The Birth of Venus || Various!TwistedWonderland X Siren!Reader

✧29. Perfect. ✧

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When you opened your eyes you were met with a stark white void. You slowly sat up, feeling rather sore. You squinted your eyes as you adjusted to bright surroundings. You began to look around, spotting a figure standing and staring at something. You couldn't make out what it was. You squinted your eyes. It was Riddle! Just regular Riddle. "Riddle?" You spoke, earning a slight Glance from him before he went back to staring at what was in front of him. You got on your feet and walked towards him. Upon taking your place beside him, you noticed his face held no expression, simply staring ahead at the scene before him.

You followed his gaze. The scene was set in a lavishly-decorated home. A child who resembled Riddle was sat at the table and a woman who you assumed was his mother stood across from him. She looked like a well-put-together woman. "Happy eighth birthday, Riddle." She smiled as she placed down a plain-looking cake with an "8" shaped candle on top of it. "This year's birthday cake is a low-sugar recipe made with nuts and lecithin-rich soy flour to improve your cerebral function." She smiled as she spoke. 

Riddle smiled down at the cake before speaking. "Thank you. But, Mom..." His mother's face soured slightly. "Just once, I'd like to try one of those tarts covered with bright red strawberries..." She gave her son a look of bewilderment, clutching at her pearls. "Absolutely not! Those tarts are monstrously unhealthy. I might as well feed you poison! Even just a single slice would exceed your recommended daily intake of sugar." She reprimanded the young boy before picking up a plate of food and putting it down on the table in front of him. "Now, dinner tonight will be a tuna sauté rich in DHA and omega-3 fatty acids. Now that you're eight, your caloric intake should be 600 kilocalories per meal, so don't eat more than 100 grams of it." She informed. "Understood?" 

Riddle stared down at his plate, now wearing a saddened expression. "Yes, Mom." He mumbled. "I'd always wanted to try one of those tarts with the bright red strawberries." Present-day-Riddle spoke from beside you. "The local cake shop had them in the window." He continued, his expression turning sad. "They shined at me like forbidden jewels." The scene before you changed.

That poor boy. You frowned. An eight year old should never have to worry about things like "caloric intake."

Younger Riddle was sat at a desk in a library. Books and papers cluttered his desk. His mother was stood next to him, holding a book on the philosophy of language. "That's enough classical magic study for today. Your homework is to read the first fifty pages of this philosophy of language book referenced in today's magical philosophy texts." His mother spoke, setting a book down on the desk. "You may now have one hour of independent study before your potionology lesson." Riddle nodded. "Thank you, Mother." He smiled, grabbing the book she placed on the desk. "I need some time to prepare the lesson materials. I will see you in one hour, okay?" She spoke before walking out of the room. 

The scene paused. "I was studying every possible subject, scheduled down to the minute." The Riddle next to you spoke, still never glancing at you. "When I didn't understand something, the lesson was extended until I did. That was my "normal." The scene before you resumed. Something was knocking on a window in the study. "...Is someone knocking on the window?" Younger Riddle thought out loud before standing up and walking to the window. He curiously opened it to investigate, only to be met with two little boys. Those of which were a young Trey and Che'nya. Trey was holding a basketball. He looked at Riddle in shock. "Whoa, he heard us!" 

Che'nya smiled. "Hey, come play with us!" He called out. "Who are you?" Riddle questioned, confused. "I'm Che'nya, and that's Trey." Che'nya motioned to himself and then Trey. "Let's all play croquet! Oh, but it's LOTS of fun!" He grinned. "I can't. I'm supposed to be doing independent study, and I have a lot of homework to do." Riddle frowned slightly as he looked back into his study. "Independent study" means you pick what to do, right? My grandpa says play is a form of study!" Che'nya spoke, placing his arms behind his head. "Just play with us for a little bit!" Trey called out once again. Riddle looked conflicted, glancing at his study and then glancing at the two other boys. "...O-okay... Just a little, though!" Trey smiled and reached his hand out to help Riddle get outside through the open window. "Hey, what's your name?" Trey spoke

Riddle hesitantly took his hand. "R-Riddle. Riddle Rosehearts." And with that, he had left his study and made his very first friends. "I had the best time playing with Trey and Che'nya." The riddle beside you spoke as various memories of Riddle playing with the other two formed. "We did so many things I'd never done before. They taught me lots of things I didn't know. After that, I snuck out of my room every day to play with them during independent study time." 

