Two Ravens and One Crow (Novella)

pulled out a marked-up map of my real estate purchase and showed it to the birds. »Odin,« I said, addressing the ravens for his benefit, »I will leave Gungnir at the cabin on Midgard that is marked on this map.« I pointed at a circled area. »It will be there by this evening. The cabin is unoccupied and will be unlocked. I will leave Gungnir in the closet of the master bedroom. Safe travels.« I folded the map and tossed it on top of the trailer. The ravens squawked and one of them hopped over to grasp the map between its talons. They flew away with another hoarse cry, and I was quite nearly back to peace and seemingly interminable training.
    ›Huh. Guess they didn’t want a cracker after all. Another myth busted.‹
    »That was Hugin and Munin?«
    »It sure was. Granuaile, if I ever get restless and yearn for action in the remaining years of your training, I want you to remind me of this episode.«
    »Not sure what the episode was yet, but I will, sensei.«
    ›Hey, Atticus, that reminds me! You wanted me to remind you that we need to get barbecue in Atlanta!‹
    I did?
    ›Well, somewhere in the South. You said I would get pulled pork and beef brisket.‹
    I seriously don’t remember this .
    ›That’s why I have to remind you, see.‹
    I smiled. You are a very clever hound .
    ›And you are an excellent food provider.‹
    Well, don’t get all mushy on me .
    »When do I get to hear the details of this episode?« Granuaile asked. »It sounds like Odin is back.«
    »He is. I’ll tell you everything later tonight. It’s actually not over yet; I have one more detail that needs my attention. Continue your training and pretend I’m not here for now.«
    »Aye, sensei.«
    Gungnir was buried in the earth near our trailer and encased in iron to protect it from divination. With the help of the elemental Colorado and the iron elemental, Ferris, I retrieved it with little trouble. I inspected it to make sure it was in good condition, being careful not to touch the spearhead engraved with runes, lest my aura nullify its magic.
    This spear had shed a whole lot of blood, and now that I was returning it to Odin, it would shed a whole lot more. But people who truly want to shed blood will find a way to shed it, just as people who wish to do good will find a way to be a benediction to their neighbors.
    Building and growing are so much harder than cutting something down. I once spent twelve years training an apprentice to accept the magic of the earth, only to see him beheaded by the forces of Al-Mansur in Galicia. After I lost Cíbran, the hopelessness of training an apprentice had overwhelmed me for far too long, and I’d had serious doubts about taking on Granuaile and several thoughts along the way of giving up.
    But the meeting with Odin reassured me and gave me new hope. Now that we were sort of on the same side and he would keep my fake death a secret, I could face the remainder of Granuaile’s training with a bit more confidence that we would not be discovered and summarily destroyed.
    I had less confidence, however, in my ability to avoid distraction where Granuaile was concerned. After weeks of tiptoeing around the Morrigan’s severe mood swings, I wanted nothing so much as to talk with Granuaile, to enjoy her mind and sense of humor and appreciate a well-balanced personality. It wasn’t that Granuaile was serene or at peace with herself yet, but she was walking along that road and it was a joy to sense that and appreciate it, whereas the Morrigan was lost in the apeshit wilderness. Right now, it would be far too easy for me to forget myself and smile at Granuaile in a way that communicated how much I cared for her.
    The weather wasn’t giving me a break on the physical side of things either. It was still hot outside, and Granuaile was still wearing very tight workout clothes. She had begun a series of advanced tai chi forms while I was retrieving Gungnir from the earth.
    ›Atticus, I should warn you that you’re in terrible peril.‹
    Come on, not yet. She just started .
    ›No, it’s true. We’re out of snacks. I now have no incentive to rescue you from your animal desires.‹
    What? How can we be out of snacks?
    ›A perceptive question! Granuaile noticed the shortage a few days ago. »We’re running low on snacks,« she said. I heard her quite clearly. But then she did nothing to fix the problem. I can only conclude that she wanted the snacks all gone. And from that we can deduce that she doesn’t