Chapter 7

"Eh?! You really went to Dwarfs' Mine to find a magic crystal?!" Crowley exclaimed.

The trio of teens plus one cat had finally returned to Night Raven College with the magic crystal they had promised. Only now, they found themselves flabbergasted at Crowley's shock.

"Really we- what do you mean really went?! You're the one who told us to go there!" Marie yelled.

"Well, I didn't think you would really go inside the mine itself. To be honest, I figured you would give up the moment you saw the decrepit state of the place. I even had your expulsion papers completed in solemn silence. Yet you four managed to do the impossible and bring back a magic crystal."

Marie's teeth clenched as her eyes flamed with fury.

"You're telling me that you sent us off on a fool's errand?! We nearly died to get this stupid rock!"

"You tell him, Marie! Nnga! The nerve of this guy!" Grim piped up. "You almost made us fight that beast for no reason!"

Upon hearing this, the headmaster's golden eyes widened. "Did you just say beast?"

The young girl's anger slowly melted away in confusion. Didn't he know that creature was in the mines? Surely he must've known. With the creature's immense size and loud shrieking voice, it would be impossible for someone not to have noticed. At least there had to be some sort of rumors created by people exploring the mines for similar reasons. Had no one truly entered the mines all this time? None of this made sense to the teen.

"Yeah, it was this super gross and crazy strong monster. It was awful." Ace answered.

Crowley's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Please, explain in more detail."

So the four spun their tale of their encounter with the creature. Marie noticed a few times during the explanation, that Crowley would glance at her hand that was still wrapped in Ace's handkerchief. It was difficult to tell what he was thinking behind that mask. She couldn't tell if he was merely taking note of it or staring at it out of concern. Almost nothing made sense with that bird man for her. By the time the story was finished, Crowley started letting out exaggerated sobbing. He wept loudly with a huge smile on his face.

"It's so beautiful! For the day to come that students from Night Raven College would go and defeat their enemy hand in hand! It brings me tears of joy!"

The three teens blushed in embarrassment as they immediately let out objections of "I wasn't holding his hand!", "Ew, why would I hold hands with them?!", and "I wasn't hand held, who said I was hand held?"

"Regardless, this confirms my initial thoughts about you Ms. Anderson. You truly are a Beast Tamer!"

Marie nearly had to double-take in response to the statement. How from that entire story did he take away that she was a Beast Tamer? If anything, all she contributed to the battle was the finishing blow. And even then, while that did slay the beast, it did get her hand injured by that weird ink. "I really don't understand what you mean." she inquired.

The headmaster cleared his throat as he shifted to a more serious tone "Students that come to Night Raven College are selected by the Dark Mirror. They tend to have budding potential with magic that would allow them to blossom into powerful magicians. Yet you were chosen not for this. You are simply human. You have no potential and would be considered mediocre at best."
The teen gave a deadpan look. The birdman certainly wasn't winning any points in her book.
"But despite your lack of magic, I think that's exactly what this school needs. After all, you managed to guide these three to victory with your plan."

"Wait, is he saying the Dark Mirror brought me here for a reason?"

It did seem to answer a lot of questions. This Dark Mirror supposedly never made any mistakes for hundreds of years till now. But it still didn't make any sense; surely if that was the case the mirror would have chosen anyone. She wasn't special, she was just a girl who wanted to go back home. The thought of home made her frown. "Sis." She had been at her side all those years, her guardian and best friend. Going missing right before the first day of the new school was sure to spell disaster. Marie could only hope that her stay in this world would not be a lengthy one.

"You know, you have a very terrible way of wording things." Ace sighed.

"Yeah. Couldn't figure out if you were praising or insulting her nngh." Grim added.

"Hmph. Well, clearly you both don't know me well enough as these are the highest words of praise I can bestow." Crowley replied, clearly showing their words had ruffled his feathers. "Which comes to my final praises. Along with rescinding Mr. Trappola's and Mr. Spade's expulsion, Ms. Anderson, not only will I allow you to remain on campus, but I invite you to attend Night Raven College as a student!"

The three teens and the cat all yelled out in confusion.

"Wait, me a student?! But I have no magic, plus I'm a girl and this is an all-boys school. Are you sure you want me to attend as a student?"

"Absolutely! Given the full extent of my graciousness, I have decided to arrange accommodations for you in spite of your gender." Crowley spread his arms out and smiled widely as he spoke, "Luckily, you look boyish enough to pass off as male to any visitors! It is truly fortunate."

As if continuing that thought, Crowley dropped his arms and sighed. "There would be no end of trouble and scandals should word get out that I've allowed a magicless student to remain here... and a woman no less! Aaahh... the paperwork I would require..."

Marie couldn't tell if the headmaster was praising her or insulting her. Often, she felt it might be both. "Headmaster?" She asked tentatively.

"Hm?" He broke out of his thoughts, eyes flickering to land back on Marie. "Oh, right! Yes, yes, as for the magic, I have one condition. Since you cannot use magic, it is impossible for you to complete most of the classes the school requires. This is where this monster, or should I say Grim comes in. Despite the troublesome start, having cost hundreds in fire damage and disrupting our entrance ceremony... oh and there's still the fact the Queen of Hearts statue still needs to be repaired..."

"Fynah! Get on with it already!" Grim snapped, the fire in his ears flaring brightly.

Marie couldn't help but giggle a bit.

"Of course of course. Being the oh so gracious headmaster I am, I have decided to allow Grim to enroll here as a student as well. With his magic and brains, you both should be able to fulfill the requirements needed of one student. Aren't I so gracious?"

Grim was left speechless with his eyes ajar and tears brimming in his eyes. Marie didn't have to guess that those were tears of happiness. Ever since first meeting the feline, all he spoke of was attending the school. Now his wish was coming true. Suddenly without warning, he leapt up into the girl's arms. He bawled with his face buried in her chest, his fuzzy arms doing their best to curl around her but failing due to how short they were.

"Marie! Did you hear that? We're gonna be students! I'm gonna be a student!"

"The young girl paused for a brief moment. "A student..." An indescribable warmth fluttered in her heart. "But what about my home and sis?" She glanced down at Grim who perked up his head, his smile beaming up at her. "That smile, it reminds me so much of hers." She returned the smile and gave the cat a small squeeze.

"That's right, Grim. You and me are gonna be students together."

She had no idea if she would return to her world any time soon. While her sister may need her, right now there was nothing she could do. So to make the best of her time in this world, she felt it best to help Grim. After all, this was a magical school; a part of her couldn't help but feel giddy at the concept. It was like she stepped straight into one of her childhood fairytales.

"Yes, I can see you're both quite thrilled by my act of generosity." Crowley smiled. However, that smile was quickly replaced by narrowed eyes as he leaned up close. "Though I expect for there to be no incidents like there was this morning." His head swiveled to the left, allowing him to stare at Ace and Deuce. "That goes the same for you two." He leaned back with his arms behind his back. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes headmaster!" the group said in unison.

"Sometimes it's a little scary how that birdbrain could seamlessly switch from gleeful to threatening within a few seconds." Marie thought to herself.

Almost as if he hadn't been leering at the group earlier, Crowley smiled and clapped his hands together, causing his gold talons to clink.

"Wonderful, then allow me to bestow symbols to signify your status as students."

He snapped his fingers and bright white sparkles appeared around Grim's neck. When they vanished, a magic crystal now hung from his neck. Unlike Ace's and Duece's, his was a cool gray color. It shimmered brightly, almost like a dazzling diamond.

"For Grim, I give you a magic crystal. Normally students would be gifted a magic pen, but you wouldn't be able to grip it with your paws. So I made it custom-made for yourself. I paid attention to even the smallest details." Crowley's arms fanned out wide with a smile that practically reached his eyes. "Aren't I too gracious?"

Grim jumped down from Marie's arms and examined the crystal with a paw. His tail wagged happily as he proudly put his paws on his hips and puffed out his chest proudly.

"Nyeh, you hear that. I have a special custom-made collar. Way cooler than your lame pens~"

Ace simply tched with his arms crossed. Marie rolled her eyes with a sigh. Leave it to Ace to get ruffled by Grim's words. Yet what she would have initially found rude that morning, she found a bit charming. Maybe she got used to him, or maybe it was the way he showed another shade of himself back at the mines. Then again, she did get hit in the head with a rock.

"And he has ignored all my praises." Crowley sighed before clearing his throat, "Ms. Anderson, I shall be assigning you as the leader of the Ramshackle Dorm. It will be up to you to ensure Grim will not cause any trouble on the campus."

"Ah, congratulations Prefect." Duece praised as he shook Marie's hand, "I think you'll be a wonderful leader."

The girl slightly blushed at the compliment.

"Pfft. A Dorm Leader that can't use magic, pretty hilarious if you ask me." Ace laughed.

Marie grumbled before jabbing Ace in the stomach with her elbow causing him to wheeze. It's official, she's blaming the rock.

"On that note, I do have a request." Crowley spoke up, gaining the group's attention. "With you as a Prefect, Ms. Anderson, this will be conve..." He immediately stopped himself with a forced grin "I mean wonderful."

Alas, despite now being a student, the girl still could not escape the jobs forcefully placed upon her. "So much for no work." she thought with slouched shoulders. Without a word, Crowley walked over behind his desk and pulled open a large drawer at the bottom. From within it, he procured what looked like to be a camera. It certainly didn't look modern by any means, rather it looked ancient. In fact, it was caked in a thick layer of dust. The headmaster was startled by this revelation before quickly blowing away the dust and rubbing at the lens of the camera with his sleeve.

