Katherina was born into nobility. Being the youngest daughter of Andrei, she was admired by all who laid eyes on her. When her father decided it was time for his daughters to get married, many suitors lined up and drowned the family with exotic gift...
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Peppermint
Mild anasthetic action and can help with digestion. Mint also has antisetptic, antiparasitic, and antiviral aspects and can be used for headaches and other aches and pains.
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Katherina
I woke up to bright grey worried eyes staring right at me. I was confused as to why I was on the ground and then I remembered tumbling down a hill.
The grey eyes belong to a worried boy with dirt all over him and wild hair. I looked at him and asked him "are you alright".
The boy looked at me strangely like he was not expecting that as to be the first thing I asked him. He nodded his head yes and began to get up.
I saw that the flowers I picked for my sister were hopelessly scattered. Then my attention went back on the boy. I looked at his hands and saw blood on them. I put my fingers on his raw wrists and immediately understood who he was. Then he turned around and began to walk away.
As his back faced me, I felt utter sadness for the boy I tumbled with. He looked emaciated and exhausted. I finally found my voice and shouted out to him, "stop".
I saw his shoulders tense up and his entire body went stiff. I placed my hand on his shoulder to show him that I meant no harm and I asked the grey-eyed boy if I could help him with his injuries. He looked at me with utter curiosity and then nodded his head again.
I sat him down and pulled out the little bag I had around my waist. Inside I always carried a small knife in it. Of course, my parents did not know about it.
While he waited for me, I looked around the woods to see if I could find any herbs that could help me heal his injuries. I finally spotted some and picked them. I put the herb in my mouth and chewed it. Then I placed it on the boy's wrists.
He was watching my every move without saying a single word. As if no one has ever shown him kindness. Once I was satisfied with his hands and wrists, I focused my attention on his back. The whip marks were deep. The tissue around them was red and swollen.
I could feel the heat coming off of the angry slashes and panic took over my body. I began to look for the distinct leaves of a Willow tree. I spotted one near the stream and used my knife to cut pieces of its bark.
I brought back the Willow bark to the boy and handed it to him.
He looked at me with a confused gaze, still not saying anything.
"Chew it, it will help you with the pain," I said. The boy listened obediently and placed the bark in his mouth and began to chew it. I smiled at him and sat down in front of him. I then asked him, "what's your name?".
He looked at me and solemnly said "Vitaly". I smiled at him, and said "my name is Katarina but you can call me Katya". He looked back up at me, and for the first time, he seemed to relax. I saw a small hint of a smile but it only lasted for a second. Then he began to stand up and as he turned back around to face me one last time he said, "Thank you Katya for helping me". And walked away.
I felt a strong blush come onto my cheeks and smiled as he walks back to the stream to fill up his buckets and head back to where he came from.
I decided to pick some of the beautiful blue forget me not for my sister, and since the berries I picked got smushed in my pocket, I decided to pick fresh ones.
Once I got home, I ran to my sister and gave her a strong embrace. She pushed me off of her and began to whine that I got her silky dress all dirty. I pushed that thought away and handed her the beautiful bouquet of forget me not flowers. She wouldn't even take them in fear that there would be bugs on them.
I looked at the innocent flowers and frowned. My mother came into the room and her jaw dropped when she saw me. "Katherina, why are you not cleaned up and dressed?"
I looked back at my mother confused as to what she was referring to. Then my father walked into the room and looked at me. I ran over to my papa and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. He messed my hair up a bit and smiled back at me. "Katya, do you not remember our dinner date with the Aminov family today?"
I looked at my father with shock. I completely forgot. He gave me a nod, and I ran to my room to get washed up and changed.
Freya walked in to help me and I was very grateful for her help. She made my hair look very elegant and helped me get into an uncomfortable dress.
I looked in the mirror and did not recognize myself. Freya noticed my uneasiness and picked a couple of the lilac flowers sitting on my night stand. She then placed a couple of the flowers into my hair.
I smiled back at the mirror and thanked Freya for all the help. I left my room and began to walk down the steps with fear of falling, and as I made it to the last flight, I saw the Aminov family looking up at me. I did not hear them come in but I was shocked at how tall their sons were.
My father introduced me and I bowed politely to the family. Then my mother started small talk with them and guided them to the dining area where everything was already set up.
I smiled to myself because I knew that Mariana cooked something divine for tonight. While I was excited about the food, my sister was chatting away with the young suitors. My father saw my boredom and decided to introduce the two young gentlemen talking to my sister. Philip the taler one with strong features was mesmerized by my sister and kept trying to make her laugh.
The other brother whose name I learned was Roman had a strong posture with dark piercing brown eyes that were staring right at me. My sister looked like she was a little annoyed that she couldn't catch his attention, but I could care less. none of the suiters have ever caught my interest, and that is because I know that all of them want a woman to only look pretty and bare children. None of them would want a so-called witch in their homes.
Then my attention was captured by a figure in the corner of the room holding a pitcher filed with wine. His chin was lowered and he looked like he was about to fall asleep. I couldn't see his eyes but from the green tint on his hands, I could tell it was the boy I healed earlier.
Then his gaze met mine and I smiled at him. He looked shocked for a minute and then focused his attention back on the goblets. He saw that my father's glass was half empty and made his way around the table. My eyes followed his lean figure as he walked over to my father's glass and poured wine.
My father cleared his throat, snapping my attention back to him. Then he gave me a stern look and I brought myself back to the mindless chatter at the table. Dreaming about the boy with the beautiful grey eyes and the gentle voice.
Roman, who was sitting in front of me, realized that I was day dreaming and decided to look at where my gaze went. I then looked at Roman and saw the anger in his eyes. He looked at the boy with pure hatered.
My mother finally snapped the tention in the room by asking the family if they would like to hear Alexandrina play the piano.
Roman got up and walked over to where I was sitting to help me up. He gave me his arm and lead us hastley out of the dinning room and into the piano room.
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Feeling very inspired today, so if I make any errors as I update please comment and I will fix them. Also if you are enjoying the story so far please let me know so I have the motivation to continue.
