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xp_logs2009-08-15 06:25 pm
x-klara.livejournal.com) wrote in xp_logs2009-08-15 06:25 pm
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Rose Red: Within a Fortress of Thorns
Klara thinks about how she got into her current situation while she's safe within her thorny maze.
Huddled up in the center of the field, Klara hoped that Coop and his friends would give up hacking away at the enormous rose bushes. Not only was she afraid for her own life, but she was vaguely aware of the pain the rose bushes felt as they ineffectually cut into the plant to attempt to reach her.
She sat on the ground, hugging her knees and her head tucked in a position vaguely reminiscent of an armadillo or a turtle. She hoped Coop would just give up and she'd somehow be able to manage to get the unwieldy mass of rosebush under control enough to run away. At the moment, she felt safer surrounded by the maze of thorns. In her safe space in the center of the maze, she had a lot of time to do nothing but think.
Thinking back, Klara remembered how things came to be the way they were now...
***
September 29th, 2008
The gardens and the fields were the places where Klara found herself going the most often. She felt a measure of peace there that she hadn't felt since her curse had first shown up. The petite girl felt that she belonged with the plants, and perhaps it was part of her curse...but it felt safe. Safe, peaceful, and like she was in her element. It was also a respite from her father. As much as she loved and respected him, he had become extremely difficult to be around lately. He had turned to sin, drinking to try and forget his daughter's curse. When she was out of sight, she was out of mind. And when she was out of mind while he was in that state, she was safe. When he wasn't affected by the drink, he was simply depressed and looked at her with saddened worry more than anything else. Klara wished that there was some way to cure herself, and save her father. At the moment, though, she and her mother were keeping things quiet. They claimed that he was ill, and they had taken on duties that would have normally been his on top of their own responsibilities.
The only reason the fields were growing any worthwhile crops to speak of was because of Klara's curse. It was for that reason and that reason alone that she didn't completely hate it. Perhaps God was testing her, and if she was a dutiful and loyal servant of God, her curse would be lifted and her father was cured. She was trying to use it to help her family. People were starting to whisper about how unusually quick the crops were growing on the Prast farm, considering how few people were tending them. As careful as Klara was trying to be, and however briefly she asked the plants to grow, they always seemed to grow faster than she meant them to.
Right now, she was in the family's corn field. "Grow, please," she said, concentrating so that they would only grow as much as she wanted them to. Immediately, the corn plants began to shoot upward, and Klara hastily said "Stop, please", willing them to stop as quickly as she could.
In the two seconds she'd used her ability, in spite of the effort she'd exerted to keep the growth miniscule, they'd already grown a full inch. Klara hoped her mother wouldn't notice. She'd promised her mother that she was praying her hardest to get rid of her curse. Her mother would not approve of her using it, even if she was doing it for the family's benefit. It was a moral dilemma Klara hadn't managed to resolve. Should she risk the family's crops being so greatly diminished for the sake of doing things the right way? By using her curse, was she giving in to the devil's temptation, or was she doing the right thing and helping her family? She didn't know. Only God did, she thought.
I wish He would give me a sign, she thought to herself.
Luke had managed to get permission from his father to buy a bouquet of roses for the girl he was starting to take a fancy too. The proper thing, of course, was to go through their parents. But he wanted to make sure she liked him first. He was shy.
It was then he saw it and heard her. Luke dropped the flowers in shock. Klara was a witch.
"You... Klara... you're a..."
Klara jumped when she heard Luke's voice. She stood there frozen in place, horrified that he'd seen her. Nobody was supposed to be there, least of all someone outside of her family! She buried her face in her hands.
"I...I am sorry," was all she could find the words to say. She couldn't really defend herself against the accusation. "I am sorry that you saw that..."
Right now, she didn't want Luke to see her. She didn't want anyone to see her. The plants around her obliged, growing tall and strong and completely blocking Luke's view of her as she retreated deep into her parents' fields.
