Chapter Text
Ace and Deuce were both getting ready in their dorm room for classes this morning. Ace was busy with his hair while at the same time, Deuce was quickly finishing some extra homework that was due for class.
“You should have done it when we were hanging out with the others,” Ace comments. “At least I’m a more responsible student than you are being right now– ACK! Hey!”
Deuce threw his pillow at Ace hitting him on the back of his head. He glares but quickly finishes answering the last question and stuffing the worksheet in his books.
“There! Now let’s go or else we might be late and I don’t want another lecture from Riddle again!” Deuce says. Ace mumbled but followed anyway grabbing his blazer on the way out.
As they walked the confusing hallways of Heartslabyul, Deuce mentioned something happening during the first club meetings for track which Ace groaned.
“Dude, you already told this story back at Ramshackle! I don’t need to hear it another time!” Ace says as he puts on the blazer and grabs out his phone.
“And besides, we still need to finish that potion project Crewel set for us.”
Deuce shuddered at the thought of his teacher scolding them for not finishing the project on time. He could already hear the man raising his voice and wand at them.
“Do you think Sebek might help us? I’m pretty sure he’s thinking about the science club!” Deuce wonders. Ace hums but shakes his head.
“He’s probably as clueless as we are, maybe we could ask Trey since he’s also in the club as well.” Ace mentions. Deuce nods at that and they continue walking down the hall only to see something weird going on in the main room of the dorm.
There were students and teachers all gathered together, some huddling together as others were quickly being pushed outside by the teachers, screaming to head towards the mirror chamber.
“What in the sevens…” Ace murmurs. Deuce was also speechless but then he sees Cater also helping out along with a few upper classmen.
“Look, there’s Cater! Maybe he knows what’s up?” Deuce asked.
Ace shrugged and dragged Deuce along towards Cater who was busy with helping others that he didn’t realize the pair were behind him before turning around and jumpscared by them.
“OH SHI– Adeuce!” Cater screamed but calmed himself down. “What are you two still doing here?! Didn’t you see the others scrambling to get out of here?!”
“No? Why are you and everyone else freaking out?” Ace asked.
Cater looked between the two before looking at the teachers like he was deciding between something before he sighed and pushed the pair to the other side of the room where it was less populated.
“Look, I’m not supposed to say this and I’m not even sure myself but something happened with Riddle.” Cater says.
Ace and Deuce glance at each other before speaking at the same time.
“Dorm Leader?”
“Trey came running down the halls this morning, no idea what was going through his mind but when he came back, Crowley came following along looking panicked,” Cater bit his lip and lowered his voice.
“I tried asking Trey when he came back alone but all he said was to evacuate everyone immediately, so I cloned myself to help but I managed to sneak by to see what happened,”
Cater stopped his sentence and turned around. His gaze was towards the hall that was being blocked off by Crowley and another teacher, which was Professor Trein as the two of them are speaking to one another, before Crowley heads back into the hall.
“What… Did you see, Cater?” Ace prodded. Cater didn’t say anything but the moment he turned around, there was fear in his eyes.
“Riddle overblotted in his sleep.”
"... "Overblot?" Deuce asked. Cater then realized no one had yet to explain to them what it was to which he felt the need to talk about it.
“There’s a whole spiel but the main idea is that it is an accumulated residue formed out of negative energy from when we use our magic to which when it gets too much, the magic user can essentially become overtaken by said negative energy and thus… could die from it.”
There was silence except from the other students evacuating the place but between the three of them, everything felt still hearing the information suddenly out in the open. The fact that Riddle could actually die from this didn’t settle at all in their guts.
“Then why isn't anyone doing anything?! How long has he even been like– like that?!” Ace asked but was quickly shut down by Cater.
“Quiet! Don’t start spreading rumors now,” Cater did a quick look around. “Look, I don’t know what else is happening, I’m not even sure about half the things I saw! Just, don’t go looking for trouble and get out of here-”
Just then a loud roar came from the hallway and all of them turned towards the sound. Crowley and Trey came running out with Crowley covering Trey behind him. Cater ran to where Trey was, with Ace and Deuce following behind.
“It’s getting angrier, the blot is starting to cover part of Riddle’s body and I’m afraid I don’t have a clue on what is going on.” Crowley says to Trein who hummed.
