Because I am a lousy excuse of a writer I've made this extremely long as I can and have basically made this 2 chapters into one, if you are not a favourite of long chapters, sorry but short chapters every now and then just doesn't satisfy me :) Here you go my devoted fans
Chapter 20
"Where're you off to?" Silver asked as he made breakfast.
I had come back from my few weeks of training out in the desert and was relieved to find nothing much different. Except for Silver, seeing as how his hair is longer, he's gotten taller, and his muscles seem to have gotten slightly bigger than when I last saw them too. Seems like I'm not the only one who did some training.
Things were not awkward as I'd thought they'd be when I returned. It just seemed like we went on pause and when I came home, it restarted again. I like how he didn't ask questions such as 'why' or 'who', I like how he trusted me to tell him in my own time.
And I will tell him.
I was hopping up and down, trying to get my shoe on my foot. "Going out with the girls. Need to find clothes for the party next week." I quickly explained.
"Right," He said in a non-convinced tone. "Or is it just you who needs to get clothes?" His head popped out from the kitchen doorway, his eyebrow quirked upwards.
I cursed under my breath, disappointed that he had me figured out so well. My shoulders sagged in defeat as I let out a meek "Maybe."
He smiled slightly as he shook his head in mock disappointment. "Have fun." He said with a small wave before disappearing back into the kitchen. I was about to leave when a quick idea popped into my head. I ran into the kitchen and quickly pecked Silver on the cheek before running back out, not needing to look back to know that his face was probably as red as a sun burn. With a quick "Bye!" I closed the door behind me.
Grinning on my way to Maka's house, where we all agreed to meet up, I couldn't be in a better mood today.
*****
Holding up a long purple dress, I turned to the girls with a small grimace. "This one?" Liz, Patty, Tsubaki and Maka all shook their heads with a frown. I dropped down on my knees. "No...more...please..." I said wearily, completely losing all hope in finding a dress after these 6 hours we've been searching. I could feel my spirit starting to leave my body.
Ah...mother? Is that you in that light? It looks so pretty up there, let me join you~
"Luna, snap out of it!" Liz was holding onto my shoulders, shaking me back and forth.
I shook my head. "Huh? What? What's happened, did we find a dress?" I asked, my mind completely blank for a moment.
"We're going to have a look at another shop, come on." She pulled me up by my arms but my legs stayed weak.
With tears running down my face, I sniffed. "Please..." I whined, on the verge of full out crying. "I'll go in a dress made out of paper that Patty made, just please let me go home!" I heard Patty hiss an excited "Yes!" from behind me.
"No way, we're finding you that perfect dress today!" She said with such determination before proceeding to drag me out of the shop, everyone else following behind.
"Come on, Luna, we'll find you a dress eventually." Maka said with an uneasy smile on her face, clearly she feels like wanting to go home too but no one should argue with Liz when it comes to fashion.
"You can do it!" Tsubaki said with two thumbs up, that same old happy smile still on her face. I hated it right now.
I silently prayed that my life would end in this instant just so this torture would be over with.
*****
I hid under a bench as I saw the feet of the girls run past me. After endless searching, I was able to lose them in a costume shop and I've been hiding here for a while now. I was really starting to feel upset that I might not be able to find the dress like I'd wanted, it really sucks that out of the many shops this huge city has, we haven't found even one.
Making sure that the girls were now far away, I shimmied out from the bench and walked backwards slowly before colliding into a body, pushing e forward again. "Oh, I'm sorry!" I quickly apologised, turning to see a petite woman with big glasses. She was wearing a pink and purple striped top with a blue dungaree on top, her long hair in a fish plait. Her hair was a strange colour, it had sort of a purple-ish hue.
"Watch where you're going!" She said, standing up to brush off the dust from her clothing.
I'd made her drop the documents she must have been holding and started picking them up for her. "I'm really sorry." I said once again, my voice trailing off as I realised the papers had drawings of clothes. "Hey...did you draw these?" I asked, looking through them once again.
She snatched them from my hand before adjusting her glasses. "And what if I did?" She said in an accusing voice, her sharp purple-blue eyes glaring at me. Her rude tone a complete contrast to the innocent look she gave off.
I stuttered, a little bit surprised. "U-Uhm, nothing, it's just really good that's all."
Her eyes widened slightly as if she was surprised to hear me say that. "Really?"
