Wolf-speaker (17 page)

“Why did you do that to your face?” asked the ten-year-old. “You look like a mummer at Midwinter Festival.”

“Do what?” No, she was not mistaken. Something was very wrong with her front teeth. “What do you mean, a mummer?”

“You know—they play the parts of the animals, asking Mithros to bring back the sun, so they glue whiskers and furry noses to their faces.”

Daine explored with her hands. Her nose had gone flat and—there was no way to get around it—furred, and she had long whiskers curving from either side of her mouth. Her top and bottom incisors were long and extremely sharp, sharp enough to cut her skin. “You can see all this?” It was hard to talk around rodent teeth. Kitten trotted over and touched the new parts with gentle claws.

“Of course,” Maura replied scornfully. “It's as plain as the nose—” She stopped just in time. The rest, “on your face,” didn't seem tactful.

Daine whooped and stood up, nearly braining herself on the rock overhead. Going outside, she grabbed Maura by the hands and danced her around, laughing.

“I'm not crazy!” she cried. “I'm not mad! It's
real! The changes are real!” She skidded to a halt, realizing something. “I think the badger
knew
this would happen. He
said
I'd be surprised.” She touched her face, but it was human again. “Odd's bobs. Could I make the whole change? Change entirely into an animal? That would be
wondrous
.”

“Don't ask me,” replied Maura. “Do you know how it happens?”

“No, but I'll find out.” There was a screech overhead. Daine looked up in alarm, but the caller was only a hawk. “‘And here we are, dancing in the open like idiots. Let's get under cover, and decide how we'll eat tonight.” She trotted back toward the caves, Maura and Kitten behind her.

“I should have brought food and stuff,” Maura complained, panting as she ran. “I didn't stop to think about anything like that. I just wanted to get out of there and get word to the king.”

“Are you sure you can't go home now?” asked Daine. “You know that help is on the way, and you'll get proper food.” She glanced at her friend. Maura's face was set. “I can't be attending you, you know. Numair wants me to count the soldiers in the forts—unless
you
know how many there are.”

Maura shook her head. “They never talked about anything like that around me. If they had, I'd've gotten help a long time ago.”

“But wouldn't you rather be sleeping on a soft bed under warm blankets? Not to mention your servants
being afeared for you.” They had reached the entrance cave. Once inside, they slowed to a walk.

“You don't understand,” Maura said, catching her breath. “If you're noble and you find treason, and you live with the plotters or go to their parties or marry into their family or
anything
, then you are just as guilty as they are.”

“You're only
ten
,” Daine argued, taking all of her remaining supplies from her packs. “Surely no one's going to haul a child up before the Lord Provost.”

Maura sat by the fire pit. “My father said the laws were written long ago, when times were simpler. They used to hang children for stealing bread, did you know that? Some things have changed, but not chivalry and the nobles' duties. That's what makes me mad. Yolane was raised the same as me. She
knows
what's right and wrong, but she doesn't care. By law Dunlath can be plowed up and sown with salt, and our people made to leave, but does she care? No. She'd rather risk lives and our home so she can wear a crown and order people around.”

Daine patted her friend's arm. “She won't get that chance, and nothing's going to happen to Dunlath. You trust Master Numair. He'll fix it.”

Maura smiled crookedly. “It isn't him—I don't know him at all.
You're
the one I trust.”

Daine hunted and fished until dark, gathering enough food to ensure that Maura would eat properly. Fish would do for that night, with rice from
her supplies. The game birds could be baked in clay for Maura to have later. Kitten found mushrooms and blueberries, which would make pleasant additions. When they returned to the caves, Tkaa was there.

“He is under cover, natural and magical, for the night,” the basilisk said as the girls began to cook. “I promised him that I would stay with Lady Maura.”

The ten-year-old grinned. “I'd like that.” Seeing the pleasure in her face, it was hard to believe that one day ago she had screamed upon seeing him. “The wolves still make me nervous.” When Daine glanced at her, she shrugged. “I'm sorry, they just do. Speaking of them, where have they been all day?”

“Hunting, I s'pose,” Daine replied. “Some days it takes longer than others.” She tried to remember when she last saw the pack, and realized it had been the evening before. “They'll be back when they've fed.”

She was dishing up the rice and fish when she saw Tkaa reach into a pouch in the skin of his belly. “Did I know you had that?” she asked, curious.

“One does not expect the very young to know a great deal,” he replied. He drew several chunks of rock from the pouch and placed them near the small pile of stones that was to be his own meal. “Dessert,” he explained in his soft voice, when he
saw that the girls, Kitten, and Cloud watched him intently.

“The birds and the rice and the rest of my supplies will hold you whilst I'm gone,” Daine told Maura as they ate, wincing as Tkaa crunched his meal. “You'll be fine here. Tkaa will be with you, and Kitten.” The young dragon, wrinkling her muzzle at Tkaa's idea of food, nibbled daintily on a trout.

