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Asha handed her a quill.

There was nothing left to do but write. She laid down the scrap and began to write the words that she already knew she had written. The words she had already read. But when she tried to write more, a message to Buffalo, Zara’s hand came down once more. Gentle, firm, and final.

The note was rolled tightly and placed in the glowing bottle. Then the stopper was sealed with candle wax, poured from the tip of Nell’s blade. Zara handed the bottle to Asha, who was standing at the door now. She walked to the rail and flung it. Amrita watched it arc high into the sky like a shooting star. It pierced the bubble and disappeared into the storm.

Zara blew out the candle. Nell pushed her out onto the deck and closed the door.

“Amrita?” Soraya peeked up over the railing. The storm was enormous behind her. Amrita felt the first drops of rain as the bubble above them began to fail. There was a hole where the bottle had pierced it and it was starting to grow. The wind whipped across the deck, snapping the sails and sweeping away everything that wasn’t tied down.

“Amrita!” Soraya cried out. “Zara, Asha, Nell… No! I said I would set you free. You must let her go!”

Amrita still had things she wanted to say to Soraya. So many questions she’d wanted to ask and stories she’d looked forward to hearing. She knew now, for sure, she would never have the chance. So she called out instead. “Go now, Soraya Tufan! You must leave now. Don’t look back.”

Soraya wept. “I cannot leave you here. I would not have had the courage to do this without you.”

“I am sure you would have,” Amrita shouted. “Eventually. And I am sure you still will. You might even find someone who’s a much better kisser than me.”

Something moved across Soraya’s face. Not quite a smile. The memory of one.

“When the wards fade your magic will once again be your own, Amrita. You must use it to save yourself. Please. I cannot live with another loss.”

“I’ll think of something,” Amrita promised, although the way the ship was already starting to shudder she wasn’t sure it was a promise she could keep.

Nell used her sword to cut the ropes, leaving Soraya no option but to depart. The tender landed with a splash that parted the sea. Asha leaned forward at the rail and held her hands to either side of her head as she called forth a wind that pushed the small boat away from The Tufan. It slid through the storm like a drop of oil on water, leaving no wake and vanishing the instant it cut through the clouds.

The three Fates climbed onto the rail and stood there for a moment, arms linked together. Zara looked back for a moment and lifted her free hand.

Farewell. For now.

Then they leapt overboard. The last of the bubble went with them and The Tufan crashed into the ocean with an ominous cracking sound. The ship began to list.

Only Fortune remained with her now, her claws clinging to the rail and her large, wise, amber eyes fixed on Amrita.

She hadn’t been asked to stay. So why was she there? Perhaps to witness, Amrita thought. The ship was going down. Not in a hurry, but it was a forgone conclusion.

All around her she could hear the creak of old boards and the clatter of loose things falling, clay jars rolling and glass shattering. But these were nothing compared to the deep booming bass roar of the storm. Amrita dropped to her knees and crawled to the center of the deck. Once there she used a length of rope to secure herself to the mast.

She reached both hands into her pocket. In one hand she held her wand steady. Against the knuckles of the other, she could feel the cool brass of Buffalo’s binoculars.

Q: Which widely accepted animal behavior theory was later disowned by the scientist who invented it?

A: The “alpha wolf” theory

The theory of dominant animals fighting their way to the top of a rigid hierarchy was based on observations of unrelated wolves held together in captivity. In the wild, a wolf pack is simply a family. The wolves in charge are the parents. They lead because they are older and more experienced, not because they have defeated anyone. The researcher who originated the alpha theory spent the remainder of his career attempting to have his own book retracted. It remains in print.

—Dan Wilder, The Most Important Question: Fanciful Trivia by Dandelion Wilder

TWENTY-NINE

FAMILY RESEMBLANCES

Luna was not working in the cafe when Dan came home to the Mudpuddle, but he knew where to find her. She was on the narrow side stoop, already settled with a steaming pot of tea and two mismatched cups, her flour-streaked apron suggesting she had stepped away from something in the oven and hadn’t let that stop her. She looked up when Dan appeared around the corner and her face split into a wide, surprised grin.

“Dandelion!” she exclaimed. “I wasn’t expecting you home at this hour. To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“Well…” Dan hesitated. He had to force himself to spit it out. “There’s a favor I’d like to ask, Granny.”

Granny Luna’s eyes widened. She linked her tiny arm through his much larger one and tugged him out the side door of the mudroom to the narrow stoop that ran along the Mudpuddle’s east-facing side. There were a pair of mismatched chairs there.