"I believe in you, Dev-Dev. You're the only one that can bag that monster," Cater told Devon as they stood staring up at the entrance of the coliseum with Grim and Jade in tow.

"Our very lives are riding you, Devon," Jade added.

"Right. No pressure or anything," Devon snarked before turning to face them with an eager grin. "Consider that monster bagged, boys. Let's do this."

Meanwhile, another hunt was taking place in the woods behind campus. Floyd cackled with glee as he stalked his quarry. "Ha ha! See, here's the thing: I never cared about that stupid harp from the get-go. It doesn't matter to me which side wins this thing so long as I get to have a good time." His grinned sharpened as he finally caught sight of the person he'd been chasing. "So how's about we kick the rules to the curb and just play until we're both completely wrecked?"

Jamil barely had time to dodge as Floyd attempted to strike him with his empty bean blaster. Being hunted by the more outwardly psychotic eel twin was not how he'd planned to spend his day. "I question which of us is the real monster here…"

"Run, little monster. While you can still use your legs," Floyd urged before breaking into a maniacal cackle.

The previous day, in Class 1-A's homeroom…

"Alright pups, settle down and take your seats," Crewel said as he strode into the classroom, effectively putting a halt to any chatter. "It's time to divide you all up into groups for Night Raven College's traditional Beanfest event. Groups will be assigned by the drawing of lots. You will each come up to my desk in the order of your seat numbers to draw."

Grim blinked in confusion. "Beanfest?" He looked up at Devon. "Got any idea what that's all about?"

"Never heard of it," Devon replied, "but if I had to guess, it sounds like a celebration of all things bean and bean-related."

"Hold up, Dev. You really don't know about Beanfest?" Ace asked incredulously.

Devon gave Ace a flat look. "Dude, are we gonna do this every single time I don't know about something Twisted Wonderland-related? I saw it on the school calendar and I know the VDC crew is going back to their own dorms for tonight to prepare, but none of that told me anything about what Beanfest actually is and, frankly, I've been too busy with other things to look into it."

"Hmm. I suppose it can't be helped, then," Crewel said. "Very well; allow me to elaborate, Ms. Lopez. It's my job to whip your canine crania into shape, after all." He cleared his throat before continuing. "Beanfest is a traditional event held throughout Twisted Wonderland every February. Long ago, there was a place in this land called the Valley of Happiness, named such because it stood as a lush, fertile land of plenty. The valley was also the home of a magic harp that sang with an enchantingly beautiful voice and its' singing was the cause of the valley's prosperity. All the people and animals, even the plants, drunk deep of its' sound. But eventually, a giant grew jealous of the valley's abundance and stole the harp. Without its' magic, the plants began to wither and the people went hungry. All seemed lost until a certain farmer came into possession of some beans-magic beans, to be precise."

'Wait a sec…this is Mickey and the Beanstalk, isn't it? Should've guessed,' Devon thought.

"The beans sprouted into a massive beanstalk overnight and reached all the way up to the giant's home in the clouds," Crewel continued. "The farmer was able to climb the beanstalk and take back the harp. Once he'd returned safely to the ground, he chopped down the beanstalk and in doing so slew the giant pursuing him. With the harp restored to its' proper place, the valley was once again graced with abundance. The end." He turned to address the entire class now. "The story has two morals: when someone takes something from you, take it back. And when someone wrongs you, get them back twice as hard."

Grim nodded. "Okay, I think I get it now."

"That's why every Beanfest people dressed as farmers "slay" people dressed as monsters by hitting them with beans, right?" Deuce asked.

Crewel nodded. "Precisely. Good boy."

"You know, I think we have a story similar to that one in my world. Guess Halloween wasn't the only thing that carried over," Devon commented. 'I'm not so sure those were the morals of the story from my world…but I think I like these better.'

