IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT ACE AND DEUCE AND GRIM WOULD NOT STOP PESTERING HER about what she, Trey, and Crowley had talked about after they were sent out of the room.

"Are you kidding me? Even Milcery knows! And you're saying I, the Great and Powerful Grim, doesn't?"

He always got this whiny when he didn't get his way. "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you. Headmaster's orders. But don't worry! You'll find out soon enough."

"Boo! Laaame."

"Stop it, you're starting to sound like Ace."

And they would continue to pester her about for the next couple of days. Trey was not spared either, a curious Cater and an equally-curious-yet-more-restrained Riddle on his tail. Their saving grace was Magift Season, which after a discussion with Ace and Deuce, made her realize that it was a peculiar sport similar to Unovian[1] football. Apparently, the craze was so widespread that the others just forgot about her and Trey.

And so they had time to prepare.

With full permission from Professor Crewel— to her surprise, he was the Science Club's advisor— Zoroark was moved from Heartslabyul to the Science Club room. (Call it a probation, if you will.) It was actually rather big, this room, so they installed a pen for him to reside in for the time being.

The Professor, actually, was the only person on campus who Zoroark had an inkling of fear for. As far as Yuu knew, anyways. After all, the way the man waved that whip around was the farthest thing from... comforting. And so the Pokémon behaved whenever he was around.

(Even so, she would never let that whip ever come within any Pokémon, she silently promised.)

Heartslabyul, as a whole, was rather blind to the entire Zoroark incident. Thank Arceus for that. Cater and Riddle had chalked it up as just an unruly student messing around with a Transformation Unique Magic, which was really... More or less, a close description to what really happened. Their students ate it up anyway.

"Rest assured, I will make sure the perpetrator will never pull stunts like these again!" Riddle really did mean it, though.

"Long live Dorm Leader Rosehearts!"

The Science Club was actually rather bare, Trey and Crewel explained to her and Crowley. It was a promise that no students would discover Zoroark's existence during his little probation because... Well, there were no students to witness anything.

This was partly because all the students last year were third-years, and had long since moved on.

Another part, Trey had reminisced with a sigh, was because of a grand-scale stunt performed by a Pomefiore student last year— all for the sake of witnessing a beauty far out of this world, whatever it was.

"He... single-handedly scorched half the club room, damaged five of our cauldrons, and successfully scared off any remaining members into joining again this year. ...But I'll admit, the explosion was really pretty. I don't even know how he got it to turn pink."

"Whoa." Yuu looked up from her paper. "And you still keep him as part of the club?"

"It's... ah, complicated, to say the least. Professor Crewel was furious." The boy scratched his neck, looking sheepish. "But he's paid for all the casualties, and sent a request to return. Up until now, we've been thinking of denying him."

"Up until now?" She couldn't help being curious.

"He's actually quite a talented potioneer, despite his... eccentricities." Trey laughed, "Besides, he's got a knack for tracking animals down, befriending them. Like you, kind of. It doesn't hurt that he's not the type to tattle about Pokémon either."

"Interesting." Was that some sort of approval, then? She was willing to trust his judgment if it was. "If he's really that valuable to our cause, maybe Headmaster Crowley should get a hold of him."

"I mean, he has helped Heartslabyul wrangle a couple of our hedgehogs before."

"Really?" Surprising. "What... What did you say his name was again? I didn't quite catch it."

"Oh, he's Rook Hunt."

"Hunt?"

Yuu became a member of the two-person Science Club before she knew it, finding herself spending more and more time there with Trey.

When he called them aside to talk privately, Crowley had tasked them both with a little project he intended on starting up— One that would simultaneously help the students adapt to the existence of Pokémon and keep track of them.

It was about time we as a school had grown accustomed to this phenomenon, the man had said with a tone of finality. So inevitably, another special task was assigned to the two of them above all their classwork.

