You sure this is safe? I asked, gaze flicking to the para-phernalia. I didnt understand ley line magic and therefore distrusted it.
Ceri eyebrows rose as she tore a chunk from her herbed breada strand of her hair drifting in the breeze from the open transom windows above the fixed stained glass, dark with night. Its never safe to ask for a demons attention, but you dont want this unsettled.
My head bobbed, and I wrangled another blob of pasta on my fork. It tasted flat, and I set my fork down. You think Newt will come with him?
A soft flush showed on her. No. In all likelihood she doesnt remember you, and Minias wont allow anyone to remind her. Hes reprimanded when she strays.
I wondered what Newt knew that was so terrible she had to forget it to stay halfway sane. She took your circle. I didnt think that was possible.
Ceri delicately dabbed the corner of her mouth with a napkin to hide her fear. Newt does what she wants because no one is strong enough to hold her accountable, she said. My anxiety must have shown, for she added, Its skill in this case. Newt knows everything. Its just a matter of her remembering it long enough to teach someone.
Maybe that was why Minias stuck with her despite the dangers. He was picking things up, bit by bit.
Ceri reached for the remote and pointed it at the stereo. It was a very modern gesture for such an old personality, and I smiled. If you didnt know shed spent a thousand years unaging as a demons familiar, you might think she was a set-in-her-ways thirty-something.
The soft jazz lifting through the air cut off. The sun is down. You should rescribe the calling circle before midnight, she said brightly, and my stomach twisted. Do you remember the figures from this morning? They are the same.
I stared at her, trying not to look stupid. Uh, no.
Ceri nodded, then made five distinct motions with her right hand. Remember?
Uh, no, I repeated, having no idea what the connection was between the sketched figures and her hand motions. And I thought you would do it. Scribe it, I mean.
Ceris breath escaped her in a long sound of exasperation. Its mostly ley-line magic, she said. Heavy on symbolism and intent. If you dont draw it from start to finish, then Ill be the one who gets all the incoming callsand, Rachel, I like you, but Im not going to do that.
I winced. Sorry.
She smiled, but I caught a grimace when she didnt realize I was watching. Ceri was the nicest person I knew, giving treats to children and squirrels and being polite to door-to-door solicitors, but she had little patience when it came to teaching. Her abrupt temper didnt mix well with my scattered concentration and haphazard study habits.
Flushing, I set my plate aside and slid the cool, sinking-into-my-legs feeling of my scrying mirror onto my lap. I wasnt hungry anymore, and Ceris impatience was making me feel stupid. I reached for my magnetic chalk, nervous. Im not very good at this, I muttered.
Which is why youre doing it in chalk, then etching it in, she said. Go on, lets see it.
I hesitated, looking at the big blank expanse of glass. Crap.
Come on, Rache! Jenks coaxed, dropping down to land on the mirror. Just follow me. Wings going full tilt, he started to pace in a wide circle.
I arranged myself to follow his lead, and Ceri said, Pentagram first.
I jerked my hand from the glass. Right.
Jenks looked up at me as if in direction, and I felt a sinking sensation. Ceri set her plate down, her disgust obvious. You dont know a thing about this, do you?
Jeez, Ceri, I complained, watching Jenks flit furtively to steal the smear of honey on Ceris spoon. I havent actually finished any ley-line classes. I know my pentagrams suck dishwater, and I have no idea what those symbols mean or how to draw them. Feeling dumb, I grabbed my wineglassthe white wine, not the red Ceri had brought outand took a sip.
You shouldnt drink when you work magic, Ceri said.
Frustrated, I set the glass down almost hard enough to spill. Then why is it out here? I said, a shade too loudly.
Jenks eyed me in warning, and I puffed my air out. I didnt like feeling stupid.
Rachel, the woman said softly, and I grimaced at the chagrin in her voice. Im sorry. I shouldnt expect you to have the skills of a master when youre only starting out. Its just
a stupid pentagram, I finished for her, trying to find the humor in it.
