This Is Part 18 Of The "What If Yuu Didn't Want To Go Back?" Series!

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 15 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

"Heeeey, what club are you guppies joinin'?" Korrak and I ignore the voice. We're not guppies, so that can't be us, right?

"So, when do club meetings start?"

"Heeey, you! With the cat and the rat!" Okay, that guy is probably talking to us.

"W-W-What do you want, minnow?"

Immediately, the teal-haired boy's face twists into one of anger, his mismatched eyes flashing with rage. He leans back, placing his left hand over his right shoulder and separating his lips just enough to expose his triangular teeth to curious eyes.

"What was that, guppy?"

"I a-asked you what you w-w-w-wanted, minnow." Even through his stutter, Korrak sounds confident and dangerous, like he's this six-foot-something a warning.

"I'm no minnow... am I gonna have to squeeze some sense into you?" The yellow shade of his right eye is starting to remind me of a road sign used to warn people about some danger up ahead. I don't show my nerves, though, and Korrak looks fearless.

"What, I need more s-s-sense? You're the o-one who called us guppies." As much as I shouldn't be, I'm exited. Seeing Korrak fight would be awesome, and this dude with the dark stripe in his hair is annoying.

"You're on, minnow."

Korrak extends an arm to the bench, and Mandible takes the opportunity to dismount from his shoulder. Mr. Singular Dark Eye moves to punch him, but Korrak dodges, landing a good couple of punches on his opponent's jaw as he does so.

Teal Hair Boy doesn't even flinch. Instead, he swings another big arm, only to be met square in the golden eye with a fist, head-on.

Minnow flinches. Korrak keeps going, aiming mostly for joints and the back of his opponent's head. Despite the obvious pain he's in, minnow doesn't back down, and keeps swinging, kicking, and doing whatever else he can to try and land a hit.

Eventually, Korrak lands an uppercut square under minnow's jaw. Minnow grabs the back of his collar, much to my horror.

The grin minnow gives Korrak would've made me faint. "I've got ya now, little Angler."

"B-better. I'll give you that. S-still, you lose."

Korrak swings himself upwards, landing a solid kick on his foe's neck. Teal Hair drops him, choking on the force of it all and gasping for breath.

"My, my, Floyd. I haven't seen you in such a terrible condition since we were fry." Someone else has appeared, speaking more formally than Teal Hair. I'll call him Pronouns. Pronouns resembles Teal Hair, in the way your reflection resembles you.

Teal Hair has a dark left eye and a yellow right one, whereas Pronouns has a yellow left eye and a dark right. Additionally, the dark stripe in Teal Hair's hair is on the right side of his face, while Pronouns' is on his left.

"Yeah, yeah... some Angler went and called me a minnow."

Pronouns shakes his head. "I didn't think anyone here could fight you and win. Would you like to visit the nurse?"

"Nah, I'll be juuuuust fine." Teal Hair's voice has reverted to the blithesome tone it was before.

"You're bruising."

"Is that right, Angler?"

"Floyd, come here." Pronouns holds his brother's face up to the light and checks. He sighs. "Brother, you have a black eye. Come on, let's go to the nurse."

"Aw, it's not that bad."

"We're morays. We aren't supposed to bruise."

With that, they leave.

"Way to go, bud! I knew you could do it," Mandible cheers. "You always have been great at that."

I am in awe. That was incredible! Korrak just took on a guy with shoulders twice as broad as his- and won. He got caught, and he still won.

Korrak extends an arm to the bench for Mandible, who climbs back onto his familiar. Both of them then take notice of my staring.

"You w-wanna learn how t-t-t-to do that?"

I can only nod. Korrak laughs, genuine joy bubling up for the brief moment it lasts.

"I'll sh-show you aft-t-ter the det-ention."

"Myaah, dinner!"

Immediately, Korrak and I are running, Grim and Mandible on our shoulders. I turn in our club application on the way, and we run the rest of the way- maybe P.E. is paying off.

Vil is waiting for us when we return to the dorm. "I heard from Octanville's vice housewarden that you," he points an accusatory finger at Korrak, "got into a fight with his brother. Explain.

"Well, s-some guy st-t-t-tarted calling us 'guppies' and ch-challenged me t-t-t-to a fight, so I beat him u-up."

Vil looks astonished. However, before he can comment, Rook materializes with one of his own.

"Oui, Roi de Poison! I saw it all- the grace! The skill! The elegance! Truly, it was magnifiqué!"

