Of Gods and Fae (18 page)

"Why Mr. Hoskins," she said with a smile, suddenly
sounding every bit the Southern Belle. "I do believe you are trying to get
me alone." This was definitely not the Delia I was used to, I thought as
we walked through the doorway and headed for my car.

The drive to my house was uneventful.  Delia seemed lost in
thought and I figured I'd wait to ask any questions.  As we pulled through the gates
Charlie was waiting. Before I could get the door open he was on me, checking to
see if I was ok. Damn dog had a better information network than I did. When he
was finished with me he checked out Delia. Satisfied, he went back to the
house.

"I'll just need a minute to change," I said as we
walked into the house.

"I think you better take a shower," Delia said,
after walking up close and sniffing.

"You're probably right," I kidded, leaning down
and smelling my shirt. "Grab whatever you want and I'll be down in a
few." I ran upstairs and took a quick shower, throwing on some pressed
jeans and a button up shirt before heading back down.

"What's this?" I asked, walking into the backyard.
The kitchen had been empty but the door was open and the patio lights on.

"I changed my mind," Delia said, pointing to the
BBQ Island. On it were two steaks, bone in, that I'd had in the fridge.

"Seems to me you had some help," I replied, eyeing
Charlie as he brought the ball to her.

"Well, he might have told me they were there," she
said with a laugh. "But these will do fine, I don't feel like going out
anymore and since we're here…"

"Ok. But it'll take a few, I'd rather cook them on
this," I replied, picking up the small charcoal grill I kept around for
good steaks. I poured in some briquettes, lit them, and then went inside for
some spices.

"Don't you use magic for anything?" she asked as I
came back out.

"Old habits," I replied in jest as I grabbed two
beers out of the refrigerator in the island and popped the caps off, handing
her one. "Besides, I thought you didn’t like the Fae, let alone their
magic."

"I never said that," she said. "Not all Fae
treat us as servants. As for the magic, well, it's just not something we Lilin
really ever see. At least not the good kind. Except when Bjartr does something.
But… I don't know… that seems different somehow."

"Let me show you something then," I said as I went
into the house and turned out the porch lights. The moon was up and there
enough light to see as I led her into the grass by the trees and my garden.

Believe it or not there were a few tricks I had learned when
it came to magic, especially where my home was concerned. Just ask my neighbor
who still was amazed at the 'secret formula' fertilizer I gave her. Truth was,
it was just a regular bag I'd gotten at the nursery. While it did take sunlight
for plants to grow, it was the faeries in the moonlight that I'd asked to visit
her yard that really made the magic happen. Although she would never see them.
But in Delia's case, I made an exception.

Taking her hand I let the magic flow through us, opening
sight to beings not normally observed here on the earth. Suddenly another world
came into focus. Sprites and faeries danced in the moonlight amongst the
branches of the trees. Others visited each plant in the garden, sprinkling
magic to make them grow. Will-o'-the-Wisps blinked into and out of existence
over parts of the yard, never staying too long. A few faeries and sprites came
close, their wings buzzing just out of normal hearing range as they passed. They
nodded as they passed, recognizing me for who I was.

"They're beautiful," she whispered as she watched,
captivated by their ballet in the moonlight. Raising her hand, one alighted for
a brief moment upon her finger, before dancing away like a butterfly.

"We're not all monsters," I said softly as I let
go of her hand, the otherworldly beings fading back into the night.

"Where'd they go," she asked, looking around.

"Here," I answered, and blew a whiff of magic in
the air so she could see them again. "They can be distracting if you let
them. So, you once asked me what has changed. Now it's my turn. What has
changed?" I queried as I took a sip of my beer. Figuring now was as good a
time as any to destroy the mood.

"I don't know what you mean," she replied, still
trying to touch the faeries.

 "Oh, please," I countered, walking back toward
the grill. "You've always kept your distance. Even when bad things weren't
happening. Now, all of sudden we're having steaks in the backyard and flirting.
I don’t really know anything about you, either. But I would like to know what's
going on."

