Twisted Wonderland: The Experiment

NRC: 1.1

          3rd POV
     A few days have passed since the Unbirthday party, and all of Heartslabyul is in good spirits. Jack and Nura were mixing together a simple plant growth potion for alchemy with Crewel, but...let's just say neither of them are in Pomefiore for a reason. They both let out coughs as they wave away the smoke that came from the cauldron. Crewel gave the two an unimpressed stare, making Jack shrug his shoulders with an awkward smile and for Nura to hang her head in embarrassment with both covered with soot. He sighs and moves onto Varina and Sebek.
     Unlike the previous two, their potion was looking like perfection. Sebek gave himself a satisfied nod as Varina has a small but pleased smile. Crewel looks into the cauldron. He hums, before nodding his head. "Good pups. Now test it on the plant." He gestures to the withered plant between the two.
     Varina nods as she grabs a dropper. She fills it up, and the whole class seems to hold their breath as they watch her empty it. A second passes before the plant blooms into a healthy flower. The whole class applauds as Sebek holds his head high and Varina tucks her chin while giving a shy smile. Crewel nods his head at Sebek, shooting Varina a small smile. "Excellent job you two. Well done." The bell rings, and Crewel perks up. "Ok, everyone please clean your cauldrons and then off with you all. Varina and Sebek, since you were the only two to complete you potions, you may each bring a vial."
     Varina's smile widens as she and Sebek nod. The class finishes picking up, and everyone starts to head to lunch as they casual converse with each other. Right before Jack could leave, however, Crewel called him name. Everyone else had left, but Nura and Varine (and Sebek by extent) waited for him by the door. "Crowley needs to discuss what happened last week with the ones who were there and Professor Trein, so please stay behind." He shoots a pointed look towards the girls, who nod their head, shoot Jack a smile each, and leave.
     He waves them goodbye with a confused smile, before shooting it towards Crewel. "Why are we discussin' it in ya classroom Sensei?"
     "Because he wishes me to examine Yuu for whatever may make them be connected to Mr.Rosehearts overblot." He bluntly says, making Jack awkwardly not his head as he sits at a random desk.
     A few minutes pass as they wait for the rest of the group to arrive. While they wait Jack starts to analyze Crewel, who was simply preparing for his next lesson. His eyes narrow in contemplation, tilting his head slightly.
     Not even a second passes before Crewel sighs and looks at Jack. "Can I help you Mr.DiTrade?" He asks in an exasperated tone.
     Jack's expression doesn't changes as he shakes his head. Crewel sighs again, rolling his eyes as he returns to his lesson plans.
     ...
     "How old are ya?"
     Crewel drops his pen as he leans back in his seat, staring at Jack in with slight aggravation but also confusion. "Excuse me?"
     "How old are ya?" He repeats with a shrug, leaning against the desk with crossed arms and an almost suspicious expression.
     Crewel mirrors Jack. "Why, pray tell, do you want to know?"
     Jack just shrugs again. "Just curious. Want ta know my teacher more." He gives an overly sarcastic smile. Crewel just gives an unconvinced look. Jack coughs into his fist before asking, "But, on a totally unrelated note, does the name Laura ring a bell?"
     The two have a staring contest for a moment before Crewel finally realizes. He glares at Jack and shouts at him, "I am not you daddy, boy!"
     Completely wrong moment to shout that because right at that moment Crowley walks in with Trein, Yuu, Grim, Ace, Deuce, Riddle, Trey, and Cater in tow. They just stare in shock (and amusement for some) as the two begin to yell at each other.
     "How do you know though!?"
     "I would have have been the same age as you to be your father!"
     "You could be a teen dad for either of us to know!"
     "How old is your mom?!"
     "It's rude to ask a ladies age Sensei, 'specially when she ain't here."
     "I'll take it she's at least 40 in that case."
     "...Yes...So are you my dad or not?"
     "NO!!!"
     "EXPLAIN THE HAIR THEN!!!!"
     "BY THE SEVEN-!"
     As the two continue to argue with each other, the others just keep looking back and forth between the two before Yuu finally asks, "What did we walk in on?"
     "I have no clue children," said Crowley as he slowly pulls them and Grim away from the door, "but I feel we should close the door and wait a moment. Slowly though."
     "Get in!" Crewel tells them, making them all jump (Trein simply raises a brow) as they hurriedly get in. Crewel glares at Jack, who returns it with a look that says 'this isn't over'. He even does the 'I'm watching you gesture', making Crewel glare at him in confusion as holds his hand out like 'huh?'.
     Crowley glances between the two before awkwardly coughing into his fist before smiling at Crewel. "Divus, Mozus, I must thank you for taking this time during you lunch to do this."
     Everyone flinches as Crewel cracks his whip and turns the glare to Crowley, who flinches. "It's not like I had much of a choice, you sprung this on me last second to where I could not say no."
