"Alright. Spill it, Dev," DJ said.

"Why are you so sure there's somethin' to spill?" Devon asked with a roll of her eyes.

DJ and Dominic both gave her a flat look before gesturing at the opulent palace the three of them had found themselves in.

"Look, I already told you that I don't know how or why I keep getting these dreams and I have no control over where they send us," Devon reminded them. "At least it's the royal palace of Agrabah this time and not Ursula's cave again."

"You're dodging the question," Dominic said. "That means something actually has gone down."

Devon puffed up her cheeks in frustration, but she knew there was no point in trying to redirect her brothers-they just knew her too well. "Fine," she sighed, "but at least it's not a situation that could potentially render me homeless this time."

"Is that supposed to make us feel better?" DJ snarked.

Devon filled her brothers in on the situation in Scarabia: how the students were being forced to remain on campus over the break on Kalim's orders, Kalim's mood swings that seemed less like mood swings and more like a split personality, Jamil being at the end of his rope and asking Devon and Grim for help, that strange brain fog Devon had experienced, and their failed escape attempt.

"So…you're sayin' this is basically a large-scale kidnapping," Dominic concluded once Devon had finished.

"Sounds like it," DJ agreed, "but after the way those other scrubs manhandled Dev and Grim, I'm not really inclined to be sympathetic." He turned to look at Devon. "So what are you gonna do? Clearly Crowley isn't gonna be of any help."

"I don't really think there's much we can do right now," Devon replied. "We'll need to come up with a better plan if we wanna try and sneak out, so Grim and I will just have to grin and bear it for now. It's a crappy situation, but it could definitely be worse, y'know. At least we don't have to worry about not having a place to sleep."

Two figures suddenly appeared in the room and pulled the triplets from their conversation. It didn't take them long to recognize the scene: the Sultan and Jafar were discussing Princess Jasmine's betrothal. Jafar offers himself as an option, citing a "law" that stated the princess would be wed to the royal vizier if she was unable to choose a suitor by her sixteenth birthday (which squicked all three of the triplets out quite a bit: Jasmine was supposed to be right around their age and some guy old enough to be her father was offering to marry her? Even if it was just a bid for power, it was still gross to them.). The Sultan thankfully objected as he was certain that Jasmine could only be wed to a prince, which prompted Jafar to use that creepy cobra staff thing's mind control powers to manipulate the Sultan into agreeing to force Jasmine into a marriage with him. He'd nearly succeeded, but his attempt was interrupted by the sounds of music, breaking his hold on the Sultan as the old man raced eagerly to the balcony to see what was going on.

The triplets were pulled along, able to watch from pretty much a front row seat as the 'Prince Ali' musical number started up with a massive parade led by a disguised Genie. Devon and Dominic watched the parade happily as they reminisced about watching the movie when they were children, but DJ couldn't bring himself to join. A troubled expression was fixed on his face as they watched the parade enter the throne room. Seeing Jafar use whatever mind manipulation abilities his staff afforded him brought him back to what Devon had told them about Kalim's mood swings and the brain fog she'd experienced. That Jamil guy was present both times it had happened and it seemed he was the person closest to Kalim. A vice dorm leader job probably wasn't too different from a vizier-type position, right? And if these Disney dreams were supposed to parallel whatever was currently happening at the school…

He wondered whether or not he should say anything to Devon yet. It was pretty clear by the way she'd talked about him before that she cared quite a bit about Jamil (though DJ couldn't tell yet whether it was strictly platonic or anything more than that) and she sympathized with the situation he was in, which meant she'd likely have blinders on when it came to his actions, no matter how suspicious whatever was happening way. Unless Devon actually saw Jamil doing something nefarious, she'd be hesitant to suspect him in any of this. DJ knew this from experience; Devon was the same way with Madison. He didn't want to start a fight with his sister, especially when he only had a hunch and some icky vibes, so he opted to stay quiet for now. If another Disney dream cropped up, he could voice his suspensions then.

Devon was once again woken up by the sound of Grim's sleep-talking. "Mrah… I don't want no more of those moldy crackers…," the little monster grumbled, only to be woken up by the sound of the lock to their room clicking and the door being thrown open.

One of the Scarabia students from the night before (Devon had mentally dubbed him 'Scarabia student A' since at this point she didn't care enough about most of the regular dorm students to bother learning their names) marched into the room, his eyes narrowed into a glare. "Just how long are you two planning to sleep?! On your feet, both of you!"

