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indriSUMMARY: Giles and Ethan, the electric Kool-Aid funky Satan groove year, in the early seventies. Rated M. Spoilers to Band Candy. Acknowledgements and disclaimers.
They walked in that general direction, but it was slow going, as they were stopped at every other teepee, tent and caravan by someone keen to see Randall. Men clad only in jeans came to shake his hand and reminisce about that gig three years ago; women in peasant dresses embraced him and buried their heads in his hair. Roaming packs of naked toddlers were enjoined to remember Uncle Randall and Auntie Dee. His hat accumulated flowers, feathers and peace buttons.
"Why's Randall so popular here?" Ripper asked Ethan.
"He remembers people's names. He's been here every midsummer since he moved to England. And people always remember meeting him."
Stan did a brisk trade. Ethan looked around, pointing out caravans and tents belonging to people he knew. He explained how he'd met each of them, their magical interests and their utility as contacts, plus which of them wasn't speaking to whom for reasons known or unknown. Ripper tried to take it all in.
"So it all boils down to who slept with whom, who lent money to someone else, and who accidentally snubbed someone twenty years ago?"
"Pretty much," said Ethan. "Or who stole someone else's demon."
"That happens a lot, does it, demon-stealing?"
"More than I had once imagined," Ethan said.
At the next caravan, the others were invited in to see a new baby and a dog. Ripper didn't know the couple, so he circled around a few tents, whereupon he almost walked into a girl he thought he knew.
It took him a few moments to place her. She wasn't wearing any make-up this time, her dark hair was pulled back into a pony-tail, and she had a throw-rug draped around her shoulders like a cape. It was Mandy, the girl Stan had brought to the owl spell.
"Oh, it's you again!" she said, and she threw her arms around his waist. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She appeared to be part of a pack of other similarly-dressed girls who now surrounded him.
She had turned up at the squat one day, asking for "the wizard", quite desperate to take part in another casting. Ripper had fobbed her off, saying that Ethan didn't live there any more, but her crestfallen look had made him tell her of the upcoming gathering at Stonehenge. Clearly, she had managed to get here.
"This is fantastic!" she said, looking up at him. "This is everything I ever wanted. Magic, it's all real."
She let him go then, and he watched as she was reabsorbed into the pack, who ran away through the crowds.
Ethan and the others emerged from the caravan as Ripper stood there.
"Come on now," said Ethan. "It's time to visit Evelyn." He pointed towards a sturdy two-chambered tent in chocolate and red.
Ripper tried to refocus. "Is it going to be awkward, seeing her here?"
"No," said Ethan, "but let me do the talking." And he touched Ripper's chest in a gesture just intimate enough to make Ripper uncomfortable in public, even if the public was a field full of hippies.
"Randall!" came yet another shout from behind them. "Dee!" But this time it was a voice Ripper thought he recognised. It was Evelyn.
She was in a long green dress, with the hem pinned up to avoid the worst of the mud. She had a necklace of beaten gold leaves. Randall took his hat off and gave her a deep bow. Diedre curtsied and laughed.
"And Ethan, sweetie! I thought you weren't coming."
Ethan consented to be kissed theatrically on the cheek. "I changed my mind," he said.
"Really, that's wonderful. Now I see that all your glasses need to be refilled. Come with me."
The tent was large enough to have two rooms. They stood in the front one, which had a small fold-out table and chair. Ripper noticed as they went in that she said a chant as she unfolded the tent flap, to shut down some fairly substantial wards. The back room was sealed off from the first by a flap of plastic.
She poured them all glasses of a very strong syrah, the kind that would kick you in the head afterwards. And she tossed Ethan a brownish cube.
Ethan held it into the light. "Stan," he said, "how come Evelyn's hash is always so much better than yours?"
Stan shrugged. "Either she's got a better supplier," he said, "or, it's magic. Take your pick."
There was some chit-chat about the household, Adrienne and Tom, plus Evelyn asking Ripper what his name was again.
"How's your magic coming along then, Ethan?"
Ethan was dabbing a piece of the cube into a pipe. "I'll have to come around and show you later."
"We're on our way to the Henge," said Randall. "We haven't paid our respects yet."
"Well, I won't keep you. But pop by later, won't you?"
Outside, they started to near the stages. A few people were jamming on bongos but there didn't seem to be any actual bands playing yet. Ripper adjusted the weight of the guitar case on his back and wondered if he'd have the courage to play.
Randall waved at a few of the people nearby who had instruments with them. He said to Ripper, "If we come back in the next hour, I can introduce you to the people you should know."
It was barely perceptible, but Ethan had started to weave a little as he walked. Ripper wasn't happy to admit it, even to himself, but he actually found Ethan rather more likeable when he was just slightly stoned. He was more relaxed and more normal somehow. The downside was that the drug made him stupid.
They passed the last of the cars, then the last of the teepees, and were at last in the section of clear grassland that surrounded Stonehenge.
Ripper had seen photographs of it, of course, many times, but seeing it in person was not the same thing at all. Nothing had prepared him for the massiveness of the stones, their height, their gravity, the way they towered over him, Randall, Ethan, Diedre, Stan and the hundreds of other people here. He stretched his hand out to touch the nearest one, craned his neck back to see its top high above. And each stone, through its form and posture, seemed to possess a personality distinct from every other. Not even the Watchers knew how the circle had come to be.
Randall and Diedre bowed and curtsied low before entering the circle. Stan gave the stones a respectful nod and Ripper followed him in. Diedre found a spot to lay the tarpaulin over the mud, gesturing for Stan and Ripper to sit with her. Ethan had paused at the edge of the circle, as if bracing himself.
Randall called out, "Ethan," and Ethan at last strode in.
