Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I don’t want to go!

Those were her last words before that mirror had pulled her in, wrenching her out of the desperate grip of Ace, Deuce, and Grim. The last thing she saw through her tears were the panicked faces of her dearest friends as they slowly shrank and faded out of sight.

Ace looked more scared than she had ever seen him, Deuce was practically lunging for the mirror, determination clearly visible in his eyes, and Grim…

Grim was crying as he reached a small paw after her.

The next thing she knew she was waking up in Hogwarts' infirmary, jolting upright in bed with a scream, tears streaming down her face. She flailed around for a bit before she was restrained by an older woman wearing a nurse's uniform.

Despite her improved physique from her time at Night Raven, Yuu still wasn’t a match for the much larger woman, and she was held still until she calmed down.

She introduced herself as Madam Pomfrey, which had initially confused Yuu until she asked for the date.

September 2nd, 1994. A Friday.

Her reaction had given her away, and the signs of shock were still evident when a still very alive Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, swept into the infirmary with all the pomp that his many positions allowed.

When he sat down beside her bed and began asking her questions—who she was, what had happened to her, how she had ended up in the Forbidden Forest—Yuu panicked, just a bit.

She had read what happened to time travelers that messed with the time stream too much; this was, in every sense, much more dangerous than her trip to Twisted Wonderland had ever been.

At least at Night Raven College, she hadn’t had the chance to potentially wipe out the timeline, or blip out of existence because of a paradox, or who knows what else!

Her head throbbed as she tried to understand the ramifications of time travel in this context while answering the Headmaster's questions.

It didn’t help that she was still reeling from the sudden departure.

Yuu felt tears come back as she remembered the faces of her friends and thought of what the others would think, the promises she hadn’t fulfilled.

Her leaving was for the best, but she hadn’t wanted it to be like that. She hadn’t wanted it to be so soon.

She shifted uncomfortably, trying to distract herself with what she was going to say to the headmaster.

“Do you have any veritaserum?” she asked suddenly.

The now more solemn wizard nodded, eyes more serious at her question. Madam Pomfrey voiced her confusion over their conversation as she waved her wand over Yuu.

What followed after the Headmaster’s nod was an interrogation that lasted all of four questions, after Severus Snape—the professor, not the portrait—had arrived with the potion she’d requested.

Who are you?

Yuu.

Where did you come from?

The future.

How did you get here?

I don’t know.

Is there anything else you believe I should know?

Voldemort loses.

Yuu was thankful that the questions they asked hadn’t been too invasive; being under the effects of the truth potion was much less pleasant than Jade’s unique magic.

She had heard that veritaserum was a happy feeling, like secrets didn’t matter. To Yuu, it felt like everything was worthless, so why bother keeping secrets?

She was happy when Professor Snape administered the antidote. Afterward, they conversed about what would happen to her. She explained that she was a Hogwarts student (or was it a Night Raven Academy student now?) in the future. Headmaster Dumbledore then helpfully suggested she join the student body as a fifth year until they managed to figure out how to send her back home…

She meant to the future, not NRC.

The situation gave her a vague sense of déjà vu, only with a distinct lack of Grim, and coffins, and Crowley.

All in all, it felt like the worst experience.

She had to blink back tears again.

By the end of the day, a Professor Flitwick had been read into the situation, and she was shuffled off to the Ravenclaw dorm once more.

Under the curious eyes of her new classmates, Yuu found herself falling back to old habits, withdrawing into herself and trying her best not to draw attention.

She didn’t want to mess things up.

Soon enough she was assigned a bed in a room with only two other roommates. They didn’t seem interested in conversation, not even looking up when she entered.

Crawling into the bed, Yuu curled up, feeling distinctly like something was missing as she tried to hug something that wasn’t there. Even with all the blankets, she still felt cold.

Thankfully, her roommates didn’t comment on the sniffling noises they had heard throughout the night, or how red her eyes were the next morning. Instead, they simply shuffled out of the room to breakfast.

After another brief moment of listlessness, wondering what she was supposed to do now, Yuu followed suit, pausing halfway through tying her bow before realizing that she had put on her Ramshackle uniform.

It took her another few minutes to dig through the chest Professor Flitwick had left her with to find the Hogwarts uniforms within. Pulling it on slowly, she felt distinctly unforgettable as she stepped out into the common room.

Maybe she could wear her armband under the cloak…

Unbeknownst to Yuu, inside the chest Flitwick had given her was the small pile of belongings they had found on her unconscious body. This included her uniform, but also, buried underneath, was a small bag with a few of the gifts she had received, the earpiece she had gotten from Leona, and her phone.

A phone which, in the depths of the trunk, was beginning to light up, the screen turning on briefly before flickering. After a moment, it gave off a noise like static, then muffled voices, and finally, it turned dark briefly before the video call feature booted up.

A moment of silence before—

“Is this enough of a connection, Crowley?”

“Yes, thank you. I should be able to take it from here.”

That night, Professor Dumbledore received a letter on his desk, marked with a wax seal he had never seen before. The contents requested a break of tradition.

A fourth school was interested in participating in the upcoming Triwizard Tournament.

And they were willing to provide quite the incentive.

Chapter Text

Classes were dull.

Yuu never thought she would say that. Ace and Deuce would likely think an imposter had replaced her if they heard those words come out of her mouth.

But it was true.

She filled out her notes, answered questions, and took tests, but it felt like she was just going through the motions.

After classes, instead of running after Grim, Ace, and Deuce, being kidnapped for chess with Leona, taking shifts at Monstro Lounge, desperately avoiding elaborate gifts from Kalim, or any of the other crazy and fun things that would take up her time at Night Raven, she would go to the library and read.

It felt almost nostalgic.

It made her sad.

After sitting and reading whatever book she grabbed off the shelf, she would shuffle into dinner, eat a few bites of whatever was closest, before trudging back to her dorm and lying down on her bed.

These first few nights, she had spent staring at her phone in the dark. There wasn’t any reception here, but she was still able to scroll through her saved pictures. The first night she had, with great nerves, swiped over to Magicam to maybe see if by some miracle her private messages were still working, but all she got was the no-signal message, punctuated by a cartoon frowny face.

Her photo scrolling always had her pause on one of the last ones she took before they had left. It was after one of the student reward ceremonies, and she had managed, with the help of Rook and Lilia, to get all her friends into one place.

Vargas had, with great bemusement, agreed to take a picture of the ensuing chaos of students from every dorm, including the dorm heads, in one place. She had regularly fallen asleep staring at the picture, trying her best to memorize the faces of friends she would never see again.

This night wasn’t much different as she snuck into the dorm room long after her roommates had already fallen asleep. She changed into her nightclothes before climbing into bed and fishing her phone out from her bookbag.

Flicking it open and entering the password Vil had made her put on, Yuu was about to click on her photo library, but she paused.

Atop the Magicam app was a small, red icon showing the number one.

Yuu felt her heart stop for a moment before, with a shaking hand, she tapped her finger against the glass.

After a moment, the Magicam app opened, the same smiling face telling her she had no connection present.

But in spite of it, there, at the top of her list of direct messages, was an icon that showed a new message.

From one Dire Crowley.

She opened the conversation.

Dire Crowley: Yuu-kun! You caused quite a ruckus for your gracious Headmaster. I’ve had to replace my door four times this week alone. And after all that talk of it being better for you to leave, your parting words are “I don’t want to go.”

I warned you, don’t say I didn’t. All of them are much too attached to let things end just like that. And as the generous and magnanimous headmaster I am, I cannot let a single student of mine end their time at my school just like that. And who is going to make me food and listen to me ramble so politely? All these other students are so rude to their kind headmaster.

Thanks to your supremely intelligent and powerful headmaster, we have managed to find a way to you. We’ve gathered you are at your previous school, so to smooth over the transition, I figured I would enroll us in a little competition you have coming up. Until we get there, I expect you to uphold Night Raven Academy ideals. Those are crushing all competition by any means and striving for excellence over all others. Anyways, I am going to have to cut this short because I can feel the defensive spells on my office door giving way to your pack of wild beasts. They’ve all been quite affected by your sudden departure, and we had decided not to let them know we had potentially found you until we were more certain in our methodology. I bet it was that Crewel that let it slip. Wish your dear Headmaster luck!

Stay safe, Yuu,

Dire Crowley

P.S. Also, you and I have to have a chat. I have some paperwork we need to work through. I was planning on waiting until summer vacation, but you disappearing like this isn't good for my heart.

Yuu blinked, the words not seeming real for a moment. Rereading the conversation again, then a third time, she felt something grow in her chest. A silly smile began to grow across her face, and she was sure Ace would make fun of her if he saw it.

Raising an arm, she rubbed it against her eyes, ignoring the wetness that she felt in favor of looking back at the screen.

It said it wasn’t connected but…

She navigated to the group chat—it had taken a lot of cajoling to get them all to join—and tapped on the reply bar before, with slightly shaking fingers, she began typing. After hitting enter, she waited with anticipation as the bar slowly spun, and, after a minute, in spite of the no-signal symbol still present, it sent.

For a moment there was nothing, and Yuu was worried that it hadn’t actually worked, and that maybe she was just dreaming the entire—

Cater Diamond is typing

Cater Diamond: YUYU!

Ace Trappola, Leona Kingscholar, and 27 others are typing…

Moments later, another message came from Crowley.

Dire Crowley: YUU-KUN WHY!

She would spend the rest of the night messaging back and forth with her friends and trying her best not to let her giddy laughter wake her roommates.

The next morning, Yuu was tired but happy. She hadn’t slept at all, too busy answering the many questions of her friends and trying to reassure them that she was in one piece and hadn’t yet had to deal with any Overblots or otherwise crazy things.

She consciously neglected to mention the fact that a war was only years away and that the school currently had a Death Eater as a teacher.

She didn’t want to worry them, and some of the messages she had received made her somewhat worried her friends would either have a heart attack or break even more of Crowley's things than they likely already had.

Yuu went to breakfast with a smile, which seemed to startle her class more than she expected. Her classes went better as well. She had even earned some points for Ravenclaw from the hard-to-please Professor Snape, for being the only one to properly remember the safety procedures he had put on the board.

After lunch she stopped by the library at her now usual time. As she went to sit down at her usual spot, her eye caught on the only other student in the library. She hadn’t noticed him before, but he was seated far enough away that she wouldn’t have noticed him regardless in her previous state.

He was young, probably younger than her, maybe a third or fourth year. From his uniform she could tell he was a Hufflepuff, but what really caught her attention was the large, thick-covered book that sat on the table in front of him.

The book wasn’t any she had seen in the library, whether it was before she had come to Twisted Wonderland or since she had left. Its cover looked to be made of thick, slightly gnarled wood, colored a deep burgundy. As he read, the boy would occasionally reach over to his wand, studying it intently before placing it back down.

The Yuu from before NRC would have just left him be, maybe have looked for the book after he was gone. Even now, she was hesitant to approach.

After deliberating for a moment, the boy seemed to sense her stare and looked up. Upon seeing her studying him, he gave her a glare that was almost on par with Leona-senpai’s, only diminished because she could now see he was even younger than she had originally thought—maybe even a second year if she had to guess.

Her good mood, and feeling nostalgic from being glared at for little to no reason (her time at NRC may have skewed her expectation of social interaction a bit, huh?), Yuu decided she wanted to talk to him.

The longer she stared, the more his glare darkened. Yuu noted that despite his attempts at warning her off, the slightly shorter student had hair even longer than Tsunotarou’s, falling into his face and ruining the effect.

Stopping a polite distance away, Yuu thought about what she could say before the other took care of that for her.

“You look happier than the last few days; that's good, but if you're going to be bothering me because of it, please go back to being miserable.” His voice began light and consoling, like an adult congratulating a child, before darkening significantly.

“I was curious about what you were reading. I haven’t seen that book in the library before?” she began, heedless of the clear warning in his tone.

“You wouldn’t; I got it from the restricted section,” he grunted, his voice a bit too light to pull off the effect he wanted.

Her eyes widened before flicking back towards the book, pages opened to a diagram of a tree with numerous notes written beside it. “It’s about… trees?” she asked.

Her question seemed to exasperate him further, as he let a sigh out of his nose before answering.

“I am studying Wandlore, not trees, not Herbology, not the Dark Arts.”

Wandlore wasn’t a topic that was discussed at Hogwarts as far as Yuu knew; it was only taught through apprenticeships, and even then tended to be limited to family lines and by the Ministry itself.

But what stood out to her was instead…

“You have a pass to the restricted section?” she asked, wonder in her tone. She had tried for years to get one, but ever since the Cornish Pixie incident two years after Harry Potter graduated, passes to the restricted section needed to be approved by the Headmaster as well as two teachers before being granted.

At her question, the Hufflepuff student got a bit shifty-eyed, glancing off to the side before slowly pulling the book back to himself and closing it.

“Madam Pince,” he said unconvincingly.

Yuu, now familiar with sniffing out mischief from looking after Ace, Deuce, and Grim, would bet her wand that if she asked Madam Pince about this pass, the student in front of her, a second-year most likely, would be in for a world of trouble.

Putting on her best sly smirk, learned from Ace, Yuu slid into the chair next to him.

“How about you tell me what the book is about and how you got into the restricted section, and I won’t go asking about this pass?” She thought she did a pretty good job, judging by the way the boy paled at her deal. Azul would be so proud.

The boy seemed to mull it over for a bit before sighing and opening the book back up onto the table.

“What’s your name anyway? I’ve been calling you mopey weirdo in my head this entire time.”

“My name is Yuu. What about yours, kouhai?”

Muttering "kouhai?" under his breath in a questioning tone, the boy responded.

“I’m not sure I want to give someone who’s blackmailing me my name,” he began, still looking quite unhappy with the entire situation.

Yuu shrugged before turning back to the book, it had opened to that same page. From her new position, she could also read exactly what type of tree it was.

“I’ll just call you Eucalyptus then,” she stated simply, turning to study the book in front of her.

“What type of name is that, you smiling weirdo?!”

Ignoring his protest, Yuu felt her still-present smile widen slightly as the warm feeling in her chest grew.

Night Raven Academy was coming to Hogwarts; her friends were coming.

She hoped they didn’t mind if she made some more while she waited.

Chapter Text

Yuu had spent the entire free period she had talking to the younger Hufflepuff. He had been reluctant to talk much at first, but after she had asked a few questions, he became more engaged, and before she knew it, he was ranting at her at a volume barely acceptable for the library and pointing vigorously at various images in the book.

She had known many magical artifacts had sentience of some kind, but some of the things Eucalyptus mentioned, and some of the theories he later explained, sounded fantastical even by her understanding of magic.

It was quite fun to talk with the other, actually; he treated every question she asked like she was his opponent in a debate and would speak at length about his thoughts on the matter.

He felt honest, in an aggressive way. It reminded her of Sebek, if one condensed Sebek into a body half the size.

It had been him that ended up cutting their conversation short when a small alarm sounded, and he reached into his robe to pull out a tiny bronze-colored watch. They both had to run to make it to their respective classes on time.

Not before Yuu had prodded the other boy into agreeing to meet up in the library next time as well. She felt quite devious when she framed it as her disagreeing with his theories on the value of unicorn horns in wand usage.

He had puffed up, and she thought he was going to burst into another rant before he let out a tremendous sigh and demanded she be back here at the same time tomorrow so he could “educate her on the properties of wand cores and the common mistakes therein.”

As she climbed the stairs, she couldn’t help but daydream about what was happening at NRC at the moment. She hoped that Ace and Deuce were looking after Grim.

So caught up in her thoughts, she wasn’t watching where she was going, and grunted as she reached the top of the stairs and bumped into someone, sending them tumbling.

There was a yelp, and when she managed to pull herself to her feet, she saw that she had bumped into a younger student, Gryffindor by the looks of it, and she was being helped to her feet by two others. The other girl’s belongings, a number of books and her bag, were scattered across the stone floor.

Yuu opened her mouth to apologize, but before she could, mean laughter rang out, and a couple of students dressed in green walked into her view.

“Aww, looks like little mudblood took a tumble; you lot do tend to be clumsy, huh?”

The blonde boy’s words seemed to set off the others into another bout of laughter. One of the boys who had helped the girl up, a redhead that honestly reminded her of Fred, stepped forward aggressively. At first, he glared at the Slytherin students before his gaze turned to her.

Despite being older, Yuu felt herself shrink slightly. She opened her mouth to apologize but was cut off by the other boy.

“Who are you? Another one of Malfoy’s cronies or something? Like he needs help to make a right arse of himself. I ought to shove you down myself.”

Yuu was momentarily stunned by the angry statement, and before she could recover, the other group of students responded.

“Typical Gryffindor, resorting to violence at the drop of a hat. Maybe you should do some self-reflection before blaming others for your clumsiness.”

Before one of the two Gryffindor boys could respond, the door to the classroom behind them opened, and Professor McGonagall stepped out, a scowl on her face that matched Professor Crewel’s in intensity.

“And what exactly is going on here?” she asked, voice demanding an explanation from the gathered students.

None of the Slytherins seemed interested in responding, and Yuu was still confused about the entire series of events, so it was the black-haired Gryffindor boy who responded.

“Malfoy was insulting Hermione again after the Ravenclaw girl shoved her down,” he said quickly, pointing to the curly-haired girl who was still gathering her things back into her bag.

At his words, the tall professor’s eyes seemed to tighten and focus on her and the other students.

Yuu opened her mouth to try to apologize but was interrupted once again, this time by the professor.

“Five points from Slytherin for belligerent behavior,” she paused before her glare turned to Yuu, “and another fifteen from Ravenclaw for roughhousing. Now all of you, to your classes; the period is starting soon.”

Yuu tried to quickly respond, apologize, anything to explain the situation, but the professor interrupted her.

“I won’t hear any excuses. From any of you. And Dumbledore will be hearing about this, young lady. Being a special admission does not excuse you from the rules.”

Yuu flinched, shuffling into the classroom under the judgmental stare of the Transfiguration Professor, a few of the Slytherins shuffling in behind her to McGonagall's Advanced Transfiguration class. One, a boy with dark skin and high cheekbones, moved beside her as she sat down and leaned over as McGonagall began attendance.

“Sorry about getting you involved in that; Draco doesn’t tend to think about others when he acts.” He grimaced as he spared a glance at the Professor, who seemed invested in answering the curly-haired girl, Hermione’s, questions.

“You’ll probably be on McGonagall’s radar for a while, but eventually Draco will do something stupid and she’ll forget about you.”

Yuu was still a bit thrown by the confrontation, but nonetheless, she gave the other boy a weak smile.

“Thanks, why did he involve me anyway?” she asked, whispering back.

The other boy returned her smile.

“His father ordered him to make connections in Ravenclaw, but because he has the social skills of a slug, these are his attempts. He also is unable to resist making fun of Potter and his friends at every opportunity.”

Yuu nodded before freezing for a moment.

Red-haired boy that looked like Fred.

Curly-haired girl named Hermione.

Potter.

“Was that Harry Potter!?” she whisper-yelled at the other boy.

If anything, her panicked response seemed to amuse the other boy as his smile widened.

“You didn’t know?” he asked.

Instead of responding, Yuu dropped her head onto the desk in front of her and groaned. The other boy's chuckling didn’t help in the slightest.

The other boy seemed to take pity on her and rubbed her back in what would be a comforting way if she couldn’t hear him snickering quietly at her plight.

Moments later, the class started, and Yuu was too caught up in taking notes and asking questions to bother feeling bad for making enemies with her heroes.

At the end of class, the other boy helped her pack up her things with that same smile, and Yuu couldn’t help but think how well this boy would fit in with the rest of NRC, being unfairly good-looking. She had learned not to say as much out loud, but Floyd couldn’t stop her from thinking it.

As they left, the boy turned to head back with the crowd of Slytherins before pausing.

“What’s your name anyhow?”

Yuu paused her own stride before turning.

“Oh! I’m Yuu, nice to meet you.” She smiled at her own pun.

“Nice to meet you too,” he responded before turning and walking away.

She made it halfway to the Ravenclaw dorm when she realized that she hadn’t gotten his name.

“And this should help us break through the veil.”

“Absolutely. Why do you always act like you doubt me, your illustrious and gracious headmaster?”

At the other man's words, Leona gave a derisive snort before turning away, provoking much squawking from the man.

Crowded into Dire Crowley’s office, there was a meeting taking place:

Riddle Rosenhearts and his card soldiers, Leona Kingscholar, Ruggie Bucchi, and Jack Howl standing off to the side, Azul Ashengrotto and his enforcers, Jamil Viper and Kalim Asim, Vil Schoenheit and his entourage, Idia Shroud and his younger brother, and Malleus Draconia alongside the delegation from Briar Valley.

A group such as this would strike fear into the heart of anyone who saw them and send any NRC student running for the hills.

And here they all were.

Stuck in a room and forced to work towards a common goal.

It hadn’t been without its hiccups. More than one fight had broken out and had to be broken up by the more even-headed members, but even now, glares were exchanged from across the room, and Crowley feared his office would once more become a battleground.

“It’s not like that at all, Headmaster. We’re just worried about Yuu, see.” Kalim laughed, although to the more keen-eyed individuals, it was clear even he was somewhat unsettled.

“And you don’t think I’m not?” Crowley’s posture remained loose, but the words had a darker lilt than his usual speech patterns.

“I assure you all, I am just as worried for our dear directing student, more so even! Oh, I can’t even imagine how she must be feeling without her ever-reliable headmaster there to guide the way.” Crowley placed his hand across his brow as if to shield himself from the humanity of it all.

Next to Crowley sat a mirror, not unlike the many others used around Night Raven Academy. Where it stood out, however, was its size, the mirror itself spanning an entire wall of the office, and its color, as unlike the black or reflective surface of the other mirrors around the campus, this one regularly pulsed through a variety of colors.

It was a product of Crowley’s own unique magic, according to the man himself, although he refused to disclose what exactly that magic was. It was what had allowed them to connect to Yuu’s world, then to Yuu’s phone.

After some careful tinkering, Idia had managed to implement what he referred to as a “buff” to the artifact, which, according to both him and Crowley, allowed larger physical objects, such as people, through. Previous tests had not been promising, but the two mages assured the gathered group that this iteration showed promise.

It only remained to test it.

The reason they had gathered today was simple: to decide who would go first.

Finishing his theatrics, Crowley turned towards the group, placing his hand on his chin as he stood beside the mirror's surface.

“As you all know, I called you here to figure out who we would send first to test the mirror.” The golden orbs in his mask bobbed as they flicked over the group.

“I am now willing to take any suggestions,” he finished, a sly smile on his face.

Chaos broke out as nearly every person in the room began talking at once. This cacophony went on for a while, arguments, bribes, and even threats all being thrown around. Eventually, it died down once more as Crowley raised a hand. A bead of sweat seemed to run down his mask at the reaction.

“I see, I see. I think I know enough to make a decision.” He nodded to himself.

“As your ever gracious, thoughtful, and responsible headmaster, as well as Yuu’s favorite teacher, I feel confident that the one who should go first is…” He paused for dramatic effect, prompting Riddle to raise his scepter, face reddening, while a crack sounded from the chair Malleus was sitting in.

“Myself,” he finished simply as he sidestepped through the mirror. Power temporarily spent, the pulsating colors calmed and transformed to a solid glass surface.

Chaos once again broke out in Headmaster Crowley’s office, just in time for one Professor Crewel to burst through the door, an incensed look on his face.

Chapter Text

Dire Crowley was fabulous, flamboyant, and flighty. Known throughout the land as an entertaining and goofy figure.

Dire Crowley was old; he had been alive long enough to see the rise of Lillia Vanrouge, witnessed wars, and let them pass him by.

Dire Crowley was wise. He was not strong enough to contend with the true superpowers, but not weak enough to ever be disregarded. A piece to be watched. So he made himself indispensable.

Dire Crowley was the headmaster of Night Raven College. He had built the place and helped raise it to its prestigious position. They were the first international magic school, despite what that scum Ambrose said.

Dire Crowley was a fae, native to Briar Valley, returning to his roots every summer. Despite this, he had no child of his own. None he had seen had been worth the chaos of taking them, and none of the other sex had ever appealed to him. It was all so… basic.

A raven enjoyed shiny things, unique ones. So, despite the estrangement it had brought about from others of his kind, Crowley had not chosen to become a parent.

Instead, he became an educator. To raise the next generation, to secure a neutral position in the world, but chiefly amongst his reasons, to search.

Dire Crowley was not unlike other Fae; rather, he was simply more picky.

Years passed by, then decades, centuries even.

Not a single child that passed through his halls shined in the way he wanted. Oh sure, some of them were more impressive; some had a luster that caught the eye, but none worth the trouble it would bring about for him to take them as his child.

But then Yuu came along.

Mysterious little Yuu, a defenseless girl thrown into a pit of vipers, floundering and lacking even the most basic of survival instincts and social ability. Crowley had felt for her even before he had known her true gender. He had expected her to be torn apart, metaphorically, in a week.

Instead, Yuu kept on going. Revelation after revelation, first her own form of magic that still fascinated Crowley, then her gender, which had shocked him.

Even more surprising was just how she had tamed the beasts of Night Raven College. This year of students was particularly rowdy, but Yuu simply kept on charming them, to a degree that he would admit he had thought her some form of Fae for a brief moment.

The young girl simply kept on surprising him. Kept on shining brighter and brighter.

And kept on being exposed to greater and greater danger. Her adventures in Octavinelle had nearly given him a heart attack, and it had only gotten worse as the year went on.

She didn’t even have a family name! She was practically yelling at him to adopt her.

Eventually, he didn’t know when, he had made the decision. The paperwork was all collected (and certain pieces were filed appropriately to prevent that Scarabia combo from trying anything themselves), and he had planned to speak with her about it during summer vacation.

He felt bad for putting on airs, for pretending to be looking for a way for her to return to her own world, but…

He was a fae.

They had experience in convincing people.

She’d forgive him, eventually.

Hopefully.

There had been, of course, the shock of her even managing her charm on his Prince, Malleus Draconia. That had nearly sent him into cardiac arrest. Having to maybe give his own future ruler the shovel talk… He filed that away to figure out later when he had first heard.

He still hadn't figured out how he was going to do that.

All of his plans had been thrown out of the window when that mirror had activated, taking Yuu in the middle of the day in front of the entire school.

It had been chaos since then. Dorm Leaders breaking down his door, yelling, fights breaking out across the school, and Prince Draconia himself looming ominously in the corner of his office.

Didn’t they realize he was stressed too?

His child, his daughter, was stuck in another world (her actual home), all alone. Anything could happen while she was there. She could get hurt, be attacked by those Death Eaters… decide she wanted to stay.

Dire Crowley was panicking as well. Luckily he worked well under pressure, and within the week, with the help of Mr. Shroud, they had managed to find Yuu, through her phone of all things. A few days after, he had managed a prototype of the mirror. After some basic tests, he was relatively confident it was safe for human passage. What he did next…

Dire Crowley was a fae. He hadn’t appreciated all the chaos, all the breaking of his things, the yelling. So he may have been feeling a bit vindictive.

So he called all the little hooligans to his office, and had sent a delayed letter to Crewel to explain the function of the mirror after he had already departed.

So after some dramatic timing, he had hopped through, enjoying the look on the faces of those who had caused him and his soon-to-be daughter all that trouble.

Though, admittedly, maybe he shouldn’t have pulled the same trick on his Prince and General Vanrouge.

He was sure he’d be fine. Killing him would disappoint Yuu after all. Never let it be said that Dire Crowley didn’t know how to play to his strengths.

The journey hadn’t been smooth; if one of his human students had gone through first, they may have had trouble recovering. Thankfully Crowley was gracious enough to take the first dive.

The arrival location could use some improvement. He had ended up sprawling out on the mirror, outfit still smoking slightly from the journey. A ghost, that of a young girl, shrieked at him as he stumbled and nearly face-planted into a nearby stall.

Standing up and brushing himself off, he gave a brief bow to the spectral young miss before exiting the bathroom in as graceful a fashion as he could.

Stepping out into the hall, he was struck by the sudden silence and the familiar feeling of dozens of students staring at him like he was a circus act.

Giving them a cheery wave, Dire Crowley began walking in a random direction, stride confident and swift.

Refuge in audacity had always been one of his greatest tools in unfamiliar territory. If he acted like he knew where he was going and was in a hurry, few people would question him. Besides, he had sent a letter ahead.

Occasionally, he would pass a group of students in an unfamiliar—and frankly a bit ugly if he did say so himself—uniform, consisting of a strange mix of traditional robes and a tie.

Crowley couldn’t help but feel a sense of superiority as he studied the facilities. NRC outstripped this place by a factor of two, visually at least. He’d yet to meet any of the teaching staff, but of course, he wasn’t optimistic.

Continuing down the hallway, he eventually passed by an older man with a cat, who seemed to be yelling at a cowering group of students. Both groups turned to stare at him as he passed, to which he waved merrily.

“Merry day for a walk, isn’t it?” he chirped as he passed.

Turning the corner, he heard the commotion continue, and stomping footsteps as someone followed after. Glancing around to see if anyone was looking, Crowley braced his legs and spread his wings, and with a single flap, sprang up to the ceiling, concealing himself with a thin layer of void.

The older man and his cat thundered past, scanning for him. Of course, Crowley, being a master of stealth on top of dashingly handsome, was perfectly hidden. Once the man had passed, he waited another few moments until he was sure the coast was clear. All that remained in the hallway was a single student, about the age of their third years at NRC, frantically trying to pack a stack of books into his bag.

Carefully gliding until he was directly above, Crowley let his wings vanish back into the ether and dropped noiselessly down in front of him.

“Greetings, my young friend!” he said loudly. It was only polite to greet others, after all. At his appearance, the other student stumbled backward and let out a brief scream, and Crowley felt his smile grow.

He still had it.

While the other was still gaping at him, Crowley continued.

“Could you perhaps tell me where I might find the library in this fine school? I have a meeting, you see, and I’m quite behind on my schedule.” Swapping tracks, he made sure to inject a bit of impatience into his voice and let his eyes flare a bit brighter as he stared down at the young man.

The other, gulping and tugging at his maroon tie, raised a shaking hand and pointed slightly to his left. Crowley turned.

About a hundred meters down the hall, a large archway stood, doors ajar. Above it was a copper sign decorated with books and pages.

How gaudy.

“Thank you very much for the assistance. Now, make sure you get to class on time. Sloppy packing is no mistake.” With those brilliant parting words, Dire Crowley turned on his heel and fast-walked towards the library. Carefully, he poked his head in the door first, glancing left and right, before stepping in fully.

There didn’t seem to be anyone in the immediate area, but if he knew his child Yuu, she would be…

Ah!

“Yuu!” he called, adding a bit of theatrical relief to his voice as he rushed over. His dear child student was sitting at the table with another much younger student, hunched over a large book of some sort that looked delightfully cursed. He’d have to ask her later.

The blue-eyed girl looked quite shocked as she stared at him, frozen. That lasted until he got within a few feet before she also stood quite quickly.

“Headmaster Crowley!” She rushed forward as if to hug him before pausing as that innate sense of politeness she held stopped her. That was adorable.

Throwing his arms out, he wrapped them around her, lifting her and spinning around as he let out a few fake sobs of relief.

The younger boy, still sitting at the table, gave the two of them a confused look at the theatrics before his eyes settled into a glare so easily Crowley figured this one glared a lot.

“Great, now there’s two of them,” he muttered, closing the large book and tucking it away. Rude! Not an insult he hadn’t heard before, but still rude.

“How did you get here?” she mumbled, staring up at him.

Striking a truly heroic pose for his audience, Crowley puffed out his chest.

“Your generous and amazing guardian is capable of many great feats. Crossing worlds to assist one of his students is a small feat for me.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, and Crowley felt a vague worry take over him. This was the face Yuu made when she was ready to deliver a truly damaging verbal attack.

“Then why couldn’t you do so until now?” she asked, genuine hurt vaguely present in her voice.

Crowley flinched slightly before opening his mouth to respond, now significantly less confident.

“Well, you see—”

“You must be the Headmaster Dire Crowley. I’m glad you found your way here alright, but may I ask why you are harassing our students?” An elderly but steady voice echoed from the entrance of the library.

Crowley whipped around, a fake smile stretching across his face as he felt the feathers around his shoulders puff up slightly.

There stood an elderly man—wizard, Crowley assumed—in a set of robes that may actually give Crewel a heart attack. His right hand loosely gripped a small stick—wand, he reminded himself—but the other man didn’t raise it.

Good, he’d hate to have to attack someone in front of Yuu.

“Indeed I am, sir. You received my letter,” he responded brightly.

Sweeping into a properly dramatic bow, Crowley let his cloak flare up behind him, hiding the two children from view. You never could be too careful with unknowns, after all.

“May I have the pleasure of knowing whom I address?” he finished.

The old man nodded, eyes twinkling as he notably did not tuck the wand away.

“I am Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, and I’d quite like you to answer my question, then meet with me in my office. We have much to discuss,” he responded genially.

Yuu stepped around him slightly—silly child, what if the other tried to attack—and began to say something before Crowley interrupted.

“Ah, apologies, I was just so emotional, you see. When NRC had one of our students disappear, we were quite panicked. Myself doubly so, given that it was my own child who vanished suddenly.” He made sure to emphasize that Yuu belonged at NRC, not this backwater medieval shack of a school.

From behind him, he could hear Yuu mumble “my own child?” to herself. The other boy, whose name he did not yet know, also couldn’t help but make his thoughts known.

“If that’s your dad, no wonder you're so small. He looks like a stiff breeze would give him anxiety.”

Crowley felt his smile stiffen. What a rude, rude child.

Chapter Text

Kalim Al-Asim was used to getting what he wanted. Whether through money, charm, or any of the hundreds of underhanded means available to the Asim family.

Jamil Viper was only one of those many underhanded methods available to Kalim. They had known each other since childhood and were, for much of their lives, just as much master and servant as they were friends.

It was only recently that the dynamic had begun to change. To become better. That was mostly thanks to one person.

Yuu.

Ever since she had come and practically upended Scarabia, their duo had become a trio.

Jamil started showing off what he could do, and Kalim began standing on his own. Kalim began thinking more about the consequences of his actions, and Jamil stopped putting up a front.

Overall, things had gotten better, and they had made a friend, a real, true friend, in the process.

Sure, Yuu was a bit too casual about her safety, and she still hadn’t agreed to join Scarabia where they could help protect her properly, but they were working on that!

They had just gotten a proper security system up at that Ramshackle dorm, and the paperwork that Jamil had prepared was slowly (much more slowly than usual despite the generous fees they had provided) working its way through the system.

By the end of the year, Yuu would have been a citizen of the Scalding Sands (Kalim called it an end-of-the-year gift, Jamil called it insurance), and Yuu could come home, meet their baba and all his siblings, and be safe!

(Jamil was also looking forward to introducing Yuu to his family, but he didn’t say so aloud.)

It was what she deserved, after all.

But then Yuu had disappeared. Jamil hadn’t been there, but Kalim had watched it happen. Despite how fast he ran, he couldn’t make it in time to grab and help pull her back.

After that was one of the few times Kalim remembered truly being angry. Angry with those Heartslabyul students for not being stronger, holding tighter, but mostly he was angry with himself.

For not being faster, for not being there with her already, for not foreseeing this.

For letting her get taken.

It rained that night, and not just because of Diasomnia.

Kalim Al-Asim was not used to the feeling of losing, of despair.

(Jamil had sat down in his room, put his face in his hands, and screamed. Screamed just like he had done whenever he lost a relative in their service to the Asim family, screamed just like he did after he ingested poison in Kalim’s place, screamed like he did when Kalim followed him to NRC.

Then he stood back up, left his room, and went back to work. Kalim needed to be comforted, the dorm needed to be managed. There were things to do. He would mourn later.

Jamil Viper was familiar with loss, an old hand at despair.)

When their vice-dorm head left his room with slightly red eyes, not covered despite clear attempts, not a word was spoken, and they all diverted their eyes.

Now, though…

“Jamil, is it done?” Kalim asked, staring beseechingly at his friend. The last few days had been a flurry of phone calls, explanations, arguments, bribery, and more. The two of them had been working day and night to get things ready.

The exhaustion was more apparent on Kalim than Jamil, the latter used to the exhaustion that came from nonstop work.

“It seems that useless headmaster threw his own hat in the ring far before us,” Jamil grouched, staring at his phone screen, eyes flicking through an email.

“Has the court already made a decision then?” Kalim asked, legs bouncing somewhat nervously. The bags under his eyes couldn’t hide the relieved grin that had been stuck on his face for the past few days. Even these recent difficulties did little to dim it.

Jamil grunted in response before tucking his phone into his pocket.

“Of course not. With all the pressure we're putting on them, they're probably paralyzed. Either say no to the Asim family or to Dire Crowley. They won’t be making a decision anytime soon.” As he spoke, the dark-haired student stood, stretching his back just enough for a number of cracks to be heard, before falling into step beside his dorm head.

“That’s good though, right? It gives us plenty of time to muddy the waters, talk to people.” Kalim’s smile was bright, but for a moment a sharpness could be seen. This was the boy who would inherit the Asim empire speaking.

“More time only gives us more time to plan, after all.”

Jamil nodded along as they walked, smile matching Kalim’s in enthusiasm if not in brightness. Any Scarabia student who saw the two at this moment would turn around and pretend they hadn’t seen anything.

Jamil gave a single, decisive nod.

“The only thing that could go wrong is if someone else throws their hat into the ring, but the other dorms lack the deliberate spirit needed to think ahead like this. It’s just a matter of time.”

Kalim's smile lost some of its sharpness, and the two left for their quarters to get some long-awaited sleep.

“So we're absolutely kidnapping the directing student.”

“Hahh, of course we are. Don’t tell me you replaced whatever you had between your ears with money, Ruggie.” Leona yawned at the other, turning over in bed as Ruggie paced back and forth in the other's room. “Also, don’t call it kidnapping; it makes it weird.”

Jack stood stiffly by the door, looking distinctly uncomfortable with the conversation but unwilling to leave them to this conversation alone.

“Well, sorry, Your Highness. I don’t really see a lot of planning being done by you. We could probably get her over here, but what happens when any one of those other rich kids she charmed comes knocking down our front door?” Ruggie ranted, idly collecting some of the clothing strewn around the room and piling them into the laundry basket.

To Jack's eyes, it seemed like Leona rolled his eyes before rolling over with a sigh and groping at his bedside table until he managed to grasp a luxurious-looking envelope. Dragging it closer, the Savanaclaw dorm head slit the letter open with a claw and practically flung it at the hyena beastman.

Ruggie scowled as he barely caught the object, withdrawing the paper and glancing at it. Whatever was on it blew the hyena beastman's eyes wide open before he started sputtering.

“Royal Invitation of Citizenship to the Sunset Savannah, made out to one Yuu, signed by King Falena Kingscholar and Prince Leona Kingscholar, effective immediately upon acceptance! Leona, what on earth?”

Thumping the paper into a surprised Jack's hands, Ruggie stepped forward after dropping the rest of the clothes into the laundry basket. The first-year stared at the letter himself, reading over each line with his characteristic seriousness.

“How do you know she’ll accept?” Jack asked.

“Because she already committed, remember?” Leona opened one eye to stare at the other two Savanaclaw students. “If she tries to disagree, I’ll just bring up her promise. She’s too much of a herbivore to go back on that.”

“And if her ‘friends’ intervene?” Ruggie asked, hands making quotation marks as he said friends. Even after all this time, he didn’t think much of any of Yuu’s other friends. To this day, he still half-regretted not just grabbing Yuu and disappearing with her during the winter holiday. It would have been a lot easier to hide her away then. Now, it would be practically impossible.

“They won’t get a chance to. I’ve already got everything arranged. A nice party, some distractions. Elder brother and his family will be there; they wanted to meet her.” Leona gave a lazy grin.

“Cheka’s been excited to invite his Onee-Tan to his birthday party. She won't be able to say no.”

Yuu wasn’t entirely sure how Crowley had gotten to Hogwarts. When he had burst into the library, she was sure she was hallucinating or seeing something that wasn’t there. Like a reverse boggart had broken into the school or something.

When he had swept up to her, picked her up, and begun spinning them both around in a circle, she realized this was all too real. Yuu knew that Crowley had said they were coming to get her, but… Yuu had honestly thought it was a bit of a fantasy.

She was so, so happy to see him; it nearly brought her to tears. She dearly wanted to throw herself into another hug, damn all the social rules it would break, but a question still lingered.

If Crowley hadn’t been able to find her a way home in all the time she had been at NRC, how would it be easier to find her once she was gone?

Then he had shown up, and he started bragging about how easily he had crossed over to find her, and Yuu couldn’t help but wonder what was different now versus then. The most immediate connection was that Crowley wasn’t actually looking, which she had asked. He flinched when she did.

The others had suspected for some time, but it still hurt, just a bit, to have it confirmed so bluntly by the man himself.

There was no time to talk about it, however, as Dumbledore had immediately swept in, and within moments Crowley and Dumbledore were marching towards the latter’s office, Yuu following silently. Occasionally, Crowley would glance back, but she refused to meet his eyes.

This feeling, she recognized, was anger.

She didn’t like holding grudges, but…

She had trusted Crowley, despite what others had said.

Dumbledore had gestured for her to follow, but Yuu was mainly following because she wanted answers.

Why wasn’t he looking? Had he ever even tried?

And what did he mean by “my child”?

As they marched through the school, many students paused to stare at the two older men before their gazes began burning into her back. She could practically feel the curiosity in them.

They eventually made it past the classroom and into the headmaster's office, where Crowley immediately saw fit to make himself comfortable in one of the large chairs in front of the desk, legs crossed over one another, and claw-tipped fingers tapping impatiently on his leg.

He looked like he wanted to say something to Yuu but stopped himself as Dumbledore sat in his own high-backed chair behind the large desk.

The air immediately became slightly tense as two of the most magically powerful figures she knew of faced each other in a meeting of two wildly different worlds.

The two men sat in that room discussing for ages, speaking about tournaments, lodging, mirrors, and about a dozen other things. The tones used were light, and both men smiled mildly at one another as they spoke, but it was impossible to ignore the palpable feeling of magic in the room. It was like two great beasts pacing back and forth in front of each other.

Yuu was reminded of when her friends from Savanaclaw, Heartslabyul, and Octavinelle had gathered together in Monstro Lounge.

Negotiations continued for about an hour, with Yuu a silent observer, before the conversation eventually turned back to her. Dumbledore was the first to start it.

“And regarding your connection, Ms. Yuu, what exactly is the relation?” His eyes twinkled as he asked, but there seemed a more serious undertone to the question.

Crowley opened his mouth, but for once Yuu cut him off.

“He’s my previous headmaster,” she said shortly. She’d have to talk to Crowley later about what this “my child” business was about, but for now, she couldn’t have him lying to Headmaster Dumbledore.

Crowley shot her a truly wounded look that wouldn’t be out of place on Grim when told that they were out of tuna, but Yuu steadfastly ignored it, choosing instead to look into Headmaster Dumbledore’s eyes.

Dumbledore, that same genial look on his face only altered by a slightly raised eyebrow, glanced between the two of them. Yuu did her best to keep her face blank and meet his eyes, and Crowley, much less than the relaxed and experienced headmaster he had been for most of their discussion, was staring over at Yuu with a look not dissimilar to that of a wounded puppy or bird.

Subtly, he tapped his finger against his teacup, swapping its contents for a stronger variety he had tucked away in the cupboards behind him. Taking a sip, he felt the burning liquid run down his throat.

“Perhaps,” he began, pausing to ensure he had both parties' attention, “I should let you two… talk it out?” he asked, looking between the two individuals seated before his desk.

The two gave him a nod, and Headmaster Dumbledore stood, pausing by Yuu’s chair.

“If you need anything, I’ll be right outside.”

Crowley bristled slightly but let the other leave without comment.

With a click, the Night Raven Academy headmaster and the wayward directing student were left alone. The clicks and whirs of the instruments on the desk filled the air for a moment before Crowley cleared his throat.

“Well…” He paused, threading his fingers together in his lap.

At his words, Yuu turned towards him, and Crowley faltered once more, the long-winded speech he’d been about to spout dying in his throat.

Yuu was crying. Those blue eyes misted slightly by tears, lines going down her cheeks as she looked up at the fae.

That expression was dangerous for the health of whoever had made her cry. Fortunately for Crowley, none of those wild animals were here yet.

Unfortunately for Crowley, he was not immune to her beast-taming himself.

Sighing, Crowley did something that he hadn’t done in nearly three hundred years. Reaching a single clawed hand up, he grabbed hold of the beak of his mask, unraveling nearly one hundred defensive spells attached to the artifact.

Gently, he removed it from his face and set the mask on his lap, looking down at what, to every person alive in this day and age, was the face of Dire Crowley.

Raising his eyes, he met the ice-blue eyes of the child in front of him. He felt his fae instincts keenly in that moment, how he hated to see her cry. How he wanted to rip and tear whoever caused her such grief.

Only, the culprit was himself.

Yuu’s eyes were still locked on his face as Crowley slowly, delicately, reached over and grabbed one of Yuu’s hands in his own.

“Yuu-kun, I’m sorry,” he began, pausing slightly. It was odd to be at a loss for what to say.

“I… When you first appeared, please be certain I was doing everything in my power to find you a way home. In fact, it was thanks to my earlier efforts that we were able to find you so quickly. That, and your phone.” The child was listening attentively to his words, as she always did when he spoke—hurt, but still trusting.

“My efforts only slowed as I began seeing the effect you had on the campus. Those boys, Yuu… many of them would be dead if you weren’t there. But not only that, I saw the effect it had on you.”

Crowley paused, taking a deep breath. His throat felt sore, but he needed to continue. He needed his child to at least understand his reasoning; forgiveness could come later.

“Saying it was for your own good is a poor reason, but seeing you grow, begin to smile, laugh…” Crowley let a smile grow across his face. “I was so, so happy to see you grow.”

“It is not an excuse; it is my selfish reasoning, but I wanted you to understand. I also…” He paused, nerves coming on, lowering his eyes to stare at the small, pale hand between his gloves.

“You proved yourself an exceptional beast tamer throughout your time at NRC, and not just of students. You even got that scary Crewel and the rest of my staff on your side. And I suppose that I am not immune myself. Do you know how difficult it is for someone to worm past my defenses, after all these years of…” He paused, trying to find the words.

Yuu shifted, not pulling her hand away. Crowley found himself once again shocked by just how tiny she was… He wondered if her original caretakers were still around for him to meet.

“Headmaster, I…I told you, it wasn’t safe. It’s because of those amazing friendships I formed that I had to leave, come back here,” Yuu said, but her voice sounded small, sad to Crowley.

She looked up, resolve firm in her eyes.

“I still want to protect my friends, so I need to find a way back home, but…” She looked away.

“Being here might be worse than being at NRC?”

“Oh?” Crowley asked, a sense of guilty excitement welling.

“This is the right spot, but… this is decades in the past for me.” She looked nervous as she spoke, as if expecting some immediate reprisal for sharing the information.

Dire Crowley blinked briefly; that was unexpected. Glancing around, he leaned in slightly, a bit of his flamboyant energy returning.

“Is that why everything is so…” He searched for a polite way to put it before giving up, “Antiquated?”

Yuu seemed faintly embarrassed for a moment.

“No, it’s like this even in my time.”

“Really?”

Yuu nodded.

“Well, that's—” Great! “Terrible.”

Yuu didn’t look like she believed him.

“It seems like you have no choice but to come back to Night Raven Academy. You’ll be pleased to know that Ramshackle is exactly as you left it.”

The younger seemed reluctant, expression conflicted for a moment before she let out a small sigh.

“Fine, but you need to promise me you’ll help me look for a way home,” she said, in a stern tone that made Crowley want to pinch her cheeks.

With a smile and a flourish, Crowley responded.

“Why, of course! You can rely on your ever kind and—”

“Swear it to me.”

Crowley looked over; Yuu was staring at him with a fierce expression that carried more weight, both emotionally and magically, than he had seen from the girl before.

He nodded solemnly.

“I swear that I will help find you a way home.” Yuu relaxed and gave him a brilliant smile that made his heart swell. Crowley felt slightly bad for all the obvious loopholes he’d left in that oath. Only slightly. He was a fae, after all.

Speaking of…

“We also have one more item to speak of.” The air in the room was lighter, and Yuu perked up at his words, a look of curiosity on her face.

“Oh yeah! What did you mean by ‘my child,’ Headmaster?” she asked, head tilting to the side.

With a smile and clap, Crowley withdrew a small packet of papers kept within his vest and laid them down on the desk, carelessly pushing aside a few of the delicate-looking instruments to make room.

“I’m glad you asked, Yuu-kun. Being your generous Headmaster and favorite staff member, I had front-row seats to your trials and tribulations over the duration of your stay at Night Raven College, and my heart went out to you on every occasion we met, when you wept to me about your woes and—”

“These are adoption papers,” Yuu said as she sorted through the stack of paperwork, having picked it up and started reading at the start of his monologue.

Crowley, not put off in the slightest, continued without missing a beat.

“The struggles that not having a last name in Twisted Wonderland brings are many, especially with the type of life you’ve been leading.”

“Headmaster—”

“You are an especially kind child, and I greatly enjoy our talks—” Crowley had begun rambling.

“Headmaster Crowley!” At her slightly raised voice, the fae turned back to Yuu, staring her in the eyes.

“Why—” she began, before taking a slightly shaky breath. He noticed that there were tears in her eyes once more.

“Why would you want me?” she asked, voice shaking as she did, eyes downcast slightly.

Oh, he was absolutely going to weasel the names of her birth parents out of her. And then perhaps slip them to Prince Draconia… or maybe Mr. Shroud.

After he got his own turn.

“Miss Yuu,” he began, his voice steady now—calm, solemn, stripped of its usual theatrics. “I am a fae. And to the fae, there is no treasure more sacred than a child. It is why strict laws bar us from nearing unclaimed children in Twisted Wonderland. It is why suspicion follows us, why fear lingers in the hearts of other races.”

Crowley paused then, drawing a deep breath that trembled ever so slightly with the weight of confession.

“In all my years, I have never taken a child. Never felt the desire to raise one. Until I met you.”

He looked at her then, earnest and unguarded.

“So I ask—no, I offer—with no binding magic, no expectation, and no chains: would you allow me to call you my child? For as long as you wish it. No longer, no less. It would be the greatest honor of my long and wandering life.”

Crowley fidgeted slightly and briefly scratched at an arm. He always got more fae-ish without his mask; it was slightly uncomfortable. He wished to put it back on, at least in this unfamiliar world, but it helped communicate how serious this offer was.

By the end, his words sounded more solemn, like an oath more than an offer. Yuu glanced at the paperwork in front of her again, at the name.

Yuu Crowley.

And at the line where her signature would go.

She looked up.

“I have questions.”

He nodded.

“Please ask.”

Chapter Text

To land dwellers, the Coral Sea was the most diverse and expansive country the world had to offer. Having claim to the majority of the world's waters, they bordered every single major country in some way, shape, or form.

To the merfolk, things were a bit different.

In truth, the oceans were too wide, too diverse, too expansive for any one ruling power to claim true control over. There were entire civilizations that lay in the depths that had never seen a single ray of sunlight, and creatures so large and old that they predated even the first wooden ship.

The royal family, rather than a ruling body, served as a guiding voice, a connection to the surface and a way for the seas to speak as one when dealing with the two-leggers.

They did hold quite a bit of power, with hundreds of subjects bowing their heads to them and theirs, but they did not speak for everyone. And many parts of the sea held resentment, or even malice, towards those who would dare even try to claim dominion over the entirety of the sea.

Azul Ashengrotto swam through some of these waters, still in his human form. Flanking him were Floyd and Jade Leech, both having shed their false skin already. Uncharacteristically, both eel mermen had a nervous look on their faces, their eyes darting back and forth, gills flaring as they scanned their surroundings.

They were deep enough now that there was practically no light, save for the incredibly dim one Azul had conjured with his staff. To summon anything brighter, he said, would be tantamount to inviting what lurked below.

Deeper and deeper they moved. Not a word was exchanged between them. Azul seemed to be following a path invisible to the other two as they moved aimlessly through the void around them.

Eventually, one had reached the edge of their patience.

“Azul, where are you—” Jade’s voice started, before swiftly cutting off as, in time with his words, a massive form shifted in the darkness above, whipping by.

Azul gave Jade a look, suddenly pale himself. He raised a single finger to his lips, mouthing the words “almost” to him silently.

Jade nodded. Floyd was too busy turning in place, trying to catch sight of the figure to do the same.

Eventually, they had reached their destination. To the other two, it looked as if they hadn’t moved an inch, their surroundings still the same formless void.

Azul evidently saw something the other two did not, as, after briefly glancing around, he raised his staff, and the small orb of light seemed to flare, before darting away, leaving a small piece behind.

Back and forth it flew, trailing more light as it moved, until the void seemed to have small stars in it. Finally, it flew back, and Azul, with a great look of concentration, tapped the light once more. All at once, each fleck left behind flared bright, filling the void. All three Octavinelle students needed to shield their eyes for a moment.

When they opened them again, a small grotto was revealed. The formless void had pulled away, and the seafloor was visible. White sand with shells scattered throughout made up the sea floor, and there were small spires, symmetrical to one another, sticking out.

It took a moment, but Floyd recognized the spires as the ribs of some massive beast, stretching out into the darkness, thicker than his body and three times as long.

The only vegetation that was visible were grayish weeds, waving gently in small patches along the floor. Neither eel recognized the flora, but they seemed to somehow hold the flecks of light Azul had sent out, shimmering lightly under their observation.

It seemed the picture of the deep sea their parents had warned them to avoid. The only sign of occupation, in any way, was the cave, dead center of the patch of visibility, jutting out of the ground in a way that seemed distinctly unnatural.

Around the entrance, there sat small effigies and charms, some looking entirely too real. Many of the decorations seemed to be made of real bone and other body parts. From here alone, Floyd could spot many skulls belonging to various mer, some beastmen, and at least one fae.

Azul, after a moment of contemplation, let out the first noise he had made since they entered the deep sea.

“Alright, we should be clear. Just don’t go outside the boundary.” Their Dormhead's voice was full of tension, but backed by an undercurrent of steel.

“You’ve yet to explain why we’ve come down here, Azul. Please embrace the spirit of mercy and explain,” Jade said, a placid smile on his face. It was only lessened by his eyes, which shifted around, restrained fascination warring with caution.

“Yeah, just dragging us out here all of a sudden without telling us anything isn’t like you. I had important stuff I was doing.”

Azul scowled slightly, face pinching, but there was an undercurrent of weariness there all the same.

“You were about to break into that useless headmaster's office and try to make off with the mirror.”

“Oh, so you knew. I thought you were too clueless—sorry, I meant focused—to notice.” Jade smiled, teeth on full display and tail curling coyly behind him.

Azul grit his teeth before letting out a sigh, gloved hand covering his face.

“No, you were quite obvious about it. Now come on, I don’t want to keep her waiting.” Azul turned, unwilling to fall for Jade’s prodding today.

Floyd swam along beside him, a lopsided grin on his face.

“But Azuuull, you still haven’t explained what we're doing here?”

Azul didn’t stop moving, but he knew if he didn’t give Floyd an answer now, the both of them were only going to get more disruptive. He needed them calm for the upcoming meeting.

“We're meeting with my grandmother. I wrote just after Yuu vanished. I didn’t trust the efforts of Crowley or the others, so I decided to approach outside help,” Azul answered stiffly, brushing past the hanging bones and other charms at the mouth of the cave. Floyd and Jade followed after him, carefully avoiding brushing against them.

The further into the cavern they got, the tighter it became, until the three were forced to move single file. All along the walls were decorations similar to the ones outside.

Just before the cave got so tight it would be brushing the sides of Jade's and Floyd's bodies, it suddenly opened up into a humongous cavern. It looked almost like a dragon's hoard, the floor piled high with gold, gems, and other artifacts.

In the center was a cauldron, massive, just as big as the one they saw at the museum. It was bubbling even before they entered, and under it blazed a purple flame, with enough fury to roar even at this depth of the sea.

But there was no one around. The three students searched the cavern before Azul finally lost his patience.

“Grandmother?”

The moment the words left his mouth, something dark flashed across their vision.

A second later, two massive pillars crashed into Jade and Floyd, wrapping around them and slamming them to the ground.

The agitated sand thrown up from the sudden movement cleared, revealing the culprit.

“Oh! If it isn’t little baby Zuzu. I got your letter. I can’t believe you finally came to visit me, darling. I’m always inviting you, I am, but your mother is always telling me that coming this deep is dangerous, but look at you now.” The voice spoke with a gossipy tone, an accent more fitting for a young lass from the inner city than a denizen of the deep.

The octopus mermaid, if one ignored the fact that she was nearly three times the size of Azul’s true form, looked precisely like one would expect the mascot of an instant-mix pancake brand would, with a slightly rounded physique and smile lines crowning her slightly wrinkled face.

She looked as if she would be baking cookies for the neighborhood kids, and many would likely trust her cheerful facade immediately, if they somehow missed the belt of skulls from various creatures hanging around her waist, or the fact that two of her massive tentacles were curled chokingly tight around Floyd and Jade. Azul was sure he could hear cracking from here.

Opening his mouth, Azul’s attempt to speak was cut off as his grandmother dragged him—and by consequence Floyd and Jade—towards the cauldron in the center of the room.

“It must be that useless husband of hers. You know I was always tellin’ her that he didn’t have the nerve to be a proper mate, but did she listen to me? No. I love your mother, and it’s good that she’s independent like that, but you know I miss the days when I had my little girl hanging off my every word. The only good thing that man of hers did was you, Azul, you know that.”

The larger mer didn’t seem to even stop to breathe as she spoke, which made sense when you considered she had gills. The three young men were dragged closer to the cauldron, and Azul was sure he could see Jade attempting to bite through the tentacle holding him to no avail.

“Such a polite young man you are, Zuzu, you even brought us dinner. I was gonna cook us up somethin’ fresh my honey just caught, but these two will serve as good appetizers.” Her tentacles raised up, and Floyd and Jade began being lowered into the cauldron.

“Grandmother!” Azul forced out over her chatter. She turned to look at him.

“Those two are with me. We are business partners.”

His grandmother put her hands to her mouth, and an expression of shock, which Azul was relatively certain was entirely faked, appeared on her face.

“Oh dear me, I’m so sorry honeys, let me just—” The tentacles unfurled and released the two eel mer. Jade and Floyd simply floated in the water, gaping and letting their bodies decompress.

“That… was… tight…” Floyd managed to groan out, his eyes rolled up slightly.

Before the two could fully recover, they were gathered up by tentacles once more, this time with a much more delicate touch. They pulled the two down until they were floating in the water next to Azul, directly across from his grandmother.

“Oh look at you two, such handsome young men.” Jade had his cheek pinched and shaken around in a disastrously strong grip. Floyd’s hair was tousled, despite his attempts at snapping at the fingers.

Azul seemed faintly embarrassed by her actions but did not say anything, instead floating there silently as she turned back to him. Her eyes widened as they landed on him, as if she had just noticed what he was wearing.

“Oh, what are you doing in that down here, sweetie? Here, let me help you get into something more comfortable.”

His eyes widened as he realized what his grandmother intended to do, and he only had a second to act as he raised his hands. It was not fast enough to stop her from reaching forward and tapping his head.

“Grandmother, wait—!”

Within seconds of the contact, Azul's form rippled, and his human skin faded away as he morphed into an octopus mer.

Dropping his arms to the side, now in his mer form, Azul let out a quiet sigh, much to the amusement of his grandmother.

“I was hoping to save the potion.”

“But you look much better in this form, dear.” His grandmother smiled at him as if daring him to continue protesting.

“Yes, Grandmother.”

“That’s a good dear. Now, before we continue the pleasantries,” the much larger mer spun around the cauldron, perching herself on the other side, “what can Grandmother do for you, dearies? It’s always good to get business out of the way first.”

The air had changed. Despite the older woman’s face still bearing the same kind smile, it was as if the sea had gotten cooler.

Azul gulped, swimming forward slightly. Jade and Floyd, recovered now, flanked him, keeping nervous eyes on her long tentacles, which were still strewn across the entire cavern.

“Grandmother,” he took a deep breath, “I need your help.”

She leaned forward.

“Oh, my independent grandson asking his dear grandmother for help. Why haven’t you asked your mother, or that useless father of yours?”

“They don’t have the skills you do, Grandmother.”

If anything, the mer looked positively intrigued by his words. She leaned over the cauldron slightly.

“Do tell, dearie, and don’t leave anything out. Grandmother needs to know everything if she is to help.”

Azul took a deep breath and began to explain his time at Night Raven College, and the friend—business partner—he had found.

By the end of his explanation, his grandmother looked practically ecstatic, rubbing her hands together with a grin that made the trio nervous stretching across her face.

“I come to you now, Grandmother, because I do not feel that the others are acting fast enough. Grandmother, it would make me very happy if you were to help me.” He paused, looking to the side.

“I do not have faith in those at NRC to help me. You always said to contact you if I ever needed help,” Azul finished, looking slightly shamefaced at having to ask family for a favor like this.

“Oh, what a brave little girl she is, swimming all alone in the empty sea. I see why you got fascinated, boys. Yes… I think I’ll help you find your lost lo—lost friend,” she said, tentacles already pulling towards her various bags and effigies in a flurry of movement.

Floyd tried to count the limbs, but at times he counted eight, and at other moments he could swear there were at least thirty.

He found that trying to watch them gave him a headache and decided to look away. Normally he’d be complaining or attacking. But the presence of such a large predator had him stepping lightly.

He’d cause a bit of havoc at the lounge later as revenge for Azul not telling him—after they got Koebi-chan back.

“But of course,” she continued, “there’s always a cost to this sort of thing.”

The smaller octopus mer froze, before bracing himself. He had prepared himself for this.

“Of course, Grandmother, I am prepared to pay—”

“I want to meet her.”

“—nearly any price—wait, what?”

His grandmother gave him a kind—too kind—smile. It reminded him of when his mother got out the photo album last summer, a devious smile that promised embarrassment.

“W-what do you mean, Grandmother?” he asked in an only slightly worried tone.

“I want to meet the girl who did so much and caught my dear grandson's eye. A grandmother has to meet potential family after all.”

“Well, I’m sure we can arrange—wait, what!” Azul’s face immediately began filling with color at her words, and, for the first of many times, Floyd, Jade, and Azul’s grandmother shared a laugh at the youngest Ashengrotto’s embarrassment.

Chapter Text

Harry Potter wasn’t very fond of the new ‘Claw that had appeared partway through the year.

To be completely honest, Harry hadn’t even noticed her existence until she had shoved Hermione over just before class.

Talk about a bad introduction.

And then the older girl (he still had a hard time believing she was a year up from them; she was shorter than nearly every person in his year) hadn’t even bothered to apologize.

Ron had been fuming nearly the entire day, but Harry was relatively sure that Hermione had already forgotten about it. She was ranting to him and Ron about what she had read by dinner time.

Harry hadn’t forgotten, but it was no use to hold a grudge.

Enough kids in Slytherin had caused them trouble at one point or another that it was useless to hold grudges at this point.

And Harry didn’t want to believe that an entire House was evil, not like Ron thought.

Admittedly, the girl being from Ravenclaw made her more memorable, but Harry wasn’t unwilling to believe that more people decided they had a problem with him.

He was used to being hated for little to no reason.

Still, he couldn’t help a niggling feeling in the back of his head that something greater was going on.

So he kept an eye out.

This suspicion was rewarded when he heard from Percy that a strange man in a mask was spotted in one of the halls, then the library.

Apparently, he looked like a Death Eater.

And apparently, he was seen heading off with Dumbledore, and that same strange student.

He tried to figure out her name, asking some of the older Gryffindors, but oddly enough, none of them knew.

A surprise new student, whom nobody knew, who disliked Muggle-borns, and hung around with Slytherins and a man dressed like a Death Eater.

Something was definitely up there.

So imagine his heart when he saw that same man, black mask and all, sitting at the head table that night, all smiles and wild gestures.

Harry Potter couldn’t help but feel tired.

Couldn’t he get a normal year?

Yuu Crowley…

Wasn’t that odd to think now?

Yuu Crowley could feel the eyes of her housemates drilling into her at dinner time. Evidently, the Hogwarts rumor mill had worked quickly and to the best of its ability.

While she hadn’t been asked any questions yet, Yuu could practically see the spirit of Ravenclaw in action as the students around her darted their eyes to the head table, where Crowley ("Please call me Father, or even Papa, if you're feeling informal!") was sitting, making conversation with an increasingly annoyed-looking Professor Snape.

She didn’t know what they were saying, but it only took a few whispered conversations and barely hidden pointing for most at the table to make a connection between herself and the weird stranger at the head table.

No one asked her any questions, though; a couple of students even scooted away when she sat down. She wondered what they were saying.

It made her almost nostalgic for before NRC. At least no one was being openly hostile at this point.

Speaking of NRC…

Crowley and she had spent more than an hour talking (although it felt more like negotiating) about what it would mean for Yuu to agree to such a contract. She had ended up reading the entire thing multiple times over to ensure that all the terms were fair, and that Crowley would be looking for a way home for her.

The entire process made her realize that her headmaster was more like Azul-senpai than she thought. Both of them would be incredibly offended by the insinuation.

She’d be sure to mention it next time both were in a room together.

