Diana was the one who found Akko motionless amongst the broken glass. The moment she laid eyes on the brunette, Diana sent out a beacon to signal the others and rushed over to Akko's side. She used healing spell after healing spell, but Akko's heartbeat remained weak and the brunette never stirred. When the other professors arrived, they stopped her and took Akko away to the infirmary.
No one could figure out what happened. Why would anyone want to destroy the greenhouse of all things? More importantly, who or what hurt Akko? There were no signs of injury, yet the girl's heart struggled and she remained comatose. Diana wanted to stay at Akko's side, but she needed to find out who did this. She couldn't sit around and mope, she needed to find a way to help Akko! The heiress thought she could handle this herself. She would distance herself from her feelings and focus on the task at hand. She was going to break into the greenhouse and analyze the situation. Surely, there must be clues left behind by the perpetrator.
The bizarre nature of the assault couldn't have been done by a student, so they could go home until the attacker was caught and combat magic lessons were required to be taken by all of the students who chose to stay. A strict curfew was put into effect. Everyone must be in their dorms by sundown. Diana snuck out the moment the opportunity arose, determined to find the truth. With her knowledge of the school's patrol routes and impressive magic skills, breaking into the greenhouse was easy.
"Nothing gets past Detective Diana…"
The blonde ignored the way her heart clenched at the memory of the brunette and she continued to investigate the area.
The staff had cleaned up most of the glass and fixed some of the shelves. Diana had a flashback to three days ago: a petite frame curled up on the floor surrounded by glass, pocket watch clenched to her chest. No, I can't let myself be overwhelmed. I need to focus, she thought as she persisted.
However, her resolve was crushed when she made her way to the back of the tropical room.
There must have been at least a hundred Rainbow Dandelions in special magic cases to preserve them. All of them were a familiar shade of powder blue.
"It's a Diana Dandelion."
The heiress could hear Akko' voice from the time they went to the Summer Woods.
"Because it matches your eyes."
She could remember how cute the cheesy witch looked when she brought her the dandelion.
"I'm here Diana. I'm not going anywhere. I told you already, you aren't getting rid of me that easily."
Diana fell to her knees and cried.
Diana couldn't handle the sudden surge of emotion, unable to oppress them any longer. She needed Akko. She wanted the brunette to run up and hug her, to promise her she'll never leave. She wanted to hear Akko's stupid puns, to see her smile, and hold her hand. But Akko wasn't here. She hadn't been here for three days and she showed no sign of getting better any time soon.
One Week Later
Luna Nova Academy was quiet after Akko's injury. Students and professors alike were impacted by the disappearance of the jubilant witch. The whole campus seemed to be in a perpetual state of gloom. Since only the professors and Diana (after much insisting) were permitted to visit Akko in the infirmary, Diana would update the rest of the group on the witch's status, but it was always the same thing. There was no improvement and the cause was still unknown.
The friends began to worry about Diana as well. The heiress seemed to distance herself from everyone, much like when she first arrived at Luna Nova. She only spoke when she needed to and almost completely stopped talking to the others, locking herself in her room practicing her healing spell. Hannah and Barbara would come up and leave food for the blonde, but when they went back to retrieve the plate, they were disappointed to see that Diana barely touched it. Diana was starting to lose weight and the dark circles under her eyes indicated she hadn't been sleeping either. Finally, they believed an intervention was needed.
Diana didn't even flinch when Amanda all but kicked down her door. Her tired eyes looked up from her book and at the newcomers.
"Could you please keep it down? I need to concentrate," She stated simply.
Before anyone could say a word, Sucy made her way swiftly across the room like a phantom and stopped directly in front Diana.
"You and that idiot have a lot more in common than I thought." She remarked nonchalantly, but her eyes were blazing. The chemist was furious. Hannah wanted to say something, but Barbara stopped her and shook her head.
"Let her finish," she urged while taking Hannah's hand in her own.
