Work Text:
“You're not Ace... Are you?”
“What?”
There's something unknown growing between them when those words are spoken. Something eating him alive. It wasn't the sun that was getting closer to them, making him sweat under those handsome gem eyes. It wasn't the time stopping while he was being questioned. It was fear.
His feets, his breath and his eyes; everything stopped just to pay attention to the guy next to him. A few minutes before, they were walking together back to their classes, but now, both stopped in the middle of the path just to find out what was the truth behind everything.
Deuce was looking at him, expecting an answer to all his questions, but he can't answer all of them. He knows it. He doesn't know what happened or how he ended up in a place he doesn't belong to, but he was trying to at least pretend he did until he found a way back home.
“How did you know?”
Deuce doesn't look surprised, his only answer is a short nod of ignorance before walking away, leaving confusion behind him. The fear and anxiety crawling Ace legs and arms. The shadows of the fears, the panic and memories haunting everything around him. It only took ten steps, which Ace counted, for Deuce to turn around to take a look at him again with a little smile.
“What are you doing there? We are late to class, dumbass”, those words made him feel even more confused, but he still went after Deuce. Just like always.
Let's do a summarize.
A month ago, he was in his world. He was at the Night Ravens College, a special academy for people like him. Everyone knew about magic and they studied to be mages. The world was always covered with insane things happening everywhere you went to. It was chaotic and almost dangerous, after all, magic can be pretty dangerous if you don't know how to control it.
He still remembers all the times he almost ended up being dead or losing a friend because of strong people losing control. Everyone was different but so similar at the same time that he was sure about something. That was the only place he knew where everyone could hate each other but still be there when you needed to be saved. With little accidents, he understood. He belongs to that magic world that doesn't exist in the world he was sent to.
More important, he belongs to Heartslabyul. Even with all the rules and all the trouble he went through, he belongs there.
In the Heartslabyul dorm, his more comfortable space was his room, which he shared with a boy that he met at the beginning of the semester in the opening ceremony. Deuce Spade was everything he wasn't. He took things more seriously and he was proud of being in the school, because that's what his mother would be proud of.
Ace was like that too, but he was leaning more towards that big wall of troublemaker that followed him everywhere. Deuce always ended up in problems because of him.
That day wasn't an exception.
“You are an asshole! I hope you know it!”, Deuce was furious at him, and he understood why, but his pride was bigger than that.
“Deuce it was just an accident! I told you already how it happened!”
“An accident? Ace, you burned my leg! You know I have an event from the club in three days and now I can't even walk properly”
At that moment, Ace didn't have the courage to look at Deuce at the eyes, but he couldn't avoid it either. If he looked directly into his eyes he would see that pain and feeling of betrayal. If he looked down, he was going to see how bad the wound was even if it was already bandaged and cleaned. It was understandable that Deuce was this mad to him. It was an accident, but he was the one that did a potion that the professor said twice that it wasn't safe enough to perform. And he was the one that decided to make it worse with his spell. Now both of them are suspended and Deuce is wounded.
“Where are you going?”, panic started to grow inside him when he saw Deuce packing some clothes.
“I'm going home until this ends! I'm tired of you putting me in a rough spot every single time. It's like you don't give up. You bring trouble everywhere you go and I'm always behind you so I get punished as well! All the adults don't even care about what was my paper in your work, all they care it's that I was there. Can't you act more mature!?”
He was right. He can't defend himself. But, he doesn't want to be alone.
“Deuce please, don't go...”, when he tried to approach Deuce, the boy slapped his hand away and looked at him without a single brightness in his eyes.
“Why can't you just go somewhere else or at least change your fucking attitude!? You're not a kid, Trappola! I'm so fucking tired of you! Just go away and leave me alone!”
What happened after that is all blurry. He knows he fell from the stairs, but he really can't remember how or what was he saying when it happened. His eyes closed and as soon as they opened again, he was already in a whole different place.
In a blink of an eye, his world changed and he didn't know if he was going to see his friends again. Maybe he deserves it. Maybe this is for the best.
It took him only two days to understand what happened. He, somehow, traveled to a new world where magic didn't exist and he was being punished because of something. The people he once knew were there too, but they were not the same anymore. There was no magic, no tales and no one knew about the school he belongs to. Everything was different and he felt out of place. He didn't know how to go back and no matter what he did to find answers, he always woke up again in the same place.
He considers himself lucky. After all, it wasn't the first time he traveled to a whole new world and he understood quickly that it was happening again. But he also considered himself unlucky. He was alone this time and this was a world without magic, without his memories right beside him.
There was no Twisted Wonderland. Night Ravens College didn't exist and his magic was gone. This wasn't his home.
Even if he went to a school in this world too, he simply didn't belong. Even if he used all his time there to get to know more people or try to talk to the ones that made his life a good story to tell in the future, they were never going to be how he remembers. It's not like he had the courage or right to make them different, since this was their world and he was the one that didn't belong.
Riddle was in this world, but he looked more free and happier. His hair was divided in two colors and his clothes didn't match the perfect attitude from his world. They don't talk to each other, never did in this world, but if they were in the same space, Riddle would say hi. He found out that this Riddle escaped from his home and lived with Trey's parents now. He didn't have the courage to change his life with something so little.
Trey was the same as before, but he looked less worried about the people around him. It was like everything was already perfect and he didn't need to clean the mess of someone else. He still cares for people, specially Riddle, but he was less protective. He was probably the only one that felt the most close to his own world. So again, how can he change his life?
Then, Cater. He was the same, nothing changed. Extrovert, popular and a party person that couldn't take anything that seriously. But somehow, there was something different in his eyes. That difference was only towards him and no one else. Cater always looked at him like he could kill him anytime soon if they crossed paths again or if Ace even dared to speak to him.
The reason could be because of what he did. When he woke up in this world, he did the mistake of hugging Cater and since then, the boy keeps a distance. It's understandable. They never talked, Cater only knew who he was thanks to Riddle.
Then there was Deuce. His roommate from his world was also in this strange place and they shared room once again, but their relationship was not the best. They were almost like two beasts that were chained to the same room just to see who killed each other first. He noticed this when he tried to hug the boy when he woke up, but was greeted with a punch in his cheek and a voice of disgust. With that action he just could tell that this wasn't the person he knew and that he wasn't even close to it. This Deuce had blonde hair, but his roots were blue.
