Gaelic Tales: A Collection of Short Stories

The Traveling Witch.

Far back in the 1700s in London England, when people were tried for witchcraft, a woman sat writing to her husband, she wrote (oh dear husband, how I miss you so, each time I look at our picture frame I feel sad, knowing you hand to go, knowing that you had to go to that other land, that place called Dublin, I know you didn't want to leave me, as you placed that final kiss upon me, I'm wishing you well, also hoping you're in good health, love from your faithful wife, p.s. looking forward to seeing you in our new life.)

Finishing her penmanship, she folds the paper and places it into a letter, then she grabs a seal as one of her maids heated up some wax, she places the seal into the wax coating her family initials AC on it, she sits up straight sighing heavily trying to relax her neck, then looks out the window seeing it was dark, as she says "won't you please hand that of to... oh darn who is it again, the letter boy, his name again what is it?"

The maid standing behind her says, "it is the mail man, miss, you're wondering about, is it?" 

Nodding her head, she says smiling "aye, I mean yes, what's his name again?"

The maid says, "I believe his name is Alfred, if my memory serves me right."

Again, the woman of the house nods her head "yes him, give it to him, for him to give it to my husband."

Smiling the maid says, "as you wish."

The maid leaves with the letter as two more maids came in to change her, the woman gets up and struggles to move in her mantua, but she manages to go to the changing area in her room and the two maids helped her out of it, into something mor breathable, the maids put on her bed attire, she walks out with her saying "I still feel awkward you all doing this."

The older one says, "we know you say that every time we do this, but it is our job."

Sighing she sits thanking them, as the both then leaves, she falls back on the bed looking blankly at the bed frame thinking "I want to see him, but he told me to stay, thing is I know why he left but, I want him back in my arms like it was three years ago, the warmth of his breath on my neck, I miss his warmth."

She looks over then at the smouldering fireplace, she stands up and walks with a pitter patter of her bare feet on the stone floor reaching the fireplace, she then kneels reaching up the throat of the fireplace and picking out a closed metal box, she goes to the table once more opening it and there a picture of her and her husband on top of a large amount of pound's.

She picks up the picture caressing it smiling fondly, once she was done with that, she placed it beside her as she started to count how much she had in the box, there was two hundred pound in there, satisfied with that she puts all back to where she took it from then goes to bed and sleeps the rest of the night through.

The next day she wakes bright and early, with a maid knocking on the door and entering, the maid noticed that the woman of the house was up and sitting at her desk in her old clothes peasant clothes to be exact she sat in a thin Bumroll & Corded Petticoat.

The maid questions this but the woman retorts "I want to wear something breathable, since I am leaving to Ireland today."

The maid again questions "wouldn't you rather want to go in something more proper?" She gets up smiling "no, no, no need I rather stay in something comfortable than something unbearable, bear in mind tight area too so, before I go can I ask can you get me a book to, for the long haul one that I can write in."

The maid does as she was told she got a small book handing it to the woman of the house she places it in her satchel that wrapped around her shoulder and they both walk out to the hall where they met the head maid escorting her out to the front door.