Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I was young when I first found my soulmate. Too young to even understand the whole ‘soulmate’ thing. So when I first saw her, and literal fireworks exploded behind my eyes, needless to say that seven year old me was confused beyond all belief. 

I was at a concert. Well, not a concert, more like a show. A show my favorite magician was putting on in my hometown. It was rare for her to come to Japan, so I knew I had to go. After months of begging and being on my best behavior (save for the bunny incident), my parents finally bought me the tickets. 

After I found out, it was all I could talk about until the show date. Every night before bed, I would look up to the Shiny Chariot poster hanging on my wall and promise to see her soon. Thinking back, my obsession might have been considered a little unhealthy, but that’s besides the point. 

Upon arriving at the show venue, I remember, after we set our stuff down to save our seats, my parents and I walked around, looking at the merchandise that was being sold. There, they bought me the very same keychain I’m wearing on my bag today. 

After we had gotten the keychain, we were called back to our seats, as the show was about to begin. Bouncing in my seat, my parents had to practically hold me down to keep me from jumping up and disturbing the show. It was magical. Even if it was nearly 10 years ago, I can remember every tiny detail, from the slight change in red hue on Shiny Chariots uniform to the fantastical one of a kind finale.

Too bad that show was her last. 

After her amazing finale, she announced that she had just performed her last show and left the stage in a flutter of doves. I was heartbroken. Tears falling from my eyes, my parents attempted to comfort me, offering me words of comfort and soft touches. 

I ran off. 

And ended up running into someone equally as heartbroken as I was. At least, that was until we looked at one another. 

My heart rate sped up, my cheeks grew warm, and my head was abuzz, my brain going at a million miles an hour. She was beautiful, with blonde and green hair, deep, blue eyes, and very obviously foriegn. I remember thinking, “ What the heck is happening, why can’t I breathe, who is this girl? ” all while offering my hand to assist her off the ground. The moment our hands touched, I was blown away.

Literally. 

I was flown back a few feet, crashing into one of the many Shiny Chariot merchandise stands. As for the girl, she wasn’t so lucky as to have something to land on. With a loud cry, she landed on the pavement, gasping for air. Getting up as quickly as I could, I ran over to her, careful not to touch her and repeat the same incident. 

“Hello? Are you okay?” I remember asking, watching as she managed to sit up on the pavement. Still coughing, she waved me off, motioning that she was alright before jumping up and pointing an accusing finger at me.

“You! What did you do?” she had exclaimed, face red and said accusatory finger shaking as she pointed it towards me. The shaking finger came closer, almost to where it was touching my chest, so I backed off. 

At that point, we had gathered quite a crowd. Embarrassed, I stepped back while frantically looking for my parents. “Me? I didn’t do anything,” I yelled, continually stepping backwards until my back touched a tree. 

With that, she had sneered, “Well obviously you did something .” Then, her finger poked my chest. Thankfully, that time, nothing happened. Well, except for my parents barging through the crowd. 

With their appearance, all I can remember is my parents whisking me away, and the angry look on my ‘soulmates’ face. 

After we had left the concert, and I told my parents of the whole fiasco, they explained what soulmates were. 

And I was devastated. I had made a bad first impression on my soulmate. The next few days after the show were terrible, what with the soulmate realization and Shiny Chariots quitting. 

Soon, I grew out of my funk, and set up a goal for me and my future self. 

I was going to find my soulmate.

And I was going to apologize, and hopefully make everything alright between the two of us. After that, I started participating in more school sports, and even joined the basketball team. Though, of course, that didn’t work out, so I was pushed to join track. 

And, I learned that I have a knack for running. At my old school, I was the top runner, and have even won medals showcasing that fact. Because of my track skills, I was offered several school scholarships. Though, only one stood out. 

That is why I’m here, at Luna Nova academy for gifted girls. Why? Because, a fact I may have forgotten to mention is that my soulmate had an accent while yelling at me. A British accent. So, after many tear-filled pleas, working hard to earn the money, and even more begging, I finally managed to convince my parents to allow me to become a foriegn exchange student, and attend Luna Nova. 

The way Luna Nova is set up is well, considered weird. They very rarely ever give out scholarships, and only accept top athletes. From what I remember from the email, there are 5 different sports Luna Nova participates in. Track, Basketball, Football, Tennis, and Equestrian sports. In Luna Nova, each sport is placed in different sections of the school, so each type of athlete rooms in their specified section of the school. Even then, I still didn’t know where to go, or where to find my soulmate. 

Sure, she most likely won’t attend this exact school, but at least I’m in the country right? That’s a step closer from being in a whole ‘nother country. 

The loud rumble of the bus tore me from my inner thoughts. Grabbing my suitcase, I climbed onto the bus, and handed my ticket to the driver. As soon as I sat down in my seat, I realized I was absolutely exhausted . This entire situation was exhausting. I needed a nap. 

With that, I relaxed into my seat and silently doze off. 

_______________

“Miss? Uh, Miss, I think this is where you get off. I saw the Luna Nova brochure in your hand and I assumed that it was where you were headed. . .” the bus driver said, trailing off as I awoke. 

Hearing that, I jumped up from my seat and peered through the bus window, marvelling at the size of the building itself. 

Saying thanks to the bus driver, I hopped off the bus and strode to the front gates to gather my bearings. 

Remembering that I had a map of the school with me, I grabbed it out of my pocket and tried to figure out where my dorm was. 

After standing there looking at the map like an idiot for around 20 minutes, I gave up and decided to wander around aimlessly until I came across someone who could help. 

This school is enormous . There were more halls than I could count, and I won’t even attempt to count the amount of classrooms I had passed so far. They were empty of course, seeing as I arrived after class hours. Everyone was most likely eating, or in their dorms. 

Speaking of dorms. . . I still couldn’t find my own. Apparently I was assigned to the red dormitory, also known as the red team. There were teams here? How was that going to work? This was completely different from how the schools were set up back at home.

“Hey! You there, do you have permission to be out of your dorm?” an authoritative voice drew me from my inner thoughts, making me jump and turn to face the owner of said voice. 

Scratching the back of my neck awkwardly, I glanced at the two girls standing in front of me before glancing back down towards the floor. “I- well I’m new here! And I. . . I got lost. Is there any chance you two could show me to my dormitory?”

With that, the girls’ stances relaxed, and their stares turned sympathetic. “Yeah of course we’ll show you, what dorm are you in?” the redhead asked, stepping around me to read over my shoulder. 

After reading what was on my paper, she stepped back and gestured for her companion to come near, telling her to read what I had. With that, the two’s faces turned into sneers. 

“Oh, you’re on the red team ,” the two said snidely at the same time, which was honestly a little creepy to watch. “Perfect, yet another short legged runner to slow down the red team.”

Now that was uncalled for. “My leg length is just fine, thank you very much! And what did I do to you? All I needed were directions. . .”

The girls conversed between themselves before turning back in my direction. “Fine, two hallways down, take a left, the fourth doorway on your right, then take the stairs up to the third floor. The big red door opens to the red dormitory, if that wasn’t already obvious enough.”

With that, the girls walked up, each flicking their hair over their shoulder as they did so. 

Well, that was confusing. 

Shaking off whatever just happened, I proceeded to attempt to follow their confusing directions, but in the end I became lost. Hopelessly lost. 

Turning yet another corner, I came across a large blue door. Figuring that it was a step closer to getting to my own dormitory, I opened the door and was immediately knocked down. 

“Hey! What’s the big. . .,” I trailed off in shock, my mouth dropping open and my eyes widening. 

There, on the floor once again (no thanks to my clumsiness), sat my soulmate . I found her! I really found her, nearly ten years after our first encounter. Sure, she had obviously changed over the years, in a very, very good way, but I’d know that weird mix of blonde and green hair anywhere. 

And- she did not look happy. “ What is the meaning of this?” she exclaimed, standing up angrily as she dusted off her skirt. Not even bothering to offer me help up, she pointed an accusing finger towards me. “Why are you in the blue dormitory? You’re obviously not a member of the blue team. Where are you supposed to be at the moment?” she questioned rapidly, firing question after question so that I couldn’t figure out which to answer first. 

