Author's Notes: This one is a bit longer. But it does have plenty of differences. Especially the fight between Grim and Ace. Enjoy!
0 5: The Great Seven
Henley was quite comfortable under the covers. He had chosen the first room on the first floor right next to the stairs. It was a decently sized room and it while it was going to require quite a bit of cleaning and repairs, it provided the best view of the front of the building.
There was also a nice fireplace in the room with a large rectangular mirror above the mantle. It could become quite a nice room. Once he was done with the lounge and kitchen, he'd split his work between the bathroom and this room.
"Hee hee hee..." Henley grimaced in his sleep at the laughter that filled his subconscious. "Aren't the two of you supposed to be off cleaning the school today?" the familiar voice asked.
Grim groaned in his sleep. "Five more minutes, Ma..." he trailed off with a little snore. Henley was trying to wake up as another voice spoke up.
"Go ahead, sleep the day away." the voice sounded a little gleeful. "And you might not ever have to wake up again."
'That sounds like a threat, but...' Henley finally got his eyes to pry open.
"Just like us!" laughter filled the room as Henley finally shot up awake. Grim was also up and awake as they realized just who had been there.
"Me- what?! The ghosts are back! Hey, Hen, up and at 'em!" Grim cried, as he and Henley scrambled from the bed. Well, Henley certainly hadn't been expecting a battle first thing in the morning. That was for sure, though it did help him to wake up. As it turned out, the ghosts didn't mean them any harm.
"So, I hear you'll be living here from now on?" the tallest of the ghosts said with a grin. Henley and Grim nodded. "Hope you like pranks as much as we do!" he crowed before he and the others disappeared through the roof laughing.
"Things are definitely going to be interesting around here." Henley mused, looking up when Crowley opened the door and stepped into the room.
"Good morning, Henley. Did you sleep well?" Crowley asked. He had only allowed the ghosts to wake up the duo after putting down some ground rules in regard to his ward and Grim.
"Not at all!" Grim cried. "When I sprawled out on the bed, the mattress fell right through the frame!" The little beast was jumping up and down while waving a paw wildly at the man. "Exactly how ramshackle is this dorm?" Grim demanded hotly.
Crowley blinked at the cat before looking over at Henley who looked surprisingly well rested despite the state of the room that he had slept in. "I slept great." He said with a genuine smile, stretching and reveling in the multiple pops that sounded deafening in the quiet room. Grim and Crowley both cringed at the horrid sound.
"I am delighted to hear that you've adjusted so well to your predicament." he told the boy. "Speaking of, I have brought your breakfast. In an act of pure generosity. Get dressed and meet me in the lounge and we'll discuss you assignment for today." Crowley said brightly, before snatching up Grim to give the boy some privacy to change.
Henley chuckled before getting up from the bed. He applied the potion to the injury on his forehead and did his best to tame his tangle of dark curls. He scowled, pulling out a few twigs he had missed the night before. He sighed; he was going to need a lot of help with this at some point. He didn't have anything to put his hair up with, so he left it alone after that. He put on the pieces that somewhat resembled the school uniform and decided he looked presentable enough for cleaning. He went and joined the other two in the lounge where Grim was already eating some bacon.
"First, this is the potion Divus wants you to take every morning to help your nutrient intake." Crowley said, handing over a pale pink potion.
"Thank you." He said, taking the semi-sweet potion before getting started on the breakfast the man had provided.
"You're welcome. As for your assignment today. Seeing as how the campus is quite vast, without magic it would be quite the Herculean task to clean it all. Instead, I'd like you to focus on the area spanning from the front gates to the library. It's not too terribly large, but it does cover a decent part of the area for you to get accustomed too." Crowley explained. Henley nodded, remembering that area briefly in his and Grim's exploring the night before.
"I'm hoping to avoid any incidents today, however, if something happens, I just ask you try to mitigate the damage somewhat."
"I can't be held responsible if someone does anything to my human. But I'll at least keep them from being a pile of ash on the ground."
"I'll do my best." Henley promised the head mage who looked at Grim with some concern.
