Highland Raven

by Melanie Karsak

  Druanne frowned at me.

  “I’ll wake her in a while.”

  “You should have let me know. I am your elder. I am trained in the healing arts. I know better than you what to do,” Druanne said then shook Sid’s shoulder, waking her.

  “Don’t underestimate me. Epona has taught me as well.”

  “Willful girl, your power is reckless.”

  “What do you know of my power?” I glared at her.

  Sid woke somewhat. Druanne held her jaw, a bit too roughly for my liking, and poured the liquid down her throat. Sid sputtered a little.

  Druanne patted her back, helping the liquid clear, then lay her back down. “I know your power is more harmful than good, that’s what I know.”

  “You fear it because it showed me your true nature. You have no reason to be afraid of me. I wouldn’t strike at you unless you gave me a reason.”

  “Fear you? I hardly fear you. You simply don’t belong here,” Druanne said, and in a huff, she rose and left, slamming the door behind her once again.

  “Try not to peck her eyes out, Raven Beak,” Sid said in a whisper.

  “I’m doing my best,” I assured her, glaring at the door.

  Sid laughed softly.

  “You smell horrible. Let me get this dirty thing off you,” I told Sid.

  She nodded, and with my help, she sat up. I pulled her old gown, a tattered black cotton dress, off her. It smelled so bad and was in such a shamble that I set it aside to be burnt. I went back to the fire, warmed some wash water, then grabbed the sweet smelling lemon balm soap Sid had sitting on her bureau.

  Sid lay naked in her bed. She was drowsy, her eyes opening and closing softly. I covered her body and washed the grime from her legs. She was a thin woman, but her legs were muscular. I washed her arms. They were a mess of scratches and grime.

  “Where did you get all this fine furniture, anyway?” I asked her as I cleaned her up.

  “A gift…from the Seelie King when our son was born,” Sid whispered absently.

  “Your son, is he—”

  “Eochaid.”

  “Eochaid?”

  “My son,” Sid said quietly. “His name is Eochaid. He’s so beautiful.”

  “Like his mother,” I said as I gently washed the dirt smudges from her face.

  Sid smiled. Her eyes closed.

  I gently pulled the cover away and washed her soft, white stomach. My eyes were drawn again and again to her small, pert breasts with their soft pink nipples. My mind went back to the day at the spring with Banquo.

  Sid rolled over and looked at me. She took the rag from my hands and pulled me onto the bed beside her. Despite her exhaustion, she leaned forward to press her mouth against mine. I could taste the potion Druanne had given her, the sweet taste of honey, marigold, chamomile, and other herbs lingering in her mouth. I kissed her gently, again and again, tasting her. My hands shaking, I gently touched her breasts, my fingers grazing those small, sweet nipples which hardened to my touch. It was not the power of Beltane guiding me. It was something different, an old longing. I wanted to feel her body close to mine, but I knew she was weak. I removed my clothes pulled her against me, enveloping her in my embrace. It felt so good to feel our skin touching. Sid kissed my neck and gently stroked my body. Her touch felt wonderful, so sweet, so familiar. Sighing deeply, she laid her head on my chest and entwined her fingers around mine.

  “Now we just need Banquo,” she whispered, and moments later, she fell asleep.

  * * *

  A couple of days later, we all reveled in the celebration of two things: the harvest and the handfasting of Gwendelofar and Sigurd. Sid was still not well enough to join us. Most of the time she slept. I stayed by her side as much as I could, but joined the others for the wedding celebration.

  Gwendelofar was dressed splendidly. Aridmis had surprised us all a day earlier when she emerged from her house with a wedding gown to give to Gwendelofar.

  “I was my mother’s,” she’d told us. “I will never have the chance to wear it. My life is here. Wear it in good health,” she told Gwendelofar.

  “Oh, no! I cannot. One day maybe you—”

  Aridmis shook her head. “No, I will not. My life is here,” Aridmis repeated again with finality. From her words, we all understood that Aridmis knew her fate and was resigned to it.

  “Thank you,” Gwendelofar said, tears welling in her eyes.

