The Feral Child Read online

  As the quiet began to stretch between them, Seamus sighed. “I can hear your brain working, Maddy. It’s not very subtle. Why don’t you just ask?”

  “Everyone we met in there thought you were a big deal,” she said. “They all went wobbly at the sound of your name. So why didn’t you help us? Why didn’t you get Stephen back yourself?”

  “It’s complicated . . .”

  Maddy scowled. “I nearly died, and you tell me it’s complicated . . .”

  “OK, fine, it’s politics,” said Seamus. “If I don’t want someone interfering with the way I run things, I can’t interfere with the courts. It’s all about balance. If all the Tuatha leave each other alone, there will be no fighting. If I start trying to order around other Tuatha regents or the members of their court, it gives them an excuse to start an argument. But it doesn’t mean I can’t give things a nudge.”

  “Like telling Granda what’s going on?” she asked. “Is that what you two are always talking about?”

  “Yes.”

  “And it was you that told him when we were coming back out and to meet us at the mound so he could swap that changeling?”

  “Precisely,” said Seamus. “You need to go easy on your granda, Maddy. He’s been living in the shadow of the mound all his life. He knows only to be fearful. He lost your mother, and you’re such a target . . . well, you can’t blame the man for being cautious.”

  “Liadan said I was an ‘agent of destruction.’ Is that true?”

  “There’s something about you, Maddy, that sends ripples through our world. You’re the key to something . . .”

  “What?” prompted Maddy.

  “That I don’t know yet,” said Seamus. “I think life will be more exciting with you around, but whether or not you’re an ‘agent of destruction,’ well, that’s for you to decide.”

  “Why do you hang around here so much?” asked Maddy.

  Seamus looked down at her and grinned, full moons floating in his eyes. “I think it’s an exciting world. Humans, you’re changing all the time, and faerie kind never do. It’s fun to watch.”

  “Oh,” said Maddy. “Well, I’m glad we make such good pets.”

  Seamus frowned. “That’s not what I said.”

  “I know, I know.” She held up her hands. “I just don’t believe your tourist story, but that’s fine. I’m sure I’ll get the truth another time.”

  “The truth is that when I bound myself to the Land, all those thousands of years ago, it was a mistake to let my strength wax and wane with the seasons,” said Seamus. “It was a huge mistake to return to animal form in the winter. I thought it would keep me humble. All it did was make me weak at certain times of the year. Putting part of myself here, in the mortal world, is my insurance policy against trouble. I might only be a shadow of what I really am, but at least I can watch what goes on over there and in this world. As I said, it lets me give things a nudge.”

  “Are things that bad between faeries and humans?” asked Maddy.

  He sighed. “Let’s put it this way—powerful beings should never sleep. Not if they care.”

  Maddy looked at her watch. “I’d better get home,” she said.

  “Busy afternoon?”

  “Yeah, I’m helping Granda put up some shelves in my room.”

  She whistled for George, and Stephen came panting up to her, his face crumpled and on the verge of tears.

  “What’s the matter, nappy bum?” she asked.

  “Didn’t win,” Stephen sobbed. “No chocolate.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about that,” said Maddy as she reached down and lifted the child on to her hip, his arms circling her neck. “You came second, and second prize is also a bar of chocolate.”

  She nodded a goodbye to Seamus and walked across the square, George trotting by her side, his teeth firmly clamped around the stick. As she got to the wall that divided the village square from the street, she turned to look. Seamus was still standing where she had left him, his face up to the sunlight, a full spread of antlers only she and a handful of others could see dipping down his back.

  Stephen yanked a handful of hair. “Maddeeee,” he whined. “Wan’ go home.”

  She hugged him tight. “So do I,” she whispered into his hair.

  GLOSSARY

  Roisin (roe-sheen)—Maddy’s cousin. If she doesn’t know the answer, she’ll Google it. Might get a bit panicky but generally a good person to have in your corner.

  Samhain Fesh (sow-en fesh)—This was the pagan feast that marked the start of winter, when the harvest was gathered in and people got ready to endure the winter months. It is also the time of year where the boundaries between the faerie world, TÍR NA NÓG, and the mortal world wear thin and faeries can cross over to us and we can find ourselves lost in their realm. Christians tried to stamp out Samhain by replacing it with All Hallows Eve or Halloween, but the old ways are there, underneath it all, even if we have forgotten them. So the next time you go trick-or-treating, put a cross around your neck and some iron in your pocket. And always be nice to old ladies you meet on the road—you never know whom you are talking to. Faeries never forget a kind deed or a harshly spoken word.

  Tír na nÓg (teer na nogue)—The Land of Eternal Youth. The fabled realm of the TUATHA DE DANNAN that exists beneath Ireland’s surface, the place the Tuatha fled to when they lost their battles against mortals for control of Ireland. This where the TUATHA and the lesser tribes of faeries live. Many, many people search for ways in, but you need a faerie guide to enter the realm, and getting out is never as easy. Something to think about if you have things urgent to do topside—I’d clear your diary.

  Sean Rua (shawn roo-a)—This is a faerie as old as the TUATHA DE DANNAN. He has been mentioned in folklore for thousands of years and seems to pledge allegiance to any court he feels like serving at the time. No one knows exactly what Sean Rua is, but his talent is that he resembles a child and has hypnotic powers of persuasion. He has lured hundreds, if not thousands, of mortals beneath the mounds, and there is no record of any of them returning home.

  Tuatha de Dannan (too-ay day dah-nan)—The Tuatha have many names: “the Shining Ones,” “the Fair Folk,” “the Gentry.” Some call them “faeries,” but they call themselves “gods.” They used to be in charge of Ireland, until St. Patrick came along, and they have serious powers. They can control all the elements (air, water, fire, and earth), cast powerful spells, and change their form at will. They are vain and short-tempered, cruel, and spiteful. They argue so much that fighting has practically become a hobby. They are the most powerful beings in TÍR NA NÓG, and they rule it. It’s best not to upset them.

  Fionnula (fin-oo-la)—Not a faerie, but Maddy’s very human aunt. You would not want to bump into her in a dark alleyway.

  Liadan (lee-ah-dan)—Means “gray lady” in Irish. Liadan is an old and powerful elf from the Nordic countries. No one knows why she and her clan came to TÍR NA NÓG seeking sanctuary, but she’s as argumentative as the TUATHA DE DANNAN. Do you know someone in school who could start a fight in an empty room? That’s Liadan. The only good thing about her is that she unites the TUATHA against her. Everyone needs someone to hate, right?

  Cernunnos (ker-noo-nos)—One of the oldest and most powerful of the TUATHA DE DANNAN, he clings to the form he took when he was worshipped in pre-Christian Ireland, the Horned God. But he likes to linger in our world too, so he takes on human form for the winter months, calls himself “Seamus” (shay-mus), and lives in Blarney, County Cork, keeping an eye on the mortal world and any coming and goings from TÍR NA NÓG. It’s a weird way to spend your holidays, but who’s going to argue with an ancient Celtic god?

  The Morrighan (more-i-gan)—In pre-Christian Ireland the Morrighan was worshipped as a triple-faced goddess. She represents the maiden, the mother, and the crone, and she is the most powerful of the TUATHA DE DANNAN. It is her power that created TÍR NA NÓG and her power alone that keeps the boundaries up between the faerie and mortal worlds. The
Morrighan is also one of the most dangerous of the TUATHA. She is also known as “the Raven Queen” and is the living embodiment of war. Waking the Morrighan is not something that should be done lightly.

  Fachtna (fakht-na)—Means “hostile” in Irish. Says it all really. Fachtna lives, eats, sleeps, and breaths war. Never happier then when she has a knife in her hand.

  Glaistig (glay-steeg)—Glaistigs are either hostile or friendly, depending on who you are. Normally they lurk near water and lure male travelers to their deaths. They are not very keen on men. But they love children, so much so that mortal women often used to let a local glaistig care for their children while they washed their clothes in the river. Stephen is very lucky to have been cared for and surrounded by glaistigs in Queen LIADAN’s court. Any faerie that might have tried to harm him would have found the fingers of AOIFA or her sisters wrapped around their throat.

  Fir Dorocha (fear dor-ka)—Means “dark men” in Irish. These faeries are the embodiment of fear. They spread hatred and terror before them and drive mortals crazy. Wherever there is a mob or a riot in progress, the fir dorocha are close by. They have also been known to abduct mortals for the kings and queens they serve. Basically, they do all the nasty jobs LIADAN and the TUATHA do not want to do themselves. Faeries to avoid at all costs.

  Fionn (Fee-on)—A dryad, which is an elemental faerie, the soul of her tree. Elementals are simple creatures, and the other faeries tend to look down on them for it.

  Selkies—You have heard of werewolves? Well, there are actually lots of werepeople and other animals in the world. Selkies are seals. They can shed their seal fur on land and change into people. If you take a seal-woman’s fur, she has to follow you home, and as long as you keep her sealskin away from her, she has to stay a woman and cannot go home to the sea. Quite a nasty thing to do to a selkie, no? So don’t do it. Ever.

  Aoife (ee-fa)—A GLAISTIG, and a lady-in-waiting to Queen LIADAN.

  Dullahan (doo-la-han)—A very nasty dark faerie, the headless dullahan is a soul collector. Sometimes he rides a giant black horse; other times, a coach with four horses. He never speaks, except to say the name of the person whose soul he has come to collect. No door or gate can be barred against him.

  Gancanagh (Gan-cah-nah)—Maddy is lucky that no matter how gorgeous she thinks Connor is, she’s too young to be interested in kissing boys (yuck!). Connor is a gancanagh, a male faerie who has a poison in his skin that makes mortal woman fall in love with him forever. When he leaves them, they die pining for him. One kiss is enough.