And so Anna’s story continues…
Day 29: Anna arranged the components.
Anna arranged the components. She double checked to make sure she was sealed in her concealment spell. Nothing and no one could see or sense her. Nothing would be sneaking up on her while her concentration was elsewhere. Secure in her precautions, Anna put the spell of seeing together in her small travel bowl and looked into the depths as images began to form.
The image was a little foggier than when she made the infusions fresh, but Marcus was still recognizable as was the man calling himself Christopher. Christopher was waiting patiently, a confident look on his face as he casually flipped through the pages of a magazine. Marcus was pacing like a caged lion, worry creasing his face.
“She wasn’t seen at the archives,” Marcus said.
“She wasn’t seen arriving,” Christopher corrected.
“Fine she wasn’t seen arriving,” Marcus added.
“She might not go today,” Christopher said.
“Why not?” Marcus asked, his pacing coming to a stop.
“Because of the tracker you put in the archival shelves,” Christopher said. “She was lucky to identify it but she might not feel like her luck will hold. She might be contemplating whether returning to the archives is safe.”
“Why are you so calm?” Marcus asked. “Do you not get how important this is?”
“Of course I do,” Christopher said. He set his magazine to the side. “She will still meet with me this evening, I am sure of it.”
“Because you are so irresistible?”
Christopher smiled. “I like to think so, but it makes the most sense.”
“How so?”
“Well,” Christopher said. “We know she hasn’t left the city, all the gates are watched and warded, she wouldn’t be able to slip through.”
“True,” Marcus said. “No one even remotely matching her description has passed the gates and we haven’t gotten a single hit on her magical signature so there were no illusions.”
“Exactly,” Christopehr said. “She will be all alone and wondering what this new change brings. She will be thinking of going home and she might need a friend to confide in. She can’t confide in the ones she has here, if she has even been here long enough to make friends.”
“Why not?” Marcus asked frowning.
“Because they are part of her life here,” Christopher explained. “To tell them who she is might make them feel betrayed. Especially if she mentioned the warrant and subsequent pardon. They will feel lied to and betrayed and not likely to help her. I think she is smart enough to realize that. Whereas a new friend who might be willing to talk about her change in circumstances with no judgement?” Christopher smiled. “That might be harder to resist.”
“It might,” Marcus said nodding. “She’ll be scared and confused.”
The spell started to fade and Anna let it go.
Ten til Midnight 