Tipsy Moon

Chapter 2. Samhain Night

Ireland, October 31, 1524

The moonlight was getting brighter.

"There's not much time left", – I said out loud to myself, already starting to get nervous. – "Where is that banshee?!"

I looked up.

"Fi

The seconds dragged on like hours. I began to nervously tap my foot. "Calm down, Eithne. You still have time…" – I said out loud to myself.

The next second, Fi

"Okay, my friend. Let's go without her".

Taking one last sca

"Ready?" – I asked Fi

The raven soared upward, and I turned to the thicket of the forest to the north. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. As I exhaled, I slowly let out a soft, high-pitched sound. Almost a whistle that only the certain inhabitants of this forest could hear.…

Will-o'-the-wisp,

Hear my call.

May my path be bright,

On sacred Samhain.

After another breath, I opened my eyes and saw three silvery will-o'-the-wisps next to me.

"Happy Samhain, my friends! Thank you for your help. Well, shall we run to the Fairy Meadow?"

I smiled, anticipating the fun, and ran into the thickest part of the forest, now well lit. I wouldn't have gotten lost anyway, but with such guides it's much better, right?

Moss, grass, twigs… Roots, trees, bushes… Nothing stopped my legs from ru

I ran, and the headwind carried away my tears of happiness… Happiness and gratitude to this forest and its herbs that made my ale so magically delicious. And tonight it will flow like a river! Even the noble fairies will visit my pub today. I want to see them madly! Such an honor falls only once a year on the night of Samhain, when the border between the worlds is erased.

I wonder who will be at the Meadow today? Abcan promised to write a song about my pub… I should remind him… He probably forgot. I think the chief bard of the Tuatha De Dana

"Eithne! Where have you disappeared to?!" – a ringing voice in my left ear pulled me out of my thoughts. – "Everyone has already gathered. The ceremony is about to begin!"

A little elf, who lived not far from me in the crown of an ancient ash tree, fluttered next to me.

"Kitty! And why aren't you there yet?" – I asked, frowning. Maybe something happened…

"I just came from there. I flew to look for you. I thought maybe something happened".

Wow! The neighbors' thoughts coincide! I glanced at Kitty's worried freckled face and smiled.

"Everything is fine. Thank you for your concern, dear. I was just waiting for Ashlyn. We agreed to go to the Meadow together. But she never came… By the way, is she not there?"

"I haven't seen her", – Kitty answered thoughtfully. – "But Clíodhna is there. Let's find out from her?"

My eyebrow flew up.

"Yeah, right, I'll ask the queen of all banshees: Can you tell me, your honor, where the hell your subordinate is hanging out?!" – I answered with a dull face.

Kitty's ringing laughter seemed to spread throughout the entire forest. Like hundreds of little bells falling on the leaves of the trees.

To be honest, this thought didn't make me smile much… I was worried about Ashlyn. I hoped she was just howling on someone's roof in Ardara, foreshadowing another death. No, of course I didn't wish death on the inhabitants of the coastal village. That's just the way things are in the world of fairies. Everyone has their own purpose. I wonder what mine is. Not to serve ale to everyone of course…

Thinking about the sublime, I didn't even notice how I reached the Meadow, and Kitty had long since flown ahead. It's good that the forest helped me not to stumble over every snag and not get a bunch of slaps from branches, otherwise I could have forgotten about dancing! Of course, I could have used the portal, but on sacred Samhain I just wanted to run through the forest and breathe in the magic of this night…

Having thanked the forest and the Will-o'-the-wisps once again, I came out into the Meadow, flooded with the light of the full moon and fluttering fireflies. In the very center low heather grew, forming an even circle. In this circle were the fairies of the highest rank, including representatives of the Tuatha De Dana

A fascinating sight… I can't take my eyes off it every time…

It's a pity that I missed the ceremony. At it, the noble fairies praised the gods for the fruitful year and sang spells, calling for the new year to be no less successful. So be it!

