"GAH! H--Housewarden?!"
The small, delicate boy with rose-red hair, who she'd come to know as Riddle Rosehearts, stood behind Ace.
His posture was ramrod-straight and his arms were folded as he glared up at Ace with a scathing look of disapproval.
This was the first time Kat had seen him since the ceremony.
His school uniform was immaculate and tailored to perfection, not a wrinkle or smudge to be seen.
He'd actually tied his tie in a bow...
It was a surprisingly cute detail, compared to his aura of professionalism, but it seemed to suit him.
His rose-red hair was neatly kept...
Aside from two locks that didn't seem to want to lie neatly with the rest, standing up slightly against his bangs like a pair of drooping antennae.
They almost seemed to fall in an angular heart shape...
"Oops-- Riddle!"
Cater jumped up too, waving a hand with a nervous smile.
"Hey, sorry we didn't see you there-- you're looking adorbs, as always!"
"Hmph."
Riddle cast the disapproving look on Cater now, making him shrink back.
"Cater. If you insist on continuing to run that clever mouth of yours, keep in mind you may well end up losing it... Along with the rest of your head, of course."
Cater sat back down with a quiet laugh, knocking himself lightly in the head.
"Oh, nooo... My bad, my bad! Forgive me!"
"Myargh?!"
Grim, who had bristled, puffing out like a sea urchin at all the commotion, glared at Riddle angrily.
"YOU! You're the punk who put that weird collar on me at the entrance ceremony! You--"
Kat reached over, bopping him on the head, not quite so light this time.
"SHUT," she hissed angrily.
Riddle looked at Grim for a moment, blinking.
Then he turned his gaze to her, and she stiffened.
Those startlingly gray eyes of his scanned her, but he didn't seem particularly angry or anything.
It was more like mild disapproval, which seemed to be his default state of existence.
"And you are... The new students who nearly got expelled yesterday, I believe."
She nodded, blushing.
"Y-Yeah... I mean, yes."
"Hmm..."
He tilted his head at her, then started walking around the table towards her.
She stood up nervously as he approached, tugging at the hem of her hoodie.
"We met briefly at the ceremony, did we not?"
She straightened up a little.
She hesitated.
"...Prefect? Of the Ramshackle dorm? According to the Headmaster, anyway... Thanks for not letting this one--" she gestured towards Grim.
"Set me on fire that time, by the way."
Riddle blinked again. His eyelashes were almost as long as Lilia's..
Then he seemed momentarily amused. Cupping his elbow in one black-gloved hand, he put the other, in a loosely curled fist, to his chin, giving a soft laugh.
"It was no trouble," he replied with a shrug. "Kat, hmmm... Well, my name is Riddle Rosehearts, Housewarden of Heartslabyul. However..."
The brief moment of mirth vanished almost instantly. He looked at Grim, skewering him with a sharp, icy look.
"I'll ask that you, little creature, refrain from referring to my Unique Magic as a 'weird collar'."
Grim stiffened, giving a small 'GURK!' sound.
Then Riddle looked back at Kat.
The disapproval in his gaze actually hiked up a few notches from his apparent baseline level.
"Goodness gracious... Not only a student, but a prefect as well? Really..."
He shook his head.
"The Headmaster's habit of tolerating, or even apparently rewarding, rulebreakers is beyond me... It's only a matter of time before it spirals out of control, sending this entire campus into chaos. For the sake of maintaining order, any and all rulebreakers should have their heads removed immediately... Without exception."
Out of the corner of her eye, Kat saw Ace shake his head as well, muttering something she couldn't make out.
Taking a few steps back from her, Riddle cast his disapproving gaze across the entire table.
"The Headmaster may have forgiven you-- and why he would do so is frankly beyond me. However, you would do well to keep this in mind... If there is any further rule-breaking, I will not be so lenient."
All Kat could do was stand there awkwardly, feeling frozen to the spot. Geez-- he was little, and cute, but he had this crazy strong presence..
The way he looked at you made you feel like a deer in the headlights. Kinda like Trein's aura of sternness, but dialed up to a thousand...
Just him turning his attention to you was enough to make you feel like you'd done something wrong already.
Ace coughed, drawing her attention away from Riddle.
"Uh-- hey, by the way, Mr. Housewarden, sir... Any chance I could talk to you about gettin' this collar removed?"
