Forbidden Knowledge Vol.1 (Marisa Kirisame X Male Reader)

Chapter 37 - Forbidden Knowledge Vol.1 - Power

I had woken up that morning with an eagerness I couldn't quite explain, itching to see Marisa and keep ticking things off that wild bucket list of ours. But as I approached her home, I heard the sound of glass shattering and something heavy slamming against a wall, followed by Marisa's voice, fierce and raw. Alarmed, I quickened my pace and pushed open her door.

The place was a mess, even by Marisa's usual standards. Broken potion bottles lay scattered across the floor, their contents oozing across splintered wood. Books were tossed around like they'd been caught in a storm. My heart sank seeing the familiar place in such chaos.

"Marisa?" I called out, carefully stepping through the rubble and picking up a book that had somehow ended up halfway across the room. I began setting things back where they belonged, stacking some of her more well-worn volumes on the shelf. That's when I saw her—hair dishevelled, eyes dark with exhaustion, and a haunted look on her face.

"What the hell do you want?" she snapped, her voice edged with frustration and something deeper, something closer to desperation. "You here to see the big failure I am? Go on, rub it in! Laugh about how I can't even keep up anymore!"

I hesitated, putting the book on the side and shaking my head. "Marisa, why would I ever think that about you?" I asked softly. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

She let out a bitter laugh, her hands clenched into fists. "Oh, what's going on?" She spun around, her clothes scorched and torn like she'd barely made it out of an explosion. "Why don't you take a wild guess, huh? What does it look like?"

I opened a window, letting some of the smoke drift out, ignoring her protests as I tried to clear the air a bit. After setting the last book upright and pushing away a broken bottle, I folded my arms and looked at her firmly. "Marisa, want to talk about it now?"

She opened her mouth, anger still flickering in her eyes, but her voice faltered. Her lip trembled, and she tried to hold her composure—but finally, she cracked. Tears spilt over, and she crumpled, sobs escaping her as she clutched onto my shirt, saying something almost unintelligible between gasps and cries. Words like "failure" and "weak" tumbled out, her feelings of being left behind clawing to the surface.

Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around her, letting her cry as I stroked her hair, murmuring words of comfort. She pressed her face into my chest, her grip on my shirt tight. After a while, her breathing slowed, the storm of emotions finally ebbing.

Gently, I tilted her face up and wiped her tears away, offering her a faint smile. "Marisa, you're plenty strong as it is. You're the strongest person I know, and that's a fact."

She sniffed, her expression wavering. "I am?"

"Oh, without a doubt," I said, smiling wider. "And the Marisa I know doesn't give up, no matter what. Whatever crazy magic experiment you were working on? I know you'll get it next time."

A hint of a smile appeared on her face as she leaned into me again, nodding. "Yeah... just a setback."

"There you go." I gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Just a setback. You'll get it, and you'll knock the socks off everyone."

"Even you?"

"Especially me." I held her gaze, trying to let her feel my confidence in her, my belief that she could overcome anything. "But you look exhausted. Please, get some rest."

Marisa gave a slight, reluctant nod, her head finding a comfortable spot on my lap as we sat down together. As she settled in, she looked at the scattered remnants of her failed experiment, sighing softly. "I really overdid it this time, didn't I?"

I chuckled, brushing a few stray hairs out of her face. "Hey, don't worry about that. Get some rest. You'll be back at it like nothing happened tomorrow."