Dragon Tamer - Book 1

Chapter 3

Marcie woke up screaming.

Sweat drenched the sheets that were twisted around her torso. The fading memories of monsters in the dark caused her to panic and she ripped at the material, convinced it was trying to trap her. The sound of her fathers snore woke her from her half-sleep.

She sat panting in the darkness, drawing a breath she swept a hand across her forehead. Her shaking increased, she wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes scanning her room, seeing nothing she lifted a trembling hand and slowly pulled away the curtain that divided her room from the rest of the house. The sky was lightening and she could just see the shape of her father sprawled across his cot in the corner, an empty bottle clenched in his hand.

She dropped the curtain, breathing heavily and forced her rapidly beating heart to calm down.

After a few minutes lying in the dark, she gave up trying to sleep, pulled on her short dress with her leggings and dragged a comb through her hair.

It was chilly outside, so she pulled some furs over her shoulders and went round the back of the cottage.

Marcie and her father lived in a reasonable sized cottage far removed from the rest of the village, and backed up against the forest. The walls were Wood and clay with a brick base to keep out the damp, the roof was shingled, jutted out at the front to make a porch, a vegetable and herb garden was situated in front of the house and there was a chicken coop at the side. It had been made by Marcie's father, a woodcutter, who had been quite skilled at building in his youth. In fact, most of the houses in the village had been made by him or with his instruction, and he was well respected because of it. But that was years ago.

Inside it was all one room except for her room which she had separated with drapes of material to give her some privacy, a fire place was situated in the middle to heat it in the winter and for cooking,around were two stools for Marcie and her father to sit and warm themselves. Shelves lined the walls filled with pots and jars and pans and other things, strings of drying herbs hung from the rafters and furs hung from the walls, her fathers cot was stuck in the corner nearest the door, so he could get to it quick when he came in late at night, and near his bed was the table where they eat.

It was quite a pretty house. Marcie kept it clean and cared for. During the summer months she even put some flowers around the windows. At the moment though the windows were empty and devoid of any life, ready for the autumn.

At the back of the house was a large pile of wood, stacked up neatly. Near this was a chopping block with an axe lying on the ground. Beyond this was a large willow tree, separated from the trees of the forest by several yards. On the old tree was painted a large circle with smaller circles in its centre.

Marcie sat on the cold ground, her back to the wood pile. She breathed in the clean morning air and listened to the scant birds whistling to each other.

The forest loomed in front of her, threatening and mysterious. She swore she could hear deep breathing coming from its depths, the same sound that had caused her to run away two days ago.

She gripped her bow, staring into the dark shadows between the trees.

"Stop it!" she said loudly, either to herself or to the presence, imagined or real, that stalked her.

She took a breath then said again "Stop it!"

She listened hard. The breathing was probably just the leaves of the trees and the eyes she imagined lingering in the trees may just be the gloom of the half light and would fade as the sun rose higher.

The door crashed open and Marcie's father, Junca, limped out leaning on a cane and sipping from a bottle.

Junca had been the well known in the village for his good looks and his charms when he was younger. Tall with light brown skin, blond hair and blue eyes, he had the same distinctive features of all the villagers. Features that held them apart from the rest of the kingdom, or so they were told. Marcie was the only anomaly in the village having been born with green eyes, inherited from her mother, an outsider.