Your Shades of Gold

Prologue

Ever since I can remember, I have always thought of autumn as a time of adventures, of change and magic. As an eight year old, I loved watching the leaves abandon their summer green in favour of the more vibrant colours of autumn and,unlike the harsh summer sun which had gifted me with a wide array of everlasting freckles and the occasional sunburn, autumn rays were much more gentle and, as such, provided the perfect light for my periodical garden reading sessions.
There are few words that can describe how dear our home in the English countryside was to our family. Father had what you would call green fingers so our garden was teeming with life almost all year round. Mother would laugh whenever he got excited over a new acquisition for his garden, especially when you saw his tall form, that of a man who had spent most of his life serving in the army, lean over a bush of roses or a patch of strawberries with his lips pursed and eyebrows scrunched up in deep concentration. Compared to me and dad, mother was less of an outdoorsy person. She enjoyed outings as much as anyone, yet I knew our Friday nights at home, watching movies or playing one of our board games were her favorite. It was for such special occasions that she reserved her sweetest smile.
As father was often fond of recalling, he had met my mother, Lyra, when they were in high school. He had seen her at school and, in lieu of being a devoted romantic, decided to try and woo her the classic Shakespearean way, that is, throwing pebbles at her window and shouting love poems until she would answer him . Enter a ten feet high wall around grandfather's house and, needless to say, their official meeting ended up being less romantic than father would have wished. After valiantly climbing to the top of the wall, he ended up being driven to St. Agnes's Hospital in my grandpa's old Ford. Despite the turn of events, the most important part of his plan did succeed. Their wedding took place in autumn, two years after.

When I was ten, life took on an unexpected turn for me as well. I had found myself in the posture of being the older sister to the most perplexing little creature I had ever seen. Suffice it to say, the little thing had won my heart the moment our eyes met and I knew that whatever life might throw our way, I will do everything and anything to keep him safe. And so, the years of my youth passed in a settled, quiet manner.