Note: This is a sequel to MindFull, so you may need to read that one first for this to make sense.

It was in the middle of the week following the wonderful date she had with Akko that Diana's more cynical thoughts came to a head. After their last class of the day, Magical History, she and Akko naturally decided to walk back to the dorms together. Something they had always done, but now found itself contextualized in an entirely new way since Akko had learned how Diana felt about her.

Funny, how just a little new information can completely change everything.

Of course, that was exactly the problem she had lately. The days after their unofficial date should've been some of the most carefree of Diana's life, and in some ways, it was. She couldn't deny she was happier than she had been in a very long time. Her heart still pounded in her chest with the bright smiles Akko sent her way, and suddenly even these benign little walks to and from class became grand moments simply because they were together during them. So her regrets had absolutely nothing to do with the girl she cared for, nor the time they shared.

No, what Diana regretted was her own behavior during the date. All the times she tripped over her words, stuttered, let her feelings for Akko get the better of her…it was just foolish. Juvenile, stupid, and utterly beneath her. Yes, it was new territory for her, but the way she just panicked and flailed when Akko so much as complimented her made her look like an idiot. She just seemed to lose complete control of her thoughts. And then there was the fact that one week ago, she had been incapacitated by a perverse demon and required Akko to travel within her head and fix her from the inside out. She still wasn't sure how to feel about that whole thing.

She did trust Akko. She trusted her implicitly with her insecurities and vulnerabilities. To say Diana was glad that Akko knew not only how she felt, but actually appeared to reciprocate those feelings was a vast understatement. If ever there was a person she felt safe enough with to bare her soul to, it was her. And Akko's subsequent actions proved exactly why Diana had fallen for her.

Yet that trust with her innermost thoughts was the exact reason why Diana wished Akko had never seen them. The irony that the one person she really wanted to impress would see her in a state when she had no control over herself more than annoyed her. Not that Akko had ever treated her with any more deference than she did all her other friends, but still, it gnawed at Diana's insides that she couldn't ever seem to keep herself in line around Akko when her opinion was just so important.

She made a declaration then, that if she were to be in a relationship, she was going to remain in better control of herself and her emotions, more than ever. Both because Akko deserved a respectable girlfriend (regardless of the fact that she paid no mind when Diana acted less so) and because Diana never settled for anything less than as close to perfect as she could get. She needed to prove to both of them she was above such childishness.

As they left the classroom towards the dorms, Akko let out a frustrated groan. "Ugh…that class is way too hard. How can anyone stand it?"

"It's just reading, Akko." Diana shrugged. "Besides, you already know that to become a great witch like you want to be, you just need to put in the work."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." She groaned, massaging her forehead. "But it's long and it's boring."

"You know, I told you that if you ever needed support, I'm here for you."

She couldn't help but smile at the light blush on Akko's cheeks. "T-thanks…but you don't need to do that! Don't worry about me, okay? I can figure it out, really!"

"I know you can." Diana said. "But regardless, if you ever need it, I'm always willing to help you."

She glanced down just in time to see Akko hesitantly reach for her hand only to quickly pull back, as though nothing happened. Neither of them commented on it.

She couldn't help but wonder about this more withdrawn side of her. Akko was unabashedly happy that they were dating. She was as loud, proud and boisterous with that fact as she was with anything. In the few short days since Saturday, she cheerfully told just about every one of her friends about it, far sooner than Diana would've, given she was fairly certain it took at least two dates to be officially dating. Yet, when they were alone together like this, Akko seemed to become much more bashful.

It did give Diana more time to compose herself and make sure she didn't do anything too foolish. And they had only been together for a few days, and not even officially, considering how they had more or less avoided calling their date as such. She hardly considered it proper to be openly affectionate so early on, and that was the thing holding her back. She was just curious as to what was making someone as sure of herself as Akko hesitate.

As they continued on towards their respective rooms, Diana found that their walk was turning out much quieter than usual. And even beyond Akko's atypical bashfulness, she didn't even seem to be trying to make conversation as she always did. In fact, she looked…a little paler than usual. Her eyes were glazed over, and beads of sweat began forming on her forehead. Every few minutes, she would massage the spot between her brows.

