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“Great job team! I’m proud of us going up there!”
Surprisingly, Kalim Al-Asim—Housewarden of Scarabia (as of a few weeks ago)—does not have his enthusiasm returned from his dorm’s Spelldrive team. Instead, groans emerge throughout the locker room. Even the usually composed best friend, Jamil Viper, has his face scrunched up, as if he swallowed some particularly poisoned poorly-made curry.
“What do you mean “good job?” A player slams the locker shut. His hands become fists. “We lost, Kalim. We lost real bad to Diasomnia.”
“We didn’t even get a chance to score a single point against them!”
“Against them?” Another player scoffs. “Please. It was all Malleus Draconia. He’s a damn monster in the field.”
“I think he’s a monster in general…”
“For awhile, I thought it was just Savanaclaw that was bad, y'know? Maybe their players just suck ass. But Malleus…” The Scarabia student shivers.
“Dude, you think Savanaclaw sucks? They literally have fucking Leona Kingscholar on their team, and he’s one of the best damned players in this fuckass school! Their team is fire! If he couldn’t beat Malleus, we should’ve known we were screwed…”
As the chatter rises, Kalim struggles to keep the grin plastered on his face. As much as he’d rather not call anyone a monster, the Diasomnia Housewarden’s magic was… something else entirely. A whole different level. No amount of “Oasis Maker” or “Snake Whisper” or any of his other dormmates’ UM could beat him. No one could even land a hit on the dragon fae.
Even if Scarabia has never been known for their athletics and Kalim personally wasn’t the most interested in the sport, much like any Housewarden, he too hoped their dorm would win, or at least place in top three. Or Seven, show off at least some of their Spelldrive skills to recruiters. To give the audience watching them a show, like he got growing up whenever he watched the Intradorm Spelldrive Tournament. To not even have that is…
He glances towards Jamil for any hint of advice. The other is preoccupied, staring daggers on the ground, as if the tiled floor had personally caused Scarabia to lose. His hands won’t stop twitching.
Kalim looks over to the rest of the team: they were all in similar states of distress. Morale was at an all time low.
He can’t have that.
Kalim cups his mouth, “Everyone!” When his team looks up, he lifts the lids of his mouth up. “Let’s have a party!”
“HUH!?” Shared expressions of bewilderment are exchanged across the team. An upper classman, an elephant beastman to be specific, clears his throat, ears bend back. “Uhm… didn’t we just lose?”
“All the more reason to celebrate!” Kalim claps. “It’s like the Queen of Hearts said: when life gives you lemon, make lemonade!”
“The Queen of Hearts did not say that—“
“SO!” Kalim claps again. “We should make the best out of the situation! Which means a party!” His eyes close, imagining the sight. “We can have food and drinks and dancing and singing, and oh!” He turns from his daydream to beam. “We can invite the other dorms to congratulate a season well played! They did they best they could!”
“…That does sound good. I do need a pick me up.”
“Partying always lifts my spirits.”
“The ones Kalim hosted are the best! We need to have more!”
“We can hate on Diasomnia together!”
“Hashtag… Down-With-Diasomnia!”
“Bro, you sound like Cater Diamond… but Hashtag… Amen.”
With his dormmates’ growing excitement, Kalim’s own grin feels lighter. Their earlier downtrodden behavior has all but disappeared under the promise of a party—which, granted, based on their comments, is quickly turning to a smear campaign against Diasomnia… But! If everyone has a good time at the party, all of Scarabia’s animosity for the dorm will be forgotten, he just knows it!
He turns towards his best friend to express such thoughts, only to catch the sight of a deep frown on the other’s face. Before Kalim could comment, Jamil bows slightly. “…Suppose we’re having yet another party then, Housewarden?”
“Jamiiil!” He singsongs. Kalim his best friend on the back. “There’s no need for titles like that. We’re best friends, after all. But yes!” He pumps up his fists. “We are having another one in honor of the Spelldrive competition. It’ll bring everyone’s spirits up from this, I just know it!”
An exhale. His best friend always seems to do that nowadays. Part of Kalim wonders if he was doing before he arrived before dismissing the thought. Jamil wouldn’t do that; he must be thinking deeply about school. Hopefully this party will let him loosen up!
