I stood in front of the mirror, all dolled up and dressed in a plain black dress with pockets—the only one I agreed to wear out of the dozens that Maria made me choose from because for one, it had pockets, and second, it didn’t scream flowers and loud colors. It was five in the afternoon, and the promenade that the Junior batch had been preparing for was supposed to officially start in an hour. I stared at my reflection, remembering a photo of Dana 2.0 with make-up and hair done exactly like mine, and I found myself hoping that her world wasn’t as tumultuous as mine seemed to be.
On my watch was a display of the news from last night and this morning—the High Council spokesperson had announced an official press conference. She didn’t mention the exact reason, but I knew what it would be f