Vil pauses. "Rook, are you saying that you saw Floyd Leech get beaten up by a Pomefiore student and you didn't tell me?"

Rook does not pause. "Oui! I was hoping to tell you later."

"...A Pomefiore freshman won a fight against Floyd Leech?"

Rook nods. "Oui!"

Vil, clearly baffled, asks, "How?"

"With agility, cunning, and courage! Beuté!"

"Rook, you are a very unusual person."

Rook's smile remains. "Oui!"

"Myeeh, I'm hungry! This is taking forever! We want French toast, not French talking!"

Mandible and Korrak both burst out laughing. Rooks joins them, and, before I know it, so have I.

"Enough! All of you are permitted to go and eat. Rook, you stay with me. Korrak, meet me after dinner." He pauses, thinking. "And, Grim, French toast is a breakfast food." Only the slight, amused smile on Vil's face and subtly joking tone reveal the intentions behind his words.

"Oui! Roi de Poison, I shall follow your lead! Off to dinner, then?"

Vil nods. "Certainly."

Dinner is po boys. Grim and I eat one each, much to the suprise of Epel.

"Y'all eat way more than I realized! What's th' rush fer, really?" I'd answer if I didn't have a mouthful of food. Epel, noticing this, just shakes his head.

"City folk, I guess... so, anythin' interestin' happen?"

Korrak raises a finger to signal that he has something to say, but too much food in his mouth to say it. He does finish, though.

"I got int-to a fight. Against s-some guy named 'Floyd.' He w-was weird."

I, now finished with my own mouthful, toss my contribution into the ring. "Korrak won. It was great."

Epel shakes his head. "Yuu, yer th' only one t' stay outta trouble, considerin' th' lot o' us."

I nod. "Yep."

"Did ya catch 'is last name? This 'Floyd' guy?"

Grim pauses between bites. "Leech. Why?"

A look of shock stuns onto Epel's face. "Floyd Leech? The Floyd Leech? Tell me ev'rythin'! I been lookin' t' git a piece o' 'im myself!"

Somewhere in the distance, I hear Vil sigh.

This is part 16 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

"Korrak. Korrak, wake up. You're squirming. Hey, Korrak. Korrak? Grim, are you having any luck with Mandible?"

"Heeey! Myeh, no dice. Same with Korrak?"

I sigh. Korrak is writhing more than last night, and he's still out cold.

"P-please... let us... h-hide..."

Yeah, definitely a nightmare. Even if he weren't begging an unknown dream entity for help, the pained expression on his face and constant movement are dead giveaways.

We need to tell Vil and Rook. They're our housewarden and vice housewarden, not to mention upperclassmen- they're better equipped to deal with this. Unfortunately, it's early, and they likely aren't awake.

Grim and I only woke up to go to the bathroom, but this? This is too worrying to ignore.

Despite that, we'll have to until morning. We can't tell Vil until he wakes up.

Sigh. This sucks. Since yesterday, I've seen Korrak as a sort of older brother figure, and, just as any little sibling would be, I'm worried sick.

"Hey, Yuu... Do you think they're going to be okay?"

"I hope, Grim. I don't know enough to trust myself to accurately judge that, but I trust Rook and Vil to find out if they don't already know.

"We need to go back to sleep. You know Vil's going to be mad if we stay up too long."

"Yeah, I do. Should be easy enough, right? You're a cat, so you can probably go to sleep quickly, and we're familiars, so that should apply to me, too."

Grim shakes his head. "Iistening to you talk in the morning is a lot like listening to myself think."

I glance at the clock. It's two hours until we're supposed to wake up. Vil will be pissed about our inevitable lack of sleep, but what can we do? The answer is try anyway.

...The lack of sleep is visible. Neither Grim nor I got any sleep after we woke up. We went to the bathroom, but we did not rest. Our eyes did not want to stay closed, and it's showing now.

"Monseur Mystery."

I nearly shout in suprise, but appearing out of nowhere is kind of Rook's "thing," along with speaking French.

"Hey, Rook." He saw the several seconds of totally silence and shock as we processed his arrival. His face shows it.

"Come with me."

He takes us to Vil's room. When he knocks, and we hear the "come in," I nearly pass out with relief. Finally, we can tell Vil about what happened.

"Yuu, Grim- what happened? Did you stay up on your phones? Did you feel too sick to sleep? Did you have too much caffeine? Why do you look so exhausted?"

"Myeh... We woke up to go to the bathroom, but Korrak was having another nightmare, and we couldn't sleep after that."

