#(BUT UGHHH MY HORT WUV THEM

[universestreasures]

blasterdiablo​:

There was no time for a tea party for the young Hatter, and even if he had wanted to take a short break having one with the princess he couldn’t… His father had locked the door, after all. It was his way of making sure Ren wouldn’t wander off if he happened to get bored with a project. More and more often Ren found himself cooped up here in the Hatter’s room, sometimes for days at a time. Which had caused him to miss more and more tea parties with the girl who’s smile made the hardships worthwhile. Ah well– Ren just had to work harder. If his father saw improvement in him perhaps he’d earn himself some more free time between holidays. It was times like this though that he especially enjoyed catching Misaki in the gardens, like he had done so today.

The daylight was long gone by the time his father had returned from working with the King and Queen. Ren had been working by candlelight when the locks on the heavy door had come undone, the suddenness of it all causing the boy to wince as his hand slipped and he once again drove a sewing needle straight through the fabric of Misaki’s dress and into his thumb. The red head was working to untangle himself from the thread when his father had walked in, the shadows cast by the dancing flames of the candles exaggerating the deep lines of the man’s features.

For once Ren had been anticipating his father’s return, happy even. Seeing Misaki among the rose patch today had given him the idea to add several hand stitched roses all along the dress the Hatter had started, decorating the otherwise empty fabric with pops of color that Ren had found both fun and pleasing to the eye. But all Ren saw in that moment was stars, the audible crack in the otherwise silent room registering before the stinging pain in his cheek did. The stool he had been sitting on was thusly kicked out from under him, causing Ren to fall back into a tray of sewing supplies– various needles and scissors all designed to stab and cut through fabric with ease had found their way to his body, his clothes offering him zero protection. 

But none of that mattered the moment he had caught sight of what his father was doing now that Ren was out of his way. The dress– He was destroying Misaki’s dress!

Desperation and panic painted the young boy’s face, completely overturning the pain he would have been feeling if he wasn’t so focused on the scene before him. The Hatter’s face was twisted in a terrible anger(an expression Ren was used to seeing at this point, but this was the worst by far– he had never seen his father so…so…upset. With him..? He didn’t know what was going on–). The man was shouting curses, but none of it registered, not as the man had taken to tearing out the roses Ren had spent all evening sewing into the dress. 

❝ F-Father? What are you doing?! That’s Missy’s dress..! You’re going to ruin it!! ❞

Ren had finally managed to pull himself up, the forearm he had caught himself with bleeding as he leaped onto the dress form to protect it from the man’s assault. It had turned into a struggle between Hatters then– one to save the dress and one to destroy it entirely. By the end of it the younger Hatter lay on the ground, thrown there among the remnants of the dress they had both worked so hard on. 

His father had declared Ren to have been the one to ruin the dress(but he wasn’t the one to have torn it apart, seam from seam–). That Ren had some audacity to tamper with his perfect work(but he was only trying to have it fit his perfect image–). That now Ren had to remake the entire gown before the Queen’s unbirthday, and that he wouldn’t be allowed to leave the studio until his father had something he could work with. When Ren had tried to protest he was met with either the heel of his father’s shoe or hand until his very consciousness had begun to waver.

The man screamed until Ren had voiced his understanding of the situation, his voice cracked and hoarse by the time he managed to force it past the blockage in his throat. Most of the candles had either been burnt out or blown out by the gust of wind caused by the attempted slamming of the door as Ren’s father stormed out of the studio, leaving Ren where he lay amongst the scraps. He doesn’t dare whimper, even as the pain had begun to properly set in. This was the pain Misaki’s dress had probably felt as his father reduced it to threads… He was feeling it now too. The pain he caused the dress, the ruin he had heralded by his involvement, he felt it all.

That was when he heard the tiny voice. But surely it was a dream. The princess’ voice he knew wasn’t supposed to sound so– so sad. But he was proven wrong as the girl knelt down beside him to offer her concerns. But Ren seems to only curl in on himself further, body shaking as he forced it to move when his very bones cried out for rest. His own voice was small as he choked out a single sentence he had wished to tell his father but now the man was no where near to hear. Only the girl he has yet to accept was there with him now.

