by Dyan Chick
I took a breath and looked at Max. He nodded at me.
“I’m so sorry, sir. I’m afraid I wasn’t really listening to the conversation. I was daydreaming about sleep.”
He smiled at me, then started to laugh. Max joined in. Then Saffron. The whole table was laughing.
My face went scarlet.
Max placed a hand on my shoulder as he caught his breath. “I don’t think you need to worry about politics.”
I bristled at his comment. What had I been preparing for during my lessons if not politics? I was about to say as much when Max spoke again.
“Saffron? Can you take Etta to her room. I think she needs to get some rest.”
“As you wish, my lord,” Saffron said.
Her formal response caught me off guard after the embrace and kiss they shared earlier. I made a note to myself not to bring it up with anybody. If Saffron was hiding her relationship with Max, I didn’t want to get her in trouble.
Saffron showed me to a canvas tent with a bed roll. I bid her goodnight and closed the flap. Next to the bed roll was a trunk. I opened it to find all of my dresses and clothes neatly folded inside. I quickly changed into night clothes and gratefully crawled under the blanket.
I thought about everything I had been through. The world seemed bigger now. A week ago, I was a peasant girl, on track to become a seamstress. Now I was involved with rebels who wanted to overthrow the king and place a brother I never knew I had on the throne. Sir Henry’s words echoed through my mind. Don’t trust anybody.
10
The next morning when I peeked out of the flap of my tent, I saw the man I had seen yesterday with Max, sitting on a stump. His arms were crossed and he looked bored.
Yesterday I saw him only briefly but I was pretty sure it was the same person. He had shoulder length honey blonde hair and stood head and shoulders taller than me. I was surprised he looked to be near my age.
“About time you woke up.” He stood and dropped his arms to his side. “We’ve got things to do and I’m stuck with you all day.”
I tilted my head to get a better look at him. Though he was tall, he wasn’t very broad. Couldn’t be much of a fighter.
He raised an eyebrow at me and I noticed just how green his eyes were.
“Well?” he said.
I’d gotten used to people being overly nice to me. I didn’t know how to handle somebody who so clearly didn’t want to be around me. My heart sunk a little. So much for making friends. I blinked a few times. What does he want me to say?
He rolled his eyes. “You ready to go?”
I looked down at my dressing gown. “No. I’m not dressed.” I pulled the tent flap over my body.
He laughed. “Well, princess, you better get ready. Max gave us a list of things to do and we’re already behind.”
I dropped the tent flap back in place and stomped into the tent. Who was this man to speak to me like this? I dug through the trunk and found the least formal dress I owned. Riding clothes.
“All right,” I called as I pushed my way through the tent flaps. “Let’s go do this important stuff that Max wants us to do.”
Without any other comment, he turned from me and started to walk away. I shook my head and followed him. Max’s comment from last night came back to me. I was supposed to be acting like a princess.
“You know,” I shouted up to him, “you aren’t making me feel very welcome.”
He stopped and spun around. “I’m so sorry, your majesty. I’m sorry you don’t feel special.”
“I’m sorry I’m taking you away from whatever important dish washing duties you might have, but -“
“Dish washing! Ha! You don’t know what you are talking about.” He stepped up to me and leaned down so our noses were almost touching. “I’m a sorcerer. And I’m taking my test in two weeks. I should be spending this time studying or practicing or working with Max. Instead, the whole camp has been obsessed with your arrival and I’ve missed out on days of training. That would be bad enough as it is, but now I have to baby-sit you all day!”
My face was hot. I didn’t ask for any of this. “Hey!” I said. “I didn’t ask for your help. You can go do your magic tricks and I can take care of myself.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Magic tricks?” He shook his head. “You have obviously never seen a true sorcerer in action before. As for taking care of yourself.” He shook his head.
“I’ll be fine on my own!” I lifted my chin and started to walk away from him. How am I suppose to spend the day with this person? He is insufferable. I shouldn’t have to put up with this. Maybe I could find Saffron, I was sure she’d understand. Maybe she would be just as irritated by him as I was.
“How’d that work out for you before?” he asked. “The taking care of yourself thing. I heard about the guards at the tavern. And the road. What if it’s Reapers next?”
I stopped walking. My shoulders sunk. He was right. I don’t know how to take care of myself.
“Fine. Let’s get this over with and then you can go pull rabbits out of hats.”
He pushed past me, back on the original path we had started down without saying a word. I rolled my eyes at his back and followed.
He is the most irritating person I have ever met in my life. “Where’s Saffron? Or my brother? Can’t they show me around?”
“They’re busy,” he said.
“So they needed to keep you distracted?” I asked.
He glared at me. “No. For some reason, they felt like you were important enough to be in the care of a sorcerer.”
“Are you actually a sorcerer if you haven’t passed your test?” This time I was genuinely curious, and I used a softer tone. This man and Max were the first sorcerers I had ever met.
He sighed. “No, not officially. I’ve been training with your brother for 10 years.”
A pang of jealousy shot through me. He had spent the last 10 years with the brother I just found out about. “How did you become his apprentice?”
