There were stories. Peasants told stories of nobles living in magnificent castles full of gemstones and gold and more food they could ever eat in a lifetime and of commoners with no necessities to farm for themselves and no fears of children and adults alike not able to survive the latest winter.
Astara wonders if there were stories within the others. Of commoners thinking of nobles the same and thinking peasants were filthy beggars and miserable thieves. Of nobles thinking peasants were wild men and women and children living off the land and off each other like beasts and commoners were the servants that kept them fed and washed and in power.
It's probably something similar, really. If the nobles of the Forsaken Realm simply thought of peasants as toys and resources, then the nobles of the Common Realm must think of them as animals, and the nobles of the Noble Realm... Astara tries not to think about it. So, she doesn't. She has better things to worry about.
Recca is only four years old and now a new child has been taken in. Father Orsi had named him Nash. It's a harsh winter and Astara's scared Nash won't make it; he's only a babe after all.
She doesn't even give a glance at the memory of the night before, watching Father Orsi pray almost vehemently for all of the children to survive. There's not a lot of food left, and they still have one more month of winter.
She and Yuno are both six now, but trying to help out Father Orsi and Sister Lily is almost impossible. They aren't big enough yet. Astara continues to help whenever she can–hanging up the laundry, sewing when Sister Lily lets her, washing the tatoes, farming–but Father Orsi didn't let her go deliver the message today. She doesn't have any magic to protect herself from evil men.
That's what Father Orsi said. She doesn't have any magic, but she doesn't understand why he said it the way he did.
Astara is six years old, and she has yet to showcase any magical power. Sister Lily says four years old is the most common age for magic to simply show itself.
Yuno's magic came before their fourth birthday, during the late summer months in the dead of night when he and Astara were watching the stars. A soft wind, barely even a whisper, brushed back her hair before it could fall in her eyes. Astara was so happy for him.
Forest green eyes almost glowed in the soft moonlight, appearing jade in color, and ash blonde hair, messy and long, shined like the very stars had been captured on Earth. She smiled so brightly at her brother, with awe and pride and pure joy, that he burst into tears at the sight. She didn't know what she did to make him cry, and Astara's panicked hug just made him cry harder.
Astara was excited for her magic to come next. She really was... until it never showed up.
Astara yelps as she trips over her own feet, the rapidly thickening snow preventing her from keeping most of her balance. Her lungs burn at the freezing air, eyes flicking across every opening she passes. Yuno. Where is he?
He hadn't come back. If he didn't come back soon, the snow might take him. Astara can't let that happen!
"Yuno?! Yuno!" Astara calls out loudly, slowly starting to run once more. A familiar whisper, sharp and terrified and distraught, reaches her ears; Yuno's magic. Astara slides to a stop before sprinting left to chase after the crying whisper, her heartbeat pounding loudly in her ears.
She turns a corner and everything stops; just for a moment.
A man held Yuno's necklace and Yuno was crying with blood falling out of his mouth. No. Blood falling from the side of his mouth, from a deep cut. A grimoire glowed behind the man, a small knife, not even one meant for anything of importance, hovered above his hand. A droplet of blood fell off the tip of the blade and landed in the snow.
Yuno was crying. Yuno was hurt. Yuno was hurt. Yuno was hurt.
"Yuno!" Astara sprints forward without a single thought or reason. She barrels into the man and wraps her arms around him as tight as she could, only to be slapped away by the knife. Astara cries out when the knife slices into her collarbone before it's roughly pulled out by her being thrown back.
"ASTARA!"
The pain sears through her body like the hot iron poker that had almost fallen on Recca a year ago if she didn't get in the way. Astara bites her lip as the tears immediately fall from her eyes.
"Who the hell are you, brat?!"
Astara stands up and races forward, fury etched into her face. "Th-that necklace is Yuno's! Give‒give it back!"
"Brat! Get the hell off of me!" Astara cries out when the man slams his fist into her head, slamming into the ground. She stands up and tries to grab the man again, only to be stabbed on the other side of her collarbone.
"A-Asta!" Yuno flew back with Astara as the knife forced her back towards him. He takes the weight and presses a hand to one of the stab wounds, falling back onto his butt.
"Y-you monster!" Yuno shouts loudly with tears falling down his cheeks in rivers. "What‒what do you think you're doing?! A-Asta!"
