"C'mon Maura, I'm starving" Jane grumbled. She hadn't eaten since she and Maura had been on the plane heading into England. The very conservative portion of chicken risotto was far from satisfying, and it drew unfavourable comparisons to the porcini, spinach and ricotta risotto that she had learned to make under Maura's tutelage.
"Seriously Jane? Just a minute ago you were complaining that I'd left your bra in the Bake Off tent; now we're going to get it!" Maura exclaimed.
"I think I remember complaining that you had taken it in the first place! Seriously, I'm starving, can we just stop to eat first?"
"We'll go to the restaurant after we've picked up our underwear."
"Fine. Can I have a hug though Maur?" Jane petitioned Maura for some close contact, to which Maura stopped walking and turned around to take Jane in her arms. As they embraced, one of Jane's hands slipped up the back of Maura's shirt.
"What are you doing?" Maura asked, perplexed at Jane's behaviour.
"Nothing" Jane said, highly unconvincingly.
"Get your hands off of my cookie bra!" Jane's hands instantly recoiled as if they had been scalded by the erotic confection. "Come on, it won't take us long. I remember leaving our bras in one of the utensil cupboards, so they shouldn't take too long to find. Then, I promise that we can get some food".
"Fine" Jane conceded, as they continued walking down the stairs. The house that Jane and Maura were staying in was an 18th century manor house on a very large English country estate. On the aeroplane ride over Maura had told Jane about how the 18th century, in England, was a time where the nobility of the country migrated outwards to cultivate large country estates. The land was very neatly arranged, with ornate and dainty trees dotted over well-trimmed lawns; it was around this time that landscape gardening had become a sought after service. Jane hadn't admitted to Maura that she actually found everything that she was telling her to be extremely interesting.
As they got to the empty foyer of the house and slid out of the large oak panelled doors, the couple realised that it was already dark outside; it grew darker in England sooner than it did back in Boston.
"It's probably best it's so dark, I doubt anyone will see us" Maura re-assured Jane.
"Gee, why wouldn't we want anyone to see us walking back from the Bake Off tent with underwear caked in cookie dough? It's almost as if that's something to hide!" Jane retorted with more than a smidgen of sarcasm.
"Behave, you! At least until later. Look, the tent is just over there, not too far to walk" Maura told Jane as she pointed at the large white gazebo erected in the centre of a grassy clearing. Even under the night time shade it was easy to see. As they walked towards the tent, Jane observed the familiar setting that she had seen on the many YouTube videos she had watched of this show with Maura as they prepared for her appearance on it. Except, one thing was different. For some reason all of the cupboards and appliances had been moved to the rim of the gazebo, leaving a large empty space in the centre. Maura noticed this as they slid through the sheet allowing them access to the tent.
"Everything's been moved! How am I going to find out which one was my workstation?" Maura gasped, exasperated at the situation.
"Don't worry Maura, we'll just look until we find them, okay?" Jane comforted her, before noticing a single plate of cookies that had been left on one of the counters. "Well well well, I think we just found the solution to my hunger problem". Maura glanced over to the plate.
"Oh, those were made by another contestant. Prudence, I think her name was? I have to warn you, Mary and Paul hated them; I imagine she's going home this week" Maura told Jane in a very matter-of-fact tone. Jane subsequently eyed the cookies with suspicion, as if they were a suspect in one of her murder cases.
"They couldn't have been that bad. What kind of cookies are they?"
"Well, Prudence seems like quite an edgy girl, but I have a feeling that beef and horseradish cookies are a bit too innovative." Upon hearing this Jane took a swift step back from the offending plate of cookies.
"You can say that again; I'll just leave these here. Wouldn't want good ol' Prudence to miss out on her spoils."
"And you, detective, can start by helping me find our underwear!"
"Y'know I love it when you call me detective, Dr. Isles".
"I do, indeed" Maura purred, closing the space between her and Jane, then going on to rest her hands around Jane's waist, pulling her ever closer for a kiss.
"Oh Dr. Isles, what treatment have you got in store for me today?"
