I flopped out of my nest to stand in front of her. "Yesterday, when Bloodstone handed me my scroll, he gloated so much he almost broke his face."
Her orange wings began to unfurl. "That is extraordinarily disrespectful, Zaria. Being named Violet seems to have gone to your head. You and Leona had better---"
"Tell me why Bloodstone would be so happy about Lily Morganite!" I interrupted.
"What?"
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Beryl's knees folded, and her wings failed to catch her. She fell into my nest!
Confused, I watched her fight for control. On the fourth try, she managed to heave herself out of the nest, but she didn't stay upright. She sat on the edge.
"Beryl?"
"Lily Morganite," she said tremulously. "Your mentor? I do not believe it."
I scooped up the scroll from the nook beside my nest and held it out to her.
Magic Mentor for Zaria Tourmaline: Lily Morganite Report to 3750 Morganite Towers in Oberon City.
"It cannot be." Beryl's wings flapped convulsively. "What am I to do?" She seemed to be talking to herself. "Oh, Cinna, what can I do?"
Cinna. My mother's name.
Beryl sighed so deeply it sounded like a sob. "Zaria, this is not something I can help you with. Mentor assignments are decided by the Council, and they do not consult your teachers. Mr. Bloodstone could not bring this about. He is not part of the Council, much as he would like to be." She straightened a little and seized my wrist. "Listen to me. You must not ever discuss personal matters with Lily Morganite. Nothing, do you understand? If she asks about your parents, tell her you do not remember them. Same with Jett. Are you listening?"
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I had never listened more closely to anyone.
"Do not let her get the best of you," she went on. "Do not let her lull you into revealing a single thing about yourself." Her grip on my wrist was painfully tight.
"Why? Who is she?" I tried to pulled away, and Beryl finally let go.
"She is diabolical." Beryl covered her face with both hands. I'd never heard her label anyone that way.
Her hands dropped into her lap like two dead birds. "Lily Morganite is all the more dangerous," she went on, "because she has the other Council members fooled."
"Fooled?" I heard myself asking.
"Fooled into thinking she has the best interests of Feyland at heart. Ha! She pretends to care so much." She looked me in the eye. "This assignment as your mentor must be her doing, Zaria."
"But why would she want to be my mentor?" I asked after an awkward silence.
Beryl swallowed hard. "You are Violet, and now she wants you in her clutches." How pitiful she looked, collapsed on the edge of my nest, her orange wings quaking against the pillows, her face haggard and drawn. "Promise you will not tell her anything at all about you, your parents, your brother, your friends, your life."
I promised.
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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
THE ANCIENT DURABLE SPELLS MUST BE REFRESHED WITH LARGE AMOUNTS OF RADIA FROM TIME TO TIME, OR THEY BEGIN TO LOSE THEIR POWER.
ALL FAIRIES AND GENIES WHO REGISTER ABOVE RED ARE REQUIRED TO PAY A RADIA TAX TO HELP SUPPORT THE DURABLE SPELLS. THE TAX IS COLLECTED AND DISPENSED BY THE FORCIER OF FEYLAND.
ONLY THE MOST HONORABLE AMONG FAIRIES AND GENIES MAY BECOME A FORCIER.
--Orville Gold, genie historian of Feyland
Beryl gave me directions to Morganite Towers. "And do not be put off your guard by its beauty."
"I'm not a baby."
But looking at the graceful spires of Morganite Towers, I had to admit it was hard to believe a diabolical fairy could be living there. I flew up to the thirty-seventh floor at the top, alighting on the balcony marked 3750, and tapped on the door. When it opened, I found myself unable to breathe.
Standing in a shimmering white gown was the fairy I had seen on my visit to the viewing station--the godmother
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who had given such a bad gift to her human godchild.
Up close, her pink skin was flawless, and every one of her saffron hairs was smooth. Her white wings hung soft and still. "Zaria Tourmaline?" She enunciated my name clearly. Her voice was unusual--sweet and light, yet it grated on my ears.
The scent of lilies washed over me as I nodded. I exhaled, sounding like a whistling teakettle.