"You know how much you mean to Akko and yet here you are letting yourself wither away. Do you think she'd be happy seeing you do this to yourself? If you can't love yourself first and take care of your health, you don't deserve anyone else's love because they would only get hurt. Akko wouldn't only get upset if she saw you like this, you would break her heart," Sucy said harshly.
The blonde's eyes widened, "I don't want to hurt her! I just—", she trailed off unable to find her words.
Lotte entered the room and gripped Sucy's hand before addressing Diana. "Diana, we're your friends too. You don't need to take handle this alone. Please, talk to us. We want to help you," the freckled girl soothed.
Diana looked away ashamed, "I'm sorry," she apologized quietly.
"We don't need an apology! We need you to haul your ass to our room and enjoy Jasna's cooking! The cafeteria is already closed." Amanda replied while Constanze nodded her head in agreement. Hannah and Barbara hugged the embarrassed blonde, not saying a word knowing that none more were needed. They knew that they had to stick together now more than ever.
Things felt so wrong without Akko, but the friends did their best to remain positive. After the group finished eating, Hanna and Barbara made sure Diana returned to their dorm as the blue team again. They didn't want her to be alone.
The moment the green team was alone, Amanda's smile changed. She believed Akko would recover, after all, the brunette was even more stubborn than her! However, the comatose girl wasn't improving. The redhead forced herself not to think about the possibility that Akko might never wake up. Constanze snuggled into her side as the trio sat on her bed and Jasminka held Amanda's hand, giving her a reassuring squeeze.
"It sure is boring without that idiot, huh?" she choked out, starting to tear up. The other two witches immediately hugged the crying witch, feeling tears prick at their own eyes.
Meanwhile, at the red team's dorm, Sucy went back to her experiments as usual as if nothing was wrong. Lotte knew the girl was suffering just like the rest of them but she tried not to show it. In that sense, she wasn't much better than Diana. Lotte got up and hugged Sucy from behind.
"That's dangerous," Sucy warned, but made no attempt to remove the girl and continued working.
"You should take your own advice. Sucy, talk to me," Lotte pleaded, tears escaping her eyes. She buried her face in Sucy's shirt.
Sucy froze. Lotte released her as she turned around. Sucy awkwardly put her arms around the crying girl and pulled her in for a hug. She let out a sigh before speaking.
"I miss her." The long-haired girl stated. It was just three little words, but Lotte could tell Sucy's admittance took a lot of the witch's will. The bespectacled girl smiled, though the tears didn't stop.
"I miss her too," Lotte responded. She hugged the other girl back. "Sucy, you're not very good at giving hugs, are you?"
Sucy groaned, "It's not my thing."
"Do you hate them?" Lotte asked.
"I never said that," Sucy replied, still holding onto her friend.
"Maybe we should do this more often so you can learn how?" Lotte smirked.
Sucy rolled her eyes, but she didn't decline.
Even in this bittersweet moment, the duo couldn't help thinking about how Akko was all alone in the infirmary. At least they had each other, but Akko had no one. Lotte gripped tighter onto the back of Sucy's shirt.
"Why couldn't things stay the way they were? Why does she have to suffer?" Lotte hiccupped.
"I don't know, but this is Akko we're talking about. She's strong," Sucy replied with conviction.
Later that same evening
Diana snuck out again, careful not wake her sleeping friends. She quietly made her way to the infirmary. She needed to see Akko again, just once more before she went to bed. Luckily, Ursula was the one who was supervising the infirmary, guarding it in case whatever attacked her pupil returned. The educator looked just as bad as Diana, tired and stressed. She also spent a lot of time in her room, hardly seen outside of class. She let Diana in but warned her to be prepared to hide in case one of the other professors showed up. It was way past curfew after all. Ursula returned to the empty bed she was staying in and closed the curtain. She wasn't going to leave the room, but she could at least do this much to give the blonde some privacy.
