Chapter 13

The 'morning after' first times can often be a barometer of how a relationship might go. In one sense Donnie and Katie barely knew each other, had only gone on a single date, yet in another sense their lives seemed intertwined over the centuries of the McGregor Clan's history. Whatever it was – the history, the chemistry between them or the work of the goddesses, there was no hint of awkwardness between them.

Donnie was up early. He took Rory for a long walk, as he knew the Collie would be left in the apartment most of the day. After that he roused Katie.

"I'm guessing you'll want to get back to your flat early to change clothes and stuff," he said. "Why don't you grab a shower and I'll rustle up some eggs and coffee?"

"That sounds like a plan," Katie replied. She smiled at Donnie. "You know, I didn't tell you last night, but the main reason I turned up at all at seven was because you had the cojones to tell me to be there. I guess I found out just how big those cojones were, eh? God I can feel it, I'm not sure I'll be able to walk!"

Donnie laughed. "Hit the shower, nighean ruadh. I'll get breakfast; we've got classes starting at 9:30."

"Aw, is my baby embarrassed to hear me boast about his performance last night? Were you serious about it being your first time?" Katie asked.

His grin belied the fact that there was any embarrassment. "My first, but certainly not my last I hope. Now, in the shower girl!" Donnie noticed that Rory was sitting beside the bed and Katie was idly stroking the Collie's head. "I can't believe how quickly he's taken to you."

"Don't think that I'll be sneaking back into my flat to avoid being seen either, buster! What I said last night, about the girls - if they can't accept us going out together, then they're not real friends," Katie told him.

"Shower! Now!" growled Donnie.

"Oh, I love it when you get all masterful!" Katie giggled.

Over the next few weeks Beira's explanation for how the girls on the course had treated him were borne out. Once Katie had done the unthinkable by going out with Donnie, the others admitted that they thought he was something of a hunk too.

"None of us would have had the nerve to go out with him though. How did you get over his age?" one of them asked Katie.

"I didn't. You were there – he told me I was going out with him, I just couldn't refuse," she explained.

Donnie had to admit that the change in atmosphere helped allow him to focus better on his lectures. He also found Katie's friends nice people once he got to know them.

Katie was introduced to Heather and they hit it off immediately. Katie and Donnie shared details of their lives and got to know each other better, but surprisingly, Katie didn't ask him to explain how it was possible that he had met her ancestors. They quickly fell into a comfortable routine, including sex several times a week. Donnie even asked her if she wanted to move in with him.

"You could still have your own space," he argued. "We'll set you up in the second bedroom so that we're not constantly on top of each other. Come on, Rory has already adopted you anyway!"

Katie considered the offer seriously, but eventually declined. "Too much, too soon, too fast, my love. I want to be able to concentrate on my studies at least some of the time. We're good together, let's not push it too much," she explained.

Donnie took her refusal without rancour – they saw enough of each other in classes and in the evenings – and he had to admit that he too needed time to study hard given his schedule. They also exercised together after Donnie worked out two routines for them. His obviously involved more than Katie's, but they shared gym and swimming time. All in all, things were working out just fine.

The next big event for Donnie was the SNP party conference in October. He had already carried out some work for the party at Stirling University, canvassing in support of an older student who was seeking election as an office bearer of the National Union of Students. This would be his first party conference however, and Donnie was looking forward to it.

Each of the main political parties in Scotland hold a three or four day conference in the autumn every year. This year, 2010, was a little different though as it would be the last conference before the Scottish elections in May 2011.

"You're so lucky to be going to a party conference," Katie groused. "Shit, you're even speaking at it! That, along with the work you do on the run up to the May elections is going to be invaluable in terms of helping with your studies."

Donnie shook off her praise. "The speech is at a fringe meeting and I'm only getting to do that because I made a substantial contribution to party funds. As for the rest of it, if you joined a party, you could be doing the exact same. You know what they say, Katie? Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach!"

"Take that back, toy-boy!" she cried playfully, throwing a cushion at him. "My younger sister is training to be a teacher!"

"May the goddess help all of the young men of McGregor, Iowa," Donnie said seriously. "If your sister looks half as good as you do, those boys are going to be whacking off dreaming about her!" Having managed to keep a straight face throughout, Donnie dissolved into giggles when he delivered his 'punch-line'.

