"Esther M. Friesner - Chicks 02 - Did You Say Chicks" - читать интересную книгу автора (Friesner Esther M)

moleтАж or a receipt."

"Of coursethisbelly doesn't have a mole," Dorcas said. "It's not mine.Youshould knowтАФ"

"Keep her quiet," the judge said icily, "Or I'll have her in contempt!"

Dorcas glared at the judge, but said no more.

Afterwards she exploded to Mirabel. "He knows perfectly well that's my bellyтАФhe's had his tongue on
that mole, when it was where it should be, on me. He just doesn't want everyone to know it."



Feristax, the LA&AS wizard, smiled when Mirabel told him about that fiasco. "If we can get them into
court again, I think I may have something."

"What?" asked Mirabel crossly. She was not about to humiliate herself again in court.

"It's a new concept." She had heard that before. "After that problem with the random access storage
deviceтАФ"

"When you got our tits mixed up," Mirabel said. "I remember perfectly. Go on."

"WellтАж there's always been exchange, you know. Someone with red hair wants yellow hair; they get the
red hair spelled off, and yellow hair spelled on. That puts red hair into the universe, and removes yellow
hair. So if someone else wants red hair, there it isтАФit's an exchange, not a creation. But it's not a theft or
anything."

"Like money," Mirabel said.

"Exactly." The wizard beamed at her. He had found the right level to communicate. "But, as with money,
there are thieves. If there's no red hairтАФjust for an exampleтАФ"

"YES!" said Mirabel, stroking the haft of her knife; the wizard blenched and went on hurriedly.

"If there's no red hair, then they'll do a universal search for an individual with red hair. And contact a
local practictionerтАФsometimes not even a licensed wizard!тАФto spell-steal it away, where it becomes
available to the person who wanted red hair."
"What color hair does the victim get?" Mirabel asked. "Or do they just snatch them bald-headed?"

"Gray, usually," the wizard said. "Very few people ask for gray, except of course wizards." He patted his
own storm-colored hair, so incongruous with his youthful unlined face.

"Aha!" That was the thing about gray hair.Gray hair on young visage, might be a wizard. "He had gray
hair, that dancing master. And he was young."

"Did he have a badge of license?" asked Feristax, touching his.

"Not that I saw," Mirabel said.