by Jacky Gray
Everyone joined in enthusiastically with the hurrahs and Fletch mimed paying fealty to Archer who bowed graciously. After almost a minute of wild cheering, whistles and applause, Fletch called a halt and everyone sat back down. He lifted his goblet quite demurely and said, ‘Dear people, please join me in a toast of thanks to our families.’ Several laughs condoned the irony and everyone copied his sedate manner as they raised their glasses.
Bethia stood, pulling Patricia and Kayleigh with her. They gave the final chant together. ‘Happy Beltane to each and every one of you. Eat, drink and be merry. Blessed be all.’
‘Finally we get to eat something. Archer, pass me the bread basket.’
‘Fletch, you haven’t stopped eating all day.’ Kayleigh was not complaining, merely stating a fact.
‘Yeah, but that was only cakes and things, a real man needs meat and bread, eh Archer?’
Archer had just bitten off a huge hunk of warm bread, so he simply nodded.
Bethia giggled. ‘Well I haven’t seen much of you today Fletch, but you were eating almost every time I saw you.’
‘It was usually you he was eating.’ Edlyn’s scathing comment made all three girls wince.
Archer glared at his rudeness. ‘There’s a time and a place for that kind of talk.’
‘You seemed to be getting your share, from what I could see.’ Edlyn would not be happy until he’d insulted everyone.
Both Archer and Fletch rose in their seats. Kayleigh and Bethia pulled them back down again while Patricia said in a voice dripping with ice, ‘Either you stop it right now or I will take this fork and stick it somewhere which will make you talk like a girl.’
He was about to say something nasty to her, but obviously thought better of it and closed his mouth.
If that was anything to go by, the next hour would be a strain. Archer tried to think of a topic everyone could talk about without ending up in a fight. ‘I thought the band was brilliant, I’ve never enjoyed the maypole bit before.’
‘I was just pleased I didn’t trip up or anything, it was pretty complicated.’
‘You, trip up, Kayleigh? Never. There’s no one more graceful than you on the sports field.’
‘Or less graceful off it.’ If Archer’s comment had made Kayleigh turn pink with pleasure, Edlyn’s made her red with humiliation.
Archer glared. ‘One more comment like that and I’ll …’
‘What? Fight for the lady’s honour?’
‘Edlyn, I warned you. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything.’ Patricia stuck her fork into his leg, not very hard, but his tunic was quite thin and he jumped.
‘You wouldn’t dare. Anyway, you can’t reach.’
‘No but I can.’ Bethia got her fork and showed him. ‘For goodness sake, stop acting like a donkey and spoiling everyone’s party. Try to be civil and enjoy yourself.’
He seemed to calm down, settling into a sulky silence which lasted for the first two courses – a fiery tomato and vegetable broth, followed by a colourful salad topped with nuts and small cubes of cheese. The rest of them were quite content to remember some of the highlights of the day. Patricia got up after the second course just as Bethia launched into the story behind the winning garland.
Knowing the ending already, Archer excused himself, and waited by the tent’s entrance until Patricia returned. ‘Can I have a word please?’
She looked at him warily. ‘Just one, then. It’s quite cold out here.’
‘Sorry.’
‘That’s one word.’
Archer’s desperation was plain to see as he all but bent down on one knee. ‘Can I have a few more?’
Her lips twitched in a smile. ‘Go on.’
‘I simply wanted to apologise for being so tactless earlier. I meant to say that all these other girls were kissing the May King. There was only one girl I wanted to kiss.’
‘Who, Bethia? You managed plenty of that. And I heard you thought she was better than me.’
‘I didn’t say that.’ But he knew who had told her.
‘Chrisya, then. I was beginning to think you had sprouted an extra limb.’
‘No, she wouldn’t …’
Patricia was determined to make him suffer. ‘It must be Kayleigh. She certainly seems to fancy you; never stops blushing when you’re around.’
‘Patricia. Will you stop?’ She looked as if she was going to carry on, so he did the only thing he could under the circumstances and kissed her.
