Let the Darkness In

Dusk was falling in a soft, balmy mantle as I limped through the woods. It was quiet, except for the scurrying and chirps of animals settling in for the night. They and I knew better than to stay out here once the sun had set. Thhese soaring pillars were our playground during the day, but once darkness obliterated all…it was time to hide.

A still stream meandered its way through the bracken, my path home. Its glassy surface caught the dappled red and gold of the dying sun as it broke through the canopy. Looking to the left, I could see the shadows starting to claim the edges of the trees. I tried to speed up but my foot dragged behind, slowing me down. Gritting my teeth, like always, I forced myself to walk that little bit harder and faster but for all my years of practice, it was a stubborn thing. The dull ache was my companion. It had never gone but I had learned to live with it.

In sixteen years, I had only been caught unawares out here once. I had disobeyed her, and come running out here to follow the whizzing lights that beckoned me. Within moments of leaving the gate, I had been led into a part of the forest I hadn’t known. A swarm of bats attacked, ripping at my hair and my face, causing blood to well from deep scars. Most had healed but I still had a pale nick, just under my left eye. When Ysymay found me, a bleeding, sobbing mess, she had taken me home without a word. The blood and scars were enough. I later learned that it wasn’t bats that had attacked me. I never left home after dark after that.

Right now, it looked like I was perilously close to repeating history. My foot was burning with the effort of trying to keep up with the other one but it was a battle that would never be won. As much as I wanted to be an elegant deer bolting, I was more of a lopsided gremlin, with a rolling gait. And I had the face to match.

Finally, as the sky turned the rich blue that heralded the beginning of the night, I could see the torches burning outside the cottage, beckoning me with their flickering warmth. Sweat beading on my brow despite the cool autumn air, I finally stepped through the gate set in the fence. I placed my hand on the wood and whispered the words that would gain me safe entry. Knowing my touch, the gate swung open, and I was home.

“Do you want to maybe one day walk through that door?” Ysymay snapped as the door bounced off the stone wall. It was a sturdy door to still be standing after the treatment I gave it. I threw her a look and slumped down on a stool by the fire. Grabbing a bowl off the ledge, I spooned some of the stew from the small pot bubbling over the fire. A hand pushed a horned cup of amber liquid into mine. I drank down the nectar in seconds.

“Who were you off with today? The fawns? The elders?”

I gave a shrug.

“Whoever wanted the pleasure of my company.” I flashed her a smile, letting the warmth and safety seep through me. Home.

I savoured my stew, partly because rabbit was my favourite, partly because I knew what would happen as soon as I drained the last drop of liquid. Sure enough, as I slurped the last drop, the bowl was snatched away and a stool was bought opposite me with a screech.. Chapped hands pushed back the skirts around my ankle and grasped it tightly. I glared at my antagonist but that look no longer phased her. Biting had never worked either.

“Please Ysymay. You know this isn’t going to work. Can’t we just accept that my foot will never bend the right way?”

Ysmay ignored me and pulled out the crude splint from under her stool that had bound my foot every night for the last fifteen years. Twisting my foot till the tears came to my eyes, she locked it in place with the torture device she told me would ‘help’. In all that time, my foot had probably moved an inch and was still as painful each and every day. It was only after I had kicked her in the face with my good foot one time that Ysymay and I made a deal. I would wear the brace every night if it meant during the day, my foot could run – or stumble – free.

Taking a pot down from the shelf beside her, she unscrewed the lid to reveal a bright green slime. One I had made actually – a mix of herbs, animal fat, and the sedative powers of plants that grew all around me. It stank to high heaven - of decaying plants - but it did a great job of helping with the swelling and bruising.

Once my foot was caged behind bars, I stood up and hobbled over to my cot in the corner of the room, feeling red heat prickle my arms. Animal hides separated my quarter from the rest of the room; as womanhood had first struck I had asked for the privacy a lady required. Ysymay had scoffed but granted my request. Sighing, I threw myself down on the bundle of blankets, yanking the hides close behind me and trying to ignore the sharp shooting in my ankle.

