Days later, with permission from Crewel, Crowley, and the nurse, Yuu now stood, watching the familiar scene as a red-head marched gracefully forward, his head held high.
"All hail our leader, the Red Sovereign himself... Housewarden Riddle!" A Heartslabyul student gestured toward Riddle, giving a quick bow before returning to the ranks.
"We salute you, Housewarden Riddle!" The boys all recited perfectly as Riddle Rosehearts now stood among them, face adorned with a charming smile as the group of students applauded.
"Hm. The garden roses are red, the tablecloths are white... This seems a proper unbirthday indeed." Riddle examined, reaching toward the teapot. "Is there a dormouse asleep in the teapo-"
He froze, pulling away as if he'd been burned. "Er, well, I suppose it's fine either way." Yuu sighed, a crooked smile of amusement and fondness creeping onto her face.
He was trying.
"Not everything has to change completely, you know." Trey informed the Housewarden with a chuckle. "Like, maybe spread the jam on your scones, instead of on the dormouse this time?"
Yuu made her way over to the two boys, listening to Trey's words.
"Let's try to set the bar at 'it's great if it's this way,' not 'it absolutely has to be this way.'"
Riddle nodded, thinking over his childhood friend's words for a moment. "Yes, that makes sense."
Yuu smiled warmly, gesturing for her two idiots to follow her lead, having finally managed to get the two to agree to treat her like a normal person. Amusingly enough, both of them still seemingly a bit bitter after Yuu had admitted that three others had figured out her pregnancy before them.
"Can you believe we got roped into cleaning up and prepping the garden again?!" Ace groaned loudly with a sigh.
"Well, at least the housewarden recovered from his overblot without any complications." Deuce said, standing stiffly beside Yuu. She nudged him slightly, gesturing for him to relax a bit.
"And, the garden is Magicam-worthy once again! Hashtag #nofilter on this gorgeousness!" Cater smiled, snapping a quick selfie of himself and a grumpy-looking Ace.
"That's a good thing, isn't it tin man?" She teased slightly, turning to face her tense friend, making Deuce blush slightly.
"I-I'm not a tin man!" He retorted, relaxing as Yuu broke into a fit of giggles.
"I know, I'm just teasing."
Deuce gave her a smile, as he pulled a chair out for Yuu in a gentlemanly sense, Yuu recalling that Deuce had quite a lot of respect for his mother. She gave him a thankful smile as Grim hopped up to her lap, practically drooling as he eyed all of the cakes.
"Blah blah blah! Let's just eat already!" He said, licking his lips as Yuu straightened his ribbon.
"Manners, Grim." She reminded the cat monster, who simply sniffed and sat up.
"And eat we shall!" Cater said, standing next to Yuu, who'd gotten the seat to the left of Riddle. "I'll get the-"
"Wait a minute!"
Yuu flinched at the sudden loud voice of the housewarden as he slammed his hand onto the table, standing suddenly, his delicate features marred by a deep frown. Yuu followed his gaze, heart sinking.
Cater turned to the housewarden, wide-eyed as his face paled slightly. "Huh?
"There's a white rose...!" Riddle called, pointing as he stood. Yuu followed suit, prepared to hold the younger boy back.
Ace and Deuce followed, faces terrified. "We missed one?!"
"Ace, Deuce, I told you to make sure to paint EVERY rose!" Cater said, turning accusingly to the freshmen.
"Wait, this is our fault?!" Deuce cried.
"R-Riddle, listen..." Trey began.
Yuu noticed a sharp gleam in the red-head's eyes as he slowly turned.
"Riddle... please, try to understand-" She began in defense of her friends, watching fearfully as Riddle clenched his staff in his hand. Yuu tried to shield her friends before Riddle's expression softened, lips pulling back in an amused smirk.
"Well... I suppose I can overlook one or two missed roses."
The entirety of the dorm released a breath of relief at their housewarden's words.
"R-really?! That's so generous of you, Riddle!" Cater sighed, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"If we work together, we should be able to get them painted in no time." Riddle laughed jovially, holding his staff firmly.
"What? They still gotta be painted?!" Ace yelped, disbelieving.
"Even so... I'm impressed. You've changed, Riddle." Trey gave a soft smile at his childhood friend, who returned it.
