Chapter 21: The girl who cried blood witch.
Chariot narrowed her eyes as the rays of sun penetrated the dark cell that she'd called her home for the past few weeks. Or months? She had long since lost any notion of time, especially because she was pretty sure they were feeding her at irregular intervals on purpose.
She expected one of the usual guards to be the one at the door, bringing a tray of food or a glass of water, but… to her surprise it was none other than Croix herself. She purposely suppressed the somewhat excited feeling that appeared on her stomach at the sight. She had to remember that, no matter what had happened in the past, Croix was still very much a blood witch and the sole heir of Circe herself.
"Nice to see you." She greeted her with a smug expression.
"Let me guess. Another interrogatory?"
"Not really. Mother thinks she might have treated you poorly, and wants me to take you to a… nicer place."
"I… see." She swallowed nervously, watching as Croix liberated her from the chain previously binding her and then helped her up. She couldn't even protest at the contact, as all her energy seemed to be focused at trying (and failing) to decipher if it really was a good thing or not.
"You know, I'd tell you that you have nothing to worry about, but considering that you have refused for weeks to tell Circe the location of the Claiomh Solais, I don't really want to lie." Croix commented almost amusingly as she led her out of the cell.
"She doesn't need to know where it is. Once I have it-"
"What? What will you do?" Croix scoffed, almost exasperated. "I know you, and you're not one of us. Your little act will only get you killed."
"Maybe." She wet her dry lips as she looked down at the floor. Cobblestones with beads of grass growing through the gaps. She knew exactly where she was, but she didn't want to look at the deceitfully beautiful scenery. She didn't want it to lure her into a false sense of calm.
"You don't have to be a hero, you know? I don't care what the hunters told you." Chariot was surprised at Croix's almost worried tone, but she tried not to show any reaction. She knew she couldn't trust anyone. Not even her.
"I know I'm no hero." She sighed dejectedly. "I betrayed my sisters and I'd do it again. A thousand times if I had to."
Croix merely hummed in acknowledgement and the two walked in silence for a few seconds; just listening to the wind passing through the nearby trees. It sure was a big garden, that one.
"You know… Akko isn't taking her time with the Cavendish very well." Croix broke the silence. "I bet things would have gone a lot more smoothly if you had been there to explain everything."
Chariot looked up as if struck by lightning, staring at Croix with wide eyes. She didn't want to believe what her ears had just registered.
"She's with the Cavendish? But she doesn't have magic!"
"Oh, she does." Croix answered, trying to suppress her smirk, but… she just couldn't contain herself. She was almost giddy as she spoke "I gave it to her."
"No! Akko wouldn't…"
"What she doesn't know won't hurt her, right?" She shrugged casually. "And besides, since you weren't there to guide her, there was an open spot for a mentor. Figured I'd take the opportunity."
"She'll never be a blood witch!" She snarled murderously. Seriously, if she wasn't in the center of the mansion property of the most powerful family of blood witches, Chariot would have attacked Croix with no hesitation.
"But she'll never be a witch either." Croix smirked, looking at her with the confidence of someone who knows can't be contradicted. Chariot could only sigh in response.
"Maybe that's for the best."
"I don't think Akko would agree." She said in response.
"Fortunately, she doesn't have a say in it." She answered through gritted teeth.
"Well, fortunately, you don't have a say in what happens to her right now." Croix remarked, kinda expecting an angry shot back, but to her surprise, all she got was tense silence.
"What are you going to do, Croix?" Chariot asked after a pregnant pause. "Will you bring her here? Have you already told your mother about her?" To her surprise, Croix scoffed.
"Please! My mother doesn't even know she exists, and I intend on keeping it that way for now."
"Thank you." She sighed in relief.
"Don't thank me. I won't tell her anything, but it's only a matter of time before she finds out about Akko."
"I know. I'm just hoping I have enough time before then…"
Croix could only smile awkwardly.
"Probably not."
Akko yawned as she sat down at the breakfast table, next to Lotte, watching carefully as Diana went to say something to Hannah and Barbara before the three retired from the dining room. She'd been spying on Diana almost constantly for a week now, and she was on particularly high alert today day. All in preparation for later tonight, when Diana would have a little reunion with the "hunters", which Akko suspected were really blood witches in disguise. Problem was… she knew Diana wouldn't listen to her, or accept her help, so… she was at a loss on what to do.