Kat actually unfroze fully this time, turning to look at him with a frown.
Yeah, she highly doubted THAT was gonna work...
Just as she'd suspected, Riddle gave a quiet scoff, turning and skewering Ace with that icy glare of his.
"I had intended on removing it once you'd taken the opportunity to reflect upon your crimes... But I've not detected a single shred of remorse in the foolishness I've heard you spout today. So it seems that you still require some time to think over your actions."
He folded his arms again, with a very small, faint smile.
"No need to worry... The first-year curriculum is much more focused on magical theory than its practice. And your current inability to use magic injudiciously will go a long way in preventing incidents like yesterday's."
He looked around at the whole table again.
"Now, if you've all finished your meals, you should quickly cease your idle chatter and prepare for your next class."
Straightening up, he puffed out his chest slightly, voice taking on a recitatory air.
"Queen of Hearts' Rule number 271: 'One must leave the table within fifteen minutes of completing their lunch'. I'm sure I don't need to remind you what happens to rulebreakers, do I?"
Ace muttered something again.
"I believe what you MEANT to say was, 'Yes, Housewarden'!" Riddle interrupted, raising his voice in a sharp, stern bark that made her jump.
"Y--YES, HOUSEWARDEN!" Ace and Deuce echoed in unison, snapping up ramrod-straight in a comical display of unconscious obedience.
"Hmm..."
Riddle gave a soft hum of satisfaction. "Very well."
Trey laughed, getting up and adjusting his glasses. "There, there... Don't worry, I'll be sure to keep an eye on them," he said soothingly.
To his credit, he didn't so much as flinch or look nervous as Riddle turned to face him.
"Hmm," the smaller boy mused again, sounding slightly mistrustful.
"As vice-housewarden, I trust that you'll be sure to avoid any further indiscreet chatter. 'Loose lips sink ships', as they say. Now, as per the Queen of Hearts' Rule number 339: 'One's post-meal beverage is to be lemon tea, with exactly two sugar cubes'. Thus, I must be off-- regretfully, we appear to have run out of sugar cubes."
Turning to Kat again, he bowed at the waist, one hand folded in front of him. "Young miss. And..."
Straightening up, he cast one last disapproving look at the rest of the group.
"...Others. Farewell."
Turning sharply on his heel, he strode towards the door of the cafeteria.
His shoes clacked on the floor as he muttered something under his breath.
The milling students actually parted as he moved past, like he was an undersized shark swimming through a school of fish.
For a moment-- just a moment, so brief she might have imagined it-- it looked like he'd faltered mid-stride, wobbling slightly.
Then he continued, striding confidently with measured steps, out the door and down the hall.
"Phew!"
Cater sighed hugely, flopping down on the table with his head in his crossed arms.
"Boy, I'm sweatin'... Talk about stressful!"
Grim grumbled, planting his paws on his hips.
"Man, what's WITH that guy?! He's got some serious issues!"
"Hey, Grim-- that's rude!" Deuce scolded, glowering at him.
Kat exhaled, sitting back down and shivering slightly.
"Oof... Well, he was intense, but... He seemed polite enough..."
Trey laughed, sitting back down as well. "Yeah, he is... He seemed to like you, actually."
Everyone except Cater gave him a shocked look, drawing back.
Trey nodded. "For him? That was basically a friendly chat."
Kat shook her head, raising her eyebrows. "If you say so..."
The cafeteria had gone silent for a moment after Riddle left, but now she could hear the murmurs starting back up.
"Is the dorm head gone?" Someone at a nearby table quavered.
"I-- I think so," the person next to them muttered. "Thank god-- I totally just broke rule 189! 'Never eat hamburgers on a Tuesday'!"
They shuddered visibly, shaking their head. "Man, if he caught me... I don't even know what I'd have done!"
"Ugh..."
The first person shook their head too.
"I wish we could at least eat lunch in peace... Why can't he go somewhere else to eat, huh?!"
Oof... Big yikes.
He didn't seem to be the most popular of people...
Looking around, she saw Trey and Cater exchange looks.
What kind of look was hard to tell... Was it worried? Resigned? Knowing?
Apparently Trey noticed her noticing of the look. Sitting back slightly, he crossed his arms, smiling.
"You know, Riddle secured the position of dorm head before he'd even finished his first week of school," he informed the table at large.
