Then Diarmuid rose up to go to her:  “Where are you going, Diarmuid?” she said.  “I am going over to yourself for a while,” said he.  “O Diarmuid,” she said, “that cannot be; I belonged to you once, and I can never belong to you again; but come over here to me, Diarmuid,” she said, “and I will put a love-spot on you, that no woman will ever see without giving you her love.”  So Diarmuid went over to her, and she put her hand on his forehead, and she left the love-spot there, and no woman that ever saw him after that was able to refuse him her love.

CHAPTER III.  THE DAUGHTER OF KING UNDER-WAVE

One snowy night of winter the Fianna were come into the house after their hunting.  And about midnight they heard a knocking at the door, and there came in a woman very wild and ugly, and her hair hanging to her heels.  She went to the place Finn was lying, and she asked him to let her in under the border of his covering.  But when he saw her so strange and so ugly and so wild-looking he would not let her in.  She gave a great cry then, and she went to where Oisin was, and asked him to let her shelter under the border of his covering.  But Oisin refused her the same way.  Then she gave another great scream, and she went over where Diarmuid was.  “Let me in,” she said, “under the border of your covering.”  Diarmuid looked at her, and he said:  “You are strange-looking and wild and ugly, and your hair is down to your heels.  But come in for all that,” he said.

So she came in under the border of his covering.

“O Diarmuid,” she said then, “I have been travelling over sea and ocean through the length of seven years, and in all that time I never got shelter any night till this night.  And let me to the warmth of the fire now,” she said.  So Diarmuid brought her over to the fire, and all the Fianna that were sitting there went away from it seeing her so ugly and so dreadful to look at.  And she was not long at the fire when she said:  “Let me go under the warmth of the covering with you now.”  “It is asking too much you are,” said Diarmuid; “first it was to come under the border you asked, and then to come to the fire, and now it is under the bed-covering with me you want to be.  But for all that you may come,” he said.

So she came in under the covering, and he turned a fold of it between them.  But it was not long till he looked at her, and what he saw was a beautiful young woman beside him, and she asleep.  He called to the others then to come over, and he said:  “Is not this the most beautiful woman that ever was seen?” “She is that,” they said, and they covered her up and did not awaken her.

But after a while she stirred, and she said:  “Are you awake, Diarmuid?” “I am awake,” he said.  “Where would you like to see the best house built that ever was built?” she said.  “Up there on the hillside, if I had my choice,” said he, and with that he fell asleep.