One application of Light Magic, and they no longer had handprints on their faces.

"Are you feeling better?" Sophia asked cautiously. "No more sudden urges to throw away everything and do something stupid just to be with Rafael?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Maria said. "Have your own urges reduced themselves to their usual level?"

"I'm back to the way I usually am," Sophia confirmed.

They exchanged last looks and entered the Academy's garden.


Maria was unsure why she was being swarmed by excited students and graduates all eager to hand her with flowers, envelopes that reeked of perfume, and heavily perfumed handkerchiefs.

(It was only later she realized some of them were not handkerchiefs, and she had to sigh at the disgraceful state of the country all over again. What sort of twisted person gets rid of their laundry by giving it away? )

However, swarmed she was, along with the rest of the outgoing student council and other 'popular' students like Lady Katarina, Lord Byron, Lady Zerbst. The swarms were all saying things like "I've always been your fan!" or "I've looked up to you all this time!" or "I'll never forget you!" or "Take me now!". Silly things like that. Maria supposed she should take comfort that she had somehow gained their admiration, but to be honest she had absolutely no idea why.

Some sort of disturbance arose near Katarina, involving many of the lady crying about… wanting to have a dress? As that went on, and the crown around Maria dissipated, Maria found herself facing Diana Cavendish.

"Departing Lady Head Clerk," Lady Cavendish said with an ironic smile as she nodded to Maria.

"Incoming Lady Head Clerk," Maria replied, mirroring the gesture. "Thank you for all the capable support you have provided me this year. It was of great assistance."

"You are welcome, Lady Campbell," Lady Cavendish said. "I wish you well in the no doubt tumultuous years ahead of you."

"Thank you, Lady Cavendish," Maria said. "I also thank you personally for the great favor you bestowed upon me of teaching me Gerudosa. I regret I have not managed to learn enough to be fluent."

"It was an experience for me as well," Lady Cavendish said. "I've grown up with it, so I never realized how difficult it must have been for father to learn. It certainly explains some of the teasing I now recall. I will be returning to our families plantations this summer. If you wish, I am willing to search for someone who could teach you and at least act an interpreter."

"That would be greatly appreciated, Lady Cavendish," Maria said.

Near Katarina, a chaotic battle broke out as girls and a few boys all cried about wanting a dress.

For a moment, Maria and Lady Cavendish just watched.

"At least you will no longer have a Lady Katarina complicating things," Maria said.

"Praise the sun," Lady Cavendish agreed fervently.

Up in the sky, nightflowers began to bloom, vivid purples and reds lighting up the still-daylit sky in unnatural colors and getting people to stop and stare. Lord Claes took the opportunity to grab Katarina and run.

"Lady Campbell…" Lady Cavendish said hesitantly. "Would it be all right if… if I called you Lady Maria tonight?"

Maria blinked, surprised. "I would not object to that, Lady Cavendish," Maria said. "But in return, may I call you Lady Diana?"

"That would be wonderful," Diana said. She suddenly smiled, like a bright, shining ember of flame in the midst of an eternal age of dark. "I would like that very much, Lady Maria. Would it be presumptuous to consider us friends?"

Maria blinked. "Why?"

The embers became a flame, driving the darkness back.

Above, the nightflowers finished. There was applause and cheering at the display. And then exclamations as people realized someone had taken Katarina and run.

"Though I'd request you not tell Lady Katarina how quickly I agreed, she'd probably cry about it being so easy," Maria said.

Diana laughed, and the flame lit the sun anew. "I won't."

Maria nodded in relief. "You were invited to the party at the castle, were you not?"

"Yes," Diana said. "And the… what did Lady Katarina call it? The Student Council Sleepover? It sounds vaguely obscene, all of use in the saem bedroom in our sleepwear."

"Once, I might have agreed with you," Maria said, "But given Katarina proposed it, I believe she merely intends for us to stay up all night engaged in intimate conversation, snacks and gossip. A sort of nocturnal tea party."

"Yes, but why in sleepwear?" Maria asked.

"Probably so we don't have to get changed should anyone nod off," Maria said.

Diana appeared to give it some thought. "That… sounds strangely sensible. But most improper."

