Silver Dew (19 page)

Sebastian slowly sat up, pulling me along with him. And despite the absolutely breath-taking starlit sky and the night full of magic and wonders around us, I could look nowhere but at him. His expression was tender but serious, his eyes full of emotions so complex there were no words that existed to describe them. He reached out to take both my hands in his. I was surprised and confused to notice the slight tremble to his touch.

“I love how important family is to you, despite the way your own has treated you. I love how you try to see the good in everyone and how unconditional your love is, once earned.” He squeezed my hands tightly as his voice ever-so-slightly trembled. “I know how much your father’s approval means to you still, and that’s why I waited until I could do this with his permission. So that I could ask you properly, as you requested.”

I watched in wonder as he let go of my hands and reached into his jeans pocket. My mind wasn’t really processing what he was saying and what he was doing until he pulled out the tiny, shimmering, silver ring.

He held it before me almost uncertainly, his eyes studying every expression on my face.

I stared at the ring in complete shock. It was beautiful. It was a thin, silver band that twisted in and around itself to form a simple yet beautiful Celtic love knot, almost identical in design to the ring that I already wore but this one was smaller, more delicate and definitely more feminine. Several small diamonds were trapped within the twists of the knot, sparkling as brightly as the stars in the heavens above as they appeared to be braided into the ring’s intricate twists.

My heart pounded in my chest, my breath caught in my throat, my hands began to tremble as the night wind slowly rose and swelled, stirring my hair and sending shivers down my spine. The ancient magic in the air swirled all around me, rushing through my heart and soul and bringing shimmering tears to my eyes.

I met Sebastian’s gaze and a sudden calm settled over me. I could see the thousands of words on his lips, the millions of promises in his eyes as he took a slow, shaky breath and reached for my hand.

“Marry me?”

Those two simple words conveyed a thousand different things. The world hung on my response, the night suddenly silent, the wind still, the stars pausing in their flickering. Sebastian seemed to be holding his breath.

Wordlessly, I slid his heavy, amber ring off my finger and carefully handed it back to him. There was only one possible answer. And as I spoke the word, I felt it carry through the air on an ancient magic, older and quite possibly more powerful than our own. The word reverberated from my lips throughout The Giant’s Ring, my solemn vow witnessed by the sky, the earth, the air.

“Yes.”

Shooting stars exploded throughout the sky, a sudden warm gust of wind swirled around us and spiraled up to the heavens, catching and intertwining our breaths. And Sebastian’s joyful laugh joined my own as he slid the beautiful silver band onto my finger and we tumbled to the ground in each other’s arms, the magic of The Giant’s Ring and the night itself, alive and flowing through us both.

Chapter Eight – Mistaken

Sebastian and I spent most of the night talking, our discussions ranging from idle to intense. Despite the seriousness of our situation, I felt surprisingly light-hearted, laughing - even giggling, and enjoying myself in a way that I hadn’t in a long time. Sebastian appeared more relaxed and happier than I had seen in a while too. It reminded me of the early days of our friendship and it was a happy reminder that I definitely needed.

It was a night of joy and celebration, and a night of passion. At times I became so lost in the ecstasy of his touch that I could barely speak or breathe. I clung to him, never wanting his kisses to end, never wanting to let go. These intoxicating moments stretched into forever, until I remembered a little self-control. It was a strange sensation to have to remind myself that I wanted to wait until after we were married to give myself to him entirely and in the back of my mind, I found myself beginning to question why?

Eventually we fell asleep, tangled in our blankets and each other’s arms. We must have both wanted a peaceful rest as Sebastian slept soundly without any of his nightmare disturbances and my dreams were both lucid and calm.

