't move, and Soul screamed at her to fall back.
The sound of metal scratching metal ricochet echoed throughout the cave as Leiko stood between Maka and Cassandra, her own double-edged blade arm breaking the witch's metal nails. The witch's evil glare melted into one of surprise and disgust.
"Too bad you can only focus on one future," Leiko muttered, looking down with blood dripping from her face and mouth as she flashed her shark teeth. "Didn't even see me coming."
Leiko was in no way, shape, or form fit to fight a witch, especially one of Cassandra's caliber. Her gorgeous dress was practically in shreds, just enough to cover what needed to be. Parts of her stomach and back that were showing were stained red from the gashes across her body. Her hair had been let down, and hacked at from dodging attacks. Her bangs were cut on a diagonal, reaching to the corner of her cheek. The long hair that fell down her back was now only half of what it used to be. The pure white color of it was spotted and stained of her own blood, looking like a botched hair dye experiment. The smeared puddle of her blood on the floor from her struggling covered the back of her legs, and drips of it trailed down her front.
"How can you-" Cassandra stuttered, admiring Leiko's comeback. "You're supposed to be dead!" Leiko lifted her head, revealing the same smile she had before when the madness too her over. The same gray ring around her eyes appeared, and her toothy grin was ready to rip out someone's throat. She stumbled closer to her enemy, giggling, leaving a terrified Maka and a concerned Soul behind her. Cassandra chuckled, and put her hood back on.
"Now I see where your name came from, Ms. Arrogant, thinking you're all that and a bag of chips. You really think you can end me, especially after what I did to them on your graduation day," Cassandra taunted. Leiko's smile melted, and her temper flared as she jumped at the witch, blade arm out and ready.
Leiko was in the Black Room again, standing with the harp. The little demon was chewing on his fingers again, drool dripping from his sharpened teeth. She looked at the door, knowing it would only open to the wall. She looked back at the harp, and shook her head.
"All that I worked for, everyone I've met, everything is crumble if I don't do this," she muttered to herself. She sighed, and sat back down at the stool. She took a quick look at the demon, who was almost ready to bounce off the walls, and smirked. "I guess I'm not off the madness wagon all the way, huh?"
Leiko rested her fingertips on the strings of the harp, and took a deep breath in. As she took a slow, and calm breath out, her fingers pulled and played the strings of the harp almost expertly. A beautiful hum came from each string, molding together as one gorgeous sounding song.
As she played, the red mist of madness surrounded her figure, and started to leak into her real self, propelling her limp body into battle. Too quick for her liking, the song started to sound distorted, like she was losing her own sanity.
Soul could almost hear Leiko's playing from his own void as she jumped at Cassandra, madness blazing from her own madness. It was an eerily familiar feeling to his own insanities, his own piano playing.
"Maka-"
"I feel it too," she said before her partner could finish. "She must have black blood to be able to use her madness like that. I can hear a harp playing."
"We need to pull her out, Maka," he said. "I barely got out of it with your help, she has no one controlling her." Maka nodded, and rushed at the witch and Leiko fighting. Without a moment to stop and think, Leiko kicked her leg back, smashing Maka into a wall. She looked at her friends, and giggled.
"This is my mission," she said, holding in bubbly laughter. "My blood will help me more than you ever could! It's almost black, ya know." She went back to watching for the witch, who had disappeared. "Where are you, Sandy?"
Minutes passed, and there was no sign of her. Maka stood up, struggling from shaky legs. Soul changed to his human form, and helped her get on her feet. They watched Leiko tap on the walls and call out for the witch, obviously not herself.
"She's gone," Maka managed to say, holding her stomach, hurt from Leiko's foot. "I can't feel her soul anymore."
Leiko turned to see the two students struggling to get up, hurt and sore from what she did. When she realized what happened, the sight of it pulled her right out of the madness. When her arm changed back into a human arm from a blade, and the gray from her eyes disappeared, her wounds started to bleed again. Her eyes quickly closed shut, and she fell to her side, blood puddling around her again.
"Leiko!" Soul and Maka shouted. They looked at each other, debating on what to do.
"You stay here with her, I'll look for BlackStar and Kidd," Soul said. Maka tried to fight him on it, but he didn't take no for an answer. "You need to rest, anyways. Plus, you can tell if her soul is gone or not. If I'm not back in ten minutes, take Leiko and go find help yourselves."
"Soul-" Maka said, but he was gone in a flash. She sighed, and looked at Leiko. "Men can be so arrogant. Please stay with me, Leiko," she said, fearing more and more as she felt her friend's soul wavelength get dimmer and dimmer with every passing minute.
Author's Note: OHMYGOSH THIS IS SOOO LATE I AM SOOO SORRY
Of course, I do have a half-ass good excuse ^^; I've been swampped with last minute summer reading stuff, and along with procrastinating this fight scene. I can't write fight or romantic scenes well ;^; Please excuse my terrible explanations! Remember: Read, Review, and Enjoy!
~ Nicole
