Akatsuki: The Second Act (Magi Ja'far X Fem Reader)

Potential

(Y/n)

About a month of training flies by, every day a struggle to drag my weary body out of bed (or Ja'far's desk if we'd been working late into the night) before enduring my training sessions. But gradually, steadily, I was improving.

"Faster, (y/n)!" barks Sinbad. For someone so cheerful and friendly, he actually has a rather serious side too. I push him away with a little help from my magoi, then lift my sword with my left hand just in time to block Sharrkan's attack. But as expected from one of Sindria's Eight Generals, he doesn't let me get away that easily. Out swords lock and push against each other, waiting for the other to yield.

I grit my teeth. This is bad. Suddenly, I spot a flash of turqoise hair walking through the gates. "Hey, is that Yamuraiha? Who's that guy she's hugging?" I say, peering over Sharrkan's shoulder. "What?!" he yells, immediately spinning around to look. Grasping the oppoturnity, I kick the back of his legs and make him lose his balance. Next to the courtyard gates, Yamuraiha is shaking with laughter at the sight of Sharrkan stumbling. She has, indeed, come into the courtyard. The part about the guy she was hugging, on the other hand, was a complete lie.

"Why, you little-", he mutters, glaring irritatedly at me. I somersault away before his sword can strike me, allowing my stolid expression to slip for a while just to throw a smug look at him. He may be a general and one of the greatest fighters I've had the honor to face, but Sharrkan is still Sharrkan. And I know how to push his buttons. The moment does not last long, however, because I have to get ready to meet Sinbad's next attack.

After what seems like an endless dance between returning Sinbad's magoi attacks and trying not to let an embarrassed Sharrkan slice my face off, Sinbad calls for us to stop sparring.

"Great job, (y/n)! You managed to last a really long time! You didn't use too much magoi this time, either," he says, back to his buoyant, encouraging self. Wiping the sweat from my brow, I grin in satisfaction. I'm so happy to have made it this far! I've regained most of my strength and speed and am getting better at controlling the amount of magoi I use.

There's just one problem.

I haven't been able to beat Ja'far, or even keep up with him for long. As usual, I meet up with him that night. It's uncanny and impressive, the way he can blend into the darkness and use it to his advantage. But after so much training, my eyes have become better at adjusting to the darkness, and my other senses have become more alert. A bit to my right, I hear a squirrel skittering out of a bush, disturbed by something.

"There!" I grab Ja'far's arm, ready to flip him over my head, pin him down, then hold a knife to his throat. But my grip is too weak, my reflexes too slow to keep up with him in the dark. Once again, I lose him in the darkness. Finally, he comes up behind me, disarms me, and traps me in his wires. Again.

Nevertheless, as I head back to Ja'far's office to help him do some final bits of work, I realise that I don't really feel disappointed. I've come this far. I almost had him today. Tomorrow, or maybe the day after that, I'll get him.

The pen clatters to the floor, breaking my train of thought. Ja'far's finally fallen asleep, his breathing now a slow, steady rhythm. "Well, looks like I should go to sleep too now," I sigh, leaning my head against the desk next to him, my thoughts fading as I doze off.

A faint sound wakes me up. The sound of water burbling, spilling over mud and pebbles as it flows somewhere nearby. A stream. My eyes open to see a child silhouetted against a sky peppered with stars and fireflies.

"Sister!" the child exclaims in that achingly familiar voice. "Let's play!"