~~CHAPTER 1~~
Day 1
Day 1
Squish, squish, squish.
I grunted as I hauled the huge milk bucket across the muddy field of the farm, the golden rays of the late afternoon sun spilling over my shining blonde hair.
Why do I always have to milk the cow?
I puffed the last few yards to the ramshackle barn where old Jenny, the cow, was waiting. I sat down on the milking stool and started the pain-stakenly hard job of milking.
Thirty minutes later i sat back up, my back now aching, with a full pail of the rich, warm liquid. Standing up I let out a big, loud yawn. I grabbed the bucket, wincing under the heaviness, and started for the door when I heard a tiny rustle.
Something‘s moving in the haystacks.
Slowly, I placed the bucket down and quietly crept toward where I thought the sound came from.
There it was. Right in front of me a light brown puff stuck out in between two haystacks. It quivered. As I crawled even closer the puff shook harder and harder until......
“Ahhh!!!!”
The hay stacks flopped down with a dusty swirl and there stood a girl! She was about my age, skinny, and had long, silky hair tied up in a weird way-like a braid but without the braiding. And it looked as if it might have shined if it wasn’t so wild and straw-covered. She stared up at me with hazel-brown eyes, her jaw dropping. I stared at her straight in the eye and her mouth shut soundlessly. Without speaking she tore away from my gaze and started inspecting her trodden clothes.
“Who are you? Where did you come from? Why are you here?” I sputtered nervously.
The girl looked up and, after a moment’s hesitation, began to speak slowly. “Huh? I’m Rosemary and I live in Galindo Court, San Diego. I have no idea how I got here either. Now you answer my questions: first of all, where am I? Who are you? Why am I in a barn?”
I looked at her in astonishment. “Surely you know where you are!”
Rosemary shook her head slowly.
I laughed; I just couldn‘t help myself. “Well, you must be dull in the head, Rosemary. We are in Scotland, of course, and in the tiny village of Whitemire. My name is Katerina. You sneaked in here to steal the chicken eggs, hmm?
“And where is this………this…….place you come from?”
She snorted. “I didn’t come here to steal chicken eggs Katerina. I have no idea how I got here! Oh- I think I’m going to be sick!”
“There, there now Rosemary,” I crooned, “Come, I shall take you back to my home and let Mama fix you up. Come on before the sun goes down!”
She stood up and followed me to the door. I picked up the heavy load again and started off back home with the strange girl trailing behind.
~~~~~~~~
Fire, smoke, and ashes. That was all I saw. No Mama or Papa working the fields, no little James and Jack playing in the mud. Nothing but the smell of burnt wood. Tears rolled down my cheeks. “They are all gone. Who would do such a thing?” I sank to my knees and wept. Not long after deep sleep took over the both of us and we huddled together in the grass with the cold wind biting at our backs.
I woke up with the faint sound of footsteps close by. Shivering, I woke up Rosemary. Huddled in a thicket, we sat, looking for the source of the sound.
A few muttering voices and a sneeze followed the coming of four cavalrymen. They were carrying spears with sharp, crude-looking tips and blood-red uniforms. I looked a little more closely and then I saw it. A yellow ‘M’ with a sword cutting through the middle. The insignia of Magus’s army.
While they were blabbering away I caught bits of their conversation. “……Magus…..destroy the house……catch the girl and her friend…..”
I tried to gasp but bit my lip instead. Why does Magus want to capture me and Rosemary? We’d better leave then.
We waited until the soldiers disappeared and crawled out of our hiding place.
“Where are we going now?” asked Rosemary.
“Back to the barn,” I answered. “I need to gather supplies.”
“Why do we need supplies?”
I grunted. “Didn’t you hear what those soldiers were saying?”
“No. I fell asleep again. Sorry.”
“It’s Magus. He was the one who burned my house down and now he’s sending his troops to go find and capture me.”
“Who’s Magus?”
“No time to explain. Hurry up!”
I was already inside the barn, clearing away the floor to where the attic was. Pulling the door open I told her to stay there. I lit a lamp and went under.
I emerged with four bundles: two packs with food, water, and extra clothes inside, a little bag with two butchering knives, and a sack of dried herbs and medicines.
I shifted two of the packs onto my shoulders and Rosemary followed suit. Then, we set out, with fear in our hearts, up the rolling hills of Scotland; Away from the pile of rubble that I used to call home.
