Chapter 22: Karen is… nice?
I didn't feel like going to class. I just wanted to stay on bed all day and dream of a better life in which the shiny rod didn't exist and my life isn't a complicated mess, and I can just hang out with Croix without a care in the world.
But of course, that wasn't happening.
I had classes to attend, six stupid words to find and a friend to reconcile with.
Thankfully, after yesterday's events Croix no longer hates my guts, but… she was still distant. And her eyes hardened every time she saw the shiny rod, which was the reason I ended up burying it under a pile of dirty clothes, promising myself to only grab it if I was alone or Croix specifically asked for it.
Maybe, just maybe, we will be able to fix the cracks in our friendship. Or so I hope.
For now though, I have other things to worry about. Like the endless Numerology class, or the deadly boring Magical Languages class, or the many other stupid classes I have to sit through during the day and that I had definitely not missed during Samhain break. Like, seriously, just one week is not enough! After all I went through I deserved a whole month of vacations! … Although I don't think I could survive all that time by myself. After just a few days I was already going crazy!
But anyways, point is, by the time classes end for the day, all I can do is drop down on my bed and mope because I'm tired, frustrated, and I haven't seen Croix since yesterday. Like she's avoiding me.
Ugh! Why did this stupid rod have to choose me?
Subconsciously, I let my hand drop from the mattress and search under the bed until I come across a metallic object. Like I've been doing ever since I got it, I raise it above me as I lay on my back, practically having a staring contest with it. Like, sure, it's been a huge help when it comes to my spectacles; it proved as much yesterday, but… I just wished the whole seven words quest didn't come with it. Like, not only do I have the entire fate of the magical world on my shoulders, but now things with Croix has been awkward as ever! And for what? Just because of this shiny, stupid thing!
"What's that?" I startle out of my contemplations once I hear my roommate's voice, and I let go of the rod involuntarily, which of course makes it fall onto my face.
"Ow!" I exclaim, rubbing my forehead. Gosh, how does it hurt! The rod sure is heavy. I wonder how many neurons I lost right now? It's not like I have many to spare.
"Chariot? Are you okay?" She asks, coming to stand next to my bed.
"Y-yeah… yeah, this is nothing." I lie, faking a smile and finally looking up at Karen, who has a rather skeptical stare.
"Okay. If you say so." She says at the end, her eyes deviating again towards the rod that's fallen down next to me. "Anyways, where did you get that staff? It looks… important."
"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me." I simply answer, sitting up even at the risk of getting dizzy. I just don't like looking up at Karen from so far down.
"Probably." She admits, smiling… though she doesn't seem to be mocking me. Yet. "But I'm still curious as to what your answer would be."
"It's the rod of seven stars." I shrug, already expecting her to laugh on my face. "Claiomh Solais. The first wand. The rod that belonged to Woodward."
"… Now I see why you said I wouldn't believe you." She says, raising an eyebrow.
"Told you." Well, at least she isn't laughing.
"Why would you have such a thing anyways?"
"I don't know." I answer honestly, deflating a bit. I've been meaning to talk with someone about this for a while and, even though Karen wouldn't normally be my first option, there's no one else here, so… "It chose me for some reason, even if it should have chosen Croix instead. And now I have to revive seven ancient spells and break the seal of the Grand Triskelion, or whatever." I groan, venting out my frustrations on her. "Not by choice, obviously."
"Sounds like you have too much on your plate." She says, and I have to agree with a little defeated hum. "And I doubt you have made much progress, correct?"
"Well, at least I can use it now." I answer defensively, glaring at Karen as if daring her to make another one of her mean comments. "But when it comes to the words… no such luck." I then admit with a grimace.
Why am I opening up to my most hated roommate? I don't really know. Maybe I'm a bit lonely, maybe I need someone to talk to, and maybe she's the smartest person I know aside from Croix. So, perhaps a part of me is hoping she'll help me, but I'm too proud to ask. And she probably won't do it willingly.
