Chapter 1

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he sky was a beautiful pink and orange color, the trees shifted and swayed in the crisp, fall air. All was silent in the kingdom of Crithson. A king sat in a rocking chair, back and forth he went. The king sat in deep thought, all the while waiting patiently for the time to come. The king looked out the window, not a single child was out and about for they too were waiting. Such a beautiful fall evening, a perfect time, he thought, a perfect time indeed. 

     At last the time came; a servant came bursting through the castle doors. “Your majesty” he panted “the queen asks for you” the king slowly rose, he could not help but smile, for the time had come at last. He followed the servant through the corridors, all was silent. This was the king’s first time to experience anything of this sort; he didn’t know how to react nor what to say when he saw her.

     The servant led him into a little room; all that was in the room was a small window, a dresser, and bed, in which his wife lay. He hurried to the queen’s side, then he saw her, tears came to the king’s eyes. The moment he set eyes on her, he knew, this was his daughter and he loved her with all of his heart, he swore, right then and there that he would let no harm come to his wonderful, flawless daughter.

    “I shall call you Aurum, for your eyes, they shine like gold!” he whispered holding baby Aurum up. “You, my child, are a gift from God!” baby Aurum laughed, her very first laugh, for she knew, this was her father. The king gently set her back into her mother’s lap, kissed his wife, and picked baby Aurum back up, he could not stand not to have his daughter in his strong hands. After a long moment, he set Aurum onto his wife’s lap, “It shall be proclaimed tomorrow that baby Aurum has come.” The king said. “Why not now?” the queen said, her eyes glowing.  The king laughed, “Yes, let us proclaim it to the kingdom now!”

     The king lifted his wife out of the bed, helping her stand, he gently picked up Aurum. “Ring the bell!” he hollered cheerfully. The servant hastened to his feet, “Yes your majesty, right away!” then stumbled out of the door. The king and queen followed at a slower pace, “This baby, our daughter, is never as I imagined her to be.” The king whispered to his wife. The queen looked a questioningly look at him, “Why, What do you mean?” “I mean, Aurum, is worth more than gold, is as flawless as a clear, spring day, as radiant as the sun, and means as much to me as my very own life. Tears came to the queens eyes, “You just spoke my thoughts”

     The bell rung out over the kingdom, people started to peek out of their windows, open doors, and stumble out into the sunshine. They all knew at once what had just happened, the little baby girl had been born. The people began gathering at once, crowds were formed in a matter of minutes, all were as excited as the king himself. Trumpets were playing, eagerness was in the air.

     The king took a deep breath, and flung open the castle doors, the king and queen walked gracefully out into the crisp air. The crowds went wild, the king lifted baby Aurum up into the air. They went silent; all of the people of Crithson instantly fell in awe at Aurum. “Her name, we shall call her Aurum!” “And that my dear, is how you were born” the queen finished telling her story to young Aurum.

      “Wow Mother!” said Aurum. “People really were amazed at me? That’s so cool!”

“Yes, my dear, they were more than amazed.”

“Were you happy when I was born?” Aurum asked. The queen smiled, “Yes, very. Now it is time to wash up for supper, father will be home in a few minutes.” Happy that she had brought joy to her parents she hopped up and skipped to the restroom. She brushed her hair and washed her face and hands, and then all of the sudden she remembered something. Dashing to her room, she knelt under her bed and grabbed a small, hard object.

     “Aurum I’m home!”The king said, as he started up the stairs. “Father!” Aurum cried, sliding down the rail and into her father’s strong arms. “This is for you!” Aurum said thrusting the small object in his face. The king smiled and set her down on the ground, taking the object from his daughter’s hand, he examined it closely before exclaiming “Why, it’s a diamond! Where in the world did you get this?”

“I bought it!” Aurum said proudly. The king laughed, a hearty laugh, Aurum’s smile dropped. “Do...Do you not like it? I promise I bought it with my own money.” she was very much hurt. The king looked down at her, eyes glowing, then scooped her up and whispered “Not like it? Oh Aurum, I love it! It’s the best gift I’ve ever received! But best of all, it’s from my little girl.” Aurum lit up, “Oh I’m so glad you like it!

 “Ariston! Aurum! Supper!”

           *********

     At supper the king told his family that he needed to go somewhere, the queen smiled, “Of course” she said. “Where? Where do you need to go?” Aurum asked. “You’ll soon find out.” He replied mysteriously, then dashed out the door before anyone could question any further. “Mother, do you know where he’s going?” Aurum asked. “I haven’t got a clue” she said in return. Aurum looked at her suspiciously, “Are you sure?” those bright, blue eyes staring straight at her, the queen found it very hard to lie to her daughter. Finally the queen laughed, “Aurum, you little rascal, you’re going to spoil your surprise!”

Aurum smiled, “Ok, Ok, I guess I’ll found out soon enough what’s going on.”

    Finishing supper, Aurum still kept wondering what her surprise was and when she would get it. “Mother? May I just ask when will I get my surprise? Will it be

 tomorrow-“ Aurum’s eyes widened, “My birthday! I’m five hours away from being ten! Wait, that’s why you told me that story, about when I was being born, and I bet father is….. It all makes since!” the queen laughed, “I was wondering when you would put it all together and remember your birthday was tomorrow!” Aurum was so happy, but one thing she didn’t get, “Mother, how did I forget my birthday was tomorrow?” “Well, Aurum, we always had reminded you about a month before your birthday when it was, and you would always count the days down until it. This year we decided to make it more of a…..well we decided to make it as memorable as possible. We wanted to surprise you tomorrow, but instead we figured we’d give you a chance to figure it out. And that’s what you did-“

 “But Mother” Aurum interrupted “What I don’t get is how I figured it out…. I mean yes you gave me small clues, but… I don’t know”

“Well for start, its fall, the leaves are changing color and the air is clear as day. The small clues helped you also, but something told you it was your birthday and you followed it, you sensed it”

                           

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     The next morning Aurum awoke to hooting and hollering from her parents, friends, and relatives. Her face immediately broke into a smile, unlike most people who would have jumped out of their skin at the sudden sound a yelling. “She’s awake!” she heard her friend Danny yell. Everyone gathered around her bed, Aurum now wide awake said “Thank you so much everyone!”  Everybody said that they were glad to do it and told her to hurry and get dress so the party could begin.

     Once everyone had left, she leaped up, got ready in record time, and was down the stairs before anyone had time to even sit down. “My goodness Aurum, that was fast” the queen said. Aurum laughed, “I know, I’ve never dressed that quickly! I guess I’m just so eager to get the party started!” Aurum looked around, “Mother, the whole kingdom is here!” the queen smiled, “Yes, in honor of you”

“Thank you” Aurum whispered, and then she ran off to find her friends.

      

Reviews

[Craig2591]

A pleasant chapter and a good introduction to the characters.

[Lilah Kate]

Thank you!! I'm not sure if I should keep going or not...