"Oh, I'm flirting with you am I," she said as she
came up to me.

"That's not fair," I said, her lips just inches
from mine. "And don’t change the subject." She was so tempting, but I
needed to know more.

"Fine," she said, turning away. "Tell me,
what do you really know about us?"

"If you meant the Lilin, not much," I admitted.
"The Lilin inside you gives you strength and longevity. In exchange it
needs blood. The legend of vampires are based on your kind, but you don’t have
fangs, rather you have a… I guess I'd call it a proboscis. Other than that and
the wars, not much, to be honest."

"So not a lot. You want to know more about us… about me?
I'll tell you a story," she said, picking up her beer where she'd left it.
"But you can cook while I talk, agreed?"

"I can do that," I admitted, checking the grill.

"Do you know how old I am?" she asked as she sat
down.

"I have no clue," I answered as I began to sear
the steaks, they were thick so they were going to take a bit of time. "You
look like you’re in your early 30s, but I'm guessing that's not the case."

"I'm not as old as your plaything, Delia, but I'm older
than 30," she said with a laugh.

"She's not my plaything," I replied as I flipped
the steaks. "And let's not get off track here."

"I was nothing more than a farmer's wife when the
Romans left Britain sometime in the what? Fifth century or so. I couldn't tell
you exactly," she began as she took a drink. Then she stood back up and
looked back over the yard. Watching the Faeries still moving about, dancing
from plant to plant.

"It was when the Saxons came, or at least I think it
was the Saxons. Hard to remember who was who in those days. Suffice it to say
that raids were common, and they weren't pretty. They'd come a few times before,
usually just stealing our food but occasionally they were violent. I lost my
husband and his father during an earlier one. But this time was worse. There
was very little food left, they had burned much of the fields. They raped the
woman and left us for dead. At least some had had their throats slit, putting
them out of their misery. But my last attacker had not been so kind. I remember
lying next to the still smoldering ruins of the farmhouse as they marched off,
wondering when I would die. Then he came.

"His name was Orvyn. He picked me up and carried me to a
place not too far away. It was in the woods and near a stream that used to flow
across our fields. I think my back was broken and I remember the pain as I
prayed for death. Then he put me down gently and asked me if I wanted to live.
What was I going to say? Living was still better than being dead, or at least
so I thought at the time. I croaked out the word yes and then he kissed me. I
remember a burning in my throat and I passed out again. When I awoke later the
pain was gone. I tried to get up but I was still weak. Then Taite joined us. It
takes two, you see, for a Lilin to be created."

"I'd heard that," I said.

"Yes, well, she told me what they were. Not just the stories
they tell children to frighten them. But the real stories. They weren't Demons,
or spawns of the Devil, they were just the Lilin. A fusing of two beings, she
said. Even with the curse of Demeter… yes, they told me that, too.  I would be
stronger, faster, and I could live a long, long time. At first I was hesitant,
I'd been brought up fearing the thought of such creatures but eventually the
pain started to return. You don’t realize how much you want to live until you
are about to die. But her kiss was much worse than his had been. I remember the
gagging and the pain as it took form inside of me. I think I was in and out of
consciousness for a few days but soon I started getting better. My body changing,
the wounds healing. Then I became younger, or at least I looked like I was.
Life was not kind to women in those days. But my skin got taut and the muscles
hard and I was much stronger and faster than before.

 "They taught me how to use a bow and a blade. Then
they taught me how to hunt. Not just for food, but for blood as well, and
revenge."

"And did you get it? Revenge, I mean"

"I did. We hunted well together. But after a while we
had to split up, thanks to the decree. The Lilin, at least in those days,
travelled only in pairs except in situations like mine. It took about a year
for me to become fully grown and then they had to leave me. They did teach me a
lot in that year, especially how to avoid your kind. Nothing personal,"
she added.

"I understand," I answered, pulling the steaks off
the grill. "I'm gonna grab some salad and plates, let's move to the table
and you can finish your story."

