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The trepidation of the exams weighed heavily on the hellhound, but it was but an exam - a test of what he had learned since coming to the academy. It was to test his knowledge, his skill, his resourcefulness, to test if he was ready to move on and make it on his own. He had spent most of the morning prepping himself up - psyching himself up for the exams, but still finding time to relax and clear his mind of doubts. Still, there were thoughts left, but a lot less than when the morning light came through the windows. He turned to see the sleeping monster hellhound. To him, he appeared to be beautiful in the way he slept, a bit strange, but he had found the monster admirable and aesthetically pleasing to look at.

The entrance to the exam was rather... unexpected. He had expected a large, hedge maze with an exam proctor waiting for him. He had expected some proctor to be waiting for him with some sort of devious grin on his face. He even expected his mother to be present just to throw a wrench into his life now that it was going somewhere - now that he was getting somewhere. He had not expected a door with a handle. Nothing special about it. It was not ornate nor was it humming with energy. The demon spent a moment looking the portal over - a cautious sniff, a tentative touch to the door's frame, before grasping the handle.

"About jacking time you got here, mister. We have been waiting for you for ages. Come come, we are already behind schedule." A ghoul came to him, her thin hands on his shoulder and a plain white mask with no prominent features on it. She pushed him along through a throng of creeples of all sorts, all of them wore belts and packs and headsets and held objects ranging from mics to cameras. His thick brows shot up as he was forcible pushed around by such a smaller ghoul, he wasn't even sure what was going on. "Now now, you sit here," she pushed him harshly into a wooden stool and stand. Harsh, bright lights shining directly on him. Before long, he noticed that there were cameras pointed at him, all their beady red lights in the darkness behind the masked ghoul's shoulders. "Ahem." She cleared herself as she settled herself into the seat adjacent to him, her lean legs crossed at the ankle, her head back. "Make up!" That command had demons and reapers coming to her side to apply whatever it was before disappearing back into the darkness. Uru looked around. His first thought was to get up and move, but his body refused. "Now then, all you must do is look at me, smile, and speak truthfully."

"Speak... wha-"

Suddenly the lights glared brighter and the red lights became green. "WELCOME ALL! Today, we have a special guest with us. He was the former heir to his pack. He had it all, the power, the wealth, the land, the looks - though, arguably, I'd say he still has that. Welcome, the exiled hellhound of Cocytus, Uruzar'Baelaian!" The sounds of a clapping and cheering crowd came off to his left, yet there was no one there. His ears deepened in red, his eyes narrowed at the - now understanding the situation - interviewer, his fingers curling around the armrest of his stool. Her faceless mask turned to him. Something inside of him told him to settle himself, to calm himself down. To remember that this is an exam... by the academy. This is unexpected but it should have been. This should be in the realm is possibilities.

"It is a... pleasure to be here." He gritted out as he settled back into his seat, his shoulders tense under his jacket. He placed his hands in his lap as kept his eye contact with the faceless mask.

"Thank you!" She chimed, her hand raising up with a stack of cards. "Lets begin with.... What is it that the Cocytus do? They are a rather elusive pack of hellhound demons, but I hear so much about their wealth and power but we never see them. Yet, here you are, a Cocytus demon right before us. Are they all like you? You look quite wonderful and well fit for a demon."

"Well, they keep to themselves, but ... if you knew them, you wouldn't want to. You see, the Cocytus are one of three packs in a three-way alliance. The last alpha it had was manipulative and conniving. If she had wanted something from you, she'd get it by any means necessary. As long as she had the upper hand, that was all that mattered to her." He nodded slowly at the answer. It was true for what he had said. His mother was quite the literal b***h if both meanings of the word. "However, not many of the Cocytus pack are like me. They rely more on their magics and their spells - the azure flame that we have been known to possess. However, I rely more on my body, being independent of myself for myself. If you know what I mean. So, no - I am one of a kind among the Cocytus."

"Ah, yes, your mother was the last Alpha until her own exile. How fascinating! She seemed to be a strong individual, that was until you had defeated her in a fight for rights. A tradition among your species, correct?"

Uru nodded. "Yes, I had defeated both my uncle and my mother in the fights. I have proofs of each. Among my species, taking a life in such a way is prohibited. As demons, we must follow the rules and laws set before us. While my father was a monster, I am a demon."

