Lady Macbeth

Gruadh is happy to have Macbeth home for an evening. He has been spending weeks and months fighting Thorfin at the Moray border and managing Duncan. At dinner, Dermot recounts a battle between Macbeth and Thorfin, where Thorfin relied upon the magic of his raven banner. Dermot concludes his poem calling Macbeth “fierce” and “generous” and notes that although his poem is concluded for the night it “will only be complete when Macbeth achieves his destiny.”   Gruadh decides she must use magic to protect her husband. She decides to visit Enya, Thorfin’s grandmother, who taught Thorfin his own magic.   

That spring Gruadh returns to Elgin. While there, she is happy to hear Thorfin and his army has been temporarily distracted by infighting. Thorfin’s nephew betrayed him, and Thorfin in turn murdered his nephew. Gruadh thinks killing family “takes a black heart,” but Macbeth notes that “when kin slaughters kin, it cannot always be judged poorly […] sometimes it is necessary.” 

Later in the year, Gruadh is upset to hear Lady Sybilla died in childbirth. She remembers her promise to watch over her children Malcolm mac Duncan and Donald Bán. Gruadh still has not told Macbeth about her oath, and wonders if she will be able to fulfill it. 

Accompanied by Angus, Aella, and other guards, Gruadh finally goes to meet Enya. Enya greets Gruadh as Queen, which she corrects to Lady, and Gruadh greets Enya as Lady, which she corrects to Mother. Enya recognizes that Gruadh wants “an end to sorrow,” and can tell that Gruadh herself can see the future and doesn’t need Enya’s help. Gruadh explains she wants “good omens and powerful charms” to bring fortune to herself and her family. 

The two women look into a bowl of water together. Enya predicts Gruadh will have two sons, although they “remain in God’s hands.” Gruadh is not excited by this news. Enya then has Gruadh tell her own future. Looking into the water Gruadh sees a boat carrying a dying king. She cannot determine any details, but Enya says this is for the best.

Gruadh asks Enya about Thorfin’s raven banner. Enya admits she gave it power through spells and charms. Enya refuses to help strengthen Macbeth against her grandson, but agrees to help Gruadh, although warns her that she can either choose to study magic or be queen. Gruadh rejects this binary, arguing that if she is going to be queen she has to do her best to help her husband. Finally, Enya gives the younger woman a brooch that Gruadh will say a spell of protection over.

Duncan continues to fight Thorfin and lose. That summer, Macbeth comes home one evening and he and Gruadh watch the northern lights. Macbeth says they are “celebration for a king and a queen.” He tells Gruadh that if they never have a son, he will make Lulach his heir. He adds that Lulach, because of laws of Celtic succession, would be his heir, and anyway, is his son “in all ways but one.”