xviii, xix, xx

Parts xviii, xix, xx

wc: 3.1k

An Endless Hunt: 828

A Lesson Learned: 1.8k

The Prologue Adjourned: 408

A/N: Please read the after chapter notes!

Please cut on this line: ✄ ╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍╍

xviii: An Endless Hunt

The group ran out of the mine and back into the Silent Woods, the monster hot on their trail.

"Are you kiddin' me?! It's still coming! It pushed all that weight!" Ace said as he watched the monster run after them.

The monster started to swipe at them with its pickaxe. "Oooooooogh...! Giiiive it baaaaaaack...!"

"It's too fast! It's about to catch us!" Ace said was sweat dripped down his face.

[N] groaned. "Then it's killed or be killed!"

"Aw, fine! Let's just smash the thing. Try not to wet yourself, Deucy!" Ace said as he pulled out his magical pen.

Deuce nodded. "Same to you, Ace!"

"Why did I agree to this again?" [N] sighed as they took out their magical pen.

Grim huffed. "I'm gonna show ya why they call me Grim the Great!"

"No one calls you that though." [N] said, not missing a beat.

Grim growled, then blew out his blue fire. "Grrraah! No one asked you hench-human!"

> VILLAINS' WORLD

Deuce panted as he held his knees.

"Is it... over?" Ace questioned.

Grim smiled. "I think... we won? I think we did it!"

"Hell yeah!" [N] fist pumped the sky.

"All right!" Deuce cheered.

"Woohoo!" Ace said as he wrapped his arm around [N]'s shoulders.

Grim's smile widened. "Gimme a victory high-five!"

Deuce and Ace gave the beast a high five.

"Yeaaah!"

[N] sighed in relief, then crossed their arms. "Sharing burdens really does bring people together, huh?"

"Uh... I don't think that has anything to do with it." Deuce was quick to deny what [N] had said.

Ace agrees with the blue haired male. "Yeah! Spare us the cliches, [N]!"

"There's no 'together' here! We won 'cause of me!" Grim spoke, "This is all from me bein' a magical genius!"

[N] looked at the three boys with no expression on their face. "I should beat you guys up, I'm so serious."

"Y'know... I hate to admit it, but... we mostly won because of your plan." Ace said as he smiled fondly.

Deuce nodded. "Yeah... if you hadn't managed to keep your cool and tell us what to do, we would have never got this magestone."

"Now I won't get expelled." Deuce says with a small sigh. "And wow, is THAT a relief!"

[N] looked back in the direction of the mine. "I'm just glad none of us suffered major injuries."

"Yeah, yeah, lessons were learned, et cetera. Can we just go home already? I'm wiped." Ace said as exhaustion started to catch up to him.

Grim shared the same sentiment. "Usin' all that magic made me hungry!"

"Huh? What's this?" Grim looked down at what seemed to be a rock.

Ace inspected it. "Is that a part of the monster we just beat?"

"It looks like... a magestone? But it's black as coal! I've never seen one like that before." Deuce look at the stone, assuming it to be some type of magestone.

Grim picked up the stone and sniffed it. "What IS this? It smells amazing!"

"Grim, please do not consume random stones you find on the floor." [N] says, not moving to take the stone from him.

Ace looked at Grim like he was crazy. "Are you insane?"

"Must be some kinda fancy monster candy that it was hidin' from us!" Grim said as a smile adorned his face once more. "If this tastes as good as it smells..."

Grim placed the stone in his mouth and swallowed it.

[N] gasped and grabbed Grim's face, attempting to make the beast spit out the stone.

"Grim! spit it out, you could get sick!" [N] tried to pry open the beast's mouth.

Grim started to squirm up until the flavors of the stone hit him.

"MYAAH!"

Deuce goot worried. "Are you okay?!"

"That's what you get for eating trash!" Ace just shook his head."

"Oooooooogh... urrrrgggh... that... WAS AMAZING!" Grim jumped a little with joy as his happy expression came back.

Ace and Deuce were stunned. "What?!"

"Rich in flavor and full-bodied... like sweet, fragrant flowers burstin' into bloom on my tongue." Grim spoke, "A whole field of 'em! Right in my mouth!"

[N] gave Grim a nervous smile. "Those words are commonly used to describe a really good meal... not a stone you found on the ground."

"Gross. Monsters must have real weird tastes." Ace said in disgust.

Deuce spoke up. "You might be onto something there..."

