This Is Part 17 Of The "What If Yuu Didn't Want To Go Back?" Series!

This is part 17 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

Today did suck. Grim and I nearly fell asleep during every class except P.E, when we fell asleep and were just left in the shade because Vargas wouldn't let anyone carry us to the nurse. Lovely. That nap gave us the energy to report him, and then it was spent.

I can't remember anything else. Just reading my notes feels like a fever dream. The writing is so messy, it's barely legible, if at all- I can hardly read anything at this point.

The one thing I do remember is going out into the forest for some peace and quiet with Korrak and Mandible. Oh, and falling asleep on Korrak. That too.

Waking up is better. I feel more refreshed already. When I turn to look, though, Korrak is awake.

He sees me staring and laughs softly. "Morning, lil' bro."

I smile. This world really is the best thing to ever happen to me. I have an older brother! And, thinking back, I've probably called Vil "mom" at some point, which probably makes Rook the dad.

"This is nice, isn't it?"

I smile. Grim is right, this is nice. There's a gentle breeze blowing softly, the sun is high enough to light the area but low enough to be out of our eyes, and the clouds are floating lazily overhead, shifting shape as they do.

Korrak has the right idea, lying on his back and looking at the sky.

"I've heard p-people say that it's th-th-these gentle little moments th-that make life comfy." He closes his eyes and reopens them after a second. "Never understood that u-until now."

"Never paid attention to them?"

He shakes his head, the grass underneath his hair rustling quietly as he does. "Never h-had any I could p-p-pay attention t-."

He pronounces "attention" as "addention" and stutters at the word "to," but only once. Instead of trying to say both letters, he just gives up after the first holdup.

"Why not?"

"B-being calm is a p-privilege I just couldn't afford." His expression saddens. I didn't even realize I had spoken until he answered me.

"Yeah," I start, knowingly this time, "I get that. Like life is a racetrack and being content is taking a leisurely walk, and by the time you realize running is optional, you're surrounded by people who either don't know or don't care and you have to keep going or you'll get trampled. Like there's a wall of people between you and joy, and the only way to slow down and survive is to be removed from the track entirely. I get that."

"Y-yuu..." Korrak is crying now. I don't know when he started, but there are tears running down his cheeks.

"Do you really f-feel like th-that?.. H-hey, you can s-stay on the t-t-t-t-track. Don't go." His voice drops to barely a whisper. I almost can't hear him over the breeze.

"P-please, not you t-t-t-t-too..."

Oh, he doesn't know the part about leaving the track was supposed to refer to me suddenly waking up a student at Night Raven College- he thinks I'm still suicidal.

"Korrak... That's not what I meant by that."

"W-what could you h-h-have meant? Did you j-just lie down f-for a nap and sit u-up in T-T-T-Twisted Wonderland?"

"Uh... pretty much."

"What?" This time, Mandible talks. Korrak lies still, presumably processing what I just said. He soon turns, looks at me, and gives Mandible a "You do the taking" short of look.

"So, I... I'm not from a world with magic. I'm from another track, so to speak. One day, I woke up in a coffin, met Grim, and got sorted into Pomefiore. In under ten minutes."

"What the fuck? Yuu and Grim didn't meet until the first day entrance ceremony?"

"Kinda. When I lived in the other world, I had a cat. He had a condition where the end of his tail split into a trident, just like this," I'm holding the end of Grim's tail now, he's snuggling into me and purring in a successful attempt to calm me down, "and he was my only friend, and he died, and I was never the same. And then, I saw him at the entrance ceremony, and..."

I'm crying now. Korrak has moved onto his side, wrapped his arms around me, and placed my head near the junction between his neck and shoulder. I'm hugging back, and Grim has moved to the same spot on me to purr.

"It's okay. I'm o-okay. I have Grim back, and I have magic, and I'm happy."

Everyone is crying now. Me, Korrak, Grim, and Mandible, crying and hugging and smiling and lying on the ground and, in Grim's case, purring.

"As much as I hate to interrupt this, Roi de Poison would like you all back inside before twilight. Is is dusk."

