Secrets and A Surprise
“Mammy, come here, look what I’ve found in the garden?”came the excited voice from her three year old son, as he hollered in through the open kitchen door..
“What is it,Severus?” asked Eileen Snape.
The sound of an impatient snort followed by a wail of a long drawn out, “Oh…Mameeeeeee!”
“Hang on, I’m coming!”
She headed out into the garden to be met by Severus who impatiently clung onto her hand and tugged her along to the grass.
“SEE?”
His mother shook her head. “No.” Both of her eyes were nearly closed due to a recent brutal attack on her by her husband.
He had failed to remember in his rush that his Mammy could not see properly. His tummy ached, when he remembered his big loud Da.
He jerked at his mum’s hand and indicated to the ground to kneel down.
“See now?” Severus asked with a smile as he moved his mum’s hand down over the grass.
“Oh it’s a daisy.”
“Uh huh! but look,” her son encouraged and shifted her hand once again.
He watched as his mother felt the other daisy as she began to understand. Severus also encouraged his mum to feel further afield and watched as his mother’s face changed to one of astonishment.
“Oh my Severus, you have found a fairy ring!” His mother laughed, proud of her boy.
“I have?” the little boy shrieked, his high pitch voice clearing the birds from the trees . Then did a happy dance around and around the Fairy ring and his mother. “I just love fairies!”
“Calm down.” she warned, ”“Did you manage to count all of the daisies?”
“uh huh!”
The child scrambled out of her lap and began to count each daisy, to be sure he had got the number correct.
With his tongue between his teeth Severus concentrated and gently touched each daysy as he counted out each in turn.
“One,”
“two,”
“three,”
“four,”
“five,
“”six,”
“seven!”
Together they shared the delight of the fairy ring with peels of laughter as his mum told tales of the fairy folk.
Severus was so proud of his special Fairy ring in his back garden.
The following morning Severus ran out into the garden wearing pyjamas and barefooted. He was excited to say ‘good morning’ to the Fairy ring but stopped short as he dashed onto the grass.
His bottom lip began to wobble, he was sure it was here last night. Distressed, his tears fell faster and faster as he wandered around and around in circles, hunting for his fairy ring but it had gone. He let loose a piercing wail for all in the vicinity to hear!
His mother dashed out into the garden and gathered him up in a fierce hug at finding him so distraught.
Eileen had been listening for Severus to wake but her brute of a husband had demanded her attention as she lifted his jacket down off the peg and handed it over to him along with his piece bag containing his lunch, tobacco and the morning paper.
She was quick to attend to him as she did not wish further blackened eyes, her eyes were beginning to heal after the last time he had used her as his personal punch bag.
She, like her son, had loved the fairy ring of daisy’s in the garden but her husband had not. During the evening while Severus slept he had got out the strimmer and strimmed away the fairy ring. She had tried to stop him but failed and was lucky to get away with just a sprained wrist..
A week later, Severus slowly tugged on his mother’s shirt and whispered to her.
“I’ve a secret.”
“Really?” his mother asked in a whisper.
“Yes.”
They kept their voices low as Severus’s dad was sitting close by and was on the phone booming his big voice out for all to hear.
He stopped talking when he spotted Severus and he frowned.
“What is it now?” He snarled back at him annoyed. He made his eyes smaller and glared angrily as his son had disturbed him as he talked to his workmate about the next footy game.
Severus rapidly shook his head and slipped away quickly retreating out into the back yard.
Shouts came from the kitchen as Severus played outside. He then heard the front door slam. His dad had gone. Only then did he run back inside.
“Mammy!”
They hugged each other and Severus told his mum his secret.
“Don’t tell me Da!”
“I promise.” and gave the little worried boy a quick hug.
The Fairy Ring had returned.
It had reappeared in the back garden sheltered by the greenhouse and near the herbs on the tiny plot of grass close to the compost heap. A place his father never ventured .
The pair had afternoon tea set up on the wonky table outside the greenhouse with Severus’s chair facing the Fairy Ring. Today was a Saturday and it was an away game so Tobias would be gone long into the night, so they both could relax.
The little boy had insisted on setting up his miniature plastic tea set beside the fairy ring with wee samples of food on the plates and water and juice in the cups.
“Do fairies like chocolate cake?” Severus asked, his feet swinging back and forth as he sampled a piece of cake.
“I do not know but I know a little boy who does.” Eileen looked over at the fairies and smiled, sending them a wink.
Seven fairies sat along the stone wall and listened to the chatter between the mother and child. they would inspect the tea set later thinking the cups and food, just about the right size for them to hold.
They had witnessed the attack on their fairy ringby the mean man and had conspired to give the child a new ring where the angry father would never venture.
The seven fairies later agreed that they did indeed like chocolate cake.
End.