I thank KatherineOzawa of Wattpad for helping me.
Grim was invested in the topic. "So what are the other dorms like, then?"
Trey began to explain "As Cater mentioned earlier, the dorms of this school are themed after the Great Seven. We have our dorm, Heartslabyul, modeled after the strictness of the Queen of Hearts. Savanaclaw, based on the persistent spirit of the King of Beasts. Octavinelle, based on the benevolent heart of the Sea Witch. Scarabia, based on the mindful personality of the Sorcerer of the Sands. Pomefiore, based on the tenacity of the Fairest Queen. Ignihyde, based on the diligence of the King of the Underworld. Diasomnia, based on the noble spirit of the Thorn Queen."
Niho fiddled with her utensils nervously. "That's a lot to take in."
"All those names are way too long! How's anyone supposed to remember 'em?" Grim pouted.
"Ah ha ha! Well, you get the idea. Want to or not, you'll learn them soon enough." Cater laughed.
"At orientation, the Dark Mirror picks a dorm for you based on the essence of your being. As a result, each dorm ends up with a distinct sort of…flavor, we'll call it." Trey went in-depth.
"That is sooo true. I totes see it."
""Flavor," huh…?" Deuce asked.
"For example, look at that guy." Trey pointed nearby at another table to someone tall and with-
"He has dog ears?!" Niho gasped.
"That rough-and tumble vibe he's got has Savanaclaw House written all over it." Trey pointed out.
"No doubt. That dorm is full of scrappy guys who are into, like working out and fighting. How should I describe the vibe…? Macho dudes? Gruff big brothers? Something along those lines. The black and gold armband is another giveaway." Cater puts out.
"Huh. All right, so what about that guy with the grey and purple cord wrapped around his arm?" Grim motioned to someone further back.
Trey followed him and answered, "He's gotta be from Octavinelle House. And the student sitting at the table in front of him has a red and gold armband-Scarabia colors." He pointed over to two figures side by side one another.
"Those dorms are for the smart students. They're always neck-and-neck in the academic ranking. Ah, but the current housewarden of Scarabia doesn't seem to be all that great of a student…" Cater shrugged.
"And here Cater goes, off on some tangent." Ace reminded.
"Ha. You learn fast. Let's get back on topic. You see the flashy one with the purple and red armband? Those are Pomefiore colors." Trey points over further and true to his word, there seemed to be sparkles no matter which angle they turned.
"Whoa! The girl with the potion books, I really like her!" Grim gaped at the smaller body amongst the taller ones.
"What's she doing in a boys' school?!" Deuce looked confused. Ace hit him on the arm.
"You two are such morons. There aren't girls officially enrolled here."
"WHAAAT?!"
Niho gave both Ace and Deuce a look.
The smaller boy looked around at their table, hearing the confusion going on, but was pulled back into the conversation and didn't think much else.
"Speaking of girls, there's a portrait in the west hall who's a real beauty. Name's Rosaria. If you'd like to meet her, I'd be happy to introduce you. Maybe we can set something up?" Cater smiled playfully.
Ace waved his hands in front of him for a 'nope'. "A painting? Hard pass! I don't care how cute she is if she's two-dimensional!"
"Come on, man. Who cares how many dimensions she's got! Anyway, they take vanity pretty seriously at Pomefiore. It's basically a dorm full of models. Their housewarden has 5,000,000 followers on Magicam." Cater squealed, and Niho could almost see hearts floating in his eyes.
"Hey now, they're not all just pretty faces. The students at Pomefiore are among the best at potions and casting curses." Trey intervened, making Cater snap out of his fantasy. Or whatever he was thinking...
"Heh heh. True dat. Next, we have Ignihyde…" the ginger scanned the place. "Their armbands are blue and black, but I don't see any around here. They tend not to be the most outgoing of students. Even I don't have a single friend from that dorm. They're kind of the polar opposite of us sunny, fun-loving Heartslabyuls."
"So they're gloomy and miserable?"
"Hey, no need to put it like that!" Trey scolds the cat. "They just have a reputation for being quiet and serious, is all. That dorm tends to attract magical-energy engineers and students who are good with tech."
'So they're into sci-fi or something.' Niho thought to herself. They seemed interesting enough.
"And that just leaves… Diahonyalara, was it?"
Ace glared at Deuce. "You were off to a good start, and then ram rammed right into the guardrails. It's "Diasomnia.""
"I know that! I just misspoke, all right?" Deuce blushed a bit, embarrassed.
