Woman In The Hollow

Six

3rd Person Pov

"Ichabod, Ichabod." The beautiful women kept calling as she spun around causing her large blue dress to flow around her. The young Ichabod Crane walked through the beautiful garden that contained gorgeous flowers and big trees which had lovely pink flowers covering it's branches. He walked towards the woman and and she cupped his face with her hands and gave him a motherly kiss. As she pulled back and took her blind fold off Ichabod held up a small banquet of wild flowers. The women went inside with Ichabod and threw the flowers in the fireplace while drawing symbols in the ash on the floor.

Suddenly the scene changed to the young Ichabod hiding under the covers of his bed while the thunderstorm outside raged on. His mother came in with a warm welcoming smile as she sat at the edge of the bed and brought out a paper circle with string attached to either side of it. On the paper one side had a beautiful red cardinal and on the other side was an empty cage. And as the woman twisted the string the paper spun around making the Cardinal look like it was moving in and out of the cage. But outside the room watching was lord Crane and slowly he had suspected his wife of witch craft and he grew more furious each day.

Suddenly, again, the scene had changed and flashed towards a room full of weapons and other tools used for death. And in the center of the room stood an iron maiden. Ichabod's whole body jolted as he woke from his dream to see that it was still early morning and light had not reached above the horizon yet.

Ichabod's Pov

I went down stairs with one of my newly lit candles to get a cup of water. I went to pour a cup of water when I noticed a light coming from under a door in the room next to me. I blew out my candle and quietly made my way over to the room and opened the door. As I looked into the room I noticed Y/N sitting on a small couch  reading with the light from the fire going in the fireplace as I opened the door she looked up at me.

"Pardon my intrusion." I said quickly.

"It's not an intrusion at all. What are you doing up Constable?" She asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." I said curious to why she was up so early.

"I often come down to read when I wake up early and can't get back to sleep. And you?" Y/N said.

"I just woke up early." I said.

"And what are you reading?" I asked.

"It's just and old adventure book I still enjoy from when I was little. If I'm being honest it's really the only book I own that I am able to fully understand." She said.

"What do you mean by understand?" I asked.

"Well I don't know how to read very well. I never went to school and I  wasn't even taught by my parents." She said.

"So how did you learn to read?" I asked.

"Well I learned from our maid she taught me how to read and write and she also taught me just some basic skills of life like cooking,cleaning, how to chop wood and start a fire, wash clothes and repair them as well." She explained.

"Why did your maid have to teach you all that?" I asked.

"Because my parents were always drunk. When I was younger my mother and father stayed sober enough to look after the house and maintain a job. But once I was about seven or eight my mother gave up any attempt to remain sober. They fired our maid to save money and I then was in charge of cleaning and doing chores and I was even in charge of doing most of the cooking. By the time I was ten I was going out into the city every week with some money and a list of things my father and mother approved of for me to buy for their meals." Y/N explained.

"How did you manage to leave?" I asked.

"Well one day I just decided I was going to pack some of my things and I was going to leave so when my father got home from work I told them I was leaving. They yelled and screamed at me for awhile and once they were done I turned around and left. I got a job as a maid for an old widow that I knew and saved everything I earned until I had enough to leave." She said.

"I am sorry to hear that Y/N." I said.

"Its fine that was a while ago and I have made myself a life here even if the townspeople don't like me. Oh, I nearly forgot." Y/N said as she reached out to grab a small blue book of the table in front of her.

"Katrina Van Tassel gave it to me when I was waiting for you outside her house. She told me to give it to you and to keep it close to your heart." Y/N said holding it out for me. I took the book from her hands and read the cover it was titled  "A Composition of Spells, Charms and Devices of the Spiritual World"

"I have no use for this." I said handing the book back to her.

"Are you always so sure of everything Constable?" She asked.

"Do you honestly belive in this?" I asked curiously.

"I don't not believe in it." She answered.

I signed in defeat and took the book back and opened the cover. "It's her mother's book." I said.

"It was her mother's. The women there now is her step mother. She was actually the nurse that helped take care of Katrina's mother when she was sick. Her mother died shortly after I arrived in town." Y/N explained.

"Wait, that is Katrina's step mother?" I asked.

"Yes, I know it's so confusing sometimes but I have found that nearly every family in Sleepy Hollow is connected by marriage or blood somehow." She said.

I stayed silent and thought about what she had just said for a moment before Y/N brought me out of my thoughts.

"Well would you look at that it's nearly day already how time flies. I guess I should start on breakfast or we won't have anything to eat." Y/N said putting her book on the table.

"Yes, I will be down again shortly I have to go over some things for the case." I said heading back to the door.

"It was nice talking to you Constable." Y/N said.

"Its was nice talking to you to Y/N and please call me Ichabod." I said.

"See you in alittle bit then Ichabod." She said before I exited the room.

As I walked back up to my room I thought about my conversation with Y/N but what I thought about most was when she said my name. It brought a smile to my face I liked hearing her say my name she made it sound beautiful.