Doctor Who_ Wolfsbane - Jac Rayner [66]
The Doctor sat with his chin in his hands for a silent minute. Then he sprang to his feet. „Emmeline,‟ he said, pointing down to her.
„Ja?‟ she said.
„Tonight is the night when you have no control over your wolf self, is that correct?‟
„It is,‟ she said, nodding.
„Then I‟m afraid you will have to stay well out of the way.‟
„This was also my plan,‟ she said.
„It‟s entirely possible that there may be a murderous mob out for your blood again, too. You can‟t stay here. We‟ll have to get you as far away from here as possible.‟
She nodded again, uncomplaining.
The Doctor took his seat again. „Now, we have to find Hester. Any ideas?‟
Harry shook his head.
But Godric was leaning forward. „It is only a thought...‟ he began.
„All thoughts welcome!‟ said the Doctor encouragingly.
„Perhaps if this sorceress believes herself to be the Lady Morgan, she will have gone to the seat of the Lady‟s power?‟
The Doctor stared at him for a second. Then he jumped to his feet for a second time, and clapped his hands in delight.
„Wonderful! That‟s it! Hester will have magicks that can track Morgan le Fay‟s power. But we… we have an eyewitness!
She‟ll think we can‟t find her, she‟ll have hidden her path, Emmeline couldn‟t track her even as a wolf - but she could never have anticipated this!‟
Godric looked worried. „I have not actually visited the spot,‟
he put in. „I know of it only through reputation.‟
„That‟s good enough,‟ said the Doctor. „Come on!‟
He jumped up, and after a second Godric did too.
Emmeline got smoothly to her feet. The Doctor turned to the still-sitting Harry with a quizzical look.
„Er... I don‟t want to be a wet blanket,‟ said Harry unhappily, „but what are we going to do when we find her?‟
The Doctor sat down again. So did the others.
„Ah,‟ said the Doctor. „Right. Let‟s think about that. Now, let‟s see what we have. On the one hand, a sorceress who can hide her tracks, cast spells on people and cause them to fall asleep, has absolutely no regard for human life, and can control nature itself.‟
„Oh, no problem then,‟ muttered Harry to himself.
„So. What do we have on the other hand?‟
„A fat chance,‟ said Harry.
„A werewolf,‟ said Emmeline. Harry bit his tongue and did not voice his concern about placing that on the list of their assets.
„The knowledge that our cause is noble and just!‟ said Godric.
„And,‟ said the Doctor, eyes gleaming and face now beaming, „the Holy Grail!‟
Harry frowned. „Don‟t you see?!‟ yelled the Doctor. „It all adds up! A werewolf. The Holy Grail. The knowledge that our cause is noble and just! It all adds up to a great big fat, juicy, perfect chance. If a werewolf such as Emmeline here is unnatural - sorry, Emmeline - how much more unnatural must Hester‟s sorceries be?‟
„And if the Grail hurts the Lady Emmeline so badly...‟ said Godric.
„Yes! If it hurts Emmeline so badly, can you imagine what it will do to someone wielding as much unnatural power as Hester will be when she does whatever she‟s going to do tonight?‟ The Doctor was pacing the room, excitement in every step. In the hands of someone like Godric here, someone pure of heart who believes in our cause, there is no question in my mind that if we can get close enough to Hester, the Grail will be able to prevent her from doing whatever it is she‟s planning on doing. Yes!‟ His eyes were shining more fiercely than ever. „We‟re going to win!‟
Sarah woke up. She had been sleeping, and smiling in her sleep. She felt like she‟d been drugged. Or been drunk, at least. And now she had not exactly a hangover, but a huge fuzzy feeling in her head, like she was seeing the world from the inside of a big pile of cotton wool - sort of comforting but suffocating at the same time.
She tried to open her eyes, but realised they were already open. She just wasn‟t seeing with them. There was a touch on her cheek, the lightest stroke, the feathery brush of a fern.
And she remembered where she was.
„You said you preferred men for company,‟ she said accusingly.
The green woman smiled softly. „I