Jamil and Azul

Jamil is not subtle about how dislike of Azul, responding to him with sharp remarks across multiple storylines, sometimes on sight. When Azul assures Riddle that he and Jamil’s “deep and enduring bond as classmates” brought them together before a class Jamil responds, “Don’t listen to him. We just happened to run into each other when we were both on our way to the lab room.”

Jamil greets Azul, his judge for the Master Chef course, with, “Of all the people who could’ve judged my food, it had to be you,” and later tells him, “I see you still love the sound of your own voice” and “The sooner we get this over with, the sooner you can leave.”

Jamil describes Azul’s outfit for Tapis rouge as a “two-faced design,” saying, “I couldn’t think of a more perfect fit for you,” and when Azul replies, “Being two-faced has always been your thing; I feel as if l’ve stolen your thunder,” Jamil counters with, “Not at all. They practically coined the term just for you.” Commenting on Azul’s hairstyle Jamil says, “I feel like I can’t let my guard down around you, even more than usual.”

While going up the bell tower for the first time during Glorious Masquerade Jamil asks an exhausted Azul, “So this is all it takes to reduce you to a miserable heap?,” and when Azul alter insist that he puts a great deal of effort into flight classes Jamil responds, “l’d say it’s sadder if you still can’t do something after putting in the work.”

And Jamil has first-hand experience with Azul’s poor flight skills, being assigned to teach him out to fly in vignette where Azul initially refuses to accept his help, suspecting an ulterior motive. When Vargas refuses to let either student leave the sports field until Azul can fly Jamil feigns desperation for a study guide, offering to teach Azul flight in exchange, which Azul accepts. 

Azul is Jamil’s judge during Master Chef and very complimentary of his cooking. Jamil responds, “Must you be so hyperbolic?,” and, “You do realize when you go on like that, it makes you sound less sincere, right? But fine, I’ll accept your compliments this time.”

Jamil gives Vil permission to share his recipe for salad dressing with the students of Pomefiore, but when Azul interjects with, “Oh, really? How very kind, thanks!,” Jamil replies, “I wasn’t talking to you.”

Jamil is suspicious of how little Azul eats during the Halloween Party, asking him, “Is there a scheme in the works I should know about?,” and saying, “You can’t even relax on Halloween, huh?,” to which Azul responds, “Like you have room to talk.”

During the NBC event Azul suggests that they work together and Jamil responds, “Absolutely not. You’re the last person I’d ever want to group up with,” only to immediately be assigned a group with Azul and exclaiming, “I can’t believe I landed on the same team as Azul…and worse, Riddle.”

Later on, Riddle goe sin pursuit of Lock in order to recite a poem and Azul goes in pursuit of Riddle to avoid getting sued. Jamil exclaims, “What is WRONG with those two?!”

During Vargas Camp Floyd tells Jamil he talks like Azul, and Idia also says the two are similar in the way that they both prioritize efficiency, 

Azul seems to agree that they are similar, referring to both himself and Jamil as “twisted individuals,” and then self-correcting, “calculating individuals,” in Book 4.

In Book 7.5 Kalim says outright that Jamil and Azul “are a lot alike,” and when Jamil counters with, “That’s not funny. I’m nothing like that scheming, heartless rogue,” Kalim responds, “That’s what I’m talking about, right there.”

Azul goes to Jamil’s rescue (and to win the game) during Beanfest, rescuing Jamil from Floyd after he goes rogue.

Azul goes to Scarabia to watch a concert thrown by Kalim (Jamil: “I told him to suspend the concert! He must have snuck off while I was preparing the food”), having anticipated the end result of the lounge being “in shambles,” and offering his aid (Jamil: “And yet I doubt you offer your services for free. *sigh* Beset once again with the usual flimflam”).

Azul is suspicious of Jamil during Book 4, saying, “a clever hawk hides its talons,” and we see an example of what he means in a vignette where Jamil seems to hesitate after hearing details of a potionology assignment from Riddle. Azul tells Jamil, “I can respect a man who doesn’t tip his hand. If anything, that makes you more trustworthy than idiots who blurt out everything on their mind.”

Jamil reflects, “Azul has such a way of sussing out the truths people prefer to keep hidden.”

When Azul fails to complete their assignment on his own and Jamil refuses to do any of the work, Azul says, “I’ve always been onto you and the competence you try so hard to hide…But even your deceptions are not flawless,” referring to Jamil’s hesitation earlier on after their assignment was described by Riddle. 

When Jamil says he would rather be subjected to Crewel’s ridicule than let Azul take credit for correct answer, Azul blackmails him into sharing his information on the threat of revealing to Crewel that he has not been contributing to the assignment.

Jamil reluctantly reveals the solution and Azul observes, “You really stick to your guns. If anything, this is making me more curious about you than ever. I get the feeling that you and I could do some wonderful business together.” (Jamil: “Funny. I feel the exact opposite.”)

Azul shares a homeroom class with Jamil and says that their paths cross often as they also share a number of the same electives. Azul says Jamil is “demure and poised, you might say. He hardly ever ventures opinions of his own.”

Azul unilaterally decides to go to Jamil’s “aid” in Book 4, forcing his way into Scarabia with the excuse of returning Kalim’s magic carpet and offering to assist Scarabia with their Winter Break training. Jamil argues against Azul’s offer (“If we invite the housewarden of one of those other dorms to join us, we’re showing the enemy our hand”), telling Azul, “I’m saying this for your own good,” but Kalm overrides Jamil.

