"Hey, so is it just me or has the Prefect been acting kinda weird lately?" Ace asks his dormmates during one of their regular unbirthday parties.
"Weird, how?" Deuce asks in response, "He didn't seem any different last time we saw him."
"Mmm, no, I think I know what Acey means. He looked a little on-edge to me when he was over yesterday." Cater says thoughtfully while scrolling on his phone.
"You don't think he's in trouble, do you?" Trey asks in mild concern.
Riddle rubs his chin in contemplation, "I wouldn't go that far. From what I could tell, it seemed more like--"
"--he's waitin' for something." Leona says between sips from his water bottle, "Herbivores like him tend to get anxious when they're anticipatin' something."
"What would he be waiting for, though?" Jack asks while putting away the brooms now that Spelldrive practice is over, "Midterms are already over and there aren't any major assignments due this week."
"Shihihi, maybe he's waitin' for his next paycheck to come in. I know I am!" Ruggie jokes while stacking up the Spelldrive disks.
"Floyd, be serious for once." Azul groans while rubbing his temples, "We already gave him his latest paycheck a couple days ago. Although, I question the quality of the work that we paid him so much for."
"Fufufu, now now, Azul. Even you are no stranger to the odd slow day or two. Remember your benevolence." Jade comments to placate his housewarden, "Though, I do seem to recall the Prefect muttering to himself quite a lot during his last shift."
"Hey, yeah! I remember that too!" Floyd chimes in from the office couch, "I think I heard him mention somethin' happening...this Saturday?"
"This Saturday...this Saturday..." Kalim repeats while poking his head to jog his memory, "What's so special about that day...?"
"Kalim, you're bound to hurt yourself if you keep thinking so hard." Jamil says with a sigh, despite contemplating it himself, "Although, that date does ring a bell for some reason..."
"Roi du Poison, as beautiful as you are whilst in such deep thought, keeping your brow furrowed for so long will only give you wrinkles." Rook advises his housewarden who is currently sitting in his chair, his brow remaining furrowed.
"I'm aware, Rook, but I can't shake the feeling that this Saturday is important somehow...something to do with the Prefect..." Vil says, his frustration growing at not being able to remember what the reason for this feeling is.
"Y'know, I feel like I remember him saying something to me about that specific date...it's on the tip of my tongue..." Epel says while racking his brain for the memory.
"Rrrgh, it's no use. I can't remember." Idia slumps back into his chair in resignation, "I'll never be able to focus on my game like this! Ortho, did the Prefect say anything to you about something happening this Saturday?"
"Hmm, let's see...searching memory banks..." The android says while several beeping sounds emit from his body until he lets out a large gasp several seconds later, "Match found! B-Brother, this is really bad!"
"Hmph, that human should be begging Malleus-sama for forgiveness in making him spend so much brainpower on him." Sebek comments indignantly, earning a light elbow jab from Silver.
"First, he's our friend too, don't be rude. And second, don't interrupt Malleus's train of thought, I think he's almost got it." Silver chides as Malleus discusses the matter with Lilia.
"I seem to recall it being a rather important day that fae like ourselves don't usually concern ourselves with..." Lilia muses from his upside-down perch next to the prince.
"Something we fae don't typically celebrate..." Malleus ponders before finally the realization hits him like a slap to the face, signaled by a powerful strike of lightning just outside the dorm window--
Deuce paces the ground in a panic, his hands clutching his head as he spirals into despair, "Oh, oh sweet, merciful Seven, how are we such bad friends?"
"WHA- Who're you calling a 'bad friend?!' It’s not like we missed his birthday entirely!" Ace denies, thoroughly offended.
"But we ALMOST missed it, even after he told us a whole month in advance!" Deuce argues back before Trey interjects.
"Calm down, you two. It's only Monday, so we still have time to make up for it." Trey advises his underclassmen.
"Trey's right. We should each begin preparing a gift to bring to his party and--" Riddle begins to say before Ace cuts him off.
"WHAT party? He never said anything about a party and we ALL know that the Crow hasn't given it a second thought. Hell, he barely remembers to give Y/n his allowance every month!" Ace argues.
"The party that WE'LL be planning FOR him that you would know about if you had let me finish talking, Ace Trappola!" Riddle scolds the first year as he stands up.
"Oh, I am TOTES down for that!" Cater exclaims while already typing out a list of tasks and needed materials, "We'll make sure his party is better than anything the headmage could come up with!"
The Heartslabyul students then gather together to start laying out everything to be done for the Prefect’s party.
They do this, of course, not knowing that his friends from the other dorms have come to the same conclusion.
