Wedding Hells (Schooled in Magic Book 8) (11 page)

“I haven’t thought about it yet,” Emily admitted. “Are you offering?”

“Yes,” Melissa said.

Emily studied her for a long moment. A couple of years ago, she would have suspected a trap. It had been Melissa, after all, who’d played a hundred nasty pranks on her. But now, after Melissa’s marriage and Emily’s role in it, she found it hard to believe that Melissa would play any jokes on her. It was far more likely that Melissa was trying to pay a debt she found burdensome.

“I’ll keep you in mind,” she promised. “But you do realize that
I
was not raised in those traditions.”

“Your father committed a grave mistake there,” Melissa noted. “Our traditions are quite important. They are the wardstone of our society.”

Emily nodded and turned back to where Caleb was patiently waiting. When she glanced back, as he led her onto the dance floor, Melissa was gone.

“She was offering to stand beside me,” she said, as they spun around on the floor. “Is that a good idea?”

“See what happens in a couple of years,” Caleb said. He frowned as he considered the possibilities. “My mother may object because Melissa deserted her family.”

Emily sighed. The network of patronage and family relationships that bound the magical families together was too complex for anyone to follow, save for someone who had steeped themselves in it since birth. Caleb’s mother, a sorceress herself, might have ties that led, eventually, to Fulvia, even though Fulvia had been stripped of most of her power. It was just possible she would refuse to accept Melissa playing any role in the wedding...

If there is a wedding
, she reminded herself. She liked Caleb, she felt comfortable with him, but marriage? She honestly wasn’t sure. But then, the Courtship was meant to make her sure - or allow one or both of them to decide against it without shame.
There’s a long way to go before I need to choose a second
.

Caleb met her eyes. “Do you like her?”

“I feel sorry for her,” Emily admitted. It crossed her mind, not for the first time, that she and Melissa had a great deal in common. And Alassa and Melissa, for that matter. “She’s so alone right now.”

“She had the courage to stand up to someone almost as formidable as my mother,” Caleb said. There was a hint of admiration in his tone. “I think she’ll be fine.”

“I hope so,” Emily said.

She tugged him though the doors and into the gardens surrounding Whitehall. Dozens of couples were already there, walking through the darkened bushes and pretending they were invisible. Just for a few minutes, she could pretend she was someone else, someone who wasn’t scared to hold her boyfriend in her arms. But she knew it couldn’t last.

“I’ll see you in Beneficence,” she whispered, as she looked up at the sky. The stars twinkled down at her, forming constellations that might not be visible on Earth. “And...and I’ll do my best to be polite to your mother.”

“Please,” Caleb said. “And be polite to my father too.”

Emily nodded. “I’ll do my best,” she said. It was rare for a mundane to marry a powerful magician, she’d been told, and those who did were extraordinary. “He must be a formidable man.”

“He is,” Caleb said. They turned to walk back inside. “And he’s looking forward to meeting you too.”

T
HERE WAS NO SIGN OF CALEB
at breakfast the following morning. Emily ate quickly, checked her trunk and travel bag - most of her possessions would be going into storage until she returned for Fifth Year - and hurried down to the courtyard. Lady Barb and Melissa were waiting for her, next to a large open-top carriage. Emily nodded to them both, shoved her bag into the compartment under the carriage and clambered into the vehicle. Melissa scrambled up next to Emily; Lady Barb took the reins and cracked the whip. The horses neighed, and started to pull the carriage towards the gates.

“If you’ve forgotten anything, it’s too late,” Lady Barb said, as they passed through the gates. There was a long stream of carriages heading for the portal, but Lady Barb took them right to the front of the line and was waved through. “Brace yourself.”

Emily closed her eyes, concentrating on preparing herself for the portal. There was a surge of magic surrounding her - for a moment, her head felt as if it were being crushed by a giant - and then it faded to nothingness. She opened her eyes and looked around as Lady Barb drove the horses back onto the road. A river lay ahead of them, easily wide enough to take several giant sailing ships. She saw a handful of fishing boats making their way down to the sea as the carriage turned to follow the road.

