Changing my colors

When Yoshiko was a kid, she was truly convinced that she was a fallen angel.

She thought her punishment was not only being thrown out of Heaven to the mundane world of humans down on the Earth, but also lose the ability to see any color displayed before her.

But when with the passage of time one day her mother explained her the concept of soulmates and how having one would make her see the different colors dyeing the world until her soulmate died and everything that was painted in colors once would go back to be black and white for the rest of her life, Yoshiko found it to be the most cruel punishment she could have ever imagined and couldn't help but feel terrible for her mother.

Ever since she heard those words, she hoped, no... wished that she'd never find her soulmate as she didn't want to go through the pain of witness something as beautiful and breathtaking as seeing everything around her painted in vibrant colors, only to see herself one day being snatched of all that and be left dead alive…

I'm a fallen angel, these mundane things are nothing to me but a trifle.

That's what she liked to tell herself as time went by and her schoolmates slowly met their soulmates.

I don't need colors.

She kept convincing herself, sadness reflected in her eyes as she saw the happiness radiating out of Hanamaru and her newly found soulmate, Ruby.

But one day, that thought changed completely.

Yoshiko couldn't help but grumble on her seat, wriggling bored as she tried hard not to fall asleep after she was dragged by her mother to a rather dull piano contest. She could only sigh heavily, before excusing herself to use the restroom for a moment, because it's not like she would miss anything, right?

Of course that was what she thought, but she couldn't be more wrong about it.

As she was making her way back to the auditorium, she heard the gentle playing of the next contestant, weak sparks floating though the hallway's air while painting her surroundings with faint colors.

Yoshiko could only gasp, opening her eyes widely as she ran back to the auditorium as fast as her legs allowed her, but much to her bad luck, when she entered, she heard nothing but the silence that followed the round of applauses after the pianist finished their presentation.

As soon as she entered, everything was back to be black and white, and when she looked at the stage, the piano seat was completely empty. Yoshiko was late.

Damn me and my stupid bad luck.

She cursed to herself, grabbing frantically her mother's program to try and search for the name of the contestant that just played, but she couldn't even remember the number of the last contestant that was performing when she left, and she pretty much didn't even bother to hear about the new one.

With a heavy and dejected groan, the only thing she could do was to slump into her seat and listen to the rest of contestants without really paying attention to them, none of them being able to make her see any timid spark of color like the pianist that did it on her way back from the restroom, not even the slightest glimmer of color…

Ever since that day on, Yoshiko has been looking everywhere she goes desperate to hear that gentle melody again, desperate to see those faint colors again painting her surroundings and making them shine lively, but it seems to be a failed task…

One afternoon, after classes have ended and she has finished her cleaning duties for the day, she hears it.

It's soft, but still a beautiful melody that paints her surroundings timidly, so Yoshiko quickly throws the broom in her hands to the floor and sprints out of the classroom, running as fast as possible through the different hallways of the school trying to locate where the sound comes from. But once again, much to her bad luck, the faster she runs, the faster the sound seems to fade away in the hallways until it ceases completely.

No! No! Please keep playing! I have to find you!

She screams internally desperate yet with no luck of her prayers being heard and answered.

As Yoshiko reaches a flight of stairs, she stumbles and falls down with such a bad luck that a girl that just happened to pass by gets trapped in the accident, sending the both of them to the floor with a loud thud as Yoshiko crashes into her.

A mixture of whimpers and grunts fills the hallway as Yoshiko opens her eyes to find a very nice and good looking collarbone in front of her.

- Woah! I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to crash into you.

She quickly apologizes, pulling herself slightly away while wincing at the sudden and quick movement.

- Are you okay? Are you hurt?

A gentle voice asks her instead, stealing the air out of her lungs.

The blue haired girl can only gaze up to stare at the girl in front of her in awe, taking in her beauty, in the brightness of her burgundy hair, in her mesmerizing golden eyes…

- Did you hurt your head?

The girl asks with nothing but worry, making an attempt to touch Yoshiko's head which only makes the younger girl panic and shriek, pulling away embarrassed.

- I-I yes – Yoshiko struggles to say, seeing the girl in front of her worrying more, before she realizes what she just said, almost facepalming herself – I mean no! I'm perfectly okay, don't worry!

She ends up clarifying, hearing the other girl giggling and making her look at her in complete awe, drawn by such a beautiful sound.

Not realizing of it, her hand reaches the girl's face to caress it delicately, mesmerized, taking a lost strand of her silky and bright burgundy hair in between her fingers.

- So this is the majesty of colors…

Yoshiko trails off completely mesmerized by it, making a soft gasp escape her company's lips.

- You can see them too?

The burgundy haired girl asks to which Yoshiko can only nod in a daze, a smile spreading across her lips as the other girl smiles widely and happily.

- So you're my soulmate? – Yoshiko asks insecurely, getting a nod in return – I'm Yoshiko!

- R-Riko.

The other girl introduces herself timidly, a light blush adorning her cheeks, and Yoshiko already loves the light pink color dusting her beautiful face. So out of impulse, the blue haired girl throws her arms around Riko to hug her tightly and happily much to the burgundy haired girl's further embarrassment.

- Just wait and see, little demon Riri, how I will paint your world with the most majestic colors you have ever seen!

- W-what!?

Riko finds herself exclaiming in shock as she's pulled by the hand by Yoshiko to run down the hallways with their laughs filling them, finding herself not caring about it as she already likes her strange but cute soulmate.