"The Beanfest celebration is held a bit differently at Night Raven College," Crewel told them. "The entire student body will be split into two teams, regardless of class year or dorm, and then the farmer and monster teams will compete for the harp in a massive cross-class athletic showdown!"

"Wait, seriously? Why?!" Ace asked.

"Traditionally, the monsters are supposed to stick to running around and getting pelted with beans," Crewel replied. "However, the students on the monster team grew weary of that and hit the farmers back, which resulted in a massive, chaotic free-for-all."

Devon grinned. "Heh. Sounds par for the course for this school."

"Indeed. If a brawl is inevitable regardless, it only makes sense to turn it into an organized, competitive PE activity," Crewel reasoned. "Thus, Night Raven College's traditional Beanfest event was born. That concludes my generously-offered remedial lesson! Now then," He refocused his attention on Devon, Grim, Ace, and Deuce, "Trappola, Spade, Lopez. Come up here and draw your lots."

"Yessir," the group chorused before they stepped to the front of the room, Devon holding Grim up so he could grab their lot.

Ace was the first to open his lot. "Oh hey, looks like I'm on the monster team."

"And I'll be on the farmer team," Deuce added.

Grim opened his and Devon's lot before eagerly showing her the paper. "Look, Dev! We're on the farmer team too!"

"Looks like we're gonna be enemies tomorrow, then," Ace said with a cocky smirk.

Deuce smirked right back. "If you think I'm gonna pass up the chance to knock you down a peg or two, you've got another thing coming."

"Oh, heck yeah! Ain't no way I'm gonna lose!" Grim cheered as Devon rolled her eyes playfully.

"Coach Vargas will go over the rules of the game in full tomorrow morning before the event starts," Crewel said. "You pups are hereby dismissed! Now, out!"

Professor Trein made his way right to the headmaster's office after classes dismissed for the day, a paper clutched firmly in his hand. When he arrived, he saw Crowley and Vargas poring eagerly over various papers on the headmaster's desk. He fought the urge to tut at them as he made his way over. "Here you are, Coach Vargas. These are the Beanfest team assignments from my homeroom class."

"Thank you, Professor Trein," Vargas replied, taking the papers and looking them over. "Well I'll be. We've got some real gems in these matchups."

"Let me see," Crowley said, reading over Vargas' shoulder. "Ah, so those boys ended up on separate teams, did they?"

"The other team assignments had me thinking that the farmer team would be pretty heavily favored to win this year," Vargas began before breaking into a grin, "but now all bets are off!"

"The unpredictability of this game is half the fun!" Crowley agreed as he clapped his hands together gleefully. "I can hardly wait to see which team takes the victory this year!"

Trein heaved a weary sigh. "I can't believe we're making such a farce out of a time-honored tradition. Some prestigious academy we turned out to be. It's absolutely deplorable-and made all the worse by how excited the faculty is about it!"

"I-I don't know what you mean, professor!" Crowley protested. "Why, nothing could be further from the truth!" He nudged Vargas. "Isn't that right, Coach Vargas?"

"R-Right, exactly!" Vargas agreed. "I'm just eager to see the muscle development that's bound to happen in a physical challenge like Beanfest, that's all."

"It seems your mindset is as old-fashioned as your fashion sense, Professor Trein," Crewel said as he strode into the office.

Trein quirked a brow. "I beg your pardon?"

"Old customs are meant to be iterated upon and updated to accommodate more modern sensibilities," Crewel elaborated. "We won't be able to move toward the future if we stay stuck in the past."

"Hmph, "update" indeed," Trein scoffed. "And when was it that our school's Beanfest turned into this mockery of an event?" He gave Crewel a pointed look. "If memory serves, it was doing your tenure as a student here, Professor Crewel."

"Ah yes, I believe it's been, what, fifteen years since Beanfest took on a more competitive format here," Crowley spoke up.

"And since magic has been banned from the event, it's become much more manageable nowadays," Crewel added.

