“No, you should not. It is not your business. If you wished to make it so, you should have come to me.”
“You don’t listen to your own. Why would you listen to me?”
“I did not come here to argue the affairs of the light Faery. What I want to know is did you tell Eleni the truth about Rhiannon?”
“As far as I told her, yes, what I said was true. Rhiannon jumped from the falls. She hit the rocks before she landed in the pool of water.”
“And you found her?”
“To be precise, one of mine, Harry, found her. She was despondent and threw herself over. He managed to pull her to shore. Her heart was still beating but weakly, near death. There was no time to get her to one of the Mercifuls to save her. She would have been dead before even one of us could get there.”
“Would have been?”
“There was no chance she could have been returned to health. Truly, there were injuries your healers could not have mended. Her spine was severed.”
“So he let her die?”
“Your kind had no appreciation of her gifts. We did. He did not sit back and do nothing as you would have. He brought her across.”
“My understanding was you alone were allowed that position in your coven.”
“Normally, yes. But this was a special circumstance. You do not concern yourself in our affairs, so this is really not your business. She had met Harry and me. She told us she wanted to be one of us, but she was too young to make that decision. We don’t turn children. We tried to convince her of her worth as a light Faery. I know you don’t believe that. But I did feel she had more to live for, and we had agreed that only if there was no alternative to her death would we take her. We did not tell her that.”
“You did not tell the priestess, either.”
“If she had so little discernment she didn’t recognize a Vampyre, why would I tell her that? The girl is dead to you.”
“But not buried.”
“You would not give her a proper funeral pyre because she took her own life.”
“I do not wish to make war on you. I wanted to know the truth.”
“I have given it.”
“Where is she now?”
“She is with mine.”
“May I see her?”
“No. She has not completed the change yet. Perhaps in a year.”
“A year?”
“As a newborn she would wish to drain you. She must learn our ways.”
Dandriloc nodded. “And she will sing with Shauna Faun?”
“Indeed, if she chooses to stay with us and follow our rules.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
“Then she’ll be a rogue and we’ll take her where she won’t harm your clans. But I think you needn’t worry. She was, I think, in love with Harry. If she can spend her time with him, I think she’ll be happy.”
“Thank you, Simon.”
Simon stared at Dandriloc in disbelief.
“You’re thanking me? Will your goddess be pleased by that?”
“I will lose my position because of this.”
“You set that precedent when you stripped Aoife of her position. She’s no friend of ours. Moira wasn’t, either, but she accepted our help when it was necessary. We don’t wish to have traffic with the goddess’ priesthood unless there is no other alternative. But you insisted on interpreting things otherwise. Don’t expect any pity from me about that.”
“You swear on – on whatever you hold honorable that she attempted to kill herself and was nearly dead before your coven member turned her?”
“I so swear. And I also promise you that none of yours will see her other than when she is finally ready to perform in one of our concerts. If you would like, we will send notice so you can attend.”
Dandriloc grimaced. “That will be unnecessary. Once she is visible to light Faeries I will have the affirmation that she is dark.”
“We’re finished, then?” Simon asked.
Dandriloc nodded.
Simon was gone before the druid made any move.
Dandriloc returned to Teilo’s home to thank the couple for their services and hospitality, then returned to his home.
XVI
On the third night Rhiannon woke. It startled her that she was alive. She gasped and sat up. Harry, who was just seeing to the arrangement of his hair turned around.
“You’re awake,” he said joyfully.
“Harry? I’m alive?” she asked, looking at herself and finding she was in different clothes, her cuts and bruises gone.
He frowned slightly. “Alive isn’t quite the word I’d use. I brought you across.”
“I’m – you made me a dark Faery?”
“It’s what you said you wanted.”
“Nuala said you’d never do it, that you’d forget me.”
“I told you she couldn’t be trusted. Simon wouldn’t allow me to turn you unless you were on the point of death.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that?”
“I didn’t want you acting rashly. Besides, you were too young. You said the day we returned was your birthday. Once you were seventeen you were old enough.”
“So, if I’d tried to kill myself earlier, you would have let me die?”
“I would have had no choice. Now, if you’ll have me, we can be together forever – or for as long as your love lasts.”
She stood and paced his small chamber.
“This room –”
“This is where I spend my days. My lair, if you will. You may share it with me or have a separate one.”
“I’ve been alone most of my life. I no longer want to be alone. If you don’t mind, I’d like to stay here.”
Harry beamed. “I would love that.”
She wandered around, her brow wrinkled. “Harry, you killed Nuala, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“She won’t come back?”
“No. I severed her head and it was destroyed. I left her body to meet the sun, so it burned. There is nothing left of her.”
“Have you ever killed another Vampyre?”
“No. I hope I never have to again. But come, let’s go see the others.”
“Simon knows you turned me?”
“Yes. Everyone is waiting to meet you as your new self.”
