Shaman of Stonewylde

by Kit Berry

  ‘No,’ said Mallow, glancing around furtively. ‘She’s . . . she’s wicked. Truly wicked, and I don’t like going there. But I best be getting on, for I need to finish here and get down there quick or she’ll be complaining and then Martin will get angry.’

  ‘Pah!’ said Marigold. ‘If Martin don’t—’

  ‘What on earth is all this noise in here?’ drawled a loud voice from behind the connecting door, and in walked Rainbow.

  ‘Oh sweet Mother!’ cried Marigold. ‘Not another of ’em!’

  ‘Watch your mouth, Marigold!’ said Rainbow sharply.

  ‘We didn’t know you were back and all! Any more o’ you nesting in here?’

  ‘No there aren’t! Magpie, it’s lovely to see you again. How’s the painting?’

  ‘And you can keep your paws off my boy too! Come on, Magpie. Let’s get back to the kitchens.’

  ‘What a splendid idea!’ said Rainbow, stretching languidly and shaking out her hair. ‘I’ll come down with you. Maybe you’d rustle me up something to eat? I’m starving. I seem to have over-slept and missed out on breakfast.’

  Yul had been silent until now, knowing that if he spoke he would say too much. Sylvie sat next to him and he could feel her tension. The old Villagers amongst them bristled with dislike and indignation, whilst Harold twitched so much that Hazel grew quite concerned. Martin was silent too, clearly briefed to keep quiet today, and Rowan sat with her arms folded and a smug grin on her face, as if nothing that happened today was of any importance to her.

  Only Clip seemed completely calm and unperturbed by Buzz’s invasion into their territory, and Yul watched him speculatively. He understood now that Clip’s dreaminess in the past had perhaps been a smoke-screen; his father-in-law and uncle was not as daft as he appeared. Whilst in London on the recent visit, Yul had developed a reluctant respect for the older man. Six months ago Yul could never have sat here and let these events unfold without trying to intervene, but today he was able to take a back seat and watch, knowing that he wasn’t the only one capable of controlling the situation.

  ‘Look, I’ve come here in good faith to help,’ said Buzz with only a hint of exasperation. ‘I’m offering to put everything right with Stonewylde. Clip, why you’ve brought this proposal to the Council is beyond me as the decision is yours to make. Please – for once in your life, be strong and decisive! Stonewylde is yours. You own the place so you decide.’

  Clip’s pale grey eyes flicked round the circle and he noted Yul’s dark, silent demeanour, which surprised him. Sylvie was pale and strained, her eyes scared. His gaze then rested on Buzz, large and uncomfortable in his chair and fighting the urge to shout at them all. Doubtless he bullied everyone he worked with and his civility was now wearing thin. Clip decided this had gone on long enough.

  ‘Stonewylde is not mine, Buzz. Nobody owns Stonewylde – she owns us. We are merely her guardians, appointed to serve her. She takes from us what she needs to survive, and she gives back to us as she sees fit. She’s Nature at its most fundamental, and you certainly don’t have the means to put everything right with her. Stonewylde’s needs go far deeper than material wealth, and what you have to offer isn’t what she requires. Stonewylde is at present in shadow, in eclipse, but soon she’ll be in glorious sunshine again. And it definitely won’t be because you’ve splashed a bit of money about.’

  ‘Oh, for Christ’s sake!’ yelled Buzz, shockingly loud in the ancient hall. ‘Don’t start with your bloody mystical bullshit now! You always were an old fool and—’

  He stopped abruptly as Clip fixed him with a wolf-grey stare and pointed straight at him.

  ‘Be still! You will never return to Stonewylde, Buzz, and nor will any of your kind. You are never to attempt a come-back again. The banishment that my brother Sol imposed still stands, and always will.’

  Buzz sat looking as if he might explode, his pale blue eyes popping and bloodshot, but his mouth closed. Clip continued quietly.

  ‘I shall be leaving at Samhain as I promised, and I’ve taken steps to ensure that the material and practical aspects of Stonewylde’s needs are covered. I’m trusting in my shamanic insights that all will be well in the future with the other, spiritual aspects.’

  There was a pause whilst everyone digested exactly what he’d said.

