Lily In The Valley

My family was never this poor, that much I remember. I remember playing all day and worrying about nothing. My father was an important official in the royal court, holding a post most people would kill for. We schooled with the royal children and accompanied them wherever they went. I still remember that day, the morning started great. I and my brothers went to the palace as usual. The heaviest rain fell that day, I remember I showed a stranger to a room my father was in. I will never forgive myself for that mistake I made. The mistake cost my entire family their lives.

I spoke to the stranger innocently, I even saw him with a weapon but it didn't cross my mind. I heard a gunshot, followed by muffled screams.I ran into the room with my eldest brother, Tion. Our father was lying on the floor, he was murdered in cold blood and I was the cause. I saw the crown prince in the same room where he was murdered. He was not touched at all, the assassin came for only my father and left after his job was done. I was only ten years old and the prince was sixteen. He could have fought if he wanted to but he was more concerned with protecting his life. Our guard took us back home. I ran to my mother and told her what happened. She cried and hurried to the palace. "Lord Banty Goldstein has been found guilty of treason to the state. His family is to be stripped of all titles and all their privileges. The royal court has been indeed merciful to their family," I heard the decree. This cannot be possible, my father was not guilty of any of the crimes, it was a setup. My father's brothers came home that same day.

"Banty can never do this. It is not possible," He said, I hid behind the door to listen to their conversation.

"They found the terrorist secret seal on him. A letter was intercepted with his seal on it. The royal court cannot lie," My father's the youngest brother spoke.

"Thank you all for your concern. We have been asked to evacuate the property. If any of you could lend us a place to stay as of now, I will pay you when I get a job, " I heard my mother speak.

It was heartbreaking, she did not deserve this. ''No, we do not want to be labeled as accomplices. Your father is the cousin of the king, can he not lend you a place? One of my uncles said. They were the same people that leeched off us when my father was alive. It had not even been up to a day and they were rejecting our help.

"Let your sons join the army, he will make a small income. At least you will be able te live from there," Uncle Judy father's third brother spoke.

"My sons are not old enough, they will not be able to survive if they join the army," My mother's eyes were sunken.

The prince was there when my father was assassinated, why did he not speak up? Why did he not tell the truth? Things were running through my mind. My eldest brother, Tion was the crown prince's aide. Could he not think of their friendship? He watched them accuse my father wrongly. I ran with tears in my eye, I would have fallen down but Tion caught me before I could fall.

"Tion, " I called his name and hugged him tightly.

"Do not cry, Avery. Everything is going to be fine," He kissed my cheek. Nothing got better, it got worst.

The servants who worked for us donated their wages to us but it only lasted a short time. We were back on the streets, living in shelters. We were eating only once a day. I was very slim, my mother was becoming sick, and she could not walk long distances again. Winter eame faster, we tried to perform shows but we could not earn much.

Mother was getting sick and we could not get enough food or even drugs, even the maids in our home did not suffer the way we were doing. I heard gossip in the street.

"Behold, the mighty have fallen." The street vendors spoke. We had to cover our faces in shame and walk away. I tried stealing food from stalls once in a while and most times I had to beg.

"Mother I cannot watch you suffer this way, I will look for a job. We should all look for jobs instead of reaming about" I yelled at them.

I was extremely angry, even as I was young, I knew everything that was happening. They did not even let us take our inheritance.

My brothers tried to get recruited into the military but they were turned away because they were children of the traitor of the country. I sneaked out of the shelter one night and that was the day my entire life changed.

A few days back. It was snowing heavily, mother's health was deteriorating. There was news of a foreigner coming to town from another state. I heard the pickpockets who sleep next to us in the shelter talking about it. They said they could get valuables from his carriage, he was a young lord very respected and known in the entire country. It was a good opportunity.

"Peter, can I join you?" She asked the eldest person in the group.

"Avery, you are too young. You will slow us down and if you are caught no one will get dragged in the dirt with you. Go back to sleep, I promise to bring you back something. You are a good kid and everyone in the shelter loves you," Peter replied.

"I promise, I will not be a liability to you. I just want to find some valuable things. I need to sell stuff to be able to get drugs for my mother. If I can get those things, my family will be able to eat for at least three days. If I am caught I will make sure, none of you are involved," She begged.

"Pete, let us carry the girl. I have a feeling she will rat us out if we do not take her alone. We do not want to get involved with the authorities," Jeremiah chirped in.