Giving her a wide smile, I nodded. "Yeah, they're great."
Her face turned red and she faced away from me, twirling a piece of her hair between her fingers. "T-Thanks...not that I asked for a compliment."
"Aha, so you did draw them!" She jumped slightly before looking at me with an accusing look yet again.
"Yeah, I drew them, what's it to you?" She looked at me with suspicion.
"Uh..." What was it to me, it's not like I know her or anything. I guess I just wanted to make conversation with this girl, something about her aura just makes me want to know even more. "So...are you a designer?" I asked, trying to make conversation.
She looked down sadly. "I want to be, but no one thinks I have what it takes..." I don't think I was supposed to hear what she'd said but I heard it anyways and I instantly feel the need to help.
"Hey, there's a party next week and-"
"The party at DWMA?!" She gasped, a twinkle in her eyes.
I smiled, news travels fast in this city. "Yes, and I've been looking for a dress all day and nothing has been able to catch my eye, but you're designs...if you could design and make me a dress, I would absolutely grateful."
Her mouth opened wide. "You want me to make you a dress in under a week for a famous party at the DWMA?!"
"Yes."
She snorted and rolled her eyes before turning her back to me. "Sorry, but you'd need a professional for that."
Before she could start walking off I grabbed her shoulders. I wanted this girl to make my dress, she has potential, I can sense it; her soul protect wasn't as strong as it could be. I leaned forward and whispered. "I can sense your powers, you can do it."
She faced me again, wide-eyed. "What do you mean?"
Quickly finding a dark corner, I dragged her to it. "It's ok, I'm a witch too."
She almost dropped her drawings again at this. I don't blame her, not only is it rare to know the identity of a witch in this huge city but to also be a witch who doesn't want to...well, kill everyone. "You're not very convincing, being a DMWA student and all..." I was about to get on my knees and beg until, "but I'll take your word for it. I'll have a dress ready by today but I don't know what type of dress you'd like-" She stepped back and looked me up and down with a scrutinising look. She then smiled the same way a child would smile the very first time it saw snow. "I know exactly what would look great on you..."
*****
"Well, what do you think?" She stepped back and examined her work. She'd taken me to the basement of her home which was a shop itself. There were aisles and aisles of fantastic clothing all in different shapes, sizes and colours. It shocked me when she said no one would buy anything just because she didn't "look professional" it's madness!
I twirled around, the frills at the bottom of the dress flying up. The dress was absolutely perfect and I adored it. It was a small black dress with frills on the collar and on the hem on the bottom of the dress. There was also a frill bow on the collar. It was simple, cute, and amazing work for just 3 hours.
(A/N: Picture of the dress to the side, my description alone doesn't do enough justice to how pretty it is)
I jumped up and down. "It's perfect!" Giving her the biggest hug I could, I couldn't be more thankful. "I love it so much, thank you!"
Turning her head, her cheeks turning red, I could see her struggling the urge to smile. "Why are you so happy, it's just a dress..." Closing my eyes, I used the powers in me to give her a little gift. With my eyes still closed, I heard her give a gasp as she saw what I'd done.
Tiny white feathers were floating around the room, dancing on a non-existent wind. "As a thank you gift." I said, smiling at her.
She stuttered. "It's not like I asked you for anything in return..." Aw she's just adorable!
"I'll be coming here again!" I waved as I walked up the stairs, the girl still looking at the feathers in awe.
"Wait!" She called out. "What's your name?"
All this time we'd been talking and the one question neither of us thought to ask was our names. "Luna." I responded.
"Shaula." She introduced herself.
My eyebrows rose. "Like the star?" I asked.
"Uhm...I guess?" I noticed how she seemed confused and didn't know very much about the meaning of her name and decided not to pry any further. Upon learning the meaning of my name while I was younger, it soon became a habit to work out meanings of various other people's names. It's sort of a...hobby, I guess.
"Well, Shaula, it was very nice to meet you and thank you again for the beautiful dress."
"Giving people compliments doesn't make them nice to you y'know..."
"Ah, but it does!"
Fuming she stamped her feet stubbornly. "Oh, just go! You're friends are probably worried to death about you anyways."
I'd almost forgotten about everyone else! I never told them where I'd gone or how long I would be...I wonder if they're still looking for me. "You should come to the party wearing one of your dresses!" I called out before slamming the door shut behind me, running back to the shopping district to try and find the girls.