Rook is right. We have our skincare routines, and dinner, and bedtime, and I should probably shower. At the very least, though, I think I'm a little closer to cracking the smokescreen that is Korrak Dinak.

Rook leads the four of us back into the dorm. Vil is waiting patiently at the door, likely to make sure we're okay.

The clock says we've been out in the woods for over two and a half hours. That gives us enough time to shower, do our usual skincare routine, and still get to bed on time.

Before we go to the Backstage Room, Rook hands each of us a small plate with some very appetizing food on them.

"Eat quickly," he whispers, and then he is gone. I listen, but Vil stops us.

"Do not choke. Take reasonable bites."

We did need the reminder. Finally, we're off! Hopefully, some hot water will help me sleep.

The shower did help. I passed out the instant I flopped onto the soft, welcoming comforter, and that was that.

Not a great day, but an excellent conclusion. I'll take it.

We don't wake up too early this time, either. Korrak and Mandible aren't in the room by then, so we just go straight to the Backstage Room and get that managed.

"Yer tellin' me you ain't never seen 'n apple tree? How th' fu- fresh hell does that work out?"

Epel's morning over-breakfast talk is extra entertaining when you also listen to Vil sigh in the background.

"You think everything has apple trees? No. Korrak, pass me another one of the fruits."

Mandible chews on his apple and Epel stares in disbelief. "Y'all're city folk? An' here I thought you lotta come from somewhere interestin'!"

Oh, if only he knew.

This is part 19 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

The first thing we see when we walk into the club room is that Grim and I are the only Pomefiore students. Joy.

The second thing is that guy's hair is fire, much like the inside of Grim's ears. Guess it's just a rare trait, then.

The third thing is that Fire Hair Guy is staring straight at Grim. He probably didn't know animals could have that, too. He might just be a cat person. Either way, he's a clubmate now.

"You must be the new members! Welcome! I am Azul Ashengrotto, housewarden of Octanville and manager of the Monstro Lounge, and this," He motions to the guy he's apparently supposed to be playing chess with, "Is Idia Shroud, housewarden of Ignihyde. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Fire Hair looks like he's going to explode from anxiety. He's the one sitting accross from Azul, and he looks very intently at Grim, like his presence is the one thing keeping him conscious.

"What are your names, newcomers?"

"I'm Grim, and this is my familiar, Yuu! Spelled Y-u-u, not y-o-u."

Azul now looks off-put. "Well, Grim and Yuu, we here at the Board Games club are quite glad you're here! Welcome! And, if you ever need, say, a wish, then do not hesitate to come to me."

Idia sighs. "Never go to him for a wish, kitty. He's deceptive."

"I can hear you whisper, Shroud."

"Eep!"

Right off the bat, I recall something I was told at the entrance ceremony: Azul Ashengrotto, the housewarden of Octanville, is always trying to get people to sign contracts with him. Usually, only he benefits. Grim knows this, too.

"What, did we walk into the Contracts Over an Unsused-But-Set-Up Chessboard Club? Sorry, we signed up for something else. Come on, Grim, let's go find the club where they actually play chess."

"I'm back! Oh? New clubmates? Sweet!"

...looks like floating is another rare trait. This new kid has the same blue fire hair as Idia, as well as equally yellow eyes. He looks to be wearing some kind of jet boots, which he deactivates when he enters the room to oogle at Grim.

"A cat! Aww, your fur looks so soft and silky- and you have a uniform! By the seven, you're adorable!"

Grim straightens up, puffing out his chest and looking very proud. I do the same- after all, he's my familiar.

"Ortho, there's no need to be so close to our new members. Personal space, you know."

Well, now Grim just looks annoyed.

"Myeh, Azul, you have something on your face."

"This?" He points to a little black dot near his lips. "That is supposed to be there."

"Not what I meant," Grim continues, "the wire. Were you born into a fence or something?"

Ortho bursts out laughing. Idia does the same. Azul does not follow suit, but does try to talk, failing miserably become everyone in the room but him is too busy laughing their asses off to hear him.

