A Single Snowflake

by A D Tether

  *

  Joni and George ran into the sea, they held hands as they jumped over the gentle waves then kicked their legs splashing the sea water in the direction of Henderson and Belle, today was a perfect day. A boy's voice called out close by, at first the children could not see who was calling, but when they looked harder there in front of them was a boy, a boy who looked just like Peter from the old school photograph.

  'George it is me, I have waited so long for you, have you come to play with me?'

  Joni gasped, rubbed her eyes and looked again, she grabbed hold of Belle's hand and tried to work out in her mind how this could be, how could a boy only have grown a little bit in over seventy years.

  'Is your name Peter' stuttered George.

  'Of course silly, honestly George how could you forget my name' laughed the boy.

  'I think you are confusing me with my great grandfather, I look just like he did and we both have the same name' replied George, trying to let the boy down gently.

  The boys head fell, a tear trickled down his face, the truth hit him hard.

  'I'm sorry, I am so stupid but of course you can't be George, oh well that is it then, I will never have anyone to play with now' cried Peter.

  'What do you mean, please don't cry, I bet we can help you, and if me and Joni can't I bet that Henderson and Belle can for sure, they can do anything' pleaded George.

  *

  A little way beyond the children, the spirits of Mr and Mrs Rawlings sat up amongst the sand dunes, they watched as their long departed son was at last talking to other children, who were these blessed souls who could see their only child, could today be the day when they would be reunited for ever and set free. They dared to hope, too long they had been lost in the darkness of sleep waiting for Peter to be found, each year on this day they had returned to the very spot that had taken his earthly body, only to be pulled away as the evening took hold, only to hear Peter cry that he still had no one to play with. If only those boys hadn't have tormented him, if only they hadn't have looked away for just those few minutes, their own guilt hung over them, but Peter never blamed them, each year they would be together for a short brief moment, but he was still a child who just wanted to play.

  *

  Joni pondered her next words, her Daddy had told her over and over to ask questions politely and not to be so blunt, she didn't understand his reasoning but tried her best, 'think before you speak' she told herself over and over again.

  'Peter, are you a ghost boy' she asked quietly.

  'I suppose I must be, but please don't be frightened, I'm not dangerous' Peter pleaded.

  'I don't think you are scary but why aren't you in Heaven, I though everyone went to Heaven when they died, or if they were very naughty they went to Hell and Daddy told me there were no such things as ghosts, I mean well.. er.. Belle isn't a ghost or Henderson cos they come from a special place called Shenka, and er.. well Sydney, Julian, Denis and my Nana's guardian Lionel aren't ghosts either, so can you tell us where you came from, cos you weren't here yesterday' questioned Joni.

  Peter's bodily form shimmered in the late afternoon sunlight, he thought hard about the question Joni had put to him, would she understand, he had to make his reply simple enough for her young mind to perceive. His eyes fell on Henderson who was standing knee deep in the sea water, Henderson in turn gazed at Peter, a gaze that ran through Peter's lost soul, the kind of look that would make anyone feel secure and free.

  'Can we play first, just for a little while' pleaded Peter.

  'Of course we can, come on Joni, let's play skimming, there are lots of flat pebbles lying around, do you like skimming Peter?' asked George.

  'Oh yes please, this is such jolly fun' laughed Peter.

  So for twenty minutes or so the three children skimmed stones across the sea, sometimes the stones sank as soon as they hit the water, but other times they bounced, and with each bounce the children squealed with excitement.

  'Thank you so much' panted Peter, 'can we hold hands and just paddle out up to our knees.'

  Henderson was anxious but he knew that first Peter needed to fulfil his long held wish, just five more minutes would be fine,

  'Just five minutes, the evening is getting closer' he urged.

  And so they waded out and when Peter was satisfied he turned around and walked slowly out of the sea and sat down on the sand, George and Joni followed his lead and sat down either side of this new found friend, Belle and Henderson sat down facing the children, whilst Julian sat a little way back and wrote down everything he heard and saw in his precious notebook. They had been sitting for just a brief moment when they were joined by the spirit bodies of Mr and Mrs Rawlings, Peter held on to his parents then begged them to sit down and meet his new friends.