She glanced at Melissa, who looked faintly unwell. “Why don’t we just take the portal into the city?”

“The City Guilds don’t like the thought of establishing a permanent portal,” Melissa said, grimly. She swallowed hard, as if she were trying not to be sick. “We have to use the one here and drive into the city, across the bridges.”

Emily nodded and leaned back into her seat as the carriage rocked toward the river. The landscape changed, becoming rockier, as the city itself came into view. She found herself staring as the river split into two, each smaller channel branching out and protecting Beneficence from harm. One channel ran down a rocky gorge that looked dangerous, even to her untrained eyes; the other was smoother, but ran under a rocky overhang that made it impossible for anyone to climb up to the city. Beneficence was an isolated island, to all intents and purposes; she couldn’t help thinking of a castle, brooding over the surrounding landscape. It looked, very much, as though the entire city was built of dark grey stone.

Like Manhattan
, she thought, slowly.

“There are four bridges,” Lady Barb said, without looking back. “Two of them can be raised when danger threatens, while the other two are heavily guarded and warded against intruders. It’s very difficult to get into the city if the guards are even remotely ready to repel attack.”

Melissa elbowed Emily. “Caleb will be more than happy to tell you all about it,” she said, dryly. “Just remember to look suitably awed when he does.”

Emily snorted, rudely, as the carriage joined the road leading up towards the city. It looked as though the local farmers -
her
farmers, if she recalled correctly - were bringing the fruits of their labors to the city, while the city-folk were selling fish and trade goods from across the world. She’d read about Beneficence back when she’d been planning her bank and she’d learned that the city was politically neutral, isolated by the river and sheer cliff faces from the surrounding kingdom. King Randor’s predecessors had found it impossible to do more than annoy the inhabitants, no matter how hard they tried to cross the river. And the city’s navy was more than equal to the task of beating off a blockade.

That may change
, Emily thought, as the carriage rattled across the bridge. The scent of fish hung in the air, making her gag.
Firearms and steamboats will change everything
.

Lady Barb glanced back at them both and pulled to a halt next to the guardhouse. A pair of grim-faced men inspected her papers, glanced at Emily and Melissa, and waved them through without further ado. Emily kept her face expressionless as Lady Barb drove them past a series of fortifications, stopping just as the first row of terraced houses came into view. It looked as though someone had discovered the concept of skyscrapers without actually being able to build them properly. Emily couldn’t help being reminded of Lego cities built by children, as if bigger houses had been piled on top of smaller houses. She was mildly surprised that whole blocks of buildings hadn’t come toppling down by now. The builders were either very good or magicians.

“Thank you for the ride,” Melissa said. She scrambled down from the carriage, collected her bag and nodded to Lady Barb. “I’ll see you tomorrow, probably.”

Emily frowned as Melissa turned and headed off down the street. “Is she safe here?”

“She’s a magician,” Lady Barb said, as if that were answer enough. “And even if she weren’t, Beneficence is one of the safest places to live...at least outside the Lower Depths. The City Guard is known for being
very
alert to possible threats.”

She whipped the horses back into motion and guided the carriage along a dark road. The buildings loomed close, overshadowing them; pedestrians walked past the carriage, heedless of the potential danger. A handful of young children - male and female - were following the horses, waving cheerfully. Emily kept one hand on her money pouch as she studied the locals. Many of them looked wealthier than the commoners she’d seen in Zangaria...

...And dozens of women were walking alone.

“This is Magicians Row,” Lady Barb said, as they turned into a short
cul-de-sac
. The scent of magic surrounded them, beating on the air. “Most of the magicians in the city live here, so be on your best behavior.”

Emily nodded, watching the passing buildings with wide eyes. They were decorated with runes and large signs advertizing their wares. A cluster of alchemists sat next to a large building offering enchanted artefacts; beyond them, a small inn offered a place to meet magicians who didn’t have an establishment of their own. There weren’t so many people on the streets, she noted; magicians tended to have nasty senses of humor and she had a feeling the local residents weren’t averse to playing tricks on their neighbors. A handful of children wearing robes ran past, playing with a floating light ball. Emily wondered, suddenly, what it would have been like to grow up surrounded by magic.

