Crackle... crackle...

The sound of crackling flames echoed in the distance. You hadn't remembered anything; you assumed you hit your head against something. You groggily woke up and rubbed the back of your head.

"Ugh... why... does this... keep happening... where am I?"

You got to your feet, but quickly fell back down. Your ankle was sprained.

"Damnit... now I can't walk anywhere. I really need help, though. If I die down here..."

~

"Which mirror did you throw the prefect into?"

Epel was cornered by the people giving chase to you. He backed away nervously until he hit the wall.

"I-I dunno... b-but I know t-they'll be better o-off not with t-the likes of any of y-you!" Epel stammered.

Vil grabbed Epel's wrist and began to pull him back to Pomefiore. "You want to act stupid? Now YOU'LL be paying for a new window; and believe me, you'll be needing a LOT of money," Vil said.

"V-Vil-san, let me go!" Epel protested.

"Apologies, Monsieur Princess Apple. It must be done in the name of beauty," Rook said. "Monsieurs, I bid you all adieu."

Rook took Epel back to Pomefiore for Vil. Vil folded his arms and sighed.

"The feeling is mutual," Riddle said. "We have yet to catch the prefect..."

"But," Azul started, "We have their accomplices."

Leona scoffed. "Like we'll be able to pry information outta 'em."

"I agree with Azul, reluctantly," Vil said. "We must gather as much information as possible. Go get the people you consider accomplices. I will go back and fetch Epel."

The other dorm heads nodded, with a few grumbles along the way.

~

"Hmm? I'm detecting... a life force somewhere around here! But I don't see anyone..."

A light voice came from around the corner of a large stone pillar. A small boy with flaming blue hair and gold eyes floated just besides you.

"Ortho Shroud... brother to Idia Shroud. Ortho! ORTHO! DOWN HERE!"

Ortho stopped. He turned to the sound of your voice and stared wide eyed at you.

"{Y/N}? What are you doing all the way down there?" Ortho bent down and examined you. His scanners covered your body, filling your brain with a tingling sensation.

"I'm detecting high levels of stress, anxiety, pain, and sleep deprivation. Your nutrition levels read low, your heart rate is very high, and your brain shows signs of mental scarring. Your ankle has also been injured. Body temperatures are reading quite low; I suggest warming up to help improve your health, mind, and spirits. Come with me! I promise to take good care of you."

Although you had never really known Ortho, you could sense that he was a trustworthy individual. You stepped into his hands, and he gently picked you up. He then proceeded to float up a flight of stairs towards the dorms.

~

"Nii-san! I'm back!"

Ortho entered a room that smelled of old clothes and potato chips. You covered your nose.

"Hey, Ortho," a deep voice replied. You could hear the clicking of buttons; whoever was in the room was gaming.

"Nii-san, I brought a guest!"

The person in the chair suddenly got up in a panic. He fell off the chair and landed in a pile of clothes.

You were able to get a better look at whoever was gaming away in the dark room. The person had flaming blue hair, much like Ortho's and the same golden eyes. They wore a blue hoodie, black sweatpants, and no shoes. Their skin was very pale.

"O-Ortho, y-you k-k-know I c-can't handle c-confrontation!" The boy whimpered. "I-I'm n-not in a-a talking m-mood!"

"Nii-san, that's not fair! {Y/N} really needs help! They've been shrunk!"

The boy turned. "S-shrunk? L-lemme see..."

Ortho held you out. You waved at the boy, who seemed to be entirely fascinated with you.

"R-Ramshackle Prefect... all shrunken d-down?! This is... like... Little Nightmares! How'd you get like this? Can you shape shift? No... you're probably a dwarf or something..."

"I'm sorry but... who are you?" You asked.

The boy suddenly retracted. He brought the top half of his jacket up to his face. "I-Idia Shroud... I guess. I'm the Housewarden of Iginhyde... and you met Ortho already. He's my little bro."

Ortho smiled at you, though you couldn't really tell. A mask was covering his face.

"Can you help me? I'm trying to figure out what happened to me. I've been running around all day long, and I'm just... REALLY tired."

Idia nodded. "I can run a f-few scans... but I can't guarantee accurate results. C-c'mere..."

Idia picked you up and took you to his desk. He placed you beneath a blue light. Typing away on his keyboard, he booted up several programs to use in his experiment.

"H-hold still." Idia began running the programs. A blue scanner fell over you. You laughed; the scanner tickled.

ANALYSIS COMPLETE. DATA WILL NOW DISPLAY.

Several holographic screens showed up in the air. Idia began to organize them by type until he landed on one he thought was interesting.

"Hey, {Y/N}? What do you think made you shrink?" Idia asked.

"A magic potion... why?" You asked back.

"W-well... it wasn't really a potion. My data shows that it was fae magic."

Fae magic? That's strange. You were sure it was a potion. Remembering what Epel had told you, you decided to ask Idia about his underclass men.

"Idia-senpai? Do you know about first years making a shrinking potion recently?"

Idia shook his head. "I barely leave this room. I dunno... sorry."

You sighed. "Well, it was worth a shot. But Fae magic? What dorm do Faes belong to?"

"Diasomnia," Idia replied. "Their Housewarden is Malleus Draconia."

"Malleus Draconia," you breathed. You heard rumors of him, but you've never seen him before. You wondered what he looked like.

"Can you bring me there?" You asked.

"M-me? If I left this room, Riddle-shi would yell at me, and I'm not in the mood for a lecture by an S-Tier character."

You tilted your head.

"Sorry... just forget I said that. Ortho, can you go take prefect?"

Ortho paused. "Nii-san, we can't take them yet. We have to heal them, remember? They have a sprained ankle."

Idia sighed. "Fine. Ortho, get your med kit ready. We'll fix you up, {Y/N}. Just... hang tight."