Straight-Up Not Having A Good Time At Night Raven College: Chapter 1

Chapter 8: The Legendary Seven

Grim looked up.
"Hey, hey-- so how 'bout the other dorms? What're they like?"

"Wellll..."
Leaning forward on the table again, Trey adjusted his glasses.

"Like Cater just said, the dorms of this school are modeled after the Great Seven. First, we have our dorm-- Heartslabyul; modeled after the strictness of the Queen of Hearts."

Everyone nodded.

Trey continued.
"Next we have... Savanaclaw House, based on the persistent spirit of the King of Beasts. Octavinelle House, based on the benevolent heart of the Sea Witch. And Scarabia House, modeled after the mindfulness of the Sorcerer of the Sands."

He looked around to make sure everyone was getting it, then continued.

"Then there's Pomefiore House, based on the tenacity of the Fairest Queen. Ignihyde House, based on the diligence of the Lord of the Dead. And finally, there's Diasomnia House, based on the noble spirit of the Thorn Fairy."

Kat blinked hard.
That was a whole lot of information to absorb all at once.
But also-- ugh, was she getting another headache? How much water had she been drinking? Probably not enough...

"What's with all these NAMES?!" Grim demanded, looking baffled.
"They're way too long-- how's anybody supposed to remember just ONE of 'em, let alone all seven?!"

"Ah ha ha!"
Cater laughed again, winking.
"Well, as long as you get the basic outlines of 'em, that's fine! Don't worry, you'll be able to remember them all pretty soon-- whether you want to or not!"

Trey crossed his arms.
"Which dorm you get into is decided at orientation, where the Dark Mirror picks you one based on the essence of your soul... Or something like that, at least," he said, smiling.
"Because of that, every dorm ends up developing a distinct kind of... Character, let's call it."

Cater nodded eagerly.
"Yeah, yeah-- it's true! I mean, I totally see it-- all you gotta do is look around!"

Deuce frowned, looking puzzled.
" 'Character'?" He repeated, putting a hand to his chin.

"Hmm. For example..."
Trey started looking around the cafeteria. "Ah! I got it. That guy."
He nodded across the room.

Kat sat up a little straighter, squinting. "Which one-- oh."

There was probably only one person Trey could be referring to. She couldn't see many details, but they were tall and jacked, leaning against the wall with their arms crossed.
They had tan skin, spiky white-gray hair, and...
It was one of the kemonomimi furries.

Beastfolk, she corrected herself, that was probably the right word.
Whoever it was, they had a pair of husky-like ears on top of their head, the same white color as their hair.
As she watched, they swiveled their ears around. She saw something swish behind them-- a tail.
A big, white, fluffy tail.

"That wild, rough-and-tumble vibe he's got going on has Savanaclaw written all over it," Trey continued.

"For suresies!" Cater agreed, nodding emphatically. "That dorm's just full of athletic guys who are all into working out and fighting and stuff like that."

Kat squinted.
Just her luck-- he wasn't wearing a vest... And she couldn't make out the color of his armband from this far away.

"Man, what's the right word... Macho dudes? Big, gruff older brothers? Something like that... Anyway, the black and gold armbands's another dead giveaway!" Cater informed them.