With renewed energy, Hoshi made her way to the headmaster's office with the other three in tow as Deuce questioned hesitantly, "Are you sure you don't want to rest a little longer, Hoshi?"
"I'll be fine now. Really." Hoshi replied with a wide smile.
"Well, let us know if you feel faint, you hear me?" Grim grumbled rather unimpressed by her reassurance.
"Got it."
Finally, they arrived at the double doors and knocked on it thrice before a voice called out from behind, "Come in please."
The door opened as the nurse with black hair and purple cat ears appeared alongside Counselor Abi. Hoshi recalled the brief contact they made afterwards where he briefly introduced himself as the nurse of this school and the counselor having come from another school specifically for her case.
Upon entering, Hoshi and the others noticed the counselor gave them a friendly smile and bid them a good rest of the night.
"Ah, so its you four." Crowley smiled as he sat back in his chair and placed his chin on his crossed hands, "How are you feeling, Mr. Hoshi?"
"Better."
"Is that so..." Crowley nodded in deep thoughts before continuing, "Then, would you be able to sit through this conversation about what happened back in the mines?"
"I told you, we went in there for a magestone and found a giant monster!" Grim cried out indignantly."
"A monster... Right. Would you kindly relate this story in full?" Crowley hummed in deep thought.
It took a bit with Hoshi explaining the situation to them.
" Hmmm. So a mysterious monster was living in the mines."
When she was done with her part, Deuce finished, "After that, we turned around and found Hoshi had passed out on the ground covered in blood! So, we hurried back."
After listening for a while, Crowley muttered in deep thoughts aloud, "And the four of you worked together to destroy it, and then brought its magestone back to me? Even dragging an injured person with you?"
"I don't know that I'd call it "working together."" Ace grumbled in denial, "Besides, we can't just leaving a dying person behind…"
"It was more like we just happened to share the same goal at the same time..." Deuce agreed hesitantly.
After a moment of silence, a tear rolled down Crowley's face as he cried out loud, "Oh, gracious... Ohhh... Ohhhhhhhh!"
Having seeing their headmaster burst into a flood of tears, the four were shocked as Grim cried out in disbelief, "What is this guy's deal?! Burstin' into tears in public? At this age?!"
"In all the decades I've worked at this school..." Crowley sobbed with a bright smile across his face, "The day has finally come when the students of Night Raven College have joined hands together to defeat a common foe!"
"Whoa! No! No way would I join hands with that guy!" Deuce was flabberghasted as he heard this.
"Okay, one, there was no joining of hands. Gross. And two, exactly HOW old are you, headmage?" Ace scolded him with a shocked expression across his face.
"At this moment, I am moved beyond words. This incident has proven my hopes were justified." Crowley got up from his seat. He had clearly ignored them and declared proudly, "Hoshi, my doubts are allayed! For you... You possess the talents of a beastmaster!"
"A... A beastmaster? What talents are those, exactly?" Hoshi was taken aback by those unfamiliar words.
"My students have all been selected by the Dark Mirror for their exceptional talent and potential. But great talent begets great pride and big egos." Crowley ignored her questiones and continued, "Most are so self-reliant and self-centered that they never even consider cooperating with others."
"You make it sound like that's a bad thing." Grim grumbled in dismay, which nearly made her want to correct him.
"But you, Hoshi, possess no magic fitting to be considered a mage by others." Crowley reminded her much to her bewilderment, "Yet in spite of that - or perhaps because of it - you were able to convince those who CAN use magic to work together for a common goal. The everyday, humdrum mundanity you possess may be exactly what Night Raven College needs!"
She paused in disbelief. Was he always this vain?
"But... none of those words are good things?" Ace pointed out in dismay.
Ignoring Ace too, Crowley nodded as he continued, "Hoshi... I am convinced that people like you are necessary for the future of this school. My educator's intuition tells me so. Trappola, Spade - I hereby revoke your pending expulsions! Furthermore, Hoshi... I am granting you the qualifications necessary to attend at Night Raven College!"
"WHAT?!"
"As an actual student?!" Hoshi looked to him in bewilderment, "You remember that I can't use any of the elements magic, right? You just said I had no ability to even be considered a mage!"
"Of course. This is extraordinarily kind of me because most who can't use any elements are considered to be the same as not having magic at all." Crowley continued, "However, there is one condition. Your inability to use proper magic is, for a mage, unacceptable. You would not be able to adequately pursue the school's curriculum! As for you, Grim..."
He pointed to Grim and continued, "Your actions today have made it clear that you possess sufficient talent to become a mage. In light of the total sum of your respective circumstances, you and Hoshi will share a single enrollment at Night Raven College."
She paused in confusion. Share a single enrollment?
She now know he was making stuff up, but she wasn't going to correct him knowing he was the one in charge of this school.
Grim jumped teary eyed as he did so, "Myah! I... I'll get to go to this school...? As an actual student? Not a janitor?!"
"Correct. However!" Crowley added loudly, "There must be no further incidents like the one that occurred today. Are we clear?"
"Myah... Myah... Hoshi, I... I finally..." Grim turned to her as tears over flowed his quivering eyes. Seeing him so happy, Hoshi decided to just let it go and allow Frim to indulge in this moment.
"I'm so happy for you." Hoshi replied with a bright smile, "It'll be a pleasure working with you."
