Faerie Tale (15 page)

She nodded; it was what she had been trying to tell him. 

Eventually, though, Denny thought he had got enough to begin researching the runes.  The results were surprising even by their standards.  

~ Chapter Nineteen ~

L
ong ago there lived an ancient race of peoples known as the Tuatha De Danann.  These were the people of the god Leir who inhabited the world before the coming of man. When the men arrived, they battled the Tuatha De Danann and forced them to retreat underground where they are believed to have lived in hollowed out hills.

Their descendants became known as the Sidhe. 

Leir, on returning to the world of men, saw the descendants of his people and was ashamed for they had become feckless and cruel.

So, he took the four great treasures of the Tuatha De Danann, the Spear of Lugh, the Stone of Fal and the Sword of Nuada and the Dagda’s Cauldron and he melted the spear and the sword in the cauldron and forged a gauntlet by plunging his living hand into the molten metal and in his palm was the stone.  As the metal cooled, all Leir’s power was transferred into the stone through the steel.  And he wrote upon the gauntlet he had made. 
Anelivinge man who bareth this steel shalle be thee Avatar of thee great Leir that his powere on earthe shalle nevere bee loste.*

*[
Leir’s spelling was terrible.  All gods are like this.  If it’s them writing it then it must be right, right? This explains a lot about “Olde Englishe”
]

For he knew already that the power of the old gods was waning on earth, his people were all gone and all that were left were the Sidhe who he utterly rejected.  And so he chose Humankind to receive his power and charged them that they must rid the world of the Sidhe. And the first to wear the gauntlet was Oman, Chief of the Gaels – sons of Mil, also known as Milesians.  And in time the gauntlet passed to the druids, and the witch clans also had their custody of the power of Leir, and the Sidhe were defeated – for a time.

Then time passed, and knowledge was lost, and the gauntlet of Leir passed into the unknown and was forgotten.  And the Sidhe returned, and they were angry. 

Denny clapped Stiles on the back.  ‘Congratulations mate,’ he said heartily.  ‘Your first time out and you’ve made god.’

He looked slyly at Stiles and added.  ‘But of course, you knew that already didn’t you?’

The others looked questioningly at Stiles. 

He shrugged.  ‘I had an idea,’ he admitted.  ‘I can feel his thoughts – sort of, but I can’t make head nor tail of them mostly.’  He looked at Denny apprehensively.  ‘You don’t mind?’ he asked.

‘Mind?’ said Denny perplexed.  ‘Why should I mind – Oh, I see, because I’m only a ….  Well, whatever I am.  No I don’t mind.’

‘He has the power of a Djinn,’ said Tamar.  ‘Dependant on no one. He’s still more powerful than you are even if it doesn’t sound as good.’ 

‘I wasn’t going to say anything,’ said Denny.  ‘It seemed – tactless.’  And he glared at Tamar.

‘Yes,’ she said unconcernedly.  ‘It’s in bad taste to gloat, but that’s why I did it
for
you.  Sometimes things just need putting in perspective.’

‘Shut up,’

‘Yes Master … oops.’

Stiles raised an eyebrow but said nothing. 

‘How does it work then?’ asked Cindy getting them back on track. 

Stiles hesitated.  ‘I
think
it’s connected to my brain through the central nervous system,’ he said.  ‘When I put it on, I could feel it spreading through me – really weird feeling, by the way – anyway, I just have to think something and the gauntlet does it.’

‘Your mind relays the instructions to the gauntlet?’ said Denny.

‘Yes,
I’m
not doing anything, it’s the gauntlet that does it, I just tell it what to do.  It’s borrowed power. I won’t live forever, and when I die the gauntlet will come off ready to be passed on.’

‘An Avatar,’ said Tamar.  ‘That’s not the same as being a god then?’

‘It means that he’s the personification of a god, or the
idea
of a god,’ said Denny.

‘I am the living embodiment of the concept of belief that was the god Leir,’ said Stiles somewhat pompously.  ‘I have the powers attributed to him and the memories, although they are somewhat nebulous, of his time as a sentient being, before he died.’

‘In other words,’ said Denny, translating. ‘Leir’s in there somewhere.’

‘I am me, and also him,’ said Stiles.

 ‘Then he isn’t dead, is he?’ said Cindy. ‘Not really. He found a way to carry on.’

