Chapter 7

"Off With Your Heads!" Riddle shouted. Ace and Deuce had been trying to stand after their defeat, but the force of the sudden collars caused them to fall back down.

"Urrrgh... Not again," Ace groaned. "I didn't even have time to finish my spell!"

"He shut us down like it was nothing..." Deuce said in amazement.

"That was fast!" I said.

"Visualization is key to spell casting," said Crowley, acting like everything was completely fine. "The better you are at accurately visualizing your magic's effects, the stronger and more precise it will be. It would appear Mr. Rosehearts has finely honed his magic."

"Myah... They didn't stand a chance," Grim said, shaking his head sadly.

"Hmph. You didn't even last five seconds," Riddle said. "That was all you had, and still you thought to challenge me? You must be utterly humiliated. I guess my mother was right. A man who cannot follow rules is a man who cannot achieve anything."

Deuce glared at him. "Tch... We agree that rules should be followed. But forcing others to follow nonsensical rules like the ones you've enacted is tyranny!"

"Then you agree that breaking rules is wrong. And in this dorm, I AM the rules. Therefore, those who cannot abide by my decisions deserve not the heads they use to complain!"

"But that's not right!" I said.

Riddle turned to me. "I am the one who decides what is wrong and right! What sort of pitiful education have you received, that you cannot follow such simple rules?" He looked me up and down distastefully. "Clearly, you were born to parents with no great magical capability. And as a result... You lack even the basic education necessary to attend a school such as this. It's quite sad."

My eyes widened in shock. That hurt. "I-" If learning to follow rules without question constituted a good education, I wanted no part of it!

"You little..." Deuce growled.

Ace stormed over to Riddle, his eyes flashing with anger. "You shut your spoiled little mouth!" he shouted. Then he brought his arm back and punched him right in the face.

Riddle fell right to the ground. He looked up at Ace with his mouth partly open. "Wh-what?" He quickly stood up.

"Riddle?!" Cater and Trey exclaimed.

"Mr. Rosehearts?!" said Crowley.

"Bam!" Grim cheered. "Right cross to the face!"

"A-Ace?!" Deuce said.

I looked at Ace in surprise. "You..." Had he done that for my sake? I didn't know he cared that much.

"That's all I can take," Ace spat. "Forget Riddle. Forget the duel. I'm done."

"That hurt!" Riddle cried. "You... p-punched me?!"

"Kids aren't trophies for their parents to flaunt. And the accomplishments of a child aren't determined by the worth of their parents. It's not your parents' fault you became a tyrant - or anyone else's. You've been here a year and haven't even made a friend who will tell you you're outta line. And that's on you."

"What are you even talking about?"

"Yeah, maybe you had some rigid upbringing from a relentless helicopter-mom. Is that all you are? An extension of her? Can't you think for yourself? You call yourself the 'red sovereign?' You're just a baby who's good at magic."

"Baby...? Did you just call me a 'baby?!' You don't know anything about me! You don't know anything about anything!"

"Nope, sure don't. And I don't need to. Your attitude tells me all I need to know - that you're nothing but a spoiled brat!"

"He's right," I said. I walked up to Ace and stopped beside him, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. "You have to start living for yourself."

Riddle's face grew red, and he started stomping his foot. "Shut up, shut up, shut UP! My mother was right! And that means I'm right too!"

"Riddle, calm down," Trey said. "The duel is already over."

"Mr. Clover is correct," said Crowley. "The challenger has been disqualified due to physical violence. If you do not cease your conflict now, I'll have you written up for breaking school rules!"

"Ace is right, though!" said a Heartslabyul student. "I've had enough of Riddle!" Suddenly, someone threw something at Riddle, and the object hit him right in the face.

Riddle looked at him in shock. "Huh?!"

"An egg?" said Trey.

