Author's Note: Mild content warning: Dominic says f—k.

Meanwhile, back at the school store, the reactions to the proposal crew's performance were…mixed.

Crowley sighed and buried his head in his hands. "I can't believe the Tall Boy Squad was shot down so quickly.

Riddle chuckled to himself. "Did you see how Floyd goaded the ghost into slapping him? No hesitation whatsoever." He kept his eyes on Ortho's projection of the surveillance feed with a vindicated smirk. "Let that be a lesson not to choose potential marriage partners solely based on height."

Ace was too busy cracking up next to him to pay much attention to Riddle's words. "Oh man, what was going on with Trey's singing?! That was hysterical! I mean, I get that some people have simple tastes, but those lyrics were somethin' else!"

"C'mon Ace," Deuce attempted to admonish him despite barely being able to hide his own snickers, "there's no need to insult the guy." He snorted before bursting into laughter as well. "I just can't! I keep thinking back to those lyrics and I just wanna laugh!"

"Alas, poor Vil!" Rook lamented dramatically. "To see his immaculate cheeks marred by that bright red slap mark! Why, it's enough to break a man's heart! Such fair features blemished is a tragedy of epic proportions!"

"Uh… Yeah, totally," Epel replied, trying to keep up with his vice dorm leader's theatrics. He chuckled before whispering under his breath, "But man, that face he made when he got shot down…"

"It was the way Floyd just torpedoed Jade's chances for me," Devon commented, amused. "I also love how nonchalant Jade was about it, too. Like, "Yes, I did just try to give you a flower that could melt your face off…for science. But we're cool, right?""

"This isn't a game, you lot!" Crowley scolded. "Or have you forgotten that Shroud's life is hanging in the balance?! Oh, merciful Sevens, where do we go from here?!"

"There's no need to worry, headmaster!" Azul declared as he stepped forward. "I'd like the chance to make up for my dormmates' shortcomings." He shook his head with an expression of regret. "It's obvious to me now that they have no idea how to treat a lady." He straightened up and offered Crowley his best 'business mode' smile. "I, on the other hand, can guarantee you that I will get that Severance Ring on her finger!"

Cater rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Everyone knows that I'm the resident expert when it comes to wooing cuties!"

"Wow, Cater. You seem pretty fired up all of a sudden," Deuce observed.

Cater shrugged. "What can I say? I'm in my element here!" He eyed Deuce with a sly look. "Actually, I think you should come too, Deucey. The more wingmen, the better, right?"

"Wha- Me?! This kinda stuff isn't really my strong suit," Deuce argued. "I don't know the first thing about how to romance someone."

"So, what, you're just gonna abandon Trey, then?' Ace challenged. "Ouch, man. Didn't think you were so cold."

Deuce gave Ace an incredulous look. "What?! Of course not! You know I'd never do something like that!"

"Then get movin'," Ace replied with a smirk. "I'm sure Trey's just waitin' for ya to swoop in and save the day."

Deuce nodded determinedly. "You know what? You're right. I swear I'll get justice for Trey!"

"Hey, there ya go! Way to shoot your shot, man!" Ace praised teasingly.

Deuce nodded again and turned to Cater. "Count me in! Let's crash that wedding hall!"

"Poor sweet Deucey… Can't even tell when he's being played," Cater muttered low enough so that only Devon (and her brothers by extension) could hear.

Lilia was the next to volunteer. "I suppose I ought to throw my hat into the ring as well. I can hardly call myself a teacher if I can't make up for my student's deficiencies."

"It sounds so cool when he says it," Epel muttered admiringly.

Lilia smiled and patted Epel on the head before turning to Crowley. "The operation is in good hands, we assure you."

"Yeah, but it's too bad that you guys won't even get a turn," Cater teased playfully. "Just you wait-Cay-Cay's gonna slay-slay!"

"You weren't kiddin', Dev. He really is the most extra person in the room," DJ commented.

Azul smiled and shook his head. "I think both of you will find that I'm a very tough act to follow."

"Okay, I'm glad you guys are friends now and everything, but if I were in your shoes, I'd feel like he was trying to sell me a crappy used car in exchange for one of my kidneys every time we talked," DJ said to Devon as the second wave of suitors set off toward the main building.

Devon rolled her eyes inwardly. "Well, a fool and his kidney are easily parted, I guess. How's Dom doing, though? I haven't heard from in a minute but I can feel how angry he is."

