Sir Pants and Sir Reddy Still Don't See a Mirror, But They Learn About Cleanliness

Just as Sir Reddy was about to turn around and let himself tumble all the way back down the stone stairs because it would be easier than continuing to climb, they reached the top of the castle. There was a door.

"I will open the door," announced Sir Pants.

"Yes, of course," said Sir Reddy faintly. He was still trying to breathe and his legs were shaking from the long climb. "Aren't you going to knock first?"

Sir Pants thought for a minute.

"Yes," he said. "Here I go."

Sir Reddy said, "Aren't you tired at all?"

"Yes," said Sir Pants. "It doesn't matter. Don't let your body fool you. You are perfectly fine."

"But my body is saying that it's about to sit down," said Sir Reddy.

His legs buckled and Sir Reddy caught himself by slapping his palms up against the cold stone wall of the stair way.

"Oh well sit down then, by all means," said Sir Pants.

Sir Reddy's body collapsed on the floor into a position that looked a little bit like sitting, only it was lying down.

The door opened.

Sir Reddy gasped. "Sir Pants, the magician knows we're here even before you knocked!"

Sir Pants glared at Sir Reddy. "Only because he heard us talk to each other outside the door."

"I'm not a he," said the magician.

Sir Pants and Sir Reddy stared at the figure standing just inside the door of the room at the very tip top of Castle Caraway. They could tell it was a magician because of the long shapeless cloth draped all over it and the tall conical hat that slumped over on top of its head. It was a dark material, either navy blue, or gray, or black, or a dirty brown, or something else that was dark. The hair coming from the magician's head was wispy and long as it should be, but it was hard to tell what was hair and what were other things that had gotten caught in the hair. Sir Reddy thought he saw a tiny china bowl up near the shoulder area and Sir Pants was in the middle of counting spider webs, although it was very hard to do because the webs were partly made out of the magician's hair and so they were all sort of connected.

To be continued...