"Headmaster!" Deuce called out once everyone had been transported back to the Mirror Chamber. "We did it! We brought back a magic crystal!"

"Stop screamin', dude," Ace admonished with a shake of his head. "The headmaster's probably already gone home for the-"

"What's this, then?" came a voice from directly behind them. "You actually managed to obtain a magic crystal from Dwarfs' Mine?"

The group screamed in surprise and jumped away from the voice, only to turn and come face-to-face with the headmaster himself. Deuce was the first to recover. "Y-Yessir," he replied shakily, holding out the crystal for the headmaster to take.

The headmaster took the crystal and turned it over in his hands. "My word… I didn't think… I never thought you'd actually go, much less come back with a crystal in hand! And here I've spent the entire evening completing your expulsion paperwork in solemn silence."

"Fgnya! You've got some nerve!" Grim exclaimed, pointing a paw at the masked man. "And after we risked our lives fighting some crazed beast to get that stupid thing for you, too!"

The headmaster blinked, a flicker of surprise appearing in his yellow orbs. "A "crazed beast", you say?"

"Yeah! There was a monster roaming in the mines!" Ace confirmed. "A gross and crazy strong one! It was awful!"

The headmaster looked intrigued. "Could I ask you to explain the situation in greater detail?" he asked, resting the knuckle of his index finger against his chin.

"Sure, but can we get Devon's arm taken care of first?" Deuce requested, gesturing to Devon's torn sleeve and injured arm. "She got cut pretty badly when we were fighting that monster."

After a quick stop to the school infirmary to get Devon's injury cleaned and bandaged (along with a first aid kit since Sevens only knew she didn't have one at Ramshackle), Crowley led the three teenagers and one monster through a pair of large double doors and into his office. It was spacious room decorated with a purple, silver, and gold color scheme and large windows that overlooked most of the main campus. The deep purple drapes were covered in gold stars and moons and portraits of the Great Seven floated in ornate golden frames behind an equally ornate wooden desk. Crowley waved his hand and three chairs appeared in front of the desk. "Please take a seat." The group did as he requested, Grim hopping into Devon's lap, and launched into a play-by-play of what happened at the mine as Crowley sat down behind the desk.

"I see," Crowley said once they'd finished, rubbing his chin with his index finger. "A mysterious monster living in the mines… And you lot managed to work together to defeat it and bring back a magic crystal…"

"I wouldn't say we "worked together" exactly," Ace denied as he rubbed the back of his head.

"It was more like our goals were aligned in that particular instance," Deuce agreed, crossing his arms defensively.

The headmaster was silent for a moment…before bursting into a series of exaggerated sobs. "OH MY GOODNESS! I'M SO OVERWHELMED!"

Grim jumped, his fur standing on end, as the remaining three could only stare in stunned disbelief. "W-What gives?! Why'd he burst into tears like that?!"

"In all the decades I've served as headmaster for this school, I never thought I'd see the day when Night Raven College students would join hands to face and defeat their enemy together!" Crowley exclaimed, wiping a tear from his eye and somehow not stabbing himself with the claw-like ornaments on his fingers.

"W-Wha?! No! Under no circumstances would I ever hold this guy's hand!" Deuce shouted, jerking a thumb at Ace.

"For real!" Ace agreed as he narrowed his eyes at the headmaster. "First of all, there was absolutely no hand-holding because ew. And second of all, how old are you anyway, headmaster?!"

Devon glanced at Ace before taking another look at the headmaster. Ace had a point; half of his face may have been obscured by a mask but Crowley didn't look anywhere near old enough to have been in charge of the school for "decades". 'Then again,' she thought. 'Those pointed ears of his have me wondering if he might not be human… Maybe he's from a race that's more long-lived…'

"I am simply overcome with emotion!" Crowley exclaimed, ignoring both the boys' outbursts and Devon's pondering stare. He clapped his hands together and smiled. "This incident confirms my suspicions." He pointed dramatically at Devon. "Devon, my dear, it is clear to me now that possess a talent for beast taming!"

"A talent for what now?" Devon asked.

