The death of Juliet's father came as a shock until her mother found the outstanding gambling debts. Her mother cried for a week when she discovered her late husband had gambled away every valuable they owned; even much of Juliet's money was gone. They were on the street before her father was even in his grave. Juliet, who had always been aware of her father's addiction, kept many of things that she couldn't bear to part with in her locker at school. She hid away her sketchbook, her favourite book, about two hundred pounds, and her great-great grandmother's pearl necklace. As there was no money left, Juliet was forced to leave her prestigious art school.

With her money, Juliet bought a bus ticket, at her mother's request, to the countryside, where her mother's family home, Moonacre, resided. It was a one-way bus ticket. Her mother told her that Juliet that she was to live with an uncle that Juliet had never even heard of, let alone met. She was also going on this journey alone as her mother was going to try to find a job so that they could put their lives back together.

Juliet didn't protest. She knew that it would be no use; her mother was just as hard headed as she fwas. So she packed the few belongings that she had left and headed to a valley that she had never even heard of; Moonacre.

The bus dropped her off near a sign that read: "Silverydew, 6km." Behind the sign lay a beaten, unpaved path that was too narrow for a car to pass through. Juliet knew that no one was coming for her because no one even knew she was visiting. In her knapsack, she held a letter addressed to her uncle informing him of the situation. Her mother didn't want to risk a responding letter telling her that she was unwelcome, but she knew that her brother, given no other alternative, would never turn away his own niece when she stood on his doorstep with no where else to go. That was also why her mother did not accompany her to Moonacre.

Juliet took a folded piece of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it. Her mother's hand drawn map was a little vague, but she eventually found the path on the map. It was a winding road, but it didn't branch out do she knew that it would be easy to follow. According to her mother, it was a half an hour run to the gate and a three-hour hike to the manor.

'There by suppertime,' she giggled to herself as she tied up her curled red hair is a quick twist. She took the white ribbon she wore around her neck and tied it to her knapsack. She pulled her fingerless gloves over her hands and began to jog. This was one of the very few times that Juliet was glad that her mother had forced her to participate in track and field. She picked up the pace and sprinted across the English countryside following the designated path.

Juliet had spent her summers by a lake with her parents. Her father would take her fishing and her mother would make cobblers with the berries they would pick. They were the pleasant memories that she tried to hold onto. She had always loved the fresh air and the stars. It was a nice reprieve from the stink of London, but she found the quiet of the country unnerving.

Slowing her pace after nearly fifteen minutes of running, she noticed that her stomach was growling. Without completely stopping, Juliet took her bag off her back and pulled out an apple she had stolen from a grocer's back in London. She bit into the apple, creating a satisfying crunch.

If she hadn't been listening, it may have masked the crunch of branch from the nearby woods. Juliet tossed the finished apple core at the sound, hoping that she was feeding a hungry rabbit but also listening for any human sounds.

"You lost, sweetheart?" a young man asked as he emerged from the forest. He was a little older than Juliet with curly brown hair. He was dressed all in black; there was even a piece of fabric tied across his face, covering his nose. There were feathers and jingling trinkets hanging off his leather jacket and he wore a red scarf around his neck. He looked like he lost a bet.

"Don't call me sweetheart," she growled, "and I'm not lost. I know where I am."

He smirked, pushing his hat to the back of his head. "Whatever you say darling," he answered.

Juliet rolled her eyes. She had a long way to go and she didn't have time for local bumpkins. She turned to walk away from him, but he grabbed a hold of her elbow.

"You're not going anywhere, darling," the boy proclaimed.

She whirled around, slamming her tight fist into his chest. The boy released her arm, stumbling backwards. Juliet kicked him in the shin.

"Little witch!" he snarled as he clutched his chest.

Laughter exploded from the forest as two other black-clad boys emerged from the woods. "Can't handle her, Robin?" one of them mocked.

"Shut up!" the first boy snarled. Robin's dark eyes were consumed with rage, but at the same time desperation as he looked at Juliet. He looked almost like a beaten dog with a steak being waved before his eyes.

His gang surrounded Juliet, like vultures circling a corpse. They cooed and snickered at her as they moved in. "Here pretty!" one laughed. "Come on, don't be a little prude."

Juliet glanced around, searching for an exit. She decided that she would have to run through them and head for the gate, which according to her mother's sketches was climbable. Feeling cheeky, Juliet flashed a smirk a Robin before taking off like a jackrabbit. She pushed past the boys, wildly attacking them with her balled fists, and kept running, even though they were at her heels.

From their groans and grumbles, they didn't think that such a small girl could run so fast. Their complaints stopped once the wall and gate came into view. They laughed, yelling at her that she had nowhere left to run. They thought that she was trapped like a rat, but she was just full of surprises.

Juliet leaped into the air, pushing off against a lower stone, launching her forward. She grabbed a hold of the warm stones and began to climb, to the utter surprise of the young men below her. They could have climbed after her, but they remained on the ground.

"She's not a girl, she's a cat!" Robin yelled after her. "Come on love, come down before you hurt yourself."

Once she reached the top, Juliet turned back to glare at them. "Not a chance! Now go away before my uncle has your heads!" she screamed after them.

They laughed. "Oh, we're shaking in our boots!" one of the nameless boys laughed.

