"HEY. Knock it off, you three."
Two figures were making their way out of the dorm building, loping over towards them.
One was strolling behind the other, arms crossed behind their head. They had sandy hair and an oversized jacket. The other, striding tall and slow with one hand on his hip, had long dark hair, light brown skin and a golden yellow vest.
...It was him.
Again.
The guy from the greenhouse... Leona.
...Oh, great, Kat thought. This is exactly what she needed right now... This fuckin' guy.
The three large students perked up, looking excited, but also seemed... A little deferential? They actually stepped back respectfully a bit as the lion-eared youth stalked over.
"Oh-- dorm head Leona," the brown-haired bully said, in a tone that was somewhere between eager and apprehensive. "Good timing!"
"These assholes are barging in an' trespassing all over our territory!" The reddish-haired one added, nodding and scowling at Kat's group.
"Yeah-- and WE were about to teach 'em a little lesson!" The bleached-hair one laughed.
Leona and the sandy-haired boy exchanged glances.
"Hmm, izzat' so?~" The sandy-haired boy grinned, strolling a little ways ahead of his companion. "Well, well, well-- let's see what we got here... Ah?"
Eyebrows raising, he came to a stop, tilting his head at Kat. "Say, I think I know you... The ones from the cafeteria earlier, right?"
"Huh?!" Kat heard Grim splutter, and suddenly he scurried out from between her ankles, glaring up at the boy. "Hey-- it's YOU! Mr. Menchi-Katsu Sandwich!"
The boy actually seemed a little startled, drawing back a bit as Grim scrambled up to his feet. "Whoa-- hey now, HEY now!" He scolded, taking another half-step back and raising his hands. "Take it easy there, pal! Let's not get carried away with givin' people such tasty-sounding nicknames, alright? I do have a name, you know-- it's Ruggie Bucchi."
The newly-introduced Ruggie huffed, adjusting his loose tie and scowling right back at Grim. "See? What'd I tell ya? A proper, manly-sounding name and everything, right? Do me a favor an' don't wear it out."
"...Haah?" Came the low, growl-like interjection, and Leona paced over as well, crossing his arms.
"Now that I get a better look at you..." He mused, peering around Deuce's shoulder at Kat. "You're the little herbivore who went an' stepped on my tail the other day at the botanical gardens, huh?"
"Whaaaat?!" One of the delinquents-- she wasn't looking at them anymore, on account of Leona's sharp gaze drawing all her attention at the moment-- asked incredulously. "The housewarden's tail? You're kiddin'..."
"There's no WAY you're gonna get away with THAT," another one-- maybe the reddish-haired one-- added.
Kat heard Deuce growl quietly, moving a little further in front of her. Ace actually came up beside her too, looking nervous but still determined.
"Well?" One of the delinquents asked as they started closing in again, grinning menacingly. "What you gotta say about that, huh, little girl?"
...Maybe Kat was imagining it, but she thought she saw a momentary flicker pass over Leona's face. Shaking her head, she licked her lips nervously, turning her attention back to the three large students.
"I-- I did say I was sorry about that when it happened," she managed as Cater joined her team of protectors, standing behind her with a tense look on his face. "And-- I am not a 'little girl'-- I'm nineteen, okay?!"
"Aw-- you're 'sorry'?" The brown-haired bully sneered. "Don't gimme any a' that-- if that's all it took, we wouldn't need the police or nothin', now would we?"
"Ah-- hey, yeah, THAT'S right," Ruggie piped up, looking up from his glaring contest with Grim and giving Kat a lazy smirk. "I was wonderin' where I'd seen you guys before... It was at the gardens, huh?"
Grinning, he glanced back at Leona, quirking an eyebrow briefly. Maybe Kat was imagining it, but she thought she saw Leona's eyes dart back and forth between her and the sandy-haired boy for a second...
"C'mon, Leona-san, Ruggie-san-- what are we waitin' for?" The pale-haired bully complained. "Let's get 'em already!"
Leona scoffed, putting his hands on his hips. "Quit yappin' like a pack of wild dogs, idiots," he said shortly, rolling his eyes and giving a dismissive ear-flick. "What, you really wanna risk getting in a fight right before the tournament and gettin' disqualified?"
"WHAT?!" The pale-haired delinquent protested, face falling into a disappointed scowl. "What, ya mean just let 'em go?! But all this nice, juicy prey just walked straight into our territory... Can't we even nibble on 'em a little?"
Kat winced, drawing back a little as Grim's claws dug into her leg.
