Rafal glanced down and saw Aric in her sightline. The young School Master stopped smiling. “How did class go?”

Sophie noticed Hort over his shoulder, as Beatrix flirted with him in a corner.

“Sophie?”

“Mmm?”

Rafal caught her glancing at Hort. Sophie instantly looked back at Rafal. “Oh! Lovely! Class was just lovely,” she blithered.

The School Master frowned. “Look, I have to go in, but I’ll see you at lunch. We have a private spot on the balcony—”

But now Sophie was staring at Reena and Ravan as they walked by, both wearing white swan pins that said “Bring Good Back!” with Tedros’ handsome face painted on them. The prince was painted so heroically, so dashingly, that Sophie’s heart ignited—

Rafal spun and the two kids’ pins instantly reverted to black swans with Rafal’s young face and the words “Evil Rules!” He narrowed his eyes and turned to Sophie.

“You seem distracted,” he said icily.

“Me? No, no—” Sophie forced a cough. “Just tired. You know, still recovering from being sick . . .”

Rafal’s gem-blue eyes sliced into hers, as if shaking down her soul, and Sophie’s stomach twisted. She kissed him on the cheek, squeezing his arm. “I’ll see you at lunch, okay?”

Rafal searched her face a long moment . . . then softened. “Don’t be late. I’ll be waiting for you.” He touched his cold fingers to her lips.

Sophie watched him head into his classroom, making sure to give him a bright smile and wave as he went inside . . .

The moment his door closed, she took off like a hare, scampering straight out of Hansel’s Haven, desperately in need of a place to think.

Rafal was right. She was distracted, suddenly unable to pay attention to her one true love, the true love whose ring she was wearing, the true love she’d fought her whole story to find. And she was distracted by the same thing that had distracted her from the day she was born—

Boys.

Too many boys.

Sophie shut the frosted door behind her and stood in cold, gray sunshine on the roof of the old Honor Tower. Slouching against black glass, she looked out at the Endless Woods beyond the slimy green bay, hidden beneath weakly lit skies that made morning look like dusk. With a deep breath, she pulled herself up and headed towards Merlin’s Menagerie, the topiary tribute to King Arthur that had always been her and Agatha’s favorite spot to think—

Her eyes widened.

The hedges of the menagerie no longer reflected King Arthur’s story—but his son’s instead. Sophie moved through the garden, taking in scenes of barechested Tedros meeting Agatha for the first time, Tedros asking Agatha to the Evers Snow Ball, Tedros rescuing thorn-gashed Agatha from the Endless Woods . . .

Why would the School for Evil celebrate a Good love story? she thought, studying Agatha in Tedros’ arms. Old pangs of jealousy stirred and she tried to hold them down, reminding herself that Tedros wasn’t her true love anymore. He was Agatha’s. Like Rafal is mine.