Nona wakes cold, still dressed, after having fallen asleep from exhaustion the night before. In remembered fragments, Camilla had not questioned Nona closely about the broadcast, while Palamedes had focused on Pyrrha’s disappearance and realized that Pyrrha may have gone toward the shuttle before the news spread. Nona wakes alone for the first time without the usual dream-recording routine, though Camilla is nearby making breakfast.

When Camilla tells Nona to record her dream, Nona accidentally plays an old recording instead. Nona hears Camilla and Palamedes discussing why Blood of Eden wants Harrowhark, whether the Resurrection Beast is central to their plans, and whether Nona might be a completed soul merger. The recording also reveals the strain and devotion between Camilla and Palamedes as Palamedes fears consuming Camilla’s life by sharing her body. Camilla catches Nona listening but does not punish her.

Over breakfast, Camilla says Pyrrha has been gone nearly twenty-four hours and that they must search for her. Because Pyrrha left her guns behind, Camilla concludes Pyrrha did not intend a long absence, and Camilla decides they will go to the spaceport. Nona asks to stop at school first to check on the Angel and her friends, and Camilla agrees, warning Nona that afterward there may be no more school or seeing her friends.

On the way to school, Nona notices the city’s tension, armed militia, and people moving supplies. At school, Nona reunites with Honesty, Beautiful Ruby, Kevin, Hot Sauce, the Angel, and Noodle. The Angel tells the class that normal school cannot continue for long, then teaches practical survival: which parts of the city to avoid, where to flee, how to prioritize water, and why the arrival of a Lyctor and possible shelling make the situation dangerous. The Angel also reveals she was born on Lemuria, where ecological collapse, House withdrawal, Blood of Eden, violence, and resettlement shaped her fear of necromancers.

After the power cuts and the school generator starts, the Angel ends school and has the children take food home. Nona gives the Angel the class drawings, but the Angel is visibly shocked by Nona’s drawing and hides the reaction. Outside, Hot Sauce gathers the gang, names an emergency hideout beyond the city, and leads them in a pledge to protect one another forever. Born in the Morning arrives late after his fathers join up, so the gang repeats the pledge with him and parts in better spirits.

After the others leave, Nona and Hot Sauce return upstairs. Nona is relieved Born in the Morning came, but Hot Sauce says they may not have him properly until his fathers are dead, because Edenites go through people quickly. The remark darkens Nona’s brief happiness and underscores the danger now closing around the children.