"Myaaah!" Grim yawned and stretched after he and Devon had said their goodbyes to Ace and Flapjack (by way of the Ramshackle staff) warped him away. "I slept like a log last night." He shot Devon a glare as Flapjack reappeared. "Except for the part where you stepped on my tail, Dev. I keep tellin' ya you gotta be more careful!"

Devon blinked before turning to look at the mirror. 'So that wasn't a dream after all. I really did talk to Mickey Mouse last night…'

"Hmm?" Grim hopped up onto Devon's shoulder to look at the mirror as well. "What are you gawkin' at the mirror for? That Sending Stone thing would be glowin' if your family was tryin' to reach out, right? I swear, you are so weird sometimes." He huffed when Devon didn't respond to him and tapped her cheek with his paw to snap her out of her daze. "We're back on fire-tendin' duty today, remember? I vote we get that done early so it's not hangin' over our heads all day. Then we can hit up Scarabia for some food!"

"I'll gladly agree to getting the fire taken care of, but I don't think I'm feelin' up for a visit to Scarabia right now," Devon replied.

"Still upset with Jamil, huh?" Grim asked.

"Yeah, but that's not the only reason. I'm just feeling a little icky today and I don't think I have the energy to keep up with Kalim, either," Devon elaborated. She sighed and muttered, "People who don't get periods don't understand how lucky they are…"

Grim tilted his head. "What do you mean by-oh, that's right. Now that ya mention it, I guess it is getting pretty close to that time, huh?" He patted Devon's head reassuringly. "Don't you worry then, Dev. I'll make sure to eat enough for both of us!"

Devon giggled. "I'm sure you will, bud."

"Hey, Grim!" Kalim greeted as he waved the little monster over. "Please come and sit! You're just in time for breakfast."

"Heh heh. Don't mind if I do!" Grim replied eagerly as he settled in next to Kalim.

Jamil's posture straightened slightly as he glanced in the direction that Grim had just come from, only to subtly deflate when he failed to catch sight of what (or whom) he was looking for. "I, ah, I take it Devon isn't with you today?"

"My, my, so she's still holding a grudge, is she?" Jade asked with a toothy, sadistic grin. "Devon never struck me as the type to hold on to her anger like that. She forgave Azul, after all, and there's no bad blood between her and the three of us even after the anemone situation."

"Daaang, Sea Snake. Shrimpy must really hate you," Floyd chimed in.

Jamil narrowed his eyes at the twins, but refuse to engage with them otherwise. It had been Kalim's idea to extend an open invitation to the Octatrio to "hang out" at Scarabia whenever they wanted for the remainder of the break. It hadn't even been 24 hours and Jamil already wanted to rip his hair out. He'd been hoping against hope that he'd see Devon at some point, but he wasn't too surprised to see that she was still avoiding him.

Azul sent Jamil a smile that made his skin crawl. "Fret not, Jamil. I'd be more than happy to speak to Devon on your behalf if that's what-"

Jamil cut him off quickly. "No. The last thing I need is to be indebted to you, of all people."

"Nah, it's not just about Jamil," Grim explained between bites of food, pulling Jamil from his thoughts. "I mean, yeah, Dev doesn't wanna be near him right now, but she's also not feeling too hot today."

"Oh no! Has she come down with a cold or something?" Kalim asked. "It's pretty snowy back on the main campus."

Grim shook his head. "Nope, it's not a cold. I'm not too sure about the specifics, exactly, but she goes through something like this every month for about a week. She gets real sluggish and does everything she can to not have to move."

"So she starts actin' like Sea Lion?" Floyd asked, mildly amused.

"A little," Grim agreed. "At least Leona's in a constant bad mood. When Dev gets like this, she's impossible to predict. Sometimes she's fine, sometimes she starts crying for no reason, and sometimes she get angry enough to give Riddle a run for his money."

