The Thief and the Thunderstorm. Part Eight

Part Eight: Dreams and rewards

Many hours later the Thief awoke. He opened his eyes to see sunlight and bird song. He remembered failing to rescue the coat, yet he felt good and happy. He clambered out of his battered van and sat down on the grass before his house. He breathed in the scent of honeysuckle and whinbushes, and drifted off into a gentle day dream.

In the dream the Thief could see the dolphin swimming through the mighty Selkie Palace. In its mouth it carried the Royal sealskin coat. Beside the dolphin swam the porpoise carrying the starfish on its back. The three heroes were flanked by the huge seals of the Selkie Royal Guards.  As they swam through halls and corridors, they were greeted by the cheers of Selkies, lobsters, seagulls, crabs, molluscs, herons and oystercatchers. And of course the happy ‘Arrr. Arrr’ of a pipe chewing be-whiskered old sailor.

When the thief woke again, his heart was full of happiness for he knew the dream was true and that the Queen of the Selkies had been saved. From that moment on he gave up trying to become rich: he never stole anything ever again and from that day to this he has been content to live his life quietly and happily.   

Of course, this is not quite the end of the story. For the Queen of Selkies was so grateful that her life had been saved, that she had given a great reward to the porpoise, the dolphin and the starfish. The Queen also decreed that the human who had helped them would be rewarded with his weight in gold and jewels. All Selkies were ordered to keep a look out for the man who had help save the Queen’s life. 

And so it is that sometimes when you walk along the Galway coast you will occasionaly see a seal out in the water watching you with its great dark eyes. Only it is not a seal, it is a Selkie looking for the thief who saved the Queen of the Selkies.

-fini- 

If you've enjoyed this story you why not check out  Sandy and the Unicorn.