Trefoil (5 page)

Meckenzie knew he was right but there were so many questions she had, and she knew this man had answers.  She could see in his eyes that he was looking for them.  There had been a spark of recognition in the stranger’s eyes as he had looked at Meckenzie, but he had made no move towards her, no move to hurt her.

Taggart stood up just as the mystery man looked in the door.  "I'll get us some coffee.  Pull out your phone and pretend to make a phone call."

Meckenzie did as Taggart had instructed her.  She pulled out her phone, but instead of pretending, she called Kellan.  As she held the phone to her ear, she once again made eye contact with the large stranger.  He looked at her, once again recognition sparked in his eyes, but he moved on and didn’t enter the coffee shop.

"Kellan"

"Yeah, are you in the house somewhere?"

"No, someone was following Isabel out of the park, so I took off to follow him and Taggart came with me.  We are at the World Coffee around the corner.  Can you check to see if Isabel has made it back to the house yet?"

"Sure, I'm in my room so let me run down stairs."

"You want us to bring you back a coffee or something?"

Kellan laughed, "You run off chasing some strange guy who is following Isabel and now you’re taking my coffee order.  You really are something you know."

"No reason to be impolite. Plus we are trying to look indiscrete, the strange guy spotted us following him and we ducked into the coffee shop to look inconspicuous."

"I don't see Isabel anywhere."  Kellan said.  "Isabel? 
You here?"

Meckenzie waited for Kellan to finish looking for Isabel.  She hoped she would come home so that they could just grab their coffees and head back to the house. She could hear Kellan opening doors and shouting for Isabel.

"She's not here.  You want me to come to you guys and we can search for her?"

"I think we will take our coffees and stroll back to the house the long way.  Thanks Kellan."

"No prob."

As Meckenzie was hanging up the phone with Kellan, Taggart returned to the table with two coffees.  "I called Kellan and had her see if Isabel had made it back to the house."

"Any luck?"

"She isn't there.  I think we should take our coffees and go for a casual stroll back to the house.  Maybe going down the way he was facing and then doubling back to the house in a couple of blocks."

Taggart and Meckenzie headed out of the coffee shop.  They headed southwest for a couple of blocks then doubled back in front of the Natural History Museum.  Meckenzie spotted Isabel sitting in front of the Museum looking intently at some brochures.  She met Meckenzie's eyes and made the slightest head shake indicating that they should not acknowledge her. 

Meckenzie grabbed Taggart's attention, "We should head home."

Taggart looked confused, "Isn't that what we are doing."

"Yes, but I spotted Isabel.  Don't look.  She indicated that we should just head home."

As they entered the front door, Kellan was waiting for them by the window.

"I've been watching for you guys.  No sign of Isabel."

"She's sitting in front of the Museum."  Meckenzie replied.

"So what exactly happened," Kellan asked.

"Isabel went to meet the courier that would be delivering the messages to mom.  She headed off into the park and I thought I saw something in the trees, so I ran upstairs to Dad's balcony to watch.  As she was leaving the park, some large guy followed her from the trees right across from the house.  They both headed down the side street.  Taggart and I followed them,
and then
ran into big scary guy across from Coffee World."

Taggart interjected, "He was
kinda
scary."

"Like what kind of scary?  Creepy, drag you into the park and take advantage of you scary?  Mug you in the side street scary?  Or trying to take over the world
kinda
scary?"  Kellan seemed more amused with her wit than actually interested in an answer.

"He was just scary.  It's hard to explain.  He was huge first of all and dirty. He seemed to be looking for Isabel.  When he spotted us he followed us to the coffee shop, but didn’t come in after us."  Meckenzie remembered the dirt that layered his clothes, it was so curious.  Like years of dust had been building up on him and he had never actually thought that cleaning it off was a good idea. 

Taggart headed for the kitchen.  "Let's have some lunch and wait for Isabel."

"That's a plan."  Kellan and Meckenzie said at the same time.

Chapter
8...

It was two hours later before Isabel made it back to the house.  She had walked through the park and stopped and had lunch.  She gathered the trips in the garden to have a talk about that morning’s events.  Everyone was on edge and their father hadn't been heard from since his exit during this morning’s initial conversation. 

The tension was hanging over the room like a fog rolling in from the ocean.  Meckenzie couldn't help but feel an overwhelming desire to hide in her room and sleep, but she knew that sleep, no matter how tempting, would bring no relief. 

Isabel started slowly, "I appreciate your concern for me Meckenzie.  It was very brave of you to try to come sa
ve me.  But you must understand
there is nothing that would hurt me more than for you to be discovered here.  I cannot say this enough, you have to be careful.  And running out into the street to follow someone who is following me is beyond careless."

Meckenzie opened her mouth to protest, but Taggart placed his hand on her. 

