A Fool's Study into Witchcraft
Chapter 2: Perceptions are changing
"Patra!"
Akko's tiny Persona gestures her hands for the umpteenth time. Comforting light surrounds her fearful patient and snaps her back to reality. The recovered student scans her immediate surroundings, seemingly unable to recall what transpired.
"…That's… the last… one!" Akko pants, using a nearby table to support herself. Sweat rolls down her forehead as she stabilizes her breathing. Her Persona sends her a concerned look before shattering away. "I AM DONE!" she bellows as her eyes begin to grow heavy and her legs struggle to stand tall.
"Good job. That may have been the worst entrance ceremony in this school's history, but at least you took responsibility for the matter and fixed what you caused." Sending the Japanese girl a few more looks of annoyance, Professor Anne Finnelan orders the other teachers to escort the recovered students out of the infirmary, "the headmistress has permitted your continued attendance to this academy, but do not try pushing your luck any further. Are we clear?"
Akko gulps nervously, "Yes, ma'am..."
"Good. I will escort you to your assigned room now. Perhaps tomorrow we can have a discussion about your- Persona is it?- And see where you fit in our curriculum. I, as well as much of our staff, am interested in hearing about the nature of your summons," after a brief pause Professor Finnelan takes a glance at Akko, "you don't look so well though, should I request aid?"
Taking a shaky breath, Akko stands back up and gives the educator another tired smile. "... It's fine, I'll manage... Thanks."
"Alright then, follow me."
As Akko follows the Professor slowly out of the infirmary, she glances at a nearby clock. "Oh man... It took that long?!" She thought.
"128 thou has counted." A voice chuckles wickedly in her mind, "such a tedious task thou art forced to do."
"And whose fault was that!?" Akko tiredly shouts.
Professor Finnelan turned and shot a glare at Akko, "is there a reason for the sudden outburst?"
Akko exhaustingly sighs, "I-I... was just thinking out loud, sorry."
The professor continues on her path and mutters under her breath, "seriously, youth these days..."
"Mental voice, Akko," the voice points out, "remember, my voice is but whispers that others cannot hear. Thou forgets this fact too often."
"Yeah, yeah," Akko thought, annoyed, "but seriously, Aradia. What you did was overkill."
"Wands of aggression were pointed at thee and thine new friends. Be thankful of mine own level headedness," her Persona replies, "the fact they failed to resist such a simple spell however, I find far more concerning. Witches are not as resilient as they were in ages past."
"Duh! They're just normal people! They aren't like us!"
"Thy point still stands. The quality of witches has degraded."
"How are you the Persona closest to my heart again?" Akko sighs.
"Thou hast found the answer to that question already."
"We are here," Professor Finnelan says, interrupting Akko's mental discussion, "this will be your room from now on. Remember to be respectful to your roommates." She opens the dorm room...
… Revealing both Lotte and Sucy relaxing atop their beds in their pajamas. As the three pairs of eyes meet, their minds are filled with nothing but astonishment.
"Be sure to behave and to get along for the next three years." The teacher threatens, "if you don't the school will take very harsh disciplinary measures. I guarantee you all that." she closes the door.
Finally left to their devices, smiles creep their ways onto the girls' faces. "What luck!" Akko exhaustedly mutters out.
"Luck? More like they grouped us up together to keep an eye on us," Sucy deadpans, "But I don't mind. Being roommates with you means easy access for me."
"Yeah!" Lotte says with gratitude, "you saved my life today, Akko! I didn't even get to properly thank you!"
Akko proudly replies back, "no need to thank me, Lotte… As the next Shiny Chariot, it's only natural that I save the helpless..."
With the stress of the day gone and the sight of a warm room with familiar faces, Akko's legs finally give out. Lotte to gasp in shock, quickly rushing to aid the exhausted girl. "W-What's wrong?! Are you okay?!"
"S-Sorry... I'm at my limit... I'm just…really…sleepy..." Akko murmurs, her words quiet and lacking in energy.
"Was it from healing all those students?" Lotte asks. "Just casting spells shouldn't be this tiring, though. Your summon was the one doing all the work, right?"
"... Personas... use energy from me..." Akko answers weakly, allowing Lotte to help her sit down on the bunk bed, "... I've never had to heal so many people... so many times before... I'm completely drained."
"Wait a minute. What Akko just said doesn't make any sense," Sucy lays out in her mind, "witches use magic by drawing magical energy from Ley Lines. Sure, a witch casting a lot of magic will get tired. But the reason she gets tired is because of the activity, not because her spell drains her body's energy."
"So... Your summons, those persona things, cast magic with your own energy?" Sucy asks.
Akko nods.
"That… sounds impossible," Sucy deadpans, "hey, Akko, can you explain it furth-"
Sucy's question is cut short by the sound of rhythmic breathing. The tired girl never even got the chance to change her outfit. She just flopped onto the bed and passed out, face buried in the fluffy, white pillow.
"... They do say stupid people fall sleep faster," Sucy sighs.
"They do?" Lotte asks.
"Hey Lotte," Sucy gestures, "go get Akko's backpack. I want to see what's inside."
"I-Isn't it... rude to touch Akko's stuff without her permission?" Lotte hesitates.
"Now, now. Don't tell me you don't want see what's inside?" Sucy tempts, "don't you want to know more about Akko?"
"W-Well... I do, but…" Lotte answers hesitantly, "…maybe we should wait for her to wake up so she can tell us herself?"
"And what if she doesn't want to tell us?" Sucy tempts once more, "she told us she was a normal girl when she clearly wasn't. If today didn't spiral out of control, we probably would've never even learned about what she can do. What if she has even more skeletons in her closet? Besides, you still need to get your stuff out of there. So what do you say?"
