This Is Part 6 Of The "What If Yuu Didn't Want To Go Back?" Series!

This is part 6 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

"Hey, Yuu! Hey, Grim! How's your day?"

"Hey, Korrak! Hey, Mandible! Guess what happened in first period?"

"Ooh," Mandible chirps, "did someone flirt with the teacher?"

"Myeehh... Nope. Some kid showed up late, and asked another kid what he had up his ass when the other kid told him to try and be on time!"

Epel, Korrak, Mandible, and Rook all burst out laughing, along with several other kids who heard Grim telling the Tale of Trappola.

"Firs' period 'n our class, sum' kid wen' on ahead an' tried t' flirt wit' Crewel! Didn't go well fer 'im, no s'prise there."

Vil is still trying to hold in his laughter. "Who exactly thought it was a bright idea to show up late for first period?"

"The claustrophobe from the entrance ceremony. I told the teacher, mya-ha! He asked the question to a new friend of ours."

I nod. "Yeah, there's a Heartslabyul right in front of us who's really nice. Then there's Trappola..."

"The gall o' some folk, eh? Hey, I dun' think we've really met- name's Epel! Nice t' mee'cha!"

"Nice to meet'cha too, Epel! I'm Yuu- Y-u-u, not y-o-u- and this is my familiar, Grim!"

Epel and I shake hands. Epel then shakes hands (paws?) with Grim unasked, so I like him more than I did listening to him, Korrak, and Mandible becoming friends this morning.

"It's nice to see you all getting along so well. Remember to keep a balanced diet, alright? In other words, that is entirely too much watermelon. Take some of the fish."

"We did, Vil."

"Where is it?"

I point to Grim. Vil chuckles.

"Well, just make sure he switches shoulders every once in a while. Otherwise, it'll ruin your posture. Same with you, Korrak. Mandible needs to sit on your left shoulder as often as he stays on your right."

Korrak nods. "Yes, sir."

"Ah, such young innocence, pushing through the teenage years! If only lunch lasted longer... Alas, there are many things I cannot change. Nonetheless, Beuté!"

"Hey, Rook is right! We have ten minutes to get to our next class!"

"Mandible is right. Come on, Epel!"

With that, Epel, Mandible, and Korrak all rush off to finish their food and get to their next class. Grim and I share a look before running after them, eating watermelon all the way.

"Bye, Deuce! We'll see you tomorrow!"

"Bye, Yuu! Bye, Grim! I'll see you in History!"

I sigh. "That wasn't so bad, was it, Grim? For a first day of school, I'd say that was awesome!"

"I have to agree! Can't wait to go to dinner and bed..."

I laugh. Grim is sitting on my other shoulder- per Vil's advice- and is flat-out pooped. He appears satisfied, though. I imagine I look similar. Oh, well. Nothing to do now but eat, the bedtime routine we're going to be doing all the time now that we're in Pomefiore, and a good night's rest. Maybe a meet-up with Korrak and Mandible- after all, you don't have to be Heartslabyul to spill tea.

Dinner is mostly silent. Everyone is too hungry to talk and too tired to stay at the table once they're done- such a thing would delay bedtime! Most of the chatter occurs on the way to and in the Backstage Room, as we freshies have started calling it.

"So, what happened to the flirt?"

"Ah, he had t' wash all th' mirrors 'n the school- 'cept the magic one, course. All wit' Vargas watchin'! 'Heard 'e kept on givin' 'im terrible dating advice th' whole time! Musta been a sight t' behold, I tell ya. What o' Trappola?"

"He had to wash every seat in the classroom after school. So, 40 chairs. By hand. Alone. To a shine. Those chairs are going to be cleaner tomorrow than they were today!" I glance left. "Korrak, wake up."

"Eh?" He really needs sleep. He got here first, though, so I imagine he'll be first to bed.

"You're done with the routine, Korrak. C'mon, let's get to bed." Korrak complies with his familiar's suggestion and carries himself out of the room, 'possum in his arms. I stop brushing Grim and flip him over.

"Purrrrrrrr, this is awesome. Rrrrrrrrrrr..."

Grim continues his happy rumbles as Epel stands and yawns. "See ya' t'morrow, pal." With that and a pat on the shoulder, he's gone, as are most the people in the room.

"Murrr, that's it?"

