Summary: The Grand Council votes to name Mateo the Royal Wizard of Avalor, and Elena brings Naomi along to give him the news. Mateo handles this well, until he doesn't.

Naomi learned pretty quickly that the Grand Council was not going to be nearly as exciting as her first few weeks had led her to believe. As it turned out, it wasn't all meeting kings and rock not-monsters; most of it was dull, logistical discussions of economic policy and legal minutiae. It was all far out of her depth, and she spent most of the meetings feeling lost and exhausted, and unsure of what her own job responsibilities actually were.

The last week's inglorious topic of choice had been the palace staff. Expelling Shuriki's more staunch supporters from their ranks was an ongoing task, with new ones popping up like weeds each time they thought they were done. Even if they hadn't needed to flush half the guard, the former queen had kept much of her personnel understaffed and overworked. But after a week's worth of reviewing headcounts and salaries, it seemed like the end was finally in sight.

Her elbow was propped up on the table, her chin resting in her palm. She was trying desperately hard to not look bored, but she'd felt her brain check out some twenty minutes ago as Esteban started going down the list of still-empty staff positions for the upteenth time. Her leg bounced under the table and her eyes were locked on a portrait on the far wall like it was especially interesting, like she hadn't seen it every day since her appointment.

"We are back up to full in the kitchens and gardens, though I recommend we hire a few more maids to help with straightening out the rooms left unused during Shuriki's rule." He was pacing at the side of the room, clutching his agenda in one hand and stroking his goatee with the other. "Of course, with how long it has taken us to get to this point, I suspect any more hires may delay finalizing our annual budget until next month."

Naomi wanted to scream. It had been his fault the staff reorganization had taken so long. In fact, it was his fault that the Grand Council meetings tended to drag on in general. He was contrarian for the sake of it; he argued against every point Elena raised regardless of the value of the final decision, and regardless of if he could change anyone's minds. Sometimes he would make a valid critique—Elena seemed to routinely forget that there was only one of her and that she couldn't personally handle every city project, and Esteban was more than happy to remind her—but most often his cases were inane time wasters, like criticizing choices in tablecloth colors and flower arrangements. If Naomi didn't know any better, she'd think he was just trying to wear everyone down enough to let him do things his way without question.

Elena looked equally ready for the meeting to be over. She wore a polite smile and kept her hands folded neatly on the table, but the rigid line of her shoulders and the way she tapped her thumbs together exuded a nervous energy that spoke of someone with something to say. If she still had Isabel's swivel chair, she'd be spinning in it for sure.

Esteban was finally nearing the end of his monologue. Something about a handyman slid past Naomi's ears before she latched onto the phrase she'd been waiting for forever. "...Otherwise, all of our remaining staff positions have been filled."

Heaving a sigh of exhausted relief, Naomi turned to Elena, ready for her to adjourn the meeting.

Except then she didn't. "Actually, Esteban, there's one more staff position we haven't discussed yet."

Naomi bit back a groan. She had to be kidding.

"I am quite sure my list was thorough," Esteban said as he returned to his chair, and for once, Naomi found herself silently agreeing with him. "What are you proposing I missed?"

Elena smiled. "The Royal Wizard, of course!"

Ah, so that was it. Esteban bobbed his head in a reluctant concession, and Luisa and Francisco sat up more alertly, having gone a bit glassy-eyed themselves during their grandson's speech.

"It wasn't the highest priority to get this sorted out right away, but now that all the essential positions are taken care of, I think it's fair to discuss." She looked proud, her chin jutting out and her shoulders squared. "And since it's an appointed position, I would like to formally recommend Mateo de Alva for the job."

…Mateo?

From Naomi's understanding, Avalor was a bit lacking in magical options, but Mateo seemed awfully inexperienced for such a high-profile position. She'd never personally met the court mage of any other kingdoms she'd lived in, but she'd gotten enough hearsay to piece together a unified picture of what one would look like: old, wizened, self-assured and uniquely powerful. Mateo wasn't exactly any of the above. She'd thus far seen him one: fix a window, and two: knock over some noblins, and he could barely even keep a grip on his wand most of the time.

It wasn't that she had a particular objection to him, it just seemed odd that Elena had put his name forward so wholeheartedly. Maybe there really just weren't any other candidates. She leaned back in her seat, settling in for the long-haul. It should have been a quick vote, but Esteban would surely have things to say about it.

