Malleus didn't appear in the next couple of days. To Yuu, it almost seemed like it was done on purpose. And the worst of it all was that he was successful in picking Yuu's curiosity up.

Yuu never talked with Malleus about the Overblots nor the personal issues of each dorm leader. First, because all Overblots were caused by unresolved private matters and gossip was something he found disrespectful. Second, because Yuu couldn't help the impression that Malleus sometimes was a little out of touch with the world around him. And third, because Yuu tried to be as independent as possible.

Even if Yuu and Grim got closer with Malleus, no one was willing to forget their strange acquaintanceship started because of a mysterious visitor who felt like crashing their dormitory grounds at night. And there was the fact that even if he didn't have ill intentions, Malleus could sometimes be full of himself and insensitive to the struggles of others. In some aspects, Tsunotaro was a little bit awkward, even he tried to carry himself with elegance and poise.

Yuu just had issues taking Malleus seriously.

But he knew the reunion they had inside Ramshackle dormitory changed a few things. Malleus now felt closer. The ghosts made a few comments about him every once in a while. Grim would play with the Onix dragon and sometimes receive answers, even if the majority consisted of good-natured pranks. The Art of Trolling was a discipline that required thorough practice and wit.

The boy left them to their own devices.

The thing that got stuck in his mind was Leona's comment. About the lizard magic. Yuu had an intuition he shared with no one. The next time he saw green firelights outside of his dorm, on a cold night, a wise voice in his head told him to ignore them and he did. After all, he was tired, the air was chilly and there was a lot of homework ready for Grim and him to complete the next morning.

The boy knew how to be selfish, too.

Ace and Deuce soon started to retake on their visits to Ramshackle dormitory. They'd complain about Riddle's behavior, even if his worst tendencies were already dealt with post-Overblot. Cater Diamond was following a new internet trend that involved taking pictures of people using a special Magicam filter and tried it on Ace, Deuce, and other first years in exchange for tutoring and answering their questions. Trey Clover just let them be. He found it amusing.

And soon, they started having homework reunions again. Pijama parties, movie nights, improvised ramen noodles feasts, and game times. Yuu missed those days. And Grim was happy. He would quarrel with Ace like always, but to Deuce and Yuu's surprise, the redheaded boy begrudgingly admitted their monster companion seemed to have matured.

Just a tiny bit.

Only that.

Jack Howl, Kalim Al-Asim, Epel Felmier, and Rook Hunt would pay them visits, too. Even Leona Kingscholar, Ruggie Bucchi, and the Octavinelle trio would appear every once in a while. Floyd Leech made a scary comment about how Ramshackle Dorm would be a good place to leave his squeezing partners alone after a session and his twin told him it was not okay to be so forward with his comments. Everybody felt a chill run down their spines, minus Leona, who only showed annoyance.

The days passed and one afternoon, Yuu saw Lilia Vanrouge, the gaudy Diasomnia student. He lightly teased him about ignoring new friends. He was accompanied by two guys: a quiet silver-haired boy Yuu had never seen before and a noisy green-haired giant boy with whom Yuu and Grim often shared some of their classes.

Yuu, who was alone in the corridor, only answered that people who wanted to befriend him should try to be more direct in their approach and not mix strange drinks during their visits.

When did he had become so sharp-tonged?

To the boy's surprise, Lilia stared at him with a genuine blank expression. It wasn't a poker face but the reaction of a stunned person.

'So, that's what he wanted to bottles for, ¿huh?' was his response.

He didn't even try to cover up for Malleus.

Lilia's companions stared at him with confused faces, but Yuu saw a strange glint in the eyes of the silver-haired one. Lilia just shrugged his shoulders, innocently said young people are young people, only wanting to explore, and bid him adieu.

Yuu didn't know what to expect from the exchange. He knew people in Night Raven College weren't sincere nor had the best inclinations, but he also was surprised by Lilia's honest answer. Well, it wasn't full honesty. But at least he didn't try to lie or pretend indifference. Yuu had chills remembering Jamil Viper's treatment of him that ended with Grim and his kidnapping inside Scarabia dorm.

Yuu was kidnapped inside a room of a college placed in the dimension where he was originally summoned, and kept against his will by a headmaster that only lied about his attempts to research a way to send him home.

The boy's mood decreased for the rest of the day.

But it only helped to raise his surprise the following night.

Because Yuu was outside, eating candy, looking at the stars, and just thinking about his homeworld when he saw green firelights floating a few meters away from him. The boy signaled for his visitor to come closer. And the small green lights floated towards him.

His horned visitor appeared in front of him, looking majestic. He had a funny glint in his eyes, too. And he carried a stringed instrument with him.

Yuu knew the object was old the moment he laid his eyes on it. The wood was dark and it had intricate patterns cavern on it. He knew some were runes, others were illustrations. But he couldn't see much of it, because Malleus immediately moved it and announced his intention of sharing some good ol' Norse poetry with him.