“Uh- hi, I’m new here, and I sorta got lost on the way to my dormitory, and the girls I asked for help weren’t really much help. Or nice for that matter,” saying what happened aloud in front of my soulmate made me both feel and sound like an idiot, but there was nothing I could do to help it. 

With that, she moved her hand up towards her face to rub the bridge of her nose, almost as if she had a headache. “I see, which dormitory are you in?”

I gulped, “R-red.”

“The red team you say?” she said before muttering something under her breath. “That’s quite alright, I’ll show you the way so that this type of incident doesn’t occur again.”

Turning on her heel, she walked swiftly out the blue door, motioning for me to do the same. The entire walk there was silent.

And it was absolute torture. 

Finally, we reached a large red door. “This is your dormitory. This is where you will sleep, study, and whatever else you may do in your free time.”

With that, she turned around, only to be stopped by my hand on her wrist. 

And it burned. I could tell it pained both of us, what with the screwed look of pain painted on her face.

“Sorry! Sorry I didn’t mean to do that but. . . well I need to know. Do you remember me?” 

At that, she raised an eyebrow and thought for a moment before frowning. “No, I can’t say that we’ve ever even met before.”

She- she doesn’t remember me. God, now that was a heartbreak and a half. 

Noticing that my spirits had been brought considerably down, she stepped forward and laid a comforting hand on my shoulder. 

Only, it hurt . It hurt like hell itself had travelled over my body and spit flames. I jumped back, wincing as I held my shoulder. 

She did the same, holding her hand away as if I could happen again even without us touching. 

“Did you feel that too. . .” I said, trailing off as the pain in my shoulder subsided little by little. 

Not responding, she turned around and walked swiftly away, still holding her hand in pain. I couldn’t even go after her in fear that I would yet again be lost in the many halls of Luna Nova. 

Today was going great . Just great . 

Leaning against the door, I let out a long, sadness filled sigh. 

Only to fall backwards. 

“Whaddya want?” a sickly looking girl asked, looking over my fallen form. 

“Oh- I’m your new teammate! At least, I think so. . .” 

With that the girl gruffed and turned around, leaving the door open so I could walk in.

“Welcome to the red team, I hope you can run,” she said as she climbed into one of the empty bunks, laying down and opening a book. 

I scoffed, “Of course I can run! That’s why I’m here,” I stopped talking after I noticed she wasn’t listening anymore, as she was wearing headphones and was presumably listening to music. Slightly miffed at being ignored, I chose the nearest empty bunk and threw my belongings atop of it, proceeding to sit down and pout. 

Today sucked. It was nothing like I expected it to be. First, getting lost, then meeting those two mean girls, finding my soulmate only for her to not remember me, and now I’m stuck sleeping in the same room with two girls I don’t even know. 

I threw myself back and bounced on the bed, letting out a near silent “oof” as my head hit the pillow. 

Even though I slept on the bus, I couldn’t help but feel absolutely exhausted. Maybe I was just emotionally tired. With that, I closed my eyes, preparing to sleep. 

Soon, I finally felt myself drifting off to sleep, with the last thought on my mind being ‘I hope tomorrow will be better.’

Chapter Text

Today was not going any better than it was yesterday. 

So far, I had already run into those two mean girls from last night again, and, they’re friends with my soulmate. I had made an absolutely terrible first impression with them as well. I also still didn’t know the name of my soulmate, which was a crime in itself. And, all of this happened before breakfast. 

Maybe coming to this school was a mistake. 

Also, the breakfast here is terrible, which is almost as bad as the entire soulmate fiasco. Though, it’s not as if I had a choice, I was starving because I hadn’t eaten last night. Something was better than nothing, but that seems as if it might become my new motto for my time at Luna Nova. 

Finally, the bell rang, signalling that breakfast was over and that first period was about to start. Luckily I had first period with my teammates, Lotte and Sucy. After finally being able to introduce ourselves this morning, I learned that Lotte was a bookworm, and the lead jumper of our team. As for Sucy, though she doesn’t look like much of a runner, she’s the long distance runner of the team, and also has a strange mushroom fascination. 

Well, at least they’re nice. Walking to class, I saw my soulmate and her friends walking to class as well. I waved, but the two mean girls hmphed and look the other way. 

My soulmate ignored me. 

Though, it looked as if they were walking to the same class as we were, so at least that was a plus. I hope. 

Walking in with the rest of the red team, we took a seat on the opposite side of the classroom from the blue team. It was the exact opposite of what I wanted to happen, with the best option being seated right next to my soulmate. 

Then, the teacher walked in. 

“I’m sure most of you all know by now that we have a new student in our midst. Atsuko Kagari, if you would please,” she said, gesturing to the podium in the front center of the classroom. 

Standing up shakily, I made my way to where she was gesturing, and stood rigid as she handed me different books and materials. “As you’ve joined late in the semester, you’ll have quite a lot to catch up on, and I expect you to be fully caught up in time for the Teams Race.”

With that, she sent me back to my seat and started class. 

What did she mean by caught up? And what was the Teams Race?

_______________

“Akko, are you sure you don’t need help carrying all those books?” Lotte asked, most likely seeing me struggle. But my soulmate couldn’t know that. 

“Wha- pfft no I’m fine, these are nothing, light as a feather,” I said, all while nearly dropping half the stack on the ground. 

Lotte looked worried nevertheless, “If you’re sure. . .” she said, still staying close just in case something were to happen. 

And, of course, it did. 

Stumbling over nothing , I tripped, and fell, dropping everything in my arms. 

Right onto my soulmate. 

With a loud yell, we both fell, the books and papers being crushed between us. Luckily for me, both the books and my soulmate broke my fall. 

The same could not be said for her. 

With a loud cry, she hit the ground, the breath once again being knocked out of her lungs. Scrambling up, I pushed the books and papers out of the way and offered my hand out to help her up. Ignoring my hand, she looked to her teammates for help, and slowly stood up. 

“Diana! Are you okay?” one of them asked as they helped her up. 

Diana? So that was her name? Looking at her now, it fit. Though, that might just be because she’s angry.

“This is the third time this incident has occurred! Don’t you ever look where you’re walking? Honestly, I swear-”

“Did you say third?” I interjected. She said third. That means- that means she remembers! The only way that this could be our third time crashing is if you count our first meeting as children!

Suddenly, her face turned red, she started to respond, but ended up turning foot and running. Everyone in the hallway was in shock. Me particularly. Had she lied? Or was that just a slip of the tongue?

The two girls ran chasing after her, most likely to see if she was alright. I hadn’t bothered, I didn’t know the school grounds very well and it’s not like she’d be comforted by the sight of me. After all, I was the one she was running from. 

_______________

Finally, we were running. Everyday, we had track practice after school. 

And I loved it.

I was happiest when I was running. The wind mussing up my hair, my chest pumping up and down, the rest of the world a passing blur. 

Today was no exception. As soon as my foot left the track, my problems flew away with the wind. My soulmate, the mean girls, and well. . . everything.

That was, until said problems quickly caught up. 

“Well, if it isn’t the red team dunce ,” the girl with the ponytail teased, steadily keeping up with my pace. Soon, the other joined her, snickering as she did so. 

Looking out of the corner of my eye, I could see my soulmate, or, Diana, trailing behind the girls, keeping to herself. 

The mean girls, most likely noticing that I wasn’t listening, proceeded to tease me further. “Why, you’re so slow, you wouldn’t have a chance to even race Diana,” they taunted, each laughing haughtily. 

Now that was too far. 

“Excuse me? I bet I could run laps around Diana ,” I said with a sneer, making sure to throw a pointed look behind us. 

At that, the two girls became enraged, and sped up to stand in my way. “Oh really? Diana,” one of them called, “Please come and teach this. . . whatever it is a lesson.”

Passing us, Diana only slowed down a moment, before saying, “I don’t wish to waste my time,” before speeding back up. 

And I didn’t like that one bit. 

“Diana,” I called out, “Please humor me with a. . . friendly race, if you would.”

At that, she stopped, turned around, thought for a moment, and put forth her hand, “Sure, what could it hurt?”

_______________

“Now, girls, this is a friendly race, and there are to be no bets placed on this match,” the instructor said, watching as several girls placed something suspiciously into their pockets. “Alright, ready girls?” she questioned, grabbing her starter flags when both Diana and I nodded back. 

