"Thank you so much, Crewel-sama!"

Kat bobbed her head and knees again, then ducked out of Crewel's office, closing the door behind her. "Phew..."

She leaned against the wall, holding the stack of new-- or rather, secondhand-- textbooks and notebooks against her chest. Her moment of respite didn't last long, though. Grim started tugging insistently on her pants leg, jumping up and down.

"Come on, come on, come ON!" He insisted. "Let's hurry up an' get to those botanical gardens and get chestnut-pickin'!"

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, o-KAY! Calm down... Will you at least let me go back to the dorm and put these down first, huh?"

Grim grumbled, following her as she started walking back up the hallway. "Ugh, fiiine... As long as we get there fast, okay?"

She rolled her eyes again. "I'll do my best..."

It only took about ten minutes to get back to Ramshackle, drop off the new school materials, and make her way to the botanical gardens.

She decided to bring her new schoolbag with her, though, with only one notebook and a few pencils... Just in case. You never knew when you might need to write something down, after all. Plus, she might feel like drawing something... Even though her phone full of reference images was gone.

The gardens themselves were a huge glass greenhouse, glinting in the afternoon light. She looked at it appreciatively as she walked around it, ending up at the back, where Ace and Deuce were waiting.

"FINALLY!" Ace snapped, getting up from the ground and brushing some dirt off his pants. "What took you so long, huh?!"

She blinked, then turned on her heel, starting to walk back the way she'd come. "Goodbye," she said flatly.

Ace spluttered, and she heard him running back up to her. "H-Hey, WAIT!" He protested, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, okay?! Come on, Pre-K, don't leave... I could really use your help, alright?"

Rolling her eyes again, Kat turned, brushing his hand off her shoulder. "Don't touch me without my go-ahead, but fiiiine.... Just to get you off my shitty old couch sooner, though."

Laughing quietly, Deuce pointed towards the surprisingly thick forest behind the greenhouse. "Okay-- the chestnut trees shouldn't be far," he announced, starting to walk. "Let's get going, yeah?"

"Yep!" Kat agreed, starting after him. She had to pause briefly for Grim to claw his way back up to her shoulder. After that, the group walked into the cool, dappled shadows, a lot more pleasant than the last forest they'd been in.

It only took about another five minutes to find the chestnut grove.

"Whoooa!" Grim cheered, jumping down off her shoulder and starting to scamper around. "Lookit all these chestnuts just lyin' around! At this rate, I'm gonna be stuffin' myself with marron tart for weeks! Gye he-!"

Licking his lips, he bent over, picking up a spiky brown lump that had broken open, revealing the gleaming brown nuts inside. As soon as he grabbed it, though, he yelped, dropping it to the ground and running back to Kat's leg.

"Mee-YOWCH!" He complained, wringing his paws. "These stupid spines just pricked my paws! Grrr..."

"Aw, geez..." Crouching down, Kat took one of Grim's paws, turning it pad-side up. "You okay? You aren't bleeding, are you?" She asked, running her thumb gently over the pink, squishy beans.

"No," he grumbled, letting her feel his paw-pad for any remaining spines. "But it still hurt..."

Sighing, she scooped him up, holding him in one arm like a baby as she put her other hand on her hip. "So, what do we do now?" She asked.

Deuce hummed, crouching down and poking a clump of spiny chestnuts with the tip of his magical pen. "I don't think we're gonna be able to do this with our bare hands," he said, standing back up. "Plus, we're gonna need something to put them in, anyway..."

Crossing his hands behind his head again, Ace looked back towards the greenhouse. "There's probably some tools in the botanical gardens, right?" He suggested.

Deuce shrugged. "It's worth a look," he replied, starting to walk back down the path.

When they entered the greenhouse, Kat's mouth fell open, and her eyes widened. "Wooow..."

The greenhouse somehow seemed even bigger on the inside than it looked from the outside... Whether that was some kind of TARDIS magic or just an optical illusion, she couldn't tell.

True to its name, there were plants everywhere... Trees, vines, flowers, bushes, all with barely a brown leaf or wilted blossom in sight.