  *

  Pete yawned and sat up, he had fallen asleep in the shade of the marram grass that grew tall in the high sand dunes, Marie was looking silently at the children who were sitting a little apart from each other on the beach facing the sea.

  'Look at them, they are in their own world, I noticed just a few minutes ago that they both turned around and smiled, but I swear they were not smiling at me, I waved but it was if neither of them could see me' murmured Marie.

  'They are a bit odd at times aren't they, does George still talk to himself as if he is having a conversation with someone else' said Pete.

  'Yes all the time, I mentioned it to Margaret a few days ago, and do you know what she said' laughed Marie.

  'No go on tell me' urged Pete.

  'Well she said how did I know he wasn't talking to someone and that just because I couldn't see didn't mean there wasn't anyone there, and the next day I heard her doing just the same thing, I was in my bedroom and she was tidying George's bedroom for me, I distinctly heard her having some full blown one way conversation about someone called Julian and that he just had to give me time' replied Marie.

  Pete pulled a piece of grass from the dune and twisted it in his hand, he was trying to remember a dream, a dream he had when Joni was born, for some reason he felt it was important, vital and urgent.

  *

  'Can you tell us what happened' asked George.

  Peter hesitated, Mrs Rawlings ran her fingers through his hair, for although they were spirits they could touch and feel each other, 'Peter dear, can you manage to do that, can you tell or is it too painful for you?'

  'I can manage Mommy, today has been different, this is the day I have waited for, the day when real children have played with me, and that is all I ever wanted' cried Peter.

  'That's my boy' urged Mr Rawlings, 'we have waited for this day for so many years.'

  Peter closed his eyes and began to speak, Joni and George hardly dared to breath, Henderson sat deep in thought whilst Belle gently leaned forward eager not to miss a single word.

  'It was this date but the year was 1948 and we had come here for a holiday, all I wanted was to play in the sea with some other children. I was so happy to be back with my Mommy and Daddy, but I did so miss George he was like a big brother to me, I missed Judith too, but not as much as George. I was sad that he never wrote to me, but Daddy said maybe he had lost our address and he might be sad about that too. I was paddling in the sea, Mommy and Daddy were sitting in the dunes watching me, they told me not to go in too deep because I wasn't a good swimmer, and I did try so hard to do as I was told, but the other boys made me forget. They were on a raft and were jumping in the sea, they were all laughing and having so much fun. I can remember standing in the sea up to my knees and watching them, just wishing I could have as much fun as they were having. Then one of the boys called to me, he said 'hello there boy, bet you can't swim out to us can you' then another boy called out 'even my little sister can swim, what are you a little sissy.' I just wanted to show them that I was brave so I tried to swim, but I don't know what happened, on minute I was splashing in the water, the next minute I was lost, wandering around in a dark mist, I was so scared, I...'

>   Mr Rawlings interrupted, 'We only took our eyes off him for just a few moments, some people were coming through the dunes and we were in their way, all we did was stand up and move our blankets and picnic basket.'

  'We heard loud shouts and screams from the boys who were playing on a raft, they did try and rescue him but Peter was gone, never to be found, it was a freak wave that took him away' cried Mrs Rawlings.

  'It wasn't their fault' Peter continued, 'it was mine, I should have just ignored them.'

  'But why are you still here' asked Joni.

  'I come back on the same date every year, just looking for someone to play with, I don't know how it works though, and the years go very quickly, it seems that I am only lost in the mist for a few days then I am back, and every year I see my Mommy and Daddy' replied Peter.

