• My armor laid tight against my skin. I stared over the hill towards the burning castle. "That is where I am going. To the fire..." My thoughts said so clearly. Usually, my thoughts were a jumbled mess but this time, I knew I needed to focus. "I know my goal," I slowly said in my head. Then I found my voice and was able to say it. To finish my sentence with the words I longed to be true, "I will save Chitikaru. I will save you, my sister!" I shouted, pointing my sword towards the sunset which rested on the castel. Her castle. Then I was on my way.


    My name is Ontaru Kirutama. Yes, I am a girl. I'm a warrior too. A fierce fighter. But yet, I am that girl. The girl that decides to swing around a broom as if it were a sword instead of doing my chores. I am the misfit at school; always teased and ignored. The year was 1965. Mother was always struggling to feed my family. I tried all I could to help out with gathering food or cooking but I fealt it was never enough. We lived in a log cabin right in the middle of a forest. A stream was near our home which I would collect water from for mother and family to drink. Mother always told me how much of a help I was to the family, But even then I did not feel it was enough. An emptiness that remained empty. It was like being straped to a wall watching someone slaughter a loved one. Feeling so helpless... It was June 18, 1965 when I was sprawling up a tree to collect fruit when I came home to the possibly worst thing I have ever had to face. Death. No not dying but to see someone die.

    As I walked up the front steps to the cabin, I grabbed a piece of firewood for the woodstove. With a basket of peaches in one hand and a block of wood in the other, I ran excitedly through the front door like the 8 year-old I was. I wanted to hand what I had to my mom, see her smile and then hug me close like she always did. While she was holding me against her chest, I could hear her heart beating. Thump. Thump. Thump. I counted her heartbeats until she was done hugging me. She would kiss the top of my head and barely mumble in my ear, "I love you. You are such a big help, Ontaru." Her black hair spilled over the top of my head and covered up my face. Her smell was so lovely. A lavender smell. These things were so vividly remembered in my head. but when I walked into the room, it was not at all what I expected.

    Though the smell of split-pea soup was scattered around the air outside, mother wasn't at the gas stove like I expected her to be. You could hear the quiet sound of the soup bubbles popping themselves. "Mother?" I called, setting the basket of peaches onto the counter. There was no answer. I wasn't that worried about her at first. I always knew she was a strong person that could always protect herself. But, as I expected, Chitikaru was asleep on the little sofa we had in the living room. I set the block of wood down by the woodstove and slowly crept over to my sister. I did not want to startle her. "Chitikaru," I quietly said, shaking her shoulder a little. Her eyes barely opened but I could see the joy in her eyes. She was happy to see me. "Ontaru?" She said slowly sitting up. "Did I fall asleep?" She said reaching her arms high up into the air, obviously stretching.

    "Go figure," I said, lightly chucking. "You were up pretty late last night." She is a little younger than me, I should also mention. "Yes, I was." She said answering my statement.

    "Do you know where mother is? I came home from gathering peaches and she isnt here. But I do remember that she left-" Then it clicked,
    "She left the stove on!" I shrieked, turning around and racing over to the stove. The steam was filling the kitchen quickly, large wet bubbles filling over the top of the pot. The lid to the pan was shaking rapidly. I was standing in front of the stove trying to figure out what to do. "How do I turn it off?!" I said glancing over at Chikitaru. She looked almost as paniced I did. The cheap fire alarm we had a few yards away from the stove was rapidly chirping. "Yes! I know it is burning! Shut off!" My thoughts were talking to both the alarm and the stove. Then a small blaze grew, catching the oven mit next to the gas stove on fire.

    "Chikataru! What do we do?! I can hardly breathe!" I shouted glancing at Chikataru who was just as confused as I was close to passing out. I struggled not to, but the fire slowly grew. The cup cupboard was above the gas stove which was what I needed to reach for. I stretched my hand up as high as I could. Hey, I was only eight! But as my fingers finally touched the metal knob, I pulled my hand back. One, it was burning hot, and two, my sleeve caught on fire. Chikataru was not there when I looked to my left. "She's left me to die!" I thought. Then the searing pain set in. My arm was burning. I cried so hard, it fealt them evaporated from the heat. I grabbed my shirt sleeves and pulled the shirt off of my torso. So there I was, In a training bra and a pair of old blue jeans.

    The pain was still there. I could feel it. It was a searing pain that still put me to tears. I ran outside and saw Chikataru thrashing through the garden shed for what I thought was a bucket. I Joined in. Shovel. Hoe. Rake. Some old packages of tomato plant seeds. But them we found it. An rusty old bucket. I snatched it and ran inside to meet my fate.

    There was not a speck of oxygen in that room. It was all smoke. I coughed and gagged as I darted over to the kitchen sink. Since the fauscet lay so close to the fire, with one quick swipe I turned the water on and put the bucket in the sink. As The bucket slowly filled, I ran back outside and sat down. The burn on my arm was a searing pain that felt like someone brought a staple gun to my forearm. I placed my hand on the dark wound, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath.