♥ Dama di cuori ♥

Following after the English Release of Twisted Wonderland but don’t worry i don’t mind spoilers if anything it just gets me more hyped!

Queen Of Hearts: he’s based off the villain from Alice in Wonderland and actually aspires to be like her…so much so he strictly implements her rules to his dorm and now Heartslabyul students have to brush their teeth twice when they eat turkey

Literal Short King: short in height, short in temper, short impulse control 

Glass Canon: strong mage but a cold will leave him in the nurse office

You either wish you were him or you hate him (heartslabyul dorm voice: that’s our housewarden!!!)

Rules!? Rules! : do you think he let go of the queen’s rules just cause he’s no longer at the dorm? no one is free from his reign!

Off With Your Head!: dw it’s not literal yet but he’s used to relying on his signature spell as punishment so it’ll occasionally slip out when he’s really angry, even if nothing happens

Step Aside I Got This: a true leader must be reliable and riddle is not afraid to take matters into his own hands, be it his own or others

Give Me The Question: despite his grumblings about riddles he actually loves problem solving, give him anything and he’ll pour all his attention in reaching a solution 

Doctor, Doctor: perhaps it’s his parents influence but he does have a small knack for it even if it’s mostly relying on books but isn’t that how med school goes?

Someone help this grandpa keep up with the youth

There’s a voice that keeps talking to him, but he chooses to ignore it. The man is hardly in the mood for pleasantries or conversation. The tone of irritation the other wore didn’t even phase him; not much could, at this point.

So when the other pointed out he was in the middle of the hall… perhaps Kratos didn’t even notice.

“ … . “

Wordlessly, he acquiesced, and moved further against the wall as to not block the hallway. Whatever made the voice go away. Kratos himself wouldn’t leave from his vigil at the door. So if the voice wanted him gone altogether… good luck with that one. The man didn’t so much as look up to the person addressing him.

Riddle watches as the other moves away silently, an anger brewing from the mans silent attitude when faced with a stranger. “So you are listening.” He follows the man but keeps his distance, opting to stare down at the solemn figure in disgust.

“We are in a museum, you’re meant to appreciate art. Not loiter around on the floor.” Though he could concede it was a hard task given the subjects. Nevertheless, a sulking man just sitting by the wall was far more eerie than any of the portraits. The man was proving to be a nuisance once again.

 “I”m not certain this is safe.” he’s helping someone do something but he’s unsure on whats actually happening right now. But he looks to be having a bit of fun. 

“It’s not as dangerous as it looks.”When he had requested aid to help with the horses he hadn’t expected a man with anthers to be appear. Riddle was familiar with beastmen but it was the first time he met one with deer features. “But you do need to be cautious, horses are sensitive creatures. They can sense your uneasiness and they won’t trust you if you remain like that.” He guides the man to stand on the side of the horse, kneeling down to show him how to properly hold the leg. “You have to be decisive.” 

The parts of the day that blurred together were the ones Kratos wished he’d been able to focus on. Anything but the sight of the forge, with its pools of blood seeping into the wood, and the smell of that sick sort of iron leaving his brain in a chokehold.

He remembered the field; it was warmer today. And he remembered he was giving one of his students some pointers on… something.  The barking and howling Noishe rushed over with, and kicking off the ground and into the air. Varying gasps as he rushed through on wings that cut through the coming snow. The branches that stung his face as he rushed to the forge his son took so much pride in.

The blood, Everywhere The way Noishe whined and sobbed outside the doors, too distressed to enter The very empty feeling in Kratos’ chest that could not sense the faint echo of his family.

His mind keeps moving, from that spot to the museum floor, as if he really were rushing between the two locations, until he had to put his head between his knees.

Kratos didn’t need to check the gallery of those horrible portraits. With the look of pity that curator gave him, he could already tell.

So here he waited, outside the exit to that place he’d never experienced. Waiting.

…That’s twice now, Kratos.

Twice you’ve let that boy down.

There’s an eerie aura to this place, something he can’t quite explain but it’s alluring. Alluring in the same way a trap would be to the less cautious, but as anything in this world, nothing is ever quite just as simple. In an effort to understand this world a little better he had found himself within the gallery, lost amidst the several paintings. They were unsettling, far less appealing than anything he’d ever looked at back in his own world but Riddle threaded on. There ought to be something he can use as a clue.

