Welcome to Memory Lane…

“Let’s all become locked within this dream.”

🧸

“Toys and humans are one in the same, destined to be left behind.”

⛏️

“Gyahahaha! Submit to my power or die at my hand!”

🔋

“Let’s make this the biggest fireworks show in all of Sage’s Island!”

🚀

“Reach for the sky, villain!”

banner by: @/arcdiris

“Let’s all become locked within this dream.” (ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ.ﾟ

🧸

“Toys and humans are one in the same, destined to be left behind.” (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧

⛏️

“Gyahahaha! Submit to my power or die at my hand!” ꒰(͏ˊ•ꈊ•ˋ)꒱

🔋

“Let’s make this the biggest fireworks show in all of Sage’s Island!” ৻( •̀ ᗜ •́ ৻)

🚀

“Reach for the sky, villain!” (∗´ര ᎑ ര`∗)

A set of footsteps could be heard behind him, forcing the leader to pause. Despite exhaustion threatening to devour him, Lotsie picked himself up. Winston and Yuukei stood in front of him, wand raised and bag open.

“You again… always trying to make a mess of my nostalgic memories.” He lightly laughed, “You even got my star student to follow your every word.” 

He tapped his cane twice, the phantom monster rising up with a groan. “But I won’t need to worry about that soon, because you’ll all join the loop too.”

Time shifted once more, and the blotting dolls that had come from the mirror reappeared at the two first years’ feets. They crawled and sunk their melted hands into their shoes, as if begging them to stay too. The two chipped away at them, Winston with his wand’s spells and Yuukei with whatever items he could find in his bag. Yet, the dolls kept multiplying unceasingly. 

But Yuukei remained unfazed, looking towards the images of students fading in and out of time. Hundreds of people would remain trapped if they didn’t defeat Lotsie as soon as possible. 

Yuukei stares down the maddened dorm leader, “Whatever spells you cast aren’t going to stop any of us anymore, we’re ending this loop here and now. 

Lotsie giggles, coughs bleeding into his fit of laughter. “Sure, like how you said you’d tell every one of what I’ve apparently done. Now look where it got you, alone with only a student with a few tricks up his sleeve.” 

“Who the heck said it's just those two here?!”

Flames burst from what can only be described as a flamethrower on wheels. Yuukei and Winston leap out of the way, the fire burning the remaining monsters to a crisp. 

“Now fiendish king! Meet the fires of our magnum opus! A weapon of destruction crafted by the world’s greatest villain and inspired by NRC’s greatest mage!” Zackery calls. 

“Yeah, whatever he said!” Grim added on with a sly grin. 

Lotsie stood silently at the sight, his heart pounding far faster than should be possible. With a quiet tremble, he pointed a finger towards his once-loved classmates. 

“Move.”

The phantom moved on all fours, charging towards the students like an actual animal. Winston pushed Yuukei out of the way, a cloud of smoke trailing as he flew and slammed into the floor.

Zackery directed his gun towards the monster, only for ice to block its muzzle. A pair of jingling shoes trip him, Lotsie’s cane ramming right into his gut. He fell to the ground in pain as Grim jumped onto the dorm leader’s face. He scowled and scratched at the man before finally summoning a ball of fire from his jaws. Lotsie’s hair singed as he yanked Grim’s collar and threw the magical beast to the ground. 

A giant paw smashed Grim onto the floor before he could recover as Lotsie backed away. A recovering Yuukei watched as his legs were shaking, and he looked to be leaning heavily onto his cane. 

He’s being drained. 

With his head pounding, Yuukei pushed himself off the ground and ran towards the dorm leader. He tackled the man and grabbed onto his cane, narrowly avoiding ice spells aimed for his head. 

“Zackery!” He screamed. “Light ‘em up!” 

The purple teen grabs the heavy gun and points it to the monster. Without its other half to defend it, Zackery pushes on the trigger as hard as he can, the magic gem on top of the weapon beginning to shake as mana was pulled from it. A loud wail could be heard as the creature fell back, its fur torched and blot bubbling from the heat. 

Lotsie screamed with it, kicking Yuukei in the gut before shooting him with a spell. Staggered, the dorm leader begins to phase in and out, blot leaking from his forehead. Yuukei coughed as he tried to get up, far too late from stopping the dorm leader from casting his unique magic once more. 

Suddenly, a cloud of pink and yellow exploded beneath Lotsie. With a closed fist, Winston jumped towards his idol and socked him in the skull. 

Lotsie stumbled for a second, dropping his cane in the process. It's far too much for him at this point, the loop, the fight, the blot, the pain. He falls onto the dorm’s wooden floor and gazes at the blurry image of the phantom burning away. 

Everything he’s built falls apart, and he reminisces of that cheerless night.

CHAPTER 30: Goodbye, Lovely Adolescence

A camera lies on a table, and a blonde child picks it up like usual. He stares into the lens, finding a story taken from a memory.

“William, it's time to get rid of these childish ideas.” A stern male voice called from above.

The fireplace crackled oh so quietly. But for William, it felt like an eternity of watching the poor toys he adored since toddlerhood melting into plastic sludge, not even the toxic fumes staying as it flew out of the house’s chimney. His mother’s hardened grip on his arm finally loosened as he wailed. The cold eyes of his father looked down on him without pity nor concern. 

I hated you.

And I hated all of those god awful, miserable adults.

“You…want to open a show studio?” A childhood friend laughs in his face. “God, did you waste your time at that fancy school dreaming? Just work at the factory, my dad said he can get a better job than whatever nonsense that is.”

The scene shifts, and mocking, complaints, and critiques fill the dark silence. William runs through the cold night and back to the train, leaving not even a note for his parents to explain his disappearance. He despises them, he despises his rainy little town, he despises this feeling. 

He rides the train into sunrise and towards the mirror portal where Night Raven College calls him. Backwards, backwards, backwards, to where that place loved him for who he was. It didn’t matter if the whole dorm was empty, as long as he could remain in there forever. But with his family still around, forever was just a mere wish. 

The idea of growing up was sickening 

I refused to become some awful person like them,

betraying childhood promises and tossing their dreams away

So I didn’t.

The Unique Magic he birthed was still a secret, not even the teachers were informed. A spell based on creating a looping dimension might as well be something more dangerous than encountering a fae prince. He didn’t even tell his parents, who he’d never see again.

In that loop, in that time where he thought a simple 24 hours had passed, a loneliness like no other was born. However, he pretended he was unaffected once he left, simply believing he was finally free. At least that belief of his, as fickle as it was, stopped him from losing his mind on that sunny day.