“Wolves—?” Maura started to ask, voice quivering. “I'm sorry. I don't mean to whine. Only, all my life I was told wolves will eat me. It's hard to forget.”

“But you think Stormwings are fine.” Daine knew she kept returning to that point, but she couldn't help herself. She had battled them for so long that it was well-nigh impossible to see them as anything but foul.

“Not
all
of them. The one that called you a Stormwing killer and some of the others can be nasty. But Lord Rikash takes me flying sometimes.”

Daine gaped.
“Flying?”

“Yes. They made a rope sling for me, and they carry me in their claws. It's fun! They're a lot stronger than you think.”

“Smell?” Daine's voice came out as a strangled squeak.

“Oh, I dab perfume under my nose, and I breathe through my mouth. Once I was getting over
a cold, and I couldn't smell a thing. That was the best time. And when you're up in the air over everything, who cares about smells?”

The rest of his meal eaten, Tkaa put a dessert rock in his mouth and hummed his satisfaction. Daine, glad to change the subject, asked, “Is it good, then?”

Tkaa nodded. “The best I've ever had. They are well aged, and I am most partial to this dark variant.”

Maura shook her head. “Wouldn't you rather have real candy? I have spice drops. You just reminded me.” She fished a crumpled paper from a pocket and offered its contents to Daine and Kitten, who accepted with pleasure, then to Tkaa. The basilisk thanked her politely, but it was easy to see he was not tempted to trade his “candy” for hers.

“What is it, the stone you're eating?” Daine asked.

The basilisk chose a rock and made a sound that was half whistle, half croak. The rock flared with a multitude of lights colored blue, violet, and green, with tiny sparks of red and amber. Slowly the lights faded. “Black opals,” the immortal announced with pleasure. “The finest I have ever eaten.”

Kitten sat up and whistle-croaked. The pile of stones shone with the same rainbow of colors, and went dark. “Very good, Skysong,” approved Tkaa.

Daine frowned. Here was the answer to the
mines and the emperor's interest. “Yolane ships opals to Carthak,” she said. “And Ozorne gives her mages, gold, maybe even soldiers, for when she rebels against King Jon.”

“This just gets worse and worse.” Maura's voice was tight. “It's illegal to mine precious metals and stones without telling the Crown.”

“Prob'ly for just this reason,” Daine pointed out. “So folk won't sell them and use the money, or the magic, to make trouble.” She put a hand on Maura's shoulder. “We'll stop them, Lady Maura. You'll see.”

SEVEN

COUNTING SOLDIERS

Tkaa promised to tell Numair of the opals in the morning, then entertained Maura and Kitten with tales of the Divine Realms. Daine put out the food and made sure Maura knew how to cook it. She was impressed by the girls camplore: few ten-year-olds could build a fire, let alone cook on it. Maura gave the huntsman Tait the credit.

“You're lucky in your friends,” Daine said as she tucked Maura in.

“If not my family,” agreed Maura, yawning. “The wolves really won't eat me?”

Daine took a breath and counted to ten, so she wouldn't give an angry reply. It worked, simply because Maura was asleep by the time she finished counting.

“I leave to go south at dawn,” she told Kitten, Tkaa, and Cloud later.

Tkaa switched to thought-speech, confiding that so much spoken talk that day had made his jaw muscles ache.—
Have you decided how you will go in?
—

“I'll see who's about,” replied Daine. “Oh, listen—the pack's coming.”

—
We must take your word for that
,—remarked the basilisk, amused.—
In this, your magic is more powerful than ours
.—Kitten nodded.

Daine went to the cave entrance to greet the wolves. The moment she saw them, she wished she had remained seated. Brokefang, in the lead, bore a ham in his jaws. Frostfur was next with a rope of sausages. Each wolf had something: small bags of grain, meat, sacks of potatoes. Each pup proudly, and gently, bore an egg in his or her mouth. Also, enthroned on Sharp Nose's back, nagging the wolf to trot slower, was the squirrel she had healed two days ago.

Brokefang put the ham at her feet as the rest of the pack carried their burdens into the cave. The squirrel asked to come, the chief wolf told Daine, panting happily. He wants to help.

“Help with what!” Daine whisper-screamed. Tkaa, Kitten, and Cloud came out to see why she was so excited. “Are you
crazy?
Why did you steal all this food?
Where
did you steal it? Mithros above,
how
did you steal it?”

Easily, Battle replied. We visited the tree cutter den. They had more food than they could use. We ate some ourselves, and we spoiled the rest.

Frolic added, We knew you and the human pup
would soon eat all you have. Besides, if the men have no food, they will not have the strength to cut trees.

“I
told
you, the Coldfang was set on your trail because you stole the axes! It'll be a lot easier to track you when you stole hams and onions! They smell!”

If they follow, we are ready, said Brokefang coolly. There is a rockfall up the slope. When pushed, it will bury a Coldfang, and we can use other ways out of the cave.