CHAPTER 22: CRAFT, CUNNING, & MISCHIEF

Jill continued to work until 11 PM. Then she quickly got ready for bed, set her alarm for the next day, and crawled under her sheets exhaustedly. Grim was already asleep at the foot of the bed. Jill wondered if he had been waiting for her until he finally gave up and went to sleep on his own. Some hench-human she was… she always seemed to be letting someone down, even if she wasn't planning on running away.

Her dreams were murky at first, but then they settled on a more recent memory of hers. One that she didn't see much point in at that time, but it was now ghoulishly clear what it all meant.

Halloween Night, after the banquet and before Malleus froze time for the ghostly latecomers…

Jill was walking home to Hallowgrim, having said goodnight to all her classmates. Her stomach was full, her heart was light, and Grim had fallen asleep in her arms. Despite the rude tourists, her first Halloween Week at Night Raven College was a success. Jill grinned to herself, still feeling the festive adrenaline in the air.

In front of the Hallowgrim gates was Dire Crowley himself.

"Miss Bones, congratulations on this Halloween Week… and give that to Mr. Grim when he awakes," Crowley said warmly.

"Of course, sir," Jill said. "I'm glad I could celebrate with everyone. It was a lot of fun!"

"I'll be honest, I didn't think much of this old house," Crowley said, glancing back at Hallowgrim. "By the time I became headmage, it was used mainly as a storage area. When you dropped in and asked to recreate it… well, I didn't see much risk or reward in it."

Jill looked up at the full moon, not sure what to say to that.

"But you've truly made this a sought-after dorm," Crowley said. "I've been getting constant messages from mages who want to be sorted into Hallowgrim! Not to mention, this has caused our tourism to explode from last Halloween Week… even if some of our visitors were less than ethical…"

Good thing we scared them all off, Jill thought, and she forced her lips into a straight line. The faculty wasn't supposed to know about that little skeleton in the closet.

"We should be getting many more students… and perhaps female students as well, if there are enough applicants." Crowley smiled. "You truly have become an exceptional student, Miss Bones, despite your unpredicted arrival."

"Not at all, sir," Jill said humbly. "I just put my nose to the grindstone. Anyone in my place would do the same."

"I doubt many students would reach your level if they were put into your shoes," Crowley mused. "You've been such a boon to Night Raven that sometimes I wonder if I should keep you here…"

A cold chill went down Jill's back. "Wh-What…?!"

"I'm only joking," Crowley chuckled. "Well, I wish you a Happy Halloween and a good night." He walked down towards Main Street, letting Jill carry Grim into the dorm.

If only I'd known… so that's your ploy, huh, Crowley? Keep me at Night Raven so I'll continue being your perfect little puppet? I should've cut my strings from you months ago…

"Just Another Day" blared next to Jill. The goth girl stirred, still tired from her late night project, and turned off her phone alarm. Grim stretched himself like a cat and gave a huge yawn.

"There ya are," he said. "Thought you'd be in that artroom all night."

"I got carried away," Jill excused.

"Are ya gonna show me what you're makin'?" Grim asked. "Is it somethin' for me, like when you made my ceremonial robes?"

"Grim, it's a surprise," Jill said. "I can't tell you! And don't peek in—it would be like looking at your presents before Christmas! It just isn't done."

"Ah, so it is somethin' for me," Grim said with a smirk. "Got it."

Jill decided to let Grim think whatever he wanted. It would be a cruel kick in the teeth once Grim knew the truth—she had no idea how to break it to him and still get away scot-free. She would have to write a letter to everyone, apologizing for her betrayal and fully confessing how much they all mean to her. By the time that letter was read, Jill would either be in Royal Sword or even in Crittenden. Grim would have to be strong without her looking after him all the time.

