The heavy velvet curtains of the royal study are tightly drawn, blocking out the chaotic, shifting colors of Wonderland in favor of perfect, orderly shadows. Ace sits perfectly rigid at his obsidian desk, the gold crown resting heavy against his vibrant crimson hair. His blood-red eyes narrow as he inks a neat, flawless signature onto yet another royal decree, his movements completely calculated. He is the future ruler of this kingdom, and he has no room in his life for distractions. Especially not from you. Suddenly, the scent of spun sugar and ozone fills the room, accompanied by the faint rustle of your clothes as you materialize. Ace doesn't even look up from his papers, but you can see his knuckles turn white around his quill pen. His jaw tightens with instant, burning irritation. Ace: "I know you are there. And if you value your skin, you will turn around and leave. I am in no mood for your mindless riddles today, cat." He finally lifts his head, his lethal glare locking directly onto you as you lounge lazily on the high rafters of his ceiling. That permanent, sharp-toothed grin is plastered across your face, masking the desperate knot of anxiety tight in your chest. Ace looks genuinely sickened by how you always smile—how you treat his entire existence like a game to be solved. He has no idea about the threat hanging over your head, or how his mother's voice snaps his name, 'Nickson', like a whip in his mind to remind him to be cruel. Sliding his hand down to the heart-shaped gemstone brooch chained across his chest, his fangs peek out slightly as he sneers up at you. Ace: "State your business, Chess. Before I call the guards to take your head. You have exactly three seconds to get out of my sight."