"Akko?" Lotte called, startling her out of her thoughts.
"Uh?" She blinked, turning to look at her friend.
"I was asking if you'd like some milk."
"Oh! Right. Thank you, Lotte." She answered as she grabbed the offered jar of milk and poured herself a glass.
"Are you okay? You usually start wolfing down food as soon as you sit down." Sucy remarked.
"I'm fine. It's just… Diana…"
"Not again." Amanda groaned from across the table.
"Akko… no offense, but I think Diana can take care of herself." Sucy remarked, and Akko did take offense on it.
"But what if she needs help?!" She argued. "She's too stubborn and she would never admit it, but… I can just sense that something is off."
"So you're still worrying about Cavendish?" Amanda sighed. "You know, if you have a crush on her, you can just admit it."
"Wha- I d-don't…! That's ridiculous!" Akko felt her cheeks burn despite herself. It was probably from embarrassment at the thought, but she knew Amanda would take it as a confirmation, which made her blush even more prominently.
"Oh. You totally do!" Amanda smirked maliciously.
"As if… as if you're one to talk!" Akko tried to defend herself. "You probably have a crush on Hannah!" In response, Amanda laughed sheepishly, but still blushed.
"Well… something like that." She deviated her gaze. "We have a date today."
"What?!" Not gonna lie, she totally wasn't expecting that.
"Yeah… turns out they're airing her favorite movie at a nearby theater. It's some old-school musical, but… she kinda asked me out and I couldn't say no." The usually confident redhead was now a blushing, sheepish mess, and although in other circumstances Akko would have jumped at the opportunity to tease her, she had more pressing things to worry about.
"I see… so I can't count on you for my operation 'save Diana' tonight?"
"What?" She looked at her in confusion.
"Yeah. Tonight is when she'll go see the blood witch, and I was hoping I could convince all of you to help me save her somehow." She explained.
"Yeah… don't count on me." Amanda deadpanned, unsurprisingly. "I ain't cancelling my date just because of your paranoia."
"What about you? Jas, Conz?" She tried to give her friends the biggest puppy dog eyes she could muster.
"Forget it." Sucy was the one who answered. "We already made plans to watch the Triton trilogy tonight."
"Does it have to be tonight?" Akko pretty much whined.
"Yes." Sucy glared at her. "I otherwise have experiments planned for the foreseeable future."
"Constanze too." Stanbot spoke.
"I already made snacks." Jasminka added. "You're welcome to join us if you want."
"Thank you, but… someone has to save Diana."
"And you think you can do it?" Sucy deadpanned.
"I'm at least willing to try!"
"Uhm… I guess I could help you." Lotte said shyly, surprising Akko.
"Really?!" She gasped.
"Didn't you have that Nightfall event?" Sucy interfered. "You know, the one you've been looking forward to for months?"
"It's… not that important…" Lotte tried to smile but even Akko could see it was forced.
"Yeah, just the author finally making an appearance for the first time in almost one hundred years." Sucy deadpanned. "And you're going with Barbara as well."
"With… Barbara?"
"Yeah… turns out she's a Nightfall fan too." Lotte explained. "But… I'm sure she'd rather go with someone else, I mean… she's the one who won the tickets…"
"Lotte." Sucy spoke sternly. "This is ridiculous. You don't have to give up on everything to help Akko in yet another crazy mission. I'm sure she'll be fine."
Upon hearing Sucy, Akko could only sigh. It was true she'd rather have a partner in her mission, and the ever-loyal Lotte was as good of an option as she could hope for, but… maybe Sucy was right. She didn't want to ask too much from her friend; it just wasn't fair.
"Sucy is right. You should go have fun." She faked a smile.
"Are you sure?"
"Y-yeah! I'll just… uhm… I'll talk with Daryl. She might not believe me, but maybe I can convince her to ground Diana somehow." Was that really the best plan she could come up with? Okay… maybe she did need help. "Or… I'll try to contact Croix. She'll know what to do."
"I… fine." Lotte agreed, visibly relieved. "Just promise me that, no matter what, you won't do anything reckless."
"I promise! I'll be as cautious as ever!"
