Apprentice Cat: Toby's Tale Book 1 (Master Cat Series)

by Virginia Ripple

  “It’s a wonder you were chosen,” scolded Adele as she paced to the mirror. “Given the scant information you included in your letter I wasn’t sure you had been. Really, Toby, a letter?”

  “I’m sorry, mother, but things have been chaotic here.”

  “As if I don’t remember what it was like as an apprentice: running from the Commons to the classroom and back until you managed to drag yourself half-asleep to your room. I trust you’re managing to stay on top of your studies, at least.”

  “Mostly,” murmured Toby.

  “Mostly?”

  Toby cursed himself silently. His mother’s ears were just as sharp through the mirror as in person, it seemed.

  “Yes, mother, we’ve had a few late starts. Nothing to worry about.”

  “I suppose. They do give apprentices more leeway than hopefuls, but that’s no reason to start being lazy.”

  “Ummm. About that… I’m not exactly fully apprenticed yet.”

  “What do you mean: not exactly fully apprenticed yet?” Adele asked, her eyes narrowing.

  “Well, I’ve been chosen, yes, but it’s… ummm…”

  The queen’s tail tapped rhythmically as she waited. Toby looked down at his paws. He could hear the gentle scratching of the housekeeper’s scrub brush. Just get it over with. The orange tom took a deep breath.

  “I’m on provisional status,” he said in a rush.

  “Provisional status,” repeated his mother, enunciating each syllable. She sat, tapping her tail, glowering at the young tom. Toby sat motionless. Several moments passed. Suddenly his mother seemed to deflate. She closed her eyes and sighed.

  “I guess provisional status is better than nothing. Were you at least partnered with someone who could help you improve your magic?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Oh, Toby,” Adele said, shaking her head. “Who?”

  “Lorn Ribaldy.”

  In a flash his mother looked twice her normal size. Her eyes glowed. Mariam, who had been studiously ignoring them, hastily dropped her scrub brush in her bucket and scurried out the door. Toby was thankful for the solid mirror between himself and Adele.

  “That traitor’s nephew? How could they?” she stormed. “It’s sabotage. That’s what it is. If he’s like his uncle he couldn’t magic himself out of a woodshed let alone carry the weight of being a master mage.”

  “Mother,” said Toby, watching her pace stiff-legged in front of the mirror.

  “Why would they do such a thing after what that snake did? I’ll just have to speak to someone about this.”

  “Mother,” he said a little louder.

  “No. I can’t do that. No one would listen to me. Master O’dorn. Yes, he can talk to someone at the High Council. They know what happened. Surely they wouldn’t want a Ribaldy at the academy.”

  “Mother,” shouted Toby.

  “Don’t worry, son,” Adele continued, turning to sit and face the orange tom. “I’m sure we can fix this.”

  “Mother, please. There’s nothing to fix.”

  “Toby, you don’t understand. You can’t trust a Ribaldy.”

  “Lorn isn’t his uncle.”

  “Can he do magic?”

  “Sure,” he temporized.

  “By that I assume you mean he can do magic, but not very well.”

  “Something like that.”

  “Toby, do you know why Master Kiyoshi was partnered with Hecktor Ribaldy?”

  “Master Jalen said it was because they had unique talents that complimented each other.”

  “That’s putting it nicely,” growled Adele. “Master Jalen has always down-played the differences between master mages and master cats, especially in their case. The truth is Master Kiyoshi kept Hecktor from blowing everything to kingdom come with his wild experiments.”

  “Oh.”

  “Yes. Oh. And now you’re partnered with his nephew.”

  Toby wasn’t sure what to say. He couldn’t tell his mother about the exploding homework or how things Lorn had carefully laid out for class at night went missing every morning. He didn’t want to broach the real reason for the call now. Asking about his father’s disappearance after his mother’s outburst seemed like asking for trouble. Yet, he needed that information. Bracing himself for more ranting, he decided to steer the conversation in the direction he needed.

  “Actually, mother, I didn’t call to talk about Lorn. I wanted to ask you a question about Father.”

  “What about your father?”

  “I wanted to know about the mission he went on before he disappeared.”

  “Why do you want to know about that?” asked Adele, voice low, ears flat to her head.

  “I was just curious,” answered Toby, trying to look innocent.

  “Curiosity is a bad thing. Forget it. You need to concentrate on your studies so you can become a full apprentice.”

  “But—”

  “Leave it alone, Toby.” The image of his mother shattered, leaving the young tom staring at his own reflection again.

  Toby and Lorn were racing to the Commons for lunch the next day when he spotted Master O’dorn exiting the Administration Building.

  “You go ahead. I’ll see you in class,” he shouted to Lorn, turning to intercept the old mage. The orange tom raced toward his old friend.

  “Master O’dorn,” said Toby as he skidded to a halt beside him.

  “Apprentice Toby, what an unexpected surprise.” The master mage smiled.

  “I’m glad you’re here. I need to speak with you.”

  “I suspected as much. Young cats don’t usually rush to meet me on a whim.”

