FREE FOOD

Pat strapped the rope around Fred's waist and Fluffy hefted him up, then let the rope down again and she climbed up. She walked over and wrapped her arms around the cantankus' neck. "Thank you so much, you strange thing." Fluffy barked and licked her face, coating her in his drool. Pat wiped off Fluffy's thank you while Fred staggered back the way they'd come. His legs obeyed him with more reliability than before, but Pat came up behind him and slipped her shoulder beneath one of his arms. She smiled at him. "You might need some help for a little while longer. You drank a lot of water, remember?"

Fred shuddered. "Don't remind me."

"Do-do you remember much after that?" she asked him.

The boy furrowed his brow. "After I shot off the staff?" She nodded. "Nope. Don't remember anything until I was puking my guts out with you sitting beside me."

"Oh..." Pat was troubled by Fred's strange behavior; that hadn't been the first time he'd become someone else. She worried it would get worse if he kept using that staff.

They toddled along back to the bridge, laughing off their adventure because they were both alive and well. Fluffy followed and was a comfort to them; he had energy enough to fend off an army. They were two dozen yards away from the bridge when Pat stopped. Her eyes stared straight ahead and Fred followed her gaze; Ned still lay where they'd left him. Fred lifted his arm from her shoulder and stumbled over to him while Pat hung back; she feared the worst. Fred slid up beside the old man and looked him over. Ned's cloak was pushed open and a tip of another rope hung out. That explained where Fluffy picked up their escape item.

Pat came up behind him. "Is he...?"

Fred shook his head. "No, he's breathing." He lifted Ned's head up and felt a huge lump on the back; the landing had been one hell of a knockout. Fred was more rough with his friend than he intended because Ned's eyes shot open.

Ned sat up and shooed away Fred's hands. He scowled and gingerly touched the back of his head. "I see that you were trying to finish the job," he scolded Fred.

Pat surprised them both when she fell to her knees and wrapped Ned in a tight hug. "I'm so glad you're okay," she mumbled through his cloak.

Ned smiled and returned the hug. "So am I," he replied. Pat released him and he glanced over to Fred, who's clothes were torn and wet. "You appear to be in need of a new set of clothes again, my dear Fred. What exactly happened after my short nap?"

Fred grinned and shrugged. "Not much. Just defeated a monster and saved the day."

The old man raised an eyebrow. "All by yourself?" he asked the boy.

The boy's face drooped. "You don't think I could have done it?"

Ned waved his hands in front of himself. "No no, of course I believe it. It's just, well-" he pulled at his beard and his eyes twinkled, "-somewhat unbelievable." Pat rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face; she couldn't be mad at him when she was still so relieved he was okay.

Fred frowned. "Well, I did. It wasn't easy, but somehow I got down to the rock and blasted it away with this." He held up his pieces of stick.

Ned raised an eyebrow. "Rock?"

The boy nodded. "Yeah, there was a glowing stone at the bottom of the thing, and I guessed it was pretty important because it didn't want me down there, so I destroyed it. That killed the creature." Fred didn't like the look on Ned's face. "Why? Is that important?"

Ned looked off into space, and even Pat's glee melted away into worry. "Is it important?" she repeated Fred's question.

Ned shook himself of his stupor. "What? Oh, yes, very important. That's the particular ability for Canavar. He uses the stones to focus his power and create such things. So what are we sitting around here for? There could be more danger afoot." Pat helped him climb to his feet, and Fred fetched his staff and placed it in Ned's hand. Ned took a step forward and stumbled; the pair noticed he winced. "I think perhaps that whack on my head did more damage than I thought."

"Maybe you can ride Fluffy?" Fred suggested. Fluffy heard that and bound forward with an eager bark.

Ned grimaced, but patted the cantankus on the head. "All right, you can have the honor of carrying me, but be gentle."

Fluffy was not gentle. The moment Ned's butt slid onto Fluffy's back the dog bound forward with a roar of a bark. Ned screamed and clung to the beast's back as they sailed over the bridge. The youngsters ran after them, but had a hard time keeping up; not so much from Fluffy's pace as from their laughter taking all their breath away.

The companions reached the other side of the bridge and traveled over the gentle hills that lay beyond the river. Night came on before they reached the capital, and they rested beside a crackling fire. Fred, as the most exhausted, collapsed between his blankets. While he slept Pat took the chance to recant to Ned what had happened to them, including Fred's eerie behavior after she pulled him from the water. "What do you make of it?" she asked him.

Ned leaned forward on his staff and his brow furrowed in thought as he watched the fire. After a moment he closed his eyes and shook his head. "I can't say for sure, but you would do well to watch over him. I would trust no one else with the knowledge of his affliction."

"Watch him? How can I watch him after we reach the capital? Would you not be a better protector of him?" she countered.

Ned shrugged. "I may be, but you two are closer in age and would give much more trust to each other than to an old man like myself."

Pat frowned at him. "You must be joking."

The old man turned up his nose in fake insult. "I never joke about such serious matters," he teased her. His amusement didn't last long, for his face drooped and he looked to her with his weary old eyes. "But in all seriousness he needs you, and I think you may find a use for him. He has saved your life several times. A boy like that would be a great asset to have on hand in these dangerous times." Pat stared into the fire and Ned retired to leave her to her thoughts.

The next day they awoke and hurried on their way. By midmorning they saw the crest of the hill, and their steps quickened until they reached the peak. There was a flat spot at the top, and they took in the view. A large, green valley spread out before them in the shape of a bowl. Mountains capped with snow stood to the north, and smaller mountains lay on either side. In the valley was a large city of stone, larger than Tramadore, and a great road led up to the three gates that fed commerce into the metropolis. They could see carriages and carts wheel through the gates, and countless people wandered in and out. The city was defended by a twenty-foot thick wall of stacked stones, and a small army of guards patrolled the battlements. In the back-center of the town stood a tall castle fortress built on the only hill in the valley. Three towers rose up from the high, defensive walls, stepped so that a giant could walk from one to the next like stairs.

Ned smiled and nodded at the place. "A very pretty sight. Let us hope we are expected." He trooped down the mountain and Fred aimed to join him, but a hand grabbed his arm. He turned back to find it was Pat.

Her face was pale and her voice shook; she turned away from him. "I want to ask you something," she told him.

Fred frowned. "What is it?"

"Once we reach the capital I'll be under constant guard, and only able to see noblemen and the king. I-" she paused, took a deep breath and turned to look into his eyes. "I want you to be one of those guards, along with Ned."

Fred blinked; he wasn't sure he'd heard her right. "You want me to guard you?"

Pat smiled and tilted her head to one side. "Why not? You've been doing a pretty good job of it so far. If it hadn't been for you that monster would have carried me away."

The boy shrugged. "I-I guess, but to keep protecting you like it's an official thing? Won't the king have some good guards you can use-"

Pat put her finger on his lips, and shook her head. "They will be strangers to me, and how can I trust strangers over those who I already know will risk their lives to protect me?"

Fred pulled away from her finger, squinted his eyes and rubbed his chin as he leaned in toward her. "I don't know. Will there be free food?"

The girl rolled her eyes and slapped him on the shoulder. "Is that all you boys think about?" she scolded.

Fred rubbed his bruised shoulder, and sheepishly smiled. "It's a high priority for us. I can't protect you on an empty stomach."

Pat shook her head, sighed and turned him around to face the downward trail. Ned waited for them a dozen yards down, and there was a smile on his face. "Come on," she told him as she pushed him down the trail. "Let's go see what trouble you can get us into at this place."