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Galway Ireland, October, 2010
 
Kara and I woke up snuggled in each other's arms and lay there debating whether we should leave the warmth of our bed. The question was decided for us as the call of nature seemed to beg to be answered. We reluctantly got out of bed and slipped a robe on and put our feet into cold slippers. The old Manor house while modernized in recent years, still proved to be very hard to heat due to the high ceilings with their ancient exposed beams. The floor was flagstone with an Area rug placed in the most commonly traveled footpath. The cold wind blew in off of Galway Bay with the howling fierceness of the ancient ghosts that are said to haunt so many places around this beautiful country. The windows rattled with the force of the wind as if someone was knocking on the door asking to come in. We both managed to make it into the Loo and take care of our morning rituals before we made our way to the kitchen. The kitchen was retrofitted with all the modern conveniences, but still retained the charm of it's 400 year old past. We started the kettle to boiling for tea and got the ingredients out to make pancakes and omelets. Kara and I were here along with my sister Lyndsey, her wife Alyssa, Kara's Grandma Keely, Her Mom's Lorenna and Melissa and my mother Katherine. Lyndsey, Alyssa and I were progressing in learning how to increase our powers. Grandma Keely is very proud of how far we have come in just six months and we may be allowed to start casting more difficult spells very soon.

About 30 minutes later, the rest of the house begins to filter in to the kitchen. I guess the aromas wafting through the house did their jobs and soon everyone was seated and enjoying breakfast together. Kara and I told everyone that we planned to go into the village and shop for a few more warm clothes and something for our dinner tonight. It was decided that we would buy some Corned Beef brisquet and vegetables for a boiled dinner. Kara wanted to show me more Historical places too, so we decided to make a day of it. Our first stop would be a store that sells warmer coats than we have now. Since we haven't been back to the States in six months our wardrobes haven't kept up with the colder turn in the weather that we have had lately.

Once we made it into Galway, we started looking for warm coats. The first three shops didn't have much of a selection of outerwear, but we did find a couple of beautiful long sleeved dresses. Navy blue for Kara and a Jade green for me. We bought matching lingerie and shoes to go with it. We added three pairs of tights and were more than a few pounds lighter in the wallet, but pounds heavier in actual weight. Fortunately, we did borrow the BMW sedan that was part of the estate to bring our new merchandise home. We finally found the coats we were looking for in the 4th shop we looked in. They were long wool coats with matching hats, scarves and gloves. We were actually surprised to see them on sale! We looked around and found more long sleeved tops, pants and long skirts, plus two more pairs of shoes apiece. We got to the till and the lady who waited on us instantly recognized that we were clan members. Her name was Amanda Quinn and she happened to be one of my cousins. Needless to say we hit it off rather well. I had met more of my extended clan when I arrived here and we connected as if our family branches had never been separated by the vast ocean and a few hundred years. We invited her to dinner at the Manor and told her to be there around six. She asked if she could bring her wife and twin girls too and we told her that that would be fine. I really wanted to hear her stories that had passed through so many generations. We left and found a nice pub to have lunch and rest our tired feet. It was also great that the car was parked close by so we could drop off our extra purchases. We naturally wore our coats immediately as the wind came blowing through with an extra bite! After lunch, we decided to walk through the cemetery at the Parish church. It was well over 500 years old and had about 700 souls buried beneath it's sod. As we walked through the cemetery, something bright caught our eye closer to the sides of the church. It was a blood red gravestone and it was set off by itself surrounded by a wrought iron fence. The name on it read FR.Matthew O'Shea.1618-1660. Something drew me to it and I knew that this man had somehow played a role in the history of our clans. We knew he had to have been in power during the widespread persecution of our people. Kara and I decided that we would ask Grandma Keely about it when we got back. We proceeded to the market and got our supplies and then headed back to the Manor.