“Perhaps this is something entirely new? I haven’t seen anything like this at all.”
As the teachers talked, Cater was fretting over Trey who was trying to calm down. Making sure Trey wasn’t hurt or anything Cater was busy asking questions about Riddle’s health to which Trey had no answer for.
As Ace and Deuce watch the scene, Ace slowly takes out his phone and quickly sends a text. Deuce sees this and is confused.
“Who are you texting?” He asks. Ace ignores the question for a moment and then tucks the phone away but with a huge grin on his face.
“Just texted Yuu, pretty sure they can handle this.”
“...Are you kidding me?”
Sebek felt a shiver go down his spine as he got ready for the day. He felt this sudden feeling of doom just lurking around the corner, as he slowly looks out his dorm door as he sighs in relief knowing there isn’t anyone there.
But as he walks out and shuts the door behind him, he turns around and spots Lilia a step away from him.
“Good morning my loyal son from another family–”
“LILIA?! Where- I mean, how are you?”
Sebek said as he struggled calming his racing heart with Lilia suddenly appearing next to him. He should be able to handle his surprise entrances but the other just keeps on scaring Sebek no matter what! And he knows Lilia is doing it on purpose with the way the other smirks so evil.
“Oh Sebek, you’re still just as I remember you!” Lilia says cooing. “But I’m just here to greet you and talk since I haven’t been able to for the week or so,”
Lilia walked next to Sebek as the two of them continued down the hall towards the main room. Lilia asks Sebek about his classes with Sebek responding back but as the conversation lingers on, the two couldn’t help but smile at the light mood.
Sebek felt comfort in talking like this with Lilia, he remembers those specific moments from his childhood of chatting with Lilia when Silver was with Malleus during the end of training sessions and just talking. The blabbers of a child talking about catching their favorite bug, his parents letting him play in the water, or his grandfather trying a new recipe for Sebek, he remembers those moments fondly.
“Sooo,” Lilia trails off. He pauses for a moment but turns to Sebek with a wide grin that makes Sebek nervous.
“How are your friends? I know you’ve been hanging out with them for a while and I want to know what you guys have been up to!”
Sebek sighed knowing Lilia wouldn’t let this topic go unless he told him something to please him. He thought about their ‘hangout’ sessions and games he was introduced to or rather, reintroduced and mentions that.
“Well, I learned a new game from the human!” Sebek says. “They taught me something called ‘Uno’ and it is very competitive!”
“Oh? I never thought a game from them could catch your attention so quickly, shall I learn the game as well?” Lilia asks.
Sebek shuddered thinking back from when Lilia understood how to play the game and then suddenly in the terms of Ace words, Lilia was crashing out over losing multiple rounds.
“...In the future perhaps!” Sebek did not want to experience that again and not until all this overblot stuff was settled.
Just as Lilia was going to respond, a shout was heard coming from the main hall. Sebek and Lilia paused, looked at each other, then rushed over to where the noise was coming from. When they arrived, Yuu and Grim were both catching their breath but the moment Grim spotted Sebek he dashed towards him and jumped onto his chest clawing at his clothes.
“MYYAAAAAHH!! SEBEK!” Grim cried out leaving Sebek to try and pry off Grim but couldn’t with the death grip he has on Sebek.
“Something is happening and me and my henchman are now involved and I don’t want to do this alone but the stupid crow brought us in and Ace already mentioned us and now we have to deal with this and because Riddle overblotted–”
Sebek stilled and then covered Grim’s mouth to then say, “Riddle… overblotted?”
Lilia stood next to him but he was looking away and Sebek couldn’t tell what emotion he was expressing. He was always difficult to figure out but Yuu came rushing up and grabbed onto his sleeve.
“Come on! I am not doing this alone and since you know Riddle as well maybe all three of us could help him!” Yuu reasoned. They tugged on Sebek’s sleeve but as they tried to drag him away, Lilia stopped the pair by holding onto Sebek’s other sleeve.
“I will be going with you.”
Sebek heard the serious tone in his voice, from when he met Lilia as the general and realized that’s exactly why he said it like that. A stern look with a firm voice made the trio stop in their tracks.
“I… Are you sure Lilia–”
“I am sure, lead the way and explain what is happening.” Lilia says.
