Chapter 3

The end of the school day did not come soon enough. And yet, even when the final bell rang, I knew there was more torture to follow. "I'm already exhausted from a full day of cleanin'," Grim grumbled as we entered the cafeteria. "I can't believe we still gotta wash a hundred windows!"

I bit back a retort about this being all his fault. My anger had since vanished, and if we were going to be living together, we needed to get along. Playing the blame game would not help our situation. "We just gotta suck it up and do it."

"What's buggin' me is, Ace ain't even here yet! To make us wait, after what he did... Grrr!"

I looked around with a frown. "Good point." We could get started without him, but that would hardly be fair. So, we waited... And waited...

"And now he's super late! I bet he up and bailed on us!"

"We should look for him." After what that guy said with us, no way was I letting him getting out of the punishment.

"Ain't no way am I doin' his punishment for him!"

"Me either."

"C'mon, Ona, I don't care if we gotta drag him kickin' and screamin', he's washin' those windows!"

We did not know which class Ace was in, so we decided to look through all of them. In the first room, we found a talking painting that said it saw him heading back to his dorm. We immediately ran to the building that led to the dorms. Luckily, we spotted Ace just as he entered the Hall of Mirrors.

"AHA!" Grim shouted. "GOTCHA, PUNK!"

Ace turned around, a panicked look on his face. "Oh no! They saw me!" He began running.

"Stop right there, pal! No fair gettin' a head start! Wait!"

"Who in their right mind would ever wait? Seeya!"

"No way are you gettin' out of this! You think I WANNA wash windows?"

"Yeah!" I said. "This was your fault too." We continued to run through the ridiculously long room. Ace nearly ran into a guy with blue hair, who looked back at us, startled.

"He's shirking his cleaning responsibilities!" I explained.

"What?" said the boy. "That's not right! But how to stop him? Like, freeze his legs? Or bind them with a rope? Or maybe I could... Hmm... No..."

"I don't care how!" Grim exclaimed. "Just do something! Anything!"

"Anything?! Anything, huh..." The boy looked a little panicked. "All right! Here goes anything! I summon thee... something heavy!" A cauldron fell from the ceiling and fell right on top of Ace. Grim and I burst out laughing.

Grim jumped up and down excitedly. "Look, Ona, look! That Ace guy got crushed beneath a giant cauldron! It squashed him flat! Aha ha ha!" He pointed at Ace. "That's what you get!"

"A cauldron?! I wasn't expecting that. I may have overdone it this time..."

I grinned. "No, that was great. Thanks a lot!"

Ace groaned as he pushed the cauldron off of him. "What are you bothering me for?" he said. "You guys coulda just banged out the work yourself!"

I lifted my eyebrows. Was he serious right now? "There's no 'banging out' a hundred windows!"

"You have to wash a hundred windows as punishment?" said the blue haired boy in alarm. "What the heck did you do?!"

"I was just screwing with that furball a little," Ace said. I gave him a sharp look. "Okay, and the statue of the Queen of Hearts got a teeny bit charred. Sue me."

The other boy gasped. "You damaged a statue of the Great Seven?! No wonder he flew off the handle at you! After you managed to get into THIS school, how could you get in trouble on the very first day?!"

"Oh, shut up. Who are you, anyway?"

"My name is Deuce. Deuce Spade. Don't you remember your own classmate, uh...?" His face turned blank.

"You don't remember my name either, do you?"

"That's not the point! You shouldn't try to shirk an order from the headmage!"

"Exactly!" I said.

Ace crossed his arms, frowning. "Yeah, yeah, message received... Fine, let's bang out the windows already." He looked around. "Huh...?"

"What...?"

Ace's eyes widened. "The furball! He's gone!"

I held in a groan. "We better catch him." Ace made Deuce come along, so the three of us chased Grim through the building and out into the streets. I could not believe he would run away after making a big deal about Ace doing the same. Was I the only one here who had a sense of responsibility? Okay, maybe Deuce was alright. He was helping us even when he did not have to.