Wrought-iron gates and fences stood, in theory dividing the greenhouse into sections. They didn't seem to be doing their job very well, though. The plants grew through, around or on them, completely undeterred.

Wide stone paths crisscrossed the ground, and crystal-clear water flowed in shallow canals. The canals were lined with bright blue tiles, giving it an almost artificial, brighter-than-life feeling that she'd always kind of liked at theme parks, mini golf courses or old movie sets... But without the overpowering smell of chlorine and other such chemicals.

Indeed, as she took a deep breath, all she could smell was nature... The scent of verdant leaves, damp earth and all kinds of flowers. The tension she hadn't realized she was carrying drained out of her shoulders and upper back.

"It's gorgeous in here..."

Dammit, and she'd forgotten the stupid camera. Well, when she'd left Ramshackle that morning, she hadn't even had a bag to put the stupid thing in...

"No kidding," Ace agreed, looking around in awe. "I didn't realize this place was so big..."

Deuce nodded, looking around as well. "If it's this big, there's gotta be a groundskeeper or something somewhere in here," he said, turning. "Let's split up and look for them, okay? They've gotta have some tools we can borrow."

"A'ight," Ace agreed cheerfully. "Then... Dibs on the right path, okay?"

Deuce looked back at her, and she shrugged. "Okay," he agreed, looking back at Ace. "Then I guess I'll go left... Grim and Prefect-- I mean, Kat-- are you okay with going straight ahead?"

"No problem," she replied, shrugging. "I'll holler if I find anything, okay?"

"Same here," Deuce nodded.

Ace gave a two-fingered salute, turning on one foot and heading off to the right, where a small stone bridge arched across the canal. "Aye-aye, captain," he called back lazily.

"See you later," Deuce smiled, waving as he headed to the left, with an identical bridge.

Kat smiled back, waving as she strolled up the path in the middle. Grim hopped out of her arms, skittering along on the path next to her as she wandered aimlessly.

She wasn't really looking very urgently... She paused every few feet, touching a flower gently or crouching down to read one of the little silver plaques driven into the ground. Ugh, she'd needed this... It had really just been one fucking thing after another since she'd gotten here.

"Hey, hey-- check this out!" Grim interrupted her reverie, bouncing up and down and pointing at something. "There's a ton of fruits growin' over here!"

He paused, sniffing the air eagerly. "An' it smells like they're ripe, too!"

He stepped off the path, drool already forming at the corner of his mouth.

"Um-- ABSOLUTELY not," Kat interrupted. She hurried forward, snatching him up before he could go any further. "In case you forgot, eating things you're not supposed to is the whole reason we're even IN here, remember? Besides, I don't actually recognize any of these plants... I don't know if that's even safe to eat."

"Rrrrr..." He grumbled, slumping in her arms.

"Besides," she added. "The quicker we find the groundskeeper or... Whoever, the quicker we can make that marron tart, remember?"

This seemed to quiet him down a little. She still kept him in her arms as she walked down the path for a few more minutes, taking in the scenery.

Suddenly, she stepped on something.

What the...

It felt like a thick vine, or maybe a root?

At nearly the exact same moment, she heard a noise-- a quiet hiss or growl, like someone muttering under their breath. "Ow! Dammit..."

She jumped, looking down and stepping back from whatever had been under her foot. At first, she actually thought it was some kind of thick, light brown vine, but... The bushes next to the path had lots of big leaves, without any creepers or tendrils at all.

Then the leaves rustled, and she jumped again, holding Grim defensively to her chest.

"Hey," a gruff voice drawled. "Whoever you are, you've got some nerve, steppin' on a person's tail and not even bothering to say sorry..."

The 'vine' yanked back into the bushes. With a few more rustles, someone stood up from behind one of the trees close to the path. Leaning on it, they gave her a look that wasn't so much glaring as smoldering, a seething, dangerous look that burned like an ember.

"Oh-- g-geez, I'm sorry," Kat apologized, drawing back nervously. "I wasn't paying attention, my bad..."

The person was...

Hang on-- this was the catboy! The catboy at the ceremony! And she'd just stepped right on that tawny, brown-tipped tail!