Astara stumbles onto her feet, a hand spread out behind her. "I-I'm not done yet! Give‒give Yuno his necklace back!"
"Do you wanna die?!" Astara ducks underneath the knife shooting towards her, tripping over her own feet, before she charges at the man. Her head whips around when the whispering wind rises into a wail of anguish. She watches with wide eyes as Yuno covers his left side, wailing in pain.
"YUNO!" Astara turns around to sprint back towards her brother. A hand snakes into her hair and pulls harshly, ripping out a few strands.
"This is your fault, filthy little brat!" The hand forces her head back, forest green eyes staring up into the eyes of a crazed man. "I'm taking this necklace, and I'm gonna have some fun with you."
Something unfamiliar pierces through Astara's stomach. Freezing and numbing and completely awful. Like a charred piece of food had managed to tear open her stomach from the inside.
BA-DUM.
Being so young, Astara didn't realize what this feeling was. Being so young, she doesn't know much about this night; only blurs of something awakening inside of her and the pain and the promise that she and Yuno made after everything was over and they were safe back inside the church.
She would continue to not know until Father Orsi and Sister Lily finally told her and Yuno what actually happened this night, when they turned 13 years old. It was terror, but not just any kind. Astara was terrified for her life, and her brother's.
BA-DUM.
Mana in of itself is an energy, a life force. When a child's magic begins to awaken and grow with them, the innate mana a child is born with becomes something like a muscle, or an instinct.
Even if a child's magic doesn't start to show around age four, all it could to awaken it is a drastic change. A near-death experience where the child uses magic in pure instinct to survive; an extreme emotion, be it good or bad, that jumpstarts the magic; a pure and instinctual need to protect themself or someone the child cares about.
BA-DUM.
Father Orsi laughs loudly, clearly nervous about something. "Astara-chan! I'm tasking Yuno-kun, because he'll be able to protect himself! You don't have magic, and evil men will take advantage of that!"
BA-DUM.
"You're special, Astara. Just like Yuno." Sister Lily gently pats Astara's head with an even gentler smile. "I have a feeling that having no mana will make you be capable of great things... Astara."
BA-DUM.
"No matter what! I'm gonna be the Wizard Queen! And I'll make sure that everyone will be able to live wherever they want to!" Astara grins at her brother. "I'll make sure we won't ever have to live like this again! Okay?"
BA-DUM.
Astara had no mana at all, so it had been clear–to even children like her and Yuno and even Recca–that she had no magic at all; no abilities to call her own, and no usefulness in a world built in magic.
That night, when the snow was falling hard and Astara and Yuno were terrified for their lives, something had awakened. Astara didn't achieve the scientific impossible and awakened some form of obscure magic within her that broke the very laws about magic, no.
Astara had awakened its antithesis; Anti Magic.
BA-DUM.
"GET AWAY FROM US!" Astara raises her hand towards the man's face, hiding her own with her eyes clenched shut.
A dark, darker than a void, mass sprouts out from the space in front of Astara's hand. An almost crimson sheen covers it like blood smothering a light.
The glow from the man's grimoire falls to the ground and the knife completely disappears as he starts to fall back. He doesn't even react before the dark mass expands out like a shield, tendrils attaching to the hand gripping at Astara's hair.
Like the dark mass, Astara's world goes black.
Ever since Astara could remember, maybe ever since she was born, she has been able to feel mana in everything and everyone around her. And she doesn't mean sensing mana; she means feeling it. She can feel it, hear it, she can sometimes smell it, and she can even see it if the mana is high enough.
Father Orsi always is bright and a constant warm presence; a fire in a hearth that can never be put out. It always feels safe and sacred in a way that symbolized his faith.
Sister Lily is a calm river, gentle and warm, but able to turn into a dangerous rapid when pushed to protect; it never ran dry and always washed over Astara and Yuno and the other children in soft waves.
Yuno's magic is the first one Astara ever heard. It was the soft whisper, a gentle song. The whispers can turn into wails when Yuno is hurt, or screams when Yuno is angry. It breezed over Astara like a blanket and never left her, even when Yuno had to go somewhere else for an errand.
Astara can also feel the mana from nature as well, but she hasn't figured out how to tell the differences between them all. She knows that a tree is more lively and curious where a rock is strong and undaunted, but it's hard to tell the difference between a rock and the rain or a campfire and a tree.
