Tilly limped through the still dewy grass. The weedy girl looked pitiful, her figure and clothes dirty and tattered. She was now eleven years old. Three years it had been since she had lost her home and her father, her last living relative, to a fire. Since then she kept herself alive for better or for worse with begging and odd jobs. She appeared accordingly. Dressed in old rags compassionate souls had gifted her, with felted long straw-blonde hair, haggard but still not losing the will to live from the clear blue eyes. Her skin was tanned, for it was summer soon and she lived out in the open. Currently the child’s skin was laced with bruises because she was expelled with club blows from the nearby village of Heathton together with other beggar’s pack as recently as yesterday. Sadly not the first time she had to experience something like this.

After she had spent a night on moss cushions underneath a knotty old spruce tree, Tilly now set off again. She hurt all over though but the bit of money and food she brought with her in a small bag would surely not suffice for long. The next village, Cliffwood, lay beyond the shadowy woods she currently traversed, and from Heathton to Cliffwood it would take the girl three days or more for sure. Especially now, when she couldn’t walk normally. At least Tilly’s rags-wrapped feet were still sound. Even if it was already early May these days, it could nevertheless be astoundingly brisk in the morning, particularly as the frost of the previous winter could still be felt in April. Correspondingly, Tilly shivery coated herself further with her tattered rags.

One step at a time the girl continued on her path. Only at noon the child took a break. The cold was already gone by now. Birds joyously sang in the branches of the green forest trees. A gentle wind bringing the smell of spring blew through the scrub. The surface of a larger forest lake a slightly broader creek was pouring in sparkled in the sunshine.

Tilly currently stayed at the shore of the very same lake. After she initially had refilled her hose, she now allowed her travel-weary feet rest in the cool lake water. At the same time she chewed on a hard heel of slightly moldy bread which was her first meal of the day. Tilly had come not as far as originally desired due to her injury but that couldn’t be helped.

It’s not like I had a horse or cart. she thought to herself. Her only trusty means of transport were her feet even though she once had learned to ride, back then on the stud owned by her father.

She would have forgotten the ridiculous thought right away if she had not seen a lonesome grazing horse at the bank of the other lakeside when looking up randomly from her frugal meal.

Tilly rubbed her eyes in surprise. The horse really was there.

A big black stallion grazed peacefully on the shore beyond as if forgotten by the world.

Excitedly Tilly crammed the bitten heel of bread back into her small bag, wrapped the rag binding hastily around her dripping-wet feet, and stood up as fast as her sore body allowed for. The straying steed was a unique opportunity for her! Not only could she try to reach Cliffwood faster on horseback – of course in the hope that the animal was already used to being ridden – she could also try to sell it to thusly fund her further life.

Carefully the blonde girl scurried from shrub to tree to bush, always intent to not warn the mount too early of her presence but also not to lose it out of view. The animal, however, grazed unperturbedly even when Tilly left her cover and approached the black horse slowly with a calming tone.

She had already neared the grazing horse except for a few steps when she was struck by an inexplicable shiver. Suddenly the old stories that the child’s mother used to tell on long winter evenings at the chimney crossed her mind. Among them was also the story of the cruel water horse, the kelpie, that but waited for an oblivious person to sit on its back to carry him quickly into the depth of the water and devour him there.

“You aren’t a kelpie, horsey, are you?” the girl asked with a hushed, shaky voice.

The yet impassive steed quickly turned its head to the beggar child and looked at her with piercing eyes in a manner making the girl’s hair stand on end.

“A kelpie?” the black horse asked in a dark voice that seemed to derive out of a deep abyss and snorted disdainfully. In the process he showed his teeth that, far from any kind of horse, consisted of fangs like a carnivore’s. “I am an each-uisge, please! How can anybody confuse me with something like a kelpie? Do I live in a river like a dim-witted kelpie? No, I live in a lake. I would be pretty stupid if I had to arrange myself with the stream current. What’s more, an each-uisge is much more majestic than any kelpie! Honestly!”

With paralyzed limbs Tilly stared at the presenting surreal scene. She had barely considered possible that she would hurt the pride of the water horse with her question.

“Kelpies! They all only know kelpies!” the each-uisge complained “Hardly anybody has ever heard of the proud each-uisge! Not to mention that nobody can correctly pronounce our name!”

When the rant didn’t abate even after a long time, the girl managed to regain her composure. This nagging water horse, though eerie, didn’t seem nearly as dangerous as the man-devouring creature of the legends.

“Do you eat people?” Tilly even dared to ask.

Surprised, the black horse stopped his lament and gazed at the child that now appeared to be no longer afraid of him.

