Chapter Text
"Yuu."
"Yes, Professor?"
"Why are you in a tree?"
"Ah, well- you see, Professor-" they began. . .and stopped.
". . .yes?"
"I am in a tree," Yuu said.
"I do see that, yes."
"And I cannot get down."
"Ah. Of course."
Yuu smiled nervously, sheepishly, down at him as they sat. Sat was a rather generous word for what they were doing- they were more lying on a branch, limbs locked around a bough as they clung to its topside for dear life. In their NRC uniform, they made a fine impression of a scrap of black cloth snagged on brambles.
"Alright then," one Divus Crewel said, turning away-
"P-Professor!"
He glanced back. "Do you need help?"
"Um-"
"If you got up, you can come down, can't you, pup?"
"W-well," said the whelp, "I didn't exactly. . .get up here. . .by myself? Someone uh, threw me-"
"Someone what?"
Their smile turned tight, eyes more panicked than mortified- "W-with permission! I think it counts as permission? I didn't think he'd throw me but I asked for help so-"
"Yuu," Crewel asked again. "Why are you in a tree?"
"I um," they looked away from him, as though the branch below them held some interest beyond what they'd uncovered in however long they'd been on it already. "I may have been. . .trying to hide. . .and I saw Floyd and he- w-well, I thought he'd just let me hide behind him but he's a lot stronger than I thought and he-"
A gust of wind blew by, and the branch held strong, but it shook and rustled and Yuu squeaked and went still.
Crewel stared at the student. The student did not disappear from the branch. He pinched the bridge of his nose and looked at them again. Still there, still clinging.
"Floyd. . .you asked Floyd Leech for help?"
". . .yes?"
"Out of all the mongrels," he sighed. "And I suppose he thought it fun to leave you up there?"
(There was, undeniably, a very unprofessional un-professorlike part of him that found the poor pup's situation amusing. He was almost certain that the livelier Leech had seen it too.)
"I think he just forgot, actually. Jade came by and called him and they went off and um. . .yeah."
. . .Crewel could see that happening too. He'd lost track of the times cauldrons and beakers were burnt black because that mutt wasn't mindful.
"Well," the professor said, and Yuu looked at him again.
". . .w-well?" they echoed timidly.
"Do you need help?"
"I-" they turned a shade redder. "Um. . ."
"Even dogs know how to call and beg. If you don't ask for help, you can't expect it to come. If I hadn't looked up when I did, I wouldn't have noticed you were up there."
"Haha, g-guess Floyd did a good job then?"
He gave them a very unimpressed look. They blushed and he wondered how much ruddier the pup's face could get-
"S-sorry for the bother, Professor, but can you help me down? Please? "
. . .better late than never.
"Good," he said, because good behavior ought to be reinforced, and this pup was particularly prone to trouble. He cast a quick spell to have his suitcase hover nearby and had the coat float beneath them.
"Now let go."
"What?!"
~ ~ ~
"Let go, Yuu."
They looked down, and all they could see beneath them was the fuzzy edges of a coat and its scarlet lining, like a gaping maw-
"I-I don't want to ruin your-"
"Yuu, it is the end of the day, I haven't the patience nor energy to float you nor go find a ladder. You asked for help, I am helping. Let go."
They were being enough of a bother. Just- just let go then.
They took a deep beath, and tried not to think of how terrible they looked, leaves in their hair and face feeling like a furnace. They uncurled their fingers, unclenched their hands and oh, they were gonna feel the wood-prints on their skin later. They were a little glad then, for how numb their hands were-
They heard Professor Crewel somewhere below. "Trust your teacher, won't y-"
Then they plummeted into the coat and fell into something and. . .!
And. . .?
. . .they weren't falling anymore. . .?
They cracked an eye open.
Steel eyes looked down at them, and they seemed to be concerned before they returned to the usual sterness of Divus Crewel, Night Raven College's feared teacher of science and alchemy.
Professor Crewel was looking at them.
They were in his coat, in his arms.
"That wasn't so difficult, was it?"
~ ~ ~
He'd been wondering how long he had to stand there below his coat, waiting for the pup to release themself and thinking to himself that this was why he didn't like cats, when Yuu fell.
They fell into the coat and he caught them after, just as he planned. Their eyes were shut though, and they were terribly still.
. . .goodness, had they fainted ?
He frowned at them, the shadows beneath their eyes, the scar below their left one from Rosehearts, their hands close to their chest, fists clenched and blackened and rough from Kingscholar and Ashengrotto-
The pup opened their eyes, and he sighed.
He set them on their feet then, only-
Only their knees buckled and he quickly lifted them up again.
"How long were you up there?"
They could only give a helpless shrug, which seemed to make them wince, and weren't they such a tiny, light thing, drowning in his coat-
"P-professor?"
