#if yuu ever gets separated from Silver it's over for them

[dragonniaa]

"What if I drift away into the night?

The journey's more than I can bare

Won't you just wake me up when we get there?

Or don't, my love

I'll sleep forevermore

Until the world is gone

Until the sun takes it all"

[cyn-write]

"Her Smoldering Eyes Still Scorch My Soul"

Summary: Rollo has been eyeing you since your arrival, seeing you as the diamond amongst coals. At the Ball, he corners you into a dance, but your BF is not going to let this slide...

Pairings: Rook, Epel, Silver, and Sebek x F!Reader (separate) For Azul, Idia, and Malleus' part

For Riddle, Deuce, Ruggie, and Jamil's

For Rollo's Warnings: Possessive behavior, suggestive, manipulation (Rollo), obsession (Rollo), established relationships, romantic, fluff ~

Note: This is the last part FINALLY!!! I have been working on this for a while and am excited to move on to new projects! Any suggestions, please let me know!!

Prologue

"Who might you be miss?"

Y/n gave a kind smile and nodded her head in greeting "I'm y/n, it's nice to meet you," she stayed next to Trein as she was there as his assistant.

"Yuu is our magicless perfect of Ramshackle. She will be working as my assistant throughout the trip," Trein added.

She felt Rollo's eyes scan her, and, unlike his greetings to the rest, he held out a hand. Being poilet, she offered her hand as well, and he lifted it to his lips, grazing her knuckles quickly.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, y/n. I understand it must be difficult, being surrounded by mages every second of the day. I hope you get a chance to relax this trip." Y/n blushed at the motion and bit her lower lip. All the while she could feel her boyfriend glaring daggers into her and Rollo.

"I-I'll do my best..." Y/n replied. Throughout the entire trip, Rollo seemed to gravitate towards y/n and used every excuse to isolate her from the group. They chatted about her difficulties at NRC and of the festival. Due to her being Trein's assistant and the constant reminders to behave, she and her boyfriend had little time together.

This all accumulated at the Masquerade. Rollo had given Y/n a proper dress for the occasion instead of the attire his counsel had chosen. The (color) fabric decadently adorned your figure and stunned the NRC boys with its beauty. But before her boyfriend could ask for a dance, Rollo stole y/n away. He whisked her to the dance floor, and they started chatting.

At this point, Y/N's boyfriend has had enough of the student counsel president, but what sent him over the edge is when he takes you to the balcony and dare suggest the worst:

"Y/n, stay here with me." Y/n turned quickly on her heels to Rollo in confusion, "The fools at NRC do not deserve your purity. You belong here. with me." He has her pinned against the balcony, "This is your sanctuary."

Y/n pushed Rollo away slightly and spoke up, "Thank you for the offer, but I have not intention of leaving NRC. It is difficult at times but I wouldn't have it any other way. Now if you excuse me, I want to go back to the ball."

Rollo grabbed y/n's wrist and pulled her against him. "It's because of Draconia, isn't it? He has bewitched you!" He pinned her between the balcony wall and him. "Those fiends have enchanted you, but I will free you from those chains and show you salvation! No matter the cost!"

Rook Hunt

An Arrow landed right in between Rollo's middle and index finger splayed on the wall.

Rollo turned to see Rook with his bow still aimed at him.

"What is the-"

"Step away from Mon Ange."

Ever the observant Hunter, he could tell Rollo was attracted to his dearest as many were. He trusted y/n to take care of most of them. She was quietly capable, and he knew she preferred to fight some battles alone, but this crossed a line.

It only took a few strides to close the distance between them. Rook, being the gentleman he was, gently pulled y/n out from under Rollo's grip. He pulled her behind him and stood tall against the Student Council President.

"Hunt. What is the meaning of this? The perfect and I were having a conversation and you shoot at me?!" Rollo's tone begins to lose his composure. "You will pay for this!"

"Not if you want the entirety of Nobel Bell to learn their esteemed president is a pervert." Rook held up his phone and a video of the previous events started playing. Along with that he scrolled and displayed photos of Rollo looking at y/n's behind and chest, being aggressive towards her, and pinning her against the wall.

Rollo quieted and stared at Rook in rage, "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh I would, and the first person to see this would be the Dean of Nobel Bell and Professor Trien. Permanently ruining your reputation and the friendship between the schools." Rook took a step closer and held his thumb over the 'send' button. "And you wouldn't want that would you?"

Y/n looked at her loving hunter in shock. This was a side of Rook you were never privy to and it was terrifying. Rollo closed his agape mouth and stepped back. He bowed to the couple and retreated "Enjoy the ball, Mages." he spatted.

The moment Rollo left Rook turned to his Mon Ange and cupped her face with his soft gloved hands. "Mon Amour, are you alright?" he was so gentle with her.

Her emotions started to flood her senses as tears spilled from her eyes. She nodded and smiled, "Now that you're here I am," she brought her hands to his shoulder and he pulled her into a hug.

"Mon Amour, you're safe now. Non will dare hurt you as I stand by your side." He patted her head and kissed her cheek and forehead and anywhere he could get his lips before he finally placed them on her lips.

She smiled and let out a soft cry, "I know, I know."

"Ma Princesse, your chevalier dans une armure brillante will never leave your side again." He held her close as she cried.

Eventually, a new song began and he stepped back. Rook had an idea to make her feel better. He kneeled in front of her and clasped her hands in his, "Mon Ange, will you honor a humble chevalier with a dance?"

Y/n nodded and smiled at her brilliant hunter, "Of course, Mon chevalier!"

Epel Fulimer

"YOU GET YUR HANDS OFF HER!" Epel wasted no time, pulling Rollo off his apple-blossom. He stood in front of y/n and held out his magic pen to the predator. "YOU LAY A HAND ON HER AND ILL BUST YOUR BOTTOM THREE WAYS TA SUNDAY!"

Epel looked dashing in the moonlight. Despite the cuteness of his outfit, in the eyes of y/n he looked like a prince rescuing his love from an evil monster.

Rollo looked shocked at being thrown off the perfect by this little mage. He squinted his eyes then they widened when they realized it was one of the NRC freshmen.

"Fulimer. This doesn't concern you." He said pointedly, "Now go back to the ball and leave the perfect and I to our discussion."

"NO. YOU LISTEN TO ME." Epel said and squared up the older mage, "y/n told you NO. She clearly said she doesn't want to leave NRC. So unless you wanna go right here. right now. You leave MY Girl alone."

Rollo glared at the two and before he could say anything else he heard someone call his name from inside. He straightened up and looked past Epel at y/n, "Think about my offer y/n, we will discuss this matter later."

He turned and left the balcony. Leaving Epel and y/n alone in the cold night breeze. Epel watched Rollo leave then turned to hug his beloved close to his chest, "y/n, I am so sorry I didn't get here sooner. I couldn' find ya in the ballroom and people said Rollo took ya, and I thought the-"

She shut up his yapping by giving him a deep kiss on the lips. Epel pulled her closer, firmly gripping her waist and slipping a hand into her hair. The couple stayed like this for a long time before parting to breathe.

After regaining his breath, Epel said, "Wow... what was that for?"

Y/n smiled and placed her hands on either side of his face, her fingertips grazing his mask, "Isn't it traditional for the damsel to kiss her champion after a heroic rescue?"

Epel's smile turned mischievous, the way it always did when she complimented his masculinity. "Champion ya say? Well, Princess, do ya wanna go back to the ball or keep thanking me?"

Y/n giggled at the suggestive comment and said, "What do you have in mind?"

Epel leaned in close and whispered in a low voice teaming with desire, "I say we slip back to my room and-"

"Monsieur Cherry Apple! Madame trickster! There you are! I was looking all over for you!" Rook came out and Epel jumped back and grumbled at his senior's interruption. "The music is splendid! why don't you join me for a dance?"

He held open the door back into the ballroom open and gestured for them to come inside.

"We will be there in just a sec," Epel said and gave Rook a look of 'Please give me two more seconds'.

"Very Well, I will be waiting ~" Rook said and closed the door for a second.

"Well... looks like Rook decided for ya, but" He bowed to y/n and held out his hand, "Will you be this humble Champion's Princess tonight?

Silver

"I suggest you let the lady go." Silver’s hand gripped Rollo’s shoulder, forcing the president to turn from y/n.

The expression on his face was stone, eyes filled with a fiery rage all aimed at the man who dared to lay a hand on his princess. Rollo was taken aback by the gaze, it it made y/n’s heart swell. The momentary shock of Silver’s iron grip allowed for y/n to slip away from her captor and into Silver’s arms. The partner change changed Silver’s tactic from offense to defense. He let go of Rollo’s shoulder, took y/n’s waist, held her close to his chest. He held out his magic pen like a sword and y/n felt as if she was on the cover of a Romance Book. From where she stood, Silver looked like a fairytale prince. He may be a man of few words, but his eyes could write a novel.

“As a retainer of Prince Malleus and a Knight of Briar Valley, I cannot overlook a man of your caliber harassing a lady.” He said, his voice steady yet commanding, “Especially MY Lady.”

Y/n felt the heat rise in her cheeks, that was the first time he ever referred to her as “his.” Due to his position, their relationship had to be kept secret from everyone but Malleus and Lilia. They never used labels even in private. There were times she felt as though they were just friends, but you understood his situation. Now he called her his and acted as her knight, her Prince Charming.

Rollo was shocked to say the least. He took a step back and said, “The perfect and I were just discussing some private matters. But we can continue our conversation later,” Rollo started to walk away but Silver held his pan to the small of his back.

Silver’s expression shifted from stone to threatening, he lowered his voice an octave and whispered into Rollo’s ear, “You will not speak to her again. If you do, I swear to the sevens you will have wished those fires consumed you.”

Rollo glanced back a Silver with a twinge of fear in his eyes before retreating back to the ballroom.

The moment Rollo left the balcony, Silver turned back to look at his dearest. For someone notorious for his stone expression, Silver was very expressive on the balcony. He looked at the perfect with concern. His eyebrows knit, lips slightly frowning, and eyes looking in her eyes with deep concern.

Without any words, the two lovers embraced under the stars. Silver pressed his lips to her temple and whispered, “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner.”

Y/n looked up at her knight and smiled, “It’s okay…” she brushed her lips against his cheek and whispered with tears in her eyes, “y-you called me ‘your lady’… you’ve never called me your’s.”

Silver brushed back a stray hand of hair as he said, “I know I asked to… to keep us quiet, but after that, I think it best that I be selfish…” he kneeled before his beloved in the (f/c) dress, one hand clasping hers while the other laid over his heart. “Y/n, will you honor the selfish request of a knight and be my princess?”

Sebek Zigolt

"Let. Her. Go."

Rollo turned to face him and was surprised to see Sebek. The usually loud retainer spoke in an even tone, barely above a sage whisper. His magic pen was drawn and pointing at directly at Rollo’s head.

He did not yell, but his rage was oozing out of every creases of his being. The fear in y/n’s eyes when Rollo pinned her to the railing made a switch click inside the freshman. He had been looking for y/n for a while. Malleus suggested the two dance n’s relax, and Sebek was never one to deny his Prince’s request. But when he saw Rollo pulled the human on to the balcony, he knew something was up. He got to the balcony just in time to hear Rollo suggest the worse: the Human switching schools… HIS human. And worse off, when she said no, Rollo forced himself on her. He could not take this anymore.

Rollo stood between the human and him. The council resident looked the freshman up and down before simply stating, “Zigolt, what are you doing? The perfect and I are trying to have a private conversation.”

“You touch her again and I will not hesitate.” Sebek Said, he stepped forward and Rollo remained unmoving.

“And I suggest you leave us be.” Rollo dare place his arm around y/n’s waist, “If the professor’s heard a NRC student threaten the Host of this event, the relations between our schools would be ruined, so I suggest you leave us be. She and I still have much to discuss-“

“You let go of her or I will-“

“Will what? Ruin the name of you dear prince and university over a human woman? I thought human’s meant nothing to fea like you-“

“The discussion is over. Flamme.” Malleus appeared behind Sebek with Silver by his side.

Sebek looked back to his Prince and his brother in arms and they could see the rage and disparation on his face. Malleus smiled at Sebek and said, “Sebek, take the child of man to the dace floor, it is simply criminal that a young couple not dance at a ball.”

Sebek understood the hidden meaning behind the words, ‘take y/n out of here.’

He strode over to y/n as she shimmed out of Rollo’s grip. In a rush, y/n and Sebek embraced upon meeting and he took her hand in his before leading his human away from the scene. Silver nodded to Sebek as they passed, releasing him of his duties for the night. Once away, the couple stopped in an alcove and Sebek embraced his human tightly.

“Y/n forgive me,” He said with his emotions finally spilling over, “I have been an inattentive lover and did nothing when Rollo had you… I’m so useless-“

“Don’t say that.” Y/n placed her hands on either side of Sebek's face. She looked him in the eyes and saw the disappointment. He was so upset with himself for what happened. Despite his rough facade, he put a lot of responsibility on himself, and if he did not live up to those impossible standards, he punished himself. "You saved me Sebek, so can we leave that behind us and go to the ball?"

Sebek allowed a small smile to grace his lips. He leaned his forehead against her's, "Oh course... I want nothing more than to be with you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Note: Please Like, Reblog, and Follow for more! If you are interested in seeing an NSFW part 2 or want to see more characters in this scenario, please let me know! (Do not Steal)

[collegeishardbutwritingisharder]

Male Yuu! Reader (Platonic Yandere) Part 1

@asillylitteseabunnyay More ideas! Warning: Really OOC characters (Even for yandere standards. This is a major reason as to why I write headcanons before writing a separate piece for them), I really did try to make this into one post but I really wanted to post something. Sorry for taking so long to post something.

For those who want a word count: 14,203 words. Once again, sorry for being really slow.

"(Y/N)! Wait up!"

I turned around to see Ace running up to me with Deuce trailing after him. A grin broke on my face at the sight of them. Those two always bring trouble with them and while it can be tiring, I could never imagine a different life that I could lead. Or at least, my life in Twisted Wonderland.

"Heya, guys! What's going on? Riddle chasing after you for breaking another rule or Azul wanting to capture you in a contract again?"

"Do you really think that whenever we want to see you we're in trouble? I'm kind of wounded."

Ace put on a fake pout before pulling a mock hurt pose.

"Because whenever you ARE in trouble, you come find me to get you out of it."

"Fair."

Deuce walked around Ace before greeting me.

"Good morning, (Y/N)!"

"Good morning, Deucey! How's your morning been so far?"

"It was quite uneventful which is a nice change of pace from how mornings normally are for us."

Deuce was pushed by Ace, who started laughing at Deuce who lost his footing.

Ace and Deuce started a stare off before I just lightly tapped both of their foreheads to snap them out of it.

"Yo, troublemakers! If you keep fighting like this, we're gonna have trouble coming our way. Let's move!"

Ace and Deuce nodded at me before we all started to sprint to get to P.E. Vargas was no joke when it came to being late. I would prefer not having to do twenty extra laps around the field, thank you very much.

Thankfully, we made it with only a minute left to spare. Jack and Epel were there ahead of us and claimed brooms for Ace and Deuce.

"If you three keep sleeping in, you're going to end up missing class."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's get this class done and over with."

Jack tossed the brooms to Ace and Deuce who caught them before turning towards me.

"(Y/N), do you want to ride with me on my broom today?"

I thought about the offer before another student butted into the conversation.

"I already offered the Human a ride on my broom last class!"

