"Nature is strong as life itself"

3|HER BROTHER, HER LOVER, HER PAST

The sun rises upon a new day. Her eyes flutter open as the joy of a fresh new day comes to her. Asherah wakes up after a wonderful night and the new day is certain to become a bright one. Sitting up on the bed, the girl stretches her body. Her eyes are quick to look towards the flowers and it is as if they invite her to a good day. Where she is certain that the day that is ahead of her will be just as wonderful and magical as the last one, and is that always what she thinks.

Asherah's nightgown falls down her feet as she stands from the bed and is met with the room's cool temperature where she shivers slightly. The summer weather is warm and hot during the day but as soon as the sun has begun to set, this cold begins to flow over the world. During the night it can become cold as winter. The girl does not mind at all. In fact she does enjoy how wonderful the world appears to be, and she finds it to be magnificent how all of it blooms together in a circle that never ends.

Removing her nightgown which is white yet slightly see-through and is a couple of years old as she has used it for a long time and the family uses what they have until they break or until they cannot be used any longer. Dressing herself into her dress, she looks at herself in the mirror. Her hair is all over the place as it usually is when she wakes up. She is not like her mother who barely has her hair in tangles when she wakes. Asherah's hair is always out of placee and tangled when she wakes up or just after a long day.

Brushing through the tangles, the girl is quick to prepare her hair into this long silk like smoothness. When she is prepared, she leaves the room to see that her parents are preparing the breakfast for the three of them. Smiling when she sees her parents laughing to themselves at something that they are discussing. "Morning" She says in a cheery voice. Both of them turn around to look at their daughter with smiles on their face. "Morning, my darling" Her father speaks to her as he greets her. She walks over to her mother who hugs her and then she hugs her father.

Sitting down, breakfast is soon to arrive and the three of them eat. "I shall be visiting Declan today" Asherah announces to the two of them and they give her some smiles. "Your brother, I have heard is growing anxious for his child. I knew that he would not be able to handle the responsibility" Her mother says in a joking matter. Her brother has been nervous about his child which is soon to arrive into the world. "Yes, however, he is not alone. And we will be there for him as well" She speaks to her mother.

"If I were to be frank, I always thought it would be you who married before your brother. We might say he is not the one that others handle easily" Her father says to her which makes her laugh. "Yes, Declan is odd most of the time. Yet, he will always be the one who has a heart of pure gold" She tells her parents. Believing it in her own heart that those are words that are the pure truth. Her brother has always been there for her growing up and now it is her time to be there for him.

After breakfast, Asherah assists her parents at cleaning up and then she walks out through the front door after having said goodbye to her parents. The morning sun is slowly making itself known in the world where she is growing brighter with each minute that passes by the world. Her brown eyes watch the world with wonder as she can't help but see the beauty that the world has to offer. Even when the girl has not even seen the entire world and doubts that she will ever see it in her lifetime.

The beauty and wonder she wishes to see and often does dream about being somewhere out there in the world. Yet, she knows that this village is the place where she belongs and she will never leave. Unless she weds a foreigner that will take her away. Though there are not that many foreigners that come looking for a bride and if they are they are not the right ones that she is looking for. In a day she is at marriage age and she will have to find someone to wed as her father has been trying to keep the town at bay, he will not be able to any longer.

The village is not that large yet neither is it small either and the way that she adores walking through it makes her smile. This morning life is waking up after the night and she can see that people are beginning their work and children are playing outside. A smile of wonder comes to Asherah's face as she sees it all. However, her smile is quick to fall from her face when she catches the sight of someone that has spotted her as well and she almost freezes.

From a barn, two winters older than her walks over to her and one of the boys that are head over heals in love with her because of her beauty which annoys her to all limits. Since she was a small child, the girl was declared a figure of beauty and men admired her from afar. Boys soon began falling for her the older she grew. Much to her own dismay and she is annoyed with it all. Rolling her eyes, she tries to hurry to her brother's house before he catches up with her yet he is quicker than she is and does catch up with her.

