The Bronze Mage (29 page)

Melanie was gone. Other students were in the halls, but at the moment none was paying much attention to Tabitha. There were a few curious glances, of course, but no one suspected she would do anything other than what her father had ordered.

Feeling very self-conscious, she walked out of the dormitory, across the grounds, to the eastern edge of the school. This would be the tricky part. With no trees, she would be visible for miles, so she couldn't leave until after everyone fell asleep. She sat on the ground, back to the easternmost building, and waited.

The sun set. The noises behind her quieted.

Tabitha stood and looked carefully over the college grounds, but it was too dark to see anyone. She hoped that once the moon rose, she'd be able to see a little better. At least she also couldn't be seen.

"I thought you might be outside."

Tabitha jumped before she recognized James's voice.
 

"They said you'd gone home hours ago," she said.

"I did. I can't stay long, but I wanted to check on you. Mage Edgar told me what your father decided."

"Do you have any idea when you might come back? They have at least agreed to wait for you."

"It won't work Tabitha. Not if I could return tomorrow and stay a month, and I can't do that. Two weeks from now I can arrange to take a week off, but no more. My time is not my own, but even if it was, you don't need days or weeks from me. You need years. One at the very least, but probably two."

"I'm going to talk to my father in person. Once he understands how set I am against them experimenting on me again, he'll change his mind. It's because you rescued me, because I asked you to, that he's reacting this way. He thinks you've fooled me like you did the others. If he knows how important this is to me, he'll cooperate. I know he will."

"What do you want him to do?" James asked.

"To arrange a position for me in Salbren. I can help King Fenril's field marshal the way I've helped my father's."

"And then?"

"Well, you should be able to find more time to help me if I'm there." His question made her doubt his willingness for the first time.

"I can't have you in Salbren, Tabitha. You are worse now than you were at Princess Anya's wedding."

Was he embarrassed? Tabitha was confused by his answer. "Isn't that the point, that you need to make me better?"

"I can't risk calling you in my sleep again. We were lucky no one noticed then, but now that it's public knowledge, you can be certain people will be looking for it."

"Surely that isn't already known in Salbren?" Tabitha could have cursed Mage Edgar for blabbering, but she couldn't think of any words harsh enough.

"Not yet, but it won't take long."

"Well, maybe that was a fluke. You never called me in your sleep while we were both here."

"I've thought about that. I think it's because you've been sleeping under my spell. Possibly intentional compulsion overrides unintentional."

Did that mean he would have called her still? Did he dream of her? Tabitha focused back on the problem. "So you could do that there, too, right? Put me to sleep with your spell?"

"Honestly, Tabitha, do you really think me putting you to sleep every night would start fewer rumors? How many men are allowed in your bedroom at home?"

Tabitha had to admit not even her father or Jerrold had come to the girls' bedroom in the last few years. And the servants would talk if James did, even if no one else knew.

James continued. "Even if I no one saw me, if I transported magically to your room, people will soon know the nature of the spell and its strength. They will make assumptions. Especially because it's me."

James had done exactly that sort of thing before, going to women's bedrooms. He knew from experience what kind of talk would result.

"Then I don't know what to do." Tabitha sagged back against the building.

"Don't you?" James's voice was quiet. "There's only one option, Tabitha. There's only ever been one. That's why your father doesn't want to give up on the mages' experiments."

"I have." She sought his eyes through the darkness. "There's no reason to believe it will work better now. The affinity isn't weaker than last time. But I am. I'm really afraid."

James sounded fierce. "I thought I held your corpse once... I won't allow it to happen again."

"But how can you stop it? My father has authority over me, both as my parent and my king. You can't kidnap me again. That's not a practical longterm solution." She added this rather quickly, as it occurred to her he might.

"No." Although she couldn't see his expression in the dark, Tabitha could have sworn James was smiling. "I learned my lesson. I will work out the terms with your father this time. It is unfortunate that you're not yet nineteen, but an exception will have to be made."

The terms? Tabitha wondered. Nineteen? Why did that matter? As the answer to the last question occurred to her, the other was answered as well.

"You plan to marry me?" She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Probably because she had no idea how he felt about it.

"It's the only legitimate way I can keep you near me to work on the spell."

"Oh. Then, no."

A pause.

"No?" James asked. His voice had that quiet tone that was never a good sign.

"No. You can't marry me just to work magic on me. No. That's not even one of the allowable reasons. I'm fairly certain it's one of the excluded ones. No." Her voice was getting stronger.

"Tabitha," his voice was still quiet. She had to focus to hear him. "As soon as I leave, the affinity will start increasing again. You should be fine for a week or two, but we don't know even that for certain. If you're here, these mages may be tempted to tinker with the spell before I can come back. Certainly, they plan to after. The affinity will increase drastically again and you will die."

"That's why we need to work something else out. Maybe not in the castle." She had started edging away from him, unconsciously at first, now intentionally. "Maybe I can live anonymously in the town. Tell them I'm your relative, so they don't make assumptions. I'll work at something, in a stable or somewhere else."

Tabitha's backward progress became more difficult as James stopped counteracting the affinity. Then he called her back to him. She came to a stop inches from him.

