The seasons changed from spring to summer. The school year ended, much to Willamina's disappointment, and the unforgiving Georgia heat began.

After three months of living on the plantation, Willie had yet to make Evangeline her friend, but she wasn't giving up yet. She would find a way, and she wouldn't stop until she did. For now, she fulfilled her need for friendship by talking to Alberda at every opportunity. Sadly, these opportunities were few and far between.

Alberda spent the majority of her days cooking, cleaning, or doing anything else Abigail and Theodore requested.

It didn't make any sense to Willamina. Why couldn't people do all those things themselves, she would wonder. However, she never questioned it aloud. It hadn't taken her long to realize that her uncle was quick to anger, so she stayed quiet and out of the way to avoid his temper.

She leaned back into her seat and returned her thoughts to the book she had been reading. She had a small selection of books from home that she had brought with her, and she was rereading one of her mother's favorites. Evangeline was lounged upon a couch across the room, brushing a doll's hair.

Abigail appeared in the doorway, hand propped on one of her plump hips. "The fabric I ordered should be in today. I need you girls to go and pick it up."

Willamina closed her book and set it off to the side. She could return to it later. She could hear Evangeline sigh from across the room. Willie thought that this was a good chance to form a bond with her cousin, although she knew that Eva was probably thinking something different.

Evangeline set her doll and the brush down neatly before crossing the room to her mother and holding her hand out. Abigail laid a few coins into the girl's hand.

"If you have any money left, get yourself some licorice or Necco Wafers," Abigail told them.

The prospect of candy made both of the girls smile. Evangeline dashed away first, blonde curls bouncing. Willie was quick to follow her. However, neither of the girls made it very far before they both silently agreed that running in the ninety degree heat was not a good idea. She found herself wishing she'd brought along some water.

It was a long and hot walk into town. The conversations between the two were brief, but Willie was grateful for it.

She was still learning her way around the town, so Evangeline led the way to the general store.

A bell on the door rang when they stepped inside. Willamina looked around. There were shelves and shelves of food, cloth, silverware, and other goods. At the opposite end of the store was a counter, and behind it stood an elderly man with kind eyes.

"Good morning, Miss Evangeline," the man greeted. "Who's your little friend?"

"My cousin," Eva responded in a correctional tone. "Willamina." She stepped towards the counter and laid out the money. "I'm here to pick up the dress fabric my mother ordered."

The old man turned his gaze to Willie as they stepped up to the counter. "It's good to meet you, Willamina. I'm Mr. Clark."

Willamina smiled. She liked this man already. She studied the area behind the counter as Mr. Clark counted out the money. On the shelves behind the large wooden counter were a variety of hunting rifles and pistols, all carefully mounted onto the wall or in display cases. The other shelves contained medications and tonics, most of which she had never heard of, but fascinated her.

Mr. Clark disappeared into the back of the store, into what Willie assumed was a storage room. When he returned, he was carrying a dark blue fabric. Evangeline thanked him as she took it.

"Looks like you have a couple of extra pennies," the store owner said. "Would you like some licorice?"

"Yes, please," Eva replied, excitement lacing her voice.

Mr. Clark reached into one of the several candy jars that sat on his counter and pulled out two pieces of licorice and handed them to each of the girls. "Be careful on your way home and come back if you need anything else." He smiled, crow's feet appearing at the corners of his eyes as he did so.

"Thank you." Willamina took the candy in a gentle manner and she smiled gratefully up at the old man. "It was good to meet you, sir."

"It was good to meet you too, dear."

The two girls turned and headed out of the store, happily munching on their licorice.

Evangeline skipped down the stairs, focused on her licorice rather than where she was going. She hummed as she ate, seemingly tuning out the rest of the world.

Willamina heard the sound of hoofbeats approaching. Fast. She dashed down the couple of stairs that lead down the porch of the store and grabbed onto Eva's arm, yanking her back towards the store and out of the street. The action caused Eva to drop her candy into the dirt.

The horse galloped by, so close that Willie could feel the wind off of it. After it, came a girl with dark hair tied into a messy braid. The horse slid to a stop as it realized the end of the street was blocked by buildings and it had nowhere else to go. The large animal huffed and turned around, looking for another escape route, only to be met with a rope around its neck.

The gray horse stomped its foot and flared its nostrils in protest, but made no further moves to run away.

"That's the last time you escape your paddock," the dark haired girl said. "When we get back, I'm mending that fence."

Willamina and Evangline stood, frozen as they watched the whole thing. Willie was still in shock that her cousin was almost trampled, and even more shocked that she'd managed to pull her out of the way in time. A few people who had been on the street had stopped to watch, but they were beginning to disperse now.

Eva reached down, picking her licorice up out of the dirt. She wrinkled her nose and sighed.

"I'm sorry you lost your candy," Willie said.