Grim keeps purring as I pick him up, stroke his stomach, and carry him to our dorm room. Korrak has done us the favor of forgetting to lock the door, so I do that myself before I put a sleeping Grim in his cat bed and a tired myself into my changing room of a closet to put on my pajamas.

"I wish I had magic..." The words are quiet, nearly silent on my lips, but oh-so-true. These people- these mages- can do so much with so little, and I just can't.

The glass of water is still on the nightstand when I lie down in bed. Now or never, I suppose.

Despite my efforts, all I get are ripples across the surface from the students still walking in the hallway. I sigh. No magic for me.

"Come on, Yuu. You're in Pomefiore, the dorm of tenacity! You can do it. Just go to sleep and stop worrying, just for the night."

I smile, softly. "Come on, Grim," I start, "we both know that mirror sorted you." My voice is somber. Why wouldn't it be? I'm too tired to pretend I'm Perfectly Fine with being the only one in a mage school with no magic. Still, Grim is right- I should just go to sleep.

Tonight, I dream of miracles.

This is part 11 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

By the time I leave, I have a ready-to-use phone and a phone case that somehow reminds me of both Grim and Pomefiore, courtesy of Rook. And, bonus: the touchscreen works through my gloves, so I can use it after class without taking them off and risking losing them.

Grim seems to like the charger more than the phone- naturally. He's a cat, the charger is a long thing that waves and dangles, that's what I figured would happen.

"No, Grim, don't bite that. Come on, let's put on our dorm uniforms and go find a nice stick to make a toy out of."

"Nice stick? How am I supposed to hold that?"

"You aren't. I have a piece of string to tie to it."

"So..."

"I can wave the stick around, and you can chase the string."

Grim's face lights up, and he magically changes into his dorm clothes without further instruction or prompting. I head into the closet.

The dorm uniform is incredibly comfy. The fabric is not only soft, but also tailored to fit me, and thermal in such a way that I'm never cold. I ought to wear this more.

When I reenter the room, Grim hops readily onto my shoulder. Off to find a toy, I suppose.

But, even as I search, something eats at me. It's nothing I don't recognize, but it's nothing I can just deal with- it's the knowledge that, out of all the people here, I am the only one with no magic.

Just knowing I've made it this far, so far, and I'm missing that one final thing- Grim wants to be a great sorcerer, so I either hold him back by keeping him with me 24/7, stick with him and watch as I pretend I'm okay with being so close to magic, and yet so far from having any of my own, or die.

I don't want to die. Not anymore. Not now, not when my death will actually hurt people. Not when there are people who will miss me and mourn me and wish I stayed. Not when my absence will open an unfillable hole in someone's heart.

I don't want anyone to feel that, because I've felt it myself, and it hurts. It hurts so much, like there's a part of you that's just void, and it's sucking the life out of you, bit by bit.

I felt that. For years, I felt that, killing me wholly and forcing me to live, day after night after miserable day, with no end in sight.

No. I won't die now. I'll wait until I've lost Grim and Vil and Rook and Epel and Korrak and Mandible and Deuce and Ace. I'll die when I'm just a distant memory of "one of our roomies in college," and "that classmate from my first year at Night Raven," and "the freshman with the flame-eared familiar."

I will die when I am nothing more than "that blurry memory of someone I knew and forgot."

"Monseur Mystery."

Rook's voice is soft, and tender, and worried, and caring, and kind. Kind. Kind, because he doesn't care about my lack of magic- he cares about me, the freshman with the flame-eared familiar. He cares about me, Monseur Mystery. He cares about me. Me, someone he knows and hasn't forgotten.

I needed that reminder. It's so quiet out here. My thoughts spiral and I can't stop it and there are tears streaming down my face, leaving little dark spots on Rook's dorm uniform.

I blink. Weren't we just on the ground? This ground is soft, like- oh, Rook moved us into a tree. I'm sitting on his thigh, not leaves. That makes sense.

No matter. With his arms wrapped around me and my arms wrapped around his waist, I am safe. That much, I know.

Grim is saying something. I hear his words, I know what they mean, but the dots go unconnected, and I take comfort in simply knowing he's here.

"Monseur Mystery, I hope you do not mind. Vil wishes to see you."

Vil. Another person to whom I am not just a distant, fading memory. Another person who cares about the freshman with the flame-eared familiar. Another person who cares about Yuu.

Rook is tapping on glass now. I am still crying, tears still running down my cheeks and into the fabric of Rook's uniform.