True to form, he twirled his mustache, staring down the bridge of his nose with an impassive, thoughtful frown. "Hm, yes, he would be the most suitable for the job. I could not agree more."

Naomi blinked. Wait, what?

"What a wonderful idea, mija," Luisa said. "I'm sure he will do a great job."

Francisco nodded along as well. "If he's anything like his abuelo, he certainly will."

Naomi snapped her head between the other councilors, willing her brain to catch up. It felt like she'd skipped ahead, like she'd somehow slept through the entire discussion.

Elena's bright smile rivaled the light pouring through the windows behind her. "Then I'll call the vote! All those in favor?" Her own hand shot up, and the others' were starting to uncurl from their sides when Naomi finally found her voice.

"Wait, wait, wait! Hang on—" All eyes were suddenly on her, but she was far too confused to feel self-conscious. "You mean my classmate Mateo, right? The guy that got his wand stolen by noblins on your first day?" She searched their faces for an explanation. "Are we thinking of the same Mateo?"

Elena chuckled, folding her arms on the table. "Do you know any other Mateos?"

"Do you know any other wizards?" Francisco tacked on. "There are only so many people we could appoint to this position."

"But even if there were more," Luisa cut in, shooting her husband a stern glance before softening her voice, "Mateo would still be an excellent choice."

Another chorus of agreement circled the room. Naomi looked around frantically, feeling like there was a joke she hadn't heard.

"Naomi, you went to school with him, right?" Elena asked. "Can you think of any reason we wouldn't want to appoint him?"

"I'm not really trying to argue against him," she explained. Why were they leaving this up to her? "I've just barely seen him do any actual magic."

Across the table, Esteban laughed, a harsh, taunting sound. "Surely you, Miss Turner, do not mean to suggest you take issue with his qualifications."

He watched her, something far too smug in the set of his mouth, and Naomi felt shame crawl its way up the back of her neck. Mateo at least knew magic. Whether he was any good at it was irrelevant; he was by default more qualified for Royal Wizard than she was for Grand Councilor. Practical or not, she wasn't a politician, and Esteban took every opportunity to remind her of that.

"That's not what I'm saying," she insisted, hating how petulant she sounded. She was already the youngest in the room—she didn't need to give them any more reason to see her as a child. "It's just that you guys are talking about him like he's the greatest wizard you've ever seen, and I feel like I'm missing something!"

"Yes, well, it wouldn't be the first time," Esteban remarked. The words felt like a slap.

Elena narrowed her eyes. "Esteban." He rolled his eyes at her reproachful tone but kept his mouth mercifully shut. Face softening, Elena turned to Naomi to explain. "Mateo was an immense help during the revolution. He helped get me out of the amulet, and my abuelos and Isabel would still be trapped in that enchanted painting if not for him." She tilted her head, puzzled. "Did he not tell you that?"

Helped out a little bit, he'd said. Didn't really do that much, he'd said.

Naomi's strained expression must have answered for her, because Elena went on with an apologetic smile. "That's right, you weren't in town, were you? I'll have to make sure to tell you the whole story sometime. We can make a day of it! I know a good place to hike."

"Yes, yes, you can plan that later," Esteban cut in. "Are we prepared to vote?"

Francisco nodded again. "If no one has anything else to say, I don't see why not. Elena?"

She beamed. "All those in favor of naming Mateo de Alva the Royal Wizard of Avalor?"

Her hand shot up, closely followed by Esteban's, and Luisa and Francisco weren't far behind. Naomi watched them all, something unsure fizzling in her gut, and then slowly raised her own hand, her fingers uncurling.

Elena grinned. "Then it's unanimous! I'll write up the letter and have it sent to him at once. Actually—" she suddenly stood, face brightening further and fingers pressed to her chest. "I'll deliver it myself!"

Esteban sighed. "Elena, you do not have the time to go running around delivering royal decrees yourself. You have other duties you must attend to today!"

"I know that, but this is important, and Mateo's my friend. And," she added in a conspiratorial stage-whisper, "I want to see the look on his face when we tell him the good news."

Luisa tutted gently. "Esteban, surely Elena has enough time to spare for a little break. Her other duties aren't going anywhere."

He didn't look impressed, but conceded anyway with another weary sound. "I suppose presenting appointments is a royal obligation…"

"Great! Then let's get going!" Elena rounded the table, hooked her arm through Naomi's and had dragged her out of the seat and halfway to the council chamber doors before Naomi had a chance to protest.

