Alexandra stood in front of a brick wall in a dead-end alley in Chinatown, and traced a row of symbols on it with her wand. Nothing happened.
She stared at the wall, wondering if it would be easier to just blast through it.
Probably not. According to Anna, this wall had separated the wizarding community of Little Wuyi from Muggle Chinatown for over a century, and she couldn't even identify all the spells that were fortifying it. A crack in the world that ran through Chinatown led directly here, and she thought she could probably use it to step into Little Wuyi if she had to, but it wouldn't be the most gracious entrance, and there was no telling what she'd unleash.
She unrolled the scroll she'd received from a wizard manning a lonely shack in the mountains to the east. She squinted again at the symbols Mr. Feng had drawn for her, and concentrated as she tried to duplicate the strokes and swishes. When Anna taught her the Erasing Ink Charm in sixth grade, it had taken her weeks to get the words and gestures right.
On her third try, when she finished the last stroke of the third symbol, there was a grinding sound, and the bricks in front of her fell away, leaving a hole large enough to walk through.
She stepped through, and was immediately confronted by two large swans, one black and one white. They honked and thrust their beaks at her, angrily beating their wings. Alexandra clenched her wand tightly in her fist and stood her ground, determined not to be provoked or intimidated. That was what Mr. Feng had told her—the swans knew if you were a resident, a guest, or an intruder, but they greeted everyone the same way.
After flapping and honking furiously for almost a full minute, the two birds stepped back and glowered at her. Alexandra could understand why Anna didn't like them.
"How'd you like to go to the World Away?" she muttered. They stood temptingly atop the crack she'd followed here.
The swans honked contemptuously at her.
Alexandra walked past, and almost jumped when a honk sounded from directly over her shoulder. The evil bird had actually waddled up behind her to try to startle her. She considered flipping it off, but she was in sight of Little Wuyi's houses now, and decided she should try to appear to be a well-behaved visitor.
Under other circumstances, she'd have been charmed by this hidden village on a hill in the heart of San Francisco. The houses were all elegant shingle-tiled structures painted in bright colors, with chimes and bells and lanterns hanging from eaves. The yards were decorated with wells and statues and beautifully-manicured rock gardens. Here and there was a pagoda-roofed shed or gazebo, all along a winding clay path ascending to the top.
It hardly looked like a community preparing to be besieged. Yet when Alexandra looked more closely, she saw small helmeted terra cotta men lining rooftops or camouflaged in the shade, watching her with ready spears and swords as she walked past. Something rose from a well and looked at her with large, bulbous eyes before sinking back out of sight. And in the corners of her vision, flames danced about, flickering away when she turned her head to look at them directly, but if she used her Witch's Sight, she could still see them—burning elemental manifestations of some sort that were tracking her progress through Little Wuyi. She couldn't tell if they were living creatures or conjurations, but they seemed dangerous.
She only saw a few people. There was an old woman who sat on her porch, smoking a pipe. When Alexandra waved to her, the old woman just gave her a stony stare. Alexandra tried bowing. The woman continued to stare at her. Alexandra sighed and walked on. A pair of young faces peeked at her from behind closed curtains, but quickly disappeared when she looked in their direction.
Finally, at the top of the hill, Alexandra found a gathering of wizards assembled outside the largest house. Some stood on the road, between Alexandra and the gate. They were dressed in elegant Chinese robes with fancy, trailing sleeves and wore tall curved hats, and ranged in age from a young man with just a hint of a mustache to several old men with long white beards. There was only one woman among them, an elderly witch in deep blue robes decorated with golden ginkgo leaves. Behind them, in the yard, were about a dozen younger men. Several of them carried spears or iron fans, and Alexandra saw the glint of armor under their robes.
She approached the men and the woman at the gate and bowed. "Hello. My name is Alexandra Quick. I believe Congressman Chu is expecting me."
The men looked her up and down, while the woman gazed off across the bay to the west. None of them seemed friendly.
"How do we know you're really Alexandra Quick?" asked one of the younger men. "You could be a metamorphmagus, or—"
"—or glamoured or Polyjuiced or Imperiused, right," Alexandra said impatiently. "Wouldn't your guard swans detect any of those things?"
The men looked at each other. Alexandra wondered if they were giving her a hard time because she wasn't Chinese, or because she was the Enemy's daughter, or because they were just jerks.
Then a voice called from the front entrance: "Alexandra!"
Anna walked out. She wore red robes with a high-necked collar and gold trim. Her hair was long and straight, with ivory barrettes holding it back from her face and shoulders, and she wore makeup: powder on her face, eyeshadow, and red lipstick.