Without the hood, she could see even more of his features. His hair was long and unkempt, with overgrown bangs, giving him a wild, untamed look. Two small braids hung down over his shoulders. He was wearing what looked like the school uniform, but without a jacket or tie. His shirt collar was unbuttoned all the way down to his sternum, with his sleeves rolled up carelessly.

Christ, he really was good-looking... Like, she'd never seen anybody who looked like this in real life, only in movies or pictures. She didn't feel the urge to do anything about it, but it was still startling to see somebody who looked like that this close...

But the thing that drew her eye the most was his ears. They were, without a doubt, the rounded ears of a lion, sitting just behind his bangs, the same color as his skin and tail. One of them flicked irritably as she watched, and she shook her head, looking back into his face.

"I-- I'm sorry," she apologized one more time. "I'll... Look where I'm going next time..."

The lion-eared boy gave a quiet snort of amusement. No, she wasn't sure 'boy' was the right word for him... He looked at least her age, if not up into his early twenties.

" 'Sorry' ain't gonna cut it," he said, a small sneer curling his upper lip, showing a glint of white fang underneath. His voice was low and drawling, almost lazy, but with an edge to it that made all the hair on her body stand up.

Grim, still in her arms, crossed his forelegs. "You the caretaker or something?" He asked, looking him up and down. "Man, you're kinda rude... You sure you should be talkin' to students like that?"

"GRIM!" She hissed angrily, shaking him.

The lion...Boy... Didn't actually seem to care, straightening up and crossing his arms as he stepped forward. "Ain't nothing worse than lying down for a nice nap, only to have some jackass step on your tail," he continued. "It'll ruin your day quicker than anything."

He was tall, too... His posture had a kind of slinking, slouched feel, but he was probably the same height as Crewel or Crowley.

She couldn't keep back a shudder as he kept advancing, slowly, like a big cat stalking its prey. "I am... So, SO sorry," she tried one more time, feeling her mouth start to go dry.

The way those emerald eyes skewered her, freezing her to the spot... It wasn't like Riddle, who had a schoolteacher or commanding officer vibe to him. This was a predator's gaze in the most literal sense of the word, setting off the alarm bells in her hindbrain like nothing had ever done before.

He stalked forward for a few more steps, then paused, ears swiveling.

"Aren't you-- Ahhh..."

He smirked, tilting his head back imperiously and looking down at her. "Now I remember. You're the one who showed up right in the middle of orientation... The magicless little herbivore who got summoned by mistake, right? Hm..."

Giving a quiet, amused hum, he raised an eyebrow, taking one more step forward.

She retreated, almost jumping out of her skin as the back of her knees hit the dense shrubbery on the other side of the path.

Coming to a stop about a foot in front of her, he bent over at the waist, long torso bridging the distance easily. Then he sniffed twice, nose crinkling like an animal's.

Kat froze instinctively, clutching Grim tight and making him squeak like a rubber toy. Oh, god... Is he actually smelling me?! He'd better not try to kabedon me, I swear to fuck...

After a moment, he straightened up, giving a sardonic laugh. "Heh... Looks like it's true! There's not a single whiff of magic on ya..."

He put his hands on his hips, casting a critical gaze over her entire body. "Weeeell... Can't say I'm the type of guy who enjoys hurting someone so helpless..."

Grim shivered in her arms, going stiff. "K-K-Kat," he chattered nervously. "I dunno what's up with this guy, but he's really makin' my fur stand on end!"

Yeah, no kidding, she thought, still unable to move or speak.

"...Doesn't mean I'm not gonna do it, though," the lion-man continued. He took a few steps back with an unpleasant smirk. "See, nobody gets to stomp on my tail an' just stroll off like nothing even happened. Not to mention, I'm all pissed off from bein' woken up from my nap, too..."

He walked in a slow half-circle around her, tapping his chin theatrically with a finger. "Now let's see... I think that'll run you about... A tooth."

This jerked Kat out of her trance. She shook her head, the electric pulse of fear and adrenaline surging through her veins. "W--Wait!" She protested, skittering sideways on knees that felt like water. "Whadd'you mean, a tooth?! Isn't this a little extreme for something that was an accident?!"

