Break, too, caught the "your" in there, and he pauses in his flapping to cast a disgusted look in Oz's general direction. The satisfying sound of book against skull earns a prim little sniff, and he moves to join them with a deliberate dignity that is totally undermined by Baltus launching himself onto Break's bed and flopping over with his noodle legs outstretched.

"These house-hunting orders of mine come from the Bitey Alice directly, so there's to be no silliness out of you," he says flatly, assuming this will kill any argument on Oz's part entirely. "She and I discussed the situation, and we decided -- a proper house in the woods somewhere is just the thing. Now that we know we can travel by lamp of all things, there's definitely no need to compromise between peace and quiet and convenience, right?"

Setting the map down on the desk, Break slides it over for the boys to investigate. It is upside down but that's okay. The house in question is clearly marked.

"I'm told this one is directly between the graveyard and the fishy place," he says, meaning Darcmouth. "It's sat empty for quite some time. Evidently, it's terribly haunted."





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