Chapter Four: The Settling of Siobhan's Mind
Siobhan placed seven candles in a circle on the floor of her room. Then she took seven bowls and placed them between the seven candles. She took dirt from around the sacred Pillar (that was in the center of the Park) to fill the seven bowls. Then she lit the seven candles in a counter clockwise order. Siobhan further walked around her circle seven times before she sat cross-legged in the center. She closed her eyes and hummed the song of sowing seeds that her race had sung on Lugnasad.
"Plant me, O' goddess, and make my roots go deep. Secure me in your earth and give peace for growth" She sung with arms raised
The minutes ticked away as Siobhan remained frozen with her arms reaching toward the heavens. The unsettled rumblings in her soul seemed to wash up on the beach of her mind. As if she was in a tall tower looking down at the beach of her mind, she began to see where the feelings of anxiety, fear, and restlessness had begun.
The first memory that had begun the unrest happened while she had been eating lunch with her friends at school.
"Aw yes, how could I have forgotten?" muttered Siobhan
"Ok, so we have settled that we are going to have a picnic lunch at the nature park by the Bear Paw Library and then go study in the library, right?" asked Blanche with her pen ready to mark in her calendar book.
"It sounds ideal to me. I would love that time for chit-chat before having to do the dreaded homework" said Iona
Iona had discovered that she shared the same lunch with Siobhan, Casey, Ashling, Blanche, Colin, and Donald on Hero Day 1. She immediately had joined their lunch party and seemed to fit right in. She didn't have the arrogant air of Bruce, Sasha, Liam, and Teagan.
"Yep, sounds like a plan to me" said Casey
"Did we decide to each bring our own meal or what?" asked Siobhan
"Yep, we are each bringing our own grub" said Casey
"Man, girls are odd creatures. Guys would have just said 'hey lets meet up here'. We wouldn't have planned out food, schedules, or anything" said Donald
"Hey we are not odd. We are simply wiser" said Casey with a glare in her eyes
"Wiser or sillier" retorted Daniel
"Sillier" replied Colin
Casey rolled her eyes and was about to ignore both the Air clan boys when the entire group was startled at the approach of three students.
The group recognized Will Stronghold and Warren Peace right away. Siobhan, from Blanche's glare, assumed the red head with Will was his girlfriend, Layla.
"Hello, we wanted to talk to Siobhan" said the red head, smiling at the entire group
Siobhan stood up and approached the three; "I'm Siobhan" she said and held out her hand.
"I'm Layla, Will's girlfriend" said Layla as she shook Siobhan's hand
"As you already know, this is Will" said Layla as Will also shook Siobhan's hand
"And this is Warren" said Layla as she turned to the last member of their group. He seemed reluctant to shake hands nevertheless he shook Siobhan's hand.
Siobhan felt her head ring like a mighty hammer had been swung at her. The world was spinning round and round. She reached out and grabbed something that felt warm. Her vision cleared and she looked down. On her wrist was a tattoo shaped liked a medallion and in that circle of ink were flames that seemed to swirl and toss as she stared at them. Fear moved up her spine freezing her breathing and she hiccuped.
"Are you alright?" asked Casey
The world seemed to be back in place and Siobhan was surrounded by her friends as well as Will, Warren, and Layla. She was standing by Warren with her hand still in his.
"Do you need some water?" asked Casey as she created water out of thin air and directed Colin to catch it in his empty water bottle.
"Yes –hiccup- please" said Siobhan releasing Warren's hand and turning to grab the water bottle
After Siobhan drank some water, her hiccups seemed to vanish.
"I'm sorry about that." Said Siobhan
"Oh no, it's OK. I am just glad you are OK. I am sure the guys feel the same way" said Layla
Will and Warren nodded their heads. Siobhan thought she saw Warren toss a glare her way and she hoped that she had not been in her vision trance for too long. "Had he seen my eyes fog over?" wondered Siobhan. She hoped he had not and that the only awkwardness was her hiccup and holding his hand too long.
