But there was probably a catch. There usually was, with wizardry. The spell might call for some especially rare or loathsome ingredients, or require an impractical amount of time and effort for the water thus obtained. If it were really useful then everyone would use it, the way every wizard knew at least one combustion spell to avoid meddling with flint and steel.
Ithanalin had taught her one of Eshom’s other spells, the Oenological Transformation, which turned water to wine, but the Freshwater Spring wasn’t in her master’s book of spells, so someone in the chain of masters and apprentices had presumably not thought it worth passing on. Or perhaps Ithanalin or his own master had bought the Oenological Transformation, rather than learning it as an apprentice, but at some point someone had learned the one and not the other. Changing water to wine was good for impressing people, but not really much use beyond that-the ingredients included a dragon’s scale, which cost considerably more than a decent bottle of wine, so the spell didn’t save any money. A single scale could be used several times before its virtue was exhausted, but not enough to make the spell a bargain.
So if someone had thought that spell was more use than Eshom’s Freshwater Spring, then the Spring must have some serious drawback.
Some of the neighbors were out in the courtyard, dumping their wastes and fetching water just as she was; Kilisha waved to a few, but did not say anything beyond a brief acknowledgment of their greetings.
The earth of the court was muddy and slightly slick-apparently it had rained during the night, though the sky was mostly clear now, with just a few pink-edged clouds scudding across the brightening blue. That made the footing tricky, and she had to be careful not to spill anything.
She was still wondering what the flaw in the Freshwater Spring might be as she carried the two heavy buckets back to the kitchen. She was almost to the door when Adagan called her name from his own back door.
She nodded to him, but didn’t stop until he called, “Wait a minute!” He was hurrying across the muddy kitchen yards.
Reluctantly, she lowered the buckets and asked, “What is it?”
“Did you find all the furniture? I saw you and the soldier bringing back some of it on a rope yesterday, but then you were flying around later, and I wasn’t sure whether you might be looking for more.”
“We’ve got most of it,” Kilisha said. “Everything but the red velvet couch-you know the one I mean?”
“Yes, of course. The one Ithanalin’s customers sit on for presentations.”
“That’s the one. I haven’t seen it since it got animated. So yes, I was looking for it when I levitated.” A sudden thought struck her. “Have you. seen it?”
Adagan turned up an empty palm. “I’m afraid not,” he said. “I’ll let you know at once if I do.”
“Yes, please. And tell anyone else you know to keep an eye out, would you? I think we’ll need all the help we can get to find it.”
“Of course. Do you have any idea where it is?”
“It was last seen heading west on the East Road, toward the Fortress,” Kilisha said. “But that was two days ago. It could be anywhere.”
“I suppose it took shelter during the rain last night.”
Kilisha looked up, startled. “I hope so,” she said. “Rain wouldn’t be good for the finish. Or the fabric.”
“No,” Adagan agreed.
“I need to get this water inside,” Kilisha said, picking up the buckets. “Yara will want it.”
“Of course. But do let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. And I’ll tell everyone I know about the couch.”
Kilisha nodded, and then hurried inside.
Yara was waiting, Pirra clinging to her skirt. “Any news?” Yara asked.
“No, Mistress,” Kilisha replied.
“I heard your voice.”
“Adagan the Witch was asking whether there was any news. I told him we still need the couch, and asked him to keep an eye out for it.”
“Oh, Adagan.” She glanced at the door. “What about the other neighbors?”
“I didn’t speak to anyone else, Mistress.”
“We should ask them if they’ve seen it.”
“I’ll do it, Mother!” Telleth volunteered from the stairs.
“We should ask anyone we can,” Kilisha agreed. She glanced through the open door of the workshop, and noticed the sprig-gan-she hoped it was the same spriggan, and it certainly appeared to be from her present vantage point-perched atop Ithanalin’s sheet-draped head, sitting back comfortably and drumming its heels on the wizard’s right ear. “Even spriggans-if you see any today, ask them if they know where the couch is.”
“Spriggans?” Yara turned and glared into the workshop. “Talk to those little pests?”
“They might know something,” Kilisha said. “Oh, they’re stupid and annoying, but they can smell magic and they can talk, so we might get a hint from one.”
“I’ll talk to them, Mama!” Lirrin called.
“I’m going to go around to all the gates,” Kilisha said, “and talk to the guards to make sure the couch didn’t leave the city.”
Yara blinked at her in surprise. “All the gates? That would take all day!”
Kilisha had not really thought about that. She had been thinking of Eastgate and Farmgate, the two she had visited before, but of course there were others-Wargate and Newgate and Grandgate and Southgate and Northgate... was that all of them? She tried to remember the view from the air.
Oh, Cliffgate. That was all, she was fairly sure. She counted on her fingers.
Eight gates, spread around three leagues of wall. Yara was right-that would take all day. Kilisha sighed.
“What if it got on a ship and sailed away?” Pirra asked.
“Then the gods arc being cruel and it’s hopeless,” Kilisha said. “But really, who would let a velvet couch on board a ship? Something that size couldn’t stow away very easily.”
“Maybe someone should ask down in Seagate and Southport,” Telleth said. “Just to be sure.”
“There are docks in Bywater, too!” Lirrin pointed out.
“Those are mostly just for fishing boats,” Telleth retorted.
“Would a couch know the difference?”
“There are only five of us,” Kilisha said before Telleth could reply. “We can’t search everywhere.”
“But what if we need to?” Lirrin asked. “We might not find it if we don’t look everywhere!”
No one had a good answer to that. After a moment’s awkward silence, Yara said, “I don’t want you asking at all the gates. We’ll get someone else to do that. Could you make a homunculus for the job, maybe?”
“The master hasn’t taught me any animations yet,” Kilisha said.
“Well, I still don’t want you spending the entire day checking the gates. I want you here as much as possible, in case some other spell goes wrong-you’re the only one here who knows any magic.”
“The neighbors-”
“I don’t want the neighbors!” Yara interrupted. “I want a member of this household to be ready. I want you to stay here and keep an eye on Thani’s magic and practice the spell you’ll need to revive him. I was scared half to death when you were out roaming around the city yesterday; I was constantly worrying about whether that thing on the lamp in Thani’s workshop was going to explode or bubble up a demon or something. The rest of us will find the couch-or you know, maybe it will come home on its own.”
“It might,” Kilisha admitted. After all, if it had any of Ithanalin’s memories it would know this place was home.
But it had had a day and a half, and it hadn’t returned yet.
“Then you’ll stay.”
“Mistress, I can’t practice the spell without jewelweed,” Kilisha protested. “I found the bench and the coatrack-I could-”