Chapter Text
The first thing that the boy noticed was that this place he was in was dark, and small. The second was the noise. Rattling and banging, like someone was struggling to open something.
“What in the…?”
“Crap, people are coming! Gotta get this uniform before-“
The voice strained as it tried to lift the something. The boy didn’t recognize it, but it was distinct. A high pitched voice that sounded like claws were scratching down their throat.
“Gah! This is too heavy!” The voice gritted. “Alright, time for my secret move- Hrah!”
Bright blue fire suddenly erupted around the boy. Thinking quickly, he flung his foot forward and kicked the lid off of whatever he was inside. It landed on the floor with a distant bang, and the boy found himself flying in mid air. His arms pinwheeled, his feet trying to find leverage as he tilted forwards dangerously. Eventually, his hands found the edge of the box and he latched on, pulling himself back and pressing himself to the back wall. It wasn’t very far back, the purple toes of his black shoes stuck out over the edge.
“GAAAH!” The voice- a cat like creature with flaming blue ears- flew back from where he had blown the lid off. “Your not supposed to be awake!”
The boy kept his feet firmly planted, and couldn’t help but stare at the coffins hovering lazily outside his box. His gaze flicked between the creature and the coffins, trying to make sense of it. None of it did, unfortunately.
“Why are the coffins floating!? Why are you floating!?” The boy turned to the cat creature, eyes wide. Maybe it would have some answers.
“What do you mean, why am I floating!? I’m always floating!” The creature snapped. “Don’t question the power of The Great Grim!”
That didn’t help at all. The boy yelped as his box flipped upside down, having to press his arms hard against the short walls to stay inside. “Can you get me down from here!?”
“Why would I help a measly human!?” The cat creature, Grim, smirked, deciding to watch the boy’s misery. “Anyways, you have something I want!”
“I don’t have anything!” The boy looked down at himself. Except for a strange outfit and a silver necklace with a crown, he truly didn’t have anything else on him.
Grimm’s grin somehow got wider, his pointed teeth flashing. “Gimme that uniform!”
“What uniform?”
“How could you be- the one you’re wearing dummy!”
The robe was black, the inside a purple fabric that had no right to be this soft with how fancy the gold detailing was. He wore a black button up under the robe with slacks, a purple belt with a gold buckle cinched around his middle. The belt squeezed uncomfortably. It was overly fancy, so it made sense that it was a uniform. Thing was, why was he wearing it?
“Do you have something else for me to wear?” The boy asked with an awkward smile.
“No! Does it look like I can carry that!?” Grimm gestured to his small but round cat-like body. He growls, eyes narrowed. “Gimme the uniform or I’ll roast you!”
Blue fire erupted around the coffin, and the boy took his chances with toppling to the stone floor below. The chamber was huge, with a large mirror displayed on a pedestal in the center of the room. Strangely enough, the glass was black. He didn’t have much time to think about that before he was suddenly being pelted by blue flames, and he took off through the large double doors.
The boy skidded around corners and darted through hallways and classrooms, his legs moving with practiced agility he couldn’t remember learning. Why couldn’t he remember that? He couldn’t think on that too long, since the floor was being scorched and tapestries and paintings were shriveling to a crisp behind him. Once he saw an opportunity, the boy darted outside. Maybe he could lose the thing in another building. There seemed to be a lot.
“Get back here you annoying human!” Grim screeched, a fireball flying through the air and narrowly missing the boy’s ear. He took the first door he saw, scrambling inside and slamming the massive door shut behind him. He was submerged in darkness. He heard a thump as the cat creature hit the door, growling and scratching and shouting all the while. The boy kept his hands and feet planted. He had to make sure the door stayed shut.
A BOOM! Erupted, and the boy was flying through the air. His ears rang as he hit the ground, blue fire catching on shelves and books now lit by the moonlight. The cat hovered ominously in the door, the same sly grin back on his face.
“Caught you!” The cat said, laughing. “You really thought you could escape me? The Great Grim!? No chance!” The creature darted forward, fire dancing on his lips. “Now hand over that uniform or I’ll-“
A crack split the air, and Grimm was wound in a black rope. The boy couldn’t believe his luck. Grim seemed just as shocked as he was for a second, but Grim’s expression fell fast.
“OW! What’s with the rope!? Your gonna break my tail!” Grim thrashed about, trying to free himself from the tight bind.
