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There was dust in her eyes. It clouded her vision to the point where she could barely open her eyes without getting dust in them, and she definitely didn’t need that at the moment. Eventually, the dust settled down, leaving nothing but rubble in her view. She turned around.
“...Shiho?” Behind her was no one. There was no one around her at all. Everything had collapsed into nothing but rubble.
“Shiho?” She felt herself staring at each body around her for longer than she probably should have, their lifeless still eyes bearing down into her soul, as if to tell her this is your fault. Each person stretched out into some weird position, most of them reaching out in some desperate final attempt to survive . To say it was hard to look at was an understatement. Blood had splattered everywhere, including on herself.
Ah, she hadn’t noticed how her dress had practically been dyed red, not the pastel green it was when she had first put it on in the morning. Her hand moved to wipe away some of the blood on her face, but just as she felt herself touch the cold red liquid, her hand stopped. Even if she wanted to keep moving, she couldn’t. She could feel every muscle in her screaming to close her eyes, to not think about the stickiness of the blood on her hands, to just run away and find somewhere safe. She didn’t do any of that though. She faced forwards and opened her eyes. Then she started walking again.
She couldn’t tell how much time had passed at this point. Most likely very little time had passed, but every second in the rubble felt like minutes, and each time she found a body, time slowed down just a little more. Each one added to that feeling of judgment, that feeling that she was being watched. Slowly, she took another step, facing the floor. Only one thought sounded through her head. This is your fault. Don’t deny it. Everything here was because of her. Every corpse on the floor, every collapsed building. Because of her.
As she walked over a small bump, she noticed a gray mess of hair peeking out from some debris and without thinking, she was already digging away, trying to free them. She kept digging until she finally pulled out the body. It had short, ash grey hair and seemed to have on some cape, but there was dust and dirt everywhere, and she couldn’t see any clearer than that without looking closer. So, she looked closer. Despite every bone in her body screaming to look away , to run and not look back. Something was wrong. AVERT YOUR EYES FROM THE TRUTH. She didn’t listen to herself. She noticed a crest, one which could only belong to one person. A shiver ran down her spine. An eye opened. A hand reached out, grabbing at her dress. It clung on, weighing her down, and she couldn’t pull her off. A pair of now dead green eyes stared into her pale blue eyes. You did this. YOU. DID. THIS. NO MORE RUNNING.
Her eyes snapped open. No longer was she stuck in the endless rubble, but now, she was laying in bed, covered in sweat. Her breathing was heavy. She could feel the way that sweat stuck to herself as she slowly got up, sitting at the edge of her bed. She looked up, no longer seeing that blank, empty sky, but instead looking at the blank white ceiling above her. Normally, she would find it rather bland and unappealing, but now, it felt almost comforting. She took another deep breath as she slowly tried to stabilize herself.
Eventually, she laid down on her bed once again, feeling herself relax just a little. Still, she couldn’t get that sight out of her mind. Then again, she never could normally, so it wasn’t abnormal. She took in another deep breath, but her heart still had not calmed down enough. So, she decided to get up. She got out of bed quietly so as to not disturb Airi, who was sleeping in the bed next to hers. She took off her shirt, as it was still covered in sweat, and switched into a new one before finally exiting the house.
The sky was clear so each and every star was visible in the night sky, glimmering and glowing brightly. Slowly, Shizuku took in the sky above her, slowly staring and absorbing in the way that each star seemed to glow. Needless to say, it was comforting to stare at the night sky, in all its stillness. She sat there a while, star-gazing like she had seen one of her sister's younger friends do. She would point at the stars and tell her friend the name and point out the shape of each constellation visible in the sky. Sometimes the others would chip in too, pointing in a random direction and trying to recall the name. When they got it right, they would clap, but when they got it wrong, they would all just laugh. I wonder how the rest of Shiho’s friends are doing now…
Her breathing quickened as her thoughts drifted to Shiho. She felt heart begin to race as Shiho’s face flashed in her mind. Her breath got faster and faster and faster-
“Hey.” A cold hand was suddenly on her shoulder, which made her jump up in fright. “Woah! I’ve never seen you jump like that!” Airi was standing in front of her, hands up in a slight shock. Slowly, both of them sat down, Shizuku avoiding Airi’s gaze.
“So, are you gonna tell me what’s up?” Airi looked at Shizuku, squinting at her.
“It’s fine-” Airi suddenly placed her hand on Shizuku’s mouth and faced her just as she finished responding.
“Don’t lie to me. We’re too close for that now.” As soon as Airi let her hand go, Shizuku quickly turned away and hid her head.
