"You hit like a girl! Go again!" Papa screamed at me. It was his last day at home with his family before he left again. He looked on at us as my younger brother and I fought in hand to hand. Papa has taught me everything I know about fighting.
"I am a girl father!" I screamed back. I was never good at following directions.
"I was actually talking to your brother." He replied with a laugh. Michael, my brother, turned away from the fight horrified with what our father had said. But while his attention was away from the fight I threw a side punch to his jaw knocking him to the ground.
He looked up at me with steam practically pouring out of his ears. "What was that for?!"
"Father never said the fight was over. Don't let your guard down; your enemy could take advantage of that." I said with a tone of superiority. I never tried to brag about winning a fight. This was because I knew how to handle it diplomatically.
"Good. Now off to bed. I must attend to some things before I leave. Joan please join me." He said sadly. I thought knew why: He was going to leave again. For as long as I could remember Papa has been leaving home for the summer. He always came back, but I always feared he wouldn't.
We walked into the "barn" next to our home that housed three horses and the tools we used for fighting. "I am leaving tonight as you know. And before you ask my daughter, I will not tell you where I am going. But please be sure to take care of your brother and your two sisters. You may have to go into the city this year. Please don't go as a girl if you go. You wouldn't last one day in the city. Girls shouldn't know how to fight and if you show you can I will never see you again. Be careful." He whispered as he pulled me into a hug. "I love you."
"I love you too, Father. What would I do in the city? I can't do anything but fight." I questioned.
"You can read, write and you are so good to everyone. Do you remember the time the old woman came here with her injured horse? You forced them to stay until he got better. The lady never stopped beaming at you in the six months she was here. "He laughed.
With tears in my eyes I said "Goodbye" And walked out the door in to the warm house leaving my father to be alone.
When I walked into our little wooden cottage Cassie, my 2 year old sister, was crying. She was attempting to climb up a chair that led to the top of a small table. I ran over to catch her just as she was falling to the ground. As soon as I scooped her up she started giggling. "I almost climbed the cliff Jo!" She cried. Not this again. I pleaded.
Cassie seems to think it is humorous to pretend she is falling off the cliff that is right behind our home. At the bottom of the cliff sits the beginning of the town belonging to Espoir, our beloved kingdom. Well, the king's kingdom. My family isn't technically a part of it since we are outside its borders. But we like to think that we belong. At least, I do.
I took Cassie over into the sleeping room and put her in bed next to her twin sister who was already sleeping. "Shhhh. You need to sleep if you want to play with your brother tomorrow." I whispered to her. She loved playing with her brother