Hekara stared at Essryl for a long moment, looking perplexed, then shook her head and muttered. “Dark elves. I don’t understand you in the slightest.”
“You shouldn’t, really. All I have to say is… good luck,” Essryl said, smiling and turning away from the demon.
Hekara needed to pack, after all, and Essryl had said what she needed to.
Chapter 10
Ruethwyn wasn’t too surprised when all her friends decided to accompany her back to Tyrness in the end. If Korima and Tadrick hadn’t come along with, it would’ve been more surprising. It was just Sella that had made her wonder, even with the arrangements with the barge made, though in the end, she’d decided to come with. From a few things that had been said, Sella really wanted to see the Lightweaver clan, so Ruethwyn suspected that she wasn’t going to be shaking off her friends until she left for Resvarygrath’s throne in the Obsidian Palace itself, if even then.
Barton had been kind enough to send an escort to guard them on their way to Corwal late one evening, and they’d spent a short evening in an inn before boarding the barge long before the sun rose for the trip downriver. The barge had proven to be a boring place to reside, with cramped cabins and a small crew that focused mostly on ensuring they didn’t run aground with their cargo of quarried stone.
The first day had been the best, as Ruethwyn found it somewhat interesting to watch the scenery float by at the slow, steady pace of the river. The river wasn’t the fastest method of travel, but except in the worst of weather, barges didn’t have to stop, so it was far faster than walking in the end. Eventually, Korima had driven them all half-mad through her dislike of being cooped up on the ship, but that hadn’t been the truly discomforting thing for Ruethwyn.
No, that had been how much attention she’d garnered over the trip. Just the trip to Corwal had been startling, because in the time they’d spent getting dinner and heading to their rooms, Ruethwyn had been approached by at least three men who’d been rather forthright in their advances on her. There might have been more, both men and women alike, but Ruethwyn wasn’t certain about them. She’d never been on the receiving end of flirtation except for with Korima, and the kitsune had been far more direct than Ruethwyn thought most people were.
If that hadn’t been enough, she’d been approached by a couple of members of the barge’s crew when she was in private, and Ruethwyn had quickly realized that being on her own only encouraged the attention. She finally had decided to spend most of her time in the cabin she’d rented, despite it being tiny and shared with Korima. It might be uncomfortable, but it was far more relaxing than the alternative, and she’d started using a spell she’d neglected, one which allowed her to conjure water and clean herself with it.
It was a relief to reach Tyrness, and Ruethwyn had suppressed her sigh of relief until she was well away from the barge, then spoke firmly. “I’m not taking a barge again unless I have no other choice. They never talk about how cramped the quarters are in the books I’ve read.”
Tadrick laughed at that, grinning as he replied. “I think that’s at least partly because most people don’t stay in their cabins, most of the time. I’ve always heard that they’re mostly for sleeping, not for the passengers to stay in like hermits.”
“Yes, well, if I hadn’t been propositioned by a quarter of the crew, I might have been more comfortable with coming outside,” Ruethwyn retorted, scowling at Tadrick. “As it was, I didn’t feel entirely safe.”
“They were mostly harmless, Rue. You just need more practice brushing people off when they’re paying attention to you,” Korima said, smiling broadly as she skipped along. “I mean, you’re so taken aback and timid when people come after you that they find it encouraging.”
“Very true. I’m not incredibly experienced myself, but if I were flirting with you, I’d take your reaction as encouraging,” Sella agreed, and Ruethwyn couldn’t help giving her a betrayed look.
“That’s not fair, though! Aside from Korima deciding to blindside me with her attention, do you have any idea how many times people have flirted with me?” Ruethwyn asked, barely keeping from hunching her shoulders. Even now she saw some of the crowd milling through the docks district watching her, and it didn’t help her nerves. Korima likely had a point about her appearance being distinctive, she had to admit. She hadn’t thought of it before, but even she would’ve noticed the problem after this trip.
“I’m going to guess not many,” Sella said, glancing at the others, and Tadrick raised his hands in protest.