“How dare you touch me!? Since when we are this close!?”, he would be lying if he said those words are not deep inside his heart.
Even if Deuce kept his distance, Ace saw himself following him around because it was the only person that was still close to him like the world he once knew. It's not like he wanted to make the boy uncomfortable or that he was pleased to be punched every single time, but it was Deuce. For him, he was his friend and not only a roommate. Not even a stranger. He was his Deuce.
Now, going back to the present, Ace has a lot of questions.
“When...”, he stopped before completing the question, not knowing how to approach Deuce anymore.
“Do you remember what happened between us the night before you woke up that day? If the answer is no, then there's your answer. I started feeling something was wrong since that moment.”
It's been a long hour since they made it to class after a short but cold walk. Now, both were sitting next to each other in class and since the teacher left them alone, the topic came back. The trees were dancing in the wind outside and a little breeze hugged them from one of the windows that was opened by one of their classmates. It was warm but cold, just like the conversation they were having.
“I think you should know about this. Ace and I... Well, we don't have a good relationship, if I can even call it like that”, Deuce made a pause to take a look from the window right next to him, the breeze ruffling his hair. “But years ago, we used to be friends. Everything went down when I confessed my feelings to him and he disappeared from my life.”
Feelings? What is he talking about?
“I liked him. I thought he liked me too, but looks like I was wrong. With just a simple confession, he escaped from my arms.”
Deuce started laughing and, for a moment, Ace felt like he was being hypnotized. This Deuce was charming, just like the one he knew, but there was something slightly different. Not because of his appearance, but because of his personality. In this world, Deuce was a troublemaker just like how he was, but he was still that one smart kid that was always paying attention to everything and everyone. He was caring and, most of all, he had a good reputation with his classmates. He only had a bad reputation outside of the school.
But for Ace, he was still the same boy he once knew, just a version he never got the opportunity to see.
“See? It's impossible that you are him! He would never look at me like that.”, Deuce made a long pause before continuing. “He liked being at home, but you love going out. He didn't pay attention to me, but you... You are just different. Not once have you left my side since you came here.”
“The Deuce I knew... He was the best person in the world. I just couldn't say it. I was a mess with words and he was always in trouble because of me. My words even made him feel hurt, so I didn't know how to approach him.”
Deuce only nodded at those words and silence fell over them. It wasn't uncomfortable but it wasn't comfortable either. It was something in the middle that was starting to be annoying. So, Ace decided it was time to try to change everything and that included the awkward feeling in his chest.
“I will find a way back and soon enough, your Ace will be back and maybe you two will find what you want. Together.”
Deuce looked at him with a little smile and Ace felt like he just said something stupid. Behind his eyes, there was fear and insecurity, but also a strong feeling of anger that could start a fire anytime soon. Ace wonders what happened between them, since they were now classmates.
“Ace, do you like the Deuce from your world?”, Ace wasn't even drinking at that moment, but the question catched him so out of the blue that he started chocking.
Did he like Deuce?
He can't tell. He never thought about it.
He liked being with him, but he also liked to annoy him and just see him mad. He hated when Deuce tried to be the hero in situations that could be dangerous for him. He dislikes how his friend jumped towards the danger just to make a point. He felt uncomfortable when Deuce tried to be the best, when he already was but never noticed.
“I never thought about it.”
“Did your Deuce ever like you?”
He can think about all the memories in his mind that involves his Deuce and the answer is simple.
No.
Deuce would never like someone like him, because he could only make him feel anger. They fought a lot and there was never a chance of them apologizing to the other even if they could recognize they were in the wrong. Both were so proud and that made their personalities to crash.
His question was never answered, and Deuce pretended that he couldn't remember asking. The silence was back, the weather turned more cold and the day passed in a blink of an eye. Ace was thankful, but since that moment, his mind was somewhere else.
He was thinking about his world, about everyone in there.
How was Riddle? Will that version of him find his freedom?
Was Azul still making contracts and experiencing a lot of new memories because of Floyd mood swings and Jade tricks?
What about Epel and his time in Pomefiore? Maybe he found peace inside that big dorm.
How was Heartslabyul in his absence? Was Riddle losing his mind because of all the rules he's skipping?
What about Deuce? Was he looking for him? Is he crying? Is he suffering?
What if someone else took his place just like he did with the Ace of this modern world?
Oh.
What if the Ace from this world ended up going to Twisted Wonderland?
“At least he's not alone anymore...”, he spoke in a low voice, looking at the blue sky outside the windows.
In Twisted Wonderland
“He is awake!”
It took just ten seconds to open his eyes completely and for a lound scream to announce the existence of someone just by his side. Then, another ten seconds and someone was checking his eyes and murmuring things while doing some kind of physical exam. Another ten seconds. He looked around and saw walls that he didn't remember, people that looked different at how his mind portrayed them. Faces looking worried when he never talked to them before.
Was he dreaming?
Ace was confused, but he still tried to pretend he understood what has happening. If this was a dream, it was better to live through it and then wake up. All dreams are bound to end.
Even if the clothes he was wearing and the style of the people there with him didn't look like something of his world, he still pretended to understand. Even if the doctor that was attending him didn't look like the ones in the hospital he always went to, he still pretended. Everyone looked weird for him. People with ears of a wolf on their heads, people with pointy ears or fangs. He saw everything. It was strange, but he still pretended he understood. Maybe he really was dreaming.
“Ace, can you hear me? Do you remember what happened?”, a deep voice made his body tremble and Ace tried to process the words before answering.
“No... I don't.”
“This is weird, there's not a single problem with his body but he still was asleep for three days and I can't feel his magic core anymore... Deuce, could you call your Housewarden and tell him to come with Crowley?”
Ace even pretended that everything was fine when he noticed who was with him and who screamed when he woke up. This has to be a dream. Deuce was different and looked at him with so many regrets that didn't include a single trace of anger like always. Unconsciously, his hand ended up looking for Deuce's hand but the guy escaped from the room before their hands could touch. Ace was pretending to be fine with that.
Deuce left him alone and came back with people he once knew, but never talked to. He couldn't understand why Riddle was looking at him with worry, but with anger, or why his director was wearing such a strange costume that was hiding his face. They looked strange, but Ace can remember that it wasn't Halloween soon, so why they were dressed like that?
Was it really a dream?