It’s why Kalim brought up the idea in the first place.
“…How much food do I need to make?”
“Hm… for about a hundred or so guests?” He waves his hands vaguely.
“HUNDRED?!”
“Yup!” He places an arm on the other’s shoulder, squeezing it reassuredly. “We’re inviting all the dorms we can, so it’ll be a big one!” When Jamil’s dropped jaw doesn’t close, Kalim finds his own grin wobbling. “If you need any help—“
“No.” Jamil shoves the other’s hand away, face scrunched up in irritation. Witnessing Kalim’s surprise, he smooths his face over quickly. Rectifies, “…No. It is not becoming of the Al-Asim heir to be cooking.” He bows again, a smile glued to his face. “I can handle it. It is my duty as a Viper to be at your service.”
“…Jamiiill!” The hand that was on his shoulder is now embraced across his waist, engulfing the other into a hug. “You’re the best! You’re the most amazing person ever!” As he hugs Jamil, he feels the other shift, searching for a hoodie that wasn’t there. The edges of Kalim’s grin grow, tethering onto a smirk. Some things never change.
He pulls away to look at a flushed Jamil. His hands squeeze Jamil. “Tell me if you need anything, okay? I’m here for you. As your best friend.” From the corner of his eyes, he sees the Scarabia Spelldrive team, still mocking Diasomnia. He blinks; as their leader, he’d have to go over and fix that. He looks back at Jamil. “And as a Housewarden.”
Something once again flashes on Jamil’s face, but it’s too fast for Kalim to recognize the emotion. Instead, he nods. “Of course. I’ll need to leave now to start on preparations.” He furrows his eyebrows. “Stay with our dormmates, got it?”
Kalim gives Jamil a thumbs up. “You got it, buddy!” Jamil watches Kalim for a few long moments before exhaling. He gives the guy a stiff nod before walking off, a contemplative hum with each step.
Kalim matches his best friend in stride in the opposite direction: the Spelldrive field. With a pep to his step and a similar hum, he knew Scarabia was going to host the best party yet.
—
“…Diasomnia is playing next? Again?! Seriously?!”
“Hey, maybe Heartslabyul will beat them.”
“Man, be serious!”
True to his word, Kalim stays with the Spelldrive team, settling into the bleachers as they watch the other dorms. With the Pomefiore vs Ignihyde match finishing up with a surprisingly near even split (the Ignihyde players practically going from zero to hero) only broken by Pomefiore winning by a few extra points, the next match is starting soon. Unfortunately, the upcoming teams included Diasomnia.
“Screw Diasomni-shit.”
Kalim’s expression morphs to a small frown. While the trash talk has dramatically decreased with the Pomefiore vs Ignihyde match, bringing Diasomnia back into the field led to a sharp spike. It’s up to him as Housewarden to stop them.
“Everybody!” He calls. All his dormmates look up, confusion alight in their eyes. “While the school is preparing for the next match, let’s invite everybody to the party!”
“Ohh, that’s a great idea. Might as well do it during the Diasomnia vs Heartslabyul match too—nothing interesting is going to be happening.”
“Hey, you never know—“
“Dude, give it up already! It’s Diasomnishi—!”
“—GREAT!” He claps in delight over his teammate. He ignores their surprised expressions as he exclaims, “Lets make this a Spelldrive party worth remembering!” When similar determined looks meet Kalim’s own, his grin feels lighter: even with the slight unsportsmanlike behavior, he can depend on his team.
Kalim traverses the stadium, searching for various dorms’ sportswear amid visiting guests. He chats it up with numerous Spelldrive players, many of which are upperclassmen due to their higher level of expertise. What starts off as grouchiness and irritation will turn to excitement, he just knows it! Even if it's a reluctant agreement of, “Guess I’ll go…” or “Beats sitting in my room being miserable.” or even the “I can’t wait shittalk Diasomnia there.” After promises of spreading the word, he flits to the next person.
…He’s making progress!
Before he pushes any stray (and extremely stray!) doubts away, he catches sight of particularly pointy ears sticking out against the crowd. No other beastmen in Night Raven College had them: Ruggie Bucchi.