Riddle whipped his head around. "Who did that? Who threw that egg?!" Everyone remained silent, and he began to laugh hysterically. "You say YOU'RE fed up?! I'M the one who's fed up with all of YOU! No matter how strict I am, no matter how many heads I remove, you keep breaking the rules! All any of you care about is doing what YOU want to do! If the guilty party won't come forward, then I'll pass judgment on all of you! Clearly, none of you value your heads! Off With Your Heads!" The students closest to him were fitted with collars, and the rest started to run. "Ah ha ha ha! How do you like that, hm? Now no one can do a thing to me! Do you see now? My strict adherence to the rules was clearly the correct path!"

"Cease this improper behavior now, Mr. Rosehearts," Crowley said. "I expect better from you!"

"Trey, if he keeps using his spell..." Cater said. "This could get ugly, fast!"

"Riddle, stop this!" Trey said sharply.

"Wow, way to totally prove me wrong here, pal!" said Ace. "I call you a baby, and you immediately throw a temper tantrum!"

"Retract your comment immediately, or I shall skewer you where you stand!" Riddle bellowed.

"No way. I ain't retractin' squat."

"You can't always get your way," I said.

"YEEEAAAAARGH!" Riddle raged.

"Dude, this is bad!" Cater said, eyes wide. "You've G-2-G, now!"

"The rose trees!" Grim said. "They're floating!"

"This is some serious magic!" said Deuce.

"Mighty roses, tear this brute to pieces!" Riddle said, deadly intent in his eyes. I gasped. He wanted to destroy Ace!

"Cease and desist at once!" Crowley shouted.

" It's already too late...!" I said. Besides, Ace seemed frozen in fear. Instinctively, I moved in front of him to shield him, even though we would both probably get struck.

Ace gasped. "What are you...?"

Just as the trees were about to hit us, they suddenly turned into harmless playing cards. "Nngh?! What just-" said Riddle.

"Huh?" said Ace. "We're still alive? What's with all these playing cards?"

"All the rose trees turned into cards?" said Deuce.

"Riddle, stop this right now!" Trey said firmly.

"Wait, is that Trey's 'Paint the Roses?!'" said Cater. "But... how?!"

"All the magic-sealin' collars are gone!" Grim exclaimed.

"What did I tell you?" said Trey. "My magic can overwrite characteristics for a short time. So I used it to make 'Riddle's magic' into 'my magic.'"

"You can do that?" Cater said in amazement. "That's some kinda loophole!"

"N-no..." Riddle said. "Off with their heads!" It did not work. "I SAID, off with their heads!"

"Riddle, stop," said Trey. "Can't you see how you look right now?" The students began murmuring about how out of control Riddle was acting.

"What? Was my magic overwritten by yours? Does that mean your signature spell is stronger than mine?!"

"Of course it doesn't. Riddle, take a deep breath and listen to us."

"Are YOU going to tell me that I'm wrong too? After all I've done to protect the rule of law?! Do you know how much I've suffered for this?! I... I refuse to believe this!"

"Cease immediately, Mr. Rosehearts!" Crowley ordered. "Any further attempt to use magic will leave your magestone completely tainted with blot!"

"Blot?" I said.

"But... I'm right!" Riddle cried. "I'M the one who's right! There is NO! POSSIBLE! ALTERNATIVE!"

"Riddle, stop!" Trey said.

Suddenly, Riddle changed. He was adorned in red and black, and his outfit took on a thorn-like appearance. "Did his whole body just change?!"

"Heh heh heh... AH HA HA HA!" Riddle laughed darkly. "You are fools to defy me! You are not welcome in my world. In my world, I am the law. I am order made manifest! The only response I will accept from you is 'Yes, Housewarden Riddle.' All who defy me will lose their heads! Ah ha ha ha ha!"

"Dear me, what have I done?" Crowley said in dismay. "I've allowed a student to overblot in my presence!"

"'Overblot?'" said Grim. "What does that mean?!"

