Clan Green Bear: Wizards of White Haven

by Frances Howitt

  ‘You should be resting too,’ Amelie chided her but decided Cassy was viewing the place proprietarily. ‘I thought you’d wait to actually move in before you start changing all his furniture,’ Amelie teased and Cassy blushed.

  ‘Sorry Drako,’ Cassy said meekly.

  ‘Make all the changes you like,’ he offered. ‘You know I’d like you to feel at home here.’

  ‘Drako!’ Cassy objected weakly.

  ‘Never misses an opportunity where you’re concerned, does he?’ Amelie teased. ‘He hasn’t changed.’

  ‘You’re right,’ Cassy said looking up into his wistful dark eyes. She could easily read his wish for her to move in and ultimately become his wife.

  ‘I’m teaching him the virtue of patience. He’ll need that to deal with the brood of children he keeps thinking of.’

  It was Drako’s turn to flush. ‘I can’t help what pops into my head,’ he objected weakly. ‘Serves you right for peeping,’ he added without bothering to deny it. He escaped into the lounge to meet Jim just coming up the lane. He remembered that dream featuring several adorable blonde little girls like Cassy running wild in the sun and adventurous dark haired boys he could teach to ride and hunt. He yearned for a family of his own. Yet he hadn’t wanted it before he’d met Cassy. She was the one that gave those thoughts meaning.

  Jim came in and gratefully warmed his hands before the fire. Cassy and Amelie were laughing about something in the kitchen. Jim was surprised to hear that, but he merely raised a brow at Drako. Cassy had been noticeably quiet and withdrawn recently. Drako shrugged at Jim but he couldn’t help smiling.

  Cassy settled closely beside Drako and took his hand. He met her gaze and lifted her hand to plant a gentle kiss on her knuckles. He was declaring their relationship was back on without saying a word! He was very aware Jim was watching, yet now he was reassured of their relationship he quickly relaxed his territorial jealousy at Jim’s proximity to her. Everyone else had a refill cup of tea and tucked in to the biscuits Drako put on the table. They were all content to sit before the fire, relax and gaze at the snowy vista. The magic they had expended planting the hedge, required rest and a snack, but doing so in comfort was infinitely preferable.

  Jim and Drako began discussing the new hedge and the further section still to do. They talked more amiably than they had been able to since Drako’s return. Everyone was relieved that the uncomfortable undercurrent had disappeared.

  When they went to complete the work on the next section, Drako went with them and held Cassy’s hand. He then actively assisted in the sprouting bit, as Amelie called it, and felt proud to have a hand in it.

  When they’d finished, Cassy gave Drako a quick kiss before leaving him to return to the school. She was aware he watched her go wishing she wasn’t, but things between them were much better. She now felt they both understood one another and she could talk to him properly. She was also aware a number of the clan villagers were watching her interaction with Drako closely. Most seemed relieved to see these small displays of shared affection and she was guiltily aware her prolonged absence had worried them.

  17. New Arrivals

  ‘Sir, six men are approaching the gates. What do you wish us to do?’ an out of breath man announced on entering Jim’s office.

  ‘Who is on duty at the gate?’

  ‘Bradley. You know him?’ it suddenly occurred to the guard to ask.

  ‘Yes.’ Jim said shortly. He had made a point of being introduced to all those who would stand guard at the gate so he could find them. As all were animus, Jim had to do the reaching and finding to identify, and then link, to Bradley’s mind. Jim announced his presence, entering his mind sufficiently to use his eyes and felt Bradley’s trepidation, mixed with relief that Jim was there. ‘The one at the head is Wizard Tobias, aide to Lord Aubrey and Captain Vorn has been here before,’ Jim identified. ‘Politely send them up to me.’

  ‘Yes sir. Thank you, sir.’

  Jim remained to monitor the guard’s mind as he went out to greet the visitors. He noticed Tobias’s surprised discomfiture to be greeted by name.

  ‘Please go on up to the school. Wizard Jim is expecting you.’

  ‘Is he now?’ Tobias remarked but said nothing more.

