Schooled in Magic Read Online Free PDF

her eyes, she knew that she would be back home...
    But the bed felt uncomfortable and unfamiliar - and the air was too hot - and someone was in the room. Someone else ?
    Her eyes snapped open. She was lying on her back, staring up at an elaborately crafted ceiling decorated with gold and silver leaf. A young woman stood by the foot of the bed, holding out a robe for Emily to wear. Her original clothes had been taken away to be cleaned - or so she thought. It wasn’t as if she wanted them back.
    It hadn’t been a dream, Emily realized. She found herself smiling brightly as she pulled herself out of the huge bed.
    The serving girl passed her the robe–there was a curious blankness in her eyes that bothered Emily on a very primal level–and stepped back, heading for the door. She was young, with long blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a uniform that managed to combine elegance and practicality. The girl didn’t seem curious about Emily, or what she was doing in her master’s bed, but she worked for a magician. No doubt she was used to all kinds of wonder and magic.
    The robe was long and shapeless, hiding her figure more completely than her own clothes. Emily let out a sigh of relief as she donned the robe - it felt surprisingly soft and warm against her skin–and she headed to the bathroom to splash water on her face. One thing that hadn’t been mentioned in any of the role-playing campaigns she’d fought was that medieval plumbing left a great deal to be desired. There was no hot running water, let alone a device to flush the toilet. Magic clearly didn’t provide a substitute for such basic technology... Maybe, she told herself, she could convince Void to install running water in his tower. It might make the environment healthier.
    Chuckling at herself, she washed then stopped in front of a mirror, studying her face. A moment later, the image rotated around, showing her what she looked like from behind. Emily started backwards in surprise, then realized that the mirror image was due to magic, exactly what she would have created if she’d had the power and the talent. She found herself casting a glance at the book Void had given her, wondering if it would teach her how to create a magic mirror or other useful tricks.
    She couldn’t resist. “Mirror, mirror, on the wall,” she said, “who’s the fairest of them all?”
    “Silly question,” a voice said. Emily nearly jumped out of her skin. “ Fairest is a subjective measure. One man’s fairest woman might be another man’s ugly cow.”
    Emily started to laugh. “Don’t you have any opinions on the subject?”
    The mirror’s voice deepened. “I’m just a mirror,” it pointed out, rather snidely. “I am really nothing more than a reflection of yourself.”
    “I see,” Emily said, although she wasn’t sure that she did. Her body image had never been very good. Surely the mirror would have mocked her as comprehensively as her stepfather. “Thank you.”
    She stepped away from the mirror, towards the heavy wooden door. The serving girl had left it open and was waiting outside with an expression that suggested that she was prepared to wait forever.
    Emily stepped out of the door and wasn’t entirely surprised when it closed behind her, slamming shut with a faintly ominous thump. Void had promised that she would be safe in his tower; it was, he’d bragged, protected by countless security spells.
    Emily could feel something in the air as the serving girl bowed to her and led the way down the stone corridor, past a giant window looking out over the forest. Something huge hung in the air, something with giant bat-shaped wings ... Emily stopped and stared. It couldn’t really be a live dragon, could it? How could something that big even fly ?
    Magic , she reminded herself. She had to remember that magic really worked here.
    The dragon flapped its wings slowly; the next moment, it was gone. Emily felt a sense of loss, as if all the magic in the world had