Diana took a seat in the chair beside Akko's bed, watching the rise and fall of her chest. Akko looked like she was having a nightmare, but the heiress couldn't do anything for her. She tried calling out to Akko, knowing she wouldn't be heard. She brushed the brunette's bangs away from her face and held her hand, attempting to soothe the sleeping girl. However, Akko remained unresponsive. The blonde felt helpless as she watched Akko struggle with whatever foe she was fighting in her dreams. Diana remembered the fairy tales she heard as a child, where curses were lifted by kisses. As if it's that simple, she thought bitterly. Yet, she still leaned in and pressed her lips gently against Akko's. I could use a miracle right now. I'm willing to try anything.
Instead of a miracle, she felt a small sharp sting on the left side of her lower lip, as if she'd been cut. She touched her lip gently and realized she was bleeding, she was cut. Akko had a matching wound on her lower lip as well. Their first kiss wasn't sweet, it had the metallic taste of blood. Diana quickly grabbed cotton balls from the counter and dabbed away the blood from the brunette's cut. The slash was thin like a paper cut, but it was deep enough to leave a scar.
The heiress cursed, completely confused on how this could have happened. She pulled out her wand and cast a healing spell, knowing it was a fruitless attempt. No healing spell seemed to work on Akko after her attack, befuddling the professors. The doctors who came to see her couldn't pinpoint the cause either. Akko's case was a unique one, and they suggested not moving her too much until they knew it was safe to do so.
Ursula turned her attention to the blonde after hearing the sudden profanity. She rushed over the moment she saw blood on Diana's lip. "What happened?" she asked, cradling Diana's face to examine the wound.
"I don't—", Diana started, but never finished.
SLAM
"Ursula! We think we know what happened to—Diana? Why are you here?" Professor Nelson interjected, slamming the infirmary door open. "We'll talk about this later! Right now we're holding an emergency meeting!"
"Is it about Akko? I'm going too." Diana declared, walking past the teachers before they could argue. Not that either one of them would have.
"Kagari lit a fire in that one, huh?" Professor Nelson smiled as she and Ursula followed the blonde.
Ursula was still too flustered by everything to properly answer.
Headmistress's Office
The moment Diana entered the office, the older witches fussed about her wound.
"I'm fine. I can heal this later in no time. What about Akko?" Diana asked eagerly as she dabbed the cut with a handkerchief Finnelan handed her.
"I think I can shed some light on this case," came a voice behind her. Diana turned around to face a young man leaning against the wall. His dark brown hair was disheveled and he had a thickening stubble. However, his voice and bright green eyes were unmistakable.
"Andrew?" Diana asked incredulously, never seeing the boy in such a sloppy state. She was the one who informed him of Akko's state, but the statesman never responded back.
"Forgive me for my appearance, but I had to rush over as quickly as I could. After I heard about what happened to Akko, I used my new connections with the magic community to see if anyone could provide help. I ended up coming across an interesting trend." Andrew explained.
The moment he heard about his friend's condition Andrew canceled his flight and prepared appointments with respected witches within the magic community that he met previously. He knew that even if he tried to visit Akko, there was nothing he could do to help her. Instead, he used his connections and contacts to further seek help for the sleeping witch.
This was something he only he could do and he was going to give it his all.
He didn't hesitate and traveled from country to country, gathering information from not only witches, but sages, and psychics as well. Andrew's father was cross with him for bailing on their important conference, but he didn't care. He was going to follow his heart, just like Akko. He knew if he didn't, he would regret it later. Not only Akko was suffering, but Diana as well. While they never got along, they had known each other since childhood and he couldn't let her take on this burden by herself.
Andrew placed a laptop and a magic mirror that connected to the internet on Holbrooke's desk, bringing up his data on the laptop and magic related information on the mirror. He learned to use magic devices because he took his new role as a bridge between the magic community and the government seriously.
"Ever since the return of magic, there has been an escalation of both tragedies and what some might call miracles." Andrew started.
The entire world was saturated with high levels of magic. Because of this, there have been cases of regular people accomplishing extraordinary feats by accidentally tapping into their magical potential.
