The Seer (37 page)

They rode into
the deserted village square and reined the horses to a halt. 

‘Ah, The Cloak
beckons.’  Xerxes dismounted with a satisfied sigh.  ‘And to think
that only this morning I was four days ride away!’

‘Certainly
makes travel a lot more pleasant.’  Phantom agreed, slipping gratefully
from his horse and stretching.  ‘I could actually get used to that.’

‘Should my
brother and I help to keep the others quiet about the cull?’  Phantasm
asked Fabian in a quiet voice.

Fabian shook
his head, ‘I think it would actually help our cause to pre-empt Malachi’s
efforts to leak the news.  Let the rest of the Ri draw their own
conclusions as to how Mistral obtained the Contract.’

Phantasm
nodded in agreement, ‘Yes, that could work.  We could simply lead them to
believe that Mistral Saw the Contract in Mage Grapple’s thoughts and persuaded
us to use our gift to influence Master Sphinx into giving it to her.’

‘It’s close
enough to the truth to be believable and takes the blame away from Leo. 
The warriors will soon get over their resentment; they would have done exactly
the same if they had your gifts.’

‘I think I
need an early night.’  Mistral interrupted them with a yawn.

‘Have you got
your key?’  Phantasm asked her.  ‘Only we’re going straight to The
Cloak.’

Mistral
finished her yawn with a nod, ‘It’s in my saddlebag, oh, and thanks for the bed
for the night.’

‘You’re
welcome.’

Leaving her
brothers strolling towards the lit windows of The Cloak and Dagger, Mistral
turned and headed for the infinitely less inviting stableblock.  Feeling
exhausted, she led Cirrus into his stall and settled him for the night with
less than her usual care.  She leaned against his stall, yawning quietly
while Leo and Fabian finished their conversation.  Gradually her yawns
grew louder until she heard Fabian mutter a promise to complete their
discussion in the morning.  With a quick apology for keeping her waiting,
he took her by the hand and led her out into the cold night. 

‘Travel by
Expediency is faster but equally as wearing on the body,’ he explained,
watching her yawn her way across the village square.

‘I noticed.’
 Mistral agreed wearily and tripped over her own feet.

Fabian laughed
and swung her up into his arms, carrying her up the street to the twins’
house.  He set her down briefly to find the key in her saddlebag and open
the door.  Prospero trotted in immediately, leaving Fabian to carry
Mistral into the dark house.  She was asleep in his arms before they reached
the top of the stairs.

The familiar
feel of Fabian’s arms around her slowly registered in her sleep fogged
brain.  She smiled and rolled over, sliding her hands over his warm skin.

‘Good
morning,’ he murmured, kissing her hair and pulling her onto his chest. 
She sighed contentedly in response and let herself begin to drift back into
sleep only to be cruelly jerked into wakefulness by his next words.

‘Stay awake
Mistral.  You have an appointment to keep.’

Mistral
groaned and slid further under the blanket, clinging to the last vestiges of
sleep while he rose and began to dress.  She opened her eyes to watch him
reach under the pillow to retrieve his dagger and slide it into the side of his
boot.

‘Get up
Mistral.  Serenity is waiting.  I asked the twins to let her know you
would be calling in this morning.’

‘How
thoughtful.’  Mistral muttered and made no effort to move.

He turned to
look at her, raising an eyebrow in a mocking expression, ‘Would you like me to
carry you there like that?’

‘No,’ she
scowled at him and buried herself deeper in the blankets.  ‘But I don’t
think I’ve got any clean shirts left now, so I’ll just have wait until the
twins are up and I can get something from that chamber of horrors Phantasm
calls a wardrobe.’

‘I may have a
clean one if you have no objections to wearing my clothes.  It’s in my
saddlebag.’

Mistral
scowled more deeply.  She wore Fabian’s shirts more than her own and he
knew it.  Her last excuse to stay in bed was gone.  She had no choice
but to get up.  Finally admitting defeat, she flung back the blankets and
stalked over to where their saddlebags were slung on the floor.  She knelt
down to undo the buckles of Fabian’s and noticed some faded gold lettering
stamped on the underside of the leather flap.

F.C.DW.

Fabian De
Winter was obvious.  But the C?  She rummaged through his saddlebag
until she found a shirt at the bottom that was marginally less creased than the
others.  ‘What does the C stand for?’  She asked as she yanked it on
over her head.