Idia finishes laughing, pulls out a game labeled "Cliffs & Climbs," and sets it up, motioning for Ortho, me, and Grim to join. Azul continues failing to explain glasses to a cat who's ignoring him while people laugh at the obvious ragebait he's fallen for.

"I heard the whole thing from down the hall. Nice to meet you! I'm Ortho Shroud, freshman and Ignihyde's Vice Housewarden, as well as Idy's little brother. This character is mine."

Just looking at the board, it's a game of Snakes and Ladders. Ortho has selected a small, wooden flame to represent himself. Grim and I choose the cat, obviously. Idia considers for a moment, then picks the thimble that probably didn't come with the game. He flips it open-side-up when he puts it on the board, and Ortho glares at him until he sets it so you can't see the opening from above.

Let the board games begin.

This is part 4 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

My bed is soft. Very soft. I don't want to leave, but I have to.

"C'mon, Yuu! We're gonna be late! Myaah, wake up! We have class!" Okay, he has a point. Being late to class on the first day would be horrible, both for our reputation and Vil's.

Mustering all my willpower, I drag myself out of the warmth and onto the cold floor. Oh, slippers! That's much better.

...Hold on.

"Grim, when did I change into my pajamas?"

"You didn't. Vil used magic to swap what you were wearing with those. He said he didn't want to wake you up." Grim beams. "I managed that trick, too! Look at me, mya-ha!"

Sure enough, Grim is wearing a white, collared button-down, a black-and-white striped tie, a purple vest that matches his magestone, and a dark grey jacket to top it all off. Worn below the collar of the button-down is the collar with his magestone, and there's a violet string-looking thing with a red stripe down the middle tied around his left front leg, held in place with a golden emblem that's carved to look like Pomefiore's crest. He has no pants, but that's pretty much what I expected.

"Your uniform's in the dresser, Grim's familiar."

"Come on, Mandible. You know his name."

...Korrak sounds exhausted! Is he not used to this kind of sleep schedule? I wouldn't be surprised. Mandible did mention that he has pilot parents, after all.

Oh, right. My uniform. Sure enough, it's in the top drawer of my nightstand, neatly folded. Looks like it has all the same parts as Grim's, plus pants, shoes, and socks. There's boxers in there, too. Better go change. Didn't I hear a sophomore mention walk-in closets at the entrance ceremony?

Yep, there's a door over by the foot of my bed. That must be the closet, which is soon revealed to be walk-in. Hey, there's a light! And a full-length mirror!

...This is probably a changing room. Oh, well. Figuring out where and how everything goes on is a walk in the park, and there's a shoe rack on my left. The only pair that seems appropriate for a regular school day are the loafers, so that's what I put on.

"Myaah, you look awesome!"

"Thanks, Grim! You wear it better, though."

"No way! We're familiars, so we both look equally awesome!"

Aww. "I'll let you have this one, Grim."

"Hey, Yuu and Grim. I've got your schedules over here. Says you're in class B. We aren't, unfortunately." Korrak frowns once he's done speaking, but I don't realize why until he pokes Mandible. "Hey, wake up. We have class too, you know."

Grim goes and gets the schedule from Korrak, and carries it back to me. Upon examination, I learn class does not start for another hour.

"Korrak, do you know why we're up this early?"

He sighs, unsuccessful thus far in his attempts to wake the exhausted opossum on his bed. "Breakfast and skincare routine. Both are mandatory in Pomefiore, and this wake-up time is recommended by our housewarden." Yeah, that explains it.

Mandible wakes at the mention of food. "Breakfast? Where?"

Korrak's face is what you'd expect from a sitcom mom. "The dorm dining room. Today it's fruit, I think."

Mandible's tiredness vanishes from his face instantaneously when Korrak says the word "fruit." Mine does the same.

I grab Grim. "C'mon, breakfast!" He does not complain.

Soon after stuffing our faces with way too much watermelon, Vil stops us in the hall.

"You fell asleep before I could give you this. All yours. Use it now. And Grim should be brushed every morning before you dress him." Vil hands me a small cardboard box that feels magically reinforced. He does not let go until I'm firmly holding it, probably because it's far heavier than it looks once he does.

"He dressed himself. Is there a cat brush in here?"

