Mairelon the Magician

by Patricia C. Wrede

  Kim could see that he was not giving her his full attention

  When she began to speak of Bramingham Place and Renee

  D'Auber, however, the magician's preoccupation vanished

  Kim found this extremely annoying until she noticed Mair-

  elon's right hand rise to touch his breast pocket from time to

  time He was more worried about that spell than he wanted

  to let on

  As soon as they reached the wagon, Mairelon began rum-

  154

  maging in the large chest. Kim sat on the floor beside the

  door and hugged her knees, watching with great interest She

  was cold, tired, and very hungry, but she did not mention it

  She was, after all, used to being cold, tired, and hungry, and

  if she said anything, Mairelon might remember she was there

  and send her away while he read Renee's letter

  Mairelon laid a white silk scarf and a small crystal globe on

  the counter and closed the lid of the trunk. He turned and

  spread the scarf out, smoothing it carefully until not a wrinkle

  remained He drew Renee D'Aubers letter from his pocket

  and set it in the exact center of the scarf, with the blob of

  sealing wax facing him Then he lifted the crystal globe with

  the tips of his fingers and set it on top of the letter It showed

  a strong tendency to roll off the lumpy surface of the wax,

  but he got it positioned at last

  Finally he was satisfied He raised his hands slowly and

  extended them, cupping them around the precariously bal-

  anced globe without touching it He bent his head and began

  to whisper The words hissed and sizzled in the confined

  space of the wagon, rough and saw-edged Kim held her

  breath

  Orange light flared from the crystal globe, and Renee

  D'Auber's voice filled the wagon "My friend, there are things

  that you must know, and even this means of communication

  is not entirely safe I will meet you two hours before the time

  I told your young companion, in the hollow below the oak

  hill southwest of Ranton Hill Do not fail me in this,"

  Slowly the orange light faded Mairelon stood motion-

  less, staring down into the crystal, even after the last of the

  light was gone Kim twisted to get a better look at his face

  and realized that he was not looking at the globe in front

  of him His eyes were focused on empty air, and he was

  frowning

  155

  Kim cleared her throat, then cleared it again Mairelon did

  not respond At last she said loudly, "Heyi Is that all?"

  "What?" Mairelon said, then shook his head and turned to

  look reproachfully at Kim "Don't ever interrupt a wizard in

  the middle of a spell, Kim Magic requires a great deal of

  concentration, and breaking it can be very dangerous "

  "I wasn't interrupting a spell," Kim said "You were just

  thinkin', far as I could see "

  Mairelon blinked and glanced at the crystal Then he

  rolled it to one side and picked up Renee's letter He stood

  staring at it for a moment, tapping it gently against his left

  hand, until Kim was afraid he was going to go back into a

  brown study She tried to clear her throat again and started

  coughing in earnest as she inhaled something the wrong way

  This attracted Mairelon's full attention at last, though his

  first inclination was to proffer cups of water instead of expla-

  nations As soon as Kim got her breath back, she pushed the

  cup away and demanded, "What was it that was takin' you

  such a lot of thinkin' on? You ain't goin' to meet that gentry

  mort like she says to, are you?"

  "Meet Renee"? Of course I'm going to," Mairelon said He

  looked down at the note, which he had still not read, and his

  frown returned "I was just wondering why she chose that

  particular place "

  "What particular place?" Kim said, exasperated

  "The hollow by the oak hill where those ridiculous 'druids'

