Chapter Text
"It's taking so looooong," Imogen complained on the carriage ride through Tyrrendor and Deaconshire. "I wish we were flying."
"Even by dragon, it's still hours," Katrina pointed out, because she was older and liked to pretend she was the reasonable one and Imogen had forgotten how infuriating she could be. She hugged her sister tighter.
"I knooooooooow, but it's faster and the view is way more better." The harder she fought to hold onto her adult mindset, the faster it seemed to slip away. Better to grab onto the memories instead, they were more important.
She had a new respect for her mother, who shared the carriage with them despite her dragon being in the air somewhere nearby. Imogen could only think how much she'd have to love someone to pick a carriage over dragonback.
After two days in the carriage with nothing to do but think about things she couldn't explain, it was a relief to get home. Her mother hung her flight jacket by the door while Imogen kicked her shoes off and slid across the wood floor in socked feet just because she could.
"How long are you home, Mom?" Katrina asked behind her.
"I have a few days before my leave is up."
"Good."
Imogen remembered that home meant she could finally write down all the things that had been rattling in her head.
"Stupid Garrick getting the runes all wrong," Imogen grumbled to herself. "Why's he gotta be like that? And he wrote them in his notes so he'll probably go put all his mistakes back in."
The whole time she was complaining, she only half-noticed her older sister watching her. Imogen's lips were pursed and her eyebrows were furrowed, and Katrina had to be used to Imogen being a tiny, angry, stubborn thing, didn't she? So why was her sister staring at her?
Imogen decided to ignore it. She went up to her room as soon as they had eaten a light dinner and she and Katrina were sent off to mind themselves until bedtime. She pulled out her coloring pencils but she couldn't find any good paper, definitely nothing big enough for runes. She ran over to Katrina's room instead, hoping to help herself to her sister's art supplies.
Despite a week in Aretia and two days in a carriage, when she knocked and Katrina opened the door, Imogen was a little overcome again at the wonder of seeing her sister whole and alive. She was starting to get settled back into being six somehow but she wasn't entirely six in her mind yet and she hoped she wouldn't quite be. There was so much work to do, after all, and she kind of liked how exciting it was to see her mother or her father or her sister.
"Treeny, I need big paper and I don't have any. Do you?" Katrina waved Imogen into her room and went to the chest of drawers beside her desk to look for the art supplies. Imogen had thought it was pretty silly when she'd had to take the painting lessons and the flute lessons, but the Cardulos were technically a noble family even if her mom considered herself a rider first and didn't take it as seriously as some of the other families, and so she'd had to learn all the lady arts (and complained bitterly about it).
"I'm not giving you the ink paints so you can't make a mess," Katrina said as she pulled out the short stack of large papers. Imogen wiggled her nose in offense.
"I'm not gonna make a mess," she told her sister as she reached for the paper. The taller girl held it up, out of her reach.
"Yeah, because I'm not giving you the inks."
Imogen stuck her tongue out at her sister, and Katrina seemed to relax. Maybe there were some advantages to being more of a six year old than she had been.
"I wanted to ask you," Katrina said, dangling the paper over Imogen's head, "are you okay? You've seemed kind of out of it since we were in Aretia."
"I'm fine," Imogen insisted. "Just thinking about a lot." That was an understatement, but it seemed like the only thing she could say.
Katrina lowered the paper until Imogen could grab it from her hands. "If those boys gave you trouble, or there's something you're worried about, you know you can tell me, right, Genny?" Maybe she should tell Katrina too? Would she believe her? She'd have to share more details than Garrick had needed to convince Xaden.
"I know," Imogen insisted. She set the paper down on the bed and dove forward, wrapping her arms around her sister's waist. It was as close to a crushing hug as her six year old arms could manage. "You're the best sister ever."
"I'm glad you think so," Katrina laughed. Imogen came so close to saying something else, but no, she wasn't ready yet. She needed to figure out what to say, she needed to be a little older.
"Thanks, bye," she said instead, grabbing the paper and running back to her own room.