The men in the yard came to attention and made way for her. The men at the gate stepped aside as she came through, and while they weren't as deferential, Alexandra could see from their body language that Anna commanded a measure of respect. Anna's expression was imperious.
Alexandra stared at her friend. Anna was no taller than the last time she'd seen her, yet she seemed to have grown in stature. Who was this haughty little princess? She wondered if Anna, too, would challenge her presence here.
Then Anna beamed and threw her arms around Alexandra's neck. "Oh, Alex! I'm so glad you're here!"
Relieved, Alexandra embraced her friend. "I am, too."
"I was so scared when I heard about Eerie Island, and you being chased around the Confederation—I listened to all your wizard wireless broadcasts, with Archibald Mudd—and then the rumors from back east, that you'd been captured again, and even one rumor that said…" Anna gulped. "You'd been given to Dementors."
Over her shoulder, Alexandra saw the men watching with bemusement. The older men rolled their eyes. One of them spoke to Anna in Chinese. A couple in the yard made some comments to one another. Only the woman continued staring off to the west, as if she hadn't noticed the girls at all.
Anna turned to the old man and replied in Chinese.
Alexandra said, "I can tell you all about it, but maybe not in front of everyone?"
"Yes." Anna smiled and took Alexandra's hand. "Come on. My father wants to talk to you too."
They walked hand in hand through the yard, and into a foyer that was more like a tunnel carved in stone.
"I missed you," Anna said quietly as they entered her house.
"I missed you too," Alexandra said. "I'm sorry it took me so long to come. I should have joined you as soon as I found out you'd left school."
"You were doing your father's bidding." The way Anna said it didn't sound judgmental or critical at all, but as if she thought this was only natural.
"For all the good it did anyone," Alexandra said bitterly.
Anna glanced sidelong at her. "The Thorn Circle has been doing a lot. Not all of it good, but they've definitely been hurting the Confederation."
They fell silent as they entered a spacious room with low sofas, large cushions, and short wooden stools to sit on. Geming Chu dominated the room, seated at a table and examining several scrolls that were unrolled across it. Besides him, there were six men and two women in the room. One of the men was about Mr. Chu's age, with dark brown hair and flinty steel eyes, wearing a leather vest and tunic and polished black boots over a dark red shirt and black trousers, giving him a militaristic appearance that reminded Alexandra uncomfortably of Aurors. He had been leaning over the table and conferring with Mr. Chu, but he stood up as Anna and Alexandra entered.
Except for him, all the others were Chinese. One of the men and one of the women had been huddled with Mr. Chu and the uniformed man; the other six were spaced around the room, seated on sofas or cushions, either listening to the conversation or reading from stacks of parchment and occasionally scribbling something with a quill. As Alexandra opened her mouth to speak, an owl came flying in through a window, dropped a piece of parchment on the stack next to one of the wizards, and flew out again. Alexandra saw now that there was a stand by the window with a horizontal rack on which three owls were perched, including Anna's familiar, Jingwei. The great horned owl hooted at the two girls.
"So, the girl who has caused all this trouble," said Geming Chu.
"That's not fair," Alexandra said. "I didn't cause this, and the Confederation…"
Anna cleared her throat. Alexandra closed her mouth, and bowed her head slightly. "Congressman Chu. It's nice to see you again. Um, thank you for inviting me."
The corners of Geming Chu's mouth twitched. He rose to his feet. "You are very much your father's daughter."
"You keep saying things and I don't know if you're insulting me or not," Alexandra said.
Anna made a strangled sound. The adults in the room all wore pinched expressions, or just stared at her, except the white man, who folded his arms and studied Alexandra with a frown.
Alexandra took a breath. "I'm sorry. I know I'm supposed to be respectful to my elders and a gracious visitor—"
"Have you ever been respectful or gracious?" Geming Chu asked.
"Baba!" Anna said.
Anna's father waved a hand. "No insult intended, Miss Quick. A respectful girl would not have done all the things you've done, including defying the Governor-General himself, and if you had a proper feminine nature, you would not have survived half your adventures."
"That's definitely insulting," Alexandra said.
"Baba!" Anna protested again.
"Regardless," the Congressman said, "here you are. After sneaking past the Confederation's Regiments and spies and hit-wizards. In the message you sent, you made it clear you are not here as an emissary from the Thorn Circle. Does that mean you are no longer doing your father's bidding?"
"Yes, sir," Alexandra said. "My father and I had… kind of a falling out. So no, I'm not here on his behalf, and I don't speak for him, and frankly, I don't know what he's going to do next."
