CHRISSY
This was getting more and more like one of the more difficult clubs, and I was beginning to feel very much out of my depth, for I had nothing I could bring to that evening’s table. The stuff about ‘Pat’ had blindsided me, and then Red stepped in with even more.

It was indeed like one of those clubs, where a succession of devious sods did their party pieces and challenged me, in effect, to outdo them. That place with the guitarist who seemed to worship Nick Drake, for example. I just about had to beat him to death with the smallpipes.

She was talking about a murdered woman now, and from the way Deb and her girls were nodding along, they all seemed to have known her, or at least known of her. At least Steph was making some sort of sense, but I had to slow her down.

“Steph?”

“Yes?”

“Just an observation, a little one. Your music day sounds like a lovely thing, but there’s only going to be three of us playing at Brocolitia, and Frank, if he’s up to singing. Not quite what you have, as resources, like. You’ve got me at it now, Anth”

I waited for the laughter to abate, hiding my smugness, before speaking again.

“Anyway, it does sound like the sort of do I might fancy, so keep me in mind, kay? Now, when I sat down with Neil here, I brought a notebook. Both sorts, actually. I like paper and pen, me. What I had planned to do is ask for some requests, of tunes and stuff. I’ll assume that ‘Saucy Sailor’ is in the mix. I’ve got a guitar with me, so I can cover the intro, continuo and outro. You okay for the main melody, Steph? I think lots of right hand in it would lift things”

She looked at her husband, who just nodded and waved her on.

“Geoff here has a bouzouki and an octave. One of them for rhythm?”

I made a couple of notes.

“That’s one, then. We play, Frank sings. Neil: any particular pieces for you?

He sat in silence for almost a minute, before Frank put a hand to his arm.

“While you think, mate, there is one I can think of. Alun Wallis sang it, to his daughter, aye?”

I noticed three of Deb’s girls nodding rapidly.

“What’s the song, Frank”

“First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”

Bloody definitely, and one for me.

“I can do that one. Fiddle accompaniment, Steph? Just nod. Neil?”

“There’s one, but it’s sort of shared with Mike. He says it was a favourite of his first wife, and…”

He locked up for a second, mouth twitching, before speaking again, his voice slightly strangled, and I realised he was fighting the urge to sob. Poor, poor man.

“Cyndi Lauper song. Words… we both work, worked, with light, me and her. And what hurt her was being who she was, who she really was. True Colours, that’s the song. That’s my request”

Steph was now smiling.

“I know the song, for the same reasons. It’s one that really, really speaks to people who, well, my community. And I have a tune for, well, for the end of things”

She told me. I grinned, almost happily.

“That will do very, very nicely. Any more for any more?”

To my surprise, it was Rosie, who had sat very, very quietly through everything, who added a request.

“Debbie will understand this one, and who it’s for. Glen Campbell, Wichita Lineman. Would you mind that one, Sis?”

Debbie’s face was as clenched as Neil’s had been, but she gave a sharp nod. Card full, in terms of timescale and mood. I needed a quick refresher, though.

“You lot staying here for a while? Could someone grab me another pint, then I’m off to pull up some recordings and get the Campbell and Lauper into my fingers and gob. And write down the lyrics, as well; they’re both a bit before my time”

Geoff did the honours with the ale, and once that was gone, I was back over to my little room in the YHA and onto the internet.

The Campbell was a gift for a singer, and the melancholy tone was perfect for what we had planned, especially with its hints of singing, windblown wires. ‘Dance on the wind’, that was Rosie’s phrase. As for the Lauper, how the hell had I ever missed it? It was so clearly a song about a trans person, and it left me with a lump in my throat the size of a spud-u-didn’t-like. ‘First Time’ was one of my standards, so no worries there, but I took myself into the shower before bed, and did the traditional sing-into-the-nozzle. Head down early, woman; heavy day ahead.

NEIL
I wondered if she had left us out of embarrassment, with all of the emotion coming out from our group. It was getting to me, for when I had opened up before, it had been to Alys and Lexie, or to Mike and Ish, and Chrissy was, really, a stranger. Debbie was staring at me, as was her sister, and it was Rosie who spoke first.

“I hope you don’t mind us adding all our own memories, Neil”

“No. It’s like I said. Gives Maddy friends to go with her. Where did you let Pat go, Debbie?”

A long sigh.

