Author's Note: You know those designs that appear whenever the loading screen pops up in the game? Those are the ones I'm thinking of here.


"Maaan, I can't believe our break's over the day after tomorrow," Grim whined as he (begrudgingly) helped Devon, the Octatrio, and the Scarabia duo clean up after lunch at Ramshackle. "I don't wanna go back to classes!"

"Ah ha ha! I understand how you feel, Grim!" Kalim agreed. "I'm a little sad break's almost over too, but I'm still pretty excited for everyone else to come back to campus."

"They say that all good things must come to an end, after all," Azul chimed in before redirecting his attention to Devon. "And speaking of good things, Devon, the dish you served us for lunch today was nothing short of sublime. What did you say it was called again?"

"Spicy crab creole," Devon supplied. "My soon-to-be cousin-in-law, taught me how to make it not long after she and Valentina started dating. I've been wanting to make it again for a while, but not all of the ingredients I needed for it exist in this world."

"Ah," Azul replied, sounding mildly disappointed. "I was hoping to get the recipe so we could serve it at the Mostro Lounge, but I can only imagine how much sourcing the missing ingredients from your world would cost."

"Heh. You're also assuming Monique would be willing to give it to you," Devon pointed out. "Her family's similar to mine in that they're very protective of their recipes. I only have it because we're almost officially family as it is."

"Guess that means we'll just have to come here to hang out with Shrimpy if we want more," Floyd said in a tone that was equal parts threatening and playful.

"I'd be fine with that," Devon replied. "Actually, that's part of why I asked you all to come here today." She opened up a nearby cupboard and pulled out some gift bags she'd stashed there beforehand. "I wasn't sure if holiday gift exchanges were something people did here, so I was a little late getting something together, but once I got my tablet back from home there was no stoppin' me."

"She's not jokin'," Grim agreed. "I'm pretty sure she stayed up an entire night putting the finishing touches on some of these."

Everyone eagerly opened their gift bags, pulling out ceramic mugs. Each one had a customized design printed on it that Devon had drawn herself and each design made use of the recipients corresponding dorm colors. The designs were repeating and wrapped all the way around the mugs: a coffin-shaped border with a specific image inside-a feathered headdress for Kalim, a hissing cobra for Jamil, an octopus tentacle for Azul, and opposite-facing eels for Jade and Floyd.

"Aaaahh! This is so cool!" Kalim exclaimed, rushing over to Devon and pulling her into a hug. "Thank you, Devon! You've absolutely made my day!"

"Yes, these designs are wonderful. I quite like the bubbles in the background of the ones for Floyd, Azul, and myself," Jade agreed. "And you drew these yourself?"

"We already knew you were talented, but this is some next-level stuff, Shrimpy!" Floyd commented, lifting Devon up into a spine-cracking squeeze.

Devon giggled despite Floyd seemingly trying to squeeze the air out of her lungs. "I'm glad you guys like them! It took me some time to work out ideas that were distinct to each of you but still fit with your dorms. Azul's especially gave me a hard time; I wanted to draw an entire octopus but I couldn't get the design to where I was satisfied with it. It just ended up looking too cramped."

"Well I think the lone tentacle suits him perfectly," Jade said with a smile. "It's as though Azul's lurking in the depths, waiting to drag down an unsuspecting passerby."

"Hmph. That tracks," Jamil snarked.

Azul rolled his eyes before refocusing on Devon. "How did you even get these made? Normally I would assume you got them done at Sam's store but given that it's closed for the break…"

"There's a shop in town that specializes in customized stuff like this," Devon explained. "It's not just mugs, either; they can do all kinds of things."

"Wait, so you left campus to get these done? You know you need the headmaster's permission to leave the school grounds, right?" Jamil reminded her.

"Yeah, too bad he isn't here to give it. Or to stop me," Devon retorted. "The man's livin' it up on some tropical island somewhere, what's he gonna do?" She smirked. "Besides, he refused to pick up his phone when Grim and I tried to reach him for help which resulted in one of his students Overblotting and the others having to manage it without any hope of backup. I think he can be…persuaded to let a few unauthorized trips off campus slide."

"Okay, you've officially been spending too much time with Azul," Jamil remarked dryly.

Azul rested his hand on Devon's shoulder. "I can't remember the last time I was this proud of someone, Devon."

"Jokes aside, I really am glad you guys like your mugs. Obviously, you can take 'em back to your dorms with you but you're welcome to leave them here too so they'll always be here whenever you stop by to hang out," Devon said. "And speaking of hanging out, I distinctly remember passing an old-school arcade on my way to the shop that put these mugs together. Anybody up for a field trip? Flapjack can warp us there and back."

