The one that got away... ( headcanon ! )
synopsis ; after you finally went back to your world, some canât help but feel your lingering presence in the air even after your departure
characters ; Overblot boys !!
words ; 3,610 ,, ~600 words per character
tags ; romantic/platonic ? ,, light angst ,, hurt/no comfort ,, reader is Yuu/Prefect ,, gn/reader ,, very cringe/dramatic ,, not beta-read
He was never one to show much, especially when it came to showcasing his true feelings. Heâs always been told to suck it up, others have it worse yada yadaâŠyou get the concept.
But thatâŠsimply didnât apply to you. And he realized it after his Overblot. Wellâ not really. Heâd always seen your kind and patient nature towards Ace and Deuce. But after his Overblot, he truly had seen just how far you would go for someone you cared for.Â
You checked on him regularly, listening to his rants about the first years getting detentions, or whatever new book his mother had sent him. You listened, but never pressed him. You never made him feel like a puppet at your command. (not that heâd let anyone dictate him around!âŠ)
He grew quite fond of you. There is no other way to put it. Especially when he invited you as a special guest to an unbirthday party.
You came dressed as requested from code, even made Grim wear matching clothes to yours! You came on point, and brought a home-made apple pie!! (you had double checked the rules with Trey to make sure it didnât end like last timeâŠ)
He loved the apple pie. Heâd always enjoyed the sweet taste of the watery fruit, and you brought him a home-made one just for the party? You hit him straight in the heart. He secretly and discreetly saved a few slices for himself for later.
After that, it sort of became a âtraditionââyou being a special guest, bringing the apple pie and Riddle saving slices secretly.
He enjoyed sharing such an intimate bond with someone to the point of a shared activity done from the heart, such as this small tradition.
If you had made your presence so seen to Riddle, whyâd you leave so soon? That was unfair.Â
Riddle didnât cry when you crossed the border through the Magic Mirror, and he didnât cry after the goodbye ceremony. He didnât even get teary-eyed. (unlike Deuce and secretly AceâŠRiddle had seen, but didnât comment on it.)
But at the next unbirthday party, your absence made him uneasy. As if something vital was missing.
Your laughter wasnât filling the cracks in his heart; your embarrassed thankyous werenât heard after his compliments on your âvery formal attireâ or your culinary skills.
And Riddle didnât like it when things didnât go according to his routine. During the whole party, he was quite snappy with everyone (he even collared a few studentsâŠ).
And this time, there were no discretely stolen slices saved for later.
But most importantly, no you.
Just like Riddle, Leona wasnât one with feelings. He rarely spoke up when something poked at him the wrong way. Mostly because even if he did, heâd always end up being the bad guy in some way.
He hated being the bad guy. Growing up, heâs always been seen as Falenaâs shadowâor even worse, everything Falena wasnât. Rude. Sort of egoistic. Full of sarcasm.
Leona wasnât that. Those labels didnât define what the mirror of his soul showed. And you knew that.
You saw under the âlazy lionâ façade. You saw a man who grew up surrounded by hatred towards everything he did or was.
Thatâs why you stuck around him. You wanted for him to subconsciously realize: he wasnât the âbad guyâ in your eyes. At first, he was reluctant to believe your words.
To his ears, most of them were sweet nothings, said simply because you needed something from him, or maybe you were just backhanded.
He thought he had met someone with the same level of sarcasm as himself. But oh, was the beastman wrong.
Even after his continuous annoyed remarks, you still ended up back to him in your free time. Just you, Leona and a sleeping Grim on your lap, all three of you basking in the sun filtering through the botanical gardenâs glass.
He wasnât going to lie to himself and say he didnât enjoy your presence. You were silent when he was in a bad mood, and chatty when he wasnât. As if you had decoded his mood swings.
And you always kept Grim under control, and as annoying as that brat was, Leona silently enjoyed his presence too (especially when he was silent).
Much to his surprise, he had grown fond of the Ramshackle Prefect.
But obviously, he couldnât have something nice in his life, could he?
He was foolish to even dare to dream of a reality in which you stayed by his side every sunny afternoon.
He didnât cry either during your last goodbyes. His emerald eyes stayed on you the entire time.
To memorize something that would soon be gone. Someone who had become rather important to him.
He never got to keep shiny jewels, after all. They were all reserved for others.