"Most humans don't take random stuff they find on the ground and just pop it into their mouths." Deuce finished.

[N] just sighed before turning their attention to Grim. "You sure you're okay bud?"

"Myah ha ha ha! Man, was that great!" Grim laughed boisterously. "Don't worry about me. I don't got a weak stomach like you humans do."

"Hmph. We'll see if you're so smug when you're sick later tonight." Ace says in warning.

Deuce decided to switch topics. "Okay, let's pull ourselves together. We need to get this magestone to the headmage!"

xix: A Lesson Learned

"Pardon?! You're telling me you actually went to the Dwarfs' Mine in search of a magestone?" Crowley said as he folded his arms surprised.

"Uh...? Yes?" Deuce, Grim, and Ace say in unison.

[N] chuckles a bit. "Were you expecting us to take our expulsion and leave?"

"...Not really. I didn't expect that you'd seriously do it." Crowley says with a finger to his chin.

"And never in my wildest imaginings did I think you would actually return with a magestone!" Crowley finishes.

Crowley speaks a bit quickly. "And here I spent all evening preparing your expulsion documents."

"Are you serious?! While we were fightin' some crazy monster for you, you were expelling us?!" Grim yells out.

Crowley looks at Grim in confusion. "'Monster'...?"

"Yeah. There was a monster, all right." Ace nods. "A big, nasty one. It nearly killed us!"

Crowley put his finger back to his chin. "Would you kindly relate this story in full?"

"Would you kindly let me shove my foot up your as—" [N] tried to get closer to the headmage, but was held back by Ace and Deuce.

Ace nods nervously. "Yep! Glad to explain!"

> HEADMAGE'S OFFICE

"Hmmm." Crowley hummed.

"So a mysterious monster was living in the mines." Crowley summarized what was told to him.

"And the four of you worked together to destroy it, and then brought its magestone back to me?" Crowley smiled a bit at his own words.

Ace chimes in. "I don't know that i'd call it 'working together.'"

"It was more like we just happened to share the same goal at the same time..." Deuce adds on.

[N] crosses their arms. "And what did we do, pray tell, to reach this equal goal of ours?"

Ace, Deuce, and Grim look off in different directions, avoiding [N['s gaze.

"Oh, gracious... ohhh... ohhhhhhhh!" Crowley started to sob.

Grim was startled. "What is this guy's deal?! Burstin' into tears in public?! At his age?!"

"In all the decades i've worked at this school..." [N] was quick to cut off the hysterical male.

"'The day has finally come when the students of Night Raven College have joined hands together to defeat a common foe!' Yeah we get it, you like seeing friendship amongst students." [N] sighed.

Crowley was surprised at how [N] somehow took the words straight from his mouth.

"Whoa! No! No way would I join hands with this guy!" Deuce says.

Ace speaks up. "Okay, one, there was no joining of hands. Gross. And two, exactly HOW old are you, Headmage?"

"At this moment, I am simply moved beyond words." Crowley ignores the statements from the two boys.

Crowley stops sobbing. "This incident has proven my hopes were justified."

"[N], my doubts were allayed when you showed your capabilities during orientation, but they have been allayed even further! You possess the talents of a beastmaster!" Crowley said in glee.

[N] looked around a bit in confusion before looking back at Crowley. "A what master?"

"My students have all been selected by the Dark Mirror for their exceptional talent and potential." Crowley said as he eyed [N] slightly.

Crowley continues. "But great talent begets great pride and big egos."

"Most are so self-reliant and self-centered that they never even consider cooperating with others." Crowley says.

Grim crosses his arms. "You make it sound like that's a bad thing."

"But you, [N], seem to not have those qualities." Crowley spoke over Grim.

"Perhaps because of that, you were able to convince those with feeble magic to work together for a common goal." Crowley smiles.

"Eh?! What do you mean by feeble?!" Deuce, Grim, and Ace say in unison.

Crowley ignores the three. "The abnormal, odd, and unusualness you possess may be exactly what Night Raven College needs!"

"But... none of those words are really good things?" Ace spoke.

Crowley places his hands on [N]'s shoulders. "[N]..."

"I am convinced that your likeness is necessary for the future of this school." Crowley said, making [N] nervously chuckle.

"My educator's intuition tells me so." Crowley nods.

[N] sighs at the statement made.

Crowley turns his attention to the two teenage boys. "Trappola, Spade — I hereby revoke your pending suspensions!"