  I stood with the others at the center of the coven, the fire burning brightly. We said our prayers and listened attentively while Epona performed the marriage rite. Near the end of the ceremony, Epona pulled out the same comb and mirror she had shown me, handing the comb to Gwendelofar and the mirror to Sigurd.

  “By the Lord and the Lady, exchange these tokens of marriage and become…not two in one union…but three. The earth is fertile,” Epona said.

  Sigurd handed the mirror to Gwendelofar.

  “And the seed is sewn,” Epona added.

  Gwendelofar handed the comb to Sigurd.

  Epona then pulled out a long cord of red ribbon. The couple held the marriage talismans as Epona wove the ribbon around their hands, beginning the wrap on Gwendelofar’s arm, circling until the ribbon was tightly wound on Sigurd’s arm.

  “I unite you. God and Goddess. Husband and Wife. Mother and Father,” Epona said, touching Gwendelofar’s stomach gently. “You are now one. In life and in spirit. May the great ones bless you.”

  “So mote it be!” we all called happily.

  “So mote it be,” Gwendelofar and Sigurd answered in unison, and then they kissed, sealing their wedlock.

  By the next morning, Gwendelofar and her husband had gone. Sigurd would take his wife and unborn child north to his small farm. In my heart, I wished her well. Fate, in the end, had been kind.

  Chapter 18

  In late September, we heard the sound of hooves coming toward the coven. Madelaine’s red hair shone through the trees, most of their leaves now fallen. Uald and I had been practicing at swordplay in the coven square while Sid watched on. Dressed in riding breeches and a night shirt cut off at the waist, I was a little embarrassed to have Madelaine see me. Not to mention, I was completely soaked in sweat.

  “Seems I’ve left my niece here too long already,” Madelaine said with a smile from atop her horse. “She’s a doppelganger of you!” she told Uald with a laugh.

  “Even worse,” Uald said. “She’s already better than me.”

  I slid the sword into its scabbard and crossed the lawn to join my aunt. I smiled at Uald’s compliment. It was an elaboration, but my daily sparring had improved a lot. I was getting good. I held Madelaine’s horse’s bridle while she dismounted. She practically leapt from her horse, catching me into a fast hug, squeezing and kissing me.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she told me.

  “Me too,” I replied, kissing her cheek.

  Madelaine cupped my face in her hands and studied me. “How beautiful you are.”

  I smiled back at her then turned to Sid. “Madelaine, have you met Sid?” I asked, turning to Sid who had, apparently, been talking to Nadia. When I said her name, Sid ended her conversation with the invisible fairy woman, frowning at her with annoyance.

  Sid smiled. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

  Madelaine took Sid’s hand and smiled at her, but I saw Madelaine’s brow furrow as though she was puzzled. “Have we met before?”

  Sid smiled knowingly. “No, we haven’t.” Sid then frowned and shushed Nadia. “Not now,” she whispered to her invisible companion.

  Madelaine looked puzzled.

  “Epona is out riding,” I said. “She should be back soon.”

  Uald, also drenched in sweat, caught Madelaine up in her arms, lifting her off the ground.

  Madelaine laughed loudly. “Put me down!”

  Sid then fell into an argument with Nadia. The fight ended when Sid sighed loudly. “I’ll be back soon,” Sid told me then headed off into the woods.


  “Come. We’ll wait for Epona,” Uald said, motioning to her little home at the back of the smithy. I tied Madelaine’s horse to a post then followed Uald inside.

  Uald slid her tools into a box, wiping the table clean with her hands, then motioned for us to sit while she poured us both an ale.

  “There is much to say,” Madelaine intimated with a serious look on her face. She took my hands. “Alister is dead, and I have been remarried.”

  Uald’s slammed the mugs down angrily. Ale sloshed over the top. “They treat you like a common whore, pushing you on one man and then another.”

  Madelaine looked at her with soft eyes. “It is the way of things.”

  “To whom are you married?” I asked.

  “To the Mormaer of Fife. He is an old man, kind and sweet, enamored with his new, young wife.”

  I smiled and squeezed Madelaine’s hands. Alister was dead. My vision was true. He was dead. And I had killed him. I had released Madelaine from her pain and punished a man most deserving of punishment.

  “So Fife and Lothian are now locked,” Uald grunted as she threw herself into a chair. She propped her feet up on the table and drank deeply from her mug.

  Madelaine nodded.

  “Who made the marriage match?” Uald asked.

  “King Malcolm,” Madelaine said, “and he asked after you, Corbie.”

  It took me a moment to respond to that name.

  “Ah, you would no longer be Corbie, would you? What do they call you now, my sweet?”

  “Cerridwen.”

  Madelaine thought it over. “A dark goddess. It fits you. Your father would be proud,” she said with a smile.

  The thought that my father would be proud of me made me smile, but the notion that the King was making inquiries had made my heart beat faster, and worry gripped my stomach. “What did King Malcolm ask?”

  “He asked your age, your looks, your welfare, and your whereabouts.”

  “He’s considering marrying her off too?” Uald hissed.

  “He’s planning.”

  “Did you see Duncan?”

  Madelaine nodded. “He’s fair-haired and gangly. I’m not sure there is much of a mind rattling behind those eyes. His mother was always dim-witted. I don’t see any of the MacAlpin blood in the boy.”

  Duncan was not the black-haired man I had seen in my cauldron, then. I had wondered, given it was known Duncan was slated to be king, if he was mystery phantom who’d haunted my visions. But if the raven-haired man wasn’t Duncan, who was he?

  “I’m glad your new husband is kind,” I told Madelaine and shifted, unsure how to broach a new topic but wanting badly to interrupt the last. “Aunt, there has been an inquiry for my hand in marriage.”

  “An inquiry? How? From who?”

  Uald smiled smugly but lifted her mug of ale so Madelaine wouldn’t see.

  “A druid…a young man who visited here. I was quite taken with him. He will be the Thane of Lochaber. He has asked that he be considered.”

  “You told him who you were?” Madelaine looked alarmed.

  I shook my head. “Only that I am from a noble house, like him.” I smiled as I thought about Banquo. If the marriage could be arranged, I could travel to Lochaber with Banquo after Samhain.

  Madelaine smiled softly. “You are young, my dear. At your age, the flame of love can fan quickly. There are many lords who are inquiring for your hand. And many lords with titles far above Thane of Lochaber.”

  I frowned at Madelaine’s words. I was young, and Banquo and I had just met, but that didn’t mean what I felt wasn’t real. “It is a noble and powerful house.”

  “Ruled over by Gillacoemgain, Mormaer of Moray, who is also unwed and has begun making inquiries. I don’t know Malcolm’s plans, but there is great strife in the north. Thorfinn the Mighty, as they call him, is gaining power over the northern-most provinces but is backed by Norway. Something will be done to quell him, by war or marriage.

  She took a drink and continued, “And Thorfinn fosters Lord Macbeth, your cousin Donalda’s son. With Macbeth’s father dead, at the hands of the Mormaer of Moray mind you, he too holds sway in the north. The matter is desperately convoluted.

  “But what I know for sure is that Duncan, Macbeth, Thorfinn, and Gillacoemgain are all unwed. All four have a claim on the north. All four would be a strong marriage match for the daughter of Boite. And all four would rule over the Thane of Lochaber.”

  “But…I love him.” It was true. I did love Banquo. He was my soulmate.

  “What is his name, this druid who has charmed you?”

  “Banquo.”

  Madelaine looked at Uald who was smirking. “Well?”

  “He is a good lad, and he is a druid. And he bears the marks of the stag god. He is well-suited for this dark goddess, and the two of them would be a stronghold for our faith. Ignore the duties of your line and follow the duties of your religion. Move Malcolm. Convince him on the match. Cerridwen is right. Lochaber is a strong province and a good ally. Perhaps the king would consider it since love is involved.”

  “Malcolm is not moved by sentiment.”

  “Let Malcolm take the north by force. Lochaber could stand with him and raise the isles, their ally, to Malcolm’s banner.”

  Madelaine looked thoughtful. “He doesn’t know who you are? You are certain?”

  I nodded.

