Summary

In Chapter 4, Agnieszka discovers that Sarkan's impatience with her is because he feels a responsibility to teach her. Also, he loves magic which means he wants her to do it correctly. Midwinter arrives, a holiday in Agnieszka's village. She can imagine the preparations going on there. Sarkan does not celebrate. Agnieszka conjures up a meal like those being served in the village, but she is not excited about it because she does not have the “eager ache of hunger in my belly from the long day of cooking” (56).

A messenger arrives, saying a chimera is threatening the Yellow Marshes. Sarkan is skeptical, saying they are cold-blooded creatures and seldom come out during the winter, but he packs supplies and leaves. He cannot even guess when he will return. That night, Agnieszka wakes to find beacons burning throughout the valley. They are used to...