Cassandra returned to the lunchroom a bit downtrodden, but not depressed. Riddle seemed like a good guy. He likely was the way he was because someone made him that way. If he didn't want to talk about it, then that was more than okay. She barely knew him and this was likely very personal. She would wait for him to open up, if he wanted to, that was. Though she genuinely hoped he chose to confide in her.
Walking back into the cafeteria with her hands in her pockets, she took her seat without a word and resumed her place in the Excalibur book. Shorter looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"You good?", he asked, seeing as she wasn't smiling in the least, something she almost always did. Cassandra gave him a small, reassuring smile and nodded.
"Yeah, I'm just a bit worn out from arguing with Riddle. He realized Ace was collarless and was pissed that we're coming to the Unbirthday party, so I had to talk him out of trying to kick us out and re-collar Ace by saying I would bring a dessert to the party.", the redhead explained, not technically lying. Shorter raised an eyebrow.
"But isn't recollaring him pointless because you'll just take it off? Also, you already made a tart for that pint-sized jackass, why are you making another one?", he asked. Cassandra smirked.
"That's the fun part. You see Shorter, as I have memorized all eight-hundred ten of those rules from hell, I know something the others don't about acceptable foods for an Unbirthday.", Cassandra drawled slowly, leaning back in her seat and continuing to read her book. Shorter smirked as well, catching onto what was happening.
Cassandra, like always, had a plan; and also, like always, it was a fun one.
"And that would be?", he asked. Cassandra's smirk turned into a toothy grin.
"The only thing you can't bring to an Unbirthday party is a mont blanc tart, which is exactly what we're going to bring.", the tribrid whispered conspiringly, and Shorter grinned widely but raised an eyebrow.
"But why do you want to piss little red off more? Not that I'm complaining, but I don't really see the point, and you always have a point.", Shorter whispered back, and Cassandra laughed a bit.
"Right you are, darling. My 'point' is this; Riddle is stuck in his own little world where rules are the only thing that matter, likely because of some jackass adult in his life. So, we're going to show him just how stupid his rules are by rebelling. Once he sees we have a point, his world view will be shattered and we'll be there to help him pick up the pieces.", Cassandra explained. Shorter's grin widened.
"So you want to take Mr. Big-shot-Napoleon-complex down a peg and then bring him over to the fun side?", he asked. Cassandra nodded.
"Fuck it, I'm in.", he said, and the two lovers shared conspiring grins, before Cassandra suddenly remembered something.
"Hey Trey!", she called out, drawing Trey's attention away from his conversation with Cater.
"Yeah?", he said, and Cassandra smiled at him apologetically.
"I know this is a lot to ask, but could you give two of us your extra Unbirthday invites? We need eight for all of us to go, and Cater, Ace and Deuce already gave us theirs.", the redhead explained. Trey blinked and then smiled.
"Sure, I never use them anyways. Oh, and that reminds me!", he said, a look of realization on his face as he brought a green plastic cake box over to the tribrid.
"I made you this. It's a strawberry cake. I figured you deserved something sweet after what happened at the dwarf mines. Headmaster Crowley... isn't the most competent headmage, but that was intense even for him. I'm honestly shocked he would so much as suggest sending you all there.", the green haired third year explained, an apologetic and concerned look on his face. Cassandra smirked at him in a way he couldn't decide whether he found attractive or foreboding.
"It's fine Trey, really; I assure you Crowley will find out the meaning of the expression 'karma's a bitch' very soon.", Cassandra explained with a dark chuckle, causing Trey to gulp.
Trey was quickly finding that Cassandra was a demon from hell with the general disposition of a kicked hornets nest when she was angry; however, she wouldn't direct her violent fury at you unless you were the cause of it, standing in her way, or a total asshole. Trey would like to think he was none of these things, and resolved not to become any of them in the future, and so he had come to the epiphany that he should attempt to rid himself of his fear towards the beautiful redhead; if not in the name of common courtesy, than for the sake of his slowly dwindling sanity as a result of spending the last year trying to keep everyone in Heartslabyul from going ballistic. He didn't need fears of being murdered in his sleep by gorgeous women keeping him awake at night when there was already so much other stuff already accomplishing that.