"I see." Mr. Chu looked from Alexandra to Anna, and back to Alexandra. "That does raise the question of why you're here, then."
"Isn't it obvious? I came to join you." Alexandra let go of Anna's hand, which she'd been holding the entire time, and stood facing Mr. Chu with her hands at her sides. "You're leading the California Secession, but lots of other Territories want to secede as well. My father has no plan for what happens after the Confederation falls. He just wants to tear it down, end the Deathly Regiment, and unseal the Lands Below so the Confederation loses its power forever. He doesn't care what happens to Muggles or anyone else after that."
"So like Abraham Thorn," Mr. Chu said. "He will right a wrong at any cost. And he has little sympathy for those who suffer as a result. To his way of thinking, they should have acted before he was forced to. I do wish to restore order to the Confederation, Miss Quick. And peace, with Muggles and all Beings alike. With enough Territories behind us, we can call a new Confederation Convention and make things right. But, right now the Thorn Circle and their allies in the Dark Convention are as much a threat to that peace as the Confederation. Which leads me to ask: without your father behind you, what exactly can you do for us?"
"What is Anna doing for you?" Alexandra asked. "Or for that matter, David and Torvald and Dylan and all our other friends from Charmbridge?" To Anna, she muttered, "Where are they, by the way?"
"Later," Anna mumbled.
"We can always use more wands," Mr. Chu said. "But I suppose I was hoping you brought more substantial help."
I could have brought a Doomguard army, Alexandra thought. "Don't underestimate me. You've only heard half of what I've done."
He nodded. "Very well. It will be good to have more of Anna's friends with her. And even if you don't speak for your father, it might still help us when it's known that the Enemy's daughter has joined us."
"With all due respect—aren't you also an Enemy of the Confederation now?" Alexandra put an arm around Anna's shoulders. "That makes two Enemies' daughters on your side."
Geming Chu's smile was strained. "Indeed."
Alexandra and Anna walked back down the winding path to the bottom of the hill and the entrance to Chinatown. Alexandra had released Charlie, who sat on her shoulder.
"We're not really expecting an attack here yet, at least not by a Regiment," Anna said. "Even if Muggles are starting to realize something is going on, no one wants them involved in the war."
"You think they might notice dragons flying over a city?" Alexandra asked.
"I think it will be hard to convince them it's for a movie if dragons start burning the city. And there are too many Anti-Apparition Wards for the ROC to attack except by breaking through the wall, and the geomancy of Little Wuyi will make that hard unless they flood the streets of San Francisco with wizards. That's why David and Dylan are out in the City."
Charlie cawed as they approached the guard swans. The swans flapped their wings and honked angrily, and a cacophony of avian insults ensued. Alexandra imagined that Charlie was swearing at them in bird-speak. The swans' eyes glowed an angry red. She actually held her wand in case they tried something, but apparently they were less interested in harassing people who were exiting Little Wuyi, and they stepped aside, still exchanging insults with Charlie.
The brick wall once again fell away to let the two girls and the raven leave. Charlie said, "Birdbrain!" as they stepped through, and then the bricks closed behind them. Alexandra let Charlie fly up to a nearby balcony from which to observe them as they walked through Chinatown.
Anna had changed into a dress that was a little too fancy for walking around in, but did not stand out the way her robes and hooded cloak did. She wore a long coat over it, and Alexandra was wishing she'd put on something heavier than her jacket. San Francisco was windy and cold in December.
"So how many Muggle-born spies are hanging out in Frisco besides David and Dylan?" Alexandra asked.
"A few," Anna said. "We don't know how many Deathies are in the city, but so far, we've been better at finding them than they are at finding us. Also, never call it Frisco. It makes you sound like such a tourist."
"What about Torvald and Stuart and the others who aren't Muggle-borns?"
"North or south, with the New Regiments," Anna said.
Alexandra shook her head. "You're just kids, Anna. You shouldn't be soldiers. You shouldn't be fighting a war."
Anna smiled as she looked straight ahead. "You mean, you think everything you've been doing was necessary, but you don't think the rest of us should be putting ourselves in danger like this."
Alexandra sighed. "Yes. That's what I mean."
"My father wanted me to go to China, with my mother."
"Why didn't you?"
"Before we found out about the Ban, you mean?" Anna looked at her. "Because I knew you'd still be here," she said softly.
The two of them stood on a street corner while cars went by. Alexandra searched for words. Then a vehicle honked loudly, startling them both.
