The Unwilling Apprentice (Book 2)

by Heidi Willard

  Fred scowed at her. "Hey, it's not my fault these guys are terrible guards. They're part of your unstoppable army, remember?" he quipped.

  "I never said anything about them being unstoppable, now stop jabbering and save them from your beast!" Pat shot back.

  Fred wanted to argue more, but Fluffy was causing havoc at the door. The beast tried to claw and gnash it's way into the entrance hall and more guards were coming. He popped out of the window sill, and dashed out of the room to the hall. After a few wrong turns he found himself on one of the long balconies that looked over the hall and wound its way down the imperious stairs. Captain Hawkins stood near the entrance while his men pushed up against the log that held the doors shut. "Hold the line! Don't let that thing in!" he ordered the guards.

  The wood above the mens' heads splintered, and a tongue lapped through the small crack. It swiped off many of their helmets, and Hawkins pulled his sword from its sheath. He stalked toward the tongue, and Fred realized he meant to cleave the tongue from its owner.

  "Stop! Wait!" he cried out. Hawkins paused and watched the boy sprint down the stairs. Fred ran up to him and blocked the captain's path with his arms held out on either side of him. "Fluffy won't hurt anyone, I promise!"

  "Then keep your promise and have your beast stand down," Hawkins demanded; he didn't sheath his sword.

  Fred glanced over his shoulder at the entrance. The gate was barred and he didn't see much chance of convincing them to open it, but still he had to try. "You need to open the door so I can get to him," he told the captain.

  "Open the gate and let that cantankus inside? The king would have my head for allowing such a beast in the hall of his ancestors," Captain Hawkins replied.

  "But he's not here right now," a voice spoke up. The pair turned to see Mariana Martley walk down the grand staircase with a smile on her face. Martley's voice was a mix of seduction and cool confidence. The effect was to throw men off their guard and women on theirs; for Fred he was mesmerized by her beauty. "And I believe this boy has the ability to sooth the beast at the gate."

  Captain Hawkins scowled as she came to stand before the men. "Then do I have your permission to open it, Lady Martley?"

  "Yes, and be quick about it before this boy's fine steed is killed by your men outside," she commanded him.

  "Men, pull the barrier aside," he ordered them. They obeyed him and removed the plank that held the door closed.

  Fred rushed forward at the same time Fluffy barged into the hall. His happy bark rattled the windows and echoed off every old stone in the castle. Fred pressed his hands against Fluffy's chest and glared at the beast. "That's enough!" he scolded the cantankus. Fluffy immediately drooped and whimpered; he was subdued.

  "A happy ending. My favorite," Martley cooed. She came up behind Fred and scratched Fluffy behind the ears. The cantankus leaned into her touch and his tongue lolled out in glee.

  Hawkins stepped up to the pair, and though his sword was sheathed his hand lay on the hilt. "That beast must be taken from the city before it does more damage," he ordered the boy.

  Martley wrapped her arm around Fred's shoulder and pulled him close to her side. Fred's face was squished up close to her cleavage; he thought he would die happy and suffocated. "Nonsense, my dear captain. Except for the humiliation of your men, the damage here isn't lasting," she pointed out.

  Hawkins's face lit up with red fury, but he bowed at the waist. "Very well, Lady Martley." His eyes glanced down at Fred. "But I expect your cantankus to remain outside the castle halls." Fred eagerly nodded, and the captain went off to repair the damage to the castle courtyard and his men's reputation.

  "It seems your cantankus is in need of a great deal of training. Let me give you a piece of advice," Martley playfully told the boy. She leaned down and Fred's eyes zoomed in on her ample cleavage. They knocked together like two swinging pendulums. "If you ever get the chance visit a craftsman in the city by the name of Canto. He resides in the blacksmith district, and will craft you a collar that will help with your friend here." Fred dumbly nodded, and the woman laughed. She straightened up and broke the spell. "Or you could perhaps get your friends to help you." Her eyes flickered above them and Fred followed her gaze to see Ned and Pat stood on the balcony. Martley curtsied to them. "Greetings again, honored guests." Ned bowed his head, but Pat stood stiff and her hands tightly grasped the railing.