The next morning, I woke to the soft patter of rain. In some corner, I could hear it making its way through the thatched roof and dripping onto the floor. A bucket would sort that problem nicely. I yawned and stretched. As I pulled back the hides, I ran my fingers through my knotted mess of waves. Ysymay had said I looked something like a disgruntled bear when I woke. I had naturally tried to bite her head off.

Ysymay had gone, as normal, to fetch food and supplies. When I was younger, she had told me to stay put and not to follow her. Obviously, I had ignored her and had followed her for some distance before I was caught. There was anger and then there was Ysymay, whose wrath was akin to the thunderstorms that sometimes rolled above our heads.

With the rain hammering down, I pulled on my cloak and stepped outside. It felt like someone had thrown a bucket over me and I gasped. This was nature’s way of cleansing and creating a sparkling new world - washing away the darkness from the night before. Each raindrop trembled with life – I could feel each and every drop hitting my skin as a gift. As I limped to the pool, my hood slipped off, heavy and saturated but there was no point in pulling it up. I turned my face upwards, letting the water wash away the sleep and tiredness from my face.

Dragon’s breath twisted around the trunks of trees which were silhouetted against the dove grey. Above, some rain was caught by the huge canopy, a light pattering noise. Underfoot, the earth was starting to get slippy. Mud squelched between my toes. Walking barefoot was a way of connecting me to the Earth. I could feel it pulse beneath me, grateful for the nourishment of water.

I made it to the pool, brushing away some ferns that obscured it from any watching eyes. Shedding my cloak and nightgown, I stepped in, letting the water envelop and cleanse my skin. A pink flower grew on the banks of this pond, one I had discovered released a gorgeous scent when crushed. I pressed the leaves into a ball and rubbed it over me, washing away the slightly pink smears it left with the water.

As I stepped out, I could feel every tendril of air brush over my damp skin. Slipping my dress back on quickly, I squeezed as much water as I could out of my waist-length hair, leaving the rest to dry…or maybe not the case in this weather.

A flicker to my left caught my eye and I turned. A shape was moving through the branches and ferns that surrounded the pool. A giggle, a foot falling on the earth so quietly, you wouldn’t hear it if you didn’t know what to listen out for – I knew who this was.

“Annan, come out here!”

Silence descended and then a hand pushed away the ferns slowly. A pair of brilliant green eyes shone at me from a face that tapered into a delicate point. Hair, the same colour as the grass in spring, hung in a waterfall, tucked behind pointed ears. Tiny veins, almost like the ones that shot through a growing leaf, snaked down her forehead and reached for the earth. Ferns, flowers, tree bark, and ivy formed her garment. On one of her feet, she wore an anklet made from flowers.

“How have you been?”

She shrugged, twirling a strand of vine through her fingers. “The fawn were after me last night.” A light bubble of sound escaped from her lips. “But we tricked them, leading them right into the sleeping ring.” Her voice was the wind through leaves, gentle.

I chuckled. Fawns were the bad boys of the forest – men, goats, a bit of both - after one thing only. Sometimes in bed, I could hear the faint squeals and the thuds of hooves as they played their nightly games of hide and seek in the woods around the cottage. Annan was one of the cleverer nymphs, always thinking of ways to outwit them. They were handsome, but not the smartest creatures out there. That’s probably why when I had first found her at this pool, we instantly found something of ourselves in the other.

The sleeping ring was a ring of plants that were particularly potent under the moonlight – when the lunar rays hit them, they released a scent so strong, that most of the night creatures would sleep through a night and two days.

“Yes, but did Naois catch you this time?”

A small blush crept across her face. “He wouldn’t have…if I had not let him. Come,” she said, quickly moving on. “Will you come with me to bless the waters?”