"Yuu-kun, you are the only one I deem qualified for this role. As the most knowledgeable among us— Trey-kun as well, you have displayed such a way with Pokémon... Who else may I turn to?"

She felt obliged to say yes. It was quite regrettable, actually. ...Yuu should have known that the Headmaster didn't include the exact details of said task until they agreed to it— Such conditions included presenting a thorough lecture on the topic of Pokémon to the rest of the Dorm Leaders.

Crowley had reasoned that with such serious circumstances, he had to be notified whenever a Pokémon would appear. The most efficient way to do that was to let other students be aware of such matters, so that they in turn would know how to handle it should the situation arise. His reasoning was (they hated to admit it) concrete.

Both she and Trey knew that he held a bargaining chip over her head— Was this what he was talking about, the punishment for withholding information about the Wild Pokémon appearances from him?

He was actually rather sneaky in his own way, they lamented together.

YUU HAD ONLY EVER BEEN INSIDE INSIDE THE MIRROR CHAMBER TWICE BEFORE— Once, during the eventful entrance ceremony at the beginning of the school year, and now. Currently, clutching onto her notecards and Pokéballs for dear, dear life. The second time around, the students of Night Raven College have managed to make it much more daunting.

Perhaps... Perhaps it was because the room was filled with twice the amount of intimidating teenagers than she remembered. Among the crowd, she could make out a few familiar faces.

"Look, look, it's Yuu! You remember him, don't you, Jamil? Hey, Yuu!" The boy laughed at his own pun.

"Couldn't even if I tried to, Kalim."

"Hi, you guys."

This loud outburst caused many heads to turn in her direction. Yuu flushed and looked imploringly at Riddle and Trey, a silent plea to start the meeting already.

"Ah. Headmaster, then, shall we?"

"Of course, Rosehearts-kun. Then let our October Dorm Lead meeting commence. Our topic for today is the Inter-Dorm Magical Shift Tournament. First, a word from Mister Ashengrotto."

"Oi. Just a moment. You mind telling us why it's so awfully packed here today? I think a certain Herbivore might be a little lost."

Her eyes flicked in the direction of the voice and she froze when she realized just who exactly it was.

"Ah, that's right. Yuu-kun is my special guest. Some of you may or may not remember him from the entrance ceremony."

Leona's (she now recognized, with a growing sense of dread) tail swished back and forth with contemplativeness. He narrowed his eyes and she nearly shivered.

"As for the rest of you... The reason I have summoned both Dorm Leaders and their vices here today is because my special guest has a special announcement. Do not fret, all will be revealed at the end of this meeting."

If possible, Headmaster Crowley's cryptic words singled her out even further. She suddenly felt rather small.

"Ah, but before that! Where were we? My apologies, Ashengrotto, you may go ahead."

Yuu tried her best to keep her head down and act as a fly on the wall for the duration of the meeting. It was quite hard to do, given the penetrating stares sent her way during the entirety of it all.

She listened silently as the boy with the silvery hair— Ashengrotto, if she recalled correctly— listed off all the Magift Tournament's preparations.

Crowley brought up something about a Mister Malleus Draconia... and his admission into NRC'S Hall of Fame. Strange, she didn't even know this institute had such a thing. It was strange watching all seven dorms squabble about, with Leona (among others) expressing his heavy disapproval on the subject.

The only two people who did not object were a) the talking blue object and b) the boy (man?) with the black, magenta-streaked hair. The latter, was the Vice Dorm Leader of Diasomnia anyway, so she supposed his vote did not count. Yuu recognized from the cafeteria all those weeks ago— With such a memorable first meeting, she easily remembered his name. Lilia Vanrouge, it was.

"Speaking of which, where is the student in question, Mister Draconia? Did I not stress that this month's meeting was extremely important? Has someone forgotten to inform him yet again?"

"Er..."

Lilia sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose. "So it seems he has been forgotten."

"I could have sworn someone told him."