After they’d finished, Dumbledore had come in, looking as serene as he had at the start, and Yuu had been sent out while the two headmasters had a private conversation.

The classes she would have had were already finished, so she decided to take a seat on the stone bench in the hall and wait, popping open the book that had been recommended to her by Eucalyptus.

It contained, according to him, information on all the interesting types of magical trees. Specifically, he mentioned it had a chapter on Whomping Willows and their origins.

Yuu was halfway through the chapter on Enveloping Elms when there was a light tap on her head. Crowley was in front of her, smiling down with a slightly exasperated look.

“Yuu, you really need to keep a better eye on your environment, fledgling. You didn’t even look up when I said your name.”

She could practically hear the pun in his voice, and Yuu couldn’t help but smile up at him.

Despite all of her grievances, her worries about NRC and the timeline…

It was good to see Dire Crowley.

The smile was still on her face as she responded.

“What did you and Headmaster Dumbledore talk about, Headmaster Crowley?” she asked.

“Well!” he began, sweeping her up and walking beside her as he swung the arm not holding her hand in a bombastic manner.

“Firstly, we discussed Night Raven Academy’s participation in a small inter-school event that I won’t spoil—”

“The Triwizard Tournament?” Yuu asked curiously, before realizing she had cut off the headmaster. “Sorry.”

The other didn’t seem perturbed by her interruption.

“Precisely! Although don’t let anyone else know; from what I was told, it's meant to be a bit of a surprise.” Crowley paused, glancing over at her with piercing gold orbs, mask firmly placed back on his face after they had finished negotiations.

“Do you know because of your…?” he asked leadingly.

Yuu nodded, slightly nervous about discussing the topic in the open hallway. Luckily, Crowley seemed to understand, as he quickly picked up where he left off with the previous topic.

“But yes, NRC will be happy to open up inter-dimension relations by dominating—I mean graciously participating in this event.”

“Oh!” Yuu absorbed that, before another thought came to mind. “Does that mean that other NRC students are coming here?” she asked excitedly, the smile still attached to her face starting to hurt, but the thought of seeing the others…

“So eager to see that pack of wild animals you’ve tamed… aren’t you?” Crowley asked, a smile in his own voice as they turned a corner past the library, where she briefly got a peek at her new friend, Eucalyptus, before they quickly moved past the open doors.

“You know, as your ever-responsible and generous guardian, I am obligated to act in your best interest, and to vet all potential partners to the most serious of standards.”

There was still levity in the other’s voice, but the words felt a bit heavier as he spoke. Still, they somewhat confused Yuu.

“Partners? Like me and Grim?” Yuu asked, tilting her head up at Crowley, meeting the eyes of the other. Crowley seemed to sigh tiredly, the slight tension she hadn’t immediately noticed fading slightly.

“We are going to have to have a talk about the nature of some of the relationships you are building, general social norms, and your own general obliviousness, fledgling. It’ll grow to be a much bigger problem as soon as those rabid beasts see you like this.”

Yuu blinked up at him, trying to process his words as Crowley continued.

“Anyway, the second thing we talked about was your enrollment here and at NRC, and which should take precedence specifically.” This topic actually seemed to put some real passion into Crowley, his voice dropping slightly.

At this point, Yuu actually recognized where they were; it was the hallway near the Great Hall, leading from the entrance near the docks.

How did they get here?

“That poorly dressed elderly fool seems to think that NRC is not prepared to help you further your knowledge of your own magic. The nerve of him, as if his school didn’t look like a bad fantasy novel conceived on a napkin.” The growl was now clearly audible. Yuu noticed that Crowley had become a lot more free with his emotions—his true ones—since he had arrived here. Especially when it came to NRC in comparison to Hogwarts.

Or her, she realized.

“But you don’t need to worry about that. Mr. Dumbledore and I will continue our conversation on another day. You and I have a much more pressing appointment to get to,” Crowley said as they began to approach the Great Hall. It must be dinner time, she figured, as they began passing other students heading into the hall.

“After all, dear fledgling, food is one of the great joys of life,” he said confidently before casting a gaze down at her.

“You dearly need it too; much too light you are, dear,” Crowley said, provoking a small frown from Yuu. She had gotten better—Jamil and Vil had forced her to. A comment rose in her throat before she could stop it. She puffed out her cheeks in anger before responding.

“Back at you, Headmaster. Maybe you should join me and Jack for some morning runs; they are good for your health.”

Crowley’s eyes widened, but Yuu didn’t wait for him to continue. She entered into the hall ahead of him. She could hear, faintly, the overly dramatic wail of “What does that mean?!” but oddly enough, Yuu thought that Crowley sounded almost… happy? Amused? Not angry by any means.

Yuu sat down at the Ravenclaw table, and moments later Crowley swept past to take a seat next to Snape with the rest of the staff.

Which brought her to now. Yuu poked at the rice on her plate, wondering how her friends were doing, and trying her best to ignore the stares.

Hopefully, Grim was being taken care of by Ace and Deuce.

Despite her good mood from before, Yuu couldn’t help but worry.

She really missed Grim…

There was a brief commotion further down the table, but Yuu didn’t bother, too busy trying to figure out if she could afford to secretly check her phone and message Ace for more updates on her partner.

Another crash.

This time Yuu did look up. At the far end of the Ravenclaw table, there was a bunch of students standing and arguing, and a vague rising of smoke from the table itself. Similar events were taking place all across the other tables.

Even as she observed, down the table, closer this time, there was another commotion, with a brief gout of familiar flame, provoking a screech from the sitting students and sending them scrambling from the table. Only a blonde student seemed unperturbed, but Yuu was too busy with the implication of that fire to look further.

Those flames… but it couldn’t be.

Crouching down, Yuu stuck her head slightly under the table and looked in the direction of the chaos. As she hoped, there was a faint blue glow further down.

A name couldn’t help but escape her mouth.

“Grim!”

The chaos paused simultaneously with the blue glow, before it flew towards her. It only took moments before a small grey blur impacted her chest, sending her stumbling.

“Henchman!” Grim cried, ear flames blazing higher as he clung to her, crying.

“Stupid henchman, why’d you have to disappear like that?” he blubbered. Yuu clutched him tighter and buried her face into his side.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, feeling her own tears begin to wet his fur. Yuu felt his round body stiffen before relaxing slightly, but still maintaining his tight grip.

“I’ll forgive you this last time, but you can’t scare me like that ever again, okay?” he said, tears still audible in his scratchy voice.

“I’m sorry, I won’t.”

“Stop apologizing,” he responded, sounding a bit sleepy. “Of course you had to be at the last table I checked. I’m gonna need a lot of tuna after what I had to do to get here…”

“And what did you have to do, Mr. Grim, to cut the line as they say?”

Crowley had made his way down, fast and quiet enough that even nearby students jumped when they realized how close the masked stranger had gotten.

Grim froze in her arms, stiffened, before looking up at her with a nervous chuckle.

“Let’s just say, you’re gonna have to defend me from those others, alright, henchman.” Yuu frowned at the tone in his voice. He only sounded like that when…

“Grim, what did you do?” she asked, lifting her face from his fur for the first time.

The small cat averted his eyes, and for the first time Yuu realized how quiet it had gotten.

Everyone was staring now. Blatantly.

“Perhaps we will have to make that announcement now, Mr. Crowley,” Dumbledore spoke from the head table. Everyone turned their stares to him briefly before they all swung back to Yuu.

“It seems so, Mr. Dumbledore, it seems so.”

Grim gulped.

Crewel stepped into Crowley’s office that morning, holding the packet of notes Crowley had left.

According to the chicken-scratch writing from the headmaster, the Mirror should be charged enough for another test run this morning, before they would be able to charge it all the way and send through multiple people at once.

Crewel intended to step through and drag that useless headmaster back over, alongside the lost puppy as well. They could sort things out after the older one was properly punished and the younger one was safe.

But when he stepped into the office, the first thing he noticed was that the defensive barrier he had put up had been broken.

The second was a sticky note attached to the mirror. Swiftly, Crewel glided across the room, the only sign of his ire being the tightened grip on the crop in his hand.

Decided to go first - Grim
P.S. Totally worth it

Crewel felt a vein pulse on his forehead, and his headache, which had been growing ever since the directing students had vanished, flared.

The puppy’s little cult was going to be insufferable.

A pile of papers manifested itself in a sparkle of green light, floating through the air briefly before being grabbed by a lithe hand, read over briefly by crimson eyes, before a delighted cackle sent shivers down the spines of the Diasomnia students who were passing by the room.

“You were right, Malleus; that Crowley truly is predictable, isn’t he?”

Malleus, reading over the adoption papers himself, let a smile with much-too-sharp teeth show.

“Indeed. Is it ready, Lilia?” he asked.

“Yep, part two of your little master plan is ready to begin.”

Malleus stood from his chair.

“It’s best not to keep the Child of Man waiting, then. Let us begin.”

Chapter Text

Riddle Rosehearts was not a prince.

He had no royal bloodline, nor was he obscenely rich.

He was not famous, nor a member of some grand company.

Riddle Rosehearts was talented, both academically and magically. He was confident, followed the rules, and looked after the well-being of those under him.

There had been, recently, slight feelings of inadequacy in certain matters.

Specifically, when it came to the directing student, a—he was honored to say—dear friend of his, and an honorary student of Heartslabyul.

It was that last part that had begun bringing up these feelings. A student of his had been subjected to all manner of injustices, right under his nose. Oftentimes, he found himself unable to assist, or unsure of how to go about it.

It burned at him to have a student under his care, a friend of his, suffer so. It burned to be so incapable.

This was before he learned about her secret. The directing student, Yuu, was a girl.

His face still burned red at the thought, although not out of anger as per usual.

Every time that realization came back to his mind, all he could think about was how ungentlemanly his actions towards her were. How he yelled at a lady, attacked her, had her thrown out.

How they slept in the same bed.

His head was starting to ache, and Riddle began using his breathing exercises normally meant to help with anger to contain his embarrassment.

Regardless of his actions—and if his mother ever found out about them, he would be publicly beheaded in the town square—Riddle could at least comfort himself with the fact that there were many in this school who had committed far worse transgressions.

The only problem was fully exacting the price of their mistakes from the hooligans in question.

Savannaclaw had been easy enough to punish; their students, especially those Cater thought had physically assaulted his friend, could be dealt with during and outside of class time. There were more than a few sent to the Infirmary by “accidents” involving Heartslabyul students.

Deuce had been most useful in that regard, his knowledge of how to cause trouble without drawing the ire of teachers coming in surprisingly useful.

But that was truly as far as their reprisal could truly go.

The true perpetrators were oft untouchable by the means accessible to him. Either royalty, famous, or terrifyingly talented in ways that made Riddle fume from the effortlessness of it.

So he was left to stew in his impotence, unable to take proper action to defend those under his care, to defend his friend.

However, Riddle Rosehearts would not be worthy of his name if he let a momentary roadblock stop him from his goals. If something was in your way, you simply had to run it over, again and again, until your path was clear, and your opposition was flattened.

So he worked. Improving himself, his dorm, and working to help the directing student do the same.

She always seemed so happy with his efforts, always thanked him even when others decided to give up early.

It was enough that a bit of red rose once again, but Riddle shook his head slightly, before continuing with his work.

Regardless, if Yuu would not address slights against her herself, he would simply have to do some himself, until she learned.

At least, that was the plan.

Until she vanished.

Riddle was quite familiar with Yuu’s thoughts on her position in this world, and the importance she placed on going back to her old one. Most of her friends (although he hesitated to call those hooligans from other dorms truly her friends) simply nodded along with her whilst resolving to convince her otherwise in time.

He thought that was incredibly short-sighted.

Riddle had learned, been taught by Yuu personally, that the wishes and thoughts of others do matter. He hadn’t been pleased by the thought of Yuu going back to a world that he did not believe valued her, a world that scorned her.

But he went back to his mother each summer, each holiday, in spite of what Trey and Cater, and now even Ace and Deuce said.

A memory surfaced as he worked, provoked by his thoughts.

Way, way back when he was younger, before his mother had forbidden contact, he, Trey, and Che’nya were playing in the woods. Che’nya and Riddle had gotten lost further in, and Riddle had gotten scared.

“Che’nya, which way should we go? It’s getting late.”

“That depends on where you want to go, Riddle.”

Che’nya had asked him if he wanted to escape, run away from all of it. It was one of the few times in Riddle's memory where his friend looked entirely serious.

Riddle’s answer…

“I want to go home, Che’nya.”

“And where is home? With her, a woman who scolds you, doesn’t let you live in the slightest?”

“She wants what’s best for me. The rules are the key to a successful life and society. And she’s my mom. Despite everything, she’s my mom, and I can’t leave her alone.”

Despite all his attempts to convince, cajole Riddle, the young boy was resolute. So Che’nya led Riddle home and never brought it up again. Sometimes he wondered what his life would have been like, had he accepted Che’nya’s offer and disappeared down the rabbit hole.

But he never regretted it.

Despite everything that happened after, leading up to the present, Riddle never regretted not leaving home.

His home was with his mother. Was it good, healthy? Maybe not, evident from the events of his Overblot. But at the end of the day, he loved his mother, for better or worse.

And things were getting better, but that's beside the current point.

So he understood why. He would still try to argue, to convince her of the merits of staying at Night Raven Academy, of Twisted Wonderland. However…

Riddle would not decide someone's home for them.

He would help her find her way home, if she asked. He would help her settle here, if she wanted. But it was her choice.

Which was why what happened irked him so much.

Ace and Deuce had come bursting through his door, practically knocking it down and sending another student crashing to the floor with afternoon tea, and the tea set itself, crashing to the ground.

Riddle had been about to behead them both, already standing, scepter raised, when the words from the two underclassmen came pouring out.

Yuu had been taken, sucked in by a mirror in the middle of the school.

The thought would have broken Riddle’s heart, but he could accept, eventually, if Yuu had gotten her wish, if she got to return home.

It was her parting words, however, that gave him pause.

“I don’t want to go!”

The two swore that she had pleaded with them not to let go.

To Riddle Rosehearts, that was unacceptable.

So he marched out of the dorm, flanked by his soldiers, and made his way to the headmaster. On the way, he was joined by many others, and entering into Crowley’s office, found some had already beaten him there.

What ensued was a long discussion punctuated by shouts, magical attacks, physical attacks, and planning.

By the end, they had settled on a course. Finding Yuu was the priority. It would be difficult, but Idia Shroud, Malleus Draconia, and Headmaster Dire Crowley himself were working on a mirror leading to Yuu’s world.

Riddle Rosehearts’ assistance was not needed, despite how many times he asked if there was anything he could do.

The inaction left him clenching his hands, angry at himself.

So he had marched back to Heartslabyul and gotten to work. To do what he had always done.

If Riddle Rosehearts could not match up to his peers at this moment, he simply had to work harder, and improve. It was what he had always done.

The others, he didn’t doubt, were trying to take the lead somehow. Cater had mentioned that Kalim was making moves towards getting Yuu citizenship, Trey noticed Lilia seeming more smug than usual last time he saw him, and Ace and Deuce had seen Savanaclaw making preparations for something at Ramshackle.

He could guess what they were doing; it was easy. So he prepared some countermeasures in advance and went back to his own preparations.

The others were relying on Idia, Malleus, and the Headmaster in their efforts. That didn’t sit quite right with Riddle. A simple request had Idia giving him a copy of the notes for the project, and here Riddle was, hunched over papers whilst a tall mirror stood in his room, with numerous sigils drawn around it.

Many forgot, but transportation magic had long since been a specialty of the Queendom of Roses. Recreating the historical unique magic “Down the Rabbit Hole” would be a feat worthy of textbooks.

It would be just the start for Riddle.

He wouldn’t stop improving. He couldn’t wait to show Yuu.

Grinnell O’Ryan didn’t care for many things at Hogwarts.

He didn’t care much for the wizarding world in general. Quite frankly, he would much rather be home learning magic from books instead of being shipped off to some boarding school.

But Mom, Pop, and that little man, Professor Flitwick, said that he needed to get a formal education, so he’d been shipped across the land, further than he had ever been from home, to the Scottish highlands.

He’d maybe been a bit excited for the first few days. He’d made friends with another student on the train, a boy named Ben, and they’d chatted the entire train ride to the castle.

It was embarrassing to admit that Ben was one of his first friends.

They’d talked about everything from their classes to their favorite types of food (Benny had never had bacon before; his parents thought it was unhealthy, Grinn thought his parents were stupid), and they’d talked for so long that when the train stopped, they had to scramble to get changed in time.

The sorting ceremony was where things had started changing.

Grinnell had been sorted into Hufflepuff; Ben had been sorted into Slytherin.

It wasn’t terrible at first; they still hung out, but it was more difficult. Ben said his upperclassmen didn’t like him hanging out with a Hufflepuff but told him he’d assured them that Grinnell was “the right type.”

He didn’t understand what he meant at the time. He knew now.

Eventually, Ben had started bringing in other Slytherin students, often older students, and well, he didn’t notice the other Hufflepuffs begin giving him a wide berth at the same time. Soon Grinn was only hanging out with the green-robed students, walking with them, studying with them, laughing with them.

He’d been so oblivious, he didn’t realize what, or who, they were laughing at. Only vague memories that often there would be another student leaving upset while he was led away by Ben.

It was an angry Gryffindor upperclassman that brought everything crashing down, though he guessed it was his fault in the end.

They were laughing like normal, and Grinn had only vaguely noticed the other student, a girl collecting her books off the ground. Ben had said something to her that Grinn hadn’t heard.

“I don’t know why you're laughing with them, O’Ryan. How does it feel to be part of the group that you hate so much?” The older boy, with brownish hair, asked angrily, stomping up to the group.

Ben gave the older boy a sneer Grinn couldn’t remember Ben ever making.

“What are you talking about, Maxwell? The O’Riain family goes back ten generations of pureblood breeding; meanwhile, your blood may well be dirt at this point,” Ben responded.

The older student's eyes widened before a smirk crawled across his face. His eyes were locked on Grinnell, and it made him uncomfortable.

“Oh, you don’t know? Grinnell, you’ve really pulled the wool over the eyes of these little snakes, eh?”

Ben shifted, and some of the other Slytherin students inched away from him at Maxwell's words.

“What do you mean, Maxwell?” Ben demanded.

Max gave a laugh that sounded more like a cackle to Grinn’s ears.

“This little puff here isn’t a pureblood, you idiots. It’s O’Ryan, not O’Riain.” The two names sounded the same to Grinn, maybe pronounced a little differently, but the same. Ben obviously heard something more because his head whipped over to Grinn.

The look on his face was complicated, as if he was trying to figure out who to believe and what course of action to take.

“How do you spell your name, Grinn?” he asked, that same complicated expression on his face.

Grinnell spelled it out loud, now very conscious of the distance his friends had put between him and them.

Ben’s face flashed through a couple of emotions—hurt, regret—before settling on resolve.

Maxwell's chuckling could be heard.

“How does it feel to be tricked by a mudblood, little snakes?”

Grinnell's head swung between him and the now separate group of Slytherin students, trying to figure out what was happening.

“It seems like one of your ilk managed to trick a firstie; par for the course for a mudblood after all,” said an older Slytherin, sparing a disdainful look at a shamefaced Ben before giving Grinn a disgusted one.

Maxwell’s mean smile grew.

“Our ilk? No thanks, I think he fits better off with you snakes anyway. You can keep him.”

The older Slytherin, Ollie, Grinn realized, snorted before turning around.

“We don’t keep trash around; sorry, pick up your own garbage.”

Ollie began walking away, followed by the other Slytherins. Ben lingered a bit, conflicted.

“Ben...?” Grinn asked, hopeful for his friend to clear up what was happening.

His friend flinched before looking him in the eyes.

“Shut up, mudblood! I can’t believe I let some lowborn trash like you trick me. You’ll regret this, I tell you!” Ben whipped around and stomped off, back towards the Slytherins. Grinn stood still, stunned. He turned to look at Maxwell in askance, but the Gryffindor only gave him a glare.

“Don’t look at me, brat. You brought this upon yourself when you decided it was better to be scum than good. And don’t let me see you get anywhere close to Anne again!” With that, the older student turned away, leaving Grinn standing alone in the hallway.

He felt a tear roll down his cheek.

“Please…” he said quietly.

“I don’t understand…”

Later that night, Grinnell shut himself up in the library and read. He stayed there so long that Madam Pince came in to tell him to go to sleep. She took one look at his tear-covered face as he tried desperately to figure out what he had done wrong, sat down beside him, and gave him a hug before walking him back to his dorm.

The next day, Ben wouldn’t even look at him, and when he tried to get close, another Slytherin shoved him roughly enough that Grinn nearly fell over.

“Get away, mudblood.”

None of the other Hufflepuffs would even look at him; most Gryffindor students actively glared.

He was well and truly alone.

Only the Ravenclaw students seemed to tolerate him for that first week afterward. They didn’t seem to care if he sat next to them, as long as he was reading too.

After the first week, the insults started.

By the end of the month, he had learned how to fire back with insults and sharp words and eventually got into his first fight.

Ben punched him in the stomach, but Grinn gave him a black eye.

He tried to explain that he didn’t start it, but McGonagall didn’t seem interested in his explanations, just scolded him for violence and removed points.

Then some of the Hufflepuffs started to glare at him.

Eventually, Grinnell decided that maybe it was better to just not bother with people, so he avoided everyone.

So his first year passed, with Grinnell sitting on the return train alone.

He didn’t tell his parents what happened, despite the many concerned looks the two gave.

Even Grandpa sat him down and tried to get him to talk, but Grinn didn’t. It wasn’t their problem; it was his fault after all.

When he returned for his second year, he wasn’t expecting anything to change. But that new transfer seemed to live to defy expectations. He wouldn’t get his hopes up, though. Better to keep his expectations low…

Yuu poked her head into the library; she had just barely managed to escape the Ravenclaw common room. There had been many, many questions about Grimm, her connection to Crowley, and bizarrely enough, her skincare routine.

She’d had to dodge dozens of dangerous questions. Doing so in front of a common room full of curious ravens was exhausting, and she was hoping to relax a bit in the library. Plus, if she was right, there should be…

There!

Eucalyptus, sitting in the corner. His book was open, but he seemed to be lost in thought. He was staring off into the distance, and the look on his face brought back thoughts of Leona just before his Overblot.

Stepping forward, her friend(?) didn’t seem to notice; it wasn’t until she sat down beside him that he blinked and turned towards her.

Only to blink again in confusion.

“Meet Grimm,” she grinned.

“Who are you, kid?” Grimm said in a grumpy voice. He’d grumbled about beast taming and locking her in a room ever since she told him she wanted to introduce him to someone.

Eucalyptus looked from Grimm to her; she could practically hear the dial tone in his head.

“That’s a talking cat,” he muttered, leaning in closer to Grimm, who leaned away in response. His words, however, sparked an old complaint.

“I’m not a cat!” Grimm growled. He was puffing himself up to try to look intimidating, and it was all Yuu could do not to grab and squeeze him around the middle.

Luckily, Eucalyptus took that job into his own hands.

The small boy reached over and plucked Grimm up with no fear, despite the flames blazing a bit higher and the lashing claws.

“What type of magical creature is this?” he muttered.

Grimm, unhappy about being manhandled but unwilling to hurt Yuu’s friend, responded from within his grasp.

“I’m a grand sorcerer, you short brat. Put me down and bow, and maybe I’ll show mercy!” Grimm growled.

The younger boy reared back slightly at the harsh words, before giving a mean grin of his own.

“I wonder what type of wand cores I could extract from such a creature...?” he said in a tone reminiscent of Floyd in a bad mood. Grimm stiffened, before leaping back into Yuu’s arms.

“What does that mean, you weirdo!” Grimm yowled, a look of confused terror on his face.

Yuu took one look at his face before laughing happily. Grimm grumbled slightly, but what caught her ears was the near-silent noise from the other human in the room.

Eucalyptus was, despite his best efforts, failing to hold back a laugh.

Yuu gave a big smile at the sight, causing the younger boy to blush and turn away.

“So…” she started teasingly. “What are you reading?”

The other boy took a moment to calm down before turning back.

“Well, what do you know about dragons...?”

Yuu’s eyes lit up.

Chapter Text

“So everyone just uses pens as their wands and writing instruments?” Eucalyptus asked Yuu over the library table, a book that concerningly appeared to be bound in human skin pinned beneath his arm.

Yuu nodded, Grim curled in her lap as the two Hogwarts students studied at the table. Crowley sat nearby, looking somewhat deflated as he observed them. A tea set sat beside him, but there was no food in sight.

This was quite odd for the fae. Whenever he and Yuu had their little tea times in the past, there would always be biscuits, sandwiches, or some other form of treat for Crowley—and occasionally Yuu—to munch on throughout.

Crowley seemed especially focused on food, in a way that reminded her of Grim. Both of her friends had gotten offended when she mentioned the comparison, though, so she hadn’t brought it up again.

Anyway, when Crowley had first appeared and pulled out a small platter of tea sandwiches and cookies, alongside a teapot, Eucalyptus had merely blinked before glaring and pointing at a nearby sign hung on the end of a bookshelf:

No Food or Drink in the Library

Yuu was a bit ashamed to have forgotten the rule herself—too used to Crowley, being the headmaster, circumventing the rules of NRC as he pleased.

Crowley had tried to launch into some sort of spiel about the importance of eating well and how proper nutrition paired with simultaneous studying was key to information retention, all while reaching for a cookie. But Eucalyptus, to Grim’s infinite amusement, had given him an unimpressed look and slapped his hand away.

The second-year did the same anytime Crowley or Grim reached for the plate of food—until Crowley gave up and Grim decided to play the long game, attempting to sneak around Eucalyptus using exaggerated, theatrical movements that made Yuu want to squeeze him.

She was fairly sure Eucalyptus had noticed but hadn’t commented on her partner’s antics.

Despite his animosity toward eating in the library, he did seem strangely tolerant of the tea—even having a cup himself after seeing Crowley take a sip.

Currently, they were talking about the difference in magical mediums between NRC and Hogwarts. She hadn’t quite revealed that it was a different world yet, but she had a feeling the younger student already had some theories he was keeping quiet about.

In response to his previous comment, Yuu nodded.

“The magic gems at the top of the pens serve as the conduit to their magic, among other things.” She didn’t want to mention blot just yet.

Eucalyptus seemed to think a bit, then wrinkled his nose at her.

“But why pens? I hate quills as much as the next person, but it just seems kind of… arbitrary,” he said, glancing over to the quill in his own hand, which he was using to write an essay.

“It’s symbolic.”

Both Yuu and Eucalyptus looked over at Crowley, who had seemingly recovered from his temporary depression and was now delicately sipping from a teacup as he watched them.

“Pens are instruments of creation—meant for writing stories, crafting grand designs, and plotting schemes that shake the world. We at NRC give our students pens with magic gems because we believe magic is a tool, not unlike a pen—capable of creation, destruction, and, most importantly, change.”

Crowley punctuated his words with an obnoxious sip from his teacup, making it clear Eucalyptus knew exactly what he was doing. Then, for good measure, he gave a pointed look and wagged the now-empty cup slightly in his direction.

The younger boy gave his several-centuries-elder a faintly disgusted look before turning back to his writing.

Yuu, however, wasn’t done—her curiosity piqued by Crowley’s impromptu lecture.

“Then why do the dorm heads use staves, Headmaster?” she asked.

Crowley gave her a leading look while pointedly not answering the question, prompting her to sigh.

“Then why do the dorm heads use staves, Father?”

Crowley nodded with a very smug expression before answering.

“Dorm heads are allowed to wield greater mediums with more capacity due to their position and magical power. But any student who reaches fourth year has the ability to attend a class on medium crafting.”

He turned toward Yuu.

“Professor Crewel actually teaches it.”

Eucalyptus paused in his scribbling for a moment, while Yuu leaned in closer, delighted at the new information.

“Staff… That could work,” she heard him mutter as he began writing anew, this time on a fresh length of parchment. It seemed Crowley had heard him too, because he leaned over slightly to peek at the paper.

“What are you working on?” Yuu asked, curious. Despite being “friends” for the past few weeks, she still knew precious little about her underclassman. He was surprisingly private about his life. She had even asked for his actual name a few days ago, but his face had screwed up and he’d left their study group early. She hadn’t asked again.

Blinking as if surprised they were still there, the shorter student averted his eyes, brushing his brown hair out of the way—pale, nearly grey-brown eyes flicking to the side. The way his hair immediately fell back into them made Yuu want to ruffle it.

She wondered if this was what the others felt before they messed with hers.

“Ah,” he began, then paused again, as if unsure of what to say. Yuu and Crowley looked at him expectantly, and the scrutiny—however innocent—seemed to make him uncomfortable.

“It’s for a project for Flitwick,” he finally said, carefully tucking his notes away.

“And if I asked the good Professor Flitwick about this project, he’d be willing to tell me all about it?” Crowley asked, with a tone in his voice Yuu couldn’t quite place. But whatever it was, the effect it had on Eucalyptus was clear.

He slowly paled. Crowley and he locked eyes for a long moment. Yuu noticed his hand inching toward where his wand rested on the table. She was about to intervene when—

“Well, I’m sure I won’t have to do that!” Crowley chirped brightly, settling back into his chair. Yuu hadn’t even realized he’d stood up. Picking up his teacup again, he took a long sip.

Color didn’t return to her underclassman’s face immediately, but he did stop reaching for his wand.

Yuu still wanted to know what Eucalyptus had been working on, but now didn’t seem like the right time to ask.

“But if you ever need any help with this little project of yours, do feel free to approach me. A dear friend of Yuu’s is a friend of mine, after all,” Crowley finished, giving Eucalyptus a warm smile.

She raised an eyebrow slightly. That seemed unusually helpful for the Dire Crowley she knew.

“Of course, in comparison to some of the lower standards here at Hogwarts, the help of an educator such as myself would be invaluable,” he finished.

There it was.

Yuu sighed, and color seemed to finally return to Eucalyptus’s face as his nervous expression fell away into an unimpressed one.

Opening up the strange skin-bound book, Eucalyptus didn’t even bother to look at Crowley before responding.

“If I wanted dramatics and delusion, I’d read the cursed diary I found yesterday,” the younger boy muttered, flipping to his bookmark.

Crowley choked on his tea, patting his chest slightly as he tried not to spit it onto the table. Yuu didn’t bother to hide her own giggle at the remark and Crowley’s reaction.

There was a brief period of silence—Yuu working on her classwork, Eucalyptus making more notes, and Crowley pouting at not having the last word—when...

CRUNCH

In their preoccupation with the conversation, they’d forgotten about Grim’s stealthy approach toward the untouched plates of food Crowley had brought in. Perched on the table was Grim, who’d apparently used a couple of books stacked on top of each other to scale back up.

In each hand was one of the cookies Crowley had brought, one with a large bite taken out of it. A veritable fountain of crumbs was falling from the cookie and onto the many books scattered below.

Noticing he’d been spotted, Grim simply shrugged and turned toward Eucalyptus specifically.

“Can’t stop me now, shorty.”

And with that, he took another huge bite out of the cookie, more crumbs scattering across the table.

The Hufflepuff’s eyes twitched slightly, his hair puffing out in a way that reminded Yuu of horns as he stood abruptly from the table and grabbed his wand. She wasn’t sure if it was the insult or the crumbs falling onto the open books that set her underclassman off—but it startled Grim either way.

“I’ll disassemble you for parts, you damn kneazle!” he cried, beginning to chase Grim across the library—crumbs and swears flying as the two darted between tables.

Yuu got up to stop them, and soon only Crowley remained at the table, watching the cat run away from the Hufflepuff, who was now being chased himself by a Ravenclaw.

The show only ended when Madam Pince kicked them all—including a now very shamefaced Eucalyptus and a red-with-green-stripes Grim—out of the library for being too loud.

Crowley, who hadn’t participated in the chaos and had disappeared the moment Madam Pince appeared, was waiting for them outside. He tutted at each of them, lightly scolding them for “causing a scene.”

The teasing had Eucalyptus red in the face and ready to turn his wand on Crowley next, and the only thing that stopped him was Dumbledore appearing at the end of the hall.

“Headmaster Crowley, I have the Minister of Magic in my office ready for our meeting—one that was supposed to start about ten minutes ago.” If Dumbledore was irritated by Crowley’s tardiness, he didn’t show it, but there was a certain line of steel in his voice.

Crowley nodded importantly, ignoring the still-fuming Eucalyptus clutching his wand behind him.

“Certainly. Let’s not keep Mr. Corn Fud waiting,” he said, marching down the hall without waiting for Dumbledore. The other headmaster merely nodded and joined him as he passed.

“Cornelius Fudge is the name, actually, Mr. Crowley. Do try to memorize it before we get there.”

As the two walked away, Eucalyptus took a deep breath before tucking his wand away and turning to Yuu, who was still clutching a now-sleepy Grim.

“I am going to strangle that weirdo,” he said moodily.

Grim stirred briefly, giving the boy a grumpy look before responding,

“You’re gonna have to get in line, kid.”

Later that night, she would post a picture she’d taken with Eucalyptus—who had only agreed after an hour of her doing her best to explain what a phone was, even though she still didn’t fully understand how to use it, despite Idia and Ortho’s best efforts.

It hadn’t occurred to her that smartphones didn’t exist at the moment, and she’d had to desperately try to explain away the existence of the device.

The picture needed to be a selfie, since there wasn’t anyone else to hold the phone, so she and Eucalyptus ended up huddling together to both fit in the frame.

Her solution—much to the embarrassment of the younger boy—was to emulate some of the selfies she’d taken with Cater. She wrapped one arm around the smaller boy and pressed their cheeks together. Grim sat curled in the gap between them, still sporting his new colors courtesy of Eucalyptus.

After some prodding, she got them both to smile up at the camera so she could take the picture. His hair had fallen a bit, so only one eye could be seen, but his smile was fully visible—wide, but doing nothing to hide his slightly reddened cheeks.

When she had begun prodding the smaller boy, he’d folded quickly, as if used to being made to smile for pictures.

Later that night, she would pull up the group chat and write a quick message before uploading the picture.

Yuu: I made a new friend! Meet Eucalyptus! I just realized our names start the same— is this what you call a mini-me @DourSamurai ?
(PIC)

Several People are typing…

She then clicked her phone to sleep, grabbed Grim, and curled up in bed.

She’d check the messages tomorrow.

Ortho Shroud ver.1.22474487139 was experiencing an emotion he would describe as jubilance. It was highly likely that in the near future, he and Big Brother (Family, Priority Level 1) would be able to access the other dimension (now designated TW4 for records purposes) and secure Designation: Yuu (Family [Informal], Priority Level 1) for transfer back to a safe location.

When she had first been isekai’d without consent (Big Brother’s terminology), Ignihyde had experienced increased rates of depression nearly across the board, and Big Brother had suffered a catastrophic backslide in his mental health.

Ortho had also experienced numerous malfunctions during that time, and he would admit his functionality had been diminished.

But then, a few days after the event, Big Brother had pinged Ortho with an information packet. In it was an IP address and a key to a new transmitter that had not been present before.

Accessing both at once had allowed him very weak access to a signal.
Yuu’s cell phone.

After that, Ortho had immediately ceased experiencing malfunctions, although he was still unable to identify the source of the stability. He did not dedicate too much RAM to the search, being too busy assisting his brother in triangulating the signal through the [VOID] and improving the transmitter.

Another day into their efforts, Headmaster Crowley (Neutral/Enemy, Priority Level 12) had appeared quite suddenly in Big Brother’s room. Ortho had nearly clipped him with his Technomatic Cannon before the headmaster had a chance to explain himself.

The following discussion had been brief, punctuated by Big Brother raising his voice to decibel levels Ortho had never recorded before, but ultimately ended with the two of them reaching an agreement.

Fast-forward a few days in his memory files, and the entirety of Yuu’s contact list had been made aware of what Big Brother had found. They were now trying to influence the outcome—arguing about research, protocols, precautions, and dozens of other matters.

Ortho was not a being used to feeling anger. Feelings in general had not stopped being novel since his inception. Happiness, sadness, joy, envy—these were emotions Ortho had experienced and understood.

Of these, anger was rare. Likely because Ortho Shroud simply did not enjoy being angry. He was much better at controlling his emotions than most others.

But the actions of those individuals from other dorms—toward his Big Brother, and toward Yuu—made him angry.

They demonstrated such a lack of care, a lack of thought. They clearly did not possess the emotional intelligence to understand others.

If everyone he had met acted like these spoiled dorm heads did, he’d have already used his high-level access to S.T.Y.X. to take over all Technomatic automatons and destroy humanity in a systematic process spanning three years, using the plans catalogued in sub-folder b18plx.

Thankfully, he had met plenty of good people.

Regardless, it was like the other students at this school didn’t understand the effort Ortho’s Big Brother had put into this venture. The sleepless nights of doing nothing but work. The times when Ortho would float next to his door, listening to his brother cry. They didn’t hear the muttered words: “I won’t lose anyone else.”

Instead, they just broke into Big Brother’s room and made demands. Work faster, work harder, give me this, give me that—why aren’t you done yet?

Only Riddle Rosehearts (Dorm Head, Priority Level 10) had shown any form of politeness—merely asking to be read in on the project.

Ortho often kept his opinions to himself when they were not positive, but he sometimes wondered how Yuu could stand to be friends with such rude people.

Still, the majority of the work was done. And despite Dire Crowley and Grim’s (Monster/Familiar, Priority Level 6) unpermitted use of the transdimensional transportation device, they were still on schedule.

Ortho’s only gripe was that Big Brother was still allowing access to the device for the other NRC students.

Practically speaking, if Big Brother simply took the schematics—or better yet, the portal itself—and retreated to the Island of Woe, they would have sole access and be better equipped to manage the rescue efforts.

However, Big Brother had argued that moving now would slow their progress. Additionally, the two of them would soon cross over to secure the other end, and undue activity or resistance from the other students could interfere with those efforts.

So, they stayed.

But Ortho wasn’t angry. Not for long.
It wasn’t efficient.

Ortho would put his efforts toward more productive things. Such as creating numerous stratagems in case a violent rescue was required. Or crafting a PowerPoint slideshow on the benefits of staying in Twisted Wonderland, with a subsection specifically dedicated to the Island of Woe.

Tomorrow, Ortho would go through the portal to make contact with Dire Crowley and help establish NRC presence on the other side. He would be followed by Big Brother soon after.

Ortho spun up his 21 proxies before continuing his line of thought.

He had another mission from S.T.Y.X. that Big Brother was not to know about—delivered directly from the top. The contact labeled Mom <3 had pinged the day before with his mission details.

Operation: Stunt Double would leave its preparation stage the moment he found Yuu.

He was also to deliver a message from Mom <3 personally to Yuu and to gauge the viability of another mission.

Big Brother definitely wasn’t supposed to know about that one.

Azul’s grandmother had kept hold of her grandson and his two friends for a few days before she deemed the potion she was brewing “ready.”

She had taken from them the minute strands of hair Jade had collected from Ramshackle, as well as the blood samples stolen from Crewel’s office—also by Jade—both of which were tossed into the cauldron at different times. Afterward, she added a few other esoteric ingredients, gave it a few good stirs, and slammed a large lid onto the pot.

She then promptly declared it needed to cook for at least 48 hours and proceeded to drag Azul, Jade, and Floyd out for some hunting.

The poor little fish didn’t know what hit it when the two eels and the octopus emerged from the depths. It was over fast, and later during dinner, Azul was briefly thankful Yuu wasn’t there to see their eating habits—before he remembered that Grandmother had asked to meet her. And Grandmother wouldn’t bother holding back in order to test the young human.

He would have to warn her first.

He was grateful when the potion finally finished—for more than one reason.

The rest of their visit went much the same, with Grandmother spending her time either testing Jade and Floyd in a variety of ways—physically, mentally, and magically—or embarrassing Azul in front of his business partners with scrapbooks and stories.

On the final morning, Azul’s grandmother instructed the boys to pack their things and get ready for a trip. She also finally deigned to explain what the potion was—moments before they left.

“Don’t you know, Zuzu? It’s a tracking mix, dear. Remember when you got lost in the shallows off the Queendom of Roses and I managed to find you crying on that rock? This was the stuff,” she answered with a smile, shoving a collection of vials into her travel pack.

She’d told them all to be ready by seven in the morning and hadn’t started packing herself until eight.

It was exactly what Mom used to do when they had trips, but he refrained from commenting.

Jade furrowed his brow slightly before opening his mouth. He’d learned early on that Azul’s grandmother took his acidic tongue with a smile—and a quick wallop with her tentacles that left him in a crater on the sandy seafloor.

“Apologies, Grandmother, but how will a tracking spell work here? Our dear symbiote is in another world,” he asked, his smile slightly stiff.

“Yeah, Granny, what’s the plan?” Floyd asked, looking slightly irritated. He hadn’t taken to the new environment quite as well as Jade had, although Azul knew it was mostly due to their inactivity while Yuu was still missing.

None of them were fond of feeling useless.

Azul’s grandmother spun around, a tentacle conveniently smacking Floyd across the room as she turned to Jade with a kind smile on her face.

“Oh, because the worlds are already connected, deary. We just have to find the right door,” she said, making a wild gesture with one hand while the other dug through a drawer.

“What do you mean, Grandmother?” Azul asked, leaning forward.

His grandmother, finally satisfied with her packing, moved toward the entrance.

“Darling, has that school done nothing to teach you about the nature of things? The fact that your little lady friend ended up here in the first place should tell you enough to figure it out,” she began, a tentacle wrapping around the handle of the entire cauldron as she passed.

“The fact that this girl was brought here—either through circumstance or purpose—means that there is already some form of connection present, or one has been created by her arrival regardless. And while those other fools bother themselves with trying to build a new door, we will simply find a current one.”

As the group of four left Grandmother’s home, she reached out and grabbed the lid of the pot.

“The ocean is deep and filled with places we haven’t told the surface about—even places most merfolk don’t know exist. But your grandmother knows enough. When I was a young girl, I couldn’t tell you the number of times I accidentally poked my head into some cave system or another and ended up in a different ocean.”

She paused, frowning thoughtfully.
“I wonder how that dear Scylla is doing… eh, I’ll check in later.”

With careful timing, she cracked the lid just so—only for a second—before slamming it shut again. A thin vapor emerged from the cauldron, looking almost like an oil slick to the Octavinelle students.

The color, which couldn’t be properly described, slowly drifted with the currents before a small flash of blue light—the same shade as Yuu’s eyes—enveloped it. Like an eel, it darted off into the blackness, leaving behind a faint blue trail.

Grandmother gave a pleased hum before shooting off after it, long tentacles trailing behind even as her main body disappeared into the darkness.

“Azul, your family is weird,” Floyd grunted, finally pulling himself out of his latest crater and floating next to his brother.

“Why, Floyd, I find her perfectly pleasant,” Jade smiled. “If anything, I can see the family resemblance.”

“Thank you, Jade, but—” Azul paused, turning to the smiling eel.
“Must every line contain a barb at me?” he sighed.

Jade smiled—still a tad too sharp, as it had been since Yuu vanished—but it was, annoyingly, a relief to Azul. They were so close now that some of the heavy emotion was lifting, and things were starting to feel like normal again.

Floyd didn’t say a word. He’d been the most visibly affected of the three by the Directing Student’s disappearance. His mood swings came less frequently now, but the emotions had intensified. He’d been in a foul state since they awoke.

Instead, the eel-mer simply swam after Grandmother. Azul and Jade soon followed.

Few words were exchanged as they swam—too busy trying to keep up with the fast-moving mermaid leading them. Often, they lost sight of her altogether in the darkness of the sea, forced to rely on the glowing blue trail instead.

Eventually, the trail began to brighten, becoming more pronounced against the ocean’s depths until it became a ribbon of neon, leading them through the black. Occasionally, massive silhouettes followed from afar, keeping just out of view—but something, whether Grandmother’s presence or that burning blue light, kept them at bay.

Azul was certain they’d traveled for days when they finally arrived. Jade said it had only been a few hours. Floyd didn’t comment, but to him it felt like they’d barely moved at all. Grandmother just smiled.

At last, the group of four came to a stop at a tall spire, its architecture looking more at home on land than at the ocean’s floor. The blue light darted directly into a well at the spire’s center, filled with a strange, pulsating green film.

Grandmother smiled—unlike the others they had seen during their stay, this one was positively feral.

“You boys ready?” she asked as she tightened the straps on the satchel she’d brought.

Azul swam forward with a small frown.
“You’re coming with us, Grandmother?” he asked.

“’Course I am, Zuzu. Someone's gotta keep you all out of trouble—and I wanna meet this girl that’s got you boys so worked up.” His grandmother seemed positively delighted as she responded.
“Besides, it’s been years since I’ve had a proper adventure.”

With that, Grandmother—with a flick of her tentacles—dove toward the shimmering light, which sparked green as her massive form squeezed through the gap.

The trio looked at one another.
“I suppose we follow, then,” Azul said.
“Your skills of observation will always astound me, Azul.”

The byplay was interrupted by another sparking green light as Floyd darted after Grandmother.
“I suppose I should keep an eye on Floyd causing trouble,” Jade sighed, though the grin on his face contradicted his words.
“You mean keep Floyd out of trouble, right?” Azul questioned, already knowing the answer.
“No.”

Jade followed through the gap.

Azul sighed. Normally, he’d have the energy to get more worked up at Jade, but the wait and the trip had taken a lot from him.
He swore that once they got Yuu back, they were drafting a contract to transfer her to Octavinelle—just so he could prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.
Even if he had to cheat to make it work.

Grandmother had mentioned wanting to have Yuu over for dinner… maybe he could use that…

As Azul debated in his mind, he dove in after the others. The green light temporarily blinded him, but after a moment, salt water turned to fresh, and the surrounding darkness of the deep sea gave way to the dim green glow of… a lake?

Blinking, Azul was surprised to find the first thing greeting him was a spear pointed at his face. Beings—not unlike merfolk—were surrounding them, all holding spears.

“***********” they spoke in a language he couldn’t recognize.

It seemed Grandmother could, though—he could see her slightly to his left, alongside Jade and Floyd, all under the same pointed threat.

“*******,” his Grandmother responded. Whatever she said was not well-received, as one of the spearheads was shoved closer, nearly brushing her throat. Azul didn’t like the smile that spread across her face at that.

“Azul, darling, that school of yours has given you all some combat training, yes?” Grandmother asked, completely unfazed by the spear now touching her skin.

Azul nodded. Jade and Floyd were already wearing their battle-smiles.

“These fine folk seem determined to detain us for an uncertain amount of time,” she continued. “How’s about you show me what you’ve learned at that fancy school of yours?”

As she spoke, Azul saw Grandmother’s tentacles rising from the depths around them. It reminded him of images he’d seen in a museum—of the sea witch attacking a ship.

Azul nodded.
“Yes, Grandmother.”

There was a flurry of movement. Jade and Floyd were immediately lost in a cloud of sediment and red mist filling the water. Grandmother grabbed the one who had been poking her with the spear and began bending him, while her tentacles wrapped around three or four others.

And Azul—

Azul pulled out his staff, much to the apparent shock of the strange mer around him, who all backed away.

“Do be kind. I have a lot of pent-up aggression to work out,” he said gently. “And dear Yuu made me promise to manage my blot build-up.”

He gave a faint smile as he took a step forward in the water.
“If you cooperate, I’ll try to let you live.”

He swung his scepter, and an unseen current sent a large group of the mer tumbling through the water—directly into the ball of violence that was Jade and Floyd.

“It’s a deal.”

They were midway through the meeting when a frantic pounding sounded on the door.

Not a moment too soon, either.

Dumbledore considered himself a patient man, but watching Crowley continuously puff up Cornelius’s ego—while slipping in insults the man did not understand—was not his definition of a pleasant time.

They hadn’t even gotten through a quarter of the meeting topics and had already run over their planned schedule.

Dumbledore stood.
“You gentlemen, please continue. I must see what the matter is.”

He slipped away just as Dire Crowley made some comment that had Cornelius chuckling.

Outside his office door stood Hagrid—soaking wet and looking quite distressed.

“Hagrid, whatever is the matter?”

“It’s the lake, Headmaster. Something’s attacking the Grindylows. There’s blood floating to the surface, and an emergency message was given to one of the students—who passed it on to me.”

Dumbledore’s eyes widened.
“How’s the giant squid?” he asked, already beginning to fast-walk down the hall. Those two fools in the meeting would still be talking themselves up by the time he returned.

“She’s terrified, sir. I went to her favorite spot and found her curled up as tight as she could manage. Refused to leave—even for food. Something’s got her properly spooked.”

What on earth could be in the Black Lake that could scare a giant squid with kraken ancestry?

Grinnel was underneath the Whomping Willow, reading through the latest book he’d borrowed from the Restricted Section. To Create Life by Victor Frankenstein had proven to have many points that helped further his own projects.

Specifically, the good doctor’s descriptions of the nature of magic and what made things “alive” according to his personal definition. The man had done some fascinating work with enchanted items—though most people only knew him because of the Muggle adaptation of his research.

What was less known was that Dr. Frankenstein’s work had helped pioneer modern broom creation, as well as significantly advancing the wizarding world’s understanding of portraits.

Regardless, he’d come out here to read, not to lecture himself about things he already knew.

The Whomping Willow was still considered a bit of a fearful spot among Hogwarts students, even though most knew it was perfectly safe under the right conditions. Grinnel used it as a place to read—specifically, the side that faced the lake, away from the castle.

A great view, peace and quiet, and—most importantly—no nosy upperclassmen to embarrass him.
His cheeks still felt slightly warm thinking about that goofy picture she’d taken.

That he was the only one who ever came out here also helped.

Grinnel flipped another page before glancing up at the sound of a sudden noise.

There seemed to be some kind of commotion going on at the Black Lake. Closing his book and setting it aside, he squinted down the hill, trying to make it out.

As he did, another sound startled him.

He looked around—it sounded almost like… yelling?

Glancing left and right, even standing up and checking around the other side of the tree, the second-year couldn’t find the source.

It was getting louder, though. It almost seemed like it was coming from below.

Looking down, he noticed a small hole in the ground—likely made by some sort of animal. A rabbit, maybe. The sound definitely seemed to be coming from there.

Getting down on his knees, Grinnel leaned in closer when—

He scrambled back as a hand burst out of the rabbit hole.

It reached around briefly before bracing itself against the ground.

Then another hand.

In a scene fit for a horror movie, a person slowly began to emerge—body flexing and twisting from an opening far too small.

First hands, then arms, then a head of strawberry-red hair. Eventually, a boy—older than Grinnel—pulled himself free.

He was wearing a white suit with strange decorations and wore a severe frown on his face. He was facing away from Grinnel, and after steadying himself on his feet, brushed off his outfit and looked around.

He noticed the castle first. After pulling out a device similar to the one Yuu had used, he nodded resolutely.

Grinnel tried to slowly back up, but his foot landed on one of the crackers he’d been eating, causing a distinct crunch.

The boy whipped around, a truly devastating glare on his face (Grinnel wished he could glare like that).

The boy’s red eyes landed on him, and Grinnel froze. It felt like his entire existence—from his appearance to his choice of snacks—was being judged by the other boy.

Then, horrifyingly enough, there was a flicker of recognition in the boy’s eyes. He checked the device again, flicking the glass panel a few times. He looked back and forth, as if comparing data, before he spoke.

“You are the individual known as Eucalyptus, yes?” the boy asked.

Grinnel felt something inside him shrivel at that stupid name, but he supposed it was better than people knowing his real one.

He nodded slightly. The other boy’s eyes narrowed.

“It’s polite to answer verbally in most circumstances,” the boy added.

Grinnel, feeling that disappointing this person might cause trouble, quickly responded.
“Yes. That’s me.”

The redhead nodded, then stepped forward, reaching out a hand to help him up.
“It’s nice to meet you. My name is Riddle Rosehearts.”

Grinnel stared at the hand for a moment, before a voice—sounding suspiciously like his mother—yelled at him in the back of his mind.

Taking the hand, the other boy pulled him to his feet.
“Nice to meet you, Riddle,” Grinnel said, confusion evident.
How did this boy act like pulling himself out of a rabbit hole was completely normal?

His answer seemed to surprise the other boy, who blinked.
“So casual already… may be cultural differences,” he muttered to himself, then refocused on Grinnel.

“I’d greatly appreciate it if you could give me a hand, Eucalyptus. I’m looking for a friend of mine I believe you may know. She goes by the name Yuu.”

Grinnel felt his mind freeze for a moment before understanding clicked into place.
Of course the weird upperclassman had something to do with the weird boy who pulled himself out of the ground.

Reaching down, Grinnel grabbed his book and the remaining crackers, tucking both into his satchel before turning back to the other boy.
“Yeah… she should be in the library right now. I could show you if you like?” he offered. Best to get this over with fast.

“That would be very kind of you,” the older boy said, offering Grinnel a small smile.

Eyes widening, Grinnel quickly turned around.
“Come on, it’s this way,” he muttered, willing his cheeks to stop reddening.

First Yuu, now this Riddle boy.

Why were there so many pretty people annoying him this year?

Chapter Text

Yuu: I made a new friend! Meet Eucalyptus! I just realized our names start the same—is this what you call a mini-me, @DourSamurai?
(PIC)

Idia Shroud: No.

Ace Trappola: Yuu, are you cheating on us again?? With another school?! @Yuu answer me Yuu!!

Jamil Viper: Check your messages.

Kalim Al-Asim: He looks nice! You should bring him back to NRC with you!

Ace Trappola: Absolutely NOT. She can’t keep getting away with this!!

Ortho (Moderator): [JealousHousewife.png]

Deuce Spade: Ace’s personality can be equated to a mean girl from a high school drama.

Cater Diamond: True.
Jamil Viper: True.
Jack Howl: True.

Ace Trappola: I hate all of you. More importantly, how are you guys not freaking out right now?? If Yuu starts beast-taming more people from outside the school, who knows where she’s gonna stop.

Ace Trappola: What if she starts making friends with RSA students?!

Epel Felmier: Ace may be right here. I don’t know if RSA would remain standing if Yuu started making friends there.

Deuce Spade: Ace making a good point. [SebekShocked.png]

Sebek Zigvolt: I STILL PROTEST THE USE OF THAT AS A REACTION IMAGE.

Sebek Zigvolt: REGARDLESS, THE ANSWER IS CLEAR. IN ORDER TO PREVENT NEGATIVE INFLUENCES FROM AFFECTING THE HUMAN, ACCESS TO SUCH UNCURATED INDIVIDUALS MUST BE CONTROLLED.

Sebek Zigvolt: I HAVE BEEN INFORMED BY SILVER THAT I SHOULD HAVE PUT THIS ALL IN A SINGLE POST. HOWEVER, THAT WOULD RUIN THE FLOW OF CONVERSATION, SO HE IS WRONG. ANYWAYS, I AM SURE THAT ONCE WAKA-SAMA IS THERE, SUCH UNSAVORY FIGURES WILL DARE NOT APPROACH.

Ace Trappola: [Post has been deleted]
Ace Trappola: Never mind.

Leona Kingscholar: Wait a minute, brat. I saw that.

Idia Shroud: Explain.

Vil Schoenheit: Excuse me. Elaborate on that statement immediately, potato.

Trey Clover: Ace…

Sebek Zigvolt: What.

Ace Trappola: I’m sorry, OK?! It just slipped out.

Trey Clover: Report to Heartslabyul immediately. Riddle will hear about this.

Ruggie Bucchi: Hold it, rich boy. You're gonna have to explain exactly what he meant by “Riddle already had that covered” before you go around beheading him.

Idia Shroud: The Mirror has not shown any unauthorized uses on record, and Ortho and Crewel are the only ones with keys.

Cater Diamond: I don’t see why it’s any of your business what our Housewarden does in his own time.

Deuce Spade: Yeah! Riddle didn’t even need to use your mirror, Shroud-senpai! He’s just that good.

Cater Diamond: Deuce…

Jack Howl: I do not understand how Yuu is friends with you two.

Riddle Rosehearts: @TreyClover Please execute their punishments to the best of your ability in my place.

Lilia Vanrouge: Riddle, would you be a dear and explain what your freshmen are talking about?

Leona Kingscholar: You can’t just go and leave it at that, Queeny. You owe us an explanation.

Riddle Rosehearts: I have no obligation to explain myself to any of you.

Ruggie Bucchi: The hell you don’t. Don’t make me come over there, rich boys.

Riddle Rosehearts: [YuuAndRiddle.PNG]

Deuce Spade: Wow.

Kalim Al-Asim: Awww Yuuuuu looks so pretty! <3 <3 <3
How’d you get there early, Riddle?? I wanna come too (╥﹏╥)

Leona Kingscholar: She wasn’t lying then.

Ruggie Bucchi: All of you perverts avert your eyes before I take them out.

Riddle gave the camera his best glare as the young man snapped a picture of him and Yuu. His phone had started blowing up not long after the boy had led him into the large castle.

Imagine his immense displeasure when he discovered that one of his freshmen had already let the secret slip—in the group chat, of all places.

Already, some of those hooligans dared to demand answers from him.

He would certainly need to devise an appropriate punishment for the freshmen, but at the moment, Trey—his ever-reliable Vice Dorm Head—was in charge. Riddle trusted he would exact sufficient discipline in his place.

“What was this picture for again, Riddle?”

Yuu.

Turning back to his friend, he fought the instinctual blush that threatened to rise at seeing the young lady actually dressed as a lady for once.

Even after he had learned her secret, Yuu had continued to wear male clothing. It did an exceptional job of concealing her from prying eyes. However…

He had not been prepared to see Yuu as she was now, and Riddle would admit—if only internally—that he had lost his composure, however briefly.

He steadfastly ignored the judgmental stare of the young man holding the camera.

“Can I put this down now?” the other asked, looking incredibly put upon by the whole ordeal.

Riddle would normally scold any NRC student who dared to speak so insolently to him, but this young man—Eucalyptus—was not an NRC student. And Riddle was still in a remarkably good mood, so he let it pass.

“Certainly.”

Riddle held out his hand, and the other boy placed his phone in it.

After reading through the flood of messages and demands from the other students, Riddle decided he needed a way to demonstrate the proper level of care he gave to their input.

A picture of him and Yuu, enjoying tea, seemed an elegant solution.

He had enlisted the younger boy to take the photo—though he’d had to show him which buttons to press. Riddle had taken Eucalyptus’s hands and demonstrated carefully what to do, not unlike how he’d instructed Yuu in etiquette.

The boy seemed embarrassed to need such direction, but having grown accustomed to Yuu’s own ineptitude with technology, Riddle was unfazed. He did not relent until he was confident the instructions were understood.

By the end of the lesson, the boy’s face was red, but the picture came out perfectly.

Yuu had found the entire process hilarious. Grim had looked thoroughly exasperated.

Now, the young man just seemed tired. After handing the phone back, he turned as if to leave—

“Eucalyptus, would you like to join us for tea?” Yuu asked.

Riddle wasn’t opposed to the idea. The boy seemed responsible enough. And more importantly, Yuu had clearly grown fond of him. Which meant, inevitably, that Riddle would be seeing a lot more of him in the coming weeks.

Once Yuu decided she liked someone, she rarely let them go. Riddle was personally familiar with that trait.

Better to make positive connections now—before the others arrived and tried to do the same.

He also had a few questions about this place… ones Yuu might not approve of him asking directly.

Raising his scepter with a practiced motion, Riddle offered the underclassman a pleasant smile.

“Please, do feel free, young man. Tea is always better when enjoyed together.”

The other boy seemed to slump slightly (he would need to correct that posture) before giving a resigned nod.

“Sure, why not. Ms. Yuu, am I going to have to deal with anyone else crawling out of the ground while I’m trying to read?” he asked, sitting at the table with them.

Yuu immediately turned toward him, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“Crawled out of the ground? Riddle-senpai, what does he mean?” she asked, in her typical fashion when something piqued her interest—sparkling eyes, trusting gaze, the whole act. He resisted the sudden urge to ruffle her hair.

“Well, you see,” Riddle began, smoothly transitioning into lecture mode, “the Queendom of Roses has a long and storied history of transportation magic being used in a variety of ways, and its methods and applications are well documented…”

Yuu reached for her notes, expression alight.

“Ms. Yuu, please answer my question before you start taking notes on something else!”

Epel was bouncing his leg as he waited in the lounge for Vil and Rook to finish getting ready.
The Pomefiore first year was in a rather foul mood, and it had his dormmates steering clear of him—which suited Epel just fine.

That Riddle had posted a picture of himself and Yuu having tea in what was obviously Yuu’s old world was infuriating. What was in question was how on earth he’d gotten there before everyone else, and without Idia noticing.

The Ignihyde duo swore up and down that the portal hadn’t been used, and Heartslabyul had locked itself down as best it could without preventing students from going to classes.

Epel had wanted to just go knocking himself and ask questions in a not-so-Pomefiore manner, but Vil had sent Rook to stop him. Instead, Rook told him to wait in the lounge for Vil—in way too many words—and then vanished on him.

He still wanted to knock some heads, but something in Rook’s eyes had told him to wait. Besides…
He trusted Vil enough to know there was probably a plan hidden in the words he didn’t understand.

Didn’t mean he had to like it, though.

Epel glared at that Tanzanite who dared to approach him. The other student turned sharply away—well, more like tried to make it look like he’d never intended to approach in the first place—but it made Epel feel better to imagine him running.

Soon enough, Rook came flouncing into the room, his usual serene smile firmly in place as he joyfully greeted the other members of the dorm—to their visible terror.

He was followed closely by Vil, who stalked forward with his usual confidence.

Epel felt a bit envious of it at times. The way Vil could walk into a room and own it.
At the same time, it was infuriating—especially when, after making Epel wait for thirty minutes, Vil didn’t even look at him. Just walked past as if expecting him to follow.

It always rankled, but today in particular, a frown spread across Epel’s face as he hopped up and fell into step beside Rook. He waited until they made it into a private sitting room before letting his frustration show.

"Schoenheit-senpai, why did you have Rook stop me? Heartslabyul is over there cheatin’ and stealing a lead, and we’re just supposed to sit around with our thumbs—"
Epel took a deep breath, seeing Vil’s eyebrow raise slightly at his slip into less-refined speech.

"Why are we not responding, Dorm Head? The other dorms are obviously taking steps to... to..."

Epel paused, chewing on the words. Saying “to steal the Directing Student” felt wrong. She wasn’t some object to be taken. But he didn’t quite know how to phrase it right.

Thankfully, Rook, ever the perceptive one, leaned in with a kind smile, saving him the trouble.

"To sway our dear Trickster’s allegiances, perhaps, Monsieur Pommette?" he offered, voice light and theatrical.

"Yeah," Epel echoed, more firmly now. "Why are we lettin’ the other dorms try to sway the Directing Student’s allegiance?"

Vil regarded him with that same inscrutable calm, hands folded elegantly on one knee, the other leg crossed precisely over the first. Epel was getting better at reading his Dorm Head’s expressions, but sometimes Vil’s silence still unsettled him.

It was like being stared down by a statue that might move at any second.

A beautiful, terrifying statue.

Rook, of course, was staring too—but Epel was used to that. He could tune that part out.

The silence was broken at last by the arrival of another student—one of the members of Yuu’s ever-growing fan club—bustling in with a silver tray of tea. He laid it down with elegance, gave a brief but graceful bow, and departed just as swiftly.

Rook poured the tea, offering the first cup to Vil with the sort of reverence usually reserved for royalty or relics. Vil accepted it, took a long sip, and finally deigned to respond.

"Tell me, Epel," he said, voice smooth, "have you ever watched a soap opera?"

Epel blinked. "Yeah. Gran watches one every Saturday."

Vil gave a small, satisfied nod, as though that had been the exact answer he was hoping for.
"Then you’ll understand. What’s happening right now at Night Raven College is exactly like one. Panic, drama, desperate gestures. All these other dorms clawing for attention when the danger has already passed."

He met Epel’s eyes then—sharp, glittering with something that might have been amusement… or calculation. Maybe both.

"The moment contact was reestablished, it was obvious. The Directing Student was always going to return to NRC."

"They’re all actin’ so desperate…" Epel muttered, starting to piece it together.

Vil took another slow sip of tea before continuing.
"Exactly. And in doing so, they’re making a fatal misstep."

"The romance of it all!" Rook declared dramatically, clutching his chest. "To see such fierce competition, such passion—it is enough to make the heart flutter! C’est magnifique!"

Vil gave the briefest hum, acknowledging Rook’s theatrics without indulging them.

"But desperation is never appealing. The others are casting themselves into a pool of noise. Each one trying to be the loudest voice in a crowd of imitators. It's like asking a celebrity to choose their favorite fan at a red carpet event."

Epel nodded, slowly catching up. "So... we’re just waitin’. ‘Cause the louder everyone else gets, the more we’ll stand out by not shoutin’ at all."

Vil’s lips curled into a faint, knowing smile. "Very good, Epel."

There was a pause. Then Vil added, almost as an afterthought—but one clearly chosen with care:

"The Trickster is no fool. She will recognize sincerity when she sees it. And when she’s tired of theatrics and clamor, when she’s looking for something... real, she’ll find it here."

Rook sighed, gazing dreamily into the steam rising from his teacup.

"Ah, the elegance of restraint. The quiet dignity of patience. Pomefiore need not chase; we let the world come to us."

Epel, feeling like he’d just passed a pop quiz with flying colors, sat a little straighter.

