The first thing Kat did when they got back to Ramshackle was go upstairs, slam the bedroom door, and scream into the pillow until her throat was hoarse.
Then she lay facedown on the bed. She took about ten minutes to just lay there mindlessly, stewing in all the stress, uncertainty and other such emotions roiling around in her body.
Finally, she got back up and changed into jeans and a t-shirt. Slinging her hoodie back on, she went downstairs, into the lounge.
"Hi," she announced.
Stepping off the staircase, she wandered over to the couch with her hands in her pockets.
"Hi," Deuce replied exhaustedly, with his head in his hands.
Ace just grunted, lurking in the corner and leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
They'd changed back into their school uniforms... Or whatever spell Cater had used had worn off, she wasn't sure.
Looking around, she actually spotted the dorm uniforms. One of them was tossed carelessly in a pile by Ace's gym bag, while the other was folded neatly on top of Deuce's backpack.
Huh... Okay.
So, Cater must've used the same spell Crowley did when he switched her casual clothes with the uniform....
Grim clambered up into her lap as she sat down. She gave him a few idle strokes, staring at the dusty chandelier for a few seconds.
His ribbon was back to normal too, and she rubbed the moth-eaten edges between her fingers.
"....We've gotta talk to Trey," she said eventually, still looking at the ceiling. "About all of this."
"Yeah, but we can't go back to Heartslabyul," Deuce muttered, ruffling his hair anxiously. "M-Maybe we could wait until Monday and--"
"No WAY!" Ace interjected, slamming a fist against the wall. "I'm not--"
Unfortunately, this resulted in a large puff of dust from the velvet wallpaper, and he had to stop mid-rant and cough angrily for a few seconds.
"I'm not-- waiting another SECOND! I don't care if we have to literally ambush the guy! I'm getting some goddamn answers about that little shithead, and that's final!"
Kat and Deuce exchanged glances.
"....Like Deuce said," she continued.
"We can't go back to Heartslabyul..... Do you two know anywhere else he might be over the weekend?"
Grim perked up, ears pricking.
"Ooh-- maybe we can corner 'im in the cafeteria! He's gotta come by for lunch or dinner, right?"
"Mmm," Kat mused.
"Not a bad idea, actually.... But I don't think anybody in Heartslabyul is really gonna need lunch. The tea party's kinda like a brunch buffet..."
"Good point," Deuce agreed, raising his head. "Then... How about dinner?"
"Hmm," she said again, looking back up at the ceiling. "Yeah, maybe..."
Suddenly, Deuce sat up straight, eyes widening.
"Oh-- I GOT it!" He exclaimed, slamming his fist down into his palm. "The library!"
Everyone looked at him in surprise.
"The library?" Kat repeated.
Deuce nodded eagerly.
"Yeah, yeah-- I saw the cookbook Clover-senpai was using for the marron tart, and it was definitely a library book!"
"Huh?!" Ace snapped, scowling. "So what? He COULD just wait until the start of the week to return it! I mean, that's what I'd do..."
Deuce shook his head.
"No, no-- I don't think Clover-senpai would be the type to do that! I mean, actually I overheard him saying something about that... He said he always returns the books right after he's done with them, and he only takes out one at a time. He was giving somebody some study tips, and I-- I..."
He trailed off, looking down and blushing.
"...Huh," Kat said thoughtfully, tapping her chin. "The library, huh? Okay.... Well, it's as good a place as any, I guess."
She looked around at the other two again.
"Oh, but-- what time is the unbirthday party supposed to end? They'll all still be there, duh..."
Ace scratched his head, squeezing one eye shut and thinking.
"I think-- sometime in the afternoon? Probably? Like, after 3-ish or something...."
"Okay," Kat nodded.
"Uh...... Either of you got a watch or a phone or something? This house doesn't have a working clock...."
"I got it," Deuce piped up, looking at his left wrist. "Hmm... I-it's about one right now..."
"Okay," Kat nodded.
"Then-- how does heading to the library at about two-thirty sound? We don't know how long it's gonna take for the party cleanup or whatever else..."
"Yeah, sure!" Deuce smiled, nodding. "Good idea, Prefect!"
"Yeah, yeah!" Grim agreed, standing up in her lap and pumping a paw in the air eagerly. "With all of us against just one a' him, we'll get the answers outta Trey no problem!"
"Hey, Grim-- we're not gonna beat him up," she scolded, flicking him lightly on the forehead. "We're just gonna talk. Not wink-wink just-gonna-talk, literally just talking."
