pay him any money.”
As I spoke, I found myself suddenly uncertain of my ‘good deal.’ One of my earliest lessons about dealing with Deveels was ‘If you think you’ve made a good deal with a Deveel, first count your fingers, then your limbs, then your relatives ...
“Permission to use your name?” Tananda echoed. “For two lousy rings? No percentage or anything? Didn’t Aahz ever teach you about endorsements?”
There was a soft BAMPH in the air.
“Is someone taking my name in vain?”
And Aahz was there, every green scaly inch of him, making his entrance as casually as if he had just stepped out.
Of the three of us, I was the first to recover from my surprise. Well, at least I found my voice.
“Aahz!”
“Hi, kid. Miss me?”
“But Aahz!”
I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry. What I really wanted to do was embrace him and never let go. Of course, now that he was back, I would do no such thing. I mean, our relationship had never been big in the emotional displays department.
“What’s the matter with everybody?” my mentor demanded. “You all act like you never expected to see me again.”
“We ... Aahz! I ...”
“We didn’t,” Tananda said flatly, saving me from making an even bigger fool of myself.
“What little sister means,” Chumly put in, “is that it was our belief that your nephew, Rupert, had no intention of letting you return from Perv.”
Aahz gave a derisive snort.
“Rupert? That upstart? Don’t tell me anybody takes him seriously.”
“Well, maybe not if your powers were in full force,” Tananda said, “but as things are ...”
“Rupert?” Aahz repeated. “You two have known me a long time, right? Then you should get it through your heads that nobody holds me against my will.”
Somehow that quote sounded familiar. Still, I was so glad to have Aahz back, I would have agreed to anything just then.
“Yeah!” I chimed eagerly. “This is Aahz! Nobody pushes him around.”
“There!” my mentor grinned. “As much as I hate to agree with a mere apprentice, the kid knows what he’s talking about ... this time.”
Chumly and Tananda looked at each other with that special gaze that brother and sister use to communicate non-verbally.
“You know, big brother,” Tananda said, “this mutual admiration society is getting a bit much for my stomach. How about you?”
“Actually,” the troll responded. “I wasn’t hearing all that much mutual admiration. Somehow the phrase ‘mere apprentice’ sticks in my mind.”
“Oh come on, you two,” Aahz waved. “Get real, huh? I mean, we all like the kid, but we also know he’s a trouble magnet. I’ve never met anyone who needs looking after as badly as he does. Speaking of which ...”
He turned his yellow eyes on me with that speculative look of his.
“I notice you’re both here ... and I definitely heard my name as I phased in. What I need more than fond ‘hellos’ is a quick update as to exactly what kind of a mess we have to bail the Great Skeeve out of this time.”
I braced myself for a quick but loud lesson about ‘endorsements,’ whatever that was, but the troll surprised me.
“No mess,” he said, leaning back casually. “Little sister and I just dropped by for a visit. In fact, we were just getting ready to leave.”
“Really?” my mentor sounded both surprised and suspicious. “Just a visit? No trouble?”
“Well, there was a little trouble,” Tananda admitted. “Something to do with the King ...”
“I knew it!” Aahz chortled, rubbing his hands together.
“... But Skeeve here handled it himself,” she finished pointedly. “Currently, there are no problems at all.”
“Oh.”
Strangely, Aahz seemed a bit disappointed.
“Well, I guess I owe you two some thanks, then. I really appreciate your watching over Skeeve here while I was gone. He can ...”
“I don’t think you’re listening, Aahz,” Chumly said, looking at the ceiling. “Skeeve handled the trouble.
As I spoke, I found myself suddenly uncertain of my ‘good deal.’ One of my earliest lessons about dealing with Deveels was ‘If you think you’ve made a good deal with a Deveel, first count your fingers, then your limbs, then your relatives ...
“Permission to use your name?” Tananda echoed. “For two lousy rings? No percentage or anything? Didn’t Aahz ever teach you about endorsements?”
There was a soft BAMPH in the air.
“Is someone taking my name in vain?”
And Aahz was there, every green scaly inch of him, making his entrance as casually as if he had just stepped out.
Of the three of us, I was the first to recover from my surprise. Well, at least I found my voice.
“Aahz!”
“Hi, kid. Miss me?”
“But Aahz!”
I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry. What I really wanted to do was embrace him and never let go. Of course, now that he was back, I would do no such thing. I mean, our relationship had never been big in the emotional displays department.
“What’s the matter with everybody?” my mentor demanded. “You all act like you never expected to see me again.”
“We ... Aahz! I ...”
“We didn’t,” Tananda said flatly, saving me from making an even bigger fool of myself.
“What little sister means,” Chumly put in, “is that it was our belief that your nephew, Rupert, had no intention of letting you return from Perv.”
Aahz gave a derisive snort.
“Rupert? That upstart? Don’t tell me anybody takes him seriously.”
“Well, maybe not if your powers were in full force,” Tananda said, “but as things are ...”
“Rupert?” Aahz repeated. “You two have known me a long time, right? Then you should get it through your heads that nobody holds me against my will.”
Somehow that quote sounded familiar. Still, I was so glad to have Aahz back, I would have agreed to anything just then.
“Yeah!” I chimed eagerly. “This is Aahz! Nobody pushes him around.”
“There!” my mentor grinned. “As much as I hate to agree with a mere apprentice, the kid knows what he’s talking about ... this time.”
Chumly and Tananda looked at each other with that special gaze that brother and sister use to communicate non-verbally.
“You know, big brother,” Tananda said, “this mutual admiration society is getting a bit much for my stomach. How about you?”
“Actually,” the troll responded. “I wasn’t hearing all that much mutual admiration. Somehow the phrase ‘mere apprentice’ sticks in my mind.”
“Oh come on, you two,” Aahz waved. “Get real, huh? I mean, we all like the kid, but we also know he’s a trouble magnet. I’ve never met anyone who needs looking after as badly as he does. Speaking of which ...”
He turned his yellow eyes on me with that speculative look of his.
“I notice you’re both here ... and I definitely heard my name as I phased in. What I need more than fond ‘hellos’ is a quick update as to exactly what kind of a mess we have to bail the Great Skeeve out of this time.”
I braced myself for a quick but loud lesson about ‘endorsements,’ whatever that was, but the troll surprised me.
“No mess,” he said, leaning back casually. “Little sister and I just dropped by for a visit. In fact, we were just getting ready to leave.”
“Really?” my mentor sounded both surprised and suspicious. “Just a visit? No trouble?”
“Well, there was a little trouble,” Tananda admitted. “Something to do with the King ...”
“I knew it!” Aahz chortled, rubbing his hands together.
“... But Skeeve here handled it himself,” she finished pointedly. “Currently, there are no problems at all.”
“Oh.”
Strangely, Aahz seemed a bit disappointed.
“Well, I guess I owe you two some thanks, then. I really appreciate your watching over Skeeve here while I was gone. He can ...”
“I don’t think you’re listening, Aahz,” Chumly said, looking at the ceiling. “Skeeve handled the trouble.
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