"Oldthings" by Will Shetterly

First published in Xanadu 2, ed. Jane Yolen. Now available in And Other Stories by Emma Bull and Will Shetterly, an ebook and a trade paperback from all fine and some not-so-fine booksellers.

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Oldthings

by Will Shetterly
Jeffy got silver bullets, Jill got a matched pair of big golden crosses, and I got a lousy wooden stake. I sat crosslegged on the floor, looking at this three-foot-long pointed stick, and said, “What’s this? A carve-your-own-cane kit?”

Poppa Fred had his sense of humor remov...