Chapter Text
Shiny ruby hair
Soft dew eyes that I dream of
Smile of midnight light
Oh beloved ruler of Heartslabyul, trust me when I say that my heart—
(…)I look forward to your reply, Sincerely—
I hope you enjoy this humble gift—
I've been working hard on my baking and wanted to share it with you—
The crackling of the fireplace grew louder as Ace, with visible disgust etched on his contorted face, tossed another batch of letters into the fire as if they were toxic waste he needed to get rid of as soon as possible.
He watched the papers disintegrate into black petals for a couple of seconds and then decided he needed to go to the kitchen off the dorm for a glass of water and stretch his legs a bit before sinking back into the lounge armchair to help get rid of those letters and gifts that appeared every day like an endless plague ever since Riddle’s frown had softened to make way to freer expressions on his face and careless smiles that he didn’t know how they affected others.
Riddle was in the library studying fervently, as Cater had told them via the secret chat group the four of them shared, and he wouldn’t be back for a few hours, so they were safe to continue with that secret activity. But there was a nagging feeling in Ace’s chest that didn’t stem from guilt, and he knew it wouldn’t go away with just a glass of water and a breath of fresh air, because that feeling had been there for weeks, ever since he read that first letter full of sickly-sweet words addressed to his dorm housewarden.
Deuce was still sitting on one of the red couches in the lounge; unlike Ace, he forced himself to read every word of the letters. His disgust was no less intense, but he kept it deeply hidden, ashamed to even show the slightest hint of his annoyance. He did this to find out what kinds of people were pursuing their dorm housewarden, and there was a wide variety—from innocent crushes with sweet messages to intense, brazen admirers whom, if Deuce knew their identities, he wouldn’t hesitate to drop a cauldron on.
On the small round table were two piles that the blue-haired man had made over the past hour: one consisted of read letters, tossed somewhat carelessly back into their envelopes, and the other of small gifts that were nothing out of the ordinary. Things that the four in charge of Riddle’s protection had seen before: jewelry, appetizing and not-so-appetizing desserts, items of clothing such as white lace gloves, stockings, or shirts with pretty patterns, and flowers with cards attached full of little dedications that they would never allow the recipient to read.
Most of it ended up in the fireplace, the desserts in their stomachs, and the jewelry and clothing were resold by them; those thaumarks (of which there were quite a few, since much of the jewelry was genuine) were put to good use—albeit a selfish one, since each of them used them to spoil Riddle in their own way.
I love you, Riddle Rosehearts. Please accept my heart; I’ll make you the happiest person in all of Twisted Wonderland and I swear—
And with that last letter, Deuce Spade finished placing them in the roaring fire of the fireplace. The rest of the gifts were put into a bag; that night, while Riddle slept peacefully, Ace, Deuce and their seniors would decide how to distribute each item.
Deuce headed toward the kitchen where Ace had disappeared, relieved to finally be free of the position he’d been in for so long. His mood improved slightly as his mind filled with plans for what to do with the money he’d been saving up until now. The four of them had planned to take Riddle to a small café that had recently opened; Cater had shown them photos of the tiny place and the menu of delicious desserts and drinks that made his heart flutter just imagining Riddle’s face as he tasted them. But he wanted to give his dorm housewarden something: a thank-you gift for helping him so much with his studies, especially with algebra, since that was what he struggled with the most, and Riddle never gave up on helping him, always offering words of encouragement and small smiles whenever he managed to get the right answer.
And lost in that train of thought, he soon arrived in the kitchen, where Ace was in a different state of mind—deep in thought, clearly struggling with some inner conflict.
At Octavinelle, a dorm submerged underwater—a stark contrast to the Heartslabyul dorm with its warm atmosphere and the scent of roses carried on a gentle breeze— inside a quiet, secluded office where the only sound was the echo of a finger tapping rhythmically on the desk, the housewarden of that dorm was lost in his thoughts: “Did he like the dessert I made Jade make just for him?” “What kind of expression lit up his face when he took the first bite?”
Elsewhere, sitting by the fountain of a castle with pointed purple roofs, was a boy, his hands in his lap, his light blue eyes fixed on his fidgeting feet, and a deep blush spreading across his pale cheeks. “I hope he liked my strawberry brooch,” he thought as the blush spread across the rest of his face, imagining a smile that never materialized.
Quite a distance away, in a dorm completely different from the previous two, sitting in the shade of a stadium’s bleachers and absently watching a spelldrive match, a hyena boy thought about the bouquet of dandelions he’d picked and sent, with a red-haired boy in mind. “I wonder if he liked it,” “Did he put it in a vase?” he wondered, oblivious to the fate of that innocent bouquet.