Julia

  In the end, her entire css knew, si only Marie and Pia had seen the kiss. Julia was tired. Her cssmates had questioned her about it and had been very excited about the news. Some also asked if they could meet the elf. Eventually, they promised not to tell anyone, but Julia doubted it would st long. Fortunately, no oed ively. At least as far as she could tell. Still, she was nervous. Wheuro her apartment iernoon, Sophie was already waiting for her with cake and tea, which she had baked together with Finn.

  They ate the cake together and talked until Leopold and Marko returned from the kit.

  "We had to peel tons of apples!", groaned Marko. "For applesauce. And peel and grate potatoes! Apparently, tonight the kit makes potato pancakes for the other students. There has been o this! My hands are stiff and hurt! Great! I'll never peel apples and potatoes again!"

  "I don't think you will be that lucky", Leopold objected and kissed Julia on the cheek. "How was your day?"

  "Phenomenal! We were seen! Now my whole css knows we're together!" Julia sighed. "They didn't stop asking me about you and us. Shame on you!"

  "So bad?" Leopold ughed. "I'm sorry. Are you angry with me?"

  Julia shook her head. She had liked it, even if it was stupid.

  "What did they see?" Finn looked at them with i. "What did you do?"

  "Surely something i!" Marko wi him.

  "We kissed, Marko. Nothing else", the elf replied. "Just a kiss."

  "How b." Marko crossed his arms.

  "Juli's cssmates didn't find it b", Finn objected.

  "Juli?" Sophie handed Marko and Leopold a piece of cake.

  "My new niame." Julia brushed a stubborn strand of hair behind her ear.

  "What? I want to call you Juli too!", shouted Marko immediately. "May I? Or? If Finn is allowed to…?"

  Julia nodded. "I have to do my homework now."

  "How b!" Marko shook his head. "But what about the kiss?", he called after her, ughing, as she went to her room. She hadn’t much to do and therefore fi very quickly.

  After dinner, she sat with Leopold in the living room. Marko y on her feet as a wolf and Finn snuggled up to him. Both were deep asleep.

  "I had a vision." Julia leaned against the elf.

  "A vision? A good one or bad one?"

  "I'm not sure. Both, I think. In my vision, you had a vessel in your hand. I've never seen it before."

  "A vessel?" Leopold stroked her hair. "What kind of vessel?"

  He suddenly seemed nervous. Julia looked up at him. "Well... Like a jam jar. Only from cy." What kind of vessel was it? Or was she just imagining his nervousness?

  "Maybe the medie I brought from home? It certainly doesn't mean anything."

  "You're probably right. But I also saw a fire and a vilge in the forest... We were there. How do you thi there?" Had she just imagined his nervousness? Probably.

  "Hm." He put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him. Then he pressed a kiss to her hair. "I don't know. Didn't you see anything about it?"

  Julia snuggled even closer to him and closed her eyes. "No. Nothing. I don't know how this will happen."

  "Then we'll have to wait and see what happens?"

  "I could try to see more. But just because I want to see something specific doesn't mean I see it."

  "It's a dilemma."

  Marko hummed in his sleep. She felt his wolf's body vibrate slightly. She smiled. The wolf was warm.

  "It's te." Sophie came into the living room. "You should all go to your beds!"

  Julia sighed and buried her fa Leopold's shoulder. He stroked her bad ughed softly. "Go to bed, princess. I wake up the two wolves."

  But Marko woke up when Julia carefully pulled her feet under him to get ready for the night.

  Peter

  Peter stood in front of the almost-finished painting. The painter worked very quickly, and thhly, and drew Babette very well. Peter, oher hand, looked like an unhappy ghost in the painting. At least that's how he felt. Babette disagreed. She had called it 'royal pallor' a Peter aloh his dissatisfa. His father talked to the baron and Babette pyed the piano. Peter didn't know she could py the piano... Or rather, couldn't. He didn't know which piece she wao py. It was clear that she missed the melody on the slightly out-of-tune piano. What she pyed sounded like cat whining.

  Her stepmother embroidered and listeo her with a pained smile. It was raining. Thick drops knocked on the window pane of the firep in which they were. Here also hung the painting of Babette, which her stepmother wao give her for the new house. The picture showed Babette. A small, pretty, and chubby girl with red cheeks and a delightful smile. o her sat a swan. The picture was cute. Horses could be seen in the background. Babette held a doll in her arms and looked happily toward the viewer. There was only one problem. The painting was huge. No wonder her stepmother wao get rid of it. It did not fit into the paratively small firep. The picture hung there like a monstrous mo.

  "Did you like my piano pying?", asked Babette as she finished her horrible piano interlude.

  "It was extraordinary." Peter didn't look at her. "The piano has to be tuned."

  Babette snorted. "I tu myself, yesterday!"

  Peter bit his lower lip so that he didn’t ugh out loud. Babette had pletely detuhe piano herself.

  "Please remember that tomorroill try wedding cakes to make a sele", the Baroness remihem. "And wioo."

  Wine and cake? That sounds like a disaster. Peter was already feeling sick at the thought of it. But maybe he could get drunk? Drunk might the event surely be more bearable?

  Or not?

  He had a bad feeling.

  sasi