Chapter Text
Azul Ashengrotto was not someone who accepted gifts. They were...burdensome. Receiving a gift means being indebted to the person who gifted it to him. It was the same thing with favors. He would rather be debt-free, after all. Every time anyone had gotten him a gift, he would find a way to pay them back with a favor he decided or in a return gift. He didn't want to be indebted to anyone, malicious or not, for the fear that someone might use that gift as leverage in a deal. It might've been a silly fear to anyone else, but to Azul who ran a business that dealt with deals and debt, it was something more tangible.
And today was the day where he was on high alert against gifts: his birthday. A day when everyone and anyone wanted to give him gifts. A few choice people had tried to hand him gifts in the form of food, and he had to explain that he couldn't accept due to the nature of the business he ran. A lie, of course. He was skilled enough to tell if there was a spell anywhere near his food from the traces of magic. Kalim had already offered to host a party on his behalf twice, which Azul declined profusely, again, twice. He was sure that Jamil would have a headache had he agreed. Then it was Rook bothering him, asking what kind of food an octopus preferred which was intimidating when it came from the excitable hunter. Though he appreciated those who tried to get him gifts, he couldn’t accept any of them.
Azul almost had a headache by lunchtime. There was no way to escape the celebratory mood. He knew that there would be a party waiting for him in Octavinelle after the school day was over, as per NRC tradition. He adjusted his glasses as he walked down the hallways, flanked by Jade and Floyd. It was a rarity on its own because the moodier Leech usually went where he wanted when he wanted. It didn’t matter. He figured it was the perfect time for him to talk to them about the new special menu that he had thought up for their seasonal menu.
That was before Floyd got distracted.
"Ah? Isn't that Shrimpy?" Floyd's voice was as excited as ever. "Imma go squeeze them a bit." Azul looked up to see the so-called "Shrimpy" standing at the end of the hallway.
Azul sighed, half-disappointed that he didn't get through his plan yet, "There he goes. As excitable as always around the Ramshackle Prefect."
"My," Jade chuckled. "You're not being honest with yourself if you say that we aren't the same." Jade walked ahead, catching up to where Floyd was currently cuddling into Yuu at the end of the hallway.
Azul couldn't argue with that. He didn’t want to delve into what exactly it meant, but he knew Jade was right when he said all three of them were…slightly biased in their feelings towards the Prefect. He finally unrooted his legs, making his way over to where the twins were chatting with Yuu.
"What a coincidence it is to run into you here, Prefect," Azul smiled, practiced, and measured while keeping his tone coy. "Were you perhaps occupied with something?"
Yuu pointed as best they could with Floyd draping over them like an oversized blanket, "I was looking at that." The three followed their finger over to a small machine tucked into the corner of the courtyard.
"Ah yes," Azul took in the strange box-like machine. "Idia-san had told me about it during club hours. Ignihyde had brought over that so-called 'claw machine' to test out their new anti-magic-breach software. It is filled with...toys, and he was confident that someone was bound to try using magic to force it open."
"Eh, is Little Shrimp interested in toys?” Floyd hummed, his sharp teeth on display. “That's kinda lame."
"You think?" Something Azul couldn't describe shadowed Yuu's expression before it disappeared. "I think I played with something similar back in my world."
"I've heard that it's very hard to get those toys," Jade said in a fake worried tone. "It could be a good business prospect, Azul. My classmates had certainly spent all their allowances on that machine."
Now that sparked Azul's interest, "How fascinating."
"Shrimpy, you'll never be able to win!" Floyd said, clinging to the Prefect like a sloth. If that was Azul, he would've already pushed Floyd off. Which probably would've angered the taller. In that respect, Azul applauded Yuu's patience.
"Now now, Floyd," Jade chastised. "That isn't something that you should say. You should say that it’s improbable to win on the first try."
Despite the comments, the Prefect had slipped two thaumarks into the machine, standing in front of it. He watched as the machine sprung to life, the colored lights illuminating the many stuffed animals and figurines sitting inside the box. Yuu placed a hand on the lever and the claw jerked around to their whims.
Hmm, it did look tempting to play. Maybe people's frustration was also what played into it. The more one was denied something, the more one would want it, thus leading to mindlessly spending money in excess... Ever the businessman, he quickly calculated how much it would be to acquire one of these boxes, according to what Idia had said.
Azul shifted his gaze up, just in time to see the metal claw drop the toy. He flinched as the machine flashed its bright lights one again, celebratory music playing as a mechanical voice said, "You are the winner!"
"Woah! Shrimpy won something!"
"I guess I still got the touch,” Yuu said as Floyd swung them up into the air.