Peter drew the plan for the robbery,involving ten-year-old Avery. They drafted the plan for the big theft. Pete was to steal the key and print a duplicate in case he was ever going to come back to town.

"Are you ready?" Jeremiah asked Avery.

"My brother has been monitoring me. Please can we wait a bit until he falls asleep completely?"Avery asked.

"If we are a second late, our plan will flop, I knew carrying this girl was going to cost us. If you are not coming, you can stay, " Peter exclaimed.

Avery sighed "I need to do this for mother. She is getting very weak, I am so confused," She sighed. She went to the shelter. "Uhm, Tion, I am very pressed, I need to use the public toilet," That was the best excuse she could find.

"Do you need me to escort you?"He asked her.

"No, I can manage on my own. Do not worry. I am sure they will be many people there, do not stay up waiting for me," She smiled and left. It was very dark, yet she was able to find her way out.

She ran to the point they were going to meet. "I thought you were never going to come," Peter spoke.

"I need this more than any of you do." She said and they started running towards the destination. They finally reached the carriage. It was on its way out of the city. It was parked near an inn and the guards that were on duty was asleep.

Avery sneaked into the inn to make sure everything was okay. She knew the exact location where the master was staying, when she knew that the place was clear, she called them in.

"Check inside, the master should be asleep by now," Peter whispered.

"We have to hurry, the guards who are on duty will soon be switched" Jeremiah panicked They sneaked inside and started stealing valuable things while Avery was meant to watch the door. Jeremiah dropped a jar down. "Run!" Peter shouted waking everyone up. The guards came and surrounded the tent.

Jeremiah and Peter had already escaped and they left her there. The guards put their swords at her neck. "What are you doing? Drop your swords. That is a little girl," The young man spoke.

"My Lord, she and her friends have robbed you. They are thieves and we need to find the remaining two," The guard spoke The young man knelt in front of her.

"What is your name?"He asked. She was silent. "I am Cadel. It is your turn, what is your name?"Cadel asked again. Avery knelt down. "I am sorry for stealing from you. My mother is sick and I do not have any means of getting money to buy her medicine. No one wants to help us or give my brothers a job. I am so sorry, please forgive me,"She pleaded and held his feet. "I asked you a question, what is your name?"He said.

"I am Avery," She stammered. "Avery who?"She asked. "Avery Banty. My father was the crown prince's teacher and he was framed" She cried.

"Oh, you are Lord Banty's daughter? Get up," He helped her to stand.

"My Lord, the Banty family has been charged with treason. Being associated with any of them will anger his majesty," The same guard spoke.

Avery noticed that the guard was the only one who spoke, which means he had a good position here.

"Theo, do not speak while I am talking. Prepare the carriage and bring the doctor. We will have to check on her mother" He ordered.

Avery looked at his face, he was not more than seventeen years old. Cadel's family died, he took his father's position immediately, the highest position after the royals. He was made the general of the army, not only because his father gave him a good service and played an important role in the growth of the country, but because at seventeen he was more capable than the adults. He lived within the borders with the army to protect the country. He was also the crown prince's bestfriend. They went outside to the carriage. "Come on, " He helped Avery inside the carriage.

As they arrived, Cadel was in shock. The people in charge of the shelters collected plenty of money in the name of keeping the place running, the condition of this place was very bad. He could not imagine how anyone was able to live here. The people woke up when they heard the sound of horses.

"Hi, have you seen Avery?" Tion asked his neighbor.

"Last time I saw her, she was with those lads, peter, and Jeremiah," He spoke. "Those children are always up to no good, now my mother's going to worry," He ran a hand through his hair. "Where's your sister? I have told you and your brother to always take good care of her?" Mrs. Banty spoke and coughed out blood "Mother, do not stress yourself. I will get clean water for you to drink,"Tion stood up.

"Where are you going to get clean water from?"She asked.

"Everyone come outside, "The shelter head ordered.

The guards pushed them to line up. Everyone was quiet and they waited patiently. Cadel helped Avery to come down from the carriage. The villagers murmured.

"We have found Avery, madam," The woman in front of Mrs. Banty spoke. Avery's family came out and knelt. "My goodness, what trouble has she caused again? I am sorry for what she has done, she is not a bad kid, I promise, " Her mother cried.

