[A: 6 C: 114] - Avalon Hall University
[Aurola is from @cyten0]
(Ramos) [Alex] {Nihil} <Altiare> |Jasmine|
“U-uh,” (You raise your hand like a kid caught cheating on a test.) “T-that’d be me-”
(Before you realize it, La slammed you against the wall. She kept you pinned with one arm, as she brandished the other fist in your face, with more of that burning red energy bristling at her fingertips; that were curled just like the Knights, just like-)
“What did you do!” (She barks.)
(Your eyes are wide with panic.) “Wh-wha--”
“Don't play that game with me!!” (She pushed the burning energy closer to your face.) “You stuck up fancy dress shitheads are all the same! No WAY that sadness took that kid over without someone like YOU HELPING IT!!!”
“Hey!!!” (Isabeau put a hand on her shoulder.) “That’s my friend! Back off!!!”
“Are they?!?” (She shrugged him off and side-eyed him.) “Or are you just saying what they WANT you to say!!”
“Don’t be ridiculous!” (Odile snapped.) “Do you expect me to believe they could control all of us and fight the Crimson Knight all at once?!?”
“Please, I’ve seen people like them do that and more!” (She turned back to you.) “Now what did you do!”
“I-” (What is GOING ON!?!?!? What’s this lady’s deal?!?) “I-I didn’t do anything I swear! Please!!!”
“Wrong answer!” (The smell of sugar intensifies, a-and that red energy’s-)
“Good lord Aurola, the poor thing’s only just arrived!” (The new voice sent a shiver down your spine. It was smooth, confident, authoritative, and sickeningly saturated with finely trained inflections.) “Is this how one greets people in Poteria these days? My, no wonder Percival ended up like that.”
(The voice’s owner was a tall, light skinned, dark haired man who was walking down the Keeps entrance hall towards you. His eyes were as piercing as his smile was devious, and he wore a well tailored suit adorned with a crest-)
(“Eyes were as piercing as his smile was devious” oh that’s quite good, you’ll have to remember that.)
“Oh shove it, Galahad!” (Aurola sneers-- Wh- WHAT?! He, that’s what you were just thinking-!!) “I caught one of your cronies.”
“My what?!” (What?! You’re aware of me!! You push past Aurola. How!?!) “What in- you’re not one of mine, how do you know our craft!?!”
“Get the fuck away from me!” (Aurola shoved the man- Galahad? Back and stepped away, pointing that energy at him.) “And why the fuck are you acting surprised! You said you guys were the only fuckers who KNOW mind craft!!!”
“We are!” (Galahad huffs, crosses his arms, and glares at you.) “Or at least we’re supposed to be!”
“Wow. WOW! Some secret society you fuckheads are!”
(Isabeau slipped to your side protectively while those two were arguing. He put his hand on your shoulder.) “You okay? Any idea what that was about?!”
(You shake your head.) “I-I dunno, paranoia?”
(Paranoia is right, my little self-trained squire.) (You felt your heart skip a beat as the voice rattled in your head. Galahad was giving you a look and a smirk. Was he talking to you and La at the same time?!) “A suggestion, Aurola? Perhaps save your accusations for someone who hasn’t just defeated the Crimson Knight. Look, they were even able to save the poor child!”
“Leave Bonnie out of this.” (Petronillé practically growled, and stood back up.) “We need to get them to a doctor, so stop fucking with my friend!!!”
“That asshole is not your friend!!!” (La glared at Nille and pointed her craft back at you.) “Stars, they’re likely the reason your siblings like that in the first place-!!!”
“AUROLA! GALAHAD! WHAT THE HELL!?!?” (Arks voice sliced through the argument as she stormed down the hall, bow over her shoulder.) “Blinding stars, La!!! Those are the crabbing Saviors!! Stand down!!!”
“But-”
“Stand! Down!!! That’s an order!” (You’ve never seen Ark sound so. . . Commanding.) “I’ve known Ramos for years. YES they know mind craft, but they’re not one of these assholes!”
