I relaxed a little. Saoirse has a caring, motherly nature. It fits so well with her, as she is a witch of healing by birth.
That's the reason she works at the hospital; to practice her spells and help people. Saoirse is very advanced in her craft for her age as well.
I gently untangled Saoirse from me as I took a step back. She could tell I needed space, so she smiled and didn't resist my actions.
"You look like you could use a seat on the couch with a blanket and a drink."
I looked at her absentmindedly and nodded.
"Alright, come on."
Gently, but firmly, she took the purse away and put it in the closet. I took off my flats and she grabbed them from me and put them in the closet as well.
Then she took my hand and led me to the living room.
Saoirse instructed me to sit on the couch, then she located the remote for the electric fireplace and turned it on. (Not the heat, just the flame part).
She grabbed the thin fleece blanket off the armchair and came over to me.
"Goodness! What are you sitting like that for? Put your feet up.", she chided.
To humour her, I pivoted my body and swung my feet up onto the couch.
"That's better, isn't it? Now let's take this blouse off you. Honestly, Sinead. Sometimes I don't know how you can even breathe."
Saoirse doesn't have the same opinions as I do when it comes to corsets and tight-fitting clothing.
I obediently raised my arms directly above my head and Saoirse wasted no time in getting hold of the edge of my blouse and tugging it up over my head and off my body.
"Alright. Here you go.", she said as she handed me the blanket. As she neatly folded the blouse, she said, "I'm going to go get you that drink now."
"Wait!"
She turned back to look at me.
"Can you bring me some willow bark tincture? These cramps are getting worse."
"Cramps? Of the stomach? Or is it the time of month?"
"My stomach's fine…stupid womanly nature.", I muttered angerly.
"Say no more. I'll fix everything.", Saoirse promised as she left the room.
As my body relaxed into the couch, I reflected on just how much my current state of affairs bothered me. Normally, I would feel emotions; be disappointed, sad, a little discouraged.
But it wouldn't hit me this hard. It was only the influx of extra hormones that was making me this miserable.
I remember once, when being the High Priestess was still new to me, and I had recently arrived on Earth, I questioned the Great Goddess of All about why females had to go through such an ordeal while men seemed to be so lucky.
She seemed amused by my question. Her reply was that while men, biologically, were a bit physically stronger than women, all things were made in balance.
She hinted that since women were at such a disadvantage, perhaps this monthly trial helped to toughen them and allow them to be stronger in a different, but equally important way.
Suddenly, I was brought out of my ruminations. Saoirse walked through the doorway.
"Here you go. Let's get you all fixed up!", Saoirse said, sounding ten times more cheerily than I felt.
She handed me the small vial of willow bark tincture and I threw it back in one shot. I left my head thrown back and the vial upended in the air for a few extra moments, to make sure I got every drop possible.
"Thank you.", I said, as I handed the vial back to her.
"My pleasure.", she returned, handing me a small, clear glass of a draft.
"Is this…"
"Now, you just never mind. No questions: you need it."
She placed her hand over mine and guided the small glass up to my lips. But I hesitated, turning my head slightly to the side.
Saoirse had my trust completely; she had earned it long ago. And I had done the same of her.
But some small seed of doubt sat deep in the pit of my stomach. Some tiny voice inside me, fainter and more distant than that of my natural intuition, said: something is not quite right.
But I discounted it as some mistrust fuelled by the extra hormones, and turned my face back towards her, beginning to drink the draft. Seeing I drank, she removed her hand from mine and patiently waited.
The glass empty, I returned it to her hand and lay back on the couch. She walked across the room and turned on some instrumental jazz, turning down the volume, until it played softly.
"I'll bring you some water and put it on the side table for you."
As she left again, I felt the tincture begin to kick in and my pain began to dull. I relaxed further into the cushions beneath me.
But then my doubts about the contents of the draft began to bubble up again. Something about the taste…something from the earth. My mind worked hard to try and piece it together. But I found it harder to think, harder to focus my thoughts in my mind.
I found my train of thought again. The taste…earth…plants…something that flowered.
The colour red came to mind. Not a vibrant, true red, but something more orange-red. With soft green leaves…like in that large graveyard in Europe…AH!
The image popped into my mind very suddenly, crystal clear. In my minds eye burned the image of an orange-red poppy. The variety of the species widely grown on this continent.
'Poppy?'
That meant…oh no.
I moved my tongue around the roof of my mouth to see if I could get any remnants of that taste. My findings confirmed it.
There was no doubt in my mind that there was opiates in that draft.
As my mind reeled trying to figure out why Saoirse had done that, the effects of the opiates began to further muddy my thoughts. Every second that passed, I fought more and more of an uphill battle.
I had no idea what was going to happen to me, or how I would react.
I thought I saw Saoirse enter the room, sit a large glass of water on the side table and then whisper something quietly.
I had no idea what she said. Or if she was even really there. My eyelids were so heavy. They slid closed.
Saoirse stood beside the couch where Sinead lay. She'd sat the glass of water on the side table.
"Please forgive me, Sinead.", she whispered. "I didn't want to. But I didn't have any choice. She made me do it. I couldn't go against her, no one could."
Saoirse sighed deeply. She fixed the blanket around Sinead, tucking her in.
"I hope you are okay in there. Fight your battles and come out on top in your spiritual journey."
Then Saoirse left the living room.
Colours swirled behind my eyelids, like a rainbow viewed through a kaleidoscope. Shapes both existed and did not exist at the same time.
An image formed and just as I began to decipher it, it disintegrated, the colours dissipated, and it reformed into another. This happened again and again.
But for how long, I did not know. Time didn't seem to exist, yet I knew that it did.
Finally, I was able to understand what I saw. It was a person…it was my mother!
"Mother!"
I reached out to her.
"What are you doing here? Why aren't you at home?"
"My daughter, I am as far from home as you are yourself."
"But what do you mean?"
"In time you will understand. It will become clear."
"Mother, why are you here?"
"Because you need to see me."
"Hold on, what does that mean?"
"We don't have long to talk to each other. My daughter, I need you to listen. Much has changed at home since you've left."
She looked sad.
"We have new family members, and others have left. The entire world has changed. The politics are different. Religion is questioned. The darkness is spreading. The fate of the very planet is in danger. We need you back as more than just our High Priestess."
Mother grabbed my hand and held it tightly.
"Sinead, love. You are leaving soon. Be ready and have all in order. Be prepared for the worse but hope for the best. You recall all our legends? The information gathered by the prophets about The Chosen one? The time of The Chosen one draws near. You must prepare for this."
She kissed me on the forehead with all motherly tenderness possible.
"I love you dearly. I miss you so. Your entire family does. Please, trust in your clan. Follow the Holy Writings. Pray to the Goddess. Follow the Light. I know you will be the pride of us all."
Mother let go of me and took a step back. The colour of her image faded. The lines of her outline against the black darkness of the background began to blur.
"Wait, Mother, don't go! It's been years since we last spoke…"
"Goodbye, my beloved daughter…"
"Wait!"
But she faded away into the darkness and didn't return.