Anya's birthday dawned with much celebration, the entire kingdom coming out into the streets.  Dmitri threw a festival in her honor, replete with the finest caviar and buttery champagne and parades through the streets.  The only one who seemed to not enjoy it was Morozko, who insisted he was sick and skipped out on the festivities.  Anya was quite irritated that her guardian had skipped out on the grand festivities.

Their family gathered that morning in the rose garden outside the ramshackle library’s bay window to bless Anya.  They passed around a horn of vodka and poured it onto the ground, praising the gods one by one and asking for...