Dragonspell - Donita K. Paul [19]
Granny Noon pulled long, shiny shears out of her apron pocket. She pointed to a wooden stool, and Kale reluctantly perched on it. She cringed as Granny Noon attacked her curly hair. The flashing silver blades clipped at her locks with amazing speed.
“Sit still,” ordered the tiny old woman. “Let’s see…where to begin? First, don’t be intimidated by your gift. You will gain mastery over the pull dragon eggs have on you.”
“I didn’t like going through that tunnel to the cavern.”
“Of course you didn’t, dear. Very sensible of you. Sticking your hand in holes, crawling into unlit underground passages. Risky undertakings. You’d be well advised to be a bit more cautious.” She shook her head and tsked without once missing a beat with the shears.
“I couldn’t help myself. It was scary. In the tunnel, I couldn’t stop.”
“Yes, well now you know more of what it’s all about. Your mind was trying to tell you even then.”
“It was?”
“The image of Mistress Avion’s chicken coop was the only thing that your previous experience could identify. If you had been able to relax, you probably would have conjured up an image of the egg you already had, and then by putting two and two together, you would have understood you were going toward a clutch of dragon eggs.”
“You think so, Granny Noon?” Kale shook her head. “I don’t think I’m that smart.”
“Keep still.” Granny Noon lightly thumped her on the head with the side of the shears. “Yes, I think so. All you need is experience in the service of Paladin.”
Granny ran her fingers through Kale’s curly hair, and then sharp scissors snapped around her ears. Kale squeezed her eyes shut as if that would protect her from being nipped by those shiny blades.
“Discernment is what you need,” said Granny Noon.
Kale wished the old emerlindian would just concentrate on the haircut and not try to talk at the same time.
“I wish I could give you discernment, but you must learn it. Step by step. Experience by experience. They should have chosen older companions for your journey.”
“Dar and Leetu are older.”
Granny laughed. “Leetu is a lot older, but still a child emerlindian. And Dar is no better. Sending three children out to find Fenworth. Of course, he’s as old as the swamp, so that should give you a balance of wisdom.”
“I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“Of course not, dear. That is why I am saying you need discernment.”
Kale crushed down a remark that sprung to her lips. Didn’t anyone outside of River Away know how to properly explain anything?
“The two who came to rescue you with Dar and Leetu Bends,” continued Granny Noon, “were Lee Ark, a marione general for Paladin, and Brunstetter, an urohm lord and ruler of a small province in east Ordray. I can’t believe Bends never got around to telling you these things. That girl! And she informs me that she has given you no instruction on your mindspeaking abilities.”
“Me? Mindspeaking!”
“Of course, dear.” The shears’ snapping slowed now into a rhythmic beat as Granny Noon circled Kale. “How did you feel when you approached the city of Vendela?”
“A little scared,” Kale admitted.
“No no, besides that. Didn’t you feel crowded? As if there was a hum of noise, like bees bumping against your brain?”
Kale drew in a sharp breath. That was exactly how it had felt as she sat in the wagon approaching Vendela. And in River Away, too, on market days.
Granny Noon continued as if Kale had answered. “You see, that’s because you’re a mindspeaker. Of course, a mindspeaker is also a mind-listener, so to speak.” She giggled, and the air quivered around Kale as if Granny Noon’s joy actually enlivened everything in the room. “Now look down, dear, so I can get these scraggly wisps of hair at your neck.”
Kale dropped her chin, and Granny Noon talked as she snipped. “Living among the mariones was a disadvantage. Very few of that race are proficient in conversations of the mind. And they’re among the most difficult to read even if you’re talented. You’ve had no training, but your skills will develop quickly now that you’re with