One case was when rainfall suddenly appeared out of the blue sky, bringing water to a tiny village suffering from months of drought. The entire village prayed, believing only a miracle could save them. They clasped hands, looking to the sky, putting everything they had into a single desperate prayer. The rain started off as a soft drizzle before coming down in a downpour. They weren't pitied by some ambiguous power, they created their own miracle. There was another case in New York where a business woman jumped in front of a moving truck to save a child and unconsciously put up a barrier protecting them both. No one was harmed. Similar stories popped up all over the world, magic becoming a hot topic once again.
However, there were also cases where once weak magical creatures grew in strength and size, posing a threat to both magical and non-magical beings. Dormant dangers awoke hell-bent on spreading catastrophe now that they could move freely thanks to the magic filled atmosphere.
Demons were one of the most common entities to take advantage of their new power. They are beings not of this world and they're strength was limited by the lack of magic on Earth. Just like how witches were once only able to use magic near the philosopher's stone, demons were restricted to areas with high concentrations of negative energy, like places where tragedies had taken place. In the old days, demons were free to roam the land and were feared by all. Every culture has stories of demons and ways to counter the fiends, because it was a natural part of life back then. The demons would attack people and desecrate locations, creating places that drew in negative energy to make themselves even more powerful. Fear, anger, sadness, demons thrived off these things. They needed magic to move and hate to gain power.
While everyone listened quietly, the bit about demons caught them off guard.
"Andrew, do you think Akko was attacked by a demon?" Diana asked, eyes widening.
"That's absurd! Why would a demon attack the greenhouse of all things?" one of the professors asked, Diana was so stunned she didn't even know which educator it was.
"I think I know why," Ursula remarked, receiving the attention of everyone in the room.
"They say there is a thin line between love and hate. Diana and Akko turned the greenhouse into something special for not only us but for the students of Luna Nova. The students would gather and work diligently, cooperating, and having fun at the same time," Ursula smiled as she remembered the beaming faces and laughter before Akko's attack. "The greenhouse was something we were all proud of and it was a place brimming with positive energy. That's why it attacked the greenhouse because it knew its destruction would hurt us. The more you love something, the more it stings when you lose it. After the attack, no one can mention the greenhouse without creating tension in the air. It's associated with violence and a place where many of the students' hard work was squandered," Ursula sighed, "All the positive vibes from the greenhouse turned sour, it was the perfect target. Akko was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
Everyone was quiet for a moment, taking in all the new information. It made sense, but a demon of all things? It was so overwhelming.
"There is something else I wanted to discuss," Andrew commented, breaking the silence. He turned to face Diana. "I heard Akko's mischievous behavior escalated after the Missile Crisis. That's why she started working with you, correct?"
"Yes," Diana answered tentatively, unsure why Andrew was suddenly bringing this up.
Andrew steeled himself and continued, "According to the magic community, the soul like the body, can be wounded. Instead of physical injury, the soul may become vulnerable to supernatural encounters. I believe Akko has such an injury, but it only started to really 'fester' after the return of magic. After the Missile Crisis, she caused so much trouble Luna Nova had to hold a meeting over what to do about it. Perhaps she was acting no differently from before, but because she is being targeted by these entities, every mishap escalated since misfortune is a side-effect of these things. Doesn't it seem strange that a single girl was able to cause so much trouble? Even for Akko, the accidents seemed too extreme."
"That doesn't make any sense. Akko stopped causing trouble when she was assigned to work with Diana. If your hypothesis is correct, why would these entities suddenly stop?" Badcock asked.
"Because Diana's very presence keeps them away. When Akko was on her own before, she was vulnerable, but because she was paired with a noble witch like Diana, she became somewhat untouchable to these entities. Is there any point in time you think Akko could have gained such a wound? Or maybe a turning point where you noticed Akko seemed to experience more bad luck than usual?" Andrew asked, hoping he wasn't right.
"Pappiliodya," Diana replied in a hushed voice. "In the greenhouse, there were Pappiliodya cocoons on the Jennifer Memorial Tree. I thought they were parasites so I tried to get rid of them, but I accidentally hit Akko with the spell, Murowa."