"She stole from the..."Theo spoke out of turn. "Shut up," Cadel yelled at him. He helped the woman to stand up. "Avery," Her mother hugged her tightly when she ran to her. "Doctor, check the lady's pulse," He ordered.

A seat was brought out for Mrs. Banty to sit. Cadel turned to the officials.

"Do you know the punishment of extorting money from his majesty and claiming it is for the people? I know how much is given for you to make sure that the homeless people at least at a place to lay their heads and food to eat, " He was angry.

"My Lord, we have done our best but these people are not satisfied. They steal the money allocated for them," The senior officer spoke.

The people were murmuring and protesting. "So now, you commit the offense and push the blame to the commoners. Theo, arrest them. Take them to be investigated," He ordered. "Yes, my Lord, " He answered and arrested them.

"What is the diagnosis?"She asked.

"She is suffering from tuberculosis, she needs to be admitted to the clinic and she needs to be taken care of," He said.

"This is quite serious, arrange for a place for them to stay," He ordered. "The woman will be admitted to the clinic immediately," He ordered. "Thank you, my Lord. What have we done to deserve such help?" Mrs. Banty asked. "Ma'am your husband was once my teacher and I am friends with Tion, even if he has not told you yet," He said

"Take them to the King! "He exclaimed.

"My lord, we are sorry. We are going to repent," the officers spoke.

"Gideon," Cadel called another guard.

"My lord," he replied.

"Prepare a place in my home for them to sleep. We will not be coming back anytime soon. So they can occupy the place until you find another place tostay," Cadel spoke.

"Yes, my lord," The guard replied. They reached the mansion, Tion refused to say a word until they arrive.

"My lord, thank you for giving us a place to stay. I do not know how I will repay you," Mrs. Banty spoke.

She felt very grateful, no one had treated her family well since her husband died. She started believing that there were no good people in the world. When they well to do, she always gave help to the people who approached her, and now they were repaying her family with bad treatment.

Avery went to see Cadel in his room.

"Sir... I am very sorry for what I did. I wanted to steal from you but instead of punishing me you pardoned me and gave my family and me, a place to stay will forever be grateful to you," Avery spoke.

"I gave you a place to stay, but without a job, your family will still have difficulties. I will not always be here and they will have to feed and take care of their needs. The government has refused to give your brothers jobs so how are you going to survive?" He asked the little girl. Avery sighed, she had not thought about that yet. "I do not know what we will do from here, but having a place to stay is a good start," She smiled. Cadel turned to her.

"Follow me, live as a man. Change your name and take on my family name and become my brother. Life only supports you when you are a man, my mother had to sacrifice everything for us because she was a woman. I do not want the same for you and in exchange, I will help you and your family," Cadel spoke, holding her shoulders.

"I understand your concerns, but it will be best if you can allow my brothers to work for you. They are very good at manual labor. My mother used to tell me that changing my identity will get me punished. It will be as if I am committing fraud," She replied, raising her concern.

"That is the only way I can help you. The government knows that the late Sir Banty has two sons, who will care about a daughter. Come to me when you have decided, I am leaving tomorrow," He replied and dismissed her.

Avery went to her mother's room. She saw her mother coughing seriously, she felt very bad.

Her mother was all they had and if changing her gender was going to give her family peace and comfort, she was going to do it for them.

"Mother" she woke her up. "Why are you not asleep yet?"Her mother asked her. "Mother, I was thinking." She stopped and took a deep breath in trying to regain her confidence. "Mother, actually, Lord Cadel wants me to follow him and travel back to his new base. I am going to work for him while training to serve the country I will be able to send you money every month and we will be able to afford a good life," Avery spoke.

"What?"She exclaimed. "Is that what he wants? He wants my ten-year-old daughter to follow him?" She was confused

"Mother, you need to calm down. I have decided to follow him, " Avery replied.

"What do you mean by that? I have not given you permission yet. I cannot let you leave," Her mother spoke against her.

"What do you mean by this? Do you want us to go back to the streets? Do you want us to suffer?" Avery raised her voice. She held her mother's hands.

"Mother, it is for us. We cannot go back to the way we used to live. We need to live a happy life and I am sure that is what father wants for us. I am going to go with him, I need your trust. I will become successful and I will make sure we never have to suffer again," She smiled.

They heard a noise coming from Cadel's quarters.

