Homeward Bound, And Back Again
This is set after Schooling A Succubus (even though it isn't actually finished yet!), and was purely for fun. Ever wondered how the Fae missed Bo for 28 years? Here's a possible answer…
Her first thought that morning was: I can hear movement. Bo's up. So what else is?
Kenzi, yawning, knocked on Bo's bedroom door to investigate; Bo answered cheerily, "C'mon in."
She did, to find Bo apparently packing for a trip. "Um, there's no need to do a midnight flit, Bo, 'cause for one thing we don't actually pay rent, and for another…it's mornin'."
"This isn't a flit, Kenzi. Last night I had an idea. I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner…I think I know a way to find out more about my past."
"Yeah? Okay, how?" Kenzi asked, enthused at first, but her jaw dropped at Bo's next words:
"By going back to it," Bo told her, "By going back to a certain little Midwestern town in the middle of nowhere." She gazed soberly at Kenzi. "I'm going home."
X
Lauren was peering keenly through a microscope at a tiny tissue sample which, if her theory was correct, would revolutionise stem cell therapy…if she could only find a way to publish without revealing her Fae involvement. She sighed fondly as she heard approaching voices. They were arguing, but this was hardly surprising given who they belonged to. Well, one of them, at least.
"Bo, this is totally not a good idea - goin' back to your roots is always bad, 'specially if you uprooted 'em hard enough!"
"It's been ten years, Kenzi. It's about time."
"I'm doin' everythin' I can to talk you out of this, girlfriend, an' you're not listenin' to me!"
"You can't. I'm not. I have to go." The voices' owners arrived in the lab; Lauren sighed again, and straightened up. The Nobel Prize for medicine would have to wait. Her friend and lover needed her; else she probably wouldn't have come here.
Not that she minded in the least.
"Hi. You busy?"
"Always," Lauren replied wryly, "but not too busy for you." She smiled, and they kissed. "Hey, Kenzi."
"Hey," Kenzi acknowledged, without the usual sass. "Um, Bo's got this crazy-ass idea in her head, and I was wonderin' if you got some Fae hoodoo that'll get it out."
"I'm going home," Bo explained, looking daggers at Kenzi.
"Home?" Lauren puzzled. "Oh, you mean your adopted parents' home?" Bo nodded. "Bo, are you sure they'll be okay with that?"
"That's what I've been tryin' to get through to her! For God's sake, she killed a guy! Okay, she didn't mean to, an' they'd have a hard time provin' it, yeah, but still - dead guy! Bo splittin' town! Connection, anybody?"
"Bo, why do you want to go back?" Lauren asked.
"To ask my parents about Lou Ann," Bo explained. "She must've told them something. I know it's a long shot, but I have to try. Even if they don't know anything, I have to go back, because…" She paused. "They were good to me, Lauren. I had a pretty happy childhood - well, it could've been worse, anyway," she reflected ruefully, remembering how bored she'd been. "They took good care of me. They must've been frantic when I took off like that, I didn't even leave them a note…they deserve to know. I never even thought about how they'd worry, and I feel so guilty about that. I haven't even called them in ten years. Not once." She gazed determinedly at her friends. "I'm going back. I'd like you guys to come with me, but I'll go alone if I have to. One way or another, though, I'm going."
They went with her, of course. They couldn't do anything else.
X
It was a long ride they were contemplating, and Lauren offered Bo the use of her car, a late-model Lexus. Bo's eyebrow was raised in puzzled appreciation. "Thanks, but why?"
"Bo, I have seen that contraption you drive, and I'm not convinced it'll make it." Bo looked hurt, though Kenzi smiled slightly. "Mine's less than a year old, and it's very reliable. Plus it has air conditioning."
"I'm sold," Kenzi piped up, "let's go if we're goin'!"
X
On the way, Lauren, who'd volunteered to drive the first half or so, noticed Kenzi was still jittery, and asked: "Kenzi, why are you so against this? What's wrong with Bo reconnecting with her past?"
"I dunno, I just got a feelin' it's gonna stir up trouble, an' we have had way too much of that lately!"
"Amen, Kenzi," Bo reflected, with feeling.
"No," Lauren shook her head, "there's more to it than that. Oh, come on," she continued, "you're often chastising Bo about taking things too personally - although you do, Bo," she added, carefully ignoring Bo's scowl, "so how does this relate to you?"
She wasn't surprised when Kenzi didn't reply immediately. When she did, she was sober, subdued. "Well…I can't go back, even if I wanted to - wouldn't ever want to. Don't ask me why, it just ain't happenin', ever. I'm not the only runaway I know, and I know a couple who did go home - and boy, sister, did they re-gret it. I just don't want the same thing happenin' to our girl, that's all."
Lauren and Bo both smiled fondly; Bo hugged her. "Thanks, Kenz. But it isn't gonna be like that. My situation's totally different from most other people's, and -"
"No, it ain't - one of the peeps I mentioned? Theresa. She killed her uncle, 'cause the psycho creep was totally feelin' up her boobs an' ass an' he wanted her to do…stuff," she looked ill, "photos an' shit. Well, she didn't mean to, but one day it all just got too much for her, an', well, there ya go. He totally had it comin'; hell, he even tried to feel me up once. No-one listened to her side of it, though. Her folks didn't believe her, an' she went down. Way down. They sent her down, Bo! Six years, an' she's still in there! What if your peeps freak out the same way -?"
"They won't," Bo reassured her. "They're not the type to freak out. Even if they were…" Bo smiled, and her eyes briefly flashed blue.
"Oh, yeah…forgot 'bout that."
