Gossipsin

         Katya hunkered down behind the Great Eastern Hemlock tree, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. She whispered a loud ,"Sssshh!!," at her younger fifteen year- old sister, Elisabeth, who lay next to her. In this admonition, she most likely made more noise than if she hadn't issued the warning. Elisabeth was the recipient of a spray of spittle that rained down on her blonde hair. Elisabeth toyed with the idea of giving her sister a swift kick, but had learned from experience that the repercussions wouldn't be worth it. They hadn't come here to fight. Instead, they watched Mary, who looked very youthful and fetching in her newly- sewn red muslin dress and contrasting white pinafore, plant corn in the freshly-dug fertile soil. Katya and Mary were only a few months apart in age at age seventeen, but their physical appearances and dispositions were vastly different. Unfortunately, Katya got the worse end of the bargain with both comparisons. Truth be told, she was very jealous of Mary, but wouldn't even admit it to herself. Katya's very plain features combined with her excessive height of 6'4"- she even towered over most men- perhaps contributed to her less- than- ideal personality. She had a streak of meanness, which in of itself wasn't the worst of it. Her love of tattling and gossip were the traits that didn't endear her to the settlers in the Schenectady Stockade,  local neighbors, and fellow parishioners of the First Reformed Church. Katya resembled her father, Pieter. The daughter version was tall with close-set brown eyes and greasy brown hair. Elisabeth inherited their mother's looks - a fair complexion paired with blue eyes. Her diminutive figure was what most likely made her an occasional target of Katya's wrath. She had a naturally sunny demeanor, combined with a built -in capacity to emphasize with the plight of others. These traits served her well in sometimes deflecting Katya's less-than -peaceful tendencies. Their parents loved each other in spite of their unlikely matchup. They met at an early age attending the same church outside the city of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Pieter's father ran a prosperous farm and gave the newly -married couple money for passage and a stake to build a small homestead in New York. They managed to  expand their farm, located across the Mohawk river from the Stockade, with the help of additional money sent from Pieter's father and with the assistance of a few Mohawk Indians. The joy of this adventurous and promising undertaking was permanently scarred two years ago, on February 8th, 1690. The Stockade was viciously attacked by a warring party of 114 French and 96 allied Indians. Two snowmen were the only sentinels, and the enclosure was taken by complete surprise. Sixty settlers were killed, including Katya's and Elisabeth's mother. She, like Katya, was fond of gossip and was visiting with a friend from the church. A snowstorm delayed her return and the massacre ended her life. Pieter still had not gotten over the sight of his wife's mutilated body when he searched for her two days later.

           Katya and Elisabeth continued their hour - long observation of Mary, as  hunters would monitor their prey. Mary worked methodically up and down the regular and even rows.She placed fish heads alongside the corn kernels that were planted. No part of this bounty pulled from the Mohawk River would be wasted. This practice would ensure extra fertilization of the soil. Mary stopped every now and then to push back a lock of her jet-black hair away from fer face or take a swig of water from the small tin in her apron. She was exotic looking - her father was Dutch and her mother was Mohawk Indian. Their farm was one-half mile away from Pieter's. Mary was much admired for her beauty and knowledge of the land that spanned generations. People had grown a bit cold toward the family, however. Many Mohawk Indians in the Stockade had been spared by the raiders and some settlers harbored suspicions they had been involved in the plot. Elisabeth had enough of this folly of spying on the neighbors. Besides,her right leg had fallen asleep. She retreated into the safety of the newly - green spring forest, with Katya hot on her heels. Katya said in a loud whisper, "I wasn't ready to leave yet ! " Elisabeth replied in a louder voice, "There wasn't anything to see !" Katya refuted her statement and argued, "It was kitten heads she was planting along with the fish!! I saw it myself and you are my witness!!" As Elisabeth's mouth hung open and she shook her head from left to right repeatedly, Katya continued on with this remarkable tale. "Mary showed me the new batch of seven kittens in her barn a week ago. I was there yesterday and there were only two. She told me she didn't have enough fish heads for the planting. Five from the litter would be sacrificed to give the crop some extra potency, " said the imaginative Katya. Elisabeth just sighed and said nothing. Katya had come out with some crazy stories, especially since Mother died, but this might be the most outlandish one yet. "Are you going to tell Pastor Dirk ?," asked Elisabeth. There was fire in Katya's eyes and a twisted smile on her lips as she answered, "Ja !" Elisabeth sighed again as they made their way home. 