The wheels in Jamil's head began turning as the conversation continued. It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on, but Kalim was his blissfully unaware self and he doubted periods were something most merfolk knew much about (blood in the water could be a death sentence, after all). It also helped that he had a teenaged younger sister, too. He knew of one surefire thing that always made Najma feel better; he just hoped Devon would be open to him trying to help her out as well.

"Honestly, I don't know how you're taking this lying down, Dev. If I were you, I'd march right over there and chop his dick off," Valentina commented. She had reached out via the mirror not long after Devon had arrived back at Ramshackle after tending to the fireplace with Grim, though Devon suspected she'd been up for hours and waited until what she thought was a reasonable hour before attempting to contact her. To say she was unhappy with Jamil on her cousin's behalf was an understatement.

"I won't say I didn't consider it," Devon replied, "especially considering he hasn't even apologized. I wish my heart wasn't being so stupid right now. At least then I could decide whether it'd be better to cut him loose or try to forgive him…"

"Would that be enough to make you forgive him?" Valentina asked.

Devon shrugged. "I'm not sure. It'd be a start, at least."

Valentina watched her cousin with an inquisitive look on her face. "So what is it that you're needing from him? It's pretty clear you don't want to just write him off. Going off what Tia Elena told about your blessing, you'd be able to tell if this Jamil guy was a genuine dumpster fire of a person so maybe that means there's some hope for redemption."

Devon thought for a moment. "I guess I'd want to know if he would choose to spend time with me because he actually chose to or if I was just a means to an end for him from the start. There were times where it seemed like he was enjoying himself, but if the mess in Scarabia taught me anything, it's that he's a good actor when he wants to be."

"Well, if it were me and I'd decided to forego the dick-slicing plan because I'm a kinder person than he deserves, I would wait for him to come to me," Valentina advised. "I do think it was a smart idea to keep your distance to give yourself time to work out your feelings, but he needs to be the one to take the initiative-"

Valentina was interrupted by a thermos suddenly appearing in Devon's hand, with Flapjack and Mirage rising up through the bedroom floor a second later. The two Wisps pulsed excitedly as they informed Devon about what had happened.

"Can you really understand them even though they don't actually speak?" Valentina asked.

Devon nodded. "Yeah. I couldn't when I first met them, but Regina cast some kind of spell to let me translate their pulses. I can't tell you how many times Zephyr's almost got me in trouble in class; they like making sassy comments to try and make me laugh." She listened as the Wisps continued, glancing down at the thermos. "Huh… Speak of the devil." She turned back to her cousin. "Apparently our not-so-favorite vice dorm leader took it upon himself to bring this to me. I guess Grim must've told him it's my time of the month because this is supposed to be a tea to help with cramps."

Valentina quirked a brow. "Really? I'm surprised we didn't hear him screaming while Regina pelted him with knives. They seem fond enough of doing that to the headmaster so I doubt they'd have any issue doing it to a student."

Devon translated as Regina's "voice" pulsed in her mind. "They say they were going to if Jamil actually tried to walk through the gate, but apparently he stayed on the Main Street side. I'm guessing he knows Regina doesn't actually have any control over any area outside the Ramshackle property."

"Wish I knew how he managed to convince Regina to even allow that thermos inside in the first place," Valentina commented.

Mirage pulsed eagerly before conjuring up an illusion, making it seem as though they'd been transported outside of Ramshackle. Devon moved so that she and the mirror were facing the same direction, standing just inside the gate to the property as Jamil approached.

"Wow… I know magic's a thing where you are but it's still a bit of a shock to see it in person," Valentina said.

Devon smiled. "I know what you mean. It definitely took some getting used to when I first arrived. The Wisps got me acclimated pretty quickly, though."

