Anna helped her mother wash the dishes. Ivy would scrub them clean, and Anna would dry them with the pale yellow towel next to the sink. Anna looked to her mother before drying a plate, "I am sorry for scaring Nicholas." She said softly.

Ivy smiled, "And have you told Nicholas that...without laughing?"

"No, not yet."

"Why haven't you?"

Anna shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe because it's sort of fun to scare him..." She added on quickly, "But I am honestly sorry. I just can't resist sometimes. I mean... I do love him, and I put him before myself. Or if it was a danger...time... I'd put myself before him. I mean he'd be more important then myself."

Ivy smiled again and nodded once, "I understand, Anna."

She grinned and wiped off her wet hands, then handed the towel to her mother. From her bedroom (along with Nicholas's) she heard her father give a hearty laugh. Nicholas's giggling soon followed. Anna loved it when her father laughed, it always could cheer her up. Her father, Anna noticed, talked quite a lot around them, but when he was away from them, with others from the village he wasn't much for speaking. Sometimes, late at night, she'd see Lucius on the porch, busy writing for some talk with the elders the next day.

Lucius came out to them after a few minutes, "He's sleeping now...I'm quite tired myself, think I'll be going to bed." He kissed Anna's forehead and smiled at her, "You'll be better to Nicholas?" He asked her.

Anna smiled and nodded, "Yes, I promise. I mean it this time."

"That's good." Lucius kissed her forehead again then looked to Ivy softly, "Will you be in soon?"

Ivy nodded, "Yes, dear." She smiled softly and Lucius nodded then walked into their bedroom.

Anna looked to her mother, "I don't mean to cause any harm... Just curious."

"Too curious for your own good at times." She smiled then kissed Anna, "Sweet dreams, Anna."

She watched her mother go, "Sweet dreams..."

XwXwXwXwXwXwXwXwXwXwXwX

Anna turned to her side in her bed, her arm under her pillow. She watched Nicholas sleep, a quiet snore every so often. He was sleeping peacefully. There was silence through-out the house. Wetting her lips, she slowly stood up and stepped over the floorboards she knew creaked. She walked to the window that was a few steps from the foot of their beds. She gazed out of the window to the torches in the distance, beyond those was the forest.

This was the perfect time.

She kneeled next to her bed and pulled out the yellow cloak from under her bed. Anna grabbed her shoes and stood up, silently walking of their room, and out of the house.

Once she was outside, Anna put on the shoes and threw the cloak over her nightgown and started to carefully walk towards the forest. She kept to the shadows the best that she could. She glanced up to the white moon hanging in the sky then looked down to the ground, stepping over a large tree root. Something ran from the bottom of the tower to the hill that she often played on, probably a deer or something like that.

She stopped and looked over to the watch tower to the left of her. Anna pulled up her hood and walked in between the torches, over the forbidden line.

Instantly she was in the forest. The dark forest...Shadows from the trees were dancing on the ground. Anna caught glimpse of red. She picked it and saw that it was a type of berry. She gazed at it. Red was an amazing color. Anna put in the pocket of the cloak then turned, walking out of the forest.

She was halfway back to her house when she heard the unmistakable noise. The warning bell. Anna froze in place and looked over her shoulder into the distance. The bell, from this distance, was quite small, but it was undoubtedly swinging from side to side. It was loud, quick, urgent.

Anna wanted to run, but her legs wouldn't move. She was in too much fear to run. The bell echoed in her mind, but all around her she heard people frantically moving in their homes. Someone in the distance was shouting her name, and she recognized it at her father's. There was a cry from the tower, and instantly the bell stopped. Her wish to run came true in one sudden motion.

Before she knew it, she was running faster then she ever did in her whole life. Her heart was pounding wildly, but there wasn't time to breath.

Her house was just ahead, just a bit farther. She could see her father running towards her. His hand was around Anna's, pulling her into the house.

They were in the small room, under the floorboards. Anna stared up, realizing that the something that was running wasn't a deer. It was the thing that the bell was warning for... The bell had been ringing wildly, but then it came to an instant stop while she was outside. There was no reason for it...

In less the person could no longer ring it....