Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Miku: Wandering Traveler offering advice

Rin: Black Knight of the Dark Kingdom

Len: Black Knight of the Dark Kingdom

Luka: Royal Medic of the Light Kingdom

Meiko: Right-hand woman of the Light Kingdom Leader, Kanade

Kaito: Right-hand man of the Dark Kingdom Leader, Aoyagi Harumachi

Ichika: Purple Knight of the Light Kingdom

Saki: Noble of the Light Kingdom

Honami: Medic of Light Kingdom

Shiho: Black Knight of the Dark Kingdom

Minori: Noble of the Light Kingdom, next in line for the throne

Haruka: Retired Knight, Minori’s lover

Airi: Noble of the Light Kingdom

Shizuku: Spy for the Dark Kingdom

Kohane: Noble of the Light Kingdom

An: Purple Knight of the Light Kingdom

Akito: Toya’s bodyguard

Toya: The Dark Kingdom’s 3rd prince

Tsukasa: White Knight of the Light Kingdom

Emu: Noble of the Light Kingdom

Nene: Mage of the Light Kingdom

Rui: Head Mage of the Light Kingdom

Kanade: Ruler of the Light Kingdom after her father died

Mafuyu: Kanade’s bodyguard, defector of Dark Kingdom

Ena: Dark Kingdom’s Noble

Mizuki: White Knight of the Light Kingdom

Chapter Text

They say of a traveler, a wanderer, that goes around war-stricken kingdoms everywhere. They say that she would come and only stay for a mere 2 days before leaving. They say on the 2nd day, she would offer advice and insider information to the rulers of said kingdoms, before once again going off on her merry way. 

She has had many people know her from various names, the deranged wanderer, the come-goer, the saviour traveler, but only a tiny amount know of her real name: Hatsune Miku.

They say her appearance changes every time she goes to a new kingdom. She would have new highlights in her hair, a different colour of hair, a different hairstyle, new accessories, new outfits, but something that never changes was her signature teal coloured hair, and that lopsided grin that she would wear and flash at the end of her travel…

Miku sits at the countertop of the tavern, staring through the window at the children playing outside. A girl with black-coloured hair was throwing a ball up in the sky, with a short, grey-haired girl managing to catch it effortlessly, with 2 other girls, one with blond pigtails and the other with mousy, brown hair struggling behind. Miku gave a chuckle as she watches them play, sipping on her drink. The tavern owner noticed and slid over to initiate a conversation. 

“Looks like you’re enjoying yourself, strange traveler.”

“Indeed I am. After all, there’s no better pleasure than watching innocent children playing freely.” She replied with a smirk, extending a hand towards him. He shakes it, a grin plastered on his face. 

“These children are playing so casually, out in the open…” the tavern owner sighed as he placed a hand over his head. “Little do they know of the crisis between the Light and Dark Kingdoms as of now. One of these children is a Dark Kingdom citizen too. Sooner or later they’ll be banned from setting foot here, and these children won’t be able to play together again..”

Miku sipped the drink again, her eyes lost in thought. “They will reunite again, on the battlefield. Bearing the blood of each other’s comrades on their shoulders, God knows what will happen next…” Miku sighed before slamming her drink down. 

“How can you say that? It’s not like you could see their future. Who knows, they might just grow up and never see each other again. They might not even remember each other. The alcohol must be getting to you, strange traveler..” The tavern owner looked at Miku with a confused face, before giving her a chuckle.

“I can assure you I’m perfectly sober. It wouldn’t be easy, seeing your childhood friend spilling the blood of your own comrades.” Miku replied, and with one big gulp, downs the rest of her drink. She stands up, and slams a few silver coins on the table. “Keep the change.” Miku said with a lopsided grin, and proceeded to walk out. “Such a strange person..” the tavern owner muttered. Miku turns around, gives him the same lopsided grin, and replies, “Well, I’m just a strange traveler.”

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Miku roams the streets, the wind pulling the hood of her cloak down, revealing bright, teal hair that whipped wildly around. “Teal hair!” a bright-eyed girl said from beside her, eyes wide as she pointed at her hair. Behind her, a tomboyish girl with pink hair pulled her back. “Minori! Don’t you know it’s rude to point at strangers?” she chided as the latter kept her head down. A blue haired and white-haired girl trailed behind them as the girl named Minori bowed down and apologised to Miku. Miku didn’t say anything, just smiled before pulling her hood up and walking away, leaving the girls in confusion. 