So, waking up to the whispers both wailing in pain and weeping in terror and sadness greatly confused, and scared, Astara.
"–ease! A-Asta–Asta! Please! Please wake up!" Yuno's voice slowly pierces through whatever veil that had smothered all of Astara's senses.
Astara's face twitches at the feeling of warm water lightly dripping onto her arm. She breathes deeply and immediately knows where she is. Frankincense; she's in the church. Astara groans quietly before slowly opening her eyes.
She stares at the dark ceiling for only a moment before turning her head. Yuno tries to wipe away his tears as he leans forward. There was a bandage on his chin and he didn't have a shirt on, so Astara could see the bandages wrapped around his torso.
"A-Asta!" Yuno exclaims through his tears, almost jumping onto the bed to hug his sister. His necklace jingled quietly from the rapid movement.
"N-necklace... we got–got it back!" Asta smiles brightly, making Yuno cry even more.
"A-Asta–Astara... you almost died! You–" The wailing and weeping whispers turn into screams "–how can you be the Wizard Queen if you die?! My necklace m-means nothing if you died f-for it!"
"I–I won't die. I'm gonna become the Wizard Queen first! I'm–I'm going to become the Wizard Queen... and protect you and everyone–everyone else! And–and–"
"Astara!" Yuno shakes his head, glaring through his tears. "Sister Lily almost couldn't save you! You–and–there's gonna be scars now and you–"
Astara stares at her brother with wide eyes, watches him crumple even further. Tears of her own start to well up, unbeknownst to her.
"Y-Yuno..."
"I-If you d-died... If you died, none of us would be happy! None–none of us could enjoy any of the nicer things you gave us if–if–if–" Yuno clenches his eyes shut and hangs his head. He sobs loudly.
"Y-Yuno... I..." Astara swallows back at burning in her throat. She shakes her head, even though it makes her tears fall.
"Yuno. I... I'm going to become the Wizard Queen... I'm going to become the Wizard Queen and prove–prove..." Astara grabs Yuno's hand, making the boy look up at her. "I'm going to–to prove that someone who's poor... someone who's an orphan... someone like us can–can become the Wizard Queen!"
Yuno stares at the silent tears falling from forest green eyes. He stares at the burning determination and the complete and utter confidence surrounding Astara that she can make it that far.
Wind swirls around his person, whispering of promises and oaths that lead to death if broken, as he lifts his pinky towards his sister. "Promise–promise me then..."
Neither pay attention to the magic filling the room, nor the dark mass that starts to bubble up around Astara's back and arms in response to the call for an oath. Astara answers the call and raises her own pinky, linking it with Yuno's.
"Promise–promise me that you won't die before you can reach that–that level... p-promise me that you won't lose to anyone–anyone except me. That–that the title for the Wizard King... it will come down to us," Yuno speaks softly. "If–if you believe that people like us can be–be the Wizard King... then I'll be the Wizard King. I'll do it to protect everyone–to protect you."
The soft candlelight flickers and makes soft black hair appear like an endless black night, void of stars or any kind of light. Gold eyes are filled with a burning determination themselves; glowing and almost ethereal.
"To become the Wizard King..."
"To become the Wizard Queen..."
"To protect our family and prove that people like us can be worth something... to protect each other..."
Yuno and Astara stare at each other, unknowing of their oath, but fully determined to make it happen. The dark mass swirls around the two of them, eating at the wind surrounding them, but making it stronger in the process as it swirls into a tighter circle.
"I swear to not die before my time. I promise to only lose to you for the title of Wizard King."
And a siblings' promise had been made.
The sun is high in the sky. The last droplets of morning dew have finally completely dried underneath the direct sunlight and the dying winter air lazily breezed through the small village of Hage. An old axe shines underneath the sun rays peeking through the leaves of the giant oak tree before being swung down over a head of ash blonde hair. It easily slices through the log even with the dull blade.
The hair was messy and long, reaching the 15 year old girl's hips. With the sunlight peaking through the leaves, small strands of silver streaked through the ash blonde gleam brightly when the light catches onto them. A fair-skinned and round face is framed by messy strands that fell out from the black headband the teenager wore; one strand fell between her forest green eyes, bright and focused at the task at hand.