Fellow first year student—one who played in the Spelldrive match. Even if the two were technically on opposing teams, seeing someone his age amid what felt like professionals with their upperclassmen… his presence reassured him.
Kalim grins. Cupping his hands, he yells, “Ruggie!” As the aforementioned student looks up, ear twitching confusedly, Kalim runs up to the guy. “I didn’t expect to see you here!”
He turns his head, searching the sea of people for any hint of yellow; even just the dormmates would work to spread the word. Who doesn’t like to party? “Most of Savanaclaw seemed to have left.”
“Ah…” While a smile stays on the hyena beastman’s face, it seems to wilt, akin to some of the flowers he saw Ruggie carry a few times. He scratches the back of his head, his ears downturned. “Well… our Spelldrive team left after our match with Leona. It didn’t exactly go as expected, so…” He shrugs.
The smile all but disappears now, his gaze on the ground. He fidgets with his hands.
Despite himself, Kalim finds himself matching his expression. Sitting down beside his fellow student, he reminds, “Savanaclaw isn’t the only one in that position. I mean, you saw us, haha!”
Memories of his teammates' sharp disappointment at the match’s outcome flash through his mind, leaving an ache in his stomach. Ruggie’s emotions bring that same tingling feeling. It makes the Housewarden want to comfort the guy. “So don't worry, Ruggie, you’re not alone.” Another laugh; he places an arm on the other’s shoulder. “Besides, there's always next year!”
Before he could even process what’s happening, his hand is swatted away. When Kalim meets the other’s gaze, he finds a similar look of surprise mirrored back on Ruggie. Surprise quickly turns to anger while a scowl tugs at the hyena beastman’s face.
”Are you serious? It’s humiliating we lost—especially when we’re the athletic dorm, it’s literally what we’re known for.” He fists his hands. “That guy practically hogged the whole field to himself! Nobody in our team could do anything in comparison to him! His magic is unstoppable.” Kalim’s stomach flips in his chest from heartache. “I don’t want Leona to be right but there’s no way we can beat him next year.”
Kalim can’t help but wince, forcing his smile in place. “I—I mean, you’d all have improved since then, right? So it’ll make a difference from this game, at least!”
The Savanaclaw student snorts, resting his head in his hand as he turns away. His next words are said under his breath, not meant to be heard for the audience in question, but Kalim catches it nonetheless. “…If you think any improvement from us is enough to beat him, then you’re even stupider than I thought.”
Oh.
He must’ve said that aloud, because alarm crosses Ruggie’s face. The hyena beastman laughs apologetically, raising his arms in protest. “Sorry, sorry. Didn’t mean to say that.” When he smiles, his expression is tense, while the light doesn’t meet his eyes. “Heat of the moment, y'know?"
“…Haha, yeah!” He throws his head back in laughter. “That happens to the best of us! So don’t worry about it, alright? We’re friends after all.”
Ruggie’s terse expression relaxes into something more genuine: relief. He didn’t exhale, but the way he deflates is similar to that. “…Shyeheyehe! You got that right!”
There’s a silence that feels slightly off-kilter as they go back to watching the game. Kalim finds his eyes drifting to the scoreboard. Heartslabyul has 10 points to Diasomnia’s 100. The Heartslabyul Spelldrive team couldn’t look more defeated and Riddle, his fellow first year and Heartslabyul Housewarden, couldn’t have been more pissed. The sight draws a frown.
When he glances at Ruggie, he looks worse. He carries the same emotions as Scarabia’s Spelldrive team.
What was that Isle of Heroes tale—the Siphysian task? With the heaviness of his emotions, it feels like the weight of the boulder that had to be pushed up.
It doesn’t help how Ruggie’s ears stayed flat or how his hands remained fisted.
It’s what strengthens his decision. “Youre not alone in feeling that way.” the Al-Asim heir says, more quietly than he wants to admit. “Other teams got their butts kicked.”
Ruggie doesn’t turn, but there’s eyes watching him considering, calculating even. It’s a look Kalim is unused to in a school setting, that makes him shift uncomfortably in his seat and throat incredibly dry. He pushes onward regardless, forcing a grin to his face, “It’s why I’m hosting a Spelldrive party at Scarabia later.” He raises his arms up. “There'll be food and games and dancing and tons of other things to do so you should come! Oh, and your dorm is included!”
