Author's Note: Alrighty, we've reached the last filler chapter (for now, at least). We'll be getting back to the actual event story with the next update. Now that the Halloween event has dropped on the English server too, I'm not worried about spoiling it.

"Listen, all I'm saying is that it feels wrong to be throwing this party while Dev's trapped in some other world," Dominic argued as he watched DJ goof around with Maverick, an agouti-colored husky puppy and the youngest of the family's three dogs. The two remaining huskies, Blitzen and Loki, were nearby; Blitzen on the living room couch with her face pressed against Dominic's leg so he would pet her and Loki watching DJ and Maverick, apparently waiting for his moment to jump in to play too.

"Okay, but you would've been lookin' for an excuse to cancel the party even if Dev was still here," DJ pointed out, looking up briefly from his game of tug-of-war with Maverick before refocusing on the puppy.

"Irrelevant," Dominic countered, though DJ was amused that his brother made no effort whatsoever to deny his claim. "C'mon, DJ. Are you seriously gonna tell me you don't feel weird about this at all? It's true that I'm not a fan of parties. Or large gatherings. Or…really just socializing at all in pretty much any context…" He shook his head to get his thoughts back on track. "But doesn't it feel like having a party without Devon is…I dunno…a slap in the face to her memory or somethin'?"

DJ gave his brother a flat look. "Okay, first of all, don't talk about Dev like she's dead." Loki chose that moment to rush over and join in the game with his younger sister, so DJ handed the toy off to him and stood up, dusting himself off. "Second of all, it doesn't really matter how we feel about it at this point. We've already sent out the invites; people are expecting this party to happen." He walked over to the couch and took a seat beside his brother. "I get how you're feelin', I really do, but I don't think we're doing her a disservice at all by having the party."

"Well, in my completely unsolicited opinion-" came a voice from the doorway. The boys jumped and turned to see their father standing there with a gentle smile on his face. "-I think DJ's got the right of it." He walked over and patted Dominic's shoulder before sitting down in a chair across from his sons. "You both know your sister better than anyone else, mijos. What do you think would upset her more: following through with a party that was already in the works before she was pulled into another world and making sure you each have enough fun for her too or putting the brakes on the party because of her absence?"

Dominic sighed. "Probably that second one." He shook his head. "But it still feels wrong."

"Okay, let's try thinking about this a different way," Angelo tried. "Dominic, when you had those visions from Devon's point of view, you made a comment about Devon having made quite a few friends in Twisted Wonderland during the time she's been there. Are the two of you at all resentful of that? Are you upset that she's doing what she can to make the best of her situation and enjoy herself, even though she's separated from you two?"

DJ and Dominic looked at their father as if he'd grown a second head.

"Of course not!" DJ objected.

"Yeah, we miss her to death and we're sure she misses us too but we don't expect her to sit around mopin'," Dominic added. "Her life shouldn't screech to a halt just because we can't be right there with her."

Angelo's smile widened as he gave his boys an expectant look.

Dominic glanced at DJ. "I bet she feels the same way. She might not be able to party with us, but she'd still want the show to go on." He shuddered. "I can only imagine the earful we'd get if she found out we canceled without it being some sort of emergency…"

"We'll just have to have enough fun for her too," DJ replied. He fell silent for a moment as a mischievous smirk spread over his face. "Ya know, I've been waiting for the right time to bring this up but…there is one good thing about Devon not being here for the party this year."

"That expression on your face never leads to anything good," Angelo commented.

"And what could possibly be good about Devon not being here?" Dominic asked as he gently rubbed Blitzen's ears.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'd much rather have Dev here so she could be part of all this," DJ assured them. "But since we're on the subject of making the best of our situations…" He cast a sidelong glance at his younger brother. "I can think of two people we-and plenty of other people-would be very happy not to see at our party this year. We always kept quiet about since they're Dev's "friends" and all, but now…"

"DJ… You know your mother and I don't tend to get involved with your party so you three are free to do your own thing," Angelo began. "Having said that, I'm pretty sure I know who you're talking about and, while I can understand you not wanting them around, I'd be remiss in my duties as your father if I didn't express concern that pulling a stunt like that might end up causing unnecessary drama."

"Unnecessary drama?" DJ repeated. "You mean like the kind those two harpies cause almost every day now?"