"Are you feeling okay?" Diana asked. "You've been touching your head a lot."

"What?" Akko seemed surprised that she had noticed. "Y-yeah, no, I'm good. Just…suddenly got a headache again. It comes and goes."

Diana's brows furrowed. "Have you not been feeling well lately? You never told me. Do you…need anything?"

Akko forced out a laugh. "I-it's no big deal or anything!" She ran the hand on her forehead through her hair, acting as though it was her intention all along. "…it's just kinda…strong today…"

Considering her informal promise to herself, Diana couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed she couldn't do more. Granted, it was just a headache (and she was…aware she had a tendency to overthink things) but still, it would be nice if she could help Akko feel better. Especially if it's been something that's reoccurring. It would ease her own anxieties considerably to prove she could be counted on when it would actually make a difference.

Diana nodded sympathetically. "Well, if you're sure you're alright…"

Akko rubbed her eyes. "Is what white?"

"That's not what I-" Diana pursed her lips, with a displeased hum. "Akko…how long have you not been feeling well? If you tell me what's wrong, maybe I can-"

"No, it's fine, Diana!" She argued. "You don't need to…I dunno, I'll figure it out by myself. D-don't worry about it!"

"If you need to go to the nurse…"

Akko visibly winced. "Nah, the new one they hired doesn't…really like me. I mean…c-could you maybe do a healing spell or something?"

Diana shook her head. "Healing spells don't really have much effect on headaches." Nor on stress or drowsiness, despite her best efforts. "I'm sure if you just get some rest, it'll clear up."

Akko let out a long sigh. Diana couldn't help but feel disappointed in herself, regardless of how logical it was. But then, she also couldn't help but notice how much their pace began to crawl. Akko was walking like she had weights around her ankles. She was clearly downplaying how much it was affecting her, but to what degree?

Akko suddenly stopped, and propped herself up against a wall. She staggered off-balance, and struggled to shake off her dizziness. "W-whoa…h-hang on…" She murmured. "Ev'rything's all…wonky…"

Diana huffed. Of course she'd be stubborn about this. What wasn't she stubborn about? "Okay, be honest with me. If you're feeling sick, just tell me so I can help you."

Akko waved her hand. "No, just dizzy, I guess…what's that…ringing?" She looked around for the source of some unheard sound. "S'like a really high pitched…eeeeeeeeeee, or something."

Diana crossed her arms, choosing not to comment on the noise. "…Look, maybe I should get you to the nurse. Something's clearly wrong."

Akko pushed herself off the wall. "N-no no. I'm fine! I'll be fine!" She said, with a forced confidence. She gestured to her wobbly legs. "See? Look I'm standing up…and I'm all…standing…and…it's good…"

And then she collapsed to the floor.

"A-Akko!"

Diana quickly knelt down to her side, doing her best to control her panic. Situations like these were the exact reason she trained so hard to keep her emotions in check. Akko was face-down on the floor, so the first thing to do was turn her over and make sure she can breathe as easy as possible. She was awake, thankfully, but only just. A sickly groan escaped her lips. Beyond her overly pale complexion, there was nothing visibly wrong with her, so whatever had caused her to collapse must be related to her sudden (and apparently reoccurring) headache. There was still no clear cause of it, but regardless, she wasn't going to get up on her own anytime soon.

Diana quickly threw Akko's arm around her shoulder, hoisting the girl to her feet. It took most of her willpower not to dwell on how limply Akko clung to her. Taking a calming breath, Diana considered her options. The nurse was halfway across campus, and she didn't have the strength to drag Akko all the way there on her own, especially if she completely lost consciousness.

So she'd continue to the Red Team's room. They were only a few turns away, and there was no way she could leave Akko's side without having her somewhere safe, with someone watching over her. Once she wasn't in such immediate risk, then Diana could better assess what was wrong and how to help her. Diana gave her hand a light squeeze to get her attention.

