Zephyra
༝ ᴵᴺ ᴬᴸᴸ ᴹᵞ ᴰᴿᴱᴬᴹᔆ ᴵ ᴰᴿᴼᵂᴺ ༝
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2024
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☀ Aιкσ ☀
❝𝔄𝔩𝔩 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰 𝔰𝔥𝔢 𝔰𝔞𝔦𝔡
ℜ𝔲𝔫𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥 𝔪𝔶 𝔥𝔢𝔞𝔡.❞

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━∘♡̵┛
☀ Aιкσ ☀
❝𝔄𝔩𝔩 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰 𝔰𝔥𝔢 𝔰𝔞𝔦𝔡
ℜ𝔲𝔫𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥 𝔪𝔶 𝔥𝔢𝔞𝔡.❞
𝒜 westerly wind blew across the snow-tipped peaks of Kinai's northern countryside, great evergreens stretching up to the skies to meet the yawning abyss of darkness above. It was early enough in the morning that the birds had just begun to sing, the silhouette of the moons fading as the golden sun peeked over the horizon and lit the world awash in its glow. Wooden carriage wheels cut through ice and snow until they made it onto a dirt road, the horses at its head snorting and flicking their manes as they trotted along the beaten path.
Aiko sat alone in the coach, her russet-colored head leaning against the back wall as she daydreamed. After packing her bags and frantically checking over her new academy uniform for any stains or wrinkles, she'd loaded her belongings into the back and prepared for a long journey across the kingdom. Megumi Academy was located in neutral territory near the southeastern edge of the continent, where the weather was mild and there were few people around for miles. Reading up on it, she'd discovered that the school itself was actually built inside of a large crater — rumor has it that the crater was formed thousands of years ago when the goddess herself came crashing down to the earth and gifted mankind with mastery over magic, blessing them with the ability to wield the elements as a sign of her good will.
Of course, that was only a rumor. Nobody really knew when or how mages came to be, though everyone had their own explanations that ranged from somewhat plausible to completely nonsensical. That was all a bit outside of the scope of Aiko's mind, however. She lounged back and yawned loudly, rolling her sore shoulders as she stretched her arms above her head. Having to wake up so early and get ready wasn't doing her any favors, and it wasn't long before she fell asleep on the leather seat, her head pressed up against the window as she closed her eyes and let the carriage rock her along into dreamland.
✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ
"I don't know about this, Ai. Attending such a big academy could be dangerous." The soothing, sagely voice of her grandmother floated to her ears, ever the cautious woman. It was that very caution that had kept them safe for all these years, she knew, but there was no way that she could just ignore an invitation from the headmaster of Megumi Academy.
"Oh, don't worry about it, nana. Everything's going to be just fine! It's one of the most secure places in the country, after all." Aiko had reassured her as she'd stuffed another sweet roll doused in lemon in her mouth, a bit of citrusy juice spilling over onto her chin. "I'll write to you every week - promise."
The elderly woman let out a sigh as she tucked some of her granddaughter's hair behind her ear, the age lines in her face growing deeper with concern. "If it were up to me, I'd keep you far away from that damned prophecy. What if you run into that cursed girl at school? Goddess, to think they'd even let a child of darkness into the academy."
Aiko shook her head, gently taking her grandmother's hand away from her face and placing it back at her side. "It's just a dusty old text, nana. The prophecy isn't actually real. What's the worst that could happen?"
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╰══• ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧♡✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ•══╯
╰══• ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧♡✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ•══╯
When the heroine awoke once more, she found herself face to face with the most grand view she'd ever laid eyes upon. The carriage descended into the valley below and Aiko stuck her head out of the window to watch as yellow and orange leaves fluttered on by, a slight chill in the air signaling the beginning of autumn. From the big clocktower in the square, she could tell that it was less than ten minutes until noon — in others words, the very same hour she was meant to show up for the opening assembly. The driver had just barely made it in time, the rickety old wheels sliding to a stop as he reined in the horses. Aiko shot up out of her seat and fumbled for the campus map that had been enclosed in her letter, her hazel eyes wide as she scanned over the crumpled paper. Oh no. Where's the meeting hall?
She practically busted the doors down in her hurry to exit the carriage and grab her heavy, overstuffed bags from the back, though the added weight of them didn't seem to bother her much. After accidentally hitting the coachman in the face with one, she turned red and quickly bowed her head a few times as she backed away. "Sorry. Thank you!"
There was no time to linger. She had only a few minutes to find the meeting hall, and with such a huge campus looming ahead of her she was afraid it would take at least half an hour to make it from one side to the other. Her panicked expression only deepened as she attempted to decipher the map, silently cursing herself for never having been particularly skilled at navigation. As she looked up she noticed that there were almost no other students near the front, likely because they were already at the assembly. Spotting a boy walking by himself, Aiko rushed over to him and waved, her white uniform skirt rustling with the movement.
"Hey! Are you heading to the assembly, too? Can I walk with you?" She smiled at him in a friendly manner, her head tilting to the side as she watched him acknowledge her. The dark-haired boy leveled her with a blank, disinterested gaze before turning his face away a moment later.
