Shaun's stepmother was as certain as any of the rest that the boy had been stolen.
She said, "And luck to the Good People! May they work the lazy lad and make a man of him!"
She was not sorry for Shaun. But she was sorry for herself that he was not there to work for her any more.
In a few months nobody spoke of Shaun in the village. He was forgotten. He was forgotten by all but little Eileen. She thought of him each day.
And ofttimes she went to the lake and talked to the blue waters. She asked them where the fairies had taken her Shauneen.
But the wind only blew ripples over the blue waters of the lake. And the trees sighed, and Eileen ran home crying.
She did not tell her mother. She kept her secret in her heart and kept her heart open for Shauneen.
Then one day after many months, a letter came to the town. It was for Eileen. It came from a strange land; and everyone in the village was curious about it.