The pair watched as Illusion!Jamil approached the gate to Ramshackle with the thermos in hand, looking up at the building for a long moment as if debating whether to press forward or go back to Scarabia. He seemed uncharacteristically nervous, but managed to steel his resolve enough to move to unlatch the gate. His fingers just barely grazed the latch when a low rumbling growl came from somewhere on the other side of the gate. Jamil froze and looked around for the source, but didn't see anything amiss. He reached for the latch again, only to hear the growl once more, louder this time. He also noticed a golden aura engulf the steps leading up the hill to the dorm, manipulating them until they melded together into a slick, icy ramp.

"Right. I forgot about the Wisps residing here," Jamil muttered to himself. He took Regina's warning to heart and cleared his throat, raising his voice slightly to address the large Wisp. "Judging from your response, I can only assume Devon still doesn't want to see me." He paused as if waiting for some kind of reply, only to sigh when Regina didn't give him one. "That's fine. I can respect her boundaries, but could I trouble to give her something for me?" He held up the thermos. "My understanding is that Devon's feeling rather under the weather today. If Grim was right about the cause, she's probably experiencing some cramping right about now. My sister experiences similar problems, so I made a tea for Devon that I would normally make for Najma. Hopefully, it'll make her feel better too."

The growl sounded again, though it was less aggressive than the first two times. It didn't take a genius to see that Regina was clearly still suspicious.

"It's up to Devon whether or not she drinks it. I just thought it would help," Jamil assured Regina. "I'm not going to ask you to persuade her to come see me or even to let her know I'm here. I just don't like the idea of her being in pain, especially not if there's something I can do about it."

It was silent for another moment…until Flapjack appeared out of thin air and warped the thermos away before disappearing as well. Jamil's brow furrowed in confusion until he saw the little red Wisp reappear in one of the windows on the first floor of the dorm, the thermos next to them. A look of relief flickered in his dark eyes, only for him to pull his attention back to Regina as another warning growl sounded. He might not have been able to translate what the Wisps were saying, but the meaning still came through loud and clear: they'd bring the tea to Devon, but it was for her benefit, not Jamil's. And they would be coming for him if they got even the slightest sense that Devon's health was affected in a negative by whatever he gave her.

"Thank you," Jamil said as he nodded toward the dorm. "I'll be on my way now." He turned back toward the path to the Hall of Mirrors and walked a few steps before looking back over his shoulder. "I know you might not believe me, but for what it's worth, I really do hope Devon feels better soon."

Devon stared down at the thermos in her hands for a moment as the illusion faded, bringing her and Valentina back to Devon's Ramshackle bedroom. She unscrewed the cap as she stepped back in front of the mirror and proceeded to take a swig. Almost immediately, she felt her cramps beginning to ease. "Dang, he's wasn't kiddin'," she said, surprised. "I really am starting to feel better."

"Hmm… Fine. I hate him slightly less now," Valentina replied. "Please tell me it'll take more than one decent gesture to make you forgive him."

"Oh, of course it will," Devon agreed. "Like I said before, I'm not even willing to consider forgivin' him until he gives me a genuine apology at the very least. But…I wouldn't be as against being around him for more than a few seconds if he wanted to talk."

"Do what you think is best. You know this guy better than I do," Valentina told her. "I might not care for him, but I'll support your decision regardless of whether you forgive him or not. But just to be clear," She smirked, "if he's dumb enough to hurt you again, baby cousin, I will find a way through this mirror and he will be losing his ability to breed."

Devon smirked back. "Oh, I don't doubt that for a second, Val."

Jamil checked his phone for the umpteenth time that day, hoping against hope that he'd have some sort of message from Devon, only to deflate when he saw that wasn't the case. He was being honest when he told Regina that he wasn't expecting the gesture to make everything right between him and Devon, but he couldn't stop himself from being a little disappointed that she hadn't reached out. He'd debated contacting her first, but he didn't want to risk making her even more upset by bothering her if she wanted her space.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of his phone ringing. He snatched it up eagerly, scanning the caller ID, and was hit with another pang of disappointment when he saw his sister's name on the screen. She'd called him every day since his Overblot to make sure he was really taking it easy so he could recover and while he appreciated the thought, she wasn't the one he really wanted to hear from. He answered the call nonetheless, sighing out a hello.