"I'm going to take you to your room, okay?" She said, as evenly as she could. "…If you can, tell me what you need. Just…say something, please."

"Nn…m'good…" Akko slurred out. "…fall down lotta…times…"

Right. That would have to do for now. It took long ten minutes to get to the room, not helped by how much Akko ended up dragging her feet. She only stayed awake enough to continue rubbing her head. Diana didn't let herself think about it. Not until they could get inside. She knocked on the door, hoping she wouldn't have to go to her own room and risk Akko getting worse.

Lotte and Sucy were both home, thankfully, and after a few panicked questions Lotte helped her lay Akko down on her bed. Diana was almost thankful for Sucy's nonchalant demeanor. Lotte's fretting, while admirable, was not helping her think clearly. Akko had sunken into her bedsheets with another weary groan, which meant Diana only had the other two for her questions.

"So." Diana spoke loudly, snapping Lotte and Sucy's attention to her. "She said something about headaches. Do either of you know anything about that?"

Lotte gave a hesitant nod. "Y-yeah, she's been saying she gets them whenever she wakes up…a-and that they just start and stop a lot for a while…"

"Any idea what's causing them?"

"Not really." Lotte shrugged helplessly. "Some days she never mentions them, and then some days she says she'll have a lot."

Diana felt her brows twitch. "Some days? Exactly how long have these been happening?"

Sucy had sat down on her own bed, absent-mindedly stirring of vial of a substance Diana chose not to dwell on. "She's been complaining about it since a week ago." Sucy explained. "Figured she was just talking like she always does."

"A week ago…" Diana bit the inside of her cheek. Not as long as she feared, but then, the timing of that was somewhat unsettling. Especially with all the other oddities about these headaches that led to her passing out like that. Perhaps it was just her overthinking, again, but something didn't seem entirely natural about it. But before she could think on it further, Akko groaned loudly, squinting in the low light beneath Lotte's bunk.

"Why's everyone…talking so loud?" She moaned. "Brain hurts…"

Diana knelt down to the bedside, making an effort to lower her voice. "You should've told me sooner. What's going on with these headaches? How can I help?"

Akko let out a small sigh. "It's been getting worse and worse…" She admitted. "I…I think I do…need you to go in and fix it."

Diana's brows furrowed. "What do you mean go in?"

"I went in your…brain, right?" Akko said, with a light shrug. "I dunno…fix it. You're the one who's good at…healing stuff."

She wanted her to travel inside her mind? It was hardly a conventional solution, nor was it one she was entirely comfortable doing. "I don't know…are you sure that's the right choice? It's not really…"

Akko cut her off with a curt nod. "Yeah. Something's wrong up there…you're smart and junk. I think you can figure out what's wrong. Just…fix it. I dunno."

Diana had done an amount of research on psychic-melding, but not as much as she would've liked. Definitely not enough to comfortably risk her own safety on, let alone potentially someone else's. But then, Akko sounded sure of herself, and she did do this twice already, with a certain degree of success. Not to mention, the timing of it compared to their last…incident was too close to be coincidental.

Perhaps something had happened when Akko was in her head. Akko deliberately chose not to say much on what happened, and she never mentioned any danger. Rarely did she ever acknowledge the danger she put herself in. So if something had gone wrong when she was in Diana's mind, it would then be Diana's responsibility to correct it.

Sucy sat up from the bed, with the beginnings of a smirk on her face. "This isn't going to be your guys' go-to solution for everything, is it?"

"Obviously not." Diana said flatly. "But something must be done, and all things considered, it does seem to be a possible solution. If it can help her, I'm prepared to do it." She turned to the ailing girl on the bed, figuring she needed to know what she was getting into. "I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking for, however. What can you tell me-?"

Akko had already passed out again. Of course she had.

With a quieted huff, she pulled over a desk chair to sit next to the bed. A considerable part of herself was advising against this idea, but she ignored it. Regardless of the danger, she owed it to her. And she was still a Cavendish after all. New waters or not, she was not raised to succumb to doubt. She was raised to face her problems logically, and she would approach this field of magic with the same dignity and rationality she did all fields she dealt with.

