As soon as Monty dismissed them, Miles jogged lightly forward with a smile on his face. "I can take you to the Mages," he said, throwing an arm around Kerry's shoulders.

"They'll probably want to see you, too," Caleb said to the Rose Thief before he could slip away. The Rose Thief shrugged and tagged along as Miles led all four of them down a couple of hallways and into a library crowded with tall shelves made of dark polished wood. Despite the numerous shelves, Ray felt like there was a severe lack of books. Every shelf had at least one, and plenty had twenty or thirty books placed neatly on the wood, but it didn't even hold a candle to the smallest public library Ray knew of back home. There was a strange hush in this room despite its size, a silence as soft as a pillow. Any noise felt like it was too loud, especially the sound of five pairs of boots against a stone floor. As they moved, Ray could see small open areas with plush chairs and hard tables.

Prince Miles took them straight through the shelves to a set of double doors edged with gold. Just outside this door, sitting at a table with a book, was Kara. She wore a high-necked, sleeveless undyed tunic fell to mid-thigh and a pale blue jacket with a short torso and long scalloped sleeves that would cover her hands when standing neutrally. Her black pants fell loosely to the top of bright red embroidered cloth shoes. When Miles drew closer, she carefully closed the book and rose from her chair.

"Your Highness," she greeted, her eyes flicking from Miles to each other person he was with. Her gaze rested on Ray and the Rose Thief, but if she was surprised, she didn't show it. "What brings the party here?"

Miles grinned widely and giggled, his eyes scrunching up. "Straight to the point, I see."

Kara crossed her arms. "Well it's not every day you bring four people directly to the Mage's Atelier."

"True, true," Miles admitted. He gestured to Ray and the Rose Thief. "Anyway, as you can probably tell, we now have two of Ray. The extra claims to have come from another dimension, and they were hoping that the Mages here could help discern... stuff. Anything." Ray pursed his lips and drew his eyebrows together. The extra? Well, he supposed that wasn't a wrong descriptor.

Kara exhaled through her nose and uncrossed her arms, letting her sleeves fall to cover her hands. "Alright. I want Ray and the extra to come with me. Everyone else, leave." She paused before shrugging. "Caleb can hang around I guess. Now shoo," she said, waving her arms, her sleeves flapping and exaggerating her movements. Kerry tipped his hat to the Rose Thief and left arm-in-arm with Miles. Caleb waved and disappeared into the bookshelves with the promise of stopping by in a little while.

Ray wasn't sure what to expect on the other side of the double doors. The Mage's Atelier was circular, the center of the room comprised of stairs all in a circle leading into a circular depression in the ground like an inverted dais. Three extra rooms at equal distances from Ray seemed to hold various materials, like vials, herbs, mortars and pestles, and yes, cauldrons. A spiral set of stairs off to the side led up to a second floor. Contrary to the atmosphere of the library, the air here practically seemed to buzz. A few people were wandering about, people that Ray actually mostly recognized. Arryn was apparently cooking something in one of the side rooms, wearing mostly black, her long sleeves rolled up and buttoned. Patrick and Jordan seemed to be sparring in the circular depression, but stopped when Kara entered with the two Rays.

"Carry on if you wish," Kara said to Patrick and Jordan. As she strode over to Arryn, Ray and the Rose Thief trailing in her wake, she called, "Hey, Arryn, do you have any time to spare right now?"

Arryn brushed some sort of crushed, dried herb off of her palm and into the large pot she was leaning over. She stirred it with a copper ladle a few times before setting the ladle aside and turning towards Kara. "I suppose, yeah. The potion's got to simmer for a few hours now." She froze when she noticed the two identical men. "Woah, did Ray find his long-lost twin?"

Kara's lips twitched in a suppressed laugh. "Not quite. The extra claims to have come from another world, and I want your help trying to figure out exactly what happened."

Arryn nodded and undid her sleeves, allowing them to fall down and cover her hands. The two Mages took Ray and the Rose Thief up the spiral staircase into another circular room. This room was even barer than the one below it, completely empty save for torches on the walls, clear windows in between them, and a few scattered candelabra. Kara waved her hand, and a wooden three-legged stool appeared in the air beside her, suspended for a few seconds before falling. She caught it and tossed it at the Rose Thief.

