Chapter 1: Seventeen Summers

Iris awoke in her bed just after sunrise. A thick coating of sweat covering her skin. The sun had just barely risen and already she felt hot and sticky. She turned her head towards the wide open window, thankful that Lydia had not shut it before she had climbed into bed last night. A few days ago they had had a rather tragic encounter with a squirrel who attempted to ransack their bedroom before Papa had come rushing in to save the them from the fright of it. The past few nights Lydia had made certain to keep the the wooden window tightly latched. Though, the heat wave that assaulted them yesterday had not yet relented, leaving Lydia no choice but to leave the window fully open so the lower temperatures of nightfall might sooth their sweat ridden skin.

She turned her head to see Lydia still peacefully sleeping, the soft sound of her gentle snores filling the air in the room. Iris leaned over and placed a small kiss on her sisters wet matted hair and quietly lowered her feet to the floor. The wooden floor felt smooth and cool beneath her bare feet, she wrinkled her toes and slowly climbed off the bed. She tiptoed towards the bedroom door, gingerly turning the handle and crept all the way through the cabin until she pulled the heavy wooden front door open. Allowing a bright wave of light to spread across her curvy form, bathing her in its golden light.

Iris crossed the threshold and out into the still cool morning air. She shut her eyes and flung her head back, embracing the new day. She stepped off the last creaking wooden step of the cabin and into the soft ground, feeling the cold dirt between her toes. Iris stared straight ahead smiling at the beautiful day and walked over to where the white and yellow daisy grew. She unceremoniously plopped her body down amongst them, breathing deeply and taking in their sweet smell. She closed her eyes, letting the floral smell envelope her senses. Iris turned her head to the left, her wide smile growing even wider across her face as the sweet floral smell became mingled with the familiar sweat covered earthy musk she had grown so fond of over the years.

"Happy Birthday Mënëkòn."

Iris opened her eyes to see Matto crouched next to her, both hands hidden behind his back. "Thank you." Iris reached out and placed her palm gently atop his bare foot, dragging her thumb slowly across his toes. Matto smiled down at her and pulled his hands forward, showing her his birthday present. Their family never gave birthday gifts, only something small to commemorate the day and always by their parents. Though every year on Iris's birthday, Matto would wake well before sunrise and go off into the forest to pick all her favorite flowers. He would find them in the dark, almost completely by scent alone. Then he would wait until she rose from sleep and came outside to give them to her, always before the rest of their small world had awoken. It was their tradition together.

Iris reached up with her free hand and took them from him. "They are beautiful Matto." She put them to her face, breathing in their saccharine scent.

Matto shifted his weight and laid down beside her, his limbs stretching far out from his body. Matto was quite tall, he towered over Iris when they were both standing up fully erect and she was by no means short. He shifted his body further into the flowers, his bare skin absorbing the coolness of nature before the vengeful heat overtook the day.

"What shall we do today?" Matto turned his head towards hers, their noses almost touching.

Iris stared into his caramel colored eyes, examining the tiny flickers of yellow gold that were splashed throughout. Matto and Keme both had the alluringly exotic look that only comes when two different races mix. Matto's skin was the color of honey, darker in the summer months from constant exposure to the sun. Both he and Keme had their father's high cheek bones but his mother's delicate features. Their overall appearance was one of true beauty. Iris had always said that Matto, Keme and Winnie were the prettiest of them all, much to their delight.

Iris mulled over his question for a moment and said, "Hmm, perhaps swimming. It looks far too hot for much else."

"Swimming…you love swimming." Matto laughed at her rather unoriginal idea.

"I am as comfortable in the water as you are on land." Iris said as she turned her head away from him, staring up towards the early morning sky.

