The Stranger - Max Frei [253]
“I haven’t the faintest idea,” Lonli-Lokli said. “We’ll have to look at a map.”
“Around here is where we have to stay,” I said dreamily. “And then we’ll go home, and my poor heart will be broken all over again.”
“Again?” Lonli-Lokli asked, as though he hadn’t heard me correctly. “Excuse me, but Sir Max doesn’t create the impression of someone with a broken heart.”
I nodded cheerfully.
“It’s one of my inconvenient qualities. The worse things are going, the better I look. More than once I tried borrowing money from friends when I looked like I had just won the lottery. My absolutely true stories about living for a week on just bread and water went over like a load of baloney.”
“And you really experienced such hard times?”
Spending time with me clearly encouraged the development of Sir Shurf’s facial muscles. A look of surprise crept into his usually expressionless countenance.
“Yes, can you imagine? Sometimes I didn’t have anything to eat at all. Thank goodness everything changes. Sometimes.”
“That explains a lot,” Lonli-Lokli said thoughtfully. “That’s why it’s so easy to be around you, despite your madness.”
“What? Well, you sure know how to flatter a guy.”
“It’s not a compliment, but an observation. Maybe you put another construction on the term.”
I sighed. Who said anything about semantics? It was already clear to me that Lonli-Lokli wasn’t trying to praise me this time.
“I didn’t mean anything by it,” Sir Shurf said in a conciliatory manner. “A completely normal person just isn’t cut out for our line of work. When I was in the Order they used to say, ‘A good sorcerer doesn’t fear anyone but a madman.’ A bit of an exaggeration, naturally, but I think Sir Juffin Hully operates on this principle when he chooses his colleagues.”
“Fine,” I said. “I am what I am, and whatever you call me won’t change anything. Let’s stop here, Glamma. I want to walk along the riverbank and mingle with the locals. Something in my heart tells me they’re dying to give shelter to two rich idlers from the Capital. Don’t worry, I remember. My name is Marilyn; and I’m planning on having a little chat with some sweet little old ladies.”
“Do what you must,” said Lonli-Lokli. “After all we shouldn’t forget that Sir Max is my boss.”
“Oh, come on.” I couldn’t restrain a nervous chuckle. “All right, I’ll be back soon.”
I felt a thrill when my feet touched the amber sidewalk. Through the thin soles of my boots I felt the tender warmth of the yellow stone. My body felt light and happy, like I was about to take to the air. Kettari was wonderful, like my favorite dreams, and I now felt more like a sleepwalker than someone wide awake.
I crossed the street with Lady Marilyn’s light step, then strolled along, peering at the tiny ancient houses in ecstasy and smiling all the while. “The Old Riverfront,” I said, reading the name on a plaque. Well, here’s something else I like!
Oh, Juffin! I thought. If I could shout loudly enough for you to hear, I would be sure to say that a remarkable old fellow like you could only be born in such a magical place as this. I’m hardly likely to be able to say this when I see you. So I’m telling you now, just so you know, all right?
I was so absorbed in thinking about what I would want to say to the boss that I almost knocked over a small, frail old woman. Luckily, the dexterity of her tiny frame was hardly in keeping with her years. At the last moment, she swerved aside sharply and grabbed on to the carved handle of a small garden gate.
“What’s wrong with you, child? Where did you leave your pretty eyes? In your husband’s snuffbox?” she snapped at me angrily.
“I’m awfully sorry,” Lady Marilyn said, embarrassed. “I just arrived a half hour ago in this town I’ve been hearing about since childhood. I never imagined it would be this beautiful! That must be why I’ve gone a bit out of my head—but it will soon pass, don’t you think?”
“Oh? And where have you arrived