Geez... Were they really pushing this whole wild-animal gimmick hard, or did they actually wanna eat them? It was probably the former, but still...
Leona curled his lip into some kind of frown or scowl for about half a second. Then a sly smirk spread across his face.
"Who said anything about letting 'em off the hook?" He drawled. "Nah-- we're gonna settle this little dispute with a nice, friendly game of Magical Shift. How's that sound?"
The large students turned, blinking, a little stupidly, at him. "Magishift?" The brown-haired one asked, cocking their head in a very animalistic way.
With another scoff of laughter, Leona folded his arms, stalking forward a few paces. "After all-- it's not against the school rules to use magic during a match, is it? I mean, no matter what kinda spells we sling, it'll aaall just be part of the game..."
The three delinquents gave various mutters of realization and excitement, starting to grin eagerly again.
Ruggie's smirk spread into a full-on cocky grin, way too wide to hide behind the loosely curled fist he brought up to his mouth.
"Heheh-- awww, Leona-san, you're such a bully... If we're talkin' you here, I doubt this weak-lookin' bunch could even last one game with ya!" He announced. Then he gave a hissing kind of snicker that sounded like "Shihihihihi!~", shoulders and ears twitching in time with his laughter.
Down at her feet, Grim growled, and Kat jumped as his claws dug even deeper into her leg. "Mrrrgh... Why, you-- there ain't no way I'm gonna take THAT lyin' down! Fine-- if ya wanna play, you're on!"
Deuce, still standing protectively in front of Kat, sighed a little, shooting a glance down at Grim. "Yeah, well-- if we wanna leave, it looks like we don't really have a choice..."
Scoffing, Ace cracked his knuckles, stepping forward a little and scowling. "Tch-- alright, FINE! If that's how it's gonna be-- you're on!"
Glancing back over his shoulder, he flashed a smug, dangerous grin at Cater. "Cater-senpai! You better remember this when you're puttin' together the new team roster, you got it?"
Cater, still standing behind Kat, looked back and forth between Ace and the Savanaclaws, obviously mildly panicked. "Eh-- s-seriously?!" He demanded.
Then he sighed, shoulders and head drooping as he put a hand to the back of his neck. "Ahhhh-- man... Guess it can't be helped... But leave Prefect-chan outta this, okay? She's got nothing to do with this."
"Haah?" The reddish-haired student demanded, swiveling their ears and turning to look at Kat. "And why should we? She's just as guilty of waltzing in on our turf as any a' YOU guys, right?"
"Hey-- back off," Deuce snapped, raising his arm protectively. "Leave her alone-- she can't use magic, okay?!"
"Yeah, what he said," Ace agreed, stepping back a little and cracking his knuckles again. "Or what-- do you only think you've got a chance if you go up against a non-mage, is that it?"
Glancing back over his shoulder, he gave Kat an apologetic grimace. "No offense, Pre-K."
She shrugged helplessly back at him, still looking around nervously at the assembled Savanaclaws.
One of them-- the brown-haired one?- growled a little, sounding offended. "Rrrgh-- why, you red-haired little punk!" He snapped, starting forward. "You better watch your--"
He was interrupted by Leona, throwing his head back and giving a short bark of laughter. "HEH! Nah, he's got a point... Alright, then. The little glasses herbivore can be the bench-warmer for your team, how 'bout that?"
Kat looked around again, licking her lips nervously. The three large Savanaclaws were looking at her with faint, nasty smirks on their faces... Blushing uncomfortably, she looked down at the ground, shuffling back a little bit.
Cater, coming up behind her, grinned, giving her a soothing wink and a small wave as she turned to look at him. "Hey, hey-- relax, Prefect-chan," he smiled. "Don't worry-- you just watch, okay? Leave it all up to us!"
"Y-Yeah, but," Kat muttered, looking back and forth between him and the Savanaclaws. "I mean..."
"Hey, seriously-- relax," he assured her, leaning in a little closer. "Trust us on this-- but keep an eye on the other team's movements for us, a'ight? Tell us if they're up to something sketchy if you can."
"I'll... Try," Kat muttered, holding her elbow nervously. "But-- I really don't know anything about sports... E-Especially about Magishift; I've never-- I mean, we don't have it back home, and--"
"Hey, hey-- herbivores!" A gruff voice interrupted. Suddenly, the three large students were hemming the group in again, starting to herd them back towards the plateau with the carved stairs. "Quit it with the fuckin' yappin', alright? Stalling ain't gonna help you any, ya know!"
"We're not-- HEY!" Ace protested, staggering back and bumping against Kat. "Knock it off-- OW! Okay, okay, we're GOING!"
With muttered complaints, and a brief pause to get Grim's claws unstuck from Kat's pants, they reluctantly submitted to the Savanaclaws' herding. Making their way across the stretch of desert, they started up the rough, winding stairs carved into the side of the plateau.
As Kat started climbing, one hand gripping Ace's shoulder for stability, she glanced back. The three big Savanaclaws were still right on their heels, 'encouraging' them onwards. Leona and Ruggie, meanwhile, were still standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching their ascent.
...She wasn't really surprised that Leona was apparently the housewarden, if she thought about it.
Even though he and Riddle probably couldn't be more different if they tried, he still had a certain... Maybe air? About him? A strong presence, or charisma?
A scary one-- scarier than Riddle's, actually, at first, before she'd gotten used to it. Riddle was-- well, he was Riddle. All straight-laced and upright.
But Leona was-- Well, there was no other way to say this, but he was... Wild. Untamed, almost... But not inelegant.
He really was like a big cat-- muscular, but agile, with a certain... Almost confident grace in every movement, and even just standing there.
And his eyes...
Cold, cunning, calculating... Sharper than knives, with the glint of a keen intellect flashing like a semi-sheathed claw behind them. He really was intimidating...
The effect was slightly spoiled when she spotted that he was wearing, like... Battered leather dad-sandals.
...Okay.
Shaking her head, she turned, picking her way carefully along as the three large students kept up the pressure from behind, chuckling nastily every so often.
Letting go of Ace's shoulder, Kat took the last step up into the stadium proper, shuffling to the side a little as she looked around.
...Yeah, this place was big. The field itself was probably a little bigger than the average school gymnasium basketball court, divided into... She counted. Nine? Sections? With things that looked like tall, wrought-iron weathervanes standing in a neat row on the side closest to the entrance.
There were actually two of those round goals-- one on either side, obviously, along with those... Yeah, she still couldn't figure out what those things were. The lights-- or big spinny things or whatever...
The roof of the bleachers were supported by slender pillars of cream-gray stone, decorated with a geometric pattern made up of small tiles running along the bottom wall.
There were two of those-- oh, god, what were they called... The-- bus shelter things? Where the athletes sat? On this side of the stadium, one on either side of the entrance.
The stadium, she realized, was actually occupied-- there were a couple handfuls of students in there already. Some were wearing the school uniform, some were wearing the PE uniform, and... Some of them were holding brooms. A few of them were even sitting on theirs, dicking around at various heights in the air.
"...Wait, hold up," Kat muttered, reaching over and tapping Ace urgently on the shoulder again. "Does this sport-- do... Do you play Magishift on brooms?"
Ace blinked, looking over at her with a puzzled frown. "Uh... Yeah? Didn't I tell you that?"
"You did NOT," Kat replied through gritted teeth, staring and seething quietly.
...She was seriously going to LOSE it. How in the FUCK was this even possible?! There was NO WAY this was a coincidence.
It all-- it all looped back to Harry Potter. Why?! How?!?! Was she in a-- in a weird AU fanfiction or something?!
Well-- okay, if she WAS, then at the very least whoever was writing it didn't have the same TERF-y views, it seemed like...
But-- but still. Seriously? SERIOUSLY?! What were the ODDS?!
The crunch of footsteps ascended the stairs behind them. Kat glanced back to see Leona taking the final few steps up into the stadium, followed by Ruggie.
Grabbing Ace's sleeve, she quickly shuffled out of the way, dragging him with her and letting the housewarden pass.
"Okay," Leona yawned, ruffling the back of his long hair as he kept stepping forward, stopping towards the middle of the field.
"Hey," he called, putting one hand to his mouth. "Listen up. These herbivores-" he jerked his head at Kat's group. "Are gonna play a couple rounds a' Shift against us."
Even though he still wasn't being all that loud, the stadium still went quiet, students turning their heads eagerly.
"Let's see," he continued, tapping his chin. "One, two, three... Yeah, looks like we'll have a full team over on our side."
Smirking, he shot a glance over his shoulder. "That okay with you? There's only five of you-- countin' the hairball and Glasses over there, anyway."
"Tch!" Ace scoffed, tossing his head with a scowl. "Yeah, yeah-- whatever, man! We can handle it... Right, Deuce?"