He left the roses, a gift to her and her favorite flower as he turned and ran, unable to say the word 'witch.' Because as the bible said, they couldn't suffer a witch to live, and didn't want her to die.
***
April 5th, 2009
Klara had never liked the winter, even though she understood it was part of life. It was cold, the plants were dead and you couldn't eat anything fresh in the winter. It was all food that was carefully preserved in jars. This past winter, however, had been more difficult than most, because it wasn't just the weather that was cold. The community itself had been giving her the cold shoulder and shunned her. Klara didn't know if it had been Luke that said something, or if the sudden growth of the Prast crops had attracted more attention, but people were whispering. Numerous times, she'd even heard one of the neighbors telling her parents to make her leave before the whole community got sick. It seemed that while nobody wanted to kill her for being a witch, her family members were the only ones who wanted her around now. Even they had difficulty looking at her without fear or revulsion sometimes, though her parents allowed her to stay under their roof, and her siblings would still speak to her when they came to visit. Her father still seemed convinced that he could beat the curse out of her, but it hadn't worked yet.
The worst thing wasn't her own pain, Klara felt. As a witch, she was already being treated with far more compassion than the bible called for. It was the fact that her parents were being harassed constantly because of her. Her very presence seemed to make them miserable now, and yet they still protected her from the rest of the community. Her concern for her parents was what finally cemented her decision to leave as soon as the weather wasn't freezing anymore.
Packing her belongings didn't take long. She wasn't going to bring many things with her in the first place. A jar full of mixed seeds so that she could grow herself food to eat while she travelled. An envelope with her eldest brother Joseph's address on it. Unlike the rest of Klara's siblings, Joseph had left their small Amish community and he lived across the state in modern dwellings. Perhaps Joseph could help her. She'd always been closest to him, being the baby of the family while he was the eldest. At the very least, she was certain he would let her stay for a few days, even after she told him about her curse. He'd always taken care of her.
Writing the letter to her parents was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do in her life. Taking those first few steps out the door was the hardest.
***
April 8th, 2009
It was frightening being out on her own. Klara had long since exhausted her meager personal finances paying for bus fare and buying food. A short staffed road stop diner took pity on her one rainy night and allowed her to stay there the one night in exchange for her cleaning and helping to prepare food, but they'd told her they couldn't hire her or let her stay there in the long run unless she got herself a social security number and other identification. Today, it wasn't raining, and Klara was relying on her curse for food. She had enough seeds with her to last for a while - particularly since all plants contained seeds, so she could keep reusing what was grown.
She was getting slightly better at controlling the rate of growth - but only if she concentrated and wasn't afraid of being noticed. She was in a small wooded area near some rural properties, with not a soul in sight, so she felt safe working at it right now. Taking an apple seed out of her pocket, Klara focused on that seed's growth. Within seconds, it had gone from being a seed to an oversized apple, roughly the size of a grapefruit.
Coop had been scouting out the area to find a decent spot to set up a new field of weed. He'd found a couple of rarely travelled sections of inacessible woods that would, at a pinch, work. He was, however, startled to find a little Amish girl growing plants... really... really quickly. Now that could be useful. She was clearly sleeping rough and it was getting cold at night. "Interesting skill you got there, kiddo. I reckon y'all might be in the market for a job, now."
"I...I would like some work," said Klara, the apple suddenly growing even larger before she consciously stopped the growth. The man had startled her.
"But it is a curse. I should not use it. Work was meant to be done by hand."
She had to reprimand herself both verbally and non-verbally for even considering using it in lieu of real work. That was a witch's mentality - bending nature to one's will instead of living within nature.
Coop smiled gently, saying "It's okay, honey. You're just speeding up what God would have done more slowly. That's fine, isn't it?" Christ, she was eating it up. "I'll trade you bed and board and an allowance for you growing me some plants. How does that sound?"