_______________________________________________________________________________________

She walked past the knight training grounds, taking notice of long, black-blue hair sparing with one of short orange with wooden swords. Beside them, a hamster-like girl and a boy with split tone hair sat on the ground, watching them eagerly. In the end, the black-blue haired emerged victorious, with the hamster-like girl congratulating her and getting her cheeks squished by the latter. The ginger sulked as the split-toned boy patted his head, and signed him a  ‘ you did well ‘. The ginger’s expression softened, before turning back and challenging the girl another spar. Miku halted as she spotted the split-tone hair, grimacing at his future fate before leaving…

_______________________________________________________________________________________

She chanced upon a crowd, before peering closer in to take a peek. A young, blond boy was floating, performing tricks and shouting out loud, delighting the crowd. Below him, a green-haired girl had her arm shyly outstretched, as if she was propelling the boy. The crowd jumped with joy and clapped their hands as rows of plushies started dancing, moving along to a pink-haired girl with a contagious smile. A purple-haired boy stood at the background, chuckling along as he moved his hands, controlling the puppets to his beck and call. Soon, the performance ended, and the children bowed as the crowd cheered. Miku chuckled as she walked away from the crowd.  

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Miku walked aimlessly around before spotting a group of girls (?). Long silver hair shone in the sun as she collapsed onto the ground, seemingly out of exhaustion as a purple-haired girl extended a hand to pull her up. 2 others were chasing each other, the one with short-brown hair with a face of annoyance and anger while the other had a cheeky grin on their face. They chased each other round and round ‘till their legs gave out and they collapsed onto the grass. Miku looked at the silver-haired girl. ‘

It seems like she hasn’t heard the news yet..’ Miku thought, before continuing on her merry way. 

_______________________________________________________________________________________

As Miku neared the royal gates, she faintly saw 2 shadowed figures ahead of her. Upon a closer look, it was revealed to be Meiko and Kaito. Kaito was dressed in a white dress shirt, a black jacket with gold embroideries resting on his shoulders. His hair was neatly parted, and he had a stern look on his face, a contrast to their school days where he would wear a permanent grin. Next to him was Meiko wearing a black shawl dress, with white embroideries, the neckline exposing her bare shoulders and the dress draping down to her ankles. Her hair was short and flowy, shining in the glimmering sun, with a solemn expression on her face. 

Miku chuckled. “Come to see me off? Old friends.” Meiko and Kaito looked at her. “Indeed Miku… I trust that you will return, as you would always. “ Meiko replied, her gaze fixed on the twin-tailed traveler. “Although that day would remain a mystery… “ Kaito continued. “Miku smiled again, flashing that same lop-sided grin. “Indeed old friends. I will return, when all of this is over, and when one side has fallen and the other has emerged victorious. “ She smirked as she saw the two staring daggers at each other, and of course they would, they were on opposite sides after all. Miku sighed, before stepping out the kingdom gates, continuing her long and far journey ahead…

Chapter Text

She carried herself with elegance and grace. Her long, pink hair draping down and shining in the sun, the helms of her dress studded with gems, the cool silver fabric swaying in the wind as she walked along the streets. Townsfolk nearby started murmuring about her presence. Rightfully they should, as it’s not everyday you see Great Healer Luka roaming the common streets. 

They speak of her great achievements in healing magic. How her studies had benefited the community of medics so much. With a spell of her chanting, a severed limb, which was once previously said impossible to regenerate, was immediately stitched back, with no visible marks left over. Another spell of hers could speed up the healing process of regenerating new cells, while another could eliminate toxins from the body with ease. Alas her spells were yet to be universally used, as her spells require a set amount of mana to perform, along with certain conditions which were even unknown to Luka herself. Nevertheless her achievements in magic were widely sought after and renowned, with Luka promising to work on them even more for ordinary healer mages to use too. This has made her popularity and fame rise, but that didn’t come with even more risks:

Including those of people resorting to illegal means to obtain her spells.

She couldn’t count the number of times she had been ambushed, sometimes by rogue bandits, assassins from corrupted nobles, and even ordinary townsfolk too. Thankfully, the bodyguards assigned to her from the Light Kingdom and some spells she learnt for self-defense came in handy and had managed to drive them away from her.

