Call the Witch

Chapter 24 The presents of a god

The beautiful midnight when we had to meet Goibniu had arrived. We went to where we remembered the entrance was and there he was, waiting for us smiling. He had not disappointed us.

"Come in." He invited us.

He took us to the same table the other time and we sat expectantly. From an auxiliary table, to match the first one, he gave me a pendant with his chain. It was a silver Celtic knot, it couldn't be made of iron, since the Tuatha couldn't touch it, similar to the one Fay had given Woody, but with a slightly more complicated design. Its silhouette was reminiscent of a four-leaf clover. Inside each leaf, well differentiated and separated from each other, there was a knot from which came out two lines that joined it to the adjoining leaves. I admired his mastery.

"This will keep evil from him." He assured me.

"Thank you very much, Goibniu." I thanked him wholeheartedly.

At that moment I was putting all my hopes in that object. If an amulet made by the god Goibniu, artisan of the Tuatha De Dannan, who had created so many magical and marvelous weapons, could not stop him, then what would?

Then he held out a braided ring to Fay. It was bronze, with a shimmering quartz in the center. From the outside it looked like a round stone. The tip of the tear was inward to stay in contact with her skin.

Fay squeezed it into her fist, looking into his eyes, as if she was feeling its power and giving him her approval.

"It's exactly what I wanted." She thanked him.

The blacksmith nodded in satisfaction.

"I have something for you too, lad." He said in a good mood.

I looked at him in surprise and, I have to admit, excited. What would it be? A sword? Although with my stick I managed quite well. Something smaller and easier to hide like a knife or maybe...?

At that moment Goibniu offered me a torc of twisted and interlaced strips, topped at each end by the head of an animal.

"What are they?" I asked, spinning it in my hands. Celtic art was beautiful, but indecipherable to me.

"Dogs." He replied.

"They are... Dogs?"

I would have liked something greater. I don't know. Dragons maybe? Or wolves, horses, or even bulls...

Fay looked at me with disapproval, behind Goibniu, who was still standing in front of me.

"Yes, dogs. They symbolize courage, loyalty and honor. And they are also a symbol of protection."

He had said the last words to me, looking at me in a significant way. Then he had glanced out of the corner of his eye in the direction of Fay, who had not seen him because she was behind him.

"These bloody sons of Dana know all the tricks in the book," I thought sulking. "Gossips, busybodys..."

"They are very fierce." He continued.

"Yeah, sure."

"It will protect you as well."

"It weighs." I observed.

"Less than this one." He commented , pointing to his, which was four times bigger than mine.

"Yes, but he has had millennia to get used to wearing it." I thought, as if an attempt had been made on my manhood.

Fay squinted at me sternly.

I got up and stretched out my hand to him. I had reconsidered. She was right. Apart from the fact that it was counterproductive to offend a being like him, it was ultimately a gift from a god. Its value was incalculable. It was sacred. I felt honored after thinking about it.

"Thank you, really. You have done so much for us. We are indebted to you."

"That's right." Fay supported me. "If there's anything I can do..."

Goibniu shrugged his broad shoulders. And he smiled.

"If ever need anything I'll ask you." He promised.

Fay nodded. I felt bad for her. She owed more than Germany and partly, largely, because of me.

"Goibniu... I know you've already done a lot for us, but..." Fay started, looking at the ground in shame. Suddenly she looked up and stared at him straight into his eyes. "There's no one else I can ask this of."

The smith nodded.

"Ask, but only one question and you can't complain about the answer." He mysteriously warned.

"Who...?" She interrupted herself. She didn't know how to ask the question wisely. "What ancestor is the Tuatha's blood that runs through my veins?"

The god took Fay's hand, making it disappear completely into his own.

"Of one of those who can become a bird."

I raised my eyebrows in disbelief. What an answer.

Fay looked at him as if he had spoken to her in a language unknown to her, which was already difficult.

"Thank you." She concluded.

I suppose it was something to be thankful for. He had limited the list of candidates even if it had been only a little.

The blacksmith shook my hand gently and I wondered what I had to eat to be like him when I was greybeard. Meanwhile, Fay admired the ring. I realized she didn't dare wear it, but I didn't understand why.

We thanked him again for his help, earnestly, and when he had said goodbye to leave, he turned to Fay.

"Don't you wear it?" He asked as if he were feeling her out.

She put it on her finger without hesitation, as if he had challenged her. Then Goibniu grabbed her by the wrist.

"Beware of your quest for power, Cailleach. You may not like what you find at the end."

She nodded affected and we left.

"Next time bring me some chocolate too!" He voiced from the entrance. "It caused a big stir in Bodb's court!"

Fay blushed and waved from a distance, nodding.

"Put the torc on." It was the first thing she said to me as we went down the hillside.

"How can I walk down the street with this?"

"He said it would protect you. Listen to me."

"I'll look like some kind of Celtic-cocky with that on."

It started raining and we ran to the tent. We began to change our clothes with our backs to each other, which made me a little tense, since I couldn't stop imagining her undressing, animated by the froufrou of the fabric.

"Evan..." She called me.

I cleared my throat, which was parched.

"What?"

"I never told you, but... this tent was bought by my father. We were camping together.

"Your mother wasn't going?"

"No, not at all." She replied and laughed. "My mother didn't like these things at all. The absence of comfort wasn't her thing. Those of us who liked to be in touch with nature were my father and me.

"Someday will go camping and take Woody with us."

She didn't answer.

Suddenly she came up to me, changed her clothes and whipping her long hair with a towel.

"Do you miss Canada?"

"Yes." I answered without hesitation. "I miss canoeing along the old trade routes in the autumn, jumping on a tire down a snowy slope, skating on Lake Ontario when it's frozen... but I can't ignore the beauty of Ireland. I've never felt like a stranger here."

"And in Canada you're not..." I thought.