"I'll let you know when I find anything involving your situation and I'll hopefully have some proper clothes for you by this evening. I'll also be discussing that test with Crewel and Trein, you should be taking it sometime tomorrow, probably in the morning." He added to the boy who nodded his thanks. "Now, I will leave you too it. You are of course free to take lunch in the cafeteria, and you may study in the library once you've finished your work for the day if you'd like. I do ask that you try to be back here by nightfall."
"Yes sir." Henley said, finishing his meal.
"Wonderful! I eagerly await the fruits of your labor." Crowley said gleefully before he left the two of them to get to work.
"No one better try anything with you. I will bite them." Grim scowled.
"Thanks for being so protective Grim. But I'm sure we'll be fine." Henley assured the beast who gave in and followed his human from the dorm.
Night Raven College: Main Street
Somehow, despite the vastness of the campus and the extremely long walk from their dorm to Main Street- Henley had noted the gardens, the mirror chamber, and a shop during their walk- they did arrive in good time.
The pathway had seven statues along it. Four on one side, three on the other. Henley looked at the statues, a feeling of familiarity scratching at his mind. Like he knew them but couldn't place where from. There was the woman with a crown and heart shaped paddle in one hand. An octopus lady with a contract. A large lion with a scar over his left eye. Then across from those three was a tall, elegant woman holding a melting apple by its stem. Next to her was another woman, this one possessing horns and holding a staff. Next to her was a shrewd looking man in a large hat with a snake shaped cane. And the final one was a tall man with flaming hair and flames from his finger.
"What's the deal with these statues? All of their faces look pretty scary." Grim said, getting a raised brow from Henley. "Like this lady here. It looks like she's got some real anger management issues." Grim defended himself, indicating the woman with the heart shaped paddle thing.
"You don't know the Queen of Hearts?" a voice asked, causing the duo to look over at a fair skinned, ginger haired boy with scarlet eyes and a red heart painted over his left eye. He was in the school uniform, though his possessed a bright red vest, unlike Henley's own vestless uniform. Henley assumed that had something to do with his dorm as he had spotted a few other students with vests of different colors. The armband around his bicep was a red and black ribbon with a golden emblem, probably the symbol of whichever dorm he was a part of. A heart with a crown atop it and the four suits in the upper left corner of the heart, and a little banner with 'Heartslabyul' across it.
"Queen of Hearts? Is she some kind of big deal?" Grim asked the boy, grabbing Henley's attention from observing the other and paying more attention to the upcoming interaction and explanation. Despite his curiosity, Grim was tense and ready to spring at the first sign of trouble. It was subtle enough that the newcomer didn't even notice he was under scrutiny.
The boy looked at them before shrugging. "She was a queen who lived in a maze-like garden of roses long, long ago. Like centuries ago. She was a strict woman who prized order above all. She wouldn't tolerate a rose being off color, or her playing-card soldiers being out of step." The boy explained. "She basically ruled over a kingdom of madness, but not one of her subjects dared to defy her. You wanna know why?" the boy asked with a large grin.
"Why?" Grim asked, listening intently to what the other was saying.
"Because the punishment for breaking a rule was immediate decapitation!" he told them with glee.
"That's seriously messed up." Grim muttered, though Henley almost thinks it's the boy's glee at such a gruesome punishment that has Grim disturbed. Henley himself wondered, briefly, if decapitation was common in Twisted Wonderland. It didn't ring as familiar in his mind, so he wasn't sure. That tidbit hadn't been in his book, but he also hadn't gotten around to reading the next chapter. He had been far too busy and tired last night to read chapter two. So, he still only had the overview of the races of Twisted Wonderland figured out. He really hoped he could finish that book at some point.
"Pretty cool, right?" The boy asked them. "I'm a big fan. I mean, who would bother to obey a queen that was kind all the time?" he asked.
"Yeah, true. A leader needs to be strong." Grim had to concede before focusing on the ginger haired boy. "But putting that aside... Who're you?" Grim asked.
"Name's Ace. I'm a first-year student here as of... today! Pleased to meetcha!" He said, genuinely gleeful, much to both of their distrust, though neither showed it out right.