"I'm starvin' here! Let's just get these stupid roses painted or whatever!" Grim meows loudly, positioning himself in front of the unpainted bushes.
Riddle hummed in agreement, pointing his staff before turning to the others. "All right, is everyone ready?"
"Yes!"
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"When's the last time you did the painting, Riddle?" Trey asked, coloring a single rose red.
"Hard to say. I've let the dorm members handle it since I became a housewarden." Riddle responded thoughtfully, Yuu watching the coloring of the roses.
"It's kinda fun once in a while." Cater remarked before adding, "Well, less so with a bunch of clueless freshmen."
"Hey! Do you mean us?!" Ace growled at the insult, making Yuu laugh.
"After all the painting I've had to do, I'm about to wipe the floor with Riddle!" Grim said, challenging the housewarden.
Riddle shot the cat a look, smirking.
"We'll see about that."
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"Roses, be red!" Ace muttered, blindly shooting his magic at the roses, turning them a very vibrant neon green. "...Aww, nuts. That color-changing magic's harder than it seems." He huffed, looking at the roses
Yuu snorted. "All talk, aren't we?" She quipped, Ace shooting her a look.
"Hey! I am not above hitting a girl." Ace warned, jumping in surprise as the voice of his housewarden resounded from behind him, scolding him lightly for the mistake.
"White among red is simply unacceptable. Do it again, and do it right!"
"'Do it again and do it right!' My left foot." Ace grumbled, attempting again.
"The food's gonna get cold if you keep us here all day!" Grim called from the other side of the bush.
"What do you think of putting the focus more on having fun over being accurate?" Trey suggested, making Riddle huff, unsure of how to proceed.
"If that's preferable, then...very well. Let us endeavor to keep this 'fun'." He said, Yuu walking over to him, checking in.
"Don't force yourself too much, Riddle." She said with a smile, Riddle returning it awkwardly.
"I am LOVIN' this new open-minded version of you! Snappin' this for posterity!" Cater called, retreating from his spot behind the rose bush, taking a quick picture, temporarily blinding the young woman, the housewarden, and his vice.
"Ack!" Yuu yelped, rubbing at her eyes. "Cater! The flash, dammit!"
"Whoops! Sorry!"
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Once Yuu had regained her vision, she watched the others, her heart swelling at the sight of such a friendly event. She wrapped her arms around herself as she watched the chaos as Ace and Deuce chased around Grim, who'd accidentally set fire to their rose bush.
She sighed before feeling a small tap on her shoulder. The young, pregnant woman turned slowly before facing Riddle.
"Yuu, would you like to help me paint the roses?" The red-haired boy asked, leaving Yuu dumbfounded.
Her gaze softened, nodding in excitement, making Riddle smile back.
He held out his staff, instructing Yuu to hold onto it, placing his hand above hers. Not touching her, but stabilizing the staff.
The stone on the staff began to glow brightly, leading to Yuu having to close her eyes before reopening them, a light breeze flowing past her. Her eyes adjusted quickly, leaving her quiet as she stared at the impressive scene before her.
Riddle pulled his staff closer to him, blowing at it before smirking in satisfaction.
"...And that's how it's done."
Yuu turned to him, her eyes sparkling. "That was so cool!"
"Geez Louise! You finished those roses before I could even raise my pen!" Ace yelped, jaw dropped as he examined the roses.
"You've certainly proven you can lead by example." Deuce agreed, making Riddle smile.
"Applied magic is Riddle's super-special specialty!" Cater beamed, putting his phone into his pocket as Trey turned to Riddle.
"They look great, Riddle."
The housewarden, in response, simply nodded, his eyes sparkling.
"That ought to do. And now...let the unbirthday party Begin!"
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Now, once again seated at the table, Riddle cradled a box in his arms as Ace began.
"So what happened to that tart, Housewarden?" The ginger teased his upperclassman.
"I made it for you, as I promised I would." Riddle said, thrusting the box in Ace's direction, opening the box to reveal his gift. "Here: one strawberry tart, crafted by yours truly."
Yuu looked inside of the box, eyes widening as she saw a very lopsided strawberry tart, the pink filling having somewhat of a brownish tint to it. Yuu gave Riddle an encouraging thumbs up, not trusting her voice to betray her emotions, as she was struggling to hold back amused laughter.