"Yeah," Deuce agreed, nodding and punching his fist into his palm. "It doesn't matter how many guys you throw at us-- there's no way we'd lose!"
"Ooh," Kat said quietly, pressing her knuckles to her mouth and shrinking back a little. "I-- I don't think you should say that..."
The small crowd of other students were wandering casually over towards them, with predatory grins on their faces... Grins that were mirrored on the three large delinquents, Ruggie, and of course Leona.
"Oof," she heard Cater mutter, and glanced over at him to see him twiddling a lock of hair nervously. "Yeah, I'm with you on that one, Kitty-Kat..."
"Heheh!" Grim cackled, running a brief circle around Kat's legs and stopping in front of her. "Hey, hey-- what're ya lookin' so gloomy for?! I'm a master magician, remember? With me on the team, I'll MORE than make up for you! Heck-- I'm probably worth FOUR players all on my own!"
"Yeah, that... Doesn't really make me feel better," Kat told him.
"HEY!" He protested, scowling, but was interrupted by a burst of raucous laughter from the assembled Savanaclaws.
"HAHAHA!" One of them guffawed. "What-- THAT lil' rat? Worth FOUR of us?! You've gotta be fuckin' kidding me..."
"Heh," Leona smirked, taking a couple steps forward and gazing coolly down at Grim. "Well, it's good you've got confidence, at least... Let's see if you've got the skills to back it up, hairball. Glasses--"
Snapping his fingers, he gestured carelessly towards one of the roofed shelters.
"--Go sit over there."
"Y-Yeah," Kat muttered, looking down quickly and blushing a little.
Turning, she stepped towards Deuce, patting his shoulder. "Uh-- good luck," she said. "All of you-- and be careful, okay?"
"Yeah," Deuce smiled, nodding back.
Hearing a deep, quiet growl from-- someone, she didn't know which one it was-- she jumped a little, wincing.
Turning, she scurried across the field, to the bus shelter thing Leona had pointed at. God-- she felt like such a little mouse or something... This was so embarrassing.
But-- she was actually really nervous...
Ugh-- she didn't really want to admit it, but she actually felt relieved about getting sidelined. These guys-- Savanaclaw, they... They scared her.
It wasn't like she was short or anything, but all of them were way bigger than her... Well, all except for Ruggie, who was... Like, almost the exact same height she was.
And, again, besides him, they were all really intimidating... Their size, their general... Demeanors? Their rough, scrappy, almost TV show bully acts? It was a little cringe, not gonna lie, but... Still scary.
But-- Leona...
...Honestly, Leona was the scariest. Even though he wasn't nearly as over-the-top as the others...
Standing nervously in front of the shelter, she rubbed the end of her tie between her thumb and finger, watching.
Ace, Deuce, Cater and Grim were taking their places on one side of the center of the field.
Leona, on the other side, was apparently bossing the other Savanaclaws around. One of them tossed a broom to Cater, who caught it one-handed, twirling it carelessly before slinging it over his shoulder.
With a few more gestures and orders, all but two of the crowd shuffled off to the edges of the field.
A few of them wandered over to the top of the stairs, standing casually with arms folded and smirks on their faces. The message was pretty damn clear-- none of you are going anywhere until we're done with you.
...Great.
The Savanaclaw players-- that was Leona, Ruggie, the three large students, and two of the ones from the crowd- were lined up across from the Heartslabyuls and Grim. They-- the two new players-- were both beastfolk...
Actually, had she seen any humans here so far? Huh...
One of them was blond, with... She squinted again. Were those monkey ears?
The other one had dark gray-silver hair, with black canine ears.
Leona, standing in front of his team, pulled a magical pen out from somewhere, snapping his fingers again. With a zip of golden, sparking energy, a disk came streaking through the air like a comet, hovering above the end of his pen.
"Alright," she heard him drawl over the sounds of eager mutters and snickers from the watching crowd. "In the interest of sportsmanship an' all, I'll be generous and let YOU have the disk first turn... We've got home field advantage, after all, so it's only fair, really."
Ooh-- Kat's stomach churned a little. Yikes-- she didn't like the confidence in his voice one bit... It wasn't obnoxious and cocky, like Ace, or casual and carefree, like Cater. It was a-- was a dangerous confidence... Once again, she was reminded a little bit of Riddle. That assurance in his voice-- like there wasn't even a possibility that he could be wrong... That things wouldn't go his way.
