One-Shot takes place after Diana and Akko have confessed their feelings to each other and Croix is still working at the Ministry. Fluff all the way!


"I'm coming to Luna Nova." is the first thing Croix tells her when she answers the phone.

"You are?!" Akko asks excitedly while getting closer to Diana who was reading a book. "Croix-Sensei said that she's coming to Luna Nova!"

"That's great news!" Diana agrees and grabs the brunette's hand tenderly. She knew how much her girlfriend cared about Professor Croix. "When will you be coming?"

"That's the thing…" the woman says while chuckling. "I may have angered Finneran before I left Luna Nova all those months ago." she continues explaining. "And she may have placed a curse on the Leyline that connects Luna Nova to the Ministry."

"She did what?!" Diana asks worriedly.

"The curse only affects me." she calms the blonde witch immediately.

"What you did to her…" Akko interrupts them. "Was it worth it?"

"Hell yes." Croix smirks wickedly. "Although I didn't realize that she would react in such a way. And I need to get to Luna Nova."

"Perhaps an apology letter may get Professor Finneran to eliminate the curse?" Diana suggests to her.

"It has to be tomorrow. Eliminating the spell will take Finneran too long, even if she agrees to do it."

"Tomorrow is Ursula-Sensei's birthday." Akko realizes why the lilac-haired woman was anxious about arriving as soon as possible.

"Then we could tell Ursula-Sensei what happened and we can meet you in town." Diana tries to think of other options and plans.

"I want it to be special…" Croix whispers to them. "And I want to confess to her how I feel where we first met."

"That's so romantic!" Akko gushes and gives her girlfriend her best puppy eyes. "Come on, Diana we must help her. Surely you can think of a way to bring her here."

This makes Diana chuckle and hug her brunette tightly. She just couldn't resist it when Akko asked her for help with those big, red eyes.

"I'm pretty sure Professor Croix also thought of a way to come here. Which I guess is why she called us?" Diana asks knowingly to the older woman who nods in confirmation.

"I found a way to travel through the Leyline without being cursed. But, I will need another witch to carry me."

"So you want us to go to town, meet with you and then bring you back to Luna Nova?" Akko asks and then smiles devilishly. "You'll have to transform so we can carry you."

"Indeed, and I have the perfect animal in mind."

"No." the brunette witch interrupts her, earning the surprised looks of Diana and Croix. "We will help you." she promises her professor. "But we'll get to choose the animal you'll transform to."

This makes Diana smirk and nod in support. She had no idea what her girlfriend was thinking, but knowing her, it would be something that would surely help Croix and Ursula.

"Ok…" Croix agrees with them because she had no other way to get to Luna Nova.

Chariot was definitely out of the question because she wanted to surprise the woman.

"We'll pick you up tomorrow morning before Ursula-Sensei wakes up." Akko plans everything.

"Then I guess that means I'll see you both tomorrow!" Croix tells them happily. "Thank you again, for always being there for me."

"Of course Professor Croix." Diana is the one that tells her and hangs up. "So darling…" she says to Akko while hugging her from behind. "What have you planned?"

This makes Akko chuckle warmly.

"I can't get anything past you." the brunette jokes teasingly. "Remember that potion you showed me a few days ago and how you told me that you wanted to find a person to try it on?"

"Yes…" Diana asks confused.

"Let's try it on Croix-Sensei." she says with a happy smile on her face.

LWALWALWA

Anxiously waiting for the young couple to arrive, Croix was going over her plan. She had meticulously organized her day in a way that would make it as productive as possible. She was going to spend all morning and afternoon with Chariot. And at night, with the moon high in the sky and the starts shinning bright above them; she was going to confess her love.

It was a perfect plan that shouldn't fail her. Not when Chariot told her to come back to her. And, it may have taken her longer than what she thought, but she was finally free from the Ministry and was allowed to stay wherever she wanted.

But Croix, and the Ministry, knew very well that her new home would most probably be at Luna Nova.

Because Chariot was there and Chariot was her home.

Smiling and moving from side to side after seeing Akko and Diana, the older woman runs towards the two witches and hugs Akko tightly. It had been weeks since she last saw the young witch and she had missed her terribly.

"Akko!" Croix exclaims brightly while keeping her locked in her arms. "I've missed you so much!"

"So have I." Akko promises her while squeezing her as well. "I'm so happy to see you."

"Diana…" Croix doesn't know if the blonde witch will allow her to hug her, but is surprised when Diana is the one that starts the embrace. "I have missed you as well."

"The feeling is mutual." Diana promises her warmly. "It is nice to see you looking and doing well."

"Time away from Luna Nova and the Claiomh Solai has made me see things with a new perspective. Made me realize that I don't need that kind of power in order to improve or bring back magic."

"I'm proud of you." Akko tells her with a warm smile. "And I'm sure Ursula-Sensei will be even prouder and happier." she gets close to the lilac-haired witch to whisper in her ear. "She has missed you too."

"As have I." Croix says softly. "She was still asleep before you left, right?"

"Well, she must have been. During the weekends, she likes to oversleep. Says that it is because during those days the older witches don't ask her to do their jobs or run around school." Diana explains to the older woman.

"But let's not linger any longer." Akko suggests to them. "Instead, let's go ahead and tell Croix-Sensei what animal she must transform to!" she grins wickedly and whispers to Croix their chosen animal.

"Really?" Croix murmurs completely bored. She was expecting a more difficult animal. "Metamorphie Faciesse!" she chants the spell and feels herself get shorter.

"She looks adorable!" the brunette witch exclaims while bending down and picking Croix. "And her hair is also lilac."

Diana chuckles and starts caressing Croix, which makes her purr in contentment.

Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to turn into a cat if they continue to touch me like that…

"Ok, let's go!" Akko starts walking towards the Leyline and Croix tenses a little.

Although she was confident the effects of the spell wouldn't affect her, she was still concerned about the possibility of her calculations being wrong.

"I thought you said the curse wouldn't affect you like this…" Diana asks her worriedly in cat-tongue.

"It shouldn't." she reaffirms. "But still, thinking that in this Leyline there is a curse with my name written on it…"

"She's right." Akko says as well and this earns her a surprised expression from cat Croix. "Diana has been teaching me languages. Turns out that cat tongue was one of the easiest ones for me." she explains proudly.

"Usually it tends to be the opposite. Birds are easier while mammals are harder."

"She did learn fish language in a day..." Diana chuckles warmly. "Good, we did it." she simply says and is thankful to Akko who successfully distracted their professor.

"Ok, so now that we're through you can let me go. I'll return to my normal self and then we'll be headed to Luna Nova!" Croix exclaims happily. "Metamorphie Faciesse!" she repeats her earlier spell and is surprised when nothing happens.

Why isn't it working?

Turning to look at the younger girls to inform them of her situation, she sees Akko giving her a knowing look and that's the moment Croix realizes she has been played by the two lovers.

"Akko!" she exclaims while angrily hissing at her. "What did you do?!"

"We just placed on you a potion that will prevent you from becoming a human until midnight." Diana explains to her.

"Midnight!" Croix says desperately. "Why would you even do something like this to me?"

"Do you remember what happened the last time I saw you?" Akko asks her knowingly and this makes Croix gulp in regret.

She thought Akko had forgiven her for that…

"I thought you said you didn't mind." cat Croiw meows sadly.

"I don't." Akko smiles softly at her. "Do you trust me, Sensei?"

"Until a few minutes ago yes I did! But now I'm not so sure."

"Believe me when I tell you that I'm doing this in order to help you with Ursula-Sensei."

"She's right." Diana agrees with her girlfriend. "It may seem like Akko's plan is preventing you from planning your excellent confession; but then again, how many times has Akko made terrible situations become wonderful and endearing moments?"

"Is that why you went along with this?" she asks the blonde witch menacingly.

Diana merely shrugs.

"The fact that you're using my propensity to get luckily out of things is not very charming Diana." Akko murmurs to her girlfriend while kicking the floor childishly.

The blonde witch notices this and hugs her girlfriend before starting to pepper her face with kisses.

Before, Diana had been scared of acting like this with Akko; of being warm and loving in public. But, after learning that in reality her girlfriend was very insecure, the blonde heiress decided to take the reins in the relationship and become tactile and open when it came to showing her affection.

It had done wonders to boost Akko's confidence and happiness…

I guess she's right about that, Croix thinks and decides that it was more urgent to go to Luna Nova than to get those two witches to give her the antidote.

But how would she even talk and be with Chariot if she was in this form?!

"I refuse! Stop kissing and making dovey eyes at each other and give me the antidote!" Croix tells them angrily while feeling her hair rising.