Behind him, the boy spotted a rather eccentric looking man bearing a top hat and an outfit covered in feathers. He held the rope Grimm was tied in in one hand, while spouting water from a strange pen in his other. The fires gradually diminished.
“Consider it tough love, foolish cat.” The fires out, the man pocketed the pen and yanked Grim next to him. Grim spouted furious protests as he did so.
“I’m not a cat!” Grimm’s efforts redoubled, now trying to chew the rope off while struggling desperately.
The man sighed, opting to ignore the creature for now and turn to the boy. “There you are! I’ve found you at last. Are you alright?”
The boy opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again, but no words came out. Finally, he collected himself and got to his feet. “I think so.”
“Good, good.” The man nodded slowly, then the little glowing gold dots in his bird face mask narrowed to slits. “Were you ever eager to make your debut, leaving the gate on your own. Not only that, you’ve brought a poorly trained familiar with you. You’ve not even had your first day and you’ve already broken a plethora of school rules!”
“As if I’d listen to some lowly human!” Grimm shouts before The Boy can say something. “Lemme go!”
“I don’t even know what a familiar is.” The boy shrugs and tries to give his best smile, though it comes out forced.
The man’s expression shifts from frustration to suspicion, grabbing Grimm by his scruff and pulling the rope over his mouth. Grimm strained in protest, voice muffled.
“Are you sure you don’t know what a familiar is?”
The boy shakes his head. “I don’t.”
He looks briefly surprised, then frowns. “I suppose that is something to be learned here, but I would assume a new student would know what a familiar is by now.”
The boy was getting more confused with every word that came out of this man’s mouth. “What do you mean, ‘new student’ and ‘gate’? What’s going on?”
“The gate refers to the door you woke up in, though normally the door must be unlocked with a special key.” The man explains, pulling said key from a pocket in his vest. “Somehow, you seem to have woken before someone could unlock the door. And with an unruly bedhead.”
“I think Grim blew the door off of mine.” The boy forced a small laugh and subconsciously ran a hand through his hair. It was spiked in odd directions now that he felt it. He could tell it was brown from the locks that hung in his eyes.
“Grim?” The man glanced at the cat creature, who squirmed under the gaze. “Your acquainted with this creature then?”
“He told me his name after he blew the door off.” The boy clarified.
He narrowed his eyes at Grim. “It appears we have a culprit for your odd waking conditions. Are you sure he’s not your familiar?”
The boy nods, and Grim nods along with him. The man sighs heavily.
“Fine, I will deal with you afterwards.” He glares at Grim, then turns back to the boy. “For now, your orientation has already begun. We must be getting back.”
“Wait, you never told me what the ‘new student’ thing means. Am I at a school? Where am I?” The boy frowns.
The man leaned down to get right in the boy’s face, studying him. “Curious, you seem to be completely serious.”
“I am, I really don’t know!” The boy held his hands up cautiously.
The man backed away, hand to his chin in a thoughtful gesture. “It seems the timespace teleportation has addled your memories. It does happen often enough for this not to be unusual.” He turns on his heel, fancy shoes clicking as he starts walking. “Come, I’ll explain on the way, for I am nothing if not magnanimous.”
The boy hurried to catch up to him, turning to watch the doors of the odd building thunk shut behind them.
“This is Night Raven College.” The man starts, making sure that Grim is hovering along behind them. “It is an institution for students the world over who demonstrate a rare aptitude for magic. It is the most prestigious academy of its sort in all of Twisted Wonderland.”
The boy didn’t question the use of magic, the term felt familiar in a way he couldn’t explain. “I didn’t know there were schools for learning magic.”
“There are.” The man leaves it at that and continues. “I am the headmage, appointed to take care of this academy by the board chairman, Dire Crowley.”
The boy doesn’t seem the least bit intimidated by that, instead he snickers.
“What?” The man looks unimpressed.
“Dire Crowley? That’s your name?”
“Yes. Is there something unusual about it?”
“No, it sounds funny though. Dire? Very serious and dark event? Paired with Crowley? Like the bird?”
Dire Crowley groans. “Your being awfully casual with me for someone who just found out I’m the head of this school.”
The boy shrugs. “Why not? Might as well be friendly.”
Crowley can’t help but smile discretely, and he continues. “Only those deemed to have a talent for magic by the Dark Mirror can attend this school.”