They all looked over at Ace, still leaning against the wall.
"Ugh.... Okay," he grumbled, rolling his eyes. "I just hope he doesn't take too long.... I'm gonna get bored out of my skull just sitting around and waiting for the rest of the day."
".....It's a LIBRARY," Kat said after a second. "Have you considered maybe... Reading a book?"
Ace scoffed. "Pffft... Aw, come on! What, are you ACTUALLY gonna do that?"
She exchanged a look with Deuce.
"....Yes," she replied. "Duh."
"Neeeeerd," Ace muttered out of the corner of his mouth.
Deuce and Kat looked at each other again. Then Kat picked up Grim, bringing him closer to her face.
"I'll get you three entrees next time we're in the cafeteria if you go and bite Ace on the ankle," she whispered in his ear.
"But don't break the skin or anything-- just make it hurt. Deal?"
Grim looked around at her, eyes wide and eager.
"Shh," she warned, putting a finger to her lips. "Okay?"
He nodded excitedly, and Kat lowered him to the floor.
"Grim-- KILL," she ordered, pointing at Ace.
"What the-- AAAGH! FUCK!!" Ace shrieked as Grim sped across the floor like a furry, blue-flamed bullet, nipping at the redhead's ankles like a kitten trying to play with its human's feet.
"STOP! STOP!! HEY-- GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU SHITTY LITTLE DEVIL-BEAST! KAT, GET YOUR FUCKING DEMON-- AAAGH! STOP!!"
Deuce and Kat both burst into laughter, clutching their stomachs and slapping their legs.
"Okay, okay, Grim-- PFFT! Th-That's-- HA! That's enough," Kat choked out, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye and sitting up. "You've upheld your end of the bargain... It's a deal, okay?"
"Heheh!" Grim cackled proudly, turning with a proud swish of his tail and strutting across the floor.
"Grim the Righteous has punished the evildoer for ya, underling! Better be grateful!"
"WOO!" Kat cheered, pumping her fists and jumping up off the couch.
"That's my Grim-sama! See what happens when you keep running your mouth, Ace?"
Ace shook his head rapidly, looking back and forth between her and Grim in a stunned stupor.
"Wh-- SERIOUSLY?!" He demanded. "No way-- did you SERIOUSLY put that little shit up to that?!"
"You're goddamn right I did," Kat retorted. "And I'll do it again, too."
She pointed at him emphatically.
"And don't you forget it, smartass."
Deuce gave another strangled cough of laughter, bent almost double with his head in his lap.
"I hate literally ALL of you," Ace snapped, stomping across the room and storming off in a random direction.
************************************
Kat sat at one of the tables in the school library, turning another page in the book she was reading. Grim was loafing grumpily on the table next to her, and Deuce was leaning against a nearby shelf.
Ace was pacing up and down impatiently, grumbling to himself.
After a while, he came over, peering over her shoulder.
"...Are you actually reading that?" He asked suspiciously.
"Yes," she replied, turning the next page and continuing to read. "Fuck off."
"Tch," he grumbled, turning and pacing away again.
After a few more minutes, his pacing was starting to get on Kat's nerves.
"Hey," she snapped, turning to glare at him. "Sit down. I can't concentrate."
"We aren't HERE to--"
"SHHH!" She and Deuce hissed in unison, putting their fingers to their lips.
"--HERE to read," Ace hissed back. "We're SUPPOSED to be waiting for Trey-senpai!"
"We ARE," Kat said. "The cooking section is literally right on the other side of this shelf. What are we supposed to do, wait faster?"
"Yeah, but--"
Suddenly, Grim stood up, ears twitching. "Hey-- SHH!" He ordered. "I hear somethin' comin' this way!"
Closing the book, Kat stood up hurriedly, skittering over to the shelf and peering out through the books. Ace and Deuce followed suit, with Grim jumping down off the table and climbing up onto Kat's shoulder.
At first, nothing seemed to happen. Then footsteps approached, slowly, but steadily.
Trey emerged from the shadows with a book tucked under his arm.
He paused for a second, adjusting his glasses, then walked up to the shelf in front of him.
Kat glanced around at the others, raising her eyebrows.
Okay, he's here... Now was anybody gonna say anything?
Deuce squared his shoulders, taking a silent breath and nodding.
Giving a soft sigh, Trey started trailing his fingers across the spines of the books.
He slid his book back into place.
Instead of turning, he stayed where he was for a moment, putting his hands in his school uniform pockets with his head drooping a little.