❝ …I… I just thought… the red roses suited Missy best– ❞

He reaches out to Misaki soon after, taking her hand with a notably shaky grip. But despite that, his hands remained the least damaged part of his body. Seems his father was at least careful enough in keeping them unbroken for the long days of work ahead. Although he was unsure if it was his own blood or his father’s that came off in drying streaks on the girl’s own skin now, the image of the man’s bloody knuckles coming to mind as Ren stared at their hands now. But that pretty much confirmed it, that Misaki was truly the one here with him now… He had turned his eyes away from hers the moment he saw them welling with tears, the boy now willing himself to sit up somewhat straight.

❝ O-Oh, Missy, what are you doing up at this hour? ❞ Ren starts after situating himself, seeming to miss her questions of concern entirely as he collected himself all too quickly. It was almost unnatural given the state she had found him in. The destined-to-be-hatter was far more worried about the fact Misaki had walked in to see the remnants of the dress rather than the bloody and bruised mess he himself had become though. A truly odd one, he was. Even despite the swelling of his cheeks he offers Misaki an apologetic smile of sorts, it was the best he could manage given the circumstance. ❝ This is just… it’s just that… your dress for the Queen’s unbirthday… I seemed to have ruined it. I’m…I’m sorry, Missy. But I’ll have it fixed up in no time! So there’s no need to cry, okay? ❞ -

“Huh...?” A confused but concerned whimper escape the youth’s lips after he accepts her outstretched hand, Misaki simply watching on as Ren tried to pull himself together. What did the roses he mentioned earlier have to do with this? Is that why he is covered in red just now? Why did he have bruises and cuts all over himself? Why did she hear screaming? She had so many questions and Ren’s own responses didn’t provide any answer.

This isn’t the first time she’s found him in an injured state like this. By nature, the future Hatter was rather clumsy. Almost every week she noticed a new bruise or cut from a needle accidently piecing his skin, and almost every week she would take some time to help patch him up. It became so commonplace that she couldn’t help but be worried about him all the time. How could she not when he was her best friend in the whole world? The only real friend she had?

However, what just happened didn’t seem normal at all. She’s never seen him or a garment of his in such a state, her heart aching as tears continued to flow. Her grip on his hand tightened, not caring if the red liquid got on her soft skin. None of that mattered when Ren was in pain, even if he was trying to hide it from her as he always did. 

She wishes he didn’t have to try to lie to her about how he was feeling. She wishes he was just honest with her. She wishes she could help him like he’s always helped her...

“I...I don’t care about the dress...!” Misaki cries out, her hurt cracked voice echoing throughout the castle’s tall and wide halls. “I care...I care about you, Ren! Not some dress! And you’re hurt right now, badly! We...We need to get you to a doctor, or some other person who can help! You really need it, Ren! Stop trying to act so tough and just listen to-”

Teal eyes widen as she is suddenly detached from Ren, the princess having been grabbed by one of the Card guards who must have noticed she snuck out of her room. Tiny legs kick to break free, but it’s no use. She’s powerless against them like this, Misaki knowing they answer to her mother and father and not her yet. 

They do not as much speak a single word as they begin to march in the opposite direction of the injured boy, leaving Misaki powerless to stop the separation between her and Ren. She didn’t want to leave him in such a poor state, but what was she to do? Regardless, she still kept fighting to break free, if only to make sure he knows she is trying all she can to get back to him; That she is doing all she can to return to the side of her friend and not abandon him in a time of need.

“Ren...! 

“Ren!”

“Ren!!!!!!!!!!”

As she is calling out to her friend ever so desperately with all her heart, one might swear the sound of a subtle...cracking noise could be heard echoing throughout the realm. Or...is that ones imagination? In a land like Wonderland, such things were often hard to discriminate. Such was the beauty of a such a world where logic and rules were odd and sometimes nonexistent.

However, Misaki certainly feels it...

Deep inside her chest, in her heart of hearts, a slight pain stings her so slightly yet sharply, like being poked with a sewing needle where deep red blood seeps out for all to see...

~