Another week passed in hazy te summer days, filled with the hum of locusts and the scent of Lady Reedsley’s flowers blooming in wild abundance. Honestly, Pandy wasn’t even sure all of the flowers she saw were supposed to bloom at the same time – or that they were all ‘real’ flowers at all – but when the rich perfume filled her nose, it was difficult to care.

  Once or twice during those peaceful days, Pandy thought Thaniel would try to talk to her, usually around bedtime. The first night, he didn’t pce Pandy in his bed like he usually did, but in the middle of the night, he woke, reaching for her, and after that there was no more hesitation. They returned to the way things had been since Pandy arrived, though with a subtle sort of distance created by all the words Thaniel refused to speak, and Pandy couldn’t.

  Thaniel had received a whole new wardrobe from the guests who’d come for his birthday party, along with all of the books and supplies he would need for a year of school. Since the assets of the Dunning estate were still being held until a legal guardian was appointed for Thaniel and Lian, Captain Reedsley sent for Thaniel’s personal items, but Thaniel couldn’t pay him back for anything he or Lady Reedsley bought. Pandy heard them talking and knew they’d debated how to afford new things for Thaniel, until Lady Reedsley nded upon the idea of opening the birthday party to all their friends.

  As the sun set on the eighth day after the party, Thaniel, Geraldine, and the two pets came in from their newest ‘secret’ hideaway. The wild roses had been abandoned, along with tea parties, after Captain Reedsley read the children a few chapters of Wayward Pirate Pete, which was about a boy of around ten years old who ran away to become a pirate, but wasn’t very good at it because he was too nice. Several chapters of this book were scattered throughout Gacha Love, so Pandy had read most of it before, but Captain Reedsley brought it to life with his booming soldier’s voice.

  Now, the children spent most of their time talking about foc’s’les and poop decks, leaving the house at ‘first bell’ and not returning until they grew too tired to continue battling imaginary elementals with wooden swords. They hid treasure in the branches of trees and attempted to build boats that would float on the shallow, meandering trickle of water they optimistically called a river. Each night was spent in cheerful chatter as they pnned out the next day’s adventures, and the two children were already deep in discussion of how they would rescue hostages Bunny and Miss Cupcakes on the morrow.

  They stopped abruptly, however, upon seeing a carriage sitting in front of the house. This was no normal carriage, such as Lady Reedsley might ride into town, or Cra might take to a friend’s house. No, this was tall and proud, cquered in deep blue with what looked like real gold trim around the windows and roof. By far the most astonishing thing, however, were the pair of blue steeds harnessed to the front of it. These creatures had soft blue fur, tails and manes like white clouds, and deep gray eyes. Thanks to Gacha Love, Pandy knew what they were, and what the emblem on the carriage door meant, but it was obvious from the gobsmacked expressions on the children’s faces that they had no idea what was going on.

  The two elementals-that-looked-like-horses turned to eye Thaniel and Geraldine, who stared back, mouths agape, until the front door of the house was flung wide and Lady Reedsley hurried out. Or rather, Lady Reedsley’s dress hurried out, carrying inside it a small and somewhat pale Lady Reedsley, who had obviously decided the occasion called for her Best Clothes, the skirt of which would make an excellent circus tent.

  “There you are!” She hefted her skirts with a small grunt, hurrying down the steps toward the children. Normally, Lady Reedsley was quite forbearing, seeming to be one of those parents who understood that children should have the opportunity to be children, so long as they did it as far from adults as possible. Today, however, she plucked twigs from Geraldine’s curls, and attempted to straighten Thaniel’s stained shirt – which had been new only a week ago – all with a look of Great Concern. “We have guests, so you need to run up to your rooms and change as quickly as possible,” she said briskly.

  Thaniel gnced again at the ‘horses’, who were actually Cloudmane elementals, and dawning hope brightened his expression until it was almost too brilliant to bear. “Is Lian back?”

