A few days passed when Alicia returned from the portal that Varian had built. This had unfortunately not brought her into her nor into the Inkwell Isle's from the book. But into another version of the Inkwell Isle's from the Cuphead Show. In this version, Alicia was not the only person from the real world who had ended up in a cartoon world, nor was she the only one the devil was after.

Of course, the group could not use the portal because it was unfortunately destroyed when Alicia jumped out of it. It consisted only of ashes and burnt nails that were once supposed to be the frame. The liquid evaporated. However, Varian still had enough liquid to build a second portal. However, he wanted to build this one better so it wouldn't break the first time. But Elder Kettle had no metal or anything else, which is why this was put on hold for the time being. As chance would have it, the fox found a silver heart-shaped locket while cleaning up the portal, which looked more than familiar to him.

"Eira? But how can it be..." he didn't want to believe it but she had to be here on Inkwell Isle's as well. But where? He didn't know where she was and the others didn't know either, otherwise they would have said something. No, she was still here somewhere and they were surely looking for him. And as he had heard from Alicia and the others, information on Inkwell Isle's is passed on quickly. So that everyone on the islands knows. This can be positive or negative because the group knows who would benefit from it.

The devil himself, who was still eager to win Alicia over and make her his wife and queen.

That's why he sat on his throne and stared at the ceiling for what felt like an eternity, but was only a few hours, while in his head he went through one plan after another to find out how he could best win Alicia over. But no matter what plan he thought through there was always a problem. Be it her powers that were stronger than his, the three cups or the wolf and the fox that was now part of the game. These made his life difficult and made it difficult for him to get to Alicia.

He was already annoyed. But what made him even more annoyed and furious was his auditor. He reminded him that he had reached 5% with the soul count. Angrily, he clawed his hand along the armrest that dug into the fabric. Henchman and Amnon saw it and swallowed nervously while the auditor ignored it. He rather prepared himself for his work and left the throne room.

However, he remembered one more thing he had to tell the devil before he left the throne room. "Oh one more thing the marriage contract should be signed otherwise the wedding and the ceremony will be invalid".

His eyes snapped open when he hear that. The wedding and the ceremony would not be valid until Alicia signs the marriage contract. Only then will she be his wife and queen. But Alicia was stubborn and that the others who are with her in company. The contract has not yet been signed. But that will change today. The devil had a plan. A diabolical plan you could say.

"Amnon" the husky demon to the left of the throne twitched when the devil mentioned his name and tried not to drop the tablet he was holding in his hands on which were deviled eggs. "Y-Y-Yes B-B-Boss?" he shivered and put the tray down on the serving table next to him before turning his attention to the devil.

"Do we have a demon capable of creating illusions?" Amnon thought for a moment before turning to the devil. He knew which demon could help. "Y-Y-Yes we have a D-D-Demon sir" this pleased the devil very much. "Then bring me this demon" he ordered the husky demon who disappeared from the throne room and went to his master Silk.

She sat with the other demonesses in a small chamber and watched from afar the devil in his throne room. "Silk your lapdog is coming back" said Caterina while polishing her armor and looking quite bored. Scorpina, meanwhile, clipped her tail while Wespae and Daiyu talked.

"I hope he brings news on how we can get this hybrid out of the picture once and for all" growled Silk who saw Amnon getting closer and not landing as softly as he had hoped. Silk rolled her eyes in annoyance and lifted the husky by his harness to get him to the same eye level as she is. "H-H-Hey Silk I... uh... got some good news.".

All five demonesses were surprised by this and stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to the husky demon that Silk slowly lowered to the ground so that he could continue telling the news.

"The devil is looking for a demon who could create good illusions" Daiyu grinned diabolically when she heard this and reached for her fans. Silk and the others, however, were not pleased that they were not wanted by the devil. However, Silk saw an advantage in this. Maybe they could get rid of Alicia once and for all without the devil knowing anything about it.

Daiyu did not say no to this and followed the Husky Demon to the throne room while Silk and the others prepared for their plan and were on their way to the surface.

Up there, Alicia and the others were out in the forest looking for Gwyneira Snowveil. Or as Varian called her, Eira. Since the Inkwell Isle's were not exactly small, the seven had to split into two groups to search for the vixen. The fox had left an exact description of what Eira looked like for both groups.