"You are so sick, you know that? So bad. I've never thought about it that way though, and you're probably right. Jennifer really is hot, and those boys will be sporting wood for sure! Kinky, that's a very kinky thought! I'll have to remember and work that into the conversation the next time I speak to Jennifer."

Donnie shifted the conversation back to the conference. "Why don't you come with me?" he asked. "I'm sure I can get you a pass. You'll be in at the start of the really interesting work – shaping the manifesto between now and March in time for the election."

Katie liked that idea and she knew she would make a point of being there to hear Donnie speaking too.

October 14 -17, Perth Concert Hall, Scotland

Perth's Concert Hall was shrouded in huge banners of black and gold, the SNP colours, proclaiming that this was the 76 ^th annual conference. Donnie managed to find somewhere to park the car and then checked again that he had everything he needed – SNP membership card, conference security pass, conference handbook and confirmed access to the exhibitor reception. "Have you got your pass to get in?" he confirmed with Katie. "We can drop by my stand so you can see more of the details of what I invented."

Having donated £250,000 of his profits from the energy licensing business, Donnie's company had space at the conference to sell its services to others. The donation had undoubtedly helped in having the party approve his application to speak at one of the fringe events too. £250,000 was the third highest single donation the SNP had received that year. With an election only 6 months or so away, Donnie's name was being discussed by the party leaders and they already knew quite a bit about him.

Donnie couldn't attend all four days of the event – his studies just wouldn't allow for that, but he had agreed with Katie that they would make it for the opening day to hear the keynote speeches and then Donnie would be returning the following night to give his own talk.

"There's a definite buzz about the place," Katie observed once they had gained access to the venue proper.

"They're excited about the election," said Donnie. "We've had almost four years now of the first ever SNP Government in Scotland. Admittedly it's been a minority government, but the party are gearing up to fight harder than ever to secure another term. Having tasted power, all of these people want more of it."

"So this whole event is an opportunity for the leaders of the party to put forward new policy ideas so that the rank and file members can debate them and have their say in the direction the party is going?" Katie clarified.

"That's it in a nutshell," Donnie agreed. "Of course this year, the policies they agree are the ones they'll fight the election on. It's high stakes stuff and no one is better at it than Alex Salmond."

Alex Salmond was the charismatic leader of the SNP and Scotland's current First Minister. Formerly an economist with one of the UK's leading banks, Salmond's instinctive political brain and his cheeky, witty, but razor sharp debating skills put him a cut above most of the other politicians in Scotland. He had two main character flaws though – because he was so much better than his opposition, he could appear smug at times in debate. And, for those who worked closely with him, he could also be a bully.

"But he's in India, I heard him on the radio this morning," Katie queried.

"Yes, he's in Delhi for the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games," Donnie confirmed. "It's important because India hands over to us as Scotland host the next games in 2014. The First Minister is going to address the membership via video-conference though, as I understand it."

"How did you find that out?" Katie asked.

"It was on the SNP website."

"I didn't see it, and I was looking on there last night," she argued.

Donnie laughed. "It's in the members section. You need to be able to log-in to see details like that."

That afternoon, the young couple found themselves responding to Salmond's highly motivational and uplifting speech as much as anyone else in the Concert Hall. The First Minister rehearsed the SNP's record in government and took a swipe at the performance of the other parties, majoring on their failings in the UK parliament. He finished with a rousing call to arms.

"Scotland needs the SNP – now more than ever.

"We lost our independence as a result of economic mis-management in this country. The Darien affair effectively bankrupted us, but with England the prime mover in ensuring we couldn't trade freely with other countries. Nonetheless, it was the Scots who were bankrupt.

"That economic crisis resulted in the Treaty of Union on 1 May 1707 and the loss of our independence.

"Today the boot is on the other foot. Today the economic crisis that lies behind rising unemployment, crippling price increases and the collapse of our public services is down to the banks in London! The English based banks have bankrupted the country.

"Let's fight to make that crisis the spur to achieve a vote for independence on 5 May 2011!

