Hounded

unbound from my friend? I tried something else. Oberon, can you hear me?
    › Of course, ‹ he said, and I sighed in relief. › My ears just popped or something. Did you feel that, whatever it was? ‹
    Yes. I need you in the meadow to the east .
    › Okay, I’ve had my fill anyway. What’s up? ‹
    There is trouble at Jacob Lake . Coffee Witch came immediately to mind, but I had no idea what she and her friends could have done to upset Kaibab. Can you find your way there by getting back to the road and following it north?
    › Sure, but aren’t you coming with me? ‹
    I’m going to fly there . I unloosed the knot that bound me to hound form and tied myself to a different shape, this time a great horned owl. Look for me nearby or wait by the lakeshore if you don’t see me .
    › Are you going to kick somebody’s ass? ‹
    I don’t know. Maybe .
    Oberon trotted into the meadow as I leapt into the air, flapping hard to gain altitude. › Well, I’m not going to worry. I’ve watched you spar with that martial arts dummy in the backyard lots of times, and you always win. ‹
    Thanks, buddy. I’ll see you soon . I circled to the north and tried to gain speed. Owls are more renowned for their silence than their swiftness, but I still figured it was the fastest way for me to get back to Jacob Lake, and if there was trouble there, then a silent approach would serve me well.
    Jacob Lake is actually a dissolution sinkhole formed in the limestone of the plateau. It’s been there for ages, and it’s the main watering hole for wild animals in the area. A large meadow surrounds it, and farther back the ponderosas and aspens give it a majestic skyline. There’s also a tiny village by the same name a bit to the north, where the inn is located, so I didn’t know if the trouble was by the actual lake or » in town. «
    I floated just above the tops of the trees so that I wouldn’t waste any time in maneuvers, taking the straightest line to the lake. Once in range of the meadow and the lake in the center of it, I spied nothing down there but a dozen wild horses munching on the last grasses of the season. I thought a circuit of the lake would be prudent, so I began to circle it counterclockwise, staying above the trees and looking below. When I got around to the west side—nine o’clock in dogfighter’s terms—I saw a flash of pale flesh below the canopy and banked around to take a better look. I heard odd screeching noises, too, and then tense voices:
    » I don’t think you should kill it, because that will be like releasing it. «
    » It can’t break the circle even if it escapes the animal. It’ll still be bound. «
    » Fine, but how do we get its power into us ? «
    » I don’t know, I didn’t expect this half-assed splicing of spells to work! «
    » So you didn’t even plan for the eventuality? «
    The voices belonged to three familiar naked women, who were all witches beyond a doubt now. They were clustered around something on the ground, and I decided to light in a pine tree behind them to take stock of the situation and prevent them from seeing me accidentally. What little noise I made upon landing was masked, no doubt, by the frantic animal cries coming from the vicinity of the women. Their bodies were blocking whatever was making the cries, and they were the types of bodies that cause distraction.
    They were easy to tell apart even without their tracksuits on. Coffee was on the left, pale with an occasional dark freckle and her hair still tied in a ponytail; the blond, thin-lipped one whom I called Pinky was in the center, and Coppertone stood on the right—tanned all over, I noticed. None of them had neglected to visit the gym regularly. » No, I didn’t, « said Pinky with some asperity. » And neither did either of you, so you can aim that blame somewhere else. «
    » Well, we have to try something, « said Coffee.
    » Don’t you think I know that? « Pinky snapped.
    Though I thought I knew what was going on, I couldn’t quite believe that they had managed it. I needed to know more before I leapt to any conclusions. I glided silently to the earth and released myself from the owl shape, back to my human form again.
    I quietly cast camouflage on myself, which is the nearest I can come to invisibility. It binds my pigment to my surroundings, so that I become practically invisible when I remain still. People can see me if I move quickly, but if I imitate the Rock of Gibraltar they have to really