"Not much more to tell," she replied, following me
into the kitchen. "Life was simpler then. I moved around a lot, met up
with a few others of my kind from time to time and then I came here when Bjartr
asked me to join him."

"So that doesn’t really tell me what's going on now
though," I said, plating the steaks and removing the bones and a hefty
chunk of meat for Charlie.

"I'll get to that," she replied, setting down her
beer on the counter. "But first, do you have any wine?"

"Pantry under the stairs," I said, pointing to the
door. "There's an opener on the cooler and glasses on the shelf."
Then I grabbed the plates and took then out back, setting them down on the
patio table.  I gave Charlie his cut and the bones. He didn’t stick around but
headed out to the yard to snack.

"Opus alright?" she asked.

I nodded and sat down.

"I didn’t know you were into wine as well. We have a
nice selection at Danu's"

"I'm not really," I replied. "Client of mine
owns a liquor store. Sends me some good stuff every year." I motioned for
her to sit.

"Now, where was I," she asked as she poured the
wine.

"What’s going on now," I reminded her, rolling my
eyes.

"Oh yeah," she said after a moment.
"Sometimes you can be so difficult… "

"What does that mean?" I replied. "I was just
asking the same thing you always do."

"Fine," she said, putting down her fork.
"Look, I would have thought some of it would be obvious. That battle with
you on Olympus, Demons trying to kill me, and now one of my own kind. Maybe I'm
just tired of it… and then there's Lucius."

"What about him?"

"Don’t tell me you didn’t know who he was."

"I know he was a Roman Centurion, what else is there?"

She shook her head as she reached for her wine.

"I knew you were different when I first met you, acting
the way you did. But sometimes you make my head spin. Don't you know anything
about the political situation out here? I mean with the Lilin.

"Like I told you a minute ago, I don’t know much about
the Lilin. What did I miss about Lucius?" I asked, now really curious.

"Lucius Camillus is not just another Lilin. He is the
right hand of the Elders, or at least he was until he met you." She took
another drink, then laughed. "By the Gods, my Fae lord, you haven't just
turned my world upside down, you've turned everyone's and didn’t even realize
it."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. I thought I was just
planting a seed, looks like I planted a whole tree. Shit, or maybe a grove.

"You really didn’t know, did you?" she said,
standing and walking around the table towards me. She stopped next to me and
leaned against it, crossing her arms.

"Sorry, believe it or not, I'm just winging it here most
of the time," I replied, figuring honesty was as good an approach as any.
"Just don’t tell anyone else," I said with a wink, trying to make
light of it.

"You amaze me. Do you know that?" she asked with a
laugh, and then she sat down, straddling me in my chair.

"I do believe you're avoiding my question," I
replied, putting my arms around her.

"Alright, but you may not like what I tell you."

"I'll just have to take that chance, I guess."

"As you wish," she said softly, without getting
up. "Truth is, I never liked the Fae. But then, what Lilin does? I have tried
to avoid the Fae for generations. It wasn't until I met Bjartr that I ever
interacted with your kind. Happy?" She reached back to the table to take a
drink of wine.

"I understand," I replied. "I really
do."

"Good. What else you need to understand is, and I'm not
telling you any secrets here, that until maybe 50 years ago, there was very
little communication between us, the Lilin, I mean."

"Ok."

"Then the old ones, the Elders, started contacting us.
Just one on one, like in the old times. At first it was just to see how we were
and to let us know they were around. Then, as technology got more advanced,
they started to get more involved. Oh, nothing sinister, or so it didn’t seem
like it was at the time. But technology gave them power. We didn’t need to keep
meeting one on one. Now they could conference call to get around the edict. Do
you understand?"

"I do," I replied. I'd said much the same thing to
Lucius when I first met him.

"Anyway, old rules were enforced again and we had to be
cautious amongst the Fae. The Elders didn’t want conflict. So while I was
attracted to you when you rescued me from the Weres, once I found out who you
were I had to be careful."