After this chapter I'm hoping to get the ball moving along and get more wishes granted haha. Alice's first day of school has literally dragged on for like nearly four years smh.

Other than that, this is more transitory for Alice's character, I suppose.

-.-

Chapter 11: Commitment is the Biggest Joke of All

"I want to kill the idiot that landed me in this class." Alice groaned right as the bell of dismissal gave a ring.

Not hesitating, she pulled her book bag over her shoulder and attempted to make a quick escape out of the door.

She didn't even want to wait for Blood or Elliot, though lucky enough for her neither had been able to bother her considering the whole class period had been used for everyone to take an exam. The teacher and Blood had both been at the front, the teacher on the computer while Blood continued grading paper.

Considering it was her first day in the class, Alice had only been given a textbook and a supply sheet from the instructor and was exempt from the test, thus leaving her with so much time to just sit and think.

Unfortunately, that class didn't seem to have any windows so a majority of her time had been spent either glaring down at her desk or even watching Blood grade papers up ahead.

Looking at him with his reading glasses, uniform, and concentrated expression really made him look similar to her previous master, it was actually really freaky.

The Council had to have done this all on purpose through some kind of plan.

There was no way a coincidence like that was possible…

Considering her seat toward the back of the class, her pace to leave was slowed by the students ahead of her that seemed to be taking their sweet time in going out.

Alice didn't even make an effort to hide the face of displeasure that made its way to her face when she finally made it to the door.

"Yo, Alice!" She heard Elliot call to her distantly, though she refused to turn around, "Blood and I are heading out to the North Patio to hang for a bit before we go home. You want to go with us?"

As if she'd ever do that. She'd eat her own foot before spending another second breathing the same air as them.

Distantly, Ace's voice echoed through her head and she inwardly groaned.

She really did need to get to know them better and that would be the perfect opportunity.

Glancing over her shoulder, Alice sent them a dull look, "Alright, but I promised Boris I'd meet him at the front gate and I don't want him freaking out so I'll tell him where I am first then meet up with you both."

"Psh, you don't have to walk that far way just for that." Elliot snickered as he slung his arm over the female's shoulder.

Caught by surprise, Alice gave a small startled jump as he did so and growled under her breath at how some of the few kids still exiting the halls appeared to laugh at her.

"I'll text him! It's all good!"

"Are you both going to stand there all day or are we going to get a move on?" Blood questioned right after he exited the classroom and began making his way down the corridor.

Elliot perked up and immediately began walking to catch up to him and Alice heaved a sigh.

A few students still seemed to linger up above and while she walked with a decent space between her and the two older boys, she could still feel the stares aimed her way and hear the little whispers some of them shared over her.

Blood was really popular apparently.

Really, she couldn't understand how or why.

He was rude and gross.

Unless it was just because he had a pretty face, then maybe she could see how.

"Alice, you're walking so far back! Come on, walk beside us before you get lost!" Elliot beckoned to her with a grin as he and Blood glanced over their shoulders to her.

The brunette blinked, "I'm fine back here."

Blood nodded his head, his eyes observantly watching her, "So you're the type that likes it in the back?"

"Why does everything you say end up sounding so gross?" She growled under her breath in irritation before she watched back at him solidly, "I'm the type that likes it when boys are quiet."

"That's odd considering how I'm renowned for my normally silent nature. Are you trying to flirt with me, Princess?"

Shit.

She set herself up for that one.

"Urgh. Why did I decide to tag along with you again?" She groaned in annoyance, her steps stopping as they made it to a division in the hallway.

Giving the two of them a blank look, she huffed, "You know what? Forget it; I'm heading to the front gate. Have fun at the Patio or whatever." Alice waved off uncaringly before she took a left and began heading to the nearby stairwell.

She could hear Elliot saying something to her, but she tuned him out.

She didn't know the school that well and admittedly this part was foreign to her.

Hopefully it wasn't like the mansion and she'd be stranded for hours in it.

Going down the first flight of stairs, she found that the area was actually really spacious when it was free of students crowding inside of it.

When she made it to the bottom of the first staircase, she found her steps halting at the sight of three boys that were all staring up at her from the bottom of the second one.

