In the second half of the eleventh chapter of Wizard’s Holiday, Nita gets an Oath, and Dairine prepares for the task at hand. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to read Young Wizards.
OH MY GOD I AM SO PROUD OF NITA. It is not an easy feat to trick the Lone One, and she managed to manipulate It into a BINDING OATH. In minutes. How??? By appealing to the things that enrage the Lone Power more than anything: stagnation. Boredom. Tedium. Nita knew that the Lone One was desperate to be released from the Naos, but she also knew that It was bound to betray her. That’s what the Lone One does, isn’t it? Thus, once It started begging them to help, promising to anything just to be set free, both her and Kit were clever enough to still refuse to help.
Right up until Nita sneakily said that there was one Oath that the Lone One could swear. As I said before, this moment has a power to it because of the series’ continuity:
Nita’s smile was grim. “You made me do a lot of research when my mother got sick,†Nita said. “A whole lot of reading in the manual. Do you think that after she was gone, I just gave that up? And since I started really working on it, I’ve been getting access to all kinds of information I didn’t know was there before. You have no idea what trouble you’ve made for yourself.â€
It’s glorious, isn’t it? I certainly didn’t expect the Lone One’s torment of Nita and her family to backfire like this, but the irony is sweet and delicious and I LIVE FOR IT. The Lone Power actually makes an oath to help, and the promise itself is so specific that it appears Nita and Kit may have actually found a way to get the Lone Power to serve them without it being a problem in the future for them or, and I’ll quote here:
“…any thing or person affiliated with them in whatever degree.â€
AHHHHHH THIS PART ISN’T SPECIFIC BUT THAT’S A GOOD THING. As It points out, this could mean ALL OF EARTH’S UNIVERSE. Incredible. INCREDIBLE.
Now, most of this is set-up for the next conflict Nita and Kit will have to face. Somehow, they need to locate Druvah. I did believe the Lone One when it said that it had no idea where he is. Even then, there’s still the huge problem looming over everything: How are Kit and Nita going to tell Quelt the problem with her world? What about the rest of the population of Alaalu? Do they even get a say? How can this world be convinced that evolution of a species is a good thing?
Roshaun
OH MY GOD DIANE DUANE HAD ANOTHER SECRET HIDING FOR ME AND I WASN’T READY. I still hope that Dairine and Roshaun get to have another conversation about their interactions over the past week. Roshaun’s secret – that his father has stepped down and Roshaun will basically return home after this excursus to be king – explains so much of his behavior. It was better for him to pretend that he was a proud, sanctimonious leader/son of a leader than admit the truth: that his family are pariahs, that there are countless people trying to assassinate him, and that Roshaun is possibly doomed to a life he doesn’t really seem to want to live. Instead, he came off as an asshole because… well, it was an easier thing to portray, right?
That doesn’t necessarily excuse his behavior, but it certainly explains it. Can you imagine being forced to go on a trip like this specifically so that your parents can enact a huge change like this while you’re not around? Oh, make no mistake, I fully believe that’s why the trip happened and why Roshaun’s mother urged him against coming home, even while using the pup-tent. It feels so underhanded, you know? Hell, I bet if I re-read the book, I could identify the exact moment that Roshaun found out he was the next Sun Lord. IT’S SO MESSED UP. And yet? Roshaun is still helping Dairine. In his own way, maybe he believes the Aethers sent him to this world to do some good for some people who will actually thank him, who won’t hate him for the family he was born into.
THAT’S SOME HEAVY SHIT, Y’ALL. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that I loved that Dairine decided to take Roshaun to the moon as part of her apology. I mean, I love the whole bit about the moon being a sign of luckiness against terrible odds. But the moon represents such a goodness within the Young Wizards, so it feels right that Dairine share it with him.
ALSO THEY HELD HANDS OH MY GOD EMOTIONS.
I am thrilled to confirm that I will be a Guest at CrossingsCon 2017! Badges are now available, so COME HANG OUT WITH ME THIS SUMMER.
http://youtu.be/u5x22S9L8Hs?a
Mark Links Stuff
– I am now on Patreon! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards. I POST A LOT OF CUTE PHOTOS, OKAY. Think of it like a private Tumblr blog that only SPECIAL PEOPLE get to read.
– I have updated my list of conventions and events for the remainder of the year and much of next year. Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates / Appearances page.
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