TWST'D: Keys to the Future

Welcome to the New Normal pt. 6

Grim gave her a funny look before the Headmage went about the room with amazing speed; Camila wasn't sure if her eyes could keep up.

Still, she used her intuition to guide her, relying on her ears and nose where her eyes would fail her, and sure enough, they hit their mark every time.

Like the other ghosts, Crowley let out a pained yelp, though unlike them, his cries of pain seemed more authentic.

Part of her almost felt sorry for him.

Almost.

Once they were finished and Crowley was satisfied, he changed back in the blink of an eye.

"Good, good. I knew there was something special about you, Camila. Your appearance belies that of a wo- person who can bring those unlikely to befriend one another together!"

Camila raised a brow at his correction.

Grim didn't notice, however he made a face.

"There he goes with that 'together' nonsense!"

"Actually," Crowley continued as he ignored Grim, "my educator senses were tingling the moment I laid eyes upon you at the entrance ceremony fiasco. You have the gift of a beast tamer!"

Camila cleared her throat while Grim choked.

"Beast what?"

"I see," was all she could muster.

"No matter..." The Headmage went off into a fit of muttering, most of which Camila couldn't make out.

He then went dead silent as he turned his back towards her and Grim.

"Alright then!" He spoke suddenly as he spun back around on his heel with the clap of his hands.

Grim nearly fell on his rump.

"This guy and his energy..." Grim grumbled.

"Enough wasting time! Onto the discussion of your chores!"

He snapped his clawed fingers and a stack of clothes appeared on the table, as well as some cleaning utensils.

"This is your uniform for the time being. I modified the jumpsuit to fit your exact measurements."

She picked it up, and as it unfurled, true to his statement, the tan jumpsuit fit her height at least.

He then divulged the same information he did to Camila when she first arrived at the abandoned dorm before turning towards her again, ignoring Grim's protest.

"After you dress up, I need you to clean Main Street for me. After you're done, I'll need you to meet at my office, understood?"

Grim sighed while Camila nodded.

"Understood," they parroted.

He smiled cheerfully.

"Excellent!"

***********

Due to the dorm being so close to the main campus, it took little time for the duo to make it to their destination.

The smell of blooming flowers hit her nose like a kiss to the face, and the cheerful vibe of Spring put her in a good mood.

The heat of the morning sun was hidden under the shadow of the lush green trees that surrounded Main Street, as birds chirped their morning songs.

Camila was the one carrying the cleaning utensils with Grim hitching a ride in the mop bucket.

"Tch," he began as they made their way towards Main Street, "no way do I wanna clean. I wanna shoot cool spells like boom! Bam! A wham-a-lam-a-ding-dong! And everybody'll be cheering my name!"

"Afraid we have to do this, Grim," Camila explained smoothly, "he's the headmage for a reason. Any defiance and he could cast us out with ease. Let's just do this quickly so I can get you your tuna, okay?"

"Eh, okay," he said eeorishly before he gazed at the statues ahead and his ears perked up.

"Whoa, Camila! Check it out!"

He ran ahead of her to climb on the statue closest to them:

The elegant shape of a portly woman in a long dress bowed gingerly to them, her heart-shaped staff in hand and her small crown placed elegantly atop her neatly combed head as she smiled sweetly at them in a field of roses.

Underneath her visage was a mural detailing her as the Queen of Hearts.

Grim stared at her in awe, losing all the depression he had acquired from earlier.

"Camila, who's the cool looking lady up there?"

She stared up at the statue, at her complacent face carved into the marble, and whistled.

Her calmness belied her cruel and crazed nature, and from what Camila could remember, wasn't at all the pleasant and charming looking woman this statue portrayed her.

She opened her mouth-

"What's this?" But a voice interrupted her, sounding fairly close, "you don't know about the Queen of Hearts?"

She turned towards the sound from behind her to see a boy with wild, bright red hair, with the lower half a burnt ochre.

Camila noticed he had a deep red heart tattooed over one of his matching red eyes, which scanned her and Grim curiosily.

"Eh?" Grim tilted his head at the new face curiously, "was she a big deal?"

The boy simply nodded.

"Oh yeah. She was a queen who lived in a rose maze long ago. Someone who valued rules and discipline above all else and very strict with her card soldiers. From the marching of their feet to the tending of the rose maze, she expected excellence."

"'Strict' doesn't even begin to cover it," Camila cut in evenly, "if they so much as misplaced a rose or hedgehog, they'd get beheaded!"

When she looked up, she noticed the light in Ace's eyes falter, but only for a moment.

He let out a humored smile.

"Ah, so you know a little something."

"....."