"Wow bro, don't sound so happy to hear from me," Najma snarked. Jamil could easily picture the deadpan look on her face.

"Sorry, Najma," Jamil apologized. "I'm glad to hear from you, honest, but-"

"But your little lady friend is still upset with you, so you're finding it hard to find joy in anything thanks to the hole her absence has left in your life?" Najma finished for him.

"I wouldn't say it's quite so dramatic," Jamil replied, "but I am missing her. I don't know how I'm supposed to make things right with her if she won't give me the opportunity."

"Who's to say she won't?" Najma asked. "Did she tell you she didn't want to see you again?"

"No," Jamil replied. "I haven't heard from her at all since…you know."

"Okay. Then what's stopping you from making the first move here?" Najma pressed. "I'm not going to pry into whatever it was you did that hurt her so badly, but if she's the injured party here, it shouldn't be on her to reach out first. Based on what you've told me about her, she sounds like a pretty straightforward person; I doubt she'd have any trouble telling you if she needs more time or if she doesn't want anything to do with you."

"I suppose that's true," Jamil agreed. "I don't want to rely solely on words, though. I'd like to do something to make up for what happened. As much as I am loathe to take a page from Kalim's book, if anyone deserves a parade and feast in their honor, Devon does. Having said that, I don't have the means to throw money at my problems."

"I don't really think that would help you much anyway. A feast and parade would be nice, but they seem a little impersonal and Devon might feel pressured into saying everything's cool when it's not if you get her in front of a big crowd like that, which might end up making her even more upset," Najma pointed out. "If you want my advice, your best bet is to keep things between the two of you. I think making some kind of gesture is a good idea, but it should definitely be something tailored specifically to her."

Jamil blew out a breath as he tried to come up with a plan. He could throw a banquet for a bunch of people he didn't know or care to know together in no time at all, but a smaller, more intimate affair with someone whose forgiveness he'd bend over backward for was new territory for him. "I don't suppose you have any more brilliant suggestions?"

"I mean, nothing specific. You know Devon way better than I do, after all," Najma reminded him. She was silent for a moment before speaking again. "Okay, let me ask you this: it's pretty clear that you've been missing Devon, but what exactly is it that you've been missing? And don't say "everything" either. Pick the one thing you miss the most about having her around."

Jamil took a moment to think. It was hard to settle on just one thing he missed about Devon but… "I guess I miss the way she always made me feel heard. There was plenty that I couldn't tell her about my situation, but she always made sure I knew that I was safe talking about it with her if it ever got to be too much. She could always pick up when I was beginning to feel overwhelmed too; she actually made some excuse to pull me away from Kalim a few times so I could walk away and decompress."

"Alright… In that case, why don't you do something to prove that you've been hearing her too?" Najma suggested.

"And how would I do that?" Jamil asked.

"That's on you to figure out," Najma replied. "You're the one who's had an actual conversation with. There has to be something she's told you that you can use."

Jamil mentally ran through as many of his conversations with Devon as he could remember, trying to think of something. They'd discussed life in her world quite a bit due to his desire to travel, and it wasn't long before he hit on an idea. It was a holiday tradition for her family, something they did every year. Grim had told them all about the mirror development and while Jamil was glad Devon was able to have a few touches of her home at Ramshackle now, this was one experience a magic mirror wouldn't be able to replicate. "Thanks for your advice, Najma. I have to go; I think I just got an idea."

"No problem. Just call me later to let me know how it goes," Najma replied, her smile evident in her voice. "Good luck, big brother. I hope whatever you're planning helps you get your girl back."

