Magus of Stonewylde Book One

by Kit Berry

  ‘They’re like a group of gossiping old women,’ she laughed. ‘Look! Every time one of them flies away, another one steals a twig from its nest. And they’re so loud. What have they got to make so much noise about?’

  Magus smiled at her.

  ‘You’re really happy here, aren’t you? I asked your mother the other evening if she was certain about making this commitment at Beltane, and I’d like to ask you the same thing, Sylvie. You’ll be making sacred vows in the Circle and I want you to be sure.’

  She turned to him, her strange grey eyes shining.

  ‘I’m sure.’

  ‘We originally said there’d be a year’s trial. But I think you belong here.’

  ‘I do. I’ve come home.’

  She realised she was echoing Yul’s words.

  ‘I’m so pleased, Sylvie. I really believe it’s the right decision.’

  She smiled and took a deep breath of the fragrant morning air. Her body tingled with vitality. Since the moon dancing she’d felt better than ever before. Magus’ dark gaze scanned her glowing face, the ravages of eczema almost banished, her eyes no longer sunken and dull and her frailty finally receding.

  ‘I want to share the Earth Magic with you again at Beltane,’ he said, ‘to complete the healing we started last month.’

  She nodded and remembered her outburst of tears after Magus had filled her with his gift of energy. It was embarrassing, for he’d seen her at her most vulnerable.

  ‘You were very ill,’ he said gently, as if reading her mind, ‘and it’s not surprising you felt so emotional. But this time you’ll feel strong and powerful. Beltane energy is the best and without it I’d never be able to run Stonewylde as I do.’

  ‘Really? So it’s not just for healing then?’

  ‘No, it’s green energy from the Earth and it can be used for healing of course, but also just to give extra strength and vitality. Leading Stonewylde is the most gruelling job and almost too much for one person. The magic comes to me and I use it, but as the magus it’s also my privilege to share it if I so choose. So during Beltane I want you to stand with me in the Circle and take your fill. After that you’ll be whole.’

  ‘You’re very good to me,’ she said in a small voice. ‘You make me feel cared for and special.’

  ‘You are special, Sylvie. That’s why you’re here. Outsiders are never normally invited into the community, as you now understand. But I knew when I first saw you that day in London that you belonged at Stonewylde. I can’t wait for Hazel to see you in the summer. She’ll be amazed at your transformation.’

  ‘I’ll always be grateful to her,’ said Sylvie. ‘I dread to think how I’d be now if she hadn’t rescued me.’

  ‘Don’t think of it,’ said Magus firmly. ‘It’s behind you. You’ll never be weak again, Sylvie. I shall make sure of it.’

  They watched the rooks for a while longer. A young gardener wheeling a barrow appeared from around the corner of the building. He bowed his head respectfully to Magus and Sylvie and headed off towards the formal gardens.

  ‘So – no doubts then? You’d like to officially join our community in a couple of days’ time?’

  ‘Yes please! I’ve no doubts at all.’

  Magus smiled and gave her a little hug as they stood side by side.

  ‘Good. And now I really must go to my office. I’ve completed my annual tour of the estate and there are so many reports to write up. I’ve got plans to—’

  They were interrupted by Martin, a tall, sombre man who shared the blond Hallfolk hair but was a servant.

  ‘Sorry to intrude, sir, but there’s a call for you from London.’

  ‘Thanks, Martin. You’d better get back to your lessons, Sylvie. Tell your teacher I needed to talk with you. And Sylvie … I can’t wait till you become of one of us.’

  Yul was busy once again adding the final touches to the bonfire in the Circle. He’d watched the Spring Equinox hare decorations on the great stones being washed off and repainted with images of the Green Man. Fennel once more climbed up and down a ladder, adding glints of gold to the faces sprouting oak leaves. Yul had another strong urge to knock him off the ladder, especially as Fennel had been one of those involved in the incident at the Equinox, but he was learning to curb his temper and bide his time.

  Buzz had just appeared in the vicinity, supposedly supervising some Village youngsters laying lanterns, but in reality throwing his weight around and showing off. Yul watched him from beneath lowered eyelids, trying not to attract any attention. He knew only too well that no Villager would ever dare defend him from Hallfolk victimisation. Buzz could bully him with impunity, as he’d always done.

