Disclaimer: I own nothing in this Fanfiction.
Prologue I : Reunion
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"—Kyrie Elyson…"
The light faded, the blue haired girl holding the black book with the image of the cross in front of her opened her eyes, the body that was underneath her no longer in this world. She looked up, feeling a great relief, a cold breeze entering from the broken windows and playing with her hair.
A black haired teenager with deep blue eyes fell to his knees behind her.
"What... What did I do..." He thought, staring blankly at his hands. Lines and points were everywhere, the ground, the ceiling, even the girl in front of him was riddled with those accursed fractures in reality.
Ciel heard the thump of his knees impacting the ground. She turned around, quickly dropping the Holy Bible and disregarding the scattered Black Keys to run to his aid.
The young man's mind started racing, remembering everything that happened and led to this point. The golden haired, fair skinned True Ancestor whom he loved dearly... She was gone.
"—Arc..ueid..." The knife dropped from his hand, causing a clanging sound to echo across the hallway. His hands rose to his face while shaking violently.
"ARCUEID!" he screamed out, defeated. Giving in to the sorrow that formed in his heart like a thorn, he cried out in pain. Not physical pain, no. Something much worse.
The blue haired girl approached him, calling out his name. "Tohno-kun..." But there was no response other than the tears which fell down his cheeks and dropped to the floor as he continued crying.
She called out to him again, this time placing a hand on his shoulder. "Tohno-kun!"
Nothing. It's like he just broke. The only thing he did was cry out that name even louder. Except that Ciel wouldn't give up, would she. Grabbing him by the shoulders, she started shaking him violently. "TOHNO-KUN!"
That triggered something deep within his mind. Somewhere within all those complicated emotions, HE woke up.
Ciel noticed the sudden switch in demeanor. Confused, she tried to help him back to his feet. However, the moment she touched his hand, she knew something wasn't right at all. Turns out her intuition was correct, as mere seconds later, he jumped back to his feet, holding his knife. She assumed a stance, thinking he may attack her. The Burial agency member looked at HIM with a concerned expression before calling out to him, "Tohno-kun! Get it together! There's no need to fight anymore!"
It really didn't change anything. Because in the end, and with a smile, Shiki held up his knife pointing the sharp end towards his own chest.
"NO—KUN!"
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...
Cold... So cold that he could see his own breath as he panted while sprinting through this oddly familiar forest. Above, he could see the crimson moon watching over him without a care in the world. But it was stupid to expect a floating piece of rock to have mercy on his poor soul wasn't it?
He felt his feet moving, as if running away from something. Continuously placing one foot in front of the other, without really knowing why. He clasped a small wooden box in his hand, holding into it for dear life. He couldn't tell what was inside. Nor did he want to find out at the moment, he had to keep his focus on running away from the sense of danger behind him.
A clearing was ahead. He would finally make it out of this nightmare. His footsteps began to drop the rhythm as he got even closer to his destination. His eyes widening with horror as he finally stepped into the safe haven which was the clearing.
The little boy's hands and shoulders slumped down as his mouth stayed agape, his breath coming out frozen due to the sheer cold. One more step, and he heard a splash. Down he looked at the crimson pool of blood he stepped in, then at the sole tree which stood in front of him. Was it even a tree anymore? Its branches were defiled with corpses. So many corpses impaled and hung on the tree, under which he used to sit down with his parents and practice with his cousins.
Ah... But they were there too, on the tree. A sick feeling of nausea bubbled up in his mind as he tightened his grip on the box he was holding. He slowly felt his knees give up on him. Then he dropped on his back, directly splashing into the pool of his family's blood.
Time passed and he just laid there unmoving, despite every part of him telling him to run, lest he'd die if he stayed for another split second, lest he'd become part of this sick tree of humans, lest he'd join his family on the branches. Yet in the middle of all of that, he stared at the sky in disbelief. Not even sure whether this was some sort of twisted nightmare, or hazy midsummer dream.
The boy unlocked the box and raised the item he was carrying all along to the sky. A fine switchblade with a leather handle, decorated with Japanese letters which spelled out [七夜]. He had seen these letters so many times before, but this time... this time it was different. He knew what that word truly meant.
"Nanaya... Of course... How could I have been so dense..." He commented with a tone of broken humor, feeling his soul leaving his body, yet smiling. Because he finally realized everything. He remembered it all.
"Ha...Haha" He laughed weakly. His expression unreadable as he looked at the big floating piece of lunar rock.
Even though everything was so incomprehensible, he couldn't help but think...
