What do you know about… jackals, cousin? Troy didn't like where this conversation looked like it was headed. He was overwhelmed with a temptation to lie, to say he didn't know what Kappoulis was talking about, but the looks on Moffitt and Anah's faces were telling him that they would say something if Troy didn't. He hesitated for a moment, an anxious knot rapidly tightening in his stomach. "Well… what do you want to know?"
"Is it true that you have the spirit of jackals within you?" Andridis asked.
"Maybe."
"Do you or do you not?" Kappoulis continued to stare hard at him.
Troy gave Moffitt and Anah a nervous look. "Yes. I… I do. Why? Why does it matter?"
"Because over the last several years, our homes and farms have been plagued by strix." Kappoulis's expression softened. "We have prayed, and we asked our priest to pray. He told us to visit a man living alone in a monastery several miles north of here, completely isolated from the rest of town. The man who lives there is something of a seer. We visited him, like we were told, and he told us that we did not have to fear for very long. In a vision he had the previous night, he told us that a jackal warrior, of our flesh and blood, would come from a land far away, and defeat the strix in battle during the witching hour of a full moon."
"Most people of that type are lunatics," Troy said.
Moffitt glared at him. "Troy, Dietrich could be considered a seer!"
"Vissarion is no lunatic." Andridis's expression hardened. "What is the matter with you?"
Troy stood still, feeling everyone in the room turning on him. Even Vasilakis didn't look happy with him.
"You do this every time your jackal spirit is brought up," Moffitt said. "Every bloody time!"
Troy remained quiet, wishing he had kept his mouth shut.
The only person who didn't get angry was Lavrentis. In fact, he looked disappointed. "We really do need help. I was telling you just a few minutes ago how aggressive the strix have gotten. It's only going to get worse if no one does anything, and having someone with magic would help a great deal."
"You guys have guns. Use them," Troy said.
"They are vampiric, Samuel. It is difficult enough to shoot their heads since they are small and can fly. We would need silver bullets to afford being a little less accurate, and those are extremely difficult to come by," Andridis replied.
"Troy, your grandparents told you how dangerous the strix are," Moffitt said. "You're not leaving these people to them!"
"Who said I was?" Troy glared at him. "They can become better shots with a bit of work."
Moffitt sighed. He motioned for Anah to leave his shoulders, and looked at the others. "Excuse us. We're going to talk outside." His eyes remained narrowed to slivers of gray ice as he gestured for Troy to follow him. They both stepped out into the bright Mediterranean sun, and stood in silence for a moment before Moffitt turned to Troy. "How many times are we going to have to drag you into things before you accept what you were given? I thought you accepted this during the magpie prophecy last year. You even used your ability during our attack on the castle. Why are you suddenly closing yourself off now?"
Troy looked at the ground for a while before managing to make eye contact with Moffitt. I think I really screwed this one up. "I expected that to be the end of it."
"Things like that never just go away."
"I was willing to accept that. I am not willing to accept being part of another prophecy."
"Unfortunately, you don't have a choice. Dietrich didn't have a choice. Jules didn't have a choice. Do you think I wanted Jules to go through all that? No. But, there was nothing anyone could do about it. We just had to accept it and fulfill it to the best of our abilities, which we did."
"Then tell me this, Moffitt, why me?"
Moffitt sputtered. "Wh—I don't know! I didn't write or plan any of this! And you know what? I'm not going to try and drag you along again. You know what you are, and you know what you have. You need to stop being so bloody afraid of this. Nothing is in the way of you accepting this but you and your own stubbornness."
A hundred different things had been running through Troy's head since Kappoulis dropped this bombshell on him about the seer's vision. Up until then, no one in his blood family apart from David knew anything about Troy's role in Dietrich's prophecy and the jackal powers that came with it. Even David knew the bare minimum, and Troy was never sure why he never told his brother more. Now, he was here, in Greece, with cousins he didn't even know existed until a little over an hour ago, and they were about to know everything.
This wasn't Troy's goal when he came here. He wanted to see and learn about the place his grandparents grew up in, not be dragged into another damn prophecy. He knew Moffitt was right, but he was far too frustrated and unable to put his thoughts into words.
"What are you thinking, Troy?" Moffitt's tone was somewhat gentler now. He was clearly still annoyed, but there was a tinge of sympathy in his eyes.
Troy shrugged.