"It was worse than last time," I add, "he was moving more and wouldn't wake up. He also kept begging some unknown entity for help. And we missed two hours of sleep."

"Oh, dear..." Vil is very clearly, very deeply concerned for us. It shows plainly on his face, and he soon maneuvers me into a chair in front of the vanity.

Rook tries to grab Grim, but there's a knock on the door before gloves meet fur.

"Come in."

Korrak opens the door. He looks even worse than me, and Mandible looks worse than Grim. I didn't even know an opossum could look so tired, but... Well, I'm not Wikipedia. I don't know everything.

When the door closes behind him, Korrak abandons his balance, and falls. Rook catches him, of course, and my lagging mind registers that Korrak hasn't seen me and Grim yet.

"What happened, Monseur Smoke?"

"I dunno." For once, the syllables slipping from Korrak's mouth are blending together. "Jus woke u-up like th-th-th-th... this." He yawns.

Poor Korrak. Seeing him like this is a little terrifying. I know he's stronger, and smarter in fights- I watched him beat up a guy a whole head taller than him just yesterday- but seeing someone that powerful, made so weak in just a night... plus, knowing he got eight hours of sleep and still has dark bags under his eyes just unsettles me. Brr.

During my think, Vil went and got another chair to place in front of his vanity. Looking into the mirror, Korrak finally notices me.

"...Hey. Something h-h-h-happen?"

"Woke up to pee and couldn't go back to sleep. You?"

He sighs. "Nothing much. I s-s-slept all night and I'm more t-t-t-t-t-tired than when I went t-t-t-t-to bed."

"That sucks."

"Y-you have no idea."

Vil has retrieved a hairbrush and two stools. One stool goes behind my chair, the other behind Korrak's. I see Vil's reflection in the mirror, right behind my own. Behind my roommates' sits that of Rook.

Rook starts brushing Mandible's fur. Vil begins brushing my hair. I relax into it, letting the gentle tugs of the bristles sway my head ever-so-slightly. It's almost hypnotic, the soft pulls on my scalp. Maybe I'm too tired to judge; maybe I'm just starved for the slightest scraps of affection; maybe my brain has been trying to sleep for over two hours and failing, but regardless of why, I allow Vil's careful strokes to lull me into closing my eyes.

"You shouldn't sleep off-schedule, but you need it. Rest, little one."

With that, I am asleep.

"Yuu. Wake up." Something soft and faint, a pressure, of sorts- oh, Vil is shaking my head. "You have to eat. Come on. I've managed your morning routine for you, okay? It's time to get up now. You need to eat."

I open my eyes. Vil's violet irises meet mine, and he smiles as softly as he speaks.

"Do you feel better now?"

I nod. I'm sleepy, still, but some things just cannot be dodged. I do feel better, though- just the slightest bit more rested. That bit will probably make all the difference today.

"Monseur Smoke. Wake up." Rook lightly taps on Korrak's head until he wakes, slowly. "There you are, Monseur Smoke. Come on, you must eat."

Korrak turns to look at me, and we make eye contact. The look is mutual; shared:

"Today is going to suck."

I have something to say about the What If Yuu Didn't Want to Go Back series.

Recently, I have come to realize that I cannot upload one part a day and still post long, quality updates. I need some time to figure out how to get the plot to go where I want it to, among other things.

For that reason, the series will be put on hiatus- but fear not! I will return to it when I know what I'm doing. Also:

I am starting a new series, which will be uploaded while I plan out WiYDWtGB. Part one will be uploaded later today.

I hope I can continue to post content that entertains you all!

Quick note: don't do this if it's an adolescent and it's snowing out! Adolescents don't yet have the defense from the cold that adults do. If you release an adolescent into snow, they'll either die or get back in. It's better to keep them in a secure cage with food, water, bedding, and a lock until the weather warms up or you can drop them in a mansion.

Seriously. They're endangered, mostly because of ignorant people dropping adolescents out into the snow.

sick of all these horror movies vilifying Slashers. just because you don't find them cute and cuddly doesn't mean they don't play an important and necessary role in natural ecosystems. don't claim to support biodiversity if you dismiss species like Slashers just because pop culture has convinced you they're "creepy"

This is part 20 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

"Okay, I'll go first. I'm the oldest."

Grim and I share a look. A silent, mutually thought idea is agreed upon and placed into action. Grim dismounts from my shoulder and onto the desk with the board.

"Can I go first? Please?"