For now…

__________________________________________________________________________________

Luka got up from her age-worn desk. She hurried out of her chambers and approached a senior healer mage, eagerly exclaiming, “Martha! I think I’ve made a breakthrough! Come help me test my spells!” With no hesitation, Martha followed her in. After all, Luka had all the healer mage’s respect for her work.

Luka’s chambers were neat, except her desk. Ink bottles spilled over, mountains of papers, some scorch marks on the table from past failed spell attempts. Luka opened her notebook, with a smile as she showed the spell to Martha. It had the same function as her other spells, but with a twist: any mage could use it, not constraint to her anymore. Martha performed the spell, and her jaw almost fell in awe as the spell performed the exact same as Luka’s one previously. Luka’s eyes sparked. After months of research, it worked! Truely a breakthrough in her craft indeed! She immediately sent a letter to the high council of the White Kingdom to meet at the secret council hall to discuss her research. Council meetings in the White Kingdom are sacred and very important, which is why the council halls are held in a separate venue, deep in the woods and riddled with high level security and hundreds of knights. All important documents are held there, which makes it a very important place, thus its hidden location. Soon enough, her letter was returned, and a council session was scheduled the day after…

__________________________________________________________________________________

Luka pulled her hood up, concealing her bright, pink hair. It was crucial that people do not find out her identity as she proceeded to the council hall. She was dressed in dark clothes, the fabric helping her blend into her surroundings in the darkness of the night. She pushed a brick in her wall, and in an instance, the brick wall that was once there was gone, replaced with a long spiral of stone stairs, revealing a secret exit where she would meet her guards who will take her to the council hall. She used a spell to close the brick wall behind her, before making her way down.

As she reached the last steps, she was greeted with the familiar faces of her escorts. Serie and Faline, her trusted guards from the moment she became Great Healer Luka. She got onto the carriage, the plush velvet bringing comfort to her as the carriage set off, with countless knights following along. 

__________________________________________________________________________________

The journey to the council hall is no smooth journey. The carriage jumped at every bump in the road as they made their way, the route always slightly different than before. As Luka sighed and started to relax, a deafening crack resonated throughout the forest they were in. Luka and the carriage froze as the sharp drawing of a blade resonated through.

“What-” Luka was about to exclaim. “Great Healer Luka! Stay in the carriage! We’ll deal with this!” Serie said as she and Faline brandished their swords, charging at the intruders. There were sharp sounds and stings as metal clashed with each other, neither side willing to give in. Luka held her breath, not moving an inch past the carriage doors. 

Just then, the sounds of metal stopped, with the panting of breath only to be heard. Luka shakingly opened the carriage door, wondering of the outcome of the brawl. As she took a step down, something rolled onto her foot. It rolled over, revealing Serie’s face, eyes wide as her mouth made an “O” shape, yet no sound came out as blood stained her cheek and the ground. Not far was her lifeless and headless body, white robes stained with red. Faline had her back pressed against a tree, with the cloaked assailant holding a blade down her throat. One side of Faline’s face was stained with deep, dark blood, with only one eye intact and a grave wound on her torso, each breath she took making the pain cross through her body once more. Luka was paralysed with fear, and Faline, with the eye she had left, reached Luka.

“Run-” Faline said, before getting cut off by the sound of metal against flesh as the assailant’s blade cut through her, and her hand flopped down, never to be raised again. As Luka was coming to her senses, the assailant turned towards her. Luka raised her hand, preparing a spell but nothing came out. She looked up, realising she was trapped in a magic-confinement space, where mana was of no use. With no other option, Luka did what she only knew she could do: run.

She ran past the countless bodies of soldiers.

She ran past the heads of Faline and Serie.

She ran past everything. 

__________________________________________________________________________________

The foe must’ve been exhausted after the fight, as Luka was able to run for a solid 20 minutes before collapsing onto the ground. She looked up, and to her relief, she was out of the magic barrier. She quickly picked herself up and started walking, as the surroundings around her revealed to be a flower field. She looked around, and gave a half-hearted smile. 