"I see…" She trails off, looking to the side, frowning as if considering something, and then her eyes land again on the rod, a thoughtful expression clear in her features. "Have you tried summoning the rod's spirit? I mean, if it really is as ancient as you say, it must have one living inside it."
"How would that help me?" I ask , staring at Karen with newfound interest.
"Well, if there really is a spirit in there, maybe it knows how to unlock the seven words, and could therefore tell you about it."
… Well, that's actually not a bad idea. I'm surprised I didn't think of it before, really. There's only one little problem.
"I don't know how to talk to spirits. Or even summon them, for that matter."
"I could try it." She immediately offers, surprising us both. Then, she coughs and looks to the side, trying to appear disinterested. "I mean, I don't have anything better to do right now, and it would be irresponsible to just leave such an important task in your hands, so…"
"Okay?" Did Karen really just offer to help me? Am I in a parallel universe or something? But then again, I can't let an opportunity like this pass, right?
"Good. Come on, let's go somewhere secluded and with more spiritual energy. That will help with the process."
We end up at the top of the New Moon tower, just under the Sorcerer's stone. We are sitting cross legged in front of each other, while the rod is just lying there between us; inanimate and silent as always.
"Turuto estida!" Karen says once more. She's been casting the same spell for several minutes now, trying different pronunciations and wand movements, but nothing seems to work and, honestly? I'm starting to lose hope. "Ugh! It's useless!" She exclaims, frustrated. "But I don't understand, this thing is old. It's spirit really should be answering by now."
"And… is there no other spell?" I ask, but of course, Karen just rolls her eyes at this, probably exasperated at my lack of knowledge, though she does take a moment to explain.
"Turuto estida is the most powerful communication spell there is, being able to summon even the most ancient and powerful spirits." Her eyes deviate to the rod, glaring at it in frustration. "So, you see, I could use Turuto tarumare or any other spell, and there would still be no results."
I just pout in protest to the condescending tone she used but decide against saying anything. After all, she's out here helping me even if I didn't ask, so I should be grateful, right?
Now, I know Karen isn't exactly an expert when it comes to this type of magic, but I have seen her use this spell a couple of times, and exchange a few words with the spirits. Plus, she's the best of our class and I'm just a dunce, so I really, really, should just keep my mouth shut, but…
"Maybe it just won't work if you do it." I say before I can stop myself. At this, Karen shoots me a death glare that actually makes me cringe. Ugh, why do her green eyes have to be so scary?!
"Excuse me?!"
"I… i-it's just…" I swallow, searching for the right words as to not offend her even more. "It's no ordinary object, right? It specifically chose me, so maybe it will only be able to connect with it's owner."
Karen looks to the side, thinking, before a grimace appears on her face, like she just swallowed a particularly awful-tasting thing.
"That… that would make sense. I guess." She admits reluctantly. "Unfortunately, you don't know the spell and you also don't know how to talk to spirits, so that means this whole thing was a big waste of time."
"Oh, come on! I've gotten better at spells." I protest.
"Yeah, but that's not saying much." I pout at her mean comment, but otherwise decide to ignore her and continue on explaining my idea.
"It can't be that hard, right? And once I summon the spirit maybe you'll be able to talk to it."
"I mean… I guess it's worth a try." She shrugs. "I doubt anything will come out of it though."
"Great! So… what was the spell again?" I ask sheepishly, only to earn an exasperated sigh and an eye-roll from my roommate.
"Turuto estida. And you have to be very concentrated and calm for it to work, so… this may take a few tries."
"Right, right." I close my eyes and ready my wand, trying to concentrate solely on the rod that's in front of me; on the connection we have. On my heart, and my love for magic. Like I always do while practicing with this thing. And surprisingly, even if I'm not touching it, I feel it react to me somewhat. Like there's some sort of force responding to my thoughts.
Then, I cast the spell.
"Turuto estida."
Instantly, I start hearing something. Like a whisper. More accurately, many whispers. A chorus. But I can't understand what those voices are saying! I then open my eyes, and find Karen looking at me with a bored expression, not at all disturbed by the voices.