Vil nods. "There most certainly is." With that, he's gone. I set off to the room I fell asleep in last night.

There's a lot of people in here, but it still isn't hard to find an empty seat. I remove Grim's little uniform (as much as I don't want to) and begin brushing him. The process only takes a few minutes, and I use the opportunity to chat with Korrak, who's in the seat to my right.

"So, what class are you in? Grim and I are in class A."

"Me and Mandible are in class B. I hope it goes well."

The kid on my left speaks up. He has beautiful, fluffy, lavender hair and the second-prettiest blue eyes I've ever seen, in my biased-toward-Grim opinion.

"Hey, me too! What're you named?"

"Uh, Korrak. And this is Mandible. What's your name?"

I sit and return the cat brush to its spot in the box before reading the instructions for the skincare products. A few of them are for Grim, so I pull those out first- while continuing to eavesdrop, of course.

" 'S Epel! I like that there 'possum- 'Mandible', eh?"

I smile. The instructions are easier to follow than I thought they'd be, and the blooming friendship makes excellent background noise.

This is part 14 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

"A nightmare? Both of them? I've heard of familiars having similar dreams, given how common it is, but it's generally accepted that having a familiar is a nightmare deterrent." Vil pauses, his face pensive. "Generally, though, having a familiar means you won't have any nightmare you can't be woken from. And you're sure it was a bad dream?"

"Positive. He kept begging some unknown figure for help; it was something like 'please, make this stop' over and over again, quietly."

"Hmm. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'll see what I can do."

"You know, Roi de Poison, I have seen Monseur Smoke go and punch trees quite often, until he bleeds. Every time, his attacks last one half-hour, if uninterrupted."

"That does sound like it could be related." Vil turns his head towards me and Grim rather suddenly, as though he forgot we were there. "Yuu, Grim, go and eat. You need the energy, and you've already done enough here. Make sure to drink some water; you two haven't been drinking enough."

Grim and I follow Vil's instruction and leave. Breakfast is avocado toast, which I'm pretty sure is our housewarden's way of making sure everybody eats a decent amout of something green instead of living on fish like the whole dorm seems to try.

While the ice water is nice, I can't bring myself to enjoy it. What of my friends? What of Ace and Deuce, with their tyrant housewarden? What of Korrak and Mandible, with their unknown nightmares?

"H-Hey, Yuu."

"Hi, Korrak! What's up?" Looking into his smokey grey eyes, I can understand why Rook calls him 'Monseur Smoke.'

"Not much, but I'm p-p-pretty sure we have t-t-t-t-to join a club. What club are you joining?"

"Myeh? We have to join a club?"

"Yeah, by the end of the week," Mandible adds, "have you seen the options?"

"Uhh, nope." Grim and I speak in unison this time.

"Well, w-w-we can all g-go and look at the opt-t-t-tions lat-t-t- Mandible, you know what I was g-g-going t-t-t-"

"Sure do. Anyway, do you two wanna go to the courtyard later today and look at the options?"

"Sure! Sounds fun."

Korrak looks relived. "Thanks, bud. You've always b-b-been there f-for me." Korrak turns to Grim and I. "Th-th-the speech issue is w-w-w-worse when I haven't eat-t-t-en."

Grim and I nod. "Isn't everything?"

"Fair point." Mandible seems to share Grim's sentiment. I hand Korrak a piece of toast, and he starts adding butter and avocado almost immediately.

When Grim and I get to class, we discover a well-rested Ace with no collar on.

"Yeah, housewarden Riddle must've had a change of heart or something. He's stopped enforcing most of the rules, and now Ace's punishment for stealing is helping Trey bake the tarts for the party. We still can't play croquet after 5:00pm, though."

I smile. Grim and I were right. Riddle did just need a hug and some time to himself.

The rest of class goes by without incident. It would be boring if I weren't learning the history of an entirely new world, but, hey, I'm in luck!

Alchemy sees me successfully using magic to catch a glass jar that got knocked off of a shelf. It "certainly would've shattered" on the stone floor if not for my "catlike reflexes-" or so Crewel says, anyway.