He gave me a sidelong glance. “That’s a long story.” He turned away from me for a moment then stopped walking. “Look, I’m supposed to give you a tour and show you around. I’m going to do it because I always do what Max asks me to do. And because I agree with him, you need protection.”
“Fine.” It was pretty clear he didn’t want to waste time getting to know me. Looking around I realized we were standing in the space where we had eaten dinner last night.
He lifted an open hand and gestured to the middle of the space in front of us. “This is the common area. You probably already figured that out. We eat meals here and have meetings here or do anything that involves the whole camp.”
The common area seemed to be the heart of the camp. People came from all directions to walk through it and there were worktables set out on the outside of the clearing. I saw a man working on a cart, hammering away at a wheel. Two children were sitting next to a woman weaving on a large loom. They were braiding strips of fabric at her feet. I heard a loud clanging sound and looked for the source of the noise.
“That’s the blacksmith. He has a little work area set up right behind those trees.” He pointed toward the sound.
“Hey, Ashton!” called a stocky man who looked to be only a little older than my guide. “Want to introduce us?” He stopped in front of me and gave a bow. After the way I had been treated this morning, I was taken aback.
“Your name’s Ashton?” I asked, suddenly feeling foolish for not asking sooner.
“Never introduced himself, huh?” the newcomer said to me. “He’s got no manners. Orphaned, raised by -“
“That’s enough, Micah,” Ashton said through gritted teeth.
Micah pressed his mouth into a tight line. He took a step backward, as if he was afraid of Ashton.
I was impressed by Ashton’s ability to quiet him so quickly. Micah was solid muscle and looked like a fighter. Ashton was tall and lanky, he didn’t look like he’d ever lifted a sword. I nodded my head in
greeting at Micah. “Nice to meet you.”
He smiled at me. “It’s nice to finally meet you. We weren’t sure if we’d get to meet you of if you were going to be traveling outside the kingdom right away.”
My heart sunk. I didn’t like the reminder of my upcoming diplomatic missions. “It was nice talking with you, Micah. However, Ashton and I have some things to do. Maybe I’ll see you again later?”
Micah shifted his footing uncomfortably. “Um, yes, princess. Later.” He gave an awkward bow and walked away.
“I should have let him keep talking to you,” Ashton smirked. “But we finally found something we have in common. I was just as happy to get away as you were. There’s just something about Micah that makes me uncomfortable. Besides, I hate small talk.”
No kidding. I still wasn’t ready to let go of the earlier argument. I bit my lip to keep my smile from spreading.
“Come on.” He was serious again. “Let’s see the rest of the camp.”
“So, Ashton,” I said.
He glanced at me. “Yes, my name is Ashton.”
“I’m -”
“-Etta, I know.” He didn’t look at me as he walked.
I flinched. The new name didn’t sound right coming from him. “I’d rather you call me Wilona.”
He stopped and narrowed his eyes then softened them. He smirked. “Okay, Wilona.”
We spent the next several hours visiting the different areas of the camp. The stables, the aviary, the gardens. There was even a chicken coop. The camp was larger and more organized than I would have guessed based on the location in the middle of the woods.
“Where did all of these people come from?” I asked.
“You mean, how did they come to join the Ravens?”
I nodded. “There’s so many people here. Old, young, men, women. So many different trades and skills.”
“The king has created a lot of enemies. Well, his guardsmen have, at least. Most people who seek us out have lost something. Homes, loved ones, children. Or they’ve seen the horror that the king puts his own people through. The original Ravens were made up of soldiers who fought for your father. They grew from there.”
I sat down on a fallen log and rested my chin in my hands. “Tell me more.” I felt like a child asking for another bedtime story.
He sat down on the other end of the log. “Well, there’s a lot to tell. I’m not sure where to start.”
“How about how you got here?” I suggested.
“That’s kind of personal, don’t you think?” His previously self assured attitude was gone.
I struck a nerve. “I’m guessing you know more about me than I know about myself.” I shrugged. “Seems fair that I should know something about you.”
He sighed. “You aren’t going to drop this, are you?”
I flashed my best sweet smile. “Nope.”
He relented. “Okay, but the short version. Here goes. I was living in a boy’s home with the Sisters of the Blossoms. When the Battle of the Dead happened, the home was in the path of the fighting. I don’t remember much, but from what I was told, few of the children survived. Those of us who did were taken in by a knight of the Aqualine army. He was one of the founders of the Ravens. So, basically, I grew up here, in these woods.”
My heart softened toward Ashton as I heard this story. It wasn’t very different than my own. I knew what it was like to be an orphan.
We sat in awkward silence for a few moments. Ashton cleared his throat. I looked over to see him stand up quickly.
“We better be moving on,” he said, keeping his voice flat and unemotional.
As much as I wanted to keep asking questions, or even try to comfort him, I knew it was time to get going. Any small connection I felt was in my head. Ashton had no intention of getting to know me. I stood and brushed the tree bark from the back of my skirt.
“Lead on,” I said, doing my best to sound bored.
