"Mom?"

Had this really been the first time arana had properly spoken to angel like this in a while? She had...talked before, even in her state, but something about this felt different. She had more life to her, her eyes were slightly more vibrant and her face wasn't changing emotion so...often, or being so static either. Everyone was caught off guard, they knew she was getting better...but hadn't been expecting her to react so...fast to seeing them all there.

She didn't look...perfect, her response was slow, but...it didn't change their emotions at all.

"Hello...angel...amir?", she still seemed a bit fuzzy, she probably didn't remember that much of what was even going on, or why she was in bed, or why she was in butterfly castle. Those were stuff she might need explained or could be triggered later if they were lucky, The important thing was she was awake and speaking to them. Even if her mind wasn't exactly perfect, this was just enough in the moment.

"Arana...darling...i missed you...", the family of arachnids circling around her and crying from all of their many eyes, angel and his father grasping her hands gently as if worried she'd let go but not wanting to hurt her at all when she was finally showing signs of her true self. She sent them a warm smile, grasping their hands back and eyeing both of them as she moved onto her side a little.

"H-how long...have i been...?", she couldn't seem to finish the sentence, everything had probably been mostly a blur to her, a blur she could barely make out as those memories had been eaten so often and were barely even present. Her worry was clearly present, who knows how long her kingdom had been without a queen? Her son without a mom?

"Darling, it's ok...don't worry right now, you just need rest and we can deal with it later", there was a lot the family had to talk about and now was just not the time to do it, as much as they wanted to. She had just started making this much progress, better to wait until she was fully ready before risking anything. But it seems her memory of her family had indeed remained strong.

She reached out to touch angel's face, looking him over, as if wondering if she had been asleep for years and her son had gotten older since the last time she had seen him. Angel didn't look like himself, well, the last time she had seen at least. She couldn't tell what about him was different she just knew somewhere in her mind this was different then he used to look before somehow.

And she looked surprised when she saw sky off to the side, not wanting to be awkward in this family reunion and ruin the nice moment for everyone. The Queen reaching out to her, wanting her to join in the moment, her family taking notice and ushering her over as sky was pulled into a group family hug. This was a happy moment for all of them, and they wanted sky included.

And she was sure the next time they saw nora or jude, they'd probably do the same thing.

"You're so pretty", the queen was getting a good look at sky, her memories might be a little fuzzy but she seemed to remember who sky was at the very least. Looking over her as if trying to recall something, "You and my son...were fighting...are you...ok?". Oh right, they were still on bad terms when this all went down weren't they? Sky and Angel both shifting in place as the hug ended.

"Uh well...not anymore?".

She looked a bit confused and Amir stepped in.

"Maybe update her on that all later...she still needs rest...then you can tell her all about your new...relationship, she has a lot to catch up on". her memories were weak as is, trying to mess with them too had might not be such a good idea, the kids nodding as amir soothed his beloved. "We should send word to the others she's awoken finally, get her some more food and water...see what she's in need of...now that's she more mobile she needs some strength in order to stay healthy".

"I'll text my parents", sky quickly pulling out her compact, "Uh...i think we have a room, well actually a bed in our small safe room, for you already but i guess you want to stay here tonight if she's well-". she nodded to his queen and all he gave her was a nod, it was not a shock at all, though really the biggest thing to ask was what angel wanted to do.

"Angel?".

He knew why she was asking, and he suddenly felt stiff, all eyes on him as he took into consideration what he wanted to do. He didn't want to leave his mom's side, but there were reasons why staying with her right now might be a bad idea that he had to consider. He took a minute to think about all the choices before making the final choice for the night.

"I...still want to be in the bunker...", he admitted, though he seemed extremely torn about his choice.

His father's look making it even worse.

"I-...", he started.

"I get it"., sky said, sending him an understanding look, Amir nodding shortly after in agreement.

He probably didn't want to have a panic attack of some kind in front of his own mother, even if he was happy to see her again. Sky didn't need him to explain anything, he didn't have to, no one could blame him in the slightest for being too scared to handle that right now, patting his shoulder and reassuring him. "It's ok, you can hang out with her tomorrow, tomorrow if i can...i'm gonna see what that mess was back there...with celeste and luna".

"Alone?".

"Well i can't be left alone, i have guards...but i will bring a friend who can help...probably landon, because he's neither busy nor out of the loop on what happened, like jeez...he gets into more trouble then me". that made the prince laugh, "Well, i hope you can put it to rest...whatever celeste and landon's deal is...um...thank you...for...making all this happen".

"Hey, it's ok, i'm just glad y'know...things aren't how they were anymore...it's nice".

KNOCK KNOCK.

"Sky? You still in there? Can we come in?".

Her mother wasted no time at all making it here the moment she got the text, Star not even waiting for an answer from her child before coming inside. She looked very happy to be away from her own mother as she looked among the small family. "Oh..oh my, you weren't kidding, she's...". Before she could say anything the king had placed a hand to her mouth before apologizing under his breath.

"She's just awoken and needs a little space, please don't freak her out too much".

Star ceased her excitement quickly, just looking at the spider queen, "I'll let everyone know right away, anything she needs come right to me and let me know, i want her to be as safe as possible in here. What does she want to eat? Are her pillows too uncomfy? Maybe we can grab some music to trigger some more of her memories, i hear that helps a lot-".

"I'll let you know", he said gently, "Thank you for caring so much".

She tried to get ahold of herself, "Yeah of course, besides, anything to stop dealing with my mom's nagging is good in my book, oh...speaking of which". Star faced her daughter, yawning, "You probably should head to the safe room and get ready to go to sleep soon, not trying to kick you out of here sky, but we do have a little bit of a curfew and-".

But the princess didn't protest further, "Yeah i got it...just uh...i'll meet you back there...right angel?". The boy glanced to his parents, clearly not too willing to leave them but knowing he had to, he started with a wave, before his father pulled him into another hug. He was going to need time to get used to this, leaving the hug to head out with sky. as he gave his parents one last look before they left.

"You and your dad...seem to be on better terms", she pointed out, a smile on her face, "Told ya".

"Funny, but...yeah we talked...it was nice, i've never had a conversation with my father like that before, i wish i had...but...i really appreciated it now", there was a warmness in his chest he hadn't felt in a while, a weight lifted off his chest. "I have so much to say to my mother but knowing she's ok...i never thought i'd see it so...it's so...different".