Sebek appeared out of nowhere, being loud like always. Although his words did remind me of yesterday. I was riding on Floyd's broom for class (Mainly because he wouldn't let me ride on anyone else's broom) and I nearly fell off many times. Sebek came to me after class and offered his broom instead. This did surprise me considering that Sebek has been a recent friend that I've made but I wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Anything to not ride with Floyd again.

"Yep, he's right, Jack. I promised Sebek that I would join him for this flight class. Although if you're offering for tomorrow, I wouldn't be opposed to that."

Jack gave me a nod before getting himself ready for flight. Looks like I have my flight partner for tomorrow! I walked with Sebek to the spot that he picked which was quite a bit away from the other first years but I didn't care that much about it. This class is a mix between all of the years so I wouldn't be surprised if Lilia or Silver was in this class as well.

"Child of Man."

Or I should have guessed that Malleus would be in this class.

"Hello, Hornton. I hope that this morning is treating you nicely."

I still can't really wrap my head around the fact that my night friend is really the Malleus Draconia. It's still something that I must get used to.

"Young Master!"

Sebek's face lit up with the biggest smile that I think I've ever seen which made a smile appear on my face. Even thought the half fae carries a huge amount of aggression towards humans, whenever he's happy, it's near impossible to not be happy along with him.

"ALRIGHT! Let's start working out those muscles!"

Coach Vargas appeared out of nowhere like he normally does and got everybody into line. Sebek positioned his broom safely between his legs while I tried to position myself carefully as well. The take off is always the hardest for whoever I'm flying with considering that we have to time the launch perfectly with each other.

Sebek was staring at me to make sure that I was ready and I gave him a quick nod to signal that I was ready for take off. We did a short run before jumping and taking off. I held onto Sebek for dear life when we started to get some serious altitude. I've learned that if I grab the broom while in flight, that I accidently cause some mild steering interference.

"Khee hee hee. Careful, (Y/N). You might end up causing a tear into Sebek's uniform."

I turned my head to my right to see Lilia flying there. Him being there made me recount all of the people in this class. Everyone was in this class today! I'm particularly amazed that Azul was able to get his broom up this high and the fact that Idia was riding the broom correctly. That might be because we're actually going for a flight around the island for class today.

"I'll loosen my grip in a bit. I'm still not a big fan of heights."

A shudder went up my spine when I looked down. I don't understand how people are able to fly this high up without being terrified.

"WOOOOO!"

I tilted my head up to see Cater riding his broom like a skateboard and doing tricks on it. I wish that I had a fraction of his courage to do something like that.

"Don't worry, Human! I will not be doing ridiculous stunts like that with you on the broom with me."

"Thanks, Sebek. I greatly appreciate it."

The class continued like normal. Many people were flying by Sebek and I to have a pleasant conversation. Riddle and the rest of Heartslabyul were checking in with me to make sure I didn't need a quick emergency landing. Sebek took mild offense to that saying 'If the Human needed to go down, I would be more than capable to take him down myself!'

"Are you sure that you would be taking the utmost of care that he is protected when flying down?"

"Of course, I would!"

"I don't know, Sebek. You don't always seem to be the perfect fit for protecting (Y/N)."

"Why you-!"

Ace and Sebek started a screaming match mid air, making me roll my eyes. Those two are like oil and water. Never to be mixed.

"Good morning, Prefect."

"Good morning, Dorm Leader Rosehearts!"

"(Y/N)..."

I let out a laugh at Riddle's warning tone. I love to tease him about his proper title.

"Sorry, sorry. Has your morning been calm?"

"Not in the slightest! There were nearly five rule breakers this morning! I don't know what they were thinking about having strawberry tea on a Thursday!"

"The lunacy!"

"I know!"

"Hehe, it did make for a magicamable morning though!"

Cater flew next to us, still in skateboard position.

"I bet it did!"

"I'll send you all of the pics after class! Kay-kay?"

"Kay-Kay!"

I like indulging in his vocabulary from time to time. It's interesting and different from my own!

"Ace. Stop fighting with Sebek before Riddle decides that it's off with your head."

Trey was ahead of all of us, flying backwards which was pretty impressive, mediating the fight between Sebek and Ace.

"But-!"

"YOU HEARD THE OTHER HUMAN, ACE! ADMIT YOUR DEFEAT!"

Don't fight Sebek, it isn't pretty.

Ace let out a scoff before flying towards Deuce. Riddle and Trey followed quickly after them to make sure that those two would stay out of trouble for the morning while Cater saw Idia and wanted a picture of him before he hid away for the rest of the day.

"*Yawn* Doesn't it get exhausting with all of those other noisy herbivores chatting your ear off?"

Leona and Ruggie came on the left and the right of us.

"I don't see it as tiring. In fact, it's actually quite fun to talk with your friends in the morning!"

Leona gave a smirk at me with a glint in his eyes. Oh no.

"That's just like you, Herbivore. Taking pity on other herbivores, especially those who follow that Lizard."

I felt Sebek tense at Leona's words. He turned his head to glare at Leona.

"How dare you insult the YOUNG MASTER?! YOU LAZY LION!"

Leona and Sebek started to have a shouting match over my head. Why does Sebek feel the need to fight with so many people this morning? Where does this energy come from?

"Psst, (Y/N)!"

I turned my head to see Ruggie. He gave me a slight wave before holding out an apple for me.

"Here! I decided to be kind today and got you an apple!"

"Thank you, Ruggie! Now. What do you want?"

Ruggie's kind smile turned into a slight smirk.

"Glad you asked! I have to do laundry later today and considering I did something nice for you, you could do something nice for me?"

"Sure, I'll come by noon to help you out."

"Thank you, (Y/N)! Shye hee hee!"

"Alright, leave (Y/N) and Sebek alone you guys."

Jack and Epel came out of nowhere and separated Leona and Ruggie from our broom.

"Hmph, self righteous fresh babies."

Leona flew off and motioned for Ruggie to follow him. Ruggie gave me a nod before flying after Leona. Sebek looked at Jack with anger.

"HOW DARE YOU INTERRUPT US, JACK!"

"Your yelling was giving (Y/N) a headache. Besides, you should be paying attention to flying and not crashing."

Epel then flew closer to me and took the apple from me.

"Hey!"

"Ya don't wanna ta eat this one. There's mealworms in it. Make yer stomach upset."

I looked at the apple with disgust. I can't believe that Ruggie would try to feed me something that like.

"Thanks, Epel. It looked like such a good apple too."

"It takes a trained eye ta tell. Seems like Ruggie needs a better eye."

Jack and Epel flew away after making sure that Sebek and I would be safe with flying.

"These useless creatures. Thinking that I'm incapable of taking care of a singular magicless human."

"Calm down, Sebek. I'm certain that they are just worried about me being up this high. It's not everyday that a magicless human goes off the ground. If it makes you feel better, I feel completely safe with you flying the broom."

Sebek gave a proud smirk before straightening his back and picking up the pace to continue flying with the group. I started to scan the sky for other people that I knew.

Azul didn't really come near us or anybody for that matter. I think that he was a tad scared of accidentally crashing into anybody which I think is a valid fear. I quickly shouted some encouragement to him. Jade and Floyd on the other hand had no problem with coming up to us. Jade mostly left us alone, saying that he was there to keep an eye on his brother. Floyd though...

"Awwww, Shrimpyyyy. Why are you flying with Crocodile instead of me todayyyy? Are you trying to get squeeeezed?"

"No Floyd. I'm riding Sebek because he offered."

"Hmph. That's no fun. Come here on my broom."

Floyd grabbed my arm and started trying to pull me onto his broom. Because of my near death grip on Sebek, it started to also mess with Sebek's flying as well.

"ARGH! STOP THIS INSTANT, YOU INSOLENT CREATURE!"

"Floyd! Stop that! This isn't funny!"

"Hehehehe~ I think that it's pretty funny. Come on, Shrimpy. It'll be safe."

"FLOYD!"

"Floyd. That's enough. You're causing (Y/N) to be uncomfortable."

Jade intervened by prying Floyd's hand off of my arm. Sebek was able to stabilize the broom and we were flying smoothly again.

"Booooo, you're no fun, Jade."

Jade let out a chuckle.

"Sorry, Floyd. Normally, I'd let you have your fun but there is a tad too much risk here."

My breathing normalized just in time for Kalim and Jamil to visit us on the left side.

"Hiya, (Y/N)! Good morning, Sebek!"

"Morning, Kalim! How's today treating you so far?"

"Today has been the best so far! Jamil made a delicious breakfast for the whole dorm! We also discussed planning a party for later this evening! Would you two like to join us?"

I noticed Jamil tense a bit at the mention of more people coming to the party. That man was under so much pressure that it's not even funny.

"Sorry! But I must keep watch over the Young Master at all times! I don't have time to partake in silly human activities!"

"Yeah, I have to decline as well, Kalim. Ramshackle has been in need of a clean up and I'll most likely have a bunch of homework to do tonight anyway. I hope that you have a pleasant party though!"

Kalim had a slight pout on his face before his normal smile reappeared.

"That's quite fine! Although the party won't be the same without you, (Y/N)!"

Kalim then flew ahead of us. Jamil looked at me and I gave him a wink and a smile. I wasn't really too busy tonight but I decided to do him a solid. Jamil gave a small quirk of his lips before flying after Kalim.

"First Potato."

I turned my head to the right to stare at Vil. Boy, was he as intimidating as ever?

"Sit up straight. If you keep curling into Cucumber here, your posture will be horrendous."

I nodded at Vil before trying to sit up straight. The wind decided to pick up then and there, wobbling the broom. I immediately curled back into Sebek.

"Thanks for the advice Vil but I think that I'm going to stay curled until the end of the flight."

Vil narrowed his eyes slightly before directing his attention to the front.

"Oh, le pauvre escroc! Although, I must admit that the sight of your fear brings out a completely new side of your beauty to light!"

I saw Rook upside down which made me jolt a bit. Sebek let out a grunt.

"Human! Be careful!"

"Sorry, Sebek!"

Rook only let out a laugh before going to Vil to fawn over him. The duo flew off which made me let out a sigh of relief. I'm glad that I was able to befriend those two at VDC but I won't lie that I'm terrified of what those two can do together.

"(Y/N)-San!"

Ortho's voice traveled into my ears which made me look behind myself to see him there.

"Ortho! It's nice to see you and your brother this morning!"

"Yes! Niisan prefers to skip this class but he was more than willing to go when he heard about it being a mixed class. I'm still not too certain as to why though."

"Maybe he misheard. I have no idea either though."

"Oh yeah! Niisan wanted me to ask you if you were down for playing with him tonight over voice chat! He has recently been really involved with a new MMORPG that he wants to play with you."

I thought about it before realizing that Kalim was still nearby. I couldn't just brush off one friend and not the other. Sorry, Idia.

"Sorry, Ortho but I have to clean up Ramshackle tonight. With Grim being trapped inside all day, he's sure to make a mess. Or more of a mess."

I wasn't lying about Grim being stuck inside all day. Two days ago, a freak accident happened in the cafeteria which ended up with Grim's tail being broken. I prescribed him bed rest and plenty of bandages for healing. He made a mild fit about it before realizing that I wasn't about to forfeit my ground.

"Oh."

Ortho looked a bit disheartened but I had to stay strong. It doesn't help that I see Ortho as a brother. I want the robo kid happy!

"Yeah, really sorry, Ortho. Maybe tomorrow, I can play games with Idia."

Ortho seemed to perk up at that before zooming past us to talk with Idia. Sebek was quick to fix his course with the new air ripples.

"CAREFUL OF WHERE YOU'RE FLYING!!"

"Calm down, Sebek, he's just a kid."

"Ah, youth. I hope that you young ones won't mind me joining your flight?"

Lilia made his reappearance and started to fly with us.

"Master Lilia!"

"Welcome back, Lilia! Where did you come from?"

"Khee hee hee. I was just trying to arrange something. Don't worry too much about it."

Two more people came up to fly next to us. It was Malleus and Silver! I gave both of them a wave which they returned.

"See! I thought that it would be nice for our dorm to fly together! Even if you're not part of our dorm, you're still quite a treasured friend to us all!"

"I'm honored that you won't kick me out of your dorm flying session."

We all just flew in peace for a bit but that peace didn't last for long.

"Freak wind!"

A huge gust of wind came out of nowhere causing me to lose my grip on Sebek and fall off the broom.

"(Y/N)!"

Sebek tried to grab me but sadly, he was much too slow. I kept falling before I finally hit the ground. It was so painful. A huge pain seared through my leg, back, head and arm. Oh, the times when you wish that you had magic to make all of your problems go away. Sadly, my wishes won't be answered anytime soon.

I heard a bunch of calls of my name. I tried to keep my eyes open but the pain in my head was making it insanely hard.

"(Y/N)! I found him!"

Deuce came into my line of sight and I tried to give him a smile but the look on his face made me think that my smile wasn't exactly a smile.

"Don't worry, (Y/N). You'll be fine. I know that you'll be fine. You have to be fine!"

I tried to get some words of comfort out for Deuce but the pain got too much for my brain to handle. I let out a groan and passed out. My dreams were really weird. There were a bunch of different clouds who were talking over each other. It was near impossible to make out what they were trying to say. It started to hurt my head mildly.

I was thankful when I started to wake from the dream. The voices of the clouds went quiet, giving my head the needed break from noise that it wanted. I started to open my eyes but they were really sensitive to light and there was plenty of it in the room.

"Urrrr, that's really bright."

"He's up!"

"Now that was loud."

My eyes adjusted to the light and I saw Sebek kneeling next to me. I started to look around the room more and everybody was there watching me, concern and relief were reflective in their eyes.

"Ugh, what's going on, guys?"

I tried to sit up from my lying down position but I let out a scream. It was much too painful to even sit up. Next thing that I knew everybody was surrounding me and trying to make sure that I was okay.

"(Y/N)!"

"Don't strain yourself."

"Stay down, Shrimpy!"

Everyone's face held such amounts of concern. Even Leona! I didn't even really think that he even tolerated me in the slightest! The more that the situation processed in my brain, the more funny that I found it. I even started laughing which shocked everyone around me.

"This is no laughing matter, (Y/N)! You were severely injured!"

"Sorry, Riddle, but you must admit the way that you all are acting is quite bizarre!"

Everyone looked at each other confused before returning their gazes back to me as if they wanted a further explanation.

"I mean, c'mon guys! You're treating me as if I'm a fragile glass doll that will break if someone so much as breathed on me! You've seen me fight at least five different overblots! I think that I'm strong enough to handle a bad crash."

Everyone stayed silent at what I said. Apparently, they have forgotten how much that I've been through ever since I arrived at Twisted Wonderland.

My stomach interrupted the silence with a warning that I was hungry. Leona was actually the first to react.

"Ruggie, take this and go get (Y/N) something good to eat. Don't skimp out."

"You got it."

Ruggie rushed out of the room, most likely going to the cafeteria. He really doesn't have to get me food, more importantly expensive food. I would just be happy with a bag of chips and a bottle of water to tide me over for now.

"You really didn't have to send Ruggie out to do that. I think that I could have just gotten a ghost from Ramshackle to get me the leftovers from last night."

Vil snapped his head towards me when I mentioned leftovers.

"Do you mean those unhealthy, instant foods that I've heard from Epel that you order from Sam so much?"

A mild blush appeared on my face. It's true that I haven't really gotten the chance to really have a decent meal in a few months but hey! Life on a budget was never easy!

"Yes, those foods. I didn't finish the oven pizza that I got yesterday. There should be more than enough food unless Grim ate most of it today."

