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Akko and Diana stood atop the world, adrenaline finally releasing its hold on them as relief took their reigns. Just as their physical body felt weightless in space, their hearts too felt relieved of a burden that far exceeded their capabilities, yet by some miracle, and with the help of a certain Shiny Rod, they watched in awe as the Earth and its inhabitants thanked them in the only way they could.
Beaming back up at them was the biggest smile both girls had ever seen, manifested into a more tangible form by the recently revived roots of Yggdrasil. As simple of a gesture as it was, at its core, it revealed the very basic essence of magic that many have forgotten: underneath all its formulaic formalities and theoretics, magic was as simple as believing of its existence. Much like the Grand Triskellion, the power of magic was at most limited to the caster’s imagination and in seeing such a miracle unfold before their eyes, it only further enforced it to them just how much simply believing was a quintessential source of procuring magic of any kind.
In making this realization, Akko closed her eyes and giggled in content at just how much this came full circle for her. What had been nothing more than a dream to make people laugh and smile had ultimately become the unifying force that brought many lives together in the hope of achieving one goal.
All because she poured her heart and soul into believing it could happen.
Taking Diana's hand, Akko chanced a peak back at her fellow savior, expecting nothing less than a similar smile to be reflected back at her.. only to be disappointed upon being greeted with a look of horror tarnishing Diana's elegant face.
Except, it wasn't directed at her.
Following her gaze, Akko looked back down at the planet they had saved, recoiling in shock at what met her eyes.
Down below, during the short time she had turned away, the smile that once coated the planet in its ethereal green light began morphing and contorting into a blood red frown. It had been a gradual transformation and Diana was witness to it all, and soon Akko as well.
Where the nose was supposed to be on the face, a small red dot began to grow.
Pulsing, like a faint heartbeat.
As if it were alive, the red blob was expanding at an almost exponential rate, merging with the green and eating away at its brilliance. The once tender green smile slowly ebbed its way down the color gradient until an angry red frown fully emerged from its remains, bathing the planet in an eerie glow.
Then, in an almost comical fashion, the frown shrunk in on itself, popping out of existence like a bubble's last breath.
However, what it left behind wasn't as humorous as its final bidding. Akko and Diana gaped in disbelief at the sight they were seeing. Clenching tightly at the hand in her grasp, Akko could only whimper as a single thought played over and over in her mind.
'What went wrong?'
Much like her predecessor, a wave of eerie calm had washed over her before the weight of the events that followed soon came crashing down.
From their perch up in space, they could only look on at a lone crater the size of the very smile they had painstakingly fought for, that marred the surface of the planet like a brand. A scene starkly similar to mistakes made from a once bygone decade.
"W- We did all that we could.. What even.. Why?! How could this have-"
"Akko-"
"Diana, w-were we not enough?! I don't get it-"
"Akko, it wasn't guaranteed.. you know we-"
"No! I can NOT believe this happened.. I- I refuse to believe it did-"
Tears cascaded down Akko’s flush cheeks as sob after sob heaved up from her lungs. A myriad of negative emotions began to settle in her now fragile heart. Guilt, sadness, anger, grief- Akko’s hand immediately went limp from Diana’s hand. Glossy eyes stared blankly into the distance as small tremors wracked her body, jostling her sobs into random hiccups.
There was nothing she could do now. What was once a bustling metropolis was now an empty desolate hole in the ground. Akko always believed magic was capable of anything. She truly did. But this was where she drew the line. Magic may be powerful in its own right, but was it powerful enough to bring back the lives of thousands of people-
'I-I’m sorry.. I’m sorryI’msorryI’msorry-'
A tug.
From behind her, Diana pulled Akko against her chest and into a tight embrace, gently nudging her head back to lean against her shoulder. In whispered breaths, she shushed the brunette into a state of calm. Broken, but calm nonetheless.
For a moment, everything was still.
With a grimace, Diana glanced down at the surface below. She knew this brief respite wouldn’t last for very long. Eventually, they would have to come back down to Earth and face the aftermath. But for now, they both needed this retreat from reality as the silence of space offered nothing but its presence to the upcoming chaos.
Yes, things had truly come full circle.. but not in the way they had hoped.