"Overblot is a dangerous condition that mages must avoid at all costs. At the moment, he is overcome by negative energy, and has lost control of his magic and emotions."

"Okay, sure... but what does that mean?"

"Please explain!" Deuce said anxiously.

"To put it in layman's terms, he's in evil berserker mode!" Cater said.

"If he keeps releasing magical energy, we could be looking at a loss of life here - his included," said Trey.

"Uh, WHAT?!" Grim exclaimed.

"The well-being of my students is my top priority" said Crowley. "Therefore, I must evacuate them immediately. As for Mr. Rosehearts, we must restore his consciousness before his magical energy runs dry. For as bad as losing him would be, there are scenarios that are far worse..." He looked around at the students. "Listen well: I need all of you to seek help from the other housewardens and members of the faculty."

"Hiiiyah!" Ace shouted, hitting Riddle with magic. "Take that!"

"I summon thee, cauldron!" Deuce said.

"What do you fools think you're doing?" Riddle said, dodging both attacks.

"Um, hello?!" said Cater. "911? We've got an idiot emergency!"

I shook my head. "No, that's not it..." I understood what they were doing, and it left me in awe.

"You DID hear that part about how reeeal bad things are happenin' with him, right?!" Grim said.

"That's why we need to stop him now!" Deuce said. "I don't want that on my conscience!"

"And I'm not givin' up till I hear him say 'I was wrong and I'm sorry,'" said Ace.

"Right," I said. "He can't make up for what he's done wrong if he's dead. And regardless, saving his life is the right thing to do." That both my friends realized this and wanted to help him after what he had done to them... They were a lot better people than I initially gave them credit for. "Grim, I'll help you aim."

Grim nodded. "Thanks."

Trey sighed. "All right, let's do this. I can overwrite his magic for a little longer. In the meantime, do what you can! Headmage, please evacuate the other students!"

"Wait!" Crowley said. "This is dangerous!"

"Are you S-R-S, Trey?" said Cater. "You can't beat Riddle!"

"So what, you're not even gonna fight unless you KNOW you can win?" said Ace.

"Yeah, he's right," Grim said. "That's weak."

"This is the only way we can think of to snap him out of this!" said Deuce.

"Yeah... I don't want to lose him," said Trey. "There're too many things I've left unsaid."

"We just have to do this, whatever it takes!" I said.

"Ugh, I do NOT like or subscribe to this, but fine!" said Cater.

"Ngh... I'll be back as soon as I've gotten the students to safety," said Crowley. "Stand firm until then!"

"Such defiance, from every last one of you!" Riddle roared. "I shall take all of your heads!"

"Riddle's body can't take much more of this," said Trey. "We need to stop him before it's too late! Sleight of Hand!"

"Confound it all! Still you oppose me, Trey?!"

"All right! We've locked down Riddle's collaring attack!"

"But not for long," said Cater. "We're still in kind of a tight spot here."

"Yeah. Get this done quick, while I keep Off With Your Head sealed away!"

My friends attacked while I helped organize their strikes. "Gah! Shouldn't he be outta magic by now?!" Ace said after awhile.

"I am absolutely, positively right - beyond any possible shadow of a doubt!" Riddle said.
I have to be! Otherwise, what was any of it for...?!"

"Riddle..." Trey said sadly.

"Trey, focus!" Cater snapped. "Any distraction now will be giving him an extra advantage!"

"Ah, sorry!"

We continued to fight. Somehow, at long last, we managed to overpower Riddle. He collapsed to the ground in defeat. "I...was wrong?!" he said in a broken voice. "But that's...impossible... Isn't it...Mother?" He fell to his knees, clutching his head in his hands. Then he totally collapsed on the ground.

Something deep inside propelled me forward. "Ona, don't!" Grim called.

