Author's Notes: Just a quick warning before we get started here: there's a brief mention of blood in this chapter (nothing graphic), Devon curses in Spanish, and there are mentions of unhealthy coping mechanisms due to unresolved trauma stemming from sexism (nothing specific is mentioned because it gets explored in full later on when I cover the Savanaclaw arc, but I just wanted to give everyone a heads up).

Ace led the way to the woods behind the botanical garden after classes had dismissed for the day. Rays of sunlight filtered into the area through the gaps in the trees and a pleasant woody scent filled the air. Devon spotted some bright red apples hanging from the branches of a few of the trees and wondered briefly if students were allowed to pick the fruits. She'd have to ask Crowley the next time saw him. She glanced up when Grim tapped her shoulder.

"Check it out, Dev!" he chirped with excitement, pointing toward a small grove of chestnut trees nearby. "There are chestnut trees growing all over the place here!" He rubbed his front paws together, smiling mischievously. "With this many, we could have all-you-can-eat chestnut tarts! Nyaha!" He stood up on Devon's shoulder and reached toward the closest branch. "Let's get pickin-" He jerked his paw back suddenly and cradled it to his furry chest.

"What happened, bud?" Devon asked.

"The thorns pricked my paw!" Grim pouted. He leveled a glare at Zephyr when the green Wisp began to pulse with amusement. "Why you! You're makin' fun of me, aren't you?!" He reached out his good paw to swipe at Zephyr…only to lean out too far and fall to the ground face-first.

Devon snorted. "C'mon, Zeph. Don't be like that," she scolded, barely able to conceal her own laughter. Zephyr was completely unapologetic, happily flying in rings around Devon. Devon rolled her eyes playfully before squatting down next to Grim. "You okay?" Grim let out a small grunt in the affirmative and Devon scooped him up into her arms as she stood back up. "Lemme see your paw, bud." Grim reluctantly held out the paw that got pricked. There was a very small puncture wound on his center paw pad but thankfully it wasn't bleeding. "That don't look so bad. You'll be okay. But just to be safe…" She carefully took hold of his injured paw, placing a gentle kiss on the injured pad.

Grim jerked his paw back and gaped up at her in shock. "W-What was that about, henchman?!"

Devon shrugged. "Just something my mom used to do when my brothers and I got hurt as kids. It's supposed to make it stop hurting." She smiled at the feline in her arms. "Do you feel better?"

Grim grumbled something unintelligible before letting out a quick "Yeah" and hiding his face in Devon's neck.

"It doesn't look like we'll be able to pick these with our bare hands," Deuce told them. "If we're supposed to be collecting a few hundred, it'd probably be smart to get a basket or something to put them in too."

"Do you think the botanical garden would have that stuff?" Ace asked, nodding toward the large glass building nearby.

Deuce shrugged. "Only one way to find out. Let's go take a look."

The freshmen couldn't help but gape as the made their way into the building. The sweet perfume from several types of flowers filled the air and the sound of water running through a canal that cut through the entire garden could be heard nearby. "Whoa! It's way bigger in here than I thought!" Ace exclaimed.

"Given how big this place is, there has to be a groundskeeper or two, right?" Deuce mused. "Let's split up and see if we can find someone."

"I'll go right," Ace volunteered.

"Then I'll go left," Deuce said. "Dev, Grim, and Zephyr, you guys head straight back and see what you can find."

"You got it!" Devon agreed, giving him a tiny salute before setting off.

The Ramshackle trio set off toward the back of the garden. Devon's head kept swiveling around to try and get a look at all the flowers and trees. A lot of them looked like plants from her world but there were just as many that she didn't recognize. She wondered if any of the plants she didn't recognize had some sort of magical properties.

"Wow! There are so many yummy-looking fruits!" Grim exclaimed, gesturing to a tree full of ripe pears. He reached toward one. "They smell so good!"

"Ay, Swiper, no swiping!" Devon chided, gently smacking Grim's paw away as she kept walking. "We don't know if this place is a communal garden or not and I don't wanna risk starting a fight because we took someone's pears." She felt herself step on something long and thin, pausing when a deep voice grunted in pain. "Hmm? Did I step on a hose or something?"

A rustling in the plants nearby caused her to freeze. She turned in the direction of the sound to see a man with lion ears emerge from the foliage along the side of the path. He had messy dark brown hair that fell a little past his shoulders, two portions of it tied into braids on either side of his face. His bright green eyes were narrowed into a glare and Devon could just barely make out a scar going through his left eye. "Oi. You just gonna walk off without sayin' anything? You've got some nerve."

Devon blinked. "What?"

"Are you the groundskeeper here?" Grim asked the man. "Probably shouldn't be talkin' to a student like that, y'know."

"I was right in the middle of a nice nap and then you go and walk all over my tail," the man growled, ignoring Grim entirely. "Who do you think you are?"

Devon glanced down and, sure enough, the man did indeed have a lion tail; it was currently flicking with irritation. She could see the disdain in his eyes, not unlike the look Riddle had given her in the cafeteria earlier (or, for that matter, Ace when they first met). It was really starting to rub her the wrong way that most of the people here automatically wrote her off just because she wasn't able to use magic. It felt much too close to certain experiences she'd had back in her own world. 'If it's not one thing, it's another. Seems like people will find some reason to look down on me no matter which world I'm in.' The rational part of her knew it wouldn't do any good to pick a fight. There was no sense in making an enemy if she didn't have to; all she had to do was apologize and be on her way and she'd hopefully never have to see him again. The reckless and emotion-driven part of her, however… Well, it wanted nothing more than to knock him off his high-horse. Why should she have to roll over for this guy? He was the one who left his tail out where anyone could step on it. Besides, that look in his eyes reminded her way too much of…him. 'If I get all meek and submissive now, all that'll do is teach him that he can keep walking all over me. Well, history is not going to repeat itself this time!'