Vil then turned his head to Leona.

"Tell Ruggie to order two of whatever he is getting for the prefect. He obviously needs better food choices than what he is supplying himself with."

Leona only nodded his head before pulling out his phone to text Ruggie his new order.

"At least, I'm keeping Sam in business."

Crowley then entered the nurse's office, making me slightly jump and hurt myself more.

"GOODNESS GRACIOUS! Broken bones are no joke!"

"(Y/N)! I've heard about your condition!"

Crowley also looked around at all of the students who were already there.

"Appears that the rest of our student body has enough concern for our dear magicless student."

Crowley then made his way to the bedside and looked down at me.

"Now then, we must figure out a way to make sure that you can heal quickly and safely! I am not able to handle all of your needs everyday.

Hmmmm, I'm wondering if you would be fine if a ghost just brought you meals and Grim could give you your homework that you've missed."

"Grim is out of school on injury as well, Headmage."

"Hmmm, maybe your professors would be kind enough to bring your homework to you."

"Headmage."

Crowley and I turned our heads to look at Riddle. He had a straight face but I could tell that he had a plan.

"We Heartslabyul students will be more than willing to take care of (Y/N). He has helped us out more than times than we can count, either with overblots or if someone was going to break one of our rules."

"Yeah! Besides, (Y/N) and I are like, best friends! I'd be more than happy to try and teach him the lessons that he missed! Also I'd be cursed if I didn't help him out when he really needs it."

"Since I'm also one of (Y/N)'s close friends, I can help keep him company between classes! So that he isn't too lonely during the day!"

"I can help him during meal times and create a small dessert for him everyday. It wouldn't be too much a hassle."

"And I can keep him updated on current events! #KeepingThePrefectInTheLoop!"

Ace, Deuce, Trey and Cater all seemed super excited to help me with my recovery. Although a scoff from Leona and Vil resounded in the room.

Riddle was immediately on the defense and sent one of his strongest glares their way.

"Do you two have a problem with our plan?"

Leona gave an eye roll before saying his part.

"You're really going to entrust that idiotic herbivore to catch the prefect up on the lessons that he missed? Even if you taught that herbivore by himself, I'm still certain that he still would fail his classes."

Ace got visibly angry at Leona words but was held back by Deuce. Probably because the Headmage was still in the room.

Vil put in his thoughts next.

"None of you will actually take care of the prefect in the way that he deserves. I doubt anybody would be willing to make sure the prefect stays presentable even in casts."

Trey and Cater looked between themselves before returning Vil's glare. But soon enough, something else caused an uproar amongst the group.

"But I want to help (Y/N) to get better as well!"

Kalim looked very determined to be useful to me before looking over to Jamil with pleading eyes.

"Right, Jamil? We want to make sure that (Y/N) gets the utmost of care!"

"Kalim's right. I doubt that any of you had to take care of someone who was sick. I've been in the caretaker role so I think that we are most likely the best to assure (Y/N)'s quick recovery. Kalim has also had experience with taking care of his younger siblings as well."

A loud thud was heard from behind Jamil which got everyone's attention drawn to Sebek.

"NONE OF YOU SHALL HELP THE HUMAN! IT WAS MY OWN SHORTCOMINGS THAT CAUSED THE HUMAN TO BE INJURED IN THE FIRST PLACE! THUS I SHALL TAKE UP EACH AND EVERY DUTY MYSELF!"

Soon enough, there was a whole yelling match between all of the dorms on who would be able to take care of me. Soon enough, Crowley had enough of the fighting and silenced them all.

"ALRIGHT!

While I'm moved to tears by seeing all of my students work together for a common goal, we still must come up with a schedule to make sure that Mr. (Y/N) gets the care that he needs.

Thankfully, my quick thinking has come up with the perfect solution!

Mr. (Y/N) will stay here in the nurse's office and each day a different dorm will take care of him. Heartslabyul on Monday, Savanaclaw on Tuesday, etc, etc."

Everyone reluctantly nodded to the plan. It sounded like a good plan considering that everybody would get what they want in the end. There was some mild awkward silence before Ruggie kicked open the doors with his hands full of food.

"Okay, so I bought twenty meals because that was all that I could have afforded with Leona's money plus haggling."

Leona facepalmed before letting out a groan.

"You useless hyena, I wanted you to get at least fifty meals with that money."

Thus started the crazy recovery scheme between all of the dorms.

Heartslabyul's day was probably one of the most relaxing days that a person like me could have. At the start of every day, Trey would come in and bring me a homemade breakfast. It always was some sort of pastry like pancakes, waffles or croissants. For the first two weeks, mainly because of the pain that I would acquire if I moved too much, Trey spoon fed me my breakfasts. I promised him that I would pay him back for meals but he always told me that it wouldn't be necessary.

"There's no reason to repay me, (Y/N). I'm used to taking care of my younger siblings."

Then throughout the day, Cater and Deuce would visit at random times. I'm ninety percent certain that Cater skipped a good portion of his classes and clubs to hang out with me. He would stay late into the night as well, taking pictures or showing me random memes that he found funny. Though per my demand, he would put his phone away and ignore it while we played a board game that he 'borrowed' from the board game club.

"Time for a new pic for the cam! I'm going to title this one 'Brothers Night In!'"

Deuce would come during the breaks between our classes to either lightly talk about what happened during class or tell me how much that he missed me during classes.

"I've never truly realized how boring classes are without you there."

Lunch is always spent with Riddle. He brings personally brewed tea for both of us to enjoy! He also makes sure that I'm properly taken care of and that none of his dorm members were slacking on their jobs.

"You're happy with how my dorm members are doing? Good. I'm glad that they are upholding your expectations. If they ever let you down, let me know. I'll make sure that they know better than to disappoint my family."

Finally, Ace is probably the person that I see the least of but considering what I know about him, it's quite believable that he wouldn't be there as often as the others. He does get me my homework and brings me dinner though.

"Yo, little bro! Sorry for being late with your stuff today! Basketball club started straight after school today. Let's eat before we start getting work done!"

Savanaclaw is next. To be honest, with only three of them throughout the day, it is quite hectic. Especially with Leona as one of the caretakers. Since Leona normally skips classes, he now sleeps in the nurse's office with me all day. Sometimes, if he doesn't fall asleep, we end up having a pleasant talk. He also makes sure that I'm comfortable with extra blankets if I'm cold or more pillows if the bed isn't soft enough. He does get mad if I try to situate the blankets myself.

"Stop squirming. Let your pride watch over you for a while."

Ruggie was the most hardworking out of the three. He had to get meals for me and Leona. Not to mention that a good majority of time he was trying to convince Leona to go at least to one of his classes on Tuesday. I told him that if he was too busy with Leona, he doesn't have to take care of me.

"Don't worry about me, (Y/N)! I always take care of the younger ones at home, you're no different!"

Jack was quite useful with teaching me all that I missed. He takes everything slowly which I appreciate! Alchemy has been really hard for me ever since I've arrived in Twisted Wonderland. It's like chemistry and I nearly failed when I took that.

"Did you understand that? Good. The last time that I had to teach like this was with my younger siblings when they wanted to learn how to snowboard."

Wednesday is one of those days that I can't wait for it to end. Floyd doesn't care what hurts me exactly. He sometimes just picks me up from my bed and carries me around campus.

"Why are you crying, Shrimpy? Elvers like you need all of the fresh air that they can get~!"

Normally after many tears and a majority of my day, Jade arrives and relieves Floyd of his job. Floyd always puts up a fight telling Jade that he isn't done playing with me but Jade reminds him of whatever Azul needed him to do now. Floyd becomes quiet before trudging off, a scowl on his face. Jade then normally takes me back to the nurse's office with an apology.

"I must apologize for my brother. He doesn't understand that you need your rest, (Y/N). He called you an 'elver'? Well, I won't disagree with him but don't worry. It's not an insult."

All of the meals on Wednesday are supplied by the Mostro Lounge per demand of Azul. Floyd packed breakfast and lunch for us to prevent me having to be stuck in the office all day. Dinner is the only meal that I can enjoy in a comfortable position. Azul personally delivers it to me and provides a small bit of entertainment for me.

"I do hope that the food is to your liking! I would hate for a fry to go hungry during the time that they need to heal!"

When it comes to Scarabia's turn, it's probably the most organized day. That might be because Jamil is in charge of most of the things when it comes to taking care of me. He always comes with handmade meals, extra pillows in case the ones that I've been laying on have lost their fluff, etc, etc. He always seems to know what I want.

"Here you go. A light novel for you to read to make sure that you aren't bored in bed all day. How did I know that you wanted something to read? Call it 'Caretaker's intuition'."

Kalim didn't really have anything to help me get better but his charismatic personality always made my day! After school, we would just talk about the most random things to pass the time. Kalim's most favorite subject to talk about though is his home. He talks as if I've been there before though.

"And then we all went swimming! Where did we go swimming? (Y/N)! You know that we have a pool back at home!"

Pomefiore's day is quite restless for me. Before the sun is even up, Vil is there, doing a two hour long skincare routine for me. There have been times where I've almost fallen back asleep while he was taking care of my skin. Normally, if that does happen, he flicks my forehead which wakes me up immediately.

"The others may have let you become lazy but I won't let that continue on any longer. I'll make sure that you're properly taken care of. I refuse to let my junior deteriorate anymore."

Rook likes to randomly surprise me during the day and give me plenty of compliments about my strength. His weirdness was fully on display but to be honest, I always loved when Rook was true to himself. It was also fun to look at his Neige scrapbook!

"Magnifique! I'm so overjoyed that my Jeune Chercheur de Beauté is being inspired by my collection! Don't worry mon protégé, Je ferai un album à votre beauté bien assez tôt!"

Epel comes to visit to give me my homework before setting up his own work to do with me. Surprisingly, we don't talk that much during the time that we do hang out, preferring to enjoy each other's presence in silence. When we do decide to talk, it's always short but I enjoy having them.

"Rook and Vil did what? Ah can never understand those two. But I'm glad ya can put up with them."

Saturday is when the Shroud brothers come to visit, it's the only time that Idia will actually leave his room to visit me or maybe another reason gets him out and about. I'm not too certain anymore mainly because I don't know how Idia functions half the time.

"u-u-um! hiya, (Y/N)-San! ugh, this is so embarrassing. i-i-i-i brought my portable gaming set up so that we can beat all of the other normies online! if there were people in classes today, i would totally have dreaded this more."

To balance Idia's nerves, Ortho was nearly sparking with excitement! He was in his alchemy outfit and running constant tests on me. Although he would make sure to cheer Idia and I on whenever we were either having a hard time or won a hard match!

"Niisan and Ani are so awesome! Everyone else will see how cool the two of you are together!"

Then comes Sunday. The second most hectic day of any week. I at least don't get hurt. All that I get is mild deafness in one of my ears. Sebek doesn't leave my side while begging for my forgiveness for letting this happen.

"PLEASE FORGIVE ME, (Y/N)! I'M SORRY THAT I FAILED YOU AS YOUR OLDER! I WILL NEVER LET SOMETHING HAPPEN LIKE THIS AGAIN TO YOU! I PROMISE THAT I WILL PROTECT YOU WITH EVERYTHING THAT I CAN!"

Silver was thankfully calmer than most of the others. Although he did have his own overprotective tendencies but was amazingly more organized than anybody else's! Especially for a sleepy guy.

"Sebek, you should think about getting (Y/N) some food if you want him to forgive you."

Lilia would actually prevent Silver's plan from working by bringing in his own food for me to eat. Fun fact: I can amazingly stomach his food. Considering that I'm ninety five percent certain that I should have food poisoning, his food doesn't even taste all that bad.

"Here you go, my little bat! A nice, warm meal that will fill you up! Don't be shy about engorging yourself! There's more than enough."

Malleus is probably the person who was the most affected by my injuries. He wouldn't really talk with me but just look over my casts with what could best be described as melancholy.

"I'm so sorry, my dear Child of Man. I should have never let this happen to you in the first place. I've failed you as a friend. Trust me, I promise you this as the Prince of Briar Valley, I will never let anything hurt you again."

This cycle continued on for a little over ten weeks. What was supposed to be a seven week recovery was heavily deterred by a reckless Floyd Leech. But I was so excited to be able to move on my own for the first time in a little over two months! When the nurse gave me the okay to move, I tried to stand on my feet right away. I didn't even wait for anybody to appear. I am so relieved that I can take care of myself again and no longer be a burden to everybody.

"Okay, I've got this! One, two, and up we go!"

I got up onto my feet and while I did wobble for a bit, I was pretty sturdy for someone who hasn't used their legs in a while. I didn't try anything risky like jumping or running but I was walking little laps around the nurse's office. The nurse gave me plenty of encouragement to try bigger strides or other things to improve my movement.

It was all fun and games until it was time for my guests to come in. Since it was a Wednesday, Floyd was the person who came in first to see me walking around on my feet.

"SHRIMPY! You're supposed to stay in bed!"

"I don't have to stay in bed anymore, Floyd! The nurse gave me the okay this morning! Besides, even if I was in bed, you would have just picked me up and carried me halfway across campus."

"That's not the point, Shrimpy! Elvers can't really take care of themselves without their swarm protecting them!"

"Floyd, this is a good thing! Besides, what is an elver anyway? You've been calling me one ever since I was injured. And I don't have a swarm!"

"Yes, you do! Jade and I are your swarm! We can't be having our little brother putting himself at risk!"

I went silent at what Floyd said. Little brother? I'm not their little brother. Floyd is known for going off in his own world from time to time but... I'm actually starting to worry that something happened to him.

"Floyd? Are you feeling alright?"

"Of course I am, Shrimpy! Although, you walking around as if you're some stingray, did give me a bit of a fright~"

"I wanted to make sure, Floyd, you do realize that I'm not your little brother right?"

"What are you talking about, Shrimpy? You've always been our little brother! Shrimpy can be soooooo forgetful sometimes~"

"No, Floyd. I'm not your brother."

Floyd's lazed/relaxed facial expression turned into a scowl when I tried to press the fact that we're not related. He wrapped his arms around me and gave me a light, warning squeeze.

"Shrimpy, I'm not in the mood to hear lies from you. You ARE my little brother, an elver, and you are not ready to walk around the school by yourself."

If Floyd squeezes me now, there's a good chance that something will break again and I will have to be bed ridden again. I can deal with Floyd acting as if I was a baby eel for a little while. He'll get bored after a short while with this.

"Okay, okay, sorry Floyd. I think hitting my head from my fall must have caused me to forget some things."

"It's okay, Shrimpy~ You can be stupid from time to time but that's because you're still growing~ Soon enough, you're going to be as long as Jade and I! Now back to bed you go!"

Floyd picked me up and plopped me back down on the bed. The nurse tried to explain to Floyd that I was fine to walk on my own. He didn't take it kindly.

"Are you trying to tell me how to take care of my younger brother? Sounds like a nurse shark wants to be squeezed today~"

The nurse backed down after that. I don't blame him though. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of Floyd's aggressions. Floyd didn't look away from the nurse and looked like he was going to attack the nurse anyway. I had to do something before Floyd acted on his impulses.

"So, Floyd, what do you have planned for us today? I really want to bond with my big brother some more!"

I've never seen Floyd's head turn so fast or his expression change more than it did right then. For a second there, Floyd's smile could actually challenge Kalim's smile for the brightest smile in the world.

