"Yes, the fellows who patch up the damage done by sword and axe, pike and spear, bolts, daggers, falling horses; the men who try to cure gangrene and chopped-off limbs, set bones, a.s.suage fever, bandage boils on the b.u.m, scalds from burning oil and give you a cure for the clap. The ones who give the same ointment for dog-bites and pox and saddle-blisters, who gave wine to all and unction to the dying if there was no priest about . . . Horse-doctors, most of them, used to galls and spavin, mange and sprains, but not to humans. But there was one-a little man, dark and pocked from some obscure town in Italia, I think, but married to an English wife, who had a gift with bones. He did not just bind and bandage and splint, he had a full set of human bones, of horse bones, of dog bones, and these he had cunningly strung together with wires so that they held like puppets on strings and he could study the way they moved and were dependent on each other. Also, when a man died of some blow to his head, back, hip, he would lay back the flesh when he could and study the injured bones, to see where and how they might have been mended." He sighed. "I learnt a lot from him, Thingummy. That"s one of the reasons that makes me suspect that to straighten that back of yours will take more than a sudden dragon-spark. The spine is a marvellous thing, all locked and connected like a necklet of ivory shapes . . ." He settled back against the rock. "Got any more of those mushroomy things?"
"One."
"Let"s split it. Thanks . . ." He chewed for a moment, then tucked the sc.r.a.p under his tongue. "Mmmm, that"s better . . . So, I might think twice before committing myself to anything too protracted this time; a short campaign, perhaps.
"And you-what will you do?"
I sighed. "Try to find somewhere to live, then make a home of it for the others. Scratch a living somehow, whether by trying to be self-sufficient with food, or by trading mushrooms, or-oh, something or other will turn up, I suppose. It must. It always has . . ."
"Optimist!"
"What else is there to be? Pessimists are always expecting the end of the world tomorrow, so don"t bother doing anything in case it comes today instead. Optimists fall flat on their noses often, too often, but at least they don"t believe the worst will happen till they"ve had time to get in the harvest, sow the winter wheat, spin the fleece, set the ram among his ewes, lay in wood, jar the honey-"
"Oh, darling Thingummyjig! You"re a tonic for the footsore and heart-weary, truly you are!" And he threw back his head and laughed, quite forgetting I think that he had hushed me a moment since for the sake of the others. They stirred, but it was only to seek a more comfortable position. He hugged me. "I shall miss you, girl, sure and I will! You"re more fun altogether than those fine court ladies with their fal-lals and insipid talk-and if it"s more than that I seek, sure a willing trollop from the village is heartier and more honest by far!"
"I shall miss you too," I said, but I tried to keep my voice light. "We have had some good times together, have we not, even among the bad?"
"Sure we have!" He seemed to hesitate for a moment. "You know, I don"t like to think of you and all those animals just going off into the wilderness after this is all over without making proper plans. Why, there"s no telling what mischief you might get up to, and there"s all those dangers along the road . . .
"Sides, you need someone to help build that house you spoke of . . ." He hesitated again, then seemed to make up his mind. "So-"tis in my mind to stay with you awhile, just until you"re all set up. Then my mind would be at ease when I took to the road again."
I couldn"t help the shiver of excitement that started in my stomach and ran out to fingertips and toes and shut my eyes on its way to burning my ears.
"You mean . . . ?"
"I mean that we"ll be companions of the road that much longer."
I wriggled inside my clothes like an eel through gra.s.s. "Hurray! I mean-I mean thanks! I suppose I didn"t really fancy being on my own, and then having to find somewhere and build a house with only the others to help. A-"
I was going to say "young woman" but changed my mind, "a person can have a hard time persuading villagers to accept them if they don"t appear to have a-"
oh dear, this was getting difficult; "-I mean, females do . . . If they don"t . . .
So you see it will help if they see you around at first: you can say I"m your- your servant . . ."
He didn"t answer, so I twisted round in his arms anxiously for confirmation that he had understood, for by now I had a clear picture in my mind of myself, grown straight if not beautiful, dressed in a skirt instead of trews, spinning thread at the doorway of my little hut on the edge of the clearing near the village, and perhaps even leaving off my mask once Conn had gone, and of the villagers accepting me eventually and not even looking at my ugly face after a while, but glad to welcome me into their world because I had arrived with a great knight like Conn.
"I know it"s a lot to ask, but if you just said-said to whoever is there that you would be back every now and again-you wouldn"t really have to, of course- to see that I was comfortable, then I"m sure they would treat me as-as more normal. More like them . . ."
My voice trailed away, for I was suddenly aware how close we were, now I was facing him. His eyes glittered down into mine, our noses almost touched through my mask and his chainmail tunic rubbed my chin as he breathed. I quite forgot what I had been saying and when his next words came, for a moment they had no context.