X
After what seemed like forever - Bo's home town was right in the middle of the Midwest, and the landscape en route was desert, desert and more desert - they arrived. Kenzi saw immediately that Bo's description - 'all car shows and church socials' - was spot-on. It looked like (eew!) a village fête. "Yeesh," she shuddered. "Are they holdin' some bring-an'-buy sale over there?"
"Yep," Bo grinned, enjoying Kenzi's discomfort a little too much. "Tony and Marcia Philips run it. That's them," she added, pointing at an overweight couple behind the main stall.
"I'm so outa here," Kenzi muttered, but Bo grabbed her jacket collar before she could move.
"No, you don't. You had your chance to duck out, so now you're here for the duration. This way," she added, dragging Kenzi aside, Lauren following.
X
It wasn't long before they arrived at the house, which was a pretty standard affair by Midwestern standards. For a long minute, Bo just stared at it.
It hadn't changed.
The guttering on the roof's east side was still sagging. Bo remembered guiltily she'd promised to help Dad fix it…the day before she left. Sorry, Dad.
The American flag hung from the porch, not quite straight. "Tradition," Dad had told her when she'd asked, aged seven, why it wasn't straight. The Dennis family had lived in that house since the founding of the town, and the origin of the tradition was lost to history.
As was so much else; it was the town that time forgot. Nothing ever really happened here, which was why Bo had never regretted leaving as such…only the circumstances were sour, not the act itself. She had had vague plans to leave around then anyway, just not so…precipitately.
Her reminiscences were interrupted when the front door opened, and a large crossbreed Alsatian bounded out, followed by -
Her heart leaped.
Mom…!
Mary Dennis hefted the watering can she was carrying and sprinkled the rose bushes…then the dog barked on seeing Bo and her friends, and she looked up.
But Bo was the only person she saw.
It had been ten years, but of course she recognised Bo instantly.
"Bo…" she whispered incredulously.
"Mom…" Bo replied, a tear starting down her cheek.
She looked older (well, of course, it's been ten freakin' years), but no less beautiful to Bo's eyes. She was petite, short, but Bo knew there was a deceptive strength there. She'd let her still-lustrous black hair grow much longer than Bo had ever seen it.
I was always telling her to let it grow. It's lovely. Looks like she finally listened…
In an instant, all Bo's doubts and fears were washed away. She ran to her adopted mother, ignoring the dog's barks. Her mother met her, and they hugged fiercely, both crying.
"Well, so far, so good," Kenzi quipped, then spared a glance for the dog, which was regarding her and Lauren interestedly. It was a worryingly big dog - cute, but big.
"Um, nice doggie," Kenzi attempted to placate him (her?). "Jeez, that thing's as big as Dyson!"
"Here boy," Lauren called, holding out a hand, palm down. The dog trotted over to her, sniffed her hand and licked it, his tail wagging. "Good boy!" she told him, crouching down and ruffling his fur. "You just have to know how to handle them."
"Like to see you try that with Dyson," Kenzi muttered.
"Sam!" Mary cried tearfully. "Bo's back! Come out here, it's Bo!"
A man of medium height and greying brown hair emerged. He was not unhandsome, and had a steady look about him. Kenzi found herself liking him on sight. His face crumpled on seeing Bo, and he joined the hug.
"Welcome home, baby," he sobbed.
X
After the expected tears and greetings, Sam set up chairs and a small table on the porch, as it was too lovely a day for the indoors. "Drinks, anyone?" he offered.
"I could so use a beer," Bo answered.
"No, you're not old enou -" he stopped. "Oh…you are, now, aren't you? Sorry."
"That's okay, Dad," she smiled fondly, squeezing his hand.
"Look at you," Mary marvelled, "you haven't changed. Well, no, you have - you've matured. She was always so pretty," she addressed Kenzi and Lauren, "but once she turned fourteen and started getting taller, oh, you could see the beauty she was going to be. And is," she added proudly.
"Bo, are you, not to put too fine a point on it, blushing?" Kenzi ventured merrily, with a mischievous look in her eye (though there was nothing new about that).
"Of course not," Bo denied.
"Yeah, you are! Ooh, I never thought I'd see that! I am so taking a photo!" She rummaged for her phone gleefully.
"You are not! Stop that - !"
Everyone else just laughed as they scuffled, but in the end Kenzi did take the shot.
"That's what friends are for, Bo - to embarrass you," Sam grinned, taking a pull on a beer bottle.
"This one, definitely," Bo groused, but her parents could tell she didn't mean it. They were clearly the best of friends.
Abruptly Lauren looked somehow distracted; she was glancing around as if she'd heard or smelled something. Bo noticed, and wondered, "Hey, you okay?"
"Yes, I…I'm fine, Bo," she smiled, "just fine."
Bo didn't believe her, but tabled it for now. There was serious catching up to do.
"So what are you doing with yourself, Bo? We always wondered what you'd be, how you'd turn out…"
"Well, I imagine 'private investigator' wasn't on the list," Bo quipped, "but that's what I do. What we do, sorry, Kenzi," she corrected. "We take cases the police can't or won't handle. We do get a fair amount of kooks, but - well, we get by. It's worthwhile work. I like it."
"She always did strive for meaning in her life," Sam nodded to Lauren and Kenzi. "It comes from being adopted, I guess. We told her as soon as we thought she was old enough, of course."
"And it didn't matter," Bo said, squeezing his hand again. "At least…" she hesitated, "it didn't then."
She steeled herself; the time had come.
"Mom, Dad, there's something you should know about why I left. First, though -" She faced them, tears in her eyes, and told them earnestly: "I'm sorry."
She couldn't hold back the tears; Mary, too, started crying. "I…I had to leave, but I'm sorry I didn't even leave a note. I didn't think…I…it was Kyle," she forced it out. "He…"
"Kyle Robbins?" Mary asked; Bo nodded. "Oh, Bo, we told you not to -"
"But you didn't tell me why!" Bo cried. "Mom, I adored him! I'd have done anything for him, and we…we made love in his SUV - and, dear God, it was good…he was good to me, Mom, he was kind…I wasn't just a notch on his bedpost. We were making plans, but…but he…" She broke down; Mary held her tightly as she sobbed.
