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He was walking toward the gymnasium, Professor Trein wanted someone to find Jamil, to inform him he needed to get the classwork printouts for the study hall of today.
He happily volunteered to the task of tracking him down, and after a bit of asking around, he was informed that the Scarabia duo was somewhere around it.
He didn't exactly know why he took each opportunity to see Jamil, but from the look on the twins when he mused about it out loud, they probably knew but refused to say.
There was something, that attracted him, perhaps it was the multiple layers of masks covering his face he wanted to throw away to see the raw Jamil underneath. Or the hard earned skills he hid as if it was a secret only he could know. It was always fascinating how someone so talented wanted to be so unseen.
It was made clear after winter break why, but it did not stop the want to prod and untangle the secrets around his person.
Jamil Viper was his little personal project he took on when he had free time, against Jamil's wishes.
He hated him with a passion, for good reasons allegedly, but he was never afraid to show his sharp fangs at him, warning him of the bite if he didn't back off.
He wanted to feel the bite
Such a fascinating human was wasted as a servant, he hoped one day the world will see the true Jamil he saw glimpses of.
He was snapped out of his fantasies by voices in the gymnasium. He stayed hidden behind the door, listening easily with his non-human hearing.
“Hey, Kalim, Hey, Jamil. Lemme guess : you guys are auditioning for the VDC too ?” He recognized the voice as Ace, one of the Heartslabyul first year.
His intel was right, he was there.
“Yup ! It's a big festival, and there's no better occasion to dance !” Kalim answered “Jamil and I happen to both be good at that AND singing. Right, Jamil ?”
“I'd rather not draw that much attention to myself, personally” He heard him sigh.
“I saw you guys from behind, and goodness, you've all got two left feet !” Kalim was as blunt as usual “It was like watching an elephant panic and rear back on its hind legs” He continued with a laugh, uncaring of the dejected expression he certainly caused “You can hardly dance, and you'll have to do that while simultaneously singing at the audition. Maybe you're in above your head here”
“Rgh…The fact that you said all of that with complete sincerity makes it even worse” It seems Deuce was there too.
Ace interjected “Hey, come to think of it, Jamil, you taught Floyd some dance moves at Basketball Club practice once”
Did he now ?
He could remember a day where Floyd started his Mostro Lounge shift by spinning on his head as if he was a whirlpool. While spinning he knocked and broke one of his new tea sets he bought days before.
He spent the next thirty minutes berating him on the cost, on the behavior one from his establishment was supposed to have, good manners and appropriate places to to break his own neck outside of work hours.
It clearly went from one ear and got out from the other but it helped him calm down by venting. Then Jade started quoting his words each time he passed by and graded them from one to ten, by how imaginative they were.
They made it a game to play with his nerves, unfortunately.
“Great idea ! You can't go wrong with Jamil as your coach” He missed a part of the conversation in his musings but it was easy to guess. The firsties asked Jamil to tutor them, and Kalim agreed to it before he could.
“He asked me, not you !” Some things may never change between them.
“Anyway, teaching makes good practice for me, so…sure” He knows dancing is not only a hobby for Jamil, but a passion he could never pursue “For beginners, we should start with isolation. Spread your feet as wide as your shoulders”
He was used to Jamil tutoring him, Coach Vargas assigned him to help him in his flying. Not that it really helped in the long term…
The only good thing Jamil ever said about his flying skill is that he never gave up, no matter how many times he failed.
And something about “eloping” with the ground with how many times he kissed it, which he usually ignored.
Once he answered “What ? Jealous ?” With a smirk, the next second he was kissing the ground once again from the push Jamil gave him. He never answered after that.
He heard the bell announcing the afternoon classes, making the students stop dancing behind the door.
He heard Jamil gives encouragement and advice on how to progress in their conundrum.
Kalim is once again making commitments on Jamil's behalf, to show his singing skills, he wouldn't mind seeing it himself.
The firsties and Kalim went to fetch mops to clean the floor after their exercises. It was the moment to make his presence known.
He knocked on the door and walked inside toward a suddenly grumpy Jamil “Ah, excellent. There you are, Jamil”
“What do YOU want, Azul ?” He had such a deep frown adorning his face from seeing him, he was worried Jamil would have wrinkles soon if he didn't stop.