She reddened. Actually, its merely that I wanted to get this done tonight.
Oh. Embarrassed, I looked at the blank mirror, my reflection a gray shadow peering back at me. It was going to look like crap. I knew it.
The wine is a carrier for the invocation blood, also washing the salt off the mirror when youre done, Ceri said, and my gaze went to the bucket, now understanding why shed brought it out. The salt acts as a leveler, removing the excess intent in the lines you scribe in the glass as well as bringing the acidic content of the yew back to a neutral state.
Yew is toxic, not acidic, I said, and she nodded apologetically.
But it will etch the glass once you coat it in your aura.
Euwie. It was one of those curses. Great. Im sorry for barking at you, I said softly, my gaze flicking to her and away. I dont know what Im doing, and I dont like it.
She smiled and leaned across the table between us. Would you like to know the meaning behind the symbols?
I nodded, feeling my tension ease. If I was going to do this, I really ought to.
They are pictorial representations of ley line gestures, she said, her hand moving as if signing in American Sign Language. See?
She made a fist, her thumb tight to her curled index finger, angling her hand so that her thumb pointed to the ceiling. This is the first one, she added, then pointed to the first symbol on the cheat sheet lying on the table. It was a circle bisected by a vertical line. The thumbs position is indicated by the line, she added.
I looked from the figure to my fist, turning my hand until they matched. Okay.
This is the second one, she said, making the okay sign, angling her hand so the back of it was parallel with the floor.
I mimicked her, feeling a stirring of understanding as I looked at the circle with three lines coming out the right side. My thumb and index finger made a circle, my three fingers stretching out like the lines fanned out from the figures right side. I glanced at the next figure of a circle with a horizontal line, and before she could shift her fingers, I made a fist, turning my hand so my thumb was parallel to the floor.
Yes! Ceri said, following the gesture with her own. And the next would be ?
Thinking, I compressed my lips and stared at the symbol. It looked like the previous one, with a finger coming out one side. Index finger? I guessed, and when she nodded, I stuck a finger out, earning a smile.
Exactly. Try making the gesture with your pinkie, and you can see how wrong it feels.
I tucked my index finger back and stuck out my pinkie. It did feel wrong, so I went back to the proper gesture. And this one? I asked as I looked at the figure in the last space. There was a circle, so I knew that something was touching my thumb, but which finger?
Middle one, Ceri offered, and I made the gesture, grinning.
She leaned back, still smiling. Lets see them.
More confident now, I made the five gestures, reading them as I traveled around the pentagram clockwise. This wasnt so hard.
And this middle figure? I asked, looking at the long baseline with three rays coming up from the center equidistant from each other. It was where my hand had been when I contacted Minias earlier, and by the looks of it, my fingertips would hit the ends of the lines.
Thats the symbol for an open connection, she said. As if an open hand. The inner circle touching the pentagram is our reality, and the outer circle is the ever-after. Youre bridging the gap with your open hand. There is an alternate pattern with a series of symbols scribed between the two circles that will hide your location and identity, but its more difficult.
Jenks snickered, still trying to scrape honey off Ceris spoon. I bet its harder, too, he said. And we do want to finish before the sun comes up.
I ignored him, feeling like I might be starting to understand this.
And the pentagram is simply to give structure to the curse, Ceri added, trashing my good mood. Oh, yeah. I forgot it was a curse. Mmmm, goody.
Seeing my grimace, Ceri leaned over the table and touched my arm. It is a very small curse, she said, her attempt to console me making things worse. Its not evil. Youre disturbing reality, and it leaves a mark, but truly, Rachel, this is a small thing.
Its going to lead to worse, I thought, then forced a smile. Ceri didnt have to help me with this. I should be thankful. Okay, pentagram first.
Wings clattering, Jenks landed on the glass, shivering once before he put his hands on his hips and peered up at me. Start here, he said, walking away, and just follow me.
