Gen 1 Chapter 7 - Taverns and Treasure

"Check it out Elias! I finally got one on the pole!" Eva said happily.

"It only took three tries," Elias teased.

"You haven't even got one yet!" Eva retorted, grinning. She loved their weekly night out at the local tavern. She thought back to the first time they went to the tavern, Eva had been really nervous they would be thrown out. They were old enough to go, but it had still seemed very grown up and too good to be true!

"Watch how it is done!" Elias boasted, tossing his horseshoe and missing completely.

"Do you want me to show you how not to miss?" Eva fired back, giggling. Elias responded with a mock glare then said "Oh I give up, you always beat me. Let's have a drink!".

"No, Elias. I've had enough and you definitely have! Come on, you can walk me home," Eva said turning toward the door.

"Of course I can walk you home, we live next to each other, daftie!" Elias mocked heading unsteadily after her. Eva guessed by the time they walked home, it would be another night she would have to put Elias to bed. He really did not know when to stop. It was only one night a week though so she didn't really mind.

As Eva and Elias arrived at Elias's house, they were greeted by a familiar scene. Lissie had clearly just arrived home herself and Luke was telling her what an unfit mother she was. Eva thought how terrible it must be to have a marriage like that, but there was no escaping it. Married couples that split up were pretty much outcasts in the eyes of the Church and shunned by the village folk as a consequence.

Eva got Elias through the door. The fresh air on the walk home had made its mark and he was almost asleep stood up. She steered him through to the bedroom and onto his bed. Elias was going to have a rather sore head come the morning.

Elias sleepily pulled off his top and mumbled something incoherently before drifting off.

Eva looked down at him as he slept. She couldn't help but notice how much he was changing. He was still very skinny but he was getting quite tall and as she looked at his bare chest, she started to feel a little flushed. Suddenly uncomfortable, she gave him a last look, smiled softly at his peaceful face and walked the short distance to her house. Lissie and Luke were still arguing and paid her no attention as she left.

Back at home, she tucked into a plate of vegetables from the local farm. The summer was always a time where hunger was a little less throughout the village. She thought about Lissie and Luke. Their marriage had been arranged by their families. Luke had once had a fair amount of money from his work as a brewer. Lissie had not been opposed to the marriage, imaging herself to one day be walking amongst the nobles, and Luke was in awe of her beauty. Unfortunately, Luke got overfond of his own produce and gradually lost his trade. With the work gone, the money went too and when the money went, Lissie all but checked out of the marriage. Now Luke worked as a butcher but was still fond of a drink, spending the little money they had on it. Twice Lissie and Luke had nearly been evicted for not having enough money to pay their taxes.

Eva thought of her own parents. They had been together over fifteen years and were still so obviously in love. They hardly ever argued and were always kissing each other. Eva felt lucky to have her parents and hoped that one day, she would have a marriage like theirs.

By the time Eva was finished eating, she was desperate for her bed. As she settled off to sleep, she found her mind drifting again and again to Elias, sleeping on his bed, and that night, she dreamed she found the treasure he always talked about when they were younger.

Gen 1 Chapter 6 - Hugs and Harvests

With the arrival of spring, Eva and Elias began to spend their days at the local farm. It was hard work, taking care of the crops and the children often returned home smelling of sweat with their eyes half closed. At least there was a chance of a little extra to eat, a few berries or an apple that wouldn't go noticed. The spring weather fluctuated from heavy rain to hail, yet still the children kept up their work. Well, Eva did. Elias was prone to taking the odd break!

Elias made up for his laziness on the stall, selling confidently to most people that came his way. He had the gift of the gab and knew it too. Eva didn't mind, she preferred working in the fields. People made her nervous unless she knew them quite well.

The little pond on the farm slowly defrosted as the weather grew warmer and Eva tried to spend a bit of time fishing each day, even though she didn't really enjoy it and honestly, she wasn't very good at it. Fish brought in fairly good money however, especially after a winter of eating shrivelled up boiled vegetables and eggs when they could be got.

"Elias, are you taking a break again?" Eva called, without looking over her shoulder. 

