Chapter 1: The Dark Mirror
Chapter Text
A wave of inky black envelops your field of vision as you lurch forward and fall face-first onto smooth stone tiles. Letting out a yelp on your way down, you land rather ungracefully. A groan is expelled from your body soon after and you take your time to get off the ground, making sure you didn’t break any bones upon impact.
Other than some stinging pain in various spots that will surely result in some bumps and scrapes, you’re ultimately unharmed. Thank Diavolo for that, because you’re certain Solomon would have some words for you if he knew you were going against his instruction and practicing new magic without his supervision. Not because he doesn’t think you’re capable- everyone knows by now how powerful you’ve become since training under him- but because he cares for you and doesn’t want a repeat of the last time you disappeared.
You look around the strange room filled with black… coffins? Oh no. You curse yourself for proving him right.
You hadn’t even stepped through the portal yourself- you were pulled through by some force as soon as you got close enough to stick a hand in.
It’s fine, you think to yourself and look up at the mirror you dropped out of. It’s higher up than you were anticipating, levitating a couple feet off the ground. The mirror still swirls with the same inky black illusion you phased through, meaning the portal is still open. I’ll just use some wind magic to propel myself up and crawl back through. They’ll never even know I was gone and I won’t have to sit through a lecture from Solomon.
But of course, nothing ever goes perfectly according to plan.
“Who are you and just what do you think you’re doing in here?” A stern, accusatory voice stops you before you can even attempt to use your magic.
Shit.
You turn around slowly to see a short boy likely a few years younger than you with red hair and a rather annoyed expression. Beside him is a taller boy with green hair and a clover stamp on his cheekbone, looking weary but far less hostile.
“Uh…”
Soon enough more people start filing into the room and you scramble to form some sort of plan. Should you just go for it and try to get to the mirror? Or should you stall and try to open a new portal in one of the coffins? Solomon said doors are good alternatives to mirrors, right? What’s with this group of guys? Too many questions are running through your mind and with the added pressure of being on a time crunch, you’re unable to come up with a plan fast enough.
Considering your success rate with Solomon (a whopping zero percent), you hadn’t expected to even create a portal, let alone interact with anyone from another dimension… admittedly not your best idea to come so unprepared, but in your defence it’s not like you had a choice in the matter.
(You absolutely did, and you once again curse Solomon for being right.)
“Well? Speak,” the red-haired boy seems to be losing his patience and it gets the attention of the other people in the room.
“Hey, Riddle, who’s this?” asks a boy with short white hair.
“That’s what I’d like to know too, Kalim.”
Well… no use trying to stick around and explain yourself.
“Sorry about all this, I’ll be going now-”
Of course the portal chooses that exact moment to close with a loud bubbling noise to accompany it.
Multiple sets of eyes are drawn to the mirror that’s now back to being as shiny and reflective as the rest of them.
‘Riddle’ seems to catch on first. “Did you… enter through the dark mirror?”
“Well… kinda? I’d say ‘I got pulled through’ is more accurate.”
“Are you a student here?”
Student…? Oh, that makes more sense. You look around at the rest of the gathered group and start making connections. Most of them look to be around the same age, with the exception of a couple outliers and a floating tablet, and they all seem to be wearing different versions of the same uniform. Unless this is some sort of club or sports team, and not representative of the entire student body, you seem to have been brought to an all boy’s school.
You know mirrors can always act as portals, so it’s entirely possible you’ve landed in a world without magic, but based on their reactions, they don’t seem too out of sorts over the idea of you travelling through one. Plus, based on the way these coffins seem to be floating on their own… it’s probably safe to assume there’s magic here.
“No, I’m not. I don’t know how I ended up here.” When in doubt, play dumb and don’t give too much away.
“Somehow I don’t think that’s the whole truth,” he says, raising some sort of gemstone on a… stick? A wand? You can’t see it that clearly, but based on the way he’s holding it, you assume he means to attack if you make a wrong move.
You eye him wearily and slowly take a defensive stance in case he, or anyone else watching the exchange for that matter, tries to strike.
“I promise you it is,” you say, and subtly wave your hand to try and bring up a shield. When it doesn’t work, alarm bells go off in your head, but you ignore them for now, focusing on what’s in front of you.
