Riddle kept his word and finished prepping for the unbirthday party. You helped where you can but Riddle insisted on doing most of it. Deuce and Ace actually helped set up the tables and decorations. Finally by the end of the week, the unbirthday party was ready.
"All hail our leader, the Red Sovereign himself, Housewarden Riddle!"
"We salute you, Housewarden Riddle!"
The Heartslabyul students cheer as Riddle makes his way out of the dorm. Riddle nods his approval, seeing everything is in place.
"The garden roses are red, the tablecloths are white... This seems a proper unbirthday indeed. Is there a dormouse asleep in the teapot- er, well, I suppose it's fine either way."
Trey steps beside Riddle. "Not everything has to change completely, you know. Like, maybe spread the jam on your scones, instead of on the dormouse this time? 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 nods. "Yes, that makes sense."
Ace sighs. "I can't believe we got roped into cleaning up and prepping the garden again."
"Well, at least the housewarden recovered from his overblot without any complications." Says Deuce.
"And the garden is Magicam-worthy once again!" Carter takes various pictures of himself and the garden. "Hashtag #nofilter on this gorgeousness!"
Grim rolls his eyes. "Blah blah blah! Let's just eat already!"
Carter laughs at the eager cat. "Then eat we shall! I'll get the-"
"Wait a minute!" Riddle interrupts. "There's a white rose..."
Ace whips around to spot the white rose. "We missed one?"
Carter whirls to face the two. "Ace, Deuce, I told you to make sure to paint EVERY rose!"
Deuce glared back at Carter. "Wait, this is our fault?"
Trey nervously glances at Riddle. "R-riddle, listen..."
You take Riddle's hand with both of your own. "Please try to understand."
Riddle stares at you before a smile breaks out on his face, chuckling. "Well... I suppose I can overlook one or two missed roses."
Carter takes a step back. "R-really? That's so generous of you, Riddle!"
Riddle smiles to the rest of the group. "If we work together, we should be able to get them painted in no time."
You nod and smile back but Ace doesn't look too happy. "What? They still gotta be painted?"
Trey smiles, a small laugh escaping his lips. "Even so... I'm impressed. You've changed, Riddle."
Grim let's put a frustrated groan. "I'm starvin' here! Let's just get these stupid roses painted or whatever!"
You laugh at Grim's impatience. Riddle walks with you to a bush with some white roses, his hand still holding onto yours. You pick up a paintbrush and dip it in some red paint. Everyone else gathers around the bush.
"When's the last time you did the painting, Riddle?" Trey asks.
"Hard to say. I've let the dorm members handle it since I became housewarden."
Carter flicks his paintbrush around. "It's kinda fun once in a while. Well, less so with a bunch of clueless freshmen."
Ace glowers at Carter. "Wait, do you mean us?"
Grim smirks at Riddle. "After all the painting I've had to do, I'm about to wipe the floor with Riddle!"
Riddle grins back at him, letting out a chuckle. "We'll see about that."
"...and that's how it's done." Riddle says as he finished painting the last rose.
"Geez Louise!" Ace exclaims. "You finished those roses before I could even raise my pen!"
"You've certainly proven you can lead by example." Deuce agrees.
Carter laughs. "Applied magic is Riddle's super-special specialty!"
"They look great Riddle." Trey nods to the Housewarden.
"That ought to do. And now...let the unbirthday party begin!"
Everyone cheers at Riddle's words, all finding a place at the tables. You sit down with Ace on your right and Carter on your left. Riddle sits in his spot at the head of the table. Trey and Deuce take their seats at the table. Ace grins over at Riddle.
"So what happened to that tart, Housewarden?"
"I made it for you, as I promised I would. Here, one strawberry tart, crafted by yours truly."
Riddle presents a beautiful strawberry tart that gleams in the light. Just the sight of it makes your mouth water. Trey nods his approval.
"Nice! The shape's a little off, but I can tell you put a lot of work into that glaze. A fine job indeed, especially considering it was your first!"
Ace rolls his eyes. "Oh, puh-leeze. How about we actually TRY it before you start fawning all over him, Trey?"
Carter holds his hands up before anyone could touch the tart. "Hold it! Don't you start cutting that before I get my Magicam snap!" Carter takes multiple photos. "Okay, got it!"
Ace scoffs. "I see Cater hasn't changed a bit either. All right, let's dig in"
Each of you grabs a slice. Eagerly taking a bite out of the delicious looking tart. But as soon as the tart hits your tongue, you can tell something's off about it.
"Uhhh,"
"This is kinda..."
"Salty!"
Everyone cries out, pushing their plates away. Riddle watches with shock. "What?"
Ace grimaces. "Err? This isn't KINDA salty, it's a full-on salt lick! What did you put in this?"
Riddle looks to the tart confused. "But I followed the rules exactly, and measured everything precisely! Unless... Oh! Could it be... from the oyster sauce?"
Deuce sputters, spiting out his drink. "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..."