"Oh, um no, I was just standing up to stretch my back," Elias offered. He realised he had been watching Eva work for about five minutes. Lately, he seemed to be watching Eva a lot. Ever since she had been so unwell at the end of winter, he felt worried about her almost all the time. It was silly, but he really couldn't help it. Perhaps his own illness had damaged his brain!

He turned back to the crops, shaking his head. 

He didn't see Eva trying to climb the apple tree, all he heard was the thud and Eva cry out. 

"Eva! Are you okay?" he said as he rushed over to her.

"I really banged my head," Eva answered, sadly. 

"You daftie, you are supposed to climb the tree not fall out of it!" Elias said cheekily, hoping to see her smile. He helped Eva to her feet.  

"I'm so fed up of that tree!" Eva said, crossly. "In fact, I'm fed up of the fields. I'm fed up of the stupid chickens. I'm fed up of Sunday keeping us up all night!" She burst out, angrily. 

"Hey, the chickens aren't stupid! One of them told me a joke about a chicken crossing a road!" Elias teased. 

"Oh, shut up Elias, chicken's can't talk. They just walk about clucking all day," Eva returned, walking off to the public toilet to clean herself up. 

Elias waited for Eva to finish then went in to make sure she was okay. She looked so angry but mostly sad. He guessed she was pretty exhausted to be getting angry, it wasn't really like her. Or perhaps the bump on the head had made her crazy, he pondered. 

"Why are you always making jokes Elias? You never take anything seriously! Why don't you go and find your imaginary dragon!" Eva flung at him then burst into tears. 

"Oh come here," Elias said gruffly and gave her a hug. "If I didn't make jokes you would just be all mad and grumpy all the time! Like my dad!" He giggled. 

"You are such an idiot Elias," Eva said then burst out laughing. "Your dad really is mad and grumpy though!" She said against his shoulder. 

"Well there you go then!" Elias said, smiling. "Come on, lets head home, I'm so tired I could sleep like this!"

"Me too Elias. Just one night without Sunday screaming would be great," Eva said wistfully, as they made their way home. "You're so lucky your little brother is a good sleeper."

Sunday was not in good form when Eva got home. She was cutting her back teeth and it was hurting. As much as Eva moaned about Sunday, she did love her very much. Some nights, Eva would take Sunday into her own bed and cuddle up to her, to help her settle and get some sleep. Eva's mum did her best but she was still regaining her strength after the dysentery. 

"Come on Sunday, let's see what there is left to eat," Eva said hopefully. She checked the pantry and found some cold pottage. 

Eva thought Sunday was even happier than herself, when she placed a bowl in front of her. Eva wondered to herself when Sunday might have last been fed.  

"Thank you Eva, you are such a help," Eva heard her mum say behind her. Turning round, she gave her mum a tight hug. 

"It's okay mum, I like helping," Eva said. Her mother's hug made her feel warmer inside than Eva had felt all day. 

Eva finally settled herself into bed and was just about to drift off into a deep sleep when she heard angry voices nearby.

Eva realised it was Elias's parents having another one of their rows. Lissie would have just got home from the tavern and Luke would be telling her what a terrible wife she was. Eva thought about Elias. She hoped he was okay. Maybe he was asleep already. She thought of the warm glow she got when her mother hugged her. "Poor Elias," Eva thought to herself sleepily. "I bet no one gave him a good night hug tonight". 

That night, she dreamed she was asking a chicken how they cross roads. 

Gen 1 Chapter 5 - Sickness Strikes

Eva didn't see much of Elias at all over the next few days. Occasionally she caught sight of him running outside his house to throw up. Eva became afraid that she would get sick too, especially with the reappearance of flies with spring arriving.

Life without Elias around was rather dull. The weather turned from cold and snowy, to cold and wet. Elias's mum was next to get sick and even Elias's new baby brother. Eva tried playing hop scotch on her own, but she really missed Elias. He made everything more fun.

Eva's fears were realised when her father Kirk, came down with the sickness too. He seemed much worse than the Buckhorn family. Her poor father went foraging for his $20 a day, and all the while was throwing up nearly every hour. As time went on, he began to wet himself too. Yet still he forced himself out foraging each day.

One night, Eva woke up feeling terrible. Her stomach was churning, her mouth was full of saliva and she knew she was sick too.  Word was spreading around the village that this sickness was serious. There was medicine that could be bought to help fight the symptoms, but Eva knew her family did not have any money to spare. The name people were calling the sickness was Dysentery.

