I don't know how long I was in a deep sleep before my mind started to stir. I felt coldness brush lightly across my cheekbone. Then like lightening, images flashed before me and then stopped on one. I suddenly saw my mother but she was not the vision I had of her when in her womb. This was far more beautiful than the motherly figure I remember.

I was almost sure I was in a dream. She had the moonlight shinning down on her. Her long black hair blew in the wind. Her green eyes were intense, filled with emotion I can not decipher, perhaps longing? Lust? Her dress was very elegant. Then I noticed her neckline, she was harmed, bleeding, but yet she smiled and no where in her face showed worry or fear. Emotions I knew all too well. She looked as if she was glowing, swaying with the wind as her neck continued to hemorrhage. Then instantly the vision changed. She was running, her face was full of terror. The clothing she wore has changed. A red dress now tattered, this is the same dress I have in my possession. The thickness of panic surrounded her as she raced away from chancing lights towards...me? Then in a blink she was gone. The image was left with emptiness. I felt pain, sorrow but these were not my own feelings. The cold caress vanished and the images did as well.

I flung my eyes open and searched around the room. But there was no sign of any presence. Then I caught eye on the opened window that I remember being shut. Someone was here, I knew. I got up to my feet, walked towards the window and climbed out of it. If these were images trapped in someone else's mind then that means they know of my mother. They would know of her life here on earth. Once I landed on my feet from the short drop, I searched around the area but found not even a hint of anything that could of possibly intruded on my sleep. Maybe it was just a dream, I've never really experienced dreaming before. I don't believe my eyes held shut long enough for it. I climbed back through the window and closed it. My mind must have been playing tricks on me, that would be the only explanation for the un-explainable.

I found it hard to get myself to go back to sleep so I laid awake in thought for the remainder of the night. Pulling all the memories of my mothers I had stored away. Maybe there was something I missed. There was no memory of the images I saw tonight from her point of view.

For the first time ever in my whole existence I witnessed a sun rising up from the horizon. I've lived my life in artificial light and darkness. I found the sun to be quite magnificent, but my eyes were not used to such brightness. As much as I wanted to look at its beauty, I could not. I watched as the light flooded over the land then spilled in through the window and onto my face. I closed my eyes and absorbed its warmth. I felt my skin tingle at it's touch as if it were coming alive. I wanted more.

I walked out of the room and to the front door. I stepped onto the front porch that hasn't yet been touched by the sun. I felt the coolness of the wooden floor against the bottoms of my bare feet. I stepped further, down onto the grass that was damp with small drops of water. Ahead, I saw where the sun's rays met the ground. I stepped to the boarder of shade and sun. I slowly place my foot over the line. I closed my eyes and pushed myself further into its direct light. I saw the rays shine through my eye lids. The warmth was comforting, I let it wrap me for a moment. Then the tingling started to become a more intense burning. I opened my eyes and looked at the skin on my arms. They were turning bright red. I quickly ran back into the house and shut the door behind me. I looked at my arms again, the red was fading to a light pink. Sookie was standing in the entrance of the next room.

"Daniella! You look like a lobster, you're all sunburned!" She walked over examining my face and arms. She then looked at the clock. "It's only seven a.m., the sun's only been up for fifteen minutes...."

"You think I'm allergic? Like the vampires?"

"No, not like them. They catch on fire and burn up in flames when they meet the sun... This is just as if you fell asleep outside for a few hours without any sunscreen.....Does it hurt?"

I shook my head "no" she laughed. "It will.....Come on, let's get some aloe on that before it does." she walked towards the bathroom and I followed. She pulled down a container from the shelf and opened the top. "Open your hands." I did as she asked and she squeezed a gel like substance in them. "Spread this over your face and arms, it'll help it heal." She placed the container back on the shelf. "I'm goin to go make some breakfast in the kitchen. Join me when you're done." She smiled and left the room. I spread the cold gel over both my arms evenly, then moved onto my face. I looked at my reflection, my face was a bright pink like my arms. I wiped the remaining substance onto a cloth and walked to the kitchen. I took a seat at the table and watched Sookie at the stove.

"Sookie, can I ask a favor of you?" She turned around with a smile.

"Sure, what's up?"

"I know this may sound a bit much, and you don't have to agree if you don't wish to. But do you think you could teach me a few things."

"Well sure, what do ya wanna know?"

"Well you think we could start with your self grooming process?" she laughed a bit.

"Of course, after breakfast I'll show ya how to do a few things, although there is some stuff that.... well....are just too private to show ya but I'll tell you what to do." She turned back to the stove. "We'll probably need to go to the store and get you some personal items you're going to need first. Which means I'll need to run to the bank and take out some money before we go. We could make a day out of it." she seemed to be thinking out loud. But the word "money" triggered something.

I skimmed through my mother's memory, I remember there being something of great importance she once thought about that involved the word money. And instantly I found it. An old house covered in grape vines, a large tree stood in front of it that held a swing. Behind the house was a water well that was deep. The house was my mother's. Another image was her at the well with a large metal box, the box held her savings. She did not trust banks or brokers. Each month she added more and more of her money in the box and hid it at the bottom of the well. If it's still there I could give it to Sookie to show my gratitude for all her help.

"Sookie do you have a writing utensil and some paper?"

"Is a pen ok?" she walked over to a draw and pulled out a sheet of paper and a white stick.

"Yes." she placed it on the table in front of me.

"There ya are."

"Thank you." I took the pen in my hand and began drawing out the house, trying to capture the details so that Sookie may recognize it and know where to find my mother's old house.