The girl fully stood up and wiped away the sweat beading on her forehead with the back of her gloved hand. The gloves were black with embroidered stars on the backs, patched over and sewn back together many times. The long white sleeves of her blouse, normally cinched at her wrists to protect her skin, were rolled up to her elbows and partially showed off her strong arms. The high neckline hides the two slight crescent shaped scars on either side of her collarbone.
The black bodice is cinched tight to her body and is embroidered with two white clovers on each side of the white lacing. The full midnight blue skirt ended right above her leather riding boots; the folds of the skirt gathered at the waist are embroidered with white stars. A white apron, narrow and long, only covered the front of the skirt.
Shears were pocketed in the hand sewn pocket of the apron with a small sewing kit hidden deeper inside. The teenager swings the axe into the cutting block before she wipes her gloved hands onto her apron, making something clink together in one of the many hand sewn pockets hidden inside her skirt.
"Asta! Are you done–ah! Looks like you are!" A young woman in a black habit with a gold cross hanging off of her neck walks up with a basket of just washed clothes.
"Sister Lily!" Astara turns around with a beaming smile and jogs over to the Sister. "Ah, I was going to get the laundry done! You're such a hard worker, Sister Lily! Please marry me!"
"I'm sorry, but I'm everyone's sister, Asta," Sister Lily declines the proposal.
Astara points towards the Sister with determination set in her expression. "It's because I've yet to prove my worth, isn't it, Sister Lily?! When I become the Wizard Queen, I'll prove my worth and ask you to marry me again! I can't laze about while you work so hard!"
"I'm sorry, but I refuse, Asta," Sister Lily declines once more, bringing the 15 year old to her knees in tears.
A 13 year old girl slowly claps her hands as she walks over; a 10 year old boy walks next to her with his arms behind his head. "Well done, Sister. Asta-nē shouldn't be getting into these weird moods. It's unbecoming of her."
"Recca~! Why are you being mean to me? And why won't you call me Aneki?!" Astara lifts her head with tears still falling from her eyes.
"Our Aneki shouldn't be acting the way you're acting, Asta-nē," The 10 year old boy states nonchalantly.
"Nash~! You're even meaner!" The whispering wind gets louder and louder, making Astara scowl. "Yuno! You have to stop teaching the children to be so rude! Showcase some emotion, you handsome jerk! Why do you have to be the meanest?!"
Yuno stops walking, no emotion on his face as Aruru and Hollo stop beside his legs. He holds his chin as if actually thinking of the reasons. His finger idly taps on the white scar that stretches near the corner of his mouth and up along his jawbone.
"Why? Because you're loud, short, clumsy, and immature. You're not appealing to women, or men, in any way. Being mean to you is the only way for you to stop. Basically, it's deserved. And besides. I'm going to become the Wizard King," Yuno answers without a bat of an eye, walking past the crumpled form of his sister.
"If you're this mean to the sister you've grown up with for the past fifteen years, then no woman would ever like you!" Astara cries out with an accusing finger.
"Let me give you a hand." Yuno ignores the ash blonde to help Sister Lily with the laundry.
"Thank you."
"Don't ignore me, damn it!" Astara picks up a rock and throws it at Yuno's head.
"Astara, how many times do I have to tell you that throwing rocks won't get anyone's attention?" Yuno slowly turns around with furrowed eyebrows to indicate his annoyance. "And Sister Lily is a woman of the cloth, so she can't get married. Also, you're only 15, so you can't get married anyway."
"Oh? But I just got your attention because of the rock!" Astara states smugly, making Yuno's eyebrow twitch. Aruru giggles loudly inside her hand.
"Yuno-nī got played!" Aruru exclaims.
Hollo jumps up and down with a bright laugh. "Play! Play!"
"Asta, on your trip to the forest can you gather some more chrysanthemum? We've run out in our stock during the winter. Oh and chamomile if it's in bloom yet," Sister Lily asks, making Astara smile brightly.
"Got it! I'll be back before dinner then!" Astara exclaims as she stands up from the ground.
"There's been talk of some boars around. When I'm finished drying the laundry, I'll come with you," Yuno speaks up before using his magic to make the wet laundry float in the air.
Astara raises an eyebrow, hiding a smile. "I can handle myself just fine against some boars, Yuno. If I remember correctly, you're the one that needed my help last time."