To be honest, I didn't even realize I knew a spell that could save that jar. I just panicked and attempted one I've read about. Good for me!

P.E. sucks, as usual. Ace stays conscious, though! Not without a bad sunburn that got him sent to the nurse anyway, but baby steps.

Lunch is tomato soup, which is the first time the main dish of a Pomefiore meal does not and cannot include fish. Even this morning, there were pieces of salmon for the avocado toast.

"So, Epel, w-what club are you in?"

"Spelldrive. Cain't wait fer practice t' start up, lemme tell ya! Hopefully I'll git bigger an' stop lookin' so-"

"Epel, Vil's in the room." Epel, despite having just been interrupted by four people, one of whom is a cat and another of whom is an opossum, does not delay his speaking. That's gotten pretty normal, after all.

"Whoop, sorry. Thanks, y'all. 'Nyway, I'd jus' like t' be a little less girly, y'know?"

"I g-get that. I got mist-t-t-aken for a girl all the t-t-t-"

"Take another bite of your soup, Korrak."

"Thanks, Mandible." He obeys. "Anyway, people u-used t-t-to think I was a girl all the t-t-time. They'd p-pick on me 'cause of that- you should've seen th-the looks on their faces when I beat the shit out of them."

Korrak laughs. I recall what I heard Rook say about Korrak punching trees until he bleeds, and spilling no blood for half an hour every time. Guess that's just what he's like.

Korrak doesn't strike me as a violent person so much as the retalliative sort. Why would he be violent? He doesn't start fights, he doesn't bully people, and he doesn't tolerate bullshit.

"It was always real f-funny, watching them s-s-suff-"

"Korrak." Our housewarden now stands tall behind the Korrak's confident figure.

"Uh, when I beat the bully out o-of them."

"Perfect." With that, Vil walks off. I wonder, why did it take him so long to react? Then again, this room is full of teens. Epel can't be the only potty mouth.

Korrak watches Vil go and shrugs. "That's life, I s-suppose." His stutter has noticeably improved since eating more of his soup, but is still present.

"Do you fight often, Korrak?"

"Only when I g-gotta. Kids back a-at my elementary school called me th-the gas st-t-t-ation, cuz I w-was nice t-t-to have around unt-il there were s-sparks."

Yeah, that makes sense. It's a little hard to imagine people pissing him off at all, but especially recalling the tree-punching thing. After all, Korrak stands tall and confident, with square shoulders and a smirk that suggests anyone who goes looking for trouble with him will find more of it than they bargained for. There's a spark in his eyes, like the sun peaking out from smoke, that makes it obvious: you fuck with Korrak, you've fucked up.

He's not shy, that's my point. He is kinda cute though, what with the hair- ashy purple and super fluffy. Combine that with his beautiful eyes and some teenage jealousy, and you've probably got at least one kid challenging him to make sure he stays away from their lover.

"Myah, we have class!"

Everybody's eyes widen. Evidently, the whole room forgot we aren't eating dinner.

Then, from various voices accross the room: "run!"

Luckily, Grim and I make it to class on time. Biology class is about morays today- specifically, the differences between cold sea morays and warm sea morays.

According to Trein, there's a trench that separates the sea. Morays who lay eggs on the south side lay two connected egg sacks. One side only has babies with magical left eyes, and the other only has babies with magical right eyes. The babies in each side fight until only one is left, and the survivors are twins.

Warm sea morays have nothing of the sort. Eggs can't be carried over the trench because the temperature change kills them, and keeping them on the side they weren't laid on requires keeping them at the temperature of the other side.

Cold sea morays can lay warm sea eggs, and vice versa. It's all location, and it's all very facinating. But, alas, class cannot go on forever.

MacGyvering shows us using drills as motors for fans, boats, and a variety of other things. Not really, though- we're making blueprints. Reasonable enough, if you ask me.

Finally, class is over. I hold Grim and carry him to the courtyard so he can sleep on the way. Korrak and Mandible are already waiting.

They wave. I wave back. Korrak motions to me to stand over by him, and I follow his lead. Beside him is a big list of all the clubs, pinned to the wall.

