Mori Tsukisa hummed a song as she stepped out of the bathtub, steam rising around her.
Her lush black hair, like seaweed, hung wetly down her back; the girl wrapped herself in a bathrobe and was forcibly pushed back into bed by Nagini—she had wanted to go out on the deck to catch the breeze for a while.
"It's night, and your hair is wet." Nagini tucked the girl's restless feet under the covers and pressed down firmly. "Or are you saying your constitution won't let you get sick?"
"I really might not—"
"But it looks like you will." Nagini was quite firm this time, staring straight into Mori Tsukisa's eyes. "If it looks like you will, then it's possible. Arrietty and I are worried about your health. Please warm up in bed, or even take a nap; it's night now."
Arrietty was writing and drawing on the table, her small hands, feet, and even her face stained with blue ink. "Please say 'you are worried', Nagini."
"Try saying it out loud, it won't be too embarrassing." The Little Sprite flicked her finger, and another artistic ink blot appeared on the white paper. "I'm not worried about Her Majesty; don't use me as the first fence to stop a bull."
Nagini looked back, and Arrietty shrugged with a half-smile. "What's the big deal? Just say 'I'm very worried about you'. Isn't that cute?"
The Little Sprite was laughing when suddenly her vision blurred—within a bright yellow circle, a long, narrow vertical pupil was staring intently at her... Rubbing her eyes, she saw Nagini had already quietly turned back to face Mori Tsukisa, her head lowered silently.
"I am indeed worried." The woman's soft waist seemed boneless as she slowly leaned closer to Mori Tsukisa's upper body, helping her pull up the covers. "Mori Tsukisa is the person who saved me; I should take good care of her."
Mori Tsukisa, who was being 'well cared for', pulled the covers up with both hands, resting her chin on them as she gazed at Nagini's gentle face.
"Oh, thank you," Mori Tsukisa said dryly. "You've been getting weirder and weirder lately, Nagini."
Nagini's expression remained calm and composed. "There's nothing weird about a maid."
"But you're not a maid."
" I am now."
"Ya-ha!" Arrietty cheered from the side. "Take her, take her along, Her Majesty! I like this little snakey! It'll definitely be interesting if she's there!"
Ever since the Little Sprite had let it slip last time, Nagini had been curious about the so-called 'other World'. Mori Tsukisa had nothing to hide; she could tell Baru whatever she wanted, and she didn't mind telling Nagini as well.
"It's just as you heard; Arrietty and I don't belong to this World." The girl struggled to sit up, wrapping the covers around her chest like a tube top. "I often travel through different Universes and have the Ability to take... interesting fellows with me."
"Arrietty wants you to come with me. Are you willing?"
With her black hair blending into the gold-trimmed covers, Mori Tsukisa curled the corners of her mouth. Combined with the beauty mark at the corner of her eye, she looked like a black rose emitting a seductive poison—
Before she could hear Mori Tsukisa say more, Nagini was already beginning to feel dazed.
What?
Leaving this World, the Multiverse, Planeswalkers, Little Sprites—how did all this fit together?
Weren't wizards supposed to be the greatest secret of this World?
"Take your time thinking about it."
Mori Tsukisa giggled as she got out of bed, putting on a heavy beige travel outfit and testing her range of motion.
"It'll be easier for moving around in a bit." The girl carried Arrietty to the cabin window and opened it casually, letting the sea breeze pour into the room.
"Moving around?"
As Arrietty and Mori Tsukisa looked out at the dark waves not far away, a gleaming scimitar was pointed straight at the girl's throat the moment the master and servant turned around!
Clang—
The metal vibrated as a much shorter steak knife parried the sudden assassination attempt!
The girl reached out and deftly pulled the intruder in through the window.
Arrietty, with dry tea leaves in her mouth, lay on Mori Tsukisa's head, watching the commotion while chewing: Thank heavens that window could barely fit an adult, otherwise, what was pulled in would have been just a few spare parts.
She didn't want to sleep in a pile of severed limbs.
Thud.
The man in the black robe was tossed onto the floor. Nagini covered her mouth in shock; this had happened in a flash, and she hadn't even been able to react before it was over.
The man in black was thrown into a daze, swaying on his knees as he shouted at Mori Tsukisa in the local language.
Mori Tsukisa actually spoke a bit: "Who are you looking for, please?"
Nagini:...What can I do? She was starting to understand Mori Tsukisa's train of thought.
A few rounds of exchange yielded no results. The man's face looked hideous in the firelight, his coarse skin clearly belonging to someone who spent years in the sand and dust of the desert.
From the corners of his eyes to the bridge of his nose and down to his chin, countless black hieroglyphs were tattooed on him. When he looked up, his face was very eerie, as if the tattoos had come to life.
"Ah!" The man roared as he drew a second scimitar from his waist. The two gleaming crescents crossed and slid against each other, the sound of metal friction piercing to the ears!
The man charged at Mori Tsukisa like a madman once again!
Puff.
Arrietty covered her face.
"Your Majesty, if you could change that bad habit of killing people where you sleep, I think I would love you even more."
Mori Tsukisa giggled and kicked the corpse. Only then did Nagini gradually steady her rapid breathing... "I... I'll handle this." She looked at Mori Tsukisa, her pupils flashing with determination. "You go find Evelyn and O'Connell! I saw that man was carrying weapons; he can protect you."
"Go, and take Arrietty! Go find them! There can't be only one enemy!"
"I don't have my wand! And if there are many of them..."
The more Nagini arranged things with a nervous expression, the stranger Arrietty's expression became.
Until... she really couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Pfft—" The Little Sprite covered her mouth.
"What are you laughing at?" Nagini looked up, expressionless.
"I thought of something funny..."
"What funny thing?"
"Um... the story of a bobtail black cat."
"What bobtail cat?"
"The bobtail cat waiting for us at the port where we'll disembark..."
Mori Tsukisa made a gesture to Nagini, preparing to lead her out of the cabin—she was going to check on Eve's safety.
"Nagini, don't worry, we—"
As Mori Tsukisa was reassuring Nagini with her back to the door, another voice pierced through the cabin door.
"Diffindo!"
Boom! Shards of iron and wood splinters flew!
Immediately after, a second curse followed seamlessly!
"Avada Kedavra!"
A dark green ray flew rapidly toward Nagini!
In an instant, the woman's eyes seemed to see a rusty scythe; it was held high above her head, waiting to sever her neck—
Warmth, joy, freedom—all of it began to drift away from Nagini's body. she felt a bit cold as a liquid seeped in from her neck and slid into her heart, where it coiled, waiting for the final moment.
Then, a flash of long black hair blocked the blade.
Dumbledore, who had followed the trail, saw this exact scene:
Mori Tsukisa narrowed her eyes and turned her body, blocking Nagini from the path of the Killing Curse.
The green light exploded with a 'boom'!
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