Martin Millar - Lonely Werewolf Girl (10 page)

She needed to find some private place. The waves of depression
brought on a terrible anxiety which began to affect her senses. Her
heart pounded, breathing became difficult and her vision was blurred.
She searched right and left for an alleyway to crawl into. She couldn't
find one. Kalix swayed on her feet and reached out her arm to steady
herself against the wall. If anyone noticed her plight, no one stopped
to help as she stumbled along.

Kalix didn't even notice when she reached the end of the
pavement and stepped onto the road. She didn't see the truck that hit
her. There was a screeching of tyres, a crash, and she was thrown into
the air. She landed, broken and bleeding, on the other side of the
road. Now people ran to her aid but Kalix couldn't make out any of the
individual figures, just a frightening blur of motion as people
gathered around, pressing in on her.

She couldn't die like this, with a crowd of people staring at
her. She was far beyond her human endurance but the werewolf inside her
gave her one last surge of strength and she rose to her feet. She took
a few blind steps and then broke into a run.

Kalix turned a corner. She rubbed her hand over her eyes and
there in front of her was the opening she'd been searching for. Kalix
threw herself into the alleyway. Her legs gave way. She had to get
further. She started to crawl. She dragged herself as far as she could
up the alleyway. At the very end she found a pile of stinking, rotting
boxes and she tried to pull them over her.

"Now I'll die," she thought. She could feel the blood oozing
out of her body. She thought about Gawain and tears came to her eyes
because he'd never know what happened to her. Kalix whispered a goodbye
to him, then everything went dark.

29

The cousins about whom the family did not speak were twins,
very similar in appearance though not quite identical. Beauty's hair
was dyed blue while Delicious's was a very bright pink. They both
played guitar and sang, quite well, and this, along with their
MacRinnalch good looks, might have been enough to bring them some
success, had they not been too intoxicated to ever make progress with
their band. The twins' rapid descent into rock and roll degeneracy had
shocked the rather staid elders of the clan.

Beauty and Delicious were playing their guitars in the front
room of the house they shared in Camden. It was going well till Beauty,
reaching for her bottle of wine, tripped over her guitar lead and fell
into Delicious. Both girls ended up in a heap on the floor in amongst
the bottles, glasses, and cigarette papers.

"Damn," said Beauty.

"Damn," said Delicious.

They lay in silence for a few moments.

"It's a good song anyway," said Beauty. "We should write
another verse."

She started scrabbling around in the mess on the floor,
looking for their marihuana. The sisters smoked a lot of this, and
washed it down with beer, cider and wine. Their capacity for
intoxicants was famous throughout North London. Although such behaviour
might have had a very bad effect on any normal person, Beauty and
Delicious were protected by their inner werewolf strength. The same
strength which allowed Sarapen to roam the moors for days on end
allowed the twins to indulge their desire for stimulants to an alarming
degree. It did have some consequences. Though they remained reasonably
healthy, the twins could no longer change at will into werewolf form.
They had forgotten how. They still transformed on the wolf nights
around the full moon but that was all. They didn't care. There was
plenty of fun to be had in this part of London for a pair of attractive
girls who could play guitar and drink anyone under the table.

Some way through sharing a very large joint, constructed quite
expertly by Delicious, Beauty wondered what the ringing sound was.

"Feedback?"

Delicious turned down the volume control on her guitar. The
feedback stopped.

"There's still something ringing."

"It's the doorbell."

Interested, Beauty started crawling towards the door to
investigate.

"Maybe we ordered some food?"

She reached up with difficulty to open the door. Decembrius
looked down at her in surprise. Beauty was perplexed.

"We paid the TV license," she said. "And the council tax."

"May I come in?" ventured Decembrius, not entirely at ease.

Beauty didn't answer. Delicious appeared at her side, also
apparently unable to stand. Decembrius felt uncomfortable. It was some
years since he'd seen the twins and they obviously didn't remember him.
He introduced himself. They still looked blank.

"Decembrius? Never heard of you."