The entire room stilled. Murowa was a basic combat spell used to exterminate weak magical creatures. While it would considerably hurt a human, it wouldn't be life-threatening. On the outside, someone hit by Murowa may look like they made a full recovery but, they would have taken unseen spiritual damage making them vulnerable to invasive or paranormal entities. None of the professors were aware of Akko's injury, or else they would have taken the proper steps necessary to treat the brunette. It always seemed like bad luck followed the optimistic witch wherever she went, but they never considered that there could be an actual reason for it.
Diana could feel tears welling up in her eyes, "It's my—"
Ursula rushed over to the blonde and hugged her tightly, "Hush. Don't go blaming yourself for everything. We need you right now. Akko needs you."
Diana buried her face in Ursula's shirt, salty tears stinging her wounded lip.
"Akko's always had a gift for bringing people together and making them smile," Andrew said while putting away his belongings. "The demon is probably trying to take her down from the inside out since that idiot is too stubborn to go down without a fight. It's trying to steal her from us," he continued, clenching his fist.
"We aren't going to let that happen," Finnelan announced, taking everyone by surprise. "We shouldn't delay any longer, we've kept Miss Kagari waiting long enough."
Diana nodded her head. Andrew and Ursula followed the blonde heading toward the infirmary while the other professors were sent to prepare for the demon, knowing things were about to get ugly.
In the Infirmary
Akko's lip wound had stopped bleeding, but the tiny laceration made Diana's heart fill with guilt. Ursula noticed the matching wounds. "Diana, what happened? You never told me," Ursula asked while searching for the proper materials to treat her cut.
Diana sat beside Akko and brushed her thumb across her cheek. "I may have been punished."
"Punished? For what?" Andrew asked while he walked over to Akko's bed. It was the first time he saw Akko since the attack. Akko was usually a ball of energy, constantly moving and always optimistic. The motionless girl in front of him was a shell, not his boisterous friend. Andrew didn't cry, especially not in the company of others.
Something must have fallen in his eye.
"I stole her first kiss," Diana smiled bitterly, "even though she wanted to do everything properly."
Ursula dropped the bottle of disinfectant she was holding. Part of her couldn't believe Diana would do something so bold while she was still in the room. Hearing the commotion, Andrew and Diana looked at the astronomy teacher, who just smiled sheepishly back. The teacher collected herself and approached Diana. She put some of the disinfectant on a cotton swab and gently dabbed at the blonde's lip. Diana had taken the time to properly treat Akko, but she didn't take care of herself.
"This injury occurred when you kissed Akko?" Andrew inquired, voice shaking. "This may be the first bit of good news today."
"How is this good news? I hurt her," Diana retorted.
"The demon has taken basically taken Akko hostage. It hurt you and her in order to intimidate you! It's scared of you. That's why it hurt both you and Akko because it wanted you to leave," Andrew explained, collecting himself.
Diana thought about what Andrew said. He was right, demons were known to mock exorcists' faith and people's emotions to dissuade them from trying anything against them. Demons created doubt in their enemies to weaken them. It was a show of power.
Ursula, satisfied with her work, released Diana. "Diana, can you show me where Akko was struck? If Andrew's right…" she trailed off.
"I hit her in the back, between her shoulder blades," Diana confessed. Ursula carefully sat Akko up.
"Andrew, could you step outside for a moment? I need to remove Akko's shirt so we can see the wound," Ursula requested.
Andrew didn't want to leave, he was worried about Akko. Diana shot him a glare and he was forced to go. "I'll be right outside. Keep me informed," he relented shuffling out of the room.