"You have proved us both quite wrong," Jade complimented. "I wonder what you managed to win."
Yuu– after extracting themself from Floyd's grip– bent down towards the small hatch. They rummaged around a bit before revealing that they won a stuffed toy.
It was...an octopus.
Azul blinked as he stared at the happy expression it had. It was dark purple, with eight stuffed tentacles sticking up every which way. They…won an octopus. An octopus, of all things?
"Ooh, it's squishy," Floyd had his hand on one of its stout tentacles, squeezing the stuffed toy mercilessly. "Kinda good to squeeze." He let go and Azul’s throat bobbed at the way the tentacle was now flattened.
"It certainly has a charm of its own," Jade said as he chuckled.
"It's really cute," Yuu looked up at him, before looking down at the plush. "It kinda reminds me of you. Do you want it, senpai?"
Azul felt stupefied at the question, stuttering, "E-Excuse me? You'd like to give that…to me? That...that octopus?"
What kind of game were they playing? Azul felt his thoughts jumble from the effort it took to try to rationalize what was happening. He had no use for a stuffed animal, much less one of an octopus. Was this their way of saying that his octomer form was unsightly? But they had just called it cute...and said it reminded them of him, of all people.
"I mean, I was just playing around for fun," Yuu patted the octopus plush. "I feel like if I took it with me I'd be dooming it to a life full of dust at Ramshackle."
"That is quite true," Jade said before sending the Prefect a polite smile. "Ah, I mean no offense. The dust is also a part of Ramshackle's...ambiance, after all."
"Besides, senpai...isn't today your birthday?" The octopus was then thrust into his arms. He held it away from him like it was contaminated with blot. "I guess this counts as a present. Happy Birthday, Azul-senpai." Azul felt his heart stutter, though he would never admit it. So that was their angle. A gift.
Azul cleared his throat, getting ready to use his glib tongue, "Thank you for the present. What a...wonderful gift indeed. What would you like in return for it?"
"There's no need since it was all luck. If I didn't win then I wouldn't have gotten the present," Yuu stepped a little closer, before whispering. "Unless you'd like to pay me back the two thaumarks I used on the machine? Then we could say that you won the toy instead, senpai."
His brain most definitely short-circuited as Yuu left, the octopus still in his grasp. Usually, he would call out after them, with something of a promise to pay them back but... They were right. They won the plush by luck. And they gave it to him for his birthday because he was coincidentally there, not having spent more than two thaumarks on it. He frowned, adjusting his grip so that the plush wouldn’t fall. Then…what should he do?
"It seems that our dear Yuu-san has got you cornered, Azul," There was an amused glint to his eyes, Azul sourly noted. "You can't pay them back for something that they didn't even spend that much money on."
"Little Shrimp has re~ally good luck," Floyd grinned, poking the octopus. "Kinda jealous you got such a nice present from Shrimpy, but it's your birthday so I won't steal it."
"I'll think of a way," Azul said quietly, his usual bravado forgotten in the back of his mind. "I'll pay them back for what they gave me." Because he would think of a way or else he wasn't Azul Ashengrotto.
Or so he thought.
Okay so, maybe he wasn't Azul Ashengrotto.
Hours later, the smiling octopus was sitting at the corner of his table as he checked over the weekly sales report for Mostro Lounge. It was long after the party at Octavinelle had ended. A lot of people had been in attendance and even Yuu was there to take his picture. Though he wasn't fond of pictures, this one was taken on behalf of the headmaster so he didn't complain.
Floyd snatched the octopus from his desk, "Hello, little Tako~" Azul felt another headache growing as he watched Floyd turn the octopus inside out. Did he mention that it was reversible? Because the octopus was, in fact, reversible. Ironically it was Jade who figured it out. Its happy face was replaced with a frowning one on the reverse side, which Azul did not appreciate. At. All.
"Azul's ki~nda frowny, so little Tako should be on this side," Floyd had snickered, placing the now-frowning octopus back on his desk.
Maybe he should stuff it into a cupboard so he didn't have its eyes tracking his movements every few seconds. The pressure it put on him was felt keenly, in how Azul couldn't help but have his thoughts drift to ways he could pay back the Prefect. And so far, he had nothing. And it was bothering him immensely. So much so that he was sure he would be staying up thinking about it.
Azul abruptly pushed back his chair, drawing the attention of the twins. Their mismatched eyes looked at him curiously, Jade from where he was checking invoices and Floyd where he was messing around with his phone.
