Lucky Rabbit

Everyone except Lian and Clara gathered to eat. Clara was at a friend’s house again, while Thaniel’s brother claimed he needed to pack, even though as far as Pandy knew, the vast majority of his possessions were books and identical white shirts and black pants. Still, it was obvious to her – and doubtless to everyone else over the age of eight – that Lian didn’t want to socialize with the Reedsleys, and no one tried to force the matter.

Rather than being relegated to Thaniel’s lap or the dark and dangerous bowels of the table, Pandy was given her own cushion at Thaniel’s elbow. There she sat, while everyone offered her carrot sticks and slices of apple, and Miss Cupcakes glared with venomous yellow eyes from Geraldine’s lap. Normally, Pandy would have enjoyed the attention and the treats – even if the maid did spoil it somewhat by watching Pandy’s rear end as if expecting her to poop in the treacle – but she was too busy examining her status and trying to figure out what was going on.

Name: Pandy

Species: Rabbit? (Deceased)

Age: 24

LF: 0/0

Mana: 0/0

Stats

Strength: 3 Intelligence: 12 Agility: 10Skills

Hop: Lv. 8 (40.5%) Bite: Lv. 5 (20%) Scratch: Lv. 7 Minor Heal: Lv. 1Corruption Points: 19

Her percentage toward the next level of Hop had gone up, but otherwise the only thing that had changed was the addition of a question mark after her species. Was the System no longer sure she was a rabbit? Or was the question mark a result of her own uncertainty? It was possible the magic had just created the character of ‘Bunny’ to give Pandy a role to play, but it seemed like a very odd choice. Then there was that brief moment in the midst of the tower fire when Pandy would have sworn she had very non-Pandy-like hands, but not fluffy little rabbit feet either.

What she really needed to do was talk to that annoying but informative god some more. Then she remembered how he’d flinched when she yelled internally. Quickly, she chewed and swallowed a mouthful of crumpet – which was really just a biscuit with pretensions – and thought,

For a moment, she thought nothing would happen, which was really okay, because now that she thought about it, bothering a god while he was trying to power through ten million pull-ups or whatever gods like him did for fun was probably not her best idea ever, and even she had to admit that was a low bar. Then her head nearly split as a voice said,

Pandy almost choked on her bite of sweet, sweet carrot as she said,

the familiar voice said again, slightly quieter.

She blinked.

The over-loud voice grew somewhat plaintive.

Pandy really, really wanted to know what happened last time, but she was already starting to get a headache, so instead she asked,

There was a long pause.

This time she wasn’t sure if he was going to answer, or start making mouth noises while claiming that their connection was breaking up, the way one of her foster brothers had when his parents called while he was skipping school. he asked finally.

She shook her head, then remembered he probably couldn’t see her. Of course, he might actually be watching all the time, which made her feel rather squicky. Either way, she said,

the god answered, relief plain in his voice.

she said, holding up a soft white paw as if to prove that she was, in fact, still rabbit-shaped.

The god wasn’t listening any more, however. There was the sound of something like a very, very large gong, and he shouted,

There was a sudden vacancy in Pandy’s head that didn’t seem like the usual sort of emptiness, and she was certain the connection between her and the god had been severed, for better or worse. All in all, it was probably for the better, though, because if rabbits could have migraines, she was definitely getting one.

All right, so she wasn’t getting an answer to the question of her species right now, and possibly not ever. It didn’t actually matter at the moment anyway, so instead she chomped absently on a large and particularly juicy broccoli floret as she considered the rest of her status.

Unfortunately, it seemed that while the god’s appearance had banished the broken skill selection box, it had also made it so she didn’t get to pick a weapon proficiency at all. It was possible that she could go back and read the book again, but she didn’t know if she’d just get the same glitched options. Until she could actually talk to the god properly, she was just kind of…stuck.

Well, except for one possibility. Now that she was certain she was in Gacha Love, and not some other game world, she could at least try to level up. Not that there were overall levels, not in the same way there were in other games, but she could improve the levels of her skills, which was effectively the same thing.

Gacha Love took place over the course of one school year, when Clara was sixteen and her parents sent her off to Condor Academy in order to meet other young nobles and learn how to use her Light magic. Each ‘day’, the player had a certain amount of Stamina, which allowed them to do things like go to class, do homework, and attend social events.

If Clara was in the right place at the right time, she might find herself in the midst of an event, whether that was bonding with one of the love interests or being bullied. If she chose to use her limited Stamina, she could use skills to improve her chances of success, and in the process, the skill’s level would increase.

Since gaining skills wasn’t the focus of the game, the System for increasing skill levels was fairly basic. Once she’d gained the skill – whether by attending class, learning it from a person or book, or simply by trying something new during an event – its level increased as it was used. It started out at level one, and was maxed out at level twenty.

Going from level zero to one only required the player to use the skill a single time. Level two required two uses, three took three uses, and this pattern continued until level ten, at which point it became more difficult. This seemed fairly easy, and it was, but it was still limited by Stamina. During a normal playthrough, without buying or gaining any boosters with gacha, a player could barely max out one skill, and that only if they really focused on it.

If you wanted a fairly balanced Clara, then you could get several skills to level fifteen or so, your favorite to level twenty, and leave the rest at ten. Any skill below level ten could become a liability, failing when it was needed most, and you’d lose out on any stat increases you could have gained simply by bringing those skills to ten.

Each skill had an associated stat or stats. The Fashion skill, for instance, raised Style by one point for each of the first ten levels. Any artistic skill added to Talent, while things like Politics and Eloquence gave you more points in Reputation. Once you raised the skill past level ten, you might gain an additional point in a secondary stat as well. Eloquence, for instance, was also useful in gaining Charm, but only at level eleven and above.

Pandy didn’t have most of the stats she was used to, but if this world really followed the logic of the game, when she did raise one of her skills, she should also gain points in one of the stats she did have. She could really use more Strength, for instance, since three seemed pathetically low even for a rabbit.

Best of all, she didn’t have Stamina. She didn’t even need to sleep. That meant that if she could gain more skills and level those up, she could become the strongest, smartest, most agile rabbit in the history of rabbits. A bunny with a Strength of fifty could protect Thaniel much more effectively than one with a Strength of three.

The trick was, of course, that up to this point her skills had only worked a small percentage of the time. It didn’t matter what her potential was if she couldn’t figure out how to access it. And, alas, a pleasant family luncheon didn’t seem like a good time to test things out.

Pandy peered around, noting that everyone seemed to be finishing their meal. They were back in Lady Alice’s greenhouse room, and everything had long since been set to rights. The table was covered in a lovely white lace cloth. The dishes were simple white porcelain, but they and the silverware were buffed to an almost painful shine. There was a large bowl containing the remnants of a delicious salad, as well as some kind of meat on a platter and a tray of crumbs that had once been fresh-baked bread. Everything spoke to a prosperous but not overly wealthy family, who nonetheless took a great deal of pride in what they did have.

Thaniel took the white linen napkin off his lap and covered his mouth with it before burping softly and muttering an apology. Geraldine giggled, but everyone else ignored it politely. The tips of Thaniel’s ears turned a bit red at the sound of the giggle, and he slid down in his seat just a bit, wincing as he did so.

Pandy caught the wince, and suddenly realized that of course poor Thaniel must be covered in bruises, especially around his rear end. Even if he weren’t, he had to have strained some muscles while he was trying so desperately to hang onto the horse. And Pandy had the perfect solution.

She thought as loudly as she could. Then, just because it seemed like a good idea, she added,

Casting of Minor Heal successful. 50% experience gained towards next level.

You have no Mana. Using Life Force instead.

Healed Nathaniel Conroy for 16 HP.

-8 LF

Oh. So that’s what LF stood for. A sudden stab of deep discomfort went through Pandy’s body, and as it reached her posterior, something plopped quietly onto the table. Pandy quickly turned her head, and saw that her tail – her adorable little fluffy cotton-ball of a tail – had fallen off. It wasn’t in the treacle, but it wasn’t far off, either. Quickly, Pandy backed up until it at least looked like the pouf of fur was in the right place and checked her status again.

Name: Pandy

Race: Rabbit? (Deceased)

Age: 24

LF: -8/0

Mana: 0/0

Stats

Strength: 3 Intelligence: 12 Agility: 10Skills

Hop: Lv. 8 (40.5%) Bite: Lv. 5 (20%) Scratch: Lv. 7 Minor Heal: Lv. 1 (50%)Corruption Points: 19

Well, that hadn’t exactly gone as planned. She might not have Stamina, but she did have Life Force and Mana, which weren’t in the original game. It looked like those were at least somewhat interchangeable, so even though she had no Mana, she could use some of her possibly unlimited health pool to use Mana-based skills anyway. Though if she was going to literally fall apart when she did so, there was a definite downside to it.

The next question was, were LF and Mana directly interchangeable? She had used eight LF to heal Thaniel for sixteen. Was that the normal cost and the most the skill could heal, or was that all Thaniel had needed, so it used just what it needed to? And if she had used mana, would she have spent eight there as well, or would the cost have been different?

Small hands scooped her up, and Pandy kicked out as she was raised into the air. Her back foot impacted her fallen tail, sending it arcing off the table, where it landed in a large pot containing what looked like a Monstera plant, except that the leaves were shades of green and purple, instead of just green.

Fortunately, small children weren’t known for their powers of observation, and Thaniel didn’t notice Pandy’s tailless state as he snuggled her up against his chest. Miss Cupcakes, however, did notice, and the kitten launched herself from Geraldine’s lap as the girl also rose. Apparently some signal had been given, because everyone was standing, so no one commented on the kitten’s sudden departure.

Gray fur flashed in the corner of Pandy’s vision as Thaniel began moving toward the exit after his new friend. Rather than clinging to her mistress’ heels as she usually did, the small kitten jumped up into the large pot containing the Monstera plant, vanishing beneath its broad leaves. A moment later, she reappeared, a ball of white fluff clamped firmly between her teeth, and she gave Pandy a meaningful look before she vanished deeper into the large room, taking her prize to some hidden nest, where she could hide or, heavens forbid, eat it.

That squicky feeling was back, but now it was directed at the vanished kitten. Pandy couldn’t help but think of a crocodile, slowly swimming away with a clock ticking in its belly. Hopefully, Miss Cupcakes hadn’t just gotten a taste for rabbit.