A Horrible Familiar

Chapter 1

"Er, Miss Louise? If you would complete the ritual please?" Colbert asked kindly.

"O-Oh, of course…" She turned to face the goose, who was currently stretching out its wings and taking in the change of scenery. "Hello, uh… Goose? I'll find a better name later, but from now on, you'll be my familiar, okay?"

"Hjönk?" It tilted its head at her, not really understanding her words. Louise sighed before pointing her wand at the waterfowl.

"Pentagon of the Five Elemental Powers, grant your blessings upon this creature and bind it as my familiar." She then bent down and kissed the goose on its bill. The goose looked at her curiously before honking in pain. It turned its right wing around and found the source of its pain, which almost instantly subsided. It would seem that some strange markings were engraved onto it. Taking interest in the marks, it flapped its wings, as if showing them off. Louise giggled at the little show her new familiar was giving her before petting it.

"Oh wow, that is golden. A boring old goose for boring old Zero!" A foppish blonde boy called out. Some students laughed alongside him, but the water mages of the crowd looked on thoughtfully, namely one Montmorency. Geese were usually attributed to water due to their affinity to the lakes, so maybe the former Zero had some standing as a Water Mage that couldn't control her magic at the very least. Well, at least she thought a little higher of her than before. Although, that really isn't saying much due to the extremely low bar Louise had in her mind in the first place.

After some harsh exchanges between Louise and her classmates, she and her goose went to her bedroom, where it immediately found solace in the bundle of hay she put aside for a familiar the night before. Louise smiled at her new companion before getting serious.

"Alright, let me explain some ground rules, er… I didn't give you a name yet, did I?"

"Hjönk."

"Right… How about… Anser? How does that sound?"

"Hjönk Hjönk!"

"Glad you like it Anser! What a good…" She picked up the goose and looked at its underside for a second before continuing. "Boy! Now then, onto some ground rules! I am your master and you're my familiar, so I expect you to listen to me when I give you orders, okay?" Anser simply picked at his feathers, prompting a sigh out of Louise. "Right, a goose… Look, just… try to stay out of trouble, okay?" Once those words were spoken, a trigger went off in Anser's mind that made him honk excitedly before settling down in seconds, but if you looked carefully, there was a horrible glint in his eyes that spoke volumes of what he would bring.

Louise shook her head at her goose's antics and changed into her nightgown. She then gave her old clothes to Anser, who surprisingly held them all in his beak. "What a good goose. Now go find a housemaid and ask her to clean those clothes for me. Or, as best as a goose can do."

"Hjönk!"

"How can you… nevermind, look just go get those clothes washed. Afterwards, come back here for bed." Anser nodded as he waddled out the room, clothes in bill. Once out of earshot, Louise sighed. "What an odd goose…"

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Anser made his way through the school with the clothes he was given. Truth be told, he had no idea where he was headed, but that never stopped him before. True, this new place was far different from the village he was accustomed to, but it wouldn't deter him from his goal. This was weird, as his mental To-Do list seemed to be edited slightly when he was branded as a familiar. A new item popped up, one that took priority over all else: