Jamie Brightwood stood where his street used to be. Green vines covered everything. They climbed the houses, wrapped the lamp posts, and buried the road under a thick knot. He had grown up three blocks past this spot. Now he could not even see three blocks. Somewhere under all this green sat the seed that fed the vines. Find it, and he could take his town back. But first he had to get through the wall in front of him. He pulled at a vine near his knee. It flexed and gripped his wrist. Jamie yanked free and stumbled back. These plants moved. They watched. He had known that for weeks, but it still made his skin crawl. "They won't like that," a voice said behind him. Jamie spun. Tom stood there, red hair bright against the green, a purple cat winding around his ankles. Tom lived two doors down from Jamie once. Jamie's chest went tight the way it always did when Tom appeared. He hoped it didn't show. "You followed me," Jamie said. "You always come here." Tom stepped closer. The cat leaped onto a fallen branch and stared at the vine wall. Its ears twitched. "I brought help." He opened his jacket. A cluster of tiny dragons spilled out and hovered. Their scales flashed every color. They were no bigger than sparrows, but their eyes were sharp and bright. "Where did you get those?" Jamie asked. "Found them nesting in my chimney." Tom grinned. "Watch." He pointed at the vine wall. The little dragons darted forward. They breathed thin ribbons of fire. The vines hissed and shrank away from the heat. They curled back on themselves, opening a narrow gap in the tangle. Jamie's heart jumped. "It's working." He pushed into the gap before it could close. Tom followed, the cat and dragons ahead of them. The dragons burned a path forward, foot by foot. The vines pulled back on every side. Jamie saw the shape of his old road appear beneath his feet, cracked but real. Then the ground ahead opened. His neighborhood spread before him at last. He knew every roof, even under the green. He turned to Tom, ready to laugh. But the vines behind them were already growing back. Fast. Faster than the dragons could burn. The gap they came through vanished. A fresh wall rose between Jamie and the way home. The dragons drooped in the air. Their fire came out weak now, just sparks. One landed on Jamie's shoulder and shivered. They were tired. They had spent everything getting him through. Jamie stood inside his old neighborhood at last. Behind him, the vines had sealed shut. Ahead, more green covered the houses he loved. "We made it in," Tom said quietly. He looked back at the closed wall. "But how do we get out?" Jamie had no answer. He was deeper in the tangle now, and the only way was forward, toward the seed.