"People in Xentia know my family well enough," he said. "They would find out who you really are. It wouldn't even be hard. You've visited twice already. Once the type of spell becomes common knowledge, the rumors will destroy both of our chances to lead respectable lives."

Now Tabitha was angry. "Respectable? When was that ever a concern of yours? If respectability was your goal, kidnapping me was an ill-considered tactic."

"It wasn't my goal then. It is now."

"I refuse to marry you just to secure your reputation. Besides, for all you know, the affinity may take months or years to re-strengthen. I'll take my chances."

"You will not. You may not care about your life, but others do. This isn't a negotiation."
 

His pronouncement incensed Tabitha. "This isn't your cabin, James. You don't get the final say."

She wasn't fool enough to take his silence as acquiescence. Tabitha took a deep breath, then another.

"I will talk to King Fenril tonight," James said. "He won't be hard to convince."

Tabitha smiled in spite of herself. Indeed. The Xentian king might declare a holiday. Then she dropped her head. "That's not the king you should be worrying about. How will you ever convince my father?"

"He knows I can take you, and he believes I would. If I ask nicely, he won't turn me down, even if he thinks I'm lying about the reasons. He wants to have a say in the terms of the contract, so he can still provide you with some legal protection."

"So you're doing this whatever I say?"

"I would much rather have you agree."

Tabitha was strongly tempted to tell him "no" again. But refusing James wouldn't bring him on his knees spouting poetry and as much as she wanted him to admit his feelings for her, it simply wasn't going to happen. She needed him.

Tabitha squared her shoulders and looked James in the eye, as much as she could in the dark. "We're not going to your hunting cabin at any point. And I get to spend time at home first to plan a proper wedding with my mother. And you will write a really, really polite letter to my father telling him why you feel this is necessary and promising to take excellent care of me." Tabitha paused, then realized how that sounded. "I already know you will, but my father doesn't. Even if he doesn't believe you, he'll want to have it in writing. So will my mother."

"Agreed," James said. He stepped back from her and vanished.

So that was it. She was going to marry James and live in Salbren. On the bright side, if he kissed her, she wouldn't have to push him away.

Tabitha's adventures are continued in "The Green-Eyed Mage"

Appendices

PEOPLE OF THE THREE KINGDOMS

In Valstadt

NAME, TITLE

DESCRIPTION

Bernice, Queen

queen of Valstadt, wife of Rhys, mother of Jerrold, Melanie and Tabitha

Crandall, Mage

court mage of Valstadt

Jerrold, Crown Prince

heir of the throne of Valstadt, oldest child of King Rhys and Queen Bernice, brother of Melanie and Tabitha

Melanie, Princess

middle child of King Rhys and Queen Bernice, sister of Jerrold and Tabitha, mage-in-training

Rhys, King

king of Valstadt, husband of Bernice, ally of King Fenril and King Langston, father of Jerrold, Melanie and Tabitha

Tabitha, Princess

youngest chid of King Rhys and Queen Bernice of Valstadt

In Westphal

NAME, TITLE

DESCRIPTION

Cameron, Prince

son of King Langston and Queen Caryn, has 2 older brothers and 2 younger sisters

Caryn, Queen

queen of Westphal, wife of Langston, mother of Philip, William, Cameron, Carissa and Irene, childhood friend of Queen Bernice of Valstadt

Carissa, Princess

daughter of King Langston and Queen Caryn, has three older brothers and one younger sister

Edgar, Mage

court mage of Westphal, head of the College of Magic, great-uncle of Rayner

Irene, Princess

youngest child of King Langston and Queen Caryn

Langston, King

king of Westphal, husband of Caryn, ally of King Fenril and King Rhys, father of Philip, William, Cameron, Carissa and Irene

Philip, Crown Prince

heir to the throne of Westphal, oldest child of King Langston and Queen Caryn

Rayner

great-nephew of Edgar, Edgar's assistant for a while, magic-senser

William, Prince

son of King Langston and Queen Caryn, has an older and a younger brother and two younger sisters

In Xentia

NAME, TITLE

DESCRIPTION

Angeline

daughter of Lady Emerton

Anya, Princess

heir to the throne of Xentia, only child of King Fenril and Queen Lynnette, friend of Princess Melanie of Valstadt

Auguste, King

deceased, previous king of Xentia, father of Fenril, enemy of Valstadt

Emerton, Lady

mother of Angeline, hosted dinner parties for Tabitha's family during their visits to Xentia

Fenril, King
 

king of Xentia, opposed his father's attempt to take over Valstadt, ally of King Rhys and King Langston, married to Lynnette, father of Anya

James, Mage

mage sent by King Auguste to overthrow King Rhys of Valstadt, failed and spent 28 years as a bronze statue, the only living mage who can weave spells without the use of potions or ingredients

Lynnette, Queen
 

queen of Xentia, wife of Fenril, mother of Anya

MAGIC IN THE THREE KINGDOMS

Incidence and Employment

Magic used to exist throughout the continent, but is now unique to the three kingdoms. The Northern and Southern Empires lost access to magic generations ago through an event that took place during one of their wars. Their inability to defend themselves against magic prevents the much larger empires from conquering the three kingdoms. The absence of ingredients with magical potential inside the empires discourages mages from defecting to them.