"Heck yeah! I was hopin' we could check that place out!" Grim cheered.

"I'm in too!" Floyd agreed. "I'm sick of bein' cooped up on campus."

"I'm game. It should make for a fun afternoon," Jade concurred.

"Then I suppose I'm going as well," Azul chimed in. "Someone has to make sure the arcade's still standing by the time we leave."

"Can we go too, Jamil?" Kalim asked. "It sounds like a blast!"

Devon saw Jamil hesitate, so she jumped in to assure him, "The Wisps will be keeping an eye on everything, so you'll be able to relax for a bit too."

Jamil's eyes flicked from Devon to Kalim before he sighed. "Fine. I'm clearly outnumbered here. Let me just text our other dormmates so they don't think we just vanished on them."

Kalim cheered and followed Jamil out of the room, as did Grim and the twins. Azul was about to head after them as well when Devon stopped him.

"Hold up a sec, bud. I've actually got another gift for you, but I didn't wanna risk Floyd seeing me give it to you. You know he'd be upset I didn't get anything extra for him."

"Heh. True enough." Azul watched curiously as Devon stepped closer to him, pulled something round and silvery out of her pocket and gently pressed it into his palm. "Is this…a coin?" he asked, studying the item. "I've never seen one like this before."

"Makes sense, considering it's currency from my world," Devon replied. "That night Grim and I crashed at Octavinelle after busting out of Scarabia, you told me you collected coins as a hobby. I know coins from my world don't have any value here, but there's a superstition that quarters like that one can bring good luck. I've had that one on me since I first got here."

Azul couldn't keep the tiny smile off his face as he continued to study the quarter. He turned it over to see what looked like a woman holding a torch aloft in one hand and a tablet of some kind in the other along with a shape he couldn't quite make out in the background and the words 'NEW YORK' printed just below the rim.

"A few years before my brothers and I were born, commemorative quarters like these were minted as a tribute to each of the fifty states that make up the country I live in," Devon explained. "The woman you see there is the Statue of Liberty and she's easily the most iconic landmark in New York. Probably the entire United States, actually."

"That's right. You've told me about her before," Azul recalled. He took a closer look at the quarter. "Even this miniature etching of her is beautiful; I can't begin to imagine what she must look like in person. And this bizarre shape in the background is…?"

Devon snorted. "What the state of New York looks like on a map. Like I said, I know it doesn't have any value in this world but-"

"Maybe not monetary value," Azul interjected, "but it has a great deal of value to me personally." He smiled at her, allowing himself a moment of softness since it was just the two of them. "It came from one of my dearest friends, after all. Thank you, Dev." His smile widened just slightly as Devon pulled him into a hug. "I'll treasure this."


"I've noticed you seem awfully eager to return to Night Raven College tomorrow," Maleficia commented to her grandson as they shared one last meal before he returned from break. "I wonder what could possibly have you so excited."

"Honestly, Grandmother, again?" Malleus huffed, pouting. "You've done nothing but tease me about Devon ever since you found out who she was."

"Perhaps I wouldn't be so eager to tease you if you hadn't tried so desperately to hide her identity from me," Maleficia retorted.

"How was I meant to know that you already knew her, let alone that you'd been friends with her family since before she was even alive?" Malleus fired back. "If it had been any other human, you would have had all sorts of suspicions."

"I would have had suspicions about anyone you showed so much interest in regardless of species, wyrmling," Maleficia countered. "Honestly, it's a relief to see that you chose so well." She studied her grandson carefully. "I know I mentioned this to you before, but Devon's family has assured me that they won't reveal your true identity to her, but I really do think you ought to tell her soon. I understand your reasons for keeping it from her, but if her family's reaction to learn my identity is any indication, I doubt you need to be overly concerned about her fearing you."

"Yes. I'll admit, their acceptance did put my mind at ease," Malleus agreed. "Devon herself has never pressured me to reveal myself to her either, but I don't like keeping things from her. When the time is right, I shall tell her."


"Ya know, I'm still a little blown away by all the gifts we got over the break," Devon commented to Grim as she took stock of everything that had been sent to Ramshackle both during and after their time in Scarabia.

Grim rolled his eyes as he chomped on one of the tuna cans Devon's family had sent for him. ""We" nothin'. Most of those gifts were for you."