"Agreed! After all, what's the point of a physically-focused event that leaves you too injured to exercise? Besides, we've got a school full of troublemakers, so we've gotta account for that sorta thing! Wah ha ha ha!" Vargas said with a cackle.

"I fail to see the humor, Coach Vargas," Trein said with another sigh.

"In any event, I didn't come here to wax nostalgic about days gone by." Crewel handed Vargas a paper of his own. "These are the team assignments from Class 1-A, Coach Vargas."

Vargas gave Crewel a nod of thanks before looking over the names and team placements. "Right, thank you…" He let out a low whistle. "Well now, that certainly shakes things up a bit."

Once again, Crowley craned his head to read over Vargas' shoulder. "Oh my, I agree. This year's competition is already shaping up to be even more chaotic than last year's."

"Wah ha ha!" Vargas laughed again. "That's the beauty of this school! I can already tell I'm gonna have trouble sleeping tonight, that's for sure!"

"Okay, lemme see if I've got this right… Classes are cancelled for the entire school tomorrow so all the students can play what amounts to an all-day game of capture the flag but with beans," Madison summarized as she and Devon talked on the phone later that evening. Devon had her phone on speaker as she packed up an overnight bag.

"Yeah, pretty much," Devon replied. "Apparently it turned into a total free-for-all when they first started doing it, so the school just turned it into a competition and a way to net some extra PE points."

"Well I've gotta give 'em points for adaptability, I guess," Madison said. "That actually sounds kind of awesome."

Devon blinked. "Really? I thought you'd think it was juvenile."

"I mean, maybe a little," Madison conceded, "but it sounds like a great way to let off some steam. I know you love your boys, Dev, but I can also tell they drive you up a wall sometimes. Maybe it'll be good for you to let loose a little."

"Huh. I never thought of it like that," Devon admitted. 'It is pretty nice that this it's a purely physical event too. No magic means a more level playing field.'

"So will you fighting not to get beaned or will you be doing the beaning?" Madison asked.

"I'm on the farmer team this year, so I'll be on bean handling duty," Devon replied. "Some of the upperclassmen told me that there'd be special equipment on the field for both teams, including what amounts to some special airsoft guns made to fire the beans." An almost childlike eagerness crept into her voice as she bounced excitedly. "Here's hopin' I can get my hands on one. I'd love to see how they handle."

"Why does that not surprise me?" The smirk was clear in Madison's voice. "Your parents are both paintball champions and given what they taught you, I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up winning the whole thing. What'd they think when you told 'em about all this?"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Mads, but Mama and Papa both said that the farmer team working together is gonna be key here," Devon told her. "Luckily, Deuce made it onto the farmer team too so I already know there's someone I can work well with. Other than that, they're both really excited and eager for to fill them in once the game's over."

"Heh, that absolutely tracks." Unable to stop herself, Madison asked, "How do you think Deuce'll do?"

"I'm not worried about him at all from an athletic standpoint. He's on the Track and Field team, so he's got the stamina for this," Devon explained, an amused sparkle in her eyes. It wasn't like Madison to ask follow-up questions when Devon mentioned her other friends. Deuce had evidently made an impression. "Long-term strategy isn't his strong suit, but maybe that's for the best for a game like Beanfest."

"I agree; it sounds like there are a lot of variables to take into account," Madison concurred. "At least you two can watch each other's backs."

"Always," Devon replied. "I do have to get going, though. I'm meeting some of the guys for dinner and then heading over to stay at Pomefiore tonight."

"Those dorms have some of the weirdest names I've ever heard," Madison commented. "Good luck out there tomorrow, Dev. After you check in with your parents, make sure to let me know how everything goes down too, okay?"

"You got it," Devon promised. "Later, Mads." She smiled to herself as she ended the call, only to startle when she turned and caught sight of Grim hovering in the doorway. "Oh hey, Grim. I didn't see you there." Her smile dropped slightly when she noticed the slightly bothered look on the little monster's face. "Everything okay?"