"Myah…?" Grim sat up groggily and blinked his eyes open. "What now?" He caught sight of a clock on the wall. "Hang on, it's only 6am! Why the heck are you gettin' us up so early?"

"We're marching ten kilometers to the eastern oasis this morning," Scarabia A reminded them.

"And why do we gotta go with ya?!" Grim demanded. "That sand's gonna be an absolute pain to walk on."

"Because those are the dorm leader's orders. Now stop whining and come with me!" Scarabia A ordered as he marched over and made to grab for Grim again.

"Okay, it is way too early for this and I'm still plenty pissed about last night. Did you not learn anything from last time?" Devon snarked as her arm shot out to grab Scarabia A's wrist before he catch Grim by the scruff again. "Nobody touches Grim, mmkay? Make sure you and the rest of those morons get that through your heads if you wanna keep your ability to breed." She gave his wrist a hard squeeze before shoving him back so she could get out of bed. "Now back off. We're comin'."

"Ah, good morning, you two," Jamil greeted as Devon and Grim joined the rest of the Scarabia students as they prepared for the march. "Did you sleep well?" He caught sight of the cut near Devon's eye. "How in the world did that happen?"

"Why don't you ask Scarabia's little night patrol," Devon grumbled. "This is absolutely ridiculous. Not even Heartslabyul has people patrolling the dorm overnight like that!"

"I couldn't agree more, believe me, but it's Kalim's orders to ensure nobody tries to skip out on the training," Jamil replied. He took Devon's face in his hands to gently inspect her cut. "It doesn't look too bad, but even so…" He pulled a disinfectant wipe and a small bandage out of his pocket, tearing open the wipe and gently rubbing it over Devon's cut before carefully placing the bandage over it and smirking inwardly when he felt Devon's cheeks grow warmer under his hands. "There. That should keep it clean. Wouldn't want it getting infected, now."

It took Devon a moment to find her voice again, flustered as she was as Jamil continued to tend to her. "You, uh, you just carry that stuff around with you?"

Jamil gave her a small smile. "Comes with the territory when you've been looking after Kalim for as long as I have. And please rest assured that I'll speak to the ones that caused that injury. I'm rather curious about what you were doing that caught their attention, but regardless it's no excuse to treat a guest in such a manner."

That was a lie; Jamil was already well aware of the altercation between the Ramshackle duo and Scarabia's night patrol…but Devon didn't need to know that.

"Thanks, Jamil. I appreciate it," Devon said as she smiled back. "I think I've got a bigger problem than the cut right now, though." She gestured down toward her outfit. "How exactly does Kalim expect me to march though a desert like this? These boots were meant for snow, not sand."

Jamil nodded. "Ah, yes. Good point. Don't worry, I think I have just the solution." He took out his magical pen and pointed it at her and instantly her outfit was replaced with a Scarabia dorm uniform. He told himself that this was all part of his plan; that he had to continue playing the dutiful and kind vice dorm leader as well as make sure that he continued to stay on Devon and Grim's good side for the time being, but there was just the tiniest sense of guilt deep down inside him that most likely played a part as well. He didn't exactly enjoy lying to Devon-she was one of the only people who'd ever taken the time to actually ask after and listen to him, after all, but he needed to keep her in the dark if he wanted his plan to work. He'd waited too long for this opportunity to present itself and he couldn't let it slip by at the risk of upsetting a girl he'd only known for a few months who had no idea how much he was truly suffering.

'Uh, yeah. Of course she doesn't know. You refuse to actually tell her anything.' There went that little nagging voice inside him again. He'd been pretty good at quashing it the few times it had made itself known, but it had been growing more persistent since he'd roped Devon and Grim into his plan. 'You already know she's sympathetic to what you've been going through. Would it really be so bad to clue her in?'

"Get in formation, everyone! We're wasting time!" a harsh voice called out, preventing Jamil from arguing with himself any longer. The other dorm students snapped to attention as the dorm leader approached, but Jamil couldn't help but be amused by the absolutely bamboozled look on Devon and Grim's faces.

"Please tell me that boy ain't ridin' in here on a whole-ass elephant," Devon said in disbelief as they watched the pachyderm take up a spot at the center of the assembled students so Kalim could keep an eye on everything.

"Par for the course for the Asims, I'm afraid," Jamil replied.