I woke just before dawn, warm and safe, at peace in Sebastian’s embrace. The sweet scent of grass hovered in the early morning air as the eastern sky began to lighten. I watched in wonder as the night’s stars winked out one by one, enchanted by this magical moment in the calm before dawn. As the sky and day awakened, I admired my engagement ring, hardly believing how perfect and magical a night it had been. I became lost in pleasant, sleepy thoughts as the world around me began to stir – birds called out their happy trills, the sky shifted from midnight blue to a pure and clear azure, and the silvery dew that clung to the blades of grass around us began to slide down towards the awaiting earth. I closed my eyes and sighed happily, smiling as Sebastian’s arm gently tightened around my waist.

“Good morning beautiful wife,” he whispered sleepily in my ear, his warm, gentle breath tickling my skin.

I giggled, a happy joy bubbling up within me at his words. “Not yet – but soon.”

“You’re worth waiting forever for.”

I turned my head to meet his lips and for a short time, I became lost in oblivion again. I found myself light-headed and breathless when we finally broke apart. We were lying face to face now, staring into each other’s eyes. Sebastian gently stroked the side of my face, his touch so careful and thrilling.

“The sun is rising, we should go.” It was his suggestion but I could clearly hear and sense his reluctance. A small quiver of fear hit me as I realized that our magical night was over, and I remembered what dangers today might bring. I had somehow managed to thoroughly forget about the Others, because I had wanted to forget I supposed. But now reality was returning like the crack of a whip. I wanted to flinch back from the truth and hide but hiding was obviously no longer an option.

“Where will we go?” I sat up as I spoke and began shaking out and folding the blankets. I felt the definite need to keep my hands busy in an attempt to distract myself from the panic hovering at the edges of my thoughts.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. He caught my hand and waited until I met his gaze, his eyes steady and calm. “It’s going to be okay, Gracelynn, I promise. They don’t outnumber us yet, our wants still overpower theirs. There’s still time to find the answer.”

“Not much time,” I pointed out and it was true. I could feel the seconds ticking away now with each fraction of an inch the sun rose higher, its bright warmth and fiery rays cracking the sky open in a blaze of glowing color along the horizon.

“True,” he agreed. “Let’s get moving then.”

We packed up the rest of our things then walked across the ring to the closest path up the outer bank. I wanted to change my clothes and freshen up but it had felt decidedly wrong to do so within the ring’s sacred boundaries. Luckily there were public bathrooms set up near the parking lot that we went to use. I dressed in lighter clothes than the day before, sensing that it was going to be hotter. I still chose a thin, long-sleeved t-shirt to accompany my shorts, wanting to hide the tattoo that snaked up and around my arm as much as possible. I pulled my hair up and back into a tight ponytail, quickly scrubbed my teeth with my toothbrush and splashed the remaining water in my water bottle on my face. I felt refreshed but only slightly calmer as I came out of the washroom and rejoined Sebastian. He grinned at me as I approached and pointed towards the far end of the parking lot.

“Look.”

A large green tour bus was unexpectedly approaching the parking lot, speeding along the straight and narrow road between the farmers’ fields. I couldn’t imagine what a tour bus was doing at The Giant’s Ring so early in the morning. I jogged after Sebastian as he went to find out.

As soon as the bus stopped, its doors opened and sleepy-looking tourists began slowly coming down the steps. Sebastian greeted the tourists with polite smiles and murmured greetings but it was obvious the driver was his real interest. The minute the tall, thin man began descending, Sebastian launched into a friendly-sounding babble. The driver’s greenish-blue eyes darted my way several times as Sebastian spoke and his laughter boomed out over the parking lot, a surprisingly loud sound for such a thin man. They were both grinning like long-lost friends within minutes and the driver finally said something in English as he stepped away from the bus and lit a cigarette.

“Your welcome t’join us. We’ll be takin’ off again in an hour once this lot’s had their fill of the ring at dawn,” he told us both, speaking around the cigarette that hung from his lips.

“My thanks, sir,” Sebastian held out his hand and shook the other man’s hand vigorously. “Would you mind if we wait on the bus? We’ve seen enough of the ring.”

“Sure, sure.”