Before the young witches could answer her, Croix hears with her enhanced cat ears a very familiar and frightening voice coming their way.

Shit, she had forgotten to tell them to not get out of the Leyline so close to the school!

"Miss Cavendish and Miss Kagari." Professor Finneran tells the girls hauntingly. "May I ask what you're doing here instead of being at the school?"

"Professor Finneran…" Diana gives her a polite smile. "Akko and I just had to run to town to get some things from the library." she explains and shows the woman a cart full of books.

When did they even have the time to grab those?

"Is that really all?" the older witch asks them suspiciously. "What about that lilac cat behind Miss Kagari's legs?"

She found me!

"Oh, we just found her in town and Akko begged me to bring her with us. She was injured and we healed her." the blonde continues explaining.

Diana Cavendish is seriously a master manipulator.

"I couldn't leave her there without knowing if she was going to be alright…" Akko smiles warmly. "And Diana had been explaining earlier to me that soon enough we'll have to choose our familiars. So, I wanted to use this cat."

No way… Akko too? What has happened during my time away?!

"It seems that your relationship with Miss Cavendish has been quite beneficial to you, Miss Kagari." Professor Finneran tells them honestly and Croix doesn't feel the remark was sarcastic or ill-mannered.

"May we ask what you're doing here Professor Finneran? It is quite strange to see you near the school's borders." the brunette witch asks politely.

"Oh, just some sensors that I had placed a couple of months ago were activated and I came to see what that was about." the older witch looks around her while moving her wand in circles.

She had sensors even outside the school! Croix thinks worriedly and thanks Diana and Akko for their quick thinking and for not giving her the antidote earlier.

"Perhaps they lost their affinity?" Diana suggests to the older woman. "I have read that happens sometimes with spells that are cast for too long."

"Indeed, that may have happened." Professor Finneran tells Diana with a soft smile. "Now, you should go ahead and return to your dorms before lunch begins. While you may take this cat, Miss Kagari, it can only stay in your room."

"Understood." Akko gives the older woman a bright smile and bends down before grabbing cat Croix and carrying her to the school in her arms.

"You must have done something very wicked to her, Croix-Sensei…" Akko chuckles while caressing her head and Croix is too relaxed to answer her.

Yes, being a cat was not bad at all.

LWALWALWA

"Now, return me to my human self." Croix demands the girls who giggle and shriek in happiness.

"She just looks adorable!" Akko says loudly while peppering her face with kisses and Croix should do something to stop her but she is really enjoying the love and warm touches.

"Maybe Croix-Sensei was a cat in a past life." Diana smirks from Akko's bed and this makes Croix growl in annoyance.

"Cheeky! Being with Akko has certainly given you a sense of humor." she says while turning her back on the blonde witch.

"Croix-Sensei don't be like that!" Diana says to her and starts massaging her body which forces Croix to purr and lay herself down.

Damn it!

"It's not Diana's fault." Akko tells her happily while watching her girlfriend laugh and play with cat Croix. "It was my idea to do this."

"I know that I owed you from your last visit to town…" Croix says softly while remembering the joke she played on Akko and how angry the young girl had been. "But you've had your fun now and Chariot will be waking up very soon."

"Well, the thing is…" the brunette witch blushes while looking embarrassed. "We kinda didn't know that the curse we gave you had conditions that needed to be met before the spell can be broken."

"Wait, you said you gave me a curse?!" she screams and is sure people only heard her hissing and meowing because she was a cat.

"In our defense, we didn't know that it was a curse until we tried to turn you back into a human before Professor Finneran arrived to the gate." Diana explains to her.

"So are you saying that I will have to stay a cat forever?!"

"Of course not!" Akko smiles happily at her. "It will be easy for you to break the curse!"

"And very romantic if you ask me…" Diana adds with a warm smile.

"All you need to do is get Ursula-Sensei to give you a true love's kiss before midnight!"

"Because if you don't then you will really stay in the form a cat for all your life." the blonde finishes explaining with an apologetic smile.

Before Croix-Sensei can even think of an answer to give the girls, she hears the bell ring.

"Lunch time!" Akko yells excitedly and gets up from the bed. "Come on Diana, I'm starving!" she says to her girlfriend who shrugs her shoulders and stands as well.

"Wait, what about me?" Croix asks them worriedly.

"We have plenty of time Sensei! Don't worry. Besides, you need food as well."