A large black SUV pulled to the curb, in the middle of rounding the corner, provoking the cars behind it to honk angrily as it partially blocked the intersection. The driver's side window rolled down, and Dylan Weitzner stuck his head out and whistled at them. "Hey, go ahead and kiss!" he said. "Don't stop on my account."
"Oh my God, you are such a jerk," Alexandra said. She and Anna exchanged a look, and then Alexandra ran around to the passenger's side while Anna opened the rear door behind Dylan and got in.
With cars still honking behind them, Dylan barely waited for Alexandra to close the door before gunning the SUV forward. Alexandra looked at the spacious, leather-clad interior and whistled. "Where the heck did you get a new Cadillac Escalade?"
"Technically it's David's," Dylan said.
"David has a driver's license too now?"
"Yeah. We needed something with tinted windows and a lot of room in the back and good for driving up in the mountains, and David's loaded since he emptied his trust fund—"
"He did what?"
"—so now we have this sweet ride." Dylan winked at her. "Total pussy magnet."
"Pig," said Anna from the back seat.
"You are so gross," Alexandra said. "But how? You can't buy a car if you're sixteen."
Dylan shook his head at her. "Hello? Wands?"
Alexandra stared at him, then looked up at the mirror in the sun visor, in which she could see Anna's face. They exchanged another look as Dylan weaved through San Francisco traffic.
Alexandra put on her seatbelt. Dylan glanced at her and rolled his eyes. "Are you a witch or not?"
"Your driving sucks," Alexandra said.
Overhead, Charlie followed them through the city.
Dylan took them to a run-down neighborhood with a shocking number of people sitting on curbs or huddled under filthy blankets on the sidewalk, or pushing shopping carts full of their possessions.
"What's with all the bums?" Alexandra asked.
Anna made a small, nervous giggling sound. Dylan snorted. "Un-PC much? Nobody says 'bums' anymore. They're homeless. Jeez, do they still have sock hops in your little town, Larky Mills or whatever it's called?"
"Do you still suck at dueling?" asked Alexandra.
"Do you still threaten anyone who hits a nerve with violence?" asked Dylan.
"Are you two flirting?" asked Anna.
Dylan rolled to a halt in a back alley full of overflowing dumpsters, with old tenement buildings rising on either side of them. Black iron fire escapes zig-zagged up and down the painted brick exteriors. Alexandra hopped out immediately, and wrinkled her nose at the smell. Anna and Dylan followed, and Dylan waved his wand over the Escalade, casting a Muggle-Repelling Charm.
Charlie landed on the SUV and cawed. Alexandra said, "Wait here, Charlie."
"Big fat jerk," Charlie said, looking directly at Dylan.
"Even your bird is annoying," Dylan said. "C'mon. The bachelor pad awaits. Anna, you told her about no Apparating around here, right?"
"I should have mentioned it," Anna said. "Yeah, Apparating in the City is a bad idea. Before we kicked out the Territorial Governor, they started to cast an Anti-Apparition ward over the entire city, and it didn't exactly work but it does mean you'll probably get splinched. We haven't really had time to undo it, with so many other things to do and also hit-wizards who will attack anyone they see performing magic. But it doesn't affect them. So if you see someone Apparating, it's probably a Deathie."
"Great," Alexandra said.
They entered the building on the right and climbed up stairs that were surprisingly clean and free of smells.
"You rented an apartment?" Alexandra asked. "Using your wands again, I suppose?"
"Why you sound so disapproving?" Dylan asked. "Anyway, we had Mr. Dean's help with that."
"That's one of my father's deputies," Anna said. "You met him back at the house."
They reached the fifth floor landing. Alexandra heard loud music thumping from within. She looked at Anna. "So, what, you just set these clowns up with their own apartment to party in?"
"We do shifts hunting for Deathies in the city and doing lookout duty up in the hills," Dylan said. "As well as running messages and supplies and things. Oh, and I don't suck at dueling. David and I have been practicing with Stuart and Torvald. You don't know half the shit we've done, Troublesome, so maybe shut it for once?"
It wasn't Dylan's words, but the sudden angry look on his face that silenced Alexandra. In that moment, he wasn't a crude, annoying boy, but someone fatigued and strained in ways Alexandra hadn't guessed.
He opened the door with a tap of his wand, and Alexandra and Anna followed him into the apartment.
There were loud beats playing from a stereo, and the dimmed lights revealed at least a dozen people in the living room. Some were dancing in front of a large flat-screen TV on the wall showing a rap video. Others were seated on sofas or plush chairs, playing or watching others play a video game on a second TV. In the next room, a kitchen/dining area, three people were seated at a round table drinking bottled beer and smoking as they did something on their phones. There were shadows in the hallways—even more people roaming about the apartment.
