Author's Notes: Sorry about the delay on this chapter, guys. I got sick before I was able to get this chapter posted and had to take a break to rest. I really appreciate you all being so patient!

Riddle and Devon's eyes snapped open as they returned to consciousness. The aura and glow in Devon's eyes faded away and, much to her relief, there was no trace of Riddle's Overblot form or the tree-wielding shadow creature. Unfortunately, the pain caused by her bruised rib returned with a vengeance as soon as her magic faded, causing her to let out a sharp gasp and pitch forward. Fortunately, Ace rushed to grab her shoulders and steady her in time. He knelt down next to her and let her use him as a crutch to keep herself propped up. She smiled as Zephyr zipped over to her as well, letting out a relieved pulse before blowing out a gentle puff of wind against her cheek in a sort of kiss.

"So you finally decided to come back to us, huh," Ace commented. His tone was flippant but Devon could see the concern in his eyes.

"Don't scare me like that, henchman!" Grim chided, running toward Devon on all fours and propping his paws up on her leg. "If you die, who's gonna buy me tuna?!"

"What happened? Are you guys okay?" Trey asked as he knelt down next to Riddle.

"Seriously! We didn't know what we were gonna do if you two stayed out of it for much longer!" Cater added.

"We're fine…I think," Devon gasped out. "It's kind of hard to explain what…" She trailed off as she caught sight of the carnage around her, Riddle following her gaze. "…happened…"

The pair looked around at the rose maze…or what was left of it, at least. Trees had been uprooted, a number of the hedges that made up the walls had been toppled, and there were several craters in the ground from Riddle's Overblot specter trying to murder everyone with giant rose trees. Said dorm leaders eyes widened in shock at the extent of the damage. "What…What did I…?"

"Ah, good," Crowley interjected. "It appears they've both come back to their senses. I'm so relieved."

'You say that, but your tone's as bored as ever,' Devon sniped inwardly, letting her head rest against Ace's. She could've sworn she felt the redhead nuzzle her gently but the pain in her abdomen made it impossible to dwell on it.

"Don't worry about the garden right now, Riddle," Trey said gently. "Just try to rest."

"Oh, come on! This whole mess started because everyone kept coddling him like that!" Ace pointed out. "There's no point in trying to sugarcoat it: the entire rose maze is a total dumpster fire and we've all had the tar beat out of us!"

"No joke," Deuce agreed.

"I don't understand why you humans bottle your stress up like that," Grim commented. "It's better to let it out so stuff like this doesn't happen."

Riddle looked at Ace, recalling Devon's words from inside the mind link. If things were going to improve around Heartslabyul, he was going to have to take the first step. There was no changing what had already been done, but he owed to his dormmates and himself to do better going forward. Even so, he found himself feeling apprehensive about how Ace would react; Riddle had been the hardest on Ace than on anyone else that remained in the rose maze. Devon was right that he'd probably take some time to win over, but the only way to start the healing process was to clear the air. He met Devon's eyes, his expression hesitant. She gave him a small smile and a nod, encouraging him to say what he needed to say. Feeling more encouraged by her support, Riddle's grey eyes returned to meet Ace's red ones. "The truth is…I really wanted to eat that chestnut tart."

Ace blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"The roses are fine white and the flamingos are fine pink," Riddle continued, looking around at Deuce, Cater, and Trey in turn. "I prefer putting honey in my tea instead of sugar cubes, and I like milk tea more than lemon tea anyway." His eyes began to grow misty. "I want to sit and chat with everyone after we finish eating…"

Trey exchanged a glance with Cater, looking just as confused as Ace. "Riddle…?"

"I-I wanted to spend more time with Trey and everyone else…" Riddle's voice trembled before the dam finally burst and the poor boy began sobbing into his hands. The rest of the boys looked at each other in confusion while Devon smiled at Riddle with a mix of both sympathy and pride on her face. Trey reached out to pat Riddle's back and Devon leaned forward with a wince to squeeze his hand.

"Man… I never thought I'd see the day our dorm leader would be bawling like a baby right in front of me," Cater whispered.

"I think it's a good thing," Devon whispered back. She let go of Riddle's hand to gently rub Grim's ears, causing the feline to purr and push his head into her hand. "This has been a long time coming. And Grim's right; bottling up your emotions is never a good idea."

Ace wasn't quite so sympathetic. "Oh, come on. Knock it off already! If you think a few crocodile tears are gonna be enough to make me let you off the hook, you're wrong!"

Deuce shook his head. "You're dead set on refusing to read the mood, huh?"

"I'm sorry too," Trey said, adjusting his hat. "I knew how much you were suffering but I turned a blind eye to it and said nothing. Well, not anymore." He looked Riddle in the eye, his tone firm but gentle. "Riddle, the way you've been doing things is wrong. You owe everyone a proper apology."

Riddle gave him a shaky nod. "I-I'm sorry!" He sniffled and choked out another sob. "I'm so sorry, everyone!"

Nobody said anything for a moment as Riddle continued to sob, his face buried in Trey's shoulder as the older boy continued to pat his back. Finally, Ace broke the silence. "Ya know, I've been asking myself what I would say to you if we ever got an actual apology from you and I kept drawin' a blank. But now that we've got one…" He gestured for Deuce to kneel down on Devon's other side. When the blue-haired boy did so, Ace gently braced Devon against him, taking care not to jostle her too much. Once he was satisfied that she was situated, he turned to face his dorm leader, pulled in a breath, and crossed his arms. "ONE MEASLY APOLOGY ISN'T ENOUGH TO FIX THIS MESS! DON'T THINK I'M GONNA FORGIVE YOU JUST LIKE THAT!"

