Dragon and Judge

"You will figure it out," Taneem assured her. "I have faith in you."

"Thanks," Alison said. "In the meantime, I'm going to go see if this bathroom has a tub and some hot water. Will you be okay here alone for a few minutes?"

"There is room to hide beneath the bed if necessary," Taneem said. "Go and enjoy."

The bathroom had a tub, plenty of hot water, and—best of all—a little privacy. Alison enjoyed the bath as long as she dared, then dried and dressed. She returned to her room, to find that in her absence her dinner had been delivered.

And that the waiter was still there.

"You are the human Alison Kayna?" he asked politely. He was a Wistawk, tall and spindly and rather young.

"I am," Alison said, glancing around. There was no sign of Taneem. She must have made it under the bed in time. "Thank you for the dinner."

She sat down at the table and picked up the fork. The tray was military style, molded metal with five compartments for food. All five were filled with the proper nutritional range of meat, vegetables, bread, fruit, and even what appeared to be a sort of pudding.

The room itself might be insultingly simple, but at least Neverlin wasn't going to make her eat slaves' food, too.

She looked up, to find the Wistawk still standing there. "Was there something else?" she asked.

He hesitated. "My name is Shoofteelee," he said. "May I ask a question?"

"I suppose," Alison said cautiously.

Shoofteelee seemed to brace himself. "Are you a friend of Jack Morgan, who came to us as Jack McCoy?"

Alison stared at him. Was this some kind of trap? "What makes you think that?" she countered.

"Because they dislike and distrust you, as they did him,'' Shoofteelee said, the words coming out in a rush now that he'd committed himself to this line of conversation. "Yet they treat you specially, as they did him. You have the same air of nobility about you as he had." He looked furtively around the room and lowered his voice to a whisper. "As also did the dragon."

Out of the corner of her eye, Alison saw something gray twitch under the bed. "I'd be careful about trying to see nobility in people's faces," she warned. "It usually doesn't work."

"Then—?" He broke off, frowning. "What then are you saying?"

Alison hesitated. Still, if it was a trap, she was already in it. "I'm saying don't assume I'm a noble person," she said. "But as it happens, I do know Jack Morgan. And the dragon."

Shoofteelee's mouth curled open in a relieved smile. "I knew it," he breathed.

"The question is, what do you know about them?" Alison asked.

"I was here when—"

"And you might as well sit down," Alison said, waving him toward the bed.

"Thank you," Shoofteelee said, a little uncertainly. Stepping to the bed, he folded his lanky body onto it. "Thank you."

"You were telling me how you know Jack," Alison prompted.

"I was here when Jack Morgan came and offered us freedom," Shoofteelee said. "He and the black dragon defeated many of the Brummgas and led nearly thirty slaves to freedom, including six from the household itself."

"The bla—?" Alison caught herself just in time. Of course the story would be about a black dragon. K'da in combat mode turned black, no matter what their usual color. "But you weren't invited?"

Shoofteelee's eyes closed, waves of subtle color rippling across his skin reflecting his deep emotional pain. "I was afraid," he said softly. "And I did not believe."

"Not really your fault," Alison said, feeling an obscure desire to soothe the other's ache. "If I hadn't seen some of the things the dragon can do, I wouldn't have believed him either."

"You seek to quiet my shame," Shoofteelee said. "But the shame is far distant to the agony of having been left behind."

"I understand," Alison said gently. "I'm sorry."

"Do not be sorry," the Wistawk said, the emotion clearing abruptly from his face. "For with you I have now a second chance. And this time I will not let it pass by."

"Whoa," Alison said, holding out her hands palm outward toward him. "Slow down a minute. I'm sorry, but that's not why I'm here."

Shoofteelee's face fell. "But we have waited for this chance. For Jack and the dragon." He lowered his eyes. "And we have hoped. We have hoped so much."

"I'm sorry," Alison said again. Under the edge of the bed she could see Taneem shifting restlessly, and it didn't take a genius to tell she was starting to feel all noble and guilty.

Shoofteelee took a deep breath and stood up. "But I keep you from your meal," he said, heading for the door. "My apologies."

"That's all right," Alison assured him, standing up as well. "Did the humans say anything else of interest?"

Shoofteelee eyed her a moment, perhaps wondering if she was even worth talking to anymore. "The older one—Mr. Arthur—told the other that he had heard that a Judge-Paladin had arrived at a place called Semaline. He seemed concerned about it."

"What did the other one say?" Alison asked.

Shoofteelee shrugged. "He seemed unconcerned," he said. "Perhaps even amused."