They are so going to kill me...
*****
I found them all inside a cafe, having a snack. As I opened the door, the bell rang and made them aware of my presence, surprise and annoyance on all their faces. "Hey guys!" I greeted, holding up the dress in my hand. "Look what I found!" And just like that, my disappearance had been forgotten as they all rushed up to get a closer look at the dress I had.
"Wow, it's beautiful." Commented Tsubaki.
"Where did you get it?" Maka asked.
I thought for a minute, deciding whether or not I should mention the new friend I had made. "I...just picked it up."
Liz gave me an unconvinced look. "So someone just threw it on the ground and you just happened to run across it?"
Giving out a nervous laugh, I nodded. "Yup, that's about the whole story...ahaha..."
The girls looked at each other before shrugging and turning back to me. "Oh, well, at least you finally have a dress, now." I let out a breath of relief once they let the issue go and joined in on the conversation at the table, discussing how everyone's clothes for the grand event will be.
This day will be perfect!
*****
As I finished applying the pink lipstick on my lips I did a look-over at myself in the mirror. I wore the black dress Shauna made for me and had slathered my nails a silvery colour. My hair was up in a messy French twist with a few strands out in front of my face. Finally I had on black heels and silver earrings to complete the look.
A knock on the door. "You all set to go, Luna?" I heard Silver's voice from outside.
"Yep, I'll be right out!" I answered.
I quickly checked myself in the mirror one more time before turning to leave the room. Silver was waiting for me outside and when he saw me, he had the biggest smile on his face. He was wearing a pitch black suit with a white shirt and a silver tie. It was simple yet the way he wore it made him seem to overflow with confidence and power. It was almost intoxicating.
Bending his head down slightly, he pecked me on the lips and whispered, "You look wonderful." Without me noticing, he put a corsage on my wrist, it was silver and black with a ribbon on top.
I looked at it with a confused smile. "We're not going to prom, Silver," I said with a chuckle.
He shrugged. "We never had the opportunity to go to a prom, so this is as good as it gets." It's true, we never went to a prom. Because we grew up in the countryside there was no proper huge school building, just an old woman who would gather us around and read out school books for us to take notes in. And when she unfortunately died, my parents decided to home school us which wasn't hard as they were absolutely wonderful around me and Silver and, for some reason, had a collection of a variety of books.
Silver held out his arm and bowed slightly. "Shall we, milady?" He said in an overly-posh way.
I rolled my eyes and put my arm through his. "Time to party!"
*****
Beautiful fireworks in the sky brightened up the night sky as we got closer to the DWMA. The giant candles surrounding it made it look that much more ominous. With the fantastic fireworks all in different shapes, colours and sizes, you can tell this took weeks and weeks of planning to do.
The gang was already at the entrance of the school by the time we got there. "About time you guys showed up, I'm so hungry!" Black Star exclaimed, rubbing his stomach. His blue hair was still in its strange messy star shape and the black suit he was wearing was put on sloppily, the sleeves of his jacket slowly drooping from his shoulders. Well he sure put in a lot of effort. I sarcastically said in my mind.
From behind him, Tsubaki gave him an 'are-you-kidding-me?' look. She looked quite fed up as she looked at Black Star, most likely from the effort she must have used just to get him to wear a suit, much less look presentable in it. It always blew my mind how beautiful she was and yet again she has made me gawk at her. Her hair was up in a fancy bun and she had a shiny pearl necklace around her neck. The pale green dress she wore hugged her figure nicely and ruffled at the bottom.
Kid sighed. "Is that the only thing you can think about?" He said in a condescending voice, his face in his hand. Kid was very...simple with his choice of clothing. He wore a white suit which zipped up and his usual skull resting on his collar. As always, the way he dressed has left me wondering where he got this strange fashion sense from.
Standing on either side of him (for symmetry, as always) was Patty and Liz. They wore the exact same suit as Kid but in red. It fit snugly on their curvy figures but judging by the depressed look on Liz's face, it wasn't what she was expecting to wear on a fancy night out. "Well, you guys are all dressed up, aren't you?" She said, looking at our dresses with longing. Patty was just beaming at us with her usually bubbly grin, her rosy cheeks stretched wide.
