THE CASTLE

ONE MORNING I LOOKED OUT OF MY WINDOW AND, EXPECTING TO SEE MY BACKYARD, SAW A VILLAGE WITH A STONE CASTLE IN THE BACKGROUND. I LOOKED DOWN AT MYSELF. I WAS IN A WOODEN BED WITH A STRAW STUFFED MATTRESS AND PILLOW AND A QUILT SQUARE QUILT. NEXT TO THE BED WAS A BOW AND QUIVER OF ARROWS, AND A SMALL DAGGER ON A BELT STRAP. THESE ITEMS SEEMED FAMILIAR SOMEHOW, EVEN IF I WAS GOING OUT OF MY MIND WITH WORRY. WHAT THE CRAP WAS I DOING HERE!? I TOOK THE BOW AND QUIVER AND SLUNG THEM OVER MY SHOULDER, AND THEN THE DAGGER AND BELT STRAP AROUND MY WAIST-AS IF I'D HAD THEM FOR MY WHOLE LIFE-THEN TOOK OFF THROUGH THE DOOR. I CAME TO A LONG HALLWAY THEN CAME TO A SMALL SHOP. THERE WAS A SIGN ABOVE THE DOORWAY IN – WHAT, SCOTTISH? – BUT I COULD READ IT JUST THE SAME. IT SAID, "KADLYNN'S WEAPONS AND ARMORY" WHAT THE HECK? I COULD READ VIKING LANGUAGE? HOW? "CRUD," I THOUGHT, "I'M BACK IN TIME TO WHEN VIKINGS ROAMED THE SEAS." WHAT, MY MIND HAD AN ACCENT? "HELLO?" I HAD AN ACCENT TOO! "HELLO? OH, GOOD! ANOTHER ARMORY. THE OTHERS ARE ALL FULL TO THE BRIM." SOMEONE SAID. I RECOGNIZED THEIR VOICE, "ISABEL?" HOW'D I KNOW HER NAME? THEN I NOTICED THE WINDOW. I LOOKED OUT AND, "OH, NO," I WAS IN A WIKING VILLAGE. I SLAMMED THE WINDOWS SHUT, ONLY TO SEE ISABEL IN MY SHOP, A SCARED LOOK ON HER FACE, "WHO ARE YOU? WHERE DID YOU COME FROM? YOU DON'T LOOK LIKE A VIKING."

"THAT'S CAUSE I'M NOT," OH, CURSE MY STUPID ACCENT.

"WELL, THEN ANSWER MY OTHER QUESTIONS!" I NOTICED SHE HAD HER HAND RESTING ON THE HILT OF HER DAGGER. I LOOKED DOWN. SO WAS MINE.

"OK, MY NAME IS KADLYNN AND I'M FROM AMERICA IN THE 21ST CENTURY. HOW I GOT HERE, I DON'T KNOW, SO DON'T YELL AT ME."

"WELL, WHY ARE YOU TALKING LIKE A VIKING, THEN?"

"YA, I CAN'T FIGURE THAT OUT EITHER. ALL I KNOW IS I WOKE THIS MORNIN AND I WAS IN THE BACK ROOM. WHO KNOWS HOW, WHY, OR WHEN?"

ISABEL'S FACE CHANGED FROM FRIGHT TO MORTAL TERROR, "WHAT! THE ELDER SAID NOT UNTIL THE SNOW MELTS! WE'RE NOT READY!" READY FOR WHAT? EVEN THOUGH I WAS CONFUSED, I WAS SCARED TOO. ISABEL SEEMED SCARED AND THAT DID NOT LOOK TOO GOOD TO ME, "OK, BACK UP THE TRUCK, YOU MEAN YOU KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN AND YOU'RE COMPLAINING TO ME? COMPLAIN TO THE ELDER, OR WHATEVER YOU SAID, ABOUT THIS."

ISABEL WAS PACING NOW, "THE ELDER IS KIND OF LIKE A FORTUNE TELLER. SHE TELLS PROPHECIES. SHE FORETOLD A NEW PERSON COMING HERE AFTER THE SNOW MELTS. SHE SAID THE NEW PERSON WAS NOT LIKE US, THAT THEY WERE FROM A LAND FAR AWAY FROM A TIME FAR AWAY. I DON'T UNDERSTAND. THERE'S STILL SNOW. WHY ARE YOU EARLY?"