"I'm going to pay Yuu-san a visit," Azul squeezed the octopus in a vice grip. "I think the best way to pay them back is to give this to them. I'll be back in a little bit." Azul donned his grey trench coat, his staff in one hand and the octopus in his other. He looked ridiculous surely, but there would be no one around to see save for Yuu so he didn't care. He just needed to stop thinking about this....this pest that sat on his desk.
"Aww, I'm gonna miss you little Tako," Floyd said with a pout as he passed by. Azul walked towards Ramshackle with a single thought: If he could get them to take this gift back, then he wouldn't have to think about this infernal octopus anymore.
He completely missed the grins the Leech twins shot each other after he passed them, and the delighted look of a predator stalking prey in their eyes.
As soon as he arrived at Ramshackle, he saw that it was dark. Was it always like that? Or was the Prefect already asleep? He frowned. It wasn't that late, he was sure that Yuu must still be awake.
He took a breath, readying a smile before knocking on the door. Instead of a firm knocking sound, he was greeted by the door drifting open. Was the security in this place that bad? Maybe he could get them new locks to pay them back. But quality locks cost a lot more than two thaumarks. So he was back to square one.
Azul sighed as he stepped through the threshold, the dark foyer greeting him,
"Prefect? Are you awake?" Azul pulled the stuffed animal closer to him as he approached the lounge. "I'm here to return the-"
There's a flash of light and a loud bang that has Azul whipping out his staff to cast a spell. He blinked, light speckling his vision when he heard the resounding, "Surprise!" ring out in the room.
When Azul's vision cleared, he saw Yuu standing in the foyer, with Floyd on their left and Jade on their right. Floyd was holding on to a large confetti gun– the source of the bang– while Jade had his magic pen handy– the source of the sudden flood of light. Yuu stood in the middle, holding up what looked like...a plate of brownies.
"What...is the meaning of this?" Azul managed to squeeze out, trying to sound angry though he ended up sounding shocked instead.
"We made a trap 'n Azul walked right into it," Floyd said, prancing up to him to push him onto the couch.
Azul squeezed the octopus to his chest, using it as a barrier between him and the tweel-human trio, "What trap?"
Jade was smiling that smile reserved for when he was playing with his victims. Azul didn’t like it being directed at him. "Well, it was all thanks to our dear Prefect here. They laid out some excellent bait."
Azul's eyes narrowed, "Bait?" His eyes shot open when he stared down at the octopus. Did they-
"Cut it out, guys," Yuu sighed, placing the brownies down. "We're supposed to be celebrating him, not intimidating him."
Floyd whined, putting his head on top of the Prefect's, "Can't help it. It's been ages since we've seen Azul so surprised!"
"It is quite the rare occasion, so forgive us for delighting in it so much."
Regaining his composure, Azul sat up, "Did you gift me this toy hoping that I would come here to give it back to you?"
Yuu smiled apologetically, "I really did win it by luck, senpai. I just played on that habit of yours to never leave a debt unpaid, and the tweels took care of the rest."
"It was quite amusing to continually bring your attention to the octopus."
"Yeah," Floyd started to smirk. "Azul's eye twitched whenever I played with little Tako, like...I thought you'd blow up like a volcano."
"So. What was the purpose of this?" Azul's patience for games was wearing thin. He didn’t appreciate being toyed around like this.
And maybe he sounded a little too hurt because Yuu looked sorry as they spoke again, "We wanted to do something you could also enjoy. I mean… I know you have a reputation to uphold in front of the students, so you can't...fully enjoy the party we had earlier, so… So…"
"What Yuu-san means is," Jade interjected. "You can relax. No one's here to appraise you."
"Mhm!" Floyd lifted one of the plates. "Little Shrimp cooked a lotta good food, which I made sure Jade didn't meddle in because mushrooms are blergh. So you gotta eat lots!"
And oh.
Azul was almost touched. Almost. He definitely would've been more touched if it wasn't for the deception and trickery. But he understood where they came from, sort of. If they'd asked him to join this party he would've refused just as he refused Kalim hours earlier. That didn't stop him from feeling wronged for being tricked so thoroughly.
"You've given me quite the wonderful opportunity," Azul sat up, knowing he sounded a bit forceful. "Now how should I pay you back, I wonder."
Yuu blinked, looking confused, "Why would you need to pay us back?"
Azul almost snorted at that, "Why? Because you threw this...silly party for me."
"Eh? We didn't throw a party for Azul though," Floyd grabbed one of the brownies, popping it into his mouth. "It’s a misunderstanding."
What in the Great Seven does that mean? Azul must've said that out loud because instantly the twins were smiling at each other. This just reminded him of how much he detested when they would band together against him to prank him for his previous birthdays. Now that they had a third conspirator, Azul really was less than thrilled.
