Summary
Part IV: Incendiary
Technicalities
Celia doesn’t want to leave, but she sets her ring on the mantel, takes the book, and goes. Her father trails her and excoriates her for her choice. They argue, and she bursts out that this must end; she is exhausted and she knows her father would sacrifice her without a thought for the victory. She also accuses him of not caring about anyone else involved in the circus. She asks where the man is who won the last one, and Hector sneers that the man is the contortionist.
En Route from London to Munich
The train seems normal on the outside, but inside, it is sumptuous.
Celia walks down the corridor and stops before Tsukiko’s compartment. Inside, Tsukiko is comforting a sobbing Isobel. Isobel leaves and Celia asks Tsukiko if she will show her her scar. She asks why she is here, and Tsukiko says to be a contortionist.
Celia sighs, hoping for a clearer answer, and Tsukiko tells her to ask clearer questions. Eventually, Tsukiko tells her that there is more to the game than she expects, that she stayed in the circus because she liked Chandresh, and that she promised she would not reveal herself unless approached directly.
Tsukiko asks Celia if she loves Marco, and she says yes. Tsukiko then asks if she thinks he loves her. This phrasing bothers Celia and she does not know what to say. After all, Isobel thought he loved her, and his skill is creating illusions.
The conversation continues. Celia wonders how the circus could continue if she were gone. She ventures to ask Tsukiko for help, but the contortionist smiles that it is Celia’s place to do it properly. If she cannot, Tsukiko will step in and end it, but this has gone on long enough.
Celia asks what happened to her opponent. Tsukiko looks down at her tea. She says her opponent is a pillar of ash, now most likely blown away.
Escapement
Bailey is in shock. He is not late, but the circus is gone. Suddenly he remembers Poppet mentioning a train, and he rushes to the depot. It is empty, but a kind-looking older couple is there. They explain amiably that they are following the circus and it will take about a day to figure out where it is going. Bailey asks if they know Poppet and Widget; they do not know them personally, but they are tickled to hear he knows the twins with the kittens.
Bailey asks how they know where the circus is going, and they tell him they are rêveurs. They introduce themselves as Victor and Lorena, siblings. Another woman named Elizabeth joins them. Bailey admits he is not a rêveur, but when Elizabeth asks questions about his love for the circus, they tell him that he is.
The four depart on the train to Boston. Victor says he will stay with them in the extra room they have rented in the Parker House; a man named August was going to be there, but he changed plans.
Inside his hotel room, Bailey is discombobulated with the fast pace of all of this and the opulence of his surroundings. Victor and Lorena treat him to a new suit and he cannot believe how he looks in the mirror. Lorena gives him a red flower for his lapel.
In the lobby, they join a few more rêveurs and tell many stories. Bailey listens, utterly absorbed. In a pause, he asks if the circus is changed. Victor and Lorena look at each other. They say it has not been the same since Herr Thiessen died. They explain who Thiessen is and how he made the clock, admitting there is something “off-kilter” now in the circus, like “a clock that is not oscillating properly” (416).
Victor excuses himself while everyone is eating dessert. When he comes back, he excitedly says they are heading to New York.
Impasse
The illusionist finishes and bows. One man remains in the audience. Marco asks Celia why she is avoiding him and why she stole his book. She admits she is trying to make the circus independent and to untie it from them. He wants to help; she says she has Lainie and Barris and that, with training, Poppet and Widget can help.
Marco looks at her and states that she doesn’t trust him. She says that Isobel trusted him, as did Chandresh. Marco sighs that he never told Isobel he loved her, and he was young and lonely.
Celia stands to leave. He says she is breaking his heart: she keeps leaving him.
Celia looks at him and states flatly that one of them will have to die for this to be done. They cannot simply stop, and they cannot go on. Celia whispers that she is going to be like her mother, who also killed herself. Marco tells her he loves her more than anything and creates the illusion of the ballroom. Tearing up, he tells her that this was when he knew he loved her. She gives in and says it was when she knew, too. They embrace and Marco does not want to let her go. She insists, and she reminds him hundreds of people are in this web.
She leaves, only her perfume left in the air. Marco takes a playing card from his pocket and puts it on her chair.