"H-Hey, Kat!" Grim yelped, putting his paws on her arm and shaking her urgently. "Start runnin', will ya?!"

"Too late," the lion-eared man sneered. Pouncing, he grabbed her by the lapels of her jacket, yanking her forward as he pulled back his other fist.

Dropping Grim, she flinched, holding up her arms and bracing herself, when...

"LEONA-SAAAAAAN!"

Her would-be assailant froze, lowering his fist. "...Huh?" He muttered, flicking an ear and looking around with a frown.

Someone was jogging down the path from the opposite direction, oversized shirt and jacket bouncing loosely.

Giving a quiet, disappointed growl, the lion-eared youth let go of Kat's jacket. She staggered back, one hand on her chest as her heart raced so hard she thought it might try to escape from her body.

"Oh, for cryin' out loud... I knew I'd find you somewhere around here, Leona-san!" The newcomer scolded, coming to a stop with their fists on their hips.

They were almost the same exact height she was, with light skin, a sharp face, and a mop of sandy hair not dissimilar to Ace's. Their build was slim, bordering on skinny, and even their pants were oversized, rolled up at the ankle. They were wearing a yellow vest and armband, which marked them as a member of Savanaclaw...

And, unsurprisingly, they had a pair of animal ears and a tail.

What kind of animal she couldn't exactly tell... The ears were roundish, but too big for a lion's or a bear's. What little she could see of the tail looked sort of canine, the same sandy color as their hair with a tuft of darker brown near the end.

They glanced at her curiously, with lazy, down-tilted gray eyes, then back to the lion-man... Leona, possibly? "Didja' forget? You've got after-school classes today!" They scolded, tugging at his sleeve.

Kat stepped back, bracing for the explosion.

Instead of turning on the newcomer, though, Leona just sighed, putting his fingertips to his temple. "Ugh... An' now the annoying guy's right back on my tail," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

The sandy-haired newcomer was really tugging at him now. Grabbing his forearm, he pulled him, slowly but surely, back up the path, like a small animal dragging an oversized toy. "Leona-san, you've already repeated a year!" They chided, with a cheeky smirk. "Keep this up an' next year, you and I are gonna end up bein' classmates!"

"Ahhhh... Shut up already, will ya?" Leona growled, jerking his arm out of the smaller student's grip. "I seriously can't stand all the fuckin' yappin', Ruggie!"

'Ruggie' huffed, putting their and/or his hands on his hips again and pouting. "Oh, so you think I LIKE bein' on your case all the time?" He said irritably.

Clicking his tongue, he shook his head. "Come onnnnn, man... You always kick up a huge fuss, but you could seriously just breeze through life no sweat if you'd just TRY!"

He grabbed Leona's sleeve again, tugging him insistently up the path.

Leona apparently realized he wasn't going to get out of this one. He scoffed, turning and surrendering to the smaller student's herding.

He shot one last piercing look over his shoulder, tail lashing irritably. "Tch... Guess I'll let you off easy this time. Next time you blunder into my territory, you better watch your back... Herbivores."

The last word was spat with such derision that it made Kat flinch.

The unlikely pair walked off, the sound of the sandy-haired stranger still scolding Leona fading off into the distance.

"Phew..."

Kat's knees folded and she dropped to the floor. "God, we've GOTTA stop tripping hostile encounters like this... My heart's seriously gonna give out!"

"Fwaaah... Man, that made me NERVOUS!" Grim squeaked, running up and hiding behind her to peer out at the shrinking figures in the distance. "What was with that guy just now?! What, does he think he's some kinda bigshot gangster or somethin'?"

Kat shivered slightly, even though the air was warm. "Yeaaah, I-- I don't think he was the groundskeeper," she muttered, rubbing her upper arms.

Those ears, though... And that tail. The wild hair, the eyes... He was definitely a lion.

And that-- that scar...

Another wave of dizziness washed over her, and she closed her eyes, putting her fingertips to her forehead. Then she sighed, getting up slowly and brushing off her pants. "Oof... Okay, let's start--"

"HEEEEEEY! KAT! GRIIIIIM!"