He still didn’t understand soap operas all that well.

But this?
This was starting to make sense.

Divus Crewel did not consider himself a kind man.
A good teacher? Maybe.
An expert in all things fashion? Absolutely.
A responsible pet owner? He might just be the best.

However, kind was not a word many used to describe Divus Crewel. In fact, he was fairly certain most of his students thought him downright cruel for some of the things he did.

What did those irresponsible mutts know?

It was his job to train these animals so they could be released back into the wild. Leave them alone too much and they wouldn’t survive to adulthood. Coddle them too much and they’d never learn to hunt.

Night Raven Academy was all too much like his job at the animal shelter—regardless of how offended that useless pigeon got over the comparison.

When that puppy had shown up, wandering around lost and abandoned, Crewel had done his best not to get attached. Her owner was likely to show up eventually, and he’d only be in for heartbreak when she inevitably had to leave.

But then he started learning more.
This wasn’t just an abandoned puppy. This child was practically a stray from birth. Constantly getting into trouble and giving him heart attacks, he couldn’t help but lean in closer to watch.

An innocent puppy trapped in a kennel full of disobedient mutts, sniffing about for trouble. It was practically destined that she’d get herself into some kind of kerfuffle.

Divus just didn’t expect it to be overblots.
Seven of them—and a host of other trouble on top of that.

So, he did the responsible thing.
He stepped into the role of owner. To help her grow. To help her thrive.
Where her parents did not.

And he fancied he was doing quite well.
Teaching a child life skills wasn’t unlike raising a dog. And it was much easier—at least with this puppy—than dealing with the average NRC student.

The day she disappeared, Crewel was off-campus.

It made him want to scream.

One day. The single day he left her in Crowley’s care—that was the day she vanished from her enclosure.

He hadn’t put much stock in those mutts’ attempts at protection, but he’d expected something from Crowley. Instead, he returned to find the headmaster frantically flipping through papers while his office door lay on the ground, nearly torn off its hinges.

Divus had been moments away from turning in his resignation—in a very physical manner—when Crowley revealed what he’d been working on.

Tracking spells.

Something Divus was quite good at.

With a bit of work, he and the headmaster were able to locate the puppy—even across worlds. From there, it had been handed off to that Shroud boy.

Soon enough, they had a working prototype.

Then Crowley had jumped through the portal—and left him with a letter and partial control over NRC.
Shared with Trein and Vargas of all people, until Crowley returned.

It was all Divus could do to resist the deeply irresponsible (but incredibly tempting) urge to follow after him and strangle him. A new world was probably an awfully good place to hide a body.

Alas, Divus was burdened by actually being a responsible individual.
Unlike some people.

Still, Crowley couldn’t complain if Divus used the time to make a few executive decisions.

Such as how NRC would be introduced for this tournament.

If a bit of the NRC budget quietly shifted from Crowley’s winter holiday bonus into funding a sufficiently extravagant ceremony—well...

Crowley would absolutely notice.
But it’s not like there would be anything he could do.

Trein and Vargas had signed off, after all.

Crewel leaned back in the comfortable office chair he and the other staff had purchased—using Crowley’s summer holiday budget.

There was still the other matter.

Divus was fully aware of some of the plans the students were making.
And he was absolutely aware of what his boss was likely to attempt.

The alchemy professor recognized a losing fight when he saw one—and if he attempted to enter the fray as his own side, that’s exactly what it would be.

So before the portal project had even begun, he and a few other staff had cornered Crowley and offered some suggested adjustments to his plan. Ideally, Crowley had already implemented them, and the paperwork just needed to be filed here in Twisted Wonderland to make everything official.

Godfather Divus Crewel had a nice ring to it, after all.

They’d had a pleasant tea time, only cut short by Heartslabyul Rule 271: “One must leave the table within fifteen minutes of completing their lunch.”

Eucalyptus had questioned the purpose behind it, and Riddle—rather than losing his temper at the very idea of a rule being questioned, as he would have at the start of the school year—had instead pulled a small pamphlet from his pocket and handed it to the young man.

“Heartslabyul Dorm Rules and You?” Eucalyptus asked, reading the title.

Riddle gave him a firm nod.
“The key to leading a successful school career—and, indeed, a successful life—lies in those pages, young man. Please do your best to memorize them before our next meeting.”

Eucalyptus did not look enthused.

“There is, however, a list of the most commonly relevant rules on the first page. Do your best to follow those, and I can assist with the rest,” Riddle admitted at the look he received.

The underclassman gave a slow nod and tucked the pamphlet into his book bag. He turned to Yuu with a questioning look in his eyes. She tried to give her most encouraging nod. Being a good senpai was important, after all.

“Anyways, I have to go work on some homework, so you two can continue without me,” the second year said, giving them both a polite nod. Riddle nodded in return, and Yuu waved happily as the Hufflepuff made his way up the nearby staircase to the second floor.

A stray thought crossed her mind—she thought the Hufflepuff dorm was on the first floor, alongside the library.

Perhaps he was using an empty classroom to practice.

“Perhaps we should go meet with the Headmaster,” Riddle interrupted her thoughts. He was looking at the moving staircases with an odd intensity before he turned back to her.

“Didn’t you come here with him?” Yuu asked, a bit confused.

At her question, a small, smug-looking smile spread across Riddle’s face. Yuu blinked, not used to seeing such a mischievous expression from him.

“Not quite. In fact, I doubt that Crowley even knows I’m here at the moment. It will be quite the surprise for him.”

She nodded.
“Sure. He should be in the Headmaster’s office now—we can go knock. But, Dorm Head, how did you get here, then?” Yuu didn’t imagine it could be easy to cross between worlds.

Riddle’s smile widened just a touch.
“Crowley and the others were going a bit too slowly for my tastes. So, in order to guarantee the safety of Heartslabyul’s youngest member, I worked out my own way across.”

Her eyes widened, but Riddle preempted her questions.

“Wait just a moment. I did bring the notes with me, and we can discuss it later. However, I would like to make myself known to Crowley and your previous Headmaster. It would be rude, after all, to continue without doing so.”

Yuu pouted slightly but nodded. Gripping Riddle’s hand, she led him toward the Headmaster’s office, just passing by one of the entrances to the Quidditch field when—

“Oi! Hey, you two!”

A voice called out.

Yuu and Riddle turned, spotting an older student—at least a sixth year, maybe seventh—landing just outside and jogging toward them, clutching a broom in his other hand.

The Gryffindor student was tall, just a bit shorter than Jack, and frankly, the broom looked rather small in his hands. His hair was cropped short, a very dark brown, and his eyes were green.

He didn’t seem aggressive, but the frown on his face had Riddle stepping forward protectively.

“Can we help you?” Riddle asked, his tone imperious.

The older boy squinted at him, then shook his head.

“I don’t know who the hell you are, but I wanted to talk to the Ravenclaw. It’s nothing bad—just a bit of a warning.” He raised the arm not holding the broom in a surrendering gesture.

Yuu stepped forward, head tilted slightly.
This could be important—she’d learned not to disregard freely given warnings at NRC.

“A warning about what?” she asked.

The older student gave her a smile that felt… pitying.

“The kid you’ve been hanging around—O’Ryan. Be careful with him. He’s a bit of bad news.”

Riddle didn’t say anything, but Yuu quickly put the pieces together.

“Eucalyptus?” she muttered.

The older student nodded.

“If that’s the name he gave you, it’s fake. His name’s Grinnell O’Ryan. And he’s a blood-purist little turd. Was a right problem last year until I managed to put him off bullying for a while.” He waved an arm dramatically, like he was revealing some great truth.

Riddle’s face twitched at the language but otherwise remained still as Yuu frowned. That didn’t sound like the Eucalyptus she knew.

The Gryffindor must have noticed her skepticism.

“Don’t believe me, that’s fine. I give this warning to everyone who thinks about approaching him. You just got to him before I got to you.”

The tall boy patted Yuu on the shoulder.

“Just keep yourself safe. Don’t let him drag you into anything foul. If he causes you trouble, let me know. The name’s Maxwell, by the way.”

Yuu shifted, a strange feeling welling up in her chest—one she vaguely recognized as a form of anger.

She opened her mouth, then closed it again.
The words she wanted to say—despite what Ace and Deuce might suggest—wouldn't be helpful here.

“Thank you for your suggestion,” she said instead, offering a polite smile.

“But I think I’ll judge for myself.”

The older student nodded like he’d expected that answer.
“That’s fine. Just don’t be surprised if you catch some flak from Gryffindor and Slytherin as long as you hang around him. He isn’t well liked by either.”

Yuu nodded, already turning away from the older boy. Riddle followed after her.

“You handled that well,” he said in a low tone as they moved away from the Quidditch fields.

“Someone at NRC helped me learn that making my own judgment was important. I can’t let other people decide for me.”

She gave Riddle a grin, which he returned in kind.

She spent the rest of the walk pointing out parts of Hogwarts to Riddle as they moved. He nodded and asked questions along the way, genuinely interested. By the time they reached the Headmaster’s office, Yuu was telling him about the four founders of Hogwarts.

“—and so they’re kind of like our Great Seven, but not as—oh, we’re here.”

Yuu blinked slightly as she was stopped from walking directly into the Gargoyle by Riddle’s arm.

“We can continue later. For now, where is the office?” Riddle asked, glancing around.

Yuu grinned. She was excited to show him this part. Turning back to the statue, she spoke clearly.

“Could you let Professor Dumbledore know we’re here?”

The stone figure nodded empathetically, much to Riddle’s surprise.

Within moments, the Gargoyle moved aside, revealing the staircase leading up to the Headmaster’s office. Yuu could already hear raised voices...

He’d opened the door, though, so it was probably fine.

She turned to Riddle.
“Let’s go?”

“We shall.”

Moving up the stairs, the voices became louder—and strangely enough, more familiar.

Eventually, they turned the corner only to see—

“Azul!” Riddle exclaimed in surprise.

“Riddle?” Azul said, whipping around with his pen half-raised.

“Ms. Yuu, if you could—” Dumbledore began, seated at his desk with hands folded.

“Koebi-chan!” Floyd cheered, practically diving over a chair to tackle her.

“Ugh, Floyd-senpai,” Yuu groaned as she was squeezed tight.

Grandmother turned to Jade, who was sitting beside her, barely containing his laughter at the sight.
“Reunions are so nice, don’t you think, dear?”

“Fufu—Of—Of course, Grandmother,” Jade managed, struggling to speak through his laughter.

On the other side of the now-disguised mermaid, Crowley sat with a stiff smile on his face.
He hadn’t intended for either of these groups to come through the portal before he returned and finalized the paperwork. Things now had the potential to deviate from his plan.

He shouldn’t have underestimated the resourcefulness of NRC students. The realization was as annoying as it was flattering.

Tired, he turned to Dumbledore, who had wisely chosen not to speak up again amid the chaos.

Floyd was running around with Yuu clutched in his arms, laughing about shrimp and crabs, while Riddle chased after him—his face cherry-red with anger. Jade had decided to join in, attempting to snag Yuu from Floyd mid-flee.

“Perhaps we should let the children play and continue this later?” Crowley suggested, directing the question to both Grandmother and the other Headmaster.

Dumbledore nodded, a mirthful look in his eyes at the scene before him.
“Perhaps.”

Grandmother had pulled out an old Polaroid—one Crowley recognized as a well-loved ghost camera—and was snapping pictures the entire time, completely ignoring his question.

Vil looked down at the letter in his hands, a delicate sigh escaping his lips before he extended the paper to Rook. Rising gracefully from his seat, he smoothed a nonexistent wrinkle from his coat.

“Epel?” he called.

The younger boy looked up from where he sat at the corner table, pencil still in hand. “Yeah?”

“Do me a favor and ensure Stage Six is reserved for the next four days. If anyone protests, inform them it’s by my order.”

Epel blinked, surprised, then nodded. “Got it,” he said quickly, already gathering his things as he jogged out the door.

The letter had been from Professor Crewel, relayed through none other than Dire Crowley.

Night Raven College would be participating in a modified two-wizard tournament—hosted at Hogwarts, no less—alongside Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. And as part of the formal introduction to the school, each institution was expected to give a performance.

A welcome showcase.
A statement of identity.

Vil had been offered the position of director for NRC’s presentation.

Offered, as if anyone else could possibly do it justice.

His gaze narrowed slightly as he returned to the table, now empty save for a silver tray of tea.

“Rook,” he said crisply. “Contact the other Dorm Heads. Try to arrange a meeting within the hour. If they hesitate, tell them it concerns news about the Directing Student. That should capture their attention.”

Rook, already halfway to the door, turned and gave a theatrical bow. “Consider it done, Roi du Poison. Shall I wear my second-best cravat or the one with the hawk feather?” he asked.

Vil didn’t dignify that with a response. Rook would bring the feathered one regardless. The others often complained when he sent Rook to fetch them, but the vice dorm head had yet to fail in securing a meeting.

Vil personally thought it was the bow and arrow that made him so effective.

Now alone, Vil returned to his seat and opened the slim silver laptop tucked neatly in his satchel. The glow of the screen lit his eyes as he pulled out a fountain pen and began sketching notes in the leather-bound planner beside him.

Stage layout: unknown. Costume palette: dictated by dorm uniforms. Lighting: torches, presumably. Sound choreography: pending. Symbolism: something grand, of course.

The pen tapped against the edge of the paper—a faint tik-tik-tik—as he fell into thought.

“This isn’t just about aesthetics,” he murmured to himself. “This is Night Raven College’s introduction. A statement of identity.”

And what was the identity of NRC?

A knock on the door broke his concentration. Another student peeked in nervously.

“Dorm Head? You requested the stage crew be summoned?”

“Good. Send them to Stage Six within the hour. We’re designing a new presentation from the ground up. I need everyone ready. There will be students from every dorm involved, so contact some peacemakers as well. Trey Clover is a good place to start.”

The student gave a hurried nod and fled.

Vil leaned back in his chair, letting his eyes close for one brief, rare moment.

He could already picture it. The gasps. The stunned silence. The moment the audience realized they weren’t just watching a performance—they were witnessing a claim of superiority.

Night Raven College wouldn’t beg for attention.

They made the world watch.

And if Pomefiore sat center stage—
Well, that was just the price of doing business.

Chapter Text

Dumbledore had sent Azul, Floyd, Jade, Riddle, and Yuu away to "get the energy out of their system," while Azul’s Grandmother, Crowley, and Dumbledore discussed “lodging and logistics,” as Crowley put it.

Yuu had wanted to stay a bit longer—she really wanted to talk to Azul’s grandmother. Azul had spoken of her with such high regard that Yuu could barely contain her questions.

However, Floyd had refused to let go of her, and Azul looked about ready to explode when his Grandmother casually mentioned how nice it was to meet "her grandson’s lady friend."

That had sent both Jade and Floyd into fits—which was unfortunate for Yuu, still trapped under Floyd’s arm like a barrel—as the movement sent her bumping into various things around the Headmaster’s office.

The words also seemed to embarrass Riddle just as much as Azul, his face reddening quickly, though he managed to restrain himself in the presence of two Headmasters.

Thus, the group of NRC students was promptly ushered out into the hallway and left to occupy themselves.

It seemed Riddle already had an idea of what they could discuss, because as soon as they had walked a respectable distance from the Headmaster’s office, he swung around and pointed his scepter directly at Azul.

"You!" he began, face still cherry-red from earlier. His voice was tight, as though he wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to say.

"Me?" Azul asked innocently, his best smile pasted over his face.

"What are you doing here?!" Riddle demanded, his voice echoing down the stone halls of the castle.

The Octavinelle Dorm Head placed a hand against his chest, looking positively aggrieved as he reared back slightly.

"Why, Riddle-san, isn’t it obvious? In the spirit of the Sea Witch, we’ve come to assist in the retrieval of our dear Directing Student," Azul simpered, his words and tone unable to fully hide the smug glint in his eyes.

"That fish’s gotten better at acting," Grim whispered from Yuu’s left.

She whipped her head around. Grim had scampered off that morning, muttering about “keeping up his end of the deal.” She had been worried he’d gotten lost when he wasn’t back by lunch, so it was a relief to see him.

She would have hugged him if she wasn’t still stuck in Floyd’s grasp. Judging by the tone of the rising argument between the four upperclassmen, she wasn’t going to be freed anytime soon.

"What do you mean? They still clearly need to take classes," she answered, swinging back and forth as Floyd walked with her tucked under his arm.

"He still isn’t good, but it’s clearly better than before," Grim muttered, scampering on all fours to keep up.

They had moved away from the Headmasters' offices and were now passing the greenhouses. The argument had gotten out of proportion, Riddle’s voice becoming slightly shrill, and Azul’s smile turning a bit manic.

"You noticed then, Mr. Grim," Jade said, falling back a little to join her and Grim's conversation. Grim yelped, but Yuu gave him the best smile she could while still dangling from Floyd's arms.

"Really? Has he been taking classes or something?" Yuu asked, wondering if Azul had somehow gotten Schoenheit-senpai involved. It didn’t seem like something Azul would do without leverage already in hand.

Jade gave a wide, amused smile.

"Not quite. You see, as Grandmother worked on the potion, we had quite a bit of time to plan. Azul decided to take your advice and better himself. He spent at least an hour a day practicing lines in front of a mirror, specifically—"

"Jade, be quiet," Azul barked suddenly.

The party of NRC students stopped as Azul swung around to face his Vice Dorm Head.

This time it was Azul who was red, while Riddle watched the proceedings with a confused frown.

Jade simply smiled and closed his mouth. Yuu had a feeling she’d be finding out the rest soon enough—and from the dismay on Azul’s face, he knew it too.

Grim gave Azul a disgusted look she didn’t quite understand.

"Ehhh~ All this arguing is making me hungry. Koebi-chan, where do we go to get food? We haven’t eaten for aaages. Look at Jade, he’s practically withering away."

Jade gave the group a pleasant smile, decidedly not withering away.

Yuu squirmed a bit in Floyd’s grip before responding.
"Floyd-senpai, I don’t even know if it’s dinner time yet," she whined.

Floyd, noticing her squirming, removed her from under his arm and instead held her up in front of him. She felt a bit like a cat, dangling from his hands.

"But I’m hungry, Koebi-chan. Be a good symbiote and point me to food," he whined, shaking her gently. Despite being denied, Yuu could tell he was in a good mood—the angle of his eyes and mouth made it obvious.

Riddle, however, was not so relaxed.

"Floyd Leech, put her down this instant," Riddle barked, sounding more nervous than he had even when threatening Azul.

Floyd paused at Riddle’s words. Suddenly, Yuu felt very nervous.

Floyd’s eyes slowly drifted from her, to Riddle, and then back again.

Riddle noticed the shift too. With great trepidation, he took a step back.

Floyd seemed to come to a conclusion. He shifted and placed Yuu carefully onto his left shoulder. Then he looked over at his right one and nodded thoughtfully.

"Hey, Kingyo-chan," Floyd began, his voice slow and sweet—like he was trying to coax a jumpy animal. The effect was ruined by the wide, feral smile splitting his face. "Come here for a second."

Riddle took two more steps back, now wearing a look Yuu had only ever seen once before—when presenting the apology tart.

True, absolute nervousness.

Floyd took a long step forward, bringing Yuu closer to Riddle.

For each step Floyd took, Riddle took three back, never turning his back to the Leech twin.

Yuu figured she should probably step in and stop this, but when Floyd got like this, reason tended to leave the building.

The Red Queen's back bumped into the stone wall, and just as Floyd’s reaching hands got closer, a sound echoed through the hallway, causing everyone to freeze.

Grim, still standing behind Floyd, looked down at his stomach before glancing up at Yuu.

"Henchman, I’m hungry. Where’s food?"

"Oh, well," she began, thinking fast, "I suppose we could go check the Great Hall to see whether dinner has started."

Already wondering if there was somewhere she could grab Grim a snack, she gently patted Floyd’s shoulder to direct him.

Jade chuckled softly as Floyd, still carrying Yuu on his shoulder, cheerfully changed course toward the Great Hall.

Azul seemed a bit nonplussed by the sudden loss of tension in the group, not quite pouting as they continued walking.
Riddle, on the other hand, looked thoroughly relieved, giving Yuu a look and mouthing thank you as they moved.

From her elevated perch, she noticed how he made a clear effort to keep both Jade and Azul between himself and Floyd.

"I am still stunned by the blatant favoritism you show that beast, Yuu," Azul muttered as they moved in their new direction.

"Grim’s not a beast," she responded.
Azul only sighed and turned away.

Before long, the conversation turned to Hogwarts, and suddenly Yuu found herself being interrogated by Riddle, Azul, and Jade all at once.

Before she knew it, they were already at the doors to the Great Hall.

Yuu could hear a bevy of voices from within, but the doors were currently closed.

"I guess dinner’s already started," she said aloud, looking down from her perch at her friends.

"Would you all like to sit with me?" she asked, rubbing her hands together nervously.

When she looked back up, she was met with four deadpan stares.

"Shrimp—I'm sorry, Yuu-chan, I think we’d be delighted to sit with you," answered Jade, looking decidedly amused.

With that, clearly a bit impatient for food himself, Jade pushed open the large doors of the Great Hall.

The doors swung open quickly, and the group stepped inside.
Yuu immediately became very aware that she was still riding on Floyd’s shoulder.

And that there were now several hundred students staring at the strange group that had just entered the hall.

Conversation died down almost immediately as more and more students turned to stare.

Riddle straightened instinctively, and Azul adjusted his glasses.
The Leech twins, however, didn’t seem to notice—or care—as their gazes immediately fell upon the tables laden with food.

Jade hummed slightly, then turned to Yuu.

"I assume our table is the one decorated with blue and silver?" he asked pleasantly, already moving forward, followed by Floyd and Grim, then the dorm heads.

Yuu nodded.
"How did you know, Jade-senpai?" she asked, steadfastly ignoring the stares.
She was used to being the odd one out at NRC, after all. She wasn’t going to let something as silly as social expectations stop her from being with her friends.

"You’ve talked about being a 'Ravenclaw' quite a bit. It is the duty of a good friend and symbiote to remember the things others speak of," Jade answered with a smile.

Yuu felt touched and said as much as they navigated between tables.
Most students made way for them—others were simply too stunned to move.

"Jamil-kun sent out an email," Azul muttered, slightly irritated behind them.

"Directing Student, would you like to hear more about Azul’s childhood? His Grandmother shared such cute stories," Jade continued, as if he hadn’t heard Azul at all.

Azul groaned audibly, even as Yuu nodded enthusiastically.

Approaching the Ravenclaw table, the students quickly made way for the large group, scooting aside at the sight of Floyd’s wide, sharp-toothed smile.

Eventually, they all settled in.
Yuu was nestled between the two Leech siblings, Grim curled in her lap—much to the annoyance of Azul and Riddle, who she could barely see past Jade’s tall form.

Immediately, the two eel mermen began collecting food from the table.

Floyd’s nose wrinkled at the selection available, and neither Jade nor Azul seemed particularly pleased.
Riddle, however, looked perfectly content, if a bit offended by the lack of proper tea.

Before Yuu could even think about what to grab, a plate of fish—cod, maybe?—was placed in front of her. She looked up to see Jade, now seated, with a large portion of the same dish in front of him.

"It is the most palatable-looking item," he said conversationally, as he picked up his fork and knife and began demolishing his food with all the grace of a nobleman.

Riddle, after piling his own plate high, leaned over with a faintly offended look on his face.

"I’ll have you know this is very traditional Queendom of Roses cuisine. Frankly, it’s nice to have a feeling of home."

Yuu felt Floyd snort beside her before he too began to eat.
She couldn't help but be curious.

"Riddle-senpai, British food is like food from the Queendom of Roses?" she asked, trying to peer past Jade’s form to see him.

"Yes, well—"

"Excuse me?"

A voice interrupted.
Yuu turned toward it.

Across the table, three girls she didn’t quite recognize had sat down and were looking directly at their group.

They all appeared older—probably a year or two above her—and seemed quite intent on speaking. When only Yuu seemed to notice their words, the girl in the middle tried again, this time with a slightly irritated look.

"Excuse me!" she said again, louder.

Floyd and Jade didn’t so much as twitch, continuing to eat, but Azul dabbed at his mouth politely with a napkin before turning to them with his best smile.

"Yes, what can I do for you?" he asked.

The trio seemed very appreciative of the attention. Yuu watched as they swooned slightly before answering.

"Sorry for interrupting," the speaker said, twirling a lock of hair around her finger, "but my friends and I were wondering who exactly you four were. Hogwarts doesn’t usually get many visitors, especially such handsome ones."

Her friends giggled at her words.

Yuu found herself nodding absently along. She was still often stunned by just how pretty every NRC student was.

Azul, however, didn’t seem enthused to be called handsome—even less so than when Yuu did it.
Still, he didn't let his displeasure show—at least not openly. Only the slight tightening around his eyes gave him away.

"We are here for the Triwizard Tournament," Riddle interjected smoothly before Azul could continue.

"Our school is participating; however, we decided to make our arrival a bit early in order to better prepare," Riddle finished smoothly.

The three girls let out theatrical oohs and ahhs.

"How responsible. I hope you realize Hogwarts won’t just give up without a fight," the one on the left said playfully.
She then turned toward Floyd, who had finished his own food and was now stealing from Yuu’s plate—much to her chagrin.

If Jamil or Vil found out she wasn’t eating full portions again, they’d make her retake those awful online nutrition courses. She’d already lost some weight from how little she’d been eating when she first arrived at Hogwarts.

"Do any of you need help getting around the castle? We’d be happy to work as tour guides. We know all the best spots."

She gave a strange smile toward Floyd, who didn’t even seem to notice, too busy stealing Yuu’s food with single-minded focus.

In a last-ditch effort to defend her meal, Yuu scooped up the rest of her fish and, despite already feeling full, shoved it all into her mouth, chewing quickly and swallowing.

She gave Floyd her best smug look.
He returned it easily.

It took Yuu a second to realize that she’d done exactly what he’d wanted.

"Manipulator," she accused, pointing her now-empty fork at Floyd.

"Koebi-chan needs to eat more if she wants to grow up," he sang sweetly.

"I thought it was 'grow up big and strong,'" she said, frowning.

"It’s already too late for that."

She pouted, resolving silently to get revenge later. For now, she turned back to the group.
The three girls looked irritated at being ignored, but luckily, Jade took over.

"Thank you for the offer, Ms...?" he said leadingly.

"Oh! I’m Marietta Edgecombe, that’s Rebecca Kinley, and she’s Cho Chang," the girl answered brightly.

Jade nodded politely.

"Ms. Edgecombe. But as you can see, we already have our own guide right here," he said, placing a large hand firmly atop Yuu’s head—and then, to her protest, rustling her hair.

The dismissal clearly didn’t sit well with Marietta, who directed a frown at Yuu before turning back to Jade.

"While I’m sure Yuu knows the castle reasonably well, she only just arrived this year. Poor dear gets confused easily—and a bit aggressive when it happens. Just a few days ago, she 'accidentally' sent Hermione Granger to the ground, you know."

Her smile turned sharp, but it was nothing compared to Jade’s, who returned it with a razor-sharp grin of his own.

"Thank you for the advice, Ms. Edgecombe. I will be sure to give it all the consideration it deserves," Jade said, voice smooth.

It was unusually tame for him—but perhaps being outside Monstro Lounge, and in another world, invoked a bit more caution.

Still, the edge of Jade’s smile—and the slight, deliberate show of teeth—seemed to unsettle the girls, though they couldn’t resist getting in one last jab.

"Well, don’t be afraid to find us if you want someone with a bit more maturity to help you around," Marietta finished, the other two girls nodding as they stood and flounced away dramatically.

As they left, Yuu noticed them giving her sour looks.

The words confused Yuu—she was pretty sure all three girls were in the same year as her. Besides, she was plenty mature!

She looked up at Floyd, wrinkling her nose slightly.
"That was weird," she said.

Grim, still settled in her lap, gave a confused grunt of agreement.
Floyd nodded empathetically at her words. Azul scoffed in clear disdain.

Their conversation was interrupted as Dumbledore, Crowley, and Grandmother appeared at the head table.

Dumbledore stood and, with a flick of his wand, released a loud bang that silenced the hall instantly.

"Greetings, everyone. I apologize for interrupting your meals, but there are a few announcements we must get through before I let you return to them," he said, his voice carrying easily through the quiet.

"Firstly, I am pleased to announce that, for the first time in history, the Triwizard Tournament will be modified to allow for an additional school. The recently discovered Night Raven Academy will be joining us, alongside Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. Here with me is Headmaster Dire Crowley, who will be assisting in the preparations."

Crowley stood, offering a surprisingly serious, dramatic bow before sitting again.
There was a growing buzz of mutters from the crowd.

"Alongside him is one Ms. Ashengrotto, here to teach some limited classes on advanced Alchemy, as well as to assist with preparations."

Grandmother stood and gave a dignified nod to the students.
Azul, meanwhile, placed his head in his hands and groaned audibly.

"With the addition of another school, we have decided to add a fourth task to the tournament, expanding the festivities and helping to foster even deeper connections between our schools."

Dumbledore took a brief breath before continuing.

"Finally, some of you may have already noticed we have some new friends among us. Students, if you would please stand."

Riddle stood first, followed by Azul, then the Leech twins—who dragged Yuu up with them.

"These students are here to learn more about Hogwarts and our culture from now until the end of the tournament. I expect you all to treat them with respect—and show the best that Hogwarts has to offer."

They sat back down.

"That is all for now. Please, tuck in and enjoy your food. Those of you who plan to participate in the tournament, continue your preparations—it is just around the corner, after all."

With that, Dumbledore retook his seat, and the hall exploded into loud, excited chatter.

It seemed that NRC was now the talk of the school.

Yuu could already see several students heading toward their table.

Desserts appeared on the table before them, and Grim immediately began gathering a small hoard in front of himself.

Already, students were speaking with Riddle and Azul—both of whom seemed to have the conversations well in hand.
Yuu felt faintly nervous for the students already digging around in their satchels for coins during their conversations with Azul... Surely he wouldn't do anything too intense while they were guests. Right?

Any student brave enough to try speaking with the Leech twins was either ignored or greeted with a sharp-toothed smile that sent them scrambling toward the much safer-seeming Riddle and Azul.

This, thankfully, shielded Yuu from most questions, allowing her to focus on trying to stop Grim from eating too many pastries—until—

"What species is he?"

An airy voice asked.

Looking up, Yuu found herself met with a pair of silvery eyes, tilted curiously at her.

It was a younger Ravenclaw student, with dirty blonde hair, now occupying the seat vacated by the girls from earlier.

Yuu gave the other girl a smile before answering.
"He’s a Grim."

The younger girl’s eyes widened, before focusing back on Grim.
"He doesn’t look like one, although I suppose that’s part of the strategy, isn’t it? If someone doesn’t know they’re around a Grim, they can’t run away," the girl commented idly, as Grim continued chomping away at some treacle tart.

The conversation, however, seemed to rouse him.

"I am a great sorcerer!" he declared, his mouth still slightly full.

To Yuu’s surprise, the young Ravenclaw simply nodded in response, before pulling out a quill and some parchment.

"I never knew that Grim could become great sorcerers. Would his majesty care for an interview?"

Grim, happy someone was finally giving him the respect he believed he deserved, nodded eagerly.
The two then began a long conversation about Grim’s (mostly made-up) past at NRC.

Yuu had to do her best to keep from squealing at how cute the two of them were.

By the time the conversation was winding down—students now trickling out of the Great Hall—the young girl had used up nearly three sheets of parchment recording Grim’s answers.
She never seemed to grow tired of it, and neither did Grim.

"Sorry," Yuu interrupted gently, "but it’s nearly time to go. We can meet in the library to continue if you’d like?" she offered.

The other girl’s eyes widened, before she nodded rapidly.
"I would very much like that, Ms. Yuu."

Yuu blinked. She didn’t remember giving her name... but maybe the girl had heard it mentioned somewhere.

"What’s your name?" Yuu asked, giving her a warm smile.

The other girl shrugged slightly.
"You can call me whatever you like. It seems to change by the day with some of the other girls."

Thankfully, Yuu had plenty of practice thinking up nicknames.
Studying the girl for a moment, she eventually found one she thought fit.

"How about Luna? Like the moon. Your eyes remind me of it," she offered.

The other girl’s eyes widened again—before a wide, truly happy smile broke across her face.

"I love it. Thank you! It feels like I’ve had it all my life."

Yuu nodded, returning her smile—and had to physically restrain herself from pumping her fist in victory.

This was her first female friend!

Grinnel had made the decision to skip dinner today.

It sucked, because the house elves actually made really good bacon, and after he’d found the kitchens and asked them nicely, they made sure there was a small platter of it near him at every meal.

But this was the only time he was relatively sure he’d be able to move around without anyone—especially annoying weirdos—interrupting him.

Carefully reaching into his satchel, he withdrew his friend, who let out a discordant, displeased-sounding hiss.

The small snake—over a foot in length and slightly thicker than a pencil—was a faint orange color. Its eyes shimmered oddly as Grinnel removed him from his dedicated pocket.

The snake gave Grinnel a distinctly petulant glance before flopping limp in his hand.

Grinnel sighed.
"Look, I’m sorry, okay? I tried to get away multiple times, but people kept interrupting," he pleaded.

After having tea with Yuu and that Riddle guy, Grinnel had tried to head straight to the second floor.

But he'd run into some of Maxwell’s Quidditch friends.

They'd given him a dramatic warning to "stay away from the new students" and tried to shove him around a bit.
They backed off real fast after Grinnel grabbed one by the arm and flipped him onto the stone floor.

Still, that—and dodging the professors—had eaten up way too much time.

Ulnferth didn’t so much as twitch, causing Grinnel to roll his eyes before reaching back into his satchel with his other hand.

"Would you do it for one of Mom’s cookies?" he offered, withdrawing the treat from his bag.

Shaper, his owl, had flown in recently with a large shipment of goods from home. He’d kept them hidden from Ulnferth until now—because he knew the gluttonous reptile would sneak in at night and eat them all if he knew.

Grinnel had met Ulnferth during the summer after first year.

The snake had gotten into the kitchen, and his mother—fearless as she was—had grabbed a cleaver and chased the then-terrified, but surprisingly swift, reptile around the room.
Eventually, Ulnferth had crawled under the stove, and neither cleaver nor broom could dislodge him.

It had taken Grinnel dangling one of those cookies in front of the stove for the snake to poke his head out.
Seizing the opportunity, Grinnel had grabbed the creature and spirited him off to his room before his mother could make her own move.

From there, they’d struck a deal: Ulnferth would help Grinnel with his projects, and Grinnel would feed him—and keep him away from his mother.

They'd been the best of allies ever since.
Ulnferth had also grown quite rapidly—he was nearly double the size he’d been when they first met.

The reptile in question, hearing Grinnel’s words, perked up and lunged from one hand to the other.

Within moments, the cookie was gone, and there was a distinct bulge in the snake’s body.

Grinnel couldn’t help but grin.
"Better?" he asked.

The snake nodded.

The Hufflepuff wasn’t entirely sure snakes were supposed to be able to digest cookies—and definitely wasn’t sure they were supposed to be able to hold conversations or bargain.

He always figured it had something to do with magic.

"You remember what you need to do?" he asked.

Ulnferth gave him a long-suffering look, but nodded again.

Now, with his ally’s cooperation secured, Grinnel stepped into the second-floor girls’ bathroom.

Far from Hogwarts, in a dark Albanian forest, there was a cabin.
It wasn’t large, nor particularly well maintained.

If a hunter had stumbled upon it by chance, they might have thought it abandoned.
Only someone familiar with magic would have been able to detect the malevolent protections surrounding the building—and indeed, a hunter who had once stumbled upon it had run afoul of those protections.

They now stood, a statue of salt, right at the boundary.

From the dark sky, a blur shot down, materializing in front of the cabin as a darkly dressed man of average height, wearing a white mask.

He shifted slightly, orienting himself, before carefully checking the key he had been provided, making sure it was intact.

Then, taking a deep breath, he stepped over the boundary, feeling relief when nothing happened.
Quickly, he entered the building, and was directed by a hunched man toward a specific room.

"Milord, a report from Severus," the masked man said, bowing low.

"Speak," a whispery voice commanded.

The masked man shifted uncomfortably before straightening.

"He says that Dumbledore has welcomed a fourth school into the Triwizard Tournament. A 'Night Raven Academy.'"

There was a long pause.
A faint sound of slithering and the rustling of paper echoed through the darkened room before the voice hissed again from behind the dark-draped bed.

"There is no such school. Explain."

The Death Eater gulped audibly at the tone.

"I do not know, Milord. That was all Severus said. But my other sources report that there is an individual in the castle—a masked man going by the name Dire Crowley."

The name seemed to echo around the room, and unseen to either figure, the phantom outline of a raven briefly flickered across the wall.

"They say he is the supposed Headmaster of this unknown school. He, alongside a few students, has recently arrived."

Another pause—this one thoughtful.
The Death Eater, gathering his courage, broke it.

"I also have a letter here, from Snape. He said it contained information too sensitive to be said aloud."

The slithering sound intensified.

"Come here... Give it to me."

The Death Eater gulped again before slowly approaching the bed.
When he reached the side, he shakily extended the letter into the shadows between the hanging curtains.

Something seized it.

The letter vanished from his hand.

The Death Eater let out a relieved breath, turning to back away—only to feel, a second later, the rush of movement.

There was a lunge.

He knew no more.

As Nagini slowly began her meal, the figure on the bed—with weak, skeletal fingers—opened the letter.

He read slowly at first, the words sinking in, until an expression of genuine surprise flickered across what was once, and would be again, Lord Voldemort’s face.

"Time travel... Travel to other worlds... What a curious child," he muttered.

"Perhaps, Nagini, we should arrange a meeting with this child—if Dumbledore himself is putting so much stock into their ramblings."

He placed the letter down beside him.
At his will, it began to smolder, then burn away to ash.

"But this must not interfere with our greater plan. We will need Crouch to act sooner. Four trials will require more direct intervention... and these Night Raven Academy figures must be evaluated carefully."

His voice was low and musing.

"Wormtail!" he called.

There was work to do.

Chapter Text

After the feast, Yuu and her friends had been pulled aside by Crowley once more. Eventually, they were led by Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall toward their temporary dormitories.

Or more accurately—her friends were.

When Yuu arrived, still sandwiched between Jade and Floyd and flushed with happiness, the Transfiguration professor had taken one look at them and immediately stopped in her tracks.

“Ehh~ What are you talking about? But Koebi-chan is going to have a sleepover with us,” Floyd protested, voice just shy of irritated.

McGonagall’s glare deepened. For a moment, Yuu thought she was about to be scolded again by the sharp-tongued Scottish witch, but the glare instead shifted—focusing directly on Floyd, then sweeping across the rest of her companions.

“If you think I’m going to allow an underage Hogwarts student to spend the night with four older male students from another school, you must think we’re complete fools. Ms. Yuu, return to your dorm. Immediately.”

Floyd shifted, the light dimming in his eyes—and Yuu could feel the mood around him start to shift dangerously. Before he could respond, however, Azul stepped forward.

“My sincerest apologies, Professor McGonagall,” he said with smooth formality. “But Ms. Yuu is a student of Night Raven College, as I’m sure Headmasters Crowley and Dumbledore will attest. She simply arrived earlier than the rest of us. Furthermore—” his tone dropped, just slightly, “I do not appreciate the implication your assumption makes about our intentions.”

At the mention of his name, Crowley stepped forward with an exaggerated nod to confirm Azul’s words. Dumbledore followed suit with a subtle nod of his own when McGonagall turned toward him with a pointed, expectant glare.

Still, McGonagall bristled.

“This is entirely inappropriate, and I refuse to tolerate it. Having a female student share housing with older male students is doing nothing but asking for trouble,” she snapped, her voice tight.

“I completely understand your concerns, Professor,” Crowley said, far more seriously than usual. “Which is why Professor Dumbledore and I have prepared a separate dormitory for Ms. Yuu to occupy until the rest of NRC arrives.”

McGonagall’s shoulders relaxed slightly, though her sharp eyes were still narrowed. Dumbledore confirmed Crowley’s statement with a calm nod.

At last, she straightened her back and gave a firm, “Very well.”

“I will escort Ms. Yuu to collect her belongings. Come along, young lady,” McGonagall said briskly, sweeping up beside Yuu. She placed a firm but not unkind hand on her shoulder and began to steer her down the corridor.

“We’ll be back shortly. In the meantime, you two—” she gestured to Crowley and Dumbledore “—can show the others to their dormitories.”

“Wait, why can’t the house elves—” Yuu began, protesting as she was ushered away. Grim scrambled after them, having toppled from her arms when McGonagall pulled her away from between Jade and Floyd.

“The house elves are quite busy with preparations for the other schools, Ms. Yuu,” the professor said as their voices began to fade. “Besides—”

The rest of the sentence was lost to distance as the two disappeared around the corner, Grim huffing along behind them.

The remaining group watched them go.

Crowley cleared his throat.

“Well then! Best not to dally. If you would lead the way, Headmaster Dumbledore, we’ll settle in while those two finish up.”

Dumbledore raised a single, skeptical eyebrow at his fellow Headmaster, clearly sensing something in Crowley’s tone—but he said nothing and turned to lead the way.

“This way, please.”

Riddle followed quickly, though he looked less than pleased to lose sight of Yuu so soon after finding her.

The Octavinelle students, on the other hand, hesitated—glancing down the hallway Yuu had disappeared into.

Crowley, noticing, called back with cheer that didn’t quite mask the edge in his voice.

“Come along now. We have much to discuss. Ms. Yuu will join us later.”

Azul, ever the careful negotiator, replied with respectful diplomacy.

“Headmaster Crowley, are you certain it’s safe for us to leave the Directing Student alone after—”

“I said, Mr. Ashengrotto,” Crowley cut in.

The world seemed to still.

Color drained from the air. The hallway dimmed slightly as the fae’s golden gaze pierced through his mask, glowing brighter. Even Riddle, already walking ahead, paused at the intensity of his stare.

“We have much to discuss. Come along. Now.”

The three mermen nodded stiffly.

Dumbledore, noticing the sudden tension, turned.

“Is something wrong, Headmaster Crowley?”

“Not at all, Albus!” Crowley replied brightly, fast-walking to fall in step beside him. “Just some minor disciplinary issues to be addressed once we’re settled. You know how teenage boys can be.”

Dumbledore gave a genial chuckle.

“Do go easy on them. We were all young boys once.”

“That is precisely why I am so hard on them,” Crowley replied, tone feather-light but laced with deeper meaning.
“Being young makes everyone prone to mistakes.”

McGonagall led Yuu swiftly through the halls, walking fast enough that Yuu had trouble keeping up—her legs simply didn’t cover as much ground as the older witch’s did.

The silence between them held until they’d crossed the staircase. Rather than being led to her dormitory, however, the Transfiguration professor abruptly turned and ushered Yuu through a small door off the hallway. It turned out to be her personal office.

"Take a seat, please, Ms. Yuu," the professor said, bustling around behind her desk. Her tone wasn’t as strict as usual—there was more warmth there than Yuu had expected.

Yuu obeyed, settling into one of the plush chairs as Grim hopped into her lap. While waiting, she took to observing the office. Numerous portraits adorned the walls, and a small stack of transfiguration books sat on the desk, along with a scattered collection of intricate puzzle pieces.

Yuu idly mused that the way the puzzle pieces cast shadows in the flickering torchlight made them resemble the silhouette of a bird perched on the desk. There was even a narrow gap shaped like an eye.

The books appeared to be various transfiguration texts, although several titles and authors were unfamiliar to her.

Before she could lean in further for a better look, Professor McGonagall turned back from what she had been fiddling with—a small tea set. She placed it carefully on the desk, poured two cups, and then took a seat opposite Yuu.

Neither of them reached for the tea.

The silence stretched, uncomfortable, until McGonagall broke it.

"Ms. Yuu, you're probably wondering why I asked you here."

Yuu nodded quietly. McGonagall inhaled slowly before continuing.

"I have some concerns," she said, her tone gentler than Yuu was used to. "Specifically regarding the individuals you've been interacting with—the students from Night Raven College."

Her discomfort was visible, etched into the lines of her face.

"The implications of a group of older teenage boys sharing a dormitory with a younger girl are especially troubling, and I would be remiss in my duties if I didn’t address the potential danger you may be in."

Yuu blinked. She didn’t quite understand what McGonagall meant—and when she glanced at Grim, she saw the same puzzled expression on his furry face.

McGonagall sighed at their confusion.

"I’m worried they may be trying to take advantage of you, Ms. Yuu. With the way those tall boys were… handling you, and how you allowed it, I worry for your safety."

Understanding finally dawned. Yuu’s cheeks flushed, not with embarrassment, but with indignation. She felt offended—for herself and for her friends.

“They wouldn’t do that!” she blurted, an uncharacteristic bark in her voice. Grim, now sitting more upright in her lap, didn’t speak—his eyes were distant and thoughtful.

McGonagall raised her teacup, took a small sip, and continued calmly.

"I do not mean to cast aspersions on either you or your friends, Ms. Yuu. I only want to ensure you are safe. My past scolding doesn’t diminish the fact that you are still a young witch under my care. I would be failing in my responsibility as a professor if I did not raise these concerns."

Grim shifted, then looked up at Yuu, his voice lower than usual.

“I think we should listen to what she has to say,” he said slowly, his eyes flicking between McGonagall and Yuu. There was something anxious in his expression.

The professor inclined her head in silent thanks.

Grim rarely agreed with authority figures—especially ones who'd lectured Yuu in the past. The out-of-character response made her raise an eyebrow.

“You didn’t see how those other students were acting when you disappeared,” Grim continued. “And some of the stuff I heard when we found out where you were…”

He trailed off with a shiver, glancing at the door as if expecting something to come through it. Then he looked back at Yuu.

“If this lady knows something about what they might try, we should listen. It’s like you always say, Henchman—better to know it and not need it, than need it and not know it.”

He offered her a weak smile.

Yuu, touched, squeezed him gently around the middle. She didn’t like seeing him worried.

McGonagall observed the two of them in silence, her expression unreadable—but Grim’s words only deepened the concern in her eyes.

Yuu looked up, her chin resting lightly against the top of Grim’s head.

“Alright,” she said. “We’ll listen.”

McGonagall nodded. A small, grateful smile flickered across her face as she reached for a thin book beside her desk.

“We’ll start with cutting spells, and when—and where—they are most appropriate to use.”

She placed the book in front of Yuu. The title read:
"Top 50 Charms for Dealing with Unwanted Advances."

Yuu’s eyes widened.

What followed was perhaps the most extensive lesson she had ever received on cutting curses—specifically, where they were most effective against the masculine persuasion.

The group of students was eventually led to the far end of the castle by the two Headmasters, stopping before a large, sealed door.

With a flick of Dumbledore’s wand, the door creaked open to reveal a modest common room, flanked by a series of doors along the back wall. The decor was luxurious, if a bit dated—elegant, but clearly from another era.

“These will be your temporary quarters until the portal is stabilized,” Dumbledore said. “Do forgive the size—Hogwarts doesn't often receive guests.”

Crowley clapped his hands together, a showman’s smile on his face.

“No worries, Albus. It is the most I expected from your fine institution.”

Dumbledore didn’t rise to the bait. He merely offered a genial nod.

“I suppose you must be used to such accommodations, Dire. Please alert the house-elves if you need anything. The press conference is tomorrow morning—sharp—so please, do not sleep in.”

With that final jab, the older Headmaster turned and strode away, leaving silence in his wake.

The common room remained still for a long moment.

Then Crowley turned toward the students.

“You know,” he said, voice uncharacteristically flat, “out of everyone I expected to attempt skipping the line, Mr. Ashengrotto and the Leech twins were at the top of the list. But not you, Mr. Rosehearts.”

Riddle shifted slightly, discomfort clear in his posture.
Being caught breaking the rules was a new experience for him.

“Headmaster Crowley,” he said evenly, “my reasoning was simple. I was concerned for the safety of Ms. Yuu in a world that has already harmed her.”

He didn’t lie. He didn’t attempt to excuse his actions. It wasn’t in Riddle’s nature to shy away from consequences.

“That,” Crowley said coldly, “is the only reason none of you are being sent back to Night Raven Academy to face punishment.”

His voice didn’t rise. It didn’t waver. It didn’t need to.

“But that is not the reason I’ve brought you here today.”

He stood ramrod straight, hands folded behind his back. When he finally looked away, something shifted in the room, and all four students suddenly remembered they were meant to be silent.

“I assume,” Crowley said, voice laced with derision, “you all know about Yuu’s less-than-stellar home life. She has likely confided in you. Yes?”

He didn’t wait for an answer.

“She has also, through means only accessible in this world, removed her own last name—struck herself from every record. And then, by coincidence or fate, this child found her way to NRC… and changed much. As both of you well know.”

As he spoke, Crowley turned away, casually studying the painting above the mantlepiece. It was too calculated a gesture to be truly idle.

“I have decided to correct that error. A child such as her deserves better from the world. If her world will not give her the family she deserves—then Twisted Wonderland will.”

He turned slightly, casting a long shadow across the carpeted floor.

“Upon my arrival, I made her an offer: that I would take her in as my own.”

Azul’s mouth fell open.
Riddle’s eyes widened.

Even without being fae, they understood the implications.

Crowley continued, tone unwavering.

“Today, I stand before you not as Headmaster Crowley—but as Dire Crowley, father of Yuu Crowley.”

He turned fully toward them now.
The lights in his eyes were gone. Black voids stared out from behind the golden mask.

“I will warn you only once,” he said quietly. “Whatever your intentions toward my daughter may be—tread carefully.”

The room chilled.

“I will be watching.”

A flare of golden light burst back into the sockets behind his mask, and the shadow on the wall behind him shifted, swelled, becoming the wingspan of a great bird.

It was much later when Professor McGonagall led Yuu to her new dormitory, a levitating trunk floating obediently behind her. When they arrived and knocked, the door was opened by a still fully dressed Dire Crowley, who greeted them both with exaggerated enthusiasm.

“Ah! My favorite professor and my dearest student!” he said, waving flamboyantly.

McGonagall gave him a flat, unimpressed look before turning to Yuu.

“I expect you to have learned at least three of the charms from that book by the start of next week, Ms. Yuu. I will be quizzing you,” she said curtly.

Without so much as a glance back at Crowley, she turned and swept down the hall, her robes billowing behind her.

Yuu turned to her eccentric headmaster.

“Did you have fun?” he asked brightly, ushering her inside.

“It was... educational,” she replied as she stepped in.

It was clear the others had already gone to bed. Riddle, likely bound by some rule of royal propriety, was probably tucked in early. But what surprised Yuu was the absence of the Octavinelle trio. She’d expected to be ambushed by a well-meaning but overbearing Azul—or at the very least, dragged into some cryptic comment from Jade. Instead, the dorm was quiet.

“Did the others already go to sleep?” she asked.

Crowley, because that’s what he was—her guardian now—nodded.

“We had a bit of a group meeting,” he said cheerfully. “And those beasts were all tuckered out afterward. Good for us too.”

He led her toward a pair of armchairs arranged near the center of the room. Between them sat a small table with two steaming cups of tea and a familiar plate of cookies—Crowley’s inevitable contribution to any conversation labeled tea time.

Yuu took a seat as Crowley plopped into his own, raising his teacup with flair. With a wave of his scepter, his extravagant robes shimmered and shifted into a pair of striped pajama pants, a loose button-up shirt, and a frankly ridiculous nightcap that drooped so far it nearly dipped into his tea.

She stared at it. He pretended not to notice.

“What did you guys talk about?” she asked aloud as she reached for her own cup.

“Oh, just some logistics,” Crowley replied airily. “With two dormheads showing up ahead of schedule, I had to ask who was managing their dorms in their absence. Can’t have students running amok, now can we?”

Before she could follow that thread further, he clapped his hands together.

“Now then—tell your father how your day went.”

Yuu froze mid-sip, her cheeks flushing at the casual way he’d said it.

She set her cup down, lips pressed together as she shot him a look. And yet… she couldn’t find it in herself to protest. Not seriously, anyway.

Instead, she sighed and began recounting her day, starting with Herbology.

Her father was so embarrassing.

THE FAE RETURN?
Dumbledore Opens Door to Dangerous Unknowns as Night Raven College Joins Triwizard Tournament!
By Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent to the Daily Prophet

Witches and wizards of Britain, brace yourselves—you may want to sit down for the news I am about to share.

This morning, in a shocking announcement that has sent tremors through the magical community from the mages of Japan to the shamans of the Americas, a joint press conference held by Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge and Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore revealed something unprecedented:

A fourth school—yes, fourth—will be joining the already precarious Triwizard Tournament.

The institution in question? Night Raven College, a shadow-draped academy emerging not just from foreign soil, but from a realm no one seems to have known existed... until now.

And their headmaster?
None other than Dire Crowley, an enigmatic educator with eloquent speech, theatrical flair, and fashion sense to rival Gilderoy Lockhart himself. But what has most tongues wagging isn’t his wardrobe—it’s his heritage.

Yes, dear readers. Fae.

The word alone sends shivers down the spine of any witch or wizard with a basic education in magical history. The Fae, once powerful allies and feared sovereigns, vanished centuries ago. Some claim they perished. Others whisper they withdrew, unwilling to share the world with the creeping rise of Muggle technology.

Now, it seems, they have returned.

Crowley’s negotiations—conducted directly with Minister Fudge himself—herald more than just another competitor in the tournament. His presence signifies a potential re-emergence of the Fae into the global magical stage. When pressed for comment, our esteemed Minister offered only the cryptic phrase: “There is more to come.”

Sources within the Ministry suggest the Department of Mysteries has been mobilized for diplomatic outreach of a kind not seen in generations. Hushed reports indicate that the Fae may be only the beginning. Hogwarts students vesting Hogsmeade speak of strange creatures within the school grounds.

And most curious of all? Students in unfamiliar uniforms—clearly not Durmstrang or Beauxbatons—have been seen wandering Hogwarts’ hallowed halls.

But perhaps the most pressing question of all, dear readers:
What exactly is Albus Dumbledore’s role in all of this?

Why has he—ever the vigilant Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump—invited these unknown entities through Hogwarts’ gates? Why was the public not informed sooner? And can we be certain that this so-called Night Raven College is what it claims to be? Are these true Fae... or something more dangerous masquerading as myth?

One thing is certain: if more Fae begin to arrive in Britain, the eyes of the entire magical world will turn to us. Diplomats, Aurors, and scholars alike will descend upon our nation. Whether to welcome, study, or protect us from these ancient beings remains to be seen.

In the meantime, I promise you, dear readers—I will uncover more. Dire Crowley has yet to respond to requests for comment, but rest assured…

Rita Skeeter is watching.
And if the Fae are truly back?

So is the truth.

Idia Shroud was tired.

He was miserable, worried, guilty, hateful, depressed, furious, hungry, envious, and dozens of other negative things.

Blot was building rapidly, but as it surged, so did the blue flames—and Idia could feel it leaving his body just as quickly. There wasn’t enough time to worry about blot right now. So despite scorching the roof of the room, despite the shelves of delicate instruments and rare books being blackened and curling from the heat, despite the luxurious Ignihyde furniture being burnt beyond repair—

Idia kept typing.

He was so, so close.

He couldn’t stomach the thought of losing anyone else. He couldn’t handle that.

So when Yuu disappeared, Idia panicked.

But panic turned quickly into action. They’d had a lead, after all—Yuu’s world, those strange hostile mobs that occasionally manifested. There was a connection. There had to be.

The immediate hypothesis: she’d been taken there.

A world full of hostile mobs.

Alone.

He’d been running on nothing but blot and energy drinks when Crowley knocked on his door with the device.

A signal.

It had taken every shred of control for Idia not to tear it from the man’s hands and slam the door in his face.

Instead, he played nice. Teamed up with the enemy. Accelerated the timeline.

Because Yuu was a second chance. One he didn’t deserve.

He’d always known, ever since that day, that he wasn’t good. That he should have died that day.

So he tried to redeem his miserable existence.

First, by building Ortho.

Then Yuu found him, and refused to leave, no matter how hard he tried to push her away. And…

She and Ortho… they looked at him like he mattered.

Like they were happy he was alive.

And that made him happy, too.

For one painfully brief moment, sitting between them, Idia had believed the world might actually be worth living in.

He wasn’t good for them. They’d probably be better off if he disappeared.

But Idia was selfish.

So he worked. And worked. And worked. And worked.

Even as the others went behind his back—splitting efforts, duplicating research, wasting time and resources like morons—he kept going. Didn’t they realize how inefficient that was? Were they stupid?

So what if Riddle had skipped the line using his notes? So what if the fish twins had slithered their way through the portal, somehow?

He wasn’t angry.

No. Not at all.

Instead, he channeled those emotions—every flare of blot, every sting of guilt—into the work.

He worked until he physically couldn’t anymore. Ignored the sounds of Ortho chasing off the other dormheads. Ignored his brother’s attempts to get him to eat. Ignored everything.

But now—he was nearly there.

The previous prototype had a 19.4532% chance of dimensional hemorrhaging. Fine for him. Fine for Crowley. Even fine for a few overzealous dormheads.

But not for Yuu. Not for Ortho.

This version though...

Stable dimensional anchors. Constant transmission. Reinforced halcyon membranes.

It was nearly perfect.

Just a few more keystrokes.

Idia typed the last lines of code, his fingers trembling with exertion. Behind him, he could hear Ortho welding the final pylon into place.

The Ignihyde dormhead shoved back from his desk, the Cerberus uniform clinging uncomfortably to his skin. Yuu had once called it his “serious outfit.”

Fitting.

“Ortho, has the admin set the beacon?”

“Yes, Nii-san,” Ortho replied instantly. “Beacon is set and locked. Ready to activate.”

No smile crossed Idia’s face, but the blot burning off his body finally lessened.

“Good. Let’s get started.”

He hit the Enter key.

The mirror began to shimmer, the surface rippling like water. A low whine started to build. The pylons sparked. The entire structure vibrated as mage lights above flickered.

Then—

Ping.

The vibration stopped. The rippling ceased. The mirror’s surface melted into a kaleidoscope of color, perfectly stable.

“All sensors green, Nii-san. We are go to proceed,” Ortho reported. Relief, pure and bright, echoed in his voice.

Idia didn’t need a real-time readout to know Ortho was smiling.

Stepping up to the portal, Idia took a deep breath.

“Ortho. Send Professor Crewel email 6B. Forward it to the dormheads too.”

Ortho brightened. “Nii-san… does that mean we’re going through now?”

Idia nodded.

He wouldn’t have been able to hold himself back anyway.

“Yes. Are you prepared for transport?”

There was a faint series of clicks before a small suitcase flew into the room, propelled by tiny jets. It darted toward Ortho, who caught it midair and hooked it neatly onto his back.

“Ready!” he affirmed.

Idia nodded, turning back toward the portal.

“I’m going in.”
If his voice shook at all, Ortho didn’t mention it.

“Right behind you, Nii-san.”

Idia didn’t waste time with dramatic pauses or deep breaths. No hesitation. No second thoughts.

He stepped forward.

The portal flexed around him—like sliding through liquid glass—and then, with a snap, he was somewhere else.

He barely had time to register the sudden quiet before he heard the thump of Ortho landing behind him.

“Gateway stabilization confirmed—100 percent! Hello, Nee-chan!”

Nee-chan.

Yuu!

Idia whipped his head around. They were standing in what looked like an antiquated common room. The furniture was old and ugly, but well-kept. And there—on a couch, halfway through a cup of tea and looking groggy—was Yuu.

He took a shaky step forward. Then another. Then he stumbled.

He practically collapsed onto the couch beside her, wild blue hair fanning out in every direction. It wasn’t burning anymore.

“Idia-senpai—” she started, but the words were cut off as his arms wrapped tightly around her.

He couldn’t stop shaking. His breathing was uneven. His fingers curled into her sleeves, gripping like she might vanish if he let go.

Her arms came around him, slow but firm.

And that was it. That was all it took.

She was here.

She was safe.

He hadn’t failed again.

The realization broke something in him, and hot tears streamed freely down his cheeks, faster than he could contain them.

He didn’t fail. She’s safe. Please don’t leave me.

His body sagged, exhaustion overtaking him. Weeks without sleep, dangerous levels of blot, caffeine crashes, and soul-crushing anxiety all came crashing down at once. He slumped into her side, head resting against hers.

“Idia-senpai!”

He could explain everything later. He would. But just for now, he let the world slip away.

“What happened to Idia, Ortho?!”

“Nii-san is currently resting after numerous weeks of 24-hour work, dangerous levels of blot, poor nutrition, and emotional trauma. Please be patient with him, Nee-chan.”

“What?! Why didn’t you stop him?!”

The arms around her tightened.

“Nii-san wouldn’t rest until we had assured your safety. We were both very worried, Nee-chan.”

“…Oh.”

There was a sniffle. Idia didn’t have the energy to be embarrassed by it.

“But we’ve found you now! Which is good! I was on the verge of taking physical action to make Nii-san rest.”

There was a rustle on the other side of the couch, followed by a soft dip in the cushions. Ortho had powered down most of his external systems.

“This is very comfortable, Nee-san. Please stay still while I monitor your and Idia’s health conditions for file updates.”

“…Ortho, is that an excuse to use me as a pillow like Idia is?”

“Yes!”

“Oh…”

“…Wait. What do you mean by ‘Nee-chan’?”

“Hey! What are you two doing to my henchman this early in the morning?!”

Ron Weasley never liked the mixed Transfiguration classes.
It was bad enough that there were always Slytherins in the room, but having older students in there too? That just made things worse. Every time one of them answered a question, it left Ron feeling like a first-year again.

That sort of thing had only gotten worse ever since that weird Ravenclaw had shown up late into the term.

When Ron saw her shove Hermione in the hallway that first week, he knew there was going to be trouble—and if trouble came, well, Ron was happy to oblige. No one messed with his friends.

Unfortunately, it hadn’t come to a duel or anything like that. Ron figured he could take her pretty easily—she didn’t look like she could stand up to a stiff breeze, and he was pretty sure he was faster with a wand.

After that, she’d kept her head down, quiet in class, didn't raise her hand much. But lately, something had changed. All of a sudden, she was acting… different. Raising her hand constantly, staying after class to ask questions, even starting to remind him a little of Hermione.

If Hermione was friends with Slytherins, anyway.

It rubbed him the wrong way—and he couldn’t quite put a finger on why.

She was also one of the students who always seemed to know everything in Transfiguration, and with her not here today, Ron had been secretly glad. He could answer without feeling like an idiot for once.

McGonagall had just gotten halfway through roll when there came a knock at the door. Ron sat up straighter. McGonagall always locked the door once class started, and anyone who came late had to knock and be let in. Ron glanced around. Yeah—he figured he knew exactly who it was.

The Transfiguration professor cast a slow, deliberate glance around the room. Her expression said she’d also figured it out. With a long, weary sigh, she turned toward the door.

“Ms. Yuu, what reason do you have for being—”

She stopped short.

Everyone stared.

Yuu stepped inside, wobbling slightly under the weight of the person currently draped over her.

“Sorry, Professor McGonagall, I—” she shifted her balance, hoisting him a little higher, “—I have no good excuse.”

The boy she carried had his chin resting on top of her head, arms loosely wrapped around her shoulders like a scarf. He was one of the strangest people Ron had ever seen. Pale as a ghost, lips black as ink, and sharp sharklike teeth just barely visible behind them. His hair looked like fire, blue and flickering, and his uniform looked bizarre.

Floating just behind them was someone smaller—a younger boy, hovering in the air, wearing strange segmented armor and studying the room with unnerving calm.

“Bloody hell…” Ron muttered.

He could hear Hermione whispering furiously to herself on his other side, something about magical energy signatures and “nonstandard enchantment matrices,” but Ron couldn’t take his eyes off the scene.

The floating boy glided forward, eyes bright.

“Apologies for the interruption, ma’am!” he chirped. “I am Ortho Shroud, and this is my big brother, Idia. We’ll be accompanying Ms. Yuu for the near future. I hope we can get along!”

The older boy—Idia, apparently—mumbled something unintelligible, still half-asleep.

For a long moment, McGonagall said nothing.

Then her expression snapped into focus. Her eyes narrowed. Her shoulders straightened.

“Ms. Yuu!” she barked.

Yuu flinched like she’d been electrocuted. She scrambled to attention—nearly sending Idia sliding off her back in the process.

“Did you at least try any of the curses I taught you?”

The room fell into a stunned silence.

Yuu stared at her. Then at Idia. Then back at the professor.

Her face turned beet red.

“Wha—It’s not like that!” she yelped. “He’s my older brother, Professor McGonagall!”

Ron groaned and dropped his head into his hands.

He couldn’t believe it.

Somehow, this year was shaping up to be the weirdest one yet.

Chapter Text

He hated it here.

This castle. The people who worked in it. This godforsaken country and the corrupted society they clung to like lifelines.

He hated it all.

It had never—never—let him keep anything that made him happy.

Lily was gone. He regularly had to interact with the two people most responsible for getting her killed. And he was stuck teaching snot-nosed little brats who wouldn’t know proper magical discipline if it hexed them between the eyes.

In an ideal world, Severus Snape would have the pleasure of watching both Dumbledore and the Dark Lord perish—preferably slowly—and then retreat far from Wizarding Britain. He would lock the door behind him and finally dive, uninterrupted, into the true depths of potionology.