Lauren and Kenzi exchanged a sad glance in which each could clearly read the other's expression: Dear God, I wish I weren't here right now.
It took Bo a while to work through it, but this had been coming for ten years; she hadn't dared acknowledge her grief for her first love until now, or her guilt at leaving so thoughtlessly without any explanation. Floodgates, once opened, are hard to close.
It was at that point that things took a peculiar left turn. Mary and Sam suddenly had the oddest expressions on their faces; Sam said in a gentle but strangely stilted voice, "That wasn't your fault, Bo. The coroner's report said he had a weak heart."
"What?" Bo gaped, her head jerking up. She stared at him incredulously. "Dad, he was nineteen, he was an athletics champ! What the hell?"
"How could you be blamed?" Mary asked.
"But - it was my fault," Bo admitted, tears starting again. "I didn't understand then, but - when I, um, get it on with people, something happens, I…sort of -"
"Bo," Lauren interrupted her urgently, "Stop! I think I know what's going on."
"What?" Bo exclaimed in shock. "What the hell are you - talking…about…?" She trailed off on seeing Sam and Mary's faces. They seemed - blank, somehow. Fear stabbed at her heart.
This was Fae stuff - it had to be! Oh, no…please, not them…oh, God…!
Lauren rose from her chair and clicked her fingers in their faces; neither reacted. "I thought so. I felt it when we first arrived, but I wasn't sure…"
"You felt what?" Bo demanded, her voice coloured with worry and fear.
"Bo, they're okay, honestly," Lauren assured her, "but nothing you can tell them about the Fae will make sense to them. It won't even register, even if you try; they'll just sort of…shut down - like this," she indicated Bo's insensible parents. "They didn't tell you because they couldn't. They're under a geas."
"What the Fae have wildfowl got to do with this crazy weird shit that's goin' down here?" Kenzi demanded.
Lauren chuckled briefly. "No, not 'geese' - 'geas'; the English spelling is G - E - A - S. Think of it as a charm, or a spell."
"Oh, now I get it."
"So do I," Bo nodded grimly. "Who, and why?"
"Most likely Lou Ann, to protect them - and you," Lauren responded instantly. "I think I can get a few answers, but I need time alone with them, and a degree of privacy. There are hypnotic techniques I can use; I'll need, oh, about an hour." She smiled. "You could try taking Shadow for a walk."
Shadow barked immediately and, just to show how well-trained he was, dashed into the kitchen and returned with his leash. Bo groaned. "I am not a doggy person."
He gazed at her in appeal.
She glared back. "I am not."
She might have resisted a while longer, but the pathetically raised paw did it; he didn't even have to whine. She sighed, and surrendered. "Okay. C'mon, mutt. You, too, Shadow."
"Hey!" Kenzi protested.
X
Once she was alone with Sam and Mary in their living room, Lauren took off the necklace that symbolised her - service - to the Ash, to use it as a focusing object, in the classic technique of capturing the subjects' attention. Once they were fully immersed in the trance, she began speaking softly in Celtic, the language Lou Ann would most likely have used, reassuring them that they were safe and all was well, and that they could trust her. She knew they would understand; the geas would translate.
She asked, gently: "Who?"
"The one who brought her," Mary answered, in the same tongue. "She was afraid."
"Why?"
"There was danger. There was threat to Bo."
"How?"
"Blood. She used blood."
A blood geas, Lauren mused, pleased with the accuracy of her hypothesis. I thought so, from the sheer power of it.
She continued, slowly and gently; some answers were slow in coming, but after half an hour Lauren now understood a lot more about what had happened twenty-eight years ago.
"Now," she told them calmly, "it is time the foundling knew. She will have questions. You must answer if you can. The secret is safe with us. Do you understand?"
"Yes," they both replied.
"I will count to three. When I reach 'three', you will sleep until Bo returns. You will remember nothing of my questions. You will remember nothing of the Fae. You will awaken with a sense of calm and well-being, and you will talk with Bo. Do you understand?"
"We do."
"Good. One…two…three."
They instantly slumped in their chairs, fast asleep. Lauren sighed deeply in relief, and gently arranged their limbs so as to avoid cramps. It had been much easier than she'd feared; clearly Lou Ann was skilled in the use of a geas.
Either that, she mused, or she had some expert tuition…Aoife, maybe…
X
"Come back here already," Bo called futilely to Shadow, who was dashing through a field after a cat, which ran hell for leather and leaped into a tree, hissing. It was clear from the way he was bounding after it, rather than running flat out, that he didn't intend to hurt the cat, just chase it; but the cat, of course, was not so sanguine. After all, Shadow's head was bigger than the entire cat.
"Bo, ain't you ever taken a dog for a walk?"
"Since when did you become an expert?" Bo retorted.
"You just gotta know how to handle 'em," she smirked, echoing Lauren in a private jest. "We need a stick." She quickly found one, called to Shadow and threw it when he looked around. He barked joyfully and raced after it. He quickly fetched it back, dropped it in front of Kenzi and barked eagerly, wagging his large bushy tail. Bo laughed. "I think you've made a friend for life."
"It is just wrong that such a big damn dog looks so cute," Kenzi complained. Then the sass emerged, as it always did. "I wonder what'd happen if you threw Dyson a stick?"
"Likely he'd beat you stupid with it - though that wouldn't take long," Bo snarked.
"Oh, you are so going down for that!"