"... O-Okay. I guess," Lotte hesitantly agrees, feeling guilty about the complete disregard of privacy. "But let's help Akko get into bed first. It's the least we can do after what she did for us."
Both girls get up and start undressing the Japanese girl, removing article after article of clothing until they finally remove the coat, revealing something they never would have expected.
Scars littered Akko's skin. Some are faded, most seemingly coming from the general wear and tear of an active life style. But amongst the remnants of small cuts and scrapes, two prominent scars mark her right arm.
"Look at all of these," Sucy examines closer. "I thought she could heal herself?"
"Yeah… she fixed my leg just fine," Lotte wonders.
"Or maybe her... Persona, can't fix scars?" Sucy says as she picks up Akko's right arm, "these ones remind me of botched injections."
"Really?" Realization hits Lotte, "are you suggesting that Akko is on some kind of drugs?"
"Could be. That would explain some of her weird behavior," Sucy grins a bit at the morbidly funny thought of a ragged, disheveled Akko shooting herself up with a cocktail of different chemicals to behave to way she does. "But these scars aren't recent though, they look pretty old."
"I see," Lotte nods as she puts away Akko's clothes. "Just guessing here wouldn't get us anywhere. We can ask her tomorrow if she is willing to tell us."
As Lotte gets Akko under the covers, Sucy eagerly unzips the backpack and begins sifting through its contents. It didn't take long for her to recover all of Lotte's souvenirs, which the Finnish girl happily accepted back. After that, Sucy began her exploration into the depths of the seemingly bottomless backpack.
Digging through the backpack, Sucy grabs the first thing her hand touches. Pulling it out of the bag reveals the hilt of a sword. With a huff Sucy pull the rest of the blade out of the bag, raveling a claymore ¾ of Akko's height. The moment the blade left the bag, the entirety of its weight bared down on the gloomy witch and she struggled to lift it. Unable to carry it entirely, she drops the weapon by the bedside, burying the tip of the sharpened steel into the floorboards.
"I-Is this real!?" Lotte exclaims shaking.
"Judging by the weight and the gash in the floor..." Sucy rubs her sore arms, "yes."
"W-Why does Akko have something like this in her backpack?!" Lotte asks shakily.
"I have a feeling that this is only the beginning," Sucy looks back into the pack, curiosity glinting in her eyes.
Rummaging through the rest of the bag with the help of magic, the girls find a myriad of different weapons. Daggers, katanas, and whips emerged from the mouth of the bag. Spiked clubs, cutlasses and falchions were added to the pile of ever growing weaponry. Battle axes, shields, rapiers, and Japanese paper fans with razor edges joined the arsenal. And perhaps the most shocking and absurd of them all, guns, actual guns, now littered the floor. The guns alone were enough to arm a small militia. But with the amount and variety of bladed implements at her disposal, Akko looked ready for an all-out war.
"W-Well..." Sucy stammers as even she begins to lose her cool, "who would have thought she liked collecting weapons? I expected Shiny Chariot merchandise or something."
Lotte timidly examines one of the guns, a masterfully crafted revolver that looks like it is ripped straight out of a Western fantasy. She sighs in relief as she checks the chambers. "These guns aren't loaded. Thank goodness... but still..."
They continue rummaging through the pack, seemingly having emptied Akko's entire stockpile of weapons. And now they have seem to stumbled into the girl's stockpile of medical supplies. Bandages, syringes, a myriad of different medicines, sutures, and other miscellaneous medical supplies emerge from the pack. Why Akko has enough medicine to supply a small clinic is beyond them. Investigating the never ending void that Akko calls a backpack further, Sucy finds a bag filled with small rocks. Each stone within is marked with archaic green symbols. Both witches can feel thrums of power emitting from each and every stone.
"Are these... Magic Stones?" Sucy stares in disbelief.
"Magic stones?" Lotte asks, "how did she get her hands on so many of them?"
"Exactly," Sucy growled in annoyance, "these are supposed to be super rare and expensive outside of certain areas."
They continue on, searching for any other insane and extravagant things that may have found their way inside. They found talismans and voodoo dolls, Sucy quickly realizing these are just cheap imitations rather than the ones used by actual witches. They found tons of books written in Japanese, which neither of them could read, and judging by the cover, probably too difficult for the likes of Akko. They found a myriad of precious gems, all of different shapes and sizes, colors and luster. Lotte was at a loss for words when they stumbled upon a ruby the size of her fist. They were also items they couldn't identify, like a red mirror with words scrawled all over its surface. Both girls had no idea what it could possibly be for.
"Enough," Lotte grabs Sucy's outstretched hand, stopping the gloomy witch from pulling anything more from the bag, "if you pull anymore out, our room will run of space!"
"One more, and we'll stop," Sucy replies as she pulls out... a strange looking feather. "This is...!" Sucy begin sniffing it like a mad dog.
"What is it?" Lotte asks, her eyes widen as she realizes what the object is. "Is that feather special?!"
"This is… incredible!" Sucy storms to her desk in a hurry. Quickly prepping her chemistry equipment. The girl begins experimenting on the unknown object.
"What are you doing, Sucy?" Lotte asks.
"..." Sucy did not reply. Completely and utterly burying herself in her work.
Lotte looks at Akko's sleeping form from across the room, muttering 'shiny chariot' repeatedly under her breath. She sighs. "...I'll clean up this mess, I suppose. It'll be bad if any of the teachers see this."
As Lotte began packing Akko's belongings using levitation magic, an idea sparks in her mind. "Oh, I know! Let's try this. This will surely tell me something."
With her ability to draw out the spirits of ancient items, Lotte casts a spell in an attempt to commune with the spirit of Akko's backpack. Holding her wand above the backpack, she began to sing, "la la la la..."
Nothing happens.
Lotte sighs in disappointment, "it's too new it seems. That's unfortunate..."
As she continues putting Akko's things back in where they belong, she would occasionally tries the spell on other objects. But much to her surprise, not a single object she tested had a spirit she could talk to. Not even any of the older looking items.
"That's strange. That backpack I can understand, but why doesn't this ancient looking sword have a spirit?" Lotte scratches her head.
This piqued the Finnish girl's curiosity, but she was far too tired to dwell on the issue. After packing up the last of Akko's belongings, she bids good night to Sucy, who just waves, and goes up to the top bunk of the bed.
The gloomy witch continues to experiment into the night.
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Akko's eyes slowly open as the gentle, elegant melody of a piano, followed by the near angelic singing of a disembodied voice, fills her ears. The soothing aria stirs the girl into consciousness as she take a hazy look at her surroundings. Akko's eyes snap completely open as her mind comes into focus, realizing that she is no longer in her dorm room, but rather standing behind a podium in a large courtroom tinted from top to bottom in a peculiar shade of blue.
"Eh... EHHHHHH?!" Grabbing the edges of the wooden podium before her, the girl cries out in disbelief, "How did I end up in here?!"
The atmosphere of the room, with the color scheme and disembodied music, is alien yet somehow calming. Dead center of the room in front of Akko's podium, fire; the very same flames that accompany her personas when summoned, springs from a bonfire, its blue light illuminating the room in azure hues. Multiple cages of cold steel hang from the ceiling, suspended by long iron chains. Jury stands loom over the girl, their seats void of life. A fair bit behind the fire, seated high on the judge's stand, is the strangest looking man Akko has ever seen.
His appearance is unnerving to say the least. The man is old, thin and lanky, donning a black business suit with a white undershirt and black tie. His head is round and balding, white hair congregating at the back. His wide, bloodshot eyes focus on Akko unmoving and unblinking. His ears are pointed and long, his nose sharp and elongated, and a wide, unchanging grin stretches across his face, reaching from ear to ear.
"Welcome, Accused, to the Velvet Room," the strange man greets in Japanese. "My name is Igor. I am delighted to make your acquaintance."
Akko settles herself and bows. "...Nice to meet you, Igor-san," she politely replies, "my name is Kagari Atsuko. Can you tell me how I ended up here?"
Footsteps echo throughout the room as a small girl enters the room. She appears about twelve, maybe thirteen, her height barely reaching to Akko's chest. Long, platinum hair cascades down the girls back. Her outfit consisted of a blue dress reminiscent with black accents, black long-sleeved gloves, black shoes and white knee high socks. A blue headband with white butterflies and yellow flowers adorns her head. A massive blue tome that is certainly too big for her is tucked underneath her arm; the title reading 'Le Grimoire". The newly arrived girl came face to face with Akko, looking dead at her with brilliant golden eyes filled with authority.
"Do not be alarmed, the you in reality is currently fast asleep," she answers, "you are only experiencing this as a dream."
"Oh right... I fell asleep after using so much energy..." Akko mutters, "but still, where exactly is this… Velvet Room?"
"This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter," Igor answers. "It is a room that only those who are bound by a "contract" may enter..."
"Contract...?"
A blue butterfly appears out of nowhere and lands on the wooden podium, in front of Akko. Closing its glass-like wings, it patiently waits. The girl's eyes widen immediately upon recognition.
"That was the butterfly that saved me and awaked Aradia!" the Japanese girl exclaims. "It was you all along, Igor-san? Thank you so much!" she happily bows.
The young girl beside her shakes her head. "Your gratitude is misguided. Master Igor is not the one that granted you the power of the Wild Card. He and I merely aid those with that power on their journey."
"I see. But still, if you know who granted me this power. Please tell them that I couldn't be more grateful to them. Eh?..." Akko looks at the girl before her, "I don't know your name yet, sorry."
"My name is Lavenza, and like Master Igor, I am also a resident of the Velvet Room. I have been selected as your attendant to assist and guide you along your journey." Lavenza bows back, "it will be a pleasure working with you from now on."
"Yes! Lavenza-chan! I hope so too! I will be in your care!" Akko reaches out her hand. Lavenza, surprised at Akko's actions, hesitantly but happily shakes it.
"Now that the introduction is over," Igor begins, "allow us to discuss the contents of your contract."
"I understand, Master Igor," Lavenza bows. "The Velvet Trial is now in session!"
"Eh...? EHHHHH?!" Akko's jaw drops as Igor pulls out a judge's gavel and brings it down with a mighty crack. The bonfire rages as the sound echoes through the room. "What am I on trial for!?"
"The crime of Witchcraft of course," Lavenza answers.
"But I'm studying to be a witch! I'll be guilty for sure! I thought they ended witch trials centuries ago?!"
"It is not only you that is on trial, but also witchcraft itself," Lavenza elaborates.
Igor pulls some files out and begin reading. "The case of this trial is "whether Witchcraft is detrimental to humanity". However, with the lack of a defense attorney for the Accused, the court has no other choice but to find the defendant guilty-"
"OBJECTION!" Akko interrupts, her face filled with anger. "Did you even ask me!?"
"I see. So the Accused will take up the role of defender herself, is this correct?" Igor asks, looking down on Akko.
"Yes I will! I don't know why you guys are putting magic on trial, but I will do everything in my power to stop it!" Akko declares.
"The court will allow it then," Igor states, "Kagari Atsuko will now be the defender of both herself and the credibility of witchcraft. In the upcoming journey, the new defender shall establish her bonds as credible testimonies." A loud crack echoes throughout the room as Igor swiftly brings down the gavel once more. "The court is adjourned."