  had their ceremony the other night," Mairelon said "Feeling

  more the thing? Good, because we're going to have a busy

  evening 1 want to get a good look at that hollow while

  there's still light, and after that—well, we'll see Come

  along " He was out the door of the wagon before Kim could

  respond

  "Hunch ain't goin' to like this," Kim muttered as she

  climbed to her feet

  156

  "Isn't," Mairelon's voice corrected A moment later his head

  reappeared in the open doorway "And since Hunch isn't

  here, it doesn't matter Bring the lamp and the little sack in

  the corner, I may want them " The head disappeared once

  more

  Kim rolled her eyes, picked up the tamp and the sack Mair-

  elon had indicated, and started after him

  157

  SIXTEEN

  ~^jl^' T- or the rest of the afternoon, K-im and Mair-

  JK^^^ 1 elon tramped through the wood at the foot

  / '•of the druids' hill, peering under bushes and up

  into trees Kirn had only the vaguest idea what they were

  looking for, but after several attempts to pry an explanation

  out of Mairelon she gave up and simply copied him Half-

  remembered warnings about mantraps and poachers made her

  move warily, but she found nothing Maireton seemed to do

  no better than she had, but he was preoccupied on the walk

  back to the wagon, and Kirn was positive he had noticed

  something she hadn't

  At Mairelon's insistence, Kim spent the evening working

  on her lessons Her fingers were growing more used to the

  moves and twists that made coins seem to vanish from one

  hand and appear m the other, and she had mastered the art of

  tying knots that slid apart when the proper bit of rope was

  pulled, but she was not doing nearly so well at reading She

  pored over the stubborn little black marks for hours, mutter-

  ing to herself, while Mairelon prowled restlessly up and down

  the wagon Once she ventured a question about his meeting

  158

  with Renee, but he was so completely uninformative at such

  length that she did not try again

  Mairelon was up at dawn the next morning, blundering

  around the limited space inside the wagon in a way that made

  sleep impossible for anyone else Kim tried muffling her head

  under the blanket, but it was no good Finally she gave up

  and rose, yawning, to see whether breakfast was one of the

  things Mairelon had been getting ready during his annoying

  rambles

  It wasn't Kim had to make the porridge herself, which

  did not improve her mood Her irritation increased further

  when she noticed that Mairelon had put on his flash togs,

  rather than his smock or stage clothes, to go to his meet-

  ing with Renee He looked very well in them, which some-

  how annoyed Kim even more To top things off, she

  didn't do much better with the porridge than Mairelon had

  the day before "I'll be glad when Hunch gets back," she

  muttered as she spooned the lumpy grey mixture into her

  bowl

  "What? Not already'" Mairelon said He glanced around

  hastily, then turned a reproachful e
xpression on Kim "Don't

  scare me like that"

  Kim stared at him in complete bewilderment "What're you

  talking about^"

  "I thought you said that Hunch was back," Mairelon ex-

  plained

  "No, 1 said I'd be glad when he was," Kim said Then, in

  response to Mairelon's skeptical expression, she added, "So

  we can get some better grub "

  "Oh " Mairelon looked thoughtful "You have a point Per-

  haps we should dine at the inn tonight if Hunch hasn't ar-

  rived by then I rather hope he hasn't "

  "Why? Hunch cooks better than that fat cove," Kim

  said

  159

  "if Hunch gets here today, it'll be because he's in a hurry,"

  Mairelon answered "And he'll only hurry if he thinks

  Shoreham's information is important I'd prefer not to have

  any startling news about any of the people connected with

  the Saltash Platter Or its copy "

  Kim mulled that over while she finished her porridge She

  scraped the last few lumps from the sides of her bowl and

  surreptitiously shook them off her spoon and onto the ground

  beside the steps where she was sitting She scowled down at

  the bowl, dropped her spoon into it with a muffled clink, and

  said, "We ought to leave if you want to be the first one at that

  hill "

  "Yes," Mairelon said "Thank you for reminding me " He

  rose and brushed at his pants, as if to dispose of nonexistent

  crumbs "Practice that handkerchief trick while I'm gone; you

  still haven't got the last twist nght "

  "You ain't leavin' me herel" Kirn said incredulously.

  "I most certainly am," Mairelon replied. "When Renee says

  alone, she means alone I shouldn't be long "

  "You shouldn't be gom' at all," K.im told him "And you

  particularly shouldn't be goin' alone What if that druid

  cull shows up wavin' his pops, the way he did the other

  night?"

  Mairelon looked amused "Jonathan Aberforcb ! doubt that

  he's even out of bed at this hour, much less wandering about

  in the woods with a pistol "

  "How do you know^ He's dicked in the nob, if you ask

  me, and there ain't no knowing what notions a Bedlamite'!!

  get"

  "All the more reason for you to stay here," Mairelon said

  To Kirn's indignation, he still looked more diverted than con-

  cerned "If he shows up, you can bar the wagon door No

  more arguments, Kim, if you please You're not coming, and

  that's that "

  160

  "It don't please me at all," Kim muttered, but she could see

  that Mairelon was determined, and she knew from experience

  that once he took a notion, he was stubborn as a coster-

  monger defending his route through the market She sat and

  glowered at him while he straightened his jacket and brushed

  his hat, but she did not make any further remarks until he had

  disappeared into the woods Then she burst out, "Bubble-

  brained, pigheaded, sapskulled gull> Muttonheaded flat' Nod-

  cock Coosecap It'd serve him well enough if I up and fol-

  lowed him Bufflehead Shab—"