"Trust me when I say that I understand how frustrating it can be to accept what the supernatural throws at you."
"We've been over this, Moffitt. You and I aren't the same."
"We're a bit more alike than you'd care to admit. Like I said, I'm not going to argue with you on this again. If I knew this was going to happen, I would've told Dietrich to go with you. He knows how to handle your rubbish."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. Forgive me for my tone and my choice of language, but you are being utterly ridiculous. I'm not helping you with this. We're going to that monastery."
Over the course of serving together during the war, Troy had never encountered much resistance from Moffitt on anything, unless it was something personal. In those situations, Moffitt could be just as stubborn as Troy, sometimes even more so. He also won out in those situations. Any other commander would have seen Moffitt as disobedient, prone to emotional outburst, and a severe liability, and Troy had moments where he was tempted to send Moffitt back to the British Army because of this. At the same time, he felt Moffitt deserved a chance. He was a good soldier, though riddled with issues that required a firm but gentle approach. Then again, much like Troy, Moffitt was hesitant to discuss his issues. He would never discuss why he was anxious or why he was apologizing for something that wasn't his fault. It could be frustrating at times, but Troy could work with him.
Troy had watched Moffitt's growth over the years, and yet it was still surprising to see and hear Moffitt being so firm in what he was saying. Not just firm, but angry. Part of Troy was proud of Moffitt for not being so timid, but he was also wondering that if Moffitt was going off, it meant Troy truly screwed up.
There was no getting out of this, was there? "Fine," Troy said. "We'll go to the monastery."
The happier atmosphere of earlier had faded entirely when Troy and Moffitt re-entered the house. The Greeks in the kitchen still seemed greatly annoyed with Troy, except for Lavrentis. The boy was told to stay home with his mother while the men and Anah went to the monastery. No one said a word after Troy said he would go and hear what the seer had to say, leading him to wonder if it was best he left after this. Clearly, he didn't think about what he said. Clearly, it made everyone upset. Clearly, he was doomed to never have good relations with any member of his blood family anymore.
They were able to drive most of the way to the monastery, but when they came to the base of a rocky hill, Andridis stopped his vehicle, prompting Vasilakis to stop as well. Once both vehicles were stopped, Andridis approached the driver's side window, prompting Vasilakis to roll it down. "We must walk from here," Andridis said.
Vasilakis, Troy, and Moffitt got out of the car, and followed Andridis and Kappoulis up to a narrow, gravelly path that wound around the hill. It was a nice day for a walk, Troy would admit that, but it certainly wasn't what he had in mind for his first day in Greece. He glanced up at the cloudless blue sky, and ignored the chill moving up his spine when he saw the Egyptian vulture, circling overhead. The vulture's yellow head moved, and Troy couldn't help feeling that the damn bird was looking at him.
He stopped thinking about the vulture when he could see the reddish-brown stone that made up the monastery at the top of the hill. The building was smaller than Troy expected, and very old. Several of the bricks were cracked and weathered. Many roof tiles needed a bit of repair, but there was evidence that whoever lived there had made some repairs all over. A tall iron fence, lined with sharp spikes to deter trespassers, surrounded a wide area, with the monastery at the center. When they reached the gate, Troy could see a cloaked figure in a garden, watering plants. There were ravens perched on the roof above the garden, seemingly watching over the figure. One of the ravens turned, and called down to the person in the garden.
The person looked up and over at the gate. Troy highly doubted this was the seer, but Kappoulis said that he lived alone. His doubt came from the fact that the man was much younger than Troy expected. The man's eyes were alert, his face was clean-shaven, and he seemed more grounded.
"That's the seer?" Troy asked.
"Yes," Kappoulis said.
"I expected someone who looked like a deranged Santa Claus."
Kappoulis sighed and shook his head before turning back to the gate. "Vissarion! Hello!"
The cloaked man set down his watering can, and left his garden to unlock the gate. He paused when he saw Troy, then resumed unlocking the gate. "Come inside. I would like to speak with the jackal warrior alone first. The rest of you will stay in the garden."
Troy glanced at the others heading to the garden, while he followed Vissarion into the monastery. The interior of the building was lit by torches, candles, and ancient, cobwebbed chandeliers. Many of the halls seemed drab, but the individual rooms had varying projects and artistic endeavors inside. Paintings, carvings, writings, and sewing work lined the rooms, showing that Vissarion kept his mind active in his isolation.