The scene changed to the set of a bench in what looked to be a park. Riddle was sitting on the bench and talking to Che'nya and Trey. "Whaaat? You've never even tried a strawberry tart? They're out of this world." Che'nya exclaimed. "Yeah. My mom says sugar is basically poison." Little Riddle sighed. Trey frowned. "I mean, you probably shouldn't eat too much of it, but calling it "poison" is kinda...yikes." He cringed at the end of his sentence before smiling with an idea. "You know, my family runs a cake shop. Let's go get a tart right now!" Riddle looked up, hesitant. "Really? But...I shouldn't." He fretted. "Just one slice. It'll be fine." Trey assured as he pulled Riddle from the bench. "One slice for YOU, maybe. I want a whole one!" Che'nya chuckled.

The scene changed to Trey's home where Riddle was seated at the table next to Che'nya. Trey walked in and placed a slice of strawberry tart in front of Young Riddle. "A bright-red strawberry tart on a white plate." You looked over at the Riddle beside you, who now spoke with a small smile, staring at what seemed to be a fond memory. "To me, it shined more brightly than any gem could." The young Riddle took a bite of the tart and you could practically see the amazement on his face. You could assume that this was probably the most flavorful thing he'd ever tasted. "That first bite was so sweet. It tasted like nothing I'd ever eaten before. With each bite, I became more entranced..." You watched as young Riddle happily ate the tart and chatted away with his friends. "...and completely lost track of the time." Riddle's smile faded rather quickly as the scene changed. 

Little Riddle was standing in his study, his mother yelling at him. "I cannot believe this! Not only are you cutting independent study time, but I find you eating a mountain of sugar?!" She screamed at the boy who tried to hold back his tears. "Those two hoodlums must have incited this behavior. You must never play with them again!" Tears began to fall from little Riddle's eyes. "I'm sorry, Mother! I promise, it will never happen again." He pleaded through tears. "Be quiet! You've broken the rules, and I'll not hear another word from you."

Your frown deepend. Oh, that poor boy. You looked over to Riddle whose frown deepened as well. You knew his mother was strict, but this was overkill. You suppose you can see where he gets it from. This was all he knew. 

"Because I broke the rules, my favorite part of my day was taken away from me. I vowed to never break my mother's rules again. After all, she was the most accomplished mother in the city, and therefore, the most correct." He paused. "But Mom... Why?" He choked out. "Why does my heart hurt so much? I want to eat a tart! It's my birthday, so can't I have some just this once? I want to play outside all day long! I want to make lots and lots of friends! Tell me, Mom, please..." You could see the tears well up in his eyes as he ranted. "What rule do I need to follow to make this pain go away?"

It was silent for a moment. You looked over at him, trying to find the words to no avail. You grabbed onto him before pulling him into a gentle hug, much to his surprise. "...You... You are not your mother. Your mother was cruel, the way she treated you... wasn't right." You felt as he began to tremble, beginning to cry. You gently rubbed circles into his back before pulling away from him. You grabbed his hands gently and he looked up to meet your gaze, tears still flowing from his eyes. "You can be whoever you want, however you want. Rules play no factor in that. I know you're a good person, maybe an even better housewarden. But the way you've been going about this... it's not okay." Riddle sniffled, using one of his hands to rub the tears away from his eyes. "...I understand."

You gave him a gentle smile before beginning to feel light-headed. "Y/nnnn...?" You heard a voice call out. Your eyelids felt heavy. You closed your eyes. "Y/nn...?" You heard Yuu's voice call out to you. "Y/n!"

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