Work Text:
If there was one thing that you realized after living in Twisted Wonderland, it was that strange things happened pretty much daily. Was it because the world was magical and prone to circumstances that could have never happened in your home world? Was it because you were always the odd one out due to your relatively strange upbringing from a world that was quite unlike this one? Or was it because as the school’s beast tamer, you were privy to the comings and goings of the young, wily mages that were more villain than hero even on the best of days?
You were never quite sure, but perhaps it was a mixture of all factors. It would make sense.
Or maybe it was because you were far too kindhearted for your own good.
There was only so much evil and darkness in this world, and you could not stand to spend your life adding to the negativity. As such, what could have been a life free from troubles apart from the errands that Headmage Crowley had you doing for him, you were honestly overwhelmed by how much you had gotten yourself involved.
Willingly.
Or unwillingly.
Today was like any other day.
Classes had been pretty standard, but you were sure that you were falling behind in one of Professor Crewel’s classes. Professor Trein, on the other hand, had given you a slight nod of acknowledgement when he had given you an old essay of yours, a higher score than usual written beautifully in deep red ink. Stunned, you had barely stuttered out a thank you before he had strode away in that curt manner of his, Lucius giving a judgmental look as he passed.
Once the day’s activities had finished, you had practically begged some free time from your trio of first year friends. Ace, Deuce, and Grim were great in intermittent doses, but even you couldn’t say that you weren’t just the tiniest bit peeved that they liked to rile each other up. If you didn’t know any better, you would have thought that their banter and fisticuffs were a way of showing affection…
Ah, but young love did not have a place in such a school. Especially if the ones in what you could think of as having a close relationship were too proud for their own good.
As you walked down Main Street, the cold eyes of the Great Seven watching your every move, you could have sworn that you heard a shuffling sound. Still relaxed, but wary of your surroundings, you halted in front of The Great Sea Witch, the smug look in her eyes all the more intimidating as the sun began its gradual descent. For a moment, you had thought that you misunderstood. Maybe you were tired or this school’s shenanigans were getting to you.
You shook your head and began to walk past the Sea Witch’s statue.
Well.
That was what you were trying to do.
The instant you turned around and began to head back to your dorm, you heard the thundering footsteps of someone coming from right behind you. Instincts honed from an entire year of overblots and Coach Vargas’ training, you whipped around, a textbook in hand to beat the perpetrator down.
In a school filled with magical students, was this the most effective weapon out there? Obviously not, but you had no choice.
Swinging the book down should have been the end of it—or rather, maybe the start of a beatdown that would have surely killed you—but instead, you were lifted off your feet and thrown into the air!
“Shrimpy is being excitable today! How cute!”
Ah.
It was Floyd.
His high pitched voice devolved into giggles as he swung you around, your legs flying freely in the air. In his rough handling of you, you had dropped your weapon and your arms were pinned to your sides. There was no way you could reach into your bag or start banging your hands against his chest. In fact, the more you struggled, the tighter he seemed to squeeze you.
Typical Floyd.
“It’s nice to see you too, Floyd.” You struggled to mumble in between gasps of breath. You threw your head back and caught sight of the Sea Witch looking down at you with what you swore was dark amusement. Great, even one of the Great Seven was laughing at your misfortune. “Can you—Aaagh!”
Floyd launched you into the sky again, his mouth wide open with laughter. You tried not to stare at his teeth too hard—you could have sworn that you were used to how razor sharp they looked!—but every time he bounced you up and down, you couldn’t help but imagine that if you leaned a little bit forward, his teeth could have grazed your face.
Not ideal.
“Come on, Floyd!” You tried to wiggle out of his grasp, the look on your face pleading. “I’m really tired from performing labs all day! Put me down already! Come on before I do something we both regret!”
Floyd quieted—never a good sign. There were very few times Floyd could be seen as someone who was quiet—even fewer when he could be best described as serious.
At that very moment, he was both.
You had been kidnapped from your world, forced to be an errand runner for a negligent Headmage, and have been closely acquainted with the idea of dying after going toe to toe with Overblots.
This was probably the first time you were halfway through death’s door.
His eyes, already alarming due to the unnatural colors of olive and vibrant gold, pierced your own. His lips, usually upturned in a crooked smile, were straightened into a thin line.
And then—
“Nah. I think I like you where you are.”
