Reprimand

Ingrid Erikdottir; Ylri of year 1032 Ab Teoria Magica; Hamlet-nested-between-mountains-and-river; No longer bored out of her skull

Grandma was pacing back and forth in Vic’s house, and I could see that she had been almost running with her own cane to reach there before us.

The cane itself had mud and was wet at least two inches above the usual, so much strength she had been using to reach here in time.

The question of the “why she was doing that” would be soon to be answered, after she had calmed down from her pacing.

None of us, not even the alfar, tried to keep her from doing it.

Vic knew it was useless, and had just gone to give some nuts to the squirrel, it seemed like he wanted to know if the animals knew something about the big, and far too bright, pillar of light he could not feel.

Hopefully it didn’t disturb that bear…

It had been awfully close to the lair, after all.

“Now.” Grandma asked while pacing back and forth still, the cane continuing the out of rhythm tick-tock it had been doing: “May you please explain what happened? I know it was not nefarious, but it was quite disconcerting to see a beacon on a mountain.”

Her voice was soft, but I could see the cane trembling in her hand.

Meaning that the second I turned, that same cane would come on my head, fast. And hard.

And leave a bump the size of a mountain, without letting me go to Vic to heal it.

So I threw someone else under the horse, someone who, unlike the alfar, would not be able to throw me in the river.

“I arrived after Vic started doing it” I spoke with almost no guilt.

Almost, because I knew that what I was doing was somewha-

The metal cane came for my head, and it made it snap back with a sudden crack, and made me moan loudly, rolling on one of the beds of Vic’s lower floor, holding my head all the while.

“Please do not under-report your own involvement, little rock. So, what happened?” Grandma asked, her tone still calm, and cold as the wind outside.

The alfar had turned away all the while, trying to keep her own expression calm in front of the unstoppable power that was my own grandmother.

Coward!

A clever coward, but still a coward!

I swore I could hear a shadow from outside, but I was sure it was not Vic. Vic would enter just to make sure Grandma was ok, right? Right!?

“I am waiting, little rock.” Grandma chided, tapping the cane on the ground and making me freeze.

So I just…melted.

I said everything, even if it didn’t feel like any of this would be bad.

We didn’t do magic against nature, hell it felt good being near it.

Nor did we do magic against the thinking.

So, after I ended with the incense put inside the small altar, Grandma sighing and sitting down was the best possible outcome for me.

It was, after all, her “maybe you did not messs it up too much, after all”, which happened when I simply added a tad too much honey to the pies, or when I treated the leather a tad too thinly.

“What you did was foolish. Of all you three.” She started, tapping the cane while searching for words: “You could have risked your lives for an unsure reason, and I will make sure to…talk about this to Victor as well.” Oh damn, she used his name.

She was really annoyed.

“But;” she continued, looking at me, while the alfar pointedly continued to lay on her bed and looking away: “It seems it was simply something that may cause some curious eyes here. There are barely mages of worth in this barony, and others who may come here would need to wait for spring, which will give me enough time to make sure the alfar, and possibly the boy, aren’t in too much of a mess.”

Wait, what?

“Why would those of the order be angry? It’s not like we sinned or did an heresy, hel it’s even written to expand the knowledge of magic if there is a chance, and it does not go against the other laws!” I whinged, glaring at my grandmother.

‘I would have wanted to know too, and I could have known too, if you had said that’ went unsaid, but if she was concerned it was better to not talk about it.

For that moment.

“Exactly for that reason, little stone. But I will make sure that they will think I did that but, for that, I will need to speak to our dear alfar. Alone.” She immediately started to walk towards the Lucrezia, who had immediately, after hearing the words “talk”, gone ramrod straight, freezing like a deer in front of my gun.

It would have been fun, if there wasn’t the underlying fear of what she could to me if I didn’t obey to her order. Which I did.

I was not foolish, after all.

So I opened the door, despite wishing with all my heart being able to remain inside in the warmth, only to find just outside Vic and the squirrel, staring down at what seemed like a small field divided into many squares, with around twenty stones inside those squares.

He turned towards me, then looked at my forehead.

“Not one word.” I said, my mind reeling at the grievous betrayal he had done to me, leaving me along with dear Grandma to be reprimanded while he played outside, letting only me weather the punishment.

He waited some moments, his lips quirking up, then he smirked completely and went back to the game.

Not one word was said, but I knew I would get my revenge on him.

But not for the moment.

I just went beside them and watched them play, the whimpers from inside the house covered by the small crunching of snow and the wind.

At least I had warm clothes.

Could be worse, I could be traveling with this weather.