The walk back through the mansion and gardens had been uneventful. They traveled in silence, but for Drake, humming a simple tune. Gigi didn’t know what to say at this point. She was frankly exhausted from the whole night. A hurricane of emotions had swept through her in such a short period of time. Jörg, destroying someone who inspired her, had an all too familiar sting—rage at the world’s inequities had burned through her, leaving her an exhausted husk.

The task of justice had been placed on her athletic, green shoulders. It was a burden she would happily carry if it meant she could balance the scales, even if it were just this once. Mai deserved better. Gigi would do everything in her power to see that she got it. In truth, she didn’t know if she was really strong enough to see it through. Thorny vines of doubt ensnared her. The harder she tried to reassure herself, the more entangled she became. Could she actually triumph where her hero had failed? Gigi didn’t know.

She looked to the roof of the cavern. Nestled in the rock sat the massive bioluminescent blue-green bulb that illuminated the Hollow. It was beginning to dim. She realized dawn must have been approaching. They would likely get home after the first loaves were done baking. She wondered how incensed her mother would be. Despite being dead on her feet, Gigi decided she would still do the deliveries as a peace offering. Maybe she would even apologize.

The city was still bustling, even at the late hour. However, the inhabitants paid no mind to Gigi and Drake. She looked at her companion, still humming. His eyes were alert as he watched the crowd pass them by. She wondered if he looked for dangers around every corner. Perhaps he was simply picking out the next subject he would sketch.

She didn’t know what to do with her feelings for the man she walked beside. Events from the night bobbed to the surface of her thoughts. Drake had been there for her when she needed someone most. True, he had stopped Jörg from crushing her, which was appreciated. However, his words were what kept echoing through her heart. He had been the first person in her life to say that he thought she was strong enough to be champion, that she already was his, and that regardless of a belt, she mattered. Nobody, including herself, seemed to believe in Gigi as much as Drake did.

The goblin thought of discovering the truth about his past, or at least a share of it. She had no idea how many skeletons clung to him. Clawing at him from days that he would never be able to forget. The thought scared her, but the idea of leaving him to fight those demons alone felt wrong. Not because she thought she owed him something but because she knew he would have done the same for her.

She sighed. Then there was the fact she had almost kissed him. Gigi knew she would have if they hadn’t been called into Lili’s office. The thought made her feel light-headed. It may have just been the alcohol and adrenaline fading from her system that had compelled her lips forward. However, she had been in plenty of drunken brawls, and this was the first time she had felt this way.

Gigi smelled something fried and delicious as they moved. It dawned on her that she hadn’t eaten anything but a donut for dinner and two meads. Her stomach rumbled loudly. She grabbed Drake by the hand and pulled him, following the scent. Before long, they were in front of a stand. It was a glorified stove with a cooling rack on wheels, run by a very tired-looking arachne. Gigi recognized the golden buttery medallions steaming on the cart, and her mouth began to water.

“We’ll take all of them,” she said, dropping some coins in one of the arachne’s free hands.

Gigi took them down an adjacent alley and through a set of iron gates. They found a secluded spot in what Gigi was confident was a private garden. Too tired to care about trespassing, she plopped down on a patch of grass. The little garden was lined with trellises that rode the brick walls that marked the end of the garden. They were all interwoven with well-manicured cave creep. The pink and purple blossoms slowly began to curl inward, readying to slumber for the day.

As Drake joined her on the grass, the lamp perched in the center of the space came to an orange flickering life. Gigi offered him the greasy basket of food. Drake took one of the palm-sized medallions and sniffed it. He shrugged before biting into it. Gigi smiled and did the same, devouring one after another. She savored the crispy skin and delighted in the earthy flavor.

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“What are they?” Drake asked, picking up another one.

“Fried kiligari,” she threw one into her mouth.

“What’s a kiligari? I thought you didn’t eat animals.”

“It’s a fungus, and it grows like a weed down here. It actually will eat through bricks if you aren’t careful.”

“Unless you eat it first,” Drake laughed. Gigi returned a small smile. Her doubt was still churning in her stomach, along with the fried treats. In a few short weeks, she would be fighting Jörg, and she felt far from ready.

“Drake,” she put the basket of fungus down, “I’m not sure I can beat Jörg.”

“Why? Just because you lost that fight with him now?” He asked innocently. She grimaced. He knew it as well as she did. The truth stung, but it was her reality.

“You could be less blunt, but yes…because I lost…because Mai lost.” Gigi slumped inward, her ears drooped, and she felt less confident by the second.

Drake stopped eating, looked at her, and frowned. She looked up at him with sad eyes. He shrugged and shook his head. “I don’t think either of you were that far away from beating Jörg.”

She didn’t want to hear niceties, but the goblin’s curiosity had been piqued. “Why do you think that?” She didn’t want to admit it out loud, but she knew Jörg was about to break her like a doll if he hadn’t intervened.

“Gigi, do you remember that ‘test of strength’ he goaded Mai into?” She did. The cocky expression on the serpent’s face burned into her memory. “He lost that. You can’t fake muscles straining that hard.” Gigi opened her mouth to protest, but nothing came out. “He might try to say that he lured her into a trap, but the reality is he wasn’t stronger and had to resort to a trick to win.”

“But he still won!” she said after finally finding her voice.

“He did,” Drake admitted. “But, if Mai had simply turned her head, that victory would have been a defeat. From what I saw, he got lucky,” he said, shrugging as if it were obvious.

Gigi sat up straighter and looked him hard in the eye. “You aren’t going to seriously sit there and tell me I almost won when you had to pull me from his tail,” she said with annoyance.

He met her gaze and nodded. “Gigi, you were one punch away from winning that fight.”

Her ears fluttered. “Explain,” she demanded.

“That punch you landed on Jörg, I don’t think you could see it. You were probably too close, but you hurt him. There was panic in his eyes when you connected. I don’t think he could have taken one, let alone two more of those.” He put his hand over hers. “Maybe you came up short today, but we will make sure when it counts, you don’t.”

“What if I can only get one punch?”

“Then you aim where it hurts the most and put your soul into that punch.”

“You make it sound so simple,” she sighed. She wondered how many duels Drake had been in and how many battles he had fought. She doubted he had the faintest notion of a number. Then, an idea struck her.

“Drake, will you be my coach for this fight?”

“What’s a coach?”

“Someone who helps you win your fights with strategy and training.” Someone who believes in you.

Drake’s eyes lit up. “You would let me do that? You trust me?”

Gigi nodded solemnly. “But don’t tell my mom.”