The two sides fought for control…and the emotions won.

"Don't be so dramatic," Devon scoffed. "It was an accident. Besides, if it evidently ruins your day to have it stepped on, maybe you shouldn't have had it just lying on the path."

The man's eyes widened just slightly and Devon felt just the slightest bit of smug satisfaction. Clearly, he wasn't used to people talking back to him, furthering Devon's belief that he was just another smug, self-centered jerkass who got off on making people weaker than him feel small. His glare intensified as he growled, actually growled, at her. "Just who do you think you're talkin' to, herbivore? Do you even know who I am?"

"Why? Did you forget?" Devon shot back.

"You-" The man took a threatening step closer to her, only to freeze. He straightened up, a smug smirk forming on his lips. "Hang on. I know you. You're that herbivore from the entrance ceremony. The one that the Dark Mirror said can't use magic." He leaned closer to her, his head hovering right next to hers, and inhaled deeply.

"Dude, what the actual hell?!" Devon shouted, taking a reflexive step. 'Hang on. He didn't recognize me until just now…so he wasn't acting all superior because of my lack of magic. Sounds like he just has a shitty personality, then.'

The man leaned back upright, the smirk still on his face. "So it's true; I can't smell a speck of magic on you." He sighed. "It's no fun fighting opponents who can't even put up a decent fight…but I'm still gonna do it."

"This guy's got my fur standin' on end, Dev," Grim whispered to her. "We need to get out of here."

"Don't worry, Grim," Devon whispered back. "He thinks I can't put up any sort of fight." She smirked. "It's gonna be so much fun to prove him wrong."

"You can't just step on my tail and expect to get away scot-free," the man continued, seemingly oblivious to Devon and Grim's conversation. "I'm pissed from being woken up too, so I hope you're ready to leave behind a tooth."

"Bring it, kitty cat," Devon taunted. "I ain't scared of you!"

The man took a step toward her again and Devon braced herself to barrel roll out of the way of whatever he tried to do. Grim tapped her shoulder frantically. "Dev, we gotta-"

"Oi, Leona!" called out a voice. The plants along the path rustled again before being pushed aside to reveal a scrawny-looking boy with messy blonde hair and pale blue eyes. He had animal ears as well, but Devon couldn't quite place what type of animal they belonged to. "I thought I'd find you here. It's time for your remedial lessons, y'know."

The man, Leona, by the sound of it, heaved an irritated sigh. "And now I've got this annoyance to deal with."

"You wouldn't have to take remedial lessons if you didn't keep failing, Leona," the boy pointed out. "You realize that we'll be classmates if you get held back again, right?"

"Shut up," Leona scoffed, crossing his arms. "I don't need a lecture from you too, Ruggie."

"It's not like I enjoy having to nag you all the time!" Ruggie protested. "You're not a stupid guy, y'know. You could skate right on through this if you just tried a little." He shook his head, realizing it was pointless to keep arguing. "Whatever. Let's go."

Leona rolled his eyes before turning his glare back on Devon. "You'd better think twice before walking into my turf again, herbivore."

"Pfft. Sure thing, Hoss," Devon snarked before issuing Leona a mock salute as he walked away. The lion threw one last glare over his shoulder before stalking off through the plants.

Grim heaved a sigh as he collapsed into Devon's arms. "Let's just get outta here. Why would they hire someone that intimidating as the groundskeeper?!"

"That asshole wasn't the groundskeeper, Grim," Devon told him as she carried him back toward the entrance, Zephyr following closely. "Didn't you notice? He was wearing a uniform."

"Hey!" Ace called out from further along down the path, pulling Devon and Grim from their conversation. "We were just about to come get you guys! We found some tongs and a basket over here."

"Oh right, the chestnuts!" Grim exclaimed. "If we don't collect a whole bunch, we'll be stuck with a really puny tart! C'mon!" He jumped down from Devon's arms and began running toward Ace and Deuce on all fours.

"Did…something happen back there?" Deuce asked, taking in Devon's clenched fists and the stormy look in her eyes.

"We'll tell you all about it while we're foraging," Grim replied.

"And that's what happened," Grim said, concluding his recap of the events in the botanical garden.

"I'm with New York; there's no way that guy was the groundskeeper," Ace said, pulling some chestnuts off the tree using a pair of the tongs they borrowed.

"Actually, now that I think about it, that guy was wearing a yellow vest," Grim recalled. "That means he belongs to that…Bananaclaw dorm, right?"

Deuce quirked an eyebrow. "Banana… Do you mean Savanaclaw?" He tossed some chestnuts into the basket. "Is it just me or does it seem like there are a lot of delinquents at this school?" He looked over toward Devon. "What do you think, Dev?" There was no answer. Devon had been fairly quiet throughout Grim's story, plucking chestnuts off the trees and tossing them into the basket. The anger in her eyes hadn't faded, so Deuce headed over to where she was foraging. As he got closer he could hear her muttering to herself. He couldn't understand what she was saying, in part because of how low she was speaking but also because she was speaking a language he'd never heard before. He heard her mutter something to the effect of "Cabron hijo de perra" before tapping her on the shoulder.

Devon squeaked in surprise before whipping around to face her friend. "Oh, hey Deuce. Sorry about that."

Deuce shook his head. "It's cool. I'm sorry if I scared you. You've just been awfully quiet since we left the gardens and I wanted to make sure you were okay."

Devon offered him a small, grateful smile. "I'm okay, man. Thanks for checking on me. I guess I'm still pissed about that guy Grim, Zeph, and I ran into."

"What did he do that got to you so badly?" Deuce asked. "I mean, you've had people insult you before and you didn't get anywhere near this angry."

"That's just it, though," Devon said. "The more I think about it, I'm not made about what that Leona guy did or said specifically. I think I was just project-"

"Alrighty!" Ace's voice rang out. Devon and Deuce looked over to see him tossing a few more chestnuts into the now extremely full basket. "I think this chestnut pile looks big enough. How about you guys?"

Deuce nodded. "Looks good to me."

"Yeah! Let's get them back to Trey," Devon agreed.

"This tart is gonna be amazing!" Grim cheered.

"Ah. Welcome back," Trey greeted as the group met him in the cafeteria kitchen. He let out an impressed whistle as Zephyr gently set the basket of chestnuts down on the nearest countertop using Wind magic. "Looks like you all collected quite a lot."

"We should be able to make a really big tart with this many chestnuts, right?" Grim asked eagerly.

"Yeah, but peeling all these is going to be a challenge," Trey replied. "Better get started, you four."

Deuce looked back at the basket in horror. "We have to peel all of these?!" He shook his head. "There's no end in sight."

Trey patted him on the shoulder. "Proper preparation is the key to successful baking."

"Yeah, yeah, we get it," Ace said impatiently. "Let's just get this over with."

"Peeling a chestnut properly can be tricky," Trey warned them as he helped them get set up in the kitchen. "We'll be using magic to get it done more efficiently."

"Devon and Ace can't use magic, so it looks like it's the hard way for them," Deuce commented.

"Psh. I bet I'll still be able to peel circles around you, even without magic," Ace challenged.

"You guysh," Grim began, his mouth stuffed full with chestnuts. "'hould jus' 'hit back'n wa'sh ush show you 'ow ihh done!"

"Oi, don't go eatin' all the ingredients!" Ace scolded.

Everyone set to work peeling the chestnuts, Trey, Deuce, and Grim (who decided this would be a great time to show off his talent for juggling) with magic, and Ace and Devon peeling by hand. They both picked up on it reasonably quickly despite never having peeled a chestnut before and soon enough, Devon and Ace's competitiveness had been stoked to the point that they began racing to peel the most chestnuts.

"Hey, hey, check it out, New York! Look how perfectly I peeled this one!" Ace boasted excitedly, holding up a beautifully peeled chestnut for Devon to see. He smiled when she laughed. "Feel free to applaud. I think I deserve it."

Devon snorted. "Of course you do." She gently nudged his shoulder. "Good job, man."

"Not bad, Ace," Trey complimented. "You're more dexterous than I thought."

"Heh, thanks," Ace replied, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. "I mean, one of us freshmen has to be an undiscovered peeling prodigy and it sure ain't the furball or the try-hard."

"My chestnuts are peeled just fine, thank you very much!" Deuce huffed.

"Yeah, mine too!" Grim added, holding up one of his own. "See? Put mine next to Ace's and you can't even tell the difference!"

Trey chuckled. "I'm glad to see that you all have so much energy because we've still got a long way to go."

"Can I talk to you for a second, Dev?" Ace asked. A comfortable silence had settled over the two of them, the only real background noise being Trey helping Deuce and Grim perfect their peeling technique.

"Always," Devon replied, looking at him curiously. "You hardly ever use my real name, though. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I guess. It's just…something that's been eatin' at me for a while," Ace told her. He glanced over at the other three to make sure they were still too absorbed in what they were doing, subtly pulling Devon further away from them and out of earshot. He pulled in a breath before he began. "Ya know how I was kinda, sorta…not that nice to you when we met?"

Devon rolled her eyes playfully, still peeling her pile of chestnuts. "I have a vague recollection of you being a complete and utter ass, yes."

"Heh. Guess I deserve that, huh?" Ace replied sheepishly. "I actually wanted to apologize for that. And…explain myself, I guess."

Devon stared at him, all her playful snarkiness gone. "Oh… I didn't really expect to hear that from you. I won't lie to you, I was a little curious about why you were so dead-set on picking a fight with me and Grim." She turned toward him, giving him her full attention. "Okay, I'm listening."

"I'll be honest with you. I did it because I was jealous," Ace told her bluntly.

"Jealous of me and Grim?" Devon asked. "Even though we were just janitors?"

"When I think back now, it sounds really dumb," Ace admitted. "Frankly, I was more jealous of you than of Grim. I mean, here I am working my tail off to get into this school and then you just waltz on in with no magic and the headmaster still lets you stay. I mean, yeah, you weren't a student at that point but still." He sighed, picking up a chestnut and peeling it to keep his hands busy. "I know plenty of guys who'd give their right arm to be admitted here, y'know? I figured you'd be sent right back home when the Dark Mirror said you couldn't use magic, only to find that headmaster let you hang around." He was silent for a moment. "Of course, I didn't know about your, ah, otherworldly situation and that you're basically stranded here."

Devon let out a breath. "I never thought about it that way. People keep saying how prestigious Night Raven is, but I guess it's hard to really understand what a big deal it is to be accepted here when I didn't even know it existed until a couple days ago." She picked up a chestnut and began peeling again as well. "I know Cater said there are rumors going around about me but I'm not sure if the 'literally stuck in Twisted Wonderland for reasons she can't explain with no way home for the foreseeable future' rumor has made its way around yet. Probably means there's plenty of other guys here thinking along the same lines as you were. Looking at it from your perspective, I can understand why you felt so resentful."

"Maybe, but it still wasn't cool of me to be such an ass to you," Ace said. He opted to keep his eyes on the chestnuts he was peeling since he didn't trust himself to look Devon in the eyes just yet. It wasn't like him to be this open about how he was feeling, let alone admit when he was wrong, but for some reason the idea that Devon might have taken any of the nasty things he said to her seriously made his stomach feel squirmy. "I felt awful about that "magicless nobody" comment from pretty much the moment I made it and then after your rant at the mine, it just started eating at me. So…I'm sorry."

Devon smiled warmly and shook her head. "I appreciate the apology, Ace, and I forgive you. I mean, I already forgave you but you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I figured there were no hard feelings when you let me sleep with you last night," Ace snarked. "I still wanted to say it though."

"I'm sorry, you did what last night?" came Trey's voice from behind them. The pair turned to see their green-haired friend standing there with his arms crossed and an 'I better not have heard what I think I just heard' expression on his face, looking like a very disappointed (a maybe a little overprotective) older sibling.

Ace was rendered speechless for a moment, his mouth flapping open and closed as he struggled to think of a response. He glanced over at Devon, who just shook her head.

"Don't even try to pin this one on me, dude," she told him. "You threw the lure, you reel it in."

"Start talking, Ace," Trey ordered.

One awkward explanation later, everyone was back on chestnut peeling detail. Now that everyone had gotten into a groove, the remaining chestnuts were finished in no-time flat.

"Alright, this is the last one," Deuce announced. He tossed it into the air and fired off a spell, causing the outer shell to fall away seamlessly. "And…there! We're done!"

"Thanks for all your hard work, guys," Trey praised. "Looks like even the non-magical side got through this much faster than I thought."

"Nyaha! Well, of course! It was bound to go smoothly with me on the case!" Grim boasted.

"Well don't rest on your laurels just yet. We have to puree them next," Trey told them.

"We gotta do more stuff?!" Devon exclaimed.

"Dude, not cool!" Ace complained.

"Uuuugh, we finally finished pureeing all that!" Ace exclaimed, collapsing against the nearest countertop. "I feel like I'm about to keel over right here."

"Same," Deuce agreed. "Feels like my arms are about to fall off."

Trey chuckled. "You all did great. I promise that your hard work will make the tart that much tastier."

"The smell's already got me droolin'," Grim commented from Devon's shoulder, leaning over the bowl of pureed chestnuts and inhaling deeply.

"It certainly does. All over me," Devon said, shooting Grim an unamused look.

"The next step is to mix some butter and sugar into the chestnut paste, then add my secret ingredient: oyster sauce," Trey told them.

"Oyster sauce?!" the freshman exclaimed.

Trey nodded. "Mmhmm. The umami of the oysters adds a nice, deep richness to the cream." He held up a glass bottle. "Specifically, I use this Walrus Approved Young Oyster Sauce. All the famous patisseries use this in their tarts."

"Are you sure? Oyster sauce is kinda…really salty," Deuce pointed out.

"Yeah, I'm with Deuce on this one," Devon agreed. "I mean, I'm not from Twisted Wonderland so maybe it's just a cultural difference but I've never heard of oyster sauce being used in pastries."

"Maybe, but…people put chocolate in curry sometimes, right?" Ace asked. "Maybe it'll taste alright."

The corners of Trey's mouth quirked upwards. "Pfft…Ahahaha! Of course it wouldn't!" He wiped a tear from his eye. "Who in the world would ever put oyster sauce in a dessert?!"

"Wha…?" Ace looked confused for a moment, only for his cheeks to turn a light pink as he realized Trey had just been teasing them. "Ah, screw you, man! I believed you for a second there!"

Trey patted Ace on the shoulder. "Haha! If you'd just thought about it for a second, you'd have realized something was up. Don't just accept things without a healthy amount of skepticism. Consider this some free advice from your upperclassman."

"This guy looks nice but he's probably the most conniving person we've met so far," Grim whispered to Devon.

Trey laughed again, shaking his head. "All joking aside, our next step is to take some cream and…oh…"

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Ace asked.

"You guys gathered so many chestnuts that I got ahead of myself and made too much chestnut paste," Trey told them. "We don't have enough cream to mix into it."

"I can go and buy some!" Deuce volunteered. "Do you think they sell it at the school store?"

"They sell just about everything there, so you should be able to find it," Trey said. "Can I ask you to pick up a few other things for me while you're there? I'll need two cartons of milk, a dozen eggs, some aluminum baking cups and about five cans of fruit."

"Umm…I'm not sure I'll be able to remember all tha-" He was cut off by a piece of paper with the items Trey needed written on it being shoved in front of his face. He looked over to see Devon holding it out to him while putting a notepad and pen back into one of the pockets of her messenger bag. "Oh. Thanks, Dev!"

"Okay, seriously. How much stuff do you have in there?!" Ace asked her.

"I am nothing if not prepared," Devon replied. Her expression darkened as if she was experiencing a terrible flashback. "I've learned the hard way that I'm not someone who can go to the store without some sort of list. To turn into your driveway only to realize you forgot to get the dang cheese is a frustration I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy." She noticed Trey and Ace giving her confused looks. "Cheese is a big deal in my family."

"I don't think I'll be able to carry all this by myself," Deuce said as he looked over the list. "Would you care to come with me, Dev?"

Devon nodded. "Love to!" She grabbed her bag and slung it onto her shoulder, Zephyr moving to take up their usual position. "I've actually got my own list of stuff I've been meaning to get. There's no food at Ramshackle aside from the snacks that I was carrying when I got here and I doubt those are gonna last much longer now that Grim knows about them."

"If Dev's going, I'm going too!" Grim declared. "My arms are about to fall off from all that whiskin'."

A short walk later, Devon, Grim, Zephyr, and Deuce stepped up to the front door of Mr. S's Mystery Shop. "Pardon us," Deuce called as he held the door open for Devon before following her inside. They were immediately greeting by an upbeat jazz tune playing from somewhere in the store, though they couldn't see any speakers from where they were standing. At first glance, the shop didn't really seem like a place where one could buy everyday items. A crystal ball was prominently displayed on a nearby counter and various charms and jewelry were locked behind a glass case. There were all manner of exotic items in the shop, most of them things the freshmen had never seen before. Deuce's eyes widened as he tried to take everything in. "Whoa…this place is incredible! Look, there's a crystal skull, some grimoires…"

"And whatever that taxidermy thing is!" Devon interjected, nodding toward what appeared to be the head of some sort of animal mounted on the wall.

"Do you really think we can get cream here?" Grim asked from his perch on Devon's shoulder.

"Hey there, my little lost imps! How goes it?" called a voice, nearly causing Grim to topple over. Everyone looked in the direction of the voice to see a man standing behind the register and smiling at them. They weren't sure if he'd been there when they walked in or if he'd come out at some point while they were checking out the merchandise. He tipped his purple and black top hat to them in greeting. "Name's Sam. Welcome to Mr. S's Mystery Shop! What can I get for you? A map of an uncharted land? The mummy of an ancient king? Or how about a cursed deck of tarot cards?"

"Whaa! You scared us!" Grim exclaimed.

Deuce cleared his throat as he stepped up to the counter, Devon following close behind. They both held their lists out. "We'd like the items on these lists, please."

"And some cans of tuna!" Grim chimed in.

"Don't worry, Grim. I already put tuna cans on the list I made," Devon assured her feline friend.

"Let's see here," Sam said, taking the lists and looking them over. "Cream, eggs…what a nice sweet line-up! I'll bring it all right up for you, so just hang tight for a bit." With that, he turned and headed through a doorway behind the counter.

"Huh. I guess he really does have it all," Deuce commented. "What did you have on your list anyway, Dev? Besides the tuna cans."

Devon shrugged. "It's mostly just some foodstuffs. Meat, cheese, eggs, stuff like that. I'm not really sure if I can find all the foods I'd normally eat back in my world here, so I tried to make a list based off of what I saw in the cafeteria today. All I really need are the ingredients and I cook most of my favorites myself."

"You cook?" Deuce asked.

Devon nodded, smiling. "Mmhmm. Everyone in my family can. Mama and Papa taught my brothers and me when we were little. My uncle owns a restaurant so we learned a few things from him too."

"Seriously?" Grim asked excitedly. "What kind of food does he serve? Can I get tuna there?!"

Devon giggled as she rubbed Grim's ears. "Well, you probably won't be able to get the canned tuna you like so much, but he'd definitely be able to whip up a really good fish dish for ya. As for the kind of food, Tio Diego specializes in Latin American dishes; it's what he grew up eating and something he's always been passionate about. It's…kinda hard to explain since I don't have my phone or any kind of map to show you but I'd be happy to cook something to give you an example." Her smile turned wistful. "I'd be lying if I said it wouldn't be at least somewhat for my own benefit, though. Cooking's one of the only ways I can think of to feel some kind of connection to my family."

"You really miss 'em, huh?" Deuce asked as he put a hand on her shoulder.

"More than I've ever missed anyone," Devon told him, trying to keep her voice steady. "It's my mom that really getting to me, though. I didn't get to see her before she left to go to work." She could feel her eyes starting to get misty. "I wasn't able to say goodbye to any of them before I was brought here but I at least got to talk to my dad and brothers; Mama was already gone when I woke up."

Grim shifted awkwardly before reaching out a paw to pat Devon's cheek. He cleared his throat. "Th-There, there, henchman. I'm sure your family misses you too."

"And if they're anything like you, I have no doubt they'd tear your world apart trying to find you," Deuce added as he pulled her into a hug.

"That's what I'm afraid of," Devon replied, returning the hug before stepping back and letting him go. "I wish I had some way to at least talk to them and tell them what happened. I have no doubt that they'd try to search for me, but unless they somehow find a way here, they aren't gonna find me." She rubbed at her bracelet. "There has to be a way to reach them, though. If there was a way to pull me here from my own world, I have to believe that there's a way to at least communicate between worlds too."

"Well, if anyone can find it, it'll be you," Deuce replied confidently. "I think I know you well enough by now to know that if there isn't already a way, you'll make one."

"And I'll be right there with ya…to supervise," Grim added, hopping down onto the counter.

Devon snorted. "Thanks, Grim. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Sorry about the wait, my little imps," Sam called as he reappeared from the back of the shop, multiple bags floating behind him and settling onto the countertop. "I got everything you asked for. The load's a bit heavy, though. You got it?"

"We'll be fine. Thanks, though," Deuce replied as he and Devon paid for their items. Once Devon had paid for her things, Zephyr wasted no time in zapping the bags to Ramshackle, leaving her free to help Deuce carry the things Trey had asked him to get.

"Are you sure?" Sam pressed, watching Zephyr curiously. "If you order now, I can get you a 1/100 scale floating platter to carry your purchases for 30% off."

"That sounds awesome!" Grim exclaimed.

"W-We'll be okay, thanks," Deuce interjected quickly, scooping Grim up and putting him back on Devon's shoulder. "Time to go, Grim."

"What?! But I wanted to hang out more!" Grim protested.

"Okay, okay. Make sure you stop by again soon, my little imps!" Sam smiled as he waved to them. "Bye!"

"Man, that store was crazy," Deuce commented as the group made their way up Main Street.

"Yeah, and you're a total buzzkill," Grim added. "We totally could've hung out a little longer."

"Who're you callin' a buzzkill?!" Deuce grumbled. He glanced at Devon and cleared his throat. "That bag of cans looks pretty heavy, Dev." He held his hand out to her. "Here, let me take that one. I actually know a trick to carrying heavy bags."

Devon sent him a grateful smile as she handed the bag over. "You sound like you're an old pro at grocery runs."

Deuce laughed. "Something like that, yeah. My mom always buys more than we need during sales, so the bags always end up really heavy. I'm the only guy in our house, so the heavy-lifting has always been left up to me." He paused abruptly. "Oh, my bad. You were just talking about how much you miss your family and here I am talking about mine. I wasn't trying to make you feel worse, I promise."

Devon smiled and shook her head. "You're fine, dude. I like hearing about other people's families." She nudged him gently. "It sounds like you really care about your mom."

Deuce nodded. "I really do. But in the past I always made her-Ow!" He stumbled back as two figures suddenly appeared from behind one of the Great Seven statues, knocking into him as they did so.

"Fgnya! The eggs!" Grim exclaimed. Deuce and Devon looked down to see that some of the eggs they'd bought had been cracked when one of the figures collided with Deuce, causing some of the yolks to leak all over the inside of the bag.

"Shit! Some of these eggs have been completely destroyed!" Deuce shouted. "There's egg good all over the bag!"

"Hey, watch where you're goin', ya- Hang on…," came a familiar voice. Devon looked up to see that the people who'd run into them were the two bullies they'd met in the cafeteria earlier. It was the blond who had spoken. "Aren't you the assholes that wrecked my carbonara at lunch?"

"Seriously?! You can't even go a whole day without gettin' into some kinda trouble, huh?" taunted his red-headed friend.

"You were the ones who jumped out from behind the statue," Deuce pointed out. "Even at lunch, it wasn't as if you couldn't eat the egg in your pasta, yet you still tried to pick a fight. You do realize that you just ruined a whole pack of our eggs, don't you?"

"Yeah, he's right!" Grim agreed.

"And? You're sayin' it's our fault?" the blond asked.

"I am," Deuce replied firmly, his voice surprisingly level considering the irritation in his eyes. "Please pay for the eggs. And then please apologize to the chickens."

"Pfft. Why are you gettin' so worked up over some eggs, huh?" the redhead scoffed.

'You have no room to talk, asswipe,' Devon thought.

"…Excuse me?" Deuce asked icily, his blue eyes become steely.

"They ain't on the ground, so you can still eat 'em," the blond said dismissively. "No need to sweat the small stuff."

"Yeah, we just saved you the trouble of breaking them yourselves!" the redhead taunted. "You oughta be thanking us!" He and his buddy barked out a mocking laugh.

Deuce mumbled something intelligible, his head down and his fists clenched and shaking.

"Huh? What was that?" the blond asked.

Deuce's head shot up as he glared at the two upperclassman. Devon and Grim's eyes widened when they noticed the same feral look in them that he'd had at Dwarf's Mine. "I said this ain't no laughing matter!" Deuce shouted, gritting his teeth and slamming his fist against his palm. "Didja go deaf all of a sudden, assholes?!" The bullies both stepped back a bit, clearly surprised at the outburst, but Deuce wasn't finished. "What gives you the right to decide what's important to us?! Those eggs were gonna become a delicious tart to make up for not getting' to hatch into chicks!"

'Wait a sec…,' Devon thought.

"Are your heads too thick to comprehend that or what?! Huh?!" Deuce finished.

"Eek! W-What's this guy's problem all of a sudden?!" the redhead stammered.

"If you won't pay us back for the six eggs you broke…," Deuce smirked. "I hope you're ready to get your faces punched in that many times instead!"

"Whaaa?!" the bullies exclaimed.

"Hang on a sec, Deuce," Devon interjected, placing her hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her and she smirked when he met her gaze, setting her bags down. "You take the idiot on the left, I'll take the asswipe on the right. I think it's about time someone taught these jerks some manners."

Deuce smirked back, setting his bags down as well. "I knew we were buds for a reason." He turned back to the bullies, his feral glare returning. "Square up, assholes!" He wasted no time in striding toward the blond and punching him square in the nose.

The redhead smirked and raised his magical pen to point at Devon, only for Zephyr to immediately snatch it away, locking it up in a small twister like they had done with Grim. The boy glanced at Devon nervously, suddenly without an advantage. "C-Come on, princess," the redhead stammered, stepping back as Devon stepped forward. "Are you sure you wanna do this? I've been studying martial arts and I'd hate to mess up that pretty face of yours, y'know."

