Nick Cleveland and the Coven of Lancre

Nick Cleveland and the Coven of Lancre

Chapter Six

Lancre, the Discworld

Nanny Ogg was seldom startled. She was very much a witch of the world, and between an active social life in her younger days, and a huge family, there was very little that was new to her. However, every so often something did come up. Like right then.

She could see pretty easily that the young girl who was confronting Esme Weatherwax was nobody to be trifled with. Her silvery eyes were hard and cold, and her body language radiated determination as she stood between Esme and the young man Esme had apparently downed. For a second, Nanny regretted that she hadn't been the one to find these two. She still appreciated a well-put-together young man, even if she didn't do anything active about it any more...much...and she'd have liked the chance to make his acquaintance.

She could also see that these people were not local at all. Their gear was primitive, most of it cobbled together out of whatever had been lying about. The shelter they had been using would have been rejected with scorn by the poorest Lancre peasant. And the vessel that the young man had apparently been working on was like nothing she had ever seen. She was extremely curious about these strange foreign sorcerers.

Unfortunately, Esme with her stubborn ways had apparently spilt the perfume into the soup with these strangers. Turning to her old friend, Nanny hissed: "Stand down, Esme. Let me handle this." She knew she was more reassuring than Esme was, and often used that to her advantage. Esme may have had more raw skill at "headology," but Nanny was no slouch at it. Granny scowled, but stepped back, giving Nanny the floor.

Smiling placatingly, Nanny stepped forward, keeping her hands empty. "Now, there, little miss, what's all this rumpus about?"

Ooo

Luna Lovegood was fairly sure she was going to die. She could sense how powerful the old witch who looked like Professor McGonagall was, and the new witch...who reminded Luna very much of Professor Sprout...wasn't far behind. Luna knew that she was well up on spells, but she was under no illusions whatsoever about what would have happened had she challenged either teacher, much less both of them, to a duel.

Nonetheless, she set her jaw and gripped her wand, and Nick's, which she'd picked up off the strand, tightly. Luna had no fear of death. After all, she'd see her Mummy again, and she was sure that her Mummy would be delighted to see her and want to know about everything she'd done. At the same time, leaving Daddy behind would break her heart as well as his.

When the Professor-Sprout-alike witch spoke to her, Luna felt obliged to answer. She was proud that her voice didn't shake as she spoke. "I am not your 'little miss,' whoever you are. My name is Luna Lovegood, and that old witch hurt my friend!"

Ooo

"Oh! Beg pardon, I'm sure! I'm Nanny Ogg, and this is Granny Weatherwax. What's all this about 'hurtin' your friend?'" Nanny was fairly sure she knew what had happened, from years and years of acquaintance with Esmeralda Weatherwax, but she wanted confirmation.

Little Miss Lovegood narrowed her eyes and gestured. Since she had a wand in that hand, Nanny took a step back. "I was gathering flowers, when I heard an almighty uproar here at our camp. I came running hot-foot back here, just in time to see her blast him back hard, and he's out cold. He'd never let his wand go otherwise."

Nanny Ogg gave Granny Weatherwax a look. "Well, Esme? What do you have to say? It ain't like you, pickin' on people just for nothin', now is it?"

Esme raised one eyebrow. "I was flyin' around, seein' that everythin's the way it ought to be after our little trip, when I came across this camp. It warn't there before, an' I could tell there was a girl there what had talent. I landed, an' asked for her. He wouldn't give her to me, and pulled a wand."

"You asked for her," Nanny said, shaking her head. "Why did you think that he'd just give her to you?"

"Everybody knows the rules," Granny snorted. "A young'un with witch potential needs trainin', an' that can only come from a witch. Havin' a man train a young witch...t'ain't natural. Goes agin the order of things." She scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. "An' I can't be havin' with someone tellin' me 'no!'"

Miss Lovegood narrowed her eyes dangerously. "Well, we didn't know of any such 'rules!' We don't even know where we are! We don't really even belong here!"

At this assertion, both witches' eyes went very wide. "You don't belong here? Then where do you belong? Ankh-Morpork? The Ramtops?"

Miss Lovegood shook her head. "I've never heard of those places. We're from Hogwarts. It's the greatest school of magic in the world. It's in Scotland...in the Highlands, right near the all-magical town of Hogsmeade."