"I'm sure she'll have questions".

"I would too if i was her".

"What would you ask first?".

"I'd ask if i'd woken up in some kinda alternate reality for one", he was kidding but there was probably some merit to that statement. "Maybe once she recovers more memories...if she can...maybe we can figure out what actually happened with her...". Oh right, however that thing got inside her in the first place, sky's mind going back to luna's bizarre theory.

Maybe if they all could recall who attended that party they might actually figure out who had done it, meteora or not.

At this point sky was just as willing to believe luna would make up a story about meteora just to get her in trouble and keep her from getting her in trouble, in wouldn't be the most unusual thing sky could see luna doing, she was a manipulative person. But maybe there was more to her ideas then sky was giving her credit for, and if the family could recall some memories of that day a bit more clearly...they might be able to clear that all up.

But no point in bothering angel with it now, he needed a break and it was something better asked later when her memory was slightly better.

Angel noticed sky hadn't said anything in response and nudged her, "It's ok, i'm fine talking about it, we need to deal with it...someone did this to her and we're going to find them, right away if we can". He took a deep breath, letting it all out, "It could have been a complete accident but we won't be able to rest easy if there was intent behind it...we just...i never want to see that happen to anyone...again".

"You might not get a full answer, this all started so long ago...so...anyone who could've done it might not be around anymore".

"Yeah, but it's worth looking, it's my mom y'know? If it were your parents you'd want answers too, and i want answers", there was a slight bit of anger in his voice in that last bit, he seemed determined, more then determined. The pair finally heading inside their safe room to the many still inside it, but they clearly had a main target in particular, Celeste.

Who was already being lectured with Landon by his mother, which probably meant grounding was afoot.

Though the kids coming back had gotten their attention away temporarily to welcome them back safely as their attention turned back to the troublemakers. "-getting into fights is dangerous, not just for you, but to nearly expose your identities to the rest of the castle, were you really so angry at luna you were willing to actually risk your identities?".

Celeste didn't fight back, guilty, head hanging as she sat in silence.

"Luna is not a good person and she clearly hurt you, but why would you go so far? Why'd you let her out?".

Celeste still didn't respond.

"She wasn't thinking mom, don't make her feel bad, i let her in-", landon mumbled.

"Yeah but you let her in to talk to luna, not to fight her, that was celeste's idea landon".

"I know but-".

"Then this is still on celeste, not you", they weren't intending to be so harsh on their son but this was a situation he had no need to blame himself for, he had no intended for this to happen and he clearly had tried to stop celeste when he figured out what happened. Landon shutting down as more focus was put on his sister, "Celeste, your anger has gone too far...you need to sort these feelings out or you might hurt someone.".

"I'm allowed to be angry-".

"Yeah, but you're not allowed to hurt or attack anyone, much less break out someone to fight them...you should know better, you might be trying to do it for everyone who was hurt but doing so without considering the consequences was a very selfish motive, even if you were reasonably hurt. I'm not saying this to be harsh, but because i don't want one of you getting hurt anymore".

Their voice getting softer as they got down slightly, hands resting on their knees, "Celeste, please do better...if you care about everyone, then you need to work on yourself as well...and keep yourself from doing reckless things in rage...maybe you and tom can talk or something, he's pretty good at stuff like that, working on keeping his anger issues in check".

"Why are you guys so...chill about all of this?", her question was sudden, catching marco by surprise, "Luna was such a pain and she made people mad and you're more mad at us, the people who are hurt and not at her...the one who hurt us in the first place". Marco blinking at her, not answering right away, actually considering what she was saying a little more then they would've thought.

"Well, i'm not claiming you're at fault and luna isn't, she is more at fault for hurting you...i don't mean to like...make you feel as if we're targeting you...it's just, your behavior is just...unhealthy...for you...it's eating you up...i can tell. it's ok to be mad and hurt about everything she ever did to you, but attacking her and lashing out at her is...dangerous, and i don't think it's making you feel any better".

"Only i know how i feel, not you...".

"Celeste...luna was locked in her room", sky headed over, angel tagging alongside her, "She wasn't threatening anyone, you came to her this time, if luna had intended to hurt someone, it could've been...bad. Look, she's...hurt me too, and judas, and landon, and everyone actually...to be honest, i want to kick her in the face sometimes too but well...it doesn't help our situation or make us...less sad really".

She tugged angel forward, "I mean, beating him up before didn't make me feel better...talking to him and well...working stuff through kinda did, and y'know like...you don't ever have to like luna...if she doesn't want to work things out with you, then yeah...i mean it takes two...but beating her up is just going to make things worse...especially when she's in the position she's in".

"Someone needs to stand up to her...needs to tell her off for what she did, and make her understand...", it was hard to explain, but she did...care about these people, and something about them being hurt...nagged at her, it made her mad. She was grumpy and cranky but nothing mad her more mad then people like luna, and she had an instinct that she needed to speak up.

"I'm glad you stood up to her", sky said genuinely, nodding, "It's nice, but...you don't gotta make her do anything, if she's not going to change then she's not going to...you stood up to her and that's enough...ok?". Landon had to agree, "Hey i'm...i'm sorry if i was pressuring you to make amends or something, i guess...it's easier maybe for me to let it go because i barely talked to her and she's not my sister...not so much for you...you really don't have to...if you don't want".

The scene had become the center of attention now for everyone inside the room at the current moment, some speaking to each other and others looking as if they wanted to speak up as well. But celeste nodded, speaking up before anyone else could, "Look, i never meant to like...hurt anyone...or try to hurt anyone or...if i did hurt anyone...i'm...sorry ok...maybe i do...jump into things i care about...too much and get aggressive...".

"Maybe?".

She glared at landon before finishing.

"Fine, i guess trying to fight luna was dumb...i probably would've gotten my butt kicked maybe, with her stupid training and everything, but i don't regret standing up to her dumb face". No one could protest to that, landon patting her back, "Hey well...i'm at least glad you like...really care about the rest of us to stand up to her like that, it's still really nice...".

