Mairelon the Magician

by Patricia C. Wrede

  rious this is! We need to consecrate the Sacred Dish before we

  can make any more progress in the Mysteries "

  Robert roiled his eyes and Mairelon hid a smite. Kim felt

  sorry for Jonathan She knew what it was like to lose some-

  thing she'd depended on having, even if she didn't know any-

  thing about druids or magic And after all, it wasn't bis fault

  he'd gotten hold of the Saltash Platter instead of some ordi-

  nary silver tray that no one else would have cared about. A

  thought occurred to her, and she said suddenly, "Whyd you

  pick the Saltash Platter for your Sacred Dish? 1 mean, would

  any old wicher cheat do, or does it have to be this particular

  one?"

  271

  "It was perfect," Jonathan said sullenly. "It's exactly the

  right dimensions, and the pattern has the proper balance of

  natural form and abstract design- It took me two years ,of

  hunting to find it, and it had to be stolen!"

  "Well, if all you need is something that size and shape,

  can't you use one of the fake platters? There's enough of 'em

  around "

  Everyone looked at Kim, and she flushed. "It was just an

  idea."

  "And a very good one," Mairelon said. "One of the false

  platters should suit you admirably, Aberford, Better than the

  real thing, in fact; you won't have to worry about your spells

  getting tangled up with the ones that are already in the Salt-

  ash Platter and exploding, or doing something equally unex-

  pected. "

  Jonathan, who had opened his mouth, closed it again,

  looking suddenly very thoughtful. The Earl of Shoreham's

  lips twitched, and Renee D'Auber put up a hand to hide a

  smile, Andrew only looked bewildered, and St. Clair and the

  other prisoners studiously ignored the exchange.

  "I doubt that there will be any fuss over ownership of one

  of the duplicates, either," Mairelon added.

  "1 think I can guarantee that no official questions will be

  asked," Shoreham put in, "Provided there is no fuss made at

  this end, of course. I should warn you, though, that I can't do

  a thing about gossip." He glanced m the direction of the

  door, where Lady Granleigh and her party had long since

  vanished.

  "Gossip won't do anything but increase our membership,"

  Robert commented. "We might even get a couple of fellows

  who'll pay their subscription fees. That would please Austen

  no end,"

  "Yes, wouldn't it?" Jonathan said, failing to sound anything

  —272—

  like as offhanded as he plainly wanted to. "Very well, we'll do

  it."

  "Good. I have two at my wagon; you can come by this

  evening and pick one up," Mairelon said "It's just down the

  road, on the left-hand side as you head toward the village."

  "This evening? But I thought—"

  "f have a few things still to do here," Mairelon interrupted,

  "and it won't be convenient for you to wait Trust me,"

  "Yes, and your mother was in an awful taking when 1 left,

  Jon," Robert put in. "Cod knows what she's like by now-

  She'll have half the county out hunting for you if you don't

  get home soon, depend on it "

  "Oh, very well," Jonathan said ungraciously. He swirled his

  cloak unnecessarily and stalked to the door of the lodge. "I

  shall wait upon you this evening," he told Mairelon in porten-

  tous tones, and left,

  "Silly young chub," Mairelon said, but not loudly enough

  to be heard outside.

  Andrew frowned- "Wait a minute. Didn't somebody say his

  horse ran off? How is he planning to get home, wherever

  home is?"

  "Oh, Jon never plans anything," Robert said in a resigned

  tone. "Except ceremonies. He'll probably take my horse. I

  think I had better come along with you and Bramingham,

  after all, Mr. Stuggs- 1 can stop in the village for as long as

  you need help with that lot, and then borrow a horse to get

  home on "

  Stuggs nodded and handed him a pistol "Right, then,

  Move along, now, you lot."

  "I think I'd best go with them, at least as far as the coach,"

  the Earl of Shoreham said to Mairelon as St. Clair, Jack

  Slower, and Dan Laverham started toward the door, flanked

  by Robert and Mr. Bramingham- 'Two of them are wizards,

  —273—

  after all, and it wouldn't do for them to take advantage, so to

  speak "

  "You always were a cautious one," Mairelon told him "Shall

  I come and help?"

  "No, no, you've done enough already/' Shoreham replied

  quickly "And it'll only take a moment You stay here " He

  followed Brammgham, who was bringing up the end of

  Stuggs's little procession, out the door

  Mairelon gazed after him with an abstracted air "Now, do

  you suppose he was being subtle, tactful, or merely cow-

  ardly^" he asked the window Laverham had broken

  "'E's a-doing of 'is job," Hunch said "Which you ought to

  'ave been, too, instead of breaking into 'ouses and things

  while I was gone."

  "That was my job," Mairelon pointed out "Or part of doing

  it, anyway, which comes to the same thing."