             Elisabeth thought of this disturbing new accusation, along with a host of other wild tales - mostly false- , that her elder sister was fond of repeating to Pastor Dirk. Most of the revelations had an element of truth in them, which gave an air of credibility, but were riddled with Katya's imaginings. Their mother had not  been exactly a gossip hound, but had a keen interest in all the doings of their community. Any new tidbit of information was her sustenance, just as worms are to robins. Her repetitions were more fact-based and less malicious than Katya's, however. Pieter had become inured to her pastime over the years, and was too lost in his own thoughts to pay any heed to the utterances of his own daughters. The remaining Schenectady survivors tried to be sympathetic and kind to the girls after the tragedy. Elisabeth was looked on favorably and was pulled aside for pleasant conversation whenever someone crossed her path. Katya attempted to take her mother's place as a welcome source of information. She didn't make a pleasing package with her buck-teeth, stringy hair and off-putting height. Her feeling of power was heightened when she shocked the mother of Anna and Lara .Mother was told that her daughters exposed the lower halves of their legs to some boys from Albany. Katya didn't know what punishment they received, but they turned their backs on her whenever she passed. The unfortunate Maria, a slave who survived the attack, was sent to work in the fields for two weeks instead of doing household chores. Seems that Katya told her owner that she saw Maria talking to a Frenchman outside the Stockade. Although most of the accused in Katya's fables were women or girls, she did make exceptions. She told the neighbors on both sides of Hans Bakker that he invoked the name of Satan when he was praying over the grave of his deceased son, Klass, - another raid victim. They didn't now whether Katya was telling the truth, but she was gratified when she observed them later giving Hans a wide berth. Pieter even once lifted his head out of the sand when Katya threw Elisabeth overboard. Katya reported that her sister kissed young Jan while at the barn dance. The real truth was that their  hands touched when she handed him some walnuts.  Her punishment consisted of home confinement for a week, except for church. A few more than a dozen of these fairy tales were created. There was a bit of appetite for these bits of disinformation, unusual as that may seem. Everyone was more suspicious of their neighbors and believed in the presence of evil, following the horrific attack on their settlement. Katya chose her victims carefully, never daring to include people of power, influence, or those she considered dangerous in her narratives. A stray piece of gossip, as long as it didn't involve the passer of the information, sometimes provided a welcome diversion to the toils of this back-breaking and dangerous Colonial life. A few people complained to her father or the town leaders about this tattletale, but only received lip-service. Her father would only concern himself about the basic fundamentals of running the farm. He was still a broken man. The settlement influencers owed Pieter a debt of gratitude. He had provided many Stockade residents grain at greatly reduced prices a few times when food was scarce. Pieter's farm provided a off-the -beaten track refuge for half a dozen residents fleeing certain death and the burning of their homes at the hands of the French. The men with sway urged the disgruntled to have patience with Katya and steered them to consult with Pastor Dirk. These respected town leaders unwittingly provided Katya with more elbow room to stir up trouble. 

            Most of the female set in the Stockade and surrounding lands were very enthusiastic about Pastor Dirk. He was tall and handsome ,with flashing dark eyes.  He had a smile that would draw you in, as if you were sharing a private joke. His teeth were unusually white and nearly perfect. Women, married and otherwise, would gift him with culinary dainties from their kitchens or offer to darn his socks. It was not unusual for some womenfolk from Albany to arrange the seventeen mile trip in order to hear one of his Sunday's sermons. After service, it sometimes took him an hour to make his way through the receiving line of his fans. Alas, he was not yet the permanent Pastor.  He was serving as a temporary replacement, with no solid offer as of yet. His predecessor,  Pastor Dominie, was murdered in the 1690 attack.  The movers and shakers amongst the Stockade men were mildly jealous of his influence.  Some were put off by the fact that he was only half-Dutch, his father was rumored to be born somewhere in Eastern Europe. Many were struck with wonderment when he developed a strong bond with Katya. " He has the patience of Job," was the most frequent answer to this puzzlement. Katya could only rejoice that this friendship was deepened because of her being thrown in his path in a more direct way as a result of her gossip. She delighted in this extra attention and the fact that she was now envied by her own sex. She  studied the Bible religiously, hoping to impress Pastor Dirk even further. He was her Savior and Protector. 

                Katya wasn't able to visit Pastor Dirk until Friday, two days after she observed Mary planting the corn. Pieter had business in the Stockade and Katya jumped at the opportunity to recite a newly - memorized Psalm about the wicked.  Her recent juicy nugget about Mary was also sure to impress.  When she was first approached by Pastor Dirk about a year ago,  she met the prospect with some trepidation.  She knew several people had complained about her to Pieter , but she never faced any repercussions. Likewise, he had only been interested in Elisabeth's transgression.  He had no reaction at all when she presented the other stories for his consumption and merely walked away from the table. No one broached the subject of her spreading rumors to her face. When  Katya first started spinning her tales, she had receptive audiences. The settlers learned to avoid her like the plague, and made themselves scarce when they saw her coming. You ran the risk of becoming fodder for the grist mill yourself by even engaging her in conversation. She overheard two old women from the settlement discussing the matter while they were doing laundry on the rocks of the bank of the Mohawk.Old crone Eliza said,"Pieter will not put a stop to her nonsense , nobody else will cross him because of his kind deeds."Margot replied, "I heard that Pastor Dirk is going to speak to her and she'll get her comeuppance !!" Eliza nodded her head in agreement and cackled.  Katya waited for the hammer to drop.