The three all varied in size, one being larger and heavier built than the other two in a rather intimidating form. Regardless, Alice kept her walk downward entirely unconcerned.

As she made it to the bottom and attempted to make her way out through the doors, she had to pause when one of them moved in front of her to obstruct her path.

Her eyebrow twitched and her lips threatened to erupt into a scowl while she glared up at him, "Is there a problem?"

The male returned her expression entirely unafraid and another of the trio gave a short laugh from behind her causing the genie to grunt while she glanced over her shoulder.

"You're the new kid that got the Bloody Twins a detention in Commie, right?" His dark eyes twinkled rather mischievously.

Alice shrugged, "Commie is Community Service, right? If so, then yes." She then turned back to face the male ahead of her impatiently, "Move."

Her command went ignored as the third male went on, "You're also the newbie that hit Blood Dupre in the chest with food, aren't you?"

Resisting the urge to groan, she folded her arms over her chest, "Yes, I was. Now I'm going to say this once more, get out of my way. I need to go." She ushered for the larger teen to move with a flick to her hand, however she was ignored again.

Glancing over her shoulder with a growing scowl she watched as the two brunets began to walk toward her with smiles on their faces.

"Oh, don't be so cold. We're all friends here after all."

"He's right. We just want to talk to you."

"Those guys are trouble and if you don't have the right amount of protection things are going to get ugly for you."

Alice clenched her fists with her eyes not lessening in their intensity, "So this is your way of trying to 'recruit' me or something? That's stupid. I'm already bound to those idiots, I don't need to associate myself with more." Taking a deep breath she returned her eyes to door where she now attempting to get her arm around the male blocking her way, "Now move before I make you."

The boy in front of her gave a low laugh as Alice now took a step back when he went forward threateningly, "You speak big for a pipsqueak."

She grunted as she now found herself bumping into another one with her movements backward. With a small yelp of surprise she found her upper body being held as the boy behind her grabbed her chest with his arms plastering her own to her sides firmly.

"I see now. You're a new addition to Dupre's clique."

"You think just because you're under Dupre's wing you can shit talk whoever you want?" The shortest of the three questioned while he glared down at her wickedly. Alice watched with widening eyes as he raised up his fist, "That's fucking hilarious."

Alice shut her eyes and braced herself for the impact of a punch to the face.

It certainly wouldn't have been the first time she got knocked around and from the male's body structure, she wasn't sure if it'd hurt a lot or not, but regardless she clenched her body for the hit.

However, instead of the punch, what she was heard instead was the sound of gasps.

She peeked an eye open and found herself blinking blankly at the sight ahead of her.

"Coarse men handling delicate young ladies so abrasively… Ah, haven't you little boys been taught any manners?" Blood questioned in a dull tone as he held the offending male's arm back by the wrist.

How even the hell did he get there so quick and silently—

Her train of thoughts was wrecked when the male behind her gave a pain filled shout and his grip around her body fell back quickly.

Alice turned around with wide eyes to watch the sight of Elliot twisting the teen's arm around his back so painfully that it had him spiraling to the ground helplessly. The look in the blond's eyes was one that Alice wasn't familiar seeing at all. He looked so unfeeling and colder, it reminded her of some sort of assassin or something.

She'd be lying if she said she wasn't surprised.

"You're all so fucking low! Picking on a little girl like Alice, what the actual hell!? Pick on someone your own size!"

His words were like a spell breaker and Alice immediately twitched while she glared at him, "Little girl!? I'm not little!"

Elliot blinked his eyes as he turned to her, the once merciless stare in his gaze entirely gone while he scratched his cheek with a sheepish grin, "Aha! Sorry, sorry, you know what I mean!" He laughed off before raising up and rushing to her side, "Are you alright though?"

His concern made her reaction time a bit slow and Alice slowly found herself nodding her head dumbly.

With that confirmation, Elliot returned his hostile stare to the male that was now getting help standing up from both of his companions.

Blood spared her a glance, "Are you sure? If they inconvenienced you more than what we managed to see, you know we can take care of them for you. It won't be any trouble at all."

It took another moment for Alice to actually catch onto the fact that they were defending her.