"Doesn't really look like he's a much better mood today, either," Grim pointed out as he caught sight of Kalim's harsh glare.

"Yes, and we'd better join the others if we don't want to sour his mood even further," Jamil advised as he led them toward the others.

"It's time to begin our march to the oasis! Consider this leg day!" Kalim barked out. "Anyone who breaks formation will be in for it when we return."

"Seriously, how'd we end up gettin' dragged into this, Dev?" Grim moaned. "We should be chillin' back at Ramshackle right now."

Kalim turned to glare down at Grim from the back of his elephant. "Less whining, more marching! Now, move out!"

The march to the oasis made Devon and Grim wish they were back in the snow. Grim's fluffy fur didn't pair well with the Scarabian desert and while New York could get pretty hot in the summer, it wasn't anywhere near what they were facing now. Devon was grateful for both the extremely breathable Scarabia dorm uniform Jamil had given her and the fact that her olive complexion meant that sunburn wasn't much of a concern for her, but she was seriously regretting leaving Zephyr back at Ramshackle. She was doing her best not to dwell on how miserable this mess was turning out to be, alternating between talking with Jamil and watching Kalim with concern.

"You there! Get back in formation!" Kalim shouted to one of the students near the front of the procession as they continued along the marked path to the oasis.

"He could at least give a second to catch our breath, y'know…," Grim panted.

Kalim rounded on Grim, somehow able to hear him despite how far apart they were. "It's your own fault if you're tired. That's just a sign that you need to train more! Now keep moving!"

Jamil watched Devon carefully as her look of concern only deepened. It was strange seeing someone so quick with a clapback so eerily quiet. He wasn't exactly thrilled that Kalim was now monopolizing her attention without even realizing it, but his "condition" was the whole pretext behind Jamil asking her and Grim to stay with them so it wasn't like he was in a position to complain.

Everyone continued on their march as the sun rose higher in the sky, trudging along as best they could, but it wasn't long before some of them began to fall behind.

"You're slowing down!" Kalim shouted to a student not far from Devon and Grim. "Pace up the pace immediately!"

"P-Please ease up a little, dorm head! We can't go any faster!" the student pleaded.

Kalim shook his head, a look of uncharacteristic disgust on his face. "Unbelievable! It's because of you fools that we placed last in the Spelldrive tournament and exams!"

"I'm burnin' up here," Grim said to Devon. "I think I'm gonna shrivel up if I don't get some water in me soon…"

"We're almost to the oasis," Jamil assured both Grim and the other students. "Try to hang in there, everyone."

"Awesome. Then it shouldn't be a problem if I carry Grim the rest of the way," Devon said as she scooped Grim up. "I've been worried that the sand might be too hot on his paws, anyway."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Devon?" Jamil asked. "You run the risk of making Kalim angry if he spots you."

"Well, he's already pretty angry, so I doubt whatever I'm doin' is gonna change much," Devon retorted. "We went along with this little training march of his, but I'll be damned if I let his dumb power trip put Grim's health in danger. The little guy's not built for prolonged exposure to this kind of heat." She turned her gaze toward Kalim to see that he was no longer facing them and was now calling out orders to the students in front.

"You really are a kind person, aren't you?" Jamil commented, his expression unreadable.

Devon shrugged. "I look out for my people, what can I say? And if Kalim has an issue with it…well, I'm pretty sure I could take him. Pampered rich boy versus scrappy Latina from the Bronx-not much of a fight, even if said rich boy can use magic."

It was a herculean effort, but thanks in large part to Jamil's tireless efforts to bolster and encourage the other dorm students, everyone finally made it to…well, wherever they'd made it to, it certainly didn't look like an oasis. All Devon could see was a bunch of dead or dying plants and big hole in the sand, yet for some reason the trail markers they'd been following ended here. As she watched Kalim climb down from the elephant, she couldn't help but think back to the dream she'd had the previous night-the whole musical number started with a parade through the desert before Aladdin and the Genie ended up in the palace, after all.

Grim tapped her on the arm and pulled her from her thoughts. "Hey, Dev. You've been spacin' out for the past couple minutes. Don't tell me the heat went and fried your brain…"

Devon smiled and shook her head. "I'm fine, bud. Sorry to worry you."

"Everyone, halt!" Kalim called out, finally bring the procession to a stop.

"We did it!" Grim cheered as he hopped down from Devon's arms. "We made it to the oasis!"