Seraphine, Eva's mum, became so unwell, Eva really thought her mum would die. One night on her dash outside to throw up, Eva came across her mum unconscious, lying in her own urine. Eva was terrified, her poor mum was so gentle and loving, it was terrible to see her suffering so badly. Her father had lifted Seraphine up and carried her to bed, while Eva washed her mum down and tended to the baby.

Sadly, it wasn't long until even poor Sunday got sick. Eva loved her little sister but she was so exhausted with her illness, and Sunday cried so much with hers, it was impossible for the family to get any sleep. Everyone was worried about each other. Eva didn't even know if Elias was okay, she was throwing up hourly at her worst.

One night, Eva was stood in the rain outside, after having yet again thrown up. She was so tired she could barely keep her eyes open. Eva felt shaky and thought perhaps she should just lie down and go to sleep. Then Elias appeared before her. He was horrified at the sight of her.

"Eva! Oh my goodness, you look awful. Are you okay? Why are you out in the rain?!" Elias panicked.

"Elias...Oh, I feel so bad Elias. I'm so sick and I'm so tired. I just want to lie down and go to sleep," Eva managed to say, just before everything turned dark. She heard Elias shout her name, before all her senses left her.

Eva woke up tucked in her bed. She realised she was actually starting to feel a little better. She still needed the toilet though so made her way to the main living area. To her surprise, Elias was there. He jumped up when he saw her.

"Eva! You woke up! I was so worried about you, I thought you were going to...die," Elias said, his shoulders slumping.

"Elias, how long have you been here?" Eva asked.

"I have been sat by your bed for two nights, Eva, I couldn't go..." Elias began to say.

Before Elias could finish his sentence, Eva threw her arms around him.

"Thank you Elias, you really are my best friend," Eva said softly.

Oddly, Eva's words didn't make Elias feel as happy as they should have. He didn't know why. Eva was his best friend too, but for some reason, her words stung him, just a little. He must still be a bit off after the sickness.

All in all, the sickness had lasted seven whole days, but gradually everyone was on the mend and amazingly, nobody had died. Eva and Elias were soon back to their usual selves and hop scotch was no longer boring. Eva watched Elias as he played and enjoyed the warmth she felt in her soul when he was around. No one could have a better friend, she thought to herself.

Gen 1 Chapter 4 - Sermons and Siblings

Eva liked going to church. She always worried however, with no one in the house to look after it, someone would break in and steal something. Not that there was much to steal. Aside from the furniture there was just one teddy bear Eva had been given when she was born.

All week Eva would think of the things she wanted to talk to God about. Any worries she had, she spilled it all out in her prayers for God to hear. He didn't really seem to do much about her problems, still it was a relief to just get them all out. Eva was pretty sure God was real, because once she asked Him to make Elias better when he was sick with the Flu and Elias got better.

Before Eva left for church, she collected Elias on the way. Elias didn't like church as much as Eva did, but she didn't want his soul to go to hell when he died, so she always dragged him along, in the hope God would appreciate the appearance. When they got to the church, it was still very early and no one else was there yet. Eva's father took the stand and read some interesting stories from the bible. Eva wished she could be like Jesus and feed all those people with just some bread and fish.

Elias sat right at the back of the church as usual. Eva knew he would be quietly pretending to steer a carriage whilst chasing down a dragon on his seat.

As time went on, a few more of the village arrived and after the end of the sermon, everyone chatted a little with each other. It was quite the social event really, attending church. Everyone had tales from their week to share, gossip was dished out on those not attending and people mostly just had a good time.

Elias, as charming as ever, spoke to a noble about the weather. He was so cheeky, nobles generally associated very little with the poor folk, but it was pretty hard to resist Elias's big blue eyes and blond hair. Lady Adrianna was one of the nicer nobles anyways and happened to quite like children. All children, not just the noble ones.

Back at home, Eva woke up from a little nap to the sound of her mother moaning. The baby was coming! Instead of being excited, Eva was really worried. What if her mother died in childbirth like the woman that lived down the road? Suddenly Eva was very afraid.

As was her father it seemed.

