She Who was Touched by a Goddess

Angus and End were gone by the time we had returned to the inn. There was a note from End saying thank you for the hospitality. Of all the inns they have stayed at, The Belle was the only one he truly felt at home. 

Jane was ranting while Thor was nodding his head to whatever Jane was saying. Renzie and Jana were nowhere to be seen. It was already past ten in the evening, they must have gone to sleep. Or they must have gone out. 

Either way, it was a slow season for the inn so the number of customers was fewer than in the past couple of weeks. 

Weeks. No, make it two months since Duncan and I crossed paths. Who would have thought that I would be linked to a god? Then again, I never thought that I would be a mother. 

Thor offered to stay at the front desk of the inn. He wanted to be helpful so, why would I stop him? I was about to tell him how everything worked, but he waved me away, saying he and Duncan ran a chain of hotels. 

"I missed being at the front desk, might as well help you." Thor threw a grin at Jane which made the older woman roll her eyes. 

We left with the ledger in his hands. Jane and I were silent as we headed to the coach's house. None of us wanted to break it. What was there to say? 

She did not lie to me. I cannot call her a liar. Honestly, how would anyone react if the person they knew would say, "I'm a god."?  I would have asked her if she was okay if Jane told me such things. I would probably have the same reaction if Duncan told me the same thing. 

The front door of the house was unlocked. Another new thing that I have learned living in the ground of The Belle, is unlocked doors. Fall greeted us the moment we stepped on the threshold. 

I gave him a pat on his head before I peeked at my kids. They were sleeping so soundly. It was a good thing that they were unaware of the things that had happened. They have been to so much. 

I walked back to the living room to find Jane sitting on the rocking chair that Duncan insisted I buy. It was one of those impulses of his that I did agree with. It was a good buy though. Nicole would rock some of her dolls, and Jane would occupy them when she visited. 

Like now. 

I looked at the older woman. There was a trace of fatigue in her eyes that were not there before. She may be immortal, but her problems were just like mine. 

Well, not really like mine, but there were similarities. Like love. 

"Would you like something to drink?" I asked. 

She chuckled and shook her head before answering. "Julie, you do not need to treat me like I am a different person. I am still me." 

"No, you are not," I replied, lying on the couch, that was free of Nicole's menagerie. "You are a god for Pete's sake. how can you be you?"

"For one, I have only lived as long as the world has." 

"Exactly!" 

"And the moment we exchanged messages. I knew that you were the daughter that I would never have." 

Well, that shut me up. I sigh. There were so many questions floating inside my mind, yet I had no energy to ask any of them. 

The altercation in the woods. The revelation that gods walked among us, and me, having a small sliver of immortality because of an overprotective dog had finally sunk into my sane mind. 

"Jane, I..."

"Sleep, Julie. We will talk in the morn," she stood up and kissed my forehead like any mom would have done. Fall's boost had compromised your system. Sleep is the best way for you to recover." 

She materialized a blanket that had a Celtic symbol of Brigid. My hand automatically traced the symbol. She was one of those Celtic gods that I have always loved. I smiled as darkness slowly claimed me. 

Before I fully slipped into a deep sleep. His name was the last thing I whispered. 

~~~~~~~

"Duncan."

Brigid, or 'Janes' as she was called in modern times, gave one last kiss to the woman's forehead she had claimed as her daughter. She then stood up and checked on her grandkids. 

Like their mother, these kids were Julie's blood, making them into her grandkids. 

Claude's feet were dangling on the side of the bed again. The boy had fallen off the bed numerous times, so they had to install a railing on the side of his bed. The railing came off two years after they started to get used to living in the Highlands. 

Jane made sure that his feet were underneath the blanket, and skimmed the side of the bed with her hand, before kissing his forehead. She heard a sigh of happiness. Claude must be having a good dream. She could count the number of times when she and Julie were awoken by a scream and a shout because of the trauma they had. 

Just like his mother, there was a Celtic symbol designed on the blanket. Jane made sure that they had protection. It was a stroke of bad luck that she had forgotten to give Julie hers. 

Next, she went to Nicole's room. The little girl had pushed her shirt up again, exposing her stomach. Jane made sure that Nicole's shirt was in order before giving the little girl the same kiss as she had given to Claude and her mom. 

Jane had to shake her head. She will never outgrow this habit. Just like Julie's youngest sister.  

As Jane stepped out of the room, she could not help but compare the past and the present. How much these kids have grown after living in Scotland? The contrast between then and now was un-measurable. 

The little family she had claimed, had become stronger, not just individually, but also as a unit. 

["They need a place to grow, my love," Jane told her husband.] 

Julie's annulment had been finalized and they were thinking of giving her a job as the innkeeper of The Belle. She needed the distance away from the people who she grew up with. They may be family, but Jane felt that they had never valued Julie as a daughter. 

Jane remembered the only time she visited Julie. There was a mixture of happiness and nervousness, and fear. 

It did not take long for her to understand why she was afraid. It was not for herself, but for HER. 

A surprise visit to Julie's house made her realize why she felt fearful. 

She saw how her own family treated her. Jane had lived far longer than these humans, so she was able to read them. What she saw broke her heart.

Jane looked at Julie who was sleeping soundly on the sofa. Her heart ached for her. She had seen and watched countless women who had more hardships than her. Yet she never intervened. 

So why was she so different? 

It was Julie's soul that made her stand out. The light it shines was so bright, that even when her heart was crushed, she smiled. 

Gods cannot cast spells. Only people who were gifted by Mother Nature could do that. So Jane did the only thing she could do to protect her.

Jane materialized her favorite ceremonial dagger. Using its tip, she pricked her index finger and did the same thing to Julie. 

The instant their open wound touched, Jane felt Julie's soul connect to hers. The wave of emotions that slammed against the goddess made her knees buckle. 

There was so much negative emotion she was carrying. How could she handle this much pain?

When everything was done, Jane sat back on the rocking chair and closed her eyes in weariness.  She let out a deep sigh and whispered, "She is ours, my love. Tell Duncan to hurry back, because I fear something is about to happen that would change her forever."