More fluff! Enjoy!
The meadow at the end of the farm was carpeted in lush grass that brushed the top of Daryl's boots as he leaned against the eight-foot wall in the near-darkness. Maggie settled against the cool stones next to him, resting her crutches on her other side as Glenn and Carol pointed out clusters of lightning bugs to the boys a few feet away. Mika and Carl were sitting in the grass at the base of the wall nearby, shoulders and thighs touching as they watched the two six-year-olds looking intently for their quarry.
The light was almost gone, washing everything with a dim blue hue as the lightning bugs flashed dully in the grass, their luminous bodies only just beginning to glow. Glenn was crouched next to Rory, grinning with excitement in contrast to the focus on his son's face. Glenn had offered to take the boys hunting for lightning bugs and it had turned into a late-evening adventure for Daryl, Carol, and their four children as well. Michael and Rosie had scurried off to listen for owls in the orchard and the sound of their laughter floated back on the warm breeze.
He found himself watching Carol as she sat cross-legged with Caleb kneeling beside her, his little hand holding the sleeve of her light over-shirt. Her skin was almost glowing in the soft darkness and the silvery light of the stars reflected in her eyes as she smiled at his son while he pointed out the first lightning bug to alight, wonder evident on his face.
"Ready?" Glenn asked softly. "Go!" The two boys took off running through the grass, leaping and giggling as the flashing bugs rose in small clouds around them. Daryl snickered at their excitement as they grabbed at the air, trying to outdo each other in how many they could catch and shove in their jam jars they carried.
"We used to do this all the time when we were kids." Maggie confided, beaming as Rory held up his jar for her to see from twenty feet away. "Me, and Beth. Our brother, Shawn, he used to come too… And Daddy would lean on the fence, smokin' his pipe and laughin' at us runnin' 'round like crazy people catchin' bugs we were only gonna let go again."
"Never thought'a catchin' 'em before." Daryl admitted. "They're havin' fun though."
"If I wasn't all banged up I might even be out there with 'em." She teased.
"'S'what you get for bein' a show-off." He countered. She'd twisted her ankle dancing along the narrow rail that ran at knee height around the courtyard, mostly to keep the cows out whenever they escaped their pasture and came to explore the barns and courtyard. It had been a beautiful clear morning and Maggie, in high spirits and much to the amusement of everyone watching, had skipped up onto it and balanced on it, pirouetting and giggling her way to start making breakfast. She'd lost her footing and slipped a little, landing on her feet but spraining her ankle in the process. As a result, she was hopping around on crutches for at least a few more days. "Ain't proper for a grown-ass woman with a child to be actin' like that." He nudged her with his elbow and snickered at her look of mock-outrage.
"Don't pretend that I ain't seen you an' Carol makin' shadow puppets before." She shot back. "Ain't proper for a grown-ass man with a child to be actin' like that."
He grinned at her. "We were entertainin' Caleb."
"He was asleep and you know it!" She exclaimed with a laugh. He shushed her in a hurry.
The smell of crushed grass and apples lingered on the air as the boys set down their jars, a quarter or so filled with the blinking lights, and raced off after cajoling Mika and Carl into a game of hide-and-seek. Carol climbed to her feet and joined them at the wall. The light breeze lifted the curls of silver hair around her face and set them fluttering as the moonlight cast shadows of her eyelashes on her upturned cheeks. She smiled at him.
"I hope you weren't planning on turning in early tonight."
"He's havin' fun," Daryl shrugged. "I don' mind stayin' here if you're tired." He brushed the back of her hand with his thumb and she shifted closer, so that she could lay her head on his shoulder. His arm slipped around her waist and she snuggled against him.
"I'm not, but I don't know how long they're going to play for… We could be out here all night yet."
"'S a nice night, anyway." He shrugged. His other hand came up to tug lightly on the collar of her shirt, straightening it and smoothing it down with his palm. The soft curve of her smile and the crinkles around her eyes drew out a smile from him and she caught his hand in her own. She kissed the knuckles and dropped it before Maggie made a disgusted noise from Daryl's other side.
"Y'll are gonna give me diabetes in a minute!" She grumped, but the twinkle in her eyes gave her away.
Carol just raised her eyebrows and laughed.
The boys came dashing back through the trunks of the apple orchard, nimbly leaping through the grass and cackling as small branches and twigs snapped under their boots while Glenn followed after them, carrying one lit-up jar as a sort of lantern.
"Where's Mika an' Carl?" Daryl asked when Glenn got close enough.
"In the orchard somewhere." Glenn puffed, a little out of breath from chasing the boys. "They're fine."
Daryl growled under his breath and Carol patted his stomach, smothering a giggle. "Lil' bastard." He muttered.
"Don't," She scolded with a sappy smile. "They're okay."
"Not if I get my hands on him he won't be." Daryl threatened with no real malice. "She ain't ours but she might as well be an' he's a sixteen-year-old kid. I know what he's after."
Carol laughed outright at that and despite his grumbling he huffed a laugh.
"Mama!" Caleb bounded up with a jar full of fireflies. "Daddy, look!" They both 'ooh'ed and 'ahh'ed over his hunting skills while Glenn and Maggie did the same to Rory, who then sidled up beside Carol to show her his.
"They're pretty, aren't they?" Carol cooed. "But they're living creatures so we can't keep them all locked up like this for too long… They'll die if we keep them in jars."
The boys nodded somberly at her. "We should let 'em out 'fore they can't breathe." Rory supplied.
"We'll do it all at once, okay?" Maggie interjected. "It'll look like fireworks."
Caleb's eyebrows drew together in an almost comical look of confusion. "What's that?"
"They're like… Uh, they're lights you shoot up into the air…" Glenn rubbed the back of his neck in the faint glow of the firefly jars. How was he supposed to explain frivolities like fireworks? "Like flares, but prettier."
Carl and Mika came back then, hand in hand as he led her though the now-dark orchard. Daryl glared at Carl when he stepped into the wide circle of dim light until he dropped Mika's hand with an audible gulp. Mika slipped next to Caleb and he proudly showed her his jar.
Carol scooped up the third makeshift lamp and beckoned the boys out into the grass once more. "Ready?" She asked, unscrewing the lid of her jar. The boys copied her. "One, two three!" For a moment, nothing happened as they whipped the lids off with a flourish and the boys' small faces fell.
What happened next made Daryl wish he had a camera.
All at once, disoriented lightning bugs burst from the jars and swirled around the enraptured boys. Mika and Maggie gasped in delight and Carl whispered "Whoa…" in awe. The cloud of tiny lights spiraled around the boys as they stretched their arms out wide before swirling up and outwards towards the inky sky, engulfing Carol in a brightly-lit veil as she beamed in wonderment. As the last few fluttered away into the night sky the breathless smile on Carol's face rendered him mute, her bright eyes shining under the starlight at him.
Worn out from all the night's excitement, Caleb yawned widely, breaking the moment. Glenn and Maggie were quietly heading back to their house, Rory slung over Glenn's shoulder, half-asleep. Daryl realised he'd been leaning on the wall, watching her as she watched the last of the fireflies meld into pinpricks of light among the stars, for longer than he'd intended to and Caleb's sleepy tugging on his sleeve caught his attention.
"I'm tired." He mumbled, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.
"C'mon, then." Daryl scooped him up and he wrapped his arms around his father's neck, burying his face in Daryl's shoulder. "'S way past bed time."
He beckoned to Carol and mouthed 'bed time'. She nodded and fell into step beside him as they wandered back through the dark.
Yeah... That is all :) Reviews are welcome!