"Diasomnia House is, hm… Ah, look over there. Those guys in the special seating area." Cater pointed to the Far Right of the cafeteria. "You can tell from the neon green and black armbands. They're basically campus celebrities. The vibe they give off makes it real hard for regular schmucks like us to even approach them. And their housewarden is that times a thousand."
They all look over. Ace's interest was on the smaller figure between two others. ""There's a little kid in that group!"
"Ah, we do get some child prodigies here." Trey looked at Ace. "But that guy there is no kid. He's a junior like us. Name's-"
"Lilia. Lilia Vanrouge." a voice perked up, catching both Ace and Trey off guard and surprising Niho.
Grim nearly fainted on the spot. "H-he just teleported!"
The newcomer, Lilia, flipped rightside up, letting Niho get a better look at him. He was short, had black hair with magenta highlights and very pale skin with raspberry red eyes. Her eyes widened a fraction. She remembered him from the mirror chamber, two days ago! But he had on the standard uniform, except he had a gauzy white dress shirt underneath a bright green vest, the jacket was draped over his shoulders like a cape, the tie was knotted into a bow, black gloves, and for shoes, they looked like something worn in Old England times, like Louis VIII or so…..
"I understand my apparent age interests you?" he snapped her from her thoughts as he chuckled in amusement, it sounded. "As this bespectacled fellow noted… Despite my fresh-faced, boyish good looks, it would be inaccurate to call me a "child.""
""Fresh-faced," he says…" Trey was at a loss for words, still in shock over the trick pulled.
"You need not gawk at us from afar. You may feel free to speak with us directly. We are schoolmates, are we not? All of us at Diasomnia House welcome you without reservation." Lilia grinned.
Niho looked over to see the two taller bodies from before, and that they were wearing grim/angered expressions. "Forgive me, but I don't think they agree with you." she disagreed, making the smaller male look in her direction. He walked over to her and peered down at her.
"Oho! If it isn't the new student? Niho, is it?" After she nodded to reaffirm, his smile grew wider, if that was possible. "I must say, the uniform is quite befitting for someone who doesn't harbor magic. Welcome to our Academy! I hope you make yourself quite at home," he sent her a closed eye smile. Niho didn't know whether to take his words with a light heart or tell it off as sarcasm. But she just nodded with a confused expression.
"Those guys over there aren't exactly rolling out the red carpet in terms of approachability..." Deuce broke the tension.
Lilia broke his gaze from Niho and stared at Deuce, nodding politely. "Forgive me for appearing above you during your meal. I do hope we can speak again." he bowed and walked off, back to his table.
Ace's voice was tense as he whispered, "Their table has got to be over twenty yards away from ours. And they overheard our conversation? That's WAY creepy!"
Trey recovered and cleared his throat. "Well... Diasomnia House does have a bit of a reputation for having lots of special students. Some of them are extremely talented at magic. Their housewarden, Malleus Draconia, is considered to be one of the five best mages in the world."
"Malleus Draconia…?" Niho asked curious over the familiar name spoken at the ceremony.
"You don't know who he is?" Trey asked.
"Not a clue." And she really didn't. What he looked like or even sounded like, but only his name and title. And the fact that it left shivers if even he was mentioned.
"Malleus is like reeeeeal bad news. Though I suppose the same could be said of our own dear housewarden." Cater mused.
Ace scoffed, "No kidding! He collared me for eating one slice of tart! All his rule obsession is outta control!"
"My "rule obsession" is "outta control," is it?"
Ace nodded vigorously. "You bet it is. Riddle's just a petty tyrant who leans into the whole "rules" Schlick as a pretext to keep everyone under his puny thumb!"
Deuce grit his teeth, "Ace! Behind you!" he spoke, his eyes not leaving the figure behind him. Ace turned around and saw who it was.
"Bwah?! Housewarden!"
Riddle glared down at Ace with familiar steely grey eyes. His hair was brushed back, save for two small strands bended together in the shape of a heart ahoge. He was dressed in the uniform, black gloves on both hands, the jacket was left unbuttoned, and the tie was in a bow with a small golden crown pin on the right tail of the bow, a brown leather belt looped around his waist and for shoes he had black and red oxfords.
"Hey, Riddle! What's shakin', pal? You're lookin' adorbs, as always!" Cater sang with a polite smile. Riddle's glare zoomed from Ace to Cater. But the redhead could see through the junior's facade.
