May 1, 2021… Beltane...

There is ancient magic in Wales. I was savoring a pint in the Railway Inn, Pen-Y-Bont-Fawr, relaxing before calling it an early night. Then, she walked in. Her dress was shimmering green, floating with a gossamer quality. Her strawberry blonde hair gave her an ethereal quality that piqued my interest. She gazed about the room, but I seemed to be the only one who noticed her.

Our eyes met in the dim light. It seemed like she glided across the floor as she approached my table. I assumed that she sought me out because she knew all the locals and that I didn't really belong here.

She asked, "Have you seen the falls by moonlight?" Her voice had a very melodic quality that made her seem perfect. 

I answered that I had not yet seen them at all. "We need to change that right now!" she replied, not appearing to mind my Texas drawl. I paid my tab, and she took my hand and led me to the door. No one even seemed to notice her beauty as we left. 

We strolled arm in arm down the street until we arrived at my car. I struggled a little until I remembered that the driver sits on the wrong side of the car here. As we started down the street, I was trying to concentrate on staying on the correct side of the Welsh roads while shifting with my left hand. She seductively ran her fingers lightly up and down my left arm. Occasionally her touch reached all the way up to my ear. As she did this, she twirled a few strands of my curly hair between her fingers erotically. I was so aroused that I was having trouble staying on the narrow roads. Attempting to get to know her seemed impossible. My mind kept getting distracted. I wasn't able to get my mouth to form any words.

As I drove along, I wondered what the hell I was doing. I traveled all the way to Great Britain to get photos that I could sell. I really needed this to work out after being laid off due to COVID-19. The only reason that I had come to Wales was to take photos of Pistyll Rhaeadr Falls; the tallest single falls in Britain at two hundred forty feet. There I was, heading to the falls in the middle of the night with a woman who hasn't even told me her name. I felt as though I was in some alternate universe. Was I suddenly in a novel by one of my favorite authors, Gainsborough or Hobson? I was totally bewitched by her beauty, and I believe that, at that moment, I would have followed her to the ends of the earth. 

We finally arrived at the car park, and I found a spot near the path. We started walking up the path arm in arm. Suddenly, she pulled me close and stole a kiss. I felt lost in a strange place. I could hear the stream rushing by. It sounded like a bunch of giggling voices. I felt as though there were many eyes on me. I looked around yet saw no one. As we continued up the path hand in hand, I was certain that there was some connection occurring between us. Still, I didn't understand what was happening.

We paused for a moment, still holding hands, and I looked deeply into her green eyes. I felt as though my soul was being drawn to her body. She reached up and whispered in my ear, "Stand here for one minute, then strip naked and follow me up the path to the falls. If you can catch me, I will be your lover for all time." Speechless, I froze. She lightly ran up the path towards the place the falls must be. Her dress seemed to change in the light to a diaphanous material that almost gave the impression of fairy attire.

I watched as she disappeared, and I wondered what to do. The chance of a lifetime was there for me. This was an opportunity that I decided I was not going to miss. I stripped naked and started towards the falls. I watched all along the path for where she might have gone. As I neared the base of the falls, I saw her near a small oak tree. I rushed to get near her. My need to feel her body touching mine had replaced all other thoughts. My desperation was the greatest that I had ever felt. I was so aroused that my cock ached. Surely, I had never been this hard in my life. I had to have her immediately. When I finally reached her, she wrapped her arms around me and held her body close to mine.

"I'm so glad that you are here with me," she whispered in my ear. Then our mouths met in a lover's kiss. Her breasts pressing against my chest felt so wonderful. I knew that I couldn't resist her at that moment.

"Will you be mine for eternity?" she asked me in a voice filled with a lilting melody.

I quickly replied, "I am yours for as long as you will have me." The forest sounds around us seemed to disappear. The silence seemed to create a tension of expectation. She pressed my back against the oak tree. I felt the bark biting into my skin, but I was so lost in her magic that I didn't seem to notice. She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled up, wrapping her legs around my hips.

"Do you freely give yourself to me as my lover?" was all that I heard from her lips. I felt her sweet wet folds against my cock. They were begging me to enter and find the heavenly place promised by their heat.

"Yes, I am yours!" escaped from my mouth. She arched her back slightly and slowly enveloped my cock into her body. I had never felt such intensity of passion in all my life with any previous lover. Our bodies were moving together as though we have been together for years, not the last hour or so. Time seemed to stand still as we were lost in the heat of our passion. The pain from the bark of the tree had disappeared as well. Our lovemaking seemed to go on forever, gradually building the tension between us. We both needed the orgasmic release so desperately. The night seemed to last forever at that moment. I saw a rosy glow to the east. Morning had come, and still, we had not slowed. As I saw the first rays of the sun through the trees, her body started to shiver in an orgasm. As she came, I felt my body start to shudder. I suddenly exploded inside her. We collapsed in each other's arms as we basked in the afterglow.