Devon pulled her leather jacket closer as she left Ramshackle, feeling much better than she had when she got up that morning. She'd received a text from Jamil earlier that afternoon asking her to meet him at the alchemy lab building across from the botanical garden. He explained that he wanted to talk and was hoping they could do so on neutral ground; it would be hard for them to get any privacy at Scarabia and Jamil openly admitted that he was intimidated by Regina. He had asked her to leave Grim at home (not a difficult task considering the food coma he was currently in after stuffing himself at Scarabia and again on the food Devon's family had sent) and she had agreed, though she did inform Jamil that she would have some of the Wisps along with her, having learned her lesson from their run-in in the cafeteria kitchen. A part of her wondered if she was making a mistake by agreeing to meet him, but she reasoned that she needed to return the thermos anyway and this would save her from having to make a trip all the way to Scarabia, if nothing else.

'He seemed sincere enough when he brought that tea over and it really did help,' she thought. 'There's nothing saying I have to forgive him, but I can hear him out, at least.'

Jamil was waiting for her right where he said he'd be and Devon could've sworn she saw a look of relief flicker in his eyes as he made his way over to her. "Hey. I'm glad you agreed to meet with me. I know you're not exactly happy with me right now…"

"Heh. That's putting it lightly," Devon replied sardonically. She held the thermos out to him. "Thank you for the tea, though. It really did help."

"Good. I'm glad," Jamil said as he took the thermos back from her. He looked up at her quickly as a thought occurred to him. "Er, I didn't make you that tea as a way to lure you out here or anything. It didn't even occur to me to ask you to meet me until I got back to my dorm. I mean, it's not that I hadn't thought about reaching out to you before now but-"

Devon couldn't help but smile as Jamil continued to try and explain his motivations for both the talk and the tea. It wasn't like him to awkwardly stumble over his words like this, which gave her reason to believe that this meeting wasn't something he'd planned and scripted in advance, at least not entirely. This thought was bolstered by the fact that she couldn't sense any deception from him through her blessing-it really did seem like the two events had nothing to do with each other. The thought comforted her and allowed her to drop her guard just a bit.

She reached out to place a comforting hand on Jamil's arm, effectively cutting off his rambling. "It's okay, Jamil. I understand," she said with an amused smile before glancing around the area. "Can I ask why you picked this spot, though? I understand not wanting to do this at our dorms but this seems kinda…random."

"I can assure you that there's a reason for my choice in location, but would it be alright if we talk before I get into that?" Jamil asked, gesturing toward a nearby bench.

"Oh, yes, of course," Devon agreed, following him toward the bench and sitting down next to him.

Jamil pulled in a breath before he began. He hadn't wanted his apology to Devon to feel rehearsed, so he made a deliberate effort not to think too hard about what he was going to say. Now he was kicking himself for not at least coming up with some sort of outline. "Well… I think it goes without saying that I owe you the biggest apology I've ever given. Not just for how I acted toward you during my Overblot, but for everything leading up to it. I knew you were sympathetic to what I was going through, so there's no excuse for not at least attempting to persuade you to help without using my Unique Magic on you. I'm not sure how much it helps, but I hadn't planned on getting you and Grim involved when I first formed my plan. It was only when we ran into each other in the cafeteria that I got the idea. I figured you two could put in a word to the headmaster for me. I know it's too little, too late but I did feel guilty about deceiving you."

Devon sat patiently and listened as Jamil continued, making sure to keep her expression neutral as she used her blessing to search for any signs of deception. He'd been genuine so far, which put her at ease, but she knew it was too soon to let him off the hook.

"Which leads into my next point," Jamil continued, more thankful than ever that he'd become so adept at masking feelings of anxiety because Devon's unreadable face was making him more nervous than he remembered being in a long time. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to give you an answer when you asked if any of the time we spent together was genuine. To be perfect honest, I first took an interest in you when you approached us about my injury because I wanted to see if your connection with the headmaster could help me later on. That plan lasted until about five minutes into our first real conversation."

"You mean that day we ran into each other outside Sam's store a little before Halloween?" Devon asked.