"The moon looks beautiful tonight."
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Two soft knocks echoed inside the room. The door slowly swung open, a pink haired girl with diamond blue eyes and a maid outfit walked in gracefully, her footsteps not even making sound.
She placed the tray that was in her hands on the cupboard next to the bed, then looked at the person sleeping, a saddened expression drawing across her face. Shiki Tohno was there, and has been completely unconscious for the past two weeks. They took him to every doctor they could afford, used some family connections to try less traditional methods, and even attempted Synchronization. But nothing would wake him up from his slumber. It was as if his soul was no longer in his body, even though he was clearly alive.
"How is he?" A voice came from behind Hisu. Had she not heard the same sentence every single morning for the past two weeks, she would've been flustered. That wasn't the case however, which allowed her to keep her formality.
She stood up, turned around and bowed mechanically. "Good morning, Akiha-sama. Forgive me, I did not notice you were in the room..." She paused, her eyes examining the girl who sat on a wooden chair in the corner.
The girl sat there, not taking her eyes off her brother for the whole night. Waiting for him to wake up sleeplessly. She did this so many times by now, that it caused dark circles around her eyes.
"His condition is stable." The pink haired maid said quietly, "You should rest now, Akiha-sama, I'll take care of him from here."
Akiha stared at her with a bitter smile, "Thank you... Hisui..." she whispered with a drained tone before standing up with visible difficulty. Her hair flashed between red and black as she stumbled across the room towards the door. She seemed like she would collapse at any second. A few unorganized footsteps then the door slid open and closed again. Akiha left the maid alone in the room with the unconscious teenager.
Hisui proceeded to bring a chair closer to the bed, sitting down, she started watching over him with her diamond eyes. Almost tearing up on the inside, but keeping her stone cold expression. If only barely.
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Three weeks have passed since Shiki was brought back home. At this point, Akiha and the two maids have already started to lose hope. They were at the dining room where Akiha had her breakfast. The only audible sound in the room besides the air entering from the windows were the clanging sounds of Akiha's fork and knife touching the plate.
"... I do not know what to do anymore, I did everything I could, I even went through some of Makihisa-sama's stuff to see if there was any way to wake him, but I found nothing. I feel sorry for Lady Akiha... She is no longer herself..." Thought Kohaku as she stared blankly at the broken young girl.
The doorbell rang, interrupting the loud silence, which was unusual at the time, or at any time to be precise.
Everyone seemed to be alerted at how unusual this was, then they turned to Kohaku. "Eh? I did not order anything!" She said, startled by the scene. "I will go and see who it is."
Kohaku hurried out of the room, followed by their gazes. She soon came back sprinting: "Akiha-sama!" She called out, making Akiha stand up quickly and rush over to her. "What's wrong? Who is it?" She asked.
Kohaku breathed in and out quickly, she calmed herself as fast as she could and began explaining: "A tall red haired woman with a white shirt and blue jeans arrived, she claims she can make Shiki-san awaken!"
Akiha's pupils widened in shock and in happiness at the same time, she did not know who this woman was, but who cared? "Let her in quickly, I'll meet her in the guests' room." She commanded, feeling a new hope within herself. She walked away to get a change of clothes, gesturing at Hisui to follow.
The twin maids looked at each other then nodded, feeling that their Master was reinvigorated. "Understood!" They said in unison.
Kohaku then went back to the gate. "Please, come on in. Akiha-sama will meet you shortly." She welcomed the red haired women inside.
"Okay, lead the way!" The woman said with a voice full of energy. She seemed as if she was excited to meet them.
The woman followed after the maid, who at first was weary of her, but then grew to like her attitude the more they talked, she seemed exceptionally powerful! As if she was some sort of magician or something... But her reactions were easy-going like those of a child.
"Ehhh! HUGE! LUXURIOUS! AND... BEAUTIFUL! Is this really where Shiki lived this whole time?!" The woman commented with a loud voice full of surprise as they reached the lobby of the mansion. Kohaku had a lot of questions, but she couldn't help but giggle a bit at the way the woman reacted.
"Shiki-san lived here as a child, but was sent away to live with some relatives after he got ill." Kohaku addressed the woman, "You seem to know Shiki-san from somewhere, Miss..."
The woman first froze in place, then she placed a finger under her mouth as if pondering something. "Hmm... I guess there is no harm in telling you guys my name... I am Aoko! Aozaki Aoko."
"Pleased to meet you Aozaki-sama..." Kohaku quietly giggled at the weird introduction, maybe she was an important figure somewhere? "But would it trouble you to tell me how you met Shiki-san?"