As the sun started to rise, I noticed that I couldn't seem to move very far from the tree. She looked at me and said, "I have conceived a child." I'm pretty sure that my face was expressing the shock I felt. How could she know? What would I do? I was sixty, with two adult daughters and an ex-wife. I was suddenly very confused. She smiled and started to explain. "My name is Ceinwen, meaning precious gem. Our meeting was far from a coincidence. I am one of the Tylwyth Teg; perhaps you have heard of us or our kin, the Sidhe Draoi. I started calling you months ago to get you here last night. Knowing how unhappy you were in your former life, I brought you here. You will be cherished as never before. Can you now see the fae who have been watching us all night?"

I looked around and saw many creatures, some of which I recognized from myth and others unknown to me. I was in awe of what I was seeing. She continued to explain, "I needed a lover, and Mórrígan told me it should be you. I seized the opportunity, and you came willingly. These creatures will be your friends and companions, as I will be your lover on sacred nights. I shall see you soon, my lover."

With that, she seemed to shimmer and disappeared. I tried to head back down the path to my clothes and my car, but I was unable to move further from the oak than the reach of my arms. Later that day, I saw two police officers come up the path with my clothes. They were searching for me. I tried to call them and get their attention. Alas, it was to no avail. They looked my way but did not seem to see me. I truly had no idea what happened after that. They left after not finding me or any indication I had been there.

As the days went by, I saw tourists come and go, but none of them saw or heard me. The creatures of the fairy realm did become my friends. I was tied to my tree, but never felt alone. A few weeks passed as I learned more about my new existence. I slept comfortably on the ground around my oak. It seemed to provide me all the sustenance I now required.

One morning, as the sun shone brightly, I felt someone or something coming up the path. It was my daughters and my son-in-law. They must have come to see the place where I had disappeared. When they got near me, I could tell that my younger daughter seemed to be looking straight at me. As the three of them looked around the falls, they moved in separate directions. My youngest, the Wicca, walked towards my tree. When she got close, she quietly spoke to me. 

"Yes, I see you, Dad. I knew that Ceinwen called you here. We all knew how miserable you were. I hope that you will be happy here. We will all be fine. I love you, Dad." She then joined the others, and they looked a little more before leaving. It was the last time I saw my mortal family.

True to her word, Ceinwen came to me on the summer solstice, and we made love all night as we had on Beltane. On the first of August, she appeared again for Lughnasadh—the summer harvest and a time of thanksgiving. She still did not appear pregnant at that time, although that night our lovemaking was more tender and much less urgent. This was a gentle side of me that I hadn't known existed. She returned on the evening of the autumnal equinox. When she appeared, her breasts looked fuller than before, and her waist was slightly expanded as well. We fucked like two lovers who had missed one another for weeks, which of course was what had happened. As she always seemed to do, she left me when the sun started to hit the falls.

The next time I saw her was Halloween, Samhain for those who celebrated her holy days. Her body was full and beautiful as she bore the glow of pregnancy well. There was a simmering beauty to our passion that night. When she left, I felt a loneliness I had never before experienced. 

Her next visit came on Yule, the winter solstice. Her body was swollen to the breaking point. The hunger I had for her grew when I saw her swollen belly carrying my child. It didn't matter; we made love all night yet again. Even though her pregnancy complicated things, we were able to sate our lust ourselves in each other's arms. Our time together was even more wonderful than any of the previous nights.

When Imbolc came to pass, also known as Saint Brigid's Day, Ceiwen came to me with a newly born baby in her arms. She greeted me with a hug and a kiss and presented our daughter to me.

"Beloved man, here is our firstborn daughter. I have named her Breena, meaning an imaginary fairy land. Come and bond with our child on this night." There was no lovemaking that night. It was spent in the joy and rapture of being with my baby daughter. In the morning, they left as Ceinwen always did while promising to see me on the next holy day.

I was certain that I would see my lover on the vernal equinox. Indeed, she came to me that night, and we spent the whole time renewing ourselves in our lovemaking. When she left in the morning, I felt happier than I could ever remember being. I wondered how I could have ever lived in the mortal realm.

Ten Years Later...

I can roam further from my tree now, all over the glen and around the falls. Through the years, my body has grown younger. I look thirty instead of the seventy years I have seen. My hair has turned to an auburn color from the dark brown that I previously had. My reflection in the water shows that my ears seem to be growing points to match those of all the fae creatures here.

It is the afternoon of May 1, aka Beltane. Ceiwen will be in my arms soon once again. Through the years together, we have had six lovely daughters. Breena's sisters are Keeva (gentle beauty), Darthula (beautiful eyes), Shailyn (girl from the fairy place), Ethnie (fire) and Kassidy (curly haired one). All were conceived on Beltane. They come and visit me often during the endless days here at the falls. I tell them stories of their mortal sisters and the world beyond. We laugh and play with the others here. My life finally seems so complete and filled with love and wonder.

I see her coming up the path as the sun sets. My love, Ceiwen. How did I live without her? Will we conceive yet another daughter tonight? Who knows, but I do know that we will certainly try...