"All students of Night Raven College are chosen by the Dark Mirror because they possess exceptional magical potential," Crowley elaborated. "However, this very same potential tends to cause them to become prideful, egotistical, and self-serving. Most of them would never even think of cooperating with others to accomplish a goal."

Grim crossed his arms. "You make that sound like it's a bad thing."

The headmaster kept his eyes trained on Devon. "You cannot use magic, hatchling."

"So everyone keeps saying," Devon replied dryly.

"I've been thinking ever since I became aware of the Wisp situation," Crowley continued as if Devon had never said anything. "It seems that because you can't use magic, you have the ability to convince magic users, and magical beings, as it were, to follow your instructions and cooperate with you." He beamed. "That level of run-of-the-mill mediocrity might be exactly what we need right now!"

"If you were trying to compliment her, you really missed the mark, headmaster," Ace commented.

"I have no doubt that your very existence is essential to the future of Night Raven College, Devon," Crowley said. "My intuition as an educator is never wrong, you see." He stood up and held his arms out toward the group. "That's why, in addition to rescinding Mr. Trappola and Mr. Spade's expulsions, I will be granting you the qualifications necessary to attend Night Raven College as a student!"

"WHAAAAT?!" Ace, Deuce, and Grim chorused.

Devon could only stare at the headmaster for a moment, her mouth hanging open in shock, before she found her voice. "You want to enroll me as a student here?" She paused and rubbed the back of her head. "I mean, I don't wanna sound ungrateful or anything, but weren't we just talking about how I can't use magic?"

Crowley nodded and smiled, his eyes closed. "Indeed. Such a gracious offer for me to make, is it not?" He opened his eyes, his expression becoming more serious. "However, there will be one condition to your enrollment. As we've already discussed, your inability to use magic is going to be a hindrance for you. You most likely will not be able to keep up with the school's curriculum as you are." He turned his gaze toward Grim, who remained seated in Devon's lap. "That's where you come in, Grim. You have proven to me that you do possess enough talent to become a mage. Therefore, I shall allow the two of you to enroll together as one student!"

"F-Fgnya?!" Grim exclaimed, glancing up at Devon as she smiled down at him and patted his head before looking back to the headmaster. "I can… I can go to school here too? Not as a janitor but as a student?"

"Yes," Crowley confirmed. He held up a hand before Grim could say anything else. "On the condition that you do not cause any more incidents like the ones at the entrance ceremony and earlier today." He gave Grim a stern look. "Am I clear?"

"I…I…," Grim stammered before looking up at Devon again. "D-Dev... We can…"

"Congrats, bud!" Devon chirped. "I know how bad you wanted to go to school here!"

"I did it!" Grim cheered, pumping a fist into the air.

"Well then, Grim, I shall now bestow upon you your own magic crystal, a traditional symbol of your status as a Night Raven College student," Crowley declared. He snapped his fingers and a purple crystal appeared, attaching itself to the ribbon around Grim's neck. "Typically, our students carry their magic crystals in the form of a magical pen," Crowley gestured toward Ace and Deuce. "much like the ones your friends carry. However, something like that would be too difficult for you to grip in your paws, wouldn't it? So I came up with a customized solution just for you!" His tone became self-congratulatory. "Ah, my graciousness is truly something to be behold!"

"This is awesome!" Grim cheered again, hopping down from Devon's lap as he began parading around chairs. "I look so cool! I've got my own special magic crystal collar!"

Crowley shook his head. "He's not listening at all, is he?" He turned back to Devon. "As you can see, hatchling, Grim is completely unaccustomed to human manners and society. It will be up to you to take the reins and monitor him to prevent him from causing any more trouble."

"Dang! Talk about a big promotion!" Ace said, gently poking Devon in the side. "From janitor to student to dorm leader in less than 24 hours!"

"I see. If it's just you and Grim in your dorm and you've been put in charge of Grim… I guess that would technically make you the dorm leader, wouldn't it?" Deuce agreed.

"Pfft… Well, ain't that a Night Raven first! A magicless female dorm leader!" Ace teased playfully as he ruffled Devon's hair. "But hey, whatever works!"

"Shut up, you butt-faced wombat!" Devon replied, trying in vain to push his hand away. "Why you gotta be all up in my space, anyway?"

"Don't act like you don't love it," Ace said, his familiar cocky smirk back on his face.

"Leave Devon be, Ace," Deuce chided.

"Yeah! Nobody messes with my minion but me!" Grim agreed.

"Hmm… A dorm head…," Crowley muttered under his breath as the group kept bickering. "Come to think of it, I do have a job for her and a title will make it much easier to foist-" He caught himself, clearing his throat and drawing everyone's attention back to him. "Congratulations, my dear! As the newest dorm leader of Night Raven College, I will be entrusting you with a very important task." He opened up a desk drawer and pulled out yellow and brown box before walking around his desk and plopping it into Devon's hands. "This is a ghost camera."

"A what now?" Devon asked, turning the box over in her hands to get a better look. She noticed a small lens on the front of the camera as well as a thin slot at the top. "So the pictures come out of the top, I guess? This thing kinda looks like that old polaroid camera my abuela has…"

"Who?" Deuce asked.

"Sorry, I mean my grandmother," Devon explained.

"Hang on, I think I remember my grandmother tellin' me about these things," Ace piped up, leaning over (and once again getting in Devon's space) to get a closer look. "It's like a suuuuper old magic tool, right?"

"I don't know that I'd go so far as to call it "super old"", Crowley muttered before clearing his throat. "Though it is true that it may have been invented during your great-grandmother's or even your great-great-grandmother's time. There's a very special spell that's been cast on it, you see. It is able to capture not only the subject's physical form but also a part of their soul."

"A part of their soul…?" Deuce repeated uncertainly.

"The photos are often referred to as 'Memories' or 'Fragments of Remembrance' as well," Crowley elaborated. "Here's the interesting thing about this magic item: it causes a soulbond to form between the one taking the photo and the one being photographed and it can cause the Memory contained in the photo to come to life."

Devon tilted her head. "What do you mean by "soulbond"?" she asked.

"The closer the subject and photographer are, the more vividly the photo will come to life. It's almost like watching a video. Fascinating, isn't it?" Crowley said.

"The bond can bring the photos to life…," Deuce mused before his eyes widened in realization. "That sounds just like ghost photography."

"Indeed. Hence why this camera is called a "ghost camera"," Crowley replied. "It was made in a time before video recording devices had been invented and people wanted to leave behind vivid memories. It wasn't uncommon for people to cry out "Ghost!" in surprise when a Memory came to life. Many people were terrified at the very thought of having their photos taken with this camera."

"This thing sounds like more trouble than it's worth," Ace remarked dryly as he gave the camera an experimental poke.

"Devon, please take plenty of photos of Grim and the other students to leave behind vivid memories of your time at this academy," Crowley said.

"Lalala~!" Grim sang, hopping back onto Devon's shoulder. "Make sure you get my good side! Pfft, who am I kidding?! They're all good!" Devon rolled her eyes, but smiled and reached up to scratch behind Grim's ears.

"Please take special care to capture a Memory whenever a certain someone misbehaves," Crowley ordered sternly, shooting Grim a look. "That would be a much easier way to report to me than writing tedious reports, right?" His expression softened. "I'm counting on you, hatchling!" That same self-congratulatory tone crept back into his voice. "To give my newest student a rare magic item that can even be used by non-mages~! Oh, my graciousness knows no limits!"

Devon stared at the camera uncertainly. "Umm…thank you, I guess… I'll do my best."

Crowley nodded and glanced out the window. "Now then, it's gotten quite late. We'll save the conversations for tomorrow. Please return to your dormitories, everyone."

"Yessir," the group chorused as they stood to leave.

"Oh, and Devon?" Crowley called out just as they made it to the office door. He waited until Devon turned around before continuing. "When you get back to your dorm, you'll find everything you need to start classes tomorrow waiting for you."

Devon smiled and nodded. "Thank you, headmaster." Her smile turned her into a slight smirk as she continued. "Your graciousness overwhelms me." With that, she followed her friends out the door as the headmaster beamed at her before muttering something about holding a staff meeting in the morning to "discuss this new development".

Deuce heaved a sigh as soon as the doors to the Headmaster's office closed. "Expulsion rescinded…" He leaned against a nearby pillar. "I didn't think feeling so relieved would leave me this wiped out."

