“Dad, this is Jude! He’s my friend.” She holds Peony’s hand, never venturing far from either of her dads’ sides. She knows in her heart that they might not be real-- that this whole thing might end if and when the mist goes away. But for now? She wants to enjoy being here with them as long as she can. She hasn’t been this happy in so long.

“He’s a doctor,” she says. “Um, not like a necromancer kind, but a healer kind! He helped me once when I fell off a library shelf.” She isn’t worried about her dads scolding her about that-- they know how she is.