“It’s like I’m not even in the room. . .” (Galahad steps to the side all too casually-)(Besides, doing such a feat as making the Crimson Knight is something quite far above both your talent, and mine~)
“. . . Yes Ma’am.” (La dismissed her craft and stood at ease- S-STARS!! There’s a vine of mint around your hand, in the greenhouse, where did--) “That still begs the question-”
“Don’t care didn’t ask is there a crabbing doctor here or something?!?” (Nille snaps.) (A greenhouse for a mindscape? Well I suppose anything works for an ameture.)
“There’s a camp set up in the yard.” <OUT!!! Ark was talking as you ripped that vine out of your headspace and start patrolling the greenhouse for more. This head’s members only, bitch!> “La will show you where to go.”
“Thank you.” (She lets out a breath and heads off with Mira.) (That’s more like it! Show some teeth, put up some walls! Use whatever you can to your advantage! By the Bard, you have potential, but whoever trained you was an idiot.) (You lean on Isabeau, y-you can’t keep up--)
“Huh?” (He puts a hand on your head.) “Running outta adrenaline?”
“N-no I, just. . .” (You shut your eyes tight and shook your head. Wait what’s- o-oh right, Mira, Odile, Nille, Bonnie, and La, walking away, a-and, you--) “Dizzy.”
“I’m not surprised after fighting. . . Wait.” <Isabeau pauses, then glares at Galahad, looking him up and down.> “You’re with that lot that trained Perci, aren’t you.”
“Oh! So you’ve met our little runaway, have you?” (You half-shrug. That friend of yours is sharper than he looks, squire.) <Do you mind-?!> “It still baffles me as to why he ran away like he did, let alone how he did it! But just between us? If he can slip away so easily, then he's earned a little siesta~”
“O-one conversation a-at a time, please.” (You whined, rubbing your head.) “Getting, a migraine--”
“What?! Don’t tell me you’re skilled enough to control people but can’t handle a two-pronged conversation!” (Galahad sighs, and puts his hands- gloved hands, in his pockets.) “Oh well, something to work on I suppose. Perhaps when there’s a moment I could offer some advice-”
“Absolutley not!”
“N-no crabbin’ way!”
“Now what did you think the response would be, Gal?” (Ark huffed, arms crossed.) “The Saviors here’ve been exchanging blows with Perci for a while, th’ hell makes you think they’d trust you!”
“Oh I don’t know, maybe the prospect of an actual tutor? Ah! That reminds me.” (Galahad takes an overdramatic bow.) “Sir Galahad of Avalon Hall, at your service~ Now, who was it who trained you? You never did say.”
“Nobody.” <Your head was getting clearer, finally. You glare at him.> “Well, Perci nudged us in the right direction, even if he didn’t know it, but we dealt with our sadness ourself. After that, the only teacher I had was me.”
“You what?!?” (Galahad let out a half-cough, half-wheeze that sounded like genuine surprise!) “That’s incredible! Colour me impressed, little squire, that is no small feat!”
“. . . Thanks?”
“You’ve got quite the gift, you know.” (Galahad claps his hands.) “Should you ever feel the need to nurture it further, our doors, or rather my doors, are always open.”
“It’ll be a warm day in Void when that happens.” (You and Alt grumble.) “But, thanks, I guess.”
“Anytime~ Although I have to ask. How is our little troublemaker doing?”
(You and Isabeau exchanged a Look. Isa huffed.) “Who do you think caused all this?”
“No!” (Galahad put a hand to his mouth.) “Our little bloodhound did all this?!? That's. . . Well! He's certainly earned that name of his.”
“I'm glad someone's happy about it.” (Isabeau grumbles. Wait, name?)
“Haha. . . Well I'll leave you to your thoughts. I'm quite busy these days you see, there’s just not enough hours in the day~” (He turned and began strolling down the hall towards the yard, pausing for just one thing.) “Oh and Ramos, a word of warning. While the other Knights and I may be perfectly reasonable and sensible, there are a number of students here who. . . Let's say, lack restraint.”