"I told you it wouldn't work the first time. Try again." She says.
"But… don't you hear them?" Even as I speak, the whispers intensify, making it difficult to even hear myself.
"Hear what?" She asks, confused.
"The voices! They… they're coming from…" I look at the rod, which surprisingly isn't lit, and the whispers grow in volume and number. It's like they're encouraging me to get closer, to… to touch it.
Before I can really comprehend what's going on, my hand has already extended on its own to reach for the rod, and as soon as my fingers come into contact with the cold metal…
I see Woodward, when she was alive, wielding some sort of axe. I see the base of the New Moon tower. I see some sort of cave, and then many flashes of things that pass too quickly for me to really distinguish anything. And finally… a full moon.
I gasp as the last vision ends. I'm still sitting under the Sorcerer's stone with Karen, and it doesn't seem like anything has changed, but… what the hell was that?! All those whispers, all those visions… were they because of the spell? But… wasn't there supposed to appear a tiny spirit that would simply speak to Karen? I don't understand!
"Chariot? Are you alright?" Karen asks, somewhat concerned, no doubt noticing my utter confusion.
"Fine! I'm… I'm fine." I quickly answer. "I just… uh…" Then, I proceed to explain everything that happened, which makes her adopt a thoughtful expression.
"I see…" She frowns once I finish my explanation. "I don't think I've ever heard of something like this before, but then again, I doubt the Claiomh Solais works like most other objects."
"So… what now?"
"I think it would be good for you to learn spirit language, so you can at least understand the whispers, in case they're saying something important." I nod slowly. That sounds like a lot of work! But then again, I promised Croix I would get the seven words, and I'm not going to back down at the first inconvenience. "I can teach you, if you want."
My head shoots up in an instant, as I startle at Karen's suggestion. I think my ears are deceiving me, or maybe I'm asleep, or something. There's no way Karen just offered me that much help.
"W-what?" I stutter out.
"I mean, I could give you a few lessons after classes, or on weekends. It's not that hard, really. And, as I said, it'd be irresponsible to just let the whole fate of magic rest on your clumsy shoulders."
I open and close my mouth like a gaping fish for a few seconds, searching for an answer, but all that comes out of my mouth is a question.
"Since when are you so nice to me?"
To my surprise, Karen blushes and looks to the side sheepishly.
"Yes, I know. I've been quite harsh with you this whole time, so this can seem a bit weird." She sighs. "But, we're teammates, we're supposed to help each other, and I have to admit, after getting to know you more… you're not that bad."
"What?!" Okay, so I'm still in shock by what she's saying. My mind hasn't quite processed what's happening.
"What I'm trying to say, Chariot, is… I underestimated you. At the broom race you proved you were a capable witch, then in classes you… you've been doing better, somewhat, all thanks to Croix. And also at the Samhain Festival you actually helped decorate the statue instead of being lazy or blowing everything up. So… yeah, I appreciate all the effort you're putting and I… I will try to be a little bit nicer in the future." She shoots me a tiny smile to finish off her little speech, but I still feel weird at hearing so many nice things come out of Karen's mouth. All directed to me, nonetheless!
"So… we're friends now?" I ask hesitantly.
"Don't push it." She immediately makes a face. "Acquaintances?" She extends her hand, like a peace offering.
"Sure." I grab her hand.
Akko left soon after Ursula finished telling her the little story of the day. The original plan had been that she would teach her Numerology afterwards, but soon after Diana had come saying Finnelan needed the Astrology professor for something, and she herself was going to tutor Akko that day instead.
Of course, when Ursula arrived, she found a very confused Finnelan who had no idea what she was talking about. She had a very strong suspicion as to who was behind the whole ordeal (cough, Amanda, cough), but decided to say nothing, as she was sure whoever had planned it had the best intentions in mind, since it would definitely do Akko some good to spend more time with the Cavendish heir, not just for her grades, but also (hopefully) her obvious attraction for the girl.
But anyways, now she had all afternoon practically free. So, after exercising, taking a shower and having dinner, Ursula decided to call Croix.