  It was while he was perched near the top of the massive bonfire that Buzz noticed him. Yul was stuffing a certain type of lichen-covered bark into gaps where it would burn with a blue-green flame when the fire was lit.

  ‘Look what we’ve got here – a monkey up a tree!’ cried Buzz, abandoning the lanterns and swaggering over to the bonfire. He’d put on some weight lately as well as growing taller, and was becoming quite bulky. Several of his cronies from the Hall turned around to look, and Fennel laughed.

  ‘Yeah, but with only half the brains of a monkey!’ he sneered, and promptly wobbled precariously on his ladder.

  Even though the consequences were inevitable, Yul couldn’t ignore them.

  ‘Do take care, young master!’ he called. ‘You don’t look too safe up on that high ladder. Any minute now you’ll wobble too far and fall flat on your precious arse.’

  Buzz growled at this, advancing closer to the bonfire. Yul was perfectly placed at the top, one leg wound around a thick supporting branch, his strong body braced and balanced. He gazed down at Buzz from his lofty height and then across at Fennel, trying to get down the ladder with some dignity. Yul made a show of rolling up his sleeves just to prove that he didn’t need to hold on at all.

  ‘Shut your ignorant mouth, boy!’ Buzz grunted, reaching the foot of the bonfire.

  ‘Or what?’

  ‘Or you’ll suffer. Worse than last time.’

  ‘I didn’t suffer at all last time. Chasing me into the woods – that’s hardly making me suffer, is it?’

  ‘Yeah, and Magus punished you. He told me.’

  ‘Punished me? Oh, you mean the bit of gardening at Woodland Cottage? That was no punishment. I enjoy gardening.’

  Yul knew he was pushing his luck. Buzz was right; he’d suffer for this. He could never win; the odds were stacked too heavily against him. As Buzz glared up at him forming his reply, he noticed the residue of bruising around Yul’s eye.

  ‘Hah, a black eye! So someone else taught you a lesson.’

  ‘The bastard who gave me this could no more teach anyone a lesson than you could!’ retorted Yul sharply.

  ‘You come down here and say that!’

  ‘I know, why don’t you come up here and then I will! Though a great lump of lard like you couldn’t climb an anthill!’ Yul replied, an insolent grin on his face.

  Enraged, Buzz started to climb the enormous bonfire. Very soon he was completely defeated, his legs trapped inside, his arms pulling wildly at the tangle of wood. Branches and brushwood fell out everywhere around him. Yul was still perched on the top laughing at Buzz’s humiliation, though the damage to the bonfire dismayed him. The other Hallfolk boys gathered around and yelled insults at Yul, throwing the dislodged sticks up at him to stop his mocking laughter.

  One of the woodsmen ran to fetch Greenbough, working nearby. He came puffing up the Long Walk and when he saw the scene, nearly exploded with rage. He may only have been a Villager and they Hallfolk, but his precious bonfire came above such considerations. As the head of the woodsmen, his responsibility for the bonfire superseded any natural obedience towards Hallfolk. He burst into the Circle and roared at the youths.

  ‘Stop it! Get off that fire, you fools. ‘Tis the sacred bonfire for Beltane! Get off!’

  He grabbed hold of Buzz, roughly pull
ing him free from the snarl of branches that held him fast. Greenbough was old but had worked in the woods his entire life and was very strong indeed. He wasn’t worried about putting a pup like Buzz in his place, Hallfolk or not. Buzz was yanked off balance and fell heavily onto the ground.

  ‘Stupid bloody idiot!’ he shouted, his face scarlet.

  ‘You show some respect for your elders,’ growled Greenbough. ‘Now bugger off away from this here fire or I’ll kick your arse all the way back to the Hall.’

  Trying to muster any remaining shreds of dignity, the large blond youth picked himself up and stalked off. But not before he’d pointed up at Yul and spoken slowly and distinctly.

  ‘You wait, Yul! You’re dead.’

  7

  Sylvie lay in the white marble bath at the Hall soaking in sumptuous bluebell bath oil. Steam from the enormous tub rose in fragrant clouds around her head, misting up the gilt mirrors. This was the best bathroom of all and she was lucky to have got it; usually she used one of the ordinary bathrooms down the corridor.

