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We both jumped at the voice that sounded so close but originated from the other side of the water, a little distance away. The old man continued to speak and then smiled. Not one word did we understand.
“We’re staying at the castle,” I volunteered, not wanting to seem unfriendly in incomprehension.
“Aye,” the man said again. “Ye winna aways be sae glaiket.” He turned and walked away into the wood at his side of the lake.
It all became terribly funny. Will stumbled over and almost fell into the pool which only increased the hilarity. We ran back through the wood, startling the moon-faced owl, but had to stop, breathless and bent over with laughter.
Breakfast was well underway when we walked into the large dining hall. One of the long tables was obviously for staff, but Aleks wasn’t at it. He sat with Simone at the students table. She chatted happily. He listened intently. They didn’t glance our way.
“Far have you twa bin?” Holly got up from a table, and we followed her to the canteen.
“We went for a walk,” I told her. “Found a lake.”
“At’s a loch up here, ye ken.” As she offered me a green smoothie and disgusted Will with the same, the language clarified a little. Some of it was English with a twist.
We found places on the bench by Justin and Sun at the far end of the student table.
“So, wis the water all black like?” asked Holly, sitting beside us.
I nodded.
“That’s the Deil’s Pool you found. De-vil’s Pool,” she translated. “There’s lots of devil’s places nearby. There’s the Deil’s Lum at the beach, an affa dangerous cave, spouts sea spray like smoke. Aye, he’s bin busy roon aboot here. But yon pool, it’s supposed to be haunted by three witches who take the form of mermaids to enchant ye. One of them is an ancestor of mine, so watch yersels!”
“There was this little dude showed up.” Will laughed as he spoke.
“You met another human being, out here, in the sticks?” Justin enquired.
“Like a little elf,” I said. “He popped up on the other side of the lake… loch… devil’s pool.”
Justin’s face showed delight. “An elf? Tall, thin, blond, sexy?”
“More like a gnome,” said Will.
“A little old man,” I explained. “He wore a purple bobble hat and he spoke to us.”
“Do tell.” Justin’s tone was rich with disappointment.
“Affa short manny?” Holly asked, and I decided ‘affa’ must mean very. “That’ll’ve bin auld Jackie Buchan. Nobody ever sees him. You were right honoured. Fit did he say?”
“Hang on, I’ve got it…” Just like Simone had Aleks’s full attention. “He said: ‘You won’t always be so… glaiket.’”
The last word had Holly in stitches.
“Is it bad?” I asked. “What does it mean?”
“Oh aye. It’s Doric. The language we spik up here,” she explained. “Glaiket means stupid, canna see what’s right in front of your face.”
“Bloody cheek,” said Will.
“That pool’s possibly an ancient Pagan site with a name and story like that,” Sun informed us. “Knock me up next time you go out.”
“Darling,” said Justin. “You overestimate Phi’s virility if you think she can knock you up. Mind you, a turkey baster from the kitchen, and one of Hearst’s used condoms, and we could get a big happy family going here.”
The shocked silence that followed this was broken by Simone. “This is the uncivilised end of the table then,” she said with a sneer, standing by Aleks’s side. It was time for the tour of the castle.
“To the dungeon!” announced Aleks in a dramatic voice, then leading the way out of the hall and into the foyer.
Michelle joined us, and we all crammed into the small elevator which was the only way down. The rest of the building had felt cold. Entering the dungeon was like being immersed in far icier water than Will and I had encountered earlier. Heavy metal doors led to an enormous underground cavern. Six square pillars held up the ceiling. Aleks said something about it being the biggest dance studio in the UK. Michelle said things about the space having been an old storage area. Apparently it had also been used as emergency sleeping quarters in times of disaster, and a hospital ward during the Second World War.
