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Money is always tight - always was and always will be.
The phrase “pinching for pennies” always felt real to Ruggie, especially with how he grew up in the slums of Sunset Savanna. If there was money to be taken, he went straight for it — not for profits or investing like the average businessman, but out of pure necessity. Every single thaumark and madol he needed for himself and for the kids back home. There is no such thing as a free thing; it’s just an urban legend!
That’s why, the moment he got accepted into Night Raven College and entered the dorm, Savannaclaw, he immediately aligned himself with its housewarden, Leona Kingscholar. I mean, the guy was a prince of Sunset Savanna for Seven’s sakes! That guy wouldn’t miss a golden ring or a few bills from his wallet! Working for him provided Ruggie a job — it was one hassling job, but still something that paid him and his grandma to live a little longer. He even felt a little proud of it since Savannaclaw was known to excel in sports tournaments. But when his housewarden started spiralling down an obsessive path to take down the housewarden of Diasomnia and forgot about him and the rest of Savannaclaw’s dorm members, Ruggie got a bit antsy.
His survival is a must.
Fast forward a scheme for an attempted stampede to run over the Diasomnia spelldrive team and a long battle of magic and wits against his overblotted housewarden, Ruggie was now on bed rest en route to losing a few weeks’ worth of money to be made. The sheer frustration of it all!
Not to mention that there were two students in one — a magicless human and a loud, fire-breathing cat — that essentially united an investigation team and took down his housewarden, now in his orbit. Well, mostly the human… who seemed to have the habit of giving out food often (?)
The first time they met, Ruggie used his signature spell to manipulate the cat, Grim, into giving him the last Deluxe Katsu sandwich that his boss ordered for lunch. He was quite desperate, you see, since those sandwiches were incredibly popular, and he arrived at the cafeteria far too late to nab one for Leona (maybe one for himself, but he had to settle for a sad, empty hot dog bun instead). The damn cat was ready for war for the sandwich! But the Prefect, who was with the cat, just let him take the sandwich and offered an alternative sandwich to the cat. Ruggie thought that they were too naive to have let him win this “sandwich war” with the cat. Yep, they definitely wouldn’t survive out there in the wild if they gave their food away like that. He almost pitied them. No time for that, though. He needed to get that sandwich to Leona.
The second time they met, the Prefect and their rag-tag team of investigators accused him of being the culprit of all of the injured major spelldrive players from the other dorms. Ruggie didn’t even bother denying the allegations and just asked if they had evidence. They had none. He knew that. He made sure of it. They were going to win the Interdorm Spelldrive tournament, and Ruggie believed that his housewarden would lead them to it!
Colour him surprised, though, when the Prefect gave him a meat bun on the sly, just before he managed to escape from their miserable attempt at an interrogation.
The heck?
The third time they met was essentially a showdown between his housewarden and the Prefect’s little investigating team. They managed to create an illusion of the stampede Leona instigated and cornered that lion beastman, who all but abandoned his dorm mates as he gave up on winning. Ruggie switched sides immediately. He had no shame in that. There was nothing he wouldn’t do to survive. In the end, the Prefect and their group managed to subdue the overblotted Leona, and Ruggie managed to get his revenge on Leona for almost turning his arm to sand. Earning his keep in life would’ve been extra difficult had he lost that arm.
Things became okay again after that.
Ruggie was stuck in the infirmary for a few days, but his housewarden officially gave him a few weeks off for rest. There wouldn’t be much to do since Leona himself was bedridden too. The Prefect, as well, was, in fact, also injured in the leg. But it didn’t seem to make the Prefect too downhearted, just mildly inconvenienced, if anything, based on their facial expression.
Not that he looked all that closely at the Prefect.
Ruggie still thought about how that Prefect gave him a meaty bagel sandwich when they visited him at the infirmary shortly after the overblot. He was confused, if anything, after that, especially since the Prefect also gave him a piece of candy the moment that battle was over. Ruggie already thought the Prefect was weird for being a student in a magic school despite having no magic, but for constantly giving him food? Even weirder.
Life returned to normal (ish) once he was discharged from the infirmary. The head nurse told him not to do any strenuous exercise so as not to interrupt his arm’s healing. Not that he planned to listen, though, he still needed to make up for the lost days of money-grabbing, food-stashing, and pick-pocketing for extra cash. But the Prefect appeared out of nowhere in the halls of the second year classrooms, Grim sitting on their left shoulder haughtily.
”Hey Ruggie, how’s your arm doing?” They asked, head slightly tilted as Grim loudly complained about being hungry. Ruggie eyed the Prefect’s left hand, which was full of a small plastic bag. His nose twitched at the scent the bag emitted.
”Shyehehehe,” Ruggie snickered, brushing aside the flicker of thought that food was in that bag. “Just like new! I’m back to business as usual, making sure that Leona doesn’t fail his classes.”