"Oh, I'm so glad that you asked, Shrimpy~! I originally planned on taking us to the Mostro Lounge so that we can swim for a bit, then we could go find Goldfishie and bother him for a bit and finally, end the day with some basketball! Buuuutttttt I think that we should just take it easy today and just talk. You've already had enough action today with that scary walking stunt that you had this morning. Right, Shrimpy?"

Floyd's expression changed once again. His eyes held a dangerous glint that threatened me to agree with him. I only nodded my head because I don't trust my voice to stay strong.

"Gooooooddd~"

Floyd and I talked and ate together in the nurse's office for a majority of the day. I was quite shocked by the fact that Floyd fought his mood swings away. He mentioned multiple times how bored he was and how he wanted to go bother someone or go do something but what he said afterwards is the reason why I really need to talk with Jade.

"But... I need to protect Shrimpy~ So many predators here would love to sink their teeth into a yummy elver~"

I don't think I've ever been more happy to see Jade walk into the nurse's office. Nor do I think I've ever seen Jade so shocked before.

"Oh, you were actually telling the truth."

"What~? Why would I lie to you?"

"Apologies but I truly thought that you would have ran off by now."

"Yeeeeeessshhh. Nice to know how much you trust me, Jade. But we need to have a talk."

I raised an eyebrow at Floyd. What did they need to talk about? Probably some Mostro Lounge business that I can't know about.

"Shrimpy here was walking around on his own two legs this morning!"

Jade looked even more shocked at Floyd's words. He was quick to rush to my bedside and pulled out his pen. It started glowing but I was just confused as to what he was doing exactly.

"There's no life threatening damage but that doesn't mean that there is no damage at all. What were you thinking, (Y/N)? You shouldn't be putting your body under strain."

"The nurse said that I was okay to move around again. I'm no longer in pain whenever I move, Jade!"

"Oi, Shrimpy, watch your tone. There's no reason to talk to your older brother like that."

Floyd grabbed my hand and started to squeeze it. It got so harsh that I started to writhe from the pain.

"Easy on him, Floyd. Remember what we've learned about children. When they act up, it's because they don't think that they're getting enough attention. (Y/N) here probably just feels very neglected."

"What?!"

"Riigghhtt! Shrimpy must be acting up because I didn't take him on adventures like I normally do! Shrimpy, if you were feeling suffocated in this room, you could have just told me! I wouldn't be mad~!"

Floyd then let go of my hand and pressed a light kiss to my palm. As if that would take away the pain. Jade only nodded his head before picking me up bridal style.

"Jade?! Put me down now!"

"Now, now, I know that elvers like you want to move on their own but Floyd and I cannot have you risk your health and safety anymore. Come along, Floyd. Let's go see Azul."

"Yippee! Let's go on an adventure!"

Floyd busted the doors down to the ground and made sure that Jade had a clear path of walking. Jade took his time walking with me in his arms. Eventually, we made it to the main area of the school where there were many more students. I swallowed very harshly. One misstep and I was going to be hurt once again. Thankfully, it turns out that the tweels had a plan before I did.

"MOVE OUT OF THE WAY! SHRIMPY COMING THROUGH!"

Floyd ran throughout the hallway full force, either scaring or pushing students out of the way, giving Jade a safe pathway to walk and carry me through. I still had a bunch of bandages on me and when Floyd would drag me around normally, students would be in classes. Now, it was passing time for certain classes. Everybody was staring at me and I felt my face burn with embarrassment. I buried my face into Jade's blazer and heard him chuckle.

"Don't laugh at me."

"Sorry, (Y/N). I just wished that I knew how cute my younger brother could be."

"I'm not your younger brother."

"Don't be silly, (Y/N). Of course, you are! If you weren't, why would Floyd and I be taking care of you?"

"Because we're friends?"

"Nonsense. If Azul was in your situation, I assure you..."

Jade shifted my head so that I could see his very sharp teeth.

"He would not be getting the same treatment that you are."

I shut up after that. It's times like these when I question which Leech twin is worse to deal with. Floyd is loud and destructive but Jade is always unassuming which results in me forgetting why I should be wary of him as well. As soon as either Floyd, Jade or Azul is done and bring me back to the nurse's office, I'm heading straight for Ramshackle. Don't care if I have to sit on my butt to go down the stairs, I'm sleeping in Ramshackle tonight.

"Phew! I think I cleared the way enough. See, Shrimpy! Now you're getting plenty of fresh air and we're having a fun adventure like a family! Ahhh~ I can't wait for the day that we can terrify all of these boring guppies together!"

I looked at Floyd and gave him a meek smile. I already tried both of the tweels to get out of this situation to no avail. Last thing that I needed was to upset both of them.

"Good job, Floyd. Would you like to hold our younger elver for a while?"

"Yes!"

I was passed to Floyd's arms. He gave me a light squeeze before starting to skip through the hallways. I've never felt so much like a doll before.

"Mr. (Y/N)!"

Professor Trein! My savior!

"Why were you not in class today? The nurse told all of the staff that you were healed enough to go to class this morning!"

"Ehh~ Red Squid sensei, Shrimpy her-"

"I do not care for what you have to say, Mr. Leech. Mr. (Y/N) now must get to class. Put him down and run off to your own classes."

Floyd glared at Trein before, reluctantly putting me down on my feet. I was slightly wobbly but thankfully, Trein let me lean on him. Jade and Floyd just continued to glare at Trein until we both were out of their line of sight.

"Thank you, Professor Trein. I really appreciate you helping me out there."

Trein gave me a perplexed look before pulling me off to the side.

"What do you mean 'helping', Mr. (Y/N)?"

I gave Trein the quick rundown of what happened this morning. He knew that I was injured but he didn't know about the tweels' behavior.

"That about sums it all up."

Trein had a look on his face as if I were a ghost. Or some rare creature considering we see ghosts all of the time.

"This is far more concerning than their normal behaviors. Mr. (Y/N), I recommend staying away from the Leech twins. It would be the best for your own safety."

My heart filled up with unease at Professor Trein's words. I hated the idea of just ghosting Floyd and Jade but I do think that some time away from them would do me some good and vice versa.

I nodded my head before following Trein to Alchemy class. Our entrance was really loud mainly because we had a test in class today. My normal first year crew was there but also a good portion of third years was also there. Turns out it was another mix class. I turned my attention to Professor Crewel, who was writing furiously at his desk.

"Ah. The mutt has finally arrived. Did you already give him detention, Trein?"

"No."

Professor Crewel's pen stops mid-motion before Crewel lifted his head, looking at Trein with disbelief.

"How come?"

"He wasn't ditching class on purpose. Floyd and Jade were preventing him from coming to class."

All of the writing pens went still and the room reached new levels of silent. Everybody was now looking at me with concern. All of them knew that if the Leech twins have any interest in you, you are in trouble.

Crewel and Trein seem to have a silent conversation before Crewel stands up.

"All of you puppies, continue your tests! Mutt, take your seat and don't cause a mess. Professor Trein and I have some things to discuss."

I only gave Crewel a quick bow when he was leaving the room with Trein before taking the only seat left in the class. Between a first year that I don't know very well and Trey.

Trey looked over at me. I gave him a quick smile to show that I was alright. He tapped the bandages on my arm, before putting a dramatic frown. I waved my hand before putting my fingers to the corner of my lips and lifted them into a smile.

Crewel walked back in and Trey and I stopped miming to each other. I just sat there staring at my blank desk while waiting for everyone to finish with their tests.

"Mutt."

I raised my gaze to meet Crewel's stare. I couldn't stop myself from flinching. It felt like he was staring into my soul slightly.

"Y-yes, Professor?"

"I want to talk with you after class. Don't try to escape with the crowd."

"Yes, Professor."

My voice could barely count as a whisper. I felt the pity radiating off of all the other students for me. First, I was stuck with Floyd and Jade and now, I'm going to be stuck with Professor Crewel. Oh why, oh why did the nurse have to give an okay to leave?! Why couldn't he have waited for tomorrow when Kalim and Jamil were going to visit?!

After about ten more minutes, people started to turn in their tests before leaving the classroom. I watched as Ace and Deuce left. I waved at them while they left. Ace sent me a heart symbol while Deuce gave two thumbs up. Malleus and Lilia were the next of my friends to leave. Lilia put a small bag on my desk while Malleus only stared at me. Soon enough, the only people in the classroom left were Trey, Crewel and myself. Trey already turned in his test but was just standing in front of my seat to talk with me.

"Are you sure that you'll be okay? I can stay behind if you're scared."

"I'll be okay, Trey. I do owe Professor Crewel anyway. I've been only a mutt to him for a while now. Maybe I can make it up to him."

Trey looked displeased when I said mutt but I pushed him slightly in the shoulder.

"Head on out. If you're so worried about me, you're allowed to wait for me outside. I wouldn't mind company for the trip back to Ramshackle."

Trey casted me one more sad look before leaving. After he left, Crewel stood up and took his place at my seat.

"Alright, mutt. Trein explained to me about your... situation with the Leech twins. Floyd and Jade acted highly inappropriate for it to just be written off as a casual misunderstanding. If you wish, as much as I despise taking care of the mutts of the litter, I am willing to make sure that you're safe from being torn apart by the purebreds."

I only shook my head at Crewel's offer. If Crewel did try to intervene like how Trein did, it would just cause more chaos for me. Last thing that anybody needs are angry human eels. Crewel gave me a disgusted look when I started to shake my head.

"I'm a bit offended that a mutt like you refused my services. But! I'm relieved that I don't have to protect filthy, impure mutts like you."

Crewel's words stung me a bit but in all honesty, I was used to them by now. He has always had a weird grudge against me since I first arrived at Twisted Wonderland.

"T-thank you for the offer, Sir. I'll be on my way now."

I got out of my seat and rushed out of the alchemy room with Lilia's tiny bag. Last thing that I need to do is upset Crewel even more and actually get detention for skipping. I let out a sigh of relief.

"(Y/N)!"

Deuce's voice flooded my ears before I felt him. He wrapped me in a tight hug. It caused a bit of discomfort but not as bad as Floyd's squeezes could be.

"Ouch. Hiya, Deucey!"

"Ouch? Am I hurting you?!"

"Only a tad but I know that you're doing it by accident."

"I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!"

"Calm down, Deuce. It's not a problem! What are you doing here exactly?"

"I asked them the same thing when I left the classroom."

Trey spoke up with Ace by his side.

"We're here because of the fact that you're our friend! Crewel can be so harsh to you sometimes! Really? MUTT?! At least Deuce and I get called puppies but you just get called a mutt!"

Ace continued to rant in his own world while we all just listened. Trey and Deuce agreed a lot with what Ace was saying, even as it went into dragging others.

"And who do those twins think they are?! The nurse said that you were okay to go back to classes and they prevented you from doing so?! They should be expelled for doing something like that!"

"You should really watch your mouth, Trappola."

"Yeah, Crabby. You never know who might be around to hear it."

Ace's face became paler even more than it normally is when he heard Floyd and Jade's voice come from around the corner. I totally thought that Ace was going to be a goner but amazingly, the tweels let it slide. Unfortunately, it was because their attention was laser focused on me.

"Shrimpy~~~! Let's go to the Mostro Lounge now! Elvers like you need all of the yummy food that they can get! I'm pretty certain that Crabby couldn't feed you the food that you need!"

Floyd grabbed my wrist and started pulling it, trying to drag me away from the Heartslabyul students. I started to put up some resistance against Floyd which surprisingly got his attention.

"Shrimpy, don't fight me! I only want what's best for you~"

"OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!"

"URK!"

A collar appeared around Floyd's neck and a wind spell sent him flying backwards into Jade. Riddle, basically coming out of nowhere and in his dorm uniform, looked really, really mad. His head was reaching new shades of dark red that I don't think that the art majors of my world would be able to identify.

"FLOYD! You're not allowed to bother any of my dorm members for your own entertainment! Trey, Deuce, Ace. Grab (Y/N) and come along. We have important plans to take care of!"

"Yes, Dorm Leader Rosehearts!"

Ace and Deuce linked their arms with one of my own on each side while Trey went behind all of us to prevent either Floyd or Jade grabbing me from behind.

"YOU CAN'T JUST STEAL OUR ELVER! BRING HIM BACK!"

Floyd was screaming and throwing a fit while Jade was silent. I tried to turn my head to see if I could get a glance at either of them but Trey only put his hand on the back of my neck.

"Don't look back at them. I don't want you to be influenced by their terrible behavior."

I gulped when I heard the disdain in Trey's voice. It's so weird to hear such a negative tone from a person who is normally so chill. Ace and Deuce appeared to have agreed with what Trey said.

"It's bad enough that you had to spend every Wednesday with those three. Who knows what damage they did to you?"

"Yeah! We're going to make sure that you're far away from bad influences!"

I thought about what Ace said before I started laughing.

"What are you laughing about?"

"Ace. You are the king of bad influences. Before my fall, you wanted me to join you in putting five bath bombs into each toilet that is in the main building. I had to restrain you from doing that."

"Shhhhhh, we don't need to talk about that."

"Ace, I'll be having a talk with you later."

Riddle turned his head to glare at Ace. Deuce and Trey started snickering at the interaction between Ace and Riddle. They started to bicker about whether or not Ace deserves to be punished.

"I DIDN'T DO IT!"

"Your thoughts will soon become your actions! If (Y/N) wasn't there, you would have done it!"

"okay, that might have some truth BUT I STILL DIDN'T DO IT!"

After about five minutes of walking, we reached the Pop Music Club room. Cater, Kalim and Lilia were rocking out and they appeared to be having a blast. Ace and Deuce let go of my arms and I got closer to their makeshift stage. Sometimes I wish that I was better at playing an instrument so that I could join them but... I think that I would only bring down their performances.

After about two minutes of them not realizing that we were there, Cater took notice and appeared to have gone through a mental pause. Because he stopped singing and playing, Lilia and Kalim stopped playing their instruments as well.

"(Y/N)!!!"

Kalim lunged at me from behind his drums to enwrap me in a hug. I was mildly prepared but it still ended up hurting me.

"Ow, hiya, Kalim!"

Kalim didn't react to me saying ow like how Deuce did before.

"You're walking! Oh, that's amazing news! I'll get Jamil to host a huge celebration for the fact that you can move around again! I'm thinking fifty purple peacocks and plenty of golden camels will be a good start for your parade!"

Kalim went off into a planning scheme. I tried to get him to stop for Jamil's sake. There's no telling what Jamil might do if Kalim does something like this.

"I don't need all of that. Promise."

"Dorm leader Rosehearts, what brings you here? Did Ace-chan and Deuce-chan mess things up again?"

Cater's teasing tone triggered Ace and Deuce's need to defend themselves from the teasing.

"Kidding, kidding~!"

"I was tasked by the Headmage to deliver these papers to you. He made it very clear that you need to have these papers filled out by tomorrow morning."

Cater took the papers before turning his attention to me.

"Yo, (Y/N)-chan's out of bed! I need a photo of this!"

Cater was quick to get to my side and put his arm around my shoulders. Kalim and Lilia were quick to get in the picture as well before Cater took many photos.

"Perfect!"

"Ah, my little bat! Did you like what I made for you~?"

Oh, right! I forgot about the bag that Lilia gave me. I quickly grabbed it from my pocket and opened it. Inside were little black things that I think were supposed to be cookies.

"Cookies?"

"Correct! I was trying out a healthier recipe that would be able to heal you faster! But it seems that my hard work wasn't needed after all. Makes me a bit sad."

"Don't feel bad! I'm not a hundred percent better yet. Just good enough to walk around by myself."