"Between now and May I'm going to ask a lot of you. It is our duty to persuade our fellow Scots that only the SNP have the policies that will restore prosperity. Your job will be to convince them on the doorsteps across the country, our victory will be built on your success. Just remember...

"With the SNP, Scotland WINS!!!"

There was a standing ovation of course, despite the fact that Salmond was on VC from Delhi.

Donnie and Katie didn't hang around but they enthused about the First Minister's performance as they drove back to Stirling.

"Are you going to be that good tomorrow night?" Katie teased.

"Ha! There's a big difference between a wet-behind-the-ears 17 year old speaking to twenty people and an experienced campaigner geeing up twelve hundred," Donnie replied.

Despite telling Katie that his speech was small beer, Donnie took the precaution of connecting to his gifts as they arrived at the venue. The fringe meetings didn't all take place at the main Concert Hall, and Donnie's was one of them. He parked in the car park of the Perth Ramada Jarvis Hotel.

"How do I look?" he asked Katie.

"Fantastic, an absolute hunk, but I'm biased. You do scrub up well though."

Donnie had actually purchased a suit, shirt and tie especially for the occasion of his real political debut. They were a little early and one of the SNP organisers took Donnie through to the conference room to let him familiarise himself with the IT he would be using.

"You've got a choice," the organiser explained. "You can use the podium with the built-in mic or we can fit you with a tie mic and that will let you move around. The technicians are at the back there and they can advance your visuals or you can use this to do it yourself."

He held out a small remote that Donnie could use to control his presentation.

Donnie opted for the tie mic and the remote. "Oh, just to make you aware, the First Minister has asked to join by video-conference. The camera for that is over there so you might want to keep that in mind when you're walking about," the organiser advised.

"Alex Salmond?" Donnie asked, stunned by this revelation.

"The very same. He asked us to set it up specially."

Donnie made his way back to Katie, his mind in a whirl. He hadn't fully understood just how much his financial contribution meant to the party. He shared his news with the red-head and she hugged him.

"Well news of how good you are must travel fast. I told you that first night we went out together," Katie enthused. "When you speak you just exude confidence. Go out there and wow them!"

There was still half an hour before Donnie was due to go on, but already there were quite a few people milling about the hotel lobby. Donnie opted to make his way backstage to try and focus while he read over his notes one last time.

Donnie scrolled through his visuals for his speech when he noticed he had a wireless connection – probably the hotel's service. Out of curiosity he checked to see what the time difference was between Scotland and Delhi.

"Five and a half hours, Delhi is five and a half hours in front of us, I'm due on at 19:30, that means the First Minister has stayed up to 01:00 over there. Just what is going on here?"

Despite being linked quite strongly to his gift from Tailtui, Donnie still felt butterflies in his stomach as 19:30 approached.

An aide came to collect Donnie and she checked the wireless mic to make sure it was turned on and the volume was set sufficiently high.

"Do you speak softly or loudly," she asked.

"Softly," Donnie confirmed. The aide dialled the volume up slightly and then smiled at him. "Good luck," she offered.

He heard his name being announced and the aide gave him a gentle push towards the stage. If Donnie had turned, he would have seen the girl was very nervous on his behalf. He was just about to find out why.

What sounded like thunderous applause greeted Donnie's appearance on stage. He had to do a double-take as he realised it was actually no more than polite applause, but the reason it sounded so loud was that the conference room was packed! Donnie had expected perhaps as many as twenty people might turn up for his speech, but there were clearly over two hundred here.

Once his eyes adjusted to the bright lights shining on him, Donnie received another shock. There was a flat screen monitor where the organiser had pointed out the camera for the VC unit. On the monitor was the smiling face of Alex Salmond and he was applauding along with everyone else. Donnie saw Katie sitting in the front row, but sitting alongside her were no less than five Cabinet Secretaries from the SNP Government. He recognised John Swinney, Nicola Sturgeon (Deputy First Minister), Kenny MacAskill, Mike Russell, and Alex Neill.

The applause died down and Donnie realised he would have to start.

"Goddess be with me," he thought to himself as he pressed the remote to bring up his first slide.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for such a warm reception. Looking round I realise that I should have checked the programme for this evening. All of you, including the very well known members of the audience are clearly here for whoever is next on, but I hope I can deliver something to make you think a little before then!"

