Chapter 14

On a Blessed Night of Falling Stars “I’m sorry.” Feoras bowed his head meekly. He wasn’t acting like the king of the Cait Sith anymore. He was down on all fours, like a normal cat. “I seem to have been too stubborn… It must’ve angered the first Sifla. It must’ve been why she turned us into those things. She meant to say, ‘If you want it that badly, then fight each other forever.’” Alan hung his head in agreement, looking like an ordinary dog, too. “I should’ve faced you squarely, Feoras. I should’ve asked us to stop, instead of thinking it was too much work.” “No, you’re both wrong. It was my fault for not being able to be a proper witch.” Her eyes brimming with tears, Sifla hugged the dejected-looking pair tightly. “That’s why I couldn’t hear your voices. I wasn’t really trying to listen. I’m a failure of a guardian…” Even as she said this, she held her eyes wide-open, determined not to let the tears fall. While the rest of us were touched by her courage… “If you put it that way, I’d say you’re all too inexperienced to be trusted with this hill,” Diana cut in frostily. “Attempting to rule it by yourself… You must esteem yourselves too highly.” “Hey, Diana, you don’t have to be nasty about it—” “I’m saying for that very reason, the three of you must join hands. You’ll have the necessary power to guard the hill when you do so. In any case, you saved those two, Sifla. You showed great courage in the face of danger.” “…You should’ve started with that.” “You’re the one who interrupted, Akko. You should listen until others are finished speaking.” “Yes, fine, whatever!” Diana snobbishly looked away, and I pouted. Come on. Give me a break. I worked hard, too, you know. “It’s just as Diana says… From now on, I’m sure the three of us will combine our strengths and guard the hill together,” said Sifla. I was still feeling sulky, but Sifla gently held my hand. “Thank you, Akko. Because of you, we’ll be able to become the new fairy king.” “Huh? R-r-really?” “Yes, really. If it hadn’t been for you, we would’ve gone our separate ways.” I blushed. Diana folded her arms and nodded reluctantly. “Well, one could say that, yes. This was rather well done for you, Akko.” “D-Diana…!” “Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not complimenting you. Had it been me, I would’ve settled this before things got out of hand!” Her eyebrows came down in a scowl, but her expression was softer than usual. Eh-heh. Eh-heh-heh-heh-heh. My cheeks relaxed into a goofy grin. Sifla nodded firmly several times. “I managed that last spell because you were there, Akko. I don’t know who this Chariot is, but I’m sure you’ll become an amazing witch.” “O-oh, I know! You’re so right! After all, I’ve got this Shiny Rod. No one but me could be the next Chariot, huh?!” “…You get carried away much too easily, Akko,” Sucy grumbled at me. Whoops, I must’ve gotten a little too high-and-mighty over this. But hey, there’s nothing wrong with getting carried away once in a while! And besides, I almost never get complimented this much! Feoras and Alan quietly came up to me and rubbed their muzzles against my legs, as if asking for my attention. “Akko, I’m truly grateful. This was all thanks to you. At first, I did think you were an absurd young lady, but…” “Oh, come on! But then I turned out to be a splendid, magnificent young lady, didn’t I?!” “Yes, you did… Sort of.” Feoras smirked. Beside him, Alan gave a soft bark. “I’ll take note of that energy of yours and work to cure a bit of my laziness.” “Huh? Reeeally? Can you?” “I’ll try. Maybe.” “Boy, do I not trust that.” Amanda laughed. “For starters, quit making people pull you around on that sled. Have some dignity.” “Hmm, that’s rather… Oh yes. Constanze.” “……?” He’d suddenly directed the conversation at her, and she cocked her head, puzzled. “Would you make me something? Like some sort of vehicle that will carry me around while preserving my dignity? You’re good at that kind of thing, aren’t you? That bazooka of yours was very cool.” “……!” Oh, wow. That startled me. Constanze’s eyes sparkled so brightly. And her face actually looked cheerful for once?! Nodding several times, she took a notebook from her pocket and immediately began to sketch out a blueprint. Alan peered at it, looking happy, too. He was putting in all sorts of requests: “I’d like to attach a water bowl here. I want a pillow of some sort…” You really haven’t learned your lesson, have you…? “Never mind that. Would everyone like some tea? We still have the herbal blend that Sifla has been keeping for us.” Sifla’s face was the first to light up in response to Lotte’s suggestion. “Yes! I want to talk more about Night Fall with you, Lotte!” “Of course! Professor Ursula, we don’t