Kat, with Grim on her shoulder, stepped cautiously into the school infirmary, blinking.

It was actually a pretty pleasant room-- clean and spacious, with sunlight streaming in from the latticed windows.

...It was really hard to avoid using Harry Potter as an example when everything here seemed to be going out of its way to be as much like Harry Potter as possible, though. This was... This was basically just the Hogwarts infirmary. Like, literally, that's what it was.

There were several beds along the far wall, cordoned off by those sheet dividers...

Craning her neck from the doorway, Kat raised up to her tiptoes, trying to spot if there was anyone in any of them.

"So," Grim said. "That kid who hurt 'is ankle's supposed to be in here somewhere, right?"

"I guess so," Kat replied, shrugging lopsidedly. "Hello?" She called, raising her voice a little. "Excuse--"

"HEY!" Grim interrupted her loudly. "IS ANYBODY IN HERE?!"

"GRIM!" She hissed, bopping him on the head with the flat of her palm. "Shh! This is a medical facility-- people might be trying to rest!"

"But--" Grim protested.

Before he could finish, Kat heard something from the farthest bed-- a shuffling, and some quiet muttering.

"Shh," she insisted at him again, making her way over towards the source of the sound. "...Excuse me?" She called, 'knocking' lightly on the sheet divider and peering around it.

Two students looked at her suspiciously.

One, with light brown skin and caramel-colored hair, was sitting on the edge of the bed. Their right pants leg was rolled up to about halfway up their shin, and their ankle was wrapped in white bandages.

The other student, fair-skinned with very dark teal hair, was sitting next to the bed on a four-legged stool.

"...Huh?" The caramel-haired, injured student asked flatly, looking her up and down. "Who the hell are you?"

"...Oh!" The teal-haired student exclaimed, sitting up a little straighter as his eyes widened. "Hey, I remember you-- from the unbirthday party!"

Scooting their stool closer to the bed, they elbowed their companion lightly in the ribs, nodding at Kat and Grim. "They're the ones from the Ramshackle dorm! Remember?"

Looking between the two of them, Kat saw they both had the bright red vests, armbands and magestones of Heartslabyul.

"Oh-- geez, you're right," the injured student said, wincing apologetically. "Sorry about that..."

"It's fine," Kat assured him, waving. "Don't worry about it."

On her shoulder, Grim let out a quiet little cackle, chest swelling. "Ohhh!" He grinned. "Get a load a' that-- we're TOTALLY famous!"

Rolling her eyes, she waved a hand dismissively again, indicating to the pair that they should just ignore him. "Well-- I'm Kat; this is Grim. Nice to meet you.. Um... Hang on, give me a second..."

Fumbling with the strap of her schoolbag, she dug out a notebook, with a mechanical pencil 'clipped' to the cover. "Sorry, but-- would you mind telling me about the... Accident? I guess? What happened, I mean?"

The teal-haired student looked worriedly at their companion, who shifted uncomfortably.

"Ugh... I- I don't really know what to tell you," he sighed, rubbing the back of their neck. "Honestly, I've got no clue, either... Like, one second, I'm just walking along like always, talking to THIS guy--" He nodded towards his companion. "Then, the next thing I know, I'm falling down the stairs..."

Flipping the notebook open, Kat started scribbling.

SUBJECT #1 (victim? witness??)

One second talkingwalking normally; the next second: Falling down stairs? (It persisteth)

"You guys were... ON the staircase at the time, right?" She asked, looking up. "Sorry, kinda a dumb question, but-- you know..."

"Yeah, we were," the teal-haired student confirmed, nodding. "And it's not like we've never done the exact same thing before... We walk up and down that staircase literally every day while we're talking, and we've NEVER slipped before. At this point, we could basically do it with our eyes closed... It's like muscle memory, you know?"

Kat nodded, scribbling again.

Familiar terrain; no history of accidents

"Mmm... Did anything weird happen?" She asked after another second, tapping the tip of the pencil against the paper. "Anything seem different? Maybe there was something on the stairs themselves, or...?"