The next few days go by in a blur as each dorm bustles about, making preparations for the parties they're each holding for their dear friend's birthday.
Rarely have the teachers seen their students so well-coordinated as they watch Savannaclaw students carry large mounds of meat together, Scarabia students guide various animals down the halls towards the Hall of Mirrors, Ignihyde students raid Sam's shop for a vast array of snacks and so much more.
They're all so busy, in fact, that a certain young man goes unnoticed as he makes his own preparations.
"Let's see...board and card games, olive oil for cooking, I'll have to order the extra party hats separately...am I forgetting anything, Grim?" The Prefect of Ramshackle asks his companion while looking over his checklist.
"Nope, that's everything!" The direbeast responds dutifully.
"Perfect! Let's get back to Ramshackle, then!" The Prefect says while putting away the piece of paper, "We've still got a lot of prep to do! I'm just glad that I gave out everyone's invitations so far in advance."
Finally, Saturday arrives and, after double and triple-checking that all preparations are in order, Riddle leads his card soldiers out of their dorm and into the Hall of Mirrors to begin the trek towards Ramshackle.
"I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees what we got for him!" Cater exclaims as the five men exit the mirror.
"I know, right? I haven't planned a surprise party for anyone since my siblings back home. I hope he likes my gift." Trey muses as they keep walking, oblivious to the sound of the other mirrors activating.
"I've no doubt he'll love what we have planned." Riddle assures his friend, "We just need to remember to NOT mention the part where we forgot until just this Monday."
Ace scoffs at Riddle’s last statement, "Psshh, who do you think we are? It's like I said: 'What the Prefect--'"
"--doesn't know won't hurt him, shihihi!" Another voice that the five men hadn't noticed until now finishes expressing the first year's same sentiment.
The group turns in the direction of the voice to see that it came from Savannaclaw's resident hyena, Ruggie Bucchi, accompanied by his underclassman, Jack Howl, and housewarden, Leona Kingscholar.
The wolf turns to face the Heartslabyul students upon noticing them, "Oh, it's you guys. Where are you all going at this hour?" He questions.
"We could ask you the same thing." Deuce responds apprehensively, "And what does it have to do with the Prefect?"
"Well, if you herbivores MUST know, we were just on our way to bring him to Savannaclaw." Leona drawls.
"My, how funny you should say that!" A new voice, belonging to Azul Ashengrotto, flanked by his eel companions, chimes in from behind both groups, "We were just about to do the same, except we'll be taking him back to Octavinelle."
"Whoa, you guys are going to see the Prefect too?? You all should totally come to the party we have planned for him!!" Kalim Al-Asim exclaims as he and Jamil Viper exit the mirror leading to Scarabia.
"I'm afraid we'll have to decline." Vil Schoenheit says as he confidently strides towards the Hall of Mirrors's entrance with Rook Hunt and Epel Felmier trailing behind him, "Seeing as how he'll be attending OUR party."
However, Vil's group is unable to get far before Ortho Shroud flies over from the Ignihyde mirror and lands in front of him.
"Logic Error Detected." Ortho says as he blocks the three's path, "The Prefect is coming with us."
This confrontation ends as soon as it begins, however, when Leona calls out to the group past them that's calmly striding around the brewing chaos.
"Oi! Where do ya think you're going with your little entourage, ya lizard?" The lion calls out to Malleus Draconia and his retainers.
Sebek Zigvolt sneers in response, "YOU NEED NOT INDULGE THIS RABBLE, MALLEUS-SAMA." He says to his liege before turning back towards the whole group, "LIKE YOU ALL, WE ARE GOING TO BRING THE PREFECT TO THE BIRTHDAY PARTY WE'VE PLANNED FOR HIM. HOWEVER, UNLIKE YOU HUMANS, WE SHALL SUCCEED."
A wave of silence washes over the room.
Riddle can tell that no one liked that more than he did and he didn't like it at all. His grip on his staff tightens at the utter disrespect displayed by his underclassman and seemingly endorsed by his liege.
"Eeeeehhhhh? That's quite the mouth your pet croc's got on him, Sea Slug." Floyd Leech chimes in, "It'd be a shame if I squeezed it shut permanently." He threatens while bearing his fangs.
"HMPH! IMPLYING THAT I WOULD LOSE TO A BARBARIAN SUCH AS--" Sebek begins to respond before Silver clamps his hand over his mouth.
However, the damage has already been done and the tension in the air only thickens as each group's competitiveness and unwillingness to back down clash.
Riddle isn't sure who threw the first punch, but moments later, the hall has devolved into a battlefield as each dorm's more hotheaded students fight tooth and nail to emerge victorious and win their shared friend's favor.
