The novice witches weren't allowed to follow Ursula into the final store to buy the last ingredient. It was a small gloomy building at the very back of the Magic Bazaar where only those with special permission could enter. It didn't have the same energy the bazaar had, and Akko joked that it must be the Witches' Black Market. She earned a scolding from Ursula but that only peaked her interest. Diana had to lead her away by taking Akko's hand. Akko happily followed Diana away from the forbidden area without complaint, much to Ursula's relief. Ursula mouthed a silent 'thank you' to Diana before disappearing into the shop.
The pair bought lunch at a food stall and had lunch on a small bench separate from most of the market. Diana decided to set up the pocket watches after she finished and Akko observed while holding her multi-colored fries. Diana sighed and handed one of the watches to Akko. Akko knew how much Diana prided her herself on her vast knowledge, making it tough on her when she didn't know something. "Do you want to do it together?" Akko offered gently.
"Yes, I'd like that," Diana sighed.
Akko analyzed the watch and started to set it up with ease after noticing how similar it was to a cell phone interface. She explained everything as simply as she could while being careful not leave anything out, the same way Diana always did for her. Diana listened intently and munched on Akko's fries, not that Akko minded. Being a quick-learner, Diana was able to set up her own watch with almost no assistance from Akko.
"It's so simple after you explain it." Diana smiled as she easily navigated her device. Akko felt a surge of warmth seeing the confident smile appear on her love's face. "If you need help with anything you can message me!" Akko exclaimed happily.
Suddenly her watch made a soft chime. Akko opened it to find one new message. She looked over at Diana who just smiled back. Akko opened the message:
Thank You, Kiwi.
Akko beamed at Diana before replying:
You're welcome, Princess ;)
Diana laughed, "Princess? Really, Akko. Is the symbol at the end supposed to be a wink?"
Akko smiled and started to educate Diana on emoji etiquette.
At Luna Nova (Blue Team's Room)
"Ya dun goofed, Sucy. An Akko level goof! I'm mildly impressed." Amanda stated as she tried to comprehend the scene in front of her.
Barbara was sandwiched between Lotte and Hanna, unable to move anything except her head. The two clinging witches were bickering with each other and Barbara tried to mediate their ridiculous argument.
"I love her the way Edgar loves Belle! You wouldn't understand!" Lotte cried as she tightened her grip.
"What the heck does that even mean? I don't speak fangirl, but I know Barb better than anyone and she doesn't want this!" Hanna countered.
"Girls please, I can barely breathe," Barbara strained. The two conflicting witches released their friend only to continue their battle. The raven girl sighed and looked over at Sucy and Amanda standing in the doorway. "How long will this last?" she inquired.
"Until dusk, there's nothing we can do but wait this out," Sucy responded with a shrug.
"How did this all happen anyway?" Amanda asked, raising her voice over the two bickering witches.
"It was a love potion. If you drink it, the next person you come in contact with will fall in love with you. I snuck it into Barbara's tea—"
"Damn it Sucy!" Barbara interrupted as the conflicting duo returned to her sides again.
"-thinking she would encounter Hanna first. They're always holding hands and touching." Sucy continued.
"Lewd," Amanda smirked while Barbra blushed. Hanna took notice of this and faced the redhead.
"Don't pick on Barbara! So, what if we hold hands? We're best friends!" The pony-tailed girl challenged.
"You two can remain best friends. Barbara and I will be lovers! We can write our own story together as a couple," Lotte responded shyly in her usual sweet tone.
"HOWEVER," Sucy interjected, "Lotte and Barbara accidentally brushed hands when they were reading Nightfall together while Hanna was making snacks with Jasminka. Thank you for letting me finish, you rude bastards."
"You can't steal Barb from me! If you start dating, then I won't be her number one anymore! I belong at her side!" Hanna exclaimed completely ignoring Sucy.
"Aw, Hanna! You know you'll always be my best friend." The dark hair girl cooed while brushing Akko's bangs away from her face with her recently freed hand.
The other witch was silent for a moment, a look of realization crossing her face. Hanna separated herself from her best friend, "No, I don't think so. I don't want this anymore."
"Hanna?" Barbara called quietly, a pang of fear resonating throughout her entire body.
"I want to be your girlfriend." The other girl replied simply before kissing Barbara's cheek. Lotte gasped, Amanda clapped, and Sucy raised her eyebrows at the sudden development.
Then Barbara fainted.
"Barbara!" the once arguing witches fussed over the unconscious girl.
Sucy walked up behind Lotte holding a new potion in her hand. She dumped the contents on her unsuspecting friend. Lotte immediately fell asleep, and the long-haired girl caught her friend easily, "It'll be easier if Lotte sleeps off the love potion. You take care of Barbara, she'll probably want to talk to you when she wakes up." Sucy stated as she began carrying Lotte back their room. Amanda rushed over to help carry the small sleeping girl.
Hanna nodded as she carefully placed her friend on the bed and took a seat beside her. As always, she took Barbara's hand in her own, brushing her thumb over the sleeping girl's knuckles.
"I love you, Barb." Hanna smiled.
Red Team's Room
"Yanson is going to be pissed when she wakes up." Amanda sighed as she watched Sucy tucked Lotte girl in.
"Don't worry, Lotte is too kind for her own good. She'll forgive me." Sucy replied as she removed Lotte's glasses and put them on the desk. "Besides, it looks like things will work out for those two knuckleheads. They should be grateful!"
Constanze peeked into the room drawing the attention of the other two witches. She gestured to her friends, 'Dinner.' Sucy and Amanda smiled at the little witch before approaching her, each patting her head as they passed. They were so familiar with each other, the tiny mechanic didn't need to use her signs or stan-bots to communicate simple things.
"Looks like Akko isn't back yet and Lotte will be out for a while. Guess I'll have to save some food for them." Sucy remarked as the headed toward the Cafeteria.
"Diana isn't the only one who's gotten soft," Amanda smirked.
Sucy glared at her but Amanda laughed it off.
Outside Red Team's Room
Akko nearly shrieked when she felt something furry against her leg.
She looked down to meet the beady red eyes of a guinea pig. Akko squawked when the rodent spoke to her. "Don't just stare you moron. Change me back."
"Sucy?" Akko asked as she knelt down to pick up the guinea pig. "What happened?"
After dinner, Sucy carried back two plates of food using a preservation spell to keep it hot and fresh. She was going to continue her usual experiments when Lotte started to stir. The freckled girl was no longer under the influence of the love spell and was, as Amanda predicted, pissed. She turned Sucy into a guinea pig, the irony not lost on the chemist, and tossed her out of the room before locking the door. Unable to turn back without her wand, Sucy just waited quietly for Akko's return.
"Talk about karma, you're so fluffy." Akko giggled while petting her transformed friend. She even nuzzled the very unamused Sucy.
"Just turn me back and open the door," Sucy complained. "What took you so long to get back?"
"As soon as we got back, Diana received a message from her aunt. It looks like the return of magic has also brought on a lot of new responsibility for the Cavendish family. She tried to hide it, but she looked so stressed. I couldn't just leave her like that but eventually I had to go," Akko replied quietly. She braced her back against the door and slid down to sit on the floor, cradling Sucy against her chest. "I couldn't do anything."
Sucy remained silent, listening to her friend.
"That doesn't sound like my Akko," came Lotte's voice from the other side of the door. The blue-eyed witch was going to let Sucy in the moment she finished her dinner, but she heard Akko's voice and figured Akko would do it. When she approached the door and heard Akko's helpless tone she froze, listening in. "I'm going to open the door now," Lotte warned.
Akko got up and entered the room, still carrying Sucy. She carefully put her friend down and changed her back into a human. The trio sat side by side on Akko's bed and offered her the plate of food, but she declined.
After Akko rejected dinner, they knew the problem ran deeper than they initially thought.
Sucy recognized the sad smile on her friend's face. Whenever she talked about Diana, Akko glowed. She'd smile from ear-to-ear and her voice was always filled with affection and admiration, but then there were also moments like these. Akko's beaming smile would be replaced with the look she wore right now; sad, anxious, and most the most concerning emotion, self-loathing. Whenever her friends asked what was wrong, she'd slip on her usual smile and tell them nothing was wrong. They figured Akko would open up to them when she was ready, but at this rate, she'll develop a mask better than Diana's.
Lotte had an idea, "Akko, do you remember the day Andrew brought those souvenirs from Italy? You were going to tell us something but we were interrupted. What were you going to say?" the Finnish girl inquired gently.