Visitations
Celia sits at her desk. Books are everywhere, as are candles and a large raven. On her desk are an unraveling red scarf, a framed photo of Thiessen, a single playing card, and an open book with signs and symbols. She tries to work as Marco must have worked to make this.
Her father appears and criticizes the mess. He looks at the book and scoffs at Alexander’s complicated and covert penchant for charms and bindings. He says she is beyond all this, but she does not care.
She is not interested in kowtowing to him, and she says she knows he sent Chandresh to Alexander at the circus that night. He shrugs that he merely made a suggestion to a drunk. Celia busts out that he got her friend killed, and that he always said there wasn’t supposed to be any interference. She deems both him and Alexander cowards and says flatly that she hates him.
The man in the gray suit appears to Marco. Marco tells him that he knows one must die, and A.H. confirms this. Marco wonders why A.H. would put someone in this position, and A.H. replies that he thought it was preferable to the life Marco was likely to lead.
Precognition
Poppet and Widget come to Celia’s compartment on the train. Poppet shares with her the sense that Bailey was supposed to come but did not. It is not entirely clear to her, but she needs to be able to stop something bad from happening. Celia sighs that no one can stop things from happening. Poppet angrily replies that Celia can.
Celia responds that no one knows her role here and how much she does. She asks Poppet to share with her what she saw, and Poppet tries to articulate it. Poppet thinks they have to do something now. Celia says that timing is not the girl’s strong suit, but she will do what she can.
On the way out, Widget looks at Celia and says it is a game. Celia blinks, surprised, pleased, and sad that he sees all of this, finally, for what it is. She says she is sorry she cannot be more honest, and they will have to take things as they come.
Widget continues to look at her, then says sorry. Celia says he has nothing to be sorry about, but she kisses his cheek.
On the way out, he tells Poppet that Celia let him read her for the first time.
Pursuit
It is a slow journey to New York. Bailey watches the world pass by outside until Victor comes in with a book of Herr Thiessen's writings. After Victor leaves, Bailey hears Elizabeth ask why he is so interested in this young rêveur, and Victor replies that he is like Frederick.
Elisabeth joins Bailey and hands him a red wool scarf she has made for him. He is humbled and thankful.
They arrive in New York, and Elizabeth takes charge. Bailey meets the enthusiastic and heavyset August. August tells them the good news is that the circus is set up about a mile away, but there is bad news—or disappointing news, rather. He explains that the weather has been bad and the circus was shut last night, but around midnight there was a loud noise and the ground shook, and there was a flash as bright as day. Today, he went by, and everything is dark and shut.
Bailey immediately takes off running.
Old Ghosts
Isobel stands outside Marco’s flat waiting for him. He seems tense as he approaches her. She explains that she left the circus; Celia said she could. She apologizes for not telling him she was tempering, but she thought she was helping. Marco is still frustrated. Isobel also says she wanted to hate Celia but could not, for she was always so kind.
They talk for a few brief minutes. Isobel sadly says he never loved her, and Marco admits he did not, though he wanted to. Isobel mentions she read for a young man the other day and she thought he could save them; it was so plain, but she seems to have been wrong. Marco turns pale and asks what she means. She responds that she saw a way for them to be together and the circus to be okay, but it seems it was wrong.
In her hand is a pile of black crystal dust. She blows it, and Marco disappears.
Aftermath
Bailey arrives out of breath at the circus. It is silent and the smell is different; it almost makes him nauseous. He can’t climb the fence or squeeze through, but he finally chooses to jump over even though he hurts his leg. Once inside, he sees the fire is not burning and the contortionist is standing there. She tells him he is late and he doubts “she” can hold on much longer. Tsukiko is terse and cryptic as she answers Bailey’s question about Poppet by saying she is indisposed, and the fire is not supposed to go out.
She does, however, say the bonfire went out in an explosion of Celia’s doing. She explains she is an emissary and is there to conduct him to a meeting. She leads him to a tent and vanishes.
Incendiary
Marco slams down and realizes he is next to the clock at the circus. He looks up in pain and surprise and sees Tsukiko. Her presence confuses him; she has never talked to him much before. She brings him inside a tent and says everyone else is at an inclement-weather party.