"But we do need to be careful with her. If Professor Finneran sees her then she'll take her out." Diana adds calmly and uses her wand to create a small purse. "Here…" she gives it to Akko who shrieks in excitement and kisses her soundly on the lips.

"Thank you!" she says happily while grabbing cat Croix and placing her in the bag. "You look even more adorable than before."

"I'm a person, not a toy." Croix murmurs embarrassed. "I should just go see Chariot and get this over with…"

This makes Akko pout.

"But Ursula-Sensei will most probably be there having lunch as well since she probably just woke up." Diana adds with a soft smile.

Croix was getting scared of Diana…

"Fine…" Croix meows defeated. "But only because I have to eat and Chariot will be there." she then looks at Akko. "And not a single word to anyone about who I am, understood?!"

"Of course!" Akko gives her a dashing smile and it worries Croix immensely.

What was she not telling her?

"Now, let's go before they stop serving food!" the brunette witch smiles warmly and puts the bag with cat Croix in one of her arms and grabs Diana's hand with her other free-hand.

"You two really look adorable." Croix tells them while watching the familiar hallways pass by. "I'm glad to see you're feeling better Akko."

"It took some time…" Akko says softly. "But I'm confident in who I am and what I can be." she then looks at Diana. "It also doesn't hurt that the smartest and most beautiful girl of Luna Nova is dating me."

This makes Diana blush deeply.

Akko still has it… cat Croix smirks and starts meowing when she smells the food coming from the dining room.

"Shh!" Diana warns her while petting her. "Remember that you're not even supposed to be here!"

"I didn't know that I was starving!" Croix complains but does her best to stay quiet. "Food."

"Ok, ok, I'll go get us food. You go find an empty table." the blonde witch tells Akko and they both watch her stand in line.

"So…" Akko tells her with a warm smile. "How does it feel being back at Luna Nova?"

"Right now all I can feel is my stomach growling." the lilac-haired cat hisses at the young witch.

"So grumpy."

"I'm a cat." Croix says darkly. "Of course I will be grumpy."

"Akko!" Croix hears some girls calling the brunette witch.

"It's Lotte, Sucy and the green team." she explains calmly. "They don't speak cat tongue. So, we'll make them think that you're a stray cat I found and that I want to keep you." she finishes saying before raising her hand. "Here!"

"Hi Akko!" Lotte tells her with a warm smile while sitting in front of her.

"Akko!" Amanda smiles devilishly at her. "How surprising it is to see you come in time on a Saturday."

"Diana and I had some things to do in town." the brunette simply explains while making space for Diana who had returned with their food.

"Good morning." the heiress tells them before taking some cheese and ham from a napkin.

"Don't tell me you're now going to start feeding each other…" Sucy murmurs and this makes Croix chuckle.

"No!" Akko and Diana say at the same time while blushing.

"At least not in public…" the blonde witch whispers embarrassed and Croix is sure she was the only one that heard her because of her heightened senses.

Kinky Diana…

"Besides, today is Ursula-Sensei's birthday so we wanted to spend the day with her."

"Oh that's right!" Lotte says excitedly. "Have you planned something?"

"We bought a birthday cake on our way back." Diana informs them all happily.

Croix had not seen that cake…

"And is Professor Croix coming?" Sucy asks Akko simply.

"Well…" she starts saying and Croix decides to intervene right there by meowing.

"What was that?" Jasminka asks while looking around them.

"It came from Akko's bag." Constanze writes on her notepad and all the girls immediately circle it.

"It's a cat!" Amanda shrieks excitedly but immediately quietens when Akko and Diana scold her.

"Shh! No one can know that she's here!" Akko warns her.

"Sorry…" she apologizes and immediately starts caressing cat Croix who purrs contently. "She even has lilac-hair!"

"Reminds me of someone." Sucy says and this makes Croix stare worriedly at her.

"She looks just like Croix-Sensei right?!" the brunette witch says immediately.

"We thought so as well when we found her." Diana smiles brightly. "Which is why we brought her to Luna Nova."

"She's going to be a gift for Ursula-Sensei!" Akko says happily and this makes cat Croix stop moving.

Wait, what?

"A gift?" Croix hears a familiar voice and feels her small heart beating quickly at the sight of Chariot in front of her.

I don't know if it's because of my cat eyes, but she looks even more beautiful than when I last saw her...

"Ursula-Sensei happy birthday!" Akko exclaims while standing up to hug the woman tightly.

