#azusa kuze imagine

[shall-we-imagine]

Talking to the moon. (Azusa Kuze)

Requested: 45. "I can't imagine this world without you." From the prompt list.

Genre: Fluff.

(Second Person Point of View)

The full moon shone down on your beautifully decorated balcony, lighting it up just enough for it to feel comfortable without using any artificial light.

The sleeves of your wool, turtleneck sweater reached near your knuckles, increasing the warmth you were drowning yourself in.

The sweet scent of hot chocolate calmed your nerves, completely erasing any memory of exhaustion or annoyance you may have had.

"Today was a long day." You stare at the celestial body, glowing in the dark night sky.

Shyly, you let your gaze drop to your drink clasped between your hands that were rested on the marble railing.

"But it's okay." You mumble, "He makes everything a lot better."

A smile forms on your lips, "I hope we spend the rest of our lives like this."

You look back up at the moon, "Together."

Sighing blissfully, you add, "Happy."

The sound of the glass door opening and closing doesn't escape your notice, but you remain in the same position.

A strong pair of arms slowly wrap around your waist, and soon, you could feel your husband's chin rested on your shoulder.

"What are you doing, love?" He asks, hugging you tighter.

"Hmm." You contemplate how to explain what you were just doing, "you know how some people keep diaries?"

You felt him nod lighlty against your shoulder, encouraging you to carry on with your explanation.

"Well," you let out a sigh, "I could never get myself to keep one, but I have something similar that I do."

Your gaze wanders back to the beautiful glow in the sky.

"And what could that be?" Curiosity was evident in his voice, yet you could still hear the patience laced between the sounds he spoke. Perhaps it was the relaxing aura the night inserts into your hearts, but you could feel how he wasn't trying to rush you at all.

"Talking to the moon." You mumbled, a slight blush decorating your cheeks. Gladly for you, you had your back turned to him, so he couldn't sense your embarrassment.

"Interesting." He chuckles.

You finally turn to face him, "Come on; it helps." A slight giggle escapes your lips.

With a grin, he leans in closer, resting his forehead on yours, "well, I guess I should try it some time."

"Mmhm." You agree, before moving your drink towards him.

He accepts your silent offer, grasping the cup and taking a small sip out of the hot drink before giving it back to you.

You slowly turn to face the darkness of the night once again, sipping your drink in the process.

Azusa moves closer to the railing, resting his elbow on the marble surface. His shoulder as close to yours as possible.

You couldn't object; it was a cold night, after all. Plus, it was Azusa; you'd never protest when it came to him.

"It's beautiful." He states.

"Yeah." You rest your head on his shoulder.

"Shouldn't you go back to bed?" He turns his head to look at you. He earns a groan in response, as you shift your body to face him and look into his eyes.

"I don't want to." You pout.

"You've got work tomorrow." Your childish attitude seemed to amuse him since he lets out a slight chuckle.

"I know." It was the tenth sigh in the past 3 minutes.

"You're such an idiot sometimes." He ruffles your hair, but you push his larger hands away, trying to fix the mess he caused.

"I'm a mature, independent woman." You raise your eyebrows, playfully arguing with his previous statement.

"Of course you are" he presses a kiss to your forehead.

You place your drink on the wide railing before wrapping your arms around his torso, burying your head in his chest.

Not hesitating a second, he returns the gesture, engulfing you in a warm hug.

"I can't imagine this world without you." Even though it was such a quiet night, you weren't very sure if you'd heard him or was it your sleep deprived imagination.

Not wanting to embarrass yourself but also refusing to remain silent, you decide to take a safer route, "I love you." You whisper.

"I love you too." He responds.

He pulls away, "Now get back to bed, dummy." Grabbing your hand, he pulls you back inside to the warmth of your bedroom.

This time, he makes sure to snuggle close enough to you, ensuring you don't get out of bed until it's time for work.

The next day, you made sure to blame him for not finishing your hot chocolate the night before. Well, now it was anything but hot.

[wizardessheart-sideb]

[Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 10-1: Hunting” /End ID]

Chapter summary: With little options, I have no choice but to go with Azusa and try and avert disaster.

I’m not doing well, so I won’t be attending classes today. I’ll see you after class. Love, Tsukasa.

The Magic Note came in as I got dressed. My stomach felt so sick reading it. He… He’s not ever going to get better, is he? Not unless we get that medicine. Or Azusa or I make a contract… What would I give a demon to make Tsukasa better? Heck, what would it even ask for? A lock of my hair? Some blood? My first-born child?

I walked into the kitchen. Aika and Isabelle were at the table, bowls of cereal in front of them. There was nothing on the stove and Dorian was nowhere in sight.

“We’re on our own for breakfast this morning,” Isabelle informed me.

“Where’s Dorian?” I asked.

“He’s looking for Azusa,” Aika said.

“Still?!”

“I guess?” Aika shrugged. “I don’t know. Dorian left around four this afternoon and he called me a few hours later and told me he couldn’t find Azusa so he was going to look for him.” My stomach knotted itself up.

“He might be at the Spring of Unicorns, but I don’t know why he’d be there now,” I told her. “He seemed so hellbent on having me help him and he told me we weren’t going to go there until four am.”

“I know Dorian looked around the dorms, but I don’t know if he’s checked the main building or not,” she said.

“He better not get too much attention,” Isabelle piped up.

“Dorian’s great a stealth. There’s no way he’s gonna be caught,” Aika reassured her. “I’m more worried about him not being able to find Azusa.”

“If anything, you’ll know where he is this morning,” I said, trying to look on the bright side of things.

“Yeah, but it’d be better for us to catch Azusa before he does anything,” Isabelle pointed out.

“I’ll call Dorian and give him the tip.” Aika quickly got up and left. Isabelle sighed, folding her arms across her chest.

“Are you really going to go through with this? Helping him… You know…” Her thumb made the throat-slitting motion.

“I mean, I don’t know. I don’t want to kill anything. But I don’t know if we can convince Azusa otherwise.”

“If worse comes to worse, Dorian can restrain him and you can make a contract with a demon or magical creature or whatever you want to save Tsukasa,” Isabelle said.

“We really depend on Dorian for everything, don’t we?” I sighed.

“Well, yeah. He’s taken care of Aika since she was yo- They were young. We joke about it, but he really does take care of us. He insists on it.” She took a sip of her coffee.

“Have you ever summoned a demon or a magical creature before?” I knew Aika and Dorian were into that sort of thing. Maybe Isabelle had experience with it. But she just gagged on her coffee.

“What? No. Summoning isn’t my specialty and the price of a contract is… Something that would open up a lot of mental wounds for me. How come?” she asked.

“I’m just worried if I have to do it. I don’t know what I’d sacrifice in order to save Tsukasa. I’d give anything to save him, but when it comes to picking that...”

“I get it,” she said with a nod. “It’s a big decision, you know? If you want my opinion, I’d do some research first and decide what kind of creature to summon first. If you do chose a demon, there’s a lot of subtypes. Incubi generally make contracts for firstborns or a bit of your soul, although I’ve heard some are really flexible with payment.”

“I don’t know if I’d want to summon a demon like that…” I don’t want to make a contract like that and besides, I don’t think Tsukasa would appreciate it if I made a contract like that even if I was willing.

“Personally, I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Azusa’s stubborn, but he loves his brother and I’m sure Dorian will get through to him.” Isabelle smiled warmly at me.

“Yeah, but I don’t like depending on others,” I admitted. “Dorian shouldn’t have to do anything. I should be able to do everything on my own.”

“Oh, same,” Isabelle nodded. “But you have to realize this is something big. I feel like if you have someone willing to do the work for you or help you out, you should take it. No one should have to do things alone, you know?”

“But I’ve been depending on people ever since I got here. I haven’t done anything for myself,” I reminded her. Isabelle’s brow furrowed.

“What are you talking about? Of course you’ve done things on your own. Do you honestly think that other people have been doing your work for you? Even if people are helping you, your accomplishments and your growth are your own.” She sighed, taking another sip of coffee.

-----

I’d gotten used to walking to class on my own. But as I got to the elevator, I paused for a moment. I wondered how Tsukasa was doing. Usually he sent me a Magic Note in the morning, but it just occurred to my that I hadn’t heard from him. My body immediately started to move on its own. I needed to go check on Tsukasa.

The door to his room was opened slightly and I immediately pushed it open, only to for it to meet resistance.

“Don’t open it more. You’re going to knock me over.” Tsukasa’s voice came from the other side.

“Tsukasa?! Are you okay?” I wiggled through the small opening and found Tsukasa sitting on the ground, clutching a trash can to his chest. I immediately knelt down beside him, pushing his hair out of his face. He heaved and stuck his head into the can, vomiting. I hurried over to his desk, grabbing the box of tissues and pulling some out for him. He took them and cleaned himself up.

“Sorry, I’m staying home today,” he said.

“Don’t worry about me. Do you need me to take you to the infirmary?” I asked him.

“No, it’s fine. I just need a moment.”

“Are you really sure? I don’t mind helping you down there.”

“Really, it’s fine,” he insisted. “Azusa told me he’ll be getting another batch of my medication and I’ll be fine in a few days time.” He gave me a soft smile, hand reaching out and cupping my cheek. Despite the comforting gesture, nausea came over me. “Don’t worry about me. It’s gonna be okay.”

“I know. Everything’s going to be okay.” I spoke the words, trying to believe in them. I wasn’t going to let Tsukasa die. I had to do something to save him. I was going to do something to save him. Tsukasa leaned against me, snuggling into my side. “What if I stay here with you today?” I posed the question carefully, glancing over at him.

“I’d like that, but are you sure? Is it going to stress you to skip classes today?”

“I’ve been doing a lot better in classes. I’m sure its fine.” I put my arm around him, trying to snuggle closer to him. He put the trash bin to the side and grabbed my hand.

“I’m really grateful for you. I hope you know that,” he told me. My heart melted.

“And I’m grateful for you. I’m so grateful we met.”

----

I glanced at the clock on the wall. If I was going to meet Azusa, I’d have to leave right now. Tsukasa and I had been laying on his bed for the past hour or so. Glancing down at Tsukasa, I saw he was still fast asleep. If it wasn’t for the steady rise and fall of his chest, I would’ve worried… Carefully, I climbed over his legs and got out of bed. As quietly as I could, I sneaked out of the room. Tsukasa would probably be upset when he realized I left, but this needed to be done.

Classes were still going on, so the hallways in the dorm were silent and empty. At least that was nice. I didn’t have to worry about getting caught playing hooky. In fact, everything seemed empty and quiet as I made my way into the forest and to mine and Azusa’s meeting spot. It was as if the whole forest was empty. There were no owls crying out, no insects making wretched sounds. Nothing.

As I approached the meeting spot, I could see a dark figure in the moonlight, a flashlight in its hand.

“Azusa?” I called out.

“What?” he responded, irritated. I sighed a breath of relief.

“Sorry, I couldn’t tell if it was you or not,” I told him.

“Whatever. Let’s go.” He grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the spring. I wrenched my arm out of his grasp.

“You don’t have to hold onto me. I’m fine,” I told him. He said nothing. “Look, I’ve been thinking about this, and I have an idea. If the unicorn won’t give us a piece of its horn, I’m willing to make a deal with a demon -”

“A demon?” he interrupted. “You’re seriously saying you’d rather try and strike a deal with a demon than just killing an animal?”

“But we wouldn’t have to kill anything!” I protested.

“Why are you still hung up on that? I’ve already told you… Ugh, I’m not having this argument again. I hate repeating myself.”

“But it just makes more sense! Do you want to keep coming back here and killing unicorns every couple years or make a deal with something and have it done forever?”

“… You wouldn’t understand it,” he muttered. “I’m not going to rely on someone or something else. The only reason I brought you into this is because Tsukasa says you’re good with healing magic and I would assume you want him alive.”

“You don’t want to rely on people?”

“I just told you I hate… Are you trying to piss me off on purpose?!”

“No, no! That’s not it at all! I… I get it. I really do.”

“You’re so weird,” he said dismissively before heading into the spring. Was this how I looked to other people? Stubborn and leading myself down a difficult path for no reason? Not listening to reason? Even if Azusa refused to listen to me or anyone else, I knew how he felt.

I wasn’t sure if the feeling comforted or worried me. Uneasy, I stepped into the spring. A unicorn was already by the water, but I couldn’t tell if it was the same one Azusa and I talked to.

“Hello?” I called out.

“Ugh, you two again,” the unicorn sighed. I guess that answers that question. Jerk. “If you’re here to bargain with me, I stand by what I said earlier.”

“Are you really okay with letting someone die when you could have saved his life?” I challenged it.

“Do you really think I’m going to believe two strangers I just met? You’re probably lying,” he said dismissively.

“But do you want to take that risk? Do you want blood on your hands? Er, hooves?” I corrected myself. Azusa groaned.

“Be quiet. I’ll take care of this,” he told me, grabbing my shoulder. “Get ready to back me up if needed.”

“Azusa?!”

“Stand back or you’ll get caught in the magic circle,” he ordered.

“The what?!” He grabbed my arm and threw me away from the spring. I stumbled over my feet and fell to the ground. “Ow! Azusa, what the heck?!”

“封! (Fuu!)” he shouted, writing a symbol in the air. My stomach dropped as faint markings in the ground started to glow. It was happening. This was really happening.

“Azusa, stop!” I screamed at him, scrambling to my feet. There was a blinding light and I shut my eyes as I grabbed Azusa around the waist, hiding my face in his back.

“Get off me!” he yelled.

“No! Please don’t kill it! Just take part of the horn, please!” I pleaded.

“Stop being a baby,” he ordered me callously. “I’m taking care of everything. Just stand back and if I need healing, do it.”

His fingers dug into my arms and he wrenched my arms opened, pushing me away from him. The magic circle on the ground faintly glowed, and from some of these lines stood what looked like large slabs of glowing crystal. The unicorn was desperately rearing back, crashing onto the slabs, trying to break it. Azusa leaned down, taking his backpack off and leaving it at my feet.

“Get ready to help me with the butchering. I can’t do that alone,” he told me. Bile rose in my throat at the mental image. Azusa approached the crystalline cage and I was scrambling to my feet, reaching for my wand. But as I raised to attack Azusa, I froze. What if Azusa was right? What if this was the only way?

… No, this isn’t the way…

Tsukasa’s medicine only kept him healthy for a few years. If we went down this road, Azusa would have to kill unicorn after unicorn after unicorn. And what if we couldn’t get access to one? What happened when we killed the last one? What happened when we had no medicine to give Tsukasa? This wasn’t sustainable. This wasn’t a long-term solution.

“O sacred water, become a piercing arrow! 'Sagitta Aqua!'" I cried. A large arrow of water went flying through the air and hit Azusa squarely in the back. He cried out in pain, stumbling forward. He froze, then slowly turned to my. My stomach churned as his rage-filled face glared at me. I tried to stand my ground. “I told you, we’re not killing it.” My voice shook. Azusa took one step towards me, then another. I stumbled back.

“I knew I couldn’t trust you,” he said, voice dangerously low. He lifted his hand, starting to write something in the air. I readied my wand, ready to bring up a shield. “炎! (En!)” A bolt of fire came roaring towards me.

“Suctum Aqua!” I quickly brought up a shield and stood my ground, digging my feet into the ground. The flame pushed against my shield, but I kept it up. Even if they were getting extinguished from my shield, seeing flames right in front of your eyes was terrifying.

Suddenly, the flames disappeared and I heard Azusa scream. My shield dropped and I saw Dorian, arm raised, entering the clearing, Aika and Tsukasa following behind him.

“Tsukasa?!” Through my shock, I somehow managed to run over to him, taking him in my arms. “What are you doing here?! You need to be at home, resting!”

“Aika told me what’s going on. I couldn’t let them come for you on their own,” Tsukasa said, pushing some hair behind my ear.

“Tsukasa…” As glad as I was to see him, I couldn’t help but worry about his health and how he was feeling right now. Dorian put his arm down and Azusa choked for air, chest heaving violently.

“Our baby Unus transfer told us everything and we told Tsukasa everything. Let’s talk this out, Azusa,” Aika said gently, approaching him.

“There’s… There’s no other way…” he insisted.

“This isn’t sustainable. What happens when we can’t find a unicorn? We need another solution. Please, if you won’t listen to me, listen to them!” I begged him.

“None of you understand what I’ve been through!” he shouted. “If killing a unicorn is the only way to save Tsukasa, then so be it!”

“Hey, we’re all here for you,” Aika said gently, grabbing his arm. “We can all put our heads together and figure something out.”

“Shut up!” he screamed. She trembled and immediately took a few steps back, body shaking. “I’ve tried everything and this is the only thing that will work!”

“Oh, really? You’ve really gone through every possible solution? I find that hard to believe,” Dorian called him out, crossing his arms over his chest. Azusa glared at him.

“Oh, you’re really going to be like that?” he asked dangerously. He raised his hand and I moved in front of Tsukasa, ready to throw up another shield. But in an instant, Tsukasa moved in front of me, storming over to Azusa.

“That’s enough!” Tsukasa yelled.” They’re just trying to help you! We’re trying to help you! You’ve always been like this, insisting you can do everything by yourself. You’re so stubborn! Can’t you just accept our help How will it hurt you if you get help from us?”

“How many times do I have to repeat myself?!” Azusa roared. “There’s no other way. It’s you or the unicorn! And I’m not losing you! You’re all I have left! You have no idea what I’ve been through! I don’t care if I have to kill every unicorn on this damn planet. I will save you. I won’t let you die again!”

Everything froze.

Die… Again…?

Azusa’s face crumbled. He took a few steps toward Tsukasa, who stepped away.

“What are you talking about?!” Tsukasa demanded, voice shaking. Azusa remained silent. “I… Azusa, what are you talking about?!”

“I promised our parents I would do everything to keep you safe. I couldn’t let you die. I couldn’t let you stay dead,” Azusa said quietly.

“You’re crazy! You’ve completely lost it!” Tsukasa shouted. His shoulders started shaking. I hurried over to him and embraced him. His knees buckled and his full weight dropped into my arms. Carefully, I sat down with him. Azusa sprinted over to us, kneeling in front of Tsukasa and I.

“The past doesn’t matter,” Azusa said. “You’re alive now and I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep you alive. Even if you hate me, you’re still my brother and I’ll do anything to keep you safe.”

“Why... Why didn’t you tell me?!” Tsukasa demanded.

“I thought it would be best if you didn’t know,” Azusa replied. Part of me couldn’t fault him on that, seeing what was happening now.

“But it’s my life! I deserve to know what’s going on!” Tsukasa retorted.

“You want to know the truth?”

“Yes!”

Azusa sighed, sitting down by us. Defeated. Exhausted.

“It happened when you caught cholera,” he began. “I tried everything to save you, but when you…” He swallowed hard. “I couldn’t accept it. You were just fourteen. I’d promised our parents I’d keep you safe and I failed. So I searched for a way to bring you back. A merchant had a unicorn carcass on his hands and I was willing to shell out for it. The horn and some magic I learned from a visiting Gedonelunian woman did it.

“You came back to life. All I had to worry about was giving you your medication. As long as you were taking that, you’d stay alive. But then we moved and I thought things would be easier here for us. I’ve been trying to get bits of unicorn horns to give you the right dosage, but… I haven’t been able to. And without the medication, your body’s shutting down. That’s why we need to kill this unicorn. You’re dying and I refuse to lose you again.”

“Azusa…” Tsukasa whispered. We fell quiet. Tsukasa quietly sobbed and I just… I didn’t even know what to think. But Azusa’s desperation made even more sense now that I knew the truth. Even though I was relieved to hear Tsukasa wasn’t sick, it wasn’t like it mattered. Somehow, his body shutting down was worse. Illnesses had cures. Dying like this had very few.

“… Dorian,” Aika spoke up quietly. “I want to break our contract.”

[imagineswd]

How about Elias/Klause/Azusa with MC, when she is pregnant.

In the living room, MC is sitting on a soft chair and rubs her belly. She smiles because she is looking forward to having a baby with the man she loves. A family.

Elias Goldstein: *walking into the living room where he sees MC who sits, nervous and slowly walks toward her* “D-d-do you need something…? L..Like… *swallows a bit before speaking again* … Are you hungry? Is there anything I can do…?” *gently tilts his head and looks into her eyes* 

Klaus Goldstein: *walking into the living room* “Oh, you are here?” *slowly walking up to behind her and gently leans over her shoulder while putting his hand on her other shoulder and the other hand on her belly* “How are you feeling today?” 

Azusa Kuze: *doesn’t want to leave her side, sitting next to her on the ground while his head is on her lap* “MC, I can barely wait to see our son” *softly smiles while gently touches her belly* “Please tell me when you need something” 

[atinywizardess]

Klaus Goldstein - Mafia AU

The room was hazy and things seemed to move slower in the crowd. Klaus’ eyes scanned vigorously through faces as he sought after her. The room smelt like old scotch and cigar smoke, it would’ve been a relaxing environment had he been here for pleasure and not business. Men and women buzzed about as a jazz band played in full swing. Groups of men crowded around poker tables, gambling away their earnings. 

 His hat’s brim casted a shadow over his eyes, in here it was important to hide his face as best he could. His tailored pinstripe suit caressed his body in a comfortable snug, an expensive watch clung to his wrist elegantly. His freshly shined shoes marched on the old hardwood floor of the saloon. Many women gave him a lingering glance, even causing a few flapper girls to freeze up dancing. Although this part of town was notorious  for gangsters, he only blended so well amongst the crowd. His suit was a little too tailored and his shoes were a little too shined. 

But before anyone could approach him he made his way out of the crowd towards the back rooms. He locked eyes with one of the dancers, after recognition setting over both of them she stepped down from the stage. He looped and arm around her waist and guided her to the back exits.  Klaus glanced quickly over his shoulder making eye contact with his partner Sigurd who was posing as the bar tender. He gave Sigurd a quick nod before stepping out into the dim and foggy alley. 

Standing before him was Elizabeth Hart, one of the two female detectives in his agency. She had gone undercover as a dancer, one of the easiest ways to keep an eye on the enemy was to constantly be on stage entertaining them. Out of the three of them undercover, Klaus was the only one not working in the popular saloon.  Klaus had taken on a much more dangerous role than the others. He’d been working under the main man in the Mafia, Loran Merkulova. 

“Sight for sore eyes, Goldstein.” Elizabeth took a deep breath of the cold winter air. “Curtis and I were under the impression you’d ditched and headed west.” Elizabeth always had a light and airy mood regardless of the situation they were facing. 

“No,” Klaus scoffed. “I’ve been shadowing Merkulova for the past four days, luckily he hasn't gotten a good view of my face and I haven’t said more than ten words to the man.” Klaus could see the air starting to chill Elizabeth’s skin. “They’re planning to ambush the Reintz mafia for territory. I need the information you’ve gathered so far, so I can report back to Schuyler.” Klaus looked down his nose at his female partner. He didn’t believe for a second that she had been taking any of this seriously. In his eyes she just saw this as a chance to dress up and have men fawn over her. 

Not that men fawning over her bothered him, he could admit the beauty of a woman when he saw it. He could understand why she’d been chosen to wear a tight dress in one of Gedonelune most popular saloons. But she had no experience in undercover work, prior to this case she had just been a desk jockey. She was wonderful at answering phones and filing documents, but this was an entirely different ballgame. People’s lives were dependent on Merkulova being brought down. He didn't have time to waste, and he wasn’t about to allow her to bring down the case he’d been working on for years.

“Merkulova’s right hand Azusa Kuze has been talking about a warehouse about twenty miles east of the city. They’re using the warehouse as some type of holding facility, they’ve got a few of the weaker Reintz boys hostage. They’re using them for some type of leverage. I’m pretty sure this is where the territory play comes in. Once they lure members from Reintz into their turf it’s a free for all. If they take out a decent amount of Aster’s guys they can get an easier target on him. Well, y’know what happens once Aster’s out of the picture.”

“They move into Reintz and claim it.” Klaus scratched his chin in thought for a moment. Elizabeth got a glimpse of his eyes in the dim street light, her heart started to beat a tad bit faster. Although Klaus was the walking definition of arrogant asshole, she couldn’t help but savior the small moments when she got to study his profile. “Let’s report back to Schuyler. He’ll need to hear this and we can sketch a plan from there.” Elizabeth cocked an eyebrow.

“Together?” She hadn’t expected Klaus to show interest in anything she’d gathered from her investigation. Klaus didn’t bother to show enough interest to remember that she preferred to be called Liz.

“Well, it looks like you and I will be working closely together now. If you can gather that type of information out of men just by dancing near them, I can’t imagine how smoothly interrogations could work.” With that Klaus started to walk towards his automobile, Liz quickly took long strides next to him to keep up.

Had she just been given a promotion?

[shall-we-imagine]

Not much of a catastrophe. (Azusa College!AU*-ish*)

Genre: indeed some fluff :3 lol okay it's more comedy I guess 😂

Description:

were- /wər/

man; prefix most commonly used with animal names to indicate a person who changes shape into that animal.

(First person point of view)

I couldn't tell if I was more frustrated or confused. I had spent hours trying to fall asleep, just so I could wake up about two hours later, due to some cat meowing outside. That's the strange part. What in the world was a cat doing outside my dorm room?? It couldn't have just walked into the building; they always have the doors locked. Pets weren't allowed either. So, a cat disturbing my very much needed sleep was nothing I had anticipated.

Don't get me wrong; I absolutely love cats, but when it's 3 A.M, and you haven't had nearly enough sleep for the past week, and you've been working on some random project for college...there's no such thing as love and logic; there's only coffee and irritation.

I tried to ignore the noise; I really did. Yet, the more I tried to fall asleep, the more unbearable the scratching and meowing became.

Letting out a defeated sigh, I pushed myself off the bed and walked towards the door to my dorm. I pushed my hair down in an attempt to look less like a zombie and more like a human. Slowly, I pulled open the door and peeked outside.

It wasn't in front of my door but in front of the door to the dorm opposite to mine. There stood a slightly oversized cat with various shades of brown hair.

The feline calmly turned to look at me, revealing its beautiful pair of blue eyes. The cat looked glorious, and if it hadn't been for the fact that it woke me up, I would've been in much more awe.

I expected it to run off or at least cower in fear, but instead, it showed no interest in me, whatsoever, and turned back to the door it originally looked at.

Once again, it started meowing, and even hissing, at the door, bringing its paw to the wooden frame and clawing at it.

I crouched on the ground as if it'd make me seem less intimidating, not that it seemed at all fazed by me but still, and spoke up in a low voice, "Hey!" I shuffled slightly closer, "Hey, are you hungry? Do you want some food?" I asked, making the cat stare back at me.

Showing the same amount of disinterest, the cat proceeded to ignore me and went back to clawing at the door frame.

I huffed, as I got up and walked back into the dorm. "Let's see what do I have here...what can I feed a cat?" I stared at the mini fridge in my room. There wasn't much I could feed to a human, let alone a cat. "Hmm..maybe this could work?" I mumbled as I pulled out a milk bottle. I mean it's not food, but let's hope it appeases the nuisance at my door.

I poured some of the milk in a plastic bowl I found and carried it to the cat. I slowly placed the bowl near it, "I got you some milk, come on." I gave a smile and motioned for it to come closer. The cat held my gaze for a few moments before pushing its body off from its sitting position and cautiously raising its paw. I waited for it to take step closer..but it never did. Rather, it quickly pushed its paw down on the edge of the bowl, splashing milk on itself and me, while the rest of the liquid was spilled on the floor.

"Hey! What did you do that for?!" I snap in frustration, while wiping the drops of milk off my face. With its tail up and ears forward, the cat kept licking its paw, clearly pleased with itself. I swear I could almost see a taunting smirk on its face! Ugh!

Groaning, I got up and walked back into the dorm, finding myself an old rag to clean up the mess that thing caused. That cat is evil; I tell you! Evil! I'm certain!

I walked back outside with the rag, ready to wipe off the spilled milk. Unlike before, the cat seemed to have been excitedly waiting for me to come back. I got on my knees and used my left hand for support while using my right hand to wipe off the pool of milk on the floor.

As I was focused on cleaning, the cat slowly walked towards me and started rubbing its head on my thighs, and soon after, it started rubbing its entire body on my thighs. "Awwhh." I couldn't help but sit back on my knees and reach behind its ears. I started rubbing its head lovingly, earning a purr of pleasure in response. It closed its eyes and leaned into my palm, encouraging the gesture.

Well, okay, maybe it's not that evil.

The cat turned its head towards my door, that I had left wide open, before allowing itself inside my dorm. Was it really a good idea to let a stray cat inside my dorm room? No. Was I going to kick it out? Certainly not. Besides, it didn't really look like a stray cat; it was very well-groomed. Perhaps a student was able to sneak his or her pet in here?

Looking at the cat, I could tell it was here to stay, so I didn't bother wait for it to come out again; I just walked in and closed the door behind me. The cat kept wandering around the room in curiosity. It was really strange how it didn't seem to be scared at all; in fact, it seemed very comfortable. This only stressed the fact that this was no stray cat; it seemed familiar with humans.

I sat on my bed, watching as the cat explored the small space. Suddenly, it jumped on top of my desk, toying around with my hair ribbon, that I left on top of my paper stack. Scared for the life of my books and paper work, I got up to keep the cat away. I lifted the surprisingly light pet and carried it towards my bed.

I put it down and realized it hadn't let go of the red ribbon. "What is it? Do you like that ribbon?" I ask. It stops the war against the accessory to look at me. Then, an idea popped into my head- one that won't be very lovable to the cat, but I wanted to try it.

I carefully took the ribbon and tied a little bow around the cat's neck. It immediately started whipping its tail from side to side, showing irritation. The dark cat kept pulling at the ribbon with one paw, followed by the other, which ended up making it fall on its back, yet that only frustrated it even more, making it try to use even its back paws to remove the ribbon.

Unable to help it, I started giggling at how angry the little thing was. It stopped fighting with the ribbon to look at me. Slowly, it stood up and hissed at me. Did it just threaten me? "Okay, okay, I'll take it off." I complied, considering it felt like that cat was capable of murder, probably.

After I untied the ribbon, it seemed to calm down, and eventually proceeded to wander around again.

The more I tried to stay awake, the sleepier I got. I kept yawning a hundred times per second; I needed sleep. I rubbed my eyes and lied down on the bed. The normally uncomfortable pillow seemed a billion times softer at the moment, and slowly I was dozing off.

Before I could fall asleep, I felt the cat jump on top of the bed. It climbed on top of me, stopped, and started kneading on my tummy. I chuckled softly, "I haven't had any sleep.." I yawn, "I'm sorry I can't play with you now..maybe we can play tomorrow?" I ask it, as if it could reply to me. Somehow, it just seemed to understand. It simply just moved a little closer and made itself comfortable on my chest before trying to sleep too. A light laugh escaped my lips because of the adorable sight. Following the cat's actions, I also made myself comfortable and tried to fall asleep, which didn't take long at all.

#######

I felt something wet on my nose, and my eyes fluttered open to see the cat had decided to start licking my nose for some reason. "I'm trying to sleep; just stop." I turn my head to the other side, trying to fall back asleep. Yet, the cat persistently started licking my ear lobe. "Oh my god! What is wrong with you?! That's gross; just let me sleep!" Not bothering to open my eyes, I covered my ear for a few moments to keep the cat away, before trying to bury my head deeper into the pillow, as if that's possible.

A few, suspicious moments of silence passed, before I started to relax once again and doze off. However, of course, I spoke too soon. I felt hot breath on my neck and before I could dismiss it as the cat, a deep, raspy voice whispered in my ear, "Good morning, sleepyhead." A chill ran down my spine.

My eyes snapped open, and I looked towards the voice; first thing that met my eyes were another pair of eyes. A pair of human eyes.

I shrieked in terror, and in the process of jumping away from him, I fell off the bed. "Who the heck are you?! You freaking pervert! What are you doing here?! How did you come in here?!" I started shouting random questions, to which he rolled his eyes.

"I'm not a pervert; you let me in." The stranger sitting on my bed replied. "What in the world are you talking about?! Are you crazy?!" I yelled back at him, "And why are you shirtless?!" My eyes fell to his bare chest, thankfully the blanket was covering the rest of his body. My confusion was just increasing by the second. "Because I don't have any clothes with me?" He raised his eyebrow, making it sound as if I was the crazy one. "I'm calling the police!" I say as I reach for my phone, but he snatches it away.

"I'm the cat!" He says, "The cat you brought in last night! My highly intelligent roommate locked me out and fell asleep! I couldn't get in and you let me stay here!" He gives what he would call an explanation. I burst into laughter, "You are crazy!" I shake my head.

He stared at me with a deadpan expression before gracefully turning into a familiar, little cat. I've snapped, haven't I? I've been sleep deprived for too long, and now I've gone mad!

The cat jumped off the bed and stood in front of me, and equally as gracefully as before, it turned back into the tall, buff stranger from before, "Was that enough proof?" He asks, but his question was drowned out by my squeal, "My goodness! Put some clothes on!!" I looked away in embarrassment, using both my arms to cover my face.

"I told you I didn't have any clothes!" He defends, "Just use ANYTHING to cover yourself up! God!" I blindly reach for the blanket and toss it towards him.

"You can stop hiding now." Though unable to see him, I was certain he rolled his eyes. I slowly removed my arms and looked at him to see he had wrapped the blanket around his torso.

"You could've covered up a lot more, you know??" I complain, "if you don't stop whining, I'll take it off." He smirks when my eyes widen at his reply, "Ugh! Just nevermind! Why didn't you say you were human earlier anyway?!" I scowl. "Again, same highly intelligent roommate gave me a potion that should've kept my human form last longer, but instead did the exact opposite, and I wasn't able to turn human until today morning, so.." He replied.

"Anyway, thanks for having me." He walked towards the door before giving me a chance to reply, but I was quick to stop him. "Where do you think you're going, dressed like that?!" I look at him in disbelief. "My dorm is just opposite to yours; it's not a big deal." He shrugs and reaches for the door knob, "Students will see you and get the wrong idea!" I stopped him once more.

"Students are either in class or asleep; trust me. Plus if you're that worried, you can just check yourself." He rolls his eyes for the billionth time. I huff and face the door. Quietly, I open the door and peek my head out; I hated to admit it, but he was right. Everything was extremely silent outside.

"What did I tell you?" A whisper near my ear made me jump in terror, "Would you stop doing that?!" I place my hand on my chest, trying to recover from the jumpscare. "How can you be so stealthy anyway?! I can never feel you getting closer!" I run my hand through my hair in frustration. "Well...I am a cat.." he raises his eyebrows at me, before pulling the door open for him to pass.

He was about to walk out, but he stopped and looked at me. He brought his face closer to mine, "Once again, thanks for having me." He whispered before placing a kiss on my cheek.

I was startled by the gesture, but I didn't have time to react. He chuckled before walking out. He was charming. Strange..but charming. And for a few moments I could only watch, as he went to knock on the door, which was then answered by an apologetic guy with pink, fluffy hair.

The pink-haired guy cheerfully greeted me and introduced himself as Serge, but before he can keep talking to me, he was shoved inside by the taller guy. "Fine! Fine! I'm sorry!" Serge said as he walked inside the dorm room, "Byyee, (Y/N)!" I could hear him yell from inside.