‘Can you control it – him, I mean?’ said Tamar.

‘It’s not like that,’ said Stiles.  ‘I’m not a split personality.  Leir’s aims in passing on his power were not selfish.  I just remember him. He’s not me – or I’m not him – whatever.’

He turned to Denny.  ‘Help me out here,’ he said.  ‘I know
you
understand.  When you took the Athame, you got the powers of the demon, but you were still
you
, right?’

‘No,’ said Denny.

‘Oh, that’s right,’ said Stiles temporarily derailed.

‘And was it you or Leir that tried to stop us from finding all this out?’ said Tamar suspiciously.

‘It was the gauntlet itself,’ said Stiles, ‘protecting itself.’ 

‘But I thought it took it’s instructions from you,’ she countered.  ‘And why didn’t you tell us yourself about all this?’ she continued mercilessly.

‘I don’t know,’ he said weakly.  ‘I just
couldn’t
tell you for some reason.  I felt peculiarly inhibited about it, like it was this big secret.’  He brightened up a little. ‘But it’s okay now that you know.’

Tamar shook her head.  ‘How do we even know it’s
you
we’re talking to now?’ she said.

‘You’ll just have to trust me,’ said Stiles desperately.

Tamar looked sadly at him.  ‘We can’t,’ she said.

* * *

The whole gang was in a hitherto unknown state of discord.  Denny was still angry with Tamar, with Stiles too, and not for hiding his new power either.  He had forgiven them both for what had happened in the woods of course, but it rankled.  What made it worse was their uncertainty at the time about whether or not it had been real.  They should have
known
.

He was also being rather cold with Hecaté, although he knew that this was unfair.  But he could not bring himself to talk to her in case he lost his temper and everyone found out.  That it was important that no one knew, was something that Denny felt strongly about, but, if pushed, he could not have said why.

Tamar was frustrated with Denny, why could he not
understand?
 She also had an unsettling feeling that he had not forgiven her for her indiscretion with Stiles in the woods, even though it was not her fault.  Certain remarks that he had made, in his anger over the fact that she had become a Djinn again, had made her fear that he was indulging a belief that she had more than friendly feelings for Stiles. That he had not forgiven her, or perhaps no longer trusted her. 

No one in the house trusted Stiles at the moment. He had told too many lies recently and had received a considerable power boost, the effects of which were still unclear. Who knew what he might do, or even if he were still himself.

Even Hecaté was uncertain of him; he was not acting like himself even with her.  She also felt terribly guilty every time she met Denny’s eye and was hurt by the way he was treating her, hurt and angry.  How dare he make her feel like this? 

Stiles himself was feeling isolated and uneasy. It seemed that he had paid a high price for his new abilities.  The others could have told him that it was always so.  Not that he blamed them for being cautious.  As, he believed, the world’s most suspicious man, he himself would have done no less.  But still … surely a
little
support and understanding would not have been too much to ask.  Instead, it seemed they had deserted him and he was left feeling angry and resentful.

As for Cindy, she was not unaware of the tensions swirling around her and, even though she was the only one in the house that no one was angry with or wary of, it was having its effect on her.  She herself was annoyed with everyone, because no one would tell her what the hell was going on. 

She sensed that, although they had all come to terms with Jacky, they were still uncertain of him.  And no one seemed to care that her real child was still missing.  They were too busy worrying about other things.  Things that they apparently did not care to share with her. 

She had always felt the least important in the gang. The least liked or respected and the least needed.  The one who, if she disappeared, would not be missed, at least not much. 

Denny treated her with bare tolerance or at best distant courtesy (the best of a bad bunch, she thought, and yet he hurt her the most for some reason).  Tamar ignored her, and they all thought she was too stupid to be borne at times.

She had never really analysed these feelings before. She had thought she was unhappy because Eugene had left her alone.  But now that things were so bad around here, she had had time to think.  Eugene had
not
left her alone; he had left her with a whole mob of people who were supposed to be her friends – and she was still alone. 

 Cindy made up her mind.  She lifted the changeling out of his cot.  ‘Come on Kiddo,’ she said.  ‘Let’s get out of here,’

The changeling gurgled happily and wrapped chubby arms around her neck. 