They tussled in the long, unkempt grass, laughing hysterically like two kids. Bo was trying desperately to keep Kenzi from discovering she was ticklish, but she underestimated her friend's shrewdness; Kenzi realised her intent and divined the reason. Shortly she was giggling gleefully and Bo was helpless with laughter.
Finally Kenzi relented, to Bo's relief. "First Lauren," she gasped, "now you! And if you tell Dyson, Hale or Trick, you are so dead!"
"Ooh, blackmail material!" Kenzi whooped.
X
After an hour of this, they headed back. Bo couldn't help worrying, though she trusted Lauren's word. "I hope they're okay," she fretted.
"C'mon, Bo, she'd have said if there was anythin' really wrong, yeah?"
"Yeah, I guess…"
They reached the house; Lauren saw them through the window and waved a greeting, emerging to meet them. "Bo, they're fine, but there's something I need to explain first. Don't mention the Fae - not at all. Lou Ann did tell them to dissuade you from, well, sex, but she phrased it in a religious context. They're both Christians by upbringing, so they accepted that. Don't try to explain you're a succubus; they wouldn't understand, it would only confuse and frighten them."
"What about Aoife? Do they know anything -?" Bo demanded hopefully.
"I'm sorry, Bo, but they don't. Lou Ann told them she had to respect your birth mother's privacy. As far as Aoife goes, I'm afraid this is a dead end." She reached out, touched Bo's cheek. "I'm really sorry, Bo."
"It's okay," Bo told her, accepting it; it had, after all, been a long shot - she'd known that before they even started out. Besides, this geas or whatever was more important; she had to be sure they were okay. "Go on."
"All they know about Kyle is that he died of a heart attack; I checked with the local coroner, and that is what he recorded…but something in his voice told me he also might be under a geas. Presumably Lou Ann planned ahead, knowing you'd come into your power and likely drain someone; she might have influenced the coroner in such a way as to report any succubus-related death as something routine." She smiled gently. "She really went to a lot of trouble, Bo. The geas is a blood geas - that is, it was cast using blood, and cast expertly, at that. Most likely it was Aoife's blood, as that would incorporate the mother-child bond into the geas. It might even have been her placental blood; judging by its power - it's so strong even I could feel it - I'd say it's likely."
"How come -"
"- I can feel it, even though I'm 'only human'?" She smiled again. "Long practice and experience with Fae affairs, Bo. The only reason you didn't feel anything was because the charm was cast for you, to protect you. That's part of the reason the Fae missed you. There must've been at least one Fae passing through here in your first eighteen years, surely, if only by chance. Even if they had, though, they would have sensed nothing; even if they had, they'd know in seconds there's no point in trying to question your parents. The geas is so powerful it'll likely last until they both pass away - maybe even afterwards."
"That's 'part' of the reason? What about the rest?" Bo wondered.
Lauren's smile turned gentle. "I think I'll let Mary tell that part."
X
They went in, to discover Sam and Mary sitting calmly, waiting, with more normal expressions on their faces. Bo started in by explaining to them that she'd woken up next to Kyle and found him dead, and panicked. They seemed to accept that. Bo hated lying to them, but Lauren had made it clear there was no choice.
Besides, it was true…mostly.
"I know now I should have stayed, I should have come to you, but…"
"That's okay, Bo," Mary told her sympathetically. "We understand. It must have been a horrible shock. He was your first love…that experience has a lasting effect on a girl. I should know," she added fondly, "your father popped my cherry, and I never looked at another man again." Sam smiled at that and hugged his wife affectionately.
"Did I really need to know that?" Bo squirmed a little. "Um, can we get back to Lou Ann? What else did she tell you?"
"Very little, really," Sam answered.
"Earrings," Mary said suddenly.
"I'm sorry?"
"She gave us your earrings, Bo. She said…'Keep them for her, until the day she bleeds'. I didn't really understand it - not until you were ten or so, anyway."
"My period," Bo understood suddenly. "She meant: when I first got my period."
"On the day the girl child shall become woman," Lauren breathed softly, clearly quoting from Fae lore.
"Yes, that was it. You were ten, remember? I thought from the way your scent changed that you were due to start, so I tried to warn you, prepare you, but you were so worried after what that little brat Susie Bryant told you…then you started, and panicked…"
"I thought I was sick or something," she recalled. "God, it hurt."
"But then I gave you the earrings, and then, well, you just seemed to get better. It was such a relief, I can tell you."
Bo reached up, fingered the left earring. "I've hardly ever taken 'em off since you gave them to me, Mom. You said not to."
"I did, yes…because she did. She said it'd be easier for you, and that you'd be safe if you wore them. That didn't make sense, but…I don't know; we just trusted her."
Bo had in fact never suffered much from PMT per se (her hormone rises generally triggered libido instead of bad moods); now she was wondering if her earrings were the reason why. She remembered she did take them off briefly a few years back, while trying out a different pair - and had suffered the most agonising cramps when her period started. The next day, though, she'd put them back on - and she was fine. QED, as Lauren might say.
As soon as they got back, Bo decided, she, Lauren and Trick were going to look carefully at those earrings and figure out what the deal was with them. More and more she was coming to respect Lou Ann…and to regret that she hadn't been able to help the woman.
But there was no rush. She was home, and everything was okay. She wasn't going to be hunted through the streets of her home town as a murderess after all.
And she knew what she had to do.
X
The next day, Bo arose uncharacteristically early, and headed straight for Sam's tool shed. Shortly everyone else was awakened by hammering sounds. Sam, yawning, went to investigate, to discover his adopted daughter up a ladder, wearing his tool belt and wielding a hammer. "Hey, Dad!" she greeted him.
"Bo, what are you doing?"
"Fixing the guttering, what does it look like?" she called cheerily, banging away merrily.
