Abandoned: Chapter 1

It was a cold, lonely night, in that woven basket. My mother had abandoned me. She threw me in a basket and left me in an alleyway. I was only a baby and I didn’t realize it at the time, but it might have been for my good. I was swaddled in one single blanket, but the cold still crept deep into my skin. I honestly thought that I was going to die, alone, in that basket on that cold December night. I had drifted off to sleep, shivering in great masses. I wanted someone to put their arms around me and tell me they loved me. But I had only myself, a helpless baby who couldn’t climb out of the basket, who couldn’t ask for help. I could do nothing. I woke up crying, wanting my mother, and some food. But I had neither. I tried to drift off to sleep for the night, feeling tired and trying to conserve my energy. 

I was awakened by the rising sun pushing back the darkness of the alleyway. I was surprised that I had made it through the night. I knew I had little time left though, for if I didn’t eat, I would probably die. I was a crying-baby-girl, hoping against hope that someone would come by and save me. I stopped crying when my throat hurt badly which made me thirsty. Not only am I thirsty, homeless, tired, hungry, and not to mention lonely, but I am also bored. Now, I know that this should be the last thing that I’m worrying my head off about, but seriously, I was super bored. No one wants a bored baby. I kicked my legs until they got tired. I moved my hands around my face and instantly giggled, some of my gloom melting off of me. Who knew that the feeling of hands crawling over your face tickled?

I slept a lot over the next few days, and I think that helped me gain my strength back. I was still hungry, bored, and thirsty, but at least I wasn’t so tired anymore. About the 4th time the sun rose, the best thing happened. Someone came walking down the alley and peered into my box! I cooed and kicked and tried to do anything that would get their attention. The person looked at me and picked me up. I decided that it was a female, for she had long brown hair as I imagined my mother had. She took me to a horse tied to a small sled. The sled was loaded with crates and goods, but then she handed me off to another person. I decided that this new person was a male, for it had a beard and talked deeply. It seemed that the two people were having a conversation. 

I took this time to get a good view of where I was since I had never been out of the alleyway before. The morning sun was bright, yet I felt cool as there was a slight breeze in the air, and it was wintertime. I saw the street and many horsemen. 

It was as if my senses were tied up in a box and the box was opened for the first time, everything came at me all at once, the sound of the horses’ feet, the chatter of the morning, the sight of all the neat one-story buildings all lined up in a row, the feeling of the cool breeze, and the smell of a fresh batch of baked rye bread. The wood-paved street was neat. I turned my attention to the male that was holding me. He had a short-trimmed brown beard and mustache and neat brown hair barely visible because of his shiny silver helmet. His helmet was a sort-of round shape that had two small wings coming off of the sides. It showed his rugged face as if he had just come from a war, and he had one scar on his cheek. He had a brown fur cape trailing behind him. It was fastened on him by a shiny golden brooch that had a swirling dragon on it. He had a fur tunic, trousers, and boots. He had a scabbard or a sheath that holds a sword. Next to him was a beautiful black horse and I fell in love with it instantly. It was a strong breed and had big bulging muscles. It was not attached to a sled like the other horse. It looked so strong and free. 

It seemed that the two people finished up their conversation. The man put me in yet another basket, but this one had many varieties of things like raspberries, bilberries, apples, some nuts like walnuts, and hazelnuts, and even a loaf of bread. The basket was attached to the handsome horse. It was a little uncomfortable, being placed among all of the foods. I could see that the woman was turning around, going in the opposite direction. The man closed the lid and I could hear him mounting the horse. He made a clicking noise with his mouth, and the horse began trotting. I wiggled around until I was comfortable, and nodded off to sleep. 

I woke up when we came to a stop. He dismounted and took me out of the basket. We had traveled to a small docking area. In the bay, there was a grand ship, so grand that it forced me to look up into the sun to see the top of the mast. 

He walked onto the ship, and told some crewmen, “Make some space over there, for we have a new little guest aboard!” Of course, I didn’t understand a word he said, but I was overjoyed to finally have protection and a good family. Some men moved some crates over, and a few hollered, “Yes, Captain!” 

 I was super hungry, and I had no way to tell anyone that, so I started crying. The man lifted me so that we were eye to eye and he examined me for a few seconds. 

He said to the man who appeared beside him, “Get me some food and water for this poor baby. I need to attend to some business.”

 The man beside him responded by saying, “Yes Captain. Right away,” and he left. I continued to cry. He took me toward the back of the ship where the crew had cleared some space. Sitting on a crate was a woman with blond hair. He handed me to her, and I felt safe, so I lessened my cry. She looked into my eyes and talked calmly to me. I felt soothed, I calmed down. A few minutes later, the man that was next to the captain appeared with some bread for me to suck, and some milk in a small wooden cup. The woman took the items and set them next to her on the crate. She took the wooden cup and slowly tipped the milk into my mouth. I haven’t had milk before. It was incredible! So smooth, comforting, so creamy. I loved this new substance! After my mouth was full, she moved the cup down so that I could swallow. I looked around the ship that must have been at least one hundred feet in length and probably five feet across. It was very skinny but long. I saw many men on this boat, running to and fro with a command or mission or whatnot. I saw several other mammals that were not humans, for they had fur and couldn’t talk. I pondered much about these strange creatures. In the very middle of the boat, there was a very tall mast, holding a red and white sail that was still. On top of the mast, there was a small flag that was mainly red with a blue stripe surrounded by white. It looked like a present was wrapped. 

A while later, we set sail. It was the most glorious feeling, with the wind in your hair and the smell of the sea at your disposal. The woman held me for most of the thousand-mile voyage. We had traveled to Wales, and apparently, our homeland was in a place called Norway. We were sailing back to Norway right now. I slept on and off on this long six-day voyage. I got fed the yummy milk again several times a day. By the time this voyage was over, I had so many questions, like, what were the weird creatures on the boat or why is it so cold where we live? Who were my real parents and what happened to them? Why do we travel by boat and horse? Where was I going to live? Were those people just being nice, and will I be abandoned now? How can I trust these people?