Chapter 20 – Confessions
The drive to Brett's home near the town of Kingley, Montana was at least fifteen hours given good weather and crossed Utah and the corner of Idaho before arriving in his home state. Brett was considerate though and gave them several days to the make the drive.
Their first stop was a half-day's break in Provo, Utah. After that they took a full day off to look around Pocatello, Idaho. From Pocatello they then made the long final jaunt of nearly six hours until they arrived at the Bach family ranch. While most of the drive was wonderfully scenic and Ginny enjoyed their stopovers, she was more than happy when they finally reached their destination. She knew that Brett had informed his family that his girlfriend and her kids were coming along, but she was unprepared for the energetically warm welcome they received. Brett's parents still lived in the big ranch house by themselves even after Brett and his sister had left home. The house had plenty of room and they immediately ensconced Ginny and the kids in the guest suite on the west side of the house. She had been prepared to stay in the RV with hookups to the house, but Greg and Elaine Bach refused to let her spend a Montana winter in the RV. Truthfully, Ginny was grateful since it was now November and the weather had gotten progressively colder as they moved north.
The suite was well equipped with a small sitting room that attached to a large bedroom and a stylishly appointed bath. The decor was understated Western and very homey. The rough hewn furniture and thick wool blankets would not have been Ginny's first choice, but it fit with where she was. Another advantage was that Brett's bedroom was directly across the hall.
On the night that they arrived, Elaine fixed a simple meal with just them and Brett's grandmother, Mary White Elk. The minute that Ginny met Mary she could feel something about the woman. It wasn't magic exactly, but the woman exuded power. At first she wondered how Brett could be related to the woman with dark grey hair and brown eyes, but then she smiled and Ginny saw a hint of her grandson. They were introduced right before dinner, after Ginny had started to move into the guest suite, and the old woman clasped both of Ginny's hands in hers and stared intently. Ginny was uncomfortable, feeling the examination she was undergoing. Then Mary let go of her and turned to head for the dining room.
The meal that night was excellent and she felt comfortable with Brett's parents immediately. They also fell in love with both kids, who basked in all the attention. Once dinner was finished, Ginny declared that it had been a long day and excused herself to put the kids to bed. The suite's sitting room had a small fold out couch that she put Seb on and then put Amaia's crib next to it. They were just getting to sleep when a light knock sounded at the door. Ginny expected it to be Brett, but was surprised to find that Mary was waiting, looking at her shrewdly.
"Jen, may we talk? It is best not to wait."
Ginny suppressed an urge to slam the door shut. She was a guest with this family and couldn't refuse. Nodding, she gestured for Mary to come in. Subconsciously, she began to erect mental shields. Mary saw the sleeping children and paused to look at them for a moment before proceeding into the bedroom. Ginny followed her into the room and settled in the window seat across from the bench where Mary had perched. She wasn't sure what to say, but didn't have long to contemplate as the old woman appraised her.
"Alright Jen, or at least that is the name you have taken for this current leg of your journey, I wanted to talk to you out of concern for my grandson. He is a good man and quite trusting. I see he cares for you and yet you hold great secrets from him. I am sure he told you some about me. I am one of the Crow people as you know our tribe. The actual name of the tribe is different, but that is a simplified and rough translation. I am 94 and have seen much in my many years. I am trained as a healer, but that is also a simplistic description. Healing is not always the use of plants and medicines, but also includes the strengthening of the mind and aligning one with the energies of creation. I have special abilities that were gifted to me at the time I came to being in my mother's womb. I can see the energies that flow around everything. For those of us with these abilities, our own energies differ as we effect the energies around us. With you I sense something similar, although different. I must ask now what powers you possess and why you insist on hiding them?"
Ginny was stunned. As she had been afraid, she was being found out. How should she answer? Did she dare tell the truth? She stayed mute for several minutes while Mary stared at her. When she seemed unable to answer, Mary spoke again.
"Child, you really do not need to be afraid of me. I do not sense any malice in you and I believe you do care for my grandson. Perhaps I should tell you a bit more about myself first. I was born and raised among the tribe. We have lived on these lands for thousands of years. Unfortunately, as the white settlers came there were many conflicts and bad feelings that carry over to the present. I was unique in that I was raised near enough to town that I interacted regularly with those not of the tribe, and grew more accepting than some of my peers. I was born just six years after the last millennium dawned and married a fellow tribal member when I was twenty. I was actually quite old, having taken time to study my arts. While the marriage was arranged by the elders, my husband was a good man and we were blessed with three sons. We lost one of them though before he reached the age of one year. When the world went to war in the forties, we watched from a distance for several years. My husband was older, but he still felt the need to help and moved us to Seattle when the government advertised jobs to help the war effort. He worked in the shipyards for two years and I gradually adjusted to the strange energies formed in the city. While we lived there, I came to know several special white people who had their own unusual abilities. They called it magic and it was beautiful to see them weave their spells. Although foreign to my arts, we drew on similar energies. Then, a year before the end of the war, there was an accident at the shipyard and my husband was killed. I was 37 and our boys were teenagers. I retreated back to the reservation and grieved for three years. My sons both grew and pursued their own paths and I developed an unlikely friendship with a white rancher. We married when I was 41 and he was 49. He had never been married before and it was a new beginning for both of us. A year later I gave birth to our only child together, my daughter Elaine. While I built a new life here with my second family, I never forgot the friends that I had left behind in Seattle and their unique magic. I have not seen similar energies in many years. Now though you remind me of them."
Ginny took a minute to absorb everything that Mary had told her. She felt an understanding in the woman and decided that now was the time to tell at least some of her secrets. She nodded her head and looked into the old woman's eyes.
"Alright Mary, I guess it's time to stop hiding. You are correct, I am a witch. I come from a lesser, but still pureblood magical family in England. There are certain expectations of pureblood daughters and I have chosen to leave those behind and live primarily in the non-magical world. Also, both my children have shown early signs of magic."
"Hmm, yes, I detected the energies swirling unpredictably around both of them. So, tell me, should I still call you Jen? And how old are you exactly?"
"Mary, listen, I can see that I need to be honest with you, but I'm worried about Brett. He guessed something was a bit different about me once and I brushed him off. I care for him and don't want him hurt, but I don't know what to tell him."
"I can tell you care and I think you need to tell him everything. You two are quite close and he deserves no less. I think you will find that his unique upbringing will make him more accepting than you think. And I think he needs to know the story around your children."
Ginny's eyes popped.
"Are you clairvoyant?"
"Not as you understand the arts of seeing, but I do sense there is something of a story there. I have all the time to listen if you wish."
"Alright, I've been hiding for too long. I don't know what is going to happen with Brett and I in the long term, but I need to take care of what's happening now. Maybe I should go get him."
"I believe he is on his way."
The words were barely out of Mary's mouth when Ginny heard a knock on the door. She gaped at the Mary and then went to answer it. As expected, Brett was waiting.
"Hi Jen. Is my grandmother here? I had a sense she was and that she needed me."
"Yes Brett. She and I were just talking and I need to talk with you as well."
They made their way back to the bedroom and Brett sat with Ginny in the window seat. Ginny was still perplexed about how he had been summoned.
"Mary, did you use some kind of mind speech to bring Brett here?"
"Again, my terms are different. I did not speak exactly, but I sent my energy to find his energy and then let the one inform the other. Now, how about your story?"
Ginny took a deep breath and turned to look at Brett as he put a hand on her knee.
"Brett, I have some things to tell you. I haven't been hiding them from you exactly, but I have been trying to create a new life for myself. Mary's senses realized immediately though and she has convinced me to be completely honest with you. I will understand if you need me to leave after this, but I want you to know that I do care about you. I wouldn't risk this if I didn't. First, my name is not Jen Jacobs. My name is actually Ginevra Weasley. My friends called me Ginny or Gin and, when I left my old life behind, Jen was a natural change. You should also know that I didn't grow up as your average English girl. I am actually magical. I am a witch. I attended five years of advanced training and have received my initial certifications from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
Figuring that it was time to put everything on the table, Ginny rose and went to the dresser, where she pulled her wand from the back of a drawer. She turned and stood between Brett and Mary as she flicked the wand and caused her half unpacked suitcase to re-pack itself. Next, she conjured bluebell flames and held them in her palm for a minute before extinguishing them. She looked at Brett and he seemed stunned. Then she heard soft clapping and turned to Mary, who was clapping and grinning.
"Ooh, that was a nice show Ginevra. The magicals I knew in the forties also used wands."
Brett just shook his head.
"Jen, or Ginny I guess I should say, I asked you a couple of weeks ago about special abilities and you denied it?"