"Well, I think we should start by applying a little pressure" Jane whispered into Jane's ear before pinning her against one of the work stations, chosen by Maura for its immaculate cleanliness. Maura moved in to eradicate any space that laid between her and the detective, and this time stealing an even deeper kiss from Jane. It was a tango of the lips that made her blood sing the song of one thousand sirens that could only be expressed by pressing her body firmly against Jane's.
"Oh, Dr. what's gotten into…? Wait…" Jane shuffled out from underneath Maura, looking unsettled.
"Jane?" Maura beckoned, failing to conceal her disappointment. Jane turned back to Maura.
"Do you hear that?" Jane asked. Maura listened, trying to place a sound within the silence that had descended for the first time upon the pair of them and she did pick up on the sound of footsteps.
"Actually, yes, I do hear that" Maura admitted, disappointed that she wasn't about to have a chance to promote her levels of immunoglobulin A. She looked out of one of the transparent panels of the gazebo and saw marchers, with what looked like torches aflame.
"What do you see?" Jane asked.
"This doesn't make any sense. There are people dressed in hooded black cloaks and marching towards this tent. They're carrying torches. They remind me of pallbearers at a funeral" Maura reported, not knowing how to make sense of what she was seeing, and feeling very thankful that neither of them had thought to turn a light on within the Bake Off tent, where the sinister group seemed to be marching towards.
"Okay, we need to get out of here" Jane ordered, stating the obvious Maura didn't take much convincing and they slipped out the back way of the tent. As Jane tried to head back towards the house, Maura was heading towards a thick row of bushes.
"Maura, what are you doing?" Jane whispered, trying to keep her voice down in order to not attract the attention of the strange group of people.
"I want to see what these people are doing. Cultist rituals are fascinating events, and I'd love to actually witness one for myself, rather than simply reading about them. There's room for you here in the bushes too." Jane wished that this had been the first time she had heard that line. She knew that she wouldn't be able to talk Maura out of staying, so she reasoned with herself that it would be best to stay with her. Jane crouched down next to Maura and observed the procession.
There seemed to be about thirty hooded figures, marching in pairs and all carrying torches. Due to the darkness of the evening and the fact that every figure was obscured by their clothing, there was no way to discern the identity of the marchers.
"You know what strikes me as odd about this?" Maura said to Jane, not daring to raise her voice above a faint whisper.
"Um, let's see… Perhaps everything?!" Jane retorted. Maura seemed unreceptive to the sarcasm in Jane's tone.
"Every single one of them is carrying a torch and marching through this clearing, which isn't far away at all from the house. If someone was to look out of the window, they would easily be spotted. Plus, it's only half eight; no one's in bed yet."
"They're not making an effort to hide themselves" Jane said to herself, the detective in her finally coming to life. "You're right; that is weird. It suggests that everyone here is aware of it, or at least enough people for it to be normal."
"It could be a ceremonial march?" Maura pondered as the procession began to filter in to the tent. The two of them watched the marchers silently extinguish their torches as they entered the gazebo. Once every one of them had entered, Jane turned to Maura.
"Okay, what now?"
"Let's get a little closer to the tent, they shouldn't be able to see us and we might be able to hear what they're saying."
"You sure that's a good idea? We have no idea who these people are and this is way outside of our legal jurisdiction."
"I am aware of that, I just can't leave here now without knowing the context behind what we've seen." Jane acknowledged Maura's inquisitive side, especially because she knew that Maura would be up all night thinking about it if they didn't stay. An awake Maura usually meant a similarly awake Jane. They raised themselves into a position high enough to allow them to move, but also low enough to remain hidden and shuffled over to the tent, crouching beside it in order to not be seen through the transparent panels. They were now close enough to hear what was being said inside.
"I see the high priestess has yet to grace our coven with her presence" said a gruff male voice.
"She is coming. From the East side of this consecrated ground" responded a female voice, smooth and cold. Jane then turned to Maura with an alarmed look on her face.
"High priestess coming from the East? Wait, which side of the tent are we on?" Jane murmured.
"We're on the West, don't worry." Jane was about to question Maura about how she knew this information, but she saw that Maura was holding an antique compass on a chain that extended from her breast pocket, and her question was answered.