While this happens, Riddle attempts to quietly lead his dormmates around the fighting, but has the wind knocked out of him by an ice spell slamming into his stomach. His card soldiers form ranks around him as he recovers and tries to aim his Signature Spell at the perpetrator, but this triggers a wave of spells being launched every which way by far too many people for Riddle to collar for breaking the rules.
The fighting escalates as more and more students are roped in, which soon includes Riddle and the others. He'd intended to only defend himself, but taking one too many wind spells to the face causes him to see red, lobbing spells that ricochet off others in all directions and hitting all manner of targets, stoking the room's collective anger further until a vast array of spells all collide at once, exploding outwards as bolts of pure energy.
Riddle feels pain erupt in his shoulder as a passing bolt slices through the edge of it, letting loose a pained cry that he hears from around him as well. He looks over to see Ace and Deuce on their knees, having had large gashes sliced in their arms by other such bolts, and then glances across the room, seeing numerous other students having sustained similar injuries.
"Rids! Acey! Deucy!" He hears Cater call out as Trey inspects the three's injuries and curses under his breath.
"They need first aid!" He says urgently, "We have to get them back to the dorm!"
"*huff* B-but what about-" Ace attempts to say through pained breaths, but moving his arm wrong causes him to cut himself off with another cry.
With pain clouding his mind, Riddle’s only thought is to let his upperclassmen guide him and the others back through the mirror, unable to recall what their original goal was.
'Any minute now...' You think to yourself as you finish making the final preparations for your birthday party.
You'd said in your invitations that it would start at seven o'clock and it's 6:55 now, so you sit yourself down on the Ramshackle lounge's sofa to wait for the sound of someone knocking at the door.
You adjust your handmade "birthday boy" sash anxiously as the minutes pass and seven o'clock sharp rolls around and then five more minutes pass without a sound.
"Hey, uh, Henchman?" Grim asks from his spot next to you, "Ya said seven pm in the invitations, right?"
"I know I did, Grim. I had you and the ghosts read them to make sure everything was correct." You reassure your companion, "It's a bit of a walk to here from the Hall of Mirrors, so they're probably just running late."
That's what you tell yourself, at least.
But as five minutes after seven turns into ten, your confidence wavers, and once ten minutes turns into twenty, you feel it begin to crack.
Instructing Grim to wait in the lounge in case the others show up, you make your way to the kitchen to double check that everything is in order.
The birthday feast you'd splurged in order to make for yourself and everyone to share lay exactly as you left it, divided into groups of appetizers, entrees and desserts, all still warm enough and ready to be eaten upon your friends' arrival.
'Any minute now...' You think again as you pace around the kitchen some more, taking out your phone over and over to check the time.
7:35...
7:40...
7:41-- Ok, this is getting ridiculous.
Puffing your chest out and holding your head up high, you march confidently back out to the lounge where Grim and the Ramshackle ghosts seem to be talking about something.
"It’s been almost an hour..." The large ghost laments.
"How do we even broach the subject with him...?" The thin ghost wonders.
"He surely has to realize by now that they're not--" The shortest ghost tries to say before having his mouth covered by Grim and the other ghosts upon hearing your footsteps.
"H-Hey, Henchman!" Grim stutters as he turns to face you with a forced smile, "Is the food still looking good?"
"There's still warmth in it yet!" You respond brightly, "I'm sure it'll still be good for when everyone gets here!"
You see all four of your companions deflate in the face of your optimism before the tall ghost speaks up.
"Uh...listen, Y/n. We actually wanted to talk to you about that." He says as Grim and the other ghosts lead you to the couch to sit down.
"What's wrong, guys?" You ask with a confused tilt of your head.
The tall ghost winces before looking at you again, "It's been almost a full hour since your friends were supposed to get here...and we just think we should...y'know, prepare ourselves for the possibility that..." He trails off at the end of his sentence.
"That what?" You press, not getting it.
"We don't think the guys're comin'!" Grim blurts out before covering his mouth, regretting his words immediately.
You blink at him several times before responding, "Oh come on, you guys. Have a little faith! I've no doubt that there's just some sort of delay!" You assure them while puffing out your chest again.
Grim and the ghosts exchange worried glances before the largest ghost speaks up, "But to be delayed for a whole hour? Y/n, I think--" He tries to gently reason with you, but you cut him off.
"They. Are going. To be here." You insist, the cracks in your confidence beginning to show more prominently, "I mean, we've known these guys for almost a year now, right? And we've been through so much together that it'd be stupid to think that not a SINGLE one of them would show up!"
Your companions' gazes shift down towards your hands, which you know are shaking.
