Author's Notes: Somebody told me that Devon reminded them of a cross between Captain Jack Sparrow and Polly Plantar from Amphibia and I cannot tell you how much that made my day.

'Hot damn…,' was all Devon could think as she and her friends emerged from Savanaclaw's portal in the Hall of Mirrors. She had a feeling she knew what the vibe would when she noticed the mirror portal leading the dorm was lit by torches and littered with what she hoped were decorative bones of some sort of animal, but it hadn't prepared her what she saw on the other side. True to its name, the dorm appeared to be set in some sort of drylands. Trees were few and far between (Devon could probably count the number she saw from her current vantage point on one hand) and the dorm itself looked like it had been carved into some sort of rock formation. 'I bet it would awesome to parkour here. I'll have to find an excuse to come back and try it once this mess is over.'

"Whoa…so this is Savanaclaw," Deuce muttered, just as awed as Devon by the dorm.

"It's so rugged, like it's been built completely out of rocks!" Grim observed. He pointed toward another set of bones nearby. "What animal do you think that big skeleton came from?"

Devon looked in the direction he was pointing. "Judging from the tusks, I'm guessing an elephant."

"This place has a totally different vibe from our dorm," Ace commented. "And from Pomefiore too, for that matter."

"Right? It's so…rough and tumble," Cater agreed. "Even the air here feels wild, y'know?"

Ace shook his head to get back on track. "So we're lookin' for someone named Jack, huh? What's he look like?"

Cater pulled out his phone. "Tan skin with silver hair. He's also got wolf-like ears and a bushy tail, so that should make him easier to spot."

"Bushy tail, huh…" Grim planted his hind legs on each of Devon's shoulders, bracing his front paws on her head for balance as he looked around. "Oh hey, isn't that him over there? The guy runnin' around the yard."

Everyone looked in the direction Grim had pointed in. Their eyes landed on a student that matched Cater's description perfectly. He was tall, at least as tall as the Leech twins had been, and the amount of muscle on him was…impressive, to say the least. "Bingo! One point for Grim!" Cater chirped. "That's gotta be him!"

"And we've got another big dude after those twins," Ace muttered, shuddering at the memory.

"Guess that's why all the clubs wanted to scout him," Cater said, scratching his cheek with one finger.

"With a build like that, he's gotta be good at martial arts too," Deuce mused.

"Guess we should just go over and talk to him, then," Devon said, slightly apprehensive. She'd noticed the beastman's rather intense scowl as he was exercising. He definitely didn't seem like he wanted to be bothered and the intensity in his eyes was a little intimidating. She shook her head to rid herself of that train of thought. 'I shouldn't just assume that, though. Maybe it's just resting bitch face, like what that Malleus guy apparently has. Can't judge until we talk to him.'

Noticing Devon's tone, Cater wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he nuzzled his cheek against hers. "Aww, are you nervous, Dev-Dev? You're fine, sweet girl. Just relax~! If he tries to bite you, I'll protect you, okay~?"

Devon laughed as the last of her nerves left her. "I don't think that'll be necessary, Cater, but that is comforting. As long as we're not rude about-"

"Oi, Sir-Scowls-A-Lot!" Grim called out as he hopped off Devon's shoulders and scampered toward Jack. "We gotta talk to you!"

Jack paused in his running, looking down at the small monster with a mix of confusion and irritation on his face. "Huh?"

Grim crossed his arms with a smirk. "My sources tell me that some pretty bad dudes might be comin' after you, so in my infinite generosity, I've decided to protect you. No thanks are necessary…unless you're payin' with tuna!"

"What's your deal?" Jack asked, irritation winning out over confusion as he glared at Grim. "Don't get in the way of my running."

"Seriously, Grim?" Ace muttered as he and the rest of the group followed after Grim.

"Hold up there, Grimmy! You're way of confronting him is…well, it's no good," Cater agreed.

Devon scooped Grim up into her arms, clapping a hand over his mouth to muffle his protests, before smiling apologetically at Jack. "I apologize for him. Could you spare a moment to hear us out? I promise we won't take too much of your time."

"What're a bunch of outsiders doin' in Savanaclaw?" Jack asked, though his irritation was lessened slightly by Devon's apology. "And what's all this crap about you all protectin' me?"

"There have been a lot of accidents around campus lately involving students who are likely to be competing in the Spelldrive tournament," Deuce explained.

"And we're looking for the culprit," Ace finished.

"And? What does that have to do with me?" Jack asked, crossing his arms.

"To put it bluntly, we think you're likely to be one of the next targets, so we'd like to put a mark on you and catch the perpetrator in the act," Cater elaborated. "So? Would you be willing to help us out?"

Jack studied them for a moment before answering. "I refuse. There's no need for you to protect me; I'll figure something out on my own."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Devon pressed. "I'm not trying to doubt your strength or anything, but whoever is doing this has been able to somehow get away with causing these injuries, even when there were plenty of eyewitnesses to see everything go down. It might be safer if you had more people looking out."

Jack's eye twitched and a noticeable vein appeared on his forehead, what little patience he had left stretched to the limit. He bit out his response through gritted teeth, trying not to snap at Devon. "I said I don't need your help." An unreadable expression crossed over his features but he turned his head away before the group could get a closer look. "Besides…me being targeted…probably won't happen anyway." He turned and sent them one last look over his shoulder before getting back to his run. "Later."

"There he goes…," Cater said as they watched Jack continue his laps.

"Geez, he was a rude one, huh?" Grim commented.

"Yeah well, I can't really blame him with the way you were talkin' to him," Ace retorted.

"You humans are such a pain! Why do I gotta pick a different way to talk to each person?!" Grim exclaimed as the group turned to head back to Savanaclaw's exit mirror. They didn't make it more than a few steps before a trio of Savanaclaw students called out to them.

"Oi! Where do you lot think you're goin'?" the first student asked.

The second gave them a once-over. "Looks like they're from Heartslabyul."

The third let out a stupid-sounding laugh. "Hehehe! So they're that red brat's grunts, huh?"

"Do you really think we're gonna let you trespass on our territory and then waltz right back out?" the first asked as he loomed over them threateningly.

"I mean…kinda," Devon replied.

"Ahahaha, we were just leaving!" Ace exclaimed nervously as he nudged Devon toward the mirror. "Sorry about the intrusion, boys."

"Aww, c'mon! Don't be like that!" one of the Savanaclaw students said, moving in front of them to block the mirror back to the main campus with a mocking smirk on his face. "Stay and hang with us for a bit."

"We could play a little game of cat and mouse," another suggested, his smirk echoing his dormmates. "Y'all are the mice, of course! Hehehe!"

"Oi. Knock it off already," someone called from behind them.

Devon felt her stomach sink as she recognized the voice, a wave of embarrassment washing over her as she turned to see the lion beastman whose tail she'd stepped on in the botanical garden. He was accompanied by the hyena beastman that Grim had traded food with the other day.

"L-Leona… Dorm leader…," one of the students stammered, shrinking back a bit.

Devon's eyes widened slightly as she unconsciously hugged Grim closer. 'Are you freakin' kidding me?! That guy's a dorm leader?! Well, it's been a hot minute… Maybe he won't recognize me; I doubt I'm the first person to step on his tail.'

"These guys were encroachin' on our territory, see," the second student explained.

"We were just gonna rough 'em up a bit, y'know?" the third finished.

"Oh hey," the hyena called out as his eyes locked on Devon and Grim. "Aren't y'all the guys I met in the cafeteria that one time?"

"You," Grim growled as he struggled to get out of Devon's grip. "Deluxe pork cutlet sandwich!"

"Hey, hey, hold on there," the hyena objected. "Don't just go around givin' people delicious-sounding nicknames. The name's Ruggie Bucchi. Don't wear it out."

Leona's green eyes narrowed as they swept over Devon's face, his expression shifting from apathy to disdain. So much for him not recognizing her. "Hang on. You're that magicless herbivore that stepped on my tail the other day, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah. I was wonderin' where I'd seen you two before. Guess it was the botanical garden, huh?" Ruggie recalled.

"Whaaaat? You stepped on the dorm leader tail?!" one of the Savanaclaw students exclaimed, looking at Devon as if she'd shot his grandmother in front of him.

"Ain't no forgivin' that!" another one chimed in.

Devon pinched the bridge of her nose. "That's fine. I don't need your forgiveness since I didn't step on your tails." She met Leona's eyes, recalling her conversation with Deuce from their trip to the Mystery Shop. She still felt an intense amount of shame over how she'd acted that day, projecting her unresolved anger at a person back in her world onto someone who had nothing to do with what happened, but Deuce was right. There was no way to go back and change what happened, so she had to learn from it and do better. "I know it's been a long time coming, but I do owe you a proper apology so…I'm sorry about stepping on your tail. And for being such a bitch about it afterward. I was…" She shook her head, keeping her eyes down as she rubbed at her bracelet to help ground her. The look in Leona's eyes was causing her to bristle again and the last thing she needed now was to get too into her own head. "No, it doesn't matter. I was in the wrong and I'm not gonna make excuses for it."

If Devon had kept her gaze on Leona, she might have noticed the way his eyes widened just a fraction. He hadn't anticipated running into this herbivore again and he certainly hadn't expected her to own up to what happened and apologize. The disrespect she'd shown him when they met hadn't been anything he wasn't already used to, but most people typically didn't apologize unless they absolutely had to…and even then, he could tell most of them weren't sincere. It appeared that Devon was though, and that there was more to why she acted the way she did if her body language was any indication. He didn't have the time nor did he give enough of a damn to try to piece all that together, but he had to admit (to himself) that his opinion of Devon had improved. Slightly, microscopically, infinitesimally, but it was still an improvement.

Leona didn't have time to respond before one of his dormmates decided to pipe up again. "Wouldn't need police if your little 'sorry' fixed everything," the student said.

Devon rolled her eyes. "Again, I wasn't talkin' to you, so I don't especially care what you think."

The second student growled. "You're awful mouthy for prey."

"And you bark a lot for a wiener dog," Devon shot back.

"Grrr…," Unable to think of a retort, the student looked back at his dorm leader. "Leona! Ruggie! Let's show 'em who's boss!"

"Quit barkin' up a fuss, you mutts," Leona ordered. "What happens if you get yourselves disqualified from the tournament because of one measly fit of violence?"

"So you're sayin' we should just let 'em go?!" one of the students asked incredulously. "But they're trespassers! And such tasty-lookin' prey too."

Leona smirked. "Nobody said anything about lettin' 'em go. I say we resolve this with a game of Spelldrive."

The three Savanaclaw residents looked at each other in confusion. "With Spelldrive?"

"It's called the ultimate magical sport for a reason. We can use as much magic as we want and it's all above board so long as it's part of a game," Leona explained.

"Shishishishi!" Ruggie snickered. "Geez, Leona, you're such a bully. I doubt these guys could last one game with us."

Grim let out a frustrated growl as he hopped down from Devon's arms. "Well I don't know about you guys, but there ain't no way I'm takin' that sittin' down!"

"Even if we wanted to, it doesn't seem like they're going to let us leave," Deuce commented as he shook his head.

"Nothing else for it, then. Let's get this over with," Ace said before turning to Cater with a smirk. "Hey, Cater! Make sure you keep this in mind when it's time for replacement tryouts!"

"Seriously?" Cater groaned, playing with a few strands of his hair. "You guys are hopeless." He pulled Devon closer to him, lowering his voice to a whisper. "Dev-Dev, stand somewhere out of the way for now. Watch the other team and help us figure out their plays."

"But-" Devon began to protest.

"I know you wanna help and I'm not doubting how athletic you are, but the guys in this dorm…well, to say they play rough is an understatement," Cater reasoned. "Leona and Ruggie come from a country that's all about drinkin' that Respect Women juice so they'd probably just treat you like any other player, but I can't say for sure that the other guys won't hone in on you specifically because they know you can't use magic. Besides, you just fully recovered from your injuries from Riddle's Overblot, right?"

Devon frowned and puffed up her cheeks as she mulled over Cater's words. As much as she hated to admit it, he did make a good point. The trophy case that Ace and Deuce showed her proved that Savanaclaw had a history of winning when it came to the interdorms. She may have been able to hold her own when she and Grim were just playing a friendly match with the Ramshackle ghosts, but she was far too inexperienced (both with her staff and with Spelldrive itself) to be anything but hindrance if they were up against seasoned players. She blew out a breath, letting her cheeks deflate. "Ffffine. But I want it on record that I am not happy about this."

"I'll show you what I'm made of!" Grim declared once Leona and co. lead the Heartslabyul/Ramshackle squad to Savanaclaw's personal Spelldrive stadium. "You guy'll be eatin' my dust in no time flat!"

"Better get all that trash-talkin' outta the way while you can," Ruggie told him confidently.

"It's no fun huntin' prey that ain't got a backbone," Leona said. "Come at us, herbivores!"

"I know I agreed to help Cater and the others figure out Savanaclaw's plays, but I have no idea what I'm even supposed to be looking for here." Devon heaved a sigh as she watched her friends charge off down the field, offensive and defensive spells alike flying from their magical pens as Grim carried the disk. Zephyr pulsed in concern, sensing her frustration. "I'll be okay, Zeph. It's just…you know how I feel about being useless. I thought I was makin' strides in that department, especially after you guys gave me the staff, but…here I am, on the sidelines. Again." Zephyr pulsed again, asking why she'd listened to Cater if she knew it was just going to upset her. "Because he was right. I'm nowhere near experienced enough to even attempt to play a real match, especially against a group as hostile as our beastie friends over there." She gave the green orb a determined look before refocusing on the playing field. "As soon as we're finished here, I'm texting Riddle to see when he's got time to help me master the staff. And we need to get some more flying practice in too."

"Alright! Let's keep bringin' the heat!" Grim shouted despite the fact that neither his team nor Savanaclaw had managed to score a goal yet.

Ace eyed Leona and the rest. It may have seemed like they were keeping Savanaclaw on the ropes, but it bothered him that none of them looked all that frustrated by it. In fact, their smirks were as smug as ever. "Hmm… I don't like the look of those smirks they're wearin'."

"Good eye, Acey. I think your read is spot-on," Cater agreed.

"They're better than we thought, huh, Leona?" Ruggie commented.

"Mmm," Leona agreed. Somehow, his smirk grew even more smug. "But then we weren't expectin' all that much."

"Yo, dorm head!" called out one of the Savanaclaw students who'd initially approached Cater's group. He nodded toward Devon. "What should we do about that mouthy one?"

"Leave her be," Leona ordered. "She's not worth our time. Besides…" He focused his gaze on Zephyr. "Somethin' tells that Wisp she has with her isn't gonna take kindly to someone messin' with her. I'd rather not have it kickin' up a dust storm."

"Okay, I may not be Ruggie's biggest fan, but I've gotta admit that the dude's pretty impressive," Devon commented as she watched the hyena fire off spells while hanging upside-down from one of his teammates brooms. Her friends and the Savanaclaw residents continued to tear up the field and, surprisingly, her friends managed to remain on the offensive for the most part. Something was bothering her though; she'd noticed that Leona wasn't really doing much beyond commanding the other Savanaclaw members. He was keeping his eyes on everything, though, and Devon was worried that he was gearing up for some big finishing move. It wasn't until her friends had made it about halfway to Savanaclaw's goal that Leona finally made a move. Without betraying even a hint of what he was about to do, he blasted all four of them out of the way with barely a wave of his magical pen, clearing the way for his residents to steal the disc and score. Devon fought to keep the alarm off her face when she saw Leona glance over at her with that irritatingly cocky smirk. 'Are you kidding me?! I didn't even see him move!'

"If they hadn't stolen the disc, we would've made that goal!" Deuce huffed as they trudged back to the center of the playing field.

"Just how stupid are you guys?" Leona asked condescendingly. "Haven't you realized we've just been toying with you this whole time?" As if to emphasize his point, he used his magic to fling the disc all the way downfield and through Heartslabyul's goal without breaking a single sweat.

Grim, Devon, and the Heartslabyul crew could only stare in stunned silence for a moment, barely able to believe their own eyes. Ace was the first to recover enough to speak. "Dude, what's the deal with that longshot?! That's what I call a super play!"

Leona smirked. "Hope you're up for another round, herbivores."

'This is too much,' Devon thought as she watched her friends struggle to catch their breath, their bodies littered with bruises and covered in dirt. Savanaclaw had forced them into more Spelldrive rounds, mercilessly pummeling them with spells before they could even get their pens raised. She'd tried to jump in and intervene more than once, but Cater would send her a look warning her not to make herself a target before she could even step onto the field.

"This is insane…," Ace panted, his hands on his knees to steady himself. "We can't even score a single point on these guys."

"There's no openings or weak points in any of their plays, either…," Deuce added, panting as well.

"We don't stand a chance," Cater said as he wiped sweat from his forehead. "They say Leona's a genius when it comes to strategizing. I'd never really seen him in action before, but it looks like the rumors undersold how good he really is."

"Oi, what's the matter?" Leona called out. "Don't tell me you're done already."

"Shishishishi~! What happened to all that bravado from earlier?" Ruggie snickered.

"Get up, herbivores. We're playin' one more game," Leona ordered.

"Okay, ya know what? No!" Devon interjected as she marched out onto the field, Zephyr hovering close by. "This one-sided pissing contest is over."

"Devon…," Cater whispered warningly.

"I'm sorry, Cater, but I can't just stand to the side and watch this anymore," Devon told him. She bent down to scoop Grim up into her arms before turning to Ace and Deuce. "Come on, y'all. We're done here."

"And just where do you lot think you're goin'?" Leona asked. "I don't remember givin' you permission to leave."

"That's funny, I don't remember asking for it," Devon shot back. "I'm sure we're all very impressed by…whatever it is you guys were trying to prove with this, but I think you've made your point."

"Big talk for a little girl," taunted one of the Savanaclaw students as he stepped right up to Devon and loomed over her threateningly.

Devon rolled her eyes before squaring herself and sending him a glare of her own, refusing to back down. "Yeah? Well this little girl has no problem feeding you both inches of your cock if you don't back up, pendejo. Take that tiny dick energy somewhere else, I don't have time for you."

The Savanaclaw student cracked his knuckles. "You've got some nerve, ya little bitch. You'd best be learnin' your place before-"

A tall, muscular figure moved in between Devon and the student before he could finish. Devon looked up to see a familiar pair of wolf ears. "And just what exactly is goin' on here?"

"Hmm?" Leona shrugged, a look of indifference back on his face. "Just messin' around with a herd of trespassers."

"Where's the satisfaction in kicking a bunch of amateurs around?" Jack asked, crossing his arms.

"Wooow~ Look at you, Jack. Swoopin' in to play the hero, huh?" Ruggie commented mockingly as he laced his hands behind his head.

"You can't honestly expect me to just sit back and watch when something this heinous is goin' down in front of me," Jack said.