Akko's vision begins to blur...
Lavenza waves goodbye at the fading Akko. "I am sure you are confused. But I assure you, everything will become clear soon. Now, return to the waking world. The evidence you seek will come as your journey marches on."
"'Until we meet again…" Igor also waves his farewell.
Darkness fills Akko's consciousness...
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Akko stirs in discomfort as rays of sun beam down upon her from the window, pulling her from slumber. Weird, she remembered falling asleep with her clothes on. Did her new roommates change her?
Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, Akko looks around her new dorm room. She spots Sucy sitting by the desk and working diligently on some test tubes. The gloomy witch dons a plain white dress, seemingly her pajamas. Her uncovered eye is marred with a heavy black bag, evidence of her pulling an all-nighter.
Light snoring from above makes its way to Akko's ears. Lotte perhaps?
The brunette gets up and scans the room. The room appears to be the same as before she fell asleep, but… why are there gashes in some of the floorboards?
"Good morning Sucy!" Akko greets, resting her legs by the bedside. "Didn't expect you to be a morning person, did you slept well?"
Sucy remains on her seat. Silently put down the test tubes and went still. Without warning, the gloomy witch turns to face the Japanese girl, whipping out a handgun and appointing it directly at Akko.
"S-Sucy?!" Akko throws up her hands. "W-Where did you get that gun!?"
"I should be the one asking you," Sucy says, "this was yours to begin with."
Akko takes a good long look at the weapon before recognition sparks in her eyes. She takes a glance to the side and catches her backpack at the corner of her vision. "You went through my backpack!"
"Lotte wanted her souvenirs back and you weren't waking up anytime soon. It was only natural," Sucy answers tiredly. "And imagine our shock when we saw just what kind of stuff was inside your backpack," her visible eye narrows. "I would like a little explanation on how you get those, and this." She shows Akko the object she has been studying on all night.
"Oh that? What about it? That should be junk," Akko answers after looking closer.
"Yeah, like I'm going believe an feather, coated with a kind of poison I have never seen before, is junk," Sucy deadpans.
Akko's expression is confused, "it's not junk?"
"Just tell me where you got this from," Sucy deadpans.
"Alright, let me think…" The memory hits her, "Oh, I remember! I got it from those annoying things. What were they called again... Zhen?
"Zhen-" Sucy suddenly jumps out of her chair, shocked. "As in ZhènNiǎo?!"
"Yeah, I think, what about it? Those are just annoying Shadows. I've fought hundreds of them back when- Oh no." She swiftly covers her mouth.
"What did you mean you fought hundreds of them?!" Sucy asks, lack of sleep and the rising curiosity letting her emotions slip a bit than she personally would've liked, "ZhènNiǎo, a Chinese bird said to only exist in legend. It is said to produce a powerful poison mixed from the viper heads it eats. A poison so legendary that comparing it to that of a cockatrice's would be like comparing diamonds to coal. Poison collectors across the globe consider it nothing more than myth because no one ever found the bird!"
"It is that valuable?!" Akko exclaims. "I had so many parts from them! When I tried to sell them no one would take them. If I had known that I wouldn't have thrown most of them out!"
Sucy just stares at Akko, "You. What."
"Heh heh... I opened another can of worms didn't I...?" Akko laughs awkwardly.
Lotte, woken up by the commotion, puts on her glasses and looks down at them from the top bunk. "... Am I interrupting something?"
"Nothing much, just got Akko to spill the beans. Want to hear about it?"
"Sure, just let me come down first."
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An uncomfortable emotion settles over Akko. The stares both Lotte and Sucy sent her way made her feel like she was on trial. Maybe that's what her strange dream was, a prediction of her future.
"So... Where should I start?" Akko says airily, "there are a lot of things to go over and I don't think we have enough time before classes start."
"Just give us a summary. Let's start with your summons," Sucy asks tiredly. "Last night, you said that using them uses your own energy. Witches and magical creatures draw magic from the Ley Lines or things that store it like the Sorcerer's Stone. So what you said, about your summons drawing energy from within you, just doesn't make any sense."
Akko raises an eyebrow, "that's how magic works? I really thought it would work like how my Personas do..."
"You wish. If we could use our own reserves then we wouldn't need to pull battery in our wand," Sucy rolls her eye.
"Huh, I guess Aradia was right then..." Akko blinks.
"Aradia is that scary witch right…?" Lotte asks. "She can talk?"
"Yeah. You don't remember? I argued with her a lot yesterday, Lotte," Akko raises an eyebrow.
"But I didn't hear anything aside from chuckling..."
Akko frowns. "Only I can hear my own Persona speak. A Persona is the manifestation of my ego. They're masks I wear to protect myself against the world," she puts her hands on her chest. "At least, that was how Aradia explained it to me when I first summoned her, anyway."
"That... doesn't make any sense," Sucy deadpans.
"Hehe. I personally still don't quite get it either, if it makes you feel better," Akko laughs. "To put it simply I guess, they are things I can summon from my heart. They can cast spells and perform magic even though I can't yet. They use my own power rather than magic from the Ley Lines. Although being near a Ley Line allows me to bring them out much easier. "
"Alright, we'll take that explanation for now, even though it didn't make any sense," Sucy sighs. "How do you get a Persona then?"
Akko flinched and began to rub her arm. Her question must have hit a sore topic if Akko's reaction was anything to go by. "I-I don't like talking about it. Let's just say something bad happened and I summoned Aradia out of desperation."
"How bad was it that you don't want to talk about it...?" Lotte asks with worry. "Does it have something to do with your scars?"
