Hehe. I'm gonna be nice and give ya'll another chapter. What can I say? I
was bored.
And YAY! We get to meet James' best friend in the whole wide world since birth. Who has the same first name as Sarah's new suitor... Well, technically. Okay, and in the letter from Sarah's mother, some of that Sarah basically disregards in a future chapter, so yeah.
And the game the guys are playing is a weird version of football/catch/keep- away where they tackle each other and catch the ball and if you wind up with the ball at the end of the time limit, you win. This chapter's pretty long.
My darling Sarah,
Well, dear, I have stopped sending you suitors. However, I sent three over on ships before I received your letter. I will send no more unless you ask me to. Please, Sarah, keep an open mind about the men you will soon see.
These men, the ones that shall arrive in a week, are the gems. The ones it would be best for you to marry. They are as follows: Sir Jonathan, or John, for short, Smith, a direct descendent of the one who explored Virginia. Benjamin, or Ben, Grenville, the son of our current prime minister. And finally, Major James Raleigh.
May you find one you like, whether he dwells here or there is of no matter to me. Remember, Sarah, all I want is for you to be happy. If you are not, do not hesitate to inform your friends or me. I love you and want you to be happy, as does your father. At all costs.
- All my love,
Your loving mother
Great, three more of them. And I guess we could be expecting John Smith today, then. Great. I got up to get the door and Sarah rolled under her bed. Sure enough, it was Johnny boy at the door. He was tall and blonde with blue eyes. Looked kind of like me. Anyways, I let him in, because I couldn't be rude, and then ran up to get Sarah.
I don't know how I managed to get her down those stairs, though it was probably the same way I had when I managed to pry her off the Dartmouth. I mean, you'd think that if people dressed as Indians were attacking your ship and dumping tea overboard that you'd be off as soon as possible. Even if some strange boy was dragging you off it. Okay, in hindsight, I realize that it probably felt like I was going to do bad things to her, what with all the force, but still.
She glared at me when she reached the suitor. I smirked and ran outside. Henri was off playing catch with a few neighborhood boys. I decided that I'd join in. I grinned and intercepted the ball.
"James!" Henri chirped happily.
I smiled and threw him the ball. The eight other guys he was playing with tackled him. One of them got the ball and ran off with it. I helped my little friend up. He smiled gratefully at me.
"I thought you were with Sarah?" Henri asked.
I frowned and shrugged.
"She can deal with-Uh, I mean, I left her with a suitor," I stuttered.
He grinned.
"I would pay money to see that, mon amie," Henri grinned.
I laughed.
"HEY! Jim! You gonna be on my team or what? We have to beat these little shrimps, you know!"
I looked over at my best friend.
"Yeah, Jack, I'm coming! Henri, you're going down!" I yelled.
My friend Jack has black hair and green eyes. And I've known him since forever. His dad was the neighbor that saved me from that horrible fire. Anyways, I have to beat Henri. Jack threw me the ball and I passed it back to him. All the short boys didn't stand much of a chance against us. Especially since we're both like two feet taller than them.
"So, James, why'd you leave her with that guy?" Henri yelled.
I threw the ball back to Jack, nearly avoiding being tackled by one of Henri's friends.
"Well, Henri, I figured she could get out of it on her own, y'know?" I hollered back.
Jack threw the ball back and me and I barely caught it, jumping out of Henri's way.
"Who're you talking about, Hiller?" Jack shouted.
I frowned and dodged another jumping kid. I threw the ball back at Jack and Henri tackled me.
"Oof!" I said as I fell.
I got up slowly and continued, catching the ball.
"You don't want to know, believe me," I sighed.
Jack shook his head and threw the ball back at me. Henri opened his mouth and was about to speak when a dusty redhead, or maybe orange-head would be better, came running at us.
"SARAH!" Henri and I said in unison.
Sarah stopped running right away and our eyes locked.
"Okay, guys, game over! For now, anyways. Jamie boy and me are leading 1776 to 3. And in one of those games, Jim here had a cold!" Jack yelled.