Maka did a body count before smiling at all of us, clasping her hands behind her back. "Well, we're all here now, let's go before they end up starting without us." Maka was looking very cute with her hair down and two ringlets in front with a pink hairband holding it. It made the simple purple dress and choker she wore even more suited to her personality. Simple, yet intriguing.
Soul was behind her, the same bored look on his face as always. He was wearing a black suit which actually suited him quite well, and for once I see him without that yellow headband in his hair. To be honest, I was expecting him to dress sloppy like Black Star but then again, living with Maka must mean that she was the one to put him in line. "You're the one that was holding us all up with all the prepping you did."
"Whatever, we're here now and that's what matters." She blinked at Kid for a moment, and I followed. Kid was looking at the ground with a fake smile on his face, worry lines on his forehead. "Kid, everything alright?"
"Huh?" His head instantly rushed upwards and he blinked as if only remembering his location. "Yes, I'm alright, Maka." He replied with a smile.
"Hey, Kid," I said with a sly smile on my face, nudging his arm with my elbow. "Where's Nanami, your date?" All eyes were on him as his face flushed slightly.
"She's inside, waiting." He replied in a low voice.
Linking my arm through his, I dragged him inside. "Well, let's not keep her waiting for her date any longer!"
Once we were inside, Kid removed my arm from his. "Father will be giving his speech shortly, so please enjoy yourselves." He said formerly, walking off into the crowd to where he probably left Nanami.
After about half an hour of drinking the fancy red wine, Uncle Death was ready to go up on stage to give his speech. Kid found me and told me that I should be up there with him, considering how I was family and all. I left Silver in the shadows and let Kid drag me up the stage. As I stood at the top of the stage it hit me just how many people were here. The huge ball room was backed from start to finish with people all in formal clothing...and then there was Black Star, of course. The room hummed with the sound of people talking, laughing, gossiping and toasting as the band played a jazzy tune for those guests in the mood of dancing.
As Uncle Death stepped onto the stage, he gave me and Kid a pat on the back as he passed us. We were on his left side while Spirit was on his right. He cleared his throat and almost instantly the room quietened. "Hello, everybody and thanks for coming to this event celebrating the founding of the DWMA!" His cheery voice echoing through the circular room. Cheers and applause sounded, hushed whispers of surprise from those who have yet to see the great Lord Death in person. "Okay, that's all I have to say, enjoy!" I gave him a surprised look.
That was kind of a short speech...
"He's not taking it that seriously, is he?" I whispered to Kid.
"Really, you don't say, I wonder what could have gave it away." He replied, sarcasm clear in his tone. He sighed. "I guess I have to take it over from here." Clearing his throat and fixing his tie, he caught the attention from everyone else. "If I may speak as well." He started. "First off, thank you for taking time out of your schedules to make it here. Tonight we celebrate something dear to all of our hearts: the founding of our academy. Now, if you would I care to listen, I, Death the Kid, would like to give a few words-"
It's almost like he was planning to say this exact speech. I thought as I watched him say word after word with no hesitation. No way could he think all of this up on the spot.
During the speech, somehow, Black Star had climbed up the curtain above Kid and was now shouting, waving his arms like a mad monkey. "Yahoooo, it's me, in all my glory: Black Star! Yeah!"
Kid tried to continue with his speech but that must be a pretty hard task to do with a blue haired monkey shouting above your head and your audience not even paying attention to you anymore. He growled, raising a clenched fist at Black Star. "Shut the hell up, you imbecile!" He'd managed to pull Black Star down and now they were in an intense brawl filled with name calling.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing, interrupting me?" Black Star shouted.
"The one interrupting is you! Asshole, idiot! I wanted to give a proper greeting that was precise and exact" Kid retorted. Then the fight stopped when Kid dropped down to his hands and knees in despair. "It's useless, I'm useless, just let me die..."
I sighed. Not this again...
Black Star got up with a pissed off look on his face. "Whose party does he think this is?"
Soul gave him a deadpanned look. "Well it sure as hell isn't yours."
Uncle Death let out a hearty laugh. "Looks like the parties already starting!" He referred to the mini brawl. "Come on, there's food and music, no need to hold back on the dancing! Just have fun!" And with that, the band started playing music again and the guests continued with their business.
As I walked down the small steps of the stage, I watched everyone. Black Star dived straight to the dinner table and already had empty plates piling up next to him, Tsubaki sat next to him with a disappointed look on her face, a sigh leaving her lips. Being with him must surely be embarrassing. Kid had Patty and Liz in the middle of the dance floor and were instructing at what angle their legs should be kicked up to. Maka watched them for a while before disappearing out to the balcony. I had no idea where Soul was though...