"Wait, hang on!" she cried. "You want me to go with you?"

Elena paused and fixed her with a look of innocent confusion. "Of course," she said. "You're his friend, too, right?"

A friend that had spent their first year together avoiding him. A friend that he didn't tell something as important as "helped overthrow the government." A friend that had to shake on it.

But a friend that had to start somewhere.

"I guess I am," she finally said, and Elena hauled her through the doors with another enthusiastic smile.

Soaring over the city on the back of a jaquin had gotten less nerve wracking with time, so long as Naomi didn't think too hard about it. The city sprawling below looked like rows of toys from the distance, and she could almost pretend that she wasn't hundreds of feet in the air above them. Skylar was at least holding back on the tricks she'd seen him do when Elena was riding alone—having two passengers was putting more of a strain on him, enough that he had to fly straight for once. Still, as breathtaking as the views were and as careful as Skylar was being, Naomi could feel her stomach flip every time she thought about the drop, and she clung to Elena ahead of her even as they saw the roof of Mateo's house rise up out of the hills.

They landed just a few feet from the front gate, and Naomi didn't waste any time clamoring off, reveling in the feeling of solid ground beneath her. Good old terra firma. She might have had excellent sea legs, but her sky legs still needed some work. Elena's dismount was far more casual, sliding off Skylar's back with practiced grace. She smoothed her skirt down, adjusted the document case on her shoulder, and then knocked on the gate, waiting patiently with her hands folded in front of her.

The latch clicked and the gate swung open, revealing a petite woman that left Naomi wondering if they'd somehow gotten the wrong house. She didn't look much like Mateo, between her lighter skin, darker eyes, and vastly different face. But she had the same loose curls, pinned up at the back of her head, and the way she lit up and spread her arms at the sight of her guests was eerily familiar.

"Princess Elena!" she exclaimed, so much like Mateo had that first day, and Naomi stifled a chuckle. This was definitely his mother. Her eyes jumped over to Naomi and had barely skimmed her blond hair before recognition set in. "And you must be Naomi! Mateo's told me so much about you."

Ah, so that was what hearing that line felt like. Mateo's mom didn't seem displeased, but every rude thing Naomi had ever said to him surged to the front of her memory. She let out a weak laugh. "Good things, I hope."

Elena smiled at the woman. "Rafa! It's good to see you!" She suddenly covered her mouth, looking sheepish. "Oop, sorry. I guess I should be calling you Señora de Alva now, shouldn't I?"

Sra. de Alva scoffed. "Oh, don't worry about that, Your Highness. Now, come in, come in!" She ushered them through the gate, leaving it open so Skylar could follow. "Make yourselves at home. Are you here to see Mateo? I'll fetch him from downstairs and make some snacks."

"Thank you for the offer, Raf—Señora, but I can't stay for long. Esteban's got me on a tight schedule today." She rolled her eyes for emphasis, and Sra. de Alva laughed, clicking her tongue.

"That cousin of yours, I swear. Well, don't hesitate to let me know if you need anything. You're always welcome here, as are any friends of Mateo's." She gave Naomi's arm an affectionate tweak and then bustled her way inside, leaving them alone in the yard.

"She seems fun," Naomi said as they started toward the cellar. She hadn't been sure what to expect from Mateo's mom, given everything she'd heard about her, but somehow, this seemed to fit. "Did you two know each other?"

She didn't have to specify the 'before Shuriki' part. Elena nodded. "Alacazar used to bring her by the palace when she was little. Rafa and Isabel were about the same age back then, so they would go and play together." Freezing, she squeezed her eyes shut in frustration. "Señora de Alva," she corrected. "She's a señora now. She has a son and he's my age."

Naomi stood beside her, feeling awkward and unsure what to say. She couldn't imagine how jarring it would be to be so displaced from your own time, and to remember how things were before. She'd thought it strange at first that this princess, who surely had more important people to spend time with, had attached herself so quickly to a girl from the port and an amateur wizard, but most of her old friends were probably grown by now. Old in every sense of the word.

Elena recomposed herself and tried to wave it off. "It'll take some getting used to. It's almost a relief that you're not from Avalor—I don't think I could've handled knowing any more of my friends' parents as kids."

That stung. She surely hadn't meant it to, but it settled between Naomi's ribs like something sharp. Once an outsider, she supposed.

