A Twisted Christmas Special - Octavinelle Trio & Reader-Insert

An Icey Twistmas

As the Winter Holidays drew closer and closer, it took no time at all for Headmage Dire Crowley to remember an unfortunate and terrible truth. One that would set woeful tears streaming from his golden eyes and despairing sobs choked from his throat. His poor, poor students...

They were complete and utter Bah-Humbugs!

Let it be known, Crowley had never been fond of the cold. He was a mage known to flee to the South during Winter's peak, to enjoy the sunnier spell of Kingdoms where the warm temperature was pleasantly unchanging. And yet, there was something about this time of year that even he could not deny his fondness for.

Gingerbread houses, mistletoe, grand feasts of roasted veg, thick gravy, glazed meats, oversized cosy sweaters, and appreciating the ones most close with gifts and company. There were just too many things not to love.

So why that with every generation of aspiring Mages was he given the grumpiest, scrooge-like and most non-festive students in Wonderland? It simply wasn't fair!

But with the arrival of the non-magic student – beast-taming their way through the student body – Crowley sensed things would be different this festive season. He was determined to make it so. To show his cynical students once and for all the true meaning of the holiday spirit – the ancient magic of Yule.

And what better way to celebrate winter than with an ice rink?

Naturally, Azul Ashengrotto rose to the occasion.

You were with him when the news broke, waiting tables at the Mostro Lounge for your evening shift. How an Ice rink would be implemented on the frost-coated sports field, just off the main street's pathway. To anyone else, this was just another one of Crowley's grandiose but poor attempts at connecting with his students, who frankly wanted little to do with him.

But not to Azul. His oblong, cephalopod pupils gleamed with golden doubloons, a treasure trove at the idea alone.

This is how you found yourself working at one of Azul's many hot food and drink kiosks set up around the ice rink. A simple but brilliant idea: no one could resist a hot chocolate or hot meal after hours of ice skating.

However, you weren't so lucky to be ice skating and, instead, you stood next to the behemoth, the bastard, and the shark of NRC. Also known as Floyd Leech, which Azul was so... benevolent to pair you with on the booth you both had been assigned to. Just you and him.

Don't get it wrong – Floyd was relatively "nice"... when he wanted to be. But when kept in one spot for too long, he gets particularly insufferable and you had a sneaking suspicion your real job was actually to preoccupy him while the real work got done.

Why?

"F-Floyd, get off. I can't s-stand," you choked out as Floyd flopped his whole body onto your back – arms limp noodles over your shoulder. Your grip on the cold metal counter trembled and the edge dug deep into the front of your hip. "Floyd off! You're too heavy!"

"Nah, seeing you fall over will be funny," Floyd said shamelessly.

You scowled as his devious giggle resonated right by your ear – his sharp teeth glinting like light against water in your peripheral.

"Hehe, you actually look like a shrimp now, back arched and all. Trying oh so hard to hold me up. Come on. Fall!"

"No!"

"Come onnn!"

As you strained every muscle to not crumble under Floyd's pure massiveness, you spotted Azul and Jade nearby on their hourly sweep of the food booths. This was to confirm everything was in working out and jobs were being done.