“I have to look out for them,” Hawk replied firmly.
Panther rolled his eyes and wheeled away. “Group hug,” he muttered blackly.
Logan ignored him. Panther was just being Panther. “Just remember what I said. Stay together.”
“So you gonna go out and hunt this thing been taking all the children, Mister Knight of the Word?” Panther demanded, wheeling back. “Want me to go with you? Look out for you?”
“What’s your problem, Panther?” Sparrow snapped at him, blue eyes bright with anger. “Didn’t you hear what he just said? We’re supposed to stay out of this.”
Panther glanced over. “I heard him. I just don’t think he meant it. He needs someone he can depend on to back him up out there. Who’s he got besides me?”
“Stop trying to get your way, Panther,” Owl said quietly. “We need to stay out of this business. It will be enough if we can be of help to Hawk tomorrow. He’s going to need all of us.”
Bear muttered his agreement, and River added hers. Panther looked at them in turn and then shrugged. “Ain’t no skin off my baby-smooth butt. Do what you want.” He knelt next to Owl, feigning disinterest. “Let me see that map again.”
Logan waited a moment, then said, “One more thing. I want you to keep Kirisin with you, as well. I want you to look after him the same way you look after each other.”
The Ghosts waited, questioning looks on their faces. Kirisin had gone unnoticed up to this point, standing in the background while the others talked. Now Logan reached back and dragged him forward. “This is Kirisin. He’s an Elf.”
“Yeah, right,” Panther sneered, turning his attention back to the map. “And I’m a dragon.”
“No, look,” said Sparrow quietly, eyes fixed on Kirisin. “Look at his ears. They’re pointed.”
“Like in Owl’s stories,” echoed Bear. “Pointed.”
“Maybe he is an Elf,” River said doubtfully.
Panther looked up again, took in Kirisin’s face, and shook his head. “What’s wrong with you, River? Ain’t no such things as Elves. He’s what he is—a kid with pointy ears. Ain’t his fault. But he ain’t no Elf, so let that one go. Frickin’ hell.”
“Can’t do that,” Logan replied. “Kirisin really is an Elf, one of an entire nation that’s meant to join up with us. You need to know some things about him, so listen up.”
Patiently, Logan explained Kirisin’s background, including in his explanation a brief history of the Elves. Which, in fact, was all he could give, since he didn’t know much anyway. Angel joined in, adding what she knew from her time spent within the Cintra and Arborlon. She insisted that everything Logan was telling them was true, that she had seen it, that she hadn’t believed it, either, at first. The Ghosts listened attentively, all but Panther who kept poking at the map as if he had better things to do. But Logan could tell he was paying attention.
When the explanation was finished, the Ghosts looked at one another wordlessly. “Elves don’t look like I thought they would,” Bear said.
“Yeah, they don’t look that much different from us,” Sparrow added. She stepped forward and stuck out her hand. “I’m Sparrow,” she said to Kirisin.
The others followed, one by one, until only Panther was left. The boy looked at Kirisin darkly, then at Logan. “Bad enough we got to watch out for Bird-Man. Now we got Pointy-Ears to look after, too. I don’t know about this.”
“I haven’t got time to persuade you, Panther. You have to make up your own mind. But Kirisin is every bit as important to what’s going to happen to us as Hawk. That thing out there that’s hunting Hawk might be hunting Kirisin, as well. So I’m asking you to take care of him. Can you do that?”
Panther shrugged. “Might be.” Then he caught the look on Owl’s face. “Hey, sure. We know how to take care of each other. Took care of Cat when you asked, didn’t we?”
“Just do the same here.” Logan glanced at Kirisin. “I’m going out to look for Praxia. You stay here. Get to know these kids. They’re a good bunch.”
“He’ll be fine with us,” Owl said at once, wheeling over to Kirisin.
They were already deep in conversation, surrounded by the other Ghosts, when Logan beckoned Angel and Helen Rice away.