Rune spends the night in the first-class library and then avoids returning to the cabin, hoping to avoid Gideon after her unsettling dream. Instead, she spends the day exploring the Arcadia because she wants to know whether the ship could be used to smuggle the sibyl, herself, and possibly the Roseblood heir out of the New Republic. She concludes that passengers could never slip past the witch hunters and hounds at port, so the cargo holds might be the only option, but she cannot reach the lower decks because she is not crew and does not dare use blood magic that could expose her to the police officers watching for witches.

That evening, Rune and Gideon go to Deck C to meet Abbie and her friends. Rune discovers that “Poor Man’s Trap” is trapshooting with broken china tossed over the sea. Gideon joins in easily, gives Rune his jacket against the cold, and draws attention from the group. Rune, who is comfortable in aristocratic spaces but not in this rougher social setting, meets William, an Arcadia crewman, and Ash Singh, another of Abbie’s friends. From Ash, Rune learns that he and Abbie fought alongside Gideon in the New Dawn, but Ash rejects the Republic’s witch-hunting extremism and believes the revolution has become another regime ruled by fear.

When Abbie invites Rune to shoot, Gideon warns that Rune should not handle the rifle, but Rune takes it anyway and misses repeatedly. While the others coach her, Rune notices Abbie and Gideon talking privately at the rail with easy intimacy. Abbie’s flirtatious behavior and Gideon’s laughter make Rune jealous and insecure, and that distraction causes Rune to fire carelessly in their direction. Gideon pulls Abbie out of harm’s way, takes the rifle, and then—rather than simply forbidding Rune to continue—steps behind Rune and teaches her the proper stance, grip, breathing, and timing.

The lesson becomes charged as Gideon’s closeness reminds Rune of the dream she had about him. Gideon asks what she was dreaming when she called out for him during the night, and Rune, embarrassed because the dream was sexual, refuses to tell him the truth. Following his guidance, she calms down enough to improve and finally shatters a plate, which briefly fills her with pride.

Before the moment can deepen, Abbie calls Gideon away to join the others for cards, and he leaves Rune without hesitation. William notices Gideon’s attentiveness to Abbie and comments on it, deepening Rune’s unease. Hurt by the contrast between Abbie’s apparent normalcy and her own identity as a witch, Rune accepts William’s invitation to go somewhere warmer. Because William is crew and Rune still needs a way into restricted parts of the ship, she goes with him and leaves Gideon’s jacket behind on the deck.