"What is it that the Cocytus do?" The interview asked, shuffling her cards in her lap. "As a pack, you must serve a purpose, correct?"

Uru had nodded, his fingers folded in his lap. "Correct. The Cocytus guide those who are passing. They prepare them for when their life finishes. Understandably, those who walk with us will be afraid, uncertain, hurt, confused, anxious, angry. The Cocytus has developed an ability that lets us make that go away. Just for as long as they are in contact with an individual. It displaces those feelings - those emotions - just for a time to calm them so they can go peacefully. So in a way, Cocytus doesn't hurt anyone, they guide them. They offer company to those who don't have any when they need it."

"Quite fascinating!" The interview cheered as she shifted in her seat. It was then the air seemed to become more tense and serious as she leaned forward, her elbow on her armrest, her other hand against her chin. "Throughout this interview you call them 'Cocytus', you call them 'they', but you never said 'we' or 'I' in regards to the pack. Is that stemming from your exile? Do you no longer see yourself as Cocytus? Are you a lone hellhound?" Uru was taken back, his fingers clutching tighter in his lap - closer to his private area - as he curled inward. "Is it because your actions that resulted in your demotion from Heir to your sister? Is it because your former alpha demanded that you leave the pack and that no one of the pack, or of the other two, were allowed to home you, protect you, be there for you. Not even the pack of your father's - the Umbra? In fact, no one had heard from them since he had disappeared. Or is it because you are alone now? You have no home and no family you can return to when you graduate. Not only do you leave Amityville as an individual demon, but you leave it with nothing else but with what you got?"

"I-" he started, his eyes bleeding into their solid colors as his brows furrowed. His hands left the anxious spot of his lap to gripping his armrests, pushing himself up right to meet her "gaze". "I saw very little of the Cocytus in me. I was unfortunately born into a pack of demons led by an evil and diabolical female who saw me as nothing more as a puppet, a connector for two packs. A pack, which of whom, she had under her thumb through my father who cared deeply about me that would do anything to ensure my safety. I am only Cocytus by blood, but I choose to be my own demon through my own merits. I may be exiled, I may not be able to see my sister as often as I had liked, but that is fine by me. I've come into my own being, able to take care of myself and others around me. I am not alone. I may graduate and leave Amityville with nothing but what I got, but that just means I can do just about anything."

The interviewer stayed still for a moment before reclining to her chair. Her fingers laced in front of her and the cards in her lap. Sudden, she snapped her fingers, stood up, and walked into the darkness with the clicking of her heels. The demon hound glared at her as she walked away from him. It was when the sounds of her clicking stopped abruptly. She may have stopped, but the way the clicking ended was unusual. The green lights suddenly turned red again, but there were no sounds of shuffling or any movements in the darkness. Uru gave a pause before stepping down from his stool. Cautiously, he stepped forward into the darkness away from the blinding lights. As he neared the red lights of the cameras, he noticed that there were no cameras. There were was creeple manning the mechanisms. They were floating red lights. He narrowed his eyes at them briefly before he began to march forward into the darkness.

Where was he?

What was that interview about?

Who was that female?

Not another thought passed his mind as he walked into a wall of sorts in the dark. His hands splayed across the surface, searching and feeling around. A handle caught his palm as he turned it. A door out of the dark and further into the exams.

A bare room with white walls. If the last room was dark but that one spot where he stood, he expected something to happen as he walked further. Cautiously, he did. He stepped forward with alertness that would have firefighters waiting at every outlet in an elderly home. As he reached the center of the room, his vision begins to blur and shift around him. He let loose a growl, his feet planted firmly expecting something to attack him or assault him mentally.

"Uru, what are you growling about?" Came a familiar voice. Jerking his head around, he saw the green eyed boil sitting on a couch much like his own in the demon dormitory, with a thick stack of papers. "The line is ['Salvarez looks longingly at Ameria before taking her hand and kissing it.']" the green-eyed boil's voice changes to a deeper tone as his expression becomes more serious. "['Ameria, you are the love of my life. It is not the way I had expected us to be, but, here we are-'] why are you looking at me like that? Seriously, that's the line. As bad as it is... come on, you're suppose to be helping me rehearse!"

Uru's eyes drifted from the monster to the surroundings. This was his room. Sort of. It was much bigger but the furniture was a mixture of his own and the boil's. "What are you.... what are you doing here?"