"Ah, you always come prepared."
"Shh, I want to hear what they're saying." The couple listened in again on the happenings inside the tent. The gruff voice was speaking again.
"Is that her, cloaked in white?" he asked to no one in particular, apparently having seen someone approaching the tent. Presumably the cold female investigated the situation.
"That is indeed her." Suddenly, her voice grew shrill and imperious, as she addressed the group as a whole. "Now, everyone, down on your knees. Show the proper respect to our liberator." Jane turned to Maura with a look on her face that was so puzzled, only rivalled by the look she had made earlier upon seeing Maura's cookie bra for the first time. Jane still couldn't work out which situation was more bizarre. The female then spoke once more.
"Oh gracious one, we welcome you humbly to our gathering and offer you our most sincere thanks for your presence." The voice that responded was once again female, but lower in pitch and with a raspy texture.
"No need for thanks. This ritual is of paramount importance and must begin immediately. I see the circle has been drawn."
"Yes. It is for you to step into when you are ready" the cold female responded to the woman who appeared to be their leader.
"For my protection?"
"Vervain, freshly picked under the alignment of Saturn."
"Adequate. Lay it within the lines."
"Certainly." There was a pause before anything more was spoken by the group inside the tent.
"It would appear that they are attempting to create a circle for ritual magic, what they could be doing though is anyone's guess. The circle can be used for summoning spirits, and the vervain is commonly used for protection in this kind of ritual" Maura informed Jane.
"How do you know all of this?" Jane asked with an arched eyebrow.
"After coming across multiple deaths relating to witchcraft, it's always helpful to have a knowledge of the practices." Jane nodded in acknowledgement, and the lower pitched female started speaking from within the tent once more.
"The circle is prepared; my thanks to you." The rasp of the voice of this woman now turned into an imposing call, as she started her incantation. "With Gabriel facing me and Raphael behind me; Michael on my right, and Uriel on my left, I call the protection of the four archangels; keep me safe as I communicate with the spirits under the eyes of the moon." She paused, before continuing once more.
"Daughters of Hecate, and the dark mother herself, I pledge a loan from you of one of the spirits you hold in your merciful prison. Release the soul that was sacrificed on this very spot where I stand a year from today. Our custodianship will receive her with open arms." Jane turned once more to Maura, who she could see was recording this on her phone.
"We need to go in there. Whatever they are doing, it does not sound good." Jane said with a conviction in her voice.
"Jane, you said it yourself, this is outside of our legal jurisdiction. We could burst in there but you wouldn't have your badge, your gun; no defences. We don't know what these people are capable of" Maura responded. She really admired Jane's passion to do what was right, but she needed to keep things realistic, and the both of them needed to stay safe.
"Yeah, you're right. I just don't know what…" Jane's words were cut off by the gruff male voice calling from inside.
"Hey, is someone out there?!"
"What I do know is that we need to get out here, now" Jane ordered, grabbing Maura's hand and pulling her to her feet. They both knew that they needed to get away and they were soon on their feet, running at full sprint, hand in hand back towards the house. They didn't look back once until they had reached the doors and hurried inside; they did not want to know what could be directly behind them.
Once they were in the foyer, they both exhaled a deep breath, both out of adrenaline and exertion.
"Do you have any idea what that could have been?" Jane inquired.
"I don't want to think about it right now, especially since the second half of the first round of Bake Off is tomorrow morning!" Maura replied, still out of breath from their heart racing run across the grass clearing.
"You're right. Come on, we're going to get some food."
"I can agree to that… Oh, mother fooey!" Jane turned to Maura with a wide-eyed expression.
"What's wrong now?"
"My cookie bra has split between the two breasts!"
"You can't possibly be worried about that damn bra now." Jane glanced at Maura incredulously and they both burst into simultaneous laughter.
"I'm glad you're safe, Jane" Maura told her, through fits of giggles. Jane blushed a little, and smiled once again at Maura before taking her hand. Together, they walked to the restaurant, stroking each other's thumbs and struggling to suppress their own laughter.