“Don’t look at me! I’m not getting involved in this, thank you,” the young man said. “Ruethwyn and I already talked a little about things like this.”
“Mm… I don’t know,” Korima said, grinning at Tadrick, then looked at Ruethwyn. “I think Sella’s right, but I can’t say how many for sure. Different people react different ways.”
“Try none,” Ruethwyn said flatly, and the others slowed, staring at her for a long moment.
“Are you serious? I mean, you weren’t the prettiest before, but from what I saw, you weren’t ugly before getting burned either,” Sella protested, frowning deeply. “I’d say you were a bit above average, really.”
“Of course I’m serious, Sella. And I may have been modestly pretty, but… look, you’re from Waterstone. From what I saw, it’s about half again the size of Mellesyn, maybe as much as twice as big. There’s something else I don’t think you realize, either.” Ruethwyn paused, taking a deep breath, then let it out. “Waterstone is only what, fifteen miles from Corwal? Did you realize that the closest town bigger than Mellesyn was Waterstone? I didn’t know that until I looked at a map, but it’s true. Mellesyn was almost as close to the capital of Ovara as it was to Tyrness, too!”
“Huh. Really? I didn’t know it was quite that far away…” Tadrick murmured, frowning. “What does that have to do with anything, though?”
“Sella was closer to large cities. In Mellesyn, positions like those of a hunter or druid were highly respected. So were the positions of craftsmen and the like.” Ruethwyn’s voice grew wistful as she shook her head, swallowing hard before continuing. “Magi, true magi… yes, they were powerful, and their magic was respected, but they weren’t considered something Mellesyn needed. When I was younger, some of the others said that I didn’t act like I was Sylvan at all, and that I should have been born to the Karakar. I might not have been outcast, but I wasn’t thought well of because of my talent with magic and love of books. There weren’t many people near my age in Mellesyn, so even a couple could have a large impact.”
“Oh.” Sella’s eyes were wide, and Ruethwyn winced slightly as she saw the look she was giving Ruethwyn. Korima spoke first, though.
“That’s horrible! How could they act that way, just because someone liked something different?” the kitsune demanded angrily, looking outraged.
“Don’t, Korima,” Ruethwyn said quickly, shaking her head. “I think they’d have come around eventually, but they never had that chance. Mellesyn was a small, traditional town, someplace where things didn’t change quickly. They held to older ways, in part because there weren’t many people with talent. Remember, my parents were minor magi. I think that aside from Sinera and me, no one in the town had reached more than third circle in any sphere.”
“Huh, that’s… even smaller than I thought,” Tadrick said, a troubled look on his face. “I heard a little about Mellesyn after the attack, but no one really talked about what the town was like. I don’t think I’d heard of it before, either.”
“We had Jepharrine, but with the Frostglades there, we always had a few more powerful magi than that. I think Father has a couple of magi who’ve reached fifth circle under his command,” Sella added hesitantly, looking quite uncomfortable. “I didn’t realize…”
“And? Why is that an excuse? It’s still wrong!” Korima said, her voice firm, and her arms crossed.
“One of the people I remember saying things like that is a captive of the dragon
. The others are all dead,” Ruethwyn said simply. “Isn’t that punishment enough? I’m not going to hold something like that against them, not after everything they’ve been through. It hurt, yes… more than I honestly can express. But in the end, it all pales compared to what happened.”
“Oh, um… I suppose so. I’m sorry,” Korima said, her ears drooping slightly as she looked away in embarrassment. “I guess I forgot about that.”
“It’s fine, Korima. I can’t blame you for forgetting. After all, sometimes it doesn’t feel entirely real to me, and I lived through it,” Ruethwyn replied with a shrug. “Anyway, shall we go? I’d like to reach the inn before dark.”
“Sure. I’m just going to make sure you’re all settled in before heading back to the manor. I expect Mother and Father would be upset if I chose to stay elsewhere,” Tadrick said, sighing heavily. “That should be an interesting conversation, especially if they heard that I went into the Frostglades.”
