by Guy Antibes
“Friendship,” Ricky said. “I’ve learned I’m a sorcerer. Loria and I are in the same Sorcery class, and we had a Winter’s Day dinner and were given a few hours of freedom.”
Karian grinned. “And you thought you’d spend a slice of it with me?”
Ricky nodded, and Loria strolled through the shop while Ricky gave his friend a quick review of what had happened to him.
“Impressive. Saganet and I are acquaintances,” Karian said. “He’s a good man.”
“He’s my guardian for another eight months,” Ricky said.
“And then?”
“He made a deal with Mistress Doubli that he’d watch over me for a year,” Ricky said.
Loria gently poked Ricky in the arm. “I didn’t know that.”
Ricky shrugged. “Maybe Mistress Doubli will put me in a dormitory after that. I’m not going to worry about it. I’m learning all kinds of things, so she can’t kick me out for lack of trying.” Ricky pulled out a jar and read the label to Karian. He grinned. “See?”
“Ah, if you ever have nowhere else to go, I’ll take you in as a clerk, now that you can read.”
Ricky laughed. “I may need to.”
“I don’t see why he’ll need to work in this shop,” Loria said. “Ricky can become a great performance sorcerer.”
“That’s not for me,” Ricky said. “I don’t like being the center of attention.”
“But you put us all to shame at dinner.”
“Not Professor Calasay,” Ricky said.
“Dari Calasay?” Karian asked.
Loria nodded. “She’s our professor.”
“And once a notable performance sorcerer in her own right. If you’ve impressed her—”
“I’m just a bit better than the others in my class,” Ricky said.
“Better than four other advanced first-year students,” Loria said, defending Ricky. “Really, you should be more proud of your accomplishments.”
“Not when I’m just an audit student,” Ricky said.
Loria exhaled loudly. “No one looks at you as ‘not a real student’ in Professor Calasay’s class.”
Ricky knew when the time came to stop talking. He walked over to the candy counter. “I have some actual bank notes in my pocket. Have you gotten any new sweets in?”
~
Loria and Ricky roamed through the streets of Upper Tossa, sampling the candy Ricky had bought.
Loria turned and looked behind her. “I thought someone followed us.”
Ricky twisted and recognized two of the faces of the thugs that attacked Saganet. He grabbed Loria’s hand. “They are going to beat me up,” he said as they took off across the street.
The men caught up to them and grabbed Loria’s arm. Ricky flinched as the other thug raised a bludgeon. He shouted. Time stopped, but since he held Loria’s hand, she joined him in the spell. He didn’t think about the ramifications of that, but grabbed her hand even tighter.
Off they went. Ricky shouted again, just as the world around them began to move again. They threaded their way through the pedestrians and crossed streets behind carriages. Ricky took them through an alley that led onto the market square where Ricky had been caught.
Most of the stalls sat empty, but that gave them an opportunity to hide. Ricky led her to a vacant spot that had cabinets that usually held sacks of produce. He stuffed Loria inside and followed her.
They heard footsteps pass the stall a few times and a number of them stopped close by. “I lost them,” one said. “No matter. There is only one open gate into the academy in the evenings. We’ll wait for them just outside.”
Ricky heard their steps fade into the night.
“What did you do? Was that a shout spell? I was caught up in it, wasn’t I? You saved us.” Shock filled Loria’s face. “What are we going to do?”
“Maybe we can go back to Karian, and he can help us return.”
“They probably saw us there.” Loria looked concerned.
Ricky thought. “I know a place where we can spend the night, and no one will bother us.”
“Where?”
“It’s my secret,” Ricky said, “but it will be our secret, soon enough.
They emerged and crept to the northern edge of the market. Ricky found a Shantyboat friend to take them across the river to Shantyboat Town. Ricky led Loria onto boats and across planks to other boats until they reached Ricky’s little skiff that still rocked gently in the evening light.