Unfortunately, Grim didn't seem to pick up on that like SHE could. Cackling, he planted his paws on his hips, and even though he was pretty far away, she could tell that he had that cocky little grin on his face again. "Heheh-- you're gonna regret that!" She heard him declare. "I'm about to tear you guys APART!"
God, Kat thought to herself. Grim, I love you so much, but you are so fucking dumb...
Ruggie, standing next to Leona, apparently found this EXTREMELY amusing. "Wuoh-- really? Izzat' so?" He exclaimed, his own grin audible in his voice. "Well, well, good for you-- keep that talk up while you still can! Shihihi!~"
"Heh-- fine by me," Leona smirked, still holding the disk above his hand. "There's no fun in prey that doesn't bite back..."
He actually glanced sideways at Kat, green eyes flashing even from this distance. Flushing, she scuttled backwards, sitting down meekly on the bench.
Another wave of embarrassment washed over her-- dangit, and she'd been doing so well so far... She really wasn't small and cute enough to be acting like this.
But, somehow, whenever Leona was involved, she-- she really did feel like a prey animal... Something skittish and twitchy, like a deer or a rodent. And she'd always identified more with cats, too-- yet here she was, scared shitless by an actual cat-person. How ironic...
"Here," she heard Leona say, and glanced up to see him flick his pen, sending the disk speeding through the air.
Spluttering, Ace managed to get his own pen up, 'catching' it in midair as the crackling energy around it shifted from gold to red.
"Let's go, herbivores," Leona continued, raising his other hand casually in a very low-energy 'come at me' gesture. "Do your worst."
It was-- a little hard to understand what was going on... Especially for Kat, who had basically no knowledge of sports in general, let alone magical ones.
But the main part of the game seemed to involve, like the round Grim had played with the ghosts, a lot of running around. Added to this was the new element of actually slinging spells back and forth... Oh, and the brooms.
Her team had fallen into sort of an escorting maneuver... Grim, running on all fours, 'held' the disk, while Ace and Deuce defended him from attacks from the front and sides. Cater, flying on the broom above and a little behind, took care of aerial and rear attacks.
It was-- okay, she had to admit. It was actually pretty cool to watch...
And, despite being outnumbered, her boys were actually doing pretty well for themselves. Even though Savanaclaw was putting up a pretty good defense, none of their attempts to steal the disk had worked.
Maybe it was that Heartslabyul unity thing? Or-- she felt a small tinge of pride at this. Maybe her influence, rubbing off on them?
Whatever it was, both Ace and Deuce were pretty damn good at this, it seemed like... And Cater was frankly a whiz on that broom.
However...
She frowned a little bit.
...None of the Savanaclaw players were being quite as-- rough... As she'd expected.
The onlookers, too... Instead of looking mad or getting worked-up, they were just smirking. Occasionally, some of them nudged each other, nodding towards the field, muttering lowly.
She... Didn't have a good feeling about this.
Despite her growing anxiety, her team kept pressing onwards. Zigzagging across the field, they were making progress little by little... Even as the Savanaclaws got a little more violent with both their physical and magical plays.
She winced as someone actually attempted a fly-by shoulder-checking on Cater. He actually got knocked sideways a little, wobbling, but managed to steady the broom out.
Down on the ground, Ace dodged under one of the lunging Savanaclaws, sliding like a baseball player. Deuce, meanwhile, sent a beam of sparkles at one of the other swooping flyers as they tried to dive-bomb Grim.
They were actually getting pretty close to the goal... And still managing to keep the disk, too.
...Unfortunately, though, the watching crowd didn't seem very upset about this development.
In fact-- as her team battled their way through a small pocket of defense, getting a few feet closer... The watchers seemed to stiffen with excitement, leaning forward. Ears of all shapes and sizes pricked, tails giving tight, eager wags or lashes.
...Wait a second.
She'd seen Ruggie throughout the game... He was dashing and jumping around, almost like a gymnast, and was actually one of the ones her team seemed to be having the most trouble with. But-- she hadn't seen Leona this whole time... Where was he?
It was about this point that it happened.
She glimpsed a long-haired figure leap through the air-- this was a full-on anime superhero leap, holy shit-- landing right in the middle of the running team.
A sudden shockwave of golden energy went booming through the air, knocking the three Heartslabyuls and Grim back like they'd just been thrown.
Flinching, Kat jumped to her feet instinctively, flinging her arm up to shield her eyes and nose from the cloud of dust whipped up from the attack. Coughing, she shook her head, blinking hard and staring in shock at the scene in front of her.
