A Fox Surrounded in Darkness (Twisted Wonderland x Encanto f!reader)

Chapter 49

"999 different works," Trey was awed. "Wow... Talk about prolific."

"Indeed," Rook agrees. "They say the writer ventured into a certain mansion for their grand thousandth piece...and never came back."

"I don't think you should have added that," I sweat-drop as Sebek and Trey gulp.

"The Moon and the Laughing Night is their 13th piece of writing," Rook continues. "It exudes a vigor that marks the author's early period."

"You're quite the avid theater student," Sebek compliments.

"I'm a bit of an aficionado, novice though I may be," Rook humbles himself. "This is how the protagonist of the Moon and the Laughing Night describes the Spectral Realm... 'My attention was drawn to the tremendous full moon hanging in the sky. All was moonlight and darkness.' 'Then in that realm so devoid of color, I glimpsed a vast castle veiled in a thick fog.' 'Countless bats swarmed around it, yet their beating wings made not a sound.' 'They'd not only lost their lives, but fate commanded them to wander in vain for all eternity...here in the Spectral Realm.'"

"A full moon and a big castle," Trey  pulls words from what Rook was saying.

"Plus a thick fog and bats that make no noise," Sebek looks at the scenery. "Now that you mention it, it's the exact same scene as in the play."

"Does that mean...we're in the Spectral Realm?!" Trey pieces everything together.

"No way," I exclaim.

"It's quite likely," Rook confirms Trey's conclusion.

"It matters not where we are," Sebek states. "My mission remains unchanged. I must rescue Malleus! That's all there is to it! If only I had some clue to aid me in my...hm? There's something lying on the flagstone."

"You're right," Trey says as we look a bit ahead of us on the ground. "It's a piece of a mirror and... a letter?"

"No, it's the same invitation we found at Ramshackle," Rook frowns as he picks up the mirror fragment and letter.

"WHAT?!" Sebek shouts and my ears move to dampen the volume of his voice. "'All Night Raven College students are cordially invited to a Halloween party. Come and join the festivities. I await you at the venue.' You mean THAT mockery of an invitation?!"

"Wow, you totally memorized it," Trey was surprised.

"I would imagine that nothing slips his memory," I comment.

"I COULD NEVER FORGET HOW IT MADE MY BLOOD BOIL," Sebek yells.

"Actually, this one is slightly different," Rook states. "See for yourselves."

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

ℱ𝑜𝓇 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝑜 𝑒𝓃𝒿𝑜𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝑒 ℋ𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑜𝓌𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝓅𝒶𝓇𝓉𝓎, 𝑒𝒶𝒸𝒽 𝑔𝓊𝑒𝓈𝓉 𝓂𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝒷𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶 𝓂𝒾𝓇𝓇𝑜𝓇 𝒻𝓇𝒶𝑔𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

"I assume it means this glass that was with the invitation," Trey takes the mirror fragment from Rook to look at. "So it's not telling us to dress up this time, but to bring in some trash we found on the ground? What bizarre instructions."

"Maybe when we get all of the fragments, a doorway or something will be made from it," I suggest. "It kinda reminds me of when Mirabel pieced together Bruno's last vision."