A Hero at Heart

Chapter 1

The cold wind tossed Emiline's hair as she stood ankle deep in the crisp snow. Her heart beat faster with fear as she looked all around. She couldn't see a thing, only a white wall of falling snow. Where was her home? Where was the path? Which way was she supposed to go? She was lost. Lost in the bitter cold of winter.

"Is anyone there?" she shouted. "Please, someone help me!"

No answer came. She waited for a few moments more, but the dead silence made her heart throb with terror. If she stayed here, she was sure to freeze to death.

Feeling desperate, Emiline turned around and started to run. Surely home would be straight behind her; she hadn't walked far. But as she ran, the snow became deeper and deeper. Suddenly, she sank up to her knees in icy wetness. Where was she? She couldn't be in her own, flat field. There were no deep ditches like this near her home.

"Help me!" she screamed once more. "Please, I'm lost!" Her voice quavered as tears streamed down her pale cheeks. There was no answer to her cries for help. She was doomed; doomed to die in the ice and wind with no one near to comfort her.

As Emiline sank to her knees in despair, she remembered her father's instruction. He had warned her never to walk in a blizzard. Why hadn't she listened to him? She felt so ashamed and terrified. But there was nothing she could do about it now.

Just as she began to accept her fate, she heard a noise in the distance. It was the sound of distant bells; sleigh bells. With new hope, she looked up. "Over here!" she shouted wildly. "Help me! I'm over here!" Through the white, snowy veil, she could see the flashing lights of the sleigh's lanterns swinging back and forth as the horses pulled their load closer and closer to her.

"Emiline!" a voice called. Then, louder, the voice called again, "Emiline Elmwood, are you listening to me?"

In a common schoolhouse, at a common, wooden desk, a young girl started in her seat. The wintry wind stopped all at once as her daydreams floated away. Emiline bit her lip nervously. She couldn't remember a word her teacher had been saying, but she hated to admit that she hadn't been listening. "Yes, ma'am," she answered hesitantly.

"Then why are you not writing?" the lady asked. Miss Weed, the school teacher, eyed Emma sternly. It didn't really surprise the woman that her student had drifted away from their dictation lesson; Emiline was known for her wild imagination.

Emma picked up her pen and got ready to write. She hated dictation. She wouldn't have minded copying verses from poems, or better yet, a chapter from a good story. But Miss Weed always chose the dullest books to read. Emma liked adventure stories; tales about heroes and fair maidens.

I wish I could be a hero, Emiline thought as Miss Weed turned the page of her book. Then everyone would think I was great.

As she started writing again, her mind began to drift. What kind of heroic deed could she do? Could she save someone's life? Maybe she would discover a great lost treasure and give lots of money to someone. She liked that idea. She had just read the story, Treasure Island, and now her mind was busy with pirates and hidden gold. If she found a treasure, she knew just what she would do with it; Emiline could already see the beautiful house she would build. It would be huge like a castle. And she would be dressed like a princess. Everyone would love her because she would be a nice princess. She would give some money to charity, and everyone would have good things to say about her. But of course, she would save enough money for herself too. She would have lovely dresses with silk and lace, and she would always have licorice on hand. Emiline loved licorice whips, but her family couldn't afford them very often. If she did find a treasure, Emiline would fill her mansion with all kinds of sweet treats.