Chapter Text
“What do you mean?” Deuce asks. Eli manages to look up at the boys, confused for a moment before remembering the two of them don’t know everything they know.
“Oh, if it would have gotten physical, Cater would have won. No, Deuce, not even you could have beaten him and his unique magic. Split Card lets Cater make clones of himself.” Eli’s quick explanation leaves Ace and Deuce both reeling.
“Illusions?” Deuce asks. Eli shakes their head.
“No, they genuinely are copies of himself. They’re physical and quite strong, even. The difference is that Cater can only cast weaker and weaker spells each time he creates a new clone. Until he calls them back, his magic is split between them.” Deuce listens with interest, and Grim gives an odd look, seeming to think over how it’s possible for Cater’s magic to do that. Ace, however, is not nearly as pleased.
“I can’t get back in without a tart, right? I’ve been empty-handed since forever, man. He kicked us out after he made us help with the flowers, too!” His outrage is clear, but his volume has Eli sending him another withering glare. Grim climbs into Eli’s lap, seeing as they haven’t gotten up yet.
“I’m disappointed,” The cat mutters.
“Then, we’ll have to prepare some tarts to make up for it. After school would be– Ah! This is bad!” All eyes snap to Deuce at his cry. Eli notices that he’s looking at his phone and feels themself pale immediately.
“AH!” They shout, scrambling to stand in an instant.
“We’re going to be late for class!” Deuce explains, already walking toward the exit of the Mirror Chamber. Ace and Eli follow him quickly, both equally as frantic.
“Speaking of, what’s your class? You’re a 1st year, right?” Ace asks, sounding slightly out of breath in his effort to keep up with Deuce. Eli nods, not trusting their voice in a time like this. They’re out of shape too, after all.
“The Headmaster said we’re in Class 1-A!” Grim answers from Eli’s arms.
“Oh, then we’re in the same class. First period is all about Magical Alchemy,” Deuce explains. Eli sighs in relief. That’s one of Crewel’s classes. They rush down winding hallways, finally making it to the doorway where Crewel is waiting with a raised eyebrow and a hand on his hip. Ace and Deuce smile sheepishly, Grim trying his best to mimic that look. Eli feels their body shaking, nerves wracking their body in visible tremors.
~
“I see you’re the fresh new face who will be joining my class today…” Crewel looks over the class, only speaking again once he seems satisfied with what he sees. He introduces himself in a formal manner, and Eli sighs, knowing damn well they won’t be calling any teacher “Master” anything. Professor or even just their last name should suffice.
“Come take your seats, it’s time for class to begin. First off, a few disclaimers,” Crewel’s words are sharp and to-the-point. He outlines his expectations clearly and concisely while still managing to crack a joke or two that makes Eli genuinely smile. Deuce raises his hand to ask about some terminology and Ace groans, putting his head on the desk.
“I’m pretty bad with memorization…” He whines. Eli glares at him, elbowing him to make him sit up.
“If it’s grass, we just have to figure out if it’s delicious or not, yanno?” Grim says, a grin on his face even as Eli rolls their eyes at his antics. Eventually the bell rings, signalling for them to move to their next class. Ace and Deuce walk on either side of them down the hall, and Grim sits on their shoulder as the trio talks about how hard Crewel’s class is going to be for them.
Crewel: If you need assistance with any material, feel free to reach out. This is true for all of my students, but I feel it bears stating explicitly to you.
The funniest part of this is that Crewel has no clue how right he is. Probably not, anyway.
Eli: Thank you, Professor
Crewel: You’re quite welcome
~
Trein’s class passes similarly, although his familiar, Lucius, seems intent on making Eli’s allergies flare up as well as getting on Grim’s nerves as he makes himself comfortable in their lap. Ace and Deuce resign themselves to having lost Eli for the entirety of class, but Grim and Lucius seem to be in a battle of wills, both occupying one of Eli’s hands for head scratches. It’s not like Eli didn’t know the information from the first topic anyway, seeing as they studied Grumpy’s journal the night before.