"Hard same," Ace agreed.

"Lalala~!" Grim chirped as he scampered around the hallway. "Starting tomorrow, I'm officially a Night Raven College student!" He smirked at Ace and Deuce. "Just you watch! I'll leave you guys in the dust and take the top spot in no time!"

"Pretty big talk comin' from the guy who's only half a full student," Ace taunted back.

"We're going to be classmates starting tomorrow, Dev, Grim," Deuce said.

"Yeah," Devon replied. "I'm not gonna lie, I'm a little nervous about how that's gonna go."

"The way you steeled yourself in front of that monster even though you can't use magic took some serious guts," Deuce assured her, slamming his fist into palm. "Magic or no magic, I think you'll be able to make it here; you've already proven that taking you lightly is a big mistake."

"Hey Deuce, I've been meaning to ask since we got back, but what's the deal with you suddenly talking like a punk every so often?" Ace asked. "Didn't really expect that from a goody two-shoes like you."

Deuce jumped before dropping his hands back to his sides. "D-Do I sound like a punk? I thought I sounded," he gestured vaguely. "y'know…normal."

"Whatever," Ace replied dismissively. "Let's just get back to the dorm already. It'd be pretty lame to get slapped with a curfew violation after all the trouble we went to to get our expulsions rescinded."

Deuce turned back to Devon and Grim. "That reminds me, which dorm are you guys in?" He gestured between himself and Ace. "We're both in Heartslabyul."

"We're staying in that old dorm a little ways off from the main school building," Grim replied. "Y'know, the one that's been abandoned for who knows how long. We've been calling it Ramshackle Dorm for the time being since it looks like it's about to collapse any second. Not to mention it's crawling with ghosts too."

"It's not that bad, Grim," Devon pointed out. "The Wisps that live there have been a huge help. Or did you forget that Regina literally brought the building to life?"

"Hold up, there are actual Wisps living in that place?" Ace asked.

Devon nodded. "Yep. I was surprised too but there's, like, an entire colony living there. I'd say at least 10 or 12. I killed some magic-eating spider thing for 'em, so now they help us out around the place."

"No, they help you out," Grim corrected. "I tried to get one of them to magic me up some grub and it just dropped a bunch of water on my head!"

"I can't believe there are so many," Deuce mused. He elaborated when he noticed Devon looking at him curiously. "Wisps are really rare; if you're lucky, you might see one or two depending on how high the magical concentration of a certain place is. And to think one of them is powerful enough to enchant an entire building and bring it to life…"

"Man, I would kill to see something like that," Ace said as he draped himself over Devon from behind as they continued walking, his arms hanging over her shoulders and his chin resting on top of her head. "I wish I'd been assigned to that dorm too." He jerked his head towards Deuce. "Instead, I'm gonna have to see his self-important, holier-than-thou scowl every day."

"Better than your lazy, smug grin, you truant," Deuce shot back. "And let go of Devon. Seriously, is the concept of personal space lost on you?"

"Whatever you say, almost-expelled-crybaby Deuce," Ace retorted, though he relented and let Devon go. "Alright, see ya tomorrow, New York. I definitely plan on comin' to see that living dorm of yours too."

"You guys can stop by whenever you want," Devon agreed as she waved goodbye to her friends, watching them bicker until they were out of sight. She sighed and scooped Grim up into her arms. "Ya know, I wasn't sure about those guys at first but now I'm thinkin' they might make a good combo after all. Not unlike you and me…sometimes."

"Yeah! They're definitely the 'we fight because we're so close' types," Grim agreed before smirking. "Obviously the two of us make for an even better combo, though. After all, I'm a great and powerful magic user in training and you're…decent-looking by human standards, I guess," Devon rolled her eyes as Grim hopped onto her shoulder but her smile didn't fade. "Let's get back to our own dorm. Starting tomorrow, we aren't gonna be the janitors anymore!" He began bouncing excitedly on Devon's shoulder, causing her to smile. "Finally! Finally! Our bright and shiny school life at Night Raven College is about to begin!"

"I know it's only been the better part of a day but it really does feel like we've been gone for weeks," Devon mused as she and Grim made their way back to Ramshackle. They had just reached the top of the stone steps leading to the entryway when the front door flew open on its own and a familiar green orb raced out toward them. "Zephyr!" Devon called out happily as the Wisp flew around her playfully before hovering in their usual spot just over her shoulder. "I miss you guys today! You would not believe the day we've had." As soon as the words left her mouth, the paved walkway began moving on its own, pulling Devon and Grim toward the front door.

"What gives?!" Grim exclaimed, trying to keep his balance on Devon's shoulder without digging his claws into her. "I didn't know Regina could do this!" Once they'd been pulled into the foyer, Grim looked up at the dorm ceiling and called out, "Oi! Why'd you make us walk all the way up the stairs if you could've just pulled us in here yourself?!"

"What are you complaining about? You just rode on my shoulder the entire way back here," Devon pointed out as the remaining Wisps flew down to greet them as well. She fell silent as Regina explained what was happening so she could translate for Grim. "Huh. Apparently the longer Regina enchants the dorm, the farther they'll be able to reach and the more they'll be able to do. When they first enchanted Ramshackle, they could only influence the building itself but now they can manipulate the entire hilltop we're situated on. Soon Regina will be able to control this entire property, all the way to the rickety gate at the bottom of the hill." She turned toward Marina as the blue Wisp asked about her bandaged arm, drawing the attention of the remaining Wisps. "Hoo boy, where do we even start?" She let out a breath. "Okay, so you know how we were supposed to be cleaning up the school?"

"…and that's pretty much how it went," Devon finished, concluding her summary of the day's events. Zephyr pulsed a reply, causing Devon to laugh. "Ya know, I actually lost track of how many times I caught myself regretting that I hadn't let you come with us. But hey, at least some good came out of all that mess. We made some more friends and Grim and I are officially students now. You've gotta take the good with the bad, Zeph."

"Is that right?" came a voice from nearby. Devon and Grim looked up to see the three ghosts from earlier descending through the ceiling. The short ghost was the one who had spoken. "We were wondering why a uniform set and some textbooks suddenly appeared in your room."

"Sounds like you're gonna be stickin' around for a while, then," the skinny ghost said, sounding almost hopeful.

"Sounds that way," Devon agreed. "At least until the headmaster can get me home. Can we save the murder attempts for another time though, guys?" She gestured to her injured arm. "I think I've hit my 'stuff trying to kill me' quota for the day."

"Ah, about that…," the chubby ghost started. "I think there's been a misunderstanding."

"You guys keep making comments about us becoming your new "ghost pals" pretty much every time you appear," Devon recalled. "Seems pretty clear to me."

"Nah, you've got it all wrong, kid," the short ghost assured her. "That was just a little ghost humor. You never actually wanted to hurt either of you. We like pranks, it's true, but they're all in good fun. We'd never want anybody to get hurt." Devon still didn't look convinced, so the ghost continued. "Look, we've been pretty lonely here since all the students living here left. Even now, most people are too afraid to come near this place. We haven't had living friends in such a long time."

"That's why we were so excited when the headmaster brought you here!" the chubby ghost elaborated. "We wanted to come out as soon as you'd had the chance to look around but," he gestured toward Zephyr, who was hovering nearby protectively. "your Wisp-y friend got to you first." He glanced toward Grim. "And we were even more thrilled when the headmaster allowed this little guy to stay here too!"

"So thrilled you attacked us as soon as you could," Grim grumbled, crossing his arms.

"We were just trying to scare you, honest," the skinny ghost replied. "Like we said, our intention was never for either of you to be harmed." He made a move to float closer, only to back off when Zephyr and Fuego crackled threateningly. "Then we heard the headmaster mention that you'd come from another world entirely. We hadn't even considered that anything was amiss since you seemed so put-together but…"

"Yeah, well rule number one of cheerleading is 'Never let 'em see ya sweat'. For better or worse, I've always been good at seeming alright on the outside," Devon said. She rubbed her injured arm subconsciously. "Now that I think about it, you guys never actually tried to hurt us last night. The most you did was sneak up and scare us. I guess I jumped to conclusions before I even gave you guys a chance. I'm sorry about that. Being scared and stressed is no excuse for passing judgment so quickly."