Yeah. It has to be. Deuce being so worried about him when they didn't have that connection anymore has to be a dream.
“Bring him to the Dark Mirror, there's something strange...”
Even when he was taken to a dark room where mirrors were floating and the light wasn't showing all the room, giving a mysterious scene, he still pretended that everything was alright. He wasn't panicking. He knew what was happening to him. He knew.
He didn't.
“Ace, can you ask something to the mirror?”, a hand touched his right shoulder and fear started to flow through his veins.
What mirror? There's a lot of them!
“Where the fuck am I?”
When his question is made, he can feel someone else squeezing his shoulder and something wet getting through his clothes. He could hear someone crying, but couldn't tell who because he was too focused on the mirrors in front of him. He didn't understand why he was talking to a mirror.
These people were crazy.
“You're at Nights Raven College. I fear you don't belong in here”, a face appeared in the mirror in front of him and Ace tried to take a step backwards, but was stopped by Riddle's hand.
“What do you mean he doesn't belong?”
“This is Ace Trappola, but his soul is not the same. His soul does not belong to this world, he possess a soul without magic”, the mirror talked again and Ace knew he had to stop pretending.
He was terrorized. Where was he? What is this strange world and why everyone looks at him like that?
Everything started from there. And with everything he means all the chaos.
Why was Riddle being so strict towards him? What was he talking about when he said rule #194? Why he needed to eat something at a certain hour at a specific occasion?
Why was Cater so friendly towards him when they never talked?
Why was Trey so protective towards everyone? Why was he scared when Riddle was mad?
And...
Why is Deuce like this?
“I told you I'm fine, just leave me alone”, it was the third time that Deuce approached him without saying anything but looking like a dead body. Pale and cold.
Ace thinks that it's more likely that this was aa habit for the boy now. Every thirty minutes, Deuce would go into their shared room to check on him and ask him if he remembers something. Sometimes, he asked about his life, about who he was, if he was planning to go back home and every question that was related to him being there. He didn't mind, but at some point, it was making him crazy. So he did the only thing he was familiar with.
He screamed at Deuce and made him leave. He regrets it, because this Deuce is not the one he knows and he looked worried and hurt when he screamed at him, but he can't control himself. He's afraid. But somehow, his roommate still found his path back to the dorm to ask with his sad eyes if he was alright, so Ace just let him be.
“I don't want to stay here”, his roommate stopped walking towards the door when he heard Ace talking after hours. “I also want to leave and go back to what I remember... Everyone here is so strange to me, I know them with different appearance, looks, manners and personalities. And you know what's worse? That you have his face and it's driving me crazy.”
What made him feel worse was the way this Deuce had the same face of the person he once loved and left, but it wasn't the same person. He can't take his feelings out of his chest, even if he knows he's not the same person. He still loves that smile and that voice. He still wants to hug him and kiss his forehead. He still wants to make everything right and never make him cry again. But this is not his Deuce. He can't fix something that was never broken to start with.
Between them, there was not a single story. Just a friendship he doesn't remember because he's not his Ace.
“Do you want to know what I remember?”, Deuce looked surprised when he did the question, probably because it was the first time he called him by his name or because he never talked about him.
“I do”, his answer was fast, and Ace laughed.
“I come from a place called Japan, it's a country just like this one and in this country, you exist too. We are roommates and we used to be friends”, he doesn't finish his sentence, waiting to see the expression on Deuce's face. He doesn't look that surprised. “And he has blonde hair, likes to use comfortable clothes and baggy ones too. He gets in trouble a lot and sometimes I have to clean the wounds on his face, always wishing I could kiss them until they disappear. But he's also smart, he's lovely and attentive. And I loved him for that.”
That's right. He loved him for that and even for much more. Deuce was his first love and his one and only, but he slapped his hand away and broke the thread that they shared once. They were cursed because of his fault.
“You have his same face and it's sick. It makes me feel like crying, wondering how is he. We had a big fight before I came here and... I just wonder, what is he doing right now?”
Deuce stays silent after those words. He takes a sit beside Ace and starts playing with the sheets that were not hugging neither of them. He was deep in thought, just like Ace was. This was awkward for both of them, when they didn't know what was happening or what was going to happen next. No one could tell what they should do or how long this would last. It was something no one experienced before, and if they did, they don't remember anymore.
“The last time I saw him, I pushed him down the stairs after a fight and... Now you're here but he isn't. I had too many things to say to him for when he came back to his senses but I never thought that he wasn't coming back.”
They were so miserable in their own ways. This was painful.
“Let's find a way to get them back”, Ace was the one who spoke, his voice full of confidence.
He didn't know how to do it, but if this school was really full of magic, then maybe something existed that can help him to find a way back. He still needs to make everything right with his Deuce and he needs to stop seeing him in this one.
Twisted Wonderland Deuce was not the same as his Deuce. They were different and so...
Why was he holding hands with him?
“I told you I don't know what you're talking about!”, Ace screamed, his voice trembling and a loud cry stuck in his throat.
“Riddle, I know he did wrong but you need to understand his situation, he's not the same person anymore and he doesn't know the rules. You need to be patient with him, you're scaring him”, a soft voice interrupted their discussion and Ace felt in the ground, kneeling in front of them.
He lost the count already. He broke too many rules and Riddle was about to give him a necklace that he hated since the first moment he was under the spell. He was just lucky that Trey came just in time to stop Riddle and take him away, apologizing towards him in a low voice and soft eyes.
He was left alone in the ground and his heart started to beat faster. It wasn't an exaggeration if he said that he was experiencing everything around him through all his senses. He could hear others murmuring things about his situation or what just happened with Riddle, judging him for not knowing better and not getting used to the rules. He can feel the wind playing with his clothes and the sun kissing his pale skin. He can taste the salty flavor of his own tears.
He hates crying, but he hates the situation even more. It's been a long week and no one could tell him how he should go back to his home. To his world.
“Ace!”, he didn't need to look up to see who was approaching him.
Deuce was always there to help him get up or to clean every mess he left behind. He was the only person that was patient with him, teaching him about the classes and this new world and even about the people he doesn't remember. He was too good for him and he was starting to feel worse towards him. Deuce was an angel and he was making him suffer by staying in a world where he can't even hug the soul that belongs to his friend.
“Deuce... Did you find something?”, he always asked the same thing. He was getting tired.