Jamil nodded. "That was the first time I'd ever even hinted at how I was really feeling about my situation with Kalim. There was something about you that just made me want to open up. Your blessing aside, I've never felt like anyone cared enough to try to see past the fake smiles and polite words until I talked with you. And then there was the way you gravitated to me even when I was with Kalim. That's never happened before and I'd never really expected it to, so I was surprised at how quickly I came to crave it-how quickly I came to crave being around you. And as for that kiss on the balcony…" Jamil looked at her guiltily. "It was meant to keep you from going to Kalim, that's true. However, I'd been wanting to kiss for a long time, long before I even brought you to Scarabia. I know that doesn't make up for what I did and I am so sorry that my manipulations hurt you." He took a breath and steeled himself for what he was about to say next. "If you never want to see me again after this, I completely understand and I'll keep my distance to the best of my ability. I just…I needed you to know how sorry I am and that if you can find it in your heart to give me another chance, I'll do whatever I have to to earn your trust back."

Devon remained silent as she continued to study Jamil. Once again, her blessing wasn't picking up any signs of deception. She could, however, feel that he was growing more nervous the longer the silence continued. It couldn't have been easy for him to swallow his pride and apologize like this; she knew for a fact that he hadn't apologized to Kalim or Azul and the twins and most likely never would. The amount of effort and consideration he was extending to her was further proof that he cared for her.

Finally, she allowed herself a small smile that only widened when she saw Jamil visibly relax once he caught it. "Thank you for the apology, Jamil. I appreciate you being real with me. I know you already know this, but my blessing would've let me know if you were just feeding me some b.s.." She was silent for a moment as she tried to get her thoughts in order. "Y'know, earlier this morning I wasn't sure if I'd have it in me to forgive you, but after thinking back on everything that happened, manipulation aside, I was probably the safest during your Overblot than I've been in any of the others combined."

"Hang on. You're saying you felt safe during that mess?" Jamil asked incredulously. "I might not have any memory of what happened after I went under, but I saw the state the Scarabia lounge was in when I came to. Nothing about that screamed "safe haven"."

"Yeah, I mean, I'm not saying I wanna go through that again and, like, screw you still, but you put me in a magicproof hourglass and then moved me away from the fight," Devon explained. "I know it was just because you wanted me out of the way, but given that the last Overblot I faced was definitely out for blood and Riddle's and Leona's would've had no issue spearing me with a tree or turning me to sand, I really don't think I was that bad off with yours." Her smile became slightly teasing. "Also, don't beat yourself up too much about that kiss. I got you back for it while you were in crazy snake mode, so I'd say we're even now."

Jamil felt his cheeks warm as he recalled the picture Jade had showed him. He pulled his hood up in an attempt to hide his face. "It's a shame I don't remember it," he blurted without thinking.

Devon's smile went from teasing to amused. "Well, maybe we can recreate it once you earn my trust back."

Jamil pulled his hoodie strings tighter, growing more flustered by the second. "Wh-What are you-" It took a moment for the implications of Devon's statement to hit him and his eyes widened once they sunk in. If she was joking around with him… "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Devon shrugged playfully. "Depends. If you think I'm saying that I'll give you another chance, then yes. But," Her voice took on a warning tone, "if you pull another fast on me, there isn't going to be a third one. Now, come here." She gave him a gentle smile before pulling him into a hug. She felt Jamil stiffen for a moment before wrapping his arms around her as well.

Jamil hid his face in Devon's hair in an attempt to hide his misty eyes as he heaved a massive sigh of relief. "Thank you, Devon," he said, a slight quiver in his voice. "I promise I won't let you down like that again."

"I know you won't," Devon replied confidently, giving him a quick squeeze before letting him go. "Now are you gonna tell me why you wanted to meet here?"

