New characters Thomas (Barnaby's apprentice) and Amelia (Gingerbread competitor) are introduced. Amelia's gingerbread structure is failing because her icing won't set, which Thomas suspects is due to the ongoing structural/magnetic resonance affecting Silver Creek. Thomas suggests using specialized packing moss, seen near the Ice Workshop, as a vibration dampener for Amelia's table. This connects their domestic crisis to the larger atmospheric problem affecting the town and sets up a retrieval mission for the moss, tying into the Star Seed recovery plotline.