The Stranger - Max Frei [230]
After a few gulps of the tasty drink with its kick-boxing strength, I perked up. I think the source of my good mood lay in the dark depths of this unprecedented madness. My good friend Sir Max, the Nocturnal Representative of Juffin Hully, had been transformed into some red-haired girl entirely too quickly.
“You’ll have to work on your mannerisms, lady,” said Juffin. “You still look more like the village idiot than the wife of a prosperous member of society.”
“Mannerisms? Now wait one second!”
I jumped up and sashayed around the room provocatively. Then I pursed my lips for a kiss.
“How do you like me, gentlemen?”
Sir Kofa looked crestfallen. He didn’t say a word.
“How awful, Max!” Juffin blurted out. “Is that really customary in your homeland?”
I went back to my chair.
“Not really. Not always, anyway.” I became more composed. “That’s how dissolute women behave; and only on occasion.”
“All the same, it’s hideous! I think you owe me more than a good meal for pulling you out of there in time.”
“What do you mean, ‘in time’? If only you had been about ten years earlier.”
“I’m not sure that would have been wise. Someday I’ll explain why. You must be worn out, Kofa,” Sir Juffin said compassionately to our Master Eavesdropper.
The latter just chewed his pie with a melancholy air.
“Praise be the Magicians, one doesn’t have to perform tricks like that every day. And now I have to try teaching this lady some manners.”
“Don’t bother, Kofa. We’ll manage. The situation is almost hopeless, but I have another idea.”
“You’re right, Juffin. I do think you’re going to need a good miracle.”
“Excellent. You and Kurush just nod off for a while, and Max and I will go for a walk. Come on, Max . . . Uh, I beg your pardon. Lady Marilyn.”
“I am not nodding off. I’m memorizing what you’re saying,” the wise bird piped up. “I always knew people were strange creatures, but what I’ve seen today beats all.”
“That’s for sure,” Juffin snorted, smoothing down the buriwok’s soft feathers as we left the office.
“Where are we going?” I asked, getting into the amobiler.
“Can’t you guess? I know only one old lady capable of making a real lady out of this crazy dame.”
“Are we going to Jafax?” I asked. “To Lady Sotofa?”
“Yes. I’ve already sent her a call. She’s also from Kettari, after all, so it’s a matter of concern to her, as well. Sotofa was surprisingly quick to agree to help us. Actually, it’s not her style, but she seems to have a soft spot for you.”
“And that is completely mutual.”
“Then let’s go, Lady Marilyn.”
Lady Sotofa met us at the door of a small garden pavilion that served as her study.
“Oh, what a pretty girl! Too bad she’s not the real thing. If she was, I’d bring her here to live!” she said smiling, and hugged me.
I was, as usual, a bit flustered. I felt that no one had ever been so unabashedly delighted about a visit from me as this formidable wisewoman with the mannerisms of a doting grandmother.
“Sit down, Juffin! Remember the kamra they used to make five hundred years ago in Kettari, in the Country Home on the Square of Joy? Well, I managed to make it even worse. Try it. You’ll approve! And for you, my girl-boy, I have something very special.”
Lady Sotofa produced a miniature jug from under her looxi. Its appearance witnessed to origins deep in the ancient forest.
“It’s delicious and very good for you, in some cases.”
“You haven’t found some Heavenly Half, have you, Sotofa?” Juffin shook his head in amazement. “I haven’t laid eyes on it in at least three hundred years!”
“What use is it to you, Juffin?” Lady Sotofa retorted, her laughter ringing out. “It’s all the better you haven’t. And if you haven’t seen it, no one else has, either. Things like this should be secreted away in the dark. But do sit down, Max. No, not at the table. Over here in the armchair. It’s more comfortable. Here you are!” She held out a glass with some thick, dark-red liquid. She thought a bit, then nodded. “Yes, one’s enough. It’s better not to go overboard with such things.”
I took the small glass