Chapter 9

Ivy woke slowly, drifting out of a sleep that felt deep and restorative without any confusion about the unusual sounds she could hear drifting into her awareness. When she blinked her eyes open, she was ready for the unusual sight of the black stone wall, for the cozy, rustic little bed in which shed spent the night… she remembered every detail of what had happened the day before, and to her relief, she felt … well, given the circumstances, she felt pretty good. With a stretch, she sat up, propping herself up on the pillow behind her and blinking curiously around the little room. The fire had long since burned out, but there was enough light spilling in around the shutters on the little window in the far wall that she could see things clearly enough.

So… her first day in medieval Scotland. She took a few meditative breaths in and out as she allowed her mind and body to wake slowly, committing herself to her usual ritual of slow, gentle waking as a kind of anchor point in this strange new situation. The important thing to remember was that she was safe. Her new friends had made that very clear to her — she was safe here, and she wasnt alone. The immediate needs of shelter and food were taken care of — though her stomach was already beginning to wonder what might be for breakfast — and that meant she could shift her focus to settling in.

Step one — what was she supposed to wear? The other women like her had been in those beautiful gowns… would she join them? The shift she was wearing had been on top of a much larger pile of cloth that shed set aside last night … curiously, Ivy slipped out of bed and padded over to investigate. On the way, she glanced into the basin of now-cold water and wrinkled her nose at the volume of sand that had collected at its bottom.

Right, she said, hands on hips as she stared down at the collection of fabric and fastenings that were waiting for her on the chair. First challenge — put some clothes on.

To her great relief, shed only been struggling for a few minutes when help arrived — first in the form of a servant, who expressed surprise that she was already up, and then in the form of the now-familiar face of Nancy Grant, who beamed around the doorway at her.

Youre up early!

Old habits, she said with a smile.

You could have slept in, Nancy said, her tone almost scolding as she let herself into the little room. Youve more than earned it.

I cant remember the last time I had enough spare time to sleep later than seven, Ivy confessed with a shake of her head. Im an early-night kind of girl, though.

Youll fit in well. Once the suns down, theres not a lot to do around here… that is, unless its a feast night. Nancys eyes twinkled. Then were up until dawn. The Grants know how to party. The Gilroys too, though things are a little strained there…

Ivys ears perked up. Shed been wondering about the dispute shed walked in on. Family disagreement?

Something like that. Nancy shook her head as she stepped adroitly over to assist Ivy with the clothing she was trying and failing to get on. Mind if I help? Its easy enough once you get the hang of it, let me show you…

Please. Ivy put her hands up in surrender. Ive got less than no idea.

The Gilroys are staying with us, Nancy explained as she set about fastening Ivy into the gown with an experts dexterity. They first came back in August, for the games the Clan holds every summer. But the Chieftains lady wife went into labor unexpectedly, and the babe was too small and sickly to risk the journey home… and by the time he was well enough, it was midwinter, so they decided to stay until it was warmer.

Ivy nodded, a little taken aback by the prospect of staying somewhere for an additional three months just to avoid bad weather. Such a long stay would bring about tension in any family, I suppose.

Oh, the Gilroys and the Grants have always gotten on well, so my husband Malcolm tells me, Nancy said, shaking her head with a worried look on her pretty face. It shouldnt have been any trouble to have them stay longer… the Laird in particular was happy to spend more time with Chieftain Brian. They used to be such good friends… but you saw the way they were at each others throats last night, didnt you? Breathe in, she added, pulling something tight around Ivys waist that made her gasp involuntarily.

Once fastened, though, it was surprisingly flexible — shed always imagined these dresses would be suffocating to wear, but her breathing wasnt impeded.

You can breathe okay, yeah?

Yeah, it feels fine. She took an experimental deep breath, then let it out. What happened, then, between Brian and Donal?

Its the baby, Nancy said softly, shaking her head. Hes been sickly ever since he was born, but thats nothing unusual. But as hes grown… I dont know, I havent spent much time with him. Anna tends to hide him away… Anna Gilroy, that is, Chieftain Brians wife, not our Anna Grant. Youll meet her. Tall, skinny thing with strawberry blonde hair, always looks like shes about to burst into tears. Nancy didnt sound like she liked the woman very much, Ivy thought, feeling a touch of sympathy for the new mother. They say the baby is… a little strange. He doesnt smile, doesnt laugh… barely seems interested in anything around him, no matter how much you try to play with him. And he threw a tantrum when he was baptized.