Vissarion opened a large, wooden door into a room lined with more candles and old bookshelves. There was a large window offering a breathtaking view of snowcapped mountains that stretched out toward the north. A table was set up in front of the window, and Vissarion gestured for Troy to sit. "I will return in a moment," the younger man said. He disappeared into another room, and came back holding a tray with a cup of black coffee, a little bottle of cream, and an equally small jar of sugar. Along with the coffee were plates and bowls of bite-sized pastries, cheeses, cold-cuts of meat, and fruit. Vissarion set the tray on the table. "You may eat." He tilted his head. "You assume it is a trick."
"Maybe. What makes you think that?" Troy asked.
"That is part of who you are. Jackals are hard to capture, you know. They can sense tricks and traps, for they are tricksters themselves." Vissarion gestured to the tray again. "I assure you, I only wish to discuss this vision with you."
"Fine. What is there to discuss, though? Loukas told me what this is about. Farms are being attacked by crazy vampire owls and I'm supposed to fight them on the witching hour of a full moon."
"And you have no desire to undertake this."
"Nope. I thought I was done with this. I figured out how to use my jackal-summoning spirit thingy last year, to help protect my friend's son when a bunch of magpies went rogue. That's all I'm willing to do."
Vissarion's expression remained neutral. He poured a bit of coffee for himself once Troy had taken what he wanted. "You are aware that this was laid out for you long before you were born, correct?"
"I've only been told half a million times. Surely, whoever laid this out saw that I don't want it."
"Of course. But, they also saw the struggles that you will endure, and the potential all this has to teach you."
"I don't see how being able to summon spirit-jackals is going to teach me anything."
"Have you considered the idea that there is more to what you have?"
"No."
"Naturally." Vissarion picked up a grape from the dish of fruit.
Troy glanced out the window. "Don't tell me these damn strix are going to take over Greece like the magpies wanted to with Britain if I don't stop them."
"No, they will not, but they will attack your family, and likely kill them, if you do nothing."
"We have Moffitt. He can do it if you need someone with magic."
"My vision did not say that the Voice of the Serpents will be the one to defeat the strix, now, did it?" The young seer put the grape in his mouth. "Why do you despise this so much?"
"Because stuff like this always results in people nearly getting killed. No one gives any straight answers. It's always 'wait and see.' Dietrich almost died twice because of this crap. Moffitt's son broke his arm. I was nearly driven into the river by those stupid magpies. Moffitt's wife was nearly killed by a gargoyle."
"It has also saved your lives, more than you know. Do you remember the mission Moffitt undertook to retrieve and destroy a Coptic scroll? How you had orders to execute him? What happened when you went to shoot him?"
Troy swallowed anxiously, not wanting to think about that incident. He resisted a shudder. "A voice… in my head. It sounded like Dietrich's… saying… 'Whatever you think you are about to do, I would advise against it.' It… It didn't make sense, but I didn't shoot."
"And when you were chained to Dietrich, you had help."
"Jackals led us to water. Yeah. I remember."
"The jackal spirit that lives in you also helped you figure out what happened when you were blinded."
"Yeah. I could smell Dietrich's cigarettes, even though he took steps to make sure I wouldn't suspect a thing. Somehow… Somehow I could sense more than normal."
Vissarion nodded. "It has helped you, and it will continue to help you." He studied Troy for a moment. "I still get the impression you are against this. Why?"
Troy suddenly found himself unsure of why. He didn't want to leave his newfound relatives to be slaughtered by strix. He wouldn't let that happen. But, why did his jackal ability have to be the key to helping them? Of course, he wouldn't get an answer to that. This was written thousands of years ago. That was just how it was.
"If you would like to further understand this, I am always available," Vissarion said. "However, I will leave you with this for today: I am not going to be your mentor to strengthen your powers. That will be someone else."
"Who?" Troy asked.
"You will meet them quite soon. That is all I will say. Now, I sense you would like to leave. Take any food you would like for the road." Vissarion stood, leading Troy out into the hall, and back to the main entrance of the monastery. "Best of luck to you, my friend."
Troy stepped out into the sunlight, unsure of what to say, think, or feel. He watched the seer walk over to the garden, where Moffitt, Anah, and the three Greeks were chatting. The old gates creaked as they opened, and Troy noticed Moffitt approaching in the corner of his eye.
