Song: Tir Na Nog

By: Celtic women

start song at (1)

The butterfly sent an inconspicuous look over at Tooth. The guardian of memories saw it however and seemed to know exactly what the butterfly was hinting at. She shook her head ever so slightly, embarrassed, but the butterfly gave a simple nod that said it's a good story, you should tell it!

Tooth gave a sigh and that vocalization drew the attention of those nearby. "Vhat's up Tooth?" questioned North.

"I think," said Tooth looking nervous and then collected herself "I think it's my turn to tell a story."

Excited cheers and clapping welcomed her announcement. Tooth flew over to the band and whispered something in their ears.. The band nodded happily and flutes and a couple different Celtic and Irish style instruments replaced the current ones. Tooth sent a silent call to her fairies and within moments the ones nearby collecting teeth flue over to the clearing. Tooth sent another silent call and more fairies from the tooth palace headed towards the destinations these fairies had left.

When the fairies had gathered a humming sound came from their wings and then to everyone's surprise, instead of chirping, words in the Celtic tongue sang through the clearing.

(1) "Sha ta co ti oh scum ne rivna, Sha ta co ti oh nagga Tir Na Nog. Sha ta co ti oh scum ne rivna, Nug a Tir Na Nog."

A flute and drum beats picked up to Nicely accompanied the fairies singing.

Tooth told the story of a young Irish man as he walked along the shores of the Lake Tir Na he had spotted through the foggy mist a beautiful lady upon a horse-like steed.

The fairies jumped in eagerly picking up the melody of the song. "Come my love our worlds won't part, the gods will guide us across the dark, come with me and be mine my love stay don't break my heart."

Tooth explained how the man had become so entranced by the woman that he Instantly fell in love with her. He helped her dismount from her horse and they spent the day talking and enjoying each other's company. When they parted that evening he vowed to come back to see her the next day. For several weeks they met like this until the lady explained to him that she needed to return for the fog that brought her here every day was soon to lift. She asked him to join her, to come away to her home the fairy and Elven kingdom of Tie Na Nog, the namesake of the lake in which they had fallen in love upon.

The fairies sang out loud and clear, almost shouting, their little voices resonating through the clearing. "Tir Na Nog, oh, come beyond the ancient fog. Tir Na Nog, oh, come with me to Tir Na Nog."

"The Irish man had no family; he lived alone and had long since buried his parents." Tooth continues the story. "His work was hard and he felt he had no happiness except for the woman who he had come to so deeply care for. So he accepted her offer and riding upon her horse the two of them rode upon the water and crossed through the fog."

Tooth joined her fairies now as they sang of the enchanted land that was revealed to the Irishman. "Far away from the land you knew the dawn of day reaches out to you. Though it feels like a fairytale, all of this is true!"

They sang of the fields that they ran through and the beautiful land that was built upon sacred ground. How no matter what may happen outside of the Realm there the two were safe and sound.

Tooth floated down to stand upon the ground now as the fairies hovered above. She looked up and explained how one day the man noticed that the fog had returned and wondered about returning to the land he had known and seeing what had become of it in the few years that he had stayed in Tir Na Nog. That is when he learned that what was a few years in the Realm he now called home was 300 years in the other world.

"Time won't follow the path we came. The world you left, it forgot your name. Stay with me and be mine my love, spare my heart the pain." The fairies sang

"Shocked, the man insisted on traveling back and disheartened his love complied." Tooth story continued. "Back through the fog upon her horse they rode, only for him to age 300 years in an instant when he stepped foot in the land of man again. Only the fairy kiss which had marked him the first time he came to Tir Na Nog kept him from turning to dust. Together the two of them explored the land changed over 300 years. Their journey once again ended on the shore of the lake. The fog was thick waiting to bring the lady back home and she turned to him with questions in her eyes. "Tir Na Nog, oh, come beyond the ancient fog. Tir Na Nog, oh, will you come with me to Tir Na Nog?"

As the music faded Tooth looked at everyone who was watching her. "In the end the man did return to the ancient fairyland. When he remounted the horse and they crossed through the fog the 300 years disappeared and he was back to how he had been in the time stood still land of Tir Na Nog. However he never forgot the human world and as time passed when He and his love had children of their own, he told them stories of where he came from. Intrigued, one of his daughters and many of her sisters one day crossed the fog and found themselves in the land of man. There they set up a home in the ancient mountains of Punjam Hy Loo. They formed the sisters of flight and lived peacefully. However, like her mother before her, this one daughter very soon found herself falling in love with a human."

"So that's how your mother got to the human world!" Jack said smiling.

Tooth's only reply was a simple smile and a nod.

The story of Tir Na Nog is an Irish folktale. I did a little bit of merging of stories here though, in the original folktale when the man returns to the human world he dies after having all those years come upon him in one single moment. Instead I went with the Spiderwick Chronicles idea where as long as he still had a piece of the fairy world, a.k.a. The fairies kiss, he was able to remain alive and when he returned to the fairy magic the years fell away.