Harry and Rhiannon entered the main reception area where the others prepared to hunt. They greeted Rhiannon warmly, welcoming her to the coven.
Simon was not with them. He entered when everyone had finished their welcomes. He looked serious and Rhiannon noted it.
“Have I done something wrong?” she asked as he approached her.
“Not at all. I need to know some things. Do you wish to be part of our coven?”
“Of course I do!”
“You would know that we do not feed on light Faeries, ever. For a time you will go out to feed only in the company of another of the coven. You must follow our directions. You may not wish to. It will be difficult for a time for you to be around light Faery and not feed from them. But by feeding on them you will have to leave the coven. Do you still wish to be one of us?”
“Yes.”
“I would also ask if you wish to join Shauna Faun as a singer. Some of us have heard you sing and you would be an asset. Your audition would only be to allow the others to enjoy your voice.”
“That is my fondest wish.”
Only then did Simon smile.
“Welcome to Shauna Faun.”
Several of the coven accompanied her to feed in case she became belligerent, but Harry explained what she needed to do and no one interfered.
Once she had had her fill and Harry had fed, the two returned to the area around the cave, leaving the others to their own devices.
Harry delighted in showing her things. She saw the world with new eyes, eyes that made everything more intense. Things she had never noticed in life were suddenly more apparent. As dawn approached, she was reluctant to go to the lair. There was still so much to see.
/>
“There will be other nights, my love,” Harry said. “Let this dawn allow me to experience you as your stag, Milady.”
XVII
Aoife wasted no time bringing a complaint against Dandriloc. She came before the druid council. The six master druids besides Dandriloc convened each week to hear complaints and render decisions. Dandriloc, as High Druid, heard cases alone that didn’t require a consensus vote, such as Aoife’s trial, which was merely a footnote to a serious trial. Those like Siobhan’s, where a decision of death or being outlawed had to be made required the full council. Because Aoife was leveling a charge against the High Druid, she needed to present her complaint to the council, and if they deemed the evidence credible, would convene a tribunal to determine his fate.
Aoife presented her facts and offered Teilo and Jessica as witnesses to Dandriloc’s transgression.
“Dandriloc divested you of the position of Chief High Priestess, did he not?” Asked Neelyn, a wizened Faery whose greasy brown hair was streaked with white.
“That is true. In fact, I was divested of my position for contact with Vampyres, even though only they were in a position to save my son. I thought it unjust for him to then ask me to contact Simon for him, especially when no one’s life was endangered and he only wished information for his own personal satisfaction.”
“Isn’t it possible you’re out for revenge?”
“I am not. To allow him to contact Vampyres with impunity when I’ve been punished for it is to hold him to a lesser standard. Justice demands he be punished.”
“Thank you for your testimony,” Neelyn said.
With that she was dismissed. It took a week before the tribunal was called. A seventh druid, a journeyman soon to be made master sat on the tribunal to avoid a tie vote when judgement was rendered.
Dandriloc sat in the box set aside for the accused, facing the judges. He held his head high, showing no shame, but also showing no arrogance.
Aoife was the first witness.
“Is it true that you were stripped of your position as Chief High Priestess?” Cagwn, the journeyman asked.
“I was.”
“Did you feel the judgement was just?”
“I did not. I was in contact with Vampyres because my son’s life was in danger. Otherwise, I would never have had traffic with them.”
“And did they save your son’s life?”
“They did.”
“Why were they willing to do that?”
“Shauna Faun, the coven that dwells near here feels a sense of protection toward us, I’m told, and wish us no ill, particularly since we keep their secret. Also, since it was, in fact, Vampyres who kidnapped my son, only other Vampyres could defeat them quickly without loss of light Faery life.”
“Was your son the only one rescued?”
“No. There were four or five others taken with him.”
“Yet because you contacted the Vampyres you were punished?”
“Yes.”
“How did you contact them?”
“My sister’s husband was once a thrall. He can contact their leader.”
“And what were you told when your punishment was handed down?”
“I was told to have no more dealings with Vampyres or I would be forced to leave the priestesses.”
“You were given a position?”
“Yes. High Priestess of the Celestials. A lesser position than what I had.”
“And how did you know of Dandriloc contacting Vampyres?”
“He came to me and asked me to contact them.”
“And did you?”
“I did not. I reminded him my restriction from contacting them.”
“Did he offer you anything?”
“He said he would take no action against me. I refused and said it was a double standard. I told him I would bring a charge against him if he contacted them. He told me to do what I must. He asked how he could contact them. I told him Teilo Feather knew.”
“Did he seek Teilo Feather?”
“I believe he did.”
“Thank you.”
Teilo was next called. He recounted Dandriloc’s arrival and demeanor and his request that Teilo contact Simon.
“Did he say why?” Cagwn asked.
“Not to me. Who am I to question the Chief Druid? I did as he bade me and returned to my home to tell him where to meet Simon.”