"Are you alright?" Moffitt asked.
Troy sighed. "Yeah. Fine."
"We've discussed 'fine' before, Troy."
"I don't want to have another discussion about it. I just… I need some time alone."
Moffitt looked at the ground, and gently squeezed Troy's shoulder. "Let's head back to the Andridis's farm first."
Troy had expected him to argue, and was glad he didn't. The ride back to the farm was quiet. Too quiet. Troy knew it was his fault. He said things that were out of line, and now he was more worried about how he was going to mend his fledgling relationship with his cousins than he was about the vision.
Moffitt was beginning to wonder if he had been too harsh with Troy after Kappoulis broke the news about the seer's vision regarding the strix. At the same time, Moffitt felt his resulting anger was necessary. Troy had been disrespectful, and was doubling down on his stubbornness, just like he always did when things of this nature came up. Moffitt couldn't blame him for being frustrated, though; after what happened with the magpies last year, Moffitt was ready to be left alone by the supernatural for a little while.
He relaxed in Vissarion's garden, amazed at how lovely it was. Granted, many of the flowers were beginning to wither given that autumn was approaching, but Moffitt imagined that this place was full of life and color in the spring and summer. As he looked around, he noticed that there was both a beauty garden and a food garden, and many of the fruits and vegetables growing looked close to being ready for harvesting.
"Even our garden does not look this nice," Anah said. "Oh, look, dear. What lovely apples. And there are citrus trees! Oh, Vissarion is so lucky to be living here in Greece. The temperature is perfect for these fruits."
Moffitt grinned a little while allowing Anah to marvel at the garden. He glanced over at the stone walls of the monastery, hoping Troy wasn't being a pain. He gave a soft sigh, prompting Anah to look at him.
"Are you alright, dear?" she asked.
"I don't know if I made the right choice, yelling at Troy the way I did," Moffitt said. He sat down on a bench under the apple and lemon trees.
"I am not going to deny that Troy was quite rude. He was hit with the news so suddenly that I am not surprised his stubbornness and reluctance toward his ability kicked in with such force. Still, that is no excuse for what he said about Vissarion."
"I highly doubt he meant what he said, about seers being lunatics. If it was just us, I wouldn't be so upset, but we just met these people." Moffitt glanced over at where Vasilakis, Andridis, and Kappoulis were talking by the fence nearest the gate. "I know this isn't what Troy came here for, but… you don't think he'll ignore this, will he?"
"Absolutely not, and you know that, too, dear."
"You're right." Moffitt let out another sigh. "Quite a silly thing for me to think. Troy runs headfirst into danger all the time—well, most of the time. He's slowed down in his… uh, age."
Anah giggled. "You were going to say 'old age.'"
"Possibly."
"I think Troy will come around to this in time."
"We don't have a lot of time. The full moon is next week."
"Indeed." Anah's tone became serious. "Strix are horrible things. Unless there is some trick or power Troy must learn to stop them quickly, he will need help."
"We'll figure out a battle plan," Moffitt said. "Or, we'll leave it to Troy. Although, his battle plans weren't always the most detailed."
"By now, he knows that fighting the supernatural requires a much different mindset to fighting human opponents."
Moffitt snorted. "Anah, have you just met Troy?"
Anah sighed. "No, dear, you have a point. He will charge into this like he always does. To be honest, though, if he charges into this, at least we know he is back to his old self."
"I hate to say it, but you're right." Moffitt stood to continue exploring the garden. "I also hate seeing Troy get upset about things like this. He has a tendency to just stew about it until someone snaps him out of it. Usually, that someone is Dietrich, and we don't have Dietrich right now."
"Perhaps we should give him a phone call later tonight," Anah said.
"I agree. No one knows how to sort out Troy's brain better than Dietrich." Moffitt smirked. "And Dietrich just loves being reminded of that."
"He can never say he does not care about Troy. After all, he let Mahlah bite him to send him to the river in order to help Troy."
"That's very true. Poor Dietrich." Moffitt's smirk faded. "I think he'd be a better choice for this."
"Possibly, but Troy did ask us to come along."
"Yes, and we will do the best we can to help him." Moffitt paused and looked toward the gate when Vissarion approached. He immediately left to talk with Troy, who looked more confused and frustrated than before. After a very brief discussion in which Troy said that he wanted to be alone, Moffitt decided it was best to leave him be for now. Nothing good would come with continuing to argue with him.
