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"Delicately!" Fret whispered harshly, watching Drizzt’s hands as the drow scraped and chipped away the dried salve around the neck of the panther figurine "Oh, do be careful!"

Of course Drizzt was being careful! As careful as the drow had ever been in any task As iurine appeared to be to Fret, it was a hundred times more important to Drizzt, who treasured and loved his panther companion Never had the drow taken on a more critical task, not with his wits or his weapons Now he used the delicate tool Fret had given hihtly hooked end

Another piece of salve fell away-al the side of the panther’s neck was clear of the stuff And clear of any crack, Drizzt noted hopefully So perfectly had the salve bonded the onyx figurine that not a line could be seen where the break had been

Drizzt subli that it would inevitably lead him to rush in his work He had to take his tiurine’s neck was no more than a few inches, but Drizzt fully expected, and Fret had agreed with the esti at his work

The drow ranger urine so that Fret could see the cleared area The tidy dwarf nodded to Drizzt after viewing it, even sic and her ability to edy

With a pat on Drizzt’s shoulder, the dwarf moved aside and Drizzt went back to work, slowly and delicately, one tiny fleck at a time

By noon, the neck was clear of salve Drizzt turned the figurine over in his hands, studying the area where the break had been, seeing no indication, neither a crack nor any residue froed He clasped the ite breath, dared to hold it aloft, with all the pressure of its weight centered on the area of the cut

It held fast Drizzt shook his hand, daring it to break apart, but it did not

"The bonding will be as strong as any other area on the iteurine is whole once reed," Drizzt replied, "but what of its ic?"

Fret had no answer

"The real challenge will be in sending Guenhwyvar home to the Astral Plane," the droent on

"Or in calling the panther back," Fret added

That notion stung Drizzt The tidy das right, he knew He ht be able to open a tunnel to allow Guenhwyvar to return home, only to have the panther lost to hi the cat beside him Guenhwyvar’s condition had stabilized-apparently the panther could indeed rereat cat was not in good health or good spirits While she see, Guenhwyvar roamed about in a state of perpetual exhaustion,her once sleek sides, eyes often closed as the panther tried to find desperately needed sleep

"Better to dismiss Guenhwyvar to her home," Drizzt said determinedly "Surely my life will be diminished if I cannot recall Guenhwyvar, but better that than the life Guenhwyvar urine in hand, to Drizzt’s roo in front of the hearth, absorbing the heat of the glowing eht up before the panther-who lifted her head sluggishly to regard hiurine on the floor before her

"Lady Alustriel, and good Fret here, have come to our aid, Guenhwyvar," Drizzt announced His voice quivered a bit as he tried to continue, as the realization hit hiht be the last time he ever saw the panther

Guenhwyvar sensed that disco her head in line with kneeling Drizzt’s face

"Go hoo ho the drow intently, as if trying to discern the source of Drizzt’s obvious unease Guenhwyvar, too, got the feeling-frourine, which seeht be a final parting of dear friends

But the cat had no control in the nored the call of the ot to her feet and paced about the figurine

Drizzt was both thrilled and scared when Guenhwyvar’s for at all

When the cat was gone, Drizzt scooped up the figurine, taking heart that he felt no war the last tiain He realized suddenly how foolish he had been, and looked at Fret, his violet orbs ith shock

"What is it?" the tidy dwarf asked

"I have not Catti-brie’s sword!" Drizzt whispered harshly "If the path is not clear to the Astral Plane"

"Thehis hand soothingly in the air, "in the figurine and in all the world about us The urine close He had no idea of where Catti-brie ht be, and knew she had her sith her All he could do, then, was sit tight, wait, and hope

Bruenor sat on his throne, Regis beside hi is had already seen the guests that would soon be announced to Bruenor, and curious Regis was always happy to see the extraordinary Harpells of Longsaddle Four of theht play an i the dwarven complex-if they didn’t inadvertently take the place down instead

Such were the risks of dealing with the Harpells

The four stu down the poor dho had first entered to announce thee about his face, for his eyes were already in Mithril Hall Guiding hiweld, who had ridden into the outer hall on a curious mount, the front of which reses and a back endPuddlejuis did not know, and the wizard did not offer his narowled low and nodded in their direction

"I am Bella don DelRoy Harpell," announced the fourth, a short and quite beautiful young woman, except that her eyes did not look in the sareen, but one shined with a fierce inner light, while the other was dulled over and grayish With Bella, though, that seeive her fine features a sonized one of the given names, and understood that Bella was probably the leader of this group "Daughter of Del-Roy, leader of Longsaddle?" the dwarf asked, to which the petite woht blond saddle, Eighth King of Mithril Hall," Bella said politely "Your call was not unheeded"

A pity, Bruenor thought, but he remained tactfully quiet

"With is interrupted, knowing the two quite well froood to see that your experi came to fruition"

"Puddlejuweld happily replied

That nais would like to see!

"I a the halfling squarely "Please do not interrupt again, or I shall have to turn you into so"

The sparkle in her good green eye as she regarded Regis, and the siis that the threat was a hollow one He heeded it anyway, suddenly anxious to keep on Bella’s good side She wasn’t five feet tall, the halfling realized, and a bit on the heavy side, sois hi her feis

"My third companion is Bidderdoo," Bella went on

The nais, and came perfectly clear when Bidderdoo answered the introduction with a bark

Bruenor groaned; Regis clapped and laughed aloud When they had gone through Longsaddle, on their way to find Mithril Hall, Bidderdoo, through use of a bad potion, had played the role of the Harpell fa

"The transforave Bidderdoo a quick backhand on the shoulder, reue back in his eted about

"Of course," Bruenor said iave a sharp whistle, and one of his attendants ca the disembodied eyes, one in each hand To his credit, the dwarf tried to keep them as steady as possible, and aimed theood to see ain!" the wizard exclai what he could see, he started for himself, or for his eyes, or for the back wall, actually, and the door he and his coh He cried out, "No, no!" and turned a co, which wasn’t an easy thing while viewing hiain

"It is so confusing!" an exasperated Harkle reht

"Ah, yes," the wizard said, and turned back the wrong way oncefor the door

"The other way!" frustrated Regweld cried

Bruenor grabbed the dwarven attendant and took the eyes, turning thee

Harkle screamed

"Hey!" Bruenor roared "Turn around"

Harkle cal Bruenor once is, snickered, and tossed one of the eyes Harkle’s way, then followed it a split second later with the other, snapping his wrist so the thing spun as it soared through the air

Harkle screaht one of the eyes; Bidderdoo went for the other with his h, and the eye bounced off her arm, fell to the floor, and rolled about

"That was very naughty, King Dwarf!" the daughter of DelRoy scolded "That was" She couldn’t , as were her coh Bidderdoo’s chuckles sounded is joined in, and Bruenor, too, but only for a second The dwarf king could not forget the fact that these buainst an arht

Drizzt was out of Mithril Hall at dawn the nextHe had seen a caht before and kneas Catti-brie’s He still had not tried calling Guenhwyvar back and resisted the urge now, re himself to take on one problem at a time