Marco is still flummoxed as Tsukiko asks how much Celia told him. She admits she was part of the same game and had the same teacher—A.H. He looks at her and murmurs that she won the last game, and she corrects him: she survived. She sighs that the instructors do not know what it feels like to be bound to a person like this, to have the other person define you and you define them. In fact, she fell in love with her competitor, and that competitor killed herself to let Tsukiko win. That is what Celia is planning to do.
A voice calls out and both turn to see Celia. Tsukiko tells her to go back to the party. She looks at both Celia and Marco and tells them sadly she has been surrounded by their love letters to each other for years now; it is wonderful and terrible, and she does not want to give it up—but they are letting it fade. She gave Celia a year to fix it, she says, but Celia has not, so now she is stepping in. Celia tries to protest, but Tsukiko cuts her off and says she carries the circus within herself: he uses fire, but she is the greater loss and too selfish to admit it.
The rain pours harder. Marco yells at Tsukiko that he would rather die than live without Celia. Celia screams as Marco indicates to Tsukiko to begin. Suddenly Celia runs at them, leaps into Marcos’ arms, and the bonfire lights, taking them both. The circus is ablaze, but Tsukiko is untouched. The flames die away quickly. The bonfire is completely empty. Water patters down into the cauldron and Tsukiko waits.
Transmutation
Celia is focused on the control—focused on him, on their memories, and on trying to keep them together. There is no rain, no fire, nothing. The breaking is easy, but the putting back to together is hard. She feels like she is going to let go but does not, and agonizingly puts herself back together. She is not a wraith, though: she is whole, and her heart is beating.
Around her, the tent comes into view, but it is hazy and transparent. She is alone.
Celia can picture where she wants to be in the circus and is immediately there. She is in the Hall of Mirrors and only part of her shows. She cannot light a Wishing Tree candle. There might be footprints in the Ice Garden, or maybe they are shadows. She can feel Marco but cannot see him.
Marco is shocked by being in a fire that feels so cold. His eyes adjust and he is in the Ice Garden. The whole garden is transparent but he is solid.
Celia sees Marco appear. There are so many things she wants to say, but she goes to him and tells him she loves him. He touches her to see if she is warm and real; she is. They embrace.
Marco asks how she did it. She explains that she used the circus as a touchstone. It feels like they are overlapping the circus: not trapped, only separate.
Marco notices the Garden is melting, and he states that the bonfire went out. The only thing flickering is Celia, fragile and weakening. He realizes she is holding the circus together. Elements are slipping away, though. He tells her to let go and she moans she cannot; it will vanish forever. He asks what will happen and she says it needs a caretaker.
Suspended
Bailey is inside a tent now. He sees a man in a dark suit that seems like a ghost or a reflection. Marco walks toward him and says he must be Bailey. He is sad, and he says he wishes Bailey were not so young. Bailey can only murmur that he looks like a ghost. He asks if that was Marco’s bowler hat in the courtyard, and Marco smiles yes.
He tells Bailey quickly that Tsukiko meant to imprison him in the bonfire but Celia prevented it: he was pulled apart and put together in a less concentrated state. He instructs Bailey to follow him. They step around animals and Bailey marvels at them. Marco shrugs that he could do these things too with a bit of study. Bailey is struck that this is an option, but it makes sense to him.
Marco is leading him to the Wishing Tree. On their way, they pass a tent with a party of revelers frozen in time like statues. He is perturbed to catch sight of Poppet and Widget.
Bailey keeps walking and enters a tent with the Wishing Tree. Marco puts his arms around the woman there. Bailey recognizes her as the illusionist. She smiles hello to him and tells him she likes his scarf.
He asks how she knew he was coming here, and she says Poppet saw him as part of this series of events. She states forthrightly that they need him to be the caretaker of the circus if he is willing to make the commitment. They can help him, as can Poppet and Widget, but needs to agree. Bailey wrinkles his brow and replies that he is neither special nor important.
Celia nods. She replies that he is neither destined nor chosen, but he is here, he is willing, and he is in the right place at the right time; sometimes, that is all that is needed. She tells him sincerely this must be his choice: he can agree or walk away, and he is not obliged to help. When he asks what would happen if he left, her expression is so intimate that he looks away.
The candles waver and Celia sways. Bailey asks what he needs to do. She says that he needs to finish something she started, because she did things out of order. There is also the bonfire. He will have to light it to “power” the circus, and then the other part will be more complicated. She says he will be very tied to the circus; he will be able to leave, but not for extended periods of time. It will always be his.
