The Very Strange Tale of an Unusual Prenuptial Agreement

A STRANGE (AND ULTIMATELY VERY SAD) LOVE STORY

Our story takes place many, many years ago.

It was one of the first days of spring. A young shepherd was walking through a valley alongside the lake which lay at the foot of the highest mountain in the land. It was a lake of magic and beauty. A lake which had lain there for millions of years. The shepherd had a smile on his face and a spring in his step as he knew that the cold dark days of winter were over, for another year. He was happy to feel the heat of the sun, gently warming his skin, as it rose above the summit of the high mountain which dominated the surrounding landscape. There was barely a breath of wind; the surface of the lake was entirely flat. Save for an occasional distant bird song, he heard only silence. It really was the most beautiful place in the whole of the Kingdom.

It was a path he knew well. But this particular morning something would happen which would change his life forever…

As he rounded a corner, he heard someone singing in the distance, but getting closer, the most enchanting song he had ever heard. And then he saw her! Dancing by the side of the lake, a most beautiful fairy.

The young shepherd was smitten. Cupid's arrow slammed into his heart without warning. He fell in love with the beautiful fairy and begged her to be his wife.

But the fairy was afraid. Her elders had warned her about the human beings who lived above the surface. She had disobeyed them that very morning by coming to sing and dance in the spring sunshine. In a panic, she tried to flee.

But the shepherd boy was in love. He grabbed hold of the beautiful young fairy, took her back to his cottage and locked her in an outhouse.

And every morning for almost a year, he took her breakfast. And every evening he took her dinner. And every single day he told her how much he loved her, and he begged her to marry him. Every day she refused. She wanted nothing but to return to her own kind who lived below the surface of the magical lake.

But gradually the beautiful fairy began to have feelings for the shepherd boy. Strangely, she realised that she was falling in love with him. And one day, she surprised him by agreeing to marry him. But there was one condition;

'If you EVER touch my skin with a piece of iron' she told him, 'our marriage will be over'.

The besotted young man quickly agreed, and the wedding took place that very week. Everyone from the village joined in the celebrations. It was a time of great joy and happiness.

And the young couple went on to have a wonderful life together. They saved up to buy their own farm and enjoyed many years of happiness and prosperity. The beautiful fairy bore him two baby boys who grew to be strong and handsome.

But then one day, without warning, disaster struck!

As the shepherd was attempting to place a bridle on one of the farm horses, the horse broke free. The bridle flew through the air. And an iron part of the bridle gently brushed the left cheek of the fairy!

In an instant, she was gone. Vanished. Never to be seen again.

Never to be seen again except for one wild and stormy night when she appeared at the window of the farmhouse. Over the noise of the howling wind and the rattling of the wooden shutters, the heartbroken shepherd heard the voice of his wife.

She told him how much she loved him and asked him to look after their two sons well. She begged him to tell her sons how much she loved them.

And that was it.

The beautiful fairy has never been seen since.

It is said that even today, if you walk along the shoreline of the glacial lake known as Llyn Cwellyn, which lies in a valley in North Wales, in the shadow of Yr Wyddfa—also known in English as Snowdon—the highest mountain in Wales, and if you are very, very quiet, you might, just might, hear the heart-rending cry of a lovelorn fairy.

I didn't see or hear any fairies when I paddled here in August 2019, but I can attest to the beauty of this magical place. Just as the shepherd had fallen in love with the fairy, I fell in love with Llyn Cwellyn. This lake has been here for millions of years, since the end of the last ice age. Who knows what lies below the surface…