“Excuse me,” the lady shouts at the young boy as he tries to enter the forest. “Hey!”
The boy stops, turning to look at her. “Yes?” He asks, his bright blue eyes narrowed in confusion.
“I have a few questions for you,” she tells him, and this time he walks over to her.
”I’m uh… kind of in the middle of something, but okay.” He runs a hand through his sandy blonde hair and looks at the interviewer with a crooked smile.
”What is your name, young sir?” She asks him.
”Luke,” is his response, “Luke Doogan. Is there something wrong?”
"No, there's nothing wrong," the woman reassures him, "We just want to hear from the residents of Quinton about the use of this forest. We would like to add a public path to it and we were wanting to hear from the users of it. And you seem like you use this path quite frequently."
Luke nodded his agreement. "I do, yes. I actually hunt in these woods everyday."
"Everyday? And why must you hunt everyday?"
"Well..." Luke begins to shift on his feet a little, becoming uncomfortable. "I have to hunt to support my family."
"Isn't that a job for a father or another man of the house to do?" she asks him, as he shifts more.
"Yes," Luke says, "It is."
"So why isn't your father doing it?" she continues to pry until he seems to crack.
"My uh...my father isn't...around. Anymore." Luke stares at his feet, unsure of whether he should stay there much longer.
"Hmm..." the woman thinks for a second, then brightens up. "Oh yes! You must be Nathaniel's boy! I remember him when I used to live here."
Luke nods a little, although he still wouldn't look at her. "That's him."
"Well, Luke Doogan," the interviewer puts a hand on her chin, pondering for a moment. "I think I would like to ask you more questions."
"Okay..." Luke trails off, glancing over his shoulder at the woods as he thinks about leaving this woman who had no filter.
"Why do you hunt with a sword?" she had noticed the sword strapped to his right hip.164Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYeROxyyRR
"Oh," Luke glanced at the sword, lifting it with his left hand out of the sheath. "I don't know, really. It's not conventional, but it just reminds me of...you know, him."
"Why does it remind you of him?"
"Because it used to be his sword," Luke inspected the blade with a look of sadness, "he gave it to me, before he left."
"Did he leave for the Bellonese and Dueglesteinish war?"
"Yes," Luke answered again, "He was a general, actually."
"Well enough of the topic of your father," his interviewer was becoming bored of the topic, "Tell us some things about you!"
"I uh..." Luke glanced around for a moment, "I don't really know what to say..."
"Well, what's your favorite food?"
"Favorite food?" Luke thought about it, then said, "Oh! My mother's homemade biscuits! She would make them every time there was a thunder storm, and they tasted like a fluffy heaven, especially with butter." His face was alight with joy as he remembered the days, then became sad again as he said, "But...she hasn't made them for years."
"I notice that you wear your sword on your right side," the interviewer observed, "Are you left-handed?"
Luke nodded. "Yeah," he agreed, "Some people are concerned about it, saying that I'm cursed by the devil or something."
"Well I think it's unique!"
Luke shrugged, "Thanks." he had a crooked smile, one that made the woman think made him look younger than he probably was.
"How old are you, Luke?" she asked, wanting to test her theory. 164Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHane1GkxS
"12,"
"12," the interviewer laughed, "Well that's a good age for a young man! Are you planning on looking for a wife anytime soon?"
"I don't know," Luke scratched at the back of his neck, "I don't think I'm ready for that yet. Besides, I want my brothers to be at least a little older before I move out of the house."164Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0aWiim6I0a
"And when will that be?"
"In a few years, when they're about as old as me." Luke thought of them for a moment, "Charles, James, and Donald are triplets, and they're only 8 right now. So I don't want them to have too much responsibility on them yet. Not like how I did..."
His interviewer nodded again, then asked more questions about him that seemed very off topic from whether or not they should add a public path to the forest.
"When's your birthday?"
"June 2nd."
"Are you allergic to anything?"
"Uh...I tried trout one time and my neck started to swell up, so I think I'm allergic to fish."
"Are you afraid of anything?"
"Heights."
"Do you have any hobbies?"
"Well...I can cook and I sing sometimes, and then of course there's hunting."
"Favorite color?"
"Light blue."
"Favorite song?"
"Uh...Forever In Time, it's a lullaby."
"Do you think King Robert III is a good king?"
"I'm not really into politics."164Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpSoKiSZPum
"Do you prefer peanuts or hazelnut-"
"What does this have to do with the trail?" Luke finally interjected, having had enough of this lady's questions.
The woman felt hurt at first, then admitted, "I like to know about different people's lives. My husband died a few years ago, and I've been very lonely ever since. I just...want to be somebody's friend."
She covered her face in her hands as she began to cry, sad that she had interrupted this young man's life.
"Look," Luke's hand was on her shoulder, trying to comfort her, "I'm sorry that your husband died and I'm sorry you're lonely. Believe me, I know how you feel."
"I'm sorry..." she cried.
"How about instead of trying to know every detail of somebody's life...you can try to go to my mother." Luke pointed at a small wooden hut a ways away from them. "Here, that's my house. You can go and knock on that door and talk to my mother. She'd love your company."
"Really?"
"Really." Luke nodded, his crooked smile earnest and honest. "What's your name?"
"Margaret," she answered, wiping the tears off her face.
"Well, Margaret," Luke put his hands on both of her shoulders, "I think you are a great woman with a good heart. You just need somebody to listen to you and your hundred questions."
Margaret nodded. "Thank you, Luke Doogan."
"Anytime, Margaret. If you ever need somebody to answer your questions, just come to my house."
Margaret nodded again, walking over in the direction of Luke's house.
Luke smiled, turning in the direction of the woods again. Just as he was beginning to enter the forest, he heard Margaret say, "Wait!"
Luke turned, looking over at where she stood, wrapping herself in a shawl.
"You have his eyes, Luke. And you sound just like him." Her eyes were once again sparkling with tears, and Luke gave a small smile to her.
"I know," Luke saw her turn around, walking in the direction of his house. 164Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBYkLkyvapk
"I know," Luke said again, as he began to walk into the woods...
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