She spread her cloak, the feathers shimmering as they caught the firelight. “I need to be so much more than the village witch or town herbalist.” Sighing, she lowered her head. “I have to take care of more than just Curton now.”
Aveline approached Tasha, then put her hand on her friend’s shoulder. The feathers felt warm, as though they’d been sitting in the sunlight for hours. “I don’t know what to make of all this, but I believe in you. Somehow, my friend is the Crow Queen. You do what you need to do, for the good of everyone you’re supposed to serve. Be they gods or us puny mortals.”
Tasha put her hand on Aveline’s and squeezed. “I’ll always be here for you. Even if I’m away, if you need me, I’ll come. We’ll figure out a way.”
“I don’t suppose you learned anything about dreams while you were frolicking with the faeries?”
Tasha snorted. “They didn’t teach oneiromancy in Introductory Crow Queen. After I’ve had my tea, I’ll go to Muncifer.”
“All right.” Aveline nodded toward the back door. “How does this thing work?”
“I can just think of a destination.” Tasha glanced at the door. It shimmered before displaying the interior of Aveline’s home. “How’s that? Or would you rather go to the citadel?”
Aveline peered at the glimmering image in the doorframe. The view of her living area appeared as though she stood just inside her own front door. “Home is fine. I came straight here, so I need to walk Old Town this morning.”
“Oh, Aveline. I… saw a werewolf in the forest near town last night.”
“A what?” Spinning to face Tasha, Aveline’s hand dropped to her mace by reflex. “Where?”
“Down by the river. I think I scared it off, but you might want to warn people.”
Crossing her arms, Aveline chewed her lip. “Neither moon was full last night.”
“That just means they can control their transformations. They have accepted their curse.” Tasha poured her tea, then cupped the mug in her hands. “That might mean they’re a perfectly reasonable person and hunt only animals in the forest.”
“It could also mean they like killing.” Particularly from Watchfolk, Aveline had heard stories of werewolves living perfectly normal lives as the main hunters for their villages.
“It might even be someone from town. They know they’re afflicted, and they go into the forest, so they don’t risk others when they hunt. They might be trying to do the right thing.”
“All right.” Aveline paced before the portal. “I’ll let the guards know to warn people leaving town to be wary of the forest at night. They only come out at night, right?”
Tasha pursed her lips. “Well, if they can control their transformations, they could be hunting during the day too.”
“That’s fantastic.” Aveline pondered what sort of trouble she’d have if she closed the town entirely.
“Look, just start gathering wolf’s bane, and don’t let anyone go into the forest without it.” Tasha shuffled over to her apothecary cabinet, then searched through the drawers until she found a bundle of dried leaves. She handed it to Aveline.
“And this will keep it away?” Aveline examined the curled, segmented leaves.
“It should. Just don’t eat it.”
Aveline tucked it into her belt. “I’m not in the habit of eating stuff you pull out of that cabinet.” She turned toward the image of the inside of her home. “Do I just walk through?”
“Just go straight through. There might be a bit, just a bit, of resistance, like walking in a strong headwind, but it won’t last long.”
Striding forward, Aveline found Tasha’s description apt. After a hint of pressure, she passed through and found herself home. She spun, expecting to find Tasha behind her, but saw only her own front door. “That’s the damnedest thing I’ve ever done.”
* * *
The portal reverted to inactive status as a door just after Aveline stepped through it. Sipping her tea, Tasha she closed her apothecary cabinet. She rummaged through her belongings, putting a fistful of talons and crowns in her pouch, then she picked up a sheet of parchment.
As she wrote a list of items she wanted to buy and didn’t want to forget to ask about at the Arcane University, Korbin and Revan landed on the windowsill.
“Caw, caw!”
“I’m glad you’re here. We’re going to Muncifer.” Tasha still didn’t know if the birds understood her. She sprinkled some sand on the wet ink, counted to ten, and then blew off the sand. After rolling the parchment, she gestured for the birds to come with her. They flew into the hut to land on her shoulder.