Matto stared at her profile, memorizing her every feature as he always did on her birthday. He wanted to be able to always recall her at every stage in her life. She was a perfect combination of both of her parents. She had her father's coloring, her white skin kissed by the summer sun and long wavy light brown hair intermingled with blonde streaks throughout. She had her mother's sharp features, much like Nathaniel and of course her left eye bore the greenish golden color of her papa and her right the cerulean blue of her mama. Matto studied her face closely. She looked different today, like something had shifted within her. Matto could not quite describe it, though it seemed to be oozing out of her every pour. He examined her closer, rolling his eyes across her body. It was not just her face that had changed but her entire self seemed different. Almost overnight she had become curvier, more opulent, more of a woman and less of a girl.

Matto forced his brown eyes away from her and said, "The rest of the family will be up at any moment, if they are not already." And Matto rose to a seated position, suddenly needing a bit of distance from her figure.

"Hmm, just a moment longer. I want to listen to the birds squabble overhead." Iris said as she put her freshly picked birthday present to her nose and took another deep inhale, letting the sweet smell fill her senses one more time.

Matto smiled down at her, watching as her eyes fell shut and she brought the flowers closer to her nose. The grand bouquet obscuring the lower half of her face with their multi colored petals gracefully cupping both sides of her cheeks. Matto silently laughed as her nostrils slightly flared to their fragrance, her nose wrinkling up as the yellow and white daisies tickled her seamlessly perfect skin. Iris opened her eyes to see him staring down at her, amusement twinkling in his eyes. She abruptly sat up, connecting her left hand with the center his smooth chest and shoving him backwards into the flowers.

Matto laughed as his body became enveloped once again by the abundant flowers of the glade. He folded his arms behind his head and stared back up at her. "At least you've gotten stronger in your old age!" Iris glared down at him and slapped his stomach hard just below his belly bottom, causing him to lurch forward. She quickly hopped to her feet and scurried off towards the cabin without so much as a backwards glance. Matto leaned his body up on his elbows and watched as she stormed off, completely unfazed by her reaction to his jest. He didn't mind that she was annoyed with him, all he cared about was that she was still holding within her now clenched fist, the flowers he had picked for her on her birthday and she was.

Iris entered the cabin to see her entire family, with the exception of Ash, awake and seated at the table. "Happy Birthday!" Came Lydia's sing song voice from across the table. She quickly stood up and dashed over to her, wrapping her long arms around her. Lydia turned her head towards her little sister's ear and whispered, "Nice flowers."

Iris immediately began to blush, though she did not quite know why. It was hardly a secret that every year Matto picked her flowers on her birthday. As he had been doing it since her turned eight years old. Though this time some how felt different, especially the way her sister whispered the mention of it into her ear. Perhaps it was the flowers he had chosen to pick for her. They were all her favorites with the exception of the bright yellow yarrow that he had sporadically placed throughout. She knew from Alice that had a special type of meaning, though she could not think of what. Iris pulled herself from her thoughts and leaned her face away from Lydia, staring back into her eyes quizzically.

Lydia smiled and shook her head at her little sister's expression. Before another word could be spoken, Martin had come up behind them and encased his youngest daughter in a warm embrace. He leaned in kissing her on her forehead and said, "Happy Birthday my girl!"

"Thank you Papa."

Prudence walked over and wrapped her arms around both her and Martin, kissing them both on the cheek. "Happy Birthday darling." She whispered into Iris's ear. Iris buried her face in Prudence's neck, remembering the story of her birth and how close her mother came to dying that day. She found herself gripping a little tighter to her mother's soft body, almost as if at any moment she may disappear. Prudence rubbed the back of her head, knowing exactly where her thoughts had trailed off to. She took ahold of both her daughters cheeks in her palms and tilted her face to met her own. She leaned down touched their foreheads together. "I love you sweet girl and I am thankful everyday that I am able to be here with you to celebrate your birth." Iris nodded her head, a single tear streaming down her cheek.

Prudence wiped it away with the back of her knuckles and said, "You know what my darling girl…I think we should have pie for breakfast!"

"Splendid idea wife!" Martin bellowed out and he and Elijah began getting plates for everyone to indulge in an early birthday treat.

