I felt weak and my stomach was growling with hunger, I inevitably opened my eyes to the light coming through the window, everything was blurry, I was lying on a bed.
-So I'm in my room, it was all a nightmare, good, I'm glad, I should eat something.
I tried to sit up in bed, but I lacked strength, even so, moving made me realise that I wasn't at home.
-Where am I?
-You're at my house Ingles, Helen brought you here once you collapsed, you'd lost a lot of blood, but she cooked your head wound.
Shit then everything that happened wasn't a dream.
I put my hand to my wound, I had a bandage on my head.
-Thank you very much for your help.
The burly man standing at the edge of the door burst out laughing, he was bald with a single bald patch in the middle of his head, his hard face was accompanied by a thick moustache and a long dense orange beard.
-Your way of talking is very funny stranger, it's as if you were talking to a baby suckling at its mother's teat.
-I'm sorry for my way of speaking, and I thank you very much for letting me stay in your home.
-Don't worry about that, I'll see how you can make it up to me, now I must admit that I had bet with my wife that you were not going to survive.
What's wrong with this guy?
-I suppose he's Helen's husband?
-You make me die laughing, I could piss myself, I would never marry that scrawny old maid, Helen is Fress's cousin, the love of my life.
-I understand, sorry for the confusion, I must have been in a very bad way for them to bet on me surviving.
-Yes you were complaining all the time, besides we couldn't give you medicine, Fress's father has been seriously ill for some time, and you are an unknown invader of our land, so I think you understand where I'm coming from.
-I understand well enough, but... where are my manners, what is your name sir?
-Sir, hey man you're seriously going to kill me laughing, my name is Finley, and save the "sir" for your own.
-Well, Finley, if it's not too much to ask I'd also prefer you to call me Gran and not English, besides I'm not here to invade your sacred lands, no king invades me either, by the way.
-Whatever you say, Gran, you even have a funny name.
It's normal that you don't believe me, after all, I'm a stranger, I need to eat something.
I put one foot out of bed, I barely took it for support, I went face first into the floor, my legs couldn't support my weight.
-What's wrong with me?
Finley came over to me, picked me up and sat me on the bed.
-Take it easy boy, you've been asleep for three days.
-What do you mean I slept for three days, was it that bad?
-You sounded like you were a bloody Fetch screaming at night, you were saying incomprehensible words.
Finly mimicked my screams as if he was dying.
-Jero, Jero Jero, or something like that, that's why I bet against you.
Unconsciously I must have clung to Hero, then again I saved myself, along with this family.
-At all this, apart from me there hasn't come to this town a red-eyed woman, with a look, how do I put it as if I'm judging you.
-How specific, but I assure you no woman has passed through here, but let's get this talk over with, here, get dressed, my wife had the courtesy to clean your strange clothes.
At that moment I just realised that I was completely naked.
Because you didn't tell me I was naked!!!!
Helen was the one who stripped you naked to heal your wounds, but don't worry I won't tell anyone about your little birdie.
Finley started playing with his little finger.
Somebody kill me now, God if you exist I'll be struck by lightning.
With Finley's help I was able to get dressed, apparently his wife had washed my clothes, curiously the garments were soft and extremely clean, she had even removed the blood stains.
-Finley, your wife did a splendid job, she made my clothes as good as new.
-I'm glad you like it, your clothes are strange, but I can tell they're very fine, are you some Baron, or something like that.
-No, I mean I don't think so, honestly there are things I don't remember since the blow on my head.
There's no doubt they're good people, but I'd better keep up the lie I told Helen.
-Helen mentioned something about you not remembering some things, I guess if you don't remember them, they shouldn't be very important, by the way, this was in your coat pocket, I'm afraid it got wet.
For a few seconds I was stunned, I quickly grabbed my mobile phone from Finley's hands, I tried to turn it on, but it didn't work... damn, it must have been ruined when they washed my coat.
-It's a strange object, tell me what is it?
How do I answer you now... I need to think of something.
-It's a memory, of something I can't remember.
Shit, even I couldn't believe that.
-I understand, don't be discouraged, at some point your memories will come back. -What?
What, is this guy stupid? But how did he swallow that? Anyway, at least this will avoid any more questions.
-Finley changing the subject, excuse me, but could you give me something to eat, I need to get my strength back.
Finley again took me in his arms.
-No problem, my pretty wife has already prepared breakfast.
-Look love, look who the goddess Morrigu spat back to life.
-Don't invoke ill omens Finley, but I'm glad the little lord finally woke up.
-Thank you Miss Fress, one thing, you mentioned Morrigu, are you talking about Morrigan the Goddess of death and the one present in all the wars?
-Yes, another name, but the same Goddess, it depends on the town you visit in our beautiful Ireland, they will tell you one or the other.
-Dear, just call me Fress, Miss is a flattery from a young man like you, but it's not something I like.
Fress, he is the same person who let me stay in the stables as I said, he is a bit plump, but he has a very kind face.
She started to put some wooden plates on the table, from a small kitchen cabinet she took out a different plate, apparently made of lead.
Finley sat down across from me, grabbed a piece of bread and began to eat it.
-Love that stew smells amazing, I want to eat it already.
As Fress brought the lead dish over, Finley spanked his wife's bottom on the way over.
-Love we have visitors, besides it's too early in the morning to frolic.
-Fress my angel, it's just that knowing that Morrigu blessed this house by saving the Englishman makes me like a bear coming out of hibernation.
Ah, yes, Morrigu is also known as the goddess lover, of love and sexual desire... this is getting uncomfortable.
Fress poured food for each of us, also ladled a spoonful of stew into the lead dish, put it on a tray and took it away.
-I'll go and leave the food for my father and I'll be right back.
Gran don't say anything, it's none of your business, if you say anything you'll screw up, I can't change things....
-Fress that lead dish of yours came a little while before your father got sick..... Finley told me your daddy's sick.
Shit, why am I still talking, I can still take it back.
-Now that you mention it, if my father won it in a bet, these dishes are all the rage lately, but they're expensive, and he asks for his food to be served on that plate.
-Your father, by any chance, will have these symptoms: anaemia, personality change, vomiting, headaches?
-Yes, but how do you know if you don't even know him?
Both Fress and Finley were surprised.
How do I tell them without arousing suspicion... I've got it.
-Where I come from we had lead dishes, many people started to get sick after changing the dishes, eventually we discovered that, when in contact with certain acidic foods, the lead in the dish poisoned the food, causing lead poisoning in the blood.
Fress looked at me for a while.
What should I do then?
-The first thing is to vote that plate, feed him soft foods, clean his body well, especially his hands and faces, to avoid lead dust in his body, I also recommend cleaning his room, more than that I don't know what treatment to give him, some of them got cured with time, others died.... I think the best thing to do would be to pray to whoever you think you should pray to.
Finley's wife dropped the plate on the floor, her eyes filled with tears.
-Is what you say true?
-I'm afraid so Finley, how long has he been eating off that plate?
-Since almost a year.
A year!!!, how the fuck is that man still alive?
Next thing Fress cleaned the food off the floor, voted for the plate, then served a new meal on a wooden plate and took it to her father, there was some shouting from the room upstairs, but after a while it calmed down.
-Sorry for the shouting, it's wrong for me to say it, but Fress's father has a shitty temper.
Don't worry, besides, I'm the one who's grateful to you, you saved my life.
-Son, if everything you said is true, I think you more than paid your debt.
It's the first time since I've been talking to Finley that he's taken a serious stance, and talked to me like I'm his equal.
I stared for a while at the wastebasket, in particular the lead plate.
For a moment, remembering the conversation I had with Helen, we are almost at the beginning of the 14th century, which means that this type of dishware should not yet be a fashion.
- Could you tell me who made this type of dishware fashionable?
The lout Lord Irish, he is the current ruler who put long legs in Ireland, he together with the "nobility" made this crockery fashionable.
Again that name, I never heard of him in all my time of study, and I know the history of this place backwards and forwards... according to what I know the ruler for the year we are in should be another one, what's going on?
I started to eat before the food got cold, not only did it smell delicious, but it also tasted tasty, the more I ate the more I felt my strength returning to me.
-Where is Helen, I would like to thank her for what she did for me.
-The scrawny one left yesterday, she was just visiting, she works in? she went back to her job in Dublin.
-Too bad, I would have liked to talk to her.
Finley got up from the table and went to get something from the next room and came back.
-This was in your things too, Fress didn't want me to give it back to you, because she was afraid of you, and having a stranger armed is not a very sensible thing to do, but as a warrior I wouldn't want to be far from my axe.
Finley handed me my dagger.
-It's a beautiful blade, the pommel is beautifully ornamented without interfering with the grip, a balance is existo and besides I've never seen a black blade before, tell me which master blacksmith did this work?
-This knife was a gift from my father, it has a twin which was given to my sister, this weapon is important to me, I thank you for returning it to me.
-You're welcome boy, may your blade drink a lot of blood in the future.
How disturbing that was.
-I'd really prefer never to have to use it.
-I think that would be a cruel fate for such a beautiful weapon.
It took me another five days to recover and be able to walk on my own again, both Fress and Finley were good to me during that time, plus Fress's father started asking for more food, which was at least a sign of improvement.
I tried to make bread to help out a bit with the housework, but as I've never done it before you can imagine that I ended up making more than bread that was harder than rock.
-I can tell that cooking is not your strength, young Gran.
-Fress I apologize, I wanted to help them a little, but apparently I just made him spend more resources than necessary.
-Don't worry honey, come and get some more flour, I'll show you, first, take the yeast, mix it with a little sugar and pour some warm milk, now let it rest for a while.
Honestly Fress has been uniquely patient with me, they've been looking after me, which means they spend a lot more resources just being with them, you can tell they're not wealthy, plus they're kind enough to teach me, she reminds me a bit of my mother.
-What are you staring at me?
-No, you just reminded me of my mother, she had your same kindness and patience.
-Gran, you are very kind, but believe me, don't compare me to your mother, I assure you I don't deserve those words.
Even so, she was telling me with a smile on her face, I preferred to change the subject, since, even I didn't know why I talked about it, my mother is something I don't usually talk about, in fact, it's something I even avoided to do with Hero.
-So what do we do now?
-Now we add the flour, 3 teaspoons of salt for a kilo of flour and knead until we have a uniform dough, come and put your hands in the dough.
-Like this?
-Yes, now fold the dough tightly, that's good, go on like that.
I continued kneading until the dough was ready.
What do we do now?
-We let it rest with a bale on top until tomorrow so that the dough can rise.
I see, now I understand why the breads I made turned out like a stone... Fress I know I'm going to be repetitive with this, but I really appreciate what you and Finley have done for me, I promise I'll get to make it up to you.
Fress looked at me with pity, I couldn't understand the reason for those eyes.
-Gran, don't apologise anymore, you have helped us a lot with my father's illness, you don't owe us anything, boy.
Those words made me feel warm, having come to this family made me take the things that have happened to me in a better way.
-There's no more water left, I'll go and get some more from the well.
-Leave it to me, I'll get the water.
-Don't worry, I'll go myself.
Fress left, and at the same time Finley came into the kitchen.
-Boy, get ready, tomorrow I'll teach you how to hunt.