     "Yes, very last minute, and very poor planning on your part, Headmage." Trein responds as he pets his cat Lucius, who lets out a bored 'Meow'.
     Crowley awkwardly chuckles with a sweatdrop. Crewel and Trein are not amused.
     The students stare back and forth between the three before Riddle sighs and steps forward, gaining their attention. "Professors, Headmage, there was a reason for this meeting, remember?"
     Crowley turns away from the two with a grin. "Yes there is! Yuu." He points to said prefect, who sets Grim down on the desk. "How long had you been getting headaches before Mr.Rosehearts overblotted?"
     Yuu pauses, explicitly not staring at any of their fellow students or cat. They scratch the back of their head as they look to the side. "About a week."
    "A WHOLE WEEK!?!" They flinch as everyone yells at them.
     "OK, LISTEN, IN MY DEFENSE I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST STRESS!!" They raise their hands in a surrender motion. "AND ALSO, I SAID ABOUT, NOT A WHOLE!"
     "NO EXCUSE!!!"
     "YES HENCHMAN, COMPLETELY UNEXCUSEABLE! What would I do if my free ride and food stamp suddenly collapsed and never woke!"
     "...Damn Grim."
     "Hush up clown."
     "WHY YOU-!"
     "JACK, HEEL/NO!!"
     "Damn prefect, that must've hurt!"
     "Yuu, I am so, so sorry that I inadvertently caused this."
     "Riddle, it's fine."
     "This is most unusual." Everyone quiets down as Trein speaks up. They glance over at him, Trey holding Jack back from strangling Grim, who was being held by his collar by Crewel. Yuu was being shook back and forth by Ace as Deuce and Crowley were on either side of him. Cater patting a solemn Riddle's shoulder. Lucius let's out another bored 'Meow'. Everyone sweatdrops before they refocus on Trein as he speaks. "Never in the history of Twisted Wonderland has anyone been able to essentially sense when an overblot is near. Nor enter another's blotted state."
     Yuu's eyes widen as they shake Ace's hands off. "Wait, never?" Trein shakes his head as they look down at their hands with an unreadable expression.
      Everyone is quiet as Grim wiggles out of Crewel's grasp with a grunt. "Soooo, on a scale of 1-10, how bad is that?" "20." "Oh..."
     Another moment of silence passes as everyone exchanges uneasy expressions. Yuu sighs before raising their hand with a slight wince. "That isn't all that happened." Trein rolls his hand, telling them to continue. They sigh, rubbing the back of their neck as they lean against a desk. "Right before Riddle, Jack, and I were taken to the nurse, when Trey had picked Riddle up...there was some blot that had stuck where our hands were connected, and when Riddle let go it was basically absorbed into my skin?" They got more quiet as everyone stared in more and more shock as they went on.
     "...someone hold the first years back." Crewel advises as Cater grabs an arm each of Ace and Deuce, Jack already in Trey's hold from before as the three begin to struggle.
     "YOU ABSOLUTE IDIOT!!!"
     "Alright, children!" Crowley claps his hands to gain their attention. "Let us not start back up on yelling at Yuu again please! We need to continue." The three grumble under their breath before nodding their heads.
     Yuu gulps as they nervously smile at the glares sent their way. They yelp when they feel a tiny paw wack at their leg repeatedly. "Henchman, you moron! Say something sooner next time you dolt!"
     Yuu semi-fondly rolls their eyes as they bend down and pick up Grim, holding him like a football. He struggles, yelling at them to let him go as they say, "Alright, alright, everyone I'm sorry, ok!? This is all new to me too!"
     Everyone pauses they sigh and rub the back of their neck. Pity looks spread throughout the room before a scoff is heard and they look at Ace. "Still though-"
     "Ace." He looks over to see Jack giving him a warning look. He rolls his eyes but holds his hands up in peace. Jack nods his head before giving Yuu a sympathetic smile. "Don't apologize, we're just worried."
     "Yes." Trey says, adjusting his glasses. "Like it's been said, what you did for Riddle it not normal, but we also shouldn't be stressing you out about it more."
     Everyone mutters their agreement as Yuu gives them a thankful smile.
     A sniff is heard as everyone glances at Crowley. He as tears bubbling in his eyes as he covered his mouth. Ace, Deuce, Yuu, and Grim sweatdrop as they realize what's about to happen. Crewel and Trein already had their ears covered as the others cringe in on themselves.
     "WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DISPLAY!!" Crowley sobs out as he brings out a handkerchief and dabs at his eyes.
     Everyone sweatdrops as he continues to sob and yell about the boys at this schoool and their pride and yada yada yada. Jack leans towards Trey as he whispers shouts, "I can't believe he's our Headmage." Trey nods in agreement.
     "Dire, get a hold of yourself." Crewel blankly says as he whips Crowley's back, who let's out a 'Yeouch!' as he immediately stops. Trein just shakes his head as everyone stares at the scene deadpan.
     "Well now, Yuu," Crewel says as he walks over to his alchemy station, "now that I have a better clue as to what your symptoms are, I have an idea of what potion to make to help alleviate it. I will, however, need a bit of your blood." He takes out a small needle and syringe and walks over to them. "May I?" He asks, holding out his hand with a gentle, calming smile. They hesitate before giving him their arm.
     "While we're waiting..." Deuce says, raising his hand to gain the headmage's attention, "Can we have a more detailed explanation of what Overblot is?"
     "Yeah." Ace agrees, pointing at Riddle with his thumb. "I get that it makes people go, as Cater put it, 'dark berserker mode', but like how?"
     Riddle narrows his eyes at Ace as Crowley nods his head, putting his hand under his chin. "Yes, I suppose you all will need to know about that if you are to become wizards." Crewel bandages Yuu as he begins creating a potion.
     "I'll admit," Ace says as he sits on a desk, "I've heard about them from my bro before, but actually seeing it was something else." He rubs the back of his head.
    Riddle and Trey deadpan as the former says, "I'm still right here you know." Ace flinches as he awkwardly chuckles and scootches away.
     "What even is blot anyway?" Grim ask as he jumps onto a desk and tilts his head.
     "You typically learn about blot and overblotting in second year," Riddle says, pointing his finger up, "especially since that is the year where you use magic more."
     "Yes, thank you Mr.Rosehearts." Crowley says, gently nudging Riddle to a desk as he stands in the center. "Now, since I am gracious, I will give you lot a headmage special lesson." Everyone in the room gave him a deadpan expression that he chose to ignore. "Blot is a type of waste created after one uses magic."
     "It's like when a car makes gas as it's running." Cater elaborates, sitting cross legged on a desk while he plays with his phone. He lets out a yelp and gets off as Lucius digs his claws into his thigh, making Trein nod his head.
     Crowley deadpans at Cater, who was rubbing his thigh as Jack laughs at him. "Yes, thank you for taking over my lesson Mr.Diamond, extra points." He says sarcastically as Cater rolls his eyes behind his back. He gets back to the lesson. "Spells burn magic to manifest, and create blot at the same time. Easy enough to understand."
     "If you aren't trashy freshies." Jack mutters under his breath jokingly as the two he's talking about semi-playfully glare at him.
     "And that got absorbed into my body?" Yuu says with wide eyes. They hold a hand up to their chest. They let out a sigh before they side-eye Crowley. "So, blot is the exhaust of magic, right? Doesn't exactly sound healthy." They let out an awkward, nervous chuckle as they say this.
    Crowley nods his, deciding not to address their nerves for their own sake. "Correct. Blot has been researched since the dawn of recorded history but,..."
     "There are still many mysteries to unravel." Trein says.
      "One thing that is know for sure is that blot is a toxin and building up too much can cause great harm to the mind and body." Crowley continues for the two as he mixes the ingredients in the cauldron he's been working on.
     Crowley has a somewhat annoyed expression on his face as Ace snaps his fingers. "Oh yeah, my grandma used to always say, "You'll build up blot so don't use magic willy nilly"." Everyone can't help but chuckle as he imitates his grandma by hunching his back.
     "With great power comes risk." Crewel says with a serious tone, crossing his arms as everyone looks at him. "No matter how great the wizard, they cannot infinitely use magic."
     "So you're saying the more we use magic the unhealthier it becomes!?" Grim as in a worried tone. Ace, Deuce, and Jack also looking slightly apprehensive as they exchange glances.
     Trey shakes his head. "No, not exactly.-"
     However, before Trey could continue, Crowley cuts his off by holding his hand up. "Hold on Mr.Clover. I feel it would be better for your underclassmen to learn first hand." He had a small smile that made everyone exchange nervous looks, especially the first years. "Divus, Mozus, I thank you for your time. Take the rest of your breaks." The two give him suspicious looks as he addresses the third and second years. "You three, since you already know about the dangers, you will not participate, and may head back to lunch."
     The three exchange curious looks before Cater shrugs his shoulders, hops off the desk, and waves as he leaves. "Later freshies!" He says, making them give him an incredulous look.
     Riddle sighs as he looks at the five first years. "Good luck." He leaves as well.
     Trey chuckles at the looks the first years were giving them. "Senpai." He turns to Jack, who was giving him an all to serious look as he fights the laugh that threatens to bubble up. "I don't feel safe, please don't leave." Ace, Grim, and Deuce nod their heads in agreement. Crowley makes an insulted noise behind them as Yuu sympathetically pats his back.
     Trey can't stop the snort that escapes before he coughs into his fists and smirks at the first years. "You'll be fine, it's just the headmage." He pats Jack's shoulder, shoots him a comforting wink (that so doesn't make him blush, nope, not him) and follows the other two. Trein nods his head as he also leaves.
     "Now," Crowley claps his hands, making the five jump, "let us head to my office, shall we?" He has an ominous smile as they all sweatdrop. 'Seven help us!'