Eira is an anthropomorphic Arctic fox with a lithe build and covered in white fur. She had long white white hair with an icy blue streak, two strands braided over her shoulders while she has a small strand in the back is tied into a small ponytail. She has a small violet blue nose and light blue eyes. She wears a long-sleeved icy blue dress with a white ribbon around her waist and the bottom of skirt has a white lining with blue snowflake printings. The skirt stops above her knees, revealing midnight blue leggings and icy blue boots with white flaps and Pom-Pom strings. Around her neck, she usually wears her silver heart shaped locket with a snowflake shaped diamond embedded into it.

But Varian now carried this with him and had it firmly in his hand while he was out in the forest with Alicia and Blood.

Alicia enjoyed it as well as the fresh air, the chirping of the birds and the smell of the flowers. "Oh, it's beautiful out here" she said and continued walking while Blood and Varian nodded. She was right it was beautiful here and the clearing they were in was very large and surrounded by large trees that almost resembled redwoods. Alicia knew these trees because not far from her home town was a large forest that had these trees.

Also in the hallway were a few pictures with her family as they stood under just such a tree. Alicia also knew that this was a while ago, because at that time she was seven and did not yet live in California but in Arizona. It wasn't until both of her parents were promoted that they moved to California. And from then on, much changed in the lives of Alicia and her brother. Much of which she would like to forget.

Varian continued to look around while Blood went to a small lake that was in the clearing to drink from it. The water was very clear so you could see the bottom and the fish swimming in it. But there was no sign of Eira. "I guess she's not here," Varian said disappointingly, and walked on with his ears bent. Blood patted him on the shoulder while Alicia followed them and looked around.

The three, however, did not suspect that something bad is about to happen to them. Well, rather for Alicia, Daiyu appeared behind a tree with the devil and used her two fans to create an illusion that split the path in front of Alicia in two. Blood and Varian didn't notice anything because the illusion only affected Alicia.

She therefore unintentionally went to the right while Blood and Varian continued straight ahead. "Wonderful work Daiyu" the devil praised the kitsune. "Oh uh don't mention it" she blushed herself while the devil disappeared with his trident in his hand. Where Alicia went, however, only Daiyu knew. She smirked. Alicia was heading straight for a cliff that would take her into the sea. In addition, there were sharp rock edges at this exact spot.

So before the devil could reach her, Alicia would already fall down the cliff and probably die. This was the plan of Silk who hoped to get rid of Alicia and become queen herself.

However, Daiyu's illusion ended sooner than planned and Alicia quickly realized that she was only one foot away from the cliff she almost fell into. "What the" she looked around and realized that she was no longer on the forest path and was alone. There was no trace of Blood and Varian.

But she noticed that someone was approaching her. Therefore, she turned around and was about to ask for help when she realized that it was the devil. Of course he had to appear again. Her eyes rolled again annoyed when she saw his grin that she would like to never see again. "Hello my dearest Alicia" he said and approached her while Alicia tried to keep her distance from him. However, right behind her stood the precipice into the cliff with the sharp rocks. These she would hate to fall into. In fact, not at all. The devil, however, this did not bother him, because he used the opportunity to wrap his tail around her waist and thus pull her to him.

"Finally you are mine again" his fingers stroked her cheek and hair. His nose sniffed her hair and was very fond of the smell of coconut and cinnamon. It pleased him very much to feel this smell again in his nose while he touched her skin.

She however had enough of it. She freed herself from his "embrace" and ran into the forest to be reunited with Blood and Varian. There she hoped that he would not find her so quickly and would rather get lost. However, he knew his way around better than she did and would probably find her faster than the others. If Blood and Varian knew where Alicia was, both didn't seem to call for her.

"I hope he doesn't find me here" Alicia was out in her demon form, hiding behind a large tree while keeping an eye out for Blood, Varian and the devil. She didn't want to meet the latter. Not again. That's why she hoped and stayed hidden rather than being seen. She didn't want any inhabitant of the island to see her as she was now and call her a monster.

In the dimension she was in for a short time, Alicia met a group of people her own age who were also from the real world, just different from Alicia in that they could change into a kind of cartoon shape. These people called themselves the Dreamstones and consisted of Katie Gemwing, Lexie Luthor and Natty Poke.