  “I’m sure you’ve heard about my conversation with mother.”

  The old mage nodded. Toby wondered what his mother had said. Master O’dorn’s smile was sympathetic.

  “Did she ask you to come here?”

  “Yes, she did.”

  “So you’ve spoken to the head masters?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Does that mean Lorn and I won’t be partnered anymore?”

  “Is that what you want, Toby?”

  The young tom cocked his head to the side, wondering what it would be like to be partnered with a mage who didn’t blow things up and randomly set things on fire. Things would certainly be simpler. Still, he and Lorn had a connection, a shared mystery they both wanted to solve.

  “No.”

  “Are you sure? You realize how much more difficult it will be to move beyond provisional status with a mage such as Apprentice Lorn.”

  “I know, but I think Lorn and I can be a good team. Once he starts focusing on the lessons at hand and stops trying to twist them before we’ve learned how, that is.”

  “If he’s anything like his uncle, that’s not likely to happen.” The man gazed into the sky, a smile quirking his lips. Toby waited for him to reply. Master O’dorn looked back down at the young cat when Toby cleared his throat.

  “Did you know Master Ribaldy well?”

  “Well enough.”

  “Mother didn’t cast him in a very favorable light.”

  “That is because she blames Hecktor for your father’s disappearance.”

  “Is he to blame?”

  The old mage gazed down at the young tom in silence. A light breeze tugged at the master mage’s cloak and ruffled Toby’s fur. He stared up at the old man, willing him to say something. He gestured for Toby to walk with him toward a bench at the coach stop.

  “In a way, yes.”

  “But there’s more to it, isn’t there? Mother was furious when she found out I’d been partnered with Master Ribaldy’s nephew. I know it was more than just her worrying about me being held back by a second-rate mag
e. She was scared. Why?”

  “Tell me how much you know about your father’s secret mission,” said Master O’dorn, easing himself onto the stone bench. Toby leaped up beside him.

  “I know he was sent by the High Council to gather information about something. Mother was very upset about it all.”

  “Upset is a mild way of putting it. Your mother was beside herself. She didn’t understand why the High Council chose Victor out of all the possible loners and partners available.”

  The old mage sighed and rubbed his forehead between his thumb and fingers. Staring past the surrounding buildings, he folded his hands in his lap. Toby waited patiently.

  “I wanted to tell her, but he swore me to secrecy,” he murmured. The master mage looked down at the young cat. His eyes glistened. He reached out a trembling hand and stroked Toby’s head.

  “Your father was a very special cat. Brave and loyal beyond anything I’d known. It was his idea to go on the mission, not the High Council’s. They needed someone to gather information on a particular ring of shadow arts marketers. They were going to send partners, but your father talked them around to sending him instead. He reasoned a loner would attract less attention and could get in and out before the criminals knew what he was doing.”

  Toby gaped at the man. All this time he’d heard his mother’s side of the story, that the High Council didn’t respect loners, that they considered them to be dispensable.

  “Why didn’t he tell her?”

  “For the same reason you aren’t going to tell her you’ve been given a special mission.”

  He felt his fur fluff. His heart began beating rapidly. How had the old mage found out?

  “Relax, little friend,” said Master O’dorn. “It is simple deduction on my part. Since you are not a cat prone to seeking abuse, there could be only one reason you would risk your mother’s wrath on the very same question you now ask me.”

  The young cat opened his mouth to explain, but shut it again when the old mage motioned for him to be silent.

  “I won’t ask and I don’t wish you to tell me. Whatever the reason for this mission, I trust your instincts as I trusted your father’s. Now, what more can I tell you?”

  “Do you know where father went or who he contacted?”

  “He was sent to Hielberg County. I’m afraid I don’t know who he may have contacted once he was there. You see, the High Council agreed that the details of such a dangerous mission shouldn’t be known by everyone. Instead we decided that only the loner going and a single representative should be privy to all the information until the ring was brought down.”

  “And that representative was?” the tom asked, barely breathing.

  The master mage gazed down at the young cat in silence. He was reminded for a moment of his mother. The partners had worked together for so long it seemed they now could imitate the same stern expression.

  “Toby,” he said, “Just so you know, I was here on council business, not on your mother’s.”

  A coach rounded the corner and made its way up the road toward them. The old mage levered himself off the bench. They watched quietly as the coachman deftly executed the circle turnabout and pulled the coach to the curb. As the driver slid the door open, Master O’dorn shuffled toward it. Toby took a step after the human.

  “Master O’dorn, who was the representative?”

  The man paused with his foot on the step. Turning, he fixed the orange tom with a piercing gaze.

  “Master Hecktor Ribaldy.”

  The old mage swiftly pulled himself into the coach’s interior. The door slid shut and the coachman urged the horses into motion, leaving Toby frowning.

  Toby hurried to the head masters’ office before the morning bell had rung. When the door swung open, he entered to find Master Meredith alone. She seemed to be in the middle of writing.

