Quoted By:
"What have you brought back?" called a woman's voice as they beached on the edge of a broken parapet. Beyond an archway, a man pushed a wheeled chair into the fading light. A matronly woman sat crouched in the chair, and in one hand she clutched a staff so black it seemed to drive the waning sunlight away from it.
"A foolish boy," said Ludolph, and then smiled at Mirabel. "But he travels with a maiden of such great beauty that he must not be so foolish as he appears. He wishes to see the rule of the Dragon Lord come to an end."
"Does he?" laughed the woman, and looked Wilhelm over carefully. "What is your name, boy?"
"Wilhelm of Helmbarte, my lady," said Wilhelm as they stood before her. "And this is the maiden Mirabel of Helmbarte." Mirabel curtsied as she was named.
"I am the Lady Louve, of the House of the Wolf. I welcome you both to my home." The woman nodded to the man behind her. "This is Sir Ralph, youngest of my surviving sons. Get them food and beds," the woman commanded. "They must be tired from their journey."