Ricky rowed them to the little enclave and to his little shantyboat. He led her inside and lit a magic light. The place looked much worse than he remembered, but it was clear no one had been inside.
“This is yours?”
Ricky nodded. “All mine. I had to build it from a charred hull after a fire. I scrounged the parts.”
“It’s not very clean, though.”
Ricky shook his head. “I used to think it was heaven, but that’s not the case anymore. It’s a filthy refuge. Step outside for a moment, and I’ll clean it up a bit more. I have a blanket that should be acceptable that you can wrap around you.”
He took out puffy parcel and opened it up. The blanket looked new. “I found it not long before I was arrested.”
“Thank you.”
Loria stepped outside while Ricky quickly cleaned things up more to the standard he had become accustomed to in the past few months.
“You can come in now.”
Loria sniffed. “That’s a bit better.”
“I dusted the chair. You can sit there while we think of what to do.”
They looked at each other.
Loria laughed and looked around. “This is your world before? Is it your world now?”
Ricky shook his head. “A relic of my past,” he said, rather proud with the turn of phrase. He hadn’t possessed much of a vocabulary before the academy.
She giggled. “I’m glad it’s still here. I always wondered what the insides of shanty boats looked like.”
“Most of them are a bit better, but some boats are dreadful inside,” Ricky said.
“The same could be said of many places in Tossa,” Loria said.
Ricky had no food to offer and no fresh water. He had to get Loria to safety.
“How far is your house?”
“Maybe forty-five minutes of walking to the other side of Tossa.
“The south side?” Ricky asked.
She nodded.
“On the river? Mostly mansions are there.”
“We can take your boat?” Loria said.
“That’s what I was thinking. I don’t have any food or water aboard.”
Loria nodded. “It will be an adventure.”
Ricky didn’t agree. He was sure to be late getting into the academy, and he worried about what kind of punishment he would receive, but he couldn’t spend the night with Loria on his boat.
She still clutched the blanket around her after Ricky secured his shantyboat and moved a few things around on the narrow deck to show others that he had returned.
He shivered when he started, but by the time they reached the edge of the big loop of the river that took them from east to west, he wiped the sweat off his brow and removed his coat. The moonbeams dappled the water with a cold white light.
“You can put this over your legs,” Ricky said, tossing his coat to her.
She nodded. “Now we are in my territory. My brothers and I used to sail around in our little sailboat, along with the other children, until they grew old enough to have other pursuits.”
“Did you have fun as a child?”
Loria smiled in the dimness. “I did. It’s a shame that my brothers grew up so much earlier and left me to myself.”
Ricky sensed a thread of loneliness in Loria’s words. He knew a bit about being isolated, but he had always cast that aside to pursue his personal survival. As a child under Gobble’s eye, Ricky did not enjoy his childhood, but he persisted through the abuse his grandfather heaped on him.
Lo
ria pointed to one of the larger houses. Magic lights lit up the exterior. Ricky headed for the private dock that held much nicer craft than Ricky’s little boat.
He tied his rowboat up to the dock. Ricky didn’t expect to ever see it again, once they found refuge in the mansion…if they’d let a Shantyboat Town resident in.
Loria dropped the blanket and handed Ricky his jacket. She took his hand as she led him to a back door and tried the lock. Loria had to resort to pounding to get someone’s attention. A fifty-ish man, dressed in a dark brown waistcoat and dark slim-fitting trousers, let them in. Ricky wondered if he might be Baron Mansali.
The man’s eyebrows rose when he recognized Loria through the patterned glass.
“Miss Loria, what brings you to the house so late and via the kitchen door?”
“Bruno, this is Hendrico Valian, a schoolmate. We were out with the school’s permission when ruffians attacked. Hendrico has a small boat, so we were able to evade the attackers and rowed from the north side of Tossa to here.”
The man rubbed his bald head. Ricky thought he had intelligent eyes for a servant. “Come in.” He peered at Ricky. “You, too, young man. I’ll notify the Baron.”