“Ready, set, go!” I sped off, watching Diana’s form shrink behind me. This was going to be a piece of cake, I’ve been the fastest runner in, well, anywhere I’ve been really. 

Soon, I was finished with the first lap, and was already halfway through the second. As I said, a piece of cake. In fact, I hadn’t seen her nearly the entire time. Did I lap her without knowing? I feel as if I would most definitely notice if I had lapped her or not. Nevertheless, I continued on, finally making it onto my third and final lap. 

Though, I knew I had to stop and take a breather. As a sprinter, long distance really isn’t my forté. I can do it for sure, but I have to limit myself and my speed. I suppose I was too fired up in the beginning, and it’s starting to affect me and my running now. Glancing around, I slowed down to a slow walk, catching my breath and allowing my face to return to its original color. 

Then, I saw her. God, she looked beautiful when she was running. The way her hair bounced with every step, how her eyes were hard and focused on the task at hand, and how her mouth was upturned into a smirk. Our eyes caught as she passed me, and her smirk grew wider. 

Wait. She’s passing me?

With a wave of her hand, she broke out into a sprint, racing to the finish line, leaving dust in her wake. 

Like hell she was. I ran full force, quickly catching up and keeping pace with her. We were neck to neck, each breathing heavily, our faces red. Soon, the finish line was visible, with a cheering Lotte, and an indifferent Sucy. The two mean girls were there as well, cheering on Diana. 

“Hey! If I win, you gotta tell me the truth, and if you win, I’ll leave you alone,” I shouted, grinning gleefully as she nodded and sped up. 

With that, I sped up, once again catching up to her. With a small wave, I sped up once again, running faster than I ever have before. Surprisingly, she managed to keep up, albeit breathing harder than before. Ignoring said fact, I ran like hell, and finally made it to the finish line. Diana came soon after, panting heavily with her head between her knees. 

“I. . . won,” I said between heavy breaths, my voice wheezing as I did so. I can’t believe it, I actually won. That was. . . too close towards the end. Way too close. But, this might have solved a few of my problems. Now, I’ll know for sure that my soulmate does infact remember me, and because I beat her in a race, I might even have the two mean girls off my back. 

Slowly getting up, I offered my hand to Diana, who somewhat begrudgingly took it, but thanked me nevertheless. “Thank you. . .” she said trailing off, “As for our little. . . wager , if you could please stop by the blue team dormitory after you’ve showered and eaten, we could discuss the matters there.”

Before I could respond, Lotte and Sucy surrounded me, congratulating me on my win against the schools star athlete. 

Maybe this year wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

Chapter Text

I was nervous. I was going over to my soulmates, also known as Diana, dormitory. 

Alone . 

What if she really didn’t remember me? What if, even if she does remember me, she doesn’t like me? Like, yeah, we’re soulmates and all, but you don’t have to like someone to love them. 

Arriving in front of her room door, I took a deep breath before knocking. Oh god, I couldn’t do this. Turning around, I planned to make a run for it, only to be stopped by the door creaking open behind me. 

“Oh, good, you’re here, hurry up and get in,” she said, opening the door wider so I could slip through. Doing so, I ended up tripping over her feet, sending me sprawling to the ground with a loud thump. Wearing an annoyed expression, she offered her hand out to me, “Must you be so loud?”

Standing up, I chuckled awkwardly, and stepped fully into her room. It seemed very. . . her . To my right sat a wooden desk, with today's homework set neatly atop of it, completed. To my left, her bed, which was made to perfection, dressed with baby blue sheets and darker blue pillows. After surveying the room, I spun on my heel and faced her, smiling slightly. 

“So. . .” I started off, already seeming awkward. 

Also, seeming equally as awkward as I, she began with, “I. . . Look, I apologize for lying to you.”

Aha! So she does remember me. 

“And I’d also like to apologize for not being able to be your soulmate.”

Wait, what? “What do you mean, ‘not able to be my soulmate’, we’re soulmates automatically, we don’t really have a choice,” I explained. Hadn’t someone already explained this to her? Weren’t all children taught about soulmates at a rather young age? 

“That’s. . . that’s not the point. I have other things to focus on, and you are not one of them. My top priority is school, my family, and the olympics. Finding my soulmate was and never will be anywhere near the top. And, even with our discovery, it is still at the bottom. I’m sorry I’m not what you envisioned me to be, but it has to be this way,” from where I was, I could tell there were tears in her eyes, but I wasn’t about to mention them.

Why was she forcing herself to say those things? Didn’t everybody dream of finding their soulmate? It was obvious she wasn’t going to go back on what she said, so, I guess I’ll have to go along with it. 

For now. 

“Alright,” I said, stepping closer as I did, “Fine. But I need a tutor. You heard the professor, I’m way behind in classes and you’re the top student here.”

At that, her eyebrows furrowed, and she thought for a moment. 

“Fine, but no mentions of the ‘soulmate’ topic, alright?”

Smiling, I nodded, and presented my hand to her so we could shake on it. She did the same, and our hands met with sparks flying. 

Literally. Sparks flew off of our hands as if someone had struck two rocks together, which then caused my skirt to catch on fire. 

At the sight of my skirt on fire, I jumped, while Diana’s brow rose in surprise. When this happens, I’m pretty sure I stop, drop, and roll. So, with no other choice, I dropped to the floor, and began to roll around on the carpeted floor. Snapping out of her surprised state, she turned and bolted. 

Great. Now she was going to leave me to die. Soulmate of the year. I mean, yeah, I probably wouldn’t die from this but it still didn’t feel good . 

Soon, after rolling around on the probably not-so-clean floor, the fire went out, leaving a giant hole on the left side of my skirt. Not a minute later, she came bounding back in, fire extinguisher in hand. Seeing the smoke coming off from me, she aimed the nozzle, not listening when I yelled, “Stop! I put it-” my warning was cut off by a large spray of foam, landing all over myself and the room. 

“I put it out. . .” I finished, wiping foam from my eyes. 

With a shocked face, she set the fire extinguisher down and kneeled next to me. “Are you alright?” she asked, offering me her hand up. 

Eyeing said hand, I got up on my own, and checked for any damage. Luckily, it hadn’t burned my skin all that badly, but I knew I would definitely need a new school uniform. How was I going to explain this to the professors? 

“We need to take you to the nurse,” she said, stepping closer. 

“I’ll be fine,” I really didn’t want to have to explain what happened to the nurse. 

“Well, let me see,” she said, motioning for me to turn to my side. I did as told, pretending not to notice the blush on her face as she checked my thigh for injuries. 

“There are slight burn marks, but I have some medical supplies that should help with it, so the nurse's office isn’t necessary,” she said nonchalantly as she stood up, proceeding to turn around and open the nearest dresser drawer. 

Who keeps medical supplies just lying around? Diana, it seems. There’s still so much to learn about her, like what her favorite food was, or how she kept her hair looking flawless even after and during running. 

After digging through the drawer, she pulled out a small kit, complete with gauze, rubbing alcohol, burn ointment, bandaids, medical scissors, and tape. Pulling out the ointment, she squeezed a bit out on her finger and lifted it up, raising her brow as if to ask “Is this appropriate?” 

I nodded, allowing her to rub said ointment on my burn, making me wince slightly. Whispering a slight apology, she covered it with gauze, and taped it up tight, as to make sure it wouldn’t fall off. 

Surprisingly, when she did so, no shocks, or sparks of fire came about, making me sigh in relief. I really didn’t want to catch on fire again, or have Diana be the one to catch aflame. 

“Now that that’s settled,” I began, “I think it’s time for me to head back to my dorm.” Sure, I wanted to spend all the time I could with my soulmate, but people would start to get suspicious, and it was too early for that. “About the tutor thing, when would be the best time for you?”

After thinking for a moment, she nodded her head, and replied, “Anytime after dinner, here will work I suppose. Just tell me what you need assistance with during our first session, and we’ll move from there.”

Nodding in afirmination, I started for the door. “Oh, this is a bit awkward to ask, but what is your name?” she asked, making me freeze. Of course she didn’t know my name yet, we had yet to have a proper introduction, or ever a real conversation really. 

“Oh! Sorry about that, I’m Akko,” I said, not even bothering to offer my hand out. 