Feeling some explanation might help things along, he told them
that he'd come to see them on behalf of Sarapen. Both sisters howled
with laughter.

"Sarapen!" cried Delicious, as if the very name was enough to
make her roar, while her sister Beauty wiped tears of mirth from her
eyes.

Decembrius frowned. Looking down at the girls, with their
gaudy blue and pink hair, their ripped and shiny clothes and their
advanced state of intoxication, he could see why Sarapen had been
unwilling to make this journey himself.

30

"Another shoe humiliation!" wailed the Fire Queen.

Thrix was at a loss. She hadn't got over her displeasure at
being called a weak and dishonourable creature and strongly wished to
deal with Moonglow. Unfortunately it was impossible to do anything when
Malveria was alternately ranting and sobbing in her office.

"Leave now," said Thrix to Moonglow, harshly.

"No," replied Moonglow.

The Fire Queen leapt to her feet and started waving her hands
around dramatically.

"I will roast you in the great volcano you cursed werewolf."

Daniel took a long step backwards. Thrix brought a protection
spell to mind, just in case the Fire Queen was serious. As it was,
Malveria was in too much anguish to roast anybody. She started sobbing
again and leant against Daniel for support.

"There there," said Daniel. "I'm sure it will be all right."

"All right? How can it be all right? Do you know what happened
to me? This creature - " Malveria pointed accusingly at Thrix. " - sold
me new silver slippers and she swore - absolutely swore - that she had
just designed them. And what happened when I turned up at the Igan
Frost Queen's ball? Everybody was wearing them. And I mean everybody,
even that slutty little Igan Princess who's always trying to steal my
followers."

The Fire Queen looked accusingly at the Enchantress.

"How could this be? You swore they were new. Are you trying to
make me the laughing stock?"

Thrix was finding this hard to cope with. On one side she had
two humans making unwelcome enquiries about werewolf affairs and on the
other she had a furious fire elemental making complaints which could
not be true. Because Thrix had just designed the slippers. It was not
possible that any one else could have been wearing them. Any successful
designer became used to being plagiarised but not on the same day that
the stock left the company.

The Fire Queen started sobbing on Daniel's shoulder again.
Daniel, perplexed, wondered what he should do. He presumed that this
exotic beauty was some supermodel who had been upset at a fashion show.
He tried patting her hand.

"There there," he said.

Malveria looked at him, tears running down her cheeks.

"Is it not appalling?" she said. "To turn up at a ball and be
the laughing stock because everyone already has your shoes?"

Daniel was touched. His kindly nature was upset at the sight
of the woman's distress. Though it was contrary to his natural shyness
he strained to think of something pleasant to say which might make her
feel better.

"But you're so… eh… so… eh… you're so beautiful surely no one
would mind what shoes you were wearing?"

The Fire Queen stopped crying, rather suddenly.

"You think I'm beautiful?"

Daniel blushed.

"Eh… yes…"

"Thank you," said the Fire Queen, and rested her head on his
shoulder. "At least there is someone who is not against me."

"Please Jane," said Thrix, calling the Fire Queen by the name
that was used whenever there were humans around. "These people have
come to see me about a personal matter. Could you perhaps give us a few
minutes?"

"Your personal matter is more important than my utter disgrace
with shoes?" demanded the Queen. There was an awkward silence.

"It's about her sister," said Moonglow, attempting to be
helpful. Daniel winced as he saw the look of fury which flickered
across Thrix's face.

"The little wolf?" said the Fire Queen. "Is she in trouble
again?"

"Terrible trouble," replied Moonglow. "She needs a new
pendant."

"Really?"

"But her sister won't give us one," added Moonglow, feeling
for some reason that this woman might be an ally against the unwilling
Thrix.

"Of course she will not," said Malveria. "She is entirely
without heart. How can you expect her to do kindness to her sister when
she quite on purpose sends me out with inferior shoes?"