Another pair of strong arms wrap around me, pulling me into an embrace that's warm like the heat from a lit fireplace and strong like the house it's built into.

Secure. I feel secure here, held by two people who are, in some way, my parents, the first parents I've ever had, and never had, because, somehow, I still feel as though my life has yet to start. Like I've never been born, but I've died nonetheless.

Despite that, I feel safe and secure and loved, for the first time in what's not yet my life, but not the first, rather, just the most intense.

Back then, when Vil cut and brushed my hair, when I told them how I'd known Grim's name, I had tried to hold back my tears. I wasn't just sad, I was scared, scared this new world would be just as cruel as the last.

But, here, now, I let the sadness show in my sobs, in my sniffles, in my hiccups, in my tears.

For the first time, I am embracing sorrow, and I am nearly alive, closer than ever before.

The tears have stopped. The despair has lessened. The sadness has given way to joy. Faint joy, but joy nonetheless.

Vil is holding my face in his hands, meeting my eyes with violet irises filled with compassion, the likes of which is so intense I could never dream it.

"What's wrong? Why were you crying?"

I look away from him for only a moment, because that's all the time it takes for me to realize I crave his affection and the look in his eyes.

"All I need is magic," my voice is breaking, "and that's the one thing I don't have."

"You know," Grim pipes up, "remember the thing with the water glass? You said the ripples on the surface were because of the footsteps of the students walking in the hall."

"Well... yeah. That's what footsteps do."

"The footsteps of five people, all at least twenty meters away and trying to muffle their footsteps? On these solid floors?"

Wait. Grim has a point. Could those ripples have really been... me?

No. "There are a thousand things other that magic that could've caused that, Grim. Not all of them were there, sure, but only one had to be."

"Let me see your magestone." Vil's sudden request catches me off guard.

"Why?"

Vil just holds out his hand. "You'll see."

I hand him my magestone, and he holds it up to the light.

"Perhaps," he begins, "it is for the better that you know no spells."

The gem shines a beautiful black, all the way through- with the sole exception of three little lines of Pomefiore purple at the bottom that form a sort of upside-down trident head.

"Why is that, Vil?"

"Because," he smiles, "you would've overblotted by now if you used any magic."

"Overblotted?" For once, mine and Grim's voices are in total unison.

"Yes. Using too much magic, with no rest, causes blot buildup. But," he places my magestone back in my palm, "so do negative emotions."

"What are you?.."

"Do you know what blot requires, Yuu?"

"Uhh, nope."

Vil smiles, closing my fingers over my obsidianesque gem.

"Magic."

This is part 18 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

"Well, it's not my fault!"

"Of course not! Ace, nobody intentionally trips and falls on the stairs before the big tournament. Why would it be your fault?"

"Well, Deuce, just because I accidentally fell on the stairs doesn't mean I meant to sleep through my alarm and forget my school bag!"

"Myaah? Ace really screwed himself over this time!"

"Shut your trap, Grim!"

"Ace, be nice. Besides, you could've gone and gotten your stuff before class started. Why didn't you?"

He appears momentarily stunned, then resumes his previous attitude. "Shove it somewhere else! I'm not in the mood!"

"Ace! Don't yell at Yuu!"

Ace just flips him off. Trein, of course, walks in right when he does that- in clear view of the door.

"Trappola, detention."

Ace just groans.

The rest of class is quiet and it's easy to focus, right until the end. I notice instantly: when Ace puts his weight onto his right foot, he winces.

Grim and I share a look. Something is going on here. Luckily, we need only a few seconds of walking to determine a few details.

"Hey, Ace, does your right ankle need an ice pack, or were you using magic to keep it cold?"

He stops dead in his tracks and turns to face us, eyes wide with shock.

"Ace? Ace, are you okay?"

"Leave him be, Deuce. Ace, Yuu and I can take ya to the nurse if you want. Seriously, you need an ice pack on that."

"Ace," Deuce's voice is serious now, "did you get hurt on the stairs?"

"N-no, I'm-"

"Ace, that's serious! You could have a sprain! Come on, I'll carry you!"

"Hey, wait! Deuce, you don't have to- woah!"

With that, they're gone, Ace thrown over Deuce's shoulder like a sack of rice.

I smile. Ace is often a hindering factor during alchemy, so it's nice to toss him to the wind for a period or five. Plus, we're helping- he can't get mad at us for that!