But Leona? Leona didnât even say goodbye.Â
He couldnât bring his mouth to voice his thoughts.
He just stood there, eyeing you silently before you awkwardly moved to hug Ruggie. But his eyes never left you.
After you finally passed through the Mirror, he simply groaned something somewhat similar to âfinally⊠this is overâ and walked away, out of the room.
Ruggie couldnât find him the rest of the day.
When the moonlight finally shone over Night Raven College, Ruggie began to worry.
Where the heck was Leona?
He looked through the whole botanical gardens. No one.Â
He checked in the Coliseum. Nothing.
He checked lastly in Ramshackle. In the dorm, he didnât even find Grim. Just the ghosts.
Behind the loosely held building, he finally found the lion!Â
Leona was sleeping leaning on one of the trees, his hand on something on his lap.
As Ruggie approached him, he saw Grim on his lap, snuggling his snout in his tail.
The image was familiar to the hyena: heâd seen them countless times. But something was missing.
Or rather, someone was missing.
For the first time in months, there was no you keeping the lion company.
Azul never had many friends growing up.Â
Actually, scratch that. He didnât have any.
Could he even consider the twins his friends? Probably not, seeing how openly they expressed their displeasure if âAzul got boringâ and how they wouldâve left his side.
As if Azul had to walk on eggshells all the time.Â
He knew that the twins secretly cared for him, after all, they wouldnât have stuck around for so long if not.
But the Leech twinsâ care wasnât the same as your care for him.
You were justâŠthe prototype of the perfect friend. Or at least, the prototype of the perfect friend Azul had always wanted.
You were sweet, helpful and very affectionate.
He would never say it out loud, but whenever you came to help at Monstro Lounge, the atmosphere at the café felt lighter. You put everyone in a good mood, including the merman.
He enjoyed your physical affection. Whenever you hugged him, or complimented his attire, his heart would flutter with pure joy!
You listened so well, and carefully. You never really pushed for more from him, as in knowing deeply about his past or his personal issues. He knew you wanted to make him feel safe around you. You even made him food. Food he couldnât bring himself to not eat, as much as he mightâve regretted it.
Like youâd never do anything to hurt him.
But beyond being such a wonderful person, you also seemed like a wonderful liar.
He fell for your beautiful lies.Â
Your last hug before you crossed the Mirror was a harsh wake up call for Azul: this was the last time.Â
The last time he gets to hug you, the last time he gets to hear your voice.
His tongue felt like sandpaper in his mouth.
When you were finally back home, and the Mirror closed the portal, he immediately rushed out of the room, back to the Monstro Lounge.
He was back to work in no time.Â
Thatâs what Azul always did.
Drowned his sorrows in work.
At least, his brain didnât have time to think when working.
When it was finally closing time, Jade went into Azulâs office as the merman hadnât come out yet.
Upon entering the office room, he found Azul completely collapsed over his work. He had fallen asleep.
â[Name]..?â murmured Azul, slowly awakening as the door clicked shut.
â[Name] left today, Azul.â Jade simply replied, his tone polite as always.
âRightâŠâ Azul nodded, raising his head from the papers, wearing his glasses properly.
The truth was, before closing, you were always the one to go check on Azul (mainly to make sure he was gonna go to sleep soonâŠ).
Azul had almost thought Jade was you.
âYou can close the Lounge, Jade.â Azul said with a small shaky sigh. His under eyes were crimson red.Â
âSure.â Jade simply said, exiting his office.
Azul took a second to himself, to recollect his thoughts.
You left. His first actual friend, the first person he had actually gotten close to without the usage of a contract, was gone.
He wasnât gonna hear your voice again. He wasnât gonna see your smiling face when addressing him.
The Lounge felt more empty without your needed presence.
But mainly, Azul rarely came out of his office during work hours again.
Meeting you had changed his perspective of life. Even if firstly from afar, he had seen in you a gentle soul.
It took the two of you quite a lot to grow âcloseâ: it wasnât because of any untold dislikement, simply Jamil being too busy(and probably too observant) to break down his walls and actually trust someone.
But in the end, it worked out.
You didnât make him feel unseen, unworthy of any attention.Â
Quite the opposite, actually.
You praised his smallest feats, and completely cherished every big accomplishment.
You were always there at the basketball matches, clapping and cheering for him.