  'When we were alive we would come back here each year and look for Peter, we felt his presence but couldn't see him, then something bad happened and we were both killed. It is a strange thing that happened next, it is like being in a deep sleep and only waking up once a year on this date, when we open our eyes we are here on this beach, but the magical thing is we are together if only for a day, we can now see and be with our son, but each time Peter is taken away from us, just as evening falls he disappears, each time crying and calling out that all he wants is for one day, just one day when he can have his wish, all he wanted is someone to play with until he finally joins us for good' explained Mr Rawlings as gently as he could, not wishing to upset the two young children, who had used their powers not only to see but to grant Peter his long held wish.

  'Are you ready Peter, are you ready to join your parents, I can take you now' spoke Henderson.

  Peter looked wistfully out to sea, 'Yes I am ready, but what will happen to the lady who keeps crying in the mist?'

  Julian was still writing in his notebook, he had gradually moved closer to the group gathered on the beach, his heart quivered, surely this had some bearing on the prophecies, a woman's scream had caused the first snowflake to fall on the Shenkan garden, could this be the same woman, is this the key, he needed to speak to Peter. Julian rose to his feet, walked a few feet to face Peter and sat down, he looked towards the sun, it would be setting in less than half an hour, but this was his only chance, he had to ask.

  'Hello Peter my name is Julian Speaksafe, may I ask you a couple of questions, they are important questions and you are the only boy who can answer them' he gently asked.

  'Yes Sir, I will do my best to answer anything you want' he replied.

  'Well can you tell me about the lady, the one who is always crying, she may need our help too.'

  Peter looked Julian in the face, never before had he seen someone so handsome, he thought his father was handsome, but Julian was different, his golden face matched the sunshine, he could see he was a good man, if Judith were here she would say he was an angel from Jesus.

  'She wanders around in the mist, calling for someone called Billy, I have seen her many times, she seems so sad and lonely, once she held on to me, she asked if I had seen Billy, she said he was her husband but he hadn't come home; she said she could hear him playing his violin but every time she moved closer to the music the mist had grown thicker stopping her from going any further.'

  'Thank you Peter you have been very helpful, much more than you will ever know' smiled Julian.

  Henderson knew the time was close, he would offer his services, he prayed that Peter would be ready to go with his parents to their own Heaven, they could chose their destiny, but he would do it discreetly, away from Joni and George. His thoughts were momentarily interrupted by Mrs Rawlings.

  'George ,we did try and find your Great Grandfather and almost did, although it was many years after Peter had .er.. well you know what I am trying to say, we were nearly there, but oh if it hadn't have been for that bomb.'

  Mr Rawlings wrapped his arms around his wife, he would continue for her, he needed to say a few more words, ask one question that had plagued him for many years.

  'George, so sorry to ask you this, but did something bad happen to your Mommy's parents, maybe when she was a little girl?'

  George shuddered, he remembered the story his mother had told him when he was a baby, since then she had only said that they had died when she was a little girl and hadn't gone into detail, but he remembered every word.

  'They were blown up in a restaurant' George replied.

  'We were there that night too George, we had almost found your Great Granddad, we had his address and were planning on calling on him, and just by chance we won a meal in a radio competition, and that is where we met them, we got chatting and got on like a house on fire; such a lovely young couple, they said they had a little girl called Marie. We told them that we were looking for a Mr George Dale who was evacuated with our son Peter during the war, and to our surprise the young woman told us that he was her father, she was going to introduce us, we started to make plans, then Bang! next thing we knew we were standing on this beach, waiting for Peter' said Mr Rawlings.

  'And we never knew if they had been killed as well, we worried so much for a little girl being left without her Mommy and Daddy' sighed Mrs Rawlings.

  'She was alright, my Great Granddad George and Great Nana Lily looked after her, but Great Nana Lily is in Heaven now and Great Granddad is old and in a home, that's her over there sitting in the dunes with Joni's Dad' replied George pointing out his mother.

  Julian listened intently, slowly it dawned on him that all these events were merging together, he felt more optimistic, today would have a happy ending.

  Henderson stood up, he had to move fast, soon it would be too late, he didn't want to run the risk of Peter being dragged back into the mist,

  'I hate to hurry you, but I think we should go now, are you ready' he urged.

