The Robin And The Kestrel

He shook his head, violently. 'And to not only leave that abomination in place, but to continue to use it! This is not the Church I joined; these are not the deeds of a good and God-loving man! This man was a monster of the basest sort, and the current Abbot is no better, cloaking his crimes, using what the other created!'

Robin broke the silence that followed his outburst. 'Was Padrik educated here?' she asked, quietly.

Reymond nodded. 'We thought it a matter of pride, that he should rise to be High Bishop,' he whispered brokenly. 'And now I find it to be not a cause for pride and rejoicing, but for shame....'

'My people have a proverb, that two bad grapes don't mean all grapes are bad_but two spoiled grapes contaminate the whole bunch,' Robin told him. 'He and the Abbot together are doing terrible things in Gradford _'

'And if they are not stopped, those terrible things will spread.' Reymond's back straightened, and his expression went from horrified to determined. 'We must put this right, the three of us,' he said, finally, and firmly. 'I am not a mage, myself, but I have studied magic in the course of my work for some time. I may be able to free this poor spirit_I must study the binding spell, vile as it is. If there is a physical link, I need only break it to break the binding spell. If the spell can be broken at all, I can do so within the next two days. I can wait here for those who Padrik may send, and free them once they reach the Hill, by taking their pendants as you took Orlina's. And if I can, I will go with further victims to the Justiciars at Kingsford, lay this before them, and ask them to deal with Padrik.'

Kestrel silently applauded the man's courage_he knew that the Ghost had killed dozens of people, and yet he was willing to dare its anger to free it! And then, not content with that alone, he would go petition the Justiciars as well, a long and uncomfortable journey in the heart of winter. His regard for Reymond rose, and he tried to put his admiration into his eyes, for he knew that his words alone would not convey it, poor and limping as they were. Now, this was a man of the Church who could restore his faith in the Church's honor!

'Y-you are a g-good man, B-brother R-Reymond,' he said, warmly. 'As g-good_as the f-first Abbot was evil.'

Reymond blushed, and smiled shyly. 'Thank you for those kind, but inaccurate words,' he said softly. 'I don't know if anyone could be good enough to counteract this evil.'

'D-don't ever b-believe that, please. E-ever.'

Robin had gone into the Scriptorium for pen and paper when Reymond made his declaration; she had been scribbling furiously ever since. Now she blew on the ink to dry it, folded the note, and handed it to Brother Reymond. 'Give this to the first Gypsy you see on the road and tell him it has to get to a Gypsy named Peregrine, immediately,' she told him. 'I've left notes in other places for him, but you may be my fastest courier. When he reads it, he'll deal with the Clan that is helping Padrik with his frauds.'

Reymond nodded gravely, and put the note carefully inside the pouch hanging on his belt beside the keys to the Library. 'And what of you?' he asked, faltering just a little. He clearly wanted to hear them say they intended to do something, but he also was obviously afraid that they weren't going to.

Robin smiled, a smile that dazzled the poor man. 'We're going to do the obvious,' she said, simply, an abrupt turnaround from her earlier attitude that took Kestrel completely by surprise, and left him open-mouthed with amazement. 'We're going back to Gradford, to see if we can't expose him as a fraud without getting ourselves thrown in gaol or hung. If you can free the Ghost, that's the least we can do.'

Reymond blinked, and well he might. That was a tall task for anyone_

'Can you do that?' he asked.

Robin shrugged. 'We can try,' she replied.

Jonny grinned, with a combination of relief and approval that made him want to cheer. 'One th-thing w-we c-can do,' he said, 'is m-make sure as m-many p-people as p-possible learn P-Padrik is p-playing t-tricks. And w-we c-can p-prove it by s-showing that anyone can d-do them.'

'Oh, now that is an excellent idea!' Brother Reymond applauded.

'That's probably one reason why he's forbidden public entertainment,' Robin mused. 'If some sleight-of-hand artist duplicates one of his 'miracles,' people are going to start wondering out loud.' She frowned at that. 'It's a pity we couldn't arrange a show.'

'H-he m-may have f-forbidden p-public entertainment,' Kestrel said slowly, 'b-but he can't s-stop p-people from d-doing a t-trick or two t-to amuse th-their f-friends in p- public!'

Robin visibly brightened, and snapped her fingers. 'Now there is an idea! And by the time any Constable gets there, well, the party has broken up and there's no one to arrest! I can think of a lot of people who would like to be in on that plan!'

So can I, Jonny thought, remembering Ardana's girls, and wondering if any of the unofficial Houses would welcome a trickster as entertainment instead of a musician. For that matter, a party made