From the other side, it seemed an accident.  The southern gate cut into a shallow streamworn bed out of Gwymr/Frina???—??long since dried, but it had the watery texture.  On the other side around the gate there’d been dug a wide tidy area.  The stone fa?ade was painted and laved.  Walking up from the wilderness, though, splashed mud caked this side, and the banks of the dried stream slumped over the stone like a slimy eater.


    Bauume.  And the dog wouldn’t hesitate to hurt her, either.


    smirk on that scarred face.


    knew something.  “Have you seen a parrot?”


    parrot.  But I do know about your friend here.  Tell her to lift her hood.”  Mawla had stopped nudging me, gone very still.


    Let them go.”


    any greencloaked dragons.”


    and unprovoked assault.”


    I might not be there to help.”


    looked at him with that analytical eye my family had trained, seeing dragons as no more than bags of tells.  I was not sliding back toward that: I gave everyone a doubt’s benefit, clouded my eyes to those tells.  My patience had just???—??mysteriously???—??ran out with this particular dragon.


    Hinte had been right.


    mistake.”


    that voice.


    Spectacle of a medusa cloak.  I found odd; whenever we had tutoring together, she never could focus on anything abstract.  Patterning a cloak was everything abstract.


    intimidate, or maybe someone had patterned it for her.


    impressed?  Dost thou miss this power?”


    It had felt good.  That was just a club.  To have a cloak and once again rend light, to control perception, control light???—??wouldn’t that feel good?


    would be easier if they were.  One less pawn against Mlaen, hm.”


    Don’t, Uane.  They haven’t done anything to deserve that.”


    cat,” she muttered.  “Keep better control of thy pets, next time.  I could have hurt it worse.  Killed it, perhaps.”


    Starsnout.”  I smiled.


    taller than me.


    please don’t taunt my sister.  She could kill you.”


    I would never be exiled.”


    I am far too capable.”  She gave me one of her smiles.  “Unless thou hast some plan in mind, big sister?”


    Parrots have good eyes.


    I’ve seen everything that matters.


    about, but not enough to gloat with.”


    off in your gut.  You’d be on edge.


    Not enough to gloat with.  Something was wrong with the cloak.


    power.  And thou hast none.  No worthwhile allies, no cloak.  So much nothing.”


    Quiet.”  Then she said, “I am beginning to wonder if thou simply dost not care for thy cloak the way we do.”


    thyself.”


    anything when all the administration now knows.”


    you.  Killing isn’t???—??isn’t very subtle.”


    ever kill anyone?


    clubbed Bauume.”  My tail felt the tool still in my bag.


    are our ends.  I said, “But I can.”


    who has thy loyalty, but it is not Ashaine.  Thou hast spat upon our designs.”


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    “What a skink,” said Mawla.  She was trying to stand up.  I got off her.


    her.  If that cat is the one who cares enough to show up, well it doesn’t say much nice about the rest of them.”


    want to be.”


    kill.  Adwyn.”


    Perfectly acceptable.”


    Take to the highest skies, I prayed.


    are nice???—??you go out of your way to be nice.  Just riddle it: what sort of great big scheme do I blow into?  I’m an ashy sifter, that’s all you know.  You’re silly.”


    want?  You never hear about them except as some spook in the sky.”


    Why? If these are the sorts waiting for you back there???—??you ain’t said they aren’t???—??what could you possibly want in shouting range of them?”


    awful squawks.


    * * *