"Rise with the Sun!" came the voice of Jaive the Sorceress. "Salute the
day!"
Twenty years ago to this very day, the painting had similarly greeted a teenage girl, but unlike that one, this girl had dark hair and rose with the dawn instead of sleeping until midday. Her grandmother, Jaive, approved of this although maybe she didn't approve of the reason why. Larka was the eldest child of Tanaquil and Honj with a ten year head-start on her lively five year old red-headed sisters. Honj might have preferred a son but he only had daughters and with Larka being the eldest he took her under his wing as an honorary son.
Every morning she would rise at dawn and practise combat moves with her father and a couple of his Locusts, who helped to guard the fortress in the desert, although this was a superfluous excuse. Jaive and her husband Worabex were both powerful Sorcerers, even though their magic was a bit scatty, to say the least.
Her mother had told her that when Worabex had first come to live at the fortress all the magic had been under control, but only for a short time. Larka couldn't imagine living somewhere without magic having seeped into every part of her immediate world. This morning the lion head had thankfully produced water but her hairbrush had turned into a bird and flown away so she had had to comb it through with her fingers before tying it back. She was grateful that she didn't share the wild curly red her of her mother and grandmother.
After her training with her father she enjoyed breakfast in the dining hall with the entire family and the Locusts. She loved the way the mid-morning sun made the red and green lights in the window dance across the room. It was nice eating together, even if her two little sisters, Tweetish and Sweetish, were fidgeting non-stop and her boisterous ten year old uncle, Landerax constantly teased them so that at least one of them was crying. It was annoying that the Mother-Father, Grandmother-Worabex partnerships were always gazing lovingly at each other, so on occasions like these she was often left to watch over the children. Being all of fifteen she obviously considered herself a fully grown adult.
What would they do, if I left? She mused to herself. She was rudely interrupted by a small furry ball landing in her porridge. Wiping porridge off her face she glared down at a baby peeve that was licking the rest of the porridge out of the bowl and off its fur.
"'Orry," it squeaked. Its voice quite high-pitched compared to the one that her mother called her familiar.
"'Orry" was all this little peeve had quite managed to learn to say and Larka felt a pang of pity for it sometimes, as it never seemed to grow quite as fast as its brothers and sisters, who were now at least twice the size of it. It had also been caught in one of Jaive's stray spells and was now a dark emerald green. She picked Pology up, as she liked to call it, and gave it an extra rub down with her napkin.
"There you go, all clean. Go and play with your brothers and sisters," she ordered it. Instead of bounding off like she hoped it would, it just "Prrped" sadly and gazed up at her with its bright blue saucer eyes. "Fine you can stay," she sighed and tucked into a pocket of her dark purple dress. Its head poked out the top.
Honj and the Locusts had left to guard the castle while Worabex and Jaive were off performing sorcerous experiments and Tanaquil would wander round the castle fixing her mother's magic and sometimes dealing with the passing tradesmen. Larka, as usual, was left to deal with the children, generally getting them to help her with cleaning the dishes or cleaning one of the general areas that they all used. Around midday the three younger ones would be summoned to Jaive and Worabex's wizarding room to learn magic.
The three had shown magical ability from very young ages whereas Larka had shown none. Tanaquil had once tartly told her mother over dinner it was because Larka had too much common sense.
At these times Larka would go off exploring round the fortress or in the desert in the surrounding areas. When she was younger she had taken many walks around with her mother but as she grew older, and Tanaquil became more and more obsessed with fixing the magical leaks, Larka had had to take these walks without her. Tanaquil had told her that her mother had been too engrossed in her own spells to see to her own upbringing and so at first Landerax had joined Tanaquil and Larka until it was eventually just Landerax and Larka and then Tweetish and Sweetish.
The fortress was entertaining because the rooms were constantly altering themselves from the magical leaks, or they were being "fixed" back to the way they were twenty years ago, when Tanaquil had been here as a girl, a formation of rooms Larka had never seen. There was also the strange overgrown jungle of weeds just outside the fortress, which had been put there by Worabex and Jaive before Larka's birth. In them lived many strange animals that had been the results of magical experiments gone awry. Larka's favourites were the many bright purple cats and kittens that lived out there, occasionally coming into the fortress grounds to chase the twitching tales of the stone lions on the staircase.
About a half-mile trek across the desert was a collection of rocky hills and in these stood an arch. Tanaquil had taken Larka and Landerax over to it a few times and told them stories of unicorns and other worlds with such detail, she could almost believe they were true. Today Larka didn't fell like going all the way to the mountains as it was very hot. Instead she chose the cool shade that the weed jungle offered.
She quickly scurried down the stone steps covered in lions in various stages of repose, some yawning, and across the courtyard to the gates. Struggling, she opened them just enough to squeeze herself and a pocketed Pology through and let them swing shut behind her.
In the jungle she could hear insects chirping and cats purring and twigs snapping as she stepped on them. It was amazing that less than half a mile away there was endless scorching desert. Here however the air was thick but moist and as she got nearer to the centre it got darker, with the scant shafts of light not affording much vision. Annoyingly she stumbled and reaching out for something to steady herself, grabbed a thorny vine hard.
Sucking her hand she issued forth a stream of curses she had picked up off the Locusts.
"Muttok!" squeaked Pology.
Larka was shocked. She wasn't quite sure whether it was because of the foul language it had used, or whether it was because it had used a new word. She was about to reprimand it when a strange twist in the shafts of light grabbed her attention.
Something light and shiny, almost silver, was moving through the dark looming weeds.
Was it? No, it couldn't be!
