“Well, that’s it for today, it’s been a long one, would you mind helping the boy’s get some supper ready? Gwen and I have an important meeting to go to, we’ll be back in an hour or so,” and with that, he and Gwen both disappeared.
The boys looked over and smiled.
“We’re making a poachers pot; would you and Samuel like to help?” Tom asked.
“What’s a poachers pot when it’s at home?” Glynda asked.
Jon answered, “Well it’s a massive stew with rabbit, hare, pheasant, partridge, pigeon, and any other meat you’ve got in the house, with a load of root vegetables thrown in for good measure, carrots, turnips, swede, potato and stuff, a few herbs for flavour, then it’s just boiled and served.”
“How long?”
“Oh, a good few hours normally, but we have a shortcut which means less than an hour and it’s ready,” Jon continued.
But what if I’m a vegetarian?” Glynda asked.
“You’re not? Are you?” Tom said in surprise.
“No, don’t be daft,” she laughed, “I’ve eaten loads of meat since we got here.”
Tom playfully threw a pigeon at her, she held up her hand as if to catch it. It stopped mid-air and flew back at Tom.
“How did you do that?” Tom said with a start.
“Not sure, it just sort of happened.”
“Wow, then you might be one of the wizards who don’t even need a wand.”
“We’ll see,” she said, “we’ll see.”
Glynda paused for a moment thinking, then continued.
“I’ll help peel the vegetables if you like, and Samuel knows how to pluck, skin and gut game better than most, so he can sort the meat out,” Glynda replied.
“So, what do we do then?” the boys said in unison.
“What most blokes do, sit and watch, just sit and watch.”
Samuel looked over at Glynda with a very odd look.
While the two of them worked, Glynda started to chat.
“I did my flying lesson in the forest today and met an old couple there, Traveon and Lynessa, do you know them?”
“Oh yes,” both boys chipped in, “everyone who has flying lessons from dad meets up with them at some point,” Tom concluded.
“Strange old lady, she said I would be a good candidate for her wand when the time came, as soon as she said it, your dad went all strange.”
There was a short silence.
“Just like you two have done as soon as I mention it.”
“Well, it’s quite a sticky situation which requires some careful explanation,” Tom said, falling over his words, “best wait ‘til me dad gets back.”
“No, you tell me, your dad will flower it all up so as not to frighten me or something.”
“Well,” Tom started, “do you know the story of the wand, where it came from and stuff?”
“She told me it was from a Golden Dragon’s wing bone and the stone in the end was some old wizard’s false eye, that’s all.”
“There’s a bit more to it than that, you’d better sit down while I tell you and Jon can take over the prep.”
“Why me? Why can’t I tell her, and you peel the spuds?” Jon protested.
Tom ignored him and sat down with Glynda.
Well, there was once an incredibly old wizard who lived about two thousand years ago. He was completely blind and yet could somehow see better than anyone, where his blind eyes were there were two polished stones that looked like large pearls. One of those stones is set at the end of Lynessa’s wand. As you said, the wand is fashioned from the fourth finger bone of a Golden Dragons wing, so it has incredible strength and yet it’s as light as air. When he died, the wand and staff of the old wizard then passed to his son who, like his father before, became the greatest flier ever to grace the skies. He was Lynessa’s great grandfather many times over, and the wand has been passed down through the generations to the oldest child be they girl or boy. Now it is hers. Traveon and Lynessa don’t have any children, so when she passes on, the wand will choose a new owner, not her or Traveon, but the wand. But the legend says that it will be owned at a cost, whoever the wand claims as its new owner will also be blind in both eyes from the moment they pick up the wand, and yet they say, they will be able to see more than they ever saw before. Don’t ask me to explain it, it’s just what they say.”
“I hope it doesn’t pick me,” Jon shouted across the room.
“But that would be wonderful,” Glynda said, “fancy being able to see more than anyone else.”
“Yes,” said Jon, moderating his voice and thoughts, “but who’d want to be completely blind?”
“But you wouldn’t, you may not be able to see in the conventional sense, but at the same time, you could see even more and even better than before.”
“Oh, I hadn’t thought about it like that,” Jon admitted, “I suppose it wouldn’t be too bad after all, I just don’t understand what it all means.”
“Neither do I,” Tom agreed, “and I don’t want to find out either.”
“Well, I think it would be wonderful.”
Samuel, who rarely spoke, spoke, “well It wouldn’t suit me. I can see in the pitch black of a cave unlike you lot, you surface dwellers who always need a light, but I like my eyes, so, as I said, it wouldn’t suit me.”
With that, the conversation ended as Llewellyn and Gwen reappeared in the room, or so they thought.
Jon then blurted out, “Glynda wants to inherit Lynessa Cadwalader’s wand!”
“I didn’t say that.” Glynda snapped back angrily.
Samuel leapt on top of her, pulling her to the ground and covering her arms with his body. There was a small explosion that shook the whole kitchen area, a couple of plates fell off the dresser and three bottles of ale blew their corks out, frothing beer over the floor, much to Llewellyn’s dismay.
“Don’t wind her up,” snapped Samuel, “she hasn’t enough control of her magic to cope with anger yet.”
The four of them looked a little shocked, and it was some seconds before Gwen broke the silence.
“Is Glynda okay? She didn’t hurt herself when her energy exploded.”
“No, she’s fine, if I have her, then her explosions always come into me and dissipate, so no harm done this time,” Samuel said reassuringly.
“Oh dear, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean that to happen,” Glynda said sheepishly.
“No, we’re sorry,” Jon said, “I shouldn’t have spoken out of turn. That was your news to break.”
“But it’s not true, all I was saying was, it wouldn’t be so bad if you were blind in both eyes if you could then see more than you ever did. I don’t know what it means exactly, just that it might be okay.”
“Well,” said Llewellyn, “the legend says, that the old wizard, despite having two polished stones for eyes, could see all around him somehow, a three-hundred and sixty degree vision, and he would also know who was on the other side of a wall and see exactly what they were doing. What we don’t know, and this is important to remember,” he looked at all three teenagers in turn, and repeated, “what we don’t know, before anyone starts wishing their sight away, is if the legend is true.”
“Well, I believe it,” said Gwen, unhelpfully.
Llewellyn gave her one of his glares.
“And so do I,” Glynda said, “at least I hope it’s true.”
“Why?” asked Tom.
“Because if the wand did choose me…….” Glynda’s voice trailed off without finishing the sentence. She didn’t have to.
“Right,” said Llewellyn, as if taking control again, “when will supper be ready?”
“Over an hour, at least,” Tom answered.
“In that case, abandon cooking, we’ll eat out tonight, all of us, as a family, because that’s what you and Samuel are now, family.”