Grim had us chasing him all around the school. We finally ended up in the cafeteria, where the monster climbed up on the giant chandelier. "No fair climbing up onto the chandelier, you coward!" Deuce said. "I haven't really learned flight magic yet... What could I summon to hold onto him...? Hmmm... Oh! That's it!"

"Did you come up with somethi-" Ace started. His eyes grew wide when Deuce pointed his pen at him with a serious expression. "Oh, hey! Stop! What are you doing?! Why are you pointing your pen at me?!"

"Because I'm going to launch you."

I held in a sigh. "No way does this end well."

"Are you kidding me?!" Ace cried right before he was lifted into the air. "Bwaaah! Put me down! Seriously, do not launch me! Abort! ABORT!"

"Uh, Deuce, you should really rethink this. You're going to get someone hurt."

"Yes, listen to the magic-less girl!"

"Just make sure to grab him tight," Deuce said, ignoring us. "I've got him in my sights, and... Go!"

"Wait!" I cried, but he did not wait. He launched Ace into the air right up onto the chandelier... and on top of Grim. Of course, the chandelier broke from the weight, and all three crashed to the ground. "Now what have they done?!"

"I cannot believe you just did that!" Ace groaned.

"Oh, right!" said Deuce. "I probably should have come up with a way to soften your landing after you caught him..."

I slapped my hand over my face. "Not what he meant." What was with everyone in this school?

"You complete and total moron!" Ace said. "We got Grim, but we broke the chandelier! If the headmage finds out about this-"

"If I find out about... what, dear Ace?" Crowley said, popping up out of nowhere again.

Ace jumped in fright. "Ah! Headmage Crowley...!"

Crowley glowered at us. "YOU. THREE. AGAIN. What have you done this time?!"

"Myaaah..." Grim muttered, finally sitting up. "Everything's spinning..." Then he collapsed again.

Crowley's eyes were drawn to Grim and the ruined chandelier. "Burning a statue wasn't enough for you? Now you've destroyed a chandelier?! Enough. All of you are expelled."

"But Grim and I aren't students," I said.

"Then you will no longer be allowed on school property."

My heart rate instantly picked up. "No, you can't do that! I have nowhere to go! I'll die out there!"

Deuce appeared just as petrified as me. "Headmage, please! Give me a second chance! I can't get expelled from this school! I need to be here!"

"Then blame yourself for your own foolish behavior," Crowley said.

"I'll pay for the damages! However much it costs!"

"That chandelier is no mere light fixture. It is magical chandelier. Its candles are powered by a magical energy source, enchanted so that they will burn for eternity. It was created for us by a legendary artificer. Possibly their finest creation. It has been here since the school was established, and I imagined it would be here forevermore. Considering its historical value, I would estimate its worth to be no less than a billion thaumarks. And you intend to repay that sum?"

Deuce gaped at him. "A... A billion marks?!"

"B-But I'm sure with your magical talent, sir, you could snap your fingers and fix it right up!" Ace said.

Crowley shook his head. "Even magic has its limits. Furthermore, its magestone - the figurative heart of any magical artifact - is cracked. A magestone cannot easily be replaced. I fear the candles of this majestic chandelier will never burn again."

"Great going, guys," I muttered, trying my best to keep my own panic down.

"This is bad..." Ace said.

"What am I going to do?!" Deuce cried. "How am I going to tell my mother...?"

Crowley tapped his chin. "Ah...! But there may be on way. One tiny sliver of chance to repair this chandelier."

"There is?!" Deuce and Ace said eagerly.

"The magestone that powered this chandelier was mined from the Dwarfs' Mine. If you can acquire a magestone with the same properties, it may be possible to repair it."

"Dwarfs' Mine?" I said. I looked at Grim, and he shrugged.

"Then I'll go find a magestone!" Deuce said. "With your permission, sir!"

"I should caution you that I cannot promise there yet remain magestones to find," Crowley said. "The mines were closed quite some time ago. It is quite likely that all of the magestones have already been mined."

"I will do anything to avoid expulsion, sir!"

"Hmmm... Very well, then. I will suspend your expulsion for a single night." Crowley looked around at all of us. "But if you fail to return with a magestone by morning, then all of you are expelled... or kicked out."