Meanwhile the brown-haired stranger face palmed before directing his attention back to me, "I'm Azusa, by the way." He said when he was sure Serge was away from earshot. "I'll see you around." He smirks as he turns around to walk inside, but, once again, he stops.

"Oh, and one more thing.." He looks at me, "last night's pillow was rather comfy; thanks for that." He winks then finally walks inside his dorm, shutting the door.

Tilting my head in confusion, I stood there with furrowed eyebrows. It took me a few moments to register what he meant, and when I did, my face immediately heated up.

I turned quickly to walk inside and slam the door behind me, "I knew he was a freaking pervert!" I muttered, still unable to keep my face from turning a deep shade of red.

[shall-we-imagine]

Together we go. (Werewolf!Caesar Raphael x Reader *AU*)

Lol it's never late to request I'm always late to write tho

Requested: 34. "Please don't do this." + 45. "I can't imagine this world without you." From this prompt list.

Genre: Raw angst 😂💯 happy ending though cuz I’m weak

Strap yourselves in cuz this is dramatic as shit and also I’m lowkey rusty sooooo yeah 😂

(First point of view)

Everytime our eyes meet, my insides twist in guilt. I can barely hold his gaze for longer than a few seconds.

“Can we please get some ice cream first?” Caesar gives me his usual puppy eyes- aka the most effective puppy eyes one could ever encounter. I can almost see his tail wagging behind him in excitement.

I giggle at the cute nature of the scene. “Of course.”

He grins, immediately grabbing my arm and rushing to the ice cream truck. I do my best to keep up with him and not break my face on the asphalt.

It was Caesar’s first time at a theme park, and he was overflowing with happiness to say the least; he genuinely resembled a large puppy. 

Though Caesar always insists that the puppy/dog comparisons I make are only because I knew of his identity, I'm pretty sure it's way beyond the fact that he's a werewolf. Caesar just behaves like an oversized puppy, whether he believes it or not.

"Mmhm! It's so good!" Caesar's eyes widened at the sweet flavour of his chocolate ice cream. Part of me was worried he'd collapse and I'd have to rush him to the hospital, but from the looks of it, werewolves can apparently eat chocolate. "How's yours?" He smiled at me. God that smile kills me.

"O-oh, it's nice!" I took the spoon into my mouth, unnecessarily trying to prove my statement.

His stare lingered, but before I could ask him about it, he sheepishly spills out a question. "Can I..um..can I try it?" He pointed to the paper cup in my hand.

Giggling in awe, I immediately scooped up the ice cream into my plastic spoon. "Sure." I moved my hand closer to him, expecting him to take the spoon, but instead, he leaned his head closer, taking the spoon into his mouth directly. My cheeks heat up at the small gesture, and I subconsciously start looking around to make sure we haven't attracted anyone's attention.

"Oh! It's really good too! What is this one?" Caesar's eyes gleam in fascination, as if discovering a whole new world, which in a way he was. He'd already explained how strict the pack is about interacting with humans and their world, hence his isolation from the pack after violating that rule. To be with me. And there I was, refusing to give up my group's approval.

"(Y/N)? Why do you keep zoning out today? Is something wrong?" His eyebrows furrow in concern, further engraving the guilt onto my heart.

"I'm just a little tired; don't worry about it." I do my best to give him a reassuring smile, but I suspect that only made him even more worried. "Come on, let's get in line for the ferris wheel." I pull him towards the giant ride.

Caesar stares upwards, "Woah."

"You're not scared of heights, are you?" I smile.

"I've never been that high before," he points to the top of the wheel, "but it does look a bit scary."

"Don't worry; it'll be fun." I take his hand in mine, giving it a small, reassuring squeeze.

By the time we reach the front of the line, we were both done with our ice cream and were just anticipating the ride.

The blond helps you onto the wobbly cabin and climbs inside after you're seated.

The second the small doors shut behind him, the colourful cabin moves upwards, causing Caesar to lose balance. He screams and drops to the ground, curling into a ball in fear.

I softly place a hand on his shoulder, "Caesar, it's fine. It...does that." I chuckle.

His expression softens. Sure enough, he lets me help him off the floor and onto the seat, where he's finally able to take a look at the view beneath us.

His beautiful green eyes widen in admiration, "It's not scary at all. It's very...pretty...just like you." He turns to smile at me, but I immediately avert my gaze shyly.

He takes my hand in his, "I love being with you; you make me happy."

The sincere look in his eyes drew me in, and before I knew it, my bottom lip starts quivering. "I- yeah, me too."I gulp, gluing my eyes elsewhere. I could no longer hold his gentle gaze.

Silence follows for a few moments.

Softly taking place beneath my chin, fingertips guide my face towards their owner, "(Y/N)? Why won't you look at me?" His concerned gaze almost burns holes in my face.

I let out a nervous laugh and take his hand in mine, "What do you mean? I'm just enjoying the view. Look; you can see the ocean from here!"

Caesar forces a weak smile, "Yeah, it's nice."

________

"(Y/N), are you sure we're not lost? I can't hear any cars ahead of us..." After walking through the woods for a bit, Caesar starts getting suspicious about whether we're actually using a shortcut to the bus station.

Hesitation and guilt take turns abusing my mind and heart. "Y-yes, Caesar. Just keep following me." I try to control my breathing rate and calm down.

The closer I get to the spot, the heavier my feet feel, the harder it is to push myself forward. "I can't do this." I drop to the ground and pull out my pocket knife.

"What do you mea-(Y/N), what the fuck are you doing?!" His statement was cut off by his own terrified yell. He drops to the ground and tries to pull away my weapon.

Having already dug the sharp edge into my forearm, I was disappointed by how difficult it is to actually find the tracking device. "Tracking device, Caesar! They'll find us; I need to take it out!" I kick the blond away, as I continue to search through my own flesh for the tiny device. The pain was unbearable, but it wouldn't compare to losing Caesar.

Blood dripped everywhere, making it even harder to see. "Fuck." I pant.

"It's not working." Tears hinder my vision, "Caesar, get out of here! As quick as you can!" The confusion on his face screamed in my face that it's my fault- all of it. "Please..." my voice cracks.

"No, (Y/N), I'm not going anywhere without you. Who are we running from? What's wrong? You know you can tell me anything!" He snatches the knife away and stuffs it in his pocket, the blood making a mess of his clothes in the process.

I push him away with my uninjured arm, "There's no time; please, just leave." Desperation hung at every word, yet he remained unmoved.

"Get up. We're leaving together." He tries to help me up, but I pull my arm away.

"They'll track us down, Caesar! The device is still in there!" I yell. "Please, I'm begging you; just leave before it's too late." I push him again, but he doesn't budge.

"(Y/N), we either leave together or die together; I'm not going anywhere without you whether you like it or not." The serious expression on his face is one I've never seen on him before; he's determined and stubborn, and I knew it.

I shake my head, "No, Caesar, you don't understand; I-"

"Was supposed to kill me, but you felt guilty; I know." He finished my statement, leaving me in a state of shock and shame.

"How- what? You know?" Realizing his lack of resistance, I fall into more confusion, "Well...why did you follow me here? You didn't know I'd feel guilty; I could've killed you!"

"But you didn't." Smirking, he shrugs.

"Caesar, I'm serious..." I stare at him with pleading eyes.

He sighs, "Well, I figured if the person I love the most wants to kill me then that's it; that's how I go."

"You came with me knowing you'll die?!" I cry.

"Well, I had hope you'd change your mind; I knew the love I'd felt with you wasn't fake. I felt your love...And well, I dunno about you humans, but wolves don't go killing wolves they love." He chuckles. "And if you'd killed me, well, I'd still choose that over escaping. I can't imagine this world without you."

"You're such a dumbass." I laugh lightly, but my smile drops at the sight of of something hitting Caesar’s neck.

And before I realize what's happening, He is hyperventilating as he grasps his neck, eyes terrifyingly wide; if I dIdn't know better, I'd think he was choking himself.

I rip out the tiny needle from his neck in panic, but it doesn't stop him from gasping for air, drool trickling down his chin uncontrollably. His eyes start to roll back, but he seems to be trying to hold onto what's left of his conscious mind, "Caesar! Caesar, stay with me!" Sobbing, I begin to shake him violently, but it takes mere moments before he drops to the ground.

The sound of footsteps slowly approaching hammers realization into my terrified brain, "W-why?"

"Girl, he's not dead yet; he's temporarily paralyzed." Kate rolls her eyes, but a warning follows through gritted teeth, "We're making the killing easier for you, so don't make this any harder for us."

"He's not a monster..." I shake my head, desperately pleading for his life, "He doesn't even belong to a pack; he's harmless!"

"Take out your knife, (Y/N)." She warns while the rest of the hunters watch me expectantly.

I look down at Caesar, whose eyes barely held any life in them. No way is he getting up any time soon, and my left arm has already gone limp. We stood no chance. This is it; this is how we die. And it's all my fault.

More warnings follow, but my eyes spot a tall man hiding nearby; he was clearly watching the conflict unfold.

When our eyes met, he put his index finger to his lips, telling me to keep quiet, which I do. I was gonna die anyway; I have nothing to lose, listening to random forest man.

Smirking at my obedience, he gracefully spreads his hand open in the direction of the hunters.

Within a second, they all drop their weapons to clutch their head in their hands, blocking their ears like they couldn't stand a very loud sound. A loud sound you can't hear.

Eventually they all fall to the ground, hands still covering their ears. That's when the stranger decides to step out of his hiding spot.

He slowly makes his way towards me and Caesar. I don't know if it's the blood I've lost or the intense gaze of the man, but everything begins spinning before going completely black.

________

"Did you hear me?! I said shoot him!" Kate screams.

Confusion consumes my every inch, "W-what?"

"Are you deaf?" She holds up her gun, aiming at my head. "Shoot him."

I slowly turn to look at where she motioned with a slight tilt of her chin. My shaky hands were clutching a gun aimed at a terrified Caesar on the ground. "Caesar?"

"Please, don't do this." Trembling, he shakes his head. "I love you. I would never hurt you; you know that." His teary eyes were hypnotizing; I couldn't look away for a reason I couldn't explain. I just stood still- and stared.

“I...I don’t understand...” I lower the gun I knew I didn’t even have on me before.

“Please, I’m begging you.” Caesar pleads.

I observe my surroundings in utter bewilderment. The number of hunters bacame overwhelmingly threatening; I didn’t know there were that many of them. So many faces I couldn’t recognize.

Before I could plan my next move, the sound of a gun shot rips through the air.

My head snaps towards Caesar. His fear-stricken, watery eyes stare back into mine lifelessly. 

My lips quiver, as I scan his body for the wound.

Till I found it where I didn’t expect to.

Hot, thick liquid trickles down my face, blurring my vision in the process. My fingers reach for my forehead, allowing me a chance at comprehending the situation. 

I’d been shot.

As if the realization was my cue, I watch everything spin out of focus till I completely lose consciousness.

_________

I gasp, immediately shooting out of bed, almost slamming my head against the stranger’s.

“Jeez, the potion sure is quick.” The man mumbles to himself.

“Potion?” I wipe my forehead, just to see a gooey, yellow substance dripping off my fingers. It was a dream?

“(Y/N)!” I find myself engulfed into a warm, tight embrace.

“Caesar.” I breathe out in relief, giving into the hug.

“Wait! The tracking device-” Before I could fully push away Caesar, the man speaks up.

“Already planted it on a rat; it’s gone forever.” He gives a smile I could only interpret as him being proud of his own intelligence.

“I don’t know how to thank you...How do I return the favor? Ask me for anything!” 

“It’s a bit funny for you to think I’d need anything from you.” Seemingly offended, the man rolls his eyes and sips his tea.

“He’s a bit...uh...timid?” Caesar whispers to me, hinting he’d already tried to thank the man while I was out of it.

“I already put a healing spell on your arm; there will be no scarring, but I’d rather you keep the bandages for a few more hours.” He glances down at my bandaged arm.

“Thank you...again.” I nod. “A healing spell though...are you a wizard?” My eyebrows furrow in confusion.

The stranger sighs. “Surely you can’t be that dense.”

“I think that’s a yes.” Caesar looks at me in slight uncertainty.

Another sigh. “Azusa Kuze, wizard from Hinomoto, nice to meet you. Anything else you wanna butt into?” He uses a slightly high pitched, cheery voice to ensure we understood he was mocking us.

“Uh, no, we’re good I think.” Caesar chuckles nervously, scratching the back of his head.

“Good.” He diverts his attention to the huge book on his wooden dining table.

“Um, well, I guess we’ll be going now, right, Caesar?” 

“Uh, yes. Thank you again, Mr. Hinomoto Wizard Azusa Kuze.” Caesar bows.

The wizard scowls but shakes his head dismissively “Yeah, um, you’re welcome.”

The second we step outside the small cottage, we both let out breaths we didn’t seem to know we were holding. 

“Well, that was a strange day.” I state.

“Yeah.” Caesar nods. “Wanna get some more ice cream?”

I grin, “You know it.”

[shall-we-imagine]

Sorry, wrong person.

Someone requested Joel trying to tell Elias about his crush on Klaus then accidentally sending it to the group chat I was immediately excited to do this tbh so here we go!

[shall-we-imagine]

A night out. (Gone wrong)

Request/(suggestion?): The idea of a fake text group chat has been running around in my head. what would happen if the gang went out to do a club hop during a random Friday night? just a suggestion :)

This was a little more gay than I intended but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[shall-we-imagine]

Master List.

Yes, I've finally gotten around to fixing the Master List! 😂

Whatever you wanna call 'em.

Click here for some fluff, angst, and fluff. Oh and did I mention fluff?

They're only a few but they exist.

Some love for the BIR boys too.

Follow the magical link for some chaos, mostly.

Yeah idk why these exist, but they do.

Cuz why not?

[shall-we-imagine]

You've changed. (Azusa KuzexReader)

Requested: 2. "Define normal." From the prompt list.

Genre: mostly comedy and just randomness but also some fluff

(Second Person Point of View)

"Well, clearly, you've never been to the fairies' world!" You argue, taking a few glances at the signs to ensure you don't miss the library.

"Listen; there's no way a little fairy is gonna win against a mermaid! That just makes no sense! A mermaid can literally lure you into your death!" He claims, using some light hand gestures to emphasize his point.

"Yes, but-" your statement was interrupted by Serge's cheerful voice.

"Guys! Come take a look at this!" He peeks his head outside of a classroom- an empty one, you assumed. He immediately drags you both inside and towards the professors' desk, which carried nothing but an ominous orb of pink and purple. It looked like something a fortune teller would own, and since this was Serge you're talking about, it didn't seem very surprising.

You were previously planning to head to the library with your boyfriend, Azusa, to prove to him the strength of fairies, even though it wasn't exactly necessary, but you felt the need to do it anyway. However, your trip was delayed by your pink haired friend. You could use that as one more proof, though, right? Serge certainly knew enough about fairies!

"Hey, Serge, quick question: In a hypothetical battle between a fairy and a mermaid, who would win?" You pop the question before he begins explaining the psychics' item he was presenting.

Serge being Serge, it took nothing to get him to discuss such a useless topic. "The fairy, of course!" He states.

"See?" You turn to face your boyfriend with a smug expression.

Azusa rolls his eyes. "Come on; this doesn't prove anyth-"

"It's only cuz you've never met a fairy!"

"Well, you've also never met a mermaid!"

"Hey..uh..guys, maybe you can finish that argument later? I have an invention to show you." He gestures to the bright globe.

Azusa sighs; you nudge him, giving Serge an enthusiastic sure! and waiting for the explanation. In all honesty, you were kinda curious about the invention, since all Serge's inventions are amazing; you just wanted to prove Azusa wrong first.

A proud -and slightly insane if you pay too much attention- grin spreads across the inventor's face, "Well! This little sphere can basically combine multiple people's strength and thoughts then portray it onto whoever is carrying it!"

Unsure what that's supposed to mean, you and Azusa merely stare with slightly tilted heads. Serge stares back in anticipation until he realizes you both understood nothing of what he explained.

"Okay, how about we try it? That'll explain it a bit better. (Y/N), do you wanna try it?" He offers.

You hesitate, but seeing the gleam in his eyes, you couldn't object. "Uh, yeah, why not?"

He twists the ball before handing it over to you, which resulted in it splitting right through the middle to show a plain, black strip underneath. "Okay, so first of all, you have to think of a range. So, like maybe think everyone in this room, okay?" Serge explains, as he hands you the invention, that was a lot lighter than you expected.

"Then Azusa and I have to think of a creature or something, while you press the ball together, then it combines our magic and thoughts to turn you into whatever we thought of, get it?"

You nod eagerly, and push the two parts of the sphere together the way Serge instructed.

It was a mistake.

Why? Well, first of all, you didn't even warn them beforehand, so they were both caught of guard. Second of all, someone walked in right as you were trying out the invention, which resulted in their inclusion in the range you thought of- everyone in this room.

You fell to the ground with a loud thump, accidentally letting go of the ball of troubles that went rolling towards the newcomer's foot. At first, you didn't understand why this transformation included you dropping to the ground, but it didn't take you too long to figure out. "What the fuck?!"

Azusa tries not to burst into laughter (he didn't try hard enough). Meanwhile, Serge stares at you, his index finger and thumb around his chin, "Maybe we should've agreed to think about one thing.."

"You should've considered that before trying it out on me!!" You complain.

Serge jumps to the defence of his precious invention, "I mean part of the invention is that it reaches common ground! Which it did! I thought of a fairy, and I guess Azusa thought of a mermaid...but why the bunny ears?"

The intruder walks closer, globe in hand. "I suppose that could be my fault?" Klaus hands Serge the sphere but keeps his confused and slightly horrified gaze on you. "It would've fit you well if it weren't for the other..modifications. Now, you're an actual bunnyhead." He adds, as if that helps in any way.