Upon approaching the back door, it shimmered, revealing a winding cobblestone street between stonework buildings. Upon stepping through, she found herself outdoors in the middle of a city thoroughfare.
“Hey, watch it!”
Barely in time, Tasha moved out of the path of an oncoming minotaur. Glaring at her, he pushed his cart of potatoes past.
“Sorry. It’s my first time here. It’s a little overwhelming.” Korbin and Revan flew away as Tasha bowed to the scowling minotaur.
“Next time, just look before you dart out into the street, all right?” The minotaur snorted before continuing on his way.
Muncifer’s mountain air felt cooler to Tasha, although she trusted the mantle would keep her comfortable. Scores of people hurried up and down the street. As she turned in circles to gain her bearings, she realized viewing the city through the basin did not teach her the layout.
She was lost.
With the sun still making its way toward its zenith, Tasha figured she had time, so she followed the crowd on her side of the thoroughfare. The sound of cart wheels clattered over stone. In the distance, a bell tolled. Neighbors shouted across the street at each other, struggling to be heard over the echoes of an untold number of shoes scraping on the cobbles. Behind her, she heard the clip-clop of an approaching horse. She stepped to the side to let it pass, hoping it belonged to the city guard.
A woman wearing a heavy burgundy gown rode sidesaddle. Despite all indications pointing to her obviously not belonging to the constabulary, Tasha raised her hand, trying to gain the woman’s attention. Passing Tasha, she sneered, sticking her nose in the air, “Out of the way, vagabond.”
Slumping, Tasha dropped her hand. She glanced at her clothes, sighing, and admitted her handkerchief-hem skirt and feathered cloak probably appeared quite rustic in this cosmopolitan setting. Catching sight of the potato-cart-pushing minotaur ahead, she rushed to catch up to him. Passing the snobby rider, she ignored the woman’s insults.
“Pardon me, sir? Potato… minotaur? Excuse me!” Tasha ran behind him, her feet already aching from running on the unyielding stone.
He raised an eyebrow. “Want to buy potatoes now? Can’t you wait until I get to the market?”
“No, sorry. I’m looking for the Arcane University.”
Ogling her up and down, he snorted. “You’re certainly wearing the garb.” He jerked his head to the side. “It’s that way, six streets over. See that red lantern up ahead?”
Tasha strained to see over the crowd. “Yes.”
“Turn left at the next street after that. It’ll take you right to the gate.”
“Thank you!” Tasha waved to him as she headed for the red lantern. “I’ll come see you in the market before I leave and buy some potatoes.”
The noise of the city crowd drowned out his reply. Passing the building with the red lantern, she ventured a glance inside through its open door. The scantily clad people within confirmed the nature of their business. She hurried to the end of the building and turned left. Ahead in the distance, she recognized the spires of the Arcane University.
Calling Korbin and Revan to her, she slowed her pace, giving her feet a chance to acclimate to the hard surface of the cobblestones. The birds followed along, flying from rooftop to rooftop on either side of the street. The nearer she drew to the Arcane University, the thinner the crowds became.
&n
bsp; When she finally arrived at her destination, she found the gate open but guarded by two armored men wielding halberds. They crossed them in front of her as she approached.
“The university grounds aren’t for looking. Keep moving, bumpkin.”
Tasha drew her cloak around her. “I am Tasha Galperin of Curton, graduate of the Arcane University in Maritropa and Crow Queen. I have business here.”
As she spoke, the cloak grew warm, and she felt as though she towered over the men. After pulling back their halberds, they gestured for her to enter.
“Sorry about that. Got to keep the riffraff away.”
Tasha strode past them onto the university campus. Several buildings surrounded the main open area. To one side, students utilized a practice range for their destructive evocation spells. Other students sat around a large tree, chatting. Nearby, she smelled roasting meat from a building filled with the sound of laughter. Central to the whole compound stood the main building, a massive, multi-spired stone structure Tasha knew could only be the Court of Wizardry.
Revan landed on her shoulder, while Korbin perched on one of the branches of the lone oak tree at the center of the compound. She stroked Revan’s head. “Well, let’s pay our respects to the archmage.”