"Hmph. Cater, keep running that mouth and you'll lose it-along with the rest of your head."
Cater's smile instantly fell. "Sorry, sorry! My bad!"
"Myah?! You're the guy who put that stupid collar on me at the orientation ceremony!"
Riddle's gaze shot to the two instantly. "And you're the new students who were nearly expelled yesterday. I'll ask that you not refer to my signature spell as a "stupid collar." The headmage's habit of tolerating rule breakers like you is going to send this entire campus spiraling into chaos one day. Those who break the rules should have their heads removed immediately, without exception."
"Dude, seriously? This guy looks like a wimp, but talks like a monster!" Ace whispered.
"The headmage may have forgiven you, but if you break any further rules, I assure you I will not." Riddle glared at them both, Niho mostly.
Ace broke the tension and intervened as politely as possible. "So, uh, listen, housewarden, sir… Any chance I could get you to remove this collar?"
Riddle gave a side-eye glance. "I had intended to remove it once you'd taken an opportunity to reflect upon your crimes. But I've not detected so much as a hint of remorse in the foolishness I've heard you spout today. So I think I'll let you keep that for a while. Don't worry. The freshman curriculum is more focused on magical theory than practice."
Niho wondered what he meant by that.
"And your inability to use magic will help prevent incidents along the lines of what happened yesterday. Now, if you've finished your meal, you should quit gossiping and prepare for your next class. Rule 271 is quite clear: "One must leave the table within fifteen minutes of completing their lunch." You DO understand what happens to rulebreakers, I trust?"
"Hah, more insane rules…" Ace sighed.
"I believe you mean to say, "Yes, Housewarden!""
Both first years shouted together, "Yes, Housewarden!"
He nodded, satisfied. "Very well, then."
"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on them." Trey assured.
"Hmm. As vice housewarden, I trust you'll avoid any further indiscreet conversation. Now, as per rule 339… "The post-meal beverage is to be lemon tea with two sugar cubes."" Riddle said before walking off, muttering to himself. "Thus, I must go to acquire my sugar cubes. Farewell. Don't even get me started on their violation of running out of sugar cubes…!"
As soon as his back was turned, Niho heard dripping from afar but it vanished.
"Yeesh! That was terrifying." Cater sighed.
"That guy…has some serious issues."
"Hey, don't disrespect him!" Deuce glared at Grim.
At a nearby table, two students in the same dorm spoke to one another, catching Niho's attention.
"Is the housewarden gone?"
"I totally just broke rule 186, 'Never eat a hamburger on Tuesday.' I don't know what I would have done if he'd caught me!"
"I wish he wouldn't come here so we could at least eat lunch in peace."
Cater & Trey shared a look, which she caught.
'Something screwy's going on behind the scenes….' she thought to herself. "Tell me something I don't know: why is someone like Riddle, Housewarden?" she asked.
"Riddle managed to secure the housewarden title before the end of his very first week of school. I know he can come off a bit harsh, but he's not a bad guy. Everything he does, he does because he thinks it'll improve the dorm." Trey assured.
Niho didn't seem satisfied with his answer, believing he was hiding more than he let on. 'Why is he defending Riddle? Why can't he understand what Riddle is doing is creating chaos and fear?'
"Would a good guy go around putting collars on strangers' necks?" Grim spat, making the two third years share an awkward laugh.
"That was your fault for causing trouble, Grim." Niho hit him on the nose with her finger, a thing usually done to dogs if they misbehave. He yelped and scrunched up in pain.
"Grrrrr… But that collar really hurt, and it shut off all my magic! That's just rude!"
"Hm? You're curious about Riddle's signature spell?" Cater peaked up, seeming to want to steer away from the Riddle convo and to something else.
"That means, like… It's a spell that only he can cast, right?" Deuce asked.
"I doubt he's the only person in the whole world... But yes, a signature spell is a magical ability that is, generally speaking, unique to its user. You'll learn about them in class soon enough." Trey answered.
"Riddle's signature spell allows him to temporarily seal away the magic of another. The spell is named… "Off With Your Head!""
Niho nodded, remembering when he used it in orientation all too well. "Yep, should have known." Not only was it the same saying as the Queen of Hearts, she could even hear Riddle's voice saying it in her mind.
"Even the name is complete psycho!" Grim trembled.
"To a mage, losing the ability to use magic is about as painful as losing your head completely. Which is why all of us at Heartslabyul House try hard not to violate Riddle's rules." Cater reminded.
