Nic stopped feeling sorry for him pretty quickly at that point.“Lady Phel,” she said, not exactly drawing herself up, as she’d already been poised for the confrontation, but reminding herself of her own power and status.No one had been more delighted than Nander at Nic’s demotion to familiar status.
“Familiars should be seen and not heard,” he snapped, then deliberately turned his back on her and faced the provost.“What is the purpose of this rude summons, Provost?When my father hears of—” Nander abruptly stopped speaking, bloodshot eyes bugging in outrage.
Tandiya Uriel smiled, politely and oh-so coldly.“Manners, Wizard Ferdinand.You will speak to me, and to Lady Phel, with respect or you will not speak at all.”
Hanneil wizards—mostly Nic knew the academy proctor version of this kind of magic—could silence people, so it made perfect sense that a Uriel wizard could also do so.Still, it hadn’t occurred to her that Tandiya could and would use that power on students.
“That’s better,” the provost said approvingly, as if Nander had complied, even though he clearly still strained against the silencing magic.A few spirits popped out of the air, zooming toward the provost and she expressed dramatic shock before chopping a hand to banish them.Leaving Nic wondering how a Uriel wizard managedthattrick.Truly illuminating and food for thought.She better understood now why Tandiya had wanted to know if Nic had contemplated pitching Elal against Uriel.
“Ferdinand Elal,” the provost said with soft menace, “you did not just try to attack me with spirit magic, did you?Because that’s grounds for immediate expulsion.”
Nander sagged, abruptly disconsolate, and nodded mutely.Then shook his head.
“I suggest you sit,” Tandiya said, more gently now, almost as if speaking to a child.As Nander was only fifteen, and an immature one at that, he was probably more child than man, come to think of it.Nander sat, slumping in the chair with adolescent bonelessness.“Now, Wizard Ferdinand, I will allow you to speak, but the first words out of your mouth will be an apology to Lady Phel, and then to the Office of the Provost.”She gave the instructions pleasantly, but with iron will beneath.Was she adding a psychic compulsion?That would be strictly illegal, but Nic wondered.
Nander blew out a breath, as if he’d been suffocating—which of course he hadn’t been, but all very dramatic—and threw Nic a nasty look.“Sorry,Lady Phel.”He loaded sarcasm into the title.“Apologies, office,” he said, waving hands at the walls.
Tandiya slid Nic a neutral look that spoke volumes of her enduring patience for the job.“Less than adequate, but I’ll let it pass for now.You’re on probation for the moment, Wizard Ferdinand.Don’t fuck up.”
“Fine,” he muttered, staring at his bony knees.
“What was that?”She cupped a hand to her ear.“I couldn’t quite hear you.”
“I said yes, Provost,” he said, much too loudly.
“Thank you.”She smiled, all sweetness.“Lady Phel, I believe you have questions for your brother?”
“I don’t answer to a fa—” Nander’s words choked off and the provost wagged a chiding finger at him.
“Answer your sister’s questions, politely, accurately, and without attitude, or I’m confining you to your room with basic rations for a week.Understood?”
Nander looked appalled, then reluctantly nodded.
“There we go.Lady Phel?”
Fortunately, Nander’s continued insolence had given Nic time to gather her thoughts.She hadn’t realized Tandiya planned to lob the interrogation ball at her like that.“Nander, are you aware that Alise returned to House Elal?”
“Of course, the sneaky, lying bitch.”
“Why do you call her sneaky and a liar?”
“She said she didn’twantto be heir,” he exploded in a whine, waving his hands.“Papa was all set to officially designatemeas the next Lord Elal, which is my right!But thenyouhad to go and have a snivelly baby and Alise goes prancing back to apprentice at Elal.Did you know he showed her the arcanium?”
Nic had not known that.No one but their father and Maman, as his familiar, had known the precise location of the House Elal arcanium, hidden from them all via magical means.“If he was serious about apprenticing Alise and having her as back-up to head the house should something happen to him, it makes sense that she’d need to access the arcanium and be able to attuned herself to the Elal magic stored there.”She thought she’d sounded very reasonable, but Nander writhed in his chair, nearly in a frenzy.
“It was supposed to bemine,” he cried.“He was going to show me, he said.Papa came to visit and he told me that Alise had failed and betrayed him—aiding familiars to escape, ditching out on the academy.”He flung those last words at the provost, who listened impassively.“Alise even fucked around with a faculty member.Did you know that?”
Neither of them replied and he pouted in frustration.“Well, Alise showed her stripes,” he continued, sounding more miserable than gleeful.“She disappeared on him again.And now dear Papa has no one because I won’t be his heir now.I told him so.”
Nic exchanged interested glances with Tandiya.“Lord Elal was here?”she asked.
“Yes.”He drew out the word, making it aggrieved.“But not to visit me, his son.Nooo.He was looking for Alise, thinking she came here to tell Provost Uriel about—” He cut himself off.“Whatever.”
Tandiya shook her head minutely at Nic, communicating that she hadn’t picked up whatever thought Nander had quickly censored.From what Nic understood of psychic magic and mind-reading, surface thoughts could be easily “heard,” much as if the person had spoken them aloud.But thoughts a person took pains to hide had to be more forcibly hunted down and dug out.Uriel integrity wouldn’t allow for that kind of invasiveness.It was one of the lines they drew between their practices and House Hanneil’s.
“He said Alise left again?”Nic prompted with curiosity, leaving the slip alone.Nander would be on guard now.“How odd.”
“Not odd at all.”He laughed bitterly.“She’s fickle as a mink changing its coat.Ran off with that librarian,again.Papa was so fuc—flipping angry.Shows him what he gets for picking the wrong heir.”