“We’ll wait in the kitchen.” She took Ricky’s hand again.
He was uncomfortable with Loria showing any kind of intimacy with him in her family’s house. As soon as they reached a large kitchen, he removed his hand from hers.
“Oh,” she said. She rubbed her hands together but gave Ricky a reassuring smile.
Ricky wasn’t reassured when a large, dark man walked in. This had to be the baron. He wore a quilted black velvet robe with gold piping. His shirt was filled with ruffles, yet Ricky noticed his big toe sticking out of a black silk stocking.
“You shouldn’t be here, Loria.” Baron Mansali said. He glanced at Ricky and then turned his attention back to his daughter. “Why on earth are you returning when I was explicit in forbidding you to think of this house as a refuge from the academy?”
Loria looked at her father. Ricky could see her eyes water. “We were attacked on the streets, Father. Professor Calasay had permission to take her advanced class out for dinner, and we were given a few hours out of the academy. Ricky took me to visit a shopkeeper friend of his, and then thugs came after us. Because Ricky knew the area, we were able to escape and use his little skiff to get to the family dock. I didn’t know where else to go. We heard the thugs say they would be waiting near the gate to the academy to get us then.”
“Attacked, you say?” the Baron said, looking genuinely shocked.
“They might have been after me,” Ricky said.
“And who are you, other than ‘Ricky’?”
“I am Hendrico Valian. I’m afraid I have made an enemy out of one of our classmates. I’ve been attacked before—”
“You have?” Loria said.
“With Saganet.” He looked back to the Baron. “Since I have a little boat on the river, I thought we could evade them and come here. Loria suggested we could stay here before we return to the academy.”
The Baron grunted and put his fists on his hips and glared at Loria, but his gaze softened. “That sounds reasonable at this hour. Bruno will show ‘Ricky’ to a room. You know the way to yours. We will talk more of this tomorrow morning. I’ll send a note to the academy telling them that you are safe.” He looked at Ricky. “Both of you.”
~~~
Chapter Sixteen
~
R icky rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He looked around the bedroom in the daylight. He’d never slept in so luxurious a place. The mattress was firm, but not hard. He slept in clean sheets, not that he didn’t at Saganet’s cottage, but these were made of silk. The room itself was light blue. Yellow flowers of some sort were stenciled on the walls. It seemed too nice for him, but he rose and quickly put on his trousers and splashed water on his torso to wash away the dried sweat from his rowing the night before.
He put his shirt back on and rubbed water on his face and hair. He shook his head and vigorously toweled his head dry. A comb sat by the washstand, so he ran it through his hair. He felt better. After putting his shoes back on, he grabbed his coat and decided to do a little exploring.
He’d never been in a house as nice, although the administration building at the academy came close. The stone floors were paved with simple geometric designs. The bedroom seemed much warmer than the rest of the house.
Ricky walked down the curving stairs, looking up at the glass dome that lit up the central part of the mansion. What must Loria have thought when he brought her to his shantyboat. He was glad she thought to have him take her to her father’s house, but Ricky wondered why her father didn’t approve of her seeking him out.
Bruno walked past the stairway on the main floor and looked up at Ricky. He gave Ricky a business-like smile. “Ah. Breakfast is served in the dining room. The family is served a buffet. If you’ll come with me.” He reversed direction and stood at the bottom of the stairs until Ricky reached the bottom.
The dining room was large to Ricky’s sense, but only three people sat at the long table.
Bruno urged Ricky to eat with the strangers.
“This is Hendrico Valian,” Bruno said. “I am pleased to introduce you to three of Loria’s brothers. Anko, Varanio, and Gorda. I must attend to a task the Baron gave me. If you would help yourself to a breakfast set out there,” Bruno pointed at a buffet, “I’m sure Loria will be down presently.”