I smirked. I loved this game. Jack walked over to us. His eyes locked on Sarah. But then again, haven't everyone's at some point? I mean, sometimes I swear Moses looked like he... But that's off the subject.
"Hey, I'm Jack Halling. And who would you be?" Jack said to Sarah.
One, two, three.
"Hay is for horses. And you mean whom, don't you? Anyways, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Halling. I am Miss Sarah Phillips, pleased to make your acquaintance," Sarah introduced, shaking my friend's hand.
I smiled, though my smile was fake and I tried not to throttle Jack. He kissed Sarah on the cheek and she flushed. My smile stretched out even further. I'm not in the best mood right now.
"Look, Sarah, why are you here, exactly?" I snapped, regretting the venom in my tone.
Jack gave me a look and I sighed. Sarah looked like she was about to cry.
"James, this man will not go away! I've tried everything! I ran away, I kicked him out, I hid under the bed, I tried to get him drunk, and I even gave him the friend speech! Nothing worked. You simply MUST help me! I need you, James!" Sarah solicited.
Whoa. Wasn't expecting that. Ha, now Jack's the jealous one. Uh, okay. Hmmm.
"Okay, Sarah. I'm coming. Bye Jack, bye Henri. I might be back later if things work out!" I yelled after them.
I then chased after Sarah and soon we were both in the printshop. Of course, so was John Smith, but whatever. We heard heavy footsteps coming our way. I thought quickly. Well, we could... I suppose. Sarah looked at me.
"James? Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sarah asked quietly.
I looked over at her and shrugged.
"It depends on what you're thinking," I replied.
We looked at each other.
"Nathan Hale," We whispered together.
What is she? Psychic? She read my mind. I nodded and she grabbed my hand. Could I survive this? Eh, it wasn't too bad. I mean, Sarah WAS holding my hand, right? We walked through the door and saw Johnny Smith. Great. I wonder why she doesn't like him.
"So, Sarah? Where were you? You were gone for around 9.876 minutes. I was very worried. As a matter of fact, I'm still worried. I mean, you've been acting so strange lately, dear," John said, sounding a little too concerned.
Ah. That was why. The stalker factor. Poor Sarah. I'm a bit nervous, but what do I have to lose? She thinks I'm just pretending anyways. I slip my arm around her waist. I've got to admit, Sarah did a great job concealing the surprise on her face. But, Johnny, well, he looks livid. Hee, fun!
"Sorry we haven't been properly introduced. I'm James, I'm courting Sarah. I'm sorry her mother sent you over here for nothing, but she doesn't exactly approve of me. We're going to elope," I lied.
John raised an eyebrow.
"Look, I really don't believe that. Lady Phillips told me that Sarah might try and get out of it. I want proof," He said authoritatively.
I bit my lip and my arm tightened around Sarah.
"What kind of proof?" I asked, annoyed.
Sarah was worried. Her grip on my hand was so tight that it felt that we had one hand, not two.
"Well, if you were really her bethrothed, then you would know a few things about her. Like, for example, her address in London, her mother's maiden name, her favorite color, her birthday, and the numbers and names of her brothers and sisters," John said seriously.
I rolled my eyes. I'll just guess. Well, she wears a lot of blue. I know I've seen that address on a letter. Hmmm.
"Her favorite color's blue. Her address in London is 1010 Morgan Street. Sarah's birthday is September First, fifteen years ago," I replied, spitting out all the information I knew.
His face was impassive, but she was smiling. I pretended to think.
"Hey, could you get me some water please? Thank-you," I replied quickly.
He walked across the room.
"Mother's maiden name," I hissed.
Sarah's eyes flicked from Johnny to me.
"Stone," She whispered.
I nodded. He was making his way over to us.
"And the last one?" I mumbled.
She was about to whisper when the guy arrived with the water. He grinned.
"Her mother's maiden name is Stone," I replied quickly.
She started tapping on my hand. Four times. I didn't get it for a while. She was answering the question. Then she started spelling out names.
"She has four brothers and sisters. Two brothers, both older, two sisters, one younger and one older. Their names are Samuel (25), Tory (14), Mary (19), and Hannah (13). Need any further information?" I responded, hoping I'd gotten it all right.
