Spell Fade (5 page)

“I really don’t know,” Mother answered absently as she secured and checked items on the wagon.

“Then how do you know I’m not ready?” They had barely spoken of the wizard since he disappeared, but if he didn’t ask now, Dartan worried he might never get another chance. Mother stopped, hands frozen on a strap, then sighed.

“You have no memory of your life without me, do you?” Mother asked.

“No.”

A small laugh escaped her lips and her eyes were fixed on some spot on the distant horizon. “I can barely remember mine from before you were part of it.”

Dartan lowered his head. He was thinking about part of the conversation she had with Alain; a part he wasn’t supposed to hear. “I’m sorry,” he said, raising his head back up to face her.

Her eyes focused back on his own, a small smile still on her lips. “Why, whatever for child?”

“You were forced to give up so much.” It was hard to hold her eyes, but he managed it. “All for what? For someone you have no responsibility for?” Realization dawned in her eyes and she moved quickly to his side.

“You weren’t meant to hear that, you know?” Dartan nodded. “That was a shot at the wizard, and you got caught in the crossfire … again.” She paused, squeezed Dartan’s arm hard, then cleared her throat. “Let me make myself clear. I may not have given birth to you, but I would have words with anyone who says you’re not my child.” Dartan smiled. ‘Have words with’ was about as strong a threat as she made, but it was also all she had ever needed.

“Did I miss my family?” she continued. “Of course, but I never regretted raising you. At first, it was something I was proud to do for your mother, but I soon grew to love you even more than I did her.” She paused for a moment, gathering herself.

“You are destined for greatness,” she stated. “Of that, I have no doubt, but you aren’t ready for it.” Dartan started to protest, but she put a finger over his lips. “Let me finish. It pains me more to say this than it does for you to hear it.” He nodded, as if he really had a choice.

“I knew the wizard would be back for you, and I believed you would let me know when you were ready. I’ve watched and I’ve waited, but you’ve seemed to be content with where you are. You don’t feel out of place here at all, as a farmer. Whatever he has in store for you, you are not ready, because it means leaving all of this behind.”

Was he comfortable here? Had he ever felt like there should be something more for him? He thought back to the conversation with Alain, and the answer was the same. No, he had never felt special. He was lucky to have all he did.

“I’ve never wanted more than we had,” Dartan said. “It was always enough.” Mother smiled, squeezed his arm again, and turned back to the wagon.

“Perhaps you are ready after all,” she said softly. Then, too quiet for Dartan to hear, “At least I certainly hope you are. For all our sakes.”

“Well, if you don’t know what Alain wants with me, do you have any idea who is coming for me, or why?” He sensed she was nearing ready to leave, but he wasn’t ready to let her go yet.

“I suspect it has something to do with your birth mother,” she answered without turning. “And before you even ask, it is not my place to tell you about her.” Mother climbed into the front of the wagon and took the reins in her hands.

“Who can I ask about her?” Dartan moved beside her, and looking up he felt like a small child again. It was probably at the same height difference as was between them now since the last time he had asked about her, but he still remembered the look. It was love and sadness in equal measures, just as it was now. This time though, she could do more than silently shake her head.

“Ask the wizard,” she said with a small sigh. “He’s the one who insisted on all the secrecy. It’s about time he started answering some of your questions.” She reached down and ruffled his hair, something she had not done since he was a boy. “Go and get your things ready. It won’t be long now.”

“Am I supposed to just sit here, by myself, until he decides to show up?” A whinny echoed from the barn. “Sorry, Josie!” he called back. “Are
we
supposed to just sit around, waiting for him to show up?”

“Don’t worry,” she whispered, “you won’t be waiting by yourself.” She gave him a wink then snapped the reins and said, “Get going, Horace.”

Now what did she mean by that, he wondered, but it was too late to ask. The wagon was moving and she wasn’t looking back. She slowed slightly, steering towards the right side of the path, revealing a figure in the road. Aliet.

“Morning, Ms. Marion.” Dartan heard her voice faintly. The wagon slowed a bit more, but didn’t stop.

“Morning,” Mother answered back. She shot a quick glance back at Dartan before adding, “Go easy on him, dear. It’s been an interesting couple of days for him.” Aliet fixed her gaze on Dartan and he actually felt the anger hit him in the chest. So much for ‘taking it easy’.

