Elizabeth could not have been more surprised. Lady Ashcombe glared at Miss Bingley amidst the puzzled murmurs that were circulating around the table.
“But it was you who came to me to complain about it in the first place.”
“It turned out I was mistaken. I am sorry.”
There was a silence. Lady Ashcombe was looking furious, but she was not nimble enough to think of a way to salvage the situation.
“Well then, it appears there has been some misunderstanding. What shall we do about the charges, Lady Ashcombe?”
In the folds of her skirt, Elizabeth crossed her fingers, hoping they would not mention Jane. So far they had only struck at her. If they brought up her sister, it would be much more difficult.
“We will consider the next step and return to you.”
“Good. Then if those who are not members of the Council would be good enough to leave,” said Matlock, “I have some other matters to discuss.”
Darcy interceded. “If I may ask Mrs. Darcy to stay behind for a minute?”
Elizabeth sent Darcy a surprised look. What was he up to? He should have been delighted for her to leave with her hide still intact.
“The accusations mounted today were a perfect example of the lack of clarity about the role of my Twin and Janus Mage. No one seems to know what her role is. I would like to take this opportunity to reiterate that Mrs. Darcy is a powerful mage, chosen by this Council after a series of tests. She is a Royal Mage by right, and as such should be given specific duties.”
Elizabeth groaned. She could tell this was not a good moment to make his point. She understood his reasoning, but it would have been better left to another day.
“We all know that we have in residence a group of Talented young apprentices, and we have already been discussing bringing in more. Our only obstacle so far is the need for more Tutors who are willing to teach them. I want to propose that we set up Mrs. Darcy as a Tutor.”
Elizabeth tried not to grimace when Darcy’s proposal was greeted with loud objections.
“It is true we have discussed the matter,” said Matlock, “but the problem is that the male apprentices greatly outnumber the female ones. This is not usually the case, but many of the female apprentices did not want to move too far away from their families. And, from what I understand, the same is true of the new ones they are sending us.”
“There is no reason she could not teach the male apprentices as well.”
“Out of the question!” Mr. Devereux’s face had turned red. “I have never heard anything more preposterous!”
“A lady mage—no matter what knowledge she may possess—cannot teach boys who are no longer in leading strings. Especially one who is young and—”
He stopped, suddenly embarrassed.
No one in the room could have any doubt what he meant. Elizabeth smiled inwardly. It was flattering, of course, to know she was considered pretty by the exacting standards of the Royal Mages, but that was not the matter at hand.
“I would have to look into whether there has been a precedent,” said Pickering, pulling at his beard. “I seem to recall something—I cannot quite remember—I will have to look for the book.”
“Even if there were such a precedent,” said Mrs. Belfry, “the strict rules of the Royal Academy forbids contact between unmarried male and female mages.”
“They are allowed to mingle in the Dining Hall,” said Matlock. “As I recall, the rules specifically state that. And the rules specifyunmarriedmale and female mages.”
Devereux banged his fist against the table. “I will not listen to another word! Is it not enough that this woman has single-handedly led to the destruction to some of our best minds? She has also refused to abide by the rules. Even the Healers have brought complaints against her.”
Incredibly, Elizabeth heard a few murmurs of agreement.
“Hear! Hear!”
“Are we now rewarding her by allowing her access to our impressionable young boys? Does nobody understand what is happening? She managed to corrupt even Darcy, who has always followed his duty, and convinced him to abandon the Royal Mages without a moment’s hesitation.”
He was standing now, waving his hands about, spitting as he spoke. “She has unmanned him, as she has done with all the gentlemen who worked with her. She is a Rogue Mage. She will bring destruction to us all!”
Once again he brought his fist down, this time more forcefully, making the table shake. “She is bringing corruption into the very roots of our institution! She is a blight upon the Academy! She should never have been allowed to return. She will bring ruin to us all. We may as well have asked that French mage downstairs to join the Royal Mages. She is the enemy.”
He looked unhinged. How could anyone take his words seriously? But the grave faces around the table indicated that they did.