He appeared satisfied until he caught sight of Sarah's hands.
"Where's her ring?" He asked, clearly bothered.
I smiled and wrapped my arm around Sarah's shoulders. My other hand played with the locket she wore around her neck.
"Well, I got her this locket instead," I replied.
He sighed sadly and left. Sarah waited until he was gone. Once the door shut, she jumped up and embraced me tightly. This felt nice.
But of course, the mood-spoilers ruined my perfect daydreams. Henri was giggling hysterically. Jack looked like a whistling teapot, he was steaming. And Moses was standing there, scaring me. Seriously, did he have to be so tall? I nudged Sarah, who turned around.
"Oh, hello Moses," Sarah said nervously.
What did SHE have to be nervous about? Moses liked her. I was afraid for my life. Judging by the way he was glaring at me, I was very worried.
"James? Could you explain why I saw another suitor walking out of here and now Sarah's hugging you?" Moses said severely.
I didn't look at Sarah, though I wanted to. She was still hugging me. I turned to Moses.
"You know what? I don't know why she's hugging me. Get off!" I remarked.
Sarah looked scared and practically jumped off me. Jack was smirking. I scowled at him. Moses turned to Sarah, who blushed. This ought to be fun. I mean, sure, I have an "infatuation" (don't you just love my big vocabulary) with her, but just because I do doesn't mean that I can't still laugh. She's still a "nasty" Tory, you know. Though she's really pretty, but that's beyond the point.
"Why were you hugging James and why did that suitor leave, Sarah?" Moses asked sternly.
"Well, I was overjoyed that John has left. He's a scary man. And James was here and so I hugged him," Sarah answered.
Nice save. I however, was halfway out the door with Henri and Jack behind me. Jack threw me the ball, which I barely managed to catch. I threw it back.
"So, Jamie, care to tell me a little more about that pretty friend of yours?" Jack asked curiously.
I rolled my eyes and threw the ball back at him.
"You mean Sarah, right?" I called.
Jack nodded and threw the ball back at me. I caught it, though it barely missed my face.
"Well, she's a loyal British subject, writes to her mom every day, gets a new suitor practically every day, her dad's in the Ohio River Valley. Anything else you want to know?" I countered, throwing the ball to Jack.
Jack caught it.
"Oh, I don't know, her birthday, address in London, and favorite color," Jack said mockingly.
I frowned at the flashback and snapped out of it when the ball hit my stomach hard. I caught it before it fell and threw it back to him in a single motion, still clutching my stomach.
"Come on, any REAL questions," I retorted.
He grinned and threw me the ball.
"Yeah, what's the deal with you two?" Jack hollered.
I shook my head.
"Nothing, Jack, we're just friends. And we argue a lot so it's mostly less than that. Met her at the Boston Tea Party. It's a long story," I mumbled.
Jack gave me a look and I threw him the ball before Henri snatched it.
"Right, Hiller. So, why was she REALLY hugging you in there?" Jack returned.
He chucked the ball at me, hard. I threw the ball back.
"The same thing she said," I stated, bored.
He gave me a look.
"Jim, I've known you since birth. I know when you're lying to me," Jack remarked.
I shook my head and caught the ball. I turned to Henri, throwing the ball back to Jack.
"Hey, Henri, what do you think about this?" I asked, squatting.
He shopped short of Jack and looked at me, grinning.
"Well, you and Sarah are keeping something from everyone. That is all I know... For now, anyways," Henri said, with a strange twist of a smile on his face.
Then he tackled me. Ouch. I shoved him off me and caught the ball.
"Whatever. Why are you asking me all these questions about Sarah?" I asked, annoyed.
I threw him the ball.
"You in love with her or something?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
He rolled his eyes.
"Nope. I'm just a little interested. But you are," Jack stated bluntly.
I sighed and shook my head. I threw the ball, but Henri intercepted it and ran. I sighed again and looked over to Jack.
"No, Jack, I'm not!" I snapped.
- Loren ;*
REVIEW? Please? I gave you a long chapter even...
And YAY! We get to meet James' best friend in the whole wide world since birth. Who has the same first name as Sarah's new suitor... Well, technically. Okay, and in the letter from Sarah's mother, some of that Sarah basically disregards in a future chapter, so yeah.
And the game the guys are playing is a weird version of football/catch/keep- away where they tackle each other and catch the ball and if you wind up with the ball at the end of the time limit, you win. This chapter's pretty long.
My darling Sarah,
Well, dear, I have stopped sending you suitors. However, I sent three over on ships before I received your letter. I will send no more unless you ask me to. Please, Sarah, keep an open mind about the men you will soon see.
These men, the ones that shall arrive in a week, are the gems. The ones it would be best for you to marry. They are as follows: Sir Jonathan, or John, for short, Smith, a direct descendent of the one who explored Virginia. Benjamin, or Ben, Grenville, the son of our current prime minister. And finally, Major James Raleigh.
May you find one you like, whether he dwells here or there is of no matter to me. Remember, Sarah, all I want is for you to be happy. If you are not, do not hesitate to inform your friends or me. I love you and want you to be happy, as does your father. At all costs.
- All my love,
Your loving mother
Great, three more of them. And I guess we could be expecting John Smith today, then. Great. I got up to get the door and Sarah rolled under her bed. Sure enough, it was Johnny boy at the door. He was tall and blonde with blue eyes. Looked kind of like me. Anyways, I let him in, because I couldn't be rude, and then ran up to get Sarah.
I don't know how I managed to get her down those stairs, though it was probably the same way I had when I managed to pry her off the Dartmouth. I mean, you'd think that if people dressed as Indians were attacking your ship and dumping tea overboard that you'd be off as soon as possible. Even if some strange boy was dragging you off it. Okay, in hindsight, I realize that it probably felt like I was going to do bad things to her, what with all the force, but still.
She glared at me when she reached the suitor. I smirked and ran outside. Henri was off playing catch with a few neighborhood boys. I decided that I'd join in. I grinned and intercepted the ball.
"James!" Henri chirped happily.
I smiled and threw him the ball. The eight other guys he was playing with tackled him. One of them got the ball and ran off with it. I helped my little friend up. He smiled gratefully at me.
"I thought you were with Sarah?" Henri asked.
I frowned and shrugged.
"She can deal with-Uh, I mean, I left her with a suitor," I stuttered.
He grinned.
"I would pay money to see that, mon amie," Henri grinned.
I laughed.
"HEY! Jim! You gonna be on my team or what? We have to beat these little shrimps, you know!"
I looked over at my best friend.
"Yeah, Jack, I'm coming! Henri, you're going down!" I yelled.
My friend Jack has black hair and green eyes. And I've known him since forever. His dad was the neighbor that saved me from that horrible fire. Anyways, I have to beat Henri. Jack threw me the ball and I passed it back to him. All the short boys didn't stand much of a chance against us. Especially since we're both like two feet taller than them.
"So, James, why'd you leave her with that guy?" Henri yelled.
I threw the ball back to Jack, nearly avoiding being tackled by one of Henri's friends.
"Well, Henri, I figured she could get out of it on her own, y'know?" I hollered back.
Jack threw the ball back and me and I barely caught it, jumping out of Henri's way.
"Who're you talking about, Hiller?" Jack shouted.
I frowned and dodged another jumping kid. I threw the ball back at Jack and Henri tackled me.
"Oof!" I said as I fell.
I got up slowly and continued, catching the ball.
"You don't want to know, believe me," I sighed.
Jack shook his head and threw the ball back at me. Henri opened his mouth and was about to speak when a dusty redhead, or maybe orange-head would be better, came running at us.
"SARAH!" Henri and I said in unison.
Sarah stopped running right away and our eyes locked.
"Okay, guys, game over! For now, anyways. Jamie boy and me are leading 1776 to 3. And in one of those games, Jim here had a cold!" Jack yelled.