Yuno looks over his shoulder with a glare as he spins the laundry in the air. He looks back at the laundry and puts them back into the basket when they finished drying.
"You just have a freakish strength to be able to carry two boars back here," Yuno retorts, completely denying the previous time there had been wild boars wandering the forests around them.
Astara never lets him live it down now that he actually exercises to gain some muscle. The boar almost squished him into the ground and Astara had to carry three boars back home while laughing her ass off with a bright red Yuno in tow.
"If you think you can be better help than last year, then you can come," Astara continues to tease while she readjusts her sleeves to cover her arms again.
"Let me come with you!" Nash exclaims excitedly with a wave of his hand. "I want to help! We only ever get to eat meat when this happens! Please?"
Astara smiles and pats Nash on the head. "Sorry, but it's too dangerous. Besides, you can't even watch me skin the animals when I bring them here."
Nash blanches at the reminder and steps back towards the pot of water he had just helped boil. He rapidly nods his head, his face turning slightly green.
"A-ah, you're right, Asta-nē..."
"Yuno and Asta are the hope of this church! Always helping out and faring against the dangers of the forest to keep us safe!" Father Orsi shouts dramatically with tears falling down his cheeks after the slams open the church doors.
"We'll be back before dinner," Yuno states, ignoring Father Orsi. Astara follows after him with a wave towards their younger foster siblings, also ignoring Father Orsi.
"Be good! Love you!"
"Bye Aneki! Bye Aniki!" Aruru waves back with a beaming smile.
"Bye! Bye!" Hollo repeats before running over to Sister Lily. "Sister! Sister! Story!"
"Yes, yes. How about Recca reads the story while I fold the laundry, hm?"
Yuno and Astara turn at the corner of the church, walking towards the giant demon skull, in silence. They only stop by the back of the church to grab two baskets, a few burlap sacks, the only consistently sharpened knife that the church owns.
The wind hums quietly in its whispers, making Astara smile softly. "You're happy. The Grimoire Acceptance Ceremony is coming up, right?"
"...we haven't been able to get any food other than tatoes in a while," Yuno corrects quietly, but doesn't deny Astara's question.
"Handsome jerk," Astara states fondly. "You can be happy for the Grimoire Acceptance Ceremony. My ability won't disappear because I won't get a grimoire. It doesn't need one."
"Are you sure you want to miss it?" Yuno asks while glancing down at his sister. Astara rolls her eyes and nudges Yuno's side with her elbow.
"Like I have any need to be there! Besides, it's annoying to get laughed at for something that doesn't bother me," Astara speaks genuinely and holds her hands behind her back.
She stares up at the foreboding skeleton of the giant demon, staring at the ancient statue of the first Wizard King placed on top.
A grin grows across her face before forest green eyes glance up at Yuno. "And, I'll be getting ahead in my training while you're stuck in a crowded tower for a few hours. It's a win-win for me!"
Astara sticks out her tongue at Yuno's half-hearted glare. He swiftly kicks out his foot and makes Astara trip with a loud yelp.
"Yuno!"
"You have to stop being so clumsy, stupid."
"I'm not stupid, you jerk! And you tripped me!" Yuno walks just a bit faster, making Astara scramble to catch up. "Get back here! You won't get away with that!"
Yuno breaks out into a sprint with a hidden smile and a small laugh. Astara chases after him with a bright grin of her own.
"Something's not right..." Astara stares through the old window above the wood stove.
The Grimoire Acceptance Ceremony was today. After her normal morning routine, Astara came home to get started on a surprise dinner for everyone. But... she's been feeling off all day. There's something in the air... there is new mana around–something or someone she's never felt before.
It's almost night; the sun is already halfway past the horizon. Yuno didn't return with Father Orsi and Sister Lily and the younger children.
Astara lifts the wooden ladle out of the stew and sets it on the counter next to it. She wipes her gloved hands on her apron as she walks out of the kitchen.
"Asta, is the stew ready?" Sister Lily calls out with a bright smile. It slowly falls away at the frown on the 15 year old's face. "Asta? What's wrong?"
A far off scream barely makes it past the old stone walls of the church. Astara snaps her head up when the whispering wind wails in a screaming rage.
"Yuno!" Astara races out of the dining room and out of the kitchen, barely stepping out of Father Orsi's path.
"Astara! You need to look at where you're going! And–Astara!" Father Orsi shouts after her as Sister Lily rushes out of the dining room.
"Asta!"
Astara sprints down the street and towards the grimoire tower. Yuno is in danger! That handsome jerk!
"Of course the day I decide to stay home when something important happens is the day you get yourself into trouble! You are so grounded, Yuno!" Astara thinks, desperately masking her worry with anger.
Astara's heart almost seems to stutter when the wailing wind almost makes her ears ring with its deafening screech. She bites the inside of her cheek and sprints even faster.
It barely takes her any time before she reaches the center of the wind's wailing and screaming. She sprints over the hill towards the road cutting through it.
"–be taking that..." A sleazy voice–the center of the unknown mana, Astara would later realize–barely finishes speaking before Astara jumps over the road.
"Yuno, you absolute–" Her eyes only catch the blur of silver and some dark red cloak before she lands her feet on the stone wall. Astara yelps as gravity quickly becomes her enemy and refuses to let her defy its laws by sticking to the wall. She lands on her back with a harsh grunt, her arms and legs spread out.
Astara scrambles to her feet and whirls around with her hands on her hips. "Yuno, you absolute idiot! The day you got your grimoire, you got yourself into trouble?! You are so groun...ded..."
Silence fills the road. Astara looks at the Forsaken Realm noble completely wrapped in chains and embedded into the stone wall across from her before looking over at Yuno. He was still standing, but was also wrapped entirely in chains that sprouted out from the ground. A man in a long red cloak and greasy black hair stood across from the teenage boy with a grimoire floating next to him... but another grimoire in his hands.
The grimoire is gold-covered... and has a four-leaf clover.
Astara gapes slightly at the grimoire, her eyes widening when a soft green haze suddenly appears in her vision. It emits from Yuno with a concentrated stream connected to the grimoire. Oh.
"Who the hell are you, brat?" The rude question makes the haze disappear as quickly as it came when it brings Astara back to the problem at hand.
She scowls and widens her stance. "I'm his sister! How dare you take Yuno's grimoire!"
"Oh?" The man grins maniacally, eyes squinted in some form of amusement. "So you're the pathetic little bitch that all those kids were laughing about... the bitch that knows not to show up when she doesn't have any magic to begin with!"
"Don't you dare call Asta a bitch!" Yuno shouts angrily and tries to take a step forward.
"Yuno! Now is not the time! You! If you don't get your filthy hands off of Yuno's grimoire, I'll make sure you won't ever want to use your magic again!" Astara takes a step forward, her hands twitching to do something.
"Oh, but you'll be dead before you can even try!" The man exclaims joyfully. Astara shivers at the feeling of something so cold that it drains her energy touches her entire spine. She jumps to the left and avoids the silver chain that has suddenly appeared behind her.
"Astara, run!" Yuno shouts desperately, the wind wailing loud enough to make Astara physically wince.
"And leave you behind?" Astara jumps back before another chain could try and pierce through her. "No chance in hell! Now, shut up and let me handle this!"
Astara leaps forward the moment her feet land on the ground, ducking under two more chains.
She tugs off one of her gloves as she quickly gains ground towards the thief. "I just need a read on his magic! Just one touch!"
A few more chains sprout out of the portals they come out of, aiming right at Astara. She leaps up into the air to dodge them, spinning her momentum to flip over the man. Her hand reaches for the thief's face, her fingertips almost touching his forehead.
"So useless... you're finished," The thief states before his grimoire flips a page.
The draining cold pierces Astara's entire back, making her look over her shoulder. Her eyes widen before chains slash through her arm and back.
"Dance of the Pitless Viper!"
"ASTARA!" Yuno's scream covers Astara's choked off cry. Another chain slashes across her cheek, throwing her back against the stone wall. Her breath is punched out of her before she lands on a heap on the ground.
She wheezes for breath as she stares ahead of her, unseeing. "This... he's strong... He–he must be a mage from outside of town..."
"Thank you for such a useless fight, bitch!" The thief sneers with a joyful chuckle. He slams the heel of his boot into Astara's side and into one of the wounds. Astara chokes on air in an attempt to keep her cry of pain inside.
"Y-Yuno... give... give him–him back his grimoire... I... I'm not done..." She tries to sit up, only to be forcefully kicked back into the wall by the thief kicking her stomach.
