Sixty-One Nails: Courts of the Feyre (8 page)

    Blackbird stepped aside and I hesitantly stepped forward. I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. I staggered for a moment, unable to make sense of what was happening. I came to myself, clinging to the rail and finding my knees unsteady. Something washed over me, like waves of disorientation.

    "I suppose I should have anticipated that." She turned back to Gramawl who retreated slightly into the dimness. She wobbled her fist and then tapped it sharply against her palm, then made a series of sharp sweeping motions, ushering Gramawl backwards.

    Gramawl made a small circle to indicate us both then added an outstretched hand that tipped from side to side. The sensation dissipated and I found myself able to stand again.

    "Yes, I know what you thought, but even if that were the case, that is a poor welcome, isn't it?" She pressed the knuckles of each hand together for emphasis. There was a reprimand in her voice, mixed with the sort of fondness reserved for a well-intentioned but overprotective uncle.

    The shape retreated further into the dimness.

    "Oh, stop it. Come out and meet Rabbit properly." She was both frustrated and amused.

    Clearly the creature understood her speech as it came forward, this time fully into the light. As it emerged further I became aware that it was hunched over. Shoulders loomed behind the head, sloped down to fit in the tunnel. I thought it would shamble forward, but its step was light, full of grace and poise, like a dancer.

    There was a seismic rumbling, accompanied by a complex bow and ending with an outstretched palm. "He apologises for his misunderstanding, Rabbit, and offers you welcome, if you will accept it." I gathered my wits.

    "Thank you, Gramawl." I bowed in turn, keeping my eyes on the shaggy form. As he approached I became aware of his scent. I had thought he would smell like a beast, but instead there was the freshness of new-turned earth. I could see, now I was closer, that the shaggy fur was not matted and grey but layered with grey over brown, over black. It had the quality of a finely groomed horse's mane and I wondered who had spent time combing through that mountain of fur.

    "I was about to explain that Rabbit had brought you a gift, Gramawl, but now I'm not sure whether he will want to part with it." She was comfortable speaking and signing at once, though Gramawl appeared to understand our speech well enough. Was there some etiquette to this?

    Gramawl, lifted and then dropped his arms, pantomiming disappointment. At the same time his voice, if you could use that term, dropped in tone until I could only feel it rumbling in my bones. The hackles on my neck rose. I found myself stepping back.

    "Only a little something," she teased, holding out her hand as if swinging a sweet by the wrapper or a tiny mouse by the tail and ignoring the shivering air. The great eyes flicked back to me, luminescent in the overhead lights. His flat wet nose wriggled, seeking clues.

    "Of course, that was before you offended my friend. "
    "I'm not offended," I interjected, a little too quickly. He swept away the air with his hand, rubbed one palm against the other and added an opening and closing gesture.

    Blackbird translated for me. "He says you have accepted his apology and that it was only a misunderstanding and now he would like to know what you've brought."

    Blackbird stepped up to him, smiling, and affectionately stroked his cheek above her head. "I don't know, I bring people to meet you and this is how you welcome them. Why don't you show Gramawl his gift, Rabbit?"

    Taking my cue, I reached into my jacket for the stones, but she shook her head. "Those are for a little later. Put the sack on the floor and leave it, somewhere in the open."

    I stepped forward, still a little hesitant near Gramawl, and placed the sack on the ground and stepped back. "You need to open it a little or it's not going to come out," Blackbird added. "It'll fly off." I hesitated.

    "That isn't going to be a problem, is it, Gramawl?"

    There was a rhythmic huffing sound and my stomach vibrated to the sound of his amusement.

    I stepped back to the sack and opened the neck, letting it fall open around the bird. It hopped out onto the sack in a flurry, getting its bearings. I stepped back again. The bird was initially bemused to find itself underground. It looked about, putting its head on one side and then suddenly focused, darting sideways as it caught sight of the huge figure. It burst into the air in a clatter of wings.

    There was a dull thump, like a pulse in the air. I blinked.

    All was silent again. My brain caught up with my ears and I realised that Gramawl had taken it, mid-flight. I hadn't even seen him move.