Ursula felt a bit guilty chasing him out, but she could apologize later. After Akko's shirt was removed, the two witches examined her back. There was nothing but the familiar span of smooth skin Diana traced with her fingertips just days before the attack. Diana reached out expecting to feel warmth, but Akko's body was unusually cold. Without warning, she wrapped her arms around Akko placed her forehead between Akko's shoulder blades. She felt so frail and small in her arms. Ursula was surprised but didn't say anything. She wrapped her arms around them both. "She's so cold. I need to warm her up," Diana hiccupped, tears threatening to spill again. Diana hasn't cried this much since…
Suddenly a screech echoed throughout the infirmary. Ursula pulled Diana away, only to see a black hex mark on the brunette's back. It wasn't just the space between her shoulder blades, Akko's entire back was covered in strange black markings. Andrew was right, she did suffer from a soul wound, and it was festering.
After hearing the inhuman scream, Andrew tried to enter the room but was stopped by a magic barrier. He tried to break it with force but the barrier repelled him into the wall. Finnelan and Holbrooke finally had everything prepared for the demon, but when they arrived at the infirmary, they found Andrew unconscious outside of the room. The infirmary had a complex barrier placed around it. Holbrooke attempted to dispel the barrier while Finnelan treated the knocked-out statesman. Please, let them be safe! The headmistress thought as she focused all her attention on the barrier. Suddenly, there was a flash of light that blasted through the hallway and seemingly phased through the barrier with ease.
Don't worry Miranda, I will take it from here.
Holbrooke smiled as she heard the kind voice enter her mind. She knew things would be fine now.
Meanwhile, back in the infirmary, Ursula yanked Diana away from the brunette when she saw the black marks spreading across Akko's body. Diana shrieked, "I can't lose her too! Please! Let me go!"
Ursula's heart shattered, but she knew it was too dangerous to let Diana the near Akko's body. She was much stronger than Diana and holding her down was easy, yet it was also one of the most difficult things she's ever had to do. They watched helplessly as the demon continued to consume Akko until an abrupt flash of light illuminated the entire infirmary. The black markings seized moving and everything was still again. A soft light emitted from the corner of the room and the two bewildered witches turned to face it, or rather to face her.
"Professor Woodward?" Ursula squeaked, shocked by her former mentor's sudden appearance.
"Woodward? One of the Nine Old Witches who founded Luna Nova, that Woodard?" Diana asked in disbelief. Woodward smiled at Diana and nodded.
"It seems you need some guidance. Diana, you must heal Akko's wound if you want to save her. I've only contained the demon, but it is you who must cure her. The same way you treat an infected wound, you must treat Akko's injury," Woodward explained.
"I've tried every healing spell I know, but nothing works." Diana sighed, making eye contact with Woodward. Woodward gave her a knowing smile and Diana being as sharp as ever didn't take long to decipher it.
"You want me to use my own spell? It never works properly. I always feel like I'm so close, but then it just…flops." Diana revealed.
"Why do you want to save this child?" Woodward asked abruptly, her face now an unreadable mask.
"Because I…love her," Diana hesitated. Ursula and Woodward both picked up on the reluctance in the blonde. Ursula trusted Woodward, so she decided to remain quiet, but it was difficult to watch her pupil so distressed.
"Then why haven't you told her? Why force her to take on the responsibility of this love when you could have worked on it together? Maybe you don't love her at all, you only want the security she gives you. You know she loves you, yet you never act, just wait. Are you sure you love her?" Woodward challenged.
"Of course I do!" Diana countered. She felt like a cornered animal with nowhere to run.
"Then why? Why hesitate? Why are you running away?" Woodward continued.
"Because I'm scared!" Diana blurted. "I was scared to act because I know how much it hurts to lose someone! I want to be with Akko, but I was too afraid to act, paralyzed by my fear of losing her. I'm so afraid, I'm not sure I can love her with the same intensity she loves me. Even though I can't return those feelings properly, I selfishly wanted her anyway. I knew that even if I was too scared to move, Akko would chase me. She would come after me and love me even if I didn't do anything."
Ursula couldn't take it anymore and opened her mouth to speak, but then she saw a sincere smile appear on Woodward's face. "Diana, because you have repressed your feelings for so long, you have lost touch with your emotions. You are overthinking things, if you feel you can't properly love Atsuko, let her teach you how. I want you to think about Atsuko and just Atsuko. You need to learn to listen to your heart."
