Later in the night in the Vacant room, the Ramshackle group and Octavinelle Group are preparing to get some sleep tonight after the day they have. What's good is that Kalim hasn't changed his attitude today.
"Kalim was in a pretty good mood today," Grim happily says.
"Agreed. That was the 'regular' Kalim I know," Azul says.
Then Grim says, "When he's in a bad mood, he narrows his eyes and gets this scary tone when he talks."
"Are you certain that's what's happening here?" Jade questions.
"Whaddaya mean?" FLoyd asks.
Jasper also asks, "What do you mean by that?"
Jade turns to Floyd and says, "You're prone to mood swings yourself, Floyd. Kalim doesn't give me that same impression. I suspect a different root cause at play."
"Jamil said it was brought on 'cause of their lousy dorm standings in Spelldrive and the exams," Grim says.
"Really? Since when does Sea Otter care about that?" Floyd asks.
"Sea what now?" Grim says, confused.
Confused, Sereia asks, "Is Sea Otter what you're referring to Kalim?"
"Indeed. Floyd likes to give people nicknames based on sea creatures. In your case, Grim, you have a cute, round little silhouette. Which is why he calls you Sealie. It's a term of endearment."
"I ain't round! I'm full-bodied, thankyouverymuch!" Grim shouts, feeling offended.
Then Floyd says, "Sea Otter's always bangin' on a drum with a grin on his face. Reminds me of those fuzzy sea scamps."
He does have a generally sunny disposition. I can't imagine his demeanor would shift so drastically over something as minor as unimpressive grades. I agree that the root cause is likely to be something else entirely. If we want to get to the bottom of this, we'll need to get to know Kalim better," Azul explains.
Then turns to Jade, "Jade, would you mind having a little 'talk' with him?"
Consider it done. Jamil would be a harder target, but... Kalim might be willing to 'talk' openly with me," Jade says.
"Then I think I'll play with Sea Snake in the meantime," Floyd happily says.
"Excellent idea. I'll join you for that," Azul says.
Then the three chuckle, "Heh heh heh..."
"Their smiles ain't reached their eyes once this whole time..." Grim replies.
"Yeah. I have an uneasy feeling about this," Jasper says.
Then Briar asks, "So how about you fill us in and tell us what you're up to?"
"You'll see," Azul answers.
Sometime later, in Jamil's room, the vice housewarden is frustrated.
He says to himself, "Ugh. Yet again, Kalim ignored my input and made an arbitrary decision. Does he have any idea how much extra work that means for me? Rrrgh. Well, he's asleep now. Surely the rest of tonight should go smoothly."
Suddenly, he hears a knock on the door.
"A visitor? At this hour?" Jamil questions.
Jamil walks to the door and opens to see Azul, Floyd, Briar, Grim, and the others of Ramshackle.
"Good evening, Jamil," Azul says.
"Hello," Jasper and Tanzanite reply.
"Hi," Sereia happily says.
"How's it hangin'?" Floyd replies.
"Mind if we drop in?" Grim asks.
Sorry to disturb you this late," Briar says.
Jamil is caught off guard, "Gh! What do you want?"
When Kalim gave us a tour of the treasury, we spotted a board game I've never seen before. I asked Kalim to explain the rules, but it's still not quite making sense to me," Azul explains.
Then Floyd says, "It's this wood board with little divots, and you put gems in 'em or something? How's that work?"
Seeing the board game, Jamil says, "Ah, I recognize the board. That's a popular game in the Land of the Scalding Sands."
"As a member of the Board Game Club, I'm always looking to try new games, Azul says.
Then asks, Would you care to play a round with me?
"Aha ha, me too! I wanna see what you've got, Sea Snake," Floyd happily says.
Then Grim says, "The great Grim never misses out on a competition!"
"Kalim's gone to bed. I don't see why not. My dorm room doesn't have enough space for all of you, though. Let's play in the lounge," Jamil says.
"Alright then, let's go to the lounge," Briar says.
"Yes. Lets," Jamil says.
YOU ARE READING
Twisted Wonderland Book 4: Schemer of the Scalding Sands
FanfictionWinter Break has arrived, and Briar and her friends are staying at campus for the time being. However, their break has cut short when Jamil from Scarabia Dorm ask for their help with their housewarden, Kalim. Upon arrived, they are forbidden to leav...