24 Edlyn Stirs
Archer was sure he ate food, drank punch, and talked to people for the rest of the meal, he simply couldn’t remember it afterwards, unlike his friends. Finn raved about the lamb, casseroled with dried fruits and served with artichoke, spinach, and tiny potatoes boiled in their skins. Despite his earlier comments about sweet things, Fletch could describe each one of the puddings made with rice, cake or pastry, all sweetened with honey or flavoured with fresh raspberries or rhubarb.
At some point, Bethia and Fletch abandoned all pretence of interest in anyone else; talking, teasing and secretly holding hands under the table. Archer was a little embarrassed at the start, but as Patricia smiled at one of his jests, he realised he’d quite like to do the same with her. That would leave Kayleigh on her own so he concentrated on sharing his time between them.
Edlyn must have decided he’d had enough of being ignored. Turning to Patricia, he started a conversation about a Magi class only the two of them took. He was obviously trying to make an effort, and she responded graciously.
Archer listened for a while, but it was not an area which interested him. Patricia tried hard to include him and Kayleigh in the conversation, but each time she did, Edlyn delved deeper into some boring technicality only she could understand. If he didn’t know better, Archer might think Edlyn was deliberately monopolising Patricia – going out of his way to be charming and attentive. That made little sense. Edlyn had despised Patricia ever since she betrayed her clan by talking to a Warrior.
Kayleigh had spent way too long studying her empty pudding dish, so Archer asked her how she had enjoyed the day.
‘It was wonderful, though I really didn’t expect to go any further than the first round. Aife’s excellent and Lexie is normally, so I wasn’t even sure about that.’
‘How can you say such a thing? You must know you’re the best. You got more points than almost all of the lads.’
Blushing, she looked down at her hands.
Narrowing his eyes, Archer thought this couldn’t be the same girl he watched in training. The smart, gifted girl who was completely in control of the blood in her cheeks. What on earth was going on?
You are mate. A voice in his head, which sounded suspiciously like Finn’s, reminded him of the number of times people had told him today that Kayleigh fancied him. She was obviously feeling the same way about him as he was feeling about Patricia. Shy and tongue-tied and completely out of his depth.
‘It’s nice of you to say so. In fact you’ve been really nice to me all day, it’s one of the reasons I’ve enjoyed it so much.’ She hesitated. ‘I … hope you’ll have a dance with me later on.’
‘I’m sure he’d love to dance with you Kayleigh.’ Edlyn had obviously been listening and decided to stir up some mischief. Then he went too far. ‘Has he asked you to jump over the bonfire with him, yet? I heard him telling someone he was going to. No? Well, there you are, consider yourself asked.’
Even Fletch’s ears pricked up at this. ‘Why Archer, you sly old dog. I haven’t even asked Bethia yet. I wanted to wait until after we’d had a dance or two.’
‘Come on Kayleigh, aren’t you going to give him an answer? He’ll think you don’t fancy him.’ Edlyn was determined to do as much damage as possible, obviously enjoying the horror-stricken expressions of the three in front of him.
Fletch and Bethia were too wrapped up in their own little world to notice as Fletch formally asked her to jump the bonfire with him. He looked relieved when Bethia
agreed.
Archer couldn’t bear to look at either girl for fear of what he might see. He was sure Patricia would be absolutely horrified after the kiss they’d just shared. She might believe Edlyn, in which case she would think Archer was the worst kind of flirt, and he couldn’t bear that. What would she do if Kayleigh said yes? And more to the point, what would he do? What could he do?
He tried to focus on what Kayleigh was going through at that moment. If everyone was right and she did fancy him, she would definitely say yes and then he would have the same awful dilemma he had about kissing Bethia. He would be damned if he did and damned if he didn’t.
He could agree to jump the bonfire with her, in which case he was committing himself to courting her. This was not exactly an arduous task. Although not as pretty as Bethia, she was striking and athletic – many of the boys in the room would jump at the chance. But if he said yes, Patricia would probably never want to talk to him again. He didn’t want to throw away the friendship they’d built up over the past few years.
The alternative was to say no, in which case Kayleigh would be mortified. Neither she nor Patricia would ever forgive him for the public humiliation. Sensing she was getting ready to answer, he held his breath.
25 Clever Kayleigh
One thing on his side: Kayleigh was a lot smarter than Edlyn. ‘It’s not that I don’t believe you or anything,’ she said, making it perfectly clear to anyone listening that she absolutely didn’t believe him, ‘but I’d like to hear Archer ask me himself.’
He smiled at her cunning, when what he really wanted to do was punch the air in a victory salute. She had given him a way of escape which would suit everyone apart from Edlyn. The best thing? It was the absolute truth. ‘Edlyn must have misheard when he walked past with Melvyn. I was telling Logan I’m not ready to jump the bonfire with anyone yet.’
Edlyn looked sour, scowling into his plate.
Archer sighed. It was a job well done, however he felt he could do a little more as he took Kayleigh’s hand and kissed it. ‘I would be honoured to dance with you, that is, if you still want to?’ She nodded and he turned round, kissing Patricia’s hand. ‘And I would be honoured if you would dance with me as well.’
He held onto her hand for a second longer as she giggled, ‘Certainly Robin, how can I refuse a king?’
‘How indeed, my lady.’ He assumed a kingly pose, then grinned at Bethia. ‘I’ve already danced with you and I’m not going to ask Edlyn,’ he glanced over and addressed him, ‘unless you really want me to. Someone said how good you looked in that dress.’
Edlyn flushed a dirty red and said through clenched teeth, ‘It’s a toga, not a dress.’ He stood up so abruptly his chair overbalanced. A thundercloud brewed on his face as he strode off to the entrance.
‘Well played mate. I was wondering how you were going to get the better of that toad.’ Fletch raised a fist and Archer clasped it.
During the meal, a group of musicians filled the pavilion with pleasant sounds played on harps and other stringed instruments, with pan pipes and a flute. They were mostly traditional Beltane songs, mixed with several bland, instrumental arrangements of the current tunes, which still managed to get the girls itching to get up and dance. As the hot digestif drink was served with thin ginger biscuits, a band of seniors took to the stage. They started with a popular tune, played at the right speed and with a boy singing the words. In no time, the area in front of the stage was packed with girls dancing and singing along to the words, while the boys hung around the edge watching.
When they announced Lord of the Dance, there were groans, but the singer assured them they’d borrowed Gaelic Sound’s modern arrangement. Plucking up the courage to ask Kayleigh to dance, Archer was glad of the training the girls had given him as the dance floor transformed into a set of circles. He just about kept up as the couples wove in and out, and was grateful Kayleigh knew what she was doing as they stopped and formed squares. They did a grapevine step for each line of the chorus, always returning to their original partner.
The applause at the end was enthusiastic as the band took their bows and left the stage. All the lights dimmed. The disturbing wail from the bagpipes at the back of the room had the juniors looking round for an injured animal. Archer smiled; he knew what was coming next. Sure enough, the instant people began to make the connection between the painful sound and Rohan’s approach between the rows of tables, the air filled with an explosion of sound as Doug, Riley and Angus jumped onto the stage, beating the hides on their drums with a joyous energy. Aiden joined in on the fiddle, painting pictures of a fierce battle which built up into an impossible crescendo, then slowly died into a terrible aftermath.
Most of the juniors had never heard anything like it and were caught up in the heady emotion, but Archer, Fletch and Finn grinned at each other – they remembered it well. Fletch started off the clapping and everyone else joined in, dying down as they launched straight into the ballad of Robin Hood. Their girl singer joined in the last verse about Marian then stayed on the dais for a couple of songs, duetting with Riley and Doug.
Archer recognised the next introduction, it was ‘Someone Else’s Girl’ a popular song last year. He knew it well enough to risk asking Patricia to dance, but when he spotted her, she was already walking up to the dance floor with Edlyn of all people. He turned away with a sick feeling in his stomach as Riley sang ‘I could see her charms in another boy’s arms.’