"Well, thanks, I've been meaning to get around to that for a while -"
"- for ten years, Dad," she interjected, looking guilty. "I promised, the day before I left. So here I am, keeping the promise…ten years late."
"I think we can forgive that, honey," he dismissed it, chuckling. "The important thing isn't that you left, it's that you're here now."
That's pretty much what she said, Bo thought tearfully, but dared not show her emotions about it, not to Dad, at any rate. She descended the ladder instead and hugged him. "Did you leave it like that hoping I'd come back and fix it?" she teased.
"Sure I did," he grinned, tousling her hair.
"Liar," she chuckled fondly, tousling right back, as she was now taller than him. They laughed together, admired Bo's handiwork, and then returned to the tool shed to put the tools away.
X
After breakfast, with Mary both clucking over how much Bo ate and at the same time worrying that she was too thin (as mothers do), Sam asked tentatively, "How long are you planning to stay, Bo? I mean, stay as long as you like, of course - that's all of you, obviously," he offered.
Bo paused in drinking her orange juice. "Um, I can't stay long, Dad. I have commitments, clients…you know how it is. But I'm gonna keep in touch from now on, now I know that it's - okay," she finished, just barely stopping herself from saying 'safe'. "You've got Internet access, right? Do you have a secure email client?"
"Yeah, though I don't use it much - not much call for security around here," he answered wryly.
"No, it's just that I have to ensure confidentiality for my clients, so a secure client's the only sort I can use," she explained.
"And you haven't said how long you're staying," Mary chided her. "Didn't I teach you it's rude not to answer a question?"
Bo blushed a bit. "Yeah, you did. Sorry, Dad. Um…I dunno. A day or two, I guess, unless you've got anything you need to be getting back to, Lauren?"
"No," she said gently, "there's nothing pending in my lab that can't wait, Bo. I quite like it here," she added, smiling…and knowing exactly what Kenzi, facing her across the dinner table, was going to do now.
She did; she mouthed incredulously, "You what now?" It was a major effort not to laugh. She meant it, though; she'd lived in a similar town for a few years as a child. It was a little like coming home for her, too.
She'd put up with Bo trying to tickle her for an entire day rather than admit it, though.
X
They left two days later, after having a bucolic, relaxing (if uneventful) time of it; Bo was finally warming to Shadow, though he seemed to like Kenzi more (to her mild disgust). There were tears, hugs and promises to keep in touch and was Bo coming home for Christmas?
On the way out of town, though, Bo, who was driving, abruptly stopped. "Wait a minute, guys…there's just one more thing."
"Um, I see dead people," Kenzi quipped, as they'd stopped by the graveyard. Bo got out and made her way to the little church, where the reverend was pruning roses. She talked to him briefly, and he clipped one and handed it to her; she thanked him, returned to the car and said solemnly, "This way."
It was a short walk; Bo stopped at one particular grave. The headstone read:
Kyle Robbins
Beloved Son of Ian and Phyllis
June 19th, 1982 - July 31st, 2001
Always In Our Hearts
No-one said anything for a while; they simply stood, gazing at the resting place of Bo's very first lover. Bo's face was frozen in grief. Finally she knelt, placed the single yellow rose so very carefully on the headstone and let the tears again fall freely, the tears she'd had to deny herself these ten long years.
"I'm sorry, Kyle…I'm so sorry. You were so kind to me. Too many girls don't enjoy their first time, but I did, thanks to you. I didn't know what would happen…" Her shoulders shook. "Please forgive me…I didn't know…"
Her head bowed, and she wept.
Kenzi instinctively made as if to comfort her, but Lauren's hand on her arm stopped her. She turned to the older woman with a what-the-fuck expression, but Lauren barely shook her head and mouthed, "Leave her be. She needs this."
And Kenzi understood. This was something Bo should have done then, would have done had she not been on the run and desperate to hide. It was only then she remembered what today's date was:
July 31st.
After a while, Bo's sobs sounded somehow cleaner, as the tears laved her soul.
Eventually she rose slowly and embraced each of her friends in turn. Kenzi clung to her, crying herself, but Bo shushed her gently. "Hey, I'm okay, Kenz. I'm okay now. I'm okay."
And she was, it was clear; she even smiled, her tears drying. "Thank you both. I needed this - more than I thought, I guess."
"Bo," Lauren asked tactfully, "was this the real reason you wanted to come back…?"
"Not the only one, no…but the most important one. Kyle got me started as a real woman, and I'll always be grateful to him for that." She turned once more to the grave and smiled at it. "Sleep well, my love."
Then she turned back, and walked to the car without a backward glance.
"Why a yellow rose?" Kenzi wondered to Lauren, not expecting an answer. She got one, though:
"Traditionally, yellow roses signify joy, friendship…and, in some cultures, farewells."
"Is there anythin' you don't know?" Kenzi groused jokingly.
Bo heard, and actually laughed. Her friends exchanged a relieved glance; she'd be okay now, they knew, maybe more so than she'd been for a long time, and they were glad of it.
X
The journey back didn't seem as long as the trip out, mainly because Bo was in a much better mood. She even engaged Lauren and Kenzi in a number of road games (anything to do with memory or puzzles, Lauren of course won handily, with much good-natured ribbing from Bo and Kenzi).
They entered the Dal Riata, to be greeted warmly by Trick. "The weary travellers return!"
"Hey, Trick," Bo smiled.
"Did you find what you were looking for?"
"In a way, yeah," Bo replied. "But there's a little something I need your help with…"
X
"How can I help?" Trick asked expansively, spreading his arms like a showman, once they'd retired to the back room.
Bo, however, was now looking a little grim. "First, Trick, I want the truth."
"About what?" Trick inquired, trying not to sound too guarded.
"About Lou Ann," Bo replied flatly. "She's still alive, isn't she?"
