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Baka nods in understanding. “He’s not lord of darkness for nothin’.”

Indeed.

“Do ye need anything else?” Baka asks.

“No, thank you. I’ll grab breakfast and get to work.”

It’s strange to trade in my traditional clothes for a long-sleeved shirt, jacket, and pants, but to my horror, I think I prefer it.

My heart beats harder with each step on my way down the corridor. Cece berated me for details on the castle all week, and I could barely remember the layout of my Faerie bedroom—let alone the wonders of the gardens or the library. But now that I’m back, it’s like I never left.

The maze of corridors that leads to the balcony next to the library feels familiar, and I quickly make my way to the breakfast buffet.

“Hey, girl. Good to see you back.” Mara waves me over to her table, her fork deep into a thick omelet.

“Good morning.”

She’s wearing black tights—leggings, as she calls them—and a matching triangular scarf in lieu of a bra. Once again, I’m taken aback by the contrast between my life in Demeter and my new Fae reality.

“What’s that about?” She wiggles her fingers in the general direction of my head. “Is that how you wear your hair in the old world?”

I grip the tight hairnet. I totally forgot to take it off. “Y—yeah.”

Mara fluffs her flamboyant mane and gives me one of her ambiguous grins. “Wow. It looks super uncomfortable.”

James sits next to us with a full plate. “Welcome back, Nell.”

I offer him a small smile.

“Well, I’m off. Two’s waiting for me.” Mara packs the apple left on the table inside her bag, and I catch a metallic glint on top.

My brows pull together, my mouth suddenly pasty and dry. “You got a mask?”

“White quartz.” Mara shows off her new mask proudly, the solid piece of metal fitting perfectly over her face—with no string.

“How does it stay on your face?”

My fellow seedlings exchange a glance, and Mara huffs. “Magic, silly.”

“We passed the first trial a week ago. Baka told us you had some kind of arrangement to pace your training?” James says.

“Yes, well…” I lick my lips, unsure how to finish that sentence.

Before I can babble a falsehood, Two sticks his head out of the mirror. “Mara,” he summons her.

The redhead jerks to her feet. “I’m off living the dream guys. Wish me luck.” She hurries after her mentor, and her polished mask shines in the sun. An inked butterfly decorates her lower back, and the little knot holding the black scarf in place over her breasts is absolutely scandalous.

A hard stone sinks in my belly when she jumps inside the sceawere to meet Two.

I missed out by being gone, and that’s true for both worlds. This half-and-half arrangement is a nightmare, my focus neither here nor there. I don’t belong in Demeter as long as I still need to come here, and yet I don’t truly belong here, either.

What a mess.

James excuses himself, too, and I wait about an hour for One to show up, but he doesn’t. Whatever happened earlier, his enthusiasm for teaching me sizzled out. I join Lori in the library instead, eager to hear her take on the last two weeks and apologize for leaving without saying goodbye.

The next day, I wake up with a strange feeling in my heart. A sense of impending doom. After my morning run, I head to breakfast, but Lori, Mara, and James are impossible to find. So, I grab a bite to eat—alone—and wonder for a moment if I’m truly awake.

A low thump, thump, thump pulls me out of my reverie, and I search for the source of the pounding. Faint footsteps echo in my ears, and I follow them to the other end of the balcony, away from the buffet and library. A tight corner around the castle stone walls opens to a round staircase that descends into a small, secluded section of the interior courtyard.