Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

“ A h, they've arrived," Maggie jumped up from her chair. "Darter, clean up this mess for us, I don't wish to share my shortbread with anyone else." She cackled as she headed for the door.

Darter quickly gathered the last of the shortbread and the whisky and headed for the kitchen cabinets with it. He shoved them away as Maggie opened the door.

Mary was glad she still had a pocket full of food to eat because she was becoming more ravenous as the minutes passed and she wasn't sure if that was due to nerves or simply because she was a goblin and had a goblin's appetite.

"Don't worry, everything is going to be fine."

Mary looked at Ivy and said, "I hope you're right. I really do, because I don't want to stay like this." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of bread, popping it into her mouth.

Darter came over and sat by her side. "It's actually kind of nice having another goblin around, at least, one who's nice, anyway."

"I'm sorry, Darter. I suppose I shouldn't complain, it's just… I want to be me again, do you understand?" Mary looked at him, pleading for him to understand she wasn't trying to insult him.

Darter nodded. "Oh aye, I do. Just sometimes I miss seeing those of my kind."

"Why do you not see them? And if you don't mind me asking, what kind of goblin are you? You don't look like me or rather Nellie."

"Oh, that's because I'm a Glashtyn." He spread his fingers and held up his feet so that Mary could see the webbing. "We are aquatic and can breathe underwater. There are many types of goblins, you know. The worst are the Red Caps, they are vicious."

"Oh." Mary was surprised to hear that, but she supposed it made sense.

"And I don't see them because they are Unseelie Fae and if I were to go back to the Fae world, they would kill me."

"What? That's terrible!" Mary was appalled. Why would they want to kill such a sweet boy like Darter?

"It's all right. I like my life here with Maggie. I get to swim with Nessie in the Loch, I have a place to live with friends, I am doing well. It is peaceful here."

"I am glad to hear that." Mary took his hand in hers gently and patted it. This sweet boy deserved to live a nice life, especially since it looked as though some had been very unkind to him in the past.

"And Darter is quite brave as well, you know. He has helped the clan on more than one occasion going against the vicious Unseelie goblins," Hamish added.

"That is brave indeed," Mary said, still holding his hand.

Darter preened under the praise.

"Don't be going on about his braveness," Maggie chortled, "he'll get a big head and be unsufferable to live with." Her tone was teasing, as though this was a joke between the two friends.

Darter stuck his tongue out at her but smiled.

Behind Maggie, a group of women entered the room and the room expanded to accommodate them. Mary's eyes widened as she watched it more than double in size. "What in the hell?" she murmured.

Darter leaned into her. "Maggie has magic, the cottage is bespelled to adjust to however many guests are here and what additional space is needed."

"Come dear, let them have a look at you," Maggie called Mary over to sit upon a chair that appeared in the middle of a circle the women were creating with their bodies.

Mary slid off the sofa and walked over to the circle where the coven had gathered. "Hello," she murmured.

The witches looked at her with cautious eyes but said nothing directly to her. Instead the whispered among themselves which made her slightly uncomfortable. Then one said, "Ask her to remove her cloak."

Maggie rolled her eyes. "Mary, would you remove your cloak?"

Mary did as she was told and tugged on the ribbon tied at her neck and waist. She slipped the cloak off and let it rest against the back of the chair.

"What is your full name?" one of the women asked her with a gentle smile.

Mary smiled back. "Mary Cahill."

"I am Isla, it is a pleasure to meet you."

A few others asked her direct questions, which made Mary a bit more comfortable. She glanced over at Hamish and Ivy who were watching everything with curious faces. Her eyes traced over Hamish's taking in every feature of his ruggedly handsome face. She wished with all her heart that she could go to him, be with him, kiss him and he not be repelled by her. She hated this form she was in and prayed that she would soon be free from it.

If that happened, she could be happy here. Of course she would miss her former life in New York. She'd miss her job and her parents, but here… here she could have Hamish. At least she hoped she could. He was unlike any man she'd ever known. Just looking at him made her heart swell with passion. She wanted to share that with him. She wanted to share everything with him.

"Thank you, dear, you may return to your friends. We must take some time to prepare a counterspell that will hopefully break this one upon you," Isla said, her voice soft, but full of authority.

Mary nodded, pulled her cloak back on and moved over to join Ivy, Hamish, and Darter.

"I really meant it, you know," Darter said as he nimbly tied the ribbon under Mary's chin for her.

"What did you mean?" Mary asked when he moved to the second ribbon at her waist.

"That you could live here. We could have a good amount of fun together if you did. Maggie has a garden out behind the cottage. We could play in it, swim with Nessie, have moonlit picnics."

Mary smiled. "Thank you, Darter. I will keep that in mind if this counterspell doesn't work. If it does work, I still would like to be your friend and do those things with you."

"You would?" He seemed surprised.

"Of course. You have been very kind to me, and I appreciate that. I think you would make an excellent friend."

Darter gave her a shy smile. "I think you would too."

Hamish watched her interact with the witches and then with Darter. Mary appeared to be nervous at first, but there was a bit of sass in her answers to the witches, which he was glad to see because it told him she wasn't afraid of them. He liked that about her, that she seemed nearly fearless, but almost fragile too in a way. He wanted to protect her. Not just from this goblin witch who had stolen her body, but also from anyone who wished her harm, including herself.

He could see that if this counterspell did not go well, she just might lose herself in her grief and he'd never be able to draw her out again. He couldn't allow that to happen. The spell had to work.

It was strange, when Maggie had asked Darter to describe what he saw when he looked at Mary, he could almost see her himself. See her true self, not this goblin version. He saw more of it every time he looked into her sad eyes. The beautiful soul beneath the wrapping. He wanted this spell to work, not only for her, but also for himself, because he wanted the chance to get to know her better. All of her, the real her. The one beneath the wrapping.