Arian's Pool Ch. 03

I'd soon learned that there were no long lived secrets in a tiny village. I know that some of the few single men were very interested in how old the new woman in number seven was.

Information about me was telegraphed around the village within hours of me moving in and I was brought tea and cakes before the engine on my van had cooled down. Welcome to the area, what did I do for a living, was my husband or children coming to join me later.

The average age in my village was 51 and the few single men around were either way too old or way too young. Besides which, the social dynamic suggested that if I'd gone to bed with someone local the entire county would be discussing it within 47 seconds of him saying, "How was it for you love?"

After all, if anyone bought a condom from chemist, the entire county would know. God forbid from the toilets in the bar - the gents of course, there wasn't such a machine in the Ladies - Jess would be working out who had been in the pub on which night and she'd narrow it down, and would ask out loud in her strident Welsh accent that could carry over a crowded bar and restaurant,

"Well Lovie, I guess it musta'bin you that bought the condom; you getting some ducky?"

The old lady must have seen the disbelief in my face. "I was waiting at the desk when Doctor Gethwynn was telling Myra what to book down in the town Ceri, don't worry. But you never saw it coming did you."

"No, I was told over two years ago that I was sterile, no chance of children without surgical assistance."

"You swam in the pool Ceri din't you?"

"Yes," I said, intrigued as to how she knew.

"I was born in the house next door to yours see. When I was a girl Arian's pool was only talked about by the Grannies, and then only in whispers," her voice dropped to emphasise this, "I was brought up with the story see; hot water from the fires of the earth, cold water from the ice on the mountain, both bathed in light from the sun and the full moon." She closed her eyes with the obvious joy of recounting a story she'd known from her Granny's knee. "Pwll Arianrhod child, the waters there can cure body and more importantly soul," she took on a cheeky smile, "all the local girls used to try to get the boy they fancied to go swimming with them in the hot water there." She grinned, "Or they'd try to get him to drink the water from the cold spring. Mind you, they'd 'ave to make sure they got home quick or you never knew what would happen! When I was girl there was often a quick wedding and then the birth of a Ffraid baby or for the older ladies, 'Arian's child'. Place was famous for it!" She giggled, "or at least it wasn't famous if you get my drift."

"Ffraid?" I said questioning her names.

"Ffraid is old Welsh for Brigid, which is also Welsh for 'Bride', She was our local Saint in the olden times;" she turned to face me and dropped her tone, "But before the priests came with their bibles and their chapels it was Arianrhod's pool, named by the men who placed the stones; and the smart money says that the Jesuits pinched it and took it for their own."

I was intrigued; Arianrhod was the name written in tiny letters of my map.

"Who was Arianrhod?"

"The Celtic moon mother Goddess Ceri," she said, "The 'silver disc', mother to us all, Goddess of fertility, of time and of course fate. I get the funniest feeling that you made love to your man at the full moon, and in some way or another you asked her for a baby."

I thought back to the night I took Mike's hand and I led him to the wonderful grassed glade bathed in the light of the 'Arianrhod', the 'silver disc', and we stared up at stars and at the full moon. Laying there in my lovers arms and making the most exquisite love I pined and wept for the child I might never have, that baby I so desperately wanted, and get to know and see grow strong and that I could give my love, heart and soul to, and I thought about Mike and what he'd said to me about helping me to achieve my wish.

Then; that had been time, I stared up into his face and loved him, and right then wished that I could have a child one day, and I hoped with all my heart he would be the one.

"Yes," I said to the old lady, "Yes, I do believe I did."

"Then you're the next in a long line of girls and boys that have 'talked to the moon', or 'taken the Saint's waters' and ended up with a baby. Grandma and Mam used to send couples who were struggling to start a family there; Arian or Saint Ffraid if you like, they never let them down."

"Wow!" I said, putting a hand to my, as yet tiny, baby bump. I looked out to the woodland reaching up from the valley floor and across from my house and up the valley and thought about Mike and how I was missing him, not just our passionate lovemaking but just having him around and being in love with him.

I turned to the little Welsh lady I knew almost nothing about but who seemed to know tonnes about me. "Yes," I said, "we swam in the pool and drank the water, in coffee I might add,"

"Arianrhod don't care how you took it Ceri, you bathed in her pool and found love there, and you asked her." she looked at me. "It was love wasn't it. Arianrhod was always most specific about that. As many found love as made children there."

"Yes," I said, "Yes it was, I was in love at least."

The lady shook her head,

"It don't work like that Ceri," she put a hand on my forearm and gave it a squeeze, her hand felt cold, but then she had to be in her nineties, "Pwll Arianrhod has few rules but it's as much about love as it is fertility. Don't you give up on Arianrhod yet sweetheart, she controls fate as well as love and fertility," she said with a soft smile and stood, "or Saint Ffraid for that matter, they never let anyone down yet to my knowledge." She stopped and reached behind her neck and I saw she was unclipping a silver necklace from which hung a circular blue silver pendant. "You take this Ceri," she said walking behind me and clipping it around my neck, "My mother gave it to me and she had it from her mother. I only had boys and their wives are all passed worrying about fertility and I have nine Grandchildren and two great-grandchildren already with a third on the way," she bent down and kissed my hair. "Look after her for me Arian, it was fate that brought her here to us after all," she said and over my shoulder pointed at the new moon sitting low in the bright late afternoon clear blue sky across the valley from us like I'd could never remember seeing it before. "There she is Ceri," she whispered to me, then she spoke up slightly and I knew she wasn't talking to me, "you give my girl here all she dreams of Arianrhod, not just what she wishes for."