have to go back yet…do we?” she asked timidly. The professor shook her head. “Of course not.” “Hooray!” As everyone jumped up, Diana frowned slightly. “Honestly. I wish you wouldn’t be so childish.” “Then I guess you don’t want any tea or snacks, huh, Diana? Wanna go ahead and leave?” I needled her spitefully, and her eyebrows came down in anger. “I said nothing of the sort!” “Man. Just be honest for once, wouldja?” “Now, now. There’s enough tea for Diana, too.” “Have some snaaacks.” As we picnicked, we gazed at Stone Doras and the moon. For something so spontaneous, our little party was quite magnificent: We had some tea, and Jasminka passed around one snack after another as she stuffed her face with marshmallows. Now this really felt like a school trip! As I was on my way to get some more tea from Lotte, Professor Ursula stopped me. “You worked very hard back there, Miss Kagari. There may have been a few problems, but for a new witch, you certainly did an excellent job.” “A compliment from a teacher? That never happens! Yaaay!” “Are you beginning to understand the importance of studying magical history?” “Eh-heh-heh. Well, a little.” I did think I could probably stand to listen to the lectures a bit more seriously from now on. It was just, you know… Professor Finnelan’s voice made me so sleepy. “‘A believing heart is my magic.’ You made superb use of that, Miss Kagari.” “Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh. You think so, too?! Am I just bursting with talent or what?!” Professor Ursula didn’t answer. Instead, she gave a dry smile and looked up at the full moon. “Besides, the Shiny Rod responded to your heart again. Someone like you…you just might be able to do what I couldn’t…” “Huh?” “Oh, it’s nothing. In any case, excellent work. All right, I believe I’ll get some tea as well.” For a moment, I thought the professor’s profile had kind of looked like somebody else’s under the moonlight. I rubbed at my eyes. She’d seemed like someone I’d met before. Just as I was about to call out to her…the professor tripped over absolutely nothing and took a mighty tumble. “Ouch! Oh, why does this always happen?” Somehow, she hadn’t gotten hurt when Feoras and Alan were fighting, but I swear…this teacher. …Yep. She’s the same as always. Professor Ursula is just Professor Ursula. I must’ve been seeing things. Yeah, it was probably only my imagination! “Say, Feoras. Alan. Want to try using our power to make more shooting stars?” suggested Sifla as she drank tea with Lotte and looked up at the night sky. “I wouldn’t mind that, but…how?” asked Feoras. “We were out of control the whole time, you know. We still don’t know how it’s done.” “There’s a song Grandmother taught me. I’m pretty sure you two know it, too. Don’t you?” “…Is it—?” “Is it the one we both remembered parts of?” Sifla smiled and nodded. “Grandmother said when my heart became one with the fairies, we’d be able to make the stars fall if we sang that song under the light of the full moon. She said I mustn’t teach the cat more than the first half and the dog more than the last half.” “…I see.” Feoras’s eyes scrunched up with a smile. “Three people as one, hmm? In other words, it never would’ve worked if we didn’t cooperate,” Alan said, poking Sifla with his nose. She set down her cup and hugged Feoras and Alan, one on either side, with her slim arms. It was just like that dream. Like the three I’d seen nestled together. I bet this was what the first Sifla wanted to see. “Let’s all sing, okay?” Sifla began the song in a clear voice. The forest lady drinks red fruit, her younger sister’s offering. Beneath a tree dripping water, twittering songbirds summon the coming of spring. Bathed in the moonlight, a witch will arrive to bridge the fairies’ past. The senior overlooks the hill; white flowers show the way to those who are lost. At the end of the path, one finds the way to a paradise of love. Turn a wish into strength, and blessings will dance on a night of falling stars. Every time the three of them sang in unison, stars streaked across the night sky. The sight of it all made me catch my breath. At long last, they had become the fairy king. You know, I had a feeling there probably hadn’t been any sort of contract between the fairy king and the first Sifla. She might’ve just convinced the Cait Sith and Cu Sith to get along with each other and decided the three of them would always protect the hill together as friends. But somewhere along the way, everyone had gone back to fighting. And the fairy king had disappeared. Tonight, they’d come back as one, alongside the sacred trees. As we leaned against each other, wordlessly gazing up at the night sky, Lotte poked my arm. “Say, Akko? I was wondering.”