“The big one I saw on the pedestal? Is it smart?”
“Of course it is.” Crowley responds like this is a stupid question and keeps going. “Continuing, those who are selected are summoned to the campus via those ‘gates’ you saw before. You woke up in one.” Crowley pauses, probably for dramatic effect. “A black carriage bearing one such gate should have come to meet you.”
The boy thought for a second, trying to recall a horse drawn carriage. However, his mind was drawing blanks. In fact, anything he tried to remember was drawing blanks. It was like he didn’t have a life before this at all.
“I don’t remember.” That came out more cracked that he would’ve liked.
“The teleportation disrupted your memory recall, no need to concern yourself too much.” Crowley crossed into an indoor hallway. Grimm made a noise of discomfort and wriggled more, trying to free himself from the black rope. Crowley tightened the binds.
“Now, let us attend to your orientation.” They reached the end of the hall, where two large doors were pushed shut. They had visible scorch marks on them. The boy cringed.
The noise in the room cut off abruptly as Crowley opened the heavy doors with a swish of the same pen from earlier. There were a lot of people in here, all teenagers, and they were now staring at Crowley and the boy.
“I most certainly did not!” Crowley narrowed his glowing yellow eyes at one particular student with short white hair and a purple turban-headband wrapped around his head. There must’ve been a conversation the boy didn’t pick up on.
“Ah, speak of the devil.” A red haired boy said quietly. Something about him rubbed the boy the wrong way.
“Assuming I would abandon my duties, how crude.” Crowley scoffed. “If you must know, I was searching for the new student who’d failed to show for orientation.”
The boy waved awkwardly as all eyes turned to him, whispers passing between the various other students.
“You are the only one who has yet to be assigned to a dormitory. I shall keep on eye on the cat creature-“ Grimm muffled a cry of protest at the title, “-while you step up to the Dark Mirror. Be quick about it.”
The boy’s gaze turned to the large mirror on the raised platform. The darkness was ominous, now that he took a second look. He hesitated, then carefully crossed and stepped onto the raised platform.
The glass in the mirror suddenly burst with green flames. The boy fell into a defensive position he couldn’t remember learning as a sickly green mask appeared in the glass.
“State your name.”
The boy froze, time grinding to a halt. He couldn’t remember having a name. How could he not remember his own name? He shook his head, falling back to a normal standing position.
“…I-“
Sora.
His eyes widened. That sounded like someone else’s voice, coming from his own head.
Your name is Sora.
The boy wasn’t sure if he should believe it, but the mystery person’s voice spoke no more. The name sounded natural, at least.
“Sora. My name is Sora.”
The mask gave a small nod. “Sora.” The eye holes narrowed. “The nature of your soul is…” The room was dead silent as the mask stared at him, empty sockets digging into his skull.
“…not possible.”
The room erupted into whispers. Crowley was quick to quiet them down. “Come again?”
“The magic in this one’s soul is ancient, from a long forgotten time in our history.” The mirror explained. “His soul is unlike any I have ever seen before.”
Crowley didn’t bother to quiet the whispers this time. “How ancient exactly?”
“Long before the existence of Twisted Wonderland.”
Sora couldn’t help the unease as the whispers grew louder. ‘How is that possible?’ ‘Is he a time traveller?’ ‘There’s no way!’
Crowley’s visible skin took on a greyish tinge as the mask continued. “Due to the archaic shape, he is not suitable for any dormitory.”
Slowly, Sora turned to face the crowd. All faces were on him, full of shock, surprise, and occasionally annoyance. He couldn’t help the wince.
“The Ebony carriages don’t travel through time, time travel’s impossible!” There was a strange desperation in Crowley’s expression. “Surely you’re mistaken?”
“I am not. He cannot be taught in the typical fashion due to the nature of his soul.” The mask in the mirror elaborated.
Grim spit the black rope out of his mouth. “Let me take his place!”
Before Crowley could tighten the binds, Grimm was free, flying up above Sora’s head and out of reach of the rope. “Unlike that dumb human, I can use magic the right way! Let me into the school instead!”
The rope split the air with a crack, Grim narrowly dodged it. “Look, I’ll show you! My spells’re the cat’s meow!”
The red haired boy was the first to react. “EVERYONE GET DOWN!”
Then, the room lit up in blue.