“So where did you come from, then?” Asks a tall blonde with purple ends who made his way to the front. Under his breath you think he says something along the lines of “I don’t recognize those accessories. They don’t seem to be from any geographical area in Twisted Wonderland.”
Twisted Wonderland… is that the name of this dimension? You look down at your person and realize you’re wearing some bracelets and rings that Mammon got for you a while back. One of the bands around your wrist has a charm designed to look like grimm, another one custom made to resemble his pact mark. The rings you wear, aside from the ring of light, are made from rare materials in the Devildom- intricately crafted and designed in a way that could never be replicated by another jeweler.
“And those markings… they’re not anything I’ve ever come across in my studies.”
You wince as another voice joins the conversation, this time belonging to a boy with silver hair and glasses. You know he’s referring to your pact marks, but the fact that these people can see them doesn’t sit right with you. Even you are able to see them more clearly now, meaning the magic that’s supposed to conceal them isn’t doing its job. More alarm bells go off in your head, much harder to ignore this time. Is my magic… gone?
You owe Solomon a huge apology if you ever see him again.
“They’re just tattoos,” you lie, stepping back a bit, trying to get to the mirror. You put your hands out to show you mean no harm as you back up.
Suddenly a man enters the room and all heads turn to him. His face is covered by a mask that resembles a crow and he wears a purple cape with gold detailing and a high collar. His top hat seems to match the rest of his outfit. “Housewardens! I call to order this meeting-”
“Headmage, we seem to have an intruder.”
What a pain. Just as you were about to reach a mirror, too.
The so-called ‘headmage’ fixes his gaze on you and you resist the urge to shiver. His eyes glow yellow through the mask and seem to scan over every little detail. You remember having a similar reaction to the brothers the first time you saw their eyes glow some years ago, though this man’s are considerably less terrifying than a demon’s.
“Oh my,” he says.
You sigh, thinking you’re going to have to dodge another round of the same questions. To your surprise, however, he introduces himself.
“I am Headmage Dire Crowley, but you are not a student here, are you?”
You’re not falling for his friendly demeanour. As fake as it is, it makes sense- you’re being perceived as a threat to his students. What they don’t know (and hopefully won’t realize) however, is that if your theory is correct and your magic is gone again, they are more of a threat to you right now.
“I’m not,” you say, refraining from reaching for his outstretched hand. He puts it down soon after.
“From where do you hail, then? Scalding Sands? Shaftlands? Briar Valley?”
“No…” You have to give it to them- they have cool sounding regions. Maybe you’ll come back to explore one day with the brothers.
Since you’re cornered now, in the literal sense, you wonder how to play this. Considering you hadn’t heard of Twisted Wonderland before they mentioned it, you’re sure it’s safe to assume they wouldn’t know about the Devildom… and even if they knew about the human world, you doubt they’d know your home country… “Earth, ever heard of it?”
A deafening silence falls over the room.
Riddle speaks up again. “Earth… isn’t that…?”
“Hasn’t the Prefect mentioned that place?”
The chances of getting out of here are looking slimmer and slimmer, so you decide to take advantage of their shock. You spin around and start murmuring the incantation that Solomon taught you, trying your best to get the stupid portal to open back up.
Relief floods over you when you feel a flicker of magic run through your veins, but panic settles instead when you realize it’s nowhere near your usual level of power and definitely won’t be enough to get you home. Good going, MC, you think to yourself in between desperate attempts at getting home. You really fucked up.
“Hey- what are you- are you casting a spell?!”
You spin around just in time to see Riddle and the silver haired boy with glasses pointing their wands at you, and with barely enough time to react, you dodge the flames that shoot out at you.
A loud knock! sounds throughout the room and a sharp pain shoots through your skull.
Just before you hit the ground, the last thing you hear before your world goes black is Dire Crowley’s voice ordering someone to “Go get the Prefect”.
Chapter 2: Third Time's a Charm
Chapter Text
“Good, you’ve got the incantation down, now watch my movements as I open a portal.”
You nod at Solomon and stand back as he holds up his hand and waves it. You subtly mimic his movements as he repeats it a couple more times so you can get a feel for it. Streams of light are expelled from his palm and surround his being as he channels the magic into the mirror he’s demonstrating with. The reflective surface turns murky and swirls before clearing up and showing blue skies and a grassy field on the other side.
You’ve been learning how to open portals and travel between dimensions. After the events of last year, when you travelled to a time just after the brothers’ fall, Solomon decided that he should teach you how to open portals between worlds should you ever find yourself in a sticky situation.
‘You’re already able to teleport between the three realms, so this is naturally the next step for you to take anyway,’ Solomon had said earlier. ‘But teleportation magic is different from what I’m going to teach you today. First of all, you need a different type of gateway. Windows and doors work well, arches will in a pinch, but your best bet will always be a mirror,’ he had explained. ‘Opening one isn’t the most difficult part- making sure they’re stable and headed to the right place is.’
“Now you try,” he says and steps back.
An hour and fifty-two attempts later, you glare at the mirror across from you and sit with the reality that you failed to create a portal even briefly.
“It’s okay MC,” he reassures you. “This takes even the most powerful sorcerers years to master most of the time. I have no doubts about your ability to outshine them yet again.”
His words do help soothe the sting of not getting it right away and you relax your shoulders a bit. “How long did it take you?”
He shifts. “A few months to get them consistently stable enough for me to travel through.”
Your face falls again and he laughs. “Don’t sulk. You’ve already surpassed most of the Sorcerer’s Society long ago, you’ll get this in no ti-” the sound of his D.D.D. ringing cuts him off.
He checks the caller ID and sighs. “Oh dear.”
You peek over and see that Asmo is calling him. “Uh oh, what’s that about?”
“I’m sorry MC, I forgot that Asmodeus had asked for my help with something today, is it alright if we continue this lesson tomorrow?”
Not wanting to subject him to the wrath of your pink-haired friend (which could be arguably more terrifying than the actual avatar of wrath’s sometimes), you nod and tell him to go.
Before he accepts the call, he turns back to you from the doorway. “MC,” he says. “I know this goes against what I’ve told you before about practicing your magic, but under no circumstances should you practice portal opening without my supervision. Got it?”
His tone is strict and you know based on the look on his face that he’s unwilling to budge so you nod again and watch him leave, knowing you won’t keep your word for long.
What could go wrong?
~~~
When you eventually come to again, you’re laying flat on your back in an uncomfortable bed. Your head pounds as you sit up and you groan a bit, bringing a hand up to cradle your forehead. “Ugh.”
“Henchhuman, they’re awake!”
Your head snaps up and you look around the room trying to find the source of the voice. There’s a gray cat curled up at the edge of the mattress staring at you with eerily wide, alert eyes. Strange colouring and size for a cat, not to mention the tiny ears that seem to be made more grandiose with some blue flames, but you've seen stranger in the Devildom, so your gaze doesn’t linger and you instead focus on the girl lowering herself down onto the wooden chair by your bed.
She looks to be around your age, if not a year or two younger, and she seems to be studying you with deep interest. “How’s your head?” She asks.
You blink in surprise and take a second to answer. “Sore,” you manage to get out. Your voice sounds a bit rough, and she hands you some water. She doesn’t seem to be all that threatening- she has a calm disposition and appears to be genuinely concerned about you- so you take the cup. “Thanks… how long was I out?”
“A couple hours, not too long.”
Shit. You’re sure everyone back in the Devildom has already noticed that you’re missing. You need to find a way out of here, back to that mirror room so you can-
Right. Your powers are acting up a bit. The least ideal circumstance that you could possibly find yourself stuck in. Again.
“Was I hit with magic or something?”
“Uh…” she tries to fight back a smile. “From what I heard, you dodged a spell and ended up hitting your head on the side of the Dark Mirror in the process.”
Typical.
“What a great first impression to make,” you sigh. “And now I’m stuck here?”
“...Only for a bit longer to make sure you’re really okay.” Something in her voice tells you that she knows you didn’t mean the infirmary, but she doesn’t push the issue and continues to study you.
You pass it off as general suspicion of the rando who appeared out of nowhere and try to lean into it. You shift uncomfortably on the bed and grimace a little.
“I’m surprised I didn’t just get the boot, honestly… I guess technically am an intruder here. Wherever ‘here’ is.”
“Night Raven College.”
“Hm?”
“That’s where you are. It’s a prestigious magical academy in Twisted Wonderland.”
“Right…” you lean forward to try to pet the cat but in a shocking turn of events, it stands on its hind legs and swats your hand away.
“Myaah! I’m not a cat, get your hands off me!” The same whiny voice from earlier leaves its mouth.
You blink once and nod, retracting your hand. “Sorry,” you say.
Talking cat-like creatures… Satan would be all over this.
“Leave them be, how were they supposed to know? Sorry about him,” the girl scolds the not-cat and turns back to you, seemingly scanning your face for something. “I’m Yuu, by the way. This is Grim.”
Grimm? That's kind of ironic. You have some classmates back at RAD with pets named after the Devildom currency, it seems to be a pretty popular choice for pets there. Even Mammon has a crow familiar named Grimm. But this guy doesn't seem to like being perceived as a pet at all.
“Henchhuman, you gotta use my full title!”
Yuu rolls her eyes. “Grim, become a ‘Great Mage’ first and then I’ll start addressing you that way.”
You’ve known them for all of five minutes and their dynamic is already so clear to you. It’s painfully familiar, actually. They remind you of how you and Mammon were at the start of the exchange program.
You’re sure the similarities end there, though. Considering he's a talking not-cat and all.
“MC,” you introduce yourself to interrupt your own train of thought. “Nice to meet you.”
"So how'd ya get here anyway?" Grim asks and plops back down onto the infirmary bed. His enourmous blue eyes stay trained on you without the same weariness Yuu has been studying you with.
It's probably best if you stick to your story until you know you can trust these people, right? You're not exactly being held hostage- you're in an infirmary for goodness sake- but you know better than to think you're going to be welcomed with open arms after your encounter earlier.
"I'm not sure. All I remember is looking into a mirror, being pulled through inky black and ending up in that room."
Yuu shifts uncomfortably, like she doesn't fully believe you.
"What?" You ask.
"It's just… Riddle- that short guy with the red hair- he said just before you crashed into the mirror it sounded like you were reciting a spell or something."
Oh. Right. How did you manage to forget about something so incriminating?
You tilt your head and try to look confused. "A spell?"
"And, well, you don't seem fazed by the concept of a talking cat- don't start Grim. I don't mean to pry, it's just… when they were filling me in on the situation they told me you said you were from Earth. Like me. We definitely don't have talking creatures back home."
Huh? Yuu's in the same boat you are? You suppose it makes sense. You did get a bit of a strange reaction when you mentioned Earth around those other students… oh!
"You're the Prefect they mentioned?" You remember one of those boys calling for them just before you passed out and you use the information to try to change the subject. She doesn't need to know about your magic right now. You'll come up with something later if she asks again.
Yuu smiles a bit and nods her head. "That's me! They asked me to look after you because I was in your position a few months ago. I didn't fall through a mirror though, my thing involved horses and coffins, but I know what it's like to be confused in a strange magical world with no way home."
If only she knew she's actually in your position. A position you've now been in three times. But if she's from the Human World and without any sort of powers… Yeah, this girl really doesn't need to know about your magic right now.
"You're from Earth too? And there's no way home?" She's been stuck here with no hope of leaving?
Yuu tilts her head down and stares at her hands folded over her lap. When she looks back up and nods, you can see traces of both longing and irritation behind the smile she's forcing. "That's our situation. Sorry to be the one to break it to you. Crowley- the headmage- has been saying since I got here that he's working on finding me a way home, but I don't think he actually cares that much."
"Yeah, he didn't seem that genuine when we met." You think back to his glowing yellow eyes and make a face.
She snorts and shakes her head. "He's really not."
Grim stretches and flops backwards onto the mattress with a soft thud. "He's a slimeball, but at least I get free Tuna out of him sometimes."
What an asshole. At least when you first got summoned to the Devildom you were promised a way home… granted, you weren't sure you were going to live to see the end of the exchange year but at least you had Solomon to somewhat relate to while you worked your way through. Yuu doesn't seem to have much hope of returning at all, and you doubt anyone can relate to her situation.
A knock at the infirmary door makes your little trio turn your heads. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear.
Dire Crowley struts into the room, seemingly none the wiser to the comments that were just made towards him. He carries himself in a way that screams eccentricity and grandeur, like he truly believes he's a gift to humanity. It's almost comedic. You know very well how people in positions of power have to keep up pretenses, but you find yourself questioning how much of this is actually for show.
If the answer is 'none', you can't help but wonder how his pride would compare to Lucifer's.
Either way, you would be a fool to underestimate him or mistake his intentions so you focus on his words once he starts speaking. "Ah! I'm happy to see you're awake! Prefect, anything to report?"
"We're from the same place, Headmage. They're from Earth, like me."
Crowley sighs. "Dear me! Another student in the same predicament, how very strange… Stranger, I promise to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible so that you may return back from where you came… the Prefect can attest to how hard I've been working to find a way to return her home."
You blink, and glance over at Yuu, not sure if he's joking, but when it becomes clear he isn't, you turn back to him and nod slowly. "Right… thanks."
"And no need to worry about a place to stay because I've agreed to take the Prefect up on her plea to house you at Ramshackle dorm until I can send you home!"
Yuu's head shoots up. "You did?"
He spreads his arms wide. "Yes! Aren't I so generous? However, I can't just grant them student status. This is a prestigous magical academy after all, and I cannot just admit every strange person who happens upon here by some strange force. Imagine the outrage should the public find out!"
She sighs. "Yeah, I figured as much…" She turns to you. "Sorry, I tried to strike some sort of deal with him so you wouldn't have to go through everything Grim and I did when I first got here. No magic school for now, bu at least you get to stay with us!"
"You… did?" Why on earth would she do that? She didn't even know you twenty-five minutes ago. Why did she vouch for you?
She fidgets with her fingers. "Yeah… when Kalim came to tell me that there was some sort of emergency involving someone from 'my world', I got excited. I figured that as long as you didn't suck or turn out to be, like, evil or something, we should look out for each other."
"That's…" a far nicer start to this scenario than you could have ever imagined. Third time's a charm, you guess. "Thank you. That really means a lot to me."
Crowley, who you were hoping had left by now, claps his hands. "Yes, yes, how very touching! However, newcomer, since Yuu and Grim have been granted student status… I am in need of a janitor and my paperwork is piled so high, it's at risk of flying off of my desk… so that will be your job while you are at Night Raven College!" His tone is jovial, but his eyes are narrowed ever so slightly, daring you to disagree.
"Myaah! He's not even trying to hide it this time!" Grim exclaims.
You're not going to delude yourself into thinking there's no ulterior motive. You know he doesn't fully trust you and likely just wants to keep you close until he's figured out whatever is going on with you. He's an easy read.
That's fine. You'll play your part and figure out how to get your magic back on the down low.
He spins on his heel and strides back out the door. "If you're feeling better, have the Prefect give you a tour of the school and get settled in Ramshackle dorm. You have an early start tomorrow!"
Yuu stands up and heads towards the door with Grim in tow, a genuine smile on her face. "We'll give you a few minutes to collect yourself and process everything before heading out. We'll be right outside."
You nod and wait until the door is shut again to let out a loud sigh. Alright MC, third time's a charm, you repeat. You can do this.You swing your legs over the side of the bed and roll your ankles to warm your body back up after being in one position for so long.
Now that you're alone, rather than coming up with a plan on how to get back home without your magic or any way to contact everyone back home… you think of Yuu. Everything she told you, how she vouched for you before even knowing you, how excited she seemed to be by having someone to relate to… you've known her for less than an hour but you're already starting to feel somewhat protective over her.
That Crowley guy obviosuly isn't doing anything to get her home… so you make up your mind.
Once you find a way out of here? You're letting Yuu hitch a ride back to the Human World.
Chapter 3: Ramshackle Indeed
Chapter Text
Yuu's POV
Yuu shuts the infirmary door behind her and expels the lingering stress out of her body in one big exhale. She's relieved that her introduction went well with MC, and it's so nice to know that there's someone else in her corner now who knows what she's going through…
So why can't she kick the feeling that they're not telling her the whole truth?
Well she knows why, but she's still trying to process it.
