"John Morressy - The Questing Of Kedrigern" - читать интересную книгу автора (Morressy John)

old fogy."
"Then maybe I'm a young fogy," he said sullenly. "All I know is that I don't
want to be in a room full of people like that."
"We will set a respectable tone, and people will simply have to behave
themselves."
"Ordinarily, that might work. But this is Wizcon."
Princess drew herself up. Her blue eyes flashed, and she said with a hauteur
that would have snuffed the flame of an angry dragon, "This may be Wizcon, but
you are a respected senior wizard, representing the most prestigious guild in
the west, and / am a princess. There will be no rowdyism, boorishness, or
indecorum."
Kedrigern sensed that the final word on this particular topic had been
spoken. He nodded, and said no more.
Princess was mollified. She smiled and said, "Good. It's getting late. Pull
your boots on, so we can get to dinner. You have to prepare your remarks for
tomorrow, and you'll want a decent night's sleep."
As he tugged his boots on, Kedrigern muttered, "I'd better get my sleep
tonight. Won't get a wink of it tomorrow night,
not with a mob carousing through here until dawn. We'll head south looking
like something dragged out of a necromancer's rubbish heap."
"Don't be moody. You might at least try to have a good time," said Princess
patiently.
Kedrigern sighed. He knew that he was being selfish; even a bit childish. He
knew that Princess had been longing to give a big party and that there was no
opportunity for such things at home, and that this would make her very happy.
He knew that it would be a good thing for the guild if everyone went home from
Wizcon talking about what splendid hosts these wizards were. He even suspected
that despite all his determination to the contrary, he might have a good time.
All the same, he hated noise and crowds.
About a dozen people were seated in the dining room. Kedrigern did not
recognize a single one. They looked up as he and Princess entered, and their
gazes lingered on Princess. She was resplendent in a close-fitting pale green
gown, with a cloak of darker green thrown over her shoulders. Kedrigern,
clean-shaven, in nondescript tunic and trousers of homespun stuff and a plain
dark cloak, was given scarcely a glance. He found a corner table, small but
relatively steady and less stained than the rest, and they seated themselves.
"Probably not a wizard in the place. I certainly don't see anyone who looks
like a wizard," Kedrigern said morosely.
"You don't look like a wizard yourself," Princess pointed out.
"Well, of course not. It's just inviting trouble to go around looking like a
wizard these days."
"Then why should other people do it?"
Kedrigern grunted, mumbled something, and took to staring at the tabletop.
They dined well on grilled carp, mutton, and pheasant, plenty of fresh bread,
fruit for dessert, and a good ale to wash it all down. The meal left Kedrigern
in much better spirits. He and Princess were smiling at one another before
they reached the dessert.
"You'll have a good time tomorrow night," Princess said, laying her hand on
his in reassurance.
"I suppose so. It's been so long since I've been to a party that I've lost