"....Clover-senpai," Deuce said, stepping out from behind the shelf and folding his arms.
Trey jumped, stiffening a little, then turned.
"Ah-- it's you," he said, relaxing a little. "....What are you doing here?"
"We figured that, since you'd have to return the cookbook you used for the tart eventually, we should wait here until we ran into you," Deuce replied.
The others emerged from behind the shelf as he spoke.
Ace huffed, planting his hands on his hips.
"Listen," he said. "We... Really can't accept the dorm leader's approach, after all."
Trey blinked again.
Then he sighed, turning away again and straightening a couple of the books.
".....Yeah," he muttered, broad shoulders slumping a little bit.
"I know."
"Then tell us-- straight-up," Ace continued. "What's the deal with him?"
Trey didn't answer.
"...Is it true you've been kissing his ass ever since you were little?" Ace continued.
Kat smacked his arm with the back of her hand, glaring.
"ACE!" She hissed. "NOT the time for this!"
"Wh-- OW!" He complained, rubbing his arm and glaring right back.
Trey turned sharply.
"Who told you that?!" He demanded, face darkening.
"Some guy who called himself Che'nya," Deuce replied.
"Che'nya...?" Trey repeated.
Then he sighed, closing his eyes and putting his fingertips to his forehead for a second.
"Ah... Of course. Figures as much..."
"Sorry," Kat apologized, twirling her hoodie string around her finger.
"He just kinda-- came out of nowhere, told us we should talk to you, then just... It's not like we went prying on purpose, you know?"
"I know," Trey sighed again, crossing his arms and leaning back against the bookshelf. "He's always had a knack for getting people wrapped up in trouble they didn't go looking for..."
Grim hopped up onto a nearby table, standing up with his paws on his hips.
"See, what I don't get is-- I mean, you're a year older than Riddle, right? How come you haven't snapped an' gone off on him AGES ago? If it was me, I couldn't stand some little brat mouthin' off to me like that..."
Trey shook his head, looking down at the carpet.
"I... I will if I need to," he said solemnly. "If he ever goes too far, I will, but for now I-- I...."
He fell silent for a moment.
"For now, I can't," he murmured. "I can't scold him, or get angry with him... I just can't."
"Why the hell NOT?!" Ace demanded, stepping forward and gesturing angrily with an arm.
"Shh!" Kat snapped again, and he grumbled, falling back with his jaw working visibly.
Shaking her head, she looked back at Trey.
"About that-- I.... I think I might have an idea," she said quietly, watching him for his reaction. "When I-- um..."
Trey glanced up, honey-colored eyes catching her gaze over the frames of his glasses.
"...Yeah," he confirmed, nodding slightly. "I thought so... I thought you noticed something there."
Another short pause.
"...Thanks for that," Trey added softly.
'For not hitting him' was the unspoken end to the statement.
Kat shook her head again.
"No problem..."
Ace looked back and forth between the two of them, getting more and more agitated by the second.
"What the hell are you guys talking about?!" He demanded, gritting his teeth. "Why can't you lose it on Riddle, huh?! What, do you actually agree with all his bullshit rules?!"
Trey and Kat exchanged another look.
Then Trey stood up a little straighter, unfolding from his lean against the bookshelf.
"Because everything that Riddle is... It was all created by those sorts of strict rules."
"...Huh?" Deuce frowned, tilting his head.
Pushing up his glasses, Trey continued, still looking down at the carpet.
"His parents are actually a pair of famous magical doctors," he said.
"Back where we're from, there's not a single person who doesn't know their names... Plus, they're also descended from the local aristocracy. I think they technically still have a title, but it's one of the smaller ones, like, whatever's below 'lord' or something..."
He shook his head.
"It doesn't matter. Anyway.... His mother is especially brilliant, and she really wanted Riddle to follow in her footsteps, and live up to her legacy. So.... The moment he could talk, walk or hold a pen, from the second he woke up until the last second before he slept, it was all planned meticulously, under her strict, rigorous education program. Right down to the minute."
He glanced up at Kat again.
"Gheh!" Grim yelped, jumping back a little. "S-Seriously? Sounds like a serious bummer..."
"You don't know the half of it," Trey sighed again, putting his hand to his temple with a small, rueful smile.
"It wasn't just education-- it was everything. The food he ate, the clothes he wore, the soap, toothbrush and toothpaste he used... Even who his friends were. Literally every single detail had been predetermined for him..."
He shook his head again, taking a deep breath before continuing.