"Thank you Akko." she smiles warmly.

"We brought you a cake as well!" Diana says and with a flick of her wand a cake appears in front of them.

"Now let's sing!" the brunette witch guides her friends and soon enough Chariot is blowing the candles with a happy smile on her face.

"I don't know what to say girls…" she whispers and Croix knows that her friend is close to tears.

"Diana and I…" Akko starts saying softly. "We are very thankful for all you have done for us. For being by our side when we needed you the most and for loving us like a mother would."

"You know we both lost our parents when we were very young." Diana continues saying. "So the fact that we both found you and got the opportunity to be helped and loved by the woman we admired so much when we were young… It has been a dream come true."

"We love you very much Ursula-Sensei." Akko adds warmly.

"Akko… Diana…" Chariot says with tears in her eyes and Croix knows she's crying as well.

"Which is why we wanted to give you something." Diana says happily and brings the bag to the table.

"What is it?" Chariot asks curiously and yelps in surprise when cat Croix comes out of the bag.

"Surprise!" Akko screams and Croix smiles in contentment.

LWALWALWA

I'm saved, Croix thinks while watching Alcor standing in his seat.

After Akko and Diana had given her to Chariot, Croix had happily waited until they arrived to the red-haired woman's room before explaining the situation to her. She was certain that now the curse would be broken and that Chariot and her could spend their remaining time talking and having a nice picnic in the yard with Akko and Diana.

"Seriously, those girls…" Chariot says with a warm smile on her face. "Giving me a cat out of nowhere."

"Chariot! Chariot!" Croix screams and starts moving when she sees her favorite person bending in front of her. "It's me, Croix!" she continues saying desperately. "The girls accidentally placed a curse on me and I need you to kiss me so I can turn back to a human!"

"So talkative." she says to her and Croix opens her eyes in shock.

No way…

"Kiss me! Kiss me!" she uses her paws to climb Chariot's legs and starts caressing herself with her arm.

"I like you too." she starts scratching her head and Croix purrs wantonly.

DAMN IT!

Wanting to make Chariot realize who she was, Croix tries to stand on two legs and starts walking through the room.

"You can do tricks like that?!" Chariot claps her hands happily. "What a clever cat."

I'm clever because I'm a human! she thinks and again tries to talk to the red-haired woman.

"You talk so much." she chuckles. "Wish I knew how to speak cat tongue. Unfortunately, I never got used it. But, Akko and Diana can speak it very well!"

Those two… Croix thinks darkly while growling in anger, they knew Chariot couldn't speak cat tongue and planned this all right from the start.

I will kill them! is the last thing Croix thinks before running away from the room.

"No wait!" she hears Chariot say while things start falling. "You can't go alone!"

I will find those two brats and kill them… she says to herself while running as fast as she could.

Moving through the halls, she's lucky that not many girls are outside but are instead taking the time to nap and play games with each other. She had heard Diana and Akko tell Chariot that they would be having a picnic in the main garden. So, that was where Croix was heading.

Swiftly, Croix quickly sees the two girls eating and hisses at them before jumping straight at Akko, who notices her and shrieks before moving her upwards.

"What happened?"

"You knew Chariot doesn't speak cat tongue!" Croix yells at her while trying to set herself free. "She doesn't recognize me!"

"Really? But you look just like your human self…" Diana says confused.

"Maybe she doesn't think that Croix is coming to see her today." Akko adds softly. "You know you haven't spoken to her for a week."

"Because I was busy finishing and getting things ready for today! So I could surprise her with my confession and my freedom!" she then looks angrily at the young witches. "Tell her that it's me."

"We can't." Diana says worriedly. "It's part of the curse. The person you need to kiss cannot know that you're a human."

"Then how will she kiss me when she thinks I'm just a normal cat!" Croix looks upwards and sees that it's starting to get late. "What the hell happened to the sun?!"

"We were just getting done with our picnic because it's getting late." Akko says to her. "In fact, we were going to see if Ursula-Sensei had broken the curse."

"You probably fell asleep while waiting for Ursula-Sensei. Cats tend to sleep a lot." Diana explains to her.

"I know cats sleep!" she shrieks. "I'm just terrified that I spent the last… What time is it?"

"7pm…" the brunette witch whispers worriedly.

"The last five hours sleeping!"

"We will fix this!" Diana promises her confidently. "Akko and I will go to the library to search information on a way to break the curse without having Ursula-Sensei kiss you."

