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Dragons was the theme There were letters from the Cavern Club Exhibitions Coue There were paons- "Poor little VINNY's fires were nearly Damped after Five years' Cruel Use as a Paint-Stripper, but now-" And there were requests for donations, and talks, and things that added up to a heart big enough for the whole world, or at least that part of it that had wings and breathed fire

If you let youroddly sad and full of a strange, diffuse coood idea to wipe out the whole huain with amoebas

Beside the drift of paperas a book Vimes twisted painfully and looked at the spine It said: Diseases of the Dragon, by Sybil Deidre Olgivanna Raes in horrified fascination They opened into another world, a world of quite stupefying probleers, Heaves, Weeps, Stones It was aes, that a swa across a rooical triuly-drawn illustrations he looked away from hurriedly You could only take so much innards

There was a knock at the door

"I say? Are you decent?" Lady Ramkin booht you soined it would be soup Instead it was a plate stacked high with bacon, fried potatoes and eggs He could hear his arteries panic just by looking at it

"I've htly sheepishly "I don't nor for one"

Vis Sorey, with an, not used to addressing ladies from a recumbent position in their own beds "Corporal Nobbs tells me-"

"And what a colourful little man Nobby is!" said Lady Ramkin

Vimes wasn't certain he could cope with this

"Colourful?" he said weakly

"A real character We've been getting along famously"

"You have?"

"Oh, yes What a great fund of anecdotes he has"

"Oh, yes He's got that all right" It always a with practically everyone Itto do with the common denominator In the entire world of mathematics there could be no denominator as common as Nobby

"Er," he said, and then found he couldn't leave this strange neay, "you don't find his language a bit, er, ripe?"

"Salty," corrected Lady Ramkin cheerfully "You should have heard ot a lot in corandfather once had his grandfather whipped for "

That ht Another stab of pain froot so and probably a cracked rib or two," she said "If you roll over I'll put some more of this on'' Lady Ramkin flourished a jar of yellow ointment

Panic crossed Vimes's face Instinctively, he raised the sheets up around his neck

"Don't play silly buggers,I haven't seen before One backside is pretty enerally have tails on Now roll over and up with the nightshirt It belonged tothat tone of voice Viht in as a chaperon, and then decided that would be even worse

The cream burned like ice

"What is it?"

"All kinds of stuff It'll reduce the bruising and prorowth of healthy scale"

"What?"

"Sorry Probably not scale Don't look so worried

I'ave him a slap on the ruht Watch," said Vi to say even as he said it

"Half naked in a lady's bed, too," said Lady Raet you good and strong"

Vimes's eyes filled with panic

"Why?" he said

Lady Rarubby jacket

"I on"

"Oh, the dragon" Vion seemed aout, too I'll tell you this: it's a very odd beast It shouldn't be able to get airborne"

"You're right there"

"If it's built like swah about twenty tons Twenty tons! It's ispan ratios, you see"