"We'll stop here to take a fifteen minute break," Jamil told the gathered students. "After that, we'll head back to the dorm."

"Finally, some water!" Grim said as he dragged himself toward the depression in the sand where the oasis (presumably) was supposed to be, only for his hopeful expression to drop when it saw that it was completely barren. "What the heck?! What kind of oasis is this?! It's completely dried up. How am I supposed to get any water now?!"

"Water…?" a voice behind them spoke up. Devon and Grim turned to see Kalim watching them. He didn't have the hard, stern expression on his face that he'd worn since the previous evening-now he looked concerned. His voice sounded slightly confused when he spoke to him, as if he were in a daze. "You…want water?"

"Uh, duh," Grim replied, too thirsty to worry about possibly upsetting Kalim. "I can't remember the last time my throat was this dry."

"Well don't you worry!" Kalim chirped with a bright smile. "I'll get you some of the coolest, most refreshing water there is!" He stepped up to the dried up oasis and began gathering magic into his magical pen. "[Respite in the scalding sands, a neverending party. Dance! Sing! Oasis Maker!]" He fired his magic into the sky, which was followed by a flash of light and then a downpour of rain despite there being no clouds in the sky.

"Rain! Sweet, merciful rain!" Grim cheered as he scampered about in a sudden burst of renewed energy.

Around him, the other Scarabia students looked similarly rejuvenated. "Man, I was feeling like a dried-out husk for a bit there, but this water's got me feeling brand new!" Scarabia A exclaimed.

"No kidding. We really needed that…," agreed Scarabia B.

Kalim's smile widened at the praise. "I'm so glad you all like it! I'd be happy to make enough to fill this whole oasis!"

"I take it that's your Unique Magic, then? That…Oasis Maker spell?" Devon asked.

Kalim nodded happily. "Sure is! It lets me produce large amounts of high-quality water at the cost of just a tiny bit of magic."

"Seems kinda low-key for Unique Magic," Grim commented. "There's plenty of spells out there that let you conjure water, right?"

"True, but the point of Oasis Maker is that produces a lot of water without running my magical reserves dry. It's actually a pretty efficient spell," Kalim explained. "Before running water was the norm, people would have to draw their own water and then boil it to sterilize it. A spell like mine would've been a huge boon back then. Though I guess it really isn't as useful these days since running water is a widespread service. Even so, I'm still confident that the water I conjure is the finest and tastiest around!"

Grim tilted his head up and opened his mouth, catching some of the water before swallowing. "Hmm… Now that you mention it, it's basically right at the perfect temp. Not too cold to drink, but not lukewarm, either. And it goes down real nice and smooth, like fresh spring water. I don't think even Marina could pull this kinda quality off!"

Kalim tilted his head. "Marina?"

"One of the Wisps that lives at Ramshackle," Devon explained. "They're a Water Wisp, so they're literally made of water magic. It's pretty easy for them to conjure pretty much infinite amounts of water, but they aren't really used to doing it for the sake of consumption and not just dumping it on someone's head," She sent Grim a pointed look, "or putting out one of Grim's fires. Don't get me wrong, I'm really grateful that we have clean water at Ramshackle at all, but I have to agree with Grim that you've got them beat when it comes to taste."

"You think so?" Kalim smiled bashfully at Devon before taking her hand and squeezing it. "I'm glad you like it, Dev."

"Since when are monsters water connoisseurs?" Jamil asked, sliding in seamlessly on Devon's other side and angling his arm so that his hand "accidentally" brushed hers. He smirked inwardly when she looked up at him quickly with that flustered expression he was coming to find more adorable each time she made (especially considering she'd never once given Kalim the same look).

"Excuse you?! I'll have you know that I have one of the most discerning palates around!" Grim protested.

"I'd believe it!" Kalim agreed. "I was right to think you'd be able to appreciate the difference, Grim. Here," He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cracker, "have a cracker as a treat!"

Devon blinked. 'So he just carries those things around with him?'

"Eugh, no thanks," Grim said, shaking his head and hopping back up onto Devon's shoulder. "I'm hungry, I'll give ya that, but there ain't no I'm eatin' something so dry when we're out in the desert like this."

"Is it me or does it seem like Kalim's mood flipped again?" Devon whispered to Grim.

Grim nodded, keeping his voice low to whisper back. "Yeah, you're right. He's actin' just like he did when we got to Scarabia yesterday. It's like he's been…uh, what was the name of that horror movie you told me about? Bodysnatched? It's like that!"