The volume and ferocity of Ace's rant caused Cater to jump back. "Dude, are you serious right now?! How can you say that?!"

"Why wouldn't I?" Ace challenged. "All of us, including him, could've died thanks to that temper tantrum he threw! Not to mention, I'm still pretty salty that he threw away a perfectly good chestnut tart that we put so much time and effort into making for him! I don't care if he's bawling his eyes out, somebody's gotta hold him accountable and apparently it's gotta be me!"

"I ain't never met anyone better at holdin' grudges than me," Grim commented dryly, giving Ace an unamused look.

Riddle sniffled again. "But then…what I supposed to do?"

Ace looked at Riddle's tear-stained face, his harshness in his eyes softening just a bit before gesturing for Deuce to pass Devon back to him. "…My birthday's not for a while."

"Where are you going with this, Ace?" Deuce asked as he obligingly helped prop Devon against Ace again.

"I demand we have a Revenge Unbirthday Party," Ace said, wrapping his arm around Devon's waist to keep her steady. "We didn't even get to participate in the last one." His eyes lit up with an idea and he pointed at Riddle with his free hand. "And this time, you have to make the tart. No getting help from Trey, either; you gotta make it yourself." He looked awkwardly to the side, his tone losing most of its bite as he continued. "If you promise to do that…then we're square, I guess."

Devon quirked an eyebrow. "But Trey helped us make the tart we brought. Good thing he did too, because I don't think it would've turned out nearly as well otherwise."

"I didn't ask for the commentary, peanut gallery," Ace grumbled as he poked Devon's cheek. "So cork it."

"Luckily for you, I don't charge for it," Devon retorted. "All I'm saying is you could stand to be a little more honest, Ace. Emotional constipation isn't a good look."

Ace shot Devon a glare but there was no malice in it. "Man, you are so lucky I can't roughhouse with you right now."

"Bring it, Trappola," Devon challenged. "I can still put you on the ground, injured rib or no."

Ace rolled his eyes playfully before turning back to Riddle. "So? Do we have a deal?"

Riddle sniffled one more time and nodded. "Yeah. It's a deal."

"Mmhmm, mmhmm," Crowley hummed, nodding sagely. "Ah, the beauty of settling differences through compromise." He clapped his hands together. "It appears this matter has been settled."

Cater hopped up and dusted himself off. "Well, if that's the case, we should probably get to work cleaning up the garden." He sighed as he surveyed the mess, playing with a strand of his hair. "It was so photogenic earlier, but now it's a complete wreck. It's bringin' Cay-Cay down in a major way."

"Don't worry, I'll help you out," Trey assured him as he rolled up his sleeves.

Cater shook his head. "No, Trey. You should take Riddle to the infirmary. He just came out of an Overblot, after all. He should looked at by a professional, just to be safe."

"Mr. Diamond is right," Crowley agreed. "I'll escort you both there."

Trey nodded as he scooped Riddle up into his arms. "Understood. Thank you, sir."

"We probably oughta get Dev to the infirmary too," Deuce said. "I can see how shallow her breathing is. We need to make sure she didn't break anything when Riddle threw her."

"I'll take her," Ace volunteered. He looked over at her with concern. "Can you move at all?"

"I mean, I can, but it feels like someone's crushing my chest every time I do," Devon said. She looked over at Riddle, Trey, and Crowley. "You guys go ahead. We'll meet you there as soon as we figure out how to get me off the ground."

"Maaaan, I'm starvin' from usin' all that magic," Grim said as Riddle's group walked off. He paused and sniffed the air before wandering over to the spot where the shadow monster had disappeared. "Hm? Is this…?" He picked up a black crystal and held it up for the group to see. "This looks like the same kind of crystal we found at Dwarf's Mine!"

"Hey, you're right!" Deuce agreed as he walked over to take a closer look. "Where'd it come from? I don't remember seeing it here before."

"Just don't eat it this time, okay?" Ace told Grim.

"Pfft. Are you kidding me? I still remember how good the last one tasted!" Grim replied with a grin. "Down the hatch it goes!" With that, he swallowed the crystal in one gulp.

"H-He didn't even chew it!" Ace exclaimed in disbelief.

"Grimmy, sweetie, we really have to work on refining your palate," Cater said. "I know you're a monster but eating stuff right off the ground is just…blech!"

Grim had his eyes closed and his paws pressed to his cheeks, too lost in his own world to pay any attention to what his friends were saying. "This one starts out sweet and rich before ending with a slight hint of bitterness~! It's got a completely different flavor profile from the last one!"

"Are you sure those things aren't bad for your belly?" Devon asked, looking at her companion with concern.

"I mean…he's a monster. Maybe his stomach's just built different from ours," Ace reasoned.

"I don't think that means it's okay for him to eat stuff off the ground," Deuce replied.

"Ya know, the lawn actually has a pretty refreshing flavor too," Grim commented as he stuffed some grass in his mouth. He pulled out another pawful and held it out to Devon. "Here, try some!"

"That's our lawn, Grim! It's not for eating!" Deuce scolded as he tried to knock the grass out of Grim's paw.

Cater couldn't help but laugh as he watched Grim immediately take off running, taunting the blue-haired boy as he chased after him. The monster scampered through the wreckage of the maze easily enough, weaving in and out of the fallen trees and across the fallen hedges. Deuce's attempt to follow him resulted in him tripping on a fallen ladder and landing flat on his face. This naturally led Ace, who had somehow managed to haul Devon onto his back (he suspected Zephyr had used their magic to help lift her up without jostling her too much), to start laughing at Deuce's expense, which led to Devon flicking Ace on the forehead and ordering him to knock it off despite clearly stifling a laugh of her own. "Never change, you lot. Never change." He lowered his voice. "…And thank you…"

"Hmm? Did you say something?" Ace asked.

Cater offered him a close-eyed smile and shook his head. "Nope~! Nothing at all! Now get our sweet baby Dev to the infirmary, kay~! We'll get to work on the garden." He looked out at the mess again and heaved a sigh. "We've definitely got our work cut out for us."

"Actually…I might know a couple friends who can get this garden lookin' good as new," Devon told him. "It might take a little convincing but…hold off for now, okay? I'll talk to them as soon as we're done at the infirmary."

Ace quirked an eyebrow as he turned his head to look at her, wondering who these "friends" of hers could possibly be, but he figured he'd find out soon enough. Her hesitant, shallow breaths were concerning him too and he didn't want to dawdle any longer than they had to. "Alright, let's get you to the nurse for real now."

Devon smiled as Ace turned and began walking toward the mirror portal leading to the main campus. "Hey," she began once they were out of earshot of the others, waiting until he was looking at her before continuing. "Thanks for doing this, man."

"Yeah, well, it would've taken too long for you to haul your injured ass back to campus yourself," Ace replied flippantly, but Devon could feel him tightening his grip on her legs.

"I mean, you could've just left it to Deuce or Cater," Devon pointed out.

Ace shook his head. "Not really. Deuce can't handle anything delicately to save his life; he'd probably just make your injury worse. And I bet Cater would just use it as an excuse to get handsy or somethin'."

Devon snorted. "I doubt that. He's a flirt but he's always been super respectful about boundaries. Besides, I think we both know I could take him." She was silent for a moment, her tone more serious when she spoke again. "And thanks for stickin' up for me back there too. I don't think there's many people who would've punched their own dorm leader in the face like that."

Ace hesitated, caught off-guard by Devon's words. "I…That was just… He had it comin', ya know? I didn't do it for you; I just couldn't stand to hear him talk down to everyone anymore." He lowered his voice, speaking more to himself than to Devon, but she heard him just the same. "Besides, nobody gets to insult you except me."

Devon smiled and nuzzled her face against Ace's neck. "You're a good guy, Ace." She closed her eyes and let out a content sigh. "I'm really glad I met you."

Ace turned his eyes forward again, hoping to hide the pink blush that was beginning to dust over his face. A strange fluttering feeling began in the pit of his stomach, but he did his best to ignore it. "I'm glad I met you too, New York."

When the pair arrived at the infirmary, the first thing they noticed was a young boy with flaming, literally flaming, blue hair hovering near Riddle's bedside and typing on multiple holographic keyboards. A tablet floated next to him, occasionally giving instructions to the boy, but the only things visible on the tablet's screen were the words 'Sound Only' and some sort of logo.

"Umm…what's goin' on here?" Ace asked as he and Zephyr deposited Devon on the bed next to Riddle's as gently as they could.

"The nurse said that they don't see signs of long-lasting damage from Riddle's Overblot, but the headmaster asked the Shroud brothers to use their scanners to make absolutely sure," Trey supplied.

The headmaster looked over at the tablet. "Once the nurse sees to Devon's injuries, I'd like you to take a look at her as well. Your information databases are much more refined than ours, so if there's information to be found, I'm certain you've got access to it."

"10-4," replied the voice from the tablet. Devon could've sworn she heard the voice mutter something about "getting this sidequest over with already" but didn't have time to dwell on it as the nurse bustled back in.

After confirming that Devon's rib was, in fact, bruised and not fractured or broken, the nurse wasted no time in supplying her with a pain-relieving potion. The potion needed to mend Devon's injury would take until the next morning to complete, which was just as well since the nurse wanted to keep both her and Riddle in the infirmary overnight to ensure that there were no complications from either the Overblot or from Devon's magic.

Once they'd finished looking Devon over, the boy with the flaming hair floated over to her. It was then that she realized that the boy's body appeared to be made of metal; the only part of him that resembled skin was the top half of his face as his mouth was covered by what appeared to be a vent with speakers on the sides. "Hello there, Devon Lopez! My name is Ortho. Ortho Shroud. Is it alright if I begin scanning you now?"

Devon blinked, slightly thrown by how young Ortho sounded. His voice sounded much too childlike for him to be a highschooler, but who was she to judge? She exchanged a look with Ace before she answered. "I…I guess so."

Ortho giggled. "You don't have to worry; this scan is completely painless, I promise." Once Devon nodded her assent, a soft blue light began emanating from the palm of Ortho's outstretched hand and swept over her entire body. Ortho was silent for a moment once the light receded, his voice coming out much stiffer and more robotic-sounding when he spoke again. "Scan complete. Trace amounts of magic detected. Subject's innate capacity for magic is zero. Cross-referencing sources for probable cause of discrepancy." Ortho paused, his yellow eyes appearing to glow. "Most likely source of subject's ability is a magical blessing. Sending full report to administrator." The glow in Ortho's eyes receded and his posture relaxed. "Okay~! You're all done, Devon Lopez!"

Devon let out an impressed whistle. "Dang, Ortho. Pretty impressive setup you've got there."

Ortho closed his eyes and even though Devon couldn't see his mouth, she could tell he was beaming at her. "You think so? My big brother designed this body and all its features for me!" He gestured toward the tablet that was hovering nearby. "He's incredible."

"I-It's really not that big a deal…," the voice from the tablet stammered.

"I respectfully beg to differ," Devon argued. "You're a student here, right? So you're probably right around my age, then, and you've managed to build a system as impressive as Ortho's on your own. I'll tell ya one thing: nobody in my world could manage something like that!"

"Right?" Ortho chirped excitedly. "See, big brother? Maybe you'll finally accept the praise you deserve when it comes from someone else!"

"M-Maybe… Anyway, I'll email you the full report in a sec, headmaster," the tablet replied, clearly trying to change the subject.

Devon leaned over to Ortho while the headmaster and the tablet continued their discussion. "I didn't make your brother uncomfortable, did I?"

Ortho shook his head. "It's not your fault. My brother's an amazing person, but he tends to get…flustered when someone compliments him, especially if he doesn't know that person very well. That's why he uses his tablet most of the time; face-to-face interactions are difficult for him."

Riddle scoffed, shooting a disdainful look at the tablet. "I'll never understand why you enable that sort of behavior, Ortho. Idia Shroud is the dorm leader of Ignihyde and he should conduct himself as such. He couldn't even make it to the entrance ceremony."

"I mean…he technically was at the ceremony though, wasn't he? I remember seeing that tablet up there with the rest of the dorm leaders," Devon recalled. "And being in front of big crowds like that can be really nerve-wracking for some people."

"Yeah, and besides that, Cater told us that Ignihyde students were more introverted anyway," Ace added. He glanced over at Ortho. "For the most part, at least."

"Be that as it may, there are certain expectations that all dorm leaders are expected to meet," Riddle told them. "It wouldn't kill him to at least attend a dorm leader meeting in person."

Devon glanced over at Ortho and saw that his eyes were now downcast, clearly upset by the negative view Riddle had of his brother. Her protective big sister instincts kicked in immediately and she tried to make her blue-haired friend feel better. "Hey, everyone's got their strengths and weaknesses, right? I get why you're frustrated, Riddle, I really do, but I also think I get where Idia's coming from."

Ortho whipped his head around to look at her with wide, surprised eyes. "You do?"

Devon nodded. "Idia sounds like he might have a lot in common with one of my brothers. Dominic was diagnosed with social anxiety disorder a few years ago and a lot of day-to-day social interactions, stuff that we might not think is a big deal, can take a serious toll on him." She thought for a moment. "Like…if he has to take a test, he can't get up to turn it in unless someone else has already turned theirs in. It doesn't matter if he finishes way before everyone else, he will sit at his desk until someone else gets up." She could see the question in both Riddle and Ortho's eyes. "I'm not really sure why that's such a problem for him, but usually when he freezes in those situations he's worried about being judged or embarrassing himself somehow."

"Hang on, you told me Dom did theatre," Ace pointed out. "How can he be a theatre kid if he has trouble being in front of people?"

"There's more to theatre than just acting on stage, Ace," Trey reminded him. "There's a lot of prepwork involved and then there's all the technical stuff that needs to be done during the show." He looked over at Devon. "I'm assuming that's what your brother does."

Devon nodded. "Yep. Someone tried to get him to go up onstage and run some lines during a rehearsal once and it sent him into a full-blown panic attack. He came out of it okay, but then he felt even worse because he thought he was "causing a scene"." She sighed. "He's been going to therapy and he's got a really awesome group of friends that support him but I know it bothers him sometimes that he gets so nervous around anybody that's not a close friend or family member." A fond smile graced her lips. "I really wish my whole family could see this place, but I especially wish Dom could. I honestly think he'd be so filled with questions that his SAD wouldn't really affect him that much; he can talk your ear off for hours once he gets started on a topic he's interested in."

"I do see a lot of similarities between your brother and mine," Ortho agreed. "You said he gets more talkative when the topic at hand is one of his interests. What sorts of things does Dominic Lopez enjoy?"

"Well, he's really into working with technology, so something tells me he'd be all about Ignihyde's whole vibe," Devon said. "He's also into plants; I think growing and tending to them helps his anxiety. Same thing with cats."

"Is he into video games? He looks like he'd be into video games." Ace asked.

Devon laughed. "I'm not sure how you'd be able to gauge that by looking at him, but you're right. He'll talk and debate with people about his favorite games and anime series for days if you let him." The floating tablet zipped right in front of Devon's face before she could say anything else, causing her to jerk backwards and squeak in surprise. "Ay, what gives?!"

"Is it true?! Your brother is but a humble otaku as well?!" the tablet asked.

"Umm…I guess so…?" Devon replied, the statement coming out more like a question. "I'm not really sure what an otaku is, but I've heard him call himself that once or twice."

Crowley cleared his throat before the tablet was able to respond, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "If we could get back on track, everyone, I'd like to hear exactly what happened from both Riddle and Devon. We need to know as much as we can about this situation, so please leave nothing out."

Devon and Riddle recounted the events of the afternoon as best they could. Riddle couldn't remember much between the time the ink dome formed over him until Devon combined their mindscapes and Devon couldn't recall exactly what happened when her power first activated, so Ace and Trey filled in the blanks when needed. No matter how much the headmaster prodded them, Devon and Riddle refused to divulge much information about their heart-to-heart while they were linked, instead opting to say that they had cleared the air and come to a better understanding of one another. When they had finished, Crowley tapped his chin in thought.

"I must say, in all my years, I've never seen anything quite like this," Crowley commented. "Based on both your recollection of the events and the younger Shroud's report, it appears this Mala person is the one responsible for your new-found ability, Devon. I'm still rather puzzled as to why the Dark Mirror would state that you were unable to use magic when that clearly is not the case. You're certain you never displayed any magical talent before you arrived here?"

Devon nodded. "Positive. Like I've said before, magic's not a thing in my world."

"Besides, she probably would've remembered that aura blasting out of her like that," Trey commented. "I doubt anyone who saw it will be forgetting it any time soon."

"Hmmm… I've posed this theory to your friends while the two of you were linked, but it could be that your ability wasn't able to manifest in full due to a lack of magical energy in your world," Crowley proposed thoughtfully. "Even so, if you've had this ability since birth, it probably has been manifesting in some small way."