"Oh yeah, he's definitely in 'no talk, me angy' mode. Has been ever since the ghost started slappin' people," DJ replied. "I think he's upset at the idea that she might have done that Idia too."

"You heard the way she was gushing over him, Dom. I seriously doubt she'd actually hit him," Devon said in an effort to calm her younger brother down.

"I appreciate that you're trying to help, Dev, but I don't think I'll feel better until we know Idia's safe and far away from…," Dominic had to pause, not wanting to say anything too insulting, "from her." He sighed. "Do you think this second group has a better chance of winning her over?"

"Possibly. As long as Cater doesn't go too hard to the shameless flirting and Azul doesn't treat the whole thing like some kind of sales pitch, either one of them might stand a decent chance," Devon replied. "As for Lilia…well, he's kind of a wild card. It seems like he's really good at all sorts of things you wouldn't really expect him to be good at, so he might be a real suave charmer despite the goofy dad vibes."

"Guess we'll just have to watch and see," Dominic said, sounding less irritated now that he did before.

"Actually, there's something I wanted to ask you about, Dev," DJ said. "That guy with the glasses said that Night Raven is an all-boys school, didn't he? I was a little curious about why all of your friends there seem to be guys."

Devon didn't answer. She could already feel DJ's older brother protection protocols getting ready to activate, which was why she hadn't mentioned that little tidbit to him before.

"Please don't tell me that you're the only girl on that campus," DJ said.

"Okay, I won't tell you," Devon quipped. She noticed that the second rescue squad was approaching the gate-the perfect distraction. "Oh hey, look at that! Plot is happening!"

It took the second group less than five minutes to be slapped into submission. Now they stood frozen in place along with the first wave of suitors, though some were more vocal about their situation than other.

"Impossible!" Azul exclaimed, seething, a bright red handprint on his face. "How was I rejected?!"

"Ahahaha! Man, she really slapped you good, huh Azul?" Floyd cackled.

"My proposal should've been perfect for the ghost's standards," Azul ranted. "I analyzed the first team's data to make sure she'd accept! I even brought her a bouquet of roses and sang her a love song, for Seven's sake! So where did I go wrong?!"

"I seem to recall her saying that you talked too much and lacked even a shred of sincerity," Jade supplied with an amused smile. "I can only imagine that it rubbed her the wrong way."

Leona sighed. "Of course it did. You're not gonna get anywhere with anyone if you just talk their ear off the whole time."

"You're hardly in a position to criticize, Leona," Azul bit out. "In case you'd forgotten, you were the first to be rejected."

"I can't believe she turned me down!" Cater lamented. "I thought I was on fire."

"And how exactly was your flippant chatter supposed to spark anything but annoyance?" Vil asked rhetorically. "Even the ghost was put off by your shallowness."

"Not that I'm unhappy to see you, but why exactly are you here, Deuce?" Trey asked.

"I wanted to come and save you, but the second I was face-to-face with the ghost, I just froze up," Deuce said with shame in his voice. "I completely blanked and couldn't think of anything to say to her."

"She told me that I was too cute," Lilia added with a sigh. "It's tough being as cute as a button."

"For even Master Lilia to be dealt the slap of rejection…," Sebek growled. "Worry not, Master! That ghost is just jealous that you are far cuter than her!"

"Would you all stop shouting?!" Eliza chided as she glared over at them. "Honestly, why must modern men behave like such cads? They come here to court me, but they don't even have the decency to dress the part." She smiled before sighing dreamily. "Oh, I knew my darling Idia was the one for me! No one else even comes close!"

Chubby nodded, loyally at his princess' side. "I couldn't agree more, Your Highness. It's clear as day that these "suitors" are naught but hopeless knaves that don't know the first thing about gentlemanly conduct."

"How could I possibly be outshone by someone as antisocial as Idia?" Vil seethed. "This is more than I can bear."

"I bet that shut-in can't even sing!" Leona added.

"Hmph!" Eliza scoffed. "Please, Idia is nothing like the rest of you. As I've stated numerous times now, he's a perfect prince." She beamed once again. "I'm sure he'd gladly join me in a duet if he weren't feeling so shy at the moment."

