Song tried to sleep, but the longer the bad weather continued, the less she felt like sleeping. Twilight lent a strange aspect to woodland and stream, and a weird gray-yellow nimbus hovered over the banksides, cast through with a dull lilac glow. Gradually she began to drift toward slumber, lulled by the sound of rainfall and swishing treetops, but then a sharp movement from her father brought her back to instant alertness.

“Be silent, Song, an’ don’t move. Look at the stream!”

A long logboat thundered by on the roiling current. Seated in the prow were two Marlfoxes, identical to the two they had encountered, and large scrawny water rats, some brown, others black or gray, packed the boat from stem to stern. The majority of the rats were paddling oars, skimming and sculling to keep the craft upright and on course, while the rest were kept busy bailing out stream- and rainwater with any implements they could lay claw to.

Janglur muttered to Song out of the side of his mouth, “Just as well they can’t hear yore grandma snorin’ in this liddle lot. Be still now, here comes another!”

A second logboat forged along in the wake of the first. Janglur moved forward, poking his head out into the rain, peering upstream.

“There’s more of ’em, another four if’n I ain’t mistaken. Never seen aught like this afore. I’m goin’ to take a look. You stay put, Song. Y’know where my dagger is if y’need it. Don’t wake your mum or grandma, what they don’t know can’t ’urt ’em. Be back soon!”