“This seems better,” said the ghost, squeezing into the little space.
“I brought you some food,” I said, handing him the food I’d purloined from Bright’s meal. It seemed best not to tell Eff about the Ghost. That way she would have deniability if he was found. “I’m not going to be around much this evening. Neither is anyone else.”
“I have arrived in the middle of some kind of event, have I not?” He crawled out of the wall cavity and took the food. After sniffing it, he started eating, gingerly at first and then with increasing gusto.
“Only the most important time of the year. The head of the family travels to all the family estates and walks around the fields blessing the seeds so that they’ll be fertile in the coming year.”
“So is he the only one coming? The head of the family, I mean.”
“She!” I frowned at him, because really, what a stupid grammatical error to make when he spoke the language so well. Though of course he hadn’t been in our country very long.
“Of course. Sorry. So is she the only one coming?”
“Oh, no. She brings all kinds of other mages and family and their servants. Fifty-odd people all told. Lucky it’s not more, otherwise I’d have to give up my room and you’d have to stay in the trunk.”
There was a knock on the door. The ghost dived back under the bed.
“Marm, Lord Bright is leaving and wishes to bid you farewell,” called the servant through the door.
“HE’S GOING TO be fine, isn’t he?” said Eff as we watched Bright drive away. Her eyes were glistening with tears.
I put my arms around her. I too was relieved that he seemed happy. Perhaps I could manage the coming Blessing days without shouting at anyone after all.
“I’ve been so worried, and there was nothing to be worried about,” she murmured. “He doesn’t need our stupid family after all.” She gave me a little reassuring pat on the shoulder and pushed me gently away. “Now all I need to do is get you sorted out.”
“I’m fine.” I said. “Nothing to sort out here.” I wondered what would happen if the family found out that I had an illegal outlander in my room. Could we be in any more disgrace? Was that even possible?
One of the servants at the upstairs window let out a shout. “Marm! There’s a rider coming up from the village. The noble ones must have come over the pass.”
“Oh, pish! The family. Just when I was feeling better,” groaned Eff. “At least now I won’t mind so much when they make snide remarks about my son.”
“They’ll be gone in four days,” I said putting my hand through her arm as we went up the stairs. “Who knows? We might even have some fun. It is Blessing time, after all.”
CHAPTER THREE
BACK IN MY room, Shadow seemed to have made friends with Katti, who was sitting on a chair by the window. He scratched her absently behind the ears as he bent and peered out of Uncle Batty’s old telescope
He has a wonderful touch, Katti thought contentedly. I wondered if he was good at touching in other ways, and moved right away from that thought. That was one curiosity that was never going to be satisfied.
“They are your visitors up there, are they not?” he asked, pointing towards the gap in the hills that was Red Cat Pass. He spoke our language well, but in a very stilted way.
I took a look through the telescope. Sure enough, five huge carriages were flying in stately splendour along the road, so stuffed with people and finery that they looked like window boxes full of bobbing flowers. The magic crystals in the foreheads of the driving mages were bright even in the daylight.
“Ladybless! Look at those hats. They’re even bigger than last year. Each of those sods must be wearing three times our annual earnings.”
“And the one on the flying golden throne in front is...?”
“Our Matriarch,” I said. I noticed that she was causing her crystal to glow with a golden light—a reference to the Lady of Light whose priestess she was. “That’s Auntie Splendance. Say one thing for her, she knows how to put on a show. Even in a daylight entrance like this, there’ll be something to thrill the peasants. Not that they take much thrilling; nothing much else happens round here.”
I took another look through the telescope and snorted. “Rose pink. Does she think she’s the Blessed Lady herself? Well I suppose she is, in a sense. I bet there’ll be yellow streamers and yellow petals when she comes up the front drive. Wonder where she’ll get the petals from, this early in the season? Well, time to be serious. Help me off with these boots, will you? Pull. They’re too big so I wear extra socks and they get... whoops! That’s it—are you hurt?”
Shadow had sprawled on the floor pulling off my second boot, but seemed undamaged. I started getting changed.
“So the Matriarch is—?”
“The head of our family. The font of our blessings and our fecundity. The representative of the Holy Lady of Light on earth. My legal guardian too, for all that means.”
He was staring at me in a funny way and his skin had flushed a bright red colour.
“What?” I asked, pouring cold water into the basin so that I could sponge the dirt and sweat off my chest and neck.
“Nothing,” he said, turning his back and returning to looking out of the telescope. “So who else is there?” he asked, as I pulled my white linen under-tunic on.
“Let me see.” I took a turn at looking out of the telescope. “In the carriage behind Splen’s throne are other family members. The big one’s Great-Uncle Igniate. He’s the Avunculus.”
“That is...?”
“He’s the uncle, or in our case the great-uncle, responsible for protecting the children and household. He’s the one who should have organised a university education for me. Next to him is Blazeann, Splen’s eldest daughter who will probably be Matriarch after her—she’s already added three magely daughters to our family line and the Elders favour her. Next to her is her sister Lumina. Curse Lumina; why does she always have to come?”
“You do not like your—what is she, your cousin?”
“That’s right, she’s my cousin. The meanest of the whole rotten bunch. Every time we’re in a room together, I start tripping over furniture and dropping cups.”
“What? You mean she makes this happen with her magic? A bit petty.”
“It’s against the law, too, such as it is. I’d be a sad little skeleton still locked in a cupboard at the Family House if it were up to Lumina. Fortunately, cousin Lucient went and got help.”
I took another turn at the telescope. “Good, Lucient’s here. I knew there was a reason I didn’t run off to the hills. He’s Lumina and Blazeann’s brother. Auntie Splen’s son. He’s in the second carriage with that pig rat.”
“That who?”
“Lord Impavidus. The one with the flashy gold and blue feathers on his hat. Typical. He’s Auntie Splendance’s consort. The unspeakable rooster shouldn’t be anyone important in her household, but he certainly knows how to make his presence felt. No I’m not going spoil my mood with thinking about him. The two other men are... One of them is Cousin Scintillant, Splendance’s nephew.”