Croix knew that it was going to be a futile search since curses tended to only be broken in one way…

That's why they were so tricky.

"You should go back to Ursula's room. Be with her and get her to feel that it's you." Akko gives her a hopeful smile. "I believe in the love and bond you two have. Perhaps you should start doing the same?"

Believe in my bond…

LWALWALWA

Slowly making her way to Chariot's room, Croix was thinking of what had happened to her today. Her plan, her confession; it had all gone horribly wrong. Now here she was, alone in the hallways of Luna Nova, getting closer to the possibility of staying as a cat.

Crying in exasperation, she sees that she's very close to the red-haired woman's room. Walking upwards, probably because of her melancholy she fails to hear footsteps coming her way.

"What are you doing here?" Professor Finneran asks while using her magic to hold Croix still. "I told Miss Kagari that you couldn't be outside her room and look where I find you."

Croix starts meowing and trying to get away.

"I guess I will have to give her some detention and return you to her room…" she murmurs and starts walking away before she is stopped by a familiar voice.

"There you are!" she sees Chariot running towards her and picking her up from the floor. "I was so worried!"

"Professor Ursula?" the older woman asks her curiously. "Were you looking for this cat?"

"Yes, she's mine."

This is not good… Croix thinks while hiding her face.

"Yours?" Finneran asks confused. "I thought the cat belonged to Miss Kagari and that she was going to use it as a familiar."

"A familiar?" Chariot asks confused. "Akko hasn't told me about that."

"Miss Cavendish and Miss Kagari seemed pretty confident about it when I saw them outside the gates. They said they were coming back from town and had found the little cat injured."

"And what were you doing there?"

Oh no…

"I was checking some traps that I set months ago. They activated and when I went to see them, Miss Cavendish and Miss Kagari were right there…" Finneran opens her eyes in shock. "With the cat…"

She knows!

"You!" the older witch screams and uses her wand to try to pull her out of Chariot's arms.

"What are you doing?!" Chariot asks and lets Croix go so that she can run away from the mad witch.

"You will not escape!" Finneran keeps saying while chanting spells that she barely avoids. "You will pay!"

"Crazy woman!" Croix screams and uses her feline abilities to jump on top of the stairs.

"Stop moving you dumb woman!" she continues yelling. "Because of you I had to spend two months cleaning the yard!" the woman manages to hit her in the leg and Croix knows that this is over.

"Got you!" Finneran says and is stopped by Akko and Diana who put her to sleep.

"Oh thank Jennifer!" Croix says relieved after watching the girls check on the woman.

"Are you ok?!" Akko asks her worriedly.

"She just hit me in the leg…" Croix says and exhales in relief when Diana heals her. "Did you find something?"

"We were at the library checking for a way to break the curse but we found nothing." she says apologetically.

"We're very sorry." Akko chokes out and stands up. "I know that this is our fault…" she whispers bitterly. "But I refuse to give up."

This makes Croix stare at the young girl in front of her.

"Because I believe in the magic of love and of soulmates." she vows confidently. "And I know that what Ursula-Sensei and you share is true love."

"But she doesn't even recognize me." Croix says sadly.

"We have done all we can…" Akko tells her before taking Diana's hand and pulling her away. "Now it's up to you to believe in your love, Croix-Sensei."

"I know you can do it!" Diana gives her a confident smile and both girls disappear before Croix hears faint steps heading her way.

"Croix! Croix!" Chariot screams and Croix yells in desperation.

In a couple of seconds, the woman is next to her and again screams when she sees Professor Finneran on the floor. "What happened?"

Croix starts meowing and sees Chariot use her wand to check on the crazy professor.

"She's just stunned." Chariot says relieved and smiles softly at her. "You are a very naughty cat." she smirks and holds her tight.

She just called me Croix, why did she do it?

"You know, you remind me of a person I care about…" Chariot tells her softly while continuing her caresses. "Someone that is very close and dear to me." she sets her down and moves her hand through her body. "You even have the same hair color. Which I guess is why I decided to name you Croix."

This makes Croix meow and get closer to Chariot, using her tongue to lick her fingers because she could feel the sadness coming from her.

"She told me to wait for her." she confesses to cat Croix who stares at her with big eyes. "And I will… But I just want her back. At least for today…"

Cat Croix meows in desperation and feels like she wants to kill Akko for making her see this.

