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

Chapter 23: Magic Unchecked

"ACE!" Kat screamed, voice cracking with terror.

She couldn't take it anymore-- she squeezed her eyes shut, clapping her hands over her ears as her heart thundered in her head.

Instead of the wet, meaty crunch she was expecting, though, there was a loud twinkling sound. It was followed by a rapid fluttering, like multitudes of small slips of paper drifting through the air.
There was even a flash of light and color bleeding through her eyelids.

"...Wow," she heard Cater breathe, and his grip on her loosened, arm falling from around the front of her shoulders.

Kat opened her eyes cautiously.

The air was full of holographic card symbols, glittering and changing colors like a fireworks display.

It wasn't just the symbols, either....
Actual cards were fluttering through the air, too, raining gently down onto the decimated grass like oversized confetti.
....What the hell had just happened...?

....That wasn't important right now.

"ACE!" She yelled, shoving away from Cater and running forward.

"ACE!" She heard Deuce echo, and he scrambled towards the spot where the redhead had last been from the other side.

He was crumpled in a heap on the ground, surrounded by a snowdrift of playing cards.

Deuce got to him first, dropping to his knees, shaking him urgently.
"A-Ace... Ace! HEY! Are you okay?!"

Ace groaned, propping himself up on his elbows and shaking cards off his head.
"U-Ugh..."
He coughed, rubbing his neck.
"Ow...."

Sitting up, he looked around blankly for a second. Then he blanched, hands patting blindly at his torso.
"Wh-- h-holy shit.... A-Am I-- OOF--!!"

Kat had practically tackled him-- him and Deuce both.
She threw her arms around both their necks, sending them all flying back into a pile of cards.

"You dumb piece of SHIT!" She sobbed, body shaking with adrenaline and emotion. "You stupid bastard, you idiot, you JACKASS-- don't EVER do ANYTHING like that again, you HEAR me?!"

"Ow-- OW!" He choked, as Deuce coughed, grimacing.
"Kat, that-- that hurts.... What happened? I-- I AM still alive, right? And... Where'd all these cards come from?"

Letting go, she sat up reluctantly, rubbing her eyes with more involuntary, sullen sobs.

Deuce sat up too, picking up a handful of cards and letting them fall back down with a baffled expression.
"Were these... The rosebushes?" He asked, brow knitting. "They-- turned into cards? This is-- what the hell..."

Kat blinked hard, trying to stop herself from shivering and sobbing.
This was really NOT a good time to get her glasses all sticky and fogged-up.....
Dammit-- the tears weren't stopping.....

But-- but something was different about those two....
...What was it?

Someone else stepped past them, standing between Riddle and the shocked trio.
With another reluctant sob, she wiped her nose on her sleeve, looking up.

....It was Trey.

"Riddle," he said, voice low and serious. "That's enough. Stop this. Right now."

"Wh... Wait, was that-- Trey's Doodle Suit?!" She heard Cater splutter. "But-- how in the fuck..."

Pawsteps skittered over the drifts of cards, and Grim ran over to the group, tugging urgently on her arm.
"Hey, Kat, KAT-- the magic-sealin' collars are gone! They all up an' turned into cards, too! What the heck's goin' on?!"