The children are waiting outside the house when Arthur and Linus return; they are ecstatic over the recent explosion. Marblemaw arrives, furious both at the explosion Arthur has caused and her inability to prove that it ever happened. Zoe tells Marblemaw to be quiet. When Marblemaw threatens Zoe with arrest as an unregistered magical being, Zoe uses her powers to confine Marblemaw in the guesthouse. The children clamor for more information about what is going on. When Arthur tries to deflect their questions, Sal firmly tells him that this situation is very much the children’s business, and Arthur needs to fill them in completely. He reminds Arthur that each of the children has already experienced the kind of bigotry and pain that Arthur is always trying to protect them from and that, in any case, Arthur is not an expert on every possible form these troubles can take—Sal, for instance, has experienced racial discrimination that Arthur cannot possibly understand. Arthur relents and explains that Rowder and Marblemaw are plotting to remove the children from the island under false pretenses.

The children insist that they are ready to fight to stay together. They announce that they have decided to call Arthur “Dad” and Linus “Papa,” and they will be the Baker-Parnassus family.