"And as long as you are following the rules, Riddle isn't so scary." Trey put it.
"SPeaking of which-are you still not gonna let me into the dorm until I buy a tart, Cater?" Ace looked exasperated, but it only grew at Cater's response.
"Don't me, but… yeah. That's rule 53, so my hands are tied. Also, Riddle always looks forward to having the first slice of a tart. So if you want him to forgive you, you had better bring a whole tart!"
"What happened to "We're all from the same dorm, let's try to get along?" Throw me a bone here!"
"Dude, do you want that thing off your neck or not?" Niho glared at him. "Then shut up and deal with it."
"That's one thing. This is another." Cater shrugged.
"A whole tart has gotta be pretty expensive." Deuce couldn't help but bring up.
"Seriously? I don't have that much money."
"Then why not make one yourself? Trey made those three tarts by hand, after all."
Niho raised an eyebrow. "Wow, that's amazing!"
Ace's jaw dropped. "You made those tarts, Trey? That's incredible! That was like something you'd find at a bakery!"
Trey looked away a tad bit embarrassed. "Heh. I appreciate that. We do have most of the stuff you'd need but... I'm afraid I'll need something from you in return."
"You're gonna charge me to make it?! What kinda racket…?!" Ace's face became white as a sheet of paper.
Trey chuckled, "Nah, I wouldn't take money from a freshmen. But Riddle wants a chestnut tart next, so I'm gonna need you to gather a ton of chestnuts."
"Like that's any less of a hassle. But…fine. How many do you need?" Ace relented.
"Well, it's for the unbirthday party, so… Probably two or three hundred?" Trey calculated in his head.
"Did you say HUNDRED?!"
"Do you really need that many?" Niho asked skeptically.
"If we want one big enough to get Ace off scot-free, then yep! You get used to these things…." Cater nodded.
"And they're all gonna need to be boiled, shelled, and puréed." Trey recalled from memory.
Grim and Deuce didn't want any part, though. "Alright, I'm gonna head out."
"I'm leaving, too."
"You heartless cowards!" Ace seethed.
"I did make a promise to Ace to help him get out of this, so I'm up for it." Niho raised her hand.
"Thank you!" Ace sighed. "At least SOMEONE is kind enough to help me out of this." he glared at the other two at that.
"Hold up! Haven't you ever heard that food tastes better if you make it with your friends? This'll be a memory to treasure! It could even be your chance to make a splash as a cooking blogger!" Cater waved his phone in the air.
"Don't tell Riddle, but chestnut tarts are at their tastiest when eaten right out of the oven. And the only people who get to experience that culinary privilege are the ones who make it." Trey added to persuade the others. Grim seemed into it instantly.
"Well, when you put it that way… Come on, humans, let's do this!"
"You sure changed your tune quickly." Niho said blandly.
"I heard there's a whole bunch of chestnut trees in the woods behind the campus's botanical garden." Trey pointed out.
"Cool. Plan made. Let's meet at the botanical garden after last period." Ace planned, gaining nods from the others.
"We're gonna be up to our ears in chestnuts!" and the bell rang.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
The day seemed to pass by pretty fast, because before they knew it, it was after school already.
The trio walked through the trees, the fresh air blowing through their hair. "Whoa! There really are a ton of chestnuts just layin' around. I'm gonna be livin' large on chestnut tarts! Mmm!" Grim went to grab one of the chestnuts.
"Grim, there's something you should know." but before she could warn him-
"Let's get grabbin'-YOWCH! Myah! The chestnut spines pricked my paw!" Grim shook his paws in pain, trying to bite out the spines in his skin.
"I don't think we can do this with our bare hands. And we need something to put them in, too." Deuce sighed.
"Maybe we can find some supplies in the botanical garden?" Ace suggested.
"Good plan." Niho nodded.
"Let's take a look."
Inside the greenhouse, it was even more gorgeous than from outside.
"Whoa, I didn't realize this place was so huge." Ace whistled.
Niho stopped in her tracks and saw something flash by her eyes. A garden, almost like this, except there were some stone statues dotted here and there, depicting humans in everyday life….it set her off a bit.
Grim noticed her dazed look and tapped her cheek. "Niho?"
She gasped and the memory left. She looked at Grim who stared back at her, confused. In fact, both Ace and Deuce looked at her as well. "What?"
"You look a bit spaced out...you okay?" Ace asked.
"Please, when is she NOT okay?" Grim scoffed, earning him a whack on the head from Niho, who feigned stability.