  Jim hastily turned his attention to tidying the papers strewn on his desk then he went to the window to check how far away they were. Tobias and he had met; therefore, he could have mentally called to say he was coming. Whatever the purpose of this visit, it was clearly designed to catch him unprepared. Jim mentally shrugged and went outside to await them on the steps.

  ‘Tobias, this is a surprise,’ Jim remarked as the party drew up and began dismounting. Grooms arrived to take charge of the horses and a thought summoned Mrs White. ‘A moment sir,’ Jim said coming to the side of the elderly man not yet introduced. ‘You may find it easier to dismount here,’ he added and led the horse to one side of the steps. The mounting block had steps and a handrail and whilst the old wizard was clearly surprised, he was grateful to be able to step off, rather than have to take the brunt of sliding the height of the horse to the floor. Jim glanced at a groom and the man hurried forward to take control of the horse for him. Horses were not always placid around him anymore, depending on how close to the surface his lion was. He could do without causing an accident.

  ‘Hello Jim. Were you expecting us?’ Tobias couldn’t help asking as the young man returned to the steps.

  ‘No. You were announced of course,’ Jim added. ‘Captain Vorn, nice to see you again, this is our Housekeeper Mrs White.’

  ‘This way Captain,’ Mrs White immediately said taking her cue and leading the extraneous escort of soldiers away.

  ‘Novice Jim, I’d like you to meet Wizard Cuthbert,’ Tobias said as the old man joined them.

  ‘Pleased to meet you,’ Jim responded ignoring Tobias’ use of the demeaning title, since it was, strictly speaking, accurate. ‘Won’t you come inside?’ He led them to his office and closed the door. ‘Please sit down. So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?’

  ‘As I think I mentioned on our last meeting,’ Tobias said, ‘your appointment as Head, needs to be approved.’

  ‘You’re checking up on how I’m doing? Or am I being replaced?’ he asked, glancing at the old man. Cuthbert was probably in his early seventies, with a short mane of wind tousled white hair. His tall frame was bony, yet had probably been strong in his youth, and his restless eyes held a piercing intelligence.

  ‘I am here to make a number of assessments,’ Cuthbert announced, ‘on both the management of the school and the teaching standards.’

  ‘I see. Are you Edmoston Guild or Eastern Council?’

  ‘I’m retired,’ Cuthbert said with a small smile. ‘You might say I have been unofficially appointed to act as an independent observer by Lord Aubrey, but I will be reporting to the Edmoston Guild as well.’

  ‘When and how do you wish to begin?’ Jim asked. He knew that whilst the local Guild had no real jurisdiction over him, since he officially belonged to another Guild, they did need to vet him for the sake of the teenagers he was looking after. He couldn’t blame anyone for being anxious, as he was completely unknown and had no prior leadership experience. He was also glad the fact he hadn’t even formally completed his own schooling, was not common knowledge. The lack was deliberate since once accredited to full wizard status, different and more stringent rules applied. Each guild reserved the right to use the skills of those they had trained, for at least the first two years, post academy. For Jim that would mean having to leave this continent and lose all he had worked for, and the absence of his protection might actually endanger the friends he’d made.

  ‘I think a tour of the classrooms and general facilities would be a good place to start. Are we correct that you do not teach?’ Cuthbert asked.

  ‘You are.’

  ‘You have led melds of the students though. That was not teaching?’

  ‘I discovered that I had t
o teach Vako how to create a meld, so obviously none of the students had previously learned how to do that. However, in answer to your question, I had to undertake a number of large-scale structural repairs, for which I needed a meld of students to provide some of the power. That was indeed a useful learning exercise for them as a practical application of magic, but was not classroom tuition.’

  ‘What kind of things were you doing?’ Cuthbert asked curiously and watched Jim fish in his desk drawer and pull out a well-thumbed set of pages clipped together. ‘What is that?’

  ‘Vako presented me with this list of chores on my first day,’ Jim said and handed it over. He watched Cuthbert look through it closely, his eyebrows rising at the number of points and scale of the work it entailed. ‘It’s taking a while to work through.’