"I am Lily Morganite." Pearly eyes ran over me. "Come in, child." She extended an arm, and I saw the imposing ruby carved with the crest of Oberon sparkling on her wrist as she led the way into a lofty dwelling.
Perches filled with embroidered pillows lined the walls. Books and ornaments rested on shelves high above exotic carpets. I could imagine sitting on the wide window ledges to look out over the city.
"May I offer you sonnia juice?" my mentor asked.
"No, thank you."
"As you wish. I am glad to see you are ready to begin." She flitted up to a perch and patted the pillows next to her. "The first thing we will do is put your registry into your new spellbook."
I sat beside her, but as far away as good manners would allow. I decided I didn't like the scent of lilies, a scent that seemed to be intensifying.
My mentor brought out a large heavy-looking book with a pink cover. She laid it in her lap. "Your spellbook."
I hated that book on sight. My spellbook should be light
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as air and blue, like my mother's. I opened my mouth to ask if we could study Cinna Tourmaline's spellbook instead, but then closed it again. Beryl had warned me not to mention my family!
Lily asked for my record of registry. Fumbling in my gown, I brought it out and I handed it to her. Zaria Tourmaline, Registered Level 100, full Violet.
She examined it. "You are very fortunate to be Violet. You will have the chance to practice many spells."
I looked at her warily as she spread glue on the back of the document. "I could do an adhesion spell," she said, "but I want to set a good example, so I will not waste radia." She opened the book and pressed my registry onto the first page.
I laced my fingers together to keep from fidgeting. "How are mentors chosen?"
"By the wisdom of the High Council," Lily said too quickly. "We discuss each new assignment together. And because you are Violet, we needed someone especially well qualified to train you."
"Qualified?"
She measured me with her eyes. "I have served on the High Council for ninety years, working for the good of the land." I thought of Beryl's words. She pretends to care so much. "And," she continued, "I am Blue. Level One Hundred. So you see, I have much to teach you."
Level 100 meant Lily Morganite could do any spell I
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could do. And she probably knew a thousand spells I'd never heard of.
She handed me the book as if it were made of delicate spun glass. When I took it, it felt like a load of lead.
"This is one of the most important days in your life--the day you begin the study of magic. Remember, spell books and their contents are secret. Guard your book closely and never discuss it with anyone but me. It will belong to you, but you will keep it here, until you are ready to practice magic without my supervision."
"Supervision? But--"
"Zaria, I know you have already broken laws."
Of course she knew. She'd reported it.
"The Council cannot risk a high-level Violet running amok," Lily continued. "As your mentor, I am responsible for you. Therefore, you are not to practice magic of any kind without my permission." She gave me a metal stylus with a sharpened tip. "This pen is designed to engrave the pages of your spellbook. Begin by signing your name."
Rolling the strange pen between my fingers, I felt suddenly tired. I put down the pen and hefted the book without opening it. "Why is it so heavy?"
"It is made of an unusual alloy," she said. "I will explain later. Sign your book, child. We have a great deal to do."
I opened the book. "What will I learn first?"
"How
to control the level of magic you put in your wand."
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I wasn't going to let her know that Beryl had already taught me to control the level of magic in my wand. I picked up the pen again and rubbed my hand across my eyes, then sat a little straighter, trying to shake off a desire to sleep.
"No one informed me you were a slow student," Lily said. "Please sign your book, Zaria."
I put the pen to the page, but I was seized with an overwhelming feeling that if I set my name there, I would become forever less than I was now.
Beryl's quiet words boomed inside my head. "She wants you in her clutches."
I let the pen drop and shoved the spellbook from my lap. It fell, landing with a thud on the carpeted floor, its pages splayed like a broken fan.
Lily's pearly eyes went wide. "What is wrong with you?"
"Too heavy." My tongue felt thick and fuzzy. I reached for my strength, but it seemed faded and far away.
I had to get out.
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CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
ONLY THE ANCIENT LANGUAGE IS CAPABLE OF CONDUCTING THE MAGIC NEEDED FOR ADVANCED SPELLS. TO CAST EFFECTIVE ENCHANTMENTS, PARTICULAR SPELLS MUST BE CAREFULLY MEMORIZED, WORD BY ANCIENT WORD.