“I do not tolerate sleeping in my classroom, Mr. Trappola.” Ace, who was trying (failing) to stay awake, jumps as he is elbowed once more. Deuce mutters the lesson back to himself, which is a little distracting, but Eli knows it helps him.
~
After Vargas’ admittedly frustrating class, Eli is about ready to collapse. He was too loud, too muscle focused, and far too sexist for Eli to ever take him seriously. They found themself laughing uncomfortably through the entire class, much to the concern of Grim, Ace, and Deuce. Not to mention the completely unrealistic expectations for ever in the whole year, let alone for the first day. 20 laps? 100 sit-ups? Ridiculous! They were ranting about it when Deuce looks at their schedules. As first years, they didn’t get to build their schedules this year, so the three of them share every class.
“Let’s see, the next class is…” Before he gets an answer out, Ace is already whining.
“For a magic school, it doesn’t really feel that much different from a normal school, huh…” Eli rolls their eyes, walking faster to avoid the redhead’s bullshit complaints. They’re really getting fed up with Ace complaining about going to a school he chose on the second day. Especially after falling asleep in Trein’s class.
“I just mean that it’s a lot more… ordinary than I thought… Guess I don’t have to worry much even without magic. Dontcha think so, too, Grim? Hm…?” When no response comes from their feline companion, Eli turns to the nearest wall and begins to hit their forehead against it.
“W-What are you doing? Where did Grim go?”
“He’s outside. Look out the window.” Eli doesn’t move to look themselves, only continuing to smack their head as Ace and Deuce make noises of frustration at the sight of Grim bounding around the courtyard.
“He’s going to piss Crowley off and I’m not vouching for him. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. I’m fed up covering for him already,” Eli is going to kill the cat themselves.
“Running away on the first day… That guy just doesn’t learn, huh.” They finally face Deuce, glaring daggers at him as they see him and Ace formulate a plan silently. It’s kind of cute, actually. Those two deserve each other.
“Being negligent on the first day, are we, Eli? So, d’ya want us to help you catch Grim?” Ace’s tone makes Eli want to deck him, but they won’t. They’ll just be passive aggressive until they feel bad about it and fix themselves like they always do.
“You want a chocolate croissant,” Eli recites, “and Deuce wants a latte. Did I get it right?”
Ace and Deuce both take a step back, stunned into sudden silence. Eli grins at them, genuinely happy that they can throw them off so easily with basic information they remember from early-game shenanigans. The two boys look at each other, seeming to weigh their options for a moment before coming to an agreement.
“And that’s a deal! Alright, shall we go help out our helpless Eli, Deuce?”
“Call me helpless again and I’ll show you–”
“Sure thing, Ace! I’m most looking forward to lunchtime.”
~
“GRIM!” Eli shouts, making several students in the courtyard jump. They all look at them with varying levels of concern and confusion. They obviously remember that Eli was never assigned a dorm, and are wondering where they keep appearing from. It’s not an uncommon concern.
“Grim, taking those lessons is for your sake, y’know?” Ace asks, not far behind them.
“Wha–!? Why’re you the one taking me back?!” Grim whines, looking between Ace and a quickly approaching Deuce.
“Grim, you know why–”
“We are doing this for the sake of our lunch!” Deuce’s reply is blunt, but Eli finds themself feeling almost bad for Grim. No wonder no one at this school thinks anyone genuinely cares for them when everyone says shit like that.
“I don’t get it! I’m never going back to a boring class like that!” The feline monster takes off at full speed, leaving Ace and Deuce to chase him through the courtyard. They wisely avoid the statues of the Great Seven, no one wanting to be part of that fiasco again, but the amount of spells Deuce is calling are concerning to say the least. Eli watches as Ace wipes out, failing to catch the cat in his arms. They double over in laughter, suddenly glad to not be the one making a fool of themselves. They laugh so hard that they barely notice their hands shaking until a sudden yet familiar cold feeling watches over them.
Fuck.