Hey, everyone, this is BoneyFide13 here. Made this account just for this fic!

This is my take on Twisted Wonderland—specifically, my OC Jill Bones as the main character. I was tempted to write the entire story with Jill in place, as I have written vignettes of her on DeviantArt, but I wasn't really able to tackle the whole thing. So here is her overblot Book instead.

This story takes place between Books 5 and 6. All events are canon, but in the past with a deliberately ambiguous timeline. This is also an AU, so there will be some details that diverge from canon here and there. With that said, please enjoy the show!

Disclaimer: I do not own Twisted Wonderland, or any of the Disney properties associated within it. All references belong to their respective owners.

CHAPTER 1: MY DEAREST FRIEND

The Ignihyde dorm was quiet, with only the clicking of keyboards and buzzing of technomatic energy to fill the silence. It was notably cool inside, and since Ignihydes liked their peace and quiet, the lounge was usually a relaxing place to play games and catch up on schoolwork.

Or rather, it would be, if it weren't for Jill Bones.

The dark-haired girl quickly paced from one end of the room to the other, stared at the large doors at the back, and then repeated the process. A couple of Ignihydes tried to speak to her, in which case Jill only apologized and continued her pacing as if she wasn't interrupted. She didn't mean to be rude, but she sometimes had a way of annoying others. The surrounding students would be more irritated if they didn't know her situation.

Her friend was in a bad state. Of course she would be worried.

The large doors opened and then shut themselves again. Ortho Shroud floated into the room, and as soon as he did, Jill put her hands on the robot's shoulders.

"Ortho, how is Grim?!" Jill demanded. "Is he all crazy again? Is he hurt? What happened to him?"

"Jill Bones, it's okay!" Ortho said. "Idia's still working on him. Grim will be fine. It's almost over."

"What exactly is he doing?" Jill asked. "Are you sure I can't be in there with him?"

"Idia used the analyzer in his personal workshop to detect the blot inside of Grim," Ortho told her. "And once he found it, he began to drain the blot using our technomatic purifiers."

Jill stared blankly down at Ortho. "…What?"

"He's… getting the bad stuff out of Grim," Ortho restated patiently. "And the headmage is also present to make sure that Grim is no longer a threat. We must take precautions. Grim… did attack you, you know."

"I know," Jill stressed. She grabbed her left arm without realizing it. "But that wasn't the real Grim! Sure, Grim nibbled and scratched me sometimes, especially in the first weeks where we didn't get along… but he wouldn't maul me that way…" Jill bit her lip, thinking back to that empty coliseum after the VDC. Grim was surrounded by blot, his eyes were like lanterns, his fire was blazing hotter than ever, his claws and teeth were so sharp…

"I don't want to upset you further," Ortho said, "but I must know your side of things. You already told me about Grim's attack. But then he escaped Night Raven College… and ended up in the Shaftlands when you found him?"

"It's really the darndest thing." Jill managed a laugh, but it was shaky and broken. "You know how there's a magic barrier over Night Raven College most of the time? Well, Grim has the power to break through barriers. That's how he snuck into the school during orientation night."

"And to think, we reinforced that barrier…" Ortho mused. "Only for Grim to break it again when he escaped."

"He was still crazy with blot when he ran away. He must've been stronger then," Jill explained. "I fought him off the best I could with my own magic, but Grim beat me. For the first time…" She steadied a breath and continued her story. "Anyway, Grim told me that he ran south towards Craneport. It's a little port town that gets boats even that late at night. So Grim snuck onto one of the boats, which took him all the way to the Shaftlands."

"He was mad with blot… yet he snuck onto a boat," Ortho repeated. His yellow eyes turned blue for a second; he was looking at the internet. "I haven't seen any reports of Craneport boats being attacked, or any of the crew being injured."

"Maybe the blot was fading by then," Jill suggested. "Not to brag, but I did do a number on Grim before he ran off. Back to the story, Grim said he started travelling the Shaftlands after that boat reached its destination. He ran through until he reached Harveston. So when Epel Felmier took me to his hometown to watch the Sledathon event… there was Grim, in the Felmier home. Mrs. Marja, Epel's grandmother, was taking care of him."

"Why Harveston?" Ortho asked.

"Grim isn't sure himself. He's never the type to really plan anything out; he just does whatever he wants." Jill sighed and shrugged. "My guess, he just found the town of Harveston and decided to stay because of their apple pies. Food is the one thing that holds his attention."

"And when you saw him again, he showed no signs of aggression?" Ortho pressed. "Any trace of blot?"

"No, he was his old self. Of course, I was happy to see him again," Jill said. "…Still, we weren't sure if the blot was really gone, or if it would resurface later. I kept a close eye on Grim while we were in Harveston, and he didn't seem threatening at all. He also didn't attack anyone in the village before we arrived. I really do think… by the time he reached Craneport, the blot wore off. And the reason he ran away was because he was ashamed for attacking me…"

Ortho nodded sharply. "Yes, that seems to be the case. One more thing, Jill Bones… do you know why Grim had so much blot in his system?"

Jill bit her tongue. She needed to tell the truth, for Grim's sake… but if she talked about the overblots, then she would also be airing a lot of dirty laundry. The monstrous forms of Riddle, Leona, Azul, Jamil, and Vil, as well as their respective grievances that led to such transformations… could she really talk about them with Ortho? Was it even her place to say? Would it get the five in trouble?

"I…" she fudged. "He was eating these strange black crystals. I kept telling him not to, but he didn't listen…"

It was a half-truth—every time someone recovered from an overblot, a black crystal would appear. Jill had initially believed it to be coincidence, but by the time she realized there was a connection, Grim had already eaten too many.

