Clawdine was almost fully human now. Wolf ears. Tail. Faint mist. Breakfast went wrong. Magic practice went worse. School was unbearable. Clawdine knocked things over, rearranged belongings, and ruined focus with precision. "You keep me around," Clawdine said once. "I don't." "You do." Jaiden didn't answer. That night, surrounded by scattered cards and chaos, Jaiden realised something uncomfortable. His life was a disaster. But it wasn't empty anymore. And somehow… that mattered. Jaiden poured himself a bowl of cereal with extreme caution. He inhaled. "This is fine. Today will be fine. Nothing can go wrong..." Clawdine appeared on the counter, balancing precariously. "You poured too slowly," he said, flicking a spoonful of cereal into Jaiden's hair. "WHY HOW WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS!" Clawdine yawned and stretched, knocking over the milk by accident. "I said slow, not impossible!" Jaiden shouted, scrambling for napkins. Clawdine watched the chaos with visible satisfaction. "Productive morning." Jaiden groaned. Jaiden attempted to shuffle his cards. Big mistake. Clawdine hovered over the table, mostly solid now except for faintly smoky fingers. "You're predictable," he said, swiping a card and sending it spinning across the room. "IT'S A SHUFFLE STOP INTERFERING!" "Interference improves outcomes," Clawdine replied, flicking another card straight onto Jaiden's forehead. Jaiden yelped, slipped on a fallen card, and went down hard. Clawdine grabbed him briefly to keep him from hitting the desk then let go. "You're heavy!" Jaiden complained from the floor. "Or you're uncoordinated," Clawdine replied. Jaiden stayed where he was, defeated. Clawdine hovered above him, smug and unhelpful. Jaiden tried to leave quietly. For one hopeful second, he thought Clawdine wouldn't follow. Wrong. Clawdine appeared in the doorway, now human-sized."You're late," he said. "That's inefficient." "YOU CAN'T COME WITH ME." Jaiden bolted down the stairs. Clawdine floated after him, tugging at backpack straps, stepping in his path, and generally existing in the worst possible way. "Chaos builds character," Clawdine said. "It builds DETENTION," Jaiden yelled. Math class was too bright and too loud and smelled faintly like dry marker and despair. Clawdine stared at the board, pencil tapping too fast. Jaiden hunched in the seat beside him, arms wrapped around himself, hair slightly messy like the morning hadn't really let him escape. "That problem is wrong," Clawdine whispered. "I hate it. Make it stop existing." Jaiden squinted. "That's not how math works." "It should." Clawdine muttered. Jaiden snorted under his breath. A couple of students looked over, frowning. At Jaiden. The teacher turned from the board. "Jaiden." He straightened like he'd been jolted. "Yes? I mean what?" "Please answer the equation," she said patiently, "and stop… having full conversations with the desk." A ripple of laughter went through the room. Jaiden winced. "Sorry," he whispered automatically. Clawdine glanced at him. "Why are you apologising? You didn't do anything." Jaiden shrugged helplessly, gaze dropping to his hands. "Existing loudly, probably." Jaiden sighed and looked back at the board. Numbers blurred. Clawdine leaned closer, nervous, whispering fast: "It's negative three. I think. Maybe. If it's wrong I'm not here. You never met me."Clawdine let out half a laugh despite himself. "You're so dramatic." "I WOKE UP LIKE THIS," Jaiden hissed back. The teacher raised an eyebrow. "Jaiden?" He swallowed. "…Negative three." She nodded. "Correct." A few students blinked, surprised. Jaiden felt Clawdine relax beside him like tension draining from air. "See?" Jaiden whispered. "You're not terrible at everything. Just most things." Clawdine nudged him with his elbow. "That's my line." Across the aisle, someone whispered: "He talks to nobody. Every day. It's creepy." Clawdine's jaw tightened. Jaiden tugged on his sleeve, voice small and rushed. "Ignore them. Please. Just don't listen." Clawdine didn't answer. He just stared forward, pretending Jaiden wasn't the only one who sounded like that. Later, Jaiden sat down to do homework. Clawdine immediately sat on the desk, scattering papers." You think you'll focus?" he asked. "Optimistic." "I hate you," Jaiden muttered. "Yet you tolerate me," Clawdine replied, tapping a finger against the textbook. Jaiden hesitated. "…I don't." Clawdine shrugged. "Then you'd have stopped me by now." Jaiden didn't answer. He buried his face in his hands. Something uncomfortable lingered in the silence but he didn't dwell on it.