Chapter 45
Aveline rushed through her morning rounds in Old Town, eager to compensate for the time she’d spent with Tasha. As she wandered the streets, keeping a watchful eye for ne’er-do-wells, she tried to keep her mind off how exciting it would be to travel the world with Tasha in the Crow Queen’s hut. I wonder if she needs a bodyguard.
Long ago, the prestige of serving the crown faded, even before her guardian died, abandoned by those who charged him with keeping watch over the southeastern realm. She continued performing her duty because the people of Curton needed her. In addition, she liked transforming the city watch into a respected organization, despite Koloman’s efforts to use the constables for his own purposes.
The idea of running off with her friend to see the world carried with it a special appeal. I wonder how much Vlorey has changed since we left. I barely remember it. Sun, water, and palms. She had not thought about the city of her birth in years. Curton had been home to her for as long as she could remember.
She stopped at the center of Caravan Bridge, listening to the rushing of the Copper Run while she contemplated a future in Curton with her best friend absent doing Crow Queen things. She feared she’d see much less of Tasha now.
“Remember when I fell off this bridge as a boy?”
Aveline started at the sound of Lieutenant Valon’s voice. He apologized for startling her.
“I remember.” Aveline smirked. “Old Agnar and I had just finished moving all our junk from Dawnwatch.”
“You didn’t hesitate. You just jumped right in after me. You didn’t even know how to swim.”
Aveline laughed. “They fished us out down by Fairstone Mill. I’ve never seen a man as angry as Agnar was that day. Angry I’d be so foolish but proud at the same time that I didn’t think about it before trying to save someone’s life.”
“You were the first northerner I’d ever seen. When they pulled us out, I thought you were covered with mud.”
Aveline chuckled, holding up her hand to examine it. “Come on now, my skin looks nothing like the muck they pull out of Copper Run. But I was covered with mud. That river is nasty.”
“What are we going to do about Koloman, Lady Aveline?” Regarding the river, Valon leaned on the capstones of the parapet. “Alik says he only sleeps when he passes out from exhaustion, and he’s talking to the walls. Maxim is demanding you speak to him; Alik turned him away repeatedly.”
“Tasha’s in Muncifer now, at the Arcane University, searching through their books and whatnot to see what can be done about Koloman’s dreams.” At least, I hope that’s what she’s doing. “I expect she’ll be back by tomorrow with a solution. Or at least a sleeping draught that’ll put him into a dreamless sleep for a while. Maxim can go soak his head. I’m still annoyed he showed up and started making demands.”
“The Crow Queen.” Valon chuckled. “Folks are already planning to make the Dusk of Autumn Festival and High Harvest bigger than they’ve been for years.”
“I’d caution them about that. Tasha hasn’t been Crow Queen long enough to make the crops extra bountiful this year. It’d be awful if they didn’t have enough for the winter because they got excited. Besides, I think if someone just made her an apple pie for each of the feasts, she’d be perfectly content.”
Valon laughed. “I’ll pass that along. The apple crop looks like it’s going to be really good this year.”
“If the rock apples are any indicator, I think you’re right.” Aveline stretched. “Back to my rounds. Anything going on by Mudders’ Gate?”
Valon shook his head. “Nothing important. I’ve already been through Drakton if you want to take Hillside. I can placate Maxim for a couple more days.”
“Hillside it is.”
* * *
Tasha strode into the antechamber of the Court of Wizardry with Revan perched on her shoulder. An elderly man stood at an unadorned podium in front of a set of ornately carved doors, wisps of white hair crowning his head.
He raised caterpillar-like eyebrows at Tasha’s approach. “You’re not a student here.”
Glancing at her surroundings, she approached him. Glowing crystals in wall sconces illuminated the celestial mural on the ceiling featuring the symbol of the goddess of magic. Tasha paused to examine the image more closely. The Eye of Selene, composed of the twin moons of Calliome when the Queen eclipsed the King, occurred rarely. The alignment could only occur when both moons simultaneously displayed their full lunar faces and their orbits placed the King in the shadow of the Queen. The last such alignment Tasha recalled had occurred when she was a child.