Our tour concluded with a walk to the battle headquarters of the Ravens. We walked past a large tent that was my brother’s quarters. Most of the major meetings regarding strategy were held there. Then I was led to the weapons training center. A series of fenced in spaces set in clearings among the trees acted as outdoor training grounds for different weapons. One space for sword, a range for archery, an enclosure set up with obstacles for close quarters training. Ashton led me past the training spaces into the woods. We stopped in the small clearing where I had first met him and Max.
“This is where we come to practice sorcery,” he said, “figure you might want to know where it is since Max spends a lot of time here.” He headed back through the trees, and I followed him away from the sorcery area, doubting I’d have a reason to know where it was.
Ashton let me wander around the area on my own while he talked with a man who was sharpening swords. I wandered to the archery area and ran my fingers over the arrows filling a barrel. Hanging on a tree nearby were several different sized bows. I touched the smooth wood and wondered what it would be like to shoot one.
I thought back to the tavern where I had felt so helpless. I didn’t want to ever feel that way again. I need to learn to fight.
“Etta!”
I froze. My new name felt unfamiliar in my ears. Guess I’ll have to get used to it. I spun around.
My brother stood in front of me. He was smiling but the smile didn’t reach his eyes.
“Have you shot one before?” He nodded toward the bows.
I shook my head. “No. I don’t really know anything about weapons.”
“Saffron told me you expressed an interest in learning how to fight.”
I tucked my hair behind my ears. “Yes, that’s right.” I glanced at the bows hanging on the tree. “It’s just those men in the tavern made me feel so helpless.”
He held up a hand. “I get it. I happen to think it’s a great idea.”
I smiled. “Really?”
He nodded at me. “Think about what you’d like to study. We’ll get you started on weapons training tomorrow. I already have plans for you this afternoon.”
“What plans?” I asked. Please don’t stick me with Ashton again.
“You’re with me after lunch,” he said as he started to walk away. “We’ll see if you have any skills in magic.”
11
I stood in the center of the clearing across from Max. Both of my hands were resting in his. I looked up at his relaxed expression. His eyes were closed. We had been standing like this for several long minutes. I risked a glance to my left where Ashton sat watching us. His eyes caught my glance and he flashed an amused expression at me. I looked away quickly, feeling my cheeks redden. Somehow, Max was trying to determine if I had any magic. Butterflies filled my stomach as I waited. Did he expect me to have magic? Would he be disappointed if I didn’t have any magic? What happened if I did?
I took a deep breath in just as Max let go of my hands. They dropped to my sides and I stood there afraid to move.
He opened his eyes and took a step back, then frowned at me. “There’s magic in there somewhere. But it’s not what I’m used to, and I don’t know if we will be able to release it. You should have been trained when you were younger. It might be too late.”
I have magic? Relief washed through me, followed by confusion. How had I gone my whole life with magic inside me? Wouldn’t I have known? I thought back to my life in the little cottage. Nothing interesting ever happened to me. Then again, I didn’t know anything about magic. Maybe nothing was supposed to happen, especially if I was somehow different. “What do you mean - it’s not what you’re used to?”
He pulled a metal ring out of a crate on the side of the clearing. Tossing it to me he said, “It means that I have never felt magic like yours.”
I caught the ring and looked down at it. It was just a simple metal ring. Nothing special or unique about it. I stared through the ring, not able to concentrate on it. Instead, I was lost in thought. Where had this magic come from?
As if he knew what I was thinking, he continued. “Magic runs deep in our family. Most of the members of our family had at least a little bit of magic. It’s a shame you weren’t hidden with a noble family. Noble children used to take lessons to see if they could channel it. They’d teach them little things, see if anything stuck. Any child that demonstrated true power would be given more in depth training as they got older. If they wanted to, they could continue to the sorcerer level.”
“So this is something that our parents could do?”
Max shook his head. “I’m not sure what they could do because they were never trained as sorcerers. It’s possible they had they ability but chose not to follow that path.”
I absentmindedly flipped the ring over in my hands. What I wouldn’t give to have one conversation with my parents. If they had studied magic, would they still be alive? “So this is what makes the king so strong. Why he was able to defeat our father.”
Max nodded. “That is why learning how to control magic is the most important skill we have. Every person who joins the Ravens is tested to see if they have magic that they can learn to channel.”
“Does that mean we have a lot of sorcerers?”
“So far,” Max said, “Ashton is the only one who has shown a natural aptitude. It seems that while magic might be common, being able to control it is rare.”
I looked down at the ring and gasped. It was no longer in my hands. It was floating above me. I jumped, causing the ring to clatter to the ground.
Max smiled at me. “You just passed the test.”
I looked from Max’s broad smile to Ashton. He was staring at me with his mouth hanging open. The look of surprise sent a jolt of pride through me. Guess you’re not so special, after all.
The rest of the afternoon was spent trying to get me to move the ring from one side of the clearing to the other without touching it. It had been hours and Max was losing his patience with me. The only way I could get the ring to move was if I was holding it. Then I could get it to glide across the space and land softly on the ground. It wouldn’t budge if I wasn’t touching it to begin with.