"Nice! The shape's a little off, but I can tell you put a lot of work into that glaze." Trey complimented, Riddle giving him a thankful smile. "A fine job indeed, especially considering it was your first!"
"Oh, puh-leeze." Ace scoffed, taking a knife as Riddle placed the tart onto the table. "How about we actually TRY it before you start fawning all over him, Trey?"
"Hold it!" Cater called, promptly shoved Ace to the side excitedly, pulling out his phone. "Don't you start cutting that before I get my Magicam snap!" He adjusted the angle about three times before smiling in satisfaction. "Okay, got it!"
Ace rolled his eyes, taking the knife once more as he cut into the tart. " I see Cater hasn't changed a bit either. All right, let's dig in!"
Yuu took a slice of tart, giving Grim one of the slices, the group excitedly taking a bite. As soon as Yuu put the fork in her mouth, she froze, her eyes wide as her tastebuds were ultimately assaulted by a very strong flavor.
Grim gulped loudly.
"Hmm...?" Deuce hummed, clearly struggling to comprehend the flavor. Yuu gave Deuce a tortured smile, also struggling to swallow.
"This is kinda..." Trey and Cater muttered, reaching for their tea cups.
"SALTY!" The group yelped.
Yuu somehow managed to swallow the piece of tart before drowning her tastebuds with her tea.
"Whaaat?!" Riddle yelped, eyes scanning the others, unsure of what had happened.
"This isn't KINDA salty - it's a full-on salt lick! What did you put in this?!" Ace coughed, gasping as he downed his tea.
"But I followed the rules exactly, and measured everything precisely!" Riddle cried, analyzing what he'd done to make the tart. His gray eyes widened in realization. "Unless... Oh! Could it be... from the oyster sauce?"
Deuce sputtered, attempting to scrub the salty flavor off of his tongue with a napkin. "Wait... did you actually use that Walrus-brand oyster sauce Trey jokes about?"
"But Trey said that oyster sauce is an unlisted secret ingredient in all tarts! He said all the finest bakers use it..." Riddle pouted slightly.
"And you actually believed him?! How could you not tell that he was joking?!" Ace scolded.
Yuu raised an eyebrow at him. "You're acting as if you didn't believe him the first time."
"Even if you believed the joke, it was only supposed to be a splash. How much did you put in?" Cater asked, looking at his housewarden.
"It's an unlisted ingredient! How could I measure it if he wouldn't tell me how much to put in?!"
Yuu smiled at Riddle, eyes twinkling in amusement. For someone so smart, he appeared to be surprisingly gullible. She watched as Trey broke into a fit of laughter.
"I can't believe someone actually fell for the ol' oyster sauce prank!" He cackled, wiping tears of amusement from his eyes.
Riddle froze before breaking into a sheepish grin. "Ha ha ha... Yes. Quite humorous indeed. I truly am a fool." His eyes became somewhat downcast before Yuu approached him.
" It really is so disgusting that it's actually kind of funny!" Deuce laughed.
"Yeah, what else can we do but laugh?" Ace (miraculously) agreed.
Yuu gave an amused smile. "An attempt was made! I believe this is what you'd call a learning experience." She teased, Riddle turning an embarrassed shade of pink.
"I-"
"You know, in its own weird way, I think it's actually kinda good!" Grim chimed, taking another slice.
"Right? It really isn't half as bad as you'd think." Cater agreed and Yuu nodded.
"Yeah, actually. Maybe a bit of lemon and chili powder might make this a little better. Oooh! And some chamoy." Yuu said, mouth watering as she thought of a childhood fruit snack. She ignored the looks from the other boys.
"Seriously? You're agreeing with Grim, guys? He literally eats garbage off the ground." Deuce wrinkled his nose.
"Look, I'm not saying it's amazing or anything!" Cater said defensively.
"But you like it because it's not sweet, right?" Trey asked, Cater freezing as he stiffly turned to face Trey.
"Huh?" He squeaked. Oooh. Caught red-handed.
"You've never really liked sweet things, right?" Trey asked again, Cater biting his lip.
"Wait, like... not at all or you can only tolerate a small amount?" Yuu asked.
Cater dropped his hands in defeat. "Yeah... Looks like you got me. But how did you figure it out? I've never told anyone that."