As he steps into a new corridor he notices a lone figure crouched in silence. He vaguely recognizes the man from afar, it was dissonant to the memory he had of him, standing so proudly with sword ready to face the glitches in his stead. The mane of red hair now resembles but a quiet flame in solace. 

“...Hello.” 

He announces himself, not to startle the man as he approaches him.“Can you hear me?” He’s not exactly concerned about the man per say. In fact, he’s more annoyed that he’s being a nuisance by staying in the middle of the corridor.

 “You’re blocking the way. It’d be wise to move.”

    They say third times a charm, but this felt more like a curse with how often he was pulled back and forth. floyd didnt like being at the whims of the stars, especially when this place wasn’t even his home, they had no jursidiction to do whatever they liked. it wasn’t fair. jade wasn’t even here either. that short while wa sweet, but now he finds himself bored every day. azul could fill the void a little, but he could only do so much. how uncomfortable this feeling was. 

    “Goldfishie!” that familiar scarlet immediately caught his eye after finally leaving after his shift. his terrible mood had leaked into his work and azul had asked him to leave earlier than usual before he broke something. but something about seeing riddle switched his mood rather quickly. how perculiar. for both him to feel so elated and for riddle to show up to his work unannounced. 

    “What brought you here? i can go get azul if you’re looking for him… or are you here to see little ol me?”

The familiar nickname had him look up. “It’s Riddle.” Though it comes without any heat to it, by now correcting his name it’s more of a small nuisance than anything. He would still appreciate it if the other got it right sometime. “I actually came for you...Surprisingly.” Without any ceremony he hands the small gadget to Floyd as he approaches him. “If you can pass me the song from last time i would appreciate it.” It had been quite a while and Floyd probably didn’t even remember about it, but it was still worth trying. If anything to get a token of something from this world lest he be sent back yet again.

“Though there’s something more I want to ask.” 

@bindingheart​

He must be out of his mind. To seek the likes of Floyd voluntarily, his return must have messed with him. But it wasn’t like Riddle was going to the lounge without a purpose. After having learnt he hadn’t been the only one that got pulled back into their world, he had wanted to ask the other what he remembered. Or at least the timeline he was at. Their last meeting had been somewhat enlightening, on both worlds surprisingly. Be it for the liminal moment before the bus arrived, or the pull for cake at the Halloween party, Riddle had found that perhaps there’s a little more to the merman than he gave him credit for. 

Sure, Floyd was still as annoying and obnoxiously meddling as ever but now he could see a little beyond that. There’s a hidden care that he’s not even sure the other is aware himself. It started with the Halloween party and the more he thought of their interactions, the more he noticed that the other actually did pay attention to him. He could have excused as just a byproduct of the teasing, but Floyd asking him if he didn’t want to stay for the holidays, or grabbing the book he couldn’t reach, getting him a slice even though he knows he shouldn’t, all showed a little more awareness than just mocking him for his height. Why Riddle was even pondering so deeply about it was lost on him. 

@doodlesuit | @splitcrxd | @heartsnare | @carrdsoldier

Having been absent for so long Riddle can only imagine what his cards had been up to. He had worried over them in their world, but seeing as there hadn’t been any significant change he played it out. It was easier to focus on the demands of the moment, even if he still had to save his dorm yet again. Perhaps he had thought that this world had been nothing but a nightmare, a nightmare that took part of his memory for he had known nothing of Vil’s overblot until it got mentioned in passing. 

But now that he’s back, he sees that there’s actually much to fret over. The place they had so lovingly called the Heartslabyul dorm was, to put it simply, a mess. To any outsiders perhaps it looked composed, a normal house that showed signs of being lived in but still well kept. To Riddle’s eyes however, it nothing but a wreck. 

The starcycle in the front lawn, the rose bushes pure white without a hint of red, and it only got worse the more he stepped into their home. He laments not having finished the rule book in time before he got thrown away from this world. It was clear the dorm was lawless again. He had to set it right. 