He did ponder though, on a bench rotting and old until a white-haired teen walked up to him. With his tired eyes and annoyed talk about being lost, he befriended William quickly. They laughed until the sun set, and Lotsie swore to himself to never return to that loop of doom.

Then there was the dyed-blonde delinquent, who was far more shy than he let anyone let on. He would find his way onto the right path with William's help, and became a wonderful student in his own way. The fireworks he made always delighted the leader. 

And finally. those wonderfully nonsensical first years who were always arguing and making up. Their time together may be short lived, but William always loved listening to their ideas, even when he was most tired.

Pat, Saturn, Zackery, Winston. 

And everyone else

I love them, even now.

They embody my dreams, my ideals, and my perfect world

And they would have continued to, if not for time catching up to me once again.

A moonless night in the summer sets the scene with the storm coming not from the sky, but the words of his closest friend.

“I’m scared. My dad’s been fired from his movie-making job thanks to some new tech stuff replacing him. My family already struggled trying to get me everything for NRC, and I don’t know if another year is possible if my family needs help trying to keep up with costs.”

He sighs. “If nothing changes in the foreseeable future, this year is probably going to be my last.”

“Well, I’m sure it’ll all be all right!” Lotsie said with a smile, the words acting as a sad attempt to comfort both of them.

But I can fix it.

I always do.

I just need to give everyone a little more time.

To recover, to breathe, to stay here

To stay with me. 

Lotsie fiddled with the silver watch in bed. The thing had been with him during his first time loop, and was the only thing that got him to leave the loop before even more time passed by. It recorded the true time, and reminded Lotsie of the days when he was lost in the loop. Leaving it was hellish, sure, but sometimes, he would dream of the days he spent inside here.

He recalled Pat’s confession. It would be difficult with that many people, yes, but wouldn’t it be worth it?

And just like that, the promise he told himself was broken, as he sat at his desk and began to rework his spell. In that long, impossible night, he spelled out the curse that would doom him. 

Why… 

Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhyhywhywhywhy–

I’ve sacrificed everything, I’ve given them my everything! So why are they still leaving?!

Why aren’t you staying with me?! Is what I’ve made still not enough?

Can’t you see everything I’ve built for you?!

You’re all so– so ungrateful!

A bunch of miserable brats who don’t listen!

Who doesn’t care!

You’re all so childish–!

Outside of the memory stands Lotsie, his jester attire torn and specks of ashes covering his face paint. He returns to that burning fire, and pulls away the logs. He digs through the still-hot embers, his scarred hands refusing to stop. Lotsie clutches the remains of those toys he adored, and his loved relationships that now fall apart quickly. No amount of stitching, glue, or apologies could fix the gruesome damage. 

I destroyed it, didn’t I?

Everything I could have ever wanted, friendships, family, a bond.

I destroyed it all for nothing.

His friends’ kind faces dissipate, like the life he chose to throw away. A laugh filled with hiccups and tears rips through the air.

I see, so I’ve become a miserable adult too.

CHAPTER 31: Hello, My Bittersweet Adulthood.

Lotsie’s vision clears as his ears fill with the familiar screams of an adoring crowd. In front of him is a sea of people, clapping and looking at him with excitement in their eyes. He looks at his silver watch, remnants of something having damaged it on its shiny shell.

It’s Sunday night and a mere hour after Lotsie’s wish was supposed to come true. 

He returns to the crowd, who all stare at him in anticipation. He feels sluggish, as if he could pass out, even. But the chance to start the loop again is here, and maybe he could make it work perfectly this time.

A classmate stands below him, reminding Lotsie with the shake of the large cue cards they hold. He puts on a sheepish smile, “Aha, where was I again? Ah, yes—“

“Before I go announcing the leader to head this dorm’s future, I’d like to share a speech with you all! So please, listen closely to me.” He leans on his cane far more than he should be, his body still injured from abusing his magic.

“See, I’ve considered NRC–Toytoriya, rather, to be a home away from home—“

Lotsie’s heart almost stops by a group moving in the corner of his eye. Pat signals towards Saturn and Zackery, as they begin packing up their stuff to leave the coliseum. 

Where are you going? He thinks, but remembers the act he must perform, “…The plays, the people, the fun. I-I really love every single bit of it.”

He and Pat lock eyes, and his pleading face is only met with a glare of disgust and rage from his best friend. They’re going to leave him, and not just physically. He glimpses Zackery beckoning a familiar white hat and panics. He cannot lose this, not them. 

“With—With that said! I’d like to announce Winston Herdsmen as your new dorm leader of Toytoriya!” 

What am I doing? Lotsie shouts in his head as the light beams onto the country boy, the beam ironically avoiding the purple-haired’s reaching grasp. Winston’s confusion from being called turns into apprehension as he sees Lotsie’s hand beckoning him over. With hesitance, he drags his feet to the stage and up its stairs, the eyes of over a hundred students looking at him in awe.

Lotsie hesitantly presents the cane in his hands to the brunette, holding his grip tight on it. Winston will grab onto it, accepting this apology gift his dear dorm leader has given him, and eventually call everyone back. That’s how Lotsie knows it will go. 

Yet, when Winston sheepishly walks up to him— something far out of character for the brave first year— he touches the cane as if it were a curse, unable to meet the other student’s eyes. 

“Thank you.” He says with coldness in his voice, not giving Lotsie the chance to get a word in before he bows to the crowd and quietly leaves the stage. The crowd cheers as he departs, not realizing what had transpired. Lotsie, meanwhile, looks on in disbelief as Winston takes Zackery’s hand and leaves with the rest of the group.  

Nonetheless, he doesn’t move. The stage-light feels so isolating despite its warm hue. He faces the crowd once more, still unknown to the anguish in his heart. He wants to yell at him, tell Winston to turn around and look him in the eye. He wants to force all of them to get back here so he can start this loop properly and without anyone remembering whatever terrible stuff he’s said and done. 

But… was it not those terrible actions that are driving them away now? Even if he could try again, restart anew, it would not remove the feeling of betrayal seizing their hearts. And it is only through this frustration that the leader finally realizes what he’s done. He stares in yearning as his only friends leave through the colosseum's arches.

Alone on the stage and with tears threatening to trail down his face, Lotsie gives a smile–one bittersweet yet genuine– and yells to all of Night Raven College. 

“Thank you all for coming to my final Festival of Memories, and my birthday party for that matter! Here’s to the future awaiting us, and the memories we will always cherish. May you recall these days with a wonderful smile!” 

Fireworks, cheers, and confetti all explode around the arena, painting a delightful scene for the miserable leader. Lotsie performs his final bow, and disappears behind the curtain, leaving his dream behind for good. 

———

“Herdsmen… was acting oddly for his energetic self, no?” A former delinquent’s voice broke through the distant fireworks. The Heartslabyul duo had run into Ramshackle, who chose to leave a little earlier in hopes of missing the large crowd of attendees leaving for their dorms. 

“The guy probably just got nervous after his name was called.” Ace replied to Deuce. “I know you would be stuttering like crazy if Riddle suddenly crowned you as dorm leader out of nowhere.”

Deuce frowned at the remark, giving the ginger a playful punch on the arm. 

“Eh?! Where did you get a blot stone?!” Ace suddenly exclaimed at the black gem in between Grim’s paws. The beast sputtered in response.

Yuukei chimed in. “Oh! Grim found a first year selling some candy that looked crazy similar to one, so I ended up buying it for him. Graham was the name, I think.”

“That snotty guy? I didn’t know he had the ability to cook.” Ace snarked. “Whatever, I’ll go ahead and pester him to see if he has anymore.”

Ace walked towards the Hall of Mirrors at a faster pace, followed by Deuce after waving the two Ramshackle students goodbye.

Grim let out a sigh of relief once the two were far enough. “Thanks for that, henchman.” 

“No problem, but why didn’t you just eat it before those two found us? You do that with every gross gem you find.” Yuukei asked, checking both his camera and photos for damage from the battle with Lotsie. 

“It's just– Something feels wrong.” Grim muttered as he played with the stone. “I didn’t know Lotsie would just get left in the dust like that. Most of the overblots we handled always ended happier if ya don’t count the crying.”

“So you feel bad?” 

“I guess. Don’t you?”

“Not really. If anything, I think this is better for those 5, Lotsie included.” He looked to the night sky, which was filled with bright lights and loud booms. “In my opinion, life is meant to be filled with ups and downs so people can change. Toytoriya’s leader just went down a huge slope, so now all he can do is start walking back up.” 

Grim still looked conflicted, prompting Yuukei to speak further. “I think they’ll make up one day anyhow, they all just need time.” 

“I guess you’re right.” Grim agreed, finally popping the stone in his mouth “When did you get so mature or whatever?”

“The same time you started turning all soppy, maybe?” Yuukei cracked a grin. “Now let's head home, I want to go to bed knowing I’ll actually wake up in the next day.”

The two walked down the path to their old yet loved dorm, hoping that the future will be just a bit nicer to their new friends.

“D-Dolls…” Saturn muttered, looking sick enough to vomit. Yuukei shushed him before the teen could say anything. Quietly, all 6 students snuck their way across, hugging the wall to ensure no monsters would see them. Thankfully, the creatures appeared to be distracted, huddling up in front of the mirror as some kind of blockage. 

“How did that guy even get this many minions?” Grim muttered on Yuukei’s shoulder. “None of the other leaders could do this unless it was other students or separate monsters.”

“Does it matter?” Saturn whispered aloud, the coolness in his voice completely gone. “I’d rather we focus on getting to that mirror fast.”

“Jeez, I didn’t know you were that scared of dolls. No wonder you avoided that lady from back then.” Grim whispered in an attempt to lighten the mood. 

“I have a little sister who used to have this huge, insanely creepy collection of dolls.” Saturn murmured. “She would put them all next to my bed when I was little and I’d have to sleep with them staring at me. One nightmare later and I can’t even look them in the eye.”

The blonde froze when a weight was felt on his leg. He looked down, finding a doll caked in black ink had latched itself onto the dirty-blonde’s leg, staring at him as a crack formed across its face. Yuukei jumped to cover his mouth, but it was too late. Saturn dropped his box of rockets and screamed, the loud noise attracting the horde of toys. 

“Get to the mirror! We’ll hold them off!” Pat yelled to the first years as the blots rushed at them like a tidal wave.

“What about you?!” Winston cried. 

“Me and Saturn will be fine, now hurry!” He said, pushing the first years towards the dorm’s entrance before casting his unique magic. They sprinted to the mirror, the cowboy looking back to the massive horde before teleporting away. 

Saturn remained in a cowering position, clutching onto his fireworks with dear life. Pat struggled to keep his Unique Magic up as more and more monsters climbed on top of them. 

“Saturn, how many fireworks can you light up in 1 go?!” Pat shouted. 

“Why?” 

“I’m gonna stop casting just for a second so the rockets hit these things, I’ll reactivate it before the flames reach us!” 

“No way!” Saturn yelled, “Who the hell would think that’s nearly a good idea?!”

“I do. Because if I end up dying from these things before I get to tell Lotsie to go screw off, then I’ll come back as a ghost and haunt you instead!”

Saturn laughed in disbelief. “I think we’d both be dead in that situation.”

“Then hurry up and light those things up so I can make a gap for them!” 

With hands still shaking, Saturn opened his palm. The minuscule fireworks acted as the perfect lighter as all the rockets’ strings began to light up.

“Drop the shield in 3, 2, 1—!”

CHAPTER 28: You’ve Got a Friend In Me

Winston turned to the sound of a large bang echoing through the dorm’s mirror, the watery surface trembling ever so slightly. Yuukei pulled on his sleeve, taking his attention away from his classmates and back to the matter at hand. The 3 sprinted to Zackery’s workshop, Grim tirelessly blowing flames at the monsters crawling behind them. 

“I don’t get it.” Zackery muttered once the bangs on the door stopped. “He told me he believed me, that he believed in everyone’s dreams. He told me he can’t wait to see what I do in the future, so why this…? Has he just been lying to everyone this whole time?”

He put his head in through his hair, sliding down onto the ground. The “villain” who had the ability to lighten up a room with his mannerisms alone had been abandoned, reduced to the destroyed 16 year old he was. Yuukei bit his lip, still unable to think up the correct words. He had only known the group for a few days after all, only able to understand Lotsie’s bond with people when it was far too late. Winston takes notice, and sits next to his rival. 

“I know it feels like the world is goin’ to end right now— probably because it technically is, but that’s not the point!” Winston shook his head, still trying to break the tension. “We can still fight through this!”

“With what? We’re a bunch of teenagers with a few magic spells learned and he’s a literal time lord.” Zackery muttered through tears. 

Winston coughed, “Well, you’re right there.”

He continued on, “Personally, I wanna give Lotsie a really good hit on the head for all of this nonsense. But you’re right, I don’t think a bumpkin hero like me nor our good yet magic-less friend could do it alone.”

“I think we’d need a smart, almost conniving guy— one who doesn’t let any kind of doo-hickey words stop him from doing nothing, whether it be me yellin’ about his fancy robots or some jerk saying he’s delusional for being himself.”

To Yuukei’s surprise, the first-year appeared to take his classmate’s words to heart. He stared intently at Winston, beginning to hear him out. 

“Because I’m real sure that even if he got shot down every now and again, he knows he’s got a whole lot of support on his side. Even if some of us get really gritty about it.” 

Zackery took in a few breaths and chuckled. Comforted, he smirked, even with leftover tears still in his eyes. “Well, at least the bumpkin hero knows how to properly comfort people. Here I was believing the people he saved were inadequately made to feel safe!” 

He picked himself up and walked over to the covered contraption he was working on when Yuukei had first come in there with Ace and Deuce. “Our traitorous king had ordered me to stop my creation of an animatronic dragon for this very night. I obliged, but what he didn’t know was that I had nearly completed a very essential part of it.”

Murmurs broke out from the crowd as Winston cleared his throat. He glanced at Lotsie with a sorry look in his eyes. 

“This is going to sound strange— especially now that we’re nearing the end of the night, but it still needs to be said. Toytoriya’s dorm leader has planned something far bigger than a mere Festival for his birthday, and I don’t mean that in a good sense! He’s cast a spell on the school without anyone noticing!”

Lotsie could feel the world spin as his breath grew heavy. “Everyone, don’t listen to our dear friend Winston. He’s suffering something str—”

“Please, think about it! Haven’t you already experienced today? Not just the deja-vu, but the same plays, same performances, same lines!”

“Shut up!” Lotsie yelled as his cane chucked a large ice shard towards the stage.

The magic cut through the cowboy’s cheek, nearly missing his neck. Blood dripped onto the floor, similar to a sword that had sliced him before. Lotsie jolted out of his anger, realizing what he had just done. The whispers from the crowd turned into gasps, some even yelling at the leader. 

Recovering from the shock, Winston glared back angrily and yelled to all of NRC: “Snap out of this reverie, and remember not only the memories you’ve had, but the future still waiting for you outside!” He shot a spell towards the ceiling, wind magic ripping a bag set above. 

Copies of photos of the play that never came and a day that refused to end spilled out. Quickly, they flew across the coliseum and straight to the hundreds of already angered students in the audience. Like a switch being flipped, their minds entered a panicked state. 

“How-How long has this been going on for?”

“I knew it…I knew something felt off!”

“Hey, I want to leave!”

“Wait, everyone! Calm down, he’s just trying to scare all of you!” Lotsie attempted to calm the horrified crowd, but not a soul listened. Like the students who had gone mad in the past, hundreds of students flew into panic. 

Amongst the commotion, the dorm leader didn’t hear the footsteps of someone running behind him. He was quickly turned around, his collar yanked so he was face-to-face with a certain classmate.

“Pat?” Lotsie trembled.

“You’re a psycho…” The white-haired student cried in response. “Undo whatever the hell you casted now.” 

“No, wait , just let me explain!” Lotsie pleaded. “I’m doing this for everyone–”

“Everyone? Everyone?! Who the hell told you that any of us want to be trapped in some godforsaken time loop?! I knew you were immature, but I didn’t think it would extend into downright insanity!” He shouted, shoving his best friend to the ground.

A loud rumble is heard across the stadium as the spell wanes. The two look up, noticing the world beginning to crumble and fall apart. 

“No…no!” Lotsie gasped. Desperately, the dorm leader crawled to his wand and pointed it upwards. 

“Now come into this hall–” He coughed. The pain in his chest roared like a fire, but he could not stop here, not now.

“...and make sure to lock the door tight.” From the crowd, Yuukei could see the fading glow of a pink gem.

“For in the C-caterpillar’s playroom…”

Yuukei yelled as the students around him pushed and shoved. “Pat! Stop him before he–”

“Never shall come the eternal night.”

The black substance broke through the gem with a violent crack. Yuukei could only watch as the ink spread through the realm, absorbing Lotsie as it ran its course. One by one, people faded in and out, the scene in front of him swirling into a mix of colors. 

And as Yuukei could feel his consciousness fading in and out once more, his eyes widened at the silhouette of an Overblot Phantom growing larger by the second. 

CHAPTER 26: Growing Pains

But it was not sleep that came.

 Yuukei’s eyelids fluttered back open to Winston trying to shake him awake, he looked around to see a world in chaos. The sky melted together as the sun and moon danced across the atmosphere. 

“Ha..haha…” A laugh was heard from the stage’s main platform. There stood Lotsie and an injured Pat, wielding his wand as he tried to pick himself back up. 

“Stop aiming your wand at me…Aren’t we friends?!”  His once-clean double buns now splayed about messily on his hair, the bells on the end of his jester’s cap ringing as he banged his cane like a gavel.The phantom behind took its stapled paw and flung it at Pat, throwing him across the floor. 

Yuukei and Winston ran to his side, Grim protecting the trio as he looked in his bag for any kind of medicinal supplies. The blot was beginning to flow up and off the floors, like rain returning to the sky. Lotsie light steps could be heard behind them.

Before the leader could bang his cane again, a magic blast shot into Lotsie’s shoulder.

“Get away from my classmates!” Zackery yelled.

Lotsie gave an enraged glare, waving his wand as he looked on. The phantom above, with its paw-like feet, stepped towards the scientist with the intent to squash him. 

“Annoying… you’re so annoying! Whether you screech in my ear about your stupid evil plans or mess up my day, you and that blonde nuisance are just a thorn in my side!” 

The sound of a rocket whistled through the air, stopping the monster by an inch. The phantom blot turned, only to be hit in its glass head with a colorful explosion. Saturn stood in the stands, a box labeled “for testing” beside his feet. He dug into it, pulling out another firework and aiming it for the phantom’s paw.

“AHHH-!” The dorm leader wailed as the overblot monster was hit once again, its paw bursting into flame. “Why are you all so mean? Why are you all always destroying my stuff?!”

The world begins to warp wildly, space mixing in with time’s chaotic fluctuation. “Leave me alone! Go away!” The dorm leader cries, disappearing with the phantom. The rest of Toytoriya and Ramshackle find themselves in the school’s halls once the time loop stops falling apart further. 

Winston and Yuukei sat Pat up, the blonde trying to give first aid to both with whatever bandages were in his bag. 

Saturn and Zackery walked up to them, thankfully looking far less hurt than the other two. Yuukei carefully applied a cactus bandaid to Winston’s cheek as he spoke. “Crap, I messed up, didn’t I? Lotsie looked really hurt.”

“I wouldn’t weep over it. He almost killed you with that ice magic.” Saturn commented. “That plus with this whole time loop stuff, he had it coming.” 

“I guess…But how are we going to end it now?” He looked back at the sky, day and night mixing into a velvet purple. “We don’t even know where he ran off to. He could be anywhere during any time.”

“You’re wrong there.” Pat grunted. “Knowing him, he’s probably back at the dorm trying to fix up that monster. He would do the same with any toy that broke.”

“Then let’s go.” A cold voice rose from behind the group. Zackery stood there, an unusual glower on his face, along with signs of damage across his clothes. He turned his heel and immediately walked off, not bothering to see who followed. 

Yuukei glanced at Saturn, who only shrugged in response. Seeing the first year acting so distant appeared to be a first for the entire group. Nonetheless, the group followed once Pat was able to get up by himself. 

Ramshackle’s duo ran to catch up with the purple haired student, Grim eyeing him suspiciously. Yuukei glared at his friend to cut it out, before speaking to Zackery, who sulked as they walked. “Are you ok?” 

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He replied with annoyance, slowly speeding up to avoid further talking. Ramshackle’s leader backed off with that. 

“With the way he’s actin’, I would’ve thought Pat had possessed him.” Grim muttered once Zackery was far enough. 

“Oh, hush.” Yuukei whispered. “Let’s just leave him be for now, he’s probably really mad at Lotsie right now anyways.”

“Aren’t they all?” 

“But we gotta break out of here before the loop starts over, don’t we? I don’t wanna end up having no memories of everything going on!” ‘

“And we will soon, we’re just waiting on Winston. Time’s really weird in the loop anyways, so maybe he’s just taking really long with printing all those photos.” 

“Oh yeah? And what if Winston got captured by Lotsie and we’re just stuck here?” 

Yuukei went silent, before putting the half-eaten snack back into his bag and joining Grim on yelling for help. As if on cue, the door had suddenly begun to rattle before being thrown open. In the blinding light, the two saw a familiar face.

“Rocket guy!” Grim exclaimed at the sight of Saturn. He put his finger to the beast’s mouth in a shushing motion.

“What are you doing here?” Yuukei whispered, grateful for the purple-eyed student’s appearance.

“I had a weird feeling from the get-go.” Saturn replied. “Sorry I took so long, I didn’t realize he never actually talked to the Headmaster until I went to Ramshackle myself and found it empty.”

“Why’d you go to Ramshackle?”

“Our ‘wonderful’ dorm leader created some lie about you guys opting out of the festival. That didn’t seem like you guys with how excited you two were, much less any first year.”

Saturn offered his hand to the duo. “Now let's get out of here, I don’t know how long we got until he notices I’ve snuck away.”

CHAPTER 24: The Meltdown of a Lifetime

Back at the Festival, the 3rd day had come and gone once more. But this time, a new problem had arisen for the final act of the show.

“What do you mean you still can’t find Winston?” Lotsie asked a tense team of backstage students. Zackery stood next to Lotsie, having tried to help in the search.

“I told you! We looked everywhere from Toytoriya to Ramshackle, he’s nowhere!” The student bit his thumb. “Maybe we should tell Headmaster–”

“No! No one is telling anyone! He’s somewhere in the school, I know it.” 

“King Huggins, allow this villain to propose canceling the performance. The hero will be enraged later, but it means more time can be put into looking for him!”

“A-and waste all your work?” Lotsie put on a sad smile. “That just won’t do. He– Both of you are needed for tonight, you’re the ending act after all!”

Lotsie turned back to the backstage crew, unnerved by their dorm leader. “I want as many people on the lookout for Winston, pull out people in the middle of setting up stuff, even. Just make sure he’s found within the next hour or so.” 

“But we haven’t gotten our chance to perform yet!“ A short student argued.

“So? You should have just scheduled for an earlier time.”

“King Huggins, I really don’t mind needing to not perfo—“

“No, Zackery! You’re not canceling Winston’s act!” He yelled. “Can’t you just listen to me this one time?! Or are you going to go do some nonsensical weirdo crap that messes up everyone’s day like usual?!” 

Everyone went silent at the outburst, the grip Lotsie had on his cane only tightened. He opened his mouth to yell more, but stopped as his eyes drifted to the crowd behind the stage. The sight of an animal’s ears blazing with blue fire made his heart stop. He pushed past a silent Zackery and confronted the group. 

“Saturn, what are you doing?” 

“Stopping whatever fiasco you’ve decided to make.” Saturn spoke with his usual confidence, “No wonder you’ve kept them locked up in that creepy basement, Yuukei’s way more convincing than he lets on.”

Lotsie sputtered. “You’re seriously trusting those two delinquents’ words over your own dorm leader?”

“From lying about what happened with Yuukei to saying they left the festival only for me to find them in the dorm’s basement… Even if I was suspicious of their claims, it's not like you’re any hero either. The Lotsie I know would care about all his classmates.”

Saturn paused, a scowl appearing on his face. “...unless the one I’ve been with has been nothing but a lie.”

The dorm leader gritted his teeth in anger when the stage light had suddenly turned on, directing everyone’s attention to the stage. 

Yuukei took the chance, “Grim!” He yelled to his best friend. Without a moment’s notice, the beast set one of Lotsie’s trinkets, a clown toy, aflame. The dorm leader flew into a panic and grabbed his wand in order to take out the fire. With the distraction taking away the once-sweet director’s attention, Yuukei and Grim flew out the door and down the hall.

“You little—!” Lotsie growled as he noticed some students coming up the stairs. He channeled his sweet voice and cried. “Help! Help me! They’re trying to set the dorm on fire!” 

The group’s eyes trailed to where Lotsie was pointing his finger, dropping their supplies and running after the two. The chase continued down into the deeper parts of the dorm’s house, Grim trying his best to fend off the closest students with his magic. 

“Goddammit!” Yuukei complained as he turned left into another long hallway. “They keep blocking us from the stairs!” 

He was about to turn again if not for the two students standing near the exit, while the rest were making their way to the turn. Feeling cornered, Grim heard the call of a familiar friend.

“Guys, over here!” A small voice whispered. The Ramshackle duo looked around in confusion, when Grim noticed a small gap within the wall. “Henchman, turn around! There’s an open door over ‘ere!”

The duo quickly pushed themselves into the room. The blonde kept his eye on the door, peeking out to make sure no one saw them. Grim, meanwhile, hopped off the blonde’s shoulder, shocked by where they were. Assuming that what he was looking at was a dorm room, Grim’s eyes widened at the sheer amount of western-themed material lying around the room. He took a step forward, only to hear a small squeak below him. 

“What the heck is a doll doing here— ACK!” Grim yelled as the toy jerked alive, kicking the beast in the nose. Landing back on the floor, the cowboy-esque doll tugged at Yuukei. 

The plushie looked familiar, a dyed patch on its cheek and it's pink uniform resembling a western rancher. Its adorable, light blue eyes stared at Yuukei as it struggled to act out what it was trying to say. Picking the doll up gently, the blonde whispered, “…Winston?”

The plushie nodded excitedly before using its mitten-hand to point to its back. He turned the toy around and noticed a pull-string on its back. “Do you need me to pull this?” 

It nodded again, pushing the prefect to draw the pull-string. Winston’s well-loved country accent trickled out of its chest. “Complain and cry, because I’m not a toy!” 

Suddenly, a puff of pink and yellow smoke erupted from the doll, Yuukei coughing from breathing in the magic. As the spell dissipated, Winston appeared back in his human form. 

CHAPTER 22: Break Out

“Keep quiet. They’re still looking for you two.” Winston whispered, putting a finger to his mouth. 

“How did you know we were here?” Grim questioned. 

“I followed you guys after seeing Lotsie take you in. I had suspicions after seeing other students melt down like you, so I planned to talk to Lotsie. But after that whole reveal… it put a wrench in things.”

Yuukei remembered the cowboy’s face when he first glimpsed at him and Pat’s experience of Lotsie getting rather annoyed with his classmates. “He must have snapped at you for getting too close to the truth…”

Winston opened his mouth in confusion, but was cut short when the doorknob began to shake. 

“We’ll be found!” Yuukei whispered. He looked into his bag, looking for anything to aid him. A lightbulb went off in his head as he remembered what the dorm leader mentioned during their confrontation.

“Winston, take these and show them to anyone you can trust.”

“What are these going to do?!” Winston yelped as the blonde passed him a bundle of photographs.

‘It’s gonna help me test out a theory and end this loop.” Yuukei said, picking up a picture of Winston and Zackery’s performance. “Lotsie said cameras aren’t affected by his magic, so showing these to people might make them understand they’re in a time loop.”

“W-What if people just write it off as photo editing or something?!” 

“That’s why I’m having you do it, you’re the star of Toytoriya after all. Even if they’re skeptical, I’m sure you’ll be able to convince them.” He smiled confidently. 

The door swung open, a hand yanking the two out onto the hallway floor. Yuukei and Grim groaned as the two other students gathered with them. Yuukei looked shocked as he recognized a certain student’s face.

“Hmm? It’s the guys who started something during the Festival’s cleanup!” Saturn said. “Everyone’s chasing after you for some reason–”

“Saturn! You found those troublemakers, thank goodness.” Lotsie called the group. “Make sure they don’t have any flammables on them, and keep that animal’s mouth shut. 

The other students hurried to pick up Yuukei and Grim, casting a freeze spell to ensure they didn’t escape. Saturn looked at the scene in confusion. “Flammables?”

“These demented first years tried lighting my room on fire!” 

Saturn replied with a bewildered frown.”These guys?? I know they can cause a few fights sometimes, but a fire?” 

The dorm leader ignored his words, instead ordering the other students to keep the duo quiet through a spell. Once tied up, Yuukei and Grim were taken into corridors and down stairs previously not noticed during their first visit to the dorm. They stopped at a little closet, which Lotsie thrusted open to reveal a trapdoor labeled “Basement”.

The students holding their hands down looked shocked at Lotsie. Saturn interrupted whatever command the blue-eyed leader was going to say next. 

“Yeah, no. This is going a bit far, especially for you, Lotsie.” Saturn argued, “The basement is probably filled with a bunch of old, flammable stuff anyways.”

An uncaring scowl was splayed across Lotsie’s face before he returned to his sympathetic demeanor. “Saturn, don’t you remember when you almost set the roof on fire after a firework trick? The previous dorm leader had you locked in here for it.”

“That’s different-“

“You were supposed to get a way worse punishment for that, but I stepped in, right? I stepped in like how I did for Zackery with his stupid main role as the villain, and you with every. single. fire accident that you were meant to be expelled for.”

Saturn shifted uncomfortably, unable to get a word in. “Can’t you see how many strings I’ve already pulled for you? So why can’t you do the same? It’s not like I’m gonna go torturing my underclassmen, I’m just trying to keep everyone safe.”

Lotsie’s eyes narrowed at the singled-out student. “Are you saying you don’t want your classmates safe?”

He turned to everyone else in the group. “Are we trying to endanger our classmates here?”

The other teens shuffled quietly, a look of fear sitting on their faces. A few small and meek “no”’s were muttered out. 

Lotsie’s managed to guilt them too. He turns back to the outlier expectantly.

I’m not trying to say that, I just—“ Saturn sighed, ‘Fine, whatever, I’m not arguing anymore.”

“Soon enough… how did you know I needed to go there?” Pat looked at him with suspicion.

“Aha, just saw other students heading that way!” Yuukei lied. 

“Sure…” Pat muttered, eyebrows now furrowed. They made it to the corridor, just as the blonde remembered. And just as he predicted, a scream tore through the small chitter-chatter of the coliseum backstage.

“--LET GO OF ME!!!”

The two students stood still at the sound. Yet as Pat soon moved to run over to the distressed student, Yuukei remained frozen, his vision slowly tilting.

“Everything’s repeating! Every time–! I’M GOING TO GET STUCK AGAIN!” The student repeated, pulling out his wand in the same fashion. But instead of coming to the rescue, he slowly backed away from the scene. With memories he shouldn’t have filled his head, the prefect turned his heel and ran. 

“Why-Why is this happening?!” He thought, stumbling into a familiar brunette. 

“Yuu? Hey, where are you going?!” Winston called to no response. Yuukei continued to dash through the crowd, confusion and fear eating away at his mind. Suddenly, his head hit the soft cloth of a magenta suit. 

He looked up to see Lotsie in front of him, eyes filled with concern. And he didn’t look to be alone either.  “Henchman?? What happened? You look terrible…” He heard Grim’s voice, the beast munching on a snack behind the warden. 

“I-I can’t–” He breathed.

“Hey! It’s ok!” Lotsie consoled the teen like he was a child. “Let’s go to Toytoriya’s dorm, it’s better if you’re somewhere quieter to calm down.” The older student led him away from the busy scene.

—-

Lotsie opened the door to his previously unforeseen office. Toys, pictures and papers littered the walls and floor, yet it all fit in with the dorm’s chaotic theme. Yuukei remained standing as Lotsie sat at his chair, the scene reminiscent of a principal calling a student to explain himself.

Thankfully, Lotsie wasn’t a principal, and while Yuukei was a student, he hadn’t committed anything too evil as of late. “Now, why don’t you tell me what happened earlier? It looked like you had a big scare.”

Feeling comforted by the older teen, everything the blonde experienced flew out of his mouth. “I don’t know how, or why or anything, but I swear to god I’ve experienced this entire festival before. And I don’t mean I’ve just been to one similar, I remember the entirety of the Festival of Memories and how it all plays out.”

Grim was surprisingly quiet, listening just as intently as Lotsie appeared to. “I know when Saturn’s firework testing is, how Zackery scratches Winston on the face during their performance and- and…” 

Yuukei’s voice trailed off as he noticed something that made his heart drop. Lotsie’s cane sat near the desk, like the rest of the small, scattered trinkets around the room. It looked the same as always, if not for the near-pitch black gem encased within the bright sun of the handle.

“...And I remember the spell you cast on the entire school.”

 CHAPTER 20: kcirT cigaM A

The silence in the room was deafening, as Yuukei gazed at the shocked dorm leader. But before either could speak, a laugh from the man broke the silence. Lotsie wiped a lone tear from his cheek before rising from his chair.

“Ahahaha! Oh Eight, I can’t believe I forgot to hide that.” He grabbed the cane, looking over the dulled gem. “Thanks for calling that out, Yuu, or the whole school could have realized my spell.”

“...What?”

“Oh, you know! The time loop! The one you say you’re in, and the reason you can still remember having memories that haven't occurred yet.” He waved his hand nonchalantly. “How annoying, the mind is still able to recognize time’s passage just like those annoying cameras.”

“Hey! Start explaining what the heck is happening or I’ll set your smirk on fire!” Grim threatened. 

“No need for violence! See, I thought the festival should be extended, not until next week, or even next month. I wanted an eternal Festival of Memories, where everyone can be happy and not be burdened by adult life trying to claw at them. So I activated my unique magic, Caterpillar’s Playroom, so it really can all be forever!” 

“And I thought it would have worked this time too, but it looks like there are still quite a few issues in the spell. Well, at least it’s not too bad compared to what I’ve been through.” He laughed. “My first attempt took me what, 50 years to understand? So this isn’t too bad at all.”

Yuukei’s knees felt weak as Lotsie continued his borderline-mad rambling. “Why are you doing this?”

“Why..? “ He thought, “Because I love everyone, I suppose. I love them and don’t want anyone to be sad, or miserable, or feel like they can’t follow their dreams. But the adult world…it’s cruel like that, so why not do this? Why not allow them to stay in this wonderful memory?”

“This is what you call love?” Yuukei cried. “This is keeping everyone in a cage because you want to! I'll tell everyone what you’re doing!”

The dorm warden laughed before his smile suddenly dropped. He spoke in an unfamiliar, sadistic tone. “I’d love to see you try, because you and everyone else won’t remember anything once I fix things up and the loop restarts again. Maybe in their nightmares, it’ll appear, but only buffoons and those weak-hearted students would panic as they remember it.”

Another loud rumble runs through the coliseum as everyone cheers for the students and faculty. The prefect raises his hands to join when a sharp pain runs through his head.

“But before I go announcing the leader to head this dorm’s future, I’d like to share a speech with you all! So please, listen closely.” 

Yuukei’s sight blurs, and he clutches the right side of his forehead. Somewhere in the distance, a clock’s ticking grows louder.

“See, I’ve considered NRC–Toytoriya, rather, to be a home away from home. The plays, the people, the fun! I love every single bit of it, and this weekend proved to me that this place truly is one where we can experience our lives to the fullest!” 

He pulls out the silver watch he snatched from him out of his pocket, looking at it like an old friend. Yuukei’s legs feel weak, like getting up from his seat would send him crashing down. His eyes look at Grim, looking as sluggish ever. 

“Honestly, I wish it would never end, don’t you?”

Has the coliseum always looked so warped? The blonde can’t remember, the words the sweet dorm leader speaks are too loud to even think.

“And maybe it doesn’t have to.” Lotsie’s voice sounds warbled, like an old television’s dying connection. “This day won’t have to end at all.”

The prefect weakly turns to the other students, their eyes glazed over as Toytoriya’s dorm leader turns to the crowd. He pulls out his cane and whispers,

“Now come through this hall of memories, and make sure to lock the door tight.”

Lotsie’s gem begins to quickly corrode, the delicate pink blending with droplets of ink black.

“For in the Caterpillar’s Playroom, never shall come the eternal night.”

CHAPTER 18: !enaL yromeM ot emocleW

The same bed, the same student, the same time. Yet, the dream moves on nonetheless.

 “You’ve never seen a kid and a toy more in love…”

The scene warps into shards of memories: a girl sitting at a table with her toys, playing on the swing, her reading a storybook to a pink bear– the same one that would be abandoned by the road with other toys. 

“He wouldn’t give up… but by then, it was too late…” 

The warm setting turned to a familiar, cold rain, as someone gazes at a double of themselves, only a cleaner, more comforting version compared to the one drenched in the rain. His heart grew cold and hard, and he wanted the others to feel that horrid pain too.

“She replaced all of us, didn’t she?!”

 A paw yanks at the hand of a wailing baby, still wanting love from someone who forgot them.

“She doesn’t love you no more, now come on!”

“Yuukei…Earth to Henchman!” A paw waves in front of the blonde. Ramshackle’s prefect snaps out of his trance. 

“Huh? Sorry.” He shook his head. “What is it, Grim?”

“Ya been just staring into space for a whole 5 minutes now! Hurry up and grab your camera, we gotta head to the coliseum.”

“The coliseum?” Yuukei rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Why are we heading there?”

“Duh, it's the first day of the Festival thing, remember?”

“Hah, nice joke Grim, the whole thing ended yesterday.” His laugh trailed off as he gazed back at his best friend, a confused look across his face.

“Did ya get enough sleep? The first day is literally today, look at your phone-thingy!” Yuukei did as Grim asked.

And the beast proclaimed, it really was Friday. 

—-

“This doesn’t make any sense…” Yuukei mumbled as he and Grim walked through the festival for the 4th time. Everything still looked the same as ever much to the outsider’s confusion. 

“What jerks…” Grim muttered, staring at a rather familiar set of teens laughing at the pinkness of the coliseum’s decor. A sense of deja vu overcame Ramshackle’s leader as he watched with him. Instinctively, Yuukei stepped to the side, narrowly avoiding a large stack of boxes heading his way. 

“Hey, what’s the big idea— oh, it’s you.” Grim glared at an equally annoyed Pat.

“Shouldn’t I be saying that to you? At least your owner made sure to not run right into me.” 

“Hey! He’s not my owner!”

Pat ignored the beast and his eyes shifted to Yuu. “Anyways, move, I need to get these props backstage.” 

Yuukei remembered the student that he and Pat ran into, “Can I come with you?”

“So you can mess up my dorm’s stuff? Haha! No chance.” 

“Seriously!” Yuukei begged. “Here, I’ll even ask Grim to split up with me, that’ll be less trouble for you to keep an eye on, right?” He took Grim out of his bag and sat him on the ground.

“What?!”

“It’s ok, Grim! Go find Lotsie, I’m sure he’ll find you food to eat!” The beast’s fur above his head furrowed. He looked far less likely to do as he’s asked compared to last time.

 Wait, last time? That doesn’t make sense to Yuukei. He shakes his head and pats Grim, hoping he didn’t notice the slight fear in his eyes. “Don’t worry! I just need to confirm something really quickly. I’ll be back in a jiffy!”

“I’m starting to see what Leona meant by the students sucking at acting.” Grim said as the two watched a second-year try and fail to get the audience to laugh through some poorly-made jokes about the student body.

“I might have to agree,” Lotsie jokingly lamented with the beast. The dorm uniform he wore looked significantly different compared to the other students, with a deeper magenta coloring the coat and a light feather decorating its hat. In a way, it complimented the sweet appearance Lotsie already had. He noticed a student pulling out his phone.

“Hey! No photos during the Festival, please and thank you!” Lotsie sighed. “Hmph, I just want people to be focused on making memories, not capturing them.”

The second-year slowly walked off with only a small applause from the crowd, who were all waiting for the next group. The drums from backstage began to roll as they did with all of Toytoriya’s crews. However, a loud cheer–likely from Winston’s fanclub–  began to rise from the front as he, Zackery, and a whole lot of the latter’s robotic props came onto the platform. Dressed in rather princely uniforms, the two raised what looked to be swords and began the act.

The premise was rather simple based on what Yuukei read on the day Grim and Winston practiced. It was a scene from a play that was rather famous in Twisted Wonderland about a soldier betraying his country. One of the bots began to play haunting music as the two re-enacted the climax of the plot.

“I can’t believe you, betraying our glorious country just for some pitiful peasants.” Zackery spat with a venom Yuukei didn’t expect to see out of the bubbly teen. “Your soul has become corrupted!”

Winston glances back at Lotsie with a strange look before growling, “What’s corrupt is this empire! The king starves his people, leaves them dying on the ground begging for food! And all for, what, for a war that he’ll never win?!” 

“You best watch your tongue, traitor, or I’ll have your head with it.” 

“Hah! I’d like to see you try!” The bright-eyed student yelled.

But as the audience watched the argument play out, a certain pair of second and third year students were behind the curtains, ensuring every part of the stage looked perfect. 

“You got this, buddy!” Saturn quietly cheered on his villain-loving friend. The other student didn’t look as happy. 

“Saturn…” Pat whispered as he peered at the blades the two first years fought with. “Why do those prop swords look awfully familiar to the real ones you and Zackery were looking at online?”

The pair of black eyes were now on a sweating Saturn, looking around before whispering back, “Look! The props team was already busy with their own teams’ projects, Zackery had a lot of extra fund money and the site said shipping only cost 5 extra madol!”

“Are you insane?!” Pat yelled quietly back, 

“Winston got training from that Yuu guy, remember? He’ll be fine!”

“Oh yeah, a few minutes of fighting with magic is surely enough to fight with actual swords.” Pat’s voice oozed with sarcasm. “Y’know what, at least Heidrich got a little battle training.”

“Aha…about that–”

Pat looked dumbfoundedly at his underclassman, ready to yell at him when a slight gasp came through the loudspeakers. Their heads both darted towards the stage. Back in the front row Yuukei had successfully gotten a shot of the act, yet paid the photo no mind. He stared at where the tip of Zackery’s sword looked a little too red, and the slash across Winston’s cheek that began to drip red onto the gray floor. 

CHAPTER 16: How To: Save The World

The silence in the coliseum was deafening as Winston touched his cheek and looked at the blood from it. Zackery looked in shock, now clutching his sword with shaking hands. 

“I’m so-”

“So this is how you treat even your best soldier.” Winston spat, flicking the blood off his fingers. “I’m nothing more than another ‘rebel’, right?”

The brunette pointed his head to the audience, reminding the “villain” of their act. Zackery shook his head in return and refocused.

“You made your bed, so sleep in it.” He snarked. “It's not my fault your naivete pushed you this far.” 

Winston charged at his partner, the audience gasping as the swords clashed together. Like a real duel, the two danced across the stage until the blue-eyed student was nearly pushed behind the curtain. “Admit it! You know what this country has done! And you know it's wrong!”

“Shut up, shut up!” He yelled, pulling his sword and “stabbing” the hero in the abdomen. The brunette’s breath hitched as he fell to the floor, yet he still cracked a smile at his classmate’s panicked face. “My naivete… Of course you’d call it that, you’d call the dream we shared as nothing more than a childish memory–!” 

His crumpled form finally speaks no more, the light now focusing towards the purple-haired student. Zackery stared at the body before the sound of a guard called his character’s name, hesitantly turning his head in response. The stage’s lights finally go out, and a wave of applause comes afterwards.

Yet, when Yuukei turned to the dorm’s most lovable door leader, he was surprised to see Lotsie sitting silently with a look of apathy on his face.

—

“This evil one did not mean to swipe at your face!” Zackery announced to his classmate as the first years got backstage. “But that said, this villain must applaud your quick thinking, hero. But know I will not make the same mistake again!!!” 

“I know, I know.” Winston muttered as a second year put a colorful bandaid on his cheek. 

“Hm? Has the hero been lacerated upon his heart as well? I said my apologies rather well!”

“No, no, you didn’t hurt my feelings, weirdo!” Winston exclaimed. “Lotsie’s just…been weirding me out. If I wasn’t so focused on it I could have dodged your swing anyways.”

“Hoh?” Zackery looked on with genuine concern. “Whatever could the great king of this land do to throw off its bumpkin hero?” 

“I don’t even know if you’d understand…” Winston began to explain, but was interrupted by someone from the backstage crew. “Guys, Lotsie’s about to announce the winners! Hurry up with the bandage and let's go!”

Zackery turned to move, but first responded to Winston. “If it’s really troubling you, then just talk to me. This villain will surely know the answer to your problem!”