"Anyway, we had come over because we wanted to congratulate you on winning your first Save the Citizen" said Layla
The memory cut short and Siobhan again felt the fear climbing her spine. She remembered she had discussed the vision with Casey. The conclusion reached by both had nearly stilled her blood at the time. In her mediation, Siobhan began to think how idiotic she had been.
"How can a lost one, who knows nothing of marking & mating, mark me?" Wondered Siobhan
"It is more likely that I would end up marked by Bruce than Warren" Siobhan's thoughts continued
"Not that I would like that any better. O' goddess, are my only options an arrogant, cruel, prick or a complete stranger?"
Siobhan shook her mental self as she continued with her mediation. The beach washed away that memory only to roll another one in.
The second memory that had not settled well in her soul was the training session with her Maimeo later that same day. This particular training session had turned into a group lesson. Siobhan had been joined by Casey and Colin who were both going to turn fifteen in a couple of months. This meant that all three of them would be old enough for marking & mating.
"Tell me, why was the ritual, as we know it now of marking & mating created?" asked Keeva to the group of young Tuatha De Danann.
"It was created after the potato famine and our great scattering. Its purpose was to create unity among our people and to encourage us to marry without our race, lest we forget who we are." Said Siobhan
"It was created to help prevent us from alienating the other kingdoms who did not share our original view of mating" said Colin
"It was created when our people was Christianized" said Casey
Keeva nodded her head sagely and said, "Who is right and who is wrong?"
"Time has shrouded the truth from memory but in the end the practice remains"
"Mating, among our people is simply a matter of vows, and for all intent and purpose is the same as the other kingdoms' mating, which is their marriage. This is usually only done between those of our race who inherit no elemental powers from Dana. Tell me, young ones, what is marking?"
"Marking is what happens between two elementals. It is a one-ness of mind & body. The one being marked bears the mark of the other elemental. Thus the name, 'marking'" said Siobhan
"It is where two elemental couples knit together their lives and powers through Dana, our goddess." Said Casey
"It is love, so my mother says" said Colin
Keeva smiled, the crinkle around her eyes, told Siobhan that she was amused with their answers.
"Your definitions, young ones, are like a knife over hard butter. You are only scraping at the top of a deep well. Marking is a true mating. It is a place where soul meets soul and they rejoice. Marking is the joining of two great spirits. This 'joining' has many different forms. Some couples can speak to each other through their minds, use their mate's power's at times, or even control the actions of their mates.
"The common components of all markings are the actual mark and the one-ness."
"The Mark" continued Keeva "is given to the one who is kissed. This is usually the girl but on rare occasions a guy has been given the mark. The Mark usually is a round circle on the others wrist. It is composed of the element of the kisser. This is where the phrase, 'fire kissed, water kissed, air kissed, earth kissed, and spirit kissed' have come from.
"The one-ness refers to what the marking does. The marking creates a bond between the two participates. By this I mean that the couples who are marked think only of each other. There is no room for other people in their minds. Thus the marked couple does not fear being cheated on." Finished up Keeva
"What if someone is forced?" asked Siobhan
"After they are marked they won't feel forced. They will feel in love, as Colin's mom puts it" said Keeva
"However, to prevent anyone being forced into a marking not of their choosing, the clan elders are able to stop a marking. One must either warn them ahead of time that they don't wish to be marked by such and such a person or find sanctuary with them till such a person is dealt with"
"Lastly, once you are marked there is no going back. That person becomes a part of your soul and only death brings a partial separation" said Keeva
Her memory stopped there and Siobhan replayed her Maimeo's last words over and over. The lesson had continued but she seemed not to remember much of it. This was where her heart had found fear and unrest.
"O' goddess, I plead with thee. I beg of thee, to not let Bruce mark me. "Said Siobhan
Her mental self, even separated in a mind tower, seemed unable to find some way to lessen the fear of those words, they rung in her ears like the web of a spider.
