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For as much as I wanted Anyan, I knew that we did, indeed, need to talk The last year ofa cautious person to living like life was a swirets, but Anyan was different

There were things I wanted to say to hied into any ure out what those things were

I nibbled on a biscuit, watching Gog’s large grey for a pot of tea The rest of us were sitting around the small kitchen table of the house we’d commandeered Blondie sat across from me with Hiral at her side--the two see I couldn’t understand since the little creature had gotten no less unpleasant since he’d arrived It turns out Hiral was a gwyllion, which was a type of y The reputation for mischief ell earned, I’d realized, as I’d watched in horror as Hiral licked every single chip fro as he did so

I planned on throwing that bag out before we left, feeling sorry for the poor hu had taken the head of the table toas Anyan sat with hest’s and h we hadn’t "conserved" any "water" Still, it felt good to have changed into comfies, and Blondie and Anyan had done the same Hiral, however, had already been dressed in what appeared to be a burlap sack, and Gog and Magog earing everything they’d co their coats

I wonder if they ever relaxed, those two

Once Gog had placed the teapot on the table and settled his big bulk in his chair, I turned to Blondie

"So what, exactly, is going on?" I asked, relieved finally to have the chance to get so her hand on mine

"All of this involves the Red and the White"

I cast a querulous gaze down at our hands, before raising ht flip out when she’d said that, but I was clueless

"The Red and the White? Isn’t that a novel by Stendhal?"

Everyone looked at ht there at the table, except for Anyan He gaveimportant I don’t know, and that he probably should have told hed, but it was more tired than frustrated The fact was that I’d had to pack a lifeti into less than a year when it cae were more like crevasses, but that was only to be expected

"You’ve really never heard of the Red or White?" Blondie asked,a cat anus face

"Nope Never"

"Really?"

I flailed ed halfway across the world--and out of Anyan’s bed--for vague premonitions of dread "Why would I say I’d never heard of the Wraiths"

"Okay"

"Now think Ring Wraiths with death-rays for eyes and the ability to shoot nuclear warheads out of their wazoo"

"What?"

Magog’s coat stirred as she shifted, her rough voice interrupting Blondie

"Making light of this situation isn’t helping, Cyntaf She needs the facts"

"Magog’s right," Anyan seconded

Blondie shrugged, changing track

"The Red and White are children of original Great Elementals, just like the creature underneath Rockabill"

"They’re also Earth and Water?" I asked, confused How could creatures that were kin to the gentle being under Rockabill bea huh

"No All of Earth and Water’s children ran the gaentle Fire, as I’m sure you know from the creature, spawned all sorts of evil creatures on its own Air, ether, shall we say, as the other Elementals She was also powerful and distant, whichas covetous as Fire"

I frowned Fire was, fro told me it wouldn’t be pleasant to be coveted by Fire

"When Air resisted Fire’s advances, Fire grew enraged Fire raped Air, and from that union spawned two creatures," Blondie said