Instead, here he was. Teaching the spawn of James Potter, caught in a vice between two people he loathed, and miserable in every conceivable way.

A deep breath through his nose did nothing to ease the sharp tension in his chest. Another loud pop echoed through the dungeon classroom, followed by the sound of bubbling and some frantic yelps from the second years.

Wonderful. More melted cauldrons. More blistered fingers. Poppy would be furious with him again.

He stood from his desk with a dramatic sweep of his cloak, the effect sharpened by the way the Hufflepuffs nearest him flinched. Even the Slytherins sat up straighter, visibly bracing. Not old enough to fully mask their nerves.

Good. Let them be afraid.

Fear had taught him far more than kindness ever had.

He stalked the rows, inspecting cauldrons and sneering at incompetence.
Passable. Passable. Barely passable. A disaster waiting to happen. Slightly decent—

Ah. There it was.

Second row from the back.

Mr. Grinnel O’Ryan. Hufflepuff.

The boy was staring intently at the desk, both hands held aloft, dripping with something acidic and faintly steaming. His partner, Ben Wulf, looked far too smug for Snape’s taste.

Snape let his gaze slide over the workstation. The potion—meant to be a simple wart-removal solution—had turned an unsightly rancid yellow. On the desk, pickled snakeskin shimmered faintly under the spilled mess. Not part of the recipe. Not supposed to be there.

His eyes narrowed.

Wulf was smirking, shifting slightly in his chair. He had the look of someone who thought he’d gotten away with something.

Snape’s lip curled.

Figuring out that adding snake skin would corrupt the potion, not enhance it, required research. That reaction wasn’t covered until fourth-year potion theory. He would have to award the boy a few points for ingenuity—privately, of course.

He allowed a small, cruel smile to curl at the edge of his mouth.

“Mr. O’Ryan,” he said, his voice soft and deadly. “What happened here?”

The boy didn’t flinch. His voice was even.

“I believe Ben dropped something that wasn’t on the ingredient list into the potion, Professor Snape.”

Hm. Admirably steady, even as his hands were shaking from exposure to the acidic compound. Points for composure.

Snape turned toward Wulf.

“Well, Mr. Wulf? Did you drop something into the cauldron?”

“No, sir,” Wulf said, innocent smile in place. “I think maybe something fell out of Grinnel’s hair. He doesn’t wash it very well. Probably some mud got tangled up in there.”

A filthy lie, delivered with a smile. Snape didn’t need Legilimency to know that.

Grinnel’s cheeks flushed red. His bun had come slightly undone, some strands matted with potion residue.

“You lie!” he snapped, losing his temper.

And that was his mistake.

“Mr. O’Ryan!” Snape barked. “Do not raise your voice in my classroom. Ten points from Hufflepuff for your outburst. Another twenty for poor hygiene.”

He watched the boy pale, then redden further with the effort of keeping calm. With shaking hands, now swollen to at least double their original size, he stood.

“Apologies, Professor. May I go to the infirmary?”

Snape inclined his head.

The boy turned and left, shouldering the door open awkwardly, leaving a faint trail of potion drops behind him.

Snape waited until the door closed.

“Back to work,” he barked. “Mr. Wulf, clean the station and finish the potion on your own. You are still expected to produce results.”

The second-year Slytherin’s smile faltered slightly, but he nodded and got to work. Snape turned back to his desk, letting his robes flare behind him as he returned to his papers.

O’Ryan. Quiet. Sharp. Not without temper, but rarely provoked. And recently, spending more time around her.

Yuu.

That girl and her strange friends from “Night Raven Academy.”

What a ridiculous name. It sounded like something from a Muggle fiction novel.

Still… the Dark Lord had taken an interest. The whispers of Fae. The portal. The girl.

Something was happening.

And Severus Snape would be damned if he let another threat bloom in the shadow of Hogwarts without knowing exactly what it was.

It hadn’t been apparent from the message, but Snape suspected the Dark Lord was nervous.

Fae, historically, were a neutral force—indifferent to the dichotomy of light and dark. They did not choose sides so much as tip them, quietly and irrevocably.

They were kingmakers. Power brokers. Their roots ran through every corner of magical history, often just beneath the surface. Merlin himself—half-Incubus, touched by fae magic—was proof of that.

And now the Fae had returned. Or claimed to.

So far, Dire Crowley appeared to be little more than a blowhard—a Gilderoy Lockhart with pointed ears. Ridiculous, theatrical, prone to dramatics. A distraction.

But the girl… Yuu.

Her alleged knowledge of the future, her curious lack of origin in this world, her unnerving connection to both Crowley and the strange cohort of foreign students—those absurd boys with their synthetic hair colors and unsettling eyes...

She was something else. Dumbledore thought so. Voldemort thought so. And so did Snape.

Which is why the Dark Lord had instructed him to investigate—to identify a point of contact or, ideally, leverage over the new arrivals. If not through the girl, then through someone around her.

And that brought him to O’Ryan.

Grinnel O’Ryan. Quiet. Solitary. Intelligent. He had latched onto the girl early, or rather, she latched onto him. They shared tea in the library, studied together. Snape had seen them once, bent over a single parchment, heads nearly touching.

That sort of proximity created opportunity.

O’Ryan could be made useful.

But he was wary. Unpopular. More isolated than most. No strong loyalties outside the girl, and even that could nebulous. That could make him susceptible to the right sort of pressure—or the wrong one.

Snape steepled his fingers at his desk.

He would begin with research. Family, background, habits. Convince the boy, if possible. Leverage him, if not. The Dark Lord had provided access to certain resources. Archives. Bloodline records. Certain encouragements, if they became necessary.

Snape could feel the familiar weight of guilt creeping at the edge of his thoughts.

But guilt was a luxury. He had abandoned it long ago in the face of necessity.

This wasn’t for the Dark Lord.

It wasn’t for Dumbledore, either.

It was for Lily.

Her death had never been properly answered for. Not really. Not in the way that mattered. The system that failed her still stood. The people who profited from it still lived. The world kept turning, as if her life had meant nothing.

Severus Snape would make it mean something.

If children had to be used to get there…

Then he would apologize when it was done.

If he lived long enough to do so.

Everything about Night Raven Academy screamed wealth.

The dorms, the classrooms, the dining hall, the campus—even the people of this highbrow place screamed of never knowing the gnawing feeling of hunger.

The only thing that didn’t was perhaps the Ramshackle Dormitory—and the directing student herself, Yuu.

Perhaps that was what had predisposed Ruggie to liking the little dummy, when she’d greeted him in the greenhouse, toddling up to Leona like he wasn’t a predator more than three times her size.

His grandmother had always said he had a soft spot for small animals.

He hadn’t believed her at first, had scoffed even as he fed the small mouse he’d named Ed.

He’d saved up money and built the rodent a little enclosure, complete with toys and everything. Ruggie had shared his food with Ed, and when the gray mouse had died, Ruggie had cried.

Now, at Night Raven Academy, Ruggie couldn’t help but wonder if his grandmother, as per usual, had been right all along.

It was either that, or that directing student was a master manipulator.

Ruggie was inclined to believe it could be both, though he’d be surprised if she even noticed.

Yuu was just a naturally friendly person, and astoundingly good at making her way past whatever walls someone put up.

Ruggie hadn’t been prepared when the other had made her way past his—hadn’t even noticed until he was already sleeping in her presence and chewing on her like he was still a pup swaddled up by his gran.

Imagine his horror when he discovered that little idiot—the little dummy that had already wormed past his defenses—was a girl.

A defenseless girl that he had helped bully and injure. That he had let get put through a brutal Savanaclaw initiation.

If word ever got out, the entirety of Savanaclaw would bare their necks in shame. If word ever got out, Ruggie wouldn’t have a neck to bare after his gran got done with him.

Worse yet, the stupid, innocent little animal chose to stay in the same place—stay at NRC—with them, because she liked it there. Because she trusted them.

It was enough to make him blush, if he hadn’t trained himself to control those reactions a long time ago.

Imagine when that same small animal kept landing in a lion’s den, one after another. If he didn’t know her any better, he’d think Yuu was purposefully trying to get involved in trouble.

(Yes, he was still sore over the Octavinelle incident. And the Scarabia one. And Pomefiore, Ignihyde, and even Diasomnia.)

It was enough to drive Ruggie mad. He was on the verge of just stuffing her into a bag and hauling her back to the Sunset Savanna, regardless of what any of those fools thought.

Ruggie knew all the best places to hide. Even if they came looking, the slums where he’d grown up would be safer for her than NRC.

The only reason he didn’t—and he was close to doing it—was the little dummy’s own wishes. That, and Leona.

Despite being a perverted second prince, Leona talked when he’d cornered Ruggie after the Ignihyde overblot. He’d talked about plans, summer vacation, and the position available in the royal family.

But the palace would be a safer place for her to stay. A happier place than the slums.

So Ruggie had trusted him. Trusted the man Ruggie had banked everything on.

Then she had disappeared.

And all their carefully laid plans were thrown up into the air.

Ruggie panicked. Jack panicked. Even Leona panicked.

And then things got worse. Jack isolated himself, barely talked at all. Leona seemed to vanish entirely, snarling at anyone who approached. He was constantly having books and tablets and ancient manuscripts delivered.

Ruggie understood—he was looking for something. A way to find her. A hint of the directing student’s fate.

So what if someone takes something away from you? You just have to take it back, alongside interest.

That was the way of the jungle.

But for a week, Ruggie was forced to assume the responsibilities of being a dormhead on his own.

The hierarchy had fallen apart. A hyena in charge. At least the others in the dorm seemed to respect him and his claim.

Finally, after weeks of Ruggie breaking his back to keep their place running, they’d received good news.

They’d found her.

What followed was another few weeks of constant work—preparations, information, and chaos.

Those Shroud brothers were about as communicative as a corpse, and only half as pleasant when asked. The smaller one had taken to firing first at visitors pretty quickly.

But eventually, after what felt like glacial progress, they’d made it. They had a way into Yuu’s world.

Ruggie personally found the excuse—the little tournament idea—utter horseshit. Whatever reason that stupid headmaster had for not immediately grabbing the little dummy and dipping wasn’t good enough.

Overstaying your welcome in someone else’s house was dangerous, especially when you were looking to swipe something valuable. The longer they stayed, the more they ran the risk of the locals realizing just what they had.

Which would make their job tougher.

But Ruggie was just a hyena. And even Leona, finally in a better headspace, hadn’t had much more success with his protests.

Apparently, the headmaster was determined.

According to Leona, there were some greater powers sniffing around NRC now that word was getting around about them having access to another world.

That was fine with him. The politicians could tear each other’s throats out for all he cared. Frankly, this tournament could go die in a hole too.

Ruggie had his goal.

And as the Heartslabyul crowd marched through the mirror first—one after another in a pretty little formation—he kept that in mind.

Find the little animal, make sure she was alright, keep her safe until they were back in their territory.

And then never let her out of his sight again.

Because by the Great Seven, it was clear that the other dorms couldn’t be trusted to keep an eye out.

Savanaclaw was next, and he, Leona, and Jack—flanked by two of the other Savanaclaw students she had tamed—stepped forward. Crewel had said that five students would be going per dorm.

Before they crossed the mirror, Crewel stopped them, handing them a small collection of vials.

“Apparently,” he began, giving them all a stern look, “the world on the other side holds a bit of prejudice against anything not human. I will not demand you use them, but they may make your time there easier.”

Leona gave the professor a look, popping open the vial and taking a sniff before capping it.

“Standard transformation potion?”

Crewel nodded.

Leona took the vials and passed them back to Ruggie.

He tucked them into his backpack, carefully wrapped.

Crewel stepped out of the way, and Leona continued through the portal. Ruggie followed soon after, and he could hear Jack and the others shuffling forward.

The trip was brief, but unpleasant. Ruggie could feel his ears pop as they stumbled through, before there was a flash, and suddenly he was on solid ground again.

Ruggie looked around. Leona was already there, back straight as he glared forward. They were in some sort of common room, the decor looking remarkably similar to the Ramshackle lounge.

The Heartslabyul group was already sitting on some of the chairs, although Ruggie could see Yuu’s little friends—those fools that had let her go—shifting uneasily. Riddle, that cheater, was there as well.

Meanwhile, the Octavinelle mafia were waiting off to the other side of the room, Floyd lying flat on a couch while Azul flipped through a thick book. It looked vaguely familiar to the ones Yuu had shown him from her trunk.

Jack landed behind him, standing up straight much faster than he did.

Standing just off to the side was that shitty Headmaster, with his usual smirk on his face.

“Hello!” he chirped in a far-too-chipper tone. “We’ll just wait for the others to arrive before we get started.”

Leona grunted before walking over to one of the empty couches and collapsing on it. Ruggie followed his lead, although Jack and the others chose to remain standing nearby instead.

Slowly, the others filtered in—a couple of nervous-looking Octavinelle students, the Scarabia duo flanked by some of their students (one particularly large one made Ruggie’s hair stand on end), the Pomefiore gorillas of course stepping in time, a few Ignihyde students who immediately began checking the edges of the portal, and finally…

Ruggie could see Leona’s expression sour, and he couldn’t help his own nose wrinkling somewhat, as if he had smelled something foul.

Diasomnia.

That damn lizard stepped through first, followed by the smiling vice dorm head and the two guards.

They looked much too comfortable, and the moment Malleus stepped into the room, the smell of fae flooded throughout.

If Ruggie were a betting man, he’d say the dragon fae was already using his magic to try to find the directing student.

As the final student filtered through—another Diasomnia second year who seemed to be put in charge of carrying most of the bags—once he’d cleared the area, one of the Ignihyde students, a first year, pressed something on the side, and the flashing colors slowed.

Not closed, he figured. Just running on low power.

Crowley cleared his throat.

“Welcome, my dear students!” the headmaster began, clapping his hands together. “You all have the privilege of being the lucky few who get to experience this new world first. You will also be representing Night Raven Academy on a grand scale.”

The students sat silently, staring at him. Many were unimpressed.

“There will also be a tournament, a little competition between schools. My hope is for you all to prove yourselves—and NRC—on the grand stage.” Crowley continued, voice cheerful as he spoke.

“You know why we are truly here, Dire Crowley.”

It was Malleus who spoke.

The headmaster kept up his smile for a few seconds before letting out a sigh.

“It is midday. She is currently attending classes, and you all need to be given orientation. Ms. Yuu will be available later.” That evidently did not sit well with any of those present, as dissenting muttering immediately took place.

The masked fae continued.

“Additionally, we must discuss our plans for the opening ceremony, as well as scheduling. The mirror, as it is now, can only support so much, and many of you have responsibilities that must be attended.”

His words, as well as the matter-of-fact tone, seemed to placate the horned prince, who nodded.

In the pause, Leona gave a sidelong look at Jack, who nodded and removed his phone from his pocket. He hit a few buttons, and with a stealth that Ruggie had always found terrifying for a person his size, Jack slunk back and inched his way toward the door.

Those Heartslabyul underclassmen evidently spotted him anyway, as the two immediately turned toward their dorm head and began a furious whispered conversation.

A moment later, the two stood and did the same. If the headmaster noticed—which Ruggie figured he probably did—he gave no indication.

Ruggie mentally shrugged. This was fine anyway.

After all, their goal here wasn’t to make nice or forge connections like some RSA student.

Night Raven Academy students were more selfish than that.

Yuu was slightly exasperated as she sat in the library, waiting for Eucalyptus to arrive for their usual study time.

In the chair next to her was Idia, slightly more rested now, but still slumped into her side, long arms wrapped around her like the world’s lankiest blanket. Ortho sat on her other side, flipping through a large textbook—about one page a second—with a delighted look on his face. Grim was in the middle of the table, sleeping curled up in her jacket.

The Shroud siblings had followed her to each of her classes, and even though Idia had slept through most of them, Ortho had certainly not. The younger Shroud was also more than willing to answer any questions that came his way, but it seemed like he had taken it upon himself to answer every question in the most ominous way possible.

“Who are you two?”

“Guardians of the Ancient Vaults, here to reclaim what is ours.”

“Why is your hair like that?”

“We were cursed!”

“Why is your brother hugging Yuu?”

“The only other option was to imprison her in the underworld.”

Yuu had asked Ortho why he was giving such... interesting answers, and the younger Shroud had just chirped “Information control” before he returned to scanning Professor Binns’ lecture on the Goblin Wars.

Idly, Yuu petted Idia on the head as she flipped through her own textbooks, filling out her Charms homework as she went. While the other was more awake now, he still seemed to be feeling clingy, which Yuu could understand.

Frankly, after so long away from her friends, she appreciated the contact.

“You got that one wrong,” was muttered as the Ignihyde dorm head pointed at one of the questions on her paper.

Yuu blinked, then reexamined the problem. He was right.

Pulling out her wand to vanish the ink, she turned toward Idia.

“How did you know that?”

“Raided your trunk,” was the response, as Idia—finally seeming to fully wake up—straightened. There were still large rings under his eyes, but at least, according to Ortho, he wasn’t on the verge of cardiac arrest.

Yuu blinked. “Why?” she asked. There was a small voice in the back of her mind—it sounded like Ruggie—yelling at her to be more angry with the Ignihyde dorm head.

“Had to work in your magic system in the portal to ensure—” Idia gave a wide yawn, sharp teeth on full display, before continuing, “—to ensure cross-compatibility.”

Ortho leaned forward, not pausing in his reading.

“Nii-san has broken into multiple new fields and obtained another honorary Ph.D. during his efforts to help locate you, Nee-san.”

The Ramshackle student turned to face the younger Shroud, a curious frown on her face.

“Ortho, you never mentioned why you were calling me that?” she asked.

Ever since the Shroud brothers had appeared early that morning, Ortho had seemingly forgotten her actual name, instead referring to her as various forms of “big sister” ever since.

They’d been so swamped with questions and work during the day that she hadn’t gotten a chance to ask why until now.

He had done it so regularly, in fact, that when scrambling for an excuse to placate McGonagall, she’d gone with “big brother” of all things.

She hoped Idia wasn’t too offended by it. She knew siblings were a sensitive topic for the older student.

Ortho’s eyes curved slightly, delight clear in his expression.

“It’s because you are practically family, Big Sis!” Ortho cheered. Idia put his head down on the table at his brother’s words, hiding beneath his arms. Yuu felt her own cheeks grow slightly warm.

“That’s nice, Ortho, but—”

She stopped. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the library doors open, and in slipped a tired-looking Eucalyptus.

Ortho followed her gaze, eyes focusing on the newcomer, and Idia lifted his head just enough for his golden eyes to lock on.

Yuu waved happily, gesturing the other over.

Her smile dropped, however, when he got closer. Both of his hands were wrapped in thick bandages, from just below his elbow to the tips of his fingers. The wrappings were slightly lumpy, as if something was bulging out from underneath them.

He sat down roughly across from the three, and Yuu stood up in alarm.

“Hey,” he said shortly, reaching into his bag and clumsily withdrawing a book.

She bustled around the table, already drawing her wand out of instinct to cast a quick healing spell.

“Don’t,” Eucalyptus said, raising a bandaged arm in a gesture to wait. Yuu paused. “Madam Pomfrey said that healing charms would only mess with the wart growth.”

Yuu blinked, as did Idia, who had raised his head and now watched the two with evaluating eyes she wasn’t used to seeing.

“Wart growth?” she asked.

The Hufflepuff sighed, before he reached down with one hand and, after a few tries, snagged the gauze and pulled it aside slightly. Yuu leaned over to see, and Ortho, who had floated over, did the same.

Eucalyptus eyed the floating boy for a moment before he seemed to accept it as a matter of course. Yuu could practically hear the muttered weirdo already, and she would have laughed at his expression if not for the circumstances.

Underneath the bandages, the normally smooth, pale skin was instead bulging with humongous warts. They ranged in size from pea to golf ball, and ran all the way down from his elbows to his fingers. So large were they, that she doubted he would be able to close his hands as they were now. Yuu let out a gasp at the sight, reaching out to touch it before thinking again.

“Scans show the effects are actually muscle deep. Even the muscle appears to have developed wart-like protrusions. How horrifying,” Ortho reported, eyes flashing slightly as he scanned the second year’s arm.

“What happened?” she asked solemnly. Her underclassman gave a sour face before pushing the bandages back into place.

“Potions accident. Some bad ingredients got into a wart removal potion and inverted it.” He brought a hand up and, in a motion that seemed almost self-conscious, grabbed a handful of his own hair and tugged slightly.

“Doesn’t matter anyway. They’ll be gone in a few weeks,” he finished.

“Weeks!?”

The younger boy flinched, and Yuu immediately felt bad. He rubbed the bandage-covered hand against his shoulder before shrugging.

“Healing spells don’t work well with potions already, and because the warts aren’t technically an injury…” He trailed off before finishing, “The nurse said there would be minimal permanent effects.”

Permanent effects!?

What type of second-year potion injury caused permanent damage to a student? Professor Puck didn’t let them brew any potions over Class Two in her second year!

Yuu nodded, but couldn’t help but feel she was missing something.

“What got into the cauldron?” she asked. Eucalyptus shrank back slightly—the motion odd, she realized, because this was the most timid she had ever seen the normally poison-tongued second year act.

He looked up at her.

“I don’t know.” His voice wavered slightly, and he avoided her eyes. Not letting her continue questioning, the boy pressed on. “Anyways, who are these two?” he said, a bit of familiar curiosity leaking into his voice.

She wavered a moment on whether to push, but Eucalyptus—for the first time since she had met the headstrong Hufflepuff—gave her a pleading look, asking her not to continue digging.

Sitting back down at the table, Yuu introduced her friends.

“Eucalyptus, these are my friends Ortho and Idia Shroud,” she said, pointing at each in turn. “Ortho, Idia—this is Eucalyptus, my mini-me.” She finished.

Eucalyptus gave her an odd look, mouthing the words mini-me to himself, before turning to the Shroud brothers, studying them a bit longer—actually taking in their appearances. The two studied him back.

His eyes seemed to linger on Idia, then Ortho, before his own cheeks flushed slightly with color.

Instead of introducing himself, he turned toward Yuu, an unhappy look on his face.

“Why are all your friends weirdly attractive? This isn’t fair,” he deadpanned at her. Yuu had to cover her mouth to prevent laughter, and Idia nearly dropped his face back onto the table as his eyes widened. Even Ortho, who had returned to his own seat next to his brother, widened his eyes slightly at the blunt remark.

Yuu, however, was delighted.

“I know, right! Every time I say it, they all get angry, but it’s true! It’s so cool,” she answered. Idia let out a loud groan.

“It’s not cool—it’s troublesome. Do you know how hard it is to keep my composure when I have—” he waved vaguely in the two’s direction “—two supermodels sitting across from me? How am I supposed to study like this?”

While he spoke, Yuu took the moment to study her young friend. Eucalyptus seemed much more comfortable now that they weren’t talking about his hands. But Yuu wasn’t willing to let it go that easily.

Ortho and Eucalyptus at this point were getting into a conversation on their own. With Eucalyptus questioning Ortho about how he was flying, and Ortho cheerfully projecting graphs onto the table nearby, Yuu turned toward Idia while the two were occupied.

He was already looking at her, cheeks still red, and met her eyes.

She gestured over to Eucalyptus—specifically, the bandages.

Idia rolled his eyes exasperatedly, before nodding.

Yuu gave him a bright smile, then turned and joined in the conversation, while Idia chimed in periodically with his own thoughts.

Night Raven Academy had taught her that some things were worth fighting for.

Her friends were one of those things.

Lilia Vanrouge listened as one of the few Fae he did not have any direct sway over gave a clearly rehearsed orientation to the large group of youngsters who’d volunteered to go through the portal.

Dire Crowley was an enigma to most Fae—too old to be familiar to the younger generation, yet not quite old enough to be studied by the elder ones.

Lilia figured he’d been born during that period of flux, when death was plentiful and keeping track of who was and wasn’t alive was more hassle than it was worth.

That didn’t mean Lilia was unable to predict his actions. Dire Crowley was a masterful educator and a dangerous mage—but difficult to read, he was not.

At least, not when it came to the directing student.

Lilia had been certain of the outcome ever since the first time he spotted the two having tea together. A Fae without child, purposefully sharing food with a child without guardian?

It was a story that practically wrote itself.

Still, he couldn’t have predicted how things would turn out with the dear directing student. How she seemed to charm everyone around her.

Why, if it hadn’t been for Malleus’s interest, Lilia might have snatched the dear girl up himself. He’d never had the pleasure of raising a daughter—it could’ve been fun.

Alas, the single time he’d mentioned the idea, Malleus had given him such a scorching look that Lilia had, quite literally, burst into flames.

A chuckle escaped his mouth at the memory, and the Octavinelle student seated near him shivered—before, reluctantly, scooting closer to the smiling Leech twin beside him.

What a rambunctious child he was.

Still, Lilia could see how antsy Malleus was—itching to leave this meeting and find his dear Child of Man.

The boy was smitten. And when that dear child had vanished, he’d nearly torn down Diasomnia brick by brick. Frankly, if Dire Crowley hadn’t revealed his breakthrough in tracking down the Ramshackle student, Lilia might’ve faltered—and Malleus would’ve razed the entire dorm, sparking a real political incident.

Crowley’s help had earned him much favor with the prince, as had young Shroud’s efforts in stabilizing the mirror.

But Malleus’s insistence on fair play only added more obstacles. If he truly wished to court her properly, he now had to approach Crowley for permission—as Fae tradition dictated. Lilia fully expected the prince to corner the flamboyant man after the meeting to request it.

So anxious was the boy, he’d even come to Lilia for advice on how to go about courting.

Lilia giggled mischievously.

Naturally, being the responsible Fae he was, he gave Malleus the best advice possible. A proper Fae courting involved quite a few things, after all.

He refreshed the young prince on etiquette, gave him a small primer on small talk, and had even prepared a basket full of produce from Briar Valley. The items looked positively divine. Malleus had seemed faintly uncomfortable with the notion—but Lilia had done his best to put those fears to rest.

He had grown fond of the dear child, after all. No one would blame an old man if he thumbed the scales just a little, would they?

From there, though, it was up to Malleus.

Lilia looked across the room at the faces of the children that filled it.

The silly boy would have some competition.

Hopefully, Malleus would succeed. Lilia had always wanted grandchildren, after all—and he could hold on for a few more decades to see them.

Dire Crowley paused in his speech, back stiffening and feathers puffing out slightly.

Casting his gaze across the room, his eyes fell upon the Diasomnia chapter of NRC—specifically, they met a pair of red eyes.

Lilia Vanrouge smiled at him.

Crowley fought back a shiver and resumed the orientation.

In the back of his mind, however, he resolved to give Yuu a course in Briar Valley etiquette.

And to tell her to absolutely not eat anything they offered.

Chapter Text

WHAT IF NRC took drastic measures to disguise themselves

“Absolutely not!” McGonagall declared, glaring sternly at Headmaster Crowley. Jade and Floyd were giving the Transfiguration professor ugly looks, and the dorm heads weren’t far behind—although Yuu had more faith in the two restraining themselves than she did in the Leech twins.

The witch hadn’t even waited until they were out of the Great Hall to address what she clearly felt was a significant issue. Now there were dozens of students—those who had milled around the Great Hall a bit longer to watch the newcomers—watching the ongoing argument.

McGonagall whipped toward Dumbledore, who didn’t seem at all uncomfortable with the very public debate taking place between his guest and his Deputy Headmistress.

“Albus, this is entirely irregular and strange. An older man allowing an underaged student to be dragged away by four boys, all upperclassmen! What kind of school is this man running, for Merlin’s sake?”

Yuu felt a bit of indignation on NRC's—and her guardian’s—behalf, but she held her tongue. McGonagall seemed quite flustered, a vein bulging faintly in her neck as she ranted.

Dumbledore, looking surprised by the sudden fire from his colleague, took a step forward to respond—but Crowley beat him to it.

“And what, Minerva,” Crowley began smoothly, “makes you think that Ms. Yuu would be staying in a room with male students? The fact that you think so little of me—and of NRC—hurts.” He placed one hand on his chest and the other across his forehead, leaning back dramatically as if struck by her words.

The taller witch did not look impressed.

“And where,” McGonagall continued, “will she be staying instead? In the next room down? That is utterly unacceptable. For the safety and purity of everyone involved, this must not be allowed to pass.”

The other Headmaster turned to Crowley, raising an eyebrow.

“Despite her rather spirited delivery—which could stand to be improved,” he added with a slightly reproachful glance, “her points are quite solid. Having worked with students for a number of years, we are well aware of the activities that are at risk of happening in such situations.”

Dumbledore seemed rather uncomfortable with the topic. It was a bit odd to see a figure Yuu only knew from history looking so unsettled by such a rudimentary issue.

Still, she turned toward Crowley, wondering how he would respond. She did want to spend more time with her friends, but if it was going to cause trouble for NRC, Yuu was willing to return to her Ravenclaw dormitory. She didn’t want to cause problems.

Dire Crowley, however, had a look on his face. One that made Yuu nervous.

It reminded her of the look on Grim’s face right before he did something against the rules with Ace and Deuce.

“Ah!” he cried—not just a sound, but a word, exclaimed. “I see what the confusion is! You all think that Ms. Yuu would be without proper supervision. Never! I would no sooner leave Yuu alone with these—” he waved a hand toward the group of NRC students, “—beasts than I would my own daughter. Instead, we have some female students coming to help supervise.”

Yuu blinked in confusion—as did the other NRC students. Riddle whipped his head toward Crowley, looking more shocked than when she had first told them the truth about her own gender. Azul’s mouth had fallen open, Floyd had collapsed onto the floor, and Jade had gone stiff, eyes wide.

Yuu looked toward her Headmaster, a question escaping her before she could think it through.

“Sir, what do you mean—”

“Oh, here they come now,” Crowley interrupted, flinging an arm out to point toward the large doors of the Great Hall. Yuu followed his gesture—alongside dozens of Hogwarts students—just as the sound of footsteps echoed through the chamber. The doors pushed open, and three figures appeared.

Yuu felt her own mouth fall open as they came into view.

Leading the way, walking with a slow, stalking stride, was a tall, statuesque woman with dark skin. She had messy, dark brown hair that reached just past her shoulders. Two long braids hung over her chest, tied with yellow bands. Her hair was pushed back from her face by a yellow Savannaclaw bandana.

She looked at everything around her as if it weren’t worth her time—dark brown eyes gliding lazily over the stunned and staring students before dismissing them entirely. Her makeup was precise, her eyes lined just so to give the effect of a great beast daring anyone to challenge her.

She wore the Savannaclaw dorm uniform—vest open, v-neck shirt beneath just low enough to make students blush, but not enough to actually reveal anything. She wore fitted jeans, and each step was punctuated by the sharp clack of her ornate sandals striking the stone floor of the Great Hall.

Following after her, looking much less confident and much less comfortable with the attention, was another odd-looking girl. This one drew eyes as well—though less from her sheer presence, and more due to her appearance.

She wore a loose black-and-blue hoodie, the sleeves so long they extended past her hands and hung loosely. She seemed to shrink under the weight of the stares around her, trying to hide even as she followed the first girl into the Great Hall. This did not, however, make her any less visible.

Her hair, reaching far down her back, flickered and swayed as she moved—almost as if it were made of living flame. And not just any flame—it glowed in brilliant shades of electric blue, reflecting the light like waves of fire. She slouched as she walked, avoiding the gaze of every student she passed, in stark contrast to the bold, lion-like girl who came before.

Her face was pale—not just from fear, but as if she had no blood in her body whatsoever. Her lips were blackened at the edges. Some students—those not still scraping their jaws off the floor—might liken her complexion to that of a corpse, pale and shadowed, with an unsettling grace. She wore little makeup, only faint traces that could barely be seen.

Clutched tightly to her chest, as if it would shield her from scrutiny, was a large tablet. Its screen glowed faintly, displaying a logo familiar to Yuu. The device was connected to the cat-ear headphones hanging around the girl’s neck. Alongside the hoodie, she wore a black skirt that reached past her knees, swishing softly with every step. Her whole ensemble reminded Yuu of a character from an anime she and Ortho had watched a few months back.

Bringing up the rear was the smallest of the trio—this one also wearing a hood, though it appeared to be part of a modified Scarabia dorm uniform. Her hood shadowed most of her face, but every so often, charcoal-grey eyes would flash from beneath the fabric, scanning the Great Hall with sharp precision. Her head turned like a swivel, and her long, dark hair moved with it, braided with practiced care and precision.

Her arms swung at her sides, and when they did, snake-themed jewelry flashed in the torchlight—jingling bracelets and armbands of gold and silver, inlaid with brilliant gems. Her uniform was looser than the others', but she wore it with confidence. Each step was poised, every movement calculated.

The trio were perhaps the most fantastically fabulous women Hogwarts had ever seen.

And yet… Yuu had a suspicion.

As the trio approached and stopped in front of Crowley—who, for the first time since she had met him, seemed on the verge of losing his composure to laughter—he waved his arms grandly in a welcoming gesture.

“Professor McGonagall, please meet some of Night Raven Academy’s most skilled and intelligent female students.”

The Transfiguration Professor stood frozen. Her mouth did not hang open, but her face locked in place, her eyes wide.

The girl wearing the Savannaclaw bandana stepped forward, and as she did, Yuu’s sharp eyes caught sight of a very familiar tattoo on her exposed arm.

“Leona-senpai?!” Yuu whisper-yelled, her eyes wide as saucers. The older student placed a hand on her shoulder.

The taller girl—no, boy—looked down at her with an expression that could only be described as pained.

“Herbivore,” he greeted flatly.

Yuu’s head was spinning. She turned to look at the other two, and after a moment of processing, the obvious answer hit her.

“Idia-senpai! Jamil-senpai?!”

Jamil didn’t acknowledge her beyond a faint nod, but Idia averted his eyes, his pale face darkening with color.

“Why? How? What?!” She flailed verbally, unsure where to begin.

Idia answered first, voice low and mumbled.

“Some standard illusion magic… similar to the cosmetic you have equipped at NRC,” he explained, shuffle-whispering as he crept closer to her, as if Yuu might be able to hide him from the entire Great Hall.

Jamil picked up from there, a scowl breaking across his disguised features.

“Crewel said he needed some of us to help with something on this side. Said anyone who volunteered got to go through early,” the Scarabia vice dorm head scoffed. “He had way too much fun with this.”

Leona finished it off, eyes narrowing on her with a look that promised hours of chess losses and at least one full Magift season with Yuu as the disc.

“You owe us for this, Herbivore.”

Despite the threat, Yuu couldn’t help the slightly teary smile spreading across her face.

“I know. I’ll make it up to you all. It’s just—” her voice caught for a moment.

“I’m so happy to see all of you.”

The three "girls" favored her with reluctant smiles, and for a moment it was just them—until Professor McGonagall finally found her voice.

“Well,” she began stiffly, “I suppose if you have older female students to help supervise, it will be… fine.”

Crowley nodded back at her, his grin radiant and smug.

WHAT IF NRC arrived in the wrong Timeline

Jack Howl carefully made his way through the halls of the large castle they had infiltrated on behalf of Night Raven Academy. After the Headmaster and Shroud-senpai had managed to locate Yuu’s world, all the dorms had begun planning how to get her back—among other things.

It was the Headmaster who had suggested they, as a school, work together to locate her. Initially, none of the dorms had been interested in doing so, but after some arguments made by Rosehearts-senpai and Vil, an alliance—loose and unsteady—had been formed.

And then the planning had begun. According to the Headmaster and the Ignihyde faction, they had not been able to gather much data on the current state of Yuu’s world, or even determine where exactly she was within the castle.

Unfortunately, the portal also wouldn’t be able to stay open for long. Yuu’s world was apparently “drifting away,” according to Idia Shroud, and they didn’t know when they would be able to open a similar portal again. So they were on a time limit.

Thus, they had come to the plan they were using now.

A large group of Night Raven Academy students and professors were deployed through the portal. The professors would make their way to the staff of this “Hogwarts,” while the students searched the castle. Simple enough, Jack had figured.

Then he had stepped into the library—where he’d figured she might be—and the students who saw him had run away, yelling “Werewolf!” of all things.

Jack snorted slightly as he continued down the hall.

Cowards.

Still, it had caused problems when older students returned, wands raised and ready to fight. Jack had already been forced to incapacitate three students, and it was only slowing him down.

His phone beeped, indicating that the first quarter of their time had run its course.

Everyone was feeling the time crunch. None of them had voiced it, but they were all worried about what would happen if they couldn’t find Yuu.

A world without the directing student—after all she had done, all the hearts she had wormed her way into—seemed impossible.

Jack checked another classroom. There was a single ghost lecturing to a room full of sleeping students. Scanning them carefully, Jack determined that none of them were the target.

He left.

As Jack approached the next bend, he began to hear arguing—whispered voices going back and forth. They sounded familiar.

Turning the corner, he was met with Ace and Deuce, hunched over something. They noticed him quickly and turned, standing shoulder to shoulder.

Suspicious.

“Hey Jack, how’s it going? Find anything?” Deuce asked, sweating up a storm. As solid a guy as Deuce was, he was always a poor liar. The fact that he even tried moved him down in Jack’s estimation.

“No, not yet,” Jack said, shifting slightly to the left. The two Heartslabyul students mirrored the motion. “What about you two?”

It was Ace who responded this time, elbowing Deuce slightly before he could open his mouth.

“Nope, still looking. We were thinking of trying the library next. Dormhead and Trey-senpai are searching classrooms on the third floor, and Cater is talking to students to try and figure something out.” Ace smiled, but it lacked the usual malice or mischief that would have made it believable.

“How about you try heading to the sports field? I hear Ruggie-senpai was having some trouble,” he added.

Jack nodded slowly, continuing to circle the two.

“Sure, I’m always happy to help Ruggie-senpai. But first…” Jack took a sudden step forward, and the two shuffled back. “What are you two hiding behind you?”

The underclassmen paled, but Deuce responded first.

“Nothing. Just some books we got from the library.” Jack raised an eyebrow, and Ace sighed.

“You told me you hadn’t been to the library yet.” Jack took another step. They backed up again.

“It’s no wonder Yuu liked it here,” Ace laughed nervously, shifting whatever they were hiding behind their backs. “There’s two libraries.”

They took another step back as Jack approached.

“Yuu said the only other library was in her dormitory, which we couldn’t get into. Jamil-senpai confirmed it.”

A final step. Jack cornered them against the wall. They tried to step back again, but—

“Ow.”

A soft, tiny voice rang out.

“Can I come out from behind you two now?”

It sounded familiar.

Ace’s eyes darted side to side before he seemed to come to a decision.

“Jack… you can’t tell anyone yet, okay?” he said. The two parted, and from between them, a small—entirely too small—Hogwarts student emerged.

She was wearing robes that were slightly too big for her. Her hair was long enough to cover most of her face, and she slouched slightly as she moved.

But despite all of those differences, one thing was clear.

This was Yuu.

Jack swung his eyes toward the two troublemakers.

“Explain.”

“That’s what I want them to do,” the young girl complained, patting herself down as she stood there. Her face was flat—too flat. Jack hadn’t realized just what Yuu meant when she said she had only very recently begun learning emotions at NRC.

"We don’t know, okay? Jack, she’s eleven!" Deuce hissed, looking panicked. Ace didn’t seem much better, tugging at his hair as he stared down at the small girl.

Jack took a deep breath.

He could handle this.

He was more mature than these two. What was the next step?

Leona-senpai would know what to do.

Jack pulled out his phone and was about to bring it up to his ear, ignoring the other two’s protests when—

"Whoa."
The flat voice rang out again. Yuu was in front of him now, staring at his phone.

"How did you get a phone to work at Hogwarts?" she asked, blue eyes now visible behind a curtain of hair. Jack struggled with his options—he could call Leona-senpai first, but—

Those blue eyes drilled into his.

Crouching down in front of her like he did when talking to his siblings, Jack showed her his phone and tried his best to remember how it worked.

"These things are powered by magic stones—"

"Koebi-chan?"

Crap.

The NRC students—and little Yuu—turned to face the end of the hallway. Floyd Leech stood there, staring at the scene, seemingly stunned by the development.

He observed for a second more, and Jack could swear he saw the merman’s eyes dilate.

"Littler Koebi-chan?"

A smile grew across the Leech twin’s face.

Jack made a split-second decision.

Ignoring the cries of the Heartslabyul duo—and the small oof that came from Yuu—Jack scooped up the small girl and made a mad dash toward the other end of the hallway. He could hear Floyd Leech barreling after him, as well as the angered voices of Ace and Deuce following.

He had to find Leona-senpai.

He’d know what to do.

WHAT IF Yuu made it all the way through NRC before she was pulled back

Harry Potter was rather confused at the moment.

This year at Hogwarts was already shaping up to be strange—with the Quidditch World Cup, and then Dumbledore announcing the Triwizard Tournament in place of the usual House Cup season.

But then, there was gossip from some students that a strange woman (Percy had blushed as he retold the story—Ron gagged at the thought of his brother having a crush) had appeared in the library, asked where she was, and was then escorted out by Dumbledore.

The next day, there was a huge commotion coming from Professor Moody’s classroom. Professors Flitwick and McGonagall had cordoned off the area while the sounds of explosions and shouting rang out—alongside the occasional burst of blue flame from under the door.

By the end of it, apparently, Dumbledore and the strange woman had walked out, a levitating Professor Moody drifting behind them—stunned—while a second one followed, wearing nothing but his boxers.

After that, there had been radio silence, and Harry wasn’t even sure he’d have believed the rumors if Defense Against the Dark Arts hadn’t suddenly been turned into a study period for the next few days.

Harry was honestly rather put out about that. Moody had been extreme, but he wasn’t a bad Defense teacher—not compared to the others they’d had.

He would take anyone over Lockhart.

It was that Friday at dinner when they finally got some closure. Moody was up at the staff table again, filling the seat he’d been absent from all week—but beside him now was a new woman. The same one, Harry presumed, who had been at the center of the week’s gossip.

Harry focused on her, trying his best to make her out from across the Great Hall. The woman had Asian features and short-cropped dark hair. She wore a blouse, with a loose cloak thrown over it, open at the front. The inside of the cloak was patterned with something that reminded him of spiderwebs. Oddly enough, she also wore a black-and-white striped bowtie.

Her jewelry was strange, but not in the usual eccentric way of witches and wizards. Rather, it looked mismatched on purpose. There was a small pin on her cloak that Harry couldn’t quite make out, a necklace of thick, multicolored beads, an armband on each arm—one a silver snake, the other gold—and a wrist full of jingling bracelets that flashed whenever she waved her hands while talking.

What really stuck out to Harry were her eyes. As she chatted cheerfully with Professor Moody—who, surprisingly, seemed to grunt back with less hostility than usual—her eyes practically glowed. They were an otherworldly blue, reminding Harry of the gas stove he’d seen at Aunt Marge’s once.

They were so bright, he could make them out even from where he was sitting. As if sensing his gaze, the woman turned, scanning the hall briefly before locking eyes with him. She gave a cheery wave. Harry felt himself blush under the attention, even as he awkwardly waved back.

She was quite pretty. Percy had been right.
Harry turned back to his food and tried to focus, even as the other Gryffindor boys nudged him with sly smiles.

They were most of the way through dinner, with dessert just being served, when Dumbledore called for the hall’s attention. Clearing his throat, the Headmaster began.

“Good evening, everyone. I’m quite sorry to interrupt your wining and dining this evening, but I’m afraid I have some good news—and some news of the more unfortunate flavor.”

He smiled warmly at the room.

“To begin with the unfortunate: Professor Moody will be stepping down as our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Other callings have made themselves apparent, and being the busy man he is, he must answer them.”

Dumbledore turned toward the grizzled man and raised his glass.

“Perhaps some parting words for the students, Alastor?”

Moody looked up and glared, as if unhappy to be called on. Regardless, he stood, faced the hall with all the excitement of a man at a firing line, and said:

“Constant Vigilance!”
The words echoed through the room.

Then he sat back down.

Dumbledore nodded, dabbing at his eyes dramatically, as though Moody had just given a heartfelt speech.

“On the other hand, our good news: Personally vetted by our former professor and already proving herself a stellar member of the Hogwarts staff, we now welcome Professor Yuu Crowley to be our Defense teacher for the remainder of the year.”

He gestured to the woman, who stood and nodded politely to the students before sitting again.

“Professor Crowley will be continuing Defense classes and also assisting our very own Professor Hagrid as co-teacher of Care of Magical Creatures. Please show her the best of Hogwarts hospitality.”

The students clapped politely as Dumbledore sat back down. Immediately, conversation sparked around the hall—speculation about why Moody was leaving and just who this new professor was.

Harry picked up a piece of treacle tart and tried to tune the rest out.

He’d learn more tomorrow anyway.

The next morning, Harry walked into Defense feeling slightly unsure of what to expect.

Defense was always either his favorite or least favorite class—depending on the year. It had been leaning toward favorite with Moody. But this new professor? She could be anything.

As the Gryffindors and Slytherins filed into the Defense classroom, Professor Crowley was already there, leaning against the desk and checking students off as they entered. She would glance up at each of them, offer a bright smile, and ask them to find their seats.

The effect flustered many of the other students—and Harry felt faintly vindicated when even Draco Malfoy averted his gaze from the dazzling smile aimed in his direction.

Once everyone was inside, the professor set her clipboard down and turned to face them, still leaning casually against the desk.

“Good morning, everyone. I’m Professor Crowley. We’ll be continuing Professor Moody’s unit on curses.
First, however, I understand that some of you may have questions—given recent events. Let’s get them out of the way now. If you have a question, please raise your hand.”

Every hand in the classroom went up.

WHAT IF a tragedy had happened before NRC found Yuu (Warning: Mentions of torture, described violence against Death Eaters)

Voldemort's followers ran throughout the grounds of the Albanian estate they’d been using as a base since the Triwizard Tournament, panicking.

Everything had been going as planned. The Potter boy had taken the cup, the spare had been taken care of quickly, and their Lord had been resurrected. The ritual had gone perfectly. He had returned.

The Potter boy had only escaped by the skin of his teeth, and while their Lord had been furious at that fact, the events of the tournament had been an overall win for the Death Eaters. The return of Lord Voldemort had served as a great motivator to their forces, with more recruits flooding in each day.

Things had started going wrong, Peter figured, when they had taken the girl.

With his body renewed and their numbers swelling, they’d felt confident enough to pursue some side objectives.

One of those objectives was the girl. Dumbledore, according to Snape, believed she might possess knowledge of the future. A Seer. She knew things she shouldn’t have and claimed to be from another world.

Their Lord had been intrigued at first—and only grew more interested as the year wore on and Snape sent back more reports on her actions and her so-called “sight.”

With their recent victory, the decision had been made to push their advantage. During the last Hogsmeade trip of the year, Peter had waited. As the girl walked by, he stunned her, hauled her away, and apparated before anyone realized what had happened.

Dumbledore must not have expected them to be so bold—to leave the girl so unguarded. Or perhaps he simply hadn’t believed her. Either way, she was now in their hands.

At first, she had refused to speak. She’d proven remarkably resistant to the Imperius Curse. Every time they tried—even the Dark Lord himself—her eyes would flare a ruby red, and the control would shatter instantly. Legilimency fared no better.

So they had resorted to torture.

At first, the Cruciatus Curse. When that didn’t work, they let Bellatrix have her.

The terrifying woman had giggled, skipping into the room like she was still at Hogwarts, carrying a trunk of what she called “Black family heirlooms.”

The screams that began echoing from that room each night had frightened even Peter, and he felt a flicker of pity for the girl.

No one should have to go through the things Bellatrix was putting her through.

It wasn’t enough to make him help, though. Peter was too scared, too much of a coward.

The girl should have just given in at the start.

At least then she would have died quickly.

It continued like that for a while. Even Bellatrix was growing frustrated, and the Dark Lord was losing patience.

Then, one night, there was a sound—like glass shattering—and Yaxley came running into the common room, yelling about intruders “coming from the mirror.”

The wall exploded shortly after, and for a moment, the world was smoke and rubble.

Peter found himself lying next to the dungeon door, which hung ajar.

He wondered, briefly, if the girl had somehow escaped.

But then a figure appeared.

For a second, he thought it was James—come to take him to the grave. But as the dust cleared, he saw the differences.

The figure was tall—taller than anyone Peter knew besides Hagrid. Green eyes. Black hair.

That’s where the resemblance to James ended.

His horns scraped against the ceiling. His eyes were reptilian, cold. They were locked on the small figure in his arms.

Peter realized it was the girl, wrapped in a thick blanket. She trembled every few seconds, then went still again.

The man blinked down at her, then opened his mouth. Peter couldn’t hear what was said, but another figure appeared—smaller, with red eyes and pink hair. They wore a wicked smile, but it wasn’t happy.

The smaller figure took one look at the girl and twisted their face into something indescribable. Rage. Fury. Grief.

They spoke quickly. The smaller one nodded, and the taller man turned, adjusting the bundle in his arms before stepping forward.

Peter managed to hear only a single sentence before the man vanished with the girl in his arms.

“Leave nothing standing.”

The red-eyed boy nodded.

The taller vanished.

Then—chaos.

Peter wasn’t sure where he had ended up, but the constant noise of destruction echoed throughout the grounds. In the distance, he could see what had once been the greenhouses—now seemingly reduced to dust—as a viscous sandstorm whirled through the area. Any Death Eater unlucky enough to be enveloped screamed briefly, then fell silent.

They didn’t come back out.

Oddly enough, on occasion, some of his allies seemed to just... walk into it.

Behind him, he could hear smashing noises, and Peter had to dive out of the way—shifting into Wormtail as he did—to avoid a massive cauldron crashing into where he had just stood. There were yells behind him, and Wormtail risked a glance back, only to balk as a shrill cry pierced the air.

“Off with your head!”

There was a crunching noise, and a scream that sounded like Greyback.

Peter scuttled forward, ignoring the running Death Eaters diving out of the third floor, soaking wet and screaming of sea monsters and krakens. He couldn’t help but witness another Death Eater run up to them, face blank, eyes glowing red, before he started attacking his own comrades.

If he could just get to the Dark Lord, he would be safe.

Getting deeper into the house, Peter became immensely grateful for his Animagus form when he came across a group of Death Eaters attempting to make a stand. A beam of pure blue light—so intense it seared his eyes—drew across the room, bisecting the walls and everyone in it.

The very foundation of the building seemed to be rotting and crumbling away as he scampered, aging hundreds of years in mere seconds. Another masked Death Eater came running into the room, screaming, before he crumpled much the same way. The noise was cut off when an arrow buried itself in the man’s back, sending him to the ground and nearly crushing Peter.

But that didn’t matter. He was nearly there.

Peter dove through the door, still in his rat form, entering the room where his master was staying. He didn’t bother changing back—just looked up and around.

Only to be snagged by the tail and lifted into the air.

It was the same boy from earlier—the one with red eyes and pink-streaked hair.

He gave Peter an unkind smile.

“And this must be the one who kidnapped the dear child~” he cooed in a voice far too deep for his figure.

Over the boy’s shoulder, Peter could see his master—crumpled on the bed, tied up, with two other boys standing over him. But it seemed he was alive.

“You know,” the thing—because that’s what he was, Peter could see the sharp-tipped ears now—continued, “I could just kill you now, but I’m in a poor mood.”

The man turned around, still carrying Peter. No matter how much Peter struggled, he couldn’t seem to change back.

“Perhaps I’ll give you to Dire. That man was quite put out that he wasn’t able to come. Even offered me a favor in exchange for bringing him back a few of you to exact his own vengeance.”

Peter was dropped into a small jar that was quickly sealed.

“He wanted multiple… but I wonder if he’d take you instead?” the man finished, giving the jar a decidedly unkind smile before tucking it away into a bag—bathing Peter’s world in darkness.

Chapter Text

What if Yuu arrived much earlier in the timeline

According to Idia, the portal and its destination were ‘out of sync,’ so their “spawn location” would be sporadic, and they would arrive at different times.

His fellow member of the Board Games Club was looking more harried than usual when he explained this to them, but what most impressed Azul was how steady Idia’s voice was when addressing the simultaneously best and worst NRC had to offer.

They’d each filed in, sorted by dorm, one after another. It had been a quiet but hurried affair overseen by both the Headmaster and Professor Crewel. As Azul followed Jade and Floyd, he offered Idia a nod. He’d repay this later.

Entering the portal was an altogether unpleasant experience, though not unbearable. It reminded Azul of the first time he had come onto land and taken the transportation potion. He couldn’t see anything, but in that moment of pause, everything felt off and wrong.

Then he landed, tumbling head over heels and landing roughly onto cold tile. He scrambled to his feet and braced himself, trying to find his balance and will the nausea in his stomach to disappear. After a minute, Azul stood fully and took in his surroundings.

Of all things, it seemed he had landed in some type of washroom, given the wall of stalls, showers, and the sinks behind him. A bit more study showed the mirror behind him retained a shimmer of rainbow hue, similar to the gateway he had entered.

A residual effect, perhaps.

Regardless, the location Azul had arrived in ultimately did not matter.

Checking his phone, Azul noted that none of the others had sent an alert indicating their arrival. He figured he was either the first to arrive or the others had chosen to get a head start by neglecting to notify the rest. He typed up a quick message and sent it.

Trying to steal the lead when you were all working toward the same goal was silly, after all.

While he was on his phone, he also made sure to send a private message to Yuu, although Magicam listed her as offline at the moment.

It was hard to describe the relief they’d felt when Idia managed to identify the signal of the directing student’s phone. Unfortunately, they were unable to stabilize the signal enough to send messages across. Now that he was in closer proximity, however, Azul could clearly see the small “sent” symbol underneath his message.

Another beneficial side effect of finally being in the right world was that they could utilize the program that indolent Leona had snuck onto the directing student’s phone, functioning as a tracking device.

Despite how infuriating that man was, there was definitely some humor in the fact that he was keeping track of Yuu using a child monitoring app of all things.

Clicking through his phone, Azul found the modified program Idia had sent to each of them. After a minute of load time, a small grid appeared. A blue circle represented his location.

And a blinking red dot represented their target.

After making sure he still had everything and checking himself in the mirror, Azul peeked out into the hallway.

It was quiet. The hallway was dimly lit by torches, and Azul couldn’t see a single person. Stepping out, he approached a nearby window.

The thick layer of snow on the ground and the milky white moon in the sky confirmed his thoughts.

Azul had arrived sometime during the night, or late evening.

Backing away and holding his phone out in front of him, Azul began following the symbol, guided by a map Jamil-kun had provided—copies from Yuu’s school supplies—and his phone.

The castle was quiet and, despite the snow outside, slightly too warm for Azul’s tastes. From what he gathered from the map, he’d ended up on the third-floor bathroom. He had so far come down two flights of stairs, nearly dying on the second.

How Yuu could stand the aesthetic of this place, he didn’t understand. It was a bit too arrogant for Azul’s taste.

She was much happier in Monstro Lounge, especially since they had gotten the youngest member of their group her own uniform, complete with a hat and everything.

In this wide open area, she must feel like a small fish in the open sea.

Azul was practically doing her a mercy by rescuing her from here. And when they got back, he wasn’t letting her go unaccompanied, ever.

The Octo-mer felt his glare darken briefly.

Floyd had been all for letting her have personal freedoms, figuring there was nowhere she could run from them.

Now though...

They were in complete agreement. A united front.

In complete honesty, Azul was on the verge of asking Grandmother for a more permanent solution.

He’d decide after he heard what Yuu had to say.

When they were back in Twisted Wonderland.

Breaking free from his thoughts, Azul couldn’t help the short chuckle that escaped him. If he was reading both the map and the tracker correctly, he had a very solid idea of what part of the castle she was in.

Of course their shrimp would be in the library.

Taking a few more turns, Azul was only a few corners away from his destination when he heard voices.

Another corner was rounded, and Azul was met with the first signs of life he had seen in the castle so far.

Outside the grand doors that led to, he assumed, the library—and to the room where Yuu resided—stood two people.

Both had dark hair, nearly black, and were roughly the same height as Jade and Floyd.

That was, however, where the similarities ended.
The one on the left, wearing rounded glasses and carrying a large bag beside him, was significantly more heavyset. Even through the loose robes, his form showed signs of muscle beyond what was normal for a student—it reminded Azul of Jack, the one Yuu often hung around. His hair was messy in a way that irritated Azul for how good it looked, and he had a slightly tan complexion.

The other was thinner, with incredibly dark hair that reminded Azul of Yuu’s. His skin was pale, and while he lacked the muscle mass of his companion, there was a sense of nobility in his features that reminded Azul of Malleus—but there was also a spark in his eyes that called to the same madness that thrummed beneath Riddle’s smile.

The moment Azul turned the corner, the two stopped whatever conversation they were having and whipped their heads around to stare at him.

Putting on his best smile, Azul raised a hand in greeting.

“Hello! My greatest apologies for interrupting. I was just heading to the library for some late studying. If you two could step aside…” Azul’s tone was kind, businesslike.

The two didn’t move, instead studying him intently. Azul felt his smile tighten. He didn’t have the time nor the patience for a delay.

Before he could ask again, the smaller of the two spoke.

“You wouldn’t happen to be one Azul Ashengrotto, would you?”
The boy’s voice was soft, polite, but there was an undercurrent of certainty, anger, and oddly enough—dread.

Azul raised a brow. How would he know that?

“I am,” Azul said smoothly. “May I ask who I have the pleasure of addressing?”

“Orion Black.” The name meant nothing to Azul, but the way the boy said it made it clear he expected recognition.

Orion turned to his companion.
“Keep him here. I’ll let them know.”

Azul’s smile froze as the boy slipped into the library. Something was going on.

When he tried to follow, the remaining student stepped in front of him—just like Jade or Floyd might when they were protecting something.

“Whoa, let’s hold on a bit, guy. I can’t let you go in there yet.”
The boy gave him what might have been meant as a kind smile.

Azul’s own expression turned sharp.
“And why, exactly, should I wait? I’m on a schedule, you see.” His voice was calm, but there was a dangerous edge to it now.

“Because when you’re a guest in someone else’s house,” the boy said, voice turning flinty, “you abide by their rules.”

Ah. So that was how it was.

“It seems we have an unfortunate breakdown in negotiations. What a shame. I had promised my dear friend I’d be more diplomatic.”
Azul’s pen slipped into his hand, and the other boy raised his wand in kind.

“Would you two quiet down? We can hear you inside,” came a new voice, sharp and irritated.

The library doors opened again, and out stepped another boy—taller, annoyingly handsome in that polished RSA way. He had carefully combed dark brown hair and slate-blue eyes that were filled with long-suffering frustration.

“Potter, head back to your dorm. Help the others. I’ll speak with our guest.”

Potter—Azul now had a name for the brawler in front of him—bristled at the tone.

“Don’t suppose to order me, Slytherin. I still can’t stand you, and I don’t understand how she can either.”

The handsome boy twitched but kept his mask mostly intact.

“Regardless of your opinion of me, Gryffindor, if you know who this is, then you know what’s coming. Where there’s one, there’s more. Let me deal with this. You leave and get the others.”

The emphasis on the last part of that statement made Potter grimace, but after a beat, he relented and stepped away.

“You’d better not mess this up,” he muttered as he walked off.

Azul was officially done with this delay.

He checked his phone again—the red dot was moving, but this was still the only exit. Sooner or later, Yuu would come through those doors.

Still, the wait was souring his mood.

“I’d like to know why you all insisted on delaying me. I have something to retrieve—and you’re in the way.” His voice had gone flat.

The new boy didn’t seem fazed.

“You’re speaking of Ms. Yuu, correct?”

The use of her name gave Azul pause. Of course she would meet people here. Of course others would be protective of her.

Still, there was something in the way he said it that set Azul’s teeth on edge. Something too familiar.

“Yes,” Azul replied. “That is precisely who I speak of. You know her?”

The other nodded.

“I presume you’re here to retrieve her. Bring her back to Night Raven Academy.”

There it was again—that same cool, polite, contempt-laced cadence Azul had mastered years ago.

“Of course. Ms. Yuu has yet to complete her education, and besides that, she is a valued employee of the Monstro Lounge. She has outstanding contracts to fulfill.”

The boy nodded like he had expected it.

“I’ve heard of you. Dormhead of Octavinelle. Owner of Monstro Lounge.” Azul inclined his head slightly, a small smile returning.

“And the one who nearly killed her during your temper tantrum.”

The smile shattered.

“Excuse me?” Azul ground out.

The boy nodded, expression quite serious.

“Yuu spoke about all of you—nothing bad, of course,” the boy began. “She was shy at first, but with some pressing, she was quite happy to talk about her dear friends from NRC. The seven dorms, the crazy adventures…”

His smile took on a sharper edge.

“But here at Hogwarts, we understand how to read between the lines, you see. She didn’t dare say anything negative, and she got quite flustered when anyone suggested it, but we understood.”

“Nearly getting killed by a rage-filled child with mommy issues. A spoiled royal who can’t handle a life of luxury. A greedy sea creature with delusions of grandeur—” Azul felt his hands clench. “—a traitorous, two-faced servant. A vain movie star lacking any real empathy. A failure of a sibling. And an obsessive mess of a prince.” The boy’s voice and smile were cruel as he spoke, and for the first time ever, Azul felt the urge to defend his fellow students.

“If you know so much,” Azul began, putting weight on the if, “then you must understand there were extenuating circumstances. Besides—” Azul’s own face curled into a sharp grin worthy of a deep-sea monster, “from what we’ve heard, this world hasn’t treated her the kindest either.”

“A circumstance we are already correcting,” the boy replied smoothly. “Regardless, I came to discuss your current course of action. It would be in the best interest of both your lot and Yuu if you turned back now and forgot about her. She’s in better hands here.”

Azul stilled.

So that was what this was about.

This was familiar territory, then.

“My dear sir,” the Octo-mer took a step forward, getting into the boy’s space with a wide smile, “you seem quite confused, with the nonsense you’re spouting. Care to repeat yourself?”

The other didn’t react to Azul’s movement, beyond a slow blink that reminded him of a snake.

“I’m saying that Yuu is better off here, at Hogwarts, among her own kind. Rather than with a bunch of needy teenagers who can’t prevent a single girl from nearly getting herself killed on a monthly basis.”

The boy—Slytherin, the other one had called him—gave Azul a patronizing smile.

“You must understand, it’s for the best. Yuu described you as incredibly intelligent, after all.”

“I’m afraid,” Azul began, his business smile slipping easily back into place—the familiar debate helping him regain his footing, “that you understand nothing. Perhaps we should let our mutual friend decide. How about you step aside so we can speak with her?”

The boy’s expression soured, and he straightened his back. For the first time, Azul saw a glimpse of the monster hiding in the other’s stomach.

“It seems then,” the boy said, “we are at odds.” He gave Azul a pitying look. Azul wasn’t intimidated—he was certain he was faster and stronger, and from this distance, he could react before the other drew his wand.

“It seems so. Out of consideration for our shared friendship with Yuu, I’ll offer you one more chance to move aside—in my own infinite mercy,” Azul replied, maliciously hoping the other would refuse. It had been a stressful few weeks searching for Yuu. This might be a good outlet.

The other boy didn’t flinch. Instead, with a slow-moving hand, he pointed down the hall. Azul followed his gesture.

Another group of older Hogwarts students had gathered at the far end of the corridor—at least six of them, led by that boy from earlier. Potter.

Azul’s face went flat. He looked from the group back to the handsome boy.

The boy only smiled wider.

“As Yuu’s kind upperclassmen, it falls to us to protect her well-being. She’s been miserable for months, and we’ve just started to help her improve. Seeing you again could set us back.”

Azul swore he saw the flicker of familiar malice behind that pleasant smile.

The group fanned out, mostly boys, but there were two girls—one of whom looked suspiciously like the student who had entered the library earlier. Most already had wands in hand.

“So, what’s the plan then?” Azul asked. “Just get rid of me? Pretend I never appeared?”

The boy paused, then nodded.

“Exactly, actually. You may just be as smart as she claimed.”

Azul felt his anger simmer, ready to snap—he was about to drop his transformation, to really begin taking this seriously—when—

Vrrrrr.

Azul froze.

Then smiled.

Slowly, carefully, he reached into his pocket and withdrew his phone.

The screen showed a notification. A message. A response.

Azul looked back up at the boy, his smile wide and smug.

“What is that?” one of the students asked, sounding more curious than alarmed.

“But what if she already knows?” Azul asked, typing quickly as the others watched.

“What?”

There was a commotion from the library behind him, followed by raised voices and rapid footsteps.

The doors burst open.

Yuu flew out.

She looked different—wearing a female uniform now, with slight rings under her eyes, her hair longer—but it was Yuu.

She nearly tripped over the doorframe in her hurry. The older boy—Tom, Azul now had a name—reached out and steadied her, his expression twisting into a frown.

“Careful, Yuu,” he scolded gently, one arm still around her, even as he glared over her head toward Orion, who came rushing after her. Evidently, this wasn’t supposed to happen until Azul had been dealt with.

“Sorry, Tom-senpai, but look!” Yuu grinned, lifting her phone triumphantly to show him the screen. “Azul-senpai messaged me! He said he’s here!”

Azul cleared his throat loudly, making sure the entire hall heard.

Yuu’s head whipped toward him, and her eyes widened.

“Azul-senpai!”

