I do understand why Ace and Grim attempted to ditch. I don't want to wash all of those windows, but that also doesn't stop me from feeling unending rage at this scenario. It's been a rough day, or—not even two. I'm transported into a strange world. I look different. I have no idea where I can find a proper bra. I'm employed by some Cirque-Du-Freak showrunner of a headmaster as free labor. I'm getting mocked by some idiot hot-head and have a companion that's a fire-cat demon with an ego the size of Manhattan and the common sense the size of pinky toe.
We arrive where the chase started, the cafeteria. While I could admire the strange tree-structure or the beautiful, bright lights that have no source—no. We're here to get Grim. My too-be new fur scarf.
"Damn it! He keeps slipping past us!" Ace cusses, and I almost tell him to watch his mouth but we're kind of the same age now.
"Hee hee hee! Catch me if you can!"
"You're a coward, climbing on that chandelier!" Deuce, the unfortunate person roped into all of this, shouts out the lithe creature that's suddenly hanging out above our heads. He looks so frustrated. "I haven't learned flying magic yet. We could trap him… or… maybe… hm…"
It really seems like he's using every last brain cell for this.
"Oh! I got it!" His eyes are wide like he came up with the most brilliant plan.
I… I have the worst feeling about this. Dread overcomes me in a moment. My intuition tells me that this is the moment where everything fucks up and I have no idea why all of the alarm bells are going off in my head. It makes little to no sense, right?
Oh no.
"Did you have an—hey! Why are you pointing your wand at me?" Ace looks so concerned at Deuce. Panic, pure panic on his once smug face.
But I'm worried too.
"I'm going to throw you!" Deuce is not a smart man.
"We are so fucked-" Yeah, I'm a bad influence.
With some magic, Ace lifts in the air, the startled young man squirms, "You're kidding me, right?! Woah—I'm-put me down! Don't throw me! Stop!"
"Catch him! He's right there—now GO!" Deuce has no thoughts and all action.
Ace lets out a shout as he flies through the air and toward Grim. Now the bad cat lets out a scream as they collide together into the chandelier!
Oh, it is a glorious crash! The two of them careen down with the large, once-gorgeous object and flatten into the ground. Sending years worth of dust into the air and two idiots lying in the center of the destroyed mess. Well, so now the two had help destroying and ruining something else that was probably priceless.
"Oh no." I look at the destruction, but the two at least LOOK okay, but they're not going to be.
Grim and Ace sputter and hack on the dust.
"I can't even-" Ace starts.
"Nyahh-" Grim groans, sore from the impact. Deserved.
"Oh shit. I didn't think about the landing!" Deuce, oh Deuce… He's named right. Since he only has two braincells in that head of his.
"HOW STUPID ARE YOU!?" Ace shouts. "We got Grim, but if the Headmaster finds out about the chandelier-"
SPEAK OF THE DEVIL AND HE SHALL APPEAR!
Yep, there he is, cross-armed and looking at us. At the absolute worst and most perfect moment too. "If I find out about… what?"
We are fucked. We are absolutely, positively fucked right now. I can see the glaring of the glowing things he calls eyes behind that weird mask. I have not felt like I was in trouble like this in an eternity and I have no idea why I am on edge right now. Oh fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck.
"Ah… Headmaster Crowley…" Ace looks defeated.
Pure rage is in his voice, "WHAT. HAVE. YOU. DONE THIS TIME?!"
"Nyah… my head keeps spinning…" Grim whines pathetically… and he falls unconscious. I go over to check on him; he's still breathing, but he might have a kitty concussion.
"Was burning a statute not enough for you, and now you've gone and destroyed a chandelier?!" We're screwed. "I am done with this! ALL OF YOU ARE EXPELLED!"
"I'm not a student." I need to shut up.
And I am drowned out by Deuce and Ace screaming in disbelief, "WHAT?!"
Deuce immediately starts to beg. There are tears in his eyes, "Headmaster, please forgive me! I can't get expelled from here!"
Crowley seems resolute, "You can blame yourself for your own foolishness."
"Please! I will do anything!" Deuce's voice strains, the absolute desperation in his voice.