"And, to live up to his parents' expectations-- to make them happy... Riddle bore it all in silence, obediently completing every task or demand they put in front of him."
He laughed sourly.
"And it's not like it was for nothing, either... He mastered that Unique Magic of his by the time he was ten, you know. And he hasn't just been the top of his class-- he's been the number one student at every school he's ever been to, even back in middle and elementary... Hell, even back in kindergarten and preschool, which... Shouldn't even be possible. What it was like for him.... I- I can't even begin to imagine.."
An uneasy silence fell across the group.
Kat put a hand to her mouth, eyes widening.
God...
"Um," she said, a little muffled by her hand. "So-- how often did... I mean..."
Trey glanced up again.
"...Not often," he replied, giving an almost imperceptible shrug. "It wasn't a regular thing, but.... Often enough."
"Jesus," she murmured, drawing back a little and gripping the front of her shirt anxiously. "That's horrible..."
Ace shifted uncomfortably for a second, rubbing his arm with an unsure scowl.
Trey pushed up his glasses again, leaning back against the bookshelf.
"...Riddle thinks that he's doing a good thing by enforcing all those rules," he said. "Well-- no, it's not that he THINKS that, it's more like... That's literally all he knows, you know? In his mind, being bound by rules-- by fear-- is the only way to grow, to improve. Because-- because that's how it worked for him."
He unfolded his arms, pushing his glasses up onto his forehead and rubbing his face with both hands.
"And that's why breaking those rules is such an inexcusable evil in his eyes. Rule-breaking leads to punishment-- that's the way he's lived his whole life. No forgiveness, no clemency, no understanding-- it doesn't matter what the rule is, or why it was broken, or by whom. All that matters is that it was broken at all..."
Kat gave an involuntary shudder, stepping back and wrapping her arms around herself.
God.... So she was right, huh?
Somehow, she wasn't happy about it, though...
Ace shifted again, rubbing the side of his head.
"I-- I guess.... I guess that makes sense," he muttered. "Rules made him who he is, so.... If he goes easy on rulebreakers, it'd be like denying his own existence or something... That's what you mean, right?"
Trey folded his arms again, tilting his head back and staring up at the ceiling. With another long exhale, he pushed his glasses back into place, looking around at them again.
"....I understand why you all see Riddle as a tyrant," he said. "That his way of doing things isn't right. But-- but no matter what I do, I..."
He shook his head again, running his hand through his hair in frustration.
"...I can't hold it against him.... I can't force myself to try and correct him, o-or reprimand him. I-If I-- his whole worldview, it would just..."
Gritting his teeth, he thumped his fist against the bookshelf behind him.
"Dammit!" He growled under his breath, turning away and rubbing his eyes again.
"F--Fnyaaah," Grim muttered, slumping onto the table with a small shudder.
Walking over, Kat scooped him up, giving him a small, mindless cuddle... Partly for his benefit, but partly for hers, too.
Deuce slumped back against a bookshelf as well, ruffling his own hair.
"S-So that's why the dorm leader is like that," he muttered, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "That's awful..."
Ace crossed his arms, slouching a little and staring down at the floor for a few seconds.
".......Okaaaaaay, now I think I get it," he said eventually, straightening back up and looking at Trey. "After hearing all that, I think I finally understand everything."
Striding across the floor, he walked up to Trey.
Trey turned, replacing his glasses and blinking at him as he approached.
"The reason the dorm head's like that-- it's all YOUR fault," Ace informed him, poking the taller boy hard in the chest with a scowl.
"Wh-- HUH?!" Deuce and Grim spluttered in unison, stiffening.
"Sure, Riddle didn't get to choose his parents-- it's not like anybody could do anything about that," Ace continued.
He poked Trey's chest a few more times for emphasis.
"But you, on the other hand... You saw what they were doing to him, and how he was turning out, and you knew it was wrong the whole time, right?"
Trey drew back, looking startled.
"Th--That's..." He muttered, looking down again.
Ace huffed, stepping back as well and crossing his arms.
"I mean, for fuck's sake-- you can literally see him making the same exact awful moves his parents did to him to everybody else, right? You know it's wrong-- so why don't you say anything? What, you wanna keep on letting him do whatever he wants just 'cause you feel bad for him since he had such a shitty childhood? You KNOW where that's gonna lead, right?"
Trey put a hand to his forehead again, looking pale.
"I mean, look at all this!" Ace snapped, flinging an arm out to the side.