  'Are you now ready Peter dear?' asked Mrs Rawlings

  'Yes Mommy' replied Peter.

  'Come on then, let's getting moving, say good bye to everyone Peter' said Mr Rawlings as he rose from his sitting position.

  'Goodbye everyone, and thank you for playing with me' said Peter politely.

  'Goodbye' smiled Joni as she remembered her manners and stood up to say her farewells.

  'Goodbye' grinned George who had also risen to his feet.

  Henderson asked Julian to watch over George until he returned, he promised he would be back by morning, he then led the Rawlings family along the edge of the sand dunes towards a high rock which stood between the dunes and the sea, George watched as they scrambled over the rock face to the other side, then they were gone.

  The children's thoughts were broken, they were being called by their parents, it was almost time to go, they ran to the dunes to rejoin Marie and Pete, they were hungry and thirsty and a picnic awaited.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Passings and new beginnings.

  George woke up feeling ill, his body ached and was drenched in sweat, two days ago he was running around on a beach, it had hit him overnight, a night filled with strange dreams and now his heart was filled with foreboding, something or someone was calling to him, and he didn't know what he was supposed to do.

  Henderson returned as the day was breaking to find Julian sitting on the bedroom floor, watching George as he tossed and turned, listening intently to the mutterings of the restless boy whose face was contorted with pain.

  'Ask Sydney to wake Marie' whispered Julian, 'he needs his mother.'

  An hour later Dr Khan stood by the side of George's bed, the boy was very sick with a flu virus that had him perplexed, there were no other cases of this particular strain, but he had read about it in old journals, a virus that was recognisable by the aching swollen limbs, high temperature together with intense sweating and a dry throat; but this virus was around in the 1940's and had come and gone without any understandable reason. It had however left many children weakened and some had even died, all he could do was prescribe something to bring down the temperature, ease
the aching limbs and advise the mother to give the boy plenty of fluids to drink; he would return in two days but assured Marie that if she was at all worried she should not hesitate to phone him.

  Marie telephoned Pete to see if Joni was ill too, she was her normal healthy self but they agreed that it would be best if there were no home visits for a little while, not until George was on the mend; an hour later Margaret Haywood was at George's bedside ready to help.

  Julian felt he had to speak to Lord Albion, Ralph and Veronica, he didn't want to leave George and Marie, but felt he had little choice; what if the child didn't recover, what if he succumbed the same as the poor children in Judith's letter, there was nothing for it, he had to return to Grafflin and Shenka, he would visit Shenka first then on to Grafflin.

  *

  Julian had hurried to Shenka, as soon as Lord Ralph and the Lady Veronica heard of George's illness they lost no time in making their way to Earth, they did not wish to leave Belle and Henderson out there without support. Just before they left Julian realised that he had not informed them about the prophesy and the boy Peter, but Veronica stopped him in mid track as the words started pouring from his mouth,

  'Belle and Henderson can tell us, do not worry dear Julian, you go to Lord Albion, we will meet you back on Earth.'

  Feeling slightly more relaxed Julian headed off to Grafflin, his heart was heavy in anxiety for Lord Albion who was weakening fast, Julian was loathe to place this burden on his leader, but knew that he had no choice, so taking a deep breath he quietly entered Lord Albion's bedchamber. The room was peaceful, Lord Albion was in a trance lying on his large soft bed under a cover of the finest white satin, Bertie and Rupert sat by his side, sharing a pale blue velvet sofa, silently watching the shallow breathing of their leader. Julian crept over the thick cream carpet that covered the wooden floor and knelt down beside them.

  'How is he?' whispered Julian.

  Rupert spoke without looking at Julian, his eyes never leaving Lord Albion,

  'He grows a little weaker each day, but his mind is still alert.'

  Lord Albion opened his eyes, and slowly turned his head, his mouth formed a smile as he saw Julian, but he had an overwhelming fear of dread, he could see that Julian was troubled and needed his help and advice.