Besides, if he's going to be mad, he's going to be mad at Deuce. He's the one who's carrying him like he's a burlap sack of potatoes.

Alchemy is boring, exept for the part when we told Crewel why Ace and Deuce weren't with us and the line "so Deuce threw him over his shoulders like a pillowcase full of cotton" made him laugh.

P.E. involves Deuce returning with two notes to Vargas: one for Deuce himself, and one for Ace. On the bright side, Vargas is rather distracted, and class is easy.

At lunch, we learn something new.

"Yeah, all them weekends're no class 'fter th' firs' one. Anyways, th' Spelldrive tournament's startin' up t'day! Jus' th' interdorm one, 'course, but'chall git th' idea, don't'cha?"

Oh, yeah, we have club activities today. Hopefully, the board games club has other Pomefiore students.

"Hey, you know what happened today? Ace showed up with an injury and no schoolbag. You should've seen Deuce toss him over one shoulder and run off with him; it was hilarious."

"Never seen anything like it, mya-ha!"

"Kinda odd, th-the decision of replacing our last th-three classes w-with clubs f-for the day... Meh."

I zone out and miss the rest of the conversation. My mind is too busy to pay attention- I'm remembering. Remembering how Korrak was exhausted on day one. Remembering how Mandible said "Pilot parents" but Korrak said he had nobody but Mandible, Grim and I just days later.

He seemed so small then. So scared, like he wasn't used to new places or people. But, if he did have pilot parents, shouldn't he be very used to all that?

This roommate is a mystery- and I am a male Nancy Drew with magic and a cat. In spirit, at the very least.

This is part 9 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

Lunch was going to be mostly sushi, but Vil went out of his way to make sure everyone is eating a balanced diet, so there's a salad, too. Grim doesn't seem to like it, but I have dressing, so the two of us eat it anyway.

"You know, one of the Heartslabyuls in our class was talking about how they have an 'unbirthday party' coming up. Apparently, their housewarden is bored, so they're throwing a huge party just because." Mandible finishes talking and takes a huge (for his size) bite of romaine. Evidently, he and Korrak are the type to eat salads one ingredient at a time.

"Wow. Ain't them folks based on bein' strict? Parties're fer havin' fun! Bet their party'll be real borin'." Epel, on the other hand, adds as much blue cheese as Vil will let him get away with and douses the whole thing in ranch.

"You know, our class has two Heartslabyuls who sit right in front of us in history. One of them is pretty chaotic." Grim attempts to lick the dressing off of a leaf and put it back in the bowl, but I shoot him a look and he begrudgingly eats it.

"That doesn't mean it's going to be fun to attend, Grim. Fun to watch? Absolutely." Having eaten all of his romaine, Mandible nabs a decently-sized chunk of blue cheese and starts turning it over in his paws.

"Small bite-ts, Mandible." Since this morning, Korrak has been talking more. He does so slowly and quietly, and doesn't say many words with the "t" sound in them. When he does, it's often a word like "nettle," where the "t" sound can be safely ignored or pronounced like "d" without anyone noticing his stutter. I'm glad he has the confidence to speak in a room full of people- chances are, we have Vil to thank.

That also explains why Mandible does most of the talking. Pretty clever fix, if I'm being honest. Also, it seems like Pomefiore is way more familiar-based than the other dorms. Not only do we seem to have more familiars than the other dorms, but Pomefiore also provides uniforms for them, and is the only dorm that does. It doesn't cost extra, either.

Ah, well. After lunch is over, we have a biology class, followed by an art course and then a lesson on improvised engineering, my favorite class. Apparently, it's a "joint class," which concerns me, as using my joints too much makes them sore.

"Hey, Yuu, do you have a joint class t-today?" I've noticed Korrak doesn't stutter on the "m," "k," "n," "a," "d," "i," "b," or "l" sounds. I think that's because they're all in his and Mandible's names.

"Yeah."

"Do you know w-what that is?"

"Nope."

Epel's face brightens. "I do! Got one later t'day."

"Myaah, really? What class?"

"MacGyvering. Pr'tty damn good skill, ain't it?"

"Not on our schedule."

"Epel... Our join-t class is Improv-vised Engineering."

"Yeah, yeah, they c'n call it by whatever th' fancy fuckin' shit they feel like, but I'm tellin' ya, that righ' there's a class 'n MacGyvering."