When we got back to the house, it was a buzz with activity. We had called ahead and told them about Amanda and her family coming to dinner. The dining room was set with the finest China and crystal we had there. Apparently, Grandma Keely's sister Claire would be there too. We pitched in and got everything ready and then a few minutes before 6, Amanda and family buzzed in at the gate. Her wife Molly was an O'Shannon and I found out that she and my teacher were sisters. Small world! They had two of the cutest redheaded baby girls I had ever seen. Quinna and Shannon had just turned one year old and took to me and Kara right off. Kara looked at me and whispered that she knew ours would be just as cute! I looked at her and she gave me a sly smile. We got the babies tucked into their pumpkin seats and sat down to enjoy a delicious meal. Once we finished cleaning up we all retired to the parlor area and sat down with cups of tea in front of the roaring fireplace. Kara and I started talking about what we found and the room just went silent. You could have heard a pin drop! I looked over at Amanda and her eyes flashed with an anger that could have melt steel! Grandma Keely said that it was time the story was told to us because just as we suspected Father O'Shea was the one responsible for so anguish among our ancestors. She began.....

June 1660

Alistor Quinn was an anxious man. He was just days away from marriage to his beautiful fiancee Meg O'Halloran. The dowry that his beloved's father was giving him would set them up in a household where they could begin their lives. He loved her with all his heart, but he had a secret that he had confided in her about just a few days past. He thought she would be angry, but she surprised him with her complete and unconditional love. She told him that she had something to tell him that would have to wait until they were out on their own. He figured that her father would definitely not approve of whatever she was going to tell him so he was content to wait.

Two nights later, Alistor wandered outside of their family home. He was in the garden wearing one of his sister's day dresses looking up at the stars. His parents had turned in early and he knew they would not disturb him. He had always felt different from a very early age, but he couldn't see any solution to his problem. Father O'Shea and his secret brigade of informers were constantly rounding up undesirable people and putting them up on charges of heresy. Alistor knew that if he were ever caught, it would mean almost certain death! Unfortunately, an informer happened to be passing by on the road that night and saw Alistor in a dress and immediately rode back to the Rectory to tell what he had seen. Two hours later, a group of four informers showed up at Quinn home and arrested Alistor and led him away in shackles. While one informer handled Alistor. The others took a dagger and stabbed his father and mother and set fire to their home. Alistor was ravaged by a sorrow so deep that he just shutdown.

It was all over the village by the next morning and Meg and her mother were horrified! They knew they had to do something fast. Meg's father had been gone all night and didn't come back until the early dawn. He never said where he was, but Meg suspected he was one of the informers responsible for what happened to Alistor(He was actually the one who killed Alistor's parents, but she wouldn't find out until later) Meg knew that they kept the prisoners in a prison not far from the church and held swift trials and carried out quick executions. Most every victim was found guilty on even the weakest of evidence. Father O'Shea's thirst for power and control had most everyone trembling in fear. Meg and her mother knew they needed to act fast. They timed it just right and convened a meeting of the women to form a plan.

Alistor woke up shackled to the wall. To his left were two women and to his right were two men. He found out that the women had been secret lovers for years and had gotten caught by an informer when they were seen kissing. The two men were turned in by an innkeeper for sharing a room. They were falsely accused of being a couple and never had a chance to refute it. They were scheduled to die the next day. Alistor just knew there wasn't much hope for him. He despaired of never seeing Meg again and he was filled with guilt because it was his weakness for female clothes that cost his parents their lives. He just sat there and let the deep sobbing overtake him Jane and Mary wanted so much to take him in their arms and hold him as he cried , but they couldn't and it broke their hearts. They had to lay there powerless to move.