"What you drawin' ?" She tilted her head at the paper.

"I remember what my mother's house looked like. Maybe you'll know it." I continued to sketch and she went back to the stove and pulled off whatever she was cooking and brought it to the table.

"That's your mama's house?" I wasn't done sketching.

"Yes, you know it?"

"Well yeah, its this old abandoned house not too far from the Monroe border. As kids, we were told it was haunted, I think my brother Jason and his friend Hoyt tried to go in there as a dare once in high school but chickened out last minute." She poured the contents she held in a bowl.

"Perhaps you could take me there if it's not too much trouble?"

"No trouble at all." She went back to the stove and carried off something else to the table. I looked at it curiously. "Sausage and scrabbled eggs." She handed me a plate and a utensil. "Help your self." She smiled. "Would you like some orange juice? or Coffee?" she laughed for a moment. " Never mind...I'll just get ya some orange juice. Who knows what coffee will do to your system since you never had it before." I scooped some eggs and sausage onto my plate and enjoyed each bite.

We ate breakfast together with small conversation. Sookie spoke a lot about her job as a waitress at a bar called Merlotte's and her boss Sam. She told me some about her brother, Jason.

After breakfast she was able to teach me some minor grooming. I was handed one of her extra brushes made for teeth and shown how to use it. The taste of the paste in my mouth was no where near pleasant but did leave it feeling refreshed. She also helped me tame my hair with a brush and a elastic tie. She then gave me some more of her clothing to borrow for the day. The burns on my arms and face had already healed by the time we were ready to go. But before we left for her daily errands, she handed me a plastic bottle.

"It's sunblock, spf 40. It's not much but it should work until we can get to the store and find a stronger one. Rub it onto the areas of your skin that will be exposed to the sun." I did as she said and we made our way out the door.

"Could we stop at that old house first? There's something I think she left there that I should get before we go anywhere else. I know where it would be so it won't take up much time." I asked as I got into the car Sookie picked me up in the night before. She looked at me curiously then agreed.

It wasn't long until the house in my memory was visible. It looked like the vines had fully swallowed the house whole. The large tree in front was still intact with the swing still hanging from it. The front land was over thrown by plantation. Sookie pulled over to where the land began.

"Do you want me to go in with you?" She asked as I reached for the leaver to open the door.

"No, I won't be going in just now. What I'm looking for shouldn't take long to find if it's still there. But if you'd like to join you can."

"I'll wait in the car then. Don't rush." She smiled. I got out and shut the door behind me. Walking through the over grown grass and other plantation was even harder than I had expected. I made my way to the back of the house. The grass and vines seemed to completely cover the area where the well would be. I had to dig my hands in. Pulling, tugging and ripping away, maybe I should have asked Sookie for some help.

Finally I started to see the grey stone well from underneath the vines. Once the well's entrance was cleared, I could see a thick rope attached to a wooden handle running through the top portion of the hole. The rope was fully descended. I turned the handle slowly and carefully, trying not to disturb its old structure and cause it to fall. The well was deep, it took some time before I got the rope completely up, revealing a rather large bucket containing the metal box I recognize from my memory.

Water was draining out from the cracks and holes. I took hold of the bucket with both hands once the water stopped flowing, letting go of the wooden handle. The rope began to unravel back down into the well. The box was covered in rust and mold and was quite heavy. I set the bucket on the ground and lifted out the heavy box. The lid was sealed shut from the rust and would take entirely too much time if I were to try to open it on my own. I treaded myself back to Sookie's car and found her leaning her back against the side.

"What ya got there?"

"It was my mother's she hid it away in the well behind the house. It seems to be rusted shut. Do you have anything that could possible open it?" she tilted her head to the side, glancing at the box.

"Hmm, I might." She walked to the back of her car and opened the back door. I heard her shift a few things causing them to make a clanging sound. Then she popped up with a long rod in her hand. "Here! This should work! It supposed to be used to take the hub cap off the wheels if there's a flat tire. I think it'll do the trick. Put the box on the ground and let me try." I did as she asked and watched as she wedge the flat end of the rod in between the lid and box's seam. She pushed down on the rod a few times the decided to use her foot. She placed a hand on the car for support and put all of her body weight onto the rod. She hopped up and down twice before the lid flew open with a crack. Sookie landed on her feet as the rod crashed to the ground.

"Oh Goodness Daniella! This is A LOT of money in there!" She gasped.

I looked into the box and there were stacks ontop of stacks of paper bills tied together with elastic bands. The box had to be air tight because not a drop of water had touched these bills and most looked as if they were like new. along the bottom of the box were coins laid out, silver mostly with a few gold pieces scattered through out.

"Gosh! Looks like you found yourself a treasure chest. What a way to start out your new life here." Sookie smiled at me and I couldn't help but to smile back at the thought of a new life. A new beginning in a new world and I had no one else but Sookie to thank. I reached into the box and pulled out one of the stacks of bills then held it out to Sookie.

"I want you to have this, as a thank you." She looked shocked.

"Oh..Oh no I couldn't Daniella... that's your money and just a simple 'Thank You' will do me just fine." She smiled.

"I insist, I'm sure there is enough here to spare. Its the least I could do for all your troubles. You have been more than gracious to me. Please allow me to pay it back to you." but she continually refused. I would not give up so easily though. I would find a way to get this money to her somehow. Just probably not up front.

"Alright lets get this thing in the car and start our errands before it gets too late." She said as she helped me left the box back up and placed it in the back of her car along with the rod she used on it earlier. I put the stack of bills into the pocket of the pants Sookie lent me to wear.