At first, Alicia wanted little to no contact with the three and their companions, but when she unintentionally turned into a demon in front of the group, Alicia had to realize that she was not called a monster after all. Of course, the group was shocked, but they accepted her as she was.

They knew she was a good person and as a token of their gratitude, the group presented her with a piece of jewelry they made together with Misterie. It was a bracelt similar to their own from a woven cords and glass beads.

"Who are we talking about my dearest?" said a British voice that could be heard directly behind her. Does he always have to stand right behind me? Alicia asked herself annoyed while, the devil clutches her chin with his hand as he turns it in his direction. She stared into his yellow eyes again.

"Could you stop doing that!" she said, freeing herself from his grip as she walked away from him. She was visibly annoyed by being constantly flirted by him. Alicia was glad that the devil from the other dimension wasn't in love with her, but that didn't mean she didn't miss hers.

But he couldn't help it when he saw her in her demon form She looked so beautiful. Her eyes glittered like amber, the onyx black fur and her horns that were white just turned him on. He wanted her as his wife and queen.

Therefore, he followed her and tried to get her to sign the marriage contract in various ways. He was not stupid and knew that she would never sign it like that. No, his future queen was also smart.

Alicia continued to walk along the forest path, looking around from time to time to make sure the devil wasn't following her while she searched for Blood and Varian. She passed a lemonade stand run by a little girl. Confused she went to it. "Hi would you like to try some lemonade?" the little girl asked in a high-pitched voice. For Alicia, the voice was a bit unnatural after all. She looked around the stand and saw a list with names on it.

"Why the list?" she asked. "Oh this is for me so I know how many have had buyed my lemonade" said the child. Alicia didn't really know "I don't have any money with me" said Alicia as she continued walking.

But unknown to her the child turned into the devil who scratched his chin thoughtfully. He snapped his fingers as an idea came to him and he disappeared with his trident.

Down the same path just a little further ahead stood an anthropomorphic panther ringing a bell and holding a list and ringing for donations. Or so it looked when she tried to walk past him but he stopped her. "Excuse me, my lady, but could you do me the favor of making a small donation to our men at sea?" he asked, shaking a bucket full of coins and bills.

"Sorry, but I'm out of money at the moment" she said and couldn't even take a step when the panther stopped her again. "I don't mind I'll gladly take signatures too" he said, holding the list in front of her. She had the pen in her hand for some reason and looked at the list more closely and was a bit confused. She didn't know of any war that was playing out during the time she was in. "Um what kind of war is this?" she asked which made the panther sweat. "Um the..." he looked at her nervously "war of the ...potatoes?". Alicia said nothing, gave him the pen back and kept walking without saying anything.

It got a little colder as she continued to walk. But she noticed only now that she was again in her demon form. She wore her hoodie again and was able to hide her hands in her fanny pack. It was late summer but she felt the cold. Or was it something else? She ignored it and continued walking until she was suddenly surrounded by huge trees that resembled redwoods. She was very excited but also frightened when she realized how high the treetops were.

While Alicia continued to look at the trees, Blood and Varian walked on, not even noticing that Alicia was with them. It wasn't until they ran into Elder Kettle and the others that they realized someone was missing from the group of three. Especially Cuppy who was the first to go up to the two worriedly and ask "Where is Alicia?". Both looked behind them in confusion.

She wasn't there and that worried them a lot because they didn't know where they saw Alicia for the last time because she was always behind them. That they did not notice that she was gone was clear. However, the question remained where she could be?

The group was reluctant to search the entire forest. That's why Blood used his magic to find Alicia more easily. Small blue particles of light came out of the crystal at the tip of his wand and circled the group until one particle of light became a deer walking along the forest path they were on. "This will make it easier for us to find her" said the wolf as more animals as well as toons appeared in the light particles. Blood and Varian also appeared and seem to be walking backwards for some reason. But that didn't bother the group as they followed these two light particles to find out where Alicia went.

She was still in the forest area with the redwood trees and did not notice that the devil was on her heels and not too far away from her. Alicia looked at the trees and didn't notice that things were changing around her. The bushes were suddenly covered with spider webs that were not small but huge.

