My gaze met the window as soon as dawn was breaking. Inside, my room shimmered with delight as the sun poured through the glass. The house was quiet as usual.No Ma running down the stairs in a hurry to get some place. I did have a Ma but she didn't have a job.My town was very poor since we lived in the middle of nowhere in a forest that was very green.The curtains shifted as a light breeze ran through the cracked window.I didn't have anywhere to be at all.Of course tomorrow was market day when everyone went into the center of town to buy things like baked goods or quilts.

When I stepped out of bed the floorboards creaked a bit.Abruptly I straightened things out and went to clean myself up a bit. Once I was ready I staggered into the kitchen. Ma was still asleep since she wasn't at the table drinking her morning tea. I slumped over to see what was in the pantry.Nothing but tomatoes and what looked like a loaf of bread. But on the top shelf there was some tea so I took a bag down to heat up. Once the tea was ready I took a spoon and stirred it calmly.I hummed a little tune to soften my dry throat.

I heard a thump on the stairs and saw Ma walking down briskly.I yawned as she went to the pantry to get tea.

"Good morning sweetie.''she snapped.She was always grumpy in the morning.Once she was at the table with her tea there was a silence between us.I decided to break the silence.

"Ma?"

"Yes?" she sighed.

"Do you have anywhere to be today?"

"No, other than a few errands and a meeting in town.Plus Ainsley, you have to go to the meeting too."

"Awww, do I have to go?"

"Yes you do.Your birthday was last week and once people are eighteen they have to go to town meetings." I sighed and went to the pantry to get a tomato.I bit into it and surprisingly in it there was some blue.

It still tasted the same so I shoveled it down. "I'm going for a walk Ma!''I called as I slammed the door.When I came out the sun was rising over the horizon with a very golden haze.It was misty in the air and as the path crunched beneath me a bird called. I recognized that bird as a songbird singing it's beautiful tune.I walked on the path to the center of town where they were getting ready for the town meeting.There were lots of wooden chairs set around an open fire.A little farther back there were little shops where people could buy things.The mist turned into a drizzle so I pulled my leather sweatshirt over my head.

I slumped over to the shops.An old man was sitting at a table on a little stool playing an unusual instrument. "What is it?" I asked quietly.

"Tambourines silly.'' he said in a jolly voice.

"How much?"

"Not for sale.But I do have other old things.Here, how about a yoyo?" "Nah.What else do you got?"

"Well, there is this old sugar bowl.Um, a carving knife."

"I think I'll take the sugar bowl."

"A quarter."I gave him the quarter and scooped up the sugar bowl. "G'day." he chirped.I walked on down the path to the direction of the stream.

When I got to the stream I realized that there was a dime in my pocket.I put the dime in the sugar bowl to save for another time.The air shifted to a more pleasant breeze.I squatted down to pick up a rock. I threw the rock into the stream.I started to sing a song that my Ma used to sing to me called "castle on a cloud."

I turned around and started back to my shack.I was nearing my shack when I saw a little boy run out of one of the shacks yelling, "Ainsley!Ainsley!" Peter? I hadn't seen my cousin in ages!

"Peter! How are you?" I called.

"I'm darn tootin' alright! That's what Pa always says." I chuckled. Peter was only five. I fidgeted with the dime in the sugar bowl. "Peter, do you want a dime?" I asked him.

"Really?" He was jumping up and down. "Really," I told him. "Thank you, thank you Ainsley! You're the best!" I smiled and gave him the dime. He went skipping into his shack. I saw a face in the window of his shack. Fritz. He was a homeless boy who lived with the Patterson's. He was 19. Fritz was quite an introvert.

I walked back to my shack, pausing to take the dry clothes off our clothesline.The clothesline was a strong kind of string, able to hold about 10 shirts. I pushed open the creaky wooden door to my shack. Ma was embroidering in our cozy rocking chair.

"Ma, I've got the clothes!"

"Oh good," She said from the rocking chair. "Put your clothes in your room and put mine on that stool. I'll do it after I'm done embroidering." Ma pointed at a carved wooden stool.

I went into my room. My room was small, squeezed in between Ma's room and the kitchen. I quickly folded my clothes, then tucked them into my bureau.

In the far right corner of my room, next to my bed, is a framed picture of my Pa.The frame is carved to look like spirals, and coated in a thin

layer of gold paint. Pa was a member of the town council. He held meetings and led ambushes on closeby villages. My village is called Paxsonville. Pa died a hero. He saved us from Buckville. They were trying to steal our food. I was only four. It was very sad. Ma cried all night long.

I went back into the kitchen, and started prepping lunch. I froze some eggs and pumpkin bread. So I took those out and peeled the eggs, warmed up the bread, and served it up on two wooden plates. Ma was still embroidering, so I called her to the table. Once we

had both sat down, we said our prayers and began to eat. My mind worked it's way around the meeting.These meetings were when the town council held them(every week.) It was sort of like a gathering. Last week had been my first meeting. Everyone age eighteen or older had to attend.

At the meeting, someone named Ace Dalby had yelled, "They won't get away with it!" People had been arguing over the towns and their "Loyalty" to each other. We were all in one big group. The Blackfoot community. There were twelve towns split up between us. We had to share land, food, and materials.

I finished eating, and quietly washed my plate, scrubbing it thoroughly to get all the dirt off. I sat down on ma's rocking chair, having nothing to do. A few pieces of dust floated down from the mantelpiece, glittering in the sunlight. The dust was small and fuzzy, like ripping a teddy bear to pieces.

