This is a full-fledged sports stadium. I am amazed. Does Heartslabyul have one too? Look at it. Honestly, while I am basically being guarded so I can't escape, which is pretty much kidnapping of some sort, right? But I guess that doesn't matter. I'm worried about the Hearts boys and Grim. This is definitely not a fair match, and worse yet…

I can't really help, can I?

Sometimes it really sucks to not have magic.

"I'm gonna tear all of you apart!" Grim declares, I think; it's a little muted.

"Heh, keep that up; we'll see." Ruggie's laughing, I think?

"Fine by me, but let's see if you're all bark and no bite." Leona's smirking—and I think that's what he says. But I do not care for him right now.

The match starts, and it's one-sided from the start. It looks like the Savanaclaw members are playing with their food.

"ON YOU-!" I find a hand clasped over my mouth, and I struggle.

"Hey, no side-lining, iHousewarden/i." The asshole hisses at me.

I tug at his hand, struggling for a bit. I can't say anything, and they're not noticing.

Honestly, it might be better that way as it goes on; they don't need the distraction from me, right?

The difference in strength is definitely getting to me; it's inhuman, and no wonder he was weirded out when I slipped out of that wrist-grab. I could maybe… but I know it'll cause more problems if I struggle too much. I do not want these guys to get seriously hurt.

The power move of throwing the disc from the halfway point of the field by Leona just shows how outclassed they were the entire time, and while it boils my blood, at the same time I'm not entirely surprised at their skill. They have a fancy stadium here and ieverything/i. They must be very serious about this sport.

God it's wizard American Football. I may die laughing.

But is, unfortunately, a decisive loss for our team. Maybe we're done with this—because I would like to not be held and muted, thanks.

I am about to bite him.

"We lost…" Poor Grim.

"There's… we couldn't even… score…" Ace, is also worn out.

"That formation…" Deuce comments.

Cater looks down too. "Leona's always been… a daunting player. We can't win like this."

"Hey, what's the matter…? Giving up? Already?" I can see the arrogant smirk from here.

I could bite the guy to get let go; and I definitely give a good tug to the arm; I'm not trying to break away full-heartedly because I know our little group of investigators is entirely outmatched.

Ruggie's laugh is quite unique to him, isn't it? "What happened to all that big man talk…? Where did it go?"

"C'mon, herbivores. Get up. We should play another game." I really dislike Leona.

I put my hand into a claw like grip and slam it down on his wrist to pop it off like one would a choke hold. I manage to escape, taking off after delivering a sound kick to his ankle—it should be a few seconds.

I manage to jump down and get in the way, between Leona and my exhausted group of friends. I'm huffing myself out of panic. My heart hammers in my chest. I am not the boldest person but my gosh. "This is ridiculous—we're stopping. You've been entertained, or whatever this bullshit is." Ah fuck I will be iscrewed/i if there's a strike.

"What is going on here?!" I did not notice Jack enter the scene. He looks furious—I can see his tail hair is poofed and on end. The furious look is very intimidating. Why IS he here?

"Oh? We're just playing with the herbivores that trespassed… this is iour/i territory, after all." Leona's got a smooth delivery of everything he says and I want to punch him in his face.

"What's fun about bullying an innocent g—people?" I'm not sure what Jack is trying to say besides he does not like bullying the weak. I do inot/i get the fucking slang here.

"Oh? Lil' Jack's trying to be the cool hero here?" And that damn laughter. There's two people—three I want to punch at Night Raven College and two of them are right here. If it wasn't for magic I'd probably go toe-to-toe with at least these two right about now.

It's the Texan in me, or something.

Or I'm just really fed up with the heaping pile of bullshit people have given me lately. Hm. Maybe that.

"I can't stand watching this shit any longer." His voice grows in volume, oh, wow, am I about to see a coup via Jack?

There's a tsk from Savanaclaw's Housewarden. "Hah, listen to that drivel."

I'm quietly moving while they're distracted, helping Ace and Deuce to their feet. Making sure Grim isn't injured. Cater's standing, and we're pretty much all thinking we might make a break for it while they're having an inter-dorm conflict. I hope they continue to have it, because it really might be our only shot in getting out of here.

"Jack! A bratty little freshman like you needs to shut their damn yapper talking to the Housewarden!" Ah, good, more inter-dorm conflict!

"And look who's running their mouth. That's not proper for an upperclassman to say, isn't it?" Wow, crossed-arms and ready to throw down. I might like Jack.

"What shit are you saying!? You wanna end up like that too?" Honestly, in physique, Mr. Small Ears looks unmatched to Jack and I'd pay to see that fight.

Jack is ihuge/i.

"Heh, freshie… you sure have guts to talk like that." I think Leona's… impressed? But he looks irritated. Finally, his hands lower from his hips. "Whatever. I'm bored. There's no point fighting you." His hand goes to his… temple… or by where a human ear would be? "Let's go, Ruggie."

"Yes sir!" Ruggie responds, casual as the two of them walk off.

I.

What?