"I must relax" said Siobhan
She breathed in and out and felt a tiny spark in her soul. Her will resolved itself and she felt a wall within her heart.
"I will not be marked by Bruce. I will resist" she said and the memory floated back into the sea of her mind.
"Thank you goddess" said Siobhan
The final memory of unrest landed on her mental beach. Liam and Teagan were finally getting marked. The whole of her race had been happy and jubilant. The memory that she saw unfold was of the ceremony.
Everyone was gathered around the sacred Pillar. It reached higher into the sky than any of the trailers and it was carved with symbols and the names of the Shamans since they had moved from Ireland to America. Siobhan felt the power in the stone as they formed a circle around it.
"We gather to welcome Liam and Teagan as one into our circle" said Keeva
Her voice rang out over all the people as Cian, the elder of the Air clan, lead Liam and Teagan to the sacred stone. He took Liam's hand and covered Teagan's hand in Liam's.
"Cheanglaíonn le chéile dhá, Mar sin, is féidir linn a bheith i gcónaí ar cheann." Said Cian
"Sláinte chuig na fir agus go maire na mná go deo!" replied Siobhan and all of her race. Their voices floating over the couple like a shawl. The words were the common blessing on all those mated or marked. Yet, it felt new at each ceremony.
Keeva came up to Liam and Teagan and put a wreath on each of their heads created with the leaves of the Alder tree and the Oak tree to symbolize the deep and strong roots that they were forging among their people.
Liam kissed Teagan and Siobhan felt the air quicken around them and encircle the couple. The air seemed to mix with fire as the couple's two elements wove themselves around each other. The crowd hushed as they watched the earth suck both elements into itself. Then the goddess' blessing hovered over the couple like the scent of the earth after a rain.
Teagan grinned at Liam and smiled meekly at Cian, "Welcome to the Air clan o' child of fire" said Cian as he kissed her cheeks
The crowd cheered. Then several people pulled out bagpipes, cymbals, trumpets, and cornets. The whole of the houses of the Tuatha De Danann danced before their goddess and praised her name for the new marking.
Siobhan could not pinpoint why this memory seemed to haunt her. In her memory she remembered feeling at one with her people and equal to their rejoicing. She searched the memory anew to find the disquiet her soul had gathered.
"There" she said "He is watching me"
Siobhan had not noticed, but her subconscious felt it all the same, Bruce had been watching her the whole time during the ceremony. His eyes seemed to boil with need? Want? Desire? She shivered again but her heart was made up.
"I will not be marked by Bruce. I will resist" She repeated to herself
The memory sank back into the ocean but like a warning his eyes burned into her soul.
"I will resist" she said
Siobhan straightened her shoulders and watched the sunset on the beach of her mind. She let the warm colors flow through the rocky feelings of the day and smooth them clean. She felt a hand gently rub her shoulders and she knew. She knew Dana, the goddess of the earth, was letting her know that all was well.
She let her arms down as she ended her meditation. The candles still burned and the world had not changed. Yet, Siobhan felt changed.
"My mind has settled" she said to herself
As if on cue, all the candles blew out at once, the smoke creating a halo around Siobhan. She felt as if Dana was giving her one last reassurance.
"Thank you goddess" Siobhan with a bow
777777777777777777777777777777777777
Irish/Gaelic Names, Words, Phrases, and their meaning:
Lugnasad = A harvest festival on the first of August. The name is derived from Lugh, a great warrior & leader of the Tuatha De Danann
"Cheanglaíonn le chéile dhá, Mar sin, is féidir linn a bheith i gcónaí ar cheann" = "Joining together two so we can always be one"
"Sláinte chuig na fir agus go maire na mná go deo!" = Health to the men and may the women live forever!
A Special Note: I do not speak Gaelic but I am working with several helpful internet sources, so please be gentle with me as I learn.
Thank you to my faithful followers and to "Io's Torment" for the review. I extremely appreciated it and it gave me encouragement as I wrote this chapter. As always, please review, follow, and favorite!
Signed GottesBlume