Unseen Academicals

And now this was a duet, because another of the creatures had slid down out of the gloom on what might have been a billowing cloak, or might have been wings. They never stopped moving, each in a different direction, trying to get closer to the couch.

‘Do not be afraaaid,’ squawked one of them, ‘we are on your siiide. We are here to protect you.’

Glenda, trembling in shock, managed to stand up. She folded her arms. She always felt better like that. ‘Who do you think you are–dropping out of the ceiling and shouting at people? And you’re shedding feathers. That’s disgusting. This is a—this is quite near a food-preparation area.’

‘Yeah, push off,’ said Trev.

‘That’s telling them,’ said Glenda out of the corner of her mouth. ‘I bet that took a lot of thinking.’

‘You do not understand,’ said a creature. The faces really were strange, as if someone had made a bird out of a woman. ‘You are in great danger! Awk!’

‘From you?’ said Glenda.

‘From the orc,’ said the creature. And the word was a scream. ‘Awk!’

In the shadows in front of the open cupboard the soul of Nutt turned a page. He felt someone at his elbow and looked up into the face of Ladyship.

‘Why did you tell me not to open the book, Ladyship?’

‘Because I wanted you to read it,’ said her voice. ‘You had to find the truth for yourself. That is how we all find the truth.’

‘And if the truth is terrible?’

‘I think you know the answer to that one, Nutt,’ said the voice of Ladyship.

‘The answer is that, terrible or not, it is still the truth,’ said Nutt.

‘And then?’ said her voice, like a teacher encouraging a promising pupil.

‘And then the truth can be changed,’ said Nutt.

‘Mister Nutt is a goblin,’ said Trev.

‘Yeah, right,’ said the creature. And the phrase seemed incredibly exotic for someone whose face was looking more birdlike all the time.

‘If I scream, a lot of people will come running,’ said Glenda.

‘And what will they do?’ said the creature.

And what would they do? Glenda thought. They would stand around saying ‘What’s all this then?’ and asking all the same questions we are. She shuffled again as one of the things tried to get to the couch.

‘The orc will kill,’ said a third voice, and another of the things dropped down almost in front of Glenda’s face. Its breath was like carrion.

‘Mister Nutt is kind and gentle and has never hurt anyone,’ said Glenda.

‘Who didn’t deserve it,’ said Trev hurriedly.

‘But now the orc knows it is an orc,’ said a creature. And now they were milling backwards and forwards in a ghastly pavane.

‘I don’t think you’re allowed to touch us,’ said Trev. ‘I really don’t think you can touch us.’

He sat down suddenly beside the recumbent Nutt and dragged Glenda down next to him. ‘I think you ’ave to obey rules,’ said Trev. The moving figures stopped instantly. That was somehow creepier than their movement. They stood there as frozen as statues.

‘They’ve got talons,’ said Glenda, quietly. ‘I can see their talons.’

‘Pounces,’ said Trev.

‘What’re you talking about?’

‘Those big claws are called pounces. The ones at the back are called talons–the ones they carry the prey off with. Everyone gets that wrong.’

‘Except you,’ said Glenda. ‘You’re like the big expert on horrible birdlike creatures all of a sudden.’

‘I can’t help it. Sometimes you just pick stuff up,’ said Trev.

‘We must protect you,’ said one of the females.

‘We don’t need protecting from Mister Nutt! He’s our friend,’ said Glenda.

‘And how many of your friends have claws?’

‘What have we got to worry about here, in Unseen University, which has got great big thick walls and is pretty much generally crawling with wizards?’

One of the women stretched her neck until her face was a few inches from Trev’s. ‘There is an orc in here with you.’

There was a clink of chain. Nutt had moved slightly.

‘You work for somebody, don’t you?’ said Trev. ‘You’ve got tiny little heads. You can’t ’ave enough brains to think this up for yourself. Do the wizards know you’re here?’

Glenda screamed. She had never screamed before, not in a proper way, straight up from the bottom of her terror. Cutting her finger while using the knife carelessly didn’t count and almost certainly would never have been so loud. The scream echoed along the passages, bounced into the cellars and made the undercrofts ring[17].

Glenda screamed a second time and, as her lungs had got into practice, she managed to make this one even louder. There were hurrying footsteps from both directions.

That was reassuring.

She was not certain how reassuring was the little clink and sliding of metal that suggested a chain had broken.

The creatures went into an instant panic, trying to take wing at once. They were as clumsy as herons and got in one another’s way.

‘And don’t come back!’ she yelled as they disappeared back into the dark. Then she turned to Trev, her heart thumping, and said, ‘What is an orc?’

‘I dunno. I think it’s some kind of old bogey man,’ said Trev.

‘And what were those things?’