The injured student looked at his companion, who sighed, shrugging helplessly. "No... I mean, the stairs were clean as always, as far as I could tell... And-- mmm..."

Cupping his chin, he looked up at the ceiling, brows furrowing. "...It didn't-- exactly feel-- or look-- like he tripped? Or stumbled, or slipped, or anything like that... It was more like he-- he..."

He trailed off, making a face. "Ugh-- sorry, it's really hard to explain..."

"It was like my body just kinda... lurched forward by itself," the caramel-haired student said, scratching his head. "That's the best way I can explain it... Sorry."

Kat scribbled again.

Stairs-- clean? (Probably?)

Body just... 'Lurched?' Forward??

"...Was anybody else around?" She asked, tilting her head. "Like-- anybody possibly in pushing or tripping range, for instance?"

The students looked at each other, then back at her. "No," the teal-haired one said, shaking their head. "This was after classes, so most kids had already headed to their clubs or back to their dorms..."

The caramel-haired one nodded in agreement. "During passing period, it gets crazy, so I might have considered it then... But there was only, like, a handful of other people there, and they didn't get anywhere near us."

"Mmm," Kat murmured. She jotted down the last of the notes.

No possibility of pushing/purposeful tripping; stairway occupied but not crowded? Other ppl weren't close enough

"Hm, hm," Grim mused on her shoulder, folding his front paws and swishing his tail. "I see, I see..."

Sighing, Kat closed the notebook again, tucking it back into the schoolbag, then pulling out the ghost camera. "Well-- thank you," she smiled, giving them both nods. "I really hope you feel better soon... Oh, do you mind if I take a picture?"

"A picture?" The injured student asked, frowning. "Uh-- I guess..."

"Thanks," Kat nodded, raising the camera and peering through the viewfinder. "Hang on-- the flash on this thing doesn't turn off, but don't worry about keeping your eyes open or anything..."

She pushed the button, there was a click and a flash, and the whirring noise as the square of paper slid out of the top slot.

"Thank you," she said again as both boys blinked hard, shaking their heads. "Sorry... Again, I hope you feel better soon. Thank you."

"No problem," the teal-haired student smiled, waving. The caramel-haired one grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of their head.

She waved back, making her way back across the infirmary and back out the door.

"Um-- okay," she sighed, pulling the notebook out again and sliding the photo between the pages. "Where's the next person?"

"God DANGIT, Grim!" Kat panted angrily, skidding around the corner and colliding hard with the side of the classroom's doorframe. "Will you-- slow DOWN?! Stop running off without me!"

Grim ignored her, scampering up to the pair in the room and standing up on his back legs. "Hey, hey-- you're the guy who had an accident and almost got hurt real bad, right?" He was asking as Kat made her way over as well. "Tell us about it!"

There were two students in here as well-- one with sort of fluffy, purplish-black hair, sitting on top of one of the desks with their legs crossed elegantly.

The other one was leaning against the desk next to them, but stood up as Kat approached, folding their arms. They had light brown hair, styled in a kind of fashionably messy boy-band style, which contrasted nicely against their dark brown skin.

"And who are YOU, coming up to me so suddenly and asking that?" The purplish-haired one was asking haughtily, looking down his nose at Grim. "Why should I answer to you?"

Hurrying over, Kat scooped up Grim, bobbing her head respectfully. "I- I'm sorry about him," she apologized, stepping back. "I TOLD him not to run off by himself..." She glared meaningfully down at Grim, who grumbled begrudgingly, going limp in her arms.

"But-- um... Well, do you think you could tell us about what happened? If you're feeling up to it?" Tilting her head, she tried a smile.

The two students looked at her for a second, then back at each other.

Then they looked at her again-- only this time the disdain was obvious as they scanned her from head to toe.

