Red-haired and green-eyed Rowan is an average Scottish Girl. Of course, there is one thing special about her, something that was once abundant but in modern times is now ignored. She believes in all the stories, of selkies and fairies, and most of a...
Rowan tugs on Andrian's arm and leads him outside, frantically inhaling the fresh air when she steps out. She hadn't even realized how much she was craving it until now, but the crispness of the forest air invigorates her. She manages to pull Andrian into the trees before her legs crumple beneath her and she sinks to the floor. A noise of distress makes its way out of her throat and Andrian kneels to her level.
"Rowan, are you alright?"
She just shakes her head, her thoughts whirring in confusion and fear. When she glances up at him, she knows he wants an answer, but despite his impatience, he is waiting for her to be ready to tell him. She takes a deep, shaky breath, then another. And another. When she feels calm enough to speak, she opens her mouth.
"When the Seelie Lord found us in the bramble patch and I ran, he touched my blood. Do you know what happened after?"
Andrian frowns. "What does this have to do with anything?" She glares at him and he sighs. "Fine. After he touched it, he was angry, furious even. Not because you got away, it was something else. He wanted to follow you, Rowan."
Rowan takes another gasping breath. "Did he?"
"No. Your protections slowed him, and I was also blocking his path. By the time he was able to follow, you were out of sight. He wouldn't have known the path. Why does this matter, Rowan? Why did you need to know this?"
"In the memory, the girl was familiar to me, but I couldn't figure out why. So I kept thinking about it. Andrian, I've seen her picture in my house."
Understanding is starting to make its way onto his face, but he asks anyway. "Who was she?"
"Her name was Oriana. She's my great-grandmother. So that means my grandmother-"
She trails off and Andrian finishes the sentence for her. "Your grandmother is the Seelie Lord's daughter."
Rowan nods. "Yesterday, when you were trying to get me out of the pocket realm because you thought it wasn't safe . . . did you suspect then?"
Andrian shakes his head. "No. I just knew that Aoife said you had Aos Sí blood from one of the courts, and that the Seelie Lord was so very angry when he touched your blood. So I thought it must have been Unseelie Court ancestry that you had. The two courts are enemies, so to have a Seelie know you were part Unseelie would have been very dangerous for you. That's what I thought."
"It isn't much better to know the truth, is it?"
Andrian barks out a laugh. "The truth may be worse. Now come on, let's get you home."
"But . . . shouldn't we tell the elder?"
"I can do that."
Rowan nods. "Will I see you tomorrow?"
"Yes- oh! I forgot."
Rowan's brow crinkles in confusion. "What did you forget?"
"Do you still have the golden stone I gave you?"
"Umm, yes? Why?"
"Can I see it?"
Rowan nods and pulls it out of her pocket, handing the palm-sized oval to Andrian. He smoothes the soil on the ground aside until he unearths a flat boulder. He sets the golden stone on its surface and pulls something out of his pocket. A . . . hammer. He had a hammer in his pocket. A small hammer, but still a hammer. Before Rowan can figure out what he is about to do, he brings the hammer down on the golden stone. It shatters into a dozen tiny smaller pieces as a cry bursts out of Rowan's chest. The lovely, gorgeous stone, just gone. Andrian scoops the pieces up and shoves them into his pocket.
"Come on."
Rowan frowns. "Where are we going?"
"To the river."
They fall into silence for the first part of the trek to the river. Rowan's thoughts swirl in her head, a combination of the stone, what she'd learned, and things that didn't add up.
"Andrian?"
"Hmm?"
"What does being an honorary kelpie mean?"
"Well, the most important thing I think it means is that the curse can't affect you now. Other kelpies won't be compelled to drown you, because you're my cridhe. In the eyes of the curse, you're a kelpie, and kelpies can't drown other kelpies. Before you had met me though, you were still in danger. The other important thing is that you can freely ask the elders for aid, as you have already discovered. You will also have a place here."
"That's good. Why did you break the stone?"
Andrian grins. "You'll see in a moment. We're just reaching the river now." ________________________________________________________________________________ Who expected her to be one of the Seelie Lord's descendants? Before you knew that, what was your theory for why the Seelie Lord was angry at the bramble patch when he touched Rowan's blood? What do you think Andrian is going to do with the shards of the gold stone? What's going to happen next? Tell me your thoughts!
Also, here's the family tree for you.
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