"Furthermore, [N]..." Crowley turned his attention back to [N].

"I am granting you the qualifications to officially attend school at Night Raven College." Crowley says.

Deuce, Grim, and Ace then spoke in unison. "WHAT?!"

"So all that stuff about me enrolling was temporary?" [N] questioned.

Crowley laughed a bit. "Not really. I expected to find where you hail from in a matter of hours. But alas, my research has come up short. Making you a full student will make the paperwork easier to file."

"Wow, how sweet of you Headmage." [N] said in a sarcastic tone.

Crowley smiled. "Of course. This is extraordinarily kind of me."

"However, there is one condition." Crowley's smile left as quickly as it came.

"Due to your magic being too defined for the curriculum to handle, you will not be able to adequately pursue a school career here." Crowley said.

Crowley turned his attention to Grim. "As for you, Grim..."

"Your actions today have made it clear that you possess sufficient talent to become a mage." Crowley said with a straight face.

"While I unfortunately would not like to, you and [N] will share a single enrollment in light of the total sum of your circumstances." Crowley smiled.

Grim's faced morphed into one of surprise. "Myah!'

"I... I'll get to go to this school...? As an actual student? Not a pet?!" Grim said, still not believing what was being told to him.

Crowley nodded sharply. "Correct. However!"

"There must be no further incidents like the one that occurred today. Are we clear?" Crowley said in a stern tone.

[N] scoffed a bit. "Make sure that doesn't go through one ear and out the other, Grim"

"Myah... myah... [N], I... I finally..." Grim said to [N] as he cried tears of happiness.

[N] smiled. "Proud of you bud. It'll be great workin' with you."

"MYAAAAAAH! I FINALLY DID IT!" Grim shouted as he fist pumped the air.

"Accordingly, I will now present to Grim the magestone that is issued to every student here." Crolwey said as he did a small hand movement.

A magestone appeared on Grim's collar.

"Heh! A magestone, eh?!" Grim said.

Crowley folded his arms. "It is typically attached to the 'magic pen' that each student uses."

"But I suspect your paws cannot handle implements." Crowley takes note of Grim's paws.

Crowley tone then turned cheerful. "Therefore, I have a custom solution for you."

"Is it possible that I am, in fact, too kind?" Crowley asked, expecting a positive response.

[N] rolled their eyes at the question.

Grim started to speak in a joyful tone. "Ah, sweet! I look awesome! A magestone collar, to be worn only by the legendary archmage, Grim!"

"You're not listening to anything I say, are you?" Crowley said with a finger to his chin.

Crowley sighs. "[N], as you can plainly see, Grim remains oblivious to the customs of human society."

"You are to keep a tight rein on Grim, and ensure there are no further incidents." Crowley says.

Ace laughed. "Wow, that's quite the promotion. From refugee to student to prefect, all in the span of a day."

"Oh, I see. So if your dorm is just you two..." Deuce started, "And the Headmage is putting you in charge of Grim, that makes you... the dorm prefect."

Ace smiled. "Well, that's gotta be a Night Raven first! A prefect who doesn't belong?"

"But sure, why not? Whatever works!" Ace crossed his arms.

[N] nods. "I bet i'm gonna be an amazing prefect."

"Heh heh heh. Good luck to you, Abnormal Prefect!" Ace says.

Crowley put a finger on his chin. "Ah. Yes. I suppose that does make you a prefect."

"I just so happen to have a job for you, and that title will make it all easier to foist... er, I mean, congratulations!" Crowley quickly changed up his words.

Crowley pulled a camera looking object from who knows where. "Now, I have something for you."

"This is called a ghost camera." Crowley explained.

[N] was starting to feel a bit lost again. "Ghost?"

"Ooh, my grandma's told me about those. Those are, like, super old magic items, right?" Ace said as he looked at the camera.

Crowley started to whisper to himself. "I would hardly consider them 'super old...' ahem."

"But it may indeed have been invented when your great or great-great-grandmother was a child." Crowley spoke.

'So it is that old.' [N] thought as they folded their arms.

"It's a camera enchanted with a special kind of magic." Crowley continued.

Crowley looked at how [N] fidgeted as they had been standing for a long time. "It enables the user to photograph not just the subject's physical form, but parts of their soul itself."

"Wait, that sounds... sketchy." Deuce said in a suspecting tone.

"They're called Memories."

[N] nodded at the word. 'How mundane.'