  “That helps. Malcolm has enough of the old blood in him to hear me out. He knows where you truly are. He will understand how you and this Banquo came together. I will do what I can. Lochaber has always been friendly to our line. Their Thane would want the marriage for his son, but I cannot promise anything. My Little Corbie, you must realize you are the last gem in Malcolm’s treasure chest, the last little bird he can marry off to win him an alliance. You must not get your hopes up, but I will do my best.”

  I sighed heavily.

  Madelaine took my hands and smiled gently at me. And I realized, for the first time in my remembrance, no ghosts lived behind her eyes. I saw no bruises anywhere on her. It was finally over. I was happy for her, but I worried for myself. Surely, Banquo and I were meant to be together. Nothing could stand in the way of such old soul magic, could it?

  Epona arrived a few hours later. Madelaine shared her news with her.

  “I will be moving my household to Fife. Malcolm will put someone from Alister’s line in place. I won’t be far, but when you return, you will come to Fife.”

  “So the Thane of Fife has another wife,” Epona said. “His history with his brides is not good.”

  “I am his fifth wife, but he is not Alister. I quizzed the household women hard on the matter. All the others died in childbirth, by accident, or in sickness. There were no questions, just misfortune. The Thane is a fat old man looking for a pretty woman to sit beside him and tell him jokes. He has done his duty in the bedroom once or twice but doesn’t seek it. He is in his gray years. He seeks a companion.”

  “Speaking of? What of Tavis?” I asked.

  “He is part of my household. He will accompany me to Fife.”

  I smiled. I was so glad.

  It was late in the evening when Madelaine finally took our leave.

  “I promise you I will inquire as soon as I can on this matter with Lochaber,” she told me.

  I kissed Madelaine on the cheek then buried my nose in her hair. I had missed her smell; she smelled like hyacinths and home.

  “I love you,” she whispered.

  “I love you too,” I replied.

  Madelaine, accompanied by Uald, who would journey with her to the stream, rode out of the coven.

  I sent a silent prayer out to the Goddess: let the King be swayed. Let me marry the Thane of Lochaber.

  The only reply I got in return was silence.

  Chapter 19

  Fall drifted away. The hills turned purple with heather and then back to a dingy brown. It was not long before the cold winter winds began to whip. The fresh fruits and vegetables disappeared f
rom our table and were replaced by potted foods, meats, and breads.

  At the end of October, we began preparing for the Samhain celebration, and I began counting the days until Banquo returned. There had been no word from Madelaine. I didn’t know if she’d yet spoken to Malcolm. A holiday for dark magic, Samhain marked the eve when the veil between the worlds would be the thinnest. And it was the night most sacred to the dark goddesses. I waited on Samhain, but the days before dragged on with excruciating slowness.

  “How did you stand living in the castle? If I spend even a few days walled up I begin to feel my mind slip,” Sid complained as she paced her room one evening.

  “I didn’t think about it much, and I had Madelaine to entertain me.”

  “Mad Elaine, Mad Elaine, ever full of life. Let’s pass the time. Want to learn how to send a casting? I know you’ve done it before, but you can never practice too much, Raven Beak.”

  I nodded.

  “Then lie down,” she said and crawled onto her bed. She grinned at me.

  I smirked at Sid. We’d never said anything about what had passed between us. Sid acted as if nothing unusual had happened, but I’d begun to see her in a different light. I adored her, and she was intimately tied to Banquo, whom I loved. I wanted to marry Banquo, to be his bride, to bear his children. I wanted to rule Lochaber at his side. With Sid, I just wanted to be with her. We belonged together, her and me and Banquo. The three of us. When Sid lay down, I felt a strong urge to touch her, to put my lips and hands on her, to feel that wild energy inside her. To feel her. When I thought about it, I wondered about the deep affection I saw between Uald and Madelaine, and wondered if it was similar.

  “Not now,” Sid said with a grin. “Lie down and learn something.”

  “I’m fairly certain I learned a few things the last time I lay down on this bed,” I said with a wink.

  Sid laughed, reached over, and pinched me. “Pay attention, Raven Beak. What you must do is lift out of your body. Rise up without moving a muscle. You will have complete control of where you go. You will not be at the whim of chance. I’ve seen you do it before. Go ahead and try.”