     ❝      hmm  …  interesting,      ❞     merfolk  hums  as  he  takes  a  sip  of  his  tea.  he  and  rosehearts  are  seated  by  a  table  at  the  bakery  they  both  frequent.  the  disappearance  of  the  dorm  leader  only  for  him  to  show  up  later  was  rather  fascinating.     ❝      so  you  were  brought  back  to  the  academy  only  to  find  yourself  back  here  a  few  days  later  ?      ❞     azul  questions  before  adding,     ❝      is  there  anything  else  you  still  remember  ?      ❞

@dicuori​ 

It’s starting to become a pattern. Much like the first time, Riddle once again found himself powerless to whatever whim of fate had brought him and Azul to this table again and it was infuriating. If a gaze could kill, the tea cup would have met it’s demise. Despite his mood, he tries to hold himself back if only for Azul’s sake.“ Not much...I can’t recall how I got back.Nor how I returned. ” Which was the most irritating part. Two times he had been whisked away and he had nothing to show for it. With a frustrated sigh he takes a sip allowing the warmth to sooth his anger. 

“But time passed...fast. When I came about my senses, it was a week before Halloween.” Just the thought of the mere event had him slightly smiling. Even though they had been thrown into a loop he can’t deny that he did enjoy some of it. “ And last I recall, it hadn’t even been my birthday here.” This small detail troubled him so, not for a lack of the celebration but more for having missed such a mark. Could he even consider himself a year older if he didn’t experience it. It felt like a hole in his memory. 

“ Was I the only one gone? ”

It was the end of all ends… the ultimate finale that will decide the victor and loser – the one who lives… and dies. It was all or nothing and only he and Leo left (aside from Rani) – and if anything, he wasn’t quite sure how even made it to this point… or rather… it wasn’t that. They were keenly aware it was their hard work that took them from zero .. to something.

Yet, there was something… else off… – wrong… weird…. As much as he’d like to concentrate on the soon upcoming battle the next day, Kishinami was seemingly distracted – distracted by many other things … Was he simply not feeling well? That couldn’t be a good sign – after everything they’d been through – …Was the revelation that they were simply a ghost— an NPC created in the image of someone who’d died many years ago. A shocking… and very paralyzing realization.

But that didn’t seem to be the case either…

“Master – what in the world has gotten you in such a tizzy?”

He blinks, turning to face her, a face – that … it seemed that he hadn’t … seen in a while. Haven’t seen in a while? That shouldn’t be true –… he’s in the… Moon … Cell… right? The door to their private room gets knocked upon – making him blink once more – and Caster huffs in annoyance at the disturbance. “Whoever might it be that disturbs my time with Master?”

The door opens by itself … revealing…

“… You’re not a participant … in fact, you’re not even supposed to be here.” He finally finds himself speaking, staring at the intruder. “Who are you?”

@dicuori​ / we start as novice navigators but…rudderless boats never find the grail

All it took was one moment and Riddle’s head is resting over his desk as he’s pulled into a dream. The transaction had been fairly smooth as he barely recalled falling asleep, in fact, he swears he blinked and suddenly there’s a door in front of him. An eerie corridor greets him, the air itself seeming frenetic and stale as if anticipating for something. From the looks of it he is at a station, its’ oozing sterile blue almost reminiscent of Ignihyde back at home. 

The situation feels oddly familiar as he swears he has been in a similar place before. He can’t quite say what it is, but someone should have been with him at this moment. And the two of them should be working to get out of this place together. Perhaps urged by it, he firmly knocks on the door, he doesn’t know if anyone will answer but he might as well try before exploring. 

Before him the door opens itself revealing two complete strangers. He’s still not sure who he was hoping to find beyond the door, clearly it wasn’t them. 

“Interesting. I was about to ask the same of you.” The room is nothing like he recalls, nonetheless the feeling of familiarity lingers the further he walks into it. He acknowledges the woman in passing as he finally presents himself to the other.

    “Hehe, you should record it, i wanna see.” the idea of someone going crazy over coffee is enough to make him chuckle. neither him nor jade were big coffee drinkers ( he thinks? ) more partial to water or tea or juice rather than the bitterness of coffee.  but its not like they had the luxury of warm drinks under the sea so maybe it was just a moment of not being acclimated towards them.

    It was a bit of a lean with how short riddle was compared to him. totally forgot this would happen if they shared wired headphones. his fault for forgetting to charge his regular set, really. but he didn’t toss aside ear bud, so that made the eel happy at least. if he had, he couldn’t promise riddle’s temper to be so toned down. 

