The moment you stepped into Heartslabyul, you knew something was wrong. The rose hedges looked disheveled, and the courtyard oozed with an uneasy sort of freedom. Students lingered where they should not, and someone walked by munching on a slice of strawberry tart.

Grim leaned closer to your leg. “Uh. Since when does Heartslabyul let people breathe…?”

“They know,” you said.

Grim’s ears flattened. “Know what?”

“That Riddle isn’t here.”

You moved deeper into the dorm, and the air felt lighter and heavier at the same time. Trey stood near the baking tables, neatly arranging pastries into a baking tray. Cater leaned against the counter, staring at the pastries, but his phone sat face down on it. That alone raised alarms.

“Oh, hey. Evening,” Cater politely greeted when he noticed you and Grim.

“(Y/n). Grim. Didn’t expect to see you out this late.” Trey calmly smiled.

“Is everything okay?” You asked, trying your best not to sound suspicious.

“Things are great,” Cater laughed, but it came half a second too late.

Grim squinted. “Why ain’t you yelling at people for rule breaking?”

“Are people breaking rules?” Trey blinked, supposedly genuinely confused, but he had always been good – too good – at maintaining his composure. Were his hands trembling? Why did the left corner of his lip twitch? Why were you overanalyzing everything? Your inner Sherlock was telling you something was wrong.

Cater did not reach for his phone once and kept his hands folded. That felt more unnatural than anything else you had seen tonight.

“So,” Cater lightly said, “what brings you guys here?”

“Have you seen Ace or Deuce?” You asked, your eyes shifting between the two. Cater’s shoulders tensed, and Trey cleared his throat.

“They…” Trey said, “They were around here earlier.”

“How much earlier?”

“Time’s kinda blurry tonight.” Cater nervously chuckled, but the conversation was cut short when Ace ran past the kitchen.

“Ace!” You called out, causing him to skid to a stop.

“Yo. (Y/n). Grim. Wild night, huh?” He grinned, but his eye twitched slightly.

“Where were you earlier in the evening?” you inquired.

Ace scratched his cheek with his right index finger. “Around. Places. You know.”

“No,” you said. “I don’t.”

He laughed. “Man, you sound like him.”

Grim growled. “Answer the question.”

Ace’s smile slipped, and he threw his hands up. “I didn’t do anything.”

“I didn’t say you did,” you calmly replied.

“Right. Gotta go. Deuce needs me,” Ace nervously chuckled. His eyes shifted to Trey and Cater before he turned and hurried out of the kitchen.

You said your goodbyes to the two older students and searched for Duece, who was near the hedges. When he saw you, he stiffened and walked in the opposite direction.

“Deuce!” you called out, but he broke into a jog and disappeared out of sight.

Grim stared after him, one eyebrow raised, before he moved his eyes to you. “That was…suspicious.”

You sighed, but then voices drifted from behind a nearby hedge. While you couldn’t see who was talking, you figured it was worth eavesdropping for possible clues.

“He was asking for it.”

“Always breathing down our necks.”

“Serves him right.”

Grim stepped closer, but accidentally stepped on a twig, causing it to crack. The students paused, then quickly scattered, not wanting to take any risks.

“Sorry,” Grim mumbled.

“It’s okay,” you whispered. “But why does it feel like everyone is plotting against Riddle? Broken rules. Trey’s forced calm…Cater pretending his phone did not exist. Ace deflecting, and Deuce running. Heartslabyul feels…”

Relieved.

And that made your stomach twist even more than the oppressive rule reinforcement.

“Who’re we gonna interrogate first?” Grim asked, his tail flicking side to side behind him.

“The right question is…who will honestly tell us what is going on? Or…who will break first?” You whispered.

“Let’s interrogate, Deuce!” Grim snickered.