It’s not as if Mathias was trying to make himself look conspicuous, carting a live rabbit around. He’d wanted to hide the rabbit initially, but it refused to stay in his pocket. It preferred his shoulder, and once it found its way up there, it dug its claws in and refused to come down. Trying to tug the rabbit down would only tear his uniform, so he’d had no choice but to leave it be.
As Mathias sulked silently, Mia reached up towards the little rabbit.
“Are you hurt, poor thing? Come here.”
The look in her eyes was identical to the way she looked at Felix when he was having one of his attacks. It was such a caring look. So warm, so comforting. Mathias was starting to realize why it had such a soothing effect on Felix.
The rabbit’s ears perked up. It trembled for a moment but soon began to relax. Then it stretched its legs and hopped down from Mathias’s shoulder.
Mathias was relieved he’d chosen to come here first. He wasn’t sure how much longer he’d have been able to play babysitter to an injured bunny.
“Aw, you had a nice comfy perch up there, didn’t you?”
Chuckling, Mia stroked the rabbit’s back. She seemed to be at ease around animals as well.
Quickly whipping some first aid items from her bag, she began patching up the rabbit’s wound.
“You’re good with animals.”
Henrik said aloud what Mathias had just been thinking.
“You think so?”
Mia tipped her head to one side, still stroking the rabbit. Her hand moved with a practiced, confident manner. Something about it seemed so familiar to Mathias…
That’s the way she strokes Felix’s back…
Grinning a little, Henrik looked up at Felix. Clearly, the same thought had occurred to him.
Meanwhile, Felix blithely chuckled and exclaimed, “Even the bunny can sense how kind Mia is inside!”
As she finished patching up the rabbit, Mia muttered, “Its eyes are…red.”
Mathias nodded. They were red, yes, but not as red as his own. They were more of a reddish-brown. They reminded him of Trout’s eyes.
“It’s a rabbit. Red eyes are kind of normal for them, I thought?”
Felix shrugged. Mia thought it over for a second before shaking her head.
“Red eyes are common for white rabbits, but this one’s fur is black. That’s an odd combination.”
Felix grunted.
“So, what are we supposed to do with it?”
“I think we’d better try to find its owner…” Mathias trailed off midsentence. He had a feeling their little bunny brainstorming session wasn’t going to get wrapped up so easily.
“Who could its owner be, though? Pets are supposed to be banned from campus.”
Mia frowned, and Felix frowned along with her.
“Then maybe it’s a secret pet? In which case, there’s no guarantee we’d find its owner even if we did go public about it.”
Mathias nodded. Then Henrik stopped brooding and suddenly spoke up.
“There’s always the chance it’s not a pet at all. Even more reason for us to keep shtum about it, I’d say.”
Mia blinked, looking thoughtful.
“Hey, where did you find the bunny, anyway?”
“It was out in the middle of the magic training area.”
“Really? Not in one of the medical or pharmacology buildings?”
Mathias shook his head. Henrik and Mia both turned to look at one another.
“Maybe it escaped, then…”
“But it must have covered a vast distance…”
As the two of them murmured back and forth, Mathias frowned. He couldn’t follow their conversation at all.
He often found himself wondering what these two top students were talking about. Their brains were wired completely differently from his, and he had a feeling he was never going to get it.
So Mathias turned to Felix, seeking a reliable ally.
But then Mia turned back to Mathias.
“Mathias, could you do us a favor? Henrik and I want to follow up on a hunch, so could you carry on taking care of the bunny in the meantime?”
Mathias took a step backward.
“Wh-Why? It’s forbidden to keep a pet on campus, ya know?!”
“Yes, it’s the same rule for everyone. But Mathias, you can use magic. And the bunny seems to like you. Please take care of it, just for a little while.”
Henrik’s tone was even and soothing.
“Well, I…okay.”
Mathias thought about the heat haze spell Trout had forced him to summon.
“What’s babysitting one little bunny going to hurt you? We’ll find its owner soon enough. And you’ve made zero progress gathering info on that absent student, thanks to your chronic shyness. This is your one chance to make yourself useful.”
Felix’s dig hurt Mathias’s feelings. You’re the only one not contributing. You do your part. That’s how Mathias took it. But he knew Felix was right.
Mathias looked at the helpless bunny’s glassy eyes. Then he looked at Felix, who was gazing at him with that same sort of innocent expression.
It’s not like he would ever have expected Felix to be any good with animals, anyway.
The bell rang to mark the end of the day’s classes. Their meeting over, they all gathered up their stuff and proceeded to leave the lounge.
“Felix, how about grabbing a bite to eat?”
Mathias turned to Felix. Maybe it would still be easier to care for the bunny if there were two of them. But…
“Ah, no, sorry. Other plans. You go ahead and eat.”
Sidling off, Felix began casually hurrying away in the direction of the law building.
Sometimes, Felix had things he needed to do under his true identity. Maybe he’d gotten a summons from the royal offices.
Man…I’ve brought a heap of trouble down on myself.
Left standing there alone, Mathias chewed his lip. As he too began to wander away—
“Hey, Mathias.”
Henrik quietly called him to a stop.
What do you want now? Mathias thought, turning around reluctantly. But Henrik was carefully watching Felix until he disappeared around a corner out of sight.
Henrik’s behavior made Mathias immediately suspicious.
So, Felix was the thing he wanted to discuss?
“What?”
“Have you made any progress, grilling the other students?”
“I heard he’s being cared for at the army hospital. Nobody would tell me any more than that…” Mathias trailed off.
To him, it seemed likely that none of the other students even knew any more than that. The army wasn’t going to let information like that leak out. Maybe that’s the reason why the kid was being held at the army hospital in the first place.
Henrik sighed.
“It’s as tricky as I expected. We’re going to have to go ahead with the last-ditch resort.”
Last-ditch resort? The unusual turn of phrase made Mathias pause. Then Henrik hit him with a question that nearly floored him.