Two years have passed since you first moved to Burgess. Your father had decided four months after coming to town that he didn't want to keep moving around anymore and that Burgess was a "wonderful place to build character". You were shocked that he decided to settle down. Soon after his declaration, you bought a nice, comfy, small house. Merchants were usually better off in society, so he could afford it. You were slightly uncomfortable with the prospect of staying in one place for forever, but you tried to not let it bother. Over the past two years, you've become more comfortable with the place. The only people who bothered you now were Jackson Overland his small "clique". At fourteen, other teenagers like you had to start preparing for the real world-marriage and jobs. Going through puberty with only a father around was difficult too. You only had Elizabeth and Mrs. Overland to help you through the process. If anything, it only made you into a more headstrong person-having to go through all of this without a mother. Good things have happened too! You, Elizabeth, and Olivia were practically inseparable, even if Olivia was five years younger than you. The three of you were basically sisters.

You woke up to a quiet morning. Your father was out on a hunting trip and wouldn't be returning for another week. As you got ready for the day, you heard a knock from downstairs from what you assumed was the front door. You rushed while putting on your dark (color) cloak for the cool air of March, and ran downstairs to open the door to the greatest surprise of your life: Jackson Overland standing impatiently at your door. You gasped loudly, choking on your own spit, and then coughed for a good. Once your minor fit was done, you turned and look up to Jackson's face with a scowl on your own. You then asked, "Why are you here, Overland?" Not waiting for a response you the continued, "Never mind, I don't want to even be involved with some stunt I know you're planning to pull on me. Just leave Overland." You then almost had the door shut, when a hand stopped you from closing it.

"Stop it (Last Name)! I would never come here on my own will, except for now. This isn't some joke!" he hurriedly explained when you were about to push him out of your door's way. The tone of his voice made you stop and search his face for any signs of lies, and when you couldn't find any, you let him continue.

"Olivia is sick. She's burning up and she's been like this for the past two days." The news was quite shocking to you. Olivia was always running around, having fun and being so full of energy. You instantly started to worry about her and then invited Jack inside your house for the first and only time. Once both of you were seated, you asked him, "Well, now that I know that she's sick, what you want me to do about it, Overland? I'm not a physician."

"I know, but we—" at this Jackson's face turned slightly red,"—don't have enough money to afford a doctor." He paused again, looking as if he was going to regret his next words, "Look, I know you're smart, you're constantly reading books and all that. Don't you have anything that could help?" At these words you mouth just hung open. Was Jackson Overland actually complimenting you in a very discreet way? Given your reaction, he knew he had you sold.

"Okay, I'll do it. Give me some time. My father is out of town at the moment so I'll try to see if I have the money necessary. I'll meet you at your house," you finally told him after a long silence. In his head, Jack mentally congratulated himself and gave himself a pat on the back. He then left your house. Once he was gone, you got ready to go out. You managed to find some money, but you doubted it would be enough. And with that, you walked out your front door.

Once you got to the marketplace, you looked around in the local apothecary to see if there were any books on herbs. Amazed at your luck, you found one about illnesses and home remedies. Trying to memorize as much of it as you could, you hurriedly scanned the pages about fevers. You then asked the merchant how much the book would cost. Unfortunately, your doubts were correct: you didn't have nearly enough money. You then asked the man to reserve the book, if he could, and ran out of the shop to the Overland's house. Once you got there, you hunched over, trying to catch your breath. You wished you were wearing some breeches instead! Dresses could be so heavy! After you knocked on the front door, you were pulled inside the house by Jackson and he shoved you towards his mother.

"(Name)! What are you doing here?" Mrs. Overland asked, while she was at her daughter's bedside. You told her you came to visit Olivia and rushed to the other side of Olivia. When you touched her forehead, it felt like it was on fire. She looked clammy with sweat. You then told Mrs. Overland the little information you had read in the book just minutes ago. You advised her that cool, wet towels should be placed on her forehead to help her body cool down. After that, you turned to Jackson and pulled him aside so his mother couldn't hear what you had to say.

"Look, Overland, I found this book in the apothecary's shop that contains information about home remedies. I didn't have any money to buy it, I'm sorry. I'm going to be gone for a while, trying to earn some money. I'll try to be back in two days, at the latest. Try to cool her off by keeping a cool, wet cloth on her head. I need to go now. Take care of her. She's like family to me," you told him. He looked thoroughly confused about the situation. As he stood there pondering about what you just said, you returned to Mrs. Overland.

"I'll be taking my leave now, Mrs. Overland. I gave Jackson some pointers on taking care of her. I'll be back to visit in two day's time, if not sooner," you told her solemnly. As you started to walk out of the Overland's house, Jackson grabbed a hold of your arm and pulled you outside with him.