The Prefect chuckled with him, saying how it’s a relief that he was better. Apparently, they were also glad that Leona was slowly regaining his sense of… motivation. Ruggie only listened, playing along with the conversation with a veiled gusto. This would be the fourth or fifth time the Prefect had given him food, assuming that the food in that bag was meant for him. But there is no such thing as free food in this world. The Prefect clearly has something planned for him, but he didn’t have a single clue about why!
That’s it, he was just going to straight up ask about it. Whatever this human’s deal was, he was going to get to the bottom of this. Ruggie was not going to let himself be in this debt of random food gifting. Just what in the Great Sevens did that Prefect want from him?!
Even if… whatever he smelled from that bag was nauseatingly appealing…
”So… Prefect… What’s the deal with all this food you’ve been giving me?” Ruggie stared inside the bag, sniffing its contents the moment the Prefect handed it over. “What do you want from me?”
Why are you doing all this? Ruggie was tempted to ask. But the Prefect just looked confused. That cat was confused too, for another reason…
”Yeah, minion! Why do you keep giving this lousy dude food! That is MY food that you’re giving away!” Grim demanded an angry response, swatting the Prefect’s cheek like they dared to swipe a breadcrumb from under his fur.
The Prefect only patted Grim on the head and smiled. “Because Ruggie always looks hungry for something.”
Huh.
Astounding.
Ruggie hadn’t anticipated that response. How could he when there’s no such thing as free food in the world and no such thing as survival with pure kindness? Kindness is just naivety with no self-preservation.
They’ll be eaten, whether here or somewhere out there in the world.
“Prefect…” Ruggie donned a rare, serious expression, lingering between concern and habit from scavenging in the alleyways. There is no such thing as free food. “What do you want from me?”
The Prefect met Ruggie’s gaze, unwavering despite his sudden change in tone. “Nothing at all,” then they took a moment to think, considering something Ruggie assumed would be the actual scheme behind all this, “Actually, I’d like to hang out with you more, Ruggie.”
Ruggie watched as the Prefect smiled gently at him, ignoring the question mark forming above Grim’s head. He could feel his tail twitch as he listened to the Prefect.
“Shyeehehehe,” he snickered, “if that’s all I have to do to get this free food, consider it done.” Ruggie ruffled the Prefect’s hair, taking advantage of the fact that they were slightly shorter than him. Of course, he’ll still try to coax free food and more out of them.
Take whatever he can get from them. It was a deal.
***
Weeks pass after that fateful deal. Ruggie often met with the Prefect during lunch, and they’d exchange parts of their meals like an unspoken bargain. He’d watch as they wrestle Grim to keep their own food safe from the cat and energetically argue with Ace. Grim would always complain about the fact that Ruggie takes food from the Prefect’s plate when it should be his, and frankly, Ruggie found it funny how the Prefect’s ears would redden at the tips.
His ears would twitch after seeing the subtle colour change, but he wouldn’t admit it.
Lunchtimes become Ruggie’s favourite part of the day — mainly when he gets the chance to get to the cafeteria. He’d make sure he could appear at least once a week to honour whatever deal he has with the Prefect.
He enjoyed those moments in the cafeteria, and he could feel his tail swaying behind him whenever he thought of it.
Today was different, though. The cafeteria was as noisy as it always was during lunch, and he could spot the two first-year students from Heartslabyul chatting up a storm in their meal. The cat was there as well… missing the second half of the student he technically was.
Walking up to the edge of the table where the Prefect’s friend group ate, Ruggie asked about where the Prefect was. He was missing that final part of his meal that he was supposed to get from the Prefect. Not that he had gotten his own meal yet, either, but Ruggie’s left ear twitched in irritation.
“Oh, them?” Ace groaned at the mention of the Prefect. “They decided to go back to Ramshackle to study more before the final exams.” Ace shrugged his shoulders, struggling to understand why the said person would put in so much effort.
“Myahaha!” Grim cackled. “The Great Grim doesn’t need to study; he is a genius already!”
Deuce, who had been quiet the entire time, added solemnly, “They seemed really stressed. This morning, they were running late after sleeping through their alarm. Really bad eye bags beneath their eyes.”
Ruggie’s ears twitched again.
He grabbed himself a sandwich and a caffeinated drink from a nearby vending machine and excused himself from the group. It was cheap and enough to satiate his hunger, but something about it felt… oddly off.
Like it wasn’t actually enough.
The next few days come and go just the same. With the Prefect missing from the cafeteria during lunch times and the final exams just a couple of days away from sweeping the student population, Ruggie’s irritation only seemed to grow. Lunchtimes felt increasingly incomplete, like when he would eat a sandwich he found near the trash but had the crusts bitten off.
He liked eating the crusts of sandwiches.
