The girl walked down the muddy path in the forest. It was beating down rain, the wind was roaring and the thunder and lighting were cracking every few seconds. The girl was alone without knowing where she was going. She was starving and was freezing. Only wearing a tatted clothe for clothes and had no shoes. Her body had gone numb from the cold rain and the thick mud made it hard for her to walk.
She walked for hours. Tripping and slipping in the mud. The girl finally couldn't take it any more and collapsed into the mud.
When she awoke it was sunny with a few clouds in the sky. There was dried mud all over her body. She was still weak from when she had collapsed. Dragging herself to her feet, she continued her walk down the path.
In the few hours that she had walked, she was bitten on the hand by a lizard, swooped by a hawk that had scratched her arm and had tripped over a rock into blackberry bush. Those berries were poisons, so she couldn't eat any of them, making her feel hungrier.
Her arm had blood dripping down it, her hair was tangled in blackberry leaves and her hand was aching. But she still walked on.
It had started to rain again. Behind her she could hear the sound of hooves galloping. Turing to look she saw, two black Clydesdales pulling a carriage fit for a king.
As the carriage came closer, a group of bandits jumped out of the trees next to her. One of the bandits grabbed the girl and threw her five metres up the road.
"You're in the way!" He screamed.
At that moment the carriage passed the bandits. They attacked the carriage stopping the horses and attacking the Coachman. The Coachman drew the sword, which was strapped to his hip, and sliced one of the bandits' head off. It rolled into the mud along with the body it belonged on.
A tall man, with short, blonde hair stepped out of the carriage. He drew his sword and in a matter of seconds all of the bandits had been killed. The girl sat there in shock, not knowing what to do.
The tall man walked over to the girl and stood there studying her. Finally he reached his hand out to her. "Come with me Dear" he said. The girl, hesitantly, took his hand and stood up. She then walked to the carriage and climbed in, followed by the man. She took a seat in the far corner and the man sat directly in front of her. She observed every nook and cranny of the carriage. The softness of the spot she sat in, the shininess of the polished wooden floor, the golden rim around the door and windows.
"What is your name Dear?" The man asked the girl.
"I don't have one sir." The man's face was shocked. Seeing a girl, of her age, living a life with no name. "Sir, may I ask for your name?"
"My name is William Marlowe," he said in a proud voice. "Can you tell me where you're going?"
The girl thought for a bit, "I'm not going any where. I'm just trying to get away from... That place." William could see the girl was about to burst into tears. Hesitantly he thought of ways to stop her from crying. Then It came to him.
"Dear, how 'bout you come live with me? You won't have to go near that place and you will have a place to stay." The girl looked up at William, "I'll even give you a name." The girl's eyes lit up and she smiled.
"Thank you," the girl whispered.
The carriage finally came to a stop, in front of a massive mansion with a beautiful garden out the front of it. There were a few people in the garden trimming the hedges and there was also a large, black dog sitting at the gate, probably waiting for his master.
William stepped out of the carriage and held his hand out for the girl. The girl took it and stepped out of the carriage. William told the Coachman to go get the carriage and the horses washed and put them back in the stables. The Coachman left and the girl was left alone with William.
The girl followed William to the gate. He greeted the large dog, which was sitting there, and gave it a stroke along the back.
"This is Demon," he said patting the dog. "He's a Dire wolf and his mate, Snow, is inside with her litter of pups." They continued walking down the path, every time they passed someone William would say hello followed by their name. Finally reaching the front door, they were greeted by three maids. Their dresses were all different styles, but all of them were black with a white apron.
"Hello Master William," the maids said at the same time, "How was the meeting with the other lords?"
"It went quite well ladies, thanks for asking." He grabbed the girl, who was hiding behind him, and pulled her in front of him. "Can you ladies get this sweet girl washed and clothed for me? Once you're done bring her to my office."
They nodded their heads and took her by the hand. "Can you tell us your name?" One of the maids asked.
"I don't have one yet, but Mr. Marlowe is going to give me one."
When they got to the bathroom, two of the maids left and one of them stayed. She turned on the water to the bath and started to take the girls clothes off. Once she was naked she stepped into the bath and sat down in it. The maid put shampoo into the girl's hair and scrubbed it in, then with a cup of water she washed it out. She then did the same thing with the conditioner. When all the mud was gone, the girl got out of the bath and was dried. As soon as she was dry the two other maids came in with a dress like their own.
"Here put this on, we made it specially for you." The girl put the dress on and surprisingly it fit, they didn't even take any measurements. It was short and it puffed out. The sleeves were long with frills at the end of them and the white apron had matching frills on it. The white thigh high stockings complimented the out fit as well as her small-heeled shoes.
The three maids took the girl down to Williams's office; they let her inside, then they left.
"Dear I have thought of a name for you I hope you will like it." She smiled and waited to be told her name. "Mirabella." The girl was so happy to have a name and a safe place to be. "This will be our new home, Mirabella."
