1 Chapter one

The village I live in is quiet and peaceful everyone knows everyone nothing ever happens. It was my home for all my life. My family the Bennett's are very known in this Village, one of the founding families. My parents have been on the Village Council for as long as I can remember, always going to a meeting. My siblings are well known. My older sister Tatia was the belle of the Village, all the guys wanted her and all the girls wanted to be her. My older brother Talbot was the beau of the Village, getting all the attention from my parents with his achievements. Myself, Katerina, youngest of the Bennett family isn't anything like my siblings I'm known as the one who always has her head in her book, not that I mind as I like to be alone in my world. Today is November 14th, 1010 tonight my father is sending me away. It's a Bennett family tradition where the youngest of the family is sent away to the Conwell family to marry the eldest of the children. My great great Grandfather arranged with Malcolm Conwell when they founded Hillwood about 100 years ago when my family left England and travelled to Scandinavia. The Conwell's where run out of our Village for reasons I don't know about 50 years ago, they ran to Briarwood a village maybe 40 miles away. I don't want to leave my home, I tried to beg my Mother to not make me go it was no use.

"Katerina it's time to go, the wagon is here." my mother calls up to the loft that I and siblings share, our house is small it's one room with a fireplace, there is a small loft that I and my siblings share. I grab my little wool bag that has the three dresses I own along with my night set. I put my shoes on along with the flower crown my little brother Alaric made me when he is 5 before he died from the flu.

"Coming mother!" I shout back. I take a deep sigh and climb down the ladder. As soon as I get down my mother engulfs me into a hug.

"Good luck Darling," she says kissing blonde hair covered head.

"Thank you, mother," I whisper back,

"Katerina!!" my father yells getting irritated

"Coming father just let me say goodbye to Tablot and Tatia," I shout I turn to my siblings and hug them tightly.

"I will miss you, "I tell them

"You as well sister come to visit," Talbot says, Tatia nods and smiles. I walk out the door and give the house I called home my whole life one last glance.

"Goodbye...." I whisper as I close the door.

"Good luck Katerina." My father gives me a hug

"Thank you, father." I take a step into the cart and sigh I close the door and sigh.

"It's about a day and a half journey miss." the coachman says.

I smile hiding that they sent away from my home my against my will all to fulfil a promise made years and years ago I close my eyes and lean back and try to take a short nap but that doesn't work as the room is so bumpy.

I turn my head to see trees with falling coloured leaves, dirt roads, and small farms. I smile and the scenery as I never left my small village, I see the sunset beautiful colours fill the sky. The night sky was almost as beautiful, the stars shining brightly the moon cut in a crescent. The stars remind me of my brother Alaric and my Mother when we lost him she told me he would become a star in the sky. I smile at the thought of my younger brother.

The wagon ride from then on out is long and painful. Thoughts filling my head about how I want to go home, back to my mother and siblings. not partake in a journey to a place I'm forced to call home from now on. I soon drift off into my own world, thinking about what the man I will marry looks like. I wonder if he is tall, short, handsome, ugly, Only time will tell. I soon find myself to be jerked forward as the horse stopped making the carriage soon follow.

We can't be here yet it hasn't been a day and a half it has only been nightfall The coachman jumps out of his little seat and opens the door of the covered wagon

"We are here, miss." The man says holding out my hand for me to take. I gracefully take it and jump down. I look around the village to only to see that it is nothing like the one I called home.

"Excuse me, sir but I think you must be mistaken this cannot be Briarwood," I turn and look at the man.

"This is not Briarwood this is Kalda the Viking village." The man turns to walk away.

"You were supposed to take me to Briarwood. Take me now. I have to fulfil the promise my family made." IN demand

"Miss I did this for your own good. I worked with the Conwell's my whole life they are ruthless and cruel you will be safer here." He tells me

"If you are not to take me to the Conwell's you shall take me home." I turn to get into the wagon

"I can not do that either. I will tell the Conwells that the wagon was ambushed by the Moonshine village, they took you and killed you. then I will inform your family of your demise and you are to live your life as you would here in Kalda." He smiled sadly

"Why? Why can't I go home? Please, just let me go home," I plead with the man.

"That's for reasons I hope you never find out. Now I must be on my way if I want to make it on time." The coachman hops back ont0 his little seat. he grabs the reins of the horse and whips them making the horse take off galloping away leaving me alone. I sigh, I pick my bag off the ground and walk into the woods. I find an open patch of meadow. I take my bag and lay it on the ground. I sit on the ground I aline myself on my bag and lay down trying to get comfortable until realize because not going to happen. I close my eyes and drift off to the dream world.