"Epel, language."

"Ack! Vil!"

...Okay, maybe the fact that I have to actively not laugh at the sight of a terrified Epel sitting right in front of an upright, clearly displeased Vil means I'm going to hell, but can you really blame me? There has to be a foot and a half of height difference between them, and Epel's face is priceless.

"Repeat that sentence without swearing."

"Uhh... they can call that whatever th' heck they wanna, but that doesn't mean it ain't a class on MacGyvering."

"Your word choice is on thin ice, but that is an improvement." Vil leaves.

"Um... S-so, Epel, are you any g-good at MacGyvering?"

The concern instantly evaporates from Epel's face. "You betcha sweet biscuits, I am! Back at th' farm, ya don't jus' fix things, ya MacGyver 'em. Ev'ry shed's got a hinge held t'gether by a dow'l, or a nail, or sum'thi'n else. 'M pretty good at it, 'f I say so myself."

"So... MacGyvering is just using whatever to fix stuff? Sounds easy enough."

Epel laughs. "That ain't all it's about. MacGyvering's 'bout comin' up wit' creative fixes to stuff. Y'know, shit most city folk jus' don't consider."

"Epel."

"Um, solutions most city folk jus' don't consider."

Vil nods. "Perfect!"

"Uh, class is st-t-tarting soon. We should leave."

"Oh, shit, Korrak's right!"

"Yuu. Try that again."

"Oh, fuck, we have five minutes!"

"Without swearing!"

"Myaah, we need to go right now!"

"Yuu, not Grim."

"We're gonna be late!"

Vil sighs. "I'll accept that, but you are on thin ice. Now, hurry."

Disobeying him now would be a death sentence, so off we go!

Biology was pretty interesting. From what I can tell- aka Trein starting class with, "the only reason you have this is because most schools don't clear up the local misconceptions about other species-" the only reason we have this class is because most schools don't clear up the local misconceptions about other species.

Time flies when you're having fun, though, so we are soon off to health class- which is boring, honestly. Trappola actually fell asleep there, and Deuce had to wake him.

And then, it comes. The long-awaited MacGyvering class, taught by Crewel.

Turns out: "joint class" means "multiple classes, one lesson!" We just so happen to be going with class B, so this'll be fun.

It's here that Grim and I learn Trappola has apparently never seen an opossum before.

"Huh. That's cool." Trappola says stuff is "cool" a lot. That probably means it caught his eye more than anything else.

"Myeeh? What is? The fact that we have multiple friends in the same dorm as us?"

That gets the present Pomefiores to snicker for a while, much to Trappola's evident disdain.

"No. I meant the fact that you," he points at Grim, "are friends with a rat," he points at Mandible. "I just find that weird.

For a solid minute, all six of us are staring at a very confused redhead.

"Dude," Mandible starts, "I'm an opossum."

Trappola stands there, mouth open and eyes darting around, for a couple of seconds.

"Oh."

Crewel walks in, voice booming as always. "Hello, pups! Today, we will be continuing our course on using basic tools for unintended uses. To begin, you should have a group of up to five, but you may work alone if you please. Now, you need to locate the person in your group who is the most responsible and have him raise his hand." We pick Korrak.

This is part 3 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

"Myaah, keep going!"

"Non, chat. You no longer need to be brushed. Vil, how is Yuu's hair coming along?"

Vil sighs. I've noticed he does that a lot. "Not as well as I thought, Rook. Even though the top layer was absurdly thick, the lower layers don't look much better. This is going to take longer than I expected."

I look up and into the mirror in front of me. Vil has cut my hair short, but the process of detangling the remaining mat of hair has caused the detangled hair to be noticeably longer than what's still a total mess. I'd say the hair he's worked through is about 4 inches, just long enough to cover my ears.

"Say, Monseur Mystery, how did you guess Monseur Chat's name?"

"Well..." I hesitate. Even now, the thoughts of his death still hurt. "When I was living in my world, I found a cat. He was my only friend. He was an alley cat, but chubby- not in a concerning or limiting way, just in a cute way- and he was grey with a large patch of white fur on his front, and his tail faded into black at the end, and... he had polydactly. I think that's what it's called, at least. Do you guys know what that is?"

"Nope!" Grim's reply is cheerful, like an island of comfort in a sea of mourning.

