Authors Notes: Here is my newest idea…this time I have help though my twin sister is co-writing this one with me. She is very talented and I hope you enjoy our double efforts.
Anyway I am doing a mailing list, as I don't know if FFN is going to junk up again. I it should be up within the evening if you want to sign up drop me and email and when I get it up I will put ya on it. Or I will put up the address to the page it is going on in the next chapter.
Rabynhitt@aol.com
'What is beauty?' Hilde Schbeiker wondered. People said she was beautiful in her own way, but she didn't believe it. Her one true beauty was her hair, which was so black it seemed blue. Hilde refused to part with a single strand of it. Her hair was the reason for many arguments she had with her old nurse. It was impractically long; the length of it reached the ground and then some, so Hilde kept it tied in a bun or braid. Hilde made a disgusted noise as she looked at her body in the mirror. She was short and shapeless, and she had the body of a boy. Her face was pale and freckled to the point that she looked like a doll with the chicken pox.
"Hilde, come down here this instant!" Hilde's sister screamed up the stairs, interrupting Hilde's thoughts.
"Charlotte," their mother's calm voice rang down the stairs, "Ladies do not yell or raise their voices over a gentle whisper."
"Yes, Mother," Charlotte said in her nasal voice.
Hilde fought back a grin. Her sister would never be a lady, just as Hilde would never be a daughter in her mother's eyes. Sighing softly, Hilde listened for any sign that her sister still wanted her for something. When nothing came, she smiled to herself. Her sister was as dim witted as they came, and usually forgot what she wanted from Hilde the moment Hilde refused to acknowledge her. Charlotte gave new meaning to the term dumb blond.
"Oh, who cares? She probably just needs help figuring out what to wear for another one of her hundred suitors."
Her sister was incredibly beautiful, and had the suitors to prove it. It helped that she had a large dowry and would be the one to inherit their father's wealth. Hilde herself had nothing to attract suitors; she would get no money, and had no beauty to capture their interest.
Hilde had been the mistake; her mother only wanted one child, and when she found out that she was pregnant with Hilde, she went into a rage. Hilde had been born two months early, as her mother had no regard for her child's safety, and they said that she would not make it past her first night. But Hilde had been a stubborn thing even then, and had made it past that first night and every night since. Her Nana said always said, with a sniff and a turn with her to long nose, that even then she was showing her true colors. Sometimes when she was younger, Hilde wished that she had died that fateful night, but it was not to be, she guessed, since she was still alive.
Hilde dug through her closet until she found her old riding habit. She pulled it out and frowned; it was still dirty from the last time she had worn it. Hilde shrugged and pulled it on anyway. She had to get out before they came looking for her again; she wasn't in the mood to deal with Charlotte's tales of suitors. She just wanted to be alone, and the only place she could do that was in the stables.
Peeking around the door, Hilde smiled to herself. As usual, there was no one there. There was the sound of a soft whuffle, and Hilde grinned broadly before running down the path.
"Hello, Goliath," she whispered softly. Leaning down, she placed a kiss on his
nose. "How has my baby been?"
Goliath was the only thing in her life she loved, and she wouldn't give him up for anything. He had been born two winters ago, and was so big that his mother died during the birthing process. Hilde had raised him from then on out, despite the long hours of bottle feeding required. He was her baby, only he had four legs instead of two. The only problem was, he belonged to a friend and not to her.
"Good morning, Hilde," a young man whispered softly.
"Good morning, Greg," Hilde murmured without taking her eyes off of Goliath.
"What happened this time?"
"Uh? Oh, nothing. I just wanted out, really."
"If you would just say yes and marry me, Hilde, I could take care of all these problems. You could have a chance to be happy in life."
Hilde bit back a groan. Would he ever give up? "Greg, you're my best friend in the whole entire world, but I can not marry you. No matter how hard it gets for me at home, you deserve someone who can love you back. I am afraid I will always think of you as nothing more than a brother. I really am sorry."
Hilde hated turning him down, and she had to admit that the first time he had asked her she'd entertained idea's of actually marrying him. Hilde quickly came to realize it was not to be; she had no spark of love for him whatsoever except for that of a sister to a brother.
"I know, but I had to try," Greg said with a quick grin that Hilde knew was just a cover to hide the sorrow in his eyes. "Anyway, Mom wanted to know if you could come fix her plants. She forgot to water them again and they're wilting."
Fighting back a grin Hilde nodded. Ever since she was little, she had been able to bring dead things back to life. She didn't know how, and it the ability only worked on small things. The only people who knew about her trait were Greg and his mom, and they only knew because Hilde was removing a dead mouse when it sprang to life in her hands. It was and odd trait, and she was quiet terrified that someone like her mother would find out. Who knew what her family's reaction would be on the matter? Hilde didn't think she wanted to know.
