“Hello,” Conor said gently. “I’m Conor, and this is Briggan, one of the Great Beasts. We’re, uh, hoping to convince you to return to Lord MacDonnell.”
The hare blinked. He did not look convinced. His ears sagged — not so much sleepy as hopeless.
Conor wished he’d worked out more to say. He had really just thought the invitation, combined with the image of Briggan and him together, would be enough.
Behind him, however, Finn exhaled before speaking. “I know what it is to lose your spirit animal. The pain I feel, I see in Lord MacDonnell’s eyes. I see in your eyes.”
The hare blinked again, his ears sagging further.
“Please,” Conor said. “Come with us. Come back to Glengavin. Give MacDonnell another chance. I know you miss him. You sleep beneath his bedroom window.”
“He wants you back,” Finn added. “He’s changed.”
This time, the hare did not blink. He sat still, his giant front legs locked in place. Only his nose moved, twitching with each breath. They were so close. Once they had convinced the hare to go back to MacDonnell, they could concentrate on Rumfuss. Time was running out. Conor finally reached toward the hare, palm open and promising, growing closer, closer to the animal —
The hare bolted, gone so fast into the underbrush that even Briggan couldn’t have outrun him. It would be impossible to find him in this huge, dark garden.
“Well,” Finn said, sounding defeated. “There goes that.”
Conor gritted his teeth. Why had he reached out? He should have been more patient, given the animal more time. He was a shepherd — he knew better than to rush an animal slow to trust.
Well, he reminded himself glumly. You were a shepherd.
Finn lifted a hand to touch a spot on his bicep — where his spirit animal, whatever it was, stayed dormant. “Perhaps sometimes a relationship is just too broken to fix.”
Briggan walked to Conor’s side and sat down, letting Conor run a hand over his fur for comfort. As soon as his hand came down on Briggan’s ruff, he felt something shift in his head. His mind cleared, and the feeling of hopelessness that was threatening to overpower him was washed away. He had to lead. He had to make a decision.
“We can at least stop Devin from getting the talisman, even if MacDonnell won’t let us take it for the Greencloaks,” he told Finn. “Let’s go find Rumfuss.”
16: Rumfuss
AFTER A FLYOVER OF THE GARDEN, ESSIX WAS ABLE TO GUIDE Rollan and the others toward the fruit orchards. The journey had taken the remainder of the day, but finally Essix had landed in the branches of a thick apple tree, and seemed to announce with a churr that they were close. Now, Meilin, Abeke, and Rollan hid in the shadow beside the apple tree, while Uraza peered across the orchard from the tree’s branches itself. Abeke was impressed — perhaps Rollan and Essix really were working on their bond.
“My legs are cramping,” Rollan complained. “Let’s keep looking somewhere else.”
Abeke looked up at Uraza, whose lavender eyes met hers with disappointment. Leaving Kunaya sitting in the tree, Uraza slunk down to join the rest of them. Her movement caused a few apples to shake loose, one of which knocked Meilin on the head. She caught it on the bounce and held it up to the leopard accusingly.
“Sorry,” Abeke said for Uraza.
Meilin looked irritated for a moment, then tossed the apple into the darkness. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go —”
Meilin didn’t finish her sentence, because Rollan had grabbed her arm in an uncharacteristically serious way. Essix, who was perched on his shoulder, stared in the same direction — the area where Meilin had thrown the apple. It was through grapevines and fruit trees, a part of the orchards that seemed more wild than the rest of the garden.
Under his breath, Rollan said, “It’s too dark and there’s all that stuff in the way. But I think it’s Rumfuss.”
Meilin started in that direction. “Well, let’s go.”
“Wait,” Rollan said, snagging her cloak. “Do you really think we should just go blowing over there like a hurricane? He might run, or worse. Remember Arax?”
Abeke shuddered. The image of the gigantic ram bearing down on her would be with her for the rest of her life.
“If you were Rumfuss and crazy MacDonnell had locked you up in his garden, would you be excited about talking to humans?” Rollan continued.
“Well . . .” Abeke said as her gaze landed on Uraza. “Who better to approach one of the Great Beasts than fellow Great Beasts? Uraza, could you go see Rumfuss?”
Uraza’s ears tilted forward and she sat down, tail twitching behind her. Rollan gave Essix a nervous look, but the falcon made a soft clicking sound and jumped to the nearest branch. Meilin held out her arm and Jhi tumbled out, crunching loudly onto the ground. Everyone cringed as Rollan peered back through the trees to make certain the noise hadn’t sent Rumfuss running.
“All right,” Rollan said. “Good luck, guys.”
Uraza was the first to go, letting her tail swing playfully in Abeke’s face as she walked off. She was every bit as silent on the ground as Essix was in the air. Jhi took a step forward —
“Maybe wait a moment?” Meilin said, putting an arm in front of the panda. The panda obliged, giving Uraza and Essix time to reach Rumfuss before she started off. Jhi rumbled off into the trees, crushing leaves and sticks under her heavy paws. When Abeke could no longer see the bright white bits of Jhi’s fur, she worriedly rubbed the spot on her arm where Uraza usually waited in her dormant state.
A growl came from the trees, then a falcon’s cry. There was then a huge, roaring sort of noise, almost human in its expressiveness — the boar. None of the noises were sounds of alarm, but it still made Abeke’s eyes widen.
Funny, she thought. A few months ago I’d never even met Uraza. Now I’m nervous when I lose sight of her.
“Oh!” Meilin said, reaching forward and touching her temple. “We . . . we can go speak to Rumfuss now.”
“Jhi told you that?” Rollan asked, sounding impressed.
Meilin shrugged. “Not told, exactly. But I felt calmness. Safety.”
They crept through the trees — despite Meilin’s spirit animal, she was able to go rather quietly, though it was Abeke who truly moved like the leopard without even trying. Suddenly they broke through the darkened area into a copse of peach trees. Light now poured down from the heavy moon, so Abeke could see Rumfuss clearly. Perhaps too clearly.