Page 19 of The Highlander's Alluring Spy
Hand-in-hand, Elaine and Magnolia walked together across the tended grass towards the wilder parts of the boundaries, where the back of the castle met the forest. It was the opposite direction from the castle than the village. In the whole week that Magnolia had been here, she had never once wandered in this direction.
“What did you want to show me, Elaine?” she asked her charge, glancing back at the castle. She had the oddest feeling she was going somewhere she wasn’t supposed to, even though they were still on castle grounds.
Elaine pulled her hand and gestured for her to follow. Eventually, when they were close to the forest, Elaine pointed to a little hillock where they could sit and look into the woods without actually crossing the boundary.
Magnolia laid the blanket on the mound as requested, and the two sat together. Elaine beckoned her close and spoke so quietly that Magnolia had to practically put her ear next to the little girl’s mouth.
“Dae ye ken about the Fair Folk, Maggie?” she asked.
Magnolia frowned, leaning back from her a little and speaking at an average volume. “The Fair Folk?”
Elaine nodded seriously. “There’s a lot o’ them. They’re magic creatures that ye shouldnae mess wi’, or ye’ll get spirited away into their world. Some a’ them are kind enough, and some are naughty, but ye shouldnae get involved wi’ either, nae unless ye really ken how to communicate wi’ them.”
“Oh!” Magnolia said. Old wives’ tales of Cornish pixies and the terrifying tale her Northumbrian nanny used to tell about the Red Cap came flooding into her mind. “You mean faeri—"
Elaine quickly put her little hand over Magnolia’s mouth, stopping her from finishing the word. The child looked genuinely alarmed, her gray eyes wide with fear. “Are ye mad? Dinnae say that word so close tae the forest! They dinnae like being called that, at least they dinnae where they can hear us dae it. Ye need to be mair careful, Maggie.”
Magnolia could see how seriously the girl was taking this, so she didn’t laugh. Instead, she nodded. “I apologize,” she said seriously. “The Fair Folk, then. Yes, we have some in England, too, at least up north. I’ve never met one. I’m not so sure they visit us so far South.”
Elaine gave her a pitying look. “This forest is filled wi’ the Fair Folk,” she explained. “Ye need to ken a’ about them if ye’re to live here wi’ us.”
“I know some,” Magnolia told her. “I know that many are wicked and wish only to trick and damage humans.”
“Aye, they’re the Unseelie,” Elaine said wisely. “They arenae evil, but they can be right malicious. They’ll bite ye as soon as look at ye. An’ then there are the scary ones who might frighten ye, but dinnae want tae hurt ye. But there are good wee folk, too, the Seelie folk. They’re still mischievous, but they just want to help and love nature.”
“Like pixies?” Magnolia asked her.
“Aye, like the heather-pixies and like the wee brownies that help out in exchange for some milk and bread. An’ there’s a difference between the wee Fair Folk and their royalty, too.”
Magnolia leaned forward, fascinated. “Oh? Do they have Lairds like your Father among the Fair Folk?”
“Och, aye, and kings and queens besides. Their nobles are called theAos Sith,and they’ve got a connection wi’ nature that we humans cannae understand. They live in another world that lives on top of ours. Believe it or nae, one of the entrances to it is in that forest.” Elaine pointed to the trees.
Magnolia shivered, imagining a tall, stunningly beautiful creature with magic she did not know existing among the trees. “Why are you telling me about this?” she asked.
Elaine thought about it for a moment. “Ye said yer Maither’s namewasEleanor. Is she deid?”
Magnolia swallowed. It had been over ten years since her mother’s death, but she still felt it in her heart at those words all the same. “Yes,” she said sadly. “I loved my Mother very much, but she died when I was just fifteen years old. Why do you ask?”
“My Mamaidh is deid too,” Elaine said, sounding much more lighthearted than a child should when she said such a thing. “It still makes my Dadaidh sad sometimes. I never knew Mamaidh, but I still love her very much. She died when I was born.”
Though she’d suspected as much, Magnolia couldn’t help but feel an ache of sorrow at such a tragic loss. “I’m very sorry to hear that.”
“It’s a’right. If I ever miss her, I just come here. That’s why I’m telling ye about the Fair Folk, Maggie. Ye seem sad, and when I’m sad, they always cheer me up.”
A smile played on Magnolia’s lips. “Oh yes?” she asked. “How so?”
“Well, before me Mamaidh died, she saw one of theAos Sithin those woods,” Elaine told her. “It was a huge honor, and she told my Dadaidh all about it. She wandered deep intae the forest to where the big pond is an’ she found theBean Nighewashing some of her ol’ clothes that she’d thought were lost. She was sad because she kenned what that meant, but theBean Nighetold her to come closer, and she’d give her knowledge.”
“What’s abe-an nee-yeh?”Magnolia asked, proud at how well she managed to copy the pronunciation. “One of theEes Shee,you said?”
“Aye, that’s right. She’s a kind ofBean Sith.They’re Sith ladies that sing when they predict a death in the family. TheBean Nigheonly appears and washes the clothes of those who are gonnae die in violence, so Mamaidh was scared, but she asked for her fortune anyway.” Elaine sounded much older than just four when she spoke, staring out into the forest as though she could see all of this happening.
Magnolia was spellbound. “Aban-shee,” she repeated. She thought she’d heard tales of those, perhaps from Irish visitors with similar legends. “I see. So what did theBean Nighetell your Mother?”
“She told her tha’ she was gonnae die when I was born, but that I’d be healthy and tha’ because she was so good, her spirit could join them in the Otherworld when she was finally free o’ her Earthly bonds.”
“So Mamaidh left the forest and wore only green until the day I was born an’ she died, ready to go on to the Otherworld.” Elaine turned to look at Magnolia again. “But I think she’s still stuck in the forest, and nae yet has she gone on to the world o’ the Sith. I think it’s because Daidaidh is sad.”