"I'm good. Really."
Deuce just took her word and looked around the area. "If it's this large, it's got to have a groundskeeper. Let's split up and look."
"Sure. Dibs on the right side." Ace said.
"Then how about I go left, while Grim and his prefect go straight ahead?" Deuce directed and they all split off.
Feet away, Grim and Niho scanned the area. Grim, on the food, and Niho for the caretaker.
"Hey, come take a look at this! There's a ton of fruit growing here! Smells like they're ripe, too!" Grim's mouth watered and sneakily reached up a paw,
"Don't pick anything." she slapped his paw away.
"Ouch!"
Niho stopped. "Feels like I just stepped on something…"
A deep voice from behind her spoke up. "Hey! You've got some nerve steppin' on my tail and just walkin' away!"
She whipped around seeing it was the lion guy from before. His chocolate brown hair looked a bit unkempt, two braids handing on either side, a pair of lion ears perched atop his head. He had medium toned skin, the same summer green eyes as before and the signature scar going down over his left eye. He wore a white collared shirt, the top portion left undone, a yellow vest, black gloves with several bracelets on his wrist, the armband dangling from his waist and the brown belt holding his pants up, and leather sandals. Swishing a bit irritated behind him was a tail. A LION'S TAIL.
"Are you the groundskeeper? Not sure you oughta be talkin' to students that way, pal." Grim blurted out, and that earned him yet another whack on the head. He shouted in pain, ears scrunching down and glared up at Niho.
"Ain't nothin' worse than bein' in the middle of a good nap and havin' some jerk step on your tail." The lion growled and stacked up to her, towering over her.
Niho shook her head frantically. "I am so sorry!"
The lion squinted his eyes and stared deeply at her face. "You... I know you. You're that herbivore from orientation who couldn't use magic." He then leaned close to her and sniffed her.
Niho froze, mind running rampant with thoughts. Are you…smelling me?!'
His eyes open and it's almost….merciless. "Huh. It's true. You don't smell of magic at all. Well, can't say it'd be much fun to hurt someone so helpless. Still gonna do it, though." But then he stopped as he sniffed her again, a look crossing his face. "Wait, there's something else…."
If Niho was scared before, she was a bit more petrified now. 'What if he knows I'm a girl?!'
"I dunno what's up with this guy, but when he looks at me, it makes every follicle of fur stand on end…" Grim said to Niho.
The lion shook it off and continued, "No one gets to stomp on my tail and just walk away without payin' the price. I'm in a bad mood on account of bein' woken up from my nap, too. That's gonna cost you a tooth." The lion smirked and slowly stalked up to Niho, backing her back up.
"Please! I don't have dental insurance!" she begged, feeling her back hit a wall.
"Niho! Cheese it!" Grim pushed her.
"Leona There you are!" A new voice called out. The lion, now dubbed Leona, turned to face someone smaller than him by several inches. Biscuit brown locks, beigey skin and blue gray eyes. The newcomer, like Leona, also had ears, but they looked close to a hyena's. He wore the uniform too, but it looked a bit large on his small frame, the sleeves having been rolled up as well as the hem of the pants, and he wore light yellow sneakers to finish.
"Heh?"
The hyena hybrid ran up to him. "I knew I'd find you here! We got after-school classes today, remember?"
"Ugh… And now I've got this guy on my tail…"
"Leona, you've already had a repeat one year. If you get held back again, we'll be in the same grade!"
"Oh, put a sock in it already. I'm tired of all yer yappin', Ruggie."
Ruggie's ears flatten in annoyance. "Look, you think I like always being on your case? C'mon, man. You act like it'd be hard for you. You could skate through like if you'd just TRY. Come on! Let's go already!"
Leona clicked his tongue and turned to Niho. "Hrmph... Next time you stink up my territory, there's gonna be a price to pay, herbivores!"
He only made it three steps when Niho called out, "Hey!" and they looked back at her. "I'd prefer if you called me an omnivore."
Leona gave her a weird look but rolled his eyes and walked off with Ruggie, never looking back once.
Grim was a bit petrified from the experience. "Myah! I don't like the sound of that! What is up with this nutso?"
Niho shook her head. "Yeaaah, I don't think he's the groundskeeper…"
But two familiar voices snapped her out of it. "Yo, guys, we found baskets and tongs."
"What in the world happen to you two?"
"Let's just say….we barely made it out of the lion's den…" Niho put it.