"Please," I said, "you keep calling me Ceri, what does it mean?"

"It's more Welsh my beautiful girl," she whispered taking her hands from my shoulders, "It means 'love'. You remember it. And you remember to thank Arianrhod and Brigid for your good fortune when the time comes, Bendith Ceri..." I felt a kiss on my hair again, "Now, it's time I was finally one my way..."

I took hold of the pendant and squeezed it, turning to thank my lovely tiny Welsh benefactress but she was nowhere to be seen. There was no way she could have disappeared from the square. I held on to my pendant, stood and looked around for her.

No one, she had disappeared as quickly as sh had appeared and I had one last check before walking back to my house and my patient Benny waiting at the top of the stairs for me.

I made us both tea and sat with my feet up on the sofa all evening, watching TV with a hand on my belly and, I noticed eventually, the other holding on to my new pendant on its silver chain beautifully inlaid with blue enamelled Celtic looking symbols and the figure of a woman in a perfect circle. At first glance the perfect circle looked like the face of the moon, but the enameller had made the woman leap out of the picture the second you looked hard at it. It was a thing of beauty and I hardly took the thing off.

I googled Arianrhod and there was the same story that the old lady told me, the 'silver disc', the mother goddess, Celtic star goddess and I'd bathed in her pool, met a man I fell in love with and was now pregnant. Stranger things had happened of course.

The following day I went for lunch with Jess taking Benny for his midweek meet with his brother Mitch. I decided I would tell my friend Jess my news, no, my GOOD news. Much as I was still trying to come to terms with the fact that my wish had been granted, I was still conscious that in London I would have strutted down the street screaming my success from the rooftops, here in my quiet adopted home town, this wasn't the norm.

I'd spent almost every Wednesday lunchtime with my mate Jess, and I'd shared all most of my life with her. I knew about her life, her first marriage to a soldier that never worked, and her son Will, then meeting Dai when she went to work at the pub after coming home, marrying Dai and their daughters Anne and Julia, now both studying at University.

She knew about my break up with Jonathan, my sterility and she kind of knew that I had something going on with someone that saw me cheer up, cheer down and disappear for a couple of days at a time.

As we ate sandwiches and drank her lovely coffee I could hear Dai chattering away on the phone.

"Aww, he's booking the wake for ol' Mrs Bennett," she said, "Lovely old dear she was, passed away in her sleep on Tuesday morning. A good way to go, in her chair, in front of a roaring fire and she had a big smile on her face at least."

"I'm so sorry," I said, "were you close?"

"Mrs Bennett was like everyone's Granny, four son's all built like prop forwards for a rugby team of giants, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren with a third on the way. She was the town's favourite and called everyone 'Ceri', it's Welsh and means..."

"It means 'Love' doesn't it." I said.

"Yes, been learning the language our Maggie!"

"A bit," I said. "She passed on Tuesday Morning?"

"Yes, her daughter in law popped in to see her at lunchtime and found her, she had a good life with a good ending, asleep in her arm chair, with a smile on her face."

"That she did." I held her pendent and thought to the lovely old lady that called me 'Ceri' and told me about her grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren with one on the way. The town's Granny that handed on her pendant to me - four hours after she had died.

I decided not to share that with anyone and it did hang down in my cleavage hidden, and if anyone noticed my necklace and asked where I got it from I'd bring the event forward a day.

I needed to tell my friend Jess that I was expecting, after all it's hardly something you can hide from a good friend you see often.

"Jess," I said, "You remember I told you that I was sterile?"

"Yes," she said, "a bloody tragedy darling, I bet the NHS can sort something out for you, would your sister donate an egg for you?"

"She doesn't need to," I said. My face creased into a smile, "Don't ask how or why but I went to see Doctor Gethwynn..." I thought quickly, "on Monday, and he told me that I'm pregnant, yesterday I went to Maerbont to the clinic and they told me all is going well and about four months along." My hand trembled as I sipped my coffee.

"DARLING MAGGIE!" she screeched and leapt to me hugging me tight, causing Mitch to run in silly circles with his tail and his ears supressed, unsure of what the import of the moment was. Benny raised his head, checked that I was OK, and laid back down again while his smaller brother padded around us both. "I'm so pleased for you Maggie!" she said, "Oh Darling, it's the best thing in the world... did you... err... plan for it?"

I supposed it was the nicest way she had of asking me about the father.

"No Jess," I said, putting down my coffee mug, "I've been... err... seeing an old friend of mine... from London, nothing serious you understand, no contraception of course because, well, I've not needed it."