When I reached where I'd left Silver he had a plate in his hand, slowly eating the food. I looked at the plate confused, he was using a fork to eat with but there was another on the plate. "Why do you have two forks?" I asked.
He left his current fork in his mouth and picked up the other fork and jabbed a piece of salmon with it before shoving it in my mouth. I made a sound of protest at the back of my throat and widened my eyes in surprise. "It's for you, obviously." Was all he said, his own fork still in his mouth.
I glared at him as I chewed on the food slowly. "I could have choked." I muttered and he rolled his eyes in response. "Thank you." I said before taking another bite from the plate. From the corner of my eye, I saw a small smile on his face. I turned around and leaned on the wall next to him, our bodies close to touching. Being this close to him always comforted me, the warmth I feel by just being near him makes me feel so...calm. Resting my head on his shoulder, we watched the colours of different dress wear float around the room in time with the music. I've actually gotten used to this town and its weird ways, it's become a second home to me. And I like it that way.
With his arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer, he rested his head on top of mine. He gave my head a quick peck before resting it again. "This is nice..." He said in a low whisper so only I could hear it. Though, with the amount of dancing and music, I doubt anyone even noticed our presence in this secluded little corner.
I gave a wistful sigh as I looked on, a smile on my face. "I wish every day could be like this, it's so lively."
He chuckled. I was able to feel the vibrations on my back and leaned further back into him. "Then let's sink this moment in long enough for it to seem like it will last forever."
We did just that until Sid, the zombie teacher, suddenly appeared at the entrance. He was on his knees, blood staining his blue face as he panted heavily. It looked like he just got out of an intense battle. "Stein! Hurry, we have to get everyone out of here!" The music stopped and gasps filled the hall as everyone noticed the beat up zombie.
Me and Silver ran towards him, as did the rest of the gang. "Sid, are you alright?!" Dr Stein asked, bending down so he could be eye level with Sid.
Still breathing hard, Sid answered. "Yeah...somehow..." Lifting his head up, he looked right at Dr Stein. "There was a surprise attack from the enemy...I was able to go underground just as the explosion took place, but as you can see...I only just barely made it." Suddenly gaining new found energy, he leaned forward. "Anyways, you have to get out of here as soon as possible - it's a trap!"
Stein just looked at him with a confused expression. "A trap...?" He questioned. "But why here...why now?"
"Today, the day Lord Death left the mirror and everyone from the DWMA all gathered in this one spot: it's the day they've been waiting for!"
Realisation appeared on Stein's face as he turned around, shouting out to Nurse Medusa. "Medusa!" But it was too late. Nurse Medusa, who had been dancing with Dr Stein, suddenly ran from the middle of the dance floor and out over the balcony.
At that very moment a soul appeared. An extremely strong one. From the looks of the a few people around me, I'm guessing Maka and Kid also sensed it too. The ground started shaking and even more shouts of surprise sounded. We were looking around, darting our eyes at every place we could see as if we'd be able to pinpoint the cause.
"This is-!" Stein muttered, a panicked look on his face. He, like many of us, knew there wasn't enough time until something happened. I held Silver's hand as I looked around, determined to search out the source. "This is bad, we're being trapped in!"
Then without warning, the ground from below me shook and I was thrown slightly in the air, a coffin appearing from the ground. I looked and saw the same thing happening to Silver, Maka, Stein, Black Star, Tsubaki, Soul, Liz, Patty and Kid. We all fell into our own coffins which seemed to never end as I kept falling, the scream not dying from my lips. But then I was able to sense a surface fast approaching me and quickly positioning myself so I would land on my feet. I looked around and saw that we all ended up in the same place.
Soul grumbled from the ground, rubbing his probably sore butt from landing directly on it. "Funny how the meisters land on their feet and the weapons land on their asses...except you." He directed the last part at Silver who was standing on his own two feet the same as us meisters.
Silver shrugged at him but said nothing. He rose his eyebrows at me as if to ask if I was ok and I did a quick nod, wiping away sweat from my forehead. This is all happening too quickly for me to process...
"I can sense a lot of witch's souls..." Kid said in a low voice. "One, two...eight of them?! And there's also the Demon Sword..."
