Him
Angel of Death. Was it a title or a nickname?
He kept his face placid when she came out of the door. They spoke in hushed voices so he couldn't make out any of the things they said. Not that he wanted to eavesdrop nor intrude. It was an accident. Yet memory of them standing close and hugging burned to his mind.
It incinerated every hope he had for them. He's too late. Maka didn't love him. Their unexpected kiss earlier meant nothing. She probably got fed up with him cutting her off so she executed his threat to show him it didn't bother her in the least. Her impulse got the best of her. No more no less.
Still, he couldn't erase the feeling of her soft lips pressing against his. She shut him up. Not the other way around. Although he wanted to correct her about the meister part since she's literally the only one who could wield him and he wanted to keep it that way.
They turned into a familiar corridor buzzing with students. Their steps echoed in the same halls they'd walked when they first met and he couldn't stop his gaze from drifting back to her. She had her hands clasped to her back like she used to, a soft smile playing on her lips.
"Kidd said we should go to the rooftop to leave."
He watched her remove her pigtails. One of the hair ties clung to her hair despite her attempts to take it. Swallowing his anxiety, he disentangled it and let the question spilled out of his lips. "Why do you hate being called the Angel of Death?"
"Hmm? I don't really hate it. It's just… I don't think it suits me, I guess. I'm not really an angel type." She flashed him a wry smile when he handed her the hair tie. "Though it'd be cool if someone called me angel. Someone other than Papa."
He couldn't stop the smirk from forming when he remembered their conversation about wings and angels before. She said it then too. "Marie called you little angel once."
"I wasn't talking about Marie. Stupid Soul, stupid Kidd, stupid Papa…" She pursed her lips then walked off. Blush crept to her neck and ears when she continued mumbling. "I wonder what Kim felt like."
The said pair passed them and he could see the flush on the witch's cheeks. Guess, Ox successfully asked her for another date. Seemed like everyone in their group was interested in dating. Even Black Star and Tsubaki. He thought it would take the guy at least three more years but he'd done it.
"If you insist, I'll call you Seraphina since it's not that lame." The reply came so naturally he didn't realize what it implied until she stopped wide-eyed, face a violent shade of red. He stopped in his tracks, bracing for the inevitable pain. "Or not."
"You idiot!" Her fist connected with his arm and he grimaced at the force behind it.
His meister could pack a punch enough to send the next person sleeping till the next decade. Rubbing his sore arm, he vowed never to tease her too much. He'd end up dying before he could ask her out.
The climb to the stairs was silent and he glanced at her every while and then to gauge her temperament. Cold breeze blew to their faces signaling the top was near.
Light welcomed them when they made it out. They gazed at the horizon. Death city's mismatched buildings lined most of the periphery until the last melted into the sand's color. He caught her staring at the sun with profound sadness so he pretended to be interested on the view.
It took her a moment to recollect herself but he didn't comment on it. She tore off the sides of her skirt then waited for him to transform. Her black shorts, he noted, had a holster sewn haphazardly to the side. It must be where she stored the dagger. Fluffy wings decorated the edge of one leg while the other had a crude drawing of… a crescent moon in a stick?
He saw her glaring then shifted to weapon rather than risk her anger again.
"If you have anything to say, say it to my face." She muttered when they lifted off the air.
"You sucked at arts." His weapon form crackled and he stilled, surprised at the shock. They had no trouble flying so he doubted the black blood acted out. Which only meant one thing. She did it.
Dang violent girl. Dang him for being smitten.
"You suck at complimenting girls. It's why you're single." Her breath fogged when she huffed.
"I'll have you know my locker's still full of love letters no matter how much I clean them. I complimented Liz with her taste in music and-" he refused to say she's the only one he ever wanted. "-you're also single. So I won't be listening to your advice."
"It's by choice. Stupid."
They dived down at neck-breaking speed then zoomed past the water, leaving mist in their wake. Wind whipped her hair back and she grinned at their momentum.
Soon, they found themselves in front of a rundown apartment. Kidd was right. It only took half an hour. Maka asked him to get their attention while she enter through the second floor's window. A plan she came up by herself without asking him.
Don't get him wrong, it was an awesome plan. She'd handle Nathan, who hid in the upper floor, he'd distract Cris and rescue their kidnapped victim. Whom she sensed the agitation coming from a mile away.
They'd fight them one on one. Though with her skill, she could put the pair to sleep without breaking a sweat so the plan took him by surprise. He knew her for a long time and she'd jump headfirst into the fight with little to no provocation like Black Star. A risk tend to be involved if she turned cautious.
He knocked on the door. There was shuffling inside, muffled voices and crying. It opened to show a distraught Cris holding a child's hand. A child with uncanny resemblance to a certain mother and daughter witch. His eyes scanned the area behind them. Her weapon was nowhere in sight.
Cris gasped then shoved the child inside, a manic look on her face exuding glee. "You found me! All alone! Have you thought about what I said?"
"Yes, but I'd like to judge your skill as a meister." He kept his eyes glued into her. A hard feat considering he could hear Maka sneaking in the broken window. "Should we talk inside or…?"
"Oh, yes! Come on in. How rude of me." She ushered him in, checking the area before closing the door.
Wood creaked every time he took a step. Cobwebs decorated the ceiling. Dirt and grime covered the sparse furniture. His gaze landed on the assorted weapon strewn around.
The trembling child cowered in the corner so he held out a hand to her without alerting Cris. He neared the hole-ridden sofa when a loud crash resounded.
The second floor gave in, sending dust flying around them. Static thrummed in the air, making the hairs on their arms stand on end. When it settled, Cris shrieked. Nathan had Maka on a chokehold while his rusty scythe hovered over her eyes.
"You betrayed me!" Her shrill scream shook him out of shock.
He took the child by the arm and narrowly escaped a scalpel to his head. Cris retrieved another knife, killing intent emanating from her.
Blades grew on his back, shoulders and arms like lethal wings protecting them from flying weapons. Clutching the girl tighter, he ran to the insane meister with the purpose of knocking her out. Though the added weight slowed him down, he didn't dared leave the child behind.
Before he could reach Cris, a deafening crackle resounded followed by an explosion that blew half the apartment but strangely left them unharmed. A… lightning?
Maka stood in the center of destruction, her hands glowed with a white-hot light she aimed in their direction. The ball of pure anti-demon wavelength, he realized when it whizzed past them, hit Cris square on the chest. It didn't blew up like the former but it left her twitching.
His breath caught at his throat. Maka's eyes shone, soot and dust clung to her face and she'd probably blast him to the next planet if he still didn't move but he could only think about how terrifyingly beautiful she looked as his chest tightened with adoration.
"Anissa!" She rushed to them then faced the crying little girl in his arm. "Are you okay? They didn't hurt you, did they?"
The little witch's arm wrapped around her neck. He left the child to her to retrieve the two suspects before he could say anything uncool. Searching for a reflective surface to contact the Shinigami, he settled on a broken piece of glass.
It rang twice then Kidd's surprised face appeared. "You're faster than I expected. Where's Cris and Nathan? Did you two knocked them out?"
"Please, I didn't even get to swing a blade that it was almost anticlimactic. Maka annihilated the place in a minute." He smirked before showing the apartment. "Our suspects are alive but weak so we need a little help transporting them."
"Got it. I'll send some staffs but it'll take them an hour or so to arrive. Can you restrain them till then?"
"Sure. Not a problem. Also Kidd, they captured a small witch. Maka knows her so I think she might be related to Ligeia. What should we do?"
The Shinigami's eyebrows furrowed. "Can I see her? I need to check her state before deciding on calling Mabaa or just her relatives."
He turned back and held out the shard just in time to show Atarah crush her sister in a fierce hug. When did she arrived, he had no idea.
"She's in the neighborhood searching for her lost sister. I felt her on the way here but we didn't had the time to stop to let her know." Maka answered his unspoken question.
Atarah nodded without letting go. She glared at the suspects behind him then pulled her sister closer. "What do you want with us, you animals?!"
Nathan groaned in response. Blood dripped from the cut on his forehead but he could still move. He rolled over, pulling something from the debris. His lips curled up in a nasty grin and he threw it to the Deathscythe.
Soul caught it then sent a shockwave in retaliation using the piano blade on his arm. To his amusement, it earned him the shock and fear of his fellow weapon.
He examined the bottle. Strange liquid sloshed inside it. A blue teardrop shaped pearl floated in the middle of it. Water from the River of Lethe? No, he couldn't sense any insanity from it. A spell maybe?
"Concentrated brainwashing spell, I remember Peisinoe making me take those." Maka mused, standing beside him after hitting Nathan with the spine of her ever-materializing novel.
If his attack didn't caused him to faint, her head-chop certainly sent his consciousness drifting to the abyss. He swore he saw Nathan's spirit leave his body. Good. They needed to suffer in the same way they caused Ivelle and the others.
Warm, slender fingers intertwined to his free hand, dispelling any dark thoughts swirling in his mind. His heartbeat quickened when he realized it was the first time she did after he accidentally confessed to her before.
"Maka, Soul, Lord Death" Atarah called out, gripping Anissa's hand with fire burning in her eyes. "Leave them to me. I'll watch over them until the Shibusen staffs arrive."