"Well, senpai," Yuu sat next to him, innocently shrugging. "You kinda just walked into me and the tweels' movie night party that we were having coincidentally on your birthday."
"W-what kind of obvious lie is that?" Azul was this close to throwing the octopus at Yuu, and then maybe throwing a spell or two at the twins.
"My, Azul, no need to get so worked up," Jade smirked. "We certainly didn't invite you to this event, nor did we tell you this was an event for your birthday. We're sharing our food with you simply because we aren't barbarians. Surely we can't just turn you back when you've come all this way."
Azul wasn't sure what kind of expression he was making, but Floyd sure thought it was hilarious as he started cackling, "Aha, Shrimpy you're right! This is so fun! Maybe it's not bad to do smart stuff once in a while."
"Making Azul speechless is quite the feat, Yuu-san," Jade patted the Prefect on the head. "Your plan worked with astounding results."
Yuu grinned awkwardly at the compliments, "Ah, it was a group effort, so... Should we start with our first movie?"
Floyd snatched up the remote first, "Me first! Wanna see the one 'bout the giant shark. Seein' the little humans tryna not get eaten's the best part of Bite!"
Jade placed a hand on the remote too, "If I may, when watching with others, it is better to watch a conventional genre, such as a classic action movie. I think it is more appropriate to watch Operation Improbable."
"Jade, that's so boring."
"Truly? Well, I find that Bite’s plot is quite predictable."
And there they went, arguing about something menial again. Azul shook his head, still reeling from the happenings of the plan that Yuu had constructed for him. He had to admit that he was quite fooled.
A plate of fried chicken was placed on Azul's lap, and Yuu bumped his shoulder, "I’m sorry for the trickery and for leading you around. But you don't have to make it so complex, Azul-senpai. Sometimes you wanna give another person a gift without wanting a favor from them. Those kinds of people exist, you know."
Azul righted his glasses. Oh, the perfection that was the fried chicken in front of him. From the smell to the crispy skin, it had Azul falling in love over and over again- But that was beside the point.
The truth was, he couldn’t quite work himself up to be mad, at both Yuu or the twins. Their plan had good intentions. And while Azul was prideful, he could tell when he lost, and this was one of those rare times he would admit it. But that won’t stop him from sticking true to who he was.
He cleared his throat, pushing the plate aside, "I'll think of a way to pay you back for this. How do discounts on your Mostro Lounge purchases sound?"
Yuu groaned, "Senpai, you-"
"But," Azul hugged the octopus closer to him, realizing, miserably, that Floyd was right. It really was good to squeeze. "I will be keeping this octopus. It...was won by chance, there was no way a magicless student could set up something that had Ignihyde security measures on it."
A slow smile spread on Yuu's face and Azul was shocked for the second? or was it third? time that night. The Prefect was rarely found smiling, after all. And definitely nothing going past the small smiles they would send their friends. So to be the very person that this full smile was directed at... Azul could feel the burn on his cheeks, something so unfamiliar to him both above land and under the water.
"Is Shrimpy flirting with Azul?" Floyd whispered, quite badly. "I wanna flirt with Azul 'n Shrimpy too."
"Next time, Floyd," Jade's quieter whispers carried a hint of amusement. "Look, Azul's blushing." And Azul sent them the best glare he could under these circumstances and prayed that Yuu didn't hear anything.
The Prefect seemed to not notice, staring instead at the Leeches with puzzlement in their eyes, "Are you guys going to choose a movie? Or should I?"
It started another round of arguments between Jade and Floyd on which movie was better before Yuu ordered them to play rock papers scissors to avoid it getting physical. If it were Azul, he would've let them brawl it out before picking a movie he wanted to watch. But he supposed that was one of the many things he liked about Yuu. Their ability to handle the Leeches differently but just as efficiently as he did.
Azul felt the first genuine smile of the day grow on his face at Floyd's crestfallen face when Jade's rock beat his scissors. They would be watching Operation Improbable first. Not that Azul minded. He looked down at the frowning octopus in his grasp, before turning it inside out. The smile that left him so unsettled before seemed to mirror his own as he reached over for the plate of fried chicken. He couldn’t refuse the food that Yuu had worked so hard to make.
The movie's theme started at long last, and all four of them piled onto the too-tiny couch. In any other circumstance maybe Azul would've suggested getting a bigger couch, but with Yuu curved against his side, Floyd's leg over his, and Jade's arm behind his head, maybe it wasn't so bad. Yeah, he could get used to this, to having a brand of comfort to call his own.
his own brand of comfort, END.