I wrote almost all of this back in April, around the time I was working on chapter 21. I worked on this chapter and the next simultaneously but finished Don't Stop Dancing first on April 12th.

This chapter might be considered too personal for some readers due to the implications of acetaminophen poisoning. Because of this, this chapter has a trigger warning for drug overdosing and substance abuse. I'll be the first to admit that, while the symptoms here are a bit exaggerated and expedited for the story, they are real signs of acetaminophen poisoning. Read at your own risk.

Thank you for reading.

She didn't have time to get a stupid cold now. At least five different things needed attention for the play, which included final set designs, a costume overview, making sure that the actors were well along in learning their lines, and a talk with whoever was in charge of making the posters because they were awful. As Skuld looked over the fine details, she made a reach for her cold medicine bottle and started to unscrew the top.

Skuld let out a grimace as she started to measure out the dose. This cold had to be nipped in the bud fast, and so she made some liberty on adding a bit more to the dosage. It's not like it would hurt anything. Now, back to business. Skuld got her phone out and started to dial the first number she needed.

"Hello, Missy? Hey, this is Skuld, director for the school play, I was wondering how you were doing with the costumes?"

As Missy gave her answer, Skuld turned on her computer so she could check her emails.

"Do you need any alterations? I hear that Kris had a hard time with their costume..."

Skuld was skim reading her messages now. She opened up an email from a student in charge of lighting, Winston, who wanted to know if the school had any extra light bulbs somewhere. Why was he asking her and not Mr. Snoops?

"Yes, I'll see if I can get in contact with Olive. I can't believe she didn't tell me that earlier. Yeah. Thanks for letting me know."

Giving a sigh, Skuld then went to open a new email. It became incredibly frustrating when her fingers refused to type the right words- she was usually a pretty reliable typist, but now she kept messing up. A sharp pain on the right of her head made Skuld flinch.

"I don't have time for this..." she bitterly grumbled as she dug through her desk drawers for the bottle of pain killers. She popped one in her mouth and swallowed it without water.

There was also the meeting for the Dandelions later. What was it that Ephemer said they would discuss next? She couldn't remember. She didn't have time to remember. Skuld bit her lip as she finished off the email; her foot rapidly tapping against the floor while she thought about the Dandelions. Why did Ava think that she would be a good fit? She could barely juggle her life enough as it was, how was she going to get all of this stuff done?

Wait… Did she send the costume question to Olive or Winston? Cursing, Skuld checked the sent messages folder and let out a sigh of relief. She sent it to Olive, good. But Winston still needed an answer. As Skuld started to type up that email, she coughed. It hurt too. The girl paused for a moment, looking over at the cold medicine bottle and giving it a small blink. Had she already taken a dose already, or did she imagine it? Finding that she didn't remember, Skuld reached for the bottle anyway and poured out a new dose.

Skuld shuddered as the medicine went down. With it came the very sudden reminder that she needed to contact Mr. Snoops for Winston. And also the Dandelion meeting. And, oh wow, now her abdomen was starting to bug her too- there was such a sharp pain that it almost made her flinch. Weary, she looked back at her computer screen. None of the words made any sense; she could barely make out the most simple of sentences without squinting.

Then something seemed to click in Skuld's mind. Something wasn't right. Skuld started to get up and immediately felt her knees start to buckle from under her. A harsh dizziness came over her as she tried to move forward. Her feet felt like they were made of lead instead- she couldn't move without a tremendous amount of effort.

Skuld's heart started to pump in overtime while her vision started to blur even further. Something really, really wasn't right. She didn't know how or why, but it was all terrifying just the same. Her mind and heart raced as the rest of her refused to move. She had to… had to...

"Skuld?" Anora's soft voice all but whispered through the door. "Ephemer sent me. Are you alright?"

Skuld turned her head (too fast, the room was spinning now) and she tried to will herself to move.

"Anora..." Skuld weakly muttered as her knees gave out from under her. After that, Skuld felt nothing.

. . .

Anora had never been in the other dorms before. Not that she ever really had a reason to before now. As far as she knew, students of the same gender could visit their friends in their respective dorms, but it wasn't that common either. It didn't stop her from nervously looking down the hallway to make sure no one would question why she was here. Would anyone even recognize her from being in Vulpes?

Glancing back down at the paper with Skuld's dorm number on it, Anora nervously knocked on the door. There wasn't an answer so Anora knocked again.

"Skuld?" she said through the door, quiet but loud enough to be heard, "Ephemer sent me. Are you alright?"

For a moment, Anora was sure she heard Skuld say something before hearing something hit the floor. Anora's heart suddenly jumped as she once more knocked on the door.

"Skuld? Are you alright? Skuld?!"

Hating the awful pit that was growing in her stomach, Anora bit her lip as she tried to open Skuld's door. The door complied easily and allowed her quick access. Anora took a brave step forward and once more asked, "Skuld, are you-" before cutting herself off.

There on the floor was Skuld, unconscious.

"Skuld!" Anora immediately reacted, rushing over to her friend. "Skuld, are you okay? Skuld?! Skuld!"

Frantic now, Anora looked around the room for anything useful. Sitting on Skuld's desk was a flip phone; Anora let out a squeak of surprise before she went to get it. The girl quickly went to the contacts and found the one labeled 'Ephemer.' As the phone dialed, Anora started to pace around the room; occasionally taking a look back at Skuld.

"Skuld?" Ephemer's genuinely relieved voice said from over the phone. On any other occasion, hearing it would have made Anora smile. "Oh thank goodness! I've been trying to g-"

"She's not responding."

A stunned silence came from the other end of the phone. Anora pressed the phone closer to her ear as Ephemer made several sounds of trying to force himself to say something. Eventually, he let out a soft, "What?" despite being completely horrified.

"I..." Anora started, now feeling like she was about to cry, "I went to Skuld's dorm and heard something fall. So I… so I went into her room. She's on the floor, and she's not responding, but she's breathing. But it… it just doesn't look..."

"Anora," Ephemer then told her- his initial shock becoming something more defensive, "Get off the phone and call the ambulance. I'll get Gula."

"But-"

"Just do it!" and with that, the phone clicked and the line went dead. For a moment, Anora looked at the phone as if she had never seen one before. She didn't even quite register what she was doing as she pressed 9-1-1 into the phone.

"Hello?" the operator on the other end answered.

"M-my name is Anora Ravishta and I'm a student at Daybreak Academy. I'm in the Leopardus girls' dorms with my friend Skuld Niyati. She's fainted and isn't waking up. She's breathing but it… it's labored, I think."

"Alright Anora, I'm going to send an ambulance to your location. In the mean time, can you stay on the phone with me and tell me in detail what happened?"

Anora gave a nod despite the operator not seeing it. She looked back at Skuld and felt her face pale. Skuld was no longer breathing.