<That’s ominous.>
(Comforting!)
“Welcome to Avalon Hall, squire~” (And he was off again, for real this time.)
<Urgh. . . You wait until he’s well and truly gone to respond.> “I think I woulda preferred fighting more sadness.”
“Can’t really disagree. . .” (Isabeau sighs, and rubs his face.) “Oh yeah, good to see you Ark!”
“Right back atchya!” (Ark hugged Isabeau tightly and gave you a hearty slap on the shoulder.) “C’mon, let’s not keep your pals waiting.”
“Please.” (Isabeau started walking to the yard.) “Stars, I hope they’re doing okay.”
(You follow along- Hold up.) “Stars?”
“I-I’m trying it out!” (Isabeau pouted.) “It’s just, it kinda? Feels nice to say? It rolls off the tongue pretty good and, just. . .”
(You just miss Siffrin. . .)
“Eh, a swear’s a swear.” (Ark chuckled, oblivious.) “Change, Gems, Crab, Stars, Cutting Blinding, Bats, Blood, Skad, Void-”
“Hold on, I gotta write these down.” <You jokingly add.> “How do y’know so many?”
“Oh y’know, the military does that to ya.”
“Fair nuff.” (And what military would that be, you wonder.)
*Cameos from Left to right: Nia from @mossyflowers, Summer from @neoncityrain, Pirouette from @fungal--wastes, Wren Rosenwood from @wistful-wren, Elovan and Keokeo from @chimerical-daydreams and @vulpixisananimal, Aya from @lavender-tea-dragon, and Tom from @heartofgold8274
(The short stone hallway eventually opens up into a bright yard within the keeps walls. The ground was hard and dusty, yet strangely well kept. There was a well, bustling with activity, and people. A lot of people. Most of one side was dominated by a large camp with people of all shapes and sizes! You saw your friends were by a covered area that-)
(Is that the little prodigy everyone’s been talking about?)
(Oh yes! Ha, I could smell their mint from here, ameteur~)
(Wh, what--)
(Oh and is that a Savior of Vaugarde they’re walking with? My my, I wonder how many strings they’ve tied around that one!)
<LOCK. IT. UP!!! You force Ramos out of the way and lock down your garden. You can feel the tendrils of mind craft looking for chinks in your armor, for gaps in the fence, for your poker face to crack. What the hell?! Was Perci holding back all this time?!? These guys are relentless!!>
(Finally! A challenge! I was wondering if the mutt was about to roll out the red carpet!)
(Hmm, hold on. This is a separate beast entirely- no! A fractured little mind like that learned mind craft?! No, no I cannot be reading them right!)
(Mutt?!)
<These guys are starting to piss you off. Ahem, “Read me and weep, nose-picking snobs.”>
(HA!)
(How DARE!!)
(Oh I like this one! Hey homeschool hero, you should pay attention~)
“Ramos?” (Isa shakes your shoulder.) “Hell-ooo?”
“W-what? Huh?” (You blink.) “S-sorry I uh, zoned, out.” (Aww look, they’re timid~) (Skill like a Wolf, acts like a Sheep.) (Like I said, a Mutt!)
<Ignore them, Rams, I’ll try and keep them outta your hair. Though we might need help from Alex.>
(G-good idea. Isabeau pats your back.) “C’mon, I’ll help you over.”
(Using the fractured parts of a mind to delegate individual tasks? Smart~ I wonder what other little tricks they have.) <Will these people ever shut up? They were all around the yard; leaning against the wall, loitering in groups, and helping or ‘helping’ some of the other survivors. Many of them wore gloves, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t be an ass.>
(Can you blame us? Once we heard a little country boy’s gotten a hand on our craft, how could we NOT take interest! Oh and to find out said mind is already cracked like an egg? This is more interesting than any boring lecture!)
(You try to focus on just, walking, being in the here and now. Isabeau guided you along to where Odile had set up, not too far from where Bonnie, Mirabelle, and Nille were resting. Odile was talking to that lady, Aurola, and when she saw you walking over, she turned to leave. But not before tossing something at you first.) “Catch.”