Yuu looks at Sebek and Grim before nodding and letting them follow as they explained the situation. Sebek took everything in but his mind wasn’t letting the information settle. Riddle has just overblotted? How did he overblot when everything didn’t go to plan? But when Yuu explained he overblotted in his sleep, that’s when it hit him.
And the realization hits him hard.
“Do you think…” Sebek softly says, the others shared glances with one another. Sebek found the words hard to say out loud but the guilt overcoming his head wouldn’t let him stay quiet.
“Do you think this was my fault?” Sebek asks.
“What? Of course not! Why would you think that–”
“I was the one who gave him that gift and maybe that was the root cause of it all! If I hadn’t given him that gift, then maybe he wouldn’t overblotted because I wasn’t the reason he–”
Lilia gripped Sebek’s arm so hard that he knew there was going to be a bruise later on making him wince.
“You are not at fault, don’t talk like that.” Lilia says, leaving no room to counter it which effectively made Sebek shut up along with the others quieting down. It was a silent trip.
The moment they reached the mirror chamber, they could see Heartslabyul students gathered around the area, all in a bunch of groups. Chatters about something happening in the hallway or this black ink seeping from the cracks in the halls were the common sayings.
“There’s so many people… was it really that bad?” Yuu mumbles.
“Henchman! Did you get another reply from Ace?” Grim asks. Yuu shakes their head.
“No, I haven’t gotten a reply yet and it's worrying that Ace still hasn't even read it yet.”
The two students pause, look at one another, and then push through the crowd in an attempt to reach the mirror towards the Heartslabyul dorm. Sebek and Lilia also followed through but when they got there, it was already blocked by another teacher who was telling other students to step away and guiding them away from the mirror.
“Damn it..! There’s someone blocking our entrance.” Yuu points out. “If we aren’t able to get in then how are we going to meet up with the others?”
The group thought about it but Lilia had an idea. A rather… risky one to say the least.
“I have an idea, it’s not a complicated one but I might need to borrow some flames from our resident rodent.”
“MYAH?! I am not a rodent, mind you! Take it back!” Grim yells as he tries to swat Lilia who dodges every attack.
“What are you…” Sebek then realized what Lilia’s plan was and was automatically disagreeing with it.
“YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BURN DOWN THE BUILDING LILIA!” He shouts, very loudly, that it got the attention from the surrounding students and the teacher blocking the mirror.
“What– Mr. Vanrouge! I better not hear another attempt at burning down the chamber again! We are not going to have another repeat from last year!” The teacher shouts as they moved away from the mirror and towards Lilia specifically.
“Oh but how fun it would be! And it might cause a distraction to redirect the students away from the chamber!” Lilia smiles. “I’m just making this a lot easier for you don’t worry~”
Lilia did a small ‘shooing’ motion towards the other students that looked as if he was referring to them but Sebek understood that motion. He knew that very well. Lilia was telling them to go through the mirror.
Sebek quickly grabbed Yuu and Grim and rushed towards the mirror while the teacher was distracted. The moment they get to the other side, they see the damage.
“Oh my god…” Yuu murmurs, stunned at what they were seeing. The others were in a state of shock as well.
The entire front of the dorm was covered in black ink from the walls to the floor, everything was covered in black ink and Sebek couldn’t help but grimace at that.
“Look! There’s that crow and old professor!” Grim shouts which gets the attention from the pair along with Trey and Cater who were also standing nearby along with Ace and Deuce.
“Yuu? Grim? Sebek?! What in the world are you two doing here?! Didn’t you get the memo!” Cater shouts.
Yuu ignores Cater and heads towards the other first years. “We got your text, but I was worried when you didn’t reply back to me so I brought Sebek here just in case.”
Cater gawks and huffs at being ignored but Trey calmly places a hand on his shoulder but everyone could tell it was to calm himself down instead.
“Yuu, Sebek, I think Riddle is more than asleep, apparently he’s in his own mind from what they had gathered,” Ace points to the teachers. “And the monster I mentioned? Yeah, that’s the thing that's not letting anyone enter or even go near him.”
“So like Sebek here to Malleus then?”
“Wha–”
“Exactly!”
Sebek didn’t know if he should be offended or complimented but either way, it wasn’t the time to think about that.