She closed her eyes, and situated herself on the chair, crossing her arms. She was going to be sitting here a while, she supposed. She wasn't entirely sure what to expect with this entire thing, but regardless, she gave the go-ahead to Lotte and Sucy to send her in. She could handle whatever she could find.

"Um…okay, I guess." Lotte said from behind her. "I, um…guess I'll do the spell then?"

"No, I'll do it, Lotte." Sucy said. "It would be my honor to perform this spell on Diana."

One not so gentle spell later, Diana supposed she had begun her first foray into mind-melding.

Before she even opened her eyes, she was struck by a…peculiar feeling in her head. She bit back a moan as she rubbed her temples. There was a disconnect here that was hard to describe. Like her mind was awake while her body was somehow not. A little like a lucid dream, but more…out of body, in a way. It was incredibly disorientating.

A familiar voice snapped her out her stupor. "Whoa, you're really weird looking! More of a good weird than a bad weird, but I don't think I've ever seen a persona that looked like you! Are you new here? Who are you? What are you supposed to be anyway?"

Diana cracked her eyes open. "…Akko?"

But the person standing before her…didn't seem to be the same Akko. Instead of her school uniform, she was now inexplicably in jeans and a grey hoodie. There were two lines of text sewn across the chest. One in Japanese she couldn't read, and one below in English, that read "Talkative". She couldn't exactly tell what the shirt was meant to convey, nor how she was now standing up again with a bright smile compared to how she had been only minutes before.

The other girl barked out a laugh. "Aw, why are you just calling me Akko? That's just weird when you think about it! I'm Atsuko Who Is Talkative, but everyone calls me Talkative Akko! Who are you anyway? I already asked, but you didn't say anything. You just looked at me funny. How come you look so funny? I've never seen an Atsuko who had a face and hair and other stuff like yours!"

"A-Atsuko who is…what?" Diana murmured. "What's going…?" She shifted on her feet. And since when was she standing? She looked downward, confirming that the chair she had been sitting on and the wood floor of the Red Team's room were gone, replaced with…green grass?

Her eyes snapped upwards at her new surroundings. The only similarity with the world she had just been in was the darkening evening sky. But now she was in…some sort of fair? Festival? Large wooden booths and attractions were set up as far as she could see. Brightly colored tents stood tall, and a giant Ferris wheel was in the distance, with neon lights shining in the air. It was all ridiculously bright and colorful.

But even more bizarrely, in a moment already full of bizarre nonsense, the fair was filled with copies of Akko, freely walking around and interacting with the various attractions. Some dressed in strange and elaborate outfits, some in similar grey hoodies, some colored in unnatural hues, but just…dozens upon dozens of copies of this one girl. And the part of Diana that was still a teenager was severely unsure how to deal with it.

Diana shook her head in disbelief. "What is this?"

"Oh yeah!" The strange Akko said. "It's a festival today! Don't know why, but that's just how it is! Anyway you never told me your name, but you don't really look like any of the other Atsukos here. You're kinda like a gross mutant Atsuko, but you don't look gross at all. You look really pretty actually! And you don't talk much either. You're just squinting at everything. Is everything okay, Pretty Looking Mutant Atsuko?"

"…what is this?"

Diana took a number of hesitant steps back, trying in vain to process all of…this. In one moment she had been in a quiet room. Now she was in this mess of colors and lights in some strange landscape, with so many copies of Akko everywhere in sight, including this one just babbling nonstop, all demanding attention away from the still inexplicable sensation in her head this psychic melding caused in the first place. It was just…too much, all at once.

Suddenly, she backed into something, and a sharp gasp escaped her lips. She turned around to be met with yet another copy of Akko, but dressed like a police officer of all things. There was Japanese text written on her badge and nametag. She could do little but gawk as the Officer irritably turned around to glare.

"Hey, who's bumping into-?" The Officer paused to look over her. "…Whoa. What kinda Atsuko are you supposed to be?"

