rondezview | I see now, clear and free

Yeah, that's probably for the best. They're addictive. Not the worst drug we had at work - that would probably go to the monster whose spines got people high until their heads literally exploded - but it was definitely a known problem.

Have you told Floyd that story yet?

[Because that sounds like a story Floyd would want to hear about...]

In the meantime, I'll make a note to try talking to Yuu about it the next time I see them, if you haven't tried talking to them already about this.

Not yet, but it was coming up on my list of stories he might like.

[Yes, she has a mental list of things she should tell Floyd specifically about. She always feels good when he enjoys her stories.]

I did give them a warning. Grim is really awkward talking to me for some reason so we haven't spoken much, but Yuu promised to tell him.

I... think that may have to do with what happened the first day you were here, during the lecture.

[As in, the question someone threw out about whether or not Grim was considered "fuckable" on Evangeline's scale for monster fucking.]

...That's fair. I guess most guys don't like it when you call them small, huh.

I'm afraid not.

[... Even if it is true. Sorry Grim.]

That said, Yuu is, for the most part, the reliable sort when it matters. I'm sure that they will at least try to talk to Grim about it and get them to not eat those stones anymore.

[Hopefully...]

I appreciate it, thank you. Ideally we wouldn't have any more overblots and that would solve that problem, but that's more difficult than just not eating them.

Indeed. [At this point, the tweels have returned with a list of alcohol for Evangeline to choose from as desired, as Azul taps his arm thoughtfully from where he has them folded across his chest.]

I wasn't there when Riddle and Leona had their incidents, so I can't really say anything about what it was like when they had succumb to overblot. [And his own incident... the less he has to remember about it, the better, he thinks.] The one connection I've been able to determine with all of the incidents so far is that it has been happening to the dorm leaders so far, as opposed to just any student at random here.

[As such, it might be worth looking the dorms that have not had any notable overblot incidents just yet, such as Scarabia, Pomefiore, Ignihyde, and Diasomnia...]

[Evangeline orders the heaviest drink on the menu. Go big or go home.]

The dorm leaders... Well, that makes sense. It's related to heavy stress, so I'd expect the people with the most responsibilities to suffer it first. The biggest indicator of an upcoming overblot would be someone acting strangely or suffering intense distress, but I don't know the students here well enough to really identify that. I've recommended to the headmaster that he hire a counselor, for what it's worth.

[Azul can't help but scoff a little.]

As useful as a counselor would be here, I wish them luck in getting anyone here to actually agree to seeing one.

[That includes himself, because there is no way in hell he wants to confide his anxieties to a stranger.]

...Yeah, that could be rough. Regular mental health checks were mandatory in LobCorp, but I kind of don't want to enforce that in the same way they did?

[They would literally just kill you for not submitting to them. No thank you.]

The situation's not quite as serious here, at least. It still sucks, but nobody's been stuck like that so far.

Yes, thankfully that has not been the case.

[Before the tweels walk away to obtain her drink order, Azul ends up whispering something to them first, and then proceeds to actually sit across from Evangeline proper rather than continuing to stand hovering nearby like he had been before.]

Have you discovered anything else of interest during your stay here?

[Oh, actually joining her properly this time, that's new.]

Did you know that people without innate magical abilities can technically overblot in certain circumstances? You need a lot more emotion involved than someone inherently magical would, but it's possible.

Really?

[Hmm...]

In other words, that means even someone like Yuu or... well, you, could potentially experience overblot here?

We could, yeah. It shouldn't happen, because the level of emotion required is so high. But it's especially bad when they do, because getting them to use up their magic to tire them out and turn them back to normal isn't an option.

[In other words, they'd probably be stuck like that.]

I see.

[That's... not good.]

I'm assuming you've already warned the headmaster about this?

Yeah, of course I did.

I do want to stress how unlikely this is to happen here - the kinds of things that historically have caused non-magical people to overblot are, like. Watching a loved one die in front of you, or having your life's work made meaningless, or things like that. Not to say that the breakdowns that lead to other people overblotting aren't bad, but they're not 'my entire life is ruined' bad.

[That gets a slight quirk of his lips turning up here, almost in a smirk.]

Speak for yourself--I'm sure someone like Riddle would tell you that he thought his life was ruined for a good minute there when he was overblotting, knowing the kind of person he is.

[... Azul also thought that too, so this is a pot calling the kettle black statement, but--he isn't going to point that out yet.]

I'm trying to convince you that you don't have to worry about Yuu, because you're a good guy so of course you're worried about them.

[About Yuu specifically - she hadn't considered him being worried about her.]

They're going to be fine. I promise.

[He starts to open his mouth to note that she should include herself in that statement of people they should be worried about here, but then the rest of what she says stops him short.]

You think that I'm a good guy?

[When has he ever done anything to warrant that as a compliment??]

Yeah?

[Confused.]

You went out of your way to treat me generously even after I made you uncomfortable. You care about Floyd and Jade despite their difficult personalities - I can tell because you have a particular smile when I'm telling them stories and they're really enjoying it. You work hard at everything you do, and I think that's really admirable.

[Thank God Floyd is not here, he would probably burst out laughing or start making fun of Azul for having momentarily blushed at such a nice compliment. But Azul quickly coughs and adjusts his glasses, quick to regain a semblance of cool.]

Thank you for the compliment... it's good to have someone finally have a pair of working eyes around here when it comes to my good points.

[... Of course he couldn't help but end up having something smarmy tacked onto the end.]

[Evangeline does giggle, but not in a mean way.]

That's one of my best qualities, working eyes.

[And that seems to be the twins cue to return with her drink... as well as one for Azul it seems, though it's hard to tell if it's also alcoholic or if he picked something else to drink for the time being here.]

Finally--I do hope that you enjoy the drink you picked out.

I'm sure I will, thank you.

[As promised, she doubles her regular tip.

And so things continue for a while. Evangeline keeps visiting the lounge, building up points and telling more stories. The days are peaceful, or at least, as peaceful as they ever get in Night Raven College.

Today is not that kind of day.

The sound is probably the first sign something is wrong - a dull roar that comes from deeper in the Octavinelle dorm. Shortly thereafter, a message from Crowley, short and to the point: someone summoned something they shouldn't have, and the dorm needs to be evacuated. The plan is to trap the creature there after everyone has gotten out and keep it contained until professionals arrive to deal with it.

That's probably fine. At least, Azul's classmates have no problem whatsoever with getting the hell out of a dorm with a rampaging monster in it.]

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how did I go this long without adding the glasses push to his icons

a critical error

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