Chapter Text
The full moon shone its silver light brightly on one particular spring night. The stars twinkled in the sky, beautiful and visible despite the city's light pollution. The air was warm outside and there was a slight breeze. Most of the students of Hope’s Peak Academy are sleeping soundly in their beds. All except one.
In one of the club rooms was a tall, lanky man forming a circle with complex designs on the dark, hardwood floor with salt. He was careful not to disturb the lines he had already created as he moved around the room, adding more to the magic circle until it was complete. He took a step back and scanned his design, comparing it to a drawing in an old leather occult book.
The Ultimate Anthropologist ambled towards a rickety wooden table at the front of the room, on which were the supplies he would be using for this ritual. He took up a pocket knife, which had a wooden handle. Engraved into the hilt was his name surrounded by several intricate patterns. He took a large pink candle off the table and held it in his hand as he wrote his name and star sign into the side with the blade, tiny shavings falling to the floor. Turning the candle around, he wrote the name and star sign of his friend and the co-president of the occult club, Angie Yonaga, onto the other side, just as he had done with his own.
Korekiyo flipped the pocket knife closed and slipped it into the pocket of his pants. It was important that his switchblade not get lost in the clutter that filled the occult club room as then, it’d be highly probable he may never see it again. However, unlike Angie, Korekiyo was organized, having a particular spot where he liked to keep each of his possessions. He touched his left wrist with the fingertips of his right hand and smiled softly when he felt the bright pink hair tie he was wearing as a bracelet under the sleeve of his dark green military jacket.
He placed the candle on the table and grabbed the red rose in full bloom that lay next to it. He slowly and carefully plucked off a few of the petals, the action reminding him of the game Loves Me, Loves Me Not that he used to play when he was a small child. He did not take more petals than he needed, keeping the flower mostly intact. He returned the flower to the long table and picked up the candle once more. With the petals in one hand and the candle in his other, he rubbed the flower petals over it, coating the candle in a thin layer of rose oil.
Korekiyo walked over to the small, plastic trash bin by the entrance of the club room and deposited the flower petals inside. The trash was mostly empty save for a few pieces of paper and the petals now resting on top. He made a mental note to empty it before their next club meeting so that Angie wouldn’t see. He already knew she’d have questions as to where they came from and he didn’t feel like explaining, nor did he want to lie to her.
He returned to where he drew the magic circle and cautiously set down the candle in the center. Korekiyo reached into the pocket of his jacket and quickly found what he was looking for, a small box of matches. He pulled them out of his pocket and took one of the matches out of the box. Korekiyo struck the match against the side of the matchbox, igniting it on the first try. He leaned over the magic circle he had created, careful not to break any of the lines for if he did not fix them, the ritual wouldn’t work, making all of his hard work and preparation meaningless, and lit wick of the candle.
Korekiyo steadily stood back up to his full height before quickly shaking the match, putting out the mini-fire. He took a few steps back from the magic circle and lowered himself so that he was sitting down on the ground. He placed the used match, which he planned on throwing away later, as well as the mostly full matchbox into the pocket of his jacket. For now, Korekiyo watched as the candle's flame flickered, slowly melting the candle. His yellow eyes followed a small drop of wax that gradually dripped down the side.
The Ultimate Anthropologist understood that he should likely feel bad about what he was doing but he couldn’t find it in himself to. He knew his actions were incredibly selfish but he had never claimed himself to be otherwise. He had always been selfish and this was just one example on a very long list that proved this. To him, it didn’t matter what he had to do to get what this ritual promised. He’d easily perform it a hundred times if that was what it took.
Korekiyo placed a hand behind his body and leaned back on it. He knew he would be there for a while so he may as well get comfortable. There wasn’t much he could do except wait for the candle to burn out. While the pink candle slowly burned and more wax began dripping down the side, Korekiyo’s mind wandered, thinking back on the many memories that had led to this moment.