"...It has become quite clear that such is not the case."

The Headmaster placed a finger on his chin. "Goodness, these boys... My deepest apologies to Diasomnia. Whatever shall we do? This meeting is absolutely crucial, so we cannot afford to withhold any information from him. As Yuu and Clover-kun have done to me, of course."

Ouch.

Trey laughed deflatedly, quite abashed. "That's..."

SHe gaped at him. "Headmaster, we all meant well, I swear."

"Yes, yes, all jokes— Ah, Shroud-kun!" He pointed directly at the blue, floating... object. She had initially assumed it was a Rotom phone, but had long since discovered such wasn't the case. "I assume you can screen record from that device of yours, can't you?"

"Er... Yeah, I guess," Came the voice. It had a bit of a robotic tone to it, a bit tired, a bit apathetic.

"Fantastic!" He clapped his hands, regarding the room excitedly. "Now, we can get started. Ashengrotto, you have no more announcements to make, correct?"

"Correct, Headmaster."

"Perfect. Now then, without further ado— Yuu-kun, you have the floor."

"Yes, thank you very much."

Trey stood up at the same time she did and wheeled forward a chalkboard behind her. It had been sitting in the room for a while.

This was it. She tried to gather up at least a little bit of the assertiveness and eloquence that she had seen the Ashengrotto boy possess before.

"Good afternoon! My name is Yuu. You may all remember me as the transfer student during the entrance ceremony." It would have been best to leave out the detail that she aided in destroying the school's chandelier. Though there was no doubt in her mind that word about it had become widespread.

She made eye contact with Trey and Riddle, both who sent her a look of encouragement— and continued. "Before all else, I'll let you in on a secret, actually— The Dark Mirror pulled me here from a different world."

Despite the emerging whispers and scrutinizing looks around the room, Yuu continued, "The reason Crowley called you all here today was because... Oh, I'll be frank— creatures from my world are popping into yours, and we don't know why."

A staggering silence.

"...Well."

"What? Are you being serious right now?"

"Mon Dieu... What an interesting turn of events, I must say."

At this, she could see several expressions grip her audience, ranging from shock to incredulity to straight-up skepticism.

"These creatures..." It soon became difficult to find her voice. "I..."

"Alright, enough." Riddle's authoritative voice cut throughout the scattered murmuring. "What he has to say is extremely important, so shut up, and listen."

"My, how forward."

A towering teal-haired boy, who she did not recognize, smiled sharply. She did, however, notice the unmistakable Octavinelle band around his arm. There was a noticeable streak of black framing the left side of his head. There was a coy smile on his lips. "I don't think I've ever seen Riddle advocate so strongly on a topic before."

Ashengrotto, who sat beside him, (looked quite small) shared the same smile. "Certainly. To think we don't even know what he plans to say."

The red-haired boy sniffed. "I assure you, you will find out soon enough."

That was a quiet warning to quiet down. They did, soon enough.

"Th... Thank you, Ri— Rosehearts-senpai," Yuu cleared her throat, and after a beat of silence, she continued. "Erm, as I was saying, creatures of my world have been crossing over this one."

"As absurd as it may sound, I promise you all that what Yuu says is nothing but the complete truth," Crowley announced, coming to her aid, "Why, Mister Rosehearts and Clover can vouch for him as well!"

The latter had an unreadable look on his face. "Just watch—You'll be proven wrong in a minute if you think we're joking."

"Bold claims," Leona yawned, "Can you back up what you say?" Dear Lord. She never noticed it before, but those were the sharpest teeth she had ever seen on a person before.

"Seeing is believing, right? Before anything else, I should probably explain what these creatures even are," Yuu said. "Where I come from, there are these creatures; like the monsters from this world, they are able to wield powers similar to magic. However, there should be one distinction to be made."

She slid out a Pokéball and tossed it into the air with practiced ease.

"Watch this— Fletchinder, come on out!"