Mother snapped the reigns and gave one last parting good-bye. “Take care of him for me!” The anger in Aliet’s eyes gave way to confusion. She turned to question Mother about the comment, but she had already given Horace a bit of encouragement, and was well out of earshot by then. When Aliet turned back, Dartan could clearly see his fate. The flushed cheeks, narrowed eyes, thin lips, set jaw, and hands clenched into fists – she was certainly going to ‘take care of him’. Probably not the best choice of phrase Mother could have picked, he thought as she stomped towards him, raising small puffs of dust with every step. Dartan braced himself.

“Three days!” she punctuated with a two-handed shove to Dartan’s chest. He took a few steps back to keep his balance, and she followed, keeping her face in his, which was no small feat considering she was nearly a foot shorter than him. “Three days, Dartan,” she repeated, this time replacing the shove with three fingers in his face for emphasis. Dartan flinched involuntarily, which made Aliet stop. She took a deep breath and stepped back, giving him some space. The anger was still there when she spoke, but it was under more control now.

“We’ve seen each other every day since we first met.” She didn’t look at him as she spoke, instead focusing on the ground, trying to stay calm. It helped, a little.

“I know,” Dartan answered, and immediately realized it was a mistake. The glare he got told him he had best keep his mouth shut, to which, he clamped it closed and lowered his head.

She stared at him a moment longer before continuing. “Did you even think about me? Wonder where I was? Or why I hadn’t come by?” The last two days had been filled with packing, and while he had missed her, the idea something might be wrong had not occurred to him. He opened his mouth, but snapped it shut before she noticed. Even if she expected an answer, there was no right one to any of her questions.

Her words came slowly at first, unsure, but then they began flying out, piling on top of one another, trying to express everything she had felt over the past three days all at once. “What is going on here, Dartan? The last time I came over here to see you I swear I saw … something.” She folded her arms across her chest, the memory giving her a sudden chill.

“I was scared, and I ran,” she admitted. “It wasn’t until I got back home I realized I wasn’t just scared for myself, but for you too. Whatever it was I saw, it was watching you.” She took a deep breath, and looked back up at Dartan. “I tried coming back more than a dozen times that day. Every time I stepped out my door I felt the chill cover my body, enveloping me, just as it had outside of your barn.” An involuntary shiver interrupted her for a moment. “My feet froze, refusing to take me any further, but I had to check on you. I had to make sure you were alright, but I could never make it further than our fence.” There was shame in her eyes, but she continued. “As the day grew later, my fear for you grew. I knew, or I thought I knew, that if you could, you would have come to check on me since I hadn’t shown up. Then I didn’t see you the second day.”

She uttered a single, short, painful laugh. “I finally had to send Marcus. I had to beg and plead with him to go and make sure you were alright.” She stared hard into Dartan’s eyes, and he wanted nothing more than to just stare at the ground, but he dare not look away now. “Do you know how hard that was for me? The look and condescending tone I had to endure from him? He made me feel awful about it before he finally relented.”

“I paced the room hundreds of times, anxious for news of you, but dreading what it might be.” She stepped closer to Dartan, who stood his ground. “And when he finally returned, do you know what he told me?” She stared into his eyes, silent, until Dartan simply shook his head. “He said you were fine, and that you and your mother looked to be packing up to leave, just like everyone else in this forsaken village.” She stepped back and looked down. “He told me if I wanted to know anything more I should come talk to you myself. He had failing crops and sick animals to tend, which left no time for problems between me and my … boyfriend.” She whispered the last word, reluctant to use it, but not willing to change the words he had used.

Looking back up at him, her glassy eyes betrayed the pain she was trying to mask with anger. A single tear streaked down her face, but she didn’t dare acknowledge it. Instead she let it trace a path down her cheek and onto her shirt, unabated. Dartan reached out to comfort her, but she moved back, and he watched the fire in her eyes quickly dry them.

“I spent the rest of that day helping my brother. If you weren’t concerned about me, then I wouldn’t concern myself with you either. I was sure I meant enough to you for at least a good-bye, so I waited.” She swallowed hard and paused a moment. “But you never came.”