"What makes you say that?" Trick asked, and then silently cursed himself - that phrase was practically a giveaway to someone as shrewd as Bo.
"I went home, visiting my adopted parents…and making peace with my past. According to Lauren, they're under a geas, which protects them against the Dark Fae, and also protected me while I was growing up. She's pretty sure Lou Ann cast it, and here's the thing: don't charms like that break when the person who cast them dies?"
"Usually, yes…" Trick answered evasively, musing wryly that J.K. Rowling had a lot to answer for.
"So either someone else cast it…or Lou Ann's still alive. Lauren got a description from my mom of the woman who brought me to her, and it matches Lou Ann. So she did cast the geas. It's still alive, or whatever, so she is, too. So start talkin', Trick," she finished sternly.
"No-one as young as you has any business being so shrewd. Are you sure you're only 28?" Trick muttered, irked. He sighed. "Yes, she is alive. I intervened in her execution, for two reasons: first, because it was the right thing to do, as she was innocent, Dark Fae or not; second, because I became convinced that you were right and she knew more than she was telling. So I offered to hide her in exchange for what she knew."
"She was Aoife's midwife, wasn't she?" Bo nodded. "I worked it out. The Will-O-The-Wisp we met said he met a Fae midwife, who was carrying me. It had to be Lou Ann - right?"
"Correct," he sighed again. "And yes, I should have told you…but I was afraid you'd be all the more determined to have it out with Vex."
"Which I would've been," Bo admitted. "That part I already figured out, and I forgive you for not telling me. I will, reluctantly, admit it was the right thing to do."
"My, we are making progress in your political education," Trick noted wryly. "So where does this leave us?"
"I want to meet her again," Bo said simply. "I want to see her, talk to her."
"Why?" he wondered, honestly curious.
"Trick…she was the very first person ever to see me - the first person ever to touch me. I probably wouldn't even be here if it weren't for her! She brought me into the world, and then went to a lot of trouble to help me stay in it, and dammit, I want to thank her for all of that!" she cried, almost plaintively.
"Oh," he murmured, surprised. "I hadn't thought of it like that. Um…I might be able to arrange it, but it would be best if she came here - the fewer people who know where she is, and that she is, the better. Not that I don't trust all of you to keep silent, of course, but if she were seen…well." He nodded. "Give me a couple of days to set it up, Bo. I'm sure she'll be as glad to see you."
"Thanks, Trick. There's something else…" She explained about the earrings. On hearing Bo's repetition of Lauren's earlier quote, his ears pricked up. "Hmm, that's very old magic…may I see them?"
"Sure," Bo nodded, removing the earrings and handing them to Trick. He produced a small magnifying glass from a pocket and murmured, "Now, let's see what we have here…"
It wasn't long before he found the answer, scrutinising the earrings in minute detail. When he did, he chuckled. "Oh, that's so clever," Trick applauded, "so simple, so obvious…but you need to know it's been done in order to defeat it. Hiding you in plain sight - oh, that's brilliant!"
"You wouldn't care to explain, maybe?" Bo demanded.
"It's Fae magic, of course, performed by our equivalent of an engineer. A magical engineer, you might say."
"Can't you just say 'wizard' an' leave it at that?" Kenzi quipped. Trick scowled at her, but she just stuck her tongue out at him. Lauren laughed.
"What's the deal?" Bo puzzled.
"If you look closely," Trick explained, "the inside of each earring has been engraved. But look carefully at the marks…"
She did, but even through a magnifying glass she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. "What am I looking for?" she frowned.
"Turn the earring just slightly to one side, and you'll see…"
And then she saw it.
The tiny, tiny marks, whatever they were, weren't in the metal. Nor were they on it.
They were, rather, hovering just above the surface of the metal!
She gaped. "I have seen some seriously weird shit since the Fae started happening to me, but this…!"
Lauren and Kenzi also looked, and were similarly amazed.
"Oh, that is so beautiful," Lauren breathed in sheer admiration. "It's been beautifully done - amazing work."
"Dude, I am seriously impressed, that is way cool! How does it work, huh?"
"Hmm," Trick mused ruefully, "would you prefer 'sufficiently advanced technology' or 'magic'?" Lauren was the only one to get the joke; she laughed.
"I don't believe it," Kenzi moaned, "now Trick's doin' geek humour! That's what that was, yeah?"
"Clarke's Third Law," Lauren explained - without explaining, as Kenzi hadn't heard of him. But Bo had: "Oh, yeah, I've heard of that; Arthur C. Clarke's Third Law: 'Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'."
"Oh, okay. So what is it?" Kenzi wondered, admiring the marks again.
"Runes," Trick explained, "Bo's name in runes -"
"Oh, of course," Lauren interjected brightly, with a pleased I've-worked-it-out expression on her face, "a Backwards Blessing!"
"Exactly, well done," Trick applauded.
"Um, a what now?" Bo asked.
"The idea is this: on the one hand, the runes put you in plain sight, because they say your name."
"Uh-huh, with you so far…"
"But on the other hand," Trick continued, "they then hide you, because your name's spelled backwards. It's a very old method…so old I didn't think anyone used it anymore," he mused thoughtfully. "This is a good thing, Bo."
"How so?"
"It limits the possibilities," he explained. "Actually the earrings' craftsmanship alone does that; believe me, this is truly exquisite work. Only the very finest of Fae artisans would be capable of it. I should mention in passing, Bo: intrinsically these are worth a fortune, crafted as they are from an alloy only dwarves can make - very, very rare nowadays. In fact," he added, "I'd offer you a fair price for them; I'm something of a collector of rare antiquities, as you might have gathered. You no longer need them for concealment, since you revealed yourself, so…" he trailed off expectantly.