I smirked. I loved this game. Jack walked over to us. His eyes locked on Sarah. But then again, haven't everyone's at some point? I mean, sometimes I swear Moses looked like he... But that's off the subject.
"Hey, I'm Jack Halling. And who would you be?" Jack said to Sarah.
One, two, three.
"Hay is for horses. And you mean whom, don't you? Anyways, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Halling. I am Miss Sarah Phillips, pleased to make your acquaintance," Sarah introduced, shaking my friend's hand.
I smiled, though my smile was fake and I tried not to throttle Jack. He kissed Sarah on the cheek and she flushed. My smile stretched out even further. I'm not in the best mood right now.
"Look, Sarah, why are you here, exactly?" I snapped, regretting the venom in my tone.
Jack gave me a look and I sighed. Sarah looked like she was about to cry.
"James, this man will not go away! I've tried everything! I ran away, I kicked him out, I hid under the bed, I tried to get him drunk, and I even gave him the friend speech! Nothing worked. You simply MUST help me! I need you, James!" Sarah solicited.
Whoa. Wasn't expecting that. Ha, now Jack's the jealous one. Uh, okay. Hmmm.
"Okay, Sarah. I'm coming. Bye Jack, bye Henri. I might be back later if things work out!" I yelled after them.
I then chased after Sarah and soon we were both in the printshop. Of course, so was John Smith, but whatever. We heard heavy footsteps coming our way. I thought quickly. Well, we could... I suppose. Sarah looked at me.
"James? Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sarah asked quietly.
I looked over at her and shrugged.
"It depends on what you're thinking," I replied.
We looked at each other.
"Nathan Hale," We whispered together.
What is she? Psychic? She read my mind. I nodded and she grabbed my hand. Could I survive this? Eh, it wasn't too bad. I mean, Sarah WAS holding my hand, right? We walked through the door and saw Johnny Smith. Great. I wonder why she doesn't like him.
"So, Sarah? Where were you? You were gone for around 9.876 minutes. I was very worried. As a matter of fact, I'm still worried. I mean, you've been acting so strange lately, dear," John said, sounding a little too concerned.
Ah. That was why. The stalker factor. Poor Sarah. I'm a bit nervous, but what do I have to lose? She thinks I'm just pretending anyways. I slip my arm around her waist. I've got to admit, Sarah did a great job concealing the surprise on her face. But, Johnny, well, he looks livid. Hee, fun!
"Sorry we haven't been properly introduced. I'm James, I'm courting Sarah. I'm sorry her mother sent you over here for nothing, but she doesn't exactly approve of me. We're going to elope," I lied.
John raised an eyebrow.
"Look, I really don't believe that. Lady Phillips told me that Sarah might try and get out of it. I want proof," He said authoritatively.
I bit my lip and my arm tightened around Sarah.
"What kind of proof?" I asked, annoyed.
Sarah was worried. Her grip on my hand was so tight that it felt that we had one hand, not two.
"Well, if you were really her bethrothed, then you would know a few things about her. Like, for example, her address in London, her mother's maiden name, her favorite color, her birthday, and the numbers and names of her brothers and sisters," John said seriously.
I rolled my eyes. I'll just guess. Well, she wears a lot of blue. I know I've seen that address on a letter. Hmmm.
"Her favorite color's blue. Her address in London is 1010 Morgan Street. Sarah's birthday is September First, fifteen years ago," I replied, spitting out all the information I knew.
His face was impassive, but she was smiling. I pretended to think.
"Hey, could you get me some water please? Thank-you," I replied quickly.
He walked across the room.
"Mother's maiden name," I hissed.
Sarah's eyes flicked from Johnny to me.
"Stone," She whispered.
I nodded. He was making his way over to us.
"And the last one?" I mumbled.
She was about to whisper when the guy arrived with the water. He grinned.
"Her mother's maiden name is Stone," I replied quickly.
She started tapping on my hand. Four times. I didn't get it for a while. She was answering the question. Then she started spelling out names.
"She has four brothers and sisters. Two brothers, both older, two sisters, one younger and one older. Their names are Samuel (25), Tory (14), Mary (19), and Hannah (13). Need any further information?" I responded, hoping I'd gotten it all right.