Her immediate thought went to the fact that they probably weren't defending her as a person, after all, she just blew them off before storming away, why would they be trying to help her out? If anything they were only doing it so their 'property' wasn't vandalized or scratched.

But remembering what Boris had told her before… She stopped that train of thought.

Boris had said he wanted to befriend her as Alice, not her as a genie.

Even if she was probably wrong, thinking that Blood and Elliot were defending her as Alice and not as a genie left her feeling a bit warm inside.

"N-no, it's fine. Let's just go." She managed to stutter out as she found embarrassment threatening to weave its way into her system.

Elliot and Blood watched at her blankly and Alice could only stare at the floor with knitted eyebrows while she felt her face growing warmer under their eyes.

"S-stop staring at me!" She exclaimed with shutting eyes though even so, she could feel their probing gaze intensify.

"The young lady can truly be charming especially when she doesn't want to be."

"Definitely!"

There was a pause and when Alice opened her eyes, she found her gaze matching up with the three males still within the room by the flight of stairs.

All three watched at her with nothing but astonishment and a hint of confusion.

She twitched, "What?"

"Wait, you're a girl!?" They all asked in unison, their eyes looking on at her in nothing short but total shock and disbelief.

Like a trigger, Alice's earlier meekness was turned off and her fury went on as she growled and stomped her foot with a fume, "YOU JUST GROPED MY BREASTS LIKE TWO SECONDS AGO, YOU DAMN PERVERT! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU THINK!?"

"Uh…"

"Well, you don't have much tits, so…"

"Truthfully speaking, I thought you had moobs."

Alice twitched, "Moobs?"

"Man boobs."

"I'll tear your tongue out and shove it so far up your asshole that your grandkids are going to feel it. Stop." Alice warned, her voice becoming deadly low and her facial features darkening severely, "Just because I have a boy's uniform on doesn't make me a guy, it isn't that hard to comprehend, I don't even have boyish features, damn it!"

Elliot blinked his eyes, "You'd have to be an idiot to think Alice is a guy. It's like me putting on a skirt and people thinking I'm a girl."

"Considering the three of them aren't brighter than the average primary school student, it shouldn't be a surprise." Blood easily remarked earning three sharp glares.

The taller of the trio sneered his way, "So he's—"

"SHE!"

"So she's really working with the two of you then!?" The brunet corrected himself with a grit to his teeth.

The shortest smirked, "You're starting to recruit allies like that, Dupre? You really have a lot of nerve calling us the stupid ones."

Beside her, Elliot growled menacingly, "Don't call Blood stupid, you—"

"Are you kidding me?" Alice interjected with blank eyes easily earning everyone's attention, "I bet I hate Blood more than you lot combined. I'm only on his side because of restricting circumstances outside of my current control."

Elliot gave her an exasperated look, "Don't take their side, Alice!"

"I'm not taking their side. I'm just saying that I wish I was neutral, but my chains kind of keep me locked to you both."

"You know," Blood began as he walked over to her, his hand moved beneath her chin to tilt her head upward and she grimaced at the smirk he held, "It's always been said that the line between love and hate is rather thin."

Alice found her cheeks warming while she narrowed her eyes, "Still pretty sure I hate you."

"You don't know me, how can you hate me?"

"Because you're annoying, a pervert, and did I mention annoying?"

"Your words are like a cold knife to my heart, Princess."

"Good."

"What a cruel thing to say to the man that just rescued you."

"What the hell do you want for being a decent human being for once? A kiss?"

"Well, if you're offering it."

"Fuck off, you don't get a reward for doing something I didn't ask of you."

"Ah, more hostile words."

"If you want more, I still have them."

"Okay, that's enough!" One of the males snarled angrily, easily catching the two's attention once more, "Dupre, prepare to…" He trailed off nervously the moment both Alice and Blood expressionlessly eyed him.

The brunette dully evaluated him, "Don't interrupt us when we're arguing."

"It's not an argument, it's a lovers' spat." Blood corrected with an impish smile that honestly made the brunette's blood boil while she pointed up at him hotly, "Don't you dare go labeling us as anything like that!"

