Chapter 8

The day after the unbirthday party, I found myself at the cliff's edge once again. I had gone there a couple of times over the past week to study or relax. Even though I could not get to the ocean, it still felt nice to see it. Today, after finishing my homework, I decided to sit against a tree and munch on a large bag of gummy worms.

"Hi there!"

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sudden voice. I looked up to see the boy I had met at the cliff the my first week, grinning down at me. "It's you," I said. I frowned when I remembered the second time I ran into him. "Why did you pretend you didn't know me when I saw you at school?"

"Huh? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Are you ashamed to be seen with me or something?"

"Nah, I don't care about that. I just haven't seen you around. Hey, what's that?" He stared at my snack bag curiously.

"They're gummy worms." I grabbed one and popped it in my mouth.

"Whaaat? You eat worms?"

I looked at him quizzically. "You've never had gummy worms? They're like candy. They're good. Here." I pulled out a worm and held it up as high as my arm would reach.

The boy snatched the gummy worm from me and popped it in his mouth. I waited expectantly as he slowly chewed. Suddenly, his face lit up. "This is amazing! Why have I never had it before?"

I laughed at his enthusiasm. "Beats me. Want some more?" I pulled out three more worms and handed them to the boy. He grabbed them from me before sitting right down beside me. I smiled and ate a gummy worm myself. For one moment, silence fell between us, and it was very peaceful.

"I want more!"

I glanced at my bag. "Sorry, I don't have many left. I really want to-" I gasped as the boy snatched the bag from my hands. "Hey!" That wasn't right!

"Thanks for the grub!" He pulled out a gummy worm and dropped it into his mouth.

"You are not welcome. Give those back!" I stood up to try to grab the bag, but he did the same thing. He laughed as he held the bag high above my head. He was nearly a foot taller than me, so there was no way I could reach even if I jumped.

"You look funny!"

"It isn't funny!" I stopped jumping and thought back to my experiences with my siblings. Then something came to me. "Okay, you asked for it..." I slowly approached the boy. He watched me curiously but did not drop his arm. Then I reached out and tickled his sides.

The boy burst out laughed. "That's not fair! Stop!"

I most certainly did not stop. Finally, I had my chance. The boy lowered his arm and I grabbed my bag back. "Ha!" I reached into the bag for a worm. I should not have looked away from him.

"You're going to get it now!" The boy grabbed my sides and tickled me from behind. I laughed but refused to let go of the bag. The boy did not give up. I tried to curl into myself, and the boy pushed me to the ground. I rolled onto my back, but he quickly pinned me to the ground.

The boy smirked down at me. "Do you give up?" His voice was low and probably meant to be intimidating, but I was laughing too hard to take him seriously.

"Okay, okay! We can split it in half."

"Hmm... I don't think so."

I gave him the most innocent look I could muster. "But I'm hungry too..."

The boy laughed. "Okay, deal."

He let me go and I sat up. There were four gummy worms left, so I handed him two. "Enjoy."

"Thanks!" He ate them both swiftly while I took my time. "You know, you're very daring for a little one."

I gave him a look. "What do you mean 'little?' I'm average height for a girl. You're just tall."

The boy chuckled. "That's cute. You're cute and little, so I'm going to call you Little Shrimpy from now on, okay?"

I stared at him. "What?"

He grinned. "I gotta go. Thanks for the food, Little Shrimpy!" He stood up and ran out of there sooner than I could think of something to say. Dang, I still did not get his name.

Monday brought a new day of classes. Grim no longer tried to run away, but it was all I could do to keep him awake during lectures. He counted for half my grade, so I had to keep him accountable. We were on our way to lunch with Deuce and Ace when I saw the guy from the cliff again. I immediately excused myself to run up to him, determined not to let me get away with ignoring me. "Hey," I said, grabbing his arm.

The boy looked back at me with a calm expression. "Hello there. May I help you with something?"

I retracted my hand. "I, uh, just never caught your name."

