After five minutes of almost sucking the life out of Aseem, the mysterious girl removes herself, straightens her clothing and immediately checks her face and hair in the compact mirror she retrieves from her cleavage. Upon assessing that everything is okay, she promptly introduces herself to the bewildered young man.

"Well, hey there, shug. Name's Brita Bellaire, but ya' can just call me Brit," she says, winking and twirling her hair around her finger. "Now, I can tell that yer a bit… um… taken aback? But I had to be certain that yer every bit of the magical prodigy this here faculty has been so worked up over. I also had to see if yer a snake or a stand-up guy. Us girls at Peppermint have to be extra vigilant, ya' know? We don't often get boys 'round here."

Aseem, feeling woozy and feverish, can only mumble incoherently in response.

"Oh shoot! I completely forgot about that pesky «Stupor» ! Sorry, shug!" Brita grins, feigning ignorance, but her hazel eyes showcase the opposite of such innocence. "What yer feeling is an after-effect of my special ability: the «Knack» known as «Perusal». It's gon' take ya' a minute to get ya' faculties and whatnot back in order, so just lay it on down for now, hun."

No sooner had she uttered those words, did Aseem recover, leaping angrily from the floor.

"What… in the world… IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" he screeches. "Like, what possessed you to just come in and attack me like that?!"

Brita jumps back, astonished and intrigued. "Okay, first: how in the hell didja snap outtta Stupor so fast?! Second: I ain't attack ya'!"

"Bruh… yes you did! You just burst in the room, leaped on me and shoved your tongue down my throat! GROSS!"

"♪ OFFENDEEEEED! ♪ My kisses are far from gross!" Brita retaliates while placing her hand on her chest in mock heartache. The sing-song tone in which she replied was ear-splitting, but Aseem shrugged it off.

"I taste sardines!"

"What? Really? I was certain I brushed my tongue good enough…," Brita exhales into her hand then sniffs it, immediately recoiling. "Oh no… it seems I skipped that part in my rush to get up here. Sadsies!"

"Do better!"

"Tuh! Can ya' blame me though? Yer hella cayute!"

"Well, I appreciate that," Aseem blushes. He almost lets his guard down, but quickly regains composure. "You were still out of line though!"

"Okay, okay. Jeez. Just chill, shug. I ain't mean to come across that way. Believe me, I had the best intentions in mind."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Aseem sighs as he takes a seat on his bed. "Between you and Julita, I don't know who's the worst."

Brita prepares to respond, but is suddenly interrupted by the loud sound of someone clearing their throat.

"What in the world…," she grumbles, turning around slowly. "Oh no, oh my – Adryon! I had forgotten all about ya', babes!"

"Yeaaaah… I can see that," he remarks. "I was preparing to explain something to Aseem, but then you busted in and interrupted it all."

Currently experiencing a mixture of relief and annoyance, Adryon finds both impossible to deal with. Although he's only twelve, the young man is mature where it counts. He's never been the type to spill his guts, preferring the security that comes with being aloof and withdrawn, yet he can't shake this sense of familiarity he feels with Aseem that makes him want to sit and talk for hours. Of course, he hasn't the faintest idea why.

This struggle, which has waged internally since he returned to the dormitory, makes it grueling to remain his typical indifferent and reticent self.

"Oh no! I am dreadfully sorry," she gushes. Sauntering over to his bed, Brita holds him close to her bosom as she plants kisses on his forehead. "I know how tough things have been fer ya' since ya' got here years ago, but look on the bright side: there's another dude 'round now, honey. Ain't gon' be alone anymore."

"Yeah, it can't be that bad," Aseem chimes in. "Being the only guys here, we definitely need to stick together."

"Hey! Us girls ain't that terrible, boo!" Brita barks. She sashays back to Aseem's side of the room, where she jabs one of her stubby fingers into his chest, causing him to slightly cough. "Actually, we ain't terrible at all."

"Yeah, one of you just likes to manhandle guys, and the other likes to kiss people without permission. Really proper and peachy."

"Most boys wouldn't complain," she says wryly, rolling her eyes.

"But I'm not most boys!"

"Ugh! Whatever," she scoffs. Brita plops onto the bed next to Aseem, causing the mattress to shake from the impact of her large posterior. "Since ya' new here and obviously uncomfortable about the whole ordeal, I'ma let ya' judgments slide. I get that being in this place, especially under the pretenses given, ain't what any teenage boy wants to deal with."

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"Well, you're right about that last part," Aseem grumbles. "I mean, can you imagine being a source of scorn and ridicule in the place you grew up? The place with so many fond memories and all of your so-called best friends that despise you now? I can never show my face in Jedwimburgh ever again."

"Shug, I know how ya' feel more than anybody else 'round here," Brita says. Sighing heavily, she embraces Aseem. "Can I tell ya' a story, darlin'?"

Aseem yawns. "Is it gonna take a long time? Because I'm exhausted still,"

"♪ RUUUUUUUDE! ♪" Brita wails into Aseem's ear with jarring melody. This prompts both he and Adryon to cover their ears. Amused, Brita decides to sing a line from a song she loves, annoying the boys further. "♪ Looooooooong………ago, I had a wooden pony, AND IT CAME TO LIFE AND TOOK ME FER A RIIIIIIIIDE! ♪"

"It hurts! It really, really hurts!" Adryon yelps as he falls off the bed, rolling on the floor like he's on fire. Aseem does the same, but is even more dramatic with his movements.

