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class for the rest of the year. Emily couldn’t help smiling as she realized that Lady Barb’s class in Healing would probably be her first. She had little interest in Magical Artwork. It would be good to see Lady Barb again.
    Perhaps she would be my advisor , she thought, as she skimmed the rest of the parchment. She had said that she was only going to be at Whitehall for a year, but perhaps she could offer advice from a distance. Or maybe she would consider staying if teaching worked out for her. Emily made a mental note to ask, then planned out her week. A handful of classes threatened to be as boring as Artwork, but most of them looked mildly interesting.
    “Master Tor is incredibly boring when it comes to law,” the Gorgon said when Emily asked, “but it is quite an important class. Sorcerers are not always bound by local law, but they are bound by the laws written and upheld by the White Council. You would probably need it in any case.”
    Emily scowled, remembering the laws that her baronetcy had built up over the years since Zangaria had been founded. Many of them were completely contradictory. Others were so poorly written she couldn’t help wondering if the clerks had deliberately sought to sabotage their lord’s work.
    “Probably,” she said, sourly. She couldn’t escape the sense that Master Tor simply didn’t like her, which was worrying. What had she done to him ? “I see I’m still stuck with Alchemy.”
    “It gets more interesting as you go on,” the Gorgon assured her. “But if you slip behind, you find it very hard to catch up. Professor Thande does classes for students who are smart enough to admit that they need help, but you really need the knack for Alchemy to become an alchemist.”
    “And I don’t have it,” Emily muttered. She tapped her trunk, checking that the protection spells remained intact, then started to undress. She’d sleep in her underwear for once, then move into the next room...if Master Tor allowed her to move. “Hey—do you have to retake all of your classes?”
    “Not really, but I have to work on the subjects I failed and retake the exams,” the Gorgon explained. “And I may forget half of what I knew over the coming year.”
    Emily scowled. “You mean you have to retake all of the exams?”
    “I’m afraid so,” the Gorgon said. She rubbed her forehead, causing the snakes to hiss ominously. “It isn’t going to be a fun year.”
    She glanced over at Lin. “I think she’s a little surprised to meet you,” she added. “But she’ll get over it.”
    “I hope so,” Emily muttered. She’d never really wanted to be famous. Now, an entire world knew her as the Necromancer’s Bane—and didn’t really know her at all. “Goodnight.”
    She climbed into bed, then closed her eyes and cast a basic sleep charm. Moments later, she was asleep.

Chapter Four
    T HE ROOMS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE soundproofed, but Emily was awakened the following morning by the sound of Madame Razz giving a student a sharp lecture on bringing everything on the list of required items. Opening her eyes, Emily realized that the door was propped open and Lin, her new roommate, was the recipient of the lecture. Swinging her legs out over the side of the bed, Emily stood and staggered towards the shower. A hot wash would wake her up.
    Madame Razz had thankfully finished lecturing Lin when Emily emerged. Madame Razz might have had a heart of gold—Emily still remembered her showing kindness to homesick girls, who might never have left their home villages before—but she was also intolerant of mistakes, foolishness and horseplay. Or, as Emily had good reason to remember, mistreating the servants. Still, Lin didn’t look to have been in real trouble.
    “I left a pair of robes behind,” Lin admitted, tearfully. “Madame Razz was not pleased.”
    “I think they have supplies of everything,” Emily reassured her, as she pulled her robe on and checked her appearance in the mirror.