"I am Jade. And who are you?"

"I'm Ona. I told you that before, remember? But you came up with a silly nickname for me..."

Jade smirked in amusement. "I assure you, I have never done such a thing. Perhaps you are mistaking me for someone else?"

My eyes narrowed. "I don't think so. I'm getting tired of your games. Just forget it." I turned to walk away.

Jade chuckled. What was with him? Even his laugh sounded different. "It was nice to meet you too."

"What's going on, Ona?" Ace said when the others caught up to me. "Still trying to bother Octavinelle students?"

"No, it was nothing," I said. "Let's just go eat."

"You said it! What's it gonna be today?" He paused at the door. "Huh, wait? What's going on? Why's it so crowded in here?"

"That famous bakery from out of town is serving up their goods," said a cafeteria ghost. "It only happens once a month! Their stock sells out fast, so you'd better hurry!"

We immediately headed inside to check everything out. "Oh, man, everything looks amazing. I'm gonna see if I can grab somethin'."

"Wow, they really do seem popular!" Deuce said. "Ona, Grim, what do you- Huh?"

"Where did Grim go?!" I said, looking around. Then I spotted him on the way to one of the serving stations.

"Hey!" he said. "Outta my way, losers! That grilled cheese is mine!"

"Hey, no cutting!" said a Heartslabyul student.

"A freshman, cutting in front of an upperclassman?!" said his friend. "Time to learn you some manners."

"He's got such a one-track mind when it comes to food!" Deuce said shaking his head while Ace sighed.

"Let's go stop him!" I said.

We ran to intervene, but we were too late. Surprisingly, Grim was able to snag the food he wanted. Of course, Ace and Deuce were left to clean up the mess. Finally, we were free.

"Ha!" Grim cheered. "Guess who scored the last deluxe grilled cheese sandwich? This guy. That's why they call me Grim the Great! Myahahaha! I also snagged a bear claw AND a cronut!"

"Grim, you need to learn some restraint!" Deuce said. "I'm really sorry, guys."

"Yo, Pops, gimme one of those roast beef sandwiches," Ace said to a cafeteria ghost.

"Hey! You're cutting in line too!"

"Myahahaha! I'm gonna savor the flavor of this victory!" Grim cheered.

"Pardon me, friend," said a boy with animal ears, popping up out of nowhere. He seemed familiar, but I could not place him. "I see you were able to get your hands on the highly-prized deluxe cheese sandwich. Incredible!"

Grim looked up at him. "Hm? Who're you and whaddaya want with my meat?"

"Oh, I'm just a guy who really, really wanted to buy that sandwich you've got there, but arrived a smidge too late. Speaking of which, here's a proposition for you... Might you be willing to trade your deluxe grilled cheese for this very exciting hot dog bun?" The boy held out the bun.

Grim looked at him like he was crazy, and I could not blame him. "Whaaat?! You must be outta your mind, dude!"

"Oh, come now. Let's not be like that. Here, have the hot dog bun. I insist." The boy pushed the hot dog bun toward him, and Grim held out the sandwich.

"Myah? What in the name of tuna...?! My paws are movin' on their own!"

"You're actually going to trade?!" I said. "It doesn't even have a hot dog in it!"

The boy smirked. "Sounds like we have ourselves a deal! Shyeheehee!" He snatched the sandwich and dropped the bun in Grim's paws. "What luck that I found a kind soul willing to trade. You enjoy that hot dog bun, I do hope you can find something to fill it with. Maybe a squirt of ketchup would imitate the real thing? Anyway, nice doing business with you. Toodles!" He trotted off like nothing had happened.

"M... M... Myaaaaaaah! My deluxe grilled cheeeeeeese!"

I sighed and shook my head. "Come on." After grabbing my food, I sat down with my friends. Grim was still grumbling even as he stuffed his face.

"Aw, maaan..." Grim sniffled. "This is *munch* the worst day *munch* of my pathetic life! I can barely *munch* choke down my lunch!"

