[b]Adila![/b]

Thankfully, you have one Princess Dandy to distract you. She wraps her arms around your neck again and squeezes. "I knew you'd come back for me, sugarcube," she says. "But you know what I realized down there?" Her hands still shake where they touch your fur. "I reckon that I haven't spent half as much time with you as I'd like. When all this hurlyburly is over and done with, well, I reckon that... if it ain't too much to be asking, we sit down with Iron Star and see if we can't talk things over about you being inclined to have a heart for a whole packle of princesses at once."

It's a lovely moment only spoiled by Hornet yelling from the front, "Hey, official friend! Want to come pull this go backwards lever? It makes us go backwards!"

***

[b]Mittens![/b]

"You are such a naughty little thing, aren't you? [i]Yes I am! But I'm soooooo cute!![/i] Aww, okay, I'll forgive you this time! But next time you go around being a little flirt, you're going to get grounded, you hear me? [i]Mew mew mew![/i]" You stand before the tree amid the burning, shadow-scorched ruins of the garden. Well, you don't stand. You're dangled above the ground being given PAT PAT PATS by Azora, whose shadow is even now plucking the last golden apple off the tree, and being narrated for by said Azora.

At least you saw Rita, her eyes sparkling with love, dart through just ahead of grasping shadows, bereft of her scarves but still able to make such amazing acrobatic feats! Maybe she'll be able to stop your Momma from doing anything bad...

You put your trust in your Rita, and in your unlikely friend, as Azora plucks the last golden apple and the tree opens wide to receive the four of you into the next room...

***

[b]Kathelia![/b]

Your head is a sack full of turnips that is being shaken about. They are soggy turnips. You are soggy and sweaty and Kyouko feels clammy where she's pressed up against you.

...

Kyouko is inches away from you, a snakerchief stuffed between her lips, and you are very pressed up against her. Again. Gosh. She's still groggy and somewhat out of it from the manticore venom, which means you have time to analyze where you are.

It's a vast shrine in the Classical Illuminan style, except instead of being in honor of Argossa, this shrine is in honor of Eupheria. Her swirling eyes look down at you from icons, the rafters are shaped like her arms, and the altar at the end of the shrine holds the Caduceus, hanging ominously above it just like it hung over Eupheria's false tomb. Was that today? It feels so long ago.

It's too easy.

There are rooms behind screen doors on either side of the long hall. Muffled sound emerges from behind each one, and each one is labeled with sigils. This is obviously a trap, especially because neither Isolde or Rita are in sight. Something's behind those doors. And Azora's going to just wilfully march down that hall, leaving you and Kyouko to squirm in the blanket, dragging Alina with her to whatever terrible fate awaits them both...