She laid on the floor with her coloring pencils and the large sheets of paper. At first, she was just going to get down what she was sure was the correct version of the time wielding rune array, but once she had about half of it down she got distracted by a section that reminded her of a complicated warding rune she'd learned, and then she pushed the top page aside and worked to get that down before she could forget it because it might be useful even if she wasn't yet able to pull enough power to imbue it.
Imogen went back to the time array, but before long she was thinking of other runes she wanted to remember too. She was already forgetting things that should have been right where she left them in her head. In a hurry not to lose her thoughts, she slid the ward rune across the floor and pulled out yet another sheet, scribbling down the bindrune Trisa had invented the week before they left, and then the one that powered the soundshield disks—that one was really useful, after all—and before she knew it Imogen had covered almost all of the paper her sister had given her in runes drawn with the soft, fat coloring pencils in bright rainbow colors. The lines were much bigger than she usually drew, because her fingers didn't quite do what she asked of them yet, but she had the ideas down.
In as much as Imogen had a plan, she was going to fold up the papers and hide them under her mattress with the notebook she'd brought back from Aretia. Unfortunately, she didn't count on how tired she was and how much more work it was to remember every time she did it.
When she woke up in the morning, she realized someone must have carried her to bed. She sat up and looked around the room in a rush, but her rune drawings were nowhere to be found.
Imogen ran downstairs, was about to barge into the smaller family dining room where her parents were bent over the table, but Katrina caught her arm and pulled her aside like she weighed nothing. Instinctively she tried to drop her center of gravity and drive an elbow back, but even before she realized it was Katrina, she knew she wasn't doing any real damage that way in this tiny slip of a body.
Solving that problem would just have to go on her already-growing list of things to do.
She let herself relax into her older sister's embrace while Katrina closed her eyes, listening. "I'm not sure what's happened, but Mother's drafting letters and she and Father have been talking to our tutor for at least a quarter mark."
Imogen was certain it had something to do with her missing rune drawings, and Katrina confirmed it a moment later. "I heard them talking last night, after Mother went in to put you to bed. Father doesn't like whatever you were drawing." She'd also completely forgotten about her sister's attempt to sound grown up by calling their parents more formally. It sounded so strange to her six-year-old ears.
"Stop putting on airs. What'd they say?"
Katrina made a face at her. "I don't remember exactly except Papa—I mean, Father—wanted to know where you'd learned something so dangerous. What did you even get up to with those boys, Genny? They're all trouble and they made you cry and—"
"Girls? I can hear you. You might as well come in to breakfast like civilized ladies," their father called, and they both peered around the doorframe.
Imogen went in first, trying not to stomp her feet like a child. She was pretty sure she wasn't succeeding. "I don't wanna be civilized, I wanna be a dragon rider like Mama." The Quadrant had soured many of her opinions about riders, but not all of them. She climbed up into one of the seats at the table, Katrina next to her.
Her drawings were there, stacked neatly between her mother's mug of coffee and a sheet of parchment with her mother's calligraphy.
She'd been… copying the runes? Imogen knew she should stop and work through this logically, but her feelings ran ahead of her again. "You took my runes, Mama?" It came out more accusing than she'd intended.
"You know what they are?" Her mother looked over at their tutor and then back, speaking slowly. "Where did you learn these runes, Imogen?"
Imogen tried to find a sensible lie. Hadn't she learned at least a few of the basics? Maybe she could say she'd mostly been making things up, like they were playing? It had been ages since Imogen had to explain herself instead of just taking awkward memories, and she was going to have to practice, apparently.
"I learned some in Aretia. The boys showed me how to knot them. I think they're pretty so I made up more." To her own ears, it sounded terrible, but her parents looked like they wanted to believe her. Their tutor even leaned in toward Imogen, complimenting her creativity.
Imogen wanted to laugh and roll her eyes at the same time. When had she first learned runes? Probably it was in Aretia, but later, once her mother had her living there for safety.