She turned, blinking. Ace and Deuce were jogging up the path towards them, with large wicker baskets hooked over their arms.

Ace, carrying two baskets, waved something in the air. It was a pair of wooden tongs, which he clacked together for good measure.

"Check it out!" He called, and she could already make out the grin on his face, even at this distance. "We found some baskets an' tongs!"

Kat sighed with relief, jogging unsteadily over to them. "Great job, you two!" She panted as Grim caught up to her.

Deuce, with only one basket, but carrying two pairs of tongs in one hand, looked at them worriedly. "Did something happen to you two?" He asked, glancing between her and Grim. "You look kind of rattled..."

Kat waved a hand dismissively. "Nothing... Well, no, not nothing, but I'll tell you about it later. I'm still kinda processing everything..."

She saw the look Deuce was giving her, and waved harder. "No, no, don't look at me like that... Listen, we're FINE! Seriously! Now come on, let's get back out there and get those stupid nuts, okay?"

Grim jumped, yelping. "Oh, right-- the chestnuts! We gotta gather those chestnuts so we can get to tart-time sooner!"

Hopping up and down, he started pulling at Kat's leg. "C'mon, c'mon-- we can fill 'em in on that crazy groundskeeper while we work!"

"...Groundskeeper?" Ace asked, giving her a weird look.

Kat shrugged. Accepting a pair of tongs from Deuce, she scooped up Grim, tucking him under her arm.

"Come on," she sighed, heading back towards the entrance. "Let's just get going... I'll tell you once we get back to the chestnut grove, okay?"

"...An' then he just peaced out!" Grim finished, folding his front legs. He was sitting on a low branch of a nearby tree while the three humans worked. "I mean, how crazy is that, right?"

Ace winced, shaking his head. "Yeah, there is... NO fuckin' way that guy was the groundskeeper or the caretaker or whatever," he said.

"Hm?" Grim frowned, flicking an ear. "...Huh. Come to think of it, I guess he WAS wearin' the gold colors of that... That banana-claw dorm or whatever it was..."

Deuce looked over at him, frowning too. "Banana...?" He repeated. "I think you meant Savanaclaw, right?"

"Yeah, I actually thought that, too," Kat admitted. She clacked the tongs together a few times, looking around for another promising chestnut. "I was just glad he didn't end up punching me in the fuckin' face, so I wasn't exactly gonna ask him which dorm he was in..."

Deuce sighed, shaking his head. "You know," he muttered despondently. "I'm starting to think there are way more delinquents in Night Raven College than I'd expected..."

"Mmm," Kat murmured, nodding.

A few more minutes of nut-gathering, and all three baskets were heaping full.

Standing upright, Ace clapped his hands, giving a satisfied sigh. "All right... If this isn't enough chestnuts, I don't know WHAT is! Let's get these bad boys over to Trey-senpai, okay?"

"Myahaha!" Grim cheered, pumping a paw in the air again. "Yeah, let's get goin'-- I can taste those tarts already, baby!"

"Yeah, like you even did anything," Ace scoffed, glaring at him.

Kat gave him a look, then shook her head. "Okay, okay, come on..."

She hefted the basket, continuing to clack the tongs in her other hand. Damn, these were really good stim toys... "Last one there's a rotten chestnut. You coming, Grim?"

Grim jumped down from the branch, scampering eagerly around her feet.

"Hey, you might not wanna do that," she warned. "We're gonna be walking with heavy objects... Don't wanna trip over and drop all these spiky bastards all over you."

He grumbled, but skittered forward, pausing and standing up on his hind legs to look back at them. "Hurry up, hurry up!" He urged excitedly, tail swishing.

"God, you don't have to tell us twice," Ace grumbled. Pulling the handle of his basket up onto his shoulder, he marched forward. "Who does he think he is, the dorm head?"

Laughing and chatting, the group wandered back down the forest path, slightly out-of-breath but in good spirits.

.

Trey opened the doors to the cafeteria kitchen for them.

