1760

I remembered Johnson's surprised expression, and how he only nodded and then stood and left.

That was yesterday. I had watched from my window as the preparations were made for our journey to New York. One of Johnson's servants had informed me that we'd be leaving at sundown. I didn't quite understand the idea of servants, but I talked with her and shared with her the food that she'd brought me.

I felt saddened that I would have to leave Bali behind. But I knew that this was his home. At least one of us had one.

We left Johnson's home at sundown and we had travelled through the night. The journey had been mostly quiet, but the crickets chirped and at times I heard the calls of the owls.

Although the men treated me better than before, the journey wasn't necessarily pleasant. I didn't want to spend more time with them that I absolutely had to.

When the sun finally rose the next morning, Charles suggested that we all rest for a few hours. That might have been the only time that I ever agreed with him.

While everyone rested, I entertained myself by pulling at blades of grass and hoarding them into a pile.

Someone was always watching me. It alternated between Hickey, Benjamin, and Johnson. I was slightly surprised when Hickey and Benjamin ignored me and let me sit on the ground. I had at least expected some cruel teasing from Hickey.

Johnson was the only one who spoke to me. Although I still didn't like him, he was the only one who didn't treat me like an animal.

It was silent for several minutes as I laid in the grass, resting my head on my hands.

"Have you met your father, child?" Johnson asked me, standing a few paces away from me.

"My name is not child. It is Kateri." I sighed, slightly annoyed. I continued to stare at the ground.

"Of course," He said awkwardly. "My apologies."

Several more moments of silence passed and I sighed.

"I have never met him. Mother never told him about us." I said, playing with a blade of grass.

"Us?" He asked, intrigued. I turned my head to look at him.

"My brother and I." I clarified, returning my attention to the grass.

"Your…brother?" He asked, a hint of confusion in his voice. Without looking at him, I nodded and replied with a simple "Yes."

That was the end of the conversation.

Soon enough we were travelling again. I was immensely relieved that Johnson had stopped asking me questions.

I was doing my best to try not to think about family. Unfortunately, Johnson's questions hadn't helped.

The hours that we travelled dragged on and on and I wondered how long we would need to travel until we reached the city Johnson had talked about. New York.

I wondered what is was like. Every time that I tried to picture it, I envisioned the small towns that we'd passed through in the past few days.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

…

The first thing that I saw of New York was the large wooden fence that was pointed at the top.

I was so disoriented when I first saw it, that I believed it was the barrier that surrounded my village. It shocked me that when I saw the barrier, I was scared. I didn't think I would ever be scared about something like that.

It dawned on me then that this barrier led into New York. To put it simply, I was astonished.

There were people mulling about in every direction. Everywhere I looked, large buildings loomed around us, painted in different colors and with people all around them.

The men in the red uniforms made me a little uncomfortable. Although they paid us no mind, their large weapons and blood red clothes put me on edge.

As our horses continued to trot down the paths, I saw more and more buildings come into view.

Continuing on through the city, I began to notice the stares. Quite a few people were looking at me in disgust. I wasn't sure why they were looking at me that way, but I tried my hardest to ignore their menacing looks.

As more and more time passed, I continued to observe my surroundings in amazement. When I looked ahead, I saw a gigantic stone wall. On top of the wall were large, bulky pieces of metal. I wasn't sure how, but I knew that they were weapons.

The wall seemed to grow larger the closer we got to it, and I found myself hoping that I wouldn't have to see the inside of that wall.

I would not be so lucky.

We came upon the side of the wall and I began to fear that our destination was inside. My fears were confirmed when we took a right through the wall of large wooden stakes. As we entered, I saw that there was what seemed to be a small town inside. There seemed to be less people around, and luckily, none of them stared at me.

We passed a man who was holding the hand of a young girl. The man nodded his head to Charles in respect.

The girl seemed to be about my age, with dark red hair and beautiful green eyes. She smiled brightly at me as we passed them by, and I returned her smile shyly.

As we turned through the small complex of homes and small shops, we came upon a wooden door that led deeper into the stone walls. Charles stopped his horse at the base of the steps that led to the door. He dismounted swiftly, and I watched the others do the same.

Johnson gently helped me dismount, and I was glad that it hadn't been as painful as the previous time.

As we walked up the steps, Hickey and Benjamin flanked Johnson and me as we followed Charles' lead.

Climbing the steps, I realized that there were three of the men dressed in the blood red uniforms guarding the wooden door. Without missing a beat, Charles ordered them to move using an odd saying.

"May the Father of Understanding guide us." He said, his voice monotonous and annoyed. Moments later, the crimson men parted to let us through the gate.

We walked through the entrance and I saw that there were several more buildings residing in this place. I saw more crimson men than I could count. Many of them stopped to acknowledge Charles with a curt nod, and fortunately, most of them paid me no mind. However, there were a few confused stares. I wondered if it seemed odd to them that a non-English child had stepped foot inside these walls.

Charles, Hickey, and Benjamin strayed off to the right momentarily to speak to a crimson man, leaving me with Johnson. I looked up at him and then studied my surroundings nervously.

"You said you were taking me to my father." I accused him. I sincerely hoped that none of these men were him.