Iris sat down next too Sampson. Her grandfather seemed to have aged decades in the mere months since Christmas. Sampson had fallen ill with fever just after the holiday and had become bedridden for several weeks there after. Prudence and Cora had diligently cared for him, at almost all hours of the day and night in the hopes that he would regain his strength. Though the fever did abate, it had taken its toll on his already weathered body and he has not been the same since.

Iris wrapped her arm around him, gently pulling her grandfather into a sweet hug. She nuzzled her head against his shoulder and smiled up at him, happy that was he still able to be with her for at least one more birthday.

Elijah passed out small plates, each with a large slice of apple pie sloppily placed upon it. When he got to Iris he planted a small kiss on top of her head, his way of saying happy birthday. Iris smiled happily up at him and said, "I wish Ash was here."

Elijah nodded his head in understanding as he took his seat next to her. "He'll be here by tomorrow."

"I know, I just miss him when he is away." Iris said as she stabbed her fork into her apple pie, crumbling the crust in one sharp movement.

"Me too, my dear me too." Martin said as he instinctually turned his head towards the open doorway wondering when his son might walk through it. Though all that came through was the bright rays of the days morning light.

It had been months since they had seen him. The last time he had been home was just after the winter weather broke. Ash was always anxious to start his next adventure. The older he got the more restless he became. By the time he was eighteen, Ash had begun leaving sporadically throughout the years to experience life in different ways. Trying new places and lifestyles, desperately searching for what suited him best. Gideon, having always been of a similar mindset, had made Ash promise that when he was eighteen he would finally take him along. Ash had whole heartedly agreed, happy to have a partner along for the ride with him. Though for now Gideon had to bide his time and wait for whenever Ash would reappear on the farm telling grand tales of his most recent adventures. Martin had never been like that, always wanting to be home with his father, happy and settled on the farm. Elijah was much more like him in that way, content to be at home and only ever desiring to continue his life on the farm with his family by his side. Perhaps Ash would come home one day and settle down with a family of his own, just like his brother planned to do in a mere few days time.

Elijah had turned twenty-six years old just this past spring and was well past the average age of marrying. Many young women had fawned over him , some even going so far as to openly pursue him. As the eldest Blackwood son, he was set to inherit the entire farm. The security alone was enough to send women swarming to him. He had admittedly enjoyed the attention as a young man. The idea of being desired by so many women was exciting, though as he matured he realized that none of them were truly interested in him, only what had to offer them until he met Tabitha. Tabitha Booker was a young woman of twenty one years. She was very petite, down right tiny compared to Elijah's towering six feet. She had long wavy auburn hair, green eyes and a splash of freckles that flowed beneath both eyes and across the bridge of nose. Everyone loved her, as her natural disposition was one of utter sweetness. Elijah courted her for several months, before falling completely head over heels in love with her. When finally he had asked her to marry him and come and live with him and his family on the farm. Elijah had almost wept tears of joy when she excepted his proposal, as his emotions were overwhelmed with happiness. The pair had respectfully asked Sampson, Martin and Prudence if they could be wed during the summer instead of the more favorable winter months, as they did not want to wait quite so long to call each other husband and wife.

Sampson, who was still the elder on the farm, had whole heartily agreed. He had decided to somewhat use Elijah's nuptials as a grand send off of sorts. He knew his time was fading and he wanted this last occasion to show off his beautiful family. In the process also saying, what he believed would be, his final farewell to many beloved friends and acquaintances. He was approaching eighty years old and his health was finally beginning to fail him. No one would have predicted his life would have extended this long. A true testament to his overall good health, despite being shot seventeen years ago and suffering from fever the past winter. When Sampson had presented the splendid idea to Elijah to have a grand affair, he had graciously agreed. He would never deny his grandfather anything and he thought it would be a wonderful way to welcome Tabitha to the family.

