When Swift had gone, she tried to make Yul sit down and listen.
‘Something awful happened tonight,’ she began, attempting to manoeuvre him into a chair.
‘I don’t want to know,’ he muttered indistinctly. ‘I’m sick of all the worry and trouble. I’ve had a great night and all I want now is to get to bed – with you, my darling. Always want you, constantly. It’s been too long. Come on, Sylvie, come to bed.’
‘No! You must listen, Yul. It’s Leveret, she tried to do something terrible tonight. She—’
‘What?’ he roared. ‘That bloody girl again! I’ll sort her out once and for all. Where is she?’
He lurched towards the door but she grabbed his arm.
‘Yul, I know you’re drunk but please, you must listen. She’s not here – she’s in the hospital wing. She’s fine now, but she tried to kill herself tonight. And her friend, Magpie – they tried to commit suicide.’
Yul stared at her, his addled brain trying to make sense of what she’d told him.
‘Tried to kill herself? No – she’s not that stupid.’
‘Not stupid, Yul, just deeply unhappy. Why else would a young Stonewylder try to go to the Otherworld before their time’s up? I told you I wanted to talk to her. I could see there was something terribly wrong but you wouldn’t let me.’
He turned on her and glared belligerently.
‘Oh right, so it was all my fault! Everything’s always my fault, isn’t it, Sylvie? Blame me for this as well.’
‘Don’t be ridiculous – it’s nobody’s fault. It’s just very sad that she felt desperate enough to try and take her life. But she’s fine, no harm done. She’s sleeping now and Maizie’s with her.’
Yul shook his head, his eyes still unfocused and confused.
‘Poor Mother! The things that girl has put her through, and now this. Leveret probably didn’t mean it anyway – just trying to get more attention. I’ve got to sort her out.’
‘No, Yul. You’ve got to listen to her instead of shouting at her, but not now. You’re right – you need to get to bed. We’ll think about this in the morning.’
She started to guide him towards the bedroom. He leered at her and she suddenly felt as if she didn’t know this dark-haired, handsome man one bit. This wasn’t her Yul.
‘Keen now, are you? About time too! Come on then, Sylvie – I’d better make the most of it, hadn’t I?’
The rest of the night was something he didn’t want to think about now, not with the ceremony about to start soon. He looked around and saw Sylvie, beautiful in her dark green and silver robes with patterns of Yule evergreens embroidered in fine detail, the mistletoe and holly berries picked out with fresh-water pearls and red garnet. She was completely ignoring him and he didn’t blame her. He just hoped she’d excuse his behaviour on the grounds of drunkenness, because he’d never, ever have treated her like that if he’d been sober. He shook his head at the thought of it and wished he hadn’t, for it felt like his brain was rattling about in his skull.
The great Circle was now packed with bodies and there was a feeling of expectancy and hush. It would soon be time for the Herald of Dawn to light the torch but before that happened, Yul should be up on the Altar Stone chanting the sacred words to invite the sun. Words that seemed to have escaped him right now. Stumbling slightly he climbed up, swaying as he found his balance, and the drums began a soft beat. He caught sight of Swift’s silver hair as he stood amongst the other youngsters waiting to be acknowledged as adults. The boy grinned at him and Yul grimaced back. Then he began the tortuous task of remembering the chants.
The ceremony was not one of the better ones and everything that could go wrong did. Yul tripped over the words and there were even embarrassing silences whilst he desperately tried to recall what came next. The damn ceremonies were too long, he thought irritably. Rufus caught his mood and panicked up in the crow’s nest, forgetting what time he should look for on the watch and Greenbough’s hissed commands were audible to everyone, destroying the magic of the moment. Then the boy slipped coming down the ladder with the burning torch and his cry of alarm was heard in the silence, making some of the children giggle irreverently.
There were no bright rays to gild the glowing magus