   “What is it? don’t like the music or something?” he asks, quirking an eyebrow over the other’s furrowed brow. did he do something weird? was there something on his face? pop felt the most like floyd at this moment, didn’t it?

   Thank the seven riddle was atleast holding onto the earbud as he moved, as he leaned back, floyd would follow far too lazy to just hold up his hand to his ear this entire time. 

   “I knew you’d listen to classical. its good for the brain so i heard, but lofi? sea otter showed you something interesting then. i can’t do it, its too slow for me.”

   The predictability was what made riddle so fun to mess with. he could get him to do things just because that predictabily allowed him to guide the way a conversation went. it was a good match for his unpredictability. 

    “I played drums, kinda wish i went to music club instead of basketball club, not that it matters anymore.”

“I’m going to prevent it from happening, not to make a show out of it.” He doesn’t think his previous roommate would appreciate it if Riddle would record their exchange, even if it would be good evidence to build his case. He’ll just have to see how bad it is when he gets there. 

Riddle blinks at the question, for a moment he had forgotten how close they were that Floyd could notice his expression. In fact, he can’t pin point exactly when he started to get comfortable to the other hovering around him. Truly, he still despises it since more often than not it meant the eel wanted to taunt him. Yet on rare moments like this, he found that he wasn’t too bad of a company, even if he was still too close. 

“It’s repetitive but it’s not unpleasant.” The yellow eye really contrasts over the brown, almost making it duller than it is. He wonders if it reflects in the dark, which wouldn’t be impossible given that Floyd is a sea creature. Under the depths, the sight of a single dancing flicker of gold would be enough to lure a prey to it’s end. He should ask Jade about it later. 

“It is. My mother used to play it often when I was younger to keep me engaged in studying, though at some point it stopped being necessary.” Riddle hadn’t really found it to be much of a loss, even if it was part of the things he’d come to appreciate as fun, silence almost always worked best to keep focus. “I find the slowness it’s best quality, it avoids distractions. Sometimes even classical can get you off track.”

    If he wanted to he could absolutely scoot over but riddles tiny and he didn’t feel like it either. legs splay out in front of him, rolling his feet with the heel to the rythmn of the music. “doesn it sound more interesting if i put it that way though? fate sounds boring all by itself,” he laughs.

    “A coffee frenzy? thats the first i’ve ever heard that word used with something like a caffeinated drink. is he attackin’ people and stuff if he drinks too much of it?” what an odd phrase to use when all he can think about blood with a word like frenzy. maybe it was animal instinct but he wanted to go hunting again soon. 

    “ Does goldfishie wanna listen?” he offers an earbud, gets impatient, and slides it into his ear gently, but forcefully. its a pop song clearly with how upbeat the music was. he was in a good mood so, so upbeat music was the way to go when he’s waiting to get to his tedious and boring job. it keeps his mood steady hes noticed if he’s able to focus on something to keep him going, but he’s still volatile. no music could actually stop his mood swings after all. t*ylor sw*ft be damned. 

   “What do you like to listen to? i bet its classical, you seem the type. we used to play jazz back home- we as in me, azul and jade.”

There’s a brief flash of his roommate hissing at him while trying to hover the coffee tin away from his reach, unfortunately for the man, he wasn’t that much taller than Riddle so it had been an easy reach. A small scoff escapes before he can help it, the idea of the cat man attacking people for coffee was far more amusing than it should be.

“I guess you could call it an attack. You’d be surprised what coffee does to a person.” 

The moment the earbud is offered Riddle is already refusing even as the small gadget is placed on his ear. It’s annoying how Floyd just forces Riddle to do these small useless things, after all, there are better ways to spend time than listening to music. But as always the other just has to drag him to nonsense.

“ Fine! I’ll listen.” Truly Riddle didn’t care too much for music, he had merely asked it as conversation since they were to be there for a while. But actually listening to it now he can’t help but to be surprised. With furrowed brows he glances at Floyd, he really didn’t know what to expect of the eel’s music tastes but cheerful pop hadn’t been it. 

“Classic. Yes...” He rests back in his place, hand holding the ear piece in place against his ear. “But I also listen to that music most people use to study. I believe it’s called lofi, Kalim showed it to me and Azul during a study session.”