"Hm? Did you say something, Dev?" Kalim asked as he called off his Unique Magic.

Jamil, having overheard enough of Devon and Grim's whispered conversation to know that one of them was probably about to confront Kalim directly about the change in his demeanor, took the opportunity to interject. "Our fifteen minutes are nearly up, Kalim. We need to start assembling the students so we can head back to the dorm."

"So soon? Surely we can let them rest a little longer, right?" Kalim asked.

"The sun's only going to get higher and the temperature will rise right along with it," Jamil pointed out. "The longer we wait, the worse the trip back will be."

"Yeah, I guess you've got a point," Kalim conceded. He turned to call out to the other dorm students. "Alright, everyone! Get ready to march again. It's time to head back to the dorm and get ourselves some breakfast!"

"Okay, so," Grim began as he and Devon began eating their lunch, the rest of the morning having passed in relative peace as Kalim's good mood seemed to hold out. "I know we've gotta stage a prison break as soon as we can…but dang, this food is incredible! It's almost worth getting Grim-napped for!"

"Hm?" Kalim tilted his head, having tuned in to their conversation. "I'm not really sure what you mean by that, but I'm glad to see that you're enjoying the food. Eat as much as you'd like! I'd recommend the blue cheese made from cow's milk for starters. It goes great on crackers." He picked up a cracker from a nearby plate and smeared some of the cheese on it before holding it out to Grim. "Here, try some!"

Grim looked at the cracker uncertainly. "Uh… Nah, I think I'm set for crackers right now-"

"Please, there's no need to stand on ceremony!" Kalim insisted as he shoved the cracker into Grim's mouth, leaving the cat monster helpless to do more than make a few sputtered protests.

"Don't stuff Grim's mouth like that, Kalim," Jamil chided from his seat next to Devon. "You'll make him choke if you keep that up."

"Oh!" Kalim replied, his eyes widening as if he just realized that was a possibility. "Sorry about that, Grim! Please, take your time. We've got plenty more."

Grim took a moment to swallow the cracker before pulling in a few deep breaths. "Not really the point, bub…"

"We still have ice cream left over from yesterday, too," Kalim continued. "I always like to set out a bunch of different flavors, then take a big spoon and scoop out however much sounds good from each one."

"Ya don't say…," Grim replied, a little nervous Kalim might try to force the ice cream down his throat next.

"Well, you know what they say: no matter how full you are, there's always room for dessert!" Kalim chirped as he moved to stand up. "Just sit tight and I'll go and get you some!"

"Hold on, Kalim," Jamil interjected before standing up himself. "I'll get it. You just stay there."

"Oh, come on, it's not like it'll be any trouble," Kalim argued. "All I have to do is take it out of the freezer, right?"

Jamil sighed; apparently this wasn't the first time they'd had this argument. "Please try to remember your station, Kalim. You're the next head of the Asim family, not a servant. If word got out that I allowed you to handle serving guests, I'd be in for a lecture from both your parents and mine."

"You're take all this servitude stuff way too seriously, Jamil," Kalim said. "Right now, the two of us are just classmates at Night Raven College. Where's the harm in acting like it?"

Jamil sighed again, realizing he wasn't going to get anywhere just arguing. "Fine. How about we compromise, then? If I handle all the scooping, will you help me carry it out to everyone?"

"Of course!" Kalim replied eagerly as he hopped to his feet. He glanced down to see Grim rummaging around and fiddling with the ribbon around his neck. "Everything okay, Grim?"

Grim jumped, startled before shooting Kalim a grin. "Wha-? Oh, yep. Everything great over here!"

Kalim smiled back. "Cool! Just wanted to make sure. You and Devon just hold on a sec and I'll be right back with your dessert!"

Grim waited until Kalim and Jamil were out of earshot before turning to Devon. "Okay, I can't make heads or tails of what's goin' on here. Kalim didn't listen when I told him I didn't want the crackers and he didn't seem to really be hearin' what Jamil was tryin' to say about "remembering his station" or whatever, but he meant well enough."

Devon nodded. "Seems to be a running thing with him. Ortho told me a while back about Kalim, Rook, and Cater dragging Idia off to eat with them even though he was trying to get back to his dorm. Apparently they didn't listen when Idia tried to tell them he didn't want to join them…not that he's all that great at asserting himself to begin with." She paused for a moment to think, recalling her conversation with Jamil shortly before Halloween Week. "I'm also curious about that servitude stuff they mentioned… I'll have to see if I can get Jamil to elaborate on that because it's got me a little concerned." 'Was that one of those "specifics" about their relationship that he told me he couldn't get into?'

The sound of hurried footsteps caused everyone to look up. Despite his seeming eagerness to help with getting ice cream for everyone, Kalim marched back into the lounge empty-handed. Devon and Grim felt their stomachs drop when they saw that all the warmth and kindness in his eyes was gone and replaced with the cold glare from their march to the oasis. The students around them seemed to feel the same way, because the conversation and the mood dropped immediately.

"Well?" Kalim began. "Just how long do you all plan to sit around stuffing your faces?! Who do you think you are, the king?!"

"H-Huh?!" everyone else exclaimed in unison.

"Get these dishes cleaned and put away immediately!" Kalim ordered, ignoring the students' confusion. "After that, get ready to start training!"

"Y-Yes, dorm leader!" the Scarabia students replied as they got to their feet and began gathering up the dishes with lightning speed, none of them wanting to risk angering Kalim any further.

"Yipe!" Grim squeaked as hopped onto Devon's shoulder when she moved to stand as well, using his pitchfork-like tail to surreptitiously slip something into her pocket. "Looks like he's back in scary mode again!"

Kalim leveled his glare at Devon and Grim next. "Don't think you and Grim are getting out of this either, Devon! We'll be doing defensive magic drills until evening. Get out to the courtyard, now!"

"Okay yeah, I think we're definitely past the point of thinkin' these are mood swings," Devon muttered to herself. That warning feeling in her gut was back; something wasn't right about this.

"Devon," Jamil whispered about twenty minutes into Scarabia's defensive magic drills as he made his way over to her while Kalim was distracted with the other students. "I'm going to slip out of here for a moment. Will you join me?"

"Join you?" Devon sent an uncertain look toward Kalim. "Won't that just make Kalim's mood even worse?"

"As long as we don't draw any undue attention to ourselves, I doubt he'll even notice we're gone," Jamil assured her. "Besides, without the Wisps it's not like you're really able to do all that much here."

"This is true," Devon agreed, "but I don't wanna get you in trouble."

"Well, if Kalim does happen to notice, I can just tell him I had some vice dorm leader duties to attend to and I asked you to assist me," Jamil added. He could see Devon was still a little unsure, likely because she didn't want to leave Grim behind. "Besides…I'll be honest, I've been feeling a little needy for your company for a while now. I feel like I haven't got to see you nearly as much as I'd like."

Devon gave him a small, shy smile before nodding in response. "I mean, you could've just led with that."

Jamil held out his hand to her, his smile widening when she took it. "Come with me. There's something I want to show you." He began leading her through the dorm's maze of hallways, his hand never leaving hers. They walked in comfortable silence for a while before he spoke up again. "I really am sorry I got you involved in all this, Devon. I knew Kalim had been behaving erratically, but I suppose I was hoping against hope that he'd calm down once we were actually on break. I really hope this doesn't sour you on Kalim too much. He really is a kind and fair person at heart."

Devon gave Jamil's hand a reassuring squeeze. "I know that. And I don't blame you for any of this."

Jamil kept facing forward so Devon wouldn't see the beginnings of a smirk forming. "I'm glad to hear that."

Eventually the pair came to a high balcony that overlooked the entire front area of the dorm, including the courtyard and the mirror portal back to the main campus. The sun was still shining brightly overhead but the shade from the building and breeze at their elevation kept the heat from beating down on them.

"Dang… Just look at this view!" Devon exclaimed as she stepped closer to the balcony's railing. "Seems like the desert stretches on forever." She turned to look back at Jamil. "And you got us up here without even battin' an eye. How'd you even find this place?"

Jamil shrugged. "One of the few perks of having so many duties to attend to, I suppose. I've gotten to know the dorm pretty well since Kalim became the dorm head."

"…Even though you're the one that's doing most of the work?" Devon asked with a look a concern.

"Devon-" Jamil began, but Devon cut him off before he could argue with her.

"I know we've already had a conversation about this before, but I stand by what I said now more than ever," Devon continued. She looked down toward the courtyard to see that Kalim was still drilling the other students relentlessly. "It's bad enough that you've essentially had to do Kalim's job for him this whole time, but now you're stuck trying to keep the students from rioting because of these, I dunno, episodes he's been havin'. I saw how hard you worked to keep everyone's spirits up-including mine and Grim's-during the oasis march."