Those prayers Eva made in church must have been heard as God decided Eva's mum would live through childbirth and after a six hour labour, baby Sunday Dearheart was born!

Eva couldn't believe it. She was a big sister! Baby Sunday looked so small and helpless. It was going to be hard to get much sleep now her parents and Eva shared their one bedroom with a baby.

Eva was so excited about Baby Sunday, she rushed next door to tell Elias but when she got to the door, Elias's mum was stood outside, with a baby of her own! Elias had a little baby brother!

"Aww, Mrs Buckhorn, your baby is so sweet! My mum just had the baby too, I have a little sister called Sunday," Eva said politely.

"Well, tell your mum I am pleased everything went well," Elias's mum said. "If you are looking for Elias, you will find him inside, he is not very well I'm afraid."

Eva felt as if someone had punched her in the chest. The thought of Elias being unwell was horrible. He might only be a boy, but he was her best friend. There were some serious diseases around just now and no one had the money to pay for treatment.

Eva found Elias hung over the toilet. He was white as a sheet and really shaky.

"Eva, don't come to close, you will get sick too", he said weakly.

Eva looked him up and down and knew he had something serious.

"What's wrong Elias?" she asked.

"I can't stop throwing up and its like I have no control over when I need to pee. I feel terrible Eva. Really terrible" Elias said, pitifully.

Elias looked so unwell and sad, Eva couldn't help herself. She pulled him up from the toilet and gave him a good hug. For once, Elias didn't act disgusted and try to pull away. He really was sick.

Elias went to have a nap on his bed. Eva was left with her own thoughts, now all full of Elias and his sickness. What if he didn't get better? It never occured to Eva that by hugging him, she had just risked her own health.

Gen 1 Chapter 3 - Surprises and Siblings

"Wait up!" Eva called to Elias. They were headed to the park whilst there was still some light left in the day. The light in Dragon Valley during winter was always very low but it would soon be spring and the children knew they would not get a chance just to play for much longer. There would be plants to take care of, fishing would start up again, tending the chickens and milking the cows. In the winter Eva and Elias had the most free time they would have all year.

The problem with so much deep snow, was that you couldn't always see what was underneath it! Eva tripped over a branch and landed face first in the snow. It didn't hurt though, so she giggled and made a snow angel.

Elias ran back to Eva and helped her up. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern. "I'm fine, my face is a bit numb though!" Eva giggled, trying to wiggle her eyebrows. "It's your fault anyways, leaving me so far behind," she scolded.

"You know you are faster than me! I had to get a head start. Anyways, I've got something to tell you," Elias teased.

"Oh, well I've got something to tell you! Bet mine is more interesting than yours," Eva smirked.

"My mum is having a baby!" Elias burst out, before Eva could continue.

"So is my mum!" Eva said in surprise. "How weird is that?" She exclaimed.

"Wouldn't it be funny if your mum had a girl, and my mum had a boy, and  they grew up to be friends like us?" Elias replied.

"You know what this means though, don't you Elias?" Eva said quietly.

"Yeah! A little brother to go hunting the dragon with!" Elias laughed, taking on a dreamy look again.

Eva sighed. Boys. "It means there is going to be less food and less money Elias. Your parents and my parents barely managed to get us all through this winter. Next winter, there will be extra mouths to feed. We are going to have to do whatever we can to help bring food and money into our homes," EVa said, wisely.

"I will pick as much fruit and vegetables as I can Eva, and you can sell them on the farm!" Elias said, reassuringly. He could see the little furrow on Eva's brow that appeared whenever she was really worried. "We make a great team, you and I," he said gently. Now was not the right time to be trying to make her laugh. "Come on, you go on the swing and I will push you," he said, reaching for her hand.

Soon Eva had forgotten all about her worries. Elias pushed her higher and higher until she was in fits of laughter. Secretly, he was even more worried about his mum having another baby than he let on. His mum was never at home already, the baby could only mean even more stress on his father and Elias guessed that much of the baby care would be left to him.

That night, Eva's dreams were full of her fears. Deep down, she was excited at the thought of having a brother or sister to play with. Maybe everything would be okay. Tomorrow was Sunday. That meant the whole family wore their best clothes and went to church. Eva would pray that her mother would have a good pregnancy and the baby would be healthy.