"Understood," I muttered.

"I understand, sir!" said Deuce. "Thank you very much for this opportunity!"

Ace sighed. "Fine, then. Let's hurry down there, find a magestone, and get this whole thing done with."

"You should be able to reach the Dwarfs' Mine instantly by using one of the gates in the Mirror Chamber," said Crowley.

"Yes sir!" said Deuce.

Grim sat up again, appearing groggy. "Wh-? Where am I?!"

"Things have taken a turn for the worse," I said.

And so, we ended up at the Mirror Chamber, where we stepped through the Dark Mirror to get to the Dwarf's Mine. We ended up in a creepy looking forest. There was a single house with no one inside. We had no choice but to head to the mine itself. I knew nothing about mining, but it could not be safe. What kind of headmage was Crowley, letting us come here alone?

"Huh?" Deuce said as soon as we entered the dark cave. "Hold up!"

"What now?" Ace said in annoyance.

"There's something there!"

"Myah?!" Grim exclaimed as two ghosts appeared in front of us. Not here too!

"Hee hee hee hee!" the first ghost laughed. "Visitors! The first in ten years!"

"Do make yourselves at home..." said the second. "You can stay forever!"

"More ghosts?!" Ace exclaimed. "They're floating around here too!"

"If we stop to fight, we'll never get anywhere," Deuce said. "Let's just keep moving." He ignored the ghosts, managing to slip past them. The rest of us followed.

"Sure, but don't act like we voted you team leader. The only reason we're here in the first place is because of that stupid stunt you pulled."

"Oh? I'm pretty sure this all started because you tried to shirk your window-cleaning punishment!"

"So, we're bringing up ancient history now? Then if you wanna get down to brass tacks, this all started when furball torched that statue!"

"Myah?!" said Grim. "Maybe you shouldn'ta made fun of me, then!"

"Enough!" I snapped. "All three of you are to blame!"

"As if you're a saint," said Ace.

"No, but I had nothing to do with any of your antics."

"Guys!" Deuce said. "We're in real hot water, remember?! If we don't come back with a magestone by morning, we're all being expelled!"

"Yeah, which is why we don't need you ordering the rest of us around," said Ace. "It gets old real fast."

"Wait..." I said. "I think I heard a voice just now." We all paused to listen.

"...iiivvv... ...oooouuu..." said a mysterious voice. When it spoke again, it sounded like it was closer. The others and I huddled together in fear. Then I saw it: a strange monster. "Stooonesss... Stooonesss aaare miiiiine!" Everyone began to freak out.

"That thing's super creepy!" Ace said. "But didn't it just say something about 'stones?'"

"Yeah, you're right," I said.

"Stooonesss..." the monster said. "...nevvva give stooonesss...!"

"So there ARE still magestones here!" Deuce said.

"Myaaah... Even as a master sorcerer, I... I don't think I can take that thing down!" Grim said.

"But we need a magestone or we'll get expelled! I'm going in!" Deuce took a step towards the tunnel the monster blocked.

"Are you outta your mind?!" Ace exclaimed. "You can't do it alone! It's too dangerous!"

Deuce held up his pen. "I won't be expelled! No matter what!" He raced forward and attacked. Unfortunately, he was no match for the monster.

"Aw, crap! He's got Loosey-Deucey on the ropes! Not on my watch! Heeyah!" Now Ace ran in. Even with his help, though, they could not get past the monster. Grim got into the action when the monster moved towards him.

"It's like nothin's even hurtin' it!" Grim complained. The monster moved, and I saw something behind it.

"Did you just see that sparkle?" I said.

"Behind the monster!" Ace agreed. "There's something sparkling in the mineshaft!"

"Could that have been a magestone?!" Deuce said.

"GWAAAAAAAH!" the monster cried. "Nooo giiive yooouuu stooooooone!"

"Ona, we need to book it, and fast!" Grim said. "That thing's gonna pound us into tuna paste!"

"Retreat! Retreat!" I shouted. The four of us ran out of the mine. Thankfully, the monster did not follow us out. We stood there for a minute, panting and catching out breaths.

