Evidently the sphinx would not wait for their company to come to agreement—though fortunately, Hamish thought, the creature agreed with the terms as he had defined them. That was promising.

The wizard pondered the riddle. He had always thought himself intellectually sharp, but the sphinx's looming presence shook that confidence. Oona's shaking at his heels did little to help the situation, either. After what felt like an eternity, he suggested—to the group, not the creature!—, "Might it be a ghost?"