“Can you read?”
“No. And I don’t want to. My mother tried.”
“Well, that’s a poor attitude. Why in heaven’s seven layers would you not wish to read?”
“I have watched the students at the school. They sit at tables with their eyes downcast all day, but when the teacher allows them to leave they run and play and laugh. No, I do not want to sit and look at a desk all day.”
“Reading is more than that. But no matter, it’s a skill you need to learn, and you will. Others your age are well ahead of you, and you must catch up. Not only is it something you should do, but it is also something you must do. A mage has to read what other mages before them have written. We will begin now.”
“Why? Give me one good reason.”
“Your father was a mage, and a great one. He collected the works of other great mages, and he wrote down his favorite spells. He could not only make fire, but water, and others. The things he put down on parchment means nothing to me, or others like me. But to another mage, they are where your answers lie. Within those scrolls are what you need to protect yourself.”
“Can’t I just ask another mage to help me?”
“Not unless you wish to die at eleven years old.”
CHAPTER NINE
“Another mage will kill me?” Hannah asked, horrified at the thought.
“Almost certainly. Three reasons. First, the apprentice mage will want the library your father owns for himself. That alone is worth a kingdom. Second, he wants the power Royals will grant him for your death. I’m speaking of those who sent those assassins after you. And lastly, he will kill you because you are a woman and a mage, something new in the world, and therefore suspect and dangerous.”
Hannah moved about the clearing in silence as she considered his words, always keeping track of the horse in case she needed to leap on its back and flee. Finally, she said, “I don’t even know for sure what a mage is.”
“You have seen magicians and tricksters performing in the public squares?”
“A few. Not many come to the Earl’s Palace these days. He frowns on any dancing, parties, or the like. Some say it’s because he has grown old.”
Sir James persisted, “But you have seen them, magicians, I mean. Heard of them, at least.”
“Yes, I saw one who made things appear in his hand and even in his hat after a handmaiden had assured the crowd it was empty.”
“Do you believe they were magic or tricks?”
Again, Hanna hesitated. The magician was clever, and people enjoyed his performance, but even though she didn’t know how he did his tricks, she believed them to be no more than that. “They were not magic.”
“That is the difference. A mage studies the ancient arts of alchemy and transformation, among others. A true mage can do things no magician ever can. For instance, I once watched a magician make a fire briefly appear in his hand. True, it only lasted an instant, but I’m certain it was fire, all the same.”
Hannah turned to face him. “But it was a trick, right?”
The Knight moved the horses away from the stream and tethered them to a pair of saplings where they could find green grass to eat. He didn’t give her the impression he was teasing, but still, amusement tinged his demeanor. “Something he had placed in his hand burned brightly for an instant, maybe a thin oil. People were impressed but realized he tricked them, with their permission. Now imagine the same crowd surrounding an eleven-year-old girl when she holds up her finger with a tiny flame burning at the tip. Not for an instant, but for long enough to draw several breaths. One is a magic trick. The other is the work of a mage.”
“You saw my flame?”
“I did. I stood behind the Old Mage and to his left. You were clever in your presentation, and only he and I saw it.”
“What did you think?” she asked.
“I looked at your face and saw the features of the Old Mage in you. I knew you were his child instantly but wondered why you dressed as a girl. I assumed you were in disguise.”
Hannah sat and allowed emotions to flow. Tears flowed like tiny twin waterfalls. When Sir James moved closer to console her, she stubbornly shook her head. “No, I need to control myself. There will be a time for crying later. Besides riding to the King’s Castle, and making me read, what are your plans for me?”
“They are our plans, and as such, we should discuss the future. The first, and most important, is the knowledge that nobody else must ever know you are a mage.”
“Because they’ll kill me?”
“Without a doubt. Not just the other mages, but people, in general, are superstitious and fearful of anything they don’t understand.”
“But you said I would study the scrolls my father owned.”
“Did I ever say it would be easy?” He chuckled. His eyes also watched the meadow, especially the path they used to enter. “But not impossible.”
Hannah used the time to contrast him and her. She’d had her birthday over half a year ago, and was nearer twelve than eleven, but would keep that to herself for now. She stood head high to his chest, perhaps a little more. Sir James was taller than most men, but his build was not that of the heavy muscled soldiers. His was lean, almost thin, his muscles hard. But his movements were smooth and as sure as if he was half his age.
Guessing age came easily when applied to children, but not so when guessing adult age, especially men. While he was quick and moved with grace, lines crisscrossed his face where there was no neatly trimmed beard, age lines and well as scars gathered from dozens of opponents. His dark hair held thin streaks of white. She asked, “If two men charged us right now, what would you do?”
“Kill them.”
“If there are four?”
“Same answer.”
“If there are ten? All of them big and with swords as long as your arm?”
“I would try to kill them.”
She watched a small duck fly overhead and then splash land into the shallow stream. “You changed your answer.”
“I’m confident I can defend us against four common soldiers. Ten is a different matter.”
She grinned and pointed at him. “So you can defeat between four and ten soldiers? How about seven?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “How big are these men and what weapons do they carry?”
“Your answer tells me you believe you might defeat seven soldiers,” she teased. “That tells me you are either a wonderful liar or a dangerous man.”
He laughed again, with more humor than he’d shown since she met him. “I may be both. Now climb back into that saddle and we’ll move on.”
Surprisingly, climbing back onto the horse was not as hard as anticipated. Hannah was stiff and sore but found she liked being on the back of the horse. Besides, it made her feel safer sitting on such a powerful animal, perched so high in the air. The horse would carry her away at the first hint of danger. She gave the animal a pat on the neck and received a shiver and snort in response. She assumed that was good.
The knight seemed to know where he was going. He never faltered. She had never been out of the Earl’s Palace until a day ago, so all she saw around her was new, and her eyes wandered as she rode, often in amazement or enchantment, and sometimes wonder or fear. She also realized after yesterday and last night, that there were many more things she didn’t know and more she hadn’t seen, so she asked, “Have you been this way?”