--Orville Gold, genie historian of Feyland
In clumsy haste, I threw myself onto Lily's balcony. I felt as if I had to break through a sticky web fastened to my wings, but I lifted off and spun dizzily away from Morganite Towers.
Weak and slow, caught in a gummy haze, I flew, expecting to be overtaken at any moment by my horrible mentor. Then my wings began to fail. I drifted downward, unable to stop myself.
Spotting the azure fronds of some bannerite bushes in a garden far below, I aimed for them, hoping they would break my fall. Tumbling and rolling, I crashed through the bushes and hit the ground. I lay half-stunned, staring through a tangle of twiglike branches at the sky. Fronds of bannerite tickled my face.
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Bannerite is famous for its soft, pretty leaves, but they are terribly bitter. If a bannerite twig so much as touches the tongue, it fills the mouth with an acrid taste. I closed my lips tightly.
What was happening?
Lily Morganite must have put a spell on me. Nothing else could explain the way I felt.
I drew out my wand and infused it with as much magic as it would hold. I gazed dully at the glowing seam along the black stylus, trying to think.
Oh, how I wanted to sleep.
"Don't sleep," I murmured. I had to reverse the enchantment. But how?
If only I had my mother's book. There must be a spell to take away the foul magic that seemed to be coating my thoughts as well as my wings. There must be!
I felt even more tired, my mind more thickly clouded. I lay still, and hopelessness crept into my heart. My arms felt stiff as stone.
I laid the tip of my wand against my aching forehead. "Undo it," I muttered. "Undo any spells on me."
My hand flopped to the ground, and I lay unmoving.
I took a full breath. The bannerite close to my nose smelled pungent. My wings had relaxed, and my head was clearing. I could feel my power thrumming again.
Either my makeshift spell had worked or Lily's spell had expired.
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It was probably Lily's spell that had expired. Everyone knew it was impossible to work magic using ordinary words. If common words could conduct magic, fey folk would cast spells by accident.
What should I do now? I was in deep trouble. I had offended a powerful fairy.
A diabolical fairy.
I didn't want to go out and face Feyland, but I didn't want to stay in the bannerite bushes, either. I wanted to disregard the advice in my mother's book and cast a long-lasting invisibility spell on myself. That way, I wouldn't have to worry about Lily Morganite ever again. Tempting as it was, I knew it would be very foolish, so I put my wand away and crept out of the bannerite. Carefully, I dusted myself off and checked my wings. They were bruised but otherwise unharmed.
After several big sighs, I decided to look for Leona. She understood the world of grown fairies better than I. Maybe she'd know of a way to change mentors.
The first fairy I asked told me that Leona's mentoring sessions were held inside the FOOM dome. "As befits a Violet ..."
When I got to the dome, a crowd hovered in the courtyard. I dove to the front, heedless of any wings I might ruffle. The fairies and genies I jostled got huffy; a blue-faced fairy scolded me: "No manners, no elegance . . . backward parents . . . uppity . . ." Her voice sounded like hammers striking granite.
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I held my position, but it didn't matter. When Leona emerged, the crowd rushed forward, and I lost my place.
"Any truth to the rumor that, Magistria Lodestone is your mentor, Leona?" the blue-faced fairy screeched.
"Has the Council let you know what they have in mind for you?" yelled a red-haired genie.
Questions spattered from all sides.
Leona just smiled. "Naturally, I can't reveal who my mentor is," she said when she could be heard. "And I'm much too young for the Council to consult me about anything."
I'd never needed her friendship more, and I couldn't even talk to her without an audience. If I showed myself, she would probably introduce me to the crowd as her sister in Violetness.
I edged sideways through the tangle of fairies and genies until the curve of the dome could hide me. Then I spread my wings and headed for Galena.
Maybe I could find Andalonus or Meteor. But if I did, how could they help me? Andalonus would make light of my troubles unless I told him the entire story, but telling him the entire story would be risky because he wasn't good at keeping secrets. And Meteor would disapprove of everything I'd done since my first visit to Earth, especially performing an advanced spell before I'd had any sessions with my mentor.