The ride back to Andridis's farm was uncomfortably quiet. Moffitt wasn't sure what could be said or done to relieve the tension. He switched to speaking with Anah telepathically. "I don't want this whole thing to damage Troy's relationship with his cousins."
"I do not want to see that happen, either," Anah replied. "They seem like good people, and the boy seems very curious about you. I would hate to see things become awkward because of this."
"Definitely not. Troy's dealt with enough problems with his blood family. The problem is, this time… he would be bringing it on himself."
"I will not argue with that."
Moffitt bit his lip. "I'm usually not the one playing referee. That job goes to Tully or Dietrich."
"I think you will make a better referee than you think, dear, and if you cannot handle it, then leave it to me." Anah smiled at him.
"Thanks."
When they returned to the farm, Troy didn't bother joining them for lunch, and instead left the property, promising that he would be back in a few hours. Moffitt believed him, but couldn't helping feeling a bit worried. He felt everyone looking at him when he sat down in the kitchen when lunch was served. His typical fascination and curiosity about local dishes and flavors went out the window, as did his appetite.
"Consider me greatly surprised that Samuel is supposed to be the one to stop the strix," Kappoulis said. "Is he… always like that?"
"No, not really," Moffitt replied. He found himself torn between trying to defend Troy, and telling the truth that Troy could be extremely difficult at times. Ultimately, he decided that he would tell the truth. It would help Troy in the long run. Then again, Moffitt wasn't at all comfortable being in such a position, and it made him feel like a bad friend. He felt Anah attempt to reassure him by stroking the back of his neck with her tail. Fortunately for Moffitt, he had some time to think, as Vasilakis spoke up.
"Samuel does close himself off when it comes to more personal things," the former lieutenant said. "It took a bit of time for me to gain his trust. Although, there are some things that I only found out very recently about him. The jackal part, for instance. I know nothing about it. It would not surprise me if that is why he shut down so quickly."
Moffitt nodded in agreement. "This is also a situation that he can't control easily, nor can he wrangle it into something he can. Dealing with the supernatural is something he absolutely despises, even though he's known about what he has for years."
"He is incredibly stubborn," Vasilakis added. "Being stubborn can have its strengths and weaknesses."
"I would say that here, it is a weakness," Kappoulis said. "A mark of stupidity."
"Say what you like about Troy, but one thing he isn't is stupid." Moffitt glared at Kappoulis. "I've known him for twenty-five years. He kept me alive from North Africa to Germany in World War II. Yes, he can be a pain, and sometimes he makes decisions that don't seem particularly smart, but he's a quick thinker and I would want him at my side in any conflict."
"I second Jack's opinion," Vasilakis said. "It is tough to help Samuel with personal issues, but once you get past that, you will have a friend for life, someone willing to lay down everything to help you. Don't cast him aside because of this."
"The timing of this is unfortunate," Moffitt added. "It is safe to say that Troy is not going to leave you to the strix. That's not in his nature. He just needs some time to accept this."
"We do not have a lot of time for him to do so," Kappoulis said. "A week is all we have until the full moon."
"How do we even know this coming full moon will contain a witching hour?"
"We don't, but it is logical to assume that with the arrival of the jackal warrior, the battle with the strix is around the corner."
"That makes sense," Anah said. "A week is still enough time for you to start getting along. Earning Troy's trust is a challenge, but well worth it."
"You would know, given how long it took you and him to stop fighting," Moffitt said.
"I was excited to meet him," Andridis said. "I would rather not destroy a chance at getting to know him."
"Me, neither." Lavrentis had been quiet up until that point. For a moment, he didn't look too sure about whether he should have spoken or not, but eventually went back to his meal. He glanced over at Moffitt. "Are you still interested in meeting the horses?"
Perhaps a distraction would be a good idea for now. "As a matter of fact, yes. I would love to meet the horses," Moffitt said.
Anah slithered down to the table from Moffitt's shoulders. "Do eat something first, dear. I can help Troy's cousins attempt to understand him."
"I would appreciate that, Anah, thank you." Moffitt didn't want to be rude to his hosts, but he also didn't want to eat too much with no appetite. His first bite of bread covered in a soft cheese returned his appetite, as well as his curiosity. It was late in the day, and he heard Andridis's wife, Chrysa mention that she was planning a large dinner for all the guests, so Moffitt didn't stuff himself on lunch. When he finished, he followed Lavrentis out to the stable, and looked around to see if Troy had remained nearby. Upon seeing nothing, he returned his focus to Lavrentis, who was unlocking a stall door with a large key.