Devon snorted. "Trust me, I'm more than sure I wanna do this." She cracked her knuckles as she continued to advance toward him. "It's just that I'm so agitated, y'see? Honestly, I'm not sure what you and your buddy over there are trying to accomplish by picking a fight with some freshmen, but trying to impress the people who can actually follow through on their threats as if they're your alcoholic father ain't a good look, honey." The redhead froze at her words, his face turning red, and Devon could tell she'd struck a nerve. She couldn't claim self-defense unless he threw the first punch, though, so she kept going. "But hey, if you're gonna do it anyway, then be a sport and grab Daddy another beer, will ya?"

That did it. "You shut your damn mouth!" the redhead roared as he charged at her with his fist raised. "What makes you think you can talk to me like that?!" Before he could actually attempt to hit her, though, Devon took a step forward and swung her fist into his solar plexus. He sank to the ground immediately, holding his abdomen as he struggled to draw a breath.

Devon bent down to his level, her eyes and tone as icy as they'd been in the cafeteria earlier that day. "I wasn't joking about knocking you on your ass, dickhead. I warned you and your idiot friend to just leave it alone, but you insisted on picking a fight. Luckily for you two, nobody's here to see you on your knees like this and I have no intention of hittin' someone who's already down," She nodded toward his blonde friend, who was still getting the stuffing punched out of him by Deuce. "so why don't you grab your buddy there and get on outta here before you piss us off even more."

As if on cue, the blond staggered over to them, his nose bleeding. "Th-These guys are insane!" He looked back at Deuce over his shoulder. "That was way more than six hits, you jackass!" He slung his friend's arm over his shoulder and hauled him to his feet. "L-Let's just get outta here! I apologize to all the chickens!" With that, the pair began staggering down Main Street as quickly as they could.

Zephyr floated over to Deuce, calling off the twister and dropping the magical pen trapped inside into his hand. Deuce whistled at the retreating bullies to get their attention before chucking the pen towards them as hard as he could. "You'd better be apologizin' a hundred times the next time you eat eggs, ya dumbasses!"

"Hey, now," Devon said. "They're already running. There's no need to keep trash-talkin' 'em, bud. Even if they do deserve it."

"E-Eek! You guys are two completely different types of scary when you're mad!" Grim exclaimed, though he didn't struggle when Devon scooped him up and began gently rubbing his ears to help calm him down.

Deuce stared after the bullies, his hands on his knees as he panted. His eyes widened suddenly and he stood up straight. "Oh crap!"

"What's up?" Devon asked.

"I really screwed up this time!" Deuce groaned, burying his head in his hands. "I swore I would absolutely, positively be an honor student this time…"

"Eeh?" Grim grunted, tilting his head.

Deuce looked over at Devon and Grim, debating whether or not to tell them about his shameful behavior when he was younger. Devon was the first person he'd considered a friend since he arrived at Night Raven College, not to mention the first girl his age that had spoken to him without a trace of fear and he didn't want to risk running her off. He was about to tell them not to worry about it, but he hesitated when he met Devon's eyes. As usual, there was no fear in her expression, only concern, but this time there was a strange sort of…magnetism to her gaze that made him want to tell her everything. He wasn't sure if it was because her eyes almost appeared to glow blue in the evening sun (he assumed it was the sun, at least; he wasn't sure what else would cause that) or if it was the genuine worry on her face, but he started talking before he could stop himself.

"All I ever did in middle school was screw around," Deuce told them. "I skipped class constantly and got into fights almost every day. I disrespected my teachers, hung around with sketchy upperclassmen, and bleached my hair to death. I was an absolute terror who ran wild on my Magical Wheel and a horrible person who would constantly lord my magic over people who couldn't use it."

"So you were slightly more annoying than you are now?" Grim asked.

"Grim!" Devon chided, shooting the little monster a glare before turning her gaze back to Deuce. "I think we did catch a little glimpse of the more…forceful side of you at Dwarf's Mine. What changed, if you don't mind me asking?"

Deuce sighed. "One night, I overheard my mom on the phone with my grandmother. She was trying to hide from me, but I could still hear her. She was in tears. She kept asking "Did I raise him wrong? Would he be doing better if he had both parents?"" He clenched his fists. "None of it was her fault. She wasn't the problem; I was!" He took a deep breath, his posture relaxing. "When the carriage from Night Raven College came to get me, my mom looked happier than I'd ever seen her. I swore to myself right then and there that I'd never make her cry again, that I'd become an honor student and finally be a son she can be proud of." He gritted his teeth. "And then I go and pull something like this… Damn it! I messed everything up!"

"I mean…did ya, though?" Grim asked. "I didn't think bein' a good student meant you had to just grin and bear it when someone's givin' ya a hard time."

Deuce looked at Grim, surprise written all over his face. "Huh?"

"If you ask me, those delinquents deserved another ten punches, at least!" Grim declared, pumping a fist into the air. "You guys got to 'em before I could, though."

"I agree," Devon added. "I was kinda hopin' that one guy had stayed up after I got him in the solar plexus so I could punch him some more." Zephyr pulsed in agreement as well, floating in a few quick circles around Deuce.

"You guys…," Deuce replied.