"Aiiiiiiiyiiiiiiiyeeeeeeeee! The pain! Oh my god, the paaaaaaiiiiiiiin!"

"Hardy har har," Brita starts, kicking Aseem. "My singing isn't that bad."

"What's that? My ears have been melted off. I'm no good at reading lips!" Aseem jests, fighting the urge to snicker.

"Whatever! Anyway, if you two are done piddlin' 'round and bein' wiseasses, I was fixin' to say that my story ain't even long, but it's worth hearing. Might help us find some common ground, ya' know?"

Aseem sits up. "Well, alright then. Lay it on me,"

"Perfect. Here goes…"

*🍬*

{AUTHOR'S NOTE: The narrator for this part will be Brita. #ENJOY…}

So, 'round five or so years before I came to Peppermint, I lived in Meadowview, which is a small town located in the southwest part of Aurissia. And, like, things were fine and whatnot, ya' know? Nothing too out-of-the-ordinary ever happened. We sorta just existed, but ain't ever really lived. I was only twelve during this time, but I knew a li'l something 'bout magic due to the circumstances surrounding my birth.

See, I'm what's known as a Vixite, which is honestly just a fancy term fer a fox-person. Weeeeeell… to be honest, I'm only HALF-Vixite, and also the only hybrid in a family of ten kids, of which I'm the youngest. My Vixite side comes from my mother though, who left shortly after I was born. She wrote a letter before dropping off the face of the earth which she gave to Poppa (that's what I call my father!), instructing him to give it to me when I was old enough. He was reluctant to do so, but eventually respected her wishes.

The letter explained that she ain't ever intend to abandon me and only left because she feared fer our safety. However, Poppa wasn't keen on lettin' her take me away, which was heartbreaking for such a young and new mother.

In my family, I've been treated coldly by Poppa's relatives, which has really reinforced the desire to meet my mother's side. Some of my siblings can be just as cold, but my brother Kwontrell—who was my fifth-oldest sibling—and I were inseparable. He always made sure to look out fer and protect me, but he also made sure to teach me how to defend myself. Being half-Vixite, I have a greater aptitude fer learning and using magic, which Kwontrell made sure to exploit. Now, I know the word "exploit" has a negative connotation, but trust me, hun — he did so fer all the right reasons.

As ya' done probably noticed, I been referring to my brother in the past tense. This is because he died protecting me from our grandfather, Atticus Earl Bellaire. Or, as we all called him: Grandpappy Atti. See, Kwontrell used a forbidden spell to banish that ol' bigoted geezer to an alternate dimension since he ain't have the heart to kill him. Sadly, the spell had the prerequisite of needing someone's life force, so he chose to give his in order to complete it.

I learned much too late that Grandpappy's life could've been used instead, which would've just sent his shriveled up corpse to the other dimension. I would've preferred that over losing my brother, but I ain't messed up 'bout it no more. It is what it is. Regrettably, my brother was prevented from entering Paraddon because he used forbidden magic. If ya' ain't ever heard of Paraddon, it's the afterlife fer righteous souls and whatnot. Ya' should know this though since ya' done lived on Sopragaea all this time. If not? Then read a book, shug!

***

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So, when my brother banished Grandpappy, it disrupted our whole community in Meadowview. And because of it being such a small town, the news spread like wildfire. Grandpappy Atti was a well-respected man in not only Meadowview, but Aurissia as a whole. This is where the scorn and ridicule that you spoke of before comes in.

Kwontrell, rest his sweet and loving soul, irreparably damaged the reputation of the Bellaire name. While most had turned a blind eye to Poppa's relations with a Vixite, they couldn't do so in the case of prohibited wizardry. It was like a massive cold front, chillin' all of Meadowview, fillin' 'em with fear that my brother was an acolyte of The Under-Lord. Because, if ya' let 'em tell it, only those in his service would stoop to such illicit sorcery. I consider that some grade-A horse-hockey though.

Anyway, some folks from Jedwimburgh got wind of what happened and came to Meadowview no more than a week after everything went down. They were apparently good friends of Grandpappy and were so-called respecting his wishes by showing up when they did. From what I could hear when Poppa and nem were chit-chattin', Grandpappy had secretly arranged for me to be enrolled in Peppermint Academy.

Ain't a word of it had ever been spoken to Poppa, but with the man enduring so much embarrassment and vitriol due to Kwon's actions, he wasn't upset with Ol' Atti. He agreed with 'em that it would be best fer the Bellaires and all of Meadowview if I was sent away. Tiring of life there, I agreed to it, packed what li'l things I could take and vamoosed. Haven't looked back since, and also don't hear from my family. I do, however, go and visit Kwontrell in Mortishaven, which is the realm of the dead.

I really miss my brother, Aseem. He was everything to me and a great example of what a man should be. He was always respectful, empathetic and courageous. He was also very perceptive. Nothing ever got by him. I could be brimmin' with joy on the outside, but he'd know that something was botherin' me deep down. At those times, he'd just take me and hold me. We'd embrace for hours. This is why I'm such a touchy-feely person. I love being held and holding others. Intimacy is everything, and it's not always sexual.

Like, I truly do regret kissin' you without permission, but I was impatient. I needed to know what kind of guy you are, because to be honest, I'ma need ya' help soon. It's gon' take our powers combined to pull off what I hope to accomplish.

*🍬*