Raising a brow, she simply said, “Diana,” and smiled, a small smile, but a smile nevertheless. Returning the gesture, I waved goodbye and opened the door, barely catching her sad expression as I closed the blue team dormitory as I left. 

This was going to be difficult. 

Making my way back to my own dormitory, I was greeted by an over-enthusiastic Lotte and a nonchalant Sucy. 

“How’d it go?” Lotte asked, stepping closer with every syllable she pronounced. 

“Whaddya mean ‘how’d it go’? We just talked. . . uh, what did you two do while I was gone?” I asked, trying to change the subject as quickly as possible. 

Though, it seemed as if Lotte wasn’t going to take that as an answer. “Nope, no trying to dodge the question, what did you two talk about?” oh gosh, I wasn’t going to last long if she kept barraging me with questions. 

Even Sucy chimed in with a, “Yeah, tell us with happened with the school princess.”

Well. . . telling them couldn’t hurt, could it?

“To be honest with you guys. . . I- I found my soulmate.”

After a moment of silence, a loud squeal erupted throughout the red team dormitory. The owner of the said squeal was no one other than a red-faced Lotte, who currently looked as if she was having trouble breathing. “You found your soulmate! Do they go here? Where did you find them? How did you find them? Are they cute? Nevermind don’t answer that, that’s a weird question. Moving on, are they-” fortunately for me and the rest of Luna Nova, she was silenced by an overly annoyed Sucy, who had placed a pale hand over Lotte’s mouth. 

Finally able to catch my breath and hopefully answer one of the many questions thrown at me, I sat down, readying myself for the most likely hurtful conversation that was to take place. 

“Actually, yeah, she is pretty cute.”

Had I really started with that question? Of all the questions that were asked, of course I would start with that one. 

Noticing that Lotte was about to start dying again, I answered another, hoping it would keep her mouth shut, at least for a little while longer. “They attend Luna Nova, and to be technical, I ‘found’ her about ten years ago, at a magicians show. She-” as soon as the word ‘she’ escaped my lips, another squeal sounded throughout the room. 

“So she’s a girl!” Lotte exclaimed while bouncing around, not able to stand still. Once again, Sucy ended her bout.

“You do know Luna Nova is an all-girls school. If she attends Luna Nova, she’s obviously a girl. . . geez, the things I have to explain,” she said, muttering the last part under her breath. While the way she said it was not the nicest way possible, Lotte nodded nevertheless, and apologized for her loudnes.

I continued, “She’s. . . she’s actually Diana.”

The room was completely silent for a few moments before Sucy, of all people, was the one to speak out. “Diana. . . Cavendish? The princess? Miss Priss? Cavencli-” I interrupted her, “Alright, that's enough of the name calling, that’s my soulmate we’re talking about here.”

Both of their mouths stood open in shock. 

“Congrats. . .,” Lotte said awkwardly, “She sure is pretty.”

I could tell she wasn’t telling me her complete and honest opinion, but I let it go nevertheless. 

“But she can’t be my soulmate.”

At that, Sucy’s expression dropped, “What do you mean ‘she can’t be your soulmate’? You guys are already soulmates.”

I grimaced, “I know, but she doesn’t have the time for a soulmate I guess. . . she’s too focused on school and the olympics and stuff.”

At that, they both shouted in unison, “ That’s not fair to you! ”

Jumping back in surprise at the amount of volume they used, I looked down sadly, “I know but it’s not like I can force her to want to be my soulmate.”

Lotte chimed in, “No. . . but you can make her fall for you.”

“That’s going to be impossible, if she doesn’t like me now and I’m her soulmate, I’m not going to be able to make her fall for me,” it was hopeless, there was no point in even trying. With a sniffle, I sank down further into my seat. 

I’m pathetic. Not even my own soulmate likes me. 

At the sound of my sniffle, the two girls surrounded me, putting their arms around me. The three of us sat quietly for a while, no one saying anything, the sounds of my sobs filling up the silence in the room.

Soon, my sobbing ceased, and the tears on my cheeks dried. I felt. . . lighter . Maybe, just maybe, I could actually do it? I could make Diana fall for me? Or, at least accept that fact that we’re soulmates. 

“You guys are right. It isn’t fair to me, and I’m gonna make sure she knows that,” as I said that, both Lotte and Sucy’s faces formed smiles, who only held me tighter. Both nodded, seemingly agreeing with my statement, before standing up. 

"We know you can do it," Lotte patted my back, "even if it is Diana."

With that, the two stalked off to their own beds. Laying down in mine, I sighed. 

Now, how was I going to make Diana fall for me? 

_______________

"How did you even get accepted into Luna Nova with these scores?" Diana questioned as she sifted through this morning's test. 

I had failed, badly. 

And Diana obviously was not happy with said fact. 

"I didn't even know this low of a score was possible. . ."

Now that was just being mean, "Hey! I tried my hardest."

She deadpanned, "Akko, I watched you sleep throughout the entire test."

"Oho, so you were watching me?"

Blushing, she turned the other way, "O-of course not, it was just a quick sweep of the room, and I just happened to see your sleeping position."

I hummed under my breath, not believing a word that was said.

"Nevertheless, these scores are unacceptable. We'll get started right away, what subject would you feel that you are the worst at?" she questioned, most likely wanting to get started as soon as possible. Typical. 

"Uh. . ." I started off, "all of them?"

Facepalming, she grabbed a large book and plopped it down in front of me, creating a loud booming noise. "Here, get started by reading this, I expect you to have finished by the end of this study session, please read aloud so that I may know that you're actually reading."

I 'tched, of course I would be reading, what did she take me for? Lazy? 

Opening the large book, I began reading, making sure to read loud enough so that she would be able to hear me. Meanwhile, she had grabbed her own book, and sat down on her bed. Crossing her leg over the other, she leaned back onto the wall, all while reading silently to herself. She could do anything and look good while doing it. 

“Akko? Why aren't you reading?”

Oh, I hadn’t even noticed that I had stopped reading aloud. Blushing, I went back to reading, trying my hardest not to look at Diana. 

I was supposed to be the one making her fall for me, not the other way around. 

I stopped reading. 

“Akko? Why did you stop reading again?”

This was it. I was going to do it. 

I was going to flirt . 

“I-I got distracted by your uh- your beauty?” oh god. I said that as a question. And I stuttered . 

Without even a glance up, she huffed, “That’s great, now, get back to reading.”

What a blow to the chest. She had completely ignored my (terrible) compliment! Turning my head to glare at her, I started reading once again, only stopping when I saw the slight blush on her cheeks. 

Yes! I had made her blush, mission one, accomplished. 

Happy with my accomplishment, I went back to reading, noticing that my voice was more cheery than before.

_______________

We were on our fourth study session and I hadn’t made any progress aside from making her blush during the first session. 

I had to speed this up. We only had our study sessions on every other tuesday, as that was when her teammates left to go shopping and stock up on their personal products. It was a hard lesson learned after I knocked on the blue team dormitory door and one of them answered instead of Diana. 

Ever since then, she had been more careful, only allowing me near when her posse was away. 

It sucked. 

But, today was tuesday. And I was going to do it. 

I was going to ask her to hang out. Outside of tutoring sessions that is. While I hadn’t made any progress in getting her to fall for me, we did become closer. You could almost call us friends. Almost . So, while it might not be a date, I was going to spend time with her outside of the school in hope that she would loosen up. 

Arriving at her door, I knocked and stepped back, excited to ask her. 

Instead, the door was opened by an exasperated ponytailed posse member. 

Was it not tuesday? Did I come on the wrong tuesday? I could have sworn that it was today that her teammates were leaving like they normally did.

“Yes? Is there something you need? We’re kind of busy at the moment. . .” she said, trailing off as loud coughing noises were heard in the background. 

“Hannah?” a scratchy voice sounded, “Who is at the door?”

That scratchy voice sounded suspiciously like Diana. Also, ponytail mean girl’s name was Hannah? Noted. 

“It’s no one , Diana, they were just leaving,” she said, giving me a pointed look before slamming the door in my face. 

Wow, rude. Through the door, I could hear arguing, catching bits of “I’m fine,” and “Just go,” in their argument. After a few more shared words, the door opened once again, only for Hannah and mean girl #2 to somewhat disheartenedly walk out of the blue dormitory. 

Luckily, the two didn’t see me as they made their way out, so I could catch the door before it fully closed. Checking to make sure the two weren’t coming back anytime soon, I snuck in, and closed the door carefully behind myself. 

A loud cough made me jump before I followed the sound of coughing to what I've learned to be as Diana’s bedroom. “Diana?” I called out as I opened her door, “Are you there?”

A croaky “Yes,” sounded through the darkness. Turning on the lights, I was met with a groan.

“Please, for the love of all that is holy, shut that off.”

Quickly shutting off the lights, I stalked over to where the voice was, finding Diana laid out on her bed. She looked terrible, her skin was deathly pale, and sweat riddled her face and forehead. 

“Diana. . . are you sick?” really, it was a stupid question to ask, it was obvious she was under the weather. 

“Ah, no, I’m quite alright. I suppose you’re here for the tutoring session? Let me just get my materials. . .” her sentence trailed off into a coughing fit as she struggled to sit up. 

“No, you stay there and sit still, you’ve very obviously sick, and, as your soul- I mean friend, it’s my job to take care of you.” Wincing slightly at my near slip up of the ‘s-word’, I pulled the covers back over her body attempted to leave, only to be stopped by a weak grasp on my wrist. 

“Please,” she whispered out, “don’t leave.”

Well, that decided that . 

Nodding silently, I sat myself gently next to her body on the bed, in which said movement caused her weak hand to slip into mine. Blushing, I turned the other way, now was not the time for soulmate things. 

So, I sat. Bored, I began drawing lines on the skin of her wrist, causing goosebumps to rise on her skin. Well, at least we’re not studying. 

Soon, her breathing slowed down, signalling that she was asleep. Now that I was allowed to get up from her bed, I went to see if there was anything I could use to make soup. Sure, I was a little envious of the fact that the blue team dormitory had its own kitchen, but it sure was useful at the moment. Luckily, there were a few cans of chicken soup hidden in the back of the cupboards, so I quickly made work of one, putting it in a pot and cooking it. 

Finally, the soup was ready, and after pouring it into a bowl, I brought it next to Diana’s sleeping form, carefully sitting down as to not spill the hot soup. 

“Diana?” I said softly, “Diana, I made you soup.”

Rustling slightly, her head popped out of the blankets, and a small yawn escaped her lips. Sitting up, she stretched her arms, and opened her eyes as she did so, blinking a few times so her eyes could get used to the dim light. “Hmm, Akko, how long have I been asleep for?” she questioned, yawning slightly during her question.

Stifling a giggle, I answered, “Oh, just an hour or so. Look, I made you soup!”

At that, I shoved it in her arms, still being careful as to not spill any on her or myself. Softly taking the bowl from my hands, she placed it in her lap and grabbed the spoon, raising it to her lips. “Akko, this tastes absolutely terrible , where did you even get this from?” she questioned, her lips curling in disgusted as she dropped the spoon back in the bowl. 

Oh. Now that kinda hurt, I felt as if I had at least done a somewhat decent job. My face dropped, and I scooted away from the part of the bed where Diana sat. 

“Oh, Akko, I’m sorry, I always get like this when I’m sick, I’m a very picky eater, especially when I’m feeling unwell,” she explained before picking up the spoon and taking another sip of the soup. “Really, Akko, it’s not that bad, I know you made it so I could feel better, so thank you.”

Feeling slightly better with her explanation, I scooted back over to her, watching as she ate the soup quietly. Though, I suppose I could use the situation to my advantage. 

“I won’t forgive you,” I voiced out, causing her to stop eating for a moment, “I won’t forgive you until you give me a hug.”

Her face twisted in confusion, “Excuse me? A hug? How is that going to resolve anything?”

I shrugged, and placed my hands next to myself on the bed. 

Now blushing, she set the soup at her side, carefully so it wouldn’t spill, and gave me a pointed look. “Alright, fine, but won’t you get sick-” I cut her off with a bone crushing hug, most likely cutting off her airway while she was speaking. 

“Please, just let me be selfish,” I whispered, hoping that she hadn’t heard me. 

After a couple seconds, she relaxed, falling into the hug as much as I was. “Thank you for taking care of me, Akko,” she said next to my ear, making me shiver. 

Sighing, I held her tighter, “Oh, it’s no problem, all I did was make you crappy soup, no need to thank me.”

After hugging for a while, we decided that we’d been hugging long enough, and unwrapped our arms from each other. Getting off the bed, I tripped, and nearly fell, but Diana caught me by my forearm. Making sure I was steady on my feet, I stood up straight, embarrassed that I had (almost) fallen once again. 

No words were said, for a while, the both of us just staring at the other. After a while, Diana spoke up, “I suppose it’s nearly time for you to leave. . .” she said, trailing off with a sad smile. 

“Yeah,” I really didn’t want to, but we both knew that her roommates were coming back soon, and we couldn’t risk getting caught. 

“Would you- well, would you perhaps like another hug on your way out?” with as red as her face was, I’m surprised she was able to get that out without a stutter. 

But, she was offering me a hug! This was progress , a lot of progress in just one day. 

I nodded my head frantically, stepping forward as she tried to sit up straighter. 

Only, we had forgotten about the steaming bowl of soup sitting on an unstable surface just next to Diana. Before I could yell, the bowl was already over her legs. 

Both of us stared at her lap, waiting for something to happen. After a moment, she shakily lifted her head, looked me straight in the eyes, and said, “Shit, that’s hot.”

Bolting over to her, I threw off her blankets, and helped her out of bed. 

“Alright, I don’t know if the baths are going to be open right now, but maybe we can ask someone to unlock them?” I said, freaking out a little as Diana had little to no reaction to burning soup being spilled onto her lap. 

“Oh, there’s no need for that, the blue team dormitory has its own bath and restroom, it’s just over to your right,” she said, pointing to a closed door opposite to her bed. 

You’ve got to be kidding me. They had a kitchen and their own bathrooms?

Grumbling slightly, we walked over to the door, opening it and turning on the lights. From there, I turned on the bath, making sure it wasn’t too warm, as she was still sick. Turning around, I faced a pale Diana once again. 

“Are you alright?” I asked as she leaned over the vanity sink, breathing in heavily. 

Now that wasn’t good. 

Slowly raising her head, she waved me off, and began undressing. At that, I quickly turned back around, a blush overtaking my face once again. “D-do you need any help?” I questioned while my back was turned, making sure not to turn around. 

“No, I’m good, I’m just feeling lightheaded,” she said, “You may leave the room if you’d wish, I assure you, I’ll be fine.”

Scooting backwards, I opened the door slightly and slid out, closing it silently as I walked back into her bedroom. 

Only to freeze. 

Her roommates were back. 

And they did not seem happy. 

“What are you doing here?” they questioned, making me sweat nervously. 

“I- uh, well- Igottagobye,” I yelled as I ran out of the room, running all the way to the red team dormitory. Opening the door and slamming it closed behind me, I dove into my bed and scrambled to get under the covers. 

I think that’s the fastest I’ve ever run.

Chapter Text

Oh god, I had messed up. Diana hadn’t even looked at me since that Tuesday, not to mention that her rude teammates kept staring and snickering at me. Nearly two weeks had already passed. I was a mess of nerves. 

I could barely run. 

I had to talk to her, if I didn’t soon, something was going to happen. 

And I don’t think it’s going to be very good. 

Luckily, today was another study day. Though, at this point, I don’t know if she even wants me there anymore. 

Oh well, I guess I’ll find out, seeing as I’m seconds away from knocking on her door. Only, the door was opened before I could knock, revealing Diana.

“Akko, please, come in,” she said, opening the door so I could step in, hiding her face behind her hair. 

“We can get started right away then,” she said, still not looking my way, “here, read this.” She thrust a large book into my lap and walked away, still making sure not to look me in the eyes. 

“Diana, I’m not reading this until we talk.”

Finally looking up, she raised her brow. “What do you mean ‘you’re not reading it’? And, talk about what ?”

Was she really trying to play stupid? Stupid really wasn’t a good look on her, it was more my thing. 

“About two tuesdays ago? Your teammates? You being sick?”

Sighing, she got up, and came and sat next to me. 

“I told Hannah and Barbara that we’re soulmates.”

Assuming that Barbara was the other unidentified girl, I nodded, allowing her to continue. 

“They. . . well they were surprised, but they’ve seemed to have accepted it. I’ve also told them to be nicer to you, so I hope you’ll have an easier time now that you have them off your back.”

Well, Hannah and Barbara staying off my back was definitely a good thing, but as for telling them that Diana and I were soulmates?

“Uh, are you sure that was a good idea?” I questioned, scratching my cheek as I did so. 

With an uncertain look, she nodded, taking a deep breath, “Yeah, I’m sure. And, it’s not as if I could have made up any other explanation when I walked out in a towel calling your name as you ran out the door at the sight of my roommates.”

Hearing the sarcasm in her voice as she said that, I winced. 

“They. . . they actually thought we had been doing something. . .” trailing off with a red face, she struggled to get the rest of her sentence out. 

“Sex?” I questioned, only to be punished with a pillow thrown at my face. 

Calming down, she nodded, “I still don’t think they fully believe me, even after hours of trying my best to convince them. I don’t think telling them that we were soulmates after the fact helped much either. Nevertheless, someone needs to study.”

I was hoping she had forgotten about that part of our meetups. 

“Ah, yeah, you do need to study, don’t you?” I questioned, trying to lighten the somewhat disheartening mood in the room. 

Chuckling slightly, she nodded, and motioned for the two of us to sit on the bed. 

Putting away the large book, she turned and faced me, “Now, I know that you dislike reading books, so I thought I might try something different today. C’mon, we’re going on a study trip,” wiht that, she stood up and grabbed my hand, leading me out of the blue team dormitory. 

“I’ve been preparing this since I got better, so a bit of thought has gone into it. I really hope you enjoy this,” she said, a hopeful smile spreading over her face as she lead me outside the Luna Nova doors. The moment the cool wind of the outsides hit me, I inhaled deeply, exhaling a moment later. Continuing to drag us who knows where, we finally stopped in the middle of the school commonplace.

“Uh, Diana? What are we doing-” a finger shushed me. 

“Shhh, technically, we’re not supposed to be out here, but I really wanted to do this for you,” she said, trailing off with a blush covering her cheeks. “All throughout the school’s common grounds, you will find notes taped to certain landmarks, such as trees, benches, statues, stairs, etcetera. I’ve set it up as if it were a large game of matchup. The red notes are not to be removed as they hold definitions, but the blue notes hold the word for those definitions, which can be removed. Match the blue notes to the correct red notes, so, match each word to its definition. Is that clear?” she asked, setting her eyes on me. 

Wow, this was. . . amazing . I can’t believe Diana set this all up for me . Maybe, just maybe, she did like me back?

“Oh, this is great. I can’t believe you did this for me, I. . . I thought you had ill feelings towards me.”

At that, her face crumpled, and she stepped forward with her arms open. Trembling slightly, she wrapped her arms around me, “Akko, I don’t hate you. I’m. . . I’m just having a hard time sorting through things in my life. I promise you’re not to blame.”

Surprisingly, once again, there were no side effects or explosions when we touched, making it the best hug I’ve ever experienced. 

After a couple moments of us silently hugging, we parted, and gave a smile to one another. 

“Alright! I’m gonna do this in record time,” I yelled excitedly, hopping in place as she brought out a stopwatch. 

She sighed, “Now, this isn’t about time, it’s about getting the correct answer. But, I know how important speed is to you, but please be sure that you’re still getting the answers correct. 

I nodded, readying myself at the made-up starting line, marked by a textbook with a note taped to it, reading ’starting line’ in crude handwriting. Smirking at Diana as I read it, I faced forward, waiting for her cue to start running. 

“Alright Akko, you may go now.”

I didn’t run.

“Diana, where’s the countdown?”

She glared at me, “Is the countdown really necessary? It’s only you and I out here, and you’re the only one running.”

“Diana, the countdown is vital to any race, whether it's one or five-hundred people competing. It’s like, tradition!”

With another sigh, she boredly began counting down. “Ten, nine-“ “Diana no, like, ready, set, go.”

At that, her brow scrunched up and she let out a deep noise. 

“ Fine , ready, set, go,” about to say something again, she stopped me, “Tsk tsk tsk, the time has started, you’d better get going.”

Scowling, I bolted towards the first object I saw that had a note stuck to it, screeching to a stop and quickly reading it. It was red, so that meant that I couldn’t remove it and that it was a definition. So, I just had to find the word that meant whatever was on the card. Which seemed easy enough. 

Making sure to leave the red card there, I ran off again, soon finding myself at a tree with a blue note taped to it. Alright, so this word didn’t match the definition from earlier, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t match other definitions I find along the way. Ripping the blue note away from the tree, I took off again, in search of more notes.

Soon, I had accumulated a decent amount of blue notes, but had made no progress in matching any of them with their correct definitions yet. 

I was going to have to speed this up. I hadn’t been around the full court yard yet, so I didn’t know if I had all the blues or had seen all the reds. But, it was better to have some of them matching, so I’ll have to match up what I can for now. 

Finding the matches weren’t hard, in fact, I was nearly out of blue papers by the time I had nearly run around the school for the second time. 

Though the weird thing was, I hadn’t seen Diana at all while I was running. I had assumed she would be waiting for me, keeping track of time and whatnot but I hadn’t seen a trace of her blonde and green hair yet. 

Nevertheless, I kept on, only finding a few more blues and quickly matching them with their correct counterpart. Soon, there were no traces of anymore pairless notes, so I ran back to the starting line, hoping to find Diana waiting there. 

Arriving at the starting line, I lowered my head in disappointment upon not seeing her, only to pop back up when my name was called. 

“Akko? Have you finished? I brought you some refreshments so you can cool down. . .” she said, trailing off when she found me waiting, “Oh, you finished? When did you get here?”

Still panting, I answered, “Just a few seconds ago, did you stop the timer?”

With a gasp, she pulled out the stopwatch and hit a few buttons, effectively stopping the timer. “I’m sorry, I’ll subtract ten seconds from the posted time, will that suffice?” she questioned, worriedly pulling at her lip. 

I nodded, smiling warmly, “Yeah, it’s fine, d’ya wanna check my answers?”

“Oh yeah of course, would you like to race while I’m doing so? I know you just ran but I figured you’d be the type to always be up to race.”

At that, I looked up, my fatigue having vanished. “Yeah! I’d love to beat you- I mean race you if you’re up for it?”

She smirked, “I don’t think that will be the case,” and with that, she took off for the first note. 

Scowling, I took off after her, catching up as she checked both of the notes to see if they were correct. “Now that,” I said, panting, “wasn’t fair.”

She simply smirked, and took off again, not bothering to respond. 

All right, if she was going to play like that , then I could do the same. Arriving to where she stood, checking the second set of notes, I stopped, and stood near, leaning into her so I could speak in her ear. “You never said I had to stop and wait for you to check my answers,” I whispered, taking off as soon as she got wind of what I had said. 

Not looking back, I kept running, this time making sure to keep a steady pace and not overwork myself. I snickered, she didn’t think I would do that , now did she? I had this somewhat lawless race in the bag. Glancing behind, I couldn’t see her, but I slowed down a bit, just to make sure I wasn’t straining myself. 

Where did she disappear off to in these races?

Keeping on, I turned the corner, noting that I was almost around the school again. Speeding up, I sprinted along the building wall, only to stop and skid on my sneakers. 

“Diana?!” I yelled in disbelief. How was she already there? I was certain that I had her beat, what with her having to check my answers and my continuous running. Forgetting to slow down amid my disbelieving thoughts, I ran smack-dab into Diana, who was presumably waiting for me to finish. We both fell, with her, as always, breaking my fall and having the wind knocked out of her. I quickly sat up, scrambling off of her so she could catch her breath. 

“Akko- wheeze why wheeze is it always wheeze me?” she said through deep breaths and wheezes. 

“Uhhh well to be fair, we are the only one’s out here.”

With a glare that said ‘that’s not what I meant and you know it’, she calmed down, her wheezing stopping and her breathing slowing. Immediately after, she broke out into laughter. Not understanding, I began laughing as well. 