“Excuse me.” The seneschal rapped his knuckles against the podium. “What business do you have in the Court of Wizardry?”
Tasha bowed her head. “My apologies, this is my first time here, and I was admiring the mural. I am Tasha Galperin. I’ve recently become Crow Queen, and I wish to pay my respects to the archmage.”
Frowning, the old man’s eyebrows met in a collision of fuzz. “You’re the Crow Queen?” He noticed Revan on her shoulder, seemingly for the first time. “You’re younger than I last saw you. Been bathing in the blood of virgins?”
Tasha grimaced. “Annika is dead. I’m her successor.”
He laughed. “Yes, we were aware of her demise some time ago. It was thought the line of succession was broken. I shall make a note you stopped by; however, the archmage is indisposed.”
Forcing herself not to slump in disappointment, Tasha looked on as the man opened a ledger and recorded her name. “Is there someone else I can speak to? I need a… consultation, or access to the library, at least. Also, I believe I probably owe dues going back several years.”
The seneschal pointed with his quill at the door behind her. “You’ll need to speak to the bursar about that. Go left around the building. There’s a side entrance near the compound wall. The archmage has altered how dues are handled.”
“After that, you’ll direct me to someone I can speak to?”
“I suggest you go to the library around the right side of the court.” The seneschal closed his ledger. “Anyone who could help you should be there. Otherwise, they’re working with their students. Do not disturb them.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Frowning, Tasha left the seneschal to guard his podium.
Outside, a crowd of students gathered in front of the oak tree to watch two older students toss alternating balls of fire and lightning to each other. Tasha studied the juggling for a moment, then she proceeded around the building to the bursar’s office.
In the office, little more than a dimly lit cubicle, a rotund woman with grey hair tied into a bun sat behind a massive oak desk that occupied the majority of the space. With a haze clouding one eye, the woman glanc
ed up as Tasha entered. “You don’t look like a student. Are you sure you’re in the right place?”
“I’m here to pay Mage’s Guild dues.” Tasha shut the door behind her and approached the desk. She noticed a tray of pastries shoved to one side. “I probably owe for several years.”
Grunting, the woman withdrew a ledger from the lowest desk drawer. “No, you don’t. The archmage granted amnesty for everyone owing back dues as one of her first acts when she took over last year. Name?”
“Tasha Galperin…”
The woman held up her hand, tapping a quill against the book. It flipped open, displaying a page filled with writing. “Continue.”
“That was nice of the archmage. I’d heard some changes were made.”
Scanning the lines on the page, the bursar grunted acknowledgment, then scribbled a few words next to Tasha’s name. “Says here you attended the university in Maritropa.”
“That’s right. I live in Curton now.”
Setting down her quill, the bursar examined Tasha, scrutinizing her with her healthy eye. “Curton? Why? Village witch?”
“When I moved there, they needed an apothecary. I now serve them and others as Crow Queen.”
The woman recorded another note. “Finally. It’s been too long since the last Crow Queen disappeared. It’s an honor. When I was a lass, she made our fields fertile again after a bad blight. We were starving when she showed up.”
She offered the Crow Queen her hand. Tasha clasped it, noting the woman’s iron grip squeezed her fingers. “I’m Adina, by the way, Crow Queen. It’s an honor to have you visit our city.”
Tasha felt her cheeks grow hot. “Thank you. How much… how much are dues now?”
“Fifty crowns, a one-time payment for lifetime membership in the Mage’s Guild.”
Patting her pouch, Tasha swallowed. “Fifty? That seems…”
“Far less than paying five crowns a year for your entire adult life.” Adina offered her a smile. “Pay what you can now and the rest the next time you’re here. There are no penalties for late payments, and the archmage has rededicated the Slayers. They no longer hunt renegades, at least, not the ones who are only delinquent in paying their dues.” Chuckling, the bursar shook her head. “The archmage is a reformer, there’s no mistake about that. Manless would have had us subjugating half the city if he’d had his way.”
Summer of Crows Page 32