"I'd like to show these to a friend of mine, little bunny. That's why I'm drawing copies of them. Is that okay?"
"Who's your friend?"
"Her name's Ce—Lady Mairi. You met her at the council meeting. She's got two littles at home, younger than you, but they stayed home with their papa." She handed Imogen a bun with jam spread on it. "She used to draw pictures like this a lot when we were training together and I want to see what she thought of them."
Imogen nodded slowly. This was either really excellent or terrible, and she wasn't sure which it would be. Her mother's letter to Colonel Mairi—probably not a Colonel yet, either—went on its way, and Imogen got her crayon drawings back and promptly hid them under her mattress with the notebook. She wished she had somewhere more secure, but she hadn't really needed a secure hiding spot until when she was a teen and by then they'd moved.
Things seemed to be almost… normal. In entirely too short a time, Imogen and her sister were seeing their mother and her dragon off. They returned to lessons with Teacher Gràs, whom Imogen had almost forgotten. He was a lot funnier than she remembered, or maybe his jokes had gone over her head the first time. She stayed busy between academics, awkward introductions to things like ballroom dance and poetry recitation, and the beginning of training to be a rider.
She got a letter from Garrick, an absolute mess of obviously coded references and seven-year-old boy adventures. Imogen rolled her eyes at a story about Garrick and Xaden finding a salamander in the fireplace and almost setting Xaden's bed on fire. Maybe all men just needed a little excuse to turn back into seven-year-old boys and forget all the important things.
Not that Imogen didn't have days where she felt truly six, small and wanting her Mama and Papa to take this burden off her shoulders.
"Mama? Do you think people can know the future?" she asked the next time her mother was home on leave. They were having an afternoon snack that was allegedly tea, but really was just an excuse for Tracilia to spend time with her youngest.
"There's no such thing as a precognition signet," her mother answered carefully. Imogen was still learning to read her mother's expressions, but she was pretty sure this was not going to be a chance to tell her to the truth. "There are stories where the gods gave people hints about the future, but they're just stories, little bunny."
Imogen scrunched up her face in distaste at the nickname, even though she knew the way her nose wiggled when she did it was half the reason her parents called her bunny. It was such a little kid name, and though she was getting used to being a little kid, she didn't have to like it. Her mother laughed gently and kissed her hair. "Why are you thinking about it?"
"I just… read a story," Imogen brushed it off.
Tracilia raised an eyebrow but took her daughter's lead to change the subject. "I have a friend coming to visit tomorrow and she wants to speak to you."
"A friend?"
"Do you remember I made copies of those runes for my friend Lady Mairi? She agreed with me that they were very pretty and she wants to talk to you about them."
"Okay." Imogen had kind of hoped they'd forgotten about that. She didn't know what else to say.
The next day Imogen was dressed up in company clothes: the kind her mother put her in, practical but clean and easy to keep neat. (Much, much better than her father's preference for pretty dresses. Imogen could admit she enjoyed a gown on occassion, but she doubted she'd ever truly be comfortable in something she couldn't climb in.)
It felt so good to go on an adventure with her mother that she didn't really think about why Lady Mairi would want to meet with her until they settled in the tea shop across from Celadine Mairi and her stack of paper.
"Hello again, Imogen," Celadine greeted her. "I wanted to speak with you some more about runes, if you don't mind."
Imogen swallowed hard. Would Celadine believe her? She didn't know, and she couldn't talk to anyone, so she'd have to wing it and see what was asked of her, then go from there.
"Your mother said you learned a few of the basic ones from the other kids in Aretia, but the ones your mother sent me were very complicated. If it's okay with you, I'd like to show you some other runes and see what you think about them."
"Can I have teacakes first?" Imogen asked, wanting a minute to think. Both women smiled and laughed softly, then made small talk while they waited for the tea to steep, then cool.
Imogen was allowed to put three cubes of sugar in her tea, which felt like getting away with something. She ate two and a half of the peach jam-filled pastries, careful not to get any sugar dusting on her outfit. Now she felt full on top of her nerves. She wouldn't have eaten that much, except she'd forgotten the taste of the pastries here.
