Rat Song

Chapter 15

The instant William left the general store, he released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. At last, he was free to investigate the Piper without fear of how poorly Father would react.

But where would he even start? He'd never set foot in Aerzen, let alone heard anything about the Piper before Burdock had told him about the powerful musician. Burdock had told him the Piper was a tall man with a powerful presence, but that description meant little to him. What humans weren't tall and powerful in the eyes of a rat? Despite Burdock's best efforts to describe the Piper, all William truly knew about him was he wielded the Hymn of the Whole with his flute and commanded an army of rats that could make short work of him.

He may have been going into Aerzen blind, but he was not entering the town deaf. If there was one group who could help him find the Piper, or at least tell him what they knew about him and his music, it was other musicians. Like his mother patching one garment with the remains of another, musicians often wove bits and pieces of other people's songs into their own. The tempo from one piece, the chorus from another.

By following the fragments of the Hymn of the Whole others incorporated into their own music, he could trace their origin to the Piper himself.

But each time he caught a snatch of the song in the pitter-patter of children's feet prancing over the cobblestones or in the rhythm of shoppers shifting around each other as they navigated through the crowded market, any trace of a pattern dissipated as soon as he tried to focus on it. Everyone moved in time with some secret rhythm that completely eluded him.

William paused beside Father's cart. "I'm going to see if anyone in the market knows anything about him," he whispered.

Burlap sacks rustled as Burdock peeked out from his hiding place amidst the supplies William had loaded into the cart. "Be mindful of who you ask, for many of this town's residents are wary of strangers," he said, keeping his voice low so only William could hear him. "I will go among the Many and see how my kind has fared since the Piper corrupted the Whole."

"Father said he will leave without me if I am not here at noon. If I do not return..." William swallowed, the muscles in his throat tightening against the words. "Please watch over Emma for me."

"It shall not come to that." Burdock peeked out from inside the cart, his beady black eyes shining with determination. "If you have not yet returned when the time draws close, I will bring you back myself."

With Burdock's reassurance steeling his nerves, William ventured into the market alone.

Hamelin's market was constantly full of chatter as customers haggled for better prices, farmers bartered crops with each other, and children played all manner of games with each other. Aerzen wasn't like that in the slightest. Here, barely anyone acknowledged each other, much less spoke. They went about their errands without so much as wishing each other a good morning. Whenever something caught their eye, customers merely pointed before wordlessly exchanging a handful of coppers for the object of their desire. Only when William drew near did he hear snippets of conversations, and at times even his approach did not rouse them from their silence.

When he and Father had passed through on their cart with its endlessly creaking wheels, chatter had swelled to meet them at every turn. With his footsteps as quiet as always, most of the town's residents failed to notice when William drew near, going about their business without uttering a single word. Those who noticed him wore too-wide smiles that strained at the edges as words tumbled from their mouths like overripe fruits falling from trees.

Unsettling though the townsfolk were, he had no choice but to ask them about the Piper. Emma was counting on him.

"Excuse me," he said as he approached an older woman hunched over a loom. "May I ask you something? My family and I are new to town, and I could really use some help."