Blood rushed to her cheeks. "My uncle is Sir Benjamin Merryweather! He is the lord of a manor so you hooligans had better leave me alone!" she didn't know how much of what she was saying was true. She had never met her uncle and he didn't even know that she was coming.

Robin's eyes widened. "Benjamin Merryweather is your uncle?"

Juliet did not respond. She simply stared at them. "Bye boys," she said before beginning to climb down the wall. She heard a barking sound so she looked down at the ground to see a gigantic black dog with strange red eyes snarling and barking at the boys through the gate.

They seemed intimidated by the massive black dog. She debated whether or not it was wise to descend any further. Her options were to either climb back up to be pushed around and possibly inappropriately touched by a band of boys who may simply slit her throat, or she could climb down and possibly be ripped to shreds by a demon dog. Oddly enough, Juliet picked the latter. She jumped off the wall when she was about a meter and a half from the ground. The dog glanced back at her, softening its expression. It glared at the boys again. She glanced through the iron gate to see that the boys were still standing there, but in fear. The dog turned away from them and trotted over to Juliet. It stopped by her side, staring up at her with its tongue hanging out.

Juliet had never been one for dogs or really any animals. She had never been allowed a pet so she didn't really know how to act around them.

"We'll get you," Robin snarled as he dared to approach the gate, "next time, Moon Princess." He pressed his hands against the bars.

'Moon Princess? Is he mad?' she wondered, but did not make her ponderings known. She laughed, turning away. She began to run up the path, hoping that the boys were not following her, but then the dog had scared them. She glanced back to see that they dispersed back into the woods. There leader, Robin, lingered a little longer to glare daggers into Juliet, who stuck her tongue out at him before running up the winding dirt road with the large dog by her side. He vanished like his comrades into the deep mysteriousness of the woods.

Juliet slowed her pace to a light jog. The manor was in view, though it was far off. She patted the dog's head. "Good boy," she cooed. Hoping that the pooch was a male.

Nearly twenty minutes later, a horse drawn cart pulled up beside Juliet. The cart was filled with straw. The driver tipped his floppy black hat at her. "Mornin' miss," he said. "What are you doing here?"

Juliet hesitated, but felt oddly comfortable around him. He reminded her of a fairytale character though she couldn't pinpoint which one. "I'm going to see my uncle Benjamin Merryweather," she said quietly.

The man smiled. "I am heading up to Moonacre myself. Climb in I'll take you the rest of the way," the man said as he pointed to his cart. He looked at the dog. "Hello Wrolf. What are you doing out of the house?"

Juliet scratched Wrolf's ear. "You know him?" she asked.

The man nodded. "I work for your uncle. Wrolf is his dog," he explained. "The name is Digweed."

"Juliet," she responded as she climbed into the cart. The dog jumped in after her.

Digweed nodded. "Nice to make your acquaintance," he said. "Does your uncle know that you're coming? He didn't say anything to me this morning. We could have picked you up. There are dangerous people in the forests."

Juliet hesitated. "He doesn't know yet," she whispered.

Digweed nodded. "Alright, deary. Hold on," he said as he forced the horse to move forward at a slow pace.

The mansion came into view and Juliet nearly cried at how beautiful it was. The manor was a pale grey with a darker grey roof and was surrounded by an eight-foot wall surrounding it. There were towers that reminded Juliet of the one that you would see in fairytales. A small green house stood near the house. Around the house stood tall oak trees that looked to be centuries old. Juliet couldn't wait to climb them, assuming her uncle would allow her.

Juliet's mother had never mentioned her brother so she had no idea what her uncle was like. For all she knew, he was a tyrant. She thought of asking Digweed about his employer, but was to shy to do so. Wrolf hopped out of the moving cart once they had reached the metal gate of Moonacre. Digweed walked up to it and pushed it open before returning to his cart. The sun was dipping in the west as they drove through the gate. They were on the grounds of the manor. Digweed closed the gate.

A man stood outside of the front door with his arms crossed. His hair was darker than her mother's hair, but they both had the same grey eyes. She also inherited that particular family trait. He was dressed in a thick black peacoat and a pair of dress pants. His expression was solemn. His grey eyes clouded over when he realized that Digweed had picked up a stowaway.

"Who is this?" he demanded. His voice boomed like thunder, causing a knot to grow in Juliet's throat. Her image of a tyrant reappeared in her mind.

Digweed smiled despite his employer's cold tone. "This is Juliet," he said, but that was not exactly what Benjamin had wanted as an answer.

Juliet leaped out of the cart and walked up to her uncle. "My name is Juliet Fray. I'm Annabelle Merryweather's daughter," she introduced herself. She handed him the letter that her mother had given her.

He snatched it from her. Benjamin ripped open the envelope and scanned the short letter. His frown grew deeper as he went on. Benjamin crumpled the paper. "That bastard," he hissed. "I told her not to marry that irresponsible ass." He looked up quickly at Juliet. "I'm sorry for your loss," he added flatly.

She shook her head. "No you aren't and neither am I," she replied. "My father was a horrible person who left his wife and child with nothing but bills."

Benjamin stared at her. He cracked a small grim. "Well I guess that I can't turn you away, just like Annie planned," he sighed. "She always was a devious little thing."

He rubbed his forehead. "Come in," he said. "I'll figure out what to do with you in the morning."