To Break a Curse

Prologue

A/N     Hi everyone! This is my first story so I would love to hear any feedback you have :) This prologue  is just to set the scene, so hold on until the next chapter before you judge it please! x

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'It's not rain – it's Cornish Sunshine.'

'Rose; I hate to break it to you, but it's wet and made up of water – it's rain.' Will nudged his horse into a canter in an attempt to make it back to the yard before the heavens properly opened.

Behind him, Rose gave up and grinned. She nudged her horse, although she supposed it was technically Will's horse, into a gallop and caught up with him easily. They glanced at each other and silently said; 'race you.'

With shouts of laughter, they raced the mile back over the fields, getting considerably soaked in the process.

Just before they entered the farmyard, they both reined their horses in so they could take in the view:

The bottom fields of Will's farm led the way to the Cornish cliffs near Tintagel where they could see the waves crashing onto the rocks. The late afternoon sky was a dark metallic blue with the sun, despite the rain, throwing out its last remaining light from behind dark clouds. Even as they watched, the wind picked up and the spray from the waves was swept high into the air; a winter storm was setting in.

These were their favourite parts of the day - watching the sun rise and set. When they had been little, Will's mum and dad would often receive a phone call from Rose's parents asking if she was with them. Rose had often used to run over to Will's farm in order to catch a view of the sunrise in the morning and the two friends would sit on the grass and watch the world wake up. Even now, aged 18 and 19, they still watched it from their 'viewing place', as Rose used to call it, on top of the cliffs as often as they could.

When they got into the relative shelter of the stables on Will's farm, they looked at each other and laughed at their wind and rain-swept appearances. Rose's mid-length, curly brown hair had been made to look even wilder than it usually did by the wind and she blinked the rain out of her blue eyes. Will grabbed an old towel and rubbed the worst of the rain out of his rusty red hair, his brown eyes watching the growing storm outside.

By the time they had sorted the horses out, it was pouring with rain and the wind was so fierce that they could hardly hear themselves speak.

They were just contemplating the hundred-meter sprint from the stables to the farmhouse when Tom, who worked on Will's farm at the weekends, ran around the corner. He caught sight of them peering out from the stables and ran towards them, shouting something.

The wind swept his words away and it was only once he was inside the stables, doubled over from running, that he could make himself heard.

'The... the cows... have got out!' he panted.

Will groaned, 'does dad know?'

Tom nodded, regaining his breath, 'he said to come and get you. They got out through the gate when Jack was getting them in for the night-'

He was cut of by Will's sound of frustration, 'for pity's sake; he knows to be careful with the gate on that field!'

'Well, he is fourteen,' Rose said. 'I seem to remember a certain someone letting twenty three sheep out on New Years Eve aged about fourteen.'

'Ahem,' Tom pointedly coughed at her. 'I'm fourteen and haven't let anything out of anywhere – yet,' he added.

Rose smiled sheepishly at him by way of apology.