There And Back Again [Black Clover x BNHA]

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Over 2.5k words of emotions with a little bonus at the end. :)

"Hey, Eri." The little girl looked up into Finral's eyes, innocence shining brightly. He swallowed deeply, forcing a smile onto his face. "You know how the other students are awake, Asui and them?" He waited for her to nod. "How about you go and keep them company? I'm sure seeing you will help them heal even faster than they already are."

Eri thought for a moment, hands bunching her little robe up. "Red there too?"

Finral nodded. "Kirishima is there too, and so is Iida, remember?"

The child scrunched up her nose, little lines appearing on her forehead. The spatial mage waited, watching as Leopold and Hamon waved him over to Cob's doors. Thankfully, Eri didn't take too long.

"But what about your match? I wanted to watch."

"I know," his heart broke, but forced himself forward, "But my battle isn't going to be all that exciting, and I think those three would much rather have your company. And Grey and Gordon can entertain you as well."

"Can I see you after?"

"Yeah." Finral lied, opening up a portal before him. "They're just through here, alright?"

"Okay. Bye bye, Fin."

"Bye Eri."

After letting her down, the little girl gave him one last glance before stepping through the portal, disappearing to a place Finral knew she'd be safe. Sighing, he jolted as a hand landed on his shoulder, the portal snapping shut.

"It may not be that bad..." Vanessa trailed off, not believing her own words.

Finral just gave her a sad look, a weary smile on his face. "We all know it's going to be catastrophic. But hey, at least I'll go down giving him a good fight."

Before the witch could speak further, Asta ran over to them, grabbing onto Finral's arm. The students and Bulls were not far behind, all giving him beaming smiles.

"Don't give up Finral! I know you can defeat your brother!"

"Yeah! Give him a good beating, just like Noelle did to Solid!"

"Hate to admit it, but your magic has grown way stronger, so go get'em!"

"Maybe if you win, I can fight you soon! Wouldn't that be fun? Haha!"

(A/N: When the fuck did this turn into a Finral-focused story??? I love him but this was not my intent. I am so sorry. It will go back to the main peeps I promise.)

Finral gave them a grin, hoping it was filled with the confidence he was willing himself to manifest. With a final farewell, the spatial mage joined Leopold and Hamon, ignoring the icy glares his brother was giving him. Taking a deep breath, he stepped out onto the battlefield.

No one was particularly loud this time around, cheers being held back as everyone could feel the underlying tension in the air. The students who were surrounded by the Black Bulls could feel the nervousness and slight fear rolling off of them. And after seeing Langris first-hand... they understood why.

It was expected, and not a surprise to anyone, when Sekke brought Langris to Finral. Leopold and Hamon had been teleported off by the spatial mage to fight Fragil and destroy the crystal, leaving him alone to defend on his own. When one of Finral's new spells homed in on the duo, sending Sekke away, the large group let out sighs of relief, knowing that he had one less thing to worry about.

Jirou swore she heard a blood-curdling scream in the distance, but brushed it away.

But then... then things became worse.