Ortho stared at her. His mouth was covered by a skull-like plating, so Jill couldn't really read his face. But after a second or so, the robot just blinked and said, "Alright then." Jill resisted the urge to wipe her brow in relief.

He turned towards the large doors. "I think Idia may be almost done with helping Grim. I'll go check. In the meantime, I suggest you go back to your dorm. You've been pacing here for approximately fifty-six minutes and twelve seconds."

"I can't leave yet. Not when Grim's like this," Jill sighed. But Ortho had a point—her legs were killing her.

"I understand," Ortho conceded. "It shouldn't be too long now. So please, feel free to have a snack from the vending machine or sit at one of the tables if you need to." He nodded at Jill, squeezed her hand reassuringly, and then floated back through the large doors.

Jill tried to pace again, but her legs were stiff from standing so long. Begrudgingly, she sat in the nearest chair, staring at the doors as if something bad would happen if she looked away. She needed to see Grim again, to scold him, to hug him and make sure that things would be okay…

She couldn't afford to lose anyone else that was close to her. Not again.

After what felt like an eternity, the doors opened wide, and Jill got to her feet. Ortho reemerged, along with Idia Shroud and Headmage Crowley. Idia was holding a small feline creature in his arms… the creature Jill was waiting for…

"Grim!" Jill cried.

Grim winced, holding his fiery ears. "Sheesh, Jill! Don't shout at me, I've been through enough!"

Jill quickly looked over Grim. The blue fire in his ears had diminished, and his sapphire eyes were struggling to stay open, but everything else was just like before—right down to the orange-and-black striped ribbon around his neck, which held an orange magestone.

"It's alright, Miss Bones," Crowley assured. "Mr. Grim is no longer a threat, and he can resume classes as soon as tomorrow. Of course, he'll have to make up a good deal of schoolwork for the time he's missed…"

Grim groaned. "C'mon, can't ya cut me a break?" His voice was high as usual, like a whiny child's. Jill always thought it was obnoxious, but she didn't mind anymore. She snatched Grim out of Idia's arms and hugged the little direbeast tightly.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Jill gushed. "Now we can go back to Hallowgrim—we can go home. The ghosts have missed you, too! Ace and Deuce also tried to visit you, but they had to leave before you came out of that room…"

Grim managed a shaky laugh. "It would be nice to go back. I am the boss, after all…"

Jill was the housewarden of Hallowgrim—a new dorm that was formerly known as "Ramshackle". However, Grim was salty about being placed beneath her on day one, so he decided he would usurp her eventually. Although he seemed to accept Jill's role in the end, he still called himself 'boss' out of sheer pride. Jill had to learn to run along with it.

"Make sure to keep an eye on Grim. Don't let him eat anything strange like those black crystals," Ortho said. "And if he exhibits any symptoms of blot, bring him back here, okay?" He looked up to Idia and nudged his brother's shoulder. "Aren't you going to say something?"

"…I'm tired," Idia grumbled. "I went to an anime pilgrimage and ended up sledding for hours… and now this? I just wanna binge-watch Sled Over Heels and catch up on my latest quests now…"

"I know this was a lot for you," Jill said. "But I want to thank you guys for helping Grim! Maybe he didn't thank anyone, but I'll speak for both of us." She extended her hand, but Idia didn't take it. The Ignihyde housewarden had never been social with outsiders, and Jill was no exception.

Idia's face flushed slightly, and he held his phone up to speak for him. "It's fine, don't worry about it lol."

"I have a question, though… how come you guys are such blot experts in the first place?" Grim asked.

Idia and Ortho exchanged uneasy glances. Crowley cleared his throat. "You see, Mr. Grim, studying blot is simply one of Mr. Shroud's many hobbies. That's all."

"Y-Yeah, anime, comics, games, and blot. That's me," Idia said, but he still seemed uneasy.

"You and Grim should return to your dorm. It's getting late," Crowley continued. "In the meantime, I have to speak more with both Mr. Shrouds."

Idia and Ortho looked worn down, like two kids who were just given extra homework. Jill wondered if it had something to do with the previous overblots, and if the others were in danger…

"What are you going to talk about? Is it serious?" Jill asked.

"It is none of your business, Miss Bones," Crowley's voice was light, but his words were dark. "Now run along."

"Sheesh, way to sweep us outta the room," Grim grumbled.

"It's okay. Thank you guys for everything!" Jill flashed a smile and jogged out of Ignihyde with Grim still in her arms. The unanswered questions and Crowley's condescending tone rolled off her back; she was too relieved to be irritated right now.

"Goodbye, Jill Bones! Bye, Grim! See you tomorrow!" Ortho called after them.

Their dorm was not in the Mirror Chamber, like all the others. Instead, Hallowgrim was on the main campus, not far from Main Street. Jill usually didn't mind the extra walk, but she was really feeling exhausted. Every step sent a throb up her legs, and her previous wounds ached as well. Crowley had generously sped up her healing with magic, but the pain hadn't fully subsided just yet. Even then, she still had worse wounds in the past… from previous battles with overblotted mages.

"I thought ya were gonna lecture me," Grim said faintly. "After everythin' that I did."

"Well, I was going to. But you've been through the wringer already, it looks like," Jill said. "How was it?"

"I was unconscious the whole time, so I dunno," Grim replied. "I feel drained though. Like I could sleep for days."

Jill adjusted Grim carefully in her arms as she walked down Main Street, glancing at the Great Seven statues along the way. The sun was beginning to set, changing the colors around them and stretching out their shadows.

"We're almost home, buddy. Hang in there…" she assured.

This overblot thing was still going on, but it wouldn't happen to Grim. He wouldn't get corrupted or hurt like that ever again. Jill would ensure that as his housewarden and hench-human… no matter what.

At last, Hallowgrim dorm lay in sight. Their home away from home.