The flowers truly are beautiful under the moonlight, she thought as the familiar stench of metal and sharp sound alerted her and she quickly duck before the blade could’ve claimed her head, only cutting off the end strands of her hair. Her luck quickly ran out, as the foe rushed forward, blade in hand. Luka raised her hand once more, prepared to cast a spell, before she saw a flash of yellow peeping from a cloak rush past her. 

That technique, Ri– Luka thought, but her thoughts were quickly shut down as her hand was severed, her hand flopping down onto the flowerbed, staining the white flowers with crimson. Luka was overcome with shock as she was then stabbed in the back, the blade poking through her body. Her body fell back as the blade was taken out, her long, pink hair spreading out along the flowers. Blood dripped from her mouth and wound as she was overcomed with pain, so painful that she could not move a muscle. As the assailant stood over her, the familiar yellow hair peeped out, along with a black bow, and at that moment Luka was overcomed with memories. Memories that she had convinced herself she had sealed off a long time ago. She stared at the moon as the assailant raised their blade. 

The moon really was pretty today… that was Luka’s last thought before the blade reached her body.

__________________________________________________________________________________

The townsfolk gathered at the square. Some stared at it with fear in their eyes, others awe, some others paralysed from the mere sight of it. On top of a sharp roof, with a sharp metal rod sticking from it, a head laid on it. Her eyes were closed, skin grey with ash, pink hair flowing against the wind, though it had lost its shine long ago. There was the once Great Healer Luka, reduced to a severed head on top of a roof. It was a truly gruesome sight, however at the corner of her ear, there were fresh, white flowers there, reminiscing of a time in the past…

As Great Healer Luka perished in the times of the war, her research had mysteriously vanished, traces of them almost gone. Nobody was to know of her findings, not even her beloved mages, and Martha had mysteriously vanished.

Chapter Text

“ Slow down, Rin!” a familiar voice shouted. Rin turned her head, a grin on her face as the other panted to keep up. Her pink hair shone in the sunlight, beads of sweat on her forehead rendering her pink hair slightly damp as she tried to catch up. Rin only smiled as she turned, running ahead with full speed. 

At long last, they collapsed on the grass in exhaustion. Rin turned to her, with the other giving her a faint grin. Rin had always loved that familiar grin. It was a symbol of who they were. And a testimony of their friendship. 

Rin never expected that grin to be the last thing she would see of her. 

It had been a simple task. Find a council member, ambush them and kill all their guards. Sounds easy enough, right? 

Not when the target was your schoolmate. 

Long-time friend. 

Lover

Rin could feel bile rising from her throat, but nothing came out. And when the king ordered her to carry it out, she said nothing as she bowed and left his chambers. 

She collapsed soon after in her chambers when she returned. 

She picked up her picture of her. It was taken during their school days, when they could play together in the sun, laughing without a care in the world. 

Her smile was beautiful, and had always been. 

Rin’s hand trembled. 

Why, though?

It was just a normal mission. 

Ambush a council member. Kill said council member. 

Yet why couldn’t she stop the tears spilling from her eyes?

She trembled and whimpered. 

_______________________________________________________________________________________

The night of the ambush, she had memorised their route. After all, things like this are easy when you have a mole. 

She waited. 

And waited. 

Until she saw bubblegum-pink hair. 

Rin’s eyes widened. 

It had been years since they had seen each other, but Rin could instantly recognise her. 

Her cat-like eyes. 

Her delicate fingers. 

Her small grin.

Rin’s heart ached as she took in all of Luka, before she stepped into the carriage, and Rin was reminded of her mission. 

Right.

Her mission…

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Rin watched the blood spill out as she decapitated her opponent’s heads. 

What fools , she thought. 

With that level of elementary skill, you can’t protect anyone.

Especially someone as great as her. 

Luka…

Her thoughts were cut off as 2 guards came out of the carriage. The minute they saw her, they rushed forward, blades sharp. Rin easily dodged their blows, dealing her own as well. Out of the corner of her eye, she found one of them preparing a fire spell. 

Can’t have that happening, she thought as she casted one herself,  said spell forming a barrier that prevents magic from being cast. Her opponent clicked her tongue, before resuming their fight. 

_______________________________________________________________________________________

As her defeated opponent lay before her, Rin stared. She stared at how the guard’s eyes blazed with anger, as she clutched her open wound, sneaking glances at her fellow guard’s head. 

