Chapter Four
In which a Brother and a Sister turn to Botany.
Barren was the house where Moon no longer lived. The pool of water before it had probably once been clear and serene; now it was dank and dark and overgrown with weed, no longer reflecting the light of the stars above. The house itself, once a vision of ethereal light, was dark and broken and silent. Nothing stirred save a mournful wisp of night-time breeze, rustling through the discarded leaves which drifted about the ground.
Hattie Strangewayes stood in the middle of the empty promontory, surveying the place with frowning brow. Theodosius stood with her, wielding a lantern with worthy intent, though its pale glow did little but make the clinging shadows appear deeper than ever.
The light of two more lanterns wavered bravely