"About that…," came a voice from the doorway. The group turned to see Deuce, Cater, and Grim walking into the infirmary. Deuce was carrying Devon's messenger bag; they must have stopped at Ramshackle to get it since Devon left it there before the duel started. Grim immediately hopped onto Devon's bed, loafing with his paws tucked under his body as he rested against Devon's legs and Deuce sat on Devon's other side while Cater sat dead center between Riddle and Devon's beds. Deuce looked at Devon carefully before he continued. "Do you remember when we went to the school store the other day and I opened up to you about who I was before I got accepted here?" Devon nodded. "I remember seeing your eyes glow blue that day too before I told you. I was hesitant to bring it up because I didn't want you to think less of me if you knew but then I saw that glow and I just felt…I dunno…better. I didn't say anything to you about it because I thought it was just a trick of the light but…maybe your power activated then too."

"Wait, hang on," Devon said, her stomach sinking. "Does that mean I, like, forced you guys to tell me all that stuff?" She sent a panicked look toward Riddle. "I swear I didn't mean to, I'm so sorry-"

"Hey, hey, easy," Deuce interjected as he put his hand on her shoulder. "I wasn't trying to imply that. It was just that the glow…" He gestured vaguely, trying to find the right words. "reassured that you weren't going to judge me if I did decide to tell you. Like…it let me know you were a safe person to open up to, but the decision to actually tell you was completely mine."

"It was much the same for me," Riddle agreed. "Typically, when mind manipulation magic is used, the person it's cast on either has no memory of the time they were being controlled or they find themselves unable to control their speech or actions despite being aware of what is happening. Neither of those happened when we were linked; everything I shared with you was entirely my choice." He smiled at her reassuringly. "Besides, I could feel your emotions just as you could feel mine; I would have been able to sense any deception or underhandedness if there was any."

"Yeah…Yeah, you're right," Devon replied. She shook her head as she settled back down. "I'm sorry for freaking out. I just…"

"Hey, this is whole new situation for everybody, Dev-Dev~" Cater assured her. "The important thing is that you both made it out okay."

"Indeed," Crowley agreed. "And what more can you tell us about Mala? You said she's an old family friend, but what else do you know about her?"

"Not very much, to be honest," Devon said. "She's never really liked to talk about herself and we never pushed her to. The only things we were able to piece together are that she's a pretty big deal in…wherever it is she's from and that the place she's from isn't big on technology. She doesn't use a phone and she's implied that most people where she's from don't either, so we can only communicate with her through letters. All her mail gets sent to a local PO box too so we couldn't piece together anything from that…"

"Family friend or not, I'm a little surprised your parents were okay with letting someone bestow magical powers on their babies," Trey commented. "Especially considering that's not the norm for your world."

"I don't think they knew," Devon replied. "The way they describe it, Mama and Papa thought the blessings were…more symbolic than anything else. They said Mala blessed us with health, wit, beauty-"

"I'd say she nailed that one right on the head~!" Cater chirped, earning him a quick glare from Ace.

"-you know, things that any parent would want for their child," Devon continued.

"I see… I must admit, I'm slightly concerned about what this might mean for your brothers, hatchling," Crowley said. "Do you recall anything more about what blessings she bestowed on the two of them?"

Devon shook her head. "I've been wracking my brain trying to remember, believe me, but we were just babies when the blessings were given." She glanced down at the bracelet on her wrist. "I'd love to be able to ask my parents and see if they can shed more light what's been going on but I haven't been able to connect to my world since the day we made that tart… Not for lack of trying, mind you." She sent the headmaster an uneasy look. "Why are you so concerned about them, though?"

"Based on what you've told me, I believe we can safely assume that the gems in those bracelets are a type of magic crystal, though not one that I've encountered before," Crowley explained. "It would also appear that those crystals were the catalyst for the connection between our world and yours. If my theory is correct, your magical ability was most likely lying dormant, though still gathering what traces of power it could, until you were suddenly exposed to large amounts of magical energy upon entering our world. My concern is that now that your abilities have awakened, this "unbreakable bond" Mala spoke of combined with the crystals on those bracelets you three share might speed up the development and manifestation of your brothers' powers as well. Now, given what you've told me about Mala, I can't imagine she would do anything to deliberately endanger a family she's clearly fond of. However, the fact remains that we have no clue what sort of blessings she bestowed on your brothers, your world doesn't have the means to help them should they be unable to control their powers, and at present you have no reliable way of warning them."

"Yeah, okay," Devon replied shakily as the gravity of what the headmaster was unknowingly implying hit her. If either DJ or Dominic had a power that manifested as…dramatically as hers did… People from her world weren't exactly famous for embracing what they didn't understand. She jumped slightly when she felt something bump against her arm. When she glanced down, she saw Grim butting his head against her arm, rubbing the side of his face against it before butting against her again. She sent him a small, grateful smile before gently rubbing behind his ear.

"I'm not trying to upset you by telling you this," Crowley assured her. "Frankly, there are far too many unknowns and variables here to predict how things will play out. You mentioned that you asked your brothers to reach out to Mala when you last spoke to them, so hopefully she'll be able to shed more light on your situation. Who knows? She might even be able to explain why you were brought here."

"I hope so," Devon said, gently rubbing the crystal on her bracelet. 'But even if my family does manage to get a hold of her, I need to figure out a way to get this whole…mirror communication thing to work again.'

"Hey," Trey called out, snapping Devon out of her thoughts. "I know your head's probably spinning with all this, but don't feel like you have to go through all this on your own. You can lean on us if you need to."

"Agreed. I owe you as much for saving my life," Riddle added before looking away so she (and Cater and Ace) couldn't see the flush on his cheeks. "Besides that… you're my friend now and I know how badly you've been missing your family. I want you to be able to see them again."

"Exactly~!" Cater chirped, nuzzling his cheek against hers. "We'll help get our sweet baby girl some answers."

"I'm not sure how useful I'll be, but I'll do my best for you, Dev!" Deuce promised.

"We've got your back, New York," Ace assured her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and gently pulling her against his chest. "I mean, clearly I've got your back more than anyone else but it's cool. I'll gladly do the heavy-lifting if it means it'll make you happy."

"Oh please, as if anyone looks after my henchman better than me!" Grim argued as he crossed his arms.

Devon laughed as she adjusted her position so she could lean more comfortably against Ace's chest. "Thanks, you guys. That means more than you know."

"I'll help you as much as I can too!" Ortho piped up. "I've been doing scans across all the databases within my power to access, but I can't find any cases quite like yours. This sounds like a great opportunity to expand my knowledge banks!" He gaze became slightly shy. "I'm…ah…I'm also interested in learning more about your world, Devon Lopez!"

Devon smile widened as she sat back up, completely endeared by the adorable robot boy in front of her. "I'd be happy to tell you whatever you wanna know, Ortho. I really wish I could show you pictures too, but my phone's out of commission right now."

Ortho tilted his head. "Do you have it with you?"

"Not right now, it's in my-" She cut herself off when she caught sight of her messenger bag, remembering that Deuce had brought it with him. "Actually…" She pulled it into her lap and reached into one of the inside pockets, pulling out the battered cell phone.

Cater winced when he saw it. "Man, you really weren't kidding about your phone not surviving the trip here, huh?"

"Have you been carrying that thing around this whole time?" Ace asked.

Devon shrugged. "Force of habit. I feel weird going anywhere without it, even though I know it doesn't work." She held the phone out to Ortho, who began performing a scan on the device.

"It appears that the device itself is still in good working order," Ortho announced after he finished scanning. "The screen needs to be replaced but everything else should still be functional. Luckily, it appears that your smartphone model is identical to the ones sold here so fixing the screen should be easy!"

"Well, that's lucky, I guess," Devon said. "Any idea where I can get it done that won't cost me an arm and a leg?"

"My brother can do it!" Ortho chirped. "He can fix anything as long as it's tech-related!"

"Huh?!" the voice from the tablet exclaimed.

"Are you sure?" Devon asked, glancing over at the tablet. "I don't wanna put him out or anything…"

"It's fine!" Ortho assured her. "Having my brother do it will be much faster than going into town!" He floated over to the tablet. "You'll do it, won't you, big brother?"

"I-I don't know, Ortho…," the tablet stammered hesitantly.

"But how many opportunities will we get to see a completely different world?" Ortho pressed. "You can do a better job than anyone else in the world and you know it! So we should help our friend out!"

Idia sighed before muttering to himself. "Maybe…but what kind of logic is that, anyway?" He could hardly call some normie he'd just met a friend and all he really wanted to do was get back to his games. But…he did appreciate that Devon had tried to stick up for him and he was just slightly intrigued by this mysterious otaku brother of hers. His curiosity about Devon's world was beginning to win out as well, but what really KO'd him was making the mistake of looking at Ortho's wide-eyed, hopeful expression. He heaved another sigh as he felt his resolve crumble. "Fine, I'll do it. Bring the phone to me, Ortho, and I'll have it done in…" He paused. "Two hours, give or take. If I'm gonna be working on it anyway, I might as well see how compatible this other worlds tech is with ours."

"Yay~!" Ortho cheered. "You just wait right there, Devon Lopez. We'll be right back!" And with that, Ortho grabbed the tablet and rocketed out of the infirmary.

Devon couldn't help but smile after him. "I like that kid."

By the time Ortho and Idia (well…his tablet, at least) returned, the headmaster had already left and the rest of the group were eating dinner; Trey, Deuce, and Cater volunteered to grab some to-go meals for everyone since they didn't trust Grim to get it and Ace, despite disguising it as him just being too lazy to walk to the cafeteria, was refusing to leave Devon's side. "We're back~!" Ortho chirped as he handed Devon her phone, its screen good as new.

"Thank you both so much," Devon said gratefully as she turned her phone on. "I really owe you one for this, Idia."

"I-I-It's fine," Idia stammered. "Don't make a big thing out of it, 'kay?"

Devon pulled up her contacts, her finger hesitating over her mother's number. She stood by her theory that she most likely wouldn't be able to reach anyone from her world but she still wanted to try. Deuce, having glanced at the phone screen and catching on to what she was thinking, gave her an encouraging nod. Devon let out a breath as she tapped the contact. The line didn't even ring before an automated voice told her that her call couldn't be completed.

"Anything?" Deuce asked as Devon disconnected the call.

Devon shook her head. "Didn't even ring." She caught sight of the sympathetic looks she was getting from her friends (except for Idia since she couldn't see him). "I'm fine, guys. I promise. I had a feeling it wouldn't work but I wanted to at least try. This just means I have to figure out how to get the mirror in my room to connect to my world again." She sighed before smiling again. "But hey, I promised you all a peek into my world and I'm gonna deliver!"

"Well, don't keep us in suspense, Dev-Dev!" Cater urged.

"Okay but…," She looked at everyone in the infirmary and then back at her phone. "I'm not sure how everyone's gonna be able to see."

"I've got a built-in projector we can use so everyone can see," Ortho offered.

"Is there anything you can't do?" Grim asked incredulously.

Ortho giggled bashfully as one of his metal fingers opened up and a cord snaked out of the tip. "It's all thanks to my big bro!"

Devon could hear Idia let out an embarrassed high-pitched noise as she plugged Ortho's cord into her phone. 'I better get this show on the road before poor Idia combusts.'

The rest of the evening was spent sharing pictures and videos (Idia was very interested in the content Devon had of the family cats, Ghost and Gizmo) as Devon explained more to the boys about where she came from. Her friends were fascinated both by how similar her world was to their own and how different it was in certain aspects as well. Trey, Grim, and Deuce were especially interested in the pictures she'd taken of the traditional food and desserts at her uncle's restaurant, while Ace and Cater made her promise to show them what was in her "When Karens Attack" and "This One Time On the Subway" folders at another time. Riddle enjoyed hearing (and asking a ton of questions about) the historical importance of New York City and the number of educational sites, and Ortho enjoyed watching Devon's video of the New Year's countdown at Times Square.

After explaining TikTok to Cater (he saw the logo and immediately asked her about it), Devon opted to show them some of the ones she'd downloaded from her and her brothers' accounts before coming to Twisted Wonderland.

"Okay, okay, this is probably one of my favorites," Devon said as she pulled up one of the TikToks. It featured a series of clips of her trying, and at certain points failing, to pull off various parkour stunts while Dominic provided a voiceover. "My sister might actually be a video game protag, guys. I'm convinced she has the ability to respawn because there's no way she can do all the stupid stuff she does and still be alive to this day. I'm convinced she does it, dies for a split second, and then comes back to life. And then she always tries to get-" Dominic's voiceover cut off as the final clip showed Devon tackling him into a hug.

"Okay, first of all: awww~!" Cater gushed. "That hug at the end! You and your brothers are too cute!"

"If I wasn't concerned about your safety before, I absolutely am now, Devon," Trey told her.

"It's fiiiiine," Devon assured him. "I'm still alive, aren't I? Besides, the parkour injuries aren't nearly as bad as the ones I got from cheer. I've literally broken bones cheerleading, but I haven't been injured nearly that badly doing parkour…so far."

"That…doesn't really make me feel better, but I doubt anything I say will stop you," Trey replied.

"Nope~!" Devon chirped.

Idia had remained silent for a while as the group continued to banter, muting himself just to be safe. Devon's world seemed like an interesting enough place, even if it was too crowded with normies, but he couldn't really say he'd be too interested in seeing it himself, even if the opportunity arose at some point. Why risk having a whole different world of people judge and mutter about him and his weird hair and what a creep he looked like just for the sake of new anime that might not even be any good. At least…that was what he thought before he finally saw a picture of Dominic. He was far more attractive than Idia had been expecting; he had it in his head that almost all otaku were as gross-looking as he was. Thinking about it logically, he probably shouldn't have been too surprised. Devon was pretty, even if she wasn't really someone he would want to date himself (way too outgoing and social and, despite showing clear signs of being an ambivert, still leaning further from the introvert ideal he preferred), so it stood to reason that her siblings would be at least reasonably pleasant to look at as well.

His new-found fascination only grew when he heard Dom's voice for the first time, rambling at an alarming speed as he attempted to explain to his sister why he was so excited about the arrival of a game he had pre-ordered as she watched him play it. Idia also couldn't help but be at least somewhat endeared as he watched Dominic's own videos that showed him playing and being affectionate with Gizmo and tending to his plants. He'd never really been a fan of gardening (or going outside, for that matter), but he could appreciate someone who was passionate about their hobbies. He looked up at his desktop again to see that Devon was showing them a video she had taken of a couple having a very loud, very public, and very explicative-filled breakup on the subway. Dominic could be seen sitting next to her, his hand clapped over his mouth as he tried to keep from laughing. Idia was taken in once again, captivated by the amusement dancing in Dominic's hazel eyes and tracking the youngest triplets movements as he ran a hand through his hair. Idia sighed. He figured there was no real harm in letting himself fantasize a bit. It's not like he and Dominic would ever meet each other anyway. "I wonder if his hair's as soft as it looks…"

There was silence for a moment, all conversation and laughter stilled, before Devon spoke up. "Whose hair?"

Idia blinked. "Huh?" He looked down at the toolbar for his tablet only to see, to his immense horror, that he wasn't muted after all.

"You said something about someone's hair being soft," Deuce said.

Idia began shrinking in on himself in an attempt to hide, despite the fact that he wasn't physically present in the infirmary. "N-N-Nope, nope, nope, not a-at all! I d-didn't say a word." Before anyone could respond, he punched in a few commands to order the tablet back to him, speaking so quickly nobody else could get a word in. "Oh Sevens, w-would you look at the time! We'll have to continue this conversation never. Gotta blast!" With that, the tablet sped off.

"I guess I'd better head back to Ignihyde too," Ortho said with a sigh as he unlinked his finger cord from Devon's phone. He turned to Devon with what she could only assume was a smile. "Your world seems like such an interesting place! I hope you'll tell me more about it one day, Devon Lopez!"

Devon smiled and nodded. "I'm down to hang out whenever you are, Ortho." She held her phone out to him. "If you want you can put your number in my phone so we can text. You'll be my first Twisted Wonderland contact."

"Seriously, New York?!" Ace exclaimed, a look of mock hurt on his face as he watched Ortho eagerly add his number to Devon's phone. "After everything we've been through?!"

Devon shrugged before poking Ace's cheek. "I can't help it that Ortho's way more adorable than you, man." She smiled when he pouted before leaning against him again. "Don't worry, though. None of y'all are leaving this room without me gettin' your numbers…if you're okay with me having them, I mean."

Trey chuckled. "I'd definitely feel better if I had a way to get a hold of you. Someone's gotta make sure you're not getting into too much trouble."