"I'm Grim. This is my human Henley, he's mine to protect." Grim said with some fervor.
"Henley, huh? That name has got an odd ring to it." Ace said, brow furrowed.
Henley raised a brow at the other freshmen. "No odder than 'Ace' is for a human." Henley replied, seeing a slight twitch of the other's brow at the implication. After all, to Henley, 'Ace' seemed more like a pet's name. A dog's, in particularly.
"So, tell me, Ace. Is that lion with a scar a famous ruler too?" Grim asked the boy.
Ace looked at the statue that the other was referring too. He nodded. "That's the King of Beasts who ruled the savanna. But he wasn't born into the throne like your average ruler. He had to earn it through hard work and elaborate schemes. When he became the king, he decreed that hyenas would be pariahs no more and should live among his subjects as equals." Ace explained.
Henley blinked. "He was able to look past social status that easily. Hm. Impressive. That's not something every leader can do." Henley mused, getting a nod of agreement from both of the others. "What about this woman? The one with the contract." Henley asked.
"That's the Sea Witch who lived in an underwater grotto." Ace said. "She devoted her life to helping troubled merfolk." Ace explained.
"If they were willing to pay the price, she'd help them change their appearance, find love, whatever they wanted. They say she was so good, there was no wish she couldn't grant." Ace paused before adding. "They also say the price could be a tad steep, though."
"If she was granting literal wishes, that makes sense. Sometimes people just need to decide if it's really worth it." Henley said.
"Hm. I could make quite a bit of money for tuna once I'm recognized as the great mage I am." Grim mused, getting a soft huff of fond amusement from Henley. "Oh, what about this guy with the big hat?"
"Him? That's the Sorcerer of the Sands." Ace explained. "He was an advisor to a total dolt of a sultan. He was a smart guy. He was the really capable sort. He once exposed a swindler- some guy pretending to be a prince in order to trick the princess." Ace told them. "After that, he got this magic lamp and became the greatest sorcerer in the world. Then, they say... he used that power to become sultan himself!"
"Wow!" Grim said with a wide-eyed look sent to the statue. "I guess it's true that a mage needs to be an excellent judge of character, huh?" Grim asked.
Henley frowned as he heard more and more of what Ace was telling them. He wasn't sure why, but something seemed off with these explanations they were being given. Like they were warped, and a lot was being left out. He would need to research these Great Seven more thoroughly. Something was being lost in translation here.
"What about this beauty over here?" Grim asked, pointing to the queen who held the melting apple by its stem.
"She's the Fairest Queen. Said to be the fairest in all the land. In fact, she used her magic mirror to check how she ranked on a daily basis." Ace continued the explanation. "When it looked like her position was threatened, they say she'd do whatever it took to keep it."
Henley thought about that. "Hm. The level of dedication it would require keeping that kind of record is, impressive." He conceded.
"They also say she was a master of poisons." Ace added, amused by the look on the other boy's face.
"Geeze. She's pretty, but that sounds kind of scary." Grim muttered.
"You think so? I gotta respect the hustle." Ace shrugged.
'I wonder if we'll be covering poisons in potionology or if I'm going to have to look that up myself.' Henley wondered to himself before looking at the tall man with flaming hair. "Ace, what can you tell us about this man?" he asked, taking Ace's attention off of Grim. Even if the explanations they're being told are off, they did still provide some information that will help with his understanding of Twisted Wonderland and hopefully trigger something with his lost memories.
"The scary one with flaming hair?" Grim asked.
"I like his hair, and I don't think he's all that scary looking. Flaming hair, how cool would that be?" Henley asked with a grin sent the cat's way who scowled back.
"I have flaming ears and that's way cooler!" Grim scowled, clearly in disagreement with his human's taste.
"This guy is the King of the Underworld!" Ace informed Henley, both ignoring Grim's muttering. "Single-handedly ruling a kingdom packed with rambunctious spirits- that takes competence." Ace said. "He may look scary, to some of us." He sent Henley a look showing he also doubted the other's taste. "But he was a straight shooter who worked tirelessly at a tough job he never even asked for. And this guy was ordering Cerberus, the Hydra, and the Titans into battle for him!" Ace added, his voice awed despite himself.