And yes, her stomach still turned in nervousness every time she pressed that stupid call button as she fumbled with her sweaty hands. She seriously doubted the nervousness would ever get away. Even back when they were girlfriends she still felt somewhat intimidated whenever she talked to her… or initiated physical contact of any kind.
But now really wasn't the time to be thinking about that! Or else she wouldn't be able to even talk like a functioning human being.
"Hello?"
"Croix!" Her voice came out more like a squeak than anything, so she took a moment to clear her throat and calm down before speaking once more. "H-hey. How have you been? It's been a while."
"I literally called you yesterday." She deadpanned, and Chariot mentally face palmed herself. She had just looked like an idiot, hadn't she? Still, she tried to amend things.
"Y-yeah? Well... It felt like longer."
"Oh?" She could almost hear the smirk through her voice. "Did you really miss me that much? Maybe we should talk more often then, if once a day isn't enough for you anymore." She teased.
"N-no!" She immediately answered. "That's not what I meant!"
"Yeah, should've imagined. Why would you miss someone like me?"
"That's not what I meant either! I-I…" Chariot paused, pinching the bridge of her nose. Geez. This was why she always got nervous when talking to Croix! She inevitably ended up flustered and wishing for Earth to swallow her after saying one-too-many stupid things.
And, as always, she heard a boisterous laugh at the other end of the phone.
"Gosh, this never gets old!"
"Croix!" She screamed with both indignation and embarrassment.
"What? I'm a villain, remember? I'm allowed to have fun." She said rather casually, but before Chariot could chastise her and remind her that she shouldn't say such things around other people, she continued. "And by the way, I did miss you. A lot. I don't think I can do with just phone calls anymore, you know?"
"So what? You want me to… visit you?" She raised an eyebrow. Truth to be told, she had already considered the possibility herself, but between her responsibilities as a teacher and the strict regulations in place at the Witches Prison, she doubted that would be possible in the foreseeable future. Maybe in Summer break. Maybe.
"Nah. That would be very inconvenient for you." She immediately denied, to Chariot's surprise. "Instead, I'd like to visit you."
"What?" Was that even allowed?
"I mean, I know I said I wouldn't return until I found the cure for Wagandea, but… is it even really returning if I just pop by for a quick visit? Or two, or three?" Now, Chariot could imagine Croix's smirk growing with each word she uttered, and the machinations already forming in her mind. Honestly, she had a very bad feeling about this.
"Uhm… would that really be okay? I just don't want you to get into any more trouble."
"If no one finds out, I won't get in trouble." She easily replied, much to the redhead's frustration.
"Croix…"
"Listen, it would be just a quick visit. Five minutes. No one will even notice." She kept arguing.
"But how would you even do that?" She tried to reason. After all, even if she only stayed in Luna Nova for five minutes, the journey there would take at least a couple of hours, even by broom. And teleportation spells didn't work on such great distances.
"You wanna know?" Croix chuckled, no doubt already anticipating her victory. "All you need to do is put the phone screen-up on a flat surface. I'll do the rest."
Chariot would be lying if she said she wasn't curious. Ever since they were little she had always found Croix's inventions fascinating, even if she never fully understood how they worked. But… it was risky. For both of them. Probably an untested technology too. And yet the benefits... Gosh, she had missed Croix so much, she couldn't deny that, but surely she was a mature, responsible woman who could make rational decisions and-
"Okay." She had agreed before she could fully convince herself how bad of an idea this was.
"Tell me when it's ready."
"Done." Chariot said after placing the phone down on the couch, peering curiously at the screen. Nothing really seemed to be happening though. Had Croix actually heard her? Or maybe it didn't work? Or maybe it was all a prank? Or…
Suddenly, something collided with her head, and she backed away, rubbing the sore spot just above her eyebrows. At the same time, she heard someone else groan in pain though, so she made an effort to open one eye and peer over the other side of the couch… where Croix was now also rubbing her forehead and glaring at her.
