gh thick tangled woods,
and rough red-headed hills, and over the wide plains of the country. And
every chief man among them chose the place that was to his liking, and
the gap of danger he was used to before. And the shouts they gave in the
turns of the hunt were heard in the woods all around, so that they
started the deer in the wood, and sent the foxes wandering, and the
little red beasts climbing rocks, and badgers from their holes, and
birds flying, and fawns running their best. Then they let out their
angry small-headed hounds and set them hunting. And it is red the hands
of the Fianna were that day, and it is proud they were of their hounds
that were torn and wounded before evening.

It happened that day no one stopped with Finn but only Diorraing, son of
Domhar. "Well, Diorraing," said Finn, "let you watch for me while I go
asleep, for it is early I rose to-day, and it is an early rising a man
makes when he cannot see the shadow of his five fingers between himself
and the light of day, or know the leaves of the hazel from the leaves of
the oak." With that he fell into a quiet sleep that lasted till the
yellow light of the evening. And the rest of the Fianna, not knowing
where he was gone, gave over the hunt.

And the time was long to Diorraing while Finn was asleep, and he roused
him and told him the Fianna must have given up the hunt, for he could
not hear a cry or a whistle from them. "The end of day is come," said
Finn then, "and we will not follow them to-night. And go now to the
wood," he said, "and bring timber and dead branches for a shelter, and I
will go looking for food for the night." So Diorraing went to the wood,
but he was not gone far till he saw a fine well-lighted house of the
Sidhe before him on the edge of the wood near at hand, and he went back
to Finn with the news. "Let us go to it," said Finn, "for we ought not
to be working in this place, and people living so near at hand." They
went then to the door of the house and knocked at it, and the
door-keeper came to it. "Whose house is this?" said Diorraing. "It
belongs to Conan of Ceann Slieve," said the door-keeper. "Tell him,"
said Diorraing, "there are two of the Fianna of the Gael at the door."

The door-keeper went in then and told Conan there were two men of the
Fianna at the door. "The one of them," he said, "is young and strong,
and quiet and fair-haired, and more beautiful than the rest of the men
of the world, and he has in his hand