Well, sorry this is taking so long to finish. ~Willow Treaty

I am in Phoenix, Arizona right now and we're staying at a friend's house until Sunday. Just a little update on my life...

She never found the village. Instead, she found herself at Castle Redmont. Looking at it, clearly interested, she unthinkingly wondered if she could climb all of the castle's towers in a week. She smiled. There were only four towers, so she could climb them all at least once in a week. Willow studied the castle walls. They were made of iron, turning a reddish color when the sun hits them in the right spot.

She walked past the guards, noting their gear and remembering their faces. They nodded to her and went to greet the people behind her. Obviously they were friends. She wandered around for a while, never going inside. That's when she saw them. It was only a small group, four people in all, but it was enough. One of them saw her looking and motioned for her to join them.

She was never the enthusiastic type when it came to interacting with people she'd just met. Especially if they were girls. Seeing her hesitation, the redhead that had beckoned her over walked to her instead, a big smile on his face. She almost took a pace backward, but instead, took a half step forward. His smile broadened and Willow watched as the others followed right behind him.

They stopped about a foot away and he held out his hand. "My name's Jackson. This is Avery and Zack," He said pointing to the people on his left. Looking to his right, "and this is Cleo." As he said her name, she hooked onto his right arm, a dreamy look in her eyes. "When we grow up, I'm gonna marry Jackson and we're gonna have seven kids, and..." She kept rambling on about her fantasy future, making Jackson blush.

Jackson was a redhead, with freckles all over. He had crystal blue eyes and was an inch taller than she was. He seemed incredibly cool to be around and had a smile that could make someone's heart stop. Cleo had black hair, her curls unbearably perfect, and dark brown eyes. She was also taller than both both Willow and Jackson by about two inches. She was super clingy to Jackson and talked nonstop. Avery was an inch smaller than Cleo and had pale blond hair, her curls wild and seemingly friendly. Zack was the tallest, slightly overweight, but with quite a bit of muscles. He had curly brown hair and yellowish eyes. At least, she thought, they were all six with her.

She seemed to be the odd one out. Her hair was dark green and her eyes blue and green. After a minute, Cleo stopped talking, a thought running through her mind. "Oh! My pastry!" She ran into some side door and into the kitchen. Jackson, relieved that she was gone for the moment, stood up a little straighter. Zack followed Cleo eagerly, wanting to be the first to try the food.

Avery looked at Willow, a small frown forming on her face. "You haven't said your name." Willow looked at her with a shy smile. "The name's Brazil." She held out a hand to Avery. Avery shook it and walked into the side door just as Cleo and Zack did moments ago. But, not everybody was hungry. Jackson stayed behind with Willow, watching as the others went into the building one by one.

She turned away, ready to find her way to the nearest village. Jackson noticed her turn and caught her arm before she could leave. He had seen the satchel she slung over her shoulder, so he assumed she was looking for a place to stay. If she was an orphan, then what better place was there than here? The rest of them here were orphans so why not? She felt his hand close around her arm. He had a light touch, for a boy at least. Turning to him, she saw the question that was forming on his lips. Forcing herself to keep quiet, she let him ask the question.

"Do you have any parents?" She was caught off guard. Since she didn't know if she had any parents, she couldn't answer him truthfully. "No..." Willow said carefully. She decided that she would develop a story to tell why she didn't have any known parents. Taking a sip of water, she noticed that he seemed to brighten up a bit. "So you're an orphan? Like us?" Willow somehow managed to not spit the water she just put into her mouth onto him.

"What?" She looked at him in astonishment. He smiled. "Yup. We're orphans," he said. "And you are too... Right?" He added the last part with a questioning look. She smiled and nodded. "Yes. I am an orphan too." Jackson looked around, as if someone was watching. Willow looked around too, noting the shadowed figure, but not speaking. Jackson finally broke the silence. "Will you stay here, with us?" She looked at him once more, and, seeing his pleading expression, nodded. "Okay. I'll stay." Jackson let out a silent whoop.

He took her hand and practically ran, showing Willow around the castle. The castle guards smiled whenever the two passed them and notified Baron Arald of the newbie's presence. Soon, everyone in the castle knew about her.

The king's assistant, Easton, was in the courtyard, looking at them as they passed. Her smile faded as she studied his eyes. Her breath quickened as an image came to her mind. Two figures. The one on the left had long gray hair, and raven black clothes, white eyes giving him a dark, menacing look. He was tall and rode a jet black horse. The other, on the right, had white hair and wore dark purple and blue clothing, yellow eyes adding to a forbidding effect.

Willow looked away and didn't look back. Now she knew who the one on the right of the image was. Easton, the king's assistant.