Bailey finally sees the enormity of this, but any concerns he has vanish. He has always known his answer. He says he will do it. Celia softly thanks him.
Marco takes off the ring, passes it through a candle, and puts it on Bailey. Bailey asks what Marco wished for as the ring begins to burn, and he says he wished for Celia. Bailey trembles in pain, but it vanishes and a scar is left. He asks what he needs to do.
The Second Lighting of the Bonfire
Bailey finds the room with the books and grabs the leather book. He tears out the page with Poppet and Widget’s signatures and writes his own. He gathers the things he is supposed to: a ball of yarn, two cards, the doves, a pocket watch labeled H.B.
He hurries outside into the light rain and finds Tsukiko in the courtyard. He informs her that Celia said to let him borrow her lighter. She regards him, and then she hands it over. She asks casually if she wants help; he says he is invested in the outcome and she is less so, so he should do it himself. She smiles the first genuine smile at him, then walks away.
Bailey looks at his items and the cauldron. He tries to remember Celia’s instructions about focus and intent. He wraps the book with red yarn, knots it three times, hangs the pocket watch around it, and tosses it dully into the cauldron. He sees Marco’s hat and tosses it in, and then, impulsively, he adds the things in his pocket—Poppet’s glove, the dried rose from the dinner with the rêveurs, and Widget’s glass bottle of his oak tree. He fumbles with the lighter and throws a burning candle inside the cauldron. He wishes, harder than anything he’s ever wished for anything before. He wishes for the rêveurs, for Poppet and Widget, for Herr Thiessen, for Marco and Celia, and even for Tsukiko.
He closes his eyes. Everything is still. Heavy invisible hands press on his shoulders. The flames catch and spark like stars. Bailey is thrown backward from the heat. Lights begin popping up in tent after tent.
Marco watches as candles come alive on the Wishing Tree. He asks if it worked, and Celia kisses him.
Part V: Divination
Poppet knocks on Chandresh’s front door. He welcomes her, saying she was smaller last time he saw her. Inside, the house is in disarray, crowded, and cramped.
She carries a briefcase. He asks why she is there, and she says she’d like him to turn over ownership of the circus. He sighs that it was never his to begin with. She responds that it certainly was, but she knows he does not have time for it. He looks at the contract, which has Barris and Lainie’s names; Mme. Padva is stepping away. He inquires as to who Mr. Bailey Clarke is; Poppet blushes and replies he is a good friend of hers.
Chandresh signs and Poppet tells him she appreciates this immensely. Looking around, she asks about all the blueprints and papers. Chandresh shrugs that these were Ethan’s; they were for the house but do not make sense. Poppet looks closely and says they are for a museum. It is a new building. As she begins rearranging, a smile grows on Chandresh’s face.
He starts to call for Marco and stops himself, wondering why he can’t seem to remember he is gone now. When Poppet tells him Marco left to be with Celia, Chandresh is visibly pleased.
Poppet volunteers to stay here for a bit to find Chandresh a new assistant, and he is relieved. A large satchel Poppet brought moves of its own accord, and he asks what is in there. She reaches in, pulls out a little black-and-white kitten, and says her name is Ara.
Chandresh is charmed. As he plays with the kitten, Poppet muses aloud that she is not going to give Chandresh his memory back; she doubts she could, but looking forward is better than looking back anyway.
Chandresh asks what she is talking about, but she replies that she is talking about nothing. She kisses his cheek, and Chandresh suddenly feels better than he has in years. His mind is clear; the plans for the museum are coming alive.
The two spend hours working on the plans, and the kitten plays.
Stories
The man in the gray suit speaks of how stories have changed: there are no more battles between good and evil, no more quests, and no more monsters. Widget listens politely.
The two speak for a while. A.H. is impressed at how many languages he knows.
Talk turns to the competition. A.H. found this challenge interesting, but is rueful that Marco is dead. Widget replies that he is not—just like Hector, standing near the window, is not dead. Marco and Celia are in the circus; they are the circus. A.H. wonders about being trapped, and Widget says that, for them, it is ideal. They are confined in a remarkable space and they can watch the world they made grow and change around them.