She blinks away the spots in her eyes and glares up at the thief. "I'm–I'm not finished! Gonna–gonna be the–the Wizard Queen... some bastard like you won't–will not be the end of me!"
"Wizard Queen?! You?! Girls can't be in a battle meant for men! And you–you want to be the Wizard Queen? You, a peasant born with no magic, no worth, and no power?! Don't make me laugh!" The thief cackles while lifting his foot to repeatedly kick Astara's stomach.
"I–I do... I do have a power... I do have worth!" Astara coughs up bile as she digs her nails into the dirt. She needs to get her bearings she needs to just touch the man's skin.
"The only thing you'll be able to do is become some man's whore! So pathetic! I bet you're already your genius brother's whore!" Something snaps as the exclamation passes the thief's lips. Astara claws through the dirt, shakily pushing herself up.
"Don't you dare call my sister a whore." The whispers go completely silent; the wind becomes dead. "Asta won't become the Wizard Queen..."
"Oh? You hear that?! Even your brother agrees that bitches like you need to stay away from a man's job!" The thief states before slamming his foot against Astara's back–or he tries to.
"Asta, you won't become the Wizard Queen... because I'm going to become the Wizard King! And Asta is no bitch or whore to anyone... she's my rival!" Yuno declares with an anger so cold, it burns the wind into nothing. Astara snaps her eyes open before she slowly reaches her hand up towards the thief's foot.
"Huh? This worthless bitch is your rival? A peasant with no–"
"Shut. Up." Astara grabs the foot digging into her back and throws it off. A slow breath hisses through her teeth as the teenager uses the stone wall to stand up.
Astara hisses out another breath, stumbling to keep her balance. Her eyes were dark with fury and determination, piercing through the thief's very soul.
"You're still in so much trouble. Let me handle this... rival," Astara says calmly before she takes her gloved hand off of the stone wall. "I'm going to... kick this bastard's ass!"
CHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSENCHOSEN.
A complete void of mana–d̶a̶r̶k̶, i̶n̶f̶i̶n̶i̶t̶e̶, e̶t̶e̶r̶n̶a̶l̶–suffocates the air. Astara doesn't blink, yet the grimoire that appears in front of her almost seemingly bends reality that makes her question if she had truly done so.
A dark, darker than a void, mass sprouts out and surrounds the grimoire. An almost crimson sheen covers it like blood smothering a light.
Astara almost lurches forward at the pull from the dark mass that had bubbled around her shoulders and arms. A harsh breath leaves her mouth at the sudden weeping all around her and inside of her.
"A... grimoire..." my grimoire. That's my grimoire.
"I knew it! I knew you would get a grimoire!" Yuno exclaims, more ecstatic than shocked apparently.
Astara gasps as the grimoire–her grimoire opens. Unfamiliar text stares at her before a void appears before the scriptures. A great sword–unlovedrustedunlovedunlovedunloved–slowly rises out of the void, surrounded by the same dark mass that is Astara's ability.
CLANG!
The tip of the blade falls three inches into the cobblestone road, the great sword taller than Astara.
"Your magic?! But–but you don't have any magic within you! What in the world is that grimoire?!" The thief drops Yuno's grimoire, making Astara scowl. She reaches forward and grabs the hilt of the great sword–her great sword.
"That sword! Just who are you?!" The thief screams in terror.
Astara tenses her arm before using all of her strength to pull the sword out from the ground. "I'm the person who'll make sure you never want to use your magic again!"
"You little bitch with no magical powers!" Chains explode out from the portal behind the thief, heading right for Astara.
Her eyes narrow before she holds her sword out. She turns it before swinging it towards the chains, slicing through each one. The dark mass around her shoulders and arms spread out and surrounds the pure mana her sword had turned the chains into.
Chain Magic. Creation Magic. Low. She's got a read on his magic now!
Astara grins widely as she charges forward. "I may not have magic... but I have an ability that will help me become the Wizard Queen!"
The dark mass surrounds the blade of her sword when she swings it behind her. She releases her control on her Anti Magic and vaguely hears the pages of her grimoire flip.
"Anti Magic: First Binding!" The edge of the sword slams into the thief before it makes him fly through the air and slam into the wall.
The dark mass stretches out into thin ribbons before braiding themselves around the man's arms and neck. His grimoire falls to the ground, completely dull.