There were so many things that she'd forgotten so completely until she touched them again.
"Ready?" Celadine asked when Imogen had settled. "I'm going to draw out some runes and I want you to guess what they mean, okay?"
By the end of the meal, Imogen swore she'd never make fun of Garrick's terrible lies again. Getting things wrong intentionally, over and over again, was exhausting. Especially because Celadine kept trying to show her the patterns and help her not be wrong, so eventually Imogen just gave up and answered honestly.
The runes got complex enough that she had to think about them, logicking through the different squares and intersections. Some of them she recognized from Trissa's lessons, but many of them she'd never learned at all.
After the better part of an hour she was tired and snappish. "Mama didn't tell me this was just gonna be extra lessons."
Celadine just laughed. "In a way it is, I suppose. Imogen, how would you feel about coming to study runes with me?"
That was not what she'd expected. "With you? Like at your house?"
"Yes, you'd stay in Mairghdelle, with me and my family. I'd tutor you in runes and my husband would make sure you're covered in other subjects."
"Would I have to study lady arts?" Imogen tried to look suspicious, but judging by the half-hidden smile on her mom's face she didn't think she was succeeding.
Celadine looked at her mother and something passed between them that Imogen couldn't follow. "We can discuss what you'll study, but there will be lots of training to be a rider when you grow up, and you'll have my kids around for company."
"Are you lonely, Imogen?" her mother asked, and Imogen just stared at her. How could she be lonely when she had living family?
"Why would I be lonely? I know you have to protect everybody with your dragon, but Papa and Treeny are always around."
Tracilia sighed. "You've just seemed so different since you got to spend so much time around other kids your age."
"Oh." Imogen had the urge to make her mother feel better. "It's different but I like home a lot, and I love you, Mama." She threw herself off her chair and into her mother's lap for a hug, nearly knocking the tea settings over.
"I love you too, bunny." Imogen's thoughts settled as her mother returned the hug. "You could learn a lot from Cel, if you wanted to. It's up to you, though."
This was the first clear sign Imogen had seen that they could change things, hopefully big things. Hopefully enough to win a war. Imogen had to believe that wasn't an accident.
She hated the idea of losing time she could have with her family, but if they succeeded, she'd have a lot more time with them in the long run.
"I'd like to try it, please," Imogen said, wiggling around until she was sitting in her mother's lap, looking at Celadine. "Thank you."
"I'm very excited to spend more time with you," Celadine said, standing up. "Do you want to leave tonight?"
"Tonight?" she groaned. "It's gonna take forever to get there, isn't it?"
"It doesn't have to." Celadine's mouth quirked up.
Tracilia stiffened. "Cel, you don't seriously mean—"
"I do it with my littles all the time, it's fine."
Her mother's arms tightened around Imogen. "Isn't she too big to wear? Is it safe? Are you sure Talamh doesn't object?"
"I think Liam's about her size, honestly."
Imogen realized what they were talking about. "I'm gonna ride a dragon? For real?" She was practically vibrating with excitement; she'd missed Glane and flying more than she had really admitted.
"Talamh will help me hold you on. She doesn't mind kids. But she's pretty unusual, Imogen, so you still have to be respectful, okay?"
She jumped to her feet. "I'll be good! I'll be so good! Never look a red in the eye! An I promise promise promise to only come from the left front, I'll be so careful!"
Celadine blinked. "Did you tell her Talamh's a red, Trace?"
"No." Tracilia squeezed her shoulder. "Where'd you learn how to approach a red, bunny?"
"Um, Aretia?" Imogen lied again.
"If you're both certain. But I'll be flying to Mairghdelle too, just to make sure you get there safe. Fine?" Her mother's hand relaxed.
"You're always welcome to visit," Celadine smiled again. "You don't need an excuse."
"Cel—"
"Just teasing!" She turned her attention to Imogen. "Let's go get you packed, kid."