The three Heartslabyuls and Grim had collapsed hard onto the ground, actually rolling a little bit before coming to what looked like a painful stop. Cater's broom drifted aimlessly through the air as he rolled over, he and the others struggling upright with groans and coughs.
...Ah.
There he was.
Straightening up from the crouch he'd landed in, Leona shook his hair back. The disk spun in place over the palm of one black-gloved hand, and even from this distance, she could see the wicked smirk on his face.
...She'd really like to stop being right about this shit at some point, Kat thought.
Sighing, she put her hands over her ears to protect them from the raucous cheers, whoops, and even barks and howls from the crowd.
Through the settling clouds of dust, she saw Ruggie wandering over to Leona's side, grinning from ear to ear.
Her boys struggled back upright, shaking their heads and staggering.
...Shiiiit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit...
She couldn't hear what Leona was saying over the continued noise of the crowd, but... If the look on his and the others' faces were any indication... He was telling them all about how he and the other Savanaclaws had only been toying with them.
With another impressive vertical leap, Leona flicked his arm hard. The disk went speeding through the air, straight through the center ring of the goal.
There was a loud ringing sound, and the goal shot out an explosion of golden sparks, fizzing like fireworks.
The cheering somehow got even louder as the watching Savanaclaws jumped up and down, punching the air and even each other.
The disk made a wide half-circle in the air, soaring back over to Leona and hovering over his hand again. Grinning, he waved a hand, motioning to the Heartslabyuls and Grim to get back up.
...Ohhh, fuck.
The next-- several minutes? Maybe? Of the game... Were a whole lot different. Her team tried to get the disk back-- but to no avail. Every time they tried, a spell or even a shove sent them hard to the ground...
And the disk kept getting sent sailing through the goal, over and over again.
As the game progressed, it became pretty obvious that-- well-- this wasn't really a game anymore...
It was more a-- a...
...It was a beating session.
Okay, luckily it looked like pretty much all the aggression was focused on the three humans, rather than Grim... Even though that really wasn't 'lucky' at all. But-- they were practically doing everything except pushing them down and kicking them...
Heart in her mouth, Kat stood frozen, watching helplessly as the 'game' continued. Even though Deuce, Ace and Cater were obviously still really trying, it-- it just wasn't doing any good. Over, and over, they got knocked to the side, ran into and shoulder-checked...
And the spells. The colored streaks of magic flying through the air, splashing against them and making them stagger back, even knocking them over...
She-- she couldn't watch this. But-- she also couldn't look away... She could barely even breathe at this point, mind just a blur of helpless, frozen panic.
When they got knocked down the next time, it didn't look like they had it in them to get back up.
A silence had fallen over the stadium-- the watchers weren't cheering now, just... Staring, filling the air with palpable tension.
"No-- fuckin' way," she heard Ace pant through the heavy silence, clutching his shoulder. "We-- didn't even score once..."
It looked like Deuce muttered something, but she was too far away to hear it-- and he was just as out-of-breath as Ace.
Anxiously, she looked back and forth between them and the Savanaclaw team. They were closing in on them in a ragged circle, one stalking step at a time.
N-No way... Were they seriously gonna jump them? Somehow, that was starting to seem more and more likely...
She saw Cater shake his head, apparently getting a bit of breath back. "Phew-- Leona-kun," she heard him say, raising his voice a little. "Listen, everybody knows you're a Magishift legend... And you know as well as we do that we definitely can't compete against you. So how 'bout we just wrap this up and call it a day, okay? We won't bother you again-- honest!"
Even from this distance, Kat could hear Leona laugh. She saw him toss his head, shaking his hair back as he put his hands on his hips.
"Oh-- c'mon, what's that?" His voice declared proudly, pacing closer to the Heartslabyuls and Grim. "Givin' up already?"
Ruggie strolled up next to Leona, grinning behind a fist. "Aww-- c'mon, what happened to all that swagger you guys had earlier?" He asked mockingly. "Was that really all you got?"
It wasn't just the actual team now-- the onlookers around the field had started approaching too, eyes gleaming with excitement. Oh, god...
"Come on-- get up," Leona ordered, smirking wickedly down at them. "Back on your feet, herbivores-- we're havin' a rematch. One more game, you got that?"
Bending down, he made as if to grab the exhausted Grim.
A jolt of dread shot through Kat's veins like a lightning bolt, and suddenly she was running across the field.
"STOP!" She heard herself scream, voice cracking with emotion. "STOP it! Knock it the FUCK off-- ENOUGH already!"
