Bree wakes feeling clear but shaken by the previous night’s manifestation of bloodred mage flame. She reviews her growing list of unusual abilities, including Sight, resistance to mesmer, and influence over Oaths, and decides that letting anyone see aether pour from her skin must become an absolute rule.

Alice has charged Bree’s phone and brought breakfast, but the uneasy peace between them is tested when Bree’s father calls. He knows about Bree’s late nights and supposed party because Alice has been updating him. Bree resents Alice’s interference, but Alice explains that Bree scared her, and Bree hides the truth by describing Nick and the Order as a wealthy, invitation-only student group.

Bree’s father decides he has given Bree too much space since her mother’s death and orders her into counseling or else home. Bree initially refuses, then changes course when she learns the counselor, Dr. Patricia Hartwood, is a Black woman who attended Carolina at the same time as Bree’s mother. Bree hopes Dr. Hartwood may know something about how Bree’s mother drew the Order’s attention.

After Alice leaves, Bree checks Nick’s missed calls, voicemail, and texts. Nick was worried about Bree and urges her to forfeit from the tournament because the chapter’s situation is worse than he realized, promising to investigate Bree’s mother himself. Bree refuses to quit, and Nick arranges for Bree to come early before the Lodge dinner so they can speak privately.

Later, Dr. Hartwood texts Bree and arranges to meet at the Arboretum. Bree arrives early and finds the Unsung Founders Memorial, a table held up by bronze figures representing enslaved Black people and servants who built Carolina. Bree sees pale yellow mage flame gathering there, recognizes the memorial’s painful symbolism, and privately resolves to ask Nick why aether would collect in that place.

Dr. Hartwood introduces herself, and Bree feels an immediate sense of warmth and familiarity with her. During their first session, Dr. Hartwood discusses Alice, confidentiality, and Bree’s mother, whom Dr. Hartwood says she knew and liked. The session takes a startling turn when Dr. Hartwood says the gardens are abundant with root energy and asks whether Bree is a Wildcrafter like her mother.