The Lady of Camp Moonbeam

The sun had begun to sink slowly over the emerald colored mountains, displaying the last of its embers into a haze of yellow-orange light, soon giving way to tints of purple streaks across the sky growing into blue twilight. As if given a silent signal, a glowing blue moon began to rise where the sun once stood. What few clouds remained, the moon's beams shown through like luminous searchlights throughout the land, and the camp, known affectionately as Camp Moonbeam, for which the area and the lake were named.

Ten years had past since the last time i was here, and this summer i got the opportunity to be a dorm counselor for one of the dorms. As luck would have it, i was placed in my old dorm. Though it looked older than in my day, the faint scent of the pine flooring still permeated throughout, reminding me of all my adventures and nervousness of my first summer there. There was no more time to reflect, i had to meet up with the rest of the counselors and kids at the Wolf's Den, one of campfire sites for singing, gooey s'mores, and storytelling...particularly the storytelling.

After the first two camp songs, and the first counselor telling the story of the Laughing Fish of Moonbeam Lake, one of kids asked me a question.

"Counselor Ryan, what's with the old cabin down Acorn Trail with the candle in the window?"

"Oh that". Looking down and grabbing my upper left arm, i could feel the long scars, nothing more now but smooth grooves in my skin, i first hesitated to reply, then relented. "Well that's a long story, if you're brave enough to hear it." With curious eyes now focused on me, i began my tale.

First remember this: "Beware the lady of ghostly blue, who hums a tune by candlelight, to follow her path, you're in her trance, you'll never see the morning light."

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. Long ago, before this was a summer camp, it was a mining camp back during the gold rush days. People from all around would come into the mountains to stake their claim and hope to make it rich. Besides that, there was some trade with the local tribes that lived in the area, and surprisingly they got along pretty well. The tribe in the area at the time only had one requirement to the miners,"do not partake in the area where the acorns fall when the moon shines high. it is the place where spirits dwell, and where they remain.

I wish i could say that this warning was heeded, but it wasn't. Some decided to build some cabins in that area, and nothing at first happened...at least until that first full moon. In one cabin, two miners who shared a claim together, began to start distrusting one another, hearing in the wind voices whispering their name, and saying, "he will betray you, he speaks untrue....." It left one miner to be killed by the other, leaving the partner going mad, and later finding his body by the river, with a expression of shock on their face, and their tongue removed.

Another cabin housed a young couple just starting out. Both worked together panning for whatever gold they find. Sometimes the man would pan until the sun went down, and his partner, with candle in hand, walk down the path to where he was, and lead him back to the cabin. Well one day, after the sun went down, the man's female companion went looking for him, and didn't see him at their claim. So, walking in a blue dress back to the cabin, she heard the faint whispers on the wind,"he will betray you, he speaks untrue..." Not believing this, she gets back to the cabin, and puts the candle in the window so he could find his way. Day after day, she would check their claim, not find him there, and walk back to the cabin. It was said every night, the candle was lit for him, and every night, the voices whispered on the breeze and in the trees of his possible betrayal. At some point, it's said she went mad, or saddened by the thought of being left alone, she would go down to their claim, work what she could, and would hum a tune on her way back to her cabin. One day, a neighboring miner who knew the couple went to see them. When he opened their door, the woman was gone, with only the blue dress left behind.

"What happened to the woman, did the guy really take off?"

"No one knows, no trace was found of either one."

"So, how did you get the scar?"

"My scar is a reminder of what i told you all earlier. Me and two other friends of mine heard about the story, and despite wanting to go to bed after lights out, on a dare, went out to the cabin to see if we could see "The Lady". Halfway between the path to our cabin and Acorn Trail, in the distance, we seen someone walking up the trail, candle in hand, humming to themself. the tune was pretty, kinda hypotizing, and before long me and my buddies were mere feet away from the cabin."

"With a calm smile, she motioned us inside, her blue dress flowing lightly against the wind blowing inside. She set the candle in the window, and stared outside."

"Why did you betray me, why were you untrue?"

"Why did you betray me, why were you untrue?"

Her voice went from a nervous tremble, to turning around yelling frantically at us: "WHY DID YOU BETRAY ME, WHY WERE YOU UNTRUE!!!!"

The door had slammed shut on us, awaking us from our apparent slumber, now realizing we were in deep trouble! my friends went behind me, tugging at the door, trying to open it, but having no luck. Scared, with my hand shaking, "I'll STAY WITH YOU, I'M NOT UNTRUE!!!", it was the only thing i could think of to blurt out.

At that moment, The Lady's frantic yelling stopped, her trembling expression became a calm smile, and she opened her arms as if an embrace. I looked at my friends with the signal to get out while she's distracted by me, and get help. As i walked to her to hug her, the door released its grip. My friends pulled the door open, and ran back to the dorm.

In The Lady's embrace, the best i could describe how she felt was a fuzzy, chaotic warmness. She hummed her tune, as she held me for dear life. I was screwed, there was no way i was getting out of this alive. The last thing i remembered was being held, and the candle going out......

Next thing i knew, it was daylight. The Lady was gone, and was awakened with scratches on my arm, and the current counselors checking to see if i was ok. We all walked back to the camp area, where i was scolded about the dangers of not following campus rules, and the amount of chores i had as punishment.

"Did you see your chickens*it friends again?"

"Yeah, i did, but i'll never do something like that ever again, i was lucky".

One counselor spoke up, "good story, but that can't be true though".

Everyone at the campfire got quiet for a moment as a light melodic humming can be heard in the distance........