Fiona and Philip were sitting in
the little office of the church that the priests used for talking to people,
both of them trying not to fidget as they waited for Father Alec to arrive.
"Do ye think he will be cross wi' us?" Fiona asked, chewing on her
lower lip nervously.
"No....I mean, he wasn't cross with
Father Herrera, and she was with child before they got married. At least we've
saved that much for the wedding night." He reached out and took her hand
gently, stroking his thumb over the back of it to comfort her. He was more
worried about her state of mind than his own, which was typical of him.
Fiona was still worried. After all, her
betrothed was a priest! She shouldn't have put him in the position where he
would be tempted to sin. Not that loving each other was a sin. They just needed
to have the forbearance to wait until their wedding night for any more *play* of
that sort.
Their wondering and worrying was suddenly
brought to an end by the appearance of the man they'd come to see. Philip stood,
bringing Fiona up with him, and said softly, "Alec, Fiona and I...we need
ta make our confessions about somethin'. Would you hear them, please?" He
looked hopefully at his friend.
Alec looked at Philip and shook his head.
"Oh no! Not you too!" he admonished gently. He sighed deeply and
nodded. "Of course. Philip, go to the altar and do some good soul searching
down on your knees while I have a little talk with your intended." Philip's
mouth opened to protest, but Alec firmly steered him out of the room. "Go
pray!" he ordered.
The younger priest obediently headed to
the altar to do as his friend had told him, and what he mostly prayed for was
that Fiona would have her mind set at ease by what Alec told her. He knew the
intimacy between them wasn't wrong, because of how much they loved each other;
he could only hope his fiancée adopted the same frame of mind after her
confession.
"Would you care for some tea?"
Alec asked Fiona. She nodded her head nervously as she sat, trying not to wring
her hands. Alec poured two cups, and handed one of them to her.
"Thank ye, Father," she said as
she took it. It clattered a little on the saucer, but she managed to keep it
from spilling.
"It's all right, child," he
said with a soft smile. "I'm not one of those parish priests who will chew
you up for breakfast just for being human. You and Philip are in love, and as
you get closer to each other, it’s only natural to want to go further in your
physical relationship."
Fiona nodded. "Yes. He called it
*petting*, he did. 'Tis the most wonderful feeling in the world, Father! But I
feel bad for puttin' me love in the way of possibly commitin' the sin of
fornication. Not that we did it. At least I don't think we did..." she
trailed off her words, her face scarlet.
Alec asked her softly, "Did you lay
with him? Did your bodies join at all? That is what fornication is, and nothing
else. As long as all you did was touch, there was no sin of that kind to worry
about."
"We.. we touched each other,"
she sputtered. "He here," she motioned towards her chest.
"And....I....," her face flamed even redder. "I touched him
too." She couldn't make herself give any more details than that.
Alec shook his head. "I think it
might be a good idea to move your wedding up a bit. Till then, I suggest you two
avoid being alone." He took her hands in his and prayed for her, asking the
Lord to give her strength to wait till the appointed time, and to bless her
upcoming marriage. He then gave her the penance she was to say, and pronounced
absolution. Together, they stood up and he made the sign of the cross on her
forehead. "Go with God, Fiona. And send that randy fiancé of yours in to
talk to me." His eyes twinkled with mischief, and Fiona had a feeling
Philip wasn't going to get off so easy.
Philip must have had the same feeling; as
he entered the room, he was quieter than Alec had seen him in a long time. And
yet his first words were for her. "Did ya set her mind at ease? She's been
nervous about....well, what you'd say about what happened."
"I told her that it might be a good
idea to move up the wedding a bit and that you two should not be alone until
then. But..." his face became stern. "Philip, I'm disappointed in you.
You should have not put her in that position."
He blushed heavily, looking down. "I
know....especially considerin' that she's not exactly from the most recent time
period. In her day, they didn't do things like that until the weddin' night.
It's just.....Alec, she's so beautiful, and I love her so much. We were standin'
there in the rain, gettin' soaked to the skin, and....I couldn't help m'self. I
know it was my fault, and I'm ready to take whatever penance you tell me
to." He bowed his head, bracing himself inwardly for a lecture to go along
with the penance. He'd felt guilty for so long over Ellen, it was a familiar
feeling to come back to him now, just when he thought he'd become a man worthy
of this lovely woman.
"Then listen to me. Your penance
will be to make sure that nothing of this sort occurs again before your wedding
night with her. You have experience, she doesn't. So any blame in this little
indiscretion lies fully in your court. By confessing this to me and to God, your
guilt will be absolved, but I still want you to be a lot more discreet in the
future."
They talked a while longer. Philip knew
Alec was right. He couldn't blame it on Hydra's water or anything, just on his
own human nature. But thankfully, Alec was more than agreeable to pushing up the
wedding date! "Philip, she loves you dearly. And you love her. Make her
marriage night with you something she will treasure the rest of her life. Be
strong. Wait till then." He then stood up and prayed over Philip, giving
him absolution as well. "Now go and finish your prayers along with the
woman you will soon be married to."
He nodded, and when he stood, his eyes
sparkled with both relief and an even stronger resolve than before to carry out
Alec's "penance" to the letter. He walked quietly to where Fiona knelt
still praying, and knelt beside her, crossing himself and starting his own
prayers.
She smiled at him as he moved even
closer, joining in with her prayers. But when he couldn't resist placing his
hand on top of folded ones, the sound of a throat clearing behind made them both
jump.
"No patty fingers now you two!"
Father Alec said in a pretty good imitation of Philip's Irish accent as he
inserted his hands between the two of them. "Move it over!"
Father Alec then knelt in between them, the amused twitching of the
corners of his mouth making both Philip and Fiona chuckle as they returned to
their prayers!