As the day wore on the entire family continued to throw themselves into wedding preparations. Elijah was to be married in a mere three days and there was much to be done. Food needed to be prepared, tables need to be affixed, decorations needed to be hung. Cora, Alice and Prudence were hard at work baking and cooking, each kitchen designated to a certain type of food. Nathaniel, Uncas and Martin were busy crafting and arranging wooden tables and chairs amongst the glade, their wives directing them at every turn and much to their own amusement. The children had been put in charge of decorating. The girls had loved being given this chore, the boys however were less then thrilled to say the least. Though their mothers had given them no choice in the matter and at least it was an excuse to escape the wedding craziness and retreat into the forest for a few hours, so long as they remembered to bring back a basket full of flowers.

Elijah had pulled Iris aside before she set out into the forest with little Winnie in search of wedding flowers and begged her to find roses of any color, as they were Tabitha's favorite. She had patted his cheek and assured him that she would find at least enough to make Tabitha a small bouquet.

Iris and Winnie wandered through the forest in search of Tabitha's favorite flower, picking several others along the way. They had a wild variety of colors by this point, though they had still yet to find roses. Determined as they were, the girls continued to trek further and further into the lush greenery of the forest.

Whenever Iris went anywhere she always offered to take Winnie along with her. As she was the youngest sibling in her family, she often longed for a little sister. With Rebekah not even a full year younger than herself, Iris often lived her desires with Winnie, who was seven years her junior. The little girl was a vision of absolute beauty, with her long raven colored hair, so striking looking against her fair skin. It always shocked people to know that she was Uncas's daughter, as he was so dark and she was so fair and with almost all of Alice's features. With the exception of her black hair and dark brown almond shaped eyes, which where her father's contribution to elegant looks. Winnie could easily pass as a white girl instead of a child of mixed race and her personality was just as perfect as her beautiful face. She was quite possibly the sweetest of all the children born on the farm. Her disposition every ounce like her parents and so different from that of her brothers. Though Keme was inherently a sweet boy, always polite and well mannered. He did have a bit of his older brother's wild nature. Matto had certainly rubbed off on him through the years. Often times, persuading him to do things he knew his parents might frown upon, though all in the name of good fun.

"Where are Lydia and Rebekah today?" Winnie asked as they walked hand in hand in the forest.

"Well, Lydia is with Robin at our cabin practicing what music they want to play at the wedding and Rebekah is helping Auntie Cora with the desserts. I imagine they will be hard at work in the kitchen until the very morning of the wedding!" Winnie nodded her head in acceptance and continued swinging their arms back and forth.

Lydia and Robin had been the only two children born on the farm with a natural inclination towards music. Martin had begun training Lydia by the time she was five years old. He would sit her in front of him, placing the violin up to her chin and hold her hand as he helped her cross the bow against the taut strings. They had practiced often, until finally Lydia had become almost as good as her father. The same can be said for Robin. When they would be together for family gatherings, he would naturally flock towards Martin or Lydia as they played. Always sitting at their feet gazing up with a look of awe. Cora had been surprised when Nathaniel was the one to encourage him to pursue the instrument. When she had questioned him about his decision, Nathaniel had plainly stated that he wanted all of his children to be happy and as long as Robin learned to hunt and defend himself properly, he was free to pursue any type of leisurely activities he so desired. After all, Martin was a perfect example of a man who could both play beautiful music and provide perfectly for his family in every way and as the years passed, that is exactly how Robin had turned out. A strong warrior as well as a talented musician. His son was the spitting image of himself, though without his own snarky nature. He had a tall lean body with strong muscular arms and just like Matto, choose to keep his dark thick hair in a shorter style. Needless to say, when he went to town he was very well received by the young ladies and whenever he took up the violin, the music was dazzling, even Nathaniel had even once shed a tear.

"And what of my brothers or Gideon and Jonas?"

Iris laughed and said, "You know as well as I do that those boys are simply shirking their family duties because they think hey are too masculine to collect flowers and are most likely off hunting somewhere." Winnie smiled widely at Iris, certain she was correct. Iris looked down at her and said, "Boys!" Emphasizing her statement with a very exaggerated eye roll. To which Winnie had laughed hysterically.

