used to frisk and play around you, and you’d
laugh and try to catch them with your little hands. Clear enough it was,
you’d taken after her. And then—she died.”
“She
drowned,” Eleanor whispered, and shuddered. All her life, the one thing
she’d been afraid of was water. Sarah nodded.
“The
enemy Element,” Sarah said sadly. “The Element that hates hers; the
river flooded, you see, and to this day, I don’t know if it was accident
or an enemy. She could have told me, but—well, the river flooded and
washed out the bridge as she was trying to get across to get home to you. Her
allies had no power to save her. And your father, well, he couldn’t bear
to look upon me, who was her close friend, so I stayed away. And you seemed to
be flourishing, and I heard about you going up to university and all, and I
thought, well, well enough, I’ll leave her be, and when she starts to
come into her power, I’ll send to the Fire Masters who’ve people at
Oxford, and they’ll take on the teaching of you. So much more clever than
I, those dons and scholars—”
“But
She
came.” Eleanor’s voice cracked.
“Then
She
came.” Sarah’s voice hardened. “My Element, but
a Master, more powerful than me, and better connected by far. In magic as in
everything else, it’s who you know that gets you places, and what
you’ve got.” Sarah grimaced. “She’s trusted by them as
should know better, but don’t; there’s no help there—yet. I
could no more stand against her than your mother could stand against the flood.
But
you
are coming into
your
powers, and I can set your feet
on the right path, and you can break her, if you grow strong enough. And this
is where I can make a start—”
She
got up out of the chair where she was sitting and walked over to the hearth.
She stared down at the hearthstones for a moment, then bent, and traced a
symbol with her index finger on one. It glowed for a moment, a warm, lovely
golden-amber, before sinking into the stone.
“Blast
her,” Sarah muttered under her breath. “She’s stronger than I
thought.”
“What?”
Eleanor asked.
“It’s
a spell that will answer to Fire as well as Earth; it’s what She did to
bind you here. I know a counter that will work within her spell to free you
from this house and hearth for a few hours at a time, though you won’t be
able to go farther than, say, Longacre,” the witch said.
“You’ll have to learn how to work magic of your own to make her
spell answer to you, how to bend it to your will for a little—we’ll
start you learning Fire magic now, if you’re ready, but definitely before
she comes back.”
“I—Sarah,
I don’t know, this all seems so—” She was going to say,
“impossible to believe,” but at exactly that moment, something
looked at her out of the hearth-fire. She looked back, feeling her eyes widen
as she recognized the fiery-eyed lizard of her dreams.
“Well,
and there you are,” Sarah said, with triumph, following her startled
glance. “Salamander. Sure sign of you coming into your powers, no matter
what
she
’s done.”
“You
can see it too?” she asked incredulously.
“Well,
of course. I can
see
the Elementals, and if they feel like it, they
might help me out, but I can’t command them, not even Earth. I’m
not a Master,” Sarah said; wistfully, Eleanor thought. “But you can
command the ones of Fire; because you’re a Fire Master, you’ll have
their respect, and because of your mother, you already have their loyalty, and
the only way you’d lose that would be to do something they didn’t
like.”
“What
do you mean,
I have their loyalty
?” Eleanor asked incredulously.
“Hold
out your hand,” Sarah replied. “To the fire, I mean. You’ll
see.”
Dubiously
Eleanor did so, and before she could pull away with surprise, that same
something leapt out of the flames and began twining around her hands like a
friendly ferret. It
looked
like a lizard made of flame, and it
laugh and try to catch them with your little hands. Clear enough it was,
you’d taken after her. And then—she died.”
“She
drowned,” Eleanor whispered, and shuddered. All her life, the one thing
she’d been afraid of was water. Sarah nodded.
“The
enemy Element,” Sarah said sadly. “The Element that hates hers; the
river flooded, you see, and to this day, I don’t know if it was accident
or an enemy. She could have told me, but—well, the river flooded and
washed out the bridge as she was trying to get across to get home to you. Her
allies had no power to save her. And your father, well, he couldn’t bear
to look upon me, who was her close friend, so I stayed away. And you seemed to
be flourishing, and I heard about you going up to university and all, and I
thought, well, well enough, I’ll leave her be, and when she starts to
come into her power, I’ll send to the Fire Masters who’ve people at
Oxford, and they’ll take on the teaching of you. So much more clever than
I, those dons and scholars—”
“But
She
came.” Eleanor’s voice cracked.
“Then
She
came.” Sarah’s voice hardened. “My Element, but
a Master, more powerful than me, and better connected by far. In magic as in
everything else, it’s who you know that gets you places, and what
you’ve got.” Sarah grimaced. “She’s trusted by them as
should know better, but don’t; there’s no help there—yet. I
could no more stand against her than your mother could stand against the flood.
But
you
are coming into
your
powers, and I can set your feet
on the right path, and you can break her, if you grow strong enough. And this
is where I can make a start—”
She
got up out of the chair where she was sitting and walked over to the hearth.
She stared down at the hearthstones for a moment, then bent, and traced a
symbol with her index finger on one. It glowed for a moment, a warm, lovely
golden-amber, before sinking into the stone.
“Blast
her,” Sarah muttered under her breath. “She’s stronger than I
thought.”
“What?”
Eleanor asked.
“It’s
a spell that will answer to Fire as well as Earth; it’s what She did to
bind you here. I know a counter that will work within her spell to free you
from this house and hearth for a few hours at a time, though you won’t be
able to go farther than, say, Longacre,” the witch said.
“You’ll have to learn how to work magic of your own to make her
spell answer to you, how to bend it to your will for a little—we’ll
start you learning Fire magic now, if you’re ready, but definitely before
she comes back.”
“I—Sarah,
I don’t know, this all seems so—” She was going to say,
“impossible to believe,” but at exactly that moment, something
looked at her out of the hearth-fire. She looked back, feeling her eyes widen
as she recognized the fiery-eyed lizard of her dreams.
“Well,
and there you are,” Sarah said, with triumph, following her startled
glance. “Salamander. Sure sign of you coming into your powers, no matter
what
she
’s done.”
“You
can see it too?” she asked incredulously.
“Well,
of course. I can
see
the Elementals, and if they feel like it, they
might help me out, but I can’t command them, not even Earth. I’m
not a Master,” Sarah said; wistfully, Eleanor thought. “But you can
command the ones of Fire; because you’re a Fire Master, you’ll have
their respect, and because of your mother, you already have their loyalty, and
the only way you’d lose that would be to do something they didn’t
like.”
“What
do you mean,
I have their loyalty
?” Eleanor asked incredulously.
“Hold
out your hand,” Sarah replied. “To the fire, I mean. You’ll
see.”
Dubiously
Eleanor did so, and before she could pull away with surprise, that same
something leapt out of the flames and began twining around her hands like a
friendly ferret. It
looked
like a lizard made of flame, and it
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