Chapter One
"Tara, could you go out and feed Fleet? I'm terribly busy at the moment." Lina asked her daughter.
"Yeah, sure mom." Tara replied, looking up from her book.
"Grandmother Murdo gave your mother Fleet, a long time ago," Doon smiled.
"She did?" Tara questioned.
Doon nodded and went back to his papers. Tara headed outside and patted Fleet on the head.
"You must've took mother out on long and fast rides," she said gently.
The horse said nothing. Tara grabbed the bucket of food and dumped it in Fleet's trough.
"Eat up, Fleet." Tara grinned.
It was windy outside, and Tara's long, wavy brunette was being blown in her face. She looked nothing like her parents, except for their dark hair. Tara had emerald green eyes, while her parents had brown eyes.
"Green eyes are a gift," Auntie Poppy had told her.
No one else in town had a horse, which made bragging easy for Tara. She didn't do it very often, though. Her father, Doon, didn't approve of it. He said it reminded him of someone named Tick.
That night, they ate a hearty meal. Tara's baby brother, Jackie, had spit out his peas when Lina fed him it.
"Here, let me try," Tara offered.
She took the spoon from Lina and fed Jackie.
"Now, Jackie, make mommy happy." Tara smiled softly.
Jackie swallowed and began to laugh.
"How do you do it?" Doon laughed.
"I just do!" Tara grinned.
Later that night, it was story time. Now that Tara was twelve, she had already heard most of the stories her parents told. Like escaping the city of Ember and discovering the mayor's secret stash of food. Tara could hardly believe these were all true.
"Tell me the story of getting out of Ember, you know, through the Pipeworks." Tara said.
"Of course." Lina smiled.
"It all began..."