Chapter 84
Charlie POV
Mrs Shapiro’s funeral was beautiful, I was a little nervous, having never attended a Jewish funeral before, or a funeral of any kind, but Daniel was my rock. After the service, Mr and Mrs Lowenstein had people come back to Mrs Shapiro’s apartment. We stayed for a while, but I was getting a little uncomfortable with the attention people were paying me, and Daniel was struggling to move his massive frame around the crowded apartment. So, after saying goodbye to Mr and Mrs Lowenstein, and explaining we had a work trip, we headed back to my apartment so I could pack. All too soon we left to catch our plane, Daniel already had his bag in his car when we left for the funeral, and a whole new round of nerves struck me. Daniel did his best to reassure me but meeting the queen of the witches was making me antsy, I didn’t want to embarrass him by saying the wrong thing or create an incident between the Lycans and the witches.
“It will be fine, I left word with Hyacinth we would be arriving tomorrow, and I told her a little about you. She’s looking forward to meeting you, and despite her sometimes, frosty demeanour, she is a nice person, who doesn’t take offence easily. So, stop worrying.” He said with a smile as we took our seats on the plane.
“I just don’t want to say something stupid, or worse, have my powers manifest and scare anyone there,” I whispered, keenly aware of the people around us.
“Everything will be fine I promise.” He said as he kissed my hand softly.
“What did the team looking for the intruder find out?” I asked, desperate to take my mind off causing an international inter-species incident.
“They should be emailing through their report at any moment, we can read it together once we are in the air.” He said with a smile, I could tell he thought my interest was another sign I would be a good Luna, but in my mind, I just wanted to know if we would be safe to stay in the house when we returned.
“What about the other men who were arrested, weren’t you supposed to go see them before we left?” I asked, clutching at straws, desperate to calm myself as the plane began its ascent.
“I was, I asked my father to interrogate them instead, my place is next to you, and you needed me more.” He said he kissed my hand again, his attempt to calm my frazzled nerves.
“Did they say anything useful? I asked, curious, but also, I wanted it to be over, for Daniel’s sake.
“Not yet, but after what the purple-eyed woman said about not believing anything Pratt says, I’m not holding my breath. I’m more worried about everyone else, the pack has been thrown into chaos, high-standing elders being arrested, and now with us leaving, I’m going to have my work cut out for me returning things to normal when we get back.” He said sadly, his hand squeezed mine, and I realised, his attempts at calming my nerves were a distraction from his own.
“I’m also a little nervous about going to a different country. I’ve only ever been with my mother, and they were road trips. I’ve never been to the UK before.” I admitted quietly.
“Actually, we are only changing flights in the UK before going to Ireland, which is separate, only Northern Ireland is part of the UK, we are going Cork, which is in the South. The time difference is the hardest thing to get your head around, and the language, don’t be surprised or offended if they poke fun at us a little. They have some strong opinions about how we use the English language. Oh, and they drive on the opposite side of the road to us.” Daniel explained which made me chuckle.
“I have seen British TV before; I think I’ll be alright,” I said, I was starting to feel a little better. “But I don’t understand why Hyacinth would settle there, there must be a million places she could have travelled to other than, Ireland?” I asked, curious about what made her choose there.
“There is a long history of the Fae and witches in the UK, dating back to the Druids and the Celts. There are still communities in Ireland and Scotland that tell stories about the Fae, or Sidhe, mostly because unknown to them a lot of people have Fae ancestry, but so many generations back they no longer have the ability to channel any of the magic. Hyacinth was born in Ireland but has lived all over the world and after the destruction two world wars had on witches and warlocks, she created a community where any of her people could come to and be safe.” He explained we had finally reached cruising altitude and the captain turned the seatbelt sign off, allowing everyone to turn on their devices and use the plane’s Wi-Fi. I noticed several businessmen in suits eagerly retrieving their laptops once the cabin crew gave the all-clear. Daniel retrieved his own laptop and began scanning his emails for the reports he was expecting.
“How old is Hyacinth exactly, you said she saw the destruction the wars had on her people, do you mean the aftereffect?” I asked desperate to learn as much as possible.
