"What?"
"You said the only way to get wise was to get experienced." Winking, I rushed out of the Hall and was soon sharing a barrel of ale with a grumpy, orange-haired vampire. Mr. Crepsley gradually cheered up as the night progressed, and was singing loudly by the time he reeled back to his coffin late the following morning.
CHAPTER FIVE
I COULDN'T understand why there were two moons in the sky when I awoke, or why they were green. Groaning, I rubbed the back of a hand over my eyes, then looked again. I realized I was lying on the floor, staring up at the green eyes of a chuckling Harkat Mulds. "Have fun last night?" he asked.
"I've been poisoned," I moaned, rolling over on to my stomach, feeling as though I was on the deck of a ship during a fierce storm.
"You won't be wanting boar guts and… bat broth then?"
"Don't!" I winced, weak at the very thought of food.
"You and the others must have drained… half the mountain's supply of ale last night," Harkat remarked, helping me to my feet.
"Is there an earthquake?" I asked as he let go of me.
"No," he said, puzzled.
"Then why's the floor shaking?"
He laughed and steered me to my hammock. I'd been sleeping inside the door of our cell. I had vague memories of falling off the hammock every time I tried to get on. "I'll just sit on the floor a while," I said.
"As you wish," Harkat chortled. "Would you like some ale?"
"Go away or I'll hit you," I growled.
"Is ale no longer to your liking?"
"No!"
"That's funny. You were singing about how much you… loved it earlier. 'Ale, ale, I drink like a whale, I am the… Prince, the Prince of ale'."
"I could have you tortured," I warned him.
"Never mind," Harkat said. "The whole clan went crazy… last night. It takes a lot to get a vampire drunk, but… most managed. I've seen some wandering the tunnels, looking lik—"