Even as knowledgeable as some of the boys in the room might've been, none of them were prepared to witness the Pokémon spring to life in midair. Kalim, she could see him stand up in his seat, his eyes lighting up with delight. The beautiful blond man in the corner, his eyes were wide with intrigue. Even Leona could not hide his surprise.

"What? Could that be... Wait, don't tell me—"

"Spatial magic? That's such an advanced topic— How could a non-magician possibly..."

"On a living thing?"

The blond student with the flamboyant hat clapped, fixated on another subject entirely. "I don't think I've ever seen such a specimen as that one before. What vibrant reds and yellows. Beautiful!"

Fletchinder fluttered around the room before perching on her outstretched arm, preening from such praise.

"Good girl!" Yuu turned to face her audience, holding the bird up for show. "I'm sure many of you remember her from the entrance ceremony."

"Oh, this is rich." Leona's barking laughter was an abrupt and sardonic thing that made the hairs on her back stand up. "So this is what you've been hiding from me, Herbivore?"

Her face might have turned red, she wasn't sure.

Fletchinder snorted at him, little embers flaring out from her beak.

"I... I suppose." Yuu didn't know what to say to that, so she didn't say much at all. Instead, she turned to her bird and scratched her chin in an attempt to diffuse the situation. "Come on, give them a Flame Charge."

Many people gasped openly when the Pokémon nodded and, as directed, charged around the room in a blaze of fire.

"Jamil! Jamil! Look, look, look!" Kalim babbled, looking absolutely electrified as he shook his friend back and forth by the arm, "What did I tell you?"

"I'm looking, alright. You were right, you were right."

Lilia placed a contemplative finger on his chin at the sight. "Engulfing one's entire body in flame... Such advanced fire magic."

Fletchinder returned to perch on Trey's shoulder, whistling a sweet tune and looking quite proud of herself. The boy returned her efforts with a biscuit and she ate the entire thing in one bite.

Riddle quietly cleared his throat and all noise in the room died down soon after. As small as the action was, she greatly appreciated it.

"Thank you." Yuu took a piece of chalk and twirled it between her fingers.

"Now, this is what Pocket Monsters are—" She wrote the term on the board, POKÉMON, in uppercase with her chalk, "—Pokémon, for short. Unlike any entity from this world, these creatures have the discerning ability to squeeze harmlessly into capsules."

"And fit into your pocket," Shroud, or Idia— whatever Headmaster Crowley had called him— pointed out.

"Exactly."

Nodding, she lifted up Fletchinder's Pokéball into the air so the room could get a better look at it. "These special capsules are called Pokéballs, which the people of my world use to transport and shelter Pokémon in."

Ashengrotto looked curiously at the thing, and she could have sworn something in his eyes seemed to flash. "How is the ball able to store the... Pokémon inside, if not with magic?"

"Is your technology just that advanced?" Shroud asked, intrigue evident in his voice.

"Not really," She supplied with a laugh, clicking the ball open. The inside of it was completely hollow, plated in steel.

Really, he gave them too much credit.

"Like I said, the Pokémon are the ones who can come in and out as they please. Technology doesn't have anything to do with it. We can make the Pokeballs shrink, though." With the press of a button, the capsule shrank to the size of a ping pong ball. "I've heard of older Regions in my homeworld using wooden Pokéballs and hollowed out fruits for their Pokémon, so there's that."

"Interesting... Monsters who can wield spatial magic."

"Something like that. That's the term for it here, anyway." The girl scribbled something on the board, "Speaking of 'magic,' I feel like I should elaborate on how it's used by Pokémon. We refer to them as moves, actually—"

It was like once she got started she couldn't stop. As she talked, there was a relaxed, more comfortable air around her— More ease in the way she carried herself. It was done in such a way that her excitement and passion rubbed off on the people surrounding her.

"—imbued with elemental energy. If you think about it... It's similar to your standard spells in the fact that pure elements can be conjured, like a jet of water or a burst of fire. These kinds of things can't be taught, but learned through, ah, gaining experience!"

Shroud made some kind of choking noise behind the screen. "Holy crap. So you're basically living in a video game world?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Are you kidding me? He doesn't even— Unbelievable." He sounded rather exasperated, sighing, "Listen. I'm just taking a wild guess here— Evolution exists as well?"

The dumbstruck look on her face was all the clarification he needed, it seemed.

"So I was right?! Oh my God. It's not that hard to figure out, really. The moment you said EXP was when I pieced it all together," He continued, chuckling to himself.

"EXP is always used to unlock some sort of benefit— What kind of game doesn't have a level-up system anyway— I mean, just look at your bird. It looks older than the last time we saw it, right? That's gotta be some kind of evolution if I've ever seen one."

Yuu forced her mouth to close. "Yes, that's right. I... guess you summed up everything to say. Gaining experience can bring upon evolution— exactly what it sounds like, a metaphorical change— and-or new moves to add to your repertoire."

"Never in my... I don't think I've ever heard Idia talk for three whole minutes like that," The blond man in the back commented, a brow raised. She remembered him immediately from the entrance ceremony; it was quite hard to forget a face like that anyways.

The girl vaguely remembered how Cater said he was quite a popular influencer. Like his feathered hat friend, he belonged to Pomefiore. Was the head of it, actually, she realized.

"Oh, please. It's not rocket science."

"Most interesting. How perceptive of you, Idia-kun," Crowley's eyes sharpened as he stroked his chin. She could practically see the gears cranking inside that head of his...

Should she be concerned? She kept the thought to herself.

"This kid is living my dream and he doesn't even know it. It's not even funny. I mean, living in a world like that— He was practically sitting in paradise?"

"You're gonna be thrilled then, gamer boy. Not sure if you missed what he and Trey said, but his world is leaking into ours." Leona drawled. The look on his face had her itching to run away.

"That way, we'd all be prepared if— no, when the situation comes up again," She added.

"Speaking of which, is it our assistance you require, Headmaster?" Ashengrotto mused, placing a finger on his chin. "To round up these creatures you've been mentioning?"

He was wearing that same guileful look he did back when he mentioning a small processing fee for late paperwork regarding each dorm's Magift player lineup. It was similar to the ones Ace and Deuce wore when pawning off her food from her in return for catching Grim during the first week of school. Words could not describe how... slimy it made her feel.

Trey shrugged. If he noticed the Look, he did not let it show on his face. "It's more of a warning, if I'll be honest. We don't even know when the next occurrence will be."

"That's right. Speaking from experience—" Riddle added, sucking in a sharp breath, "They are not favorable. Heartslabyul has already had our fair share of Pokémon mishaps..."

At this, a few eyebrows shot into the air.

" ...We would not wish for it to befall anyone else, never mind let the rest of the world find out. Just take caution, alright?"

Even Lilia could not hide his surprise. "Come again? You came into contact with a creature?"

He sighed very deeply. "...Regrettably."

"Just think of what the outside world will say when they discover that Night Raven College has become a spawn ground for creatures from another world?" Crowley lamented, shaking his head dearly.

"I can't tell anyone what exactly to look for, since there are many different species, but if you notice any strange creatures that you don't recognize— Well, chances are that it's a Pokémon," Yuu added, "The Magift Tournament is approaching too. This is why we're advising you to take caution and be on high alert. "

From what information she could gather, the campus was supposed to be packed to the brim with visitors. Who knows what could happen then if a Pokémon were to turn up.

"One big old masquerade, then." Jamil studied her. That's exactly what it was. "How many other people know? Or is it just us?"

Good question, actually. "The staff, everyone here, and three trusted others from Heartslabyul know."

"...I see."

"So this has been going on for a while, I'm guessing?" The blond man pursed his lips in thought. "How long?"

These guys really knew exactly what to ask, didn't they? Yuu counted the exact time on her fingers. "The first sighting was at the beginning of the school year? But, ah, we've had three over the course of two and half months. As far as we know, they're all random."

He made a sound of acknowledgement, neither positive or negative. She would have lied if she said it made her feel at ease.

"They've both been taken care of and situated," Trey informed. She wondered how he could still smile so serenely in this sort of situation. "We're sure they won't be the last of these kinds of occurrences so just watch out, alright?"

Leona narrowed his eyes and scoffed. "Tch. Who says we can't take care of a few animals?"

He'd be... surprised, to say the least.

"Oh, I have no doubt in your abilities as magicians. That is why you are all here now as Dorm Leaders and Vice Leaders, am I correct?" Crowley smiled behind his mask, "I must ask that you take this seriously, however. If you do happen to encounter a Wild Pokémon, either quickly apprehend it if you can or report the situation to me immediately."

"Ah, but please don't underestimate it," She quickly added with a thumbs up, "That's literally the worst thing you can do. Aside from letting word get out, of course."

Riddle nodded solemnly, all too familiar with the havoc a Wild Pokémon could bring.

Crowley placed his hands on his hips. "That's that, I suppose! Yuu, wonderful presentation. Fletchinder and Trey, you as well. Does anyone have anything else to say? Any last announcements?"

He and Yuu shook their heads. "Not at the moment, no."

"This marks the end of our October Dorm Meeting." The man exclaimed. "Thank you all for attending— Ah, but before you're excused, you must promise me that nothing discussed today leaves this room. If word catches on, I promise you the consequences will be immediate... and extremely detrimental to your future here at Night Raven College. Am I clear?"

A resounding yes. Yuu even felt herself nodding along.

"Wonderful! Ah, and with the upcoming Magift Tournament, the place will be swarming with visitors. Do try your best to be as tight-lipped as possible." His cheery disposition returned, "Now then, you are all dismissed."

EXCEPT THE FACT WAS THAT THEY WEREN'T ALL DISMISSED. After saying goodbye to Riddle, Trey stayed behind for Yuu while she was busy tidying up her notecards and erasing the chalkboard. Fletchinder returned back to her ball, the room beginning to file out the door.

They were all nearly out the door when Crowley called, "Wait! My apologies. Hunt-kun, would you mind staying back for a moment?" Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "Shroud-kun, you too."

The boy with the feathered hat was all too happy to oblige, bidding farewell to his other blond friend, who wore an unreadable look on his face. Shroud, the floating mobile device— whatever he was— on the other hand, did not share the same sentiments and floated over in a strange and disgruntled kind of way.

"Headmaster, you wished to have a word with us?" The blond asked, his eyes sparkling with intrigue. From the side, Trey exchanged a look of acknowledgement with him.

Wait, didn't the Headmaster just refer to him as Hunt? Where did she hear that name before? Yuu blinked up at him, the slow realization forming in her mind.

"Correct, Hunt! I have a proposal to share with you." He said it again. "With the both of you, actually."

Idia groaned beneath his breath. "Oh, great."

"I have been recently informed that you are quite adept with animals and magical creatures, tracking them down and the like," He continued, his tone taking on more of a reprimanding one, "It has also been noted because of a few... incidents last year of your doing, your right to be a Science Club member has been put on hold. "

"A-Ah..." Hunt's (full name Rook Hunt, she remembered), face turned remorseful, shamefaced, as he placed a gloved hand on his chest. "It was never my intention for such a tragedy to befall the Science Club— Je m'excuse."

Just as he was about to say more, maybe offer up some sort of compensation or something, Crowley held up a hand. "Just a minute, Hunt. I'm not here to scold you. Professor Crewel has already done enough of that. Instead, I have a proposition for you."

"C'est vrai?" The feather on his head bobbed back and forth as he spoke. "Please tell me what I must do! Oh, how I long to step inside the clubroom once more!"

"Listen very closely— The Science Club will be having a bit of a... rebranding, if you will. Instead of the usual activities, I've had Yuu and Trey-kun devote their time to researching the Pokémon's existence in this world," Crowley explained.

"Bien sûr, bien sûr." Of course, of course. "Perhaps, are you implying..."

Yuu's eyes nearly bulged out of her sockets. She couldn't believe her ears— Was that fluent Kalosian coming out of his mouth? He hadn't said it once, but twice. Despite the questions running through her head, she stayed silent as the conversation continued.

"What I'm asking for is that you two help with our cause. Ah, that's right— Rook-kun, you patrol around campus every week, do you not? Even better! With your skills, I believe that you will be valuable additions to the Science Club."

"Wait, what?" Shroud cut in, sounding quite shaken. If she could see his face, she'd imagine that he'd look appalled. "Headmaster, what makes you think that I'd be cut out for this? I'm... No. Just no."

"You came to me as an afterthought," the Headmaster admitted, "To be honest, I hadn't even considered you, Shroud-kun—"

"Good. I think we should keep it that way, actually."

"—Please listen until the very end! Ahem," He coughed into his fist, "My apologies. As I was saying, I hadn't even considered you until I witnessed you during the meeting. Being able to make accurate predictions like that is not something the average human can do, I must say."

"I-I mean, it really was spot on," Yuu admitted, "You caught me off guard back there."

"We must have you at the Club with us," Crowley concluded.

"That h-has nothing to do with me...! Even a noob could figure it out, I'm serious!"

He blinked at the device. "Oh? If I'm not mistaken, I assumed you were quite knowledgeable from the way you carried the conversation. Moreover, isn't working firsthand with these mysterious Pokémon just so exciting?"

"I mean, it is cool, b-but not when I have to work with other people... And my precious Board Game Club—"

"Certainement!" Rook was practically hanging onto Crowley's hands, shaking them up and down and exclaiming, "I must accept!" He was thanking the man for providing him with such an opportunity to study and meet such beautiful creatures, along with many other things in Kalosian.

"Welcome to the Science Club, then," Trey chuckled good-naturedly, shaking hands with him, "Glad to have you back."

"Glad to be back, Chevalier des Roses!" He smiled gleefully. Yuu could not stop staring at him the entire time, amazement and wonder and nostalgia all swirling in her stomach when she heard him speak the words of her homeland. "Oh, though I suppose it might be considered something like a Pokémon Club now, does it not?"

"Wait a second, I didn't agree to any of this—" Shroud began, only to shriek when the Headmaster abruptly clung onto his tablet.

"You must accept, Shroud! I beg of you, please!" His eyes were dribbling over with Krookodile dears, wailing pitifully, "What we would do without your— Your genius mind, your way with technology!"

The horrendous display of a grown man driven to tears did not manage to shake anybody's will. "G-Get off me, you're going to get fingerprints all over my camera! I'm sorry, but no means no. I'm never letting go of the Board Game Club!"

"If you choose to become a member," Crowley said at last, standing up with a harrumph and a determined look in his eyes, "I will personally exempt you from your physical activity classes for the rest of the year—"

"Let's do it."

"Just so! I'm glad we've come to a consensus," The man cheered, clapping. He turned to Yuu, who was quietly watching the interaction with a growing curiosity.

"Yuu-kun, come, come! I don't think the three of you have formally met yet. This is Rook Hunt, a third-year. He happens to be the vice Dorm Leader of Pomefiore. This floating tablet over here is Idia Shroud, another third-year, and Ignihyde's Dorm Leader."

"We have not met, no. If I had met someone like Hunt earlier," She agreed, hopping down the podium at a great speed, "I don't think I would have forgotten him so easily."

Well, that certainly got everybody's attention. Brazenly turning to the boy in question, she could not help but let the words tumble out of her mouth. "Monsieur, votre Kalosienne est impeccable. Le maîtrisez-vous couramment?" Your Kalosian is impeccable. Are you fluent?

Rook blinked at her, stunned for a moment, before his face broke out into an infectious grin. He laughed, taking her outstretched hand, "Oui! Oh la vache, pour notre adorable étudiante en transfert de parler la deuxième langue. Sans oublier, très bien!" Yes, I am! What a surprise, for our lovely transfer student to speak the Second Tongue. And very well, to add!

She flushed and shook his hand, oblivious to how Trey and Crowley stared. "Le Kalosienne est la langue de mon pays d'origine, c'est tout." Kalosian is just the main language where I come from, is all.

"The Common Language is a thing," Shroud complained tentatively, "Please use it, for everyone here."

She nearly forgot!

"Oh, Arceus! I'm so sorry," Yuu apologized, switching back to the Common Tongue[2], "I just didn't expect anyone from here to speak that— My country's main language, I mean."

"It was not unwelcome. I wasn't aware you spoke the language, anyway," Crowley scrutinized, "How unusual that the Second Tongue is also a language from your home planet."

"Second tongue?" She parroted.

"The language we spoke earlier," Rook told her, "Though I suppose where you come from, it is referred to as Kalosian, is it not?"

"Yes, that's right. Why... Why call it the Second Tongue, though?" It had been a question she longed to ask ever since Trey brought up the Mont Blanc tart in the cafeteria all that time before.

"It's the second most-used language in Twisted Wonderland," Trey explained, "This, of course, is the first."

"Ah, I see." Then, as if remembering why they were gathered there in the first place, Yuu said, "Well, it's so glad to meet you guys, Hunt-senpai, Shroud-senpai. I look forward to working with you two and Trey for the rest of the year."

"Likewise, mon ami. Ah, working together with the lovely étudiant transféré, Chevalier des Roses, and Roi de Ta Chambre! I couldn't think of a more lively, refreshing combination!"

"Likewise. Let's look forward to a good year, yeah?"

"Stuck with all these sunny-looking people... If this... whatever this is... doesn't kill me, Azul totally will..."

[1] Football — The Unova Region in Pokémon is based off of New York, which I'm pretty sure is the only American-based region in the series (besides Alola). Yuu (in-game) makes a comment about Magift being similar to American Football, so I thought I'd include this.

[2] Common and Second Language — So, a little while back in chapter 7, I said that French's equivalent in the world Twisted Wonderland was Franse. Well, forget I said that, please! I figured that keeping track of those names would be kind of a lot, so I scratched that idea. Just remember that Common Language = Japanese and Second Language = French. That is all! 

hey! how is everybody? happy holidays! here I am, three weeks after my previous update. I wished to update sooner, but school did not allow for that. but I'm here now, during break, so I hope to catch up the pace a little bit. [sob]

please tell me what you guys thought about this chapter. I know, with the start of Savanaclaw, people would have expected for Crowley to be banging on Yuu's doors first thing in the morning and crying about the unexpected accidents. this is not the case in this work!

(I hope Rook and Idia turned out okay. as much as I love them, I don't know how to write them well. they are, unfortunately, one of the few characters I don't have a good grasp on.)

I still consider this to be a Savannaclaw chapter, even if no one really mentions the injured students. but I wanted to be cool and funky fresh!!!! so here I present you with my Poké-fied take on the Dorm Meeting at the beginning of the month. I really hope people enjoyed this chapter. I put my heart, soul, and entire foot into it.

with help from my good friend Shadowhope, of course! a lot of the concepts shown here, she helped me come up with.

oh and! I started editing the book, right now I've revised the first two chapters. not many changes, but I made the proper distinction that the language spoken in Twisted Wonderland is Japanese (first chapter), so Yuu has to make that language switch.

anyways, that's all! thanks for reading <3