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"To view its anthroscopy?"

"Its anthro-what? No, my dear Alexia, to witness its"--Ivy paused and blushed, looking around to see if they were being overheard--" emissions"

"That’s what I said"

"Oh, did you? Well?"

Alexia figured Ivy was officially part of her inner circle, and this parasol was that circle’s defining feature "Of course you loved hands in exciteo fetch a wrap and my hairmuffs"

"We shall see you up top" Lady Maccon took her husband’s ar of that…" Conall waved his fingers at his nose in a fair ile

"Oh, let her have her fun, Conall"

"If you say so, h Like she had a fly about her snoot"

Accordingly, a good fifteen e, joined a shivering Alexia and an annoyed Lord Maccon on the proeous set of hairned They exactly matched Ivy’s hair and consisted ofabout her ears and a coronet of plaits Gold braid oven throughout, with a gilt dagger over the left ear with a spray of leaves and gold fruit falling at the back It lookedelse It was all of a piece and worn like a helmet over Ivy’s own hair

Because the hairmuffs entirely covered her ears as well as her head, Mrs Tunstell arm but also rather deaf

"Ivy, finally, what could possibly have taken you so long?" Lady Maccon wanted to know

"You want a song? I couldn’t possibly serenade you on an open deck Perhaps later, in the lounge You are s of that parasol, re for you"

"What are you to do? Well, I assume the accessory came with instructions It can’t possibly be all that different froave up and turned to proceed with her experiloves and passed theravely and tucked them into her reticule Alexia consulted the instruction sheet

Of the three nodules on the handle, the first, when twisted, appeared to do nothing whatsoever As she was pointing the parasol out to sea, and this was the netic disruption emitter, this was the best that could be hoped for Even Alexia was not so bold as to trot aft and try the parasol on the stea happened," objected Ivy in disappointment

"Shouldn’t with the emitter"

"Mittens? I suppose that is sensible in case of snow," replied Ivy

The middle nodule, turned to the left, caused a silver spike to jut out, and to the right, a wooden one Unlike Lady Maccon’s previous parasol, both could not pop out at once

Alexia wasn’t certain about that change "What if I need to fight off both vaave her a very dour look

"Ooh, ooh, ooh!" Ivy was practically bouncing in exciteht," she said, exae of the wooden stake with interest

"Oh, yes?" encouraged Alexia loudly

Ivy stopped and frowned, her pert little face creased in worry "I said I had one It appears to have vanished"

Alexia returned to her examinations The bottom nodule, closest to the shade and nested in the puff of black feathers, was slightly more detailed Alexia consulted her sheet and then opened and carefully flipped the parasol around A twist to one direction and a fine mist spouted forth from the ends of the parasol’s ribs From the smell and sizzle of the liquid as it hit the deck, that was lapis solaris diluted in sulfuric acid A twist in the other direction and lapis lunearis and water ca a brown discoloration to the already pocketically

"There, you see, enified approach?" Ivy stepped back from her friend and wrinkled her nose

Finally, Alexia reached the very last point on Monsieur Trouvé’s list of instructions

Gustave Trouvé had written: "My esteeinal ht make additional use of them Please ensure that you are well braced for this feature, my dear Lady Maccon, and that you have pointed the parasol at so substantial Twist the nodule closest to the shade sharply clockhile holding the parasol pointed steadily at your target"

Alexia backed up, leaning against the railing of the ship, and pointed the parasol at the wall on the other side of the promenade deck She handed Conall the instruction sheet, braced herself, gestured Mrs Tunstell well out of the way, and fired

Later, Conall was to describe to her how the parasol’s tip shot co behind it a long, strong rope The spike sank into the wall of the cabin and held Alexia was to coht have been quite useful the tiible or out of the hive house However, Gustave Trouvé had not exaggerated when he instructed her to be well braced, for the parasol jerked back against her violently, quite destroying her stability Alexia let go of it in surprise

Unfortunately, the railing was just low enough not to accoirth, and corsetry She overbalanced entirely, flipped in graceless splendor backward over the railing, and plummeted down into the ocean below

Alexia screamed in surprise and then in shock at the coldness of the water She ca, her husband dove in after He could swied as he fell, hitting the water a massive brindled beast instead of man

As the stea, "Woman overboard! Wait, no, man and woman overboard Wait, no woman and wolf overboard Oh, dash it, help! Help us please! Stop the ship! Man the lifeboats Help! Suh the icy black sea toward Alexia, his fur slicked back, seal-like After only a few moments, he reached her