"Hey! We won't let you off easy next time!" That's the guy I escaped. Huh.

I guess if their leader isn't moving, they won't either. Curious.

"Are all of you okay?" I ask the… teetering group. And I look at Jack. "Thanks."

"Oh… that was uncool." Cater sighs tiredly, but with what looks like a forced smile.

Deuce looks with a smile, very grateful to Jack. "Thanks for saving us."

"...It's nothing… I didn't come to save you guys anyway." He rubs a hand on the back of his neck. Ears flicking. Is he a little embarrassed? Jack's kinda cute, huh? He won't look at us.

"I'm dirty… let's go back to the dorm." Ace looks like he aches too.

Grim looks so down. "I'm so hungry…" Yeah, that's normal, Grim.

"Well, thanks Jack! We're going now—take care of yourself, okay?" He's still got that big grin.

"I said before I don't need your concern. Go already." Hm, I'm starting to think Jack might be a wee bit of a tsun tsun here.

I think that's right. Tsundere… tsun tsun… It's been awhile since I've been into that weeb shit. Really into it.

Something about him, though, makes me think he wants to say something but he won't for some reason or another. Maybe I'm looking far too into this but it's rubbing me the wrong way. Ah, shit. Ace has a limp, and Deuce has him over his shoulder. We'll have to check that out—soon.

It's not a terrible walk between dorms, the mirror-transport really helps, doesn't it?

We manage to get inside, and to the lounge. Most of us battle-worn, and I'm just emotionally tuckered out. The mild threat from Crowley, and the very real—hm. Something about what Jack said bothers me. I don't know what. There's something about Savanaclaw that's off, but it might just be because they're major assholes.

What is it that bothers me so much? I wish I knew.

Well, we are basically splayed around the lounge. Riddle comes in, brows knit in concern as he sees us. "What happened-?" He's not spewing some rule. Miracles.

"Well, about that… we went to check through the list, and Leona had a bit of an issue with us investigating there." Cater explains. "So they trapped us in a Spelldrive game, and kidnapped No. It wasn't great."

There's a red-hot tempered Riddle that we all know and love. "EXCUSE me?"

"It wasn't a good time, Housewarden." Deuce admits. Rubbing his shoulder.

I'm looking over Ace's ankle, at the moment. "...Okay, we're going to take care of this today. Deuce, can you get him to the kitchen here for me?"

"Sure!" He's up. And we're slinging Ace along.

"Wait—what are you doing?" Riddle's concerned.

"I'm going to introduce you to the fix-a-twist-in-a-few." I follow, and I get to the kitchen sink, plugging them, and throwing on the cold water in one side. "I need a lot of ice."

I'm surprised Riddle's up with this as he brings me two trays, and I dump them in. "Ace, sit on the counter."

They've got him up, and I switch the sinks. Putting hot water-"Test this, is it as hot as you can stand?"

Ace leans, dipping his hand. "Yeah, that's the limit."

"Okay, so basically, this is a good way to de-swell an ankle. It's one minute cold each time alternating with five, to one minute heat." At least that's how I've always done it.

"Interesting…"

"Yeah, it's a trick from my gymnastic days. I twisted an ankle and sprained a wrist a few times." I laugh a little. Wow, that was an eternity ago. I should start practicing the stretches to get back into flexibility mode, honestly. I was sort of keeping up when them when I arrived; I'm still fairly bendy, but now that I'm this age again it'll be a cinch.

The sinks are filled, and it's just about timing and switching Ace back and forth; he complains, but it does work as his ankle looks unswollen by the time we're done. "If it's still swollen in the morning, do it then—and honestly twice a day. But I've never had to do it more than once. Just keep off it until morning, okay?"

"Thanks, who even wants to go the the infirmary right now?" Ace laughs, as he gets down and uses Deuce's shoulder. "C'mon, let's go back to our room. I wanna shower and all that."

"Sure… see you, No."

The brain cell sharers retreat.

I return with Riddle to the lounge, and he is ideeply/i mulling something over.

We sit down, and Cater's already gone. Grim's still… moping over all of it, and I get it. That was rough.

"No Wei." Ugh, why, Riddle?

"Yeah?"

"Tell me everything." Oh… great. Thanks for being so thorough, Riddle Rosehearts.

"We parted, and the group of us went to check on Jack Howl—who rebuffed us, and he said something about… he probably wasn't a target? I mean, considering his size I doubt many people would target him, but there's still the risk. We were definitely treated as an annoyance, but of course we encountered—I think either sophomores or juniors of Savanaclaw. It was pretty close to a tussle when Leona, the Housewarden, and Ruggie that we had met earlier… at some point…" I pause, because something is bothering me. I still don't know what! This is so frustrating! "Anyway, they basically coerced us into a Spelldrive game, but Cater made sure I was kept out of it."

"Good. You would have faced severe injuries. You must not get into affairs with magic…" Ah, if he wasn't an inch shorter than me I would probably feel less chided.

"I know, trust me." I shake my head; it's a bit annoying, after all. Because I am without magic, I have a huge disadvantage here.

