After a week of traveling through the wilderness, the cabriolet that carried you and your father finally came to a stop in the town of Burgess, Pennsylvania. Fall was just starting, with its cooler air and its colored leaves. After traveling in the cabriolet for hours, you were eager to jump out and stretch your legs. Once you had your two feet planted on the ground, you stretched your arms up above your head, forgetting any decency that you were taught, and took in your surroundings. Burgess was only a stop for you and your father, but you didn't care—any place was better than traveling around all the time. The reason you and your father traveled so much was because of the fur trade. Your mother? She had died five years ago when you were seven from yellow fever. Nowadays, you just helped your father with his trade, and even helped him bargain at the markets—people tended to fall for your childish charms.
When you were done adjusting your fur jacket and the skirts of your dress, you helped unpack the furs from the carriage that was following the cabriolet. You then turned to the inn where you would be staying at and helped your father get checked in. After 20 minutes, everything was stored in the room that you and your father would be sharing for the next month. Your father then told you to go around town, explore, and become acquainted with the people. Even though you were 12 years old, your father knew you were responsible enough to walk around town on your own. You bade him farewell and promised you would be back by dusk at the latest.
The first place you visited was the marketplace of Burgess. It was near where the inn was located, so it would naturally be your first stop. As you meandered your way through the shops, one particular stall caught your eye: it was a stall that sold parchment, journals, ink, and an assortment of quills. You loved to read, write, and draw. Even though it was frowned upon for females to learn how to read and write, your father insisted that you learned. Being the daughter of a merchant and hunter, you were bound to be educated. You were then broken out of your thought when you felt a tug on your jacket. Looking down, you saw a young girl who looked to be six or seven with brown hair and brown eyes. On her face, she wore a look of concern.
"Excuse me, but will you help me look for my older brother?" she asked, with concern laced in her voice.
"Of course I will! I'm new in town, so maybe you can show me around too," you replied, hoping you could get a better understanding of your temporary town.
"Yeah! Okay let's go! My name is Olivia Overland [1]. What's yours?"
"(Full Name). It's a pleasure to meet you, Olivia," you responded while smiling at her. She was just too cute with her large eyes! Remembering you had a task to attend to, you asked her, "Where was the last time you saw him?"
"Oh! I think it was near the locksmith's building!" She then took your hand and started leading you throughout town. During the search for her brother, she told you that she lived on the outskirts of home because her family farmed on a small scale and herded sheep, that her brother's name was Jackson and that he was your age. She then also mentioned that he was very mischievous and often disappeared. You thought it was very irresponsible of him to leave Olivia alone, but what could you do? Like Olivia said, it was common behavior for him. Poor girl, you would've ripped your hair out in irritation by then.
When you reached the locksmith's shop, you and Olivia asked the locksmith if he had seen Jackson around. He told you two that he had seen him run down by the bakery towards the post office. From his response, you could tell Jackson was quite the trouble maker around town. You then thanked the locksmith for his troubles and then Olivia towed you to the post office. When the building came into view, Olivia sped up her pace, which made you stumble for the first few feet. She then looked around and saw the bakery and again dragged you with her as she shoved her face up against the bakery window.
"Look at bread (Name)! It looks so delicious! I wish I had some fresh bread right now!" Olivia exclaimed. You chuckled at her antics and told her, "Hey, I think we should be looking for your brother, not at the bread!" She giggled at your words and then peeled her faced at the glass and nodded at you.
"Still looking for me Olivia? You even managed to bring along someone else this time!" a boy's voice complained from behind the two of you. It surprised both of you so much that you jumped a little and turned around to see a boy around your age with Olivia's eyes and the same shade of brown hair. You figured that it was her brother Jackson. He stared at you as you were scrutinizing him, then turned to Olivia and said, "Hey squirt! You brought along a stranger this time! Why'd you do that? It's rude when you don't know the person."
"Rude? I'm glad I helped her Jackson Overland! You are the rude one for purposely leaving her behind! SHE'S SEVEN YEARS OLD!" you shouted, while putting your hands on your hips. Even though you were 12, you still managed to intimidate Jackson. Olivia also giggled at the sight of seeing her brother scared.
"Hey, hey, hey…let's just calm down now! Olivia knows I do it out of fun. You must be new here to not know about this by now. She asks everyone to help her," he rushed to explain while putting his hands up defensively. You could tell the Olivia wasn't worried anymore so you lighted up for her sake.
"Fine, Jackson Overland, I'll calm down! But next time she asks me to help her look for you, I'll punch you for being irresponsible!" you threatened. After that, it was silent between the three of you. Jackson, Olivia, and you all looked at each other, realizing how empty your threat sounded. You then started to giggle at the stupidity of it and the other two joined in as well. Soon, the three of you were bent over in a giant fit of laughter.
After realizing that nothing could beat today's turn of events, you decided that you should just go back to the inn. You had to ask Olivia and Jackson to walk you back, for you didn't know the town just yet. When you got to the inn, you bade Olivia farewell and then turned to Jackson.
"Look here, Jackson. I did mean it about you being irresponsible towards Olivia! She's seven; you can't let her wander around. Seriously, if you do do that again, I will be angry," you told him as stern as you could for a 12-year-old.
"Yeah, yeah, quit acting like my mom, newbie!" he snickered. He then turned around, picked up some of the dead leaves on the ground that had already fallen, and threw them at your face while taking Olivia's hand and running off with her. Enraged at his teasing, you yelled, "I HATE YOU JACKSON OVERLAND!"