  Lady Reedsley clicked her tongue, turning to Dalton, who was standing behind her, his face as impcable as ever. “He is, but he’s brought-”

  She pushed Geraldine into Dalton’s hands, but she was too te to catch Thaniel. The boy ducked down, using the width of Lady Reedsley’s skirts to keep him out of the woman’s grasp, and darted up the stairs and through the open door. Pandy and Miss Cupcakes exchanged gnces before Pandy followed the boy as the kitten slunk forward to wrap herself around Lady Reedsley’s ankles, vanishing beneath the vast and gaudy skirts.

  Thaniel first went to the conservatory, but found the room empty of all but greenery. Lady Reedsley called after him, and half a dozen servants appeared, looking as pale and over-polished as their mistress. Hands reached for the boy, but he deftly dodged them all, at st throwing open the door of the library, where he came face to face with his brother, at st.

  “Lian!” Thaniel cried, unching his small, dirty form into the awkward embrace of the young proto-vilin, who patted his younger brother’s head uncomfortably before setting him away. Pandy, who had entered close on Thaniel’s heels, did notice that Lian continued to rest one hand on Thaniel’s shoulder, as if reassuring himself that his little brother really was there and well.

  “Ah, Nathaniel,” Lian said, turning the boy toward the other occupants of the room. “Your Majesty, may I make known to you my younger brother, Nathaniel Conroy. Nathaniel, this is the Queen Regent Louisa Aeris.”

  An ethereally lovely dy stepped forward, her blonde hair piled high beneath a delicate silver crown. Her splendid dress was made of rich blue silk, which matched her eyes, with silver ce and tiny bells that tinkled as she moved. Small wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and a few strands of silver in her golden hair were the only indications that she was the same age as Lord and Lady Reedsley.

  Holding out a gloved hand, the queen smiled down at Thaniel. “I’m delighted to meet you, Nathaniel. Your brother has been most anxious to get back to you. In fact, I was taking my own daughter, Eleanor, to Falconet, and thought I might offer Lord Killian a ride, since my Cloudmane steeds can carry us so much more quickly than normal horses.”

  At the mention of her name, a little girl poked her head out from behind her mother’s skirts. The girl had hair as pale as Thaniel’s, but it was utterly straight, flowing down like a gleaming waterfall from the top of her head. Her eyes were a silvery gray that nearly matched those of the Cloudmanes outside, and were far too serious for her young age. She offered Thaniel a deep, perfect curtsey, spreading the knee-length skirts of a dress that was a simplified version of her mother’s.

  “Pleased to meet you,” Eleanor murmured, and Thaniel managed a credible bow to both mother and daughter.

  “I’m…very pl- honored to meet you, Your Majesty Regent, and, um, your Highness,” the boy stammered, and Pandy wondered if she’d imagined the corners of the woman’s mouth pinching momentarily at the word ‘Regent’.

  “Ma’am will do, Nathaniel,” the queen said, her kind smile belying that instant of irritation. “And once you’re at school, you should call Eleanor by name, since all the students are supposed to be treated as equals.” Pandy didn’t miss that ‘once you’re at school,’ and wondered what Thaniel was supposed to call the princess right now. ‘Hey, you’ was probably out of the question.

  The queen’s blue gaze touched on Pandy, who was hunkered down beside Thaniel’s drooping socks, and another small smile touched her lips. “Augustus? Is this the rabbit you want Us to bend the rules for?” The capital U on the word ‘Us’ was very loud, and Pandy was startled to realize that there were other people in the room. The queen’s presence was so magnetic that Pandy didn’t think she’d looked away since seeing the woman.

  Now, however, two men approached, coming from behind a set of stand-alone bookshelves that were carved from rich walnut but had seen many years of use, reducing their original shine to an aged luster. One of the men was Lord Captain Reedsley, who wore his best uniform, with the stiff colr done all the way up. The other was the oddly familiar man who had come to fetch Lian in the first pce.

  This man wore a neat but not particurly vish-looking suit, made of a gray fabric that matched the color of his eyes. His hair was combed back in a rather severe style, and a pair of small, gold-rimmed gsses perched on the end of his imposing nose.

  “Indeed, ma’am,” he said in a baritone that Pandy really should have remembered, but hadn’t. “I believe Miss Geraldine has a kitten, as well, and of course Princess Eleanor has her young hound. We have a few other students who have special pets, and it’s not like the campus isn’t set up to accommodate animals, even if those animals are usually special in a rather different way. So long as all the creatures are well-behaved, I see no reason they can’t join us on at least a temporary basis. First-year students are often lonely, and I believe having pets to care for may help alleviate their discomfort.”

  The queen seemed unconvinced, but Eleanor reached out and id a cautious hand on her mother’s skirt. “I’d like it if Winston could live with me, Mother. I promise to do very well in all my csses if he may.” Pandy would have staggered beneath the force of that pleading voice and the limpid gray eyes, but the queen was made of sterner stuff. She patted her daughter’s hand, then turned back to Thaniel.

  “And is your pet well-behaved, Nathaniel? I admit I’m pleasantly surprised to see it remaining by your side without need for a leash, but the only rabbits I’m used to seeing are on a ptter. Can such a creature be depended upon not to wander off or chew up your books?” the queen asked.

  Thaniel was obviously lost, but he leaned down and picked up Pandy, snuggling her beneath his chin. She, for her part, attempted to look as vapid and bunny-like as possible, blinking her long white shes as she took deliberate breaths and made sure to wiggle her nose.

  “Bunny’s the very best rabbit,” Thaniel said loyally, almost forgetting to add, “ma’am. She never eats anything I don’t give her.” Not quite true. There was that one time Thaniel sat down in a creampuff, and Pandy hadn’t even been aware she was chewing a hole in his pants because they were so delicious.

  “I see,” the queen said, but she gave a single nod before turning back to Augustus. “All right. Who could resist such sweet faces? But if any of the parents protest, you are the one who will deal with them, Augustus. And this is on a trial basis only. At the end of the first quarter, we will reassess the question.”

  “Of course,” Augustus said, bowing slightly. “Thank you, ma’am. I’ll let the other families know.”

  Queen Regent Louisa absently patted her daughter on the head, visibly dismissing Thaniel and Pandy. Looking around she said, “Captain Reedsley, is your daughter not here? I thought it would be nice for Eleanor to meet her before school starts.”

  Now Pandy was as confused as Thaniel. Geraldine wasn’t going to Falconet. The whole premise of the original game was that the Reedsleys could only afford to send their daughters to the st of the three expensive noble schools, which is why Cra didn’t know anyone when she started at Condor. Pandy certainly hadn’t heard anything to indicate that had changed, and in fact Lady Reedsley had been menting the fact that Cra wouldn’t be starting at Kestrel this year. It wasn’t unusual for noble parents who didn’t live in the city of Knightmere to hire in-home tutors for the first three years of school. Six really was terribly young to send children away to school, but attending Condor and preferably Kestrel as well was considered something of a requirement for social and political advancement.

  Captain Reedsley didn’t deny it, however, instead gncing at Augustus before nodding. “I’m sure Alice is getting Geraldine ready now. As you can see from Than- Nathaniel’s attire, the children were out pying.”

  “And your older daughter?” the queen asked, gncing at Captain Reedsley through her golden shes. “Cra, was it? Will they see her at Kestrel this year? I hear she’s a Light mage, and we can always use more Light in the capital.” Her ughter was like bells, but neither of the men seemed to want to join in.

  “We hired an excellent tutor for her,” Captain Reedsley said stiffly. “She’s a very bright young dy, and we hope to-”

  The door opened behind Lian, Thaniel, and Pandy, allowing Lady Alice and Geraldine into the room. The library was quite rge, but there were suddenly more skirts than floor space, and Lady Alice pulled her daughter back so their dresses didn’t touch the queen or the princess.

  Both newcomers swept deep curtsies, though Geraldine bobbled slightly on the way up, making her freckled cheeks flush a deep, unbecoming red. The girl was introduced to the visitors, and then Lady Alice and Captain Reedsley smiled stiffly at their daughter.

  “Geraldine, darling,” Lady Alice said, “we must congratute you. It has been decided that you shall go to Falconet this year after all.”