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I was just happy to let the food distract me before my worry for Coen could gnaw a hole in my stomach. He’d been in the Uninhabitable Zone for a whole day, and there was still no word. More than ever before, I wished we could share a connection like Nara and Barberro did, something that could stretch over any distance or magical shield.

Mentally throwing a shoe at his head would be nice right about now.

“Okay, Rayna, I take back every bad thing I’ve ever said about you,” Willa practically moaned as she ogled the cassava cake. As soon as I sat down on my bed, she scurried onto my lap so that she could pick at the crumbs on the tray.

I blinked at her. “I’ve never heard you say anything bad about me.”

Felicity clambered up beside me, too. “Don’t take it personally, Raynie, mice will complain about anything. I mean, just this morning she told me I take up too much space in here.”

“Can you blame me?” Willa’s cheeks were already bulging, her voice muffled. “Your tail was literally in my face!”

“I wish I had a tail to hit people in the face with,” Wren mused as she sprawled across Emelle’s bed with a palm-sized cake in each hand. “That would be so badass.”

Emelle shrugged and stole one from her. “You could if you were a Shifter. I’ve seen Lander with a tail during—”

“Do not finish that sentence,” Wren warned.

“No, please do,” I urged. It had been months since I’d experienced anything intimate myself, months since I’d felt Coen’s mouth on my… wait, no. Now wasn’t the time to reimagine that night in the lighthouse, the last night we’d had together before Queen Mydusia’s command had ripped him away from me again.

Pushing down my frustrations, I ripped off a piece of cake and took a bite, savoring the rich, coconutty taste that practically melted onto my tongue and nodding encouragingly at Emelle—who shook her head with a laugh.

“I was referring to activities on the pentaball field, not activities in bed.”

“Oh, are we talking about sex?” a new voice exclaimed.

We all turned to find Mitzi and Cilia barging into the room, their eyes immediately drawn to the small feast spread over our beds and bedside tables.

Mitzi plopped herself down and snatched a fried plantain, popping it into her mouth. “Because Cilia has a story for you, if so.”

“That was one time.” Cilia grabbed a handful of cashews, settling into a cross-legged position on the floor in front of her bed, and groaned as if we’d heckled her into it. “Ugh. Fine. So she was an Object Summoner…”

Two minutes later, I was covering Felicity’s ears as we all burst into laughter. The pit in my stomach was now filled with cake, yet I felt marginally lighter than I had in Ms. Pincette’s class. I was just wishing the distraction could last all night—or at least until I heard from Coen—when Cilia sighed at the ceiling.

“You know, that Object Summoner actually invited us to her party tonight. Does anyone want to go?”

Mitzi raised her hand. “You know I do.”

“Sorry,” Melle said with a grimace, placing a hand on her lower belly. “I already told Lander I just want to curl in for the night.”

“Yeah, I’m definitely good,” Wren said. “I’ve had enough social interactions for one day. I hit my limit the second a caiman told me my nose ring makes my ‘snout’ look large. As if it had any room to talk.”

When every head turned toward me, I hesitated… which spurred Felicity into immediate action.

“Oh, Raynie, say yes! I have the perfect outfit for you to wear tonight.” She pulled open my drawers and yanked out the piece on top, one I’d never seen before: a dress with a keyhole neckline and golden, petal-shaped designs woven into the fabric.

“It’s beautiful, Felicity,” I breathed. “I really don’t know how you do this.”

“Lots of chaos in this once-peaceful room while you’re in class,” Willa grumbled from my lap. “That’s how she does it.”

Felicity looked affronted. “What else am I supposed to do during the day?”

“Um, I don’t know.” Willa pretended to think, whiskers twitching. “Maybe go outside like a normal monkey?”

“Oh, you want me to act like a normal monkey now?” Felicity flashed a would-be-sweet smile. “Normal monkeys eat mice, by the way.”

“Liar.”

“Sourpuss.”