Elliot continued watching them with a low sigh as the three males slowly made their escape up the stairs.

As the two went on back and forth, the blond boredly took out his phone and began playing a game until he heard Alice say something about Blood's smiling unsettling her and that she was leaving.

-.-

"Oh, it looks like Boris waited." Elliot acknowledged in surprise as he, Alice, and Blood made it out the front gates.

Alice had decided that staying at the patio with Elliot and Blood really wasn't that big of a deal and she had nothing better to do anyways. She mostly stayed to herself at the tables by the vending machines while Elliot and Blood socialized with some friends. At one point some of them tried getting her into the conversation, but she had a feeling her unfriendly aura just kept them away regardless of Elliot and Blood's reassurances that she was harmless.

They had to have stayed back at least an hour. She was surprised to still see him there waiting.

When Boris seemed to notice them approaching, he leaned off the gate's stone wall with a grin on his face while he watched at Alice happily, "Took you guys long enough!"

Alice gave him an annoyed look, "Don't complain when nobody told you to stay behind. You could have gone home whenever you wanted."

Her words left a negative impact on him as evident by the pout that graced his lips, "I stay behind to give you the honor of walking home with Boris Airay and this is the thanks I get."

"More like dishonor."

"Why are you so mean to me?" Boris groaned out as Alice rolled her eyes, "I don't understand you humans and your desire for praise over things no one asks you to do."

While Boris began retorting with something she undeniably knew would have gotten her mad if she paid attention, she couldn't help but allow her eyes to go over to Blood who was watching at the two of them silently.

There was a calculating glint in his eyes that she didn't like too much, but before she could openly comment on it, she gave a shriek as Boris pulled her arm ahead roughly.

"So why'd you decide to hang with Elliot and Blood? I thought you couldn't stand Blood." Boris snickered out as the two began walking back to the mansion. Ahead of them Blood and Elliot went on ahead a good distance away.

Alice kept her pace beside him with a scowl now making its way to her features, however, before she could respond, the teen beside her was continuing.

"Did one of them wish for you to be with them or something?"

His words make her eyes widen slightly and her expression immediately faltered. The genie's steps paused for only that of a brief moment along with her breathing before she continued on ahead with her head lowering, "No." She muttered out softly.

The thought of one of them actually doing that sickened her to her core.

She had long suspected Peter of doing something like that, but thankfully he knew his limits after she denied his wish of her falling in love with him.

As if being what she was wasn't helpless enough, she didn't need them exerting that much control over her to the point she was physically unable to do anything but follow their command.

Her change in demeanor didn't go unnoticed by Boris who now looked over at her in curiosity, "Right…" With how his tone was, it made her feel bad for just closing up when he hadn't meant any harm with his words.

Clearing her throat, she turned her face away from his view, "I told you I'd try to see humans in a different light… That was my attempt." She mumbled sheepishly.

Boris blinked his eyes before he brightened up with a laugh, his once more dejected expression becoming more upbeat before he threw his arm around her shoulder and brought her closer, "Damn, Alice! You work faster than I thought you would!"

His praise caught her off guard. She didn't expect that kind of reaction. She certainly didn't deserve it either because it wasn't like she had been interacting with anyone while she stayed back. If anything, she just got the tiniest bit more acquainted with Elliot and Blood, but not even by much.

"Let me go!" She exclaimed while squirming in his grip.

"Look at you getting all cozy with humans! Feels like just this morning you hated them all!"

"I still hate you all! I'm just trying not to! You're not helping the cause!"

Still laughing, Boris released her all the while stating his apologies and Alice huffed while straightening out her uniform.

For a brief moment she considered punching him, but soon went against it the moment they continued walking ahead.

Boris lazily put his hands behind his head, "At this rate, you're going to be asking for my hand in marriage by the end of the week."

For a brief moment she considered punching him, and this time she actually swung forward.

"OW! It was only a joke!"

"Not a funny joke."

"You said you'd stop hitting me!"

"Now that's a funny joke."

"Ow! Alice!"

-.-

Just updating this because it's really on the bottom of my priorities so the next update more than likely won't be for a while aha.

Anyways, if you enjoyed, tell me what you think! :)