"My goodness. Do you even realize how delusional you sound?" Lilia asked. "You're projecting your notions onto Idia and in doing so you're refusing to see him for who he really is. So long as you keep gazing into the distance like that, you'll never find what you're really looking for." His gaze turned toward Chubby before he continued, "You need to redirect your focus to what's there directly in front of you."

"Enough of this prattling! I know what I've found: Idia, my perfect prince!" Eliza protested, given the frozen students the impression that she would have stomped her foot like a petulant child if she could have.

Chubby's expression dropped to one of forlorn longing but he kept silent, allowing the princess to bask in her happiness.

"This whole endeavor was nothing but a waste of time," Eliza continued. "We need to get the ceremony preparations underway."

"Your Highness," Chubby began hopefully, "you must be tired after dealing with all these boorish humans. Surely there's no need to rush."

"Aww, it's so sweet of you to worry about me, Chubby," Eliza replied, smiling as she patted his shoulder. "Even when we were alive, you've always been my dearest friend."

"Your friend… Right…," Chubby said dejectedly. "Of course. That's why I'm here, Your Highness."

"Now," Eliza turned to the two attendants she'd handed Idia over to earlier, "bring Idia to me!"

The two vassals bowed. "Of course, Your Highness. Here he is!"

"Uuggh," Idia groaned as he was wheeled-literally wheeled-into the room on what looked like a storage dolly. He'd been forced into a very dapper black formal suit, completely opposite from his usual style yet somehow still fitting for him; when they looked closer, they could see that a skull motif had been interwoven into the material of the suit pants and jacket. He had some white lilies pinned to his breast pocket and his fiery hair had been pulled back into a low ponytail with one piece left hanging over his shoulder.

"Oh my, Idia!" Eliza squealed as she rushed over to him. "You look incredible, darling! The long fitted jacket really brings out your air of nonchalance, the black color and the style contrast wonderfully with your bright hair and those lilies are as charming as your smile!"

"I took the liberty of pulling his hair back," piped up one of the attendants. "A minor detail, but crucial to pulling the look together."

"Now his lidded eyes and flawless features are on full unobstructed display!" added the other.

"He's positively dashing!" Eliza gushed. "I expected nothing less from you two; you helped my mother and father prepare for their wedding too, after all." She giggled demurely. "Oh my, but I'm absolute beside myself! You make the perfect groom, Idia!"

"Ugh, this embarrassment burns. Well, the parts of me that aren't already on fire, at least," Idia complained, unable to shrink away from all the eyes on him thanks to Eliza's magic freezing him in place. "If this is a bad dream, can I wake up now? I just wanna go back to my room."

"Wow, Idia's really dressed to the nines!" Deuce commented with admiration.

"Looks like he's as frozen as we are," Trey observed. "I can't believe they actually wheeled him in here on a stand."

"Wait, so she slapped Idia too?" Cater asked. "Dang, he's got one ruthless soon-to-be wifey!"

(Back with the group at the school store, Devon had to fight to keep from visibly wincing as a string of Spanish curses and insults left Dominic's mouth at a rapid-fire pace at the implication that Idia had been harmed.)

"Well, I never!" Eliza exclaimed, offended. "I just gave him a teensy little poke because he kept trying to run away."

("It's no wonder her kingdom fell if everyone in it is this fuckin' stupid and can't take a hint!" Dominic growled through the link, much to the surprise of both his siblings. They'd seen him angry plenty of times, of course, but they could count on one hand the number of times he'd been angered to the point of swearing.)

"Way to go on the rescue, guys. Gold star," Idia snarked, his voice dripping with disdain. "Way to crash and burn and leave nothing but a pile of wreckage." He continued to rant, oblivious to the glares he was drawing from the other frozen students. "I mean, I thought you normies were supposed to be good at all this vapid socializing stuff! Aren't you embarrassed?"

"You are so right, honey dearest, and you should say it!" Eliza agreed. "They're all total wrecks compared to you! I just love the way you tell people the hard truths even when they don't want to hear them! That takes real kindness and integrity, you know. You're so perfect that I just can't bear to wait a moment longer!" She nodded resolutely. "We're holding the wedding tonight!"

Idia's eyes widened in shocked terror. "Wait, tonight?! Like, tonight tonight?!"

"Oh, of course~!" Eliza chirped happily, oblivious to Idia's growing despair. "Can't you just picture it? Tonight, when the clock strikes midnight, we'll seal our eternal marriage with a kiss! Then you'll shed your mortal form and our souls will depart for our honeymoon together!"

"And leave this mortal coil without getting to read my manga?!" 'And never see Ortho or Dominic again?!' Idia looked desperately at the other students. "Guys, please! You've gotta get me out of this!"

"Hmm, well it sounds like you've found someone who loves you despite your bad attitude," Vil sniffed.

"Good on ya for findin' your soulmate," Leona added dryly.

"What?!" Idia exclaimed.

"I don't know why you sound so surprised," Jack said. "You hurled all those insults at us, after all."

("Sorry, Dom. I know you've got a thing for the guy, but I kinda have to side with Jack here," Devon said. Her brother was unable to argue with her, only offering a small, "mmm," in response.)

"It's finally happening!" one of the ghostly attendants exclaimed jubilantly. "After 500 years, the princess is finally getting the wedding she so desired!" His expression dropped suddenly. "Back in the olden days, this would have called for a nationwide celebration. But our neighbors were nothing but ungrateful scoundrels who turned on us without a second thought!"

"Ooh, just remembering it is enough to make the blood boil…you know, if we still had any," agreed another attendant.

Eliza shook her head. "Now, now, you two. There's no use in crying over spilled kingdoms. Getting upset won't change what happened, after all."

"Princess…," the attendants and guards murmured as they looked at her with adoration.

"Oh! I have an idea," Eliza continued as she gestured toward the other students. "How about we make these other suitors here the groomsmen? They can be part of the ceremony and we can have the merry wedding you two want!" She turned to the frozen group. "Did you hear that, everyone? You're going to help me and my darling celebrate the start of our lives as newlyweds!"

"Uh, can we not?!" Idia shouted. "Someone, anyone, please just get me out of here!" He looked at Azul desperately. "Azul! You and I are Board Game Club comrades, aren't we?! You're a fast talker so talk some sense into these ghosts!"

"To think that the king of all introverts would get married," Azul said calmly, closing his eyes since he was unable to turn his head away and still salty about Idia's earlier comments. "Why, I can hardly see through all my tears of joy." He smiled brightly, though his eyes were still closed. "My most heartfelt congratulations to the happy couple. I'm sure it will be a wonderful wedding!"

"NOOOOO!" Idia shrieked.

Chubby's gaze stayed glued to Eliza as she flitted happily about, alternating between gushing over Idia and finalizing the wedding preparations, his expression growing more hopeless and forlorn each time she called Idia her "future husband".

By this time, the sun had nearly set, painting the sky a dusky purple color as some stars began to peek out. Despite the lovely evening, Crowley was shaking his head in dismay. "Well, so much for the B team…"

Much like before, Ace was too busy busting a gut to listen to listen to Crowley's grumblings. "Oh man, did you see how awkward Deuce was?" he asked, wiping a tear from his eye and leaning against Devon for support. "Who goes silent like that as soon as they say their name? That's classic!"

"Myahahaha!" Grim cackled. "They were all so confident too, but they got smacked down in no time flat!"

"This isn't funny, you guys!" Ortho exclaimed. "They're going to hold the wedding tonight! At this rate, my brother's going to be dragged to the land of the dead against his will."

Riddle nodded. "Ortho is right. There's not much time until midnight. We need a successful proposal and we need it fast!"

"But even Azul wasn't able to win the ghost over," Kalim pointed out. "The only dorm leaders left are the two of us, plus Malleus and he's not an option."

"Then I suppose that leaves us with little choice," Crowley said. "We'll just have to round up every other potential suitor!"

"Sounds like we've all got some calls to make," Devon said.

"Hey Dev, while you guys take care of that, I think I'm gonna get our brother here to take a break," DJ said.

"I don't need a break, DJ. I'm good…," Dominic argued, though he sounded a bit dazed.

"Bro, you look like you're gonna pass out any second now," DJ said. "Just rest for a little while and let the NRC crew work out a plan to save your man, okay? We'll link back up with Devon in a bit."

"DJ's right," Devon agreed. "I know you're worried about Idia, Dom, but trust me when I tell you that we aren't about to let that ghost take him. And I'm not about to let her get away with slapping my friends around for basically no reason. Besides, Idia wouldn't want you to overdo it with your blessing, right? You said he was working on making changes to that adapter thing so you wouldn't have to overtax your power to make it work. I don't even wanna think about how bad he'd feel if you wore yourself down because of him."

"Mmmm…," Dominic grumbled. He knew Devon was right, but using Idia against him like that was a dirty trick. He supposed she did have a point, though. "Fine. But DJ and I will be checking back in."

Once she was sure that Dominic had severed the link, Devon took out her phone and began dialing. Unfortunately, it would seem that the rest of the NRC student body echoed the initial sentiment of the group that first gathered on the athletics field: none of them wanted to touch this situation with a ten-foot pole.

First up was Ruggie…

"So you're sayin' you want me to propose to a ghost after Leona and Jack got captured tryin' to do it? Absolutely not! Leona'll find a way outta this on his own and I ain't about to stick my neck out for free. Sorry, kitten."

Then Jamil…

"I'm not going and neither is Kalim. There could be dire consequences if he were exposed to that kind of danger," Jamil's tone grew more exasperated, "and if I went on my own, I know he'd say something like, "That sounds fun!" and tag along anyway. I'm sorry Devon, but you all will have to handle this yourselves."

And then Silver…

"I can't. With Fa-er, I mean Lilia and Sebek absent, I'm the only one left to guard Lord Malleus."

"I'll be fine on my own for a while, you know," Malleus told Silver quietly to keep Devon from picking up his voice.

Silver turned toward Malleus and cover his phone's receiver so Devon couldn't hear him. "I'm sure Father would agree with me if he were here, sire." He uncovered the receiver again. "Anyway, I'm afraid that's that. I'm sorry I can't be of assistance, Devon."

Night had fallen by the time everyone had asked their entire contacts and Magicam friends lists for help.

"So we've scraped up a grand total of nobody?!" Crowley exclaimed.

"How can they all be so heartless?" Ortho asked with a sigh.

"Fret not! For you have two qualified suitors right here!" Rook declared as he gestured to himself and Epel.

"So…does that mean you'll help my brother?" Ortho asked hopefully.

Rook smiled. "But of course! After all, there is no act more beautiful than helping one's fellow man! That, and I'm not about to allow any further mockery of Vil's fair features." He nodded toward Epel. "I'm sure you'll find Monsieur Crabapple to be just as motivated as I am."

"That's right! I'll save our dorm leader and make him acknowledge how strong I've gotten!" Epel declared. He lowered his voice to mutter the next part, "If I can do that, then maybe…"

"So the C team has a total of two people," Ace observed. "Well it's not like I can blame anyone else for not wanting to get involved-"

"I'll be going too," Riddle said.

"What, why?!" Ace exclaimed. "You're not seriously going just to rescue Cater and Trey, are you?!"

"That is part of it. As a dorm leader, it's my duty to make up for the shortcomings of my residents," Riddle replied. "However, there's an even more urgent and critical reason for me to involve myself in this. Aren't you forgetting something, Ace?"

"Umm…," Ace trailed off, trying to think of something.

"Queen of Hearts Rule 703: 'Anyone who places second in a croquet tournament must serve tea to the queen the next day'," Riddle recited.

"What does that have to do with-" Ace began, only to cut himself off when he realized what Riddle meant. "Oh no…"

"That's right. Cater placed second in the croquet tournament yesterday!" Riddle concluded. "He must return to the dorm before the clock strikes midnight! He must serve tea to the queen-that is, to me-sometime today!"

"I admire your dedication to the rules, Riddle, but I think your priorities might be a little skewed," Devon commented.

"For real," Ace agreed. "We're kind of in the middle of an emergency here if you haven't noticed, dorm leader! I'll just make you some tea if Cater can't-"

"Out of the question, Ace," Riddle interjected. "You didn't even place in the top ten yesterday. I will make sure that Cater returns in time so that we stay in compliance with the rules."

"Once a stickler, always a stickler, I guess," Ace said, shaking his head. "It's still a huge improvement over how you were before, though. And it's not like any of this is my problem!"

"So then, the next team of suitors will be myself, Rook, Epel, and Ace. That brings us to four in total," Riddle said.

"Me?!" Ace exclaimed. "I don't remember volunteerin' to be part of this!"

"You were planning on sitting out, then?" Riddle asked, though he didn't seem surprised by Ace's reaction.

"Yeah, obviously! I'm not about to jump onto this hot mess express!" Ace replied. "I don't want any part of this."

"Very well," said Riddle. "You can go back to the dorm and tend to the hedgehogs or something."