"It's okay." Eva shrugged and dropped the piece of licorice. "Thanks for saving me." She looked up, her blue eyes meeting Willamina's hazel ones.

Willie stood there in complete surprise for a moment, not quite sure if she had heard the words correctly. "You can have the rest of mine, if you want it." She held out the half of her piece that was left.

Evangeline shook her head. 'No, it's yours. You can have it." She smiled ever so slightly.

"Hey, I'm real sorry about that." An unfamiliar voice joined the conversation.

Willie turned her gaze to see the girl with the wild horse approaching them. The horse seemed calmer now, but still a little wary. The dark haired girl stopped a few feet away.

"He's still in training and our fence broke last night," the girl continued.

"It's okay," Willie replied. "Is he alright?" She knew an injury for a horse, especially to its legs, could be bad.

"He's fine, just a little spooked."

"Could I pet him?"

The girl nodded and Willamina stepped forward, gently holding her hand out to the horse so it could sniff her. The gray stallion leaned its head down and sniffed her hand, then licked it as if expecting a treat. She giggled at the feeling and reached up to stroke its muzzle.

She glanced behind her. Evangeline remained in the same place and eyed the horse warily.

"What's your name?" Willamina asked, turning her gaze back to the stranger.

"Margaret, but I prefer Maggie," she answered with a smile. "Margaret sounds too girly."

"I'm Willamina, and this is my cousin, Evangeline."

"It's nice to meet you both." Maggie nodded her head at Eva in greeting. "Sorry again about the horse."

Maggie looked to be about their age. She had dark brown, almost black hair, and blue eyes. She wore a red long sleeve shirt under a pair of dirty overalls that were an inch too short. Her boots were worn and covered in a layer of dirt and mud.

Willie thought it odd to see a girl in overalls, but not in a bad way. Finally, Evangeline stepped forward and stood next to her. However, she could sense how tense her cousin was around the horse, and rightfully so. It had nearly trampled her.

"I'm sorry we had to meet under such circumstances," Maggie said with a light chuckle. Her eyes seemed to light up when she laughed. "It was nice to meet you, but I have to go now." She started to walk away.

"Where do you live?" Willie called out after her. "We would like to see you again." She seemed like a nice girl and like she would make a good friend. Beside her, she heard Eva sigh.

"I live near Abbots Lane, just over the top of the hill, at the edge of the forest," Maggie called over her shoulder. She kept walking, eventually disappearing around the corner.

"I know where she lives," Evangeline said when Maggie was out of earshot. "She lives through the woods a mile or two behind the plantation."

"That's great! That means I can visit her soon, and she's only a walk away." Willamina spoke with a large grin on her face.

"I wouldn't visit her if I were you," Evangeline turned and began to walk back in the direction of home. "She and her father are no good. They're poor. Papa says her father is an alcoholic."

Willie's smile disappeared and she stared in the direction Maggie had left in. "Oh," was all she said.

After a moment, she followed after Eva, jogging a bit to catch up. It saddened her that her Uncle Theodore would say such things about another human being, but it did not surprise her. In her short time at Goodspring Plantation, she'd heard him say worse things about people.

As they walked, she remained quiet and ate the last of licorice. For once, she was glad Eva wasn't talking to her. It gave her time to formulate a plan.

She would get to Maggie's house somehow, whether her uncle allowed her or not.

Later that night, the Porter family sat at the dinner table eating a meal of corn, beans, and venison. Abigail was raving to her husband about decorations for the party, the dress she was going to make, and the guests she was going to invite.

Willamina wanted to speak, but had to find the right time to do it. She looked over at Elliot, who was poking at his food. Her gaze turned to Evangeline, who was eating daintily. She looked down at her own plate for a moment. She had never been to a ball before, but judging by the way her aunt was speaking, they had them there at the plantation quite often.

After a few more moments, she spoke. "Can I invite my friend, Maggie to the party?"

All eyes turned to her. Elliot's fork fell to his plate with a loud clang.

"Children do not speak out of turn at the dinner table." Theodore's voice was dangerously low.

Willamina gulped.

"What is so important that you needed to interrupt your aunt?" Her uncle asked. He sounded irritated, but he wasn't yelling, much to her relief.

She opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off.

"She's nobody. Just some poor girl we met in the street today," Evangeline said. She sent a harsh look in Willamina's direction. "She's a Welch."

"The Welch family has no business here." Theodore cut a piece of venison in half and put it in his mouth. "They're criminals. Drunks."

"But it's not the whole family, just the daughter," Willie interjected. Her uncle did not respond. He simply glared and continued on with his dinner.

There was a moment of silence.

"Well, I suppose if your friend can find something acceptable to wear, she can come," Abigail said. She followed her statement with a chuckle. "The more the merrier."

Theodore grumbled something in response, but did not speak.

A grin spread across Willamina's face.

~~~~
Word Count: 2077

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