  She sighed and closed her eyes. Tonight was May Eve. Her heart raced with excitement at the thought of the ceremony at the Stone Circle, and she was looking forward to May Day tomorrow too. Then the day after that was another full moon. Sylvie couldn’t believe it was four weeks already since the last one. She sat up in the bath, steam eddying around her, hair hanging like pieces of string about her flushed face. Time to get ready now. Her white dress hung in a room in the girls’ dormitory wing. Tonight she’d be making her vows and she couldn’t wait.

  Yul too was getting ready for the ceremony. The bonfire had been repaired and he’d received a wallop from Greenbough when he’d leapt down to the ground after Buzz’s departure. The old man knew it wasn’t Yul’s fault, but was furious that the sacred fire had been put in jeopardy. Yul accepted this tough discipline, knowing he’d deliberately goaded Buzz. He now lay in a chipped enamel tub in a small cubicle in the Village bath house, a world away from Sylvie’s white marble opulence. No clouds of fragrant bluebell steam for Yul – his water was tepid and he washed with plain rosemary soap. But he enjoyed the comparative luxury of it and was looking forward to the night ahead. Like everyone at Stonewylde, the festivals were the cornerstones of his existence and he loved them.

  Yul sat up and began to wash vigorously. As always, he was very dirty, and knew he’d see Sylvie tonight. This would be the first time since the evening on the bridge when she’d sought him out and then made him feel so wretched. The memory of her strange silver-grey eyes and their flood of pity still upset him. The last thing he wanted was her pity. The thought of her churned up his insides and he almost dreaded their next encounter, despite longing to see her again. She made him feel confused and unsure of himself.

  Glowing from her bath, Sylvie padded along the corridor and climbed a half-flight of stairs into another corridor. The Hall was a labyrinth and she was only just beginning to find her way around, especially upstairs. It didn’t help that the building had grown over the centuries, each era adding extra wings on different levels. She opened a heavy oak door that led into another part and heard the sound of many girls’ voices coming through open doorways. There was giggling and shrieking, and the palpable energy that mushrooms when a group of girls get ready together for a night out. She hesitated, suddenly feeling shy. When Dawn, an older girl who’d recently befriended her, had suggested that Sylvie join them in the girls’ wing to get ready for Beltane Eve, it had seemed like a good idea. But now she wished she’d gone back to Woodland Cottage to get ready with her mother. She couldn’t change her mind though, for her clothes hung in the communal room. She steeled herself and walked in.

  Many faces turned at her arrival and she felt her cheeks burn. But there were smiles of welcome and Dawn, sitting on a sofa in her dressing gown, stood up and greeted her. She was given a plate of cold food and a glass of milk, and a space was found for her on a cushion on the floor. The big room was packed full of girls of around her age, most of them blond haired. They were all eating supper and excitedly discussing the night ahead. Being part of a group like this was strange for Sylvie. She sat quietly, savouring the experience as her hair slowly dried down her back.

  ‘How long have we got now?’

  ‘Less than an hour. We need to get a move on soon and start getting dressed.’

  ‘Can I still borrow your old cloak? I’ll be getting my new one next Solstice at my Rite, and I hate the old one.’

  ‘Yeah, I said you could. I don’t need it now I’ve got robes.’

  ‘Will you do my hair?’

  ‘Only if you’ll do mine. Lots of little plaits.’

  ‘I still can’t believe he chose that stupid Rowan.’

  ‘Did you see her yesterday? I saw her walking back down to the Village after she’d finished work. She was smiling so hard I thought she’d split her bloody face open.’

  ‘It makes me sick. Why didn’t he choose a Hallfolk girl?’

  As the conversation progressed Sylvie realised that she wasn’t part of the group at all, for she’d no idea what they were on about. Dawn noticed her puzzled look.

  ‘We’re talking about the girl Magus chose as May Queen.’

  ‘Is she a Villager?’

  ‘Yes she bloody well is!’ said July bitterly. ‘She works in the laundry here.’

  ‘How could he pick a laundry maid? Maya’s sixteen this festival, and there’s Linden and Tulip. They had their Rite at the Spring Equinox. Not to mention Megan and Saffy at Imbolc. What’s wrong with them? It makes me sick!’

  ‘He has to be fair,’ said Dawn in a conciliatory tone. ‘It was a Hallfolk girl last year and the Lammas Queen too. The Villagers would get upset if he never chose one of them.’

