t es before. Its pink eyes ained its clean urally clean fur, for it  escaped from a bat still smelt faintly of lavender er.

    A tall, curiously pale young ood over t. -black ly over her face.

    So ion navy blazer. t, coupled , stockings and sensible sified e under t cro.

    t ionably, dead. Sabriel looked up from it and back along t left to an imposing pair of e, in gilt letters of mock Got tes to yverley College. Smaller letters added t tablisy.”

    A small figure e, nimbly avoiding t o stop sucivities. S fe and started running, ails flying, so gain momentum, but as cruising speed ablis, and screamed.

    “Bunny!”

    Sabriel flincated for a moment, t do’s side and reac o touc bets long ears.  as if surned to stone. A faint ed lips, like t formed on ips and rimed t beneat and knees.

    tip for, and topple to at t minute  and s er, so restrain t—a rabbit nos eyes brigo be off as s bath.

    “Bunny!” sood up,  by ts neck. “O . . .”

    Sered as Sabriel  over and blood stained ant hands.

    “h,” Sabriel replied wearily.

    “A scratc’s already closed up.”

    Jacint Sabriel, t the back of her eyes.

    “t anytammered Jacint did you . . .”

    “I didn’t,” snapped Sabriel. “But perell me  of bounds?”

    “Ced to a more normal situation.

    “You see . . .”

    “No excuses,” recited Sabriel. “Remember  Assembly on Monday.”

    “It’s not an excuse,” insisted Jacint’s a reason.”

    “You can explain it to Mrs. Umbrade then.”

    “O! You know I was only c—”

    Sabriel , and gestured back to tes.

    “If you’re back inside es, I  e time. t be locked till I go back inside.”

    Jacintc cill se, t tremors take ill s over, s of  and Jacint so muc  lead to? It  step from bringing back a rabbit to bringing back a person.

    orse, it  t rig turned it ure of pocer symbols as tepped from deato life. S even needed bells, or tus of a necromancer.

    Only a wle and her will.

    Deat came after deat mystery to Sabriel. S wis was.

    It  term at yverley—t t. Sed already, coming first in Englis in Music, tics, seventing Arts and fourtiquette. S in Magic, but t  printed on tificate. Magic only ierre close to t o be quite beyond t existed at all, and persons of repute did not mention it.

    yverley College y miles from tation, and taugo tudents s.

    Sabriel’s fat for t reason o seek a boarding sc first year, in Old Kingdom silver deniers t stood up to surreptitious touch cold iron.

    ter, o visit er t Midsummer and Mider, staying for several days on each occasion and always bringing more silver.

    Understandably, tress icularly since sroubled by ations, as most other girls would be. Once Mrs.

    Umbrade roubled by t Sabriel saually t teac  to kno it ot fact t some parents o ers scment.

    Mrs. Umbrade certainly didn’t  to knocracing its movements from ted ts into tides and ot  any one time on bothe all.

    Ab the moon.

    On ts, Sabriel o sneak into t ttle on tea and read a book until teristic inguis out tric ligtled tters—all necessary preparations, it seemed, for  sending to appear in the spare armchair.

    Sabriel icularly looking foro  t November. It  to end and sed to discuss ure. Mrs. Umbrade ed o go to university, but t meant moving furtal visitations ed to actual p  . On to university aying ually all arted sc ter eraction, particularly y tinct sage around yverley College.

    And tage of losing  by a lessening of y for deathe dead . . .

    Sabriel ed, book in ea balanced precariously on t  midnig appeared. Sabriel ers to peer out t t ely t t  time in   appeared and s suddenly uneasy.

    Sabriel rarely t about  noories came to mind and dim memories of hen . . .

    “Sabriel! Sabriel!”

    A cerrupted , quickly follotle of t of  teacup and unlocked the door.

    A young girl stood on ting cap from side to side in trembling e h fear.

    “Ol? Is Sussen sick again?”

    “No,” sobbed to it   me, so I looked . . .”

    “!” exclaimed Sabriel, alarmed. No one opened outside doors in t, not to the Old Kingdom.

    “I’m sorry,” cried Ol mean to. I don’t kno Rebece and Ila— it ried to get in. I slammed the door . . .”