"You just ate three pastries in ten seconds," Ace said.

"I still don't get why you even traded at all," said Deuce.

"I didn't!" Grim protested. "It's like, when he put out his hand, my paw just shot out—like it was copyin' his! It all happened so fast..."

"Like a deer caught in the sandwich-stealing headlights," Ace said.

"Nah, it wasn't like that at all. But I...I don't know how to explain it! Ugh, this stinks. I need to eat my feelings, stat! Deuce, gimme a bite of your pasta."

"No way!" said Deuce. "You made your 'bread,' now lie in it!"

"Oh, by the way, guys," said Ace, "the headmage said he had something he wanted to tell us after class. No clue what it could be, though."

"It probably has something to do with what happened to Housewarden Rosehearts last week."

"When he went all berserker mode on us? Yeah, I bet you're right."

"Maybe he wants to lavish me with a smorgasbord of succulent fish for all of my hard work that day!" Grim said.

"Yeah, dream on, furball," said Ace.

I chuckled lightly. "Agreed." I paused as the scene from earlier replayed in my mind. "You know, that guy who came by earlier... I feel like we've seen him somewhere before."

"You've probably passed him in the hall."

"Yeah, maybe that's it..." If it was not, I was sure it would come to me eventually.

After classes, we headed straight for Crowley's office. "Ah. Thank you all for coming," he said as soon as we entered. "I'll get right to the point. Now that the Heartslabyul incident is behind us... I wanted to give you a proper debriefing on the matter. If you're to become mages, you need to fully understand the malady that befell Mr. Rosehearts."

"You called it 'overblot,' right?" said Deuce.

"Yes, that is correct."

"My brother told me a little about that," said Ace. "He said that could happen to anyone who builds up too much blot. Sounds like Cater was pretty much on the nose with 'berserker mode.'"

"Yeah, but what is 'blot,' anyway?" said Deuce.

"I'd like to know that too," I said.

"Ah, indeed," said Crowley. "For your sakes, it would behoove us to start with the basics. I shall teach you all you need to know. Charity, thy name is Crowley!" He cleared his throat. "Now, 'blot' is a form of waste that is created as a byproduct of using magic. Just as cars run on gasoline, and in the process, expel dangerous gases as exhaust... Casting spells consumes magical energy, and in the process, expels blot."

"That doesn't sound very healthy," I said.

"Quite. Research into the nature of blot has been conducted since time immemorial. And yet, we still understand little about it. All we know for sure is that it is terrifically toxic, and excessive amounts can wreak havoc on a mage's mind and body."

"I guess that's why Grandma was always naggin' me to not overdo it with the magic, huh?" said Ace. "Here I thought she just didn't want me to break stuff."

"Power and peril are two sides of the same coin. Even the greatest of mages cannot cast spell after spell without consequence."

"So you're tellin' me I'm gonna get sick if I keep usin' magic whenever I want?!" Grim exclaimed.

"Not necessarily. Hm. Perhaps a demonstration would prove more efficient than a mere explanation. Ghosts, assemble! I have a job for you!"

"Huzzah! You summoned us, Headmage?" said a ghost.

"Not these guys again?!" Ace groaned.

"Would you be so kind as to help me put these young students through their paces?" said Crowley.

"T-this seems like a bad idea," Deuce said with wide eyes.

"Yeah, okay," said a second ghost. "We'll go a round or two with 'em."

"Now, students, ready your magical pens," Crowley said. "Prepare to receive a special lesson from your headmage!"

Deuce and Ace raised their pens. I scurried to the sidelines so I could instruct Grim. The ghosts were fast and furious, but they were no match for us. We really had become a great team in a short period of time.

"Hey, Headmage, what's the deal?" said Grim. "What does fightin' ghosts got to do with blot?"

"Direct your attention to the magestone on your collar, Mr. Grim," said Crowley.

Grim glanced down and freaked out. "Myah?! My magestone looks all grungy now. ...MYAH?! It won't rub off!"