    Gramawl let out a low rumbling that might have been a purr if it had been high enough. He pressed his fist to his chest then touched his lips with his forefinger, opening his hand into a fluttering motion.

    "He says it tastes of light and air," Blackbird translated, "and offers his thanks."

    "You're welcome," I offered, still trying to figure out how something so big could move that fast.

    "Delightful as it is to share such things with you, Gramawl, we really came to see your Mistress. Is she at home?"

    He used a two-handed gesture, one hand inside the other, that I couldn't interpret, then placed his palm outwards, rotating it to point at the ground. "We'll wait here then, while you check." She turned to me. "He thinks she might be sleeping, so we'll wait a moment."

    He merged back into the dark and vanished, leaving me staring at the empty sack.

    "Do they all eat pigeons?" I asked Blackbird.

    "No, but Gramawl is a creature of open twilight and he's been living down here a long time. Bringing him something from the daylight world above is like offering him a taste of autumn sunshine."

    "Can't he just leave?" I felt some sympathy for him. I had been stuck on the Underground for an hour once and that was long enough.

    "He is tied to his Mistress and she won't leave, so he'll stay with her until she changes her mind."
    "Is he bound to her, then?"
    "In a way, yes."

    "He doesn't need protection, if you ask me."

    "He doesn't do it for protection. He does it because he loves her."

    "Oh." I couldn't think of how to respond to that.

    We stood in the lighted area of the tunnel in silence until my sense of curiosity overcame my unwillingness to break the stillness.
    "Are all the Feyre like that?"

    "No, most are smaller. Gramawl is a sylvan troll, a creature of twilight. His line goes back to the first trolls. The mountain trolls are a little shorter and their coats are grey and white, but you hardly ever see mountain trolls these days. "
    "He's very impressive."

    "You may meet others like him. There are a few in and around London, but the majority live out in the forests where they're more comfortable."

    "It must be very hard for him to live so far away from woods and trees."

    "Well, trolls like caves, and this is only a man-made cave when you think about it. But yes. He wouldn't stay if it wasn't for Kareesh."
    "Kareesh is his Mistress?"

    "Yes, and I don't think she has been out of these tunnels in many years."

    "Is that who the stones are for?" I tapped the pocket of my jacket where the stones weighed in the pocket. She nodded. "A gift for a gift, Rabbit. She is the one who might be able to show you a way to survive, if she takes a liking to you."

    And if she doesn't? That question led me to other thoughts. "What do they do for food and water down here?"

    "Gramawl goes outside to forage for short periods, but not until full dark."

    "Didn't you say he was a twilight creature?"

    "Yes, but twilight in the forest is easily as dark as full night in the city. I doubt he will have seen the sun for years."

    "Do they, you know, turn to stone? In sunlight, I mean, as in the legends?"

    Blackbird laughed. "No, they don't turn to stone. But, over the years, some may have appeared to vanish leaving only the rocks behind, if they were being pursued. "
    "I suppose if you were pursuing something that big and it vanished in plain sight, you might be tempted to believe it had turned into a rock," I suggested. "Yes, you might."

    We fell into silence again, me thinking of the vanished pigeon and Blackbird with her own thoughts. I wanted to ask more questions but the sound of our breathing was sufficient disturbance in the silent tiled corridor.

    Gramawl materialised from the darkness without a sound. It wasn't just that he moved quietly; in the silence of the passage you could have heard a feather fall but Gramawl made no sound until he reappeared from the tunnel. Blackbird was unsurprised by this and took in the rapid gestures that accompanied his return. "She'll see us now, Rabbit. You are privileged. She must be curious about you. "
    "Why would she be curious about me? "
    "Because I brought you to her, I expect."

    Gramawl stepped back into the darkness and Blackbird followed him. I wasn't sure what to expect now that we were going to meet Kareesh. What would a female troll look like? Were they bigger or smaller than the males? Was she likely to decide I was a self-delivering takeaway?

    The darkness eased in behind me and we were climbing slightly. The passage angled left and right and came to a stairway at one side while the passage continued onward into darkness. The metal treads of the steps gleamed dully in the darkness and I noticed a faint glimmer of light coming from above.

