Modern Magick

The Striding Spire: 4

'Ves,' added Milady. 'You may wish to begin by consulting your book.'

'Bill Two? By all means. He probably knows something about dappledoks.'

'Ask him about the Spriggan Dells, too,' Milady suggested. 'Not just the ones in Cornwall. Spriggans spread much beyond the borders of that county some time ago, and it may be no accident that this pup turned up in East Anglia.'

Then again, it might. The cottage did, after all, have a habit of moving around a lot.

Val spoke up. 'Something else you can ask Bill, Ves. Quite a lot of major artefacts have gone missing down the ages. Some of them have turned up again, some haven't yet. I would be interested to hear what Bill knows about that, considering he's spent time at the Library of Farringale.' She frowned. 'Or, his predecessor did. Does Bill Two have all the same information?'

'Yes,' said Jay. 'Indira made an exact duplicate.'

Valerie's eyes gleamed in a way I did not quite like. 'Can I borrow that book, Ves?'

'Are you planning to give it back?'

She thought about that. 'Would "someday" do?'

'Not really.'

'Books belong in the Library!' Val protested.

'But this one's mine!'

Valerie folded her arms, and stared implacably at the spot in mid-air where Milady's voice somehow manifested sparkles. 'Can I request a second duplicate for the Library?' she said.

'Yes,' said Milady.

Valerie brightened at once. 'I'll talk to Indira.'

'Orlando,' corrected Milady. 'Indira is assisting on this project.'

'Nobody talks to Orlando,' said Valerie, rolling her eyes. 'You mean send a requisition form up to the attic and hope he notices.'

'He will notice. Valerie, please continue to consult the Library's existing resources, and relay anything you find to Ves and Jay.'

'Of course, Milady.'

'Jay, I imagine a visit to the site where you found the pup may shortly be in order. If you will be so kind as to facilitate the journey?'

'Certainly.'

'The Spriggan Glades are a different matter. They will have to be consulted, but I do not recommend that you do so immediately. They can be prickly, and difficult to deal with. I am endeavouring to secure a guide for you.'

I wondered if this guide might prove to be, in fact, a spriggan. Could be. Fae folk rarely mixed much with the human worlds, trolls somewhat excepted. They kept to themselves, tucked away in their own Dells, Glades, Knowes and whatever else, and did not much set foot outside. But still, it was not unheard of for a fae to enrol at the Hidden University, and the Society had even had a few on their staff at one point or another. I wouldn't be in the least surprised if Milady's guide turned out to be... unusual.

We stayed a while longer, bouncing thoughts around about the pup and its possible origins. Since it was nothing but speculation, Milady called a halt eventually and sent us off. 'Keep me informed,' she said as we trailed out of the tower.

I made her my usual curtsey on the way out. What can I say, Milady inspires a few old-fashioned impulses. 'Yes, ma'am,' I said.

The air sparkled. 'There's chocolate in the pots.'

Pots, plural. There was one waiting in my room, and two cups: for Jay and for me. Valerie sent me a snapshot of the second one adorning her desk in the Library: it was gold, and it had purple smoke coming out of the spout.