"That would be much appreciated, Atarah. However, I'll leave the choice to those two." Kidd replied and he heard the connection dropped after his warning of making sure they wouldn't take it too far.
He checked the glass and just as he guessed, it only reflected his face.
Understanding flickered on Maka's face. She flashed them a conspiratorial smile while tugging his hand. "Take extra good care of them for me, alright? I used your technique so you better use mine too. It's only fitting."
Looking at her face, he saw the meister-weapon pair's future growing dimmer.
They knocked on the Europe headquarters and was swiftly lead inside to a labyrinthine halls and corridors. The person who guided them, a timid, lanky guy, seemed anxious for a reason. He kept apologizing and holding his head down, refusing to look at their faces for more than a few seconds.
Soft beeping of the machines sounded on the background. The more they neared the room where Rose stayed, the louder it became. Finally, they stopped in front of a door with her name. The man twisted the knob.
The old woman sat near a window, pale hands pressed on the glass. Beside her, a machine continued beeping. Its tubes attached at the back of her hand. Her reflection revealed her troubled expression while staring at the scene outside.
"Any news about my granddaughter?" She turned when they entered, a stiff smile plastered on her face.
"Well, about that…" The guy started, wringing his hands.
"Ivelle is fine and was sleeping peacefully when we left. She is in the Shibusen clinic now and Mira is taking care of her." Maka interjected, irritation flashing through her eyes as she looked at the man. He gulped in fear before excusing himself.
"Mira?" Rose asked then squinted at them. "I'm sorry, dear. My eyesight is getting worse. Can you come closer so I can see you?"
"Of course." She answered and looked back at the Deathscythe. Lacing their fingers together, she tugged him forward. "Mira is a nurse and a great weapon. She can protect and tend to Ivelle. But don't worry! We already caught the culprits. So you're all safe now. Right, Soul?"
Soul fought the blood rising to his face. Her warm palm fit perfectly to the spaces in his hand and the proud smile on her soft lips. The lips he'd kissed earlier. "Yeah. You can rest easy now, Rose."
"Master Soul?" Rose choked out and tears fell from her eyes. She grasped Maka's free hand and looked at the two of them. "Thank you. Thank you so much for saving her. I owe our lives to you."
"Please, we're just doing our job." The meister replied, blush blooming in her cheeks. "And I know, you wanted to see Soul. He's here now. So, I'll leave you to talk."
"What?" He blinked as if waking up from a trance. Rose wanted to talk to him? Such coincidence. After the fight with the Sirens, he wanted to contact them too but since his control over the black blood began to worsen, he couldn't risk it. Only Maka's presence calmed the turbulence in his soul.
"It's okay. It would be more proper to talk about it in Death City." The woman replied. "If it's alright with you?"
If she'd wait to come to Death City, it would give him more time to restraint the black blood without relying on Maka's wavelength. Then, he wouldn't worry about the sudden bouts of insanity flaring.
"It is."
Maka told him about the staff's mess when they left the building. He was so furious at them for endangering Ivelle that he lost his cool and they had to land on some rocky outcrops.
"Sorry," he sighed then sat beside her. His anger didn't disappear but he collected himself.
"No, it's okay." She dangled her feet on the air, staring at the setting sun.
They stayed like that for a while, watching the ridiculous sun turn sleepy as the colors of the sky turned from a vibrant blue to a mix of pink, oranges, red and lilacs. Their fingers interlaced without a word. The comfortable silence they lost before somehow made its way back to them.
"Soul, I've been thinking…" Maka said.
He raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?"
She fiddled at the frayed edges of her skirt and looked at anywhere but him. Blood rose to her neck and face. "Kidd and I talked and… he made me realize something. I mean, I know what I had to do but I'm too scared to mess up. I don't want to regret it later."
His blood ran cold. The memory of them hugging earlier resurfaced and he fought to keep his face and emotions placid. A hard feat considering she could literally see whatever he felt with just a glance. He inadvertently drowned her out while focusing on his soul.
She sighed and he couldn't tell whether it was from contentment or frustration. But judging from her amused face, it must've been the former. Hurt cut through his chest. His throat tightened. It took all of his will to appear happy for her.
Acid churned at his stomach. His lungs constricted, making it harder for him to breath. The surroundings spun. Everything seemed like a joke. Just when he thought they were good and he had a chance, it turned out to be a fluke.
"Close your eyes, Soul." Her voice brought him back to the present. The early stars twinkled behind her.
He swallowed then listened to her. It would be best for her not to see the turmoil in his face.
Small, warm hands covered his ears. "Can you hear me now?"