"... Yeah. If I hadn't awoken Aradia back then I wouldn't even be here, let alone meet the two of you. S-so can we just change the subject? I really don't want to talk about it!" Akko grimaces. Whatever happened, she clearly didn't want anyone to know, so the girls decided to drop it.
"Fine," Sucy nods. "What about your backpack and all the things in it?" Her eyes narrow, "Is it related to this 'cognitive world' thing you were blabbering on yesterday?"
"You remember that?!" Akko exclaims. Sighing she reluctantly replies, "... yes."
"Cognitive… as in peoples' minds?" Lotte ponders, "how is that a… world? I've heard of complex spells that let witches link their mind with others, but physically entering it? Is that even possible?"
"I don't think I should explain further," Akko sighs. "The Cognitive World is a very dangerous place. I wouldn't want either of you getting hurt. Besides, people without a Persona can't enter it anyway."
Sucy closes her eyes, evaluating Akko's words. "So you're saying that there is a place that not even the magical world knows about and only you can enter? Where you can get all kinds of stuff for free?"
"Well... I wouldn't say free but yeah pretty much, if you discount the danger that is."
"Take me there."
"Eh?!" Akko exclaims, "but I just said...!"
"We wouldn't know unless we try." Sucy points out.
"Why do you want to come so badly though?" Akko asks.
"Why else, I am a poison collector," the gloomy witch maliciously grins, "I will go anywhere and do anything if there are new poisons to collect. Being able to get my hands on a supply of ZhènNiǎo's poison will boost my reputation amongst the other collectors. Hehehe..!" Her chuckles sent chills down Akko's spine, recalling yesterday.
"I also want to come…" Lotte whispers, raising her hand timidly.
"Lotte! You too?! Why?!"
"Think about it," Lotte explains, "a bunch of students running headfirst into the unknown and having thrilling adventures, with teachers and students none the wiser about what's happening. It's just like a novel." Lotte proclaims with stars in her eyes, "i-it sounds like fun, actually."
"Lotte… is it just me or are you are actually weird inside?" Akko remarks, shocked.
Sucy grins as Lotte clasps both of her hands together, staring expectantly at the brunette. Akko sighs in defeat almost immediately. "Fine! I'll think about it next time I go back to the Cognitive World! I can't guarantee anything though!"
"Fine by me," Sucy nods.
"Me too," Lotte smiles. "Oh, Akko. I have another question. May I?"
"Sure."
"Since you already have your Personas, why did you even bother attending Luna Nova in the first place?" Lotte asks, "you have a power that the magical world hasn't even heard of. You want to be the next Shiny Chariot right? Isn't your Persona enough? "
Akko remains silent for a moment.
"... I don't want to rely entirely on my Personas. Shiny Chariot doesn't have this power, or at least I don't think she does. If she did then she hasn't used it in any of her shows. She went to this school and became a witch legitimately, so I want to do the same."
Hearing that made Sucy and Lotte look at Akko in a whole new light.
"Beside! If I tried to perform with Aradia she'd just scare away everyone! How can I be the new Chariot if my audience all runs away crying?! That and the fact that Persona magic has one tiny problem."
"There is?" Lotte asks.
Akko frowns. "So far all the Persona magic I've seen, aside from the healing ones, are offensive. Its only recently I managed to achieve anything close to a performance with Aradia that isn't a safety hazard."
"I see. Thank you for telling us, Akko." Lotte turns to look at the clock. "I think we should prepare for class. We wouldn't want to be late after all."
Akko nods as she goes off to search for her uniform.
Her talk with both Lotte and Sucy made her feel like she had truly managed to befriend and connect with them. Perhaps something more will come from this...?
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Carrying a dozen heavy textbooks, Professor Ursula is walking down a hall with Professor Anne Finneran.
"That was unsightly of you. Almost falling asleep while the Headmistress was talking. How disgraceful," the strict teacher complains.
"...I am sorry. I was researching something and didn't get much sleep..." The young teacher apologizes.
"Hmm," Finnelan frowns, "anyway, about your request. You want to mentor the new student, Kagari Atsuko?"
"Yes," Ursula answers her superior. "I am quite interested in her summons. I would like to study them while also mentoring her in my free time. Most teachers are probably too busy to pay attention to her specifically, so I figured I could be the one to do it."
"How considerate of you. But what makes you think that she needs a tutor?" Finneran asks her. "If she already possesses the ability to summon such incredible spirits, through a method I have never seen before mind you, I doubt she would need a tutor."
Ursula's eyes narrow behind her glasses. "I see, she still hasn't realized the nature of that girl's summons yet."
"Well...! Miss Kagari is the school's first student from Japan after all! From a non-magical family no less! I just thought that I could help her get used to the new environment."
"I still don't understand why her profile even has that written. That girl clearly has an aptitude for magic so why did she say otherwise when she applied?" the strict woman wonders. "Still, I personally think you would be better off spending your free time improving your skills as a teacher," she frowns disapprovingly, "you are inexperienced and lack the discipline and dignity a teacher of this school should possess."
"... Thank you for your advice, but I'm sure I can manage doing both," Ursula hiding her annoyance behind a mask of bashfulness.
Her train of thought was shattered when she bumped into a goblin janitor and is sent tumbling forward. Dozens of heavy books are sent flying into the air, all of which Professor Ursula rushes desperately to catch before they all hit the ground.
"Catch her! Slime!"
The sound of shattering glass fills the hall as something wet and slippery breaks the bespectacled educator's fall.
"Professor Ursula! Are you alright?!" The brunette shouts, running to help the fallen woman.