"Don't mention it or whatever...i just wanted to push her back a peg...cause knowing her she's going to continue thinking she's right about everything with her smug face and never say sorry for what she did. ", she mumbled as marco stood up, "Alright, i hope you've learned at least something, i'll warn you for now, but no more, maybe just take some time today to yourself and work out some of your anger you have pent up".

As much as celeste didn't like being acknowledged for having such issues, she had to agree, she probably needed a moment to herself to cool down and rest, pulling herself together so her mind wasn't so focused on luna and just luna. She stood up and headed off to take a moment to herself, landon letting her as he did the same. Half for his sake and half his own, he had practice to get to.

Conflict finally resolved, everyone returned to what they were doing, sky being approached by the adult, who looked more the relieved to have handled that situation well without causing more conflict. "Sorry about all of that, i'm sure after coming back from seeing the queen you didn't feel like dealing with teenage anger issues but it's just life around here now".

"It's ok, we uh...wanted to know more about how things escalated so badly...we kinda had to come back here, angel's mom fully awoke and-", she was stopped right there, marco's eyes practically popping from their head, "Wait, she's up? Oh wait a minute". They pulled out their phone and took a good look at their most recent texts, oh shoot, i missed these because i got so caught up with those kids...i can't believe it! I'm so happy for your angel!".

Marco quickly pulled him into a hug, angel's body feeling crushed by the human's strength.

"Thanks...it kinda just happened, we got lucky".

"Oh no no, i don't think so, i think most likely your voices helped the process a lot", marco let him go and rattled his hair, "You jogged more of her memory and that's a good thing, it helps a lot, hopefully more can be jogged in the future if they aren't already lost. I bet your dad has a photo album or something to recover what he can, it won't be perfect but it should help...and at least she's not being drained of her life anymore".

"Dad's being careful, fragile memory right now...don't want to break it", he sounded so meek about it but the queen understood, "Hey this is a good thing, good news is great after all the stuff we went through recently, one less thing to make us all panic...now we can just focus on the other things instead. Like moon annoying star and...judas...".

Their voice softened.

"Jude's still out?".

"I doubt he won't be back before curfew and he's under guard but...yeah, he worries me a little...granted though, it's only been a few hours so it might take time, give him a few days, he might feel a little better after he has had some time to process it, as friends of his you just need to help support him and not make him feel alone through this, i know this whole thing must be rough on him".

"Well he doesn't usually isolate his family and friends like that, so yeah, of course this is weird for him...i mean i'm his best friend and he didn't even...LOOK at me during dinner", sky tugged at her hat, head tilting in thought, "Maybe some time will help, i guess we'll just see but uh...angel and i could still do something for him anyway, y'know, like we mentioned before".

"It's sweet how much you care about him, really. Today was a rough day for him, so we'll see how he does in the morning, in the meantime we'll keep checking up on him and letting him rest and whatever he needs right now, he can stay out of all of the rest of the commotion if he needs it. In the meantime we'll keep working on our plan and throwing ideas around, just...be prepared to deal with whatever Moon might change", marco's expression turning uncertain, "She's smart, i'm just worried...when she and star don't get along...".

"Right, fighting and whatever...great", three generations of butterflies that don't always get along, nothing could be better of course. They were so close to having a plan set to catch this person and this had to happen, angel managed to get out of today pretty alright but sky and her family problems were not going to end so soon and nor did much of today's events reassure her.

Marco caught onto her tone and tried to send a smile her way, "We'll move past it, and hey, maybe it'll be a good thing...you've dealt with your mom pestering you so much it's been so long since she herself had to deal with her mom pestering her. Give it some time, and after this is all over, she'll be back to retirement, for now just focus on the goal and work at it".

"Thanks marco".

"Anyways, better we get ready to turn in, i'm taking the first watch, do a head count to make sure everyone is inside ok? We're not going to fully do the lock in without everyone, and judas and a few others still need to come back...which reminds me...janna is still..uh...talking to the guy right? You guys never passed by her or anything on your way back?".

They shook their heads in unison.

"Huh, yeah, as much as i don't want to, we gotta check on her...i'll let star know, update me on that head out ok?", marco headed off to text star, sky yawning as she and angel started counting and listing everyone inside already, catching waves from mason and nora as they passed by. Most of everyone had made it back safely, most of them talking and getting ready to sleep.

Though ignoring the obvious people who were still out there was one person in particular sky didn't see, nor did angel on their count.

"Hey, you see landon, he was in here when we came in and he never left right?", angel meeting her with a shrug. He couldn't have left, the place was guarded, and it wasn't THAT big either, he had to be around here somewhere. The two wandering off to see if they could find the strange demon boy somewhere, checking around furniture, inside sleeping bags, and around the walls.

Not finding much yet, they then checked the bathroom, which he wasn't in either.

"He can't have left...but where is he?", something was up and last thing she needed was another missing kid around here, angel sniffing the air to see if he could pick up the demon's scent. Problem was landon had been all over this room and there were so many other people it was a lot of scents to weed through for the young boy's nose, though as they got close to the food supply storage he seemed to hit something.

"He smells strongest here".

Sky pressed her ear against the door, she could hear minimal noise going on inside but for all she knew it was just the coolers to keep some of the fresher stuff somewhat preserved. If landon really was in here though, what was he doing? He had to have had a reason to wander off like that...so quickly too, was he up to something again behind their backs?

Guess it was worth looking into at the very least, just in case, or if something else was happening.

Sky wished she had her wand on her, taking a deep breath before opening the door so fast it startled the demon inside. Landon falling on his back, his violin in his hands, caught off guard by the interruption. He was mad at first, but then embarrassed the next, clinging onto his violin like it was the most precious thing in the entire world. Sky though, just looked confused.

"You sneaked away to play music?".

The boy was red-faced, "Uh..y-yeah...i can't play with all the noise going on so uh...i found out this place was pretty quiet so i came in here to play, you should've knocked...you scared me". He fumbled with his instrument, pulling himself together, "You wanted us to knock on the food storage door? Dude, we didn't even know you were in here, it's not your bedroom".

Landon looked more embarrassed.

"Fine, whatever, can you not bother me though? I wanna play music in peace...", he shot them a look as he tried to go back to playing, and sky sighed, annoyed, about to leave as angel looked at the boy more closely. Landon annoyed the prince was staring at him, "Hey, angel? No offence, but i'm not that comfortable with people watching me play right now, if you don't mind...i'll be right there to bed in a minute...".