"I was thinking of joining the track and field club, but I'm not really sure. What do you think?"

"Well... what kind of stuff do you like?"

"The science club sounds fascinating. I've always liked all of it, anyway, but..."

"But what?"

"Well, I want to be more physical."

"You don't have to be in a club to use the gymnasium, Korrak."

"Yeah, great point. Science Club it is!" With that, he starts filling out an application that apparently just needed a few more fields to be filled in.

"Myeh?.. what time is... oh, I took a nap." Grim yawns, putting his, frankly, adorable little teeth on display. "What club are we joining?"

"I don't know yet. That's why we're here, Grim."

Grim hops onto the ground, does the iconic kitty stretch, and hops onto the bench. Before I can wonder why, he jumps onto Korrak's shoulder- the one that doesn't have Mandible on it- and onto my shoulder from there.

"You can just ask me to pick you up, Grim."

"Where's the fun in that?"

I sigh and roll my eyes. What clubs are there? Board Games, Mountain Lovers, Gargoyle Studies... out of those, Board Games seem like the best option.

"Where are the applications?" Korrak hands me one.

"Hey, you didn't even tell me what club you picked! We're both going, so we both need to approve!"

"I picked the board games club, Grim."

"Ooh. Sounds fun, I'm in!"

I grin. "We sure are!"

This is part 10 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

"Are you sure I can't use the power drill?"

"I ain't known ya fer all that long, ginger, but I wouldn't trust ya wit' a feather if I didn't think th' clinic had 'n open spot."

"What the fuck is your problem?"

"Trappola," I start, doing my very best to embody Vil's aura of a strong mother giving a warning, "say that again, without swearing."

"The fuck?"

"We both know what a swear is. Do not play with me, Trappola."

"Okay, fine. Hey, lavender breeze, what is your problem?"

"Lavender breeze? Well, I ain't no hussy city folk- you wanna fight me, ya better say it outright, ya concrete coward!"

"Oh, I'm a coward? You're on!"

"Say it, ya toilet-fire-fer-hair! Say ya wanna fight! 'R are ya too much'f a ketchup addict t' talk?"

"Korrak, right? Where is he getting those insults?"

"B-beats me, Deuce."

"Uh... hey! Ace! Epel! Not the time!"

Epel momentarily freezes, recalling the stories of Crewel's punishments he's heard from other. Trappola, not so much.

"Deuce, shut up!"

Something in Deuce snaps. There's a wild look I'm his eyes, and he's, evidently, just as sick of Trappola as he should be. "You wanna fight, just say it!"

"Is that a challenge?"

"Not 'ntil ya say it is, ya pigeon poop patootie!"

"Okay, fine! I'll fight you both!" With that, Trappola punches Deuce exactly once, in the shoulder, before getting his shit wrecked on the lab floor. Korrak even summoned popcorn, which would've pissed off the "pigeon poop patootie" if he weren't so busy getting his ass handed to him.

"You got it, Sir!" By the time I look up to see who said that, a tall, buff wolf dude is heroically lifting our damsel in distress from the linoleum and carrying him to Crewel. They briefly discuss something, and then Trappola's knight in shining armor is leaving him in a chair and walking over to us.

Crewel, having started sooner, arrives first. "Well, I can't have my pups dogfighting. Who was involved?"

Wolf boy, who has now finished walking over and is standing next to Crewel, speaks up. "The other Heartslabyul and the Pomefiore with no familiar, sir. Those are the ones who were fighting him. The others were eating popcorn."

Crewel smiles. "You and you, not Yuu," he begins, pointing at Epel, Deuce, and me in turn, "detention. You are to clean all of the stations in this room, top and sides, after class. I will let you have dinner first. Do not open the cabinets or drawers when you clean them, but do wash the cabinet doors and handles."

Epel and Deuce nod. "Yes, sir."

Crewel seems to approve. "Howl, you will be joining them in place of Trappola. Make sure they don't fight again."

"Yes, sir!" Howl practically salutes Crewel. Well, he doesn't, but I'm pretty sure Crewel had to tell him not to do that at some point, because that poor wolf boy looks like he has to physically stop himself from doing some kind of salute.