“I didn't, but don't worry, Trey is helping me every time he can. We will find an answer soon, I promise.”
Ace was starting to hate the way Deuce touched his face to calm him and how he always looked at him with those sad eyes that melted him. He hated how he always found him no matter where he went to and how he could only say “I found you” before taking him back to their room. He hated how his heart was racing and losing control with the face and personality.
He hated himself. He really was hating everything in this world. He wants to go back to fight with Deuce and scream to him everything about what he truly feels and kneel in front of him begging for forgiveness. He knows it's contradictory, but the need of going back to the fighting is just because it's the version of Deuce that he's familiar with, and he knows it. It's painful to even imagine a different Deuce, but that version was right in front of him and it was making his heart beat. That was what he was hating. The Deuce he knows doesn't deserve that.
“I need some time alone, Deuce, I'm sorry”, he just took one step when Deuce stopped him, grabbing his arm and walking until they were face to face.
Deuce was too beautiful and it was driving him insane. He knows he's not his Deuce. This is not the guy he loves or even the friend he once had, but it's his face. It's his eyes, his lips, his nose, his hair. It was him. He can see traces of the one he loves in the face of someone that is not him.
“Let's go together, I think it's time for you to get used to this world. We don't know how much longer you will stay and we still don't know if you need to something to go, so why not learn about us? Let's go.”
He also hated how his hands always ended up together when they walked next to each other.
The days passed by faster and the amount of sunrises, sunsets and nights that he saw under the same sky were infinite. He was getting used to everything now, to the point that he was allowed to join the classes to at least participate with the agenda of his classmates. The streets, the castle and the mirrors were already something familiar to him. He was starting to understand everything and it was enough for him to start feeling more like himself or enough for him to be like the Ace they once knew.
He was trying hard to give them the Ace they loved and remember and not this broken version.
“Ace! Can you go to Octavinelle and ask Azul if Floyd stole my notes!? I swear to God I'm going to hang that boy's head in front of his brother”, Riddle murmured the last part while walking away, not waiting for Ace answer. Probably because it wasn't a question, it was just another obligation.
It was the first time that he traveled through the mirrors and dorms by himself, but he was already confident enough. He knew he wasn't going to get lost like other times. He knows where to go to and who he was looking for.
He arrives to Octavinelle just in time to catch Azul in his way to one of his club activities. The Housewarden smiled at him before walking in his direction to make a inspection of his clothes and looks. Ace didn't know why he was doing that, but since it was not the first time, he left him be. Azul was going to add distance between them when necessary.
“I see, you're still you! Not a single trance of the original Ace. Anyways, why are you here?”
“Riddle sent me, he wants to know if Floyd-”, his words are interrupted by a long laugh and a strong slap in his back that almost made him cough.
“Oh yes he did, I was on my way to give him the notes before going to the club. Floyd is just too happy to annoy him, he's like one of those little kids going after his crush, craving attention.”
Ace didn't understand what he was talking about, but he still laughed and received the papers that Azul gave him. A lot of papers that he can't understand how Azul was traveling with them. It was too much!
“Oh, right, I have something for you too!”, Azul started to search for something inside his clothes and ended up putting a potion bottle above the amount of papers with a proud smile. “Drink this when you are alone, and let me know what happens when you do, please.”
Ace was about to ask him what was the potion, but Azul was already going through the mirror. He looked at the little bottle full of a dark substance and tried to smell whatever that was, but there was not a single smell.
He would found out later that the potion also didn't have a taste. It was just a liquid without taste that made him fall in a deep sleep just in seconds. A potion that sent him to a place he knows too well.
Ace looked around with confusion before taking a look at himself in the mirror in the bathroom. He knows where he's at. This is his own world, this is his dorm.
Deuce. Where's Deuce? He needs to talk to him.
“Deuce!”, he didn't want to scream for his name, but the excitement was too much to handle.
A blonde messy hair guy appeared in front of him, worry in his eyes and a piece of bread between his teeth. He started walking towards him and Ace forgot what he was going to say when he felt the guy touching him. This closeness... It's been too long since he felt it. He closed his eyes and leaned into that touch, letting himself feel it. Love it.
“It's you... It's really you”, Ace laughed before jumping into Deuce's arms and the tears starting to escape from his eyes. “I missed you so much, you can't even imagine how.”
Deuce didn't hug him back, but Ace didn't mind. He finally was with him.
“It's you”, finally, Deuce said something and put a distance between them. Just enough to take a look at his eyes and touch his face again, this time with a different feeling. A light just across his blue eyes.
“It's me.”
“How is that possible? Where were you? Why are you here now?”, it looked like Deuce had a lot of questions, but honestly, he doesn't even know.
“Azul gave me a potion and, I don't know, I'm here now.”
The expression of Deuce changed at that answer. He was now shaking his head and grabbing his arms harder.
“It's not permanent, it's not... You're leaving me again.”
“What are you talking about? Deuce, hey, look at me”
But Deuce never answered. The illusion broke and his knees kissed the floor while his arms lost the touch of his beloved. It was just a moment, but it was enough to make him go insane.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Six... Seconds?
“Ace, wake up. This is a dream.”
The voice of Deuce came back between the darkness and Ace tried to grab him again even if he couldn't see. He was just following his voice.
“What? No. I'm here. You're here.”
“Ace... Do you remember our fight? Will you give me an answer when you're really back?”
What is he talking about?
“Wake up, Ace.”
In a blink... He was again at Twisted Wonderland, with Deuce right beside him with tears on his face and a strong grasp on his hand.
“You're back... Welcome back, Ace”
“What...”, he did a long pause before continuing, “what happened?”
“I came back and you were sleeping, but then you opened your eyes and... He came back to me for just a moment. We talked and... Oh God, I miss him so much. I can't do this. It's so hard.”
Ace never saw Deuce cry this hard. He still don't understand, but he still hugs him and helps him to calm himself. He needs to talk to Azul and get answers.
In the modern world
Everything felt like a dream. The buildings, the cars, the technology, the people and the way they talked to each other. Everything was like those stories he would only see in fictional books back at Twisted Wonderland. It's different to him, since he's used to being dropped at disasters after disasters. Even if he was at home relaxing, something would push him towards the school just to see if everyone was doing alright after a big fight.
