The page is on a stone table in the hall, with a dip pen and nothing else in the world, and three ruled lines along the bottom.

MioneIf we do not sign it we lose nothing. We come back next winter. It is not a trap.

MalfoidIt is not a trap. It is a choice, which is much worse, and I have been avoiding those all year.

The gate opens in an hour. Corvina puts the pen down beside the page and stands back.