"Are you really okay with letting him turn everybody against him like this?! What, are you just gonna stand by and watch as everybody starts to hate him more and more? While he gets more and more isolated, and ends up alone!?"
Trey shook his head, clenching his fists and glaring down at Ace with a dangerous look.
Ace stared right back, putting his hands on his hips with a defiant scowl.
"H-Hey-- ACE!" Deuce protested, looking between the two of them in a panic.
"C-Come on, man..."
Ace ignored him, raising a hand to poke Trey's chest again.
"So? What is it? Don't tell me you're just keepin' quiet to avoid losing your own head, too? Is that it?"
Trey didn't answer, but Kat saw his fists working uncertainly.
"HAH!"
Ace stepped back again, tossing his head with a scornful laugh.
"Talk about PATHETIC! Aren't you guys supposed to be best childhood buddies or something? Then why don't you FUCKIN' ACT LIKE IT?!"
"I BEG YOUR PARDON-- WILL YOU ALL BE QUIET?! THIS IS A LIBRARY, FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!!"
The whole group jumped again, with various yelps and gasps.
Crowley was standing in the entrance of a nearby aisle, giving them all a smoldering glare with his hands on his hips.
"Wh-- G-GEEZ!"
Grim, who had puffed out in Kat's arms like an oversized hedgehog, relaxed, fur starting to settle.
"Hey, you're bein' way louder than anybody else here," he snapped, giving Crowley an exasperated look.
"Ow-- Grim!" Kat hissed, reaching down and trying to disentangle his claws from her sleeve.
"That hurts-- fuck! Come on..."
"O-Oh!" Crowley said, luminous eyes blinking in embarrassment. "My apologies... Ahem."
He coughed politely into his fist.
"But really," he continued in a hissing stage-whisper, looking around at them sternly. "The library is a place for quiet, peaceful reading and studying! We must all strive to be courteous of others, you know."
"Ouch," Kat sighed. Finally extricating Grim's claws from her clothes, she placed him down on the floor.
"Sorry, sir... Our bad."
Standing back up, she pushed her bangs out of her face, giving him a slightly worried look.
"But-- what are you doing here, sir? Isn't the library about to close?"
"Why-- I'm researching possible methods of returning you to your previous world, of course!" He informed her. "Precisely as I promised-- it hasn't slipped my mind for a moment, I assure you."
Giving a self-satisfied sigh, he straightened his shoulders, sticking his chest out a little.
"Ah-- but I AM quite gracious! And of course, this library is one of the best in the world for serious magical research. Our collection of materials on forbidden or obscure arcane knowledge is, quite possibly, unparalleled!"
He actually preened a little, adjusting his tie and hat with a smile.
"It isn't as if I arrived to secure the new release of a popular series of novels before anyone else had the opportunity to do so," he added, almost absentmindedly. "No, no, nothing of the sort, I assure you."
Kat blinked.
She opened her mouth, then closed it, looking around at the others.
They all looked back at her, giving her looks ranging from blank, deer-in-the-headlights stares to awkward grimaces to ill-concealed smirks....
From Ace, of course.
God, I'm so sick of him, she thought. Him and Crowley both.
The Headmaster coughed again.
"Incidentally-- everyone, might I be so bold as to ask what you're all discussing? And with such serious expressions, I couldn't help but notice."
Deuce sighed, drooping a little as he rubbed his head again.
"Well-- actually, sir..."
_______________________________________
*Insert the GET YO' FUCKIN' DOG BITCH' vine here*
Yeah, I think Riddle's actually very, very distantly related to the Queen of Hearts. Like, so much so that it hardly even matters, but still.
His most direct descendant (from his mom's side, of course) is probably one of the distant royal cousins who fucked off and lived in a big ye oldey manor in the countryside which eventually became Trey, Riddle and Che'nya's hometown, and it's been centuries and centuries since then, but yeah.
....Look, he just has old-money vibes, okay? There's no way that just rich doctors trying to make their kid smart would result in quite such off-the-shits controlling behavior. There HAD to be some blue-blooded classism wrapped up in there.
Plus, all that gentlemanly education and stuff, like etiquette and dancing and horseback riding and so on and so forth wouldn't be so important to nouveau-riche famous doctors, you know? They'd be more into STEM and Montessori school-type shit.
Neglectful bird-father has finally returned. I've missed him, TBH. He's a lot of fun. Even though I'm so sick of his shit, both in-universe and as a player/author. It's like-- on the one hand, he's funny and I love his eccentric energy, but like.... For the love of fuck, man. DO something. Please. Be responsible.