"Y/n...why don't we--" One of the ghosts draws near you carefully and begins to suggest something before the sound of someone knocking at the door cuts him off.
You instantly spring up off the couch, all of your confidence back full-force, "HA! See?! I knew they were just delayed!" You exclaim while practically prancing over and opening the door, "Don't worry about being late, you guys! I know that things happen, I'm just glad you're all--"
Your words come to a complete stop once you fully open the door, only to be met with no one other than a delivery ghost who looks at you in surprise.
"Oh! Sorry if I'm interrupting something, but I've got a package for you. We apologize for the delay. There was some rough weather during transit." The ghost says while holding out your package along with a pen and clipboard for you to sign.
You say nothing in response. You simply stand there for what feels like an eternity as the ghost's expression grows more and more awkward.
"Um...sir--" The delivery ghost begins to say something before you violently grab the pen, sign the receipt form and yank the package out of his hands, slamming the door in his face.
"This had better be fucking good." You mutter to yourself as you tear open the box and throw the packaging paper to the floor just to be greeted by...a box of party hats you'd ordered a few days ago.
The irony hits you like a truck, obliterating your confidence in the process.
And with it, you feel something else snap as well.
"...he...hehehe..." You want to scream and yell, you want to fall to your knees and sob, but now, "Hehehe...hahaha...!" You can only stand there, laughing bitterly as equally bitter tears begin rolling down your face.
"H-Hey Henchman..." You feel Grim gingerly put his paw on your leg as neither the laughter nor the tears show signs of stopping, "Why don't we just pack everything up? The leftovers'll last us a while--"
"WHAAAAAAAT?! Why would we do that?!" You practically scream, catching the others off-guard, "We've still got guests to feed! They're just playing hide and seek is all!" You exclaim before bolting off towards your dorm room and returning with the album containing all of the photos you've taken with your Ghost Camera.
"Come on out, guys!" You order, causing the album to be wreathed in light produced from the photos heeding your call.
In the blink of an eye, the room is filled to the brim with your friends, all practically lining up to greet you.
"Sorry we're so late, Prefect! You wouldn't be-LIEVE the mess this guy over here decided to make right before--"
"You mean the one YOU made?!"
"Ignore them. We're honored to have received your invitations, Prefect."
"Glad to be here, Prefect!"
"I can't help but notice a lack of sweets out here, Prefect. Let me go use your kitchen to bake some!"
The greetings continue in this fashion until you transition to playing the birthday games you'd gathered while the sweets bake.
"Two pair."
"Heh, three of a kind."
"Feast yer eyes, fellas! Full House!"
"What do you have, Prefect?"
"Oh, nothing. Just a Royal Flush." You say smugly as your friends start bickering over whether the dealer shuffled the deck properly.
"Heeeeeyyyyyy, the cake's dooooonnnnneeeee! Everyone gather 'round!"
Your friends guide you to your seat of honor on the sofa while handing you one of the party hats you ordered and passing the others around as they present your birthday cake to you and all begin to sing.
You look around at the wondrous sight of your friends singing "Happy Birthday" for you...and feel a pit form in your stomach.
This isn't them.
The pit in your stomach grows larger, practically opening up beneath you to swallow you whole.
You know that at least half these guys would sooner die than sing a cringey birthday song.
A feeling of virulent disgust, aimed both at the scene unfolding around you and yourself for creating it, overwhelms you, blurring your vision and filling your mouth with the taste of bile.
"Aren't you gonna blow out your candles?" You hear one of the figures surrounding you ask innocently.
You hadn't realized that the singing had stopped.
You lift your head up, the numbered candles indicating your age stare back at you from their place atop the cake.
You don't even like cake.
"Return to your photos. Now." You command and watch as most of the figures in the room dissolve into light that streams back into your photo album unceremoniously.
You feel Grim and the ghosts' worried gazes on you as you take in the emptiness.
That's right.
Your real friends aren't here.
They aren't anywhere, actually.
You don't have any "real" friends.
Because if you did, then it would be more than just you at your own birthday party.
Without another word, you discard your birthday boy sash and slowly walk back to your dorm room, closing the door and locking it behind you.
Hello!! This will be my first post on Tumblr, so please bare with me 😭
Anywho! This will be MadHatter!Yuu x Riddle because I want to. There will be Yuu overblot as well
Angst/comfort mostly, but again, first time writing something like this, so don't expect much!
It was a normal night in Heartslabyul. Well, as normal as it gets. Riddle was sitting quietly in his room, studying for an upcoming exam. It was rather peaceful...
