Fairies and Felicitations (Scholars and Sorcery) Read Online Free PDF Page B

I just—Cecily asked me to—“
    “Cecily?” Esther raises an elegant eyebrow. “What has she to do with it?”
    “N-nothing.” I should have known that child would mix up the message. Ridiculous Kitty and her insistence on anonymous Valentines; although, to be fair, she wouldn’t know I wouldn’t dare to use magic to attract Esther. “How did you know it was me?” I ask again. “I didn’t think you even knew my name.”
    Esther creases her brow. “Your name is Anne, right?”
    “Yes.”
    She shakes her head, smiling bemusedly. “If you didn’t want me to know it, why did you sign your name, idiot? You really aren’t one for the Brains Trust.”
    I can feel the blood drain from my face as the enormity of Kitty’s wickedness dawns on me. I hadn’t even thought to check that Kitty had indeed copied the poem out on a fresh sheet of paper. And she knows my signature as well as her own; she’s used it often enough.
    I take a shaking step backwards towards the door, wanting to run for my life. Esther, of all girls. Beautiful, self-possessed, clever Esther, with her cruel tongue. She is going to utterly destroy me.
    “Wait!” There is barely restrained laughter in Esther’s voice, and the amusement cuts me like a knife. “Don’t run away, poor kid. I won’t eat you.”
    She steps towards me, and my hands are in hers before I realise it. “I truly am flattered. You have quite a way with words, young lady, even if you do verge a little on the poetic side. Who am I to complain, in any case? I always had a flair for the dramatic myself.”
    Her hands are cool in mine, or perhaps it is my hands that are burning hot. Her lips are still quirked slightly in amusement, but I had never quite realise that her those almond eyes, that I had always thought of as hard and sparkling, were capable of looking so gentle.
    “Flattered or not, though, my affections are unfortunately engaged elsewhere,” she says, her tone light. I have no idea if she is serious or not. “Thank you for the poem and your courage in leaving it, in any case.”
    She leans forward and brushes my lips, very softly, with her own. I really am going to burn up. I close my eyes, too overwhelmed to look straight into her face, the touch of the kiss lingering long after it has been withdrawn.
    “Next time, however, leave the fairies alone, you donkey,” Esther says, her voice as casual as if she hasn’t just kissed me right there in the chapel. “If Charley had been with me, as well she might, and seen fabled beasts abused like that, we wouldn’t be having this conversation, because I would not have dared risking giving you away for fear of injury to your life and limbs. Charley is quite unreasonably stern about things like that.”
    “Unreasonably stern? When am I unreasonably stern?” a cheery voice asks. I hadn’t even noticed the door opening. A tall, boyish figure is at the door, running her hand through her cropped curls. “I’ll have you know I am never stern about anything. I have a reputation as a slacker to keep up.”
    Esther drops my hands so carelessly and naturally that there does not seem anything unusual about the scene at all.
    “Slacker or not, Charles, you are a prefect, and it would be bad for my own reputation to sneak to you. Why aren’t you at the meeting with the other lights of goodness and hope?”
    Charley laughs, unconcerned. “Whatever are you two doing here? I played truant from the meeting in search of someone with enough brains to help me with this beastly History composition, and Frances said you’d headed off for the chapel. It seemed perfectly in the way to her, but I thought she must have been mistaken about you. Have you been struck with religion in your dotage, old girl?”
    “I don’t see why not. I’d make a perfectly lovely nun. But this child is yet to dedicate herself to her faith, I own. Come, Charley my love, and let me help you blow the dust off the tome of time. Anne, thank you for this