"Precisely. That inky black stain is the byproduct of spellcasting known as 'blot.'"

"There's some grime on my magical pen, too!" said Deuce.

Grim waved his paws in the air. "Ewww! This is capital-G Gross!"

"Is there some way to get rid of it?" I asked in worry.

"Yes, of course," said Crowley.

"Like some kinda special soap or somethin'?" said Grim.

"With sufficient rest, blot will vanish from your magestone. This is why a magestone is so valuable to magic users. Not only does it aid your casting, it also serves as a lightning rod of sorts, to prevent blot from accumulating within the caster."

"I see," said Deuce. "So when our magestones start to get cloudy, that means it's time for us to ease off."

"Correct. Eat well and get plenty of sleep, and most of the blot will clear away."

"Gotcha," said Grim. "So when I become an even greater mage, I'll be able to fire off spells left and right! Pa-PEW! After all, I do plenty of sleepin' and eatin'."

"People vary greatly in their capacity for magic. However, save for a few key exceptions, there is little variance in most mages' tolerance for blot."

"What's that mean?"

"In essence, it means that those who possess a great capacity for magic must be meticulous in their efforts to avoid accumulating blot. Like Mr. Rosehearts, for instance."

"So, folks who know their way around magic gotta lay off once in a while," said Ace. "Seems simple enough."

"Correct. That said, it isn't anything that mages at YOUR level need to worry about. How very fortunate for you!"

Ace blinked. "I...guess that's only kind of an insult?"

"Anyway, I think I get it," said Grim. "Use magic, get blot. Blot bad. Sleep and food good. But is that really all it took to make Riddle activate berserker mode?"

"The accumulation of blot is significantly affected by the sorcerer's mental state," said Crowley. "Anger, fear, panic, sorrow... Harboring those sorts of negative energies hastens the accumulation of blot by a significant degree. This, in turn, leads to the dreadful state known as 'overblot.'"

"'Negative energies,' huh?" said Deuce. "Interesting..."

"I could see that," I said. "He did get really angry."

"Do you recall the giant shadow that appeared behind Mr. Rosehearts?" said Crowley. "Such manifestations are believed to be the result of a fusion between blot and negative energies. I'm afraid that's the extent of what current studies have revealed to us, however. There remain many mysteries surrounding overblot. After all, there are not many opportunities for study and observation."

"Let's hope it stays that way!" said Ace.

Crowley tapped his chin. "It is fortunate that we were able to snap Mr. Rosehearts out of it so quickly. If that had been allowed to continue... AAAH! It is a prospect too terrifying to consider!"

Grim and I both jumped at his shouting. "GAH!" Grim exclaimed. "W-what's your problem?! Yellin' outta the blue like that!"

Crowley cleared his throat. "Forgive me. I lost my composure."

"So, uh, what does this have to do with me?" I said. "I'm not a mage."

"Yes, but you are attending a school with mages, and it would benefit you to be aware of the signs of blot buildup."

"I... guess that makes sense."

"So, in summary, the use of magic is always accompanied by a certain degree of risk. And I expect you all to keep that in mind."

"Yes, sir," we said.

"Thus concludes your special lesson from the headmage himself! How wonderfully kind of me. Now, back to your classrooms with you."

"So, have you found a way to send me home?" I asked.

"Ahhh, yes... A means to send Ona home. Right, right. I have been diligently searching for one, of course. I have certainly not forgotten! It is merely that I've been quite busy of late."

My eyes narrowed. "Uh huh..."

"Your eyes got all shifty all of a sudden," Grim said, arms crossed.

"I-I'm certainly not lying!" said Crowley. "The October interdorm Spelldrive tournament is consuming a great deal of my attention at the moment! In fact, I've a meeting with the assembled housewardens immediately after this."

"What's a 'Spelldrive tournament...?'"

I sighed. "I never know what anyone is talking about."

Ace looked at me in surprise. "Dude, Ona... You've never heard of Spelldrive?!"