She felt herself blushing a little, despite herself. Both of them were... Okay, they weren't as startlingly good-looking as the pretty blond person at the ceremony, or even the lion-eared guy. But they were both definitely noticeably attractive... And extremely... Polished? Put-together? Even the dark-skinned one, who didn't look like it at first glance, but definitely had a sort of... Pretentiously disheveled bad-boy vibe, to use Robert Pattinson's words.

They both had the same vests, armbands and magestones, so they were in the same dorm... The vests were a deep indigo-purple, and the ribbons of the armbands were the same color, with a thin stripe of pomegranate-red. The magestones on their pens were an almost identical shade of lavender to Grim's pendant.

Which dorm was that? She couldn't remember off the top of her head...

So far, she only remembered 'bright red = Heartslabyul' and 'golden yellow = Savanaclaw'... And that last one was only because of the lion guy-- Leona-- and his... Friend? With the sandy hair.

Finally, the purplish-haired one stood up from the desk. Kat noticed that their right hand had what was probably the school-issued black leather glove on it. She spotted the glove's mate sticking out of his jacket pocket. His left hand, meanwhile, was wrapped in bandages, like the Heartslabyul student's ankle.

"What do you mean, 'what happened'?" The brown-haired student said, putting one hand on their hip as they took a small step forward. "He was injured-- right when he was in perfect condition for the Magishift tournament, too! What else is there to say?"

...Uh-oh. Grimacing, Kat drew back a little. Somehow, she didn't like where this was going...

"And-- I'm sorry about that, really," she tried again. "But I meant, like... What happened? Specifically? Like-- the events, and the... Details? And stuff?"

"Why?!" The purplish-haired one demanded, bristling defensively. "Do you want to mock me?! Relish in my misfortune, is that it?! That's quite some nerve, for a shabby little thing like you!"

"Wh-- NO!" Kat protested. "No, that's-- not what I meant! A-And what do you mean, 'little'?! I'm taller than you!" She was, actually, taller than him, by about two-and-a-half inches.

The student didn't seem to be listening to her anymore, though. "How DARE you?!" They demanded. "I will NOT stand here and be looked down upon by some skinny little brat with bad posture and dark circles!"

Snatching the spare glove from his pocket, he tossed it angrily at her feet. "I throw down the gauntlet! Duel us-- now!"

Kat blinked.

She looked down at the glove for a second.

"...No," she said eventually. "I'm not gonna do that. That's dumb."

"Oh, and what is THAT supposed to mean?!" The taller, dark-skinned student asked angrily. "Are we not even worth fighting to you, is that it?!"

"What? NO!" Kat shot back. "I'm not gonna fight you! I'm not-- I- I don't wanna fight ANYBODY! I-- GWAH--!!"

Spluttering, she ducked, barely avoiding a beam of sparkles that went zipping over her head. "Hey-- WHAT THE HELL?!" She demanded, skittering back and panting a little. "Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?! THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"

"No-- what is wrong with YOU?!" The taller, dark-skinned student retorted, pulling his magical pen out of his breast pocket. "Don't look down on us! Draw your pen and fight!"

"I DON'T FUCKING HAVE ONE!" Kat shrieked back. "I was just asking a QUESTION! Fuck ME-- what is WRONG with you people at this school?!"

She ducked again, actually dropping Grim as she avoided another spell just in time.

"AGH!" She screamed in frustration. "FINE! You know what-- FINE! GRIM?!"

Grim, having landed on his feet on the floor, shook his head rapidly, jumping forward with his back arched. "Tch-- you GOT it!" He declared, tail thrashing. "You're gonna regret messin' with ME, ya couple a' jerks!"

"Hah!" The shorter student scoffed, giving a haughty sneer. "We'll just see about that, you dust-colored rat!"

And with that, the fight was on.

"DUCK!" Kat ordered, and Grim dropped to the floor just in time to avoid a stream of holographic red fire.

It actually shot past her before dissipating, blowing her hair back in a gust of hot air. Yikes-- that was close...

"Okay-- now hit 'em back!" She called.