"Ah, that's right." Jamil took Devon's hand and stood up, leading her over to the edge of the pond across from the lab building, currently frozen over thanks to the winter cold. "You told me before that you always went ice skating with your family at that… Oh, what was called again? Rocky-something?"

"Rockefeller Center," Devon supplied, bouncing giddily at the implication. "Are you sayin' you wanna take me ice skating?"

Jamil nodded, encouraged by Devon's positive reaction. "I doubt I'll be able to recreate the experience to the letter. We don't typically decorate trees with lights during the holidays in Twisted Wonderland, so I won't be able to give you that. But," He pulled out his magical pen, "I can do the next best thing." He muttered a quick spell and pointed his pen toward the sky, causing hundreds of tiny lights of all different colors, each no bigger than a firefly, to come pouring out.

Devon stood there and admired the lights with an awestruck expression, only to pull back to reality when something occurred to her. "Wait, what are we gonna do about-" A crackling sound near her feet caused her to glance down just in time to see what appeared to be blades made of ice appearing on bottoms of her boots. She tapped them gently against the ground and found that they held fast. "Heh," she chuckled, turning her gaze back to Jamil to see him doing the same to his own shoes, "you really do think of everything, huh?"

"Well, you know. Scarabian foresight and all," Jamil replied as they made their way onto the ice. Marina, ever the cautious Wisp, made sure to magically reinforce both ice blades and the ice on the pond. "Full disclosure, I have never ice-skated before."

"Never?" Devon repeated.

"Growing up in the desert didn't really afford us many chances to," Jamil explained, wobbling unsteadily as he tried to keep his balance. "It was for the best, I think. I can only imagine what kind of shenanigans Kalim would get up to if we let him loose on an ice rink." He smiled at her. "I hope I can rely on you for assistance."

Devon smiled and nodded, holding her hands out so Jamil could use her for support. The meaning of this gesture wasn't lost on her. Though it was absolutely one reason, Jamil didn't put this together just to make Devon happy; by choosing an activity he had no prior experience with, he was voluntarily putting himself in Devon's hands, deferring to her as the one with the most experience and letting himself rely on her. For someone who prided himself on being able to handle anything and everything on his own and who really didn't like letting himself be vulnerable in front of others, this was quite a step.

…And, you know, the fact that it allowed him to hang onto her was an added bonus.

The pair skated in slow circles along the edge of the pond as Jamil built up his confidence. He found Devon to be pretty much the perfect teacher, encouraging without being patronizing, and he eventually (and reluctantly) found himself ready to break off from Devon to try to complete a lap on his own. Devon skated backwards a little ways ahead of him, facing him and ready to move if he lost his balance.

"Why am I not surprised you took to this so quickly?" Devon remarked. "You caught on way faster than I did. It was ages before I could skate without holding onto my parents for dear life."

"I appreciate the praise, but I've still got a long way to go before I'm anywhere close to your level," Jamil replied. "I have no clue how you can skate so confidently without looking where you're going."

"Intuition mostly," Devon supplied, "but this is about the fanciest thing I can do on the ice. There's no way I'll ever be coordinated enough to manage those fancy spins and jumps the pros can do."

"Well, I'm counting it as a victory if I can stay upright for longer than ten sec-" Jamil pitched forward at that moment and Devon jumped into action immediately. He reached for her on instinct, his arms winding around her waist and hers around his back as she braced herself to keep them both on their feet. Once he felt steady enough, he pulled back just a bit to look at her. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he saw the lights dancing in her eyes and he cleared his throat to snap himself out of his stupor. "Th-Thank you for catching me just now. And for giving me another chance."

Devon's gaze grew warmer before she hugged him closer, nuzzling into his chest. "And thank you for putting all of this together. And just so you know, I'm happy to do this again sometime if you wanna get some more practice in."

Jamil reached a hand up to brush some stray curls out of Devon's face, his dark eyes the softest she'd ever seen them as he rested his hand on her cheek. "I think I'll take you up on-"

"Jamiiiiilllll! Are things okay between you and Devon now?"