I could have asked Melissa
, she thought.
She would have been able to tell me
.

She felt her heartbeat starting to race as Lady Barb pulled up next to a grey building. It looked smaller than she’d expected, but living space was expensive within the city.

“Just remember what you’ve been told,” Lady Barb said, as she tied the horses to a hitching post. She’d drilled proper manners into Emily until they were both thoroughly sick of the whole thing. “And remember that Caleb will be as stressed about it as you.”

Emily nodded, smoothing down her robes.
She
didn’t have any real family, not in the Nameless World; Caleb, on the other hand, was bringing her home to meet
his
family. It had to be nerve-wracking for him. Lady Barb looked her up and down, eyed the ring on her finger and then turned to knock on the door. Emily could feel wards shimmering around the house, inspecting them, even before Lady Barb touched the wood. They were nested together so carefully that she wouldn’t have cared to try to break into the house.

And anyone caught breaking into a magician’s house can be killed, or transformed, or enslaved
, she thought.
And no one will say a word
.

She felt her heart skip a beat as the door opened, revealing a stern-faced woman who looked like a sharper version of Caleb. Long brown hair, a shade or two darker than Emily’s, hung to her shoulder blades; she wore a long dark robe suitable for a combat sorcerer, with a wand, a knife and a short sword hanging from her belt. There wasn’t a
hint
of vulnerability in her movements. Emily had to fight down the urge to take a step backwards as the woman studied her through unblinking eyes.

“Lady Emily, I presume,” she said, finally. “I am Mediator Sienna of House Waterfall. I bid you welcome to my home.”

“I thank you,” Emily said, remembering her manners. “I pledge to hold my hand in your home.”

Lady Barb echoed her a moment later. Sienna nodded to her, one combat sorceress to another, and then turned to lead the way into the house. Emily couldn’t help looking around, fascinated; the house was smaller than she’d expected, but it glowed with life. Magical lanterns hung from the walls, which were decorated with paintings clearly drawn by children. A handful of medals, including one she knew came from Zangaria, were embedded in the stone, protected by a layer of magic. Caleb’s mother paused for a second beside a household god, hidden in an alcove, then opened the door into the living room. Emily smiled in relief as she saw Caleb, sitting on a hard wooden chair, then braced herself as she saw his siblings sitting around him. He didn’t look pleased to be sitting right next to them.

“Lady Emily,” Sienna said. “Allow me to introduce my family. My husband, General Pollack; my eldest son, Casper of House Waterfall; my daughters Karan and Marian of House Waterfall. My younger son, Croce of House Waterfall, was held back at Stronghold and could not attend.”

Emily bowed her head in greeting. General Pollack looked formidable; he reminded her of Sergeant Harkin, only slightly less muscular. His face might have been handsome, once upon a time, but he had a moustache big and bushy enough to hide his mouth. Beside him, Casper looked just as muscular, his hair cropped close to his scalp. He eyed Emily with an odd fascination, as if he considered her to be both beautiful and dangerous. The younger girls seemed on the verge of giggles; Karan looked like a younger version of her mother, while Marian looked blonde and bubbly. It was clear, just from the way magic shifted around her, that Karan had come into her magic.

Sienna sat, resting her hands in her lap, and motioned for Emily to sit facing her. Lady Barb sat next to Emily, her face expressionless. Caleb met Emily’s eyes, just for a second, and they shared a moment of perfect understanding. The meeting couldn’t get any more awkward, could it?

“Fetch the food and drink,” Sienna ordered. The younger girls rose and scurried off into the kitchen. “We have prepared a small selection of snacks for you now, Lady Emily, and we will share a formal dinner later.”

“I thank you,” Emily said.

Sienna smiled, very briefly. “Did you really challenge Master Grey and then kill him?”

“Unintentionally,” Emily said. There was no point in trying to underplay it. Sienna would have read one of the many eyewitness reports of the duel. “He took something I said as a challenge and accepted it.”

“And lost,” Sienna said. She studied Emily carefully. “You must be very formidable, Lady Emily, to have beaten a combat sorcerer in your Fourth Year. I congratulate you.”