She shot forward. Azul let out a small grunt as her arms wrapped tightly around his waist, and he felt wet spots form through his shirt as she trembled.

“I missed you…” came her muffled voice.

Azul patted her back and did his best not to let her see the wide smile he was shooting at those around them.

“Yes, yes, I know. How couldn’t you miss me?” Azul bragged lightly, even as he privately drank in the contact. It had been too long—and with just him here, there wasn’t any Jade or Floyd to interrupt or embarrass him.

But there was…

“I see you’ve been busy, though. What did we say about your beast-taming habits, Yuu? How about you introduce me to your new friends.” He drew out the word, the heavy implication hanging in the air and causing the Hogwarts students nearby to stiffen and glare.

“Oh! Yeah.” She pulled away slightly—but, much to his pleasure, didn’t let go of his hand. Instead, she pulled him along up to the handsome teen.

“Azul-senpai, this is Tom Riddle. Tom-senpai, this is Azul Ashengrotto—you know, like I told you!” The way she introduced them, it was like she was honored to be the bridge between the two. Any other time, Azul—and likely the other boy, Tom—would be flattered to hear it.

Right now, though, the two were too busy not-smiling at each other.

Azul moved first.

“A pleasure to meet you, Riddle-san. Thank you for taking care of Yuu until I was able to arrive.” Azul greeted him with a wide smile as he swung their connected hands back and forth ever so slightly.

Tom grit his teeth lightly before reaching down and grabbing Yuu’s other hand.

“It’s always a pleasure to meet Yuu’s previous friends. Please feel free to visit Hogwarts for as long as you like.”

Yuu looked back and forth between her two friends, holding both their hands and looking utterly thrilled, eyes still slightly wet.

Meanwhile, she was blissfully oblivious to the new war that was starting.

Neither Hogwarts nor Night Raven Academy would ever be the same.

What if Yuu attempted an Animagus transformation

As Dumbledore led Professor Crowley through the school, there was a faint air of tension between the two headmasters.

Dire Crowley had arrived at the school no less than three hours ago, and upon his arrival, the man had begun scouring the castle for his wayward Child Directing student. However, she had not been in the library.

The younger student he had met there—after insulting Crowley’s fashion sense, physique, and ancestry—was at least able to direct him toward the infirmary wing. Apparently, the young man had met Yuu and said she was currently there.

Further interrogation yielded no more answers before the other headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, appeared.

The older man had whisked him away, and upon prompting, began leading Crowley to the infirmary. Sure, Crowley may have implied guardianship of Ms. Yuu—but it was an emergency, and only a matter of time anyway.

“So you are saying she had some sort of Alchemy accident?” Crowley queried, keeping pace with the other headmaster as they moved through the halls, ignoring the stares of Hogwarts students around them.

Headmaster Dumbledore seemed to mull over the question for a moment.

“Not quite Alchemy, Mr. Crowley. It was more ritual magic than anything, though it did stem from a potion,” the wizard replied, nodding politely to his Charms professor as they passed.

“And where was your staff at this time?”

Dumbledore didn’t flinch at the accusatory tone.

“It was not a school-sanctioned project. Ms. Yuu was attempting—or rather, I suppose, successfully attempted—a ritual usually reserved for individuals who have already graduated. She is currently dealing with the temporary aftereffects in our infirmary.”

Crowley had to stop himself from preening slightly.

Always exceeding expectations, his Child Directing student was. Regardless, these aftereffects...

“Nothing serious—simply some minor nausea, fatigue, and temporary bodily transformation,” Dumbledore preempted his next question.

Crowley was nodding along with each symptom but froze at the last one.

Dumbledore gave the other headmaster a faintly amused look.

“I suppose you may not have Animagus transformation in your world, then. Or perhaps it goes by a different name.”

“Perhaps you could illuminate me as to what exactly you mean by it, Mr. Dumbledore,” Crowley responded, unamused.

All he received was a smirk and twinkling eyes from the old man. How irritating.

Was this what it felt like to be on the other end of his schemes?

How annoying.

“I think, Mr. Crowley, it may be best for you to see, rather than I explain.”

Crowley opened his mouth to protest but was cut off once more by Dumbledore.

“Ah, here we are. The infirmary. Follow me, please—we must let Poppy know before seeing any patients.”

Crowley followed, a distinctly unhappy air about him. Dumbledore took his time chatting with the school nurse, but seemed to take far too much pleasure in discussing everything except the patient—from how her day was going to her thoughts on the recent Quidditch match.

By the end, Crowley was nearly ready to bypass the older man entirely.

Eventually, however, Dumbledore did wrap up the conversation, and they were led to a specific bed with its curtains drawn.

Dumbledore and the matron stopped a few feet away and gestured him forward.

“Go on,” Dumbledore said, “We’ll wait here while you two have your reunion.”

Crowley glanced back at them, feeling—strangely—awkward. Still, he had a child to check on.

Stepping toward the curtain, Crowley raised a hand but hesitated.

“Yuu, it’s your ever-generous Headmaster. Are you decent?” he called out, slightly apprehensive. He didn’t even know if she was awake.

There was a faint rustling sound… and then, oddly enough, a quiet coo.

Crowley turned back toward the other two staff members, who were now clearly restraining their amusement.

He’d have to get them back later. Perhaps something with paint. Or glitter. Either way, he was delaying.

Reaching forward, Crowley slowly—gently—pushed the curtain aside.

And blinked.

On the bed, rather than the young girl he had come to appreciate and cherish, there was… a bird.

A small, black dove, to be precise.

It sat perched on a pillow in the center of the bed. It appeared young, and its puffed-up feathers gave it an exceptionally fluffy look.

It was also staring directly at him, with bright, pale blue eyes.

Familiar eyes.

“Yuu?” Crowley breathed in confusion.

The bird gave a quiet coo, before looking to the side in apparent embarrassment.

Crowley couldn’t quite help the incredulous laugh that rose in his throat.

The child he had intended to adopt—the one he thought so perfect and extraordinary...

Now able to turn into a black bird.

The irony was nearly enough to make him cackle.

Reaching forward, Crowley carefully—ever so gently—slipped his hand beneath the dove. She let him, willingly stepping into his hands. As if he couldn’t easily clench his hand and crush her.

Dire Crowley turned around, ever so slowly, the tiny form of his student cupped in his hands.

“Headmaster Dumbledore,” he began, “what exactly is an Animagus?”

The wizard looked like he was about to start chuckling, and the nurse did nothing to hide her mirth, giggling lightly to herself at the sight.

“Headmaster Crowley, I’m glad you asked. It is when a witch or wizard goes through a process to give themselves the ability to transform into a specific animal.”

The tiny bird in his hands nodded in agreement.

“And how is the animal chosen?” he asked, needing to know if she had selected this form intentionally—or if it had simply been meant to be.

Dumbledore hummed thoughtfully before answering.

“That is, admittedly, a widely debated topic. If you ask some, they’ll say the result is entirely random. Others will claim it is the shape of an individual’s soul that determines it.” The elderly headmaster clasped his hands behind his back.

“I am personally of the latter opinion. Magic rarely acts without purpose—especially something as intertwined with a person’s essence as an Animagus transformation.”

Crowley nodded slowly.

“Okay,” he said simply.

The small bird cooed in curiosity as he gently set her back down on the bed. Yuu had known the Fae long enough to understand: nothing he did was ever simple.

“Would you two mind giving us the room? I’d like to have a private conversation with my dear student,” Crowley requested. “On the irresponsibility of undertaking such a ritual, and so on,” he added, waving a hand vaguely.

Dumbledore nodded in understanding, and both he and Madame Pomfrey exited the room without protest.

Turning back toward the bed, Crowley met the dove’s pale blue eyes—her head tilted in curiosity.

The Raven Fae took a deep breath, cast a glance around the room… and sat beside her.

The next moment, in a twist of feathers and a ripple of shadows, the humanoid form of Dire Crowley was gone.

The light from the window dimmed. Shadows deepened. The space warped slightly at the edges of vision.

Perched on the bed, beside the small form of Yuu, sat a raven.

But not a normal bird—this one stood nearly two feet tall, its feathers bleeding shadow and absorbing light, its wings warped into elegant but incomprehensible shapes that bent space as much as air.

This was the true form of the Raven Fae: Dire Crowley.

Yuu stared—flabbergasted, confused...

But not afraid.

Despite her own vulnerability—despite Crowley’s eldritch shape and unnatural size—she didn’t even flinch.

Instead, with unsteady, unfamiliar legs, the little dove hopped forward and chirped up at the looming raven.

Dire Crowley looked down at her—his student, his would-be daughter—and gave what could only be described as a smile, for something with a beak.

Shuffling forward, he gently tucked Yuu’s smaller form beneath his wing, nestling her close.

She barely reacted—beyond blinking at the unfamiliar warmth—utterly comfortable despite the strangeness.

“Yuu,” Crowley spoke, his voice resonating in the language of Fae and Avians—tones that were felt more than heard.

The dove twitched, and her head shot up toward him.

“Headmaster?!” she responded in kind, the same melodic, foreign cadence emerging from her tiny beak.

Crowley shifted slightly, adjusting his posture to accommodate her movement.

“You are incredible, you know that? How do you keep becoming more and more perfect?” he lamented, flaring one wing dramatically. “It’s like you’re trying to give your poor Headmaster a heart attack.”

“Thank you for the compliment, but how are you doing this, Headmaster? Are you an Animagus too?” she asked, ever the curious soul.

He huffed, a puff of shadow curling out with the breath.

“Something like that, Yuu,” he admitted. “But before we get into that, there’s something else I’ve been meaning to ask you—a proposition regarding your guardianship back in Twisted Wonderland.”

Chapter Text

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

As he worked, he took the time to study his hands. Left, then right.

The damage, in truth, was more cosmetic than it was detrimental to their function. He had slight difficulty closing his left hand, but aside from mild irritation, that was it. Much of the extra flesh had vanished, but numerous small bulbs still remained, scattered across his arms, palms, and fingers.

Larger than regular warts, they more closely resembled goose eggs or swellings. The look didn’t bother him so much as what they represented.

A loss.

He’d managed to make a permanent mark on his body—and suffered no consequences.

Grinnel felt his anger rise again and took a deep breath in an effort to calm himself. He couldn’t afford to get distracted right now. A wrong look could leave him stuck down here.

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

The twelve-year-old Hufflepuff, after some research, was relatively certain he understood what had happened.

“Potion corruption,” according to Madame Pomfrey. It took some reading and a quick swipe of an upperclassman’s textbook, but he’d figured it out.

Pickled snakeskin—small, easy to get. Frankly, Grinnel himself could make some with enough time and a jar.

Also incredibly difficult to use correctly. It only reacted so dramatically with the wart removal potion because of the numerous herbal ingredients used in that potion specifically. The only one with that volume.

Ben had known.

Ben had planned this.

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

Grinnel’s frown deepened as he reached up and, not minding the viscera it lightly smeared across his face, wiped at his eyes underneath the protective goggles.

These were his own personal pair, ones he’d brought from home after first year.

Professor Snape had made him take them off the first day he wore them to class—said they weren’t on the list.

Still, they’d come in useful more times than expected, and even now, enchanted to be opaque, they were of more use than Professor Snape had ever been.

His knife caught on something. Grinnel withdrew it quickly, swapping it for his wand.

“Diffindo.”

Back to cutting the old-fashioned way.

He’d had to bring down a couple of boxes he'd shrunk, a small step ladder from the library, and a few other things, but he’d made his little hideout into a workable lab. The tunnels led all across Hogwarts. His half-completed map of them rested on the workbench down below.

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

Ben didn’t matter anymore.

They weren’t friends. Frankly, Grinnel wasn’t sure they ever were.

According to Mum, friends were people who stuck by you in rough times and smacked you over the head when you were being stupid.

Except Ben hadn’t stuck by him. And smacking the other boy in the head hadn’t worked.

And now he was alone, and that was fine!

It was, truly. Grinnel didn’t want to be friends with any of them. They weren’t reliable enough. Too scared of the rules, of being punished, terrified of risks, and of danger...

Terrified of being seen interacting with those beneath them.

The other Hogwarts students let others define them. They avoided him because of it. Pureblood, Half-blood, Mudblood—all these names. They had magic.

Yet everyone was stuck in their little boxes.

It frustrated him to bits.

It made him want to hit something.

But he didn’t.

Professor Sprout had pulled him aside and told him he needed to work harder to connect with his housemates—and that if he ever needed anything, he could always come to her.

He had nodded at the time, not trusting himself to speak.

Grinnel had always been pants at lying.

No one at Hogwarts was worth making friends with, so he wouldn’t bother. He would do just fine on his own. He’d done so on the farm when Mum homeschooled him, and he’d do so now.

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

Nearly done now. Ulnferth was hissing nearby. His partner had taken to exploring the tunnels, delighting in the humid caves and ample vermin to serve as prey.

Well... maybe not his only friend.

Grinnel’s eyes drifted to the strange girl who had begun bothering him. Yuu.

He felt himself blush slightly—her and those strange friends of hers. All of them were ridiculous. Completely and utterly.

Heat intensified in his cheeks.

Normal people weren’t that attractive—the way they acted, those eyes. Riddle’s face came to mind when the older boy had shown him how to use that odd camera of his. How close he’d been.

Grinnel shook his head, as if trying to toss the thoughts away.

It wasn’t just that they were good-looking.

Normal people also didn’t have razor-sharp teeth, fire coming out of their bodies, and eyes and hair in those unnatural shades.

Still though, Yuu didn’t seem to want to tell him anything, so he didn’t care.

He’d figure out who they were himself.

Despite his burning cheeks, a grin stretched across Grinnel’s face—one he made sure not to show in front of others.

He loved abnormal things. They were the most fun to study—and pull apart. He always learned something new.

Speaking of which...

Lift, cut, inspect, cut, remove.

Done.

Carefully, ever so carefully—now that all six muscles holding it in place had been severed—Grinnel reached in and lifted the large orb out of its housing, making sure his goggles didn’t slip.

He made his way down the ladder slowly. Once at the bottom rung, he headed over to the small table made of boxes, a large mixing bowl he’d stolen from the kitchen placed on top.

Grunting, Grinnel lifted it and dropped the dripping, soft, watermelon-sized sphere into the bowl.

A quiet Augmenti cleaned off his hands, and Grinnel flicked open the book beside it. It took a while to find the right spell, but he had.

In, of all places, a book on clockmaking.

They’d used the spell to create the parts they needed at a large size, then shrunk them down afterward.

It wasn’t even in the restricted section; it had been in the history section of all places. A shrinking spell that only worked on inanimate matter.

“Reducio Morta.”

The sphere shrank, going from taking up the entirety of the large mixing bowl, down to the size of a football, then a baseball, before finally settling slightly smaller than a ping-pong ball. Grinnel kept his wand pointed at the object throughout the process. There was a squealing sound as mass vanished into thin air.

He gave it a moment after the spell, supervising, waiting to see if the charm would fail.

He had only tested this on plants before today. None of them had returned to their original size, even after he tested the counter-curse. After a minute (he timed it), he tried the counter-curse here.

“Finite Incantatem.”

Nothing—not even a twitch.

Grinnel couldn’t help but feel a bit giddy. Time for part two.

Carefully, but quickly, Grinnel lifted the mixing bowl and brought it closer to his cauldron. With a long-handled ladle, also borrowed from the kitchens, the young Hufflepuff began spooning in the liquid. The orb was covered up, but even to the naked eye, he could see the level lowering as the liquid disappeared—being absorbed into the object.

He moved faster, eventually emptying the much larger cauldron. The potion was now about an inch from the rim of the mixing bowl, but that distance was growing steadily as more and more of the iridescent red liquid disappeared.

Carefully, making sure his goggles were in place, he reached into the bowl. Without looking, he felt around until his hand came in contact with the object.

No longer cold—now it was quite warm, a result of the potion—and pulsing slightly. He could still feel deep gashes in it though, and without those fixed, he’d simply be downgrading.

With a gentle hand, he moved the object into the waiting ceramic jar and dropped the object in. Then, without looking in, he pointed his wand after it.

“Vulnera Sanentur.”

After a moment of silence, he reached his hand back into the jar and felt the orb again. Carefully grasping around where once there were deep grooves, now it felt quite smooth.

Grinnel took a deep breath before sitting down in the chair he had brought in.

It was time for the hard part. Also illegal—but mostly it would be difficult.

He reviewed the open medi-witch spellbook lying on the bench beside him. Numbing spell first then.

“Torpor Venae.”

Immediately, feeling was lost in the targeted area. It was a sensation odd enough to nearly cause him to drop his wand.

Nearly.

Fumbling slightly, Grinnel flipped to the next marked page. A grin grew on his face.

Raising his wand up again, the boy took a deep breath.

“Exuro Corpus.”

And Grinnel O’Ryan screamed.

Yuu left the Charms classroom nearly running, her arms wrapped around a grumpy-looking Grim. Ortho flew alongside her, and Idia followed with long strides, doing his best to keep up.

Yuu had been in her last period class, trying to figure out how she could help Eucalyptus. She had never been the best at dealing with bullying herself, when her phone vibrated. Yuu hadn’t dared check it during class, despite how much she desperately wanted to. Thankfully, Ortho was amazing and had cheerfully informed her that she’d received a private message from Ace:

Where are you? We’re here.

Ortho had offered to reply for her if she wanted.

The implications were clear: the rest of NRC had arrived.

She had, for once, desperately wanted to run out of class, but Yuu held herself back. Instead, she asked Ortho to respond and tell them to wait in the library.

Ortho had cheerfully agreed, and there was a quiet typing sound that emitted from the floating boy.

It took her a moment to realize he was using a typing sound effect.

After about half a minute, Ortho let her know he had sent the message.

Upon confirmation, her phone immediately began vibrating again—this time not stopping after a single message.

Ortho had simply smiled at her and said she should focus on the lesson.

Yuu did—pouting slightly.

But it was alright now. The library was only about a five-minute walk away, and Yuu was practically running.

Entering the high-ceilinged corridors characteristic of the library wing, Yuu turned a corner—only to find herself face to face with a wide-eyed Eucalyptus.

She couldn’t stop herself and ran right into him.

The witch and wizard collapsed in a groaning pile on the floor, Ortho floating merrily next to them as Idia caught up, wheezing slightly and propping himself against a nearby wall.

“Since when,” he paused to take a large gasp of air, “did you put any points into STR? Whatever happened to INT character solidarity?”

Yuu couldn’t contain her happiness. She sprang up, dragging Eucalyptus with her. Grim had been thrown in the chaos and ended up in Eucalyptus’s arms.

“Ever since Jack started making me actually run in the morning!” she grinned, swinging the hand now firmly grasping Eucalyptus’s back and forth.

She turned toward the younger boy, who was frantically fixing his hair. After a moment, he met her gaze. His hair obscured most of his face from the fall, and only one eye was visible.

“Where the hell are you going in such a hurry?” he grunted, sounding surlier than usual.

Yuu beamed at him regardless.

“Hey, more of my friends arrived just now! Wanna meet them?”

The younger boy looked slightly tired, dark rings under his visible eye. Still, he glanced down at Grim, who seemed to understand the silent question and nodded back.

“Ace and Deuce are okay. The rest are annoying, though.” Grim seemed oddly comfortable in the younger boy’s arms but leapt back down to walk beside them when offered.

Idia snorted at the answer, though Yuu didn’t know why.

With confirmation from his apparent best source, Eucalyptus nodded at Yuu’s question.

“Sure. I needed to go to the library anyway,” the younger boy shrugged, gesturing lightly at his book bag, which held two large tomes. “I’m just about finished with these.”

Feeling a bit mischievous, Yuu leaned forward.

“They’re also really good-looking,” she whispered.

Her underclassman’s eye widened, and his cheeks reddened slightly.

Eucalyptus turned away suddenly and, without letting go of their linked hands, began marching toward the library—pointedly not looking at any of them.

Yuu allowed it with a smile, reaching out as she went and snagging Ortho’s hand, who in turn snagged his brother’s.

She couldn’t wait.

Ace Trappola had been feeling guilty ever since the incident.

It was an unfamiliar experience for the young man, as shameless as he was, but he was. Immensely, utterly guilty, and ashamed too. He expected that Deuce was feeling much the same as him.

When that mirror had first opened, neither of them had been ready, and despite their best efforts, they hadn’t been able to stop Yuu from being taken. That was already hard enough to stomach.

But it got around the school quickly that Ace and Deuce had been the last ones around Yuu before that event.

That they were the ones that failed.

A few students had attempted to rough them up, but Ace and Deuce were used to dealing with trash at this point, and Dormhead always dealt with any of the perpetrators strictly.

What they couldn’t stop easily was the words. Students who felt that it was a failing on Ace and Deuce’s parts.

Even if they didn’t say it aloud, Ace could still see it in their eyes, and he knew Deuce saw it too.

Sometimes Ace wasn’t entirely sure they were wrong. If they’d been faster, stronger, better, maybe they could have saved her.

He pretended he didn’t hear Deuce’s teary late-night conversation with his mom, and Deuce ignored when Ace would cry over his phone as he texted his brother. Solidarity.

So when it had been announced that they’d found her, Ace hadn’t offered to help. Neither had Deuce.

With the full force of Night Raven Academy behind the efforts, he and Deuce would only get in the way. It sucked, it burned to admit it, and Deuce had punched him when he’d said it aloud, but they both knew.

Instead, they’d prepared. If they weren’t good enough this time, they’d be good enough the next. And despite what some of those idiots said, it was clear something would happen again.

Yuu couldn’t keep out of trouble.

He and Deuce had worked their asses off while the others made big dramatic plans and harassed those Shroud brothers. Riddle had even approved of the idea, giving the two of them a rare nod of approval before he shut himself away for the same thing, according to the dormhead.

They’d gotten better. Not immediately, but they had. Deuce had managed to improve his unique magic by leaps and bounds, and Ace had improved his fire magic enough that he was sparring with some of the third years and winning.

They’d been tempted to sneak through the portal, once it was active, like Grim did, but Trey-senpai had kept a keen eye on the two of them, and with Grim’s own infiltration already succeeding, Ortho was guarding the mirror day and night, with his brother moving the work station directly there.

It wasn’t worth the trouble, and Ace was smart enough to recognize that.

Still, when they all had finally been let through and into that ramshackle—no pun intended—common room, did the Headmaster really expect them all to wait? Especially when Jack, and by extension Savannaclaw, was clearly trying to steal the lead.

Instead, after a bit of pleading with Riddle, who was quite accommodating after they pointed out the missing wolf beastman, the two of them snuck off and into the wider castle.

Only to immediately realize they had no idea where to go.

While Deuce was panicking, Ace pulled out his phone.

Ace: Where r u? We r here.

There was immediately, faster than she had ever responded before, a set of bubbles indicating a message being typed.

Ortho: Nee-chan and Nii-chan are currently in class, please do not disturb them until afterwards. We will meet you in the library once class ends.

Ace felt his eyes narrow. Of course those lead-stealing Shroud brothers would take the opportunity to jump ahead. It was what he would have done.

Wait. This was a private DM!? Why did Ortho have access to this?

Ace: Hey wait why are you in this chat? Ace: Get Yuu to answer dammit.

Ortho: No phones allowed in class.

Ace: Dammit Ortho tell me!

No response.

Ace tried a few more times, but Ortho just started sending him emoji and text art pictures of fruit.

The brat refused to even tell them where the library was.

That damn Terminator rip-off!

Tucking his phone away, Ace grabbed Deuce by the shoulder and began dragging him off down the hall. They’d find Yuu themselves. They’d waited too long to let some damn class get in their way.

Unfortunately, the castle was larger than either of them had accounted for, and all they’d managed was to get themselves more lost.

And Deuce nearly had nearly fallen off those damn staircases but that was besides the point.

They were on the verge of just calling Dormhead and asking for help when they ran into Jack.

Or more precisely, the students running away from Jack ran into them.

Ace and Deuce were walking down yet another hallway, this one, Deuce thought aloud, must be some sort of dungeon, when a crowd of robe-wearing students with green ties came rushing around the corner.

They seemed to be in quite a panic, but Deuce caught one by the shoulder, younger, and stopped him flat. The young man struggled for a bit, looking at them both with panicked eyes.

"Where is the library?" Deuce demanded, voice an inch off of his “Delinquent” voice. The other boy seemed flabbergasted.

"W-What? Listen, I don’t know who you are but we have to leave, there’s a werewolf in the castle!"

The genuine terror in the other boy's voice was quite real, and Ace and Deuce looked at each other in confusion.

A werewolf?

They turned back to the boy, who was still struggling.

"Listen guy, we have to find the library, so stop screaming and—"

"What are you two doing?"

Jack stood at the end of the hallway, looking more irritated than normal. His ears and tail on full display.

The arrival of the wolf beastman seemed to terrify the other student, who managed to break out of a distracted Deuce's hold and scrambled off down the hall.

"We’re taking in the scenery, obviously—what do you think we’re doing, Jack?" Ace snarked at the other first year. Deuce, after staring after where the Hogwarts students had run with a questionable look in his eyes, turned toward them.

“We’re looking for Yuu, Jack—same as you. Have you found her?”

Jack glared at Ace, then turned the look onto Deuce.

“Not yet. This place is a maze. I got down here after heading up a staircase, of all places.”

“And what did you do to that lot?” Ace asked, gesturing back toward where the group of students had run.

“No idea,” Jack grunted, checking his phone again. “They all started yelling the moment I showed up. It was kind of pathetic.”

For once, Jack seemed slightly flustered by the reaction of the Hogwarts students.

Ace’s eyes drifted up to Jack’s ears and tail. He guessed he could see it—people here probably had never seen a beastman before.

Then a thought struck him. His eyes flicked down to Jack’s phone.

“Hey, what about that app you used to find Yuu in Scarabia? The one Leona-senpai installed?”

Jack tapped at his screen a few more times before tucking his phone away again.

“It’s not working. Ortho’s messing with it.”

Ace scowled. He was going to have to figure out some way to get revenge on that smug Ignihyde brat.

“Yeah, but—”

His phone buzzed.

Looking down, he saw a new DM from Yuu. Scrambling to unlock it, he quickly punched in his password.

Yuu: Ace, we’re in the library. Where are you guys?

She’d attached a crying frowny face emoji, and a picture of her, Ortho, Idia, and that new kid all together.

Another message popped up. This one was from Ortho.

Ortho: Oh! I forgot you guys hadn’t been here before. Here are some directions!

Ace’s phone, without him even touching it, automatically swapped over to his map app. The previously blank halls were now mapped out, and a blinking blue route had been highlighted for him.

From the looks on Jack and Deuce’s faces—both staring at their own phones—they’d gotten the same thing.

Ace felt his face twist into a sneer.

He’d get back at that brat.

But first—Yuu.

--

Yuu was waiting for a response back from Ace when the doors to the library were slammed open, and Madame Pince’s angry voice echoed through the tall shelves to the small table where she, Idia, Ortho, and Eucalyptus were sitting.

There were loud, irate scoldings as the stern librarian began berating whoever had dared enter the room with such force. Eucalyptus barely looked up from his book, and Idia and Ortho didn’t lift their heads at all. Grim, however, stirred from his curled-up position on the table, ears twitching, before he let out a sigh of relief.

“About time those two idiots got here,” he grumbled. “I thought Riddle actually killed them this time.”

Yuu blinked in confusion, just as the raised voices reached her ears.

She recognized those voices.

Bolting upright and sending her chair skidding back, Yuu rushed toward the library entrance.

Sure enough—there, in the entryway, stood the familiar figures of Ace, Deuce, and Jack, all still in their NRC uniforms.

All three of them were being thoroughly scolded by Madame Pince. Jack and Deuce looked appropriately guilty, heads bowed as the librarian waved her wand in an especially threatening manner. Ace, on the other hand, was tapping his foot impatiently, completely unbothered.

When he caught sight of her, he turned away from the furious Hogwarts staff entirely.

“Yuu!” he called, practically sprinting toward her. He grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a good shake. “Where have you been, idiot?! We’ve been looking for you for ages!”

Despite the sharp tone, his voice was faintly watery.

Ignoring his grip, Yuu wrapped her arms around him without hesitation. Ace froze for just a moment, then returned the hug. She felt wet spots gather in her hair as the Heartslabyul underclassman held her tight.

“This is worse than Scarabia. You owe me so much, you— you—” Words seemed to escape him.

Yuu held on tighter, only to squeak as another pair of arms wrapped around the both of them.

Deuce squeezed them into a three-way hug, saying nothing—but she could see the tears openly streaming down his cheeks. It said a lot that Ace didn’t say anything at the contact.

They stayed like that for a full minute, until Madame Pince cleared her throat loudly behind them.

The three separated—reluctantly. Ace and Deuce both refused to let go of her hands, though, each gripping one firmly. The librarian looked somewhat softened by the scene, though her glare still lingered.

“Next time you lot enter my library—unless something is on fire—you will do so calmly and in an orderly fashion. Understood? Now back to your table, and talk quietly.”

Yuu nodded fervently. Ace looked away, and Deuce was still trying to wipe his eyes on his sleeve.

As Madame Pince walked off, Yuu noticed the third member of their trio.

“Jack!” she called excitedly, flinching when the librarian whipped back around with another glare and a strict finger to her lips.

“...Jack,” she whispered this time, still giddy. The tall first year took one look at her, sighed, and walked forward. Despite Ace and Deuce’s grumbles, he picked her up in a short but firm hug, before setting her back down again.

For the usually-reserved Jack, it was a grand gesture. He followed it up with a hand on her head, ruffling her hair gently.

“Leona and Ruggie-senpai are pissed,” he said simply as they started walking.

Yuu nodded. “I expected that. But you’ll protect me, right, Jack? You won’t let them use me as a Magift disc again, right?”

She gave him her best pleading eyes, though a silly grin tugged at her lips.

Jack gave her a tiny smile—but didn’t answer.

“Jack? Jack, please don’t let them throw me around again.”

Still no answer. He was looking ahead—toward their table.

Ace and Deuce both caught sight of the Shroud brothers waiting for them and surged forward, dragging Yuu along. Jack followed at his own pace.

As they reached the table, the three NRC first-years locked eyes with the two Ignihyde students. Equal fire passed silently between them. Eucalyptus raised an eyebrow at the tension, then returned to his book—only to be drawn into conversation by Idia, who took a special kind of pleasure in turning away and ignoring the others.

Yuu, of course, didn’t mind the tension. She was used to it by now.

She was just happy.

She gave both of the hands holding her own a squeeze.

They squeezed back.

Her friends were here. Things were right again.

If only everyone were here.

Two hours later, the whole group was kicked out of the library.

Ace and Ortho had gotten into a shouting match that was mostly just Ace shouting. Deuce and Jack got into a “manly discussion” that ended with a toppled bookshelf. Idia and Eucalyptus accidentally set a small fire while testing a charm on one of Idia’s spare phones. Grim tried to claw apart a book he swore had bitten him.

Madame Pince, with a look sharp enough to silence even Eucalyptus, banned them for the rest of the day.

They’d relocated to the benches outside, where chaos was just about to resume—when Professor Flitwick arrived.

Apparently, he’d received complaints of a werewolf in the Slytherin common room.

He was notably eyeing Jack.

Turns out, Jack had been using his unique magic to search the castle faster. Unfortunately, young Hogwarts students were not prepared to watch a giant white wolf transform into a tall teenager with ears and a tail.

It took a lot of explaining after that.

Draco Malfoy was rather apprehensive about the events taking place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

First, that odd Ravenclaw girl had joined partway through the year—but that hadn’t been too terrible.

Then that strange man showed up, and Father’s letters started emphasizing the importance of being polite to him and any of his associates.

The revelation that he—Dire Crowley—was Fae, something Draco had only ever heard about in stories from his mother, was startling enough.

But then the revelation of a third school arriving, from a different world of all places?

It was enough to place the beginning of this school year in Draco’s personal Top Five—which, given this was only his fourth year, wasn’t a huge category, but still notable.

Of course, it only continued to grow stranger when Father began asking questions about the Ravenclaw girl, of all people. Who did she hang around with? What did she act like? What side did she seem to lean towards on the subject of blood purity?

It was all so exhausting, especially since he never seemed to be able to catch the girl alone. She was either with that tiny Hufflepuff that Wulf didn’t like, or she was in class.

It was frustrating.

But that wasn’t important right now.

Despite his father’s warnings, Draco was rather excited for the Quadwizard Tournament. The thought of four magical schools competing against each other? Maybe a Slytherin champion rising above the rest?

It was appealing.

And today was the day the other schools would arrive.

Before dinner began, Dumbledore had drawn everyone's attention and given a typical speech about interschool cooperation—full of flowery nonsense—before welcoming the foreign delegations.

First came Durmstrang, then Beauxbatons, each putting on a bit of a show as they entered. Durmstrang marched in with tall staffs—Draco knew they still used those ceremonially—and Beauxbatons twirled their way in with an elegant dance, accompanied by butterfly illusions and sparkles.

Now came the unknown school: Night Raven Academy. Draco wasn’t the only student leaning forward to see how this mysterious group would follow up on the previous two.

Pure-blooded students, like himself, were especially curious. Durmstrang and Beauxbatons were known entities. Draco himself had nearly gone to Durmstrang at his mother’s insistence.

But this school? It was a new player in every way. First impressions would be everything.

Dire Crowley had already proven himself elusive, but impeccably dressed and dramatic—especially after his bizarre performance at the press conference.

What would his students be like?

His father had warned him to be polite—even to students who didn’t look fully human. Where there was one Fae, he’d written, there were likely more.

The Beauxbatons students had seated themselves mostly near the Ravenclaws, while Durmstrang clustered around the Slytherin table. The rest of Hogwarts watched eagerly.

There was a noise near the end of the hall—and then Dire Crowley himself stepped through the grand doors.

He walked with confidence, his long coat billowing, scepter twirling elegantly in one hand.

Notably, he entered alone.

Stopping before the head table, Crowley smiled at the crowd. Then, with a dramatic gesture, he slammed the butt of his staff against the floor. A sound burst through the air, and the light in the room seemed to dim.

Behind him, from the swirling fog, a silvery sheen began spreading through the air—slowly at first, then quickly accelerating—until it obscured the entrance entirely.

A mirror.

The entire Great Hall now stared at what looked like a massive mirror, reflecting their own curious and awed faces back at them.

Then, all at once, seven parts of the mirror warped, rippling as if something inside was pressing outward.

Then they stepped through—breaking the surface like it was the calm sea.

Seven students emerged from the mirror.

All wore delicate and expensive-looking robes of black and purple—some more comfortable in them than others. As they moved, the gold trim shimmered in the torchlight like it had a life of its own.

Some faces were recognizable. The red-haired boy. The one with glasses. The one with flaming hair.

The others were new.

A tall, long haired man walked like he owned the castle. He was casual, even dismissive, scanning the hall lazily. Draco could’ve sworn there was something trailing behind him, but the torchlight and the sweeping robes made it hard to tell.

Next came a tan skinned young man with red eyes—the happiest looking of the group. Still, something about him seemed off. His eyes scanned the room a bit too carefully. He moved with a wariness that felt too precise to be natural.

Then a pale individual with blonde hair—tipped purple. If Draco hadn’t known better, he might’ve thought they were related. They walked like the floor was a runway, and Draco couldn’t help but feel underdressed in comparison.

And finally—

The most striking of them all.

Tall. Hair black as ink. Eyes a piercing green. And—most notably—massive, curved black horns that jutted from his skull.

He radiated power. The air wavered around him. Draco swore the temperature had dropped.

Each of the seven was followed by five others—also in black and purple, though less dazzling in presentation. They moved as one, heads held high, expressions sharp and unreadable.

Once the last stepped through, the mirror rippled once again, then began to collapse—sinking down until it was nothing more than a flicker in Dire Crowley’s scepter.

With a flourish, the headmaster lifted it from the ground and gave a theatrical bow.

His students followed—though notably, none bowed deeper than seventy degrees.

Draco couldn’t help but wonder what that implied.

There was no doubt: these individuals were powerful. The very air around them felt different.

But that’s not what most of the Great Hall was thinking.

Rather, the most common thought echoing through the heads of the Hogwarts students was—

Why did every single one of them look like models?!

Already, several girls were giggling and whispering among themselves. Some of the boys were grumbling—though a few were blushing and looking away, not that Draco planned to acknowledge those.

Draco Malfoy, for once, had no snide comment.

He just stared, trying to decide if this year had just gotten better—or a whole lot worse.

Chapter Text

WHAT IF NRC arrived in the wrong Timeline Part 2

The small, abandoned classroom was quiet as the three Savanaclaw students sat, staring at their target of interest.

Yuu stared right back, wide blue eyes only slightly visible behind her mass of hair. She sat at one of the desks while the other three stood.

Leona turned to Jack.

“What is this?” he asked, gesturing toward the first-year Ravenclaw.

Jack, who was standing beside the desk, his much larger hand wrapped around hers, looked intensely uncomfortable with the question. He looked aside for a bit before finally answering.

“It’s Yuu.”

Ruggie snorted, and Leona brought a hand up to massage his brow slightly.

“Yeah,” Ruggie started, sparing a glance at the small girl listening intently to their conversation, “but the little dummy isn’t typically this little.”

The hyena beastman’s words seemed to spark something in the girl, who turned her head toward him.

“You seem to know me,” the familiar voice—so flat—sent a faint shiver down the spines of the three, though none would admit it. “But I don’t remember meeting any of you. Why?”

None of them responded for a moment, before Leona finally stepped up to the plate.

“We do know you, Herbivore. Just not the you of right now.”

The girl’s frown deepened a little as she thought over his words. Then she let out a small gasp, and her blue eyes widened. It was the first real expression the three had seen from her since Jack had escaped Floyd (by throwing Riddle at the Octavinelle student) and found the other two.

“Time travel,” she said, pointing at Leona with a small finger. “Are you telling me that you all time traveled?”

Leona sank back into the large chair at the head of the classroom, not bothering to answer. Ruggie did instead.

“Right on the money, little animal,” Ruggie snickered, a smile on his face that Jack had only ever seen him wear for the directing student. “You may not recognize us, but we’re quite familiar with the Yuu of five years later.”

“Was that a pun using my name?”

Ruggie grinned.

“Shishishi~ Maybe. Why?”

She seemed confused for a moment, before a tiny, infinitesimal smile grew on her face.

“I like it,” she said in a small voice.

Ruggie stepped forward and ruffled her messy hair.

“Thought you would. You’re quite fond of using your name for puns in the future.”

She endured the torment without protest, more confused than anything.

“Oh… Who are you all, anyway? Do you know me?”

Ruggie paused, giving a questioning look to Leona, who had sat up straight with a calculating look in his green eyes. He met Ruggie’s gaze. A silent exchange, then both nodded.

“You go to school with us. Night Raven Academy. You’re a first-year. We’re upperclassmen,” Ruggie said, his best salesman smile on his face. “I’m Ruggie Bucchi, the grumpy-looking guy with the fluffy ears is Jack Howl, and the lazy cat is Leona Kingscholar.”

“Oh.” Yuu looked down at her joined hands on the desk, fidgeting slightly. “Are we… friends?”

Leona snorted, and Jack’s tail began thumping against the desk beside him. Ruggie, on the other hand, just gave her a wider smile and nodded.

“Yeah, we’re all real good friends. Best friends even. As a Savanaclaw underclassman, you spent a lot of time with us. You grew on us. Like a fungus.”

Ruggie answered, sitting down next to her.

Jack stiffened at Ruggie’s words, but a look from Leona kept him from speaking up immediately.

“What’s Savanaclaw?” she asked, curious.

“It’s our dorm at NRC. Savanaclaw was founded on the Lion King’s spirit of Persistence. It’s mainly got beastmen, like us,” Ruggie said, pointing to his ears, then waving a hand in Leona and Jack’s general direction. “Leona’s actually our dormhead, despite his indolent appearance.”

Yuu shifted slightly, staring up at Ruggie’s ears before her eyes moved over to Leona, then to Jack. Her gaze lingered on his swinging tail.

“Why are you here now, then?” she asked, tearing her eyes away to look at Ruggie, before her eyes locked onto Leona’s. He was watching the exchange carefully.

“If I’m already there in the future, isn’t being here now dangerous?” Her voice was still flat, but it sounded faintly concerned.

“Why are you asking, Herbivore?” Leona smirked. “Concerned for us or something?”

Yuu shifted slightly in her chair, glancing at the arm Ruggie had slung around her.

“Well… yeah.” She looked faintly uncomfortable. “I haven’t read a lot about it yet, but time travel’s dangerous, right?”

“And what about yourself?” Leona pressed. “Not gonna talk about us possibly causing a paradox by talking to you now?”

The next answer came instantly.

“I don’t matter as much. But if we’re friends, I don’t think I’d want anything to happen to you.”

Her voice was much more certain now. The look she gave the three of them was full of a familiar determination, and for a second, the person she would become was superimposed over her small form.

Leona gave a sharp-toothed smile at that. Jack stood just a bit taller. Ruggie blinked in surprise.

The burst of energy seemed to tire her out, however, and Yuu slumped back in her chair.

“How did I even get into Savanaclaw anyway? I don’t think I’ve ever demonstrated any type of ‘spirit of persistence.’” She gave a small shrug. “According to some of the other students, I don’t have any spirit at all.”

Leona barked out a laugh.

“Sure, you keep saying that. Anyway, it’s about time. Let’s get going before the others find us. That damn eel’s probably already spilled the beans to the squid, and if the two idiots know, then everyone does.”

The Savanaclaw dormhead stood from the desk, and Ruggie did the same, taking the first-year Ravenclaw with him.

“Shishishi~ You’re even smaller than before. I could lift you with one hand.”

The hyena beastman made good on his words, lifting the younger girl from her seat with one hand before swinging her into a piggyback ride.

Yuu instinctively grabbed on before she realized what was happening, her arms looping around Ruggie’s neck and her legs squeezing at his sides.

“It’s like wearing the world’s smallest backpack,” Ruggie joked as he made sure she was secure.

“Where are we going?” Yuu asked, not even protesting the sudden movement.

Jack frowned at the question.

“Be a bit more distrustful. If we were bad guys, you could get really hurt—or kidnapped,” he warned the small girl now peeking over Ruggie’s shoulder.

“Why should I? It’s not like it really matters if I disappear. No one would even mind.”

She said it so matter-of-factly that it paused all movement. The three beastmen shared a look.

“We’ll have to train that out of her fast,” Leona muttered, and both Jack and Ruggie nodded seriously. He turned back to her.

“We’re heading back to Night Raven Academy. You’re coming with us,” Leona answered as they began filing out of the classroom.

Yuu hummed before replying.

“But I’m enrolled here. If I miss too many classes, I’ll get expelled,” she protested. “And my family may come looking.”

Leona gave her a mean smile but didn’t answer. Instead, it was Ruggie who responded.

“If it helps, imagine us like kidnappers. You said it didn’t really matter, right? So it should be fine if we snatch you up now?” he said, voice light.

Jack winced at his upperclassman’s phrasing.

“Please don’t put it like that, Ruggie-senpai,” the disciplined underclassman muttered as they moved. While Leona and Ruggie seemed utterly relaxed, Jack kept a sharp eye on every doorway and corridor they passed.

There was a faint commotion Jack could hear in the distance, but nothing close enough to worry about. Any students they did spot were far away, rushing somewhere else and unaware of their presence.

A comfortable silence settled over the four before Yuu broke it with a question.

“Who were those two boys back there, Howl-senpai? They seemed to know me too.”

Ruggie seemed ready to answer with a smirk, but Jack beat him to it.

“Those two idiots are Ace Trappola and Deuce Spade. They’re first-years, like you. You all, plus a weird cat named Grim, are friends.”

Yuu’s eyes widened slightly.

“More friends? Are—” She paused, hiding her eyes in Ruggie’s back before continuing, “Are you sure? I’m not good at making friends.”

Jack couldn’t stop the soft snort that escaped him.

“Trust me. You’re much better at making friends than you think.”

“Much better than I would honestly like,” Ruggie chimed in, voice teasing. “We’ve learned to be careful, or you’ll go around beast-taming everyone.”

“Beast-taming?”

Ruggie nodded.

“You make friends with practically everyone you meet, little dummy. The more dangerous they are, the faster it works. Look at our dormhead over there for an example.”

Leona didn’t bother responding. He kept taking the lead as they trekked through Hogwarts. The conversation continued until Yuu let out a small noise of alarm.

“Hey, we passed the way to the main entrance,” she said, pointing back the way they came.

“What, you think we walked here?” Leona called over his shoulder. Instead of turning back, they continued on, past the library, and into a small, quiet classroom.

Leona opened the door. Ruggie, Yuu, and Jack followed. The room was empty—except for the large, ornate mirror at its center.

“That, Herbivore,” Leona said, “is how we got here.”

Yuu tilted her head at the mirror, eyes tracing the ornate frame before locking onto the multicolored glass that shimmered and shifted constantly.

“How does it work?” she asked.

“Shroud built it. Has it set up so he gets data readouts and everything. I’ll get a paper from him for you later,” Leona replied offhandedly. He stepped toward the mirror and turned to the others. “Ready?”

Ruggie jumped slightly and adjusted Yuu higher onto his back before nodding. Jack did the same, though he seemed distracted, focused on something on his phone. Yuu leaned over—he was typing something.

Leona didn’t wait. He stepped through the mirror.

Ruggie—and by extension, Yuu—followed soon after. She gripped him tighter. Something about the mirror made her uneasy.

There was a brief pulse of colors and a tossing sensation before the world burst back into light. Yuu blinked once, then twice, trying to adjust her vision.

The room was large and ornate, with carved wood along the walls and solid, classical furniture. However, it had clearly been overtaken by glowing wires and lights, all of them feeding back into the mirror. Just ahead sat a large desk with numerous floating display panels.

But what really caught her attention was the person at the desk.

He was hunched, but even sitting, Yuu could tell he was tall. His skin was pale, his eyes rimmed with shadows, and his teeth—when he glanced up—resembled those of a shark. But the most defining feature was his hair: brilliant, iridescent blue flames that flowed down his back like hair.

He looked up briefly at the four new arrivals… then did a double take. His eyes widened.

Before he could speak, Leona stepped forward, blocking Ruggie and Yuu from view.

“Nothing to see here, Shroud. You had the wrong world. Get back to work.”

Shroud—apparently his name—gaped for another second before his expression flattened into something more serious. Leona noticed too. He stepped back… and from his robes, pulled out a pen.

“Ruggie, get back to Savannaclaw. Lock it down,” the long-haired man ordered.

Ruggie whipped around and—much faster than Yuu expected—took off at a near sprint. Jack wasn’t far behind him.

Yuu tucked her face into Ruggie’s shoulder to shield herself from the wind, but didn’t otherwise move. His grip on her was firm and secure.

“Why are we running?” she tried to ask, her voice barely audible over the rushing air. Still, Ruggie seemed to hear her.

“That Shroud is liable to try and steal you from us himself! We can’t let that happen, especially to a little dummy like you! Who knows what kind of stuff he’ll say to you!” he shouted back, never slowing.

Yuu wanted to ask more, but then a loud boom rang out behind them, cutting off the conversation. The shockwave hit moments later, tugging at Yuu’s robe and making Ruggie stumble.

His grip loosened, just slightly.

Before either of them could recover, Yuu felt the back of her robe snap taut—then yank. Ruggie cursed, and she was pulled straight up.

Yuu let out a small squeak as the ground rushed away from her. Her breathing hitched as her stomach dropped. Then an arm wrapped securely around her midsection, holding her tight as the weight shifted.

“Hello, Imōto! It’s nice to meet you!”

Yuu looked up and was met by a bright smile and a gleaming visor. The boy holding her looked around her age—maybe a little older—and was dressed in some sort of sleek, armored suit. He looked unmistakably similar to the boy she’d seen earlier… the one Shroud.

Too stunned to speak, Yuu simply stared.

“Oh! Don’t worry—we’ll be back on the ground soon. We’re going directly to Ignihyde. Nii-chan is going to be so excited!” the boy said cheerfully, still smiling.

They banked slightly in the air, and Yuu instinctively tightened her grip on him, arms clinging like a koala. He didn’t seem to mind.

“Even Mom’s getting involved! She’s already setting up a new room, according to her last message,” he added brightly.

Yuu had no idea what he was talking about, but the kindness in his voice and the warmth of his smile were disarming. So she nodded mutely and held on tighter.

Sensing she was still scared, the boy’s visor split apart and retracted behind his ears, revealing a pair of golden-yellow eyes—bright and earnest, just like his brother’s.

“I know you don’t know me yet, Yuu,” he said softly, “but we’re really good friends. Please trust that I won’t drop you.”

There was something in his voice—sincerity, maybe, or something warmer—that made her relax slightly. Her arms loosened a bit, but she didn’t let go.

Besides, it wasn’t like she had much choice in the matter.

WHAT IF Yuu made it all the way through NRC before she was pulled back Part 2

Professor Crowley was amazing.

That’s not to say any of her professors weren’t. Hermione would never dare to disparage a teacher at Hogwarts, but…

Some were absolutely more qualified to teach, in her humble opinion, than others.

Professor Snape was petty. Professor Binns was a ghost (not that she let that prejudice her either way, of course). And Hagrid—while a great friend—had obviously never received any formal training in the art of education.

But Professor Crowley, on the other hand, was someone Hermione—and most of the other Hogwarts students—could actually relate to.

Young, talented, knowledgeable, and somehow able to get through a class containing both Slytherins and Gryffindors without a single point being lost on either side.

It was like having Gilderoy Lockhart again—if Lockhart had actually done the things he claimed in his books.

Defense Against the Dark Arts had swiftly become the favorite class of the year across the entire school, with students drawing comparisons to Professor Lupin.

Unfortunately, not all students were interested in the class for the same reasons. Case in point, Hermione thought as she took her seat, was the small group of seventh-year students lingering near the professor’s desk after their advanced DADA class, crowding around as she happily answered their questions.

Hermione could already see where this was going. Their “purely academic questions” all revolved around the professor’s personal life.

Things like:

“Where are you from?”

“How old are you?”

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

She’d seen this happen again and again—especially when she arrived early to class to ask real questions—only to watch the professor get tied up by older students with suspiciously flirtatious inquiries.

It always ended the same way. And Hermione, though she’d never admit it aloud, looked forward to it every time.

As the professor continued answering questions, she casually glanced down at the small pocket watch on her desk before clearing her throat.

“As delighted as I am to discuss the class material,” she began brightly, “I believe you boys all have classes to get to. If you’d like, I can recommend some readings to further explore your curiosity?”

That sent most of them off with grins and muttered “Thanks, Professor”s, but one brave student—an older Gryffindor Hermione recognized as Maxwell—lingered behind, hands hidden behind his back in an unusually bashful pose for the athletic boy.

“Sorry, Professor, but I actually have one more question if you don’t mind…” he trailed off, staring at the professor hopefully.

“Go on,” she replied kindly, “but afterward, please head to your next class. It wouldn’t be fair to Professor Flitwick—or these other students—if you’re late and delay the start of both lessons.”

Maxwell gulped and nodded before pulling his hands from behind his back, revealing a small bouquet of flowers.

“Professor Crowley, would you please go out with me?” he blurted, thrusting the bouquet forward with all the grace of a Stupefy spell to the face.

The professor blinked, glancing from the bouquet to the boy, her cheeks coloring slightly.

“Ah—Maxwell, I’m flattered, really,” she said gently, “but I don’t like you that way. And my life is far too busy for a significant other. It wouldn’t be fair to you if I accepted.”

Still smiling, she took the flowers from him and set them on a side table—where Hermione knew she kept all the gifts she’d been given this year.

“Now,” she continued, tone light and warm, “please get to class, Maxwell. You’re going to be late.”

The older boy left, dispirited, oblivious to the glares that most of the fourth-year class was now directing at the back of his head.

Once he was gone, the professor sorted through her papers and took attendance, then stood.

“Now,” she said brightly, “let’s start today’s class. We recently finished our unit on curses and counter-curses, so I thought we could move into something a bit more relevant to our current goings-on at Hogwarts: magical artifacts—and how to tell if something is enchanted or not.”

Hermione sat up straighter, quill at the ready, as Professor Crowley pulled out several sets of shiny stones, along with her wand.

“Each of these stones has been charmed with a different effect, triggered under specific conditions. Our goal is that by the end of this unit, you’ll be able to determine the effect on each stone—and dispel it—all without my help.”

The class was silent and focused as the lecture began.

“Let’s start with a question. Can anyone tell me what the basic dispelling spell is—both incantation and wand movement?”

About a fourth of the class raised their hands, Hermione included.

“Let’s go with… Mr. Malfoy. You seem quite eager today—let’s hear what you have to say.”

Hermione resisted the urge to grumble as she lowered her hand. Professor Crowley made sure everyone got a chance to answer eventually, but it still irked her that she hadn’t been called on first.

Malfoy straightened and gave the professor a smile that he probably thought was charming. Ugh.

“The charm is Finite, Professor Crowley. The wand movement is that of a shield,” he replied confidently.

Professor Crowley clapped her hands and smiled at him.

“Right on the money, Mr. Malfoy. Can anyone expand on his answer?”

Hermione’s was the only hand that went up this time.

“Ms. Granger—what do you have for me?”

She clasped her hands on her desk and cleared her throat.

“The general counterspell, in its full form, is Finite Incantatem. Finite is a shorthand version that’s slightly weaker but much more effective when cast on single targets. It rose to popularity after being published as a recommended counterspell in many household charms books.”

“Another very correct answer—fantastic work! Ten points to both Slytherin and Gryffindor.”

Hermione and Draco glared at each other from across the classroom, though Professor Crowley didn’t seem to notice.

As she lectured, Professor Crowley wrote the names of the spells on the board and underlined them.

“We’ll be making sure you all have a grasp on both versions of Finite, and by the end of this class, I hope to introduce you to Surgito as well. Now—” She turned back to the class. “Let’s have you all pair up and we’ll get started.”

At the end of class, as per usual, Hermione stayed behind to ask a few questions about the material, as well as to request more reading recommendations from her current favorite professor.

Unfortunately, so did Draco Malfoy. And as the two waited patiently while the rest of the class filed out, they glared daggers into the back of each other’s heads.

It didn’t take long for the three of them to be alone, and since the professor had a free period next, no new students arrived to replace the departing class. Hermione and Draco both strode forward at the same time, increasing their pace while shooting sideways glances at each other, trying to be the first to reach the desk.

But just as they did, there came a loud knock at the door. All three turned toward it.

“Come in!” Professor Crowley called.

Hermione and Draco both watched as the door swung open, revealing a man with the whitest hair Hermione had ever seen on someone so young. He had a small mole on the right side of his chin and wore a smile that reminded Draco a bit too much of his father during business meetings. The man was impeccably dressed in a fine suit and leaned on an odd-looking cane as he walked in.

Following him were two identical men—both nearly as tall as Hagrid—with long teal hair and a single grey bang falling over one eye. One of them was dressed to perfection. The other slouched, his button-up shirt and suit jacket noticeably misaligned and sloppily worn.

All three of them exuded danger. And all three had their eyes locked on Professor Crowley.

Both Hogwarts students stiffened as the trio entered the room and silently approached their professor, who suddenly looked much smaller in comparison. The tension thickened.

Then—

“Floyd, Jade, Azul! It’s good to see you. What took you so long?” their professor said brightly, with a teasing smile Hermione had never seen on her before.

The tension evaporated instantly.

Within seconds, the sloppily dressed twin broke into a massive grin and swept the professor up into what looked like a bone-crushing hug.

“Koebi-chan~ Why’d you disappear like that? Everyone was panicking—it wasn’t fun at all...” he whined.

“Like you weren’t worried too, Floyd!” barked the white-haired man, looking indignantly toward him.

“But I seem to recall us having to calm you down, Azul,” said the tidier twin—Jade, apparently—smiling pleasantly. “After you panicked—I mean, after you completely lost your mind.”

“Shut up, Jade. And you—” Azul turned to their professor, who was still trapped in Floyd’s hug. “What do you think you’re doing, disappearing like that? Do you know what a pain in the ass it was to find our way here?”

His eyes blazed, and Hermione unconsciously shrank back from the intensity of his glare. Their professor just gave a slightly strained laugh.

“Heh… sorry, Azul. I’ll make it up to you. Will a few shifts at Monstro Lounge II do?” she asked lightly, flashing him a sheepish grin.

“Two months,” he said flatly. “Starting now.”

“I’d love to, but—” she was finally released from Floyd’s grip, only to be promptly pulled back into his lap as he flopped into her chair. “—I’ve got commitments here for at least the next few months.” She gestured toward Hermione and Draco, both of whom straightened instinctively under the weight of three unfriendly stares.

Azul groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Don’t tell me you volunteered to be a teacher.”

Professor Crowley chuckled again, unbothered. Azul, on the other hand, looked genuinely distressed.

“No, absolutely not. That’s unacceptable. Staying here any longer is dangerous for both your health and my blood pressure.” He turned, already moving toward the door. “Come on. We’ll speak with the headmaster and sort out your terms of employment. I’m sure we can reach a deal.”

Hermione and Draco exchanged a glance for the first time in their lives that was completely devoid of competition or rivalry. Instead, it was unified concern.

They’re trying to take her away. The message passed silently between them.

Fortunately, their professor shook her head, beaming.

“No, sorry, Azul. You know how I am with commitments. Besides—” she smiled even brighter, and Hermione had to look away— “I’m having fun.”

Floyd laughed delightedly at that, and Jade’s smile widened. Azul, however, looked like he wanted to pull his hair out.

“Fine,” he muttered. “But you owe me three months afterwards. And fair warning—” his voice sharpened, “we’ll be sticking around to make sure nothing happens. And we won’t be the only ones. Good luck convincing that overgrown cat or the lizard that you need to stay here.”

At that, their professor finally looked nervous—a bead of sweat running down her cheek.

Before she could respond, Azul flicked his hand sharply. Both twins appeared at his side in an instant.

“We need to speak to your headmaster about lodging. We’ll talk more later. But for now—” he stepped forward, took her hand gently, and pressed a kiss to the back of it. “Stay safe, Yuu.”

Then he swept out of the classroom, flanked by the twins.

The door clicked shut.

Hermione and Draco were silent for a moment.

“…That was terrifying,” Hermione finally said.

Draco nodded slowly.

“I hate that I agree with you.”

Their professor turned back to them, blushing lightly from the earlier events and the realization that the two of them had witnessed the entirety of it.

“Sorry about that, you two. Did either of you have any questions that needed answering?”

A silent conversation passed between the two typically-at-odds students before they both turned toward her and shook their heads.

“Apologies, Professor. I was just a bit slow packing up,” Draco said with a smile.

“I realized the answer was already in my notes, actually. Sorry, Professor,” Hermione added, blushing slightly.

Professor Crowley looked between the two before nodding.

“Alright. By the way, if you could both keep what you saw here private, I would greatly appreciate it.”

They nodded their assent.

“Not a problem at all,” Draco said smoothly.

“Lips sealed,” Hermione confirmed.

She smiled back at them.

“Alright then, off with the both of you. And have a nice day!”

The two students left the classroom, walking until they reached a curve in the hallway before stopping.

They turned toward each other.

“So…” Draco began.

“They’re trying to steal Professor Crowley away. That cannot happen,” Hermione said firmly.

“Obviously,” Draco agreed, “but what can we do about it?”

Hermione mulled it over briefly, both she and Draco Malfoy united in a rare moment of concern for their favorite professor.

It was Draco who broke the silence.

“What if we… remove those other men from the situation?”

Hermione raised an eyebrow.

“If Professor Crowley is being pressured to resign by those three strange men—and the others they mentioned are on the way—then perhaps those men could be… chased off by a series of unfortunate accidents.” He trailed off, then gave Hermione a condescending look. “That is, if you can even comprehend that level of planning, Granger.”

Hermione snorted like an angry bull.

“Oh, I can comprehend it just fine. I’m just wondering if you’ll be able to pull off your end of it. Don’t worry if you can’t—Gryffindors are used to picking up the slack.”

“You must be. There’s a lot to pick up in that House of yours, isn’t there?” Draco fired back.

They held each other’s glare for a long moment—until Hermione broke it off with a frustrated sigh.

“Fine. I’ll talk to Fred and George, and the rest of the Gryffindors. They should be easy to get on board. I can probably swing the Hufflepuffs, too, with a bit of help.”

Draco nodded.

“Slytherin is always willing to do what’s necessary for success. Ravenclaw will fall in line once we explain the logic.”

They locked eyes one more time.

“Deal.” Hermione held out her hand.

Draco wrinkled his nose at it for a moment before sighing, reaching out and clasping it in his own, giving it a single, firm shake.

“Deal.”

They turned and went their separate ways, refusing to look back, heads held high.

They looked every bit the part of soldiers heading to war.

There was much work to do, after all.

Chapter Text

What if the Author engaged in a bit of Self-Indulgence (AKA an OC-Insert)

Ever since the day he became aware of this new world, Kanzi could practically feel Disney’s copyright lawyers clawing their way through the ether to find it—just so they could sue everyone involved for all they were worth.

Seriously though, the amount of Disney imagery—or outright identical elements—was insane. The Great Seven were just a star lineup of classic movie villains, and it felt like every important figure he heard about was some sort of expy.

And that’s not even mentioning the fact that he had magic now, among the many other features new to this life.

Dipping his hand into the small satchel strapped to his side, hidden underneath the ceremonial robes, Kanzi couldn't help himself from drawing out two marbles—a Bengelinto and an Oxblood, he could tell.

The clinking of the spheres helped bring him back to the present, focusing more on the ceremony around him, as the other first-years ahead marched up to the sorting hat—er, sorting mirror—and received their placements.

The memories from his previous life were complete. He could remember it, start to end. Certain fine details were hazy. He could recall movies vividly—the entire script of The Martian rested in his brain—and books and music were much the same.

But personal details? Things like his real name, or where he had lived? Those were fogged out slightly, like trying to remember what you'd had for breakfast the day before and coming up blank.

He’d have been more heartbroken about leaving everything behind… if he could just remember anything.

Instead, all Kanzi really knew were pop culture references—and a faded feeling of love for people he couldn’t quite name.

He also knew that he had died by getting hit by a horse-drawn carriage, of all things. The irony of that, given where he was now, made him snort lightly.

His earliest memory in this world was opening his eyes on cold sand, staring up at a star-filled sky. His body had felt small and stiff, and he’d been shivering.

He was in the middle of a desert. The only reason he made it out alive was because a group of teenagers—apparently sneaking out late to go sand-surfing—stumbled across him and led him back to civilization.

He’d been taken to the nearest government building, which turned out to be the town hall of a tiny village of barely five families. Eventually, they’d found someone who spoke English—or Rose Speak, as it was called here—who asked him a few questions.

That was when Kanzi had realized why his body felt so odd: the official, whose name he didn’t yet know, had asked what a five-year-old child was doing alone.

He hadn’t had a good answer. His hazy memories, general confusion, and now-childlike brain made anything he said come out garbled and incoherent.

They’d put him up in the town hall for a few days, trying to figure out who he was or where he came from. Eventually, when it became clear he had no stories, no name, and no family to speak of, the village chief stepped in.

The old man had named him Kanzi, after the way his eyes kept following the jingling bracelets the man wore. And just like that, Kanzi had a father.

It had all been a whirlwind, but within a month, the newly named Kanzi had taken to it like a fish to water—which, given their desert location, was a joke in and of itself.

He chuckled softly to himself, and the red-haired boy in front of him gave him a side-eye before facing forward again.

He had discovered his magic later, during a hostage incident involving some not-so-good-natured thieves. That’s when his Unique Magic had manifested. Since then, he’d worked hard to refine his skills—because in his experience, these things always happened more than once.

Just how much progress he made came as a shock to him—and a bigger shock to the village—when a black carriage nearly bowled him over one day, giving him flashbacks, as it pulled into their square.

From there, it had been all village-wide celebration and trying to convince him that he ought to go to the big fancy school instead of continuing his pottery apprenticeship.

It had taken his adoptive father nearly crying to convince him. The old man had bounced back immediately afterward, though, so there may have been a little deception involved.

Now, back in the present, Kanzi watched as the sorting proceeded, still trying to wrap his head around the sheer amount of Disney influence in this world. His eyes flicked up to the dorm leaders sitting overhead, each one looking more terrifying than the last.

Still, he was safe for now—

“Up you go. No dilly-dallying now.”

A firm hand pushed gently at his back, and Kanzi was jolted from his thoughts. It was his turn.

Not wanting to draw any more attention to himself than necessary—especially not from the local walking weapons of mass destruction—he stepped forward toward the Dark Mirror.

The mirror didn't twitch. Neither did any of the students watching. Just another faceless name in the crowd, soon to be sorted and forgotten.

That was good. Anonymity brought protection. He had learned that in his last life, and again in this one.

Standing before the mirror, he took a moment to admire the frame. It looked well-crafted—he’d bet it was solid silver.

Silver was good for enchantments. Malleable. Not as much as gold, but still good. He found himself wondering just how much it would cost to—

“To ye who have been guided here by the Dark Mirror,”

Ah, it was starting.

“I shall reveal the shape of your soul.”

For a moment, it felt like someone was looking directly into something very private. A treasure he was meant to protect. The memories of his past life passed through him more clearly than ever, and the ones from this life crystallized into laser focus.

“The shape of thy soul is… Scarabia!”