"I-I am fine, Miss Kagari! Thank you," Ursula replies as she climbs to her feet. Glancing down to see what broke her fall, Professor Ursula is met with a mass of green ooze, reminiscent of sludge and grime. The pile of goo begins to move, three holes forming on its surface, creating a face like pattern with red eyes. The creature groans and gurgles before shattering away.
Several students pass them by during the display, equal parts amazed and disgusted by the freshman's summon.
"Hehe. Sorry about Slime. It is a bit gross, but it is the only Persona I have that is, um, soft enough." Akko apologizes as she helps pick up the teacher's scattered books, "You should be more careful!"
Ursula eyes the girl. "Perfect timing," she thought.
"Professor Finnelan, since Miss Kagari is here, do you mind allowing me to talk with her for a bit?"
"V-Very well," The strict teacher says, snapping out of her stupor. "Just remember to meet myself and the Headmistress at Jennifer's Memorial Tree with the research I asked for."
"I understand."
Professor Finneran walks off, leaving Akko and the young teacher. "Do you have a minute Miss Kagari-"
"Atsuko is my given name, but you can call me Akko. Professor Ursula," the Japanese girl corrects. "I don't mind if you got it wrong though, we just met yesterday after all."
"-Akko," The teacher begins, "I want to speak to you quickly in private, do you have some time to spare?"
"Sure," she signals to Sucy and Lotte, "you guys go on ahead. I'll catch up."
"Okay Akko. See you later," Lotte replies as she and Sucy head to class, while Akko and Professor Ursula head off to a secluded hallway.
"So Professor Ursula..." Akko drops her head and bows. "I can't thank you enough for what you did yesterday! If you hadn't helped us, we wouldn't even be here right now!"
The young teacher is a little taken back. "You don't need to thank me really... You are the one who did everything on your own."
"No! If you hadn't told me that spell, I would've never activated Shiny Arc!" Akko replies. "Although... how did you know the incantations to Shiny Chariot's spell?"
Professor Ursula froze, sweat rolling down the back of her neck. "Akko... I-!"
Akko's eyes narrows, "could it be...?" she points a finger at the teacher.
Professor Ursula flinched, expecting the worst-
"ARE YOU ALSO A FAN OF SHINY CHARIOT!?"
"…What?" The teacher asks, astonished.
Akko rushes to grab the teacher's hands and shakes them, her eyes gleaming with pure excitement. "Of course you are! Only a die-hard fan would know the spells written on the limited edition trading cards! Noctu Orfei Aude Fraetor: those were the exact words written on the collector's edition of the Shiny Arc card! How could I have forgotten that yesterday!? I would have chanted it right away!"
"They made limited editions of those things?!"
"Yes! You don't know? I've got all but one of them!"
Backed into a corner by the beaming girl, Professor slowly replies, "yes... Akko. I am a Shiny Chariot fan too..." Just play along Ursula...
"Yay!" Akko throws her arms up and cheers. "It must have been an incredible moment when I found the Shiny Rod, right?! I bet your heart's going all doki doki waku waku!"
The young teacher nervously laughs. "Ahaha, yeah..." an awkward silence settles over the two. "A-Anyway! We can talk about our common interest later, Akko! The reason I wanted to speak with you now is because I want to offer to tutor you during my spare time," The young teacher states.
Akko's eyes beams again, "y-you want to tutor me?!"
"Yes. I read that you were born to a non-magic family from Japan. So, I thought you could use some help getting to know some of the basics," the young teacher explains, "if that is alright with you..."
"O-Of course! I'm just surprised that you would go out of your way to help me. Again..."
"I should be the one saying that. You're the one that surprised everyone yesterday," Ursula points out.
"Hehe... I am so sorry. Originally, I was going hide the fact I have Personas. But that plan went out of the window fast..." Akko blushes. "Oh well, there is not much I can do about it now... but on the bright side, I can use everyone to my heart's content!"
Unknown to Akko, the young teacher's eyes narrow behind her reflective glasses.
"What you summoned... a 'Persona', is it?" Ursula begins, "what kind of magic are they? What you did doesn't match any known summoning magic. Most of the teachers are still puzzled over yesterday's event. And what do you mean you were going to hide them originally?"
"Oh man..." Akko frowns, "I just spent most of the morning explaining to Lotte and Sucy too... Now I have to do it all over again."
"Just give me the short answer, maybe?"
"...No. It will take too long. The short version will just make things even more confusing. I'll have to tell you next time, sorry Professor Ursula..." Akko glances away from Ursula's disappointed face.
"...Very well," Ursula nods, "how about we schedule a meeting? Then you can tell me all about them in private. How about we meet tomorrow in the library around six?"
"Yeah! I'll be sure to bring my card collection so you can have a look at them too! See you later, Professor Ursula!" the girl waves her goodbye and leaves for her class.
Ursula sighs. That talk was exhausting, but for some reason, she feels just a bit more cheerful then she was for almost an entire decade.
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When Akko registered for Luna Nova, she somewhat expected the classes would not be as fun as she would've liked. TV had a knack for making things out to be more what they truly were.
"The Luna Alphabet is an old writing system used by ancient witches..."
But god, which ever one that heard her, she never expected learning about magic to be this boring.
"Save me, Aradia," she mentally pleads.
"How interesting. Thou hast never expected the Luna Alphabet to still be in use," the witch Persona chuckles, "what a hassle. The nine hags of old never once admitted it was a flawed system of writing. Even today, their disciples still insist on using it in the name of tradition."
"Is there a way out of this...?" Akko begs.
"Afraid not. All the spells they teach here are written in this worn-out script it seems."
