'Let me stick the kettle on and I'll tell you about my trip to the Infirmary. Very illuminating, if you're a bit morbid that is.
How do you like your tea? Black no sugar, you must be from a coastal family. Us lowland dwellers like our dairy. Father took eight sugars, said tea wasn't tea unless he could stand his pencil up in it. Mother hated how he stirred tea with his pencil but you can't civilise a carver so he said. Now I like a good slosh of milk but nothing more than a nip of whisky extra. Medicinal you know.
So I popped in to the Infirmary this morning and found Daisy and Dilys doing the rounds. Busy as ever. They were grateful for the potions and fussed about making me tea and the like. Rather embarrassing but I put up with it, they're a little over the top. I've known them since school and they've always been like that. Matching outfits, walking around arm in arm, keeping each other's secrets. We weren't friends exactly, too different I guess. But they were harmless and we moved in similar circles. In fact I think at one time my brother was courting both of them, maybe at the same time. But they were never going to give up their friendship for something as silly as marriage so all their romances fizzled out eventually.
They were most concerned about the banning of magic for healing. None of us was totally sure that healing was covered by the ban, it's all so new, but they weren't prepared to take any chances. So they were putting a splint on the broken leg of a lad who'd fallen out of an apple tree fetching his sister's kite from the upper branches. The boy was very distressed but his mother was almost hysterical. My fingers itched to wave the incantations over his skinny leg and knit the bone together but I knew I shouldn't interfere.
We went to the nurses' room and over tea and plum duff they told me about when the victim from Grimwise was bought in.
'No doubt they were magical wounds,' said Dilys
'His face were half gone, melted like candle wax. Only a lad too,' added Daisy.
'What was 'e doing there? Nothing for a young lad over there. I only go when there's special herbs I need. Spooks me out does Grimwise. Too dark and closed for my liking.'
Daisy plumped up her cushions, shuffled down and leaned over for a whisper.
'Word is he was a spy! Can you believe it, Madge, a real spy. Lenny who cleans the wards says the Guardian has been sending spies into Grimwise to find out more about this new Lord they've got. Can't remember his name but you know the one.'
'So, Lenny says that they found out who he was and chased him from the forest, blasting him with magic. Getting stronger and stronger until they caught him real good and he died. Some of the guards saw what was happening, they brought his body back. Terrible for his mother.'
'Do you know her?'
They shook their heads, Daisy wiped a tear away and Dilys patted her hand. I said my goodbyes and staggered home with the empty potion bottles and jars clinking in my backpack. I've got lots of orders for potions and a promise not to use magic until we all know the full details of this magic ban.
So my next mission is to find out who this lad was and what he was doing in Grimwise. And I think I know who to ask.'
No comments:
Post a Comment