Willow, still at the village of Bakanal, learns more about its "communal" nature, and the Festival of Balance coming up. She is disgusted with many strange aspects of the village … such as why the airship crewmen are getting such "good treatment" by the locals. She notices that Whitehead, a fellow Skreek, is following her, while she is trying to learn more of Bakanal from Morning-Mist.

While Willow tries to sneak behind Whitehead, she overhears a conversation between Captain Merryweather and First Mate Barnacle – Apparently the captain is very anxious to leave immediately, rather than to be present for the "Festival of Balance" coming up the next day.

Willow pushes that aside to focus on her more immediate goal of getting rid of Whitehead, and succeeds in driving him off after catching him by surprise. She then manages to pry more information out of Morning-Mist, and figures out that the doe has been labelled as "undesirable" and that she's to be killed at this festival, along with others whose "usefulness" to the community is in question. One of the villagers tries to pull Morning-Mist away from Willow, but the Skreek is persistent. She drags off the doe and tries to talk some sense into her. She even goes so far as to tell of her true identity in an attempt to prove her trustworthiness – and friendship – to the timid deer.

At last, Morning-Mist agrees to go away, rather than to die in the Festival of Balance … but on their way to the airship, a Jupani, Goldmane, tries to intercept them. Willow has "Burr", her cheetah slave, take Morning-Mist to the ship, while she tries to hold off the wolf. The wolf, unfortunately, clobbers Willow … but while Willow is unconscious, a small melee ensues, and when she comes to, she is aboard the Merryweather, headed away from Bakanal, despite bad weather. Burr and Morning-Mist are present as well, making it clear that the fight was not for naught.