They walked in that general direction, but it was slow going, as they were stopped at every other teepee, tent and caravan by someone keen to see Randall. Men clad only in jeans came to shake his hand and reminisce about that gig three years ago; women in peasant dresses embraced him and buried their heads in his hair. Roaming packs of naked toddlers were enjoined to remember Uncle Randall and Auntie Dee. His hat accumulated flowers, feathers and peace buttons.
"Why's Randall so popular here?" Ripper asked Ethan.
"He remembers people's names. He's been here every midsummer since he moved to England. And people always remember meeting him."
Stan did a brisk trade. Ethan looked around, pointing out caravans and tents belonging to people he knew. He explained how he'd met each of them, their magical interests and their utility as contacts, plus which of them wasn't speaking to whom for reasons known or unknown. Ripper tried to take it all in.
"So it all boils down to who slept with whom, who lent money to someone else, and who accidentally snubbed someone twenty years ago?"
"Pretty much," said Ethan. "Or who stole someone else's demon."
"That happens a lot, does it, demon-stealing?"
"More than I had once imagined," Ethan said.
At the next caravan, the others were invited in to see a new baby and a dog. Ripper didn't know the couple, so he circled around a few tents, whereupon he almost walked into a girl he thought he knew.
It took him a few moments to place her. She wasn't wearing any make-up this time, her dark hair was pulled back into a pony-tail, and she had a throw-rug draped around her shoulders like a cape. It was Mandy, the girl Stan had brought to the owl spell.
"Oh, it's you again!" she said, and she threw her arms around his waist. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She appeared to be part of a pack of other similarly-dressed girls who now surrounded him.
She had turned up at the squat one day, asking for "the wizard", quite desperate to take part in another casting. Ripper had fobbed her off, saying that Ethan didn't live there any more, but her crestfallen look had made him tell her of the upcoming gathering at Stonehenge. Clearly, she had managed to get here.
"This is fantastic!" she said, looking up at him. "This is everything I ever wanted. Magic, it's all real."
She let him go then, and he watched as she was reabsorbed into the pack, who ran away through the crowds.
Ethan and the others emerged from the caravan as Ripper stood there.
"Come on now," said Ethan. "It's time to visit Evelyn." He pointed towards a sturdy two-chambered tent in chocolate and red.
Ripper tried to refocus. "Is it going to be awkward, seeing her here?"
"No," said Ethan, "but let me do the talking." And he touched Ripper's chest in a gesture just intimate enough to make Ripper uncomfortable in public, even if the public was a field full of hippies.
"Randall!" came yet another shout from behind them. "Dee!" But this time it was a voice Ripper thought he recognised. It was Evelyn.
She was in a long green dress, with the hem pinned up to avoid the worst of the mud. She had a necklace of beaten gold leaves. Randall took his hat off and gave her a deep bow. Diedre curtsied and laughed.
"And Ethan, sweetie! I thought you weren't coming."
Ethan consented to be kissed theatrically on the cheek. "I changed my mind," he said.
"Really, that's wonderful. Now I see that all your glasses need to be refilled. Come with me."
The tent was large enough to have two rooms. They stood in the front one, which had a small fold-out table and chair. Ripper noticed as they went in that she said a chant as she unfolded the tent flap, to shut down some fairly substantial wards. The back room was sealed off from the first by a flap of plastic.
She poured them all glasses of a very strong syrah, the kind that would kick you in the head afterwards. And she tossed Ethan a brownish cube.
Ethan held it into the light. "Stan," he said, "how come Evelyn's hash is always so much better than yours?"
Stan shrugged. "Either she's got a better supplier," he said, "or, it's magic. Take your pick."
There was some chit-chat about the household, Adrienne and Tom, plus Evelyn asking Ripper what his name was again.
"How's your magic coming along then, Ethan?"
Ethan was dabbing a piece of the cube into a pipe. "I'll have to come around and show you later."
"We're on our way to the Henge," said Randall. "We haven't paid our respects yet."
"Well, I won't keep you. But pop by later, won't you?"
Outside, they started to near the stages. A few people were jamming on bongos but there didn't seem to be any actual bands playing yet. Ripper adjusted the weight of the guitar case on his back and wondered if he'd have the courage to play.
Randall waved at a few of the people nearby who had instruments with them. He said to Ripper, "If we come back in the next hour, I can introduce you to the people you should know."
It was barely perceptible, but Ethan had started to weave a little as he walked. Ripper wasn't happy to admit it, even to himself, but he actually found Ethan rather more likeable when he was just slightly stoned. He was more relaxed and more normal somehow. The downside was that the drug made him stupid.
They passed the last of the cars, then the last of the teepees, and were at last in the section of clear grassland that surrounded Stonehenge.
Ripper had seen photographs of it, of course, many times, but seeing it in person was not the same thing at all. Nothing had prepared him for the massiveness of the stones, their height, their gravity, the way they towered over him, Randall, Ethan, Diedre, Stan and the hundreds of other people here. He stretched his hand out to touch the nearest one, craned his neck back to see its top high above. And each stone, through its form and posture, seemed to possess a personality distinct from every other. Not even the Watchers knew how the circle had come to be.
Randall and Diedre bowed and curtsied low before entering the circle. Stan gave the stones a respectful nod and Ripper followed him in. Diedre found a spot to lay the tarpaulin over the mud, gesturing for Stan and Ripper to sit with her. Ethan had paused at the edge of the circle, as if bracing himself.
Randall called out, "Ethan," and Ethan at last strode in.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-13 12:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-06-13 01:09 pm (UTC)I'll actually be in the UK next month, so I may get a chance to visit (or revisit) some of the settings.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-13 02:21 pm (UTC)