“Not independent-derivative.”

“You say that they’re derivative of a lost source because they’re similar, but why can’t they be similar because they’re all true?”

The professor sighed and took a moment to collect herself. She shouldn’t have allowed herself to be drawn in; she was falling behind schedule. Was this some sort of gag? “It makes no sense to spar with me about veracity when I have an entire section dedicated to authorial ‘tricks’ or ‘stunts’ of authenticity. You’ve obviously read some of the material, but if you understood half of what you know, then you would realise how outlandish your claims are.

“Why,” the professor continued plaintively, “on the same grounds, you could argue the case that Britain was populated by giants as was also popularly believed and recorded.”

“I do argue the case on the same grounds,” Freya said. This brought shouts of derision from the other students, and a couple of them slipped out of the hall to fetch the porter. “The history of giants in Britain is too independently supported to argue credibly against. Accounts of giant occupation are recorded in nearly all of the Brut legends, as well as Irish tales and sagas, such as the Fenian Cycle’s Acallam na Senorach, and Scandinavian histories like the Vatnsdal Saga-let alone those recorded in the Bible and other Middle Eastern histories as well as Slavic traditions.”

Dr. Fowler snorted and then smiled. “This is a joke . . . ,” she murmured.

“I’m talking about human interaction with giants in each of these cases,” Freya continued. “Not creation myths or rationalisations about the acts of nature. These are one-on-one encounters.”

A man in a blue uniform was now standing at the end of Freya’s row, beckoning furiously at her. The class had dissolved into noise-much of it directed at Freya. The professor seemed to be in a mild form of shock. The porter leaned into the row and called to her. “Miss, could you come with me please?”