  Cuthbert handed it to Tobias who also examined it in surprise. Many items were ticked off, so achieving the projects on the list had not been disregarded, indeed, they appeared to have been given priority. A terse note “repair perimeter wall” would of course take considerably more time, preparation and effort than the next point “repair front gate”, which was not at all reflected in such a list.

  ‘I’d be interested to see some of these repairs as we come across them,’ Cuthbert said. ‘First, I’d like a tour of the classes in progress.’

  ‘Certainly. This way gentlemen.’ ‘Am love, can you stay in our quarters? I’d rather the inspectors didn’t see you,’ he said quickly on their private mental link. How these wizards would react seeing a pregnant student he didn’t want to know, especially when they would discover he was the father. That really had the potential to be a can of worms. Would they believe he’d crossed the teacher/student rules regarding relationships? He was supposed to set a good example, after all. The other factor of course, was that they would notice she was a very powerful wizard. He did not want to draw attention to her presence if he could help it. They would take control of her future if they could, regardless of her wishes.

  ‘No problem. I’m already there and wasn’t planning on running about anyway,’ she responded feeling about as svelte and athletic as a fat hog.

  ‘I think you’re beautiful,’ he assured quickly, noticing her discomfort. ‘It won’t be too much longer, remember, and then we’ll meet our child.’ He felt her spirits perk up and sent her his love before regretfully leaving her mind and turning his complete attention to his guests and the classroom he was about to enter.

  ‘I am sure you know our former Head, Wizard Vako. Vako, these gentlemen are conducting a school assessment,’ Jim explained and noticed the men were all quite acquainted with one another. He stood back and watched as Cuthbert and Tobias observed the class for a few minutes, examined some of the curriculum notes Vako was working from before nodding politely to Vako and heading for the door.

  Shortly, Tobias and Cuthbert had viewed each of the classes currently in progress within the house. Cuthbert made notes in a small pad he kept in his pocket from time to time, predominantly listing the teacher’s name, subject and class size. After morning tea break, Jim led them up to the training ground so they could view the students at work in the physical classes. These covered instruction in a wide variety of physical activities ranging from fitness athletics to many different combat disciplines and horsemanship. Jim knew the two men were surprised at just how many students were up here and the number of classes in progress, but the fields granted sufficient space and with so many animus students now, they had no shortage of students or adults willing to teach them. Jim watched them with satisfaction, aware that every class was a hive of disciplined activity.

  Taking Cuthbert and Tobias back via the stables and greenhouse, amply demonstrated some of the large-scale repair projects so pithily described on his To Do List, especially as they’d already seen the perimeter wall upgrades on their arrival. The two wizards stayed for lunch and viewed the afternoon classes too. Cuthbert declared the assessment complete when classes ended for the day.

  ‘You have done remarkably well in your position as Interim Headmaster,’ Cuthbert pronounced when they had retired to Jim’s office. ‘I will be forwarding my recommendation that your appointment be formally accepted by the Guild.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Jim said, immensely relieved and gratified in that recognition. He watched the two wizards depart with their escort, knowing that passing this independent inspection was a large milestone. He hoped the official confirmation of Cuthbert’s assessment was just a formality, and that no snags would crop up. He enjoyed being White Haven’s leader and it was reassuring to receive compliments of work well done.

  ***

  Ebony soon settled in to a routine now the small number of “vulnerable” refugees they had been expecting had arrived and were safely in their new homes. She went up to help at the school daily. She assisted the staff in many areas, as the need arose, but primarily kept an eye on Amelie. Jim was understandably busy during the day running the school. He could not spend as much time supervising Amelie’s well-being, as he might have liked in the last week of pregnancy. Amelie confided that in any case he fussed over her, fidgeted and was always up doing things. He was not remotely restful to be around when she was so uncomfortable and restless herself. Ebony on the other hand could sit peacefully sewing, or they could chat over other chores, so Amelie didn’t feel she was forcing someone else into idleness just to keep her company.