The ground shook again. What the hell is going on out there?
Dr Stein stepped forward and I discreetly took one back. I still didn't trust this guy. "This is an emergency situation! Listen carefully, all of you."
"Huh?" We all turned to him.
"Beneath the DWMA, the source of all madness...sleeps the first Kishin." My eyes widened as my throat tightened.
Something like that was here all this time, and under our feet, too!
"And right now, the woman who seemed to be a simple nurse is in fact a witch, Medusa, is trying to revive the Kishin. We must stop her at all costs!" Silence took over as we all processed what he'd just said.
Maka was the first to speak. "Nurse Medusa was a witch?" She asked with hesitation. Me and Silver weren't surprised at that information as we'd already had our suspicions about the school's nurse.
Soul stood up. "More importantly, are you serious about The Kishin sleeping underneath our school?"
"It's true." Kid spoke up, bringing our attention to him. "Father told me. And because of that, he can't the academy."
"Are you for real? I just always thought he was anti-social." And, of course, leave it to Black Star to think something like that.
Stein cleared his throat. "Anyways, we can't have Sid's efforts of helping us escape go to waste. I will guide you to the entrance of the basement, follow me."
There's no time for messing around, it's time we got down to business.
*****
"This is the entrance to the basement."
The 'basement' was old and dusty. Weird looking ornaments on the sides looking like they've seen better days. But for now I couldn't be bothered to focus on how fragile the walls looked or the spiders that hid away in the corners of the room as there were more important matters on our hands: The Kishin.
"Our enemy is strong, from this moment any one half-assing will most likely end up dead." Taking a cigarette from high pocket and lighting it with a lighter, he took a puff. Slowly breathing out the smoke. "If you're scared, I consider you turn around and leave now."
No one moved.
He turned around with a crooked smile on his face. "I see you're all ready to fight to the death."
Us being our usual worrisome bunch, we never go anywhere without our gear. Maka brought a giant bag with her which had everyone's clothes and weapons inside and we all quickly got changed, our poker faces on. Trust her to be the most organised one.
"If we're going to die, we won't go down without a fight." Soul said, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his yellow jacket.
"Glad to hear it." Dr Stein said in response, throwing the cigarette to the ground. "Let's stop wasting time here then." He turned around and ran through the giant doorway, the rest of us following. The weapons were in their weapon form and us meisters held them as we went. Stein said it was in case there was an ambush, we'd be prepared for it; Silver's weapon form was a giant broadsword with a chain around the handle. There was a huge staircase which seemed like it never ended as we all raced down the steps.
After we'd ran for quite a while Maka asked Kid a question. "Hey, Kid, How did Lord Death seal the Kishin?"
Kid looked back at her momentarily before looking forward again. We were all eager to find out this new piece of information. "Father removed his skin and then made a bag out of it and sealed Asura inside. He rooted his Soul and body here to prevent the Kishin from re-awakening."
"Oh, and that's why he can't leave?" Black Star asked, though there was clearly an obvious answer. "But if the seal is broken and Asura is free, will he be able to move again?" That was actually a good question, coming from Black Star after all.
This time it was Dr Stein who answered. "No, he can't. Basically, Lord Death's soul is stuck to this city and is now one with it." One with the whole city... "For him to move, the city would have to grow giant legs to move around. But let's be realistic here." Our footsteps echoed in the giant space as we continued to descend the stairs. "The risk of letting the Kishin revive is too great...madness is contagious."
With how long we were running it had me wondering just how deep this basement goes. "This is taking forever..." I muttered.
"Hey, Maka!" Black Star called from up front. "Can you sense any witch soul's up ahead?" He asked.
"Not right now, no, they might by using Soul Protect."
Black Star made a noise in the back of his throat to let her know he heard her. "Shame...sensing souls is the only thing you're half good at."
I could basically hear Maka grinding her teeth together. "Are you trying to piss me off?"
Just then I felt a powerful force. We all skidded to a stop and from the looks on their faces, Maka, Kid and Dr Stein all felt the same thing. Black Star looked like a chicken without it's head, looking around aimlessly, yelling out "What?! What?!" As if thinking we were under attack right at that moment.
"Right ahead of us." Maka said and we all nodded, knowing what she meant...except for Black Star, of course. "I'm sensing a soul up ahead. Someone's there." She braced herself. "This soul...no doubt about it, this horrible, horrible sensation." She glared her eyes forward and we all braced ourselves as we heard footsteps come closer. "Papa." Maka said with venom on her lips.