As expected, Akko switched into her casual smile, "It wasn't anything—"
"Akko." Sucy interrupted sternly. "Don't lie, or else I'll make you drink a truth potion that'll make you spill every secret you ever had since childhood."
"You have one of those?" Akko gasped, eyes widening.
"Nope," Sucy replied, earning a sincere smile from the somber girl.
"You're jokes are stupid." Akko jabbed playfully.
"Akko, you're the last person I want to hear that from," Sucy jested.
"You're both stupid," added with a grin.
"Lotte! I'm wounded!" Akko exaggerated, placing a hand over her heart and pretending to faint. The other two witches laid down beside her and now the trio was just staring up at Lotte's bunk in a comfortable silence.
Eventually, Akko spoke.
"Even if I love her with all my heart, that doesn't mean I deserve her. I'm still such a kid, I'm afraid I'll take advantage of her or god forbid hurt her. She's a noble witch, so even if I don't care about what people think, Diana has to live amongst those very same people. I wanted to become someone who deserves her, but I don't where to start. I want to fight for her, to protect her, to be part of her world, but how? The closer we get, the further away she feels. I—I Don't want to bring her down." Akko admitted, covering her eyes with her arm.
"You can start by confessing, dumbass," Sucy growled, irritated by the way her companion spoke about herself. "Figure everything else together afterward. Nothing will change if you just wallow in self-loathing. Diana would be furious if she heard you talk like that. She's so proud of you, supporting you in everything you do, and here you are belittling yourself. If you want to do it Akko, then just do it."
"Sucy's right. Akko, you've already grown so much, you just haven't realized it. The fact that you are so willing to put Diana's happiness before your own proves it. Diana smiles now and it's all thanks to you. If you feel like there is no place for you in her world, then make one! You've already done that here at Luna Nova!" Lotte added.
"But I'm —", Akko started
"Don't," Sucy interrupted Akko and sat up to properly face her. "Diana is lucky to have someone like you. She deserves to be happy, and you're the one person who can do that. I don't think people are ever just 'meant to be'. The reason you guys belong together is because you're trying. You're willing to change to fit in each other's lives. You earned the right to stand beside her. I've seen you work for hours just to learn how to make heart-shaped ice cubes in her iced tea! Not many people are so devoted, but you are. Diana needs you," Sucy ended crossing her arms. "And she'd need to be an idiot to not realize how special you are."
It was subtle, but Lotte could pick up on a new emotion in Sucy's voice, one she never heard from the other girl.
Akko held Lotte's hand and wrapped an arm around Sucy's waist. "Thank you. You're right, I need to confess to her. I'll do it in the most memorable way possible!"
"We never said it had to be flashy," Lotte giggled.
"Please, this is Akko we're talking about. If it's not flashy, it's not worth it. She even likes flashy girls. Have you seen how many times Diana flips her hair in a day?" Sucy remarked.
"It's so cute! Diana's hair is really soft and silky! I love the way she tucks it behind her ear when she's reading! And-" Akko started on one of her usual Diana rants. However, before she could continue, her stomach growled. "Uh, looks like I'm ready for that dinner after all."
Her companions smiled and Lotte got up to fetch the plate. Things seemed to go back to normal, the trio returning to their usual banter, laughing and joking. Once Akko finished her meal, she offered to take Lotte's plate to the kitchen and Sucy started prepping ingredients for tomorrow's experiments. Before Akko could leave the room, Sucy called out to her.
"Akko, it's nice that you're getting more involved with Diana, but don't forget about us. We're still your friends." Sucy said without looking away from her project.
"How could I? I couldn't have made it this far without you two! I love you guys, Ya know!" Akko chuckled as she left.
The moment Akko left the room, the freckled girl turned all of her attention on Sucy. While it was subtle before, Lotte was positive now. "Sucy, do you like Ak—"
"I did once," Sucy broke in, "but not anymore. Who could come in between those two lovesick idiots? I really am glad for them." Sucy turned to face Lotte, "Looks like we played cupid twice today. We should start charging." She chuckled.
Lotte looked for any signs of regret in Sucy's sleepy eyes, but only found sincerity. "I guess we should!" Lotte replied, relieved her friend was fine. "You know…" Lotte started, "you were such a cute guinea pig I could barely stay mad at you!"
Sucy nearly dropped her beaker of poison.