With that in mind, Trey just laughed nervously and handed her the cake box. Cassandra's dark expression then turned blindingly bright when she opened it and took a glimpse of the beautifully decorated cake.
"Thank you, Trey. This is a very beautiful cake, and you said you made this yourself?", she asked, a bright smile on her face and golden eyes glowing in admiration. Trey felt a jolt of pride when he saw her expression and smiled sheepishly.
"Yeah, I did. I come from a family of bakers, so...", he trailed off. Cassandra nodded in understanding.
"Ah, yes; nonetheless, it takes a lot of skill to decorate a cake the way you did. I'm almost hesitant to eat it.", the redhead elaborated, giving Trey another blinding smile.
"You have a truly wonderful gift, Trey.", she said in a voice so sincere the vice dorm leader swore he felt an arrow shoot through his heart. Ash, the ever observant young man he was, smiled mischievously at Trey's slight falter. This drew the attention of Eiji, who was having a conversation with him.
"There goes another one...", Ash trailed off, watching the scene with amused eyes. He remembered when he was like Trey, during the early days of his relationship with Cassandra. Eiji faced the same way he was and deadpanned as he realized the true reason for his blonde friend's amusement.
"You're just waiting for the day he and Cater figure out what they both feel for her so you can watch them try to rip each others faces off, aren't you?", the brunette asked. The green eyed vampire only smirked, and Eiji sighed in resignation.
Kalim, who had been talking with Eiji before Ash had interjected, checked to see if Jamil was still immersed in conversation with Yue. When the young heir saw that he was, he turned to face the two chatting friends and frowned.
"If you think he's one of her soulmates too, why don't you just tell him?", he asked quietly. Eiji and Ash looked at him wide eyed and blinked.
"You... you know about that?", Eiji asked quietly. Kalim nodded and gestured to his back. Eiji was confused, but Ash was able to put two and two together.
"You too?", the blonde asked quietly. Kalim nodded and Ash ran his hand through his hair as he sighed.
"Because of course. I take it that was what you and Cassandra's 'conversation' was about?", the ex-gang leader asked. Kalim nodded again and Ash gained a serious expression.
"Well, I assume that also means you've been inducted into the Court of Miracles, so as Cassandra's right hand, it's my job to give you a run down of the rules. Here's the gist; what happens within the Court stays within the Court, no divulging Court secrets to outsiders without Cassandra's permission, no in-fighting and no keeping secrets or lying without good reason. Now, here are the relationship rules; no trying to hog Cassandra, no deliberately interrupting someone's time with her, and no getting territorial with other people in the relationship. With that out of the way; hi, I'm Ash and that's Eiji. Don't ever wake me up and we'll get along swimmingly.", Ash quickly explained, smiling menacingly at the end. Kalim gulped and Eiji smacked Ash's arm.
"Stop threatening the noobies! I'm sorry about him, he's used to having to be more intimidating than welcoming.", Eiji apologized with a small smile. Kalim blinked at his words.
"Why would he have to be intimidating?", he asked innocently, tilting his head. Eiji opened his mouth to explain, but Ash beat him to it.
"It's a long story involving my shit childhood, a very dangerous drug with a very stupid name, and the most overrated city in our world.", he said, not bothering to explain further as he promptly rested his head on Eiji's lap and fell asleep. Kalim looked even more confused and a bit concerned, and Eiji could only laugh nervously at the boy's expression. He was once in Kalim's place, and he did not envy the boy in the least.
"What he means to say is that it's a story for another time.", the Japanese boy said, trying to change the subject. Thankfully, it worked.
"So, what's the plan?", the white haired boy asked. Eiji blinked.
"The plan for...?", he trailed off, not wanting to divulge anything important that Cassandra hadn't. Kalim shrugged.
"Everything. You know, the sword, the marks, all that.", he said. Eiji then realized Cassandra had told him everything and then leaned closer to whisper in his ear.