"Servant? No, you deserve better than that." His breath came in little white puffs of vapour and for a moment he closed his eyes. "Dear Mother of G.o.d, she"s such a helpless little Thing really . . . Let this be one unselfish thing I do." He opened his eyes. "So, Thing dear, as they all call you, before I go off on my travels again, if you"re agreeable that is, we"ll tie it up all nice and neat in a contract before the priest. I shall give you my name so you"ll be the equal of all, and I"ll have a home to come back to when I weary of my travels." He regarded me for a moment, then frowned. "Well?"
"I-I don"t understand . . ." I didn"t.
He gave me a little shake. "Thick, all of a sudden? Well, I"m telling you that my hand is yours, my name will be yours, and my sword to defend, if necessary, when I"m around. d.a.m.n it all, Thing-what is your real name, by the way? I can"t marry "Thing"-We"ll have to find you a name; what would you fancy?
How about Bridget? Or Freya? Claudia?"
"Marry?" I faltered, and it must have come out like the silliest bleat in the world.
"Of course. What did you think I had been trying to say?"
"You-you haven"t seen my face, and I don"t think I want-"
He misunderstood what I was trying to say, interrupting me so I should not get the wrong idea. "No, no, of course it won"t be like that, silly girl! A marriage in name only, I promise you that. We"ll be just as we are now, good companions, and you can keep your blasted mask on if you like, though I"m sure I could get used to what"s underneath!"
"But supposing you find someone else, someone-well, er, more suitable you wished to marry? Marry properly, I mean. A pretty lady . . . With money?"
"I am nearly thirty years old and I have seen enough "pretty ladies" to last me all my days! They are all alike, believe you me, and the prettier the worse! As for money-I can earn my keep, and if not, I"ve managed before and can again. And as for-the other-well, I can always find that when I need it, and I promise I would not disgrace you by seeking it while I was with you. No soiling your own front step and all that sort of thing . . . Well, what do you say?"
All sorts of thoughts were chasing through my brain. The first, illogical one: suppose I had been pretty? Would he by now have got so used to me that he would still have conferred his request for my hand like a royal order, a.s.suming that I had no other choice-but that thought was so stupid, so illogical that I shocked it into oblivion. The second thought: the man I love above all others has asked me to marry him!! The stars should whirl from their courses, the rivers run backwards, hills grow flat, trees flower in winter and cattle bring forth in threes . . . Why, then, did they all stay as they were and why did I feel like crying? I knew the answer to that one in my rebellious heart, but frantically pushed it away. The third thought: I want to be sick . . .
And the fourth? It suddenly burst like an overfull wineskin and I was drowned in intoxication for I loved him so, so, and here was my chance to really do something for my dearest knight at last- I stumbled to my feet, pulling at his hands. "Stand up!"
"What?"
"Stand up! Now, quick: I have something for you-"
"An answer, I hope," he grumbled and unfolded himself so that we stood, precariously facing one another.
"Now what?"
"Now, say it over again. Formally. But before you do, just say that you realize just what I am-"
"What you are? Oh, come on, Thingy, no time for games-"
"No game. Promise! Listen . . ." I was trembling with excitement. "Am I or am I not poor and deformed?"
"At the moment, yes, but-"
"And am I not also the ugliest person in the world?"
He shifted his gaze. "Now, you know I would never say that . . ."
"You wouldn"t say it, but do you not truly believe me to be so?"
"A man can get used-"
"Am I not?"
"Well, yes, I suppose you must be. You keep saying so, but remember I have never seen you unmasked."
"Still, you believe me to be?"
"I told you-"
"Never mind! In spite of all this," I spoke clearly, slowly, emphatically and could see out of the corner of my eye that Snowy was awake and the others stirring, and there was a hint of a lightening in the sky to the east, "in spite of all this, you have made me an offer?"
"Oh Thing, you know I have! Why all this rigmarole?"
"Then please ask me again."
"Ask what?"
"Ask me to marry you!"
"But why-"
"Ask!"
He looked at me impatiently for a moment, then his gaze softened and he smiled so that my heart turned over.
"All right, my dear, all right, have it your way . . . Hey, you lot!" He looked over at the others, all now awake and alert in the growing light. "Your Thingy doesn"t seem to credit what I asked her a moment ago, and I need you as witnesses. So, we"ll go over it once again, just so as we all get it right."
Squaring his shoulders, he put his hand to the hilt of his broken sword. "In the full understanding that Thingy here is poor and deformed and I believe the ugliest person around-though I have told her that does not matter and I could get used to it-I hereby ask, in front of you all, for her hand in marriage.
In name only," he added hastily, "on that we are agreed. But marriage, nonetheless . . ."
There was a gay, tinkling sound.
"And I refuse!" I said triumphantly, as the sun"s first rays slanted full on my beautiful knight, glinting on his armour till it almost blinded us.
"Sir Conn," said the others, more or less in unison, "your armour isn"t rusty any more . . ."