I ignored him. Riddle was out of power, and I had a feeling he needed my help. I knelt down inside him and placed my hand on his back. Suddenly, visions passed before my eyes. I saw a young boy and his mother. Was this a flashback of Riddle's life? I heard her talk about the super healthy cake she made him that sounded disgusting. She was horrified at the idea of letting him eat sweets even once. What planet did she come from? Had she never heard of moderation?

I saw more scenes, giving me proof of everything Trey described. Then Riddle met Trey and Chenya, and his life was better. He played with them every day during independent study. Then Trey took him to his parents' bakery, where he tried a strawberry tart. His mother found out, and she was furious. She took away independent study time so he could never see his friends.

"Because I broke the rules," said the present day Riddle in his head (or was it my head?), "my favorite part of my day was taken away from me. I vowed to never break my mother's rules again. After all, she was the most accomplished mother in the city, and therefore, the most correct. But Mom... Why? Why does my heart hurt so much? I want to eat a tart! It's my birthday, so can't I have some just this once? I want to play outside all day long! I want to make lots and lots of friends! Tell me, Mom, please... What rule do I need to follow to make this pain go away?"

"Rules won't fix anything," I said through my mind, and somehow, I knew he could hear me. "Your mother was wrong. She was strict because she wanted you to be successful, but there is more to life than success. Friendship matters. Enjoying life matters. Those are things following the rules will never give you. Forgive your mom... and then forgive yourself."

I removed my hand, and Riddle gasped. "Riiiiiddle!" Trey called out. A second later, he was right beside us. I looked at Riddle as he opened his eyes. They looked normal. But it also looked like he was not conscious of whatever connection we just had.

"He's back!" Ace said.

"Well, it's about time..." said Cater. "We were just about losin' our heads here - figure of speech, sorry - 'cause we thought you might never wake up!

""What in the world happened...?" said Riddle, looking around wildly.

"You don't remember?" I said. "Anything at all?"

"I... don't know."

"Ah, Mr. Rosehearts appears to have regained consciousness," Crowley said as he approached us. "Excellent."

"Don't worry, Riddle," said Trey. "Just try to rest."

"Yo, that's just the sort of coddling that led to him going nuts in the first place!" Ace said.

"It was a bit more complicated than that," I said. "Besides, a little compassion now and then can be useful. Moderation is key."

"But now the garden is tore up from the floor up, not to mention that we could've died!"

"He's right," said Deuce. "It was looking bad for a while there."

"For cryin' out loud," said Grim. "When you humans let that stress build up, the results sure ain't pretty."

"The truth is," Riddle said, "I... I really wanted to eat the chestnut tart."

"Huh?" said Ace.

"And I don't care if the roses are white, or the flamingos are pink. And I prefer honey to sugar cubes in my tea, and I like milk tea better than lemon tea anyhow. And after a meal, I want to be the one sitting around talking with everyone..."

"Riddle...?" said Trey.

"And I really wanted to play with you and Chenya more, Trey." Riddle sniffled, and his eyes became moist. "WAAAAAAAH!"

"Riddle Rosehearts, in tears..." Cater said in wonder. "Hashtag #WOW."

"You think a few crocodile tears is all it'll take for me to forgive you?" said Ace.

"Give the guy a break, Ace," said Deuce.

"I'm sorry, Riddle," said Trey. "I knew you were suffering, and all I did was pretend not to notice." Riddle continued to sob. I stood up and stepped away to give him some space. "So, I'm gonna say what I should have said earlier. Your way of doing things was wrong, and you owe everyone an apology."

Riddle sniffled. "I'm sorry..." He used his arm to wipe the tears from his face. "I'm really sorry."

"I know I've been saying I wanted an apology from Riddle," said Ace, "but now that I got one, y'know what? One stupid 'I'm sorry' doesn't even come close to making up for what he did!"

"DUDE!" said Cater. "Way to be a capital-J Jerk!"

"Maybe not as much as you think," I said. "Reparations can be a great way to find healing for both the perpetrator and victim."

