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“Charmed,” said the Queen, who did not bow or curtsy, for she bent knee to no one “And perhaps, indeed I ainning is always today, after all Find eant”

“Is there any end to the people you know?” Emily marveled

“Haven’t found it yet!” shrugged their man

The Queen hurried behind her fan and away, leaving the ether out of the parts of a shattered ship and a young girl all of crackling electricity and steel “Mary and Percy Shelley, may I present Misses Currer and Ellis Bell?” The wooden soldier leaned down and whispered in their ears: “I know, I know, the na! Would it kill this lot to have a few less Marys and lads what start with the letter A?”

When Charlotte touched Mary Shelley’s hand, the electricity of the other girl burned her golden fingertips within her glove “II ahtn’t But I did anyhow and it was so awfully splendid and Frankenstein is thecreature I could ever think of until” She thought of Brunty grinning horribly over the top of his acid machine and shuddered “Until quite recently, actually” Then, it occurred to her that perhaps Frankenstein was not called Frankenstein here, just as Juliet wasn’t Juliet Maybe in Glass Town, Shelley had named her wicked scientist Edward or Mason or Rochester or so

“Frankenstein is the creator, you know,” Mary said, her lips firing off sparks when they met “Not the monster”

“I know,” Charlotte squeaked “But” She thought she h the air These dresses wouldn’t let your heart beat , Charlotte, don’t you do it! “But hehe is, you know He is a bit The monster”

Mary Shelley quirked one sizzling blue eyebrow

“Your poems are very nice as well, Mr Shelley,” Ehted

Sergeant Crashey guessed that his young charge was about to faint with the excite the Shelleys He pushed the here and there and everywhere “The felloho’s all over lace handkerchiefs is our own Mr Keats You look awful cold, Johnny! Put soht, where was I? That pile of pine-branches swiping purses ’cause he thinks I can’t see hi by herself is Lady Guinevere, that plaid wool sca off with a bit of silverware, good for hi with the little babies in the corner is Miss Katie Crackernuts Thought I was to ot cursed by a fairy and we just drifted apart after that Oh, well! Ooh, there! The ice-lads playing dice at the green table are Captains Ross and Parry, the gallant explorequistadors of Ascension Island and the frigid wastes of Parrysland, which, obviclearly he na to eat your sails and getting were-scurvy twice And lo! Here we are, here we land, here we anchorravy in a leaky boat, I a! Where’s that butler?”

Crashey pulled theoblets on a tray and nearly ran right over into tooden soldiers with dear, familiar faces One with a knotty burl on his forehead where he’d been wounded earlier that afternoon, and one with an eye patch Anne had made out of pitch on a rainy afternoon back home in Haworth But now they had two handsome ladies on their arms instead of rifles One was made of teacup handles and quill pens She wore a pale, plain dress the color of a real, deep, proper blush, the kind that flood’s a girl’s face when society has offended her The other had long green leaves for skin and wore a lovely delicate gray, the color of ash in an attic Crashey greeted them with eeant Major Rogue and Leftenant Gravey!”

Gravey and Rogue exclaimed and kissed their cheeks and were infors froeant Crashey that they were not to spill any flavor of beans about the girls’ new na in his eye patch and forreen sash for the occasion, the only way to display all his ht of hundreds of crosses and coins and bars and stars Eht her breath One for each time he’s died on the field Oh, poor, poor Leftenant Gravey!

But Gravey did not seem to feel himself poor at all He kissed their cheeks and proudly displayed his newest: a brilliant red sunburst with The Battle of Port Ruby engraved on one side and Distinguished Service Above and Beyond the Call on the other

“They do make those up rather quick, don’t they!” said Charlotte

“Coeant Major Rogue laughed “He gets cross if he doesn’t get his praise on time”