Alexandra and Anna both looked around wide-eyed. "Are all these people Muggles?" Alexandra asked.
"No-Majes," Dylan said. "Yeah. Hey—Siti!" A chubby, dark-skinned girl with her hair chopped short and dyed pink, with more piercings in her face than Alexandra had ever seen on a person before, slid an arm around Dylan's waist and grinned at him, casting only a cursory look at Alexandra and Anna.
"I don't think this is what my father had in mind when he had you set up here," Anna said.
Dylan was in the middle of a prolonged open-mouthed kiss with Siti. Anna put a hand to her cheek and looked away. When they finally disengaged, Dylan looked at Anna and said, "If your old man has a problem with how we spend our downtime, tell him to send a grown-up to talk to us about it, princess."
Siti giggled. Anna fumed.
Alexandra pushed her way through the dancing bodies to the sofa against the back wall.
David sat there, with an arm around two girls on either side of him. The first thing Alexandra noticed was that he'd buzzed his hair short in a fade that made him look several years older.
The girls were several years older. Alexandra guessed they might even be nineteen or twenty. One was black, with her hair in a bushy afro and a set of enormous hoop earrings that brushed against her bare shoulders; the other was Asian, with bleached blonde hair in a pixie cut and so much eyeshadow she almost seemed to be wearing a domino mask. They both wore tight tops, jeans, and boots, and they were passing a joint back and forth. They offered it to David, who shook his head. He'd been watching the video game on the smaller screen, but when Alexandra appeared in front of him, his face broke into a grin.
"Alex!" he said. "You finally made it." He looked at the girls on either side of him. "This is my friend Alexandra. She's an authentic bad-ass witch."
The two older girls looked at Alexandra with wide eyes. They actually seemed impressed.
"OMG, the dragon girl!" said the Asian girl.
Alexandra's mouth fell open. She closed it quickly.
"I made it," she said. "Can we talk? Like, privately?" She looked over her shoulder. Anna was arguing with Dylan in a low voice.
"Yeah. 'Course. You two chill while I talk to Alex?" David said to his companions.
They nodded. The black girl inhaled deeply from the joint, and said, "So you do magic? The real kind?"
"I'm not sure what other kind there is," Alexandra said. She followed David through the sliding glass doors to the balcony, and pulled it shut behind them.
David stood looking out across the city, which was now lit up beneath the evening sky, then turned to face Alexandra with a smile. "It's good to see you, Alex."
Alexandra, to her surprise, found her eyes blurry. She covered it up by giving David a hug. He returned the embrace and held her tightly.
"So you really are a girl after all," he said. His own voice sounded thick.
"Jerk," she said. "You want me to knee you?"
"There's the Troublesome we know."
Finally they separated, and she said, "What the hell, David?"
He smiled as if he'd expected this. "Just chillin' a little. Gonna be up early tomorrow morning, looking for Deathies."
"I mean, what are you doing?" she asked. "What are you doing here?"
"You mean in Cali? Or here in this apartment?"
"Both. Why didn't you stay at Charmbridge? You'd have been safe there. You and Dylan both. You didn't need to do this. This is crazy."
David's smile faded. "Right, only you get to run off on crazy quests because it feels right."
"Is that what this is? A crazy quest? Did it feel right?"
"You tell me."
Alexandra shook her head. "This isn't about me, David. I didn't have a choice. I was expelled from school, remember? And then they came for me at home. They came for my family."
"And they're coming for other people's families," David said. "And half the Confederation is sitting around going, 'Oh, this is so awful,' but not doing anything." He put his hands on her shoulders. "Anna didn't have a choice either. They were gonna come for her at school. Dean Grimm couldn't protect her. No one's really safe, Alex, and you know it. There's just some who haven't been affected yet. This is a war." His hands were squeezing her shoulders tight enough to hurt. "Did you come here to lecture me? 'Cause I ain't tryin' to hear it. It's kinda too late to tell us to go back to Charmbridge, anyway."
"I guess it is," Alexandra said quietly. "But really, Obliviating your parents? Looting your trust fund? Living like a couple of frat boys?" She waved awkwardly with one hand at the apartment.
David shrugged, and let go of her shoulders. Alexandra resisted the urge to rub them.
"So, what about Constance?" she asked.
David rolled his eyes. "You're always so interested in what's up with me and Constance. Do I ask about your love life?"
"Better you don't," Alexandra said. "But seriously—"
"Seriously, Constance and I haven't made any promises to each other and she ain't here." David clenched his teeth. "She's still bespoken to Benjamin Rash."
