Al's face, those shining golden eyes, told more than his words. Edmund, gazing into them so deeply, was suddenly soothed. The surprise was genuine and obvious on Al's honest features. In their light, the hurt flickering in Edmund's began to abate.

"Yes," he said, not trying to deny the accusations leveled against his kind. "So did the Wolves. And the Minotaurs. Even some of the Fauns and Trees. What did the Panthers do that was more unforgivable than the rest?"

He didn't speak defensively, as hard as he wanted to defend the woman who'd been so kind to him these past weeks. A twinge of guilt nagged at him, that he didn't stand up more fiercely for Kala, who had given him back so much. But...he needed to know. He counted Al's opinion more highly than perhaps Al even knew. And Al knew something, maybe something important. Edmund was willing to listen.