Akko sighs in defeat. She spares a glance both of her friends and spots Lotte diligently taking notes, but clearly uninterested in the topic. Probably she already knew most of this. Sucy on the other hand is out completely cold, burying her face in her arms and gives herself to the cozy embrace of slumber.
"Akko, I have complete faith in you," Aradia comforts with gentle tone, "thine victory over the English language was a fierce battle of trials and tribulation. Now achieve that feat once more with this outdated dialect! This beast honestly cannot be any worse than thy native tongue of the Land of the Raising Sun."
"... I hate it when you use your happy tone. You're just trying to make me do what you want!"
"Remember, what I do, I do for thy benefit. At any rate, have fun with thy note taking."
A cacophony of chuckles ring out in Akko's mind as she begrudgingly grinds her teeth in annoyance. Sighing, she scribbles down everything Professor Finneran says and writes on the blackboard. Whether she understands the context or not, Aradia is right in that she should at least have it on paper.
The rest of the class went by rather swiftly. The occasional question was asked by the Professor and a few people tried to answer, but eventually no one really cared. Can't blame them; why bother when 90% of all the questions asked by the teacher are answered by the same girl? The apparent genius had the whole "ojou-sama" attitude. She had platinum blonde hair with bright yellow highlights that reminded Akko of fresh lettuce. Whenever she answered a question the entire class would clap in amazement and flattery.
"That girl... that hair... where have I seen her before?" Akko briefly thought before returning to her notes.
The next two classes before lunch were just as bland as the first, except with different subjects. Akko had hoped Fundamentals of Magic Pharmaceutics, aka the potion class, with Professor Lukic, the creepy old witch, would be interesting. All she got was the noxious fumes the woman called breath and a lecture of various different potion ingredients. At least Sucy had fun during that class. Magic Numerology was even worse, with it being essentially the subject Akko hated most, math. The only interesting thing she got out of that class is the ojou-sama correcting Professor Badcock.
They might have been the driest, dullest, and most sleep inducing classes she ever had the displeasure of sitting through, but at least she could feel her Knowledge has increased.
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Akko plops down with her lunch at a table, "I actually remembered all of those! But I still can't believe learning magic can get so... boring!" she sighs.
Both Sucy and Lotte look at the ranting Akko completely deadpanned.
"I don't know what you are expecting then," Sucy remarks, "Lotte, pass me the pepper."
"O-okay," Lotte nods and hands Sucy her spice.
"I don't know... more dreams and miracles and shiny things?! I never would've thought I would rather sit through my old math class more than the last class!"
"But that was Magic Numerology… which is math..." Lotte points out.
"I know! And I just wish it wasn't so boring!" Akko bellows, banging her fist against the table, "my old high school teacher at least tried to make us like math!"
"At least you remembered what the teachers talked about, which is far more than I expected out of you." Sucy remarks, "I was sure that you would've fallen asleep right as the lecture started."
"But Sucy... didn't you fall asleep yourself?" Lotte raises an eyebrow.
Akko sighs and rubs her temples, "my Personas kept me awake. They said that learning all of that would help me with my goal."
"Wow, that's a really handy thing to have. Having voices in your head that give you advice." Lotte says, "I kind of wish I had something like that. I am not very good at numerology myself..."
Akko, barely touching her food, whines, "... Shiny Chariot is amazing. I don't think I can comprehend how she can become such a great witch from those boring lessons."
"You do it with hard work, of course," a voice called out from behind the group. The girl with the lettuce hair walks up to Akko's table, with two more girls trailing behind.
"Oh! Ojou-sama!" Akko responses.
The lettuce haired girl raises an eyebrow, "Ojo...u-sama…?"
"Hey! What did you just call Diana?!" The girl's brown haired sidekick says, "don't you know who you're talking to?! This is Diana Cavendish. Cavendish, as in the famous family of witches! Show some respect!"
"Hannah, please!" The bark blue haired one whispers fearfully, tugging on her friend's sleeve as she avoided looking at Akko, "Don't you remember what happened yesterday?! What if she brings out that... thing again?!"
"Don't worry, Barbara! I won't fall for the same trick twice!"
Akko looks at the two fearful sidekicks. "Oh! You were two of the people affected by Aradia yesterday. I think I remember treating you both," Akko frowns as she rubs the back of her head, "Sorry about what happened. Aradia can get a little... trigger happy," she answers apologetically.
Diana clears her throat, "so Kagari-"
"Kagari is my family name," Akko interrupts politely, "my given name is Atsuko, but you can call me Akko."
"Very well. Akko, then." Diana continues, "Akko, for your information, no one in the magical world acknowledges what Shiny Chariot does as magic."
"What did you just say?" Akko's eyes narrow in anger.
"I said no one in the magical world takes Shiny Chariot seriously. Her display of magic is heavily disapproved of by almost everyone," Diana explains, "because what she did was not proper magic, a mere fabrication of the real thing used to entertain the ignorant masses. Real magic is difficult, and often boring to learn."
"... Then the magical world is wrong then," Akko replies unflinchingly, "how can they say that when her shows were so popular all throughout the world?"
"The same way a flashy movie with no plot can still bring in a lot of viewers," Diana answers, "flashy displays with no substance don't hold people's attention for long. Ten years since Shiny Chariot disappeared, and no one even bothered to look for her. You know I am right."
"She got you there Akko," Sucy comments.
"I refuse to believe this!" Akko gets off her chair, "Chariot filled my heart with dreams, and you can even say she saved my life! The magical world is wrong!"
Images of past showings of Chariot's performances flash through Akko's mind. Memories of every showing, down to the last detail, from the time of day to the faces of the audience, she have remembered them all. Looking at Diana's face, one particular memory resurfaced.
"Wait...!" Akko begins walking around Diana, getting uncomfortably closed as she examines her face in detail.