He kept moving. "I am not letting you drag yourself to Ramshackle in this state. Let's get you to a seat."
There were, fortunately, some benches in the courtyard. He deposited them into one, and when his coat spilled to the ground, they reached down to gather it up and grimaced-
"Stay!"
He'd said that enough in class for most students to freeze on command. It did the trick here too. Yuu froze, glanced at him-
He righted the pup into a sitting position by the shoulders as if they were a mannequin to pose. He then pulled the coat up himself and gathered it into a roll, its tails sticking out.
"Sit. Can you feel your hands?"
They made a face when they curled their fingers. ". . .a little?"
He dropped the coat in their lap. "Knead it, squeeze it, do anything but tear it until you get feeling back in your fingers. I'll be back shortly."
"O-okay?"
When he returned, they were wearing the coat, the end of it curling around them to let them bunch the tails by their bases in one hand as their other hand lay upon them. They were still, their head tipped forward.
"Yuu."
They startled awake. Blinked at themself, the coat around them, at him-
"Avoid sleeping in my class, pup."
Their eyes widened, and they seemed to remember themself and the situation then, because they looked terribly bashful all over again. "T-this isn't a class though?"
He huffed and sat down beside them. "Paw."
"Paw?"
"Hand," he corrected. He'd usually be greeting Smith and Lou right now-
Yuu gave him their hand. "Sorry for keeping you from your dogs, Professor."
He looked at them and turned his eyes to his pocket. "Keep yourself out of trouble, then. Any sensation yet?"
"About as much as before?"
Good grief. "Do you know what this is?"
They peered at the bottle with a dried leaf he had lifted. "Some kind of nettle?"
"Mettlesong, to be specific," He set that down and unfolded a piece of parchment paper, a greenish paste within. "And this, is powdered mettlesong, mixed with some garacap dew."
With a gloved finger he scooped out a dollop of salve and smeared a little of it on top of each of their fingers. He let go of their hand. "Rub your hands thoroughly. Do not touch your eyes."
They listened like a good pup, then blinked at their hands. "Oh. That's-"
"Like stinging nettle, mettlesong has a substances within the leaves that function as irritants. Best not pick it if you see it in the wild- not without gloves, anyway. When dried, powdered, and combined with a garacap's juices, it makes a mild stimulant that can aid in circulation and bloodflow. It should help with the soreness for a while, since the pain will be too busy wrestling with the mettlesong's sting over your nerves to cause aches."
Yuu looked as fascinated as they always did during class.
"You can feel your hands now?"
They nodded.
"Can you walk?"
They got up slowly. They stepped forward, and it was stiff, but didn't look quite as painful as it could be. Some rest did them well.
"Good." He handed them the folded parchment of salve. "Head to infirmary or washrooms, apply this to your joints, and head to Ramshackle at once."
They looked at the packet in their hands, then beamed at him. "Thank you, Professor!"
~ ~ ~
"My coat?"
His coat, yes, they were wearing his coat-
They shed it and the professor slid it back on himself, like it was a second skin. Professor Crewel looked like himself then, and looked ready to leave. He must have been about to go home when he saw them in the tree- he had mentioned his dogs sometimes, when they'd stay in his class during vacant periods to rest as he checked his testpapers. He must miss his pets, and they must miss him. How mean, to have kept what sounded like two very nice dogs from the professor. How terrible, to keep anyone and anything from their family-
Professor Crewel looked at them though, and he did not go. He placed his suitcase on the bench. He pulled off a glove, placed his hand on their head-
"Stay out of trouble, now."
They blinked at him. He drew his hand back, and there was a leaf in it.
Oh.
Oh. That was all, then-
"I-I'll try!" they smiled. They clutched the parchment in their hands. Don't tear and spill it, Yuu-
"Thank you for the medicine, Professor!"
"Take care, Yuu."
He turned around, went on his way-
Yuu did too, hurrying to the infirmary, reminding themself not to touch their eyes. How embarrassing that would be, after looking so ridiculous and teary already. . .
~ ~ ~
"Yes, yes, I'm late-"
The price of knowing animal languages was that one knew animal languages. Obedient as they were, Smith and Lou jumped at the sight of him, interrogating him for his late return. They'd been fed by their sitters, but Crewel supposed they deserved some treats before some tricks today. They settled down after some appeasement and discipline, and he had his own dinner. He sighed in his study after, lounging in his chair, a book in his lap with his hounds at his feet and the routine back in order.
The dogs rustled though, pawing at his coat's tails, and he glanced down-
'New smell, " Lou sniffed.
Smith looked up at him. 'New smell!'
"Student," he replied. 'Human pup. Training litter.'
Smith stood to put his head and front paws upon his master's lap, nose bumping the bare hand. 'New smell. Paw smell human pup? Pet pup? New pup?'
'Can play tail?' Lou asked, tail wagging, as he nosed about the coat. 'Human pup play tail-'
"Down, Smith. And no, Lou. No new dogs. No playing with that."
Lou whined. 'Unfair.'
"Play without teeth then. Your chew toy is in the corner-"
'Want bite tail.'
"No, Lou."
'Mean,' sulked the dog, but he plodded over to his toy and started gnawing contentedly.
Smith did not get down. 'See human pup?'
"No."
'See pup after moon?'
"No, Smith."
'See pup after moon after moon?'
"No Smith, no pup is visiting."
The dog whined, tail drooping. 'Why?'
"A human child is not a dog, Smith. You can't just bring one home, even if the pup is lost."
Lou perked up. 'Pup lost?'
'Pup lost! ' Smith nodded. 'Lost pup bring home? New pup home-'
'New human pup-'
'More paws-'
'More pets-'
'More treats-'
"I am not bringing a human child home!"
The dalmatians glanced at each other. Smith used his damnably big eyes as he laid he head down and looked up. 'You bring Smith home!'
'And Lou!'
'And Lou!' Smith nodded.
Crewel snapped his book shut and threw his hands in the air. "Why are you two so insistent I bring home a student?! You two said you didn't want puppies in the house!"
Smith walked over to Lou. 'Smith Lou pup no.'
Lou shook his head. 'No no no.'
Smith nodded. 'Human pup yes!'
Lou's head bobbed. 'Yes yes yes yes-'
Crewel peered at them. ". . .this is Baxter and Boris's fault isn't it? They showed you children-"
The dogs had the nerve to look shocked.
'No no no,' Lou went, but he was on his haunches, like a liar-
'Human pup nice!' Smith argued more eloquently.'You friends happy. You human friends have human pup. You no pup. You no happy-'
"I am content," Crewel said, "I never wanted children. And I've had enough of this-"
'Human pup happy?' Smith following him to the door. 'You human pup lost-'
Lou bounded along. 'No happy lost. Lost no no no happy-'
"The pup is lost, but the pup has an owner! The whelp has a family, home, a pack, somewhere! I am not bringing home someone else's child!"
The dogs stopped.
"A human pup is not just more pets and treats, a human child is a whole responsibility! There's paperwork, a-and shopping, and- all sorts of other things to be done! And the headmage is supposed to send them back eventually! It isn't worth the hassle!"
Dogs of course, have no sense of such things, like the complexities of guardianship. They simply watched him pace the kitchen, running a hand through his hair, and when he stopped, and sat down by the marble counter, exhausted and exasperated, they moved to his side.
Smith poked his head into his hand and Crewel pet him for his own sake, feeling the soft fur and as the dog rumbled sorrily, soothingly.
'You pet human pup?' Lou asked, and Smith shot his brother a look. 'You no like you no pet. You no like pup you no pet-'
"There was a leaf in their hair." There was a leaf in their hair. He found a leaf, when he came to his senses to see he was ruffling their head, when he realized Yuu was looking at him in confusion because he was petting them as though that would cheer them up, as though they were some dog -
Crewel sighed. Groaned, really, and put his head in his hands. Smith must have sensed his irritation, because he drew Lou away. They headed off to let him stew as they played elsewhere, leaving him to stare at nothing.
He was a homeroom teacher. He was a professor. He had knowledge of herbs and potions and a responsibility to use his knowledge to teach and to help.
He had no responsibility to look after a student beyond his duties as a teacher, so he shouldn't go looking for trouble. Simple as that. It was simple. It should be simple. Even if Yuu was lost or got hurt or was alone, anything beyond his class's periods was none of his business so long as students did the requirements. Yuu did their requirements, despite their injuries and fatigue. Yuu was a good student, a polite one, studious and helpful, a good child surely, one whose parents miss them and would miss them if they were to stay in Twisted Wonderland for any reason.
He would not be a reason.
So, Yuu would just have to bear with things, until then. Bear with it, with Grim, and their friends. And he'd-
He'd watch. He'd help, where he could. Where he was allowed. Where he allowed himself to. He would not allow himself to do more than harmless, harmless little bits of help. A potion here, an herb there. Nothing grand. There was nothing grand he could do anyway, besides-
He got his wits together to make some coffee. There were things to be done, he had gotten home late. . .
. . .it would have been easier if Yuu were a dog, if they were some bright-eyed, obedient stray on the road. If they were, then he could simply-
He stared at the grounds he'd spilled onto the floor. He clicked his tongue and cleaned it up.
Yuu was not a dog. Yuu was not his child.
Into the trash, all that spilt stuff.
Yuu was his student, and that was that.