The boy stared, fascinated.

''Tsunotaru, is this some sort of…?''

''It's a lyre. Norse-styled. The members of the Folklore Club lend it to me after Lilia kindly asked''

It was like a small guitar and the shape made Yuu think about an odd-shaped violin. It had a wooden handle that looked similar to horseshoes and pegs at the extreme.

''Do you play for yourself when you hang out?''

''Sometimes'' was his answer. ''It's relaxing and calming to do it when I'm alone''

Now, this definitely is some Rhaegar Targaryen material.

Yuu couldn't turn off his inner snark.

''And are you going to play for me?''

''I want to show you some things, Child of Man''

The boy felt a sweet sensation. He had never learned to play a musical instrument himself, and he expected Malleus to be good.

A smile crept to the boy's face before he knew what was going on.

Malleus explained music used to be played by skálds, ancient poets who performed in past times. He played his instrument and sang of Valas, Vidolf, Bilmeidr, and soothsayers. He sang about sorcerers, Svarthöfdi, Jötuns and Ymir*. Yuu only understood a few words and Malleus later explained the meaning. He also told Yuu that his musical interpretation was of free choice: some songs were terribly old that not even fairies were sure about how the original melodies sounded. All of that, full of pride.

Malleus was good and he knew it.

Yuu couldn't relate and just stared at him. He clapped at the end.

''Child of Man'' he asked ''have you received the Thunderstones?''

''Yes'' said Yuu ''Grim and the ghosts helped me to hang them on''

He later added ''Thank you very much''

It was odd of Malleus to ask for that. He already had seen it during their previous reunion. All visitors did, in fact. But no one asked what those were. There was an uncomfortable silence and no one touched the subject.

''There is something I've been wanting to ask you''

Malleus' tone was oddly neutral. He always was polite, but Yuu felt like something was escaping his grasp.

''What do you think of them?''

It was what Yuu precisely wanted to avoid.

Straight to the point.

''They are nice''

Malleus stared at him. He didn't buy it. And neither needed words to express himself. For the first time, Yuu felt nervous. What if he offended the Horned Guy by accident?

''Please, be honest. I'm not good at reading people.''

''Well… It's just that… I think the gesture was very nice of you. But… I don't really know how to use them and… that sort of thing… in my place, well…''

He didn't know who to say it.

''Go on, I'll listen to you''

Malleus's voice sounded relaxed. And Yuu decided that he could trust him.

''Where I'm from… well, this sort of thing is associated with kinda… not, with fully racist people who claim to be pagans and are associated with white supremacism and the like. I-I mean, it's not that believing in many Gods is wrong, but some of the modern people associated with those movements are off-putting. Disturbing. I don't know how to properly explain it''

He looked at Malleus. The boy realized his face was red. Why was he so insecure?

But to his surprise, the prince looked at him with an understanding face.

''It's fine. Those things happen here, too.''

He was calm, like an adult who is listening to an old tale about the world being fucked up and repeating the pattern yet again, told by a child.

''Though, you don't have to fear being associated with those ideas. Most of the student body here ignore what thunderstones are and the few who do know, pay them no mind or are too courteous to ask''

''Too courteous?''

''Thunderstones are associated with deep magic. For those who know, they acknowledge their importance''

He smiled softly.

Yuu couldn't understand. Why would Malleus give him something so important? He understood the intention of helping during his extremely short recovery, people around the world had their own native beliefs concerning health. But…

Malleus laughed. The noise was deep, joyful, and made the boy feel alleviated. He never had such a type of conversation with the Horned Guy. And it was of a serious matter.

''It's fine, Yuu. Don't be nervous. There are awful groups like that here, too. Plus, the world already has issues for people who use magic and those who don't. And even we, fairies, have our own struggles, too. You are not telling me anything new about the world, being yours or mine''

''Malleus, did you have troubles with them, too?''

The question left Yuu's mouth before he realized it. And Malleus' face became uncomfortable.

''Some people worship the fae'' He made an annoyed expression ''Others don't. And others just…''

''It's fine. You don't have to talk about that if you don't want to''

Malleus looked at him.

''Hey, do you want some soup?''

''Soup?''

''Yes. It's cold here and I have a few cups of ramen noodles left inside. Do you want some?''

The boy only wanted to lighten the mood.

''That's fine for me''

Yuu returned inside, boiled the water with the electric kettle, and choose two cups of ramen noodles. He had the sensation that Malleus wasn't sure about what he meant. He looked at him with open eyes, like a surprised kid. Yuu felt he only agreed in the spur of the moment.

Less than five minutes later, the boy went outside carrying plastic forks, napkins, and two cups of ramen noodles. He gave one to Malleus, who stared at it with confusion but immediately returned to his default reserved expression.

