Changeling (Sorcery and Society Book 1)(37)

I nodded. “A piece of a tart.”

“Interesting.”

“Why does it keep pecking at me?” I hissed, gently nudging it away from my skirts with a flick of my fingers.

“Where do you think witches get their familiars?” Owen asked.

I thought of the animals that roamed freely at Miss Castwell’s, cats, birds, rabbits, snakes. Dorinda Benisse kept her palomino pony named Gilded Lily in the stables, which she claimed gave her additional power in her glamour charms because he was bigger than all of the other familiars.

“A magical pet store?” I suggested, as the bird nudged at my fingertips with its beak. “Or in the case of your horrible cat, the ninth gate of Hades?”

“Horus is just misunderstood, much like his owner.”

I snorted derisively, earning a nudge to my ribs from Owen’s elbow. Owen produced a sugar cookie from his pocket and broke off a tiny piece, dropping it in my palm. He nodded toward the bird. I gamely dropped the crumbs in front of the bird, who scarfed them up hungrily. “You don’t choose a familiar. When the time is right, the familiar finds you. When you offered the bird food, it completed the bond, and the familiar began serving your best interests, which is awfully difficult to do from the other side of a pane of glass. The poor thing must have been going out of its mind.”

I opened my palm, allowing the bird to walk up my fingertips. It cheeped, puffing up its feathers. My bird was siding with Owen. This did not bode well.

“I’ll talk to Mother about placing a feeder and perch in your room and getting you one here at school.”

“No cage?” I asked. “What about the cats at school, not to mention Horrible Horus?”

“Oh, no, the familiar, who needs a name, by the way, must be able to follow you around. And the cats will keep their distance out of respect for another familiar. Magical creatures have enough control over themselves to resist their more vulgar instincts.”

I gently rubbed my finger over the soft feathers on the bird’s head. I didn’t know how I felt about an animal being sentenced to a life of servitude for me. Also, I wasn’t sure how much a bird the size of a sparrow would be able to accomplish for me. I broke off a piece of cookie and offered the crumbs to the bird. “I think I will call you, ‘Phillip.’”

“A very dignified name,” Owen noted.

“He looks and acts like a Phillip, demanding, imperious, constantly gorging himself on sweets.” I gave him a speculative look. “On second thought, I should have named him Owen.”

Owen gasped in mock insult. “You know, for someone who complains about my poor manners, you’re awfully mean to me.”

“Oh, did I hurt your delicate feelings?”

“The cruelty! The heartlessness!” he cried clutching at his chest as if mortally wounded, making me cackle. Phillip hopped about on the bench, chirping to add his voice to the chaos.

“This is what I am referring when to I talk of your poor manners,” he told me. “Please make sure you leave these charming tendencies at the door during the school social.”

My good mood deflated instantly. “Why did you have to bring up the social?”

“It will be fine,” he said. “All you have to do is make a good impression on all of the society matrons. Dance beautifully. Avoid any faux pas that might reveal your origins to the very people who could hand you over to the Guild authorities. What part of that frightens you?”

“The dancing,” I told him.

He arched his brow. “Really? Of all that, it’s the dancing?”

“I’ve never danced before in my life. I was too sick to do anything at the Warren dances but sit on the sidelines and watch.”

“You could practice,” he suggested. “Cast a spell on your slippers so they move your feet for you?”

“I have tried. It is hopeless. And I looked up the slipper spells. Apparently, it only works if you don’t take the slippers off for the rest of your life. Because if you do, you’ll die.”

“You could pretend to faint. The room will be warm and crowded. It’s not unusual.”

I paused. “That… is actually very helpful. Thank you, I will consider that.”

Owen grinned, pleased with himself, as usual. I shook my head. I knew it was probably temporary, like everything in my life at the moment, but it was nice to have my friend back. I hoped that Owen could be someone to count on, instead of someone who waited around Raven’s Rest to subtly insult me.

“Mother’s going to hate having a bird in the house, you know,” Owen said gleefully as he held his hand out to help me off the bench. “It’s going to be fantastic.”





10





Golden Cage





Phillip had grown accustomed to his new life of luxury far faster than I had, but now that he wasn’t flinging himself at my window to catch my attention, he was far less annoying. I’d expected some censure from Headmistress Lockwood for bringing a wild bird fluttering along with me when I returned to school, but she just rolled her eyes ever so slightly and reminded me that students’ families were expected to cover additional cleaning costs associated with familiars. Mrs. Winter sent a special perch carved from driftwood to keep on my nightstand, next to a silver box for his birdseed, and a note telling me how pleased she was that I’d bonded with a small, fashionable familiar, instead of something unfortunate. I got the feeling that she was referring to Dorinda Benisse’s pony. Gilded Lily tended to leave a lot of presents for Tom on the lawn.