"Exactly!" said Ace. He turned to Cater. "Have you forgotten how he made a total fool outta me?! Have you forgotten how he just threw away that chestnut tart we worked so hard on?! That ain't something you can make go away with a few tears and a flimsy 'I'm sorry!'"

"Wow," said Grim. "I ain't never met anyone who was better at holdin' grudges than I am."

"Then... Then what do you want me to do?!" Riddle said.

"You know..." said Ace. "I don't got a birthday coming up anytime soon."

"Huh?" said Deuce. "What are you talking about?"

"So, I demand a do-over for the unbirthday party! Except this time, we ain't gotta do squat. This time, YOU'RE the one who brings the tart! And no getting Trey to make it for you! Do that, and then things are square between us."

I smirked. "Just admit you want a tart."

Ace shot me a look. "Quiet from the peanut gallery! What do you say, Riddle? We clear?"

"Yes..." said Riddle. "We're clear."

"Ah, yes," said Crowley. "Compromise is a beautiful thing. I believe that concludes this matter."

I shrugged. "I suppose that ended as best as it could."

"Welp, looks like we got some cleaning up to do," said Cater. "All that work making the garden Magicam-worthy, and now it's a total tire fire. Laaame."

"I'll help out," said Trey.

"No, why don't you get Riddle to the nurse's office? That was a full-blown case of overblot. We need to make absolutely sure he's okay."

"Mr. Diamond is correct," said Crowley. "I will go along with you."

"Understood," said Trey. "Thank you, sir."

"Man, am I STARVED after usin' so much magic!" said Grim. "Hmmm... Hey, check it out!" He picked up a black stone. "That's another black magestone, just like the one we found at the Dwarfs' Mine!"

"You're right," said Deuce. "Wonder where it came from?"

"Just don't put it in your mouth this time," Ace said.

"No way," said Grim. "After how great that last one tasted, I can't get that thing in my mouth fast enough!" He immediately popped it in his mouth.

"Aaand there it goes."

"Oh, Grimmy...," said Cater. "Have some self-respect, honey! That was literally trash."

"Ahhhhh!" Grim said happily. "Rich and sweet but with a complex hint of bitterness in the aftertaste. Equally delicious, but with quite a different mouthfeel from that last one I ate."

"Let's hope that doesn't make you sick," I said, frowning.

"As a monster, maybe his stomach works differently than ours?" Ace said.

"Even still, ," said Deuce, "eating trash can't be good for anyone."

"Oooh!" Grim exclaimed. "I just tried the grass, and the flavor was surprisingly pleasant! Crisp, even!"

"That's our lawn! Don't eat that!"

"Uh, A-F-K while I go throw up...," said Cater. He looked away and added quietly, "But...seriously, guys. Thanks."

"Did you just say something?" said Ace.

Cater flashed him a grin. "Hm? Nope. Not a thing."

"Hey, Ona," said Deuce. "We still have some stuff back at your place. Let's go get it so we can move back in here."

"Alright," I said. "Let's go." We walked back to my dorm. Ace and Deuce chatted while I was lost in my thoughts. I knew it would take me awhile to process my most recent experiences. When he arrived at Ramshakle, I stopped right in front of the door.

"Are we going to go inside?" said Ace. I turned and looked at him. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"What you did back there..." I glanced at Deuce. "What you both did for Riddle... That was pretty great. You stayed to help them even though you put your own lives at risk. That was really brave."

Ace shook his head. "What did I say about getting mushy on us? But seriously, you're the one who's brave. You stayed even though you don't have magic of your own. And you tried to save my life. No one in their right mind would do that."

I smiled slightly. "I had to do it. You're my..." I looked from Ace, to Deuce, to Grim as realization dawned at me. "...my ohana."

"What's that?" said Grim.

I smiled. "It means family." And even though I still missed my real one back home, perhaps I could survive here with my new one awhile longer.