"I'm here!" she says and begs for the woman in front of her to understand her. "I'm right here!"

"But I guess she just couldn't make it." Chariot says sadly. "Now Croix, we need to return Professor Finneran to her room because it's almost midnight."

Midnight! She was running out of time!

Crying, she goes to where Chariot is standing and doesn't allow her to get to Professor Finneran.

"Croix, move out of the way!" she says but Croix doesn't budge. "Ugh, the name fits you so well! You're just like her!"

"I am her!" Croix meows and feels her legs in the air.

"Now move." Chariot is going to put her down but Croix uses her paw to caress her face.

This makes the red-haired woman stare at her with curiosity.

"Your eyes…" she whispers while focusing on Croix. "They look just like hers…"

"Chariot…" Croix says softly and hears the clock strike midnight.

It was over…

Softly, and knowing that it was probably going to be the last time she got to see Chariot, Croix wanted to confess her feelings to her at least once.

Carefully using her paws to grab the woman's face, she gets her head close to the woman she loves and stares right at into eyes…

"I love you with all my heart." she says surely and with a smile on her face.

"I love you too Croix." Chariot answers her back and Croix is surprised when she feels the woman's lips on top of her head and a ray of light pouring out of her.

Very anticlimactically, and almost immediately, Croix opens her eyes and sees that she's no longer being carried by Chariot. Instead, the woman was hugging her tight.

"Chariot!" Croix screams relieved and cries in happiness when she realizes that she's no longer a cat and that the woman that she loves returns her feelings. "How did you know it was me?"

"When you said those words…" Chariot tells her warmly. "I just understood them so clearly that I had to say them back."

"I do love you so much." Croix says to her again and is close to kissing Chariot for real when she's stopped by a loud shriek.

"You!" Croix and Chariot both turn around to see an angry Professor Finneran looking at them. "I knew it was you!"

"Professor Finneran…" she tries to calm her down. "Shouldn't we let bygones be bygones?"

"No." Finneran answers her simply before moving closer. "You will leave Luna Nova this instant and never return!" she exclaims and is going to pull the lilac-haired woman out before she loses consciousness again.

"Thank you!" Croix exclaims to Akko and Diana who were putting their wands away and giving her a bright smile.

"You did it Croix-Sensei! You broke your curse!" Akko tells her happily.

"No thanks to you." she gets close to the brunette and grabs her cheeks. "In fact, I could have stayed like a cat forever because of you!"

"Stay like a cat forever?" Chariot asks her confused.

"Yes, it was a curse. I had to get my true love to kiss me before midnight or the curse was not going to break."

"Darling…" the red-haired woman gives her a bright smile. "That's a fairytale."

"But…" Croix says confused. "I tried to use my magic to turn myself back but it didn't work!"

"The potion we put on you prevented you from using your magic to turn back into a human…" Diana explains to her cheekily. "And, it is true that you needed to kiss the person you love in order to turn to your human form…"

"But even if you failed to get your kiss, the spell would have been broken with a night's sleep." Akko adds brightly.

"I have heard of that potion." Chariot tells them calmly. "It's becoming very popular amongst children and they use it to play a game similar to truth or dare."

"So you see, you were never truly in danger of staying like a cat forever." the brunette tells her cheekily. "Although we didn't take Professor Finneran into consideration when we were planning all of this."

"Yeah, she is truly mad at you." Diana adds with a smirk.

"So you made me think that I was going to stay like a cat forever…" Croix says to the girls menacingly. "Because?"

"Because we wanted you to confess your true feelings to Ursula-Sensei!" Akko tells her happily.

"I was going to do that!" she exclaims loudly. "I even told you about it before you turned me into a cat."

"Diana also wanted to try the potion on someone and I remembered that you owed me from last time."

This makes Chariot laugh loudly.

"She's right about that. You owed her."

"You mean you're going to defend her?!" Croix asks shocked. "She tricked us and probably traumatized me!"

"But she also got you to tell me how you feel and for me while throwing me the best and most interesting birthday party I could ever think of." Chariot tells her with a happy smile on her face. "Because being with you, in any kind of way, is enough to me."

"Chariot…" Croix whispers and closes the distance between them with a tender kiss.

"See…" Diana tells them with a happy smile on her face. "I told you that Akko's plans, against all odds, tend to work."

Croix was definitely going to return the favor to the two witches soon enough…

This is not over…