"How much are they worth?" Bo asked curiously…making sure to take them back. It wasn't that she didn't trust Trick, of course, but you never knew.
"Well, it's hard to put a figure on it, but free food and drinks for life wouldn't be too much to ask for them. For your life, I mean, and given that you're Fae that could be a very long time. You'd never need to cook again, and I'm very good." He smiled. "Centuries of practice, of course. Seriously, it'd be a pleasure."
"And I'd seriously consider it, Trick…if they weren't a present from my mom - from both Moms, in a way, because I bet Aoife had them made, and paid for them." She shook her head. "No. Thanks, but no. I remember what you said about the difference between cost and value, and these," she put them back on and affectionately stroked them, "are worth way more to me than free drinks. Besides," she grinned wryly, "I have reason to believe they help prevent my PMT."
"Keep 'em, keep 'em, keep 'em!" Kenzi entreated urgently on hearing that. "Bo, you get moody enough as it is, you, you, car-destroying, Fury-killing, sword-wielding ass-kickin' sex monster, you! Can you guys imagine," she gasped fearfully, making Lauren laugh, "what she'd be like if she got her monthly freak on along with all the other shit? That's major eep territory right there!"
Even Bo laughed at that…while conceding mentally that Kenzi definitely had a point there.
"So, whoever made them is an expert, huh?" she sobered.
"Indeed, yes, he is, with access to rare and remarkable materials. To then combine such artistry with such an old piece of magical trickery…there can't be more than, oh, perhaps a dozen in the whole world who could do it, and I'm not even sure they're even all alive. They're all older than I am, and that," he finished ruefully, "is saying something, believe me."
"So where do we find them?"
"Obviously we should start with the ones in this country," Lauren suggested.
"That would be no more than three of them. If they didn't do it, they'll probably recognise the workmanship and tell us who did." He paused. "So what do we do first: arrange for you to meet Lou Ann, or arrange an audience with our 'wizards'?" he scowled again at Kenzi. She just grinned cheekily.
"Lou Ann," Bo decided. "We can meet, and then she can get back to whatever life she has now. And then, I guess, we're back on the road!"
X
Two days later, Bo greeted Lou Ann warmly as she emerged from the tunnel. Lou Ann was hesitant at first, but Bo's smile relaxed her. Trick and the others tactfully left them to it.
"So," Bo began, "how's things?"
"As well as can be expected, I guess," Lou Ann told her. A fond tone entered her voice as she asked, "How are you?"
"I'm good. And sorry - I let you down," Bo apologised. "I promised I'd get you out -"
"You were the only person who even tried," Lou Ann shook her head. "You were the only one who thought I was worth the trouble, and I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry I lied to you; that was a mistake, but…I was scared of what might happen, even in there." A wry look. "Imagine that - a death row inmate scared of something apart from execution."
"I could tell," Bo nodded, "that's why I couldn't leave it alone." Then her curiosity bump made itself felt, as it often did. "I've been wondering: what kind of Fae are you? What's your power?"
"Typical succubus," Lou Ann smiled, "they're always inquisitive. But I guess you've a right to know. I'm…well, humans in a less enlightened time would've called me a witch. I can cast charms," she elaborated, "spells, incantations, hexes…curses, when I have to. And, of course, geases," she recalled, "like the one I cast on your adopted parents - do you know about that?" Bo nodded. "As a matter of professional interest, is it still active?"
Bo nodded again. "We visited my parents. Lauren felt it, and said it was very powerful, actually. She's something of an expert on Fae lore."
"She'd have to be, if she serves the Ash," Lou Ann nodded. "I was proud of that geas; I think it was the best one I ever cast. I was so careful, but Aoife asked me to protect you as best I could. Her placental blood helped a lot, though."
"Gotcha. Listen, can you be honest with me?" Bo asked her.
"It'd be a first," Lou Ann admitted sadly.
"No, that's over with. You had your reasons, Lou Ann," Bo smiled, "and I understand, believe me. This is something else: have you ever thought of…well, suicide?"
"More than once," she answered bitterly. "Every day, I see their faces. Every day, my hands are around each little boy's neck, holding him under the water. Every day -"
"Stop it."
"- they're asking me with their eyes: mommy, why are you hurting me? Every -"
"Stop," Bo pleaded. "Stop doing this to yourself! It wasn't your fault! You didn't do it!"
"But I did," she sobbed.
"No! A knife isn't responsible if I stab someone with it! See this?" She whipped out the dagger she'd used to end Vex's unworthy life. It still bore his blood; she hadn't been able to bring herself to wash it. In fact, she was on the verge of deciding never to use it again. "This is what I used to kill the bastard who did that to you - a Mesmer called Vex."
"He - he's dead?" Lou Ann gasped in terror.
"Yeah…he's the only scumbag I ever enjoyed killing. I know it's not much consolation, Lou Ann, but at least he's paid for what he did to you."
"Bo, he was a favourite! They'll hunt you down -!"
"It's okay, I found a way around that," she said, and explained her brief sojourn with the Dark Fae. "I slid this into that diseased piece of shit he called his heart. It's not responsible for what I did! You were the weapon, not the killer! It was not your fault!" Bo held the woman's eyes, pleading with her own. "You have to believe that, Lou Ann. You have to, because - if you end it all, then even though he's dead, Vex wins. Don't let him. Please don't let him. The only revenge you can take is to live."
"But - how?" she asked. "What can I do? My husband would never forgive me…"
"He will, if you explain. Tell him, Lou Ann. Tell him everything."
She looked shocked at that. "But - the Fae -"
"Oh, screw the damn Fae! They did this to you in the first place, and the Light Fae didn't do jack to help you! So what the hell do you owe them?" She had an idea. "Look: remember what you did for Sam and Mary Dennis - the geas? Couldn't you do the same for your husband, to make sure he couldn't tell anyone else? What would it matter then if he knew? We could arrange for him to disappear, make it look like suicide - then you two could try again. He's still young enough, you could try…" Bo suggested.