"It's true, Papa," Dominic agreed. "Madison's been a drama-starter for at least since middle school, but she's gotten even worse now that Dev's not around to reign her in and Marcy's just a sycophant who does follows Madison's lead because she doesn't have enough brain cells to think for herself. I'm not crazy about having this party as it is, but it'll at least be more tolerable if those two aren't there."

"I'm sure plenty of other people would agree with Dominic if we asked," DJ added. "Besides, this is our party at our house. I'd say we're well within our hosting rights to exercise control over the guest list."

"Why is it that you're only capable of speaking eloquently when you're up to some sort of mischief?" Dominic asked. He breathed out a quick laugh and shook his head. "I stan one (1) petty king."

"Well, as a responsible-in theory-parent, I can't actively condone this sort of thing," Angelo said as he stood up. "But as a dad who knows his sons and daughter-" He reached out to ruffle both of his sons' hair. "I say give 'em hell."

"Devon Lopez…," Ortho began as he took in all the pumpkins Devon had bought. He was so excited for the party that he had arrived well before the actual start time. "I'm not trying to call your judgment into question, but I think you might have purchased too many pumpkins."

Devon laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "Yeah, you might be right. I just got so worried about runnin' out that I kept buyin' more until I ended up with all this." She gestured vaguely at the treasure trove of pumpkins they'd managed to move into the lounge.

"I still don't understand the point of carvin' up perfectly good food if you aren't even gonna eat it," Grim said as looked over the pumpkins and tried-and failed-to discreetly stash the best looking pumpkins away from view so he could carve them. "Some of these Halloween traditions are so weird."

"I think it's more interesting that Halloween exists in Devon's world as well, not to mention how similar some of the traditions are," Ortho added. He looked over at Devon, his golden eyes shimmering with excitement. "Every time you tell me about your world, it always makes me want to go and visit it myself. I know my brother's interested in seeing it, too."

Devon couldn't help but smile. She'd been doing her best not to dwell on how much she missed her world and her family-especially her family-since doing so just caused that unpleasant feeling in her chest to bubble up again, but it seemed that even crippling homesickness wasn't a match for Ortho's enthusiasm. "Well if I ever get the chance, I'd be more than happy to show you both around."

Ortho's eyes lit up again as an idea occurred to him. "Actually… There's something I've been meaning to ask you about. I don't think I've mentioned this to you before, but my brother is actually trying to figure out a way for smartphones to be able to communicate between our world and yours."

Grim looked up, pausing in his quest to establish a pumpkin horde. "Really? Why? Ain't no way he's doin' that for Dev's benefit."

"Yeah, I've gotta agree with Grim here," Devon said. "It's not that I think Idia's a bad person or anything, but he doesn't really strike me as the type to go out of his way for someone else." She winked at Ortho. "Unless that someone is you, of course."

Ortho laughed. "Well, I can't really say that your assessment is incorrect. To be completely transparent, Idia's mostly just trying to satisfy his own curiosity. It's kind of an "I want to do this to prove that I can" sort of thing. Regardless of his motives, the results could prove to be very beneficial to you if he succeeds. To that end, I was wondering if you'd allow me to run a scan on the crystal in your bracelet."

Devon glanced at her bracelet uncertainly, gently rubbing her thumb along the crystal embedded in it. "Oh… W-Well… I mean…"

"The scan won't damage the bracelet in any way, honest," Ortho assured her, sensing her uneasiness. "I know how important your bracelet is to you and I wouldn't be asking if I could figure out another solution, but my brother's research has hit a bit of a snag. He's come up with a variety of long-range communication devices, but none of them have been able to bridge the gap between worlds. You told me before that the crystals in the bracelets you and your brothers have let you talk to each other through the mirror in you room, right?"

Devon nodded. "Yeah, but I haven't been able to get it to work again…"

"All the more reason to conduct this scan," Ortho pressed. "See, it's pretty clear those crystals are key in making this work. If I can get a scan of yours to determine its magical wavelength and properties, my brother should be able to create a device that can replicate them. The thing is…I've been cross-referencing all my available databases to try and figure exactly what sort of crystal you and your brothers have so we might be able to find one for ourselves, but there doesn't seem to be much information available."

Devon glanced down at her bracelet again before sighing. "Alright. I'll let you scan my bracelet if you promise it won't be damaged in any way. It's still my only hope of being able to talk to my family again, after all."

"Of course!" Ortho exclaimed, nodding eagerly. "I promise this scan won't do any harm to it!"

Devon held her wrist out toward Ortho, making sure that the crystal was visible. Ortho reached his hand out to hover just over the crystal and a soft blue light emerged. The light swept over the crystal both vertically and horizontally before fading back into Ortho's mechanical palm.

Ortho was silent for a moment, his eyes closed as he analyzed the scan results. When he spoke again, his voice sounded much more clinical and emotionless. "Scan complete. Cross-referencing results with information in all available databases…" Another pause and then his eyes opened again. "Unable to determine a match with 100% certainty. However, analysis indicates that subject is most likely a Sending Stone. Sending scan results to administrator."

Devon shared a look with Grim. "And by "administrator", I'm assuming you mean Idia?"

"Mmhmm~!" Ortho chirped, his voice back to normal. "He'll be really excited to see those results! We knew that crystal wasn't like any other we'd seen before, but I had no idea you and your brothers would be in possession of actual Sending Stones!"

"Uh-huh…," Devon replied as she looked at her bracelet again. "I'm guessin' those aren't your average gems?"

"CERTAINLY NOT!" boomed a loud voice, followed quickly by the sound of the floorboards as they moved Sebek into the lounge.

"Fantastic. I was wondering where our living megaphone was," Grim snarked, his ears flat against his head due to the volume of Sebek's voice.

"Oh, hey Sebek!" Devon greeted. "You're here early."

"Y-Yes, well, it came to my attention that, being the weak human you are, you might be having difficulty getting everything set up," Sebek replied, though his eyes didn't quite meet Devon's. "Everything seems to be in order, though."

Devon smirked knowingly, but opted not to comment. Given how often Diasomnia students had been over at Ramshackle in the past few weeks to get everything ready for Halloween Week, she'd gotten to know a number of them pretty well and Sebek was no exception. Spending a decent amount of extra time with him meant she'd come to learn that there were certain things Sebek's pride would never allow him to admit. It also helped that Lilia had explicitly told her that Sebek was happy that she'd decided to invite him and was very much looking forward to the party despite claiming that he was only attending for the sake of propriety since Devon had gone to the trouble of inviting him and that she should be grateful that he was deigning to grace a party thrown by a human.

Sebek spoke up again quickly when he caught the look on Devon's face, not wanting to give her a chance to call him out. "Going back to what you were talking about earlier, I can confirm that you do, in fact, have a Sending Stone in your possession. Master Lilia noticed it upon meeting you on the first day of the term and informed Silver and myself of his discovery."

"Wait a second," Devon interjected. "Lilia's known about this since we met? How come he never said anything? I've pretty much always got my bracelet on so there's no way he didn't see it since then."

"Your guess is as good as mine," Sebek replied. "The inner machinations of Master Lilia's mind are an enigma. Lord Malleus is much the same, in truth. Those two are on a completely different level."

"Okay, so, given that Ortho's got access to pretty much all the information available in Twisted Wonderland and even he couldn't confirm with absolute certainty that this bad boy's a Sending Stone, I'm assumin' they can't be found just anywhere," Devon reasoned, trying to cut Sebek off from going on another rant about how great Malleus and Lilia were.

Sebek nodded. "Very perceptive, human. Sending Stones only form in the mountains of Briar Valley and are used for long distance communication. Every home has at least one."

"Since they aren't used or found anywhere else, there isn't much information available about them," Ortho added. "I figured I'd be able to find at least one source directly from Briar Valley, but nothing turned up."

"That's to be expected," Sebek replied. "Most modern forms of technology are practically non-existent in Briar Valley. Most homes don't have any sort of internet access and only a handful of people have smartphones."