“Wh-!” (You caught the small bundle of fabric.) “. . . Gloves? Thanks but uh, I-”
“It’s not a gift, it’s a muzzle!” (La snaps back, giving you a glare before walking away, muttering under her breath.)
[. . . Hot?]
(S-stars, just one more thing, huh. . . You put on the long sleeved gloves and sit down. Isabeau joins you, and puts a hand on your shoulder.) “You okay?”
“L-lotta, chatter.” (You shake your head.) “F-from, i-in the student uniforms?”
“The uniforms?” (You nod at Odile’s question. She glances around.) “. . . I was hoping this place wouldn’t turn out to be what I thought it was. Are you sure?”
“Galahad, said Perci was from here-” <You squint hard and rub your head.> “No one- t-they didn’t make any moves, o-or, did they?”
“A couple wanted to say hello, but your new friend made sure they didn’t.” (Odile teased, friend? W-who--) (That paranoid little puppet that’s lost her strings? Oh she’s got quite the bark with double the bite, but she’s not quite as interesting as you are, little bug~)
<Gods DAMMIT!!!>
(You put your head in your hands.) “O-oh I am, going to throw up.”
“Relax, Rams.” [You rest your head on top of Isa’s.] “Ignore them and keep breathing. Letting ‘em get under our skin’s worse than the chatter.”
(Physically manifesting a fragment? Now that is VERY impressive. A useful technique, perhaps?)
“T-trying, it’s, just a lot.” (Another breath.) “Avalon Hall, ring- r-ring any bells?”
(Don’t be fooled, it’ll only be a matter of time before the broken parts eat them alive.)
“Ring any bells?! Gems of course it does. It’s a very prestigious and secluded university, invitation only, taking no-one but the best.” [Odile crosses her arms.] “Don’t tell me. . .”
(Oh my ears are burning!) (Thank you thank you~)
“Y-yep.” (You continue to ignore them.) “How’s Mira and Bonnie?”
(That kid should be dead by now, if they’re lucky.) “Mirabelle will be fine, but Bonnie. . .” (Odile answ-- gh-)
[Fuck ooooofffff!! You drop your walls slightly and think really, really hard about where Eri used to live, on that nice little island that’s north of Vaugarde. It had, black sand, and was, called---]
(You and Alex wince, as do quite a few of the other suits around the yard. One is even having a coughing fit! Heh, that’ll teach ‘em. O-oh! Right.) “Sorry, what’d you say?”
“Good work, Alex.” [Odile chuckles, having clearly noticed the little mass mind attack. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.] “Mirabelle’s concussion will be healed in a day, but Bonnie still hasn’t woken up.”
“Stars. . .” [You shake your head.] “Any idea what’s wrong with ‘em?”
“Not a clue.” [Odile sighs and leans back.] “There is a healer in this camp who had some suggestions for medicine, so I was thinking-”
[Alarm bells ring in your head.] “Wait, medicine? What kind?!”
“Err. . . Anti-inflamatory, painkillers, craft enhancers--”
“Shit.” [You jump up and look around.] “Where’s Bonnie?! Where’s-”
“Over there.” [Odile points to grouping of the proper beds that’s set up in the covered part of the yard.] “Alex what is-”
[You’re off like a racehorse towards them, completely ignoring whatever Odile was saying, how very unlike you! However, this was serious, so any sass about that could come later. As you approach, you can see Petronillé has a cup of something in her hand, and was tilting Bonnies head up to help them drink it.]
“Nille wait!” [She looks up at your panicked shout, nearly spilling the drink. You slow down once you’re close.] “No meds! No medicine, it’ll kill them!”
“Excuse me?!?” [The glare she gave you, stars you could feel that in your soul. Quick, gotta explain.]
“If- fuckokay-” [You lean in and lower your tone.] “If Bonnie did the kinda wish ritual I’m thinking of, then they can’t have any help for a full day, or they’ll die.”
“. . .” [She was still glaring at you, but put the medicine down.] “Why.”
“It’s, i-it’s to do with the wish.” [You take a breath, and continue.] “Stab a blade into the heart, bleed for twenty-four hours, surviving on nothing but your willpower and concentration on whatever you’re wishing for.”
“Of crabbin’ course.” [She turns away from you, arms crossed.] “. . . You sure?”
“. . . I’m sure.” [You try not to think about it.] “More than I should be. That ritual’s probably the only thing keeping them alive right now. . .”
“. . . Okay.” [She lets out a sigh.] “. . . . . . . . Alex.”
[You snap to attention.] “U-uh, yeah?”
“. . . Are. . .” [She takes a very shaky breath.] “. . . Are they going to die?”
(Fuck.) <Shit.> [UH!]
“I. . . . . I dunno.” [There’s a very cold silence, that you feel obligated to fill.] “I-I mean, just, the fact they’re still breathing means-”
“Stop.” [She’s still not looking at you.] “Just, stop. I want to be alone right now, but, thanks, or whatever.”
“. . . Well uh. . .” [You turn and walk away with a wave.] “I’ll, be around.”
[You slowly walk back towards your little setup with Isabeau and Odile, eyes to the ground. Once you get there and sit down, you just place your fist in your mouth and silently scream. Once you’ve gotten that out of your system, you lay back dramatically on Madame’s lap.] “Stars I want to kill myself.”
(How Dramatic.)
[FUCK OFF AND DIE!! You reinforce the walls again, urgh. . . After a moment of hesitance, Odile puts a hand on you and sighs.] “Ask permission first, Alex.”
“For permission to kill myself?!?”
“What? No! [She flicks your forhead.] “I was talking about physical contact, but yes, that too.”
“Ah stars sorry-” [You start to get up.]
“Stay.” [You freeze at her command, then lay back down.] “. . . Good.”
“Cute. . .”
“What was that, Isabeau?”
“N-nothing, M’dame!”
“Mmhm. I thought as much.” [Odile chuckled.] “Are Ramos and Altiare alright? The two dissipated as soon as you took off.”
“Eh, they're fine.” [Glancing over, Altiare was standing in the doorway of the greenhouse. Ramos however was out and away in their own corner, trimming the brambles. Doubtless they were glad to be relieved of front.] “The panic just kicked them out.”
“Makes sense” [Isabeau nods.] “What was that about, anyway?”
“I thought I recognized the wishing ritual Bonnie used.” [You pluck a raspberry in headspace and, quickly checking no-one was listening in, take a bite.] “One’a the ones Wren was talking about, Bladeheart Ritual?”
“I somewhat recall. . .”
“Wasn’t paying attention, sorry.”
“‘S fine.” [Shrug.] “You take a knife forged of your own blood, focus on what you wish for, and stab yourself in the heart.”
[There’s an audible hiss from Odile and Isabeau.]
“You won't die as long as you focus on your wish. You have to do that for a whole day with no outside help.” [You glance away.] “So no medicine. If you can do that for a whole day then congrats, you get your wish. Well, that and ‘the might and will of the stars’ whatever that means.”
“Terrible.” [Odile huffs.] “What sort of twisted ritual is that?”
“Beats me.”
“Wait.” [Isabeau scrunched his face up, thinking.] “Bonnie doesn’t, have a knife like that. So whos. . .”
“It was Crux’s knife, wasn’t it?” [Odile raised an eyebrow.] “A metaphorical knife forged of metaphorical blood? Gems, that means that whatever logic this wish is working on is being mangled by Percival's little tantrum.”
“Greeeeaaaaat. . .” [You roll over to your front and pout.] “Just what we needed. The weird esoteric and dangerous craft with infinite power just started working on dream logic.”
“All the more reason we need to stop this as fast as possible.” [Odile pat your head.]
“Rest first, though.” [Isabeau shuffles and leans against a part of the wall.] “I dunno where we’d even go next, or how to get to Perci.”
“More questions for the pile.” [You lament.] “Hopefully answers come to us for once, and not the other way around.”