But this world. The people around him and the one that was holding his hand to help him every time he got lost, it was a dream. It was like he was walking through the world as a simple ghost and not with his true body. It was too relaxing.
What's more surprising to him is the way Deuce disappears sometimes and comes back with wounds on his body. It was like he couldn't escape the danger or he just didn't want to. Ace can't stop thinking about the Deuce from his world, the one that stopped that type of life to become a good student. Ace thinks and imagines. He dreams. Dreams where Deuce is hugging him, needing him to clean the wounds, loving him...
Loving him?
“Did you get into a fight again?”, Ace can only ask in a soft voice, trying to escape his own thought.
“I didn't, since you told me I should avoid it. But some guys had a beef with me after I kicked their friend, so I just let them pay back and now it's even... I hope”, Deuce dragged the last words while his body fell on his bed.
“I didn't think you would listen to me”
It's been weeks since he fell into a whole new world and he still can't find a way back home. That's the reason of why he just started to try to fit in the world he is in. Following Deuce around, listening to the classes he didn't remember taking before, ordering food he never had; hanging out in places he never saw in Twisted Wonderland. It would be a lie if he said something about not liking this world. He loves it! He loves to see the life of everyone being comfortable with others. How the people makes the place feel like a magical place even without magic.
And he also loves the company and confidence he has with this Deuce. It feels different. Special.
That connection is probably the reason of why he had the courage to ask him to stop fighting. Deep down, he thought that maybe the original Ace from this world would love that. But in other place of his soul, he knew that it wasn't actually that. He didn't want to see Deuce getting hurt because it made him think of the person he left behind. The one he hurt.
“I didn't think I was going to listen either, but you looked so worried that now I see your stupid face every time I'm about to fight someone”, if Deuce wasn't laughing while saying that, Ace would think that he was mad at him.
“I see...”, he didn't have anything else to say, just think.
“I'm going to prepare something fast to eat, would you like something?”
For some reason, something told him to stay where he was.
“I'm fine, you go eat, I think your body really needs it already”
And that's exactly what happened. Deuce left the room behind to go to the kitchen, taking his eyes out of Ace. That was the moment where everything happened.
It started with a feeling of dizziness, a type of sensation that didn't let him get up or talk to ask for help. A pain in his chest that was growing and checking his body completely. A headache that made him throw his face towards and adapt a position of a baby hugging himself. Everything hurted and he could feel every inch of his muscles contracting. And then... A sudden relief.
In a blink of an eye, he was back at Twisted Wonderland. He can tell, because his body felt powerful again and the cold breeze was too familiar. But he confirmed he was back at home when he saw that blue hair guy resting on the bed next to his own. He was looking through his cellphone, doing who knows what, but he stopped when he felt Ace glazing.
With just a single eye contact, they both knew. They were reunited.
“Ace?”
“I think I'm back... Deuce”
For some reason, it took Deuce two seconds to jump towards him to hug him in a way he never did before. And he answered back with his own arms, putting them around the waist of his Deuce, feeling him.
“I missed you so much, oh God, you can't even imagine how much. I was going crazy trying to bring you back home and now you're here. How?”
But he doesn't have the answer. He just feels something warm on his body even if he could tell there was a cold feeling around the air.
“I...”, he paused, not sure of how to continue. But he still says the truth. “I honestly don't know, there was a growing pain and when I opened my eyes, I was here.”
After those words, Deuce put some distance between them and started looking around. His orbs stopped shining like before when he locked his blue ocean eyes on a bottle that was resting close to Ace body. A bottle he can recognize even if it was from a distance. He had experience with those type of things already, mainly if it was involving someone from the Housewardens.
“It is because of Azul... So I'm afraid this is not permanent”, and those words felt like an ice bucket being thrown to him.
“What? But it's real, I'm here. I'm with you!”, it was strange for him too, the way he took Deuce hand and interlocked their fingers to bring the boy close to him. “I have so much to say to you and you're saying this is not permanent?”
“Ace, it's not my fault. Stop being so angry at me for small things!” Ace stops for a moment. He wasn't mad at him.
He realizes, though, that he really did sound like he was mad. But it really wasn't towards Deuce. It was to the situation. Towards Azul and his potion.
“Deuce, I'm not mad at you”, he starts, getting Deuce hand close to his chest. “I missed you and I'm sorry for what happened that day, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I would never hurt you, you hear me? Never”.
Then, there was a dizziness feeling. His ears started to produce a noise that was making impossible for him to listen to what Deuce was saying. He can only grab his hand with more strength, trying to read his lips but failing when his eyes start to lose focus. The pain is coming back to him and he can feel a hand touching his face. He knows it's Deuce, that's the only reason of why he dives in the touch and starts saying things he can't keep to himself anymore.
“Looks like my time is done, but Deuce”, he can't stop himself from making a long pause to catch some air just to be able to finish what he was going to say. “I promise I'll be back to you, you're my world after all”.
Calm.
That's what's left when he opens his eyes again and he sees the same eyes but different feeling in them and a different hair color.
“Welcome back, sleepy head. Thanks to your stories about Azul and his contracts, I could find out what was happening! Wow, who could even tell this was true...!”, he could pretend all he wants, but Ace knows. “Ace... I think I can't keep pretending I'm ok with this.”
It's ok. He can't pretend either. His chest hurts.
“I think I know why I'm here. Deuce... Let's do our best to bring things back to how they're supposed to be.”
He's not lying. He has an idea of what he needs to do after the other Ace took Azul's potion. After all, the potion worked for a reason. Maybe he did something different. Maybe he said something that changed the way things were. Since he came here after doing and saying something, maybe that's the way back home. Permanently this time.
In Twisted Wonderland
Azul didn't have the answers they were looking for. Even if he had them, there's no way he was going to say everything he was hiding. The only information he shared to Deuce and Ace it was the fact that the potion just forced their souls to change for a little period of time. It was just a test, something that could work and couldn't at the same time. Technically speaking, Azul made a potion just to test it and Ace was the perfect laboratory rat because he didn't belong there.
In his time on Twisted Wonderland, Ace can understand why people make stories about worlds like this. It's fun, entertaining and there's not even a single day where he gets bored of learning or watching someone fighting.
He got used to the way Leona appeared out of nowhere to insult people or the way Ruggie put a stop to him. Something he has noticed is that every time Ruggie gets close enough to Leona, he ends up stealing something and for some reason, the housewarden of Savanaclaw never did something. Ace beliefs that deep down, there's appreciation towards him but he's too proud to show it.