"She's not going to marry Benjamin."
"Oh really? You got Sonja's Inner Eye now?" David put up a hand. "Let it go, Alex. I know you mean well. Really. But this is totally none of your business and I didn't ask for your help. Or your judgment."
Charlie fluttered up to them and landed on the balcony railing.
"Hey, Charlie," David said. "Don't worry, Malcolm's up in the mountains."
"Charlie's a raven," said Charlie.
"Yeah, Charlie'd be dinner if Malcolm was here," David said.
"Real funny, jerk!" said Charlie.
David smirked. Alexandra said, "You just… turn Malcolm loose and leave him in the wild?" David's familiar was a falcon, so she supposed that made him less vulnerable than a raven, but still—
"Malcolm is flying recon," David said.
"You can see through his eyes?"
David frowned at her, as if she'd said something silly. "Not exactly. Do you know a spell to do that?"
"Not… exactly." Alexandra wasn't sure how to explain her connection with Charlie. It wasn't something she'd learned.
"Huh. Well, I got this." David reached into his pocket and pulled out a small glass eye. He held it up to his eye and squinted. As Alexandra watched, the glass eye's iris turned golden and its pupil dilated.
David put the glass eye back in his pocket. "Can't see nothing right now. Malcolm's roosting for the night. He's carrying another Eye Spy, and I can see through that."
"Clever bird," said Charlie.
"So you're watching inside the city and out," Alexandra said. "That's pretty impressive, actually."
David looked pleased.
"David, what do you do when you find a Confederation spy in the city?"
David put his hands in his pockets and looked out across the city. "We call the City Guard. That's the cadre Congressman Chu set up, mostly Chinese. We're not s'pposed to take on Deathies ourselves."
"And… how has that gone?"
David shrugged. "A few times, we actually ended up exchanging curses. But we got away. I mean, Dylan and I did. We're s'pposed to run if they ID us."
"Yeah," Alexandra said.
"You know Anna was actually at the battle up north when the Confederation first sent its Regiments into California, right? She was protected by her father's men, but she was there, and a lot of folks died, on both sides."
Alexandra looked through the glass doors. Inside the apartment, the Muggles—No-Majes, Alexandra tried to make herself think, though it was still a stupid word to her—were still dancing, playing video games, or sitting on couches, but Anna stood alone near the front door, arms folded, watching Alexandra and David. Alexandra could just see her face across the darkened room.
"That wasn't the only one," David said. "We were all at Mount Diablo. We tried to take it from 'em, but there were too many ROC wands. That's where they are now—thirty miles that way." He nodded in a vague direction through the walls of the apartment. "Me and Dylan had never been in a real wizard battle before. This wasn't throwing Tripping Jinxes and turning each other's hair into bubble-gum like at Charmbridge. There were dragons—Congressman Chu didn't think the Confederation would use 'em within sight of No-Majes, but they did. So we lost and fell back. Now we playin' spy games in the city while our regrouped forces and new recruits are north 'n south waiting for the Confederation to come after 'em, or come into San Fran. Don't know what the Deathies are waiting for."
Alexandra said nothing. She could have told him that she'd been in fights too and seen some of what he'd seen, but it wasn't the same. David wasn't usually this talkative, so she listened.
"Torvald 'n Stuart 'n Reina are out there," David went on. "Shen got got the other day, here in the city."
It took Alexandra a moment to process this. Shen—one of her older schoolmates from Charmbridge. She'd hardly known him. David said it so casually.
"So, you're staying, right?" David asked. "I mean, with Anna?"
"We haven't actually talked about where I'm staying, exactly," Alexandra said. "But yeah, I'm staying here. With all of you."
David nodded. "That's good. It's really good to have you here, Alex. The Enemy's Daughter. The Girl Who Came Back. The dragon girl. You're a legend."
"Now you're exaggerating." Alexandra glanced through the glass doors again. "I think Anna wants to go."
"I'll drive you back to Chinatown. You know you can't Apparate in the city, right?"
"Anna told me. Where did you and Dylan pick up all these… No-Maj friends of yours, anyway?"
David shrugged. "Clubs, cafes, museums…"
"Museums? Seriously?"
"The museums here are cool. You should go see the aquarium."
David led Alexandra back through the apartment. The two girls he'd been cuddling with on the sofa got up and told him they had to go.
"I'll give you a lift," he said, before Alexandra could object. "Gotta take my friends home anyway."
Alexandra tersely said goodbye to Dylan. David, Anna, Alexandra, and the two older girls, whose names were Chrissy and Cheryl, all spent a rather awkward ten minute drive to the University of San Francisco. Chrissy and Cheryl tried to ask questions about magic, and David told them most of it was secret, while showing off his wand and making it glow. Alexandra and Anna mumbled answers without saying much.
The older girls kissed David on the cheek and gave him their numbers before disappearing into the residence halls. Alexandra and Anna looked at David.
"They're college students," Alexandra said.
"Yeah," David said.
"You're picking up college girls," Alexandra said.
"You jealous?" David asked.
"You dog."
David grinned as he turned the SUV around and headed for Chinatown.
"You're using magic to impress Muggles," Anna said. Alexandra had let her have the front seat this time. "I know you don't care about the International Statute of Secrecy anymore—"
"Nobody cares about the International Statute of Secrecy anymore, Anna," David said.
"We'll care after the war is over. How impressed will they be with us if Muggles get killed? You shouldn't be showing off and bragging about being a wizard. For one thing, it makes it easier for the Confederation to find you."
"Thanks for the lecture, Anna. Nice of you to come down off Mount Wuyi to deliver your wisdom. Hey Alex, you know there's a reason why Dylan and me can't stay in Little Wuyi, right?"
"If you wanted to stay with us, you could," Anna said.
"Sure, your old man would make someone put us up. I saw how your people looked at us—"
"They looked at you the same way they've looked at me all my life," Anna said. "My mother is a Muggle, remember? You're right, David, my 'people' are really old-fashioned—"
"Racist," said David.
"—and traditionalist—"
"Bigoted," said David.
"—and they're still allying with anyone who wants to join us, just like my father is reaching out to everyone. They're trying. The war is disrupting the entire wizarding world. And you're not being fair. Has my father said one bad thing to you or about you?"
"Guys," Alexandra said. "We're friends, right? Even Dylan?"
David looked ahead as he drove. Anna looked out the passenger side window. Then Anna said, quietly, "Yes."
"Yeah," David said. "'Course we are."
In front of the alley that led back to Little Wuyi, David brought the SUV to a stop in a no-stopping zone. He and Anna hesitated, then gave each other a hug.
"Sorry," David said. "Your father's all right. And your people are leading the secession."
"You aren't wrong," Anna said softly. "But we all know things will change."
Alexandra got out, and David stepped out of the vehicle too, long enough to give her a hug.
"Maybe you should come back to Little Wuyi, to stay out of trouble," Alexandra said.
"Yeah, no," David said. "You and Anna look out for each other."
She rested her head against his cheek for a moment, then she and Anna walked up the alley to the wall between the Muggle world and the wizarding world.
Once past the wall and the guard swans, they walked in silence until they were almost back to the top of the hill.
"So, I do kind of need a place to stay," Alexandra said. "I mean, I have a magic tent, if there's a yard somewhere I can set up—"
"Don't be silly, Alex. You'll stay with us." Anna bit her lip. "We'll find some room for you somewhere in the house. A lot of the Guard is already staying with us, so our rooms are kind of full."
"Oh," Alexandra said.
She thought sleeping on the floor with others sounded less comfortable than sleeping in her tent and was about to say so, when Anna said, "You could sleep in my bed."
Alexandra stopped walking. Anna turned around, her face red. "Oh no. I didn't mean it like that! Really, I didn't!" She pressed her hands to her face. "I meant, you could have my bed and I'll sleep on the floor. My room and my father's are pretty much the only private rooms right now."
"You sleep in your bed and I'll sleep on the floor," Alexandra said.
Anna shook her head. "My father would kill me if I made a guest sleep on the floor. That would make us such terrible hosts. I mean, the Guard are his subordinates, it's different—"
"You're making this complicated, Anna."
"I know!" Anna trembled. She was almost her old self—anxious and afraid to offend.
"Anna." Alexandra hesitated. "I don't mind sharing a bed."
Anna's eyes were dark in the shadows cast by lanterns hanging from a nearby tree.
"I mean, just to sleep," Alexandra said. "I'm not offering anything more, and if you're not okay with that, it's fine. Seriously, I slept in my tent all summer. It's big. More comfortable than a floor in your father's house. Those other guys probably snore."
Anna lowered her hands from her face. "I'd be okay with it."
"You sure?" Alexandra asked. "I'm not trying to hurt you. I know I've done enough of that."
Anna took Alexandra's hand. "I… I didn't handle things well in New Amsterdam."
"Neither of us did," Alexandra said.
They resumed walking, still holding hands.
"Your father, um, what if he does find out I'm sleeping with you?" When Anna made a choking sound, Alexandra said, "Oh my God. You know what I meant. Could this be any more awkward?"