Nanny Ogg exchanged a glance with Granny Weatherwax, who shook her head. "Well, neither of us ever heard of such places. Will you let me look at your friend?" Miss Lovegood's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I promise, I ain't plannin' to hurt him. One thing we witches do is nursin' sick folks."

"Very well...go ahead." Miss Lovegood stood away, watching like a hawk as Nanny bent over her friend. When she straightened, she caught Granny Weatherwax' eye and shook her head slightly.

"I don't know, Esme. I think we better get Magrat here." At Granny Weatherwax' scowl, she went on: "I know...but she's probably better at some kinds of doctorin' than we are."

A little while later, Magrat Garlick came in for a landing. Her eyes went wide at the scene that greeted her, and she leaped off her broom, running over to the prone form on the sand. "Did this fool challenge Granny Weatherwax?"

"Er...not exactly. I was flyin' by, when I noticed that there was a girl here, one with real talent, needin' trainin'. I landed, an' asked for her. This chap here," indicating Magrat's newest patient, "wouldn't give me her, an' things got a little out of control."

"A 'little out of control?' It looks to me like it escalated into a full-blown duel. I'm surprised...I wouldn't have thought that any wizard, particularly such a young one, would be able to give you any trouble, Granny." Magrat looked around, to find herself being examined with great interest by a wispy blonde with big silvery eyes. "Or was it you that did all the damage?"

"No, ma'am, I didn't. I just shielded myself. Nicholas, here, was the one doing the fighting." She gave Magrat a sunny smile. "He was protecting me."

"Protecting you?"

"Oh yes. Nicholas has been protecting me ever since we got to this place...where ever it might be. By the bye, do you know where we are?"

This startled all three witches. "You're in Lancre, dear. A few miles from the town of Bad Ass, where Granny Weatherwax, here, lives," said Nanny Ogg, indicating Granny, who nodded firmly.

"Oh. We didn't know where we are. Even the stars here are different. Nicholas had planned to go downstream if we were here for much longer; he didn't fancy trying to winter over here. He figured we'd sooner-or-later hit a town, and we could make a living there, one way or another."

"How long have you two been here?" This was Granny Weatherwax. Her affronted pride had given way to curiosity. "An' how'd you come to be here, anyway?"

"Nicholas was working with an experimental Portkey, and something went wrong. We found ourselves here. Good job he knows how to live in the wilderness. We've been here since late spring, local time."

Nanny Ogg was impressed. She knew that it took skill to live as comfortably as they had apparently been, when completely cut off from civilization. "He's been' takin' care of you?"

"Yes, ma'am," the blonde answered. "He took over teaching me...we were at school when the accident happened. I've learned ever so much!" Nanny started to giggle, only to stifle it quickly when the blonde girl raised one of her wands. She knew wands were dangerous.

Magrat looked up. "He ain't in good shape. I'm surprised he's still breathin'. I guess it must not be his time yet."

IT ISN'T.

The witches turned to greet the newcomer. "Oh. It's you. Maybe you can tell us who these people are?" asked Granny Weatherwax.

I MUST CONFESS I AM AS IGNORANT AS YOU ARE. I DON'T EVEN HAVE LIFETIMERS FOR EITHER OF THEM.

"Oh, hello," the blonde girl said, wandering over fearlessly. "Have you come for me or Nicholas? If we both go together, I can introduce him to my Mummy. You took her when I was nine. She'll be glad to meet him. He took good care of me."

NO. I SHALL CONSULT MY COLLEAGUES. ONE OF THEM WILL PROBABLY RECOGNIZE YOU, AND WE CAN RETURN YOU TO YOUR OWN WORLD.

The first "colleague" to appear took the form of a handsome, sad-faced young man. A brief colloquy followed...none of the witches could hear what was said...and the young man shook his head, before disappearing.

SO NOW WE KNOW THEY DID NOT COME FROM NEWHON. LET ME SEE--- and a pale-skinned young woman in clothes that all the witches found outlandish, in different ways, appeared.

She raised an eyebrow as she squatted down by the fallen wizard's side. "Yep. He's one of mine, and so's his friend. It's not their time yet, though."

GOOD. I SHALL LEAVE THINGS IN YOUR CAPABLE HANDS, MY DEAR.

The pale girl turned. "I can get these two back to their own time and place...and I think it'd be interesting to take you ladies along. Seeing how other people do things will broaden your horizons. She gestured...and all of them, the unconscious wizard, his blonde friend, and the Lancre Coven, found themselves standing on a beautiful greensward, just outside a huge castle.

End Chapter 06