"It's a world-famous sport!" Deuce said. "There's even a pro league and a world championship tournament."

"Not in my world," I said.

"I ain't never heard of this either!" said Grim.

"Spelldrive is a sport played by competing teams of seven people," Deuce explained. "Basically, players battle for control of a disc and earn points by drivin' it into the enemy team's goal. The team with the most points wins!"

"A disc?!" I said. "Sign me up!"

"Oh yeah?" said Ace. "You a big sports fan, Ona?"

I shrugged. "I used to play disc golf with my brother back home."

"If you're interested, we could go check out the school's Spelldrive league sometime," Deuce said.

I smiled slightly. "Okay."

"Oh, man, I just realized that Ona would have a hard time actually playing," Ace said.

"Yeah?" said Grim. "Why's that?"

"You need magic to play," Deuce said. "Not only do you move the disc with magic, but you use it to attack and defend, too."

"Oh," I mumbled.

"The flashier the magic, the better," said Ace. "It's how players show off their skills!"

"Yes, quite!" said Crowley. "That is why Night Raven College is known throughout the world as a leader in the sport! This school has produced countless pro players! That's why our interdorm Spelldrive tournaments attract attention even from pro league recruiters. Also, those simply looking for up-and-coming magicians use the event to scout hopeful candidates. Yes, the tournament is quite an affair. The campus will be full of visitors and lined with various kiosks. And the main event will be captured by television cameras and broadcast worldwide."

"Wow..." I said. "That's incredible."

"It's broadcast throughout the world?!" Grim exclaimed. "So, you're sayin' that if I were to play in this tournament—and win of course—the whole world would see it?!"

"Of course!" said Crowley. "Players who excel at the tournament invariably attract great attention. Both from the pro leagues and the public at large!"

"In your case, the magic would barely even matter," said Deuce. "Just having a monster like you out there is sure to turn heads."

"It's settled, then!" Grim said, pumping his paw into the air. "I'm gonna train around the clock, join a team, and become a legend!"

"Alas, Grim, you cannot enter," Crowley said.

"...Wait, what?"

"Did you not hear me speak the word 'interdorm' multiple times? Your dorm doesn't even have seven members. Therefore, you cannot enter the tournament."

"Whaaaaaat?! No faaaaair!"

"But there's plenty else to do, from tending to the grounds to selling drinks in the stands! Those who stand upon the field are not the only stars of tournament day."

Grim crossed his arms and glared at the floor. "Not. Interested! I wanna be on TV! I want everyone in the world fawning over me! 'Squeee! Grim is sooooo cool!' 'Did you see that play Grim made?' You get what I'm sayin'?"

"Your delusions are oddly specific, dude," Ace said.

"Well, if you can't field a team, I'm afraid that's that," said Deuce. "Maybe next year, Ramshackle House will get some new members. But it's not happening this year."

"What, are you going to find more magic-less students and monsters?" I said.

Deuce shrugged. "You never know."

"Anyway, as I believe I've mentioned, I'm a busy man," Crowley said. "I must be off."

"Yeah, thanks for takin' me outta your busy day to build up my dreams and crush 'em!" Grim cried. "Myaaah!" He started sobbing, and I all but had to drag him back to Ramshackle Dorm.

I thought Grim would have gotten over the Spelldrive tournament in a week, but he was still grumbling about it when he returned home from classes the following Monday. "Man... If I can't be in the Spelldrive tournament, then what's even the point anymore?" he said, flopping onto the couch.

"Wow, uh, melodramatic much?" I said.

"What's wrong, Grimmy?" said one of the resident ghosts. "Something got ya down?"

"He's sulking because he can't play in the Spelldrive tournament," explained another ghost.

"If you wanna play Spelldrive that badly, why, we can play with ya!" said a third ghost. "I was the team captain ninety years ago, y'know. The girls in the stands couldn't get enough of me!"

"Yeah, but wouldn't we need seven people?" said Grim.