  ‘So? Let them get upset. What are they going to do about it?’

  ‘How’s Eleanor? I bet she’s nervous.’

  ‘It’s Eleanor’s Rite of Adulthood tonight,’ Dawn explained to Sylvie who nodded, none the wiser.

  ‘She’s okay. Her parents are here and she’s in their rooms with them. Her new robes are beautiful.’

  ‘What’s her totem?’

  ‘A hedgehog, would you believe? I thought she was joking when she told me!’

  ‘Eleanor’s always loved hedgehogs.’

  ‘Yeah, but not all over her robes and on her necklet, surely? Let’s hope she’s not as prickly tonight!’

  ‘So who’s partnering her? Fennel?’

  ‘Buzz. But I don’t mind,’ said Holly. ‘He spoke to me about it and it’s okay. He’s mine at the Winter Solstice. Unless I get lucky, of course!’

  They all laughed at this and Sylvie tried to join in.

  After a while they put their plates to one side and started to get dressed for the evening, the under sixteens in tunics and the older ones in their robes.

  ‘You don’t wear that until tomorrow,’ said Holly, noticing Sylvie taking her white dress off the hanger.

  ‘Magus said I had to wear it tonight,’ said Sylvie. ‘And my mum’s wearing hers too.’

  ‘They’re having a special ceremony,’ said Dawn. ‘Magus is welcoming them into the community.’

  ‘Really? How odd. What’s he going to do?’

  The pretty girl stood unselfconsciously in the middle of the room wearing only her underwear. She stared hard at Sylvie, who clutched her white dress and coloured slightly at being singled out like this.

  ‘I’m not really sure,’ she replied. ‘We’ll be making a vow to uphold the laws and customs of Stonewylde, I think. That’s what Clip said.’

  ‘My parents couldn’t believe Magus had brought Outsiders here. They arrived yesterday for Beltane and they were stunned when they heard,’ said Holly, pulling the tunic over her head and shaking out her blond bobbed hair. ‘Mother said it’s never been done before.’

  Sylvie was silent at this. She hoped people weren’t going to resent them.

  ‘Don’t worry, Sylvie,’ said Dawn. ‘You know you’re welcome here.�
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  ‘Yeah, but it does seem a little unfair that real Hallfolk aren’t allowed to live here permanently even though they’d love to, and then Magus goes and brings in Outsiders.’

  ‘Why aren’t they allowed to live here?’ asked Sylvie, worried now about upsetting people.

  ‘Magus says there isn’t enough room for all the Hallfolk,’ said Holly. ‘Most of them are only allowed back for one or two of the festivals a year. That’s why my parents are here now. But they’ll have to leave after a week. It’s the same for all the visitors who’ve come for Beltane.’

  ‘Not all of them want to stay here permanently though,’ said Wren. ‘My parents don’t. Dad’s an Outsider anyway and he’d hate Stonewylde. Mother always comes on her own and she says a week’s enough for her.’

  ‘Well, I just hope the visitors don’t mind,’ said Holly. ‘Two complete strangers taking up valuable Hallfolk spaces.’

  Her dark eyes watched Sylvie closely; she was trying to pluck up the courage to take off her bathrobe and change into her dress.

  ‘Of course they won’t!’ said Dawn, putting an arm round Sylvie’s shoulders. ‘Do you want to get dressed in my room, Sylvie?’

  She nodded thankfully and followed the older girl down the corridor to a bedroom. Her breathing felt tight and she wished she’d brought her inhaler. She hadn’t used it for ages but maybe she’d need it tonight after all. But it sat uselessly in a drawer in Woodland Cottage, and Sylvie realised she’d just have to manage without it. Dawn pushed her bedroom door open and ushered Sylvie inside, smiling kindly at the younger girl.

  ‘There, it’s more private here. Don’t take any notice of Holly. She’s just a bit jealous of you, that’s all.’

  ‘Jealous? What on earth for?’

  ‘You’re new and you’re getting a lot of attention. She likes to be queen bee. She overheard the boys talking about you and she didn’t like it. But don’t worry, she’s always bitching about someone or something. It’s nothing personal. I’ll leave you in peace to get changed. Use any of my stuff. We need to leave in about twenty minutes though, so don’t take too long.’