                    When Katya and her father arrived at the Stockade on Friday , she was surprised that Pieter accompanied her to the church. Katya said "I thought you were meeting with Hagen to buy some beaver pelts." Pieter replied, "I have business with Pastor Dirk first. " Katya feared the worst as she waited outside for the men to finish their meeting.  When they came out an hour later,  they were all smiles.  Pieter shook Pastor Dirk's hand and uncharacteristically gave Katya a hug. "I'll see you later, " was all he said. "Come in," said Pastor Dirk to Katya.  

                    Katya sat down in the hard wooden chair Pastor Dirk offered and wondered what he discussed with her father. Pastor Dirk recalled their unorthodox friendship of approximately one year, " I remember our first meeting. Your hands were trembling because you thought that you were going to be punished for your gossipy ways. I sympathized with you over the loss of your mother.  After you told me of your reports on the people of the community,  I became convinced that great evil existed here.  God saw fit to punish the settlement. You recall that I encouraged you to bring me more evidence of this wrong-doing instead of confronting everyone yourself. When you presented me with your helpful information, I met with each individual privately and pointed out each of their sins. They have made atonement in every case,  and I am convinced that goodness and light are returning to this once-dark place.  You are responsible, in large part, for this welcome change."  The silver-tongued Pastor now knelt on bended knee in front of the incredulous Katya. He pulled out a simple gold ring from his pants pocket and continued his speech.  " Your father has given permission for us to wed, and has offered a generous sum so that we can live comfortably.  I have dreamed of this moment for a long time and would like no delay,  if you consent. Pastor Alexander from Albany is waiting in the other room and is able to perform the ceremony now, if you would like.  Dearest Katya, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?," asked the handsome Pastor Dirk. Happy tears sprung from Katya's eyes as she nodded yes.

                        And so it was. They were married that very afternoon,  with Pieter as the only witness. The ceremony was short,  and their names were entered in the church record book. The small group had a light early dinner that consisted of provisions that  the Pastor's fan base previously provided.  When word got out of this secret marriage, it would provide the biggest piece of gossip since the raid. Katya said goodbye to her father and kissed him on the cheek.  The odd couple made the short journey to Pastor Dirk's lodging. 

                       Katya and her new husband said evening prayers together before retiring.  The moon was full and provided soft lighting for Pastor Dirk's room.  Katya was nervous as she waited for him on the bed,  dressed only in her plain muslin shift. He knocked, then entered the chamber, with his muscular bare chest exposed and still wearing his breeches. He gently slid onto the bed next to her, and ran his fingers through her hair. He gathered the long locks with one hand, and started kissing the back of Katya's neck,  giving her goosebumps. She gave out little gasps as he licked and kissed his way around its circumference.  What she didn't expect was the sudden, forceful bite as he sunk his perfect teeth into the left side of her neck. She let out a primal scream louder than a wounded animal as he threw his full weight upon her and drank her blood.  Katya lay lifeless on the bed, her white undergarment turning into a bright red crimson. 

                   Dirk surveyed his new bride laying beside him. He would have to write to Father, Vlad, in Wallachia to let him know of his success.  Vlad and Dirk were vampires in a long family succession, dating back centuries. Vlad thought it best that Dirk start a new life in North America. Many superstitious villagers were waging war on their kind, threatening the family line.  They were a less-known entity in the Colonies, while witches reigned supreme. Vlad instructed his son on the exact type of wife he should choose. The ideal candidate would have few friend or family ties, so there would be less interference and more loyalty to Dirk.  She should be plain, so another man wouldn't be interested. A comfortable dowry would allow more independence. The town gossip oftentimes deflects the bad or evil behavior away from themselves and is able to pin it on others, a valuable asset.  Katya had all these qualities in spades. It had worked so perfectly-  the settlers were grateful that someone was handling Katya's gossip. He brought in the individuals Katya named in her stories, and it was pleasant business. Dirk talked them into feeling sorry for her but gave them a subtle hint they should watch their behavior. " We don't want the witch trials in Salem coming here,"he warned. Katya believed Dirk was punishing the settlers when he called them in. He was confident he would be made permanent Pastor and would control the whole settlement. Katya was his first conquest and there was work to do regarding their new beings. Daytime services would be replaced by nighttime instead. Garlic and crosses would be banned. Most of all, Katya would assist him in acquiring new blood sources. Elisabeth and Mary would be first on the list. "Gossip makes the world go round ",said Dirk with bloody teeth.