    There was some unseen exchange between Gramawl and Blackbird and she took the steps upwards. I followed, nodding a blind acknowledgement to the hulking shape in the dimness, guessing that with his huge gold-rimmed eyes he could probably see me perfectly well.

    The steps doubled back at the first level and climbed up to an area that opened out, whether into another corridor or a room it was hard to tell, for every surface was hanging with rugs and heavy curtains patterned in muted gold and red. In contrast to the space below, the echoes died immediately, leaving a sensation of muffled closeness.

    As we walked forward, we stepped onto rugs with curving geometric patterns that led the eye to wander. Delicate filigree lamps in beaten copper hung from the ceiling, their shape reminding me of Indian or Persian influences. Their light was warm and glowing, and flickered as we passed. A scent of musk rose up around us with an undertone of new-turned earth. It might have been fetid, but it smelled clean, as if it had just rained. We approached a corner where there were cushions piled around with hangings draped into folds above and to each side making a nest. In the centre of this nest was a figure. Huge almond-shaped eyes, completely black, watched us approach. Her face was long, her chin pointed and her limbs were thin and spindly. Her alabaster skin was pale and translucent, stretched over her frame and showing her bony joints. Is this what female trolls looked like? I glanced at Blackbird but she was focused on the figure in the cushions.

    "Greetings, Kareesh. You look well." Blackbird's voice sounded muted in this enclosed space.

    "You always had a way with words," said the figure, but she smiled, exposing parallel rows of tiny needlesharp teeth behind thin lips. "Come and sit with me, and bring your new friend." She patted the cushion beside her. Silver wisps of cobweb hair trailed from her arm, hanging momentarily in the air as she moved. We approached slowly, Blackbird hunching down to nestle in beside the smaller figure who sat like a grandma pulling her grandchildren in around her for warmth and comfort. I bobbed down onto my haunches and eased sideways to sit on the edge of the cushions. "So what have you been up to all this time? I've missed you, girl." Her voice was sweet but crackly. "I'm sorry, Kareesh, I would have come before, but– "
    "Oh, I know. You've a thousand things to do and I don't blame you. It's your time, girl, and you'd best make the most of it." She reached over and patted Blackbird's hand affectionately. Blackbird captured the hand gently and held it for a moment.

    "And you've brought this one to see me, have you?" Kareesh nodded towards me.

    I bowed awkwardly from the seated position. "Greetings, Kareesh,"

    "Nice manners," she remarked in an aside to Blackbird, "but still wet from the birthing pool. Have you started taking in waifs and strays, girl?" I bristled at her implication that I was either of those.

    "I found him on the Underground this morning; he was being taken by the Untainted."

    "Hush, child. Do not speak of those. Too much sadness has come of it and I won't dwell on what's downstream. You stopped it, that's the main thing. It was well done." She pressed Blackbird's hand and looked at me again, those huge eyes unblinking. Perhaps because she looked so ancient, perhaps because of the cosy quality of the place, her strangeness wasn't as disconcerting as it might have been. Perhaps my exposure to Gramawl's fearsome size and speed and Blackbird's eccentricities had inured me to the fear I would have felt, had I encountered her on any other day. "You're still hiding then?"

    I thought the question was aimed at me and I struggled for an answer, but it was Blackbird who replied. "It's not hiding, it's blending in."

    "And yet you drew attention to yourself this day, if my nose does not mislead me."

    Her nose was small, unlike Gramawl's, and would have been dainty if it weren't so flared. She turned back to Blackbird, who looked at her hands in the dim light. I thought I saw the colour rise gently in her cheeks. "You don't miss much, do you?" Blackbird mumbled, then lifted her chin to meet Kareesh's considering look. Kareesh nodded, then let the subject drop, turning her attention to me. "So, girl, let's have a look at this rescued waif."

    She shuffled around to face me, wrapped in overlapping layers that hung from her frame like a longsleeved smock. Wiry legs appeared from under her then vanished again under the folds as she repositioned herself.

    Blackbird glanced at me, raising an eyebrow, but said nothing. I touched my hand to my jacket over my pocket and she nodded imperceptibly.