"Be It Ever So Humble" - читать интересную книгу автора (Huff Tanya)

She pulled it out of his hand and stood. The warlord pouted for a second, then discovered his boots. He gazed at them in fascination, babbling nonsense words and patting at the air with limp hands.

Everyone, the villagers and the riders, took a step forward.

"What happened?" Yolanda asked finally.

Magdelene watched the warlord trying to catch the billowing end of his own robe. "Death seems to have unsettled him a bit," she said.

"But Juan was fine."

The wizard shrugged. "Children are a lot more adaptable about..."

A dark-haired, pale-skinned young woman appeared suddenly beside the warlord, hands on hip and eyes flashing. "Would you make up your mind!" Her black robes hung straight to the sand, unaffected by the breeze. "What are we playing, musical souls? First I've got 'em, then I don't. You're not supposed to do that!" She spotted Juan worming his way to the front of the crowd. "Hi, kid."

Juan's mother grabbed his ear and yanked him behind her, cutting off his cheerful greeting. As far as she could see there was no one there, and her baby had been involved with quite enough strangeness for one afternoon.

"Death?" Magdelene hazarded.

Everyone, the riders and the villagers, took a step back. At this point, they were willing to take the wizard's word for it.

"Good guess," Death snapped. "Now, do you want to explain what's going on around here?"

"It's a long story."

"Look, lady," Death began, a little more calmly.

"Magdelene."

"Okay. Magdelene. Look, Magdelene, I haven't got time for a long story, I've got places to go, people to see. Let's make a deal-you can keep the kid, but tall, dark, and violent comes with me." She pointed a long, pale finger down at the warlord. Both her ebony brows rose as he pulled off a boot and began filling it with sand. "Now look what you've done!" she wailed, causing every living creature in earshot to break into a cold sweat. "You've broken him!"

"Sorry." Magdelene spread her hands. "No you're not." Death tapped one foot against the sand. "Okay. I'm sure we can work this out like sensible women. You can keep him, just give me one of them." She swept her gaze over the riders. One sensitive young man fainted, falling forward in the saddle, arms dangling limply down each side of his horses's neck. "Sorry," Magdelene said again, lifting her shoulders in a rueful shrug. "They're not mine to give. Why don't you just take one?" Three saddles were suddenly wet. "I don't work that way." Death shook her head. "I can't take someone if it isn't their time."

"Lady?" Both Death and the wizard turned. Carlos stepped forward, one twisted hand held out before him. Death's expression softened, and she smiled. She had a beautiful smile. "Don't I know you?" she asked softly. "You should," Carlos told her. "I've been expecting you for some time." Her voice became a caress. "Forgive me for taking so long." When she took his hand, he sighed and all the aches and pains of his age seemed to drop off him. He stood straight for a moment, his face serene, then he crumpled to the ground. All eyes were on the body of the old man. Only Magdelene saw the young one, tall and strong, who still held Death's hand. Lips trembling, she gave him her best smile. He returned it. And was gone. Magdelene stood quietly, tears on her cheeks, while the villagers lovingly carried Carlos's body away. She stood quietly while the warlord's men managed to get their leader onto his horse, and she didn't move as they headed out of the village. She stood quietly until a small hand slipped into hers. "I've got the rest of the sand," Juan told her, a bulging pouch hung around his neck. "Can we go finish your house now?" She looked down and lightly touched his hair. "They want me to stay?" He shrugged, unsure who they were. "No one wants you to go." Hand in hand, they climbed the path to the headland. "Are you going to stay here forever," Juan asked. Magdelene met the anxious look in his black eyes and grinned. "How old are you, Juan?"

"Nine." The image of the young man she'd pulled from the future stood behind the child and winked. She shooed it back where it belonged. "I'll be around long enough." Juan nodded, satisfied. "So ... I took you back from Death today. Ready to let me fix your arm now?" He tossed his head. "I'm still thinkin' about it." The most powerful wizard in the world stared down at him in, astonishment, then started to laugh. "You," she declared, "are one hard kid to impress."



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About Tanya Huff and "Be It Ever So Humble"

Tanya Huff says of herself that she dislikes telephones, store-bought muffins, and the concept of social drinking; she likes baseball, sleeping at least eight hours a night, and snow. She lives in Ontario, so it's probably a good thing she likes snow. I rejoice in the diversity of creation, having moved to California at least partly so I'd never have to see or feel snow again, having grown up with too much of it.

This story took first place in the Cauldron vote in issue 11, and we've been trying to get Tanya to write more stories about Magdelene ever since. She's still trying to come up with the perfect situation for her next Magdelene story, but in the meantime she's written us two other stories, so we can't complain too much.