Surely enough, there it was. A silver unicorn heading through the trees towards the fortress.
Twenty years ago to this very day, the painting had similarly greeted a teenage girl, but unlike that one, this girl had dark hair and rose with the dawn instead of sleeping until midday. Her grandmother, Jaive, approved of this although maybe she didn't approve of the reason why. Larka was the eldest child of Tanaquil and Honj with a ten year head-start on her lively five year old red-headed sisters. Honj might have preferred a son but he only had daughters and with Larka being the eldest he took her under his wing as an honorary son.
Every morning she would rise at dawn and practise combat moves with her father and a couple of his Locusts, who helped to guard the fortress in the desert, although this was a superfluous excuse. Jaive and her husband Worabex were both powerful Sorcerers, even though their magic was a bit scatty, to say the least.
Her mother had told her that when Worabex had first come to live at the fortress all the magic had been under control, but only for a short time. Larka couldn't imagine living somewhere without magic having seeped into every part of her immediate world. This morning the lion head had thankfully produced water but her hairbrush had turned into a bird and flown away so she had had to comb it through with her fingers before tying it back. She was grateful that she didn't share the wild curly red her of her mother and grandmother.
After her training with her father she enjoyed breakfast in the dining hall with the entire family and the Locusts. She loved the way the mid-morning sun made the red and green lights in the window dance across the room. It was nice eating together, even if her two little sisters, Tweetish and Sweetish, were fidgeting non-stop and her boisterous ten year old uncle, Landerax constantly teased them so that at least one of them was crying. It was annoying that the Mother-Father, Grandmother-Worabex partnerships were always gazing lovingly at each other, so on occasions like these she was often left to watch over the children. Being all of fifteen she obviously considered herself a fully grown adult.
What would they do, if I left? She mused to herself. She was rudely interrupted by a small furry ball landing in her porridge. Wiping porridge off her face she glared down at a baby peeve that was licking the rest of the porridge out of the bowl and off its fur.
"'Orry," it squeaked. Its voice quite high-pitched compared to the one that her mother called her familiar.
"'Orry" was all this little peeve had quite managed to learn to say and Larka felt a pang of pity for it sometimes, as it never seemed to grow quite as fast as its brothers and sisters, who were now at least twice the size of it. It had also been caught in one of Jaive's stray spells and was now a dark emerald green. She picked Pology up, as she liked to call it, and gave it an extra rub down with her napkin.
"There you go, all clean. Go and play with your brothers and sisters," she ordered it. Instead of bounding off like she hoped it would, it just "Prrped" sadly and gazed up at her with its bright blue saucer eyes. "Fine you can stay," she sighed and tucked into a pocket of her dark purple dress. Its head poked out the top.
Honj and the Locusts had left to guard the castle while Worabex and Jaive were off performing sorcerous experiments and Tanaquil would wander round the castle fixing her mother's magic and sometimes dealing with the passing tradesmen. Larka, as usual, was left to deal with the children, generally getting them to help her with cleaning the dishes or cleaning one of the general areas that they all used. Around midday the three younger ones would be summoned to Jaive and Worabex's wizarding room to learn magic.
The three had shown magical ability from very young ages whereas Larka had shown none. Tanaquil had once tartly told her mother over dinner it was because Larka had too much common sense.
At these times Larka would go off exploring round the fortress or in the desert in the surrounding areas. When she was younger she had taken many walks around with her mother but as she grew older, and Tanaquil became more and more obsessed with fixing the magical leaks, Larka had had to take these walks without her. Tanaquil had told her that her mother had been too engrossed in her own spells to see to her own upbringing and so at first Landerax had joined Tanaquil and Larka until it was eventually just Landerax and Larka and then Tweetish and Sweetish.
The fortress was entertaining because the rooms were constantly altering themselves from the magical leaks, or they were being "fixed" back to the way they were twenty years ago, when Tanaquil had been here as a girl, a formation of rooms Larka had never seen. There was also the strange overgrown jungle of weeds just outside the fortress, which had been put there by Worabex and Jaive before Larka's birth. In them lived many strange animals that had been the results of magical experiments gone awry. Larka's favourites were the many bright purple cats and kittens that lived out there, occasionally coming into the fortress grounds to chase the twitching tales of the stone lions on the staircase.
About a half-mile trek across the desert was a collection of rocky hills and in these stood an arch. Tanaquil had taken Larka and Landerax over to it a few times and told them stories of unicorns and other worlds with such detail, she could almost believe they were true. Today Larka didn't fell like going all the way to the mountains as it was very hot. Instead she chose the cool shade that the weed jungle offered.
She quickly scurried down the stone steps covered in lions in various stages of repose, some yawning, and across the courtyard to the gates. Struggling, she opened them just enough to squeeze herself and a pocketed Pology through and let them swing shut behind her.
In the jungle she could hear insects chirping and cats purring and twigs snapping as she stepped on them. It was amazing that less than half a mile away there was endless scorching desert. Here however the air was thick but moist and as she got nearer to the centre it got darker, with the scant shafts of light not affording much vision. Annoyingly she stumbled and reaching out for something to steady herself, grabbed a thorny vine hard.
Sucking her hand she issued forth a stream of curses she had picked up off the Locusts.
"Muttok!" squeaked Pology.
Larka was shocked. She wasn't quite sure whether it was because of the foul language it had used, or whether it was because it had used a new word. She was about to reprimand it when a strange twist in the shafts of light grabbed her attention.
Something light and shiny, almost silver, was moving through the dark looming weeds.
Was it? No, it couldn't be!
Surely enough, there it was. A silver unicorn heading through the trees towards the fortress.