“…You think a party is going to erase the fact that everyone got their asses kicked?”
“Butts,” Kalim mutters more out of habit than anything he’s bothered by. At Ruggie’s snort, he sends an apologetic smile. “Haha, force of habit.” The ends of his own smile relaxes at the softening of Ruggie’s eyes. “I have younger siblings. But yes!” When Ruggie scoffs, he hurriedly adds, “Or at least raise people’s spirits. Seeing everyone sad like this… even if you win, it’s hard to smile when the atmosphere is so depressing. With a party, I can bring smiles to everyone’s faces.”
“…Wait, wait, wait!” Ruggie sputters, leaning in. He nearly falls out of his seat. “Let me get this straight. You’re doing all this because what—everyone’s sad?!”
“Yeah?” At the Savanaclaw player’s widening eyes, Kalim scrunches his eyebrows. “Why? Isn’t it normal to want to cheer people up?”
“Yes but—!?” Ruggie throws up his arms. “You literally just got here! Like two weeks before the Spelldrive Tournament! You don’t even know half of the student body.”
“I might,” he insists, which, admittedly, only makes the other scoff. “Even if I don’t, they’re just friends I haven’t met.”
“…You can’t be serious.”
“I am!” At Ruggie’s gaping, he continues, “I am. Maybe I don’t know everybody at school yet but… I’ve been to tons of Spelldrive matches in the past, and they were a blast! Even when Scarabia didn’t win,” and honestly, it was often, with dorms like Savanaclaw, Diasomnia, and surprisingly Pomefiore taking first, second, and third place. “It still felt like a victory for Scarabia from how evenly matched the games were.”
“…That is true,” Ruggie begrudgingly admits. Despite his gaze on the match below them, he looks faraway; a tug of a smile inches on his face. He hums contemplatively, “But I still don’t get how that relates to you wanting to plan a party for strangers.”
“Potential friends,” he corrects. Ruggie raises an eyebrow, but Kalim chooses to ignore the gesture. “Who knows—we may make a couple new friends at the party.” He bumps shoulders with Ruggie, grinning. When Kalim sees the fellow first year student giving him a flat look, his expression dims slightly.
“And well, parties aren’t the same as winning a game but…” He fidgets with his hands. Even though he’s not out in the field anymore, his body is sweating more than ever. “I want to see everyone’s smiles—that alone is a victory.”
Despite the noise of the crowd chanting boos throughout the match, it’s never been more quiet. There’s a tense silence that Kalim, for all his skills in conversation, does not break. Even if he were to fill the silence with mindless chatter, part of him wonders if the former can be filled.
Luckily, Kalim doesn’t have to.
“Geez… When you put it like that, guess I'll have to go.”
Immediately, Kalim turns towards the beastman’s direction: his eyes are closed, distinctly refusing to meet the other’s gaze. Yet there’s a slight flush to his cheeks that wasn’t there before. “Let me know more of the details so I can spread the word.”
“Ruggie…!” He throws himself against the other, holding him to an embrace. While the beastman jumps at the sudden affection, he doesn’t do anything to pull away. Kalim’s grin feels like it’s about to burst. “You’re the best!”
Ruggie fidgets. He’s no deer, but he’s never had an expression that’s more “deer in the headlights” (as Kalim once heard a guest say) before. His Adam apple’s bobs. “Hey, uh. It’s no problem.” He clears his throat. When he speaks, there’s more bravado behind it. He bumps shoulders against Kalim. “Gotta achieve your goal, after all.”
The Housewarden beams. “Let’s work together to bring a smile to everyone’s faces!”
—
True to Kalim’s hope: a party does take place after Spelldrive’s tournament. Music fills the room while bodies crash into each other. Yells and cheers echo across Scarabia’s lounge. The atmosphere is lively. No one would have guessed that hours earlier, everyone was downtrodden from results of the Spelldrive tournament.
“Do a backflip on your broom!” cheers a Pomefiore student. A small crowd has formed as members of the Scarabia Spelldrive team did tricks on their brooms.
