'What shall we do?’ Antyr asked.
Tarrian shook his head. ‘I don't know,’ he said. ‘All I can think of is that we keep searching through the legends for some kind of a clue.
Antyr looked at the picture again. At worst, his finding it was a remarkable coincidence. On the other hand …
Tarrian interrupted. ‘Doesn't the legend tell about some of the Dream Finders arming themselves to protect the Mynedarion and oppose the will of Marastrumel?'
Antyr recalled his thoughts as he and Tarrian had talked together after leaving the Duke the previous night.
'Yes. They were the Dream Warriors. Adepts of the White Way.'
Antyr and Tarrian stared at one another. Neither had spoken. Then a shadowy figure emerged silently from a gap between the shelves nearby. It stopped, and turned towards them. Then it emitted a blood-curdling shriek of rage.
Chapter 10
Antyr jumped to his feet in terror, and Tarrian, tail well between his legs, scuttled behind him, crouching low.
'I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry,’ the figure said hastily, stepping forward and waving a reassuring hand. ‘I'm afraid it's Kany, my Companion, he's just realized that your Companion's a wolf.’ There was a pause as the figure craned forward, obviously listening to something intently. Antyr caught part of a high-pitched and earnest babble. ‘And that he's just eaten a rabbit,’ the figure concluded, his voice fading into nothingness as the sentence proceeded, so that the word ‘rabbit’ was mouthed significantly rather than spoken.
Antyr's wits cleared sufficiently for him to see that he was being addressed by an old man, grey-bearded, hunched and frail.
'You frightened us half to death,’ he said, both more loudly and more aggressively than he had really intended. ‘Coming out of the shadows like that…'
'I'm so sorry,’ the figure apologized again. ‘I can see I've upset you.’ He held out his hand. ‘My name's Pandra, Indares Pandra. I'm afraid we dropped off when we were reading and when we woke we accidentally overheard your conversation.’ He cleared his throat awkwardly.
'You mean you were eavesdropping,’ Tarrian said, erect now, and mildly indignant as he stepped out from behind Antyr.
The old man began a long and pensive, ‘Er…’ which was obviously rising to buttress a strong denial, but which concluded in a staccato ‘Yes’ as the speaker opted for the truth at the last moment.
'Forgive me … us,’ he added.
The sudden slide into abject contrition released Antyr's tension and made him smile. His still uncertain legs however, prompted him to sit down again and he indicated a nearby chair for the new arrival.
The old man hesitated for a moment.
'It's all right,’ Tarrian said, his voice echoing slightly so that Antyr knew he was speaking so that both Pandra and his Companion could hear. ‘Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you.'
'I'm not afraid, you savage,’ came the high-pitched voice that Antyr had heard briefly before. ‘I'll have your snout off if you give me any trouble.'
Somewhat to Antyr's surprise, Tarrian sat down looking rather sheepish and made no attempt to answer this seemingly unwarranted abuse. Then, as Pandra sat down, he pulled from the pocket of his gown a black rabbit. It was quite small, but its ears were well chewed and its face was scarred, giving it a distinctly bad-tempered, not to say ruffianly, appearance. After a pause for a long and rather laboured scratch it scuffled lopsidedly to the edge of the table and peered over at Tarrian.
Antyr caught a whiff of some swift animal exchange between the two, during which Tarrian spent most of the time with his ears drawn back while Kany chattered his teeth fiercely at him. Then, after some hesitation, Tarrian craned forward slowly, and rabbit and wolf touched noses briefly.
Antyr knew better than to inquire into the details of the debate. Companions were necessarily wild and free, and their animal affairs were very much their own, as most Dream Finders usually discovered quite early in their careers.
Satisfied, however, that the two Companions had made some kind of a professional peace-albeit, he suspected, based on a mutual dislike of ‘moggies’-Antyr turned again to the old man.
'Perhaps it's we who should apologize for waking you with our noise,’ he said. ‘We thought we were alone.'
Pandra shook his head. ‘No, it's fortunate you came,’ he said. ‘We could have slept till Dreamsend if you hadn't. I doubt anyone is likely to be down here before then.'
'Yes,’ Antyr agreed regretfully, though smiling again at the old man's manner. ‘I was surprised to see the place so deserted. It used to be so busy once.'
'Before your time, though, I suspect,’ Pandra replied, then he looked at Antyr intently. ‘What's your name, young man?’ he asked. ‘You've got the look of someone.'
Antyr introduced himself.
Pandra's eyes narrowed. ‘Antyr,’ he said, testing the name for a moment before realization dawned. ‘You're not Petran's lad, are you?’ he asked.
Antyr nodded. ‘Yes, I am,’ he said. ‘Did you know him?'
'Well, well. Fancy that,’ Pandra exclaimed, ignoring the question but sitting up and smiling broadly. ‘Kany, it's Petran's lad.'
'I heard,’ said the rabbit irritably.
Pandra continued, unabashed by his Companion's manner.
'Well, well,’ he repeated. ‘I should have known from the wolf, I suppose. They're not common these days. Now what's your name, Antyr's Companion? Don't tell me.’ He turned his face up towards the gloomy darkness of the ceiling for inspiration. ‘Tra … Tra … Tranian … no … Tarrian, that was it. Tarrian. Well, well. Don't you remember him, sitting alongside Petran, Kany?'
'All carnivores look the same to me,’ Kany replied testily, muttering as an afterthought, ‘all teeth, curled lips, and slobber.'
'I'm sorry,’ Pandra mouthed softly to Antyr. ‘Neither his memory nor his manners are what they were once.'
'I heard that,’ Kany said. Pandra stroked him gently and made a clicking noise with his tongue.
He looked at Antyr and shook his head proprietorially. ‘It's good to see you, Antyr,’ he said. ‘I can just about remember you as a little thing by your father's side. I didn't know him well, you understand. I don't think anyone really did. He was a bit stiff in his ways. But he was a fine man. Great integrity. Knew his craft, and always willing to help. He was highly regarded by those who mattered. I was shocked when he died so suddenly.'
He pursed his lips reflectively.
'Let's leave,’ Tarrian said privately to Antyr. ‘We've things to do and we're going to get his life story in a minute.'
Antyr flicked him with his foot discreetly.
'He used to worry about you, as I remember,’ Pandra went on. ‘Used to say you were something special, but he didn't know what. Still, that's parents for you, isn't it. Fuss and fret. Think their kids are going to be great artists, or Senedwrs, or some such, but you go your own way in the end, don't you? End up like the rest of us. Getting by. Earning a crust. Fussing and fretting over your own children in your turn.'
'Antyr…’ Tarrian murmured significantly.
'Do you remember anything particular that my father said about me?’ Antyr said, on an impulse. Tarrian let out an audible sigh and flopped down on the floor.
Pandra shook his head. ‘To be honest, I can't say that I do, Antyr,’ he replied. ‘It was just fathers’ talk, and as I say, I didn't know him all that well. He was always a bit distant.'