"Hey back off! What are you doing! Haven't you heard of personal space?!" Hannah calls out.
"Uh huh!" Akko claps her hands, and a metaphoric light bulb lights up in her mind, "now I remember! You were at one of the shows during Shiny Chariot's tour through Japan from ten years ago!" she loudly declares.
Everyone else in the cafeteria stops and their sight turned to Diana, eyes wide with shock.
"W-What?!" Diana stutters. "Y-You have the wrong person! I've never been to a Shiny Chariot show, not once! I've never been to Japan, either!"
Akko shakes her head, "no! It has to be you! When I first saw you earlier, I was wondering why your hair reminded me of something! I remembered seeing you at that show from the photos I've been collecting! That hair is unmistakable!"
"It cannot be! You must have the wrong person!" Diana rebutted, her reactions more violent than anyone really expected, "t-that could have been anyone from my family! We all have the same type of hair! You have no evidence of that outrageous claim either!"
"D-Diana...?" Both Hannah and Barbara are stunned, having never seen their friend so nervous before!
"Hehehe... We will see about that!" Akko smirks, "because I have the photos with me right now!" She reaches for the pouch attached to her belt, and pulls out a folder much bigger than the actual pocket, shocking everyone as she flips through the pages, "here! No use denying now!"
The photo she is pointing to is a family shot of a mother and father with their child, but ignoring them the evidence is there. Behind the unnamed family is unmistakably a younger Diana. The honor student's younger self has a satisfied smile on her face as she passes by the photo with her old butler; completely ignorant that she had been caught in the shot.
"Look at the smile you had! I can tell without a shadow of doubt that you enjoyed it!" Akko proudly declares. "So why are you saying such mean things toward Chariot now?!"
The look on Diana's face is one of denial, anger, and shame, while simultaneously trying to suppress said emotions. Her heart stings when she sees her younger self's happy smile, an expression that she almost never wears these days. Hannah and Barbara couldn't believe their eyes and can only glance at their rich friend in disbelief. The entire cafeteria is soon filled with a cacophony of gossip, all about Diana.
"No way! The honorary student is secretly a fan of the Shiny Chariot!"
"Everyone has hobbies, but I never expected Diana's to be this lame!"
"Haha! She goes on and on about how lame that Chariot is but secretly a big fan herself? What a hypocrite! Didn't expect that from a Cavendish!"
"I think I understand what is going on. Oh Diana, there is nothing to be ashamed of!" Akko says as she puts her right arm around the stunned girl's shoulders, her face beaming with joy as she waves around her folder. "It is so rare to meet a fellow Shiny Chariot fan these days! I can't tell you how sad I was when fans just stopped caring. I even know some of them that started to deny liking Shiny Chariot in the first place. Probably a coping mechanism... But you don't need to hide it anymore! Maybe we could form a Shiny Chariot fan club and try reignite everyone's hearts-"
Without a warning, Diana shoves Akko away and runs straight out of the cafeteria, her expression hidden beneath her hair as she swiftly disappears down the hall.
"DIANA!" Barbara immediately chases after her friend.
"Y-You...! We will not forget this!" Hannah weakly threatens. Her words have little meaning. She turns and hurries down the hall.
Akko stands there confused.
"I didn't think you had it in you, Akko. That was amazing," the gloomy witch gives Akko a smirk, followed by Lotte laughing lightly.
"But I was just genuinely happy to meet another fan…" Akko frowns as she shoved her photos back into her pouch, returning to her seat and food, "I don't know why Diana is so embarrassed..."
"It's pride," Sucy says.
Lotte ponders. "Maybe it's because Shiny Chariot is… um… unpopular to most of the magical world. If Diana suddenly revealed that she was a fan, it would give her an association with something disliked by the majority of her peers. That could hurt the image she was trying to keep."
"That's dumb," Akko frowns, "can't even like what you want to like because of what other people think is… I can't even imagine. Must be hell."
Unknown to Akko and her friends, Professor Ursula was listening in on them from the second floor balcony, her face is marred by a frown from both today's tiring research and Diana's words.
However, the frown the quickly shifted to a smile of gratitude. It truly has been a long time since someone defended the name of Shiny Chariot so passionately and somewhat succeeded.
But during that exchange, a lot of things Akko said caught her attention. One particular statement stood out amongst the others.
"That show in Japan...?" Ursula's eyes widen, horror creeping up her back, "no... they both can't possibly be…!"
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Akko's Personas:
Slime (Chariot)
Resistance: Phys
Weakness: Fire, Wind
Skills: Evil Touch, Eiha, Lunge
Profile: A primitive monster with a viscous body. There are various theories as to its origin, but it is still under debate. Said to compulsively collect shiny objects.
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AuthorNCS: RIP, Diana's secret. Your super early death has derailed most of canon and there is much to be rejoiced over. Writing her next chapter will be super fun.
Since we don't know what Akko's home life is like, I am free to improvise. And the Akko in this story had something… bad happened to her that caused her to gain the Wild Card ability. What though, you will all have to see in the future.
Why Lavenza? Because: 1) no one is going to read random Velvet Room OC. 2) I seriously doubt Igor is going to create an attendant for every new guest. 3) I just like her and want to write her.
Slime bean bag chair though! Now that's an interesting way to use your Persona!
Edit: Thanks Cousin for your cover art.
See y'all next time.
08/19/2017 Edit: This chapter has been improve-Beta-ed by RiceFieldRenigade.
11/17/2017 Edit: Thank the people at Sufficient Velocity for grammar checking this. Should be free of grammar mistakes now. Unless you have god's eyes and find something else, this chapter is now grammatically perfect.