  ‘Thank you, Clip,’ said Yul. ‘You’ve made us all feel protected from invasion, safe from the likes of Buzz and the other Hallfolk.’

  Their eyes met and Clip inclined his head, acknowledging this huge step forward. But Martin jumped up from his seat and waved his arms around furiously, his thin face scarlet with fury.

  ‘What have you done to Master Buzz, you evil, scheming sorcerer? Look at him! He can’t speak! And he were wrong – Stonewylde isn’t yours – Stonewylde is rightfully mine! I were born afore you and my mother said—’

  ‘Your mother’s the evil one!’ cried Cherry. ‘She’s a wicked old hag and—’

  ‘You, woman, will be one o’ the first to go when—’

  ‘Enough!’ barked Clip. ‘This is not the time for such talk. Buzz is silent, Martin, because he has nothing more to say that we wish to hear. And neither have you. Good folk, we have less than two weeks until Samhain, and I must tell you what will happen when I’ve left. I’m happy for Buzz to hear it so that he’ll understand once and for all that Stonewylde does not need his money nor his presence.’

  Everyone shifted in their seats, anxious to hear his words. Martin’s mouth was clamped shut and Buzz remained red-faced but quiet, his furious gaze flashing around the circle of faces until it rested on Sylvie, who blanched even further. Clip wondered why she was quite so upset by him, especially now he’d been disarmed.

  ‘Clip – about this business of you leaving at Samhain,’ began Yul. ‘I’m not sure if—’

  ‘I have to go,’ said Clip. ‘My time here is done and I crave my freedom after so many years. I’ve set everything up to come into effect at my departure, and I’ll tell you all about this. But first I have a message from Leveret about her inheritance. She wants to donate her money towards the upkeep of Stonewylde. She’ll presumably be able to access her shares once she reaches eighteen, and in the meantime she’ll use every penny she’s accumulated to help Stonewylde with the repairs and things, and pay off some of the debts. She wants to give it for the common good of Stonewylders.’

  There was a swell of approval at this news.

  ‘ ’Tis very good of the maid,’ said Old Greenbough. ‘So our troubles are over then?’

  ‘Probably not completely, but it’ll certainly help the current situation,’ said Clip.

  ‘Well, don’t think Faun’s giving her money to Stonewylde,’ said Rowan, ‘because she’s not! I got an announcement to make too – we’re going to stay with Buzz, and Faun will go to drama school in the Outside World and become a celebrity! Magus would’ve approved of that for his beautiful daughter.’

  ‘I’m sure he would,’ said Miranda drily. ‘As for Rufus – he told me last night it’s his ambition to be a doctor and he wants to go to medical school when he’s older. He says he decided this a while ago and now he can use his money to fund that. Of course he wants to return to Stonewylde when he’s qualified, to work with Hazel and Leveret. But he’s only thirteen so it’s all a long way off. And Clip has more to tell us, I believe, about the future plans for Stonewylde?’

  ‘I certainly do. As I said earlier, it’s too much for one person to own and run Stonewylde, and I wouldn’t want to pass that burden on to my beloved daughter when I leave. She and I have discussed this and everything’s now in place to turn Stonewylde into a charitable trust, run by a Board of Trustees. This’ll come into effect the day after Samhain. It means that we get beneficial tax status and no one person is then responsible for running the place.’

  Yul nodded slowly, seeing the advantages.

  ‘Sylvie and I have talked it over,’ Clip continued, ‘and it’s her dearest wish that Stonewylde should become a healing centr
e. We both feel the Green Magic is a restorative energy and should be used to heal. We want to turn Stonewylde into a place where both traditional and alternative remedies can be offered, and the Green Magic can be tapped into.’

  There was an explosion of excitement about this, and Sylvie’s eyes sought Clip’s. He smiled at her, his thin, lined face illuminated with love.

  ‘But there’s more,’ he continued. ‘Yesterday, before we left London, I heard something really marvellous. You may recall the purpose of our visit, which we shared with you all before we left. It was a sad but successful visit, wasn’t it, Miranda?’

  Miranda nodded, still a little raw from the experience.

  ‘Miranda’s mother had made it very clear that Miranda wouldn’t be inheriting their huge fortune because the whole lot had been legally tied up to go to charity. This was in the hands of their lawyers, and Miranda’s been corresponding with Christopher, son of one of the original partners. We met him in London as it was his remit to look after us all. Yesterday, when we were packing up to leave, Christopher called me for a surprise meeting.’

  Clip paused dramatically and smiled across at Miranda, who looked rather concerned.

  ‘Despite his meanness towards his daughter, Miranda’s father had been involved in fundraising all his life. Most of the money he left is at present invested, and he’d stipulated that the family’s wealth was to be entirely donated to charity, and ideally to a hospital. Miranda’s mother was to choose which one and write it into her Will, to come into effect on her death. Having met up with her daughter and other members of the family, she was very taken with all we told her of Stonewylde and Sylvie’s healing. Later, she asked to see me in private and questioned me about the healing centre we’re planning. I explained, and said it was all Sylvie’s idea. Then Miranda’s mother summoned Christopher and told him to arrange for the family’s entire fortune to go to the charity we’re setting up at Stonewylde, in Sylvie’s name.’

  There was complete silence as everyone tried to make sense of this news. Finally Sylvie spoke, a frown on her face.

  ‘So . . . so we don’t need Buzz’s money – or anyone’s money? We’ll have enough for everything we want to do at Stonewylde?’

  ‘Exactly,’ beamed Clip. ‘Everything we need to start the healing centre, and much more besides. Your dream will come true, Sylvie!’

  Leveret put in a few hours of study and then went to find Magpie, hoping they could go up to Mother Heggy’s cottage together. He was working in the Art Room with David, who had a class of younger students there too. Magpie was in his own corner with a canvas before him, painting a seascape. Leveret could tell immediately that something had upset him, as his eyes were cloudy and his expression troubled. She watched him for a while, as he put tiny glints of light onto the peaks of water to make the green-blue sea in his picture come alive.

  ‘What’s wrong, Magpie?’ she asked eventually.

  He laid down his brush and took her hands, and she saw an image of Rainbow. The woman’s eyes were exactly the colour he was using for his painting now.

  ‘Rainbow’s gone,’ said Leveret, but he shook his head at this. Then she saw Rainbow clearly up in Yul’s apartments, and sitting in the window seat behind her was the shade of a tall man with blond hair.

  David came over and looked appraisingly at the painting.

  ‘Did you hear Rainbow’s back?’ he asked Leveret. ‘She was in here earlier, and she wants to take some of Magpie’s work to show someone in London. She’s trying to get him exhibited.’

  ‘She can’t!’ snapped Leveret. ‘I don’t want her taking anything of Magpie’s away. I don’t trust her.’

  David nodded in agreement.

  ‘I know you’re the best one for getting through to Magpie. Please, can you try to find out how he feels about it? I can’t help but think she’s only out to exploit him – I don’t trust her either.’

  The meeting in the Galleried Hall disbanded and everyone dispersed to discuss the exciting news. It was very difficult for the Elders to settle down to any work after such portentous events, and they were all keen to spread the news. Martin stomped down to see his mother in the Village in a complete rage, and luckily for her, Mallow was already back home so wasn’t forced to bear the brunt of his bad temper.

  The news that Stonewylde’s financial problems were over and there was to be a special healing centre created when Clip left in two weeks’ time, spread like heath-fire through the community. Yul and Sylvie stayed behind to have a word with Clip when everyone had left, and she threw her arms around her thin father and hugged him tight. When they finally released each other, Sylvie was in floods of tears.

  ‘Don’t cry, my darling girl,’ said Clip softly. ‘This is everything you dreamed of, isn’t it? And it’s your grandparents’ chance to put right all their wrongs.’

  ‘I know, I know,’ she sobbed. ‘It’s just too good to be true! Oh Yul, isn’t it wonderful?’

  He’d hung back, not wishing to intrude, but came forward now and handed her a handkerchief.