"Continue."

"It was one-sided, and they were moving for another trouncing when I did get in between, and then Jack came back to interrupt? He basically put Leona's mood off, and they left with some threats… We managed to get back alright enough, but it only makes them suspicious. But maybe that's just how this dorm is? I don't think I'm familiar enough with the dorms and how the people are to really make a firm decision, but I guess they're currently at the top of my list."

Riddle's nodding. "We will meet tomorrow for breakfast. Come, I'll treat you two to dinner."

"Stupid jerks…" Mumbles Grim, but he perks up. "Dinner?!"

"Yes, come along. Both of you. We can get something from Sam's."

Well, I'm not here to argue with a free meal, and it keeps me from cooking.

Honestly, it's a pleasant walk, and Grim seems a little perked up with his sing-song, "Free food, free food~"

It puts a smile back on my face, even if I notice Riddle is fairly deep in thought.

Honestly, he's still like that even after we get these pretty awesome box meals and go sit down in the Courtyard. I suggested it, because it feels like too nice of an early evening to eat inside.

"I've never really eaten outside before." Riddle admits as we sit down. "Not sitting on the ground, at least."

"It's like a picnic." I grin; and Grim is already tearing into the extra-large special. He does eat a lot. Feeding him is costing Crowley a lovely fortune… and my dorm budget.

Well, not entirely. I'm able to arrange some work on the windows next week—I need a lot of work done; and the roof is sound, now, after the repairs. They're very quick, and I never see them… but as long as the work is getting done I'm pretty happy!

I open mine, taking a bite of the included sandwich. It's a sandwich, vegetables, fruit, and some sort of sweet with a water. It's pretty good, honestly. Good mix of flavors, and pretty fresh. This is really nice, honestly.

Riddle's eating fairly neatly, and in some sort of order. Well, he probably will never change.

"I'm to take the cooking class here soon." He admits. "I should know how to cook, being Housewarden."

"Huh, we have cooking classes?" I didn't know that.

"Of course—there are many electives to choose from at Night Raven College, and many of them help young sorcerers obtain life skills, like cooking… but you already cook, right?" Is he a little jealous?

"Well, yeah. I cook, barbecue, bake, smoke—all of that." I'm from Texas, it's required or whatever. At least that's what Grandma said. I learned the barbecuing from a neighbor though.

"Oh…?" He's pretty perked up. "What type of cuisines?"

"Mostly American…? But honestly there's so many hodgepodge dishes in American cuisine—well I can also make Tex-Mex… that's one… of… wow. Okay! So, basically, where I'm from, is a ivery/i large country, and there are people from all over the world there and so there's a huge melting pot of cultures, and of course that eventually means foods too. So when I say American, I mean like… a lot of different mixed foods. We have something called fusion, which is where they mash different foods together. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it's horrible. But I guess I'd consider barbecue like truly American cuisine." I cannot verify if that's true. "But yeah, there's a lot there. I learned some foreign dishes with my friends, too. They always wanted to make things from animes…" I miss that.

"Anime…?" Riddle is clearly confused by all of these things I'm introducing. Oops.

"Uh… I… I can't explain that to you. Wait—basically, it's a genre of foreign television shows! It was really popular in middle school, and we'd have sleepovers where we'd make something from one of the shows."

He looks amazed. "Fascinating…"

I can't help a grin. "There was some other things thrown in there, but honestly, it was fun. I want to do things like that here—have parties at Ramshackle after I fix it up to be presentable. Maybe sleepovers… more than the ones with Deuce and Ace appropriating the lounge." I laugh a little, that's a horrible way to put it.

There's a slight look of guilt on Riddle's face.

"Look, Riddle… we all have problems, and what matters is you've learned and you're growing because of it. We're students, we're going to fuck up." Ah, I can't help feel sympathy.

Whatever Grim grumbles around food we don't understand.

"Grim, don't talk with your mouth stuffed. We talked about this!" I scold.

He grumbles something else. Rude.

Riddle sighs. "...You're right. Every day is an opportunity to be better—which is why I will learn how to cook… would you… sample some of it, at some point?" Ah! How shy.

I smile. "Of course!"

Honestly, it was really good to have that dinner with Riddle. He also didn't have to walk us to the dorm, either.

"Thanks, Riddle! I think we'll… do better tomorrow." I sigh.

"...Of course. I'm your upperclassman, I should make sure you get back safe." He gives a worrying look to Ramshackle.

"It's structurally sound, Riddle. We're having the window people come soon, and then it'll start looking like a proper dorm, right?" I assuage him, the best I can.

"..I suppose…" He's still disapproving. "Tomorrow morning, we will meet in front of the Great Seven."

I nod. "I'll see you then!" I wave him off.

Grim's already inside, he at least waved to Riddle—but he's definitely tuckered out if he isn't talking.

We both need some rest… but I decide to get some cleaning in while Grim saws some logs. We're… doing well, maybe.

But I wish we had some answers to our mysteries.