"What does he think?"

"Oh, he doesn't know," I grinned, "It doesn't matter, it's all I've ever wanted and a dream come true. If he comes to see me again..."

"If?"

"I've not seen him for a while," I admitted, "but if or when he contacts me again I'll tell him."

"You're not going to contact him?"

"I..." I couldn't hide the break in my voice, "I don't have a contact for him, I knew him because we... err... we were neighbours and we sort of fell in together, nothing serious of course."

"Of course," said Jess, "I'm only going to say this once Darling, but you might say you're not in love with the bloke and it isn't serious, but your face and your body are saying something completely different and I get the feeling you desperately want him back and want to tell him your news."

I grinned and managed, barely, to control my emotions. Jess saw of course.

I shrugged my shoulders,

"Not in my hands Jess," I said, "But, whatever happens I have my baby to look forward to." I put a hand on my belly and felt lifted.

"You told your sister?"

"God no," I burst out, "she's older than me, and I'll get ten shades of shit for not taking precautions and stories on how I can't possibly look after it and that I should move back to London and be looked after by her as if I was one of her naughty children."

"Really?"

"Yeah, she kinda looked after me after my Mum died."

"Your... Mum? Awwww luvie!" She leaned forward and put her arms around me, her voice thick with emotion, "That'd its ducky, I will personally hold your hand through this whole process, I don't care what it takes, we'll see you through the whole thing. DAI!" she screamed, "Get the diary!"

And she was good to her word. I drank my last real coffee that afternoon and was consigned to decaf for the duration; she watched the food I ate, and I was banned from pate, soft cheese, unpasteurised egg and lots of other good stuff.

My belly swelled and I went along to the Doctors surgery for my monthly check-up, and once a week for my check-up with Jess and Dai, and the check-ups with the Doctor were by far the easiest. Jess would demand to know what my temperature was like, how my bowels were, was I feeling faint along with a mess of other questions I had to answer before they both proceeded to fill me with a mountain of comfort food.

Come February I had to make a really shit excuse to my Dad for not taking Benny to see him on his birthday but promised I be down in May when the weather improved and the roads were less slippery and icy - really it was after my child was due.

My belly was just too big to mistake for anything other than pregnancy and I wasn't ready to have that discussion with my family yet.

And so the last couple of months passed at speed and I'd planned to go into Maerbont and have the child, stay there and rest for a few days then come home to number seven.

As the due date got ever closer I started to panic but my phone had Jess on speed dial and she was all ready to whizz me the five miles to Maerbont.

Eight days before my due date, I was walking Benny in the paddock before turning in for the night when he trotted away from me towards the stream. I walked down to follow and looked up at the three quarter moon, just a few nights away from 'Arian rhod', the silver disc, and with a smile clutched my pendant. Benny walked further away from me and I still followed, turning back to my open kitchen door, dressed in my T-shirt nightdress, a grey hoodie and some slip-on sandals.

"Benny!" I called after him, and I heard a faint 'huff' from him just off in the distance. I stepped across the stones now getting slightly angrier and a bit worried, 8 months and 3 weeks pregnant was hardly the time to go walking in the woods after a missing Labrador. "Benny!" I cried, "Not tonight Darling?" I called after him, resting a hand on my bump that was giving me kicks and movements on a regular basis as my time drew near.

He barked. Benny never barked. I speeded up, as much as my size would allow me.

"BENNY!" I all but screamed in my panic, before I knew it and faster than I ever had before I was at the pool, the steam rising from the centre in a long line to show where Arian's hot thermal hit the cold spring from the mountains. It wasn't possible, I couldn't have been walking for more than two or three minutes, but to my joy there was Benny his tail wagging and looking for the world like he'd had had the best day ever. I looked around,

"Mike?" I mumbled. "MIKE?!"

As I shouted, I felt my first contraction tear across my belly and I almost fell to the ground.

"Oh shit," I remember saying out loud. "Not a good time to go following a fucking wayward dog." I stumbled across to one of our log seats that we'd arranged so we could sit and look up at the stars - together.

"Oh Mike," I whimpered, "Benny, I'm in trouble Darling..." a second contraction sprung across my loins and took my breath away. "Arianrhod, if you could to do me a second miracle, now would be a good time..."

I tried to stand, I had to get back to my cottage but as I pulled myself up, I felt a sudden release of pressure as my waters broke and the gush of amniotic fluid spread down my legs. I was pleased that I wasn't wearing my maternity pants that I'd spent the last few months in that was for sure.

With the release of fluid I felt momentarily more comfortable and tried to get to my feet, again and a further contraction hit me.

Benny trotted to me and saw the evident pain in me, as I panted through it. He trotted to where the two tall stones stood and dropping his shoulders slightly barked between them in a manner I'd never seen from him before. Twice, three times he stood there and made like the guard dog he'd never needed to be.

"Benny it's O... Shit!" I cried out as the next contraction took me. Still Benny Boy barked at the darkness between the rocks. What the fuck was going on?