Taminy Read Online Free PDF Page A

family.”
    She
leaned back from him and smiled. “I do like the sound of that word, dear
Osraed—’family.’ You make a duan of it.”
    oOo
    “So,
Gwynet, you’ve learned the use of a crystal this evening.” Osraed Bevol broke
bread into his stew and passed Taminy a secret wink.
    “Oh,
no sir!” the child came back immediately. “I did something by accident complete.
I was only picturing and ...”
    She
glanced at Taminy for assistance.
    The
older girl smiled. “You summoned fire.”
    “Oh,
no, mistress!”
    “A
natural,” said Bevol, nodding. He speared Gwynet with sharp eyes. “But you’ll
have to learn control. Discipline. Taminy will teach you that. You’ll show that
old Tynedale a trick or two before you’re a Pilgrim.”
    Gwynet
bowed her head, acquiescently. “Yes, Maister,” she murmured, and didn’t quite
hide her secret smile.
    Skeet
set out a bowl of greens and slid into his seat, eyes jet-bright. “I did the
bartering in town today, Maister, as ever. I’ve wonderful cream scones for
breakfast.”
    “And
wonderful gossip for supper, I’ve no doubt.” Bevol’s expression was wry. “What’s
today’s portion?”
    The
boy served up Gwynet’s greens, then heaped up his own plate. “Nairne’s agog
over Meredydd, still.”
    “Of
course. And likely will be till I’m in my grave and they can safely say I was
mad.”
    Skeet
passed the bowl to Taminy. “Ah, well, the Backstere has it you’re poor in the
head—torn by the talons of grief. Popular tale is she was magicked into a sea
snake or some’at. That’s the Backstere’s go at it. Lealbhallain the Loyal heard
none of that. He believes you, Maister, bow and bind. ‘She’s transformed,’ he
says, ‘made over out of Light.’ Brys-a-Lach, now, he says it’s all heresy,
either way: snake or silkie. Said she deserved to drown, he did.” He scowled
with sudden fierceness. “Called her a heretic ... and worse. Said the Moireach
Arundel was right about her seducing her boy, Wyth. Said she tried to seduce
him too.” He paused and glanced at Gwynet. “I’d’ve liked to cast a Wartweave on
him.”
    “I’ve
no doubt,” said Bevol mildly. “Don’t let it upset you. When it’s old news it
will be supplanted by the new.”
    “Aye!”
Skeet brightened, waving his fork in the air. “Has been. ‘Speaking of heresy,’
says the Backstere, ‘have you heard the rumors from the capitol?’ ‘Which ones,
says,’ Arly Odern, and the Backstere gives the tell of his uncle from
Creiddylad and some strangeness with the Cyne.”
    “This
isn’t about those murals again.”
    “Ah,
no. This is that tell you bid me keep my ears up for. Though, to all earfuls,
those murals are an eyeful.”
    Bevol
shot the boy a warning glance. “You were giving a tell ...?”
    “Backstere’s
uncle goes to the Castle Cirke in Creiddylad once a moon. And at last
Waningfeast, the Cyne just up and does this ceremonial.”
    Taminy
looked up from her plate, eyes watchful. “What did he do?”
    “He
up in the midst of the recitation of the Covenant and sips the Holy Water right
out of the Cup. Tells everyone the Meri moved him to it.”
    “That’s
all he said?” asked Bevol.
    “Well,
that’s all the Backstere said, anyway. Might’ve said more but for
Marnie-o-Loom. It’ll be all over the village by morn, like as not. Once the
Backstere’s got it-” He shrugged eloquently.
    “Aye,”
Bevol agreed wryly. “Gossips nearly as well as he bakes.”
    “You’ll
want to hear about Marnie,” said Skeet. “She was abroad the night we came home
from Meredydd’s Pilgrim Walk.”
    Bevol
was all attention—for his supper. “Was she?” He glanced at Taminy, a sop of
stew-dripping bread in one hand. “And what did she see on this night of nights?”
    “Cat
smug, that one,” opined Skeet. “Looks me over grand as a Moireach and says,
loud, so the whole shop hears, that she thought Meredydd had come home with us.
‘Two girls I saw,’ she says.