“They’re in town?” Sella asked, pausing for a moment. “I know they were in the city for a few weeks after midwinter, but I didn’t know they were back.”
Tadrick grimaced and nodded. “Yeah, Mother insists on attending the various court functions through the summer, and all the balls and gatherings. Father doesn’t mind, since he uses them to help make business deals and visit with old friends.”
“That makes me wonder… are we ever going to meet them?” Korima asked, quickening her pace to keep up as they dodged around a wagon heading for the waterfront. Or a few dozen wagons, Ruethwyn realized, seeing more past the one ahead of her.
“Not if I can help it, at least not soon,” Tadrick replied immediately, a bit ahead of Ruethwyn, while Sella was just behind her. “While I love my parents, I don’t think I like the idea of introducing them to all of you. Father wouldn’t be too bad, but Mother… she’s a bit frivolous, I think. I’m afraid of what she’d say, honestly. She might be really nice, but she also might try to push a couple of us together, and I really don’t want to have to deal with that.”
“I had rather wondered at this point. I mean, we’ve met your brother and heard about your parents a fair bit. Plus, we’ve met both my parents and Korima’s,” Sella said, and Ruethwyn felt the faintest twinge as she realized that the other woman deliberately avoided mentioning Ruethwyn’s family. “I just wondered why.”
“Yeah, I suppose that’d be an issue, and—” Tadrick began.
At that moment, Ruethwyn saw a flicker of movement to her right. She wasn’t certain what exactly happened, but something went flying out from the wheel of the wagon just ahead of her, and she only had an instant to react as the wheel came flying off and the overladen cart began buckling and veering toward her.
Thoughts flickered through Ruethwyn’s mind, but the knowledge that Sella was right behind her quelled the urge to dodge, and in an instant Ruethwyn channeled magic into her shield ring. A barrier of glittering light snapped into existence as the eyes of the wagon’s driver began widening in shock, and the wheel bounced off to slam into the wall while the wagon careened toward Ruethwyn.
Despite everything, Ruethwyn was shocked as she realized that her mind wasn’t filled with panic, but instead she reacted with instant precision, though she did channel more mana than she’d intended as she spat out the words of a spell, her left hand flashing through the gestures quickly and easily. In moments, just as the wagon crunched into Ruethwyn’s shield, she cast a spell far more quickly than she could have two weeks prior.
The wheels of the wagon squealed as ice suddenly wrapped all around them, and a berm of icy snow exploded into existence beneath the wagon just in front of its rear wheels, both supporting the bed and bringing the vehicle to a sudden, jarring halt.
All around them, cries of alarm rang out as people noticed what had happened, and curses of surprise filled the air as other wagons that’d been following the one which had nearly hit Ruethwyn dodged, throwing the street into chaos. Ruethwyn blinked a couple of times, then looked up to meet the shocked gaze of the driver and smiled at the woman as she allowed her shield to fade away.
“Well, that was a surprise, wasn’t it?” Ruethwyn said, keeping her voice mild.
“Um, yes… yes it was,” the woman agreed.
“Rue! Are you alright?” Sella exclaimed, quickly taking a step forward as the shock of the situation wore off.
“I’m fine, Sella. I got my shield up with plenty of time,” Ruethwyn assured her.
A burly man with a deep scowl stepped out of the crowd, wearing a badge which Ruethwyn didn’t recognize, but he bellowed, “What in the blazes is going on here?”
“Ah, hells,” the driver said, swallowing. “This is going to be bad for our schedule.”
“I don’t suppose we can get out of here before getting embroiled in anything?” Tadrick asked, his voice filled with resignation.
“I think it’s too late for that. Besides, it wouldn’t be polite to leave without melting the ice,” Ruethwyn replied, smirking as she explained. “I put a bit more mana into it than I intended, so it’d probably last for more than a day. We really should help sort this out, anyway.”
“Fine,” Tadrick said, letting out a sigh as the driver stepped toward the man who’d shown up.
“Why does it seem like we can’t take you anywhere, Rue?” Korima asked, her hands on her hips as she surveyed the situation. “I swear, we’ve only been in the city for a few minutes!”