"Oh yeah, I think I remember Silver telling me something about that," Devon recalled. "He said that you and he only got your phones after you'd been accepted at Night Raven. I guess Lilia already had his for mobile games and stuff, though." She ran her thumb over the crystal again, her mind racing with more questions. 'If Sending Stones can only be mined in Briar Valley, how was Mala able to get these to my brothers and me? Is she from this world too? That would definitely explain why she didn't like talking about herself. If she knows how to move in between worlds, could she get me home?' She took a deep breath to keep herself grounded. 'Okay, I gotta stay cool. My guts tellin' me I need to talk to Lilia about this. Mala seems like someone who floats in noble circles and Lilia's apparently a close confidante of Briar Valley's queen. I think he's my best bet for gettin' some answers.'

The discussion was interrupted by the front door opening and the rest of Devon and Grim's 'Shared Braincell Squad'-as Devon had named their group chat-were brought inside.

"We're here, New York!" Ace called as he strode into the lounge. "Hope you're ready to get-Why are Ortho and Sebek here already?"

"Because they're obviously my favorites and I love them the most," Devon replied teasingly.

Ace rolled his eyes playfully. "You know it's bad karma to tell such blatant lies, right?" He walked over to Devon and pulled her against him, nuzzling his cheek against hers. "Everybody knows I'm your favorite." He pressed a finger to her lips when she tried to respond. "Shhh, it's fine. You don't have to justify your feelings. It can't be easy having feelings for a catch like me, but you've been handling it real well."

Devon snorted but still hugged Ace back. "If by "catch", you mean "catch-and-release"."

The other freshmen and Ortho watched the pair as they whispered amongst themselves.

"Looks like Deuce wins the bet," Epel grumbled as he forked over so Madol to the blue-haired boy in question. "I didn't Ace would beeline for Dev as soon as we got in the door."

"Yeah, no kidding," Jack agreed as he rubbed the back of his head before paying up as well. "I thought for sure he would've lasted at least a half hour. I guess it figures Deuce would be right, though. He is in class with both of them, after all."

"What'd I tell ya? It's like Dev's an Ace magnet; he's gotta be touching her in some way as soon as he realizes she's nearby," Deuce replied with a smug grin as he collected his winnings. "You should see in when she comes over to Heartslabyul, especially if Cater's been touchy-feely with her."

The pumpkin carving got underway not long after. Devon had moved the pumpkins to the lounge to make them easier to get to, but the actual carving was happening outside. Sam hadn't been mistaken about the weather; it was one of the most perfect fall days Devon had experienced, with absolutely no traces of summer heat yet not cool enough to make being outside for an extended period of time uncomfortable. The view from the top of the hill where Ramshackle was situated was amazing as well: they had an amazing view of the different colored leaves on the trees and the headmaster had enchanted several already-carved pumpkins to float along Main Street, not to mention all the pumpkins decorating the main school building.

There was some light conversation amongst the group, but everyone had settled into their own groove for the most part, occasionally getting up to get some food or something to drink out of the kitchen before getting back to carving. The Ramshackle ghosts even carved a few themselves before making their rounds over the campus and several of the Wisps had come out of hiding to watch and socialize in their own way, usually by resting on or around the freshman of their choice.

"Okay, I've gotta know where you found some of these stencils, Dev," Epel said, holding up a paper stencil of the Pomefiore crest.

"Seriously. These are almost exact replicas of the dorm crests. You've even got the Night Raven College crest, too," Jack added. "I mean, I guess you can find almost anything online but still…"

"Oh, I couldn't find any crest stencils online," Devon corrected. "I drew those myself and then printed out a bunch of copies for us to use."

"Are you serious?! These look almost exactly like the actual crests!" Ace exclaimed, taking a closer look at one of the Heartslabyul printouts. "I mean, I knew you were good but damn…"

"You even got the little Cerberus on Ignihyde's crest down perfectly," Ortho added, taking a closer look at the stencil. "That must've been tricky to do."

"I'll grant that you've managed to capture the regal elegance of Diasomnia's crest as well," Sebek conceded loudly. "Not bad for a human."

Devon giggled. "Thanks. It kinda bums me out that Ramshackle doesn't have a cool crest or armband like your dorms do. I know it's not an official dorm or anything but there's still a small part of me that feels left out, so I decided to borrow the other dorms crests for Halloween. Kinda like a solidarity thing."

"I can't really say that I follow your logic, but if makes you happy, go for it," Jack told her. "I guess you do have friends in pretty much all the other dorms."

"Mmhmm. I've got some acquaintances in Octavinelle, but it's most just people I'm in class with. I don't think I know anyone in that dorm that I'd hit up to hang outside of class," Devon said, refocusing on the dremel she was using to carefully etch the Scarabia crest into her pumpkin.

"Speaking of friends," Ace began, gesturing between Devon and Sebek, "when did you two become besties? One day he's yellin' at you for bein' human and you're doin' everything in your power to tick him off and the next you're draggin' him along behind ya to have lunch with us."

"I was curious about that too," Deuce agreed before quickly looking over at Sebek and adding, "Not that we're not happy to have you here, Sebek. It was just a little…abrupt."

Sebek looked askance, his cheeks turning a light pink. "A-Ah… That's…a complicated matter."

"Pfft," Devon snorted. "No, it isn't." She looked back at the rest of the group. "You guys remember when I told you that Sebek spent an entire day followin' me around because he was convinced I posed some sort of threat to Malleus Draconia?"

Ace cackled at the memory. "Oh yeah, I remember now!" He turned his gaze toward Sebek. "Dude, I can't believe you thought Devon, of all people, was a legitimate threat to one of the most powerful mages in the world! I mean, Malleus could flex his finger and she'd be dead as a doornail, right?"

"Hmph!" Sebek huffed defensively as he leveled a glare at Ace. "It is my sworn duty as one of Lord Malleus' guards to remain vigilant and eliminate any potential threat, no matter how unlikely. Not that I'd expect you to understand that."

"Okay, but what made you think Devon was a threat, anyway?" Jack asked.

"Because, lack of magic aside, it would appear that my lord is growing fond of her and-" Sebek's mouth snapped shut immediately as he realized he'd said too much. He met Deuce's worried gaze for a split second, but was forced to quickly turn his attention to Devon, fully expecting her to have figured out Malleus' true identity thanks to his blunder…only to see her looking at him with a perplexed look on her face.

"Okay, that's another thing that doesn't make any sense. How can Malleus be growing fond of me when we've never met?" Devon asked. "Diasomnia's been getting their stamp rally stuff ready to go for weeks now, but I haven't seen Malleus even once." She looked up at Sebek. "Am I missing something here? Surely he can't be so ordinary-looking that I'd mistake him for just another student. After everyone's built him up so much, that'd be seriously anticlimactic."

Sebek could only stare at Devon with a mix of relief and disbelief. 'How can she be so perceptive about one thing but so dense about another?'

"Trust me, you'd definitely know Malleus if you saw him, New York," Ace replied. "While I think Mr. Fanboy over here definitely plays it up a little too much, Malleus definitely stands out even among the people at this school. Although…" He sent her a teasing look. "It could be that he's stalking you."

"DON'T BE ABSURD!" Sebek bellowed. "Lord Malleus would never stoop to something so base. And certainly not for a human! Why, the very idea-"

"Yeah, yeah, we got it," Devon interjected, trying to cut Sebek's rant off before it could get rolling. "Getting back on track, Sebek decided to follow me around for an entire day, so I had him help me out with errands and cleaning the dorm and stuff like that. Figured if he was gonna be followin' me anyway, he could make himself useful. I guess eventually he got tired of just glowering at me and we started actually talking. We got to know each other pretty well over the rest of the day." She sent Sebek a small smile. "You're actually way less annoying than I first thought."

Sebek scoffed, but a small smile was also visible on his face as he reached out to gently push Devon's head to one side. "And I suppose I've come to realize that you aren't the vapid, shallow human I'd initially assumed you were. You are every bit as ignorant as I thought, though I suppose it can't be helped given your situation. You're a fast learner, though, so I have a feeling that deficiency of yours will be amended soon enough."

All teasing aside, Sebek was well aware that Devon had oversimplified what had happened that day to allow him to save face and he was grateful for it. It was more than just "actually talking" and "getting to know each other". After finally getting fed up with Sebek's typical 'humans are inferior' bit, Devon had finally asked him point blank what exactly his hang-up was with humans. She'd interacted with plenty of people from Briar Valley and none of them (outwardly, at least) expressed the disdain for humans that he did. Sebek wasn't exactly sure what caused it, but the moment he made direct eye contact with Devon as he prepared to tell her off, he found himself rattling off many of the things he would've rather kept hidden. He'd explained to her that he was half human himself, that his mother was a fae from one of Briar Valley's noble families who fell in love with a human dentist with no magic whatsoever, and that there had been many among the nobility who were very much opposed to their marriage. He told her that while most of the nobles had long since accepted his parents' union, he knew there were still whispers of disapproval out there. He'd managed to stop just short of revealing anything else, but the knowing look Devon gave him told she had an idea of how the rest of the story went, why he was so determined to be Malleus' best and most dependable guard, and why he fully embraced his fae heritage while dismissing his human one.

This admission was ultimately what opened the door to actual communication between the pair. The conversation turned to much lighter topics after that, namely about Sebek forcing himself to drink black coffee despite disliking it so he could join Silver and Malleus when they drank it, resulting in Devon admitting that she wasn't much a coffee drinker herself and making some cocoa for the both of them and Devon admitting to having been afraid of horses since she was a child, causing Sebek to realize that that was why she always (politely) declined Riddle and Silver's invitations to join them at the Equestrian Club. By the end of the day, they were…well, Sebek wasn't exactly sure he'd call them "besties" despite Devon's insistence, but he at least knew that he could trust her.

"Hey, hey~!" called a voice from Ramshackle's front gate, pulling Sebek back to the present.

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice to see Regina swinging the gate open for Cater, Riddle, and Trey. Trey and Riddle looked to be carrying some boxes in their arms. They were too far away to tell what was in them, but Ace, Deuce, Devon, and Grim all had a vague idea.

"Ya know, I figured it was just a matter of time before Cater showed up," Ace commented. "He'd been whinin' all morning about wantin' to come and carve pumpkins too."

"I didn't expect him to bring Trey and Riddle, though," Deuce added. He waited until the trio had come closer before calling out, "What are you guys doing here?"

"I've been stalking everyone's Magicam feeds," Cater replied bluntly as he offered them a quick salute in greeting. "Some of these pumpkins are just too cute and you guys looked like you were having so much fun that I couldn't help myself~!"

"Sorry about intruding like this, Dev. We know this was supposed to be a freshmen thing," Trey apologized. "Riddle and I tried to stop him, but once Cater gets going, there's no slowing him down." He nodded toward the boxes in his hands. "I baked some apology sweets, if that helps at all."

"Pleeeeease let us carve pumpkins with you, Dev-Dev~!" Cater pleaded.

Devon heaved an exaggerated sigh as she stood up and dusted herself off, but there was an affectionate smile on her face. "I suppose I'll allow it." She giggled as Cater pulled her into a hug. "I'm just playin'; of course you guys can stay and hang out."

"It's not like we're in danger of running out of pumpkins," Epel chimed in. He smirked when Devon shot him a look. "Don't give me that face; you know I'm right. Besides, I'm from a big family too, remember? I totally get buying stuff in bulk, so I'm only kinda making fun of you."

Devon stuck her tongue out at Epel before turning to the Heartslabyul upperclassmen. "C'mon, I help you get those sweets set out. Feel free to help yourselves to the food and drinks in the kitchen too. I'd definitely recommend the apple cider. Epel's family sent him some and he was nice enough to share it with us. It's probably one of the best drinks I've ever had."

Once Cater, Riddle, and Trey joined the party (and Cater began snapping more pictures for Magicam), it didn't take long for some other upperclassmen to come trickling in. To absolutely no one's surprise, Ruggie turned up looking for food and was thrilled when Devon offered to let him take some of the pumpkin innards back with him as well. What did surprise almost everyone was that Leona had opted to tag along with him. He claimed it was because it was too loud at Savanaclaw for him to get any sleep, but the knowing smirk on Ruggie's face and the way Jack just shook his head in response said otherwise.

"You could've just said you wanted to come see me, ya know," Devon teased, laughing as Leona's tail hit her leg gently.

"Don't flatter yourself, herbivore," Leona scoffed, but there was no bite to his words nor any malice in his eyes.

"I'm just sayin', if you keep makin' all these unexpected stops at Ramshackle, I might just start gettin' it in my head that you like hanging out with me," Devon pressed.

"You're free to have all the delusions you want. Doesn't make 'em right," Leona retorted. "I'll be asleep on your couch. If you need me…go find Ruggie."