And indeed it wasn"t, celebrated with all the "Begorras," "Hail Marys," holy shamrocks and all the saints in the calendar (especially St. Patrick), and a whooping and hollering that woke all the echoes in that previously G.o.d- forsaken spot.
He honestly hadn"t remembered about the witch"s curse when he had asked me to marry him and it had to be explained to him all over again.
"But you turned me down!" he expostulated.
"That didn"t matter! You asked, that was all the curse said you had to do.
Don"t you remember how The Ancient said you can"t face straight up to a curse like that, you had to go at it sideways? You could have broken it any time if you had bribed someone ugly enough to refuse you!"
"To the devil with anyone else! It was you I asked, and you refused. But I"m not taking no for an answer: I shall marry you whether you want to or no. As I told you, you need looking after-"
"Wait till all this is over then. Till we are all whole. You still have a broken sword-"
"And don"t you think me still capable of defending you, even with my bare hands? Mother of G.o.d, you take some convincing! Very well, I shall ask you once again when all this is over, and you"ll not refuse!"
It was a glorious morning. The snow sparkled on the mountain and all around us stretched a chain of hills white and shining, their shadows purple and blue and green. No longer were we hungry, no longer cold, and when Conn set off again up the steep slopes we followed with more enthusiasm than we had shown for many a day. When we were faced with what looked like a sheer wall of rock, Snowy took the lead, slipping and stumbling for all his surefootedness. I felt like a fly crawling up a wall, my hands grasping poor Snowy"s tail like a lifeline, Conn panting behind, but at last we emerged on a ledge far bigger than we had seen before, wide and long enough to hold a wagon and two horses.
Even as we gazed out over the ridged carpet of hills below us we became aware of a sound, alien even to our harsh breathing.
There was somebody, something, up there with us- Snoring.
The Binding: Dragon
The Dragon Awakes
Raised in natural steps some four or five feet above the ledge on which we stood, was the dark, triangular shape of a cave mouth, and it was from this direction that the sound came. Instantly we all retreated to the very edge of the ledge, clutching at one another in panic like children caught stealing apples. All, that is, except Snowy, who stood his ground, snuffing the air.
"He"s asleep," he said. "Or in a coma."
"Is it . . . ?"
"Of course. We were bound to reach him sooner or later. Come, my children, you"re not afraid?"
"No! . . . Certainly not . . . Afraid, us?"
But we were, of course we were. It was all right for Snowy, I reasoned, being of faery stock to begin with, but the rest of us were all mortal. Too late I began to recall all I had heard about dragons; immense scaly beings, with leathery wings and huge claws and mouths full of teeth and fire. They ate people, whole sometimes depending on size, and were capable of incinerating entire towns and villages with their flame. They guarded vast hordes of treasure with jealous attention and demanded a sacrifice of seven maidens every year.
They hatched from golden eggs and took only a day to reach full size and after that a thousand years to die. They flew in swarms a hundred strong and mated once every nine years, laying nine eggs which took another nine years to hatch- "Grumphhhh!!"
I jumped back as if I had been punched and fell over the edge of our precarious perch, luckily landing on soft snow only some five feet below, to be hauled back by an anxious Conn. Puddy and Moglet, in jerkin and pocket respectively, had of course accompanied my fall but as I had landed on my back they escaped with b.u.mps but not bruises.
When we were all a.s.sembled back on the ledge I looked at Conn. "I"m not sure . . .".
"Neither am I, neither am I, dear girl, but this is what we all came for . . ."
"Bravo, Sir Knight!" said Snowy. "Now, shall we-?"
"I"m frightened!" said Moglet.
"So am I," I said. "But, dear one, Conn is right. This is what we came for. And we"re together, so nothing can really hurt us-remember what The Ancient said?"
And so it was that, with Snowy ever so slightly in front, we climbed up the last steps of rock and found ourselves in the mouth of the dragon"s cave.
The winter sun was at its highest, illuminating all but the farthest depths of the south-facing cave. Fearfully we peeped: a bare stone floor, stained with droppings; shelves running erratically across the back and sides, and on these humps and piles of metal: shields, helms, coins, a cup or two. In the middle of the cave a few discarded bones-bullock or sheep, perhaps-and a bluish leathery cloak or bag, flung aside from some foray probably, tattered and patched and torn.
But no dragon . . .
Perhaps there was an inner cave. Perhaps-my heart lifted, coward as I was- perhaps he had gone. Perhaps he had never been here. But there were the piles of metal, the bones . . .
"There"s nothing here," I whispered. "Except rusty metal, old bones and rubbish."
"Rubbish is rubbish is rubbish," said Snowy cryptically, who alone of us did not seem disturbed, anxious or disappointed, the sun shining on the hairs on his chin and making his lips pink.
"Well there isn"t," I said. "If-he-was here, then he"s gone, long since. Look!