Risna did not appreciate her comment. She pursed her lips. “I am serious, Miss Elizabeth,” she said flatly. “You ask me to show you secrets that could have me, or those I love, killed. I will protect my girl to the ends of the earth. Your life is nothing to me compared to that.”
Elizabeth’s smile faltered. Risna’s words reminded her that she was asking to see something that could get them killed, and Risna had just made it clear exactly where she ranked in her priorities.
After a moment of hesitation, she slid a silver noble onto the table. “It’s your choice, and what you are comfortable with, Risna. I will not push, but I would like to see what magic looks like if you want to show me.”
Scooping the silver noble off the table, Risna pocketed it. She tossed the crystal into the air and cried, “Váless!”
The crystal turned on the spot, suspended about a foot in the air.
Elizabeth’s breath caught in her throat. The crystal rotated slowly in the air, defying everything she had been taught about the natural world. She put a hand underneath the stone to see if there was some trick at play. There wasn’t.
“Would you like to try, girl?” Risna said, looking at her strangely.
She reached a hand towards the crystal before she pulled it back. What if nothing happened? What if something did?
Perhaps it would be better to try it in private, where no one could bear witness to her success or failure.
“No, thank you, Risna. I think my curiosity is sated for the day. After all, nothing would happen if I tried, would it?”
The witch chuckled. “Probably not. If you do decide to try, any small object will work.” She paused. “And if I were giving you bad advice, I would also tell you the spell is ‘Váless’.It means to fly or lift in the Godstongue.”
Elizabeth committed the word to memory. “Thank you, Risna, for your time and for answering my questions. I appreciate it,” she said, her smile genuine. “And just as you have asked me not to reveal your secrets, I would also ask that same courtesy be extended to mine.” Elizabeth blew on her tea and took a tentative sip. It was soothing and smelled softly of herbs.
“Of course,” Risna said, saluting her with her mug.
“You said there is a way to protect myself in case things go badly?”
“If you happen to have magic, you could learn to protect yourself. If not…” Risna paused. “I can craft an amulet or charm that would protect you against minor things, like becoming enthralled in their eyes and basic magical attacks.”
Elizabeth looked at her sharply. “How much?”
The woman quoted a figure.
She whistled. It would put a serious dent in her coffers, but she desperately wanted any help against demons she could get. “I’ll think about it.”
Elizabeth thanked Risna for her time and stepped out of the shop.
She had a few more stops left before she returned to the castle.
A few hours later, Elizabeth retrieved Buttercup from the city stables and left Veridas with her shoulders slumped.
She had been laughed out of several dress shops, and her saddlebags were still filled with gowns that she hadn’t been able to part with.
The seamstresses had taken one look at the gowns she had with her and declared them long out of fashion. They would never sell in Veridas, she had been told, where darker colours and different fabrics were favoured. When she had blustered they couldn’t be out of fashion, she had been met with raised brows and clear refusals.
For a ball gown that had cost a small fortune, she had only been offered a handful of silver nobles, a pittance. The other two gowns she brought received no offers at all.
Apparently, selling her belongings was not as easy a feat as she had imagined. Each rejection felt like another door slamming shut on her hopes of one day building a life for herself in this kingdom without family or connections.
Elizabeth’s fingers tightened on the reins, and she pursed her lips.
She missed her easy life, where her surname had opened doors. Now she was no one.
And then there was the matter of what she had learned from the witch today.
If anyone found out she had even spoken to one, she could be considered a criminal for failing to report Risna to the authorities. Not to mention, if anyone found out she had any connection to magic at all, her life would be forfeit.
She thought of the executioner’s platform on Calyx and grimaced. She would have much preferred to live her life in ignorance, never learning that she might have magic in her veins.