“When I woke this morning, my memory of what happened here seemed almost like a dream. In fact, everything about the past three days seemed not real. I stepped out of my door, headed for yours, and nothing stopped me.” She turned to look at the fields behind her. “Nothing, until I saw your fields. That slowed me down a bit, and when I saw your mother on top of that packed wagon, I knew.” She turned back to face him. “You really are leaving, aren’t you?” Dartan merely nodded his head, unsure if he should speak yet. “Where will you go?” she asked quietly. “What will you do?”

“He doesn’t know where he’s going yet.” The answer came from behind Dartan, but he didn’t need to turn to know who it was. Aliet, however, couldn’t hide her surprise. She peeked around Dartan as the voice continued, “And I think those are questions both of you will have to answer for yourselves.” Dartan watched as the wide-eyed surprise changed to wild-eyed fear. The wizard had done it again.

Chapter Five

She didn’t scream. Although, it was only because she was concentrating so much on trying not to faint.

“Oh, my. I’ve frightened her again, haven’t I?” Alain sounded sincere enough that Dartan was able to restrain himself from turning and yelling at him.

Instead, he managed a simple, “Yes, you did.” He moved closer to Aliet and placed his hands on her arms. “Are you alright?” he asked softly, trying to catch her eyes. Aliet continued trying to peek around Dartan, but his firm hands held her gently in place.

“It’s him,” she finally stammered out. “That’s the man I saw the last time I was here.”

“I know,” Dartan replied, “and he’s very sorry for scaring you,” he added in a louder voice.

“Who is he?” she whispered.

“The Great Wizard, Alain,” Dartan answered. He was not able to stop her from leaning over to catch another glimpse this time, and unbelievable as it seemed, he saw her grow even paler.

“Why is he here?” Dartan barely heard the question, and wondered if he had read her lips rather than actually heard it.

“He’s not really here,” Dartan said loudly enough for Alain to hear.

“Actually, for all intents and purposes, I am here,” Alain argued. Aliet looked confused as Dartan released her and stooped down to pick up a rock. He hurled the stone at the wizard, which passed straight through causing no more than a flicker in the image, and a small puff of dust farther down the path.

“Well, alright, so in the physical sense, I’m not here,” the wizard conceded.

“I’m beginning to see why Mother doesn’t like wizards,” Dartan grumbled.

“So, he’s here, but he’s not here,” Aliet said. “What does he want?”

“Best wait until you’re all together before I explain everything,” Alain said. “I’ll join you two back at the girl’s home.”

“The girl has a name,” Dartan called out to the now empty space Alain had occupied. Aliet blinked several times, almost expecting him to pop back in for one more remark.

“Is this a normal occurrence for you?” she asked, finally convinced he was gone.

“Not until two days ago,” Dartan admitted.

“And he’s really the Great Wizard?”

“According to him, and Mother.”

“He doesn’t look anything like him.”

Dartan barely concealed his smile. “We’d better get moving,” he said, scooping up the single bag of possessions at his feet. He then put his fingers to his mouth and blew a loud whistle across the yard. “Josie!” he called out, and got a loud snort as his reply.

“Are we taking Josie?” Aliet asked.

“If I can get the nag to come out of the barn,” Dartan grumbled.

“Let me try,” Aliet suggested. “Josie!” she called towards the open barn doors, and was answered by a sweet whiny followed by the clop of hooves coming at a fast trot. “That’s a good girl,” she added as the horse came straight to her and nuzzled her neck.

“I’ll walk,” Dartan said. He secured his pack to Josie, who started to complain until Aliet gave her a soothing scratch between the ears. Aliet climbed onto Josie’s back and whispered into her ear as Dartan headed for the road. He only made it a few meters before Josie pushed against his back with her head and snapped her teeth next to his ear.

“She nearly bit me!” Dartan exclaimed, rubbing his ear.

“Now that wasn’t very nice,” Aliet pretended to scold Josie, but the small, wicked laugh ruined the effect. She rubbed Josie’s neck, whispered in her ear again, and then pressed her ear against Josie’s neck. After a moment of silence, Aliet raised her head and spoke to Dartan. “She doesn’t like you.”