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Ruth Nichols’s Followers (13)
Ruth Nichols
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A Walk Out of the World
by
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published
1969
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5 editions
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Song of the Pearl
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published
1976
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6 editions
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The Marrow of the World
by
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published
1972
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6 editions
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The Left-Handed Spirit
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published
1978
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2 editions
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The Burning of the Rose
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published
1989
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4 editions
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What Dangers Deep: A Story of Sir Philip Sidney
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published
1992
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2 editions
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Ceremony of Innocence
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published
1969
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The Incarnational Theology of Charles Williams
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published
1977
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Because He Cares (Consider Series)
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It's What's Inside (Consider Series)
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“In my world,” she whispered, “we tell a story about a man who was swallowed by a whale.”
“I do not envy him!”
― The Marrow of the World
“I do not envy him!”
― The Marrow of the World
“Philip gazed at her in astonished relief. But Kyril answered, “You have chosen wisely. When I first learned of the two who had appeared in the wilderness, how little I hoped of either of you--a child of the witch Morgan and a boy, her adoptive cousin--a stranger not even of our stock! I too have grown in wisdom, for your courage has taught me much. No guest departs from us without a gift. Now I will give you mine. Philip, hold out your hands.”
Philip extended them. Kyril’s fingers closed around his wrists, and he felt a cool burning sensation, like a bracelet of white fire. When Kyril released his wrists, they bore his mark, as though his hands had burned them.
Then it was Linda’s turn. When it was done, Philip said: “What is the meaning of this gift?”
“The lifetime that lies before you will reveal it; yet I will tell you a little. I have set my mark on you. Because of it, you will never be wholly severed from us, and in a time of great need it may be we shall meet again. Even if that never comes to pass, you will always see more deeply than others. Visions hidden from them will be revealed to you. And that is both a sorrow and a blessing.”
He glanced toward the window where ghostly flakes were drifting out of the darkness into the candlelight. “And now you must sleep, for it is late.”
“Yes.” Philip stifled a yawn. “I feel very tired suddenly. Perhaps it’s all the decisions we’ve had to make.”
“I should like to sleep now, too,” said Linda, “if you will give us leave to go.”
“You have my leave.” Kyril laid his hands upon their heads. “And my blessing. Good night, my children.”
― The Marrow of the World
Philip extended them. Kyril’s fingers closed around his wrists, and he felt a cool burning sensation, like a bracelet of white fire. When Kyril released his wrists, they bore his mark, as though his hands had burned them.
Then it was Linda’s turn. When it was done, Philip said: “What is the meaning of this gift?”
“The lifetime that lies before you will reveal it; yet I will tell you a little. I have set my mark on you. Because of it, you will never be wholly severed from us, and in a time of great need it may be we shall meet again. Even if that never comes to pass, you will always see more deeply than others. Visions hidden from them will be revealed to you. And that is both a sorrow and a blessing.”
He glanced toward the window where ghostly flakes were drifting out of the darkness into the candlelight. “And now you must sleep, for it is late.”
“Yes.” Philip stifled a yawn. “I feel very tired suddenly. Perhaps it’s all the decisions we’ve had to make.”
“I should like to sleep now, too,” said Linda, “if you will give us leave to go.”
“You have my leave.” Kyril laid his hands upon their heads. “And my blessing. Good night, my children.”
― The Marrow of the World
“When Linda looked into King Kyril’s face, Philip saw her amazement and a brief, sudden joy. But at once she mastered it, or it died. “My lord, I come before you as a prisoner.”
“What is this, Linda?” he demanded gently.
“She said to me ‘Witches and witch-children--he spares none.”
“Then she lied, as she lied about so many things. Come, rise, and sit beside me. You are weary.”
But Linda remained on her knees before him. “I will not accept your mercy! I belong to no world now. Kill me, I beg you, for I have no wish to live.” Her voice was ragged with strain; she had forced her last strength to this demand.
Kyril took her hands in a firm, gentle grip and drew her to her feet. “Your anguish speaks, and the self-hatred you have learned in these long weeks of doubt. Now, Linda, let me set your mind at rest. You are more human than you know.”
Her fierceness had given way to a pitiful bewilderment. “But the spring--the demon--!”
Kyril nodded. “Powers you have, for your mother was indeed Morgan the Enchantress. But if you return to the world that has become your own, these powers will ebb, leaving you little more than ordinary mortals’. You can choose to let them go.”
He took her face between his hands, and as once before, Philip saw her tension ease gradually into peace. “I confess that I doubted too. That was why, in your journey through the wilderness, I made certain you would find me. I needed to see Morgan’s child, to discover how much of her mother’s power she had inherited. You came, but you were closed against me. Yet one night something happened, and I found the answer I was seeking.”
Down her cheek his finger traced the path of the single tear she had shed when he questioned her about her home. “I saw you cry. And, Linda, there was one thing Ygerna never told you. Try as she may, a true witch cannot weep.”
― The Marrow of the World
“What is this, Linda?” he demanded gently.
“She said to me ‘Witches and witch-children--he spares none.”
“Then she lied, as she lied about so many things. Come, rise, and sit beside me. You are weary.”
But Linda remained on her knees before him. “I will not accept your mercy! I belong to no world now. Kill me, I beg you, for I have no wish to live.” Her voice was ragged with strain; she had forced her last strength to this demand.
Kyril took her hands in a firm, gentle grip and drew her to her feet. “Your anguish speaks, and the self-hatred you have learned in these long weeks of doubt. Now, Linda, let me set your mind at rest. You are more human than you know.”
Her fierceness had given way to a pitiful bewilderment. “But the spring--the demon--!”
Kyril nodded. “Powers you have, for your mother was indeed Morgan the Enchantress. But if you return to the world that has become your own, these powers will ebb, leaving you little more than ordinary mortals’. You can choose to let them go.”
He took her face between his hands, and as once before, Philip saw her tension ease gradually into peace. “I confess that I doubted too. That was why, in your journey through the wilderness, I made certain you would find me. I needed to see Morgan’s child, to discover how much of her mother’s power she had inherited. You came, but you were closed against me. Yet one night something happened, and I found the answer I was seeking.”
Down her cheek his finger traced the path of the single tear she had shed when he questioned her about her home. “I saw you cry. And, Linda, there was one thing Ygerna never told you. Try as she may, a true witch cannot weep.”
― The Marrow of the World
Topics Mentioning This Author
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Million More Pages: Mad Man With a Box | 160 | 198 | Jan 31, 2018 08:18PM | |
| A Million More Pages: Fairy Tale Spell-Out ~ see message 6 for a special announcement | 214 | 270 | Jul 03, 2018 08:36AM | |
| What's the Name o...: SOLVED. YA Fantasy. A brother and sister, she has long silver hair I'm not sure about the brother, they live in the city near a high stone wall. [s] | 5 | 66 | Sep 24, 2021 05:33PM | |
| What's the Name o...: YA Fantasy (Medieval-esque) from the early 2000s with a wise traveler and a labyrinth underground/under a mountain | 7 | 24 | Jan 20, 2023 02:42PM | |
| What's the Name o...: ABANDONED. elementary/tween book read ~1980 about 2 kids (brother and sister?) that got 'real life' injuries from nightmares. The song "Green Grow the Rushes O" played a major role in it. | 51 | 659 | Feb 09, 2024 09:35AM | |
| What's the Name o...: ABANDONED. Young adult book; older sister follows brother into a mist-filled park, enters fantasy world | 21 | 1765 | Mar 24, 2024 05:47AM |
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