"Welcome back," he said. Adjusting his glasses, he cast an impressed look over their heaping baskets. "Looks like you got a lot, huh?"

"Yup," Kat smiled, placing her basket down on the counter with a sigh. "Oof..."

She stretched her arms, wincing. Ace and Deuce did the same, and Grim hopped up onto the counter. "With these, you'll be able to make us some HUGE tarts, right?" He asked excitedly.

"Hey, hey-- off the counter, Grim," Trey scolded, shooing him back off. "Well... The bigger the tarts, the harder it's gonna be to peel all these chestnuts, so... Do your best, okay?"

Deuce grimaced. "We still have to peel all these?" He muttered resignedly, looking at the heaping baskets. "Geez..."

Trey laughed, rolling up his sleeves and moving across the kitchens to the rows of sinks. "The key to good baking is thorough preparation," he said, turning the tap. "First things first-- come here, wash your hands... And paws."

He nodded at Grim.

"Rrrrgh..." Ace ground his teeth, pulling off his glove and shoving it in his pocket. "Okay, okay, I GET it...! Since we've come this far, there's no backin' out now, right?!"

Kat snorted, shaking her head. Taking off the uniform jacket and hoodie, she tied them both around her waist, unbuttoning the cuffs of her sleeves and rolling them up to her elbows.

After washing their hands (and holding up Grim so he could wash his), they gathered around the countertop island in the middle of the kitchen.

Trey grinned, pulling his magical pen out of his breast pocket. "Normally, the first step would be soaking, shelling and boiling them the old-fashioned way, buuuut..."

The red jewel flashed, and he threw a large ball of sparkles at the baskets of chestnuts. There was a burst of light, and everyone but Trey flinched, raising their arms. When they lowered them again, all the spiny shells had cracked open, steaming.

"Ta-dah!" Trey grinned, spreading his hands. "Boiled in the shell and ready for peeling!"

"Cool!" Kat enthused, moving closer and holding her hands cautiously over the baskets. Sure enough, the heaps of chestnuts exuded damp heat, like a cooling pot.

"Now we can get straight to the peeling," Trey continued. "It can be tricky to peel a chestnut right-- but that's where magic comes in."

Deuce looked around at Ace and Kat. "Ace and the Prefect can't use magic, though-- so I guess it's the hard way for them," he said, shrugging. "Sorry..."

"Huh!" Ace snorted, crossing his arms and scowling. "Just watch me wipe the floor with you even WITHOUT magic!"

Grim hopped up onto a stool near the counter. Grabbing a few shell-less chestnuts, he started to juggle them... Well, it was more like just tossing them from paw to paw. Whatever it was, it didn't really last very long, since they all ended up in his mouth after a few tosses.

"You guys-- mmph! Ftand back an'--" Another chestnut went sailing into his mouth, and he chomped noisily. "Watch a mafter!"

"HEY!" Ace shouted angrily, pointing. "Quit stuffin' your face with the ingredients, you little hairball!"

Grim grumbled, but reluctantly dropped the remaining chestnut back onto the counter.

Kat tucked some bangs back behind her ear, coming over and looking at Trey. "So, um-- what should I do?"

Trey laughed, picking up the other paring knife and Grim's discarded chestnut. "Here," he smiled, taking the knife and scoring an X shape into the brown skin on both sides of the nut. "Don't push down too hard-- just a millimeter or so should be fine. Then you just kind of..." Slipping the knife under one of the 'corners' formed by the X, he slid it back, bringing the skin up with it.

"It shouldn't be too hard, since these are so fresh..." He smiled, handing her the knife and the semi-peeled nut. "Why don't you give it a try, Prefect?"

"Thanks!" She nodded, taking it cautiously and continuing where he left off. Her initial peels weren't quite as smooth as Trey's, but they were passable.

Putting the newly-naked chestnut down on a wooden cutting board, she picked up another one, looking over at Trey and Deuce.

Trey raised his pen again, picking up a chestnut and holding it between his finger and thumb. "Alright, Deuce, Grim-- watch closely, okay?"

His pen flashed, and he gave it a gentle flick. A small burst of sparkles surrounded the nut, and the peel opened like the petals of a flower, dropping to the counter.

