Читать книгу Masquerades of fairies - Natalie Yacobson - Страница 7

There was a note waiting for Flora in the morning, scribbled on an autumn leaf. Some tiny elf riding a kingfisher had slipped it through the crack of an opened window. The event felt more like a dream, so Flora wiped her eyes.

«I think the tiny elves are called pixies,» she mumbled in her sleep.

«They are,» sang the mask on the bedside table.

«Ouch!» Flora woke up immediately and completely. If the living mask was not a dream, then the elf on the kingfisher was not a dream either.

The kingfisher and the elf flew away as soon as Flora picked up the note, that is, the bright orange maple leaf.

«Is it already fall? Or do elves know how to color leaves?»

«It’s from the regions of fall,» the mask determined. Apparently it didn’t need sleep, as it didn’t look sleepy.

«Where are these regions of fall?»

«They are in the Empire of Magic, of course.»

«Do I have any acquaintances there?»

Flora unfolded the sheet. The letters were scratched on it as if with claws, but the calligraphic handwriting gave away Edwin’s hand.

«Yes, it looks like I know someone there now,» Flora said, but as soon as she began to read, the note was not from Edwin. There was only one sentence written in it:

«Don’t attend any more fairy masquerades!»

Wow! Edwin has an intelligent dragon! Who would have thought?

«I wonder if this dragon can talk. He wasn’t very talkative with me last night.»

The mask laughed snidely. Flora didn’t pay any attention to her. Who would understand these magic items! Maybe the mask is crazy for laughing at something all the time. Flora couldn’t even figure out what it was laughing at.

«I guessed it!» Flora guessed. «Edwin was too shy to write me the note himself, so he decided to sign it with a dragon. After all, a dragon is only a beast, albeit a magical one. He won’t be accused of courting a lady.»

«Do you think Edwin is so shy?» The mask squinted sneeringly.

«He’s young. All young boys are shy.»

«He just looks young, and he’s a wizard. Do you know how many different magical offenses he’s had on his conscience? He once put an entire kingdom to sleep with magic, and his dragon burned down so many cities!»

«You’re lying!» Flora straightened the ball gown she had slept in without undressing and fixed her hair. Now she could go out into the garden to see if there were any traces of the fairies.

There was a surprise waiting for her in the garden – another note from the dragon. This time the inscription was scorched by fire on the trunk of a centuries-old oak tree.

«Do not be frivolous! Do not follow in the footsteps of the fairies!

Your dragon.»

«And that’s being impertinent!» Flora took offense. The letters were still hot and sparkling. So they had been scorched recently. Did the gardeners see the dragon? They definitely didn’t see any fairies last night because they were asleep. The servants go to bed early to save candles. None of them reacted to the fairies laughing at midnight, but not seeing a whole dragon in the morning was incredible.

«He’s only giving you a warning,» the mask squeaked.

«Are you protecting him?» Flora shook her so-called friend in her hands. «I don’t need dragon advice. I’m smart myself!»

«So smart that yesterday you almost died in the claws of the fairies!» parried the mask.

She’s right! Flora lost all her aplomb.

«Why did I study fine arts, geography, and even philosophy if I’m not smart enough? You should deduct it from the governesses’ salaries. Their lessons were wasted on me.»

«I only respect magic lessons,» the mask snorted. «I could give you a couple.»

«No, thank you.»

«Are you afraid of getting more stupid?»

«I’m afraid you’ll cast a spell on me.»

«I’ll do it!» The mask took offense. «I treat you with all my heart, and all you do is hurt me!»

«Do magic masks have souls?»

«It’s just a figure of speech.»

«You’re hard to understand.»

«Unlike you, I don’t make dangerous friendships with dragons.»

«I’m not friends with dragons either,» Flora said, catching herself in a lie. If she didn’t make friends with a dragon, how could she explain the dragon’s insolent behavior? He was bossy, leaving inscriptions with fire in the garden. In one bed, the petunias have been trampled and a large dragon claw has been left in the loosened earth. The maids would be horrified when they saw it. Flora rushed to fix it. Raking the ground with her hands to hide the monstrous mark was not possible. Flora began to vigorously trample the flowerbed to layer her footprints over the dragon’s trail. That way it would be hidden.

«What are you doing? Dancing in the flowerbed?«A surprised cry was from the garden gate.

«Raphael!» Flora only now noticed her brother. How foolishly things had turned out! Stomping on the flowerbed, she looked like a witch with disheveled hair dancing on the bare earth among the plucked flowers.

«Mama loved those petunias,» Rafael reminded her resentfully.

«She also loved orchids, tulips, daffodils, camellias, chrysanthemums, geraniums, and many other flowers I can’t even remember the names of.»

«That’s right, you have amnesia, sister!»

«I don’t have amnesia!» Flora got angry.

«Well, you only forget things that it’s to your advantage not to remember. For example, when you broke your mother’s necklace, you immediately forgot about it, and the maids were whipped for the offense.»

«You’re so vindictive! I don’t even remember that!»

Flora nervously fixed her hair, which was tangled in the leaves and flowers of a nearby acacia tree. Flora’s reflection in the garden pond looked like a disheveled witch. Rafael himself was not looking his best. His shirt was torn, his camisole had been lost or lost at cards, his boots had burned holes in them, and his hands had burns. He must have been drinking and partying all night, maybe even had a fight with someone.

«I hope you didn’t lose everything.» Flora asked in a venomous tone.

«On the contrary, I won a lot.»

«Then where is your camisole and your winnings?»

«You see, the thing is, I was counting coins on the way, and I was attacked by creatures attracted by the glitter of gold.»

«Were they fairies?» Before, Flora would have thought her brother was making things up, but after her encounter with fairies yesterday, she wouldn’t have been surprised if those winged wretches had attacked Raphael as well. Her brother is so cowardly! Even if he had a sword and had perfectly mastered the art of swordsmanship, he would not have defended himself against the fairies. After all, fairies are ladies, and ladies Raphael respected.

«What fairies are there,» he dismissed it. «A rabble of evil spirits: ugly trolls, gray elves, dwarves – all surrounded me at the crossroads and I had to play with them until morning.»

«So?»

«You can’t win to wizards!»

«You didn’t make all that up?»

«Look!» Raphael lifted his cuffs and showed the burns in the shape of clawed paws. «Our land is full of evil! We have to get out of here, and fast.»

«Father won’t allow it.»

Flora thought it was better not to tell Raphael about the fairies, otherwise he would lose the whole castle to them, or maybe he would just give them away for a kiss.

«By the way, did you catch leprosy from the gray elves? I’ve heard they carry magical contagion.»

«Who did you hear that from?»

«I don’t remember!»

Flora really didn’t remember.

Raphael looked around warily.

«I don’t seem to feel sick.»

«All infected people feel healthy at first. The disease doesn’t kick in right away.»

«You’re a healer?» Rafael had a frightened look on his face.

«Your friend gave me a lecture yesterday about what a bad castle we have.»

«What friend is it?»

«It is an aristocrat named Edwin.»

«I don’t know any Edwin.»

«But he was here yesterday.»

«It was an aristocrat in the middle of nowhere! He was a messenger from the King, perhaps.»

«He is more like a traveler. I invited him to dinner.»

«It’s good to have someone to talk to other than the prim astrologers my father invites. The frequent visits of alchemists and astrologers probably made our castle a bad place. When Father dies, I’ll drive them all away. I can’t stand minions and crooks.»

«How can you talk about Father’s death when Father is alive and unhurt?»

«My mother was alive and unhurt, and then suddenly…» The words froze on Raphael’s lips. «If mom were alive, she would have dispersed those alchemists.»

«I’ll find out what happened to Mom,» Flora promised herself. A chain of tiny footprints could be seen on the path. If only Raphael hadn’t noticed them. Only fairies could have such graceful feet.

«Floretta!» The brother had gotten into the habit of calling her by her pet name, so something was wrong. She was usually called Floretta by her mother or nanny. Flora was immediately alert.

«What do you mean?»

«Don’t go to crossroads in the evening, even garden crossroads,» Rafael advised. «The evil spirits love to catch travelers at crossroads.»

And at masquerades, Flora wanted to say, but she had the good sense to keep silent. Raphael wouldn’t have understood. He himself was now terrified of crossroads and gambling trolls.