  “Have a seat, Apprentice Toby,” she said without looking up. The scritch scritch of the pen continued. Toby occupied himself with reading book titles from the shelves across the room. Nestled amongst histories and incantation books were a group of well-worn, leather bound tomes that looked vaguely familiar.

  “Have you read them?” asked Master Meredith.

  Toby jumped, nearly falling off his stool. He shook his head and licked his ruff, trying to cover his embarrassment. Ignoring the prickle of heat around his neck, he looked into the head master’s eyes.

  “I noticed you peering at those,” the head master cat said, nodding toward the old books. “I wondered if you’ve ever read them.”

  Toby turned to stare at the old books.

  “I’m not sure. They look familiar, but I can’t read the names on the spines.”

  “Those are the Books of the One. Only a few copies exist outside the Temple.”

  “Is one of them called Moriel? I remember reading a story about a man who refused to fight and refused to give in. It was in that book.”

  “It seems your memory is as good as your nose. You are correct. The passive resistance parable is in Moriel.”

  “It’s a good strategy, don’t you think?” asked Toby. The image of a tortoiseshell she-cat leaving the scene of his altercation with Reginald burned in the tom’s mind.

  “Perhaps. Its basis lies in another of the books, Lemuel. It’s a guideline followers of The One call The Priceless Measure.”

  “Wasn’t that mentioned in Moriel, too?”

  “Very good.” The master cat waved her tail in an arc from the books toward herself, capturing Toby’s attention.

  “Now, as much as I enjoy engaging in religious conversations, I am sure you did not come here this early for that. What have you learned so far?”

  “Not much. My mother and Lorn’s father refused to talk about it. I asked Master O’dorn if he knew anything, but all he could tell me was that father volunteered to go and that Master Ribaldy was the only member of the High Council who knew specifics about the mission.”

  “We thought as much since no one else seems to have any information. What else?”

  “Lorn’s mother wasn’t much help either. She says it’s all a huge injustice and starts to cry every time Lorn tries to ask her anything. She did mention that the High Council confiscated all of Master Ribaldy’s things.”

  “Unfortunately we are well aware of that, too,” said the master cat, flicking her tail at the paper she’d been writing on earlier. “This is our third attempt to legally obtain Master Ribaldy’s notes on a lecture he was to give this semester.”

  “May I ask what he was going to talk about?”

  “I think he called it “The Benign in the Shadow Arts.” He was one of the most knowledgeable masters on how shadow arts practitioners twist curses using ingredients we use for healing.” The master cat’s eyes strayed to the fireplace where new wood stood ready to burn. The tortoiseshell stared intently at the wood for a moment, then whispered a spell. Flames appeared with a whoosh, settling into a cheery pop and crackle. Master Meredith turned her attention back to Toby.

  “He promised it would be very enlightening.”

  For a moment, the young tom was reminded of his conversation with the gravin and his companion. A ripple ran from his shoulders to his tail.

  “Based on what Gravin Arturo said, I can see why you’re having trouble getting those notes from the High Council.”

  “Indeed.” The tortoiseshell she-cat stared intently at Toby, making his fur twitch. He wondered if his mother had learned how to do that from the head master cat.

  “Have you seen much of Terence lately?”

  “No. Between classes and everything else I haven’t had a chance.”

  Guilt pricked at the orange tom’s skin. His paws itched to take him to his friend’s room. He still felt odd when he thought about the young cat being sponsored b
y the gravin and his companion. Shivers ran the length of Toby’s body as he remembered the overheard conversation between the two.

  “Perhaps it is time you had a visit with your friend. Have him introduce you to some of his teachers.”

  “Okay,” said Toby hesitantly. “Is there anyone in particular I should meet?”

  “I think you’ll find the secret missions instructors have many interesting stories. In fact, if I’m not mistaken, they were classmates with your father.”

  “I’ll be sure to do that. Thank you.”

  The head master cat nodded and began sorting through a stack of papers on the desk. Toby waited to see if there was more Master Meredith would say. She continued to ignore him. Taking it as a dismissal, Toby hopped down from the stool and made his way to the door.

  “Be sure to tell Master Antwan and Master Natsumi I said hello,” said the master cat without looking up. Toby nodded and continued out the door.

  The mid-morning bell rang signaling the beginning of second class. The orange tom scrambled down the stairs to race to class. He was going to be late again, but this time he wasn’t wondering how many more times he could be tardy before his provisional status would be revoked. His only thought was how to meet with Terence.

  Chapter 5

  Toby located his friend during lunch sitting alone at a table near the back of the Commons dining hall, a large book open beside him. The young gray and white tom looked as if he were trying to burn a hole through the pages of the book by thoughts alone.

  “That must be a very interesting book,” chirped Toby.

  Terence turned his head sharply toward the orange tom. At first the little cat glared at him, then recognition dawned. Whiskers splayed in a wide cat grin as the young cat patted the table to indicate Toby should join him. Toby leapt gracefully to a seat opposite his friend and said the incantation to make it rise.