"I almost stepped on him." The woman said joyfully. "That's how I met him! But he was like... Six by then. He must be all grown up by now! I can't wait to see him!"
Kohaku could not help herself. She started giggling loudly, causing Aoko to join her. "You.. You almost stepped on him... That's so funny and at the same time sounds just like something Shiki-san would experience..." Kohaku spoke between the waves of laughter, attempting to regain her composure. "My, look at me being so unprofessional, forgive me Aozaki-sama. Follow me, please."
Aoko shook her head and smiled, "It's okay! Lead on!"
"What a cheerful girl! I already like it here." Aozaki thought to herself, "It's a shame I can't linger much longer."
They continued walking, Aoko seemed to realize that this family had no ties to the Moonlit world. She did her research beforehand but this confirmed it.
A few minutes later, they reached the guests' room. Aoko was prompted to sit on a couch. Then, shortly after, a black haired girl wearing a purple formal top and red skirt joined her, followed by another pink haired maid.
Akiha and Hisui greeted the woman formally. Aoko picked up on the change of air and returned their greeting in the same method. Kohaku stood behind her, while Hisui stood behind Akiha, who sat opposite of the visitor. The two then started conversing.
"First, let me introduce myself. My name is Aozaki Aoko and I'm a researcher from the association of the clocktower in London, however, I'm not here to represent anyone, I am here to help my student by my own free will." The red haired woman introduced herself, raising a hand while talking and gesturing towards herself.
Akiha listened carefully. She took a moment to think and process the information relayed to her before talking.
"Pleased to make your acquaintance. I'm the head of the Tohno family, Akiha Tohno. Shiki Tohno is my older brother." She paused, looking at her with a suspicious expression, "According to what you said, he would be your student. However, to my knowledge, Shiki was never assigned a private teacher, especially one that comes all the way from London." Akiha questioned, trying to learn more about this weird person who was in front of her.
"Hm... While it is true that we never had any official contracts, I did teach him during a certain period of time. That makes him my student." The redhead spoke with confidence and a straightforward expression, "Back then, he told me he was in the hospital because he suffered some sort of accident. But somehow, he was able to escape. He was very young, and it was dangerous to let him wander around unsupervised. How he actually escaped is beyond me, but I couldn't just leave him be. So, instead, we sat down every now and then and had a few chats, during which our sessions were held." Aoko explained, pausing every now and then to check Akiha's reactions.
Akiha visibly staggered when she heard of Shiki's 'accident' from Aoko. If she knew that much, then surely there was some degree of truth to her words. She also saw some letters in her father's desk about Shiki's repeated escapades from the hospital. Akiha regained her composure fairly quickly when Aoko finished her explanation, she crossed her hands over her mouth as if pondering something.
"I can understand where you come from. Miss Aozaki. I have a few questions before we proceed any further..." Akiha said after a moment of silence. "Firstly, what were you doing in Misaki seven years ago? What did you teach my bother? And finally, how do you know of my brother's current situation?"
Aoko was expecting to hear these questions, she leaned back on the couch and lifted an arm up as if explaining, "I am Japanese, Akiha-sama, my organization's headquarters are in London. I was on my way to visit a relative of mine when I stumbled upon the young Shiki. That same relative resides nearby. And she was the one who informed me that you were reaching out for medical and spiritual aid without much success, so I figured something might've happened to him. As for what I taught him..." Aoko was explaining this in such a laid back attitude, that it felt like she was just describing what just happened a day ago. Once she was about to speak about the subject which she taught him, she simply brought a finger to her nose as if hushing someone, then winked at Akiha, "That would be our little secret! A good teacher keeps her student's privacy~!"
...
There was a good moment of silence before a giggle was heard from Kohaku behind Aoko. Everyone was caught off-guard by Aoko's last words, but Akiha was able to resume the serious air after clearing her throat and crossing her arms.
"Fair enough..." She closed her eyes then pointed at her, "What do you propose we should do then? I don't take it you'll heal him for free..."
"Healing him may not be the right word here, he just needs a good whack on the head and he'll wake up." Aoko explained, hearing a giggle come from behind her. "But yes, I do ask for one thing in return. Shiki has to come with me afterwards."
Silence took over the room once those words were heard, before Akiha inevitably inquired, "What do you mean? Where will you take him?"
Aoko shook her head negatively before speaking in a serious tone, "I'm afraid I can't disclose this information nor can I promise his safe return. But it's for a cause greater than all of us."