"Well, it's a condition where your limbs split off into multiple limbs. So, a two-tipped finger or extra toe or something. Well, my cat had it on the end of his tail. It looked, " I pause, reaching my hand toward Grim and trying, failing, to hold back tears. "Into three. A trident tail, just like this." I'm holding his tail in my hand now, careful, like he might break just as my voice is doing now. I can hardly speak through the lump in my throat, but I can speak.

"A-and that cat's name was Grim. And he was hit by a car when he was eight, and I've never been the same." I'm crying now, my eyes reduced to floodgates and my voice to a wreck. Vil is hugging me, his arms bringing some sense of safe to me, but that sense of safe pales in comparison to the comfort of holding Grim in my arms. His fur is soft, much softer now that he's been brushed, and Rook has joined the hug.

We stay there, just like that, for what feels like forever. Vil's arms are strong around me, as are Rook's, and I'm holding Grim again, and I don't want to lose him again. I can't. I barely survived the first time; I can't survive a second. The guilt would kill me.

"I guessed his name, too. I didn't know how. It just felt right. But... Yuu, you kind of remind me of someone. Another human. He fed me in my dreams, and his name was Yuu, and we were great friends, but one day he just stopped showing up. I never saw him again." Grim's previously sad face brightens a little, like a tea candle with just enough air to burn. "You look a lot like him, but older. Maybe... maybe he was you."

The tears come back. I let them. This time, they're happy tears, and Grim is crying them, too. Vil allows a few more minutes to pass, just like that, before he lets go and resumes his task of unmatting the other half of my hair. Rook pulls away, too, and waves his magic pen.

A tape measure, like you see tailors using in movies, appears in the air in front of him for him to wrap around my waist with skillful hands. Soon, he's removed the tape measure from my waist in favor of wraping it around my chest, and then my arms, and then Vil tells him off for doing something unnecessary.

I laugh. "Say, Monseur Mystery, have you tried to use magic since you arrived?"

I ponder. "Not really."

Rook chuckles. "Facinating."

"Are you okay with others being let into the room, Yuu?" Vil's voice is soft and soothing. I'm a little jealous, but who cares?

"Go right ahead." The lump in my throat is gone now that Grim is purring happily in my arms, just enjoying the sensation of being pet. Rook leaves the room- still holding his tape measure, I notice- and the door shuts behind him. Surprisingly, I don't hear his footsteps as he walks away, even before the door is closed and blocking my view.

Less than a minute later, the door opens again, revealing Rook, Korrak, and Korrak's familiar, whose name I do not yet know. Rook waves his pen, cleaning the cat brush with magic, and starts brushing the strange oppossum as he brushed Grim.

"Hey, what's your name? I'm Grim!"

"Call me Mandible."

Well, I guess I have a name to go with both of my roommates now. Unlike Grim, Mandible needs only a few minutes of brushing before his fur is even and soft, at which point Rook measures him, waves his pen, and voilá: five small stacks of clothing appear on the counter.

"What are those?" Mandible is already poking at the piles by the time he thinks to ask. I wasn't expecting Mandible to be more talkative than Korrak, but I guess Grim and I are no better.

"Uniforms! The white one is a lab coat for alchemy, the violet one is a dorm uniform, the one next to the lab coat is a PE uniform, the one next to the dorm uniform is a school uniform, and the one in between the dorm clothes and lab coat are some ceremonial robes. All are sized exactly for Monseur Opossum, of course." Rook looks quite proud of himself.

"Myaah, neato! Do I get some?"

"But of course, Monseur Chat! If you'll allow me a moment..." Rook starts measuring Grim just like he did with Mandible, and Vil lets out a triumphant "Hah!"

"Finally conquered my hair?"

"Not entirely, but I'm done with the hard part." With this, Vil pulls out a brush- not a cat brush, just a regular human brush- and starts running it through my hair in a soothing rhythm. Tired from the short day's events, I allow it to lull me to sleep.

This is part 8 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

Vil stares for a moment, just a moment, and then smiles. Grim is still looking at me weird, but says nothing.

We leave to eat. Grim's strange looks halt when he sees breakfast: poppyseed bagels with cream cheese and lox. We eat instead of talking, and I take the time to admire just how clean this place is.

Everything is so shiny. There aren't any paintings or pictures, noticeably, but there is a mirror hanging over there. It was probably put there to allow people to look at the oven without having to turn around, given the location and angle.