Grim rolled back to his feet, jumping into the air and spitting a mouthful of blue fire right back. The purplish-haired student flinched, staggering back with one arm flung up over their face.

Kat sprinted forward as the blue flames started fading away, reaching out and snatching their magical pen from their other hand.

"Wh-- HEY!" The student protested, dropping their arm and gaping angrily at Kat. "How DARE-- g-give that BACK!" He tried to snatch it back, but Kat skittered out of reach.

Grim jumped up again, shooting a jet of strange purplish energy that hit him head-on, making him fall back onto his butt, wincing.

"Wh-- how DARE you?!" Their companion demanded, glaring back and forth between Kat and Grim. "His hands are still INJURED! Don't you have any shame?!"

"YOU FUCKING STARTED IT!" Kat yelled back, vibrating with anger and adrenaline. "YOU STARTED IT! You don't get to be all 'ohh, violence is bad' when YOU LITERALLY STARTED IT!"

The dark-skinned student started forward, raising his own pen, but Grim shot another beam of purple energy right at his hand. He yelped in pain, dropping it and sending it clattering to the floor.

Darting forward, Grim grabbed it in his mouth. The pen's owner gave an indignant cry, trying to snatch at Grim. "That's DISGUSTING! Get my pen out of your mouth RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

Grim dodged his hands easily, skittering back to Kat and clawing his way back up to her shoulder. She held out a hand, and he deposited the second magical pen into it, panting a little and licking his lips.

"Now will everybody just CALM THE FUCK DOWN?!" She demanded, glaring at the two students with all the disappointment and rage she could muster.

The purplish-haired student panted a little, looking shocked. "You-- really... Didn't use any magic," they said after a second. "You just told that little thing what to do-- does that mean you're..."

"What, the fuckin'-- Ramshackle Prefect?! Yeah, I AM!" Kat snapped back, standing up a little straighter. "And trust me-- I don't wanna be here any more than you want me to be here! But for some FUCKING reason, I have to-- investigate all this SHIT, so... The sooner you tell me about your accident or whatever, the sooner we can ALL move on and forget this ever happened!"

Exchanging a glance with his equally-as-stunned companion, the student got painfully to his feet, tugging on the lapels of his jacket.

"...Hmph!" He declared, tossing his head a little. "I suppose--" One last pant. "I suppose you're better than I thought..."

Crossing their arms, they walked over and leaned against the desk, scoffing. "...Fine. If that's the only way to get our pens back, then I'll tell you what happened."

"We were in the laboratory," the taller, dark-skinned student said, shaking their head with a sigh. "He and I were working together on a potion, when suddenly..." A brief pause for dramatic effect.

"...His hands shot out and seized the boiling cauldron! He spilled it all over his poor hands... Not to mention his lab coat and uniform! I was shocked, I tell you... SHOCKED!"

"Oh, so now YOU'RE the one doing all the talking?!" The purplish-haired student demanded, bristling again. "I thought that I was--"

"Hey-- SHUT UP!" Kat interjected angrily. "BOTH OF YOU! SHUT UP!"

Both students froze, looking at her like she'd just burst into flames.

Shaking her head, she stuck the magical pens under her arm, digging the notebook and pencil out of the schoolbag again. Flipping it open, she started to scribble.

SUBJECT/VICTIM/WITNESS #2:

In laboratory; randomly grabbed hot cauldron for no apparent reason

"...Were you trying to do something with it at the time?" She asked, looking up at the fair-skinned, shorter student again. "Stirring it, or transferring it to somewhere else, or something?"

"Well-- technically, YES," they admitted, huffing. "We were supposed to be straining it next, but he's better at lifting heavy objects, so he brought it over to the sink. I was meant to be minding the sieve and the cauldron we were transferring it to, but when he came close, I just-- reached out and grabbed it..."

They trailed off, looking confused and sullen.

"...Huh," Kat mused. "So... Maybe you were-- trying to help him, then? Like, unconsciously, I mean? Like, that thing where you see somebody holding a bunch of stuff and it looks like they might drop it, so you kinda hold your hands out... Like that?"

