The storm kept coming. Ixian, now revealed to have been the unwitting stooge of Olga the Winter Hag looked outward, guarding the entranceway. He reported that he saw movement of the Old Men, but none approached too close. He worried about his tribe members, his lost friend Hidmeel, and the priestess lost so long ago.
Huddled in safety with Typhon in the corner was Leeta – suspected to be Olga’s heir. A hag-to-be, now doomed to wait in horror until the day she changes when she feared she would be executed without mercy. She carefully made sure Elemix was far from her.
Emmeline could see Elemix did not like his decision, but stood by it. He could not imagine what kind of life the child would have, or what tortures the girl went through. Perhaps death – as Mara pointed out – would be a mercy. Renee was gone – or was she? It had been only eight hours since Mara had left and there she saw Renee approaching. Emmeline looked up as Renee approached, “Em, you are dreaming. Its been about a week since I left and Mara agreed to left me check on you through her magics. She says I won’t be able to do this for too much longer, but I can now. How are you? Were you successful?”
“We are still trapped by the storm, the last gasp of winter here,” Emmeline said. “Leeta is still on the verge of transformation any day. She’s on the knife edge of panic every moment. I feel like crying for her every time I look at her. No one, fae or human, deserves this.”
“i’m sorry if I outed her. After what happened with the other hags, I felt I had to. You should not be hard on Elemix either. He can’t fathom anyone wanting to live in the Otherworld on purpose – given what I’m learning it makes sense he’d feel that way. What the girl was spawned from is a Cailleach, or a death hag, daughter of Winter and the Powers of Entropy. Mara says that if the girl has not pledged herself to her demon spouse nor seduced a sacrifice then there might be hope by calling on the Goddess of Winter herself to intervene.” Renee said. “This is what Mara says.”
“I do not know this goddess. How would I call her?” Emmeline wondered.
Em thought some more, then snapped her fingers. “But a priestess to that goddess would! Of course! If we find this priestess and she has not been corrupted and turned away from Winter, she may be able to help Leeta!”
“Perhaps. You are more an expert on that than I. But it may be possible I suppose. I think Mara conferred with Kalista on it. She’s been through this.”
Renee added, “Em. I need to tell you something. I may be gone awhile. You won’t notice it, but I will.”
“I’m sure your skills are needed.” Em knew Mara would never waste a favor on anything frivolous. Therefore, it was important. Emmeline was good with that. “Time will flow differently for us, since you’ll be hunting through the fae realm, I’m sure. I’ll miss you, even if it seems only a short time to me.”
“I’ll miss you too. I don’t know how long it will be for certain. May the road rise to meet you and bring you home to your children.” she said.
“Dream hug time,” Emmeline said as she shared one with Renee. “And I expect stories. Memorize everything that happens on your journey! I will set it to song so your deeds are known everywhere a human or fae ear listens.”
She hugged back, “I will, but the songs will have to be ours alone. Mara is having me seek out friends and allies from long ago, sometimes with her, some times alone. I don’t know if our Fey Lady would want to advertise her actions. But perhaps some we can discuss. I did fight a plague of boggarts. Not fun. No not fun at all. But I won.”
“How do you think she is doing? Are fae allying with her? Will our Vale and hers grow?” Emmeline asked.
“She is…an outsider to most of them. It is kind of like the stories you told me about Jon. But she lost thousands of years. I don’t completely understand the politics or the relationships. Some welcome her, some do not.”
“Then there is progress,” Emmeline observed. “Listen, you and I both know something is brewing in the North. Something is driving creatures south. Whatever it is, it’s powerful. Uzec and the Duchy are going to need powerful allies, and we can’t count on Thalassa being able to help. Not with it getting embroiled in wars to the east and southeast.
“I chose the location of the Vale with great care. I could have just as easily chosen to hide it within the protected hills of Thalassa. But I chose the North because I knew that while we require Uzec’s protection now, one day we may have exactly what is needed to help save the North when real trouble sweeps down upon us all. There were many other reasons, too, but that’s the most important one now.
“So, what you do now may be assisting Mara out of an obligation. But I believe you are ultimately helping all of us by helping her.”
“I agree. To be honest what I really want to do is to hunt this rumored reappearance of Skall. That villain set arsonists against my family home and threatened my mother, brother and sister. I don’t forgive that. Never. But I don’t want revenge. I don’t believe in that. I just want justice.” she added. “Now Mara, well she’s teaching me some things about the Fey and their nature – things I guess you already know. I’m getting a nose for them.”
Emmeline nodded. “That’s good! There really are just a few basic rules you have to know to survive. But from these basics, complicated things can be built. Like how bricks build houses. The best advice I can give you is this.
“One, true fae never lie. But that won’t prevent them from presenting alternate versions of the truth, half-truths, or simply not mentioning important things. Lesser fae can and will lie if they must. Knowing the difference could be as crucial to you as keeping your wits and knowing that what you may be told is highly unlikely to ever be the whole truth.
“Two, respect their power. Even the least of the fae can cause no end of mischief if they feel offended. Obviously, you are already learning this as you have to hunt them.
“Three, never eat or drink fae food or drink. If you do, you may become fae yourself and never, ever get to come home. Or it may do something far worse to you.
“Four, never accept a gift from fae. This puts you in debt to them, a position you do not want to be in. Appreciate the gift and acknowledge the gesture so as not to be rude. But do not accept one of your own free will.
“Five, do not thank fae. This implies you feel indebted in some way, and they can and will use that against you. Acknowledge when they do something for you. Express appreciation. Avoid rudeness. But do not express even symbolic indebtedness.
“Favors and debts are the currency of Faerie. Learn to use them and trade in them and you will succeed among them.”
Emmeline gave Renee a moment to absorb all that. When Renee finished processing that, the question on her face was obvious. “I know this partly because I’ve been to the Otherworld once and paid attention. And the rest? I just know, the same way you know how to walk.”
“I focus on family. It helps me stay on-track and not fall into traps like what you said. I do not want to stay in Faerie, as Kalista calls it. She’s learning too, but she never wants to go back to our world unless she has too. She is so very scared of something dark.” Renee said. “Mara says she is safe, but there is darkness in the Otherworld as well, things that are dangerous if they cross over.”
“Kalista has reason to be afraid. She was much further along in her existence as a hag than Leeta. Leeta has never harmed anyone. But Kalista had been committed to behind a black hag. I still saw good in her, and tried to save her. But the thing to which she had married her soul is vengeful and angry. It seeks her.”
“No. It seeks you. Mara is afraid for you.” Renee said.
“Oh,” Em said with a chill. “In that case, I’m afraid for me, too.” She was at a loss as to what to do about it, though. “I guess I’ll have to deal with that some day.”
“I’ll be there to help you – well after this thing. Thank you again for your help.” she began to walk away and then said, “you know, I never thanked you for taking me in and keeping me by your side this year after my father’s side of the deal fell through. That meant a lot.”
She clearly felt it may be a long time before they saw each other again.
“You’re my friend, Renee. I’m here for you,” she said simply. “I’ll miss you, but I know we’ll be together again.”
“Farewell.” She said and the dream ended.