Angel still looking at him as sky mumbled something and dragged angel out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

"He's lying".

"What?".

She turned to him so quickly she nearly scared him, "He's lying, something's off...i can tell...". She nearly forgot angel was practically a lie detector right now and getting better at telling the signs of a liar. Her eyebrow raised as she looked back at the door they just came from, "Jeez, again? How many times is landon gonna like...not be truthful about his actions to us? You really sure he's-".

"I think so...he's showing some of the tell tail signs i was warned about so could y'know...hide everything i was doing", Angel looked back at the door, pressing his ear against it ," But...tt just sounds like the faintest sounds of him playing violin if anything...like i can still smell him so he didn't teleport anywhere or anything". Sky pressed her own ears against the door, giving the prince a look.

"Monster hearing?".

"It's not THAT much better for my species then you, but i think i hear some violin".

"Well if you can hear violin, then maybe he isn't lying...?", angel didn't seem sure though, sky had no reason to not believe him, his track record so far had been accurate but right now she had no idea what landon couldn't be truthful about and if he was playing music in there...then there was no harm in that, could always be a small white lie in case he was embarrassed or something.

"Look we can't just barge in there again, we don't even know what he's lying about, we'll just like...keep it in the back of our heads or whatever...worry about it later", angel could agree to that at the very least, putting a pin in it for later. At least landon was inside the area still and not out there, so they could count him as being safe, they could worry about this later when it was important.

The pair heading back and finishing their headcount when finally, after what felt like awhile, judas came in.

He still looked...not like himself, but at least he was ok, even if he did basically go right to bed without so much of a greeting to anyone else. Everyone giving him his space and letting him by, knowing he probably needed it. After that star made it back after doing what she needed and janna followed behind and her expression was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.

Guess there were no doubts she finally got something out of their prisoner, even if it meant missing out on dinner completely. And without a word she went right into the kitchen to eat whatever was left out for her to much on, marco huffing as she passed by and headed right to star for imput on what might of gone down while they were out.

At least everyone seemed to be here and safe and sound.

Though going to sleep right away was stalled as Marco got the attention of the room, everyone still getting dressed and preparing to sleep another long night, "Alright everyone, so it seems janna decided to go a little far in our investigation and find out what she could from our prisoner...moral issues aside she did manage to get a little bit of new info out of him".

"It's got nothing to do with their identity right?", Mason asked sweetly.

"No, he knew nothing about that apparently, he was kept pretty in the dark about a lot of things, but it seems he did know some things he never let on about.", they eyed janna, who raised her cup of juice triumphally before shaking their head, "Anyways, so he knew about the room and what this masked person turned it into, they knew about bernard being kidnapped and-".

The brown eyes looked to star who continued on.

"Yeah so, according to janna, so yeah the guy didn't know about them being a criminal, but they did know they used magic since apparently they used it to scare him into letting them stay. Though i guess he was lied to to an extent, apparently he thought bernard was some kinda criminal himself and they were capturing him...though it seems he himself didn't fully believe it".

Everyone could hear Queen Spiderbite huff in the back, "Anyone who dresses like that is bad news, if he was really sure of himself that something was off, he should've saved that boy, but he let it go on, he should be ashamed of himself frankly". Nora looked over at her mother as if to remind her that she had locked nora up for so long, even longer then the kidnapped human had been and her mother turned away with a sigh.

"Whomever also went out, like, a lot...mostly at night, to collect items he said, though he was never allowed to actually see most of them, he could hear them do things down there, assuming it to be magic of some kind. Which is exactly why it's great eclipsa is gonna give us results on that pretty soon so we can figure out what that was all about". Which reminded sky eclipsa was out and had not been hanging out in here with them, choosing to sleep in her tower on her own terms and looking into evidence inside of her room.

She hated to admit it, but she missed her a little, she was preferable to all the mom-drama that was going to going on for a good long while by the looks of it.

"Oh and uh the biggest thing he apparently wanted to be so hush hush about? He-".

"Saw her hands boi!", janna said, pushing her way in, "Turns out, they're purple, like...dark magic purple, dude accidentally walked in at the wrong time and caught the wierdo without their gloves on, they're not only butterfly magic based, but they were doing some shady type magic, probably recently too since they really should've had their hands clean in the magic dimension too".

If that was meant to reassure them it wasn't working, everyone looking nervously upon each other at that mention. But janna seemed rather pleased with herself, "Yeah, no wonder he was scared, he saw something he shouldn't have and they got PISSED about it...guess they never wanted anyone to know they were dabbling in magic like that, much less their accomplices".

"So if they're using dark magic...should we be concerned?".

"Well, obviously yes", marco huffed, pinching their nose, tired, "Dark magic is no laughing matter...it corrupts those who use it and can be utterly uncontrollable, if it's being used, i'm not sure what we're in for...especially since we don't know what they're even doing...but if it's involved...we need to prepare for anything, and i mean anything...corrupted unicorns, deadly blasts, the destruction of the universe!".

"I don't think well...they want that...".

Angel untied his hair, the hairband being wrapping around his arm, "If they wanted to destory us like that...then...all of this beforehand...would be pointless...whatever they need to do that magic for...it's gotta be something...different". He crawled into his sleeping bag and laid down, wanting to try ad rest without being sad or scared about his future.

His mother came back, he just wanted to sleep on that feeling.

Marco paused, "Well, alright, we'll talk more later then...but it'll be good to update all of you on this so we can properly address it later, for now, just get some sleep ok? We'll get eclipsa to look into it later...she's more knowledgeable on the subject matter then any of us". Star huffed, "Does this mean we gotta tell my mom about this finding too, you know she'll freak".

"You know we have to star".

She groaned and headed off to sleep.

The room silencing down once again as everyone went to rest, most of them trying to get as much as they could without nightmares. This of course was when landon got back out of his sleeping bag, heading to the bathroom and hoping his father who was on guard didn't notice the violin he was still holding as he locked himself inside, he had a lot of practice to do


Judas was a little better over the next couple days, not completely better but at least he was making eye contact with his best friends again instead of being by himself and moping as he had been. He did want comfort to an extent, even if he was trying to handle this issue entirely on his own, it was hard for him to not want to have supportive friends around him throughout this.