    Sabriel teacup aside and pus Olment of good c and broke into a run, slapping on t sco dormitory. As s, screams broke out inside, rapidly crescendoing to an erical cy girls in tory—most of t Form, all under took a deep breatepped into ting stance. Even before s th.

    tory  to t toeps. It o be locked inside and out, but locks rarely prevailed against the Old Kingdom.

    tensely dark sood t a man-s of t, carefully cars. It ures at all, but ted from side to side, as if  did possess worked in a narrow range.

    Curiously, it carried an absolutely mundane sack in one four-fingered ark contrast to its own surreal flesh.

    Sabriel’s ed gesture, draer t intimated sleep, quiet and rest. ited botory and dreer symbols, draogether.

    Instantly, every girl in topped screaming and sloo her bed.

    ture’s opped moving and Sabriel knes attention ered on  moved, lifting one clumsy leg and s foring for a moment, ttle past t. A lumbering, rolling motion, t made an eerie, s. As it passed eacric lig out.

    Sabriel let o er of ture’s torso, feeling tuff of s or tools, but t led to only a moment’s ation before s o Deatill on truder.

    t, grey and  ill stretco an entirely flat ance, s Gate. Sure’s true s  carried to t elligent. But to it t, and Sabriel felt tc came from ture’s back and ran into the river.

    Somee, or even furt umbilical rested in t. As long as ted ture otally under trol of its master,  as it sa.

    Sometugged at Sabriel’s pantly tco t feeling of nausea rising in h-chilled body.

    “ is it?” said a calm voice, close to Sabriel’s ear. An old voice, tinged er Magic—Miss Greenrix of the school.

    “It’s a Dead servant—a spirit form,” replied  Sabriel, tention back on ture. It er t free will.

    Somet it back to t’s controlled from beyond t Gate.”

    “ rix.  Sabriel felt ter symbols gatongue—symbols t ructive poh.

    “It’s not obviously malign, nor  attempted any actual ies. So explaining purely necromantic aspects of magic to Miss Greenrix auger Magic, but necromancy ely not on ted to kno necromancy from hemselves.

    “Don’t do anyt. I tempt to speak .”

    ting into o pull  ed ion,  danger, t merely a pleasing vibration about t.

    ture   bot es, and too, s sounds he handclap.

    t tepped back, putting boto its ears. As it did so, it dropped tarted in surprise.

    S noticed t expected it to be te ted in bothe dead.

    Sure suddenly bent foro ter,  found it almost at once, but not  losing its footing. As t forced ture under. Sabriel breat slide as  cried out: “Sabriel! My messenger!  take the voice was Abhorsen’s.

    Sabriel ran fororied again. t took ture completely under.

    Sabriel looked after it,  Gate suddenly increase as it alarted to slog back against t to a point o life. tomacruly Abo return to the living.

    And t meant rapped by somet se.

    Once again, a ention ened on t need to look to kno ture s manifestation into ts spirit  t Gate. Only a pile of grave mold o be s aside in the morning.

    “ did you do?” asked trix, as Sabriel brusals falling from o t lay in front of her knees.

    “It ook it.”

    S met  out, still scabbarded, and put it to one side. S need to dra to see ter symbols etcs blade—ted crossguard o lery. It was Abhorsen’s sword.

    t next , a ly of beesubular leat, starting tle; groill t to be ,  and pulled out a tiny silver bell,  gently, but till se t someer the sound was gone.

    “Fatruments,” whispered Sabriel.

    “tools of a necromancer.”

    “But ter marks engraved on terjected trix, wion.

    “Necromancy is Free Magic, not governed by ter . . .”

    “Fat,” replied Sabriel distantly, still staring at t raising.  of ter.”

    “You’re going to be leaving us, aren’t you?”

    trix said suddenly, as Sabriel replaced tood up, s, in tion of the all . . .”

    “Yes. Into tion. “Someto Fat I’ll find er I bear.”

    Soucer mark on  it migrix nodded and touco terns of time. As it faded, rustling noises and faint ory.

    “I’ll s to trix said firmly. “You’d better go and . . .

    prepare for tomorrow.”

    Sabriel nodded and left, trying to fix icalities of t could o her.

    Sake a cab as early as possible into Bain, t too tierre perimeter t faced ternoon . . .

    Bes kept jumping back to Ab could o trap  could so do about it, even if s to the Old Kingdom?