You were always keeping him company while he cooked for parties or events. You even helped.
But your presence was enough to soothe his nerves.
Especially when you simply stayed silent, enjoying the otherâs company quietly.
Oh, how he loved those moments of calmness.
His fondness of you probably began growing after his Overblot. You had been the first to rush to him, helping him stand and accompanying him to the infirmary.
You had chosen him first. Not Kalim. Not anyone else in the room.
You had headed to him first.
He had been someoneâs first choice.
You had silently listened to his rants about anything irritating him from then on; never judging, never interrupting.
He wanted to thank you every time, to keep you close to him every day. Your soul had recognized him as a companion worth keeping around.
But he couldnât have anything for himself, could he?
Lousy servants couldnât have anything nice.
Your last goodbye was silent. A simple small hug(the first hug he had ever given you), in which he squeezed you just hard enough for you to barely notice.
After you were gone through the Mirror, he was left to care for Kalim by himself again.
He was left with no one to release his worries to.
Back to being a servant, a vice-housewarden.
He thought he was gonna be okay about it.Â
He had always been simply that.
Having you around eased his mind at least a bit, but now?
Now he was back to thinking about everything by himself.
Kalim was crying on their way back to Scarabia.Â
Jamil was stuck in the vortex of his thoughts.
Kalim mightâve calmed down afterwards, and after a few days he wouldâve begun acting like his usual cheery self again. But Jamil?
So sorrowful of all the times he had gotten mildly annoyed at you, for all the times where instead of letting you keep him company he âkickedâ you out. But mostly, for all the lost time you two will never get to spend.
Cooking was something he always preferred doing alone.Â
But if he wouldâve had the chance, he wouldâve chosen your company everyday for eternity.
And now you are gone. The only person he had ever let wander inside his thoughts was now bound to another universe; and as selfish as it may have sounded, Jamil cursed fate for making you two cross paths.Â
And for you to leave such an impact on him.
Ever since the SDC competition had passed, and after that whole month spent in Ramshackle, he had grown quite pleased with your presence.
You were one of the very few âgood influencesâ Epel shouldâve followed after, and he never failed to make you feel seen.
Vil truly liked you, there was no other way to put it.
All the time you two spent together was something he truly cherished.
First and foremost, you had never seen him as the âvillain.â
Quite the contrary. Even after his Overblot, you never lost the chance to compliment just how truly magnificent he had looked.
And donât get him started on seeing you with Rook and Epel at his(and the othersâ) rescue!
Especially seeing you in his dormâs uniform had really made him find you adorable!
Vil had truly seen the beauty of your heart, just as much as you had seen his.
Two gorgeous hearts, intertwined.
Or rather, more like two gorgeous star-crossed hearts.
Why was the world against him?
He wasnât ugly. Then why had the world taken the only person who had really seen the beauty of his heart away from him?
Perhaps, everything was a lie. Wasnât it?
All your compliments, all your time spent together. Was any of it true?
Were you sure when you said you actually found him beautiful?
Or were you just like everyone else?
Vil hated himself for even thinking such a thing.
How could someone as pure as you lie?
Why, when finally he had got to stay on stage till the end of the play, the person he cared for the most had to leave the scene forever?
Your last goodbyes were too formal for his own liking. As if you two hadnât shared an almost unbreakable bond.
Almost, because apparently, it was bound to be broken from the start.
Star-crossed for a reason.
A quick kiss on the cheeks, a small hug he had let go of too early to truly enjoy.
The passing days were a continuous nagging feeling at his heart and head.Â
He had done so little for you, whilst you had shown him that even if you leave the stage too early, that doesnât define who you are. Because you are who you choose to be.
But would his decision really matter if you werenât there at his side?
Idia himself was surprised when he realized just what a close connection the two of you had.
Not just because of possible shared interests, but because you actually understood his pace.
Even though you encouraged him to step out of his comfort zone, you had always been gentle with it. Never too pushy, just correctly inciting.
He realized just how deeply your bond went when Ortho began asking when was the next time you were gonna come over to Ignihyde.Â
You were always there to support him, cheering for him during more difficult plays of his games, whenever he had growing anxiety about any possible interaction.
Again, you were never too pushy. You respected his space, and he knew that all you wanted was for him to feel safe around you.
And as time passed, he really did end up feeling quite comfortable around you.
