Story 5-Pooka

Night of Pooka

Juan left the cave to go back to his campsite, while daydreaming about the day he had met his own wife. His thoughts brought a smile upon his face and a warm feeling in his heart that he would leave the island one day and back home to his family.
    As evening was falling upon Juan, he sat down in front of his homemade shelter while feeling the warmth of the campfire in front of him. He was watching the beautiful sun setting on the horizon, while watching his parrot friend hopping around the beach playing with a little crab.
    A few hours passed, when Juan was awoken from his sleep to sounds of voices. He gathered himself together and walked outside his hut. When looked around, Juan noticed King Oberon and some fairy workers putting his raft together. Juan strolled up to King Oberon as he proceeded to talk to his fairies’ workers, “Juan, did you think I would forget about you and your gift? My queen would have never let me forget about that. I had to console her for deep mourning for her dear friend.” Juan looked up at King Oberon and gave a sigh, “Thank you so much, your Highness, I will be eternally grateful.”
    Within a few more minutes, the King spoke to Juan, “We are finished now, and we must leave. I bid you a safe journey home, Juan.” Juan stood very still as he watched the King and all the fairies disappear in a blue fog. Juan then stood and looked at his completed raft and knew his dream about going home was soon approaching.
    Juan then turned around and went back inside his hut to return to his sleep. However, just as Juan lay down and tried to close his eyes, he heard an awful screech sound calling his name from a distance from his campsite. Juan stood up and walked out from his hut to have a look around his campsite. He thought maybe his old fairy, Puck, might be playing tricks on him again.
    Juan walked around his campsite in all directions but could not see or find anything. A tall, black horse came rushing from behind and swooped him onto its back. Juan was startled at what was happening, because for a couple of weeks now being on the island, he never saw any horses there. Juan was holding onto its mane for the fear of falling off and breaking his bones on the rough terrain below them. The horse galloped faster and faster right inside the cave. Juan was now in fear because if this horse did not stop they would both die against the cave walls. Then a green fog appeared and Juan and the stallion jumped right through the fog.
    As they entered the mysterious fog, Juan felt himself falling to the ground. He landed on his rear end with such a thump. Juan scrambled to his feet and realized that he had been transported to fairy land. Then at the moment, a voice called his name again. Juan looked up and around to find where the voice was coming from. Juan realized that he was in a mushroom little house that looked like a pub. Juan walked to a small log table and, behold , in front of him was a plump fairy with antlers coming from his head. The fairy motioned Juan to have a seat and pushed a coconut in front of him. The fairy told him, “Drink, Juan, for I got a funny story to tell you.” The fairy told Juan that it was just coconut wine but it would leave a heck of hangover tomorrow.
    Juan positioned himself in the sapling chair while sipping on the coconut wine. The fairy started his story only to interrupt himself, “Oh, by the way, I am Pooka, an old Irish fairy goblin and the great uncle of Puck.” Juan knew that he was about to have some harm done to him, so he kept alert to all comings and goings about the pub.
    Pooka took a big gulp of coconut wine, “Juan, many fairy years ago, I met a young man while out on one of my many midnight escapades. He was a little man and he was drunk, when I met him at a bridge. I can change into many different animal forms, and that night I transformed myself into a tall, black stallion with fiery yellow eyes. He said that he was a musician, but let me tell you, Juan, that little man could not play a single note.
    So I wanted to fool around with him a bit and took him to see some lady friends. When we approached my friends’ house, we entered and he was asked to play. However, when he played, the sound, hurt our evil ears. I stomped the floor with my hoof and at the moment he began to produce great melodies from his bagpipe. My lady friends were fooling with him and they all gave him gold coins for his performance.
    When we were done with him, I threw him back onto my back and galloped away in the night. However, before I reached his destination I was galloping so fast that he tried with all his might to hang on. So, I abruptly stopped in my tracks and threw him a stinky fermented marsh bog. As I disappeared into the night, he stood up to gather himself and looked into his satchel and found that the gold coins turned into a pouch full of maggots. Now, Juan, wasn’t that a funny story?” Juan looked at this strange fairy and gave a smile and nod. Juan then proceeded to ask, “Can I go back to my hut now, for I am really tired?”
Pooka stated, “Well, yes, Juan and I will give you a ride back to make sure you are safe.”
    Juan and Pooka stood up and finished off their drinks, when Pooka grabbed up Juan and threw him on his back which he transformed himself back into the very same black horse from earlier. Pooka again gave Juan a wild ride back to his hut and bucked him off into the pile of rotted fish that Puck had given him. Pooka chuckled as he trotted away and said to Juan, “In the morning, I will leave a big surprise for you. Good night!”

Author' s Note:
Pooka is a feared fairy goblin from many Irish and Welsh folklore. I took the story from Irish peasantry folklore about "the Piper and the Puca" and shortened it a bit to change the plot from the piper not going home to his mother and telling about his adventure and the gold coins. My Pooka was retelling this story like one of his many mean tricks among Irishmen.

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Original Story: "The Piper and the Puca" , Sacred Texts Online
Author Translation by Douglas Hyde of Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry. Edited and Selected by W.B. Yeats , 1888.