Later, Kalim’s refusal to share the identity of the person hypnotizing him even when being further hypnotized by Jade confirms Azul’s suspicions, and he launches a plan to undo the damage done to Scarabia by Jamil’s “training camp” by instituting less taxing, more effective training and study methods.

When Azul asks, “Isn’t it nice that Kalim’s regained the faith of Scarabia’s students?,” Jamil responds, “…No. No, it isn’t,” seemingly hypnotizing Azul and revealing his plan. Jamil tells Azul, “I can see I made the right call not making friends with you,” and announces a plot to acquire Crowley’s secret, kick Kalim out of NRC and take over as Housewarden.

Jade initially tells Jamil that his confession was “livestreamed to the world from Azul’s smartphone. Azul’s Magicam livestream presently has five thousand active viewers. It’s trending online under the topic: ‘A Certain Magicians’ School’s Dirty Little Secret,’” but this is later revealed to have been a ruse.

In Book 5 Azul explains, “That was obviously a ploy to convince him there was no talking his way out of it…All I did that day was put my smartphone on a speaker call with Jade…I obtained some perfectly good intel from the experience. I would never dream of devaluing my own assets!”

When Jamil orders a supposedly-hypnotized Azul to “subdue and restrain” the students of Scarabia Azul reveals that he was never hypnotized in the first place, having used Floyd’s unique magic to evade Jamil’s spell: “Then I pretended to be his thrall and got Jamil to spill his true intentions as he gloated.”

Azul explains that he had “quickly deduced that Jamil was the only person Kalim would care about enough to fight back against Jade’s signature spell,” which was “the underpinning of (his) whole plan.”

At the conclusion of Book 4 Azul says that likes “the authentic Jamil much more” than how Jamil was when suppressing his true thoughts, saying, “l’ve been curious about you ever since we were freshmen. You did a bit too good of a job avoiding the spotlight. It backfired and piqued my interest. I’ve always had an inkling there was more to it,” using the example of Jamil intentionally maintaining “a perfectly balanced win/loss ratio to keep from throwing Floyd into a rage” during rounds of mancala the previous night.

Azul explains, “It requires considerable skill and mental fortitude to pull off…Your true capabilities are nothing short of astounding!” 

Azul tells Jamil, “You’d get along far better with someone like me than with Kalim” and invites him to join Octavinelle, to which Jamil responds, “Not on your life.”

Azul reminds Jamil of this offer in Book 5 (Jamil: “Octavinelle is the last dorm I would ever transfer to”), and Jamil refuses against when Azul suggests inviting him to a barbecue.

Azul volunteers for a marketing campaign for NRC and offers to “let (Jamil) in on the action,” which Jamil also refuses, and he refuses again when Azul offers him a job in the kitchen of Mostro Lounge during Master Chef and again during Tapis Rouge.

Jamil tells Azul, “I will be perfectly content never being friends with you,” and Azul responds, “I’ve added a new truth to my secret collection today, so I’Il call it even” (Floyd: “Your secret collection of other people’s weaknesses, you mean”).

In the deeper level of Jamil’s dream successfully ousts Kalim from NRC and takes over as Housewarden, possibly via Azul, sharing his intentions to use the information that Azul has access to and overthrow the other housewardens as well.

In Book 6 Azul compliments Jamil on his hypnotizing of a STYX employee, but when Vil asks Jamil if he can extract specific information Jamil says no, comparing his UM to Jade’s and apparently revealing Jade’s ability to the gathered housewardens for the first time (Jamil: “Oh dear, I said something I shouldn’t have”).

Azul says, “I was trying to keep that secret as my ace in the hole. You let it slip on purpose, didn’t you?,” but Jamil replies, “Why, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Tapis Rouge begins with Azul and Jamil bickering together, Azul applauding Jamil for his supposed willingness to pass up the opportunity of visiting the Fairest City and Jamil replying, “You think I’d leave Vil to put up with YOUR mercantile machinations? He’ll be much better off with someone supportive and considerate…like me.”

When Vil orders the students who wish to join him on the trip to defeat their rivals and prove themselves, however, Azul and Jamil join forces, with Azul suggesting a lottery system and Jamil agreeing with the idea, as Jade or Floyd being in support of Azul’s proposal would have been too suspicious. Azul explains, “I reasoned that Jamil, being from another dorm, had the best chance of persuading the others.”

Upon their arrival in the city Jamil and Azul both tease Ace, but when he asks “Are you friendlier than you let on or something?,” Azul says “Of course!,” while Jamil responds, “Of course not.”

Jamil and Azul come together to tease Ace again later on (Ace: “You two are seriously peas in a pod. How come you only get along when it’s to make fun of me?”) and at the end of the story it is revealed that Jamil and Azul left their hotel together the night before the main event to investigate the back entrance to the venue (Ace: “I figured you and Azul went out partyin’ somewhere…”).

Jamil seems less hostile towards Azul at the end of Azul’s dream of Book 7: when it is decided that Jamil will leave the group Azul says, “Ah, what a pity. I was quite looking forward to fighting alongside you, Jamil,” and Jamil responds, “It’s not like this is farewell forever. And now the esteemed housewarden of Octavinelle is on the team. You’ll surely be more useful than me several—no, dozens of times over. I expect great things from you, Azul.” (Azul: “I’ll endeavor not to disappoint.”)

Azul and Jamil overlap again during Book 7.5, with Jamil pointing out that Azul should be able to relate to how incredible he felt in his dream.

Azul insists, “My true desires are nothing so foolish…!,” but Jamil does not tease him, instead responding, “Is it really something to be ashamed of?,” and getting Azul to reluctantly agree and say, “You’re right that | tasted an exaltation unlike anything l’ve ever felt before.”