“I’m sure when the world does end it will be in a way we haven’t even thought of,” said Hazel Bottle.

“All those cats,” said Jupiter Peacock. “How inventive.”

“Madame Valentin works in a pet shop,” said Marcel. “So that’s probably where she gets her inspiration.”

“She’s completely doolally,” said Hazel. “Has been for years.”

“In the nicest way, of course,” added Marcel. He always hated saying nasty things about people.

“But the end of the world, though,” mused Jupiter Peacock. “How fascinating that would be. Imagine surviving it.”

“Yes,” said Marcel Bottle uncertainly. “Just imagine.”

2

EUPHEMIA SIXTEN BOOKEND TRUELOVE, known as Effie, had been in the Otherworld since the end of school. Time worked differently there; three days in the Otherworld (they called them moons) only took 57.3 minutes of Realworld time, which meant it was always possible to slip off for a long weekend there if you had an hour to spare.

But it took M-currency—also known as lifeforce—to stay in the Otherworld. People from the Realworld couldn’t store very much of it, and Effie’s seemed to run out particularly quickly.

So she always had to leave too soon.

Today (in Otherworld time) Effie had woken up early in the large, comfortable bed in her lovely light room in Truelove House. This room always had fresh linens and clean towels, unlike in her Realworld home in the suburbs of the Old Town where if Effie wanted anything cleaned she had to do it herself, and where it never got fully light at this time of year anyway. She’d looked at her watch—it told the time in both worlds—and calculated that she’d have to leave the Otherworld by early evening if she wanted any chance of being back in the Realworld in time for supper.

But there was still a whole Otherworld day to enjoy, and Effie was going to spend it in the nearby town of Frog Hole with her cousin Clothilde. She was sure she’d have enough lifeforce for that.