"Of COURSE not!" The shorter student snapped back. "What kind of idiot do you TAKE me for?! Why in the WORLD would any sane person grab a burning cauldron with their bare hands?!"

"Jee-SUS, okay, okay, I'm sorry," Kat retorted. "Fuck ME for trying to be thorough, I guess..."

She scribbled a bit more.

Wasn't handling the potion at the time; literally just... Grabbed boiling pot for no reason? (Might've been subconscious help instinct; highly doubt these MFs would admit to doing something like that)

"Okay," she sighed, shutting the notebook.

"Hm," Grim mused from her shoulder, folding his arms and nodding again. "Okay, okay... I see."

Huffing, Kat shoved the notebook back into the schoolbag, retrieving the magical pens from under her arm. "Here," she said flatly, walking over and holding them out. "You can tell which one's which, right?"

"Of COURSE," the shorter student said irritably, snatching the pen on the left. The taller student actually pulled a handkerchief out of his jacket, picking up the remaining pen with it gingerly.

Kat stepped back, rolling her eyes as she dug the ghost camera back out. "Okay-- mind if I get a picture? Like I said, I'm actually-- sort of... Investigating all this, I guess, so--"

"What-- on THAT ancient thing?" The shorter student asked, giving the ghost camera a suspicious look. "Is it even still functional?"

"Absolutely not," the taller one scoffed, tossing their head. "I don't take pictures on anything that doesn't have filters."

"Why-- do you NEED them?" His companion smirked.

He bristled. "That's-- NOT what I meant! I--"

Kat just took the picture.

They both jumped at the loud click and flash, turning and boggling in her direction as the square of paper slid out of the top.

"Well-- it was awful to meet you," she said flatly, taking the photo and tucking it into her pocket as she walked back to the door. "Have a terrible day... I do hope your hands heal up alright, though. Bye."

She was already out the door and speedwalking down the hallway by the time the indignant protests started.

Grim, still on her shoulder, scoffed proudly. "Heh-- we sure showed THEM, right?" He grinned. "Bet they'll think twice before messin' with ME again, huh?"

"Yeah, sure-- whatever," Kat muttered, rubbing her forehead. "Let's just-- head back to the dorm for now... I need a break after that."

Shaking her head, she kept making her way down the corridor, fighting back a yawn.

Back at Ramshackle, Kat was sprawled out on the couch on her back. Holding the notebook up, she squinted suspiciously at it, like it was withholding answers from her.

...One kid lurching forward, and the other kid grabbing a hot cauldron.

Unfortunate, but... Not necessarily suspicious? The body and brain were known to malfunction every so often...

...But they were both strong Magishift contenders. That alone made it suspicious that they both had such random, seemingly out-of-character accidents...

...But, on the other hand, maybe they WERE busy thinking about the tournament and slipped up a little. Or maybe they were tired from training or something...?

But also-- magic. Magic was real, so... With that on the table, pretty much anything could happen. She still didn't know how much magic could actually do, so-- the possibilities were basically endless...

And magic was starting to look more and more likely as the MO.

...If there even was an MO.

...I hate this, she thought. How do detectives do this?

Groaning loudly, she dropped the notebook right onto her face, covering it completely.

She heard Grim sigh, and felt the couch cushions sink a little as he jumped up onto them. "I dunno," he grumbled, stepping onto her stomach and making his way up to her chest. "This all just kinda seems like a buncha space-case kids hurtin' themselves on accident to me..."

He flopped over onto his side, and she felt his muscles 'vibrate' as he stretched his legs out. "If there IS some kinda scandal here, I ain't seein' it!"

"Mmm," Kat muttered, taking the notebook off her face and dropping it carelessly onto the floor.

...They needed more information. They just didn't have enough facts yet...

...It was around this time, she thought to herself, in detective stories, that a new incident would have taken place, giving her a lead.

...But there was no way it'd be that easy.

