The Man in the Myth

Chapter 8

"He was the hound of Chulainn." Roisin explained. "He lived in the early 1700's."

"An Irish myth?" the professor asked.

Roisin nodded.

"Can you come up with multiple sources?"

Roisin smiled and nodded again. "Yes, Mr. Collyr. I have numerous sources.

"Alright, Roisin, you may do your final thesis paper on Cu Chulainn, the hound of Chulainn. Shannon, what is your final thesis going to be on?"

Roisin was in her last semester of her master's degree. She had decided to major in English Lit Studies with a minor in Mythology and Folklore. She wasn't surprised that she had chosen the minor she had. Her interest in Cu had shaped much of her life, afterall she became a gold medalist in an Olympic sport because of him. Roisin easily ignored the rest of the class as she thought about the paper she was going to write. It was going to be an easy thesis paper. 

"Roi, hold up." Sasha ran across the quad catching up with Roisin as soon as she was done with her class. Roisin turned around ans smiled at her best friend. She caught the happiness in Sasha's eyes. She had some good news she wanted to share.

"What's up, Sasha?" Roisin slipped the second strap of her backpack onto her shoulder.

"I got the job!" Sasha shouted, jumping up and down as she did so.

"The kindergarten one?" Roisin asked with as much excitement as Sasha.

Sasha nodded and clapped her hands. "Yes! They accepted my application and I start this fall."

"Yea! Are we celebrating tonight?"

"Not tonight," Sasha shook her head. "Declan is taking me out to celebrate. But let's celebrate this weekend."

Roisin nodded. "Alright, this weekend."

Sasha fell in step with Roisin.

Roisin smiled at her friend. She was the epitome of a kindergarten teacher. She exuded happiness and cheerfulness. Her spunk, fun, and adorableness would permeate every aspect of her teaching. She had an infectious energy that Roisin was constantly being affected by. Sasha's personality was evident in her wardrobe, bright hues and playful patterns were a constant in Sasha's style. But most importantly, she had a way to connect with children and the school was lucky they hired her.

Sasha couldn't keep the skip out of her step as she walked alongside Roisin. "What about you? Did you hear back from Novel Notions?"

"Not yet. But that's okay." Roisin said with a smile.

"What about Andy?"

"No, we broke up." Roisin turned and laughed at Sasha's face. Her best friend always wore her emotions on her face. "It's okay, Sash," Roisin said with all sincerity, "it was mutual."

"But I can't go out and celebrate with Declan if you just broke up with Andy."

Roisin laughed again. She loved all of Sasha's reactions. "Absolutely not. I'm going home to start working on my paper, and you're going out with Declan."

"Fine, but after the date tonight, we are eating icecream and sharing feelings."

"Sasha..." Roisin shook her head.

"Fine, you eat the icecream and I'll share the feelings."

Roisin laughed again. She loved her friend, and Sasha was someone who wore her heart on her sleeve. "How about lunch now? And then you can see that I am not struggling over the loss of Andy."