Akiha slammed her fist against the table angrily as she suddenly spiked up from her seat, "I DON'T CARE ABOUT A STUPID CAUSE! ALL I WANT IS MY BROTHER BACK! AND I THOUGHT YOU'D HELP US. BUT NO! YOU ONLY WANT TO TAKE HIM AWAY FROM ME!" She roared out furiously, her hair taking on a shade of vermillion as she did.
"Calm yourself, Akiha-sama." Hisui calmly warned from behind her.
"Hisui-chan is right, Akiha-sama, please hear her out first." Joined in Kohaku.
Aozaki whistled at the sight of the girl losing it in front of her. "The caging hair of Origami... That's unexpected..." She thought before clearing her throat.
"I wouldn't call it a stupid cause, Akiha-sama" She said, emphasizing the 'sama' part. "Because if Shiki doesn't come with me after this, the world, as you know it, will end."
Akiha and the two maids gasped due to the absurdity of this claim. "You're insane." Akiha muttered in disbelief.
"Try me." Aoko replied without hesitation.
A choice had to be made. The tension in the air reached its peak, both the maids started sweating profusely, knowing that this option may very much be their last chance at saving Shiki.
"This got to be a joke. There's no way the world is in danger or whatever and this woman has to be lying. But... Why do I feel like she's telling the truth? Why do I feel like I'm vastly surpassed here? This is my household yet... Her presence makes me feel like I'm the guest..." Akiha thought, staring at the woman's determined gaze.
"So? What's it gonna be? I don't have all day, the world's in danger after all." Aoko said, her eyes fixated on Akiha.
"How long would he be gone for...?" Akiha answered hesitantly. "Can I at least know that?"
She somehow knew this woman far outclassed her in terms of everything, she had no choice here and she realized it.
"Around a month at minimum, two months maximum, but in the worst case scenario he'll never return." Aoko explained, unfazed by the pressure in the room. "But it's entirely up to him and the choices he'll make."
Akiha bit her lip, she'd never normally agree. But this was an exception among exceptions, "Wake him up, then he can decide whether he wants to go with you or if you have to drag him. I won't interfere."
The maids let out a worn out sigh, the tension in the room suddenly disappeared and Aoko smiled as she stood up, "Don't be like that! It's not like I'm going to feed him to some sharks or something, I'll also be monitoring him the whole time, and who knows? Maybe someone else will move in to help him too."
Akiha let out a deep sigh, calming herself. "I have your word for that. Now, let's wake him up first, shall we?" She said, clearly still worried but attempting to hide it.
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The four girls stood by Shiki's bed. Akiha, Kohaku and Hisui stood back and watched as Aoko suddenly pulled out a bag from thin air. "Shhh... It's a secret trick that not many people know of." She said in her defense before anyone could speak a word.
She turned back towards the bed, scrambled through the bag until she found a stone with a runic symbol on it.
"Eh, I'm sure she had no use for it anyways." The red haired woman thought as she placed it on top of the cupboard. She turned around again towards the three, gesturing at them to step back for a bit.
"What I'm about to do is very dangerous. Do not, under any circumstance, come any closer than where you are now. If you do, I can't guarantee anyone's safety in this room." She warned in a serious manner.
The three girls nodded, Akiha felt as if she was swallowing a brick when Aoko turned away again.
"Alright you big idiot. Let's see where you ended up." Aoko addressed the unconscious boy, placing a hand over his head.
She closed her eyes and began chanting:
"Hear me, Lord of All Creation."
Blue light erupted from her shoulder. A magical circle was drawn around her arm, her Magic crest entering a state of overdrive, as mana coursed through it for the first time in years.
"I announce."
Her already red hair glowed bright crimson, the runic stone on the cupboard shaking and rustling as if preparing to explode.
"In my name representing order, blue, I announce."
The bed was surrounded with a blue glow, shining bright from a magical circle that appeared from seemingly nowhere. The maids covered their eyes from the intense light, while Akiha watched on, stunned but hopeful.
"Everything will be corrected."
She opened her eyes, pupils blue as the ocean, irises black as the night. The magnificence of the scene was indescribable, after all, this was True Magic, conducted by a True Magician.
"Order has now fallen."
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Deep in the everlasting darkness, Shiki felt his body floating infinitely. He remembered that he killed himself, which meant that he must be dead now... He could not move or talk, but he felt as if he was guided somewhere, his body was not floating haphazardly.
"Oh? Is it time already?" The voice of a woman reached his ears, he did not recognize it.