"Well, yes," Maria said. "After all, it's Katarina."


Maria had little in the way of luggage to carry to the castle, having sent most of her belongings to her estate the day before. After she changed into her formal suit, adding her sword to her hip, she checked the Workshop workers were on their way before joining Diana in her carriage.

Maria's own carriage was almost ready, she'd been told. She looked forward to the day she wouldn't have to keep hitching rides.

The Third Prince was standing by the entrance of the castle, and greeted them graciously with, "Welcome, my– oh, it's just you."

"You make me feel most welcome, your highness," Maria said blandly.

"Your sarcasm is noted, Lady Campbell," the Third Prince said. "May I compliment you on the accessory you wore earlier? It suited you very well."

"Thank you, your highness," Maria said. "If you'll excuse me, I need to see make sure things are in place for tonight's display."

"May I join you, Lady Maria?" Diana said. "I'm curious as to what creating nightflowers entails."

"Of course, Lady Diana," Maria said.

"Wait, she's letting you call her 'Lady Maria'?" the Third Prince said. "You work fast."

"She asked. Politely," Maria said.

"Katarina might cry when she finds out," the Third Prince said with a smirk.

"Why would you tell her if you think it would make her cry?" Maria said. "That's terrible behavior. Come, Lady Diana, let's check the nightflowers."


By the time Maria and Diana got back to where the party was being held, other members of the Student Council– and Katarina– had arrived. Predictably, she was already surrounded by most of her usual retinue, along with the other members of the student council

"Lady Maria! Lady Diana! Over here!" she called out waving at them.

"Yes, Lady Katarina, we can see you, there's no need to wave," Maria said. "It's improper."

"Sorry!" Katarina said. "I was just worried you wouldn't see us in the crowd otherwise since your view would be blocked."

Did… Katarina just call her short?

"I could see you just fine, Lady Katarina," Maria said. Sophia, why are you grinning? You're short too! In fact, you were shorter!

Predictably, most of the evening was spent near the buffet tables. Katarina spent most of her time eating, resurfacing to talk only when the food around her was depleted and she had to move a few feet down the table for more. Predictably, her dress for dirty. Lord Claes and Maria both sighed when they saw it.

"Honestly sister, again?" Keith said.

"Lady Katarina, if you're going to eat so much, you should at least learn how to do so neatly," Maria said.

"Sorry!" Katarina said. "I'll just have it cleaned up. Dana always amanges to get my dresses nice and clean when this happens."

Maria blinked. "Who?"

"Dana. You know, the one who's really good with cleaning powder, is usually stationed at a side room for these sorts of accidents?" Katarina said. "Don't worry, I'll be right back!"

"Don't take too long, Lady Katarina," Sophia said. "The nightflowers are going to start soon!"

"Don't worry, I wouldn't miss it for anything!" Katarina called as she ran off.

"She's going to miss it, isn't she?" Maria said.

Everyone nodded sadly.


A Katarina Interlude

Her dress was dirty.

It wasn't anything as flashy as somebody throwing wine on her like she'd seen in the soap operas of her previous world. Katarina had just spilled some food from the buffet on herself. Ah, it was a good thing mother wasn't here to see it!

She couldn't leave it like that, so she decided to go into another room and have a servant expertly clean the dress. After going into the other room, Dana used water and a sort of cleaning powder to make the dress look like new, and she even dried it with something that looked like a hairdryer. Wow, Katarina hadn't realized they had hair dryer things! But then she hadn't realized they had guns until Sophia and Maria started carrying some around. Could she get one for her hair? There was no trace of meat sauce left. Impressive.

Katarina complimented Dana on her cleaning abilities, but she smiled and modestly said that it was nothing, and they chatted about her grandchildren for a moment. Dana then started accompanying her back to the party. But while they were still in the hallway, she was called for by another young lady who had dirtied her dress. Katarina reassured her that she knew the way to the hall and could go there by herself. After all, you just had to go straight through the hallway. You couldn't have gotten lost if you tried.

"I really wish they gave out maps like they did in Amagi Brilliant Park, it's so easy to get lost here," Katarina said. Still, She confident strode down the halls, sure of where she was going.

