Part 3, Chap 1

Heaving a huge sigh of relief, Mrs. Benison nudged her two children awake and dragged them off their last flight and into the terminal.
“We’re here at laaaast,” Edmund said, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn. “Where are Grandma and Grandpa?”
“They’re probably outside waiting to pick us up, honey,” Mrs. Benison said, smiling. “You can try to call their cell and ask them where they are if you like,” she added, handing him her cell phone.

“Oh, Sarah!” cried the voice of an elder woman the moment they stepped out of the airport. A short, grey-haired woman hurried over to Mrs. Benison, who threw herself into her mother’s arms. “And you two, oh my, how you’ve grown!” the grandmother turned to Mary and Edmund, wrapping her arms around them and squeezing them in a tight hug.
“I missed you, Grandma!” Edmund cried, burying his head in the elderly woman’s shirt. Mary, watching the scene from a distance, marveled at her brother’s warmth and affection for a woman who he hadn’t seen since he was three years old.
“Oh, I missed you too, sweetie!” her grandmother cried, planting a kiss on Edmund’s cheek. Mary wondered why, if she really had missed him, she hadn’t ever come to visit him or even had any form of contact with him for so many years. “Now come on,” the elder woman continued, “Your grandfather is parked right over here.”

Mary squeezed into the back seat of the car with Edmund and her mother. She scrutinized her grandparents carefully. Her grandmother was short, but sturdy, her blue eyes still sparkling and alive. Her hair was grey, with a few silvery strands shimmering in the dim light. Her grandfather, tall and robust, had a kind, wrinkly face and long, drooping whiskers. They didn’t look so bad, she thought, and yet the distrust and anger that she felt burning in her chest did not abate.

She wondered briefly why she felt so angry at her grandparents. She remembered arguments that had occurred when she was younger between her mother and father, involving her grandparents and, Mary remembered, her mother’s sister Katie. She thought that the long separation that had occurred between her mother and her parents had something to do with a disagreement between Mary’s grandparents and her father. Mary speculated about what the disagreement had been about. Her resentment toward her grandparents grew, and she wondered angrily why, after seven years of practically no contact, they should protrude into her life now just because her father was no longer living?

An indignant fire burned in Mary’s chest. Suddenly questions swarmed up in her mind. Were her grandparents glad that her father was dead? After all, hadn’t it been he who had prevented them from visiting their daughter and grandchildren? Had her father purposefully kept his wife’s parents away from his children, or had the grandparents stayed away from their own choice, perhaps their anger or resentment toward their son-in-law? But what if her father hadn’t wanted her grandparents to be part of her life? Was she betraying him now, by going against his wishes when he was no longer there to let his opinion be known?

Mary, her heart beating thunderously in her chest, watched her mother closely. She seemed so happy, so content to be with her parents after having been away from them for so long. She chatted happily about old friends and old haunts which she couldn’t wait to show to Edmund and Mary. Confusion and uncertainty turned Mary’s sensations into a jumble of chaotic fears and doubts. She didn’t understand how her mother could be so happy, how she could be so cheerful and carefree when her husband could no longer even feel such emotions. And yet Edmund, too, seemed so carefree – they both seemed so blithe.

Heaving a heavy sigh, Mary relinquished her unhappy reflections and tried to join in on the jovial conversation that was going on around her. She had noticed Edmund eying her with concern, and she didn’t want to incite his anxiety or distress on her behalf. Grinning at him, she laughed appreciatively at a joke her grandfather had just told, and launched into one of her own.

* * *

Part 2, Chapter 1

As the plane glided through the wispy clouds, Mary stared out the window, her nose pressed against the cool glass. Apprehensions and doubts seemed to invade her mind, filling her with uncertainty. She nervously thought about their new home, their future life. Her mother and Edmund were both so confident that everything would be fine; they were both so full of courage and hope. But Mary…Mary didn’t think she could ever be brave. She thought of her father. He had passed away that February as he drove home from work. It had been a stormy day, torrential rains hammering down from dawn until dusk. He had been hurrying home after a late night at the office, when his car skid across the road and in front of an eighteen-wheeler. He had passed away in the ambulance.

Now they were moving. Moving to Virginia, to a small farm owned by their grandparents. Grandparents who she hadn’t seen in seven years, and who until a month ago didn’t seem to care whether she was alive or dead.

Mary had grown up in L.A.; she was used to the noise and bustle of the city. She couldn’t imagine life in the country, all alone in the middle of nowhere. But Mrs. Benison thought that a change would be good for them, all of them.
“Kids, I got a letter from your grandparents from Virginia today,” she had said one evening as they sat around the table eating their dinner. “They want to know if we’d like to come and stay with them on their farmstead for a while. They have a little cottage nearby that they usually rent out, but it’s empty now, and they say it would be perfect for us.”

At first Mary had been shocked and upset. Moving to Virgin! Never! But she could tell it meant a lot to her mother. She had grown up in the country, and Mary thought that sometimes her mother got nostalgic for her childhood home.
“I think you’ll really enjoy life on a farm,” she had said. “It’s going to be a great experience for you both. Plus you’re grandparents will be there. I think it will be good for us to be closer to family.”
Grandparents? Did they even deserve that name, after only appearing in her life now after simply vanishing for seven long years? Yet, Mary knew that her mother was under a lot of pressure, raising two kids all by herself in a big city. She needed some sort of help and support, and having her parents near would make a world of difference for her.