But Lou Ann shook her head slowly, sadly. "No. No, David doesn't deserve that. He deserves a chance to move on and build a new life with someone else. Besides, I was selfish in the first place - he's human, remember? I already have more decades than he has years." She stopped, looked bitter. "But I didn't think of that at the time, because I wanted him. I loved him. You don't think when you're in love, Bo. You go crazy. You think love's enough to get over that kind of stuff. But it isn't. The laws against consorting with humans…they're there for a reason, a damn good one. It's to protect them.
"No, he deserves someone who ages as he does, who'll die when he does - not someone who'll never change in his lifetime, never grow old, who'll just remind him of his mortality every damn day." She started crying. "I can't do that to him. I'm not that cruel. He deserves…better. He's a good man. He loved me - at least, until…" She trailed off, unable to finish.
"He deserves to know the truth," Bo said quietly.
"Yes, he does. But how can I tell him…without breaking his heart more than I have already?" She shook her head again. "Bo, you mean well, but it can't work. I don't regret having Lucas, Jacob and Cody, not for an instant. But sooner or later I would've had to leave him. Staying would only hurt him. I'd have to move on." She gazed at Bo. "Let me do that, in my own way, Bo. Please."
"Okay," Bo sighed, defeated. "Just…promise me you'll try to find a way to live. Just live, Lou Ann, that's all I'm asking - if not for me, then for your boys. You did not kill them. You loved them. So make your life a monument to them, somehow." Bo's eyes filled with tears. "If anything, I'm part of that. I wouldn't even be here if not for you - I'd likely be dead."
"You might have died during the birth, actually," Lou Ann murmured, remembering. "It was such a wild night, dark and stormy…"
"Did Aoife mention my father? I asked her, but she wouldn't talk about him."
"No. I'm sorry, but she didn't say and I didn't ask. She never said who was chasing her, either. I wish I knew; I would tell you, especially now. There wasn't really time to talk, anyway; her water broke just before she came to me…she was in so much pain…"
"Please," Bo pleaded, "tell me. Tell me anything you can."
Lou Ann gazed fondly at her, touching her cheek. "You were Aoife's first, you know. Too many of our firstborn die, Bo, and no-one really knows why. Maybe Lauren might figure it out," she reflected. "But you were a fighter even then," she somehow smiled, "I knew you wanted to live. Aoife wanted you to live; whatever else she is, whatever she's done, at least she can say that. Please, Bo, try to forgive her. I…I know she's not right in the head, but you have to understand…"
"I know. I know what happened to her, Lou Ann. Believe me, I understand." She sighed, remembering the epic fight and how it had ended. "Please…go on."
"She begged me to save you…even if it killed her. God, she was in labour for hours…when we realised things weren't going right, she told me: 'If you have to make a choice, choose the child.'"
Bo said nothing, enraptured. This, she hadn't known.
"I had to reach in; you were a breach birth, Bo. It was so hard, but I managed to turn you. I couldn't use magic - I wanted to, we were getting desperate, but my preceptor always told me never, ever, to use magic to assist a birth. You see, magic has a way of…marking you, scarring you, especially a new-born. So I had to use nothing more than my hands.
"Poor Aoife was exhausted, but when I finally got you turned around and yelled 'Push!' she pushed with everything she had…and suddenly there you were in my hands." Lou Ann's eyes shone with the memory; Bo drank in every word like a man finding water after being lost in the desert. "You can't imagine…it's a wonderful feeling of completeness, of rightness, when you hold a baby you've just delivered. You feel as if you could conquer the whole world..."
Bo was crying openly now. Without a word, she drew Lou Ann into her arms and hugged her. She returned it as a mother would, stroking Bo's hair, comforting her, murmuring to her.
She must've been a great mom to those kids, Bo thought tearfully, clinging to her.
They held each other for hours, comforting each other.
X
"Thank you," Bo said, stroking Lou Ann's cheek affectionately the next day, as Trick waited patiently by the tunnel entrance. "Thank you for bringing me into the world, Lou Ann. Thank you for protecting my parents. And - thank you for these," she added, indicating her earrings, "and for all the relief from period pains they've given me!"
"You're welcome, Bo," Lou Ann replied, smiling genuinely. "You know, it's not often a midwife is thanked by the children she's delivered; it's a rare privilege." She hugged Bo tightly and turned her smile to Trick. "Thank you for arranging this. And thank you both, for everything."
"Our pleasure," he smiled back. "It's time to go, Lou Ann."
"I know. Take care, Bo. Well met."
"You, too," Bo waved, as Lou Ann and Trick headed down the tunnel and closed the door.
X
A few miles later, Trick stopped, and faced Lou Ann. "I heard a little of your talk with Bo, unintentionally," he told her. "If I might ask, how much of it was kind lies? I'm not judging; I tend to favour a kind lie over hurtful truth myself."
"None of it," Lou Ann replied quietly. "I wouldn't do that to her. I lied before, and I was wrong to do it. She deserves better. From what I've heard, she's been lied to far too often as it is."
"True," Trick admitted sadly, "and mostly by me. It was necessary, but no less distasteful for all that."
"Trick," Lou Ann said quietly, "there's something else. One of my talents as a midwife is to sense what abilities the new-born has. So I knew she was a succubus from the moment she opened her eyes," she mused, "but…there was something more, something…different, strange. What is she, Trick?"
The same question had occurred to him more than once, of course. "To be honest," he told her frankly, "I truly wish I knew."
They resumed their long journey.
The End
Bo will return
In
EmanciFaetion
Watch this space!