IloveOrlando08 - Thanks, I am glad you are enjoying the story, I am trying to make it interestingly different:)
Chapter 5:
Lily had a lot of things to do today. They would bury Rose before dinner and then the rest of the night would be a big feast. Tomorrow night the small village would sing and dance, they would feast, tell stories and they would farewell one they all loved. Rose was a wonderful singer who had written many songs and Lily was going to sing them all as part of her farewell. It was all stipulated in the letter Rose had left. She did not want anyone to grieve her parting, she wanted a celebration of her life, not sorrow and despair of her death, but most of all she wanted her daughter, her flower to live and grow without sadness.
Lily had dressed in her favourite simple red dress, she had done her hair up with red roses and stepped outside ready to start the day that would end an era of her life. The whole village had pitched in to help, everyone was busy working hard to get everything ready. They all wanted it to be perfect. Rose had touched the lives of a lot of people while she lived here and she will be sorely missed by everyone. One of the villages walked over to Lily when they saw her standing looking forlorn and lost, it was Margie Hedgson. Margie was very old she had lived in the same village her whole life and had never even been past the boundaries. It was her who took a pregnant Rose in when she stumbled into the village twenty years ago, lost and with nowhere to go. Margie delivered Lily on that stormy night and later on helped Rose get sorted with a job and a hut for her and her new daughter. Margie had always been like a grandmother to Lily.
"How are you my dear, do not worry yourself about anything today we have it all under control"
"Thank you Margie, I do not know what I would do without you" replied Lily.
The day dragged on as final preparations were completed and people started to ready themselves.
"It has to be done exactly as mother wanted it" whispered Lily, "I can at least give her that"
Rose had been very specific about the ordeal, she wanted to be dressed in her special white gown with white flowers all around her. The gown was the one she had arrived in the village in all those years ago. It was very unusual, made of a silky type of material no one knew. Some said it was elvish and that Rose was an elf princess exiled from her home, of course that was not true but then Lily had pointy ears, so the rumours grew. There was definitely something special about Lily but Rose would never speak of her life before the village and Lily never asked.
The procession started just before dusk. The whole town was there, they stood in a line which led towards Roses' grave and they all wore the same expression of grief. Four men carried the casket with Rose inside dressed in her white dress with white flowers in her hair. George was the towns wood carver, he had made Roses casket and had carved beautiful roses all over it. Bill was the towns shepard, he kept watch over the flock of sheep and kept meat available for the townsfolk. His wife had a difficult birth and with Roses help she gave birth to a beautiful boy who they later named Jack after his wife's father, so he always gave Rose the choice cuts of meat. Tom was Margie's husband, he loved Rose and Lily like the daughter and grand daughter he had never had and also there was Samuel. He was the most educated man in the village, Rose would cook for him once a week and in return he taught Lily to read and write. Lily followed behind as the only known relative. They reached the grave which lay under the huge Willow tree and between the two flower bushes the mother and daughter had planted many summers ago. One was a Red Rose bush and the other was a White Lily bush which both grew near the river banks. Lily sung a short song that she had written last night, it was a song to say goodbye. Each of the town members filed past to say goodbye and they each threw a handful of dirt on top of the body. Lily was last and then the men filled the rest of the grave in. The headstone was simple, it read Rose, mother of Lily, much loved by all who knew her. Lily sat crying next to her mother until the feast was ready.
"I love you so much my mother, my best friend. I will do what you have asked, I will never let you down, I love you and I will miss you, You have taken half of my heart with you"
Lily slowly walked away from her mother with her head down towards the feast.