He has noticed that this rule doesn't only apply to Leona. There were a lot of students that liked to pretend to be such a bad boys when deep down they would do everything in their power to help. He learned of this by the stories Trey told him about Yuu, a guy who apparently came to their world and that also belonged to his same world. Maybe that's why everything was looking so smoothly, after all, everyone was experienced enough of people from other worlds coming to theirs.
Ace can't stop wondering, though, what happened to Yuu?
But maybe that's a story for another day. He's too desperate trying to make Azul talk even if the twins did everything to avoid him from getting closer. Jade and Azul would do everything, just anything, to lie to his face even if it was too obvious it was something they made up.
“Azul is cleaning some horses teeth", that's something Floyd actually said after he saw Ace coming to the Mostro Lounge.
But Jade was way worse.
“Oh, Azul died, he tested one poison of his and choked to death!"
Which is funny, considering Azul never does that, but Ace was too dumb to understand it was a joke when Jade looked like he was really crying. He only found out way later because of Riddle and Deuce that it was a lie. And he confirmed this fact when he saw Azul walking just fine around the school, ignoring him to avoid questions.
Azul was having way too much fun with that bullshit.
The point of everything was that, he got used to everyone. He liked this world and it would hurt him to go back. But at the same time, he misses someone. Every time he looks at the Deuce from this world, he can't stop his heart from beating with the memories of the one he misses. He wants to make everything right, he needs to have his Deuce back and never hurt him ever again.
That's an information he doesn't avoid telling Deuce.
"I miss him... It's crazy how much I miss him. If I could I would just take this soul out to travel around time and space until I found my own real body and I would just make it vomit the soul of that imposter!"
He would scream things like that out of nowhere while eating, and Deuce would only reply with the same thing: "you know you are an imposter too, right?"
He knows he will miss him when he goes back home to the modern world.
"Deuce, can I say something to you?"
"Anything"
That's the day it happened. How the distance broke and everything went back to normal. It just took them to do the right thing and to wish the opposite of what they wished that day. It was like going back in time.
"When I go back, I'm going to propose", he only said that as a joke to break the ice, but Deuce looked so surprised it made him feel worried. He believes in the stupid things.
"You can't propose if you don't tell him the truth, idiot!"
"I'm going to, I'll make everything right. For him. For me and for us."
Deuce smiled a little and they both fell down on their beds, laughing while watching the ceiling and hearing some students in the hallways screaming. Looks like Riddle was taking someone's head right at that moment.
"When you go back, say everything, I think your Deuce will love it. And when my Ace comes back, I'm just going to hug him and never let him go."
"That sounds unrealistic, he would punch you if you hug him."
That it is true, but Deuce is too excited for this so Ace doesn't add anything else. The silence takes over them and the night falls fast. When his eyes get tired enough that he starts falling asleep, he hears Deuce voice in the back of his mind. He doesn't know if it was because he was talking far away from him or for another reason, but his voice sounded like an echo.
"I wish... I wish he never leaves my side again."
He opens his eyes again. To the ceiling of a modern world, with views and a person that belonged only to him. He was back into the modern world and Deuce was just in front of him with a curious face. Ace doesn't question why Deuce is on his bed or why they're almost cuddling, but he doesn't say anything.
For a long hour, Ace and Deuce can only share one hug that melt their hearts. Ace can feel the heartbests of Deuce, he can heart it, and it makes him feel like he's just in another dream. But the way he hears his cries and he feels his desperate grasp, he just knows.
He's back.
He does everything he can to put a little distance between them just to be able to touch Deuce face and clean the traces of the tears. He kisses his cheeks and hugs him over and over again. He's staring a lot and he can't help it. It feels like it has been already a year since he saw him one last time. Like if the last time they were in each other's arms was centuries ago. It felt like that.
"I'm home, Deuce"
And he cries again.
"Good morning... And welcome back, Ace"
And Deuce cries too, hugging a boy that he lost too much ago. It they think back on time, the exchange of souls was not only something that brought pain, because at the end, it healed the problems they had between them. They found each other again in all the blurry lines and times.
And this time, the opportunity of loving each other correctly was too close to let it fade away.
"Oh, your hair is turning blue again. I love it so much."
Deuce smiles with the comment.
"The other Ace said something about you probably liking it in any color so I just decided to see it blue once more. If you didn't like it I would just go back to blonde", he says that so naturally that Ace feels annoyed.
Annoyed because Deuce shouldn't change because of him.
"I would love it in any color, just do whatever you want. I promise I'll treat you well now, but first, we should talk about everything. I want to know how was your life with that fake Ace... I'm better anyways."
They do just that. And the days keep passing by just how they wanted them to be.
Without saying proper goodbyes to the other person they knew, because they know that they are also happy with the present. Without the fear of waking up and finding out the one you loved was not back.
At least, that's what they wished, because Deuce had a little opportunity of saying goodbye, but Ace didn't.
In the modern world
The days keep passing by. The minutes turn into hours and the hours turn into weeks. The weeks turn into months and they pass with a slow pace. The perfect speed for them to do what Ace though it was his mission there.
He started to change the way Ace was acting in this world. He started to talk to the people he knew in the Twisted Wonderland world. He made a better connection with the studies and more importantly, he connected with Deuce.
They spent all the time together and Deuce was growing into someone new. He looked happier, more focused and worried about the same things that the Twisted Wonderland Deuce was worried about. His hair was starting to lose the blonde color and the blue was taking over, making him look even more like the person he used to know.
He doesn't want to compare them, but on times when he starts doing or saying things his Deuce says, it's difficult. After all, it's the same person but with a different soul in a whole different dimension. Ace can't control his own heartbeat.
He feels like an asshole on those days.
“Do you feel something different?”
Ace knows that Deuce is waiting for the original soul that belongs to his world, but deep down, he is hurt by this wait.
“Every time I go to sleep, I see him. I think we're getting close”, he answers with a soft voice, avoiding his eyes.
“I don't understand what is missing... You're already changing his life by like a lot! Maybe this is not what we needed to do?”
There's something Ace hasn't told him. He knows there's another thing he needs to do, but he's not ready to write over the story. He doesn't know how to tell Deuce about his theory, after all, it's just that. A theory. If it doesn't work, they can end up making everything worse.
