At school before the charity Christmas party, Demon lies to Maggot that he may spend the holiday in a shelter, hoping word reaches the Peggots. Maggot supports him visiting, but Mrs. Peggot hesitates. On the quiet, tense drive to Knoxville, Demon senses he is barely wanted and feels the weight of being an unwanted foster kid.

In Knoxville, Emmy greets them, startling Demon with her new confidence and calling Aunt June “Mom.” The apartment feels changed, and Demon notices how different city life seems, where ordinary rules don’t apply and everything looks staged for spectacle.

Late that night, Aunt June returns from work with food and announces big news: she’s fed up with the ER and its mockery, has completed a UT course, and has accepted a job at the Pennington clinic. The family celebrates. Aunt June also reveals Emmy’s adoption is finalized and that both will move back to Lee County.

Through the holiday, TV coverage of a murdered family and a surviving baby captivates Emmy. Despite Aunt June’s ban on the story, everyone follows it. Demon reflects on city hardship during the cold snap—homelessness, hunger, and danger—contrasting it with the rural safety net of extended kin.

One night, Emmy quietly joins Demon in the living room, distressed about the baby. They talk about grief and foster care; Demon describes constant vigilance and his mother’s past abuse in care. He shares his ocean “skull movie” and the belief—rooted in his being born in the caul—that he cannot drown. When Emmy calls it superstition, he bristles and admits that orphanhood feels worse than death; she counters that the baby has grandparents coming. She touches his head, asks about adoption, and he explains there are few families for kids like him and an overburdened caseworker. They lie quietly, sharing a moment of comfort that feels like relief from hunger.