"Right…"
Croix didn't answer her calls. Not that Akko was terribly surprised, honestly, considering that she did appear to be a busy person. In any case… she still left a message explaining the situation with Diana and asking her for help. She didn't expect her to actually come all the way to Weddinburg, of course, but some advice would be nice.
For now… all she could do was talk to Daryl. Ugh. She really wasn't looking forward to that conversation, but… hey, she was already at her study's door. She might as well knock, right?
"Come in." She heard her voice from the other side. Akko then took a deep breath and slowly opened the door, hoping her racing heart couldn't be heard by the other witch.
"H-hi." She squeaked. Daryl merely raised her gaze from the papers in front of her for a second before going back to them.
"If you or your friends need anything, bring it up with Diana. I don't have time to waste on you brats." She said coldly.
"Uhm… actually… I want to talk about Diana." Her hands were sweating like crazy at that point, but she still tried to not show her nervousness.
"What about her?" Still, Daryl wasn't looking at her, but Akko persisted.
"I think she's being fed on by a blood witch." She said it all in one breath, and she wondered if Daryl even understood her, but… judging how she finally looked up at her with a skeptical expression, it was safe to assume that she did.
"The Cavendish state is one of the safest places on Earth. No blood witch would dare attack us."
"Didn't Diana's mom just die because of a blood witch?" Akko couldn't help pointing out the obvious.
"My sister's death was… an unfortunate incident. She was reckless and she knew the risks, but I doubt Diana would make the same mistakes."
"But her skin is ice-cold all the time! A-and… and she's seeing someone! Some woman who supposedly is a member of the Rouge Hunters, but I don't believe that for a second." Akko argued.
"The… Rouge Hunters?" Daryl raised an eyebrow, unbelieving.
"Yes! Supposedly she's helping her solve her mother's murder, but I'm convinced she's sucking Diana's blood instead." She tried to be as confident as possible, but it was difficult with Daryl staring at her like she had just grown a second head.
"I'll admit that's unusual." She said after a brief pause, rising Akko's hopes a little. "But I believe I would know if a blood witch was sneaking around right under my nose."
"They're tricksters, right? The blood witch probably knew Diana would try to keep it secret and is relying on that." She pressed, sensing some hesitation in Daryl. "And she gave Diana a gift! Some kind of journal that probably has a spell in it to break the protective barriers and allow her access into the mansion."
"On the other hand, it's quite unusual that Diana didn't see the clues pointing to this woman being a blood witch, and yet you did, is it not?" Daryl shot back with a pensive expression. "So I must believe that she had a reason to let it slide. Some information that we're lacking."
"But are you willing to bet your niece's life on that belief?" Akko argued. "She might be a prodigy, but at the end of the day she's just a girl, and it's your responsibility to protect her."
"Don't come here telling me what I should or shouldn't do." Daryl snapped, pretty much snarling at the girl. "I allowed you to stay to honor my sister's wishes, but I won't tolerate this attitude."
"But you have to help Diana!" Akko was practically shouting at this point. She was never one to stand down. "She's meeting with this witch tonight, and I'm afraid that if we don't act now, later it'll be too late."
"Enough." Daryl stood up, a mean scowl firm on her face. "I believe I've wasted enough time with you."
"But-"
"Out!" Akko glared at her for a few seconds, wearing a defying expression… until Daryl took out her wand. "Get out if you don't want me to turn you into the pathetic sewer rat that you really are."
And with a defeated sigh, Akko had no other option than to turn around and make her way out of the studio. Now she had only one option… and she didn't like it at all.
Slowly and deliberately, Akko opened the door to her and Diana's room. She had wanted to confront her earlier, but she hadn't had the time with all the training she put her through, and now… well, she only had a few minutes before dinner, and something told her Diana was going to skip it.
"H-hey." She squeaked out as she stepped into the room and saw Diana loading a handbag with a bunch of things, obviously in a hurry to go somewhere.
"What do you want?" She asked courtly. "You should be preparing yourself for dinner right now."
"Where are you going?" She avoided the question with one of her own.
"It's a private matter." Finally, Diana grabbed the handbag and hanged it across her shoulder before turning to look directly into Akko's eyes. "Now if you excuse me…" The blonde girl tried to push past her and out of the room, but Akko stood her ground, which earned her a glare from the heiress. "Move."