"Really!" said Thrix. "I did not send you out with inferior
shoes. They were an exclusive design. I'm baffled as to how anyone else
could have a similar pair. I promise I'll sort it out for you, Jane,
only I must - "

But the Fire Queen had now become interested in Thrix's
visitors. They did not seem to be the sort of people with whom she was
familiar. She looked at Moonglow. She studied her long black hair,
black nail varnish and black clothes. The only humans the Fire Queen
had ever seen dressed in this fashion had been her own devotees, who
seemed to favour it.

"Is she one of mine?" she enquired of the Enchantress.

"I don't think so."

"Oh. I thought I did not recognise her."

"I'm Moonglow."

"Moonglow? A pretty name."

The Fire Queen turned her attention back to Daniel.

"And you, young man who thinks I am beautiful. What is your
name?"

Daniel blushed deeply. The Fire Queen laughed, very
entertained. She raised her hand to brush back his hair to look at his
face and his complexion grew even redder.

"I'm eh… Daniel… eh… Jane."

"Please, call me Malveria," she said, rolling the 'r' in an
exotic manner. "Fire Queen of the Hiyasta, Mistress of the Volcanoes,
Protector of the Flame, Lady of the Inferno, Ruler of the Burning
Element, and Persecutor of Mankind."

Daniel and Moonglow took a nervous step back, wondering if
they were about to be persecuted. The Queen, however, seemed to regard
them sympathetically.

"So why won't you give them a pendant?" asked Malveria.

"I didn't say I wouldn't. I was just explaining that it was
very difficult. Who even knows where another Pendant of Tamol might be?"

"I'm sure I could find one," said the Fire Queen, casually.
After her shoe disgrace she was rather enjoying the opportunity of
discomfiting the Enchantress, who obviously wished to be rid of them
all.

"No doubt you could," said Thrix, acidly. "However I'm not
certain it's a good idea."

"She just doesn't seem to want to help," said Moonglow to the
Fire Queen.

"I would be very wary of getting on the wrong side of me!"
snarled the Enchantress.

"You are being very rude to your guests," said Malveria. "Is
it perhaps to cover your guilt and shame over the recent shoe atrocity?"

"It has nothing to do with that! This girl called me a weak
and dishonourable creature."

Malveria laughed heartily.

"Excellent! I could not have put it better myself."

Thrix sighed. This was all going very badly. The intercom
buzzed. Ann's voice sounded very urgent.

"Sarapen is on his way!"

The Enchantress put her hand to her forehead. This was all she
needed. There was no putting Sarapen off. Her older brother would
stride straight out of the lift and into her office without pausing.
She turned to the Fire Queen.

"Malveria. I will, I promise, sort out this business with the
shoes. Someone must have stolen my design. Meanwhile, I have to talk to
my brother and I'd rather he didn't find you all here."

Malveria nodded. This was reasonable. She knew all about
Sara-pen's forceful personality.

"Please take these two into the far corner of the room and
I'll hide you," said Thrix.

Not understanding what was happening, Daniel and Moonglow
found themselves being shepherded across the large office. When the
reached the far corner the Enchantress waved her hand. Nothing seemed
to change.

"What's going on?" asked Moonglow.

"She has hidden us with a spell," explained Malveria.

"Why?"

A very large and brutal looking man threw the door open and
marched into Thrix's office.

"That is why," said the Fire Queen. "And it is quite wise. You
do not want to encounter Sarapen. He is not what I would call a
civilised werewolf. Not that werewolves are the most civilised of
creatures as a rule - one rather despairs of them at times - but even
by their low standards he is a brute. I always regret that my darling
Thrix has to associate with them so."

31

The alleyway was long and narrow, and turned at a right angle
to run along behind the shops on the streetfront. At the end it was
dark, damp, cluttered with boxes which had lain untouched for years.
Nobody came here. Kalix crawled under the boxes, still bleeding, and
lay down in the accumulated years of city dirt. If it was not a good
place to die, at least it would be quiet.

Even her werewolf strength could not protect her from the
impact of a truck. Kalix's ribs were cracked and she was damaged
inside. Blood seeped from her mouth and her nose. She hurt badly. She
fumbled around in her bag and found her laudanum. It was hard raising
her arm and Kalix drank with difficulty.