According to Marissa
Chapter Three - Part Two
Samuel found him sitting under a tree, Israel's future king. It wasn't until he had taken in his vacant, empty stare that Samuel noticed the change, a slight, yet meaningful alteration that gave him pause. It had been sometime since their initial meeting, yet Samuel remembered the boy well. He remembered the confidence in his stance, the surety of his gait, the strength of his hands, but most of all, he remembered his gaze. Even at his tender age, Samuel was taken aback by the wise fierceness emanating from the boy's dark pupils. It was uncommon to find such determination in a man, let alone a boy. Seeing it saturate the very core of his being made it nigh impossible for Samuel to forget the child, yet as he walked across the field unnoticed and unhindered, Samuel pondered how in such a short time that fierceness had dissipated. It was now a small shadow of itself. Instead of a roaring fire, in its place stood solemn distraction, bored frustration and wavering uncertainty. These emotions, as common as they were, were unbefitting a warrior, let alone a king. Something was wrong and Samuel found himself more curious than concerned, more careful than cautious. The Lord's presence did not ring alarms. At least, not yet. He would stave his worry. Until more could be discerned, he would wait. He would watch.
As he neared, the boy did not notice him. In fact, he was so out of it, he did not notice when Samuel stopped in front of him. The prophet frowned, then allowed it to sink and hang, tilt left then right then right again. After a moment, it settled, his frown. It hung lazily by his chin, beneath his scratchy beard and above his dirty tunic. Samuel stood there contemplating the boy when a thought dawned quietly, peaked shyly out of his ponderings. It grew like a weed in a field, or orange strange words written luminously, intently, precisely across a page. Buried beneath years of lost memories, half-hidden, half-forgotten, the thought answered his question, provided a reason as to why the Lord had prompted him as He had, pushed as urgently as He did. It would explain everything, Samuel thought. Indeed, it would explain a great deal.
Samuel smiled. For the first time, in many years. It felt genuine.
Decided, the old man stepped forward resting his hands on his knees. Boring questioning, curious eyes into the boy's cloudy own, he thought he caught a familiar glint. He could feel his smile widen even as he felt a word rise from his throat, pass through wrinkled lips and drizzle dusty, frizzled whiskers. One word was all it took to snap the boy back into reality. One word and Samuel was suddenly sure that the He in front of him was actually a She. Samuel's heartbeat quickened, then softened, then lightened again. It's warmth slowly grew to reach eyes that long since hardened from life and its trials, from life and its many, long difficulties. Marissa was all he said.
Marissa was all she heard.
So, I lost the entire first draft of this novel and had to start over from scratch! Sorry for the delay! - Calla