Three nights before MC showed up, Yuu started having strange dreams of what appeared to be a sequence of events from someone's life; Kneeling on the ground in front of tall, foreboding figures, all of their faces seemingly blurred out by shadows. Walking through long, twisiting hallways in strange uniforms she hadn't recognized. Flashes of magic and whispers of spells, views of snack packs and book titles that aren't from either her world or Twisted Wonderland. Brief snippets of wings and horns… glowing symbols… glittering gold and the overwhelming feelings of love, laughter, passion…
She'd hoped to be done with crazy dreams she couldn't interpret for the time being, but apparently not. She hasn't mentioned anything to Grim or any of her other friends, and certainly not Crowley, but based on what happens whenever she gets strange dreams, she wonders if this time around they have anything to with MC's arrival.
Even if she were to factor out the dreams, something about MC just feels off. She's so sure that they're from the same place, but… they weren't fazed by Grim at all. Or… by any part of the situation they've gotten mixed up into. It just doesn't sit right with her. It was also suspicious that they avoided the question about magic. She had played it off in the moment when they changed the subject, but it didn't get past her.
She takes a deep breath. There's no reason to assume they mean harm, and they're just so easy to get along with… plus, there's a part of Yuu that longs for a connection to her old life. Is it a bit of a bad idea to prioritze that right now? Possibly.
Is she going to choose it anyway? Absolutely. When was the last time she put herself first, again?
It's just… nice that there's someone to relate to now.
"Yuu, what's the matter? You look so glum!" Grim looks up at her with concern.
"Nothing, don't worry about me. I'm just tired. I was out late with Malleus last night. He found a new structure out in the woods behind Ramshackle he had never seen before, so we went exploring."
Grim snickers. "Right, I forgot you had a date with Hornton."
Yuu feels her face get warm. "It was not a date, and you know it. We've been going on walks together for ages now."
"Myahaha, keep telling yourself that."
"Grim, I swea-" She's cut off by the infirmary door opening.
"Hey," MC says. They look between her and Grim with wide eyes.
"Oh, hey!" Yuu lets go of his collar. She'll scold him later. "Ready for your tour?"
Despite the strangeness of it all, Yuu feels confident in her decision to trust MC for now, so she and Grim lead them out of the building.
MC's POV
There are two teenagers staring at you rather intently when you walk out of the infirmary and exit the castle onto one of the many cobblestone pathways that seem to connect most, if not all, of the buildings you can see.
The sight of them makes Yuu sigh. "You couldn't help yourselves, could you?"
The boy with navy hair continues to stare at you while the ginger offers your companion a smug grin. "Oh come on, just introduce us already."
The girl rolls her eyes and points at them. "This is Ace Trappola and Deuce Spade, they're students here. Sorry about the intrusion, but these idiots probably aren't going to let me give you the tour in peace."
"Oi!"
"Hey-"
"Nice to meet you both. I'm MC." You cut off their cries with a smile and an outstretched hand.
"So…" Ace starts, and you can tell by the way that Yuu tenses her shoulders that he may be a bit of a stressor in her life. You get it, you have plenty of those back home. "You're from this 'Earth' place, too?"
"Yup," you start, making a mental note of how far the infirmary is in proximity to the sports field and gymnasium. That sure is inconvenient. "Sure am."
"Housewarden didn't seem too pleased about it," Ace continues, addressing Yuu this time. "What happened?"
You're more than happy to sit this one out. You have a feeling you'll be explaning it a lot once you meet more people, so you let Yuu and Grim explain on your behalf. While they do, you continue taking in the sights and trying to get a feel for the campus you'll be calling home for… however long you're stuck here.
You think Solomon would have a blast here. You can feel the magic flowing through the air, begging you to grab hold of it, harness it, use it. You try, knowing it'll only end in disappointment, but still get frustrated when the familiarity of your powers awakening starts up and fades away far too quickly.
The properties of the magic are different here. Back home, you're barely able to notice it all around you, unless you're dealing with a cursed object or it's some sort of magic that interacts with your senses. You often rely on Solomon or one of the brothers to tell you when any other kind of magic is present. You've gotten much better at it as of late, but it's not instinctive yet.
"What kind of sorcerer am I if I can't detect the magic around me unless is galringly obvious?" you had complained to Solomon one day.
"I couldn't detect it at first either, MC," he had said at the time. "It's a skill you need to hone. We're not like the demons or angels that were born with magic- we need to work much harder to harness it, detect it, use it… you'll get there."
You wonder if you can only detect it here because it's so different to Devildom magic. That would make sense- it's something brand new, of course you would be able to notice it.
While you're lost in your thoughts, your tour guides turn onto another cobblestone street and you follow them until you have statues on either side of you. "Who are they?" You ask.
"They," starts Ace, "are the Great Seven."
"Histoical figures?" You guess, and Yuu nods her head.
"They each ruled over different regions of Twisted Wonderland at one point or another, and they're well known for certain qualities they possesed. The Queen of Hearts was strict and just, she prioritzed the law, the Sea Witch was benevolent and offered many favours to those in need… stuff like that." Deuce explains.
And there's seven of them, huh? Why does the number seven always seem to follow you around in every magical world you go to? Is it some sort of requirement for there to be seven prominent figures in power? Did you miss the memo? You'll ask Solomon about it one day.
"Interesting," is all you say, and let them continue explaining the other five figures.
You take a good look at the statues and notice that the Queen of Hearts looks slightly… burned? "What happened to her?"
Everyone in your party tenses up and you look between them, slightly confused. Eventually Yuu tugs on your arm and pulls you in the other direction, saying something along the lines of wanting to show you Sam's shop.
Those four definitely had something to do with that statue.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As it turns out, you can fit a lot of guiding into an hour.
You've become familiar with the library, some of the classrooms, you learned the route to Sam's shop, you saw the botanical gardens… you've processed a lot.
Now you're walking up to a building with a dome-shaped roof. It's circular, somewhat large, but nowhere near the scale of the castle you were in earlier. "This is the hall of mirrors," says Yuu. "This is where you can access any of the seven dorms."
"Based on the Great Seven, I'm assuming?"
"You catch on quick," says Ace. "We," he hooks an arm over Deuce's shoulders and pulls him down. "are from the dorm Heartslabyul- inspired by the Queen of Hearts."
"Right," you say and look up at the names of the other dorms. "Savanaclaw, Octavinelle, Scarabia, Pomefiore, Ignihyde and… Diasomnia. Huh."
Deuce, who was previously trying to shove Ace off of him, glances at you. "What's wrong?"
"What about Ramshackle? Didn't Crowley say that's where Yuu, Grim and I are staying?"
"Ramshackle is the only dorm that's actually on campus," The girl in question chimes in. "All the other dorms are in other 'pocket dimensions' of sorts, because they are so wildly different."
You nod and tuck the information away in the back of your mind.
"Speaking of Ramshackle," she continues. "We should head there now that you're more familiar with the campus. I'm sure you're exhausted."
For the first time since leaving the infirmary, you notice just how tired you are. "That's fine with me."
"Since we're here, we'll just head back to our dorm. Nice to meet ya, MC, we'll see you around!" Ace waves and walks through the portal. Deuce nods his head at you and heads through the swirly mirror as well.
"They're…"
"A handful," Yuu deadpans. Grim snickers and nods, as if he doesn't realize that he's more than likely included in that sentiment based on the way she looks at him after, but they both soften just slightly. "They're great, though."
The three of you that remain turn and head out the door, making room for a couple of students with silver accents on their uniforms to pass by you. You turn to see which dorm they're travelling to and assume that silver accents mean Octavinelle. Based on Ace and Deuce's uniforms, you can also assume that red and black accents can be associaed with Heartslabyul.
When you're back out into the open, you head up a hill and a decrepit old structure comes into view. You would say it's seen better days, but you're really not sure it has. It's enclosed by a black iron fence, and it wouldn't be too different from the one that keeps the House of Lamentation closed off to outsiders if it weren't for how severely crooked the bars are. The grass surrounding the building is a pale, dusted over green, certainly not as pigmented as the patch you're standing on now. The windows are cracked, some completely boarded up, and it looks as though the ceiling is covered by a tarp in the back. For a campus as nice as Night Raven College, you would assume they'd take better care of their storage sheds, but you suppose not everything can be a priority with a Headmage like Crowley.
Then you look around and realize there are no other buildings in sight.
"You're not serious," You stop dead in your tracks when you see that they're headed right for the path leading up towards it.
Yuu offers you a sympathetic smile. "It looks worse on the outside than it actually is on the inside."
This doesn't reassure you in the slightest. Has she seen the hole in the roof? You certainly understand why it's called "Ramshackle" dorm now.
Tentatively, you follow her and Grim up the path and step inside your temporary home. The interior is a pretty colour, definitely matching the decaying aspect of the structure, but in a way that you feel like it's meant to be that way. You walk further in and see that the living room doesn't match the lifeless vibe at all. It's warm thanks to the fireplace, and the lighting makes it seem very homely.
Yuu was right, it's really not as bad in here as it looks.
"Welcome to our dorm, roomie! One of the perks of living here is that you don't have to share a room with anyone-" she pauses for a second and clears her throat. "Well… actually we have some other roommates that may try to get on your nerves for a while."
As if that was their cue, ghostly laughter sounds from above and three apparitions swirl down from the ceiling. "Fresh meat!"
Grim yelps a bit at their entrance and you snicker. "You have ghosts? That's fitting."
"Agh, this one's not scared of us either." The round one sighs.
"Such a shame, I was hoping we could haunt them a bit!"
You shrug. "Sorry."
Yuu and Grim gawk at you. "You… you're taking ghosts better than the exterior of Ramshackle?"
You blink and internally curse yourself. Right, you're not supposed to be familiar with anything mystical or magical. You've grown so used to the ghosts of the Devildom that you didn't even flinch at these three friendly looking ones with funny hats.
"Uhh…" come on, MC, think of something… "I was really into the paranormal back home, I guess it's just not that surprising to me that they'd be present in a magical world?" It comes out more like a question, but you can't worry about that right now.
Grim seems to accept that answer, but Yuu seems a bit more skeptical. She ponders for a moment, then shrugs it off and ruffles the top of Grim's head. "Right. Yeah, no that makes sense."
You turn to the stairs and breathe a sigh of relief. "So are the rooms up here?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As it turns out, Yuu and Grim had been living in worse conditions than you find yourself in right now. You've also discovered that there's no hole in the roof (anymore- they've repaired it to the best of their ability) and the tarp is just to insulate it a bit better in preparation for the colder months. It really doesn't surprise you that Crowley hasn't followed through on their request for real, proper repairs, but you'd think at the very least he'd fix a giant hole for them.
The two of them told you tales while they were showing you to your room about how desolate and dusty everything was when they moved in. Since making this their home, they've spruced up the guest room downstairs, a couple of the bedrooms, and the washrooms.
"There's still lots to be done," Yuu had said. "But this is luxury compared to a few months ago."
You sigh and try to get comfortable on the bed. For how old the dorm is, the mattresses seem to be in pretty good condition, but despite your exhaustion, you suppose you're a bit too wired to get any real rest. There's too much on your mind.
The guilt is settling in now that you have time to think. It was one thing when you disappeared against your will and were brought back to the past, but right now? This is entirely your fault. It was completely avoidable. If you weren't so damn stubborn, you could be back home, in bed with Mammon and making plans for the rest of the week.
Your breath hitches. Of course you're worried about all of your friends back in the Devildom- you hate to put them through this again, but… Mammon.
You're most concerned about how he's handling it. Knowing him, he's likely pacing around, texting you, maybe even taking to the skies and searching for you depending on whether or not they've pieced together why you're missing.
The thought of him worrying over you like that makes your heart ache. You saw what it did to him last time and you swore to yourself you'd never do that to him- to any of them- again.
But here you are.
You can only hope that they're not ripping Solomon to shreds over this. You know you're in for it whenever he gets to you, so that hope is mostly for your sake. Maybe he'll go easy on you with lessons if they're not putting too much pressure on him?
You nearly snort at that. Of course they are.
And not just the brothers- Diavolo and Barbatos, too. You're sure Simeon and Luke are taking it easy on him at the very least.
You're certain they're investigating every avenue in the hopes that they'll find you. If one thing is absolutely certain, it's that you never have to doubt your place in the Devildom. You know you're cared for. You know you're just as important to them as they are to you.
What a nice feeling it is to know that you're loved so wholly.
That being said, you definitely owe Solomon.
A yawn builds up and you finally feel your eyes growing heavier. You welcome the new development and roll onto your side, adjusting yourself and getting comfortable, wishing for nothing more than a dream of home.