"Tion, are you out of your mind?"Cadel raised his voice.

"Why do you want my little sister to follow you? Can you not take my brother? Why her?" He screamed holding his shirt.

"Tion," Avery tried to push him away from Cadel. "What is going on here, " Their mother asked.

Tion came to her. "Mother, I overheard you talking to Avery. He wants her to follow him and it is not acceptable," He protested.

"Lord Cadel has helped us a lot and it is unfair if you think you have to raise your voice and try to fight him.

Avery has decided to follow him and I do not think it is a bad idea for Avery to want to expand her knowledge of the world" She said.

"Mother, she is only ten years old and you want to send her far away. A lady should stay at home and learn how to take care of the home," Tion spoke.

"Do not say any other thing on this matter. This is my final decision," She replied. Tion walked out angrily. "My lord, I am sorry for Tion's behavior," Mrs. Banty apologized. "It is fine, Mrs. Banty. I understand Tion's concerns," Cadel said. Jonathan, Avery's second brother ran after Tion. "What is wrong? Why do you not want Avery to go? She is doing this for us, she wants us to have a good life.

He said and sat on the log of wood beside Tion. "We are older than her. We should be the one doing everything not putting our little sister in harm's way because we want to live a good life," Tion spoke.

"Father died and it is my responsibility to take care of you, Avery and mother. But I am too incompetent and I cannot even." He broke down. "Avery wants to go. I know that you are worried, she has never left home and you only want the best for her. Lord Cadel is trustworthy and he will not bring harm to our sister. You should trust him," He patted Tion's shoulder. Tion sighed and laid on the grass. The following day, the guards packed Cadel's belongings to prepare for the tip. "Avery," Her mother called out. "Mother, I am ready. I need to do a few things," She replied. "Ok." Cadel provided male clothing for her to wear. She stood in front of a mirror and touched her hair. "I will have to cut it off so that they will not have any doubts," She said and took the scissors to her hair. "You can do this, it is just hair," She motivated herself.

She took a deep breath and started cutting the hair until it was very short. She went outside to meet her family for the last time. They were shocked when they saw her "What is this?" Her mother asked her. "What is what?" She asked her in return. They looked horrified to see her on low cut. Her family was not aware that she was going to be living as a boy. "You look hideous," Jonathan laughed at her. "Mother, it is just hair and it is going to grow back very soon." She smiled. "Avery, take good care of yourself and always obey your master" Her mother said with tears "Do not cry, if you cry you will make me stay back," She smiled and wiped her tears. "Come here, little monster," Jonathan hugged her as when she came. "Do not look for trouble like you always do, be a good girl." Tion advised her. "Yes, I will. I will write to you every month, do not worry," She said. Theo came in. "It is time to depart, she has to leave now." He said. "Till we meet," She said to them and left.

Everyone was shocked to see her on low cut. "You did not need to cut your hair, nowadays, men wear long hair," Cadel told her and helped her into the carriage. "Well, you are one low cut and I want to fallow your every step," She smiled. widely and looked at him with her big blue eyes. "Let us depart," Cadel ordered. They started the journey and they had to enter a boat to the next city. "My lord, which town are we going to?" She asked. She was very inquisitive and she asked questions on the whole journey. She had never traveled before, this was a new thing for her and she hoped to continue traveling.

"We are going to Liverpool, for the next ten years, we are going to be far away from London. The French will attack very soon, and I have been given orders to protect Liverpool from what is to befall us," He spoke. "You are too young to risk your life like that," Avery spoke out of turn. Cadel looked at her sternly. She lowered her head. "You should learn to think before speaking. You will be my student and you should have good qualities. From today henceforth, you will be called Aver, I do not want your name to change too much. We will soon arrive," He said and remained quiet for the remaining trip. "My lord, we are here and the carriage is also here," Theo informed him. Cadel brought his hand out for Avery so that she could enter the carriage. "Do not worry, I can do it by myself," She smiled and jumped into the carriage.

The mansion was huge, and it also had guard quarters. "Assemble the guards," Cadel told Theo. "Yes," He nodded. He waited for them to line up. "Welcome back my lord," they bowed. He nodded. "This is Aver. He is my new apprentice he will follow you and train. Do not go easy on him and do not give him any preferential treatment because he is my apprentice," He ordered.

"Yes, my lord. Welcome, young master" They bowed.