Jamil's expression went from soft to 'I'm about to choke this guy with his own bandanna' as his head jerked toward the familiar-and unwelcome-voice. Kalim was running toward them, waving eagerly. Jamil's eye began to twitch as the mood was effectively ruined, but he tried to keep his voice level. "What you doing here, Kalim?"

"I just wanted to make sure you and Devon were going to be okay," Kalim replied. "I know you said you didn't need my help, but I just got so worried that you guys wouldn't make up and it was really obvious that you were sad that she wasn't happy with you and-"

"Nevermind that!" Jamil interrupted, his cheeks growing warm again. "I mean, what are you doing leaving the dorm without an escort? You could've been kidnapped again!"

"Not to worry, Jamil," came another unwelcome voice. Jamil barely bit back a groan as Azul, Jade, and Floyd appeared. "Kalim told us about his concerns, so we took it upon ourselves to escort him here."

"We were also rather concerned about how you and Devon were faring, so we felt this arrangement benefited all of us," Jade added, his usual polite smile widening slightly in amusement as he took in the way Devon and Jamil were still holding onto each other. "Although, it appears we were worried for nothing."

"Dang, this is one swanky setup," Floyd commented, giving Jamil a sly look. "It's almost like you're tryin' to set the mood for somethin', Sea Snake."

Jamil tried to sputter out some sort of indignant reply, but Kalim finally noticed the ice blades on Devon's and Jamil's shoes and chose that moment to comment on them, thus sparing Jamil from having to defend himself to the smirking moray. "Oh, are you two ice skating? That looks like so much fun! I wanna give it a try too!"

"I'm right there with ya, Sea Otter," Floyd agreed. "I wanna get out there and tear it up!"

Jamil heaved an exasperated sigh as Kalim and the Octatrio magic-ed up some ice blades of their own, though his frustration was mitigated slightly when he felt Devon give him a gentle squeeze. He looked down to see that soft smile still on her face and she wordlessly touched her forehead to his. He couldn't help but smile back as he closed his eyes to savor her touch, taking comfort in knowing that today had been a step in the right direction.

Ending Notes: Devon and Jamil's relationship is on the road to recovery, guys! Jamil definitely meant it when he said he wasn't going to hold back anymore after his Overblot and that extends to Devon too. He won't hold himself back from her emotionally anymore, which means communication will be much better between them in addition to him being much more open about simping for her.

The next chapter is going to focus on the students returning to campus. We'll get to see some of the gifts Devon's friends got her over the holidays as well as the gifts she's working on for her friends now that she has her fancy art tablet back. She might even get some quality time with a love interest (or two) that we haven't heard from in a hot minute.

I plan on covering the last little bit of the Scarabia arc in the next chapter and then launching right into Pomefiore in the one following. I know I mentioned this before, but since there's a bit of a time skip in the Pomefiore arc (it cuts from Deuce and Epel coming back from their heart-to-heart on the beach to the day before the VDC about two weeks later), I'm planning to cover Beanfest during the time since it's confirmed to happen in February. Once that's done, I'll finish Pomefiore then jump right into Ignihyde since it picks up where Pomefiore leaves off.

Honestly, it blows my mind that most of that arc takes place over the course of roughly 48 hours given how much there is. I've saved the biggest curveball yet for that arc though, so I won't complain.

Once I finish Ignihyde, my plan is to cover more of the events to (hopefully) get the Diasomnia arc time to get to the English server/get a few more updates on the Japanese server. I'll be doing the Harveston event first, then (in no particular order because I haven't quite decided on one just yet) OG Fairy Gala, both Camp Vargas events, Glorious Masquerade (which will hopefully be releasing on the English server next month), and White Rabbit Fest (this one hasn't been released on the English server yet either, but I'm hoping it will by the time I decide to cover it. That oughta keep me plenty busy until we get more Diasomnia content.

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