"What did you mean by 'trying to earn some money'? You can't do anything now! You don't even have a job AND you're a girl," he explained. At his words you got slightly angry for him underestimating you. You responded, "Look, it doesn't matter what I do Overland! I'm more capable of earning money than you think! How I go about earning it doesn't matter and it shouldn't concern you at all!"

"What, so you're saying that you're actually capable of doing something useful?" he asked heatedly. He then continued in a slower voice, "The only job a women or girl could get would be...prostitution. Would you-" At this, you slapped him hard against his face for what he just said.

"PROSTITUTION?! Do you really think I have no shame, Overland? What I do to earn money is none of your business. Just let me do what I have to do, okay?" you hissed vehemently at him. He looked dumbstruck at your reaction and let you leave, watching you as your figure got smaller the farther you went away from him.

Once you changed clothes and assumed the identity of a male adolescent, you grabbed your hunting bag and packed some food and a knife along with a blanket and, of course, your sling. Looking around your house, you also found one of your father's spare maps and compasses and packed that as well. You then made your way out to the unknown.

Once you had reached the forest, you scanned the area for stones to use for your sling. After packing a few you then decided to make your way through the dense foliage of the wild. The further you went in the woods, the more your hair stood on end. This was your first time hunting alone, and although you would continue to practice with your sling on inanimate objects, you were frightened. You knew that the first thing you had to do was to find the river that most beavers would have made their habitat, so you started by getting to a higher elevation so you could try to get a better view. You looking for a good tree to climb and started your ascent. You were thankful to Overland because he had essentially taught you how to climb trees—you had to get away from him chasing you somehow! Once you reached a good height on the tree you looked around and finally spotted what you were looking for: the river that would be home to all of the beavers. You climbed down the tree and started off at a slight jog towards your prey.

Slightly crouching behind a tree, you set your hunting bag down on the ground and loaded your sling with the stones you picked up earlier. You had spotted your first prey and he had no idea you were there. Once your artillery was loaded, you slowly stepped out from behind the clearing, making sure the beaver wouldn't notice you yet. You kept your arms at your sides, your sling arm behind your back, in order to make sure the beaver wouldn't identify you as a human predator. After a sharp intake of breath, the beaver suddenly jerked its head towards you, but as soon as he did, you let your arm snap out from behind you as you brought it over in an overhand throw. In order to give your shot more motion, you used your hips to guide you, giving the stone the speed of a fired bullet. In less than a second, your prey was dead. You felt horrible, but you knew it was necessary in order for Olivia to survive. After you bagged your first kill, you knew you would have to do this several more times.

As dusk approached, you knew you would have to get your rest sometime soon. You knew that you had probably gotten enough to give you a fair amount of money at the market. So far, you had killed six beavers, four raccoons, and one rabbit. You decided that you would try to find a higher-elevated place to sleep, so you could keep a watch of the vicinity. As you made your way uphill, you knew that something felt wrong. You felt the hairs on the back of your neck stand up and you stopped walking and listened closely. It was too quiet for this time of day; dusk was just starting to arrive so there should still be some animals active. You knew you were right when you heard some motion behind you. You quickly turned around and almost fainted on the spot. In front of you, there was a gray wolf with its teeth bared, letting its vicious growls be heard. You knew that it probably smelled your kill so you had three options:

1. Drop your bag of the day's hard work and give it to the wolf (along with your father's map)
2. Run and try to see if you could escape it, or
3. Try to fight it off

You knew that in your heart you couldn't do the first, and you would never be able to do the second, so you were stuck with the third. You were thankful that your sling was already loaded and that it was only one wolf. The only downside was that you couldn't drop your hunting bag. You started at the wolf as it slowly approached you and before you could let your hunting instincts take over, the wolf had already sprung. When you felt the wolf's jaws clamp down on your calf, you let out a shriek of pain and dropped your sling as you fell to the ground. Letting instinct take over, you quickly grabbed your knife from your belt and cut at the wolf's throat on top of you. The effect was instantaneous: as the blood gushed out the wolf's neck, it fell limply on top of you, covering you with its blood as well. You knew you couldn't stay here or else its pack would probably find you. Trying your best to stand up, you hauled the wolf up too and dragged it by its front paws while you limped to the nearest tree. It was a struggle, but you managed to get yourself, and the wolf, up a couple of branches, just out of harm's reach. You knew that a wolf would be a great kill for the marketplace, so you decided that you would drag it with you in the morning. For now, you would try your best to get some sleep.