The moment passed. Kanzi let out a breath and headed toward the indicated group of students. He towered over most of the other first-years, but not everyone—another student, with hands the size of serving platters, stood nearby and gave him an acknowledging nod.

He nodded back and fell into line.

They waited as the rest of the students were sorted, and eventually, at the end, everyone posed for a moment—only for a strange confusion to ripple through the crowd. Dorms milled around, unsure.

“The Headmaster’s supposed to give a speech,” the larger teen said beside him, “but he’s missing.”

Kanzi frowned slightly and began tossing the two marbles in his hand again—Bengelinto and Oxblood, old favorites.

Something felt off.

Sure enough, eventually the doors slammed open. In came the Headmaster—tall, strangely dressed, scepter in hand—followed by a wayward student.

A small girl, with tangled hair and bright blue eyes, dressed in the ceremonial robes same as them.

Kanzi’s frown deepened.

He could have sworn this was a male-only school. That’s what the internet said. And the internet doesn’t lie.

Still, the Headmaster didn’t seem to mind her presence, so it must have been allowed. That was fine.

More importantly, he was Fae.

Kanzi’s internal theorist began vibrating with questions. Fae weren’t well-documented even in this world. There were rumors, but so few confirmed. He couldn’t wait to test a few theories.

Was it true that Fae turned blue when exposed to lemon juice?

One of his internet friends—Muscle_Red—had told him that. And Muscle_Red never lied.

Before Kanzi could dwell further, a loud yell echoed through the hall.

Something about a cat.

Then came fire.

Brilliant blue, like a neon rave, danced through the hall as students ran in panic. It might have been beautiful if not for the giant gout of flame headed directly toward the Scarabia group.

The large student beside him dove to the side, and Kanzi did the same, his marbles slipping back into his pouch with practiced ease.

He peeked up.

Blue fire burned the drapes. Ran along the floors. Students screamed and ducked. Three dorm leaders sprinted after what appeared to be a talking cat.

In the chaos, Kanzi spotted the Scarabia Dormhead—Kalim Al-Asim, he’d later learn—running in circles with his backside on fire.

Kanzi made to help, but paused when the strange girl from earlier ran in instead, dousing the flames in a panic.

Good.

If he helped the dormhead this early, people would remember his face.

And being remembered was the opposite of survival.

Scarabia, as it turned out, was actually a decent dorm. The heat didn’t bother Kanzi after years in his desert village, and the facilities were better than expected.

The people, though?

A snake pit.

Everyone wore a mask. Everyone had an angle. The way they smiled and handed you fruit while watching your every move made Kanzi’s instincts buzz. It was like being in the middle of a very polite assassination plot.

He was fine, though. He kept to himself.

His roommate, however, was a short, angry firecracker who picked fights like it was his full-time job. And that was perfect—because if his roommate stirred the pot, Kanzi could sit across the chessboard and listen to him rant about who hated who, who had done what, and how Kalim’s latest party had ended in a sandstorm.

Kanzi rarely won their matches, but that wasn’t the point.

The one thing that really irked him?

Kalim Al-Asim and Jamil Viper.

Neither of them wore a mask. At least, not one Kanzi could detect.

And that was suspicious.

No one—no one—was that benevolent with that much power and no agenda. It just didn’t happen.

Kanzi even ranted about it once, when he was the one with verbal momentum during a late-night chess match.

“They’re hiding something,” he insisted. “Kalim’s always smiling, and Jamil is always not-smiling. It’s too convenient. They’re like… a prince and his broody shadow clone. That’s not normal.”

His roommate sneered at him and went back to polishing his brass dice.

Didn’t matter. Kanzi knew the truth.

He made a point to avoid them both. Joined Track and Field instead of the Basketball Club (too much Jamil), ducked out early from events, and took alternate hallways if he saw Kalim in the distance.

That’s how he liked it.

Peace. Obscurity. Minimal chaos.

Which was exactly why it was unfortunate when he spotted her again.

That girl.

She wore a proper uniform now, black and white striped armband on her sleeve, and the same talkative cat from the hall followed at her heels.

But she wasn’t alone.

Two tall Savannaclaw beastmen had cornered her. They were jeering, leaning in close, shoving her slightly back and forth as the cat hissed and bristled. One of them—the bigger one—snatched the books from her arms and held them over the well in the courtyard, laughing.

“Maybe they’ll cry for them,” he taunted, his voice mock-sweet.

Kanzi sighed.

This was exactly the kind of thing that dragged side characters into protagonist drama.

Still… he glanced at the books. They looked like textbooks. One was heavily annotated. That kind of effort shouldn't be rewarded with bullying.

And the cat looked like it was about to combust again.

Kanzi felt the pouch at his waist weighing heavy.

He stepped forward.

“And look, what’s a weakling like you gonna do about it? No magic, no muscle—you’re barely even a person.” The taller teen laughed as he shoved the girl backward. She stumbled.

Kanzi sighed. The headache was already forming.

He could feel the guilt kicking in. If he didn’t intervene now, he’d just end up wallowing about it for three days and then awkwardly apologizing to the girl afterward. And he was not emotionally equipped for that kind of self-inflicted guilt spiral this early in the term.

So, with a quiet sigh, he reached into his pocket and felt around until his fingers brushed against a familiar sphere.

Nero Marquina. A marble carved from polished black stone, with white veins. His pops thought he was being clever when he sent it—“marble made of marble,” he’d joked. Kanzi hadn’t laughed, but he’d kept it close anyway.

He flicked the marble ahead, letting it clatter dramatically across the stone courtyard.

Four heads turned.

Kanzi grinned faintly and whispered the activation:

“Good as Gold.”

The marble pulsed—just once—like a soft, golden blink.

Then, across the courtyard, in perfect dramatics, came a thunderous voice:

“What do you think you are doing?!”

All four turned to see Professor Crewel, resplendent in his sweeping coat, striding toward them with a riding crop in one gloved hand and murder in his eyes.

Even Grimm looked terrified.

The students straightened so fast they might’ve sprained something.

“Professor, what are you—?”

“No interruptions, mutts!” the illusion snapped, voice cutting through the courtyard like a whip. “All of you—back to class. Now!”

The Savannaclaw students scattered. One of them dropped the stack of books in his haste, and Grimm darted over to grab them, looking smug.

As the coast cleared, Kanzi stepped out from behind the wall, letting out a breath of relief. Professor Crewel shimmered in a swirl of gold, light particles fading away until all that remained was the Nero Marquina marble on the ground.

He stooped, pocketed it again, and allowed himself a brief moment of pride.

He’d been refining that illusion since the start of the year.

There were still kinks—no shadow, slightly floaty walk cycle—but no one had noticed. Not even Grimm.

He turned to go.

And promptly yelped.

Two wide, iridescent blue eyes blinked up at him from less than a foot away.

The directing student stood there, messy hair falling back just slightly as she tilted her head up to meet his gaze.

“Was that an illusion?” she asked, tone curious—not accusing, just interested. She had to tilt her head so far back to meet his eyes that the curtain of hair usually hiding her face parted just slightly.

Kanzi blinked. Up close, she looked younger than he expected. Smaller. Soft-edged.

She reminded him of someone.

He couldn’t quite remember who.

She was flanked by the cat—not a cat—who was still glaring up at him with narrowed eyes.

“I, uh...” Kanzi hedged. “Don’t you have someplace to be, short stuff?”

The not-a-cat hissed. The girl didn’t even blink.

“I have a free period,” she said simply. “And my name’s Yuu. That’s Grimm. He’s not a cat.”

Grimm puffed his chest out like a smug little lion. Kanzi resisted the urge to grimace.

Well. So much for sneaking away without getting tied into protagonist nonsense.

“Nice to meet you, Yuu and Grimm,” he said in a rushed tone. “But I’ve got somewhere to be, so maybe catch you later?”

He turned to go—fast—but a hand grabbed his.

Small. Warm. Firm.

He stopped short, startled.

She was staring up at him again.

“Wait!” she said. Then, quieter, “I just… wanted to say thanks. For helping me. I would’ve had to fish those out of the well again.”

Again?

Kanzi opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

What on earth was going on with this girl that she had a personal history with courtyard wells?!

“…What’d you even do to get them on your case in the first place?” he asked, blinking down at her.

Yuu shrugged.

“I don’t know. They all seem really irritated that I’m small and magicless.” She said it so deadpan it nearly floored him.

Kanzi snorted.

“Yeah, well, next time just summon the fire cat earlier. Probably would’ve been faster.”

“We’ll be more careful,” she replied seriously, as if she’d just received sage advice.

Kanzi shook his head. “Anyway, no thanks needed. Seriously. Forget about it.”

But Yuu shuffled again. Still holding his hand. Still looking up.

“I’d like to meet again. I want to know more about what you did back there. And…” She gave him a small, bright smile that pierced straight through his stomach and dragged up something hazy and warm from the back of his memory.

“…I think you seem like a nice person.”

Kanzi blinked.

And blinked again.

He felt something old ache in his chest.

Oof.

Critical hit.

Why’d she have to say that?

Looking away with a slight blush, Kanzi weighed his options. There were still exits. He could feign ignorance, fake a medical emergency, or pretend he didn’t speak Rose Speech fluently.

But no—he sighed. There was no real avoiding it now.

“…Look,” he muttered, scratching the back of his neck, “we can meet up tomorrow after third. In the library, if you like. But right now—I gotta go.”

Yuu immediately let go of his hand, stepping back with that same bright, unguarded smile.

Kanzi took back every previous thought he had.

This girl was devious.

Whether she meant to be or not—she didn’t let up until she got what she wanted. Diabolical. The not-a-cat muttered something under its breath, and though Kanzi couldn’t catch the whole thing, he heard the word beast taming.

He was inclined to agree.

Stepping away, he gave a casual wave over his shoulder.

Then paused mid-step.

“Oh, and—name’s Kanzi,” he said, glancing back with a crooked grin. “Call me Zee, please. See you around, Ms. Yuu.”

And with that, he jogged off.

Behind him, Yuu stood frozen, mouth slightly open.

She flinched. Hard.

“Ms?” she squeaked, voice cracking just slightly as Grimm stared at her, then back down the hallway after the retreating figure.

That night, he returned to Scarabia, had dinner—which had turned into a surprise party at the request of Asim-senpai—and scuttled off to his room. His roommate wasn’t in yet, still off enjoying the party and probably trying to scam some of the other first-years into losing chess games.

Kanzi lay in his bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering about recent events.

That girl had reminded him of someone he didn’t remember. It was an odd feeling—like recognizing someone but not knowing from where or what their name was.

The feeling reminded him of those days when he first woke up, when he saw the stars in the sky and realized he could remember a life but none of the things that made it worth living.

It was nostalgic, and uncomfortable. Nostalgically uncomfortable.

Sitting up in bed, he checked the time. It was nearly midnight, and the party was still going strong. Kanzi sighed aloud. It was a weekday—his roommate would be back soon—but at this hour, he was more likely to just collapse into bed than to ask any questions about where Kanzi had been or what he was studying.

Stepping out into the hall, the Scarabia first-year dodged a passing student carrying a platter and headed in the opposite direction, walking slowly and casually. Past the kitchens he went, and off toward the main entrance, which was left wide open to the desert sky.

Once he was outside, Kanzi made his way around the side before sitting down, back against the wall, looking up at the sky.

He frowned.

The stars were beautiful, but…

All this light and noise from the party wasn’t helpful to his attempts to think. The sound of the pounding music, the smell of the fragrant foodstuffs served, and the flashing lights all contributed to a growing headache.

Kanzi growled. Normally, he would have simply walked to the second or third floor and found a balcony to sit on and think, but at the moment, he wasn’t willing to walk back through that cacophony to get there.

Pulling himself up, Kanzi turned back toward the Scarabia dorm, inspecting the exterior. It looked hard to scale, but he remembered more imposing climbs from his previous life.

Hooking a hand into a small groove in the building, Kanzi pulled himself up and, carefully, began to climb the side of the dorm.

Past the first floor, then past the second he went. The third floor was traditionally where first-year access to the dorms stopped, and only the Dormhead or Vice Dormhead were allowed past that point—but at the moment, Kanzi was not in the mood to stop for rules.

Past the third, then fourth floor he went, continuing on until he hit a fifth-floor balcony. Swinging himself up and into the area, Kanzi took a moment to look around. Two doors—both large and opulent—but one considerably more so than the other. He figured he may have found the Dormhead’s rooms, but he didn’t care.

What really interested him was the open door, leading to a spiral staircase.

He grinned. He’d place money that this was the path up to the tower.

Without thinking much, Kanzi trotted over and began climbing the stairs, up and up, until he reached the top. There was a small room, with a chair and a half-forgotten glass, facing the large open balcony.

Stepping out onto it, he noted the curved geometry of the top of the tower looked scalable, and something inside him told him he was not yet close enough to the sky.

Also, he had really enjoyed the climbing.

Stepping up, he grabbed onto the steeple and, carefully, keeping a firm hold, flipped himself around so he faced the open sky.

This was it. Better. Nothing but stars and wind. The sounds from down below were mellowed, and the glowing lights barely reached so far up here.

This was better. For a moment, Kanzi looked up at the sky, and just breathed.

It still seemed just out of reach. He could almost make out the way they looked, if he could just get a little bit—

“Hey~! What are you doing up here?”

Kanzi yelped as his hands loosened in surprise, and his body tilted downward as gravity began taking its course. He opened his mouth to scream when a strong hand grabbed him by the back of his uniform and pulled him back up suddenly.

There was a heart-stopping moment before suddenly Kanzi was lying on his back on a soft surface, while someone leaned over him.

“Whoa! That was close, wasn’t it? Hey, aren’t you one of the first-years? I thought all of you guys were down there partying.”

Kanzi couldn’t quite make out who was leaning above him, mostly due to the shade cast by both the spire that was still beside them, as well as the already very low light provided by the stars—but he found himself responding anyway.

“I wanted to get a better look at the sky. It was too loud down there.”

The figure above him seemed to shift, as though surprised, before laughing.

“Hah! I get that. Normally I’m good at parties, but tonight I just wanted some time to myself.” The older boy paused before straightening back up, leaving Kanzi’s line of sight. “And it’s a good thing I did, huh? That was dangerous. You should be a bit more careful. Besides, I’m pretty sure only the Housewarden and the Vice-Housewarden are allowed up here.”

There was a slightly teasing lilt in the other’s voice, and Kanzi found himself blushing slightly as he sat up properly.

“Please don’t tell him. Or Viper-senpai. I really don’t want to get into hot water my first year.” As he spoke, he took the opportunity to look around. He was still in the sky—somehow—and the tip of the tower he had just fallen off was still right beside them. Although it seemed to be swaying slightly, or…

They were.

Looking down, Kanzi noticed that the thing they were sitting on was some sort of carpet—suspiciously like the famous one from the story of the Sorcerer of the Sands.

A thought struck him, about who would have something like this just lying around, and he slowly looked up, now able to see the other more clearly in the light.

“I mean, you're not in trouble or anything. I just wanted to know what you were doing up here! You can stay if you like—the view of the stars is absolutely better from up high, right?” asked Kalim Al-Asim, Dormhead of Scarabia.

Kanzi groaned and held his face in his hands, refusing to look up, even as his Dormhead—and the son of one of the most powerful people in the Scalding Sands—let out a loud, happy laugh at his embarrassment.

Kanzi was able to get back to the ground, but only after a short flight around on Asim-senpai’s magic carpet, and a long conversation in which Asim-senpai proved exactly why he was known as both the nicest person in NRC and the heir to one of the most successful merchants in the world.

Kanzi hadn’t wanted to say much, but Asim-senpai just kept asking questions—and he was always so happy and trusting when he did that Kanzi couldn’t help but answer.

He was placed back on the ground well after 1 a.m., but only after promising to hang out more and show Asim-senpai his marble collection.

When Kanzi finally returned to his room, the other bed was already occupied by his roommate, who was fast asleep. Just like him, Kanzi didn’t bother with any preparation before flopping face-first into bed.

What an exhausting day.

The next morning, after classes, Kanzi reluctantly trudged toward the library to meet with the directing student. He didn’t really want to, but a promise was a promise—and she had helped him remember the first clear memory he’d had since arriving here.

Plus, it helped that the girl was adorable in that shy, younger sibling kind of way.

Checking his bag and the time, Kanzi stepped through the doors of the library. He’d specifically picked a time that was unlikely to have many students present, but also wouldn’t afford the girl much time to ask questions before she had to rush off to her next class.

Ideally, he would answer a few, then she’d forget about him. Dealing with both her and Asim-senpai at the same time was unfeasible, and he hoped to remove at least one of those commitments today.

Looking around, he spotted the directing student sitting at one of the side tables, notebook already laid out in front of her.

Unfortunately, those two troublesome Heartslabyul underclassmen he’d been hearing about were also there—and both were glaring directly at him, as if he’d personally offended them.

Kanzi couldn’t help the sigh that escaped him.

Of course.

Nothing could be easy, could it?

Still, this would be simple: answer a few questions, be a bit vague and a bit annoying, and leave so they didn’t remember him.

It was simple. It’s not like they could stop him. Scarabia was private enough that it would take a substantial bribe for any student to offer up information about him to the directing student—if they even had any.

It’s not like he would get attached or anything.

What If the TWST boys learnt that they missed Yuu’s birthday

It was another lazy day in Ramshackle. The end of the year was nearing, and Yuu, alongside the Heartslabyul combo plus Jack, were lounging around the directing student’s dorm building.

More precisely, Ace and Deuce were lying on the couches, while Yuu was attempting a recipe recommended to her by Jamil, with Jack helping—even as the boy grumbled.

“Trained.” Ace snickered from the couch, only to yelp when a small roll was flung with pinpoint accuracy to nail the red-headed boy directly in the head. The roll bounced onto the table, and before he could react, Deuce snagged the rounded piece of bread and took a big bite out of it, much to Ace’s dismay.

“Hey! I was gonna eat that,” he protested, glaring at the other boy as he sat up straight.

Deuce just rolled his eyes at him, opening his mouth to speak—then thought better of it. Instead, he finished chewing, then gave Ace a smug look.

“You should have been faster, then,” the blue-haired boy began. “Besides, my birthday’s next month. Consider this an early deposit.”

“Stop saying it like it’s a bank transaction. You’re starting to sound like Ace, Deuce.”

Deuce made a face at the insinuation, which Ace returned with one of his own, before both boys seemed to have a realization. Ace turned toward the kitchen.

“Hey Yuu, do aliens like you and Grim celebrate birthdays?”

Yuu, not even reacting to the alien comment, wrinkled her nose before nodding.

“Yeah—”

“Then make me a cake for tomorrow,” the Heartslabyul first year finished with a smug smile. Jack scowled at him, even as he mixed the bowl of filling vigorously, the whisk looking comically small in the beastman’s hands.

“Don’t listen to the brat, Yuu. His birthday was near the start of the year—it was all he would talk about for a while.” Jack grunted slightly, glaring toward Ace.

“If you wanted a cake, you only needed to ask, Ace. Trey-senpai said he wanted to teach me more recipes anyway!”

For some reason, that didn’t seem to make Ace as happy as it should’ve. Both he and Jack turned away, muttering about glasses-wearing upperclassmen “stealing the lead.”

Deuce, on the other hand, looked thoughtful, still chewing slowly on the mostly eaten roll.

“Hey Yuu,” he began, “when’s your birthday?”

The effect of that single question was startling. All three boys, plus the lounging monster on the coffee table, stiffened—eyes wide with realization—and turned as one toward the directing student, who didn’t seem to notice the sudden tension in the room.

“August 29th. Although I haven’t really ever celebrated my birthday,” she said thoughtfully. “Neither of my parents were ever really interested. The house-elves gave me a small cake the first two years, but I asked them to stop after that. It just drew attention, and I never really ate it.”

Her tone was as casual as if she were talking about what she’d read yesterday. The directing student’s birthday was clearly unimportant to her.

Jack, Ace, Deuce, and Grim met eyes. A silent understanding passed between them—even as Yuu continued talking.

“But anyway, what type of cake did you want, Ace?”

Ace shifted, before giving her a familiar smile—one he only wore when he was scheming.

“Eh… I don’t know. What’s your favorite kind of cake, Yuu?” he asked in a leading voice.

Yuu paused for a moment, then shrugged. “Anything Trey-senpai makes, honestly. I don’t think I’ve really had enough cake to have a favorite flavor.”

This didn’t seem to please Ace—or any of the boys—who shared another glance, this one distinctly more unhappy, before nodding among themselves.

“Well, alright. Don’t worry about the cake either. I’m not feeling it anymore.”

That was when Grim chose to speak up.

“Henchman, do we have any more of those limited edition premium tuna cans from Sam’s?”

Yuu frowned briefly, then looked back toward Grim from the kitchen.

“Only two left—but I don’t want you to ruin dinner.”

Grim gave her a lazy smile, paired with a set of big, pleading eyes.

“When have you ever known me to get full?”

“Scarabia,” Yuu deadpanned back, before her expression softened and she nodded.

“Alright. I’ll go get you one. Jack, could you watch the pan?”

The Savanaclaw first year nodded solemnly as Yuu trotted up the stairs of Ramshackle.

“Okay, we have five minutes before she realizes I already ate those three last night. What’s the plan?”

Ace and Deuce nodded. Ace was already pulling out his phone.

“I reckon we can set something up this weekend if we really want to,” he began, with Jack nodding along.

Deuce raised a hand.

“We should probably check with Dormhead first, though. He’d probably be all for it, but things’ll go smoother with his help—and his permission to use the grounds.”

“What do you mean?”

The two freshmen looked toward Jack.

“What do you mean ‘What do you mean’? We’re throwing a late birthday party for Yuu,” Ace explained.

“I get that,” Jack nodded. “But why would we need Riddle-senpai’s permission to use Savanaclaw grounds? I already texted Ruggie-senpai to let him know. You guys can bring some food if you’d like, but Savanaclaw can handle the catering. Plus, Yuu likes Savanaclaw food better anyway.”

Jack’s words provoked growls from his two fellow first years and an exasperated sigh from Grim.

“Can’t you all for once—”

“Eh, Jack, what are you saying?” Ace began, a mean smirk on his face as Deuce stood up fully, stretching out and eyeing the other track and field member. “Don’t you remember Yuu saying that the food from Heartslabyul reminded her of home?”

“Like that’s a good thing. Have you forgotten what Yuu’s own world is like, or did that leak out from between your ears?”

The two groups leaned forward, and for a second Grim thought he’d have to run upstairs to get Yuu before they tore the lounge apart. Thankfully, before the first punch could be thrown, Yuu came hopping back down the stairs, a slightly confused look on her face.

“Grim, did you already eat the extra tuna?” she asked, raising an eyebrow toward the monster, who looked away guiltily. She gave him an exasperated look before sighing.

“Guess I’ll buy more at Sam’s next time they’re available,” she muttered, then turned to the now-standing NRC students. “What are you all standing around for? Did something happen?” she asked.

Jack straightened, turning away from the other two toward Yuu.

“Do you need any more help with the food, Yuu?” he asked politely.

“No, I think that’s everything. Thank you so much, Jack!” Yuu gave him a beaming smile that had Jack looking away slightly before answering.

“Got it. Leona just texted me, so I’ve gotta get going. Call me if there’s any trouble.” With that, Jack ignored the glaring Heartslabyul students and jogged out the door.

“We gotta go too, Yuu, but we’ll come back later tonight for that sleepover,” Ace added casually. “Have fun with your club meeting at Diasomnia, alright? And call us”—he emphasized the word, gesturing to himself and Deuce—“if there’s any trouble.”

Ace and Deuce practically chased Jack out the door, oblivious to Yuu’s raised eyebrow. She turned to Grim.

“What’s up with them?”

The monster just groaned before hopping over to snuggle into her shoulder.

“You’re surrounded by idiots, Henchman.”

Neither of them noticed that Yuu’s phone, which was still on the table, displayed a familiar icon—a blue skull—which winked off shortly after Ace and Deuce had left.

Yuu was too focused on thinking about what she would tell Tsuntarou about how her friends had suddenly taken off after their conversation that day.

Chapter Text

Later that night, the temporary dorms provided to the Night Raven College students were full.

Thirty-five students, five from each dorm, sat across the slightly-too-small common room, grouped with their respective dorms, presenting a strong front across the board. Little conversation took place, aside from the quiet talk between some of the dorm students.

Instead, there was a quiet tension in the air, filled with the crackling of the nearby fireplace and punctuated by the multicolored light emitted from the “Gateway” that the Ignihyde students were still working on, even now.

If Cater could, he would have been snapping pictures nonstop. All of these individuals—Leona Kingscholar, Kalim Al-Asim, and even Malleus Draconia—gathered in one place was an event for the ages. Something not even Yuu-chan could have orchestrated if she tried.

Cater couldn’t help the exasperated noise that escaped him, drawing sharp glances from Riddle and others in the silent room.

Who was he kidding? That little devil probably could have pulled it off. Unintentionally, he’d bet.

She’d call it “really cool to have all her friends in one place” or something like that, knowing her.

It would be worth photographing, even if he probably wouldn’t be allowed to post any of it.

Speaking of posting...

Cater checked his phone again and couldn’t help the frown that crossed his face. There was, contrary to expectations, a signal. Idia Shroud had managed to connect it directly to the Mirror when he came through—weak as it was.

But unfortunately, the aspiring Magicam star was expressly forbidden from posting anything without the express permission of Headmaster Crowley and a letter from the Queen herself, addressed to the Heartslabyul delegation as a whole.

When they’d first lost Yuu-chan—and then dared to hope to find her again—Cater had expected chaos. Tears, destruction of private property, maybe a little bit of physical violence from those trying to stop the herd of beasts NRC called its student body.

What he hadn’t expected was for the situation to get political. His parents and sisters had called him, asking what was going on. His Magicam account had gained hundreds of followers overnight.

Still, he didn’t think he’d be able to relax until this whole ordeal was over. That sentiment seemed to be shared around the room, if the expressions he was reading were anything to go by.

No one had been quite right since the directing student had vanished. Cater had front-row seats to most of it.

Riddle hadn’t been satisfied with the lack of progress, so when he locked himself in his room—ignoring the Queen of Hearts' carefully scheduled rules—and had only ancient tomes and food delivered, Cater had figured he was trying to skip the line.

He wasn’t surprised when Azul and his enforcers disappeared from campus either. Honestly, he was more surprised others hadn’t tried the same thing yet. Maybe they just didn’t think fast enough.

When Riddle finally emerged and shared his plan, Cater had been all for it. After all, if others were already trying to steal the lead, then Heartslabyul had a duty to compete.

And even if they weren’t, Cater still would have pushed for it.

Everyone was antsy. Even seeing Yuu-chan at dinner had only soothed things a little. They were all on their best behavior—not just for Yuu-chan’s sake, but because a whole new school was watching. That kind of effort could only last for so long.

Ultimately, despite the buzz about this “new world,” none of the Night Raven College students cared all that much. They weren’t here for magic theories or inter-world diplomacy.

They were here for Yuu-chan.

And wasn’t that terrifying?

Cater scanned the room again, noting the faces and expressions of the most powerful students NRC had to offer.

They were all completely and utterly charmed by one little kid. They joked about beast taming, but Cater didn’t think they fully grasped what that meant—or how deeply it had already happened.

In the span of months, this barely-fifteen-year-old girl had worked her way into the hearts of the most influential, volatile, and powerful teenagers in their world. Royalty. Aristocrats. Superstars. Geniuses.

If Cater didn’t know her better, he’d think she was some kind of super-spy planted to make connections with the entirety of NRC.

But he didn’t believe that. Or maybe he was too far in himself to be impartial.

Still, Trey trusted her. And if Trey was fooled, Cater never stood a chance. Better to go with the flow than swim against the current.

The reason Yuu-chan wasn’t here with them now—despite the many protests and attempts at blatant kidnapping—was because she and Headmaster Crowley were apparently meeting with the local Headmaster again to discuss her schooling.

Many of the students wanted to grab her and drag her through the Gateway, then destroy it behind them. But they’d been reassured—both by Crowley and Yuu herself—that everything would be fine, and that they’d return shortly.

So they waited. Unhappily.

Glares were exchanged. Whispers spread between dorms.

Then, after a while, Kalim’s voice cut through the room. Mild though it was, everyone knew enough to read between the lines when Jamil Viper spoke first.

“Riddle, Idia, Azul. It seems you all have a bit to report. Please share what knowledge you’ve gained from your early arrivals.”

“Yeah!” Kalim added brightly, smiling in a way that was just the tiniest bit too sharp. “You guys are so lucky, getting to come early. I’m a bit jealous.”

After the questions, the room echoed back into silence. None of the three who had been addressed seemed willing to pick up the not-quite-accusation laid down by the Scarabia duo.

Surprisingly, it was Idia who finally answered, looking up from where he was typing into one of his tablets. The Ignihyde dormhead had been in rare form since they’d arrived—much more serious and confident than Cater was used to seeing him.

Admittedly, Cater wasn’t really used to seeing the other boy in person at all, but the point stood.

“This isn’t Yuu’s time,” Idia began. “It’s her world, her school, but it seems whatever QTE that took her missed the right timestamp—or the worlds are out of sync, or something else entirely. We haven’t quite figured it out yet.” He tapped away at the tablet a few more times before looking back up.

“Where—and when—we are currently is a few decades before the point where Yuu was born.”

This information was digested in thoughtful silence.

“Does Yuu know that?”

Idia nodded quickly. “She noticed it right away.”

Another pause, shorter this time.

“Should we be worried about anything relating to that? Time travel is riddled with its own consequences, I imagine.” It was Vil this time, asking with a vaguely concerned expression as he watched Idia closely.

Instead of shrinking away, as he normally would when under such scrutiny, Idia met the Pomefiore dormhead’s gaze fearlessly.

“Not that we can tell. If something was going to happen, logic dictates that it would have happened the moment Yuu arrived,” Idia said, pausing with a pensive look. “Also—congratulations to us, I suppose—for discovering a functional, potential method of time travel.”

That statement echoed throughout the room. Cater let the thought roll around a bit.

Cater Diamond, time traveler…

He wondered how that would sound on Magicam.

He pulled out his phone and began typing rapidly, keeping half an eye on the room.

It was Leona who next spoke, his tone unreadable.

“Has that Headmaster tried anything while he was here on his own?”

It didn’t sound like a question. It sounded like a demand for information. Riddle and the Octavinelle trio all visibly straightened.

Oh. Was there something Riddle hadn’t told them yet?

Cater leaned forward, eyes flicking off his phone’s screen. The rest of the room’s attention snapped into focus too.

Riddle cleared his throat.

“It seems that Headmaster Crowley has made the decision to adopt Yuu as his own child, for the duration of her stay in Twisted Wonderland.”

Forever was the unsaid word, but it echoed in the tension that followed.

Still, the news clearly had an effect on the room—mostly negative. But for one group, it was undeniably a success.

Leona glared over at the Diasomnia group, his eyes locking onto a neutral-looking Malleus Draconia.

Not everyone caught on quite as fast. Cater raised an eyebrow as Epel Felmier raised his hand, standing firm even under the weight of so many angry glares.

“Isn’t that a good thing, though? Giving Yuu a guardian figure—and, you know, paperwork in Twisted Wonderland?” Epel asked, soft-spoken. He was clearly still aware of Vil’s presence.

Confidence deserved to be rewarded. Cater liked Epel.

He butted in.

“It means Yuu-chan’s citizenship—depending on whether the paperwork has gone through—has been decided. The citizenship of the parent typically transfers to the child.”

Epel’s eyes widened. “So that means…” He turned toward Diasomnia.

Cater nodded.

“The Briar Valley. Yep!” he said, with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. Then he turned his gaze on Diasomnia.

Lilia, his maybe-friend, returned it.

“Isn’t it delightful? Dear Ms. Yuu spending the entirety of summer vacation as a citizen of the Briar Valley. Why, she might never want to leave.” Lilia wore a sunny smile that fooled no one, especially as his voice dropped just slightly. Silver nodded beside him while Sebek sat perfectly straight.

Malleus, however, seemed to have something he wished to add.

“The Child of Man will be safest and most secure in the Briar Valley, under our care. The danger surrounding her has only increased, as shown by this latest adventure,” he said—though what he meant was the danger of her leaving for good. “And aside from that, Briar Valley is the most beneficial location for my other aspirations. I would like to announce to you all—my intentions to court Yuu Crowley.”

You could’ve heard a pin drop.

Cater felt his own jaw drop open as everyone stared at the fae prince.

Beside him, Lilia slammed his hand into his forehead with a look of utter bewilderment.

“Malleus, you were not supposed to tell them that part,” the vice-dormhead said, his exasperation leaking into a reluctant smile. “That’s only going to make your job harder.”

Malleus turned to Lilia with a mildly puzzled look.

“Why would revealing my intentions cause any trouble whatsoever? I merely wished for them to not mistake my actions in the coming days. The courtship ritual you described is complex, after all.”

The prince appeared completely oblivious to the growing tension in the room.

“Because you may have just motivated your competition.”

Malleus blinked, then turned to the room.

“Ah. I see. I didn’t think of them as competition,” he said, then added with a smile that promised cruelty, “If any of you have similar intentions toward the Child of Man, please dispense with them now. I will not tolerate competition.”

Lilia cackled as the tension in the room spiked fivefold.

“You damn lizard,” Leona snarled, now on his feet with a furious look as he took a step forward.

Malleus met the glare with a placid smile—one that held the faintest edge of mockery and dismissal.

“What is the matter, Kingscholar? Surely you do not wish to challenge me here. Our history of clashes is… decidedly in my favor.”

Leona seemed ready to lunge forward, and neither Ruggie nor Jack seemed to favor the idea of stopping him.

It was Azul, however, who broke into the conversation.

"How thoughtless of you all, to pursue my dear employee without any discussion with her. What truly heartless people you are. In the grandest of mercies, I must, however, protest against your attempts," Azul raised his head, and below the rim of his hat, Azul's eyes were cold. "Be careful where you all tread. I will not forgive any insult to me or mine."

Sparks seemed to form between the three, the other dorms watching.

"Seems like Yuu-chan is popular, eh Jamil? We should make sure to keep her away from any bad influences, eh?" There was much unspoken in the look he sent toward his rival.

"As you say," Jamil agreed, a dark look in his eyes.

Vil shot the Scarabia combo an odd look before turning toward Rook.

"Remind me to give the Potato a lesson on how to speak to fans, and what a healthy relationship looks like." Rook nodded with a smile, carefully watching the surrounding people. He was the only one in the room other than Lilia to look entertained by the events. Epel beside him glared at Malleus with more fire than expected.

Idia and Ortho, on the other hand, were both frowning at Malleus in a distinctly disapproving way. No words were exchanged between them, but Idia had already opened a new file on his computer and was typing ferociously, while Ortho examined the Diasomnia faction more closely than he had before.

Cater glanced toward Riddle, annoyed with Malleus but faintly worried about what his reaction would be. Instead of the steaming red he expected, Riddle was completely and utterly calm.

Cater exchanged a nervous glance with Trey. This was too odd to be normal. Riddle, from what Cater suspected, should be steaming mad right now.

"Hey Riddle, are we not going to say anything?" Cater asked hesitantly. He wasn’t too happy with the Diasomnia Dormhead’s declaration himself, but he didn’t dare respond directly.

Riddle turned to him, and Cater saw that his lips were slightly downturned and his eyes were tight, but his dormhead's hold on his emotions was as solid as ever.

"Whether Draconia-san wishes to attempt to court Yuu-chan is only the business of him and Yuu-chan. It is," Riddle's face tightened further, "not our place to interfere."

Riddle turned toward Malleus once more before continuing.

"That does not mean, however, that we will let this pass without response. Malleus chose to announce this to attempt to ward off others." Cater felt himself tense as Riddle's voice took on a sharper edge.

"Besides, the choice of accepting such courtship belongs with Yuu-chan. If Malleus thinks that he is lacking competition there, then he will be sorely displeased." Riddle tapped his scepter against the ground for emphasis, in a way that usually meant he was done with the conversation.

Cater felt his mouth threaten to hang open for the second time today, and Trey once more looked at him with a shocked expression that Cater wasn’t used to seeing on the unflappable vice-dormhead.

He sunk back into the high-backed couch, phone hanging limply from his fingers. For some reason, it felt like he was back home, being forced to watch a dating show with his sisters. This was insane...

The conversation—and he only called it that to be polite—was coming to a head, growing in volume, when there was the noise of the door to the dorms opening. Through it came their Headmaster, followed by the topic of discussion herself, Yuu-chan. The taller fae was leading the young girl by the hand.

Abruptly, all conversation stopped, and as one, the room followed the two as they entered. Floating behind Yuu-chan was a large trunk, not unlike the one she had brought into the dorm earlier, full of her belongings. Grim was laying atop the floating trunk, giving the entire room of students his best stink eye.

Yuu-chan was led over to an unoccupied chair nearest to Riddle, who gave the directing student a small smile. Grim leapt from the trunk into her lap, eliciting a quiet 'oof' from her as he situated himself. There was a palpable easing of tension now that the Ramshackle students were in sight.

Before conversation could begin again, the Headmaster cleared his throat, directing attention toward him.

The fae gave his students one of his patented smiles before clapping his hands.

"Good job today! You all truly represented Night Raven Academy well. I'm so glad I taught you all so well," he said, wiping an imaginary tear from off his mask. "Anyways, I'm sure you're all wondering why I have gathered you here—"

"You're going to tell us only one group can stay, and that we'll switch out every week or so," Leona cut in, an unimpressed look on his face.

The Headmaster gave the beastman an irritated look, his smile briefly dropping before it reappeared just as fast.

"Indeed. As you may or may not have noticed, our housing here, due to our unexpected nature, is quite unimpressive." Crowley gestured to the room around them, which was, indeed, quite small.

"Therefore, it's been decided, to give you all the best experience possible—as well as to provide this world a wide view of all Night Raven Academy has to offer—that we will only have one of your seven groups stay at a time, to be swapped out at the end of each week." The entire room shifted slightly at his words, students looking at one another.

Crowley continued.

"Additionally, many of your parents do not wish for you to spend an overtly long amount of time in another world, for a variety of reasons, so what we must decide today is which dorm will be staying first, and in what order." Crowley finished, smiling at the gathered students.

Many dormheads opened their mouths to either voice an argument or question, but Crowley spoke once again, cutting them off.

"Thankfully, your gracious, responsible, and thoughtful Headmaster has already made the decision for all of you!" he said cheerfully as he reached behind Yuu-chan's chair and pulled out a poster board. On it was a diagram displaying each of the dorm's logos.

Cater leaned forward, squinting. The order displayed seemed a bit familiar…

He only got it when Yuu-chan gasped, before giving Crowley an unhappy look.

“I assure you all the order is completely random.”

Heartslabyul, Savannaclaw, Octavinelle, Scarabia, Pomefiore, Ignihyde, and then Diasomnia.

The order of the Overblots.

Crowley probably thought himself funny.

“And why can’t Yuu-chan come back to NRC instead?” asked one of the Savannaclaw students, this one with round ears.

“Because without Yuu here, we are unlikely to be able to find our way back,” Idia Shroud answered, shrugging as he typed. “The only reason this world was able to be pinpointed was because of Yuu’s presence. Without her here, the Mirror would likely stop working—or just send you into an empty abyss.” He tapped at the screen. “I’m working on an alternative now, but I don’t know when it’ll be ready. Progress could be sped up if I had consistent scans of Yuu.” He gave Crowley a pointed look. One the other man ignored entirely.

“My decision is final. However, I am not heartless—I will allow you all tonight to socialize amongst yourselves. It truly warms my heart that you’re all such good friends. However—”

Crowley was cut off as a hand grabbed the back of his coat and lifted the thin man clean off the ground. Vargas laughed as he raised the headmaster with one arm. Crewel, who had also emerged from the mirror, glared sharply at the display. Cater couldn’t help but raise his phone and snap a picture.

“However,” Crewel began, voice sharp, “I will be in charge of supervising the first few weeks, given that there is very important work for our dear headmaster back home.”

“What? Professor Vargas, please put me down—Professor Crewel, I left the responsibilities of the headmaster in the hands of my very capable staff. It was in my note—!”

Crowley was cut off again as Crewel blatantly turned and walked away.

“Vargas, if you would.”

The muscular professor nodded before turning and marching back through the mirror, a still-protesting Crowley in tow. Crewel remained silent until they left, then turned toward Yuu, who had turned in her chair to watch the chaos. Grim was perched on the back, snickering—until Crewel approached. Then he went still.

The professor gave her a once-over, inspecting the Ramshackle student—who, for the first time any of them had seen, was dressed in something other than gifted clothing or a school uniform.

“Enjoy your playtime at the dog park. Puppy, with me,” Crewel commanded. Then, to the group: “Schönheit, Hunt, you as well.”

He turned and stalked away, a large suitcase bulging with what looked like clothing trailing behind as Yuu hopped up from her chair—only to be briefly stopped as Kalim slung an arm around her shoulder.

“Professor Crewel, are you gonna be keeping Yuu for the whole night? This is the last time we’re gonna see her in a while, you know,” the boy whined.

The Alchemy professor wasn’t impressed by Kalim’s protest and directed a brief glare his way.

“You’ll all have plenty of time to play in the dirt. However, I now have the opportunity to correct a great wrong. This will not be delayed, Mr. Al-Asim.”

He turned away once more, his expectation clear.

Yuu went to follow, but Kalim’s arm kept her in place. The boy pouted stubbornly—until Jamil, with a sudden look of understanding and vague embarrassment, leaned forward and whispered something in his ear that Cater couldn’t quite make out.

Kalim’s eyes widened, and his mouth formed an “O.”

“Oh. I get it. Have fun, Yuu!”

Well, that wasn’t ominous at all.

Flanked by Rook and Vil, Yuu followed Crewel into one of the side rooms. The door closed behind them, and once again, the room fell quiet as the students digested the news.

“So,” Cater began—for the sake of breaking the silence and maybe gaining a little info—“are any of you planning on participating in the tournament?”

Ruggie snorted, rolling his eyes.

“Who on earth cares about the damn tournament? We’ve already got what we wanted. Now it’s just a sport to make sure she doesn’t make any more friends while she’s here. That’ll be enough of a job without us trying to one-up some school we’ll never go to again.”

Cater couldn’t help the vicious smile that spread across his face. He enjoyed stirring the pot every once in a while.

Besides, he genuinely believed what he was about to say.

“Here’s the thing though—are we really going to let NRC be known as the school that lost a competition the first time it crossed worlds? What would the world think? What would RSA think?” He paused, letting the moment stretch. “What would Yuu think?”

Ruggie gave him a look.

“Do you really think Yuu would care about the winner of this tournament? The little dummy barely cares about spelldrive—and that’s just because of us. What makes you think she’s gonna give a rat’s ass about this?”

Ruggie’s language grew more colorful now that Yuu was out of the room, but Cater just grinned.

It wasn’t Ruggie he was trying to bait.

“I was more thinking about how, if someone’s picked as the NRC Champion, they’d probably get to spend a bunch of time here. Preparing for the tasks. And I’d bet Yuu would be happy to help.”

The ploy was obvious, but sometimes people walk into traps even when they see them. He could already see the wheels turning in a few students' heads.

Riddle gave him a sharp look, but didn’t object.

Cater carefully didn’t mention how he’d already secured special dispensation to be present for each of the events as the “official media liaison” for NRC, courtesy of his camera and the backing of Magicam’s PR department.

He’d keep that to himself for now.

Yuu wasn’t entirely sure why Professor Crewel had called her into the separate room—especially with Vil and Rook in tow—but something about his expression, and the nearly bursting suitcase he carried, made her nervous.

“Professor Crewel, why did you call us aside?” Vil asked, head tilted slightly. He and Rook stood off to the side as Crewel gestured for Yuu to stand in the center of the room. He set the suitcase down on the bed in front of him with deliberate care.

“Because I needed the opinion of people with actual sense on this topic—not mutts,” Crewel said bluntly. “At least your eyes won’t fall out of your skull at the first round.”

Vil raised an eyebrow at the insult, but widened his eyes instead as Crewel flicked open the latches of the suitcase and unfolded it.

Inside was a collection of clothing in more styles and colors than Yuu could remember ever seeing in one place.

“Puppy,” Crewel began, with the particular intensity he always used when talking fashion, “it’s a travesty that we’ve not been able to do this sooner. But with this new school, we have a unique opportunity to help you shine properly.”

He began laying outfits out on the bed with precise movements. Rook had already wandered over to examine the ensembles, murmuring little notes of approval as he handled the fabric.

Vil’s expression shifted into one of understanding, a thoughtful look overtaking the initial confusion.

“Ah, I see. I’m pleased you chose me to assist with this, Professor. We’ll have the potato sprout looking presentable in no time. What did you bring?”

Crewel smiled faintly, giving Vil a glance as he answered. “Whatever I thought looked nice. I recently came into an excess of funds and figured it deserved to be spent on something worthwhile.”

Something about the way Crewel smiled made Yuu suspect those funds might not have been entirely his. Still, she was too distracted by the sheer volume of clothing being arranged to dwell on it.

Some of the pieces looked really nice—elegant coats, soft blouses, stylish jackets, even a few things that sparkled in the light. Shouldn’t this be embarrassing? Most people would probably feel embarrassed, right?

She glanced at Crewel and Rook. Both looked perfectly comfortable with the situation, although neither was really a good benchmark for “normal” in her experience.

Vil, at least, had seemed a bit skeptical at first—but he’d agreed so quickly that it couldn’t be too weird.

“So I’ll be trying these on?” she asked, looking up at Crewel, who had shed his voluminous coat onto the bed and now held up a deep purple garment decorated with Pomefiore motifs she recognized.

“Yes,” Crewel said crisply. “It’s a crime you’ve been forced to blend in with the mutts all day at Night Raven Academy. Here, you have no such compulsion. Now—head into the bathroom and try this on.”

She was about to comply when Crewel paused, frowning, and held out a hand to stop her.

“Puppy,” he said, voice lower, “speak up if you are—or become—uncomfortable. With anything.”

He sounded slightly awkward, like he wasn’t used to stating those kinds of boundaries out loud. Yuu nodded at him, grateful, and took the clothes into the small bathroom.

Behind her, she could still hear the professor and Vil talking.

“You realize this is just going to make them all act worse, right?”

Crewel snorted. “I expect you to execute some discipline if they don’t behave themselves, Schönheit. I wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass.”

Rook murmured his agreement, though she couldn’t make out whether Vil replied.

Yuu glanced at her reflection as she changed. She wondered what, exactly, they were talking about.

Heading up the road to Night Raven Academy was a small carriage. White, adorned with roses and hearts, it looked almost like the polar opposite of the signature black carriages used to retrieve Night Raven Academy's first-years.

The exterior wasn’t the only remarkable thing about it—if one could peer inside, they would find carefully designed compartments and containers holding all manner of items: various types of tea, outfits for different occasions, and even a small enclosure for animals, in which hedgehogs roamed.

This carriage was perhaps the best equipped to assist someone in following the rules of the Queen of Hearts while on the move.

Thankfully, only thirty-seven rules were currently in effect, which meant only the tea compartments had been opened.

Inside the carriage sat a tall woman with red hair, sitting with perfect posture as she sipped her tea during the ascent.

She had been outraged upon first receiving the letter stating her son had accepted such a task without consulting her—but recent discussions, along with counsel from her dear husband, had convinced her to withhold judgment.

For now.

She had simply decided to see what had come over her son firsthand. Inserting herself into this little foray across worlds had been child’s play. She had offered her services as a skilled healer and doctor while the students were in unfamiliar territory, and had even secured the Asim family’s support—thanks in part to past dealings and their own personal stake in the matter.

Her dear son had spoken quite highly of the friends he had made at Night Raven Academy. And even if they included that hooligan he had met before school started, she had seen the change in him. The boy she had sent away for his second year was not the same one who came home during winter vacation.

Comparing the two was like night and day.

So the mother was curious—what, or who, could have provoked such a change in her boy? And perhaps more pressingly, which one of his friends had been bold enough to send her a gift for the winter holidays?

She took a long sip of her tea, coincidentally brewed from the same blend she had received as that mysterious gift.

The assignment would take her away from work for a time, but that was fine. She always welcomed unique opportunities for professional development.

Besides—

She would do anything for her son.

Chapter Text

After a while, Professor Crewel, Vil, and Rook—followed by a faintly embarrassed-looking Yuu clutching a large trunk—reentered the lounge. The girl had just enough time to say goodbye to most of her friends as they filtered back through the portal, much to the reluctance of some.

Leona, Azul, and Malleus all went without much fuss, though from the dark glares the former two shot the latter, there seemed to be some unfinished business that would be resolved on the other side, outside of Yuu’s sight.

On the other hand…

“Why can’t Jamil and I stay? Those Death Eater guys could show up any second and Yuu could get hurt if we’re not here!”

The Scarabia dormhead had been repeating similar lines the entire time, pouting all the while. The Heartslabyul group bristled at the insinuation that they wouldn’t be able to protect Yuu.

Normally, Jamil would be the one to pry Kalim off when he clung to Yuu. This time, though, the vice dormhead simply smiled at the display, responding that it was not a servant’s job to manhandle their employer.

The job instead fell to Ace and Deuce, who struggled with the deceptively strong Kalim clinging to the directing student.

Eventually, after a smiling Trey leaned in to help as well, they managed to get the whining boy through the mirror—followed by a now-frowning Jamil. Afterwards, Yuu found herself pulled by the green-haired senior over to where the Heartslabyul group was sitting and directed to a seat on the couch next to Riddle.

From that point, the process was relatively peaceful, and before long, the room was only filled with a frowning Professor Crewel, Yuu, and the rest of Heartslabyul. The alchemy professor turned sharply toward them.

Yuu thought the man looked rather tired, and she realized this was the latest in the day she had ever seen him. Already, there were faint rings forming around his eyes, and when he spoke, he sounded especially bad-tempered.

“It is late, all of you. We will have much to discuss in the coming days, but for now, I believe I will turn in. I advise you all to do the same soon.” As Crewel spoke, his eyes tracked across the group, focusing on Yuu, and then Ace and Deuce specifically. Something hardened in his eyes.

“And you three—stay in your own rooms! All puppies must stay separate for the night.” Yuu hastily agreed, but Ace and Deuce gave the professor unhappy looks.

Crewel didn’t seem to care, his mouth a thin line.

“If I hear any howling tonight, or find you all crowded into the puppy’s room, there will be hell to pay. I am counting on you, Mr. Rosehearts, to enforce this.” His words were directed at the dormhead, who straightened up and gave the teacher a firm nod.

“Otherwise, goodnight.” The man swept off, and Yuu thought he seemed mildly awkward saying those words to students.

The group watched the door close with a definitive click before Riddle spoke up.

“We all should get to bed as well. You two—you heard the professor. Stay in your rooms tonight. No sleepovers.”

There were instant protests from Ace and Deuce, but an ominous noise from Professor Crewel’s door—along with a thunderous scowl growing on Riddle’s face—had the two quiet down quickly. This did not, however, stop the protests completely.

It was Ace who tried the diplomatic approach.

“Dormhead, it’s Friday and we haven’t gotten to hang out with Yuu yet—surely we can stay a little bit—”

Riddle sent a glare toward the red-haired first year, who stiffened. Deuce put a hand on his shoulder, and Ace backed down, an unhappy look on his face. Riddle held the glare a bit longer before turning back to Yuu.

“Have a nice night, Yuu. We have a big day tomorrow.”

Yuu tilted her head.

“A big day doing what?”

“You owe us a tour, don’t you? It’d be impolite if you let us wander around this castle alone.” Riddle gave her a smile, which was echoed by Trey and Cater. Yuu couldn’t help but return it, perking up.

“Oh! You got it. But Riddle-senpai, you also promised to tell me about how you got here on your own, right?”

The red-haired boy nodded, then picked up a carry-on from the small pile of luggage beside him and stood.

“I wish you all a good night as well. And remember to follow the rules: no fresh fruit may be consumed after midnight, unless it is yellow.” With that, Riddle left for his room, followed by Trey, then Cater. A reluctant-looking Ace and a pensive Deuce followed briefly, the blue-haired boy briefly glancing back at Yuu.

“Stay awake,” he mouthed as he left.

Yuu followed after, entering her own room. Blushing slightly, she began hanging the various outfits that filled the suitcase into the nearby closet. Grim watched from the bed.

“Hey, Henchman… do you…” The monster paused, as if unsure of how to ask his question. “Do you like it here more… than at Night Raven Academy?”

Yuu turned toward Grim, but the monster had turned the other way, studying the tapestry on the wall—this one showcasing a knight triumphing over a dragon to save a princess. He was curled tightly on the bed, and the fire on his ears was low—lower than she had ever seen it.

Yuu considered the question.

“What do you mean? I certainly think that Night Raven Academy has better technology than Hogwarts, and from what I’ve seen, their approach to teaching is—”

“No. I don’t mean the school or the worlds—I mean—” He cut himself off.

Yuu sat down on the bed next to her partner and reached out, placing a hand on his back. She began to gently stroke his fur. He didn’t react, but he didn’t flinch away either.

“What do you mean?” she asked again, more gently this time.

Grim shook slightly before answering.

“The people. Those brats from the dorms that you’ve tamed. They’re—I’m—” Grim froze, then continued.

“They’re not good people. They’re greedy, lazy, angry, bratty, and hard to manage. You have to work overtime to keep them in check and passing and…” Grim’s voice seemed to catch in his throat, before it firmed again.

“I know you’ve been trying to get home for a while, and now you’re here, so... I would understand if you want to stay. It’s not like Twisted Wonderland was kind to you, but it wasn’t so bad, right? I mean, we met friends, ate good food, had a roof over our heads. There was trouble, but it wasn’t that bad, right?” Grim’s voice trailed off, and near the end, he turned toward Yuu. His eyes were watering, and his flames—which were already low—were barely visible, just faint sparks atop his head.

Yuu couldn’t help but pull Grim into her arms, hugging the monster close. She didn’t speak right away; instead, she considered his question.

Did she like Hogwarts more?

She thought back to her experiences in both schools.

“Hogwarts was where I first started learning how to do more than just… exist,” she began, feeling Grim stiffen. She quickly continued, “But Night Raven Academy was where I learned how to be me .”

The girl looked down at Grim with a shameless smile.

“I don’t care how greedy, angry, bratty, or even evil any of you are,” she said, a familiar feeling welling up in her chest.

“None of that matters to me. I like you all as you are.” She paused, looking down at Grim. He stared up at her, tears still faintly visible. Seeing her pause, he snuggled into her more.

“But... do you want to stay here? It is your world, after all.” Will you leave me? was the unspoken question.

Leaning back against the headboard, Yuu pulled Grim up until he was resting in her arms.

“I don’t think I could leave you all even if I tried,” Yuu said. “I like you all way too much.”

Grim finally relaxed at her words, but it seemed he still had one more question.

“And I’m your favorite, right? Not that Ace or Deuce, or Riddle, or any of those scary fishmen, or—”

Yuu squeezed Grim lightly and buried her face into the soft fur on his back, cutting him off.

“Yes, you’re my favorite, Grim. We’re partners, remember?”

Her words finally brought Grim’s ear-fires flaring back to life, and a familiar grin grew on his face. He nearly leapt out of her arms to curl up on the bed in front of her, looking as smug as could be—if faintly embarrassed.

“I already knew that, of course. I was just… testing you, Henchman. To see if you knew.” The monster looked away, this time with a scowl toward the tapestry from before.

“I don’t like that. We should take it down.” Something about the fabric art seemed to unnerve him. Grim stood on the bed in front of Yuu, and seemed about ready to torch it when there was a quiet knock at the dorm door.

Both Ramshackle students turned toward the noise, then glanced at each other. A quiet message seemed to pass between them before both crept toward the door.

Yuu leaned in close and whisper-shouted the best she could.

“Who is it?”

“Who do you think? It’s me and Juice. Now let us in.”

Yuu’s face immediately brightened, and she quickly flung the door open to see Ace and Deuce standing there—the latter with a large pack, and the former with a hand raised mid-knock.

His fist nearly knocked her right in the forehead before he pulled back.

“Ace! Deuce!” Both Heartslabyul students shushed her as they shuffled inside, closing the door behind them. Grim, who had jumped back onto the bed, gave the two a brief glare.

“What are you two idiots doing here?” he asked.

Ace scowled back. “What do you think, Grim? We’re here to have a sleepover with Yuu.”

“I thought Riddle forbade it?” Yuu asked, a bit worried about what might happen to her friends if Riddle—or either of the upper years—caught them.

“See, that’s what Riddle said, but the delinquent here has a theory.” Ace nodded toward Deuce, who put a hand to his chin in a pose Yuu assumed was meant to look smart.

“Dormhead, when he told us to go to bed, reminded us of Rule 55: ‘No fresh fruit may be consumed after midnight unless it is yellow.’” At this, Deuce gave Yuu a smirk.

“Why would he remind us of that rule if he didn’t think we’d be having a sleepover anyway?” Deuce seemed inordinately pleased with his own logic—enough so that he hadn’t yet reacted to Ace’s purposeful mispronunciation of his name.

Yuu thought back to the conversation and realized Deuce might be right. Riddle did bring up that rule rather unexpectedly.

The Heartslabyul dormhead was prone to referencing the Queen of Hearts’ rules multiple times in conversation, but never ones that weren’t relevant.

And if he really wanted to catch them, wouldn’t Riddle have posted Cater or Trey to watch the door? To catch the two in the act of sneaking out?

Yuu couldn’t stop the wide smile on her face as she threw her arms around the two of them. Both returned the hug with smiles of their own, before they all congregated on the bed.

“So, why did Professor Crewel drag you, Vil, and Rook away earlier?” Ace asked as the three (plus Grim) made themselves comfortable. “You were gone for ages, and all we could hear was that creepy Rook yelling ‘Beauté!’ constantly.”

The bed was smaller than the one at Ramshackle, so they needed to huddle together slightly.

Yuu ended up lying back against the pillows, Grim in her lap, Ace sitting cross-legged at the other end of the bed, and Deuce sprawled like an octopus across the space between them.

“Oh,” Yuu replied brightly, accepting a small pack of chips from Ace—who had unzipped his bag to reveal all manner of junk food (thankfully, no fruit, staying in line with Rule 55). “Professor Crewel wanted me to try on a bunch of clothes that he, Vil, and Rook put together now that I don’t have to hide that I’m a girl!”

Truthfully, Yuu was a little bit excited for tomorrow. The three Pomefiore students—two current and one alumni—had already worked with her to decide her outfit. She hadn’t ever gotten a chance to wear really nice clothes before NRC, and NRC had her in the same couple of outfits most of the time, aside from special occasions.

She’d even tried to coordinate the planned outfits with the various styles of her friends. Tomorrow’s outfit would go well with the pin Riddle had given her all those months ago. She couldn’t wait to see their reactions.

Ace and Deuce, on the other hand, seemed a bit nonplussed at the thought, with Deuce in particular looking shocked.

“So you’re going to be wearing, like, a dress or something?” Ace asked, looking slightly weirded out at the thought, with a touch of worry in his voice. He seemed oblivious—either willfully or not—to Deuce’s expression.

“Well, something like that, I want it to be a surprise. But it’s really nice! I can’t wait for you guys to see it.”

Ace didn’t seem to share her enthusiasm, and Deuce let out a groan at the thought.

Later on, after a bit more conversation and snacks, Ace dug further into the bag, pulling out the projector they’d used for many a movie night in Ramshackle. He got up from the bed and began looking around, before turning back toward Yuu.

“Hey, where are the outlets in this room? Yuu, are they all in the common room or something?”

Deuce, who had recovered marginally from the earlier shock—partially thanks to Yuu indulgently passing him small chips from her bag—looked up at Ace with an eyebrow raised.

“Don’t you remember, idiot? Yuu’s school is from, like, the stone age. There isn’t any electricity at all. That’s why I was charging my phone and the backup battery this morning.”

Ace’s eyes widened, and he quickly put down his projector and whipped his phone out of his pocket.

“No electricity?! But my phone’s at four percent! I was going to charge it overnight to take pictures tomorrow!”

Deuce smiled smugly at the other boy. Ace turned slowly toward him before putting on a sweet smile.

“Hey Deuce, where did you put that battery of yours? I need a charge.”

The prone student gave him a deadpan stare, then turned back to Yuu, pointedly ignoring him.

“Anyway, since a movie’s out of the question, what else could we do?” Unsaid was the fact that it was already nearly eleven, and all three of them were blinking sleepily.

Yuu hummed, before her eyes lit up.

“Oh! I got this yesterday from Eucalyptus. I always wanted to try it with you two.”

Yuu practically dove onto the bed, jostling Grim and nearly throwing Deuce off as she began rustling through her bookbag. Moments later, she pulled out a small deck of cards.

“I thought you got tired of losing to me in cards?” Ace asked with a grin, already climbing back onto the bed and shoving Deuce into a sitting position. Yuu gave him a mirrored grin back.

“This isn’t just regular cards—this is Exploding Snap, a magical card game.”

Her friends leaned forward, interested in the seemingly normal deck of cards. After casting a muffling charm on the room, Yuu climbed back on the bed, brushing past Deuce, who blushed a bit and leaned away.

“Okay, so this is how it’s played…”

The rest of the night was filled with laughter. Yuu won the first two games, but after Ace got the hang of it, his natural talent for card games had him winning every one after—until the every-man-for-himself game turned into Deuce, Grim, and Yuu vs. the grinning redheaded boy.

Needless to say, they did not succeed.

Eventually, they all fell asleep, Exploding Snap cards still scattered across the covers. Yuu was on her side hugging Grim, with Ace facing her on the other side of the monster. Deuce was sprawled atop the lot of them like the world’s heaviest blanket.

Yuu went to sleep smiling.

The next morning, the two Heartslabyul first-years had woken up around three and shuffled back to their own rooms—bleary-eyed and still mostly asleep. Ace had the foresight to set his alarm early to avoid the wrath of Professor Crewel.

Still, Yuu wasn’t able to get back to sleep. Partially due to habits ingrained from Jack’s early-riser agenda, but also because of the excitement she felt.

It may have been just a weekend, but she was excited enough to put on one of the outfits they’d planned. The Pomefiore group had—reluctantly—helped her theme outfits for each dorm. They’d resisted at first, but Yuu figured they’d expected her request, given how many options Crewel presented after they’d agreed.

Still, Yuu couldn’t help but feel nervous as she stared at the dress on the bed. It was red, with a white apron that faded into black near the bottom overtop it, gold card suit symbols decorating the corners.

Once that was on, she grabbed the black-and-white checkered sash and secured it around her waist, tying it with a muttered spell.

Finally, the bowtie—the one she’d received as a gift all that time ago. She had a bit of trouble with it. Yuu had always struggled getting a regular bowtie to sit right at NRC, and this one, being a bit of a larger ribbon, proved just as stubborn.

Eventually, though, she got the bow into an acceptable shape, and Yuu fastened the four playing card-shaped pins onto it as well.

Finally, she attached the thorny rose vine decoration to the side and got Grim to help hold her hair in place as she tied the bow.

Looking in the mirror, Yuu couldn’t help the silly grin on her face as she hopped slightly. The red shoes were already set out next to her bed—courtesy of Grim—and she stepped into them, the white and checkered socks contrasting the red heeled dress shoes.

Feeling satisfied, Yuu spun around toward Grim, hands on her hips.

“How do I look?” she asked cheerfully.

Grim raised an eyebrow, giving her a once-over.

“Same as always. Like my Henchman.” The monster responded, flopping over onto his back. Grim had been a bit bored when she told him about the outfit, and he seemed just as unenthused now.

Still though, Yuu gave herself one last look in the mirror, smiling wide.

She’d never gotten the chance to dress up like this before. She’d always been focused on blending in, on not being noticed. It was how she’d survived at Hogwarts, and it was all she’d ever known at home.

This was the opposite of all that. With this, she’d stand out.

Was that what she wanted…?

Yuu nodded firmly, and her reflection nodded back. For a second, she thought she saw a flash of a girl in a dress much like her own, but blue, with blonde hair. She was giving her a thumbs-up.

It was gone a moment later, and Yuu wasn’t even sure she’d seen it at all.

Turning toward the door, Yuu picked up her book bag and, after making sure she had everything ready for the tour today, stepped out of the room and into the common room.

It was still incredibly early, and it seemed only Trey was up. He’d told her once that the reason he woke up so early was because most of the preparations at his parents’ pâtisserie took place in the early morning and the night before, so he’d gotten used to it.

He was leaned over the small table, preparing the morning tea, when he straightened at her entrance.

“Well, if it isn’t Yuu-chan, up early—” Trey froze mid-turn as he looked at her. His expression went rigid, and his eyes widened more than she’d ever seen before.

It seemed the unflappable Trey Clover was… surprised.

“Trey-senpai, good morning! Are you the only one up?”

“...”

Trey seemed frozen a bit longer, twitching slightly, before turning back toward the tea he’d been preparing. He poured himself a cup—still much too hot, if the steam flowing from it said anything—and took a deep gulp.

“Doesn’t that hurt?” she asked.

Trey took a deep breath, still staring into the teacup, before standing.

“Yuu, was that what Professor Crewel and you worked on last night?”

Yuu nodded.

“Does it look bad?” His reaction wasn’t exactly heartening.

Trey took another breath, removing his glasses briefly to rub at one eye, before regaining most of his usual calm.

