Thief of Time

“Good answer! Part of us thinks all kinds of things,” said Mrs Ogg. “Part of me is thinking, who's this haughty little miss who talks to me as if I was a kiddie of five? But most of me is thinking: she's got a heap of troubles of her own and has seen plenty of things a human shouldn't have to see. Mind you, part of me says: so have I. Seeing things a human shouldn't have to see makes us human. Well, miss… if you've any sense, part of you is thinking, there's a witch in front of me who's seen my granddad many times, when she's sat by a sickbed that's suddenly become a deathbed, and if she's ready to spit in his eye when the time comes then she could probably bother me considerably right now if she puts her mind to it. Understand? Let's all keep our parts to ourselves,” and suddenly she gave Susan a wink, “as the High Priest said to the actress.”

“I absolutely agree,” said Susan. “Completely.”

“Right,” said Mrs Ogg. “So… twins… well, it was her first time, and human wasn't exactly a familiar shape with her, I mean, you can't do what comes naturally when you ain't exactly natural and… twins ain't quite the right word…”

“A brother,” said Lobsang. “The clockmaker?”

“Yes,” said Susan.

“But I was a foundling!”

“So was he.”

“I want to see him now!”

“That might not be a good idea,” said Susan.

“I am not interested in your opinion, thank you.” Lobsang turned to Lady LeJean. “Down that passage?”

“Yes. But he's asleep. I think the clock upset his mind, and also he was hit in the fight. He says things in his sleep.”

“Says what?”

“The last thing I heard him say before I came to find you was, ‘We're so close. Any passage might do,’” said her ladyship. She looked from one to the other. “Have I said the wrong thing?”

Susan put her hand over her eyes. Oh dear…

“I said that,” said Lobsang. “Just after we came up the stairs.” He glared at Susan. “Twins, right? I've heard about this sort of thing! What one thinks the other thinks too?”

Susan sighed. Sometimes, she thought, I really am a coward. “Something like that, yes,” she said.

“I'm going to see him, then, even if he can't see me!”

Damn, thought Susan, and hurried after Lobsang as he headed along the passage. The Auditor trailed behind them, looking concerned.

Jeremy was lying on a bed, although it was no softer than anything else in the timeless world. Lobsang stopped, and stared.

“He looks… quite like me,” he said.

“Oh, yes,” said Susan.

“Thinner, perhaps.”

“Could be, yes.”

“Different… lines on his face.”

“You've led different lives,” said Susan.

“How did you know about him and me?”

“My grandfather takes, er, an interest in this sort of thing. I found out some more by myself, too,” she said.

“Why should we interest anyone? We're not special.”

“This is going to be quite hard to explain.” Susan looked round at Lady LeJean. “How safe are we here?”

“The signs upset them,” said her ladyship. “They tend to keep away. I… shall we say… took care of the ones who followed you.”

“Then you'd better sit down, Mr Lobsang,” said Susan. “It might help if I told you about me.”

“Well?”

“My grandfather is Death.”

“That's a strange thing to say. Death is just the end of life. It's not a… a person—”

“PAY ATTENTION TO ME WHEN I AM TALKING TO YOU…”

A wind whipped around the room, and the light changed. Shadows formed on Susan's face. A faint blue light outlined her.

Lobsang swallowed.

The light faded. The shadows vanished.

“There is a process called death, and there is a person called Death,” said Susan. “That is how it works. And I am Death's granddaughter. Am I going too fast for you?”

“Er, no, although right up until just now you looked human,” said Lobsang.

“My parents were human. There's more than one kind of genetics.” Susan paused. “You look human, too. Human is a very popular look in these parts. You'd be amazed.”

“Except that I am human.”