"I think those guys would've rubbed even the most diligent students the wrong way. Don't let them get you down too much," Devon assured him. "I know we didn't know each other in middle school, but the Deuce I know is hands-down one of the sweetest guys I've ever met. Not only did you help me catch Ace when you didn't even know me, but you're one of the only people I've met that hasn't made some sort of snide comment about me not being able to use magic. You've certainly never lorded your abilities over me, either." She smiled. "I'm sure your mother is already proud to call you her son. Any parent would be."

Deuce scratched his cheek with his index finger, his cheeks flushing a light pink. "Heh. Thanks, Dev. That means a lot." He gently punched her on the shoulder. They were about to gather up the bags they'd set down before he stopped. "Oh, hey! Hold up a sec. I got so distracted by everything that I forgot the real reason I asked you to come to the shop with me."

"Wasn't it to help you carry the stuff Trey wanted?" Devon asked.

"Yeah, partially, but I was hoping we could finish our conversation from when we were picking chestnuts earlier," Deuce replied. "We got interrupted before and I wasn't sure if you'd be comfortable taking about it in front of Trey and Ace. You said something about projecting and it's had me wondering where you were going with that."

Devon heaved a sigh. "You just spilled your guts to me, so I guess it's only fair. If it's alright, I'd rather not delve too deep into it, at least not now. I'm still…working through some stuff, I guess."

"I get that. Just share whatever you're comfortable sharing," Deuce replied.

"The more I think about what happened back at the botanical garden, the more I realize I could've handled the situation a lot better," Devon explained. "I was the one who stepped on that guy's tail, after all, so I should've apologized. I don't know if it would've changed anything about how that interaction went but at least I'd know I did all I could have to keep things civil. No matter which way you slice it, I was the one in the wrong."

"At least you've owned up to it. All you can really do now is try to learn from it and do better," Deuce said. "But I'm not sure where projecting comes in."

"I think part of the reason I was so quick to antagonize that Leona guy was because he reminded me of someone from my life back home," Devon elaborated. "Like I said, I don't really want to delve too deeply into it, but there was a guy I went to school with who…," She hesitated, trying to choose her words carefully. "didn't like me because I'm a female. I'll spare you the details but let's just say for now that he was very adamant about not liking me because of that." She crossed her arms, focusing her gaze on a nearby tree. "I've been going to therapy for a few years now and I've been trying to work through it. The things he said and did don't haunt me quite the way they used to, but the way Leona was glaring at me, that disdain, that…'you're beneath me and need to know your place' look brought all the anger I never properly dealt with back to me."

"So you were mostly acting on the anger you felt for that guy," Deuce concluded.

"I guess so, yeah," Devon confirmed. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I was plenty pissed at Leona too. But I think the reason I got so angry so fast was because of trauma I haven't completely overcome yet. I'm not even sure why it was Leona specifically that triggered me; he's not the first person to mock me for being magicless and I'm pretty sure he won't be the last."

"Well…I'm not an expert or anything, but maybe there's not always a clear-cut reason for why something can trigger a person in some circumstances but not others," Deuce suggested. He pulled her into a hug. "It really sucks that you had to go through something like that, but anybody who writes you off without giving you a chance is missing out because you're kind of awesome."

"I agree!" Grim chimed in, hopping onto Devon's shoulder and wrapping his paws around her head. "Obviously you're not on my level, but you're not bad for a henchman!"

"Just not bad, huh?" Devon asked with a grateful smile. "Guess I've gotta step my game up, then." She unfolded her arms and hugged Deuce back. "Thanks, guys. I think you're both pretty awesome too. Grim, the next greatest mage, and Deuce, fighter of bullies and defender of eggs."

Deuce laughed sheepishly. "Heh. May those baby chicks rest in peace."

"Umm…about that," Devon began, leaning back slightly to look up at him. "I wasn't sure when would be a good time to bring this up but the eggs we bought aren't fertilized. They wouldn't have hatched into chicks."

"Huh?" Deuce asked in disbelief. "A-Are you sure?" Devon nodded wordlessly and Deuce's face fell. "H-How do you know?"

"My brothers and I believed the same thing when we were little and Mama ended up having to explain it because we'd cry whenever we saw someone crack an egg," Devon explained. "She's a vet so if anybody would know, it's her."

"EEEEEHHH?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" Deuce shouted, his voice echoing up and down Main Street.

Ending Notes: Okay, a quick word here about Leona. I know it didn't really come across in this chapter, but he does drink his Respect Women juice every day. However, based on a few things he's said in some of his vignettes, it's clear that he doesn't think respecting women means coddling them. My interpretation is that Leona does look down on Devon (much like he does with pretty much everyone) and will continue to do so until their relationship starts to improve after the Savanaclaw arc solely because she can't use magic; her being female has nothing to do with it. In this first interaction, though, he doesn't recognize that she's female, mostly because he's pissed and sleepy from being woken up so suddenly. He thinks she's just a guy with delicate features. Besides, he isn't obligated to be respectful to her if she isn't being respectful to him and…she was kind of an asshole in this chapter. The unresolved trauma she's dealing with is going to be elaborated on more in the Savanaclaw arc, so hopefully that'll shed more light on why she immediately went into fight mode. Trust me, I'm eager for things to improve for them. #LeonaSimpSquad

On a happier note, we got to see Trey being a big bro to his underclassmen. If the asshole from Devon's world ever somehow did show up in Twisted Wonderland, he'd have quite a gauntlet of adopted big brothers to get through, especially if she'd been there for a while: Trey, Cater, the Leech twins, Vil…

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