Fabian looked
up from buttoning his jerkin, ‘C?’

‘The initials
on your saddlebag.’

‘Cassius. 
My middle name – after my uncle.  My mother was very fond of her
brother.  I never knew him.  He died before I was born, but by all
accounts he was quite a character.  She always said I was like
him.’  

Mistral gazed
at him silently and realised that she knew nothing about his family.  She
would have to borrow the boring book Phantom spent hours reading.  She
could vaguely recall the title, “
Sorcering Blood-lines: the Complete Guide
”,
but had a much clearer recollection of Phantom’s red face when she’d caught him
reading up Eloise Lacey.

‘Here you
are.’

Fabian
interrupted her day-dreaming by passing her a pair of trousers.  She took
them from him and began to pull them on reluctantly.  ‘You know Fabian, I
feel a lot better today –’

‘No.’

Mistral looked
up to see his face set in a rigidly uncompromising expression that she knew no
amount of arguments, pleading or tantrums would change.  But it was still
worth a try.  ‘Honestly, I think I just need a couple of days at home –’

‘Mistral, you
are going to the Infirmary this morning and that’s final.  I’m going to
take you there myself before I meet with Leo.’

Mistral felt
colour flood her face.  The last thing she wanted was Fabian listening to
the dreaded conversation she was going to have with Serenity.  ‘You can’t
stay while I’m in there!  It’s … it’s –’

Fabian waited
patiently for her to explain her sudden panic, ‘It’s what Mistral?’  He
finally prompted when she stalled.

‘Private!’ 
She finally muttered and immediately bent to lace up her boots and hide her
furiously blushing face.

Mistral could
hear his confused thoughts while she tied her laces, a sudden eruption of
concern that there was more wrong with her than just sickness.  She
sighed.  By trying to save her own embarrassment she had just caused him
yet more anxiety.  ‘Oh Fabian, it’s nothing for you to worry about. 
I just want to talk to her about … you know … stuff, married life and all
that,’ she improvised quickly.

Fabian gave
her a long look and she knew her face was a picture of guilt.  Inwardly
cursing her pathetic inability to lie she immediately vowed to work on
improving it.

‘Then ... I
shall take you there and wait outside.’

Mistral stood
up, ‘You’ll have a long wait then.  I’m having a bath first and then
breakfast.  There’s no way I can face Serenity’s fussing on an empty
stomach.  I’ll be ages; you might as well go and see Leo now then come
back for me.’

‘Leo can
wait.’

Mistral’s
heart sank, her last attempt to get out of Fabian dragging her to the Infirmary
had been vanquished by three short words.

‘I need to
speak with the twins anyway.’  Fabian continued with a slight smile at her
crestfallen expression.  ‘I want to know how the news of the dragon cull
having already taken place was received in The Cloak last night.’

Resigning
herself to the looming misery of a trip to the Infirmary, Mistral locked
herself in the bathroom and wallowed bad-temperedly in the bath until Phantom
eventually knocked on the door and politely enquired whether she had drowned.

‘Come on
Mistral!  I’ve cooked you breakfast!’  Phantom tried again when she
refused to reply.

There was a
short silence.

‘What is
it?’  She finally asked.

‘Sausages,
eggs, fresh bread –’

‘I’ll be down
in a minute!’ 

Mistral’s
response was immediately followed by the sound of her leaping from the
bath.  She dressed in record time to appear in the kitchen moments later,
glowing from the heat of the bath.

‘Hungry?’ 
Phantasm enquired as she stole a sausage straight from the skillet and began to
eat it with her fingers.

She nodded;
her mouth too full to speak, reaching for another she looked around with a
frown.  ‘Where’s Fabian gone?’  She managed through the last of the
sausage.  ‘I was ignoring his thoughts when I was in the bath.’

‘Got bored
with waiting for you to finish having the world’s longest bath and gone to see
Leo,’ Phantasm replied and caught her sudden grin.  ‘Oh no, you can forget
all about dodging your appointment with Mistress Lightwater just because he’s
not here.  We’ve even got his permission to use our gift to make you go.’

Mistral threw
herself onto the sofa and folded her arms defensively, ‘You wouldn’t dare!’

‘Try us.’
 Phantom placed a plate of food on the table before wandering over to
stand casually by the door.