I blinked my eyes, then went out of my shack. The rain had stopped. The stream cut it's way past our house, glinting with light. A few people were lined up on the bank, gazing down into the icy water.I wondered what they're staring at. I walked over to them, and asked, "What's in the water?" One woman pulled her stiff hat father on her head. Another man just turned away. I gazed around the people,

searching for a reasonable person that might awnser. A girl, 20, I'd

guess, was staring at me. "So, what's in the water?" I asked again. The girl blinked, then slowly brought her mouth to my ear. Her breath was cold.

"Be careful what you wish for," she whispered. Her voice echoed

in my head. Be careful what you wish for? I decided to find out for myself.

When I peered into the water, all I saw was the water, rushing on the creek bed. I turned to find the girl, but she was gone. Weird. I'd never seen this girl before.

I walked back to my shack, pulling open the doors. Ma was in her room(I guessed, since she wasn't embroidering.) I took a seat in the rocking chair, shifting around to get into a comfortable position. There was a little wooden table next to the chair, which had Ma's embroidering kit. There were some buttons in the kit. All kinds of buttons. I dumped them out on the wooden table and placed one in the palm of my hand. It was a metal button, coated with silver, with little diamonds bordering it. It was cold in my hot palm, so I squeezed it. I squeezed it even tighter. After I had set that one aside I took out another. It was pink, and had the shape of a bunny. Another one was a pale blue baton. You can buy baton's at the market in town. The next button looked like a small crooked house. I felt in the pile for another one. This one was red and fuzzy. The fuzziness felt like a bear. One button was pale yellow, with silver hair dotting the middle. Like unicorn hair. Another button was a brown button in the shape of a flower. I took out a few more buttons. One was a shovel with little metal pieces on it. One was a blue ocean wave. The last one was a button that was a pale blue with a black and white eye.

I carefully placed each button back inside Ma's sewing kit. I closed the straw top, careful not to mess up the designs on it. I walked into my small room. My endless shelf of books towering above me was dark and mysterious.

It had just occurred to me that winter was coming. The snowy and cold season. It left Paxsonville starved. Me and Ma had stocked up clothing and food for the long winter.

I ran my fingers over the smooth carving of my bed. There was some cracked wood that was splintery, and some paint had chipped off. I looked through the small window of my room, out to the courtyard.

Me and my Ma were lucky. Most people in our town didn't have a courtyard.

Out in the courtyard lay a small well, with a stone walkway leading up to it. There was also our clothesline, strung between two small birch trees, and a bucket of clothes. The last thing was a locked shed where we stored valuable things.

There was a quiet knock on my door. I opened it to see Ma. "Time for the meeting." She said. I groaned. Ma took my arm and dragged me to the front door. I put on my fuzzy jacket, and followed Ma out the door. We walked down the bumpy path near the rushing river. We cut past the edge of the village, and then to the center of town. The little shops were closed for the meeting. People were gathered, sitting on the wooden chairs circled around the fire. Ma and I took a seat in the front row(which I disliked, considering we would be in the center of attention.)

The town council sat in very high chairs behind everyone. They had rusty microphones(that connected to an old speaker) so they would be heard. A few people shifted in their chairs. I scanned the crowd of people. Fritz was way in the back with his adopted Ma and Pa. I was looking for the girl. She should be here. One of the town council members smacked his hand down on the arm of his chair.

"Let the meeting begin!" he yelled.

Another town council member, a small skinny woman, addressed the crowd.

"Who has a question?" She asked. Her voice boomed around the area. An old man stood up. His name was Braxton Kuri, I think. His voice was crackly as he spoke.

"I have a question. This year, who will be the selected town to get the exceeding amount of food and supplies?" It was true. In late Autumn, there was a meeting with all the town councils, and one town was selected each year to get the exceeding amount of food and supplies. It was a random pick. But there was one rule, one town could

not get it two or more years in a row.In my whole lifetime, my town only got it once. The crowd erupted in argument.

"We will have it!" Someone yelled.

"Justice! Loyalty!" Someone else called. The skinny woman pounded her fist on the arm of her chair.

"Silence!" Her voice boomed. "This man has an interesting question." She pointed at Braxton. "We have not yet met."

Braxton's face tightened.

"You're late! The big council meeting is late!" He glared at the skinny woman.

"He does have a point." Said a large man from the council.

"It's not our fault. Haysville and Jamesville haven't settled their disputes yet." The skinny woman called. The crowd erupted in loud cheers and boos. I shrank down in my chair, overwhelmed by all the noise.

"Silence!" This time, the large man had yelled. "This matter is discussed. Who else has a question?"Surprisingly, Fritz stood from his chair.

"I've heard this winter will be one of the worst we'll ever have. How will we survive it?" He called. The skinny woman was furious.

"Young man, we do not talk about those things. These meetings are business!" Fritz's face turned a pale white. He slowly sat down. I felt bad for him. When he had first showed up in Paxsonville, no one wanted

them except the Patterson's. Peter had always wanted an older brother.

I turned back to the skinny woman. She had sat down in her chair, clearly embarrassed by yelling at Fritz.

We discussed a few more things(that I did not approve of.) Me and Ma walked from the campfire when the meeting was over. We walked on the path. It was getting colder as the evening came. We walked past the little shops. They were still closed, packed up for the night. Halfway to our shack, I froze. My legs buckled under me, and I fell on my knees. Red and blue vomit cascaded from my mouth. I fell on my back, and everything went black.