The next morning, Pete and Daniel were led away to their executions. Jane and Mary figured to be next and they were preparing themselves for it. The guard never came back that evening until very late. Jane and Mary thought this was unusual, because the guards were passed out drunk by this time every night. Someone was coming down the steps. He looked like one of the guards, but he came over to them and started unlocking the shackles. He was whispering to them not to make too much noise. He handed Alistor a necklace and he was told to put it on and go to the window and stand in the moonlight. The beam struck the necklace and enveloped Alistor in a bright light. A few seconds later a beautiful redheaded woman of about 20 was standing there with a look of surprise on her face. Jane and Mary were handed necklaces with a different color and they surprised Alistor/Alicia by whispering thank you Meg! Alistor/Alicia couldn't believe it and wanted to ask what was going on, but got a finger to his lips with a Shhh!!!. The explanations would come later. They gathered themselves up and got out of the prison. Alicia noticed that Jane and Mary looked completely different. One had raven hair and the other red. She also noticed the guards were all knocked out cold including Meg's father. They all got in a cart and covered themselves with burlap. Meg/Marcus got on the seat and took the reins and clicked to the horses to move. They traveled a few miles out of the village until they were safe. Meg/ Marcus took another necklace out and put it on. The moonbeam hit the necklace and a few seconds later, Meg was her old self again. They had stopped on the shore of Galway Bay and there was a boat tied there. Alicia could see a huge ship anchored in the moonlight further out in the bay. They got in the boat and started rowing toward the ship and made after about 30 minutes.

Once they were hoisted aboard, they got a huge surprise. Pete and Daniel were there to greet them. Alicia was crying tears of joy to see them. They were part of the Ship's crew and were there in the village trying to sell whiskey to the Pubs. They checked in together hoping to get some sleep so they could go around the next morning trying to sell what they had. The Innkeeper was paid by the Informers to let them know if any strangers came to town. They were arrested on the bogus charge and were going to be executed that morning but the guards were ambushed and they were freed. They were taken back to the ship where Meg and the women met with the Captain. Meg's mother found the dowry money her father had hidden and paid the Captain for passage to America. Meg went on the mission to rescue Alistor and the two women. She figured that Alistor was so well known around town that he wouldn't be able to escape without notice. She also knew of his desire to be female. It didn't really matter to her because she was a lesbian anyway, but knew she couldn't live openly because of Father O'Shea and his henchmen.

She waited outside the prison in the shadows and knocked Marcus out as soon as he came out. She then put on a special necklace that would turn her into a copy of someone. She slipped into the prison and played along with them until they asked her to get another keg of Ale. She opened up the top and dumped a sleeping powder into it. She took it out to them and waited. Her father showed up and began drinking with the men. He sat there bragging about what he did to Alistor's parents and just laughed as if it was like killing a hog. After a few minutes, the men started slumping over. In an ironic twist, one started to stumbled toward the the door and fumbled until he grabbed the dagger from her father's boot. He started to fall forward at the same time her father did and the dagger was plunged into her father's chest killing him. She got the keys from one of the others and went in and freed the prisoners. Alicia never saw what actually happened to her father because it was darker in the room when she put out a few of the lamps. She figured it would aid in their escape.

The sun came up and the guards were sent out looking for the escapees. It had started to rain very heavily and the men had found a boat and were searching the shoreline for them. The winds picked up on the bay and waves were crashing against their boat with a a cascade of water coming straight down. In one split second, every one of the Informers had been drowned! Father O'Shea was in the middle of saying Mass when he dropped dead of a Heart Attack. The next day, they buried him in a separate plot away from the rest of the others. That night, a rainstorm came up and eyewitnesses said that the moon was blood red and it was poured down on the grave marker for Father Matthew O'Shea for all the blood he had on his hands.

Grandma Keely finished the story and then Amanda revealed a little more. She said that she was descended from Alistor's cousin Charles Quinn and I was of course descended from Alicia. She explained that sometime after Alicia died, someone in the family threw the necklace into the Sea and it remained there until the night of my transformation. They took the name Russell to hide the past association with our Clan. I looked at Mom, Kara, Lyndsey and Alyssa and they nodded their heads. I told Amanda that I wanted to return to using Quinn as our Surname just as it had been in the beginning. She had the biggest smile in her face!