Devon and Grim exchanged a look. Both of them were sure that Riddle would insist that Ace join in or at least sigh heavily and make some sort of comment about him not going. It was then that they noticed the sly smile working its way over Riddle's face as Ace turned and began walking toward the Hall of Mirrors.

"After all, we'll be fine with Epel here," Riddle continued as he walked over to the purple-haired freshman.

Epel blinked. "Me? Are you sure?"

Riddle nodded. "Of course. Unlike Ace, you possess actual bravery."

That stopped Ace in his tracks. He slowly turned back around to glare at his dorm leader. "…Huh?"

'Ah, so that's your plan,' Devon thought as she and Grim watched with amusement.

"It's a pity that all of my dorm's freshmen are such cowards," Riddle continued, ignoring Ace. "It appears you have more courage in your pinkie finger than they have in their entire bodies."

"Huh?" Ace repeated, the irritation only growing in his eyes and on his face.

Riddle smiled and clapped Epel on the shoulder. "I suppose it's for the best that we don't have any of those spineless oafs tagging along. We wouldn't want them slowing us down, after all."

"HUH?!" Ace yelled in disbelief as he took Riddle's bait hook, line, and sinker. "You guys wouldn't even get a turn if I came along!"

"Oh? Is that right?" Riddle challenged with a smirk as he finally turned his attention to Ace.

"Of course it is! Just you watch, I'll have that bride eating out of my hand in no time at all!" Ace declared. "Just sit back and take notes, fellas!"

Rook chuckled, keeping his voice low so only Riddle could hear. "Heheheh. Monsieur Heart is quite the devious one, isn't he?"

"Heh. Heartslabyul students are always prepared to band together like the card soldiers of old," Riddle whispered back.

Ace was too busy continuing with his tangent to notice the conspiratorial whispers. "For that matter, why are you so sure you guys will even make the cut? Rook'll probably be fine, but you and Epel are both shorter than the bride-"

Now it was Riddle's turn to bristle, his steely eyes narrowing into a glare. "Tell me Ace, are you trying to lose your head?"

"I didn't say anything!" Ace replied with an innocent smile before moving to hide behind Devon and Grim.

Ortho sighed and shook his head. "The C team has barely been formed and they're already bickering. We've only got four hours until midnight." He turned to look at Devon. "I have a favor to ask you, Devon Lopez. Please go with them and make sure they stay focused."

Devon smiled and nodded. "You know I will, Ortho."

"Oh, thank you!" Ortho exclaimed happily as he wrapped Devon up in a hug. "I knew my best friend wouldn't let me down!"

"Well I don't wanna go!" Grim protested. "And there ain't nothin' you can say to make me!"

"Nobody asked you to come with, Grim," Ace pointed out. "We're not gonna need you for this."

"Wha-?! And just what is that supposed to mean?!" Grim demanded, offended.

"I must agree with Ace Trappola," Ortho concurred. "The chances of the bride choosing you as her groom are," He paused to run the numbers, "infinitely approaching zero."

"Grrr… Fine! I didn't wanna go at first but now I'm seriously ticked off!" Grim fumed. "I'm way more charming than all of y'all put together and I'll prove it! I'm goin' with ya!"

"Ah, how beautiful it is to see you all so passionate about winning the bride's heart!" Rook exclaimed.

Devon blinked. "You do know we're only doin' this to send her spectral butt back to the other side, right?"

"Considering how much time is left until the wedding, this will be our last chance," Crowley reminded them gravely. "If we fail a third time, Idia's life will be forfeit."

A hush fell over the group as the enormity of the situation hit them. Everything really was riding on them now.

"If I recall correctly, the bride took issue with the fact that the first two groups did not dress the part," Crowley said. "She was also quite taken with Idia's tux. This is information that we cannot ignore. It's time to turn you all into perfect princes!"

Ending Notes: Dominic being jealous/protective over his not-quite boyfriend is one of my favorite things to write. He's generally the most non-confrontational of the triplets, but they say that it's the quiet ones who snap the loudest. And it's by no means a one-sided thing, either; I fully believe that Idia would get just as unhinged if he thought Dom was in danger or someone was trying to take him away from Idia. I'm talking a full-on 'what Hades did to Pirithous that one time because he tried to kidnap and marry Persephone' kinda thing.

We'll finally be getting that Devon/Ace content I promised in the next chapter, so I hope you'll all be looking forward to it!

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