0 4: Accommodations
The building Crowley took them to was old and rundown. Ramshackle, even. "Isn't it lovely?" Crowley asked, motioning to the two-story building. The sidings were flaked or broken, and a few windows were boarded up. There were a few holes that they could see even from the distance. And one room Henley noticed was a tower like room that was indicative of this building being something magnificent back in the day.
"I bet it's full of personality." Grim retorted, voice holding some sarcasm that seemed to go right over Crowley's head.
"Indeed. Now let's head inside. It's going to rain soon." Crowley said, opening the black iron gate that screeched as it swung open to the stone step pathway that led to the building. They watched as Crowley flawlessly plucked a simple silver key from a key ring that was full of many, much more decorative keys. Then he pushed open the front double doors with just a little bit of a struggle.
The inside was not as bad as either had suspected it would be. Sure, everything was dusty, in fact it looked like a snow scape, but with dust. There was no clean place to sit, let alone sleep which meant this was going to require a lot of work to get to semi-livable. "Right. I'll take care of the worst of the damages for now if you want to look around." Crowley told the duo, before waving his cane and fixing the worst of the structural damage on the ground floor.
While Crowley moved off to the next floor, Henley and Grim began to explore the one they were on. The entry hall they started in led directly into the lounge just a few feet ahead which held a fireplace and several piles of debris. There was a coffee table that still stood and an old striped couch. Some windows were still boarded, but at least the rest were still intact. There was a small closet that held plenty of usable cleaning supplies, and another that was probably a coat closet once.
The next room was the kitchen, which was actually quite large. There was a pretty decently sized table that could fit quite a few people against one wall. It was still plenty sturdy, though a few of the chairs were probably going to need to be repaired or replaced. There was plenty of counter space that would need a good scrubbing. There was a stove/ oven combo, an old fridge, a sink, and some cabinets with glass doors that some kitchen ware and utensils could just be seen through the dusty glass. All of it was going to need a good cleaning.
The next room was what Henley assumed was the laundry room. Or what passed as the laundry room mixed with being a large sunroom if the large glass windows were anything to go off of. There was a door back here that led to the back of the building and out to the back yard and the tree line several yards away. This room had an ancient washing machine as well as an old-fashioned wash tub to the side. There was an indoor clothesline above a stone floor that was inside a lower section with a drain, and several cubbies were embedded in the wall. A glance out the back showed another clothesline, so the inside one was probably for rainy or snow days.
"It's pretty decent, all things considered." Grim reluctantly admitted to the other who had to agree as they made their way back to the lounge.
"Plenty of space and a lot to work on." Henley agreed looking forward to it. It would be a nice project to distract from everything.
"There we go!" Crowley's jovial voice sounded as he came down the staircase towards the front of the lounge and near the entry hall. "The worst of the damage and the holes have all been repaired. At the very least, you'll be protected from the elements and any drafts." Crowley told the duo.
"Thank you, sir." Henley said, truly appreciating everything the other had done so far.
"Yes, well, I am a generous soul. You're very welcome." He paused before taking the silver key and handing it over to the boy. "Here you go. As the new resident of this old place, it's best that you keep a hold of this. I do believe there is a second keyring somewhere within the building that possesses the keys for the rest of the building. You may look into finding it while you're here." He nodded before making his way towards the front of the building. "I shall look through your records and find you some extra clothes for now. I'll be back within a couple hours with some food. In the meantime, make yourself at home and do not leave this dorm tonight." He said sternly.
"Yes, sir." The two of them replied with little salutes to the man. He nodded and was gone with a swish of his coat.
"He's quite the character, isn't he?" Henley mused.
"Quite a character indeed." Grim huffed. Henley chuckled before letting the other down and wrapping his book in the robes which he put a side for now.
"Let's get started then." He sighed. Grim grumbled but didn't argue and soon, the duo were working on cleaning up their new residence.
Night Raven College: Head Mage's Office
Crowley had been looking through the files of his newest freshmen for an hour and some minutes trying to locate Henley's file and yet... It wasn't among the ones on his desk. He looked around the office with a scowl while magicking the files back to their spot on his shelves. He knows the boy's files are here, the mirror wouldn't have stated the boy was a student if there weren't files that supported that claim.
He looked at the filing cabinet that held files for high profile students, such as Prince Draconia, Prince Kingscholar, and Heir Al-Asim. 'But surely not.' He thought. 'Why in Twisted Wonderland would a child with no magic, despite being admitted into a magic school, be considered a high-profile student?' He wondered. But as he's already searched the rest of the files, he figured it wouldn't hurt to check there either. He sighed. The numerous responsibilities that came with being an educator had him wondering about his cultivated appearance as irresponsible and eccentric. His own staff already questioned him on everything.