"Cool," Kat muttered under her breath.

Catching her eye, Trey smiled, then turned back to Deuce and Grim. "Imagine the peel coming off-- just like that," he told them, stepping back and adjusting his glasses. "Go ahead-- give it a try!"

Deuce nodded, retrieving his own pen. "O-Okay..."

He picked up one of the chestnuts, holding it gingerly between his thumb and finger. Closing his eyes for a second, he furrowed his brow, concentrating, then flicked his pen at it. Instead of splitting off like Trey's did, the skin crumpled up like paper, sliding up about halfway and stopping.

"Aw," he muttered disappointedly, shoulders drooping.

Trey laughed, walking over and patting him on the back. "Hey, no worries," he said. "Go ahead and pull the rest of that off with your fingers, no problem! That was great for a first try-- you just need a little more practice."

Grim jumped up and down on his stool eagerly, waving his paws. "Ooh, ooh-- hey, Kat, pass ME a chestnut! I wanna try!"

Kat snorted quietly. Putting down the chestnut she was just about to peel, she slid it across the counter to him. He pounced on it eagerly, pinning it between his paws and concentrating.

His pendant flashed, and the brown skin peeled off... But only on the right half of the chestnut.

Ace, across the counter from him, snorted loudly. "Nice going, fuzzball," he said.

"Rrrrgh..." Grim puffed out his cheeks, scowling. "Oh, YEAH?! Well, it's better than what YOU can do right now, Mr. Beheaded!"

"Speak for yourself!" Ace retorted, grinning. "Check this out!"

He proudly held up a freshly-peeled chestnut, twirling the knife in his other hand. "Read it and weep! Looks like I was right-- I don't need magic to--"

"Hey, Ace-- don't play with the knife," Trey interjected sternly. "Safety first."

Grimacing, Ace put down the knife and the chestnut. "Sorry, senpai..."

Humming to herself, Kat tapped the toe of one of her sneakers on the floor, busily peeling chestnuts. The small pile of discarded skins and freshly peeled nuts in front of her grew steadily.

Each nut was a little smoother than the last, and it got easier and easier to do it, too. Soon she barely had to think about it-- or anything-- at all.

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Deuce, Grim and Trey. Deuce and Grim were also steadily improving. They could both get the skins off in one try now, floating the nuts over to the counter and dropping them with a small clatter. They weren't quite as fast as Trey, who was practically hailing chestnuts, but they were definitely making a dent in the heaping baskets.

Ace patted the counter excitedly, getting her attention. "Look, Prefect! Look!" He said eagerly, holding up the smoothest peeled chestnut she'd seen so far. "A primo perf peel!"

Kat snorted, putting a fist to her mouth. "Seriously? What's with that alliteration?"

Ace pouted, looking disappointed. "That's not a compliment..."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay... Very nice peeling work, Ace."

"Yeah, good work, Ace," Trey agreed, coming over and peering at the pile of nuts in front of the redhead. "You're remarkably deft, huh?"

Now it was Ace's turn to snort, shrugging dismissively. "I mean, one of us has to be... An' it sure ain't the furball or the tryhard."

"Hey!" Deuce objected, fists on his hips and scowling. "My peels are perfectly fine, thank you." To illustrate his point, he flicked his pen again, and another skin slid off a nut. "See?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Grim agreed, nodding. "Check this out-- if you hold mine up next to Ace's, you couldn't even tell 'em apart!" He gestured to his own little pile as proof.

"Alright, alright-- enough bickering," Trey interjected, adjusting his glasses and smiling. "Well, it's a good thing you're all so fired up, since we've still got a ways to go... How 'bout you guys put your money where your mouth is and keep peeling instead of bragging about it?"

"Yeeeees, senpaaaai," Ace drawled obediently, turning back to the task at hand.

Kat wasn't really sure how much time had passed-- it felt like one minute, the baskets were still heaping full. Then she looked down at her own chestnut-peeling.

When she looked back up, all that was left in the baskets were discarded shells. She blinked in surprise.