“Did you give him any instruction?”
Only that he wear but one amulet and leave the others in our care until his return.”
“What if he’d been attacked?”
“Simon does not attack without reason. Besides, I have seen the burn scar on his hand from the time he handled an amulet while rescuing my wife. He would not willingly touch one. Just enough power to keep a Vampyre from coming too close is enough.”
“And did Dandriloc meet Simon?”
“To the best of my knowledge, yes. He was gone about an hour before he returned to my house.
“Did he say anything to you on his return?”
“He thanked us for our hospitality and left.”
Teilo was relieved he wasn’t asked how he contacted Simon. He didn’t want to detail what being a thrall was like, even though the druids probably knew. Perhaps they didn’t know everything about it.
When Jessica testified, she retold her conversation with Dandriloc.
“So he was concerned for Rhiannon?”
“He seemed so at that time.”
“What do you mean?”
“She was kept from singing at Beltane. She was chastised for her singing when it was better than anyone else’s. She was given to a widow who mistreated her, and when we attempted to adopt her, the priestess refused to consider it. The Chief Druid claimed to know nothing of what happened with the Cantares – his own clan – before Beltane. He gave Eleni the position of High Priestess of that clan. It was his duty to know.”
“Did you go to see him after you were refused?”
“We did not.”
“Why?”
“We believed the priestess acted with his authority and that of the Chief High Priestess. We believed that we would make life worse for Rhiannon if we complained.”
“You, the daughter and sister of one-time Chief High Priestesses don’t trust us?”
“Normally, I would. But because the priestess was unjust in her treatment of the girl and allowed a master to conduct the choir so poorly without sanction, we believed she was being allowed to do so. Generally – at least when my mother and sister served as Chief High Priestess – the high priestess visits the clans and is aware of the doings of her priestesses. The druids generally direct priestess matters to the Chief High Priestess. Why then, would we think Dandriloc would help?”
Cagwn looked displeased with her answer. He paused a moment before asking more. Jessica didn’t see what else she would possibly know about this case.
“Tell me, Mrs. Feather, how did you hear of this girl in the Cantare clan?”
“Simon, I believe, came to visit my husband. He had met the girl and thought her singing was wonderful. He couldn’t approach the High Priestess directly to discuss affairs of the light Faeries, so he asked if Teilo would see what could be done.
“A Vampyre came to your husband?”
“They are on friendly terms, and Simon was concerned for the girl’s welfare.”
“You don’t find that unusual?”
“Vampyres don’t generally meddle in our affairs, so that was unusual, yes. I prefer not to be in the company of Vampyres. My husband has a different view of them.”
“Did they not once save your life?”
“Yes.”
“Yet you prefer not to be in their company?” Cagwn asked smiling as if he believed nothing of what she said.
“As I said, Simon seems to care for the welfare of the light Faery. I am Teilo’s wife, so he saved me as a kindness to Teilo.”
“Now we must accept that Vampyres are kind!” Cagwn remarked, facing the
Tribunal.
“I don’t know,” Jessica said. “But Simon has always behaved that way.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Feather.”
Jessica was relieved to be finished. Cagwn made her feel as if she were on trial rather than Dandriloc.
Finally, it was Dandriloc’s turn. He outlined what he had done.
“Did you know about the girl?”
“Not until Beltane. I heard someone in the crowd mention a girl who sang sweetly. I also heard complaints about the Cantares. Of course, I heard their performance and was mortified that my own clan performed so poorly.”
“You knew nothing of it before?”
“No. I don’t generally concern myself with the clans and their day-to-day functions. That is the duty of the clan priestess, as you know. If she fails, the Chief High Priestess should know of it. My duty is to sacrifices and holy days, not disciplining poorly trained masters. But when I heard of this girl and heard the poor quality of the music, I decided something was amiss, so I visited the Cantares.”
“Had anyone come to speak to you about it?”
“No. I have ears. I heard the music myself.”
“What happened when you visited?”
He told of the events and how he discovered through the priestess that Simon had alerted her of the music master when he reported Rhiannon’s death.
“Eleni had so little discernment that she spoke to a Vampyre without knowing it. She cared so poorly for the village that she allowed incompetence to rule, so I removed her from her position and sent her to the House of the Priestesses. I also took the master from his position.”
“What is he doing now?”
“I understand he left the Cantares’ village, and no longer lives with our clans.”
“You said you removed Eleni from her position. Isn’t that the duty of the Chief High Priestess?”
“Normally, yes.”
“Then she wasn’t doing an adequate job?”
Dandriloc looked startled. “In this instance, no, she wasn’t.”
“So it was the two priestesses together who allowed the disgrace of the Cantares?” Neelyn asked from the podium.
“Y—yes,” Dandriloc replied slowly. He had taken care of Eleni, and had no wish to disgrace Angharad.
Dark Faery IV: The Cantares Page 8