Looking in the mirror... Hey, it's Korrak and Mandible! And...Rook? Looks like he's intercepting them, too. At least he's giving them food first. Korrak walks toward the stairs with half a poppyseed bagel in hand.

Oh, well. That's none of my business. I'm done with my bagel, though, so it's off to the Backstage Room!

Grim finishes his breakfast on the way, and I brush him until his coat is soft and even. He doesn't complain about me stopping this time, but he does set off on a quest of magically dressing himself.

When I finish my routine, we head off to put my new phone up, and then it's off to History of Magic.

Trappola isn't here yet, surprisingly. I figured he'd've learned his lesson after yesterday, but I guess not. Oh, well. His problem! We'll snitch again if he starts today with a repeat of yesterday.

By the time we sit down and start talking to Deuce, Trappola walks into the room- with a collar on?

"I see your stares. Don't ask."

With that, he sits. Deuce stares right at him for a solid 20 seconds before speaking.

"We don't even have oolong."

"Not what happened."

I sit there, contemplating why this kid is wearing a heart-shaped collar with a lock on it to class. Very much a "Heartslabyul" look, though. Half is black, half is red, and the outlines are gold.

The bells rings, and Trein starts the lesson. I take notes and help Grim do the same with his levitation magic. He picks up on it pretty fast, and his writing is easily legible within 5 minutes.

Crewel gives Trappola a funny look when he walks in, but says nothing and the way he teaches seems normal. This is only the second time I've had him, though.

More note-taking commences. I'm rather tempted to question Trappola where he got that and why he's wearing it, but class is ongoing, so I refrain from asking and make sure Grim does the same. He shoots me dirty looks whenever I close his mouth for him, but he stays quiet.

Grim and I actually manage to stay conscious all through P.E.! That's a win for us.

"What, you think you're special just 'cause you didn't take a nap when you fell?"

"Nope! We think we're special cause we aren't the ones wearing a collar, and one of us is a cat."

Trappola turns bright red. "What the hell?!"

"Mya-ha, that's what you get!"

"He has a point, Ace. How did you get that, anyway?"

"Shut up, Deuce."

"Hey, Trappola, remember that one time you were snarky with Deuce and wound up cleaning all the chairs in Trein's room? I do."

Trappola shuts his mouth, forgets his lesson, and speaks again. "Hey, you can call me 'Ace.' I don't mind. Why do you only ever call me by my last name?"

"That's what the headmage called you during the entrance ceremony. Besides, we also call you 'entrance ceremony claustrophobe.'"

"Behind my back?"

"To your face, entrance ceremony claustrophobe."

"Okay, guys, that's enough."

"Shut it, Deuce."

"Dude, what is your problem?" Evidently, Deuce has finally had enough.

"It probably has something to do with the collar." Okay, being a dick here won't help, but I'm bored and hungry, so I'll care after lunch.

"Yeah, it does!"

"Myeh... I'd just take it off."

"I. Can't."

"Why not?"

"You say that like you don't know."

"They're first years from a different dorm, Ace. Of course they don't know. You have to tell them."

Trappola says nothing. Apparently, that thought didn't occur to him. I'm guessing most of them don't, though.

Trappola sighs, but still doesn't say anything. Deuce, clearly fed up, turns to us. "Our housewarden's signature spell is called 'Off With Your Head,' and he uses it on Heartslabyuls who break the rules. The spell places a collar around the target's neck," Deuce motions to Trappola, "and seals away their magic. I'm not sure what Ace did to get collared, but only Riddle can remove it."

I remember one of the Pomefiore sophomores explained all of the housewardens and dorms to the freshmen, me and Grim included. That's how I know Riddle Rosehearts is the Heartslabyul housewarden, a sophomore in the dorm based on strictness. No wonder, huh?

"Myaah... hey, Redhead, did you complain about yesterday in front of Rosehearts?"

Trappola looks stunned. "Yeah... How'd you know?"

"You swear when you're mad. That's probably banned."

"...You're right."

Grim appears prideful of his accomplishment, chest out and everything. Trappola looks lost. Deuce looks hungry.

"Let's go to lunch. Come on, Ace."

Grim and I wave. "Bye, Deuce! Bye, Trappola!"

The walk back to the dorm is tiring, but it's nice knowing we're just a little step closer to whatever it is we're reaching for.