  "You might 'ave got shot," Hunch said doggedly

  "Yes, well, I didn't, so there's no need to go on about it,

  especially since the main reason you're so nattered about it is

  that you missed out on the fun "

  "Nattered about it?" said Andrew in a puzzled tone

  "It's one of Kirn's expressions," Mairelon said "Very de-

  scriptive " He paused, looking at Andrew, and Hunch closed

  his mouth on whatever further comment he had been about

  to make "It's good to see you again, Andrew," Mairelon said

  after what seemed a very long time

  "It's good to see you, too, Richard," Andrew answered in a

  low voice "For a while I wasn't sure I was going to "

  "What? You haven't been listening to Hunch, have you?

  That business on the Peninsula wasn't anything like as serious

  as he claims "

  "I can see that Hunch and I are going to have to have a

  long talk," Andrew said with a crooked smile "But that wasn't

  what 1 meant "

  274

  "Yes, well, actually I know that, but it doesn't matter,"

  Mairelon said quickly

  "It matters to me," Andrew persisted. He took a deep

  breath and went on, "I misjudged you very badly five years

  ago, and I want to tell you that I know it now, and I'm sony."

  Renee D'Auber gave a small nod of satisfaction, and a slow

  grin began to spread across Hunch's face Kirn felt like cheer-

  ing, but she didn't dare- She was almost afraid to breathe, for

  fear someone would notice, and remember she was there, and

  make her leave

  "All right," Mairelon said gently, his eyes on Andrew's face

  "You've told me Apology accepted Can we'leave it at that?"

  "You mean I—you'll—that's all?"

  "Realty, Andrew, were you expecting me to demand satis-

  faction?" Mairelon said in the mildly exasperated tone he used

  with Hunch and Kim "A pretty thing that would be; you are

 
my brother, after all, not to mention that dueling's illegal Or

  did you think I'd throw a fit of temper? I could turn you into a i

  frog for a few minutes, if it would make you feel better, but

  I'd really rather not It's the devil of a nuisance to measure out

  all the ingredients for the powder, and I can never remember

  the proper endings for the verbs "

  Andrew laughed "I—well, thank you, Richard Will you

  be coming home now?"

  The words were a question, but his tone made it clear that

  he expected Mairelon to answer yes Kirn's heart lurched as

  she realized just how inevitable that yes was, and how much

  it would mean The Mairelon she knew was an act, a trick to

  fool the Runners, and the trick was no longer necessary He

  would become Richard Merrill again, and go back to a gentry

  life she could hardly imagine She tried to be glad, but all she

  could think was that there would be no place in that life for

  her She wrapped her arms around herself and hugged hard

  At least she had the five pounds Jasper Marston had paid her,

  —275—

  and the clothes Mairelon had bought Maybe Mairelon or

  Shoreham would give her a few guineas more for her help

  with Laverham It was as much as she had wanted when she

  got into this, she couldn't help it if her wants had changed

  somehow since then

  "Home," Mairelon said, rolling the word as if he were

  checking its taste "Not just yet, I think Until the word gets

  out, I prefer to lie low We'll stay here for a few days, then

  start back to London Is the old stable still there^"

  "In London?" Andrew asked, bewildered

  "No, in Kent The one we used to climb on the roof of,

  when we were boys "

  "Oh Yes, it's there Why?"

  "It would be a good place to leave my wagon I'll send

  Hunch down with it once I'm settled in London "

  "And not before," Hunch put in darkly "You ain't fobbing

  me off with no tale this time, Master Richard "

  "You're going to stay in London for the Season, then?" An-

  drew said with an uncertain look in Hunch's direction

  "It is an excellent plan," Renee D'Auber said "You will be

  the nine days' wonder, and it will be entirely plain to every-

  one that you had nothing to do with the robbery "

  "I expect I'll have more to do than attend social events,"

  Mairelon said with a hint of sarcasm "Shoreham is bound to

  want me for all sorts of things Which reminds me, there was

  one other thing 1 wanted to attend to Kimi"

  Kim )umped and nearly fell off her footstool "What?" Her

  throat felt scratchy, and she experienced a sudden desire to

  run She knew what he was going to say, and she didn't want

  to hear it

  "Why did you tip that table over on Laverham when he

  was in the middle of that spell a few minutes ago?" Mairelon

  asked

  "The tabled" Kim said blankly The question was so com-

  276

  pletely different from what she had expected that she couldn't

  quite grasp it

  "Yes, the table " Mairelon looked at her sternly "I've told

  you more than once that interrupting a wizard is dangerous,

  and if you claim you forgot, I won't believe you So why did

  you interrupt Laverham?"