Lilia's face fell while I grabbed one of the 'cookies'. I popped one into my mouth. The taste exploded in my mouth and I had to shake my head to try and get used to the taste. Lilia's cooking can send your soul into the next five dimensions sometimes.

"He let you walk without a complete bill of health?!"

"No, he did. The fact that he said that I was good enough to walk is a clean bill of health."

"Is that true? Humans have such a lazy way of taking care of the injured."

I only nodded, mainly because trying to convince Lilia that this was the better way for humans to recover would be near impossible. Although I had to admit, even though Lilia's cooking blasted my taste buds to new dimensions, Kalim's tight hug around my waist stopped aching.

"(Y/N). We must be on our way."

Riddle came up to me with Ace, Deuce, Trey and Cater behind him. I guess that Pop Music Club was done for the evening. I start to move forward but Kalim's grip tightened. I couldn't move an inch away.

"Why does he have to go with you? Jamil and I are going to be watching him tomorrow!"

"W-w-wait a-"

"Because he needs someone who can actually watch over him during the last stages of his recovery."

"Jamil and I are plenty responsible!"

Kalim was showing a completely different side of him. He seemed really possessive.

"Are you denying an order from me, Kalim?"

"Maybe I am!"

"Kalim."

Everybody then turned their heads to Jamil, who I believe was there to pick up Kalim.

"Yeah, Jamil?"

"We need to get going."

"Got it!"

Jamil started to walk, leaving Kalim still in the club room. Kalim seemed conflicted on whether or not to let go of me before settling on picking me up by my waist before running after Jamil.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow!"

"Wait a minute!!"

Kalim was much too fast for the other guys and caught up to Jamil with no problem.

"Jamil! (Y/N)'s feeling better! He can walk now!"

"I heard."

"He's also spending the night in the dorm!"

Jamil stopped before turning around to see me in Kalim's arms.

"H-hi... Jamil..."

Jamil had a mild wide eyed look while he was staring at me. I saw him take a deep inhale before closing his eyes and exhaling. He schooled his expression before continuing on with walking.

"Hello, (Y/N). Kalim. You know that I don't appreciate it when you bring in random guests without notifying me."

"Huh? But I thought you were the one who wanted (Y/N) to visit once he was feeling better?"

Jamil made a choked noise. That piece of news was interesting to hear from Kalim. I always thought that I was a further burden on Jamil's shoulders, not to mention the fact that I prevented his coup. Why would he want me to visit?

"Kalim. What have I told you about sharing private conversations?"

"It wasn't private! We had it in the kitchen. Many of the other Scarabia students agreed with having him over when you proposed the idea."

Jamil seemed to be getting more and more flustered at what he said. I felt bad.

"Kalim, maybe you shouldn't tease Jamil."

"I'm not teasing him!"

"You... kind of are."

"Oh. Sorry, Jamil!"

Jamil just decided to hide his face in his hoodie. I kept my eye on him. I made the mental note to try and apologize to Jamil later. I knew how Kalim got on his nerves very easily. We eventually made it to Scarabia and I was allowed to use my feet again.

"(Y/N)!"

I was surrounded by all different Scarabia students. They all had things in their hands. Apparently, back when I first got hurt, Kalim was very upset and told everybody about the news. I didn't realize how much the Scarabia students liked me because they ended up either making or buying things for me!

"Here! A stuffed parrot! Don't worry! It's only cloth and stuffing!"

"I know that you're almost fully healed but here. This is a cream that I use on injuries to soothe them."

"(Y/N)! As a thanks, I made you one of my mom's recipes! I messed up a lot of times in the kitchen but I think that you'll enjoy the outcome!"

I was mildly overloaded with all of the gifts.

"Thank you so much but you really didn't need to do all of this for me!"

"Nonsense, (Y/N)! You deserve all of this and so much more! Come along! Let's sit down while you continue to get gifts!"

Kalim pulled me along and sat me down on a cushion. I nearly melted in it. Compared to the cushions at Ramshackle or the nurse bed, it felt as if I was sitting on a cloud. I set the few gifts that I was holding down and that's where the other gifts were being put down.

"Kalim."

Kalim turned towards me with a shining look in his eyes. I felt so bad.

"I don't feel right accepting all of these. I haven't done anything to deserve all of this! All that I did was get hurt!"

"Shhhhh, (Y/N)! You shouldn't worry about it! You're Scarabia's little brother! We just want to spoil you!"

"WHAT?!"

LITTLE BROTHER?! What is wrong with everyone today?!

"Awww, (Y/N), don't get fussy! I know! Jamil!"

Kalim grabbed me in a hug. My back was against his chest and we were so close that I could feel his heartbeat. I tried to get out of his grip but Lilia's cookies were starting to wear off. The aches and pains were starting to come back. Jamil came from the kitchen, no longer having his hoodie covering his face.

"Yes, Kalim?"

"(Y/N) here is working himself up! Do you think that you can get him to relax?"

"Of course, (Y/N). Just look into my eyes and your worries will melt away."

I closed my eyes so fast. Jamil's unique magic was something that I never wanted to experience again.

"No! Jamil, you promised that you wouldn't do this to me again!"

"Shhhh, I won't hurt you. Just open your eyes. You'll be just fine."

I felt hands on my face and they pried my eyelids open. I was forced to stare straight into Jamil's eyes. I felt my resolve melt in a few seconds.

"There we go. Just relax. You're the little brother of Scarabia and you love being here with us. Scarabia students are the only ones with your safety in mind. The other dorms will hurt you without hesitation."

I felt my head nod. I don't understand why I was trying to fight Kalim. He only wanted to protect me.

"If another dorm member tries to interact with you, run and try to find a Scarabia student. They'll keep you safe."

I nodded my head again. A smile broke out on my face. A feeling of security enveloped me. I was so happy that my big brothers were around me. They just want to keep me safe.

"Are you done, Jamil?"

Kalim spoke in a whisper. I didn't completely understand why.

"Yes. He'll no longer give us trouble."

"Yay! Now! (Y/N)! How about after everyone finishes giving you their presents, we can throw a huge celebration for your return home!"

A giggle left my mouth.

"I love that idea, Big Brother Kalim."

About five days passed by while I was in Scarabia. I raised my concerns about my classes but Kalim or Jamil told me that everything was fine. That I didn't need to go to classes anymore. For some reason, that caused a part of my mind to grow uncomfortable with that thought. Why was I so determined to go to class? The other dorms would be in those classes! They'll hurt me!

"Are you sure that you guys have to go? Won't the other dorms hurt you guys as well?!"

Fear coiled around my heart like a snake for my big brothers. They were all so brave for going out into the school.

"Don't worry about us, (Y/N)! We can handle ourselves!"

"Besides, don't you remember?"

I looked at Jamil straight in the eyes.

"You're too weak to defend yourself."

My mind got muddled but I nodded my head yes.

"Yeah, you're right. I keep forgetting for some reason."

"Hehehehe! Don't worry, (Y/N)! I forget important things too! I wouldn't worry too much about it! Just rest in Scarabia and you'll be just fine!"

"If you say so, big brother!"

I waved everyone off before taking my seat in the lounge room. I took deep breaths to calm my heart before closing my eyes. I don't know why I always feel so worried about them leaving. They're strong unlike me.

I dozed off for a while. My dreams felt so life-like. I could have sworn that I was lifted off the ground by a million butterflies and was flown around the outside of Scarabia to enjoy the sun and scenery. Although I was given the biggest heart attack when I awoke.

I opened my eyes to see, well, nothing! There was just darkness. I haven't seen such darkness in a while. Ramshackle used to be very dark when I pulled the blinds shut but... Wait a minute, what's Ramshackle?

I heard footsteps echoing outside of the room that I was in. Maybe it was Jamil or Kalim? But why would my brothers pull such an awful prank on me? I soon got my answer. It was neither Kalim or Jamil.

The man who looked at me was wearing a deep purple outfit. It was like a dress without it being a dress. His hair was done really fancy and there appeared to be a crown on his head. I was terrified. It wasn't a Scarabia uniform which meant that this was probably someone from a different dorm! He's going to hurt me!

I let out whimpers. If I actually had a shot of taking the guy down, I would have screamed but I'm not strong enough to defend myself from him. The blonde man glared down at me.

"First Potato. Don't whimper. It isn't a good look on you."

The nickname rang bells in my head but I don't recognize him at all.

"Wh-who are you?"

The man appeared shocked by my question.

"What do you mean 'Who are you'? You know me quite well, First Potato!"

I shrunk when he raised his voice. He quickly noticed and tried to remedy his mistake.

"I apologize for scaring you, (Y/N). But I just can't believe that you forgot about me."

I stared at him and my mind was itching. It was most uncomfortable. Why did I feel like I knew him?

"Are you going to hurt me?"

The man looked appalled at the words that I said.

"Hurt you? Why would I hurt you? (Y/N). Nobody here wants to hurt you. It was bad enough that that Cucumber let you fall but I assure you that I will not cause you any harm. I owe you much better."

"Are you sure, Vil?"

"Hm? It appears that you do know me after all. I didn't tell you who I was."

I realized what I said. I do know this man! Vil Schoenheit! The famous model and actor! I helped him during VDC! My memories quickly came back! I had friends in other dorms! They wouldn't hurt me!

"Vil! It's a relief to see you again!"

I grabbed him in a hug and had the biggest smile on my face. A smile broke out on Vil's face as well. I felt his arms wrap around my body.

"It's a joy to see you as well, First Potato."

"But wait. Why am I in Pomefiore in the first place? I was in Scarabia for so long. I didn't think that anybody was searching for me."

"You're in Pomefiore, First Potato, because I heard from Epel that you weren't in class. I instructed Rook to go looking for you. The nurse told me and a few of the other dorm leaders that you should be back in classes last Thursday. It took Rook close to six days. Scarabia had you hidden well but thankfully, Rook overheard something from the potatoes from Heartslabyul. I can't believe what those spuds from Scarabia kept you captive!"

"Yeah, they all were acting really weird! Floyd and Jade were acting in a similar way."

Vil tilted his head slightly.

"How exactly were they acting?"

A sigh escaped my lips.

"They keep acting as if I'm their younger brother and that I can't do a single thing for myself! For crying out loud! I took care of overblots, I fought ghosts and students who decided to pick a fight, I took care of Ramshackle nearly by myself! I'm not a little boy!"

I clenched my hands into fists. What has been happening really has taken a huge toll on my mental state. Tears of frustration started to pool in the corners of my eyes.

"Calm down, First Potato. You're working yourself into dismay. You wouldn't want your eyes puffy, now do you? Follow my actions."

Vil coached me through a breathing exercise. I felt my panic ebb away and the tears no longer forming.

"Thank you again, Vil. I'm just really tired right now."

Vil gave me a pat on my head, which made me smile.

"It's not a problem for me, First Potato. But you shouldn't sleep any more. Naps can be useful in case of a bad night's sleep but I'm certain that you got plenty of sleep in Scarabia."

I nodded my head. Last night was the only night that there wasn't a huge party if my memory is correct. Although, I really wouldn't trust it for the fact that I was under a lot of mind control during that time.

"So, instead of taking a nap, we're going to do some other relaxing activity. You're lacking a certain glow that you normally have."

Vil grabbed one of my hands before pulling me out of the room. He led me through the hallways of Pomefiore before stopping in front of a different room. He knocked on the door pretty loudly.

"Rook! Come out please!"

The door opened swiftly and there was Rook in all of his glory.

"Roi du Poison! Oh, and my Jeune Chercheur de Beauté! It's wonderful to see you awake from your slumber although..."

Rook's smile turned into a scary smirk.

"Your sleeping face gave me the most euphoria that I've ever experienced! There was nothing more that I wanted than to split your head open and crawl inside to see what made you so calm and happy in your dreams."

Rook went on a tangent and I was starting to get uncomfortable. Rook can really go into the smallest details that even a person who spends a whole day in front of a mirror wouldn't notice.

"Rook."

Rook stopped mid sentence before clasping his hands together.

"Right! Forgive me, Roi du Poison! I got lost in my Trickster's beauty. Now, what may I do for you, my Lovely Queen?"

"I want you to take (Y/N) and get him some proper clothing. Those rags that Kalim and Jamil made him wear are quite insulting."

I looked down at my clothes. I didn't even realize that I was wearing a Scarabia uniform! When did I get changed?!

"Oui, oui, Beautiful Vil! I'll make sure that he is put into clothing that compliments your and his beauty perfectly! Now, come with me, Jeune Chercheur de Beauté. Let's get your beauty to shine above all others."

Rook left his room and started to guide me from behind. He kept a tight grip on my shoulders and started to push me towards somewhere else in Pomefiore.

"This way, this way, Trickster."

"Where are we going, Rook?"

"You'll see!"

I let out a light laugh. To be honest, this is probably the most fun that I've had ever since I was released from bed rest. Although Grim is probably freaking out by now.

"Here we are!"

I was jostled out of my thoughts when Rook opened a very large room. I was in awe of all of the clothes there. There were so many beautiful clothes. They all appeared to be of high quality as well.

"Now! Let's find the perfect outfit to compliment your beauty!"

I lost count of how many outfits that I had tried on. Rook complimented all of them but he would always end his compliments with the same ending statement.

"While your beauty is shining bright, I know that you could be shining brighter."

We finally chose a really beautiful outfit. I remember seeing it in a catalogue that Vil had a few months ago. I did want the outfit but there was no way that I could afford it. It compliments my skin and hair perfectly.

"TRÉS BIEN!! OH, MON JEUNE CHERCHEUR DE BEAUTÉ! Je n'ai jamais vu quelqu'un briller autant que toi en ce moment! Pomefiore a tellement de chance que tu fasses partie de notre dortoir comme tous les nôtres juniors! Bien que, je dois l'admettre, si vous êtes toujours proche de moi, j'aurai toute la beauté dont j'ai besoin dans ma vie pour durer éternellement!"

"Thank you?"

"Non, non, thank YOU, Trickster! For blessing me with a wonderful sight!"

I heard a vibration and Rook pulled out his phone. A smile broke out on his face.

"Perfect timing! Come along, Mon Jeune Chercheur! Roi du Poison requires your presence."

Rook grabbed my wrist and started to lead me somewhere else in Pomefiore. I saw Epel during the trip and gave him a wave. He looked shocked before rushing to catch up with Rook and me.

"(Y/N)! Where have you been?! Ace, Deuce, and Jack have been searching for you all over school! Sebek and I have been taking care of Grim and Ramshackle for ya! Even though Grim has been really upset without you recently."

"I was... mildly kidnapped by Scarabia for the past few days."

Epel's eyebrows went up before his face contorted into a scowl.

"Those gluttonous hogs... I'll make sure that they pay!"

"We're here, Roi du Poison!"

Rook opened some other doors and inside was what I would call a full photography studio. Cameras, lights, backdrops, makeup on the side, everything! Vil was there, wearing a beautiful outfit himself and had a full face of makeup on.

"Ah, it's about time, First Potato. Ah, Epel, you've come along as well."

"Well, I really wanted to see (Y/N) again."

I was mildly surprised at how quiet Epel was being. He actually appeared to be bashful.

"Well, if you're quick enough and actually listen to instructions, you can join the photo shoot."

Epel looked shocked before a huge smile appeared on his face.

"Really?!"

"Yes, but you have to clean up and get your makeup done!"

"Right!"

Epel ran off into one of the side rooms to most likely get ready. I've never seen him listen to Vil so enthusiastically before.

"Now, come here First Potato."

I returned my attention to Vil who had his arms open to me. I walked up to him, a bit confused on what he wanted me to do. He gestured to the camera and I got the hint. I moved to in front of the camera and stood there.