Disconsolate, I drifted home. But instead of going through the front door, I lifted the latch on my mother's window. I wanted to read more of her spellbook.
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The instant I stepped into her room, I knew something was different. Outwardly, nothing appeared to be disturbed. The pillows were arranged just as I'd left them, all the cupboards neatly shut. But a scent hung faintly in the air.
Lilies.
The first thing I did was rush to open the cupboard that held my mother's book. It was empty.
My wings trembled like petals in a strong wind. "Beryl must have put it away for safekeeping," I told myself, not believing my own words. "She must have."
I opened the door. Murmuring voices drifted up from downstairs. I recognized Beryl's tones, and I was afraid I recognized Lily's, too. I closed the door softly and went back out the window.
Entering by the front way, I saw Beryl with Lily Morganite.
Beryl sat scrunched on her perch. "Zaria," she said flatly when she saw me. "We have a guest."
Lily sat upright on the threadbare pillows of our highest perch, which was only a wingspan off the floor.
She gave me an aloof stare. "I have told your guardian about your rudeness earlier."
"What are you doing in Galena?" I burst out.
"Our guest is not only a councilor but also your mentor," Beryl said. "She can pass through the gateway if she sees fit."
"Not a very courteous greeting, Zaria." Lily had the air of someone who knew she could expect nothing better
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from me, but her voice was sweet. "Miss Danburite tells me she cannot understand why you would forget your manners. Prove her right. Apologize."
I wanted to scream the question that ran through my mind like a furious gremlin: Did you steal my mother's spellbook?
"Come now," Lily went on. "No shame in apologies when you have done something wrong."
"I'm sorry, Councilor Morganite ...," I began.
A smile spread over her face.
"I'm sorry, but I don't want you as my mentor."
The smile vanished. Lily's eyes narrowed. "I have not consented to m
entor anyone for over fifty years. You should be honored." She rounded on Beryl. "Although you could not be expected to know you were raising a Violet, Miss Danburite, you ought to have instilled better manners in Zaria."
"But--"Beryl said.
"Under your guidance, she seems to believe she is a law unto herself," Lily said, waving a finger at Beryl. "I see it will be up to me to educate her. And I am sorry, but I must inform the other Council members about this wayward child."
Beryl began to sputter. "Why you ... inform the Council... you cannot ..."
"Certainly I can," Lily answered, smiling coldly. She rose. She swept up to me and put her face close to mine.
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"Remember, there are penalties for discussing your spellbook with anyone but me."
I was close to calling out that she was a liar, and that she'd enchanted me for no reason, and that I'd never let her come near me again. But I didn't speak.
I watched her as she left. She was carrying a pink bag. It had a bulge the size and shape of my mother's spellbook.
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CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
BAD-TEMPERED FAIRIES AND GENIES HAVE PLAYED AN ESTABLISHED ROLE IN FEY HISTORY. WHEN ANGERED, THEIR VENGEANCE OFTEN TAKES THE FORM OF MALICIOUS ENCHANTMENTS, CAST NOT ONLY UPON HUMANS BUT ALSO UPON FEY FOLK UNFORTUNATE ENOUGH TO OFFEND THEM. ALAS, ONE DESPICABLE DEED BY A WICKED FAIRY OR GENIE RECEIVES MORE ATTENTION THAN COUNTLESS ACTS OF GENEROSITY BY GOOD-TEMPERED FEY FOLK, IT IS UNWISE TO ANGER A POWERFUL FAIRY OR GENIE.
--Orville Gold, genie historian of Feyland
Five years ago, I had lost my mother. I couldn't bear to lose her legacy now. Before Beryl could say a word, I flew out the door. Skimming into the sonnia field, I ducked down among the lush red flowers.
"Verita sil nos mertos elemen." Invisible, I hurtled after Lily.
I had to find out for sure what was in the pink bag. Once she got it safely back to Morganite Towers, I'd have no chance.
But how could I take it from her? I was gaining on Lily, but what could I do when I reached her? If I so much as
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