"I... live here? I left the set early." The room had a very distinct smell to it that told him it was theirs. It was their scent. Not his own. Not the boil's. But theirs. Together. It was a scent that prominent in one location and that was the boil's monster dormitory. There were other scents here. A young one. The foxfires. Yet they were nowhere to be seen. As the thought crossed his mind, the room blurred briefly as a stamped of yips and fluff came from another room toward the pair of males, swarming around the demon's feet.

"Shoo!" The green-eyed boil chuckled as he ran his hands through their fur as they passed beneath him."Guys, we're rehearsing. Go watch over the pup."

"Pup?" Uru questioned as his brows rocketed up into his hair line, eyes wide at the boil.

"Yeah, I know you wanted to cuddle with him when you got home, but I put him down after his lunch. We can't go over my lines if he's awake. The monster smiled as he placed the script down on the table. The foxfires disappeared into the other room.

Uru slowly sat down next to the boil, his hand bravely reaching out to cover the other's. Slowly he was putting connections together in his head. Damien - the green-eyed monster boil - did appear older, his hair a bit shorter, eyes brighter than any of his personalities. He did appear a bit older than he remembered. Their location - their home - was a mixture of their own furniture from their respective dorms in one location in a bigger layout. They were living together. And there was a pup? A pup. Was it Damien's? Was his? Was it... theirs? Thoughts ran through his head when a hand came to touch his face.

"You alright, Urubutt? You seem so out of it. Didn't even get one line out." Damien teased lightly. The concern was there, he appreciated that. But it wouldn't be Damien with a tad of teasing.

"Y-yeah. Just a lot going on..."

"No, they didn't turn down another manuscript did they? I swear, you spend all your jacking time editing your work, they could at least, y'know, tell you what was wrong with it." The way Damien spoke with his hands some times made Uru smile more. The way he was concerned about his own affairs made his heart warm. He was a special monster.

Wait. Manuscripts? Editing? What was it exactly that he was doing for his work? He had thoughts of being a trainer or doing something physical but... a desk job? Confusion washed over his face.

Uru ran his hand through his hair which, surprisingly, was longer now. "Uh... yeah, I'll figure it out." he offered, giving Damien's hand a squeeze. "I'm gonna go give the pup a... a kiss." The monster just smiled and nodded, picking up his script again to go over it as Uru lifted himself off the chair. As he approached the room the foxfires disappeared into, the scent of the young one grew stronger. As he approached, the room stirred again. Through the doorway he could see a small bump at the top of the bed, nestled in the pillows, a tuft of brown. The pup. There was a pup in the bed - their bed. His heart swelled. This was what he had wanted. Not just Damien - he was the greatest creep he knew and appreciated his companionship, friendship, and everything, but this? This topped it. This was family. This was stability. Bravely, Uru stepped forward to the door, but as he passed on through, everything shifted back to the bland, simple room. The demon's head jerked around searching for Damien, for the foxfires, for the pup. Nothing. There was nothing in this room.

On the other side of the room was a door. Likely, it led to the next room of the exams. Smiling, he walked toward the door with a better sense of what to expect after all this. Something to look forward to. Perhaps this room may not show the future, but the possibilities of it. It showed him what he had wanted most. Maybe, if luck played in his favor, he could make it that. There was no need to rush into it. One step at a time.

Faces. Familiar faces. He could point out at least three of them that he had personally spoken to before at previous gatherings here at Amityville. The rest he could recall seeing around the campus. However, this time, they were all sitting in front of him. Looking down, he was at some sort of podium. Behind him, a large board. This was a classroom! Uru looked at the class again. These were students. His students. This time, he noticed that they were all looking at him with interesting, disinterest, boredom, or occupying themselves with whatever was fascinating under their desks. He was a professor at Amityville... Looking down at the podium, he saw that there was nothing. No lesson plan, no papers, not even a sign up sheet. He mentally cursed to himself as he leaned forward.

"Alright class, I know for a fact whatever is entertaining you in your lap, you can do that on your own time. Eyes up here or it will be at a wall." He growled, glaring directly at one ghoul who jerked up right, slapping her skellyphone onto the desk. The other students seem to perk up after that, looking at him and stopping whatever distractions they had going on. Seemed like the authoritative approach was working. He had many tutors growing up; some gentle and patient, others authoritative who yelled and demanded attention. He could do both. But.... what was his lesson plan? What class was this? He was new at this... he isn't a teacher. He's still a student!