They'd received holiday cards from just about all of their friends, including the one from the mysterious 'M.D.', as well as some fresh apples and apple cider from Epel, a holiday cake from Trey's family's bakery (both of which were shared with Devon's family), a trendy new phone case from Cater that featured a blue cat-like creature that looked remarkably similar to Grim, a very fancy (and rose-scented) stationary set from Riddle, and a book on various fae cultures from Sebek. The Octatrio had gotten in on the fun as well; she'd received some new parkour gloves from Floyd (along with a promise to play Parkour Tag with him), a small terrarium from Jade, and her very own Octavinelle dorm uniform from Azul, which she had happily modeled for her family, making sure to show off the fedora and emphasizing that she could wear it tilted at the jaunty angle of her choice. She and Jamil had to stop Kalim from literally trying to buy her and Grim a five-star restaurant, insisting that Kalim generously allowing Devon and Grim to come to Scarabia to escape the cold whenever they wanted was gift enough.

Her two favorite gifts, though (not that she would ever tell anyone), were a stuffed bat with a Velcro back that allowed it to be stuffed with sachets of potpourri-a joint gift from Lilia and Silver with Lilia choosing the bat and Silver selecting various scents he thought Devon would enjoy-and a large colorful blanket, though she did notice that there were more shades of blue than any other color. It was the softest and warmest blanket she'd ever felt, clearly made of top-quality materials. There wasn't anything to indicate who had sent it, but Devon recognized both the patterns and some of the dyes as those traditionally used by only the most skilled craftspeople in the Sunset Savanna and likely cost a pretty penny to have commissioned.

Devon was sorely tempted to snuggle under her new blanket for a mid-morning nap, but a voice calling from outside the dorm put those thoughts on pause.

"Devoooon! Griiiim! Come out and play!" Kalim called out.

Devon and Grim headed over to a nearby window to peer outside. Kalim, Jamil, and the Octatrio were standing on Ramshackle's front step. Devon was about to move to answer the door when a thought struck her. She turned to Grim with a mischievous grin. "I just got what's probably going to end up being a terrible idea. Wanna do somethin' that might get us maimed?"

Grim smirked back and hopped up on Devon's shoulder. "Heck yeah! I love it when you hit Bad Decision Mode! What'd you have in mind?"

"Just follow my lead," Devon replied. She threw on her heavy winter coat and snow boots and fired off a quick text to Kalim to let him know they'd be out in a minute before picking Grim up and carefully sneaking to the back door, silently thanking Regina for ensuring that the floorboards didn't creak. Once they'd made it outside, she placed Grim on her shoulder so she could free up her gloved hands to scoop up some snow, packing it tightly into a ball. She crept along the side of the building with Regina manipulating the snow to muffle the sound of her footsteps. She and peeked around the side of the building and shared a look once they were satisfied that their friends hadn't caught onto them yet.

"If we don't make it outta this, Dev," Grim said, "I just want you to know that it's been an honor."

"Likewise, bud," Devon whispered. She took a quick breath before popping out from her hiding place, shouting, "Element of surprise!", and chucking her snowball.

Floyd turned around just in time for the snowball to hit him right in the face. Time seemed to stand still as everyone aside from Devon and Grim tried to process what had just happened, but once they did, their reactions were mixed. Kalim and Jade looked to be two different sorts of amused-Kalim in a delighted 'This is so fun' way and Jade in a twisted 'I see you have chosen death' way-while Azul and Jamil looked at Devon with matching 'Girl, why?' expressions.

"It's the last day of our break; there's still enough time for me to make one more bad decision!" Devon said as if that explained everything.

"Ah hahahahaha!" Floyd cackled as he wiped the snow off his face. "You're always a riot, Shrimpy! I'm glad ya stuck around after everything with the exams. But," His grin turned menacing as he cracked his knuckles, "you know I'm gonna have to pay you back for this, right?"

"Oh, I'm counting on it," Devon replied with a smirk, gesturing toward the dorm (and Regina) to signal them. The steps leading up to the dorm were manipulated into a ramp again and a fresh coating of ice rendered them slick. Without missing a beat and making sure Grim was still secure on her shoulder, Devon hopped onto the ramp, keeping her balance easily as she slid to the bottom of the hill. "Goonies never say diiiiiie!" she and Grim shouted in unison.

Floyd laughed again before turning to Jade. "Is she the coolest spirit sib ever or what? I really hope Mama and Pops let us adopt her for real."

"Heh," Jade chuckled as he followed Floyd toward the ice slide. "I'm certain they could be persuaded if they had the chance to meet her."