Ruethwyn rolled her eyes and turned away, smiling at Sella as she murmured, “She’s being a bit overly dramatic, isn’t she?”
“I don’t know about that, she does have a point. You seem to attract trouble, Rue,” Sella countered, but her smile was obvious.
Ruethwyn sighed, then stepped toward the man trying to sort the situation out. The horses weren’t happy, but the drivers seemed to be calming them down. First, she needed to try to figure out what had happened.
Jethel frowned from the alley in annoyance. She was holding the linchpin of the wagon wheel, and after a moment, she murmured a spell to snap off the piece that’d held it in place, tossing the two pieces to either side of the alley. Hopefully no one would realize that someone had pulled it out deliberately, but it wasn’t a worry if they did. She’d be gone before they thought to look down the alley.
More disappointing was that the attempt hadn’t killed the young woman, but Jethel hadn’t honestly expected it to work. She knew very little about Ruethwyn, and the woman had changed significantly. If they hadn’t known that her appearance had changed, Jethel wouldn’t have even known it was the same person.
More interesting was how quickly Ruethwyn had reacted, and the ease with which she’d used her magic. That was information that Jethel’s superiors would want to hear about, so she shrugged and turned away to disappear down the alley.
It wouldn’t do to be spotted, after all.
Chapter 11
“See? You look very different,” Tadrick said, looking far too entertained as they waited.
They were outside the gates of Tyrness Academy, and Ruethwyn glared at Tadrick for a moment before sighing and looking over at the gate, as well as the pair of guards watching them warily. They weren’t typical guards, of course, as one was a mage who held a crystal-tipped staff, and both were equipped with multiple enchanted items. The problem was that they were rather skeptical of Ruethwyn’s identity and had refused her entry for now. They’d sent for one of the instructors, but Ruethwyn was beginning to worry that she might have more trouble than she’d anticipated.
“I know, but apparently I didn’t think about the potential consequences,” Ruethwyn replied, letting out a deep sigh. “This is far more complex than I thought it would be.”
“That’s only to be expected, Rue. When you change significantly, even if you don’t feel that different, it isn’t like everyone else should be expected to realize it’s you,” Sella told her, looking amused as she glanced at the guards.
“I don’t know about that,” Korima
disagreed, shaking her head slowly. “Maybe it’s just because kitsune can shapeshift, but we’re pretty used to people changing what they look like, though some people do it more than others.”
“Really? You’ve never shifted your appearance, at least not that I’ve seen,” Tadrick said, his eyebrows rising. “I did see a few of the actors in the troupe do it, but I assumed it wasn’t easy.”
“Um, well, it isn’t easy, and it takes practice. I can change my shape somewhat, but I’m not great at it,” Korima said, shrugging uncomfortably. “Changing into the shape of a fox or the like is much easier than changing into another human or elf-like shape, and even then, changing what you look like is… tough. A handful of kitsune can do it, but they’re rare. Like Jael… I don’t know if anyone knows what their original appearance is, including them!”
“Them?” Sella asked, blinking. “That sounds odd.”
“Jael swaps from male to female the way some people change clothing. I have no clue what gender they actually are,” Korima said wryly, shaking her head. “I’ve done it a couple of times, but I can’t imagine how they can change so easily.”
“You’ve turned into a boy?” Ruethwyn asked, her eyebrows rising suddenly as she looked at Korima in surprise. Looking at the redhead, Ruethwyn couldn’t imagine what a male version of her would look like. Both of the others were staring at the kitsune as well, and Korima shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot.
“Of course I have! I mean… if you knew you were able to, wouldn’t you, just to see what it’s like?” Korima asked. “It was weird, really. Things feel different, you have to walk different, and I lost my balance a couple of times. It’s far easier to walk as a fox, so I haven’t done it in a few years.”
“Huh. I’m trying to imagine you as a guy, and it’s… tough. I can kind of see it, but it’s hard,” Tadrick said, staring at Korima as he spoke slowly.
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