Distantly, the heaves of a vomiting duck reached my ears. It was an odd sound, beginning as a quack and ending in a hoarse gasp.
The man brought his horse to a halt. 'Ho there, my good woman. Is this troll bothering you?' He loosely gripped his sword hilt.
'Actually, he's with me.' I raised my head enough that everything below his nose fell below my brim. He had a strong, round jaw.
Newt stumbled to the road, smacking his bill and moaning. He glimpsed the man and gagged. My familiar dashed back into the bushes and commenced vomiting anew.
'Is that your duck as well?' the rider asked.
'He is.'
'Is he ill?'
'Apparently so. Nothing serious, I suspect.'
I raised my hat to glimpse the man's eyes. He met my gaze without blinking. I was unaccustomed to that. Most people turned from my sight. Either because they thought I was a madwoman, not to risk antagonizing, or knew I was a witch, and feared the evil I might inflict through my stare. But he didn't, and neither did I.
I couldn't sort through all the dark whisperings of my curse. I wanted to devour this man as I had none before. I didn't know why. He was a healthy specimen, but there were many healthy specimens at the settlement. Yet, even as I imagined sinking my teeth into his flesh, an inexplicable nausea seized me. Nothing so serious as the sickness Newt was suffering. In fact, it was not an entirely displeasing sensation.
We stared into each other's eyes for what seemed a very long time. He turned away finally and broke whatever strange spell held me. I quickly lowered my gaze away from those hypnotic eyes.
He cleared his throat and avoided looking directly at me. 'Is this the way to Fort Stalwart?'
'Yes. Just keep to the road, and you'll be upon it in another mile.'
'Thank you. Good day, good woman, troll. I hope your duck feels better.'
He spurred his horse to a gallop. I watched him go. I had no choice. Something, perhaps his magic aura, made me. I noticed the fullness of his shoulders and wondered what it might be to nibble at the flesh with soft, gentle nips. Then to tear it away to savory mouthfuls. Then I would turn him over and split his chest, scooping out the delicacies within. I'd lap up the blood for dessert.
I wouldn't eat his eyes. Those, for reasons not entirely clear to me, I wanted to save.
As if sensing my thoughts, the man glanced back with a severe frown across his face. I wanted to look away, but I didn't. I stared without bothering to hide it until he disappeared around a bend in the forest.
Newt dragged himself from the bushes.
'Dark gods, such purity of heart. The demon in me was unprepared for it.'
'You've never met a White Knight before then,' Gwurm explained. 'They're famous for their virtue.'
'He seemed very dark for a White Knight,' I said.
'They enjoy a small but diverse membership.'
I bent down on one knee and wiped Newt's bill with the hem of my dress. 'Feeling better now?'
'Now that he's gone, I'll be okay.'
'Come along then. We have much to do.'
'Oh, right. The boils. I'd nearly forgotten.'
'Yes,' I agreed. 'The boils and the rotting food.'
We started back to the fort, and I dallied, preserving Newt's happiness as long as I could.
8
The settlement buzzed byearly evening at the arrival of a genuine White Knight. While performing my daily rounds, I listened and learned. Everyone knew of the White Knights though none had ever seen one in the flesh. They were an order of heroes dedicated to vanquishing evil in all its forms. They slew unruly monsters, deposed mad kings, put down illegitimate rebellions, and labored to make the world a better place. They were most famous for their virtue that rendered them invulnerable so long as they kept themselves pure.
I suspected this might be true to a degree. But his invincibility was as much due to the invisible brand on his forehead as his pure heart, and true invulnerability is beyond magic. Any enchantment, however well aided by a virtuous soul, has a flaw somewhere.
Everyone was interested in this White Knight. Even Sunrise, which surprised me. I didn't think her the type to swoon over a man she hadn't even seen. She'd been working on his arrival and hadn't gotten a glimpse before he'd disappeared into the fort.
She threw question after question at me while sitting in my tent.
'What did he look like? Was he handsome? He must have been handsome.' She didn't squeal, but she came very close.
'He was attractive,' I replied, 'but handsome, I think not. His ears were too large. Not in an arresting way, but noteworthy.'
'And tall? Was he tall?'
'He seemed tall, but he was sitting on a horse. It was hard to tell.'
'But he must have been fair skinned with shimmering locks of gold.'
'He was darker than any man I've ever seen.'
'So, he is a not quite handsome, possibly tall or not, dark man.'
I nodded.
'I won't say I'm not disappointed. Although there is a certain romance to the darkness.'
'Legends are always better from afar,' I said. 'He was truly pure of heart. He made Newt sick. And he had the most handsome, deep black eyes.'
Sunrise tapped her teacup. 'You're smitten.'
'Am I?'
'Very much so.'
I believed her. On matters of love and lust, I trusted Sunrise as I had Ghastly Edna on witchly subjects. To be sure, she tested me.
'When you speak of him, you smile, and you are very spare with your smiles.'
I felt the slight grin on my lips. 'Is that all there is to it?'
'Not all. When you think of him, do you feel a flutter inside?'
I paid attention to my body and found, if not a flutter, then a flittering in my stomach.
'Flittering is even worse,' she said. 'Do you find yourself wanting to be near him, to kiss him?'
'I want to eat his face.'
'And if, while eating his face, your lips should happen to touch his ...'
The flittering in my stomach moved lower and tingled softly in places that had never tingled before. I smiled, and realizing my smiling, I blushed.
'Most definitely smitten.' Sunrise patted my hand to comfort me in much the same way Ghastly Edna had on occasion. 'It's nothing to be embarrassed by. It's perfectly natural.'
Newt chuckled. 'Didn't you hear her? She wants to eat his face. There's nothing natural about that.'
'Oh, be quiet. This is a good thing. You should be happy for her.'
'Have you ever devoured a man?' I asked.
'No. But I'm a mortal woman. You're a witch, and cursed, and undead. So I think the ghoulish impulses are perfectly healthy.'
This was logical, and I pushed aside my embarrassment. 'Do you really think this is a good thing?'
'I see nothing wrong with it. It just shows that you're more human than you thought.'
'Can I really love him?'
Sunrise laughed sweetly. 'I said nothing about love. I said smitten. It can lead to love, but more often than not, it is merely a temporary infatuation.'
'How do I know which it is?'
'You'll find out in due course.'
Newt scowled. 'She can't be smitten. He's a White Knight.'
