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It was still dark outside when Sa crawled out of bed She went over to the door of her room and put her ear to the wood She couldn't hear , which was even louder than the growling of Mr Pryde's pack of dogs had been Saes wouldn't squeak

To her relief she saw the other girls all still asleep Prudence was on the pallet of straw closest to Sa even louder without the door to , Sa to thuish snort and then resuirls in the beds getting younger the closer she got to the door As she reached for the door, Samantha sniffed the air Someone's pallet would need fresh straw later With any luck it would only be one Five years ago she and Prudence had been forced to change aler had any babies and very few toddlers that chore was much sih of relief upon e Real summer lasted only a month or two on Eternity, while the winters seeer on the mainland? She had wondered about that for the last five years, but still didn't have an answer

The rest of the village was silent as she passed through it Five years ago she never could have walked this freely through town at this hour, or else Pryde's dogs would have torn her to pieces The dogs and their oere gone now, though every now and then a howl could be heard from the forest

Sae of the forest She wanted to hug herself to ward off the cold, but she couldn't Whenever she did, she felt the things on her chest She broke into a quick trot instead; the activity would keep her warainst the chill

When she reached the strea rustling in the bushes or the trees She didn't hear anyone on the path either For a few rown used to the coldness of the streaht of Eternity's short suot anywhere near room temperature She had learned the best way to face it was to just plunge in She bit down on her lip to keep herself fro at the coldness of the water She waded in until the water covered her up to her neck She planted her feet into the muddy bottom of streas, Samantha still couldn't swim