Astara pants quietly, lowering her great sword until the tip scrapes against the road. She stares at the whimpering and unconscious mage before looking down at her great sword.
"...I knew my training would come in handy, but by God, is this thing heavy," Astara speaks softly to herself.
"Asta." The ash blonde looks up before turning her head towards Yuno. She blinks at the proud expression on his face, and quiet joyfulness that hides within it. She releases her great sword and runs towards her brother.
"Yuno!" She trips over her own feet as she reaches him, falling into his chest. Her arms immediately wrap around Yuno before she steps closer.
"Asta," Yuno says again, smiling softly. Astara steps back at the second call of her name and looks up at the black haired teenager. Yuno pales at the scowl on the girl's face and tries to scramble out of her hug.
"Yuno, you absolute," Astara grips her own wrists and lifts Yuno up and over her head, "fucking idiot!"
The road cracks underneath the force of Yuno's head and shoulders slamming into it from Astara's suplex. His groan leaves his mouth in a high pitch as Astara forces him to fully lay on the ground, easily keeping herself standing.
He watches past the stars in his eyes as his sister turns around with her hands on her hips and a frozen hell waiting to be unleashed in her eyes. "What in a devil's name were you actually thinking?! You could have been killed! Your grimoire could have been destroyed!"
"...Asta," Yuno tries to get Astara's attention with the call of her name.
"Do you not remember our promise, you idiot?! I can't become the Wizard Queen if my rival can't even compete against me! You are such an idiot! What about the children?! They would be devastated if I came home with you injured, or God forbid killed!" Astara continues her scolding rant, even as she starts to pace. "I was cooking a surprise dinner, you know! If I came home when everyone was excited to celebrate with you not with me, everyone would be so sad! And all of that food, wasted!"
"Asta."
"And I left without a word to come save you, you handsome jerk! I almost ran right into Father! You have to take better care of yourself! And I even left the stew on the stove! If it burns, it'll be your fault! You stupid, stupid, stupid idiot!"
"Astara," Yuno calls out one more time, louder than Astara's own scolding. She stops pacing and whips her head around to glare at her brother. It fades into a simple shocked stare at the quiet, but still beaming, smile on Yuno's face from where he stood. Her eyes take notice of the grimoire in his outstretched hand. It was hers, unloved and forgotten for what looks like ages.
The wind slowly breezes past, picking up the dandelions floating around. The sun makes them glow golden, like fairy lights.
"My... my grimoire." Forest green eyes stare at the five-leaf clover on the cover of the grimoire. Astara smiles softly before she slowly walks forward.
She grabs the grimoire from Yuno's hand, holding it in front of her. "I... I did a spell. Against that thief–I... I have spells."
"I'll pay you back someday." Astara looks up at the calm statement. "For saving me again. I'll pay you back, because... I'm going to be the one to become the Wizard King... rival."
A wide grin grows on Astara's face before she laughs loudly. She taps the corner of her grimoire against Yuno's chest before she walks past.
"When the time comes... we'll see who will become the Wizard King or Queen. To prove that a peasant–an orphan can make it that far..."
Yuno walks over and stands next to the shorter teenager, staring out towards the giant demon skull and the ancient statue sitting on top. "To protect our family..."
"To protect everyone and make everyone happy."
The two siblings, in every way but blood face each other. One with bountiful magic and the other with an immense amount of its antithesis. Both orphans, both peasants, both starting from the very bottom.
"Astara."
"Yuno."
They both raise a hand, linking their pinkies together. "It will be me who becomes the Wizard King/Queen."
And a siblings' promise had been sworn.
Hey! Hope you all like the new story! By the way, As I began to write this story, I only had watched seven episodes and as of the end of this chapter, I have watched up to episode 20 of Black Clover, so I know a lot more than what I did before!
I'm honestly quite surprised by how much I enjoy Black Clover, but I'm happy that I do enjoy it because I am almost insulted by how little Black Clover fanfiction there is. Like, it's popular in the sense that everyone knows the name and what it's vaguely about (here in America), but like... there's not enough!
So, I'm making this because I have a lot of headcanons and a lot of worldbuilding I want to explore. Mostly because fantasy is one of my favorite genres, so if I'm going to be writing fantasy, I am going to make sure that it is written hella good.
I hope you all enjoy the first chapter! Bye.
WhovianWhoudini