As Jill got ready for the day, Grim spoke up again. "So I had another dream about the Pumpkin King. He brought some stuff from the Christmas village and showed it to everyone he knew. But no one got it, so he was studyin' Christmas all by himself in his room. Then he got the big idea to be Santa himself." Grim frowned. "Ya said that the Pumpkin King and Boogie Man were friends, right? But I didn't see the Boogie Man at all!"

"Your dreams tend to differ from the stories in Twisted Wonderland," Jill explained, putting her hair in its usual orange ribbon.

"Yeah, it's weird," Grim mentioned. "I'm gettin' these weird feelings, too. Like… somethin' bad is about to happen."

"Of course something bad will happen," Jill said. "We've been through several overblots, a fairy gala, a ghost wedding, weird squishy creatures falling from the sky, and who knows what else. This place is like a magnet for weirdness."

"When ya put it like that, I guess so..." Grim glanced at Jill's magestone. There were some blot spots, but it wasn't too alarming—some spots vanished, while new ones appeared in different places. Day by day, the blot kept shifting like a kaleidoscope. Jill and Grim weren't sure if that was normal or not, but Jill decided not to go to seek help. Because she didn't need help with her blot anymore. She had hope, a secret light in her heart.

After breakfast, Jill and Grim descended down the stairs and past the gates. Ace, Deuce, Jack, Ortho, and Epel were all there, and none of them were smiling.

"So… I'm guessing the headmage didn't help?" Ace asked. "Some of us saw you storming out of the main building."

"He shut us down," Grim snapped. "And also won't let us find any exits for ourselves. So we're back at square one."

"That's real frustrating," Epel muttered. "To do so much work, only to reach a dead end…"

"We're truly sorry, Jill Bones… but it seems that we've all reached our limit," Ortho explained.

"Boys, it's okay," Jill said. "Like I said earlier, I'm just glad you all helped me the best you could. Sometimes things just don't work out—life's not fair, and all that. I'll just take what I'm given."

"What about your nightmares?" Deuce asked. "Or your blot?"

"My blot isn't too bad," Jill said, showing everyone the magestone. "And if it does get out of hand, I'll get help, like with Grim."

"Right…" Ortho didn't seem to like the reminder.

"You know, there are counselors in this school that could lend you an ear, if you need extra help," Jack offered.

Night Raven counselors, Jill thought to herself. Anyone from this school won't help me in the slightest.

"Right, thank you. Things will be okay," she assured them with a smile that felt phony, but looked genuine.

And that was that. No one pressed her on her issues anymore. Things were back to normal.

For the rest of the week, Jill continued her duties. Between classes, schoolwork, her part-time job, and hanging out with friends, she had precious few hours of free time to sew her outfit. It only made her more determined to make every minute count, to not waste any cuts or stitches…

If only I had that stupid hammer, Jill thought to herself irritably. In her first few weeks here, she came across a strange hammer while cleaning out one of the rooms. According to the ghosts, this was a magic crafting hammer that could turn raw materials into furniture. After buying the right materials from the Mystery Shop, Jill and Grim went hog-wild creating gothic furniture to match their revamped dorm. Gravestone-shaped chairs, cobweb curtains, a coffin-shaped wardrobe, an old-fashioned candelabra… the list went on. But the hammer was old, and so it broke after all the Hallowgrim stuff had been made. Jill was meaning to get a replacement, but it would be quite costly. That said, it would be nice to use that hammer on her fabric and get a nice new Royal Sword outfit in the blink of an eye…

All this time doing things the old-fashioned way only gave Jill more time to regret her decision. But at this point, she felt as if she had no choice. Well, she could give up and fall into despair, but that wasn't a choice.

By Saturday night, she had the skirt and sash created, and was working on the shirt. It wouldn't be long at this rate… but how was she going to execute her plan once this outfit was finally made?

Author's Note: The magic crafting hammer comes from the "Guest Room" sideplot, where you can find a hammer that lets you create furniture and decor in your guest room. Naturally, Jill would go crazy with it until it breaks XD