He wasn't talking as much, but he wasn't avoiding them either, which was an improvement.

No one really wanted to push him, he clearly needed time to really think about things and he could talk about it when he wanted to, it just currently made things super strange. Judas was basically hanging with them just to hang out, but he wasn't really interacting with them at all, following them around like a fly more then his usual self. No one pushed him away, but they wished he was back to himself.

That didn't stop anyone from trying to cheer him up, giving him updates, sending him treats, and complimenting him when they could. For now it was all they could really do unless judas was comfortable going any further. Walking around was probably good for him anyway, he wouldn't be much better locked in his room like landon used to be...or...still was seemingly.

Angel spent nearly all hours of the day with his mom, Nora with him, alongside her parents.

They had to be there, they were the ones mostly in charge of her medical care. Not to mention angel's father would not let them leave, desperate to thank them in any way possible for what they had done for his family. This tended to be the reason sky was paling around with sunny and lexi more then anyone. Working on their disguise plan and spending time together when allowed.

Judas tailing them from behind, listening to them as they talked about the weird stuff that was going on. Including his brother acting funny, not that that was a surprise to really anyone at this point, though sunny seemed to think landon's secret was more related to his crush then anything else. The girl giggling to herself, "Mason is telling me landon's working up the courage to confess real soon, he's probably working on a song for it...don't worry".

"You really think so?".

"Yeah, i think so...it's personal, let him be with it".

Guess her assumption made at least a little bit of sense, easing sky's worry for a moment as sunny tightening the dress they were working on together. "Well if he is he doesn't need to hide it, we all know about his crush, we'll all support him if he needed it...and i'm sure having his crush sent back to earth with bodyguards is something that might warrant help and support".

"Well, he might want to do this one on his own, his crush".

"Yeah i guess so, dunno why he has to make it so weird tho, like hiding in the food locker? Weird place to practice...but whatever.", she snipped at a ribbon, tying it on carefully, "I wish him luck though, like i hope he does a good job, maybe if he's lucky they can go to jude's coronation together as a pair, there's still time for it, matching costumes are fun".

"That's still only if his crush returns his feelings sadly, but i think he has a chance, they seem close", she fluffed up the skirt a bit, testing the stitching, "But for now, leave him be, focus on our tasks at hand, if things go well we can finally put an end to this. ". Sky eyed judas, who was still being completely silent on the bed nearby, licking her lips and shrugging".

"You know, after this, i can work on some costumes for the event as well...for all of us...i mean it'll take a lot of time, but if i have some help-", sunny's eyes lit up, "OHHHH! YESS, let me help! I wanna do something pink for myself, or maybe we can match in some way! I'll help you figure something out! We can start coming up with ideas now and work on them for the rest of the week!".

"Speaking of which, lexi? You still brainstorming over there?".

The girl sent her thumbs up, "Trying magic nets!".

Guess there were worse ideas of traps they could set.

"Alright well, good job! Let us know if you got any other ideas, we really want this trap to work!", and the girl went back to work, happy as can be to have her sisters around to work with her, "You been to parties like this sunny?". The demon smiling up at her, "I guess you're asking since i told you about my isolation, but yeah, of course i did! Not too many crazy ones like this, but i went to a few when i could, nothing like this though".

"Not as grand?".

"Nah, plus i was busy watching my little brother most of the time! Actually, i think the day i got stuck here...i was at a party...". sunny paused, her fangs prinking her lip as she thought back. "Yeah, i was at a party, my friends were there and my brother, i think it was a family party to hang out with my relatives and stuff, i guess to them it looks like i ran off or got kidnapped now..".

Sky pondered for a moment, "Did...i ever ask you guys about...getting here? Like...what happened? I remember you guys like...popping in and falling into the grass before you tried to blast me but well...i'm not sure what it was like for you, from your perspective".

"Maybe you asked at one point? It's been so long...i've been so distracted with all this stuff that's all been shoved into the back of my mind, i think less how i got here and more about getting back to see well...y'know, my family and friends again".

"Well, maybe something you remember could help us? Do you remember anything significant?".

"Well, i dunno...i think what i remember most was heading off to find one of my friends...then...BOOM, burst of light, and there i was in your grass...i did feel like...maybe i was being tugged on at one point but...that's about it, not as much i can say. It was all so sudden and i didn't know what was going on or if anyone else at home even noticed the light was happening really".

"You were like...pulled?".

"I think so? Not sure if it was by someone or because of magic though, i do remember a feeling of being pulled".

"Actually, you were all pretty dressed up the night i saw you, maybe you were all at parties at the time you came here...wonder if it was the same night in your dimensions or what...huh", sky really should've asked stuff like these way sooner. "You'd have to ask the others, though it probably doesn't even matter anyway, but it's interesting to think about at least".

Yeah, she could say that.

"Hey sunny...wild thought here, but you ever think...because of this multiverse thing...that there are multiple versions of us out there? Like...we can't be the only sky and sunny out there, because mom well...has many versions of her out there since you all exist, so like...i could've ended up with a different version of you, a nicer luna, an less abandoned lexi, a more cheery celeste", the demon shrugging simply to her wild ideas, "Well yeah, of course...i guess i don't want to think about it too hard though. Tons of you out there all doing different things can well...be too much".

"I get that actually...i guess it just makes me think about how limitless the universe is...that we are like...one of many outcomes, i guess it just really makes me think, the multiverse is kinda cool...sucks some jerk like omni gets to take care of it. Maintaining it's structure and checking out all the worlds that come with it, it sounds like a bit of fun actually".

"Well, your wand seems to be tailored to mutliverses...right?".

"I think so, i mean, the gem was at least".

"Maybe look into that more then, maybe it's your calling or something, getting involved with alternate universes. After all, we ended up in your universe, not the other way around, maybe getting involved in this stuff was something you were meant to be apart of. Sometimes things work in funny little ways and well, you never really know till you try".

Sky laughed momentarily, coughing on accident as she pulled herself together, "Yeah, i dunno about that, i can't seen myself doing something as crazy as that sunny. I mean it sounds like cool, but the guy was made for a job like that, it's not something a mortal can just...do. Besides, you know i'm not that good with my wand and my wand right now is in no condition for any of that".

"Sky it was only a suggestion, i just think you have great potential y'know? Besides, why not? Maybe a mortal can handle things in better ways, especially since you know better then they do, you're not gonna make a big deal outta a math problem or anything". Sky didn't seem so sure but sunny looked encouraging, putting her shoulder and working on the outfit more, her tail holding her other tools in the process.

"Every queen has their thing, maybe this is yours", the girl didn't seem to be buying it but it wasn't worth tossing out either, maybe if she had a little more time to think on it. If only she had the wand back, she might be able to look into that rare crystal, but it seems that was something better left for later, if she could even get to her wand again in the near future.

"Well, what is your thing sunny?", she asked it so suddenly that it caught the girl off guard completely, nearly scaring her, "I uh...well, i think it's my performances, not my uh..demon thing, at least that's what i hope it is.". She got back to work and didn't go any further on that point, the girls changing topics quickly as they finished what they had worked on.

Sky stepped back to get a better look at her work, finally happy to have finished it up, thankfully they didn't need to many too many of these, otherwise she might of been here all week trying to get them done. Sunny also actually seemed to do a really great job much to her surprise, she wasn't exactly as great at this like sky was, having made mostly small-scale stuff for her plays.

But she actually seemed to learn from what sky showed her and she seemed impressed with herself, and even lexi looked amazed.

"I haven't been this impressed with myself since i made my brother that hat, and that was the best thing i had ever made with my own two hands in my opinion, i wish he could see this, he'd be so happy", she cooed over the gown, smiling ear to ear, "I can't wait to use this, even if it's just for the sake of spying, it looks really convincing and well made".

"Thanks, i uh...i like making my own clothes, so this is just kinda my thing. I wasn't big on mom's old stuff and barely found clothing that i actually liked around here so...i started making my own stuff, sometimes my mom is picky about it but like...i remind her how she dresses and sometimes she shuts up about it. I like my hats the best, it gives me something to feel proud of".

"I'm not as good as you, but it's ok, you're more used to it".

"You kidding? You're much better then that time i tried to get jude to do stuff like this with me, he pricks himself constantly, big hands".

She giggled.

"Fair, you're just more experienced".

Judas looked up and at the clothing, smiling at sky and sunny for the first time since he'd been there, also seemingly impressed with the girl's handiwork, though he had seen sky's many works before, he never failed to let her know he thought she was talented. "Well, maybe you learned a few skills to take back home when you can then, teach your brother more about making clothes, working with people can really help", sky shrugged, sitting down more comfortably, "I'll let my parents know we finished these up for today.".

"Great, i nearly finished our script".

"Our script?".

"Sky, our cover is us being performers, we at the very least need to be so convincing they won't suspect a thing, so yeah, we need a script and we need to practice somewhat, i'll give you the first few pages soon so you can practice". Oh right, sky was so busy with the outfit side of things she forgot the whole reason they had these clothes was for a play, even if it was a fake play.

They meant nothing if they couldn't sell the fact they were performers.

Sky suddenly had flashbacks to the last time she performed during the party, when everything went so poorly that she broke something after nearly hurting her own mom it seemed. This was far less scary and she didn't even have that wand right now but she couldn't help but be reminded of it, and all the unpleasantness that came alongside all of it.

She urged herself to relax, this was nowhere near as bad as that, they were uncover and everything. Plus this didn't even involve any magic, so there was much less risk of her breaking something or hurting anyone in the process. At worst she made a fool of herself onstage and maybe possibly exposed their entire plan to people who shouldn't know about it...but at least she couldn't nearly kill anyone.

"You uh...wrote a script? When?".

"Freetime, besides, i like writing plays, i have tons of notes for scripts all over my room in the underworld".

"Do i have to get it perfect? You know i can't lie all that well and i can't act to save my life".

Sunny, clearly sensing sky's distress, patted her back, "Relax, you don't have to get it perfect, at worst...try improvising, like what you do with spells and stuff, if you really sell it like you know what you're doing, people won't eve notice you're not actually doing what you're supposed to do. We gotta be eyes and ears in that place for a bit, and we won't be alone either".

"I miss my wand..."she gripped her hands tightly, sunny's smile slightly fading. "If something does happen i won't have it to protect myself or any of you...i'm just...nervous going and doing this without it, even thought i know i have to." She felt sunny hug her gently, comforting her to the best of her ability, "Hey, it's ok, we can all fight, bring your little shocker thingy, just in case if you don't feel safe".

"I know, i guess it just feels like i was just starting to get good at magic and now i can't even really do it anymore...i can't dip down much or anything just yet either", even if she wanted to try to dip down more she didn't have the time right now to even do it, much less master it like a lot of queens did. The closest she got was flying with angel using her tiny wings but that wasn't the same.

"Well, we'll just do our best not to get into danger then, sound good?", sky lifted her head to her sister and nodded, that she could agree on, thought now she was thinking more about her current lack of magic. Dipping down might make her more powerful, enough to take down a threat like the one they were hunting, but there was no way she could get that good in time.

Right?

Sunny and Lexi packed up, having business elsewhere, which this time was sunny finally getting a chance to meet angel's mom in person, well, as herself anyway. Angel had been there every single day since she awoke so he was expecting them and they didn't want to be late to hang out. They made sure they had everything, waving to sky as they left, judas however, was still in the room. He didn't seem to want to leave sky's side right now nor did he have anywhere else to be. Sky was met with the silence of her room, unsure of what to say to judas lest she make things worse on him.

This was one of those situations where you needed to select your next words super carefully or you might get into serious trouble, or hurt someone you cared about, and sky worked herself up to look at judas and try and cheer him up. "Hey, so uh, they're heading out, is there something you'd like to do until my next meeting with mom involving luna and stuff? I promised angel to question what happened a few days ago but i got real busy with the outfits so i had to pull it back, but i got free time right now.".

Ok, slightly clunky, but not awful.

"You're trying to stop me from thinking about it, aren't you?".

Ok, nevermind.

"Judas, you're my best friend, we hang out all the time...you know that", the demon hunching in shame for his previous comment, "Sorry". His saddened voice got her to quickly reach out to rest her hands on his arms, "Hey, it's ok, i get it. C'mon, we should do something together, we haven't gone out just to have fun in forever it feels like, we could go and eat or watch a movie...don't worry i can confront celeste and luna later about stuff, you're more important right now".