"It's my job, Devon," Jamil replied matter-of-factly. "It's the job of all vice dorm leaders to give their all to assist the dorm leaders."

"And what about outside of NRC? How long have you guys had this dynamic where Kalim makes a mess and you have to clean it up?" Devon asked pointedly.

Jamil stared at Devon with what he hoped was a suitably stunned expression. He'd deliberately dropped that hint about being in service to Kalim in hopes that she would pick up on it and that Kalim would be too dense to realize that they probably shouldn't be discussing those matters in front of others. It wasn't exactly a secret that he was Kalim's attendant, but nobody outside of his family and Kalim's knew much about the specifics of the job. Once again, Devon was proving herself to be more perceptive than he gave her credit for and, quite frankly, he couldn't deny the fluttering in his chest at how upset she was getting on his behalf.

"Well?" Devon pressed. "I heard what Kalim said about you taking "servitude stuff" too seriously. So what is your and Kalim's relationship, really?"

Jamil studied Devon for a long moment as he weighed what to say next. He needed her on his side if he wanted his plan to work, but there were things he couldn't risk telling her unless he wanted to risk trouble for his family. He loved how passionate and outspoken Devon could be, especially when it worked in his favor, but for the time being he couldn't risk whipping her into a frenzy. "The truth is that my family has been in service to Kalim's family for generations. It's an, ah, arrangement that's been in place since long before my grandparents were born. And yes, the job description does include "cleaning up after" members of the family we serve. I myself have been attending to Kalim since we were both young boys."

"And…and that's it? You don't get any say in your own life at all?" Devon asked incredulously.

"My understanding is that this kind of dynamic isn't a common one in your world, so I get why it's difficult to wrap your head around it," Jamil replied, "but this is the hand the Vipers have been dealt. All we can really do is make the best of it."

Devon sighed as she tried to make sense of what Jamil had told her. "I don't understand how you can be so chill about this. Don't you ever get overwhelmed?"

"Not that I'd ever show it to anyone, but sometimes I actually do," Jamil said as he stepped up next to her. "That's why it's nice to have places like this where I can escape when I need to." He gestured to the balcony they were standing on. "I've always been good at ferreting out places to get away. I come up here when I don't want anyone to find me."

Devon looked at him, confused. "But…now I can find you."

"Can you, though?" Jamil asked with a smirk. "No offense, but I highly doubt you could find your way back here without me." His smirk softened into a smile. "Either way, I don't mind the idea of you being the one to find me. I know I said before that I regretted getting you caught up in all of this, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't glad for your presence."

"I'm glad you think that," Devon replied as she turned to pull him into a hug, "but I still think you're taking on too much, considering you're not even getting credit for most of it. I'm not stupid enough to think that the thing between your family and Kalim's isn't something that can be changed in a snap, but do you think there's something that can be done to make your time here easier?"

"What did you have in mind?" Jamil asked as he wrapped his arms around Devon to return her hug, surprising himself at how natural his reaction felt since he'd never considered himself a very physically affectionate person.

"Well…maybe we could talk to Crowley about the Kalim situation once the break is over," Devon suggested as bitterness began creeping into her tone. "To be honest, Grim and I have already tried to reach out to him last night, but he's too busy "investigating" some tropical island to pick up the phone."

Jamil hummed in thought, but didn't give any other outward response. 'I've spoken to the headmaster regarding Kalim being unfit to be a dorm leader before and nothing came of it. But now that I have some carefully orchestrated proof of his incompetence, I might have more a leg to stand on now. Doubly so if I have you on my side, Devon, as it appears you have the man's ear.'

"In the meantime, though, I'd really like to talk to Kalim about what's been going on," Devon continued.

Jamil could almost hear the record scratch as his thought screeched to a halt. "…Come again?"

"I know it sounds like a disaster waitin' to happen given how volatile he's been lately, but the way Kalim's been bouncing back and forth between fun party dude and a dictator that could give Riddle a run for his money is pretty jarring, especially considering how seamlessly it happens. From what I've seen, there's no real build-up to it and he doesn't even seem to remember that he was acting so strangely at all when he comes back to his cheerful self," Devon continued. "I don't really know how to explain it, but something just feels off about the whole thing, so I'd like hear what he has to say about it."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Jamil protested, trying to keep his tone as neutral as he could. "If we were to confront him, we run the risk of sending him into an even worse mood. If that happens, it would make things harder on everyone else in the dorm."