"Well, can't we just turn her back using the invention again?" Azusa, who seemed to be in a weirdly good mood, asked.

Just when you feel like there's a solution to your strange form, Serge frowns. "You can only use it once every forty minutes.."

You groan. "How bad does it look?" You could see the blue tail you'd grown where your legs used to be, and you could feel some scales all over your body, but you weren't sure what happened to your face. You hoped for nothing too weird, as you pull out a mirror from your backpack.

"I mean..It could pass off as normal if we exclude the tail?" Serge gives a nervous smile.

Blue hair. Pointed ears like an elf's. On top of your head were also another pair of ears- a bunny's. There were only a few scales on your face, but your skin had turned to a very light sky blue colour too, so there's that.

You bring the mirror down to squint at Serge, "Define normal."

"I mean people are usually not that attentive or sharp, to be fair." Klaus shrugs.

"I have blue skin! And two pairs of ears! And scales! You'd have to be blind not to notice that!" You snap.

"Why are you snapping at me?! Don't force me to give you extra assignments!" He warns.

You pretend to clear your throat, "uh, sorry. Forget that happened."

"It's important to mention that class begins in like.." Klaus glances at his watch, "ten minutes."

"Ten minutes?! What are we gonna do?!" You begin to panic. "Also, being dry makes me uncomfortable." Man, why are you acting like a real mermaid?

"Do you want me to take you to the lake?" Azusa teases, earning a glare from you.

"You guys need to hide somewhere until I figure out a way to reverse it...or the forty minutes are over.." Serge scratches the back of his head nervously.

"How are we even going to leave the classroom without attracting attention?"

Wrapped in both your own cloak and Azusa's cloak, you felt like you were imitating voldemort's look during the beginning of the goblet of fire. It wasn't the best feeling. The fact that Azusa had to carry you wasn't helping either.

"(Y/N)? Azusa? What's wrong? Why are you carrying her?" Elias stops you both, and you use all your power to pray he doesn't notice anything weird with your figure. Elias would be understanding, but let's just say; the less people that got to see your odd transformation, the better.

"Um..she hurt her leg." Azusa blurts out.

"What?! How?" Elias's voice was filled with concern, forcing you to feel guilty for the lie.

"D-don't worry about it; it's not bad! Azusa is just exaggerating!" You laugh nervously.

"Okay.." The blond male nods slowly, as if slightly suspicious, "why are you wrapped up like that?"

"I'm..I'm cold." You wanted to slap yourself for how bad your lies were turning out.

"Are those..bunny ears?" Elias points out the long, furry ears you'd pressed down underneath the hood of the cloak, in attempts to conceal it.

"It's..it's a costume!" You glance between Azusa and Elias in panic, silently asking your boyfriend for help.

"A costume? What for?" You love Elias; you really do, but at the moment, you just wish he'd stop asking so much questions.

"You don't wanna know." Azusa smirks, earning a bashful oh from the smaller boy, before proudly leaving with you in his arms.

"Really, Azusa?! Out of anything you could've said?!" You complain, fairly embarassed by his bold statement as well.

"I panicked." Shrugs a perfectly calm Azusa.

###

"How much longer do I have to wait?!" You groan, pulling at the hood of your cloak and pressing your second pair of ears further down.

"I don't know; it seems like we'll have to wait for the forty minutes to be over." He gives you a sympathetic smile, but that doesn't stop you from releasing a louder groan and dramatically lying back on the grass in defeat.

You hear a chuckle, directing your attention back to the male sitting opposite to you with crossed legs. "You know you actually look kind of cute like that; I'm considering keeping you from transforming back." He smirks.

"You wouldn't dare!" Your bunny ears push your hood back, taking a stiff, straight position towards the back of your head. It was supposed to show aggression, but it seemed to only look adorable to your boyfriend, who just burst into laughter.

"See? You're so cute." He speaks in utter awe, petting your head to further increase your displeasure.

"Hey! Don't make me get violent with you; I'll-" He connects his pink lips with your pale blue ones, interrupting your empty threat. You could feel your bunny ears relax and stay down near your face. You were glad his eyes were shut; otherwise, he would've once more burst into laughter at your inconveniences.

"Am I interrupting something?" The familiar voice of a person that indeed enjoyed interrupting happy moments for his sadistic pleasures- okay he wasn't so bad, but this was the best part of your day; come on!

"Uh..no?" You give an awkward smile, after you pull away from Azusa in a rush.

"Technically, the forty minutes are over. You're free, bunnyhead." Klaus chuckles, tossing you the troublesome sphere. You could clearly see how much more he's enjoying using that nickname. "Serge was so caught up in figuring out something to reverse it that he didn't notice the time was up anyway."

"Oh! Thank you!" You hold the globe with such relief. "Okay, Azusa think of my usual form!"

"Got it." He gives a thumbs up, signalling you to go on. You comply and once again press the ball together after twisting it the way Serge did earlier. This time your range was just one person- Azusa. This should go perfectly fine.

Your normal skin colour and hair colour were back! Also, no fish tail or scales! You get off the ground, cheering loudly. "Finally! I'm back!"

Klaus was giving you and Azusa confused looks. Azusa was yet again trying not to laugh. You paused, deciding your celebration should probably be delayed- something was definitely up.

"Are we supposed to tell her?" Klaus turns to Azusa.

"Nope."

"Tell her what?" You begin patting your face, trying to figure out what's off. Then you reached it. Those fucking bunny ears were still there. "Azusa!"

"Oops?" He smiles innocently. "You look extra adorable, though, and that's thanks to me." He defends.

"You're pure evil!"

"You know you love me." He states, a smirk decorating his lips.

You huff, trying to distract from your burning hot cheeks. "I do."

"I love you too." You somehow didn't notice until now, but his face was now a lot closer than before. His eyes were switching glances between your eyes and lips.

"You do know I'm still here, right?"

"Yeah, why are you still here?" Azusa rolls his eyes at the blond, reluctantly pulling away from you.

"Oh, yeah, my bad; let me just walk away with this." Klaus had apparently retrieved the orb and was now walking away with the only cure to your current state.

"Hey, Klaus! Klaus, wait!" You chase after the taller male that made it a point to walk faster and ignore your shouts.

Anyway, long story short: now the entire academy thinks you can make some very good, convincing costumes. How you wish that was the case..

[wizardessheart-sideb]

[Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 9: The Truth” /End ID]

Chapter summary: Tsukasa’s home sick again and finally tells me the truth about what’s going on.

I’m staying home today. I’m sorry I can’t walk you to class. Love, Tsukasa.

That was the Magic Note Tsukasa had sent me this morning as I ate breakfast. My stomach had dropped to the floor when I read it. I was really hoping he’d feel better, but apparently not. Did Azusa not come over and give Tsukasa medicine? Was Tsukasa just really sick? Again, once classes were over and I’d run an errand, I knocked on Tsukasa’s door with my free hand; the other had a small to-go bowl of soup.

“Come in,” he called weakly. I quickly went in, placing the soup on his nightstand.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” I asked.

“Bad. But I took some painkillers, so hopefully my body stops hurting soon.”

“Is it everywhere?”

“Basically,” he pouted. I sighed and handed him the soup. His face lit.

“You didn’t have to get me dinner. Thank you.” He didn’t wait to dig it, carefully taking off the lid and grabbing the spoon. He said something I didn’t quite understand before shoveling the soup into his mouth.

“You don’t have to thank me. It’s the least I can do.” I got on the other side of the bed, laying back on the pillows. “I don’t want to push you, but have you had your medication recently?” Tsukasa nodded, putting his spoon down and swallowing.

“Actually, Azusa came over this morning and gave me a dose,” he told me. Relief flooded my body.

“So you’ll be feeling better soon?!” He bit his lip and stared at the blankets. The relief I’d just felt evaporated in seconds. “Tsukasa?”

“I… I honestly don’t know.” His voice was barely above a whisper.

“But doesn’t this medication help keep you from getting sick in the first place?!”

“It does. But… I really didn’t want to tell you this.” My heart stopped.

“Tell me what?” I demanded, trying to sound calm when I felt anything but.

“My medication does keep me from getting sick, but it’s real purpose is to keep my body healthy. But we’ve been running low on it and… It’s watered down,” Tsukasa admitted.

“It’s what?!”

“Azusa’s mixed it with fillers so I don’t run out, but now it’s so weak that honestly, I don’t think it’s really doing anything anymore.” My blood ran cold.

“Tsukasa, why wouldn’t you tell me this?!” I demanded angrily.

“I already told you that I don’t want you to worry about me. You’re so stressed about classes and your Judgment and my health problems were just piling stress on,” he defended himself heatedly.

“But this is serious! I’m thankful you’re trying to make me less stressed, but this is your health! I need to be in the know about this sort of thing! I can’t help you if I don’t know everything.”

“I know, but if there’s a way to keep you from being totally stressed, isn’t that something I should do?” he countered, eyes narrowing.

“I mean, in most cases yeah, but this is different. This isn’t getting us dinner while I’m working late.”

“I…” He sighed, clearly frustrated. I certainly felt the same.

“How about we just. Cool down for a couple moments and then come back to talk about this?” I suggested. There was no way we were going to get anywhere when we were both angry.

“Let’s do that.” Finally, something we could agree on.

The tension in the air as we slowly calmed down lessened and lessened. By the time I was ready to talk things out, I wasn’t mad anymore. I knew he just wanted to help me out, but I wish talking to him wasn’t like talking to a wall. I looked over to tell him I was ready when I saw him slumped against his pillows, fast asleep.

“Oh no, Tsukasa…” I sighed. I was caught between waking him up and letting him sleep. After all, he’d been so sick. And besides, I had to go meet Azusa soon. You know what, I’ll just come back. I wrote him a quick note explaining I was going to be studying in the library and to send me a Magic Note when he woke up and placed it on his nightstand.

Azusa had asked me to meet him in the forest, at a large rock in the middle of the forest. He’d drawn me a map and with the moon lighting the way, I made my way through the forest. By the time I reached it, he was already there, arms folded and looking around his surroundings.

“Sorry I’m late, I ran to Tsukasa’s room to bring him dinner,” I told him. He didn’t look happy, but he nodded.

“It’s fine. Let’s head out.” He didn’t waste a moment, walking away. I hurried after him, falling into step with him.

“Head out? What we need isn’t here?”

“No, it’s just a little ways away. We’re going to the Spring of Unicorns,” he informed me.

“The Spring of Unicorns? What’s that?”

“According to a friend, unicorns live in his area and there’s a special spring they like.” I knew unicorns lived in Gedonelune, but I had no idea they lived on campus. You’d think more people would talk about that.

“So, uh, what are we getting at the spring? A special flower? Special water? What?” I asked.

“We’re going to get a part of a unicorn horn,” Azusa said.

“We… wait,  what?!” I stopped in my tracks. Azusa stopped too and gave me a tired look.

“Come on, we don’t have all night,” he snapped at me. He grabbed my arm and dragged me along. Once I got my footing and kept walking, he let go. But it was as if I could still feel his hand around my arm. My head was moving fast, trying to figure out why we’d need something from a unicorn. And then it hit me.

“A unicorn horn?! But… wait… is that what’s in Tsukasa’s medicine?!” I squeaked.

“Yeah.”

“Hold on, but unicorns don’t live in Hinomoto.”

“Really? I, a Hinomotan, didn’t know that,” he said ssnidely.

“Stop being sarcastic, you know what I meant!” He rolled his eyes.

“When Tsukasa was sick, I used to go around to some shady merchants and see their wares. I was desperate for something to save him. One merchant managed to smuggle a unicorn in. Somehow, it died on the way over and I took it off his hands. It cost too damn much, but it worked, didn’t it? Tsukasa was healthy for years until…” His voice trailed off.

“Until what?” I prodded.

“I didn’t think getting access to a unicorn would be so hard. I knew they lived in the forests here, but I didn’t realize they only live on the peninsula the Academy’s on. I haven’t been able to get to a unicorn until this year.”

“So why do you need me to help? Do you need me to talk to the unicorn?” I asked.

“Sort of. They like the pure of heart and having you with me when we negotiate would look good. Besides, I’d rather make the medication in the Night Class lab. No one will bother me there.”

“I see. Is there anything else we need for his medicine?”

“I made the first batch with unicorn blood since it also has magical properties, but this time around since I don’t have a dead body, I’m going to skip it. It was just for extra strength, anyway.” I shuddered at the idea of Azusa butchering a unicorn, even if it was already dead.

“Does Tsukasa know what’s in his medicine?”

“No. He loves animals so much it’d be a bit of a slap in the face.” He gave me a look so sharp that it could’ve killed me. “You won’t tell him what’s in his medication.” It wasn’t a suggestion; it was a demand.

“My lips are sealed,” I said hurriedly. He gave me a smile and my skin crawled.

“Good.”

The trees gave way to a clearing with a sparkling pond in the middle. And lo and behold, a majestic unicorn had it’s head bent down, drinking from the spring. I’d seen horses before, but this creature seemed so much bigger than a horse. The air of grandeur around it made me stop in awe. There has a hand on my back and Azusa was forcing me forward. His message was clear.

“Um, excuse me?” I called out timidly and the unicorn looked up, looking at both of us.

“Humans? What are you doing here? Isn’t this a little deep in the forest for your type?” he inquired.

“Uh, we were looking for a unicorn to talk to.” What was I even saying?

“Then I guess you’ve completed your task.” He leaned down, continuing to drink.

“We wanted to ask a favor,” Azusa spoke up. The unicorn lifted its head again.

“A favor? That’s a bit arrogant to ask of a creature you just met,” he said. I mean, he wasn’t wrong, but he was being so rude to us.

“I know,” Azusa replied. “I wouldn’t ask this if the situation wasn’t dire. My brother’s body is slowly shutting down and the only medicine that can save him needs a very small amount of a unicorn horn.”

“Oh, so that’s it? You want my horn?” The unicorn’s eyes started to change to a deep red and I quickly shook my head.

“We don’t want the whole thing,” Azusa said quickly. “We know what that means. We just need a small chunk.”

“And what will I get in return?” the unicorn asked pointedly. We paused.

“… The satisfaction of knowing you’ve helped someone?” I said.

“Wrong.” How is that wrong?! “How do I know you just aren’t going to sell it off?”

“That’s fair,” I conceded. “But please. We need to help his brother. He’s really sick and needs this medicine.”

“Come back in five years. If you’re patient, I’ll let you have a piece,” the unicorn said. Azusa twitched.

“Five years?! We don’t have that kind of time!” Something about Azusa changed. He tensed beside me and it was as if I could feel negativity radiating from him.

“If you aren’t patient, then you aren’t getting a piece of my horn, which I was generous enough to offer,” the unicorn sniffed. Yeah, it’d be generous if you weren’t being such a jerk about it.

“My brother will be dead in five years if we don’t get this horn!” Azusa cried. Dead?! My stomach fell straight to the floor and a wave of dizziness hit me. No… He was being melodramatic, right? Tsukasa always said he was overdramatic. That was the case, right? Tsukasa couldn’t be dying. He couldn’t be. He was just sick right now and he was going to get all better soon.

“I will not give you anything unless you wait. I need to know you’re trustworthy.” The unicorn acted like he didn’t even care, like our words weren’t even reaching him. Did he not understand death? Considering unicorns were endangered, surely he had to understand?

“We… You…” Azusa’s fists were clenched and there was something disturbing in his eyes. The air grew still and in a moment, my body was moving.

“We’ll come back tomorrow to talk this out more, Mr. Unicorn,” I piped up hurriedly. My arms were around Azusa’s waist and not a moment too soon. A second before I grabbed him, he started to lurch forward.

“Let go of me!” he screamed at me. He was seething as I dragged him away. It was like trying to drag a rock around, but somehow, we got out of the spring. “Let GO!” He pushed me and I stumbled backwards. He was breathing heavily, glaring into the darkness. “That selfish piece of -” A long string of expletives left his mouth as he stormed forward back towards campus. I scrambled to follow after him.

“What are we going to do now?” I was at a loss. Maybe we could find another unicorn if this one was going to be a jerk? Maybe there was something else we could do?

“We’re going back tomorrow and we’re killing it,” Azusa announced coldly. My blood froze.

“Kill… Kill it?! Azusa, that’s illegal!”

“Yeah, no shit. What else are we supposed to do?! If we don’t get that horn, Tsukasa will die!” he yelled at me.

“But… !” I couldn’t think of what to say. Of how to fight back. Sure, I wouldn’t mind slapping the unicorn for being so rude, but killing it?! There had to be another way! Killing a unicorn was a serious crime. If we got caught… I shuddered at the thought. But at the same time, what if Azusa was right? What if this was the only way to save Tsukasa? I wasn’t going to let him die, but if this was truly the sole way of keeping him alive… I just didn’t know.

The walk back to the dorm was silent. If I wanted to break the tension between Azusa and I, I’d have to cut it with a knife. I stole glances at him every so often. He looked quietly furious, fuming at how things turned out. I didn’t blame him. I understood where the unicorn was coming from, but it was harsh. Maybe if we came back tomorrow, he’d change his mind?

“Meet me tomorrow at the same place, same time as tonight,” Azusa ordered me. “We’re getting that horn if it’s the last thing we do.”

“There really isn’t another way?” He made a noise of disgust, rolling his eyes. What Dorian and Aika saw in him, I didn’t know.

“There’s not! How many times do I have to tell you that?!” he fired back. I flinched and he just rolled his eyes yet again. “If you don’t want to help, fine. I’ll just do it on my own since you clearly don’t care enough about my brother.”

“Excuse me?! You have absolutely no right to say that!” I argued. “Sorry that I actually have a conscious about killing animals.”

“Oh please, like it’s a big deal. It’s the circle of life. How is killing an animal for medicine different from killing an animal for food?”

“Uh, are y’all okay?” I looked over to see Isabelle coming out of the dorm building, eyebrows furrowed. Azusa straightened up, giving her a smile and a laugh.

