Free The Curse of the Wolf Girl by Martin Millar Page A

excellent mood. I have been to the opera!”
    With that, the queen began humming an air, something neither Daniel nor Moonglow could remember happening before.
    “It was such a splendid experience! I am amazed I have never been before! Such music and costume! Such glorious scenes!” The Fire Queen broke off to hum a little more. Moonglow had pulled out a seat at their small table, but Malveria showed no inclination to sit down.
    “So great was my enthusiasm that I found myself in sympathy with a rather oversized man,” continued Malveria, “called Falstaff, I believe. Are you familiar with him?”
    “Yes,” said Moonglow, who knew Falstaff from Shakespeare, though not from the opera.
    “How I laughed at his antics! The scoundrel attempted most basely to seduce respectable women in a scandalous fashion, but I could not be completely out of sympathy with his efforts, as he had such a beautiful voice. And he was handsomely dressed, in a manner which made the best of a bad job, as it were. One wishes that he had been less generously proportioned, but even so I was prepared to support his endeavors.” The Fire Queen paused and looked thoughtful. “It has to be said that the women he was attempting to seduce were not of the most slender figures either and would have benefited from the strict regimen of diet and exercise with which Malveria continues to gladden the hearts of her subjects by remaining the slenderest of queens. Nonetheless, they also had most beautiful voices. After the performance, I went with Thrix to a place called ‘backstage,’ and I met the large singer who was Falstaff! He has a wonderful voice, that Mr. Felicori!”
    “Felicori?”
    “An Italian. Thrix’s mother is staging a singing event in Scotland, for charity, and wishes Mr. Felicori to appear there.”
    Malveria sat down gracefully at their table, not displeased to rest her feet. The heels she was wearing, while extremely stylish, were far from comfortable, though that was something she would never have admitted. Daniel meanwhile was distributing pizza. Next to him, Kalix, in her werewolf form, ate hungrily. At the mention of her sister, a scowl had appeared on her face, but she remained silent.
    “My dear friend the enchantress was supposed to impress and seduce Mr. Felicori. But impressing and seducing are not her strongest points. When a bold advance is called for, she has a tendency to hang back.”
    “Did she really want to seduce him?” asked Moonglow, who, knowing Thrix, couldn’t quite imagine it.
    “In the sense of forming a sexual relationship with him, no,” admitted the Fire Queen. “But in the sense of persuading him to oblige the Mistress of the Werewolves, yes. As I understand it, Mr. Felicori has many calls on his time, and it is not easy to make him agree to such an engagement. Fortunately for all, I took matters in hand, brushed his admirers out of the way, confronted the great singer, and made a strong case to him that he should agree to appear in Scotland.” The queen smiled at the memory. “Mr. Felicori was favorably impressed, I assure you. It was a service I was pleased to do for my good friend Thrix, even though—” Malveria’s expression clouded slightly. “Even though I, of course, will not be welcome at the event.”
    Moonglow nodded. She remembered that the Hiyastas and the MacRinnalch werewolves were historical enemies and had fought each other in the past. No Hiyasta would be welcome at a MacRinnalch event.
    “Would you like a Pop-Tart?” asked Moonglow, to cover Malveria’s disappointment.
    “I would love a Pop-Tart,” replied Malveria. “Though only one, as I am on a strict health regime. I must look fabulous for next month’s important sacrifice on the Great Volcano. One cannot disappoint one’s adoring subjects by turning up with unwanted extra poundage. Word would reach Princess Kabachetka, and she would spread it around all the realms in no time.”
    “Are you still rivals with