Autumn in our sanctuary is the hottest time. Young dragonlings are learning to fly, grown-up salamanders try to burn down the forest, and in the nest of the firebird, the long-awaited chicks are about to hatch. That’s why a visit from inspectors of the capital’s Ministry of Natural Resources is especially ill-timed right now—particularly if among the checkers there are people who believe they’ve arrived in an ordinary forest, and magic exists only in fairy tales.