“You know something”, of course, Deuce can already know those things just with taking a look. Like the Deuce he knows.
“Deuce, if you could repeat the night where everything happened, what would you do different?”, he doesn't answer the accusation.
“I would...”, Deuce stops talking and Ace looks at him. “I would say to him that I still love him, after everything”.
Ace doesn't know what happened between them. He knows he has to fix that connection, but he needs to know more about that day. What they felt. What they saw. What they said and what they did to give the soul of this world a choice of running away. Just like his own.
“Deuce. Do you think you can...”, he stops. He feels a deep hesitation deep inside his heart. It feels wrong. “Do you think you can act again what happened then? But this time, saying what you really want to say”.
That's it. That's what they need to do. If they traveled because of something said and an action, then the way back was doing the opposite of it. In the worst case, it was repeating the exact same action and words to make their souls go back. But, that last option could make them end up in a whole different universe once again. Nothing was secured on this. They can't give their souls another reason to end up changing their places again, but involving another party.
For a long moment, Deuce is in a trance. He keeps looking at Ace, like he was doubting him or thinking he was joking. For him, it didn't make sense what he was asking for. There were things he wanted to say different and things he wanted to avoid doing, but not towards this Ace. Towards the Ace that belongs to him. To his world.
Ace can see it. He understands that glow in his eyes and the shaking on his legs. He can tell by this point. He knows Deuce even if he has another soul inside him.
“I know I'm not him, but trust me on this. Say everything, do anything you want and when we open our eyes again, I will not be here. Everything will be back to their place.”
This time, Deuce acts.
He takes both Ace's hands and interlock their fingers. The touch burns, but it's warm and brings a feeling that Ace didn't know he missed. He can't wait to see his Deuce again.
This Deuce, the feeling he brings to him and all that warm... He knows that it doesn't belong to him. All that love and all that longing wasn't meant to be his. And he doesn't want it from this Deuce. He only wants it from the one he can see every day, from the only person that was by his side even if he turned out to be a danger and a problem in a body.
Of course, he feels something when he sees this Deuce. He loves him. He hopes that he can be happy and that all that regret turns into joy. Into a "I'm glad I finally said it" and not a "I hope I said it earlier” when it was late to do so. There was also the fact that he doesn't love this Deuce in a romantic way, it was just an innocent love. Because he knows this is not his place. Because he knows there's someone else waiting for him. Because when he sees him, he can only wish for him to go back home to hug his Deuce and feel him. The real him.
“Ace. When we were kids, you used to take my hand to take me everywhere with you”, finally, Deuce starts talking and Ace stops thinking from a moment. “When we were teens, I realized. I was in love with you”, he continues, this time taking one of his hands to Ace cheek.
There's a long pause. There's hesitation again. Ace can only take his hand tighter, making a slow movement with his head to feel the touch of Deuce on his cheek, deeper.
“When we lost each other, I think we lost ourselves too. You stopped talking to me out of nowhere after I came out to you and I... I thought that you hated me. And I started to hate you too”, when Deuce stops looking at him, Ace takes the courage to touch his face to make their eyes connect once again. “Then, you started to be different towards everyone and I changed everything about myself, trying to change what you thought I was. Then, we met once again here.”
Somehow, they ended up being on their feets and Deuce put some distance between them. The sensation of his hands still intact on Ace's skin.
“I still hate you”, he finally says, his hands turning into fists and his head facing the floor. “I hate you so much... Because you didn't let my heart in all these time and when I finally was ready to let you go, you came back.”
Ace can tell that this time, Deuce is saying exactly what he wants to say. His voice sounds different from what it did in the beginning of their conversation. Even his eyes looked different. There were some tears falling from it, a trace that he cleaned with his own sleeves from his jacket.
“And you acted so different, like you didn't know me. Like I was a stranger, I was so hurt that I did something I regret. I did the same to you, but worse”, Deuce looks at him again, his hands falling to his side. “I know it's my fault. This discussion, you telling me that we can start from the beginning and me saying something I don't even feel.”
Deuce walks towards Ace and his hands end up on his cheeks again, this time, closing the space between them. Their faces were so close that Ace can see his tears more clearly. He can swear he can hear his heartbeat and his hands shaking. Their breaths were mixing and the warm was growing. Eating them.
“Ace, when I said I regret meeting you and that I wished for you to vanish, I was lying. I miss you... And I'm sorry, Ace. I love you.”
They both closed their eyes when Deuce put their foreheads together. Their bodies ended up becoming one in a hug, one that felt too familiar and correct, while both felt on Ace's bed and they didn't talk about it again, not even about something else. They just drowned into the silence and fell asleep just like little kids. The tears of Deuce disappeared and the ones from Ace just started flowing in his dreams.
He knows he is sleeping, but deep in his unconscious he can hear Deuce talking. His Deuce. He is saying things like "I miss you", "come back to me" and even though he can't feel him, he can just tell. Deuce is hugging him, his body. He can feel the warm and the love. The regret and the weight of his soul finally coming to a calm, leaving almost nothing on him
With each second that pass by, he can hear Deuce voice even clearer. It's like he's getting close to him, even when he know he's not. Since he is still sleeping. He's still hugging the other Deuce, even though he wishes to be right next to the own that is calling him in such a desesperate voice and broken one at that. And after a long, long pause, Deuce voice starts to disappear.
Ace can feel something changing and the dark on his dream island starts to grow, making him unable to catch any words or actions that happens around him. Then, something feels different.
He sees a light. He sees a hand in front of him and a blue hair guy smiling while waiting for him on the other side. His uniform and his spade mark on his face. The one he loves and only knew about it after losing his essence.
Ace starts running. He runs, even though he falls twice into the ground. He runs, until his breath is gone and his kneels brings him to the floor for a third time, this time in front of the person that was waiting for him.
And Ace can't stop himself from going into those arms. He hugs him with love, with desesperation and all the anxiety disappearing from his body and veins. He feels like Deuce's light touches him, bringing a lot of brightness into his world and eyes. His eyes open and everything he saw when he went to sleep, is gone.
There's no one by his side. The white sheets are gone and now there's a red and black decoration around him. There's a voice in the background, one that shakes his soul and that makes him smile. One that still doesn't notice that everything is done.
