Just Like A Child

Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

I sat in the middle of my favorite place, an open field just across the street from my house here in good ol' Belton Texas. It's a relatively small town, and not many people know of it unless they're from around here, but it's nice. I laid on my back, trying to avert my thoughts from the itchy grass, dehydrated from the heat, and focus in the clouds above me. I had my hands crossed behind my head, staring up at the bright sky

Through heart shaped sunglasses. It was hot today, though not quite sweltering (a blessed plus) as Texas usually is, and it felt nice. Spring. Well, more of summer, really. The seasons ways skipped around here. You could walk outside and get a heat stroke in December, and in April it could snow. It snowed on Easter day just a few years ago. Right now it was August, school was out by not for much longer, and I was basking in my solitude and silence, just myself, just how I always did.

A small distance away, the dry grass crunched. The sunlight had shifted slightly, but not from the little clouds in the sky. Someone was blocking it. I jumped up, quickly squinted my eyes, staring up at the intruders of my sunny paradise.

Two men stood over me. One was ancient, looking close to a hundred but by the strength that radiated from him, I would have said forty or fifty. A long white beard extended from his face, at least two feet long, and he wore something I only see on Halloween. A wizards outfit. Long blue robes with silver star-like patters etched in. The man wore half moon glasses on the bridge of his long nose, his bright blue eyes sparkling with something of humor and surprise. He stood over me, looking down with a ghost of a smile.

The other man stood back a little from me, but his black penetrating eyes were solely focused on my person. He wore all black, a cape-like thing over a vest and button up shirt, trousers, and shoes. All black. Just like his eyes. His black hair just touched his shoulders in a greasy curtain, and at the mere sight of him, I punched up my nose. He seemed to sneer down on me over his crooked nose, as if offense by me. The two men were such opposites, I would have said that they weren't together, only their odd outfits were a dead giveaway that they, indeed, were.

I jumped to my feet, afraid and shocked, and faced the two odd men. "Um... Can I help you with something?" I asked, trying not to sound standoffish. Afraid as I was, it was no good to me to show it; surely I could outrun the elderly one, but I couldn't be sure about the other. I furrowed my brow. Old guys don't usually just pop up and stare at young girls, at least not around here.

The older man seemed to come to his senses, but the younger man still looked as if he had tasted something rotten. I would be angry too if I had to wear three layers of black clothing in this heat. "Yes, you can." The ancient man took a step forward, emphasizing his next words. "It seems that it is past overdue for you to know your heritage."

As he stepped closer, i stepped back, growing increasingly anxious. I only stared a him, a blank and taken aback look on my face. What the heck was that supposed to mean? "I'm sorry, I think you have the wrong person-" my voice was shaky, intended to be lighthearted breathy laughter, but coming out strangle and uneasy.

"No, no," He then produced a roll of yellowish paper from the inside of his robe, rolling it out in front of his face for a second before reading out, "Haeley Lorraine Williamson, is it?" He asked, rolling back up and tucking the scroll into his robes in one swift movement. The paper seemed to disappear, no bump in his pocket.

I blinked at where the paper vanished for a few seconds, before moving my eyes up to the man. "I... Yes, that's me..." I replied meekly. I suppose they were here for me. But the looks of this still gave me the creeps. I mean, I'm a pretty paranoid person anyways, but this just didn't make me feel comfortable. Though I was pretty sure I could outrun them, I felt intruded upon, my resolute and composure slipping.