This was of course due to the illusion of Daiyu who wanted to mislead Alicia. But what neither the Kitsune Demon nor Alicia suspected was that one spider thread was real. Accidentally Alicia touched it and noticed that it stuck to her very strongly. It felt like those rolls of glue that are used to close packages before they are shipped. Or like the flytrap at her grandma's house. Yep very sticky and annoying to get off.

She tore off the spider thread which left a vibration that went up into the treetops. Six red glowing eyes could be seen up there looking down at Alicia before they disappeared into the darkness. Alicia didn't notice anything and continued walking until she felt her right foot get stuck on something. She looked down and saw that it was spider thread wrapped around her right leg.

"Great" Annoyed, she tried to remove the thread, but it was as strong as steel and could not be removed, which frustrated Alicia. With all her strength she tried to remove the thread but it did not work. But that was not the worst news. "Wait, is it my imagination or is the forest getting smaller and smaller?" Alicia was suspended in the air and on her way directly to the treetops where the red glowing eyes greeted her. She tried to free herself but the pull was too strong and she was pulled upwards further into the treetops where she met a rather unattractive acquaintance.

It was a spider but with horns and several small legs. Two of the many arms pulled at the thread Alicia was tied to. The yellow eyes immediately told Alicia that this was none other than the devil in the form of a spider. "Aw, no. Not you again!" said Alicia exasperated. The devil, however, grinned even more than before as he pulled her to him. "Why, yes, my darling. So good to see you again" he snickers seductively.

Alicia now hung at his eye level and he was ready to kiss her. However, she pushed him away and tried to free herself with her own claws. However, they didn't really help her, so she dangled upside down again while the devil came closer to her and stared at her with his many eyes in which she sees herself.

"How many times must I remind you that I'm already married?" she asked, turned around and showed him her back. "Just go away and leave me alone already!" But the devil turned her back in his direction and grinned seductively at her. She was right in front of his face. "Oh, don't be like that, dear" he held her with two of his many arms and was ready to kiss her. His lips formed into a kiss that slowly approached her. But before the devil's lips could reach hers, an arrow pierced through the spider's thread Alicia was hanging on and she fell from the treetop straight down onto the hard forest floor.

With every second Alicia was getting closer to the ground and knew that this would be her end when she hit the forest floor. This was also known to Silk and the others who were looking out of a bush not far away and didn't want to miss the whole thing.

Silk in particular wanted to see Alicia disappear from this world once and for all. But her wish was not fulfilled because Alicia transformed while still in the air and suddenly stuck to the tree trunk like a lizard.

She turned into a large lizard-like creature covered in rough skin with in large round spiny scales. On both of its front arms, as well as on its head and the end of its tail, were feathers that allowed the creature to glide. Atop his head are a small bat wing-like crown with white Horns sticking out of them from behind. From the feathers on the head to these at the tail end a small fur strip went off. The pointed claws held on to the bark, or at least that's how it looked from a distance. But in reality the creature stuck to it with its hands and feet. The devil rubbed his eyes. Yep, this creature with black scales, gray feathers and fur and white horns and claws was definitely Alicia.

Silk and the others, however, looked shocked to annoyed at Alicia who was slowly climbing up the tree and still had problems removing her claws from the bark that stuck to it like glue. "Oh that f...-!" Vespae and Caterina covered Silk's mouth while she continued to curse and scold Alicia who was slowly coming to terms with her new transformation.

"Let me get a good look at you" Alicia suddenly heard and looked up where the devil in his spider form was climbing down the tree in front of her. He liked the new transformation very much and wanted to have Alicia all the more for himself.

Alicia, however, objected and turned around so as not to grant him his wish. "You don't want me to look at you?" She didn't say anything. "No matter" he grabs Alicia's chin with a spider thread and turns her head to him and stared into her eyes. "You can always look at me" he said seductively. But Alicia unintentionally jumped off the tree, which caused not only her but also the devil to be in the air for a short time, until they realized that gravity had kicked in. The devil fell down. Alicia, however, glided in the air like a flying squirrel.

Confused that she was gliding in the air, Alicia tried to keep as much distance from the devil as she could. She did not want to be alone with him. She knew what that would mean. Therefore, she thought and considered that there was only one way to get rid of him for a while. She had to glide into the treetops and wait until the devil disappeared.

