Page 1 of The Seventh Swan
The servants whispered in his wake.People often did.
Saveli ignored them, as he always had, and carried on through the hall of the lavish manor he'd been invited to visit in a mysterious letter full ofwe beg of youanddon't know what else to do.After his godfather had retired from a life of service, Saveli had taken up the mantle.He had learned the magic; he would do the work.It was all he'd ever wanted from the moment he'd watched his beloved godfather save the cursed and heal the broken and guide the lost.
He got many letters pleading for his help.Some he had to refuse, some he could delegate, but this one had come tearstained and full of remorse and regret, a genuine fear that a man might take his own life over what had been done to him.
Also, the letter had come from a duchess almost as famous as his family, tied to a tale of magic that resonated deeply.The magic itself had said he should heed the cry for help, and so Saveli had come, and now he would see if he could help a man slowly dying from the inside out.
He was shown to a parlor that resembled a cake, all pastels and ruffles, frothy and playful, redolent in a sugary scent, like fresh made candy set to dry before being placed for sale.He always carried a bag of sweets with him, for they often helped distract and calm people, especially children.
Standing there draped in black, he felt like a shadow or omen.A servant should have taken his cloak, but they often forgot to ask, distracted by his presence entirely.He removed it and folded it neatly, carefully set it aside on a small end table, and went to the window that overlooked a pretty little rose garden.Two men were there, and several children, playing some sort of game that had the children screaming, shouting, and laughing.Saveli smiled faintly.
The sound of strident, urgent steps came from the tiled hallway, and the door opened as he turned.The woman in the doorway gasped softly before recovering herself, closing the door behind her before she stepped further into the room and gave a curtsy worthy of a queen.She was beautiful, imposing without being intimidating, a stern but loving matriarch.Her warm brown skin was flawless, save for her hands and wrists, and her black hair was threaded with silver despite her youth.She wore a dark green gown embroidered with flowers and birds, and no jewelry but her wedding ring and a plain gold locket, unusual for the most powerful duchess in the kingdom.
Lady Celina Althaus, Duchess of Everhart, famous because she had arrived out of seemingly nowhere wed the long-missing Duke of Everhart.It was, he had been told many times, one of the most famous stories in the kingdom of Hochberg.
"Thank you, Sorcerer, for answering my letter.I know your time is precious and my problem likely small compared to most."
"A papercut is nothing to an adult, but quite alarming to a child.I do not measure problems by their size, but whether I think I can help with them.Sit, Your Grace, and tell me the whole of your problem."
She called for coffee first, a favored drink in this kingdom far south of his homeland, and after asking, made his with cream and sugar."Thank you," he said as he took it.
Now the familiar ritual was completed, she seemed more at ease and ready to speak."Do you know the tale of my husband and his family?"
"I heard some measure of it as I journeyed here, from people at taverns and inns, but as to the accuracy of their tellings…" He spread his hands.
She smiled ruefully and gave a small laugh."If what they say ofyourfamily is true, Sorcerer, then you're acquainted well with how truth spins into colorful tapestries."
"I am," he said, sharing the smile."So tell me the true tale."
"Seven years ago now, my sister-in-law rightfully spurned a rotten man.In revenge, he turned her brothers into swans.If she gave her hand to him in marriage, he would free them from the curse.Else, she would have to work for seven years, one for each brother, to weave the cloth that must be draped over them.The weaving would be cruel and tedious, and throughout, she could not make a single sound—not to cry or exclaim or utter a single word.
"That is how I found her, two years later, living alone in the woods, weaving the fabric that would free them, her hands cracked and torn, always bleeding.She could not speak, but the man who punished her was not as clever as he thought, and so she couldwrite.I had nothing and no one in my life.I traveled from town to town doing the thankless, tedious work no others wanted to in trade for food and bed and sometimes coin.So I helped her, and we became dear friends, sisters.With my help, it only took an additional three years, five in total, rather than seven…"
"But…" Saveli nudged.
"At the end, I accidentally spoke, and the end of one piece of fabric failed.The youngest, Oskar, retained a wing instead of an arm."In her lap, her fingers were tangled together in knots, her knuckles white, and a tear ran down her cheek.Her hands were covered in scars, as though she had plunged them into an especially thorny rosebush over and over and over."They were extremely weak after enduring such terrible magic for years, and collapsed only minutes after being restored.In my haste to be helpful, to be good, I agreed when the healer offered to remove the wing and replace it with a mechanical arm.Oskar… he has never forgiven me, and rightfully so.Please, if you are able, help him.I have paid great prices before…" She spread her hands, which did not stretch out entirely, gnarled by scarring and damage treated too late."… And I will pay them again, to set right what I so badly wronged."
Saveli sighed inwardly as the problem was made clear, like a tapestry he was close enough to see the fine details of after being across the room for so long."I am not here to judge, Your Grace.That is not my place.Even if this were my homeland and not yours, my mother and sister have the unhappy duty of casting judgment, not me.I will help your brother-in-law as far as I am able, if he will let me.Lend me a room while I work, and do not rush me.It could take days or weeks or months, I do not know.A wound that deep does not heal quickly."
"I understand.You will be given time and space and all else you need.I had a room prepared on the chance you chose to stay.Come, I'll take you there now, so you can rest and refresh.Do you prefer to dine with the family or in your room?"
"In my room for now, but that may change as I settle."
"Of course."She gathered her skirts and led the way out."My husband will be home later tonight, if you wanted to meet him, or it can wait until tomorrow.His brothers live elsewhere now, save for Oskar.He lives on the property, in the old groundskeeper cottage.We rarely see him here in the house.If you would like a tour, I can give you one tomorrow."
"That would be appreciated."
She nodded and didn't reply further, leading him up a beautiful staircase of dark wood and deep greens, then to a suite of two rooms."Are there belongings I should have brought up?"
"A large trunk and a valise I left outside at the bottom of the steps.I think the servants were about to attend them when there was some commotion with chickens and goats."
Huffing in amused exasperation, she said, "I see.The travails of being a working manor instead of a showpiece manor.My husband quite loves those stubborn goats, for reasons beyond me, but I will not deny him even the smallest happiness."
"I would not either, were it me.May I see your hands?"
She stared in surprise for the barest moment, then offered her hands.He took them, oh so gently, and ran his thumbs over the scars he could easily reach."Flax of course, for the base to hold the magic.Starwort for hope and valor.Greenbrier because love is often painful, but always beautiful.Fire weed for the cruelty of it all, and for healing and expulsion.Fresh blood for strength and life.A vow of silence for the years stolen, the pieces of life that were never lived.
"You and your sister did extraordinary magic, Your Grace.Transformation is difficult, and restoration nigh impossible.The last man who did it was called Heartless for his brave deed.Seven lives were saved.One soul is struggling right now, that is true, but you saved seven.Do not let one mistake drive you to forget that."
