CLICK HERE FOR BLOGGER TEMPLATES AND MYSPACE LAYOUTS
Welcome!
Magic, murder, intrigue, missing relatives, secret caves, fantastical creatures, royalty, nobility, romance...
Who ever said our lives were dull?
To follow our story, use the sidebar links and start at the beginning of it all...

Arri- March 7, 2005


March 7, 2005
Dear Keish,

“I think Mendel’s planning to build a flying machine,” Gordo confided in me today after his last study session with Liop before Liop leaves for Adya.
“Why do you think that?” I asked.
“Why else would his intelligence test include questions about navigation and height measurements?” Gordo asked.
I hadn’t thought of it that way. It was a troubling idea.
“I think he was just being slapdash,” I said.
“Maybe,” Gordo agreed, but he looked doubtful.
This is crazy. I don’t have time to worry about Mendel and flying machines.

March 8th
I have your letter. I don’t think I will tell Liop about having the museum to himself for a day. I will let you surprise him. He’s going to be so excited!
What kind of chickens does Keaton want? I’ve seen so many varieties at fairs. Some of them don’t look like chickens at all! The funny thing is that you never actually see fancy chickens on real farms. It makes me wonder where the fancy chickens came from…
Nothing new to report about the name glyphs. Brynn says research of this sort takes time and we should be patient.
Passing air into and out of a cell would be tricky. If you passed too much, the cell would probably explode. I will talk to Master Grant about Tish’s suggestions and wait for her letter with more details. The easiest substance to pass in and out of a cell is water. This process is called osmosis. Many experiments involving no magic at all have been performed on this subject. It’s all about the density of the water outside the cell membrane compared to the water density inside the cell. The water wants to move from areas of high density to areas of low density until both sides of the membrane become equal. It’s kind of like setting a wet washcloth on a dry one. The dry washcloth absorbs water from the wet one until the amount of water in both washcloths is more or less equal. I don’t know why cells are like that, but they are.
So far I cannot banish bacteria from a slide. I have tried, but the cells seem to just ignore magic. Master Grant says a future experiment will involve performing magic on increasingly smaller living organisms to see what the smallest size organism is that normal magic will affect.
Nysa is still having Gretel perform traditional awareness exercises, but she has added experiments in which Gretel tries to detect the magic in verbal spells as Nysa recites them. They haven’t had any success yet, but Gretel is determined. She seems to see this as her own personal battle.
Gretel is sending Father’s pocket watch with Liop who has promised to guard it carefully but not to cast any spells on it in case he interferes with your ability to use it in the location spell. I think you are very brave to allow Nozama to come with him. Uncle Winthrop is going to keep Coulter. I think he wants the company.

March 9th
Mendel says he will be delighted to draw up a floor plan of the Prens’ townhouse. Gordo has volunteered to help with the measurements. They will draw up the plan as soon as finals are over and mail it to you. Unfortunately, that’s going to be toward the end of Taty’s visit with you. In the meantime, I can tell you that the Pren townhouse consists of three floors. The first floor contains the kitchen, dining room, parlor, and servants’ quarters. The second floor contains the three bedrooms and a small sitting room off the master bedroom. The attic contains Sir Pren’s office and storage. Actually, now that I think about it, Taty could tell you that, if you don’t already know it…
Gordo’s still deciding what his major will be, but I think he has ruled out any of the sciences. He wants something practical that will make a good career. Right now he is contemplating following Mendel into architecture.

March 12th
Master Beagan Bastion Brio was knighted today. King Trunsle and Queen Elspeth held a formal ceremony with a luncheon afterwards. Most of the royal family was in attendance, although the Duke and Duchess of Lowell were absent. It was elegant sitting at long tables in the court room to eat with the ancient tapestries and thrones. King Trunsle gave a speech about courage in the face of danger. The sword he used to knight Beagan was then presented to him along with Brynn’s shield. Sir Beagan’s title is more honorary since he isn’t really going to enter the army or become a practicing knight. He was very excited about the whole thing. He loves the shield. He called it a work of art and said he wouldn’t dare even to joust with it for fear of causing damage. Master Corey is a little jealous, but not so much that he can’t be happy for Beagan. Beagan said that the next time someone with a knife threatens the Queen that Corey is more than welcome to do the fighting. Corey said he isn’t going anywhere without a knife ready from now on. In this way he will be better prepared than Beagan was.

March 16th
I took my last final today. I don’t know how they went. I’ve been so stressed out and finding time to study this term has been so difficult. It’s a relief to know that I have a few days until classes start again on the 21st. I have exactly four days without any obligations. Taty isn’t around, so I don’t even have any social engagements. I’m going to take Sprigs out every morning for a good, long ride. The weather is beautiful! Brynn calls it the calm before the storm. I’m not going to worry about that. I’m going to spend my afternoons going over the notes I’ve taken and working on a cure for Father. For once, I’m going to follow Master Ujifil’s advice and study just one subject at a time.
This evening I received a note. Various translators have decided that one of the names, Ta’y is probably an object, or at least not a person. Sen’a might be my father, Captain Etautca, or it might also be Captain Stoddart. They aren’t sure which, because they aren’t sure whether the context of the letter is now or in the past. The last name remains a complete mystery. What the documents have to say about all these names is also still a mystery.
I have a letter from Liop. He is having a wonderful time with you! I’m so glad he was able to go. It sounds like Nysa and Taty are also enjoying themselves. Part of me wishes I had gone, and part of me is glad that I’m here with Gretel where things are relatively quiet.
It’s strange. It’s been almost two weeks since my last letter and I’ve been so busy that I’ve hardly had time to write, and yet now that I’m sitting here with plenty of time, I find that there isn’t much to tell. I doubt you want me to recite everything I’ve memorized or the essay on the political ramifications of the Drought of 1913 that I wrote for my Elcaran History class. Even Mendel has been hard-pressed to find time for much mischief. Although he sent Lorenzo over with a letter for you containing his “Pre-qualification Exam for Matrimony,” which he assures me no young lady has been able to pass yet. (Really, I think he just wrote it because Caden asked for it. I don’t think it existed before.) He wants to make sure Caden gets it before the ball. Tomorrow he and Gordo will draw out the Prens’ townhouse. Then Mendel will take off for Odsreq to spend time with his family. Unfortunately, Gordo lives too far from home to do the same.
I’m going to send this letter now, as you are probably wondering why you haven’t heard from me in so long. I hope all went well with your finals!

Love,
Arri

Go to NEXT Letter

No comments:

Post a Comment

Leave us a little note-- Hermes or Clotho will be sure to deliver it!