“I told you Airi, it’s no problem…” At this point though, Shizuku felt her whole body shaking and trembling. Then, she felt a hand on her head. She looked up, slowly, and saw Airi. Her hand was on her head, and she was head patting her. Airi’s face was a light shade of pink when she spoke next.
“I know you’re normally the one doing this, but I hope this makes you feel better…” Airi had turned and faced away from Shizuku at this point, but Shizuku could still see the faint blush on her face. She chuckled slightly and leaned into Airi’s hand.
“Thank you Airi.” They both sat there for who knows how long, staring at the stars, Airi now holding Shizuku as leaned her Airi’s shoulder. Slowly, she felt her eyes close shut as Shizulu began to drift off to sleep.
“Y’know, I used to hate you.” Shizuku was definitely asleep at this point, leaving Airi talking to no one. She sighed before continuing, “When we first met, I was always so jealous of you. You always seemed to be able to do just about anything, and you had a talent for magic, the one thing that I always wanted to be able to do.”
It had been a tiring day for Airi.
“Fucking hell!” Just as Airi was about to cast the spell, the ball of energy that she had spent so long gathering quickly fizzled out. Great, she had just wasted an hour. Still, she began collecting energy again. Soon, the lines that ran through the sword began to glow as Airi began to concentrate. The first step to cast magic is collecting mana. To do that, one must focus in and sense the mana, before gaining control over it and collecting it within a chosen vessel. For Airi, that was her sword. However, some people could use themselves as a vessel if they were talented enough. She stood like that for a while, collecting and building mana until-
“Airi!” Out of nowhere, someone had run up to her and embraced her, causing Airi to stumble to the floor and for the mana she was building up to fizzle out.
“Shizuku! Haven’t I told you to stop interrupting me when I’m practicing!” She tried to push Shizuku off herself, but despite her efforts, Shizuku clung onto her like a puppy, leaving Airi stuck in place.
“Sorry! I just saw you and couldn’t resist hugging you since you’re so soft!” Shizuku quietly said, and she almost seemed to be sorry if it wasn’t for the huge smile that was on her face.
“Whatever, just get off and let me practice.” Airi replied bluntly. Finally, Shizku relaxed her grip enough for Airi to push her off. Just like that, it was back to practice for Airi. Picking up her sword, she closed her eyes once more and began to focus.
God, I really did hate Shizuku back then, didn’t I? For the longest time, Shizuku was everything that Airi had wanted to be, but better. She was talented at magic, more so than maybe any other person on the planet. She was beautiful too, no one could deny that. Even Airi back then acknowledged it. Still, that only irritated her more. She seemed so perfect back then . Now, of course, she had spent enough time with Shizuku to know that wasn’t true.
That day, Airi was just out for an evening walk when she noticed someone. They seemed to have been practicing magic, as there was a huge ball of magic in their hand while they just stood there. Slowly, Airi walked towards them, careful to not disturb their concentration. Soon, she realised that the person she was looking at was Shizuku. She had on an expression that Airi had never seen before; like all her focus and concentration had been laser focused onto on point. The sphere in Shizuku’s hand continued to grow and grow until it was absolutely massive. Then, in one swift and clean motion, the sphere formed the shape of a flower bud.
“Flower dance.” Suddenly, the flower bloomed, each petal elegantly blooming out and extending like the waves of the ocean. The entire time, Shizuku stood there, eyes closed, in intense concentration. The magic flowed out, covering the entire training arena in a beautiful, light green field. The sight was absolutely stunning. Even now, a few years later, Airi could still remember every little detail, as she had made sure to burn every moment her eyes captured into her brain. She blinked, and just as suddenly, the field disappeared and Shizuku collapsed on the floor, panting.
Now that Airi looked closer, she noticed that sweat was dripping down Shizuku’s face. Her breathing was also very heavy, and she looked visibly exhausted. Most likely from using that much magic. Even after all that, Shizuku picked herself back up again, closed her eyes, and began to concentrate. Meanwhile, Airi could only stare in awe as the sphere began to reform itself.
I’m really glad we became friends. Shizuku was now in Airi's lap while Airi stroked Shizuku’s hair. Looking closer at her face, Airi could notice and take in every detail. Her long eyelashes, her gentle expression and flowing hair, and the light smile left on her lips. She looks so peaceful, sleeping like this… Maybe if I leaned in a little- NO. Airi had to physically shake her head to stop herself from leaning down and kissing- NOPE.
As if to tease her, Shizuku suddenly curled up into her, bringing the two closer together. oh my god I can feel her breath on my stomach. She felt her face grow hot. Lucky Shizuku can’t see me right now… Even though her face felt like it was burning, she continued to stroke Shizuku’s hair. Slowly, she felt herself calm down and return to normal. She looked up at the stars, still and unmoving. I hope that we can stay like this forever… looking up at the stars, side by side.