Sure enough, it was Spirit who came out of the shadows with a shocked look on his face, his hand up in the air as a greeting. We all relaxed except for Maka who still looked on at her father with a glare. "A horrible, horrible sensation?" He repeated, shock still taking over.
"Pretty amazing for being able to get out of that magic trap." Stein commented.
Spirit gave a cocky chuckle before flicking his hair away from his eyes. Doing a dramatic pose. "When it comes to chasing a woman, no one is better than me." He said with a thumbs up. All of us gave him a deadpanned looked while Maka gritted her teeth even harder. He was completely unaware of the murderous looks his daughter was giving him. Black Star obviously noticed and let out a snicker at her expression before she punched him in the face to shut him up, not keeping her eyes away from her father.
"Of course..." Stein said. "But, that's good. I don't know how far I would've been able to go without a weapon." He walked up closer to him and it seemed like they were having a conversation just with their body language. "Up ahead?"
Spirit answered. "Yeah, they're waiting." He then turned into his weapon form: A giant black cross with (where I'm guessing his blade should be) one part almost as long at the handle. Stein held Spirit in his hand as he turned to face us all once again.
"Everyone, from here on out there's no telling what could happen. I advise no weapon to go back to their human forms no matter what. Just a single attack could take away your life." He said ominously, his glasses glinting in whatever light could be seen in this dark place.
"Understood." All the weapons chorused from inside their weapon forms.
"Are you sure they're waiting, aren't they headed straight to the Kishin?" Kid asked.
"No, they shouldn't all be headed there..." Stein answered.
Black Star was silent for a minute. "Hey...do you hear that?"
We all listened carefully. "What did you hear, Black Star?" Soul asked. He didn't answer which we were grateful for as we needed to know what exactly he heard. Sure enough, footsteps could be heard coming closer...and closer.
Everyone braced their weapons, getting into a defensive stance. "I hear it." I said, one of the few things I've said since Sid helped us escape. "Sounds like footsteps."
Black Star smirked. "Finally, they're coming." He was obviously pumped up and ready for a fight. "Which one is it?"
"One who's confident being outnumbered," Stein spoke up. "And is also able to attack and hold off those numbers," Then a soul - a witch's soul - appeared in front of us and we immediately held our ground, ready to strike.
She's here. Nurse Medusa.
Medusa's soul was huge, to say the least. It had a purple hue and sharp arrows surrounded it. No doubt about it, this is the soul a witch who was pure evil. There she stood. Wearing her infamous black one piece with no sleeves. Her arms both had a sort of black tattoo of a snake on them with two silver bracelets on each wrist. Her hood had, what appeared to be, giant eyes on top. She also appeared to have a tail in the shape of an arrow. Even as a witch she still had her hair twisted at the front.
"About time you showed up." She said in all her barefoot glory.
"Alright, here's the plan-"
"Should we really discuss that while in front of her?" I interrupted.
Even though he didn't turn his head I knew he had a lopsided grin on his face. "We can't really ask her to walk back to give us some private time can we?"
I looked downwards, face blushing red as I realised how idiotic I sounded. Black Star is starting to rub off on me...
"I can already guess what they're plan is. First to face is Medusa, further up ahead is the Demon Sword, and the two remaining will be on their way to the Kishin. The werewolf Maka met before would use his immortal life to his advantage and protect the Black Blood at all costs. And now where we come in: I will take care of Medusa while the four of you quickly get past her, Kid, seeing as how you have the most mobility with your Beelzebub, you will go after the two holding the black blood."
"Got it." Kid said.
"Black Star and Luna, your job is to take on the Demon Sword so Kid and Maka can pass."
"Right." We chorused.
"And finally, Maka, you go ahead with Kid and stop the wolf and witch together."
"Okay."
"Finally, everyone," He turned his back to Medusa. "Don't die on me."
Medusa let out a laugh. "Explaining your plan right in front of the enemy?" Giving out another laugh she looked at each one of us before locking her eyes with mine. Her penetrating gaze startled me a moment and I almost lost my stance.
Looking into her eyes, I could feel the same tingle in my brain I'd first felt when I woke up. Something I had forgotten was almost coming back to me. She sighed. "Luna, you've grown up so well..."