The driver waved us towards the still-open bus door and began slowly walking away, taking long, slow draughts of his smoke.

I followed Sebastian up the steps and onto the cool bus, sliding into one of the front seats beside him.

“What was that all about?”

He grinned at me, cheerfully. “Well, apparently this bus of tourists is on its way north to the coast of Antrim and specifically, The Giant’s Causeway. There’s room on board and since we’re newly engaged, the driver wanted to help us celebrate by offering us a free ride.”

“What? Really?” I could hardly believe it was going to be that easy.

“Yes, and since our wants are still controlling our destiny, what we want to find must be further north. It makes sense to go to
Clochan na bhFomharach
- The Giant’s Causeway,” he translated, when he realized he’d slipped back into Irish. “The rock formations there are millions of years old and virtually unchanged from our time. It’s not a sacred place but a place of legends and natural wonder, and it’s not too far from where my village and the Sisters’ temple once stood.”

“Are there any remnants of the temple?” I asked, picking up on his excitement. To my disappointment, he shook his head.

“No, the village and temple were lost many centuries ago – not a trace remains of either,” he told me, a touch of sadness to his voice. “The tree that marked Caoilinn’s grave is long gone too… it’s all been lost to time.”

A forlorn silence settled over us both. I wondered at what it would be like for your birth place, your home to slowly vanish and be completely forgotten. In a way, I hoped I would never find out.

“Tell me about The Giant’s Causeway,” I requested, hoping to distract both Sebastian and myself. He smiled at me in amusement as if he knew exactly what I was trying to do but he answered anyway.

“It’s actually a World Heritage Site now,” he informed me. “According to local legends, it was built as a bridge to Scotland by the warrior giant
Fionn mac Cumhail
. The stories vary but the general belief is that the Scottish giant
Benandonner
came over the bridge to Ireland and was terrified by
Fionn mac Cumhail
.
Benandonner
fled in terror and in doing so, he ripped up and cracked the bridge – forming the causeway. Really the hexagonal, basalt columns are a product of ancient volcanic activity. It’s a beautiful site – the lava plateau was formed right along the ocean with thousands upon thousands of columns of rock and tall, grass covered cliffs that plunge into the waves…”

Sebastian’s eyes took on an unfocused, faraway look that told me he was remembering the site and describing it from memory. It was a relief to see him call upon a memory from further into his past without pain or discomfort. He still seemed to become lost within the past though and after several minutes of silence, I eventually had to lightly shake his arm to regain his attention. Still, it could have been much worse – it often had been.

“Sebastian, the driver’s coming back.” I held my breath nervously as Sebastian’s eyes struggled to refocus, a momentary confusion clouding them.

“The driver…? Oh, of course. Yes,” he muttered as he blinked his eyes rapidly and gave his head a little shake. He flashed me a quick, reassuring smile but it did little to settle the growing sense of unease in my stomach.

“Alright you two?” the driver asked in a loud and friendly voice as he climbed back aboard the bus. He didn’t wait for either of us to respond before continuing. “Some of them are heading back already. Not too impressed with the ring or too damn lazy t’walk about it much. I reckon we’ll be headin’ out sooner than later. We should make it to The Giant’s Causeway within the next coupla’ hours. I’m going t’take the coastal route, bit a scenery for the tourists to take in and won’t add much time to our trip.”

Even as the driver spoke, tourists began climbing back aboard the bus, greeting us with surprised and curious looks but no one asked or questioned why we were there.

“Are you certain this is the right way to go?” I asked Sebastian in a low voice. “Do we really have time to drive up north?”

“Yes and no,” he answered with a smile. “It’s obviously where we want to go – things couldn’t be working out more perfectly. Whether we have time or not... we can only assume the Others haven’t arrived yet since our wants are still being accommodated so smoothly. They’re bound to be close to getting here and when they do arrive, they’ll follow us straight to the causeway. Let’s just want to find what we need there before the Others find us.”