Among the rest in the main circle was the Master of the Forest. He was wearing simpler clothes, without jewelry. In my opinion, his main decoration was the long, flowing branches of mistletoe that grew straight from his head, intertwining with his long golden hair. And this did not cause any surprise, because the Master of the Forest was the forest itself: every blade of grass, every branch, every animal and bird, every drop of morning dew… Often I communicated with him through Fi

The sounds of music pulled me out of my sad thoughts. That's it, I have to stop this! You've become very thoughtful lately, Eithne. You'll miss all the fun! It's not the time for sad thoughts during the celebration of Samhain!

Oh yeah, I need to look for Ashlyn… Where did that banshee disappear to?!

I glanced around the meadow, but still didn't see her sparkling long silver hair. But I noticed a dark figure that I hadn't seen before. A tall young man with a beautiful profile, my age by the look of it (well, not exactly my age of course… I don't know how old I am myself… you can never tell how old a fairy is by looking at them, but by human standards he looked about thirty). He was wearing clothes made of expensive fabrics, in which a bright red velvet vest stood out.

As if he sensed my piercing gaze, he pushed back his unruly long black hair and turned to face me. Oh! And the red vest perfectly matched his red eyes… Damn it! It’s a vampire! A rare guest in our lands though… I’ve met them three times at most in the last two hundred years, and then only briefly. And in all of Erin there were no more than twenty of them (if you trust Abcan’s stories, of course… but this dwarf had an iron reputation, so I was tended to believe him).

I didn’t get a chance to examine the rarity because the dancing had begun. Never mind, the night is long, the moon is bright, we’ll have time for everything. But for now – let’s go have fun!

* * *

A trio of dwarves set the rhythm with a cheerful reel on a violin, bodhran and flute. To their sounds, all the visitors to the clearing began to dance, jumping and spi

Oh, full moon, pour your light upon the Fairies' Meadow.

My bodhran is banging hard the rhythm of our souls.

Drive away from our lands all the darkest shadows.

Celebrate, the young and old, when sacred Samhain calls!

Wow… What a celebration indeed! My head was already dizzy… In order to avoid a dangerous collision with other participants in this chaotic action, I stepped aside a little to catch my breath. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed tables with refreshments and drinks, among which a red cap with a feather flashed. Merrow! I hope it's Eavain… I ran up to the tables and to familiar cap.

"Eavain! Is that you?!" – I called out to the merrow joyfully. She jumped slightly in surprise and turned to face me.

"Eithne!" – seeing me, her frightened face softened and broke into a warm smile. – "Happy Samhain!"

Eavain ran up to me and hugged me tightly.

"Happy Samhain to you too, my dear!" – I happily hugged her back. – "May the new year bring peace to the lands of Erin and send invaders back home!"

"You couldn't say it better! So be it!" – Eavain raised her hands to the sky in prayer to the gods, and a second later grabbed my hands, which now made me jump too. – "Eithne! Where have you been?! I haven't seen you for over a week! I'm starting to worry…"

I love Eavain very much. She is an incredibly beautiful, gentle creature. My mind is always at peace and my soul is happy when I'm with her. For me, she was the embodiment of all the tenderness of the world, love and compassion. Even the dress she was wearing today was incredibly delicate and airy, peach shaded with flowing sleeves and a belt embroidered with precious stones and shells. There was also a beautiful sparkling shell brooch on her cap. Of course, I can't say that the red cap went well with the dress, but without this attribute, the merrow would not be here now. But thanks to it you definitely won't lose this beauty in the crowd.

"I'm so sorry! I was terribly busy", – I answered with a guilty face. – "As you can see, this year full moon falls on Samhain. Half of the attendants of this event will go to my pub after the dance to continue having fun until dawn! I needed time to prepare enough ale and treats. And make a couple of hangover potions… I'm sure someone will definitely need them in the morning".

After a small pause, we both laughed. Ballads about gatherings in my pub fly far beyond the borders of our forest. Even to the depths of the sea.

"By the way!" – I remembered. – "That last type of fish that I got from you, when dried turned out to be just perfect for ale! Tomorrow evening I will come to you to get some more. The more the better! Can you get some?"

Eavain was not only my friend, but also my main seafood supplier. For myself, I always took various shellfish, and dried fish always went well with ale.

"Of course!" – merrow answered happily. – "This fish is easy to catch, although it goes far from the shore… I think I'll have time to get enough for two baskets by tomorrow evening".