“You look fantastic, Yuu-chan. I just wasn’t expecting it. That’s very Queendom of Hearts inspired, isn’t it?”

Yuu nodded. Trey grinned, pulling out his phone.

“I want to see the others' reactions—but first, I gotta ask: have you still not learned how to tie that bow yet?” he asked, pointing at the somewhat lopsided ribbon.

She shrugged lightly, a bit embarrassed.

Everyone kept fixing it for her instead of showing her how to do it properly.

“Can you help me fix it, Trey-senpai?” she asked, walking over to the chair he was sitting in.

The green-haired teenager shook his head.

“I’d be thrilled to, but I think it would be better if Riddle were the one to do it. He’s better at those fine details than I am.” She had a feeling he was lying, but trying to get Trey-senpai to do something he didn’t want to do was a dangerous sport.

Instead, she sat down in the chair next to his and accepted a cup of tea and some biscuits he’d prepared, before the two began making light conversation about where they would be going today.

The next up was, in fact, Riddle himself, who marched into the lounge fully dressed and ready for the day. Yuu’s chair was pointed away from his door, so Trey was the first to notice him. The vice-dormhead gave a jaunty wave.

“Good morning, Riddle. I got the tea ready.”

Riddle nodded gratefully, walking toward the group.

“Good morning, Trey. Thank you for preparing the tea. Has anyone else woken up yet?”

Trey gave Riddle a placid smile—one Yuu recognized had a slightly mischievous edge, similar to when he told Riddle that oyster sauce was vital to tarts.

“Yuu is actually in this chair right here. Why don’t you come say good morning, Riddle?”

Yuu felt there was something else going on here, but unable to pinpoint what Trey was scheming, she went to stand—when Riddle interrupted.

“No need to stand. I think I’ll come join you two before waking up the others.”

Yuu heard the sound of Riddle approaching, and Trey’s smile took on a devious edge, his glasses flashing ominously.

“How did you sleep, Yuu—” Riddle appeared on her right and was halfway through greeting her when he stopped, staring down at her.

Slowly, Riddle’s face turned red. It was almost like a glass filling with cranberry juice—the blush rising from just below his collar, up his neck, over his cheeks, and disappearing into his hair, leaving the entirety of Riddle’s exposed skin strawberry-red.

Multiple times, Riddle opened and closed his mouth, and the noises that came out sounded more like a dormouse than a person.

“Riddle-senpai…?” she asked. This was the second time she’d gotten this type of reaction. She knew her outfit was different from what she usually wore, but surely it wasn’t that shocking?

“Hey Riddle,” Trey said casually.

Riddle’s head slowly turned, like a rusty swivel, toward his vice-dormhead.

“Why don’t you fix the transfer’s bowtie? She could use a hand, and I figured you were just the person.”

Trey’s voice was perfectly steady and serious, and it sounded logical enough to Yuu. But then again, that was exactly what Trey was good at, wasn’t it?

Riddle turned back toward her with that same slow-motion motion, eyes wide. He got down on one knee to be level with Yuu, and with shaking hands, he reached toward her bowtie.

His hands came to rest at the sides of the ribbon, and Yuu saw his eyes snap from one pin to another—clearly recognizing them as the ones he’d gifted her. Riddle’s face was closer now, and Yuu met his eyes as he began working slowly.

Despite his obvious stress, Riddle’s hands were deft. Still, about halfway through, Yuu had to lean forward slightly to give him better access to rethread the knot, which brought her face a little closer to his.

A noise not unlike a tea kettle began sounding in the common room—but Yuu could see from her angle that it wasn’t the teapot.

Before she could investigate further, Riddle regained his speed and finished the bowtie efficiently, tying it into a smart bow before collapsing into the chair beside her.

Trey quickly handed the boy a cup of tea, which he drank quickly—not unlike how Trey did earlier.

It took a few minutes before the dormhead had calmed down enough to talk, although the redness refused to recede further than his cheeks, and whenever he looked Yuu directly in the eyes, Riddle’s eyes would widen and he’d quickly look away.

Before he’d regained enough nerve to speak, Cater entered the common room, humming a little tune and already snapping selfies as he walked. He glanced up at the gathered group, eyes drifting from Trey, to Riddle, then finally to her.

He lazily looked back at his phone, and Yuu thought she was finally going to get a normal reaction—when Cater’s head shot back up, his eyes locking onto her once more.

Unlike the others, however, rather than freezing, Cater’s mouth curled into a wide smile before he zipped over to them.

“Yuu-chan! Look at you!” He grabbed Yuu’s cheeks and began squishing them playfully. “Is this what you were preparing yesterday? I had a guess, but look at you!” Cater sounded extremely happy, and when he whipped out his phone, Yuu was too busy rubbing her now sore cheeks to respond.

“Do you mind if I get some pictures of you?” he asked hopefully, holding up his phone. Yuu nodded with a blush, and Cater immediately began taking selfies with her, as well as individual shots.

He didn’t seem to tire of it either, but about a minute into having her pose for him, Cater turned toward Riddle and Trey with a devious smirk.

“And what do you two think of Yuu-chan’s outfit?” he asked teasingly.

“She looks fantastic. Don’t you think so as well, Cater?” Trey was the first to respond and had long since regained his composure. Riddle, on the other hand—

“Yes! I mean, the transfer looks very nice in that outfit—not that she doesn’t usually—but, she looks very beautiful—” Riddle clammed up. The more he talked, the more embarrassed he became, it seemed. Cater grinned.

“A bit choked up, Dormhead? What if Yuu thinks you don’t like her outfit?” he teased, ready to keep playing.

Trey, however, seemed to have had enough of Riddle’s embarrassment. He stood slightly, pressing Cater’s phone down with one hand when he raised it for another picture.

“All right, let’s give Yuu and Riddle a break. Cater, sit down and drink your tea.”

Cater gave Trey a small pout but collapsed onto the couch, flipping through the photos. He still joined the conversation, though, occasionally looking up at Yuu and smiling.

Professor Crewel was the next to rise. He stalked into the room in his usual uniform—sans the large coat, which still hung by the door of the common room. He paused briefly upon seeing the three Heartslabyul students and Yuu already present, but simply nodded before checking his pocket watch and exiting.

Yuu supposed he’d already seen the outfit last night, but she was still disappointed he wouldn’t be staying for the tour of Hogwarts. Still, she guessed there were responsibilities waiting for him around the castle.

Finally, and practically at the same time, Ace and Deuce came stumbling from their rooms, eyes half-closed and still dressed in pajamas. They seemed guided by the smell of tea and biscuits alone, and then collapsed on the other couch.

Trey smiled fondly, and Cater could barely restrain himself from laughing.

Two teacups were placed in front of the boys, and Riddle finally rebooted—just enough to scold the first-years and perhaps have a bit of fun himself.

“Sit up straight, you two, and open your eyes properly. It’s not acceptable for a Heartslabyul student to act so slovenly. Look at Yuu, for example. She’s already fully dressed and awake.”

Riddle had directed their attention to Yuu. The two boys looked up, and their sleepy eyes slowly cleared as they took in the sight.

Ace’s eyes widened, and his mouth fell open. Deuce was the same.

Yuu waited for a more dramatic reaction, but they both stayed frozen for a while—until Ace shook it off and grinned.

“Finally decided to stop cross-dressing, huh, weirdo?”

Yuu scowled at him and resisted the urge to throw her biscuit. Grim, meanwhile, snorted and gave Ace a dismissive glance.

“At least you reacted a bit more reasonably, Ace. These weirdos all freaked out the moment they saw her. Like Deuce.” The student in question was still frozen—eyes wide, mouth open. Ace glared and nudged him with his elbow.

“Hey, Deuce, snap out of it.” It had no effect. Ace jabbed him harder, but the other boy didn’t budge.

Throwing his hands in the air, Ace turned back to Yuu.

“You broke him, Yuu. You broke Juice.” Ace joked, grinning as he began poking Deuce in the cheek repeatedly.

Ace’s reaction had been the most tame so far, but she was secretly grateful for it. She hadn’t meant to shock anyone. Still…

“You haven’t told me what you think of it yet, Ace.”

The boy paused, then smiled—a genuine one.

“You look good, Yuu. But I guess that was inevitable once you finally started dressing like a—”

“G-G-Girl!”

Deuce had chosen that moment to restart. The single word left his mouth before he collapsed , passing out cold.

“Deuce!” Yuu rushed over as Ace and Cater burst into loud laughter while Riddle groaned and pressed his fingers to his temples.

As she checked over her friend—with a smiling Trey now helping—Yuu couldn’t help but wonder:

Was this really the greatest idea?

“Still awake back there, Captain Obvious?” Ace called back as the group left the main building of Hogwarts and began trekking across the school grounds. Yuu had begun the tour a little bit after Deuce had woken back up, and they’d ensured he was fine.

That did not, however, stop him from getting teased relentlessly by Cater, Ace, and even—at times—Riddle, of all people. Thankfully, the boy seemed to take it all in good stride, only groaning somewhat at Ace’s jab.

They’d seen much of the school by now, with Yuu showing the curious group of Heartslabyul students everything from the Astronomy Tower (where Yuu refused to get close to the edge) to the library (where she received her own fair share of teasing).

As they moved about the school, Yuu couldn’t help but notice the stares. She’d expected the looks some of the boys received—given how ridiculously attractive everyone from Twisted Wonderland was—but what threw her was the attention she was getting.

She supposed it had to do with her outfit, but none of the onlookers seemed willing to come up and talk with her. Whenever one looked ready to approach—perhaps that sixth-year Ravenclaw she noticed—her attention would be pulled away by one of her friends, and when she looked back, only a smiling Cater, Trey, or Deuce stood in their place.

Either way, she didn’t worry too much. She was too busy answering questions, explaining the history of this or that room, or showing off secret passages she’d learned about from Fred II.

They only had one more stop for the day, which brought the group past the Quidditch field and toward the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Riddle made a face at the name.

“Why name something the Forbidden Forest if you don’t want people going there? It’s practically putting up a neon sign for the unintelligent to trespass at their leisure,” he grumbled.

Yuu shrugged. At some point, they’d started holding hands—when, she couldn’t say—but now their joined hands swung between them as they walked.

“The wizarding world doesn’t tend to have great naming sense. I wonder if it has something to do with magic—if the name something has affects how it acts?” Her idle musing was met with an interested hum from Riddle and simultaneous groans from the first-years.

“Please, can we talk about something interesting?” Ace muttered before perking up. “Unless we’re going in, in which case, give me a second to run and tell Crewel.”

Yuu scowled at him, which only earned a grin in return.

“We’re going to meet one of my old professors—one of my favorites, actually!” she chirped happily. It had been a good day so far, and she was feeling light on her feet. As the small hut came into view, she began tugging Riddle gently toward it.

“We’re here! Let’s knock!”

The Heartslabyul students all stared at the hut. Then at her.

“Are you sure we’re in the right place, Yuu? This looks like a shack. Like, pre-renovation Ramshackle,” Deuce said, tilting his head. Ace nodded, and similar skepticism could be seen in Trey and Cater’s expressions.

“I’m sure, yes! Besides, Ramshackle doesn’t look like a mansion and it’s still pretty cool, right?” Deuce nodded, although their looks didn’t change much.

Yuu practically skipped up to the door and gave it two loud knocks. That should be enough to get his attention.

“What does this professor teach, exactly?” Riddle asked, straightening his uniform. He seemed a bit nervous—though Yuu wasn’t sure why.

She smiled brilliantly.

“Care of Magical Creatures! My favorite class!”

“You’ve gotten plenty of use out of that,” Cater muttered, only to offer a placating smile when Grim whipped around with a glare. “I didn’t mean anything by it, Grim-chan.”

Before Grim could retort, the door swung open—and out stepped the largest man any of the Heartslabyul students had ever seen. Towering over 250 centimeters, with a beard to match, the man wasn’t just tall—he was built like a brick wall. He had to turn sideways just to fit through the already-large doorway.

His eyes, small compared to the rest of him, swept over the group. He didn’t say anything at first, but when Yuu stepped forward, he turned to her with a grunt.

“What can I do for you kids? If you’re looking for Care of Magical Creatures, you’re about an hour early.”

The Heartslabyul students looked toward Yuu.

“Professor Hagrid! It’s nice to see you! I just wanted to introduce my friends to my favorite professor!” she said cheerfully. From anyone else, the words might’ve sounded sarcastic—but Yuu had enough natural sincerity that no one could doubt it.

Her words seemed to pierce through the silence, and everyone relaxed slightly as Hagrid blushed and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment—a motion that looked oddly small on someone his size.

“Oh, well I’m flattered, Miss…”

He paused, fumbling for her name, not wanting to seem like he’d forgotten a student who enjoyed his class so much.

“Oh! I’m Yuu! I took your class last year, so I understand if you don’t remember.”

Hagrid nodded enthusiastically, grateful for the out.

“Ah, I remember now. Miss Yuu! It’s good to see you again.” The half-giant gave her a firm pat on the shoulder that nearly sent her flying, but Yuu grinned and held her footing.

“So—these your new friends? They’re from that Night Raven school, yeah?”

Riddle, who had regained his composure faster than the others, cleared his throat and stepped forward.

“Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Professor Hagrid. Yuu has spoken quite highly of you, and we are delighted to finally meet the man behind the stories. I am Riddle Rosehearts, Dormhead of the Heartslabyul Dorm.”

He gave a polite smile and extended a hand.

Hagrid returned the smile—and with an enthusiastic motion, accepted Riddle’s handshake.

…And nearly flung the small boy up and down like a ragdoll.

“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Mr. Rosehearts. I’m happy that you all seem to be adapting to Hogwarts just fine. It can be difficult to be away from home—don’t I know it.”

Recovering from the handshake quickly, Riddle nodded back with a smile, before stepping slightly to the side.

“These are some of my dorm students. Trey Clover, my vice dormhead and a third year at Night Raven Academy, followed by Cater Diamond, another third year, and finally we have our first-year troublemakers—Ace Trappola and Deuce Spade.”

The students waved at their respective introductions, although Ace and Deuce looked a bit indignant at the description.

Hagrid nodded at each of them, a smile on his face, which only waned when the sky darkened slightly, and the traditional Hogwarts weather made itself known with a cool breeze.

“How’s about we take this inside? I’ve got some rock cakes and tea ready, and I’d hate for us to get rained on.”

Yuu glanced at Riddle, who nodded his assent, before turning back to the large professor.

“We’d be delighted!”

Soon enough, they were all gathered inside Hagrid’s hut, which had just barely enough seats for all of them, with Yuu having to squeeze onto a bench next to Cater, who gave her a side hug with a smile.

Hagrid had quickly distributed teacups and small pucks of pastry he called rock cakes to all of the students, and had then sat down himself. The first-year duo had made the mistake of trying to bite into the pastry outright and nearly chipped a tooth for their efforts.

From there, Ace had taken Trey and Riddle’s example and begun dipping the pastry into his tea to soften it before biting in. Deuce, on the other hand, seemed to have taken it as a personal challenge and was stubbornly gnawing on the rock-hard treat.

Yuu had quickly engaged Hagrid in a conversation about the Care of Magical Creatures course this year, which was joined by the older Heartslabyul students—who proved quite inquisitive, much to Hagrid’s delight. He seemed thrilled to have such lively company.

“—and what do you think of this Tournament, Professor Hagrid?” Riddle asked, sitting properly with one leg crossed over the other. Not that the propriety had stopped Hagrid from conversing with him. The man had already clapped Riddle on the back with a loud laugh from a joke earlier—nearly knocking him off his chair—much to Cater’s exaggerated shock.

The half-giant straightened up before giving his answer.

“I can’t tell you anything about the tasks, understand, ‘cause that’d be cheating. But I will tell ya’ that you oughta be a bit careful if you plan on participatin’. There’s a reason why previous champions have died during this, and this year’s shaping up to be just as grand.”

Riddle nodded solemnly at the man’s warning and was about to continue the conversation when the large cuckoo clock above Hagrid’s mantelpiece went off. A hand-carved bird popped out from the doors, letting out a loud cooing sound.

Hagrid stood up abruptly—nearly knocking the teapot off the table, if not for Trey’s quick reflexes—and jostled Cater out of his seat in the process.

“Merlin, we’ve been talkin’ so long I’ve lost track of time. Hate to do this, but if ya’d like, you can come back later. I’ve got somewhere I needed to be five minutes ago.”

The groundskeeper began bustling around the cabin, cleaning up and gathering his things. The NRC students followed him out of the building, but before he could fully leave, Yuu reached for his hand.

“One more thing, Professor Hagrid!” she called.

The man paused, turning his attention back to her. Yuu shifted somewhat nervously.

“Could you… maybe set up a meeting with Hermione Granger for me?”

Hagrid blinked.

“Eh? Hermione? I mean, sure, but what for? Couldn’t you just go up and talk to her yourself?”

Yuu looked down guiltily.

“I bumped into her a few weeks ago, and I haven’t gotten a chance to apologize yet. And—” she paused, feeling the encouraging looks of her friends behind her, “I want to clear up a misunderstanding.”

Hagrid gave her a thoughtful look, and after a moment, he nodded with a kind smile.

“Ay, I can do that. And good on ya for takin’ the initiative. I swear, too many students in this school are more focused on appearances than people. Come by tomorrow, if you like.”

With that, Hagrid bustled off, and Yuu turned back to her friends, feeling a bit self-conscious.

She was met with fond smiles from all of them.

“Where to next, Yuu?” Riddle asked.

She returned their smiles, feeling the warmth in her chest.

“I was thinking we could go get dinner.”

The dormhead nodded, just as the sound of a groaning stomach echoed—though Yuu couldn’t quite pinpoint its source.

The five of them began heading back toward the castle.

The art by Luna Selene that inspired Yuu's outfit in this chapter.

Chapter Text

Dinner was always an interesting affair at Hogwarts. Students in years one through three were required to attend dinner at six and leave by seven-thirty, in the interest of providing younger students with structure.
They were allowed to come early if their schedules allowed, but they had to obtain permission from their prefects first.

The older students, on the other hand, often had more specialized classes held at odd times of the day. They were allowed to come to dinner at any time they wished between five and nine, though many stuck with the younger students if their classes allowed.
Prefects were responsible for leading younger students back to the dorms once they finished their meals.

Thus, when Yuu and her friends decided to get dinner—around five-thirty or so—there weren’t many students in the hall, and most of those present were older: fifth, sixth, and seventh years. Many turned and stared when the door opened to let them in. After a moment, most, busy in their work or conversations, turned away.
Some, however, did not.

The denizens of Hogwarts had been wary when the Night Raven Academy students had first arrived, most choosing to give them a wide berth.
Then, when the full mass of them appeared, the sheer presence of so many striking individuals had kept people away.

But tonight, there were only five of them (no one was really sure what was going on with the girl), and most students had gotten over their initial caution. Plus, with their unique style of dress, mysterious background, and striking appearances, many were now interested in speaking with them.

Despite the Ravenclaw table having plenty of open spots, unlike the night before, the group gravitated back toward the Hufflepuff table—led by Riddle, who had already located a spot with enough room for the six of them.

As they sat down, Riddle took the seat to Yuu’s left, followed by Trey. Her other side was flanked by a smiling Cater. Across the table, a grumpy-looking Deuce and Ace sat, glaring slightly at their upperclassmen.

Sandwiched between the two first-years, Eucalyptus sat with a grumpy expression that reminded Yuu a bit of Grim when Leona showed up at Ramshackle uninvited.
His arms were unbandaged now, though they were still warped and swollen with large warts and growths that made them look larger than they really were. Still, they didn’t seem to cause him trouble, judging by how he handled the silverware.

“What are you lot doing here?” the second-year asked, even as he passed Deuce a platter of some kind of quiche. In front of him was a plate piled high with food, and a second plate off to the side filled with nothing but bacon.

Ace, evidently noticing the same thing she was, paused in loading up his own plate to glance at the shorter boy and give a whistle.

“Do you think you’ve got enough bacon there, man?” Ace joked, making as if to reach over and snag a piece—
Only to yank his hand back when the Hufflepuff practically hissed at him, waving a fork in a vaguely threatening manner.

Ace didn’t try again immediately, but judging by the smile on his face, Yuu figured it wouldn’t be the last of his antics tonight.

Instead, the Hufflepuff let out an offended squawk as Ace plopped his arm down on Eucalyptus’s head, using the younger boy as a convenient place to lean.

“So how’d you already beast-tame this one after only being here, what, a month?” Ace’s tone was teasing, even as Eucalyptus struggled ineffectually under his weight.

She figured the younger boy didn’t actually mind that much, because after a couple more seconds of token resistance, he slumped forward and just kept eating, determined to ignore Ace’s antics.

Yuu shrugged. She’d learned that arguing she wasn’t beast-taming anyone only got her skeptical looks from her friends.

“Eucalyptus is just a cool guy, I guess.” A mischievous thought struck her, and she gave Ace a wide smile. “And much cooler than someone I know—he actually enjoys studying.”

Ace rolled his eyes at her teasing tone and took a sip from the goblet he’d snatched before responding.

“Oho~ I see how it is. The minute we’re out of sight, you replace us with a shorter copy.”
Eucalyptus gave an unhappy grunt at the adjective but didn’t respond.

Yuu snorted at Ace’s dramatic tone—until a much more devious expression appeared on his face, and her apprehension spiked.

“You know, maybe we ought to take a bit of compensation,” he said with a smirk, turning toward Deuce, who was busily devouring the quiche in front of him. “Hey, Deuce, how do you feel about stealing this one from the directing student?”

Deuce turned toward Ace, confused for a second, before catching on. He nodded with a mischievous smile of his own.

The redhead turned back to Yuu.
“It’s decided. This one’s ours now.”

…What?

Eucalyptus, evidently of the same mind, looked up and raised the eyebrow over his one visible eye.

Ace continued to smirk, wrapping an arm around Eucalyptus and pulling him closer. Then he turned toward Riddle, who had been watching with a neutral expression.

“Dormhead, permission to adopt Hogwarts student Eucalyptus into Heartslabyul as my new little brother?”

Deuce nodded, a thoughtful look on his face.
“Mom always said she thought I’d be the best older brother.”

Meanwhile, Eucalyptus—still trapped in Ace’s one-armed hug—stuck a piece of bacon in his mouth and chewed with a scowl.
Though Yuu couldn’t help but smile, she spotted the faint blush just under his collar.

Riddle gave the trio across the table a long look, analyzing every facet of Eucalyptus. The boy averted his gaze after briefly meeting Riddle’s eyes.

The dormhead nodded, raising his goblet as he spoke.

“Hm, we’ll likely be seeing a lot of the young man in the future anyway. Getting a head start is a good idea. Good thinking, Ace.” Riddle gave Eucalyptus a nod. “Welcome to Heartslabyul, Eucalyptus.”

While the other Heartslabyul students clapped politely—Deuce giving the now scowling boy a noogie—Yuu couldn’t help but feel a surge of sympathy as Eucalyptus began to protest.

“What on earth are you on about? And get your arms off me, you two weirdos. Weirdos, all of you!”

After freeing himself from the clutches of Ace and Deuce—and threatening their next attempts with a fork—the younger student returned to eating his food with a pout, only to notice Yuu’s smile and give her a faintly annoyed look.

“What’s with the grin, weirdo?” he asked.

“You use that word a lot, don’t you, Chibi-Yuu?” Cater asked, chin propped up on folded hands. He gave Eucalyptus a sly smile. The younger boy only spared the upperclassman a brief glance before looking away, the blush climbing higher.

Yuu watched the interaction with the same bemused look before responding.

“We are now comrades-in-arms. Know that I understand your plight and am grateful for you taking their attention away from me.” Yuu gave him a mock salute before shoving a forkful of food into her mouth as Deuce took his turn using the small boy as an armrest.

“What does that mean!?”

She didn’t answer, instead savoring the relief that someone else could now bear the brunt of Heartslabyul’s aggressive recruitment tactics.

Now, if only the same could happen with the other dorms.

She was Ramshackle, after all. That was all Grim ever wanted to be.

Still, she understood now why Trey always seemed so amused whenever he tried to coax her into Heartslabyul—Eucalyptus’s face under a friendship assault was pretty entertaining.

She was surprised, though, at how friendly they were being. In her experience, NRC students rarely got along with others—not even members of their own dorms, let alone those from outside.

Yuu rested her chin on her fist, deep in thought.

Maybe it was because he wasn’t from NRC?

Yuu was pulled from her thoughts by a cough from behind. Heads turned as the group shifted their focus from the entertaining antics of the first-years to a small group that had gathered just behind Trey, who greeted them with a friendly smile.

There were three Hogwarts students: two older ones—both Gryffindors—and a younger one Yuu recognized from her year. She recognized one of the older students as Maxwell. The other was a girl with dark brown hair that fell to the middle of her back.

The younger student was another Hufflepuff, likely in Yuu’s year or one above. She vaguely remembered seeing him speak with Eucalyptus during lunch, though Eucalyptus always looked miserable during those conversations.

Something about the boy was familiar beyond that, and Yuu squinted at him. Catching her gaze, he smiled and waved, but her attention was pulled away when Maxwell spoke. He was smiling too, and looking directly at her. Yuu squirmed slightly under the attention.

She didn’t notice the way Cater’s eyes tracked the exchange, nor how his smile sharpened ever so slightly.

“Hey,” the Gryffindor raised a hand in a lazy greeting. Despite her predisposition to dislike the older student, his tone carried no malice. “Sorry to interrupt your dinner, but I just wanted to check—you guys are the Night Raven Academy blokes, yeah? We chatted earlier.”

As usual, it was Riddle who took the lead, his expression neutral as he nodded. Evidently, he remembered Maxwell’s last interaction—and his quick dismissal.

“That is us, yes. Can we help you?”

The other Gryffindor nudged the Hufflepuff forward. He had been staring at Yuu throughout the greeting and blinked like he was coming out of a daze before turning toward Eucalyptus with a faint frown.

“O’Ryan. Professor Sprout wanted to speak with you before dinner gets fully underway. Come with me.”

Eucalyptus frowned, but still worked on wiggling out from under Deuce’s arm.

“Did she say why, Diggory?” he asked, watching the prefect and the two Gryffindors with narrowed eyes.

Diggory didn’t answer immediately. He shifted awkwardly before finally responding.

“It’s about your behavior recently.”

Eucalyptus’s eyes widened, confusion plain on his face.

“What behavior—?”

He froze. Yuu could practically see the realization settle in. He turned and shot a glare at Maxwell, who responded with a thin smile.

Oddly enough, Eucalyptus didn’t argue. He just slumped his shoulders and followed Cedric away. Yuu felt like she should step in, but couldn’t quite figure out how. Ace and Deuce were frowning, and even Riddle seemed mildly displeased.

The prefect led the boy toward the mouth of the Great Hall, where they exited through the large doors.

It was Riddle who broke the silence.

“Was there anything else?” he asked, his tone far less cordial than it had been moments ago. Clearly, the interruption had soured his mood.

This time it was the girl who spoke. Maxwell, having lost interest, had wandered a few feet away to chat with another older Hufflepuff.

“We wanted to ask if you’d like to come sit at the Gryffindor table. We’ve got plenty of seats and good company.” She stopped when she noticed the vaguely unfriendly looks now pointed her way, and she backtracked slightly, her voice laced with embarrassment.

“I didn’t come over here just to chase off your current company or anything. It’s just…” She paused, trying to figure out how to word the offer without it sounding awful. “I figured you guys might want to sit in good company instead of… alone with the Puffs.”

She shifted back and forth slightly, clearly trying to find her footing.

“‘Sides, O’Ryan really isn’t the best company. I’m not trying to tell you who to hang around with, but you’re really not going to make friends sticking with that Puff. The things I hear from Max and some of the others really aren’t great. Also…” She blushed a little. “I wanted to ask if any of you wanted to come down to Hogsmeade this weekend. You know, see a bit more of the British wizarding world and get the full Hogwarts experience.”

The Heartslabyul students seemed a bit surprised by the offer—although none of them looked particularly interested. After a brief glance exchanged with Trey, Riddle turned back to the girl and offered her a smile Yuu hadn’t seen from him before.

It wasn’t rude, nor was it the pleased kind of smile he usually gave when complimented or satisfied.

It reminded her of the look Sam sometimes gave the customers ahead of her in line—polite, measured, and carefully distant.

“Thank you for the offer, Ms…?”

“Angelina. Angelina Johnson,” she rushed to say.

Riddle nodded.

“Ms. Johnson. But we are perfectly content where we are. Besides, I’m sure we can expect our present company to return shortly, once he’s finished speaking with Professor Sprout.”

Angelina seemed to take the rejection pretty well, nodding with a sheepish smile.

“Yeah, no, I get it. In hindsight, I kinda look like the bad guy here. I’ll yell at Max later—this feels kinda set up. Don’t be a stranger, though.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

Riddle watched her go, and for a few moments the group was silent, the sounds of cutlery and low conversation in the hall filling the space between them.

Then Ace turned toward Yuu with a frown.

“What was that about?”

Grinnel leaned against the wall outside of Professor Sprout’s office. Diggory had already left, confident enough that Grinnel wouldn’t try to slink off—though he had still warned the boy not to.

As if he was the type to hide from the consequences of his actions.

The greenhouses, thankfully, weren’t far from the Great Hall, so the walk had been short and painless. Unfortunately, that also meant he was subject to plenty of stares and more than a few cruel smiles as other students walked past, headed toward dinner after whatever classes they were coming from.

Doubly unfortunate was the fact that this included the Slytherin-Gryffindor Charms class.

He’d learned that keeping his head down was useless, so as the large group of students walked by, the Hufflepuff stared straight ahead instead, eyes trained on the wall, and his bag firmly held behind him.

“Hey, look—it’s the troll.”
“O’Ryan push anyone down the stairs recently?”
“Look at his arms, I hope the professors aren’t letting him touch anything.”
“What did he do this time?”

It was all stuff he’d heard before. Not always directly at him, but always meant to poke and prod. Most of the direct insults were from the Slytherin students, but the Gryffindors weren’t far behind. Whispers that were just loud enough not to be accidental.

Still, it was better than being ignored. He supposed. He could take the insults. Words were wind, after all.

“I wonder if it was his mother or his father who was the ogre?”

That, on the other hand—

Grinnel pushed off the wall.

Standing in front of him was a grinning, familiar face.

Ben, flanked by Alister and Marco, had stopped entirely, now blocking his path.

Grinnel gritted his teeth. He didn’t like scrapping with Ben. But he especially didn’t like it when people talked about his family.

“Watch your mouth, Ben, or I’ll start thinking you’ve got too many teeth,” he growled.

Ben just smirked, stepping into Grinnel’s space. The other two followed, trapping him on either side.

“That’s what a half-ogre like you would do, isn’t it?”

He paused, theatrically. Grinnel couldn’t help but think he looked stupid with the way he held his chin.

Ben had always had a sense of theater. He told Grinnel once he wanted to become an actor when he got older. They’d joked that they’d start their own troupe and travel around the world.

“You know the rules. You can talk all the shit you want,” Grinnel stepped up, shoving Ben back. The third years grabbed him before he could do more. “But you talk shit about my family, and I start breaking bones.”

Ben stumbled from the shove, his smug look replaced with a scowl.

“Fine. I’ll get to the point, mudblood. That girl—Yuu—stay away from her.”

Grinnel raised an eyebrow.

“What’s it to you who I hang out with, Ben? Jealous or something?”
A cruel smile tugged at his lips. “Maybe if you were any less of an arsehole, you’d have actual friends.”

Ben growled—though to Grinnel, it sounded more like a cat’s yowl—and shoved back. Grinnel didn’t budge.

“Mudbloods don’t deserve to be near anything related to the Fae.”

Confusion and anger rose in equal measure.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Ben didn’t answer. He just pushed ahead with his rant.

“And you don’t get to talk to girls.”

…What?

Grinnel wasn’t the only one who paused. Ben looked mildly shocked at his own words, and the other two Slytherins gave him confused looks.

Ben shook his head, trying to regain his momentum.

“Just stay away from the girl, troll arms. Then we go our separate ways.”

The smart thing would’ve been to just lie. Nod and walk away. Go to dinner with Yuu like he planned and ignore whatever Ben said.

But Grinnel didn’t like lying to Ben. And right now, he wasn’t feeling smart.

“Make me, Ben.”

That set him off. But even with three against one, Grinnel was confident he could leave all of them on the floor. He’d bet Ben knew that too. So he waited.

Ben glared… and then smiled.

“I bet your father was happy he died—so he didn’t have to deal with your ogre of a mother and the disappointment of a half-breed son.”

The next thing Grinnel knew, Alister was clutching his nose—probably dislocated—and Marco had a hand over his eye. Blood trickled down Grinnel’s own forehead, and his side ached.

Meanwhile, Ben dangled in the air by his robes, smug as ever.

Grinnel could feel tears sting his eyes as a growl built in his throat. For a second, he was tempted to reach up, brush the hair out of the way of his right eye, and give Ben a good long look.

But he didn’t.

“Violent idiot. You never think ahead, do you?”

Grinnel blinked at the voice.

“Mr. O’Ryan, what on earth are you doing?!”

The door to Professor Sprout’s office had opened. She stood there, flustered, followed by a strange man in a suit and a large, fluffy black-and-white coat.

Definitely not Dire Crowley. But definitely part of the Night Raven delegation.

Grinnel opened his mouth, but Ben beat him to it—tears in his eyes.

“Professor Sprout, we were just walking by, and I saw O’Ryan standing here. I wanted to ask if he was alright after Potions—'cause I’ve been feeling real bad—and then—”

He almost burst into tears.

And the sight made Grinnel want to pick him back up again and shake him. He just couldn’t take his lumps without trying to lie his way out of it.

Also, something about seeing Ben like this didn’t sit right.

Professor Sprout stepped forward, a practically heartbroken expression on her face, and laid a hand on the boy’s shoulder, consoling him.

“Don’t continue, dear. We’ll figure out what happened later. For now, let’s get you three to Poppy, yes? Mr. O’Ryan—my office. Now. Wait there until I return.”

Grinnel stepped forward. She couldn’t possibly believe this load of crap, could she?

“Professor, that’s not—”

“Now, Mr. O’Ryan. And we will be speaking with the Headmaster about this afterward.” Her voice and face softened, but with grief rather than kindness. “Honestly, I didn’t believe what those Gryffindor boys were saying, but with this... it may be time to talk about more serious action to curb this—this hooliganry.”

He opened his mouth to respond, but Professor Sprout gave him a glare he’d never seen on her face before—and he stopped. It was no use.

As per usual.

It never was.

Grinnel felt his shoulders slump, only to tense again when an unfamiliar hand came down on one of them.

“Professor Sprout,” the man said smoothly, “if you’d like, I can watch the unruly mutt until you return.”

It was the stranger from earlier—the one with the monochrome hair and the dramatic coat. He wasn’t looking at Grinnel, but rather over his head at Sprout. His grip on Grinnel’s shoulder was firm, but not harsh.

She nodded, gratitude on her face.

“Yes, please. Thank you, Professor Crewel.” She turned to Grinnel. “Behave, Mr. O’Ryan.”

And with that, she bustled off, leading the three Slytherins away. Ben turned to give him a smug look—but it vanished quickly in favor of a faux-hurt one when he saw the other man, Professor Crewel, staring him down with a flat expression.

The three rounded the corner, and Grinnel was left alone with the Night Raven professor.

“Let’s go take a seat, shall we? And you will tell me exactly what happened.”

Grinnel was guided into Sprout’s office by the firm hand on his shoulder. He was directed into one of the large, plush yellow chairs in front of her desk. As he settled in, he brushed aside a strand of a trailing plant absentmindedly.

He took the time to study the professor now that they were indoors.

The man stood tall—taller than anyone else Grinnel had seen at Hogwarts—and even without the extravagant coat, he radiated presence. Commanding, sharp, and larger than life. His movements were smooth, deliberate. When he sat, it wasn’t just sitting—it was lounging, like he’d conquered the chair and now ruled from it.

His hair was striking—split cleanly down the middle, black on one side, white on the other. His outfit continued the theme: tailored black and white, accented with dull violet trim, and finished with brilliant maroon gloves and tie.

Altogether, Professor Crewel looked exactly how a competent wizard ought to look. Professional. Imposing. Unmistakably unique.

Which made it all the worse that Grinnel was about to be taken to task by the man. He looked like someone worth respecting.

Before the conversation could begin, Crewel stood and stepped forward.

“Stay still,” he said, reaching for Grinnel.

The second year flinched.

The professor paused, then let out a sigh. “I’m going to check the cut on your head and put a bandage on it. This is not optional—but if you stay still, it will be done faster.”

His voice was stern, but not unkind.

Grinnel obeyed. The older wizard produced alcohol—not a potion, actual alcohol—and dabbed at the cut. It stung. Then came a mundane bandage.

It was the first time Grinnel had ever seen a wizard use Muggle medicine.

Crewel leaned back to inspect his work, holding Grinnel’s hair up as he did. After a moment, he nodded and let the boy’s hair fall back down. He returned to his seat, packing the bottle and other supplies into the suitcase beside his chair.

The silence afterward felt awkward to Grinnel—tense and uncertain—but Professor Crewel seemed perfectly at ease.

Then he spoke.

“Now. Tell me what happened out there. You don’t seem like the type to bite other dogs without provocation... if what the Puppy has said is true.”

Grinnel blinked. Puppy?

He tilted his head in confusion. First "mutt," now "puppy." What was it with this guy and dogs?

Crewel noticed. He let out a weary sigh and leaned back a little.

“I’m referring to Ms. Yuu, Whelp.” His eyes sharpened. “The Puppy has spoken quite fondly of you, so I am inclined to hear you out. My patience, however, is not infinite, so—”

He leaned forward.

“Speak.”

The weight of his gaze made Grinnel shiver.

He wanted to protest the nickname—Whelp didn’t exactly sound flattering—but now was not the time.

A professor was finally giving him a chance to explain.

“I…” He hesitated. Crewel said nothing.

“I was coming from dinner. Prefect Cedric Diggory told me Professor Sprout wanted to speak with me about some... behavior issues. I don’t know what behavior he meant,” he said quickly, his voice firm. “I mostly keep to myself, sir. But I guess people have been talking about me.”

He met the other man’s gaze.

“I waited outside her office, because you were both in a meeting. Then Maxwell and the others showed up.”

He paused, uncertain. He didn’t really want to say what happened next—but Crewel took that choice away.

“And you decided to attack them like a rabid stray?”

“No!” he yelped. “No, I—They started saying things. I was going to ignore them, I was. But then they brought up something personal, and I just couldn’t—”

“What did they say?”

Grinnel hesitated again.

“They said…” He looked down.

Crewel didn’t push.

Grinnel took a breath and forced himself to speak.

“They said my pops was probably glad he died. So he wouldn’t have to deal with Mum and me.”

Tears pricked at his eyes. His throat tightened. His right eye throbbed faintly.

He didn’t look up.

“Hm.”

The other professor leaned back, but Grinnel wasn’t done.

“I just... I can’t let anyone say that, sir, and I just got angry and, well—”

“You attacked them.”

Grinnel nodded.

There was silence as he sat stiffly, hands on his knees, while Crewel studied him.

“You shouldn’t have attacked them. That was against the rules. And stupid.”

The derision in his words was clear—so too his opinion of Grinnel’s choices.

Grinnel felt his heart sink. Strangely, though, the only emotion there was resignation. What had he expected, after all? He looked down at his hands, still marred by the growths, and slowly curled them into fists against his legs.

“But I cannot say you weren’t justified.”

Grinnel looked up, startled, only to find the professor giving him a wicked smile.

“When someone speaks poison, it’s only right to respond in kind. Your problem, Whelp, is that you let anger get the better of you. I’d wager that other mutt planned this—knew how angry you’d get, and used it to put you right where he wanted.”

Grinnel blinked. He had talked to Ben about his dad once, hadn’t he...?

But what was the professor getting at?

“There’s potential there, though. With the right training, you could make a good guard dog... Maybe I should take a personal hand in this.”

Before Grinnel could ask what that meant—seriously, what was it with the dog metaphors?—the door swung open, and a still quite furious-looking Professor Sprout stepped in.

Crewel quickly stood, and with a subtle gesture, the two professors stepped out into the corridor to speak privately. Grinnel couldn’t make out what they were saying, and he wasn’t about to risk getting caught eavesdropping.

Left alone, he tried to puzzle through Crewel’s words.

The door opened again. This time, both professors entered together. Professor Sprout took her seat with slightly less fury in her expression than before, though her posture remained rigid.

Unlike with Crewel, there was no reprieve—no preamble.

“Mr. O’Ryan, what you did today was utterly unacceptable. Frankly, I have half a mind to drag you before the Headmaster this instant to discuss possible suspension. You seriously hurt those boys. You broke Mr. Wulf’s nose, for Merlin’s sake!”

Grinnel winced. Physical violence always seemed so foreign to witches and wizards. It was the same reason he usually came out ahead in most scraps.

Everyone had a spell to cast until someone got punched in the face.

Professor Sprout paused, then took a steadying breath.

“However,” she said tightly, “Professor Crewel has spoken in your defense.”

She gave him a stern look—no longer furious, but still grave.

“Words are never an excuse for violence. If something like this happens again, you are to go to a professor. Do you understand?”

He nodded once.

“In light of the provocation, I’m reducing your punishment. You will be serving detention for the next three months, and writing an apology to each of the boys involved.”

Grinnel shifted. That sucked. Not the detention part—he’d take double the hours over writing apology letters, honestly.

“These detentions will be served with Professor Crewel, who has assured me he has experience disciplining... difficult students. I expect to hear nothing but good reports.”

Grinnel glanced at the man beside her, but Crewel was studying his red gloves with apparent disinterest.

“Finally,” Professor Sprout continued, “I will be deducting fifty points from Hufflepuff for this incident—”

As if his housemates needed more reasons to hate him.

“—and five points per student from Slytherin, for their own words and actions.”

Her piece said, she gave him one last hard look—but Grinnel refused to meet her eyes.

She sighed.

“You’re free to go. Detention begins tomorrow. You’ll report here first, where we’ll speak with the Headmaster. Have a good evening, Mr. O’Ryan.”

He stood, legs stiff, and trudged toward the door. He glanced back at Professor Crewel, who met his gaze with a raised eyebrow.

No further words—not yet, anyway.

Just before he stepped through the doorway, Professor Sprout called after him:

“Oh, and Mr. O’Ryan.”

He stopped, turning halfway.

“Be grateful I’m not contacting your mother about this. Cause no more trouble if you want to keep it that way.”

Grinnel managed to bite back a snort.

His mother would probably offer to come down and give those boys a wallop herself.

Anneliese O’Ryan wore a lot of hats when it came to life and work.

At work, she was the owner, cook, part-time waiter, manager, and security of a little restaurant and bar downtown—the same one her husband had opened before they got married.
At home, she was a mother, a breadwinner, a caretaker (to both her son and her grandfather), and a groundskeeper to the old man’s estate because “no one else could do it right.”

But she never faltered. Ol’ Annie O’Ryan had passed through many a trial by fire and had mastered the arts of multitasking and prioritization—among many other things.

With her baby boy off at that magic school, she’d been able to take a few of those hats off, at least partially, and catch up on a lot of work. That way, when Grinnel did come home, she could give him more time and less stress.

After that first year, though, she wasn’t so sure she even wanted to send him back. Each vacation he returned more miserable than the last. Sure, she saw some of that fire come back after just a few weeks at home, but it still wasn’t right.

Enough that even her old man had commented that maybe it was time to start looking at alternatives.

Like she hadn’t already.

Her limited connections told her that as far as schools for magic went, Hogwarts was the only real option available. The others didn’t accept transfers, and private tutoring required money and influence—things she didn’t have in that world.

Even when she sent messages via that blasted bird they’d bought, the most McGonagall would say was that her son was “doing fine,” and she didn’t have clearer details because “there are far too many students in the school to pay preferential attention to one, Ms. O’Ryan.”

It made her want to drive to the Highlands and wring that woman’s skinny neck—but that’d be illegal, and probably detrimental to her boy’s education. So she didn’t.

Still, something was going on. And if she didn’t start seeing some improvement in his mood, she’d have to start looking into extreme solutions.

She refused to let her boy grow up with that frown on his face. That wasn’t what she wanted. And that wasn’t what Caleb would’ve wanted.

She let out a quiet sigh at the thought of the man, glancing from the large pan she was holding over the stove to the picture frames resting on the windowsill nearby.

One specific picture drew her attention.

From years ago—of a tall man with brown hair and eyes and a bushy beard, and an even taller woman with darker brown hair tied into a thick braid and sharp green eyes, both holding a laughing child up high in the air.

She quickly looked away. It was too late at night to be thinking about what they’d had. That path led to drinking, and if she started, the old man would too. Then they’d both wake up hungover tomorrow, and she had an early shift.

Instead, she turned back to the pan, listening to the sizzle and pop of meat cooking. Nearly done.

The night was quiet. Routine.

She could hear the frogs outside, peeping away. The gentle hiss of the gas stove. The steady breathing of her grandfather flipping through whatever book or paper he’d chosen tonight.

It was familiar.

But without Grinnel—or Caleb—it was boring, to be honest.

Sometimes it even made her think about going back to her old job, before the marriage.

Tonight, though, she heard something else.

Rustling.

Carefully, Annie clicked off the stove and slid the pan away, silencing both. The rustling remained. Then—a faint creak.

Like someone stepping onto the porch.

She stepped quietly into the front room, staying to the carpet as she crossed into the darkened entryway, and leaned slightly to peer through the transom window above the door.

Outside, she saw lights. At least three of them, held like flashlights—but with the shape and glow she now recognized as wands. Just like Grinnel’s.

She listened.

“... this the place?”

“Think so... plan?”

“Grab... kill... wants the... alive.”

Well.

Annie scowled, her hand drifting down to the bright red brick they used as a doorstop. Her fingers wrapped easily around the rough edges.

So much for a quiet night.

She wanted to call out to the old man and tell him to grab his gun, but the timing wouldn’t work. If he moved, they’d hear. If she rushed, they’d break in.

Better to get the drop on them.

The deck creaked louder. The muttering grew clearer. They were just outside now.

A whisper. A flicker of light. The door began to slowly creak open.

She stood just to the side of the frame, frozen and waiting.

A figure stepped in—wand held high. They wore a white mask, and a dark cloak that billowed even without wind.

How edgy. She wondered what they wore for Halloween if this was the everyday getup.

They paused, cautious. He swept his wand left—nothing. Then slowly turned to the right.

For a moment, she thought he’d miss her.

Then he froze.

His gaze locked on her form, hidden in the dark corner.

Up, and up, and up—until he had to crane his neck to look her in the eyes.

She gave him a smile—before swinging her arm and smashing him in the side of the head with the brick.

He went limp instantly, but before he could collapse, she grabbed him by the arms and, with practiced ease, swung his body—light as a sack of potatoes—right back out the door and, ideally, into his companions.

From the grunts and curses that followed, she’d bet she was right on the money.

Brick still in hand, she stormed out after them.

It was best to press your advantage, after all.

It was still dark, and it seemed their little lights had fizzled out from the commotion. Still, there was just enough light to see that she’d taken one of them down—the poor bastard currently pinned beneath the unconscious body of his friend.

He was still reaching for his wand, though.

After stepping outside, she brought her foot down on his wrist—hard.

There was a crack.

The man let out a strangled curse but went still and pale when her foot came down again—this time on the wand itself—shattering it and punching a hole through the boards of the deck.

“What in the seven hells?!”

Looking up, she spotted the last one, still standing, his wand pointed at the ground. Still armed, though.

She had to move fast.

Unfortunately, this one was faster than his friends.

“Stupefy!”

Thankfully, spells were much slower than bullets—and a hell of a lot easier to dodge.

A flash of red light zipped toward her, and she dove to the side, the bolt narrowly missing her. Winding up her arm, she fastballed the brick straight at him—and nailed him in the chest. He dropped like a sack of flour, the wand flying from his hand as he hit the ground, wheezing.

She stepped over and stomped on the wand for good measure.

Checking over the three of them, she quickly confirmed that none were getting up any time soon. The one she’d stomped on was still conscious and angry, sure—but judging by the look on his face, he was too busy panicking about his wrist and his broken wand to pose any danger.

Anneliese was about to find something to tie them up with when a loud bang rang out from inside the house—sharp and unmistakable.

Gunshot.

She ducked instinctively.

An expression resembling fear crossed her face as she sprinted for the house, bolting back through the entryway.

If her old man had kicked the bucket to something like this, she was going to kill him.

She dashed into the living room where she’d last seen him—

—and stopped short.

Everything looked exactly the same… aside from the long hunting rifle cradled in her father’s lap as he rocked calmly in his chair.

And the cursing, cloaked figure in a skull mask, slumped against the far wall, one bleeding hand raised in the air and both eyes locked on the rifle barrel aimed squarely at his chest.

Anneliese glanced from the intruder to her father and smirked.

“Nice shot.”

“Anneleise,” the old man grunted, never looking up from his target, “the moment I miss a shot at that distance, I want ye to shoot me.”

She chuckled, already crossing the room to grab the wounded man by the collar and haul him up.

“Crazy old man.”

He didn’t respond. Just opened the book he’d evidently set on the night table and began flipping through pages as if nothing had happened.

“We should probably write a letter to Grinnel,” she muttered, hoisting the groaning man over her shoulder.

He nodded.

“I’ll get the paper. You secure the hoodlums.”

And so, Retired U.S. Staff Sergeant Anneliese O’Ryan, née Markhal, immigrated Irish citizen, got to work.

Chapter Text

Deuce wasn’t sure how he felt about Hogwarts.

It was a very cool-looking place. Just walking through the castle while Yuu talked about it felt more like a stroll through a museum than a school.

And Yuu was one of the greatest guys—

His mind stuttered briefly.

…

One of the greatest girls he’d ever met, so Hogwarts had to be a great spot.

But on the other hand—

Deuce eyed the hall around them. Dinner was well underway by now, but that Eucalyptus kid hadn’t come back yet. Instead, his spot was quickly filled as students began flooding the hall, and soon enough, there was a dull roar of conversation.

It was still the place that had nearly taken Yuu away from them. The place that still had the potential to make his good buddy disappear.

That was why Deuce couldn’t relax.

Ace, Cater, Trey, even Riddle—all of them seemed so sure they were out of the woods. That Yuu would come back with them after this was over and they’d all forget this other world.

Deuce didn’t feel the same. He didn’t feel safe.

Ace had raised an eyebrow at the way Deuce glared at everyone who so much as looked at him—but Ace didn’t know these things the way Deuce did.

You didn’t just leave a gang, after all. You were always being pulled back in, no matter how far you ran. Especially if you were as cool as Yuu was.

To really get left alone, you had to be either strong enough that it wasn’t worth the trouble—or do something so severe that no one would dare try again.

He’d gotten off relatively easy, putting off that decision by vanishing to Night Raven Academy. But even now, he still got messages from time to time—old acquaintances he hadn’t blocked yet.

Demands. Offers. Threats.

He’d probably have to make an example of someone over the summer just to finally put it to bed. He was strong enough now to do it.

But Yuu didn’t have the same luxury. She had the power, sure—but she wasn’t willing to use it. She wasn’t willing to send a message. Wasn’t willing to strike back hard enough to scare someone off for good.

To be honest, Deuce was afraid.

Because Night Raven Academy felt a lot like a gang.

And if NRC was like that, then Hogwarts probably was too.

Yuu was cool. She was strong, smart, kind, funny, brave. Pretty.

His cheeks warmed slightly, and he only realized he was staring at her when Ace jabbed him in the ribs.

The point was—when a gang realized someone was valuable, they didn’t let them go without a fight.

Night Raven Academy had already realized how valuable Yuu was. They’d taken steps.

As far as Deuce was concerned, it was only a matter of time before Hogwarts figured it out too.

So they had to be ready. Ready for whatever Hogwarts might try to keep her.

So when an older student sat down next to Yuu—one who looked a bit too polished and wore a very familiar smirk—Deuce’s instincts screamed that he was up to no good.

“Excuse me?”

Yuu, Grim curled in her lap, had been engaged in a conversation with Trey about the differences between Alchemy and Potions, with Riddle listening nearby and Cater busy taking pictures of his food. She turned toward the speaker with a polite, if hesitant, smile.

Trey did as well—though the look he gave the Hogwarts student was sharp. Deuce, who had learned to read his vice-dormhead’s expressions, knew exactly which kind of smile that was. Not the friendly kind.

The Hogwarts student, a handsome upperclassman with expensive-looking robes and soft waves in his hair, didn’t seem to notice—or care. He didn’t even glance at the others. His eyes were focused only on Yuu.

He smiled, and Deuce thought it looked oily.

“Sorry to interrupt,” the boy said smoothly, “but I noticed you just as I came in, and I had to come introduce myself to such a pretty girl.”

He tilted his head slightly. His hair shifted with the motion, and Deuce thought he looked a bit like a washed-out, aged-up version of Neige Leblanche.

“My name is Julius Cappelletti. May I have the honor of knowing the name of the fair maiden I address?”

Yuu shifted slightly, clearly uncomfortable, but with nowhere to run and the older boy waiting, she eventually replied.

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you, Cappelletti-san—”

“Julius, please,” he interrupted, voice soft and condescending. “I can’t bear to hear someone like you speak to me so distantly.”

He reached out, as if to take Yuu’s hand. She quickly pulled it away, instead adjusting her bowtie with nervous fingers.

Deuce felt his jaw tighten. He could feel Ace stiffen next to him. Grim sat up sharply, giving the stranger a look that could curdle milk.

“...I don’t think I feel comfortable with that, Cappelletti-san.”

Riddle nodded in approval at her response, though his expression had darkened considerably. Deuce guessed that Julius ignoring every single one of them was pissing off their Dormhead more than anything else.

He was right to be. This guy was off.

And Deuce had seen people like him before.

The ones who smiled at you like you were a thing they could own.

The other gave a theatrical flinch, as if wounded by her words.

“Alas, I understand. Love cannot bloom without precious time spent together. It is therefore my mission here to invite you on an outing, dearest Yuu.”

Deuce blinked, running the conversation back in his mind. He didn’t remember Yuu ever introducing herself to the guy. Looking up, he met Cater-senpai’s eyes—and saw that he’d come to the same realization. From the way Yuu paused, he’d bet she noticed too.

“Tomorrow, I propose we meet in the morning and spend the day exploring Hogsmeade. It will be just the date we need to get to know one another better—”

He was cut off with a yelp and glared to his side. Ace whistled innocently, but Deuce was willing to bet he’d stomped on the guy’s foot.

Julius turned back to continue his pitch, but Cater leaned in before he could.

“You know, Julius-chan,” Cater purred, his voice lilting and sickly sweet in a way that almost sounded practiced—like someone else had used it on him before, “isn’t it rude to break into a conversation and only greet one of the participants? How mean. I might just cry.” Near the end, he started to sound just a bit like Lilia, which made sense. The two were in a club together, after all.

Cater threw an arm over Yuu’s shoulders and pulled her close, rubbing their cheeks together in a familiar but sudden display of affection.

It worked exactly as intended. Julius’s eyes widened, flicking between Cater’s closeness and Yuu’s surprised—but not exactly thrilled—expression.

“Cater’s right. But it’s funny you should mention Hogsmeade,” Trey continued smoothly. “Ms. Yuu was just telling us about it. We figured we’d all go together and explore it ourselves tomorrow. Thank you very much for the offer, though.”

“Finally,” Riddle said, his voice cold with finality, “it seems only polite that you approach the Dormhead before you solicit one of his students for an unsanctioned outing. That would violate at least a dozen rules—not to mention being highly improper.”

“So how about you buzz off?” Grim added from where he’d hopped onto the table. “My henchman’s not interested.”

Deuce found himself smiling—genuinely smiling—at his upperclassmen (and Grim). They got it. This wasn’t just some greasy older kid flirting with Yuu. This was a rival gang’s move.

Romance and relationships were common ways of tying people to their gangs. Deuce gave Trey a thankful look, which the upperclassman returned calmly.

More than once, Deuce had felt lucky to be sorted into Heartslabyul. He felt it again now. And he was a little surprised his upperclassmen understood gang politics so well.

Still, it was good to know they were all on the same page.

Yuu looked back and forth between the now stone-faced Heartslabyul students and Julius, who—somewhat admirably—did not back down, despite the five pairs of very unfriendly eyes now trained on him.

It was Julius who broke the silence.

“My deepest apologies, friends. My distraction by Ms. Yuu’s timeless beauty caused thoughtless actions on my part. You are…?”

He looked at Riddle first, finally acknowledging someone else.

“Riddle Roseheart, Housewarden of Heartslabyul and the one responsible for the students you see around you. To my right is Trey Clover, my Vice, and to the left of Ms. Yuu is Cater Diamond. On either side of you are Ace Trappola and Deuce Spade.”

Julius inclined his head in greeting. “I am delighted to meet you all.”

It wasn’t even ten seconds before he spoke again.

“I understand you may have had prior arrangements, but I beg you, Ms. Yuu, to give me a chance. Surely you would appreciate an experienced guide?”

Yuu looked increasingly uncomfortable as she responded.

“I’m very flattered, Cappelletti-san—”

“Fantastic! I’ll see you—”

“—but I’d rather spend tomorrow with my friends.” Yuu’s voice wasn’t loud, but it rang over the table like a bell.

Julius’s expression faltered—just for a second. His smile dipped into a thin frown, but it snapped back into place just as quickly.

“Please reconsider. Perhaps we can meet in the morning and—”

“She said no.”

The voice was sharp, dangerous, and Deuce didn’t realize it was his until Trey-senpai looked over at him, slightly wide-eyed. Cappelletti flinched, turning toward the voice.

And for the first time, he actually looked at Deuce.

Deuce could’ve stopped there. He’d made his point. Riddle gave a small nod of approval. Cater smiled.

But something in Julius’s attitude—his oily charm, his entitlement—something about it had struck a nerve.

The way he looked at Yuu reminded Deuce of his old man. Charming, smooth-talking—and nasty underneath.

So Deuce didn’t stop himself when his mouth opened again, something mean and stupid and sure to get him in trouble about to roll off his tongue.

“You—”

“Is there a problem here?”

“Just in time,” Grim muttered.

The entire group turned in unison. Looming behind Ace, Deuce, and Julius, wrapped once again in his long two-toned coat, was Professor Crewel—his scowl like a stormcloud over his face.

Deuce felt his blood run cold. Ace paled visibly.

Cappelletti, on the other hand, didn’t seem to register the threat.

“Ah, sir, it’s nice to meet—”

“Back to your table, mutt.”

The word hit something in Julius, something that made him freeze. His eyes sharpened—just for a second. But whatever he’d been about to say died in his throat the moment Crewel’s scowl deepened.

He stood. Slowly. With dignity, even.

But his eyes flicked back to Yuu as he did.

“Think over my offer, dear Yuu. We will speak again.”

With that, he was off, and Deuce glared after him, hands clenching and unclenching as the older student walked away.

“Thank you, Professor. He was getting somewhat pushy,” Yuu voiced.

There was an unhappy noise from the Alchemy professor’s throat—something like a low growl, Deuce thought.

“If he causes you any more trouble, let me know. Puppies should not have to deal with that sort until they are able to defend themselves.”

Deuce found himself nodding in agreement, for once fully understanding the man’s dog analogies.

Yuu shouldn’t have to deal with that type.

“It was fortunate I was here. I came over to tell you all that Mr. O’Ryan will not be joining you again tonight.”

His new little brother!

“What happened, Professor?” That was Riddle asking, a note of concern in his voice.

Crewel turned toward the red-haired boy.

“He got into a bit of a scuffle with some other mutts. His Head of House has sent him back to his dorm for the night.”

Yuu blinked in surprise, before a look of concern settled over her face. Crewel, however, preempted her next question.

“You can ask him what happened yourself. For now, finish your food and move back to your kennels for the night.” With that, Crewel began walking away, coat trailing behind him.

There was a brief moment of silence, the NRC students watching the professor’s retreating form. Then, the conversation picked up again—this time about what they would do tomorrow in Hogsmeade.

Riddle and Trey were interested in the bookshop Yuu cheerfully endorsed, while Ace and Deuce pestered her about what candy and treats they could get their hands on. Cater was mostly interested in taking pictures and people-watching, though he did lean in when Yuu mentioned the possibility of magical telescopes being available.

They weren’t approached again for a while. The very public rejection of the last contender had clearly killed off much of the lingering confidence of the Hogwarts hopefuls. A group of girls did regularly glance over and giggle, though—much to Deuce’s confusion. Ace made a face and called him an idiot when he asked.

This went on for a bit, until—

“Would you mind if I sat here?”

This time, the voice came from Riddle’s side of the table. Twisting in their seats, the group turned to see the form of a small blonde girl standing near them, shifting in place and looking somewhat shy.

Immediately, Yuu’s face broke into a wide smile. Seeing Yuu so receptive, the Heartslabyul group eased their expressions. Deuce had already relaxed—Riddle’s shoulders hadn’t even tensed at the sight of the girl, which meant she wasn’t a threat.

“Luna!” Yuu sounded delighted.

Riddle nodded in greeting as well.

Seeing the positive response, Trey took the lead, giving the small girl a warm smile and patting the seat beside him.

“There’s room right here, if you like,” he said, giving her his “Big Brother” smile.

The girl—Luna—seemed to freeze at the sight of the green-haired upperclassman. A faint red quickly spread over her face. Deuce wondered briefly if she was sick, but a snort from Cater beside him knocked him out of his thoughts.

Luna stiffly sat down in the chair beside Trey, who promptly drew her into their ongoing discussion.

It was a good dinner, Deuce thought. Even though he still couldn’t wait to be back at NRC, to get back to what was familiar. But for now…

He joined the conversation, and laughed when the new girl, Luna, said something that twisted their Dormhead’s expression into something entirely confused.

“No luck then?”

Julius jumped slightly. He’d taken the scenic route back from the Main Hall in preparation for this meeting, just as he had dozens of times before. Still, the way his companion always managed to sneak up on him startled him every time.

Turning around, he came face to face with Romina Montecchi—Slytherin student, and his dear friend. They’d first met when they were young, brought together by their families to continue a long-standing alliance. She wore her green uniform impeccably, her hair draped over her shoulders in the elegant way they'd been taught since birth.

They’d been raised practically as siblings and were long familiar with one another before coming to Hogwarts.

Now, she was his accomplice in a mission from their families—their first real assignment, although they’d trained for this for years.

“Unfortunately, no,” Julius muttered, wrinkling his nose. “Those boys around her are sharp. Possessive, too. Although she didn’t seem to notice—or mind.”

Romina didn’t look worried. The curve of her mouth and the gleam in her eyes radiated confidence.

“She seems like the type to fold under enough pressure,” he continued. “If I can get her alone, I think I’ll get a better response. The hard part, of course, is managing that.”

She waved him off.

“Yeah, yeah, I know my job too. I’ll talk to them tomorrow.”

Julius felt a tick form in his eyebrow. He tried to keep his voice calm.

“Why didn’t you try today? I would’ve had an easier time if you’d just distracted one of them.”

Romina didn’t flinch at the shortness of his tone.

“And I will. But if I’d joined in today, I’d have been painted with the same brush as you. They’d be wary of me after that. You going in alone gave me valuable information—and a cleaner entry point later.”

“At the expense of my own effort.”

She rolled her eyes.

“Uh, yeah. Obviously. Only one of us needs to succeed. Both would be great, but you heard Nonna—we just need one in. The girl would be ideal, but one of the boys will work too.”

Julius looked as if he were about to strangle her.

“This is why I don’t like working with you. You’re always so—”

Just as his voice was rising, footsteps echoed at the end of the hall. Instantly, both of their demeanors changed.

Julius, whose hair was slightly mussed from agitation, casually leaned against the wall, relaxed. Romina, who had been checking her nails and not even looking at him, suddenly clasped her hands together with a vapid smile.

A group of Gryffindor students walked by, laughing. One glanced down their hallway, spotted the two "lovebirds"—well known for their excessive lovey-dovey hallway displays—and promptly turned away, giving them a thumbs-up as he passed.

They waited, listening until the last echo of footsteps disappeared. Then they dropped the act, pushing away from one another with matching expressions of discomfort.

“Do we really have to keep doing that?” Julius asked flatly.

“Do you think I like pretending I’m into you?” Romina shuddered. “Ew.”

The air between them shifted. Tension reset. Romina spoke first.

“You keep doing what you’re doing. I have a plan.”

“Care to read me in?” Julius asked irritably.

She only smiled.

“Just keep annoying them. If it gets them defensive and angry, even better.”

Julius frowned, unconvinced. She placed a hand on her hip.

“Trust me, alright? I don’t lie. Do I?”

He sighed and nodded reluctantly.

“Fine. But if this blows up, you’re explaining it to Nonna.”

Romina nodded solemnly.

“Promise.”

She held out her pinkie. Julius hooked it with his own, and then the two turned, heading in opposite directions down the corridor.

The next day had gone by in a flash. The Hogsmeade trip was fun, although Riddle wasn’t very impressed by Ace’s trip to Zonko’s joke shop.

Deuce, on the other hand, had gotten into an extensive conversation with the clerk at Ceridwen’s Cauldrons and had, in fact, left with a new one of his own.

