And you came back to Lyrian?" Galloran said in disbelief. "Believe it or not, I came through the same hippopotamus that brought me here the first time. Jumped into the tank on purpose. I wanted to keep others from wasting their time pursuing the Word. And I couldn't ditch Rachel." Galloran smiled. "Truly, you are possessed by that species of madness that begets heroism.

Do us all a favor and toss your mouth overboard.

The surprise is on the far side." "You're sure?" "Positive." "It better not be another fairy," Seth said. "What's the matter with fairies?" "I've already seen about a billion of them and also they turned me into a walrus.

It was an emergency!" Seth blurted. "Read my lips - emergency reading - not some demented idea of fun. If I was starving, I would eat asparagus. If somebody held a gun to my head, I would watch a soap opera. And to save Fablehaven, I would read a book, okay, are you happy?" You had best be careful, Seth," Grandma warned. "The love of reading can be contagious." I just lost my appetite," he declared.

In his writings, Patton was shameless about his ambition to woo Lena to be his bride. He detailed the gradual progress he made, playing music for her on his violin, writing her poems, beguiling her with stories, engaging her in conversation. It was clear that he obsessed over her. He knew what he wanted and never relented until she was his.

Was life like that? You could look ahead to the future or back to the past, but the present moved too quickly to absorb.

I guess Smart Seth is glad, he said reluctantly. But be careful. Idiot Seth is the guy to watch out for.