Widget adds that Marco thought of A.H. as his father. A.H., surprised, asks if Marco told him this; Widget replies that Marco let him read him once.
A.H. sighs that the competitors were too well-matched, and now they can never be separated. Widget wryly replies that, obviously, he’s not a romantic. A.H. says he was in his youth, but Widget notes that that was a long time ago and he does not have a shadow. Impressed, A.H. says he is of an advanced age and has seen many things.
They speak more about the nature of magic. A.H. asks what Widget does, and he says he tells stories. This piques A.H.’s interest, and he says that must be Widget’s goal. These stories must be told; Widget’s sister can see the future, but Widget can shape it.
Widget asks if the game is finished, and A.H. says it is and it isn't; it has fallen into an unforeseen loophole and is not properly completed. Widget frankly tells him that he is here to negotiate for what is essentially a used playing field that is of no further use to A.H. but has a great deal of meaning to him and others. He asks A.H. to name his price for the circus.
A.H. smiles idly and says he wants a story. He wants the story of what brought them all here. He wants a story from the heart. When the story is done, he will relinquish what is left of the circus in him. The challenge will be a stalemate.
Widget thinks of where to begin. There are so many places. He starts…
“The circus arrives without warning.”
Analysis
Morgenstern ably brings all of the tensions of the novel to their apotheoses and denouements in these last two sections of the novel, answering many of the questions readers have accumulated throughout the text.
First, Tsukiko. Readers learn that she was A.H.’s last competitor and winner, and that she won the competition but lost the love of her life. Her rival killed herself rather than living without Tsukiko or having to endure the competition any longer. Tsukiko joined the circus to perform her contortionist “magic” out of curiosity, and then she stayed because it was a wondrous place. She saw Celia and Marco write their love letters to each other and was both heartbroken but fulfilled. For her, the circus must endure even if Celia and Marco do not; if they cannot take the necessary steps to ensure that it does, then Tsukiko will step in. Tsukiko is a somewhat enigmatic character, but she clearly values love and courage.
Second, Bailey’s fate. What is wonderful about what Morgenstern does with Bailey is that she shows how a normal, “not special” person can actually be exactly who is needed to do great things. Bailey does not know magic and he’s not a performer, but he’s an ardent enthusiast for the circus. He is brave and empathic, and he will be the perfect caretaker for the circus.
Third, loose ends with the circus associates are tied up. Celia taking over the binding from Marco, then having Bailey take it over, coupled with the end of the competition, means that Barris, Lainie, Mme. Padva, and, most importantly, Chandresh, are freed from the circus’s clutches. They still love the circus and will still help it, but they can now live freely. For Chandresh, who was almost destroyed, this is a heartwarming end. The narrator says, “As soon as [Poppet’s] lips touch his skin, Chandresh feels better than he has in years, as though the last of a fog has been lifted from him. His mind is clear, the plans for the museum becoming cohesive” (498). With a new kitten, help from Poppet, and an exciting and completely manageable new project before him, Chandresh will be fine.
Fourth, Celia and Marco. These doomed lovers end up not being doomed at all, though the path they had to take to get to this point was an arduous and often overwhelming and depressing one. Their future is now tied to the circus forever, as it is the touchstone Celia used to remove Marco and her physical bodies from the world while letting their spirits endure. But, as Widget tells A.H., being “trapped” isn’t as bad as it seems: “It’s a matter of perspective…They have each other. They are confined within a space that is remarkable, one that can, and will, grow and change around them. In a way, they have the world, bound only by his imagination…So yes, I think it marvelous” (502).
Finally, A.H., Widget, and stories. As perhaps the most elusive character in the entire novel, more about A.H.’s motivations becomes clear here. He likes stories and he thinks they must endure, but he knows that stories have changed. He explains to Widget that there are no battles between good and evil, nor any simple quests: “Things keep going on, they overlap and blur, your story is part of your sister’s story is part of many other stories, and there is no telling where any of them may lead” (499). Furthermore, how can one say who the real hero is? He states, “And is not the dragon the hero of his own story? Is not the wolf simply acting as a wolf should act?” (499). Morgenstern said she put many of her own thoughts into this speech, and, indeed, this is an important coda to her novel full of intertextuality, multiple main characters, and a lack of clear “good” and evil.”
