Raeve wakes abruptly from an intense erotic dream about Kaan just before the encounter reaches completion. Still physically shaken and frustrated, she realizes a dragon's roar—not the dream itself—pulled her awake. When another shriek sounds overhead, Raeve quickly dresses, arms herself, and leaves the safety of the sleep space, initially fearing that war may have reached Dhomm.

Outside, Raeve studies the sky and sees paired Sabersythes spinning through an overwhelming spill of silver aurora ribbons. As she moves to the Loff's shore, she notices silver streamers across the city, lively drums, food scents, and a festive atmosphere rather than signs of battle. Remembering merchants once discussing The Great Flurrt, Raeve concludes that the strange sky and dragon behavior likely mark a mating celebration, which leaves her both embarrassed and emotionally stirred.

The city's celebration awakens a dangerous longing in Raeve. She feels pulled toward the life, openness, and desire the festival represents, but she also knows that crossing back into that world means confronting painful truths she has been avoiding. She turns away, trying to retreat into the jungle and preserve her self-restraint.

Before she can leave, Raeve notices a black basket hanging from the tree where she previously found the carving. The basket proves that someone knows she is hiding here and placed it for her deliberately. Inside, Raeve finds an elaborate silver mask, a shimmering gown fastened with diamond brooches, crystal slippers, sun-shielding poultice, and a carefully folded note.

When Kaan's málmr falls into her lap with the note, Raeve understands the gift as something deeply personal. Although the note's full wording is not shown, Raeve feels the emotional weight of its brief message and reads the entire offering as an invitation to step into the celebration and into the memory of what she and Kaan once were. She decides this is the moment that will burst the fragile dream she has been living in, yet she accepts that she owes their shared past—and Kaan himself—this final opening of her heart before she intends to erase it all.