*Third POV*
Inside the Heartslabyul dorm, Riddle was sitting in a chair as he was staring at a student before him. The student was shaking in fear and horror as he was in trouble for breaking one of the many rules of the dorm. Cater and Trey stood on the side of the chair that Riddle, they weren't happy at the moment as they had a sadden look. They hated this soo much, but they couldn't do much without getting collared by Riddle. They have to play it safe as they watched the student pleaded for forgiveness.
"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 states as he looked at the blonde-haired student, who was afraid.
"I'm sorry, Housewarden. My pink clothes were in the laundry... Please, sir, not the collar!" The Heartslabyul student pleaded
"This is your second rule violation. I cannot forgive a repeated offense. Off With Your Head!"
"Gaaaaaaah!"
"Write me a 5,000-word apology and weed the garden for one week, and I'll remove it." Riddle orders the student
"*Sob*... But..." Riddle wasn't having it with the whining
"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?" Riddle looked at Trey and Cater
"Trey? Cater? Remove him from the premises." Riddled ordered
"... Yes, Housewarden." Trey and Cater said sadly
The two grabbed the student by the arm and proceeded to drag him out as they were quietly apologizing to the student. The student continued to pleaded as he was being dragged out of the premises. It broke the two's heart from the sight of each student that was collared, but they couldn't do much to help. After they got the boy off of the premises, Trey was currently in the library while holding a book. He needed to return a book he was borrowing for the time being as he doesn't need it.
"......"
Trey remembered what happened during the unbirthday party and what the group said before they were kicked out. He felt guilty that he had to kick them out like that instead of protecting them from Riddle because of fear. He remember what Ace said to Riddle and the look Ciel was giving when him and Cater were fighting Ace, Deuce, and Grim. The anger in Ace's voice and the disappointment and sadness in Ciel's eye burns deeply in his mind. But before he can focus on the thoughts more, he heard footsteps as he looked up to see the four walking towards him.
"Hello, Trey." Deuce said as the group approached him
"How are you feeling?" Ciel asked
"You four!" Trey said as he looked at them
"With Ciel's help, we figured that if we waited at the library, you'd show up to return your tart cookbook eventually." Deuce explains
"We still got a problem with the way Housewarden Riddle is handling all of this." Ace stated with an annoyed look
"That's right, he doesn't realize that what's he doing is harming others. If this continues... Who knows what will happened." Ciel stated with his arms crossed
"Yeah, I thought you might say that." Trey said sadly
"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 as Trey looked at him in shock
"What?! Who told you that?" Trey demanded
"A guy who called himself Che'nya." Deuce answered
"He was the one who suggested to confront you, Trey." Ciel explained
"Che'nya... Huh. That explains it." Trey said with a face of recognition
'Does he know Che'nya? It could explain why he suggested to us to talk to Trey.' Ciel thought to himself
"What I don't get is, aren't you older than Riddle? Why haven't ya told him off already?" Grim asked in confusion
"I do when I need to. I don't think the situation calls for it." Trey said which made us confused
"Why not?" Ace asked while being annoyed
"These sorts of strict rules... They're what created Riddle." Trey answered
"Huh?" Deuce looked confused
"What do you mean?" Ciel asked
"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
"Sounds pretty lame." Grim said
'I feel like I had that kind of life, except I was the one to choose that life.' Ciel thought
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 finishes the story as he looked at us.
"......" Ace didn't say anything
"So it's his parents' fault he's like that?" Ciel said as he felt his grip tightens on his arms
"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 explains
"I guess that makes sense, since rules made him who he is." Ace said
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 said sadly
"Myah..." Grim had a sadden look
"So that's why he's like that." Deuce said sadly
"I can't believe that happened to him..." Ciel said with a sadden tone
"...... All right, now I get it. It's YOUR fault Riddle's like this." Ace said while pointing at Trey
"What?!" Deuce, Trey, and Grim shouted as Ciel stayed quiet
"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 asked
"I mean, yeah..." Trey trailed off
"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 scolds him
"......" Trey remained silent
"Ace, man, come on..." Deuce said as Ciel shakes his head.
"Though, he does have a point... Even though Riddle is a victim because of his parents, Riddle is not being told that what he's doing is not right which made him believe that what he was doing was okay. He's the one that is hurting the other students because he's continuing the cycle that was placed upon him without realizing the damage." Ciel stated while giving Trey a stern look.
"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 scolds him
"You there! Be quiet! You are in a library!" The group turned around to see that is was Crowley coming towards them while holding a couple of books.
"You're yellin' louder 'n any of us, though!" Grim said with a deadpanned look
"He's got you there, Crowley." Ciel said with an amused smirk
Oh! *Ahem* Yes, my apologies. But let us strive to maintain the library as a quiet place for reading." Crowley said as he tried to regain composure
"What are you doing here, Headmage?" Ciel asked
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." Crowley explains himself
'I call a bit of bull on that...' Ciel had a sweatdrop appeared on his head, though Ciel couldn't blame him on wanting to get a new novel, he's done it before.
"*Ahem* Incidentally, what are you all discussing with such grim faces?" Crowley asked as Deuce sighs
"Well, since you asked..."
YOU ARE READING
An Earl in Night Raven College (Book One)
Fanfiction(Black Butler x Twisted Wonderland) After avoiding being expelled, Ciel is now a student in Night Raven College with his magic companion, Grim. Now he must face a new challenge when he meets a housewarden named Riddle Rosehearts, a person who is str...