Mistral
watched him through narrowed eyes, ‘Worried I’ll try to escape?’ 

Phantom
shrugged, ‘You do have a certain aversion to the Infirmary.’

She glowered
at him from the sofa then turned to look at Phantasm, stood by the kitchen
table with Prospero sat beside him, staring fixedly at the plate of food. 
‘You can’t make me go!’  She cried.  

‘Actually we
can,’ he replied calmly.

‘I don’t think
so!’ 

Mistral leapt
to her feet and stood between them, looking furiously from one twin to the
other only to suddenly feel light-headed.

‘Are you
alright?’

‘Fine … bath
too hot … and hungr –’

Suddenly the
twins had an unobstructed view of each other across the room.  They looked
down simultaneously to see Mistral unconscious on the floor.

‘She’s
fainted!’

‘Well, that
makes our job a bit easier.’  Phantom remarked after a moment’s pause.

‘You’re not
the one carrying her,’ muttered Phantasm and strode over to gather her
up. 

The door to
the Infirmary banged open as Phantasm strode through carrying the still
unconscious Mistral.  Serenity appeared from the Apothecary store and
watched Phantasm lay her on the nearest bed.

‘Mistral was
keen as ever to visit my Infirmary I see.’

‘Actually,
she’s fainted.’

Serenity’s
face creased into a look of concern.  She walked quickly over to the bed
and laid a hand against Mistral’s brow.  ‘Hello Mistral, it’s been a
while,’ she said pleasantly when Mistral groaned and opened her eyes.

‘Not long
enough.’  Mistral gave the twins a reproachful look.  ‘Did you have
to?’

‘You passed
out.  So, yes.  And now we’re going to find Mage De Winter and give
him the joyous news that you’ve moved on from being sick to fainting.  I’m
sure he’ll be thrilled with the improvement.’

‘How long have
you been vomiting for?’  Serenity enquired briskly while she checked
Mistral’s pulse.

‘Thanks
brother.’  Mistral pulled a face at Phantasm.  ‘Now she’ll want a
colour and consistency report.’

Serenity
regarded her thoughtfully for a moment then turned to the twins, ‘You may leave
now.  I am sure Mistral would appreciate some privacy whilst I complete my
examinations.’

‘What? 
Examinations?  Now?  Can’t it wait?’

‘No.’

The twins
walked away from the sound of Mistral’s increasingly high-pitched complaints until
the closing Infirmary door cut her off and they were left in the silence of the
corridor.  Prospero whined and scratched at the door. 

‘No
boy.’  Phantom patted his head consolingly.  ‘You’re better off out
here, I promise.  I think things could get ugly in there.’

After a brief
battle of wills Mistral submitted grumpily to Serenity’s care, giving terse,
one-word answers to the stream of questions she asked.

‘There, all
done!  That wasn’t so bad was it?’  Serenity finally said.

‘You don’t
really expect me to answer that do you?’  Mistral glowered at her while
she buttoned her shirt up and decided to skip having the embarrassing
conversation she’d been dreading.  She’d definitely suffered enough for
one morning.  ‘So what’s up with me then?’  She demanded
rudely.  

Serenity gave
a light laugh, ‘Well, I’m sure you must already know.’

Mistral looked
at her moodily, ‘Not really, otherwise I wouldn’t have been dragged here, would
I?’

Serenity
smiled, ‘It’s perfectly simple.  You have fallen.’

‘No, I just
sort of blacked out –’

Serenity
laughed and touched Mistral’s cheek, her eyes shining with excitement, ‘I meant
… you have fallen with child.’

‘Huh?’ 
Mistral stared blankly at her. 

‘You’re
pregnant Mistral.  You’re going to have a baby.’

Mistral’s face
froze.

‘Mistral?’ 
Serenity finally asked when the silence finally grew unbearable. 

‘No!’ 
Mistral suddenly gasped.  ‘You’ve made a mistake!  It’s not
possible!’

Serenity’s
voice was gently insistent, ‘I hear two hearts beating inside you, and you have
the beginnings of a pregnancy swell in your abdomen –’

Mistral
immediately retched. 

Serenity
swiftly reached down to grab a bowl from beneath the bed and held it for her,
waiting patiently for her to recover.  She patted her arm soothingly once
she had finished.  ‘This stage should pass soon; you’re nearly at the end
of your first trimester.’