  ‘It’s . . . so unexpected. I’m finding it hard to take it in immediately. But yes, it is wonderful and I’m sure it’s the right thing for Stonewylde. It certainly feels right.’ He looked at Clip’s grey careworn face and into his pale eyes. ‘Clip, all that you said about Stonewylde – her needs, how we’re only guardians and not owners – I’d never really understood that before. But now I feel enlightened and it’s put me to shame. Some of my past behaviour—’

  ‘We’re all learning, Yul,’ said Clip, patting his arm. ‘We all do our best and hopefully we get there in the end. It wasn’t till I saw Buzz in action today that I realised just how little like Magus you actually are. You’re strong and you’re a leader, but you’re not in the same mould as Magus or Buzz. You’ve always acted with the best of intentions, not because you enjoy power for its own sake. I’m sorry if I’ve ever misjudged you in the past.’

  Now Yul was a little bright-eyed with unshed tears, and unexpectedly, Clip opened his arms and took the young man into a heartfelt embrace, while Sylvie looked on in utter astonishment.

  Later on, still feeling emotional and unable to settle to anything else, Sylvie and Yul decided to take the girls for a walk up to the Stone Circle. It was a lovely clear October afternoon with a couple of hours before twilight, and the leaves were well on the turn after such a dry summer. Bluebell was growing up and could now manage much longer walks than before, and because in the past Yul had always worked such long hours, they’d missed out on little family outings such as these. The four of them wrapped up in jackets, although the sun was shining, and set off out of the Village and up the track leading to the Long Walk.

  The girls ran ahead excitedly, examining conkers and chestnuts and laughing at the squirrels’ antics, whilst Yul and Sylvie strolled hand in hand.

  ‘What a day!’ said Yul. ‘In fact, what a few days! So much excitement and everything turned on its head.’

  ‘Oh yes,’ agreed Sylvie. ‘Everything has changed so fast. I feel quite exhausted by it all and I just want to catch my breath a bit.’

  ‘Well, Buzz should be off any time now, and then we can all breathe a big sigh of relief,’ said Yul.

  ‘You were very good with him last night and this morning,’ said Sylvie. ‘I was so worried you’d thump him.’

  Yul chuckled at this.

  ‘Of course I wanted to! There were a few moments when it was a close thing, but really, it wouldn’t have solved anything and I’d have looked like some boy brawling in the street again. Clip handled him far better than I could have done.’

  ‘He was wonderful, wasn’t he?’

  Yul agreed and they walked along in silence for a while, Sylvie wondering if Buzz had actually left yet. After the meeting, Clip had told him to have lunch, pack his stuff and be off as soon as possible. Buzz had nodded and swiftly left the Galleried Hall. Ever since his dramatic entrance the previous night in their old chambers, Sylvie had felt hers
elf on the edge of a precipice, trying to put one foot in front of the other and not look down at the terrifying drop below. She’d been sure that Buzz was going to make some allusion to the ballet, especially when he’d winked at Celandine so conspiratorially. She was entirely blameless, but how awful it would look to have deceived Yul like that. But hopefully Buzz had now gone, and the moment of danger was past.

  And as for her other secret . . . she was dying to tell Yul about the tiny curled-up being inside her. They’d transgressed, but she didn’t care; the thought of carrying his baby, conceived at the Blue Moon under their yew tree, was so magical that the two-children rule mattered nothing. Maybe she’d tell him today, in the Stone Circle. It was still early days but everything felt just right, and what a wonderful way to celebrate the events of the past few days.

  The children raced up the Long Walk, russet leaves drifting down over their heads and crunchy beech mast underfoot. Soft golden sunlight streamed in shafts through the autumn leaves, and Yul glanced at Sylvie as they walked hand in hand. He felt deep inside that they’d finally reached a good place in their relationship and their marriage could start a new phase. The thought of Rainbow still filled him with guilt and dread, and he’d been terrified that Buzz might use it against him. But surely if he’d known about it, he’d have done so by now; Rainbow must have kept quiet after all. Yul decided the best option would be to bury the secret completely and just start again with Sylvie. They’d have to plan where to live as she clearly hated the beautiful apartments he loved so much, but that could all be part of their new beginning together.

  The Stone Circle became visible through the stone portal and the girls paused at the threshold, well aware that thoughtlessly racing inside the huge, sunlit arena wasn’t respectful. Bluebell took Celandine’s hand and allowed her older sister to lead her inside. She scanned the area quickly, the stones even bigger to such a small person, and quickly located him. Today he stood leaning against one of the megaliths near the Altar Stone. He raised a hand to her and waved, and Bluebell swallowed and quickly looked away.