9 April, 1790
My love’s betrothed has been sent on an errand that will take him away for a week at the very least. We’ve made plans today to meet behind her father’s barn, where we can steal away for the afternoon. My heart swells with the thought of our meeting, and the reality of the present situation is suspended momentarily. If only I could get a glimpse of our future, to be certain that we will find a way to be together for all of time.
I smiled and traced the words on the page with my index finger. I could feel the magic growing at my core, so I closed my eyes and let it take me.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself standing in front of a modest two story house. The stones making up the exterior looked smooth and worn by countless storms. Several steps led up to a large front door. Curtains hung closed in all the windows, and if not for the smoke rising from the chimney I would have thought the house was empty.
A crisp, cool breeze wafted through the grey sky. Dust rose around me as someone rode past on horseback. I looked around, but there wasn’t much to see, nothing but tree-lined, open fields besides the house. I could just barely make out another house down the block and through the trees.
A young man came out of the house just then, taking the stone steps two at a time. He wore a white linen shirt, a dark-colored jacket and matching pants. He was very handsome and walked with a regal posture. His brass-buttoned clothing indicated I was definitely somewhere in the past, but I still wasn’t sure what I was seeing. He looked up and down the path, as if to make sure the coast was clear. Satisfied no one was in sight, he tore off down the street. I followed him, curious where this vision would take me.
A long, wooden fence held up by stone columns stretched as far as I could see in each direction. Once the house the gentleman had come from was out of sight, he jumped over the fence. I followed close behind him. He looked over his shoulder as I landed in the tall grass and my heart leapt into my throat. He couldn’t see me, could he? I looked over my shoulder, but saw nothing behind me. Cautiously I turned back toward the gentleman and to my relief found him already walking away from me.
His frantic, urgent demeanor seemed to transform into something more peaceful the longer we walked up the low, grassy hill. I followed him through the tall grass at an easy pace until we reached the top of a hill where he paused. I stopped beside him. At that moment, I knew exactly where I was and where we were going. A small barn sat at the bottom of the hill. Further out, I could see a few more houses and a small town off to the left. The barn just below us must have been where the lovers were meeting. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched William run down the hill toward the barn. When he was about fifty yards away, Constance appeared out of the shadows to meet him. She flung herself into his arms and they kissed with a longing that pulled at my heart.
I could feel reality pulling me back, but I watched the lovers for as long as I could. Robert had told me they would end up together and I wished I could tell William he would get to be with the woman he loved so much.
The vision gave way to my living room, and I smiled at the love I had just witnessed. “Welcome back,” Robert smiled up at me from his makeshift bed on the couch.
“How’d you-“
“I could see in your eyes that you were somewhere else.”
“I saw William and Constance.” I let out a small chuckle of delight and looked at the journal in my hand. Something about putting a face to the man whose journal I read was kind of thrilling.
“Really?” Robert asked as he sat up.
I nodded. “They were meeting each other behind her father’s barn.”
“I’m glad you’re reading through the journal.” Robert tossed the quilt off of him and sat up.
“Yeah, I haven’t really looked at it much since you gave it to me, but I was curious what else was in here besides the prophecy.”
“It’s a diary just as much as it’s a way of passing information on to the next generation.”
“I gathered that.” I smiled again, thinking about William and Constance.
“So, is there a reason you’re reading in my bedroom instead of yours?” Robert gestured around the living room.
“Actually, yes. I came across something I wanted to ask you about but you were still sleeping.”
“Alright, but coffee first. Some of us aren’t morning people,” Robert noted as he pushed to his feet and stretched his arms above his head.
I followed him to the kitchen and flipped the journal open to the entry I had read first that morning.
“Soothsayers aren’t like the rest of us. The blood in their veins gives them the strength to harness their ability,” I read out loud. “What does he mean, Soothsayers aren’t like the rest of us?"
“Bethany didn’t tell you?” Robert asked, pouring grounds and water into the coffee machine.
“Tell me what?”
“The only way a person can be a Soothsayer is if they’re a direct descendant of Merlin. That’s what William means by the blood in your veins.”
“Okay, but what does that have to do with Soothsayers being different?” I asked with only a little difficulty. The fact that I was a descendant of Merlin was a hard pill to swallow, but I had decided to accept all of this and stamped out the screaming doubt in my mind.
“Your Magic is directly connected to the most powerful person the Magical world has ever known,” Robert continued.
“I still don’t know what that has to do with anything.”
“Magic comes from your soul. Where does your soul come from?" He asked as his eyebrows rose on his forehead.
“I don’t know,” I replied, a little shocked at the turn of the conversation.
“Ever heard someone say that a trait in a person must have skipped a generation?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s because each generation before you is a part of your soul. Your soul happens to be connected to Merlin and that’s what gives you the ability to be a Soothsayer.”
“What do you mean each generation is a part of my soul?" I shook my head trying to decipher what he meant.
Robert took a breath and explained, “When you were born, your ancestors were already a part of you. Their essence, their souls played a part in creating you. It takes more than just DNA to create a person, Magical or not. Your families’ Magic has had an influence on you since the day you were born.” The coffeemaker groaned and spat the last remnants of the dark liquid into the pot below. Robert reached for it enthusiastically to pour himself a cup.
I set the journal on the counter as he handed me the mug of steaming hot coffee and proceeded to pour himself one.
“Then why wasn’t I born with a Magical soul? It doesn’t make sense.” I said, emptying a sugar packet into the steaming drink and stirring in a splash of French vanilla creamer.
“Your soul is still unique to you, they just influence you a little. It’s the same way genes work. No other combination could have made you exactly as you are. You were born the way you were meant to be born, without Magic,” Robert said.
“So anyone in my family has the potential to be a Soothsayer?”
“No. I can assume since your Aunt is a Soothsayer and she is your mother’s sister that the bloodline is on your mother’s side. No one on your father’s side of the family could ever be a Soothsayer. But if you or your Aunt were to have children, they would have the possibility of being a Soothsayer.” He poured a little creamer into his own coffee and took a sip.