"We're going to keep the sword a secret for as long as possible. As for the marks, we're not shouting about them to the heavens, but we're not going to go out of our way to keep them a secret at all costs. It'll probably be an open secret sort-of-thing, but we don't know anything for sure and it's Cassandra's call.", Eiji explained. Kalim nodded.
"So keep things between us?", he asked, sending a quick glance to a surprisingly happy Jamil. It was going to be hard to keep it a secret from him, but he would have to manage. Eiji nodded.
"I trust you're capable of that?", he asked seriously. Kalim nodded solemnly, and Eiji smiled brightly.
"Good!", he said simply, and like that the two returned to their earlier conversation, Ash peacefully snoring in Eiji's lap. Cassandra glanced at the scene, smiling a bit, before she turned back to a flattered Trey.
"Y-you can't mean that.", he said, a bright blush on his face. Cassandra raised an eyebrow with a charming smile.
"But I do; in fact, I think you would be just the person to help me with a little problem of mine...", she trailed off. This got Shorter's attention, who was now paying full attention to the conversation at hand. Trey blinked.
"What do you need help with?", he asked. Cassandra smirked internally.
'Hook, line and sinker.', she thought. If Riddle's vice dorm leader seemed to be in agreement with the rest of his dorm that he was going too far, he would be more inclined to realize his faults. She felt kind of bad for dragging Trey into this, but he was going to get involved at one point or another. Might as well have him be useful when he does.
"I promised Riddle I would make a dessert for the Unbirthday party. I want to make a mont blanc tart, but I'm afraid I've never made one before-", Shorter resisted the urge to snort at that.
Cassandra could make a goddamn five-tier wedding cake like it was toast. He would know, she had actually made one last year for her friend's wedding. The Marshall-Kenner wedding was definitely one for the history books for a variety of reasons he didn't have the energy to think about. He still couldn't look most of the crescent pack in the eye after he drank eight glasses of their special moonshine and tried to wrestle an alligator, only to nearly get his arm bitten off and bleed out into unconsciousness. He would never live that down, even as a vampire.
"-And I don't want to mess it up. So, I figured, why not ask the expert for help?", she said in a voice oozing with charisma. Trey blushed a bit, but looked hesitant. He had enough on his plate as it was, and then there was the tattoo-
All thoughts of saying no disappeared when he saw Cassandra's disappointed face. He felt like his heart was being ripped out of his chest.
"Of course, I understand if you're too busy; you're a vice dorm head, after all. I shouldn't expect you to cater to my whims.", Cassandra said in a soft, sad voice. Trey panicked when he heard it.
"No no! Don't get upset, I've got the time, I finished all my work earlier!", the green haired young man said as he waved his hands about, and Cassandra smiled brightly.
"Is that so? In that case, I thank you for your help! Meet me at my dorm after you're done with classes, we can use my kitchen; bring Cater, too.", the redhead said in a jovial voice. Gold met gold, and Trey swore he saw her eyes flare to life as she spoke, like a fire flickering in the wind. In the face of those eyes that never stopped burning, Trey could only nod in agreement and return to his seat with a pensive expression and a light blush on his face.
'What have I gotten myself into?', he asked himself as he folded his hands in front of him. Cater looked at him in curiosity, before returning to his activities on Magicam, unaware of what was to come.
Unbeknownst to everyone at the round table, three Diasomnia students had been watching them like hawks, waiting for the moment when a certain person would finally be left on her own.
It seemed that moment had come.
With the grace and silence of a soldier, Lilia floated up into the air and took a seat on one of the ceiling rafters. Grinning mischievously, the fae hopped off the rafter and floated downwards at an exceptional speed, his hands behind his back and body ramrod straight as he zipped downward head first.
Cassandra, who had been looking back at the large clock on the wall behind her to check the time (lunch would be over in twenty minutes), turned forward and only smiled when she saw Lilia's grinning face in front of her.