"I guess… It's just that…," Grim struggled to find the right words, his tone so subdued that Devon was beginning to worry. "Well, you've told that Madison girl about a lot of our friends already, but you still haven't mentioned me to her yet. I was just wondering…" He quickly shook his head. "Nah, nevermind. It was dumb, anyway."

"It's not dumb if it's bothering you, bud," Devon assured him, walking over to him and picking him up. "The reason I haven't told Madison about you yet is because, well, I don't really know how. Aside from my family, nobody from my world knows where I really am. If what Mala told my family is true, then only a small handful of people are even aware that magic is a real thing, let alone entire parallel universes and monsters that can talk and breathe fire. Believe me, I'd love to tell her about you and the ghosts and the Wisps and every other magical thing I've seen and done since I got here, but that's an awful lot to drop on someone all at once, especially considering we've been on the outs until literally yesterday." She smiled at him before kissing his forehead. "I'm sorry I hurt your feelings, Grim."

"Pfft, please. As if my feelings could be hurt by somethin' that small," Grim denied, though the look in his eyes was a mix of grateful and relieved. "I was just worried for Madison's sake. Didn't want you deprivin' her of the chance to meet a great mage in training, after all!"

Devon laughed. "Can't have that, can we? I don't like leaving Mads in the dark and I know that Dom doesn't like keeping the whole truth about Idia from Harper and the rest of his friends, either. When the time comes that we can tell our friends everything-and it will-you're going be the first person I formally introduce Madison to."

Grim smiled. "Good. I'm glad you've got your priorities in order. Now let's get to the cafeteria! I'm starvin'!"

Over in Diasomnia, at around the same time…

Silver knocked on the door to Lilia's dorm room, waiting for the bat fae to give him permission to enter before stepping inside. He'd been meaning to speak to Lilia about the strange reactions Devon seemed to be causing in him since he'd come back from Ramshackle the previous evening, but this was the first instance that Lilia had been alone and Silver had been awake. Sebek had insisted on escorting Malleus during his Gargoyle Studies Club activities, which was fine by Silver; he'd prefer not to have an audience for this conversation, anyway.

"What troubles you, Silver?" Lilia asked after pausing his game. "You look even more somber than usual."

"I'm not entirely certain. I can't say anything definitively, but I think someone has placed a curse on me," Silver replied bluntly.

Lilia was in front of Silver faster than he could blink, his hackles raised and his protective dad instincts taking over as he immediately began checking for some sort of magical signature left by whatever had afflicted his son. "What happened? What sort of symptoms have you been experiencing? Do you know who cast the curse? Quickly now, Silver; time might be of the essence!"

"It hasn't been anything terrible, honestly. It's just that I've noticed my heart rate and body temperature increasing even when I haven't done anything especially strenuous. At first I thought I might be coming down with something, but then I realized that it only seems to happen when Devon's either near me or on my mind, which has been happening much more frequently as of late. My hands get sweaty, I feel my face heat up, and I can't seem to focus on anything except her. I don't recall getting hit by a misfired spell or anything, but I can imagine what else might be causing this..."

"Oh, is that all?" Lilia replied, heaving a sigh of relief and holding a hand to his chest. "Don't scare me like that, Silver. It's not doing my poor heart any favors at my age."

"I'm sorry, Father, that wasn't my intension. I'm just not sure what's going on with me and-"

"There's no need to fret," Lilia interjected reassuringly, patting Silver on the head. "You're not cursed at all; you're just "catching feelings", as the kids say." He smiled and wiped away an invisible tear. "Ah, my boy's finally becoming a man! What a joyous day in any parent's life!"

"Father…" Silver attempted to rein Lilia in, but was no use.

"You know, I got the sense that something was brewing between the two of you for a while now," Lilia continued. "The way you met was so precious, after all, and then offered to teach her to use a sword-oh!" He hit Silver with a mock scandalized look. "Wait…are those lessons just an excuse to get Devon alone? My word, what a little scamp I've raised!"