Anna laughed softly. "A lot more awkward. But I don't think he'll say anything."
"He didn't get mad at you about the whole, uh—kissing girls thing?"
At the ball in the Governor-General's mansion, Anna had kissed Alexandra and been captured on film by Archibald Mudd, who had published the picture much to Anna's consternation, even more than Alexandra's. Mudd told Alexandra he was just doing his job. Alexandra still thought he had enjoyed embarrassing her.
Anna sighed. "After chewing me out about inappropriate public displays, he hasn't said anything since. I'm pretty sure he's hoping I'll get over it."
"I don't think it works like that," Alexandra said.
"It really doesn't," Anna said.
It was still dark out when Alexandra heard a commotion outside. She lifted her head, and felt Anna doing the same.
Anna's bed was large and very comfortable. Her room was fancier and more luxurious by far than their room at Charmbridge. The two of them had somewhat awkwardly changed into sleeping clothes and climbed under the covers. At some point during the night, they'd wound up huddled against each other.
Some of the men in the household were speaking in Chinese, apparently to Mr. Chu, who Alexandra heard issuing commands.
"Are we under attack?" she asked, already getting out of bed and snatching up her wand. "Has the Confederation sent a Regiment into San Francisco?"
"I don't think so," Anna said, also getting out of bed and pulling a robe on. "But there's an intruder. Someone tried to get past the guard swans."
The two girls emerged into a house that was in motion, with Geming Chu demanding answers and heading for the door. He glanced at Alexandra and Anna and said, "You two may stay here. I'll handle this."
"Right," Alexandra muttered, as Mr. Chu went out the door. She followed him. Anna followed Alexandra.
Congressman Chu was flanked by a dozen other wizards as he walked in long strides down the hill. Alexandra and Anna hurried to keep up. At the bottom of the hill, two men and two women stood at compass points around someone bound in chains, with each of the captors holding one end of a chain. As more people arrived and cast Light Spells, the area became lit almost as bright as day. A row of terra cotta men marched along the top of the wall around Little Wuyi.
Alexandra saw who the Chinese wizards had captured, and exclaimed, "Hela?"
Hela was angry, battered, and covered with blood and feathers. One eye was almost swollen shut. She sat kneeling on the ground with chains wrapped around her, gritting her teeth.
A few yards away, a wizard was kneeling over one of the guard swans casting a healing spell, while a white-haired witch in a robe too thin for the night air was keeping a magic bubble around the other swan, who was furiously trying to throw itself through the barrier. Given the lack of noise, the bubble must have contained a Silencing Charm as well.
Geming Chu turned to look at Alexandra and Anna. His expression showed his annoyance that they had not stayed behind, but he asked, "Do you know this girl, Miss Quick?"
"This is Hela Punuk. She was the Thule champion at the Junior Wizarding Decathlon. Don't look at me like that, Hela. You won't even tell us what we are supposed to call your people. She also does my father's bidding. What are you doing here, Hela?"
"Doing your father's bidding," Hela said. "He told me to rejoin you."
"I told you you were free!" Alexandra said. "I told you to go home!"
"You do not command me," Hela said. "Not anymore. My responsibility is to my people and they told me to continue to do as my—as Abraham Thorn tells me. He told me to find you and help you. He also told me to tell you that you are a spoiled, truculent, reckless child, that you have no idea how much trouble you have caused him, and he is immensely angry at you."
Alexandra sighed. She looked at Mr. Chu, who was listening to this exchange with arms folded. "I left her behind with—wait a minute. What did you do with the Doomguards, Hela?"
"I took them north, as you suggested. To put them to use defending our territory." Hela looked down. "Your father is also… not pleased with me."
Alexandra laughed in spite of herself.
Mr. Chu said, "Miss Punuk, do I understand correctly that you are one of the Thorn Circle?"
Hela shook her head. "No, sir. I do Abraham Thorn's bidding. I am not one of his circle."
"You should not have tried to force your way through our wards and past our wardens. Did you think an intruder would be permitted to invade our sanctuary so easily?" He turned to his guardsmen and said in a quieter voice, "She shouldn't even have been able to get through the wall."
"Mr. Chu," Alexandra said. "Hela is… she's on our side. I'm sure she's very sorry for trying to enter uninvited." She gave Hela a pointed stare.
"Yes, sir," Hela said. "I regret my mistake."
Geming Chu studied Hela, scowling, then snapped his fingers. The four wizards holding her chains released them, and as they fell away, Hela rose shakily to her feet.
"So where's she going to sleep?" Anna asked.