Now she's frowning. The animals she's met in the dreaming have all felt real enough to her; they had minds and could speak to her without any trouble. Maybe they're just very good fakes, but either way, the thought of bringing one out of the dreaming and into the city is troubling.

"Well, if they aren't real animals, then you've got some sort of weird dream creature on your hands that you don't really understand," she reasons. "And if they are real animals, then you're no better than the rift, just hauling them out of their homes and into the city because you can."