"Why am I doing this?"

"We're doing this to capture your natural beauty while putting you in a low stress environment. You mentioned how you were tired and creating beautiful works of art is a relaxing activity that we can do together."

"W-w-wait, these photos won't be p-posted anywhere? Right?"

"Of course not, First Potato. I know how much you get nervous about photos of you."

I felt the tension leaving my body. Knowing that I could just have fun pictures that don't need to be one hundred percent perfect was a joy to hear. Vil kept talking to the camera man when Epel came back with an outfit of his own. It was a bit cutesy but he didn't seem too annoyed by it.

"There! I even wore the outfit you picked, Vil!"

There's his annoyance.

"Hmmmm, you rushed your makeup, hair and the outfit looks thrown on. Ugh, maybe I'm feeling more lenient because of my junior being here or I must be going crazy, but go on."

Epel jumped slightly before running to me. He even captured me in a hug.

"(Y/N)! It's a wonder to see ya again! To be honest, the school is kind of falling apart with you out of action for so long."

"Oh! That's... really not good."

NRC falling apart is the nearly last thing that I want. I mean, sure. When I first got it here, I was highly uncomfortable but now. This place is like a second home to me.

"Alright! Roi Du Poison has placed me in charge of making sure everyone is in their correct positions! Alright, Mon Jeune Chercheur! Over here!"

Rook grabbed my hands and led me over to a plain white cube. He first sat on it before positioning me on top of him.

"Um, Rook?"

"It will be fine, Trickster! Now, Epel, please come over here!"

Epel rushed over, put his hands in a crisscross position, lay them in my lap before settling his head on top of them. His head facing the camera while he was kneeling. I stayed as still as possible before Vil came over and stood behind me and Rook. He put his hand on my shoulder. It kind of felt like a family portrait.

"We need at least one formal photo before we can do more. Now, everyone, give the camera your best smile."

I looked at the camera and gave it my best smile. I hope that it's enough to make the picture look well. The photographer took many pictures of us in the position and at different angles. My eyes were mildly blotchy after that.

"There we go. Now, time for other poses."

I don't know how many hours we spent there but I must admit. It was so much fun to just have a photo shoot with my Pomefiore friends. Some of the photos were just me and Epel or me and Rook or me and Vil. Each one had a different feel. Vil's photos were more serious while Epel's photos had a more fun vibe. Rook's photos were light hearted but at the same time, my heart raced because of the look in his eyes.

"Wow, I think that I really needed this. Thanks Vil for coming up with this."

"No problem, First Potato. Although you should probably rest now. It's gotten quite dark."

"Has it?!"

I moved to leave the room and took a look outside. Sure enough, the moon was in the sky at Pomefiore.

"Oh no! I need to get to Ramshackle. Thank you guys so much for hanging out with me but I really do need to leave!"

"Wait!"

"Non!"

"Hold on-!"

I didn't wait to hear their protests before running down the hallways.

"I'll return the outfit tomorrow! I promise!"

I didn't have the time to change. I had to get back to Ramshackle. Grim will never forgive me for taking this long to recover and see him again. It took me around six minutes to reach Ramshackle and I bursted through the doors. The ghosts there looked shocked before they became overjoyed.

"(Y/N)!"

"Welcome back!"

"We've missed you!"

"Thanks for the warm welcome guys! But where's Grim?"

"Upstairs in bed!"

"Thank you!"

I ran up the stairs and quietly opened the door to see Grim curled up in a ball on the bed. I shut the door before walking to him and gently started to pet his back. He leaned into my touch before opening his eyes.

"(Y/N)!"

Grim jumped onto me to smother my face.

"Hello, Grimmy! It's wonderful to see you as well!"

Grim had a big grin on his face before his expression turned into a dark one.

"You need to leave."

Saying that I was confused would have been an understatement.

"Wh-what do you mean? Grim, aren't you glad that I'm back?"

"I am! But all of those other guys are insane! They've been talking about kidnapping you to 'keep you safe'!"

"WHAT?!"

[silverstagspirit]

This is going to be a word vomit, but there are some comparisons between Earth and Twisted Wonderland that I wanted to make based on souls and myths on what happens to souls in the afterlife. So I’m sorry for how long this will be🥺! For biology au, I feel that not only would Yuu be biologically different from everyone in Twisted wonderland, but also have a different soul structure. In Twisted wonderland, the color and shape of the soul is used to indicate the type of magic and how much magic someone would have. The color of souls that are used to separate people into their dorms are red, yellow/orange, light purple, dark purple, blue, and green. For ghost in Twisted Wonderland they look very cartoonish and have a different appearance than when they were alive. Meanwhile on Earth souls are very impossibly to see or to prove their existence, but the ghost here on Earth are much more terrifying looking. Not only do they have the same appearance when they were alive, they would also have the injuries/cause of death marks on them. Plenty examples are on YouTube, “Creepy Sentences said by Kids”. (there was this one kid making weird faces in their living room, when their parent asked why, the kid responded they were mimicking the woman with the long braid around her neck) Also, in varies religions (mostly in the big ones such as Christianity, Muslim, and Jewish) you’re soul is affected by the decisions of your actions like doing good deeds or committing sins. Another factor that could impact your soul is how you lived and died. (If you committed suicide you just doomed your soul to never passed on to the afterlife). Whatever action you take will affect the shape your soul and will be your indicator if you pass into heaven or hell. Imagine how funny it would be if Malleus and the doctors came up with another method to see Yuu’s soul, only for many doctors and some of their classmates to faint when they see something eldritch appear, like one of those biblical accurate angels staring back. (Yuu did help save the dorm leaders from dying when they over blotted and stayed friendly to them despite almost getting killed. I’m pretty sure Yuu earned big points in getting into heaven.) The people that would faint would be Trey, Ace, Cater (after taking a blurred photo) and maybe Riddle. The people who would be stunned would be Malleus, Lilia, and Silver. The people that would try to fight this would be Deuce and Sebek. Meanwhile Grim would most definitely hide or shoot fireballs.

I'm not gonna lie.

I've been daydreaming about the ghost thing as well for a while now but didn't think about putting it in this series.

This ask has now confirmed for me that I am not the only one who wonders if all ghosts in Twisted Wonderland look all cute and puffy like that. When I got the English version and played the prologue; then those ghosts in the mine start attacking us, I remember how scared Ace, Deuce and Grim got and thought: "Why are they this scared? These guys are all puffy and cute.

I was thinking about another au that I have in the works where Ace gets acidentally sent to Yuu's world whilst they are still in twisted wonderland. Until he is summoned back, he learns about Yuu's world through the people around him and the experiences he endures.

One of the scenarios of that series has Ace split off from the other people and encounters a ghost that is inspired by a ghost story I heard IRL. I kinda wanna work on my horror writing.

Them all fainting would be funny. They would never be able to look at Yuu the same way ever again.

Thank you for the ask. It was very entertaining to read.

[akai-joou]

WELL YOU CANT LEAVE A BRUH ON A CLIFFHANGER?? Keep the oc talk train going WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

KJAFBHSKDFJ HELLO OMG OKAY UM JUST

I decided that Grace is somewhat a Yuu. But you know, not following traditional game lore. She goes to the ceremony and actually gets sorted into Diasomnia.

The whole thing with Grim does go down just... as an isolated incident with Crowley being the one to keep watch over the him until he figures out exactly what to do.

But Grace? Sorted into Diasomnia. If I recall correctly, Diasomnia is a dorm where they value those with strong magical power and honor? Don't quote me on that, I do believe I read it on an analysis on here once. I ran with that analysis though.

Arthurian Mythology tends to follow the chivaric code, which can often be seen in Lilia, Silver and Sebek! Knight's honor and what not. Besides, it just makes sense. It'd be the perfect dorm if only they didn't scoff at her at every turn simply because her magic isn't all there at the moment. When reading the theory and everything, it makes sense. But in practice? It's lacking, comparable to a child that's just starting and can't even levitate a spoon.

So they scoff at her at every turn. Her fellow first year, Sebek berates how she'd bring shame to the dorm as a human, others simply shame her and try to reason that the mirror made a mistake. That she probably shouldn't have been accepted into the school. (Call back to how in the novel others tend to scorn Yuu because he's magicless and still an alumni.)

→ These are her first two weeks of school until she sighs and goes to Lilia (since Malleus is MIA) to discuss changing dorms. Not to please the others but more-so because she's just so over it lmao

She got used to the training grounds there for her sword fighting though, and Sebek and Silver are both great sparring partners but FUCK if people aren't annoying. Lilia ever the father figure decides to make a compromise. They speak to Crowley and Crowley reasons that if she simply doesn't want to be in the dorm she couldn't switch (the other dorms aren't appealing, maybe Savanaclaw because training sessions, but Diasomnia is the best in her opinion) which is WHEN Ramshackle is brought up.

And until she can basically jump start her magic to where it used to be, she gets to stay in Ramshackle Dorm.. despite it being abandoned and well... Ramshackle. Crowley also gives her the task to watch after Grim. Maybe figuring how to tame this dire beast will help her do somethings here and there.

→ THIS. Is where the game begins! Basically!

She's already a student when the [Prologue] where she meets Ace + Deuce officialy happens. She still accompanies them to the mine and Deuce is the one to make note of how not-afraid she is despite lacking proper magic. Ace kinda shrugs him off about it, but like she's literally about to throw hands with a stick. Actually I wonder if she has a sword/baton like Silver?

She doesn't use the Diasomnia uniform actually! She uses some random vest she found in Ramshackle when cleaning out and doesn't really wear the Diasomnia Dorm uniform either pffft. Has it though. The little Dorm ribbon? She has it in her bag, just doesn't use it.

Deuce and Ace stick with her after that, though she kinda side eyes Ace often because you know.... Ace will be Ace. And some of the shit he does really grinds her gears, but she does have a soft spot for Deuce especially after book 1. Something about how he does everything to make his mom proud really resonates with her... though she doesn't know why.

Ah, she doesn't remember anything from before waking up in the lake. Haha.

My favorite thing about working on Grace has GOT to be how I worked with each overblot scenario fixing it to match her character. How to honor these knightly code values that stay in her mind, instincts at this point. Why she reacts how she does. So let's separate each book in like... conflicts and how they affect those around them. Is it within the dorm? Is it an internal conflict? Does it affect the whole school? External conflict.

→ Book 1 (internal conflict)

At first she kinda... sides with Riddle. Ace's ridiculous excuses and she'd be like "yeah, kinda serves you right." But then Deuce comes in and talks about how ridiculous some of the rules are and she goes "Huh. Let's go see then." Meets Cater, sees how utterly stupid these rules really can be and well- we all know how Book 1 goes down.

It's called The Rose-Red Tyrant for a reason. And that kicks her chivalrous ideology into play. She's gotta help sort out this internal conflict before it gets out of hand. It's great.

Of course that's... internal conflic, just imagine when it's external and concerns more than one dorm.

→ Book 2 (external conflict)

Leona's whole thing practically affects everyone. Hurting players in other dorms already irks the living hell out of her, foul play and what not. But going as far to involve her actual dorm? I think... at the end is when Ace and Deuce kinda find out that she's in Diasomnia. Like.... I'm just saying as someone who did those types of ceremonies where they drone on calling people one by one like graduations... you zone out at some point.

Anyways, I DO HAVE WRITTEN DOWN WHAT SHE SAYS TO LEONA. Because yeah Lilia goes off at him but like so does girly. I think it was.

"It is a good thing that you are the second Prince. if this is how you behave as the Leader of a Dorm, then I can not fathom to imagine how you would be as the Leader of a Country."

Which, you know.... is a dick move and DOES add to his overblot. But also Lilia follows along with his Malleus speech. Silver watches amused and Sebek agrees. Ace and Deuce are like "holy shit" but Deuce lowkey is like "that's kinda-" (I'm bringing Deuce up alot, aren't I? :) That's an important detail for later. Keep in mind, she was meant to be with Silver, at first.)

Anyways, those are like two of the best examples of how it comes to dealing with overblots, it's pretty fun actually!

An important detail is that I don't... think she's in any club right now. When she was a Yuu I had noted down that she used to be in a fencing club, which I would like to include but the closest thing is the training/sparing sessions Sebek and Silver often do. So she often can be found in Diasomnia sparring with Silver which leads to... the rumor mill rumor milling haha

[higuchimon]

[fanfic] Rewards of Losing:  Chapter 16

Shou clipped one of the leaves, running his hands over the branches, and exuded as much of his energy into the tiny plant as he could. He breathed in deeply and closed his eyes. The plant whispered back to him, enjoying the feeling of his hands on the leaves, murmuring about how happy it was that he’d grown it and how pleasant it was with the sun and earth and water.

Slowly he soothed the little plant. It settled itself back into its pot and the leaves spread outward to soak up the sun. It hadn’t properly blossomed yet and he wasn’t going to force it. Good Healers never forced plants without a good reason.

One of his teachers peered over to check on his work and nodded in approval “You’re getting better,” she praised him. “You’ll be eligible for the Obelisk Blue Healer Corps in no time if you keep this up.”

Shou dropped his head at once. “No, I won’t,” he murmured. He knew that it would take far more skill and talent than he had to be that good.

He would never be good enough to be on the Healer Corps. They only accepted the best of the best, and he wasn’t even bonded yet. No one had even wanted to court him yet. No one had even wanted to fight for the right to.

Not like his brother. He’d seen the battles when everyone eligible fought to see who would have the right to court Ryou. Battles between Healers were almost as terrifying as those between Firestarters, especially for a Healer to watch. He recalled in vivid detail how Yuuri won it – turning every plant that the other three had against their masters, and tearing them into shreds.

There were few times when it was permissible for Healer to kill Healer. When it came to fighting for a Firestarter, that was one of those times.

The teacher only rested a hand on his shoulder before moving on. Shou carefully cleaned up his area and then made his way back to his own quarters. Like those of any Healer, there were plenty of plants there that he’d raised and grown himself. All of them murmured in pleasure as soon as he entered and Shou greeted them, curling up in his favorite chair and picking up his PDA.

Nothing from Ryou. That disturbed him. They didn’t talk very often but Ryou at least sent a message once a month, catching Shou up on what he was doing over there in XYZ. The fact of his being there worried Shou more than he’d ever wanted to say. XYZ was a strange world, a place full of terrifying creatures and a strange summoning method that Shou didn’t understand.

When’s he going to come home? Shou tucked his head down and sighed. He knew that sooner or later he needed to wander around and check on some of the communal gardens. That was part of a Healer’s duty from the moment they began to attend the school. There was only one garden that he hadn’t yet come near and the last time he’d talked to one of the more senior Healers, he’d been told he really needed to go by that one.

But he didn’t like being anywhere near the Garden that Yuuri used the most. So far as he knew, no one did. It wasn’t even allowed to go too near there except in certain cases. Technically he had permission but he wasn’t going to push it. He might wander that way if he knew for a fact Yuuri wasn’t there.

For a moment he worried at his lip, then went over to the door that led to his own private garden. This garden was connected to every other garden in Academia. Shou settled in there and reached for the foliage, whispering in that silent language.

Is Yuuri there? Just that one question. It was all that he needed to know. If he could just get in there enough to fulfill his duties, then he wouldn’t have to go back for ages.

And maybe, just maybe, he would find out something about his brother. That worried him, that Yuuri might be the only one who knew anything. He didn’t want to ask Yuuri. He wanted to know without interacting with Yuuri at all.

He waited for an answer. Waited until the wind blew and the leaves whispered and told him what he wanted to know.

