“I carried recipes in my head like maps.”

“No point carrying useless ballast. It won't change a thing.”

“Death should be a celebration. Like a birthday. I want to go up like a rocket when my time comes, and fall down in a cloud of stars, and hear everyone go: ahh!”

“I liked her better for showing a little spirit.”

“Was it my fault that I got out of hand?--Loki”

“I know you,” said Maddy. “You’re -““What’s a name?” Loki grinned. “Wear it like a coat; turn it, burn it, throw it aside, and borrow another. One-Eye knows; you should ask him.”“But Loki died,” she said, shaking her head. “He died on the field at Ragnarok.”“Not quite.” He pulled a face. “You know there’s rather a lot the Oracle didn’t foretell, and old tales have a habit of getting twisted.”“But in any case, that was centuries ago,” Maddy said bewildered. “I mean - that was the End of the World, wasn’t it?”“So?” said Loki impatiently. “This isn’t the first time the world has come to an end, and it won’t be the last either.”

“If knowledge was power I had under my possession the entire school”