“Wake up stupid head! You're late!”, Deuce is there. His blue hair is a mess and he's still in his pink leopard print pajamas. That piece of cloth Ace loved to laugh about.
He does that since he can't stop it. He laughs and starts to bring his hands to his head, losing himself in the feeling. He is going crazy, there's no doubt, but he's having a lot of emotions in just a minute. It worked, he's back and the first thing he sees is the guy that makes his heart beat and the only one that can make him cry of relief while he's laughing at him and his totally funny pajamas. That's probably what makes Deuce understand that something changed.
“You're not Ace...”, finally, Deuce turns to see him. “No. You are. I just mean that you're not the same one. Who are you?”
“Deuce Spade... I'm home”.
It feels different. To tell him that he's home and not that he's back. Probably because it is different. He's not only back. He is home. Deuce is his home.
He stands up and walks towards Deuce, wrapping his arms around his waist and letting his head rest on the guy's shoulder. He starts crying in his arms, making the grasp around his waist even tighter. The warm, the bittersweet feeling and the way Deuce wraps his shoulders with his arms to bring him even closer it's killing him. They both cry and they ignore the announcement of the beginning of the day. That moment only belonged to them.
“I couldn't say goodbye, I feel bad”, Deuce says finally, laughing a little when they finally leave some space between their bodies. Though Ace doesn't stop hugging Deuce waist.
“I couldn't either. But I think the other Deuce will not even think about it... I'm sure he will be happy to see the Ace he loves once again and not me. Just like I'm happy to be with the one I love”, he really doesn't analyze what he just said, but when Deuce freezes, he catches his own words.
“The one you what now!?”, of course, Deuce was going to push him to start walking away. Just like always.
Ace laughs out loud, following him through the doors and trying to annoy his friend while walking on the corridors of their dorm. They both don't think too much about what they're doing, until a cough behind them makes them stop and turn on their heels. A red haired boy is there, his arms crossed and his eyes are about to explode just because of what he's seeing.
“I was hoping that Crowley was wrong when he told me that you two missed the first class... But here you two are! In pajamas! Do you want to lose your heads!?”
Ace was never happy to see Riddle, but this time, the happiness was so much that he ended up running to him to hug him. His tears coming back while Riddle was trying to push him away.
“Deuce! What is wrong with him!? Help me getting this thing out of me!”
“Ace! Leave the Housewarden alone or you're going to lose your neck just when you came back!”
It looks like Riddle needs a little of time to process those words just like Deuce did before. He freezes and watch Ace from head to toes more than once, until he understands and process the information. And then, Ace can feel a sudden pat on his back and a little laugh that is covered with another cough as soon as Deuce and Ace turns to see Riddle.
“I will forgive this, but it will not happen again. I'm going to let Crowley know you're back, we need to know if there's something different or if you're fine.”
“Thanks Housewarden!”
It looks like nothing changed a lot. Everything was the same, even the people he knew. And the best of everything was that he was back with his Deuce. And with the new opportunity, he would do anything to correct every mistake he made.
In alchemy class, he always avoid hurting Deuce. Even if something ended up going wrong, he would avoid screaming or crashing out about it. He really was trying and for him it felt like how Riddle felt when someone threw eggs to him and he ended up changing his methods. Sometimes he can't avoid making those comments out loud, which Riddle always happens to listen like if he was listening to every student from their dorm.
"I'll overblot and become Riddle at this point", he once said while in lunch and Deuce looked so scared he could only inhale air before turning back. "Hello, housewarden!"
"Off with your head!"
The only thing he can miss from the modern world is the absence of Riddle magic. At least some things never changed in Twisted Wonderland.
"I told you to be careful with that mouth of yours, you always attract the things you don't want to"
"Hey. That's a lie. I attracted you, didn't I?"
He was the same stupid Ace, there was no doubt about it.
"Maybe I should have stayed with the other Ace, he was nicer"
"Impossible! Deuce told me a lot of stories and he was an asshole!
He wasn't lying, that's the only thing he can think about the Ace he will never get to know personally.
"And you are too, maybe the universe just recognized nothing would change if you two exchanged places because you just lack brain in every universe."
Ace can pretend to be offended, but that feeling never last long. He would always end up going back to Deuce, be as annoying as ever and stick to him with the fear of being separated once again. He can't lie to himself alright. He is afraid of letting go of that hand again and end up in a whole new place with someone that is not him.
If he ever gets lost in time, he hopes that his Deuce is right there by his side. He can only think this, he can never say it out loud. But with Deuce, he can go through whatever the universe puts in front of him, because Deuce is his reason to be and live.
"Ah, I gotta say I missed how mean you can be. So please, don't change everything of you to fit with me, I would like you even if you destroy my reputation again. That's what I like about you anyways."
And that's why Ace loves him. Because Deuce knows him and still chooses to like him.
He can only wish for them and the other two to find happiness in the next years to come. He hopes that in every universe, they find each other and learn to love like how they learned. Even if it gets a little tough and they end up distanced, he hopes that the small red thread just forces them to find each other once again and be loved until the end of their days.
"Ace, did you just drink a lemonade?"
Yeah he did... So what?
"What about it?"
"Run for your life!"
Even if he did that, Riddle was still way to close to them. And, when he saw the lemonade cup almost empty, he only laughed like if he was already planning how to murder Ace.
"I can't believe you went to another world and already forgot our rules! I'll ask Trey to educate you on this again, this is incredible"
If he wasn't already beheaded, he would probably be by that point. He's just that kind of person.
But hearing Deuce laugh can only make him smile too. He can be mad about the rules again, but hearing the only he loves being so happy again its enough to make him drop his knees to pray for and to him.
Since everything started with a wish and ended with another one, he can make a new one to allow the future to bring happiness to Deuce in every place. That's his only objective at that moment.
Deuce will always be his home and love, no matter where or what version of himself he is.
He just loves Deuce. His Deuce.
He doesn't know his other 'me' that Deuce knew, but he hopes that he can learn thanks to his mistakes too. He wishes that his other me can make Deuce happy, or he will end up traveling universes again to make him regret everything.
Yeah. That's the only wish he has for the other Ace.
Deuce probably has a better wish for his other 'me'... Right?
Right?????
"Oh, if I have to wish something for the other me then I wish he makes his Ace cry and supplicate down on his knees. That would be pretty good. You should do that too, Ace"
Yeah, right. Nope.