Mistral wiped
her mouth with a trembling hand and stared at Serenity again, ‘My
what
? 
How long?’  She abruptly stopped and retched over the bowl again.

Serenity frowned,
‘I don’t know Mistral.  It really would help if we knew what blood you
have, then we could determine how long your pregnancy will last.’

Mistral jumped
as the door to the Infirmary banged open and Fabian burst in, his face rigid
with anxiety.  He froze in the doorway, registering Mistral laid on a bed
with a look of abject terror on her face.  The twins slid softly into the
room behind him and remained quietly by the door while Fabian strode to the
bed, leaning protectively over her while he glared at Serenity. 

‘Why did
Mistral faint?  What’s causing her illness?’

‘You are going
to be a father Mage De Winter, congratulations.’  Serenity replied with a
happy laugh.  ‘I’ll just leave you two alone for a moment to celebrate the
good news.’

‘What?’
 
Fabian’s eyes widened. 

‘That’s
right!  A baby!’  Serenity called from the storeroom.

Fabian blinked
and sank slowly onto the bed.  He took hold of Mistral’s hands absently
while they stared wordlessly at each other.  Mistral could see his aura
spinning out of control, his confusion apparent in a dark swirling fog of olive
green, then a blinding explosion of joyous yellow burst forth, brighter than
the midday sun.  The murmuring of his thoughts abruptly filled her mind as
his shock faded and he began to think again.  She listened to them, the
panic building in her with every emotion he expressed … hearing his joy, his
pride at being a father … at her being a mother.

A mother.

She stared at
him, watching the look of glowing triumph spread across his face, the heavy
weight of claustrophobia sliding over her with every second that passed. 

Trapped.  

She was
trapped by something impossible to escape from, by something living and growing
inside her … like a parasite.  And the cause of it was staring right at her
with eyes of softest velvet; her gaoler.

‘Everything’s
going to be fine Mistral.  There’s no need to be afraid.’  

She could see
her face, stricken with fear, reflected in the shining black depths of his eyes
and knew that everything was far from fine, ‘No it’s not!’  She cried
hysterically and immediately wrenched her hands from his; fear suddenly giving
way to anger.  ‘You!  You’ve done this to me!’  She shouted and
leapt from the bed, backing away from him towards the door, pointing a shaking
finger at him.  ‘You’ve
trapped
me!’

Fabian stood
up and walked towards her, his hands outstretched in a supplicating gesture,
‘Mistral –’

‘
Don’t
say my name!’  She howled, covering her ears and shaking her head
wildly. 

‘Please, just
listen to me,’ he moved closer with slow, deliberate steps.

‘Keep away
from me!’  She screamed, backing away from him and reaching into her belt
to grab her dagger, eyes bright with fear.  ‘Or I swear I will kill you
for what you’ve done to me!’

Fabian paused
and held his arms out to her, his eyes beseeching.  She glared at him for
a second, her whole body shaking with fury and then she was gone, the Infirmary
door banging shut behind her.

Fabian
immediately strode towards the door to find the twins blocking his way, ‘
Move
!’

‘Mage De
Winter, do not make your child fatherless.’  Phantasm warned softly. 
‘Just let her calm down.  Or she may do something foolish.’

Fabian’s eyes
burned into Phantasm’s steady green gaze.

‘If you chase
after her now she’s more likely to ride recklessly.  It wouldn’t be good
for her to fall.’

Fabian stared
at him wordlessly, his face filled with sudden anxiety, ‘Why the hell didn’t
you use your gift to stop her?’  He burst furiously.

‘We
were.  But the Sight has made her stronger now.  I don’t think she
even felt us.’

‘Would
somebody care to tell me why my Seer has just stormed out of the Infirmary with
a face like thunder?’  Leo’s icy voice demanded from the doorway. 

 ‘She’s
my wife, not your Seer!’  Fabian shouted. 

Leo raised an
eyebrow and regarded Fabian in cold silence, ‘Well, your
wife
looked
even more bad-tempered than usual.  It really isn’t convenient for her to
be storming off every time you two have an upset!  I have an elven
delegation arriving this evening and I need her in the meeting!’

‘I don’t have
time for this!’  Fabian shoved past Leo and stalked away down the
corridor.

Leo stared
frostily at the twins, ‘And what has Fabian done now?’

‘Only the most
natural thing in the world.’  Phantasm sighed.