Until a certain nut case knocked on the door. Without bothering to wait for permission to enter, Yuu walked in. They quickly closed the door behind them, a faint giggle coming from them.
Riddle sighed, setting down his pen. He knew that with Yuu there, he wouldn't get any studying done.
"What do you want, Yuu?" He muttered, not bothering to turn to look at them. He already knew they held the smuggest grin on their face imaginable.
You see, Yuu was a trouble magnet, no doubt. They are a walking catastrophe. They did impossible things. They walked on walls, they sat on air, they talked as if someone was there in an empty room, they heard voices, they saw things others didn't, the list goes on.
Though, Riddle never really complained about Yuu's company. Despite them being the exact opposite of him... he finds that being around them... is nice.
Yuu giggled again, but it was higher, more... manic. "Aw, Riddle, you flatter me!" They singsonged, skipping over to where Riddle sat.
Looking over his shoulder, they saw what he was studying, rolling his eyes slightly before flopping down on the couch that was conveniently in Riddle's room. "Studying? How boring."
"Studying is not boring! It's necessary!" Riddle defended, yet he knew it was a losing battle.
Yuu giggled again.
"Sure it is, Rids." They said, staring up at the ceiling.
Riddle sighed again, staring at them with exasperation. He could tell that something was off tonight. They they were acting more manic, if that was even possible, but Riddle had no clue as to why.
As Yuu stared up at the ceiling, they started to see it move. It moved and twisted, forming cruel faces and mocking laughs. Their ears stared to fill with whispers, whispers of madness, of guilt, of happiness, or anger, all at once.
Their eyes became fully black, the shine fully gone, leaving behind a haunted stare that made a shiver run down Riddle's spine.
He poked Yuu's arm slightly, something close to concern on his face. "Are you ok?" He asked after a moment.
Snapping their gaze back to Riddle, they grinned again, "I'm fine, Rids! Just... dandy!" They said, but their voice lacked conviction.
Riddle was not convinced, not one little bit. But, he didn't push for answers.
Yuu suddenly sprung up, a wide grin yet again on their face, seemingly plastered on there. "Well! I best be off! Won't want to get bored by all your studying!" And with that... they left.
Riddle sat there, a furrow in his brow. That was weird. Weirder that Yuu usually was. They never acted like that.
Quickly closing the door behind them, Yuu looked around. All the walls, ceilings, floors, they all moved, twisting into horrid and creepy shapes. Their ears were filled with more whispers. Promises. Threats. Pleads.
They couldn't take it anymore. Everywhere they went, everything they did, this always happened. Their mind won't leave them alone.
It was getting suffocating. Hurrying down the hall, the walls seemed to stretch. They covered their ears, trying to block out the noise.
They seemed to be walking in circles, not finding the exit despite knowing the layout of Heartslabyul like the back of their hand.
Their breathing picked up, the whispering getting louder and the walls laughing harder.
Where was everyone? Why were they alone right now? What is going on?
Yuu start to run, continuously running into the same place they were before. Was this a maze?
They ran until their legs burned, until they couldn't anymore. Collapsing to the ground, their breathing was ragged and their heart was hammering in their chest.
The whispers where so so loud, making it impossible to think. The floor laughed. The walls laughed. The ceiling laughed.
"Stop! Just stop! Leave me alone!" They screamed, clutching at his ears and squeezing his eyes closed.
They felt a hand on his shoulder, but it didn't emit warmth. No. It was cold.
A voice filled his ears. "Just embrace it." It said. "Embrace it. Embrace the madness. Embrace it... and you'll feel peace."
Yuu trembled, feeling ink begin to pool under them. They felt it drip down their head, down their cheeks, starting to cover them.
Yuu stared at it, laughter bubbling in their chest. It soon began to fill the entire room.
Riddle doesn't even know how it happened.
He found Yuu on the ground, clutching their ears, Ace, Deuce, and Grim beside them. Cater had ran to inform him, and Trey ran to get the Headmaster.
Riddle touched their shoulder, trying to snap them out of whatever haze they were in.
Suddenly, blot began to form around them, making the 4 collectively jump back.
Yuu began to laugh, the distorted sound echoing off the walls.
Seeing what was happening, Riddle quickly told the Heartslabyul students to back away.
As blot ink quickly enveloped Yuu in darkness.
Yuu had overblotted.
When some of the ink cleared away, it revealed something awful. Yuu was still coated in it. They had on a sort of jesters outfit, a crown sitting on the top of their head. The ink on their face resembled a clown's makeup.
Ace and Deuce shared a look of horror. Riddle was alarmed beyond belief. How could they overblot? They were magicless! Moreover... where was the blot monster?