"I…what?"

"Well?" The Officer crossed her arms. "You just gonna stand there, or are you gonna say something?"

The criticism cut through her confusion. Diana mentally reprimanded herself. Honestly, what was she doing? Hadn't she just decided that she would maintain her composure better around this girl? Granted, these eccentric circumstances were off-putting, but she wasn't stupid, and she knew better than to act as such. A simple, concise explanation should clear up any confusion and make this ordeal much easier.

Diana cleared her throat into her fist. "…My apologies. I'm simply a little dazed at the moment. I'm not supposed to truly be here, and I must admit, I'm rather lost. I didn't mean to bump-"

The Officer held up a hand, with a surprised look on her face. "Wait, hold up. You're just saying you're not supposed to be here? Just like that?"

Diana blinked. "Yes? That's the truth, after all."

"And you're just confessing to that? Not even gonna argue it?"

"Why would I-?" Diana tilted her head. "Look, I'm merely disoriented right now. If you could perhaps direct me to-"

She was interrupted when she felt something cold and metal click around her wrists. When she looked down, the Officer Akko was restraining her with a pleased smile. Diana pursed her lips. "…Pardon my confusion, but is there a…particular reason you're handcuffing me?"

"It's just standard procedure." The Officer explained. "I know you willingly confessed and everything, so we can skip the trial, but it's just what we're supposed to do to bad thoughts."

"I…I don't…" Diana squinted in her confusion. "Trial? Bad thoughts?"

The Officer lightly shrugged. "Yep. That's my job after all! I bring the bad thoughts to Judge Akko for trial, and then I bring the ones that aren't supposed to be here to their execution."

"Execution?" Diana's eyes widened. Did they mean execute in the sense of-? But that…no, she was letting her emotions get the better of her again. She was just overthinking things again. No one was seriously considering killing anyone. A chuckle escaped her throat, one more apprehensive than she would've liked, but one nonetheless.

"This…this is a joke, right? Surely you remember me. You couldn't possibly be considering something so…so ridiculous."

Surely it had to be. Didn't it? For what little she knew about the machinations of the human mind, she did know Akko. And this was her mind. Surely the bizarre little versions of her within her head were enough of a part of her to not behave so irrationally. And they wouldn't be so hostile towards her in particular, not when Akko treated her the way she did.

From behind them, Talkative Akko cheerfully waved. "Goodbye, Pretty Looking Mutant Atsuko! It was nice to meet you, even though you didn't really say anything and we didn't actually talk at all! Sorry you got the catapult!"

Diana paled. "…catapult…?"

The Officer solemnly nodded. "It's one of the tougher parts of the job. The thing is, it's kinda sad to kill off thoughts, even when we know they're bad. We don't really like to see it happen."

"Right." Diana agreed, breathing a sigh of relief. "Of course you don't. I know you, Akko, you wouldn't-"

She was interrupted again by the Officer's bright smile. "So we just catapult them into a never-ending abyss on the edge of the mind, so that way, we don't have to see it happen! Smart, right?"

With that, the Officer grabbed her shoulders and began to lead her away. Diana did what she could to collect herself, to direct her thoughts, quell her outburst at this turn of events inside this strange new world. And despite herself, she could only let loose a single, all consuming thought.

"…W-what is this?!"

A.N. Diana is a much more serious and accomplished character, so it only takes her 1 chapter to face execution vs Akko's 3! As expected of Diana Cavendish!

It took me a while to think of a plotline I liked, that would be both new and in-tone with MindFull, but I think I found something that speaks to me. Akko's mind is going to play by much different rules than both Sucy and Diana's, for reasons that won't be entirely explicit. I wanted to do something that might also change the first one is read, along with characterizing both our leads in interesting ways again since they're past the "will they won't they" stage.

I also have a tumblr now, if you ever wanna talk to me or whatever. I won't post any spoilers, but I'll talk about these stories if I'm ever on. You can find me at platinumsupa dot tumblr dot com. Apparently the site doesn't let you post URLS, which I didn't know, so sorry!