Diana closed her eyes, thinking about Akko's smile, her laugh, her warmth, the affection in her bright eyes whenever their eyes met. She didn't dwell on the context of these situations, just the sole feeling Akko gave her. Her heart soared and that familiar warmth—no, love filled her from head to toe. "I love her," Diana said with much more conviction. She felt a sense of wholeness come over her as if she found something she never knew she was missing. She felt complete.
"Many witches forget the root of magic. Yggdrasil, the cosmic tree that gave birth to all magic, was fed by the power of belief. Emotions are the fuel for our magic, but many see feelings as primal or animalistic. They choose to distance themselves from their hearts thinking they find enlightenment and success elsewhere, denying their true selves. Diana, use your emotions to fuel your magic, believe in yourself. Atsuko chose you and that's all that matters." Woodward affirmed.
Ursula gave Diana a gentle push towards the sleeping girl. The heiress made her way to Akko and pulled out her wand. She focused on her feelings first: the love she felt for Akko, the pain of loss, the anger she felt toward the demon, the companionship and support from her friends, Diana let them all flow through her. She felt the same way she felt the day she and Akko fired the final Shiny Arc together. She didn't let her feelings consume her, but she embraced them and let them become her strength.
Power simply radiated from Diana, Ursula was shaken by how the girl's slender frame never faltered under the immense concentration of magic. Woodward, renowned for her vast wisdom, was flabbergasted. She knew Diana had potential, she was a descendant of Beatrix Cavendish after all, but for her to handle this much magic on her own at such a delicate age? Woodward thought she had seen it all until now. She may even surpass Beatrix at this rate, the ethereal witch thought.
Diana tried to put her feelings into words, she was ready to cast her spell, but her original words didn't do her emotions justice. Instead, she leaned forward and kissed Akko's forehead. Thank you. She then placed a gentle kiss on Akko's lips, no longer fearing the demon. I love you. Somethings didn't need words.
Akko's entire frame was enveloped in light and the blonde watched as the black markings faded away. Her spell may have worked a little too well because Akko's old scars from flying accidents and such also started to fade. A shrill screech filled the room as the demon was evicted out of the brunette and crashed against the floor. Ursula and Woodward prepared to fight the demon, then realized they didn't have to, the demon was burning. The fiend screeched and tried to crawl away from the light Diana radiated. Demons were usually sealed away or sent back to their own world since they were powerful and persistent, yet this one perished in front of the stunned witches. It sizzled away into nothing. Diana hadn't just exorcised the demon, she exterminated it.
They looked back up at Diana. The blonde had draped herself over Akko, listening to the strong steady heartbeat under her. Suddenly the heartbeat increased and Diana grew concerned, but before she could move she felt Akko's hands gently stroking her hair.
"Looks like a princess kissed me better," Akko smiled as Diana met her eyes.
"Why are you so cheesy," Diana laughed, tears forming in her eyes again.
"Because you love it," Akko replied. Suddenly Ursula threw herself on top of the couple.
"I was so worried! Thank god you're both ok!" she bawled.
The two didn't mind the intrusion, they could properly catch up later. They stayed like that for a moment, basking in each other's company. However, Akko still had a blaring issue to take care of. "This is nice, but can I have a shirt, please? This is kinda awkward." Akko pleaded sheepishly.
"I like you better without it," Diana answered without missing a beat.
"Girls, I'm still here…" Ursula sighed.
Woodward smiled, her work here was done. Those two will accomplish great things together, I should keep an eye out for them. She looked back at the witches. They flirt even more than Croix and Chariot did back in the day. To be young and in love, she thought to herself before vanishing.
Author's Notes
I hoped it all made sense to you! I referenced things that happened throughout the story. Forgive me for scaring you last chapter! Can you guys understand my obsession with the greenhouse now?
Sleepy, when I read your review I was shocked! You had me figured out! Good job!