"I'm not sure right now if we'll need you," she said. "Maybe to see if there's a connection between you two. For now, sit somewhere against the wall." To Ray, she said, "Now you are a different story. Stand in the middle, there, and Arryn and I will get to work."

~~~~

Ray was made to stand in the middle of the empty stone room for hours. About half an hour in, the chill of the room-chill by virtue of being entirely stone-began seeping into his flesh, beginning at his exposed right hand and raising goosebumps all up his arms. Kara and Arryn stood around him in varying positions trying several different spells. One made him glow softly and made warmth tingle all over him. One had several orbs of white light spiral about him. At one point they made the Rose Thief stand up and stand back to back with him, and several silvery-purple ropes twirled around them.

After a couple hours, Arryn had to leave to return to her potion. Caleb showed up to see how they were faring and stood next to Rose Thief as they watched Kara work. Whenever Ray attempted to shift position or slouch, Kara would snap at him to remain still. His back and feet were beginning to ache. Finally, when Ray's stomach had been growling for twenty minutes, Kara sighed and stretched. She looked exhausted, dark shadows underlining her eyes.

"I've done all I can," she said. Ray sighed in relief and immediately sat down on the floor. She turned towards the Rose Thief and Caleb. "Unfortunately... I didn't find much. There's nothing between you and this extra Ray. Which means the fact that he's another you is completely irrelevant as far as I am concerned."

The Rose Thief frowned and made a sort of frustrated growling noise. "Did you find anything fucking useful?"

Kara glared at him and crossed her arms. "Other than he's incredibly hard to scan? Nothing, just my own speculation." She looked at Caleb now. "Why didn't you tell me he was hyper resistant to magic?" she snapped.

Caleb shrank back and raised his hands defensively. "Uhh, slipped my mind?"

Kara sighed again. "My theory is that a dimensional spell was used. If I had seen him soon after his arrival, I might have been able to sense the remnants of the spell. I had no idea that portals to other dimensions were possible-other dimensions are only a theory to us, after all. But anyway, whatever happened, my best guess is that he wasn't brought here by accident. Someone made a cross-dimensional portal, and he went through it."

"Portals?" Caleb asked incredulously. "I didn't even consider... No one has been able to create an actual portal for years. The closest thing I know of is the Enderman teleportation technique. But portals..."

Kara shrugged. "A book or two that we have mentions portals used in the past, but not how they were made-only that they're really complicated. Somehow, someone somewhere cast one. It's not even a sure thing that this is what happened, it just seems most likely to me. You wanted my help, and that's the best I could do. Sorry I couldn't do more."

"You've been a great help," the Rose Thief said, standing up and sweeping out of the room. Ray couldn't tell how sincere his doppelgänger's statement was; he said it in such a biting tone. The two of them might have stopped fighting, but the Rose Thief still seemed grumpy and in a hurry to get rid of Ray. A few seconds later, a plainly dressed servant in red climbed up the stairs.

"I have been instructed to let you know that dinner will be ready in half an hour," said the servant. "His Majesty the king has invited the four guests to join him and his Royal Highness the prince at the table."

~~~~

At the dinner table, Ray quickly realized just how similar his Monty was to the King. Though King Monty had had a calm and focused demeanor in the throne room and seemed to think deeply about what he was going to say before he said it, in a casual environment he was as animated as anyone.

The dinner table was a large but squat rectangle, close in measurements to a square but still clearly elongated. It was made of dark, polished wood, and a deep red tablecloth covered it all. White and yellow roses adorned the center of the table. The room itself had several alcoves carved into the wall at equal intervals, and each of these had an intricate statue or decorated vase. In between them and the torches, on the stretches of blank wall, colorful tapestries hung depicting what Ray could only guess were pieces of interpreted history. The tapestry directly across from him had four guys raising their arms up to a large golden pillar, from which bright yellow and white threads burst like the rays of the sun.

King Monty, Prince Miles, and Barbara all sat at the short side of the table. Ray was sat next to the Rose Thief and some noble he didn't really know. On the other side of the Rose Thief was Kerry, who sat around the corner from Miles. Caleb sat across from Ray. Food was brought out by servants on silver platters. Ray was surprised to find that the food was really appetizing, including chicken garnished with tasty herbs and spices and steaming rice mixed with a colorful sauce-though to be honest, he wasn't really sure what he was expecting in the first place. The servants first tried to serve him wine, but the Rose Thief actually leaned in and made the servant bring water instead.

The Rose Thief winked when Ray shot him a thankful look. "I know myself," he said with a smile.

Ray spent most of the dinnertime quiet, having nothing to contribute to the conversation. He listened intently to the exchanges around him, however, and repeatedly rubbed his hands together without really realizing it. Barbara was loud and enthusiastic, and seemed to love to gossip, though almost everyone at the table discussed the social happenings of the other countries and even of people within the Ruby Kingdom. Ray heard plenty about the scandal Kerry caused with Sir Gray; about the naughty gossip surrounding the Captain of the Guard in Achievement City sleeping in a room attached to the Prince's (and how he was also the Prince's chief bodyguard as well); about the many rumors surrounding Joel in Roosterteeth and how surely by now that man is off his rockers (fueled, of course, by Caleb's and Kerry's recent visit); and about the jokes made about the relationship between King Geoff and his prime advisor.

When Michael and Prince Gavin were mentioned, Ray noticed the Rose Thief grow still. The Rose Thief took several seconds to recompose himself before rejoining the dinnertime conversations. Ray studied his doppelgänger out of the corner of his eye for a while, but whatever the Rose Thief's beef was, he hid it well. Ray quickly forgot about it, especially when the man sitting on the other side of him distracted him. The man introduced himself as Shadles and inquired after Ray's "strange mask."

Ray blinked confusedly for a moment. "Uh, my glasses? They're not a mask, I need them to see."

Shadles, a man with a square jaw and a twisted goatee, smiled blankly. "Oh, I see. I thought that, like your twin, it was a sort of mask. You need them... to see?"

Ray blinked again and realized for the first time that he hadn't notice anyone wear glasses. "Yeah, like, if I'm not wearing them, then everything is blurry."

"That sounds like something the Mages could heal," Shadles replied, thumping Ray on the shoulder. Ray grimaced at the contact and shrugged. Something about Shadles and the lithe way he moved felt... off to Ray. He couldn't place it, but Shadles made him feel uncomfortable.

"Whatever."

Ray was relieved when dinner finally ended. He wasn't sure when he was allowed to leave, since no one seemed inclined to excuse themselves, but when King Monty stood and announced he was retiring for the night, that seemed to be the cue for when everyone else could leave. Ray was fatigued despite being asleep for a good portion of the day. He had skipped the previous night, stood in the same spot for several hours, and then attended a large and busy dinner; he felt like he deserved to go to bed.

When he returned to his now-dark sparse room, he found a long wooden box on his bed. Inside was a rapier and a note from Kerry. The note said, "This is the sword I found for you in the market. I had it sharpened while you were resting. I hope it is too your liking." The sword was similar in make to the Rose Thief's sword, with a similar handle and guard, the gold from the guard twisted down to meet the pommel. The pommel was a blooming red rose, as opposed to the Rose Thief's closed rose, and the blade was darkened with heat. Ray smiled at the gift and set it aside to crawl into bed. However, Ray quickly found he couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned, restless and unfortunately awake. Finally he decided to take a walk around the castle. If anything, he could freely appreciate the art scattered about.

Rubbing his chilly hands together, Ray wandered about the halls, feeling for the first time in two months relatively at ease. A few torches were lit, but the castle was much dimmer than it was in the daylight. Being alone was refreshing to Ray, just him and the moonlight streaming through the windows.

It wasn't long until he heard the murmurings of voices. Ray crept closer to the source, which appeared to be past an open door with candlelight flickering inside. He slowed when he could pick out what the voices were saying and hid in a crevice with a statue. He recognized all three, though he could only identify one.

"Do I have your word that you will do it?" asked the Rose Thief.

"If you have the coin, then my skills are all yours," said one man's voice. Was that Shadles, from dinner? "I must ask why a guard needs to work with me."

Ray heard the Rose Thief huff. "Ichigan used to work in Venator's castle. He knows the layout and can help you get in."

"And if I know Venator," said the third man, who must be Ichigan, "then even their patrols should still be mostly the same. We can get into the prince's room no problem."

Shadles gave a resigned sigh of agreement. Ray heard small bits of metal clink together, and then the Rose Thief said, "You'll get the rest when the deed is done. I expect you to leave tomorrow."

The sudden shuffling of bodies alerted Ray to the fact that the three men were leaving. With no real place to hide in sight, Ray opted to duck behind the statue he was already sharing a space with. Shadles, seemingly the only one with a candle, stalked off in the other direction. Ichigan, who Ray recognized as the one-eyed guard who usually stood at the front of the castle, marched past Ray without even shifting his head. It seemed the shadows hiding Ray were adequate enough for the one-eyed guard. Maybe that's why he was only on duty in the day.

The Rose Thief was a different story. Ray's doppelgänger left the room a few moments after the other two men, and almost immediately spotted Ray hiding. Ray tried to shrink against the wall, tried to become as small as possible when he saw the Rose Thief's face blanche. The Rose Thief strode forward and gripped Ray's shirt, lifting him up and pushing him against the wall.

"How much did you hear?" the Rose Thief hissed, his face contorted with anger. Ray could tell it was an anger driven by fear and anxiety. Ray hadn't wanted to believe what he had been hearing, but the Rose Thief's reaction solidified Ray's theory.

"Enough to know you're sending fucking mercenaries after Gavin," Ray said with a steady voice. He balled his hands into fists nervously and tried not to tremble. The Rose Thief shoved Ray away and stepped further out into the hallway. "What the fuck are you doing? You're-you're gonna fucking kill your own friend?"

Ray didn't expect the Thief's gloved hand to backslap him across the cheek. "He's not my friend," the Thief said in that terrifyingly quiet voice straining with anger. "Not anymore. And he's not yours either. I don't know your relationship with Gavin in your world, but this one is not fucking yours. So stay out of this."

Ray thought quickly, ideas firing off in his head like a minigun. He rubbed his cheek with a cool hand. "Fine, God," he said, slumping his shoulders and looking away for extra effect. "Sorry I care about a different version of my friend?"

The Rose Thief was breathing heavily, but he seemed to accept Ray's response. He stood in the darkness for a few moments before marching off. Ray watched him go and waited. He wasn't sure how long to wait, but after what must have been fifteen minutes, Ray walked off with purpose. When he reached his room again, he did not enter and instead headed further down the hall where he knew the other guests were sleeping. He didn't even knock on the door, but entered in quietly and gently shook the bed's occupant awake.

"Kerry," Ray whispered. "I need you to get me back to Achievement City."

(This week has been eventful so sorry for the extremely late update. Updates will now be on Fridays until summer ends and maybe once school starts for me)