“I believe we have more troublemakers here… but I think this could work.” Crowley suddenly says to which it stops everyone in their place to only turn to their headmaster seemingly dumbfounded.
Trein especially as he was already glaring at him.
“Don’t you dare send these kids into the dorm like this! We don’t even know how to get in without harming Riddle and ourselves if we do!”
Crowley clicks his tongue and taps his cane to the ground.
“But if we are there with them, there is a higher chance that we might be able to penetrate Riddle’s mind and be able to disperse the blot away!”
Crowley huffs and looks towards the blot covered dorm in thought. “I have to try, I cannot let a student die like this when I know there’s a chance to save them.”
Trein looks at Crowley’s determined face, it has been a long time since he saw that familiar expression before, then at the others to only sigh and grab his wand from his coat.
“Very well, at least you have a sense of responsibility at the moment,” He speaks then turns to the others. “The Headmaster has come up with a plan. If we make it to Riddle before the blot has finally taken over his mind we might have a chance to defeat it, but it comes with other obstacles to deal with.
As Trein explained the plan in detail, Grim was the one to essentially give everyone the summary of it.
“So you want us all to go in with a spell protecting us and fight these blot monsters while Trey and Cater are leading us to where Riddle is and essentially destroying the big monster that’s there?”
“Yes.”
“...Doesn’t this remind you guys of the caves?” Deuce was the one to say this to which all the first years nod in agreement. The teachers, or rather, Crowley looked away from the glaring Trein as the third years felt lost for a moment.
“Ahem!” Crowley obnoxiously cleared his throat to get the attention from everyone. “So, we agreed on the plan? Very good! Let us save our fellow Housewarden!”
“You didn’t even give us an option–”
“Onwards! The spell is already in place!” Crowley interrupted Grim’s sentence and pushed forwards, letting the third years guide them through the building.
Sebek made sure to keep his guard up at all times. This was a mission where his fighting abilities were going to be challenged. Although his magic is a bit weaker than before any extra training he did in the future, he knows he can make up for it with his strength.
It was like Lilia’s strength tests. He still has nightmares from them.
The moment they all stepped inside, it was eerily silent. Not even the sound of flowing ink was heard, just pure silence. Their footsteps echoed throughout the empty hallway but it only adds to the creepy factor of the dorm.
“Yuck… The entire walls are covered in ink…” Ace mumbled. “At least it doesn’t smell all that bad.”
Sebek hummed but his main focus was making sure all their weak spots were covered. He took the backline so they won’t be ambushed in case any monsters start appearing at that moment. The others created a bit of small talk, specifically Crowley asking if Trey or Cater noticed anything about Riddle beforehand that initially made him overblot.
He was paying close attention to the conversation but there wasn’t any new information provided. Trey just explained how he was talking to Riddle before curfew and left him alone for the night.
But it wasn’t until he mentioned the gift given by Sebek that he felt the guilt creeping back up.
“Gift? That gift from C.Nya guy?” Yuu says. “Wait- so you’re telling me that was Chenya?”
“Apparently so, but I still wonder why Chenya gave you the gift instead of directly giving it to Riddle, Sebek?”
‘Did he just- Now everyone is staring at me…’ Sebek nervously played with the fray of his sleeve as everyone’s eyes fell onto him.
What was he supposed to say at that moment? He could tell the truth and say that he saw someone outside the science classroom, assuming it was Chenya, hanging around and chasing the guy down to the forest or, he could lie and say he saw someone and suddenly was given this gift with no context.
Okay, maybe that wasn’t a true lie but it was still a lie anyway! Sebek needed to decide quickly and pick an option or else the others would start getting suspicious. He was definitely realizing at that moment he was a terrible liar. But, it felt like luck was on his side.
The building started to shake like an earthquake hit the area, with the walls crumbling down and more ink flowing in the hall they were standing in.
“No more chatting, we need to get to Riddle quickly!” Trein says and urges everyone to leave the currently flooding hallway.
“This way! It’s the next hallway!” Trey shouts. A few more steps and Sebek could see the hallway he was talking about.
As they ran into the area, there they spotted a large double door, ink flowing from the bottom as what looks to be black vines covering the entire space. Everyone was careful with where they step as one wrong move and suddenly their foot would go missing.