"I know he can come off a bit harsh, but he's really not a bad guy, you know? Everything he does, he does because he thinks it'll make the dorm better."
Grim grumbled, crossing his arms.
"Oh, yeah? Would a so-called 'good guy' go around puttin' collars on strangers' necks?"
"Hey, wait a sec," Kat objected.
"That shouldn't count-- who was it who was going around setting fire to the Mirror Chamber, again?"
"Rrrrrgh..."
Grim grumbled again, slouching down and grinding his teeth.
"But c'mon-- havin' your magic shut off all sudden-like like that is rude! Plus, the stupid thing hurt a lot, too!"
"I'm sorry-- you also almost set me on fire," she continued, crossing her own arms and giving him a stern look.
"Which I-- never actually got an apology for, by the way."
"Aw, come ON!" Grim protested. "Why're you stickin' up for the guy, anyway? What gives, huh?!"
"I am NOT 'sticking up for him'," she replied flatly. "I'm just pointing out that, at that time, the collaring was way more than justified. It was probably necessary."
Ace looked around, blinking.
"Hey, that reminds me-- what's this 'Unique Magic' thing he kept going on about, anyway?"
Cater perked up.
"Hm? You curious about Riddle's Unique Magic?"
"Yeah," Deuce nodded eagerly.
" 'Unique'... Does that mean it's a type of magic that only the housewarden can cast?"
Trey adjusted his glasses again, looking pensive.
"Mmm... Well, I doubt that he's the only person in the whole world... But yes, Unique Magic is a magical ability or spell that's, generally speaking, unique to the caster. There are probably others who can use magic with a similar effect, but not in the same exact way he can... You get it?"
Kat nodded thoughtfully.
"Yeah, I think so... It's kind of like magical Quirks, right?"
"Quirks?" Trey echoed, looking at her in puzzlement. "I'm not sure that's--"
She waved her hands quickly.
"Oh-- s-sorry, sorry. It's from an anime back home... You probably don't have it here, huh?"
"Wow-- Prefect-chan, you watch anime?" Cater asked, looking surprised.
She grimaced. "Yep..."
"Nerd," Ace muttered under his breath.
Picking up a piece of quiche crust from her plate, she chucked it at him. It hit him in the side of the head, sticking in his hair.
"HEY!" He protested.
"Bold words from someone who, unless I'm very much mistaken, IS literally an anime," she retorted.
"What the hell are you--" he began, but Trey interrupted them.
"ANYWAY," he said firmly. "You'll learn more about them in class soon enough."
"Yep, yep!" Cater agreed, nodding. "Riddle's Unique Magic lets him temporarily seal away the magic of another. And it's called..."
He grinned, leaning in a little closer with a wicked look.
" 'Off With Your Head'!"
Grim yelped, bristling.
"Yikes-- even the NAME is terrifyin'!"
Cater laughed.
"See, to a mage, getting cut off from using magic might as well be the same as getting your actual head chopped off," he explained.
"Which is why those of us at Heartslabyul House do our best to keep Riddle-kun happy and avoid breaking the rules."
"And as long as you do that, Riddle's really not that scary of a dorm leader," Trey nodded, crossing his arms again.
"Mmm..."
"Ahhh..."
Cater sighed.
" 'Fraid so... Sorry, it's rule 53, so my hands are tied! Plus, Riddle-kun also always looks forward to gettin' the first slice of cake-- or tart, whatever."
He held up his hands with his index fingers and thumbs extended, making a triangle shape.
"So, if you wanna get back in his good graces, you'd better bring him a whole one!"
Peering through the triangle at them, he winked.
"Tch..."
Ace scoffed, scowling. "So much for 'we're all in the same dorm, let's all try to get along', huh?!"
Cater laughed again, patting him cheerfully on the back. "C'mon, c'mon-- that's one thing, but this is another!"
"Mmm," he grumbled again.
Deuce put a hand to his chin, looking worried. "A whole tart, huh... That's gotta be pretty expensive, right?"
"Gweh... Seriously?!"
Ace groaned, bonking his head against the table. "Dammit, I don't have that kind of money..."
Lifting up his head slightly, he peered out at Kat.
"I don't know why you're looking at ME," she said flatly, crossing her arms again. "I don't have any money, either-- and even if I did, it wouldn't even be the right currency. What's the currency you guys use here? Mattels, or something?"