‘At least there’s still
one
person around here who loves me,’ thought Cindy. 

And, although she would have died before she admitted it, she was not so much thinking of Eugene as of Denny. 

~ Chapter Twenty ~

I
t had been a week since they had returned and there was still no sign of Tamar’s plan – if she had even had one beyond making sure that no one died. 

The Faerie Queen was known to have rebuilt her palace and was presiding over a reign of terror from there, and still Tamar did nothing. 

There was the question now, of course, of how Stiles’s new powers could be factored in.  As Denny had pointed out, they had gone to the abandoned gypsy camp in hopes of finding something that might help, knowing full well that Finvarra had used their power and he had had control of the portal stones.  But it had to be admitted that what they had had in mind was something more along the lines of something to use on the stones instead of witch (or as it turned out druid) blood.

There was an unspoken decision among all of them not to engage the Faeries again until they had something pretty solid to use against them.  Something, in fact, that could not fail.

There was nothing.  Unless it turned out that Stiles’s new powers were the key and they could not be sure of that yet. 

And they were safe here for the time being …

There was a scuffle in the hall. A bewildered Faerie had broken in and found itself facing the kind of odds that Faeries tried to avoid i.e. one person but with a sword and in a very bad temper. 

Tamar waved the sword threateningly at the Faerie, and it backed nervously toward the door.  Denny watching over the banister thought it looked rather foxy faced although it was clearly trying hard to look better.  It put Denny in mind of the Queen.

It was having no effect on Tamar, even though it did look rather like Denny. Finally, it gave up and fled out the door.  Tamar pursued it. It stood on the step shaking and gasping. Tamar did not move for a second, and the Faerie asked.  ‘You’re just going to let me go?’

‘No,’ said Tamar.  ‘I just didn’t want you to bleed on the carpet.’  And she struck. 

Denny looked thoughtful as he walked back up the stairs unobserved. 

‘Denny’s in a pretty bad mood these days,’ said Stiles coming up behind her.’

‘Yes,’ said Tamar, ‘well.’  She did not turn round.

Stiles nodded.  ‘I know you don’t trust me anymore,’ he said.  ‘But I think you should listen to me anyway.’

Tamar turned round slowly.  ‘Okay then,’ she said.  ‘What?’

Stiles nodded as if she had just answered a question.  ‘Thought so,’ he said.

Tamar frowned.  ‘What are you talking about?’ she snapped.

Denny called Tamar from up the stairs, and she instantly made to go. 

‘That,’ said Stiles.  ‘You
have
to go don’t you?’

‘Denny wants me,’ she said evasively.

‘And he’s the Master now,’ agreed Stiles. ‘I
am
a policeman,’ he added in answer to her wary expression. ‘I notice things.’  He lifted his hands.  ‘No freaky powers I promise, I had my suspicions before I ever got …  “Avatared” and well …’ he took her unresisting arm gently. ‘Looks like I’m not the only one to have recently acquired some new wrist-wear.  He drew back her sleeve as Denny had done to reveal the manacle.

‘
Tamar
.’

‘Yes
Master?
’ said Stiles.  ‘That was a bit of a giveaway you know.’

Still Tamar said nothing. 

Denny came bounding down the stairs ‘Tam … oh!’ he stopped short as he took in the scene.  ‘She can’t tell you about it,’ he said to Stiles.  ‘I – um – told her not to.’  He had the grace to look embarrassed about this, so Stiles did not comment.  He just
looked
.

‘Why?’ he said.

‘It doesn’t matter now,’ said Denny.  ‘I didn’t want Cindy to know either.’  He felt this was a point worth making – there was enough bad feeling around as it was. ‘Where
is
Cindy anyway?’ he added.  ‘I haven’t seen her all day.’

‘Sulking in her room,’ said Stiles dismissively. ‘Don’t change the subject.’

‘Cindy doesn’t sulk,’ said Tamar obediently.

‘Anyway, she always comes down at one to feed the … Jacky,’ said Denny and it’s nearly two.’

Stiles was being tag-teamed by them, and he knew it.  He gave it one last try.  ‘This is
me
guys,’ he said.  ‘I promise.  Please just tell me what’s going on.’

Denny sighed. ‘Think about it mate,’ he said.  And Stiles smiled in relief at the re-introduction of this familiarity.