  "Because his spelt was queer as Dick's hatband anyway,"

  Kim said "You know that"

  "Yes, I knew it," Mairelon said "But how did you know?"

  "It was the words," Kim said- She frowned, trying to think

  how best to describe what she had sensed when Laverham's

  spell began to go wrong

  "You speak the Latin, then?" Renee D'Auber said, raising

  her eyebrows in polite incredulity "Or the Creek, perhaps?"

  "! ain't got no need to speak it," Kim snapped, wondering

  why they were staring at her like that "Laverham's words

  weren't They weren't lined up neat and proper like they

  should of been "

  "Should fcape," Mairelon murmured "And I did warn you,

  Kim, about reverting under stress "

  "Do not be hard with her," Renee reproved him "It is not

  at all wonderful that she should have the difficulties after all

  that has happened "

  "No, the wonderful part was the bit about the words,"

  Mairelon said "Kim, do you mean that you can feel when

  someone is casting a spell?"

  "I don't know about that, but I can tell when somebody

  says some of them—of those shiny, sharp words you use for

  spelts," Kim replied carefully

  "You mean like apheteon'> Or perhaps—" Mairelon rattled off

  a long, bumpy sentence and raised his eyebrows at Kim

  "No," Kim said, happy to be sure of something "Those

  sound right, but they don't have no edges They're just non-

  sense "

  277

  "And these?" He said a short phrase that crackled and glit-

  tered

  Kirn flinched and nodded. Maireton stared at her- "My

  Lord," he said in a low voice. "No wonder you weren't hurt

  when the spell shattered."

  "There ain't nothin' wonderful about that," Kim said, staring

  in turn. "I ducked, that's all"

  Renee and Mairelon exchanged glances. "Nothing wonder-

  ful about it at at!," Mairelon agreed. "For a wizard."

  "What?" Hunch gasped. "That Kirn, a wizard? She ain't no

  such thing!"

  "Not yet," Mairelon said, smiting. "But with proper training

  she will be."

  "Me?" Kirn said, stunned, "Me, a wizard? Me?"

  "Ah, bahl" said Renee to Mairelon. "You do not explain at

  all well, I find, and so you are frightening her." She stepped

  forward and put a comforting arm around Kirn's shoulders. "It

  is because you can feel the magic, which is a thing very diffi-

  cult for most people to learn and for some quite impossible.

  So you have the talent for magic, and now, if you wish, you

  will come to London and get the training."

  "Of course she wishes," Mairelon broke in. "Kim likes

  London, We'll start the lessons as soon as we've found a

  house to hire for a few months, and—"

  "Richard!" Andrew sounded horrified. "Are you mad? You

  can't live with this . . . girl in the middle of London!"

  "Really, Andrew, you're as bad as Hunch," Mairelon said.

  He gave Kim an uncertain, sidelong look that Kim, in her

  confusion, found impossible to interpret, "I'll make Kim my

  ward; that will satisfy the proprieties."

  "But, yes!" Renee said before Andrew could object again.

  'That will do entirely well. And you and Mademoiselle Kim

  will stay with me to begin, and there will be no foolish gossip

  such as Monsieur Andrew Merrill fears, because I will be

  278

  there and everything will be proper." She tilted her head to

  study Kim, ignoring the brothers Merrill.

  "It is a great pity we cannot take you to France," Renee

  went on "But there is a dressmaker 1 know who will do well

  enough, although she is entirely English. You will be. quite

  charming in a gown, f think." Her eyes nickered from Kim to

  Mairelon and back, and she smiled to herself, as if con-

  templating a private jo
ke.

  "Hold on a minute, Renee," Mairelon intermpted. "I'm not

  spending hours at some dressmaker's, I refuse. Positively."

  "But of course you will not," Renee said gently. "You will be

  spending hours with Milord Shoreham. He will want the de-

  tails of all your work, and he is very persistent."

  Mairelon looked at her with a blank expression that

  Changed slowly to chagrin. "Oh, Lord, you're right again. It'll

  take hours. Days."

  "Naturally," Renee said. "And while you and Milord

  Shoreham talk, Mademoiselle Kim and I shall shop for the

  kind of clothes that will be proper for your ward to wear in

  London." She turned back to Kim and leaned forward con-

  spiratorially. "But we will save the boy's clothing for other

  times, because, all the same. Monsieur Richard Merrill is not

  at all proper and of a certainty you will need them,"

  "It ain't fitting, Master Richard," Hunch grumbled, but he

  was not chewing on his mustache at al!, and Kim decided he

  was only complaining for the form of the thing

  "Well, Kim?" Mairelon said, "You do want to come, don't

  you?"

  "Come?" Kim shook herself, thinking Me, a wizards, and

  gave Mairelon a look full of scorn. "Do I look like a looby?