The Weathervane

Chapter II - Being Chased

I wake up looking at a wood surface, light comes from my right and I turn towards it and sit up.  I am in a cabin that is being lit by two small lamps and the soft light of the evening sun.  One of the lamps is on a counter; the other is on a table.  The table is against the wall on the far side of the room, with a window next to it.  The sun is lower; there are a few good hours of light left.  The cabin is one big, open room.  To my right are a fireplace and chest, to the left of the fireplace are cupboards with drawers in them.  Windows are above the cupboard and the chest.  To my left is a door and on either side are cupboards, on the left side there are cupboards on the wall and the floor.  The ones on the bottom have drawers and the ones on the top open with doors.  There is an old fashioned sink built into the counter top.  On the right of the door are more cupboards, they are like the ones on the left, both sides have windows and I can see the forest outside.  There’s no other door other than the one on my left. 

Enoch is at the table writing something and I can’t see Peter anywhere so I slowly sit up.  My feet dangle at the edge of the wooden bed.  I decide to try to escape; I think it would be best.  I slowly lower myself onto the floor and sneak up behind Enoch with my hands ready to strangle him. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, you won’t be able to, you are too weak. And you don’t have the element of surprise.” 

I nearly jump out of my skin; Enoch just turns and looks at me

“For being so important you are really dumb, first off the boards squeaked when you walked across the room, you didn’t step quietly, and your breathing was so loud that even in a storm I would have heard you.”

I stare at him with a blank look on my face, looking at him and wondering why I didn’t hate him, like I should, and why I’m not afraid of him, like I should be. 

“Why am I here?”

He looked at me, sighed, and finally started talking. 

“The truth is going to be hard for you to see.  It is a confusing tale and you won’t want to believe me.  First there is another world, I am from there, that world is in trouble, trouble that only you can stop, but girls in that world are worth nothing, they are like property, they do what men tell them to do.  We have to get you into that world without them knowing that you are a woman; they must think you are a man, a man traveling in other men’s company; otherwise, you could be severely punished.  Here you will be prepared for the world that you are about to enter, we will teach you to fight like a man, walk, talk, and act like a man.  If you refuse, that is just too bad, you will learn; if you want to or not.  Unfortunately, we can’t just tell you, you will have to relearn everything and that is going to take a considerable amount of time and effort.  We don’t have all the time in the world because soon the Weathervane will be here and once that comes, there is no more time and no turning back.  That is the point of no return.

“First, I will cut your hair and as I do so I will tell you of our war that plagues my land and home.  It all started; sit, before I was born.  Here, put this around your neck.”

 “Whoa, my hair took me years to grow out.  You are not cutting my hair!”

“Well if you want to be killed for having long hair then be my guest.”

Enoch walked out of the cabin and two seconds later Peter walked in, I stand up and face him. 

“Let me go, you can’t keep me here, I have things to do and my parents are all worried about me, besides you guys are crazy, you think a Weathervane is going to make you travel to another world?  You obviously made that up while in the insane asylum, NOW LET ME GO!”