"Professor Uru, what are we suppose to be doing today?" The class let loose a quiet chorus of murmurs as they were also uncertain. With his fine ears, he heard most of their concerns.

Setting his mind to it, Uru stood upright. "Alright, class, we're going outside to the Lost Forest. We are going to be doing a physical class today."

There was cheering.

------

"Alright, split yourselves into teams. I do not want to see segregation of dorms or gender here. There are twenty of you, figure it out." The students shuffled, quickly pairing up. Instantly Uru noticed something. Because he had mentioned that it was a physical class. Both sides tried to get as many as physical fit individuals they could get, leaving many of the smaller, thinner students to be straggled to one side or another. Uru scoffed as his arms crossed his chest. "Right. So here's what we are going to do. Each team has two scarves. These will be your flags." An eruption of cheers and grins, shoving, and laughs. "Your team will hide your flag. You will then capture the other team's flag. First one to bring me both flags wins. There is a barrier set up to confine the area. There are no rules here except that of Amityville. The use of FEAR is prohibited. Do not harm one another, please. I'll only ask that once. Any team found breaking my rules will have to deal with me being on the opposite team. If you tap someone with both hands, that person must stand still for ten seconds. If you're in the air, you must land." The boils grinned and laughed, smug as ever. The ghouls smirked with slight interest. "Losing team will have to hand in an essay homework. Subject pending. You have ten minutes to hide your flags."

The two teams broke up. Uru caught acting leaders on each team, dubbing them "Team Claw" and "Team Fang". He already knew the outcome of this match. Standing where he was, he opened his senses to listen in on them both. Team Claw had decided to shove their flag up into a tree leaving a handful to protect it as the more physical members went for the opponent's flag. Team Fang were much more clever - even made him chuckle - tying the flag to one of their fastest, smallest members with wings. They opted to send their entire team out, leaving behind the flag-bearer and two students whom natural ability were to create illusions. To be fair, the rule was no FEAR, natural abilities were still in play. He grinned when he heard the first signs of contact. Some of Claw stayed to delay Fang, Fang worked around Claw with their numbers to push toward their direction assuming it would lead to their flag. There were accusations being thrown 'You didn't touch me!' and 'I got you! Stand still! Stop cheating!'. Sounds of beating wings indicated that Fang must have had some winged students that let them fly up into the tree where the flag rested. There were a string of demands coming from the opposite side of the forest where he could imagine Fang's flag bearing runner was being chased by Claw.

Before long, the Fang flag bearer came bearing both flags with a wide grin on her face.

"Looks like your team wins and are exempted from the homework assignment." Uru stated as he gathered the flags.

"Not fair, they-they tied theirs to a student!" A claw boil cried, surrounding by others covered in mud and leaves and twigs.

"It was within the rules. Besides, who puts their flag in a tree when we have students with wings?" A ghoul replied with an air of smugness over the boils.

"Hecate, what was even the point of this class? If I wanted to play a game of capture the flag, then I could have done that on my own time!"

"Then you clearly missed the purpose of this class then." Uru growled, his eyes narrowing on the whining boil. "And that is your assignment. I want an essay on my desk. Not only on why you had lost due to your lack of cleverness, but also to as to the purpose of this class. If you hand in 'because they cheated', you're writing two papers. One on why you lost, and another on how you believe they cheated. I need a good laugh. Now, those of you who lost, go home. Get cleaned up. Those of you who won, meet me back at the classroom. Going to need a list of names to give passing marks to."

Team Claw groaned as Team Fang cheered. As he was walking back to class, the door that led to the room did not lead back at all.

< Choosing to Visit Another Room >

Striking at the armor clad being, the hellhound growled as he continued his strikes whilst it hid behind the larger than self shield. "YOU STAND BEFORE ME AND YET YOU HIDE!" He roared as he threw his fist after fist, feeling the microfactures in his fist slowly spread. He poured more and more of his energy - his being into defeating this knight.

He had came a long way, he had went through the chaos, he had came back stronger.


Uru's HP: 40/50
Times Hit: 2/3

Uru missed, exhaustion getting to him. He needed to take a breather.

Uru's HP: 25/50
Times Hit: 3/3 - Finisher