Trey had disappeared for a bit, off to “explore the area,” according to the green-haired teen, and Riddle and Yuu had been dragged back and forth by an excited Cater, who was taking pictures in and outside every shop they could reach. Oftentimes, he was given side-eye by the other witches and wizards, not understanding what the orange-haired boy was doing with the thin device.

By the end, Yuu was exhausted—but happy—and they took the train back to the castle.

That night, though, brought more excitement. Professor Crewel, waiting for them at the Hogwarts station, pulled them all into their small dorm before they could head to dinner.

As they entered the common room, Yuu blinked at the sight of the gateway up and running once more, with Idia off to the side, typing away on a laptop. He raised his head as she entered and waved back at her greeting.

What really caught her eyes, though, was the people filling the common room.

Leona lay back, taking up an entire couch by himself, seemingly asleep—though from the way his tail whipped back and forth, Yuu would bet he was entirely awake. Nearby, Jack leaned against a wall, eyes open and alert as he scanned the room. They locked onto their group the moment they entered.

On the other couch was Azul, accompanied by Jade, both of who looked entirely to at home with the way Azul already had papers spread across the coffee table, running the numbers already. A teapot, tended by Jade, was already being used to fill a teacup that Yuu recognized from Azul's office at the Monstro Lounge.

Sitting in the largest chair was Epel, who—despite Vil being nowhere in sight—sat as properly as ever: back straight, legs still. His hands were folded in his lap. Still, Yuu could tell he was nervous, from the way his breathing was perfectly measured and steady. It was something Vil had taught them both—to do when they were nervous or worried.

Then there was Malleus himself, standing next to the mirror, studying its hue as Idia worked. He looked just as composed as ever, dressed in his Diasomnia dorm uniform. When they entered, he turned, locking eyes with Yuu in particular.

He gave her a smile, which she returned.

The most surprising presence in the room—and the one that had Riddle stiffening beside her—was a moderately tall woman in a smart red suit, sitting with her legs crossed at a nearby table. She had bright red hair, tied into a bun, and fair features. Across from her sat Azul’s grandmother. Neither of them spoke. In fact, they seemed to be pointedly ignoring one another.

On the table in front of her sat a teapot, alongside a single cup filled to the brim.

She looked familiar.

Yuu nudged Trey, who had been busy studying the gate, and pointed at her.

Her upperclassman’s eyes widened. He hastily pushed her hand down.

“Who is that, Trey-senpai?” she whispered.

“Riddle’s mother, Yuu. Don’t point,” he whispered back, looking more tense than she’d ever seen him.

Her own eyes widened, and she glanced over at Riddle—who had stiffened immensely and now seemed to be making sure everything about his appearance was perfect.

Crewel, oblivious to their astonishment, stepped forward and clapped his gloved hands together to get their attention.

“Now that we are all gathered, we can begin. I am not one for useless ceremony,” Yuu could almost hear the jab at her guardian in his tone, “so I’ll start immediately. First on the docket.”

He turned to face the students, most of whom straightened slightly at his attention. Leona just opened his eyes to lazily look at the alchemy professor, and Yuu noticed the woman in red twist her lips into a slight glare at Leona’s leonaness.

“Most of you are here today because you expressed interest in representing Night Raven Academy in this interschool tournament. Tonight, during dinner, you are expected to enter your names into their Goblet of Fire, and tomorrow, a champion will be chosen at random from the names entered.” He paused, gazing over the group before continuing.

“I must also remind you, these trials will not be for the faint of heart. Each of you has been required to submit a waiver signed by a parent or guardian in order to participate. The chosen champion will also be staying here for the majority of each week, in order to properly prepare and ‘intermingle’ with the other students. Is everyone prepared to accept these requirements?” He gave a moment, eyes sweeping from one student to the next. None backed down.

“Very well,” he said, gesturing toward the two other adults in the room.

“You may have noticed our guests. May I introduce Melene Ashengrotto and Regina Roseheart, who will be assisting the students staying here—as well as the champion—in keeping up with their studies. They will be teaching you, along with some others, in order to ensure you remain on track with the rest of the school.”

Crewel stepped aside to allow the two to properly introduce themselves. Both women stood, and Yuu heard a gulp beside her as they approached.

It was Azul’s grandmother who stepped forward first, still looking completely harmless and entirely delighted.

“It’s lovely to meet you dears. Let’s all get along just fine, okay?” Her chipper tone did little to ease the tension in the room, but Yuu gave the woman a warm smile. She’d had so few chances to interact with her friends’ families at NRC, and Azul was always so private—despite being immensely proud of his family—so she was looking forward to speaking with the older merwoman.

Stepping up beside her—and standing about a head taller, thanks mostly to her heels—was Regina Roseheart. The woman who had, debatably, started the first Overblot that had occurred at Night Raven Academy. Riddle’s mother.

She gave the group an imperious nod, her sharp eyes slowly scanning the room. They barely stopped on Riddle, glossed over Trey entirely, until they landed directly on Yuu, who was still dressed in one of the outfits Crewel had helped her pick out.

“It is a pleasure to meet all of you. I look forward to seeing who my Riddle has been associating with. Follow the rules, and we’ll get along just fine.”

Unlike Melene, Regina’s voice was cool and stable—like a researcher delivering a lab report.

Crewel waited to see if the two women had anything else to add, then nodded.

“Very well. You all may go to dinner.” He turned to the recently arrived medley of individuals. “You mutts will follow them. Put your names into the Goblet before the end of dinner if you still wish to participate, then return here with the rest of them.”

Epel raised a hand, and Crewel gave a small nod to acknowledge the question.

“When will the Champion be decided, Professor Crewel?”

She knew this! Yuu opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off when Regina spoke instead.

“The names will be drawn tomorrow, after the Halloween feast. You will all be attending classes in the meantime until the champion is revealed.”

Crewel nodded.

“Correct. I’ve taken the liberty of making class schedules for each of you, so you don’t die of boredom throughout the day,” Crewel said, handing them out. Before long, there were faint grumbles and dismayed expressions at the sight of their timetables—Leona’s was upside-down, likely intentionally.

Crewel just glared at them.

“Mutts shouldn’t complain when just being here is already a privilege. You are ambassadors for Night Raven Academy—and for your respective homes. Act like it.”

His words had an effect on most students. Some—like Leona—remained unfazed.

The professor gave one more sweeping look around for any final questions. Seeing none, he waved a hand dismissively.

“Good. Go and eat. Any trouble will be met with firm discipline—and I trust you all understand what might happen if you try to cheat an ancient magical artifact.”

His words, curiously pointed, seemed aimed at Malleus. The fae prince gave only a single, slow blink in response.

The group stood and began to file out, Yuu being led by a still slightly stressed Trey, pursued by those who had just arrived—until they were stopped.

“Clover, I believe I’d like to borrow Ms. Yuu for the moment. There are some topics that bear discussion.”

Regina had appeared beside them so fast that Yuu barely had time to blink. Despite being slightly shorter than Trey, she seemed to loom over him, her expression shadowed and unreadable.

Trey looked unsure of what to say—for the first time since Yuu had met him. While he searched for an answer, Yuu made a decision of her own. She’d always wanted to speak with Regina anyway.

“Sure! I’d be happy to talk for a bit, Roseheart-san.”

Riddle, who had been walking ahead, stiffened and turned back, a faintly panicked look on his face.

I’ll be fine, she mouthed toward him and Trey. This didn’t seem to reassure either of them, but Regina took the choice from their hands, laying a hand on Yuu’s shoulder.

“To dinner, you two. Ms. Yuu will return shortly.”

With Yuu nodding along and no polite excuse to refuse, the two reluctantly obeyed, leading the others toward the dining hall.

Soon enough, it was just her, Professor Crewel, and the two women left in the common room. Her professor wore an unreadable expression Yuu couldn’t place—until he excused himself with the words, “I’d better go watch the mutts.”

And then it was just the three of them.

“Come. Let’s sit,” Regina said, leading Yuu toward the table she’d occupied earlier. Melene had already taken a seat, and soon Yuu found herself holding a cup of tea while the two women studied her.

It was Regina who began, voice calm and deliberate, the tone of someone who expected to be listened to.

“So. You’re the girl attending Night Raven Academy. I’ve heard much about you from Riddle. I wonder how much of it is true, hmm? You two seem to be close.”

Yuu smiled up at the woman and nodded.

“It’s nice to meet you, Roseheart-san. Riddle-senpai is super smart, so he’s probably right in whatever he’s said—good and bad,” she laughed sheepishly. “It’s really nice to finally meet you.”

Her response seemed to satisfy Regina, who leaned back slightly.

“Drink your tea, dear. We have much to discuss before I feel confident in your eligibility. Tell me—what do you spend your free time doing?”

It was starting to feel more like a job interview. Still, Yuu obediently sipped her tea and prepared to answer—only for Melene to cut in, voice light and mischievous.

“Hmmm, you know, I’ve heard from my dear Azul that you’ve been helping him and his friends with that little café business at your academy. How has spending so much time with my Zuzu been? He can be a bit headstrong sometimes—but he means well.”

Thrown by the sudden shift in tone, but still happy to answer, Yuu nodded enthusiastically.

“Azul-senpai is incredible. He’s super smart, and sometimes the effort he puts in makes my head spin.”

Her response seemed to please Melene, who leaned back smugly and turned a sly smirk toward Regina. The red-haired woman shifted slightly, a faint fluster touching her features.

“Enough about the girl doing another student’s homework,” Regina cut in, cool as ever. “Riddle mentioned that you participate in the Equine Club together. Tell me—has he kept up with practice?”

“Uh, I don’t know how he was before, but Riddle-senpai is incredible! He took me riding once and it was amazing.”

“How lovely,” Melene crooned, “but how was your trip with Azul to that underwater museum in the capital? I heard Jade got a photo of you two holding hands.”

This time, Yuu didn’t even have a chance to answer before Regina—who was now full-on glaring at the smiling Melene—barked out her next question. It was directed at Yuu, but her gaze never left the other woman.

“I heard you and Riddle had a sleepover—”

“Oh, just like how my darling Azul nursed her back to health?” Melene chimed sweetly.

“From something he caused?”

“These things happen—”

“Yes, I suppose when a household lacks discipline, the children grow up like—”

“Do not speak of discipline to me, young lady!”

“I suppose you’ve never heard of it with your figure.”

“Well, at least Azul likes his family. Who knows what type of father yours would make? Apples and trees, I believe the saying goes.”

“And undersea is better, where—”

The conversation devolved into the most intense quiet argument Yuu had ever seen. Regina had turned entirely red, her voice never rising above a polite drawl. Melene maintained a smile so sharp Yuu was surprised it hadn’t sliced its way off her face.

Fiddling with her teacup, Yuu wondered if she should interrupt.

“Um… perhaps I could start from the beginning? I can tell you how I met Riddle and Azul-senpai?” she offered cautiously.

The volume dropped instantly. Both women stared each other down for another breath before slowly turning their eyes to Yuu, faces reforming into expressions far too sweet.

“Certainly, Ms. Yuu.”

“Sounds like a plan, honey.”

For some reason, Yuu felt like she was missing something. But at least they weren’t arguing anymore. Now… where to start?

“Well, the first time I met either of them was at the opening ceremony, when…”

Yuu began recounting her experiences at Night Raven College with her two hardworking upperclassmen.

In the back of her mind, a little voice whispered warnings: Be careful what you share. There might be a reason they haven’t told their families everything.

But that would mean lying.

And Yuu didn’t want to lie to her friends’ families—not when they were trying so hard to be involved. Besides, they already knew everything if they were here, right?

So, as she started from the beginning, she resolved not to leave out a single detail.

Elsewhere, Azul Ashengrotto and Riddle Rosehearts both froze mid-step, struck by an inexplicable, bone-deep chill.

Chapter Text

The three women had ended up spending the majority of dinner in the common room—so long, in fact, that Crewel had poked his head in to check on them, only to find Yuu partway through explaining how she and Floyd had become ‘symbiotes,’ while the two women listened with oddly intent expressions.

The Alchemy professor had ended up bringing them dinner in the dorm, assisted by a couple of house-elves. The gesture, considerate as it was, seemed somewhat out of place for the normally sharp-tongued professor.

When he stepped in and heard the topic of conversation, an odd expression—almost like pity—appeared on his face before it was quickly wiped away.

After laying down the tray, he leaned down next to her.

“Those mutts deserve everything that comes from this. Do leave out no details, puppy,” he muttered before bowing his head slightly at the other two and leaving.

It took her a minute to realize it was because of Twisted Wonderland’s reverence toward women. The way he acted toward her and the two adults frankly made Yuu feel a bit uncomfortable.

She was so used to Crewel’s straightforward irreverence and confident demeanor that the strange deference he gave the three felt odd—like the professor she had grown to respect had become a stranger in the course of a few minutes.

Either way, they took a short break to eat, during which both older women had returned to sniping at one another. Yuu watched, head bouncing from one to the other as they exchanged subtle barbs (in the case of Mylene) and outright criticism (Regina). It felt a bit like watching a tennis match.

She had just finished explaining what had happened after Azul’s Overblot when the doors to the common room opened and the Heartslabyul and Octavinelle boys trotted in, Jade engaged in conversation with Trey while Cater listened in. Ace and Deuce trailed behind, led by a smiling Cater.

Both wore collars, but from the vaguely proud looks on their faces, Yuu figured they’d gotten into a fight—and won. Grim trailed behind them, collarless, but looking just as smug.

Her irritation at the two for causing trouble was eclipsed by the happiness that welled up at the sight of them. It had really only been an hour, but after months without any of them, could anyone blame her for being a bit clingy?

Grim dashed up without a word and jumped into her lap. Yuu wrapped her arms around the monster and squeezed. He let out a low purr.

“What happened?” she asked under her breath.

Grim shifted slightly, turning in her arms until he was facing her.

“Those two idiots, alongside that Eucalyptus, got into a fight with some other Gryffindor kids during dinner,” he grumbled.

“Maxwell?”

Grim shook his head.
“No, some other brats who were talking smack about NRC and…” Grim paused, giving her a glance she didn’t quite understand.

“And?” she pressed. Eucalyptus was nice, but she didn’t think he’d get into a fight for the honor of Night Raven College of all things.

“And they were talking about a few other things they didn’t have any right to.” He finished, clamming up with a look she recognized—he didn’t want to say anything else on the topic.

Their conversation was interrupted when Regina, who had watched the interaction with a neutral expression, cleared her throat. As one, the room turned toward the tall red-haired woman, who now wore a severe expression. Next to her, Mylene wore the ominous smile of a grandmother with an axe to grind.

The expression caused the group—specifically Riddle and Azul—to grow quite worried. Crewel himself wore a smile that, to Yuu, seemed to take sadistic joy in the tension on both dorm leaders’ faces.

Once the room had gone silent and attention was focused on them, the two women struck. Standing from their seats, they gestured at their respective family members.

“Zuzu, dear, let’s go have a chat in the other room real quick. I’ve heard some truly fascinating things about your school career, and some clarification would be absolutely darling.”

“Riddle, with me. We have some items to discuss about your conduct during the first few months of the school year.”

The two dorm heads wore looks of vague dread and confusion as they were pulled along into the connecting bedrooms. Yuu half expected to hear raised voices, but there was no sound at all once the doors closed.

Yuu squinted at the door, wondering how it worked. Perhaps there were silencing charms. She wondered if she could find an explanation in the library—

Her thoughts were cut off when a hand landed on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Trey had stopped behind her, a worried look on his face as he gazed at the door Riddle had gone through.

“Say, Yuu-chan, we got worried when you didn’t show, but Crewel said you all were having a discussion. Have fun?”

She gave a happy smile to the green-haired upperclassman as she answered:

“They wanted to know about my experiences at NRC, and about Riddle and Azul, actually—” She turned to Jade, who was standing off to the side, looking toward the door Azul and his grandmother had disappeared through. The amusement he felt was clear in the way his eyes curled and his shoulders shook.

“Jade-senpai,” she continued, and the eel-mer turned to her as she spoke, “could you help remind Azul-senpai to write home more? Apparently, he hasn’t been writing to his grandmother or mother much recently.”

Jade, already clearly amused, had trouble containing himself as he answered:

“Fufufu— I will be sure to remind him, Yuu-chan, although I think you may have already given him enough to think about.”

Yuu shifted slightly, conflicted.

“I made sure to mention that it was Leona-senpai who pushed Azul into Overblot. I thought about lying, but…” She frowned, and Trey let out a sigh, squeezing her shoulder. Yuu appreciated the gesture.

“I would’ve felt bad lying to Azul and Riddle-senpai’s families, and—” her mind flashed back to the piercing looks both women had given her as she spoke, “I think they would’ve been able to tell if I tried.”

Trey looked uncomfortable—worried, even—but eventually let out a sigh and sank onto the couch beside her.

“I’m just a bit worried. Even though Riddle says she’s been much better lately…” Yuu couldn’t imagine Riddle ever casually using the word better to describe his complicated relationship with his mother. “I guess I still worry. Especially when the two are alone—and she has a good reason to be unhappy with him this time.”

Yuu patted his shoulder.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine. What’s the worst that could happen anyway, with Professor Crewel here?” She cast a glance over to the Alchemy professor, who had seated himself elegantly across from them and now seemed more interested in fiddling with a lighter he’d pulled out from somewhere. He was giving it a wistful look.

Cater, who had been typing away on his phone off to the side, looked up at Trey’s words.

“You realize that you’ve just tempted fate, right, Trey?”

The green-haired senior grimaced at the statement, then nodded.

“Yeah. I’m a bit off my game today.”

Yuu took a closer look at the Heartslabyul student, noting the rings under his eyes and the slightly disheveled state of his hair.

“Are you alright, Trey-senpai?”

He blinked, giving her a mildly surprised look, before a slightly embarrassed smile spread across his face.

“Can’t get anything by you, can we, Yuu-chan?” The older student leaned back against the couch, pulling Yuu into a brief side hug.

“I’ve been a bit worried about Riddle with his mom here. And I’ll admit, despite the initial novelty—” Trey gave the common room a sweeping glance, “I haven’t much adapted to Hogwarts yet. When I tried to use the kitchen, those house-elves got quite flustered. And there’ve been a few things…” He trailed off.

As Yuu waited for him to finish, Cater leaned down.

“Trey-kun gets twitchy when he isn’t able to shove baked goods at people. It’s his love language,” he whispered in a teasing tone—only to yelp when Trey grabbed him by the collar and yanked him face-first onto the couch. The orange-haired boy tumbled forward with a surprised noise, his phone falling into Yuu’s lap as Trey sat down into his own seat.

“You know, Cater, I’ve been experimenting with some new sweets recently. Thank you for volunteering to taste-test them when we get back.” He was smiling, but even Yuu felt a shiver run down her spine. Apparently, the unflappable vice-dorm head of Heartslabyul didn’t take kindly to being teased.

Cater righted himself and plopped down on her other side with a grin, swiping his phone back and tucking it away before throwing an arm around Yuu.

“Trey is so mean to me. Protect me, Yuu-chan~”

Yuu yelped as the upperclassman ruffled her hair aggressively. Trey offered no help, simply watching the interaction with amusement.

Ace and Deuce, who had filed in a bit after the upperclassmen, shot Cater an irritated look at the close contact, but otherwise remained in their seats.

The assault on her hair stopped after a bit, and Yuu saw Trey looking far more relaxed, smiling at the byplay between her and Cater. Was it possible that Cater-senpai had realized his vice-dorm head was unsettled, and took steps to correct that?

She sent a questioning look toward Cater, who merely raised a finger to his lips with a secretive smile.

The Heartslabyul upperclassmen were so cool. Yuu beamed at Cater, who returned her smile with one of his own—but before she could ask him anything, Jade spoke up, seeming to have grown tired of observing.

“Directing student, please excuse me for asking, but are you aware of the Yule Ball?” His words were curious, but something about the glint in Jade’s eyes told Yuu that he was after more than a simple answer.

She shifted slightly, thinking back to what she knew from history classes—as well as the castle gossip about Harry Potter’s adventures. The Triwizard Tournament did feature a Yule Ball, didn’t it?

Yuu had never been particularly interested in it. Most of the excitement from that year came from the tasks themselves. The only reason she remembered there being a dance was that some older Ravenclaw girls had giggled about it once during her first year.

They’d talked about how they wished Hogwarts had a yearly dance independent of the tournament. Then they’d started giggling about love and other things, and Yuu had tuned them out in favor of a book on dragon species, suggested by Professor Hagrid.

Returning to the present, Yuu nodded to answer Jade’s question.

“The Yule Ball is traditionally part of each Triwizard Tournament, although—” she paused, glancing down at Grim, who seemed to be listening more intently than expected for this kind of conversation, “—this tournament is a bit less than traditional, with us being here.”

She finished and looked back up at Jade, who had grown a wide smile in the time she’d looked away.

“Why do you ask, Jade-senpai?” she said. The look on the Octavinelle vice-dorm head’s face implied something was greatly amusing him—either in the moment or something he expected to happen soon.

Jade leaned forward in a conspiratorial way, but didn’t bother lowering his voice. In fact, he seemed to be looking directly at something behind her when he spoke.

“Because, in my investigation of the castle, I’ve come across a bit of a rumor I’d like to confirm with you. A few female students from the Ravenclaw dorm were quite happy to share a few things with me.”

Jade’s smile widened slightly. Yuu heard movement from behind her, and Crewel glanced toward the door. A strange feeling of nerves crept in as Yuu tried to figure out what part of the Yule Ball could possibly provoke such an expression from Jade.

“Did you know that each Champion is required to take a date to the dance and to dance with them throughout the night? According to the kind individuals I heard this from, it’s quite romantic—truly.”

Yuu felt Cater and Trey stiffen beside her, and she could see Ace and Deuce do the same. From behind, she heard a faint gasp and a startled yelp that sounded like Epel.

Finally twisting around in her seat, Yuu saw that more of the NRC delegation had returned—specifically, Leona and Malleus.

They had entered just in time to hear Jade’s announcement—or more specifically, Jade had timed it just so the two would hear it. Malleus didn’t seem perturbed by the news; instead, he had a small smile on his face as he settled into the chair nearest the fireplace. Leona, on the other hand...

The scowl on the lion beastman’s face was truly ferocious as he took up an entire couch on his own. His eyes rapidly traveled from Jade, to Crewel, and then back to Yuu. He seemed to be debating something.

“What took you guys so long?” Grim asked from Yuu’s shoulder. Neither Malleus nor Leona looked interested in answering.

Crewel, still seated, responded to Grim’s question.

“They were finishing putting their names into the Goblet of Fire. Now—” he turned toward Jade—“Leech, explain what exactly you mean by that.”

If anything, Professor Crewel’s interrogation only seemed to make Jade happier. The eel-mer turned to the Alchemy professor with his usual calm expression.

“Just what I said, Professor Crewel. I’ve heard around the castle that there is a ball during which the Champions are required to have a date. No confirmation, of course, but I thought it relevant to share amongst our prospective Champions—given that, amongst the NRC student population, there is only one female student.”

From Crewel’s deepening scowl, Yuu guessed that he hadn’t been aware of the required part of Jade’s information. Still, she didn’t understand why this news was causing so much tension.

Yuu opened her mouth to ask, but was preempted by Grim raising a paw.

“What they’re saying is that one of these idiots is gonna have to ask you to the dance,” he said.

She blinked.

“Okay... and?”

Leona decided to answer this time, the look on his face reminiscent of when he and Yuu played chess.

“It means, herbivore, that you’re likely going to be asked out by someone. More than just the Champion will be expected to attend the dance because of the politics involved. And even if it’s not required, no one here wants to go alone—much less go with one of the locals.”

From the tone of his voice, Leona sounded irritated. His eyes were locked onto hers.

Yuu opened her mouth to ask more questions when there was a sudden commotion. The dorm room doors—specifically the ones Riddle and his mother had entered—swung open, and Regina marched out, followed closely by Riddle.

While the red-haired woman looked just as composed as before, Riddle, for the first time since Yuu had met him, looked ever so slightly shamefaced.

Quickly, the duo located Yuu, and with swift but unhurried steps, they made their way over. Regina stepped aside, and Riddle took her place. Before Yuu could ask what was happening, Riddle leaned forward into a deep bow directly in front of her.

There was a moment of silence. Cater and Trey were both frozen. Yuu stared, wide-eyed. Riddle’s mother, however, gave an approving nod and looked pleased.

“Ms. Yuu, I sincerely apologize for my actions against you during this school year. They were founded in anger, which was misdirected at you and others. I will work to make amends, and I hope you will accept this apology, as well as my future efforts.”

Seeing Riddle bow at all—to anyone —felt fundamentally wrong. Like nature itself had been reversed. Yuu didn’t like it.

“Riddle-senpai!” She rushed to stand, placing her hands on his shoulders and urging him upright.

“Please, Riddle-senpai, it’s fine.” Grim snorted from behind her, having hopped off onto the couch when she surged forward, but she ignored it.

Riddle looked up at her, as she had asked, and she was struck by how serious he looked.

“No, it is not. I’ve apologized before, but given how kind a friend you’ve been to me, it deserved to be repeated. What I did to you was ungentlemanly—but more than that, my actions toward you and the others were simply cruel.” As he said this, Riddle reached up and took Yuu’s hand, holding it gently in his own. Yuu felt slightly warm at the gesture.

Staring her directly in the eyes, Riddle continued.

“I would also like to make a request, if you’d be willing to hear me out.”

Yuu smiled at her good friend.

“Anything!” Anything to get him to stop bowing like that.

Riddle’s mouth wavered a bit—a small smile threatening to appear—before a stern look overtook his expression, and his grip on her hand tightened slightly.

“I told you, you’re never to promise ‘anything’ to anyone. Ever.”

Yuu nodded in assent, although privately she still thought it was right. She would do anything for her friends.

Riddle gave her a skeptical look before continuing along the previous thread.

“Very well. Please be aware you are well within your rights to say no. In fact—” he paused. “Please take some time to consider, and give me an answer after the second task.”

Behind him, his mother gave an approving nod, standing slightly back so as not to be directly involved in the conversation, but close enough that it was clear she was listening—and prepared to intervene if needed.

The way this conversation was going made Yuu nervous. What could Riddle be about to ask that was so monumental?

In the background, she noticed Malleus sit up slightly, looking more interested in their conversation than he usually would be in anything that didn’t directly involve his own interests.

“Yuu Crowley,” Riddle said—her new full name—“I would like to ask if you would give me the pleasure of going with me to the Yule Ball this year, as my date.”

Yuu blinked once.

Then again.

For some reason, she could feel her cheeks begin to burn, and her breathing picked up—but she couldn’t pinpoint why. Still, Riddle’s question…

Her and him, going to the Yule Ball…

The way he worded it implied he didn’t just mean as friends, but—

“What?!”

The noise came from Deuce, who had shot up from the couch, wide-eyed and locked onto his dorm head. The first-year took a stuttered step toward the two of them, looking as if he couldn’t decide whether to dash forward or collapse.

Malleus had also stood from his seat, wearing a strange expression of irritation—beyond mere inconvenience. The Draconic Fae looked bewildered, shocked, and angry—all directed squarely at Riddle.

Then the door to the dorm room Azul and his grandmother had gone into swung open, and Melene filled the frame. For the first time since Yuu had met the woman, a frown marked her face.

Azul stood just behind her, looking much the same. Yuu could see that calculating look in his eyes—the same one he wore when he was gauging the worth of Ramshackle and weighing how to take it before his Overblot.

Riddle was still waiting for an answer.

Yuu realized she was observing the room as a stalling tactic. Was this what being in shock felt like?

Turning back to Riddle, Yuu opened her mouth once to respond, but closed it again before anything came out.

Riddle seemed to take that as a valid answer anyway, nodding decisively.

“As I said, please do not answer now. It would mean a great deal to me if you gave this genuine thought and care, rather than saying yes just because I am your friend.”

With that, Riddle gave her a respectful nod before turning on his heel and fast-walking over to Professor Crewel, red creeping up from his collar.

The room was silent for a moment—everyone, including Yuu herself, stunned by Riddle’s question.

Yuu sat back down onto the couch, staring after Riddle, who was now engaged in a one-sided conversation with the Alchemy professor. Her face continued to feel warm, and she could vaguely hear Cater saying something to her, though she couldn’t make out the words.

Did Riddle mean he liked her?

Like liked her?

…

She sounded like one of Ace’s soap operas that he thought they didn’t know about.

Shaking her head, Yuu was brought back to reality by Deuce abruptly coming to a stop in front of her. She looked up at her blue-haired friend, who still appeared utterly shell-shocked by Riddle’s words.

“Y-Yuu,” he began, a resolute look breaking through his stupor. His eyes sharpened as he spoke.

“I—” Deuce looked off to the side toward Riddle, who seemed to sense his gaze and looked back.

“I can’t allow dormhead to take the lead uncontested! I apologize, Rosehearts-senpai.”

Turning back toward Yuu, Deuce stared her in the eyes. Despite the flush in his cheeks, his gaze didn’t waver.

“Yuu, please consider going with me to the Yule Ball instead of Rosehearts-senpai!”

The room fell silent at the declaration, and Yuu felt lightheaded. Deuce held her gaze, unwavering. Riddle looked shocked—but not angry. His mother looked both, but refrained from speaking.

Surprisingly, Riddle did not appear furious about the newfound competition. Instead, as he looked at Deuce, he offered the first-year a respectful nod—as if acknowledging his resolve. The exchange was nearly indecipherable to Yuu, who was still reeling.

There was a screech from the other side of the room, where Malleus and Leona had been seated.

The Diasomnia dorm head had risen abruptly, as had Leona. But while Leona only scanned the room with a sharp look, Malleus took a jerky step forward.

He navigated around the small tables, and—for once—his tall frame seemed clumsy as he made his way through the room toward her. He came up beside Deuce and looked as if he meant to say something, opening his mouth—but as everyone’s eyes turned to him, Malleus paused.

“Have a nice night, Child of Man. I believe I will be turning in early.” With that, he turned—and before he even took a step, the Fae vanished in a swirl of green sparks.

Leona snorted and muttered something that Yuu couldn’t quite make out, but he looked deeply entertained by whatever had just taken place.

Deuce, his part said, retired to his own room—followed by Riddle and then the others. Cater patted her on the back as she turned in herself, Grim already snoozing in her arms. But it was Trey who stopped her before the door closed, wearing a strange expression.

“Trey-senpai…?” she said, tilting her head.

The green-haired senior took a deep breath, giving her a searching look, then sighed with a soft smile.

“I had a whole speech planned… but knowing you, I don’t think it’s needed. You’d never dream of hurting Riddle or Deuce, huh?”

Despite the strangeness of the question, Yuu shook her head vigorously.

“That’s what I thought. Be careful with them, eh Yuu? They’ll respect whatever choice you make, but emotions are finicky, you know?” She didn’t, but Yuu nodded anyway. She’d never dream of hurting her friends.

Regarding their proposals, though…

She’d have to think about it. Even now, she felt slightly lightheaded and confused. Why would they want to go with her?

Closing the door, Yuu walked over to the bed, head full of questions without answers. She collapsed, using Grim as a pillow—and was out like a light.

In another part of the castle, a ritual was taking place. Old, Fae in origin, it was meant to contact others across great distances. It had been likened to a magical email, with the requirement that both sides possess a talisman allowing the connection.

Uniquely, in this instance, it allowed communication across more than just distance—indeed, with the portal open, it connected across worlds.

(Lilia had sighed and asked why he hadn’t just done a video call. Malleus hadn’t wanted to tell his dear friend that he had once again broken the minuscule device. At least it wasn’t an emotional outburst this time—he simply hadn’t expected it to be so fragile in his back pocket. When he sat down, there was a distinctive crack, and it hadn’t worked since.)

It took only a moment of waiting before the other side of the connection opened. A sphere of faintly green fog formed in the air, and soon, an image appeared—composed of light and dust—forming the face of Lilia Vanrouge.

“My prince, what a surprise to be contacted so soon. Tell me, how did the announcement to the dear child go?” His voice was lilting and gossipy, and from the picture, Malleus could tell the other Fae was lying on his belly across a couch. It did not look like one from the Diasomnia lounge, though…

Regardless, the question had the crown prince of Briar Valley shifting on his feet like a nervous schoolboy, and the sight nearly delighted Lilia enough to provoke laughter. Still, he refrained—it wouldn’t do to damage his confidence at this critical juncture.

“I… have not made any announcement as of yet. There have been complications.”

Lilia frowned, and Malleus understood why. They had planned for Malleus to make his intent toward the Child of Man clear that night, while Lilia worked to convince Dire Crowley to accept the courting proposal.

“What kind of complications?” he asked.

Malleus felt the frown that had plagued him all evening return.

“The competition is more challenging than I anticipated. My planned announcement was interrupted by Spade and Rosehearts. I didn’t feel it was a good time to add my own—I did not wish to overwhelm her.”

Reading between the lines, the truth was clear—at least to Lilia, who had known Malleus for many decades. The young prince had lost his nerve in the face of other suitors, despite all the bold talk beforehand. If this had happened to anyone else, it might have made Lilia grin wide with amusement—but now, it was impeding their goals and the prince’s happiness.

Still…

“Rosehearts we expected, but I didn’t think young Spade had it in him to confess directly after his dormhead. How bold,” Lilia said, unable to help himself. Little Riddle could be quite intimidating, after all.

Malleus looked embarrassed—an expression likely only Lilia could read—and glanced away from the call, studying the empty room around him.

“I agree. However, I am calling now to ask for assistance.”

Lilia grinned.

“Oh~, what for?” The smile on his face was full of fangs and mischief. Malleus knew he already understood the question.

“Despite my earlier dismissal, I would like to take you up on your offer of further coaching in the art of courting. My current understanding appears to be… lacking.” Unspoken was the fact that Malleus’s “current understanding” came entirely from Lilia—and from various Briar Valley romance novels.

Lilia gave a theatrical hum, rolling onto his back.

“Okay, but only because you asked so nicely. Although, I hope you don’t mind—I’ve enlisted some help in this endeavor. I am , after all, an old man—unfamiliar with the ways of the world. I would be remiss not to seek guidance from someone who might better relate to our, ah, target.”

Something tickled in the back of Malleus’s mind, and he realized where he recognized the furniture upon which Lilia lay. It was the same design his grandmother used in her sitting rooms. But why would—

Malleus leaned forward.

“Who did you enlist?” He wasn’t keen on discussing such matters with a stranger.

“Why, dear child, who else would be prepared to give you guidance in such a trying time?”

Instead of freezing, as Lilia had expected, Malleus instead relaxed.

Into the frame leaned a familiar figure—with long black hair, iridescent green eyes, and a noble face of high cheekbones and fair skin, matured ever so slightly and aging with elegance.

Malleus smiled.

“Hello, Grandmother. Are you here to provide advice?”

The ruler of Briar Valley nodded.

“Family helps family—and in this matter, I believe my insight may be more… attuned than our dear Lilia’s.”

Feeling much more confident now that he had the assistance—and tacit approval—of his grandmother, Malleus allowed a small smile.

“I eagerly await any advice you have.”

His grandmother didn’t smile—she rarely did—but she sat down on the couch beside Lilia.

“I can only assist with what I understand, so please, dear child, tell me everything.”

As his ruler commanded, Malleus obeyed. He started from when he had first laid eyes on his Child of Man, speaking poetry of stars, of stone, and of gargoyles. The entire time, his grandmother and guardian listened.

They would be there the entire night.

The group that had come to volunteer for the tournament had been given the option to either stay the night or head back to Twisted Wonderland until the drawing the next day. The majority had chosen to stay—frankly, to keep an eye on the Herbivore—and Leona would’ve done the same.

Had it not been for those stupid, stupid Heartslabyul duo deciding now was the time to declare their intentions.

The little brat still wasn’t emotionally educated enough to handle a second grader, much less deal with two upstarts deciding this was the perfect moment to try and court the Herbivore.

To be completely honest, Leona hadn’t thought he’d have to deal with anything like this until at least second year. He’d been aware of the looks she occasionally received, from those in the know about her secret. Oftentimes, the ones giving those looks didn’t even realize it themselves.

But Leona saw. It was the job of royalty to be observant, even as a second prince. Proposals, faux pas, and more were all part of the political minefield Leona had to occasionally navigate back home.

If there was one part of being the second prince he didn’t loathe, it was that he wasn’t as subject to the whims of the press and paparazzi as his brother.

The childish crushes certain individuals harbored had been obvious to him—and to a few others. He simply hadn’t thought any of them would act on it.

Rosehearts was still harboring guilt from his Overblot—frankly, so was Leona. And that Spade first-year didn’t seem like he’d ever work up the nerve to confess, obviously still caught up in that childish mental block of realizing he was friends with a girl .

But even then, both of them—Spade’s bravery no doubt provoked by his dorm leader’s own confession—had worked up the gall to confess to the Herbivore. Not just in front of Leona, but in front of that damned lizard . The look on the Diasomnia dorm head’s face when he tried—and obviously lost the nerve—to confess was nearly priceless.

If only it didn’t come at the cost of messing with Leona’s own plans.

And if only they hadn’t been confessing to the Herbivore .

A familiar, protective anger welled up in Leona’s chest—one he could only ever remember feeling when Cheka had scrambled out of his arms in favor of tackling his brother, of all people…

Or that one time the castle had gone on lockdown for an intruder, and a younger Leona had been holed up in his room with an infant Cheka while someone pounded on the door.

Whether she—or anyone else—knew it or not, the Herbivore was one of Leona’s . Part of Leona’s pride. Just like Ruggie, Jack, Cheka… maybe even those idiots in Savanaclaw who stuck to him like burrs.

That meant she was family . More than that stupid Crow, too—Leona had seen her first.

If he wanted to be her family, he should’ve moved faster. Whatever contract they had now was probably superseded by Leona’s own efforts. Striking first was the most basic rule of the jungle.

Leona had already begun taking steps to officiate, before Crowley had made his airy little offer—after Leona had snuck through before the rest.

As bitter as his relationship with Falena might be, they were still family. And Falena understood the meaning of pride —both the concept and the unit. So, he did what family does and assisted Leona in securing his.

As far as the Sunset Savanna was concerned, the Herbivore had always been a member of a branch family. Recently, connections had been found to a—until-now thought extinct—bloodline, the records too vague to confirm anything beyond her general relation.

But the result was clear: the Herbivore had always existed in Twisted Wonderland, and she was related to the royal family. That spelled out certain privileges, such as guaranteed full citizenship and a place of residence at the castle, should she wish it.

It also meant that if those little brats wanted to try courting the Herbivore, they’d need to go through the Sunset Savanna royal family—specifically, through her guardian.

Which just so happened to be Leona.

The Herbivore deciding to spend a bit longer in that stupid castle complicated things, though. He couldn’t just ship her off to the homeland as easily as he could if they were still at NRC. Nor could he exercise the same pressure to prevent these kinds of advances as readily as he wanted.

That didn’t mean Leona was powerless.

It just meant he had to make a phone call—one that couldn’t be overheard by anyone .

Especially not that damned lizard .

When the Savanaclaw dorm head finally stepped back into his dorm, it was late. Only Ruggie was still up, lying flat on a couch in the lounge, phone held above his head with straight arms. He seemed to be clicking through some sort of online store.

Leona knew that Ruggie, as embarrassed as he was about it, had taken up knitting from his grandmother, and occasionally sold small items online under a pseudonym.

When he saw Leona, the hyena beastman rolled off the couch and twisted just so, rising into a lazy slouch in one smooth motion. He tucked his phone away as he did, sharp eyes catching Leona in a glance.

“How did it go?” he asked, his usual smile curling his lips. His posture was casual, but stiff—and Leona knew the other was even less happy than he was with the Herbivore not returning immediately. It had taken not insignificant promises to keep the scavenger from trying to grab Yuu and disappear.

He’d be even more unhappy with the news of what had happened. If Leona was protective of Yuu, Ruggie could be considered a helicopter parent . It was frankly kind of gross—just how much the other doted on the girl while pretending he didn’t.

“Not great. I’ll tell you the new plan—and what happened—tomorrow morning. For now, make sure everyone’s asleep and activate the barrier spells on the area. I need to make a phone call… and it can’t be overheard.”

The other frowned at Leona, and for a second, he thought the hyena was going to push. If there was anything Ruggie Bucchi would go against Leona for, it would either be money—or things involving Yuu. Still, it was a sign of how much he trusted Leona that, after a minute of squinting at him, the other nodded and trotted off to secure the dorm. It was what he expected. It made his heart swell.

Leona watched him disappear before turning and taking the winding staircase up to his own room. As he passed the Herbivore’s door—still open, left just as she had—it gave him pause, but he didn’t linger. He sat down at the desk beside his bed.

Careful not to jostle the chess set laid out in some puzzle or another, Leona pulled out his phone and jabbed in a number only he and a few others knew. It only rang once before it was picked up.

“Leona?” a bright-sounding voice answered. He sounded far too awake for the hour, but thanks to time zones, it was still mid-afternoon over there. “How’d everything go? Are you two at the airport yet? Cheka’s been asking after you.”

In the background, Leona could vaguely hear the laughter of the aforementioned child. The weariness in Falena’s voice spoke of the kind of exhaustion that only came from chasing around an energetic cub who only ever calmed down for his mother or uncle.

Leona let out a sigh through his nose. He needed help—but that didn’t mean he had to make small talk.

“Falena. There’ve been some complications.”

There was a brief pause before his brother's tone shifted, all lightness gone.

“What kind of complications? Is my new sibling hurt?”

Leona shifted slightly, hand clenching around the White King piece that sat on his desk. The Herbivore wasn’t Falena’s anything—but for now, Leona had little choice but to let him say it.

“The kind that requires more resources. She has suitors.”
He spat the word like a curse, and he knew Falena understood exactly how he felt about it. Those feelings were mirrored back in his brother’s response. They both had poor experiences with this sort of thing.

“What do you need? You’ve probably already got a plan, knowing you, otōto .”

No hesitation. No questions. Just an offer of resources from someone who had nearly everything at his fingertips. It was almost enough to make Leona appreciate him.

“First thing—how do you feel about some more aggressive diplomatic outreach…” he began, the sound of a pen scratching paper audible as Falena took notes.

The two would talk late into the night.

And the next morning, Ruggie’s panicked fury about the recent events on the other side of the mirror was only averted when Leona explained the new plan. By the end of it, neither of them was smiling—but there was a vicious sense of victory in their eyes as they got to work.

Azul’s conversation with his grandmother hadn’t been unpleasant in the slightest—rather, it had served as a warning.

The world under the sea had different standards for gender. While the larger cities largely reflected the gender norms of the surface, the more rural reaches of the sea had a decidedly different perspective.

It didn’t matter what size or shape you were, where you came from, or what you’d done. The only thing that mattered was the strength to survive. Man, woman, or anything in between—anyone could thrive in the deepest parts of the sea. It was simply a matter of how hard you were willing to fight for it.

Some called it true equality. Others, functional anarchy. For Azul’s grandmother, it was simply home .

So Melene was neither shocked nor offended by Azul’s actions—toward his peers or toward the directing student. She’d done worse, by far.

If anything, what made her most unhappy was that Azul had lost—and put himself in undue danger. The incident only made her approve of Yuu all the more.

What did scare Azul, however, was that his grandmother mentioned—without hesitation—that she would be telling his mother everything she had learned.

Apparently, his mother had become quite interested in “his little lady friend.”

Azul hadn’t known the two women were still in contact. Evidently, his mother had heard about Yuu from Melene and had not been pleased that it had taken her mother-in-law learning about the girl for the news to reach her.

Additionally, Azul was in hot water for running off to another world without informing either her or his stepfather.

The octopus-mer ignored the faint shiver that ran down his spine at that thought.

What had caused him the most immediate distress, however, was the scene he came upon after leaving the room.

Both Riddle and Spade had declared their intention to court the directing student.

For some reason, that provoked an ugly feeling in Azul’s chest.

Imagining the directing student dating anyone was hard enough—mainly because Jade and Floyd might just drag any would-be suitor down into the ocean, never to be seen again.

It was… worrying how protective they were of their symbiote.

But beyond that, the thought didn’t sit right with him for other reasons. It wasn’t just concern for what the Eel twins might do.

It was the idea that they —those Heartslabyul students—didn’t know her. Not like he did.

Not even Draconia was as close to her as Azul was.

None of them had the contract .

None of them had helped her as much as he had.

Sitting on the bed in his small dorm room—elegantly decorated, if not as grand as his quarters in Octavinelle—Azul had to relax his fingers from their white-knuckled grip around his pen.

He couldn’t afford to get worked up now.

Volunteering for the tournament—another calculated decision, one his grandmother said his mother also disapproved of—had been part of a careful plan.

A plan to ensure that Yuu came back to Twisted Wonderland.

Where she belonged.

Doing so would be doubly easy if he could stay here full-time—to prevent her from falling for any schemes that the more unsavory individuals within this school would undoubtedly come up with.

Yuu was the stupidly good-natured type who would fall for the most basic trick. He couldn’t afford to let her get caught up in anything here, to make obligations that would tie her to this place.

Not when she already had a deal with him.

Besides, who else but him could serve as an exemplary champion of Night Raven College? A student with near-perfect grades, strong magical abilities, and a winning personality to match. Winning a tournament in another dimension would go a long way toward raising Azul’s prestige and putting his name on the world stage.

The benefit of spending additional time with the directing student was a mere bonus.

His phone began vibrating, as Azul had expected. His grandmother had told him to anticipate the call, after all.

Reaching over—with only a slight hint of trepidation—Azul picked up the phone, his best smile plastered on despite the fact that the one on the other end couldn’t see it.

“Hello, Mother. How are you?”

Hundreds of miles away, nestled just on the outskirts of Pisa, Italy, there stood a beautiful villa. The architecture spoke of old money. The building itself looked like an ancient home that had been lovingly and meticulously maintained over the centuries. At first glance, the only magical thing about the place seemed to be its stunning location and lack of human activity.

But for those who looked a little closer, certain signs would become clear: the gardens held flowers that did not match any known species; the reflective surfaces—windows, mirrors, gilded picture frames—flickered with signs of things that did not exist in the physical world. And should a particularly determined non-magical person—or an amateur ghost hunter—enter with a thermal imaging camera, they would find the figures of the building’s true residents floating silently through the halls.

This was the primary residence of a powerful couple—rulers of their own respective magical lineages. They had ruled for centuries… and would likely continue to do so for centuries more.

Only visible to those with the gift of Sight, they now sat together, enjoying a quiet dinner alongside a few select family members. A long dining table stretched out before them, set with various delights and traditional Italian fare.

It was a celebration—not loud or raucous (that would come later)—but rather a quiet, private acknowledgment of survival.

For the longest time, their kind—the pure-blooded Fae—had been dwindling with each generation. True bloodlines had become rare, as many vanished, were slain due to ancient grudges, or married into mortal bloodlines in a desperate effort to preserve what they could.

But now, with the news that had arrived from the British wizarding world—confirmed by their internal agents—there was hope once again. The Fae would not die out.

And as Queen Titania and King Oberon toasted their continued existence, joined by the very few pure-blooded Fae who remained, they spoke of the days to come.

Contact had yet to be made—but plans were already in motion.

What would they do? Would they stay, or would they leave? What concessions were they willing to offer? What could they afford to take?

They would be ready. The few who remained did so not only because of their longevity, but also due to their guile, power, and cunning.

Understanding how little leverage they currently had over these outsiders—whose assistance they needed—was only the first step.

The second was learning how to gain that leverage.

There was a girl. A child. She had arrived first and clearly held value to the outworlders. She had become the surrogate of the foreign fae who arrived afterward.

There was potential there—for a deal to be made. A connection to forge. A weakness to exploit.

Which of those it would be had yet to be decided, though ideas were already being whispered over the wine.

None would be acted on just yet. Tonight was a time for remembrance and quiet celebration.

Their agents were already at work. The children would be notified soon.

The game would begin—
But not tonight.

Tonight, Barty Crouch Junior made his move.

The situation had changed immensely, but ultimately, their plans—at least according to the Dark Lord—had been wholly unaffected by this change.

The news of the Fae returning did not, after all, revive their Lord on the spot. He still needed a new body, and that body would still need a way past the ritual that brat’s mother had placed on him. Thus, the boy still needed to be in the tournament.

Unfortunately, his original plan had been thwarted.

Barty had wanted to spell the Goblet at least a week before the champions were chosen, so he’d have time to maintain the enchantment. But then that girl had arrived, followed by the absurdly named Night Raven Academy , and suddenly Albus Dumbledore was constantly asking his dear friend Alastor Moody to do one thing or another.

Guard this. Patrol that. Attend this meeting.

For Merlin’s sake, if Barty didn’t know any better, he’d think the two were dating, with how much time Dumbledore spent around him.

He’d only gotten a free moment the night before. He had attempted to charm the artifact, only for the damned Goblet to blast him nearly clear across the room. He had anticipated that it might reject the enchantment—ancient artifacts could be finicky, sometimes even gaining sentience over the centuries—but the spells his Lord had given him were implied to be just as old.

Not wishing to be discovered in case he triggered some ward or another, he’d retreated for the night. That meant there was even more pressure on him to succeed tonight. Thankfully, Plan B—while not locking the Potter boy into a magical contract—was considerably easier to execute. Rather than enchanting the Goblet itself, he’d simply enchant the air above it.

If everyone believed the Goblet had chosen Potter as a champion, then it didn’t matter whether it had truly done so. There wasn’t a safe way to verify the selection without risking the boy’s magic. He would just enchant a piece of parchment to appear after the real champions had been chosen, with a little magical flare from the Goblet to really sell it.

Crouch reached into his pocket and carefully withdrew the piece of parchment that had been prepared for this purpose. In the event he had been able to enchant the Goblet, he’d wanted a piece actually signed by the Potter boy—which was why the parchment he held had been torn from one of the lad’s essays, right where he had signed his name.

The Great Hall was quiet as the disguised Death Eater entered. The massive doors—spelled to open only for staff—parted with no resistance.

Crouch was still shocked by how easy it had been to replace one of the Headmaster’s closest confidants. The fearsome Auror’s reputation had worked against him. Apparently, no one had considered that Mad-Eye Moody could be overcome and replaced so efficiently. Or perhaps they thought no one would be bold enough to try.

Carefully, maintaining a safe distance this time, Crouch waved his wand around the parchment, lifting it into the air. It floated for a moment, bobbing slightly, before he gave a precise flick of his wand and sent it flying.

Weaving through the air, it approached the Goblet, stopping just short of a meter away before abruptly circling around and affixing itself to the back of the artifact. Another muttered spell caused the parchment to camouflage, blending perfectly with the metal of the Goblet.

Crouch watched with bated breath. There was still a chance the Goblet had protections that could counter even this subtle deception. But he was betting on Dumbledore not having anticipated such a simple trick.

When nothing happened, he let out a quiet sigh of relief and raised his wand one final time. A small burst of flame would be triggered tomorrow, when the name was to appear. He’d activate it from the Head Table himself.

With no further reaction from the Goblet, and nothing more to be done, Barty Crouch Junior—disguised as Alastor Moody—turned toward the Great Hall doors.

It wasn’t the magical contract they’d originally hoped for, which would weaken the ritual to revive his Lord. That could be offset slightly with different reagents and additional preparations, but it was still a blow. The Dark Lord would not be pleased. Still, when he’d been given the mission, they had planned for the possibility of setbacks. That was why they had second—and even third—contingencies in place.

At least they had managed to get Potter into the tournament. The boy’s protection needed to go if their plans were to succeed, and this ritual remained the quickest way to do it.

As Crouch exited the hall, he took another swig of Polyjuice Potion, idly wondering whether the taste could be improved by mixing it with pumpkin juice.

Silence returned to the Great Hall.

Then, a figure stepped out from behind one of the massive tapestries hanging along the wall.

Tall. Wearing a distinctive uniform. A single yellow eye catching the light, even in the darkness.

Jade Leech looked quite pleased as he reviewed the magical video he had just recorded—footage of a Hogwarts professor rigging the tournament.

He had only come to inspect the Goblet, curious about the artifact’s magical composition after a stroll through the Hogwarts greenhouses. Imagine his surprise when the doors to the Hall opened and one of the staff slipped inside.

Ensuring the video was saved, Jade approached the Goblet, still blazing with its telltale green fire. Reaching forward, he felt carefully around the artifact’s surface until his fingers brushed something slightly different in texture.

With a small smile, he pinched the edge of the false parchment. It resisted for a moment—just a moment—before the Goblet flared faintly and the paper dropped away, losing its enchanted coloring.

In his hand now lay a plain, unremarkable piece of parchment, signed by Harry Potter.

Jade’s smile widened.

This was going to be very interesting.

Even with the video, there was always the possibility that the wizards here wouldn’t trust it—new technology often bred skepticism in conservative circles like these. But with a bit of physical evidence, his words might carry a bit more weight.

A professor, potentially compromised. Azul would be thrilled .

Pausing just long enough to ensure the other man had truly left, Jade slipped quietly out of the Great Hall. This could prove incredibly useful to Azul.

But first, he had to make sure he didn’t get caught on the way back.

This entire tournament was, quite frankly, more annoying than interesting to Hermione Granger.

Many of her dormmates were all giggly and ridiculous about the oh-so-handsome boys, and the attitude some of the Hogwarts boys had adopted since the other schools arrived was just as irritating.

She would much rather have a single, regular, uneventful school year—one where nothing happened, no one got hurt, and Harry wasn't dragged into some life-threatening event or another. Just one year where she was free to focus on her classes, read, and enjoy magic, just like she'd been hoping for when Professor McGonagall had first turned her coffee table into a pig.

Instead, they had an archaic excuse for veiled bloodsport taking place, and the school was twice as crowded as usual. She just knew Harry was going to get involved somehow. He always did.

Her natural dislike of the tournament didn’t mean she wasn’t anxious about the choosing of the champions—but not because she was excited. Quite the opposite.

If there was any way Harry could get into trouble this year, it would be someone manipulating the Goblet to choose him as an underage champion. She knew he wouldn’t put his name in, but that didn’t mean he was safe. Hermione wanted to believe the professors had placed sufficient protections around the Goblet so it couldn’t be tampered with.

But if there was anything she had learned at Hogwarts, it was that sometimes the figures in authority were less competent than they appeared.

So that night, as dinner ended and they waited for Dumbledore to begin his announcements, Hermione would admit—at least to herself—that she was nervous. Her leg bounced under the table, and unlike most nights, she had kept her current book in her bag, giving the headmaster her full attention.

Ron was still groaning to Harry about not being able to put their names in, shoveling food into his mouth all the while. Harry half-listened as he nibbled on a treacle tart, his eyes locked on the head table. She figured it was for the same reason she was watching—worry.

Harry, despite what most people thought, could be surprisingly perceptive. She really did wish he’d put more time into studying and research with her—he had a knack for pattern recognition and could be diligent when it came to precise instructions.

Honestly, if it wasn’t Snape teaching Potions, she suspected he might like it more than Transfiguration.

He must have noticed her gaze, because his eyes flicked toward her and he gave a small smile.

“What’s on your mind, ’Mione?” he asked, setting down his fork.

She shrugged. Hermione didn’t want to voice her suspicions in the middle of the Great Hall, so she deflected.

“Just some theories I’ve been working on. Night Raven Academy has made some waves in the magical community, and Professor Flitwick passed along a few papers discussing the new branches it may have opened.”

Ron, who had looked up when they began speaking, tuned back out as soon as she mentioned papers , his scowl deepening at the mention of the new school. Though Harry tried to seem interested, she could tell by the way his eyes flicked to the side that he really wasn’t.

He hummed in response, glancing over at the Hufflepuff table, where the aforementioned students were seated.

“What do you think of Night Raven Academy, then?” he asked.

Hermione brightened.

“It’s all so fascinating, isn’t it?” she began. “Remember how excited you were when you found out about magic, Harry? Well, imagine discovering it again . A whole new system of magic, developed entirely independently from ours. We don’t even know if it’s the same energy or something completely new.”

Harry nodded along, his eyes going distant—nostalgic, even—as he likely remembered when Professor McGonagall first appeared to explain magic to him. She snorted slightly at the mental image. She wondered how his relatives had reacted to that .

“If you ask me, they’re a bunch of arses,” Ron muttered, his voice muffled by food. He swallowed before continuing. “They walk about like they own the place. I swear, that short redhead thinks he’s the Queen or something. Plus, they’re friends with the bloody snakes—so they’re probably blood purists too.”

The disdain in his voice was clear, and he looked toward Hermione for confirmation. At the end, he turned to Harry for support.

Harry shrugged, looking vaguely uncomfortable at being put on the spot. “They’re definitely something, alright,” he said, voice carefully neutral.

Ron wrinkled his nose at the vague response, but before the conversation could continue, a sound rang through the hall: a piece of silverware tapped against a glass—several times louder than should have been possible.

The Hall quickly quieted as all attention turned to Professor Dumbledore, who now stood at the podium, wand in hand, his blue eyes twinkling as he surveyed the room. Only when silence had fully fallen did he begin to speak.

“Good evening, everyone. Before we begin the choosing of the champions—as I’m sure you’re all eagerly awaiting—I’d like to say a few words.” Dumbledore spoke calmly, but through a mix of magic and natural oration, his voice echoed strong and clear across the vast room.

“The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. A champion was selected to represent each school, and these three champions competed in three magical tasks.” He gestured to Madame Maxime and Headmaster Karkaroff, who each stood in turn.

“The schools took turns hosting the tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of fostering ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities. This year, however, we will break with tradition.”

Everyone already knew what he was referring to, but still, many held their breath as they waited for his next words.

“We are joined here today by the venerable school of Night Raven Academy, who will, for the first time in history, be providing us with a fourth champion to participate in the first-ever Quad-Wizard Tournament.”

Frankly, Hermione thought it didn’t roll off the tongue quite as well as Triwizard Tournament , but she refrained from mentioning that.

As Dumbledore spoke, a fourth figure—Dire Crowley, who had been missing from the school for the past few days and had only reappeared at the Head Table that evening—stood and gave a sweeping bow.

“Please, before we begin with the choosing of the champions, let us take a moment to appreciate the fact that today, we welcome into our midst new friends. I hope you all will do your very best to make them feel welcome in the coming days and show the best that Hogwarts has to offer. A round of applause for our three visiting schools, please!”

At his words, the Hall burst into applause. Hermione joined in—and promptly kicked Ron under the table until he did the same.

Dumbledore clapped warmly, his smile wide, as did the other heads of schools. Among them, however, the only one truly smiling was Dire Crowley, still wearing his now-trademark mask.

When the applause died down, Dumbledore continued.

“Now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for. The champions will now be chosen.”

With a wave of his hand, the braziers in the Hall dimmed, leaving the flickering blue flames of the Goblet of Fire as the main light source.

Dumbledore approached it slowly and laid his hands upon the artifact. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, suddenly, the flames turned a vibrant red, and from the fire, a single slip of parchment shot out.

It floated delicately for a second before, with a flick of his wand, Dumbledore caught it. He unfolded the slightly charred paper and read aloud:

“And the Durmstrang Champion is… Viktor Krum!”

A roar of applause came from the Durmstrang students seated with the Slytherins, and Hermione recognized the name immediately. Viktor Krum—famous Quidditch player—strode confidently up to the front, shook hands briefly with Dumbledore, and was then led off into a side room.

Another flare of red flame followed, and another piece of parchment flew free, this one flying much lower. Dumbledore didn’t even need to use magic to catch it.

“Next, the Beauxbatons Champion shall be… Fleur Delacour!”

This announcement prompted a double wave of applause. The Beauxbatons students clapped politely and with restraint; the male population of Hogwarts, however, applauded far more enthusiastically.

Much to Hermione’s dismay and disgust, Ron was among them.

Fleur Delacour, strikingly beautiful and graceful, ignored the attention. She swiftly walked to the headmaster, gave a polite nod and handshake, and exited through the same door Krum had used.

The next piece of parchment came crumpled into a ball. It nearly hit the ground before Dumbledore caught it, chuckling softly as he smoothed it out.

“The Hogwarts Champion shall be… Cedric Diggory!”

Hermione stood as well, clapping enthusiastically. She didn’t know Cedric well, but his reputation as a model prefect preceded him.

Cedric approached the front of the Hall, receiving back pats and hugs along the way. When he reached Dumbledore, the older wizard gave him a proud pat on the shoulder.

The Goblet, now burning higher than before, let out a sudden gout of green fire—and this time, a folded piece of paper flew out.

Hermione blinked, surprised to see not parchment, but actual paper—stark white and lined. She could make out the neat folds even from where she sat. That, too, was something she found herself envious of. The NRC students still used pens and proper paper. She dearly missed both.

The paper, folded with precision, sliced through the air and was deftly caught between Dumbledore’s fingers. He unfolded it, glanced at the name, and looked back up at the crowd.

“Finally, the Champion for Night Raven Academy shall be… Riddle Rosehearts!”

A few muffled curses rang out, mostly drowned by polite applause. Hermione watched as a red-haired boy, dressed in bright white rather than Hogwarts black, confidently marched up to the headmaster. His outfit stood out strikingly against the darker robes around him.

He wore a serious expression as he gave Dumbledore a curt nod and a handshake before being led off by a man she assumed was another NRC staff member—easily identified by his long black-and-white fur coat.

Waiting for the noise to die down once again, Dumbledore returned to the podium.

“Four champions have been chosen—each capable and remarkable in their own right. However, by the end of this, only one may emerge triumphant, bringing glory to both themselves and their school. Only one may lift the Quad-Wizard Tournament trophy.”

With a flick of his wand, Dumbledore unveiled a glittering trophy made of shimmering blue crystal and gold. Engraved on its surface was a single word:

Champion.

“We must remember, however, that this event is meant to build inter-school relations. Any and all cheating, sabotage, or unsavory behavior will be examined with the utmost scrutiny—and may result in that school’s disqualification.”

His tone was solemn, and the sharp look he gave the crowd sent shivers down many spines.

“With that said, you will be allowed some time to discuss this new information amongst yourselves while the champions are given an orientation. Later in the week, the Weighing of the Wands will take place. I wish each of our champions good luck—and to all of you, a good night.”

Dumbledore turned from the podium—and immediately, the Great Hall erupted into deafening chatter.

Hermione sat back down, even as Harry and Ron were drawn into a conversation about something with Oliver Wood. She couldn’t help but feel they’d somehow dodged a bullet. She had been so sure that Harry would somehow get dragged into the tournament. For once, she was happy to be wrong.

Now that she wasn’t stressing about that, she remembered another thing she’d intended to do today. Hagrid had caught up with her earlier and passed along a message. He’d offered to set up a meeting himself, but she figured she could just catch the other girl tonight.

Standing from the table, Hermione grabbed her book bag and began weaving her way between students—both from Hogwarts and the visiting schools. Eventually, she made her way to the Hufflepuff table.

It only took her a moment to locate the person she was looking for. The girl in question was surrounded by some of the most eye-catching individuals in the Hall, after all.

The group seemed caught up in conversation. The tall, green-haired man (she desperately wanted to know if that was natural) was saying something, and the girl Hermione had come for seemed quite invested, if the way she stared up at him was anything to go by. She was wearing the same uniform as some of the other NRC students.

Hermione wondered if each dorm there had its own specific uniform.

Spotting a seat across from the girl—next to a shorter, brown-haired boy who she figured was either a first- or second-year—that had just been vacated, Hermione took her chance.

Sliding past another student and nearly getting knocked over by a pair of Durmstrang girls, she managed to reach the spot and sit down, resting her book bag on her lap.

Immediately, the entire group turned to look at her. Hermione put on her best smile.

“Sorry to interrupt. Hagrid said you wanted to talk to me about something. I’m Hermione Granger, by the way. We have a few classes together, but I don’t believe we’ve ever properly met.” She extended a hand across the table.

The other girl’s eyes (those were very blue) widened, but after a moment, a bright smile appeared on her face. She reached out to shake Hermione’s hand.

“I’m Yuu Crowley. It’s nice to properly meet you! I just wanted to apologize for knocking into you earlier. I knocked you down but never got a chance to say sorry.”

Hermione’s eyes widened. She remembered the incident, but she hadn’t even been angry—just faintly annoyed. From the look on Yuu’s face, though, it seemed the guilt had been eating at her.

That was touching, but completely unnecessary. Hermione smiled again.

“Don’t worry about it, really. I’ve had my fair share of tumbles and run-ins with others too.” She tried to convey sincerity. She didn’t want anyone feeling bad over something so minor.

Yuu gave a grateful nod.
“Please let me know if there’s anything I can do anyway.”

Well, if she insisted...

“In that case, would you be available to discuss some of the differences between the two magic systems—Hogwarts and Night Raven Academy? I’ve been reading everything I could find, but some firsthand information would be lovely.”

Yuu smiled.

“Absolutely, I—”

She was cut off by a loud whoop and cheering from farther down the table, as the Hufflepuffs began chanting “Cedric!” over and over again. Yuu turned to glance toward the noise, then looked back at Hermione.

“Would you like to go somewhere else to discuss?” she asked.

“Library?” offered Hermione.

Her smile was mirrored by the other girl, who nodded. She and a few members of the Night Raven Academy group stood, and as one, they began making their way toward the entrance of the Great Hall.

Hermione had been nervous at first, but if the worst thing that happened this year was other students putting themselves at risk in a silly tournament—while her friends stayed safe—and she got exclusive firsthand information on groundbreaking magic...

Well, then this was shaping up to be a pretty good year indeed.