Marie grimaced as it was placed in her hands. It felt a bit heavy and clunky for her to carry around. Lifting up to examine it a bit more, she noticed the lens had a strange shape. Two round circles on top of the lens, situated like ears. It seemed strangely familiar but she couldn't quite place her finger on it.

"This is a magic camera called 'Memory: A Fragment in Time' also nicknamed the ghost camera." Crowley explained.

"Ah, I think my grandma told me about that. It's a super old magic tool, right?" Ace asked.

"It is not 'super old'!" Crowley exclaimed, prompting Marie to snicker a bit. Seems his age is a bit of a touchy subject. Clearing his throat and straightening himself out, he continued "While this camera may have originated in your grandmother's time, it is still a very special tool to this day. It can intertwine the souls of those whose photos are taken with those of the photographer. To demonstrate, Ms. Anderson, please take a photo of Mr. Trappola and Mr. Spade."

Marie raised a brow as she fiddled with the camera in her hands. Quite strange to claim it can intertwine souls. But on the other hand, she has witnessed many strange things that day. A talking cat that can breathe fire, a magical school, a man that was part bear, and ghosts. With nothing to lose, she held the camera in front of her left eye. It took some testing with a bit of buttons to figure out what to do, but when she got both Ace and Deuce in perfect clarity, she took the shot. The camera flashed and printed out a small photo from a slot.

She pulled it out and flipped it around. What she saw made her gasp in surprise. The image, it was moving. In fact, it was playing out Duece's and Ace's slight bickering between each other before having to pose together.

"Now you see why people call it a ghost camera. It can capture the memories and replay them. When people saw this they would often cry out 'Ghost!'"

"Wow, this is amazing, but why give this to me?" Marie questioned.

Crowley smiled as he placed his hand on her shoulder "Ms. Anderson, you will make many memories here in the school along with many friends. I want you to capture and treasure these memories. Make your life here a Night Raven College one you can look back fondly upon."

She smiled slightly at the man's words. He may be a birdbrain at times, but at others, he could be quite touching.

"And it makes it convenient for you to record any troublemakers. I'm sure you'll be quite a dear and report to me at the end of every day to make sure things are running smoothly. Aren't I so gracious to bestow this upon you."

Ah, of course. At this rate, she learned you couldn't expect gifts from Crowley without there being a catch. Knowing best not to get on his bad side, she managed to bite back a snide remark. Instead, she forced a grin, and said a strained "Thank you sir, you truly are generous."

At that moment, a clock on the wall had chimed. It was now ten o'clock at night.

"Ah, it has gotten late." the headmaster mused before commanding "Return to your dorms. You will need the rest as the first thing in the morning, you shall attend your first classes."

Once the group had left Crowley's office, they let out a sigh of relief. The excitement from the day had caught up to them, leaving them all drained. Marie especially felt sluggish and wanted nothing more than to plop back in her bed.

"Well, guess this is night then." she smiled.

But before she could walk away, Duece spoke up "Wait, can I walk you back to your dorm?"

She turned around a bit surprised. "How come?"

"I just want to make sure you get there alright. I feel like it's the least I can do. It's thanks to you I managed not to get expelled."

A small blush graced her face. It wasn't completely all her, Ace and Grim helped too. Still, the compliment made her feel good.

"Alright, you insist. Thank you, you're very kind you know that."

Hearing this, the boy coughed with a bright blush tinting his cheeks.

"Ugh, well if you're going, I might as well. Really don't feel like heading to the dorm by myself." Ace added in with his hands lazily lying behind his head. "Sides with Mr. Serious' IQ here, he would probably get lost on the way."

"I would not get lost! Sides, do you not want to go alone cause you're too scared to?"

"Says the one who almost bawled about nearly getting expelled."

"Oh shut up, to think I have to see your mug in class tomorrow."

"Yeah, whatever."

As the two bickered, Grim snickered in amusement before leaping up on Marie's leg. The girl helped out the feline, boosting him up where he managed to perch on her shoulder.

"Those two make a good combo. They might fight, but being the Great Magician I am, I can clearly tell they're doing it cause they're friends now."

Marie laughed a bit as she glanced over at the two boys. "You know what Grim, it's not just them. I think we're all friends now."

Yes, friends indeed. Not exactly the most ideal way she figured she would make friends, but friends nonetheless. She gave Grim a small scratch on his neck, earning a purr in return. Her green eyes gazed up at the night sky. Exactly what would tomorrow hold for her and her new friends? She had no idea and that was okay. No matter what this school threw at her, as long as she had Ace, Deuce, and Grim by her side, she would be ready to take on this new world.