It was at this point that a loud, mechanical buzzing sound echoed through the house.

"...What was that?" Kat asked, picking up her head and looking down at Grim, lying on his side on her chest.

"Huh?" Grim said, lifting his own head and swiveling his ears.

The sound came again.

Wait a second-- was that...

"Is that the... Door buzzer?" She asked slowly. "Or-- doorbell, or whatever?"

The sound came a third time.

"...Sure SOUNDS like it," Grim said, standing up and stretching again before hopping down off her chest. "Well? You gonna go answer it?"

Kat looked at him for a second, then sighed. "Ugh-- fine," she grumbled, sitting up and getting to her feet.

Stomping across the room and into the front hall, she pulled the door open.

Ace, completely collar-free this time, was standing on the front porch, hands on his hips. "Heyoooo," he called, giving a two-fingered salute. "How's it goin', Pre-K?"

"Oh-- Ace," she said, relaxing a little. "Hey..."

Peering out of the front door, she glanced at the button for the doorbell.

"...Honestly, I didn't think that thing worked," she said after a second.

"Oh-- really?" Ace asked, blinking. "Well-- the lights work--"

As if on cue, the wall sconces in the hallway flickered ominously, buzzing.

Kat held her breath.

After a second, the lights steadied out, and she and Ace both relaxed a little.

"...Most of the time," the redhead finished awkwardly.

Kat knocked lightly on the peeling, painted wood of the doorframe three times, just in case.

Pawsteps padded across the floorboards, and Grim wandered over, stopping at her leg and yawning as he leaned a paw against her shin.

"Oh--" Ace looked down at him, eyebrows raising. "Hey, it looks like you're feeling better, Grim... You quit pitching a fit about the Magishift tournament?"

"Tch... What, it's just you?" Grim grumbled, drooping. "Maaan... Look, we're kinda busy right now, so we don't have time to play around with ya, Ace. Buzz off, okay?"

"Busy?" Ace repeated, frowning. "Like what, you got a lot of homework or something?"

"No, I already did that," Kat said, shaking her head. "The truth is-- ugh..." Groaning, she rubbed her hands over her head. "It's a long story..."

Ace sucked in a breath through his teeth, stepping back a little and giving her a worried look. "...Somethin' on your mind, Kat?" He asked.

"You could say that," she sighed, shrugging.

"...You wanna talk about it?" Ace asked after a second.

Kat gave him a surprised look. "...Really?"

"Hey, come on-- what's that look for?!" Ace protested. "I can't be worried about you once in a while?"

She blinked, then shook her head, giving a soft exhale through her nose as a very quiet laugh. "No, no... Thanks, Ace. Well-- come on in, I guess... I'll-- try to explain it. But-- it's kinda crazy... I still can't really believe it myself."

"Ooh," Ace said, raising his eyebrows again. "Yikes-- sounds like a lot... Welp-- thanks for having me..."

Nodding, she stepped aside.

Returning the nod, he hopped up onto the threshold, wandering into the lounge.

Shutting the door again-- not bothering to lock it again-- she scooped Grim up into her arms, following Ace into the lounge and dropping down onto the couch.

"Right, okay..."

"...And so now it's apparently OUR job to figure it out," Kat finished, rubbing her forehead. "For SOME fuckin' reason..."

"...Huuuuh," Ace mused, leaning back in his chair and cupping his chin. "So... Suspicious accidents and injuries, huh?"

Grim, back on her lap, nodded. "Yeah-- but honestly, nothing we've heard so far's been all that suspicious... It seems like maybe they were all too busy thinkin' about the tournament, and ended up hurtin' themselves somehow."

"Mmm," Kat agreed, propping her elbow up on the couch's armrest and putting her cheek on her fist. "It's like... It IS suspicious, but... It also ISN'T. You know? Like... All the 'suspiciousness' could still just be weird coincidence. Stranger things have happened..."

"Huh," Ace said again, looking up at the ceiling. "Yeah, you're right..."

They sat in silence for a few moments.