"I think Isabel has a point.  You put yourself in harm’s way.  That guy was huge and he saw you.  If we hadn't ducked into the coffee shop and put on a heck of a ruse, I think he would have figured it out.  That is if he hasn't already."

"He saw you?"  Isabel questioned.

"Yes," Taggart responded.  "He turned and looked right at Meckenzie, so I grabbed her hand and pulled her into Coffee World.  We got some coffee and hung out for a minute.  Then we headed further away from the house and doubled back.  That's when Meckenzie saw you in front of the Museum."

Meckenzie thought about telling all of them how his eyes had met her own and that there had been a spark of recognition.  She was sure that the stranger knew who she was, but she didn’t know why he had not tried to harm her in some way.  After a
moment's
contemplation, Meckenzie decided not to share that information with the
group;
it would only worry them more.

"I think we have to do some protection spells for the house and you guys.  I need to get a few things from upstairs, but you stay here.  I'll come back and we'll try some things.  I also want you to describe him to me, I never saw him.  I just felt his presence."

Isabel ran up the stairs and left the trips to contemplate the upcoming spell casting.

Kellan was the first to speak.  "What do you think this is going to consist of?  We aren't going to have to kill a live chicken and drink
it's
blood are we?"

"Chicken?"
  Taggart was laughing so hard that was all he could manage to say.

"I think it is a reasonable question.  I don't want any part of killing some animal so that we can be safe.  I am not about to get all witchy because Isabel says we should."  Kellan protested with a hurt look on her face.

"Kellan, I think it will probably be herbs and chanting.  She did a calming spell on me earlier and all she did was chant some weird words and stare at me."

"I'm not sure I’m any more comfortable with that.  I have some serious reservations about everything that is going on.  I am not sure I want any part of this."  Kellan responded.  She seemed to be lost in some thought process as she stared at the water bubbling in the garden fountain. "I really would just like everything to go back to normal.  I love you both, but I'm not sure I'm willing to put my life on the line for people I don't know."

"I'm not sure we are going to have a choice.  If everything that we are being told is true then we have people coming after us and they don't seem like the type of people who would just let us disappear into the world.  The guy from earlier was huge and he looked like he could hurt someone without even trying.  Plus he had some battle scars that looked like he may have already hurt someone."  Taggart stumbled through this statement trying to get Kellan to snap back to reality.  "I know that we had lives planned.  I'll never be a doctor now.  I don't think that is really fair, but I don't think I have a choice."

Kellan burst out, "A choice!
  We
do
have a choice.  We can just send Isabel away and just ignore it all.  I don't think they will come for us if we don't have Isabel here drawing attention to us
,
and she is the one that went into the park and exposed us.  She is the one who wants to do magic and the one that wants to take us back.  Dad would support us.  He would protect us.  We can just disappear into our
own
lives.  I could go play ball.  You could go to Harvard.  Meckenzie could..."  Kellan paused.  "What is it that you would do Meckenzie if we didn't have to go rescue a world of fairies?"

"I don't know."  Meckenzie responded.  "I think I’ve been drifting through my life because this is what I'm supposed to do.  I won't lose some future I haven't planned.  I don't want you guys to have to give up your plans, but I don't think I can do this on my own.  I think we have to do it all together."

Kellan began to speak when Isabel started back down the stairs.  She paused knowing
that what she wanted to
say would only
met
argument from both of her siblings and this woman who was here to protect them.  She just couldn't imagine that any of this was really the way life was supposed to turn out for her.  Kellan needed more proof. 

Isabel looked at the group with fascination.  "With all this tension and quiet, it would give a girl the impression that you guys were talking about me."

"What do you expect?  We are being asked to believe a story that is written in a fairy tale book.  We are being asked to give up our lives for people we don't know.  Did you think we would just all sign up and go to our deaths for you because you say you’re our great-great aunt or whatever?"  Kellan's anger was turning her complexion a curious shade of crimson.  She seemed to be growing larger, her body was expanding.  It was like she was one of those balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. 

Isabel looked at Kellan and giggled.  This only instigated Kellan's anger more.  She didn't know what was happening to her. 

"Kellan, look at me. 
Breath.
  Your experiencing something called
ar
fheabhas
fás
colainn
.  It roughly translates to super body growth.  Your anger has triggered it, so you have to relax.  Let Taggart and Meckenzie hold your hands, we are going to calm you.  Everyone hold hands."

Meckenzie and Taggart took Kellan's hands which were already twice their natural size. 

"Now you two join hands and we are going to repeat the
ciúnaigh
spell I used earlier.  So everyone close your eyes."

Kellan looked horrified as she stood there at well over seven feet tall.  Tears began to roll down her cheeks.  She was losing some of her anger as fear took over.  She seemed to have stopped growing.

"Now repeat after me.
Ciúnaigh
reacht
.
 