Making the short walk to Greg's house helped her clear her mind and relax her. Hilde loved his house and his family. His father wasn't as rich as her own, but that mattered little to the two friends. They had met by accident; Greg was out riding his pony one day, and lost control over it. Hilde had been on her own spoiled pony not too far from where he was, and chased him down. They had been scolded and punished, but an instant friendship had formed. While Greg never got on a horse after that, Hilde's love for them had blossomed. Especially after she had gotten Goliath.
"Hilde." Mrs. Betchenman said as a smile spread across her aged face. She wasn't a tall woman; she was shorter than even Hilde, and she had a face full of wrinkles and a full figure. She was the mother that Hilde had always wanted. In fact, if Hilde had problems or needed something motherly, from advice to just gentle loving, Hilde came to Mrs. Betchenman for it.
"Your plants again?"
"Yes, I can't believe that I forgot them again!" Mrs. Betchenman said, shaking her head in exasperation. Hilde grinned. Mrs. Betchenman constantly forgetting things; it wasn't that she was losing her mind, it was just that she was a little ditzy and would probably would always be so. They said she had mellowed over the years, but Hilde would hate to have seen how she was when she was a young girl. Hilde was sure the town was still recovering, like her precious plants were always were.
"It's okay. I don't mind helping you out." And she really didn't. It was the only way Hilde felt that she was able to repay the woman her kindness for everything she had done for her. She knew that Mrs. Betchenman thought that she was a bother to Hilde, always asking her to use her gift. Hilde called it odd powers, but Mrs. Betchenman called it a gift; it was another reason that Hilde loved her so much.
That thought caused another grin to spread across her face. Mrs. Betchenman never made her feel out of place or out of sorts, and Hilde was eternally grateful.
"What plants do you need fixed?"
"My orchids. My love orchids are so sad looking." Hilde shook her head with amusement and followed the woman to where she needed help. Hilde looked around to make sure no one else was there before she turned toward the plant. Then, she reached out and placed her hand on the plant. As in all the previous times that she used her powers, peace flooded her soul and a gentle white light surrounded her hand. It moved into the plant that seemed to bloom into life in moments. Hilde smiled softly as the whole plant righted itself. It was almost like watching something come back from the dead. The whole plant set itself upright, and the blooms went from being shriveled to lush as buds popped out from various places and started to grow instantly. Before long, Hilde's work was done and for the first time that day she was at peace. Her whole being was relaxed. She repressed the urge to sing; it was always like that after she brought something back to life. There was a peace that came from deep within, and she was on a high. Hilde didn't know what it was. All she knew was that she would not trade anything for that peace it brought her.
"Oh, thank you, Hilde." Mrs. Betchenman said, grabbing Hilde in a motherly hug.
"They look so much better now."
Hilde hugged the woman back and grinned down at her. "You're welcome, and you know I always love to help you."
"I know, dearie. Would you like to stay for dinner?"
"Of course. Mother won't miss me for a while anyway."
"Good. Come on, it should be ready soon. We're having your favorite; roast pork with gravy and mashed potatoes. There's bread fresh out of the oven, too."
After dinner, Hilde was back on her way home. She sighed and wondered what she was going to do with her future. She knew she couldn't always live off her mother. For one, her mother would not allow it. Secondly, Hilde refused to indulge in that type of life. There were better things out there for her, she just knew there were, and maybe there was even someone who could love her.
After putting her horse back into the stables, Hilde prepared herself for the lecture that she knew was to come. It was times like these that Hilde found herself wishing with all her might that the earth would just swallow her up. It was twilight, and Hilde stared up at the darkening sky. Looking at the only visible star, she smiled slightly. The first star was supposed to be lucky.
First star I see tonight,
Wish I may, Wish I might;
Have this wish I make tonight.
'I wish that there was someone out there who could love me just for being me.'
Hilde laughed at her childish behavior, but she wondered if her wish would come true. Maybe it would, maybe not. She took one last longing look at the sky before walking into her parents' house. She was greeted with chaos. Her mother was screaming at her father. Her father was yelling back. Her sister was in tears. The whole household was yelling. For a moment Hilde could only stare in shock at the scene that greeted her disbelieving eyes. Finally, she took a deep breath and did what she could to calm it down.
"Quiet!" Hilde screamed at the top of her very loud lungs, which in turn
got the desired effect peace and quiet.
" What in the world is going on here?" Hilde demanded, only to have her mother start screaming again and her sister start crying. But it was what her father said that left her in the mixer.
" Hilde, we have lost everything. We have to be out by day after tomorrow."
"We….lost….everything?!" She repeated slowly, her brain trying to
comprehend what it had just been fed.
"Everything." Her sister wailed. "We have nothing left."
"What happened to it all?'
"Daddy lost it on a stupid bet. So were moving to the country to a friend of his house."
Still sobbing, she wailed, "It's a cottage, and everything will be awful! It'll smell bad, and be moldy, and the roof will be thatch, so it'll leak, and there will be BUGS!! And the bugs will get into everything……"
Charlotte's words faded out, and Hilde sank into a chair. Everything was gone. Everything, and she was going to move to the country with her mother and sister. Groaning, Hilde bit back a scream of frustration. She was doomed.