I looked at Ceri to see if this was allowed, and she nodded. My shoulders eased, then tightened. The chalk felt almost slippery as it skated over the mirror, like a wax pencil on hot stone. I held my breath waiting for a tingling of rising power, but there was nothing.
Now over here, Jenks said when he lifted into the air and dropped down at a new spot.
I played connect the dots, my lip finding its way between my teeth until a pentagram took up nearly the entire mirror. My back was feeling the strain, and I straightened. Thanks, Jenks, I said, and he lifted up, his complexion red.
No prob, he said as he went to sit on Ceris shoulder.
Now the symbols, Ceri prompted, and I reached for the top triangle, being careful not to smear my other lines. Not that one! she exclaimed before the chalk could touch the glass, and I jumped. The lower left, she added, smiling to soften her voice. When you scribe, you want to rise clockwise. She made a fist, her eyes going to the cheat sheet. This one first.
I glanced at the diagram, then the pentagram. Taking a breath, I held the chalk tighter.
Just draw it, Rache, Jenks complained, and as the hush of cars shushing against wet pavement soothed me, I sketched them all, my hand becoming more sure with each figure.
As good as I, Ceri praised, and I leaned back and let my breath slip from me.
Setting the chalk down, I shook out my hand. It was only a few figures, but my hand was starting to ache. I glanced at the yew, and Ceri nodded once. It should etch the glass if you tap a line and let your aura slip into the glass, she said, and my face scrunched up.
Do I have to? I asked, remembering the sinking, uncomfortable feeling of my aura stripping away. Then I looked over the church. Shouldnt I be in a circle?
Ceris hair floated when she leaned to stack our plates up. No. The mirror isnt going to take it all, just a slip of it. No harm in that.
She seemed confident, but stillI didnt like losing any of my aura. And what if Minias showed up or called in the meantime?
Oh, for the love of little green apples, Ceri said darkly. If it will make this any faster.
I winced, feeling like a chicken, then jumped when she tapped the line out back and, with a word of muttered Latin, set a loose circle. Jenkss wings hit a still-higher pitch when the large bubble of black-coated ever-after shimmered into existence around us. Ceri was at the exact center, as was the way with undrawn circles, and I could feel the pressure of ever-after against my back. I scooted forward, and Jenkss wings hit a still-higher pitch. He finally settled himself on the table by the salt. I knew he didnt like being trapped, but after seeing Ceris impatience, I decided Jenks was a big boy and could ask to be let out himself if it bothered him that much.
Ceris circle was held with only her will, completely undrawn and entirely from her imagination. It wouldnt hold a demon, but all I wanted was something to keep nebulous influences out while my aura was not protecting my soul. Why ask for trouble? And with that in mind, I earned a huff of indignation when I picked up the phone and took out the batteries. An incoming call could open an opportunistic path.
Youre not going to lose all your aura, she said, moving our stacked plates aside.
Yeah, well, I felt better, and as much as I liked Ceri and respected her knowledge, I was going to fall back on my dads admonishment never to practice high magic without a protection circle around you. Demon curses probably fell under that umbrella.
So it was with a lot more confidence that I plucked the makeshift stylus of yew from the table and tapped a line through Ceris circle. The energy spilled inwarm, comforting, and a little too fast for my likingand I tilted my head and cracked my neck to hide my unease. My chi seemed to hum, and my fingers about the yew cramped briefly. I flexed them, and a tingling ran from my center to my fingertips. Id never felt anything like it before while spelling, but then I was drawing a curse.
You okay? Jenks asked, and I blinked, brushing my hair from my eyes and nodding.
The line seems warm tonight, I said, and Ceris face went empty.
Warm? she questioned, and I shrugged. Her eyes grew distant in thought for a moment, and then she gestured to the chalk-marked scrying mirror.
My eyes fixed on the chalk lines, and with no hesitation I reached for the pentagram.
The stick of yew touched the glass resting on my lap, and with a shudder my aura pooled out of me like icy water. I gasped at the sensation, my head jerking up, finding Ceris.