Tsunami blinked her eyes open groggily before realising everything around her was dark, she frowned before raising her hands and trying to push against what was in front of her, it was then she realised exactly what she was in.
A coffin.
"Not again" the brunette female grumbled quietly to herself before she heard a commotion outside, only, it sounded like one voice instead of many and it wasn't one she recognised either.
Which did not make it any better for her theory of somehow ending up in that blasted future timeline again, she did not want to fight Byakuran again like that, no thank you.
"I better hurry up and find that uniform before someone spots me..." she heard the voice say before it was outside the coffin she was within, which again...why a coffin?
"Urgggh...this lide weighs a ton! Try this one for size! Mya-ha!" Tsunami felt the coffin heat up and the second the lid was burst open she moved and jumped out of the coffin to avoid the blue flames that didn't feel like rain flames at all, nor did they feel like glacier flames.
Tsunami looked at the tiny furball that had blown the coffin wide open, taking note of all the other floating coffins around the room
"Huh?! why is this coffin empty?" the small furball exclaimed in shock and Tsunami cleared her throat, causing the cat to startle and turn to look at her with wide blue eyes
"Why are you awake?!" the cat shouted before seeming to realise that asking her was not important at the current time and Tsunami narrowed her brown eyes at the flaming cat.
"nevermind! give me your clothes!" the cat continued after shaking his head and pointing his paw at Tsunami who simply raised an eyebrow when she noticed the almost cult-like robes she was wearing
"When did-" she was cut off when the cat shot blue fire at her,
"never mind!" Tsunami turned and ran out of the room with the cat following behind her.
Tsunami ran through hallways and what seemed like a courtyard before she arrived at a library and hide behind one of the pillars, she took shuddering breaths and was just about to harmonize with her surroundings when the cat found her.
"Ha! You think you can hide from the great Grim!" the now-named Grim smirked at her arrogantly, Tsunami narrowed her eyes as amber flames flickered along her fingertips just before seeing a cord wrap around Grim and she snapped her head up to look at the new person that had arrived in possible the nick of time.
For Grim anyway.
"Me-YEOW! That hurt! what gives?" Grim exclaimed in pain
"consider it tough love." the unknown man replied as the golden eyes behind his mask narrowed down at Grim,
"Ah, I've found you at last. Splendid." the unknown man continued as he focus fell on Tsunami who tensed slightly
"I trust you're one of this year's new students?" the man asked her and tsunami paused and blinked in confusion at the man's words.
"My, you were ever so eager to make your debut" the man sighed while crossing his arms, still frowning down at her, as if it was her fault
"and bringing a poorly trained familiar with you? that is a clear violation of the school's rules." Tsunami tensed before her eyebrow twitched
"as if i'd serve some lowly human!" Grim exclaimed as he struggled against the cord
"He isn't my familiar" Tsunami agreed with Grim as she narrowed her eyes at the unknown man for daring to assume that Grim was her familiar.
"Yes, yes. Rebellious familiars always say that. Do be quiet for a bit won't you?" the man sighed and Tsunami snarled softly at the fact this man was ignoring both her and Grim when they tried to tell him that his assumption was wrong.
"Dear me. Of all the students I've dealt with, you're the first with the temerity enough to open their own gate and step out of it" the man sighed as the golden eyes behind the mask closed and he seemed to shake his head almost in disappointment
"does the very notion of patience elude you?" the man asked and Tsunami's eyebrow twitched again at his words and she was almost glad his eyes were closed, so that he didn't see her brown eyes bleed amber briefly.
Grim saw it though, the flaming cat tensing at the almost brief change in the female's eye colour.
"No matter. Your orientation has already begun. Let us return to the Mirror Chamber" and suddenly everything made sense to Tsunami with those words and she remembered what her mother had said, but in order to seem almost clueless she decided to stay ignorant.
"Gate?" Tsunami asked and the man uncrossed his arms
"you awakened in a room full of gates, did you not?" the man asked her and Tsunami felt her eyebrow twitch that this man was causing various coffins 'gates'
"All of the students here at the campus arrived through such gates" the man explained and Tsunami felt it kind or ironic that she would pass to Twisted Wonderland through a coffin of all things.
"although students typically have restraint enough to wait until I open them before waking up" the man continued as he once again crossed his arms when he said that statement
"...so those coffins are like...gates?" Tsunami spoke just to clarify that she did hear the man correctly,
"the design is intended to symbolize a parting with your former world, and a rebirth into a new one" and once again Tsunami's eyebrow twitched violently at the man's choice of words
"...weird design intention..." Tsunami grumbled quietly enough that the man didn't hear her.