Crowley unfolds his arms. "Here's the thing: when the soulbound object between photographer and subject deepens..."

"The Memories in the photos start to move?" [N] said with a small yawn.

Crowley nodded with smile, not minding the fact that [N] was basically reading his mind. "Yes! The photos start to grow animated like videos."

"And sometimes the photographs take on corporeal form and slip out. Is that not what you youths would call 'wicked keen'?" Crowley said.

Deuce was a bit thrown off. "That almost sounds like ghost photography!"

"Very astute. Hence the name 'ghost camera'." Crowley said to Deuce. "I understand it was developed as a more vivid way to capture moments in time, in an age before video."

Crowley spread his arms out a bit. "As Spade observed, in days of yore, when people saw Memories jumping out of photos, they would get spooked and yell, 'Ghost!'."

"I've heard many a tale of people who were deathly scared of being photographed by such cameras."

Ace shook his head. "This tech sounds like way more trouble than it's worth."

"[N]." Crowley caught their attention. "I would like you to photograph Grim and the other students with this camera, and make a record of your campus life."

Grim chimed in. "Myah ha haaaa! Sounds like the perfect way to immortalize all my finest moments!"

"Ahem... make especially certain to capture mischief caused by certain students who struggle with impulse control." Crowley stared right at Grim as he made the statement.

"Keeping a photographic journal sounds far less tedious than writing me lengthy reports, wouldn't you agree?" Crowley smiled at [N].

"As a prefect, consider it your duty to maintain a sharp eye on your surroundings and record them." Crowley said.

Crowley spoke again. "Note how generous i'm being in providing a rare magical item that someone like yourself can use."

"Is my kindness not beyond all reckoning?" Crowley smiled at his so called kindness.

[N] shook their head and smiled. "I'll do my best."

"Hmm. The hour has grown late, so further details shall have to wait till the morrow." Crowley hummed.

"You are all dismissed. Return to your dorms." Crowley said.

The four nod. "Good night, sir!"

xx: The Prologue Adjourned

"Phew... we managed to avoid expulsion. That was a close one!" Deuce sighed out in relief.

Ace nodded. "Yeah, no kidding!"

"La la la la la!" Grim walked along glee.

Grim couldn't be bothered with the conversation. "I'm a student at Night Raven College! La la la!"

"I'm gonna be top mage on campus in no time. Enjoy eating my dust, boys!" Grim spoke.

[N] hummed. "Not if I can stop you causing havoc."

"Big words for a sentient pile of lint who's literally half a student. Still... good for you." Ace smiled at the beast.

Deuce spoke up. "I guess we're schoolmates now. Grim, [N], welcome to Night Raven."

"We've always been schoolmates, Deuce." [N] folded their arms.

Deuce flinched. "Really?!"

"But whatever. The pleasure is all mine." [N] smiled.

Deuce nodded. "The way you squared off that monster with your magic, I thought I was watching something out of a movie!"

"With steel nerves like that, you'll be fine. Even in this school." Deuce held a bit of a smirk on his face.

Ace stared at Deuce a bit. "Say, what's the deal with you sometimes talking like a punk, anyway?"

"Huh?! D-do I? I think I talk pretty normal." Deuce said.

Ace drops the topic. "Whatever. Let's just get back to the dorm."

Ace turned his attention to the moon shining in the distance. "After nearly getting expelled. the last thing we need is a curfew violation."

"We're from Heartslabyul House, by the way. What dorm are you guys in?" Deuce asked.

Grim spoke. "The dorm we're in has been abandoned for years..."

"We've taken to callin' it 'Ramshackle House'. The ol' dump is literally full of ghosts. Yeesh." Grim shivers at the thought.

Ace started to feel bad. "Hey, count your blessings."

"I'd rather deal with ghosts than have to see this guy's smug, self-important scowl everyday." Ace said.

Deuce scoffed. "Better than your lazy, dopey grin."

"Keep bawling, crybaby. I haven't forgotten how you almost wept when he said you were expelled. Catch ya later, [N]." Ace waved and walked away with Deuce.

[N] sighed. "A match made in hell, I see."

"C'mon [N], let's get back to the dorm!" Grim said.

Grim smiled wide. "Tomorrow when we wake, it won't be as temporary students."

"Finally, finally..." Grim's eyes filled with comical tears.

Grim gave a closed eye smile. "My glorious education as a proper Night Raven College student is about to begin!"