Ciúnaigh
stuaim
.
  And then repeat it.
Ciúnaigh
reacht
.
 
Ciúnaigh
stuaim
."
 

Isabel started circling the triplets as she spoke these words aloud.  Taggart and Meckenzie picked up the chant, finding the right resonance and annunciation.  Finally Kellan joined in and it felt as if a low voltage of electricity was flowing through their bodies in a circle. 

Then with a jolt, Kellan began to shrink back down to her normal size.  She slowly returned to her normal self and the group dropped their hands.  Everyone was exhausted. 

Isabel was excited.  She didn't seem exhausted, she seemed rejuvenated.

"That was fantastic.  You guys are so much more powerful than I thought.  Kellan you seem to have a very special gift.  I've only heard of one fairy that could ever
ar
fheabhas
fás
colainn
, King Treigold.  You are truly the progeny of the King." 

"So all you have to do is get me really angry like the Hulk."  Kellan said in a huff.  "Kellan grow big."  She said mockingly.  "I guess I should be glad I didn't turn green."

Taggart laughed, "You were a little red in the face though."

"I'm glad I could amuse you."  Kellan laughed, though tears still stained her cheeks.

The mood seemed to lighten.  Meckenzie wondered if the spell had worked on all of their moods.  She had a sense of well-being that everything was just alright.

Isabel sat on the wall of the fountain and watched the triplets closely.  They had done something amazing.  They had cast a spell so effective that it had returned Kellan to her normal state without taking hours.  It would have taken Isabel and several other fairies hours to effect any change in Kellan.  The power in these three was so great that they could perform great feats, if she could just get them focused and on the right track.

"You three are very powerful.  That spell should not have worked so fast.  It is a sign of your power that it only took minutes.  I believe with a little training you will be great and powerful Fae rulers."

The trips looked at her confused. 
Rulers?
  Were they intended to rule Aquinas?

"Rulers?"
Meckenzie was confused. 

"Of course, you are the heir's to the throne.  Your mother rules Aquinas now.  You will obviously rule the kingdom, you are the Trefoil.  With your power you will free all the kingdoms and unite them again to be ruled peacefully."  Isabel was obviously as happy as a kitten.  She seemed to not see the problem with this scenario.  In order for them to rule, they had to leave their home and they had to fight a war.  They had to win, yet none of them had been trained to fight or trained to rule. 

Isabel stood and began organizing the materials that she had brought downstairs with her. 

"We will start by casting a protection spell for the house.  It will work like a smoke detector.  When someone enters the house that means you harm it will sound a warning buzz.  Anyone with enough Fae blood will be able to feel the buzz, so we will need to warn your father about them.”  Isabel started piling some shiny black stones in front of the trips.  “We will need to place these throughout the house next to doors and ground floor windows.  But first we have to cast the spell on them."

Meckenzie picked up one of the shiny black stones that Isabel had placed in front of her.  They were round, smooth, and black.  She thought they might be obsidian. 

"Is this obsidian?"

Isabel smiled, "No, they are the hearts of gnomes. Gnomes are the guardians of the passages between lands.  It is considered an honor among the gnomes to have you heart taken after death.  If the heart is pure, it is the best stone for protection."

Meckenzie dropped the stone.  It landed on the floor with a ping like it was hollow.

Isabel cried out, "Careful!  They are very rare.  We would be at a loss if we broke one."

Taggart picked up the gnome heart and placed it on the top of the stack of hearts. 

"Taggart, place the hearts in three triangles with their points touching, it should look somewhat like a clover.  Meckenzie take this powder and draw a circle around the hearts.  Kellan, drink this tea; you are probably drained from the change and the spell casting.  Don't worry it's just herbal, no chicken blood."  Isabel was trying to lighten the mood; she didn't know how accurate her comment was to Kellan's fears.

"Okay, the three of you will stand at the base of a triangle outside the circle.  I will speak the words with you, but you will be performing the spell.  So like before you'll need to join hands and close your eyes and speak the words clearly.  The inflection is important, so listen carefully."

The trips took their positions and joined hands.  They closed their eyes as Isabel began to speak.

"
Cosain
culdin
.
Cosain
colainn
.
Cosain
intinn
.
Cosain
anan
.
 
Daingnigh
croi
seo
.
  Okay, when it is working the hearts will glow red for a moment.  You should be able to feel it. 
Like a humming in your body.
  Okay, ready."

They all nodded.  They were all a bit scared.  Meckenzie was curious as to how they would know the hearts were glowing red, seeing as how their eyes were closed.

Isabel began the spell again, "
Cosain
culdin
.
Cosain
colainn
.
Cosain
intinn
.
Cosain
anan
.
 
Daingnigh
croi
seo
.
 
Cosain
culdin
.
Cosain
colainn
.
Cosain
intinn
.
Cosain
anan
.
 
Daingnigh
croi
seo
."