"Yes Brett. I was quite scared when you asked that. You specifically asked about visions and I answered truthfully that neither myself or anyone in my family has had them."
"Alright, so you were technically truthful. Still, why? Grandmother has told me a bit about her friends in Seattle, although I'm afraid I may never have believed her completely. And you said there was a school for witches and wizards? Are there a lot of witches and wizards in England?"
"Well, first there are witches and wizards all around the world. Britain has about 24,000 at last count. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is the premier school in the British Isles. There is a small school in Ireland also. There is also Beauxbatons in France, Durmstrang up north, Salem here in the States, and another dozen at least around the world. In most countries, witches and wizards are bound by a statute of secrecy. The statutes were started when magic was persecuted by those who were afraid of it. For Britain, that was about eight hundred years ago."
"Okay, I guess I can see that. It still seems amazing that this secret society seems to be everywhere. Grandmother, did you know?"
"Not fully my grandson. I knew there were those with special talents all around. It is not that different from the secrets that are kept within the tribe with our teachings."
"Alright, next question Ginny. Why? You have this amazing power. You said you passed certifications. You were raised in England. Why are you living in an RV driving across the US with your kids? Wait, are the kids magical? Do you know yet? How would you tell?"
"Yes Brett, I was raised in England my whole life. I am actually the only daughter and seventh child of a pureblood wizard family, although not one of the highly placed houses. Still, there were certain expectations of a pureblood witch that my mother attempted to instill in me from the cradle. I was quite stifled growing up and finally had enough. At Hogwarts, you start when you're eleven and take your OWL tests at the end of your fifth year. Based on those scores, your course studies for your last two years are decided and then you take advanced tests called NEWTs. I finished my OWL tests and didn't want to continue, but I wasn't going to be given a choice. I also had no desire to follow the path my mother had designed for me and I wanted to see the world. So, three and a half years ago, I ran away and assumed a new identity. I went to Europe first and then came to the States when Seb was a baby. And yes, both my children are magical. There's never a guarantee, but both have shown small incidents of accidental magic. It's something I have to be careful about."
Brett nodded and seemed to be taking it all in.
"Wow. You ran away? How old were you? And what about the kids' fathers, are they wizards?"
"I was not quite sixteen when I left. I was seventeen when Seb was born. Dean is a wizard. Amaia's father, Javier, is not and he doesn't know about the magical world. As his daughter comes into her powers, I will most likely have to tell him one day. Also, you should know that both of them were conceived intentionally. I want a large family of my own and decided I wanted children of different ethnicities. I call it my rainbow dream. Both Dean and Javier agreed to the idea and allow me to be the primary parent, although they stay in touch. As you may have guessed when you met Dean, he's gay."
"Shit. Oops, sorry grandmother. How many more shocks do I need? Alright, so maybe I had a hint with Dean but I couldn't figure it out since you had a kid with him. I assume Seb was conceived the natural way though?"
Ginny chuckled.
"Most definitely. Dean may be gay, but for some reason he has always had an attraction to me. We first dated when I was fourteen and he was still figuring himself out. Even once he did, we still got together on occasion. I'll be honest, if I hadn't been with you when he visited, he would have been sleeping with me instead of Seb."
Brett shook his head and stood up to pace the room. Ginny was worried, knowing that he had just been hit with a massive barrage of confessions. She was about to speak when Mary stood up.
"Grandson, be honored that Ginevra has entrusted you with her secrets. She cares for you deeply. I could see that at dinner and it is why I had to question her immediately. I sense potential for both of you, but she needed to release her burden of secrecy."
Brett looked at his grandmother and nodded. Ginny could see the respect he had for her. He turned to Ginny and took her hand.
"Alright Ginny, thank you for giving me your secrets. I can't send you away. I care about you too much. Let's give this a try and see how things go."
"Thanks Brett. I won't keep anything from you from now on."
Mary looked at the two of them and grinned as she placed a hand on Ginny's arm.
"Now Ginevra, since you are staying, I'd like to talk more in a couple days. I'd like to see how you work your magic and study the energies, if you are interested. Perhaps too I can show you some of the ancient arts that I've been trained in."
"Thank you Mary, I look forward to that."
Mary nodded and then wished them both a goodnight as she left the guest suite. Brett stood with his arms around Ginny, holding her and thinking for many long minutes. When they pulled apart, he gave her a deep kiss and then said goodnight as he left her to her thoughts.