Professor Pike stared at Lucie in astonishment. “Whatever is the matter?”
“I told you!” Lucie gasped, almost sobbing. “If Fang is a wolf, then they’re going to send her away! And you just said she is!”
“I said no such thing.”
“You did! I heard you!”
“You did not. I said she wasn’t a dog. But whether she’s a wolf…or a weasel…or a wombat, that’s another matter entirely!”
“Oh! But she looks just like a wolf.”
“Only to an untrained eye.”
Professor Pike took hold of Lucie’s hand.
“Now just you come here a minute, and look, really LOOK. I grant you, at first sight she might look like an ordinary specimen of canis lupus — a wolf, in other words. But only to the ignorant observer. Only to somebody who has never really looked at wolves. I have, and I can tell you there are several important differences from any wolf I have ever seen.”
“Like what?” Lucie asked.
“For one thing, I have never seen a wolf this big. People think that wolves are huge, but actually it’s a myth. They are much smaller than people realise. Then there’s the eyes. They seem to change colour. Really quite remarkable. The head is even larger than you would expect. This suggests that this animal is highly intelligent — even more intelligent than most wolves, which means very intelligent indeed. Finally, there’s her throat and mouth.”
Professor Pike peered at Fang’s muzzle, apparently not at all worried by coming so close to her teeth. Obligingly, Fang opened her mouth wide to allow the Professor a better look.
“Remarkable,” murmured the Professor, almost to herself. “The shape of the mouth. The structure of the throat. Not what you would expect at all. Almost.…almost as if they are formed to let her speak.”
Fang grinned.
“I suppose she can’t speak can she?” wondered the Professor. And then, before Lucie could reply, “No, no…how ridiculous…ignore that question. I’m afraid I was just getting carried away.”
Lucie said nothing.
“So if she is a wolf (and it is rather hard to see what else she could be) then she is certainly not like any wolf that I have seen before,” concluded Professor Pike.
Lucie looked from Fang to the Professor and back again. Slowly a smile spread across her face.
“And that would be enough, wouldn’t it? That’s what you mean. If you were to say that she didn’t look like any wolf you had ever seen before…and you are an expert after all…”
“Yes,” said Professor Pike, smiling. “I think it might be enough.”
“And you will tell Mr Dundas what you think? And Mum and Dad?”
“I’ll tell anyone you like. The Royal Zoological Society. The International Centre for Canine Studies. The Journal of Animal Anatomy —”
“Mr Dundas and Mum and Dad will do,” said Lucie firmly. “Will you come and see them now?”
The Professor shook her head. “No, no. That is not the way. Not for people like head teachers. We can do better than that.”
* * *
Outside it was now very dark. In the yellow glow of the streetlights on Acorn Avenue, Alex was playing football with Marcus. He had wanted to play in Marcus’s back garden, but Mrs Mainwaring did not allow games: she would not have her lawn churned up into mud, or risk anyone smashing a football into one of her garden ornaments.
Alex tried to slide the ball past Marcus, skidded, and landed in the slush. “Hah!” yelled Marcus, grabbing the ball.
“Let’s go in now, Marcus,” said Alex wearily. “Mum’ll be wondering where I am.”
“Call her on your mobile. I just want to show you this great technique I’ve developed for cutting off the angle —”
Marcus stopped in mid-sentence. Lucie and Fang had just come out of Professor Pike’s house. Marcus hurled the football at Alex’s face, then ran over to hide behind the gatepost. As Lucie came through the gate he jumped on her.
“Hah!” he yelled.
“Grrr!” said Fang, losing her temper She snapped at him, as she sometimes snapped at the gulls in the park, only less playfully. Marcus sat down with a thump in the snow.
“Gerr’er off me!” he squawked.
“Don’t be silly,” said Lucie coldly. “Fang won’t bite you.”
“Although you deserve it,” said Alex, coming up. “Snooping!”
“I wasn’t snooping!” Marcus struggled up out of the wet slush. “I was playing football and when I saw Lucie, I — well, I was concerned that she might be bothering Professor Pike. After all, Professor Pike is very — err — elderly.”
“Snooping!” said Alex again.
“Anyway what were you doing in there?” Marcus said to Lucie. “What do you want with that old Professor?”
“You don’t have to tell him,” said Alex.
“I know. But actually I don’t mind.”
Lucie reached into her coat pocket and drew out an envelope. Very slowly she unfolded it. “Listen:
“To Whom It May Concern
I, Professor Elspeth Pike, Professor Emeritus of Zoology, Fellow of the World Centre of Canid Studies, Winner of the Gold Medal for Contribution to Scientific Understanding given by the International Distinguished Scientists’ Society, and acknowledged expert on the species Canis Lupus (Wolves) do hereby certify that the animal belonging to Lucie Firkettle, commonly known as “Wolfie”, does not meet those accepted criteria established by experts in the field and so cannot be categorised as a member of the Canis Lupus (Wolf) species.
Yours sincerely
Professor Elspeth Pike, FRS, FSCS, WERE, Er., Ser, WERWE, Phd.
There was a brief silence.
“What does that mean?” demanded Marcus rudely. “It’s gibberish!”
“Don’t worry about what it means,” said Lucie, smiling as she folded up the letter. “It’s called an Expert Opinion. And the important thing is — Professor Pike says it will do the trick!”
“Here, give me that!” And Marcus tried to snatch the letter. But Alex grabbed his jacket, and Marcus slipped and fell in the slush for the second time.
“Serves you right!” said Alex.
But Marcus was already up and running for home. It wasn’t Alex that had scared him. It was the look he had seen in Fang’s eyes. Certified or uncertified wolf, he wasn’t going to mess with her!