Excerpt: The Planar Pest

Lady Roean of the Fomor had lived in Cairn's Town, once, after being given to a human in marriage by the King of Atlantikon. Cole regretted never having had the chance to meet her, but such was life. The sky was clear, Lannie was taking the opportunity to paint, and Sebastian had his own room, one hopefully free of grues. It would be frustrating to hear tales of the strange cat following them when it hadn't bothered to do such a thing even for its master.

Cole's inquiries did indeed turn up a copy of the necessary book, belonging to one Antoine le Sorciere, whose reply came through the Arcanists' Guild by sundown. He would meet with them at noon the next day. Better yet, his library contained more of the missing books and Cole decided he would not be surprised if there were others he'd never possessed.

He fell asleep holding Lannie, her rounding stomach pressed against his body like a warm pillow, convinced that he would wake to a better day. Deep in the night, he woke to the sound of screaming.

"The rats! The rats!" Sebastian howled as loud as his voice could be. Cole went into his room and turned on the lights himself but still the human screamed.

Cole sighed and went back to his bed. In a few minutes, the noise stopped. Sebastian must have had the good sense to keep the lights on, as there were no more disturbances in the night.

Antoine, another human, was sociable enough but also knew when to leave them to their studies: studies considerably hampered by Sebastian's muttering about rats, which no amount of rational talk would stop. He insisted he saw them in the rafters of Antoine's library, as well, though Cole was fairly sure - the room being well lit - that it was not even a pack of grues, but one or more housecats.

It'd been a mistake to bring him but how was Cole to know? He did his best to concentrate on the books, making a mental note to bring Lannie the next day. She could at least copy down the parts he asked, and perhaps Sebastian would fare better if he had a day to relax in town.

At very least, it would make things quieter for Cole, though he might have cause to feel sorry for the townfolk.

When night fell, however, Sebastian ruined that plan. Not only did he insist on coming back the next day, he wanted to stay longer.

"I've almost got something," he said, only the second sentence since lunch that hadn't had something to do with rats or thanking Antoine's housekeeper for bringing their dinner.

"Show me, then," Cole answered, and it was another hour and a half before he got out himself.

Bryn wasn't trying to build something. He was trying to figure out how something worked, something he only barely understood, naturally. Speculating on its nature would have kept them both awake all night if Cole hadn't caught a glimpse of a clock in the middle of a debate about whether it flew or swam.

If he was lucky, perhaps Sebastian would be awake all night and fall asleep on the table next morning, giving Cole some time to work in peace.

He noticed the grues himself as he returned to his room but fortunately a neighborhood cat was on patrol outside the building, assuring they would not enter the building in sufficient quantities to cause a swarm. Presumably it was a cheshire; the glow of each eye was a different color and sometimes they weren't even lined up horizontally.

"I think I saw Sebastian's cheshire cat yesterday," Lannie said over breakfast.

Cole chuckled. "I'd say I'd be sure to tell him but I'm afraid the poor man is too unsettled to take a joke."

"Why do you think he's so upset? I never heard anything from him about being uncomfortable traveling before. In fact, he said he was originally from Kali - that's quite a way away."

"No idea, unfortunately," Cole said. "He was still going on about rats last evening."

"The grues?"

"That, and he thought he saw some in the rafters of Antoine's house. I'm sure it was a cat."

"Poor man."

"He's thrown himself into deciphering Bryn's notes, at least; I'm hoping that will distract him. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind assisting me with note-taking while he does that, maybe help determine what would give the most return for our efforts. What do you say? I'll pay for your services."

"Oh, don't," she replied. "You did me a favor, taking me on this trip. I can work for you during the days and take on a few clients each evening; it's not as if we have much in the way of expenses here."

He gave her a dubious look.

"It's a welcome change from home, believe me. If I change my mind, I'll let you know, of course."

"I'll certainly hold no ill will against you if you do," he said, still reluctant, but it was her choice whether to accept pay. Did she worry about Bryn, he wondered?

"I wonder if we should wake him up for breakfast," she murmured.

"Is he even here? I wasn't sure he came back to sleep."

"We can find out."

"I'd finish eating first."

She smiled slightly. "All right. Let's give him some time."

They ate, and found Sebastian's room empty. He was still in Antoine's library, sitting on a storage trunk that he'd dragged near his chosen desk and grinning like a madman.

"I caught it," he said without preamble.

"You have? And caught what, my good assistant?"

"I don't know yet." The grin got bigger and he slowly, carefully removed himself from the trunk, leaving his hands on it as if to prevent a sudden movement of the lid. Cole and Lannie prepared themselves and once Sebastian saw the flare of their magic he himself opened the lid to reveal an empty interior.

He looked over the lid. "It was in there. I felt it thumping against the lid, I swear. I'm not insane."

"How did you get it in?" Cole asked.

"It stole a piece of my chewing mint while I was napping," Sebastian explained. "So I took some more and put it inside, and waited."

"Clever thing, then, and not a pygmy grue."

"The rats weren't grues either," Sebastian said, nodding.

Cole looked back at Lannie, holding back a sigh. Finally he said, "Well, we can get to work for now. This thing seems to like the dark, doesn't it, Sebastian?"

"They like hiding, whatever they are."

"They, yes, of course." Argument seemed futile.