For the first time in so long, he had actually formed a truly meaningful relation with someone in real life.
Someone who respected him. Someone who didnât see him as some shut-in weirdo.
And with that, he started showcasing his true personality. He wasnât only funny, but also quite chatty about things that sparked his interest.
One thing he had always enjoyed about your presence was the fact that you didnât tell him to shut up about his passions. You even encouraged him to tell you more, also sharing some of the things you liked from your world.
Ortho was quite amused by his brotherâs interest.
(each time you spet time with Idia, he would thank you for helping his brother break out of his shell)
As more time passed, Idia had found himself to truly care for you. Though heâd never let you win at any gamesâŠhe says itâs to keep you humble.
Because now you aren't in Twisted Wonderland anymore.
How could he have let himself grow attached?Â
Your last goodbye was awkward. Like all the months of progress to break down Idiaâs shy wall were never there. It hurt Idia to do so, but he was far too embarrassed, given he had come in person to salute you.
Your hug was short. Idia was stiff the whole time, as if he had crashed.
But his eyes said a thousand words. Words he would have never had the courage to tell you, no matter if in public or privately.
After you finally passed through the Mirror, he was probably the first person to fly out the door, heading back to the safety of his room, quickly followed by Ortho.
Idia went back to his usual routine in almost no time; Ortho had even asked if he was feeling alright.
He locked himself up in his room again, social interactions even less likely to happen anymore.
He had retorted back to his old ways.Â
The only person he had finally had the courage to open up to, the person he had confided in and trusted was now gone. Gone from his life forever.
He found himself mourning someone again, but they werenât even dead.
Like with Idia, it took you two a bit to grow closer.
Malleus had always been intrigued with you, given your literal other-wordly behaviour. He was completely interested to see your reactions to things that were absolutely normal for their world.
You would sometimes find Malleus wandering around nearby Ramshackle during late hours, and occasionally you wouldâve joined him and listened to whatever he wanted to talk about that night.
What started off as just some times soon became a full on appointment every other night.
Given your limited knowledge on who he truly was, you chatted with him with little to no filter, as did he.
Although you had somewhat realized he mustâve been a big deal of a mage, since he always seemed quite sure with himself when it came to his abilities, you had still remained friendly, quite sure that if his actual intention was to harm you he wouldâve done so by now.
As imposing as Malleus looked, he was quite nerdy about different things one wouldnât have expected. But you never judged. Why would you, after all? Different people, different interests.
That was probably what endeared Malleus to you. You spoke with no fear, even if a guy with two horns was probably quite impossible to see in your world, you still treated him with kindness.
After you discovered the guy you had given a silly nickname was actually the feared Malleus Draconia, he had been quite afraid that you wouldnât have spoken to him with such freedom.
But you had once again amazed him.
Malleus wasnât really able to say just how grateful he felt to have you as his friend, but he never failed to show just how much he cared for you.
His favorite way to pass time had begun to be your late night strolls accompanied by the sound of your voices.
He felt as though the stars above had blessed him. He had finally acquired a friend in school.
Eternity was quite the cruel curse, but for it to be endured all alone?
Malleus was one unlucky fae.
You were the only one who talked during your final goodbye. You were quite unsure whether to hug him or not, as your eye contact with Malleus had grown quite intense.Â
You opted to do so, for the first and last time. Malleus went immediately rigid, but softened as the hug lasted quite a second, although he didnât reciprocate it.
After your departure, he was back to silence.
Now that you werenât around anymore, he became lonely again.
He had grown accustomed to having you around, or at least chatting with you at least once a day. But now? Now he was back to square one: the lonely housewarden of Diasomnia.
Out of habit, he still took nightly strolls around the now empty Ramshackle, but he didnât have the heart to go inside knowing that you wonât be there to greet and welcome him in.
This hurt the doomed dragon fae. Endless rain soaked into the deteriorating house that was once inhabited by you: the person Malleus had found himself caring for in such a short time. Â
Fate was a sick and twisted joke.
And it seemed that fate had decided that the heir of Briar Valley was destined to loneliness.
author's note : I have no idea what possessed me to write this bs, because it is genuinely horrifying. As a side note though, I had to do research with Malleus and Idia because I have YET to finish book 6 and 7...(haha laugh) ; nonetheless, hope you enjoyed what my delusional heart served for you all today!!<3