Some people would feel uncomfortable being read so clearly by others, but Riddle sees no problem in that. In fact, he finds that it’s much easier to avoid mistakes if one’s easy to predict. Floyd on the other hand, was as unpredictable as it could get, he wouldn’t have been able to give a guess like jazz for other.

He’d look over at Riddle, then back to his old Self, wearing the Housewarden garb going along doing who knows what now. He couldn’t be bothered to remember what it was exactly, and it’s embarrassing now to think he ever held such a position in the first place. Poor Trey had to help him through all that and he was hardly capable at leadership.

If he’s lucky they won’t have to sit through this nonsense anyway. Riddle probably wouldn’t want to bother, right?

After all, his rule over the Heartslabyul dorm was way too relaxed for the sticking to the rules Riddle.

“We really..really don’t have to stay here you know~! Let’s get going I bet there’s way more fun stuff to see than this.”

@dicuori​

The first thing that occurs to him is how open Carter’s smile was as Housewarden. It wasn’t that the other didn’t smile around him, quite the opposite with how much he strives to keep the upbeat image. But Riddle had forgotten about this, the more confident Cater that had greeted him on his first week. Back then he hadn’t really paid any mind to it, being quicker to label the older as incompetent for letting their dorm be in such chaos. Now however, he could see the little things that he missed. The way everyone seemed far more relaxed, the cheery sounds that surrounded the table even when someone forgot to jam the nose of the doormouse. It was a vision far too different from the reality he faced.

“Nonsense. They have yet to brought out the cakes.” 

Just as he spoke the table started to be filled with sweets. Riddle remembers this, he had been vexed with the fact someone made marron tarts for the Unbirthday party. Another line on his list of broken rules. If he recalls, his younger self had gone to Cater to warn him of such insolence.

He steps further into the dream to look for his younger self. He had no intent to interfere in any way, merely a curiosity to watch what was about to happen. It wasn’t that he cared much for the past, after all, there’s very little that can be gained from dwelling on it. But even he is taken by the different atmosphere, it was unsettling how different it was. Unsettling and curious. Perhaps he wanted to see just how much he had changed. 

“Housewarden Diamond, there has been another transgression.” Back then Riddle had been under the impression that Cater had memorized the rules just like him. That even if he was a bit too relaxed that he still held some esteem for keeping at least order during the parties. “If you recall, rule 562 explicitly states to not bring marron tarts to an Unbirthday party. You must punish whoever did this, they clearly have no regard for the rules.”

@dicuori

   “Its rare we actually run into each other by a chance of fate,” floyd smiles from his seat at the bus stop. long legs are outstretched, his head bouncing to the beat of a song blasting in one of his ears as the other is twirled around his finger so he could listen if riddle wanted a conversation out of him. for once in a relatively docile mood, not in a belligerent mood nor overly excitable just content. 

   “Where ya goin today?” a relatively innocent question that sounds odd coming from his mouth. one that could mean anything when it was something floyd leech was asking. he didn’t have time to chase him though, already late for work and his work uniform jacket tucked neatly on his lap was the indication of that.

   “C’mon wait with me, it’ll be more fun if goldfishie is here.” 

Riddle almost had half a mind to leave, in fact a good part of himself was still urging him to just take a different route. But as always, his sense of duty comes first, his conscience wouldn’t let him miss the opportunity to visit his old place while he still could. Plus Floyd had already caught onto him, turning now would have been far too rude even for his standards. It’s better he resigns himself and just accept his fate. In any case the bus should arrive any minute now, he can handle the eel for that long.

“Fate? That’s a whimsical way of seeing it.” Floyd seems to be in a good mood or at least in a mood that means he won’t torment him. However fleeting it’ll be, he’ll take it.

“I’m going to visit my old roommates. I have a slight suspicion one of them has already induced himself into a coffee frenzy.” It’s no suspicion at all, he knows for sure that it has happened, but it’s still enough of an excuse to at least make sure the old man is alright and didn’t fall into old habits.

Riddle frowns as he checks his watch, the bus being obviously delayed as it was nowhere in sight at the scheduled time. Even if he was learning to be more lenient Riddle still hated being tardy, but there was hardly anything he could do to change the situation. For once he doesn’t refuse the invitation, taking a seat next to Floyd with crossed arms.

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