Elfborn

Chapter 9: Old Memories

Stunned beyond words by not only Misha's powerful declaration, but by the very shifting of Reality in response to what seemed like ordinary words as well, Max sat back hard in his chair. 'What had just happened here?' he found himself wondering as he stared at an exultant Misha. Maker, the man seemed to shine, glowing from within like the elf that gave him the sigil stone had. 'Has some kind of covenant been forged? Or are these Tsigani much more than they appear?'

A glance over at Ollie found the other young man just as stunned by what had happened as he was. But Misha, caught up in the energy of the moment, didn't seem to see the shocked looks not only on Ollie and Max's face, but on Nona's as well. She stared at her friend like he had abruptly grown another head. Whether he saw it or not, it didn't matter. A covenant indeed had been forged, one that lifted off a centuries-long burden from off the Tsigani's shoulders.

"Tonight, we will feast!" Misha exultantly declared, his face beaming. He quickly stepped to the door to throw it open.

"Prepare the bonfire!" he shouted and was quickly answered by voices deep in the camp. "Prepare a calf for the slaughter! A great event has transpired and we will celebrate it in the Tsigani manner: with song and dance. Go, my friends, prepare the way. For tonight we celebrate!"

As more shouts rose out of the camp around Misha's toka, joyous and excited as they passed on the happy news, Misha turned back to Nona, Ollie and Max, a broad grin transforming his face, making the lean historian look twenty years younger.

"Not exactly what I expected to happen," he said lightly. "But satisfying nevertheless!"

Needless to say the three with Misha in his toka were stunned by the events. And that was a bit of an understatement. So surprised was he by what had transpired, Ollie was still somewhat stunned several hours later as he sat at the side of a massive bonfire that lit the camp with a ruddy glow. The big fire served as a source of heat for the great spit that now slowly rotated beside it, roasting it's burden of a spitted calf.

But Ollie saw neither the calf, nor the Tsigani that tended it. Nor did he seem to see the other Tsigani that danced merrily in a small space cleared in the camp's center to the cheerful music played by four older men, their instruments handmade and somewhat crude. Still they managed to produce a very pleasing and catchy tune, though Ollie didn't recognize it as a song he knew.

The Tsigani of the Ruthin clan knew it, however, dancing energetically to the music, their steps resembling the folk and traditional dancing that Ollie had seen people of his town dance with. The men were deft in their spinning and twirling of their female partners and the women threw their heads back in delight to let dark hair cascade wildly over their shoulders and multi-colored skirts swirled crisply around long legs as the dancers stepped through the complex moves of each dance.

Those not immediately involved in the dancing stood at the edges of the cleared space, tapping toes or singing along as they ate from piled high plates of food, each face crowned with a merry smile. Indeed the Tsigani were enjoying themselves. It wasn't often that their historian called a feast. So they were going to make the most of it!

However, the big plate of roast calf, vegetables and cheese sat untouched in front of Ollie in marked contrast to the Tsigani merrymakers. One look at the faraway expression on his face would be enough to tell that food was the furthest thing from the young Hybernian's mind.

'I can't believe it,' he found himself thinking as he stared into the dancing red and orange flames. 'I actually have the blood of elves running through my veins!' When the elf had come to visit him as he had hiked in the flats down by the Meri River, which ran by his township of Cladinshire, in northeastern Kolston, he had regarded the strange, silent creature that glowed in the dark with more than a little skepticism. In fact, he thought it quite alien, completely outside the realm of Reality with its magics and dancing bright lights, creatures Lash had named 'fairies'.