Darris Heeple - Sean A. Carmona (the little red hen ebook TXT) 📗

saw before he died was a bright rainbow.


Untying the Knot
Darris stood there looking from outside of his window transfixed on a flower. It was purple with an equal distribution of petals. Four of them seemed to flow down like a fountain, while the remaining four stood erect in such a display of majesty that they resembled a castle towering over a peaceful kingdom. It is as if an artist painted this flower-, the mind of this twelve year old Solid far advanced any of his peers. How can science create such a flower, could this possibly have happened by chance? Is it more absurd to think it was created by an artist?
Sitting there it was easy to convince his conscience that science was far more a realistic idea. After all Darris prided himself on his intellect, and intelligent people did not believe in the supernatural as far as he was concerned.
Darris was average in height-for his age-, but his shoulders were much smaller than the average twelve year old Solid. His hair was a perfect straight tangle on top of his head, but it somehow lay in a way that appeared intentional and neat. His nose was crinkled in a boyish button, and his smile was bright creating dimples on his cheek. His eyes -though brown- seemed to reflect every fragment of light in any room.
The door in the back of his untidy room began to creek open as Darris contemplated the wonders of the universe. In walked the large muscular man that was Darris’s father. He had to high step a few objects just to get to Darris, but when he did he toss what looked like a pile of rope on his bed.
“Daydreaming gives you nightmares Darris,” was the joking voice of his father.
“I just turned twelve Harpis; I am not a kid anymore.” Darris smiled and turned to face his father.
“You keep calling me by my name instead of father and you won’t live much longer.” Harpis made it appear that he was scowling, but inside he was smiling. He knew Darris was joking, but Darris was in enough trouble as it was. He had just stolen Madam Kinderly’s fresh baked gleeberry pie, which is why he was punished in his room instead of out playing with his twin brother Andom and his best friend Madeline. Actually Darris was quite the little trouble maker, and he was notorious all through out the tiny Kalenorian town of Stony Fields. He was not a criminal by any means, but a stolen pie here and prank or two there were bound to occur if Darris was around.
“Now untie this knot son.” Harpis grabbed the robe from the bed and handed it to Darris.
The rope was a mess. Darris at first couldn’t even find an end to the rope, but he was finally able to wriggle one free.
Harpis started his lecture, “Son life is a lot like this rope, a mess. It is not always a mess, but if we don’t take care of it, and we just throw it in some corner of the room instead of neatly putting it way. Then we end up with a knot.”
As Harpis was speaking Darris tried frantically to unravel the knot, but with all his effort the knot looked just about the same as it did when he started.
Harpis smiled, “Tell you what if you can untie that knot then you can go outside and play with your friends.”
After saying this Harpis began to exit the same way he came in almost tripping over what looked like a pair of trousers. He paused and turned to face Darris. “If you clean this room and untie that knot then you can go out and play with your friends.” He smiled and began to leave again.
“Dad!” Harpis rotated toward Darris. “I am sorry for stealing that pie I didn’t think it would hurt no one.”
Harpis smiled, “Anyone. Its ok son, you know I love you Dar…,” he exited the room. “Just don’t do it again,” was his last words before shutting the door.
“I love you too dad!” was the projected reply through the door.
Darris returned to his window only to find what Darris thought were the most beautiful set of brown eyes staring right back at him.
“You are precious Darris Klein Heeple,” was the voice of Madeline Clearwater.
“Yeah I feel like you should put on some tights and change your name to Darlene!” came a voice from outside. Darris peaked down outside of his window only to see the familiar face of Andom harboring Madeline upon his shoulders. Andom and Darris were twins, not identical twins, but they looked almost exactly the same. Andom had much broader shoulders and was two minutes older, and much stronger than Darris. Darris was the brains, and Andom was the brawn. Madeline was a head shorter than Darris with soft brown hair and two or three freckles on each one of her cheeks.
“One of us has to be Maddy,” was the defensive reply of Darris. Darris was the only person that called her Maddy, everyone else just called her Madeline. Madeline liked it that way.
Maddy smirked at his remark, “Anthis Middleton thinks I am plenty precious. He gave me a flower today.” She said with a dignified nod.
“Asthma Anthis! You two an item now?” was the chuckled reply from Darris
Maddy began to blush, “That is very rude Darris! He is a nice boy and no we are not an item.”
“You two gonna argue all night cause my shoulders are starting to hurt?” Andom was always braking up their bickering.
Maddy looked down and apologized to Andom, and then she crawled into Darris’ bedroom shortly followed by Andom who shimmied up the drain pipe and pulled himself into the window.
