Free MA06 Little Myth Marker by Robert Asprin Page B

now.”
    “You want I should talk like Guido instead, know what I mean?”
    “I don’t understand,” the troll interrupted. “Is something amiss?”
    “We don’t have two problems,” Aahz announced. “We’ve got three! Markie, Bunny, and the rumor mill!”
    “Gossip? How can that be a problem?”
    “Think it through, Chumley,” I said. “All I need right now is to have a bunch of hotshot dragon poker players hunting me up to see if I’m as good as everybody says.”
    “That’s only part of it, partner,” Aahz added. “This could hurt our business and public images as well.”
    I closed my eyes and sighed.
    “Spell it out for me, Aahz. I’m still learning, remember?”
    “Well, we already know your reputation at magic has been growing fast... almost too fast. The competition hates you because you’re taking all the prime assignments. No big deal! Professional jealousy is the price of success in any field. There comes a time, however, when you can get too big too fast. Then it isn’t just your rivals you worry about. Everybody wants you taken down a peg or two if for no other reason than to convince themselves that your success is abnormal... that they don’t have to feel bad for not measuring up.”
    He paused to stare at me hard.
    “I’m afraid this dragon poker thing just might push you into the second category. A lot of beings excel here at the Bazaar, but they’re only noted in one field. The Geek, for example, is a recognized figure among the gamblers, but he doesn’t have any reputation to speak of as a magician or merchant. People can accept that... work hard and you rise toward the top of your group. You, on the other hand, have just made a strong showing in a second profession. I’m afraid there’s going to be some backlash.”
    “Backlash?” I echoed weakly.
    “It’s like I’ve been trying to tell you: people aren’t going to want you to get too much above them. At the very least they might start boycotting our business. At most... well, there are ways of sabotaging other people’s success.”
    “You mean they’re going to...”
    “That’s enough!” Chumley declared, slapping his palm down on the table loudly.
    It suddenly occurred to me that I had never seen Chumley mad. It also occurred to me that I was glad our furniture was strong enough to withstand even Aahz’s tirades. If not, the troll would have destroyed the table just stopping the conversation.
    “Now listen up, both of you!” he ordered, leveling a gnarled finger at us. “I think the current crisis has gone to your heads. You two are overreacting... snapping at shadows! I’ll admit we’ve got some problems, but we’ve handled worse. This is no time to get panicky.”
    “But...”
    “Hear me out, Aahz. I’ve listened to you bellow often enough.”
    I opened my mouth to make a witty comment, then, for once, thought better of it.
    “Markie is a potential disaster, but the key word there is potential. She’s a good kid who will do what we say... if we learn to watch what we say to her. The same goes for Bunny. She’s smart as a whip and...”
    “Bunny?” I blurted, forgetting myself for a moment.
    “Yes, Bunny. It’s been a long time since there’s been anyone around here I could discuss literature and theater with. She’s really quite intelligent if you bother to talk to her.”
    “We are talking about the same Bunny, aren’t we?” Aahz murmured.
    “The one who comes across dumb as a stone,” Chumley confirmed grimly. “Just remember how I come across when I’m putting on my Big Crunch act... but we’re wandering. The subject is problems, and I maintain with a little coaching Bunny won’t be one.”
    He paused to glare at us.
    “As to the rumor of Skeeve’s abilities at dragon poker, I’ve never in my life heard anyone get as alarmed as you, Aahz. Sure, there are negative sides to any rumor, but you have to get pretty extreme to do the projections that have been voiced just