The Red Wyvern - Katharine Kerr [74]
“The princess is doing well, Otho,” Elyssa was saying. “The stairs tire her, is all.”
“Understandable, that. Well, you tell her to take care of herself.”
“I certainly will. Don’t let it trouble your heart.” She glanced at Lilli. “Lilli, this is Otho the silversmith.”
“How do you do?” Lilli said.
Otho looked at her, twitched his lips in what seemed to be a smile, then turned and stomped off.
“Manners our Otho lacks,” Elyssa said. “But he’s devoted to Princess Bellyra. He made that lovely silver casket, the one with the roses graved upon it, for a wedding gift, and he makes her little trinkets now and again as well.”
If Otho had made the casket, then did he know about its evil secret? Lilli had no intention of asking outright, but as if thinking about dweomer might draw dweomer, Nevyn came strolling up to join the two women.
“Good evening,” he said. “I was wondering if Lady Lillorigga might spare me a few moments for a little walk? The evening air is quite pleasant.”
Around back of the main broch complex Dun Cerrmor sported a large open garden as well as the secret one at its heart. A servant had hung candle lanterns here and there from the trees, and overhead a three-quarters moon was rising to match them. Since Lilli had never seen a formal flower garden before, she was enchanted. A long sweep of rosebushes was just coming into bloom, while in raised beds flowering herbs added their scent to the night air. Paths led among the glowing trees into mysterious darkness. From somewhere at the garden’s heart came the sound of water, trickling over rock.
“This is lovely!” she said. “What is it used for?”
“Naught. It’s here to enjoy, and that’s all.”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. How wonderful!”
They walked down a gravelled path toward the sound of the water.
“I see you’ve met Otho,” Nevyn said. “I suppose he was rude to you. He’s rude to everyone, so please don’t let it upset you.”
“So Lady Elyssa told me. It’s odd, but he reminds me so much of Brour. Not that Brour was ever rude, I mean, and he was a young man to Otho’s old. But there’s somewhat about their faces that made me wonder if they were kin.”
“Distantly, they are. You have sharp eyes.”
“I’ve needed them.”
“No doubt. Otho made the casket that—”
“So Elyssa told me. Does he know about, well, about that thing inside?”
“He does.” Nevyn glanced around. “Let’s not discuss that matter, Lilli, until we can be sure no one will overhear.”
“Of course, my lord. My apologies.”
“I wanted to talk about you, anyway. I wasn’t making some idle threat when I said that misusing dweomer could bring you harm. It’s a question of the balance of the humors, you see. Using dweomer draws upon the fifth element, the aethyr, and its humors. Working magic drains, as it were, the aethyr from your body, and if you’re not properly trained to restore it, you can become quite ill.”
“Aethyr? So that’s what that word means! May I ask you about somewhat? A while back Brour and I worked a ritual, and we invoked this spirit. He called Brour a child of earth, but he said I was a child of aethyr. What does that mean?”
“Brour did what? Have you been trained to work invocations?”
“That was the first one, but we practiced it a lot.”
Nevyn growled under his breath.
“Well, I’m so very glad he at least let you practice,” Nevyn said. “We obviously have a great many things to discuss. Lilli, for your sake, I need to know everything you were taught and what Brour and your mother made you do.”
Lilli hesitated, wondering how much she should trust him, and he allowed her silence as they walked along. They reached a clearing among the trees. In the center of the open ground stood a basin of cloudy white stone, touched with gold by the dim lantern light. Water welled up inside it and overflowed in a graceful veil all round. Nevyn paused and dipped his hand into the water, then drew it out with a scatter of drops.
“There are four elements,” Nevyn said, “fire, air, water, and earth. The aethyr is the fifth, their root and their unity, some say. Humans, people like you and me, partake of the