''Tsunotaro, have you ever tried ramen noodles before?''

Yuu was already eating his.

''I've seen some students do it''

Malleus used his fork to ellegantly twirl the noodles, but he couldn't cut them.

''You have to eat them as they leave the cup. It's like Chinese food''

Malleus stared at him.

''Asiatic food''

He kept looking at Yuu.

''Eastern food!''

The boy felt nervous all over again. He knew in Twisted Wonderland already were similar cultures to those of the Asiatic continent of his world. He just lacked the precise terminology to name them and make his expressions understandable.

And Malleus laughed again.

''I'm just joking. Lilia once made me try foreign food from one of his travels in the world. But…''

He stopped talking. And smiled.

''You know what, Child of Man? To thank you for your generosity, I shall share something with you, too''

Before the boy could answer, green sparkles gleamed around them and a horn appeared in front of them. It was long and white, with mysterious inscriptions carved on it. When the boy took a closer look at the horn, he realized the inscriptions were runes. And it made a noise. There was liquid inside.

''Malleus, these only are ramen noodles. You don't have to…''

''Child of Man'' he had a pout on his face ''I want to do this''

'' 'S fine, then''

It was like having a whimsical cat. One that liked to show up at your yard during nights, behaved according to his fancies, and left when he wanted.

''Are you sure we can do this? This is a school''

''Just take a sip, Child of Man. It won't harm you''

''Malleus, you are a student. And a dorm leader, too''

''It's not like this amount of alcohol will hurt me. I'm resistant to it. And at the Valley of Thorns, we drink as tradition dictates it''

Each of them took a sip of the horn. And ate the ramen noodles. Yuu offered to prepare more, but Malleus declined and told the boy to keep drinking, while they kept talking about mythology. And Gods. And Malleus asked Yuu how did people perceive the Old Gods in his world. But he didn't ask about the Norse Gods, he also asked about the Gods of the West, the Gods of the East, and the Gods of the South. And Yuu's head was dizzy, the mead was bittersweet and delicious. And he talked, but he didn't talk only about the Gods, he also talked about the Marvel movies, and Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston. The ideas got mixed in his head. His thoughts were blurry. And so his words.

And, after that, he just stared at Malleus. And he giggled.

''You know what, Tsunotaro?'' he said ''You really look like him''

''Like whom?''

''Like Loki'' said Yuu ''Long black hair, green eyes, a flair for drama and a huge ego.''

''Child of Man''

''Yes?''

''That's wrong'' he said ''There is no way I could look like Loki Laufeyson. No one knows how he looked like. He was a giant and a shapeshifter''

He was deadly serious. He took it literally.

And then, Malleus proceeded to explain to the poor drunk boy how Loki had long blond hair according to some myths, had the scars of stitches in his lips, but how others stated he could have had red hair, just like Thunaer, and, and….

Yuu couldn't follow all the monologue (because at that point, it was a monologue, not a conversation). But he waited patiently and listened. And when he started feeling cold again, Malleus heated the mead and let him drink. And he kept talking about the Norse Gods.

''Woah'' Said Yuu ''It really sounds like Loki could corrupt everybody''

''Why do you keep talking about him?''

''Don't you always talk about the Norse Gods? Odin, and Thor, and…''

''Because you only talk of them from the Norse sources. In the valley I grew up, we had other names. And Loki Laufeyson wasn't exactly worshipped... For Thunaer, Fri, Fûa, and Wotan, it was another situation''

''Still'' said the boy, in his drunken haze ''He really seems the type to cause mischief and corrupt things. Hahahah, like the Overblot. It reminds me of that dream about that silver sword becoming corrupted and people looking at it from a cliff''

Malleus stared at him.

''The what?''

''It's a dream I had after you rescued me the night Grim went berserk''

Malleus' expression was again of genuine surprise. Open eyes, parted lips. Like a child who discovered something new.

''Child of Man''

''Yes?''

''Please, do tell me more about that''

''About what?''

''About that vision, please''

''And why are you interested in that?''

There was a glint of mischief in Malleus' eyes.

''Because such things can only happen Once Upon a Dream''

The gleam in his eyes became inhumane. Yuu shuddered and suddenly felt his head was clearer.

He should not have talked about that.

*the poem I reference it the Völuspá hin skamma. The band Skál used it for their song 'Rún'. I recommend y'all to search it on Youtube, it's very cool.

**Update: (December 14th) Aside from correcting a few things, this chapter also expresses (in a very light manner compared to how I do it in real life) my reaction when I research for beliefs in ancient Germany. Bro, the amount of fuckery I sometimes see online while looking for sources is... like, NO. It's hard to come by info concerning the religious beliefs of germanic tribes because most preserved information sources become from northern Europe. And while I look for it, there's some crazy shit by people that appears here and there. Ugh, song 'Rún'. I recommend y'all to search it on Youtube, it's very cool.