The Forbidden Six

September 9th, 1939

September ninth dawned cloudy and dark. Liese looked out her window and frowned. Dark gray clouds hung low in the sky, threatening rain. The sun weakly shone through the clouds every so often. The morning was not delightful in the slightest. Not even the frail sunlight could cheer her up.

Liese moped over to her closet and pulled out a red plaid skirt and a simple white blouse with small red polka dots. Hopefully the bright colors could somehow bring her spirit up. She walked over to her dresser and picked up her locket. Fastening it safely around her neck, her fingers traced the flowers on it before falling to her side.

Nelke wandered into her room. She laid on the ground and Liese sadly smiled. She wished she were a dog so she would have no troubles. If she were a dog, there would be no war for her and everyone she loved wouldn't be leaving.

Liese brushed her hair. She looked at the tin of hair pomade on the counter. Instead, she fastened a white bandanna around her head and tied it. Opening a drawer, she saw a few makeup products. They hadn't been used in years; Hitler didn't like women wearing makeup.

She filled a basket with some muffins she had made the night prior. She had gotten the ingredients that day as well. It was her first time using a ration card. They had been introduced in August, but she had put off using one for as long as she could. Using one made the war seem more real, more tangible.

The train for Poland would depart at noon to arrive at Warsaw at eight. The clock on the wall read nine o'clock. Three hours until they left. Three hours that would quickly pass and she would be standing on the platform and waving as her friends left. Three hours.

Liese sat down at her kitchen table with a deep sigh. Nelke came up to her and put her head in her lap. Liese petted her head while she bit into a chocolate chip muffin. It had started raining a few minutes prior and it pattered a mournful song on the window panes. She was the only one up and she had the house to herself for the time being. Being alone made the situation ever so more lonely.

She looked down at her dog. "I don't want him to go. What if he dies? I know he doesn't want me talking like this.... What if it happens? I just don't want him to go." Nelke tilted her head to the side, wondering if she was going to drop any of her food.

She stood and went to her room to retrieve a notebook, which contained one of her many unfinished stories. She just had so many paracosms in her head, that it was hard to stick to just one. She wrote a few words before abandoning it and throwing it to the side. She wrote a note for her parents then started the walk to Mena's. The rain dampened her hair and clothes. Her hair flattened and hung over her shoulders in a lifeless fashion.

Liese's father wouldn't be leaving since he was over forty five and Liese was extremely grateful. There were only two more years until Augustine turned seventeen and had to enter the army, assuming the war lasted that long. The Great War had only lasted four years. Maybe this one would conclude in a faster manner.

There had been a name being thrown around for a few months. People had begun calling the Great War "World War One". The people in Germany had been referring to the most recent war as the "Greater German War" or "World War Two". In Liese's opinion, numbering the wars wasn't very optimistic. It implied that there would be another "world war".

As Liese thought, she trekked to Mena's house. Mena's home had seemed so much more lonely ever since Kristallnacht. When she looked at the front door, all she could think of was the officers knocking on it. A few days after the event, Mena had told her all about it.

Liese's fist hovered over the door before she saw a sign asking people to ring the doorbell. She did that instead and listened to the rain hitting the porch over her head.