Gryffynhall (the Danu Cycle: Fiann Trilogy Book 1)

Chapter Three

The hallway was vaguely familiar to her. The floor was dark wood, covered in a long, red rug, patterned with whites and golds. Ahead of her was a giant doorway, with stained glass windows and an ornate doorknob. The walls were pristine white, covered in photographs of people she knew.

Her parents smiled at her from hundreds of shots. She saw herself as a little girl. Her grandparents, aunts and uncles; all had a place, even the ones who were dead. All her parents' friends smiled down at her as well, she recognised them better than her mother's family, as they visited all the time.

She heard music and laughter, and walked towards the living room. Young children ran out of the door, squealing in delight as they were pursued by sparkling blue butterflies. She giggled and looked down at herself. She wore a light pink dress, white tights and white shoes. She moved over to the pictures on the wall and peered at her reflection. She could not have been more than five years old.

She giggled again as the children brushed passed her and she joined them as they ran around the house laughing. Every now and then, an adult would conjure up something different for the children to play with; an orange dog, a miniature yellow elephant, multi-coloured balloons, green faeries. All the apparitions glittered and sparkled as if they were dancing in a rain of glitter. The children laughed and played until they got weary.

Then, they sat down together at the feet of their parents and played with their own meagre magic. She watched as her parents took photos and put them in their photo album, laughing and showing the pictures around.

Niamh made red and silver ladybirds dance across her fingertips for but a few moments. She giggled and laid her head back happily. She was getting stronger in her magic; soon she would be as strong as her friends.

She smiled at the red-headed older boy with the twinkling brown eyes who laughed with her parents. She couldn't remember who he was, but she knew he was a comforting presence and was always nice to her.

As she watched them, Niamh felt herself drifting to sleep. Her head lolled and she twitched.

She was back in her bedroom, lying spreadeagled on the bed.

Her parents' photo albums.

Surely, a picture of Shaun and Oona would be in there.

She jumped up, threw off her backpack and went in search of the albums.

****

A few hours later, her room looked like a bomb had gone off. A shrapnel bomb. The shrapnel being nearly everything Niamh owned, which was now spread all over every available surface.

She sat in the middle of the mess, finally holding the thing she had been looking for. Her parents' photo album.

This was not the photo album with professional wedding photos of couple and family, or family photos of Niamh and reunions. No, this one had pictures full to bursting of their lives before all that. Before Niamh. She flicked through the pages, drinking in every detail.

If Shaun and Oona had known her father, they would be in here. She flicked through the pages, stopping to check them all thoroughly. She came to rest on a picture of her parents with eight others. They all looked to be in their early to mid twenties – though they looked that age in almost every picture of her parents and their friends. Under this particular picture, Niamh read 'the troop. Caer Sidi 1998'.

She had no idea where Caer Sidi was. But sure enough, Shaun and Oona were there, flanking her parents, their arms all around each other's shoulders. The whole group smiled and looked like they were laughing. She touched her parents' faces, feeling herself smile.