"Al-Asim. Draconia. Kingscholar. Leech. Leech. Schoenheit. Shroud. Vanrouge. Aha! Veil!" He pulls out the file, frowning immediately at the slight folder that proved Henley was, in fact, a high-profile student. "Well, color me surprised." He muttered, returning to his desk with the file, not bothering to close the drawer. "Let's see who young Henley's family is so that I can call them and inform them of the unfortunate amnesia situation." he mused, opening the folder.
Only to balk at the sheer amount of black ink used for censorship in classified files. Not even Vanrouge's files had this much black ink and his file was mostly classified. His mind reeled at the sheer number of 'redacted' on the pages.
Student Name: Veil, Henley
Age:15
Date of Birth: August 30th
World(s): Twisted Wonderland, [Redacted]
Mode of Transmigration: Reflection Ritual of Return
Primary Guardians: [Redacted] [Redacted]
Secondary Guardians: [Redacted] [Redacted] [Redacted]
Tertiary Guardians: [Redacted] [Redacted]
Emergency Guardian: Dire Crowley
Home Address: [Redacted]
Home Number: N/A
Current Health Afflictions: Amnesia resulting from a Magical Ritual, Anemia, Healing scar from attack in previous world
Abilities: [Redacted]
Titles: Beast Master, Heir [Redacted] [Redacted]
Familiar: Grim- Afflicted with ritual caused amnesia
Circumstances: Returning transmigrator, family sealed and unavailable
Afflicted Curses: [Redacted]
Afflicted Blessings: [Redacted]
Enrollment: Enrolled by [Redacted] approved by Dark Mirror under authority of [Redacted]
Crowley dropped the file and buried his face in his hands in sheer exhaustion. How was he already Henley's emergency guardian? He didn't even know the child and yet... Here he was, written down as the child's guardian in case anything happened to the rest of the boy's family. Which- he glanced back at the file. 'Family sealed and unavailable'- was the apparent case.
"So, all of his family is sealed away and unavailable." He picked up the sheets of paper and leaned back in his chair as he studied them again. "The Reflection Ritual of Return. Hm. Sounds familiar... I'll need to look it up and see what the details are. I should talk to the Dark Mirror as well. He could give me something." Crowley sighed again. "And he's returned to Twisted Wonderland from another world that he has no recollection of. Brilliant. Something else to look into and that's not including all of the 'redacted' that imply his being cursed and blessed and he is an heir of some kind at least. Seven help me." he muttered before putting the page back in the folder and putting it into a protected drawer of his desk, rather than the filing cabinet that he closed with a wave of his hand.
"Hm. What should I tell the boy? The truth or merely say that I haven't been able to find out anything quite yet. Maybe a mix of both?" he shook his head. He would decide that later, maybe after he talked with the Dark Mirror. However, he glanced at his watch, he needed to get the child some food, clothes, and a mage stone for his familiar. The next few days were going to be busy. Classes started tomorrow, yet he wasn't sure he wanted to put Heley and his familiar in classes just yet.
It would probably be best if he assigned the child other tasks for now. Maybe he could suggest the child clean some things to jump start his funds? The boy did transmigrate with nothing to his name from this other world. And he would still need to check financials and such to determine what the boy could be given as a stipend. Then there were his legal responsibilities as his guardian that he needed to look into, so possibly some legal and childcare books? Crowley groaned. How had he gotten more responsibilities in the span of a few hours?
Crowley shook himself from his spiral. All of that could wait. For now, he knew the basics of what was required of him and among those was feeding the child and clothing him. However, with the time, nothing would really be open. So, he would get some clothes that would work for now from the lost and found, then he'd get some proper shopping done tomorrow morning. After grabbing a mage stone that was pale lavender and not affiliated with any of the dorms for Grim, he left his office.
Crowley stopped by the lost and found and collected some pieces of clothing that definitely belonged to the school uniform. How his students lost so many pieces of their uniforms, he would never know. The slacks and loafers from the ceremonial uniform would work for basic school uniform attire, so he just needed a shirt, jacket, and either a bow or tie... He chose a simple black and white bow that matched Grim's own. He got the smallest articles he could find which, more likely than not, were still going to be too big on the boy. Hopefully not too terribly so.
He also got some simple athletic pants and a too large shirt that the boy could sleep in. After putting all of that in a bag, he stopped by the cafeteria and collected the food he had asked the ghosts to make for the boy and his familiar. Once that was all settled, he popped over to the old building to avoid the rain. He appeared in the lounge but neither the human nor beast were there.
He heard something upstairs in the first-floor hallway. As he walked, he spotted the tail ends of some ghost disappearing through the walls. 'Oh, that's right. There were some ghosts residing here.' Crowley mused before stumbling slightly. 'Oh, right! Their pranks had gotten a bit out of hand and the students fled the dorm in fear. That was why it had been abandoned.' He winced, hoping Henley was fine. He did speed up his pace a bit.
"You used that chair leg like a pro!" he heard the familiar crow with pride. He glanced over to see both were out of breath. There were some scorch marks all over the hallway and Henley did possess some minor heat burns. Overall, though, they actually seemed pretty okay. 'The files stated that Henley is a Beast Master. So, he'll be mostly okay.' Crowley thought with relief before speaking.
"I have returned with food and supplies!" He said jovially, amused by the startled shrieks the duo let out.
Ramshackle House: Lounge
They weren't sure how long they had been cleaning before the rain started to lash at the windows in a steady rhythm. "It finally started." Henely mused before throwing some wood into the freshly cleaned fireplace. "If you would Grim." Henley requested.
"Of course. Mya- ha!" He spit a ball of cerulean flames into the fireplace and soon, a merry flame was roaring, allowing warmth to seep into the lounge.
"Thanks Grim."
"You're welcome. This little feat was nothing for Grim the Great." He said a little haughtily.
"Alright, I'll remember that." They looked around. There was still a lot to do in the lounge, but they had made some decent progress. "Let's take a break and go check out the rooms." He suggested and Grim was all for it as the duo headed up the stairs and to the first-floor hallway.
"That fire definitely doesn't reach up here too well." Grim mused.
"Which means a room with a fireplace is necessary." They were cut off from further discussion by a chill sweeping over them, making their hair stand on end.
"What was that?" Grim asked softly, falling into the language Henley had first heard from him while in the gate.
"I'm not sure, but there's magic moving. Be on guard." Henely whispered back similarly. He didn't pay attention to how he could have done it in the moment.
"Boo!" A voice cackled behind them, causing the duo to startle and turn around in alarm. Eyes wide as they took in the three ghostly figures that had appeared behind them. Ghosts. One was tall and thin. Another was tall and stout. Then there was a small, stout one. They each had pale blue eyes and wore tattered, slate gray capes and dark gray top hats with dark blue ribbons.
"Gh- Ghosts?!" They yelped, tumbling back. Well, Henely's pretty sure this is the first time he's seen ghosts for real. The ghosts cackled as they began to circle around the two living beings.
"We haven't had visitors in ages!" The first one cried gleefully.
"They all got so afraid of us that they ran away." The second one added.
"We just wanted another friend to play with. Say, why don't you join us?" The last one asked, looking at the boy before them.
"I don't think so!" Grim hissed, jumping before Henley, his flames flaring and his fur puffing up. He stood between his human and the threats before them. "If you want to turn my human into one of you, it'll have to be through me!"
The three ghosts cackled madly and that was how the fight began. Henley helped Grim by calling out the locations of the magic that the ghosts held. Magic so old and so well camouflaged, it almost couldn't be told apart from the ambient magic that filled the campus. Henley called out locations and used a broken chair leg as a weapon. He had to wait until the very last second when they were appearing to land any hits, otherwise it just went right through them, while Grim's fire left holes in the spectral bodies.
"Aie! Flee! It burns!" The ghosts shrieked, disappearing through the walls. But there was some amusement and enjoyment in their voices which led Henley to thinking that the ghosts were much more benign than they first appeared.
"We did it! We drove them off!" Grim hooted with pride.
"You were awesome Grim." Henley praised the beast who puffed up pridefully.
"You weren't bad yourself Henley. You used that chair leg like a pro!" Grim replied. Henley couldn't help but feel a little prideful himself.
"I have returned with food and supplies!" a jovial voice said behind them, causing both of them to let out startled shrieks as they looked up at the head mage, who held a tray of food and drinks and a bag on his arm.
Ramshackle House: Lounge
Grim and Henley were seated on the much less dusty sofa while Crowley stood before them on the other side of the coffee stable that held the tray laid out with food and drinks for the duo. "I see. I deeply apologize. I had forgotten that was why this dorm had become abandoned." Crowley said after hearing the story from them.
"It's okay, really. I think they were playing. We'll just settle some ground rules with each other when they get back." Henley mused, and Crowley is once more reminded that this child was a beast master, if his files were to be believed. Which he had no reason not to.
"I think that would be lovely. I have brought a mage stone for Grim. If you'll affix it to his ribbon, this is a symbol depicting him as a student since I doubt he'll be able to handle the pen implement that you and the other students will be using. Both of you will be one student as he is your familiar." Crowley began, watching as Henley affixed the stone to the ribbon even as his eyes drifted to the fountain pen in the other's pen holder. No place for a stone but possessing the symbol of the school as a topper instead.
