'The truth?'
They went in in time to see Dairine go straight to her mom, willingly, and then to her dad, and hug them hard. This triggered a few minutes of loud noises, brief crying spells, and much fast talking. In the midst of it, Nita met her mother's astonished eyes over her dad's and Dairine's shoulders. She shrugged, and grinned. Some things not even being a wizard was going to help her explain.
It didn't last, of course. Dairine promptly disentangled herself. 'If I don't go to the bathroom,' she said, 'I'm gonna blow up.' And she headed up the stairs.
On the living room coffee table, calmly, as if it agreed with her, the Apple she had dropped there grew legs, climbed down, and went after Dairine.
Nita glanced at Kit, and together, as usual, they sat down to face the music.