SUDDENLY EVERYTHING SEEMED TO CLICK, "IF I'M EARLY, THEN THAT MEANS THE ELDER WAS WRONG AND THE PROPHECY IS STARTING NOW." ISABEL SUDDENLY TOOK ME BY THE HAND AND STARTED DRAGGING ME TO THE CASTLE IN THE DISTANCE. ON THE WAY, I GOT A PRETTY GOOD LOOK AT THE VILLAGE. THERE WERE SO MANY OTHER SHOPS THAT I WANTED TO SEE. THERE WAS A TOWN SQUARE WITH A PLAZA WHERE PEOPLE WOULD COME AND GO GREETING EACH OTHER ON THEWAY. EVERYONE SEEMED TO BE PREPARING FOR SOMETHING. THANKFULLY I WASN'T THE ONLY ARMORY IN TOWN BECAUSE ALL THE OTHERS WERE PACKED WITH PEOPLE BUYING ALL KINDS OF SWORDS, SHIELDS, AND ARMOR. I WOULD'VE STAYED AND LOOKED AROUND BUT ISABEL JUST KEPT ON GOING. WHEN WE FINALLY GOT TO THE CASTLE, I REALIZED IT WASN'T A CASTLE AT ALL. IT WAS MORE LIKE A BUNCH OF HOUSES AND TOWERS SQUISHED TOGETHER. I COULD TELL ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE LIVED THERE BECAUSE THEY KEPT ON COMING IN AND OUT OF THE HOUSES, BUSTLING ABOUT LIKE THE COMMONS AREA, THOUGH THEY MOVED MORE SOLEMNLY, QUIETLY, AND SLOWLY THEN THE TOWN SQUARE. WHEN ME AND ISABEL CAME CRASHING THROUGH, I ALMOST FELT LIKE I SHOULD SAY SORRY FOR DISTURBING THE QUIET. WE WENT ALL THE WAY THROUGH UNTIL WE CAME TO WHAT YOU COULD OBVIOUSLY TELL WAS THE GRAND MANSION. WE WALKED IN. NO ONE WAS THERE EXCEPT SOME GUARDS AT THE DOOR, "HALT! WHO IS IT?" ISABEL TOOK CARE OF IT, "FELIX, IT'S ME, ISABEL. WE WANT TO SEE THE CHIEF AND THE ELDER. IT'S IMPORTANT." FELIX SAW ME THEN SAID, "IS IT TIME?" ISABEL NODDED. HE LET US THROUGH. WE CAME TO A THRONE ROOM AND SAW THREE THRONES. ONE HAD THE CHIEF, THE NEXT THE ELDER, AND THE LAST A BOY WHO WAS PROBABLY MY AGE. "WE'VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU." SAID THE ELDER. SHE LOOKED….BLIND. "IS IT TIME, ELDER" THE CHIEF ASKED. SHE NODDED. HE GOT OFF HIS THRONE AND SAID, "WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU FOR A LONG TIME." HE LED ME TO THE WALL AND PULLED BACK A CURTAIN. IT REVEALED A DOOR. HE OPENED IT, REVEALING A SPACE CONTAINING ANOTHER THRONE, A CLOAK, AND A CROWN. "WE'VE MISSED YOU" HE SAID. SUDDENLY, IT ALL CAME BACK TO ME.

I WAS PROBABLY IN 3RD GRADE WHEN I WANTED TO DO SOME GREAT DEED. I WANTED PEOPLE TO THINK OF ME AS A WARRIOR, A HERO, AND NOT SOME WORTHLESS PRINCESS. I LEFT HERE FOR AN ADVENTURE IN A TIME FAR, FAR AWAY. I HAD NEVER COME BACK UNTIL NOW. THE BOY AND ISABEL WERE MY COUSINS, THE CHILDREN OF MY UNCLE, WHO WAS SECOND IN LINE TO BE CHIEF. SO TECHNICALLY, THEY WERE STILL ROYALTY. THE ELDER WAS MY GREAT-GRANDMOTHER. AND THE CHIEF….THE CHIEF WAS MY FATHER. HE SPOKE AGAIN, "YOU HAVE BEEN AWAY LONG ENOUGH. YOU HAVE BEEN NAMED A HERO IN A PROPHECY. BUT SEEING AS THE SNOW HAS NOT MELTED YET, IT IS NOT YET YOUR TIME. WE'LL SEND YOU BACK UNTIL IT IS." I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE. I HAD FOUND MY PAST, WHICH HAD BEEN DECIEVING ME LONG ENOUGH. THEN THE CROWN GLOWED. THERE WAS A FLASH OF LIGHT. AND THEN I WAS IN MY BED AGAIN. I WAS AFRAID IT HAD BEEN A DREAM, BUT THE BOW, QUIVER, AND DAGGER WERE BESIDE MY BED. THERE WAS SOMETHING TAPED TO THE DAGGER. IT WAS A NOTE. IT WAS WRITTEN IN SCOTTISH, BUT IT DIDN'T MATTER. IT READ, "THIS DAGGER WILL BRING YOU BACK TO THE VILLAGE. IF YOU WISH TO TELEPORT HERE, UNSHEATHE IT, THEN LOOK INTO ITS BLADE." I WOULD VISIT EVERY NIGHT, WHICH WAS DAY FOR THEM, AND WHEN I CAME BACK TO MY HOUSE, IT WAS BARELY EVEN MORNING.

THE PROPHECY HAS NOT BEEN FORFILLED YET, BUT ISABEL TAUGHT ME SCOTTISH AND MIKLE TAUGHT ME SWORDPLAY. EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT. I STILL WONDER ABOUT THE PROPHECY THOUGH. THE SNOW NEVER MELTS THERE. BUT WHO KNOWS? TONIGHT, THE PROPHECY COULD BE FULFILLED.

THE END