"Because you casually bring up my Paint the Roses spell every time we're eating sweets. You hide it pretty well, but that was a giveaway." Trey reasoned, pushing his glasses up.
"Ack! My secret is out! This is so so embarrassing!" Cater Shook his head. "Especially after what happened to you and Riddle. I should have learned by now that keeping your feelings on the DL is not a great idea."
"How about I cook up a quiche for the next unbirthday party?" Trey offered, Cater shooting him a grateful smile.
"That sounds totes amazing to me. Just make sure it's as photogenic as the tarts!"
Yuu smiled fondly at the boys before pausing when she noticed a familiar striped purple tail swishing at the end of the table.
"Mm mm mmm!" A whimsical voice purred, a smile materializing in thin air as it floated over to Riddle. Yuu smiled as she recognized the cat boy. "Your baked goods are always so delightful, Trey." A cookie floated to the floating grin as the mouth took a bite with a satisfying crunch.
"Che'nya?! What are you doing here?!" Riddle yelped as the cat-boy materialized, seizing Riddle's crown and placing it atop his own.
"Hm? I came to celebrate my unbirthday with all of you. A very merry unbirthday to you, Riddle." Chenya stood atop the table, grinning as he bowed to Riddle before making his way over to where Yuu was, leaning on her head.
"The unbirthday party is a Heartslabyul House tradition. It does not pertain to you." Riddle informed, standing as he made his way over to Chenya, attempting to reclaim his crown.
"And these two? What about them?" Chenya purred, rustling Yuu's hair, effectively knocking her hat off of her head.
"Playful today, aren't we?" Yuu teased, the cat chuckling.
"Always am, queenie~." He purred. "Or should I call you Alice instead?"
"Hey! You're that weird semi-invisible cat guy from before!" Grim yelped, pointing. "So you never told us - what dorm are you from?"
"Oh, Che'nya isn't even a Night Raven student." Trey informed them. "He's a student at our long-time rival school, the Royal Sword Academy."
"Whaaat? You go to a different school?"
"The frickin' Royal Sword Academy, no less?!" Ace and Deuce cried out, turning several heads.
"Okay, low-key though? That sounds like a pretty cool name for a school." Yuu chirped, placing her hat back onto her head.
"Did that guy just say the 'Royal Sword Academy'?!" Growled one of the boys who overheard.
"He's one of those pompous jerk-faces?!"
"What?! Who's from Royal Sword? We gotta run 'em outta here!"
Chenya's pupils expanded in the way a cat's would when excited. "Well, now that I've tasted some tart, purrhaps I should see myself out." He chirped meekly before grinning. "Bye bye!" Chenya waved, taking a slice of tart with him as he retreated.
"He's running for it!" One of the students yelled.
"After him! Don't let him get away!" The other cried, taking off after the cat-boy.
"Whoa, everyone turned bloodthirsty real quick." Grim said, laying himself on Yuu's lap.
Riddle nodded, picking up his crown, shining it. "The vast majority of Night Raven College students perceive the Royal Sword Academy as the enemy."
"No surprise, given that they've kicked our butts every year for a hundred years straight..." Trey laughed awkwardly, watching the group of boys look around in confusion as Chenya dematerialized.
"Hey, stop harshin' the vibe! This is supposed to be a day of celebration. Can't we all just enjoy our unbirthdays!" Cater scolded playfully, going over to fix Yuu's hair.
"Myah! Merry unbirthday or whatever! I'm gonna eat till my stomach explodes!" Grim announced, running back to the food table. Yuu stood up rapidly, chasing after her cat.
"Grim! Get back here! What did I say about manners, you trash panda!" She called, the others laughing in amusement at the Ramshackle duo's antics.
Riddle smiled, watching the two before calling out.
"To a very merry unbirthday!" He raised a teacup just as Yuu dragged Grim back to the table.
Yuu grabbed her teacup, watching as the others followed suit.
"To a very merry unbirthday!"
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End of The Book of Heartslabyul
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A/N:
Whoo! That took a whole lot longer than I thought it would cause I couldn't figure out how to proceed! But, as promised, here is the last chapter of Book 1! I'll go ahead and start on Book 2. Hopefully, I'll have that out by tomorrow! Thank you all very much for reading! I hope you all liked this, and I'll see you in the next chapter!
~
Nyx Nightshade