Driving from the ferry into dense forest, Linus emerges at a cliffside brick house with a turret and an overgrown, unused van, signaling isolation. After hearing a childlike giggle, Linus opens his car and Calliope bolts toward the lantern-lit garden. He follows through swaths of flowers, discovering an apple tree and a “statue” that blinks: Talia, a gnome, who pointedly warns him about trespassers and fertilizer.

Talia summons Theodore, a small wyvern who coils around Linus’s leg and demands payment for help. Lacking coins, Linus offers a shiny brass button; Theodore ecstatically adds it to his hidden hoard and departs. Phee, a wary forest sprite, arrives long enough to note the cat isn’t in the woods. As they search, Talia explains the home’s “personal pursuits” hour and that Arthur Parnassus focuses on helping Lucy avoid apocalyptic power surges, with Ms. Chapelwhite monitoring when needed—information that unsettles Linus.

Talia leads Linus around the house to a small guest cottage. There, Sal, a large, shy boy, calmly pets Calliope. Linus calls out, startling Sal, who instantly shifts into a tiny Pomeranian and dashes inside, with Calliope following. The guest house feels inviting, in contrast to Linus’s first impression of the main house.

Inside, Chauncey, an amorphous green child with stalk eyes and tentacles, cheerfully greets Linus as a bellhop, reports that he placed Linus’s luggage in his room, and accepts a tip. Calliope is already settled on Linus’s pillow, safe and content.

As calm returns, an icy voice fills the house proclaiming, “Prepare for the End of Days!” Talia dismisses it as Lucy’s melodrama, but the admonition highlights the gravity of Linus’s month-long assessment.