“No!” I shouted, cold dread creeping through me when I heard
Oak's conclusion.
“Surely there must be something else you can do?” Although he was
wearing his tactful expression, I could tell my husband was just as
concerned as I.
“I really don't see what else there is,” Oak replied. “This
house, this whole area, they really will have to go, there's no
alternative.”
“Yes, there is,” Raven said firmly. Before he could continue,
Oak interrupted.
“Don't talk rot,” he spat, “You, of all creatures, should know
our rules, despite your shift in sympathies.”
“My 'sympathies' have nothing to do with it, despite what you may
think,” Raven told him. “I have every respect for you, but you
and your kind are old, and slow to adapt. What we have here is
something so new, so unheard of, that the usual protocols simply do
not apply.”
“And what is it you suggest?” Oak asked, “What is it that you
would have us do? Just let the Weave run riot? Allow all and sundry
to come through unchecked?”
“No,” Raven replied, “We must summon the Council.”