  Fred's two companions moved down into the entrance hall. Pat looked at the damage to the door, and scowled at Fred and his pet. She angrily waved her hand at the destruction. "See what you did there? We've been here only an hour and already you've caused this much trouble."

  Fred wrapped his arms around Fluffy's neck and sullenly remained silent. Ned stepped between the two and smiled at them both. "Perhaps the atmosphere of this castle is less refreshing than we need. Would anyone care to join me in a brisk walk about the city?"

  "I'm afraid for Lady Elsa that's not possible," Martley spoke up. "King Stephen has a great deal planned for her birthday tomorrow and has assigned me to guide her through the particulars."

  "Particulars?" Pat repeated.

  Martley nodded. "You're to be fitted with a new dress, and even now the dressmakers wait in the tailoring room to measure you. Then there are the protocols you must memorize, the many names of the illustrious guests, and all of this must be done before tomorrow evening's dinner."

  Fred noticed Pat paled. He agreed with her visible reaction; it sounded like a great deal of work in such a short time. Still, she steadied herself and nodded. "Very well then, lead the way." Pat turned to the men and bowed her head. "If you will excuse me."

  Ned nodded back, but Fred felt a tearing inside of him. Pat looked so young and scared as she was led away by Martley to her duties. All the sullen anger he had for her vanished and was replaced with pity. He turned to Ned. "Is this what she has to do all the time now?" he asked the old man.

  Ned, too, watched them leave with heavy eyes. "I'm afraid so, my boy. She has prepared all her life for this servitude to duty, and tomorrow the chains will be strapped onto her for the rest of her life." Fluffy whimpered, and Ned sighed. "Indeed, Fluffy, I greatly concur, but you have your worries, too, my beastly-scented friend." Ned turned his attention on the cantankus and pulled at his beard. "What shall we do with you?"

  "Can't we train him? You said people used them as steeds," Fred pointed out.

  Ned shook his head. "Though Fluffy here is very bright, I fear we wouldn't work fast enough to placate our dear captain."

  Fred thought for a moment and his face lit up. "Martley told me about a craftsman in the city! She said he could help us with Fluffy."

  The old man's bushy eyebrows shot up. "Canto is still alive? That is very fortunate for us."

  "Then you know about him, too?" Fred asked him.

  Ned nodded. "He's an old acquaintance, the best cantankus craftsman in all the lands. If anyone was to make you a saddle, I would trust him to do it. Did the woman tell you where he might reside?"

  Fred scrunched up his face. "I think she said in the blacksmith district."

  Ned smiled, wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulders and turned them toward the door. "Then let us see what he can do for our wild friend."

  CHAPTER 3

  Ned led Fred and Fluffy out into the courtyard and past the ugly looks of all the guards. The old man smiled and nodded his head at each of them, and a few returned the compliment with rude gestures. Fred was glad to leave them and the castle behind, but the staring didn't stop at the castle gates. Citizens did double-takes and stuck their heads out windows to see the cantankus. They murmured to one another, and Fred eased closer to Ned. "Shouldn't we put a blanket or something over Fluffy?" he whispered to him.

  "They're only curious," Ned pointed out. "So long as we don't start a panic we'll be-"

  At that moment they happened to pass a side-street with a push-cart filled with roasted chickens that hung from the triangular canopy. The lower part was a hot bo
x filled with more of the delicious fowl. Fred leaned a hand on Fluffy's back, and the next moment he teetered over onto the ground. Fluffy barreled down the street toward the cart, dreams of dark meat in his eyes. The owner had his back to them until he heard the pounding feet. He turned with a smile that transformed into horror as he watched this large creature with its tongue out racing toward him. He screamed like a girl, grabbed the handles of his cart and raced down the street.

  Fluffy howled at the challenge of chasing his food and his lips curled back in a wide grin. The smile terrified the cart owner, who flew around the corner onto a busy street. People screamed and yelled, and dove out of the way of the cart as it went careening through the crowds. Fluffy bolted around the corner and crashed into several people who were picking up themselves from the streets. The cantankus ran over them and after the cart.

  Ned and Fred skidded out of the street and used the rising people to stop their slide. "Pardon us," Ned apologized. Fred nodded at the furious citizens, and the pair were off after their beast.

  Fluffy was fifty yards ahead of them and gaining on the cart. The poor owner's eyes were wide and his heaving, round stomach bounced slower with each failing step. He looked over his shoulder and the drool from Fluffy's open mouth flew into his face. The thick, oozing water blinded him and he didn't notice the wall until the front of his cart hit it.

  He flew over the handles and box of the cart, and was cushioned from the wall by the roast chickens. Fluffy yipped and put his claws ahead of him to slow his speed, but he tripped and tumbled forward. He collided with the cart and opened his mouth to grab as many of the chickens as he could gobble up.

  Ned and Fred came up to the scene of the crash and crime, and their faces fell. The cart owner lay dazed on the ground and Fluffy sat by the remains of the cart with the remains of chickens laid out around him in a circle of sacrifice. Ned glanced over to Fred, and Fred to the old man. Ned smirked and shrugged. "Perhaps Pat won't find out about this trouble," he hoped.

  All hopes were dashed when they heard the clanking of armor, and the sounds grew louder. A troupe of guards appeared out of the amused and stunned crowds, and the lead guard saw the companions against the wall. He pointed his spear at them, and his red face showed his anger. "You there!"

  Fred and Ned paled, and they both raced over to Fluffy. The beast heard the yelling and its ears perked up. The guards crashed through the crowds toward them, and all the noise and yelling startled the beast. He took another chomp of chickens and turned tail to run. Fred and Ned nimbly climbed aboard his back on the turn around and Fluffy dashed forward.

  The lead guard yelled a command and spears rained down on them. Fluffy ducked and dodged weapons and people, and skidded into a narrow alley. His shoulders scraped the sides, but he pressed forward. Fred in the rear seat looked over his shoulder and saw the guards try to take the alley entrance two at a time. Their metal shoulder pads caught on each other and the other sides dug into the stones of the buildings. They stuck fast and the rear guards couldn't get under or over their companions.

  The companions were safe, but Fluffy didn't know that. He sped through the alleys and his passengers clung precariously to his back. "Fluffy! Stop!" Fred yelled at him, but the beast wouldn't listen.

  Fluffy's speed meant he didn't take the corners very well, and one sharp turn was too sharp. His feet slipped and he yipped on the slide down. The beast rolled head-over-heels and his passengers were ejected, though not before Fluffy slammed his large body into a wooden wall. They all crashed through the broken boards and ended up in a bed of straw.

  There was silence in the building for a few moments until Fred and Ned popped their heads out of the hay. The boy spit out the filth in the pile and looked around. They were in a large, worn stable, and they had landed in one of the stalls. On the opposite wall over the stall door he could see large saddles and blankets. Fred didn't see one important person: Fluffy was missing. He whipped his head this way and that, but there was nothing of the beast. "Fluffy!" he called out. "Fluffy!"

  The cantankus stuck his head out of the straw nearby and gave Fred a big lick. The young man pushed the beast away, but there was a smile on his lips.

  "Well, well, look what the cantankus dragged in," a voice spoke up. All three of them shot their heads up and found themselves staring at a grizzled old man with worn hands and an eye patch. His few strands of hair were slicked back and he wore dirty clothes that reeked of cantankus. "Ah, that explains the screams. I thought they sounded like your work," the man spoke up with a grin. "But what brings you three in here? Come for some of my cantankus saddles?"

  Ned smiled, and hefted himself onto his feet. "It seems we have arrived."

  "We have?" Fred asked him.

  "Where else would a cantankus go for safety but to a cantankus workshop?" the stranger countered. Ned laughed and heartily shook hands with the stranger while Fluffy and Fred looked on with confused expressions on their faces. "What a surprise to see you, ya old coot!" the stranger greeted Ned.

  "The same to you, old friend," Ned returned. "I was very surprised to hear you still resided in the city."

  "Yes, but in semi-retirement. The demand for my trade has been slow of late," Canto replied, for he was the man they sought.

  Ned turned and gestured to Fluffy and Fred. "Then you are in luck. We have brought you a fine specimen of the breed, but a trifle on the disobedient side."

  "So I noticed," Canto mused with a smile. "Let me get you three out of there and have a look at the beast." Canto stooped out of sight and opened the door to the stall. Fred was surprised to find the man wasn't a man at all, but a dwarf. He'd stood on a box to see over the top of the stall door. Fred moved aside so Canto could kneel in front of the large beast. The cantankus trainer looked Fluffy over and gave a nod of approval. "Very nice one, though a little undernourished." He sniffed the beast's breath. "Though I don't know how with such a stench of chicken over him."

  "He is trying his best to make up for lost time," Ned replied. "But we wish to know what you can do about his temperament."

  Canto glanced over his shoulder at Ned. "You mean you want a saddle and collar." Ned grinned and bowed his head. Canto straightened up and rubbed his chin with his hand. "Well, it's a fine beast and I'll be glad to make a saddle with it, but there's a matter of pay." He cast a glance at Ned, and his eyes narrowed. "Do you have anything to exchange for my services?" Ned pulled out a small bag and shook it; the contents jingled like coins. Canto snatched it from Ned's hand and opened the drawstrings. A grin slid onto his lips and he glanced up at Ned. "You've pulled this trick on me before, Ned." He tossed the bag back to Ned. "Pay-dirt doesn't pay for the leather." Ned smiled and pocketed the bag. He pulled out another and gave that to Canto, who counted the coins.

  Ned frowned. "They're all good."

  "That's not what I'm worried about," Canto muttered. He glanced up and nodded behind them. The pair turned and noticed the sizable hole in the wall. "This had better cover that damage."

  Ned sighed and pulled out a smaller bag of coins. The extra pay satisfied the old trainer, and he slipped the bag into his clothes. Then he looked over the boy and the beast, and rubbed his hands together. Fluffy and Fred glanced nervously at each other. "Now when should we start?"

  "Immediately, if you're available," Ned requested.

  Canto held up his arms and gestured to the cobwebs and empty stalls. "At the present I have all the time in the world."

  Ned nodded. "Good, we'll need some careful attention to this job."

  Canto raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Something in the wind, or are you bringing it on your heels?"

  "Both, old friend. I'm sure you heard the girl of prophecy arrived today." Canto nodded. "We are her guardians, and the king has informed us he has a surprise at her birthday party tomorrow evening."

  Canto frowned. "That fools expects to put on a show, and you worry the price of admission will be high?" he guessed.

  "Precisely," Ned replied. />
  The trainer pulled up his pants and sighed. "Well, if the party is tomorrow then I had better get started. Who gets the collar?"

  Fred blinked. "Fluffy gets it." They only had one beast.

  Canto's face drooped, and his eyes shot over to Ned. "This is your doing, isn't it?"

  Ned held up a hand. "I blame the gods for my actions."

  "Yeah, when it suits your needs." Canto looked over the cantankus. "So its name is Fluffy, but that still doesn't answer my question about who gets the collar."

  "This boy will have the collar," Ned answered him.

  "Wait, what?" Fred yelped as he jumped up. He wasn't a beast.

  Canto held up his hands and fanned them toward the boy. "Calm down there, son, no one's going to hurt you. I just need to fit you for a collar."

  Fred backed up toward the damaged wall and Fluffy, sensing the boy's fear and confusion, jumped in front of Fred. He arched his back and growled at both men. Neither stepped back, but they didn't approach. Canto folded his arms across his chest and nodded. "I can see why you chose the boy. The beast has a great deal of affection for that one. I imagine he'd turn on you to save him."

  Ned gave a nod. "Yes, I would have to agree."

  Canto pulled up his pants and looked Fluffy square in the eyes. "All right, cantankus, let me through. You'll be fitted with yer own collar soon enough."

  "Why am I being fitted with a collar?" Fred asked the pair.

  The old trainer paused, and glanced over to Ned. "Did you tell the lad what he was getting into before you brought him here?"

  Ned smiled and shrugged. "He's a little green with the world, so I thought it best for you, as a superb trainer, to explain the relationship to him."

  Canto glared and grumbled, but turned back to the boy and his dog. "Listen here, my lad. You being fitted with a collar is part of training your cantankus. It lets you communicate with them." He walked over to the opposite wall and grabbed a large collar with a smaller one inside it. "Look here now. This is one of my own collars." He pointed at the big one. "This was for my old cantankus before age got him, and this one-" he nodded at the smaller one that wrapped around his hand, "-this one was mine. Won't fit me much with all these chins now, but what I'm trying to say is yer going to need to be fitted, and it won't hurt none to do it."