And this is exactly what she did. She headed for the nearest treetop and wanted to glide into it, but gravity quickly intervened and she threatened to land on the ground. On top of that, the devil seemed to be chasing her like Tarzan, not giving up so easily.

"My love you can try to escape but I will always find you!" I don't think so. Before the devil could grab her by her tail, she flew into the treetop like greased lightning. The devil looked quite perplexed when he saw that and followed her into the treetop. "Alicia my love where are you? Come out, come out wherever you are" he searched the entire treetop and stretched a spider web to prevent Alicia from escaping secretly.

However, she was no longer in the treetop but on the forest floor and made herself visible while she took her human form and exhaled in relief. She had tricked him with her new ability to be invisible. "A bit strange, but maybe I can avoid problems better in the future". Like the devil himself, for example. He gradually realized that she was no longer in the treetop. Where she was, he saw as his gaze wandered down to the forest floor where Alicia just freed herself from the remains of the spider webs.

"You can't escape me my love Alicia" he appeared infront of her and held the marriage proposal in his hand. Alicia saw it and moved backwards until she noticed the big tree behind her. She was boxed in again. But she did not give up. "Hey, look! An old lady tripped over a rock and is in pain" she said and pointed behind him. The devil heard that and liked it when people were miserable. Especially old people. "Ooh! Where?" he asked with wagging tail and puppy eyes as he looked in the direction Alicia had pointed.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, she transformed into her wolf form and runs deep into the woods. Her new form was useless here. The devil meanwhile still looked into the distance until it noticed that there is no old lady there. He realized that Alicia had tricked him. The devil groan in exasperation as he laments "I can't believe I fell for that old trick". He didn't see Alicia standing in front of him anymore and was confused until he heard someone stepping on a branch that broke in two. One look behind him and he saw the black wolf running along the path. "So my dearest wants to escape" he said and changed into his dragon form. "Then I guess I will have to catch her this way" he followed her.

Her ears sensed that he was after her so she went to another part of the forest and tried to lure him through the dense forest. Since he is very long in his dragon form, the devil did not notice that she was taking advantage of this. Just as she stopped, he saw her and wanted to jump at her but stopped a few meters ahead. "What the?" he couldn't move and didn't know why. Alicia, however, knew why. She had used the same trick Shrek did in the first movie when he, Donkey and Fiona were being chased by the dragon. Only instead of a sword and chains, he got his entire body caught in the trees.

Like a ball of yarn. This frustrated him very much. "I'd like to stay and talk and some more, but it looks like you've got yourself quite a tangled situation" Alicia said as she approached him and then immediately disappeared. The devil only saw her in the distance before she took to the air in her Wyvern form and was gone. He freed himself and gave up. For today, that was more than enough humiliation for him.

Alicia was at least glad that he no longer followed her. But during the whole thing she only now noticed that it was slowly getting dark. The others must be worried about me already. Even though she wondered if Blood and Varian knew she wasn't behind them. Of course they were. "Alicia!" someone shouted. No it were more than one that shouted her name.

Confused she looked down and saw the group looking for her. She was glad to see them and landedinfront of the group before changing back into a human. "Oh, thank goodness we found you," Elder Kettle said as he hugs her. "Where were you?" he than asked her with an angry tone. Alicia wasn't sure if she should say what actually happened or not. Elder Kettle did not know that the devil was in love with her.

"I took the wrong way and got seperated from Blood and Varian" she said nervously. But the wolf knew that it was not the whole truth. However, Elder Kettle should not know about it for now. Just as little about the fact that both Cupheads still owe their souls to the devil. His heart would not take it when he hears this. "Well, luckily nothing happened to you, my dearest." Can you even say that? Alicia was rather unsure about that.

However, the group was not out here because of her but because of the search for Eira. Have you heard anything from her yet?" the fox's head shake said otherwise. "Unfortunately, no," he sighed. Alicia felt for him and was eager to help.

However, it would do her little good to search for the vixen now if the devil is still out here. She gave in and followed the others. They could continue the search for Eira another day, but now Alicia wanted only one thing. Eat dinner and go to sleep with the hope that she could sleep in peace.