This was it.
You were either going to die by getting squeezed to death without provocation or you were going to die by trying to get away.
You had managed to stand up against the majority of the strongest mages of Night Raven Academy and barely survived exam season—you knew what you had to do.
Before Floyd could fully incapacitate you with his long spindly arms that had unfathomable strength, you summoned all of the strength that you had, reared one of your legs back, and kicked as hard as you could.
You didn’t know what you expected.
The instant your foot connected against the fleshy parts of Floyd’s groin, you felt your center of gravity shift, the world rushing around you as you fell to the ground. While the impact of the fall was painful, you found that your attention had shifted towards your upperclassman. He had bowled over, his shoulder lightly shaking before collapsing onto the ground right next to you. Curled up in a fetal position like that, you weren’t all too sure what sort of look he had on his face, but you were pretty sure he wasn’t happy with you.
Hesitantly, you crouched near him and even thought about patting his shoulder before thinking better of it.
“Are… are you all right?”
The only sound you could make out was the shuddering moan of a man in pain.
“So…” You fiddled with your phone, trying to find Jade’s contact number. “You’re not dying or anything, but like! This was all your fault, okay?”
In answer, Floyd shifted so that his face was turned towards you. All you could make out, aside from the dark shadows on his face, was the grimace that replaced his wide toothed grin. Even his glare, which would have made even the toughest and meanest NRC student quake in their boots, didn’t seem to hold as much power when he was curled up like a baby mewling for his mother.
You pressed the call button on your phone, a faint sense of hope pulsing in your chest that either Jade would not pick up at all or he would be understanding of the situation. Honestly, you hoped that Jade’s love of chaos would be enough to deter the love that he would have for his brother, but you could never quite tell with the other Leech. If it suited him, he could just as easily kick Floyd while he was down or turn his predatory sights on you.
“Good evening, Prefect.” You could hear the faint sound of clicks of silverware scraping across fine china. Ah, Jade was supervising the lounge today, wasn’t he? “If you’re in need of a favor from Azul, you can—”
“I might have done something. Bad.” You took a deep breath before glancing down at Floyd. His breathing, which had been sharp and erratic moments before, was approaching equilibrium. Despite that, the normally energetic Floyd remained curled up, his eyes closed in what you assumed was concentration.
“Bad.” Jade’s voice was flat, but you could practically see his analytical gaze turn inquisitive, his polite smile turning up mischievously. “Prefect, are you asking for a favor?”
“No! No, I…” You glanced down to find… Had Floyd moved? No, it had to be your imagination! Just in case, though, you moved several feet away. “So like… you know how male humans have external genitalia?”
This time, when Jade spoke, you could practically hear the amusement bubbling in his voice. You did not want to know why he found this scenario funny. “Why yes. I am very much acquainted with the fact that both humans and beastmen alike may seem powerful on the outside, but you could just as easily exploit their weaknesses without much forethought. Or aim.” There was a pause and then— “Would you like to know how knowledgeable I am about male genitalia?”
“N-no! That’s not necessary!”
You’ve lived through several of Jade’s rants concerning mushrooms. You did not want to know what his thoughts were concerning certain aspects of human anatomy.
You swallowed and hoped for the best. Jade seemed “happy as a clam” as one would say in the Coral Sea, but Floyd… Floyd should have gotten up by now, right?
“Well, I sort of… Maybe… More than likely…” You screwed your eyes shut and forced the words out. “I might have damaged the external genitalia of someone. Someone you may know.”
Was it supposed to be this cold in the evening? Perhaps it was your imagination, but when you breathed, you saw your breath condense into a small fog.
“Someone that I may know.” Not a question.
You were so dead.
“Yeah…” You began to chew on your knuckles. Gah, this was like pulling teeth! “You see, I was put in a situation where I had no choice but to—”
And that’s when you felt a large hand grip your wrist. Startled, you opened your eyes only to abruptly drop your phone from pure shock. Towering above you, Floyd stood. The sun was nearly at its lowest point; the shadows all around and emanating from the Great Seven’s statues had become darker, more menacing.
“Hey, Jade! Don’t worry about me! I’m going to have some hands-on learning with the Prefect!” His voice fell by a full octave, making the hair on your neck stand up and the fear in you skyrocket. “Don’t wait up. I’m planning on boiling some shrimp for dinner.”