Darris rolled his eyes, “You live here you could have just walk in from the front door.”
Andom shrugged, “This way is easier, and besides I don’t want you to get into anymore trouble. If dad finds us in here he’ll ring both of our necks.”
Darris didn’t know if it would be easier for him. His lack of upper body strength could never support his weight far enough to climb through his window.
They all took their normal places in Darris’ bedroom. Darris sat on his wooden chair in the corner by the window, Andom sat on Darris’ bed facing the window, and Maddy took her normal spot on the huge floor pillow that sat next to his nightstand.
Maddy was the first to speak, “How long has you grandfather been gone for?”
“A week and a half now,” it was Andom who answered.
“Is that normal, he was supposed to be back by now right?” Maddy looked inquisitively at Darris.
Darris stood up and walked toward the window facing north, “It is only a three day journey to Bablen, even if he stayed two nights, which is not something he would do, he should have been back by yesterday.”
Maddy grew concerned, “Are you worried?”
“My grandfather doesn’t trust Gorgal. He said that even though he is so kind and everybody loves him, that he would do anything to be in a position of great power.” Darris continued to gaze out in search of any sign of his grandfather.
Andom sighed, “Well I’ve seen one of his speeches, he doesn’t seem like he would do anything for a position of power. He didn’t even want to run for president. He said that ‘Drute Heeple has done more for this state than anyone in the history of Gyrum.’ He was distraught when he found out that won by ten votes. Nobody ever saw that coming.” When speaking for Gorgal, Andom stood up and spoke in his mimic political voice.
Darris turned around and faced them again, “Yeah I think he looks like a nice guy too, but grandpa sure was afraid something bad was going to happen, and dad says that the festival might be canceled because of the taxes.”
“That and because you keep on eating all of the gleeberry pies,” added Maddy and they all started laughing.
Darris continued, “It’s just that, I can’t remember a time in my life when Grandpa Drute was wrong about anything. Sure he is a good story teller, and the stories he tells about Terras seem a bit farfetched, but when it comes to character Grandpa Drute has always been right.”
Andom stood up to join him, “A lot of people think he is crazy Dar, they are saying he probably went off to the forest to sacrifice himself to Terras. I don’t believe them of course. You were the one who was so close to him do you think he is ok?”
Darris hesitated before answering, “I don’t know it is just not like him to be gone this long. My dad is acting like everything is ok, but I can tell he is worried too.”
Just then as Darris was looking out of the window he saw a white puff in the distance. He adjusted his eyes into focus struggling to better see what it could possibly be. With a second glance he knew it was horses’ running back from the north. He darted for the door.
“He’s here! He’s here!” Maddy and Andom followed him as quickly as they could keep pace.
Darris ran down through the kitchen ignoring his mom as she told him to slow down. Slow down? How can I slow down when my grandfather who has been gone for far so long has returned?
He arrived outside at the same time the horsemen had arrived. There were three of them, a stout man with a long brown beard, and two much younger clean shaven men. The stout man was Drute’s right hand man and political advisor Hermus Bronton. Darris looked for his grandfather’s white steed Carrot, and he found him to the far left, but Drute wasn’t there. Maddy and Andom finally arrived and filed in next to Darris.
“Where is my grandfather?” asked Darris
The three men looked at each other in a saddened expression. It was Hermus that spoke up. “We need to speak with your father Darris could you summon him?”
Darris could tell something was wrong, “NO! Anything you need to say to him you can say to me! What happened to my grandpa!?” Darris was so upset his eyes began to water.
“Andom be a good boy and go fetch your father.”
“Yes sir!” Andom hurried off to the house.
Hermus walked over and put his arm on Darris’ should. “There was a fire in the castle. President Gorgal was lucky to make it out alive. He is suffering from some minor burns. I am so sorry Darris, Drute didn’t make it out of the building.”
Darris just stood there dazed. His favorite person in the world was dead. The same person who taught him how to swim, how to hold a sword, how to spell and read was gone. The same person who told him about Terras and how he would always protect him was now dead. There is no such thing as Terras, if there was he would have protected my grandfather.
At that moment Harpis arrived. He looked over and saw tears in Darris’ eyes and embraced him. “Son, what’s the matter?” he sympathized.
“He is dead dad! He is dead and it’s all because of his stupid hunches and superstitions. He believed so much in those stupid fairy tales and now they’ve killed him. If he would’ve just listen to science and common sense he would still be alive.” Near bawling he ran back into the house.

***

Darris sat on the top of the stairs thinking about what had just