But those who could not sleep peacefully were Silk and the others who hid in a bush and watched the group. Caterina drew her bow and aimed it at Alicia. She was about to fire when Silk lowered her bow. "What the? Silk! I could have finished her off once and for all!" the Alaskan Malamute Demon appreciated, but Alicia was not alone.

If she had shot the arrow, the others would get wind of it and look for the archers. And Silk did not want this any more than the others. Of course she would be happy to get rid of Alicia. However, she had to pull herself together.

Since Alicia is part wolf demon and Silk hated wolves after she had an accident when she was still a mortal famous racer, she wanted to take revenge for what the wolf mother had done to her leg.

In Alicia, she saw those very puppies and the mother again, and it drove her up the wall. She would not let this wolf take away her chance to become queen. No, she will kill Alicia with all means. No matter what it costs. Some demons and Imps kept their distance from her, calling her evil or bad. But how bad could she be when she will be queen?

Gosh, it's such a hoot to see them quaking

When I'm queen they'll treat me with respect

I can't wait to watch their poor hearts breaking

So much for politically correct

With a huge puff of smoke, Silk and the others disappeared and reappeared in the underworld. Amnon and a few Imps were shocked when the group appeared before their eyes. She walked past the Imps and Amnon who she grabbed by the collar and pulled up to her face. She smiled at him with her pointed teeth while Amnon nodded nervously before she dropped him and he fell on his butt.

Up 'til now I've pulled my punches

I intend to eat their lunches

No more Mrs. Nice Guy, not for me

She walked over to a few Imps who meanwhile spread out around the five rivals listening to Silk sing.

If you think that I'm hard-hearted

Well, let me by, I haven't even started

No more Mrs. Nice Guy, no siree

The other rivals and Imps as well as Amnon bobbed along to the music that could be heard all at once while Silk continued to sing.

Soon as my plan has zinged her

I'll get the crown

As for Alicia, well that's tragic

'Cause I'm going back to that old black magic

Suddenly it became dark and a spotlight fell on Silk who was holding something in both her hands. In the right was a crown while in the left was a grave.

Good behaviour is so much duller

Time to show my one true colour

Baby, Mrs. Nice Guy's history

It became brighter again and Silk went over to the other rivals who grabbed her by the arms and grinned diabolically at her. Scorpina and Daiyu looked at her worriedly while Vespae and Caterina just rolled their eyes. Amnon just swallowed nervously before Silk grabbed him, spun him around and threw him away. He landed in the arms of Daiyu who looked at him in love.

Vengeance is what I believe in

I don't get mad, I get even

Alicia can't get the crown 'cause I won't let her

So I'll zap up a plan who's a real dead ringer

Daiyu wanted to kiss him but Amnon broke free and landed on the floor before her lips could reach his cheeks.

Up to no good, I love plottin'

'Cause I'm so good when I'm rotten

No more Mrs. Nice Guy, wait and see (wait and see)

Vespae, Caterina and Scorpina joined in with Silk while Amnon tried to get away from Daiyu, bumping into Silk who was looking down at him.

I'll become that nasty, naughty, very spiteful

Wicked, wayward, way delightful

Bad guy I was born to be

Silk grabbed his harness ring and lifted it to eye level while Amnon just nodded nervously, swallowing and generally trying not to make his master angry.

One more time

She dropped it anyway and went to the balcony from where she saw the throne room where the devil was talking to Henchman who was trying to cheer him up.

Lying, loathsame, never tender

Indiscreet repeat offender

No more Mrs. Nice Guy, that's not me

She knew that the devil was not talking to him about her but about the hybrid. That made Silk angry. That's why she growled and clenched her hand into a fist which she slammed on the railing. "If that hybrid crosses me again, I'll finish her off!" Amnon, freeing himself from Daiyu who was holding him with one of her many tails, walked towards Silk.

"Amnon" the husky demon twitched when she mentioned him and flew towards her with his stubby wings. "Y-Y-Yes Silk?" he asked her nervously while Silk slowly looked at him. "I want you to bring me information about this Alicia. Anything at all. I'm happy with anything" Amnon nodded and flew towards the throne room while Silk grinned diabolically. She had something big planned. Something that will prevent Alicia from getting the crown and becoming queen.

Song: No more Mr. Nice Guy from The Swan Princess 1994