"C-Croix?" She breathed out, not believing what her eyes were seeing. Her pain was mostly forgotten too. "Is that really you?" She reached out to touch her, half-expecting her to be just an hologram of sorts, but instead, her hand came into contact with her friend's shoulder, startling her a bit.
"Well, that collision wasn't imaginary, was it?" She spat out, still rubbing her forehead. "What were you doing hovering over the phone anyways?"
"I was just curious." Chariot answered defensively as she got up and went to retrieve her wand from the desk. "Stop being such a crybaby, I'll fix you up in a second. Meiro soruaru."
A green light then appeared under them, instantly fixing their already swelling foreheads and getting rid of the pain. Once that was done, Chariot carefully tucked her wand inside her desk's drawer (not that she didn't trust Croix, but better be safe than sorry) before going to sit next to her friend once more.
"You've gotten better at that spell." Croix complimented. "Guess you had a good teacher." She then smirked, clearly proud of herself. Chariot just rolled her eyes and gave her a little smile.
"I've also had a lot of practice lately." She admitted. "Being Akko's tutor isn't easy, you know?"
"I can imagine." She adopted a teasing smile. "I also got to use that spell a couple hundred times back when we were students."
"Yeah? Well most of those times was after you beat me up."
"Oh, wow. You make me sound like an abusive girlfriend." She pouted, and there was just no way in hell Chariot would ever admit she looked absolutely adorable like that. But gosh, she looked adorable! Still, she decided to tease her a bit more.
"And you weren't?"
"Okay, I'll admit I got carried away a couple of times, but you were the one who wanted to practice combat magic!" She answered defensively.
"You know I'm just kidding, right?" Chariot said, laughing.
"Well…" She deviated her gaze, adopting a somewhat angry and sad expression. "I made so many mistakes in the past, I wouldn't be surprised if that was yet another one I didn't know about."
"Croix…" Chariot took her hand in a comforting gesture. It was almost instinctive, really. Croix was sad, so she comforted her. Just like old times.
"But let's not talk about that, alright?" Croix quickly dismissed the conversation, getting up and starting to pace around Chariot's room. Honestly, she looked kinda out of place now that she was an adult. Taller, more mature, dressed completely in black… it was all just so different now. But Chariot didn't exactly mind. "So… you really got to keep my old lair, huh? It looks weird like this."
"You mean it's not full of technological junk and ramen cups?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah." She chuckled, finally smiling once more as her eyes landed on Chariot. "But I'm surprised you don't even have a bed now."
"I sleep on the couch." She shrugged.
"Oh, yeah. That couch." She then adopted a mischievous expression. "Did you decide to keep it just because it was there where we first fu- ".
Croix wasn't able to finish her question because a hand was suddenly placed over her mouth, and she found a very red-faced Chariot in front of her.
"Croix, please. You know how I've always been about this subject." She pretty much pleaded, her blush going all the way to her ears now.
"You mean the sex subject?" Croix asked after removing Chariot's hand from her mouth. "Come on, we're both adults now! There's nothing to be embarrassed about."
"Croix, please."
"Alright, alright! I'll drop it." She said, lifting up her hands in surrender. "Let's talk about something else instead."
"Thank you." She breathed out in relief. "Anyways why don't you take a seat and tell me how did you get here?"
"Oh, it was quite easy, really." Croix said causally as she threw herself on the couch, with Chariot soon sitting next to her. "I wouldn't want to bore you with the specifics."
"Oh, please tell me." She insisted. "I'm curious as to how you managed to teleport out of a highly secured prison and across half the continent using only a cellphone."
"Heh. It's not the craziest thing I've ever done." She chuckled, but still started telling her everything about how she'd hacked into the prison's security cameras to trick them into thinking she was still in her cell, and how she'd installed a teleportation app in all her smartphones, in case she ever needed it. Since it worked on both magic and technology, the barriers set to prevent teleportation didn't work on it, and distance also wasn't really an issue. She technically could've escaped from prison long ago using just this, but she assured Chariot she wouldn't do it.