Soon, our faces were red and we both were holding our stomachs in pain. Wiping tears from her eyes, she sat up, still chuckling slightly. 

I caught my breath, and managed to ask the question I had been meaning to ask earlier. 

“How- how are you here?”

She snickered for a moment more before coughing and standing up straight, “Well, fortunately for me , I knew where I had placed the red notes containing the definitions, and I had written the blue notes words big enough for me to see from afar, so I didn’t necessarily have to run to every pair of notes.”

Well, that did sort of make sense. 

“But that doesn’t explain how you got in front of me. I didn’t see you pass me, and I was watching the entire time.”

At that, she smirked, “You never said I had to run on the ‘track’,” snickering as she mimicked what I had said to her earlier, she pointed at the school, “I ran through the school.”

Mouth dropping open in shock, I stepped closer. “Y-you ran through the school? That’s- that’s cheating!”

“Oh and not waiting for me isn’t cheating as well?”

Scoffing, I placed my hands on my hips, “And not counting down isn’t cheating?” I said in a mimicking voice.

“No. . .” she said, trailing off awkwardly as she scratched her cheek, not looking me in the face. 

Laughing at her embarrassed face, I waved her off, “It’s fine, how about we place it at a tie?”

Smiling widely, she threw out her hand, “Alright, that’s fair.” With that, we shook hands in agreement. 

“But really, that totally isn’t fair.”

“Oh, shut up you, we both know you would’ve beaten me anyways.”

“I didn’t say that, you did.”

“You’re welcome.”

Chapter Text

“What do you mean the study session is cancelled today?” I exclaimed, portraying my obvious unhappiness with the statement that was said aloud. “Diana~,” I whined, “I was looking forward to spending time with you, even if it’s only studying. . .” I said, trailing off in embarrassment. 

Diana’s face colored red, but her stance remained strong, “I have personal matters to attend to elsewhere, your grades can withstand missing a study session.”

Argh, didn’t she realize that grades weren’t the point? Yeah, I guess I did need some help studying, but I more or less came to the sessions to be with her . Though, I suppose she didn’t see them that way. Originally, the study sessions were a part of a deal, it wasn’t as if she had volunteered for the tutor position. Maybe there had been a bit too much wishful thinking, at least on my part.

“Fine,” I said, sighing, “But I expect a total of three, yes, three, hugs when you come back. Or, at least when we have our next study session, deal?”

Lifting an eyebrow, she slowly nodded, accepting the conditions without comment. 

After that, she ushered me out of her room, sending me back to the red dormitory with ‘homework’, which was really just a promise to not do anything stupid while she was gone. 

Apparently, she would be gone for the rest of the week, and was leaving first thing tomorrow. Of course, I was bummed about the fact that I wouldn’t see her until class on monday, but I was more curious as to where she was going for nearly a week. Was it a family thing? Was it some special track meet? Thousands of possibilities flew through my mind, each worrying me to no end. 

But, I trusted her. Not that there was any reason to doubt, of course. Wherever she was going, it was most likely because she had to. I knew she didn’t like leaving the school grounds much, as seen from her asking Hannah and Barbara to do her shopping for her. 

With that, I yawned, and slipped into my sleeping wear for the night. 

Honestly, I know even thinking this could jinx everything, but life was going pretty good. Well, better than I had expected, what with leaving my home country and starting in a brand-new school. 

Yawning again, I laid my head against the pillow and closed my eyes.

_______________

“So, you’re Diana’s soulmate?” the redhead asked, walking next to me on the way to class.

Kinking up an eyebrow, I glanced over, “Yes, I am, why?”

At that, she smiled slightly, “Just wondering, right Barbs?”

The girl next to her nodded enthusiastically, keeping pace next to Hannah.

What was up with them? Didn’t Diana say they would keep off my back? Sure, they’re not being mean , but now they’re being annoying, asking a whole bunch of questions and whatnot. At least we were nearly at the classroom, and luckily they sat on the opposite side of the classroom. 

Except. . . “Akko, would you mind if we spoke to you for a moment?”

Groaning internally, I nodded, and allowed them to drag me off to the side. 

As soon as we were out of sight, the two apologized in unison. “We’re sorry for bullying you,” both girls said, each looking awkwardly off to the side. 

“What?” I said, as I was not expecting an apology from the two. Sure, Diana had told them to back off, but that didn’t require an apology for their behavior.

“Look, we’ve been ‘friends’ with Diana for quite a while,” Hannah started, “and the entire time we’ve been with her, she hasn’t been very. . . erm how do I say it? Happy?”

I nodded with a grim expression, allowing them to continue.

“But recently, she’s been better . Happy even. And that’s quite a rare sight coming from her if we’re being honest,” Barbara said, motioning for Hannah to spit out what they had started saying. 

“Basically, what we’re saying is that we think you make her happy.”

Oh.

“Ever since you arrived, she’s been less. . . herself , which isn’t exactly a bad thing in this case. She’s been humming to herself, getting up and ready with a smile, and looking forward to classes. And we’re saying that it’s all because of you. . .” she said, trailing off, allowing me to process the information. 

Did I make Diana happy? Sure, we are soulmates and all, but that didn’t automatically make someone happy, did it? I’ve seen other soulmates make each other un happy, so happy wasn’t a default emotion or anything. 

“I know we’ve had our differences, but we’re willing to try and. . .” she stopped, looking away only to continue at a poke from her friend, “and be friends . For Diana’s sake of course.”

Oh, I see. I was half tempted to make a jab at them, but I knew it wouldn’t be any help. I was lucky I was even getting this out of them, even if it was for Diana’s sake. 

Trying my best to give a reassuring smile, I nodded, “Yeah, sure, for Diana.” I stuck out my hand for the two of them to shake, each doing so quickly before retreating back to each other. 

“Anyways. . . we’ll be keeping an eye on you, so don’t mess this up.”

At that, they swiftly turned around and walked away, leaving me with my own thoughts. Mess what up? Diana didn’t even want to be soulmates, and the so-called ‘progress’ I’ve made isn’t very much if I had to be honest with myself. Much of this could be wishful thinking on my own part. 

But, that didn’t mean I could give up. If what the two previous bullies had said rang true, then maybe Diana did hold some feelings towards me. And there was only one way to find out. 

Brushing myself off, I went to class and continued on with my day as I normally would. Seeing Lotte and Sucy cheered me up, as they could tell, for some reason, that I was feeling down. Based on their expressions, I could tell that they were going to want to talk, especially because of what I had explained the other day. Soon, classes were over, and they sat on their beds, most likely wanting to talk, which explained why Sucy didn’t immediately put on headphones to ignore her team as she usually did. 

“Akko, I- we noticed that you weren’t really yourself today. Is something the matter?” Lotte said, speaking louder when Sucy elbowed her side. 

“Yeah, I just feel. . . empty . I’ve been feeling this way since this morning, and I don’t know why,” I explained, huffing at Sucy’s raised brow.  

Lotte’s face turned sympathetic, “Well, did you have a bad dream or something? Maybe you’re sick?” she questioned, standing up to feel my forehead after I shook my head no. After doing so, she shrugged and sat back down. “You’re not warm, and you didn’t have a bad dream so. . . “ she trailed off. 

Opening my mouth to speak, I was interrupted by Sucy. “it’s about Diana, isn’t it?”

Sighing, I nodded. There was no use arguing when she was spot-on. Of course, I couldn’t know for sure, but what with Diana having left this morning and this being the same feeling I felt after our first meeting (though that may have been my hero quitting at fault), it was the most plausible reason. 

“So, you’re feeling down because you’re away from your soulmate?” Lotte questioned, “That isn’t very uncommon, I would expect you to feel a little empty when you’re separated from a piece of you.”

Well, she did have a point, but wouldn’t everyone feel like that before they met their soulmate? Voicing my concerns, she waved me off. 

“No, it’s like. . . you don’t know what you don’t know, right? So, you can’t miss what you never had, if that makes sense?” she explained. 

Now that made more sense, a lot more sense actually. With that cleared up, I stood up. 

“Alright, thank you,” I said, catching Sucy’s eyes, and adding “both of you. Now, who's ready to practice?”