"Actually, my parents weren't even born yet," she replied stiffly.

Elena's smile grew taut, a little too fake and uncomfortable. "Ah."

Guilt welled up into the hole left by alienation, and Naomi tucked some hair behind her ear, looking away. "Anyway, we should get Mateo."

"Right!" Elena hauled open the cellar door and stepped down into it, calling Mateo's name in a sing-song as she descended. If she was still upset, she was doing a good job of hiding it, perhaps just so Mateo wouldn't think he was the target of it. Naomi followed her, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the dim light.

Mateo was on his feet when she got downstairs, the stool at the table beside him wobbling like he'd just leaped up from it. "Elena, Naomi! What do you guys need? Hang on—I can be ready in just a second—" He dove across the room for his tamborita. He'd shrugged his makeshift robe half off by the time Elena could get him to slow down and listen.

"Mateo! Mateo, it's okay. There's no grand mission or anything. We're just here to tell you something."

"Oh." Awkwardly clearing his throat, he pulled the sleeve of his robe back up his shoulder.

"Okay! So," Elena straightened up like she did whenever she was addressing an audience, though her excitement undermined her professionalism, leaking through in her voice and rushing her words. "At the Grand Council meeting this morning, we discussed the remaining staff positions to be filled at the palace, including that of the Royal Wizard. As you know, the last person to hold that job was your grandfather forty-one years ago, since Shuriki left it vacant under her reign. We decided that it's high time that position be filled again, and between your knowledge of old Avaloran magic and the dedication you've shown in using it for the good of the kingdom, I can't imagine a better candidate. Which is why," she smiled, warm and wide, no longer trying to temper the excitement in her voice, "the Grand Council has unanimously voted to appoint you as the new Royal Wizard!"

Silence yawned in the wake of her speech. Mateo said nothing, just staring at her in open-mouthed shock. He remained frozen there, stunned, so still Naomi wasn't even sure he was breathing.

She leaned toward Elena. "I think you broke him," she whispered.

His grip had slackened around his tamborita and it slowly slid to the floor, clattering against the stone, and the sound was enough to snap him out of his stupor with a full-bodied jolt.

"That—I—you—" he tried, nothing coherent coming out. He pointed at himself. "Me?"

Elena nodded. "You!"

An incredulous smile slowly crept onto his face, and he reached one hand up to thread it into his hair like he needed to hold himself on the ground. "I'm—that's—" Something undefinable crossed his face, toggling between disbelief, terror, and elation, and he sputtered out a few more unintelligible sounds before managing a blurted, "You guys!" and tossing himself toward them.

Naomi jumped. She'd never really taken Mateo as the touchy type, so to have his arm suddenly around her shoulders as he pulled her and Elena into a hug, his head between theirs, was unexpected and odd. Elena looked delighted, though, meeting Naomi's eyes across Mateo's shoulders with a grin.

"I—I don't know what to say," he said, breathless and eager, like he still couldn't quite believe it.

"Well, you could start with a 'yes,'" Elena suggested.

"Yes! Absolutely! I mean—" Mateo suddenly leapt back, nearly whacking them in the face as he dislodged himself from the hug and dropped into a waist-deep bow. "I would be honored, Your Highness. And, uh, Grand Councilor," he added, shuffling his feet to turn his bow toward Naomi.

Chuckling, Elena pulled the document case off her back. "You can save the formalities for the actual ceremony. Right now, we just need you to sign this for us."

"Right! Of course!" Mateo took the letter from Elena as she retrieved it from the case and he smoothed it out on his desk, dropping back onto his stool and fumbling around for a pen.

Elena poked Naomi in the side as he quickly checked the pen on a scrap paper and began to sign. "Definitely worth the personal delivery," she whispered, something fond in her tone. Raising her voice, she addressed Mateo again. "Once you've done that, I'll bring it back to the palace, get it properly filed, and then we can start preparations for the official ceremony on Saturday."

Mateo's pen skidded across the bottom of the document, leaving a jagged line of ink trailing off the last 'a'. He swiveled his head back up, something panicked in his eyes. "Wait, this Saturday?"

"Uh-huh!" Her brow furrowed in concern. "Oh, does that not work for you?"

A sound that might have been a laugh squeaked out of him. "No, it works, I just—I didn't really think it would be so… soon?"

