The High Princess
Prologue: The Peterson Family
The High Princess
By Sophia Taylor
The sky was a twilight-purple. The clouds were bright red and orange, as the sun was letting the Western prairies know it was saying its good-bye for the day. A moment later, it sunk completely and light was extinguished in the darkness. It was the night of the 24th of December, 1773.
A young girl of about fifteen was sitting on the prairie grass, admiring it. She had long, midnight-black tresses, and her eyes were navy blue in their colour. But there was also a sparkling quality about them that made you wonder if she wasn't a nice young girl to meet.
Her name was Clara Peterson. Clara was the youngest child to John and Nara Peterson, and she had two elder sisters and a brother. There was Samuel, the first, Rose, the second, and Carolyn, the third, besides.
Samuel had his papa's brown hair, and he had big, handsome brown eyes. He was a broad man, about twenty-one in age. He loved nothing better than to tease his sisters, especially Clara.
Rose had her mama's golden hair and sky blue eyes. She was a fun-loving sort of girl, one that often thought of funny jokes and said them for the sake of it. She was very beautiful. She was nineteen years old.
Carolyn had looks similar to Samuel's and John's, except that she had the sky blue eyes. She was not quite as frivolous as Rose, but, nevertheless, she liked a joke. She was sixteen years old.
Clara loved to watch the sunrises and sunsets. Her parents and siblings always knew where to find her once the sun started to go up or down.
"Clara, it's time to get ready for bed." Clara's mama's alto voice rang out. So Clara had one more look at the stars above before she turned in.
*
Clara, Carolyn, and Rose started braiding their hair for bed. Once this was done, they got into their nightgowns and climbed into their beds.
Rose and Samuel were old enough to have an hour later for their bedtimes. Clara and Carolyn went to bed when the sun went down. But tonight was Christmas Eve, and they all had to go to bed early to get presents on the morrow.
The next morning, everyone was up before dawn. They always were, in any case, but they all woke up a little earlier than usual, at about half-past four, instead of five in the morning like they usually did. But Christmas spirit was upon them all, and nobody wanted to lie awake in bed wishing for Christmas to start already.
Mama started making porridge for the family; Papa and Samuel started their work on the farm and the chores at their usual 5 am; and the three girls waited impatiently for the sun to rise so they could see what was in their sacks.
Eventually the sun arose in spectacular colours, as thought the girls when they watched it, standing up because of the dewy grass. When it had risen up enough that the spectacular colours had gone, they rushed inside for the presents.
By Sophia Taylor
The sky was a twilight-purple. The clouds were bright red and orange, as the sun was letting the Western prairies know it was saying its good-bye for the day. A moment later, it sunk completely and light was extinguished in the darkness. It was the night of the 24th of December, 1773.
A young girl of about fifteen was sitting on the prairie grass, admiring it. She had long, midnight-black tresses, and her eyes were navy blue in their colour. But there was also a sparkling quality about them that made you wonder if she wasn't a nice young girl to meet.
Her name was Clara Peterson. Clara was the youngest child to John and Nara Peterson, and she had two elder sisters and a brother. There was Samuel, the first, Rose, the second, and Carolyn, the third, besides.
Samuel had his papa's brown hair, and he had big, handsome brown eyes. He was a broad man, about twenty-one in age. He loved nothing better than to tease his sisters, especially Clara.
Rose had her mama's golden hair and sky blue eyes. She was a fun-loving sort of girl, one that often thought of funny jokes and said them for the sake of it. She was very beautiful. She was nineteen years old.
Carolyn had looks similar to Samuel's and John's, except that she had the sky blue eyes. She was not quite as frivolous as Rose, but, nevertheless, she liked a joke. She was sixteen years old.
Clara loved to watch the sunrises and sunsets. Her parents and siblings always knew where to find her once the sun started to go up or down.
"Clara, it's time to get ready for bed." Clara's mama's alto voice rang out. So Clara had one more look at the stars above before she turned in.
*
Clara, Carolyn, and Rose started braiding their hair for bed. Once this was done, they got into their nightgowns and climbed into their beds.
Rose and Samuel were old enough to have an hour later for their bedtimes. Clara and Carolyn went to bed when the sun went down. But tonight was Christmas Eve, and they all had to go to bed early to get presents on the morrow.
The next morning, everyone was up before dawn. They always were, in any case, but they all woke up a little earlier than usual, at about half-past four, instead of five in the morning like they usually did. But Christmas spirit was upon them all, and nobody wanted to lie awake in bed wishing for Christmas to start already.
Mama started making porridge for the family; Papa and Samuel started their work on the farm and the chores at their usual 5 am; and the three girls waited impatiently for the sun to rise so they could see what was in their sacks.
Eventually the sun arose in spectacular colours, as thought the girls when they watched it, standing up because of the dewy grass. When it had risen up enough that the spectacular colours had gone, they rushed inside for the presents.
♠ ♠ ♠
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