"ah, but now is not the time for such prattle" the man realised almost just then
"You've a student orientation to attend!" the man exclaimed and Tsunami's eyebrow twitched again
"Go on now, make haste" the man added almost ushering her out of the library.
"First, just tell me one thing: who are you?" Tsunami asked him once she had stood up properly and brushed any dust off the robe she was wearing, she could see the gears going in the man's head at her question, as the man suddenly looked thoughtful
"hm? Have you not fully regained consciousness?" the man asked her curiously and almost slightly concerned
"The time-space teleportation must have addled your memories..." the man continued and Tsunami wanted to snort, it didn't mess with her memories, she just had a hunch she needed confirming about who he was.
"well, these things happen I suppose" The man brushed it off as he looked straight at her
"I shall explain it to you while we walk. Truly my magnanimity is boundless" The man smiled at her as he gestured for her to follow.
Tsunami's eyebrow twitched at his words, she knew instantly this man would drive her up the wall.
Skull glanced around the room as he looked at Chrome, who was using him as a shield from everyone else, not that the cloud could blame the young mist at all considering everyone within the room were all males, not all of them human either.
"step forward to the mirror and be sorted" a short male with red hair and silver eyes told them both, Skull narrowed his purple eyes at the boy and kept Chrome behind him almost protectively
"No." Skull spoke coldly and Chrome tugged on the sleeve of his rob
"...maybe we should...i sensed Bossu earlier..." Chrome whispered to Skull who growled lowly
"fine." Skull narrowed his eyes before both stood before the mirror who looked at them
"State thy name" the mirror intoned and Skull stiffened, he knew that voice.
"...Skull DeMort" Skull spoke and the floating tablet seemed to hitch in breath, Chrome hesistated slightly before peaking out from behind Skull
"...Chrome..." Chrome spoke her first name, she no longer wanted to use the surname 'Dukuro' but she didn't know what to use as her last name instead.
"State thy true and full name" the mirror spoke and both elements stiffened at the mirror.
"Skull DeMort" Skull growled lowly at the mirror and Chrome hesistated, just before the doors burst open.
The man cleared his throat as they walked through the courtyard
"this is Night Raven College" the man informed Tsunami of where she was, Tsunami nodded, she had heard about NRC from her mother and as such she knew what it was and she knew who the man was as well, Dire Crowley, the headmaster of NRC.
"it is an institution for students the world over who demonstrate a rare aptitude for magic" Crowley continued to explain to her
"It is the most prestigious academy of its sort in all of Twisted Wonderland" Tsunami wanted to snort and say it was second to Royal Sword Acadmey, but she didn't feel like bringing up the school her mother said was full of stuck-up rose-tinted glasses pansies.
"and I am Dire Crowley. Having been entrusted with its care by the chairman, I serve as the headmage" Crowley introduced himself formally and Tsunami nodded in greeting to the headmage as they continued to walk
"Only those who the Dark Mirror perceives as having a talent for magic are admitted to the college" Crowley explained and Tsunami simply hummed in response knowing the mirror either sensed her flames or her magic.
"Those who are selected are summoned to the campus through those 'gates' which can appear anywhere" Tsunami still didn't understand why they used coffins of all things, but her mother did say that NRC was weird like that.
"A black carriage bearing one such gate should have come to meet you" Crowley explained and Tsunami frowned as she recalled vague yet foggy memories of the carriage, as if she had been asleep at the time, which judging by the night sky around them, she most certainly had been asleep.
"...i do recall going through a dark forest" Tsunami eventually spoke after a few moments of silence,
"the black carriage serves to receive a student chosen by the Dark mirror, it too bears a gate that connects to this campus" Crowley continued to speak and Tsunami wondered exactly how long he could talk for.
"As you know, sending a carriage to meet someone on a special day is a time-honoured tradition" Crowley continued as he put his hands on his hips and Tsunami could only ask
"a time-honoured tradition WHERE?!" she asked almost sarcastically, remembering her mother said that it usually only happened with NRC.
"Mmff! Mmmmmff!" Grim struggled against the cord and the gag around his mouth almost in objection
"now, let us attend to your orientation" Crowley spoke as if he hadn't heard Grim's muffled protest at all, which felt rather rude to Tsunami.
What's this?
TWO updates in one day?
I'm spoiling you all.
Anway, yes I know some of the translations may be wrong, I'm using the english translation of the game which I play, so no-one come at me!
However, now that we've reached this section, the updates will be a lot easier, I just needed to confirm my memory for the opening part in case I had been wrong for a few things.
I hope you all enjoy this chapter as well!
Until next time!