"Wow. That's really cool. Must have been a reliable guy to any allies he had. And he didn't let it go to his head?" Ace shook his own. "That's something else." Henley's gaze fell on the last one. The woman with horns. It was strange, knowing he knows their stories and yet being unable to recall any of them. "And this one? The woman with the horns?" He asked.
"That's the Thorn Fairy who lived upon a mythical mountain." Ace said, his voice slightly more solemn when he spoke of her. "She was noble and elegant, and a master of magic and curses- even by the standards of these seven! She commanded storms, covered the kingdom with thorns... she could use magic on a massive scale! She could even turn herself into a giant dragon." he told them with an awed tone, a smile growing on his face.
"A dragon huh? That's pretty neat." Grim said, and Henley knows he's imagining himself as something as fierce as a dragon.
"Pretty cool, huh?" Ace asked. And really, if the two of them hadn't been so untrusting of this guy, the animosity would have seemed sudden. "Not like some piddling weasel." Ace said with a sneer on his face aimed at the duo.
Henley's eyes narrowed dangerously. They had both been expecting this anyways, so it hadn't been a shock. But just as Grim was fiercely protective of Henley, Henley was just as protective of his familiar. And how dare this privileged punk think he had any right to talk to him and Grim in such a way. Why? Just because this brat had magic and Henley didn't. Did he really think Henley needed magic to take him down a peg or three?
'You belong to my Pride, and you shouldn't take any crap from anyone.' It's yet another voice that Henley knows but it's too warped and garbled to hear the voice properly even if the words are clear as crystal. The memory was sudden and unexpected. But it filled Henley with a warmth.
'Don't take crap from anyone. Alright. I can do that.' Henley thought, turning his attention back to the other boy.
Ace was laughing. "I can't hold it back anymore! Come on, you're the ones who turned orientation into such a fiasco, right! The kid who got summoned but can't even use magic! And his piddly weasel of a familiar." He chuckled. Henley's eyes were narrowed at the other who was busy wiping tears from his eyes. "It took everything I had not to burst into laughter right in the middle of the ceremony." Ace crowed. Henley's eyes sharpened.
'Aha! There we go.' he thought, stepping forward. He got right in front of the other boy, forcing him to look down at Henley due to the height difference of seven inches. He was clearly uncomfortable with the closeness Henley had initiated, which is exactly what Henley wanted from the other. For him to be uneasy. "I guess you you don't have a great memory, do you?" Henley asked sweetly. "After all, that all took place at the end of the ceremony." Ace flushed and opened his mouth to retort. Henley didn't allow him to speak. "You know, if you're going to be an insulting bully, it's best to keep the facts straight. Otherwise, you're the one who looks like a fool." Henley smiled sweetly before ducking away from the boy before any possible physical retaliation could happen.
Grim began to laugh hysterically at the ginger. "You were totally owned!" Grim shouted while laughing and pointing at the gaping ginger who growled, not liking having the other laughing at him.
'Serves you right.' Henley thought. He didn't appreciate having himself and Grim laughed at or bullied in such a way.
"Well, you weren't admitted and now you're a janitor." Ace shouted before laughing. "How lame!" Ace cried. Henley shook his head in obvious faux disappointment.
"Not able to handle what you dish out, huh? How mature of you." Henley snarked, not bothering to correct him on his assumptions. Ace didn't deserve that.
"And you're both so clueless you don't even know who the Great Seven are. Not a one of them!" Ace replied hotly. "Maybe before you try getting into the college again, you ought to take a second crack at kindergarten? It's clear that you're both woefully ignorant." he started laughing again.
Henley couldn't be bothered to raise to the bait. The kid clearly knew nothing about his situation, and it was just going to be a waste of energy trying to correct his own ignorance. What Henley forgot, even momentarily, was that his familiar was fiercely and fervently protective of him. And he took the down talking of Henley's intelligence and the unknowing jab at his situation very, very personally on Henley's own behalf. If the fierce and magic infused growls were anything to go by.