"How much do you wanna bet he's gonna take the couch that's got that big window behind it that faces out here?" Ruggie asked as he sidled up to Devon after Leona had gone inside, gesturing toward the window in question.

"What makes you so sure he's gonna pick that one?" Devon asked.

"Because if he props himself up against the arm of the couch, his vantage point will give a near-perfect view of where you've been working," Ruggie explained. "Seems he's gotten into the habit of keepin' an eye on his favorite human when he's in the area."

"Wouldn't it be easier to keep an eye on me out here?" Devon pressed.

Ruggie nodded. "Probably. But then he'd run the risk of someone talkin' to him and he just isn't down for that right now."

Devon snorted a laugh. "He's so weird."

Ruggie sent her a sidelong look. "…You have no idea."

Jamil stopped by briefly as well, having found himself with a little bit of free time while Kalim was in a remedial lesson. He opted not to carve anything and he wasn't able to stay for as long as he (or Devon) would have liked, but he seemed content to sit with Devon as she carved and talk with her, his shoulder occasionally brushing against hers. Having watched the two of them from almost the moment Jamil arrived, Cater was able to give Devon a quick subtle high-five while Jamil was distracted with something else. Even Idia stopped by (via his tablet, of course) to check up on Ortho, becoming very intrigued by the Jack Skellington face Devon had carved in one of her pumpkins.

Once it became clear that her little get-together was no longer freshmen (and Ortho) exclusive, Devon pulled Sebek aside.

"Hey, you've got Lilia and Horns' phone numbers, right?" she asked.

Sebek couldn't help his involuntary eye twitch upon hearing Devon refer to his liege by that infernal nickname. He knew by now that she didn't him by such a name due to a lack of respect, but it still didn't sit right with him. "That's correct."

"Will you do me a huge favor and invite them here?" Devon requested. "I don't have their numbers and Silver's in a remedial lesson with Kalim today so I can't ask him to do it, either."

"Mal-," Sebek began, only to catch himself and quickly clear his throat. "My Diasomnia upperclassmen are very busy, you know. They don't have time to waste on frivolity."

"Okay, fair, but could you invite them for me anyway?" Devon pressed. "They don't have to come if they're too busy, but I don't want to just assume they don't wanna be part of this, ya know?"

Grim pulled Devon's attention away from Sebek before he could respond, calling her over to help him with a more intricate carving he wanted to do. Sebek looked down at his phone as Devon walked away. There was some merit in what she said, but Malleus and Lilia's time was valuable. Such merry-making was fine for those without the weight of an entire kingdom on their shoulders-he would have begrudging accepted Silver's presence at the party had he been free to make it-, but the two of them didn't have that kind of time to waste. They were far too busy doing…whatever it was they did, most likely something much too grand for the average mind, including his own, to even begin to comprehend. 'It's best not to waste their time with this,' Sebek thought as he rejoined the party.

"Welp, all in all, I'd consider today a resounding success!" Devon said happily to Regina and Zephyr as they worked on getting the last of the clean-up finished. Zephyr pulsed in agreement while the shutters on the windows began to wave happily.

The festivities had lasted well into the evening and, by some miracle, all but two of the pumpkins Devon had stockpiled had been carved. Her friends opted to take some of theirs back to their dorms, but several of them decorated the lounge and front gates of Ramshackle. Devon kept most of the leftover food, including an apple pie that Trey had hidden away with a note saying he had made it specifically for her, having recalled that it was her favorite dessert. Ruggie had made off with a decent haul as well, as did several of her other friends, though Devon absolutely refused to give up what was left of the cider Epel brought.

Devon was just about to head inside when a familiar flurry of green lights began flickering in the yard. She hopped excitedly as her behorned fae friend appeared a second later, rushing down into the yard to greet him. "Hey, Horns!"

Malleus couldn't help but smile when he caught sight of Devon. Her presence always put him in a good mood, but seeing how eager she was to see him made him even happier. "Good evening, child of man. Judging by your mood, I trust everything went well today?"

Devon nodded. "Mmhmm~! It was a lot of fun! I was a little worried I'd end up with a ton of uncarved pumpkins left over since I went just a liiiiittle bit overboard buyin' 'em, but thankfully some of our upperclassmen friends were there to take some off our hands. I was really surprised when Leona showed up, though. I mean, he just slept on my couch and didn't actually carve anything, but still."

