occasions, Diarmuid's friends, envious of his good luck, visited the lady and asked for one of the new pups. Each time, she honoured the request. Each time, Diarmuid was angry and asked her how she could repay him so meanly when he overlooked her ugliness the first night they met. On the third mention of that which he had promised never to speak of, the Loathly Lady and the house disappeared, and his beloved greyhound died. Realizing that his ungratefulness has caused him to lose everything he valued, Diarmuid set out to find his lady. He used an enchanted ship to cross a stormy sea. Arriving in the Otherworld, he searched for the lady through green meadows filled with brightly coloured horses and silver trees. Three times he spied a drop of ruby-red blood and gathered each drop into his handkerchief. When a stranger revealed that the King's gravely ill daughter had just returned after 7 years, Diarmuid realised it must be his lady. Rushing to her side, he discovered she was dying. The 3 drops of blood Diarmuid collected were from her heart, spilled each time she thought of Diarmuid. The only cure was a cup of healing water from the Plain of Wonder, guarded by a jealous king and his army. Diarmuid vowed to bring back the cup. His quest for the healing cup nearly ended at an impassable river. Diarmuid was stumped until the Red Man of All Knowledge, who had red hair and eyes like glowing coals, helped him cross the river and then guided him to the king of the healing cup's castle. Once there, Diarmuid issued a challenge and in response the king first sent out one thousand six hundred fighting men, then one thousand eight hundred. Diarmuid single-handedly slew them all. Impressed, the king gave him the cup of healing. On the return trip, the Red Man advised Diarmuid on how to heal his lady. He also warned the young hero that when her sickness ended, Diarmuid's love for her would end as well. Diarmuid refused to believe the prophecy, but indeed, it came true. The lady sadly understood that Diarmuid's love for her had died. She couldn't live in his world any more than he could live in hers. Diarmuid boarded an enchanted ship to return to the Fianna, where he was greeted by his friends and his greyhound, which the lady