He moves closer to the building with the other man, and the words crazy fucking hippie wizard are ricocheting off the inside of his skull like so many tiny, doubting bullets.

What the fuck are dirigible plums?

"Sorry - what?" He stares at the light-haired man with a look that is a combination of confusion, distress, and - yes - horror. "I have never - did you say - garden gnome saliva? The little plastic thingers in my grandma's yard?"