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The ehter "She does not see to me, Nanshur Briar"
Briar smiled cheerfully "She fools a lot of people that way"
Once more the emperor chuckled and his court followed suit He did seem truly auided you here tells me that one of my forzai, you may rise and come forward"
Evvy did as she was told Briar could see her hair ornaainst protocol, but he stepped closer and put an arm around her anyway for reassurance
The eht on his elbows He was the very picture of an indulgent uncle, except for all that gold, Briar thought Kindly Weishu said, "We are told that you, too, have ic in your veins, unlike these poor servants of mine, who must pull it from spells and potions"
Evvy bowed low and almost lost her balance Only Briar’s arain "You’re all right," he whispered
"I get ic from stones, not my veins, Your Imperial Majesty," Evvy said as she stared at the floor
The eic from dull stones?" he asked "Or do you use those that have been spelled already?"
Evvy glanced up at hiic in them, Your Imperial Majesty," she said, a little more confidence in her voice "I can feel it -- or I could even before I studied Now I can see it, too Just like Briar and Rosethorn see the ht of qi, the power that binds all things" The speaker was the older of the twosilver mustaches His face was a es he wore beads ofin loops around his neck and worn in multiple bracelets under his full sleeves Briar closed his eyes briefly, adjusting part of hiic everywhere, enough so that he didn’t want to use the spell for long He did hold it until he saw the blaze of power froes in the room didn’t blaze with power as much as the two es who stood with the e student has learned otten"
Evvy bowed to the old man, to Briar’s surprise "I am certain that cannot be true, Master," she said politely "I anize the depth of wisdom in a face, a depth I will be lucky to ever attain"
"Such respect, e are told those of the west are rude barbarians," said the e softly
The eleamed with jade, rubies, sapphires, and pearls "Tell uards and uards alike stirred, he held up his other hand "I think I aed Evvy forward Slowly she cli that her head her than Weishu’s Then, nervously, she took the emperor’s hand in both of hers Suddenly she smiled at him "They love you," Evvy explained "Not the pearls Well, maybe they do, I don’t know I don’t understand pearls because they aren’t really stones, just dirt that got in an oyster Did you know that?" Weishu nodded, his eyes dancing "I think it’s a cheat to call them precious stones when they aren’t really," Evvy went on, happy as always to talk about rocks "But the others, they love you They just glow fro tihed outright Evvy quickly released his hand "I’ to insult you -- I didn’t mean --" She looked frantically at Rosethorn, then Briar "That’s not what I meant!"
"Cal" He bowed to the emperor "She’s all wound up She’s heard stories of the imperial courthere"
"She has nothing to fear," Weishu assured Evvy, s at her "The stones I believe you ht -- they are very old And irl in so overpowering a place So tell me, Nanshur Briar Moss, how can you teach Evuh plants?"
Briar didn’t shrug That would have been impolite "I could teach her the basics, Your I, mathematics The names and everyday properties of stones, and what they’re traditionally used for Evvy does the rest herself"
"First Dedicate Dokyi helped me a lot this winter," Evvy said "He’s head of First Circle Tee And so far it isn’t too hard once I read the spells and have the sticky parts explained to me A lot of stone wants to be shaped, even jade, if you kno to explain it right" Her face was brighter and livelier Briar thought he ets pretty bored, holding the sa it doesn’t help, because nobody likes being sht, and tell it hoill like being s its inner surfaces, it’s all you can do to keep it in the shape you want Sometimes I just let the stone shape itself, for fun"