"What was that thing?" said Ace. "No one said there'd be anything like that!"

"That was no normal ghost, that's for sure," said Deuce.

"Let's just give up and go home. I'll happily take the expulsion if it means never having to fight that thing again."

Deuce looked at him in horror. "What?! Nuh-uh, not happenin'! I'd rather die than get expelled from Night Raven! How can you give up when the stone is right there?"

"Pfft. Big talk from someone who's not even half the mage I am. You want that stone so bad, go get it yourself. I'm out." Ace crossed his arms and turned away.

"Oh YEAH?! Fine, go back to your coop, you big chicken!"

Ace appeared shocked. Then he glared at the other guy. "Whaaaaat?! Who're you callin' chicken, huh?!"

"Whoa, Deuce..." said Grim, staring at him with wide eyes. "Is it just me, or did you, like, turn into a totally different person just now?"

"Huh?!" Deuce said in alarm. He coughed. "Sorry... Lost my cool for a second there."

"So now what?" I said.

"Can't you guys just blow that thing up with magic?" Grim asked.

"Using magic at a greater scale, or using different types of magic - those things require training," Deuce explained.

"Yeah, that's why magic academies exist," said Ace. "It takes a lot of training before you can snap your fingers and turn your thoughts into magic. And the more flustered you are, the more likely you are to make mistakes."

"Oh, I'd assumed spellcasting just came naturally," I said. Not that I had ever given it much thought.

"Nope. Although, if the magic's your specialty, you can use it more intuitively."

"Anyway, we need to find some way to defeat that creature and get the magestone," said Deuce.

"Yeaaaaah. Just like the time with the chandelier, right? You 'found some way,' and now here we are."\ We just fought that thing, and it creamed us. So, what exactly is your plan here, genius? Because I sure don't trust you to improvise!"

"What?! You're the one who-"

"Aaand they're at it again," Grim said with a sigh.

I had had just about enough of those two. "Would the two of you know it off already?!" I shouted. I did not like yelling, but someone had to do it! Ace and Deuce looked at me and gasped.

"Whoa, that was loud. Where'd that come from?"

"You said it yourself - we can't hurt that thing."

"Urk... But... But what are we going to do then?!" said Deuce.

"What if we all just worked together?"

"'Work together...'" Ace repeated. "Is that some kinda joke? You always say the lamest things with the straightest face, Ona."

"Agreed," said Deuce. "No way could I work together with him."

"Yeah, but... Gettin' expelled on the first day..." said Grim. "That's pretty lame too. Maybe even lamer." Deuce and Ace exchanged looks.

"W-well..." said Ace while Deuce merely frowned.

"I did have one idea..." I ventured. I could not help much in the fight back there besides giving Grim orders, but I had paid careful attention to what was going on. Surfing taught me how to observe my surroundings and take the right opportunity.

"Gah... Fine. Let's just get this over with, then. All right, Ona. What's the plan?"

I let out a breath of relief. Finally, they were listening! I relayed my plan to them, and they agreed to give it a try. So, we soon found ourselves back at the mine entrance. "Ona..." Grim said. "Is this plan of yours really gonna work? I'm sca- I mean, I'm a little... uh, hungry."

"Don't worry!" I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt. "I think this could really work!"

Deuce nodded. "It really could. Let's go, Ona!"

I nodded. It was time to begin. Grim and I entered the mine together and looked around for the monster. "H-hey, monster!" Grim said, waving his arms. "I'm uh... I-I'm over here!"

"Grrraaawrrr!" the monster roared. "BEGOOOOONE!" It moved towards Grim.

"He's comin' our way! Ona!"

"Right over here, monster!" I said, slowly moving back. The monster got closer. I jumped back when it punched at me.

"Eep! If it lands one of those punches, we're toast!"

"Let's lure him as far from the cave as we can." For some reason, I was not afraid. I had analyzed the situation and was acting on my knowledge, just like with surfing. The monster chased us all the way out of the mind and down the path.

"We got him a good distance away from the mine!"

