A large building made of stone. Almost monumental. “Library of Congress,” said Hermia. “See? There’s the Capitol dome. We’re behind the Library of Congress right here, but this is the spot where I sat while I was showing Danny how to close his gates. And it was here that he … made a gate into me. Oh, it was such a powerful feeling, such a … but you know that. It has to be like what you experienced when … only I wasn’t dead, so, not the same after all.”

Danny had never talked about any kind of powerful experience with Hermia at this point in their story. She didn’t like that it bothered her. Maybe it was more powerful for Hermia than it was for Danny.

“Shall we go back to Veevee’s condo?” asked Hermia. “Do you know the place well enough to get there?”

“Do you?” asked Pat.

“Well, it was never very important to me until today. My liberation from jail and all that. And the place where I learned how to…”

Pat didn’t hear because she had jumped to Veevee’s apartment.

“Gate from one place to another without making gates,” said Hermia.

“Did you follow me?” asked Pat. “Or jump here on your own?”

“I don’t know,” said Hermia. “I just came here. I think. But now I think we need to separate.”

Pat knew immediately that this was the dividing line. Hermia had learned all she needed to from Pat—or all she thought there was to learn. One of those. But she was done with Pat now, and wanted to go do things that she didn’t want Pat to see.

“You’re really not a nice person,” said Pat to Hermia. Not angrily or bitterly. It was simply the truth.

“I am a nice person,” said Hermia. “I could have just gone.”

“No, you couldn’t,” said Pat. “Because I might have followed you, and you don’t want me to. So you had to tell me not to follow you, and you knew that I’d comply, because I, in fact, am a nice person.”

Hermia smiled at her. “Very accurately expressed. For a windmage, you have a way with words.”

“Don’t go to Danny,” said Pat.

“Why not?” asked Hermia. “I assume he’s at home, so even if I can’t find his ka, I can find his house. That place is very important to me.”

“Please don’t go to Danny,” said Pat.

“I don’t pose any threat to you, and you know it.”

Pat closed her eyes. “He’s doing something very difficult and dangerous, and you already know too much. If you go there, and Set sees what you know how to do…”

Hermia gave a low chuckle of understanding. “You’re afraid that if Set saw that I could make gates, or whatever we do now, he might jump to me.”