“Certainly I eat humans!” the horse declared with a thundering voice as if it was a matter of course. “Humans taste so much better than fish, ducks, and of course all the green stuff. Tender human meat! Who could ever get enough of this? Only human liver, it’s disgusting. But I don’t eat it though. Incidentally, such an each-uisge like me is much more skillful than any kelpie. No human that catches sight of us is able to survive the encounter.” so the steed proclaimed with a proud chest “You also won’t get away any better, girl.”

“But how shall people know the each-uisge when nobody is alive to report about it?” the girl wanted to know. She hoped to hold the impending death off her neck with this question. Had Tilly become aware again through the each-uisge’s statements how dangerous he was, she knew at the same time that a maltreated eleven years old child never ever could escape a rested stallion.

The unexpected question made an impact. Perplexed, the water horse began to think about it. At times he nodded; at times he shook his head so that his mane flew wildly through the air.

“You’re right.” the each-uisge admitted “I’ll let you run for once in order for you to tell the humans about the powerful each-uisge Domhnull.” Thus the black horse declared complacently. But as he watched the child in front of him the satisfaction seemed to wane though.

“Anyway, you’re no real bite.” Domhnull commented “Will anyone listen at all to such a scruffy brat like you?”

Now it was Tilly who frowned. True, she really didn’t look particularly favorable but one hadn’t to rub that straight into her face. And then it’s even a horse that talked about her derogatively. But the young beggar had always been a very shrewd child. At any rate she wanted to take care of it that the beast from the lake depth didn’t consider otherwise and also to benefit herself.

“I’m going to Cliffwood. There they know me.” the girl declared “But I don’t know how well I’ll get there. In the village from where I’ve come, I and other beggars have been clobbered very badly. Look!” With these words Tilly turned around and exposed her back that was beaten black and blue.

At this sight the each-uisge made a grimace as well as his equine facial expression allowed for. “Something can be done about it.” he said.

To her surprise, Tilly suddenly felt cold hands at her back. Startled she turned around.

“Hey, keep still!” Domhnull complained. The big black water horse still had the same dark voice but not the same shape. Instead of the ungulate there stood an elegant and handsome black haired young man, clad in a fine black costume like only the wealthy were able to afford. Out of dark eyes which appeared like fathomless lakes, the water monster that had become a man discontentedly glared at the girl. “Do you want to be healed or not?” he asked gruffly.

The girl said nothing and nodded simply. Who wouldn’t gladly be healed?

“This ointment is mainly made out of eel fat which works wonders for a variety of wounds.” The now humanoid each-uisge explained and presented a small ointment potty. Then he began to carefully spread the thwacked back with the ointment appearing pleasantly cool on the skin. He also continued the treatment at the hurting legs of the girl. In a few days the bruises would have disappeared for sure. The view of the beaten and haggard child, however, touched the otherwise adamant heart of the water monster. No human child who had encountered him had ever looked as pitiful.

“Where are your parents, your family?” Domhnull wanted to know quite out of character.

“The gods have come for them.” Tilly replied “For mother when I was still very young, for father three years ago. I have nobody else.”

For a moment the each-uisge still pondered if he shouldn’t simply eat this child which wouldn’t be missed by anyone, but considered then otherwise after all. Too bony he thought, not quite honest with himself. Fact was that for the first time in his life he felt something like pity.

“So, that’s it.” The water spirit declared and the young beggar covered her back with cloth again. Then she thanked the horse creature, collected her bag and limped her way, anxious to bring as much distance as possible between herself and the man-eating water horse.

She hadn’t come far yet when it thundered behind her back: “Hey, where do you think you’re going?”

With a face turned pale with terror Tilly turned around. “To Cliffwood.” she responded with a thin voice.

Domhnull, now in the shape of a horse again, trotted straight to the girl. “As covered in scratches as you are you won’t come far.“ the beast declared “Swing upon my back and we’ll ride to Cliffwood.” At the same time the black horse uttered a loud snort to appear demonstratively uninterested.

A conflict of doubt and hope was reflected in the little girl’s blue eyes. “Really?” she wanted to know “You don’t want to plunge me into the lake after all?”

“Nonsense!” the each-uisge barked “You aren’t even a worthy bite. Furthermore you shall report about me and my kind. Now get on.”

Tilly nodded approvingly, more to encourage herself than to consent to the horse. Then she began to swing herself on Domhnull’s back. Because of the unfamiliar movements and the height of the stallion who hadn’t laid down to facilitate the child’s mounting, a moan escaped from the girl’s mouth even though she very rarely announced her pain.

After the steed had noticed that his rider took a seat, by the way in a position looking skillfully, he spoke “Hold on tightly.” before he broke into gallop. The young passenger had barely time to hold on to the mane of her mount before the voyage started. Although she could also hold onto the sides of the horse with her legs, but just to make sure. Just like that an unusual pair, a murderous water horse and a young beggar, stormed away towards Cliffwood and into an unknown future.