I shot the boys a quick glance. "We're counting on you!"

"You bet," said Ace. "I got this! One extra-large gust of wind, comin' up!"

"With a side of Grim's blazin'-hot fire!" Grim said. "MYAAAH!" Ace used his fire magic to bring Grim's fireballs right at the monster, who recoiled in pain.

I grinned. "The monster's afraid of our flaming tornado!"

"Just stay calm," said Deuce, "aim carefully... and pull out the biggest, heaviest thing I can think of... Get 'em, cauldron!" He summoned a cauldron, which fell right on the monster.

"Nailed it!" Grim cheered. "The plan's workin'! Look, Ona! That monster got smashed flat by a falling cauldron, just like Ace did!"

"Coulda done without the reminder, thanks!" Ace said. "This has been one drag after another."

I chuckled lightly. "But it was pretty funny."

"Quick!" said Deuce. "While it's distracted, we need to get that magestone!" We ran into the mine and headed straight for the area we saw the glittering object. I let out a breath of relief when I saw a colorful stone. "That's it! That's a magestone!"

"Dooon't tooouch thaaaaat!" the monster cried.

"Uh-oh!" said Ace. "Looks like it's nearly wriggled free!"

Grim looked back in a panic. "Hey, Deuce! You gotta add more weight!"

"Y-you mean something heavier?" Deuce said, eyes wide. "Uh... I summon thee, cauldron!" A second cauldron fell on top of the first cauldron. "And also, uh... Um... Another cauldron! And a cauldron on top of that! All the cauldrons!" More cauldrons than I had ever seen in my life fell on top of the monster.

"Is that the only thing you know how to summon?" Ace said.

"Pipe down already! I'm worked up enough as it is!"

"Hey, it worked," I said. With the monster down and the others watching my bag, I was able to wriggle the magestone free from the wall.

"We got the magestone!" Grim cheered. "Now let's get outta here!"

"Roger that!" said Ace. We ran out of that mine and past the monster as soon as possible.

"MYYY STOOOOOOONE!" the monster wailed. By the time we reached the woods, it had knocked off all the cauldrons and was in hot pursuit of us.

"It's too fast!" Deuce cried. "It's about to catch us!"

"But we've weakened it!" I said. "If we strike now..."

"Aw, fine!" said Ace. "Let's just smash the thing. Try not to wet yourself, Deucey!"

"Same to you, Ace!" said Deuce.

"I'm gonna show ya why they call me Grim the Great!" said Grim.

"I'm right behind you," I said. This time, when we fought, we all fought together. At long last, the monster fell to the ground and did not move again. Our success nearly gave me a thrill.

"Is it... over?" Ace said in astonishment.

"I think... we won?" Grim said in the same tone. "I think we did it!"

"All right!" Deuce cried.

"Woohoo!" Ace cheered.

"Gimme a victory high-five!" Grim said. He jumped into the air and gave Ave and Deuce a high-five at the same time.

I smiled at them. "Shared adversity sure brings people together, huh?" Just like Luano had told me. Perhaps these guys were not so bad. Was I finally making real friends?

Deuce gave me a blank expression. "Uh... I don't think that had anything to do with it."

"Yeah!" Ace said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Spare us the clichés, Ona!"

"There's no 'together' here!" Grim said. "We won 'cause of me! This is all from me bein' a magical genius!"

Ace looked at me with the most uncomfortable expression I had ever seen him wear. "Y'know... I hate to admit it, but... We mostly won because of your plan."

"Yeah..." said Deuce, "if you hadn't managed to keep your cool and tell us all what to do, we never would have got this magestone. Now I won't get expelled. And wow, is THAT a relief!"

"We won because we all worked together," I said. Although, it did feel good to have my efforts appreciated.

"Yeah, yeah, lessons were learned, et cetera," said Ace. "Can we just go home already? I'm wiped."

I smiled. "No problem."

"Usin' all that magic made me hungry!" Grim said. He looked at the ground. "Huh? What's this?" He picked up a strange black rock.

"Is that a part of the monster we just beat?" said Deuce. "It looks like... a magestone? But it's black as coal! I've never seen one like that before."