Incredibly, Donnie heard the audience laugh at what they thought was a self-deprecating joke on his behalf. He put all thoughts of who was watching out of his head and began to pace the stage while he dropped into the presentation that he had worked so hard on.

"I was always taught to make it clear at the start what I was going to talk about and then stick to that as much as possible. The title of my talk is up there for you to see, as is the territory I hope to cover. My aim is to try and convince you that our party needs to be more aggressive with regards to the independence question and I hope to set out why energy is a key element in the argument in favour of that. Twenty minutes. That's all I ask. Give me twenty minutes and then I'll try and answer any questions you might have.

"Okay then, let's start here. Donnie thumbed the remote and a new title appeared on the huge screen behind him. He continued to pace slowly across the stage, making eye contact with members of the audience as he spoke.

Scotland's recent history on energy

"We're all aware of the discovery of oil in the North Sea. More hours have been taken up by the SNP bemoaning the lost revenue from our oil than most of you would care to mention."

That brought another laugh from the audience.

"The electorate didn't want to listen to us then. They were still locked in a perceived class war between Thatcher's Tory party and Labour and we weren't taken seriously.

"As a result, the revenues – which should have helped to make the UK and Scotland strong were wasted on paying benefits for a generation that Margaret Thatcher consigned to unemployment and in covering the cost of industrial unrest such as the miner's strikes. Revenues wasted, I say.

"Let's compare that to our neighbours in Norway where they established a social fund so they could invest oil revenues for future generations. They are building a legacy for their citizens, a legacy that will be important when the oil runs out."

Donnie thumbed the remote again and a new heading appeared behind him.

Energy impact on Scotland today

"Despite the wealth that North Sea oil represents, what is the current situation in Scotland? What impact has our good fortune in being blessed with these natural resources led to?

"Fuel prices in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland are significantly higher than the average in the UK. How can that be the case?"

Donnie could feel the audience going with him, he could feel the mood in the room and he started to feed off of it.

"And what about energy policy? Aye, there's the rub!" Donnie's quote from Hamlet didn't go unnoticed, but he carried on quickly. "We have a devolved parliament, but certain matters are reserved to London. One of those is energy policy.

"The people of Scotland have long made it clear that we do not want nuclear energy. Yet despite that resistance, Westminster is determined to build new nuclear power stations. The First Minister – good evening by the way, Alex – has resisted those plans by using the powers that the Scottish Parliament does have."

Donnie's cheeky aside to the screen where the First Minister could be seen had again raised a chuckle in the audience.

"We are using powers for granting planning permission for building works to derail Westminster's plans for nuclear in Scotland. I'm sure you, like me will not stand by and leave a legacy of nuclear waste for our children to deal with.

"Westminster and the nuclear lobby tell us there is no alternative. We need nuclear to reduce carbon emissions from traditional power stations and to generate the energy the UK needs. That's what they keep telling us."

Donnie thumbed the remote. He was using body language and gestures to emphasise the points he was making, and it was clear that the audience liked his style. His next heading appeared on the screen.

Opportunities for Scotland's future

"I'm here to argue that that is not the case, not for Scotland.

"Scotland has huge potential when it comes to sources of energy generation excluding nuclear. We have potential in wind, hydro, wave, and tide energy generation in particular.

"Our heritage in leading the world in heavy engineering and shipbuilding may be gone, but the communities and facilities are still there if we want to become the world leaders in renewable technology. The research centres in our universities show that the inventive nature of the Scot is alive and well.

I'm going to give you a break from my voice for a few minutes and just remind you of the inventive nature of the small country that is Scotland."

Donnie walked to the side of the stage and thumbed the remote again. A series of names began to scroll onto the giant screen.

• James Watt – b. 1736 – perfected the steam engine

• William Murdoch b. 1754 – invented gas lighting

• Charles MacIntosh b .1766 – invented waterproof material – the raincoat!

• James Young Simpson b. 1811 – discovered chloroform

• James Young b. 1811 – discovered paraffin oil

• Kirkpatrick MacMillan b. 1812 – invented the rear-wheel drive bicycle

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