By the time I unlock the front door to my building, I’m hoping feverishly that I don’t run into Edward. I don’t have a clue how I’d explain the wyvern vomit on my shoes. When I get into my flat, I exhale a giant sigh of relief.
“Easy does it, H. Lie down here on the nice, cool tile floor.”
H slumps down on my bathroom floor while I run my shoes under the tap. I debate giving him a rubdown with a wet towel, but leave him be when I see his eyes are closed. Carrying on with my nightly rituals, I brush my teeth and hair, wash my face and pull on my nightclothes. As I’m about to switch off the lights, I hear H murmur my name.
“Nat? Will ya remember me after I’m gone?”
I kneel next to his little body, stroking his scaly head as I reply, “Where are you going, H?”
“I’m gonna disappear. Poof. Gone. When tha magic goes, I go.” A giant tear leaks from his eye, sliding down his snout to disappear in a sizzle.
I settle myself more comfortably on the bathroom rug, sensing that this discussion will not be a quick one. There’s no way I can go to bed with my favourite Eternal in such a state. “Oh H, you’re not going to disappear! What made you even think such a thing?”
H is quiet for so long that I almost convince myself that he’s passed out again.
“I ‘eard ya and them other missies natterin’ on tonight. Iffley College. No magic left. Books not sayin’ a word… Iffley’s a few blocks from ‘ere. I’ll be next ta go.”
Reaching out, I tap his snout to make sure he’s awake and paying attention. “Did you tune out the rest of our conversation? We’re working as fast as we can to discover what’s wrong with the magic. Other than the murder, everything seems fine here at St Margaret for the moment. The gala is only two weeks away. That will surely help reinforce our connection to the magical field. That’s the whole point of it all, remember.”
H belches and immediately grimaces. “Oh. The gala, I forgot about it. I stopped listening after a bit, lost in my pint glass. It’s rare I get ta enjoy a stout or two.”
“More like a stout or five. I saw how many empties you left on the table.”
“Ya don’t need ta kick a wyvern while ‘e’s down, Nat.” He rubs his stomach, sending off alarm bells in my head, before burping up a small flame that almost lights the loo roll on fire.
I stroke his forehead again and try to breathe through my mouth, avoiding the smell coming off him. I really should have washed him when I had the chance.
“Listen up, H. I know I’m new here, and new to all of this magical stuff, but I don’t think the magic is disappearing.”
With a groan, H rolls over to face me. “Wot makes ya say that, Nat?”
“Think about it, H. Mathilde told me that the magic is everywhere, but only Oxford and Cambridge have the right tools or set-up or whatever it is to see it. How could the magic disappear?”
For the first time in a long while, H perks back up. “By jeez, ya may be right on that, Nat.”
I mentally pat myself on the back, both for making H feel better and for saving the rest of my bathroom decor from the risk of flames. “Let’s think about this logically. If there’s no magic at Iffley, that must mean that something is wrong with the set-up, something is pulling the alignment way out of place. Could the magical field be sliding around, rather than disappearing? How could we check that?”
“I can tell ya ‘ow ta check, missie. The magical field goes from Iffley College at tha top, down ta tha Arboretum at tha bottom.” H crosses his eyes, struggling to recall the rest of the information before giving up. “I can’t remember what tha other two sides are, but iffen thar’s somethin’ wrong at tha top, the bottom is tha next place ta check.”
“See, now we’re talking. And planning. I need my notepad.” I dart back into my bedroom and return with my trusty bedside pad. You never know when a great idea or urgent task will come to mind.
H is snoring when I kneel back down, I nudge him until he snorts back to conscious, sitting up in a rush causing a black ring of smelly smoke to rise from his nostrils. “Where’d ya go? Wot’d I miss?”
I gently lower him back to a safe position on the bathroom floor, patting his shoulder to keep him awake. “I went to get a notepad. Tell me about this arboretum.”
“Eh? Oh ya, well, I ain’t been thar in ages, so lemme see. It’s a giant park wiff woods. Full of peacocks. Nasty birds, strutting aroun’ tryin’ to peck me loaf off.”
Raising an eyebrow, I ask, “Really? I’ve never seen a peacock get that aggressive. They’re so beautiful to look at.”
“Meh, they’re all fer show. Anyway, tha Arboretum is south of tha city. Ya’d need a car ta go thar, too far to take a taxi.”
A big smile crosses my face. “We’re in luck then, as Harry has offered me use of her car tomorrow. I’m planning for us to pay a little visit to our ex-veg vendor.”
“Not we. No way I’m goin’ ta a farm or tha arboretum. All this ‘ere rain, I’ll never get all tha mud outta my cat fur.”
Cat fur? I run my hand down his scaly back and along his tail, reassuring myself that my eyes aren’t deceiving me. “I thought the cat fur wasn’t real.”
“Ya know what I mean. ‘Ave a good time on yer trip. I’ll probably still be ‘ere,