He saw no point in staying there; he’d only get annoyed at himself for not asking her earlier. Whirling round, Archer nearly knocked her off her feet. He grabbed her arms to stop her falling. ‘Sorry, I didn’t see you. Are you all right?’
‘Sure. I came to see if you would keep your promise, I love this song. It does not matter. I can see you are going somewhere.’
‘No, I – I was coming to find you but I thought… Oh never mind, come on.’
Everyone joined in, clapping along to the chorus. Taking his hand, she used it to spin herself round into his arms and back out again. She was so good he didn’t need to do much apart from mirror her moves and be in the right place at the right time. When he saw the amazed looks on his friend’s faces, he knew they must have been doing a reasonable job together and he enjoyed it more than he would have imagined possible.
Doug came to the front of the stage and raised his drumsticks over his head until he got silence. ‘Thank you. This is another song from last year, we hope you like it as much as we do. It’s based on a true story and the hero doesn’t live far from here.’
Archer froze. He had been dreading this moment and as the catchy rhythm began, he wondered if he could make it out of the pavilion before anyone realised. Unfortunately, Patricia had linked her arm through his and he would have had to unlink it and risk seeming very rude. Before Riley had finished singing the first line, he felt her tense up. At the end of the second line she stared up at him and whispered, ‘Is that you?’
He nodded miserably as more and more people around were nudging each other, pointing and staring at Finn and Fletch, but mostly at him. His skin felt as though it was burning as embarrassment hormones rushed around his body looking for somewhere to escape. He went completely cold, as a wave of nausea washed out from the pit of his stomach.
It felt like the longest song that had ever been sung. He must have gone through at least a dozen cycles of hot and cold before the final chorus. All he could think of was the trouble he would be in. With Malduc and all the professors, Sedge and especially Ganieda. She would never forgive him for getting into such a pickle in the first place and then for not telling her the full story. He was sure they’d added a couple of verses, there definitely wasn’t anything about the Open Arms tavern when they sang it last year. The innkeeper had probably done his own bit of promotion to get the verse included. They too would probably get free food and ale every time they passed.
At some point, Patricia had let go of his arm to clap along with the chorus and he missed her support,
feeling exposed and vulnerable. For goodness sake boy, pull yourself together. It’s merely a song and you didn’t do anything wrong. He listened to the voice in his head and took a deep calming breath, seeking some battle steel to stiffen his backbone as the applause started. Then Malduc appeared on the stage and he knew he was in trouble.
26 Where is Bow?
‘Ladies, gents and juniors. I’m sure it will surprise nobody to know the hero of that song is none other than our very own King of the May, Archer. Come up here lad.’ Malduc’s face was stern and Archer could no more move than bake a cake.
Patricia grabbed a hand and started pulling him, but his feet were firmly glued to the floor. Kayleigh stood nearby and she pulled the other hand. Someone he strongly suspected was Finn, pushed from behind. Everyone clapped as he climbed up to the stage, not quite meeting Doug’s grin.
Malduc clapped his back. ‘Archer, you have surprised me. I have never known a junior with song of their deeds before they even graduated. In fact I’m not sure if I’ve ever known anyone who had a song written about them. Let me see now …’
‘Sir, it wasn’t just me. Finn and Fletch were there too.’
‘Of course, of course. Up here boys.’ They didn’t need telling twice, leaping up and each taking one of Archer’s hands and raising them in triumph. Doug gave them a drum roll then came to the front and bowed to them. ‘Never have I been in the presence of so much royalty. I’m moved to write a song about it. “The Ballad of the Three Kings.” You’ll all be singing it this time next year.’ He ended with another drum roll then led his band off the stage to make room for the next band.
When he left the stage, Archer endured another hearty round of congratulations. He was clapped on the back more than he could ever remember in his life. Boys he didn’t even recognise were lining up to shake his hand and once more several of the girls expected kisses. Finn and Fletch were enjoying similar attention and Bethia seemed to be taking it all well, joining Patricia and Kayleigh back at their table. He thought a drink would be a good idea and excused himself from the flock, reaching the table with a big sigh.
