Lucky Rabbit {Twisted Wonderland} [Various X OC]

The Broken Chandelier Fine

As the two Ace hunters stepped out of the mirror, the first thing Elle noticed was a large cauldron in the pathway.

"Uh...well, that's new."

Riddle pinched the bridge of his nose, frustration building. The floor didn't seem to be damaged, thank goodness, but there was now a very large and unwieldy cauldron blocking more than half of the pathway to the Heartslabyul dorm, causing a bottleneck. All they could really do was stand awkwardly next to the mirror as a torrent of students made their way into the dorm.

He didn't have time for this. Any time Riddle tried to so much as take a step forward, he would immediately get unceremoniously shoved back to where he started. It didn't help that the students responsible didn't even spare him a glance. He was about to just explode at the fools, commanding them all to get out of the way, when Elle gently grabbed his wrist.

He immediately looked over at her with wide eyes and a dusting of pink on his cheeks. Why??? Had she decided to do this??? Riddle wasn't used to being touched at all, so to have someone suddenly establish contact like this...the boy was touch starved. Elle smiled apologetically.

"Sorry for grabbing you without permission, but please make sure we don't get separated, okay?"

Riddle nodded blankly, still processing the contact and the quiet and gentle tone she was suddenly using. It was very different from the professional tone she had been speaking to him with before. She suddenly felt more...warm. And safe. He kept his eyes trained on the hand on his wrist as they moved. He barely even noticed that the two of them were making their way through the throngs of people until they were nearly outside.

Once the crowd had significantly thinned, Elle let go of his wrist, and Riddle had to hold himself back from reaching out again. He shook his head, mentally scolding himself. Stop that. That kind of childish behavior is unbecoming of him. He had absolutely no time for this, He had a first year to catch and reprimand, and most likely collar. And so he once again squashed down the new feelings that were trying to grow.

"Alright, this should be far enough. Are you alright...uh, Riddle?"

"Me? Ah...y-yes. How did you do that?"

"I'm used to crowd weaving. Marie is pretty popular."

"Marie? Who is that?"

It was strange to her, having to introduce someone to her sister instead of the other way around. Having someone know her while never having even heard of Marie was an extremely foreign concept to her.

"Oh, um, she's my sister. She's a genius who's talented at anything she tries. Gymnastics, ballet, speech and debate, soccer, golf, painting...you name it, she's probably got a medal or a trophy to show you."

Riddle blinked. The girl's smile was fond, but there was a flicker of sadness in her eyes. ...Marie, huh.

"She sounds rather impressive."

"Oh, she is. I have to study twice as hard to even hold a candle to her."

"Is that what the stack of papers in your hands is?"

"This?" She looked down at her notes, holding them out for him to see. "Oh, no, not really. You see, Grim, the monster that showed up yesterday, really wants to learn magic, and so the headmage let him stay here as part of the janitorial team and let him have access to the library. He doesn't really have the attention span for reading though, so I'm studying magic myself and putting together a lesson plan for him."

Riddle gently took the stack of paper from her hands, flipping through the pages. "This is incredibly detailed...! And you're doing this for the monster that caused chaos at the entrance ceremony?" He said, impressed, yet skeptical. On one hand, that beast shouldn't be allowed anywhere near campus for the stunt he pulled; the headmage was far too lenient. But on the other....