The boy put the key ring on his belt before opening the stall door. "Can I assume you're familiar with different horse breeds?"
"While I'm not a horse encyclopedia, I can usually hazard a guess at horse breeds," Moffitt replied. "I'm most familiar with the Arabian and other breeds that have their origin in the desert. The English riding breeds are a close second. With draft horses—" Moffitt let out his breath. "I'm hopeless. I can tell you that Shire horses are big. Very big."
Lavrentis grinned. "Can you tell what this is, then?" He stepped aside to allow a tall, gray horse step out of the stable. The horse immediately greeted Moffitt, greatly curious about the newcomer.
"Well, I can tell he's very friendly," Moffitt said. He looked the horse up and down, noticing a blend of characteristics that likely came from a pedigree consisting of hot-blooded and draft breeds. "I'm going to guess this is a Percheron. One with a great deal of Arabian in him, due to his more slender features."
"And you would be correct." Lavrentis patted the horse's neck. "This is Sendoa. Papa bought him as a foal from a man in Itea, a little ways northeast of here. He is our best workhorse. Very good at keeping the sheep in line." The boy's smile faded. "We treat him like one of the family, and… I'm worried it is only a matter of time before the strix try to go after the horses."
Moffitt's heart sank. "Like I was saying in the house, Troy won't leave you all to the strix."
"He seemed really angry about the whole thing."
"I wouldn't say he was angry. He's very lost when it comes to the supernatural. He will figure out how to handle all this in time, but he won't just leave you."
Lavrentis nodded, looking at Sendoa for a second before glancing back at Moffitt. "What is it like in England? I have heard it's quite dreary there, that it always rains."
Moffitt smirked. "Well, that notion is not entirely unfounded. It does rain a lot, but not all the time. You should see the English countryside on a sunny day. It's a lovely sight, especially on horseback. Oh, and our autumn days, even the rainy ones, are a sight to behold. Such a lovely array of colors. My home city of Cambridge has something quite romantic about it on a rainy autumn day."
"There's a big university there, right?"
"Yes. One of the most prestigious in the world. I have a doctorate in anthropology, North African specialty, and I work in the archives of the anthropology department. However, I also assist the head researcher in ophiology from time to time, because I can talk to snakes."
"I know I said this earlier, but I still think that's amazing. I have never met someone who can talk to animals before."
"It…" Moffitt hesitated, "It wasn't amazing, in the beginning. In fact, it was quite scary, not because it dealt with snakes, but because of how it affected me. See, abilities like that often have to be trained. Some people take to it quickly, and others need practice. I needed practice. A lot of it." He drew in a breath. "I used to be completely unable to look a snake in the eye. They would try to talk to me, and because I had no training, I couldn't process that information. It would sort of overload my brain and I had seizures as a result. Sometimes, I would have nosebleeds as well. Now that I have my abilities under control, those aren't a problem. They can still happen in certain circumstances, though."
"It sounds like having magic is not nearly as fun as some stories make it out to be."
"No, for many people it's not."
"Is that a problem that cousin Samuel has?"
"No, thank goodness. The problems he has with his ability are different to mine, and it's not something I'm comfortable discussing without his permission."
Lavrentis nodded. "I understand."
"How old are you, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Fourteen."
"Ah, so a year younger than my son. You do remind me a bit of him."
"Is he a bit shy and happier to do work around home?"
"Actually, yes." Moffitt raised an eyebrow. "Are you in school?"
"I will be able to leave after this year, which is what I'm planning on doing. Mama thinks it would be better if I continue, and try to get into a field that pays well. Papa wants me to decide for myself."
Moffitt sighed. "I know that feeling. Well, I was forced into Cambridge. I could do whatever field I wanted, but I had to go to the university. That… contributed to some issues that I'm still managing to this day, but I'm getting better."
"That does not sound right."
"No, and I hope you are allowed to choose for yourself. However, if you are interested in furthering your education, especially with animals, I would look into transferring to Cambridge. I would be happy to host you."
"You will have to tell me more at some point." Lavrentis entered the stable, and came back out with horse tack in his arms. "Would you like to ride Sendoa?"
"I would love to."