haha.

okay so i was looking through some old stories of mine and Kristen's...this is from one we actually finished! (or...almost finished...i think we had like one more chapter to write, but we just skipped it and started writing the second book :D) we were like...between 8 and 10 years old, i'm guessing. here's just an excerpt of a hilarious story that was trying to be serious :)

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“Hello in the house!” Nat called at full volume. An old woman in ratty and torn clothes came to the door and called back, “Is that you Nathan Marshall? Well I’ll be Drated. ‘Tis been ages. Come on in and warm yourself by the fire!” Nat smiled a smile Rachael had not yet seen on Nat’s face since she had known him. Joy. He explained as they walked to the house.

“Grandma Betty’s been aching all over fer me to come – I jest knowed it. She lives out here all by herself, save her some one million animals she keeps around tis ole place of hers. Now I don’t mean to be rude, but she lives in the ugliest house in the world. But she’s a tender heart, and I dare say I’ve grown to love her like my own kin.”

He stopped at a contraption of three pieces of wood: two sticking out of the ground about 1 foot apart and one laid across that and fastened flimsily. Nat called it the “hitching post”. He tied Gray’s reins to it and lifted Rachael down from the old mule’s back.

“Good heavens, Nat, ‘taint proper to have wimmin-folk out with you on yer huntin’ trips and you know it. What are ya doin’ with that perty young lady with’in ya?” She smiled at Rachael. “Did Nat drag you out here with him?” Then she looked more closely at Rachael, straight in the eyes. She whispered so Nat would not hear, “I can see why, if’n he did. You’re a might perty if’n I do say so myself!” Rachael’s face turned red.

“Actually, Nat didn’t drag me out here. I was walking and-” Nat came up behind and poked her in the ribs meaningfully. “I, um, I wanted to come!” she said guiltily. “I have never been on a hunting trip and I figured it might be, um, fun. Nat…” she ran out of words. Nat came to her rescue.

“It’s a long story, Grandma. Really. Can we come inside? T’looks like it might rain. The old woman nodded her head and began to bustle about the cabin, setting pots upright, trying to straighten wilted floweres, and finally Nat was fed up. He snick up behind her and put his hands on her waist. with one gentle shove he had her suspended in mid air. She kicked and hollered and Nat just laughed. Then he finally set her down in a big rawhide chair and stood towering over her like the Ifle Tower to an onlooker. “Why you whipper-snapper! If you weren’t bigger than me, I’d give you a beating you’d remember! Of all the nerve!”

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so anyways, that just made me laugh. :)