“Why, what EVER could I have done to earn your ire ? And here I thought we were the closest of classmates !” The frown became deeper at his statement, Jamil will develop wrinkles if he didn't go to the point “More to the point : you're on class duty, correct ? Our afternoon Magic History period is going to be a study hall today” He continued “Professor Trein wants you to come and get the classwork printouts from the faculty office”
“Fine, I'll be right here” Such a dry answer, such hate for his person, he hopes one day Jamil will look at him with something else than scorn.
“Say, didn't Azul stream Jamil's whole diabolical plan to the world?” He heard Grim trying to whisper behind him, he failed miserably and was heard by everyone.
“Please” He started “It's like you've never heard of a bluff before. That was obviously a ploy to convince him there was no talking his way out of it. I can't believe you thought that I, the very soul of benevolence, would willingly destroy a classmate's reputation and social standing !”
“...You absolutely would” Jamil had the utmost faith in him.
But he wasn't wrong per say, for anyone else he would have no qualms to ruin someone's life for his own selfish desires. But to do it to Jamil ? Inconceivable and out of the question.
“A real nice guy wouldn't tell such a nasty lie in the first place” Grim has no understanding of chess play and it shows, not knowing that each action has consequences and that each turn counts to win the game. It was a strategy to cut all possible escapes from Jamil's grasp, and force him in a corner, in the only choice he had, the revelation of his plan.
He chuckled at the memory “All I did was put my smartphone on a speaker call with Jade” His expression turned slightly sour “Unlike Leona, I don't torment others for sport. I never do more than what is strictly necessary” Doing more for the sake of amusement was a waste of resources and time that he could use elsewhere “I obtained some perfectly good intel from the experience. I would never dream of devaluing my own assets !”
Jamil sighed once more “Whatever you say” Rude “But you know what ? I'll grudgingly admit that thanks to Azul's “benevolence” It was said with such disgust, as if it was the worst insult possible “My parents and the Asim family still don't know the real reason I overblotted” He sent a beaming smile at Jamil, making him look away while rolling his eyes.
“As for the students…” He seemed lost in a memory for a second before coming back “We've been more or less threading water ever since. Scarabia emphasizes mindfulness and forethought. Our students are trying to avoid jumping to conclusions. They're watching and waiting to see who's more beneficial to side with. Myself and Kalim included”
They were acting as befitting as their dorm “Classic Scarabia, astounding shameless, one and all. I'm impressed the two of you would even dance together after everything that transpired” He couldn't help but tease him whenever he could.
It made Jamil scoff at him “Say what you will” He turned his attention to the other to continue “In my case, the overblot incident has caused my reputation at school to plummet. It makes sense for me to fall in line with Kalim for a while, in the interest of improving my position both within Scarabia and without”
“The students must be circling you like sharks, waiting for the first sign of blood so they can challenge you to your seat” He laughed quietly at the mental image “If not for your clashing idiosyncrasies, it would be hard to imagine a more appealing person to serve Kalim” He hummed thoughtfully “He's eventually going to inherit an entire trove of treasure. In our modern society, that wealth represents a power magnitude greater than any magic. Why, it borders on omnipotence.
He received an annoyed glance before Jamil started again “Look, my holiday plot was a once-in-a-lifetime gambit. I thought that if I had failed, my life would effectively be over” Jamil sighed “But in the end, things aren't all that different now… Thankfully. As long as Kalim doesn't dismiss me, I'll continue to be his aid. I'll continue to prove myself to those around me” He pointed to all of them with a finger “That includes Kalim, my dormmates, my parents, the Asim family…and all of you”
He couldn't wait to see it, Jamil Viper shining in the light and not hidden in the shadows. He found quite the precious gem in him, an ordinary looking rock, that once polished, was as bright and tough as a diamond.
Grim said something about Jamil from one person to another after the winter holiday.
“Heh, I much prefer it this way” He interjected “if Kalim ever does sack you, Octavinelle's doors are always open to you. We would gladly welcome someone with your pedigree” He turned to look at him with a bright smile on his lips.
It was returned with a disgusted look “Thank you” And a sarcastic tone “But not in a million years. Octavinelle is the last dorm I would ever transfer to”
He loved to see anger and annoyance twist his face, but not as much as a genuine smile he hoped to cause one day.
Land-dwellers were so interesting, especially that one.
He knew coming to land was worth it, and everyday he was proven right.