"That is not a normal chandelier. It is magical, with candles that would burn for all eternity. It was crafted for us by a legendary master magical artificer. It has been here since the beginning of this academy. I would estimate it is worth more than one billion marks. Could you repay that?" He seems… so calm now. Contemplative instead of pissed off. I have a sinking feeling...
And I don't even know the value of a mark. What does it even look like? Is their—I'm getting off topic.
"A… a billion… marks?" The terror sqeaks out from Deuce.
"Can't you fix that with your great magic, sir?" Ace is changing his tune.
"Magic alone cannot fix it. Its magestone, the heart of this magical artifact, is broken. It is hard to replace magestones… This chandelier's magic may never shine again." Solemn.
"This is bad." Ace's shoulders sag in defeat.
"Shit—what am I going to do? How am I going to tell my mother…?" Deuce sounds like he's lost all hope.
Maybe I'm a little thankful I don't have parents to disappoint.
But then the devil perks up, a lift in his voice, "Ah—but, there is one thing. There may be one little change to fix this chandelier." There it is.
My instincts are so good, the bastard is up to something. Again.
"There is?!" What hope there is in Deuce's voice!
"The magestone that powered this chandelier came from the Dwarfs' Mine. If you can obtain a stone with the same properties, it may be possible to repair it."
Deuce stands up, hand fisted and held up to his chest with the other sits on his hip. Chin back as he speaks with such confidence, "Then I will find a new magestone! Please let me go!"
"However, I do not know if there are any magestones left in the mines… They were closed a long time ago. It is possible there are no magestones left to find." The crafty crow's posture relaxes.
"I will do anything if it means I won't be expelled!" Deuce proclaims.
"Very well then. I will wait for one night. But if you fail to return with a magestone by morning, you are all expelled." The somber terms are set.
"Yes! Thank you very much!"
"Ah, I have no choice. Let's go get that magestone…" Ace sighs, as if put out by the mess he made.
"You can go to the Dwarfs' Mine through the Mirror Chamber.
"What happened?" Grim's soft voice calls out as his eyes finally open. He's finally joined the waking world.
"Some of us weren't lucky enough to be unconscious the entire time, Grim. C'mon, we're going to the Dwarfs' Mines to get a magicstone to fix the chandelier you helped break." I'm not giving him no for an answer as I gently haul him up.
Now, he struggles and pushes as I gesture for tweedledee and tweedledum to lead the way. I'm not entirely clear where the Mirror of Darkness is from here.
"Good luck!" Crowley crows after us; but I swear this feels like some sort of ploy.
It's partway to the mirror chamber, with Ace grumbling, that I finally snap-"Don't you start!" I hiss, setting the struggling Grim down now that he feels aware enough to walk. "You started all of this. You decided you wanted to feel like a big man by coming over to mock us! I'm not even from this world, so why would I know anything about it?! You got your jollies. You fucked around, and you found out. And now through a series of fuck ups we're on this weird mission to keep your dumb ass from getting kicked out on the first day and to not be put down in school history as an idiot! So I don't want to hear shit, got it?"
It's then I realize I am shorter than Ace, and that he seems intimidated despite that. Fine. I lost my temper.
We're silent the rest of the way, but when we arrive I catch a grumble: "...I've got nothing but rotten luck."
If I wasn't cooling down, I might've smacked him.
Now, I wasn't aware you could use the mirror to travel anywhere in this world! Well, it makes sense, given what happened at the ceremony. But as we enter the mirror's domain, I feel a bit of nervousness. What if it goes wrong for me because I don't have magic? Will… it right the wrong and take me home, then? They can do this without me, at least.
Maybe.
These boys are hella dumb.
"This is no time to complain! WE need to go!" Deuce is all business, and it's refreshing.
Standing in front of the mirror that was, in fact, the causer of my main humiliation yesterday and some of what caused the debacle of today—we're ready to go, right?
"Mirror of Darkness!" Deuce cries, "Please take us to the Dwarfs' Mine!"
It's—so weird. How the surface of the mirror ripples like some threw a stone in the middle of a still pond. The center glows, and the light shines at us, brighter and brighter! Suddenly, we're enveloped in a too-bright light and—and I can't see anything. I feel a rush of movement I could never explain. Feeling myself tense up as this might be my mysterious ticket home.
Will I remember this as a passing dream?
