Upon registering that one of their number was apparently involuntarily human, the Vanaras all stood up and began talking at once, in Hindustani of course. Rue’s mortal victim threw the monkey charm at the feet of his fellows in evident disgust.

At the same time Percy, who could not stand, leaned forward squinting in the firelight and said, “Rue, is that you?”

“Of coursh ish me. Pershy, what ish going on?”

Percy blinked at her myopically, having lost his spectacles at some point. “Aside from the fact that we just watched the head of Ganesha emit a fire sparkler, catch fire, explode, and fall into the forest?”

“Ah, yesh,” said Rue. “That would be me assh well.”

Percy’s expression said he found this utterly unsurprising. “Our hosts thought it a sign from the gods.”

Rue nodded. “I sheem to be reshponshible for a number of those thish evening.”

Percy evaluated her newly fuzzy form. “Interesting outfit you’re wearing for an evening call.”

“Yesh, well, Primrosh did insisht I bring the scarf. It would be churlish of me not to wear it.”

“That wasn’t what I meant to imply. Are you covered in hair?”

“Pershy, you’re as blind as a billiard ball. I’m a weremonkey.” She cocked her hip out and flicked her tail. “The tail ish remarkably useful. Even better than the cat one. You know, I should like a tail as a rule. Difficult in skirts, I sushpose.”

“Oh?”

Rue decided they’d engaged in sufficient banter for the moment. “Enough of thish, Pershy. What’s been happing? How did you get here? Why ish she still a lionessssh? And mosh importantly, what are they saying?”

Percy made as if to push his non-existent specs up his nose. Finding them gone, he lowered his hand awkwardly. “That’s a number of questions to answer all at once. Where should I start?”

“Begin at the beginning. Ish very becoming, not to mention organished.”

Thus, while the Vanaras argued with one another, apparently questioning the veracity of everything their mortal compatriot was telling them about Rue, Percy explained.

Rue had, indeed, managed to race away fast enough so that when Miss Sekhmet hit the bottom of the gorge, she was a supernatural and unhurt. She’d climbed out and found Percy waiting at the top. She’d changed into lioness form so that Percy could ride. They had been about to go looking for Rue when they were assaulted from above. The Vanaras had dropped down out of the trees in a coordinated attack, and thrown a silver net over Percy and Miss Sekhmet.

“But I thought she was allied with them?”