"Oh, right, the chestnuts! We gotta gather those chestnuts so I can get my tart on! We'll fill 'em in on the crazy groundskeeper while we forage."
XXXXXXXXXXXX
"...and then he placed out!" Grim finished while they continued to pluck chestnuts.
Ace shook his head in disbelief. "Yeah, no way was that guy the groundskeeper."
"Y'know, now that I think about it, he WAS wearin' the golden vest of that Pajama-clog dorm." Grim flubbed up his wording.
"Pajama…clog? You mean Savanaclaw? You know, I'm starting to think that there's an awful lot of delinquents here at Night Raven…" Deuce pondered.
Ace looked down into the basket and nodded with approval. "All right, that should be enough chestnuts. Let's get these baskets over to Trey!"
"Myahaha! Now that we're all gassed up, it's destination: Flavortown, baby!"
XXXXXXXXXXXX
In the cafeteria's kitchen, which was pretty spacious and full of cooking ware, the three hauled the basket inside.
Trey greeted them with, "Welcome back. Looks like you got plenty!"
"Now you can make us some massive tarts!" Grim climbed up onto the counter.
"Well, the bigger the tarts, the harder it'll be to peel all these nuts, so...good luck with that!" Trey clapped his hands.
"We have to peel all of these…? Suddenly the whole room is spinning…" Deuce groaned. Trey patted him in the shoulder.
"Preparation is the key to good baking."
Ace was another story…."Yeah, yeah, I know. We've come this far. We're not giving up now!"
"It can be tricky to peel a chestnut right, but that's where magic comes in." Trey instructed.
"Ace and the prefect can't use magic, though, so it's the hard way for them." Deuce offered.
"Just watch me wipe the floor with you even without magic!" Ace smirked at Niho, but she gave him a neutral one back.
"You're gonna eat those words one way or another, bub."
Speaking of eating, Grim kept stuffing his mouth with a few of the nuts while speaking, "You guys…mmph!…ftand back and-munch-watph a mafter!"
"Hey! Quit stuffing your face full of the ingredients!" Ace slapped the chestnuts in his paws away as another memory came back to Niho. She was in a kitchen similar to this one, but instead, she was helping with baking cookies. She didn't know the exact flavor or how they looked, but….it felt nostalgic in a way she couldn't quite pin it….
"Well…..if it helps from a level of experience, I've made cookies from scratch. They turned out pretty good!...I think…" she muttered the last part to herself.
"Really? Never took you for the cooking type...then again, I never even cared what type you were…." Ace snarked, earning him a whack on the head from Deuce. "OW!"
"Be nice! " Deuce turned to Niho and sent her a silent look of apology.
Trey, who had been watching Niho for the past few minutes nodded at her work. "Nice! You're a pretty fast learner!" she sent him a small smile of appreciation and continued.
"Look at me, Niho! I managed to peel them off cleanly!"
"Whoop-de-doo." she said, as her eyes remained on her work, irritating Ace a bit.
Trey moved to Ace's side and nodded at him. "I'm surprised. You're very dexterous, Ace."
"Pretty much~ I'm a different caliber from Mr. Serious and that cat over there." Ace smirked at the failed attempts from Deuce and Grim alike.
"I peeled them cleanly, too! Take a look for yourself!"
"Me, too! Compare mine to Ace's!"
Niho snorted, "Yea, don't underestimate what people could have up their sleeves, Mr. Act-before-you-think."
Trey hid a small smile of humor and picked up. "Haha… We still have a lot to peel, but look at you being so energetic."
After sometime, Deuce shelled off the last few bits, "This is the last one… There! Alright, we're finished!" he dropped it into the basket, massaging his fingers from the work.
"Damn, the basket looks good enough to eat on it's own…." Niho mused.
"Thanks for the hard work. We finished so quickly even though we have non-magic users." Trey smiled.
Grim bragged out, "Hee hee! Everything's a breeze as long as I'm here!"
"We've still got to strain them, though."
Ace felt his heart drop in his stomach. "There's MORE?!"
Niho gave him a mock-pitying glance with, "Welcome to the world of baking."
But the three groan in exhaustion and lean on the counter.
"There! Finally got 'em all puréed!"
"My arm is killing me…" Deuce whined. But Niho was just fine.
"Nice work. It'll be all the sweeter for your pain!" Trey congratulated. Grim, having fallen down on the counter itself, stared up at the ceiling.