  They sat in on Max’s animus lessons when Amelie felt up to it. Ebony encouraged her to do that for a short time daily. The lessons were not taxing to observe, only actually in the application, but they served to distract Amelie from her cumbersome figure and were useful knowledge.

  ‘You’re only encouraging me to go to class so you can come with me and ogle Max,’ Amelie objected.

  ‘I must admit that’s a bonus,’ Ebony admitted. ‘However, I am animus you know; his lessons are relevant to me too. But the main reason is to get you out of your room and thinking about something other than your belly.’

  ‘I know. Ignore me, I’m just irritable today. I just wish it’d hurry up and be born so my body is my own again.’

  ‘It’s not going to be long now. You look ready to go into labour any time,’ Ebony told her, assessing her critically.

  ‘Good. Now spill the beans. You visit Max after classes don’t you?’ Amelie asked.

  ‘Sometimes,’ Ebony admitted casually. ‘He’s good company.’

  ‘He couldn’t take his eyes off you today and I’m sure he completely forgot what he was going to say next when you asked him a question in class,’ Amelie said gleefully. ‘Did something happen last night?’

  ‘We kissed,’ Ebony said and gazed absently out the window. She was smiling.

  ‘And?’

  ‘It was good, very good,’ Ebony amended, grinning happily. ‘But I think we shall have to practice some more.’

  Amelie laughed; Ebony’s humour and returning laughter caused them to set each other off for quite some minutes.

  ‘Ow, I’m getting a stitch in my side from all this,’ Amelie complained still trying to stop giggling. ‘Ah, maybe this isn’t a stitch,’ she said feeling a pain come again. She sat still for a few minutes, her attention turned inward and getting her mind around the realisation she was actually in labour. She stood up and her waters broke.

  ‘Well, you didn’t want to wait much longer,’ Ebony commented wryly. ‘Your little one seems just as impatient to be born too.’ She helped Amelie along to the small private room awaiting her in sickbay. Settling her into the bed, she watched the nurses judging how quickly the labour was progressing. ‘Have you had a child before?’

  ‘No. Why?’

  ‘You’re progressing quickly. You’d best call Jim if you want him to be here.’

  Jim arrived, breathless and anxious. He held Amelie’s hand and helped her through another contraction, automatically blocking her pain for her. ‘You could widen your pelvis,’ he suggested to her. ‘That would make it easier wouldn’t it?
’

  ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’ Amelie asked and hastily adjusted her frame before the next contraction hit her. Both she and the baby appreciated the reduction in the painful squeeze. Only three hours later her daughter was born.

  ‘She looks like a daisy,’ Amelie said, referring to the wispy halo of white hair on her daughter’s head.

  ‘That’s a nice name,’ Jim responded. The tip of his finger was in their daughter’s hand, her tiny fingers holding on to him with surprising strength. He was utterly entranced. ‘Hello Daisy,’ he whispered and the little eyes opened, seemed to see him before closing again.

  ‘Daisy it is then,’ Amelie confirmed smiling at her love before returning her attention to the new little person in her arms. Daisy was a part of her and Jim and she made them a family. ‘That’s your daddy you’re holding on to,’ she whispered to her daughter and stroked the soft round cheek.

  ‘Our daughter,’ Jim murmured meeting Amelie’s eyes. ‘Thank you my love,’ he whispered, overcome. Ushered out of the room by the medical staff he left them to sleep while he hurried off to spread the glad tidings to the crowd excitedly gathered just outside. Drako led the group whisking him off to celebrate properly.

  18. Bomb

  Ebony rushed into the animus classroom. ‘Max, hurry,’ she said and grabbed his hand drawing him out into the corridor and kicking the door closed.

  ‘What’s the matter?’ Max asked.

  ‘I think I just saw a bomb in Jim’s office. He wasn’t there,’ she added in a rush.

  ‘JIM!’ Max shouted, not knowing where else in the massive house he might be.

  ‘Are those your delicate tones, Max?’ Jim enquired appearing in Max’s head instantly. His amusement died. ‘A bomb? Where?’