CHAPTER 14: LISTEN, EVERYONE

A little later in the day, Jill eagerly awaited her new guests that were coming to Hallowgrim dorm. She'd gotten dressed in her orange dorm uniform, and had set up pumpkin cookies and apple cider for everyone.

"Aw, c'mon! One cookie ain't enough for me, and you know it!" Grim complained. "Gimme more!"

"The rest of the cookies are for guests!" Jill said. "I'll make you more later, just please let me do this!"

"And what exactly is the occasion this time?" Philip asked, appearing next to the duo. "You just had a party yesterday."

"Jill wants to figure out how to get back to her world," Grim explained. "So she called all the housewardens here for a meeting."

"An emergency meeting." Jill grinned victoriously. "That gets them here quicker!"

"You called an emergency meeting just for a personal question?" Philip was alarmed.

Jill shrugged. "It's an emergency to me. Besides, I never use my housewarden authority for anything. I think I deserve one freebie."

"So much for tellin' me all about responsibility," Grim said under his breath.

The doorbell rang—a low, ominous sound like the chime of a church bell. Jill grinned. "They're here! Please get the door for everyone!" she called out.

Ezekiel and Gregg floated into view to spectate, and Philip opened the front door. The other housewardens arrived, wearing their dorm uniforms—first Riddle, then Malleus, Kalim, Azul, Vil, and Leona. Idia was the last to arrive, but not in person; he used a floating technomatic tablet whenever he wanted to speak from the safety of his room.

"What's wrong? What's the emergency?!" Riddle demanded. "We gathered here as quickly as we could!"

"Oh, gentlemen! Thank you for coming all at once!" Jill greeted. "Please sit down so I can ask my question!"

"A question?" Leona groaned. "I knew it. Something stupid, I bet."

"If you wanted to ask us something, why not use email?" Idia scoffed.

"Because something this important is best asked in person," Jill said. She offered everyone a seat as well as cookies and cider. Only Riddle, Kalim, Leona, and Malleus accepted her snacks.

"I'll make this quick," Jill said. "My question to you all is… do you know any way to travel or communicate with other worlds?"

There was a beat of silence in the air. One could hear a pin drop.

"Of course we don't," Leona said. "Why would we? If we had that information, we'd give it to the headmage so you could be out of our hair."

"I knew it," Grim grumbled.

Jill's face fell. "No, please don't say that… there must be something you can tell me… anything will help….."

Leona stood up, glancing down at Jill with an annoyed expression. "Listen," he said softly. "Bad things happen in life, and there's nothing you can do about it. You might as well try to reach up and grab a star from the sky. The more you try, the worse off you'll be. So just accept what you have, and live with it." He then turned and made to leave.

"Hold it, Leona," Vil said. "This may not be an official meeting, but you haven't been excused yet!"

"No… it's okay," Jill muttered. "Leona, you can leave if you want to. I'm sorry for wasting your time."

Leona shrugged. "It's fine." Then he promptly left Hallowgrim, with Philip opening the door for him and then closing it.

"Geez, what a jerk," Grim huffed. "The rest of you guys have somethin' useful, right?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, Leona does have a point," Riddle said. "When you first arrived at Night Raven, the headmage summoned us all and explained your situation. He also asked us if we knew of any way to contact other worlds, and we told him the truth—we do not."

"No… Riddle… everyone…" Jill's eyes roved through the room. The other housewardens were looking at her with mixed expressions—annoyance, worry, and pity.

"Ace and Deuce were asking more about the story of Alice," Riddle continued. "Many people have wondered how she got to and from Twisted Wonderland. But the truth is… the Queen of Hearts has hidden the way long ago."

"Hidden the way?" Grim asked. "What're ya talkin' about? I thought there was a 'rabbit hole'!"

"That's how Alice explained her travel. It was the only way she knew to describe it," Riddle said. "When the Queen of Hearts helped Alice back to her world, she hid the method and redacted all accounts of it. I've read everything there is to know about the Queen of Hearts—she was meticulous in all things. So if something is not written, it's because she forbade it."

"But why hide such valuable information?" Azul asked.

"It was for Alice's sake," Riddle admitted. "Iracebeth worried that if others knew the way to Alice's world, they could hurt the poor girl. Trying to uncover that secret would be massively disrespectful to the Queen's wishes… so I cannot help. I'm sorry."

Jill didn't respond to Riddle. She instead glanced at Kalim, who was being unusually quiet this whole time.

"Kalim… do you have any ideas?" she asked faintly.

The Scarabian housewarden frowned, finishing up his cookie. "I've been thinking this whole time," he said. "And the only lead I can think of is… maybe a genie could help, but…"

"A genie could help if I make a wish," Jill said excitedly. "Please tell us more, Kalim!"

"But the Genie of the Lamp hasn't been seen in years," Kalim went on quickly. "There's no known way to contact him… and even if we could, he's a free genie. Genies lose a lot of their magic power once they're freed from their servitude."

