A Thousand Years

Duncan loved Ana with all his heart, soul and spirit, and their love endured much like the song A Thousand Years. Their love spanned time and could not be dampened even with the evil witch's curse that held him to the house. Margaret and Duncan were betrothed, but as time went on, Duncan found that Margaret's views did not line up with his own, therefore he released her from the betrothal. Margaret was not happy about this, to say the least, you know the saying "Hell hath no fury like that of a woman scorned"? Well, Margaret was more than scorned and more dangerous than the average woman.

Duncan had met Ana purely by accident in the marketplace, while the other women in the town were all smitten with him, Ana paid him no mind until he literally bumped into her, knocking her parcel out of her hands. Duncan apologized profusely and insisted she attend the Yule Ceilidh he holds at his home. She finally agreed to attend and they departed separately. The other women saw the interaction between Duncan and Ana and started to make plans to let Ana know she was not to try to seduce Duncan in any way. Ana tried to assure them that she had no desire to pursue Duncan but the women didn't believe her so they mocked and bullied her with Margaret being the main instigator.

At the annual Yule Ceilidh, which Duncan hosted, things came to a climax as Margaret tried to dispatch the current love interest of Duncan, which was Ana. Margaret was manning the beverage table and saw the opportunity to try to poison Ana, but Duncan saw Margaret's attempt, knocked the cup out of Ana's hand before she could drink it, and the drink landed on Margaret's dress causing the yellow to turn a disturbing brown colour. Duncan banished Margaret from the celebration that night as well as demanding that she never come near him or his family or loved ones ever again.

As time went on, Margaret came under suspicion from the townsfolk for being a witch as she had been spotted doing things such as dancing naked in the moonlight, leaving seemingly innocent totems hanging around her house, and people finding the remains of her animal sacrifices in the woods on a stone altar. She had tried to seduce other men in the village, but none held her interest, or her heart, like Duncan. She wanted, more than anything, the power that came with being his wife, the money and the property, these are the reasons he dissolved the betrothal. He wanted someone who didn't care about how much money he had or how big a house and property he had, and this person was Ana.

With Ana, he found a kind of happiness that he had never felt before, a connection like none other. And this connection was a curse as well as a blessing for both of them. A curse, because of the one placed upon Duncan by Margaret as she was burned at the stake by the townsfolk, that upon his death, his soul/spirit shall remain attached to his estate home until such time that he would find his beloved and rekindle the love they each had for one another again in the same way Duncan and Ana connected, with something much deeper than love. Due to this eternal love for each other this carried over through time itself until such a time that the curse could be broken. The blessing of their eternal love made this connection finally become a reality, and it would reestablish itself in the most unlikely of people, but not without its complications.

Upon the death of Duncan's seventh descendant, Angus, the search was begun for an heir to the estate. The solicitor, Marcus, having been named the Executor of the Will was tasked with finding the closest living blood-related heir to continue the ownership and operation of the estate. After two years, Marcus had finally tracked down an heir, Anna. Upon her arrival from the states, when they met, a connection was felt between them which confused both of them, it was a feeling of peace and 'coming home'. They both felt that there was something more, but they had plenty of time to explore those feelings later, especially since she had to relocate to claim the inheritance. There were other complications to exploring those feelings, while Marcus was still single, Anna was married, but it was a sham of a marriage, which Marcus was soon to become acutely aware of.

After a quick shopping trip, Anna treated Marcus to a home-cooked meal, which he enjoyed both the perfectly cooked food and her company very much. Their conversation over supper came easily, as she asked about the house, the property, and the history, and he answered her questions, careful not to give any indication of any unexplained occurrences that happened in the past.

After the supper dishes were cleared and washed, Marcus assisted Anna in finding the books and furniture that had been removed from some of the rooms. When Marcus departed, Anna decided to take a look around the estate. She went exploring the property and had almost become lost on the way back to the house, were it not for the glowing light in the window. She knew she hadn't left any lights on, so where was the glow coming from? She tried to figure out which room it came from when she returned to the house safely but was unable to do so, so she left it for when she returned permanently.

Anna had some very interesting dreams on the two nights she stayed in the house when she first went to claim the inheritance. The first night, she dreamt of the meeting between her ancestor and Duncan, but she was the ancestor Ana. This later caused her to inquire of Marcus about the Yule Ceilidh, which according to Marcus was a well-attended and very enjoyable gala, but upon her Great Uncle Angus' death, they stopped being held while an heir was found. The second night, the night before Anna was due to return to the states, she had the dream about the Yule Ceilidh and what actually happened between Duncan, Ana, and Margaret. Anna felt the connection and the deep love that Ana and Duncan had for each other and the lengths he would go to, to keep her safe. This caused her to awaken in an agitated state of mind as the dream felt very real and it left her unsettled for the day. She made a note to investigate the aspects of the dreams as well as the ever-increasing number of mysterious occurrences when she returned from moving house.

To be continued...