“This… is his door,” Trey says. “It’s even more covered than last time I checked.”
Trein hummed as slowly walked towards the door. As he tried to reach for the handle, vines suddenly covered the handle with some starting to surround Trein. It was Crowley who released some type of fire spell that the vines retreated back.
“It looks like the monster inside is not letting us in…” Trein turns to the others. “It looks like we have to force ourselves in.”
“But, how? WIth magic? Some of us didn’t learn any spells that could be useful in this situation!” Ace mentions as he points to the first years. Sebek did try to speak out, saying he does know spells related to fighting but was interrupted by Ace shushing him.
“Sh! I’m trying to prove a point here…” He whispered but it did nothing as the two teachers could hear him loud and clear.
“Oh! But, it would be so kind of you to participate in saving your fellow Housewarden!” Crowley dramatically says. Hand on his heart and everything.
“Is this really our Headmage..?” Ace says.
Trein sighs. “Unfortunately.”
“Will normal spells now work? We saw fire can make them retreat, is that not enough?” Sebek asks. Crowley shakes his head and demonstrates why.
Just as he released another fire spell, the vines are seen retreating but the moment the spell releases itself, the vines come right back in quicker than before.
“They only grow, not leaving a window for us to get the door open.” Crowley states, but there was one thing the Headmage had in his mind.
“Unique Magic.”
The others looked confused but Trey was the one to fully get what his Headmaster was saying.
“Myah? Unique Magic? Like Cater’s clones?” Grim asks. “What’s that gonna do to help in this situation!?”
“I think… mine can.” Trey suddenly says. He grabs out his pen and looks towards the door.
“My magic can definitely get rid of the vines. Only temporarily, but it should be enough time to get the door opened.”
“Seriously?! I thought it was just changing a food’s flavour!” Cater shouts in surprise. “You’re telling me you can get rid of these creepy vines?!”
“I think I can, my unique magic can overwrite characteristics for a short period, which means I can change the vines into something else.” Trey explains. Cater was still shocked and threw his arms in the air.
“That’s so overpowered!”
“But we don’t have a plan for when the door opens. I saw that monster hovering over Riddle, what if it starts going mad and suddenly charges at us the moment we open the door?”
It became silent for a moment. Knowing that there was a hidden danger that none of them really knew how to deal with. It was going to be either victory or a losing battle.
But, they had one advantage over the monster.
Stubborn first years.
“You really think we're going to chicken out when we're already here?!” Deuce says. He did his hand punch move with his signature angry look from back when the first years were back at the cave.
“We ain't no chickens! We're defeating this thing and getting Riddle back in any way!!”
“Yeah!! If we don't do anything then it's on us for it!” Grim yells.
Yuu joins in with their own yell and Ace gets dragged in with Deuce who was basically squeezing his arm like a toy.
“We're going to win this- Ow! Dude! Stop squeezing so hard!”
Sebek saw the group hyping each other up, reminding him of those times when the entire first year group would turn to each other if one needed that confidence boost either in their clubs or homework, it was a normal occurrence. Sebek wouldn't admit it back then, but now, he missed that.
“Come on Sebek! We are definitely going to beat that monster to the ground!” Grim says, jumping onto Sebek’s shoulder.
Sebek struggled with the sudden weight of a beast on his shoulder but it didn’t take long for Sebek to smirk and give his signature confident look.
“I’m not training to be a guard for nothing! Release that magic Trey!”
Everyone turns to Trey who turns to the teachers who nod and grab their own hands out.
“Do not worry, just focus on your magic.” Crowley reassures Trey.
“We'll do the rest.”
That was enough for Trey to perform his unique magic. He never really understood himself or his ability in his magic. He was so focused on making sure to not overpass Riddle that he had forgotten what it truly felt like to let loose. And knowing everyone around him and Riddle trapped behind this door, all relying on him to get this plan going gave him that confidence.
He was going to save his friend. And he's going to do it right this time.
“White to red, red to white,” Trey starts, the magic swirling around him like waves. The vines start to shake and then glow. Everyone watches the door waiting for that window to strike.
Trey took a breath and pointed his pen at the door.
“Paint the roses!”
Riddle slowly opened his eyes to grey. He adjusted to the light for a moment before finally opening his eyes fully. The buzzing sound was still there but it was faint.
