She dreams of Golden Hope

Dreams

"Hold fast to dreams for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. Hold fast to dreams for when dreams go life is a barren field, frozen with snow." Dreams, Langston Hughes

She felt at peace. Contentment filled her, as the sun's light filtered through the window pane and warmed her weathered, wrinkly skin and illuminated her golden curls, that were slowly turning the colour of grey ash. The smell of roasting apples infiltrated her nostrils and coupled with the buttery scent of pie crust, the scent caused Belladonna to smile proudly. It was a warm, summer day and the sun was at ist highest peak in the sky, with it being midday. The comfortable silence that had blanketed Bag End's kitchen was broken by soft, dulcet humming and Belladonna Took looked up from her calculations and smiled affectionately at the back of the girl, who had become a daughter to her and who was working diligently to prepare lunch before Bilbo arrived home from the market. Twenty-two summers had passed, since the day that Elauriel had come to Bag End and had left Laurel as her charge. A day that should have been rued for the misery it had brought and the sadness it had caused young Laurel, but which Belladonna could not help but think of fondly. For from this day onward she had been gifted with Laurel, who she had grown to love like her own daughter. And she knew Laurel was content. She knew that the young half-elf now also viewed this day as a blessing, for she had been delivered to her new family, that had loved her and cared for her. It had not only been a blessing for Laurel, who had from this day on been gifted with a nurturing childhood, but it had also been a blessing for both Bilbo and Belladonna, for they had received a loving and caring companion, who was kind and loyal to a fault and insisted on taking arduous effort to take care of them. Sometimes Belladonna feared that Laurel did this to prove her worth, that she feared Belladonna and Bilbo would throw her out and shun her, if she did not care for them with complete and utter dedication. She had talked to Laurel about her suspicion and the young girl had looked down guiltly, and Belladonna'd had her suspicions confirmed. She had told the girl that she was loved and that she need not dedicate all of her time to Bilbo and her and that she should take care of herself from time to time. Yet, all of Belladonna's beseeching had not caused any change in Laurel's behaviour and she had continued to care almost obsesivelly for Bag End.

She looked at the slender, womanly body of the young woman, who it seemed just yesterday had been her little girl. She felt warmth and longing rise within her and with a soft voice she called out to her and bid her to join her on the table. At the sound of her matriarchal voice, Laurel turned around and smiled affectionately at the elderly woman. She hastily moved toward Belladonna and sat down on the wooden bench beside her. For a fleeting moment, Belladonna had longed to scoop Laurel into her lap like she had done so many times during the girl's infancy, when she had required mothery consolement. Yet Belladonna knew that this was not possible with her increasingly frail physique, especially now that Laurel was just as tall as Belladonna herself. She wondered if her affection and regard for the young woman was being radiated from her form, because she saw Laurel's smile brighten and she felt her dainty, delicate hand cover her own more pudgy one. The girl pivoted her body, so that she was facing Belladonna and she proceeded to rest her forehead on her surrogate mother's shoulder. Belladonna combed an appeasing hand through her surrogate daughter's soft red curls and immediately the smell of sweet peas assailed her. A smell that she had come to associate with Laurel, because after Bilbo's kind gesture that had instigated their life-long friendship, the blossoms had become Laurel's favourite plants and Belladonna, who still cared for her beloved garden, despite her progressing age made sure that at the start of each spring season she had planted the seeds for this flower. The flowers would beautifully adorn the green hedgerows of her garden with vibrant purple and candid pink, but then when the flowers were in full bloom and it was time to harvest them, Belladonna would arrive in her garden and the hedgerows, which had almost been purple with a sea of sweet peas surrounding them, would revert to their forest green appearance. Laurel would raid the hedgerows and take all of the sweet peas that Belladonna had planted. It was the only selfish luxury that the girl indulged in and Belladonna could never find it in her heart to admonish the girl for taking them, especially when she saw bundles of the flowers laying between the fabrics of her clothes and which had explained why all year round Laurel's clothes smelled of the flower. She could not find it in her heart to resent the girl for taking the petals, when she saw her making fragrance and soap out of the brightly coloured petals. She loved these flowers and Belladonna would never forget to plant them for her.