"Ah ha ha! This'll be great! I've never been part of a snowball fight before," Kalim said as rushed to join them.

"Hold on, Kalim! You'll just hurt yourself," Jamil protested as he followed after the young heir.

Azul sighed and shook his head before starting after them as well. "Never a dull moment, is there?"


"Unca!" Cheka called out as he rushed toward Leona, latching himself onto his favorite uncle. "Do you really hafta go back?"

Leona bit back a groan. He was hoping to leave without his family noticing him, but it seemed he was too late. "Sorry kiddo, but I've got lots of studyin' to do."

"Come now, Leona. You can come up with a better excuse than that." The new voice caused Leona to roll his eyes. He turned to see his brother approaching now, his ever-present good-natured smile on full display. "Trying to leave without saying goodbye, I see."

"Trying being the key word," Leona snarked. "What can I say? I just missed school so much."

Falena gave Leona a knowing look as the younger beastman turned to leave. "Your eagerness to get back wouldn't have anything to do with that girl with the blue curls you have as your phone background, would it? The one that was struck in the head at the Spelldrive interdorms?"

Leona stopped dead in his tracks before whipping around to face his brother and nephew. "How did you-"

"You're not nearly as subtle as you think you are. It seems Cheka caught a glimpse of your friend at the Ambassador's banquet a few nights ago," Falena interjected, patting Cheka's head affectionately. "I was wondering what had you glued to your phone all evening."

"You say that as if I'm not always on my phone at those events," Leona grumbled. "I was only there because you demanded it anyway, Your Highness. I wasn't about to be bored out of my skull all night."

"Maybe, but I've never seen you with such a fond look in your eyes before," Falena countered. "Not to mention how you headed out to the balcony to make a phone call and didn't come back for nearly two hours."

"You're really eager to make somethin' outta nothin', aren't you? She's been stuck on campus over break so I was just takin' pity on her," Leona deflected. "Poor herbivore didn't know what to do with herself."

"You could have invited her here, you know," Falena countered. "I'd love the chance to meet someone who can capture your attention the way she evidently can."

Cheka hopped up and down excitedly at the suggestion. "Yeah! You should bring her the next time you come home, Unca!" He turned to look at his father. "She's really nice, Papa! You'll see!"

"You talked to her one time," Leona argued, pinching the bridge of his nose. He really didn't want this conversation to go on any longer. He was already embarrassed they'd caught him slipping away to talk to Devon. "Look, I really do have to get goin'. I've got some holiday homework to finish." 'That I left at school for this exact reason.'

"Fine, fine," Falena finally relented, walking over to Leona and gently clapping him on the shoulder. "But seriously, don't stay away so long next time, alright?"

"Bye, Unca!" Cheka said as he latched himself onto his uncle in one last hug. "Tell your friend I said hello, okay?"

Leona sighed. "Sure thing, but I actually have to get to her first, y'know."

After a few more minutes of Falena and Cheka's long goodbyes, Leona finally extricated himself from his family and made his way to the Dark Mirror's pickup location. A notification went off on his phone, prompting him to dig it out of his pocket. His grumpiness faded immediately when he saw it was a post notification from Devon's Magicam account. When he opened it, he was met with a picture of what appeared to be some sort of pillow fort and the caption, 'Who knew an impromptu snowball fight with an octopus, two eels, the sweetest ball of energy I've ever met, and Jamil could take so much out of you? #Naptime #PillowFortsAreTheBest #Zzzz'

'Looks like that homework'll have to wait,' Leona thought as he pocketed his phone again.


Devon yawned as she snuggled into the mass of blankets and pillows that she and Grim had created in the middle of the Ramshackle lounge. Some of the spare sheets were suspended overhead to create a sort of low-hanging canopy held up by various pieces of furniture, making the fort even cozier by adding a certain amount of privacy and by keeping the warmth from escaping. Worn out from the snowball fight earlier that morning, Grim had passed out the moment he was able to get comfortable. Devon managed to take a shower and then change into some dry clothes-pajamas, really-before settling into the fort, but exhaustion wasn't far behind her, either.

She barely registered Regina letting her know that someone was headed toward the dorm, knowing they would keep anyone out that shouldn't be there. She was right on the edge of sleep when someone poked their head into the fort.

"Oi, Princess. Long time, no see."

Devon's eyes snapped open as she jerked her head in the direction of Leona's voice. The lion prince was watching her with his usual smug grin, but kept himself respectfully outside of the fort for the most part, not wanting to intrude on Devon's space until she gave him the okay. Devon smiled at him sleepily, pushing herself up into a sitting position and rubbing her eyes as the drowsy fog cleared from her mind. "Hey, Leona! Good to see ya!"

