My beloved thinks he is stronger than the river siren, Yara. He thinks that he can withstand her powerful pull, and that the danger is over. It is far from over!

He won’t be able to resist going into the forest when she calls him tonight. I’m certain he will go to the river and swim in the dark pools.

He sits with me in the garden, saying nothing. His face has gone pale and his manner is strange. He won’t answer any of my questions, and he pulls away from me, complaining of a violent headache.

“I’ll tell you everything tomorrow,” he says. He walks away in an angry state, like a man who is going to get his gun.

Julia in The Story of the Yara, Brown Fairy Book. Painting by John William Waterhouse.