Yuuri wasn’t in the Garden. He might not be back there for some time. Shou wasn’t sure why, but that gave him a little time. So he gathered up every scrap of his courage and headed outside. If nothing else, he wouldn’t have to interact with Yuuri’s scary plants for months after this.

Shun usually kept a careful eye out as he headed back from wherever he’d been to where the survivors huddled together. He wanted to make sure he made it back safely and didn’t lead any of Fusion’s filth to where they hid.

Usually he did. Right now he didn’t care. He would have gleefully led the entire army there, if only for the chance to turn around and roast every single one of them into a great pile of ashes.

He’d wanted that ever since he’d seen what happened to the train. Before then he’d just mildly hated the invading army. They didn’t belong here; they’d done a lot of harm, and he knew they’d do a lot more. But he at least had his family. His sister and his parents – they’d been separated during the initial invasion, he and Ruri having been chatting with some old friends, while his parents were at home.

It had been a very happy, normal day. He’d looked forward to his next chance to duel against Kaito. He’d have to argue with Yuuto about it, of course, but they usually settled that with a duel too. Everything had been so peaceful. So perfect. So happy.

And then from nowhere came the strike, the Fusion warriors tearing into town from all sides, and life changed forever.

My parents are dead. I have to tell Ruri. Oh, how he didn’t want to do that. He knew that he needed to, but he didn’t want to. Telling her that would make it as real to her as seeing all the damage and bodies caused by that Firestarter of Fusion had made it for him.

He thought he smiled. It was the sort of smile that wasn’t a smile. It certainly didn’t make him happy in the slightest. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever be happy again.

“Shun?”

He raised his head up to see Ruri standing there, hand reaching out for him. Her fires brushed against his, the two flames wrapping around one another. She took a step closer.

“What’s wrong?”

He didn’t want to tell her. He wanted to be able to say that their parents were safe behind him, that all of this was going to end. But the words refused to make their way out of his mouth.

Ruri raised one hand to touch his lips. “You don’t have to say it. I already heard,” she murmured, and Shun realized now that tears streaked her cheeks. “All of them?”

He nodded slowly. “I burned the fool who did it,” he confessed. He’d never done that to anyone before. Normally Firestarters had some leeway in killing people, if it was to defend their Healer or their family. But he’d never had anyone enrage him to the point that he unleashed the full force of his flames.

Until now. Now he knew that he’d done it and what perhaps terrified and pleased him the most was that he didn’t care. If Fusion’s soldiers followed him, he would do it all over again. If anyone threatened Ruri or Yuuto or anyone else that he cared about – a vanishingly small list – then he would end them without mercy.

Slowly he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Ruri. She returned the embrace, and he could feel her shaking in his arms.

“We have to get rid of them,” she murmured. “What do they even want with us?”

“I don’t know. But we’ll burn them out eventually.” If only Fusion didn’t have Healers and Firestarters of their own. Then those of Heartland would be able to defeat their opponents. As it was, all they had were those who could duel.

Slowly the two of them started to head back the way that Ruri came. Both of them kept a cautious eye out for anyone who might try to attack them. Shun couldn’t wait to get back to where he could feel Yuuto’s glimmering warmth. He’d never known a Healer like Yuuto. They’d worked hard on attuning to one another and perhaps if things had gone on the way they should have, they would have planned bonding at some future point.

That might still happen. Shun wasn’t going to deny the chance. But right now he wasn’t worried about bonding. He just worried about everything else.

Including one tiny thing. He nudged Ruri ever so gently. “Have you found any Healers to your taste yet?”

Ruri sighed right away, lightly tapping at him with fire between her fingers. “Why do you keep asking? Why now?”

Because she needed a Healer. Because he needed to think about something that wasn’t what he’d seen that day. Because he hoped something good could come out of all of this. But now he just shrugged. Ruri rolled her eyes.

“Not yet. Come on. Let’s go.”

Shun didn’t argue. He’d done all that he could anyway.

Durbe ran a soothing hand through Chris’s long silver hair. His Healer lay there quietly, eyes closed, trying to rest. Both of them had been busy for hours, trying to reinforce the various Gardens throughout Heartland and avoiding being seen by any Fusion soldiers.

Both of them were good enough duelists to defend themselves, but Chris wanted to save his energy to put into the Gardens. The survivors would need those to have food and shelter.

“Any new information?” Chris murmured at last. Durbe shook his head.

“Nothing we didn’t already know. If we’re to stand a chance here, then we’re going to have to find a way to use their weapons against them. And we don’t know how yet.”

Chris sighed, brow furrowed. “There should be a way.” He knew more about science and tech than Durbe did. Durbe liked hearing him talk about it, too. Seeing him excited about something new was a beautiful sight.

Durbe considered their options, then shrugged. “The only way I can think of is to get one of their Duel Disks and see if we can figure out how it works.”

There wasn’t a response at first. Then Chris tilted his head up and eyed Durbe thoughtfully. “So how do we do that?”

A very good question indeed. Durbe considered even more options. It was simple to declare they would just acquire a Duel Disk. Actually doing it was the hard part, when they all knew that a captured Fusion fighter would just self-destruct their duel disk.

“Let’s see if we can find at least one of them on their own,” Durbe suggested. “We can keep them prisoner and take their disk before they can wreck it.”

Chris sat up and ran a hand through the long wash of silver hair. “I haven’t seen any of them on their own. They’re almost always in pairs at least.”

Durbe shrugged. “So we find a pair of them? Then we can have two duel disks.”

Again Chris’s fingers drummed, this time also moving to caress one of the nearby flowers that sprouted up near him. “All right. We should get a few other people for this, though. Healers and Firestarters.”

“Rio and Kotori?” Durbe suggested. Rio was a Frostflame, but that could only give them more talent to work with. “Or Ryouga and Thomas?”

Chris’s lips twitched. “Why not both? But I was also thinking about Mizael.”

“Why him?”

“Because I think he needs something to think about that isn’t how depressed he’s been since this got started.” Chris drew himself gracefully to his feet.

Durbe considered that. It wasn’t untrue – Mizael could put a very good face on and did a lot to help in this nightmare situation, but any Healer worth their blossoms could see that underneath it all, something wasn’t right with him.

“Do you know what’s the matter?” Durbe wondered. He knew there was something to do with a Firestarter, but Chris hadn’t told him all the details. There just hadn’t been time with an invasion.

Chris nodded. “Remember what the Healer Cat, Kei, told us? About how that Firestarter he wasn’t actually courting turned out to be an enemy agent?”

Oh, yes. Durbe remembered that now. He hadn’t realized that it hurt Mizael all that much. Perhaps it had been more than a simple attraction. He found himself quite grateful that he’d never been torn between romantic bonds and the connection of a Healer and Firestarter – Chris was both for him, and he was the same for Chris. Trying to separate them would be a nightmare he didn’t want to live through.

Chris held out his hand and Durbe accepted it, rising to his feet. “All right. Let’s see if we can get him to help us.”

“He’s in his tent. At least I think he is.” Chris frowned in thought. “I did hear that he and Kurosaki were out earlier and the refugee train was lost.”

Durbe winced at that. He only barely knew Kurosaki Shun as one of Chris’s students, but the loss of all of those people would horrify anyone. It was the fault of Fusion, of course. Everything that had happened lately was the fault of Fusion. Even Mizael being in this situation of grief.

“We'll see how he’s feeling,” Chris said, and the two of them headed through the rows of tents.

Durbe couldn’t count how many people were here. The Night Gardens were – or had been – the largest garden in Heartland. But even with all the Healers here to support the plants of all types, no one could be certain if the Gardens could still support the people.

They needed to get rid of the Fusion invaders. Otherwise, none of them would survive.

Mizael wanted to keep on sleeping. He expected if he opened his eyes, he would see Kei there, insisting there was some way that they could get to Fusion dimension and save Marufuji. Mizael wasn’t going to take that chance. He’d said it already – if Marufuji really didn’t want to be a part of Fusion, then he could save himself.

But something kept telling him that he needed to wake up. He shifted, trying to pull his thin pillow over his face, and not succeeding. He grumbled; couldn’t they just let him sleep?

“I think he’s asleep,” a voice murmured, just far enough away that he could have ignored it and close enough that he didn’t want to. It felt wrong. They sounded like he might need him. Couldn’t they wait until later? Until he felt like getting up?

He didn’t open his eyes. He was awake, but he really would have preferred not to be. How long had he even been asleep, anyway? How long had Kei been gone?

“I am.” He could hear someone moving just outside of his tent. Not what he wanted. “I want to stay that way.”

He recognized the voice that answered: Chris. What were he and Durbe doing here?

“I wish we could let you.” Chris told him. He and Durbe both leaned into the tent. “But I think we have an idea to turn things more in our favor and we need your help.”

Mizael still didn’t open his eyes. “Why should I, Chris?” Though those few words did plant the seed of curiosity. What did they think that they could do to push back Fusion?

“We’re going to capture some Fusion soldiers, take their Duel Disks, and figure out how they work so we can use them with our words,” Chris said, almost too cheerfully.

Mizael sat up, tossing off his blanket and staring at the two of them at the tent flap. He could not have heard what he just thought he heard. This was almost like what Kei had said, but somehow – different. Sort of. He needed more details. “You want to do what?”

“Capture some Fusion solders, make sure they can’t destroy their duel disks, then retrofit their Duel Disks so that we can use them. Fighting them on a level playing field. Getting them out of our world once and for all.” Chris repeated himself. His lips quirked a little. He clearly knew what he said would have an effect on Mizael. “What do you think?”

Mizael could think of quite a few things. But one shot right to the front of his mind, chilling his heart and bolstering it at the same time.

If he comes back – if he tries to attack this world again – then it’s my fault. Because I didn’t figure it out sooner and didn’t stop him. He already carded a lot of people that we could have used now. So if I have a way I can fight back against him – I will. I have to.

That had been what lurked in the back of his mind all this time, pushed to the side by hard work of helping other people. The rage at Marufuji, the way he felt as if he’d been tricked or used, the way he felt as if he’d somehow failed all of those around him. If he’d just known sooner, been able to guess sooner, figured out what secret it was that Marufuji kept…

This might be his way to repair what had gone wrong. And this was what made it different from Kei’s insistence on saving Marufuji – this was saving their world, something far more important.

He got to his feet and ran his fingers through his hair, adjusting the scarf around his waist. “All right. What do you need me to do?”

To Be Continued

Notes: So, things have Begun To Happen!

[brella]

i feel like we always ask you about books so today i wanna ask you some anime recs :)

HOW INTERESTING THAT YOU SHOULD COME TO ME NOW, JUST AFTER I FINISHED ATTEMPTING TO BRIBE A TWITTER MUTUAL WITH A PHYSICAL CAKE SO THAT SHE WOULD WATCH AN ANIME I LOVE. i am always happy to share anime recs. 

ping pong: the animation (dir. masaaki yuasa): effusive yutaka “peco” hoshino and reserved makoto “smile” tsukimoto have been best friends since day one, and both of them love to play ping pong. peco, a child prodigy at the sport, loves it with all of his soul, and is so confident in his own talent that he’s become arrogant; while smile, in spite of his natural talent, does not take ping pong seriously, seeing it as nothing more than a way to pass the time. things are shaken up for the boys by the arrival of wenge “china” kong, a chinese player sent to redeem himself in japan after being kicked off the national team, who skunks peco in their first match, sending him spiraling into crisis; meanwhile, smile catches the interest of the school’s coach, a former star player, who is determined to make sure smile does not waste his talent. also joining the cast are manabu “akuma” sakuma, peco’s belligerent rival since childhood, and ryuichi “dragon” kazama, vanguard of the elite ping pong team at kaio academy. when all is said and done, will smile and peco’s friendship—and the love of ping pong that bonds them—remain? i urge everyone to watch this anime; it is perhaps the best i’ve ever seen. a work of art, of joy, of sadness and failure and triumph—a tribute to being alive, and to what it means to love something so much you feel like there’s no point in being alive if you can’t do it. and the animation, voice acting, and score are outstanding! 11 episodes.

the tatami galaxy (dir. masaaki yuasa): an unnamed college student is perpetually dissatisfied with his life, bemoaning the fact that he can never seem to grasp that “rose-colored campus life” he was certain he would have upon attending college in kyoto. just about the only thing he has in his corner is his mischievous frenemy, ozu, who drags him into scheme after scheme that only seem to make his situation worse; and a fellow student, akashi, who the protagonist has feelings for, but can never quite seem to spit it out. after a bad break-up sends him over the edge into total cynicism, he starts to wonder if his college years would have been spent differently (i.e., better) if he had chosen to join a different club on his first day. unbeknownst to him, the desire to go back and do it over again does send him back in time—each episode is an alternate timeline based on which club he joined. no matter how things change, though, he always seems to keep running into ozu, to just miss akashi, and to get involved with a man calling himself higuchi, who claims to be a god of matrimony; a bone-headed popular senior named jougasaki; and a beautiful but intense dental hygienist named hanuki. in the protagonist’s quest for the perfect college life, however, will he miss what’s right in front of him? i really love yuasa as you can probably tell and this, just like ping pong, is beautifully animated, great fun, and unexpectedly moving. a testament to the little things, to seeing the beauty and wonder in what we have. and the opening and ending are GOD TIER. 11 episodes.

gekkan shoujo nozaki-kun (dir. mitsue yamazaki): if you somehow haven’t watched this yet, please love yourself and do it. a romantic comedy series that follows 16-year-old chiyo sakura’s attempts to woo her crush, umetarou nozaki, gsnk, contrary to the shoujo form, actually begins with her confessing to him—but he misunderstands and gives her... his autograph?! yes, it turns out nozaki moonlights as a hugely successful shoujo romance mangaka, and he’s been needing an assistant, and sakura is in the art club... convenient! this show has it all—uproarious humor, masterful comedic timing, incredibly charming characters, and just the right dose of heartfelt romance to warm any heart. other cast members include mikoto mikoshiba, nozaki’s best friend, whose flirtatious antics constantly cause him to nearly die of embarrassment; yuzuki seo, chiyo’s best friend, a brash and oblivious jock with a beautiful singing voice; hirotaka wakamatsu, a mild-mannered basketball player constantly aggrieved by seo’s bullying; yuu kashima, star of the drama club and dashing prince of the school; and masayuki hori, drama club president and kashima’s ever-frustrated director. love is in the air not just for sakura, but for a few others, as well—it’s going to be an interesting year! 12 episodes.

kids on the slope (dir. shinchiro watanabe): kaoru nishimi is a shy and depressed honor student, classically trained to play the piano, who has spent his entire life moving from town to town due to the nature of his father’s job. at the beginning of the summer of 1966, he is sent to a small coastal town in kyushu to live with relatives, and is prepared for another year of loneliness until his world is turned on its axis when he meets delinquent sentaro kawabuchi. the two develop a strange and unlikely friendship, and kaoru soon discovers that sentaro, or sen, is an avid fan of jazz, then an emergent form of music in japan, and plays the drums in the basement of a record store owned by the family of his childhood friend, ritsuko mukae, with whom kaoru immediately falls in love. when ritsuko says that she would love to hear kaoru and sen play together, kaoru begins to acquaint himself with jazz, too, and finds that it holds more magic than he expected. part classic coming-of-age drama, part love letter to the jazz genre, this series was, fun fact, directed by the man behind cowboy bebop and samurai champloo—so, like, if that isn’t a testament to its quality, i don’t know what is. it will make you cry, though. just warning you. 

