30 minutes later…

Wes and I were running through the woods and dodging branches. Wes had said that my present was in the middle of the woods, which I think is an odd hiding place for a present, but I continued to follow him anyway. Finally Wes came to a stop. He turned toward me and told me that I need to close my eyes so that it would make it more of a surprise.

So Wes took my hand and led me through the woods, while making sure I kept my eyes closed. His hand was warm and comforting, and he would tell me where to step over branches and brambles. Finally he pulled me to a stop and told me to open my eyes. I looked around myself.

Wes had led me to a grove, with lush patches of bright green grass, and wildflowers galore. The roses that lay on the edges of the clearing were being kissed by the brilliant sun, and the minute I stepped into the clearing, I had the same feeling. The sun washed over me, making me feel rejuvenated after the long trek, and relaxed. Wes laughed and ran into the clearing, falling in a heap into the squishy grass.

I sighed, wanting to cherish the feeling, and then ran after him.
Wes:

The look on Anabella’s face when she entered the clearing was priceless. Pure joy radiantly shone through every cell in her body, and she looked relaxed. I bounded into the grass, excited to show her the last, most surprising feature I had found in the woods. As I looked back though, Anabella was still enjoying the sunlight. I decided to wait for her in the grass.

Not long after I had collapsed into the comfortable grass, Anabella came to lie down beside me. Together we listened to the birds chirping, and watched the butterflies flit above our heads. I then looked over at her calm face and told her I had one last surprise for her. Her face lit up and she readily followed me across the clearing.
Anabella:

The grass was so soft; I had to tear myself away from it to be able to follow Wes. We began to walk down an old path. I was surprised that there even was a path out this far in the woods. There were violets lining the path, and the robins were flying above our heads. It felt like such a magical place, and I began to wonder how Wes could have ever found it. When I had asked him, he said that he was out hunting one day and had stumbled upon it. I wasn’t sure if I believed him, but for now, it was enough.

We came around a bend, and out of the corner of my view I thought I saw a fence. Then when we had come around fully, I stared in astonishment. In front of Wes and I was a cottage. An old and broken down one at that, but a still a cottage. I turned to Wes and asked him if he had gone inside. He replied that that he couldn’t get past the vines that encircled the front door. I stepped forward and started to peel the vines back from the door to find an emblem engraved upon it. It was a picture of a hawk standing over an eagle, as if it won a battle against it. I didn’t know why this emblem was important, everyone knew the stories of eagles hunting down hawks and feeding them to their young, so why was the hawk in this picture shown as the conqueror? It was too confusing for my excitement of the moment, so I pushed it out of my mind, and proceeded through the door.

The door was sticky with the abundant spider webs that framed the doorway. As Wes and I walked through the doorway, we were surrounded by pitch black. In my surprise, I searched for Wes’ hand. Our hands met and, feeling reassured, I stepped forward.
Wes:

Anabella and I walked hand-in-hand through the cottage. There was no light source available for us to use. Walking blindly, we entered the only room the cottage contained. There was a small window where we could see outlines of the rooms’ contents. There were piles of paper everywhere, all of them tied together by different colored twines. Anabella stopped in astonishment, and Wes knew the excitement she must be feeling. Anabella let go of my hand and practically pounced on the documents, itching to read them.

Anabella adored any type of writing. She devoured the works, and any other words she could get her hands on. Since Isolde and Markus didn’t have any money to spare, she was never able to stifle her growing need for reading. Luckily, since Isolde had been a maid at the palace, she had learned simple education, and gave Anabella lessons after her chores.

As Anabella reached the papers, she stared at them in disbelief. She shuffled through various pieces, and in surprise, she dropped one. She bent down to pick it up and looked up at me in amazement. She told me that it was a piece of work called “The Order of the Hawk”.
“Don’t you understand?” she’d said to me, “this is the meeting place for the “Order of the Hawk! All of these papers are related to their discoveries and accomplishments!”

My mouth gaped open. Could that be possible? I had heard of the Order of the Hawk, but only from stories told by bated breath. No one knew what its goals were, but maybe from the documents Anabella could find out.