As Happy As We Can Be

Two and a half years earlier at the Celeste Estate, Tessa waits with Lange for Dex to return with food, exposing her reliance on Dex’s quiet care and the lingering effects of punishments from Mother Cordelia. Dex arrives with Corbin, a new transfer predicted for water, and introduces him to Tessa and Lange. Tessa, ravenous after a night locked in the cellar, bristles at Dex’s absence, highlighting her fear of being alone and Dex’s role as protector and fixer.

As the group talks, their dynamics surface: Lange’s teasing boldness, Dex’s caution, and Corbin’s rule-consciousness. They debate leaving the estate for Arobell despite needing passes, signaling their habit of small rebellions to cope with control at the estate. Oralia rushes in with donuts, easing Tessa’s hunger while reinforcing the group’s caretaking web.

Oralia then reveals the next assessment has been moved up to the following week, jolting everyone. The news triggers Tessa’s memory of a previous assessment: a claustrophobic vision in underground tunnels, combat with shadowed foes, fangs at her throat, and a violet-eyed woman declaring, “Not yet,” while placing a hand over Tessa’s heart to delay chaos and death. Tessa had awakened bloodied, proof of the assessments’ brutality.

Corbin hopes to avoid another test so soon, but Lange’s experience shows new arrivals are retested quickly. Tessa senses something stirring within, while Dex and Oralia exchange worried looks, implying withheld knowledge. Choosing defiance over despair, Tessa, Lange, Dex, Oralia, and Corbin link up and cross the wards to seek fleeting happiness beyond the estate’s control.