✿༺ 𝐋𝐎𝐓𝐔𝐒 ༻✿ [𝐕𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒]

Book 1 chapter 19

"The Queen of Hearts's rule 249:
"Flamingo caretakers are to don pink attire."
It was supposed to be your turn to feed the flamingos today. Why aren't you wearing pink?" Riddle growled, looking down at a shaking student

Heartslabyul Student: I'm sorry, Housewarden. My pink clothes were in the laundry... Please, sir, not the collar!

"This is your second rule violation. I cannot forgive a repeated offense.
Off With Your Head!" Riddle yelled, throwing his hand to the side in a slicing motion

Heartslabyul Student: Gaaaaaaah!

"Write me a 5,000-word apology and weed the garden for one week, and I'll remove it." Riddle growled, no mercy on his face whatsoever

Heartslabyul Student:
Sob*... But...

" Do you think I enjoy having to do this?! You're the one who broke the rules!
As much as I would like to, I cannot ignore these infractions. It's for your own sake. Understood?
Trey? Cater? Remove him from the premises." Riddle sighed out, massaging his temples

Cater & Trey: ...Yes, Housewarden.

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In the Library

"......" Trey stood silent as he bumped into the first years

"Hello, Trey." Deuce greeted

"You four!" Trey finally spoke out

"We figured that if we waited at the library, you'd show up to return your tart cookbook eventually." Deuce answered, pulling out a cookbook and handing it to Trey, ignoring y/n's confused expression

"We still got a problem with the way Housewarden Riddle is handling all of this." Ace declared

"Yeah, I thought you might say that." Trey sighed out in disappointment

"Come clean with us. What's your take on Riddle?
Is it true you've been pandering to him since the two of you were kids?" Ace asked, leaning forward on the table.

"What?! Who told you that?" Trey asked shocked

"A guy who called himself Chenya." Deuce answered

"Chenya... Huh. That explains it." Trey slumped his shoulders then sat down on a chair at the table

"What I don't get is, aren't you older than Riddle? Why haven't ya told him off already?" Grim spoke confused

"I do when I need to. I don't think the situation calls for it." Trey tried to explain

"Why not?" Ace asked

"These sorts of strict rules... They're what created Riddle." Trey begun

"Huh?" Deuce questioned

"His parents were famous magical healers. Everyone where we're from knew their names.
His mom was especially talented, and she really wanted Riddle to live up to her legacy.
So, from the moment Riddle woke up to when his head hit the pillow at the end of the night...
Every aspect of his life was planned, down to the minute, by the education program she made for him."

Trey explained as y/n looked up, hearing a very familiar story.

'Why is everyone so shocked? Isn't this normal?' Y/n thought in confusion

"Sounds pretty lame." Grim commented with a deadpan

"What he ate, what he wore, what soap he used, who his friends were - every last detail had been predetermined for him.
And to please his parents, Riddle obediently completed every task they'd laid out for him.
He mastered his signature spell by age ten.
He's been the top student in all of his classes.
I can't even imagine how hard he must have had it." Trey continued

Y/n stared at everyone's expressions, confused on why they looked disturbed.

"...?"

"Riddle sees the enforcement of strict rules as a service to his dorm members.
In his eyes, being bound by rigid guidelines - by fear - is a fast-track to personal growth.
Because that's how it worked for him.
And on the flip side, he sees the violation of those rules as an inexcusable offense." Trey spoke again

"I guess that makes sense, since rules made him who he is."

"Look, I totally get why you see Riddle as a tyrant, and why you disapprove of his methods.
But for me... I can't hold that against him, you know?" Trey admitted with a sigh

"Myah..." grim spoke

"So that's why he's like that." Trey concluded

"...... All right, now I get it.
It's YOUR fault Riddle's like this." Ace spoke up, shocking the boys

Deuce, Grim & Trey: What?!

"Riddle didn't get to choose his parents.
But you know what his parents did to him, and you know it was wrong, right?" Ace continued

"I mean, yeah..." trey spoke uncertainly

"Well, now Riddle's making the exact same mistake that his parents did.
You're going easy on him because he had it rough as a kid? Don't you see where that's leading?
You're letting him make a pariah out of himself!" Ace exclaimed, raising his voice

"......" trey looked down in shame

"Ace, man, come on..." deuce tried to calm ace down

"So why don't you say something? Are you just afraid you'll "lose your head" too?
That's pathetic!
You guys are supposed to be childhood friends?! Then act like it." Ace ignored deuce and continued to scold his senior, trey.

"You there! Be quiet! You are in a library!" Crowley yelled, once again popping up out of nowhere

"You're yellin' louder 'n any of us, though!" Grim pointed out to the headmage

"Oh! *Ahem* Yes, my apologies. But let us strive to maintain the library as a quiet place for reading." Crowley spoke with an embarrassed cough

"What are you doing here, Headmage?" Y/n asked innocently with her pot twirled in her hands making Crowley gulp

"I'm researching methods to send you back home. Precisely as I promised I would.
Oh, but I AM gracious! And the library is, of course, an ideal place for serious research.
It's not as if I came here just to secure the newest book in that popular series of novels. No, certainly not.
*Ahem* Incidentally, what are you all discussing with such grim faces?" Crowley spoke nervously, eyeing the pot ever two seconds

"Well, since you asked..." Deuce begun

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Words this chapter: 976