A/N: Miracle of miracles once again! I have finally gotten around to revising this chapter. Thanks once again to all the reviewers.

thsutton: Thanks for your note about the Book. I'll have to work that in somehow.

horsiegurl: Thanks for the encouragement! Heck knows I need it. Here's the update.

You fruitcake: You know how some people have a presence? You can't learn it, you just have it. Well, my English teacher has the presence. When she got angry once, and I mean really angry, everyone of us shivered. The room seriously grew colder, and it was a sunny spring day. I just drew from my own experience…and you can bet we were never 'bad' again!

Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction. I do not claim ownership or rights nor am I making money off this.

Chapter 5

That night, Sabriel sat on her bunk in the dark, bent over the Book, holding the volume almost reverently. She could feel the Charter all around and in the Book, slight tingles running up her fingertips and arms whenever she touched the cover.

Am I ready to open this? She asked herself. Does father…am I meant to? Then other more disturbing thoughts came unbidden to her. Why did he send me this? Is he in trouble? He never let me read it with him before. Why did he send this to me?

As if in answer, a folded letter fell out of the book wrappings. Sabriel picked it up. Peering at it, she recognized immediately her father's flowing handwriting: Sabriel. She opened the letter, and saw only three Charter marks on the paper. She touched them, hesitantly, and all at once his firm voice sounded softly, so softly she had to lean down to the paper to hear him. He sounded like he was whispering.

"Sabriel, if you hear this and hold this package in your hands, then Ancelstierre's postal system is to be relied upon," he began, and Sabriel could hear the smile in his voice. "I could think of no other way to get this to you. You know what it is. You are responsible for it for now. I am going east…there is a conflict to resolve…"

He paused, as if reconsidering his words. Sabriel could hear the call of some bird faintly in the background. Her father began again, "You are ready, and I believe, worthy. I will come at Midwinter to show you what I mean. For now, read this carefully, and keep this secret. But I warn you, do not go farther then you are allowed. This Book is not to be taken lightly. Remember, I will come at Midwinter for a visit. Take care and work hard."

The Abhorsen's presence faded away as the letter dissolved into a fine grey dust with a last spark of Charter fire, its job done. After checking for any girl who might still be awake, Sabriel opened the Book gently. The first and only sentence on a blank page shone at her out of the darkness.

Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?

"Of course the walker chooses," she said involuntarily, aloud. She covered her mouth hastily, looking around. If someone caught her awake after lights out—

She had almost begun to relax and was about to turn the page when Sulyn suddenly whispered, "Sabriel?"

Sabriel hurriedly slammed the Book shut and buried under the covers. "Yes?"

"Why are you still awake? It's way past midnight, leave the homework."

Sabriel was torn between frustration and being grateful for Sulyn's concern. "All right. I was done anyway. Go back to sleep."

The Book would have to wait. But a question pestered her, demanding attention throughout her sleepless night.

Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?

sssssssssssssssssssssss

As the days passed, drawing ever closer to Midwinter, Sabriel grew more and more preoccupied with the Book, which wouldn't let her read past the second chapter. Sabriel supposed the Book thought she wasn't ready yet, or maybe Father didn't want her learning too much yet. At first she hid the old Book under a pile of underclothes in her dresser (no one would touch those, right?), but then came Magistrix Green and glamours.

She was fascinated with them. Magistrix Green, however, did not allow them try any but the simplest glamours she could think of: cloaking a piece of furniture in a different colour, making a pen seem like a pencil…to be honest, Sabriel was bored. She was very sure she could do much more; she knew she could. She had already placed a glamour over the Book of the Dead, so the mysterious book seemed to be a nondescript, dusty volume of Statistics in Society. Sabriel wasn't really sure what that meant but she was sure it sounded important and stuffy enough to deter anyone from reading the book.

From the start, the Charter Marks flowed easily in her mind, almost automatically arranging themselves into long, complex spells that she never dared to actually try. Father had told her horrible stories about mages who were consumed, or killed, or went insane because they attempted magic far beyond their abilities.

Once, in a fit of rebellion and mischief, she put a glamour over Glesi's soup. The poor girl took one look at her soup, and started to cry hysterically at the sight of crawling worms spilling over the bowl. She crashed back from the table, her fat legs waving in the air. It was well known that Glesi had a horror of worms and bugs and anything of that sort. For a moment Sabriel felt glee.

She was suddenly seized by her conscience, a lingering voice at the edges of her mind. It wasn't fair for her to take advantage of poor ignorant Glesi. Taking the glamour off quickly, so that none of the other girls saw, she bent over her own soup bowl with a red face. Still, it was funny…

"What's with her?" Sulyn remarked, unknowing. "Flies in her soup?"

Sabriel, trying to muffle her laughter in her arms, did not notice the Magistrix glancing her way with a frown.

sssssssssssssssssssssss

"What did Potty say would the test be on?" Ellimere asked languidly.

"Potty?"

Ellimere sighed. "Ms. Pott."

"Oh. Chapter seven, the chapter with algebra." Sabriel replied, not really paying much attention of Ellimere lying on the armchair. She was thinking of how to present her diplomatic letter as an imaginary ambassador to a foreign kingdom. Another one of the Ancelstierrian Studies teacher, Miss Mathason's, write-ups, disguised as "a fun thing to do, girls!"

"Oh no, that's a hard part," Sulyn sighed, but—

"Oh, that's easy, no need to study," Ellimere jumped up. "As if I ever. Free time! I'm off outside if you, uh, need me."

"Thanks," Sabriel said, watching Elli's retreating back, at which Sulyn made a mock pout. Ellimere was unofficially her "Math tutor", and through that their friendship slowly grew. Sabriel found that she didn't really mind Ellimere's loudness: it was just the way Elli was, hating "awkward" silences, quietness, and order.

Now, what could she write about? The usual "compare and contrast"? About the countries' different laws and governments, trade concerns, wrangling politicians, borders…

The Wall.

Father was across the Wall, in the Old Kingdom. She had only crossed the Wall and the Perimeter once when she was very young, but that was enough to remember the deserted, barren strip of land that looked more like a battlefield than a proper border. She suddenly wondered where Father was. In the east, he had said. She went over to a shelf and pulled out and geography book, but the only maps she found were of Ancelstierre and other minor countries to the southwest. For the first time she realized she knew practically nothing of her home country. Tracing a finger down the map, she located Wyverley, Bain, Corvere… she put the book away resolutely and sighed.

"What's the matter?" Sulyn asked curiously, already scribbling away.

"Nothing, I was just thinking."

Before settling down to her boring run-of-the-mill essay, she took one last longing look outside at the bright sunshine and saw Ellimere running by brandishing a hockey stick.

"I'm here first! I get to pick!" Sabriel heard her yell delightedly. More shouts and exclamations followed as other girls caught up to Ellimere, as Sulyn got up resignedly and closed the window. They exchanged half-smiles of longing, and blocked out the noise as they started writing.

sssssssssssssssssssssss

Anyways, the line divider was not working, so "sssssssssssssssssssssss" stands for a break in the action. Thanks for reading! It won't take you that long to leave a comment.