The Seven Heavens

Chapter 1

Focus, breath in and out slowly and just focus, Claudia thought.

        Claudia made sure not to make a sound as nimbly moved from tree to tree in the dark forest. The deer was only five feet away now. 

        The deer lifted its' head from green pasture and pricked its ears. Claudia stood as still as statue, making sure to breath queitly. Once the deer went back to eating, she slowly moved half way from behind the tree.

        Claudia strung an arrow on her bow and slowly lifted it so that it was aimed at the animal. Tension packed in her biceps, her feet planted in the ground. She breathed in slowly and let it out.

Forgive me for this, Claudia thought

        Regretfully she let her weapon go. The black arrow soared in to the clearing and straight in to the deer straight in to the deer's side. At first the deer stumbled in suprise them clumsily fell over in to a puddle of moonlight. Claudia quickly moved out of the shadows of the forest trees and in to the clearing. She kneeled next to where her game that laid whimpering.

        "Hey, its' okay, " Claudia whispered over and over again as she slowly pulled her arrow out of the animal's side. the deer whimpered even louder, enough to cause a racket.

        "Shh! You'll draw attention to us," Claudia whispered as she looked around suspiously at the dark forest, "you never know who can be in the woods at night."

        The deer's eyes flickered nervously as Claudia wipped her arrow off on the grass. They flickered one more time then closed.

        Claudia stroked the silky far if the dead deer, "I'm sorry, I'm so-, "

        All of a sudden a noise echoed through the forest. the soft smooth noice of a flute. A certin flute. Claudia slowly smiled to herself as she got off her knees and struggled to wsing the game on her back and put her bow on her shoulder.

        "Got to head home, mother is prombaly getting home. "

                *                        *                             *                                      *                                 

        "Claudia Nelsa Moonstreak what do you think your doing out there? Didn't I tell you to not go out looking for prey?" Claudia's mother scolded her as she stumbled up the cabin steps and in to the house, " god, you  are lucky you were close enough to hear the my Everglade flute."

        Claudia wanted to protest but her mother looked knackered. Her warm blue eyes seemed weary, she head bags under her eyes, and her brown hair that was ussally pretty and lush was tied up in a stringy bun.

        Mother peered outside in to the dark, "Quickly, come in." 

        Claudia did as she was told and made sure to latch the door once she was inside.

        Safe, She thought as she sat her prey next to the door.

        "I see you have had a good hunt, " a voice said from behind.

        Claudia whirled around to see her father stooped over the small kitchen table shere her mother sat calmly cracking wallnuts.

        "Father!" Claudia said as she ran over to him and crushed him in a hug.

        "Is it me or are you getting taller?" Father said once again. He always said this and Claudia always smiled.

        "Leave your weapondary in the utility closet, then off you go to bed, " Mother ordered 

        Claudia did as she was told, then kissed her mother's cheek; then father'. 

        "Make sure not to wake your brothers," Father winked his warn brown eyes at her as if they were sharing a secret.

        However, Mother didn't seem to catch their joke, "Yes, don't wake them, we all have a big day tommorow," Mother looked up from her nutcraking, her eyes seemed to soften, brushed and combed her fiery red hair so that it was nice and smooth.

        Claudia looked at herself in the mirror. It was really happening. Tommorrow would be the last day she ever slept in the bedroom, stood on the doorsteps of her home, or even see her family again....

        Stop it, Claudia thought as she shook her ead, stop to turning yourself. 

        Claudia desperately tried to think about something else as she tip toed out of the bathroom and over to the bed. She didn't care what about; eating, sleeping, or even the poor dead dear. But it was no use, her thoughts always lead back to tommorrow. Claudia sighed as she queitly sat down on the bed and ran her fingers through her hair, couldn't just once life be fair?

        "So did you go hunting?"

        "Of course she did, silly. Say, what did you catch Claudie?"

        "Tell us!"

        At first, Claudia jumped as her thoughts were interrupted, only to realize that is was her little brothers. Two sets of green eyes started up at her. Both of them were full of mischevious behavior and excitement.

        Once Claudia recovered from shock, she answered, " Aren't you two suppose to be sleeping?"

        "We couldn't sleep," Abe, the oldest of the two, whispered back.

        "We kept thinking about tommorrow," Sammy, the youngest, added, "do you really have to go?"

        Claudia just smiled sadly for the hundreth time that day.

        "You'll remember to write to us, right?" Sammy asked

        "Of course, " Claudia whispered back, "now off to bed, don't want to wake up Mother and Father."

           *                                *                                   *                                        *                                   

        Claudia stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her mother's beautiful baby blue eyes, that were much like her own, stared right back at her through the reflection as she braided her daughter's red hair in to a neat french braid.

        "Are you sure I should go? Don't you guys need me here at home?" Claudia nervously asked her mother as she bit her lip. She almost tasted blood.

        Mother sighed, "Claudie, face me, "

        Claudia swiveled around on her stool to face her mother, "I'm prombaly not going to get in to a good section. I know I'm not, and-,"

        "Claudie," Mother said firmly, "You need to be as dauntless as you can be. You keep underestimating yourself. Besides, you look beautiful, how can you not be put in a good section?"

Claudia sighed as she looked at her reflection once more. In the mirror she saw a sixteen year old girl with hair as red as fire flames, and a bright blue dress that matched her nervous eyes. Weak. Hopeless. Afraid.

        "Come on," Mother startled her queitly, "your father and brothers are waiting at the Town Hall."

        Claudia stared in to her mother's hopeful eyes. She wanted to crawl in a hole and not come out. But she had to do this. For her mother, her father, her brothers, her family.