Henley grimaced. "This is not going to end well." he muttered. But at the same time, this punk dared to talk down to his familiar. And they were told to deal with such altercations as they saw fit.
"Anyway, just thought I'd tease you a bit." Ace said, letting out a breath of amusement.
"You considered that teasing? Oh my, I'd hate to see what you actually consider bullying." Henley said sarcastically.
Ace scowled before turning his back on the two of them. "It's been a blast! But unlike you, I actually have classes to get to, so I'll let you get back to picking up trash. Bye!" He shouted back to them.
"You ain't waking away! It's too late for that!" Grim hissed, building up flames. Henley's eyes widened in alarm.
"Ace duck!" Henley shouted, rushing towards Grim. He was too late to stop the beast though, who sent out a large blast of fire that would have hit Ace if he hadn't dropped to the ground in time.
"Whoa!" Ace yelped, scrambling back up and turning back to the cat who jumped out of Henley's reach and squared off against the other boy. Henley winced, it was clear Grim was infuriated on Henley's behalf, and really, Henley was upset on Grim's behalf.
But that didn't mean they should maim some ignorant, overly arrogant punk. He was clearly unaware of who he was dealing with: Two beings that wouldn't take crap from some magic wielding, pompous jerk who thought having magic made him a king.
"How dare you down talk my human when you're the one who knows nothing!" Grim snarled dangerously. "I'm gonna make that explodey-head of yours explode all over again as punishment for your slight against my human!" Grim growled.
"Explodey-head?!" Ace cried, sounding a little more offended by that than being almost burned to a crisp.
"I mean, he's got a point." Henley muttered, backing up his familiar.
"You wanna go down with me, shorty?" Ace retorted too Grim. "You got some guts. You wanna talk hair, huh? I'm gonna shave you like a toy poodle!" Ace shouted, effectively attracting attention from the passing students who happily decided to egg on a fight between students.
Henley snorted. "Well, this is a high school I suppose." He muttered before saying to his familiar. "Don't maim him." The strength of Grim's attacks immediately and drastically lessened even if he didn't verbally acknowledge Henley's words. That was when the fight- if you called Grim playing with the other like a cat plays with its food a fight- began.
Grim would send balls of fire at Ace. They weren't powerful enough to do any real damage to the boy. But it was a clear warning. And Ace would try to divert the flames with his wind magic which tended to give the balls of flame a slight power boost. It lasted for a few minutes with shouts and encouragements from the surrounding students making up the soundtrack of the fight.
"Take that!" Grim shouted gleefully, sending a hot wave of cerulean flames at Ace.
Said ginger laughed. "All it takes is a little gust to-" he began, diverting the flames. But due to how wide the flames were, they weren't diverted up and out of the way. But directly at Henley and the Queen of Hearts statue he had been standing in front of.
"Move!" Several voices shouted in alarm at the sight of the kid about to be burned to a crisp. Henley instinctively dove to the side, rolling to lessen the impact and coming to a stop in a crouch a few statues away.
Several sighs of relief were let out at that. "Oh no! The Queen of Hearts's statue looks like it's been flame-broiled!" Ace cried, apparently unbothered at almost causing Henley to be set alight. And oh, if that didn't add to Grim's fury and Henley's own.
"That's what you're worried about?! The statue?! Not that you almost maimed my human?! Even after he went out of his way to make sure I didn't do the same to you?" Grim shouted furiously, causing the boy to actually duck his head with a wince. Grim sneered. "My human is of higher worth than yourself, and you thought to degrade and attack him the way you did without any provocation on his part? Simply because you think yourself a king for having magic?" Grim spat.
"You should've just let it burn you to a crisp!" Several people looked at Grim in disbelief, Henley and Ace included. "At least then some space would be returned to the world where it might actually be put to use." There were several intakes of breath at that statement.
"Harsh." Someone muttered, a little thrown by the words himself.
"Sevens, that was cold." Another whistled.
