Anna And The Invisible Castle

Episode 2. A GIRL CALLED ANNA

From a close distance, Anna could hear goats bleating for freedom from behind their locked pens, but theirs has always caused commotion as most times they were allowed to roam, they ended up sneaking into people's gardens and feeding on their crops, and most times it was people other than their owners. The quarrels that usually ensued was nothing to write home about.

A silent smile turned up the corners of Anna’s lips as she remembered the main reason these goats have been denied freedom to date. It wasn't until the village elders had gathered and come up with a new rule; whosoever whose goat or goats attack another's garden, the same goat(s) shall be killed and used to prepare delicious soup for the entire village.

Well, it did the trick as ever since, no one has ever ventured to let loose his or her goat.

Anna sighed. She brought back her attention to her friend. “What would you be doing today?” It was then she noticed a slight change in her friend’s countenance. “Miel, are you alright?” she touched the girl's shoulder. They had now entered a footpath leading up to the village junction which was their favorite place for biding each other goodbyes.

“I wish I could come with you to Ascencia,” Miel said staring at the space before her. Her fingers fidgeted with the curls of her hair.

“Oh Miel,” Anna gasped, delighted at the imagination of her best friend tagging along with her family to Ascencia. “I would be very happy if you do. Have you told your mother?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t told her, but I doubt she will let me go to Ascencia..”

“Then tell her as soon as you get home. Once your request is granted, rush your silly-head down to my house. I shall tell my father too, you know already he’d be pleased to have you come with us, same with me,” Anna encouraged with a broad smile.

Miel's brows shot up in question. She met Anna’s gaze. “What if my request is declined?”

The smile faded on Anna's lips. “I would be disappointed, but then you must come and tell my father at once. You know, we wouldn’t want to wait in vain… Deal?”

“Okay Anna, deal!” Miel concurred lamely and forced a smile.

They got to the junction and halted. Anna moved and they hugged, a warm hug like two sisters kept apart for ages. But indeed they were sisters, friends turned sisters. Anna wished she could remain in her bestie's arms for one more second, but she was running late for Ascencia. She moved and they disengaged from the hug but each girl now had some tears in her eyes.

“Come on Miel, it's not like we are leaving each other forever,” Anna said rolling her eyes as if disappointed by their babyish behavior. “It's just a visit to Ascencia and who knows, you may be coming with us too!”

The girls burst into laughter and each went her way in the opposite direction.

Anna continued down the path to her house. From a nearby distance she spotted her father behind their bamboo fence, he had already brought out from the stable to their frontage, the horses for the journey to Ascencia. He was currently loading boxes of goods, his goods, to the horse-drawn wagon.

He paused and glanced at his watch and Anna knew at once he was wondering what was keeping his daughter back at the stream. He gave it another ten minutes before he’d have to head up the hills himself to see if all was well with the girls.

“Papa…”

Mr. Jones paused momentarily and tilted his head to the voice. He was surprised to see her standing next to him, her hands clasped at her back, her head bowed. And what he saw wasn’t what he’d expected. “I thought you said you were going to take a bath at the stream.” He resumed with the boxes.

Anna swallowed, she wasn’t sure if that was a question or statement nevertheless she replied, “Yes papa,” and raised her gaze.

“Well you don’t look to me like someone who did.”

“I tripped on our way back from the stream,” she explained lowering her gaze to the ground.

Mr. Jones dropped the box in his hands and faced his daughter squarely. “Running again, isn’t it?” he scowled.

But she said nothing.

“Anna you are sixteen. How many times would I have to explain to you that playing around is for children? You’re an adult and it’s high time you start behaving like one!” He paused for breath and silence broke in. Anna stole the opportunity.

“I’m sorry papa,” she mumbled, her voice was filled with remorse.

Mr. Jones looked away, he sighed. She reminded him a lot of her mother, not just her resemblance. She knew when exactly to apologize and how exactly to do so. And then whenever she did it the way she just did, he always found himself being all calm. He brought back his gaze at her. “Are you hurt, cupcake? I'm sorry for yelling,” he smiled.

She lifted her head, raised her gaze to meet her father’s, felt relieved at hearing those words which symbolized her sins were forgiven. “It's okay papa..just a few bruises on my knees, but I’m fine, papa.”

“May I have a look?” Mr. Jones requested.

Without any hesitation, Anna raised her dress to bare a set of mud stained knees to her father. He came squatting and gently inspected the almost invisible bruises. “I don’t know cupcake …can you still make the trip to Ascencia?”

At the question, Anna dropped the dress and stepped back. Her brows pulled together in a deep frown, a little mixed with shock. How could her papa attempt to use these almost invisible bruises as an avenue to alter her from going with him to Ascencia? “I already told you I’m fine papa,” she blurted, folding her hands across her chest. “I’m coming with you to the trade fair, nothing shall stop me,” she added.

Mr. Jones straightened back to his full height, he was holding in a laugh. He knows very well how to pull her legs. “There can always be another time,” he teased.

“No papa,” she sucked.

Mr. Jones laughed. “Come on cupcake, you of all people should know I was just pulling your legs.”

At those words she dropped her shoulders in relief, rubbing her sudden damp palms on her dress; it smeared some more dirt on the material. “Oh, I felt my heart break!” she grinned.

He was still laughing. “Hurry up. You know we are traveling in convoy with other villagers of Nezmae and I wouldn’t want to delay the group.” He turned and resumed loading the boxes to the carriage.

She turned to leave, remembered something and stopped. “Papa, can Miel come with us?”

Mr. Jones paused with a box in his hands. “If her mother permits it, then yes she can come.”

Anna bubbled with joy. She rushed to him and hugged him from the side. “Thank you so much, papa. You’re the best!” She dropped a peck on his bearded cheeks.

Mr. Jones smiled. “You know this old man would do anything for you, cupcake. Now go on and get dressed up already.”

Anna wanted to argue with him, to tell him he wasn’t an old man yet, yes because he was just in his early forties. Instead, she subdued the urge and hurried to the backyard. She grabbed a pail of water which she had fetched yesterday from the village well. Rushing a bath in the bathroom constructed directly behind the house, she darted upstairs to her room wrapped in her cozy yellow towel. And then she dressed into her favorite red dress which she had laid on her bed before going to the stream. Humming a song, she slipped her feet into her white glass slippers; a sixteenth birthday gift from her father, and then she began to powder her face in front of the dressing table. She combed her hair, packed them loosely up in a ponytail to reveal her creamy shoulders and neck. An object sparkled on the table as the morning sun seeped through her open window and settled on its surface. Anna smiled at her earrings, she had almost forgotten them. She wore them and they fit perfectly, dangling down her ears like falling stars.

“Miel is here, cupcake!” her father called out from outside.

“Okay papa!” she replied from her room and quickly jerked to her feet. She bolted out of the room, hurdled down the stairs merely able to contain her excitement. As she crossed the living-room, she wondered if Miel was successful in her quest. On getting to the frontage she doesn’t only meets Miel, but the girl’s mother too.

“Oh, hello Mrs. Bouston!” Anna greeted, making a wobbly curtsey out of the short run and surprise.

The moment Mrs. Bouston’s gaze fell on Anna, her mouth dropped open. Her hands flew to her chest. “God bless my eyes this moment, you look ravishing my child,” she gasped!

Anna smiled, she moved her gaze from Mrs. Bouston to a gracefully dressed Miel, they exchanged a wink, and then she returned her gaze back to Mrs. Bouston, “-You too Mrs. Bouston and your daughter, Miel. You both look amazing this morning.”

“Miel and her mother will be joining us to Ascencia,” Mr. Jones announced to his daughter.

A surge of glee rippled through Anna, but wait! Mrs. Bouston was coming too? “The pleasure is all mine,” Anna covered up her surprise.

“It appears it’s been a long time since I went shopping,” that was Mrs. Bouston, “that’s far back as to when my husband,” she touched her heart and reduced her voice to a whisper, “God rests his soul, was alive. You know there comes a time when a lady needs to change her wardrobe, not only her wardrobe, but also have a new hairdo, her pedicure, manicure. There was this particular hairstyle that used to fit me, always made me feel more attractive. You know when I was pregnant with Miel I had lost my entire glow, that pregnancy dealt with me…”

Anna saw Miel roll her eyes and fought to hold-in a laugh. Mr. Jones faked a cough and excused himself from the ladies. “A minute please ladies,” he mumbled and went over to lock the house, and then he loaded the last box of goods to the carriage. “Ladies, you can now go in,” he announced, himself taking up his position at the coach. But Mrs. Bouston aka Mrs. Talker didn’t hear him even when he’d said it a second time, how could she when she was still busy narrating this time of how she intends to rock the latest hairstyle of Ascencia?

“Mother!!” Miel grumbled. “Are we still going to the trade fair or not?”

Now that seem to do the trick. Mrs. Bouston jumped into the carriage with no further delay and the girls followed suit with Anna grinning at the mother-daughter scenario.

Mr. Jones soon learnt everyone was now settled down in the wagon and he spurred the horses to motion.

Mrs. Bouston sat directly opposite the girls. She resumed talking again, this time of the last time she went to Ascencia, of course with her husband of blessed memory. She recounted how she was pregnant with Miel back then, talked of how mercilessly that pregnancy had dealt with her; of how she had suffered from severe morning sickness. And then she went back to how fun and entertaining the trade fair had been. It was a thing of joy to the girls when she finally dozed-off, after over an hour of talking.

“Your mother is quite entertaining,” Anna broke the silence that had now enveloped inside the wagon.

Miel rolled her eyes and continued looking out of the open curtained window. “Sometimes, too much entertainment brings in boredom.”

Anna smiled. “How did you do it, I mean how did you convince her to come along?”

“Well, I didn’t convince her. Would you believe before I even got home she was already dressed up, ready to go to Ascencia without me? Can you even imagine that? She broke my heart. I only insisted I was coming too after all the sauce for the goose is also the sauce for the gander.”

Anna chuckled. “You have no idea how much I miss my mother,” she said almost absent-minded. She caressed the pendant of her necklace.

“I miss my father too, so much in fact,” Miel muttered. “I am very positive he was a great listener unlike mother.”

“But what if he was just another talkie?”

Miel thought about it and went, “Hrrhh!!! I cannot imagine how disastrous living under the same roof with two talkative could be!”

Anna broke into a loud laugh, Miel joined in. Mrs. Bouston stirred and the girls stopped!

They held their breath, their eyes widening in fear at both knowing if they end up waking Mrs. Bouston from slumber, then this time around, they should be ready to become great listeners. Fingers crossed, they held onto their luck. Immediately Mrs. Bouston resumed snoring, they exhaled and couldn’t stop chuckling.