TUS NUA - ch 46

TUS NUA – ch 46

New Beginnings – Mia and Midnight

(*)(*)(*)

Alistar rejoined the group with a discouraging look on his face.

“I would imagine from the look on your face that there was no more information available.”

“Finola, I was hoping that by giving the humans their time, considering the circumstances, they’d hurry things a bit more, but unfortunately, their procedures take much longer than I anticipated.”

He looked into his cousin’s eyes, grasped her hand and pulled her away from the others. Softly, he said, “Cousin, it’s time for some witchy interference. I’ve never known you to do anything like what I’m going to ask you, but would you like to try? I mean, Finola, you are Fey. What’s the point of having these powers if you’re not going to use them?”

“Oh, Alistar, how right you are. I honestly just hate interfering with the way humans choose to live their lives. Yes, I know, I’ve done that but only to rid them of the bad habits they use to harm others. But to just ‘help them along’? I’ve always felt that by aiding them in their slightest dilemmas, I might be making them lazy. Humans can be so fragile and so quick to allow the easiest method rather than the correct one.”

“And yes, Finola, while I totally agree with you, we also agree that there are many times we’re given no choice. Look what was happening to Jules. If not for the choice we made regarding interfering, where would Jules and all the other young women be?”

Finola leaned her head on her cousin’s shoulder and sighed deeply.

“Well, Alistar, I saw this done only once in my life but never have done this myself. I want you with me and I want to do this in my own home, in my own workroom.”

“Again, cousin, I total agree. I’ll let the others know we have an errand and will be awhile before we return.”

Once inside Finola’s personal residence, she looked at the stairs and placed her hand on the banister. “Well, mo stor, I guess it’s now or never.”

Alistar placed his hand on her arm, pulled her into an embrace and said, “Finola, my dearest and most powerful cousin. I can feel your hesitation and worry. Here this is no right or wrong. The worst that can happen is that the procedures being used by the lab will take even a bit longer but if we do nothing, their work could still take that long.”

She smiled. “Oh, Alistar, in this world or the otherworld what would I do without you?”

The climbed the stairs and as Finola reached for the doorknob she said, “Mo stor, would you be so kind as to draw our circle while I pull out my mirror?”

Alistar chuckled. “I’ll go a step further. I’ll draw the circle, and once you and the mirror are in it, I’ll light the candles.”

Finola smiled deeply. “Dear cousin, that was my intention. You’ve read my mind again.”

With the two witches, the scrying mirror inside the circle and the candles lit, Finola began,

“Mirror, my friend, I need to be

In a place that only you can see.

They look to find answers of body and mind,

Their quests are often difficult to find.

I need to see the work that’s been done.

Help me see if they’ve even begun.

Mirror my friend, I ask this of thee,

So humbly, I ask. So, mote it be.”

She murmured to her cousin, “Alistar, I don’t even know where the lab is or its name. This is surely difficult to even the most sophisticated mirrors.”

He traced his fingers down her cheek and said, “Cousin, my cousin Fey. I agree that information would make our search much easier, however we don’t have much choice but to allow your mirror to do the hunting. Look,” he said as he pointed to the mirror, “It’s trying. It’s misting. Now we wait.”

They sat cross-legged on the floor and in their minds pictured the children that sat in Tus Nua eating strawberry ice cream.

Suddenly, the mirror shook and as the mist swirled into a smoky vision, the large piece of reflective glass began to turn. Ever so slowly, it spun in a circle.

“Uh, Finola,” Alister began to ask, “have you ever seen your mirror do this before?”

“No, mo stor, not my mirror. Do you remember, as a child, hearing about Aintin Adira?”

Alistar’s eyes widened. “My stars, Finola! It’s been many years since I even thought about her. As a young boy, I always thought it was a legend. Once I reached my teen years, I learned she lived a century before we were born. But rarely did I hear anyone speak of her.”

“My maam’s aunt, Niamh, knew more about her. She met her a few times when she was a small child. Oh, the stories she told about those encounters. Although I never knew Aintin Niamh to weave an untruth, I must admit that some of her stories about Adira seemed a bit far-fetched. Especially the one about the rotating mirror. And yet, now, here we are!”

“Cousin,” Alistar asked, “could it be that Aintin Adira is helping us find the location of that laboratory?”

“Hmm, I guess as many human’s share DNA, so do we witches. I wouldn’t be surprised if she has something to do with this.”

As she spoke, the mirror’s spin slowed significantly and finally stopped. The smoky swirl also began to clear and as it did so, an image appeared in the large oval reflective glass.