Chapter Text
He knew her as a kind and patient person, and not a single day would end without him seeing her smile. So when he hears that she skipped all of her classes, and then finds her as a crying mess in her room, he wonders what had happened for her to end up in that state.
➸ Riddle Rosehearts, Malleus Draconia.
➸ Female reader.
#RIDDLE ROSEHEARTS
- Riddle is utterly speechless. It’s already shocking enough for him to hear that she had skipped an entire day’s worth of classes from Ace, and to find her sobbing uncontrollably on the floor of her dorm room had left him frozen in shock. He was initially going to pay her a visit to lecture her about her conduct, but now… he’s not so sure anymore. What happened to her?
- He hesitantly enters her room while calling her name, but before he could get anywhere close to her, he’s met with a book to the face. He stumbles back in surprise and just as he’s about to recover, a ruler hits his head. Poor Riddle had to shield himself with his arms as he tries to get a grasp of the situation.
- She’s screaming at him to leave her alone, and Riddle doesn’t know how to react to this. He’s dumbfounded, hurt, and no doubt angry at her behaviour towards him. She’s never like this…! Stomping over to her side, he yanks her arm to pull her to her feet and demands an explanation.
- “What’s with you?! You’re being a child right now, so stop it!” he exclaims. She wails in response, making him more distressed than anything. “(Y/n), what’s wrong-”
- “I never wanted to be here! I hate it here, I hate everything!” she yells, “Every day is a living hell for me!”
- He doesn’t know what to say. What about him? What about all the memories they created together - did they mean nothing to her? Did he even mean anything to her? He falls on his knees, bringing her down with him, and starts crying as well.
- “Do you hate me? Is that why you can’t stand being here?” he asks, desperate for a validation that he meant something in her life here. She forces herself to stop crying when Riddle sobbed. She could see it in his eyes, that’s he’s blaming himself for whatever misery she felt. She quickly hugs him, reassuring him that she doesn’t hate him and that she’s just frustrated by her circumstances. He calms down upon feeling her arms around him and immediately clings to her.
- That’s when Riddle realises something; no matter how kind and patient she is, she’s still human. There’s a limit to how long she can endure the stress of trying to survive in an unfamiliar world.
- From that day onward, he’d check up on her every evening and ask her about her day. If he’s busy, he’d send either Ace or Deuce over to see how she’s doing. He’ll even allow her to stay over in his room past curfew if that would make her feel better. To see her smile again, Riddle will gladly break any rule.
#MALLEUS DRACONIA
- Malleus immediately assumes the worst when he sees the mess in her room. It looks completely ransacked, as if some sort of struggle had taken place.
- He heard from Sebek that she didn’t attend any of her classes nor did she show up for breakfast this morning, which set off the alarms in Malleus’ head. Did somebody kidnap her? Just as he’s about to find Lilia to tell him what he had discovered, he hears a poorly suppressed sniffle behind him.
- As soon as he turns around, he sees her curled up in a dark corner of the room, weeping with her face buried in her knees. He’s by her side in a heartbeat - and the instant he touched her shoulder, she recoils and shoves him away from her.
- He’s surprised, but he didn’t falter when she starts yelling at him to leave. He firmly refuses and says that he won’t leave her alone until she tells him the reason behind her tears. If she continues to be stubborn about wanting him to leave, he’d pull her into his embrace and let her hit his chest until she has exhausted herself.
- “I just want to live, so why does it have to be so hard?!” she cries before sobbing uncontrollably in his arms, “I’m just so tired… Every day, it hurts, and the only way I won’t feel this way is if I forget…”
- Malleus is wounded by her words but he tries to understand her feelings. He has to. She made the effort to make his life as a student in NRC less lonely, so it’s only fair if he returns the favour. He can’t stop himself from feeling a little sad though; are his efforts in making her happy not enough? Is he not enough for her? Pinpricks of tears sting his eyes but he swiftly blinks them away.
- “But if you forget, then what will become of me?” he asks softly, “There won’t be a single trace of me left in you - not even in your memories. So please… don’t ever say that.” He would gently cradle her weary body against his chest, and if she falls asleep in his arms, he’d princess carry her to his dorm.
- He doesn’t care if students will gawk at them as he passes by because the sleeping beauty in his arms is far more important. Lilia would raise an eyebrow when Malleus returns with her, but he doesn’t question him as the fae prince carries her upstairs to his room.
- She never chose to be in Twisted Wonderland. Even if she’s surrounded by many people, she’s still lonely, and Malleus will make sure that either he, Lilia, Silver or Sebek are around to keep her company.
- Malleus takes it upon himself to be responsible for her happiness and will get rid of anything that causes her pain. After all, his future Queen deserves only the best.