Avery smiled, she was going to be living in a huge mansion and had enough to eat. She was definitely going to write this in her letter to her family. "Show her to her room," He told Theo and left Her room was very big and it was upstairs. She was the only one living upstairs. "Master is so kind towards you, he prepared his room for you," Theo said. "Why?" She asked him. Theo hit her head "Do you want everyone to know your secret?" He asked her. "I totally forgot about that," She laughed. "Do not forget, breakfast is by 6 am and training starts by seven, if you are late by even a minute, the master will punish you and I am talking from experience, I know you will not appreciate that." He smiled and left. She surveyed the room, she had her own bathtub and a wardrobe filled with clothes She went to take a bath. "Young master, it is time for dinner," The servant knocked at the door. "I will be out in a moment." She responded.

She went down and saw a variety of food on the table, there was meat and pudding. It was only Theo that was on the table "I do net understand, how will we be able to finish so much food?" She asked him. "Lord Cadel says he will not be able to join us," He smiled and started eating. "Woah, I do not even know where to start from." She sat down and started eating. She does not remember eating so much food even when they were rich, her father had always told them not to waste and to eat in moderation. The following morning, she slept in late. Cadel came to wake her up by himself. He enter the room and poured a basin of water on her. "Bloody Mary, what in the heavens is this," She opened her eyes and saw Cadel standing with the basin. "Master," She stood up quickly and brushed her out of her face. "No breakfast for you and you are going to run around the practice field forty times," He told her. "But the field is too big," She grunted. "Make it fifty." He said. "Master, I am..." She tried to say. "Make it sixty," He replied and left the field. Avery almost cried, she could not even imagine how she was going to start running in that big field. If only she slept early yesterday, she thought. She changed to her training clothes and went downstairs quickly. "What are you waiting for? Start jogging," Cadel said. She sighed. "Poor guy, he is serving punishment on his first day," The guards gossiped. "Continue practicing, if I see you doing otherwise, you will join him," Cadel said aloud. Avery ran ten laps and she was already dying. "My lord, he is just a kid and you should go easy on him," Theo spoke in Avery's favor. "You already warned him of what was going to happen, did you not?" Cadel asked him. "I did," He replied. "It is just his first day here, if he relaxes and thinks it is okay not to obey rules, there is no way he will obey the royal family in the future Everyone I train is going to work in the palace and protect the royal household. After today, he will never sleep in again," He said. "Master, I am tired. Please, forgive me," She begged. "Whenever you finish your laps you can go inside, if you do not finish it, you can find your way back home," He said and went inside. How could he say such a thing, she just arrived, how could he say she should go back home? She started jogging faster. "I am deceiving myself, I thought that the small motivational speech I gave myself will work but it did not." She fell to the ground and remained there till evening. The guards laughed at her while Cadel looked at her from the window. "What are you laughing at?" She asked them. "You better leave now," She yelled They left quickly. She slept off in the field. "My lord, should I bring him in? I think his lesson," Theo said. Cadel nodded. Theo took her to her room. "Am so hungry," She said in her sleep "I will get you something to eat, do not worry," He said and went downstairs. When he brought the food, she ate a little and went back to sleep.

The next day, Avery woke up before the bell was rung. She dressed up quickly and went to the dining to wait. "Do not make the gravy too watery" She heard the noise from the kitchen. She went to check what they were cooking. "Good morning, young master," The kitchen staff greeted. "No, please continue what you are doing," Avery spoke and watched what they were doing. "You are up so early" Theo entered the kitchen. "I do not want what happened yesterday to repeat itself," She smiled. "Well, it is almost time for breakfast. We should help them set the table like the perfect gentlemen we are, right?" He said to her. Theo was a good guy, he was a year younger than the lord. He had served him since they were children and was always overprotective of him "Yes" She replied after noticing his eyes were only on the housekeeper's daughter Avery was young, but she lived on the streets for some time and she studied her brothers' reactions when they saw someone they liked They started setting the table and Cadel came down. "My lord," She smiled and walked up to him.

She wanted him to notice that she had woken up early today. "Master, I woke up early today," She smiled. "I can see that, how was your night?" He asked her. "It was fine." She smiled. "My lord, you have never asked me that question," Theo frowned. " We set the table by ourselves," Avery went on. Cadel nodded and sat down, Lord," he replied.