Klara thought about it carefully and then finally nodded. It seemed like a fair arrangement. She would be working, and earning her room and board. And what was more, the man didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with her. It was a blessing, she thought. God was watching over her.
Huddled up in the center of the field, Klara hoped that Coop and his friends would give up hacking away at the enormous rose bushes. Not only was she afraid for her own life, but she was vaguely aware of the pain the rose bushes felt as they ineffectually cut into the plant to attempt to reach her.
She sat on the ground, hugging her knees and her head tucked in a position vaguely reminiscent of an armadillo or a turtle. She hoped Coop would just give up and she'd somehow be able to manage to get the unwieldy mass of rosebush under control enough to run away. At the moment, she felt safer surrounded by the maze of thorns. In her safe space in the center of the maze, she had a lot of time to do nothing but think.
Thinking back, Klara remembered how things came to be the way they were now...
***
September 29th, 2008
The gardens and the fields were the places where Klara found herself going the most often. She felt a measure of peace there that she hadn't felt since her curse had first shown up. The petite girl felt that she belonged with the plants, and perhaps it was part of her curse...but it felt safe. Safe, peaceful, and like she was in her element. It was also a respite from her father. As much as she loved and respected him, he had become extremely difficult to be around lately. He had turned to sin, drinking to try and forget his daughter's curse. When she was out of sight, she was out of mind. And when she was out of mind while he was in that state, she was safe. When he wasn't affected by the drink, he was simply depressed and looked at her with saddened worry more than anything else. Klara wished that there was some way to cure herself, and save her father. At the moment, though, she and her mother were keeping things quiet. They claimed that he was ill, and they had taken on duties that would have normally been his on top of their own responsibilities.
The only reason the fields were growing any worthwhile crops to speak of was because of Klara's curse. It was for that reason and that reason alone that she didn't completely hate it. Perhaps God was testing her, and if she was a dutiful and loyal servant of God, her curse would be lifted and her father was cured. She was trying to use it to help her family. People were starting to whisper about how unusually quick the crops were growing on the Prast farm, considering how few people were tending them. As careful as Klara was trying to be, and however briefly she asked the plants to grow, they always seemed to grow faster than she meant them to.
Right now, she was in the family's corn field. "Grow, please," she said, concentrating so that they would only grow as much as she wanted them to. Immediately, the corn plants began to shoot upward, and Klara hastily said "Stop, please", willing them to stop as quickly as she could.
In the two seconds she'd used her ability, in spite of the effort she'd exerted to keep the growth miniscule, they'd already grown a full inch. Klara hoped her mother wouldn't notice. She'd promised her mother that she was praying her hardest to get rid of her curse. Her mother would not approve of her using it, even if she was doing it for the family's benefit. It was a moral dilemma Klara hadn't managed to resolve. Should she risk the family's crops being so greatly diminished for the sake of doing things the right way? By using her curse, was she giving in to the devil's temptation, or was she doing the right thing and helping her family? She didn't know. Only God did, she thought.
I wish He would give me a sign, she thought to herself.
Luke had managed to get permission from his father to buy a bouquet of roses for the girl he was starting to take a fancy too. The proper thing, of course, was to go through their parents. But he wanted to make sure she liked him first. He was shy.
It was then he saw it and heard her. Luke dropped the flowers in shock. Klara was a witch.
"You... Klara... you're a..."
Klara jumped when she heard Luke's voice. She stood there frozen in place, horrified that he'd seen her. Nobody was supposed to be there, least of all someone outside of her family! She buried her face in her hands.
"I...I am sorry," was all she could find the words to say. She couldn't really defend herself against the accusation. "I am sorry that you saw that..."
Right now, she didn't want Luke to see her. She didn't want anyone to see her. The plants around her obliged, growing tall and strong and completely blocking Luke's view of her as she retreated deep into her parents' fields.
He left the roses, a gift to her and her favorite flower as he turned and ran, unable to say the word 'witch.' Because as the bible said, they couldn't suffer a witch to live, and didn't want her to die.