"MYAAAAAH! I FINALLY DID IT!" Grim jumped into the air excitedly.
"Accordingly, I will now present to Grim the magestone that is issued to every student here." Crowley continued as he waved his hand and a large purple gem appeared to hang from his tattered black and white stripe ribbon around his neck.
"Heh! A magestone, eh?!" Grim glossed at it in awe.
"It is typically attached to the "magic pen" that each student uses. But I suspect your paws cannot handle implements." Crowley explained, "Therefore, I have a custom solution for you. Is it possible that I am, in fact, too kind?"
Having heard this again and again, Hoshi realized that the headmage really has a strange habit of being conceited and vain after all. It really wasn't just her imagination…
"Ah, sweet! I look awesome! A magestone collar, to be worn only by the legendary archmage, Grim!" Grim boasted as the headmaster's words went out through the other ear.
Crowley cleared his throat in disappointment, "You're not listening to anything I say, are you?"
"Sorry, headmaster. I'll remember to remind Grim." Hoshi apologized in embarrassment.
Crowley sighed pitifully over her predicament and shook his head, "Hoshi. As you can plainly see, Grim remains oblivious to the customs of human society. You are to keep a tight rein on Grim, and ensure there are no further incidents!"
"Well…" she wore a dry smile realizing the impossible task ahead of her, "I'll do my best…"
Patting her shoulder, Ace smiled with interest, "Wow, that's quite the promotion. From janitor to student to prefect, all in the span of a day."
"Oh, I see. So if your dorm is just you two..." Deuce nodded as it dawned on him, "And the headmage himself is putting you in charge of Grim, that makes you... the dorm prefect."
"Well, that's gotta be a Night Raven first! A elemental-less prefect? But sure, why not? Whatever works!" Ace laughed.
"I'm not sure I'm cut out for this..." Hoshi hesitated with a slight blush and smiled wide, "But, I'll do my best!"
"Heh heh heh. Good luck to you, Magic-less Prefect!" Ace smirked.
"It's elementless." She pouted, "Didn't Uku just say I do have magic in the infirmary?!"
Deuce nodded with a smile of approval, "Good luck to you, Prefect. Let's see that same spirit you showed us in the Dwarfs' Mine!"
That's it. She gave up. These two are idiots…
"Ah, Yes. I suppose that does make you a prefect." Crowley nodded as it dawned on him, "I just so happen to have a job for you, and that title will make it all the easier to foist... er, I mean, congratulations! Now, I have something for you. This is called a ghost camera."
This time, she knew she didn't misheard him! Annoyed as she was, the mention of a "ghost camera" caught her attention.
As he said this, he took out a vintage old camera with a biege body and gold frames.
"Ghost... Camera?"" Hoshi received it in both hands looking rather confused.
"Ooh, my grandma's told me about those. Those are, like, super old magic items, right?" Ace exclaimed in awe as he looked at it in Hoshi's hands.
"I would hardly consider them "super old"... ahem." Crowley cleared his throat, "But it may indeed have been invented when your great or great-great grandmother was a child. It's a camera enchanted with a special kind of magic. It enables the user to photograph not just the subject's physical form, but parts of their soul itself."
She paused in bewilderment. If something is dated back when even Ace's great grandma, much less grandma, was a child, then just how old is the headmage?!
"Wait, that sounds... sketchy." Deuce pointed out in suspicions.
"They're called Memories." Crowley corrected him with a frown, "Here's the thing: when the soulbond between photographer and subject deepens... The Memories captured in this magic camera's photos come jumping out!"
"Soulbond? Jumping out?" Grim jumped in shock upon hearing this.
"When the photographer and subject grow closer, their photographs grow animated like videos..." Crowley continued, "And sometimes the photographs take on corporeal form and slip out. Is that not what you youths would call "wicked keen"?"
"That almost sounds like ghost photography!" Deuce exclaimed in disbelief.
"Very astute. Hence the name "ghost camera"." Crowley nodded, "I understand it was developed as a more vivid way to capture moments in time, in an age before video. As Spade observed, in days of yore, when people saw Memories jumping out of photos, they would get spooked and yell, "Ghost!" I've heard many a tale of people who were deathly scared of being photographed by such cameras."
"This tech sounds like way more trouble than it's worth." Ace sighed in disappointment.
"Hoshi." Crowley handed the camera to her, "I would like you to photograph Grim and the other students with this camera, and make a record of your campus life."
"Myah ha haaa! Sounds like the perfect way to immortalize all my finest moments!" Grim boasted eagerly.
"Ahem... Make especially certain to capture the mischief caused by certain students who struggle with impulse control." Crowley scowled in dismay, "Keeping a photographic journal sounds far less tedious than writing me lengthy reports, wouldn't you agree? As a prefect, consider it your duty to maintain a sharp eye on your surroundings and record them. Note how generous I'm being in providing a rare magical item that even someone like yourself can use. Is my kindness not beyond all reckoning?"
Hearing him say this, Hoshi was starting to doubt. How much of this was actually from the kindness of his heart or just wishful thinking of fame and fortune in his head? Still, she feigned a smile and replied with genuine gratitude, "Thank you, sir. I'll give this my all."
As the midnight bell sounded, Crowley cleared his throat, "The hour has grown late, so further details shall have to wait till the morrow. You are all dismissed. Return to your dorms."
"Good night, sir!" Deuce nodded his head and closed the door as they walked out.