"And since you have access to our world's social media now, you can make your own Magicam account~!" Cater said excitedly. "You should definitely hit me up when you do! I'll be your first follower!" His green eyes lit up as a thought struck him. "Oh, we should totally take some pictures around school together once you're all healed up! There's absolutely no way that adorable face of yours isn't photogenic!"

"Well, before you get too ahead of yourself with these selfie plans, we need to be getting back to Heartslabyul for the night, Cater," Trey said. "It's almost curfew and since Riddle's going to have to stay here tonight, we need to make sure everyone's accounted for." He looked over at Ace and Deuce. "You two included."

"Well, today was certainly an eventful one," Riddle commented after Ortho and the rest of Heartslabyul had said their goodbyes and left for the night (but not before Ortho hugging Devon goodbye sparked a contest between Cater and Ace to see who could hug Devon tighter, only for Riddle to sternly remind them that her rib was still very much bruised).

"That's certainly one word for it," Devon chuckled quietly so as not to disturb the sleeping Grim curled up against her leg. He had opted to stay overnight in the infirmary with Devon, with the excuse that he didn't think the Wisps would listen to anyone but Devon and what was the point of your minion having minions if she wasn't around to command them for you. She smiled gently at the redhead. "So how are you feeling after…everything?"

Riddle thought for a moment. "It's…hard to say, honestly. There are a lot of mixed feelings concerning my upbringing. I really do think changing my way of doing things is going to be for everyone's benefit, but change is never easy. I suppose more than anything, I'm just happy someone was able to see what I went through from my perspective. Literally." He looked at Devon, his expression saddening slightly. "I, ah, I never got the chance to apologize about bruising your rib either, did I?"

"Hey, don't worry about that, I've had waaay worse," Devon assured him. "You weren't exactly yourself when it happened, so I be can't too upset about it." She exhaled quickly in a short laugh. "Besides, you saw that TikTok that Dom made; you've seen the kind of accidents I get myself into voluntarily."

"Yes, and to echo Trey's sentiment from earlier, that doesn't make me any less concerned for you…even if that reckless disregard for your own safety did ultimately end up saving my life," Riddle replied. His expression grew concerned. "Are you feeling alright? There were quite a few new discoveries for you today and…we didn't uncover many answers."

Devon thought over her answer before she spoke again, gently petting her sleeping feline friend. "Well…I guess you're right about that; I have a lot of questions and not very many answers. I'm know my parents are completely in the dark about our abilities since I can't see them not tell us if they knew, but I have to wonder if Mala knew something like this would happen when she blessed us and gifted us our bracelets. What powers will my brothers end up developing? Mine doesn't really seem like it can be used to hurt anyone and based on the way Mala phrased the blessing, she didn't intend for it to be used maliciously."

Riddle nodded. "Agreed. And like Deuce and I told you before, there was no manipulation on your part when we opened up to you. It was more like your power put us at ease and let us know we could open up if we wanted to."

"But I can't remember anything about the blessings she gave DJ and Dom," Devon continued. "I would hope that theirs would be more helpful than harmful as well, but there's no way to know at this point." She let out a small huff. "Another thing that's been bothering me is why I was the only brought here. If all three of us have some sort of dormant power, shouldn't all three of us have been picked up? Was it because I was the only one out of the house at the time the carriage thing was roaming around?"

"It doesn't work that way," Riddle supplied. "If all three of you had been chosen by the Dark Mirror, three carriages would have been dispatched and they would've kept after all of you until you were brought here. I've never heard of an instance where they were called off but…then again, I've never heard of a situation quite like yours either. When you spoke to your brothers did they mention seeing any other black carriages?"

Devon shook her head. "Nope. They said they both got a bad feeling right around the time I was taken and went out to look for me, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. A horse-drawn carriage with a coffin the back isn't a common sight where we live, so they definitely would've remembered if they'd crossed paths with one."

"I see… This is a puzzle then, isn't it?" Riddle mused. He sent her a confident, slightly smug smile as he placed his right hand on his chest. "Luckily, I happen to enjoy puzzles and, if you'll have me, I have every intention of helping you solve this one."

Devon smiled as a warm feeling settled in her chest. "Well, I'm not about to turn down help from someone at the top of his class."

The pair shared a laugh as they settled in for the night. The events and revelations of the day had left both of them reeling but, at the end of the day, they'd each come out of it all with a new friend and confidante. That alone left them confident that, while things might not improve immediately, they would be getting better.

Ending Notes: The TikTok about Devon being able to respawn is based on an actual TikTok that I saw a while back but, for the life of me, I can't remember the OP.

Now that Devon has her phone back, she's totally going to do those Thomas Sanders "Story Time" things on her Magicam. I can see it now:

Devon: *chasing after Jack on his morning run* No matter how fast he ran, he could not escape the demon! But he would not let his soul be taken today!

Also Devon: *walking around with the First Year Squad somewhere on Sage's Isle that isn't NRC and sees some rando walking his dog* He was totally gorgeous and everyone that looked at him fell in love…

Rando: :D

Devon: The guy walkin' him was okay.

Rando: D:

Ace and Epel: *wheezing*

I feel like the NRC students would go from being really confused and/or annoyed at first to tolerating it to eventually looking forward to it and hoping to catch her filming one.

Poor Idia, though! I definitely feel that pain, thinking you're muted and safe to say whatever only to realize your mic's been on the whole time. He strikes me as the type of person that's quick to become infatuated with someone but slow to really fall for them. Besides, as far as he's concerned, Dom's a "safe" infatuation since he's in another world; Dominic can't think Idia's a "gross otaku shut-in" and reject him if they never meet each other. They aren't ever going to meet each other…right?

Thank you all so much for reading and being patient with me while I got this chapter out! As always, feedback and constructive criticism are welcome! Geekinthepink, out!