Silver felt his cheeks heat up all over again. "Wha-? No, it's not like that. I would never-"

"Relax, dear, I'm only teasing." Lilia's expression turned from teasing to concern when he saw the look on Silver's face. "What's the matter, Silver? Why do you look like the world's about to end?"

"Because I can't develop those kinds of feelings for Devon," Silver replied. He was sure how he hadn't noticed what was happening; the signs were practically written on the wall. The eagerness he felt when he knew they were going to meet up, the urge he felt to pass by Ramshackle on his and Sebek's patrol of the campus, part of the reason he'd offered to teach to use a sword, he was now realizing, was because he wanted to spend more time with her. His stomach sank as he put all the pieces together and realized what this meant.

"Whyever not?" Lilia asked. "Devon's an absolute catch. Any parent would love to have a daughter-in-law like her."

"And what of Lord Malleus? His fondness for her is more or less an open secret in Diasomnia. I can't possibly betray him in such a way," Silver replied, shaking his head. "What kind of guardsman am I?"

"A damn good one," Lilia replied, the sternness of his tone causing Silver's head to snap up instinctively. "You're a loyal and devoted person, Silver, and your budding feelings for Devon don't change that."

Silver still looked unsure. "But Lord Malleus…"

"Malleus has no more of a claim to Devon's heart than anyone else," Lilia interjected. "I understand why you're feeling so conflicted, but logic doesn't work when it comes to matters of the heart." An unusually faraway look entered his eyes. "You owe it to yourself to explore your feelings and see where they lead. Even if Devon doesn't feel the same-though I definitely feel that there's something there on her end, as well-or if your own feelings pass in time, you'll at least know where you stand so you can move on instead of wondering what might've been."

"But Lord Malleus is clearly the better option between the two of us," Silver argued.

Lilia shrugged. "That's a matter of perspective. Like I said, there's no reasoning with the heart and so long as Devon isn't in a committed relationship, I see no reason why you can't present yourself as an option as well, assuming that's what you want. If she wants to be with Malleus, she'll choose him, but let her be the one to make the decision." He smirked. "You'd hardly be the only one, you know. Malleus' interest in Devon hasn't stopped Kingscholar from pursuing her and I doubt it would stop Trappola and Viper if they knew. You're just as worthy as any of them."

Silver was quiet for a moment, staring down at the floor as he processed what Lilia had told him. A part of him still felt guilty for even harboring these feelings to start with, but Lilia was right that Devon wasn't committed to any would-be suitor, Malleus or otherwise. Even though his first instinct had been to back down and defer to Malleus, another part of him balked at the idea of just standing aside.

"Maybe you have a point, Father," he finally said as he met Lilia's eyes again. "At the end of the day, Devon's the only one who can decide who she wants to be with. I have a feeling that I'll regret it if I just stand aside, but I'm going to do my best to explore my feelings for her without stepping on any toes."

Lilia nodded approvingly, giving his adopted son a pleased smile. "Just what I'd expect from you, my boy." He smirked inwardly. 'And that pureheartedness of yours might very well be what ends up setting you apart. Of course I'd be over the moon if Devon chose either you or Malleus, so I'll have to make sure I talk you both up to her when I get the chance. Don't fret, boys; Lilia Vanrouge, Ace Wingman is on the case!'

Ending Notes: And now our Beanfest interlude is underway! I'm so excited to write this part and extremely blown away that I actually got to it. Usually my interest in writing a fic burns out after a few months, but this one's still going strong. I think it's because I've gotten better about pacing myself.

I am so glad I decided to have Dev and Mads patch things up. It's nice for Devon to have another girl to talk to that isn't a family member, not to mention it gives her another tie to her home world. A close-knit family is wonderful, but sometimes you just need your bestie.

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