October

Louisa sat up quickly. Something had woken her, but she hardly knew what. A crack and a thud rang through the morning air. It sounded as though it were right beside her. There was little doubt in her mind as to the cause of the sound. She climbed out of bed quickly, put on her shoes and grabbed the broom as she rushed out the door. There was a group of raccoons that seemed insistent on getting into her house through the wall. They had been coming back day and night, throwing things at the wall, scratching the wall, and everything else of the sort. She had had enough. She walked quickly around the house, holding the broom tightly in her hand. She came around the corner to the back side of the house and say William Clay standing at the old stump, chopping wood.

She froze. "Mr. Clay."

He looked up. "Miss Carpenter, good morning." There was a moment of silence. "Oh, I'm sorry, Miss. I hope I didn't wake you. The wind shifted last night; I think it's going to get very cold very quickly now, and I wanted to get you some fire wood."

He seemed to realize suddenly that she was standing before him wearing only her nightgown and shoes, her hair falling over her shoulders and being blown slightly by the light breeze. She was, by the standards of their society, as good as naked. She remained frozen before him in disbelief. She had had no intention of being seen by anyone but the raccoons that apparently were not present. William moved quickly, removing his cloak and handing it to her, his eyes turned away. He heard the sound of footsteps and, knowing that she was no longer there, dropped his arm to his side, his eyes looking into the pale yellowish green grass.