Challenge 46

Write a story that includes a celebration with a bonfire.

The Last Summer

Beta: Marigold and Llinos

Smiling thoughtfully, the old Hobbit was sitting on a bank at one of the many party tables watching the young lads and lasses that were happily dancing around the big bonfire that burned brightly in the middle of the meadow.

They were singing. They were laughing. They shouted their joy of life into the world.

Two young tweenagers, a tall lad and a dainty lass with hip long brown curls that were dancing in the soft summer night’s wind, strolled past the Hobbit.

A very special light seemed to be all around them and when suddenly the lad gave the lass a small shy kiss on her cheek a whole firework seemed to explode over their heads.

The old Hobbit sighed deeply. “Oh to be a Tweenager again. Ready to set off into the world and the whole life in front of one,” he murmured.

Was that all really already so long ago?

It seemed to him as if it was just yesterday that he had danced with his true love Emerald around the bonfire. Her hands in his hands. A happy smile on both of their faces.

Oh he had been so in love. And truth be told he still was, very much. He hated the thought of saying good-bye so soon to his good wife, leaving her alone.

He felt it though. He felt that the life was running out of him, every day a little more.

Every day he could feel the cold as it spread out in the tips of his fingers and worked its way slowly inside of him. As soon as the cold hand made its way around his heart it would stop beating and be silent forever.

”Very soon, very soon,“ he whispered.

*******

”Are you sad Granda?”

Little Peregrin looked questioningly at Willibald Banks with his big, green eyes while he took a big mouthful of his jam tart.

Looking at the child who was practically covered in jam made the old Hobbit laugh and the sad thoughts that had come over him vanished away.

”Come, Peregrin, my lad, why don´t you keep me company for a bit,” he said, while he pulled a big, white handkerchief out of his trouser pocket to wipe the mouth and fingers of the child at least partially clean.

Pippin endured this procedure with unusual patience and then climbed up on his granda’s lap for a cuddle.

“Granda? Why were you just looking so sad?“ he asked again. “Don´t you like the Summer Celebration?”

The old Hobbit kissed the soft curls of his grandson lovingly. “No, my darling, I love the Summer Celebration. That is why I was looking sad.”

Pippin frowned thoughtfully. “I don’t understand that.”

”That is all right Pippin. One day you will know what I mean…but till then many many years will pass.

”Do you know that I got to know your grandmother at a celebration like this?“

the Hobbit continued.

”I wasn´t much older than your cousin Merry over there, when I saw her for the very first time.“

Pippin stared at his grandfather in astonished disbelief. “You were that young once?”

Willibald chuckled and stroked the child’s untamed curls.

”Yes, I was that young and younger. I once was a little lad like you Pippin.”

”Were you sometimes naughty too? Because Da said to me just today that I was a very naughty lad.”

”Sometimes I was,“ Willibald replied. “What naughty thing did you do today Pippin?”

”I pushed Vinca. But she really had earned it!”

Willibald had to grin. He could remember so well all the little fights he had had with his own sister, Rosalia, when he was a lad.

 ”Granda?“

 ”Mhm?“

”What do you like the very best about the Summer Celebration?“

Willibald didn’t even have to think about that. “The dancing around the bonfire!” he answered.

”Why aren´t you dancing then?“

”I am old darling. It is already many years ago since I have danced around the fire.”

Pippin jumped off his granda’s lap and took his hand.

”Then that’s really far too long ago!“

Before he knew what had happened to him, Willibald found himself suddenly in a crowd of giggling and singing lads and lasses.

Laughing, he picked his grandson up and whirled him through the air.

Not far away from them Emerald Banks stood and watched her grandson and husband, smiling.

When Pippin spotted his grandmother he whispered something into his granda’s ear.

Willibald turned around searchingly and saw his wife standing there. He gave Pippin a kiss and then sat him down on the grass before he walked towards her.

Love gleamed brightly in his eyes and as if Emerald´s eyes were mirrors, the same love gleamed back out of her eyes to him.

This night they danced and danced and amid their laugher mixed the echo of a time long passed.

************

When Emerald was standing two months later at the deathbed of her husband she stroked an errant curl from his already cold forehead for the very last time. She thought of the past Summer Celebration and a smile appeared despite the tears on her face.

She would never forget those precious moments of their last summer together.

And she had the feeling that Willie had taken those memories too, safely locked away in his soul, with him… to wherever he had gone now.

- The End -

AN: My grandparents have been married for a long, long time and are still very much in love. At the end of this summer my granddad got diagnosed with cancer so far advanced that there is no helping him anymore. When I was sitting with him on one of the last warm days on a bank in the garden it came to my mind that this was (very likely) his very last summer ever.