"Are there other genies?" Malleus wondered.

"Sure, there have been tales of other genies… ones that live in lamps, bottles, or rings…" Kalim shook his head. "But I haven't heard anything about a genie being uncovered recently. And my family knows everything that happens in the Scalding Sands…"

"I see." Jill couldn't hide her disappointment.

Kalim suddenly jumped to his feet. "I'll ask Jamil!" he said. "I'll tell him to call you! He knows more than I do, so I'll make sure he helps you, okay?" With an apology and a hasty farewell, Kalim excused himself from Hallowgrim dorm.

"If it's alright with you, Jill… I think I should take my leave as well," Vil said. "The only relevant information I could offer is the Fairest Queen's Magic Mirror… and the Dark Mirror is even more powerful than that. If the Dark Mirror of all things cannot help you, I'm not sure what could."

"Sheesh, we're really losin' this," Grim sighed.

"Don't give up hope, Jill. Your grandfather found a way, after all." Vil offered a lovely smile. "You must be tenacious and clever if you want anything in life. Giving up isn't in your nature." He nodded and gave a graceful farewell, thus reducing the number of guests to four.

"I agree with Vil," Riddle said. "Of course I want to assist you, but my hands are tied. If I find any other way that is unrelated to the Queen's way, I will inform you." He bowed his head, said he was sorry, and departed.

"Jill, I would love to make a deal with you," Azul said. "But since I've turned over a new leaf, I feel compelled to tell the truth—I do not know a way to access other worlds. I wish I could! If I did have contacts in worlds beyond, oh, I could make Mostro Lounge locations wherever I pleased! …But that's not within my power."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Jill asked. "I'll pay any price to go home again…"

Azul stood up and sighed, assessing Jill. "I understand that you're desperate. But I can't lie to you and offer something that I don't have—that's not what the Sea Witch would do. Instead, I can offer you career counseling… for a price, of course."

"Counselin'? What would that do?" Grim demanded.

"I can give Jill tips on interviewing for a job, get her in contact with some of my connections, help her create a resume… basically, anything she'll need for future success," Azul assured Grim. "After all, Jill's only a freshman—in three short years, she'll be a senior, and she'll have to complete internships and carve her path in the world. Counselling for a career is the best that I can offer."

"But if I stay in this world, then I'll never see my mother or father again," Jill mumbled.

"True, but you'll have your future. Life's full of tough choices, you know," Azul replied breezily.

Except I never made a choice, Jill thought bitterly.

"I can see that you need to think about it," Azul said. "If you ever want to accept my help, you need only knock on my door. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to my office."

Jill bade him farewell, and only Idia and Malleus were left.

"Daughter of Man," Malleus began, "I personally don't want you to go… but if this will make you happy, I could ask Lilia about it. I don't know of a way to other worlds myself, but I can inquire on your behalf."

"That would be great," Jill assured him. "I know it would be bittersweet, but I want to try."

Malleus's smile was forced, as if he was in pain. "Please excuse me," he said, and vanished in a burst of light.

Just as Jill was rubbing her eyes, Idia spoke up at last from his tablet. "You're kinda wasting your time, ngl."

"Wasting… my time?" Jill asked worriedly.

"Think about it," Idia said sharply. "If every Tom, Dick, and Stanley could access other worlds, it would be total chaos everywhere. There are some powers that are kept from the general public to keep the peace. If there was an official way to cross that border, it would be kept top secret from us. Meaning that trying to access that info is illegal."

"Illegal?!" Grim cried. "What about Jill's gramps? He did it!"

"And then he ran away from Twisted Wonderland and never returned," Idia said. "Wonder why he never returned here, Jill? Because he knew the consequences. If he stepped foot in this world, he'd be questioned by the authorities, and his method of travel would be revoked and studied. That's likely why he never told you about magic—he was trying to keep you safe."

"B-But that makes no sense!" Jill cried. "That's a contradiction, isn't it?! If Grandpa kept magic away from me for my own good, then why did he send me here without a way back?"

"And if he wanted Jill in this world, why did he hide magic from her?" Grim questioned. "That doesn't make any sense either!"

"How should I know? Never met the guy," Idia said. "I don't want to set up a bad end for you, so that's why I'm telling you how it is. Just leave it alone. Don't chase dreams that won't come true… trust me."

Jill stared at the tablet. She couldn't see Idia's face on the screen, and she couldn't imagine how he justified his words. She bit her tongue, turning away so he couldn't see the tears in her eyes. "Please leave," she whispered in a small, broken voice.

"Oh geez…" Idia muttered. "Look, I'm sorry I made you cry, but…"

"She told ya to leave! Scram! Get lost!" Grim snapped at him.

Idia's tablet floated up from the chair it was resting on, and it floated out of the dorm with Philip still manning the door.

Once all the housewardens were gone, Jill finally dropped to her knees and let herself cry.

DRIP… DRIP… DRIP…