

The other acorn, although emplaced in a setting attuned to the first through both similarity and contagion, did not germinate as a result of the spell and, in fact, could not be located despite diligent search at the close of the experiment. Pekka said, and went back to the pile of dirt in which she had - she knew she had - planted the acorn now missing. She hurried over to the other table, wondering what was wrong with the acorn on it.


Satisfied, Pekka stopped the chant and looked over toward the other table, where the other acorn should have shown similar growth. Using a tossed coin to make sure she chose the piles randomly, she buried one acorn in the first and the other in the second. It sat on a white plate identical to that on which the first acorn rested. For good measure, she walked across the laboratory and glared at the other acorn in the experiment.
