So, I was not supposed to post this now because I already had like, ten other fics, but it's christmas so why not post something! I hope you enjoy this! Let me know what you think and I hope you have a good day/night!

That was how it ended.

A ten year worth of conflict and regret, ended with not just a blast, but the rebirth of magic.

Green lights fell down the sky, as if they were meteor showers.

Croix stared in awe, and so did the woman standing next to her. She glanced at her for a moment, and could only wear a somber and regretful expression on her face, as she saw how messed up she looked.

Her hair was all over the place. Her clothes were filled with cuts and dirt. Her arms were covered with bruises and scratches.

Bruises that were her fault…

Her eyes moved to her back, and she wondered what kind of bruise did the fall in her lab create.

...How could she be so stupid?

Why did it take for everything to blow up in her face for her to wake up?

She tried to look away, at anything but her old friend… her sworn enemy… her… whatever she was at the moment.

If she was neither a friend nor an enemy, then what was she?

Unfortunately, her eyes could only settle on her.

She tried to say something, but the words were caught in her throat and she wondered what she could even say to her. She hurt her, she made her go through hell.

So how dare she…

"Are you okay?"

...ask that?

Chariot Du Nord, the person she found herself coming back to despite trying so hard to leave her and any memory of her behind, turned to her in surprise.

"What?" Chariot spoke, and the moment Croix heard her tender soft voice, she regretted every decision in her life that has led her to this moment.

"I asked if… you're okay." She repeated, mentally scolding herself. Of course she had to be dumb enough to ask her after everything she has done to hurt her.

Good job Meridies, Idiot of the century.

"I'm fine!" Chariot said right away, leaning forward along as she spoke, before withdrawing herself and taking her hair into both hands, holding it. It seemed like an act out of nervousness. "What about you?"

"What about me?" The lilac haired witch asked in confusion, although she started to feel more tired now.

"The dragon attacked you without holding back earlier." Chariot explained, and looked at her with worry. Something about that gaze was unsettling.

"Why do you care?" Croix said, and felt a pain in her chest when she saw disappointment appearing in those red orbs, as if they had a hope in them that just got crashed. "I almost got you killed back there! I've done you so much harm and you're asking me if I'm okay?"

"You also told me to run away and save myself…"

"That doesn't matter! I got you into this mess!"

"This mess could have been avoided by us both."

"Are you kidding me?!" Croix's voice grew angrier. "I watched you get eaten by that thing! I thought you were dead Chariot!"

"I'm here-"

"No thanks to me!"

"Can you just stop?!" Chariot snapped, and this time, it was Croix's turn to flinch. "All I've wanted was to have you back, and yet all we do is fight and fight and I'm so tired of it!"

"Chariot…" Croix stared at her with wide eyes.

"It's pointless… It's always like this between us." Chariot said, her voice filled with agony, and it only made the guilt in the older woman's heart multiply.

But she couldn't say anything, because in that moment, everything caught up to her.

Croix as a witch, was physically stronger than a normal human. Her body could live longer, and it could take more damage. However, she wasn't strong enough to walk off the damage she received from her creation, and now that there was nothing threatening their lives, the adrenaline wore off, and she was vulnerable.

The redhead somehow noticed the dazed look in those emerald eyes, and she moved towards her, alarmed when she was her stumbling backwards.

Chariot caught her, telling her to stay awake, but every voice was distant to the soon to be unconscious witch.

She just wanted to rest.

But in those few seconds she had left, she raised her hand to cup her old friend's face.

She felt something wet fall on her face, and while her vision was starting to fade, she could see that the other witch was crying.

"Why are you crying for me, idiot?" She chuckled, before losing consciousness.

And that's how Croix ended up grumpily sitting in a bed in the nurse's office. She internally groaned, wishing they would have just left her there in the forest, but no, here she was in the same room as another patient who happened to be Chariot du Nord of all people.

She was starting to think she had some sort of misfortune going on for her.

Perhaps Woodward cursed her as a kid, and made sure she could never catch a break.

"Curse you Woodward, I'll cut your tree off with a chainsaw someday." She thought.

Chariot stood over her bed, with crossed arms. She looked angry, despite the concern she showed the moment the lilac haired witch woke up. She had no idea what exactly it was that she did, but her demeanor changed in an instant.

Was she going to tell her how much of an idiot she has been?

Did she talk in her sleep?

Did she say something stupid?

Did she… let out unpleasant smells while sleeping?

She hoped not.

"Why are you crying for me, idiot? Really?" Chariot started, and the emerald eyed witch looked at her in confusion. "If you died, your last word to me would be 'idiot'. What were you thinking?"

"Really? Of all the things you could be mad about, it's that?" Croix rolled her eyes. "Why are you here anyway? Didn't they say you can leave now? You're mostly healed."

"You're not getting rid of me that easily, Meridies."

