Elven World – Chapter 13 – Beloved Child

Lugh slept soundly on the forest floor, hands cupped under his face. And as he slept his dreams enveloped him and told him of the future.

A girl sat upon his knee and told him she was a child of the gods. “I can show you,” she spoke, taking his hand.  She led him down a long dark tunnel where he found the goddess Danu waiting for him.  “I knew you would come…” Danu kissed him on the forehead. They did not stay with her but continued down the long, seemingly endless, tunnel.  Lugh felt a sense of foreboding because he knew at the end of the tunnel was something he must face. He kept asking the girl, “Where are we going?” to which she answered, “Follow me.”   As they traveled, his sense of fear grew to the point he could not bear it any longer.


He woke up thankful it was a dream and that he remained on Earth, touching the ground and raising his eyes to the canopy of the trees above.

It was nearly dawn but no one else was awake. Lugh stood up and stretched. His mind was drawn to Maria and the kiss they held for so long.  Dreams did not matter now—he was full of love and full of her. He wanted only to go to her now and take her for a ride on the waves. No matter if she could not fly nor walk the waves, he would hold her in his arms and together they would enjoy the pleasures of Earth.

A bright light appeared.  He thought it was a ray of the sun at first but it grew larger and larger, metamorphosing into the form and being of BéChuille, dressed in her own familiar and favorite attire: a white tunic down to the top of her thigh and bright green leggings. On her green cloak was the delicate gold embroidery of fawn and birds. On her breast was a brooch of gold with the luster of precious stones. She wore two swords of shining silver in sheaths of bronze held to her hip belt and a golden neck ring.

“Are you ready?”

“You look—like a goddess.”

“I am!”

“What am I supposed to be ready for?”

“I have come to prepare you for your new life.”

“BéChuille, I haven’t any idea what to do. I told you, I know nothing of her world.”

“And I told you, Oh Shining One, that I would help you. I also promised, in case you didn’t notice, that I would bring you to what your heart desires most.”

“Did you really tell me that?”

“No, but I didn’t have to.  You are heading there already. I am just here to help.” She smiled.  “Now, first things first, we must provide you with clothes in an array finer than any man walking upon this Earth and gold so you have the means to be heard.”

And so she changed his appearance, putting him in trousers of the finest silk, a shirt of the softest linen and brog (shoes) made of a substance Lugh could only imagine was a tightly woven cotton and linen.  They held his feet firmly but softly.

“Take this ring that you now wear on your right hand.  Rub it and my sisters and I will appear at once. But Lugh, don’t be rubbing it for no good reason. We are bound to appear instantly and I have other business to attend to.” She rubbed her belly and looked up at him softly.

“BéChuille! Are you with child?”  He tried hard to quiet any surprise he may have shown on his face and approached to kiss her face.

“Yes, even me, brother.” And she pushed him away teasingly. “You know the stories of Fae bearing children. Don’t bother me too much, I say.”

“I promise.”  He smiled at the thought of the child of Ogme and BéChuille.  He would be the brightest light on Earth, with powers and skills beyond imagination. There was a real future for them all in this new world. Not even the fleeting thought of the darkness in his dreams could quench his feeling of hope and joy.

She squeezed his hand. “Yes, Lugh we are restoring the Kingdom here on Earth. But there is more to the prophecy than our lives here and we are bound to make it happen.”

She removed her golden brooch inlaid with red, blue and crystal stones. “Take this with you.  It is considered of great value among mortal men.

Exchange it for money for which some kill and die and for which many use to live. When you have finished with it another will appear in your hands the same as the first.  There is no lack.”

“BéChuille do you know what is going to happen?”

“In a way, I do. In a way, I don’t.  You’ve seen as much as I have. If we knew everything, there would not be much interest in living, would there?”
“I suppose not.” Lugh smiled at her.

“There is one more thing.  You can’t manage time travel in their world. I know the humans have transport but there’s one invention that’s even better…”

At this, a pure white mare came through the thicket.

“Nair!”  Lugh through his arms around the great white horse and kissed her again and again on the face. The horse nudged him pleasantly.  Lugh turned to BéChuille, “How can you… How did you bring her here?”

“She was stuck in the time channel between there and here. I simply helped her through.”

“Oh, BéChuille, this is the greatest gift I have ever received.”

“No, brother. The greatest gift you have ever received is yet to come. Now go to her.”

It did not take much convincing.  In a moment, Lugh was leaning down from Nair’s strong back to reach BéChuille’s hand in farewell.  “Tell the others.”

“I will tell them—now go.”

Imagine the moment when Lugh approached his love on his great white horse, his pocket full of gold and his face so handsome and shining? To say that Maria was swept up in a dream of love more bountiful than she had ever imagined, would be to understate the point.

Their lives entwined like swiftly growing vines. And though their love was complete, it seemed they would never get their fill.

They talked for hours on end about what they might do to help the Earth, planning their lives.  He became a part of her world, reading, learning and becoming involved.  Lugh added more rooms onto the little beach house and it became a place where scientists and archeologists from around the world would travel to discuss their ideas and learn from each other. Maria finished her first book. She sent it for publication and began research into the second.

Nair’s life became pleasant, too.  For those who could catch her she would ride them along the beach and in the evening’s sun.

One evening Maria hugged Lugh around the neck and whispered,” Lugh, we are with child.”  Lugh looked at her quietly for a long while, searching her eyes to see how much she might understand of the future. He did not, and would  not, tell her of his dreams.

“She will be perfect, our child will be perfect.”  He kissed her and held her tight.

In the spring of the coming year Maria gave birth to their daughter. They called her Áine, which means Goddess of Love.