Suddenly, Rin heard the carriage door open, as her opponent started saying the words, “Run-” before Rin dealt the finishing blow. She turned, and saw that pink hair again, with her hand outstretched, attempting to cast a spell to no avail, thanks to the barrier Rin placed. 

With no other option left, she ran. She must’ve been very panicked, to not recognise Rin. 

With a sigh, Rin walked in her direction, a heavy feeling in her heart.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Rin watched as she approached a flower field, in the direction where she had run. The flowers truly were pretty, as Rin hid in the forest, taking note of her as she ran there, panting. Rin took in her appearance, how each strand framed her face perfectly, how sweat rolled down her cheeks, similar to how it did when they were playing together. 

Together…

A memory of the past...

Rin could feel her tongue as she slipped her’s in, their lips connecting-

Rin sighed as she stood up, grimacing and preparing for the final confrontation. 

Final…

Rin got up, and in a flash teleported behind her, blade in hand. She must’ve been alerted of it from the metallic smell of blood, because she ducked, Rin’s blade only slicing the end strands of her hair. Rin saw her panicked look, and thought, 

even panicked, she’s still so beautiful…

She held her hand out, preparing a spell, mana crackling at her fingertips, they were beyond the mana barrier Rin had set already, allowing her to cast spells. However, mid-casting, she froze. Rin noticed her cloak had let out some of her hair, the bright-yellow accents shining brightly in the moonlight. There was a brief moment of silence, as Rin, with a pained expression, held her blade up. She exhaled, and performed her signature lightning fast move. Her technique allowed her to run at the speed of light, and perform actions swifty, and with one swift motion, chopped her arm off. 

Rin instantly felt regret as her face paled with the loss of her arm. She staggered back, as Rin squeezed her eyes shut and stabbed her in the back, more blood staining her blade and face as she pulled the blade out. 

She fell back with a gasp, blood staining the pure white flowers. Blood dripped down her mouth, her pink hair spread across the flower field, and Rin hated what she though. 

Beautiful.

She was always beautiful.

Even as she lays there, dying. 

Rin’s hood was pulled up from the light wind as they both looked at each other, overcomed with memories, before Rin picked her blade up, preparing the final blow. The expression she gave meeting her doom made Rin want to cry. 

It was a solemn smile, one that spoke “don’t cry, it’ll be ok” without words. 

Rin couldn’t stop the tears spilling out as she cut Luka’s head. 

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Rin walked through the square in disguise in the Light Kingdom, prepared to meet their informant in the silence of the night. As she approached the destination, she looked up, and froze. 

There was Luka, her head perched on top of a roof. Her pink hair had faded to a dull, without its usual shine, her face pale and grey, eyes closed. No one in the town had seen it yet, for it was nighttime. Silently, Rin climbed onto the roof, and was met with the eyes of one of her fellow comrades, gesturing a “no” while pointing to the head. Rin got the signal that nothing she said can make him remove the head, and instead, while he wasn’t looking, she took some white flowers from her jacket, and quietly placed them at Luka’s ear. Rin looked longingly at her head, before jumping off the roof.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Rin returned from her meeting with the informant, a quiet expression on her face as she went to bed…

_______________________________________________________________________________________

“NOOO! Luka!!” Rin screamed as she ran towards her, tears in her eyes. Luka smiled softly, before croaking out a whisper of a response, “I’m… so….r..ry…” as the ground below them collapsed, and Rin fell, while Luka’s body disintegrated, leaving just her head falling down, her empty eyes staring holes in Rin’s-

“AHHH!” Rin shouted with a gasp, gasping for air. She got out of bed and started walking circles, before she

Collapsed.

Choking back a sob, she hugged her knees towards her, and all her memories started flooding back, along with her tears.

Luka’s smile. 

Her laughter during their school days. 

How she would flirt mindlessly with Rin. 

How her tongue would swirl around Rin’s during their kiss. 

Them drifting apart due to the war. 

Her great discoveries of Medical Magic. 

Luka being on the hit list.

Her panicked face as all her guards were slain.

Her exhausted face at the flower field. 

Her pale face at her severed arm.

Her look of kindness when she realised who was going to kill her.

Her head on display at the town square.

Her eyes in Rin’s dream.

Rin felt sick. 

She barely made it to the bathroom before she vomited.