Caged Birds Will Fly

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Prologue: Off The Cliff

I climb onto our bed and pulled Eli beside me. The bed creaked under our joined weight. He yawned and snuggled into my arms. Father said goodnight, dark circles under his eyes, at the top of the stairs. He hadn't been sleeping. He closed the door, letting dim twilight fill the room of our basement. The slight squeaking of the steps leading upstairs was a now common thing ever since Trenton declared war; I shuddered thinking of how they slaughtered everyone in the village over. Innocent people. Ones with families. Without mercy. They were blinded by war. I let out a breath, letting my eyes adjust enough to turn on the lantern. The room began to slowly fill with light. Eli leaned into me, his curly hair brushing against my pale skin. I opened the curtains, letting fresh summer air fill our bedroom. The basement was calm and silent as I settled in bed with my books. The pages were worn out by years of reading; the story itself wasn't that good, but it was nevertheless my favorite. My mom used to tell me that if you wish onto the first star of the night, your wish will come true. It doesn't work, believe I've tried, if it did, Mother would still be here. Today was Mother's birthday; the anniversary of her death. I knew Dad was upstairs drinking by the sounds of bottles clanking upstairs. Tomorrow I would have to clean the bottles and take them to the marketplace to sell. It was a yearly routine that I'd grown tired of. I plop onto my pillow, my dark hair fanning out, and let the memories wash over like they did every year: 

I was thirteen and Eli was eight. I had gone to the marketplace with my Aunt, whom I liked to call "Nanna". The place was crowded, and the air was tense with the worries of war drifting in the spring air, but today it didn't bother me. Nanna moved gracefully through the crowd, avoiding mothers and drunken men easily. I spotted Mrs. Ann Alison outside her store shuffling books from one end to the other. I gripped Nanna's hand and pointed. Her rounded cheeks, that forever stayed pink, warmed as she hummed to herself. Her brown hair was short and swayed around her plump face in a short bob. She found us with her pearl eyes. "Hello! Oh, how good to see you again. Come come!"; I always loved hearing her musical voice. Nanna and I stepped into her shop; flowers draped from the ceiling and Ciel positioned cakes onto the counter. Ciel waved at us, his rugged hands pinched my cheeks. "Ciel, it's their mother's birthday today", she looked at me and whispered, "I've made something special for you and your family, Helen", into my ear. To Ciel, she recalled, "Get the "special" order". He nodded and disappeared through the double-doors. I fiddled with my raven hair that Mama tied up with two white bows. I bit my bottom lip to hold in the excitement I felt. I remember when it came. My mouth lay open as a yellow buttercup cake decorated with white flowers came from the bakery entryway. I skipped from one foot to another as Ciel set it on the table. "Yes! It's perfect", I bubbled. Nanna paid the money and lifted the cake off the wooden counter. I picked flowers from the side of the road as we went back to our cottage. My younger brother Eli jumped off his swing set and ran towards us, engulfing me in a hug. I ruffled his hair and lifted him up. Nanna went inside as I followed behind. Mother was in the kitchen, her strawberry-blonde hair loosely in a braid. "Welcome back children" 

"Welcome back Mama", me and Eli said in unison. The sun began to set by the time Father got back. He looked tired but still smiled. Everything was perfect: Mother was here, Father was here, everyone was there. She died that night in her sleep of Pheromenia, which caused her lungs to contract on itself and stop her breathing. God cried that night.

Tears splashed my face as I sat up abruptly, shivers taking over me. Eli turned to me, wet tears silently pouring from his green eyes, "Father won't leave us, right?". I choked, "No. Never". I hope he wouldn't. Eli took Mom's death harder than any of us and still had vivid night-terrors. I smoothed out my hair, took my hairpin out, and laid it down as Eli drifted to sleep, "I will never leave you". A fact of life is that it never listens to you and nothing could protect us from the truth or the sad reality. 

                                                                                             |♚•♚|

The war had caused all children to hide; we were no exception. Father always reassured us that it wouldn't last long... but I'm starting to doubt his words. The war so far had lasted three years and four months. I squirmed on my side of the bed, the August heat rubbing at my legs. I awoke groggy, annoyed, as flames surround our tiny room. I throw the covers and shake Eli, "Wake up, oh God, please wake up! Now is not the time to be in one of your "hibernation" phases". He struggles and rubs his eyes as he stares at the flames, "What... what's happening?" 

"I don't know, but we need to get out!". I run to the closet next to our nightstand, pin my brooch into my hair, and grab my emergency bag. I grab Eli's hand and push through the boxes to the stairs. Breathing hard, I run up the stairs, push Eli through the door, and run to Father's room. It's empty. Did he leave without us? I meet Eli outside. He stood bare-footed shivering. I take out our cloaks from my bag; a midnight purple for Eli and a dark burgundy for me and our boots. "Put these on, now!", He slips the brown worn boots onto his small feet. I stare into his green eyes, "It's going to be-", he interrupts, "Okay, right? That's what you always say! This is not okay, not even close". He starts sobbing. I hug him, "No, it's not okay, but I'll make it okay"; he nods. I stand and for a minute when a dark realization hits me: The Army had come for Father. They wanted to kill him for the betrayal. The thought is not far off; he always said we were a harsh reminder of the life he regretted and the wrongs he had done. The night air prickles at us as wolves howl in the distance. I grab Eli by the forearm and pull him into the bushes, "Do you want to live?"; he shakes his head, "Then hide with me". No matter what, I will protect Eli. Until death, do we part...