"Why wait?" She popped her hands on her hips. "We're well overdue to start bringing magic back to the country. If you think you need a little more time to prepare a spell for the ceremony, I can push it back a week or two, but I'd like to get you set up sooner rather than later."

"Prepare a spell…?" he echoed, sounding faraway. His hand gripped the edge of his desk, and he looked like he was about to faint.

"Well, I figured we'd have you do a little performance after all the formal stuff was over with. Nothing big! Just something to show off a bit. Most people in Avalor have never seen magic, and if they have, it was Shuriki's, so I think it'd be good to show everyone another side of it. Something flashy and fun, you know? Like… um…" She looked at Naomi, waving a hand for a prompt.

"Oh! Um, what about…" Naomi scanned the room, her eyes settling on the open door, where she could catch a glimpse of Skylar's tail swishing above. "What about something to do with jaquins? They're an important cultural symbol here, right? And they were something else that came back after Shuriki's reign."

Elena clapped her hands together. "That sounds perfect! Mateo, do you think you could do something like that?"

Mateo still didn't look relaxed by any stretch, but he rubbed at his chin and stared thoughtfully at the wall, the puzzle of thinking through spell possibilities enough to bring him back from the blank void of panic. "Well… I know a simple illusion spell. Maybe I could adapt that to conjure up some jaquin images?"

"Great!" Elena stepped over to him and picked up the signed paper. She gave it a quick skim to make sure everything was in order before rolling it up and sliding it back into the case. "I'll leave you to get that ready, then," she went on, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "I better get back to the palace before Esteban throws a fit. Naomi, we're all done with Grand Council business for the day. Do you need a ride anywhere?"

Cultural icons or not, Naomi wasn't sure she was up to another jaquin ride so soon. Besides, if she was going to do this whole 'friends' thing properly with Mateo, then she should probably know the way to his house on foot. "You know what? I'll take the scenic route home," she said.

"Okay! Then I'll see you tomorrow. And I'll see you," she added, bopping Mateo on the nose, "on Saturday, at the latest."

"Y-yeah, see you then," Mateo stammered, waving to her as she went. "I'll definitely be ready!" Elena shot him another winning smile from the top of the stairs and then left the basement. They heard a flap of wings and a rustle of grass as Skylar took off, and then Mateo turned to Naomi, frantic. "I am definitely not ready for this."

She'd figured as much. "You maybe should have mentioned that before she got on the jaquin."

"Naomi!" He hunched over, groaning and grabbing fistfuls of his hair. "Ugh, what do I do?"

"Start working on that jaquin spell?" Mateo shot her a dirty look, and she crossed her arms with a huff. "When she said we voted to name you the Royal Wizard, what exactly did you think she meant? That we were only appointing you in theory?"

"Yes! No? I don't know!" Sighing, he leaned against the desk. "I thought she meant 'eventually', after I had more experience. Like how she can't actually be queen until she's old enough." He looked at her, his eyes wide and pleading. "I'm not a good enough wizard yet to be qualified."

"Mateo, I'm pretty sure you're the only person in the kingdom that can be qualified."

That was the truth, but possibly the wrong thing to say. A daunted shadow passed across Mateo's face and he shrank in further on himself, looking far too small against the imposing stone and dark wood of his workshop.

"Look, I don't know what you want me to say," Naomi went on, more gently. "I can talk to Elena tomorrow if you want me to, but you had the chance to refuse when you realized what she meant. If you don't want the job, why didn't you tell her then?"

"I didn't want to let her down. And I do want the job, I just…" He sighed again, shaking his head. "I don't know what I'm doing."

"Yeah, well, join the club." Sighing herself, Naomi finally dropped into the uncomfortable-looking wooden chair propped up in the corner. His eyes met hers again, still looking big and sad, and she continued, frustrated. "I don't think any of us really know what we're doing. Esteban won't let me forget that I don't have any political experience, Elena ignores the Grand Council votes more often than not… I'm not even sure Gabe knows what he's doing half the time, and he's actually had training. I mean, between the three of us, we almost set off a volcano the other week."

"Wait, that was you?" Mateo straightened up, something confused and almost entertained on his face. "I heard about that in town."

Naomi grimaced. "Yeeeah, that was us. There was this rock guy that lived up there that made the lava overflow when he got angry, and we managed to keep upsetting him."

Mateo brightened, his curiosity only growing. "You guys met a rocador?"

"A what-a-dor?"