"Madols," Ace muttered, putting his head back down.
"In that case, why not make one?" Cater piped up. "Those three tarts in the fridge were all made by Trey here, ya know!"
Kat blinked, looking at Trey.
"Really?" She asked, eyebrows raising. "Cool!"
"Wh-- no way, for real?!"
Ace lifted his head up again, gaping at Trey in shock. "You made those tarts, Trey-senpai?! But they were super good-- like, professionally good! I thought they came from an actual cake shop!"
Trey chuckled. "Why, thank you! I appreciate that, Ace."
He paused, drumming his fingertips on the table for a moment.
"Let's see... It's true that I have most of the stuff you'd probably need, but..."
He gave a wry grin.
"I'm afraid I'd need something from you in return, though."
"Huuuh?!" Ace spluttered, jumping back. "You mean you're still gonna charge me for makin' it?! This is extortion, ya know!"
"Pfft... Ha ha ha!"
Trey laughed, shaking his head.
"Calm down, calm down! I'm not the kind of guy who would pull that kind of racket on his juniors, okay?"
He put his cheek on his fist, smiling.
"But Riddle's been wanting a marron tart next. So if you want my help, you're gonna need to gather those chestnuts yourself."
"Grrrr..."
Ace groaned, melting onto the table again. "Like that's really any better.... But, fine... How many do you need, senpai?"
"Mmm..."
Trey tapped his chin, looking up and doing some mental calculations.
"It's for the unbirthday party, so... Probably about two or three hundred?"
"TH--THAT MANY?!" Deuce and Grim choked in unison, looking shocked.
Trey continued, apparently not hearing them. "And they'll need to be boiled, shelled and pureed, too..."
Scarfing down the last scraps of grilled chicken, Grim stood up, hopping down onto the bench.
"Okay, I'm gonna head out," he said casually, jumping down onto the floor.
Deuce stood up too, stacking his dishes neatly. "I'll be going too," he added.
Ace jumped up again, slamming a hand on the table. "Wh-- y-you no-good, heartless COWARDS!" He blustered.
Kat snorted, putting a fist to her mouth.
"Hey, hey, come on," Cater interrupted, motioning for them to come back.
"Haven't you guys ever heard that food tastes better when you make it with your friends? Come on, you only have one youthful school life-- make some memories while you're at it!"
He clapped his hands together eagerly, eyes shining.
"Plus, this might be the start of your big breaks as cooking bloggers!"
Deuce and Grim still seemed unconvinced.
Catching Kat's eye, Trey waggled his eyebrows, then leaned in towards Grim.
"Don't tell Riddle, but marron tarts are actually at their tastiest when they're fresh out of the oven," he stage-whispered.
"Of course, the only people who get the culinary privilege of experiencing that are the ones who make it."
"Myagh?!"
Grim spluttered, freezing in shock with his ears pricking eagerly. Then he turned, scampering back up onto the table and raising a paw in the air like a fist.
"Okay, okay, you heard the man-- c'mon, you lousy humans, let's DO this! We're gonna gather a whole truckload a' chestnuts! You okay, Kat?"
Kat had just put her head down on the table, fighting back snorts of laughter and pounding the wood with her fist.
"I-- I'm fine," she gasped after a second, sitting back up and wiping her eyes. "I just-- AHEM!-- Ch-choked on a crumb or something..."
Clearing her throat, she looked over at Trey.
"Where do-- 'scuse me... Where can we find that many chestnuts, anyway?"
"I heard there's a whole bunch of chestnut trees in the woods behind the school's botanical gardens," Trey said, nodding.
"Alright!" Ace cheered, pumping his own fist. "Okay then-- let's all meet at the botanical gardens after last period, right, guys?"
"WOOHOO!" Grim whooped, jumping up and down. "We're gonna be up to our ears in chestnuts, just you wait!"
Deuce sighed, putting a hand on the back of his neck.
"I still don't see what this has to do with me... But, well... I don't mind helping, if the Prefect's gonna do it."
He looked over at Kat, who shrugged.
"Yeah, why not? Oh-- but Crewel-sensei said to see him after class to get textbooks and stuff... I guess I'll head to the gardens after that, is that okay? It was really nice of him to offer, but I don't think he's the type of guy to stand up like that..."
Trey laughed,
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