“Top of Foel Grach. Special place for us”

“But she’s still with you”

“Oh god aye! She always will be, just like… Ah, shit. I remember you that day, Anth, just about. Me and Rosie, for my parents. There were a few of us”

He smiled, ruefully.

“Ah had guessed yez weren’t exactly in the mood for a designer coffee, like”

“No, not really. But that day, we had, well, we had a group, but three of them are also lost. That’s where the Glen Campbell bit comes in. Sorry to take over, as I said”

“These were good people, then”

It was Kim who spoke up, almost spitting the words.

“Three of the fucking best, Neil, and other cunts to hate”

Debbie had her hand, then pulled her into a hug, soothing as best she could.

“Aye, Neil. Two of our brothers, and… And Rosie’s man. Neil, I know you spoke to Woolly that day, and he said how much respect you were giving the place, so we can add my three… brothers to the good people we remember”

Even I could pick up on the hesitations, but it wasn’t the time to push. Maddy had taught me that much: unless there’s a real need, move on if it gets prickly.

That’s fine, woman. Now, more beer? What was that thing about livers?”

Kim’s husband was the first to laugh, calling out “The liver is evil, and must be punished?”

“That’s it. None of us are driving until late tomorrow. If this is a wake, we can do it right”

I think it was Anth and Frank who helped me to bed.

DEBBIE
Neil was true to his word, but after a couple more, I tapered the alcohol off. Driving a fifteen-seater with a hangover was never a good idea, but I noticed that Steph was not stinting.

“Oh? Me drinking? Ah, getting a lift tomorrow, so I have the whole day to sober up, and Geoff and me, we’re staying a few days anyway, so we won’t need to do any driving at all”

“What are you doing? A bit of rambling?”

“Na. Have a blitz of Peel and Crag Lough Crags, then off up Simonside for the sandstone. Can’t come all the way here and not climb”

I noticed Scott hanging on her words, so waved at him to speak.

“You’re not shy, son. Don’t pretend”

“Ah. Right. Steph, would you be okay with some extra bods? We’ve brought some kit, but weren’t sure if we’d get a chance, you know. Bit of local knowledge. How are you getting to the crags?”

“Oh, first two are a short walk from here. Simonside’s a lot further, and Geoff’s van is only a two-seater”

Bugger it.

“what’s the other place like, Steph?”

Geoff answered for her.

“Junior mountains overlooking a valley with an old Market town, Rothbury”

“Ah! I know that place! Dad loved it; lots of engineering stuff”

Steph grinned happily.

“Oh indeed. And the hills are a bit like the Beacons, open grassland, but with stands of conifers. You’ll be wondering about the birds”

“You know me too well”

“I also know enough to have been searching the net while you negotiated. Says loads of warblers, raven, merlin, ring ouzel, chats and a mix of owls. That do you?”

It would do for a start. Sod it; I could drop them off somewhere near the climbing, and go for a drive.

“Debbie?”

“Neil?”

“I do know the area”

Enfys waved an arm.

“So do we, Miss! Came up here with her rents years ago. Alys? You got ideas?”

“Er, if Debbie’s doing a naturish amble, that would do me. You want to climb, don’t you?”

“Might do. Have to think about it…. Course I do. What do you suggest, Neil? Or where?”

“There are some real antiquities here”

Enfys mugged a bit.

“Duh, Roman Wall?”

He nodded.

“Older. Much older”

I was intrigued by his teasing.

“How old, Neil?”

“Well, a hill fort that’s about two to two and a half thousand years old. And some stones nearby. Six thousand”

Leo, from Italy, with its freight of history, had been looking smug, Rome going back allegedly to around seven hundred and fifty BC, so when Neil calmly offered such a huge number, his jaw dropped.

“I have to see these!”

Cathy was chuckling now, then did her evil rubbing hands together skit.

“So… I get to see an igneous intrusion on a vast scale, and climb on it, then go and climb on the sedimentary country rock after doing some archaeology. Suits me!”

Her face straightened.

“What? I just spent years studying this stuff, so leave me to my little games. Apart from the climbing. Belays, aye?”

Neil snorted.

“Whose round?”

Rosie did the honours, but only after a gleeful whisper to me of “Lightweight”

When Anth and Frank returned from putting him to bed at the end of the evening, I doubt they’d have agreed with her.

Tomorrow would be a hard day.