Grim sniffed the rock. "What IS this? It smells amazing!"

Ace gave him a wide-eyed look. "Are you insane?"

"Must be some kinda fancy monster candy that it was hidin' from us! If this tastes half as good as it smells..." Grim proceeded to stuff the rock in his mouth while the rest of us stared in horror.

"Spit it out!" I ordered. "Out! Bad cat!"

"MYAAAH!"

"Are you okay?!" Deuce said.

"That's what you get for eating trash!" said Ace.

"Oooooogh... Urrrgggh... That... was AMAZING!" Grim exclaimed.

"What?!" said Ace and Deuce.

"Rich in flavor and full-bodied... Like sweet, fragrant flowers burstin' into bloom on my tongue. A whole field of 'em! Right in my mouth!"

"Gross," Ace said. "Monsters must have real weird tastes."

"You might be onto something there..." said Deuce. "Most humans don't take random stuff they find on the ground and just pop it into their mouths."

I looked at Grim in concern. Something about this just did not feel right. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Myah ha ha ha! Man, was that great!" Grim said. "Don't worry about me. I don't got a weak stomach like you humans do."

"Hmph. We'll see if you're so smug when you're sick later tonight," said Ace.

"Okay, let's pull ourselves together," said Deuce. "We need to get this magestone to the headmage!"

Victorious, we returned to the school. We met Crowley in the Mirror Chamber, and he was shocked when I handed him the magestone. "Pardon?!" he exclaimed. "You're telling me you actually went to the Dwarfs' Mine in search of a magestone?"

"Uh...? Yes?" we said.

"I didn't expect that you'd seriously do it. And never in my wildest imaginings did I think you would actually return with a magestone! And here I spent all evening preparing your expulsion documents."

"Are you serious?!" Grim said. "While we were fightin' some crazy monster for you, you were expelling us?!"

"'Monster...?'" Now interested, Crowley allowed us to tell him the full tale in his office. "Hmmm... So a mysterious monster was living in the mines, and the four of you worked together to destroy it, and then brought its magestone back to me?"

"I don't know that I'd call it working together,'" Ace said.

"It was more like we just happened to share the same goal at the same time..." said Deuce.

"Oh, gracious... Ohhh... Ohhhhhhhh!" Crowley suddenly broke out into sobs, causing the rest of us to recoil in shock. "In all the decades I've worked at this school... The day has finally come when the students of Night Raven College have joined hands together to defeat a common foe!"

"Whoa!" Deuce exclaimed. "No! No way would I join hands with that guy!"

"Okay, one, there was no joining of hands," said Ace. "Gross. And two, exactly HOW old are you, headmage?"

"At this moment, I am moved beyond words," Crowley said. "This incident has proven my hopes were justified." He turned to me. "Ona, my doubts are allayed! For you... You possess the talents of a beastmaster!"

"A... A beastmaster?" I said. "What does that mean?" Once again, my question was not answered.

"My students have all been selected by the Dark Mirror for their exceptional talent and potential, but great talent begets great pride and big egos. Most are so self-reliant and self-centered that they never even consider cooperating with others."

"You make it sound like that's a bad thing," said Grim.

"But you, Ona, possess no magic. Yet in spite of that - or perhaps because of it - you were able to convince those who CAN use magic to work together for a common goal. The everyday, humdrum mundanity you possess may be exactly what Night Raven College needs!"

"But... none of those words are good things?" Ace said.

I shrugged. "I don't have a problem with it."

"Ona..." said Crowley. "I am convinced that people like you are necessary for the future of this school. My educator's intuition tells me so." He looked at the others. Trappola, Spade - I hereby revoke your pending expulsions! Furthermore, Ona... I am granting you the qualifications necessary to attend at Night Raven College!"

"WHAT?!" the four of us exclaimed at the same time.

"You remember that I can't use magic, right?" I said.

"Of course," said Crowley. "This is extraordinarily kind of me. However, there is one condition. Your inability to use magic is, for a mage, unacceptable. You would not be able to adequately pursue the school's curriculum! As for you, Grim... Your actions today have made it clear that you possess sufficient talent to become a mage. In light of the total sum of your respective circumstances, you and Ona will share a single enrollment at Night Raven College."