Their team had suggested before the party officially started, as free entertainment since the celebration was so last minute. Jamil had warned them to be careful, but the team reassured the Vice Housewarden that they’ve “done this before.”
“Besides,” one of the older members spoke. “It also acts as our redemption for our bysmal match against Diasomnia.” He exhales. “If nothing else, our fellow students would know of our talent. That we deserved better than the matchup we’ve been given.”
A flash of something crossed Jamil’s face again, but it was smoothed down before Kalim would read what the emotion actually was. He smiles, but the ends… twitch. Kalim had wanted to ask, but the other acquiesced to their dormmates before bringing up needing to tend to the food. He’d have to catch up with Jamil later.
Before he could continue pondering, a tap on his shoulders cuts through his thoughts. “Hey.” The voice is wonderfully familiar.
Kalim turns around, shock giving way to a grin. “Ruggie!” He cusps the other’s hand. “You came! I’m so glad.”
Ruggie returns his expression. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
The words are more an expression than anything but Kalim can’t stop the widening of his grin. Doesn’t pretend to, either, unabashed for his enthusiasm for the Savanaclaw student. “I was wondering where you were—we saw quite a few Savanaclaw students. We were all surprised they came.”
With how downtrodden the team was, Jamil had warned him that it wouldn't be surprising if no one came. Like Ruggie had said: Savanaclaw was the athlete dorm. To not excel in their very strength… it’s a mark on their pride like no other.
Yet despite the horrible matchup of Diasomnia and Savanaclaw, flashes of yellow uniforms poke in and out the crowds. “Did you have something to do with that?”
Ruggie’s grin turns to that of a smirk. Hands go behind his back. “Guess my methods worked after all.”
“Oh! What did you do?”
“Sorry Kalim.” A finger goes in front of his lips. “A mage can never reveal his secrets.”
A dramatic sigh; he places a hand over his forehead. “Alas, thwarted again. I’ll uncover the truth next time. Though…” He sits up straight, searching the crowd for a familiar third year. “I don’t think I’ve seen your Housewarden yet. Where’s Leona?”
At Ruggie’s own expression dimming, Kalim’s heart sinks. The Savanaclaw students shrugs carefully. “Tried inviting him but he wanted to stay in his dorms. He’ll join us next time around. Probably the yearly NRC and RSA competition.” He fists his hand. “We better win then.”
Kalim keeps his expression afloat. He doesn’t want his cousin, Minhaj Al-Rajah, to lose but… the same goes for Night Raven College. With how horribly all the dorms played against Diasomnia, he can only hope they win, or at least have several close matches.
“It’s not worth thinking about until next semester,” Kalim settles on. He squeezes Ruggie’s hand, and again, the beastman doesn’t do anything to push him away. “So until the match comes closer, let’s enjoy the here and now.”
Ruggie huffs; his lips curve upward. “Got it.” He nudges the Housewarden, waggling his eyebrows. “Gotta make your goal come true right now, after all. Or all this effort will be for nothing. Now c'mon, let’s go get some foo—“
“Did I make you smile?”
Ruggie stops. His mouth lays open, surprise alight in his eyes. “What?”
“You were really upset at the Spelldrive Tournament earlier.” When Ruggie continues staying silent, Kalim pushes forward despite his own hesitance. “This party is meant to cheer everyone up, you included. So!” He leans in. “Did it work?”
Silence. Ruggie doesn’t utter another word. Only when abruptly, the Savanaclaw player turns does he speak, “I mean, I ain’t frowning, am I?”
The beastman’s ears can’t turn color, but if it could, Kalim had the distinct feeling it would be some shade of red by now.
“Ruggie..!” Kalim throws himself at the other, hugging his arm. “You’re the best!”
He shrugs nonchalantly. “Just enjoy your parties, that’s all. Now cmon.” For the first time, Ruggie takes Kalim’s hand. “Let’s head to the food table.” His face forms another grin. “I got a few bags worth of tupperware.”
As Kalim is dragged to the table—hand in hand—while surrounded by the chatter of students of various dorms, he holds a smile of his own. While only Diasomnia won the Spelldrive Tournament, with the expressions of everyone around them, Kalim has a victory of his own: everyone’s happiness.
That’s the true spirit of Spelldrive!