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“We need to lure the serpent back through the hole before I can close it.”

“I refuse to be bait.”

“I wasn’t going to ask.”

“Good.”

She nodded at the lone herring watching from the shelter of the wreck. “I need you to talk to your friend.”

“It’s a fish.”

“So?”

“It’s not a friend, it’s food.”

“So you can’t talk to it.”

Whiskers bristled indignantly. “I didn’t say that!”

“I need you to ask it to get a school together, get the serpent’s attention, lure it back here, and peel away at the last minute so that the serpent goes through the hole rather than hitting the rock.”

Sam stared at her. “You want me to convince fish to be bait? Why don’t I just convince them to roll in breadcrumbs and lie down under a broiler?” The darker orange markings on his forehead formed a ‘w’ as he frowned. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea.”

“If they do this, the serpent will be gone, and they’ll be a lot safer.”

“Provided he doesn’t catch them and eat them.”

“I’m not saying there isn’t a risk. Just try.”

As Sam swam over to the herring, Diana slid her backpack around onto her lap and undid the zipper. She needed something that would write under water on slippery, algae-covered rock. Pens, pencils, markers, bag of biodegradable kitty litter, litter box, six cans of cat food, two cat dishes, box of crackers, peanut butter, pyjamas, clean jeans, socks, underwear, laptop; nothing that would work. The outside pockets held her cellphone, a bottle of slightly redundant water, and… a nail file. Possibly…

“She wants you to sweeten the deal.”

“She does?” Diana glanced over at the herring. “How?”

“She wants you to get rid of the fish that suck the life out of other fish.”

“There’s vampire fish in this lake?” All at once, the dark corners under the rocks looked a little darker.

“Get real. They’re called sea lampreys. They came into the lake after World War II and decimated the native populations. TVO special on the Great Lakes,” he added when Diana blinked at him.

“Decimated?”

“It means ate most of.”

“Iknow what it means.”

“Hey, you asked,” he snorted. “What do you say? They’re not supposed to be here, no one would miss them, and you can’t lure the serpent without herring cooperation. She just wants her fry to be safe.” He paused and licked his lips.

“You’re thinking about fried fish, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, stop.” If she gave the herring what she wanted, Diana knew there’d be consequences. More healthy, native species of fish in the lake, for one thing. Actually, more healthy, native species of fish in the lake was about the only thing. She couldn’t see a down side– which was always vaguely unsettling.

“You can’t do it, can you?”

“Of course I can do it.” It was disconcerting that her cat was using the same argument on her that she’d used on him. “Technically, as a Keeper, if I’m asked for help to right a wrong, I can’t refuse. Sea lampreys in the lake seem to be definitely a wrong.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“I’m not sure fish were included under that rule.”

“Very anti-ichthyoid of you.”

“Anti what? Never mind.” She waved off his explanation. “You’re watching way too much television. Okay, tell her I’ll do it, but it has to be after the hole is closed, I can’t access the Possibilities until then.”

“She wants to know why she should trust you.”

Diana glanced over at the herring. “Because I’m one of the good guys.”

“She only has your word for that.”

“Sam!”

“Okay, okay, she didn’t say that. You get to work; I’ll convince her you’re trustworthy.”

“Thank you.” Setting the jaw bone carefully aside, Diana began to scratch the definitions of the accident site onto the rocks around the hole with the point of her nail file, the algae just thick enough for it to leave a legible impression.

“Incoming!”

“I’m almost done.”

“Maybe you don’t quite understand what incoming means,” Sam shouted as the first herring whacked into her shoulder.

Diana scrambled to get the last definition drawn in the midst of a silver swirl of fish and dove out of the way in the instant of clear water that followed.

Given a choice between diving face first into rock or returning back where it had come from, the serpent chose the second, less painful, option.

The instant the tip of its wedge-shaped tail disappeared, Diana grabbed the definitions and slammed the hole closed. When she looked up, three dozen silver faces stared back at her, all wearing the same expectant expression. Well, probably expectant; it was surprisingly hard to judge expression on a fish.

“Okay, okay, give me a minute to catch my breath.” She tested the seal on the hole and reached into the Possibilities. Turned out there were a lot of sea lamprey in the lake, and over half of them had to be removed from living prey.

“Where’d you put them?” Sam spun around in a slow circle, lazily sculling with his tail.

“I dropped them in the Mid-Atlantic.”

“There are sharks in the Mid-Atlantic.”

“So?”

“Sharks eat lampreys.”

“Sharks eat Volkswagens. What’s your point?”

“We’ve been down here for hours, we missed lunch, and I’m hungry. Can we go now?”