silver spoon (dir. tomohiko ito): desperate to escape the pressures of his home life, beleaguered honor student yuugo hachiken foresakes his chances of attending an elite tokyo high school and applies to ezonoo agricultural school in hokkaido. at first holding himself a rung above his peers, due to his perception of them as bumpkins who have never had to work hard academically due to their security as farmers, hachiken quickly learns that there’s a lot he doesn’t know, and he’ll have to work hard if he wants to keep up with his peers. though initially withdrawn, hachiken comes to make many new friends, and soon begins to take his studies seriously, earnestly trying to learn all he can about the world of agriculture and how it affects the lives of his friends. this series is easily something i’d call “the feel-good story of the decade,” but it also has many profound and emotional moments, and a hugely relatable protagonist in hachiken. it’s definitely a comedy, but at its heart, it’s one of those special series that kind of takes your hand and smiles at you and says, “yeah. i get it. i know how you feel. but it’s all right. life’s pretty fun, even if you don’t notice.”

hyouka (dir. yasehiro takemoto): to this day i’m still a bit stunned that kyoto animation managed to come out with something as good as hyouka, since it’s so different from their other works, but the truth is there. it’s simple, with a cast of only four characters and few recurring side ones; a subdued score using mostly public domain classical pieces, a quiet high school as the backdrop, a close and intimate portrait of the four kids it brings together. the PV actually does a fine job of introducing the characters—apathetic houtarou, inquisitive eru, cheerful satoshi, and caustic mayaka—so i won’t go into that too much. essentially, houtarou is urged by his sister to sign up for the classics club after no one else does, since it will be disbanded if it does not have at least one member. much to his surprise, someone else already has signed up by the time he does—a curious girl named eru with an insatiable appetite for mysteries. though houtarou lives by a philosophy of what he calls “energy conservation,” eru has a power over him (read: he has a big, beautiful crush on her) that compels him to go along with her antics, and his penetrating intellect doesn’t help much. satoshi, houtarou’s best friend, and mayaka, a childhood... acquaintance of houtarou’s, also join the club, and hyouka chronicles all of the things that happen to them over the course of their school year. when asked about the meaning behind the title (”hyouka” means “frozen dessert”), the author of the novels said, “the colour of youth is like ice cream. its many flavours are like the spectrum of a rainbow, but no matter how it tastes, what doesn’t change is its richness and flavour. another distinguishing feature of ice cream is the short time one has to eat it, and how we must take care to avoid polluting it. it’s just like how youth is full of numerous possibilities, but its fragile and limited energy is easily challenged by the outside world.” i think that probably speaks for itself in alluding to the bittersweet tone of the series. it really is one of my favorites.

and, because my fingers are getting tired: yu yu hakusho is my favorite shounen series by a mile and one of the few for which i highly recommend the dub—it’s long though, 100+ episodes, but worth every minute. i’ll be glad to go into why yyh specifically is the best in a separate post if anyone is interested bc hoo boy. uchouten kazoku season 1 is great and one of my favorites but season 2 was kind of eh to me. if you like action and tragic romance, kyoukai no kanata is my second-fave kyoani series after hyouka, though it does have some fanservicey bits and fetishy humor that kind of date it a little bit. and if you haven’t started boku no hero academia yet—PLEASE GET ON THAT; IT’S SO MUCH FUN! 

and, of course, the anime of my heart and soul: lovely complex, a romcom about a tall girl and a short boy, and their arduous, hilarious, heart-melting journey from vitriolic best buds to lovers. hits all the right notes. no other shoujo compares. it’s a series that anyone and everyone can AND WILL enjoy. 

i hope that’s enough to get you started! :’D pls let me know what you think if you watch any 

[noirlevity]

Chapter 2: Bird Cage

Pairing: Mikayuu Fandom: Owari no Seraph Genre: Romance Words: 2,704 Summary: Yuu’s case. 

Previous links: 0|1

Forgetting is an anathema to living; for forgetting is akin to killing a person. It means that person no longer exists in someone's world. He is considered dead.

Yuu didn't want to be forgotten. She wanted Mika to remember her always. Even if she becomes a faded photograph to him, he would always be larger than life to her. And maybe that was the problem. Maybe that was the reason he still clings to the hope that she would still see him again, no matter how impossible it is as of the moment.

There is no harm in dreaming. Just don't let expectations lure you into a delusion that will only break your heart.

Autumn, spring, and winter had passed. The same cycle; the same beginning and the same end; still no Mika. Yuu counted the days, the weeks, and months with her fingers and toes, trying so hard to keep track of the length of time since Mika left her. This was the only thing that could distract her from the constant fear and loneliness she felt.

The fear of being forgotten; the fear of dying; the fear of not being able to see him again; the fear of the future. These things were constantly on her mind. For someone that was left behind in such a cold place as Sanguinem, with no one to count on, she was haunted by the memories of their past; the good and the bad. The bad mostly. She could still smell the stench of blood of that time; sometimes when she closed her eyes, Mika's back and heaving shoulders was a movie on repeat in the theater of her mind. This had been going on for two years.

To pass time and to distract herself, Yuu spent her time watching the leaves fall, the trees rattle, and the color of the sky change from Mika's eyes, to Ferid's, and then to total darkness. But everything just brings her back to Mika-to those deep blue eyes of his and the warmth that she felt whenever she was with him when morning comes and patches of sunlight stream down her room which often felt like how Mika's hair did-soft.

Looking up her ceiling, Yuu wondered what kind of ceiling Mika gazed at. She wondered whether he was now able to eat as much curry as he wanted without thinking of giving something in return. Yuu wondered whether he was making a lot of friends. At this thought, she couldn't help but frown. She turned on the bed noisily; she curled her toes and bit her lip. The idea of Mika replacing her didn't sit still with her. It was a painful thing to be replaced. Even if it was inevitable, the fact is, it hurt seeing love slowly fade into apathy. She feared that she would see the same look in her parents in Mika's eyes when they see each other again.

Sadness enveloped Yuu's heart like a protective membrane just thinking of it. She batted her lashes and closed her eyes. There were a lot of things that happened right after they were separated. She was captured by the Vampire Queen—Krul Tepes, but Ferid somehow managed to convince her to give her to him, so Yuu ended up in his custody.

Because of what he did to her family, Yuu hated Ferid with a passion. Just thinking of him turned sadness into rage. Yuu furrowed his eyebrows in disdain and curled her hands into a fist. Ferid, the shameless Vampire who massacred her family and the cause of her separation from Mika, yet shamelessly, Ferid acted as if nothing ever happened. He would converse with her as though they were friends. He would ask her questions about her day at his estate, about random things about herself, which Yuu never really understood why he was asking them.

Their time together was short lived though. Ferid gave him to Crowley in the end. She was sent to Crowley's estate three months after the remorseless massacre of his family as though she was just garbage that Ferid wanted to get rid of. And that made her hate the vampire even more. Now she was going to put up with another noble-a noble she wasn't familiar with in the least. Despite this, Yuu still clung to the hope that she was going to escape from them and find Mika, even if this was merely lighting candles in the wind.

Yuu sat up, long raven hair spilling across her shoulders in a messy stream. She dropped her gazed at her hands and fiddled with her fingers. She glanced around the room and caught a scent of roses in the air. Before long, those roses inside her room would rot, and with it, the sweet scent of roses would turn into the scent of ashes and decay suffocating her, just like the way her days went in Crowley's estate.

Each passing day in Crowley's estate made her feel suffocated. It was odd that he kept her, despite him finding it originally absurd to keep a human with him. Yuu went outside to go to the room she would always stay whenever she felt like being alone. Her own room always made her feel uneasy. And she always liked watching the sunrise there.

When she entered, she sauntered to the window, sat on a large chest placed on the wall. She looked at the window and slowly leaned forward to rest her other arm on the window sill. Then, she perched her chin on the palm of her hand. Her locks of raven hair fell to her shoulders softly, following her movement.

Crowley's estate was always quiet, eerily quiet. This was because the vampire didn't keep children in his estate, unlike Ferid. This room in particular was quiet. Must of old books and dust wafted in the air. It made Yuu feel stuffy, but she didn't mind. She didn't mind because whenever she gazed outside to look at how the sun rose and how its light spills over the greeneries, she feels somewhat free, having such a sight to herself.

Looking at the sky made him think of Mika's eyes. She felt she was with him whenever she did this. Missing him was dreadful, but the sky made her remember him. It made her feel less caged and more free. As her thoughts were occupied, she didn't hear someone come into the room.

-000-

Crowley just got back from his travels, so he wanted to be somewhere away from the girls. The girls were constantly chatty. They were sometimes too noisy, so from time to time, he liked to be left to himself.

Crowley opened the door, he was surprised to see Yuu there. She was wearing her human garb-white gown with black stripes. The sun streaming through the room made her appear brighter than she really was. Crowley found it awkward for him to be with her in one room. It may seem ridiculous, but it was because

Ferid pushed Yuu's custody on him just to test him. It was just for fun, Ferid said. Crowley didn't understand Ferid's taste in games. He didn't understand what pleasure it would give him if he kept Yuu.

Yet, despite this, he had no energy to say No to Ferid. So he agreed in the end. And from that day on, he had been conscious of Yuu. Crowley entered, his gait like that of a knight. It was reminiscent of his being a crusader as he sauntered towards Yuu. He scanned the room just to somehow distract himself from Yuu's image: folded knees, skinny arms draped over them protectively. Yuu's breathing, the sound of blood rushing through her heart was troubling.

The door clicked as it closed. Its sound made Yuu turn around. When she noticed Crowley, she was surprised. She stood up in attention immediately, cautious of him.

Yuu hated how servile she felt. But it was safe this way, at least. Crowley was a strong vampire. She knew after what happened two years ago that she was powerless against monsters like them.

"Raise your head." Crowley said smiling slightly.

Somehow, the red-head vampire found Yuu amusing, especially that look in her eyes that always gave her feelings away: that she hated him. This habit of hers, even though it was the first time he found her languishing idly in this secluded room, was quite warming. No, Crowley didn't like sweet stuff. No, he didn't like things that were made to move the heart. He was a vampire, feeling was a remote thing that would forever remain a memory to him. The feeling he was feeling was the feeling of conquering something feeble, as most strong men liked to indulge. He wasn't really the type to rejoice in petty wins like obvious discrepancy in power like this. Yet the look in Yuu's eyes, the fierceness in her gaze thrilled him.

"What are you doing here?"

Yuu bit her lower lip so much that Crowley feared he might see blood stream down her mouth. It would be a sight to see, but he wondered whether or not he would be able to hold himself back from drinking her blood if that happened. Since he kept Yuu, Ferid told him that he had every right to drink her blood directly from her neck. The silver haired vampire often prodded him to try it just once. Crowley never trusted him though. Sometimes his games were fun, yet it was always a pain in the ass.

"You don't need to pretend you like me." Crowley shrugged. They were both just in this together because of Ferid's schemes, so things like propriety and pretensions were useless. Yuu will not gain anything by trying to please him.

He turned to Yuu and walked closer to her. Yuu backed away like a cornered animal. Her green eyes locked at Crowley, fearful, but all Crowley could see as he gazed down at her, was her craned neck—that soft, slender neck that he could grab right then and there and press, and press until life faded away from Yuu's thrashing body. It amused him how this girl of fourteen had such power just by looking at her eyes, just by looking at how her hands clenched at her sides. Crowley licked his lips and gazed outside of the window. He perched his hand on his hips and wondered what Yuu could have been doing in this room alone. What did girls do when they were alone?

"Ah.."

"It's none of your business!" Yuu interjected, harsher than she originally intended. Embarrassed at her outburst, she was about to run, but Crowley grabbed her by the arm preventing her to go. She struggled. Fear was creeping up to her and was making her feel cold all over. Seeing the look in the red-head's eyes, she swallowed a lump in her throat.

Looking at the vampire's eyes was like looking at a void. There was no soul to their eyes, no life, only an ancient and empty gaze. Yuu was trying to free herself from Crowley's grasp but he was very strong that Yuu feared that if she continued to struggle she would hurt even more. Crowley on the other hand, was overcome by a strong need to suck her blood.

"Yuu," Crowley breathed, licking his lower lips. Yuu's eyes grew wide. She knew what would happen. Crowley had never drank her blood up until this point, but she knew that, considering their nature, he would sooner or later.

"No!"

Yuu struggled. She didn't know this only thrilled Crowley to the bone.

"I wouldn't hurt you." Crowley said in his normal tone feeling a little bit bashful at how strange it sounded coming from him. This made Yuu blush. Mika came to her. She wanted Mika to save her, but Mika wasn't around. If she cried it would only fall on deaf ears.

Crowley didn't listen. He looked at her with cold eyes. When Yuu stopped struggling, he twined her arm around his neck, wrapped his arm around her waist, and lifted her. Yuu gasped as a response. As Crowley sauntered towards the window sill, she could feel his ice cold skin burn her. It made her blush despite how wrong it was. Crowley sat her on the window sill and pressed her against the glass. He buried his head on Yuu's neck and breathed on its soft flesh. He ran a hand down the slight curve of Yuu's maturing body, making the other feel weak. It was her first time being close to a man like this. Even if Crowley wasn't really a man, it was the closer she could be to a man, and a man that was buff and handsome as her master. Crowley ripped her clothes off to further expose her neck so that he could clamp his fangs comfortably on her skin. The sound of ripping fabric filled Yuu's ears and it made her want to cry.

"Stop it!" She pounded Crowley's chest. The feel of Crowley disgusted her, but it gave here a weird sensation that made her heart beat frantically against her chest and made her knees weak. She was starting to feel dizzy so that it was almost difficult to breathe.

Crowley didn't heed to her pleas. Crowley had never been this thirsty. He had never needed to drink someone's blood like this. Yes, it was true that he liked drinking blood from strong opponents, but it was a wonder why he felt like if he could drink Yuu's blood it would be akin to conquering something that was beyond him.

Yuu kicked Crowley, making the other wince. They broke apart. Yuu wanted to run away while she still can, but Crowley stopped her. He spread her legs and pinned them down using his strong hands. The feel of Crowley's hand on her thighs made a mess out of Yuu. It made her feel things, weird things that she had never felt before.

When she finally felt a sharp ache on her neck, she froze in place and stopped struggling. The fangs clamped down on her skin oh so slowly as if Crowley was savoring every bit of this moment with her. The scent of old roses wafted in the air as a warm thing sluiced down Yuu's shoulder blades.

Blood.

Crowley's lips brushed against her skin, moving slowly, as if he was sweeping away the loneliness that filled her heart by replacing it with heat. Crowley ran a gloved hand on Yuu's girlish thighs and stopped at the juncture of her hip, lifting her clothes in the process, making it bunch up at where he guided them. Yuu was embarrassed: smooth skin turned gooseflesh as she felt her skin tingle. She was flustered. She didn't expect even the coldest of touches could make her like this. She didn't expect the feeling of being bleed was a sensation like no other.

Hearing Crowley feed on her made the experience even more depraved. Him brushing his lip against her skin; him pressing her thighs out of pleasure from the taste of her blood, made Yuu feel something weird. The pressure of his body against hers and the pleasure that ran through her while Crowley drank her blood made her grab on his vampire garb for dear life.

Crowley's mouth and fangs tarnished Mika's memory. Yuu saw invisible iron bars trapping her. Like a caged bird, she wanted to sing a song that he wished the wind would carry to Mika, to let him know she was alive. Make him remember her if he forgot. But all she was able to muster was a moan and a breathless, "Monster!" as she weakened.