Page 612 -- LXXI.

--1st Anniversary Special (day 1/7, page 2/4)--
Hector smiled and looked at Lynnette as her voice died down. “You... y-you, uh... you have a... ah...”

She tilted her head at him, waiting.

“Ah--your... uh... um...” Unfortunately, this time, he reached critical mass and turned away from her again, unable to pull any more words out.

“What were you trying to say?” she asked.

“I-I don’t know. Just, uh. N-nevermind.”

Her expression tightened. “C’mon, tell me. What were you going to say?”

“Nothing. Really. Just. N-nothing.”

She was now convinced that it definitely wasn’t nothing. He’d been talking just fine a second ago, so what the hell changed? “Seriously, just tell me.”

He fell completely silent.

At this point, she was becoming annoyed. She raised her hand and let a bit of purple creep out the back of her glove. “Hector, don’t make me wring it out of you.”

Hector’s eyes widened. He met Lynnette’s gaze evenly. And then he ran out of the room.

She blinked after him, open-mouthed and dumbstruck. He’d actually fled? For a moment, she genuinely considered giving chase.

Hector’s mother and the Queen both took notice and came over. “What happened?” the Queen asked.

“I don’t know!” said Lynnette. “Or--wait, was that a reaper emergency or something?”

“No. I was talking to Garovel when Hector suddenly left.”

“Then what the--?! Ugh! I can’t believe he really just did that!”

Mrs. Goffe had a question as well. “What in the world did you say to him?”

“More like, what did he say?” Lynnette shook her head and eyed Mrs. Goffe. “Please tell your son that the next time I see him, I really am going to wring the answer out of him.”


Chapter Seventy-One: ‘Thine unassailable walls...’
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‘Wow, Hector. And here I thought you were getting better at talking to people.’

‘Shut up, Garovel!’

‘Seriously, what the fuck was that about?’

‘Nothing!’

‘Remarkably, I remain unconvinced of that.’

‘Shut up!’

‘Well, stop running already.’

‘Is she behind me?!’

‘Lynn? No.’

Hector slowed to a walk, looking over his shoulder as he arrived at the palace’s east entrance. When he saw people were staring at him, he pulled down on the brim of his hat and tried to settle his heartbeat.