Then the fireworks started.

Katarina turned to watch them, but she could only see a small sliver since she was on the wrong side of the castle! Frantically she turned down a hall, but some building blocked the view! Frantically, she scrambled to find a good place to watch, climbing up a set of stairs…

Eventually, the fireworks ended.

"Tamaya!" Katarina cried as the last of them faded away. "Wow, Maria and Sophia make really good fireworks! I'm glad I didn't miss too much. Well, time to go back to…"

Katarina looked around. She was on a balcony she was unfmailair with, looking down on a garden that didn't seem like the usual garden for daytime parties, and there was absolutely no one around.

She slumped. "I really wish they gave out maps!" Katarina wailed.

Still, she slapped her cheeks and set off to find her way back. After all, she couldn't have gone that far, could she?

After wandering for what felt like hours, Katarina found herself wandering a dark corridor all by herself. Had someone turned off all the torches to save money or something? This hallway seemed to go on forever, with only the light from the moon outside guiding her way. Still, there was a light at the end of it, and so she headed for it, wishing she'd brought one of her lucky prism stones. Darn it, of all times not to bring one!

She was so busy grubling to herself she almost ran into the woman standing in the middle of the corridor.

"Wah!" Katarina screamed in surprise.

A woman standing silently in a dark corridor... Is this a horror movie? This is too scary…

She had been staring out the window, which showed nothing but sky. Had she been watching the fireworks too?

"Oh, hi!" Katarina said. "Sorry for screaming. Were you watching the fi– er, the nightflowers too?" she had to admit, the name was kinda cool!

"Yes," the woman said in a young, thankfully unghostlike voice. "They were very pretty and loud. But then they stopped."

"I think they ran out," Katarina said.

"Oh. That's too bad," the woman said. She finally turned and looked at Katarina. "Guests are not allowed to go any further. This hallway leads to the royal crypt, which people are forbidden from entering…"

Katarina blinked, looking in confusion at the dark, scary hallway she found herself in. What was she doing here? This isn't the hall she was looking for!

"This isn't the hall I'm looking for," she said, because it wasn't the hall she was looking for.

She should go about her business, Katarina thought.

"I should go about my business," she said to the dark and empty hall she was definitely all alone in.

Move along, Katarina thought.

"Move along!" Katarina cried, cheerfully. "Move along! Um… where should I move along to?"

A sound like a sighed wafted through the dark but empty hallway, but it was probably just the wind, because while the hallway was dark, it was most definitely empty!

Somehow or other, she wasn't sure how but it probably wasn't really important, Katarina recalled the directions back to the party. That dark, empty hallway was so creepy but so nice!

Hmm? Hadn't there been someone standing all alone there? Katarina looked back, but the hallway was as dark and empty as before. Shrugging, she hurried back to the party and the food.

When Katarina made it back to the hall, the dancing has started and Katarina's fiancé had been looking for her.

"Katarina!" the black-hearted prince said. "I was worried. I could not find you anywhere."

Katarina insintictively glanced down toward the sword at his hip and once more wished mother would let her get a sword, even just a wooden one! What was the use of learning how to use a sword to defend herself when she didn't have one when she needed to defend herself!? "I'm sorry, I left the hall for a bit," she said, one hand creeping toward Snake version 163.2 in case he was overcome with an urge to strike her down. He shouldn't since Maria was with Rafael and he wasn't supposed to do anything to her on Rafael's route, but better safe than sorry!

"I know that you just came back, but would you care to dance?" he asked, giving me his hand–

Only for Maria-chan Lady Maria's hand to grab his wrist, preventing him from touching Katarina.

"Lady Campbell, wh–" he began, but she swiftly cut him off.

"Your highness, you need to lock the castle down and have us go on alert. There is an intruder in the castle," Maria Lady Maria said grimly, giving Katarina an unnerving stare. "Now!"

Katarina blinked, and so did her fiancé. "Lady Campbell, what has gotten into you?" he demanded.

Maria Lady Maria never looked away from Katarina. "Someone used Dark Magic on Katarina while she was out of the room," she said.

Katarina could only blink. Eh?