(Rarely updated!) All Things Twisted Wonderland (Minus Smut)

The Last Poem (Rook x GN!Reader)

((A/N: This oneshot can either be taken romantically or platonically. Honestly, I just wanted an excuse to write some more angsty poetry.  Also because I watched Dead Poets Society and I can't get over how good the movie was.  My French skills may not be the best but I'll sure try my best!)) 

Y/N's mental health was declining. Afterall, Crowley was just dumping every issue onto them, school was hard as they couldn't use magic, they had to make sure that Grim was pulling his weight and the as much as they loved Ace and Deuce, the duo also contributed a large amount to their stress headache.

  As an attempt to relieve stress, Y/N began to write poems.  Slowly but surely the poems got darker as Y/N's mental state worsened and the countless nights of staying up because of said stress were showing underneath their eyes.  Everyone just kept telling them to "relax,"  however, it was more complicated then that!  How can one even simply relax when so much to do was piling up?  Y/N wasn't even procrastinating, there was too much to do in so little time and the pressure was getting too much.  Thus, the poems got darker and more frequent.  This, of course didn't go unnoticed by a certain hunter who loved to watch the Ramshackle Prefect.

One day, Y/N was sitting at their desk when an arrow got shot through their luckily open window, only missing them by a mere millimeters.  Slightly concerned, Y/N looked out the window and saw a familiar blonde bob and hat.  At this point, Y/N wasn't sure if they should be glad that it wasn't an assassination attempt or if they should be concerned that Rook had no problem with almost shooting them with an arrow.  They were pulled out of the thoughts when the hunter just stepped through their window, "Bonjour!  Please pardon the intrusion, I just saw you were writing beautiful poems and just had to take a look!"  Y/N sighed and handed over the poem to get Rook away as fast as possible.  Rook cleared his throat and began to read, 

"Unbearable waves crash down upon me
Unrelieved duties standing tall and strong
Nothing to ease the pain
No escape for me

Why not just soldier on?
Am I not just creating a mountain out of a molehill? 
It's nothing afterall
Everyone goes through this so why must I make a fuss?
Am I just that weak?
Are others stronger?

Still. . .
There has to be a way. . .
Eventually, I'll find a way to defeat my foes
I have to. . .
No matter if I'm weaker than anyone
Even if everything seems impossible
I'll find a way."

Rook let out a gasp, "That was. . . Absolutely beautiful!  Your poems are simply enchanting to read!"  

"You really think so?"  Y/N asked, doubting that he actually meant it.  

"Of course!  Tomorrow I shall bring one of my own poems and we shall read them to each other.  Until then, adieu!"  With that, Rook exited through the window once more.  Y/n rolled their eyes,

"Let's hope he won't come back tomorrow-" they stated.  

Of course, this was wishful thinking as the hunter came back the next day. . . As well as the day after that. . . And the day after that. . . . . And the day after that.  The hunter kept on coming back every day to share his poems with them and Y/N would always listen.  It was nice having someone else to read poems with.  It took away some of their stress and having someone listen to them indirectly vent through their poems.  Sometimes, Rook would even take some of their work load, further releasing them from the web of stress they were tangled in.

However, things took a turn for the worse as the school year progressed. . .

Rook was busy with trying to figure out architecture and keeping up his grades so he could make that internship opportunity, thus, he couldn't make it to Ramshackle every day as he used to.  Crowley was piling more work on Y/N as more overblots happened around the school.  They were now tasked with trying to figure out everything they could about why these overblots were happening.  

Y/N stopped coming out of their dorm and everyone just dismissed it as working.  It eventually got concerning for a certain hunter as he still missed the little poem sharings the two did.  He ran to ramshackle and opened the door, shocked to find no response.  Normally, he would get a greeting as that's something you do when there's visitors over, but, there was nothing. . . Just complete dead silence.  Rook immediately ventured farther, even knocking on the Prefect's door.  Still, nothing.  Having no other choice, he opened the door to find the Y/N slumped in their chair, unresponsive to the world around them.  

He gasped and immediately rushed over to the desk, having a hunch they were no longer apart of this world but certainly wishing he was wrong for once.  Unfortunately for him, Y/N had in fact passed away from their stress.  Rook now felt extremely guilty, if he tried harder and disregarded his grades, would they still be alive?  He tried to move them away from the chair to give them a proper burial when something caught their eye.  It was a poem.  The last poem of theirs that they ever wrote.  Hands shaking, Rook picked up the piece of paper and began to read.

Swallowing bricks and not telling a soul
One by one, the weight starts to add up
Nobody seems to care that I drag myself everywhere
Nobody cares that I'm incredibly thirsty

No matter, I'll fetch my own water
I haven't swallowed THAT many bricks
Oh?  The tap water's stopped working.
I must get my own water from a well
I'll crawl there if I have to
All I need is the cool refreshing water

How many bricks have I swallowed?
They're beyond heavy
Oh well, that makes it easier to draw water, right?

What's this?
The water has dried up?
Maybe if I look hard enough I'll-

Down
Down
Down
Into the well I fall
Weighed down by the bricks, which I thought I could handle

Rook put down the poem, shocked.  Y/N knew their mental health was declining but still downplayed it, aware of the consequences that came with their decision.  Why couldn't Y/N confide in Rook as they did before?  Was it because he distanced himself?  No amount of reflection could bring them back.  Rook only had one thought in his head:  To protect others from this cruel fate.  Thus he did, making sure Vil wasn't pushing himself too hard and even attempting to take some of his workload.  He made sure the first years were all familiar with whatever they were studying and that they weren't too stressed. 

Eventually, graduation rolled around for Rook and although he was exhausted trying to keep others from getting too stressed, it was all worth it to him.  After all, nobody suffered the same fate as Y/N, so, why did he still have a hole in his heart?  The thing is, if you dig deep enough into the hunter's heart, you'll find he still blamed himself for Y/N's death.  In his spare time, you can often find him asking, 

"If I just spent more time with Y/N, would they still be here, alongside me right now?"