"I understand where you're comin' from, but I don't think it's fair to run right to Crowley without at least making an effort to hear Kalim out," Devon reasoned. "He deserves to have a say too, doesn't he? And who knows? Maybe he's having some kind of breakdown due to stress and he'll agree to working out some sort of plan to get a handle on this. Maybe we won't even need to get the headmaster involved at all." She remembered the premonition she'd gotten with the ink blots. 'And maybe we can head this off before we have another Overblot to deal with.'

Jamil had to think quickly. If Devon got Kalim to talk more in-depth about his mood issues (and it wouldn't be very hard; Kalim was an open book), they might end up putting together that he had been alone with Jamil before they occurred. True, Devon wasn't aware of his Unique Magic and what it could do, but he knew Kalim was; the only reason it kept working was because Kalim trusted Jamil enough to let his guard down around him. They might not be able to figure out his motives right away, but they'd definitely be able to figure out that he was behind the discord in Scarabia. He couldn't let that happen, so he knew he had to distract her somehow-throw her off-balance and then convince her not to bring this up with Kalim. He quickly ruled out using his Unique Magic on her; he'd done it twice now already and she already suspected that something wasn't right. He couldn't risk doing anything to cast suspicion on him right now.

Before either of them realized what he was doing, Jamil pulled Devon even closer and pressed his lips to hers. Devon froze in surprise but quickly melted into the kiss, bring her hands up to rest against Jamil's chest. Jamil lost himself for a moment as well, keeping one arm around Devon's waist and letting the other trail up her back until his hand was tangled in her curls. It took him some time to remember what he was trying to accomplish with the kiss and even longer to reluctantly pull back from it, though he was unable to bring himself to let go of her completely. He looked at Devon as she stared up at him with wide brown eyes and felt a twinge of guilt in his chest.

"I…I'm sorry, Devon," he apologized. "I just couldn't help but feel moved by how intent you are on helping us. But please try to understand that I'm not just being stubborn when I say I don't think speaking to Kalim is a good idea. The truth is that I've tried to talk to him about the measures he's taking and the way he's been acting more than once." He gestured down to the courtyard where the other dorm students were still running drills. "You can see how well that worked out. I'm not trying to cast doubt on your powers of persuasion, but if I couldn't get through to him, do you honestly think that you can?"

"I…," Devon began, but she was still too frazzled by the sudden kiss to come up with a coherent rebuttal. Had it been anyone else, she'd probably be more skeptical that they'd actually talked to Kalim at all, but Jamil had no reason to lie to her. The guy was saddled with enough work and stress as it was-probably way more than she knew, given what he'd told her about his family's servitude-and she didn't want to make things harder for him. He had a point, too: if Kalim wouldn't listen to someone that's been with him for ages, someone he trusted enough to name as his vice dorm leader, what hope did she have of fixing anything. "I guess you're right." She sighed. "Fine. I won't say anything to Kalim."

Jamil let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "Thank you, Devon." He pulled her against his chest again, resting his cheek against the top of her head. "I knew I could count on you."

Devon took a moment to bask in the contact as Jamil held her, her entire body growing warmer as her heartbeat sped up. "We still need to come up with some kind of solution," she said as she nuzzled against him. "I seriously doubt the other dorm students will be able to just sit back and take this for much longer."

"I agree. And I'm sure you and I can figure something out," Jamil assured her. "But we'd better get back down to the courtyard for now. We don't want Kalim realizing we aren't with the others, after all."

"Yeah," Devon agreed as she pulled back from the hug, still holding one of Jamil's hands. "Before we go, I just wanted to tell you that I really appreciate you trusting me with all this. Both your secret hiding spot and that stuff about your family. It kinda goes without sayin', but I won't breathe a word of it to anyone."

Jamil felt that twinge of guilt again, but he quickly hid it behind a smile. "I know you won't; I can tell a trustworthy person when I see one." 'Hopefully once all's said and done, you'll still be able to trust me…'

Ending Notes: Jamil, honey, you've got a big storm comin'.

Hmm…Devon getting violently protective over Grim? Wonder how often we'll get to see that? *side eyes Book 6*

Let's be honest here; we all know Devon's just chaotic dumbass enough to charge a Charon soldier the second she sees that they have Grim.

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