una nicnevin is not her real name (leannan) wrote in shadowlands_ic, @ 2017-09-04 18:03:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | mac, una nicnevin |
Who: Mac and Una
What: Mac attends the engagement party
Where: Aboard the barge
When: 27 August, 1888
Ratings/warnings: Safe for work.
Mac arrived at the barge dressed in full highland regalia befitting a clan chieftain in the days when they were still a power to be reckoned with before the Forty Five, accompanied by two Seelie Fae retrainers similarly garbed. The silver brooch holding his plaid at the shoulder and the polished leather of his belt and boots gleamed in the firelight along with the hilt of the dagger at his belt.
He could have dressed as a celtic tribesman from his youth in the days of Caesar, or one of the picts that bedeviled the English a millennia ago, all would have served the same purpose but wouldn’t be as recognizable to modern eyes. The Scots rebellions were recent enough that several of the supernatural beings on the barge could have fought in them, on both sides. His presence at the gala so attired was a reminder of which member of the impending union was the senior party. Fae was its own power and would not be subjugated by other races, come what may. Politics might not be spoken of overtly at the celebration but silent messages could be sent. Both Titania and Mab had heartily approved of his decision when consulted.
It seemed the cèilidh was already in full swing, and had all the usual touches he’d come to expect with poets and musicians scattered about as well as a healthy sized dance floor. That could wait for the moment however, now was time to make his manners to the bride to be.
Una's dress, while not perfectly to period, recalled the proper dress of a lady of the same era. Her skirt was divided which Mac could imagine meant she planned to take the ladder that connected the barge. Or perhaps she already had. She wore the Balmore tartan, which would have died out had Una not preserved it in her own person, both in her skirt and in a sash tied over her left shoulder, as was her due as the lady of the clan. The sash was pinned in place by a silver brooch that might seem oddly incongruous by current standards save for the large cairngorm citrines that were set into the extensive knotwork. Mac had seen her in it more than once, but not since the Forty Five. That Una had revived it at this gathering was a message of her own to those who knew what to look for.
At Mac's approach, she turned to greet him, offering her hand, which was ungloved since she was carrying a champagne glass in the other hand. "Cousin," she said, remembering to stay in English, at least for now. "It's a pleasure to have you among us tonight. Be welcome, freely and without obligation."
“I appreciate your generosity cousin, you’re too kind.” His preference would have been the gaelic, but it was Una’s party and in this at least he would follow her lead. “You look lovely as always.” And indeed she was a vision to behold. He took her hand in his and bowed, brushing his lips over it before letting go. The vampire had best treat her well or there would be hell to pay.
Of course, that assumed there would be anything left of him once Una finished her retribution if such a thing occurred.
“My gift to you and your intended is already being consumed as we speak.” He’d contributed the spirits for both the cèilidh and the wedding feast when the time came, barely batting an eye at the expense when his banker had told him the sums required. Of course the whisky was from his own stock, distilled on his lands up in the highlands, and what beer was being consumed came from the same source as that served in the Lionhart. “But my Queen Titania bid me give you this on behalf of the Summer Court.” A gesture and the retainer on the right stepped forward, bearing an intricately carved wooden box roughly a cubic foot in size. “Take it and the contents without obligation as a gift on the occasion of your wedding.”
Una took the box, her eyes wide with curiosity and delight. "You are too kind and generous, as always. As is the Queen." She made a slight reverence at the mention of Titania, who was technically not her lady, but whom she honoured as a great power. In particular on this occasion, when Mac and his Queen had clearly set out to show the ancient power and wealth of the Sidhe. That reminder was not unwelcome as they set out into treacherous waters deeper and darker than the Thames.
"Shall we see it safely put away from the company? There is a private place set aside and I would protect Her Majesty's gift from prying eyes." Which put the question of opening it into Mac's court; he'd know best whether whatever the Queen had sent was meant to be seen publicly, as a display of her power, or whether it was a secret for their eyes only.
“The outer box can be opened here.” Mac informed her, pleased at the reaction. “The other is something my Lady intended for your eyes and those of our kinfolk alone.” He knew what it was of course, and highly approved of the choice his Queen had made and the statement it was sending.
Open it Una did, then, and gasped with pleasure at the gift revealed as the panels fell away: a small red mandevilla vine, full of life and health and Summer's vigour to Una's eyes. The mandevilla was a frost-tender shoot, but Una could see the enchantments woven in--nay, grown in--to the heart of the vine, and that with proper tending it would grow wherever she planted it as if it were eternal summer.
