The third pile made me laugh outright. Dragon scales, ghost peppers, sulfur, phoenix eggshells. “Narcissa. I am not going to allow you to breathe fire.”
“And why shouldn’t I breathe fire? I have a right to defend myself, especially if we are venturing into witch territory. And to aid you if circumstances demand it, of course. And anyway, I saw you give that little dragon the power just last month.”
“Because dragons aresupposedto breathe fire,” I pointed out. “Cats are not. Especially cats who chew on poor, defenseless orchids to spite their owners.”
“Partners,” Narcissa corrected.
“Partners,” I conceded. “But no, I am not going to allow you to be a flying, fire-breathing bloodhound of a cat. You would positively terrorize the neighborhood.”
Narcissa was about to protest, so I lifted a finger to stop her. “However, I will bring the ingredients along, and should occasion call for it, I will allow you to breathe fire for a very short time.”
Narcissa grinned, then even went so far as to rub her head against my arm. “Just imagine all of the horrible little men I could burn to a crisp in your name.”
I scratched behind her ears. “Aw, who’s my scary little nightmare goblin?”
I looked into the water basin. Auggie appeared, eyes closed. He seemed to be bouncing, before I realized he was on the back of a horse. A horse. Good. I could catch up quickly on my broom.
Scrying was a frustrating magic. I wanted more context than what this picture was showing me. I needed to knowwherehe was.
“Amplius,” I said through gritted teeth as I took a moment to slice my dagger over my index finger. I hissed at the sting of the blade, then held it over the water, watching as drops of my blood fell into the basin, mingling with the water, giving the images an even sharper quality. “Ubi es,” I demanded. “Where are you?”
And then the image faded.
I growled down at the pod around my neck as it slowly drained of power. Most magics used an imperceptible amount of energy from the caster, procuring enough from the ingredients to compensate for the spell’s demands. Scrying required force of will to keep the vision open for a longer interval. The longer the glimpse, the more energy necessary. And in case I ran into trouble in Ambrosia’s territory, I would need that energy.
I ended the spell, continuing to stare into the water for a moment, despite the vision having faded. I glanced to Narcissa. It appeared I would need to rely on my familiar to find Auggie for me.
Therese cleared her throat, and I turned to watch her attempt to crawl over to me with her bulky, squat form, then trying for a small hop that she seemed satisfied with. “Do I get powers too, Mr. Witch?”
“No,” Narcissa and I said at the same time.
Therese looked put out, but I grinned at Narcissa. With any luck, I would come across the ingredients necessary to return Therese to her true form soon. It was unsettling seeing her in such a state.
Therese groaned. “Fine. But … you don’t happen to have any flies lying around, do you? I’m positively starving.”
CHAPTER FIVE
“Well, that doesn’tlook good,” Narcissa observed, as she glided over to the coach ahead of me, quickly adjusting to her new bat wings, each the length of her entire body. She tucked her wings in at her sides, and she sniffed around the undercarriage as I reached the crash site. I leaned my broom against a boulder and set down my bag; Therese squirmed out to observe the goings-on.
“‘This job will be rather pedestrian,’” I mimicked Lucifer. “Iknewthis wasn’t going to be easy.”
Narcissa nosed around the wheels, batting one playfully to send it spinning, then lifted her head toward me. “Tantrums won’t help the situation, Callum. Lucky for you, you brought me along.”
I perked up. “You can track him then?”
“Like a bloodhound,” Narcissa agreed, then wrinkled her nose. “Not that I give any credit to their species. They just happen to smell significantly better than other animals. Probably so they can smell more pleasant things than themselves.”
“Okay. Get to it then.”
Narcissa blinked at me, then sat on her haunches, watching me expectantly. “Are you giving me orders now? We’repartners, Callum. We make joint decisions.”
I smiled tightly. “Narcissa, I think this would be in both of our best interests. You don’t want to be chained to Lucifer through me any more than I do. We will be free to do as we please once we see this through.”
Narcissa tilted her head. “True. But if you want me to cavort about the countryside with my nose down like some …canine… I deserve a reward.”
“A reward,” I scoffed. “And just what …” I realized what she was saying. “I am not going to reward you with breathing fire just because you’re being stubborn.”
She lifted a paw and began to lick it, then swiped at her face, as if demonstrating that she could sit here all night.