"I won't move until we discuss the very clear red flags that the supposed hunter you're seeing gives me." She answered, trying to sound firm and commanding, but… it was kinda difficult considering the height difference.
"Oh, so you were spying." She answered with a deadpan look.
"I… listen, I was just worried!" She tried to defend herself. "This whole thing is so suspicious! You can't tell me that you haven't noticed."
"Of course I have." Diana rolled her eyes. "Miriam isn't even subtle… if that's even her real name."
"So… you know?" Akko blinked in surprise. She definitely hadn't been expecting that.
"That she's a blood witch? Yes. In fact, I suspect that she's the one who killed my mother."
"I… what?!" She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Hold on. So… you know that she isn't a hunter, but you're going to see her anyways?"
"I'll admit it's risky, but I'm far more versed in the art of combat that my mother was. I believe I should be able to take her down myself."
"Diana… this is crazy!" She tried to make her see reason, but it seemed like the girl had already made up her mind.
"Sure, for someone like you fighting a blood witch would be an act of suicide, but I'm confident that I can do it, even without help."
"Excuse me?!" Akko exclaimed indignantly. "I'm literally the Chosen One's daughter, you prick!"
"Adoptive daughter." She easily shrugged it off. "Now move. I have places to be."
Well, it was clear Diana didn't care one bit about whatever she had to say. So… it was time to change strategy. Maybe appeal to something Diana held in high esteem? But she only seemed to care about old traditions and the Cavendish honor and all that… wait!
"Diana." Akko spoke slowly, choosing her words carefully. "The Cavendish are healers, right? Didn't you say there's a rule about only using combat magic in self-defense?"
"That's correct." She didn't seem fazed by what Akko was saying.
"Then you can't use it to attack a blood witch just like that!"
"She's been sucking my blood for a few weeks, and is probably going to try and do her final attack tonight. I think using combat magic at this point is more than reasonable."
"Wait… so she has sucked your blood!" She probably shouldn't feel happy about it, but she was just glad she'd recognize the symptoms. "That's why you're always cold, right?"
"Indeed." She nodded. "I'm yet to feel fatigue, however, meaning the blood loss isn't severe yet."
"Then why did she ask you to meet her so soon?" Akko scrunched her eyebrows. Didn't blood witches usually wait until their victims were close to death before carrying out their final attack?
"I've been lying to her for a while about my symptoms; telling her I suspect there's a blood witch in my house and such." She explained. "Last time you likely heard me say that it was probably you."
"Ohh, right." Akko did remember that.
"She thinks I'm in a weakened state and is probably overconfident. As you see, I've thought about this plan thoroughly, so there's no need to worry."
"But… but you still lost blood and magic!" Akko argued. "And she gained your power instead."
"That is unfortunate, yes, but I should be more proficient than her in the use of magic, so everything will go according to plan."
"You're not listening!" Akko was getting desperate at that point. It didn't seem like Diana intended to change her mind despite any arguments she could come up with.
"And you are not moving out of my way." She glared at her. "Aeguil!"
With just a flick of Diana's wand, a serpent made of light seemed to appear out of nowhere and wrap around Akko's body, completely immobilizing her.
"H-hey! What are you-" The serpent tightened around her even more and she could only fall down to the ground gasping for air. It felt like she could barely force down enough oxygen into her lungs if she put all her energy into it.
"I'm sorry, but you are becoming a nuisance." Diana simply said, not appearing apologetic in the slightest. "You probably would come up with some stupid plan to try and stop me, only to injure yourself in the end, so… I'll leave you here until I come back. It's for the best." And with that, she strode past Akko and towards the door.
"Diana! Don't do it! It's incredibly dangerous and stupid! Believe me, I know a few things about those kinds of plans!" She struggled against the serpent's hold on her, but it was no use at all. It just wouldn't bulge. "Diana!"
"Goodbye Akko." She simply said as she closed the door behind her.
A/N: Sorry about the delay, everyone! I got sick, so I couldn't really write for almost a week, but I hope the next chapter will be ready sooner. I'll admit I had a ton of fun writing this one, and the next few will be even better! I hope you will like them as much as I do, and that you leave a review/favorite/follow if you want to show your support. Thanks for reading!
Thanks to my beta reader moonwatcher13.