"I've stayed true to my word. Master Kenway will be arriving near sunset. He's been away for several months." Johnson countered. He looked towards the entrance once more, a hint of worry on his face.

He looked away with a deep breath and he led me to the center of the courtyard, where a small patch of green grass was growing around a short wagon.

"I have business matters to attend to around Fort George. Perhaps it would be best if you remained here until Master Kenway arrives." He suggested, gesturing to the wagon.

I sighed and nodded. The last thing I wanted was to interact with any of these men. I sat down in the grass, trying to contain the nervousness that was chewing at my insides. To calm myself, I played with the small yellow flowers growing around me.

When Johnson left me to attend to whatever he was doing, I noted that it was about mid-afternoon. My anxiety faded a smidge when I realized I still had several hours until my father was supposed to arrive.

I soon found that sitting in the grass was incredibly boring. After I exhausted my time with the grass and the flowers, I climbed onto the wagon and laid on my back, looking up at the sky. As I watched the clouds float around, I let my thoughts wander.

I thought back on how Johnson had spoken about my father in such a respectful way. Mother hadn't ever told us much about him, but I guessed that he was a well-respected man.

When all seriousness left my thoughts, I imagined my father kicking Charles. It elicited a few giggles from me, but my train of thought soon changed.

I wondered what my father looked like, and how his voice sounded. Although mother had often been bitter about the way they'd parted, she sometimes spoke well of him. She'd told me that he was kind and protective. She's even told me the story of how he'd saved her and others from our village from a horrible place. I hoped he would extend that kindness and protectiveness to me as well.

My thoughts wandered on as the sun began to set. I sadly thought about how much my life had changed in just a few short days. I'd been taken from my family, abandoned by them shortly after, and soon I would meet my father who I wasn't even sure knew that I existed.

I felt my insides grow warm and my hands started to shake. I was terrified that he would want nothing to do with me. In an effort to calm myself down, I began to hum songs from my village.

As I continued to hum to myself, I sat up and watched the wooden gate diligently. It took quite a bit of effort to keep myself from crying.

'No.' I thought, pushing my shoulders back. 'I'm not going it let them see me cry.' I sat up straight and steeled myself for what was about to come. I would not be regarded as a weak little girl. I was just as tough and strong as Ratohnhaké:ton. I was just as good as a boy.

Both my heart and my bravery faltered as I heard the large wooden gates open and two men walk through the entrance.

The moment I saw them, I knew which man was my father.

The first thing I noticed was that he was clad in blue instead of crimson red. I sighed a little in relief, which soon faded when I saw the small gun and the sword at his waist. He had a three pointed hat sitting upon his head and I saw that his dark hair was pulled back with a small red ribbon. He stood tall and proud, walking through the gate with his hands placed behind his back.

Although I didn't pay much attention to the other man, I recalled that his attire was mostly black and red.

I watched curiously as he strode towards Johnson, who'd been standing a little bit away from the entrance. Although I couldn't hear their conversation from here, I saw clearly that Johnson regarded my father with respect.

They continued to converse until Johnson gestured in my direction. My father looked at me then for the first time. He looked upon me with mild curiosity before turning back to continue talking with Johnson. I saw Johnson shift his weight in a nervous manner and I realized he was most likely trying to explain who I was. Although I may have been a distance away, I couldn't miss the furrowed brow of my father and his confused expression.

This time when my father looked at me, he looked at me with an odd searching expression. As if he could confirm who I was just by looking at me. I stared back at him for a few moments, but I soon lost my nerve and looked down at my hands. I noticed that, once again, they were shaking. I was utterly terrified that he would cast me out and that I would be completely alone.

No matter how much my mind told me to look up, I couldn't bring myself to raise my head. I didn't want to see the disgusted look on his face…the same look everyone had given me since I'd been taken from my family.

I stared at the ground for a moment, and the shake of my hands became worse as I saw a pair of black boots step into my vision.

Taking in a trembling breath, I looked up.

My father and Johnson stood in front of me, both looking at me curiously.

I stared at my father for several moments, forgetting my nervousness, but it soon returned when he lowered himself to one knee in front of me. From my seat on the cart, I was now eye- level with him.

I looked up to Johnson, in need of a familiar face, and he smiled slightly and nodded in reassurance.

Looking back to my father, we studied each other for several seconds. The very first thing I noticed was how much he looked like my brother. My heart ached is sadness at that thought.

He looked at me warmly and with the same curiosity as before. Although I didn't quite understand why, he removed his hat.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Kateri." He said with a small smile. I smiled shyly and for the first time in several days, I felt okay. He hadn't rejected me. He hadn't looked at me in disgust.

Without thinking, I climbed down from the cart and stood directly in front of him. I placed my hands on his cheeks and smiled slightly. He smiled back and placed one of his hands over mine.

I wrapped my arms around his neck. I was relieved when he hugged me back, albeit a bit awkwardly.

It was the first time I'd felt peace in days.

Hey guys! So sorry for the late update! I've been super busy with school, getting ready for college, and doing stuff for prom! So if anyone got my hint, Shay is going to be in this story :D I also realize that Haytham is probably a bit OOC but hey, I figured he'd be excited to meet his four year old daughter.

Hope you guys liked it! Please review (: