Wednesday, March 27, 2013

The Great Pumpkin Race

Chapter One


It was a blistery day, and Lemon Rose was flying through like the wind on her mountain board. The girl let loose a loud whoop as she jumped a small rock outcrop.

Leaves whipped around Lemon's face like crazed ballet dancers, but still she pushed on. The wind whistled through her hair and in her ears. It was a great soundtrack to her journey. Lemon was on a mission and it was imperative that she get there fast. Speed was of the essence. Well maybe not the speed Lemon was going on her board, but what was life without the barest hint of danger every now and then?

Her heart was racing and her palms were tingling with the exhilaration of what she was about to do flowing through her body. 

Lemon was moving through the Enchanted Forest at a fast clip. 

She wasn't sure what time it was. SHe left the city at the crack of down. It was the only way she could get out to the outer ring of the forest in enough time to make it back before they closed the gates and she was locked out.

And Lemon didn’t want to be caught out in the forest at night. There were things that went bump in the night that were not too fond of humans.
Particularly the daughter of Prince Philip, hero of the Troll Wars. There was some trolls that would have given up their newborn sons for a chance to suck the marrow from her femur. She leaned forward on her board to coax a a little more speed from the board. 

The sun was riding low barely making it above the tree line. It cast a watery haze across the sky not even going through the motions of casting shadows. She pulled her robe tighter around her body. 
Lemon was heading to the one place that was a source of inspiration for her. And Lemon needed inspiration. She was going to embark on a journey that could change her life. 

And for that Lemon wanted her father's blessing. No, Lemon needed her father’s blessing. Her mother was going to have a fit once she found out what her daughter was up to. So Lemon needed the blessing of her father to move forward.

For that she had to venture into the deepest part of the Enchanted Forest and seek him out at the Forbidden Mountain. 

Lemon Rose was a girl that should have had her future all laid out for her. Well she did. In fact her mother Briar had spent many a night up pondering the direction her daughter's life should take. It should also be noted that Briar devoted a fair amount of money to the pursuit of Lemon’s life as well. 
Etiquette classes, dance classes, music lessons, elocution lectures, and of course she sent Lemon to the best boarding school in the city. After all the only daughter of Briar Rose had a lot to live up to. 
Briar Rose, was the princess of Winkie. Heir to Winki crown. Celebrated as the prettiest baby in the kingdom. On the day of her christening she was cursed by Maleficent herself to prick her finger on a spindle and fall into a deep sleep. 

Fulfilling the curse dropped Briar and the entire kingdom into a deep sleep for 100 years. To top it all off she was rescued by none other than the second son of the King of Bean, Prince Philip. 
The Broken Egg Network aired her story for seven straight weeks. It is still the highest rated show in the network’s history. It was going to be the happily ever after of the ages. Nothing in the realm’s history had come close to their love affair. 

Till the Troll War broke out. Prince Philip dashed off for lady and country. He never made it home. Heartbroken and pregnant, Briar stepped down from the throne of Winki. She just didn’t have the heart to be Queen anymore. Her little sister took the crown and Ms. Rose moved to Beanstalk City to live out her days on her family's fortune and her good name. 

Lemon grew up dodging the cameras, slipping through the paparazzi traps set for her at school and home. "Was she and Aldo Charming an item?" was the question that was guaranteed to get someone punched in the face if she heard it one more time. It was enough to make Lemon gag. 
As if she wanted to date that moronic waste of hair gel. The boy had the IQ of a garden slug. One of the fat dumb ones that get salt poured on them.

No one ever asked what she wanted to do with her life. Everyone assumed she would be married off to some prince to become arm candy like her mom did. That was well and good, but she just wasn’t that sort of girl. Lemon wanted to be her own person and she wanted her name to be in the history books for something she did with her own hands and her own mind. 
Lemon was going to step out of her mom's shadow. She was going to Lemon Rose. Not Briar Rose’s daughter.

Lemon’s board crunched through the snow as she picked up the pace. If she were caught out in the forest after the sun set she was in for a rough night. 

The Enchanted Forest was just that. Enchanted because of the fae themselves. It was their territory. In the forest the animals talked, the trees moved and visited their neighbors for a nice gossip session, and the inhabitants were very territorial. 

She was breathing hard and she felt the sweat sliding down the neck of her yellow tunic. She was glad of the bundling she was wearing however as a light snow started and the wind picked up its pace.
Lemon was heading to the Forbidden Mountain. The last place her father walked. Her heart started to beat fast. She wasn't sure why it did that. Why should she be nervous to retrace her father's footsteps? She couldn't answer that, but it didn't help that she was venturing into the most dangerous part of the forest. 

It wasn't called Forbidden for nothing after all. 

With her last burst of energy she crested the last hill. Her breath was now coming in short gasps. In the past it was nothing for the sixteen year old to make the four mile ride through the dense forest, but it had been at least three years since she last visited her father. 