Both girls’ brows raised, “Practice what? ” the chemist asked, already prepping her tools. 

“Why, for the Teams Race of course,” I exclaimed, excited at the thought of another race. 

“Uh. . . Akko, you do know that’s months away, right?”

What? “Whaddya’ mean it’s ‘months away’? Isn’t it a monthly thing?” I questioned, confused because I had heard the teacher say something along those lines. 

Setting her book down, Lotte sighed, “Do you ever pay attention in class?”

Shaking my head, she continued, “Yes, we have monthly races, but those are so we may practice and have healthy competition throughout the year. They don’t really mean anything, unless you count the extra credit you get for winning the race.”

Nodding in realization, I grinned, “Oh well, the more races the better. And , just because the big race is a while away, doesn’t mean we can’t practice anyways.”

Sucy sneered, “Yes, it does,” she said before turning back to her project. 

Lotte said nothing, only offering an apologetic expression before turning back to her book.

Pouting slightly, I huffed and sat on my own bed. I suppose I could do some homework, but it just wouldn’t be the same without Diana’s help. 

With that, I laid back and exhaled loudly. Hopefully, Diana would be back soon, and this empty feeling inside my chest would disappear along with her return.

Chapter Text

“So. . .,” I started, trailing next to Hannah and Barbara, who were on their way to class.

The two gave me both equally annoyed and suspicious looks, not responding as they continued walking to class while I awkwardly followed. 

“Awe come on guys, I just wanna know if she’s okay,” I hadn’t wanted to resort to whining, but I was at my wits end. Diana and I’s separation was driving me crazy, and I hadn’t been sleeping well, even if I knew it was a temporary situation. 

“Akko, she’s fine! Now, stop asking, it’s not even first period and this is the fourth time you’ve asked today,” Hannah responded, annoyed. 

“Not to mention the twelve times you asked us yesterday!” Barbara added, exasperated as the continued their trek towards the classroom.

Sighing, I backed off, accepting the answer, albeit reluctantly. 

I knew I would be asking the same exact question tomorrow. 

_______________

I felt terrible. The empty feeling in chest just wouldn’t go away, and my teammates were starting to worry about my wellbeing. 

“Why don’t you just text her?”

Oh.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket, glancing at the screen before sighing dejectledy. Sucy interrupted before I could speak. 

“You didn’t get her number, did you?”

I nodded, hanging my head lowly in both shame and sadness, to the point of where my face was nearly touching the desk. The girls on either side of me shared looks, each laying a comforting hand on both of my shoulders. My forehead touched the desk with a hollow thud, a loud sigh escaping my lungs.

Maybe it really wasn’t meant to be? Sure, we were soulmates and all, but with all that’s gotten in the way; school, track, Diana herself, her two best friends. . .

Wait. Diana has two best friends! Obviously, at least one of them would have access to her phone number, right? 

Lifting my head up off of the desk, I jumped out of my seat, raring to talk to the two best friends in question, forgetting that class was still in session.

“Miss Kagari, if I may ask, exactly where are you going?”

I froze, placing my hands behind my back as I turned to face the expectant professor. Smiling cheekily, I shrugged, making my way back towards my own seat, a red hue enveloping my cheeks. Plopping down and ignoring the many snickers coming from students throughout the room, I laid my head back down, willing for the class to end quickly.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. It seemed to drag on for hours, the professor’s lesson seemingly drawing-out further as the clock’s hands moved slower and slower. 

Finally, after what seemed like forever, the bell rang, signalling both the end of first period and my chance to get Diana’s number. Jumping up out of my seat, I practically ran to my next class, nearly falling multiple times but luckily making it there with no incident. Somehow, the two girls had arrived before I had, so we were the only three present so far. I trotted over, stopping and eyeing them, watching their expressions drop the moment I stepped up next to them.

“Akko, I swear if you ask us about Diana one more time I’ll-,” Hannah began, annoyance written on her face. 

“Actually!” I interrupted, “I was going to ask you something different today.”

Both their brows raised, facial expressions matching the other in an almost comical way.

“Would you happen to have Diana’s number?”

“Did she not give it to you already?” Barbara asked confusedly, the two swapping looks I couldn’t decipher before facing me again.

Before I could reply, two phones were whipped out of what seemed like nowhere, leaving me to wonder where they could’ve kept them as the uniforms seemingly didn’t have any pockets. After a few taps, a loud ‘ ding ’ rang out from my sleeve.

“There, we’ve sent her number to your phone,” Hannah said, pointing at my sleeve, “if she asks, you didn’t get it from us.”

At that, they turned and continued their previous conversation, ignoring me as I walked back to my own seat, the smile on my face growing wider with each step I took. I had gotten her number! No longer would I have to annoy the two previous bullies to inquire about my soulmate’s wellbeing. 

Hopefully she would answer my texts. 

Sliding my phone out from its hiding place in my sleeve, I unlocked it, copying Diana’s number from the textbox and making her a contact before the professor could see that I was on my phone. 

Sliding my phone back into my sleeve, I pretended to pay attention to the lecture, ignoring the itch to grab my phone and message her.

Lotte tapped my shoulder, luckily drawing my attention from my phone and preventing me from messaging Diana right then.

“Did you get her number?” 

Great.

I glared at her for a second, putting a finger up to my lip before turning back to the professor. Seeing the eye-roll from the corner of my eye, I turned and gave a thumbs up, smiling slightly before pretending to pay attention to the lecture again. 

After that, I managed to get the fact that I had her number out of my head, at least until the final bell rang. As soon as it did, I whipped out my phone, already opening her contact and tapping on the messaging option as I walked down the halls. 

What was I going to say?

I didn’t want to just send a quick ‘hey’, message, it was too simple, especially for her tastes. But, I also didn’t want to send a large paragraph and overwhelm her at the start. Why was sending a simple text so hard? I was overthinking this, I could just ask her what I’ve been wondering, it wouldn’t be too simple nor too wordy, it was perfect.

_______________________

To: Diana

Hey, I was just wondering about how you’ve been :)

_______________________

Was the smiley face too much? She’s gonna think it was too much, I messed up already . 

A few moments later, her reply popped up, causing me to go into a panic, which was noticed by a few other students in the hall.

_______________________

From: Diana

Who is this and how did you get my number?

_______________________

Oh. I forgot to tell her who it was. 

Facepalming, the slap echoing the halls, I typed out a quick message telling her.

But, the good thing was that she replied! Cracking a wide smile, I sent the message. 

_______________________

To: Diana

Oh! Sorry, it’s Akko

_______________________

As soon as my message was marked as read, another text from her popped up, causing me to emit a squeal, once again drawing looks from others around me.

_______________________

From: Diana

Oh, I see. Not that I mind, but how did you acquire my number?

_______________________

I had to avoid the question without her noticing somehow. 

_______________________

To: Diana

That’s not important right now, you didn’t answer my question 

How are you doing

_______________________

Not looking up while waiting for a reply, I ran into a hard surface, crushing my phone between said hard surface and my chest, forcing a pained sound from my throat. I landed back on my butt, watching my phone clatter against the cool tile floor. A few students milling about the halls came to my aid, Amanda being one of them.

“Akko! Are you okay?” questioned the concerned redhead, offering a hand to me which I gratefully accepted. Hoisting me up, she clapped a hand on my back, bending down to pick up my fallen phone.

I heard a sharp intake of air, followed by a hand being placed on my shoulder, “Looks like you cracked your biggest source of happiness.”

I glanced at her confusedly, earning a chuckle from Amanda. 

“Your phone. I saw you smiling at it like it was Diana wrapped up in ribbon with a bow or something.”

Scowling, I nabbed the phone out of her hands, gasping as my fingers felt the shattered screen. Little bits of glass stuck to my hands, which were quickly wiped off on the sides of my skirt. Looking at it, I pressed the power button, only to be met with a multicolored screen, glitching as I moved it in my palm. 

Amanda gave an apologetic look, picking up one of the larger broken pieces of my phone off of the ground. Around us, students stood, some in shock, a few in laughter, but mostly it was an overall mixed feeling of sympathy, pity, and understanding. After a few more pats on the back, the students began to mill about again, leaving only Amanda, myself, and a now-shattered phone. 

“Mom’s gonna kill me.”