Sprinting forward, she shoved her way through the circling crowd, skidding to a stop between her team and Leona.
"That's ENOUGH!" She panted, shaking with rage and adrenaline. "STOP it-- what is your fucking PROBLEM?! You're just-- just fuckin' beating the HELL out of them at this point-- what is WRONG with you?!"
Leona actually drew back, seeming genuinely startled for a very brief moment. Then he growled a little, straightening back up as he glowered at her. "Outta the way, Glasses," he ordered, lip curling slightly to reveal a single sharp fang. "This's got nothin' to do with you."
"Fuck. YOU!" She responded, voice going even higher and more crack-y. "You've-- you-- what is WRONG with you?! You've proved your fucking point, okay?! We GET it-- we ALL GET it! You're SOOOO fuckin' strong-- AMAZING! Now will you KNOCK IT THE FUCK OFF ALREADY?!"
A ripple of rough laughter washed through the encroaching crowd, making her flush uncomfortably. "Oooooh," she heard someone snicker. "Now she's REALLY gonna get it..."
Ruggie, for some reason, was somehow grinning even wider now. His eyes darted between her and Leona like he was watching something EXTREMELY funny.
Leona looked at Kat for a few more seconds, face darkening slowly.
"...Rrrrrrrr," she heard him growl... A proper, animalistic growl, a sound that made her spine shiver and all the hair on her body stand up. "Listen, you--"
"...What the hell is all this?" A new voice interrupted, with its own growling undertones. "Whadd'you all think you're doin'?"
Tearing her gaze away from Leona, Kat looked around. Someone tall, tan, and broad-shouldered shoved their way in through the crowd.
...It was-- Jack. The wolf-eared boy.
"...Huh?" Leona muttered lowly, flicking an ear. "What? We're just playin' around with a few trespassers-- that's all. Why?"
Taking a few more steps forward, Jack stopped, crossing his arms. He wasn't exactly standing in front of Kat-- more like a few steps to the left of her. His body was angled so that she was just barely looking over his shoulder at Leona.
"...Playin' around-- is that what you're doing?" He asked flatly. "Tormentin' a bunch of amateur players-- what's so fun about that, huh?"
Licking her lips nervously, Kat looked around, taking a small step back. What-- what was going on? Why had Jack come back, and... Why was he-- or WAS he even trying to protect them?
"...Ehhh?" She heard Ruggie say, from somewhere beyond the bulk of Jack's body where she couldn't see. "What's thiiiis?~ Lookit you, Jack-kun-- standin' up for the downtrodden like some kinda hero! So cool... Shihihihi!~"
Jack's shoulders stiffened, and Kat heard him growl for real this time.
"...'S got nothin' to do with that," he snapped quietly back. "I'm just sayin' that this is a disgusting display-- and I don't wanna have to see it."
Shaking herself out of her freeze-response, Kat turned, scooping up the exhausted Grim. "Here," she murmured, holding him to her chest with one arm and helping Deuce up with the other.
Ace and Cater managed to get to their feet on their own, staggering slightly.
Turning, Kat peered nervously around Jack at Leona.
It seemed like the two were having some kind of staring or glaring contest... After a second, Leona clicked his tongue disappointedly, tossing his head again.
"...Heh. Way to ruin all the fun... Thanks a lot, big guy."
"Hey-- JACK!" One of the other Savanaclaws, she couldn't tell which one, barked. "You're sure actin' like a cocky little punk-- where the hell do you get off, mouthin' off like that as a first-year?"
Jack actually took a step back, crossing his arms again as his ears swiveled backwards a little.
"...Haah?" He muttered, the growl at the edge of his voice even more obvious now. "...A guy like you shouldn't even THINK about tryin' to play the upperclassman card-- so don't even try it."
"HUUUH?!" Another one-- maybe this one was the bleached-hair one? She still couldn't tell-- demanded. "What'd you just say, huh?! What, YOU wanna go now, too?!"
Another growl rippled from Jack's throat-- a loud one, that rumbled in Kat's chest like a bass drum.
"You sure you wanna try that?" He asked, dropping into a defensive stance. " 'Cause I don't think you wanna go down that road again."
Another silence fell over the field.
After a few seconds, Leona gave a mirthless laugh. "...Heh-- pretty bold, firstie. You've got balls, for sure-- I'll give you props for that, at least."
Rolling his eyes, he turned on his heel, hands in his pants pockets as he started slouching away across the field. "Well, whatever-- I'm bored now, anyway. Rackin' up the score against weaklings like these isn't even good practice... Let's go, Ruggie."