"No. I'm not going that way."
Aiko paused. "Eh... Huh? But it's about to start... Wait, where are you going?"
She watched incredulously as he began walking in the direction of the woods bordering the school grounds, his strange behavior prompting her to do a double take. "W-wait, wait! Can you at least tell me where the meeting hall is?"
He paused with his back still turned to her, but she could see him angle his jaw from behind and slightly nudge his head to the left. Tearing her eyes away from him, she turned to look down the path he'd indicated, soon spotting a big central building with a pointed roof some ways down, though it was partially hidden behind the foliage. Based on the way that students were still making their way inside, it was probably a pretty safe bet to assume that that was her destination. "Oh! Thank you so mu-"
The moment she'd turned to look at him once more, she'd found that he was already gone. Confused, she spun around a few times to see if she could spot him. No dice. Nevermind, I don't have time for this! The grand clock would soon strike twelve, and if she hadn't stepped foot through that door by then, she would be late. Goddess forbid she was tardy on her very first day.
Aiko's heeled boots struck against the cobblestone path as she ran towards the main building as fast as she could, a light sweat forming upon her brow while she sprinted. It certainly didn't help that they had to build everything so far apart, and she found herself wishing she could have a word with the architects who'd designed such a labyrinthian institution. Luckily, she was pretty sure she had just enough time to make it inside. With a singular goal in mind, the girl effectively shut out everything else around her, her legs straining as she vaulted over a hedge instead of going around it and landed smoothly on the other side.
Well, almost.
In the split second before she crashed into a stranger, the only thing she could see was a flash of pink hair, the color so bright and vivid that it nearly blinded her. She let out a shout as their bodies collided, the force of her impact so strong that it toppled the both of them. Aiko fell on top of the figure that she vaguely registered as a girl, the feeling of a soft, feminine body beneath her own serving to cushion the blow somewhat. That didn't stop her head from reeling in the aftermath, stars dancing around the edges of her vision while a thin trail of blood streamed down her nose.
Aside from the pain, however, there was something else that assailed her senses. Flashes of imagery, places foreign and strange, faces she'd never seen before — memories. Her eyes widened as they hit her all at once like an oncoming train, the sensations so sudden and violent that she felt as though her heart would stop. She experienced the entirety of another life in the blink of an eye, overpowering emotions coursing through her and causing her body to shake uncontrollably. What was this? All at once, she felt friendship, warmth, love, desire... She was staring into the eyes of a girl who meant everything to her, reaching out for her with unspoken ardor on her lips, melting into the tenderness of her embrace... Only for all of it to be ripped away as two bright lights flashed at her and a deafening sound drowned out her thoughts. Those positive feelings quickly turned to fear, despair, agony, and bitter denial. She was dying, struggling to take in her last breath even as her mind refused to succumb to the darkness. Over and over, the same line replayed in her head like a broken record, uttered by an unfamiliar voice that once belonged to her.
``— I want to see her again.``
These recollections of a past life were hers. Every sight, every sound, every taste, every scent, everything she'd ever touched and everyone she'd ever met. Her parents, her siblings, her friends, her soulmate... All of them were once a part of her life in another world. And this world, the land of Kinai, and even the boy she'd briefly bumped into earlier... She recognized them all from a video game she'd once played.
This is... The Light Maiden's Quest for Love!? And I'm... I'm the heroine, Aiko Hikari!
When she came back to, she realized that she was still on top of the young woman, her cheeks flushed and her chest heaving as she panted from the exertion of running so fast. Only a few moments had passed between the initial collision and her regaining her memories, but it had felt like hours while she was watching her former life play out in front of her. Now she was finally able to get a good look at the person she'd run into, her unfocused gaze sweeping over those sharp amber eyes and that familiar head of long pink hair. That's the villainess!
Air crashed into her lungs almost painfully as Aiko scrambled to get off of her, her head still spinning from how hard she'd hit the floor and the overwhelming sensations that came after. In a daze, she realized that this was one of the first scenes in the game, part of the prologue where the heroine arrives at the academy and is first introduced to her mortal enemy, the villainess Rin Koizumi. If she remembered correctly, this was the part where she'd be severely lambasted for bumping into her.
Unfortunately, she was too dumbstruck by everything she'd just learned to try and think of a creative way out of this situation. All she could do was fall back on her butt and stare slack-jawed at the other girl, her hazel eyes brimming with tears that even she hadn't realized were there. Everything she'd just witnessed was so intense, so heavy that she couldn't help but tear up. She couldn't quite explain it, but she missed that girl from her memories terribly.
"Ah, I-I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Aiko apologized profusely as she bowed her head to Rin, droplets of blood leaking out from her nose and staining the grass beneath their feet. "Please forgive me!"
Her shoulders tensed up as she readied herself to be rebuked by the noblewoman, but even that mattered little when she was now faced with the staggering reality of her situation. Hells, nobody would ever believe her if she told them about it. She hardly even believed it herself.
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