Come Little Children: Book I

Christmas Season - Part One

It snowed. Finally, after much suspicion, snow swirled and landed like flecked pieces of chipped silver all of the lands. Cold had wispy tendrils of frozen crystals for fingers that grabbed and terrorized all those who were not under the safe wing of warmth. On the nights of the blood moon, Katerina became prey to its grip. She performed her second and then her third Taking in the garden, her only trouble being having to travel from the manor to the garden in but a thin gown, being forced to tiptoe over the shards of silvery snow and often times having to glide over patches of ice with her bare feet. It was nights such as those that made Katerina yearn for the warmer months.

Until then, she bided her time with the noting of the noticeable growth of her belly but most distinctively with Jane. It had come as no greater surprise than to Katerina when her attendant not announce that she was taking her leave. She stayed dutifully by Katerina's side despite her previous death threat. There was no reason for her to stay after that but she did, Katerina did not know why but she didn't intend on making things easy for her. This was to say, things did not return to as they were before.

It became more like a game. Neither of them spoke as they had before, Jane because she was afraid to and Katerina because she enjoyed watching her squirm. Whenever she was in her pressence, she would have her shoulders clenched together timidly, her ears perked in case Katerina were to try surprising her and darting her eyes from every angle now became a frequent occurence. It became a game to Katerina now, who would raise her voice at any given moment simply to watch Jane jump and who would make abrupt noises to see her blanch.

Katerina edeavored in this game throughout the coach ride to Court but there was only so long she could play this game in such small quarters before it grew tedious and she resolved to give it a rest, if not for a few hours. Under normal circumstances, Katerina would not have minded the oppressive silence that grew more with the distance but these were not under normal circumstances. She was in a coach, she'd only brought two companions with her, one of which was a dog and the other who could not bring herself to speak this was the very definition of a dull journey, and a long one at that.

"Fun is yet to come." She crooned into Henrietta's silken ear as she transferred her from her lone seating to her lap where she rested her head against her mistress' rounded stomach and lazily closed her eyes. Both Katerina and Jane glanced enviously at Henrietta as she snored softly. Neither of them would be sleeping much, Katerina knew. Jane would not chance sleeping when she was in such close contact to her and try as Katerina might, darkness would not lead her to sleep.

A jolt forward made her stomach lurch and settle uncomfortably as the coach steadied its pace. By now, Katerina knew better than to ignore her nausea and pray that it would pass. Vigorously, Katerina slammed her fist at the top of the coach. It had already came to a stop when she yelled, "Halt this coach this very second!"

Practically throwing her beloved pet on Jane's lap, she jumped out of the carriage and leaned forward, holding onto the hem of her gown and allowing the bile to pad out on patch of undisturbed snow. Towards the end, it caught in her throat and she convulsed as she tried to spit it out, only to have swallowed it. Katerina was not pleased to realize that she'd sounded like an animal chocking over a piece of its own prey.

Cleaning the corners of her mouth with her index finger, Katerina turned back to her coach to find both Jane and the coachman watching her, it was surprising that they could even notice how hard she was breathing through their astonished expressions. She must have really made quite the performance.

"The first of many." She announced in a growl, snatching Henrietta and stealing away into the coach.

Oh yes, this was going to be a very long journey.