standing in line before the tables. There was no ceremony,
ritual, or rank observed this afternoon. Each was served as he
arrived, for Midsummer’s Day was the time when all would
equally share in the bounties of the harvest.
Pug caught a glimpse of the Princess
and felt his chest tighten a little. She looked radiant as many of
the boys in the courtyard complimented her on her appearance. She
wore a lovely gown of deep blue and a simple, broad-brimmed hat of
the same color. She thanked each author of a flattering remark and
used her dark eyelashes and bright smile to good advantage, leaving a
wake of infatuated boys behind.
Jugglers and clowns made their
appearance in the courtyard, the first of many groups of traveling
performers who were in the town for the festival. The actors of
another company had set up a stage in the town square and would give
a performance in the evening. Until the early hours of the next
morning the festivities would continue. Pug knew that many of the
boys the year before had to be excused duty the day following
Banapis, for their heads and stomachs were in no condition for honest
work. He was sure that scene would be repeated tomorrow.
Pug looked forward to the evening, for
it was the custom for new apprentices to visit many of the houses in
the town, receiving congratulations and mugs of ale. It was also a
ripe time for meeting the town girls. While dalliance was not
unknown, it was frowned upon. But mothers tended to be less vigilant
during Banapis. Now that the boys had crafts, they were viewed less
as bothersome pests and more as potential sons-in-law, and there had
been more than one case of a mother looking the other way while a
daughter used her natural gifts to snare a young husband. Pug, being
of small stature and youthful appearance, got little notice from the
girls of the keep. Tomas, however, was more and more the object of
girlish flirtation as he grew in size and good looks, and lately Pug
had begun to be aware that his friend was being sized up by one or
another of the castle girls. Pug was still young enough to think the
whole thing silly, but old enough to be fascinated by it.
Pug chewed an improbable mouthful and
looked around. People from the town and keep passed, offering
congratulations on the boys’ apprenticeship and wishing them a
good new year. Pug felt a deep sense of Tightness about everything.
He was an apprentice, even if Kulgan seemed completely unsure of what
to do with him. He was well fed, and on his way to being slightly
intoxicated—which contributed to his sense of well-being. And,
most important, he was among friends. There can’t be much more
to life than this, he thought.
THREE - Keep
P ug
sat sulking on his sleeping pallet.
Fantus the firedrake pushed his head
forward, inviting Pug to scratch him behind his eye ridges. Seeing
that he would get little satisfaction, the drake made his way to the
tower window and with a snort of displeasure, complete with a small
puff of black smoke, launched himself in flight. Pug didn’t
notice the creature’s leaving, so engrossed was he in his own
world of troubles. Since he had taken on the position of Kulgan’s
apprentice fourteen months ago, everything he had done seemed to go
wrong.
He lay back on the pallet, covering his
eyes with a forearm; he could smell the salty sea breeze that blew in
through his window and feel the sun’s warmth across his legs.
Everything in his life had taken a turn for the better since his
apprenticeship, except the single most important thing, his studies.
For months Kulgan had been laboring to
teach him the fundamentals of the magician’s arts, but there
was always something that caused his efforts to go awry. In the
theories of spell casting, Pug was a quick study, grasping the basic
concepts well. But each time he attempted to use his knowledge,
something seemed to hold him back. It was as if a part of his mind
refused to follow through with the magic, as if a block existed
ritual, or rank observed this afternoon. Each was served as he
arrived, for Midsummer’s Day was the time when all would
equally share in the bounties of the harvest.
Pug caught a glimpse of the Princess
and felt his chest tighten a little. She looked radiant as many of
the boys in the courtyard complimented her on her appearance. She
wore a lovely gown of deep blue and a simple, broad-brimmed hat of
the same color. She thanked each author of a flattering remark and
used her dark eyelashes and bright smile to good advantage, leaving a
wake of infatuated boys behind.
Jugglers and clowns made their
appearance in the courtyard, the first of many groups of traveling
performers who were in the town for the festival. The actors of
another company had set up a stage in the town square and would give
a performance in the evening. Until the early hours of the next
morning the festivities would continue. Pug knew that many of the
boys the year before had to be excused duty the day following
Banapis, for their heads and stomachs were in no condition for honest
work. He was sure that scene would be repeated tomorrow.
Pug looked forward to the evening, for
it was the custom for new apprentices to visit many of the houses in
the town, receiving congratulations and mugs of ale. It was also a
ripe time for meeting the town girls. While dalliance was not
unknown, it was frowned upon. But mothers tended to be less vigilant
during Banapis. Now that the boys had crafts, they were viewed less
as bothersome pests and more as potential sons-in-law, and there had
been more than one case of a mother looking the other way while a
daughter used her natural gifts to snare a young husband. Pug, being
of small stature and youthful appearance, got little notice from the
girls of the keep. Tomas, however, was more and more the object of
girlish flirtation as he grew in size and good looks, and lately Pug
had begun to be aware that his friend was being sized up by one or
another of the castle girls. Pug was still young enough to think the
whole thing silly, but old enough to be fascinated by it.
Pug chewed an improbable mouthful and
looked around. People from the town and keep passed, offering
congratulations on the boys’ apprenticeship and wishing them a
good new year. Pug felt a deep sense of Tightness about everything.
He was an apprentice, even if Kulgan seemed completely unsure of what
to do with him. He was well fed, and on his way to being slightly
intoxicated—which contributed to his sense of well-being. And,
most important, he was among friends. There can’t be much more
to life than this, he thought.
THREE - Keep
P ug
sat sulking on his sleeping pallet.
Fantus the firedrake pushed his head
forward, inviting Pug to scratch him behind his eye ridges. Seeing
that he would get little satisfaction, the drake made his way to the
tower window and with a snort of displeasure, complete with a small
puff of black smoke, launched himself in flight. Pug didn’t
notice the creature’s leaving, so engrossed was he in his own
world of troubles. Since he had taken on the position of Kulgan’s
apprentice fourteen months ago, everything he had done seemed to go
wrong.
He lay back on the pallet, covering his
eyes with a forearm; he could smell the salty sea breeze that blew in
through his window and feel the sun’s warmth across his legs.
Everything in his life had taken a turn for the better since his
apprenticeship, except the single most important thing, his studies.
For months Kulgan had been laboring to
teach him the fundamentals of the magician’s arts, but there
was always something that caused his efforts to go awry. In the
theories of spell casting, Pug was a quick study, grasping the basic
concepts well. But each time he attempted to use his knowledge,
something seemed to hold him back. It was as if a part of his mind
refused to follow through with the magic, as if a block existed
Similar Books