"Tch… Well, this buzz has been sufficiently killed," Leona said, his bored expression never changing.

"You're gettin' awful uppity for a freshman, Jack," the Savanaclaw student who'd been trying to intimidate Devon growled.

"And you're actin' awful childish for an upperclassman," Jack shot back.

The student bristled. "Come again?! You wanna join those brats on the ground over there?!"

"Ha," Leona scoffed. "Those principles of yours are really somethin', freshie." He yawned. "Whatever. This is gettin' boring anyway. Let's get outta here, Ruggie. There's no point in fighting against a bunch of weak herbivores like that."

"Right," Ruggie agreed, gesturing for the other Savanaclaw upperclassmen to follow then.

The upperclassman that had threatened Devon and Jack growled, unhappy leaving things as they were, but knowing better than to go against his dorm leader. He glared at Devon and the Heartslabyul squad before giving them a warning. "You won't have it so easy the next time you trespass on our turf!" With that, he stomped off after his dormmates.

Devon gave Jack grateful smile as the upperclassmen stalked off. "Thanks for the assist, my guy." She turned to look at her friends. "Are you guys okay?"

"More or less," Cater replied. "I think my pride's more hurt than anything else."

Deuce eyed the wolf beastman carefully. "It's…Jack, right? You totally saved our hides, man."

"Don't look so grateful. It's not like I did it for you guys," Jack deflected as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Ugh, I didn't think it was possible to feel this gross," Ace complained as he stood up. "Let's just head home so we can shower."

"And get some grub too! I'm starvin'," Grim added.

"You guys are welcome to come to Ramshackle if you want," Devon offered. "You can use my washer and dryer for your uniforms and I'd be happy to make dinner for you."

Ace perked up immediately. "Sweet~! What are we havin'?"

"Well, I'm thinkin' spaghetti since I always end up making enough to feed an entire village every time I make it," Devon said. She looked over at Jack. "You're welcome to join us too, Jack."

"Nah, I'm good," Jack declined. "Thanks for the offer, though."

"Well, we'd better head out before those guys change their minds about letting us go," Cater said. "Be careful out there, okay Jack?"

Jack looked askance. "You guys aren't in a position to be worried about me. Just go home already."

The group began to trudge back to the mirror that led to the main campus. Devon looked back over her shoulder at Jack, mildly surprised that he was just standing there watching them go. She couldn't quite place the look on his face, but her best guess was that it was a mix of uneasiness and guilt. 'What's that look about?' She offered Jack one last encouraging smile before facing forward again and heading out of Savanaclaw.

Ending Notes: I think Devon's relationships with the Savanaclaw boys are probably my favorites because they all become very protective of Devon in their own ways once the OB situation is resolved and she more or less becomes part of the pack. Jack's is more or less the same as it goes in canon: he insists they aren't friends despite the fact that he's the most obvious about looking after Devon and the most visibly concerned whenever she does something reckless. Devon becomes one of Ruggie's favorite people once she decides she likes him enough to offer to feed him and once he realizes she's not doing it because she wants something from him. Of the three, he's probably the most interested in Devon's world, especially after she explains the concept of thrift shops to him (I'm not sure if they have those in Twisted Wonderland or not, but for the sake of this story they don't). And Leona…hoo boy, Leona. The most protective of Devon by far, but is the least likely to show it. He basically goes from open disdain to a sort of mutual understanding and begrudging respect after the OB to becoming friends (though he'd never actually refer to her as one) in the space between the events of the Savanaclaw arc and the Halloween event (which is where he actually starts to catch feelings) to realizing he's caught feelings by the Octavinelle arc and basically going through the five stages of grief once he figures it out.

Y'all know what's about to go down in the next chapter: Devon finally officially meets Potential Future Husband #4 and has her first actual kinda sorta conversation with Potential Future Husband #2 (and actually learns his name).

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