"I'm sorry i've been such...a downer lately", sky gripped him tighter, head coming in to rest on his chest, sighing into her tall friend. "Dude, no one here thinks you're bad for being upset...it's ok to be upset, like...we get it. It's going to take time dealing with it...and y'know...getting better, like i had to be there since the beginning...seeing you deal with all of this pain...i can't understand it fully but...i know why it hurts".

"So...you're not mad at me?".

"Dude! Mad at you? You just discovered you spent your whole life in paranoia over something that wasn't even there! And it completely messed with your social life! And people attacked you for it! You have every reason to be mad and it'd be stupid of me to act otherwise! Jude, if you need space, it's ok...this is clearly not going to end in like...a week. We'll just take it step by step and figure it out daily...".

He nodded, sky parting from her friend and wiping at her face, tears leaking from her lips as she quickly composed herself. "Y'know, i was pretty freaked about my powers too, like...that i could hurt someone with them, but i think...i'm working on them...and doing better and if i can...you could too. You don't have to if you don't want to, but if you do...you could.".

"You know it's not the same-".

"Yeah i do, but i know that you judas, when you really want to do something, you'll do it. Take all the time you need and everything, if you need anything just ask, i'm not abandoning my best friend over this...not over us getting older or being royals and not over either of us having issues...we stick together...no matter what. So we'll take this day by day, ok?".

Judas nodding and rubbing at his own eyes, "I'd love a movie by the way, if...that's ok." His comfort right now was first and foremost, anything to help him deal with less and less stress. Sky took his hand and led him out of the room, followed close behind by their guards, better they head somewhere else and get some privacy. A movie night sounded pretty great, even if they'd be locked in a heavily guarded room.

"Hey, the dresses looked great for the record"

"Thanks jude".

The two heading inside one of the private movie rooms, guards blocking the door right behind them as they were shut in tight.


"HEY LANDON!".

Landon nearly dropped his violin, coughing as he spotted his brother pop inside of the storage room, smiling ear to ear as he so often did. Landon blushing heavily as he nearly crumpled up the paper in his hands, the younger boy spotting it and reaching out for it. "OOOO Is that your confession letter?! Can i see?! I can totally proofread it for you!".

Landon only tugged it further and further away from his curious brother. "Look, i'm glad you want to help and everything, but i really want to keep this confession thing mostly to myself, i'm not...really that comfortable with anyone seeing what i want to say...it makes me really embarrassed as is, hearing someone read it makes me feel so much more uncomfortable".

Mason backed away, sad, but understanding.

"Anyways, don't scare me like that, i already had enough close calls after sky and angel walked in on me, last thing i need is to hear them complain about me trying to do magic and going bad about this...my magic, my choice.". He grumpily tried to get back in position to play his violin but mason interrupted again, "Oh yeah, you learned any spells yet?".

"Not really, I'm using a normal violin, it's not like using that magic one".

He ushered mason to sit down next to him and his brother did so, watching his older brother intensely. "But yeah, i'm trying though, i get some glowing but not much else, granted, these aren't much of spells and i don't want to risk causing problems with a spell that could end up doing something awful anyway either, so maybe it's good i haven't made a ton of progress.".

"What spell are you trying to do? Maybe you aren't doing it right?".

Guess he never considered that before, he was practically doing this the worst way he could, going into it expecting something to happen without going for any specific outcome at all. Of course he wanted results but he also wanted specific results, and he could not guarantee that without some idea of what he was doing, his face enough to tell mason how little he knew what he was doing.

Mason quickly rephrased his question.

"What kinda spell would you even want to learn anyway?".

"I mean...maybe just something i could use...to defend myself, that's a good start right?".

Mason couldn't argue with that, landon going back to playing, trying to not get too distracted by the boy in the room as he patiently waited. Though it was hard not to get too distracted as landon's compact buzzed a little, mason quickly taking it to check and see what was going much much to landon's embarrassment. Though mason was faster then him and opened it up as landon missed the grab.

"Ohhh, you're still texting bernie?".

Landon covered his face, "Uh...yeah, we're still...friends and everything, of course we're still talking...i've just been asking how he's been doing and everything, though yeah, it's been awkward and everything back home...". He tapped his fingers on the floor and coughed, "He kinda sorta has been arguing with them about his magic stuff, i guess sunny like...called them out on how they treated his hobby or something".

"Oh yeah, i remember that!", mason exclaimed, reminding landon they were together on earth during that whole ordeal.

"I've just been talking to him, y'know? I don't want him to feel alone or unsupported or anything, it really means a lot to him that i like and support what he wants to do and everything. So yeah, we've been talking, he's been worried ever since it happened and he can't come and see me so i have to speak to him to update him on what's going on...but i have to be careful in case our phone and compact get like...bugged or something".

"You gonna confess using text?".

"Well, i mean, i hope not...but it's worth considering since we can barely go anywhere anymore...i know i have that old video i made of me sorta telling him and playing the song i wrote saved on there, but that was all just more practice...confessing through text just sounds...weird, granted i guess it'd be more weird to confess in front of his parents in person too right now".

"Wait, you record your songs?".

He shrugged, "Uh...yeah, sometimes, important to help me practice and whatever. I kinda keep them to myself mostly though". He then hear mason going through his compact, turning around and giving the boy a very angry look, "Mason, c'mon, this is still my private business, stop snooping through my phone if you really plan to help me our and take this seriously".

"Sorry, i just...i wanna see the video, maybe i could give you tips!", mason clearly meant no harm but he clearly had some work to do when it came to helping during stuff like this and well, not being intrusive or anything. Landon grumbled but at the same time maybe it wasn't too bad of an idea, as long as mason didn't do anything stupid and actually helped out.

"Alright hand it over, i'll show you where to go, last thing i need is for you to stumble across stuff you shouldn't on my compact.".

"Really?", his soft brown eyes actually seemed rather surprised at his brother for letting him see the video, landon huffing and scrolling through his compact. "Whatever keeps you from bothering me while i play ok? Just...don't judge, it's really personal and stuff...i'm not really good with people or crushes so...yeah it's a little awkward but it means a lot to me".

