Our Ideal Place (Little Witch Academia)

Chapter 16: The Wedinburgh Fair

Diana paced the hallways of Luna Nova. How did Akko know about the Retrieve lever? She must have found out when she went to Amanda's manor. It was possible that Amanda had a DAM board. She passed a deserted courtyard and sat on a bench. What should she do about Akko?

A movement caught her eye and she blinked. Something moved behind a pillar, making small scratching sounds on the stones. Diana stood up and slowly walked towards the pillar. A flash of brown darted to the next pillar then Diana ran back to the bench and stood on it.

"A mouse!" thought Diana. She should call one of the sprites to take care of it or perhaps, she could capture it herself. Her hand groped empty air. Where was her wand? Did she leave it in her room? She looked around and tried to figure out where she was. Based on the foliage, she must be behind the main building. If she could just find a sprite, it would deal with the mouse. She was about to step down when she noticed something brown near the bench.

"Ahh! It's here!" exclaimed Diana, moving her foot back. The mouse looked at her with large reddish-brown eyes and squeaked. What did it say? She should be able to understand mouse language a little. It stood up on its hind legs and squeaked louder. Diana moved away as much as the bench allowed.

Then it ran to one of the bench's legs and started to climb. As she jumped off the bench, Diana screamed in fright and ran as fast as she could. Unused to sprinting, she was soon out of breath and stopped, inhaling lungfuls of air. When she finally stood up, she was near some ruins.

"Ah... this is where I found Akko..." She sat down on the wooden bench where Akko sat when she found her on that snowy night. She had been flying above Luna Nova in an attempt to see as much ground as possible. While passing these ruins, she had a strange feeling and decided to come down. Her heart ached to see that usually cheerful girl so depressed. Although she allowed herself to be brought to Wednesday's cafe, Akko didn't respond until she showed the premium card. Was that the answer? Should she find some rare Shiny Chariot item and apologize? But where would she look? It had been over ten years.

"I didn't mean to make a fool of you, Akko..." Tears spilled from her eyes and her hands curled into fists, grabbing the hem of her skirt. How could she regain Akko's trust?

She cried for a bit and over time, exhausted her tears. As she blew her nose, she noticed something brown near her foot.

"Mouse!" Her body slid along the bench's length, moving away from the mouse. The mouse didn't move and just looked at her with its large eyes. Diana blinked. Was it her imagination or did the mouse seem sad?

The mouse squeaked in high-pitched sounds, which she understood as, "Why?"

"Why?" Was the mouse asking why she was crying? "I... I made a mistake. My friend is mad at me." It felt strange talking to a mouse. It just stood there, as if waiting for her to say more.

"It wasn't my intention to make fun of her. I was just so happy that she was there with me... and I..." Should she mention how much she enjoyed looking at Akko? Warmth spread to her cheeks as the memory of a waistband slipping over pale skin flashed in her mind. That would be too lewd. "I got carried away. I liked that she was helping me, and I liked taking care of her."

The mouse moved a few inches towards the bench's leg and stopped. Diana shifted away and watched warily. It lifted its front paws over its head as if in surrender. It was an unusual motion and Diana wondered why it did that. With its hind legs, it walked slowly towards the bench's leg. Intrigued, Diana watched as it walked over. Just as slow, it climbed the leg, pausing every few inches to look at her. Still, Diana tensed for action, ready to bolt if the mouse ran over. When it got on the seat, it slowly moved forward until about a foot away and then sat down on its rear. Its large reddish-brown eyes looked at her with a sad expression.