Chapter 38: A Strange Appearance

Lancos ran. He didn't sprint, as it would tire him too quickly, but he did run faster than he normally would have. He was determined to get to the tavern, and get help back to Cinnamon as quickly as possible. She needed him, and he would answer her call. He was a champion after all, rescuing those in need was what he was meant to do. She was also the chosen one. Like the others, he had no doubt, and he would do whatever it took to save her. However, he had an even greater reason; she was his friend. He would willingly risk his life for a friend. So he ran through the darkness and falling snow, braving the elements, all the while praying to the Goddess for Her direction, that he would be in time and Cinnamon would be safe.

Finally he approached where he thought the tavern should be, hoping he had not let the storm lead him astray. He stopped and sniffed the air and the ground, praying for some sign that the tavern was near. He sniffed for several long moments until, at long last, he caught a hint of smoke. He marked his spot, as he had done several times before, and cautiously traveled in the direction of the smell. When it faded, he thought to go back and try another direction when a gust of wind came past him heavy with the scent of smoke. Lancos howled and followed the smoke.

"Bert Munsion, what in the Goddess' good name do you think you're doing?" Rose yelled. Bert, who'd opened the tavern door, jumped and whirled around as the other patrons either laughed or yelled at him to close the door.

"I heard a wolf; I was going to go get him."

"In this weather? Didn't the Goddess put any sense in that thick skull of yours?"

"Aw, come on, Rose, you know how much wolves are worth," The young trapper complained.

"Aye, that I do. Their hides are worth a good bit more than your sorry behind." The other patrons laughed as Bert blushed. "That don't explain why you're using the front door in this weather. Use the side door you nit, you're letting in the cold!" The other patrons also loudly complained, although most of it was good-natured.

Bert closed the door and headed for the side door under the stairs. This door was mostly used by the gentry, as it opened from the carriage port. Here the gentry could leave their carriages and enter the tavern without getting wet. They would be met by a servant, or Rose herself, and led to a small but nicely furnished dining room where they could eat without mixing too much with the common folk. Most, however, usually used the main doors at the corner of the building. This night, as usual, the tavern was only partially filled, mostly with regulars who lived nearby, and hadn't wanted to eat or drink alone.

When Bert was nearly to the stair passageway, Rose called out, "Make sure it's a wolf before ye shoot. I don't want ye racin' back in sayin' ye kilt a were!"

"There aren't any werewolves around here, Rose," Bert complained, although he understood her concern. Killing a were was a bad thing, same as killing anyone else. Unless, of course, the were in question was a wanted criminal, or it was self-defense. Then it was ok.

"Lancos was here a couple weeks ago," One of the waitresses said.

"Aye, that he was," One of the regulars agreed.

"Even he wouldn't be fool enough to be out in weather like this," Another said.

"Not when he's got that pretty priestess to keep his bed warm at night!" a third quipped, sending the room into laughter.

Suddenly the door crashed open and a gigantic wolf burst in. Some stared at it in open-mouthed surprise. Others leaped back, reaching for weapons. Then the wolf began changing. When it had stopped, Lancos stood in front of them naked, panting from his run, and shivering from the cold. As Bert finished retching out his meal, one of the older men said, "Lad, I don't know what's worse, seeing you change, or seeing that shriveled pecker of yours. The room burst out laughing, even Bert and the maid who was helping to clean up his mess, as Lancos looked down at his cold-shrunken penis.