“I’m not sure, she told me she was over a hundred years old but, it’s anyone’s guess really.” He replied distracted by the many emails he had received. I decided to pull out my own laptop and do some more research, our flight to London would take roughly nine hours. Daniel had intentionally kept people in the dark about our final destination per Hyacinth’s request but had told me while I was packing. It was a good thing I got my passport renewed after college; I entertained the idea of studying abroad during post-grad but changed my mind after I saw the cost. I couldn’t ask my mother to sacrifice anymore just for me to travel and I didn’t want to take out any more loans than I had to.
I was overwhelmed by information by the time the cabin crew brought us our dinner, I had no idea Ireland had so much Fae history, or that they had protected lands thought to be inhabited by the Fae. It made perfect sense to me now why Hyacinth chose to create a community there, but with so much information and questions I wanted answers to I felt more anxious than before.
“What are you thinking about?” Daniel asked me after we had finished our food, the amenities in first class were worlds apart from the economy class I had always flown before.
“I had no idea the Fae history was so prominent in other countries; I feel like I’ve fallen down the rabbit hole.” I only half joked.
“I know what you mean, when I heard the rumours about Hyacinth and where she was, I couldn’t understand why she would choose to settle somewhere with so much Fae history. But it makes sense in its own strange way, any accidents or wayward magic could be explained away as the work of the Sidhe, and where better to hide than under everyone’s noses?” Daniel pointed out.
“Yeah, but today, with technology being what it is, everyone has a camera at their fingertips, and CCTV, how have so many species stayed hidden?” I asked.
“Practise mostly. We’ve always banded together, lived in packs, covens, whatever, and avoided humans as much as possible. As technology advanced, we learned to work within the human world, but remain apart from it. Applewood wasn’t even recognised by the census until recently, Hyacinth has the added benefit of being able to use magic to keep humans away. Of course, those who believe in the Fae avoid the witch’s hideout too for fear of incurring the wrath of the Sidhe.” Daniel explained, I felt like the more I learned the more confused I got.
“Where did the Fae come from?” I asked, I hadn’t found anything definitive in my research.
“I can only tell you what my mother told us, her great-grandmother was a Fae, and she told my mother stories when she was a girl. She said that a great goddess looked at the world and cried tears of joy at its beauty, this was before humans had ravaged the lands when nature ruled, and everything was green. Her tears full of magic, became the rivers and streams across the lands, but they were alive with spirits, who then began inhabiting the trees and plants they nourished. The goddess returned to visit her children, seeing how they had protected the lands she rewarded them with bodies, and the nymphs were born. The goddess left, intrusting the earth to her children, but when she returned a second time, many of the plants and animals the nymphs were supposed to protect were no more, they had become distracted by all the pleasures their new bodies allowed. Disappointed by her children’s failure, she once again cried, over a field of roses that had perished, her magic renewed the dying flowers, and within each new bud was a new creature, the Fae. The goddess instructed them to protect the earth, its plants and animals, and to mate and populate the lands with their children, she made them extremely fertile in the hopes their numbers would be innumerable. The nymphs, jealous of the Fae and the gifts they had received from the goddess, made mankind, who quickly spread over the lands, and the gifts the goddess had given the Fae became their downfall. They lay with the Lycans, nymphs, humans, anyone and everyone, diluting their own gifts and bloodlines until they were no more. The witches are the descendants who can still access part of the ancient magic, but only with the aid of a focusing tool, usually a crystal or a precious stone. Hyacinth uses a staff as you saw in your dream, with a fluorite crystal at the tip, it’s extremely impressive up close.” He added with a chuckle.
“Okay,” I murmured, mulling over everything he had told me. “Where is your great, great, grandmother? If Hyacinth is only part Fae and over a hundred years old, surely a full-blooded Fae would live longer, why can’t we go to her?” I knew I could be opening a can of worms, but I needed to know.
“If you believe my mother, she uses her magic to return to nature, whatever that means, when my great, great, grandfather died.” Daniel replied with a shrug.
“Do you remember her?” I asked quietly, mindful that it could be painful for him.
“No, I never met her, the last anyone saw of her was my mother’s Luna ceremony. But enough about that, we should get some rest, it’s going to be a busy few days once we land and you will be grateful for any and all the rest you can get. Plus, the jet lag is easier to deal with if you have a decent sleep before you’re thrown into a different time zone.” He explained with a kiss.
“What if I can’t sleep?” I whispered.
“Mile high club?” He teased with a smirk.
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