"A queenly gift," Una told Mac, for it was, one of great symbolism, and one she was pleased to have unveiled before the audience of mortals that watched along with the two retainers who had taken the sides of the box from her hands. "And one I receive with great pleasure and honour. But let us store it well, away from the press of people, and speak on those other matters Her Majesty bid you bring to me." And she gestured toward the heart of the barge where there was a secured retiring room.
Mac nodded and escorted her to the room. A nod and one of the retainers peeled off at the door as they passed through, the other closed it behind them and stood guard there.
“You may see this as paranoia,” Mac gestured toward the guard and shrugged. “But the shadows have been growing longer since you told me of your decision. While Queen Titania gifted you with the plant, it was Mother Summer who instructed that you receive something more.” It was rare indeed for the eldest of the Summer Queens to intervene in matters on this side of the veil, he could count on one hand the number of instances in his lifetime.
With the vine lifted out of the box he waved a hand over the wooden bottom to remove the glamours disguising the final gift. A golden bracelet revealed itself, gleaming in the light with a faint internal glow hinting at the power it contained. He picked it up carefully, a sense of reverence clear on his face. “Mother Summer bid me to give this to you and you alone, to help with the struggle ahead. Once used it will return to the court, but the healing magics are strong and will heal any injury short of the grave.”
Which meant that Cassius was out of luck if something were to happen to him. Summer’s healing magic couldn’t bring back what was already dead. But Una, or someone she chose to use the bracelet’s power to heal, could be saved.
“You are to tell no one of this,” he instructed, speaking with his authority as both Queens representative in the House of Shadows. “The mortals will think that the plant is the gift Titania bid give you and nothing else.” It was a secret that could save her life if the situation were truly as dire as Mother Summer led him to believe.
Una's eyes widened and there was a soft gasp as she took in the layers of enchantments and the deep powers in the bracelet. The desire to touch it was strong, but she knew better.
The gift and its implications were clear, and the complex dance that must have gone on in the Summer Court around it were also clear to Una. "The Mother is truly gracious. I hope neither of us will need it, but my lips are sealed until we do. There's much afoot here, more than I suspected when I began to unwind things, and I was right that the covens--though not Ravensworth, so far as I can tell--are in the centre of things.
"For one, there are mortals from America here, seeking a coven called Stahl, which they believe stole some powerful magics and brought them to London. I've set them loose among the company this evening to see what they can find, since their goals run with yours and mine. You'll recognise one by the scent of time on him. I don't know what, if anything, they've found, but if nothing else, they should overturn enough rocks that something will scuttle out."
“Stahl...” Mac mused, searching his memory. “I've not heard of them in some time. They left for the Colonies during Cromwell’s reign.” A time when he’d gone north to Scotland, temporarily released from his obligations by the death of Charles until the Restoration. “They were a nasty bunch from what I remember. Ambitious too.”
He frowned. Here in the privacy of the cabin with only other Fae as a witness he felt the urge to ask again. “You know I have every confidence in your abilities, but are you certain this is the right course of action?” Mac couldn't help but worry.
"Had I not known before, the Mother's gift would have sealed it. She wouldn't intervene unless the work was that dangerous. I cannot turn from this battle, Conall." It was not the first time Una had said such a thing to him, but this time, her voice carried no anger, merely determination. "The charge is laid on me and I must go on."
The moment ended, and she smiled, even if it was sad. "There is a small favour I would ask of you, one that my own work may prevent me from pursuing. A girl named Arabella Ward, a changeling child that doesn't know her own identity. She's been advertising in the Shade looking for people who have metal allergies. Someone placed deep glamours on her to prevent us from seeing her true form. She'll need a friend or three, and you're well-placed to find out what happened to her." That Una might not be able to do anything at all was best left unspoken, given Mac's concerns.
“I'll make certain she's looked after if the need arises.” Mac assured her. Changelings of that sort didn't cross his path often but he’d seen their like before. Mab up to her old tricks most likely.
He didn't want Una involved with the Vampires but her path was set. She had her duty just as he had his.
"Then I will rest easy on that matter." Una's tone grew stronger again. "And tonight, we will drink and play and sing, and be merry. All of us," she said, including Mac's guard in the formerly-private conversation. "Once we have put this gift away properly."