***
April 5th, 2009
Klara had never liked the winter, even though she understood it was part of life. It was cold, the plants were dead and you couldn't eat anything fresh in the winter. It was all food that was carefully preserved in jars. This past winter, however, had been more difficult than most, because it wasn't just the weather that was cold. The community itself had been giving her the cold shoulder and shunned her. Klara didn't know if it had been Luke that said something, or if the sudden growth of the Prast crops had attracted more attention, but people were whispering. Numerous times, she'd even heard one of the neighbors telling her parents to make her leave before the whole community got sick. It seemed that while nobody wanted to kill her for being a witch, her family members were the only ones who wanted her around now. Even they had difficulty looking at her without fear or revulsion sometimes, though her parents allowed her to stay under their roof, and her siblings would still speak to her when they came to visit. Her father still seemed convinced that he could beat the curse out of her, but it hadn't worked yet.
The worst thing wasn't her own pain, Klara felt. As a witch, she was already being treated with far more compassion than the bible called for. It was the fact that her parents were being harassed constantly because of her. Her very presence seemed to make them miserable now, and yet they still protected her from the rest of the community. Her concern for her parents was what finally cemented her decision to leave as soon as the weather wasn't freezing anymore.
Packing her belongings didn't take long. She wasn't going to bring many things with her in the first place. A jar full of mixed seeds so that she could grow herself food to eat while she travelled. An envelope with her eldest brother Joseph's address on it. Unlike the rest of Klara's siblings, Joseph had left their small Amish community and he lived across the state in modern dwellings. Perhaps Joseph could help her. She'd always been closest to him, being the baby of the family while he was the eldest. At the very least, she was certain he would let her stay for a few days, even after she told him about her curse. He'd always taken care of her.
Writing the letter to her parents was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do in her life. Taking those first few steps out the door was the hardest.
***
April 8th, 2009
It was frightening being out on her own. Klara had long since exhausted her meager personal finances paying for bus fare and buying food. A short staffed road stop diner took pity on her one rainy night and allowed her to stay there the one night in exchange for her cleaning and helping to prepare food, but they'd told her they couldn't hire her or let her stay there in the long run unless she got herself a social security number and other identification. Today, it wasn't raining, and Klara was relying on her curse for food. She had enough seeds with her to last for a while - particularly since all plants contained seeds, so she could keep reusing what was grown.
She was getting slightly better at controlling the rate of growth - but only if she concentrated and wasn't afraid of being noticed. She was in a small wooded area near some rural properties, with not a soul in sight, so she felt safe working at it right now. Taking an apple seed out of her pocket, Klara focused on that seed's growth. Within seconds, it had gone from being a seed to an oversized apple, roughly the size of a grapefruit.
Coop had been scouting out the area to find a decent spot to set up a new field of weed. He'd found a couple of rarely travelled sections of inacessible woods that would, at a pinch, work. He was, however, startled to find a little Amish girl growing plants... really... really quickly. Now that could be useful. She was clearly sleeping rough and it was getting cold at night. "Interesting skill you got there, kiddo. I reckon y'all might be in the market for a job, now."
"I...I would like some work," said Klara, the apple suddenly growing even larger before she consciously stopped the growth. The man had startled her.
"But it is a curse. I should not use it. Work was meant to be done by hand."
She had to reprimand herself both verbally and non-verbally for even considering using it in lieu of real work. That was a witch's mentality - bending nature to one's will instead of living within nature.
Coop smiled gently, saying "It's okay, honey. You're just speeding up what God would have done more slowly. That's fine, isn't it?" Christ, she was eating it up. "I'll trade you bed and board and an allowance for you growing me some plants. How does that sound?"
Klara thought about it carefully and then finally nodded. It seemed like a fair arrangement. She would be working, and earning her room and board. And what was more, the man didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with her. It was a blessing, she thought. God was watching over her.