Even before her husband’s death, Mrs. Benison had spoken often of wanting to get out of the noise and bustle of the city, to spend some time in the calm of the country. She was a writer, and although she had found the diversity and activity of the city a good source of fodder for her writing, she thought that some time in the peace and tranquility of the farm would give her the serenity she needed for her creativity. Mr. Benison, however, had always abhorred the idea of living in the country, particularly, it seemed to Mary, near a certain farmstead in Virginia.

Edmund was of course thrilled at the prospect of living on a farm.
“Do they have horses? And chickens? And goats? And will there be bears in the woods? By Jove, I can’t wait to ride the horses!” he had squealed the moment his mother mentioned the farm. Now, he sat beside Mary, barely able to contain his excitement. Squirming around in his seat, he tried to get a peak through the window out into the blue sky.
“Do you think we’re almost their, Mary?” he asked, a little anxiously.
“We still have the layover in Charlotte,” Mary said, laughing at his impatience.
“Oh man! How long after that?”
“I’m not sure. Not too long, I think.”
“I sure hope not! ‘Farewell we call to hearth and hall, though wind may blow and rain may fall! We must away ere break of day, far over wood and mountain tall!’” He sang, receiving a couple of looks from his fellow passengers in return for his melodious air.

* * *

New Story

Chapter One

Hundreds of students filed out of the classrooms, laughter and chatter filling the halls as the final classes ended and the bell rang for the last time. It was the end of the school year, and an entire summer of fun awaited them! Everyone prattled excitedly about their plans and aspirations for their summer vacation, a feeling of excitement and bliss seeming to permeate almost palpably through the halls.

Only one girl seemed unaffected by the pervading feeling of glee, as she lingered by her locker collecting her belongings. Mary Benison did not foresee any enjoyment awaiting her in the almost three months which stretched before her, uncertain and unpredictable. With a sigh, she slipped through the exit and out into the sunlight. As the students rapidly dispersed in different directions, some piling into yellow buses, others jumping into cars, Mary slung her bag onto her shoulder and slumped onto the grimy steps to wait. Glancing at her wristwatch, she frowned a little anxiously. Where in the world can Mom be? she wondered, looking around for any sign of her mom’s old, battered brown car.

“Mary,” a panting voice behind her called. “Sorry we’re late!” Spinning around, Mary saw Edmund rushing toward her, his face flushed and his big blue eyes sparkling. “The moving men just got there, and mom wasn’t sure if she should trust them at the house by themselves. So she got Mr. Loward to come pick you up. Gee, Mary, the moving truck is huge!”
“Mr. Loward? That funny old guy who lives down the street? Well, anyway, how was your day?” Mary asked, smiling a little at Edmund’s excitement.
“I’m just glad it’s finally over!” he laughed, skipping a bit. “No more school for nearly three whole months!”
Mary didn’t reply, but kicked a small stone with her boot, sending it skidding across the pavement before it slowly rolled to a stop in front of a school bus. Edmund looked down, his own glee dissipating a bit at Mary’s glumness. Mary caught his unhappy look, and felt a twinge of guilt prickled at her insides.
“I’m sorry Ed; I don’t mean to be a wet blanket.”
“It’s not your fault, Mary,” Edmund was quick to assert. "Come on, Mr. Loward's waiting for us."

As the two sat side by side in the backseat of Mr. Loward’s pickup truck, they let silence envelope them, both lost in their own thoughts.
“It won’t be so bad,” Edmund said after a few moments, glancing at his older sister. “It’s almost like an adventure.”
Mary tried to muster up some enthusiasm, wishing she could be more like her mother, who always knew how to cheer and hearten people rather than bring them down.
“You’re right,” she said at last, forcing a smile. “Everything’s going to be different. Maybe it will be exciting.”
“A new home, a new school, new friends, a whole new life, Mary!” Edmund cried, encouraged by her slight show of interest.
But Dad won’t be there, Mary thought. She said, “Yes, an adventure!”

When they got home, a moving truck was pulled up in front of their house, and men were loading boxes into the back.
“Oh good, you’re home,” Mrs. Benison cried when she saw her two children. “We have a lot to do before our plane leaves tomorrow morning! Why don’t you two go in and have a snack, and then make sure you have everything you need for tomorrow.”

The next morning, Mary was woken by her bedroom door suddenly being thrown open and someone hurdling onto her bed.
“By Jove, are you still in bed?” Edmund exclaimed, looking down at his sister and shaking his head in mock displeasure. “Up thyself lady, lest thou get left behind in the tumult before we embark on our journey!”
Laughing, Mary kicked Edmund off her bed with her foot. “Get out of here so I can get dressed, you scallywag!” she cried.
Edmund, wagging his head disapprovingly, disappeared down the hall, bounding down the stairs and singing Bilbo’s adventure song from the Hobbit with all his heart. “We must away! We must away! We ride before the break of day!”

* * *