The dragon fae visibly bristled at her words. "Is that right?" Malleus' tone was even, but a mix of hurt and irritation was visible in his bright green eyes. He'd been so hopeful that this human would be different, that he could form a real friendship with her, that he could be special to her, and she'd already forgotten him. Not only that, but she'd invited Kingscholar and not him?! He shouldn't have gotten his hopes up so high, but ever since she made that pinky promise to him when she had been de-aged (not that she remembered it), he'd noticed that his heart began to beat faster when she was near him and there was a fluttery feeling in his stomach that he'd never experienced before. He was beginning to crave her presence but it seemed the feeling wasn't mutual.

Devon blinked, picking of her friend's change in demeanor instantly. "You, uh… You okay, Horns?"

"I'm fine," Malleus replied shortly. "I just wasn't aware that you'd invited so many of your other friends. When last we spoke about it, you told me you only planned to invite your freshman friends."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on a sec," Devon said, holding her hands up in a placating gesture. "I think there's been a misunderstanding here. Just to be clear, I did invite Jamil Viper, Scarabia's vice dorm leader, but that was because I ran into him earlier this week and it seemed like the poor guy could use a break from…everything. He was the only upperclassman I actually invited; everyone else just showed up." Her eyes widened as a thought struck her. "Wait a sec…did Sebek not say anything to you?"

Now it was Malleus' turn to look confused, though Devon was relieved to see that he no longer looked angry with her. "I…beg your pardon?"

"Once I realized just how many upperclassmen stopped by, I asked Sebek to text you and Lilia to tell you both to stop by if you wanted to," Devon explained. "I would've done it myself, but I don't have your phone numbers. He kept insisting that "Diasomnia upperclassmen don't have time to waste on frivolity" but I asked him to invite you anyway and at least give you the option to come by, y'know?" She shook her head, realizing how it must've looked to her friend. "I should've followed up to make sure he actually did what I'd asked, but I got distracted with Grim." She rubbed the back of her head. "I'm really sorry about that, Horns. I promise I'd never exclude you on purpose."

Malleus shook his head, thankful it was too dark for Devon to see the faint blush on his cheeks. He felt like such a fool for being so quick to doubt her. "You have nothing to apologize for, child of man. I'm the one who overreacted and jumped to conclusions. It's…rather embarrassing to admit, actually, but not being invited to parties and ceremonies is a bit of a sore spot for me. Even so, it's no excuse for behaving the way I did. I hope you can forgive me."

Devon smiled before wrapping her arms around Malleus and nuzzling against his chest. "I forgive you. I'd be pretty upset too if I found out my friend had a party and invited everyone except me."

"It always amazes me how empathetic humans can be," Malleus commented, trying to slow his now racing heart as he returned Devon's hug, one of his hands tangling gently in her curls. "It seems I'll need to have a word with Sebek upon my return to Diasomnia."

"I was actually really hoping you'd come by tonight," Devon said. "I can't go back and change what happened earlier today, but…" She pulled back from the hug and walked toward the front door, picking up the two pumpkins that remained uncarved. "I still really want to carve pumpkins with you, so I made sure to keep two of them hidden away." She looked at him eagerly. "What do you say? Will you carve with me?"

The fluttering in Malleus' stomach was back and it was easily ten times stronger than it had ever been before. He wasn't sure what kind of spell Devon had cast over him to cause these feelings, but he couldn't really bring himself to care. He smiled at her, the fondest smile he'd ever given another living being. "I'd love to."

Ending Notes: I just have to say: thank the Great Seven that Devon has decent communication skills because we all know these boys sure don't.

More buildup to the Lopez Halloween Bash! I absolutely love writing the boys being petty, especially towards Madison. I don't want to spoil anything but, while Madison's relationship with Devon is more complicated than I've made it seem so far, she definitely needs to be knocked down a peg or two.

Devon's greatest fear has been revealed too! I've had someone ask me as a joke if Devon had a horse girl phase and the answer is a resounding no. Crowley better hope they don't encounter an Overblot that takes the form of a horse because Dev would nope outta there so fast.

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