Her words was muffled but he can hear her. And feel her breath fanning across his face. Goodness, she'd be the death of him. Hurt, confusion and thrill raced in his heart. It hammered against his chest, threatening to explode.
"I need to do this right. So, I need to know. Do you still like me?" She asked, doubt creeping in her voice.
He opened his eyes and stared at her. The wind blew her hair to the side and she used it to hide from him. Removing her hands, he held it in front of his chest. Death knew, he wanted her to be happy. Still, he wanted her to know his real feelings. Call him selfish but he decided to tell her the truth.
"Maka, ever since the day I chased after you as you ran to the supposed witch in a random alley, I knew in my heart I've fallen in love with you." He took a risk and placed a peck on her knuckles. The blush coloring her face looked adorable and it pained him to think he wouldn't be able to get that reaction from her anymore.
"What I said before we delved was true. And even if we rarely saw each other because of my episodes, my feelings for you wouldn't change."
"Soul…" her emerald eyes shone with unreadable emotions.
"I'll support you even if you like someone else so don't feel bad. What's more important to me is that you're happy."
She rose and he followed. They stood at the edge of the outcrop looking at each other. He hoped it reached her. His love for her and plea not to be pitied. To put her happiness first.
One step. Two steps. Maka crossed the space between them. Determination and hope was evident on her rosy face. Reaching out, she grabbed the lapel of his jacket and buried her face into his shirt. "You're the one I love, stupid."
He stood frozen for a minute, her words still processing into his mind. When realization sank, his brain almost short-circuited then. She loved him. Him. Not Kidd nor anyone else. HIM. His feelings were requited.
Blood rushed to his face and he hid into her hair to take a moment and recollect himself. Boy, was he glad they were in the middle of nowhere because he didn't know if he could stop himself from grinning like a fool for the next hour or so.
"I feel like I can finally breathe. You have no idea how hurt I was when I thought you've already moved on." She spoke into his chest, clutching him tighter.
He knew the feeling all too well. Despite his bold words earlier, his heart shattered into pieces just with the thought of her being with someone else even if it's their friend. The idea of losing her forever was terrifying.
Pulling away, he tucked a stray hair behind her ears. "I can't move on from you even if I want to. Your melody lives inside my soul. It's both madness and cathartic to constantly feel your wavelength dancing with mine."
She stared up at him in wonder. The setting sun turned her hair and skin into molten gold. Her expression turned shy and she covered half of her face, looking at the side. "I'm always reaching out to you, aren't I? But you're the same. I can feel you searching for me no matter where you are."
"Because I love you."
When she looked up, he found himself drawn into her. Like a moth into flames. Warmth spread within his chest. Blood pounded on his ears. He cupped her face then brought his face close to her until they're inches apart.
His eyes searched hers for permission. For consent to continue because he wouldn't force her to do something she's not comfortable with.
Maka stood on her tiptoes and closed the gap. Time stopped. Butterflies came alive in his stomach. The scent of sun in her skin filled his nose. Her fingers rested tentatively to his shoulders. His hands trembled. It was addicting. The way her soft lips melded into his. Something inside him clicked. Like the final piece of a puzzle and he feared, he wouldn't be able to live without her now.
They pulled apart to breathe. He opened his eyes to watch her, though he had no recollection of closing it before. She looked up at him through half-lidded gaze, smiling in contentment.
He leaned his forehead against hers, breathing her in. Burning the memory into the deepest part of his soul where nothing could take it away. For a moment, they just gazed at each other. Her fingers brushed against his lips and he swallowed the desire to kiss her again.
She pressed a kiss into his cheek and held his hand. "Shall we go back?"
Soul wanted to stay there a little longer. He wanted to cherish the moment with her but he knew they still had to report back to Kidd. Their separate responsibilities waited for them. Yet, all he wanted to do was be with her.
"Only after you answer my question."
Her eyebrows quirked up. "What question?"
"Will you go out with me?"
"You're a little late but, yes. I'd love to."
They flew back to Death City to report and it wasn't until late into the night that he realized the insanity in his blood became calm again for the first time in months. Soul wracked his brain to remember the exact moment it stabilized.
He almost choked on air when he recalled the furious meister yanking him close to kiss him. Yeah. It was at that time. No doubt about it.
Author's Note:
Hello, everyone! I just want to take this opportunity to thank you all for reading Ricorda. Thank you for all the follow, favorites and reviews you've left on this work. Reading your reviews never fails to make me happy. My heart is always filled with so much joy and gratefulness whenever I see notifications from FanFiction because I know, someone likes my story.
You mean so much to me, my dear readers! So, stay safe always. Love lots! 3
ir0ny-walking