"It's not a real match, so who cares?" said the first ghost. "Let's just play!"

Grim looked at me, and I shrugged. All of us headed outside. The ghosts taught us how to play Spelldrive, and it was actually quite fun even with my lack of magic. After awhile, Crowley strolled by and said, "Good day. Playing some Spelldrive?"

"Aaand here comes the Fun Police," Grim grumbled. "There goes my good mood, right down the drain."

"I'm pleased to see you're all getting along. Quite pleased indeed."

"Yeah, they just keep comin' back anyway. Might as well get along, I guess. Did you want something, or..."

"I have a request to make of you both. Why don't we take this inside?"

"Aright," I said. The ghosts dispersed while I walked inside with Grim and Crowley. We all sat on the couch with Grim higher up.

"Seriously?" Grim said. "MORE requests? I ain't a part of your janitorial staff anymore, y'know!"

"Oh?" said Crowley. "You DO recall that I never promised to cover the living expenses you've been racking up, yes? Hard work can be a beautiful thing, Grim. I'm sure you agree, Ona."

My eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat...?"

Crowley cleared his throat. "I'll get straight to the point. There has been a rash of students being hurt in suspicious incidents on campus lately. I'm here to ask you to investigate the matter."

"Suspicious incidents...?" said Grim.

"Yes. Students falling down stairs, getting burns from boiling water, and so forth. The specifics of the incidents differ, but the nurse's office has had a clear spike in patients over the last few days. With yesterday's incident on the stairs, we now have ten wounded students. We're just fortunate that none of the injuries have been life-threatening...yet."

"Ya sure it ain't just kids bein' clumsy?"

"I'm sure many of our students are too distracted by the upcoming tournament to focus properly. But this is far more accidents than we've had in the past years. Furthermore, all of the wounded students were considered contenders to make their dorms' teams."

"Oooh, NOW this is gettin' interesting."

"This smells like a scandal..." I said.

"An excellent deduction, Ona," said Crowley. "However, we have no evidence of foul play. All of the accidents happened in public spaces, and all of the witnesses said the same thing: 'It looked like he was just being careless.'"

"Sounds like they were just bein' careless, then," said Grin. "Case closed! Glad we could sort that out. Bye!"

"Not the most thorough of investigations, Grim."

"But this has got nothin' to do with me! I can't even participate in your dumb tournament! So what do I care what happens? Ptooey!"

"I'm sorry to hear that—especially after I'd prepared such a magnificent reward for you..."

"Ha! I ain't fallin' for that line again! I wouldn't do it even for a hundred cans of tuna!"

"But what if I allowed you to participate in the Spelldrive tournament?"

Grim's eyes widened. "PARDONNE-MOI?!"

"Should you solve the case, I'll generously permit your dorm to enter the Spelldrive tournament. What do you say to that? Surely you're dazzled by my altruism?"

"Myah... Myahaha!"

"As a participant, the whole world will lay eyes upon your majesty. Just imagine the cheers echoing from the sold-out stadium seats! 'This year's most promising rookie, the mighty Grim, has taken the field! Hurrah!' And so on."

"Oh, man. It's like I can already taste it..."

"Ah, but of course, you have refused my offer. How unfortunate. Let's forget this ever happened." Crowley stood.

"No, wait! WAIT! I'm in! I'll do it!"

"What's that? You'll do it, you say?"

"If you'll let me into the tournament, you bet! Right, Ona?" Grim turned to me excitedly.

Wow, Crowley was quite the manipulator. Good thing I was actually curious to find out what was going on. Plus, I did find Spelldrive fun. "Let's catch the culprit and enter the tourney!" I said.

"But hold on a sec. Don't we need seven players? What are you gonna do about that?"

"As school headmage, I will simply perform a magical miracle to fill out your team somehow," Crowley said.

"Sold! You got yourself a deal, good sir! C'mon, Ona, we got a crime to solve!"

"I am counting on you both."

I took a deep breath. "Okay, it's time for some investigating!"