Ricky nodded to the brothers. Only one bothered to nod back. Ricky filled his plate with a large assortment of food and returned to the table.
“I’m Ricky,” he said.
“Not Hendrico?” one of the brothers said. Ricky hadn’t noticed which name went with what face.
“If you want to call me Hendrico, I’ll answer to it, but most people call me Ricky.”
“What are you to Loria?” another brother asked.
“We are in the same Advanced Sorcery class.”
“What passes for Advanced these days at the academy?”
“I’m not quite sure since we started the course not too long ago.”
Ricky ate during the ensuing silence.
“Why were you out with our sister?”
“Our class had a dinner outside the academy, and we were given a few hours before we had to be back.”
“I’ll bet that felt liberating,” one of them said.
“We visited a friend of mine, and then we were attacked.”
All three brothers’ heads turned towards Ricky at once.
“Someone dare lay hands on our sister?”
“No one did. We evaded the thugs and decided it wouldn’t be wise to walk the streets in the dark, so we took my little boat,” Ricky made sure to say ‘little,' “around the loop and came here for refuge.”
“Are you sure Loria didn’t hire the thugs so she could get a boat ride? She used to love them.”
“She still does,” Loria said from the open doorway. She sauntered to the buffet and helped herself. Sitting down next to Ricky, she said, “Did you introduce yourselves?”
“Bruno did.”
“What is my escort’s name?”
“Ricky,” the brothers said dispiritedly. Evidently, Loria didn’t always excite her brothers.
“That is Gorda, Anko, and the old one is Varanio.”
Ricky made sure to paste the names to the faces in his mind. “I am pleased to meet you,” he said.
“So is he your boyfriend?” Varanio said with his mouth full. “Aren’t you a little young for such things?”
Loria lifted her chin. “I assure you we are too young for such things. Ricky is the best student in the Advanced Sorcery class, and I have learned from him.”
“What were you two doing so late last night, little sister?” Anko said, with a grin.
“We are friends. I introduced her to a shopkeeper of mine. He sells—”
“Karian Grandari, whom you all know,” Baron Mansali said, wa
lking into the room. “Hendrico is an interesting person. He has exceptional magical power for one so young and took Loria on a short tour of Shantyboat Town where Hendrico used to live before he became a ward for the academy.” The Baron handed Ricky his sack of candy from Karian’s shop. He had left it on the boat.
“How do you know all that?” Loria said.
“Knowledge is my business.” He looked at his sons. “Right, boys?”
Each of them nodded their heads. It looked like the Baron’s statement was well-worn in the house.
“When you’ve finished your breakfast, young Valian, I’d like a word before I send you two back to the academy.” The Baron turned and walked out of the room.
Ricky looked at the grimy sack and felt embarrassed. Now he’d get it from Loria’s father. Perhaps being beaten might have been a better fate, but he would find out for sure once he finished his tasteless breakfast.
“Sorry,” Loria muttered.
“What is he going to do to me?” he said quietly to Loria.
“Grind you up and eat you for his breakfast,” Varanio said.
The other brothers broke into laughter.
Ricky took a drink of water from a crystal goblet. It looked like something Gobble would have had him steal.
“What do you gentlemen do? I assume you have graduated from the academy?” Ricky said.
“Our father said knowledge is his business. It’s our business, too. Loria can tell you what we do.”
The three of them looked at each other and rose from the table, leaving Loria and Ricky alone.
“They didn’t answer my question,” Ricky said.
“My father runs a speculative trading company. My brothers work hard gathering information, so more knowledge leads to more profits for the business.”
“They look old enough to be married,” Ricky said.
Loria took the last morsel from her plate. “All of them are. They start their day in the building across the street, so they have breakfast here most mornings.” She looked at the clock. “You’d better talk to my father. He’s in the room across the hall.”
Ricky stood. “Could you hold onto the bag?” He pressed his lips together. “I don’t want to be scolded by your father with a bag of candy in my hand.”