"However, after orientation, I wouldn't be surprised if it took some students a while to realize that you are in fact a student here. If anyone takes exception to your status, please deal with them as you see fit. I just ask that damage is kept to a minimum and that no one is severely injured."
"Yes, sir." Henley said.
"I have also brought you some clothes that should work for tonight and tomorrow. I'll be getting you proper uniforms and clothes to wear tomorrow. For now, I'm hoping that these will do." He said, handing over the bag of clothes.
"Thank you, sir." Henley said. Crowley nodded.
"I am but a generous soul." He preened before sobering as he came to a decision. "I am still looking into your situation, Henley. I found your file, but it wasn't as helpful as I had hoped. And unfortunately, while your family is mentioned in your files, their names or relation to you is not."
"Why would that be?" Henley asked with a concerned and thoughtful frown.
"I'm not quite sure myself. However, I will continue to look into it. For now, something you must take strength in is that you do have a family. And I do believe your memories involving them will resurface as time passes." Henley took a deep, fortifying breath before nodding.
"Right. I can do this. I just have to stay strong." He muttered to himself, hearing another warped and garbled voice repeating those same words to him in his mind. He knows his family loved him. He could tell that much from what little he had from them.
"Exactly. Now, I would like to discuss one more thing with you before I leave you to get some rest." Crowley said. The two shared a look before nodding. "As of right now, I believe throwing you right into classes and such will only hurt your situation more. So, I'll be excusing you from classes for the next couple days. You won't miss much." He assured.
"The first couple days of classes are just introductions and class syllabuses. I'll have your schedule and syllabus ready for you sometime tomorrow. Instead, to give you a better chance to get used to campus and make some money since you are lacking right now, I would like you to do some simple cleaning. It's just a temporary assignment while you work through your situation, and I look into it some more. Before you begin classes, I'll have Professors Crewel and Trein assign you a basic test to see where your current knowledge is." The boy thought for a moment before nodding his assent.
"Very good! I will arrive in the morning to give you more details about your assignment. Until then, I suggest you two get some sleep." He said, relieved to have gotten through that conversation.
"Yes sir. Thank you again for everything. Have a good night." Henley said with a smile aimed at the man who couldn't help but return it himself.
"You're welcome. Good night you two." He told them, before heading out of the old building that was already rather improved in its cleanliness.
Night Raven College: Mirror Chamber
"Heed my call, Mirror of the Dark." Crowley ordered. He watched as the porcelain mask appeared on the dark surface.
"And why do you call on me so late this evening, Head Mage?" The Dark Mirror asked.
"I want to know about the acceptance of Henley Veil into Night Raven College." Crowley ordered.
"Ah, the non-magical student. A first for this institution." The Mirror mused. "But I assure you, there was no mistake in the boy's acceptance. A family member enrolled him here. I don't know which of them it was, but it was one of them."
"What do you know of his family?" Crowley asked, hoping to get more information for the boy.
"Just that he has several brothers. Nothing more. I accepted the enrollment at the behest of... Someone."
"Who?" Crowley demanded.
"I am unsure."
"What does that mean?"
"That I am unsure... Or have you forgotten what being cursed means, Dire Crowley?" The mirror asked.
Crowley scowled at the mirror. He couldn't deny its claims. After all, both of them were cursed somehow and in some way that they couldn't simply know. That was the nature of the curse. "What can you tell me of the 'Reflection Ritual of Return'?" He asked instead.
The mask's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh my, it has been some centuries since I've heard that ritual's name." The mirror mused. "However, I can only really tell you the basics, as the intricate details have been lost in that time." the mirror warned.
"I'm listening."
"The 'Reflection Ritual of Return' is a very complex and unique ritual. No one remembers who created it or when. I doubt anyone even remembers it now. It was made with a very express desire of traversing the space and time between worlds and dimensions. It requires great time to prepare for different outcomes. It requires quite a few sacrifices and parameters to properly perform."
"What could cause the parameters to not be met? And what happens if they're not?" Crowely asked, getting a thought.
"The target transmigrator will be afflicted with ritual based amnesia if they're young enough and don't have a trigger migrator with them. As for what could cause the parameters to not be met. Well, any number of things. But the biggest one would be if they ran out of time for some reason. Like someone or something attempting to interfere with the ritual." The Mirror said before fading away, indicating it was done answering questions. Crowley scowled before sighing heavily.
That answered a few things. Quite a few things, actually, and yet he had more questions without answers. He looked out the window and towards the moon that shone large and bright in the dark sky. "Just what kind of trouble are you in Henley Veil?" He wondered.