Twisted Wonderland

Punishment Escalation

Trey walks into the schools vast library. Hoping the quiet and finding a good book will help his nerves. He stopped short upon seeing familiar faces sitting at his usual table.

"Hello Trey."

"You four!"

"We figured that if we waited at the library, you'd show up to return your tart cookbook eventually." Deuce explains.

Ace folds his arms and leans back in his chair. "We still got a problem with the way Housewarden Riddle is handling all of this."

Trey shakes his head and takes a seat next to you with Deuce and Ace sitting across from you. "Yeah, I thought you might say that."

"Come clean with us. What's your take on Riddle?" Ace asks. "Is it true you've been pandering to him since the two of you were kids?"

Trey recoils in shock. "What? Who told you that?"

"A guy who called himself Che'nya." Explains Deuce.

"Che'nya... Huh. That explains it."

Grim leans forward in his own chair next to Deuce though he has to sit on a few books so he can actually see above the table. "What I don't get is, aren't you older than Riddle? Why haven't ya told him off already?"

Trey folds his arms. "I do when I need to. I don't think the situation calls for it."

Ace narrows his eyes. "Why not?"

"These sorts of strict rules... They're what created Riddle."

Deuce tilts his head. "Huh?"

"His parents were famous magical healers. Everyone where we're from knew their names.
His mom was especially talented, and she really wanted Riddle to live up to her legacy."

Trey adjusts the rim of his glasses. "So, from the moment Riddle woke up to when his head hit the pillow at the end of the night. Every aspect of his life was planned, down to the minute, by the education program she made for him."

Grim scoffs. "Sounds pretty lame."

Trey continues. "What he ate, what he wore, what soap he used, who his friends were, every last detail had been predetermined for him. And to please his parents, Riddle obediently completed every task they'd laid out for him. He mastered his signature spell by age ten. He's been the top student in all of his classes. I can't even imagine how hard he must have had it."

You shake your head, you can't imagine the stress and pressure Riddle must've felt. "That sounds horrible."

Trey nods. "Riddle sees the enforcement of strict rules as a service to his dorm members. In his eyes, being bound by rigid guidelines, by fear, is a fast-track to personal growth. Because that's how it worked for him. And on the flip side, he sees the violation of those rules as an inexcusable offense."

Ace scratches the back of his neck. "I guess that makes sense, since rules made him who he is."

"Look, I totally get why you see Riddle as a tyrant, and why you disapprove of his methods." Trey reasons. "But for me... I can't hold that against him, you know?"

Grim lowered his head. "Myah..."

"So that's why he's like that." Deuce says.

"All right, now I get it." Ace points a finger to Trey. "It's YOUR fault Riddle's like this."

Everyone looks to Ace in complete shock. "What?"

"Riddle didn't get to choose his parents." Ace explains. "But you know what his parents did to him, and you know it was wrong, right?"