Once Crewel walks off, Wolfie starts glaring at us- mostly at Deuce and Epel, but everyone gets a taste of yellow eyes boring into their soul.

I glance to my left. Korrak is frozen in place, seemingly out of fear. Wolfie takes notice quite quick.

"Hey, are you alright?"

No answer. Wolfie tries again.

"Hey, you. With the deep purple eyes that have hints of pale blue in them. I'm talking to you. Are you okay? Do you need to go to the nurse? I'm not gonna hurt you, okay?"

Looks like I misread Korrak's sudden lack of movement. Ever since he and Howl locked gazes and the wolf boy told him his eye color, my roommate has been blushing.

"Myaah, we have an assignment! Come on, I want a good grade!"

Epel just shakes his head and mutters something about "jus' don't know how t' be direct."

"Uh, name's Jack. Jack Howl. Nice to meet you, Mr...."

"K-Korrak. Korrak Dinik. It's, um, nice to meet you, Jack."

"C'mon, guys, we do have an assignment. And, Jack, I'll try not to get into another fight."

"Good. Deuce, right?"

"That's correct! How'd you know?"

"Heard the whole thing. Speaking of which, Epel, never insult people again. You're too good at it. Now, we need to find a way to use the drill that nobody would really expect."

Hey, I know this! "Flashlight."

"Drills have flashlights?"

"Yeah, so you can see where you're drilling. Just turn it on and you have a flashlight."

Korrak looks at Deuce, who nods and begins furiously writing on the provided paper.

"Now we can just screw around!"

"Question: why does the opossum talk more than the human?"

"Don't worry about that, Jack. But, hey, we get to slack off now! Mya-ha!"

Nothing significant happens for the rest of the class, but I did notice that, out of the three-sevenths of us who have fur, Jack's is the worst-kept. His fur looks very soft, to be honest, just... dusty. And like he doesn't put some fur oils on his brush before he uses it in the morning, which is what I expected, given that Pomefiore is the only dorm that makes a point of ensuring everyone and everyone's familiars are top-teir in skin and fur care.

Back at the dorm, however, Vil is waiting.

"Epel. I have been told you got into a fight today and that you are to return to Crewel's room after dinner. Explain."

"I didn't throw the first punch, he did. And he called me 'lavender breeze!' That ain't sumthin' 'e can git away with!"

"Who?"

"Trappola," I fill in.

"Oh, the claustrophobe from the entrance ceremony?"

I grin. "Yeah, him."

"And, Epel, are you hurt?"

Epel just grins. "Not at all!"

Vil nods. "Rook, make sure Epel returns to Crewel's room after dinner.

Rook appears out of nowhere with the typical "Oui!"

Dinner is salmon patties! Rook stops the mosh pit by the tartar sauce from becoming an all-out brawl, but someone still ends up with a black eye. Nobody gets in trouble because the kid tripped, and not a single punch was thrown.

As per usual, Vil makes everyone take something that isn't fish or tartar sauce, and we are not exempt. The cucumbers are good, though, as are the rest of the assorted veggies we wind up with. As some of the first people to get there, we get a load of carrots, which Grim devours the moment he's done with his patties.

The instant Epel finishes his food, he sighs. "Is he behind me?"

I don't have to answer. Once again, Rook just goes "Oui!" Epel puts his plate away, waves goodbye, and leaves. I toss in a "May the odds be ever in your favor!" That gets Rook to spend what I assume is the rest of the walk prateing about beauty. Because, hey, that's Rook. What else would he do?

Korrak goes to our bedroom and does whatever. I go to the bathroom, and, when I return, Rook intercepts me.

"Monseur Mystery, go get your phone and come with me." When I return, phone in hand, Rook says nothing more. Instead, he leads me wordlessly down the halls, and I recognize the route as the way to Vil's room.

When we reach the rather large door, Rook knocks only once upon it.

"Come in."

We do.

Vil's face softens when he sees me. "Yuu, I assume you may have trouble with setting up the phone?"

"I can't even figure out how to open the box."

"Alright. Let me show you."

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.