Nothing hurts from what Riddle could tell but his body felt so heavy. As if he was being held down by something heavier than himself.
He couldn’t move his body, none of his limbs were working and just glued to the ground instead.
Riddle knew he was supposed to be panicking, questioning why he was here or simply yelling for help. But he didn't. He never tried and instead, simply continued to lay there.
It was peaceful.
It was comfortable.
It was… home.
…
Home?
Why did he think this was home? None of this felt like home, it all was foreign to him. How was this home when he didn't even know what a home was supposed to feel like?
He thinked back to when he was younger, how he kept on studying to please his mom, how all the work he had done was his mother’s own way of showing her love. But that all felt hopeless in the scheme of things.
But… being here, in this strange place not being able to move or speak, he had time to think. About the past, present, and his future.
About himself, his personality, his magic, and to the people in his life. It felt like he had time to think about it.
And wasn't that new?
‘Should I even be thinking like this? It's my mind but… it feels wrong? Incorrect? But why?’
He thought about that for a moment. But he goes back to thinking about the previous thoughts.
What is home? Riddle didn’t have the answer to that right away, but he felt like he had time to think about it. Ponder on what home really meant to him, and come to his own conclusion about the definition.
And maybe, he could finally overcome this feeling of loss in his chest.
“I don’t think you accurately described the monster, Trey.” Cater said as he stared into the room.
“Me neither.” Trey responded by also staring in the room.
“I… I think I’m actually terrified right now.” Yuu said and leaned into Ace. “Do you also feel scared?”
“...Maybe.” Ace mumbled.
It only took a few seconds as Trey released his magic that the vines covering Riddle’s door would suddenly burst into sparkles and playing cards that gave them that opportunity to get the door open. It was Ace who reached it first and swung it open.
Everyone hurried inside, awaiting the danger that lurked in the murky ink-filled place but what they saw was even worse.
Riddle was still sleeping on his bed, his face calm and serene like he was at peace but the monster, above him with large clawed hands, dripping with blot, hovered over his head with the blot splashing down onto the pillows.
The body was all black with visible stitches on its arms and torso resembling a badly repaired stuffed toy but the clothing it had was red and tattered on the edges, holes in places as well. The back of it was protruding with metal heart-shaped spears littered across. It was disturbing with the ink also leaking from the sides of the monster.
The head however, was the most disturbing part of the entire monster. A heart shaped glass head that was filled with what Sebek assumed was blot as it leaked through the crack that went across the head. A wore a gold like head piece with a large crown sitting on top. But the one thing that was more concerning was the fully black magestone in the center of the crown, taunting them.
No one dared to speak as they were all too afraid that the monster would suddenly attack them with their voices. They knew they were all intruding on the monster’s territory but this was Riddle they were trying to save.
And Sebek? Well, he wasn’t one to give up so easily. And neither were the others.Sebek grabbed his pen out and faced it towards the monster. He fought one like this and survived, he can do it again.
The monster could sense the danger it was in and let out a loud roar, causing the room they were in to shake. It slowly got up from its place above Riddle’s bed and moved closer towards the group.
“Get ready for a fight,” Sebek says. “We defeated one before, we can do it again.”
The others nod and get into their stance. The teachers were on the sidelines but they also held their own wands while the third years stood to the other side, nervous at what was going to come.
“Ace, Deuce, Grim, aim straight towards the head, get it to fully crack,” Sebek commanded. “Cater, Trey, make the monster as distracted as you can to get an opening!”
Sebek then turned to the teachers who were busy with their own problem. The vines came back and were heading straight into the backlines but the two teachers were holding their own. Sebek then realized it was up to Yuu and him to get to Riddle.
Sebek looked towards Yuu who in turn looked back at him and gave each other a nod.
‘Get to Riddle as fast as possible. Keep Yuu safe and make sure we reach him in time.’ Sebek thought. With that goal in mind he prepared himself to run.
The monster growled once more, leaving an air of suspense and lunges towards the Adeuce and Grim team first.
‘It’s now or never!’ Sebek lastly thought and charged back.
A final showdown and the one determining if Riddle would live or not. He has no idea if he would anymore consider the change in fight but he had hope. And that hope would slowly turn into success.
…But why was he suddenly feeling faint all of a sudden?