  She stopped suddenly, staring at the place where Mairelon

  had vanished She could follow him, as easy as not She

  scrambled to her feet, then hesitated, considering Mairelon

  was a wizard, and in spite of the abuse she had just been

  showering on him, Kim had to admit that he was sharp as

  two needles That gmger-pated D'Auber mort was a wizard,

  too, and she had a powerful reputation She was foreign into

  the bargain, and therefore unpredictable What would they

  do if they caught Kim spying on them^

  The thought gave Kim a moment's pause Then she

  shmgged She'd just have to make sure they didn't catch her,

  that was all Stay hid and sherry off if they looked like sus-

  pecting anything It was no different from being on the

  sharping lay in London And if there was trouble, Mairelon

  would excuse her obstinacy in following him Besides, given

  Mairelon's idea of "explanation," there was no other way

  she could be sure of finding out what happened at the

  meeting

  That decided her She threw some dirt on the fire, kicked

  her bow! under the steps of the wagon, and started off

  She did not take the same route as Mairelon had, but cut

  sideways up to the road After all, she knew where he was

  going There was no point in risking discovery by sticking

  too close

  161

  The road was dry enough for comfortable walking, and

  there was no sign of approaching vehicles, but Kirn, remem-

  bering her experience the day before, stuck to the far edge

  anyway "What am 1 doing?" she asked herself as she trudged

  along "Coin' off to spy on a couple of frog-makers? 1 must be

  madder than he is'" But she continued walking in spite of her

  misgivings

  The sound of hooves and the rattle of a carriage brought

  Kim out of her reverie. Glancing up, she saw a landau coming

  briskly toward her from the direction of Ranton Hill. She

  sighed and angled down the verge, hoping that the driver

  would not pay any heed to a shabby boy heading into town.

  When she looked up again, the carriage had slowed and be-

  gun to turn down the lane that led to the druids' meeting

  place It was close enough now to give Kim a clear view of

  the occupants, and she nearly choked trying to smother an

  exclamation Lady Granleigh sat stiffly erect in the rear seat,

  while her brother Jasper made shift with his back to the

  horses The driver was the heavyset Stuggs, and he was

  frowning in evident concentration as he tried to maneuver the

  landau around the corner.

  "This is the outside of enough!" Lady Granleigh said in a

  carrying voice as the landau lurched forward. "On our return,

  you will drive, Jasper "

  "Really, Amelia, I don't see why you think I'll do any better

  than Stuggs," Jasper replied. "I'm no Corinthian You should

  have let me bring the coachman."

  "You are, at least, a gentleman," Lady Granleigh said firmly.

  "And the fewer who are aware of this excursion, the better

  Since you have seen fit to confide in this - person, we

  have no choice but to utilize his admittedly second-rate skilts-

  And I must say, Jasper, that I think you could have -found

  someone with more ability if you had only applied yourself

  properly "

  162

  The landau lurched again and rolled reluctantly into the

  lane, and Lady Granleighs complaints were lost among the

  trees Kim shook off her paralysis and sprinted forward- That

  skinny toff and his sister were trouble, whatever their lay was,

  but Kim was willing to bet sixpence that they'd be a particu-

  larly whacking great tot of trouble if they found Mairelon and

  Renee D'Auber at the druid hilt. Fortunately, the lane was

  rough and curving, and with Stuggs driving they wouldn't

  make good time Kim might, just possibly, get to the hill first

  with a warning if she ran.

  She didn't manage it The uneven ground, the constant

  ne
ed to dodge inconveniently placed trees, and the thin

  branches of the young trees and brush that whipped her face,

  all combined to slow her more than she would have believed

  As she neared the hill, she heard voices ahead of her and

  cursed under her breath In London she would have gotten

  there in plenty of time

  Kim slowed and began to pick her way with more care- It

  would do Mairelon no good at all if she made too much noise

  and Jasper or Stuggs discovered her. She reached the fringe

  of bushes below the hill and started working her way toward

  the voices As she came around to the far side, she heard

  Jasper's voice with sudden clarity, saying, "—question is, who

  are you?"

  'Tell him to come down here, where we can talk without

  shouting, Jasper," Lady Cranleigh put in imperiously.

  As Jasper repeated his sister's command, Kim stopped and

  peered through the bushes. Lady Granleigh and her brother

  were standing at the foot of the hill. Stuggs was a little be-

  hind them; beyond, the landau and horses were a sketchy

  outline between trees- The dark bulk of the druids' lodge was

  barely visible, though Kim knew from yesterday's explora-

  tions that it was only a few steps from the hill

  Mairelon was sitting on the ground halfway up the hill,

  163

  careless of the damage his fine clothes must be suffering His

  face was in shadow and Kim could not make out his expres-

  sion, but his pose conveyed polite but bored attention

  "Welh" Jasper said when Mairelon did not reply "Who are

  you?"

  "No, no," Mairelon said "1 asked you first I also, If you