Shadow

Spoiler Alert!

Warning! This page contains spoilers for The Sorcerer in the North.

Shadow is a female border shepherd (a breed known for their intelligence and loyalty) whom Will found nearly dead by John Buttle's hand in The Sorcerer in the North. She is currently Trobar's dog.

The Sorcerer in the North[]

Will found Shadow by the side of the road on his way to the Seacliff Fief. She had been wounded, a long gash from the bottom of the right shoulder to the base of the rear haunch on her left side, and had lost a lot of blood. Will numbed the wound before cleaning it and sewing it closed. He didn't want to leave her on the side of the road, and brought her to Seacliff to recover at his cottage. The dog became a welcome part of his day-to-day life, interacting playfully with Tug and quickly learning to respond to Will's commands after she healed.

Will found out that she belonged to John Buttle, a violent man who had wounded her and left her to die because she disobeyed him. He came to reclaim her, but was subdued by Will and Alyss. Shadow remained safe in Will's care, though he still could not come up with a proper name for her and usually just called her "the dog."

Shadow went through several names throughout the book, including "Blackie", "Traitor", and "Bread and Butter Pudding". Eventually, Trobar thought of the name Shadow because of her often silent and stealthy movement, which she had picked up from Will.

At the end of the book, Will let Trobar keep Shadow, on the condition that if Shadow ever had puppies, Will would get the pick of the litter.

Halt's Peril[]

Shadow makes another appearance in Halt's Peril. When Will returns to Malcolm's cottage in Healer's Clearing to get help for Halt, Shadow leads him to the house. Will whistles for her many times and eventually she appears, taking her to the Clearing.

When Will is saying goodbye to Malcolm, Trobar reveals that Shadow is now a mother with a litter of puppies. Honoring the deal, Will ends up with one of her puppies as his own, the only puppy with one brown and one blue eye; just like her mother. Trobar named Shadow's daughter Ebony and Will brought her home to Redmont as his new pet/companion.

The Lost Stories[]

Shadow makes a brief appearance in And About Time Too... at Will and Alyss' wedding; Trobar and Malcolm having traveled from the Norgate Fief to be at the event.

Description[]

Shadow is a female Border Shepherd, with a white ruff at her throat and chest and a white tip to her bushy tail. Her legs are white and she has a black head, with a white blaze running from her muzzle to between her eyes. Her left eye is brown and her right eye is "a manic blue". She is friendly and welcoming to people she feels are kind, but has a good sense for danger.

Will trains her to respond to many commands, such as dropping to her belly with a single word, and even trained her to take part in his jongleur acts in The Sorcerer in the North.

Under Trobar's care, she had four puppies, one of which was Ebony, who was given to Will.

Relationships[]

Will[]

Will saved Shadow from John Buttle and was her owner for some time. He trained her in hidden and silent movement, and taught her many commands which assisted him during The Sorcerer in the North.

Trobar[]

Trobar harbored a deep love of dogs, and Shadow reciprocated, recognizing his need for companionship. Will acknowledged that Shadow would be better off with Trobar and reluctantly let Trobar keep her. Under his care, she had a litter of puppies, one of which was Ebony, which Will picked to take and raise himself.

John Buttle[]

Buttle was a violent and abusive owner, eventually wounding her with a blade and leaving her to die on the road. This came back to bite him, as Will, her second owner, learned that it was him who wounded her. Eventually he was killed by Gundar Hardstriker, during The Siege of Macindaw.