Eventually, Ruggie found himself outside the Ramshackle dorm. He’d heard Ace and Grim complain about having detention from Crewel near the first-year classrooms, so he knew the Prefect was alone right now. What he hadn’t realised, though, was the swaying of his tail and the slight trudge in his steps as he made his way to the “rustic” dorm.
The dorm was as sad and creaky as every rumour exaggerated it to be. You could see bits of new wood and cloth scattered around the entrance of the dorm, and it stood out so drastically that it seemed miserable. Wafting through the air was a hint of black tea and some vaguely familiar food. Ruggie knocked before letting himself in, not giving the Prefect a chance to respond. He was hungrier than usual, and he was going to fix that.
Ruggie locked eyes with the Prefect who returned his gaze with a weak smile and a weaker wave. He looks over the dining table, textbooks and papers littered across the top, and a chair pushed out of place. The Prefect, themselves, was hovering above the stove with heavy eyelids and a ladle that stopped stirring.
“Ah Ruggie…” the Prefect croaked, “Long time no see…”
”Shyeehehe,” Ruggie laughed, brushing aside a sense of concern that bubbled up in him. “Oh, same old. Conquering the trash cans with finesse.”
He sat himself down at the dining table, next to the study materials. “Just thought of checking in with my favourite source of food. Didn’t think I’d see you so… dead.”
The Prefect giggled quietly at the offhand compliment. “I’m sorry for not being at the cafeteria for so long. There’s so much I don’t know about this world that I’m forced to catch up with.” Their shoulders sagged a bit. “Why don’t you join me for lunch and a study session later? I could use a bit of company.”
”You’re giving me more food? Damn right I’ll join ya.” Ruggie snickered again, his tail now wagging as that insatiable hunger in his stomach seemed to subside. He inhaled his share of food as quickly as he thought to and, in amidst a particular bite, Ruggie asked, “So you’ve been holed up all day and night trying to study?”
The Prefect nodded yes, grumbling about how much there is to study and that Grim is barely helping. Ruggie watched the Prefect as they ate together, noting how dark those eye bags were and the pen marks smeared on the side of their hands. With a glance at the meals they were sharing, Ruggie remembered that he had a sandwich on his person that he planned to eat later. Pulling it out of his pocket and unwrapping it, Ruggie broke off a bit of the crust and filling and placed it on the Prefect’s plate.
They met eyes again after that, the Prefect’s lighting up for the second time, he noted. Sure, they were sharing a meal, but this was the first time Ruggie had been the first to hand over a piece of food. It was usually the Prefect that initiated the exchange. Ruggie’s tail began to wag faster, but he still tried to keep it hidden.
The Prefect joked about how Grim would very much loudly complain about the lack of tuna they were having. Ruggie snickered in agreement.
Once they finished eating, the Prefect cleaned up the dining table with Ruggie washing the dishes. They migrated over to the dorm lounge and settled down on the coffee table to study. Ruggie opted to sit next to the Prefect unlike the usual across-the-table seat during lunchtimes. Grim hadn’t returned yet, so the study session was quiet with the sounds of pen scribbling across paper and pages flipping.
The Prefect was warm; he could feel it from the short distance between them. It was… disarming to say the least. Not at all to what he was used to in the alleyways of Sunset Savanna. It was a different type of warmth from the blankets in his dorm room as well.
That warmth seemed to bloom when the Prefect offered a bag of chips to snack on — he gladly had some.
It grew again when the Prefect took a bite of the biscuit that Ruggie managed to fish out of his pocket — he felt a soft squeeze in his cheeks.
The peaceful silence that watched over the dorm was new to Ruggie. Every day was always busy trying to simply survive, so this silence became the new “white noise”.
His thoughts seemed to relax, and Ruggie could feel his ears droop on top of his head. His head landed on the Prefect’s shoulder, and Ruggie felt his hair tickle the Prefect’s cheek.
He was so exhausted that he couldn’t help scooching closer to the Prefect, basking in this new yet comforting warmth. They’re right there, next to him, for once. Not across a table that blocked whatever this warmth was.
Unbeknownst to the hyena, the Prefect smiled at Ruggie. A giggle sounded quietly in their chest as they guided the boy to their lap.
“Can’t hurt to take a break…” The Prefect’s voice resounded in Ruggie’s ears as they leaned back into the couch.
“A break, huh?” Ruggie thought to himself, feeling sleep take over his eyes. “Can’t survive in the back alleys if you let your guard down, Prefect.”
“Well… if we were trying to survive together, I’d make sure you can eat before me.”
Ruggie felt a warmth envelop his head, feeling a soft hand graze his hair. It reminded him of when he was younger and his grandmother would pat his head for bringing food back to the house.
He felt his ear twitch, hearing the Prefect whisper something about a reward. Something about a thank you, too. His tail swayed slowly as sleep took him.
”A head pat in return for half a biscuit… Prefect, you’re stingier than you seem…”