"The smell alone already has me droolin'…"
Trey listed off the next instructions: "I just need to add butter and sugar to the chestnut paste, and a sensible splash of oyster sauce-that's my secret ingredient!"
"Oyster sauce?!"
Trey nodded at the two's flabbergasted looks. "Yep. The umami of the oysters gives the cream a deep, savory flavor. I use this one here: Walrus-brand Young Oyster Sauce. All the best bakers use it in their tarts."
Niho raised a quizzical eyebrow. 'Walrus? Ugh, not that stupid story.'
Deuce stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Really? But isn't oyster sauce like, super salty?"
Ace thought for a minute then nodded after. "Some folks put chocolate into curry, don't they? Maybe it's the same idea."
Trey tried not to laugh out loud at their stupidity but failed. "Pfft… Ah ha ha ha! I'm totally lying! No one in their right mind would put oyster sauce into a pastry."
Ace flushed bright red and socked him in the arm. Not too hard though. "What?! So you were just yankin' our chain?"
"Ah ha ha! I mean, if you'd used your brain, you'd have realized how ridiculous it was! Let that be a lesson to you. Don't believe everything you hear." Trey winked.
Grim gave an unimpressed look. "Feh. And I thought that human was actually somewhat decent."
"Next, I'll put in the cream…Oh!"
"What's wrong?" Ace asked.
Trey looked at the size of chestnuts gathered, silently doing some arithmetic in his head and then answered, "You guys gathered so many chestnuts that we may have overdone it with the chestnut paste. I don't think we have enough cream to mix in."
Deuce rose a hand up. "Then I'll go buy some. Do they sell it at the school store?"
Trey nodded and scribbled down a list of things on a piece of scrap paper with his pen. "They seem pretty much everything, so…probably. Can I have you pick me up a few other things? I need two cartons of milk, two packs of eggs, some muffin cups, five cans of fruit…"
"I don't think I'll be able to carry all that back. Niho, could you come with me?"
She nodded. "Sure."
"Then I'm comin' too! I'm getting dizzy from all this stirrin'. I need a break!" Grim volunteered as well.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
The walk to the store took a bit, but when they made it, it's like they had stepped into a mix between a voodoo doctor's alir and a pawn shop.
"Hello, can I get some he- Whoa. This shop is wild. They have crystal skulls, grimoires, taxidermied… Uh. I don't even know what animal that is!" Deuce drank in all the details with wide eyes.
"You think they really sell cream here?"
From behind the curtain in the back, a young man stepped out. Darkened skin with black hair and purple streaks in dreadlocks poke out from underneath a purple top hat with a red sash tied at the base and a skull pin. He had dahlia purple eyes, and wore a standard outfit of a purple dress vest and jacket, dress pants with an apron over them and dress shoes. But the odd thing that stuck out the most were the skeletal details across his clothes and painted on his arms and hands and neck with a small necklace to match. And a nametag that read, "Sam".
"Greeting, my stray imps, How fare you today? Welcome to Mr. S's Mystery Shop. What among my humble selection interests you? A charm from a secluded land? The mummified remains of an ancient king? A cursed tarot card?" He greeted.
"Myah! I wasn't expectin' this kinda selection."
Deuce stepped up and handed him the list. "Um, we wanted to buy all the items on this list…"
"Ring up two cans of tuna while you're at it!" Grim smiled.
Deuce turned back to shoot him a glare. "No, Grim! We're not here for tuna!"
Niho did the same. "I said no tuna cans until you pay me back."
Sam took the list. "What's this? Cream and eggs and… Quite the sacchariferous list! I'll get everything for you." he disappeared in a flash. Then came back with all the things in hand.
"Whoa... He really does stock that stuff, huh?" Deuce was impressed.
While he rang up the items, Niho took her time to look around, when she saw a display of journals. A thought crossed her mind that it'd be a good idea to get one and write down anything she remembers or else she'll forget it in time.
"Here you go. It's pretty heavy… Are you sure you carry this? Luckily for you, our 1/100 size flying saucers are 30% off today. Perfect for carrying groceries!"
"Ooh, lemme see! That sounds awesome!"
"We're fine, thank you. Let's go, Grim."
"Myah! I didn't realize today was National No Fun Allowed Day!"
Niho turned to the two. "You two wait outside. I have some things I want to get."
