Of course, Harwin wasn’t at the festival. He was too absorbed in his histories and diaries and logbooks to join the festivities. He lost track of time and simply forgot the revelry had begun. Something about that was endearing. She wished she could allow herself to get lost in the magic of the forest and never have to worry about joining in parties that made her feel as though she were an outcast.
Because she was an outcast. As long as she lived with the elves, she would always be an outcast.
“No,” she answered. Then, “Well, perhaps. What can you tell me about the dark wizard?”
He stared at her a long, quiet moment. Curiosity faded from his eyes and was replaced with concern.
“Where did you hear about him?”
Not everyone knew Snow had a connection to the forest and the creatures who resided within it. She had to choose her words carefully. “Someone mentioned him to me in passing.”
“No one mentions the dark wizard in passing, my dear. Come with me.”
He waved her around the desk, then headed for the door on the right. The opposite door from which he’d entered.
She followed him. her heart doing a little excited dance as she stepped through the threshold behind him. When she was inside, he closed the door behind her.
She was in a large living room with well-worn furniture—a sofa, two chairs, a low table between them. A thick rug covered the hardwood floors. On the other side of the room was a small kitchen with enough space for a table with high-backed chairs. A curving wooden staircase led to a loft with a bed that looked as though it had not been slept in.
This was the Master’s living quarters. Small and sparse yet cozy. The other door must lead to the actual archives with the rows and rows of books. She wished she could see it.
He lumbered to the small kitchen, filled a kettle with water and set it on the stove to boil. Then he got down two cups from the overhead cupboard. He placed loose tea leaves in each one. While he waited for the water to boil, he turned back to her and waved her to one of the chairs at the table.
“Please,” he said.
Snow realized it was quite an honor to be here with the Master of Archives, in his home, while he made tea. Some bit of apprehension went through her as she realized the mention of the dark wizard must mean serious business.
She perched on the edge of the chair as the kettle whistled. He poured the water, making them both a cup of steaming tea, then headed to the table where he plunked her mug in front of her. With a grunt, he slid into the chair opposite her, the cup held between his aged hands.
“Now that we have tea, perhaps you tell me what you know of the dark wizard.”
“Only that he lived somewhere in these woods and the elves cast him out.” She gripped the cup between her hands, the warmth seeping into her palms.
He considered her a long moment. “What does this have to do with what happened to you?”
“I’m not sure,” she said. “But I wondered if there was a connection between the two.”
“Very well, I’ll tell you the story.” He took a sip of tea and sat back in his chair. “Many years ago, there was a man who lived on the western edge of the forest. He had a cottage there. He had no wife and no children. We were aware of his existence, but since he never seemed to venture far from his home, we let him be.
“But one day, things began to happen. The trees came alive. The forest inhabitants seemed to have a mind of their own. Sprites and gnomes and pixies appeared when they had never lived here before. Flowers bloomed when they shouldn’t. Trees died when they should have lived. It rained while the sun was out. All manner of odd things.”
He paused, taking another sip of his tea.
“Was that because of the wizard?” she asked.
He nodded. “Though we elves tried to ignore him, we discovered he was using his power to control these creatures, the weather, the surrounding nature in which he lived. And then he decided to use it as a weapon.”
Snow stared at him, stunned. In all her years connecting to nature around her, it had never been mentioned. Surely, Faradill would remember such a thing happening. Unless he was merely a sapling at the time.
“He built an army using all manner of things from the forest. The living creatures, the trees, the flowers, everything. He became drunk on his power. He wanted to expand his domain, which meant he wanted to eradicate the elves and their home to make way for his new one. It did not go well for him.”
He paused again to sip his tea.
“What happened to him?” she asked.
“We banded together. Light against dark. There was a great battle within the forest. But it was Tasnia who used her power to send him away, casting him out and forbidding him to return.”
“What happened to him after that?” she asked.