Suddenly, the sound of pelting footsteps sprinted up the path outside, and the front door slammed open, rattling on its hinges.

Kat jumped, looking around in bafflement.

The floorboards creaked as a wild-eyed, disheveled Deuce ran into the lounge, skidding to a halt.

"ACE!" He yelled, looking panicked. "Where the hell WERE you?! It's an EMERGENCY!"

Ace, who'd jumped as well, relaxed, rolling his eyes. "Huh? Geez-- chill OUT, Loosey-Deucey, you're gonna have an ANEURYSM! What's got your panties in a twist, huh?"

"C-Clover-senpai..." Panting, Deuce bent over with his hands on his knees, catching his breath. "Clover-senpai... Fell down the stairs," he said hoarsely. "He's-- h-hurt... Like, he's REALLY hurt!"

Ace and Grim both gave near-identical splutters of shock, and Kat gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth.

"W-WHAT?!" Grim demanded. "No way... D'ya mean-- TREY?! As in, the sneaky guy with the glasses, Trey?!"

"Wh-- GRIM!" Kat scolded, looking down at him. "Did you seriously forget about Trey?! You know who he is! And don't call him 'sneaky'- that's rude!"

Shaking her head, she looked back at Deuce, who'd straightened up, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. "B-But-- he's HURT? Seriously?!"

"Yeah," Deuce confirmed, nodding. "He is..."

"Oh, Jesus," she muttered, pulling Grim into her arms and standing up. "And-- WHAT happened? Did you say he-- he... Fell down the stairs?"

Deuce nodded again, and she felt a kind of shiver run down her spine.

...Well, she'd literally just thought about needing more information... A new lead, or something. But-- for something like this to happen...

She could practically see the doors from the Detective Conan eyecatch slamming shut in front of her.

"But-- what happened?!" Ace protested, rising out of his chair. "I can't imagine Trey-senpai just tripping and eating shit for no reason like that..."

"I-- I dunno," Deuce replied, shaking his head. "But it's true..."

"Jesus," Kat muttered again, holding Grim to her chest with one hand and putting the other back to her mouth. "That's horrible..."

Squirming out of her grip, Grim thumped to the floor, standing up on his hind legs and turning to her. "Hey, hey-- let's go see 'im!" He insisted, tugging on her pants leg. "This might be a lead!"

"Uh-- r-right," Kat agreed, nodding. "And-- w-we should go see him anyway, if he's up for it... Check in on him, and stuff."

Grabbing the discarded notebook, she shoved it back into the schoolbag. Making sure the ghost camera was still attached, she slung it over her shoulder. "You're coming too, right, Ace?"

"Well-- DUH!" He responded, following after her as she ducked back into the front hall. "Come ON, Deuce-- pick up the pace! Let's go!"

Deuce growled angrily, hurrying after them with a scowl. "Hey, I'm sorry-- WHO was it who even told you about Clover-senpai's accident in the FIRST place?!"

"NOT THE TIME!" Kat snapped, pulling the door open again and hopping out. "Seriously!"

The other three poured out behind her. Grim, weaving through their feet, took up the lead as Ace and Deuce, apparently ignoring her, started bickering their way along behind her.

POKEMON! GOTTA CATCH 'EM-- IT'S YOU AND MEEEEEE~ I KNOW IT'S MY DESTINYYYY! POKEM-- YEAHHH, YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND, IN A WORLD WE MUST--

*Trying frantically to add some variety to the background characters so I don't have to keep describing the same two MFs over and over again*

Thinking about that 'if twst characters had twitter' video I saw once that had a tweet that was like 'pomefiore mfs getting jumped be like 'unhand me'

...Bro. Chapter 7 is... ACTUALLY gonna give me a panic attack.

What the fuck. What the FUCK.

...The time loop is real. I can feel it.

(...There better be an option to stay after all this, or I'm gonna lose it. Seriously.)

(And, even if there isn't, the MC better not forget everything when they go home. I swear to god.)