"William, I am in hurry, my brother will soon be expecting me" She speaks to him as he walks beside her. A chuckle leaves the boy beside her as he takes her hand into his but she is quick to remove her hand from his as she does not wish to touch him. "As exciting that must sound like, I do wish to speak to you about us" He says. Asherah turns to look at him and raises an eyebrow at him. "Us? I believe there is no us if I am not mistaken. We are simply living in the same village and nothing else. Please, forgive me for stating the fact so bluntly" She tells him.

Laughing, William gives her a smirk as he leans against the wall of her brother's house as they have arrived. "Not yet, but soon enough we will belong to one another in a ever lasting bond. I can already see it within my mind; I work all day and when I come for supper you will be ready with the warm food and then will be able to warm my bed. I will have the wife all want" William says to her.

The girl glares at him as she takes a step towards the door, not wanting to speak to him any longer. A sigh leaves her. Asherah is aware that men always think of women as nothing. Even when her family does not. Her father has always loved her mother and he said himself that he believes women are greater than men as history has shown that when women are leading, it all works out yet when men are leading they tend to throw the kingdom away and cause wars and death all around them.

History is not what most people know and her father is not aware of the full history nor does he know what it takes to lead a kingdom. "As much as you would that to happen, it is I who says that I do not want it and I wish to choose my own destiny" Asherah tells him but all that he does is laugh. "Such foolish words from a woman. You will belong to me, sooner or later. After all, it takes a single event to make your mine forever" He tells her and then he leaves her.

His words however do haunt her for a while and she does wonder what he meant by that. Choosing to ignore him, as she always does, she stands in front of the door which leads to her brother's house and knocks on it. A couple of seconds pass by the world before the door opens and the smiling face of her brother, Declan is shown there. "What brings you here, sister?" Declan asks her as he invites her inside the house. Entering the house, she smiles at her brother. "I only wish to see you and you wife, after all you are to have my niece or nephew and I am excited for that time" She speaks.

He smiles at her and his face is beaming with happiness as he can't wait for his child either. Sitting down in the seating area of the house, he hands her a glass of water which he fetched for her. "I am grateful that you are here. It is soon to happen. I just know that she will have the baby soon enough" He says. Yet another night goes by that she has not delivered the child, however it is soon to come to the time when she will have it.

The joy which is in this house is over the top and they cannot wait for that child to appear to bring everlasting joy to them. "Yes, I believe so as well. However, I do wish to discuss what you plan on naming your child. A name must have some meaning" She speaks to him. The girl has an unusual name. Asherah is the name that her mother had decided but she never gave an explaining for why she had chosen it. However the brown eyed girl does not care for what it means nor why, she simply adores her name.

It is a name that no one else has around her and no one that she has ever met has had the same name as she does, which in her own opinion makes her feel special. "We have been trying to find the best name for our child, no matter the gender yet we have not found one that we wish our child to be named. We would not want her or him to yell at us later in life because the name is not right" He says which makes her laugh.

"Your child will love you, no matter the name that the child bears" Asherah tells her brother who does look nervous but at the same time he is happy. "Thank you, sister. Now, is there anything that I can do for you?" He asks her. She giggles as she takes his hand. "Declan, I do not wish for you do anything for me. Rather I am here to assist you. I understand you are feeling afraid and I wish to be there for you" She says to him with a kind smile on her face which is always there.

Her smile is ale to comfort so many and her brother always adores when she smiles. Somehow she is able to light the world even brighter than the sun herself and Asherah is able to make the world brighter than anything with just a smile and a laugh. "Thank you, I truly am forever grateful for you, my darling sister" He says to her with a kind smile on his face as he looks at his sister and sees that in her eyes she is genuine and her kindness is a something that he does need in his life. Anyone does need it.