"No. It is not time yet. Why are you here young man?" The voice asked Shiki, it sounded much more like an angel's voice rather than a human.
"Why am I here? I dunno. I was a bit crushed and I guess my other self found it to be the perfect occasion to introduce himself." Shiki thought to himself, but was surprised to hear the voice laugh softly in response. "Woah, you can read my mind? That's a bit intrusive."
"I guess it can be seen that away from your perspective, from mine it's simply another bit of knowledge that I have." Replied the voice addressing Shiki.
"That's kinda creepy... Who are you anyways?" He asked.
"Me? I am someone who crossed the boundary. But if you must, you can call me Shiki." The voice answered his question.
"Well that's awkward, my name is Shiki too... But I guess you already know that?" The male Shiki stated.
"Indeed. It is a strange coincidence that the two of us had to meet under these circumstances, don't you think?"
Shiki and Shiki conversed for a long time, or at least it seemed to be so to Shiki Tohno. Although he doubted that this place had any semblance of time or space.
Suddenly, a fierce blue glow interrupted their conversation, the male Shiki felt something drag him away.
"Ah. It seems your time here is up, for now." 'Shiki' said, a hint of pity in her voice.
"Wait what? What do you mean? Where am I going?" Shiki asked, starting to feel sleepy.
"To where you belong for now, young man. I'm sure we'll meet again." The voice paused. "Goodbye, Shiki."
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The bright light dissipated, the runic stone on the shelf turned to dust, Aoko's hair and eyes gradually stopped glowing. She pulled her hand away from over Shiki's head, letting out a sigh of relief.
"I guess this doesn't really count as resurrection since he was not actually dead, but he was not alive when he reached the root either... It's a miracle that I did not need to adjust time at all... I wonder what kind of effect it will have on him..." She thought to herself.
Akiha raised a hand to her chest in worry. "Is it over? Did it work?" She asked, a million questions rumbling in her head, but she dismissed all as unnecessary except that one.
Aoko did not give a response, instead she curled her hand into a fist, then used it to bonk Shiki on the head.
The maids and Akiha were speechless as he suddenly spiked up in pain. "OWOWOWOW!"
He scanned his surroundings, immediately feeling his glasses being placed on his face by a familiar figure. He saw something weird.
"Sensei? What are you doing here?" Shiki asked with a puzzled expression, but before he could get an answer, the three other girls that were standing behind Aoko rushed towards him, Akiha threw her arms around him, pulling him into an embrace, while the other two stood next to her barely holding their tears.
Akiha hugged Shiki tightly, unlike the maids, she could not hold her tears. At first, he was overwhelmed by the scene, then he just gave up and Fhugged her back to the best of his ability as someone who was in bed for three weeks.
They stayed like that for a while. Akiha was handed a handkerchief by Kohaku before she stood up, fixed her clothes, wiped her tears and pointed a finger at Shiki:
"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING YOU IDIOT! HOW MANY TIMES DID I TELL YOU NOT TO LEAVE THE MANSION AT NIGHT, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU ARE SICK!" Both happy and mad, Akiha barraged him relentlessly, with him simply smiling and apologizing. He decided not to let her know anything, not about what he did at night, nor that he discovered his past.
"But seriously, what is Sensei doing here?" He said, genuinely confused.
Akiha crossed her arms. Kohaku took the initiative, starting to explain: "After a nun found you unconscious, she brought you back home. We waited for you to wake up but you simply wouldn't. We took you to every Doctor we could afford and tried everything but nothing worked. We thought we may never see you awake again, Shiki-san."
"Ciel..." Shiki thought to himself.
Akiha continued the explanation: "Three weeks." She said, making a gesture with her hand which indicated the number three. "You've been unconscious for three weeks. We lost all hope, until your 'Sensei' showed up by our doorstep this morning and simply poofed you back to life." Akiha said, paused, then continued. "It was a spectacular lightshow. You know some weird people, Nii-san."
Aoko puffed out her chest proudly. "I take pride in my work Akiha-chan. I try to make it as beautiful as I can!" She said joyfully.
Kohaku and Shiki couldn't help but giggle at the way she addressed Akiha. The latter being flustered and turning red: "W-Wait! That's not a very respectable way to address the head of the household!" Akiha said, clearly not meaning a single word.
"It's okay! It's okay! After all, I also consider Shiki as a little brother of sorts, I don't mind having a little sister too!" Aoko said jokingly, making Akiha even more embarrassed.
