At the end of the month he came back again, and stood in the great hall at Teamhair, and no one had ever seen him look so comely as he did that night.  And Eochaid had all his best fighting men gathered in the hall, and he shut all the doors of the palace when he saw Midhir come in, for fear he would try to bring away Etain by force.

“I am come to be paid what is due to me,” said Midhir.  “I have not been thinking of it up to this time,” said Eochaid, and there was anger on him.  “You promised me Etain, your wife,” said Midhir.  The redness of shame came on Etain when she heard that, but Midhir said:  “Let there be no shame on you, Etain, for it is through the length of a year I have been asking your love, and I have offered you every sort of treasure and riches, and you refused to come to me till such a time as your husband would give you leave.”  “It is true I said that,” said Etain, “I will go if Eochaid gives me up to you.”  “I will not give you up,” said Eochaid; “I will let him do no more than put his arms about you in this place, as was promised him.”  “I will do that,” said Midhir.

With that he took his sword in his left hand, and he took Etain in his right arm and kissed her.  All the armed men in the house made a rush at him then, but he rose up through the roof bringing Etain with him, and when they rushed out of the house to follow him, all they could see was two swans high up in the air, linked together by a chain of gold.

There was great anger on Eochaid then, and he went and searched all through Ireland, but there were no tidings of them to be had, for they were in the houses of the Sidhe.

It was to the Brugh of Angus on the Boinn they went first, and after they had stopped there a while they went to a hill of the Sidhe in Connacht.  And there was a serving-maid with Etain at that time, Cruachan Croderg her name was, and she said to Midhir:  “Is this your own place we are in?” “It is not,” said Midhir; “my own place is nearer to the rising of the sun.”  She was not well pleased to stop there when she heard that, and Midhir said to quiet her:  “It is your own name will be put on this place from this out.”  And the hill was called the Hill of Cruachan from that time.

Then they went to Bri Leith; and Etain’s daughter Esa came to them there, and she brought a hundred of every sort of cattle with her, and Midhir fostered her for seven years.  And all through that time Eochaid the High King was making a search for them.

But at last Codal of the Withered Breast took four rods of yew and wrote Oghams on them, and through them and through his enchantments he found out that Etain was with Midhir in Bri Leith.

So Eochaid went there, and made an attack on the place, and he was for nine years besieging it, and Midhir was driving him away.  And then his people began digging through the hill; and when they were getting near to where Etain was, Midhir sent three times twenty beautiful women, having all of them the appearance of Etain, and he bade the king choose her out from among them.  And the first he chose was his own daughter Esa.  But then Etain called to him, and he knew her, and he brought her home to Teamhair.