The girls continued to walk, chit chatting about the wedding. They talked about everything from who was going to attend to the different types of food that would be served, until finally the subject of flowers came back around and Winnie quite suddenly pointed and said, "Look Iris! I think I see roses!" She hopped up and down on her feet, proud that she had sought them out and began running off ahead into a wide open clearing. She skipped happily along the tall grassy landscape towards a cluster of large intertwined vines.

Iris smiled at her from a distance and crouched down gathering a few handfuls a vividly colored wild flowers that grew sporadically at her feet. She rubbed their soft petals between her fingers, feeling their smoothness before plucking them cleanly from the earth. Iris continued on plucking for a few moments before she turned her body back towards where Winnie had scurried off to. Before she could even rise from her crouched position she saw it. A black bear had come out from behind the trees and began strutting across the open clearing. It was large, certainly an adult. Iris's eyes went wide at the sight and let the flowers fall from her sweat ridden palms. She scanned the clearing quickly with her eyes, seeing that Winnie was standing petrified in her spot.

Iris slowly rose to her feet, keeping her stare ever focused on the bear as it leisurely walked further into the clearing. She silently cursed herself for not remembering to bring her knife with her, realizing very quickly that all she had in this moment to defend them with were her wits and began racking her thoughts to try and remember what was best to do. Though the more panic overtook her, the blanker her thoughts became, leaving her feeling utterly defenseless. All she could hope for right now was that she could somehow buy Winnie sometime to get to safety. Iris shifted her eyes towards Winnie and calmly said, "Winnie?" The little girl did not answer. Iris said again only slightly louder, "Winnie?"

Winnie rapidly blinked her eyes, doing her best to knock herself out of her trance like state. "Iris?" Came her soft frightened voice, its sweet sound just above a whisper.

Iris kept inching towards her, slowly closing the distance between them. "Winnie when I tell you to run, you are to go a fast as you can to the farm. Do you remember how to get there?" Winnie slowly nodded her head yes, much to Iris's relief and she continued, "Make sure you tell them where I am and bring back my mother or Aunt Cora. Do you understand?"

Winnie's wide brown eyes stared at Iris, silent tears began slipping from her welled up sockets. There could be only one reason why Iris would want her mama or Aunt Cora, as they were the only two capable of saving her life should she be attacked, while allowing Winnie to flee to safety. "No!" Winnie whined through her soft sobs.

Iris bent down, seeing a rather large stick laying dead upon the ground and gingerly picked it up. She wrapped her fingers around it only to find that the wood was half rotted. She could feel the bark flake off at her touch, leaving a brown residue all over her palm. She quickly scanned for anything else that might work but found nothing. She griped the rotted wood tightly in her palm, silently praying it would be strong enough to at least delay the inevitable. "Winnie. When I say go, you go!"

Between the talking and the extra movements, the two girls had seized the giant black bear's interest and it began thumping towards them. Its heavy footfalls somehow echoing through the tall trees and into Iris's ears. Iris knew there was no more time to be lost. She kept her attention focused on the bear's movements and loudly screamed, "Run Winnie, run right now!"

Author's Note: So here we are back again with our favorite family and a ten year time jump! The last chapter of The Ties That Bind was always meant to lead into the continuation, as I felt that "Ties" had run its course to completion with the second to last chapter, The Year of Our Lord 1765.

Most of this chapter was establishing the children's personalities. I wanted everyone to have a feel for who they essentially were before I jumped head first into the story. Since it was Iris's birthday it felt right to follow her into her cabin and see her with her family. Don't worry though, all of our original favorites are going to be in this continuation! I really wanted the story to begin around something rather big and at twenty-six years old, well it was certainly time for Elijah to get married! Should be interesting to see who shows up for his wedding!

Thank you to everyone who followed The Ties That Bind and a big thank you to everyone who took the time to comment/review. Your thoughts were always welcome and greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading :)