Frogkisser!

“Peace!” gasped the figure again. It wasn’t much taller than Anya, and though human shaped, was covered in slick brown fur that seemed to naturally shed the rain. Its face was quite long and pointed, but was not as pointy as a weasel’s. It had more rounded curves and attractive, dark brown eyes. Its hands, still held high, were webbed between the fingers and had only short claws.

“Who … what are you?” asked Anya cautiously. She still held her knife ready, and Ardent had prowled around behind the creature and was ready to lunge forward and bite a hamstring to bring it down. “Are you one of Duke Rikard’s creatures?”

“Not by choice,” gasped the transformed animal. “I was caught, transformed, and sent with the others. But I’m not like them. I’m an—”

“Otter!” barked Ardent suddenly. “I know that smell, I know!”

“You’re an otter?” asked Anya.

“Yes, yes, my name is … you would say … ah … Champion Smooth Stone Oysterbreaker, I think. Of the Yarrow River clan. A stupid trapper sent me with an order of weasels and stoats to Duke Rikard, and he transformed us all at the same time without checking. But as soon as I heard about you from Gerald the Herald, I knew I had to escape. Will you turn me back to myself, please, Frogkisser?”

“Don’t call me Frogkisser,” snapped Anya.

“Lady Frogkisser?”

“My name is Anya,” said Anya crossly. She was cold and very wet, and she really didn’t need yet another transformee begging to be helped. Particularly one who wanted to be turned back into an animal.

Ardent circled back to Anya. The fur on his back had gone down, and he was no longer barking. Even so, he kept one eye on Champion Smooth Stone Oysterbreaker.

“They’re special,” the dog whispered to Anya as he drew close. “Yarrow River otters. Got magic, like us royal dogs. Used to police the river, in the old times, and serve the Bill of Rights and Wrongs.”

“I don’t want to know anything more about that stupid Bill,” said Anya. “All I want is to get to the Good Wizard’s demesne and get dry and eat something!”

“But will you help me?” asked the otter. She held out her paws beseechingly. “Look at me, I’m all stretched and horrible, and I have to walk upright most of the time! It’s awful!”

“Oh yes, I suppose so,” said Anya grumpily. “What’s one more? I can’t guarantee the lip balm will work on you, though I suppose it will. Transmogrification is transmogrification, after all, whichever way it goes.”

“Oh, thank you!” cried the otter. She threw herself down at Anya’s feet. “When we find a river, I will catch you a fish. Several fish!”

“I’d eat them too,” said Anya. “Raw, if necessary. Oh, get up!”

The otter-maid stood up and bowed.

“Ardent the royal dog, Shrub the transformed newt, Prince Denholm the temporary frog,” said Anya, introducing everyone. She looked at the otter. “We’re going to need a shorter name for you, Champion Smooth Stone Oysterbreaker. How about … Champ?”

The otter wrinkled her nose. Her face was a disturbing mixture of human and otter, but her nose was still more like the animal’s, and she had fine whiskers that quivered with that wrinkle.

“That doesn’t sound right.”

“Um … what about Smooth or maybe—”

“Smoothie!” said the otter. She clapped her hand-paws together and beamed at Anya, showing lots of fine sharp teeth. “I like it!”

She did look very smooth and sleek, Anya thought. Otters were beautiful animals, and even stretched out and made somewhat human, Smoothie had a great deal of their natural allure.

But also their fish breath, noted the princess, wrinkling her nose slightly. She hoped Smoothie didn’t notice her reaction.

“Do you know if there are any weasels following us, Smoothie?” asked Anya. A nasty thought occurred to her as she said that, and she hastily added, “Or following you?”

“No, they’re too stupid for that,” said the transformed otter disdainfully. “I slipped away during the fighting with the robbers. They’ll never find us in this rain.”

Smoothie had barely finished speaking when Ardent stiffened again and whipped his head around, his ears up and nose sniffing. Even as he did that, there was a ferocious squeal and something erupted out of a sheet of rain and launched itself straight at Anya.

It flew through the air, a leap of a dozen feet or more over Ardent’s head as he leaped up too, his jaws snapping on empty air. Anya only had time to brace herself and get her arms up before it hit her. Bowled over backwards, she found herself on the ground, desperately trying to stop her throat from being ripped open by the long, many-toothed jaws of what could only be one of the Duke’s weasel soldiers.

Anya gasped and choked as the thing’s horribly yellowed teeth got closer and closer, despite everything she could do. Desperately, she tucked in her chin to protect her throat, her arms shaking with the effort of holding the thing off.

From the corner of her right eye she could see Ardent, his own jaws closed tight around one of the weasel creature’s taloned hands, trying to pull it back. On her left, Smoothie’s sharp mouth was clamped tight on the weasel’s other arm, and she was holding on with her paw-hands as well.

But even Ardent, otter, and princess together couldn’t get the weasel off Anya. Its thin, furry body, stretched into a vaguely human shape, was just too strong.

Anya knew she had to do something. Her arms would be unable to keep up the strain. In a few more seconds the thing’s jaws would snap shut on her throat and that would be it.

Summoning all her strength, she drew her knees up under the monster and kicked it as hard as she could with both feet, at the same time pushing back with every ounce of the remaining strength in her arms.

The weasel creature lurched back, screeching. Ardent and Smoothie let go. Anya kicked it in the stomach again, and the creature fell sideways off her. The princess scrabbled aside, and Ardent and the otter-maid landed several major bites. Screeching and hissing, bleeding from several wounds, it backed off, dog and otter circling for another opportunity to bite, wary of its slashing talons.

“We are many!” howled the creature. Its voice was very high and cruel and horrid. “We serve the Duke! We will find you!”

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