Rosewood Enchantment: A Little Witch Academia Tale

Chapter 10 Gathering Storms

Mailins Pov:

After leaving the hall, it was back to classes. I found myself seated between Nike and Naile as Professor Finnelan began discussing the assignment of festival duties.

"Now we will begin assigning festival duties to each team. Please send your team's representative forward to draw your lot," Professor Finnelan announced.

"Mailin, you're going forward, okay?" Nike looked at me, assigning me the task.

"Yeah, okay," I replied, reluctantly making my way to join the line of representatives. Being first always made me uneasy.

With a sigh, I drew my lot, my heart sinking a little at the prospect of what I might be assigned. However, to my surprise, I was met with an unexpected stroke of luck.

"Hey there! You're gonna be in charge of fireworks!" the cute little lot exclaimed in a cheery, high-pitched voice, bringing a spark of excitement to my spirits.

"Firework magic!" I repeated, a glimmer of enthusiasm now brightening my mood.

"How lucky!" The girl behind me exclaimed, her words infused with genuine excitement as I made my way back to my teammates.

"Hm! You losers get cleaning duty!" Amanda's lot grumbled grumpily.

"Gross!" Amanda grimaced in disgust, clearly not thrilled with her team's assignment.

"How unlucky," Jasminka's cheerful tone struck an odd contrast with her comment, eliciting a light giggle from me. Her demeanor seemed mismatched with the unfortunate assignment.

Akko and her team, on the other hand, received sacrifice duty, prompting a collective look of confusion among us.

"What's sacrifice duty?" I inquired, turning to Naile for an explanation, but she simply shrugged. The teacher proceeded to elucidate the duty, drawing laughter from the others, though I failed to join in. "Poor Akko. She always has bad luck," I remarked with a hint of sympathy.

After classes, we convened in Akko's room. Nike and Naile suggested I go alone as they needed to study, bidding me farewell as I exited our room.

In the hallway, I nearly collided with Amanda. "Oh, I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" I asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, babe. I was just on my way to Akko's room. Now that you're here, we can go together," Amanda reassured me. I nodded and took her hand, feeling a sense of comfort in her presence.

Upon entering Akko's room, Amanda made herself comfortable on Akko's bed, assuming her typical half-lying, half-sitting position. I lay beside her, resting my head against her shoulder as we held hands and listened to Akko's lament.

"Why do we have to be the sacrifices? I thought the festival was supposed to be fun," Akko expressed her disappointment.

Meanwhile, Jasminka indulged in a snack, and Constanze tinkered with some tech. Lotte then delved into the backstory of the sacrificing duty, explaining the ghost and its role in the festival's tradition.

Akko's frustration with their assigned duties was palpable. "Ugh! Now this whole thing is making me wanna cry!" she exclaimed, collapsing onto her bed with a groan of annoyance. "I just wanna be the moonlit witch like Chariot was!"

A spark of realization flickered in Amanda's eyes as she sat up abruptly, causing me to gasp and tumble off her lap. "Oh, sorry, Mailin," Amanda apologized sheepishly, flashing me a grin before redirecting her attention to Akko. "Wait a minute. You're saying you want to be the moonlit witch?"

"I'm not sure if that's likely," Lotte interjected, turning to Akko. "At this rate, I think Diana is going to be the one chosen."

Amanda nodded in agreement, sitting up further. "Yeah, I gotta agree," she chimed in.

"Right," Lotte affirmed.

Akko rose to her feet indignantly. "Whose friends are you? Hmph!"

In response, I embraced Amanda from behind as she perched on Akko's bed, one leg drawn up while she rested her arm on her knee. Amanda turned her head to smirk at me, and I stole a quick peck on her lips before we refocused on Lotte's commentary.

"Well, she does come from a long line of great witches, so it makes sense that Diana is a magic prodigy," Lotte reasoned.

As Akko and the others delved further into discussion about the moonlit witch, Sucy added her own macabre twist, expressing excitement about being eaten by a ghost.

"Unbelievable," Akko muttered in exasperation.

I let out a surprised yelp as Amanda suddenly hoisted herself onto the upper bunk bed, playfully glaring at her while she grinned mischievously.

"Man, that's totally crazy," Amanda remarked, adding her own colorful commentary to the conversation.

"Isn't it?!" Akko exclaimed, assuming Amanda was referring to Sucy's unsettling excitement.

"No, not that," Amanda clarified, her tone serious. "You're crazy if you really think you'll get picked to be the moonlit witch if you can't even fly a broom yet."

The others nodded in agreement, echoing Amanda's sentiment. Amanda continued, suggesting that being a sacrifice suited Akko, prompting further remarks about Akko's supposed misfortune.

As Akko's frustration mounted, she reached her breaking point, shouting, "YOU GUYS ARE JUST THE WORST!!" before storming out and slamming the door behind her.

I let out a weary sigh and rose from my seat, gazing out of the window. Amanda's arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me close as she rested her head on my shoulder.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly, drawing the attention of the others in the room.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I reassured her, though my attention was caught by a sudden flash of blue light outside. "I gotta go!" With that, I slipped out of Amanda's embrace and dashed out of the room.

"Mailin!" Amanda called after me, her voice filled with concern. I raced through the halls, the ground trembling beneath me as I hurried onward.