As the day goes by, she does all that she can to assist her brother and his wife whom she speaks to for a long time. His wife has not left the house for a day or two as she is expecting a child and finds it hard to move her body. However, her husband, Declan has been very supportive. And as the evening begin to show itself, the girl realizes that she must go home. After saying farewell to his brother and his wife, the girl head to her house which is close by.

In a village where the houses are close to each other, it is simple to get to places. People are mostly inside but a shadow is following the girl, yet she does not know if it. Walking down the paths, she finally is in front of her house. Asherah was about to open the door with her key when someone grabs her hand and forces her to turn around. Letting out a gasp, the girl does her best to struggle against the one who holds her. "Let me go" She speaks to the one that still holds her wrist, the grip tight.

As she was about to scream, a hand comes over her mouth and a voice shushes her to keep her quiet. The girl however bites down on the person's hand to force them to let her go and in shock they do. The person that held her lets her go and she backs against the wall as she turns around to look at them. Even in the darkness, she can see who it is. "William, What is the meaning of this?" She asks him in shock as she stares at him. Rubbing her wrist because his grip on her hand been tight enough to harm her.

He gives her a glare as he stands there. "I advise you to not enter that house" He tells her with this dark tone which she has never heard form him. William had been her friend when they were children, but it was not until he kept wanting to be with her romantically as they started to grow up that she did not want to be with him. And her father did all he could to keep the boy away from her by her own request. Eyeing him, looks around the ground for her key which she had dropped yet does keep an eye out for him.

"Why should I not enter my own home?" She asks him. Trying her hardest to not show the fear that she feels for him at this moment. There are few things in this world that the girl does fear and yet she has started to fear her childhood friend at the moment. There is something within his eyes that she sees in this darkness which makes her fear him. As if there is a feeling within her that tells her that she should not trust what he says. A dark chuckles leaves him.

He takes a step towards her and in the light that comes from her house, she can see something on him that frightens her beyond anything that she has ever felt before. His clothes and his face are covered in some liquid yet not just some liquid. The crimson red color does frighten her for she does know for certain what that liquid is. Gasping as she sees him, she wonders what had happened. "What did you do, William?" She asks him with her voice shaking from the fear that tugs at her heart.

He smirks at her as he comes closer to her. Asherah can only back until she is against the wall and cannot escape from him. Gulping she eyes him and she does not recognize the man that she is always meeting. While he does annoy her, he has never frightened her. Not when he is covered in blood. "Your family was the only thing that stood in my way of getting you for myself. I do advise you come home with me for you belong there" He speaks to her in a wild manner which makes her fear him even more than before.

Letting out a breath, the girl tries to find a way out of there, yet she is trapped and there is no where to go. A cold shiver runs down her entire body, and she is not certain if it is the cooling air of the evening or the fear which is traveling through her entire body at once or perhaps both. "William. Perhaps we can talk about this. I am here for you and I wish to guide house towards a better life, yet I cannot become your wife" She says to him in a gentle tone despite the fear.

"I know that one day you will find a girl that will fall in love with you just as much as you love her. The two of you will live the life which you choose yet it cannot me I who is your wife for I wish for something else in life than marrying" She tells him. Trying to be kind to him, even when she feels the fear try to take over her. Yet, when neither of them notice, a vine has started to travel up from the ground on the wall of the house.

The vine is subtle when it grows yet it hides a secret which is about to emerge from the shadows. For when they believe that they are alone there, there is someone else around the two of them. Someone who is watching them from afar with anger upon his face as he glares at the man that threatens to harm that poor girl who has been known to show only kindness to those which she meets. Just as she does now when she does all she can to speak to her attacker and not flee nor scream to attract attention from others in the village.

The man sees what is happening and he knows what had taken place inside that house and he knows what caused the boy to have all that blood all over him. He smirks when the vine grows larger and thicker and soon enough the vine is strong enough to lift a whole person. The man stands there and then makes himself visible in the light so the two of them which chat there can see him. The smirk widens when the vine wraps itself around the boy and it does lift him off the ground.