He sits, loafing, on the wood, giving his best kitten eyes directly to Idia, and mews softly.

"Alright, sure. Why not?"

Ortho turns sharply to stare at his brother. "Idy! I can't believe this! Willingly abandoning better chances for a cat? And no gain? You shouldn't!"

"You know me, Ortho, you know me! He's too cute; I can't help it! I'm a cat person, and I cannot abandon my primary morals!"

I roll the die. We move four spaces, onto a spot where a cliff leads. We might wind up there again later.

"Your turn, Mr. Oldest."

Grim looks at me. Ortho looks at Grim. I look at Ortho. Smugness and anger and amusement, and only one die has rolled. Only one piece has moved. This is going to be so much fun.

Grim looks at Ortho with the same adorable stare, and Ortho falls just as his brother did.

"...Fine. But only because you're cute, okay?"

Grim gets up, saunters back over to me, and gets on my other shoulder. "You heard him, Mr. Oldest. Your turn."

Idia rolls a three. Ortho rolls a five. Azul walks over and sits at the table, between me and Idia. I look at Idia, who refuses the eye contact but stares at the bridge of my nose long enough to say it: "he could still join the game."

"Hey, Azul! Not sure why you're still wearing those. Barbed is more in-style."

Azul sputters and stutters, eventually settling on, "You are a vice housewarden! You should know what glasses are!"

We laugh. "Hey, if we let him join, he might spend the whole time talking instead of playing. Y'know, like he did with the chessboard."

Azul sputters again. "I will not!"

"Myeeh... I don't think so. Prove it."

"Fine! I wi- wait! You're just trying to make me mad!" He inhales deeply. "I am going to go do something else."

Then he gets up and leaves. The other four of us just look at each other, shrug, and continue playing.

The game itself is uneventful, but the interactions are comedy gold. My favorite two are:

"Oh, come on! I could easily fly right back up there!" -Ortho

"Well, Grim, we've fallen... pretty far. You roll the die now; I have two broken legs." -me

All in all, it's a win. Not really- Ortho won the game- but the experience was a net positive.

"Good game, guys!"

Ortho and Idia agree. "Good game."

Ortho sighs. "Everything is so much fun. I'm so glad this happened."

"We're glad we joined."

Ortho laughes a little at that. "Not really what I meant, but I'm glad you joined, too."

"Myeh? What did you mean?"

"Well, I kind of... Died? And Idy managed to make a body for me. I'm technically a robot, but I do have a soul!"

Idia smiles, his sharklike teeth easily visible. "It was a little difficult, but I'm glad I did it. Being an only child sucks."

"Myeh, that's so cool! Azul is giving you a funny look, by the way."

"He is?" Ortho turns around. "Hey Azul, what's it to ya?"

Just like that, club time is over. It's now back to the dorm to rest and eat.

Korrak is awaiting our return. He's pouting a little, but, after Rook explains that new science club members don't get to handle acid on day one, things start making a little more sense.

"Well, I still don' like that Azul feller."

"We g-gotta meet Heartslabyul's v-v-vice housewarden. He made p-pastries, but didn't b-bring any."

"I got t' meet th' housewarden o' Savanahclaw. 'E really ain't all that plesent."

"Azul is annoying. Fun to mess with, though."

"'Ere's a lot o' folks on th' Spelldrive club. Tons o' Savannahclaws."

"All I had to do was look cute at them, and they let us roll first! It was great!"

"At Azul? Or at s-someone else?"

"At Ignihyde's housewarden and vice housewarden! It was hilarious."

" 'at's all it took, eh? Good fer y'all! By th' way, Leona said somethin' 'bout a celebrity- y'all know what 'e meant? 'Cause I don' know no celebrity."

Rook bursts into a laughing fit beside us. I can feel Vil's eyes from across the room, though there is notable confusion in his gaze.

"W-well, I don't know any, s-so I can't really h-help."

"Myeh... maybe he just meant 'moderately popular influencer' and doesn't know what a celebrity is."

"Th-that's probably it. Th-then again, I probably w-wouldn't know one if they b-brushed my hair."

Accross the room, I see Vil sigh and shake his head. He's probably figured out that none of us keep up with pop culture. He might know the celebrity, but I say it's none of my business.

The sun is low on the horizon, our food is eaten, and our dorm uniforms are cozy warm. Rook is still giggling beside us, Korrak is still complaining about the lack of handling acid he got to do, and Epel is calling Leona lazy.

It's been a good day.