"I'd say 'nice of you to drop in' Lilia, but I think I've already overused that joke enough today.", the tribrid said smoothly, returning the older man's wide, fang-filled grin. Shorter, who had been scrolling through his phone, looked over to see who his girlfriend was talking to, and nearly jumped out of his skin with a yelp when he saw the fae from the entrance ceremony hanging upside down like a bat. Everyone else looked in the direction of the noise, and jumped a bit too when they saw Lilia's odd position. Lilia laughed and raised an eyebrow.
"Do I want to know when exactly you overused that joke today?", he asked light heartedly. Cassandra shrugged.
"Most likely not. So, to what do I owe the visit?", she asked curiously. Lilia then began to float around her head, and Cassandra was forced to follow his zipping motions with her head and eyes.
"There is no purpose behind my seeking you out. I simply wished to see you, child.", Lilia said in a pleasant voice. Cassandra smiled and raised an eyebrow.
"Is that so?", she said slyly. Everyone at the table was watching the two's interaction curiously. Lilia smirked.
"Indeed, but I am not the only one...", he trailed off, waving over two very familiar young men. Cassandra's eyes widened when she saw who they were, but she soon began to smirk.
"Well well, if it isn't Sebek and Sleeping Beauty. How have you two been?", she asked. Sebek blushed and Silver blinked at his nickname.
"Sleeping Beauty...?", he trailed off, confused. Cassandra got up out of her seat and walked up to Sebek, causing his face to mimic her hair.
"I see you kept your hair down. You really do look nice like this.", she stated, twisting a piece of the half-fae's light green hair between her fingers. The poor boy practically had smoke coming out of his ears.
"I-uh, th-thank you for your kind words... Ca-Ca-Cassandra.", Sebek sputtered out, having to physically force himself to drop the 'Lady' on Cassandra's name like she told him to. The woman in question looked at him, concerned.
"Are you alright?", she asked. She knew she was likely the cause of his behavior, but he didn't know she knew that, and she wanted to mess with him a bit. Lilia, from his place floating behind her, gave Sebek a look that screamed 'What are you doing?!'. He was making them look suspicious! She was going to start figuring things out! Sebek noticed this and gulped, back going straight as a line.
"I am fine!", he barked out, falling into his default setting of 'loyal knight of the templar order'. Cassandra raised an amused eyebrow and shrugged.
"I meant what I said, you know.", was all she said as she made her way over to Silver. He looked at the woman he had barely met apprehensively, only for his stance and expression to soften when she gave him a soft smile.
"Did you like my flower crown?", was all she asked. Silver was surprised by her soft tone of voice and nodded gently with a light pink blush on his cheeks.
"It was pretty...", he mumbled out, but Cassandra heard him loud and clear.
"Good, I was hoping you would.", she told him genuinely. Just as she was about to head back over to Lilia, Silver called out in an effort to keep her from leaving.
"Your voice is beautiful.", he said, voice now at its regular volume instead of a whisper. Cassandra's eyes widened as she turned back to face him.
"You were awake?", she asked. Silver shook his head.
"Not for long; your song... it was just so soothing... I went back to sleep after barely half a verse... I'm sorry if that makes you think I was bored, I wouldn't want to offend you.", the auroral eyed man said slowly. Cassandra frowned at his last words, before smiling gently at him again.
"Why would I be offended that you thought my voice was pretty enough to fall asleep to?", she said simply. Silver was stunned and blushed a bit, his complexion darkening as Cassandra leaned closer to his face. He was about to ask what she was doing, when he barely caught her mutter.
"Such beautiful eyes...", she trailed off. She was mesmerized by the gorgeous mix of light purple and light blue that made up the eyes she had been so eager to see. Cassandra subconsciously leaned closer to him, and even she wasn't sure what she would do next, when she remembered she had matters to discuss with Lilia. Leaning away from Silver abruptly, the young man felt disappointed at the sudden distance between him and his soulmate.
"Excuse me, Princess.", was all the redhead said as she retreated from Silver's side. Silver's eyes widened, and he was left staring as she went back over to his father.
"So, since you're here, would you like to discuss the specifics of the party?", Cassandra asked. Lilia nodded, crossed his arms and legs, and floated down gently until he was sitting on the edge of the round table in front of the redhead.
