"By muffling the Weave, you can interfere with Sorcery as well," Spyder told them. "But that depends on the relative power of the Sorcerer you're attempting to cut off. Just to warn you," she said with a slight smile. "Only that Wikuni would give either of you even the slightest bit of resistance. And that resistance would last all of about two seconds. Even da'shar can't resist the power of a sui'kun for very long." Spyder tapped her finger to her chin. "You are sister to the Wikuni, yes?" she asked Tarrin.
"Yes," he replied.
"Keep a careful watch on her, then," she warned. "She is primed, Were-cat. Just as you were. She has reached the pinnacle of her power, and the Goddess will be testing her very soon. It will be better for her if you are there to help show her the way." She looked around. "She's very close, Were-cat. Very close. If you whispered to her, I would not at all be surprised if she could hear it."
"I'll watch her," he promised. Spyder's revelation wasn't that surprising to Tarrin, who had made the same conclusion himself just a couple of days ago. Keritanima's powers of Sorcery were far beyond the other katzh-dashi now, and were growing stronger. He could tell, he could sense, that her powers had nearly reached their peak. And because she was so strong, she was so learned despite her age, it meant that she would most likely face her power and attempt to cross over, to become da'shar. The Goddess had told him that the time to cross over was when the Sorcerer had reached the limits of their power, when it would most greatly benefit the Weave. He realized that that included da'shar as well as sui'kun. When Keritanima did achieve her maximum potential, she would lose control of that power and face being Consumed. And in that struggle, she could either find the Heart, find the Goddess, or she would die.
"I'll help," Jenna said. "I like Kerri. She's funny. I'd hate to lose her."
"Amen," Tarrin agreed.
"I think that's enough for one day," she announced, suddenly pulling her black-black cloak around herself. "I will call you again soon. Very soon. We don't have much more time left. Remember what I taught you this evening. Especially you, Jenna. What I taught you today is what you will teach the katzh-dashi when the time comes. Be ready."
"I will," Jenna said soberly, reaching down and picking up her book. "I've figured out a way to write down how the weaves are formed so they make sense. If someone read them and had a little help from a tutor, they could learn the spell."
"Excellent," Spyder told her with a nod. "You were surely the perfect person for the task, then." She looked up into the sky. "I will see you again soon. Fare well."
She pulled up her hood, and then, just like last time, she just vanished.
Tarrin blinked, then Jenna chuckled. "I really hate it when she does that. I had about a thousand more questions."
"That's probably why she did it," he said, suddenly feeling quite tired. He yawned, showing his wickedly long fangs-both upper and lower sets of them-and then looked down at his sister. "I'm suddenly tired, Jenna. I think going to bed would be a good idea."
"I think you're right," she agreed. "I want to take a bath first, though, and get a bit to eat."
"I'll tag along," he grunted as they started to make their way out of the courtyard. "Goddess only knows, Jesmind is going to have a cow when I come back. I'd like to put that off as long as possible."
Jenna giggled. "That bad, eh?"
"You have no idea," he shuddered. "I'd more than willingly fight a whole army of Demons before facing my mate when she's ticked off."
"You're not fighting her the right way, brother," she giggled. "I've learned a bit about Were-cats from Triana. If she starts shouting, kiss her."
"That's not a bad idea," he said approvingly after a moment of thought, as they disappeared through the choked entrance of the courtyard.
The impending explosion he had been expecting didn't come when he got back, mainly because Jesmind wasn't there. She had taken Jasana somewhere, probably to visit with Triana, and that suited Tarrin just fine. It had been a very long time since he'd worked the way he did the night before, and it didn't hit him how totally exhausted he was until he got back to his apartment and sat down a moment on the couch. Then it just rolled him under like a gardener planting a new flower. He felt buried in weariness, and his entire body began to ache. Sorcery was as much physical exertion as it was mental control, so whenever one practiced with Sorcery it inevitably left one both physically and mentally exhausted. After sitting down on the couch, he struggled to get back to his feet, and then dragged himself straight to bed. Never had a bed looked so inviting to him as it did at that moment, as he struggled out of his clothes and gratefully sank down into the soft feather mattress, letting its comfort drown him in delightful sleep.
But Tarrin was surrounded by those who made the day their time of activity. He had no idea how long he'd been asleep when sounds in the common room disturbed him, but even that wasn't really enough to wake him up until the scents of Keritanima, that massive Vendari Szath, and Allia invaded his dreams. Those scents were a part of his deepest memories, and their presence was enough to rouse him from slumber. He managed to open his eyes just as his two sisters filed into his room, and he paused a moment to take stock before moving. He couldn't smell Jesmind or Jasana, but he did smell Jula. He hoped they realized that if Jesmind caught them sneaking into their apartment without anyone's permission, she'd get very cross with them. To a Were-cat, entering a home uninvited was the same as challenging the owner's claim on that territory. He told himself to make that point clear to them before they left. It would be very unpleasant for him to have to break up a fight between his mate and one of his sisters.
But then again, Jula seemed to understand that, and she was objecting about every three seconds as they came into the room. "Do you realize what Jesmind's going to do to us if she finds out we came into their apartment without knocking?" she declared. "You don't just use magic to get past a locked door when you're dealing with Were-cats!"
"Well, I knew he was in here, and he wouldn't answer the door," came Keritanima's defensive reply. "Besides, it's just Tarrin. I can come into Tarrin's rooms any time I want."
"It's not just Tarrin anymore!" Jula snapped at her. "Jesmind would rip off your tail if she knew you came in without being invited!"
"Who's going to tell her?" Kereitanima said pugnaciously, and the sound of her voice told him that she had her hands on her hips, and was probably glaring at the Were-cat female. "Jesmind is the sort that kills the messenger, Jula. You brave enough to go up to her and say 'oh, by the way, we just snuck into your apartment without being invited in'?" She huffed. "Besides, this is important."
"It better be," Tarrin said wearily, rolling over and sitting up in the bed. "Listen to my daughter next time, Kerri. If I don't answer the door, odds are I have a good reason not to. And when you invade a Were-cat's home, you're issuing a very personal challenge to them. I suggest playing by the rules from now on."
Jula gave Keritanima a victorious look, crossing her arms beneath her breasts and assuming an erect posture, her tail lashing behind her. Allia ignored them, sitting on the edge of the bed and putting her hand on the side of Tarrin's face. "You look tired, deshida," she said to him. "Are you well?"
"Well enough," he said dismissively. "Me and Jenna have been practicing Sorcery. I think we just overdid it a bit last night, that's all." He looked towards the window, which was covered by drapes. "What time is it?"
"About noon," Keritanima replied. "We needed to talk to you, brother."