"Oh, I know." Croix said, and turned away, pulling the blanket over her head. "I'm going to ignore you."

"How mature of you." Chariot groaned, feeling frustrated. "Next time you're about to die, you better think of better last words." She said, before quickly looking back. "Don't actually die though…"

"Yes ma'am, I'll only die when you allow me to." She responded sarcastically, but Chariot smirked.

"I thought you were ignoring me."

"Listen here, you-" Croix shot up from the bed, only to sit back and groan from the pain in her lower back. Chariot looked at her with concern, but the older witch just looked away. "Look, can you just leave me alone? I don't want to talk to anyone."

Chariot looked at her for a moment, then her expression turned into disappointment. She lifted her left hand to hold her arm, as she bit her lip.

"I'm… glad you're here." She said, glancing one last time at her old friend, before walking away.

The redhead left the room, and Croix looked at the door, wishing she would come back. She knew this was for the best, and that she would only snap at her if she stayed for longer, but still…

Croix lied back on the bed, and closed her eyes.

She almost got them both killed, she almost nuked a country because she couldn't keep her stupid inventions in check.

Why would Chariot still try to be near her? She couldn't understand.

She closed her eyes, trying to get some sleep.

Chariot was leaning against the closed door, she gripped her arm tighter.

"Why cry for you?" She muttered, before moving away and continuing to walk. "For such a prodigy you can be so stupid sometimes…"

She ignored the looks that were given to her by the students. She was glad Finneran brought her a professor robe, or else the looks would have been worse considering she previously wore a jumpsuit.

She was still insecure about showing her real identity, so she made her hair blue again the moment she left the room, so that at least the students wouldn't know. They would still question why their professor had some bandages over her though.

They would probably come to the conclusion that she was clumsy and fell down or something.

Her wounds healed much faster because her body was strong, the complete opposite of Croix. While Croix wasn't too weak, and she had the tiniest bit of muscle in her arms (which she has been shamefully staring at, according to the nurse.) her body didn't seem like it would recover at the same speed, especially since some of her ribs were broken because of the dragon.

Out of the new nine witches as Akko called them, only Akko and Diana got the praise of everyone at school since they were the ones getting broadcasted. She was happy that Akko was finally getting the credit she deserved.

Sure, she was causing trouble all the time, but she still did her best.

She especially deserved this after… she took her magic away.

"Professor Ursula?" Chariot's train of thoughts stopped, when she Finneran called out for her. She turned, suddenly feeling nervous now that the woman knew her true identity. "Walk with me." She simply said.

Chariot gulped, and did as told. She kept a fair distance between them, hoping the woman wouldn't strangle her or something. The hallways were emptier than usual. Some students were around, while others were either in their dorms or in town. Everyone was given a few days off after the missile incident.

"So, all this time you've been hiding right beneath our noses." Finneran spoke, and the young professor almost yelped.

"I… I'm sorry." She said.

"It's a good thing you're not dead." The professor simply said, and continued walking.

Chariot looked at her in confusion, before smiling.

The two arrived at Holbrooke's office. The woman smiled warmly.

"It's good to see you, Professor Ursula." She said, gesturing for her to sit. "How are your wounds?"

"They're healing fast." 'Ursula' said. "Thank you."

"I'm sorry to ask this of you while you're still recovering, but we need your help." The headmistress said, and the young professor just gave her a questioning look. "We need you to keep an eye on miss Meridies, until we clean up this mess and finish negotiating with the magic department over her… fate."

"You're… giving her in?"

"It's not like I want to. They have seen the broadcast, and they know that those were our students out there. It won't take them long to find out who's responsible."

"But…!"

"She deserves to be put behind bars." Finneran said. "She might have helped out at the end, but she still put us all in danger."

The sight of Akko falling off the Wagandea tree flashed before her eyes, and her expression became pained.

They only knew about the missile, nothing else.

But should it stay that way?

Should Chariot really hide the truth?

Was she just holding on into a person she thought she knew?

Holbrooke stared at her for a moment, before sighing.

"We'll keep it a secret for now." She said, and both Chariot and Finneran looked at her in disbelief. "They will find out eventually, but until they come here, I won't say a thing."

"That is not a wise decision, headmistress." The brown haired witch stated, while Chariot looked hopeful.

"Until then, we seal away her magic, and she is under your watch." Miranda continued, ignoring the professor's protests. "Is that okay?"

"Yes!" Chariot said right away, before excusing herself.

She rushed back to the room where the lilac haired witch was resting. She barged in, startling the patient.

"CHARIOT FOR THE LOVE OF-" Croix sat up, only to groan in pain again. She put a hand on lower back and glared at the younger witch. "Are you trying to kill me?"

The blue haired witch stared at her with a smile.

"Tonight, you're sleeping with me."

"..."

"Wait I didn't mean it like-"

Croix simply threw her pillow at her face, and 'gently' asked her to leave.