Saturday came quickly. Once again, all the Heartslabyul students cheered Riddle at the unbirthday part. "Hm," he said. "The garden roses are red, the tablecloths are white... This seems a proper unbirthday indeed. Is there a dormouse asleep in the teapo- Er, well, I suppose it's fine either way."

"Not everything has to change completely, you know," said Trey. "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.'"

Ace sighed. "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," said Deuce.

"And the garden is Magicam-worthy once again!" said Cater. "Hashtag #nofilter on this gorgeousness!"

"Blah blah blah!" said Grim. "Let's just eat already!"

"Then eat we shall! I'll get the-"

"Wait a minute!" said Riddle.

"Huh?"

"There's a white rose...!"

"We missed one?!" Ace exclaimed.

"Ace, Deuce, I told you to make sure to paint EVERY rose!" Cater said.

"Wait, this is our fault?!" said Deuce.

"R-Riddle, listen..." said Trey.

"Oh no," I groaned. "Not again...?!"

"Well... I suppose I can overlook one or two missed roses," Riddle said.

"R-really?!" said Cater. "That's so generous of you, Riddle!"

"If we work together, we should be able to get them painted in no time."

"What?" said Ace. "They still gotta be painted?!"

Apparently so. However, with Riddle's help, we got the roses painted very quickly, just like he said. "That ought to do," he said. "And now...let the unbirthday party begin!" Everyone cheered and returned to the party.

"So what happened to that tart, Housewarden?" Ace said, trying to hide his eagerness.

"I made it for you, as I promised I would." Riddle walked over to a table and brought back a tart. "Here: one strawberry tart, crafted by yours truly."

"Nice!" said Trey. "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!"

"Oh, puh-leeze," said Ace. "How about we actually TRY it before you start fawning all over him, Trey?"

"Hold it!" said Cater. "Don't you start cutting that before I get my Magicam snap!" He took out his phone and snapped a photo. "...Okay, got it!"

"Tch. I see Cater hasn't changed a bit either. All right, let's dig in!"

We all grabbed a lice and took a bite. I froze mid-chew. It was very... interesting. "This is kinda..." Cater and Trey started.

"Salty!" we call cried.

Riddle stared at us in horror. "Whaaat?!"

"Err? This isn't KINDA salty - it's a full-on salt lick!" said Ace. "What did you put in this?!"

"Maybe he confused the salt and the sugar?" I suggested.

"I certainly did not," said Riddle. "I followed the rules exactly, and measured everything precisely! Unless... Oh! Could it be... from the oyster sauce?"

Deuce sputtered, "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 said. "How could you not tell that he was joking?!"

"It's an interesting flavor profile..." I said.

"Even if you believed the joke, it was only supposed to be a splash," said Cater. "How much did you put in?"

"It's an unlisted ingredient!" said Riddle. "How could I measure it if he wouldn't tell me how much to put in?!"

Trey burst out laughing. "I can't believe someone actually fell for the ol' oyster sauce prank!

"Ha ha ha... Yes. Quite humorous indeed. I truly am a fool."

"Ha ha! It really is so disgusting that it's actually kind of funny!" said Deuce.

"Yeah, what else can we do but laugh?" said Ace.

"You know, in its own weird way, I think it's actually kinda good!" said Grim.

"Right?" said Cater. "It really isn't half as bad as you'd think."

"Seriously?" said Deuce. "You're agreeing with Grim, Cater? He literally eats garbage off the ground."

"Look, I'm not saying it's amazing or anything!"

Trey looked at Cater slyly. "But you like it because it's not sweet, right?"

"Huh?"

"You've never really liked sweet things, right?"

"Seriously?" I said. "Not at all?"

"Yeah, you got me," Cater said, rubbing the back of his neck. "But how did you figure it out? I've never told anyone that."

"Because you casually bring up my Paint the Roses spell every time we're eating sweets," said Trey. "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."

I smiled. "Lessons were learned all around." Perhaps everyone here was pretty good company after all.