"Who in their right mind would do that?!" Ace screeched angrily, not really knowing how to react to the other's words. Henley stood up, brimming with some anger and adrenaline from almost getting burnt to a crisp. It could have been him that had wound up flame-broiled! And the kid couldn't even be bothered to apologize or anything for his verbal attack on them in the first place! The circle of students rapidly backed away at Henley's approach.
He didn't hesitate to pound a fist into the boy's head, sending Ace falling to the ground with a wheeze, not having expected the attack from someone without magic. He looked up at the boy, whimpering at the flashing anger in the boy's opalescent eyes that seemed brighter in the morning light.
"Maybe think before you bully someone again just because you think they're less than you for not having magic." he growled, very nearly falling into Grim's bestial language, which added more of a growl to his words than intended. But it was threatening enough to startle Ace and several other students that were listening in.
"What is going on here?" Crowley's voice asked, and several students backed away or began to leave the area.
"Oh no! The Head Mage!" Ace cried, a whole new fear racing through him. He tried to get up, but Henley's foot on his loose uniform jacket stopped him from getting too far.
Crowley stepped up to the three of them, his shoes clacking on the stone below him, a whip pulled tight in his hands. "As if the likes of you could ever flee from me!" He scolded the ginger for his attempt before taking in the scene before him. A crowd of students who were now rushing to get to classes, which he allowed. A ginger haired student from Heartslabyul on the ground sporting a rather large lump from Henley's punishment. Said boy had released the fallen student and had taken a few steps back as soon as Crowley had reached them. Grim himself was twined around Henley's ankles, glaring darkly at the fallen boy. His hackles were still raised.
All around were signs of a small-scale fight, then there was the charred statue. He had seen that happen from a distance and was relieved his ward had managed to escape the flames. It was concerning though. His reaction resembled something one was trained in. More to worry about, it seemed.
"Haaah... And now one of my precious statues is charred!" He sent a look at Grim. "Did I not just ask for no incidents?" He asked Grim, subtly requesting an explanation. He remembers what the beast had said before and knows something had to have happened to result in this.
Grim sent a glare at Ace before looking Crowley dead in his golden glowing eyes. "He was bullying my human for no reason but that he was bored. It did go further than intended." He admitted, probably the closest he was going to get to apologizing.
"It's almost as though you want to be expelled!" he growled at the ginger.
"No!" The ginger denied quickly. "Forgive me!" He pleaded. Crowley sighed harshly before taking a calming breath.
"This will not do. You!" He glared at the ginger who had stood up at some point in the past few minutes. "State your name and grade." he ordered. He was pretty sure this kid was a freshman, but he needed to be certain.
"Ace Trappola... Freshman." The boy, Ace informed him with his head hung.
"Then listen well, Trappola. You too, Mr. Veil and Grim." he told the three before him. "While I completely understand where you're coming from Grim, you both took it too far and punishments are going to need to be handed out." He said, getting a nod from Henley even if Grim looked rather unenthused by the head mage's words. But at the very least, he didn't refute them. "As punishment for today's infractions, you are hereby ordered to wash a hundred windows!" Crowley settled on.
"That's what you get for bullying someone so far above your station! This is all your fault!" Grim growled at Ace who looked taken aback.
"I have to do it too?!" He asked in disbelief.
"Of course you do." Crowley said with a frown. "It takes two to tango. You will meet in the cafeteria after class and help with this punishment. Are we clear?" Crowley asked coolly.
"Yes sir." Ace gave in, head hung.
Grim and Henley just sighed in acceptance of their situation. Crowley sent them on their way before making his way to his office.
And after a quick check of the cameras- yes, they had cameras- he realized that while Grim had cast the first spell, Trappola was the one who had initiated everything by bullying the other two. He wasn't sure why Henley didn't correct him about his status as a student or his amnesia, but he had held his own against the bullying. So, he wasn't going to have to worry about Henley too much in that regard, at least.
He sighed into his arms at his desk in his office. Who would have thought that being a guardian to a child- technically a year under the rest of his students- was going to be so full of drama? For now, he needed to send word to Trein and Crewel to meet him at lunch so they could go over Henley's schooling situation and the test Crowley wanted the boy to take for his basic knowledge.