Not unusual, Ivy said, hiding a grin. Ive had a few clients who made quite a scene at their baptisms. Babies dont understand the ritual, they just know someones dunking them in cold water…

It was the middle of winter, true, Nancy acknowledged. Still… the Gilroys, you have to understand, theyre Scottish. Theyre — from here, you know? From here and now. Traditional kinds of people.

Ivy nodded thoughtfully. Do they know about — where you and Elena and Anna are from?

Oh, the Grant women? No, absolutely not. Theyre aware that theres something … a little odd, about a lot of the Grant wives, and that it has something to do with the Fae. But the details, no, weve kept those to ourselves. Speaking of which — if anyone asks, you tell them youre from England or Ireland, alright? No need to be more specific than that.

Understood. Ivy felt an odd chill go down her spine. But you were saying — the baby?

Colin, yeah. The Clans have been fighting over him for weeks. His father — thats Brian, the chieftain you met last night — hes convinced that the boys a Changeling.

Ivys eyes widened. A Changeling? As in — he thinks the child was kidnapped by faeries and replaced by an impostor?

Thats right. Nancy looked impressed. Look at you, up with the folklore already.

That ones quite close to my heart, Ivy said softly, sitting down on the bed and feeling the unfamiliar skirts gathering around her. Shed been about to admire herself in the mirror in her new dress, but suddenly she had a much heavier subject on her mind. I dont know if I mentioned last night, but — I work a lot with neurodivergent children. Autism, ADHD, conditions like that.

Nancy nodded, though she still looked a little confused. Thats cool. But what does that have to do with the Fae?

Ivy sighed. The story about children being replaced by lookalikes… its been around a great deal longer than contemporary diagnoses of autism. In my field of study, the prevalence of those kinds of stories throughout history — and in dozens of different cultures, by the way — is often used as evidence that neurodivergence has been around for just about as long as we have. The signs of autism often show themselves just like that… a child will seem strange, otherworldly, not quite right… She made air quotes in the air, wrinkling her nose as she recounted the things that shed heard well-meaning parents say about their own children. As though theyd been snatched away and replaced by something else. Its sad, really. People would rather believe that there are faeries stealing their children away than to simply accept that they have a child whos a little different…

Thats really interesting, Nancy said, her eyes wide. Do you think Colin might be autistic?

Id have to meet him to make an assessment, Ivy said with a shake of her head. Talk to his parents, ask them some questions… which Im going to guess might be a bit complicated, given the situation.

Ill say. But Nancy was looking at her thoughtfully. Still — Im gonna talk to Malcolm about this, if thats okay with you?

Your husband? Ivy frowned, feeling a little self-conscious. Why?

The Fae bring us here because were in fatal danger in our own world, right? Nancy said, sitting down beside her on the bed. But theres more to it than that. Every time theyve brought one of here… its been at a time when our skills have been sorely needed. Karen, for example — she came through right when a plague was hitting the village. Shes an infectious disease specialist. Callie, the most recent before you, she was a bounty hunter or well, a skip tracer. She helped her now, new husband track down his wayward sister whod gone missing and had been thought kidnapped. Nancy shrugged. I have a feeling the Sidhe, which you might sometimes hear us refer to as Seelie, know what theyre doing, thats all. And I dont think its a coincidence that a specialist in autistic children came through right when the Clan is having trouble over a possibly autistic child.

Ivy bit her lip. I guess so. But?—

No pressure, though, Nancy said firmly. Okay? Your first job is still to settle in here — you dont have to go charging off to help these guys sort out their arguments, okay? You just take your time settling in. Colins okay for now. But once youre settled in… well, I might see if his mother might like an expert to take a look at him, if thats okay with you?

Ivy nodded. Id love to, really. Anything I can do to repay your kindness.

Strange, she thought faintly as she adjusted her skirts, trying to remember the steps Nancy had followed to get her into it so that she might be able to get dressed by herself the following day. Medieval Scotland was just about the last place shed expected for her skills to come in handy… let alone for a new client to find her on her first day here. Still, it felt good to know she might be able to make herself useful here.