He handed the video over to the small boy who quieted down as he watched, landon facing away, not wanting to hear any of the things he said. He couldn't handle watching his own awkwardness, it just made him feel more embarrassed then he already did. Focusing on what he was doing and letting mason stay distracted so he could focus on his work.

He still had some music spells magic to explore and he wanted to keep most of the focus on that without his younger brother messing with him the entire time. He tuned out of his brother's noises as he began playing again, trying to focus his emotions, how did sky do this kinda stuff with a wand, much less her mother without one? It just seemed like a lot of trial and error.

He wanted at most a bigger reaction, nothing scary, but to feel like he did some real magic instead of his marks just glowing. His mom could do magic so he had to be able to do it as well, he tried a few more notes, getting a bit frustrated as he head his brother making more noise behind him. Landon put down his instrument, still red faced at knowing he was even showing this to his brother.

"It's cute".

"Hmm?", landon's ear flickered before turning to his brother in curiosity.

"This video, it's really cute, like genuinely cute".

Landon turned away, still very red faced, "It's not that cute...i look a little stupid in it, it looks so...messy with how i set up the camera, and i can't show something like that to him, i want to impress him and stuff...not look like a dweeb.". He could hear mason's wings fluttering, "I dunno, i think it makes it more natural, makes it more...you, professional footage and lighting is like...not your style, it makes the whole thing feel more personal and like you really mean it instead of like...scripting the whole thing".

Landon paused hearing that, biting at his lip.

"You really think so?".

"I'm not saying it like, in a mean way, i just think..i dunno, maybe your crush would like it more if it felt more real then like...rehearsed or fake, you don't have to i just think this whole thing is cute...bit it's up to you". Landon was silent, he never really considered it that way, he had been more focused on making this whole thing perfect so he didn't make a fool of himself there had been little consideration that the more perfect he made it the less "Him" it was.

Would he feel more like a fool for going through the effort to be perfect and be rejected or for being his genuine self and then being rejected? He didn't really know, but he did know he wanted Bernard to know how he felt and he at the very least, wanted to continue being his friend, even if he wasn't interested in him back. That's what he knew for sure, even if it was going to be scary.

Maybe he should send it? Rip off the bandage? He was going to do it soon but he also couldn't help but feel a part of him was delaying it, dreading the reaction he would get after the words left his lips, would it be better to wait or just admit to it already before he pushed back too far?

He was so busy being lost in thoughts he barely noticed that his compact buzzed again, bernard was sending him another response and mason quickly went to check what was up, seeing their last texts. There was the conversations landon mentioned about how he was doing and updating him and overall just regular expected conversations between the two.

But their last texts caught his eye.

Bernard: Hey, i know you've been quiet recently, you ok?

Landon: I want to talk about stuff, with you, but i'm not sure i can because of the situation

Bernard: Don't let that stop you, better you get it out then keep it in

Bernard: If you need space you can tho

Landon: It's complicated.

Bernard: Then explain it to me, i'll listen, not like i have much better to do anyway, i don't want you to feel like you can't tell me anything

Landon: Ok, maybe later

Bernard: Ok, text you back soon

There was the text landon got only a few minutes beforehand.

Bernard: Hey landon! Finally back from family stuff, text me back soon.

And that was of course where the new text came in, catching mason's eye.

Bernard: Hey, i don't want to intrude, not if you don't want me too, but at the very least can i ask if this is about me? I hope my parents didn't do something.

Guess bernard was not as unaware as he seemed.

Mason looked back to his brother, if he didn't say something, who knows what bernard might actually be thinking on his end without getting a response.

"Hey, he's texting you, asking you if you're acting funny because of him...", landon turning around extremely quickly at the words, still red faced and then quickly turning back around from his brother, escalating from his calm demeanor to utter panic setting in. "Oh no, i can't make him feel like that! Shoot shoot! Uh...if i don't text right away he might think it's actually true! I um...maybe just text him that it's nothing to do with that or, i dunno, just say he's fine".

"But...it IS because of him? You're acting funny because you like him, you'd be lying to him.".

"Yeah mase, i know, but...".

"Are you going to tell him, or not?", mason didn't meant to be so demanding but at the same time he couldn't help the words that slipped out, landon promised this time, was he going to back out again?

His words made landon freeze, in fact time felt frozen for the moment entirely, and whether he knew it or not, something was happening. His cheekmarks were starting to glow again, but not because landon asked to or wanted to, almost like a emotional reaction to the situation, mason staring at him in utter awe of what he was looking at, only for it to quickly be nulisshed.

Because though landon didn't intend for it to happen, his compact was being magically affected, moving from mason's hands, and mason reached out to grab it quickly before the magic could do something else. The demon's messy fingers pressing all over it as he fought against magic, landon quickly realizing what he was doing and trying to turn it off fast, his marks fading as he calmed himself down.

"What did i-? What just happened?".

"You tell me, you were doing magic just now! You were moving your own compact and everything!".

"I-I...was?".

It all happened so fast landon could barely process it, just that he was thankful mason was here to keep him from breaking anything and making things so much worse for both of them, "I've never done something like that before...it must've been like...the stress of confessing trigger my magic or something, that's...so unusual, thank god it didn't get worse".

Then he remembered the task at hand, "Mason, hand it back, i gotta text him right now".

Mason did not hesitate, handing it back to his brother before landon freaked out any further, landon trying to pull himself together before staring at the compact, completely frozen. His sudden reaction was whiplash for mason, landon going from panicked and scared to completely frozen was extremely unusual and that could only mean something was totally wrong.

"Landon?"

Landon didn't say anything, completely petrified in fear.

Mason crawled forward, waving his hand in front of his brother's face to wake him from his strange state. Landon dropped the compact in his lap and only then did mason see what was freaking his brother out so much, it seemed during the struggle when mason tugged the phone from the magic he really hadn't been paying attention to where his fingers had landed.

And sure enough, of all the things that could happen, right in their recent texts, was a very familiar video sent right out to bernard. Mason didn't even have enough time to process it before his brother got up and ran out of the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving all his stuff with mason. Where he was going? Who knows, but wit the bottom of the message having READ in large black text...there was no backing out now.

Bernard was texting back.

Bernard: Landon?

Mason quickly closed the compact, grabbed all of his brother's stuff, and ran out the door, his wings flapping behind him.