"A rocador," he repeated, leaning across his desk to grab a book he'd pushed aside earlier. "I've read about them. When they move into a new volcano, they bond with it in a way that ties its flow to their emotional state." Pages fanned past as he flipped through before he finally settled on one and turned the book around to show her. A stylized drawing of the creature in question stared back at her, surrounded in handwritten annotations and glyphs she couldn't identify.

"The Maruvians used to see them as protectors, and they considered it good luck when a rocador moved in," he explained. "As long as they kept the rocador happy, they could guarantee that the volcano would never erupt, and it would be safe for them to build villages and farm in the rich soil around them."

Naomi peered at him over the top of the book. "And you just knew all this?"

He frowned. "Well, I had to read it first."

"No, I meant—" She laughed it off. "Ah, never mind. Where were you three weeks ago?"

"Down here, probably."

She snorted again, rolling her eyes. "What I'm saying is it kinda seems like you know what you're talking about with all this magic stuff. I don't get why you're so worried about doing this for a job."

Mateo's more relaxed attitude evaporated and he snapped the book shut. "I know theory," he said, holding it to his chest. "I don't have very much practical experience."

"Then get practicing!" She stood up and stretched, her back twinging from the chair. "You've got what, five days? All you have to do is not blow yourself up before then."

A tiny distressed sound came up from the back of his throat, and he watched as she headed for the stairs.

"I gotta get going—I told my dad I'd be able to help him this afternoon, and I've got a long walk. But I'll see you Saturday, or something. And, uh," she paused by the bottom step, "try not to freak out too much in the meantime. Somehow, I don't think it's gonna help."

"I—right. Thanks." She climbed the stairs and had just reached the top when a shout from below had her stop again. "Naomi! Wait, wait, I have one more question!"

She stared down at him, head tilted.

"Am I supposed to know who Gabe is?"

So, uh. No one ever actually introduces Gabe and Mateo to each other in the text of the show. Mateo's name is never mentioned in front of Gabe in e1, and Elena only mentions Gabe's name in front of Mateo once, while they're flying on jaquins, about to charge recklessly into a battle, while Gabe isn't immediately present himself - look, what I'm saying is that it's entirely possible Mateo either missed the name, forgot it, or didn't make the connection. Is it far more likely that Elena properly introduced them right after the credits rolled? Well, yeah, obviously. But frankly I think it's way funnier if they spent the first few weeks just kinda like, "so, who is this guy again...?"

In general, I feel like the first few weeks/months of Elena's rule before Mateo's appointment were kinda awkward for the amigos. Like they kinda knew each other, and they were all friends with Elena, but none of them were really all that close of friends with each other yet, and then Spellbound was their first big test of working together as a unit.

So with the Grand Council - while I'm sure that with 8 billion people in the world, statistically at least one of them is a 15 year old that's really into tax policy, I kinda doubt that sort of stuff was what Naomi had in mind when she got appointed. It's easy to forget when watching the show that we're really only seeing the Cool Stuff; they still have to be a functional government behind the scenes, and historically that involves a lot of legalese, pedantry, and budget discussions. Oh my god there's so many budget discussions.

Also with the Council - I remember when I first watched the show, I was surprised by the unanimous vote to appoint Mateo, specifically because that early in the show, I was surprised that Esteban could actually agree with the rest of them on something. And then watching on, it became more and more clear that Esteban... actually has a soft spot for Mateo? At least relative to how he treats Elena's other friends (largely ignoring Gabe, actively antagonizing Naomi). And then when I finally watched Secret of Avalor, it was kinda like. Oh. Yeah. He saved the rest of Esteban's family. That'll do it. And when I revisited the unanimous vote, I found myself wondering, well, what if *Naomi* was actually the one that had to be convinced, since she didn't know the SoA story yet and only "kind of" knew Mateo?

Finally, now that Esteban's here, I can talk about something I've been wanting to bring up since Ch 2. While the three school bullies don't physically show up again in this story, their spirit definitely does - each of them was intended to be a symbolic stand-in for specific social challenges that Naomi & Mateo face throughout the series. José in particular was meant to represent Esteban and his general dismissal of Naomi on account of her background. We'll get back to the other two as their impact becomes more relevant.

Fun fact! This chapter used to be two, split along the line break after the council scene. But like, neither was really enough for a chapter on its own, and they're related subjects anyway. Also it just felt weird to have a chapter in the Mateo and Naomi Friendfic where Mateo didn't even show up.