"And you actually believed him?" Ace asks, not believing this. "How could you not tell that he was joking?"
You nudge Ace with your shoulder. "You fell for it too you know."
Ace waves you off. "We don't talk about that."
Carter looks back to Riddle. "Even if you believed the joke, it was only supposed to be a splash. How much did you put in?"
Riddle waves his hands indignantly. "It's an unlisted ingredient! How could I measure it if he wouldn't tell me how much to put in?"
Trey struggles to hold back his laughter, suddenly bursting out cackling. "I can't believe someone actually fell for the ol' oyster sauce prank!"
Riddle laughs along with Trey. "Yes. Quite humorous indeed. I truly am a fool."
"It really is so disgusting that it's actually kind of funny!" Deuce laughs.
Ace shakes his head, smiling. "Yeah, what can you do but laugh?"
Grim keeps chowing down on the salty tart. "You know, in its own weird way, I think it's actually kinda good!"
Carter nods. "Right? It really isn't half as bad as you'd think."
Deuce looks to Carter with surprise. "Seriously? You're agreeing with Grim, Cater? He literally eats garbage off the ground."
Carter holds his hands out in defense. "Look, I'm not saying it's amazing or anything!"
"But you like it because it's not sweet."
"Huh?" Carter looks to Trey.
"You've never really liked sweet things, right?"
You turn to Carter. "Really? Not at all?"
"Yeah, you got me. But how did you figure it out?
I've never told anyone that."
Trey smiles. "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."
"Ack! My secret is out! This is so so embarrassing! 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." Carter brings a hand to his head.
"How about I cook up a quiche for the next unbirthday party?" Trey suggests.
"That sounds totes amazing to me." Carter holds up a peace sign with his fingers. "Just make sure it's as photogenic as the tarts!"
"Mm mm mmm!"
You jump from the sound of the new voice coming from behind you. You bring a hand to your chest trying to steady your heart. You smile at the new arrival.
"Your baked goods are always so delightful, Trey."
"Che'nya?" Riddle looks at the purple haired boy in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to celebrate my unbirthday with all of you. A very merry unbirthday to you, Riddle."
Riddle folds his arms. "The unbirthday party is a Heartslabyul House tradition. It does not pertain to you."
"And those two?" Che'nya gestures to you and Grim. "What about them?"
Grim eyes light up with recognition. "Hey! You're that weird semi-invisible cat guy from before! So you never told us, what dorm are you from?"
"Che'nya isn't even a Night Raven student." Trey informs. "He's a student at our long-time rival school, the Royal Sword Academy."
Ace and Deuce jerk back in shock. "What? You're from a different school?" Deuce asks.
Ace narrows his eyes and Che'nya. "The frickin' Royal Sword Academy, no less?"
"So there are other magic academies?" You ask and Trey nods.
"Did that guy just say the Royal Sword Academy?"
"He's one of those pompous jerk-faces?"
"What? Who's from Royal Sword? We gotta run 'em outta here!"
Some of the Heartslabyul students start rushing towards Che'nya who doesn't look worried in the slightest. He grabs more treats as he starts to back away.
"Well, now that I've tasted some tart, perhaps I should see myself out."
Che'nya makes himself disappear until all that's left is his head. He gives you a wink before he completely vanishes.
"He's running for it!"
"After him! Don't let him get away!"
Grim let's out a laugh. "Whoa, everyone turned bloodthirsty real quick."
Riddle sighs at his dorm mates aggression. "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 trails off.
"Hey, stop harshin' the vibe!" Says Carter. "This is supposed to be a day of celebration. Can't we all just enjoy our unbirthdays?"
"Myah! Merry unbirthday or whatever! I'm gonna eat till my stomach explodes!"
Grim greedily grabs the tart and wolfs it down. You're just glad no one would eat anymore before Grim hogged it. You laugh and soon the others join with you. All laughing and enjoying one another's company.
In another dorm, a lion sits on the windowsill, glaring down at his own dorm mates lounging in the foyer. His tail swishes side to side as he thinks about his plan.
The hyena walks into his room. It's the biggest room since it's the Housewarden's but given it's occupant, it wasn't nearly as big as he was used to. The room is a mess with piles of clothes astrewn all around the floor and random objects scattered everywhere.
"Awww, sounds like those Heartslabyul twits are having some kind of feast today." The hyena complains. "Must be nice. How come Savanaclaw doesn't have any traditions that involve eating lots of free food?"
The lion scoffs. "It's a beautifully sunny day and they're stuffing their faces with cookies and cake? Grossin' me out over here."
The lion rolls his emerald eyes. "Anyway, Ruggie. You know that's not what I'm here to ask you about."
"Ah, that. Just leave it to me, Boss." Ruggie smiles cheekily. "All the preparations are proceeding smoothly!"
"Then those fools won't be happily guzzling tea for much longer. That goes double for that snob Malleus. They got no idea what's comin'..."
The lion lets out a small laugh that begins to grow louder and more menacing. The laughter fills the entire room as the lion prepares for his plan.