Deuce tossed a jet of sparkles at the chestnut in his hand, stripping the skin off and sending it into the pile on the counter.

"That was the last one!" He announced proudly, fists on his hips again and puffing out his chest. "We're all done!"

"Very nice!" Trey said, giving a small round of applause. "Even the manual side managed to get through pretty quick."

Grim snorted proudly, tossing his head. "Well, DUH!" He declared. "ANY job's good as done with Grim-sama here on the case!"

Trey laughed again, walking over and patting his head. "Excellent work, Grim," he smiled.

He gave Kat an appreciative look. "You were concentrating pretty hard, huh? I barely heard a peep out of you the whole time, Prefect."

"Ehh..." She shrugged, putting her head to the side. "Honestly, I wasn't really thinking about anything. Something about repetitive small-scale manual labor like this, it just makes the time..." She gestured vaguely. "Vanish. Like fast travel in a video game, or something."

"Ahh," Trey said, nodding. "I see... Well, good work, everybody!" Stepping back, he clapped his hands together, grinning. "Alright! Next comes the pureeing and straining!"

Ace, Deuce and Grim flinched in unison, looking shocked.

"You mean there's MORE?!" Ace demanded.

Trey snorted with laughter, shaking his head. "Of course there is!" He scolded lightly. "What kind of tart could you make with whole, unprocessed chestnuts like this?"

He folded his arms, raising an eyebrow and smiling. "I'll be counting on you for the next part, too!"

"Awwww..." Ace grumbled, slumping with his elbows on the counter and his cheek on his fist. "Man, this sucks..."

Kat just rolled her eyes, stepping back from the counter and stretching both arms above her head. "Eh-- speak for yourself, Trap Card. I'm actually having a pretty good time!"

"Brown-noser," Ace muttered under his breath.

Grabbing a fistful of discarded peels, she tossed them lightly at him, making him splutter and stumble back. "HEY!" He complained. "Cut that out! Why're you always THROWING shit at me, huh?! Some prefect YOU'RE turnin' out to be!"

"Maybe I wouldn't have to throw so much shit at you if you didn't say so much stuff that deserved to get thrown at," she retorted, crossing her arms. "And in case you've forgotten, whose couch are you currently crashing on, by the way?"

He grumbled, shaking chestnut peels out of his hair as Trey, Deuce and Grim laughed. "Ugh..."

1 catboy encounter down, 1 to go.

Leona was not paying attention to the whole 'Kat is a girl' thing going on during the ceremony. He forgor *skull emoji*

(or more accurately, he never rember *skull emoji* in the first place).

He kinda just assumed that she was pretty much anything but a girl, since this is a he-they school (and there's no way he's only basing his 'respect women' stance on assigned-at-birth. If you identify with femininity, he respect. If you don't, he do not.)

(...This might cause an interesting dilemma with someone who's genderfluid/bigender/whose femininity comes and goes in some way, shape or form. Does he respect them all the time? Does he change up the level of respect depending on how you're feeling? Does he have to stop and ask you your pronouns on any given occasion where he might respect or disrespect you?)

*clacks tongs together* Time for crab. And it's Ace's turn to show off his macaroni art to Team Mom.

I'm fudging some of the details of chestnut preparing here. I spent like all day looking at videos of it before I just kinda went 'why am I worrying this much about it? It doesn't matter, lol.'

I feel like Trey wouldn't actually let Grim on the counter, so he's standing on a stool instead.

SAM NEXT CHAPTER SAM NEXT CHAPTER SAM NEXT CHAPTER SAM NEXT CHAP--

He's my favorite NRC staff member. His vibes are immaculate and the Mystery Shop theme is a bop. (I might be biased tho because I love swing music.) Crewel is a close second, then it's Crowley, just 'cause I like his character and think he's funny.

My sincere apologies to Trein and Vargas stans. It's not that I dislike them, they're fine.

(I'm giving him his fucking bones back because he looks sick as hell. I would've been fine with them being removed in TWEN if they'd at least kept the ribcage on his vest tbh. And also the Facilier amulet brooch. It was literally in the movie! And they couldn't have kept the vest?)