All in all, Chariot found herself enjoying the current conversation a lot, even if she didn't fully understand what Croix was saying. It reminded her of the old times, actually; just sitting in the same old couch, listening to Croix ramble for hours and hours until sleep finally caught up with her and she ended up falling asleep. Except this time she made an effort to stay awake, in part because she felt it would be rude, since Croix had escaped from prison just to visit her, but also because… a part of her still didn't fully trust her. And so, she didn't want to leave her alone.
"Chariot?" Croix called, startling her a bit. "Are you still listening? You look like you have something else in your mind."
"It's nothing." She blushed, embarrassed for having been caught not paying attention. "I was just thinking about…" She paused, searching for an excuse, but when she came out dry, she ended up bursting out the first thing that came to mind. "You look good in black." It wasn't really a lie; Croix did look quite pretty even if she was only wearing the black pants and long sleeved black shirt that was the prison's uniform, but then again… Croix always looked good. At least to her.
"W-what?" Croix stuttered, blushing. Just then, Chariot realized that what she said could be interpreted as her making a move, and quickly rushed to rectify the situation.
"Uh, I mean… it's just a compliment, really." She felt as her cheeks burst in flames too as she spoke. "I-I wasn't f-flirting with you, or anything!"
"Uh… okay then. Thank you." She accepted the explanation, much to Chariot's relief. "You look quite beautiful yourself." She then complimented her as well, her blush becoming even more prominent.
Now, Chariot knew she had always been quite beautiful. People reminded her at every turn, especially back when she was Shiny Chariot, but Croix's compliment still made her feel safe-conscious. She was only wearing a pair of red pants and a white t-shirt that was her pajama. And she was also wearing glasses and had her hair combed like her Ursula persona. A look she had chosen precisely because it made her stand out less and appear more sheepish and like a bookworm.
But now she wished she had dressed more like herself and less like Ursula.
"Oh, please!" She blushed and deviated her gaze to the ground. "I looked a lot more beautiful when I was younger."
"I guess that's debatable." Croix answered. "However, I personally think that the time you looked the most beautiful was when you kicked some Noir Dragon's ass."
"But… b-but I was all dirty and battered, and sweaty, and…!"
"And you looked absolutely astounding." She cut her off, giving her a sincere smile that also looked kinda loving. And just… how was Chariot's heart supposed to take that?! She felt like she was going to have a heart attack from how quickly it was pounding against her chest! And her whole body was now practically in fire. Honestly, she could only do one thing under such circumstances.
Chariot buried her hot face between her hands, trying to hide her very prominent blush. She didn't want Croix to see just how much of an effect she still had on her.
"I hate you so much." She muttered as Croix placed an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer.
"You know I only tease you because I love you, right?" She answered with a small giggle. Still, they both froze at her words, tensing once they realized what she'd just implied. Croix even ended up retreating her arm and backing away from Chariot.
"Uh… I meant…" She cleared her throat, deviating her gaze. "I meant that in the most platonic way possible. I wasn't implying that I still have feelings for you, even after all these years. That would be… stupid." She frowned and her shoulders dropped, her mood suddenly turning a lot more somber. "Like, even if that was the case, why would I tell you? There's just no way someone like you could ever love someone like me, right?" She then chuckled, but it was bitter, and her face looked more like she was making a grimace.
"Croix…" Chariot's heart broke a little once she saw her friend's face and realized she probably did indeed believe what she'd just said. But as soon as she tried to reach out and grab her hand, reassure her and tell that she indeed loved her, at least like a friend, Croix got up hastily and grabbed Chariot's phone.
"You know what? I think I should go. I don't want the guards to check my cell and find it empty."
"Croix, wait!" Chariot got up as well and tried to pry the cellphone from her hands, but it was too late.
"Goodnight, Chariot." And with a blinding flash of light, she was gone.
A/N: Unsurprisingly, this time I enjoyed more writting the present scene than the past one lol. And I hope you all liked it as well. And if you did, please leave a review/favorite/follow. It really helps. Anyways, see you in two weeks :)
Thanks to my beta reader moonwatcher13.