"Oh, shut up! I'll go continue my duties. Kohaku! Make sure they don't run away before tomorrow!" Akiha said, as she hurriedly ran out of the room, before she left however, she stopped and took another glance at Shiki. "Oh... And... Welcome back, Nii-san." The little sister quickly disappeared into the hallway afterwards, with Hisui in tow.
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"Alright." Aoko whispered to herself, her face suddenly taking on a serious expression. Shiki noticed that and immediately looked away in shame.
Kohaku felt she was out of place, so she excused herself and chose to stand outside to give them their moment.
"I failed you didn't I... I remember you told me to value all life, you told me to protect all living things, no matter what. Yet, I did exactly the opposite of that." Shiki expressed with a tone of regret.
"Yes you did. Shiki, do you have any idea what would happen to this world if you were not alive right now?" Aoko confronted him. "Everything in this world would be doomed."
Shiki's pupils widened in shock. "What do you mean by that?" He asked.
Aoko sighed. "Remember back then when I told you you were special? I meant it. You play a very important role in this universe, Shiki." She said while pointing a finger at him. "But you cheeky child had to try and end your own life, without even considering the possibility of her still being alive!"
"!" The world froze from his perspective. "What...?" He muttered in disbelief.
"Yeah you big idiot! When you killed that vampire, all the lifeforce that he stole returned to its original owners. Your 'anemia' is not even a thing anymore." She explained calmly but made sure that each word had its weight. "Besides, did you really think the Princess of all True Ancestors would simply die that easily? You're the last person who should think of something like that, she literally recovered from being killed by you of all people, after all."
Shiki was both extremely happy but also felt unmeasurable amounts of embarrassment. "Then... You're saying she's still alive?" He asked hesitantly.
"Yep. Though I wouldn't describe what she's currently doing as living." Aoko said, raising a finger towards her chin. "She sealed herself away in the Millennium Castle Brunestud."
"Sealed herself? Why would she do that?!" Shiki asked, triggered by the info relayed to him.
"Relax, we can easily free her. But it's impractical to do so at the moment." Aoko replied with a hint of imperativeness in her voice. "Remember the bloodlust. Even if she regained the power she lost from that other vampire, she still has difficulty controlling her bloodlust. It is your handiwork, Shiki."
Shiki remained silent, clenching his fist as hard as he could. "It is because I killed her. She has to suffer now because of me" he thought.
"Luckily, there is still hope for her. You can still redeem yourself." Aoko spoke, leaning back on the chair she sat on. "That is why I'm here after all."
Shiki's attention immediately came back. "What should I do? I'll try my hardest! I'll do all I can to help her!"
His reaction seemed to stun Aoko. "Wow, he really loves her huh..." She thought to herself before speaking. "Well. We have a few things to discuss before that. Tomorrow, we will leave Misaki."
Aoko then stood up and circled around the bed, opening the sealed window. Her red hair ruffled from the wind which entered.
Shiki who was processing everything that just happened simply looked at his hand, before forming a fist in resolve. "Let's go tonight, there's no need to wait until tomorrow." He said, addressing Aoko.
She turned towards him and smiled: "That's what I'd like to hear... This is the enthusiasm you need, but it's a little too early." She patted his head once, "Tomorrow..." She announced with a smile, "Tomorrow we depart.
Author's Note:
Hello everyone! This here is the first Prologue in this story. It was reworked twice for anyone wondering, and I'll continue reworking the chapters in chronological order. Thank you for reading and I'll see you around.
Q/A:
Q: Who was the other 'Shiki'?
A: Void Shiki. Why? Well... To Kill something with MEODP is sending it back to the root, so when Shiki killed himself, he basically sent himself directly to the root, except that the Nanaya personality that was within him was the one who died, simply put, its the same with Shiki Ryougi when she was stuck in the root while recovering from her accident. He would've died if it wasn't for Void Shiki being interested in holding him for a sec to have a nice chat.
Q: Did Aoko use her magic to reverse time?
A: No. Aoko simply used her magic to form another connection with the root, using the runic stone as an anchor to reality in order to bring Shiki's personality, or technically 'Soul' back to the body. Some may say that it's beyond her but I say she can pick up a few things from Touko. If Touko can put Souls into dolls, then Aoko can bring back a soul into a body.
Q: Is Shiki now some sort of new Magician?
A: Nope. He's still the good ol' Shiki Tohno, just fully aware of his past as a Nanaya. Though he does have great potential as a mage due to his lineage's utilization of... selective breeding I guess you can call it. So he can learn Magecraft with some help from his reliable older sister Aozaki Aoko.