"Not a bad setup ya got here," Leona commented as he gestured at the fort. "Saw your post on Magicam. I have to say, I'm a little offended you didn't invite me. You know how much I appreciate a good nappin' spot."

Devon rolled her eyes playfully as she smiled. "Oh I'm sorry, Your Highness. I must have missed the flurry of trumpets heralding your arrival back to campus. But since the Sleep King himself has gone out of his way to pay lil' ol' Ramshackle a visit…" She scooted to the side to make some space before motioning for Leona to join her.

"I'll overlook it this one time," Leona snarked back as he crawled into the space next to Devon. All of the tension and frustration he'd felt back home began to melt away almost as soon as he'd caught her scent, but now he could truly feel himself beginning to relax. He wasn't sure if it was the little bubble of coziness Devon had created or if it was just because she had that effect on him in general, but all he wanted right now was to stay in this moment. He felt a fluttery warmth take root in his chest when he caught a look at the colorful blanket Devon had cocooned herself in. "Nice blanket ya got there. Looks pretty top-quality."

Devon gave him an amused look, torn between playing along and calling him out before opting for the former. "It really is amazing. One of the best things I own now, actually. Too bad I have no idea who sent it to me. Whoever they are, they must reeeeeally like me if they opted to gift me somethin' this nice." She held the edge of the blanket out toward him. "Wanna try it out for yourself?"

Leona's eyes flicked between Devon and the blanket for a moment before settling himself underneath it with her and laid back against the pillows with his hands behind his head. Devon smiled as she settled back down as well, moving just a little closer to snuggle into his side.

"So how'd the rest of that banquet thing go once you were called back in?" she asked. "Hopefully you didn't pull too much of your hair out."

"Typical nobility stuff, I guess. Had to sit through I don't know how many droning speeches by a bunch of elders who pretty much all said the same thing while people praised Falena for existing. Honestly, I'd have preferred listening to that loud-mouth friend of yours sing that overgrown lizard's praises for an entire evening. At least he says it with feeling."

Devon giggled as she patted Leona's arm sympathetically. "Well at least it's over now, right?"

"Until next year," Leona grumbled.

"Then why don't you sneak me and Grim back with you?" Devon suggested. "You saw what happened during the entrance ceremony; we're experts at makin' things interesting."

"If I remember correctly, and I always do, your little furball was the one that made a mess of the ceremony. I distinctly remember you standing there looking scared and confused," Leona corrected her. "And while I'd love to have someone capable of making decent conversation along with me at one of these functions, it's a no-go. Cheka and my brother already know who you are, so there'd be no sneaking you anywhere."

Devon quirked a brow. "How do they know who I am?" She gasped playfully. "You told your family about me?! I knew it, you do like me!"

"Don't flatter yourself, Princess. Cheka just remembered you from the Spelldrive tournament and he went and told Falena. And sure, you'd be marginally better company, but that's still a pretty low bar," Leona retorted, though there wasn't any actual bite to his words.

The pair's banter continued for a while longer but Devon's exhaustion eventually got the better of her, now amplified by Leona's comforting scent. She was out like a light in moments while Leona, despite being eager for a nap himself, took a moment to watch over her. She had hinted that she'd gotten wrapped up in some kind of trouble over the break, but had been deliberately vague about how serious it was when he'd pressed her. As soon as he got back to campus, however, Leona had heard the whispers about another Overblot-Scarabia's vice dorm leader this time-and he immediately put two and two together. He knew Devon wouldn't tell him any more than she already had about the situation, so he'd planned to "accidentally" run into her at some point the following day so he could see for himself that she was actually alright. Thankfully, she didn't appear to be injured; he'd have hated to have turn that snake of an attendant into sand.

"I'm glad you're alright, Devon. Really," Leona said quietly as he gently touched his forehead to hers, committing her sleeping face to memory before falling into dreamland himself.


After waking up and saying goodbye to Leona, Devon picked up her phone to see that she had a text from Ace. He and Deuce were officially back on campus and wanted to know if she and Grim wanted to head to the cafeteria to grab dinner. After checking with Grim and getting a resounding "Heck yeah!" in response, she let Ace know that they'd meet them in a few minutes.

"Heya, Dev. Happy New Year!" Ace greeted as he and Deuce met up with Devon and Grim on Main Street.

"I know we saw you guys not too long ago, but it feels like it's been years, for some reason," Deuce added as Devon pulled them both into hugs.