Furrowing my eyebrows, I whispered. "What do you mean?"
Silence.
She cackled, almost having to hold her stomach. "Oh, this is priceless, are your memories still missing?"
"What do you know about that?!"
Maka put her hand on my shoulder. "Luna, don't listen to her, she's trying to mess with your mind."
As I looked at Medusa for longer, the closer I could feel my lost memory returning. I already knew that this witch standing before me was the same one who'd given me the snake, poisoned me, taken me away from Silver and trained me. But I feel as if I had a connection with her from much farther back.
Without realising it, I took a few steps towards her. I heard footsteps from behind rush towards me before they were abruptly stopped; Stein must have held them back. I lowered Silver as I lost myself into her eyes even more.
"Luna?" Silver asked, still in his weapon form. "What's wrong?"
Medusa tutted, a sly grin on her face. "This isn't much of a family reunion with you glaring at me." I squinted my eyes at that. 'Family Reunion' she's said the same thing to me before... Then she snorted. "But, I guess that's what your mother would have wanted - the little bitch." She sneered.
"What do you know about my mother?" I said, defensive of this witch slandering my own flash and blood. "She was a kind person, never wanted to hurt a fly."
"Ha! 'Person', 'never wanted', you've chosen your words wisely to make sure your DWMA friends over there wouldn't turn on you...but don't you think it's about time they knew who you were...Miss Bellfree?" She said sarcastically.
This wasn't good. There's no doubt in my mind that this woman knows that I'm a witch but what I'm most terrified about is what will happen if everyone else found out. Would they think I'm on her side and bump me on their enemy list?
She tapped her foot. "Hmm, that doesn't seem to help you does it? Try and think of all those fun sessions I've had with you..." She said and for a moment I thought she was talking about when she trained me until she said, "And Silver."
My chest tightened.
With me and Silver.
With me...and Silver.
Then all the painful memories came back. All the injections, the experiments, the tests. All the horrible things from when I was a child. All the terrifying moments spent with...Dr W.
Now as I thought about it.
The room was never dark.
The voice was never distorted.
I could hear and see as clear as day.
I could hear and see her.
"Dr. M for Doctor Medusa? Very creative." I said, my voice trembling as tears threatened to pour from my eyes.
She pouted. "Is that all you remember about me?"
I let out a breathy chuckle. "Of course not."
This witch. This mad woman. This psychological damaging being. The sole reason my blood is tainted.
"Aunt Medusa."
************************************************************************************************************
OH MY GOSHHHHHHHHH I'M SO PROUD OF MYSELF FOR FINISHING THIS!!!!! AND WITH OVER 7000 WORDS THATS LIKE 10 WATTPAD PAGES WOOHOOO DEAR LORD I AM TIRED AND COLD BUT RIGHT NOW I DON'T CARE BECAUSE I UPDATED SOMETHING ABSOLUTELY AWESOME AND I'M SURE VERY JAW DROPPING FOR MOST OF YOU!!!!
TO THOSE CONFUSED ABOUT THE DR W, DR M BIZNEZ: Each time I look at this chapter I always think to myself maybe it should've been Dr W for Witch....or Dr M for Medusa and the readers could interpret that as something else like....idk something like that. I've decided to finalise it as Dr. M :))
A follower started messaging me yesterday (or was it two days ago, my memory sucks :P) and the encouraging things this person started saying to me, oh dear lord it inspired me so much to power through the last thousand words x3 Thank you so much!!!! Chapter is dedicated to you for being so encouraging :D
One of the deep things they said (And I mean real deep like Lil Wayne deep you get what I'm sayin' ;) ) was this: "Lol. Understand the feeling, but we have to always remember; Some people have higher working standards than us. Whether we want to accept it or not, its the truth. Someone out there can always do more than we can. That doesn't mean we should give up, though. It means we should work at our own pace and take time when trying to surpass our limits. ^^"
It is now 1:46am, I am tired, my sis is treating me to watch the new transformers tomorrow and I am absolutely BUZZING for that, can't wait cuz she always cheers me up with her attitude!!!
Anyways, xLuckyLocketx OUT! ENJOY THE CHAPTER UNTIL NEXT TIME I HOPE I START GETTING BETTER AT UPDATES SO I CANT FINISH IT THIS YEAR >.< (it's been on for 2 years now, I needa pick up the slack before 6th form starts T~T)