"If it pleases you.", the old fae said with an intriguing smile and neutral voice. Cassandra grinned.
"Good. I wanted to have it this Friday, but that's when the Unbirthday party is, so I was hoping Saturday at five would work.", the golden eyed girl explained. Lilia nodded along and raised an eyebrow.
"You've been invited to the Unbirthday?", he inquired. Cassandra nodded.
"Yes, my entire dorm has. We've made friends with some Heartslabyul students, you see. Ace! Deuce! Say hello to Lilia and the others.", the dorm leader called out. The two first years were jolted out of their conversation and turned to face their girlfriend. Doing as she asked, they both waved nervously at the strange fae; 'the others', however, were a mixed bag of glares, 'I'm watching you' gestures (Sebek), and barely moved hands to the point where you could barely tell it was a wave (Silver). Lilia smiled at Cassandra.
"Well, it's nice to see you making yourself at home. Saturday works fine, and you should know that Malleus is thrilled. It's been quite a while since he was invited to an event like this, and he hopes Sebek's assistance has helped him show his gratitude."
Cassandra smiled and nodded.
"He has been most helpful.", she said, deliberately staring at Sebek as she said this. The first year turned away and blushed. Lilia's grin widened, and he gracefully pushed himself off the table and walked back over to his dormmate's sides.
"I just wanted to check up on you and see how you and the others were doing, especially after that fiasco yesterday; so if that's the case, I bid you farewell. I hope to see you soon, child.", was the last thing Lilia said before he, Sebek and Silver left the Cafeteria moments before the shrill sound of the dismissal bell that signaled the end of lunch, causing everyone to begin cleaning up and leaving. Kalim gasped and grabbed Jamil's hand, abruptly yanking his very irate vice dorm leader from his seemingly endless conversation with Yue with a yell of 'We're gonna be late!' from Kalim and 'Call me!' from Jamil directed at Yue. Cassandra watched them leave before she turned to Shorter, grinned slyly, stood up, and clapped her hands loudly.
"Now, we've got work to do in an hour! We're assembling the ingredients for and making a mont blanc tart for the Unbirthday! Everyone at this table is helping, no buts, and Grim I swear to God if you try to pull a runner you will get no tuna. Ever." , the tribrid said chipperly, her final statement causing her familiar to gasp dramatically. Cassandra grinned.
This was going to be fun...
—------------------------------------------
As the three Diasomnia students began to return to class, a puff of green smoke appeared out of thin air with a loud 'POOF!', startling everyone in the hallway. A bottle and a letter with a black seal on it dropped from the dispersing green smoke. Lilia reacted immediately and grabbed both objects. Noticing the emblem on the seal was that of the royal family he served, Lilia urgently opened the beige envelope, expecting to read something from Malleus, but was surprised when he saw a very short note in his Queen's neat scrawl.
Slowly, he read what she wrote;
If I want this, then you definitely need this more than I do.
Blinking in confusion, Lilia looked at the bottle in his hand. It was a large glass bottle of expensive Valley of Thorns whiskey, the kind he would drink when he was still an active combat soldier. He had stopped drinking when Malleus had come into his care, but with all his boys nearly being men, and the turbulent times he knew were ahead, Lilia decided sobriety was overrated.
'Fuck it.', he thought, unscrewing the top and taking a large swig, much to the bewilderment of his sons. He didn't care if he went to class smelling like a bar, on top of soulmate issues, political issues, and child issues, he needed this.
And so, Lilia marched on to his next class with the grace of a baby giraffe, already a bit buzzed from his years of abstinence. Silver and Sebek both exchanged worried glances and followed after their father not-so-subtly. All the while, Lilia only had one thought rattling in his head;
'I'm too old for this shit.'
Pretty fae shouta dad go brrr.
Sorry the update took so long; life happened and I started that Halloween fic. So, Lilia's already done with the world's shit; unsurprising, given the amount of crap he's likely lived through. Also, Shorter time! I feel like I've been neglecting him in favor of other characters, so I'm going to try to fix that. Next time, tart antics and Leona gets his ass kicked!
So long and Goodnight, Thackery Binx.