That Penelope Boots had squealed on her during one of her shows and her mother had blew a fuse as usual when Lemon did something that wasn't scheduled in or sanctioned by the Rose image consultants. Frolicking through the Enchanted Forest was number on their lists of things not to do.  
Lemon climbed off her board and slung it across her back. She stood atop the hill to stare down into the Weeping Valley. The name Weeping Valley was a misnomer at best.

The scene of the last battle of the Troll Wars. The last stand of the Bone Crusher regiment of the Troll army. The valley was actually just a bowl shaped indention at the base of the Forbidden Mountain. 
“Hullo dad,” she whispered as she caught the wink of sunlight off a piece of armor. The bowl dip int he earth had earned its named because after the last stand of the troll the bodies were so packed together in a jumble of humanity, blood and death that it had been impossible to go in to retrieve anyone for a proper burial. It had turned into a open air mass grave. Mourners had assembled on the lip of the valley to pay their last respects. Lemon hadn’t been born yet when her father died, but her mother never talked about that day so Lemon could only imagine how hard it had been for her. Her mother was a fragile thing.

The trees of the forest had moved back from the valley in reverence of the blood that had been spilled. 
Lemon shivered, and not the from the nip in the air either. Her brown eyes swept over the valley as they did every time she crested the last hill. 

Broken spears and shattered battle axes still littered the ground. Many were in the final stages of their lives. Some were still intake, blood stains and all. Lemon knew that not all of the bodies had been recovered and that when she walked across the valley floor she was walking on someone's final resting place. 

It was a eerie feeling, but she would not be deterred. She threw her shoulders back and marched down the backside of the crest down into the valley. 

Lemon picked her way through the littered battled gear. Careful not to cut herself on anything. You couldn't be too careful around things that might be poisoned or cursed. She was too far from the city to be rescued if she did cut herself on a cursed object. OR if she upset someone’s darkling and they figured a tasty morsel like Lemon wasn’t going to come around anytime soon. 

Now the grass and moss had reclaimed many of the dead. Including her father. Lemon knew exactly where he was. a kite shaped white enamel shield lay against a small hill near the middle of the valley. It was a strategic defensive point which gave the combatant a good view down either side of the valley. She didn’t know how she knew, but she knew the first day she arrived that that was where her father had died. 

It only took her a few minutes to navigate over to the fallen shield. She stopped just shy of the little hill. The shield was a rather ornate affair. It was a kite shaped shield with the House of Valiant family crest embossed across the front. A ruby red heart stabbed through with a golden sword on a stark white background. 

Lemon knelt down, her hand reaching out to stroke the shield. From what she had learned of her father she didn't believe that he would have carried something so flashy. It would have made him an excellent target. He carried as a banner for his house and for his honor. Most importantly for his lady. Her mother would have loved seeing him carrying the shield riding off into battle. Briar wouldn’t have seen how a stark white shield would have painted a bullseye on her husband.   

She had taken the shield and propped it up against the hill above his moss covered bones. She knelt down beside the shield. “You’re looking better.” she said. Now that she was there she was nervous. It wasn’t that she was nervous to talk to her father. She had come to his grave many times to just simply be near him. She had to swallow down the sob that had climbed up her throat. "It's been awhile huh," 

She let out a soft chuckle. "Mom has been impossible as usual. She actually talked to the Queen yesterday about my brothel to Aldo. Can you believe it? I can't stand him," The last statement burst from her mouth in an angry huff. "I don't want to be a trophy wife dad. I couldn't stand it. All Aldo wants is a pretty face. I know I can do better than that dad, you know. Plus he is so stupid.” She stopped to catch her breath. She wasn’t there to tell her dad about Aldo Charming. That would have taken more time than she had. 

"I want to race in the Pumpkin Games dad." There she had said it. For the first time, out loud. She wanted to race. 

Lemon had seen her first race when she was seven years old. She had to sneak out of the house to see the last leg of the races which took place through the Queen's Gardens. It had been the first win for Piper Peep who would go on to win a unheard of five consecutive races before retiring. Lemon would dream of nothing else since that first victory lap Piper took. 

"Dad I don't want to do anything else. There is nothing else for me to do. If I have to take another embroidery class I am going to burn the city down. I sweat it.” She took a deep breath before her anger bubbled over again. "Will you give me your blessing dad? Will you let me race?" She sat back on her haunches in anticipation of his answer.

Lemon knew her father was dead and very much gone from this life she was not crazy. However she had often gotten answers from him, not always what she wanted to hear, but she trusted his judgement far and above that of her mother. 

A harsh wind kicked up. Dust and dirt swirled around her face. Lemon coughed and tried to protect her ryes and mouth from the sudden maelstrom of debris. It was over faster than it begin. It took Lemon a few moments to wipe her eyes, but when her vision was clear a single dewdrop rested upon her father's shield. 

A symbol of his blessing, Lemon's favorite flower. A single tear rolled down her cheek. "Thanks dad." she whispered as she stood. Her knees creaked. Lemon was really too old to be running through the forest.

She kissed her hand then dropped the hand on top of the shield. "See you after I win." She promised. 
Lemon quickly made her way back to the city. She had a team meeting to get ready for.

No comments:

Post a Comment