“Oh, we’re fine. We were just talking about food ethics,” he lied. Isabelle just gave him a skeptical look.

“Uh, okay? Sweetie, we’ve been looking all over for you. Dorian’s almost done with dinner.” She put her arm around me and pulled me away. “Later, Azusa.” She didn’t even wait for him to respond, taking me inside and up to our dorm. “Was he bothering you?” she demanded as soon as Azusa was out of earshot.

“N-No, not really,” I lied.

“I have no qualms about beating someone up -”

“What? No, Isabelle. I don’t need you to beat him up. We just had a disagreement,” I added.

“Okay. But if you change your mind…” She winked. Note to self: don’t make Isabelle mad. “But seriously, where have you been? I’ve been looking all over for you.”

“I got into a fight with Tsukasa and… Oh no!” I need to go talk things out with him! “Crap, Isabelle, I’m sorry, but I gotta go talk to Tsukasa!” I started running back towards the dorm.

“Uh, okay?! Dinner’s in like, twenty minutes!” she shouted after me.

“Okay!”

I ran through the dorm, hurrying back to Tsukasa’s room. Was he awake now? Was I gonna have to wake him up? How did I even really feel about this? His door was open and I knocked before poking my head in.

“Tsukasa?” I called out tentatively. He was still in bed, a textbook open. He looked over to me. “Can we talk?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry I fell asleep,” he said as he shut his book and moved his study supplies onto his nightstand.

“I’m sorry I left while you were sleeping. And... Look, I get it. I know you were trying to do what you thought was best for me,” I said.

“I know. And I’m sorry, too. I was frustrated and not feeling well and I took it out on you. I think we both were just doing what we thought was best for each other.”

“Yeah…”

“We still need to work on our honesty with each other, but I promise I’ll keep working on it. And I promise that that’s everything going on.”

Was that true? He sounded so sincere. Maybe he didn’t know he was… No, Azusa, was totally just being melodramatic. But what if he wasn’t?

“I love you, Tsukasa. You know that, right?” I asked. He chuckled and grabbed my hand. His hand was so warm in mine.

“I love you, too,” he said, and the butterflies in my stomach were in a frenzy. … I had to find a way to save him. No matter what.

---

A delicious, savory smell wafted from our kitchen and my stomach started rumbling. Isabelle, Aika and Dorian were already at the table, eating.

“Jeez, where have you been? You’re never late to dinner,” Dorian said, irritated.

“I-I, uh…” Should I tell them about what happened?

Meeting Azusa, the unicorn, everything came rushing back to me. Azusa’s claim Tsukasa would die without this medicine. Tsukasa and I making up. My throat felt tight and it ached. My vision got blurry before the tears started. I felt Isabelle’s arms around me and I could hear Dorian trying to backtrack, telling me he wasn’t angry at me, he was only surprised and bit worried.

Isabelle sat me down, keeping her arms around me and letting me cry into her shoulder. Everything spilled out of me: my trip with Azusa, Tsukasa’s health, the unicorn refusing to help us. My sobs quieted the more I spoke, and by the time I was done, I was just sniffling. Dorian handed me some napkins.

“I had no idea Tsukasa’s condition was so bad…” Aika said.

“I knew there was something up with him, but I didn’t think it was this. Jeez, killing a unicorn...” Dorian sighed.

“I mean, I get it. If killing a unicorn was the only way to save my sister Felicity, I’d do it,” Isabelle said.

“Yeah, I get it too. But it’s not like it’s his only option,” he said. I perked up.

“There’s another way?!” I asked.

“Of course there is,” he answered. Isabelle’s eyes narrowed.

“If you’re thinking what I’m thinking, that’s a pretty big price to pay, Dorian,” she told him cautiously. “Not everyone is willing to make contracts.”

“Contracts?” I asked.

“Anything’s possible if you make a contract with a magical creature or a demon,” Dorian said.

“A demon?! I-Is that really necessary?” I couldn’t help but balk at the suggestion. But then again, if it was a way to save Tsukasa without killing anything...

“I wouldn’t say it’s necessary, but it’s easier to summon demons than magical creatures,” Dorian informed us. “Demons actively look for people who want contracts. Magic creatures generally don’t.”

“What, so you’re just going to go tell Azusa to make a deal with a demon instead of killing a unicorn?” Aika challenged him.

“It’s worth a shot, isn’t it?” he shrugged.

“Summoning a demon is so serious, though,” she pointed out.

“Uh, Tsukasa’s dying. I think this is a pretty good reason to summon a demon,” Isabelle said, folding her arms in front of her chest. “And also, it’s pretty rich that you -”

“I’m just saying Azusa is stubborn and even if Dorian suggests it, it’s not like he’ll do it,” Aika cut her off. “He likes us, but he’s also super stubborn.”

“But it’s worth a chance! And if Azusa won’t do it, then I will!” I declared. Aika and Isabelle gawked at me. The edges of Dorian’s lips twitched before he burst out laughing.

“Oh, you’re going to summon a demon? Well, if you need help, just give me a holler. Demonology is sort of my thing,” he told me.

“Don’t patronize me,” I snapped. “I want to help Tsukasa and if this is the only way I can do it, then I will! I don’t want Azusa to kill that unicorn. If I have to make a contract then I’ll do it!”

“We’re not trying to patronize you,” Aika frowned. “It’s just that making contracts with demons is a really serious thing. Sure, it’s so easy even non-wizards can do it, but it still carries a hefty price.”

“I don’t care. I’ll do it if I have to,” I told her.

Why did everyone look down on me?! I knew how big of a deal it was. But if I could save Tsukasa and the unicorn, of course I’d do it. I’d finally be able to do something for him. After so many days of being helpless and not able to do anything for him, I could finally do something to help.

[wizardessheart-sideb]

Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 8: Complications” /End ID]

Chapter summary: Tsukasa does his best to attend classes, but he ends up cutting the night short.

“Good morning, everyone.” I walked into our kitchen, ready for a big breakfast. I was so giddy yesterday that I may have forgotten to have dinner. Aika looked up from her place at the table and smiled. Dorian was at his usual station, the stove. I looked around, but there was no familiar mop of lavender curls. “Where’s Isabelle?” I asked.

“She wasn’t feeling really good, so she’s staying home today,” Aika explained.

“Oh no. I hope nothing going around the dorms.” I shuddered. I didn’t want Isabelle to have the same thing Tsukasa did. Although, wait. How would Isabelle have it before me? I’ve spent the most time with Tsukasa. If anyone was getting sick, it would be me. Maybe it’s something unrelated.

“I mean, if we want to be technical, dorms are a breeding ground for se-”

“Dorian, knock it off, they didn’t mean those kinds of infections. Jeez,” Aika cut him off. Dorian just snickered and handed me a plate.

“Thank you. But yeah, I’m worried something’s going around. Tsukasa’s not been feeling well the past few days,” I informed them.

“That’s a bummer. But I’m sure he’ll be fine. It’s just a little cold, probably,” Aika said.

“That’s what I hope too. I know he takes medicine to improve his immune system, but he’s been feeling ill the past few days,” I sighed.

“He’s taking what?” Dorian asked.

“Uh, I don’t know what it is exactly and neither does he, but it’s something to improve his immune system.” Maybe it wasn’t even a cold. Maybe his body was just out of sorts.

“You’re telling me he doesn’t know his own medication?” Dorian put his spatula down and turned to face me, looking incredulous.

“I mean, it probably has a name, but we were talking about it and he said he didn’t know what was in it, exactly. But he never said the name so I don’t know what it is,” I defended us. Aika frowned.

“I think I know what you’re talking about, though. We’ve ran into Azusa a few times when he brings Tsukasa his medication and it’s quite the set-up,” she commented, sipping on her cocoa.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“The bottles it comes in don’t look like they were meant for medicine. It honestly looks like he had some bottle lying around and put the stuff in there and topped it with that special syringe lid thing,” she explained.

“So you guys have seen it but you don’t know what it is?”

“I’m not a pharmacist and besides, when we run into Azusa, our first thought is to flirt with him, not ask him what his brother’s medication is. And I’m not the one taking it, so why should I know what it is?” Dorian retorted.

“Okay, I guess that’s fair, although I’m reluctant to say that,” I relented.

“You should check with Tsukasa and see if he’s had his dose lately,” Aika said. She glanced over to her boyfriend. “He usually gets it around this time, doesn’t he, Dorian?”

“Now that you mention it, I think you’re right. It’s about this time Azusa comes around with it. At least, he was hauling it around here this time last month and the month before that,” Dorian said.

“I’ll check in with Tsukasa on that. Thanks for the heads up, you guys,” I told them. Dorian smiled at me.

“Of course. We both want your boyfriend to be happy,” he said.

“B-Boyfriend?! How did you know?!” I demanded. Dorian just smirked and got his own plate of food, sitting at the head of the table.

“That’s my special power.. I’m in tune with attraction, love, lust, all of that. And there’s a lot of that between you two,” he said teasingly. I expected Aika to cut in, telling him to stop joking around, but she did. I glanced at her and she didn’t look irritated with him or grinning like she was in on the joke. So he’s serious...

“I, um, well yeah, we got together last night,” I informed them.

“On the Love Holiday? That’s so cute!” Aika squealed.

“Thanks. When did you two get together?” I asked hurriedly. Please let them change the subject. My face feels like it’s going to melt at any moment! Aika and Dorian’s faces fell, eyes cast down to the table.

“Oh, uh, it’s a little complicated,” Aika said. “I don’t really remember when.”

“It was around the Winter Holiday, I think? We just celebrate it in November, but I don’t remember either. We were young when we got together,” Dorian told me.

“I had just turned twelve when we got engaged,” Aika added.

“You got engaged at twelve?!”

“I don’t know if you know this, but we’re both very dramatic people,” Dorian said. “We decided go big or go home. So we were engaged from that point on.”

“Not to mention… Well, I come from a pretty abusive home. Dorian was an excuse to get out of my home and get to safety. If I hadn’t run off with him, chances are I’d be dead right now. I don’t think my abusers would have killed me on purpose, but head injuries can go wrong so easily…” Aika’s voice was trembling before she trailed off. Dorian walked over to the table and gently rubbed her back.

“But you’re here now, and you’re safe. We did the right thing, running away,” he told her quietly. My heart ached for her. I got up and gave Aika a hug. Part of me wanted to ask Dorian if his backstory was the same, but I felt that maybe it’d be a bit too much. After all, this is the most I’ve ever heard about their lives outside of school.

“Um, did I come at a bad time?”

I looked over to the door to see Tsukasa standing in the doorway, a frown on his face. Aika quickly straightened up, pushing me and Dorian off to the sides.

“No, everything’s fine,” Aika told him. The fake smile on her face was unnerving, but I tried to ignore it, going over to Tsukasa and giving him a hug.

“Morning, Tsukasa.” Dorian was back in dad mode, smiling and getting up to go to the stove. Tsukasa’s concerned face quickly turned to a genial one.

“Good morning, everyone,” he said.

“Do you want some breakfast? We’ve always got enough,” Aika asked.

“No, thank you. I just came here to get my partner.” Tsukasa’s eyes wandered over me and he smiled. I couldn’t help but beam. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Dorian and Aika smirking.

“Go on ahead. I’ll take care of your dishes,” Dorian told me. I quickly thanked him and after grabbing my stuff, Tsukasa and I were off to class. His fingers laced themselves through mine, his hand soft and warm. I squeezed it. When I glanced over at him, his face looked paler than usual.

"How are you feeling?" I asked him.

"... Not my best. But since I missed yesterday, I wanted to try and make it through today," he replied.

"Could I convince you to just go back to your dorm to rest?" As much as I appreciated him trying to make it through classes, he really should’ve been in bed resting. But he just shook his head.

"No. I already missed classes yesterday. I don't feel like I can afford to miss any more this week," he explained. I mean, he wasn’t completely wrong, but that didn’t stop me from worrying.

"Okay, but promise me you'll go home if you start feeling worse," I did my best to sound fine. But really, I just wanted to march him right back to his dorm.

"I promise." He gave me a small smile and his hand squeezed mine reassuringly. I tried to push that worry from my mind and focus on other things. Viggo bickering with Fandamilia in class, working on my magic in class (and not failing the assignments!), sneaking notes to Tsukasa when professors had their backs turned. But every so often, the worry would bubble up and I’d steal a glance at Tsukasa. His face wasn’t getting any paler, but from his shoulders slouching and from the dead look in his eyes, it was obvious he wasn’t feeling any better.

Isabelle and Clive sat across from us during lunch, chatting heatedly and chomping down on fries. Even though Aika said she was ill, she seemed just fine. Maybe she just needed a mental health day. Tsukasa and I sat together, cuddling up as we ate. We were both quiet. I wasn’t in the mood to engage with them that much and surely Tsukasa felt the same.

“Clive STOP, you can’t keep spouting these ‘hot takes’ that make no damn sense,” Isabelle said angrily. Clive just rolled his eyes, but I could tell he was enjoying getting a rise out of her.

“I didn’t say I believed it, it’s just something I heard and it made me want to die,” he said.

“You’re still playing devil’s advocate,” she retorted. “Jeez. Saying you like catboys over foxboys isn’t classist... Tsukasa, are you okay? The topic’s not upsetting you, right? Because we can stop.” Glancing up at Tsukasa, he looked like a ghost.

“No, I’m fine,” he insisted. “I’m just feeling a little sick.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe you should go back to your dorm and rest,” Isabelle suggested.

“I don’t know…”

“Tsukasa, you really should,” I insisted. Maybe he’d listen to us. He sighed, looking down at his bowl of soup

“You’re right. I should go rest up,” he admitted.

“Here, I’ll walk you back to your dorm,” I offered. I went to get up, but Tsukasa stopped me.

“No, it’s fine. There’s not a lot of time left before classes start back up again. I don’t want you to be late because of me,” Tsukasa said. Oof…I didn’t want to say it, but he was right. If it was Nox’s class I could get away with it, but not when my next class was taught by Professor Schuyler. Tsukasa gave me quick hug before heading out. I really hope he feels better soon. I’m not strong enough yet to help in any significant way.

---

As soon as classes were over, I sprinted to the dorms, straight to Tsukasa’s room. Throngs of students heading back made it a little hard to run, but I managed to weave in and out until I got to Tsukasa’s suite. I knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Even his voice sounded exhausted. As soon as the lock clicked open, I shoved the door open and hurried over to Tsukasa’s bed. He was lying down on a bunch of pillows. He had blankets piled on him.

“Is there anything I can get you?” I asked him.

“No, it’s fine.” He reached out for me and I took his hand. I sat on the edge of his bed. “What did I miss in class?”

“We don’t have to worry about that right now. You need to rest.”

“I can do two things at once.” He cracked a small grin as I sighed and pouted.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” I told him quietly. I gently pushed some hair of his eyes. He smiled back at me. “How are you feeling?”

“Bad.” At least he was being honest with me. “I took some medicine to get my fever down, but it’s not gone yet.”

“Have you taken your normal medication yet? Should I get Azusa?” I asked.

“No!” I flinched; he’d never raised his voice at me ever. “Er, you don’t need to get him involved, I already sent him a message.”

“… Okay.” If that was how he was going to be, then fine. Tsukasa sighed, eyes wandering over to the wall.

“… I don’t want you to worry about me,” he told me.

“I’m going to worry about you no matter what. I’m your partner.”

“I know. But…” He looked up at the ceiling. “I already told Azusa. It’s fine.” But there was something off in his voice. Something in my gut was screaming at me that he wasn’t being truthful. And as much as I wanted to believe him, I couldn’t find it in me to do that. “I’ll be right back.”

I moved out of his way as he got out of bed and left the room. He really wasn’t getting better. But maybe his medicine would help.

I know he told me not to tell Azusa, but he needs help. I pulled out my Magic Notes and a pencil and quickly wrote a note to Azusa, telling him that Tsukasa really needed his immune system medication but also not to tell Tsukasa I sent him a message. I know we promised to be more open, but Tsukasa was sick. He had to worry about that and I didn’t want him to be angry about this on top of that. At least, that’s what I was telling myself. I sent the message off and shoved my things into my bag. A moment later, Tsukasa returned, looking even paler than he had left.

My heart ached as Tsukasa climbed back into bed. I carefully climbed over him and laid on the other side on the bed. We scooted closer together. One of my arms rested behind his neck and the other over him. Even through the blankets, I could feel his heat.

“I really hope you feel better soon,” I told him.

“I know. I do, too.”

“When you get better, why don’t we go on our first date?” Maybe I could lighten the mood a little bit. All this negativity probably wasn’t good for him, anyway.

“I’d like that. What do you want to do?”

“We could go into town and have dinner,” I suggested.

“There’s a really good cafe in Hidamari Market. We could go there.”

“Oh, that sounds like fun!”  There was a pause. Tsukasa reached over and cupped my face, smiling warmly at me.

“I promise I’ll get better soon.” His voice was so serious it threw me off a bit. But I knew he just wanted to reassure me. He was probably frustrated with the situation.

“I know. I know you’ll get better.”

“I don’t want you to worry about me. I just want to make you happy,” he said, hand cupping my face. “I hope you know that.”

“I know. But I don’t want you to hide anything from me. You don’t have to put up a strong front with me, even if it comes from a good place,” I said.  He nodded slightly.

“I really care about you.”

He leaned forward and in a moment, his lips were on mine. My body followed his lead, melting into him. His lips were soft and warm against mine. When he pulled away, I dived back in for another kiss. It was brief, but it wouldn’t be fair for him to be the only one initiating, would it? We pulled away again and I couldn’t stop smiling. My whole body felt jittery. There was a sweet silence between us, but I wanted to say something. I just wasn’t sure what.

“.. Um, I’m not contagious, by the way,” he mumbled.

“I wasn’t worried about that?!”

A pause. We burst out laughing, holding each other tighter. There was something exciting about this. We’d have so much more laughter and silly kisses and fun in our future. As the giggles quieted down and we snuggled, the butterflies in my stomach calmed down.

Slowly, Tsukasa fell asleep nestled against me. I was just about to nod off when a Magic Note came flying into the room. It got in my face and I grabbed it. Did Azusa already respond? But it’s so early in the morning?

But it was Azusa. And the note was addressed to me.

I’ll come over after my classes and give Tsukasa his medicine. It’s the very last dose of this batch and I’ll need help making a new one. Can I count on you to help?

Help. I could finally actually help Tsukasa out instead of just bring him homework and snuggle him. Not that I minded doing these things, but this was so much more substantial. Carefully, I removed myself from Tsukasa’s arms and wrote Azusa a quick response.

Yes. I’ll help you out.

[wizardessheart-sideb]

[Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 6: Nap Time” /End ID]

Chapter Summary: Tsukasa and I spend some time talking and getting to know each other even more.

Trying to catch up on studying since I took yesterday off was a bad decision. I couldn’t focus on the words in front of me. Concepts and words and terms and diagrams just blurred into each other. Ugh, I can’t do this. I shut the textbook and stared at the cover. It was just a little after midnight and admittedly, I was feeling a little restless. I’d been sitting all day, doing homework and trying to study. Maybe I just needed a little walk. It was late enough that I could freely roam the forest surrounding the entrance of the Night Class. At least, I probably wouldn’t get caught. I slipped out of my dorm and through campus, leaving through the graveyard.

The night air was a little chilly, but given Gedonelune was so temperate, it wasn’t too bad. I wandered into the forest, far enough away from the clearing so if someone was patrolling they couldn’t see me, but close enough I could still see that clearing. The forest was teeming with live, insects making noises and every so often an owl calling out. But still, it was peaceful. It was nice to clear my mind.

Suddenly, out from behind a tree, arms reached out from behind the trees and pulled me in. Reflexively, I screamed, but a large hand covered my mouth and muffled me. The other hand a strong grip around my waist, holding me tightly against their body. The familiar, masculine voice swore and let me go. Adrenaline pumping through my veins, I gasped for air and staggered a few steps away.

“Azusa?!” I choked his name out. He stood still, hands on his hips, a confused look on his face. It looked like grabbing me hadn’t made him break a sweat.

“You? What are you doing out here?” he demanded, brow furrowed.

“I was just out on a walk. What about you? Tsukasa said you work weekends.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, one of those weird, fake smiles was on his face. Did he really think that was reassuring? Or maybe he didn’t know that his smile was so phony.

“I do, but I had tonight off. I was just taking a walk, too.  I like exploring forests at night. Not the safest hobby, but there’s something about forests at night that’s cool,” he explained. It was plausible. It was reasonable. But something about it just struck me as odd. If he was working all day, wouldn’t he be too exhausted to take a walk? Not to mention the way he grabbed me…

“Why don’t I walk you back to your dorm?” Azusa suggested, voice honey sweet. “It’s not safe for a novice magician like yourself to be wandering around a forest at night. Who knows what creatures are lurking in the dark?” My stomach was churning, but I couldn’t turn him down, could I? I was all alone in the forest. How could I get out of this?

“Sure.” What else could I say? Could I really keep walking around? To be honest, I didn’t really want to be walking around the forest when he was. I let him pass me before following after him. As we walked back to the Night Class dorms and nothing happened, I tried to shake the strange feeling in my stomach. Maybe I was just too jumpy. After all, it was late and I had a lot of stress on me. And Azusa wasn’t doing anything. Maybe he really did just like walks and had more stamina than I. But the nerves in my stomach weren’t going away so easily.

---

“Here you go.” We stood in the mausoleum, right at the entrance of campus. I started to go down the staircase, but he wasn’t following me. I looked up at him.

“Are you not coming with me?”

“No, I should probably get back to my dorm. It’s pretty late,” he said. The dread in my stomach rose up again. I couldn’t fathom why he wouldn’t come with me and see Tsukasa, but again, I tried to push it from my mind.

“Thanks for walking me back. I’ll see you later.”

“Good night.” I’ve never gone down that staircase so fast before. Once I got to the bottom of the stairs, my body naturally looked back. Azusa hadn’t followed me down. I was completely alone.

Man, that was weird.

But as I headed back to my dorm, I wasn’t feeling ready to get back into studying. After all, my walk had been cut short. You know, I haven’t heard from Tsukasa today. Maybe I should go check up on him. Once I got to the dorms, it was a quick walk to his room. The door to his suite was unsurprisingly open and I knocked on his door.

“Tsukasa, it’s me. Can I come in?” I called out.

“Yeah, hold on a moment.” Just hearing his voice put me in a better mood. It was calming knowing that he was so close. There was a pause and then a click as the door inched open. Tsukasa was lying on his bed, still in his pajamas.

“I’m sorry, did I wake you up?”

“No, you’re fine,” he said, shaking his head. “I was just lying down and resting.” He moved over closer to the wall and patted the mattress beside him. “You can lie down with me if you want.”

“S-Sure.” I took my shoes off and got on the cushy mattress beside him. Part of the bed was still warm from where he’d been laying. The butterflies in my stomach started acting up. Even though we weren’t doing anything, it just felt so intimate being this close to him and on his bed of all places. “How are you feeling today?” I asked him.

“I’ve been better. I was already feeling bad yesterday and my hangover isn’t helping me,” he told me.

“Oh, I didn’t even think of that.” I guess I was the only one who paced themselves. Although he didn’t look that drunk last night. He must hold his liquor well. That’s a shock.

“Neither did I. Azusa chewed me out for drinking so much, so I have a headache from him on top of everything else,” Tsukasa pouted. I had to fight back a laugh. Somehow, that didn’t surprise me.

“Was he here earlier?”

“Yeah, he stays here during the weekends, but he left early in the morning for work. His stuff is still here.” Tsukasa glanced over at the things piled on the spare bed.

“He told me he was going back to his dorm. I just got back from a walk and ran into him,” I said. Tsukasa raised an eyebrow.

“You ran into him? Where were you? He usually works from seven am to three in the morning.”

“In the forest. He said he had the night off and was exploring the forest.” I tried not to shiver, remembering the encounter I’d just had. Tsukasa just frowned at me, brows furrowed now.

“He didn’t tell me he had the night off,” he said. “But it doesn’t surprise me he was out in the forest. He’s always loved forests, even when we were kids. Work must be stressing him out more than usual. He only does it at night when he’s stressed.”

“I mean, you just said he was working… what is that… twenty-one hour shifts?!”

“It used to be more spaced out until we enrolled and he has to put in all his hours on the weekend. Money’s been tight since we came to Gedonelune and we can’t not work any less. I…” Tsukasa sighed. “I know how entitled this sounds, but sometimes I wish we’d never left Hinomoto. Azusa had a well-paying job back home and he wasn’t working so intensely. It cost a third of our inheritance to just move here and another third for my medication. We could’ve stayed in Hinomoto and he wouldn’t have to work so much.”

“Your medicine’s that expensive?!” Tsukasa had mentioned once off-hand that he and Azusa had important positions in noble’s household, but for his medicine to be so expensive and for them to be able to just afford it even blew my mind.

“Yeah. I mean, we got a huge supply from the money, but still, it’s expensive and Azusa said it would be near impossible to get in Hinomoto and it was pure, dumb luck that he managed to get it back home.”

“Why is it so expensive? What’s it made out of?”

“I don’t know,” Tsukasa shrugged. “I’m assuming it’s made of something native to Gedonelune and it’s expensive because of that and the fact it’s a shot.” I shuddered and he grinned. “It’s not so bad once you get used to it.”

“I would prefer not to have to get used to it,” I replied, making him laugh.

“That’s valid.”

A lull in conversation.

“What’s Hinomoto like?” I asked. Tsukasa didn’t speak a lot about Hinomoto. I wondered what kind of place it was.

“It’s very beautiful. It’s not overly developed and we have distinct seasons. I miss rain,” he confided in me.

“Yeah, we never have rain here.”

“It’s weird. I don’t get why Gedonelune needs a weather system in place.”

“Me neither. I’ve heard if we didn’t have it in place, most of the time it would be overcast and rainy, so I guess part of it is to avoid flooding. But I think it’s really just to show off to other countries, or something.”

“That wouldn’t surprise me,” Tsukasa sighed. “Countries always try to one-up each other in weird ways except for taking care of their citizens.” It sounded like there was a story there but frankly, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know or not.

“You said it,” I replied with a nod.

“I don’t understand why Gedonelune would chose a weather system to show off, but okay, I guess. At least around the Winter Holiday, the school gets permission to have snow.”

“We do?!” That was news to me. I just imagined the Academy always had sunny weather.

“Yeah. It was nice getting to experience that stereotypical Winter Holiday with snow and everything. A lot of people in the dorms were talking about how they’d never gotten to experience that before, so it felt nice that that was my first experience.”

“‘First experience?’” Did it not snow in Hinomoto often?

“We don’t celebrate the Winter Holiday in Hinomoto. Well, some people do, but Azusa and I never did,” Tsukasa corrected himself. Oh. That explains it.

“Are holidays in Hinomoto that different?”

“I guess? I don’t know. We have a lot of different ones, but some western holidays have gotten popular over in Hinomoto. The Love Holiday, for example. We celebrate that now. But we don’t celebrate Halloween and we have Obon, which you guys don’t have.”

“Obon?”

“It’s a holiday where we honor our passed loved ones. There’s a big festival and everything. I’m usually more busy around then since Azusa’s birthday’s around then, but it’s a lot of fun, even if it’s a bit tiring.”

“When is your birthday?” I asked.

“It’s in October.”

“Oh.” It’s too bad I already missed it. Maybe a nice, quiet birthday party would’ve lifted his spirits a bit. “Next year, I’ll throw you a huge birthday party.”

“Oh, you will?” He turned his head to look at me, a wide grin on his face.

“Yeah! You better be ready to party hard.”

“I’ll prepare myself.”

Another lull in conversation, us just smiling at each other. I wondered where we would be when his birthday came around. Would I be an official student? Would I be able to spend the whole day by his side? Or would I have to only see him after classes when he could sneak away into town.

“Um… What about you?” Tsukasa spoke up suddenly, the smile on his face fading and his expression growing more serious. “What’s your life story? I know we’ve talked a lot about other stuff, but we’ve never talked about our pasts before.”

“Well, I lost my parents to illness at a young age and had to grow up without them,” I informed him. His face crumpled.

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. It still hurts sometimes, but I try to focus on all the good memories I have of them,” I said. He nodded.

“I’m glad. I don’t remember my parents at all. I’d just turned a year old when they were killed.”

“Tsukasa…” So we’re both orphans. At least I got to knew my parents...

“It’s fine. Sure, I’m sad I never got to know them, but I feel detached from it, if that makes sense.”

“Yeah…” My hand reached over for his. There was no hesitation as our fingers interlocked. A soft smile grew on his lips. My heart beat picked up.

“We should do this more often. Hanging out without studying. Getting to know each other.”

“I’d really like that,” I told him softly.

“I like studying with you, but it’s nice to relax and spend time with you and not worry about memorizing techniques and incantations. I like spending time with you,” he said.

“I like spending time with you, too.”

We lay there, holding hands and staring at the ceiling. My eyelids slowly started drooping. The room was just the right temperature, the bed was so comfy, and with Tsukasa by me, I just felt so relaxed.

“I could totally take a nap right now,” I murmured.

“I was just thinking the same thing,” he laughed.

There was a silent understanding between us. The problems I’d had earlier and that strange encounter with Azusa were far from my mind now. I closed my eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

[wizardessheart-sideb]

Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 2: On the Very First Day” /End ID]

Chapter summary: It's my first day of classes and things are harder than I thought they'd be. And now something strange happens with Tsukasa...

The shrill ringing of my alarm woke me up and immediately my stomach was rolling. The strong smell of bacon and something sweet was strong in my room. If anything, it made my nausea worse. I didn’t even open my eyes as I turned my alarm clock off. Did I really have to get out of bed? Couldn’t I just sleep a little longer?

Five more minutes wouldn’t hurt…I plucked the clock from my nightstand and just as I was about to reset it, there was loud knocking on my door.

“Time to wake up! If you keep sleeping, you’ll miss breakfast!” Isabelle’s voice shouted from the other side. Ugh… With my stomach feeling so gross, maybe that’d be for the best. Would I be able to keep anything down right now, anyway?

“Okay, thanks, Isabelle!” I replied as cheerfully as I could given how little sleep I’d gotten. I groaned as I got out of bed. I hadn’t even done anything yet and I already felt dead tired. Somehow, I stumbled through getting dressed and ready for the day.

When I stepped out of my dorm room, the smell of breakfast just intensified. The door to our kitchen was open and as soon as she caught sight of me, Isabelle waved me in.

“Oh, there you are! We were wondering when you’d get up,” Aika greeted me. She was seated at the table, blonde hair tucked into a neat bun and make up done. How did she have energy for that? It felt so early, even though I knew it wasn’t.

“Your food’s gonna get cold,” Dorian spoke up. He was standing at a counter, pouring batter into a fancy-looking waffle maker.

“You made me breakfast?”

“Of course he did,” Isabelle said. “He cooks all our meals.”

“He’s totally the daddy of our dorm suite,” Aika added.

“How dare you make me go through the five stages of grief this early in the morning,” Isabelle hissed. Aika just shrugged, taking a sip of her cocoa.

“What? I’m not wrong,” she commented nonchalantly. “Also it’s like, eight in the evening.”

“YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT!”

Unsure of what to say, I just grabbed the plate of food Dorian brusquely shoved towards me and sat down across from Isabelle, who now had her head down on the table. Dorian sighed and grabbed his own plate, sitting across from Aika. I cut into the fluffy omelet and cheese started spilling out. Dang, Dorian’s really making some fancy stuff.

“So, are you nervous?” Isabelle asked me, sitting up, chin resting on her hands.

“Oh, um… yeah, a little,” I told her.

“You’ll be fine. Your class has some total sweethearts,” she reassured me. That’s a relief. I already knew Tsukasa was a classmate, and if everyone was like him, I’d be able to make friends fast.

“You mean there’s four decent people out of fifteen in their class,” Dorian muttered under his breath. My stomach had slowly stopped feeling sick, but thanks to that quip, the nausea was back. There’s only four nice people in my class?

“I mean, that’s better than none!” Isabelle said hurriedly. She pouted before smiling at me. “Ugh, whatever. Anyway, you’re going to be fine. Your class is small and as long as you stick to the nice ones, you’ll be fine. You have Tsukasa, but you also have Hiro and Clive and you’ll love them.”

“Fandamilia is also very nice but jeez, she’s so energetic when she’s not drunk,” Dorian added. Aika glared at him, fixing her posture to be pin-straight.

“Dorian, are you trying to start a fight at the breakfast table?!” Her voice was harsh. Cold. She nervously glanced over to Isabelle, who had a similar look of fury on her face like Aika had had moments ago. “Isabelle, ignore him.”

“Don’t befriend Fandamilia,” Isabelle commanded.

“Our newbie can befriend who they want. Fandamilia is nice and even though she has her faults, she still deserves to have friends,” Dorian argued heatedly.

“Uh…” How was I supposed to react to this? It’s not like I knew Fandamilia and could say anything to support Isabelle or Dorian. There was no other choice but to just sit there and watch the scenario implode before my eyes.

“Isabelle doesn’t get along with Fandamilia anymore,” Aika whispered to me. But that didn’t really do anything to clear this up. Why didn’t they get along? Why were they friends in the first place? Why do I need to avoid Fandamilia? Dorian sighed and sat his teacup down onto the table a bit too forcefully, some tea sloshing over the side.

“Look, befriend her or don’t. Make the choice for yourself and not because Isabelle told you to,” he told me. His eyes were burning and I couldn’t do anything but sit there and wither under the pressure. Isabelle just rolled her eyes.

“I’m just trying to save them some heartache. It sucks when you befriend someone and then they try to justify some jerk’s terrible behavior,” she said. Oh. I guess that explains a little more. But I still wish I could get the full picture.

“I don’t like him either, but Fandamilia needs friends that aren’t Zeus,” Dorian said. “How do you expect her to grow if she doesn’t make more friends?”

“I don’t think you can even call them friends. He doesn’t really acknowledge her,” Aika lamented. She sighed, stirring her cocoa. “She should just summon herself a boyfriend like I did.”

“What?” Did I hear that right? No, there’s no way I heard that right.

“Oh, a gender-reversed take on the ‘hur dur my wife’s a demon’ boomer joke. Classy. Innovative. Straights can keep their rights now,” Isabelle retorted.

“Oh my God, shut up. If I can’t be the cute one, I have to be the funny one,” Aika replied, just as fiery. Dorian just pouted at Isabelle.

“I can’t believe you’d call me or Aika straight. I might be dating Aika but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate a nice, tall man willing to destroy this -”

“I HATE THIS FAMILY!” Aika shrieked. Dorian just snickered instead of finishing his sentence, but it’s not like I didn’t know what he was going to say. Part of me wanted to say, “let him speak,” but I don’t know if I can really joke around with them like that yet.

There was a knock on the wall and when I turned around in my seat, I saw Tsukasa sheepishly standing there. Everyone straightened up a bit.

“Oh, hey, Tsukasa. Care to join us?” Isabelle asked, starting to get up. But Tsukasa just shook his head and Isabelle plopped back down into her chair.

“No, thank you,” he told her before turning to face me. “I came to see if you were ready to head to class.”

“Me?!” It made my heart flutter a little bit, as strange as it was.  

“Oh, really now…” Dorian commented, voice low. Aika reached over and lightly smacked Dorian’s arm at his mischievous tone. Something about it made me flustered and I started looking around wildly for my bag.

“Oh, um, give me a moment to do dishes,” I said. I started to stand up, but Dorian snapped and in an instant, my dishes floated into the sink.

“I take care of the dishes. Don’t worry about it,” he said, flashing me a smile.

“Are you sure?” I didn’t want to just let him do all the work, especially since he made breakfast.

“This is how it always is,” Aika told me. “Don’t let us keep you.”

“If you say so…” I grabbed my bag before joining Tsukasa. We fell in step with each other as we made our way to the classrooms.

“How did you sleep this morning?” he asked.

“I was out. The trip yesterday was more exhausting than I realized,” I laughed. Part of me wondered if I should bring up last night. He wasn’t really having a good time, but if he came to get me, then he must be feeling a bit better. And besides, maybe it wasn’t my place to pry into his life. “It’s weird how tiring travel is.”

“I know, right?” he said, a large smile on his face. “When my brother and I moved here, we were both so exhausted from the trip that we slept for a full day once we got to our inn.”

“You moved here?”

“Yeah. My brother and I lived in Hinomoto all our lives, but we moved to Gedonelune four years ago. It was right after my fourteenth birthday.”

“Oh, that’s exciting. Do you like it here?” I’d lived in Reitz my whole life. I didn’t really know much about Hinomoto other than it was an archipelago east of us. That was it, basically.

“I do. Hinomoto was really nice and I wouldn’t mind moving back, but I really like Gedonelune and I’m glad Azusa had us move.” That must be his brother. “We used to live in the imperial court and while it was nice living in luxury, I’m not a huge fan of having so many rules. I think some rules are necessary, but there were some that were just dumb.”

As Tsukasa told me about his life living among royalty, we got to campus. The hallways were full of students just milling around and it was the same inside our classroom. There were already some students in their seats, reading or sketching absentmindedly or just staring off into space. No one acknowledged us when we came in and no one said a word as Tsukasa lead me to the front row and sat down. I took the seat next to him, to the right of a girl with a big, green ponytail full of curls and in front of a guy with black hair with bleached ends. I quickly got my things out of my bag. I wanted to ask him how difficult classes were, but it’s not like I could now. What if someone overheard and made fun of me? The girl next to me didn’t seem like she’d notice since she was fidgeting with some paper, but the guy behind me had bad vibes radiating from him.

The bell abruptly rang and the remaining students filed in quickly. The girl next to me slumped a bit and put her paper away, taking out a notebook. The nerves in my stomach started to act up as more people came inside. This was really happening. My very first day of classes at Gedonelune Royal Magic Academy! I just hoped I could keep up with everyone else. Prefect Nox walked into the classroom, a smile on his face. Okay, this wasn’t bad at all! I had Tsukasa here with me and I had Prefect Nox teaching my first class!

“Okay, everyone here? Good. Let’s get started.” Nox leaned against the podium, eyes lazily scanning the classroom. We locked eyes and his grin widened. “Although, I guess I should introduce our new student.”

“Oh!” I shot up out of my chair, waving nervously to the rest of the class. Apathetic eyes met mine, if they looked up at all. Tsukasa was the only one who greeted me with a smile. That melted some of my nervousness away. “Hi, I’m the new transfer student!” I gave them my name. “Let’s, uh, let’s do our best to get along.”

“Sounds fake, but whatever,” someone spoke up. I couldn’t tell who it was. The rest of the class snickered and I sunk back into my seat. I glanced over to Tsukasa, but he was glaring at another student.

“That was rude.” Yikes, what that really Tsukasa talking back?! Sure, I didn’t know him well, but for him to sound so angry and ready to throw down was disconcerting, to say the least.

“Hey, let’s not get into a fight, okay?” Nox spoke up quickly. “Let’s just let it go and start class.”  He just plowed on, telling us to open our books. I reached out and tapped Tsukasa’s shoulder, leaning in towards him.

“Thank you,” I whispered. He smiled.

“Don’t mention it.” I’m so lucky to have Tsukasa in my class. But now I see what Dorian was talking about. People seem like they can be really snide here.

“All right, today we’re working on defensive magic,” Nox announced. “I know it doesn’t seem as cool as offensive magic, but if you can’t use defensive magic, you’re as good as dead in a fight. We’ll be going elemental shields today, specifically water. Can someone tell me what you’d call water when casting a spell?” Everyone’s eyes dropped to the ground, trying to avoid Prefect Nox’s eyes. “Fandamilia?”

“Uh… Aqua?” The girl with green curls answered, uncertain.

“Correct. Keep up the hard work, Millie.” She beamed. So that’s Fandamilia. She didn’t look at all like I imagined. She didn’t look at all like the mean girls from movies. “For today’s class, you’ll have to create a shield large enough to protect yourself and your partner. I’ll fire attacks at you and let’s hope your shields are strong enough. Get in pairs and then get in horizontal line from that wall to this one.”

My stomach knotted itself. The shield didn’t sound bad enough, but Prefect Nox testing it? That was what worried me. I looked around me, looking for a partner.

“Tsukasa? Do you want to partner up?” I asked him.

“I’d love to.” Again, he gave me one of those lovely warm smiles. Even though I was nervous about the assignment, seeing him smile settled my nerves. “Um… Would you like me to go first?”

“Oh, um, no, I can go first if you like,” I replied.

“All right. That’s fine with me.” I just nodded. We got in line and Prefect Nox, of course, went to the end closest to us. I could throw up then and there. I stared at the textbook, hoping that somehow, it’d help me conjure the shield easier. Student after student had success and my nausea got worse and worse. Prefect Nox arrived to us and I took a deep, shaky breath.

“O water, protect us from harm! Suctum aqua!” I waved my hand a large shield of still water appeared. I… I did it?! I’d never tried this spell before. Thank goodness it worked.

“That’s a great size,” Nox commented. “But let’s see if it’ll hold up. Sagitta aqua!” Several arrows of water easily pierced my shield and splashed into me. I coughed, letting the water drip out of my mouth. My shield dissipated. “Your shield looked a little thin. Next time, make it a little thicker and maybe try getting the water to swirl. That should help deflect some attacks,” he told me.

“Thank you.” I’m the first person in class to fail… I can’t cry. I’m not going to be the first person to fail AND the person who cried in class on their first day.

“水! (Mizu!)” Tsukasa quickly drew symbols into the air and a shield appeared. It was much smaller than anyone else's and Prefect Nox frowned.

“I think it needs to be bigger, but I’ll go ahead and attack. Sagitta aqua.” Again, water arrows went flying to Tsukasa. He lifted his shield but as soon as the arrows hit it, the whole thing broke and sprayed water on not just him, but me and the girl on his other side.

“I’m sorry, you two,” he said. He pulled out a handkerchief and gave it to me.

“Next time, make your shield bigger and keep it together. A shield that breaks means you’re going to get some serious injuries,” Nox critiqued.

“Thank you.”  Prefect Nox went over to Lyza and I saw Tsukasa’s shoulders slump ever so slightly. As awful as it was, part of me was relieved I wasn’t the only one that failed. But at the same time, I felt bad that Tsukasa had failed too. I put my hand on his bony shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. He turned to me and mirrored me, putting his hand on my shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. Maybe we were going to be okay. A few more minutes passed and Prefect Nox reached the end of the line.

“All right, those were all good first tries,” Nox announced. “Let’s do this again and keep in mind my constructive criticism.” I almost gagged. Again?! We have to do this all over again?!

We didn’t improve much and by the time we were back in our seats, I was ready to take a nap. Who knew classes would be so exhausting?

“Good work today, guys. Here’s today’s results,” Nox said. He snapped his fingers and a large list appeared on the blackboard. My stomach dropped to the floor as I read the names and realize what it was. It was our names and our scores for the day. I kept reading and saw mine and Tsukasa’s names at the bottom of the list with only a few points each. Some kids were cheering, others gloating about how well they did. I just wanted to disappear into thin air.

“Are you okay?” Tsukasa’s gentle voice was in my ear, his hand on my shoulder.

“No. Why are our scores up on the board?”

“It’s like that for every class. It’s supposed to motivate us, but I think it’s kind of terrible.”

“No kidding.”

The rest of my classes didn’t go that well and by the time the final bell rung, I was ready to go back to my room and die in peace. Everyone was pretty quick to leave the classroom as I sluggishly put my stuff away.

“Hey. Are you okay?” Tsukasa inquired. I just sighed.

“Yeah, I guess. I didn’t know things were going to be so intense here,” I replied.

“I know what you mean. These classes are hard and on top of that, they make it like a competition.”

“I don’t see how this makes anyone motivated.”

“Everyone here is kind of competitive. Well, most everyone.” Somehow, that didn’t make things better. “If you’re worried about your grades, how about we go study together?” Tsukasa suggested. I didn’t know how much he could help me, but it’d be nice to suffer with someone else.

“Sure. We can go study for a while.” Wallowing in self-pity will have to wait. After all, I guess I do have to study hard so I’d be accepted as an official student.

The halls were already cleared of students, but in the distance I could hear faint chatter coming from near the entrance of campus. Hm. I wonder what that is? Tsukasa lead me down the hall and to two large wooden doors.

“I’m sure there will be some study rooms open for us,” Tsukasa said as he held the door open for me.

The library was massive. Shelves lined the walls and were standing proudly on the floor like soldiers, lined up perfectly and precisely. Tables were shoved into any space they could find that was out of the way of traffic. Tsukasa lead me through the stacks and to the back wall. Several doors lined the walls. Next to them were windows looking in to empty rooms. Again, Tsukasa opened a door and motioned for me to go in.

“Thank you.” What a gentleman. It was a cozy little room. There was a blackboard in addition to the table and chairs. Tsukasa took the seat across from me and started pulling his textbooks out.

“So, what do you want to study?” he asked.

“Uh…” “Everything” would be a bad answer, wouldn’t it? “Gosh, I don’t know… Is there anything you want to work on?”

“I don’t have a preference,” he responded. Great. More pressure. I know he was probably trying to be polite, but I had no idea what to do.

“Um… Man, I really don’t know. I feel like I have to work on everything,” I sighed, leaning back in my chair, arms crossed.

“We can study whatever you need to. I’ve got all night.”

“I don’t want you to ignore what you need to do for me, though. My failures shouldn’t cost you anything.”

“Hey, don’t say that.” He leaned in closer to me. “I’m not sacrificing what I need to do. We’re working together on things we both need. This is a two-way street.” Something about his words reassured me. It sounded so mature and certain. Well, maybe mature wasn’t the right word. Perhaps authoritative was a better term. He looked so strong in that moment. But in a second, he quickly looked away. “Sorry, was that weird? My brother says it all the time so I thought it would be comforting…”

“Pft… Haha!” The switch from confident to shy struck me as funny. But at the same time, it was so sweet he’d try comforting me when we hardly knew each other.

“It was comforting. Thank you, Tsukasa. I really appreciate it,” I told him. We shared smiles. All of a sudden, the crescent moon brooch on his cloak start to glow.

“What’s with your brooch?” he asked. Huh?

“Is mine glowing too?!” I asked.

“Wait, mine’s glowing?!”

We looked to our brooches and saw them glowing brighter and brighter until the light seemed to shoot out of the brooches. Sparkles mixed it the air and exploded like a firework, beautiful and fleeting.

“That’s pretty, but… What is that?” I asked him. He shrugged.

“Were you trying to cast something?”

“No. Were you?”

“No.” Then what was it? “I know sometimes if you sing well enough, magic crystals can form in the air. Maybe this is something like that? With friendship?” Friendship… Does he see me as a friend? … I suppose I see him as a friend…

“I… I guess it is.” Something about this situation felt so odd. It didn’t feel threatening or something, or bad, but still. I wondered what that magic was all about. Even as Tsukasa and I shared a smile over our new friend status, I still couldn’t help but wonder what had happened.

[wizardessheart-sideb]

Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Main Story” and “Chapter 4: Studying Cut Short” /End ID]

Chapter summary: Tsukasa and mine's daily study session gets derailed a bit when he feels sick after practicing defense magic.

The bell rang and I slumped forward onto my desk, groaning. It’s only been three days, but I’m so tired. I’m ready to take a nap. Or die. Either one. Even though I’ve been studying and practicing so hard, I can’t ever catch up to everyone else.

“Are you okay?” Tsukasa’s voice sounded concerned.

“No,” I answered honestly. Tsukasa leaned over and rubbed my back. Even through my clothes, I could feel the heat from his hand. It felt more nice than reassuring.

“Is this about our grades?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I replied. “And I’m tired.” Even after our study sessions, I spent hours in my room studying and practicing. If I was being honest, I probably wasn’t getting enough sleep on top of still trying to get used to this new nocturnal schedule.

“Do you want to cancel our study session for today?”

“… No.” It was a tempting offer, but I couldn’t slack off. Not when his grades depended on me.

“I don’t mind canceling,” Tsukasa said.

“No. I need to practice.” It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t exactly the whole truth. I didn’t want him to know I was worried about his grades. He was probably worried about them enough without me putting more pressure on him. Tsukasa sighed.

“… If you’re sure.” He sounded hesitant. Reluctant. But he just stood up, gathering his things.

Have I upset him?

Quickly, I shoved my stuff into my bag and I caught up with Tsukasa. There seemed to be two streams of people: one going back to the dorms and the other heading towards what I assumed was the Night Cafe. Not that I’d been there yet, what with Dorian cooking our meals and even packing our lunches. I wonder when he gets any sleep with how busy he is… And speak of the devil…

As Tsukasa and I approached the library, Dorian came into view, sitting on the ground in front of the door, face in his hand.

“Uh, Dorian? Are you okay?” I asked.

“Hey,” Dorian responded. He got to his feet, still looking disgruntled. “I’m doing a favor for Nox and Rex. I can’t let anyone into the library.”

“What? How come?” Tsukasa asked.

“The hell if I know,” Dorian said with a shrug. “They just asked me to keep people out while they investigated something in there. Whatever it was, they looked pretty freaked out about it.”

“That’s kind of concerning,” I said.

“I’m sure it’s nothing that bad,” Dorian said. That… no. Just no. Was he just trying to play it down so he wouldn’t scare us? Nox and Rex seemed like really tough guys. If something scared them, it would probably scare anybody. But regardless of what happened, this meant no studying in the library today. Tsukasa and I said our goodbyes to Dorian before turning back the way we came.

“Uh… do you still want to study? We could go study at the dorms,” Tsukasa suggested.

“I think we have no choice.” We made our way to the dorms and up to the third floor where Tsukasa’s suite was.

There’s something interesting about seeing dorm rooms. There’s a special brand of uniformity to them. They have the same bed, same desks, same dressers, same lights, same flooring. But each person makes the room their own. Decorations are put up, layouts changed, personalities seep into the room. And Tsukasa’s is no different. There are photographs of him and an older guy who must be his older brother all over his wall. A pile of snacks rests on his desk and his bed is messily made.

“Sorry my room’s messy,” Tsukasa said as he started moving stuff from off of the beds to underneath them. “You can sit wherever you like.”

“No, it’s fine! This isn’t messy at all.” I sat down on the bed across from his. Tsukasa leaned against his bed after pushing away some spare blankets. “Um, I guess I should go over earth shields since yesterday was garbage.”

“All right, let’s do it,” Tsukasa nodded. I whipped out my wand and steeled myself. The faster I got this, the more I could hone this until it was perfect.

“O earth, protect us from harm! Suctum terra!” The image of a stone slab strong in my mind, I channeled my magic through my wand. A solid dirt slab appeared in front of me. Tsukasa smiled widely.

“Hey, that looks way better!” he said. His compliment made my cheeks burn.

“Thank you! Can you attack it and see if it’ll stay?”

“Yeah, of course. 水! (Mizu)!” Tsukasa drew a symbol in the air and a deluge of water came forth, slamming into my shield. I had to channel more magic into it, trying to keep it in place and together. My muscles tensed from all my concentration. Suddenly, the water stopped and Tsukasa exhaled, shoulders slumping forward.

“I think it’s good,” he said breathlessly. Yay! I did it!

“Now I just need to keep this up…” Easier said than done. Not to mention, Tsukasa’s magic was improving too. I was about to compliment him when it happened. Tsukasa flopped back onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling, his chest rapidly rising and dropping.

“Tsukasa?! Are you okay?” I hurried over to his bed. He nodded very slightly, eyes closed.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just a little winded and dizzy,” he told me.

“Dizzy?” I get being winded from magic, but dizzy?

“It’s nothing serious,” he tried to wave my concern away. “It’s just a part of my condition.”

“‘Condition?’” I repeated. What condition?

“I just need to lay down for a moment,” he said.

“That doesn’t sound like it’s not serious.” Now that I thought about it, on the day I moved in, wasn’t Tsukasa in the infirmary? Nox said something about Tsukasa scaring them. Has this happened before? As Tsukasa got on his bed, I sat at his feet. “Is there anything I can do for you?” I asked him.

“If you could hand me a pencil and my Magic Notes, I’d really appreciate it,” he said.

“Uh, sure.” Even though I had no idea why he’d want those, I got up and rifled through his bag for them. His things weren’t well-organized, but somehow I was able to find them.

“Thank you.” He sat up a little and started writing furiously. I tried to sneak a peek at what he was writing, but since it was in Hinomotan, I couldn’t understand it.

“What are you writing?” I inquired, trying not to sound too serious or nosy.

“I’m writing to my brother,” he explained. “I have to tell him whenever this sort of thing happens.”

“That’s kind of weird. Oh!” Dang it! I need to stop blurting out things! But he didn’t look offended. At least, I didn’t think he did. He frowned, sad, but at least he didn’t look angry. He just looked resigned.

“It’s not…” He sighed, putting his pencil down.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it in a weird way. I was just surprised,” I said, trying not to dig myself into a deeper hole than I was already in. The last thing I wanted was a fight with Tsukasa. Not just because we were Buddies, but because I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.

“No, I understand,” Tsukasa said. “I know it’s weird, but Azusa’s insistent on it.” Again, he sighed. He picked his pencil back up and continued writing. “It’s invasive, but there’s nothing I can do about it.”

With a flourish, he finished the note and sent it off. The sorrowful look on his face tugged on my heartstrings. It’s really not a good situation to be, isn’t it?

“Tsukasa… You don’t have to tell me, but what’s going on?” I reached out for his hand absentmindedly. It took me a moment to realize what I’d down, but before I could take my hand back, Tsukasa grabbed it. He gave it a gentle squeeze before letting go. His eyes avoided mine.

“… You’d find out eventually… And I guess this affects you since we’re Buddies…” he muttered. He took a deep breath. “I’ve always been sickly. Ever since I was a child, I always had problems with my immune system. I get sick really easily and I don’t think I’m ever truly healthy. I’ve almost died a few times, but I’ve managed to pull through. I had a really bad bout of cholera when I was fourteen and after that, Azusa insisted we move to Gedonelune because the medication I’m taking is readily available here and it’s hard to get in Hinomoto.”

Tsukasa’s arms folded in front of his chest.

“Azusa’s always been so busy working to support us that it’s always been our system that if I wasn’t feeling well, I tell him immediately so he can keep up to date with how I’m feeling. I was fine with it when we were younger, but now that we’re adults, it just feels invasive. I know he’s just doing it because he cares about me, but he raised me and he knows I’m always sick. I don’t see why he has to know everything.”

“Is your medication not helping?” I asked.

“Ugh, I don’t know. It really helped me the first few years I took it. I got sick only once or twice a year. But in the last year or so, I’ve been getting sick more often and I honestly don’t know if it’s actually doing anything. But Azusa keeps insisting I need to take it…”

His shoulders slumped and my heart sunk. I couldn’t begin to imagine how much stress Tsukasa was under. Not only did he have to deal with being sick, but he had to deal with his brother being overbearing. In that moment, a single thought occurred to me: If I got good enough at magic, maybe I could help him. Was healing humans and animals really all that different?

Once again, my hand reached for Tsukasa’s. But this time, I didn’t wait for him to grab it.

“If you need anything, I’m here for you,” I told him. His hand was so warm as it squeezed mine back. A small smile was on his lips.

“Thank you. That really means a lot to me.” A moment passed and yet again, I realized what we were doing.

“Oh! I’m sorry, I swear my head isn’t on right today,” I stammered. I pulled my hand out of his. Thankfully, he just laughed; he didn’t seem angry.

“I don’t mind holding your hand,” he said. For some reason, that made my stomach feel all fluttery. I needed to become an official student now. Not just for myself, but to try and help Tsukasa. To help him relax and repay the kindness he’s shown.

Tsukasa and I decided to cut our study session short and after doing some homework together, I returned to my dorm. Like usual, the door to the suite was open. As I approached, I could hear talking in the kitchen. I poked my head in and saw Aika and Dorian. Aika sat at the table, flipping through a book while Dorian stood at the stove.

“… Okay, add the paprika and let it simmer for fifteen minutes,” she instructed him.

“Got it,” he nodded.

“What’re you making?” I asked, coming into the kitchen and taking a seat across from Aika. The two smiled.

“There you are! I was wondering where you were, what with the library being closed,” Aika said.

“Yeah, did you guys get your study session done?” Dorian asked.

“Aw, you were studying with your Buddy~?” Aika teased me. Hm. I don’t know if I like that lilt.

“Well, yeah, of course I studied with Tsukasa.” Why was I feeling so defensive?

“You two are so cute together,” Aika commented. “Cute together?!

“What?!” I squeaked. My face was burning and I wanted to disappear into thin air. Why are they being so weird?!

“Pft… Don’t get your underwear in a twist,” Dorian laughed. “Aika just thinks you two are a cute couple.”

“We’re not a couple though?!” I corrected him.

“Yet,” Aika said with a wink.

“You guys are spending a lot of time together,” Dorian pointed out, the edges of his lips curled into a grin.

“Because we’re Buddies. We have to work together. Our fates depend on each other.” I told them. But they kept smiling and it was clear my words didn’t mean a thing to them.

“Come on, isn’t there something romantic about being with someone that your fate is tied to? Right, babe?” Dorian looked to Aika, who was staring off into space. She perked up, looking around the room like a Meerkat looking for predators.

“… Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, totally,” she said. Dorian pouted at her.

“At least pretend to pay attention when I’m bullying someone,” he said. This was only going to get worse, wasn’t it? They really weren’t going to listen to the truth that Tsukasa and I were just friends.

“Y-You guys are too much!” I cried. I quickly fled from the room, Dorian’s laughter chasing after me.

“Dinner in an hour,” he called after me. I slammed my door shut, leaning against the back and sliding to the ground. My face felt hotter than lava. Why are they like that?! Is making people embarrassed their hobby?!

I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. It was obvious I was flustered. But why? I didn’t see Tsukasa romantically, so why did their teasing feel like a personal attack on top of just being embarrassing in general?

[wizardessheart-sideb]

[Image ID: A chapter image done in the style of Wizardess Heart. A large, off-white imagine with a guy on it. He’s wearing a dark gray uniform. There’s a lavender bar over him that reads “Tsukasa Kuze.” The rest of the text reads “Happy Ending” /End ID]

As soon as my alarm went off, my stomach started aching. Or maybe I just became aware of it aching? That sickly feeling when you don’t get enough sleep filled my stomach and my eyes burned as I opened them. It was six in the morning and we’d just gone to bed a few hours ago. But today was a special day: my trial. The day where I’d become an official student or not.

Beside me, Tsukasa turned over onto his back. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and groaned.

“I feel like I only got a few minutes of sleep,” he complained.

“Me too. I wish this wasn’t so early,” I sighed.

“Our Judgments were this early too and I hated it.”

I didn’t want to get out of bed, but this wasn’t something I could be late to. I crawled out of bed and slowly started getting ready for the day.

“You can stay here if you want and sleep a little longer,” I told him.

“And let you go to your Judgment by yourself? No way.” He got out of bed and started going through his backpack for some fresh clothes. As we got ready, I swore I could smell something cooking. It had to be my imagination, right?

“Hey, do you want to go get breakfast after the Judgment?” I asked.

“I’m down. I should be hungry by then and it’d be nice to celebrate you becoming an official student,” he said with a grin.

“Don’t say that! We don’t know if I’ll pass or not.”

“Love…” He went over to me, cupping my face in his hands. “There’s no way you’re not making it. You’re going to pass. I know it.” His words soothed me. I put my hands over his and kissed him. What was I going to do if I didn’t make it?

When I opened the door, the smell of pastries and cinnamon filled the air. Tsukasa and I glanced at each other. I guess I hadn’t imagined it at all. The door to our kitchen was open and when we peaked inside, we were in for a surprise.

“Guys?!” I squeaked.

“Good, you’re awake. I thought I’d have to go and wake you up,” Isabelle laughed. Isabelle and Aika sat at our table while Dorian was at his usual post at the oven.

“What are you guys doing up? It’s so early,” I said.

“Did you really think we weren’t going to have breakfast with you? Or should I say, you two?” Aika teased me. My face was burning. I was already trying to avoid Dorian’s burning eyes and this wasn’t helping me feel calmer. It’s not like anything happened, but even if I explained that, they wouldn’t believe me.

“You realize people can just sleep in beds, right? You don’t have to be doing anything else,” Tsukasa said in a deadpan. Isabelle snorted.

“Sure, sure,” she grinned. I tried to ignore her snickering and grabbed some food.

“So how’re you feeling this morning, sweetie?” Aika asked.

“I’m nervous,” I admitted.

“Don’t be! You’re totally gonna make it,” Isabelle said encouragingly.

“You’ve been through worse. This is nothing,” Dorian piped up. … You know what? They were right. I’d been though so much in the past couple days and I’d improved by leaps and bounds. With everyone’s help and my own effort, we’d weathered through this past two weeks. I grabbed some food and sat down across from Isabelle.

“I really appreciate everything you guys have done for me. Thank you,” I told them.

“Oh, don’t worry about it! Helping each other is something we should all be doing,” Aika said.

“Maybe people in the Night Class will actually start working together now,” Dorian muttered.

“Huh?”

“No one here really gets along. I mean, I think it’s changing a little bit since the Unus students have their little cliques and that’s better than nothing. But the Night Class has been notorious for lone wolf attitudes,” Aika explained.

“I wonder if the Day Class is like that,” Dorian mused.

“I guess we’ll find out,” she shrugged.

“Huh? What’s that mean?” I asked. The two looked to each other.

“Do you want to tell them, Aika?” Dorian asked.

“Tell me what?”

“We, uh, we’re no longer Night Class students,” Aika said quietly.

“What?!”

“When I made a contract with Dorian, I gained the ability to use magic. Now that I broke it and I can’t make another contract with him, there’s no point in us staying here,” she said. So that’s why she was evading our questions about how she’d be affected for breaking her contract...

“Headmaster Randolph was nice enough to offer us teaching assistant jobs, at least for the end of the year. I’ll be helping to teach summoning magic and Aika’s helping out the music department,” Dorian told us.

“So we won’t see you guys that much anymore?” My shoulders slumped.

“No, but we’ll make sure to keep in touch! And you can come visit us once we get our new place set up!” Aika said cheerfully. Even though the idea of our suite just being myself and Isabelle felt weird and it hurt to know Aika and Dorian wouldn’t be around, at least they were still going to be in town. They weren’t going away forever. This was just another step in their journey.

“I hope you guys enjoy the teaching positions,” I told them with a smile.

“Thanks! I hope so too,” Aika laughed.

The sun was already shining brightly as Tsukasa and I made our way to the auditorium. It was still early enough in the morning that our shoes squeaked as we walked on the wet grass. It was going to be a beautiful day and part of me was sad I’d become nocturnal. This was perfect picnic weather.

“How are you feeling?” Tsukasa asked.

“I’m a little nervous, but I think I’ll be okay. But what about you? How are you feeling after all of this?” I asked. He sighed.

“It’s been pretty hard coping with everything Azusa told me. It’s… weird to think about, to say the least,” he told me. I squeezed his hand reassuringly. “I’m just trying to stay positive. This is a second chance, isn’t it? And I’m going to try and live life to the fullest.”

“That’s a good way to think about it,” I agreed. I had to wonder though, how hard it would be to find a therapist for him that wouldn’t immediately rat Azusa out for necromancy and attempted murder of a unicorn.

“And physically, I’ve never felt better,” Tsukasa said.

“I’m so glad for that. I’m just glad this is all over.”

“Me too. Now we can just focus on us.” He put his arm around me and I snuggled into his side. We continued our journey to the auditorium, passing through the Day Class’ side of campus. I couldn’t help but wonder what would’ve happened had I been accepted into the Day Class instead of the Night Class. Would I have been able to improve so much? Would the days before my trial be peaceful and calm? Or just as busy and stressful as the past couple days?

Although I wasn’t sure why I’d been selected for the Night Class, I was glad I was here. If I’d been accepted into the Day Class, I would’ve never met Tsukasa. Or Isabelle. Or Dorian and Aika. Maybe I never would’ve learned that I can depend on people. At least, not yet.

We reached the auditorium’s door. Tsukasa turned to me.

“You got this. I know you do,” he reassured me.

“I got this…” I nodded. Everything is going to be okay. I took a deep breath and entered the auditorium.

The auditorium was lofty and to be honest, it looked more like a cathedral than a place for school assemblies and rallies. The ceiling were soaring and the light stone was so bright in the sun light. Headmaster Randolph stood behind a podium, smiling.

“Good morning, Headmaster,” I greeted him.

“Good morning. Are you ready to start the trial?”

“I am!” He chuckled.

“I’m glad to hear that enthusiasm! May I please see your Acceptance Letter?”

“Yeah, just give me a moment, please.” I rummaged through my bag, searching for the letter. I came across the Love Holiday card from Fandamilia and smiled. Even if Isabelle didn’t like her, she was a sweet girl deep down. I found the letter and handed it over to Headmaster Randolph.

“Thank you very much,” he said. He carefully placed it in front of a golden pair of scales.

Are those used in the Judgment? It’s not based off of grades or professors recommendations? … Huh. You learn something new every day. "Oh Scale of Judgment... This student shall be judged to be a rightful student or not. Reveal your judgment now! … Please your hand over your letter.”

Silently, I obeyed his orders. As soon as my hand went over the letter, the scales started to shine bright. The light got brighter and brighter and I shut my eyes. But then it suddenly dissipated. I opened my eyes and my letter was still glittering. The words “provisional” started to fade from the paper and giddiness was slowly settling into my body.

“Congratulations, you’ve become an official student,” Headmaster Randolph told me with a smile.

“Yay! I did it!” I jumped up and down, clapping my hands together.

“You’ve improved a lot in the past two weeks. You should be proud of yourself,” he told me.

“I am! But I couldn’t have done it without my friends and Tsukasa helping me out.”

“I’m happy to hear that. You two looked so terrified when I confirmed your Buddy status. It’s good to know you two have been working hard together.”

“Yeah, we’ve both been working really hard. And we’ll continue to work hard!”

“Good. Now go rest up. You probably aren’t used to being up this early,” he laughed.

“Yes, sir. Thank you again!”

“No need to thank me. This is all thanks to you.”

I knew that he didn’t mean anything about it, and it was true that I put in a lot of hard work to get here, but really, this wasn’t just my victory. This belonged to me and my friends.

I left the auditorium and found Tsukasa leaning against the wall, waiting for me. His face lit up when he saw me.

“It’s official!” I announced.

“That’s great!” His arms wrapped around me tightly, spinning me around in a circle.

“I’m so happy nothing has to change.” I breathed a sigh of relief. It really did feel like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

“Me too. I don’t know what I’d do if you got rejected,” he said.

“We don’t have to worry about that!”

Tsukasa cupped my face with his hand, smiling softly at me.

“I’m so proud of you.” He kissed my nose and I couldn’t help but giggle.

“I couldn’t have done it alone. This was teamwork,” I told him.

“Maybe it was, but you’re allowed to take the credit if you want. We could’ve helped you, but your effort’s what made this happen.”

Perhaps he was right. But I preferred to think of it as a group effort.

“So, how about we go back to the dorms and get some sleep? We got classes today, after all.”

“Let’s do it.”

Holding hands, we walked back to our side of campus. The giddiness died down a little, but there were still butterflies in my stomach. I’d made it into my dream school. I got to officially enroll. And of course, I wouldn’t have to leave Tsukasa’s side.

This was the beginning of a new wonderful chapter in our lives.

Months later…

The dining room in Aika and Dorian’s apartment wasn’t the biggest space. The table clearly meant for two people had the six of us crowded around it, eating and chatting. Dorian had pulled over a recliner for Isabelle to sit on, Aika sitting on the arm of the chair. Tsukasa say on a step stool and we were all shoulder to shoulder. But somehow, that just made this way more fun.

“… And then! And then he gave this truly hot take and my soul left my body. I just don’t understand how Clive gets all these terrible hot takes,” Isabelle told us, gesticulating wildly the whole time.

“I’m pretty sure he thinks they’re stupid, too,” Tsukasa said.

“Has it occurred to you he’s just doing it to torment you?” Azusa asked.

“Yeah, he likes trolling people. He does it to Viggo all the time,” Tsukasa pointed out. Dorian snorted.

“Oh yeah, Viggo and his magic bong,” he laughed.

“He’d tell you it’s a pipe,” Aika giggled. I snickered before taking a drink of my punch.

“Do you have anything fun planned for the summer, Isabelle?” Tsukasa asked.

“Nah. I’m just babysitting the whole time,” she told us. “If Nox goes and visits his aunt, I’ll hang out with him some, but other than that, it’ll be an uneventful summer. What about you guys?”

“There’s some nice hiking trails around Reitz that we might hit. But I think it’ll just be a sleep summer for us, too,” I said.

“After this semester, I’m totally fine with that,” Tsukasa said.

“Yeah, things have been so crazy. Hopefully next year isn’t so insane,” she laughed.

“It makes me glad I was put in the Day Class,” Azusa commented.

“Oh, you’re one to talk. The Day Class is just as chaotic. Like that stuff with Klaus and Randy? That’s straight out of a soap opera,” Aika said.

“Who?” Tsukasa asked.

“Prefect Klaus is an old acquaintance of Aika and he hates Randy’s guts. It’s kind of amusing, to be honest,” Azusa informed him.

“You’re only saying that because you don’t have to deal with the two of them at the same time. Imagine having them in a class together,” Dorian pouted.

“That’s unfortunate,” Azusa said unsympathetically. I snorted and glanced at my watch. I almost choked at the time.

“Tsukasa, we need to head to the train station,” I said quietly, grabbing his shirt sleeve.

“Aw, you guys gotta head out?” Aika frowned.

“Yeah, we can’t miss our train,” Tsukasa said.

“Well then, I guess we won’t keep you.”

We got up and started giving hugs to everyone, saying our goodbyes. We’d be back in town a week before school started to spend more time with Azusa, Aika, and Dorian, but until then, Tsukasa and I would have the summer to ourselves.

“Be sure to write me once in a while,” Azusa told him.

“I promise. Don’t overwork yourself,” Tsukasa replied.

“I won’t,” Azusa promised.

It was nice to see them truly getting along now. Tsukasa and I grabbed our backpacks and suitcases and leaving the trio’s apartment, we made our way to the train station. Although I was sad to leave our friends, this was going to be an amazing summer. I just knew it. The day was beautiful and there were so many beautiful days ahead of Tsukasa and I. And hands clasped together and our shoulders rubbing against each other, we started our next big adventure.