He appeared satisfied until he caught sight of Sarah's hands.
"Where's her ring?" He asked, clearly bothered.
I smiled and wrapped my arm around Sarah's shoulders. My other hand played with the locket she wore around her neck.
"Well, I got her this locket instead," I replied.
He sighed sadly and left. Sarah waited until he was gone. Once the door shut, she jumped up and embraced me tightly. This felt nice.
But of course, the mood-spoilers ruined my perfect daydreams. Henri was giggling hysterically. Jack looked like a whistling teapot, he was steaming. And Moses was standing there, scaring me. Seriously, did he have to be so tall? I nudged Sarah, who turned around.
"Oh, hello Moses," Sarah said nervously.
What did SHE have to be nervous about? Moses liked her. I was afraid for my life. Judging by the way he was glaring at me, I was very worried.
"James? Could you explain why I saw another suitor walking out of here and now Sarah's hugging you?" Moses said severely.
I didn't look at Sarah, though I wanted to. She was still hugging me. I turned to Moses.
"You know what? I don't know why she's hugging me. Get off!" I remarked.
Sarah looked scared and practically jumped off me. Jack was smirking. I scowled at him. Moses turned to Sarah, who blushed. This ought to be fun. I mean, sure, I have an "infatuation" (don't you just love my big vocabulary) with her, but just because I do doesn't mean that I can't still laugh. She's still a "nasty" Tory, you know. Though she's really pretty, but that's beyond the point.
"Why were you hugging James and why did that suitor leave, Sarah?" Moses asked sternly.
"Well, I was overjoyed that John has left. He's a scary man. And James was here and so I hugged him," Sarah answered.
Nice save. I however, was halfway out the door with Henri and Jack behind me. Jack threw me the ball, which I barely managed to catch. I threw it back.
"So, Jamie, care to tell me a little more about that pretty friend of yours?" Jack asked curiously.
I rolled my eyes and threw the ball back at him.
"You mean Sarah, right?" I called.
Jack nodded and threw the ball back at me. I caught it, though it barely missed my face.
"Well, she's a loyal British subject, writes to her mom every day, gets a new suitor practically every day, her dad's in the Ohio River Valley. Anything else you want to know?" I countered, throwing the ball to Jack.
Jack caught it.
"Oh, I don't know, her birthday, address in London, and favorite color," Jack said mockingly.
I frowned at the flashback and snapped out of it when the ball hit my stomach hard. I caught it before it fell and threw it back to him in a single motion, still clutching my stomach.
"Come on, any REAL questions," I retorted.
He grinned and threw me the ball.
"Yeah, what's the deal with you two?" Jack hollered.
I shook my head.
"Nothing, Jack, we're just friends. And we argue a lot so it's mostly less than that. Met her at the Boston Tea Party. It's a long story," I mumbled.
Jack gave me a look and I threw him the ball before Henri snatched it.
"Right, Hiller. So, why was she REALLY hugging you in there?" Jack returned.
He chucked the ball at me, hard. I threw the ball back.
"The same thing she said," I stated, bored.
He gave me a look.
"Jim, I've known you since birth. I know when you're lying to me," Jack remarked.
I shook my head and caught the ball. I turned to Henri, throwing the ball back to Jack.
"Hey, Henri, what do you think about this?" I asked, squatting.
He shopped short of Jack and looked at me, grinning.
"Well, you and Sarah are keeping something from everyone. That is all I know... For now, anyways," Henri said, with a strange twist of a smile on his face.
Then he tackled me. Ouch. I shoved him off me and caught the ball.
"Whatever. Why are you asking me all these questions about Sarah?" I asked, annoyed.
I threw him the ball.
"You in love with her or something?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
He rolled his eyes.
"Nope. I'm just a little interested. But you are," Jack stated bluntly.
I sighed and shook my head. I threw the ball, but Henri intercepted it and ran. I sighed again and looked over to Jack.
"No, Jack, I'm not!" I snapped.
- Loren ;*
REVIEW? Please? I gave you a long chapter even...
