After leaving Kamran, Alizeh pauses in the crowded streets of Setar and absorbs the life of the city, knowing that after the ball she will either escape or be forced to flee. The sights of families, food stalls, music, and children intensify Alizeh’s grief over her loneliness, but also strengthen Alizeh’s resolve to survive with only her own will and skill.

Alizeh tries to plan for the ball with almost no money. Because Miss Huda has not paid an advance and Alizeh has only two coppers, Alizeh considers remaking one of her worn dresses into something acceptable enough to avoid attention. Alizeh decides she also needs to remove her conspicuous bandages before the evening and reluctantly returns to Deen’s apothecary despite the awkwardness of their last conversation.

While Deen unwraps Alizeh’s injuries, Alizeh reflects on her impossible position as a Jinn queen without a kingdom. Alizeh remembers her mother explaining that the Arya mountains’ magic can be unlocked only if five loyal subjects are willing to die for Alizeh, a requirement Alizeh finds brutal and nearly unimaginable. Alizeh also considers the Fire Accords, concluding that King Zaal’s supposed mercy toward Jinn was a strategic act that absorbed Jinn into Ardunia’s armies while stripping them of power and safety.

Deen discovers that Alizeh’s wounds have healed with unnatural speed. Alizeh confirms that such healing is rare among Jinn and realizes that her body may possess more strength than Alizeh understood. Deen charges Alizeh nothing, then reveals that a tall man with vivid blue eyes came earlier and paid Deen to wait for Alizeh and give Alizeh a parcel.

Alizeh fears the mysterious gift, then reasons that Kamran could not have delivered it because Kamran was at Baz House at the time, while Hazan does not match Deen’s description. Inside the pale yellow box, Alizeh finds a perfect pale lavender gown for the ball. Deen gently assumes the gift may bring Alizeh happiness and confesses that Deen, too, knows what it means to hide his true self; Alizeh responds with sympathy, and the two part with a fragile sense of kinship.

After leaving the apothecary, Alizeh remembers the enclosed card and reads it in the street. The note instructs Alizeh to wear the gown that night and promises that Alizeh will be “seen only by those who wish you well,” suggesting the gift may protect or conceal Alizeh at the ball.