"Okaaay," Ruggie chorused, turning to follow.
Glancing back over his shoulder, he grinned. "Toodles," he called, giving a sarcastic salute and a wink before strolling off behind Leona.
"Rrrr..." The remaining Savanaclaws looked between the retreating pair and Kat's group, shifting uncertainty.
"...Tch!" One of them-- Kat could actually see it was the reddish-haired one with the black ears-- scoffed after a second. "You bastards better remember this... Think twice about invading somebody else's turf, you got that?"
With various growls, scoffs and muttered threats, the small crowd shuffled off, shooting glares at Kat, Jack, and the Heartslabyul trio.
After Jack was the only Savanaclaw student remaining on the field, Kat let out a long, tense breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Whoooooooof-- o-okay..."
Blinking hard, she turned to look at the others. "Are you guys okay?"
"Ah-- heheheh..." Cater shook his head, giving a slightly weak grin as he rubbed the back of his neck. "W-Well-- more or less, but... Looks like my plan to look all cool for you went out the window pretty fast, huh?"
"I-I'm-- okay," Deuce muttered, shaking her hand gently off his arm. "Thanks a lot, Prefect..."
Stepping away from her, he approached Jack cautiously, tilting his head. "Uh-- Jack, right? Thanks... For that."
Turning, Jack looked him up and down, taking a small step back.
"...Don't get the wrong idea," he replied, one hand rubbing the side of his head as he glanced to the side. "I wasn't tryin' to help you guys or anything like that."
Staggering over, Ace groaned loudly, rubbing the back of his head. "Aaaaugh-- god... S-Seriously, I'm fuckin' drenched in sweat over here... And dirt. And-- who fuckin' KNOWS what else... Let's just call it a day an' head back to the dorms, alright?"
Grim, in Kat's arms, slumped a little, going limp as his ears and tail drooped. "Yeah-- I'm gettin' super hungry over here..."
"Right," Cater agreed, nodding. "Welp-- okay, Jack-kun, we're heading off... Careful not to get in any weird accidents, okay?"
Huffing quietly, Jack stepped aside as the group, led by Cater, started trailing off towards the edge of the field.
"...I already told you I don't need the likes a' you to be worried about me, didn't I?" He stated, crossing his arms again. "Now hurry up and leave."
Putting her head down, Kat hurried after the others, then paused right at the edge of the first step.
Turning her head, she glanced back at Jack. He was still standing with his arms crossed, golden eyes watching intently as the others descended.
"Um-- thank you," she ventured awkwardly. "And-- sorry."
Jack blinked, looking a little surprised for a second. Then he huffed again, putting one fist on his hip and ruffling the side of his spiky white-gray hair with the other.
"...Yeah, whatever," he muttered, glancing away. "Just get outta here already, will you?"
"Y-Yeah," Kat agreed, nodding. "Right." Turning, she hurried down the stone staircase.
...Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted that big, fluffy tail give a few faint swishes. Or... Possibly wags?
Whatever they were, she lost sight of them as she all but scrambled down the stairs, focusing on getting out of Savanaclaw as fast as humanly possible.
Author's Notes:
Leona, frantically trying to come up with a way not to beat up a woman without looking weak in front of his dorm students: oh sh*t oh f*ck oh f*ck oh sh*t--
Yeah, I wanted to get bonus chapter 2 out before publishing this one, which is... Why it took so long, lol. Also... I-- I couldn't figure out how to write the Twistune segment.\_(ツ)/
...I kinda like Ruggie saying 'toodles' sometimes. I'm probably not gonna do it every time the subtitles say it, but maybe sometimes? If I feel like it?
Leona's F*cking Sandals. Send tweet.
(...I've never had a Twitter account in my life, lmao. I just know that's a thing people say. Meme osmosis is real.)
On a non-fic-related note: I'm very hype for the guest room feature, but I do kinda feel like they still should've waited for after chapter/book 6 to release it on the NA server, lol.
...Also, I've just got Halloween Idia wandering around my room RN. I like seeing how he walks, it really suits him. I'm just imagining him pacing back and forth muttering and chewing on his fingernail.
...Maybe he heard I'm into cosplay and wanted to show off/bond with me over it, and that's why he's wearing the Pumpkin Knight armor? Idk, lol.
Anyway, MALLEUS NEXT CHAPTER MALLEUS NEXT CHAPTER MALLEUS NEXT CHAPTER MALLEUS NEX--