"Myah!" Grim said in shock. "I... I'll get to go to this school...? As an actual student? Not a janitor?!"

"Correct. However! There must be no further incidents like the one that occurred today. Are we clear?"

"Myah... Myah..." Grim looked at me with teary eyes. "Ona, I... I finally..."

I smiled warmly at him. "I'm so happy for you!" I did not particularly want to be a student, but I did not mind it if it meant Grim got to be a student too. And it had to be better than being a janitor. Plus, I would get to hang around kids my own age.

"MYAAAAAH! I FINALLY DID IT!"

"Accordingly, I will now present to Grim the magestone that is issued to every student here," Crowley said. He explained that students typically carried their magestones on a magic pen, but he gave Grim his on a collar, which he proudly put around his neck. I wondered how he had been so prepared. "Ona, as you can plainly see, Grim remains oblivious to the customs of human society. You are to keep a tight rein on Grim, and ensure there are no further incidents!"

"Wow, that's quite the promotion," Ace said. "From janitor to student to prefect, all in the span of a day."

"Oh, I see," said Deuce. "So if your dorm is just you two... And the headmage himself is putting you in charge of Grim, that makes you... the dorm prefect."

"Well, that's gotta be a Night Raven first! A magic-less prefect? But sure, why not? Whatever works!"

I smiled at him. That was a far cry from his attitude when we first met. "I'll do my best!"

"Heh heh heh. Good luck to you, Magic-less Prefect!"

"Thanks!"

"Ah, yes," said Crowley. "I suppose that does make you a prefect. I just so happen to have a job for you, and that title will make it all the easier to foist... er, I mean, congratulations!" He stood up and rummaged around his office. He picked up an old fashioned camera and held it out to me. "Now, I have something for you. This is called a ghost camera."

"Ghost?" I said.

"Ooh, my grandma's told me about those," Ace said. "Those are, like, super old magic items, right?"

"I would hardly consider them 'super old,'" Crowley said. "But it may indeed have been invented when your great or great-great grandmother was a child. It's a camera enchanted with a special kind of magic. It enables the user to photograph not just the subject's physical form, but parts of their soul itself."

"Wait, that sounds... sketchy," Deuce said.

"They're called Memories. Here's the thing: when the soulbond between photographer and subject deepens... The Memories captured in this magic camera's photos come jumping out!"

"Soulbond?" I said.

"When the photographer and subject grow closer, their photographs grow animated like videos... And sometimes the photographs take on corporeal form and slip out. Is that not what you youths would call 'wicked keen?'"

"That almost sounds like ghost photography!" said Deuce.

"Very astute. Hence the name 'ghost camera.' I understand it was developed as a more vivid way to capture moments in time, in an age before video. As Spade observed, in days of yore, when people saw Memories jumping out of photos, they would get spooked and yell, 'Ghost!' I've heard many a tale of people who were deathly scared of being photographed by such cameras."

"This tech sounds like way more trouble than it's worth," said Ace.

"It sounds cool," I said.

"Ona," said Crowley, "I would like you to photograph Grim and the other students with this camera, and make a record of your campus life."

"No problem," I said, taking the camera from him and examed it.

"Myah ha haaa!" said Grim. "Sounds like the perfect way to immortalize all my finest moments!"

"Ahem... Make especially certain to capture the mischief caused by certain students who struggle with impulse control," said Crowley. "Keeping a photographic journal sounds far less tedious than writing me lengthy reports, wouldn't you agree? As a prefect, consider it your duty to maintain a sharp eye on your surroundings and record them. Note how generous I'm being in providing a rare magical item that even someone like yourself can use. Is my kindness not beyond all reckoning?"

"Thank you, sir," I said.

"The hour has grown late, so further details shall have to wait till the morrow. You are all dismissed. Return to your dorms."

"Good night, sir!" Deuce said, bowing before leaving with the rest of us. I could not help my grin as I exited the room. Finally, things were looking up!