They looked at her oddly, but complied. She put down a journal she had picked out of the display. A small faux-leatherback covered journal with plenty of pages, maybe around 250, to write down her thoughts and memories. Blue by the spine and left, red in the bottom right and purple with hints of yellow at the top right watercolor the front of the notebook with the pattern of a flower indented on the front, to the side, and had a small blue ribbon attached inside to act as a bookmark.
"I'd like this please and do you have any flower seeds and garden tools I could use?" She requested, taking out her wallet, courtesy of Crowley, along with a few bills as part of her weekly payment.
"Comin' up!" Sam nodded. Two seconds later, he came back with everything in hand. "What say you? Want a 1/100 size flying saucer to carry your purchases for 30% off?"
"Uh, maybe later." She declined politely.
"I wanted these things because….after visiting Heartslabyul once, I saw the roses lining the place….and I made it a task of mine to spruce up the Ramshackle dorm a bit and maybe liven it up a bit as an invite to others like myself into the dorm when they drop in. IF they do….and someone said our place looked...a bit bland…." she explained.
Sam nodded as he rang up her order, "Well, you're pretty efficient when it comes to work for the future." and gave her purchase with a smile.
"I'll let you know if I come up with something else." Niho nodded, taking her things in hand.
"Very well. Then until next time, my little imp! Do come again! Ciao!" Sam sent a small wave as she walked out the door.
"Sorry for the wait." She apologized. But Deuce told her it was no biggie and they made their way back.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Back onto Main Street, evening was just about to set over the horizon as a mix of purple and pink littered the sky.
"That store was amazing." Deuce shook his head.
"Yeah, and you're amazingly cheap." Grim put his nose in the air.
Deuce gave him a glare. "Who are you calling cheap?!" but something else caught his eye. "Hmm. Niho, looks like you got the bag with all the cans. That must be heavy. Let me take that one. I've got a little trick for carrying heavy bags." He took the other bag from her carefully, letting her take care of her own things.
"You're quite the power shopper." she said as they picked up walking again.
Deuce began rambling, "Yeah. My mom always used to stock up at sales, and the bags would get ridiculously heavy. I was the only man in the house, so I got to do all the heavy lifting, and- Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to monopolize the conversation."
Niho shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "It's great that you helped out around the house."
Deuce shrugged subtly, "No, it wasn't like that at all. The truth is, I- Owww!" but he wasn't looking where he was going and ended up hitting somebody in the side, and a crack sounded. He looked down only to see a goopey mess drip inside.
"Myah! The eggs!" Grim fretted.
"T-the carton of eggs is totally smashed! And now the bag's dripping egg goo everywhere." Deuce looked up to tell off the person who bumped into them, but they beat him to the punch.
And it was the two classmen from earlier today at lunch. "Ouch! Why don't you watch where you're- Hey! You're the jerks who broke the egg yolk on my carbonara!"
His friend followed suit. "I've had about enough of you punks. You need to learn your place!"
Deuce spat back, "… You're the ones who darted out at us from around the corner! And you picked a fight with us at lunch over an egg that you were still totally able to eat! And now you've destroyed six of OUR eggs!"
Grim stood proudly at his side."Yeah! He's right!"
"So what? You're sayin' that was our fault?" the first guy scoffed.
"I am. Please reimburse us for the eggs. And then apologize to the chickens."
"Ooh, look who's got his big boy pants on. You sure are makin' a big deal outta some stupid eggs." the second students snickered.
"What?" From there, the two began to taunt him.
"They haven't even touched the ground, so they're still edible. Quit whinin'."
"You should thank us for savin' ya the trouble of crackin' 'em!" They started laughing like it was the funniest thing they've heard.
Niho, behind Deuce, felt her anger surfacing already. She felt like putting them in their place for their mindless deeds, but an already fuming person, with a dark air around him to match, spoke up before she could.
"That ain't funny."
"Huh?"
Deuce's hair covered his eyes as he looked down, clenching his hand into a fist. When he looked up, his eyes had the same crazed look from before back in the mines. "I said, THAT AIN'T FUNNY!" he snarled. "You don't get to call my eggs stupid. You don't get to call ANY eggs stupid! Those eggs may not have gotten to be chicks, but they were gonna make some amazing tarts! Do you get it yet? DO YOU?!"
The two students backed up at his change in attitude. "What is with this guy all of a sudden?!"
"You owe me six eggs. If ya ain't gonna pay me for em, then you're gettin' a bruise for each one!" Deuce thrusted the bag out to Niho for her to hold as he cracked his knuckles.
"Are you serious right now?!"
"Buckle up, jerks!"