"Heh heh. Just be honest and say you guys missed me," Grim said with a smirk.

"We definitely missed one of you," Ace said under his breath.

"Oi. C'mon, you guys. Quit blockin' traffic," came a familiar voice. The group turned to see Jack approaching them.

"Hey, Jack!" Devon greeted.

"Dang, man! Did you get a tan or somethin'?" Ace asked.

Jack blinked before looking down at his hands. "Did I? I haven't really noticed. I spent most of my break skiing, so I guess it could be from that."

"Huh. Does it snow a lot where you're from?" Ace asked.

"And what's skiing?" Grim asked as he ran in around the groups legs, happy to see his friends again. "I wanna try it!"

"Hey! C'mon Grim, stop running around underfoot. You're gonna get stepped on," Deuce chided. He tried to take a step back to avoid the little monster, only to collide roughly with another student.

"Oof," the student grunted and everyone turned to see a familiar head of lavender hair.

"Oh hey there, Epel. Sorry about bumpin' into you like that," Deuce apologized. "You okay?"

Epel let out a quiet sniffle and the group noticed the tears forming in the corner of their favorite feral farm boy's eyes. To say they were thrown was an understatement.

"Wh-Whoa! You're crying!" Deuce exclaimed.

"Teacher, Teacher! Deuce is making a kid from another class cry!" Ace teased.

"Shut up, Ace! No one thinks you're funny!" Deuce snapped back before turning back to Epel and offering him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry about that, man, really. I didn't realize I'd bumped you that hard. Do you think you need to be checked out at the infirmary?" He offered his shoulder. "You can lean on me if you think you need to."

"You didn't hurt me, Deuce. That's not why Ah'm upset," Epel said. His fists clenched in frustration. "Dangnabbit…"

"Is it Vil again?" Devon asked.

"You know it," Epel replied. "He's on my case about not stickin' to that dang skincare routine he expects me to do while I was home. He tried to drag me into some etiquette lessons to review what he'd taught me before break, but I ran off before he could get started."

"He really jumped you as soon as you got back?" Ace asked. "Yeesh, you'd think he'd at least wait until school was officially back in session."

"Why don't you come to dinner with us," Deuce offered. "I bet some time to decompress is just what you need." He turned to Jack. "You should come too, Jack."

"And after that, we can stop back at Ramshackle so I can give you guys your gifts," Devon added.

Jack nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"That sounds amazin', but I'm almost positive that Vil sent Rook out to find me," Epel said.

Devon smiled and held up her staff. "Then it's a good I never travel without an Illusion Wisp. Mirage can make it look like you're not even there so long as you're sitting at the end. An Epel-sized gap between two of us would be a dead giveaway."

A slow smile began to spread over Epel's face. "Then yeah, I'd love to have dinner with you guys."


Vil shot a withering glare out the window of the Pomefiore ballroom. "It seems he got away." He raised his voice to call out to his vice dorm leader. "Rook! Are you there, Rook?"

The huntsman appeared behind Vil immediately, almost as though he'd been expecting the summons. "You called for me, Roi du Poison?"

"I want you to find that boy and bring him back here at once," Vil ordered, never facing away from the window.

Rook nodded before taking of his hat and dipping into a bow. "Of course. As you wish, my liege." And then he was gone as quickly as he appeared.

"I'm not about to let you escape, Epel," Vil said, his voice dangerously low. "I'll stop at nothing to be the fairest one of all."


Ending Notes: That's one more story arc done and dusted! Pomefiore starts in the next chapter and I could not be more pumped to cover it. I'm excited to have Devon's family take a more active role now that she's able to talk to them face-to-face again (kind of) and I'm eager for her relationship with Vil to finally get some more development.

I got to write two of my favorite things in this chapter and I am over the moon about it: Azul and Devon being adorable besties, and Leona and Devon being each other's safe space. Obviously, I like Devon with all of her love interests, but I really love writing Devon with Leona. They're that couple that's always really affectionately snarky with each other, but anybody who watches them for more than two seconds can see how devoted they are. Devon is Leona's biggest cheerleader and Leona's always there to block out the world when Devon gets overwhelmed.

On an unrelated note, I keep thinking about Devon working out a way to bring the boys to New York and how they'd react to various things/interact with Devon's family. Specifically, Ruggie seeing the Lopez family's comically large home/property and immediately declaring that he and his Grammy are moving in and then losing his mind over Krispy Kreme/Dunkin' Doughnuts.

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