"Hey, we're not blameless here either, kid," the chubby ghost said, offering her a small smile. "We ghosts sometimes forget how scary we seem to the living. We've got a bad habit of coming on too strong when it comes to our pranks; that's why this dorm was abandoned, after all. Can't really fault you for reactin' the way you did."

"Do you think we could start over?" the short ghost asked hopefully.

Devon smiled and nodded. "I'd like that. In that case, I'd like to officially introduce myself. I'm Devon Lopez but y'all can call me Dev." She glanced at Grim expectantly.

Grim sighed. "You can call me the Great Grim, future archsage in the making!"

The ghostly trio beamed at them. "We'd shake your hands but we're incorporeal," the chubby ghost said. "Nice to meet ya, Dev and Grimbo! Feel free to call us whatever you'd like. We've been ghosts for so long we can't remember our names anyway."

Devon thought for a moment before speaking up. "How would you guys feel about being called Tios?"

The ghosts looked at each other. "What does that mean?"

"It means 'Uncles' but it's not strictly limited to blood relatives, at least not in my family," Devon explained. "My brothers and I have always called our parents close friends our aunts and uncles too."

"Meh, I'm still just gonna call ya 'ghosts'," Grim added with a shrug, earning a laugh from everyone else.

The rest of the evening passed amicably as the ghosts, Devon, and Grim got to know each other better, as if all the tension was just a bad memory. Grim, at least, was still understandably wary of the ghosts but he was nowhere near as on edge as he'd been during their previous interactions. Eventually, though, the stress of the day on top of all the running and physical exertion caused Devon and Grim to tap out for the night. Devon excused herself to go and take a shower, eager to get cleaned up after all the running and sweating she did earlier.

She couldn't help but chuckle to herself when she caught sight of Zephyr hovering dutifully just outside the bathroom door as she finished getting ready for bed. "I appreciate the concern, Zeph, but I don't think you need to be quite so on edge. The ghosts said they'd back off, remember?" She hummed when Zephyr pulsed in response. "Yeah, I guess it's better to be overprotective-" She was cut off by another series of pulses, her eyes widening. "You don't need to do that!" More pulses. "Okay fine, but I'm sure what happened today was a fluke. There's no need to inconvenience yourself like that; Grim and I will be fine tomorrow." She sighed at Zephyr's reply, pulling back the covers on the bed and being careful not to wake Grim, who had sprawled out near the foot of the bed. The green Wisp clearly wasn't taking 'no' for an answer; they were adamant on accompanying the pair (Devon, really) to class the next day.

"Fine, fine," Devon conceded as she settled into bed, keeping her voice down so as not to disturb Grim. "We're not getting anywhere just arguing. You can come with us tomorrow but please don't feel like you have to stick around if you start feeling…tired, maybe? Or like you need to recharge?" She shook her head. "I'm sorry, I'm not really sure how it works for Wisps. My point is, if you feel like you need a break, take one. You all have already done so much for us and I don't want to inconvenience you any more than I already have." She kept her gaze on her orb-like friend. "Promise me?" Zephyr gave her one quick pulse before gently tapping against her forehead in response (not that she could feel it but it's the thought that counts). Devon smiled. "Good."

She felt Grim stir as she began to lie down, glancing in his direction as he sleepily stood up on all fours and padded over to her before hopping up onto her chest and settling back down, passing out again almost immediately. She laughed softly, running her fingers through his soft fur and eliciting a purr from the feline. "Goodnight, bud." She settled back against the pillows and whispered a quick goodnight to the Wisps before closing her eyes and falling asleep almost instantly.

Ending Notes: And with that, the Prologue is complete, my friends! I am so excited to start the Heartslabyul arc! More Devon/Ace interactions, Devon and the boys just…struggling to figure out if Cater's even real (I feel like Dev'll probably just ask him flat-out at some point), more Lopez family appearances and a peek into how things are going back in Devon's world, Grim being a menace, and some of the boys finally getting a chance to see Ramshacasita do its thing.

Thank you all so much for reading! As always, feedback and constructive criticism are always welcome! Geekinthepink, out!