Sianim 02 - Wolfsbane

work—I know it well. I’ve never heard of talismans of warding.”
    She was not so easily won from her chosen story. She merely raised her eyebrow at him. “I had not heard of bane-shades before today. Isn’t it wonderful that we may learn throughout our lifetimes. I assure you that the only ones here when the wardings were drawn were my wolf and I. You have your choice of mages.” She gestured to Wolf, who whined and wagged his tail gently. No human mage could manage to stay in an animal form as long as Wolf had tonight. That Cain ae’Magison was something other than purely human was something his father had kept quiet.
    Kisrah spared her a brief glare before continuing into the room. She lit a magelight as she followed him in, but he lit his own as well. Obviously, she thought with amusement, he didn’t trust her. Smart man.
    She tugged the curtain shut behind her, stopping just inside the alcove, where she could see the sorcerer without interfering with his magic.
    Like Wolf, he placed a hand on her father’s forehead and made a gesture that looked somewhat similar. Watching him closely, Aralorn saw the Archmage’s full lips tighten with some emotion or perhaps just the effort he put into the spell. When he was done, he stepped back for a moment, then began another spell.
    At Aralorn’s side, Wolf stiffened and took a swift step forward, crouching slightly. Aralorn felt a swift rush of fear; had she trusted too much to her knowledge of this man?
    In spite of her suspicions, she really didn’t believe he would actually harm her father. His reputation aside, Aralorn had access to more rumors than a cat had kittens, and she’d never heard a word to indicate he was dishonorable; and someone had taken great care to keep from harming her father. She knew too much about magic to make the mistake of interrupting Kisrah, but she watched him narrowly and trusted Wolf to stop it if need be.
    Whatever the spell the Archmage wrought, Aralorn could tell by the force of the magic gathering at his touch and the beads of sweat on his forehead that it was a powerful one. When he was through, Kisrah leaned against the bier for support.
    “Cursed be,” he swore softly, wiping his face with impatience. He turned to Aralorn, “Quickly, tell me the names of the magic-users who live within a day’s ride of here.”
    “Human mages?”
    “Yes.”
    Aralorn pursed her lips but could think of no reason to lie to him. “Nevyn, for one. I think Falhart’s wife Jenna might be a hedgewitch—someone said something like that once—but you’d have to talk to them to be sure. I know she’s the local midwife. Old Anasel retired to a cottage on the big farm over on the bluffs about a league to the south. I believe that he’s senile now. That’s it as far as I know—though there are probably a half dozen hedgewitches.”
    Kisrah shook his head. “Wouldn’t be a hedgewitch. Anasel . . . Anasel might have been able to do it. I’ll speak to Lady Irrenna about him. It is certainly not Nevyn. I know his work.”
    Aralorn tapped her fingers lightly on her thigh. Hedgewitches aside, Kisrah should have been able to answer the question about wizards for himself. He was, after all, the ae’Magi. All the trained human wizards, except for Wolf, were bound to him.
    “Ask Irrenna about other mages as well—she might know something I don’t, but after you do that, you might see if you can contact one of the Spymaster’s wizards in Sianim. Tell them you’re asking for me, and they won’t charge you. If there is another wizard here, Ren will know.”
    Kisrah looked startled for a moment at her helpfulness, but he nodded warily. “I’ll do that.”

    That night, comfortably ensconced in the bed, Aralorn watched as Wolf, in human form, scrubbed his face with a damp cloth.
    “Wolf, what do you know about howlaas?”
    He held the cloth and shook his head. “Something less than a story collector like you, I imagine.”
    She shrugged. “I was just wondering how long I’ll be listening to the wind.”
    “Is it bothering you now?”
    “Not as long as I stay away from windows.”
    “Give it a few days,” he said finally. “If it doesn’t stop soon, I’ll see what I can find out.”
    She nodded. The thought that it might never fade was something she didn’t want to dwell on. She came up with a change of topic.
    “What was the second spell Lord Kisrah tried to work?” she asked. “The one you were worried about.”
    Wolf