Leo continued
to regard him stonily, ‘I am not interested in riddles Phantasm!  I merely
need to know whether I can expect Mistral back this evening or whether she is
intending to have an extended tantrum and force me to reschedule my meeting!’

‘Extended, I
think,’ muttered Phantom.

There was a short
pause while Leo narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, ‘Why was she in the Infirmary?’

Phantasm
turned to look at Leo, ‘Mistral is going to have a baby.’

‘That’s
impossible.  She’s a half-breed!’  Leo snapped callously.

‘Hmm, that’s
what we all thought, but the evidence would suggest otherwise.’

Leo frowned
and gazed out of the Infirmary window where Fabian could be seen galloping
Spirit along the path leading to the North Gate, ‘If she’s not a half-breed,
then what is she?’  He muttered to himself.

‘Pregnant,’
confirmed Phantasm shortly.

‘And really
angry,’ added Phantom.

Leo snorted
and turned on his heel, leaving the Infirmary door to bang shut behind him.

‘I’ll pass
your congratulations on.’  Phantom murmured sarcastically. 

Serenity
emerged from the safety of the storeroom, her expression disapproving, ‘That
door will fall off its hinges if you all insist on treating in like that! 
And I really don’t think Mistral should have been allowed to leave.’  

Phantasm
sighed, ‘It was safer than trying to stop her, I assure you Mistress
Lightwater.’  

‘Well, I want
to know the moment she returns.  She’s going to need constant
monitoring.  This is going to be a hard adjustment for her.  She’ll
have to stop working –’

‘But how can
Mistral not have realised she could bear children?’  Phantom interrupted
in a perplexed voice. 

Serenity
frowned thoughtfully, ‘She was raised in a Mage community Phantom.  It
would have been perfectly normal for her to have a natural cycle.  And,’
she gave a rueful shrug, ‘since we’re not exactly inundated with female
warriors, Mistral probably never realised that she was different to other
half-breeds in that respect.  I do need to question her about it though; I
may be able to work out a timescale for her pregnancy based on that information.’

‘I’m sure
that’s a conversation Mistral would love to have!’  Phantom muttered under
his breath.

Phantasm
lifted an eyebrow in brief agreement before shaking his head in bewilderment,
‘I never knew!’

‘No, but then,
she’s hardly the sharing type about that sort of thing is she?’  Phantom
said then frowned.  ‘Although, thinking about it, she did seem extra
grumpy sometimes.’

‘A
baby!’  Phantasm echoed in a stunned whisper.

‘Mistral a
mother.’  Phantom added in a heavy voice.

They shared a
long look.

Mistral rode
without noticing where she was going, allowing shock to shield her from
reality.  A sharp spurt of gratitude made her cry when she saw Prospero
running alongside, loyal to the last.  She gave Cirrus his head and clung
on, sobbing blindly into his mane.  Cirrus ploughed across the snowy
meadows and plunged into the dimness of the trees.  She didn’t attempt to
guide him, but let him find his own path, sometimes cantering, sometimes
trotting, but always moving on, never stopping.  Mistral’s tears gradually
slowed, leaving her feeling strangely empty.  She let her mind drift,
avoiding the inevitable moment when she would have to face the truth; accept
the unacceptable.  

Time passed
unheeded.  Daylight had given way to soft winter twilight when Cirrus
finally wearied.  It would soon be dark.  Mistral knew she should
return, but to go back to Fabian was out of the question.  Resentment
reared in her like an angry snake.  How could he do this to her? 
He’d trapped her!  She’d heard his thoughts, seen his desires … and they
terrified her more than anything she’d ever been asked to See … a
mother
… Mistral felt panic raking at her insides with razor-sharp claws.

Cirrus
stumbled over a tree root in the fading light and dropped heavily to one knee,
throwing Mistral.  She landed on the hard floor and lay winded, staring
numbly up at the darkening sky.  The first stars were just starting to
appear through the overlapping branches above her.  Maybe, just maybe, if
she lay there for long enough, she would simply sleep and never wake up …
exhaustion washed over her.  Mistral felt her eyes close, letting the
irresistible lure of sleep pull her down. 

‘Seer. 
You have fallen.’ 

A rich, wild
voice spoke suddenly close by, waking her abruptly.  Mistral began to laugh
hysterically and fresh tears trickled from her eyes.