[Discontinued*] The Darling Princess [A Twisted Wonderland Fanfic]

Chapter 19

"Eh?! You went to the Dwarves' mine to find a magic crystal?" 

The three boys, plus a still extremely agitated cat, were standing in the mirror chamber before the Headmaster of Raven Night College, the latter of whom was looking positively ruffled. Had he been a true bird, his feathers might have become uneven at his somewhat flustered state.

The three looked at each other, surprised at the shock on the Headmaster's face. Had he thought that they would just cower in their dorms until the sun rose, only to face expulsion? Did he think so low of their courage and determination? They all found themselves rather irritated at the Headmaster's reaction but kept their mouths shut.

"I really didn't think," Crowley muttered. "You'd not only go but come back with a crystal in hand..." He sighed, looking disappointed. "I quietly completed the paperwork for your expulsion."

Grim didn't hold back his annoyance. "Fgna?! The nerve of this guy. While we were off fighting some crazy beast!" The cat continued to mutter a little, pacing around the floor with his little forked tail flicking back and forth like a cat's would if they had been annoyed by someone. 

The words of Grim made Crowley lose his train of thought. "Beast?"

"There was a monster there," Ace said in a matter-of-fact tone. "It was crazy gross and super strong. It was awful."

The mention of the monster made a pit of worry plant itself in Crowley's stomach. "Could you explain in more detail?" He quietly motioned for the three students to follow him out of the mirror chamber, and as he led them down a great many halls, Yuu found his eyes wandering around, not having seen this part of the castle before. The young magic-less boy left the explaining to the three magical beings who had been there to bear witness to the event, allowing himself to slip into quiet contemplation. 

Eventually, the group wound up in Crowley's office, and the crow-like Headmaster sat down in his chair, leaning back a little as he listened to Ace and Deuce finish their tale about how they bravely defeated the monster. Y/N was mentioned near the start of their adventure, as they had been forced to bring her back to the mirror, and it was only then, that Yuu start to wonder about the girl. Crowley had said nothing on the condition of the girl. Was it possible that he wasn't even aware that she could have frozen just as she was exiting the mirror?

"A mysterious monster living in the coal mine," Crowley hummed. One of his golden claws tapped his chin as he thought. "The four of you worked together to defeat it and bring back a magic crystal?"

"We didn't really work together," Ace muttered, scratching at the back of his head nervously. While it was true that he, Deuce, Grim, and Yuu had all played some part in the defeat of the monster, he didn't quite feel like they had worked together on it. It was simply the fact that they had a common goal of retrieving the stone and making it out of the cave alive.

"It was more like our goals aligned," Deuce agreed.

Crowley stared at the boys for a moment before bursting into tears, the thick beads of liquid spewing from his eyes and trickling down his face. Though his appearance screamed dignity upon first appearance, his sobs were anything but. They shook his body like an earthquake, and the boys glanced at each other nervously, wondering what on earth they were supposed to do to comfort the Headmaster.

"What's with this guy," Grim exclaimed, jumping back as a particularly loud sob left Crowley's lips. "Why is an adult bursting into tears?"

"In all the years that I have been headmaster... For the day to come that students from Night Raven College go hand in hand to defeat their enemy!"

"What," Deuce yelled, jumping away from Ace. "I did not hold this guy's hand!"

"I would never do that," Ace shouted, seemingly offended at the thought that he would hold Deuce's hand. "But Headmaster? How old are you?"