"The Thief of Always" by Clive Barker Quiz

Answer: Seasons changed as the day passed

It was a dark, cold February when Rictus arrived and took Harvey Swick with him to Mr. Hood's Holiday House. Harvey arrived at the House and ate a huge meal. The cook, Mrs. Griffin, took him to his room. Harvey thought he'd go outside and play but fell into a long, deep sleep.

When he woke up it was summer outside. He soon realized that as each day progressed, the seasons did too. The morning was Spring, the afternoon turned to Summer, the beginning of the evening was Autumn, and the nighttime was Winter.

Answer: The lake

When the day turned into Summer, Harvey wondered if there was a lake he could swim in. Everything else was so wonderful he assumed that there would be a place where he could cool off. Wendell said that there was, but warned him that he wouldn't like it. Harvey wanted to see it himself, and when he did, he realized Wendell was right- he hated the lake.

It was large and foreboding and was filled with frightening fish. The rocks surrounding the water were green and slimy as well.

Answer: Halloween

Harvey asked his friend Wendell about how the seasons changed at the House and Wendell told him it must be magic. He also gave Harvey a stack of comic books and told him to look for a monster to be that night for Halloween. Every night at the House Halloween was celebrated.

After that would be a Thanksgiving feast followed by a quick snowfall that would also bring a large Christmas tree and presents for everyone.

Answer: The House of Always

When the boys celebrated Halloween for the first time, Wendell dressed as a hangman and Harvey was a vampire. Wendell managed to play a trick on Harvey by throwing a dummy he had made along with a pumpkin head. He tried to cheer up the upset Harvey by saying "...we're at the Holiday House." Harvey agreed and said there'd be other times to get him back. Wendell replied "Always. That's what this place is.

It's the House of Always."

Answer: A prison

Harvey made another friend named Lulu, and one day he couldn't find her. He asked Mrs. Griffin where she was and she responded that Mr. Hood didn't like "inquisitive guests." Harvey responded that he wasn't even entirely sure Mr. Hood existed, and his words frightened the old cook.

She practically begged him to stop talking. Harvey realized that it was intended for him to stay at the House forever and eventually got Mrs. Griffin to admit that the House was essentially a prison that neither of them could escape.

Answer: A baseball glove

Every night the House celebrated Christmas. Lulu reminded Harvey that he should wish for anything he wanted. To test the houses' magic, he wished for an impossible gift: a handmade Noah's ark his father had carved for him. He had loved it but had lost it during the years. To Harvey's shock, the same ark was in the tree waiting for him. Later on he remembered how sad he was when somebody had stolen his new bicycle and found the same bike under the tree and different day. For one of the last Christmases Harvey celebrated, Wendell got a mechanical dog and he got a magician's kit.

Answer: Something he had lost

Harvey had gone to the lake to test out his ark and played it for some time. But he lost his balance and fell into it, sending his ark sinking into the dark depths of the lake. The fish were large and Mrs. Griffin told him that they were poisonous, so he quickly left. Lulu met Harvey outside and told him to keep his eyes completely shut.

She said that she wanted to give him something to remember her by, and handed him three pieces of his Noah's ark that she had retrieved from the lake for him.

She cried and ran away and Harvey saw what had become of her- she had lost all of her hair and was becoming another fish for the lake. Her eyes were filled with so much horror and sadness that Harvey knew he'd never forget them.

Answer: She was the first child to go to Hood's house

Mrs. Griffin spent all of her time at the House making sure every child who entered would be happy. But she had one of her cats help Wendell and Harvey escape, so she was punished. Harvey returned to the house, freed her, and told her everything was going to be all right. Mrs. Griffin immediately began to cry and she explained that she hadn't cried in decades.

Her tears broke the curse Mr. Hood had placed upon her: she was the first child at the House and he told her that if she stayed forever, she would never cry again.

She was very grateful for Harvey.

Answer: He actually showed it love

The House had four loyal servants who all followed Mr. Hood: Jive, Rictus, Marr, and Carna. Harvey cleverly made his way through them. Marr, who tried to change Harvey into a worm, was defeated when he asked her what she dreamed. He took hold of her hands and, because he didn't want to be anybody but himself, Marr's magic was transferred to her own body. Marr didn't have a heart and did not have dreams, so she turned into what she dreamed of: nothing. Harvey tricked Jive into eating pie, which was just an illusion and was actually just dust and ashes.

The skinny man coughed it up and turned into dust and ashes himself. When Harvey confronted Hood, he commanded Carna to attack him. Carna thought it was going to be punished, but Harvey raised his hand and gently patted its head.

This show of love to the unsuspecting creature caused it to turn into a mere pile of ancient bones. Later on Hood killed Rictus for trying to steal his magic.

Answer: A lunar eclipse

Harvey had remembered what Rictus had told him- it took much magical energy to keep the Hood House and its surroundings going. So Harvey cleverly began to ask Hood for several things and he knew it would drain the monster, who he thought of as the Vampire King because of the way he devoured children's souls.

He asked for real animals for his ark and received a herd of real-life miniature animals and the largest delicacies he could think of, including caviar, roast swan, and oysters. But the wish that drove Hood past his breaking point was for all four seasons at once.

The elements battled each other and tore the House apart.